Another Letter from Adrian Rogiers to his Wife, Written in Prison at Ghent

Out of a loving heart, an affectionate greeting to you, my dearly beloved wife, whom I married before God and His glorious church, and whom I also love from the heart. This the Lord knows, who with His eyes that are as a flame of fire sees through everything. Revelation 1, verse 14. Further, after all proper and Christian greeting, let me please inform your love that I am in fairly good health according to the flesh, and my mind is still fixed, by the help of the Lord, to hold fast to the faith even to the very end. Furthermore, my dear wife, I trust that you are also well in soul and body, God be praised, and ready to pass the time of your stay here with joy, to the praise of the Lord and the salvation of your soul. May the good, eternal and Almighty God, who through His gracious goodness gives both wine and milk without price, strengthen and confirm you and all of us together by His Holy Spirit, that we may serve the Lord in His fear; for there is nothing better than the fear of the Lord, for Sirach says: "Money and riches lift up the heart, but much more the fear of the Lord; for he who fears the Lord, with him it will be well at the last." Sirach 40, verse 26. Therefore, O my dear lamb, hold firmly to the Lord, and arm yourself; put on the armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand all the subtle assaults of the devil; for our adversary the devil, says Peter, does not rest, but walks around us like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Ephesians 6, verse 13; First Peter 5, verse 8. So, O my dear sister, stand fast in the faith, pray, and be on the watch; put on the bond of love, and beware of false prophets; for in the last days, as Christ says, many false prophets will arise, saying: "Look, here is Christ, and look, there is Christ," but do not go out. And they will say: "Behold, he is in the desert, and in the chamber; but do not believe them. For as the lightning comes out of the east and shines even to the west, so will also the coming of the Son of man be." Matthew 24, verse 23. Therefore, O my love, persevere steadfastly until you are taken from here; for in yet a little while, He who is to come will come. So possess your soul with patience, and endure the heat of the sun for a little while, for Christ has promised us tribulation in the world, and God also speaks through the prophet, saying: "Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail; for now you will go out of the city, and you will dwell in the field." John 16, verse 33; Micah 4, verse 10. In short, the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. Matthew 11, verse 12. And Paul also says that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. Acts 14, verse 22. For Christ, who is our head, went before us, and had to suffer much reproach for our sake, as the prophet says: "He took upon him all our sins, and bore our reproach, and he is silent as a sheep before her shearers; and when he was reviled, he did not revile in return, and when he was threatened, he did not threaten in return, but committed vengeance to him who judges righteously." Isaiah 53, verses 6 and 7; First Peter 2, verse 23. So we must also, my dear wife, according to the words of Peter, follow the Lord's footsteps. For Paul says: "Being reviled, we bless." First Corinthians 4, verse 12. And Christ also taught us to pray for those who afflict us. Matthew 5, verse 44.

So, O my dear lamb, let us in all things show ourselves true members of Christ, and think as Paul says: "If we suffer with Christ, we will also reign with him." Second Timothy 2, verse 12. Let us therefore lay aside all malice, and shun the sin that besets us, and follow after holiness, without which no one will see the Lord. First Peter 2, verse 1; Hebrews 12, verses 1 and 14. Oh, let us adorn ourselves with a holy manner of life, and let us not be conformed to the world, which will pass away with its lusts.

Therefore, O my dear lamb, let us watch diligently, as servants who constantly wait for their Lord, so that we may through the grace of God be partakers of the glorious reward, with all the elect children of God, forever and ever. Amen.

Further, my dear wife, I do not know much more to write to you, but I ask you to excuse my little gift; for if Habakkuk had brought something better, you would have fared better. History of the Destruction of the Dragon 33, and so on. [n1082-1]

Furthermore, my dear wife, know that I received what you sent me, for which I thank you sincerely, for it was a great comfort to me. Further, my dear wife, Maerten van der Straten and his dear wife, Beliken van der Straten, greet you much. Margriet van der Sluys, and Dingentgen of Honschoten, and that honorable young man Hansken of Oudenaerde greet you much; and finally we all together ask you earnestly to pray to the Lord for us, that He will make us fit rather to die honorably with Eleazar than to live in disgrace. Nothing more, but I commend you to the Lord, and to the rich, comforting Word of His grace. And do the best for the children in every way; teach them to fear the Lord. Though I am confident that you will do this, I cannot keep from writing it; but whatever I do is done out of pure love and from a good heart.

Farewell; do the best in the beginning and in the end.

Written for your service, by me, your dear husband and brother in the Lord.

ADRIAN ROGIERS.

MAERTEN VAN DER STRATEN, WITH BELIKEN HIS WIFE, IN THE YEAR 1572 [n1082-2]

At this time yet another pious brother, named Maerten van der Straten, born at Kortrijck in Flanders, with his wife, named Beliken van der Straten, fell into the hands of the enemies of the truth, so that after many temptations their faith was found much more precious than perishable gold, which is tried by fire. So Maerten van der Straten, and two other brothers and a sister (who are mentioned separately in this book), on December 4, in the year 1572, in the city of Ghent, steadfastly gave up their bodies as a sacrifice acceptable to God, and were burned together in the Friday Market, with balls in their mouths; and Beliken van der Straten was afterward, in 1573, in Lent, offered up in the same place for the truth; having thus fought a good fight, finished the course, kept the faith, and, in spite of the opposition of the tyrants, taken the kingdom of God by force.

Concerning these two pious witnesses a separate book has been printed, containing many excellent letters by Maerten van der Straten, and several hymns which these persons composed and addressed to each other, and to others in prison. Of these letters we give you several, as follows.