The Fifth Letter from Maeyken Wens, Written to Jan de Metser, Minister

Love God above all; He is the one who is, and who shall be

The rich grace and peace of God the Father, and the love of Jesus Christ; may He be your comforter. Though we must now die, we are better off than you who remain in this valley of tears; however, one must wait patiently until the Lord comes. O my brother in the Lord, I would so gladly have written you a short letter, but my time has slipped away, although I have been confined long enough. But I am such a poor writer; so you must excuse me, and consider: if you were invited to a table somewhere, would you not certainly be satisfied with what was prepared? So you must also be satisfied with my writing, for I do not have much, and therefore I cannot give much. And now I also cannot write much, because I have been sentenced; nevertheless I was so full of joy that I would not be able to express it with my mouth. May the Lord be praised forever for the great grace He has shown me, who have feared so much. Oh, what a strong God we have, compared with what we see the wicked have. Oh, let us have good courage; we shall devour our enemies like bread. I go before you, tomorrow; may the Lord grant you strength, that you may come to me, as I trust you will. But, my dear brother in the Lord, always watch, for the Lord will come as a thief in the night, when we least expect it, for this was my experience; it is good then that a man is not sleeping. But, dear Jan, I should have written you more, but my time of deliverance came on quickly, so my flesh begins to tremble somewhat; however, this is the nature of the flesh. With this I commend you to the Lord, and to the Word of His grace. Farewell, my dear friend Jan. I have written you this the night I was sentenced, that you might have something from my hand, for old acquaintance's sake. Take my simple letter in good part, for I would not have thought that I could write you so much yet after I was sentenced. I will now bid you adieu here in this world; but I hope that we shall see each other up there in the New Jerusalem, where there shall be no more parting. However, I hope that before this letter shall have been read, I shall have entered into rest by the help of the Lord; and I also hope to be an epistle which shall be read by all men. Second Corinthians 3, verse 2. Adieu, adieu, dear friend. Greet your dear wife warmly in my name, and tell her that if she has seen anything in me which did not edify her, she is not to follow me in it; but if she has seen anything that was edifying, to follow what is best. This is the good wish of my heart, written to you on the fifth day of October, 1573. My fellow prisoners also greet you warmly.

Written in my bonds, by me your weak sister, as much as I am able, which is but little:

MAEYKEN WENS.

So they persecuted the prophets.