{"id":101,"date":"2023-08-28T06:13:03","date_gmt":"2023-08-28T06:13:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/?page_id=101"},"modified":"2023-08-28T06:13:03","modified_gmt":"2023-08-28T06:13:03","slug":"martin-luther-quotes","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/martin-luther-quotes\/","title":{"rendered":"Martin Luther Quotes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n\n\n

MARTIN LUTHER ON THE DIGNITY AND MAJESTY OF GOD<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \u201cI look upon God no better than a scoundrel\u201d (ref. Weimar, Vol. 1, Pg. 487. Cf. Table Talk, No. 963).<\/li>\n
  2. \u201cChrist committed adultery first of all with the women at the well about whom St. John tells us. Was not everybody about Him saying: \u2018Whatever has He been doing with her?\u2019 Secondly, with Mary Magdalen, and thirdly with the women taken in adultery whom He dismissed so lightly. Thus even, Christ who was so righteous must have been guilty of fornication before He died.\u201d (ref. Trishreden, Weimer Edition, Vol. 2, Pg. 107. \u2013 What a great blasphemy from a man who is regarded as \u201cgreat reformer\u201d!).<\/li>\n
  3. \u201cI have greater confidence in my wife and my pupils than I have in Christ\u201d (ref. Table Talk, 2397b).<\/li>\n
  4. \u201cIt does not matter how Christ behaved \u2013 what He taught is all that matters\u201d (ref. Erlangen Vol. 29, Pg. 126).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    MARTIN LUTHER ON THE 10 COMMANDMENTS<\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. \u201c[The commandments] only purpose is to show man his impotence to do good and to teach him to despair of himself\u201d (ref: Denifle\u2019s Luther et Lutheranisme, Etude Faite d\u2019apres les sources. Translation by J. Paquier (Paris, A. Picard, 1912-13), Volume III, p. 364).<\/li>\n
    2. \u201cWe must remove the Decalogue out of sight and heart\u201d (ref. De Wette 4, 188)<\/li>\n
    3. \u201cIf we allow them \u2013 the Commandments \u2013 any influence in our conscience, they become the cloak of all evil, heresies and blasphemies\u201d (ref. Comm. ad Galat, p.310).<\/li>\n
    4. \u201cIt is more important to guard against good works than against sin.\u201d (ref. Trischreden, Wittenberg Edition, Vol. VI., p. 160).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      MARTIN LUTHER ON THE MATERIAL NECESSITY OF GOOD WORKS<\/strong><\/p>\n

        \n
      1. \u201cGood works are bad and are sin like the rest.\u201d (ref. Denifle\u2019s Luther et Lutheranisme, Etude Faite d\u2019apres les sources. Translation by J. Paquier (Paris, A. Picard, 1912-13), VOl. III, pg. 47).<\/li>\n
      2. \u201cThere is no scandal greater, more dangerous, more venomous, than a good outward life, manifested by good works and a pious mode of life. That is the grand portal, the highway that leads to damnation.\u201d (ref. Denifle\u2019s Luther et Lutheranisme, Etude Faite d\u2019apres les sources. Translation by J. Paquier (Paris, A. Picard, 1912-13), VOl. II, pg. 128).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        MARTIN LUTHER ON THE IMPORTANCE OF FREE-WILL<\/strong><\/p>\n

          \n
        1. \u201c\u2026with regard to God, and in all that bears on salvation or damnation, (man) has no \u2018free-will\u2019, but is a captive, prisoner and bondslave, either to the will of God, or to the will of Satan.\u201d (ref. From the essay, \u2018Bondage of the Will,\u2019 \u2018Martin Luther: Selections From His Writings, ed. by Dillenberger, Anchor Books, 1962 p. 190).<\/li>\n
        2. \u201cMan is like a horse. Does God leap into the saddle? The horse is obedient and accommodates itself to every movement of the rider and goes whither he wills it. Does God throw down the reins? Then Satan leaps upon the back of the animal, which bends, goes and submits to the spurs and caprices of its new rider\u2026 Therefore, necessity, not free will, is the controlling principle of our conduct. God is the author of what is evil as well as of what is good, and, as He bestows happiness on those who merit it not, so also does He damn others who deserve not their fate.\u201d (ref. \u2018De Servo Arbitrio\u2019, 7, 113 seq., quoted by O\u2019Hare, in \u2018The Facts About Luther, TAN Books, 1987, pp. 266-267).<\/li>\n
        3. \u201cHis (Judas) will was the work of God; God by His almighty power moved his will as He does all that is in this world.\u201d (ref. De servo Arbitrio, against man\u2019s free will).<\/li>\n
        4. \u201cNo good work happens as the result of one\u2019s own wisdom; but everything must happen in a stupor . . . Reason must be left behind for it is the enemy of faith.\u201d (ref. Trischreden, Weimer VI, 143, 25-35).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          MARTIN LUTHER ON CHRISTIAN LIVING<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \n
          1. \u201cBe a sinner, and let your sins be strong, but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world. We will commit sins while we are here, for this life is not a place where justice resides\u2026 No sin can separate us from Him, even if we were to kill or commit adultery thousands of times each day.\u201d (ref. \u2018Let Your Sins Be Strong, from \u2018The Wittenberg Project;\u2019 \u2018The Wartburg Segment\u2019, translated by Erika Flores, from Dr. Martin Luther\u2019s Saemmtliche Schriften, Letter No. 99, 1 Aug. 1521. \u2013 Cf. Also Denifle\u2019s Luther et Lutheranisme, Etude Faite d\u2019apres les sources. Translation by J. Paquier (Paris, A. Picard, 1912-13), VOl. II, pg. 404))<\/li>\n
          2. \u201cDo not ask anything of your conscience; and if it speaks, do not listen to it; if it insists, stifle it, amuse yourself; if necessary, commit some good big sin, in order to drive it away. Conscience is the voice of Satan, and it is necessary always to do just the contrary of what Satan wishes.\u201d (ref. J. Dollinger, La Reforme et les resultants qu\u2019elle a produits. (Trans. E. Perrot, Paris, Gaume, 1848-49), Vol III, pg. 248).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            MARTIN LUTHER ON CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND CHARITY<\/strong><\/p>\n

              \n
            1. \u201cIf some were to teach doctrines contradicting an article of faith clearly grounded in Scripture and believed throughout the world by all Christendom, such as the articles we teach children in the Creed \u2014 for example, if anyone were to teach that Christ is not God, but a mere man and like other prophets, as the Turks and the Anabaptists hold \u2014 such teachers should not be tolerated, but punished as blasphemers . . . By this procedure no one is compelled to believe, for he can still believe what he will; but he is forbidden to teach and to blaspheme.\u201d (ref. Luther\u2019s Works [LW], Vol. 13, 61-62)<\/li>\n
            2. \u201cThat seditious articles of doctrine should be punished by the sword needed no further proof. For the rest, the Anabaptists hold tenets relating to infant baptism, original sin, and inspiration, which have no connection with the Word of God, and are indeed opposed to it . . . Secular authorities are also bound to restrain and punish avowedly false doctrine . . . For think what disaster would ensue if children were not baptized? . . . Besides this the Anabaptists separate themselves from the churches . . . and they set up a ministry and congregation of their own, which is also contrary to the command of God. From all this it becomes clear that the secular authorities are bound . . . to inflict corporal punishment on the offenders . . . Also when it is a case of only upholding some spiritual tenet, such as infant baptism, original sin, and unnecessary separation, then . . . we conclude that . . . the stubborn sectaries must be put to death.\u201d (ref. pamphlet of 1536; in Johannes Janssen, History of the German People From the Close of the Middle Ages, 16 volumes, translated by A.M. Christie, St. Louis: B. Herder, 1910 [orig. 1891]; Vol. X, 222-223)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              MARTIN LUTHER ON SOCIAL JUSTICE<\/strong><\/p>\n

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              1. \u201cPeasants are no better than straw. They will not hear the word and they are without sense; therefore they must be compelled to hear the crack of the whip and the whiz of bullets and it is only what they deserve.\u201d (ref. Erlangen Vol 24, Pg. 294).<\/li>\n
              2. \u201cTo kill a peasant is not murder; it is helping to extinguish the conflagration. Let there be no half measures! Crush them! Cut their throats! Transfix them. Leave no stone unturned! To kill a peasant is to destroy a mad dog!\u201d \u2013 \u201cIf they say that I am very hard and merciless, mercy be damned. Let whoever can stab, strangle, and kill them like mad dogs\u201d (ref. Erlangen Vol 24, Pg. 294).<\/li>\n
              3. \u201cLike the drivers of donkeys, who have to belabor the donkeys incessantly with rods and whips, or they will not obey, so must the ruler do with the people; they must drive, beat throttle, hang, burn, behead and torture, so as to make themselves feared and to keep the people in check.\u201d (ref. Erlangen Vol 15, Pg. 276).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                \u00a0MARTIN LUTHER ON THE LOVE OF JEWS<\/strong><\/p>\n

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                1. \u201cMy advice, as I said earlier, is: First, that their synagogues be burned down, and that all who are able toss sulphur and pitch; it would be good if someone could also throw in some hellfire\u2026 Second, that all their books\u2013 their prayer books, their Talmudic writings, also the entire Bible\u2013 be taken from them, not leaving them one leaf, and that these be preserved for those who may be converted\u2026Third, that they be forbidden on pain of death to praise God, to give thanks, to pray, and to teach publicly among us and in our country\u2026Fourth, that they be forbidden to utter the name of God within our hearing. For we cannot with a good conscience listen to this or tolerate it\u2026 He who hears this name [God] from a Jew must inform the authorities, or else throw sow dung at him when he sees him and chase him away\u201d. (ref. Martin Luther; On the Jews and Their Lies, translated by Martin H. Bertram, Fortress Press, 1955).<\/li>\n
                2. \u201cBurn their synagogues. Forbid them all that I have mentioned above. Force them to work and treat them with every kind of severity, as Moses did in the desert and slew three thousand\u2026 If that is no use, we must drive them away like mad dogs, in order that we may not be partakers of their abominable blasphemy and of all their vices, and in order that we may not deserve the anger of God and be damned with them. I have done my duty. Let everyone see how he does his. I am excused.\u201d (ref. About the Jews and Their Lies,\u2019 quoted by O\u2019Hare, in \u2018The Facts About Luther, TAN Books, 1987, p. 290).<\/li>\n
                3. \u201cIf I had to baptize a Jew, I would take him to the bridge of the Elbe, hang a stone round his neck and push him over with the words I baptize thee in the name of Abraham\u201d (ref. Grisar, \u201cLuther\u201d, Vol. V. pg. 413).<\/li>\n
                4. \u201cThe Jews deserve to be hanged on gallows seven times higher than ordinary thieves.\u201d (ref. Weimar, Vol. 53, Pg. 502).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                  MARTIN LUTHER ON THE SANCTITY AND DIGNITY OF MARRIAGE<\/strong><\/p>\n

                    \n
                  1. \u201cIf the husband is unwilling, there is another who is; if the wife is unwilling, then let the maid come.\u201d (ref. Of Married Life).<\/li>\n
                  2. \u201cSuppose I should counsel the wife of an impotent man, with his consent, to giver herself to another, say her husband\u2019s brother, but to keep this marriage secret and to ascribe the children to the so-called putative father. The question is: Is such a women in a saved state? I answer, certainly.\u201d (ref. On Marriage).<\/li>\n
                  3. \u201cIt is not in opposition to the Holy Scriptures for a man to have several wives.\u201d (ref. De Wette, Vol. 2, p. 459).<\/li>\n
                  4. \u201cThe word and work of God is quite clear, viz., that women are made to be either wives or prostitutes.\u201d (ref. On Married Life).<\/li>\n
                  5. \u201cIn spite of all the good I say of married life, I will not grant so much to nature as to admit that there is no sin in it. .. no conjugal due is ever rendered without sin. The matrimonial duty is never performed without sin.\u201d (ref. Weimar, Vol 8. Pg. 654. In other words for Luther the matrimonial act is \u201ca sin differing in nothing from adultery and fornication.\u201d ibid. What then is the purpose of marriage for Luther you may ask? Luther affirms that it\u2019s simply to satisfy one\u2019s sexual cravings \u201cThe body asks for a women and must have it\u201d or again \u201cTo marry is a remedy for fornication\u201d \u2013 Grisar, \u201cLuther\u201d, vol. iv, pg. 145).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                    MARTIN LUTHER ON THE QUALITY OF EDIFYING SPEECH<\/strong><\/p>\n

                      \n
                    1. \u201cWhat harm could it do if a man told a good lusty lie in a worthy cause and for the sake of the Christian Churches?\u201d (ref. Lenz: Briefwechsel, Vol. 1. Pg. 373).<\/li>\n
                    2. \u201cTo lie in a case of necessity or for convenience or in excuse \u2013 such lying would not be against God; He was ready to take such lies on Himself\u201d (ref. Lenz: Briefwechsel, Vol. 1. Pg. 375).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                      MARTIN LUTHER ON HUMILITY<\/strong><\/p>\n

                        \n
                      1. \u201cSt. Augustine or St. Ambrosius cannot be compared with me.\u201d (ref. Erlangen, Vol. 61, pg. 422).<\/li>\n
                      2. \u201cWhat I teach and write remains true even though the whole world should fall to pieces over it\u201d (ref. Weimar, Vol. 18, Pg. 401).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                        MARTIN LUTHER ON THE VALUE OF SACRED SCRIPTURE<\/strong><\/p>\n

                          \n
                        1. \u201cTo my mind it (the book of the Apocalypse) bears upon it no marks of an apostolic or prophetic character\u2026 Everyone may form his own judgment of this book; as for myself, I feel an aversion to it, and to me this is sufficient reason for rejecting it.\u201d (ref. ammtliche Werke, 63, pp. 169-170, \u2018The Facts About Luther,\u2019 O\u2019Hare, TAN Books, 1987, p. 203).<\/li>\n
                        2. \u201cIf your Papist annoys you with the word (\u2018alone\u2019 \u2013 Rom. 3:28), tell him straightway, Dr. Martin Luther will have it so: Papist and ass are one and the same thing. Whoever will not have my translation, let him give it the go-by: the devil\u2019s thanks to him who censures it without my will and knowledge. Luther will have it so, and he is a doctor above all the doctors in Popedom.\u201d (ref. Amic. Discussion, 1, 127,\u2019The Facts About Luther,\u2019 O\u2019Hare, TAN Books, 1987, p. 201. Cf. Also J. Dollinger, La Reforme et les resultants qu\u2019elle a produits. (Trans. E. Perrot, Paris, Gaume, 1848-49), Vol III, pg. 138).<\/li>\n
                        3. \u201cThe history of Jonah is so monstrous that it is absolutely incredible.\u201d (ref. The Facts About Luther, O\u2019Hare, TAN Books, 1987, p. 202).<\/li>\n
                        4. \u201c\u2026the epistle of St. James is an epistle full of straw, because it contains nothing evangelical.\u201d (ref. \u2018Preface to the New Testament,\u2019 ed. Dillenberger, p. 19. \u2013 Cf. Also Jean Janssen, L\u2019Allemagne et la Reforme. (Trans. E. Paris, Plon, 1887-1911). Vol II, Pg. 218).<\/li>\n<\/ol>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                          MARTIN LUTHER ON THE DIGNITY AND MAJESTY OF GOD \u201cI look upon God no better than a scoundrel\u201d (ref. Weimar, Vol. 1, Pg. 487. Cf. Table Talk, No. 963). \u201cChrist committed adultery first of all with the women at the well about whom St. John tells us. Was not everybody about Him saying: \u2018Whatever has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/101"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/101\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102,"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/101\/revisions\/102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/freedbytruth.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}