Great Persecution In Austria, A. D. 1539.

Thus the faithful company was led, like a flock of sheep, through countries and cities, to the sea; journeying from the castle of Falkenstein to Vienna, thence to Neustadt and Schottwien, over the Semmering, to Bruck-on-the-Mur, to the borders of Bavaria, to Luebeck and Marburg, to Tiele, to Stein, in Carniola, over the Save to Laibach, but still no comfort came. During their imprisonment there they had to suffer much hunger and distress; they were fed with the bread of anguish, and had to drink the water of sorrow; but thus it was the will of God to reveal his word and truth in every place and country, and to make it known to the nations that were ignorant of it, and to let them hear the sound thereof; even as he always provides gracious means to lure men away from unrighteousness, so also here, where these witnesses of the faith and the divine truth were led to many and various places, and also to places where strange languages were spoken, where the truth had not been heard, and where it was unknown and hidden among the nations. They caused some from Carniola to search after the truth, and thereby some attained to a knowledge of it, who are still at this day serving God with a sincere heart. But how these captive brethren, while on their journey, were treated in many places, how they were beaten, driven, and coupled together with ropes and chains, and what resulted to them from this, would be too long to write; still, however great the tribulation they suffered, God always comforted them in their hearts.

But since God always remembers his own for the best, even when in the greatest fear, and never entirely forgets them, he strengthened some in their imprisonment, so that they trusted in God with a good assurance and hope, that he would work for and show them a deliverance. Therefore they prayed with the others in the fear of God, though they were firmly resolved to suffer for the truth of God, and to die rather than to participate in wicked piracy; yet they had reason enough, constantly to persevere in prayer to God, with heartfelt lamentation and sighing, that he would promote his divine honor in them. In this God showed them, how they should hold proper converse with each other, the strong care for the weak, and assist one another. And though they had but very little sustenance, yet they trusted in the Lord, that he would provide for them, so that they should not have to beg for their bread. Then, on the twelfth night, at Trieste, they were all delivered from their chains and bonds, and went out of prison. Through the providence of God a place was shown them, where they all in the same hour let themselves down by cords from the walls of the city. Thus the very bonds in which they had been brought thither as prisoners, had to minister to their deliverance.

From this it can be seen, that, though the ungodly devise many things against the pious, God always turns it for the best to his people. Thus, through the providence of God, they escaped from the hands of their enemies, in spite of the watchful guards whom they had placed in the city and upon the walls; for God changed their prudence to folly, so that they escaped over the walls right near the guard-house.

When all of them, both sick and well, had escaped over the walls a good many of them gathered together, knelt down, and together offered praise and thanks to God. God thus sped them on their way, that the greater part of them returned with joy and glad hearts to the church in Moravia. Twelve of them, however, were recaptured by the wicked, who pursued them, and, together with the other three, they were delivered to the Emperor’s Admiral over the Armada, taken to sea, and brought upon the galleons, with the intention of employing them as pirates, but the pious risked their lives, and would rather be scourged. But as to the end of each one of these nothing certain is yet known, but, it is to be supposed that, if they constantly adhered to the Lord, they did not have many good days while they lived. But the above mentioned brethren whom God had delivered, when they, about the year 1540 returned from Trieste to the church in Moravia, they were received with great joy and gratitude, as a gift from God.