# Hans Bret, A. D. 1576.

1576 · Historical source

Source: Martyrs’ Mirror. Original heading: HANS BRET, A. D. 1576.

Source heading; not independently verified

Hans Bret, who was about twenty-one years old,
and the son of one Thomas Bret, an Englishman,
was (besides his daily labor which he performed in
the service of his master) very diligently concerned
and engaged with the study of the word of the
Lord, in which he constantly exercised himself in
the morning and evening also, generally, exhorting
with edifying, profitable and instructive passages
from the holy Scriptures, those with whom he had
intercourse, to a virtuous and godly life. He would
also not spend Sunday idly, but truly sanctifying
and observing it, generally sought together a number
of new converts, to whom he diligently went in
all kindness, giving out to them in the fear of
God some edifying questions from the Scriptures,
whereby he exhorted them to repent and desist from
their sinful life, showing them the indignation which
God shall pour out upon the children of unbelief
and unrighteousness, and the gracious promises of
salvation which are promised in eternal life to the
penitent children of faith. This his exhorting he did
with such becoming earnestness and edifying doctrine,
that many sought to be with him, perceiving
in him the powerful work of God and his advancement
in the knowledge of Christ, with which he,
though so young in years, was very richly filled,
and which he also did not keep to himself alone,
but allowed it to break forth and flow from him
without fear, to the profit and advantage of his
neighbor. 2 Cor. 3:5; Phil. 3:8; 1 Tim. 4:12;
1 Cor. 10:33.

But the devil, the enemy of righteousness, and
envier of the increase of virtue and of the church of
Christ, could not long tolerate or endure this; for,
perceiving in this servant the godly zeal in the
truth, and assiduity to convert the erring, he, by
his instruments (blood-thirsty men, who always
have dishonored the temple of God, murdered his
sheep, slain his saints, shed their blood, and given
their flesh as meat to the beasts of the field), sought
to trouble this servant of God with affliction, and to
hinder the brightness of his light, which he also
partly effected and accomplished; for about two
months after he had been baptized upon the confession
of his faith, according to the command of
Christ, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Ghost, there came, on the sixth day of May,
in the year 1576, about nine o’clock in the evening,
the Bailiff of Antwerp, with many servants, to the
house of Hans Bret’s master, who had been betrayed
with all his household. They closely guarded
this house from behind, where it had two exits, as
well as in front, with armed men and beadles, and
then knocked at the front door, which Hans Bret
came to open (not knowing that those who thirsted
for the blood of his master and his household, and
for his own, stood before it), and asked who was
there. They said: “Open,” and pretended that they
wanted to buy something. In the meantime, hearing
that they had inserted an instrument in the
door, to open it from the outside, he began to think
that they were the wolves and tyrants, who came to
devour the innocent and harmless sheep of Christ,
and did not open the door to them; but they managed
to open it from without, which perceiving,
Hans Bret ran into the house, where his master
with his wife and several other women sat eating,
and warned them of it, who all quickly rose up and
ran to the rear, thinking (as also Hans Bret) to escape
by the back door; but when they opened this,
the Bailiff’s beadles showed themselves with great
cruelty, speedily apprehending and capturing all
whom God permitted them, among whom there was
also this servant of God; but his master and several
others with him were wonderfully and remarkably
delivered and preserved through the hand and assistance
of God. Jer. 1:8; Acts 26:17. Behold,
thus did this innocent sheep of Christ fall into the
hands of the wolves, and was confined in prison,
only for the faith in the doctrine of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and the practice of the same.

Now, how he conducted himself in his bonds;
how they, through wiles and snares, fair promises
and severe threats, sought to move him from, and
despoil him of, the salvation of his soul; and how
they, because he had written some letters to his
brethren and friends, cast him into a loathsome
dungeon; together with the various disputations
which he had with the priests and soul-seducers,
and also how he answered them, and what boldness
he manifested through the help of God; all this you
will find fully treated and revealed in the following
letters written by him.

When he had been confined about eight months,
the tyrants finally went to the utmost of their power
in the case of this servant of God and faithful follower
of Christ, and, on Friday before Derthien-Avondt,
in the year 1577, had him brought into
court, whither he went very boldly, since his bonds
were not for any crime, evil, or unrighteousness,
but for the doctrine of his Lord and Master, Jesus
985
Christ, for righteousness and truth, for which the
children of God have always had abundantly to suffer,
who have helped Christ to bear his cross, as a
true ensign that they are Christ’s servants, disciples
and followers.

Being brought before the lords and judges, he
was asked, whether he had been baptized upon his
faith, which he finally confessed and acknowledged,
not ashamed of what he had done by the command
of his Lord and Master Christ Jesus, though he
certainly knew that they did not ask him to be
taught of him, but only to get a word from his
mouth by which they might sentence him to death.
When the lords and criminal judges had heard this
Christian confession, they rose up and went to sentence
him to death; and having returned from their
evil consultation, they pronounced and declared
their sentence over this servant of God: that he
should publicly be burnt alive at the stake till death
should ensue.

When he had received his sentence, he was conducted
back to prison, undismayed and of good
courage, where he doubtless addressed some Scriptural
remarks to the common people, as setting forth
the cause of his imprisonment and suffering not to
be any evil or crime, but the faith of the pure and
saving truth, which the world cannot endure. Romans
10:9.

Thus he (Hans Bret) was brought back from the
court into prison, and confined and held there till
the following day, which was Saturday; then, in
the morning, the executioner came to him into
prison, in order to screw fast his tongue, close his
mouth, and prevent his speaking. O miserable
work!

Murderers, and the very worst criminals have the
privilege and permission of freely using their tongue;
but, behold here a follower of Christ, a child of God,
a servant of faith, one separated from the world, in
whom dwells righteousness and no cause of death is
found—behold, how he is prepared for death by
closing his mouth and screwing fast his tongue, that
the truth may not be proclaimed, righteousness not
heard, nor any testimony be given of the name of
Christ. O Christ, look down, and succor thy saints.

When the executioner had come to him, he
commanded him to put out his tongue, which he
(faithful and pious servant of God), willingly did,
since he had not a member on his body, which he
was not willing to deliver up to suffering for the
name of Christ, being well assured that all the sufferings
of this present time are not worthy to be
compared with the joy and glory which God has
promised them that overcome. Matt. 10:22; Romans
8:18; Rev. 2:7.

And when he put out his tongue, the executioner
fastened it with a piece of iron, and screwed it very
tight with a vise or screw, and then touched the
end of the tongue with a hot iron, that swelling, the
screw might not slip off or become loose. O bitter
cruelty and great tyranny.

When they had thus closed his mouth, and
screwed fast his tongue, the fire with which he was
to be offered up being already prepared in the market
place, they led him forth, with his hands tied
together, from prison, and placed him into a
wagon, to convey him to the market place, to the
spot where his sacrifice for the word of truth was to
take place.

It is said that they took this wagon for the reason
that the way that leads from the prison to the market
place, could not well be walked, because of the
burnt houses which had been set on fire by the
Spaniards, at the taking of Antwerp.

When he stepped into the wagon, he saw several
persons of his acquaintance, whom he boldly and
joyfully beheld, showing by his actions the desire
which he had to come to the place where his sacrifice
was to take place. He affectionately bowed his
head, and greeted divers persons with the head, expressing
and manifesting his steadfastness by his
countenance and actions, all to the praise of God,
who bestows such strength and power upon his
saints, as being their protector, refuge, help, power,
strength, and strong bulwark in all distress, tribulation,
sorrow, and suffering inflicted upon them by
the world for the true saving faith in Jesus Christ.
Matt. 28:20; Ps. 18:2; Matt. 16:16.

When he had been brought into the market place,
near the stake and the fire, he lifted himself up, and
being clothed with Christian glory, descended from
the wagon, being of good courage in God, strong
in faith, and persevering in the conflict. With folded
hands, he bowed his knees to the earth, humbly
casting his eyes up to heaven, thus preparing himself
to worship his Lord and God, and to commend
himself to him, even as behooves every Christian
believer. Luke 23:46. But when those blood-thirsty
men saw this, they could not tolerate or endure
it (which they nevertheless permit criminals to
do, who are put to death for their evil deeds); but
very hurriedly and quickly pulling him up from the
ground, they prevented him from calling to God
upon his knees, and with great cruelty conducted
him to the stake. To suffer all this, he went into
the hut (constructed of straw and wood), humbly
and meekly stepping to where they placed him at
the stake, and made him fast by putting chains
around his body, all of which he endured with great
steadfastness for the word and truth of Christ. And
as he thus stood in the hut, at the stake, they finally
kindled the fire, thus burning alive and devouring
this lamb, whose body, indeed, was burnt, but
whose soul was received into paradise, into joy and
blessed rest, because he confessed Christ, who has
promised salvation to them that endure.

Thus did this young and pious Christian, aged
about twenty-one years, end his life, and offer and
deliver up his body for the word of God, in the
year 1577, on Derthien-Avondt, and thus he became
a witness among the witnesses of Jesus, a confessor
among the confessors of Christ, a Christian
conqueror among the soldiers of the Lord, a soul
among the souls of Christ at rest under the altar, a
faithful servant among the servants of Christ, whose
reward is the crown of eternal, imperishable life.

Here follow some letters which Hans Bret wrote
during his imprisonment.

986





---

Page: http://history.truechristian.church/stories/mm-hans-bret-a-d-1576/

[Contribute a correction or addition](https://github.com/trueChristian/history.truechristian.church/issues/new?title=Correction%3A+Hans+Bret%2C+A.+D.+1576.&body=%23%23+Page+or+topic%0AHans+Bret%2C+A.+D.+1576.%0A%0APage%3A+http%3A%2F%2Fhistory.truechristian.church%2Fstories%2Fmm-hans-bret-a-d-1576%2F%0A%0ARecord%3A+mm-hans-bret-a-d-1576%0A%0ADate+currently+shown%3A+1576%0A%0A%23%23+Correction+or+addition%0A%0A%0A%0A%23%23+Sources+and+evidence%0APlease+include+book%2Fpage+references%2C+archive+links%2C+or+first-hand+documentation.%0A%0A%0A%0A%23%23+Image+credit+%28if+applicable%29%0ACreator%2C+source%2C+and+permission+or+public-domain+basis.%0A%0A%0A%0ASubmitted+for+review%3B+this+issue+does+not+publish+changes+automatically.)