has my God said--on this I stand," then shall ye see that he will
quickly depart, and ill-humor, evil lusts, wrath, avarice, melancholy
and doubt, will all vanish. But the devil is artful, and does not
readily permit you to come to this, and so assaults you in order to
take the sword out of your hand; if he can make you full, so that
your body is unguarded and inclined to wantonness, then will he
quickly wrench the sword from your grasp. Thus He served Eve: she had
God's word; if she had continued to depend on it she would not have
fallen, but when the devil saw that she held the word so loosely, he
tore it from her heart, so that she let it go and he triumphed.

Thus St. Peter has sufficiently instructed us how to contend with the
devil. It requires not much running hither and thither; is besides a
work that you can do, yet no longer than you depend through faith on
the word of God. If he comes and would drive you into despondency
because of sin, only seize hold of the word of God that speaks of the
forgiveness of sin, and venture yourself thereon; then will he be
compelled quickly to let you alone. St. Peter says, moreover:

_Knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren
that are in the world._ That is, be not surprised that you must meet
opposition from the devil; but comfort yourselves, inasmuch as ye are
not alone, but there are others besides you who must endure such
suffering, and reflect that you have your brethren to share with you
in the strife.

There now you have the Epistle in which you have sufficiently heard a
truly christian doctrine; in what a masterly manner he has described
faith, love, and the Holy Cross; and how he instructs and warns us as
to how we should contend with the devil. Whoever comprehends this
Epistle, has doubtless enough, so that he needs nothing more but that
God teach him richly from that which likewise overflows in the other
books. But that is besides nothing different from this; for here the
Apostle has forgotten nothing which it is necessary for a Christian
to know.

Finally, he does what every faithful preacher should do, in that he
not only takes care to feed the sheep, but also cares and prays for
them; and concludes with a prayer that God may give them grace and
strength, that they may understand and retain the word.

V. 10. _But the God of all grace who hath called us unto His Eternal
glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while,