MarginaliaAn. 1555. Iuly.the people be seruitures to eyther of these: the wayes be strait and wyde: the mansions be Heauen and Hell. Agayne: consider that this world is the place of tryall of Gods people and the deuils seruauntes, for as the one will folow his maister what soeuer commeth of it, so wil the other. Marginalia2. Maisters, 2. sortes of subiectes, 2. wayes, 2. Kingdomes.For a tyme it is hard to discerne who pertayneth to God and who to the deuill: as in the calme and peace, who is a good shipman and wariour, and who is not. MarginaliaAffliction tryeth who go with God, and who go with the deuill.But as when the storme aryseth, the expert mariner is knowne, & as in warre the good souldiour is seene, so in affliction and the crosse, easely Gods children are knowen from Sathans seruauntes: for then as the good seruaunt will follow his maister, so will the godly follow their Captaine, come what come will, where as the wicked and hypocrites will bid adew, and desyre lesse of Christes acquaintance. For which cause the crosse is called a probation and triall, because it tryeth who will go with God and who will forsake hym. As now in England we see MarginaliaChristes part the smaller, and why?how small a company Christ hath in comparison of Sathans souldiours. Let no man deceiue him selfe, for he that gathereth not with CHRIST, scattereth abroad. No man can serue two maisters: the Lord abhorreth double hartes: the luke warm, that is, such as are both hote and colde, he spitteth out of his mouth. None that halte on both knees doth God take for hys seruauntes. The way of CHRIST is the strait way, and so strayt, that as few fynd it and few walke in it, so no man can halt in it but nedes must go vpright: for as the straitnes wyll suffer no reeling to this side or that syde: so if any man halt, he is lyke to fall of the brydge in to the pit of eternall perdition.

[Back to Top]

Striue therefore good maister Doctor, now you haue found it, to enter into it: and if you should bee called or pulled backe, looke not on this side or that side, or behind you as Lots wyfe did: but straight forewards on the end which is set before you (though it bee to come) as euen now present: MarginaliaA wise man will euer consider the end.like as you do and will your patientes to do in purgations and other your ministrations, to consider the effect that will ensue, wherethrough the bitternes and lothsomnes of the purgatiō is so ouercome, and the painfulnes in abiding the working of that is ministred, is so eased, that it maketh the patient willingly and ioyfully to receiue that is to be receiued, although it bee neuer so vnpleasant: so (I say) set before you the ende of this strait way, & then doubtles, as Paule saith, æternū pondus gloriæ paret. i.  

It shall bring with it an eternall weight of glory, whilest we looke not on the thing which is seene, for that is temporal, but on the thing which is not seene, which is eternall. So doth the husbandman in plowing and tilling, set before him the haruest time: so doth the fisher consider the draught of his net, rather then the casting in: so doth the Marchaunt the returne of his marchaundise: and so should we in these stormy daies set before vs not the losse of our goods, liberty, and very lyfe, but the reaping time, the cōming of our Sauiour Christ to iudgement, the fier that shall burne the wicked and disobedient to Gods gospel, the blast of the Trumpe, the exceeding glory prepared for vs in heauen eternally, such as the eye hath not seene, the eare hath not heard, nor the hart of man can conceiue. MarginaliaThe glorious recompence of such as suffer for the Lord.The more we lose here, the greater ioy shall wee haue there. The more we suffer, the greater triumph. For cortuptible drosse, we shall find incorruptible treasures: for gold, glory: for siluer, solace without end: for riches, robes royall: for earthly houses, eternall palaces: mirth without measure, pleasure without paine, felicitie endles: Summa we shall haue God the father, the sonne and the holy Ghost.

[Back to Top]

Oh happy place, oh that this day would come. Then shall the end of the wicked be lamentable, then shall they receiue the iust reward of Gods vengeaunce, then shall they cry wo, wo, that euer they did as they haue done. Reade Sapien. 2. 3. 4. 5. Reade Mathew. 25. Reade. 1. Corinthians. 15. 2. Corinthians. 5. and by faith (which God encrease in vs) consider the thinges there set forth. And for your comfort, reade Hebrewes. 11. to see what fayth hath done, alwaies considering MarginaliaThe way to heauen is by tribulations.the way to heauen to be by many tribulations, and that all they which will lyue godly in CHRIST IESV, must suffer persecution. You know this is our Alphabet: Hee that wyll bee my Disciple, sayth CHRIST, must deny him selfe, and take vp his crosse and follow me: not this bishop, nor that Doctor, not this Emperour, nor that King, but me, sayth CHRIST: For hee that loueth father, mother, wyfe, children, or very lyfe better then me, is not worthy of me. Remēber that the same Lord saith: MarginaliaMath. 8.He that wyll saue his lyfe shall lose it. Comfort your self with this, that as the Deuyls had no power ouer the Porkets

[Back to Top]

or ouer Iobes goods without Gods leaue, so shall they haue none ouer you. Remember also that all the heares of your head are numbred with God. The Deuill may make one beleue he will drowne him, as the Sea in hys surges threatneth to the land: but as the Lord hath oppointed boundes for the one, ouer the which hee can not passe: so hath he done for the other.

[Back to Top]

On God therefore cast your care, loue him, serue him after his word, feare him, trust in hym, hope at his hand for al helpe, and alwaies pray, looking for the crosse, and when soeuer it commeth, be assured the Lord, as hee is faithfull, so he will neuer tempt you further then he wyl make you able to beare, but in the middest of the temptation will make such an euasion, as shall be most to his glory, and your eternall comfort. God for his mercy in CHRIST with his holy spirite endue you, comfort you, vnder the winges of his mercy shadow you, and as his deare childe guide you for euermore. To whose mercyfull tuition, as I do with my harty prayer commit you: so I doubt not but you pray for me also, and so I besech you to do still. My brother P. telleth me you would haue the last part of S. Hieromes workes, to haue the vse thereof for a fortenight. I cannot for these three dayes well forbeare it, but yet on Thursday next I wyll send it you if God let me not, and vse me, and that I haue, as your own. The Lord for his mercy in CHRIST direct our wayes to his glory, Amen.

[Back to Top]

Out of prison by yours to com-
maund Iohn Bradford.

MarginaliaAn other ghostly letter of M. Bradford to Mistres M. H.J Humbly and hartely pray the euerliuyng good God and father of mercy, to blesse and kepe your hart and mynd in the knowledge and loue of his truth, and of his Christ, through the inspiration and workyng of the holy spirite, Amen.

Although I haue no doubt but that you prosper and go forwardes dayly in the way of godlines, more & more drawyng towardes perfection, and haue no neede of any thyng that I can write, yet because my desire is that you might bee more feruent and perseuer to the end, I could not but write some thyng vnto you, besechyng you both often and diligently to call vnto your mynd as a meane to styrre you hereunto, yea as a thyng which God most straitly requireth you to beleue, that you are beloued of God, and that he is your deare father in, through, and for Christ and his deathes sake. This loue and tender kindnes of God towardes vs in Christ is aboundantly herein declared, MarginaliaGods benefites to vs declared.in that he hath to the godly worke of creation of this world, made vs after his image, redemed vs beyng lost, called vs into his Church, sealed vs with his marke and signe manuel of Baptisme, kept and conserued vs all the dayes of our life, fed, nourished, defēded and most fatherly chastised vs, and now hath kindled in our hartes the sparcles of his feare, faith, loue, and knowledge of his Christ and truth, and therfore we lament because we lament no more our vnthankefulnes, our frailnes, our diffidence and waueryng in thinges wherin we should be most certain.

[Back to Top]

All these thinges we should vse as meanes to cōfirme our faith of this, that God is our God and father, and to assure vs that he loueth vs as our father in Christ: to this end (I say) we should vse the thinges before touched, especially in that of all thinges God requireth MarginaliaThe chiefest seruice of God is to thinke well of his fatherly goodnes in Christ.this fayth and persuasion of his fatherly goodnes, as his chiefest seruice. For before he aske any thyng of vs, he sayth: I am the Lord thy God, geuyng him self, & then all he hath to vs to be our owne. And this he doth in respect of him self, of his owne mercy and truth, and not in respect of vs, for then were grace no grace. In consideration wherof, whē he sayth: Thou shalt haue none other Gods but me, thou shalt loue me with all thy hart. &c: though of duety we are bound to accomplish all that he requireth, and are culpable and gilty, if we do not the same, yet he requireth not these things further of vs, then to make vs more in loue & more certaine of this his couenaūt, that he is our Lord and God. In certaintie wherof, as he hath geuē this whole world to serue to our neede and commoditie, so hath he geuen his sonne Christ Iesus, and in Christ, him selfe to be a pledge and gage: wherof the holy Ghost doth now and then geue vs some tast & sweete smell to our eternall ioy.

[Back to Top]

Therfore (as I sayd) because God is your father in