Marginalia1555. Iuly.foote. Now is Gods people a derisiō and pray for the wicked. Now is the greatest plage of all plagues falne, the want of Gods word: and all these we haue, yea I alone haue iustly deserued. Oh that as I write (I alone) I could with Dauid, 1. Par. 21. and with Ionas in hart say so. But I do not, I do not. MarginaliaMaster Bradford confessing himselfe to the Lord.I see not how greuously I haue sinned, and how great a misery is fallen for mine vnthankfulnes for Gods word, for mine hypocrisy in professing, preaching, hearing, and speaking of Gods word, for my not praying to God for the continuance of it, for my not liuing of it throughly as it requireth &c. I will speake nothing of my manifest euils, for they are knowen to you well enough.

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Deare brother and sister, with me say ye the like for your owne partes, MarginaliaHe exhorteth them by his confession to do the like.and with me ioyne your harts, and let vs go to our heauenly father, and for his CHRISTES sake besech him to bee merciful vnto vs, and to pardon vs: MarginaliaHis prayer to God.Oh good father it is we that haue deserued the taking away of thy word, it is we that haue deserued these thy iust plagues fallen vppon vs, we haue done a misse, we haue dealt vniustly with thy gospell, we haue procured thy wrath, and therfore iust art thou in punishing vs, iust art thou in plaging vs, for we are very miserable. But good Lord and deare father of mercy, whose iustice is such, that thou wilt not punish the pore soules of this realme, which yet haue not thus synned against thee, as we haue don (for many yet neuer heard thy word) for our trespasses, & whose mercy is so great that thou wilt put our iniquities out of thy remembraunce for thy CHRISTES sake, if we repent and beleue: graunt vs we besech thee, true repentaunce and faith, that we hauing obtained pardon for our synnes, may through thy CHRIST get deliueraunce from the tyranny of Antichrist now oppresssing vs.

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Oh good father, which hast said that MarginaliaPsal. 125.the Scepter of the wicked shoulde not longe lie vppon and ouer the iuste, least they put foorth theyr handes to iniquitie also: make vs iust, we pray thee in CHRISTES name, and cut a sunder the cordes of them that hate Sion: let not the wicked people say, where is their God? Thou our god art in heauen, and dost what soeuer it pleaseth thee vpon earth. Oh that thou wouldest in the meane whiles, before thou doe deliuer vs, that (I say) thou wouldest open our eyes to see all these plagues to come from thee, and all other that shal come, whatsoeuer they be, publike or priuate, that they come not by chaunce nor by fortune, but that they come euen from thy hand, and that iustly and mercifully: iustly because we haue & doe deserue them, not only by our birthpoison still sticking and working in vs, but also by our former euill life past, which by thys punishment and all other punishments thou wouldest haue vs to call to our remembraūce and to set before vs, that thou mightest put them from before thee, where as they stand so long as they are not in our remembrāce, to put them away by repentance. Mercifully oh Lord god dost thou punish, in that thou doest not correct to kil, but to amend, that we might repent our sinnes, aske mercy, obtaine it frely in CHRIST, & begin to suffer for righteousnes sake: to be part of thy house, whereat thy iudgement beginneth: to be partakers of the afflictions of thy church, & thy CHRIST, þ^t we might be partakers of þ^e glory of the same: to weepe here, that we might reioice elswhere: to be iudged in this world, that we might with thy saints iudge hereafter the world: to suffer with CHRIST, that we might raigne with him: to be like to CHRIST in shame, that we might be like to him in glory: to receiue our euils here, that we might with poore Lazarus finde rest elswhere: rest (I say) and such a rest as the eye hath not seene, the eare hath not heard, nor the hart of man is able to conceaue.

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Oh that our eyes were opē to see this, that MarginaliaThe crosse sent from God, and to what end.the crosse commeth from thee to declare thy iustice and thy mercy, and hereto, that we might see how short a tyme the time of suffring is: how long a time the time of reioysing is to them that suffer here: but to them that will not, how long and miserable a time is appointed and prepared: a time without time in eternal woe and perdition, too horrible to be thought vpon. Frō the whych kepe vs deare father, and geue more sight in soule to see this geare, and how that all thy dearest childrē haue caried the crosse of greuous affliction in this lyfe: in whose company do thou place vs, and such a crosse lay vpon vs as thou wilt make vs able to beare, to thy glory and our saluation in CHRIST, for whose sake

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we pray thee to shorten the dayes of this our great misery fallen vpon vs most iustly, and in the meane season geue vs pacience, repentaunce, faith, and thy eternall consolation, Amen, Amen, Amen.

And thus deare hartes I haue talked (me thinkes) a litle while with you, or rather we haue all talked wyth God. Oh that God would geue vs his spirite of grace and prayer. My dearly beloued, pray for it, as for your selues, so for me, & that God would vouchsafe to make me worthy to suffer with a good conscience for hys names sake. Pray for me, and I shall doe the lyke for you. This. 20. of December, by him whom by this bringer ye shall learne. I pray you geue my commendations to all that loue me in the Lord. Be mery in CHRIST, for one day in heauen we shal meete and reioyce together for euer more, Amen.

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MarginaliaThis Austen being a Dutchman, was Latymers seruant, and a faithfull Minister in the time of Kyng Edward, and in Queene Maries time a diligent attendant vpō the Lords prisoners.MIne owne good Augustine, the Lord of mercy blesse thee my deare brother for euer. I haue good hope that if you come late at night, I shall speake with you, but come as secretly as you can. Howbeit, in the meane season if you can, & as you can, learne what Maister G. hath spoken to D. Story and others. The cause of all this trouble both to my keeper and me, is thought to come by him. It is sayd that I shall be burned in Smithfield, and that shortly. Domini voluntas fiat. Ecce ego domine, mitte me. i.  

The Lordes will be done. Behold here I am Lord, send me. Ah mine owne sweete frend, I am now alone, lest I should make you and others worse. If I should liue, I would more warely vse the company of Gods children, then euer I haue done. Irā domini portabo, quoniam peccaui ei. i.   MarginaliaMich. 6.I will beare the Lordes anger, because I haue sinned against him. Commend me to my most dere Sister, for whom my hart bledeth, the Lord comfort her, and strengthen her vnto the end. I thinke I haue taken my leaue of her for euer in this lyfe, but in eternall life we shall most surely meete and prayse the Lord continually. I haue now taken a more certaine aunswer of death, then euer I did: and yet not so certaine as I thinke I shold do. I am now as a shepe appoynted to the slaughter. Ah my God, the houre is come, glorify thy most vnworthy child. I haue glorified thee, sayth this my swete father, and I will glorify thee, Amen. Ah mine owne bowels, praise God for me, & pray for me: for I am his I hope: I hope he will neuer forsake me, though I haue aboue all other most deserued it. I am the most singuler example of his mercy: praised be his name therefore for euer. Cause Mistres Perpoynt to learne of the Shrieffe M. Chester, what they purpose to do with me, and know if you can, whether there be any writ forth for me. Factus sum sicut nicticorax in domicilio, & passer solitarius in tecto. i.   MarginaliaPsalm. 102.I am like to a Owle in the house, and as a sparrow alone in the house toppe. Ah my Augustine, how long shall Gods enemyes thus triumph? I haue sent you this of the baptisme of children to write out: when this is done, you shall haue other things. Pray, pray mine owne deare hart, on whom I am bolde. The keeper telleth me that it is death for any to speake with me, but yet I trust that I shall speake with you.

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Ihon Bradford.

¶ To these letters of M. Bradford aboue specified, here is also adioyned an other letter of þ^e sayd Bradford, written to certaine of hys faythfull frendes, worthy of all Christians to be red: wherin is described a liuely cōparison betweene the Old mā & the New: Also betweene the Law and the Gospell, conteining much fruitful matter of diuinitie, necessary for Christian consciences to read and vnderstand.

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MarginaliaA comparison betwene the old man and the new, by M. Bradford.A Man that is regenerate & borne of God (the which thing that euery one of vs be, our baptisme the sacramēt of regeneratiōdoth require vnder payne of dānation, & therefore let euery one of vs wyth the virgin Mary say: be it vnto me O Lord, according to thy word, according to thy sacrament of baptisme, wherein thou hast declared our adoption: and let vs lamēt the doubting here-

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