Marginalia 1555. Decemb.CHRIST, wishyng them to feare God more then mā, and to learne to despise earnestly the vanities of this world: desiryng you all to pray for me, that I may end my iourney with fidelitie, Amen.

Iohn Philpot.

THe principall spirite of God the father, geuen vnto vs by CHRIST IESVS our mercyfull Sauiour, confirme, strengthē, and stablish you in the true knowledge of the Gospell, that your faithfull hart (worshipfull and deare sister in the Lord) may attaine and tast with all the Saintes, what is the height, the depth, the length, & the breadth of the sweete crosse of CHRIST, Amen. &c.

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O, happy are you amongest all other women, that haue founde thys precious stone which is hydden in the Gospell: for the which we ought to sell all other thinges, and to purchase the same. O happy woman, whose hart God hath moued & enlarged to be in the professiō therof. Other seeke worldly goods, honours, and delights: but you seeke with a good vnderstanding, to serue God in spirite and verity. This is the gate that leadeth to heauē: this is your portion for euer. By this shall you see God face to face (which sight is vnspeakeable ioy) and by this shall ye see whatsoeuer your hart cā desyre. By this shall you haue a full sight of all the beutiful heauenly powers, and of all the celestiall Paradise. By this shall ye knowe them that you neuer knew, and be ioyous and glad with those which you hane knowen here in God, world without end. &c.

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Ah, I lamēt þ^e infidelity of Englād,MarginaliaHe bewayleth the state of England. that after so great light, is stept into so huge darknes againe. The seruaunt that knoweth his masters wyll and doth it not, shall be beaten wyth many stripes. MarginaliaPlagues prophesied to Englād though the Gospell be restored agayne.Ah, great be þ^e plagues that hang ouer England, yea though the Gospell should be restored agayne. Happy shall that person be, whō the Lord shall take out of this worlde, not to see them. Ah the great periury which mē haue rūne into so wilfully against God by receiuing Antichrist againe and his wicked lawes: which doe threaten a great ruine vnto England. O that the Lord would turne his iust iudgements vpon the autors of the trucebreakyng betwene God and vs, that they might be brought low (as Nabuchodonoser was) that his people might be deliuered, and his glorye exalted. MarginaliaGood luck foreshewed in restoring agayne the Gospell.God graunt that that good lucke which you hope shortly to come vpon the house of God, be a true prophecy, and not a well wishing onely. Ah Lorde, take away thy heauy hand from vs, & stretch it out vpon thyne enemies these hypocrites, as thou hast begun, þ^t they may be cōfoūded. O let not the weake perish for want of knowledge thorow our sinnes. Although thou kill vs, yet wyll we put our trust in thee.

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Thus (deare hart) you teach me to pray with you in writing. God heare our prayers, and geue vs the spirite of effectuall prayer, to poure out our harts continually together before God, that we may finde mercy both for our selues, and for our afflicted brethren and sistern. I can not but prayse God in you, for that pitifull hart that taketh other folkes calamities to hart, as your owne. Blessed be they that mourne, for such shall be comforted. God wipe away all teares from your pitifull eyes, and sorrow from your merciful hart, that you may (as doutles you shall do shortly) reioyce with his elects for euer. You haue so armed me to the Lords battell both inwardly and outwardly, that except I be a very coward, I can not faint, but ouercome by death. You haue appointed me to so good & gracious a Generall of þ^e field, to so victorious a Captayne, and to so fauourable a Marshall, that if I should not go on lustely, there were no sparkle of heauenly manhood in me. I wyll present your coate armour before my Captaine, & in þ^e same I trust by him to ouercome. MarginaliaPhilpots Scarffe.The Scarffe  

I desyre as an outward signe to shew to our enemies, who see not our glorious end, neither what God worketh inwardly in vs, through the blyndnes of their harts, that they persecute CHRISTES crosse in vs, whereby he hath sealed vp the truth of hys Gospell by hys death vnto vs, that we by our death (if neede be) might confirme the same, and neuer bee ashamed, whatsoeuer torment we doe suffer for hys names sake: and our weake brethren seing the same myght be more encouraged to take vp CHRISTES crosse, and to follow him. God geue vs grace to do al things to hys glorye, Amen. &c.

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The world wondreth how we can be mery in such ex-

treme misery, but our God is omnipotēt which turneth misery into felicitie. MarginaliaExperience of Gods comfort in the tyme of affliction.Beleue me deare Sister, there is no such ioy in the world as the people of CHRIST haue vnder the Crosse. I speake by experiēce: therfore beleue me, & feare nothyng þ^t the world can do vnto you. MarginaliaPersecutors, when they pryson mens bodyes, they set their soules at liberty.For when they imprison our bodies, they set out soules at liberty with God. When they cast vs down, they lift vs vp: yea whē they kil vs, thē do they bryng vs to euerlastyng life. And what greater glory can there be, then to be at cōformitie with CHRIST? which afflictions do worke in vs.

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God open our eyes to see more and more the glory of God in the crosse of IESVS CHRIST, and make vs worthy partakers of the same. Let vs reioyce in nothing, with S. Paul, but in the crosse of IESVS CHRIST, by whom the world is crucified vnto vs, and we to the world. The crosse of CHRIST be our standard to fight vnder for euer. Whiles I am thus talkyng with you of our commō consolation, I forget how I trouble you with my rude and vnordinate tediousnes: but you must impute it to loue which can not quickly depart from them whom he loueth, but desireth to poure him self into their bosoms. Therfore though your flesh wold be offēded (as it might iustly be) at such rudenes, yet your spirite will say nay, which taketh all thyng in good part that cōmeth of loue. And now I am departyng: yet will I take my leaue ere I go, & would fayne speake somwhat that might declare my sincere loue to you for euer: farewell. O electe vessell of the Lord, to the comfort of hys afflicted flocke, farewell on earth, whom in heauen, I am sure, I shall not forget. Farewell vnder the crosse most ioyfully: and vntill we meete, alwayes remember what CHRIST sayth: Bee of good cheere, for I haue ouercome the world. &c.

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God poure hys spirite abundātly vpō you mine own deare bowels in CHRIST, vntill you may come to see the God of all Gods with his electes in the euerlasting Syon. I send to you the kisse of peace with the which I doe most entierly take my leaue of you, at this present. It is necessary we depart hence or els we could not be glorified. Your hart is heauy because I say I must depart frō you. It is the calling of our mercyfull father, wherwithall you are cōtent, and so am I. Be of good comfort: hold out your buckler of fayth: for by the strength thereof we shall shortly mete in eternall glory: to the which CHRIST bryng both vs, Amen, Amen. The x. of Decēb. 1555.

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Death why should I feare thee,
Since thou canst not hurt me:
But rid me from misery,
Vnto eternall glory.

Dead to the world and liuyng
to CHRIST, your owne bro-
ther sealed vp in the verity of
the Gospell for euer.
Iohn Philpot.

MarginaliaAn other letter of M. Philpot to a certaine godly Lady.I Can not but most hartly geue God thankes for these his giftes in you, whose brightnes many beholdyng that are weake, are much encouraged to seeke God likewise & to cleaue to hym, hauing the ensample of so faythfull and constant a Gentlewoman before their eyes. If the Queene of the South shall rise with the men of CHRISTES generation, and cōdemne them for that she came from the end of the world to heare the wisedome of Salomon: then shall your sincere & godly conuersation, thus shynyng in this daungerous tyme of the triall of CHRISTES people (beyng a woman of a right worshypfull estate and wealthy condition) condemne in the latter day a great many of these faynte harted Gospellers, MarginaliaAgainst faint harted Gospellers.which so soone be gone backe and turned frō the truth, at the voyce of a handmayden: seyng that neither the feare of imprisonment, neither the possessions of the world (wherewithall you are sufficiently endued aboue a great many) can separate you from the loue of the truth, which God hath reueled vnto you. Wherby it appeareth that the sede of Gods word which was sowne in you, fell not, neither in the high way, neither amōg the thornes, neither vpon the stones, but on a good ground, which is blessed of God & bryngeth forth fruite, with great afflictiō, an hundreth fold, to the glory of God & the encrease of his Church. &c.

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In consideration wherof, S. Iames byddeth vs highly to reioyse when soeuer we fall into many temtations, knowyng that it is but the triall of our fayth, that we might bring forth that excellent vertue patience, by the which we are made like to our redemer Christ, wyth whom we here being like in suffring, assuredly shal hereafter be partakers of hys eternall glory. Therfore S. Paul sayth: God forbyd that I should glory in any thyng, but in the crosse

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