Marginalia1556. Iuly.to seale it with your bloud: I should highly extolle the Lord who hath geuen you a glorious victory ouer all your enemies, visible and inuisible, and hath geuen you grace and strength to finishe the tower that you haue begon to build. Finally, if I loued you, I should most hartely reioyce and be glad to see you deliuered frō this body of sinne and vile prison of the flesh, and brought into that heauēly tabernacle where you shalbe safely kept, and neuer offend him more.

This & much more should I do, if I had a good hart towardes God, or you his deare child. But (alas) I am an hypocrite, and do seeke nothing but mine owne commoditie. I would haue Gods euerlasting prouidence, geue place to my peuishe will and purpose, although it were to the hinderāce of his glory and your sweete commoditie. God forgeue me my horrible ingratitude, sins, and offences against him, and good brother do you forgeue me my great negligence and vnthankefulnes towardes you, and henceforth I promise you, I will put my will to Gods wil, and pray that the same may be fulfilled in you, so long as you be on this earth: and when you are taken hence, I will most hartely praise the Lord for you, so long as I haue my being in this world. MarginaliaIohn Careles taketh hys leaue of M. Bradford.Ah my deare hart, now I must take my leaue of you, and as I thinke, my Vltimum Vale in this life, but in the life to come I am right well assured we shall merely meete together, & that shortly I trust. And in taking of my leaue of you (my deare hart in the Lord) I shal desire you faithfully to remember all the sweete messages that the Lord our good GOD and most deare louing father hath sent you by me his most vnworthy seruaunt, which as they are most true, so shall they be most truly accomplished vpon you eternally: and for the more assuraunce and certificate therof to your godly conscience, he hath cōmaunded me to repete the same vnto you againe in his owne name and word.

MarginaliaTestimonie of gods spirite.Therfore now geue eare and faithfull credence. Harkē O ye heauens & thou earth geue eare, and beare me witnes at the great day, that I do here faithfully and truly the Lordes message vnto his deare seruaunt, his singularly beloued & elect child Iohn Bradford. MarginaliaIohn Careles doth Gods message to Master Bradford.Iohn Bradford, thou man so specially beloued of God, I pronounce and testifie vnto thee in the word and name of the Lord Iehouah, that all thy sinnes what soeuer they be, be they neuer so many, so greuous, or so great, be fully and freely pardoned, released, and forgeuen thee, by the mercy of God in IESVS CHRIST thine onely Lord and swete Sauiour, in whom thou doest vndoubtedly beleue. MarginaliaPower & practise of the keyes of the Gospell.CHRIST hath clensed thee with his bloud, and clothed thee with his righteousnes, and hath made thee in the sight of GOD his father, without spot or wrinckle: so that when the fire doth his appointed office, thou shalt be receaued (as a swete burnt sacrifice) into heauē, where thou shalt ioyfully remaine in Gods presēce for euer, as the true inheritour of his euerlasting kingdome, vnto the which thou wast vndoubtedly predestinate & ordained by the Lordes vnfallible purpose and decree, before the foundation of the world was laid. And that this is most true that I haue said, I call the whole Trinitie, the almightie and eternall Maiestie of God the father, the sonne, and the holy ghost to my record at this present: whom I humbly besech to cōfirme and stablish in thee þ^e true and liuely feeling of the same, Amen. Selah.

Now with a mery hart and a ioyfull spirite, somthing mixed with lawfull teares, I take my farewell of you, mine own deare brother in the Lord: who sendd vs shortly a mery meeting in his kingdome, that we may both sing praises together vnto him with his holy Aungels and blessed spirites for euer & euer. Farewell thou blessed of the Lord, farewell in CHRIST: depart vnto thy rest in the Lord: and pray for me, for Gods sake.

As I had made an end of this simple letter, I heard some comfort both of good M. Philpots seruaunt and yours: but (alas) I do scarcely beleue them. Well I will hope in God, and pray all night that God will send me some comfort to morrow, and if the Lord geue you sparing to morrow, let me heare foure wordes of comfort from you for Gods sake. The blessing of God be with you now and for euer, Amen.

Yours for euer in the Lord Iesus, Iohn
Careles, liuyng in hope agaynst hope.

In readyng this letter of Iohn Careles to M. Bradford, aboue prefixed, wherin he maketh so much mentiō of a certeine letter of his sent to him, & of the great

excedyng cōsolation, he receaued of the same, thou wilt wishe peraduenture (good louyng reader) in thy mynd, to haue some sight also of the sayd letter of M. Bradford. Wherin to satisfie thy desire, or rather to preuent thy petition, I haue hereunto annexed the same, to the entent thou mayst not onely vnderstand the contentes therof, but also receaue fruite therof to thy consolation likewise. The purporte of the letter here foloweth.

¶ Master Bradford to Careles,  

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This letter was first printed in 1570; it does not appear in Letters of the Martyrs. The preceding letter is Careless's answer to this letter.

MarginaliaA comfortable Letter of M. Bradford to Ioh. Careles.ALmightie God our deare father, through and for the merites of his dearely beloued sonne IESVS CHRIST, be mercifull vnto vs, pardon vs our offences, and vnder the winges of his mercie he protect vs from all euill, from henceforth and for euer, Amen.

Deare brother Careles, I hartely pray you to pray to God for me for the pardō of my manifold sinnes & most greuous offences, which neede no other demonstration vnto you then this, namely that I haue behaued my selfe so negligently in aunswering your godly triple letters, which are three witnesses agaynst me. God lay not them nor none other thyng to my charge to condemnation, though to correction, not my will but his will be done. Concernyng your request of absolution (my dearest brother) what shall I say, but euen as truth is, that the Lord of all mercie and father of all comfort, MarginaliaPractise of the keyes of the Gospell.through the merites and mediation of his deare sonne thy onely Lord and Sauiour, hath clearely remitted and pardoned all thy offences what soeuer they be, that euer hetherto thou hast committed against his maiestie: and therfore he hath giuen to thee as to his child (deare brother Iohn Careles) in token that thy sinnes are pardonned: he (I say) hath giuen vnto thee a penitent and beleuing hart: that is, a hart which desireth to repent and beleue: For such a one is taken of him (he accepting the will for the deede) for a penitent and beleuing hart in deede. Wherfore (my good brother) be mery, glad, and of good cheare, for the Lord hath taken away thy sinnes: thou shalt not dye. Go thy wayes: the Lord hath put away thy sinnes. The East is not so farre from the West, as the Lord now hath put thy sinnes from thee. Looke how the heauēs be in comparison of the earth, so farre hath his mercie preuailed towardes thee his deare child Iohn Careles, through Christ the beloued. Say therfore with Dauid: Prayse the Lord oh my soule, and all that is within me prayse his holy name: for hee hath forgiuen thee al thy sinnes: as truly he hath. And hereof I desire to be a witnes. God make me worthy to heare from you the like true message for my selfe. Myne owne dearely beloued, you haue great cause to thanke God most hartely that hath giuen you such repētaunce and faith: the Lord increase the same in you and me a most miserable wretch, whose hart is harder then the Adamant stone, or els I could not thus long haue stayed from writing vnto you. If I liue and may, I purpose and promise you to make amendes. Pray for me my most deare brother, I hartely beseche you, and forgiue me my long silence. God our father be with vs for euer, Amen.

Yours in the Lord, Ioh. Bradford.

¶ To my most deare and faithfull brethren in Newgate, condemned to dye for the testimonie of Gods euerlastyng truth.  

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This letter was first printed in 1563 (pp. 1449-50) where it was wronglyattributed to Philpot. It was then reprinted in Letters of the Martyrs, pp. 560-64 and then in all subsequent editions of the Acts and Monuments. The orginal letter is ECL 260, fos. 130r-131r. ECL 260, fos. 217r-218r and ECL 262, fos. 53r-v and 58v-59r are copies of this letter. It was written between 18 March 1556, when Tyms was condemned, and 24 April 1556, when Tyms was burned.

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MarginaliaAn other Letter of Iohn Careles to the constant brethren in Newgate cōdemned.THe euerlastyng peace of God in IESVS CHRIST, the continual ioy, strength and comfort of his most pure, holy, & mighty spirite, with the encrease of faith & liuely feeling of his eternall mercy, bee with you my most deare and faithfull louing brother Timmes, and with all the rest of my deare hartes in the Lord, your faithfull felow souldiours, & most constāt companions in bondes, yea of men condemned most cruelly for the sincere testimonie of Gods euerlasting truth, to the full finishing of that good worke, which he hath so graciously begon in you all, that the same may be to his glory, the commoditie of his poore afflicted Church, and to your euerlasting comfort in him, Amen.

Ah my most sweete and louing brethren, and dearest harts in the Lord, what shall I say, or how shal I write vnto you in the least point or part, to vtter the great ioy that my poore hart hath conceaued in God, MarginaliaExample of true loue and charity among the Martyrs.through the most godly example of your Christian constācie and sincere confession of CHRISTES veritie? Truly my toung cā not declare, nor my penne expresse the abundance of spirituall mirth and gladnes, that my mind and inward mā hath felte, euer since I heard of your hartie boldnes, and