MarginaliaThe chiefe cause of all these later persecutions in the Church is onely the priuate quarell of the Byshop of Rome.your vnreasonable doinges, of this your so mortall and deadly hatred, fury and malice you beare agaynst these your euenchristened, of these your tumultes, coniurations, gapyng and hopyng, rebellions, mutteringes, and murders, wherwith you trouble and disquiet the whole worlde. Of all whiche mischiefes, if the true cause were well knowen, the truth would be found doubtles to be none other but onely the priuate cause of the Byshop of Rome, that he is not receaued, and the dignitie of hys Church exalted.

Touchyng which cause how vnreasonable and vniust it is, more shall be sayd (the Lord willing) in reply, accordyng as I shall see their aunswere, if it shall so please them, or any of them to aunswere this Question. In the meane tyme this for a briefe note shall suffice: that it standeth not with the Scripture, but contrary to the Scripture, that the Byshop of Rome should so reuenge hys own priuate cause. MarginaliaThe plantation of the Popes supremacie proued not to be of God.[illegible]If his title and plantation be good and of God, why doth not he referre it vnto god? And no doubt, but if it be so, God will mayntayne it, though the whole world sayd no. If it be otherwise, it will fall and bee rooted out though al the world sayd yea, Yea the greatest Argument to proue this plantation of the Popes supremacye not to be of God, is, that the Pope fightyng in hys owne pryuate cause, by outward and worldly force seketh hys owne glory. Christ our Sauiour beyng here refused hym selfe, yet neyther reuenged hys cause, nor sought hys owne glory, but onely the glory and will of his father, thus speakyng of hym selfe: Si ego glorifico meipsum, gloria mea nihil est, pater meus est qui glorificat me. &c. Ioan. 8.MarginaliaIohn. 8.This is: If I glorifie myselfe, my glory is nothyng: my father is he that glorifieth me, &c. Euen so I say with scripture, that if the Popes procedyngs were planted of God, he woulde not so wrastle for his glory, as hee doth. But forsomuch as he seketh by such crueltie and bloudshed to exalt hym selfe, we may well argue his procedinges not to be of God, and that he shal be brought low. &c. Luc. 18.MarginaliaLuke. 18.

MarginaliaThe 3. question.My thyrd Question I take of the xiij. chapter of the booke of Reuelation. MarginaliaApocal. 13.[illegible]Which booke as it conteyneth a Propheticall history of the Church: so likewise it requireth by histories to be opened. MarginaliaThe two beastes in the booke of Reuelation described.[illegible]In this Chapter mention is made first of a certayne beast comming out of the Sea, hauyng vij. heades and x. hornes, with x. diademes of blasphemy. Vnto the which beast the dragon, the deuill, gaue his strength, and great power to fight agaynst the Saintes, and to ouercome them, & to make xlij. monethes: of the which beast, one of his heades was wounded at length to death &c.

MarginaliaThe second beast with the hornes like a Lambe.After this immediatly in the same Chapter mention followeth of an other beast, rising out of the land, hauyng two hornes like a lambe, and spake like a Dragon, and dyd all the power of the former beast before hys face, and caused all dwellers of the earth to worship the beast: whose head was wounded and lyued. Who also had power to giue spirite and lyfe to the sayd former beast, to make the Image of þ^e beast to speake, & to cause all men from the highest to the lowest, to take the marke of the beast in their handes and foreheades, and whosoeuer worshipped not the Image of the beast should be kylled. &c.

Vpon this description of these two beastes ryseth my Question, wherein I desire all Papistes, from the hyghest to the lowest, eyther to aunswere or to consider with them selues, what the spirite of the prophesie meaneth by the sayde two beastes. Neyther is the mistery of this prophesie so obscure, but beyng historical, by histories it may be explaned and easely expounded. Writyng therfore to the Papistes, as men expert in histories, my Question is this: that seeyng the prophesie of these ij. beastes must nedes prefigure some people or dominion in the world, of some high estate and power: they will now declare vnto vs, what people or domination this should be. Which if they will do playnely & truely, accordyng to the markes and properties of the sayd ij. beastes here set forth, they must nedes be driuen of force ineuitable to graunt and confesse, the same onely to agree to the Citie and Empire of Rome, and to no other: Whiche by these reasons followyng of necessitie must nedes be concluded.

MarginaliaThe misterie of the first beast rising out of the sea applied.[illegible]First, the beast which came out of the Sea, hauyng the strength, the seate, and power of the great Dragon (the deuill, called the Prince of this world) committed to hym, who also had power giuen ouer all tribes, nations, languages, people, and countries in the earth, must nedes be an Empyre or Monarchie of great force, passing all other Monarchies in þ^e world besides: and this must nedes argue the Empire of Rome, and none other.MarginaliaThe Image of the beast resembled to the Monarchie of Rome
Apocal. 13.

Secondly, in that the beast had vij. heads, and x. hornes, with x. diademes full of blasphemy vpon them: those vij. heades beyng expounded in the sayd booke, cap. 17. for vij. hilles, notoriously importeth the Citie of Rome, wherein were vij. hilles, conteyned. The like also may be thought of þ^e x. hornes beyng there expounded for x. Kynges (signifiyng belike þ^e x. Prouincies or Kingdomes of the world subdued to the Romayne Empire) with the x. crownes of blasphemy vpon their heades: all which conueniently agree to the Citie of Rome.

MarginaliaOf these 42. monethes, and the exposition thereof, read page. [illegible].Thyrdly, where the sayd beast had power to make xlij. monethes and to fight agaynst the Saintes, and to ouercome them &c. therby most manifestly is declared the Empire of Rome, with the heathen persecutyng Emperours, which had power giuen the space of so many monethes, (that is, from Tiberius to Licynius. 294. yeares) to persecute Christes church as in the Table of the primatiue Church hereafter following is discoursed more at large.

MarginaliaThe wounded head of the beast in the reuelation what it meanethFourthly, where the prophet speakth of the one of the heades of the beast to be wounded to death, and the wounde afterward to be cured agayne, by that ye haue to vnderstand the decay and subuersion of the Citie of Rome and of Italie, which beyng one of the heades of the Romayne Monarchie, was subdued by the Gottes, Vandals, and Lombardes, and the Citie of Rome, thrise sackt and taken betwene the reigne of Honorius Emperour of Rome, and the tyme of Iustinian Emperor of Constantinople, & so remayned this head of Rome wounded a long time vnder þ^e dominion of þ^e Lombardes, till at length this wound was cured agayne, as the sequele of this prophesie declareth: MarginaliaThe second beast rising out of the land pretending the hornes of a Lambe what it meaneth.
Apocal. 13.For so it followeth in the foresayd Chapter of the Reuelation: And after this I saw (sayth he) an other beast rising out of the land, hauyng ij. hornes like the lambe, and spake like the Dragon. Who practised all the power of the first beast before his face, and caused all the inhabitantes of the earth to worship the first beast, whose head was wounded & cured agayne &c. And to hym it was giuen to giue life to the Image of the beast, and to make it speake: and also to make al them that will not worship the image of the beast, to be slayne, and caused all from the most to the least, both rich and poore, free men and bond men, to take the marke of the beast in their right hand and in their forheades, so that none should buy and sell vnles he had the beastes marke about him. &c.

MarginaliaThe mysterye of the 13. chapter of the Reuelations expounded.The description of this second beast beyng well vewed: it can not be auoyded, but nedes must be applyed to þ^e Byshop of Rome and to none other: as by history and order of tymes is euident to be proued. For who els representeth the hornes of the lambe of God which taketh away the sinnes of the world, but onely he? who speaketh with the voyce of the Dragon so proudly, as he? The voyce of the Dragon spake once to Christ: That all the glory of the world was his to giue to whom he would, and that he would giue it. &c. And doth not this false horned lambe speakyng in the same voice of the Dragon, say by the mouth of Pope Gregory vij. that al the kingdomes of the earth were his, and that he had power in earth to loose, and take away Empyres, Kingdomes, Dukedomes, and what els soeuer mortall men may haue, and to giue them where he would? &c. Ex Platina in Vit. Gregorij. 7.MarginaliaEx platina in vita Gregorij. 7.

MarginaliaThe Image of the olde monarchie reuiued by the Byshop of Rome.Furthermore, at what time the declining state of Rome began to decay, and Italy was brought vnder subiection of the Lombardes, then the Pope styrred vp Pipinus and Carolus Magnus, to take his part agaynst the Lombardes, and to restore agayne, the old glory of that Monarchie to his former state. And therfore who cured the wounded head of this beast agayne, but onely he? who gaue life and speach to the Image of the beast but he? who after þ^t by helpe of the French kinges, had subdued those Lombardes with other aliens, and had gotten the possession of Rome into his own handes, he so repared and aduaunsed the fame and name of Rome, that since that tyme all persons from the hyest, to the lowest, both rich & poore haue bene glad to send and seeke to Rome, yea Kynges, Emperours, Queenes, and Dukes haue bene glad to kysse that Bishops feete, and to lead his horse, by the bridle. So that the Maiesty of Rome in the olde heathen Emperours dayes was neuer more terrible, nor glorious, nor neuer had more power to persecute and ouercome Gods Saintes then these lambelyke Byshops of Rome haue had, and haue exercised these 500. yeares in Christendome. MarginaliaPower to do the workes of the beast before his sight.
Apocal. 13.And therfore who els in all the word hath so much power to do the workes of the first beast, before his face, as he? or who but he alone? whiche forceth both high and low, rich and poore, free and bonde to receaue the seale, and to become loyal to the Citie and sea of Rome: so that who soeuer hath not the marke whereby to be knowne to hold of the Church of Rome, shall haue no place: to buy and sell nor to occupy in all Christendome.

Now if any Papist whatsoeuer, in aunsweryng to this my Question can aply this prophetical mystery of these ij. beastes, otherwise then thus, I would hartely desire hym, to take so much paynes to satisfie this doubt at his good pleasure and lay-