shrynke, and so horribly abuse the Testament and lawe of the Lorde? when thou thy selfe preachest, not to steale, yet most abhominably stealest, not from men but from God, and committyng moste haynous sacriledge, robbest Christe thy Lorde of hys right members thy body and thy soule, and chosest rather to lyue miserably with shame to the worlde, then to dye and gloriously with honour to reigne with Christe, in whom euen in death is lyfe? Why doest thou now shewe thy selfe most weake, when in deede thou oughtest to be most strong? The strength of a fort is not knowen before the assault: but thou yeldest thy hold before any battrie be made.

MarginaliaAn. 1554. Februarye.Oh wretched and vnhappy man, what art thou but dust and ashes? and wilt thou resiste thy maker that fashioned thee and framed thee? Wilt thou now forsake him that called thee from the custome gatheryng among the Romish Antichristians, to be an Ambassadour and messenger of his eternall worde? Hee that first framed thee, and since thy first creation and byrth preserued thee, nourished and keept thee, yea and inspired thee with the spritie of knowledge (I can not say of grace) shall he not now possesse thee? Darest thou deliuer vp thy selfe to an other, beyng not thine owne but his? How canst thou hauyng knowledge, or how darest thou neglect the law of the Lord, and folow the vayne traditions of men: and where as thou hast bene a publicke professour of his name, become now a defacer of his glory? Wilt thou refuse the true God, and worshyp the inuention of man, the golden calfe, the whore of Babylon, the Romish Religion, the abhominable Idoll, the most wicked Masse? wilt thou torment agayne, rent, and teare the most precious body of our Sauiour Christ with thy bodily and fleshly teeth? Wilt thou take vppon thee to offer vp any sacrifice vnto God for our sinnes, consideryng that Christ offered vp himselfe (as Paule sayth vpon the Crosse a liuely sacrifice once for all? Can neither the punishment of the Israelites (whcih for their Idolatry they so oft receaued) nor the terrible threatnyngs of the Prophetes, nor the curses of Gods owne mouth feare thee to honour any other God then him? Doest thou so regard him that spared not his deare and onely sonne for thee, so diminishyng, yea, vtterly extinguishyng his glory that thou wilt attribute the prayse and honour due vnto him to the Idoles, whiche haue mouthes and speake not, eyes and see not, eares and heare not: which shal perish with them that made them?

What sayth the Prophet Baruch,MarginaliaBaruch. 6. where he reciteth the Epistle of Ieremy written to the captiue Iewes? Did he not forewarne them that in Babilon they should see Gods of gold, siluer, wood, and stone borne vppon mens shoulders, to cast a feare before the Heathen: But be not ye afrayde of them (sayth Ieremy) nor do as other do: But when you see other worshyp them, say you in your hartes: it is thou (O Lord) that oughtest onely to be worshipped: for as for those Gods, the Carpenter framed them and polished them, yea, gilded be they, and layd ouer with siluer, and vayne thyngs and can not speake. He sheweth moreouer, the abuse of their deckynges, how the Priestes tooke of their ornaments and apparelled their women withall: how one holdeth a scepter, an other a sword in his hand, and yet can they Iudge in no matter, nor defend themselues, much lesse any other, from either battell or murther, nor yet from gnawyng of wormes, nor any other euill thyng. These & such like wordes, speaketh Ieremy vnto thē, whereby he proueth them to be but vayne thyngs, and no Gods. And at last he cōcludeth thus: Confounded be they that worshyp them. They were warned by Ieremy, & thou as Ieremy hast warned other, & art warned thy selfe by many Scriptures in many places. God sayth: he is a ielous God, which will haue all honour, glory, & worshyp geuen to him onely. And Christ sayth in the iiij. of Luke to Sathan which tempted him: euen to the same Sathan, the same Belzebub, the same deuill, whiche hath preuayled agaynst thee: MarginaliaMath. 4.It is written (sayth hee) thou shalt honour the Lord thy God, and hym onely shalt thou serue.

These and such lyke doe prohibite thee and all Christians to worshyppe any other God then whiche was before all worldes, and layde the foundations both of heauen and earth: and wilt thou honour a detestable Idoll, inuented by Romish Popes, and the abhominable College of craftie Cardinals? Christ offered himselfe vp once for all, and wilt thou offer hym vp agayne dayly at thy pleasure? But thou wilt say, thou doest it for a good intent.MarginaliaGood entent. O sinke of sinne: Oh child of perditiō: doest thou dreame therein of a good intent, where thy conscience beareth thee wytnes of Gods threatned wrath agaynst thee? How dyd Saule? who for that he disobeyed þ^e word of þ^e Lord for a good intent, was throwen from his worldly and temporall kyngdome. Shalt thou then that doest deface Gods honour and robbe hym of hys

ryght, enherite the eternall and heauenly kyngdome? Wilt thou for a good intent dishonour God, offend thy brother, & daunger thy soule, wherefore Christ hath shedd hys most precious bloud? Wilt thou for a good intent plucke Christ out of heauen, and make hys death voyde, and deface þ^e triumph of his crosse by offering hym vp dayly? Wylt thou either for feare of death, or hope of life, deny & refuse thy God, who enriched thy pouertie, healed thy infirmitie, & yelded to thee his victory, if thou couldest haue kept it? Doest thou not consider that the threed of thy lyfe hangeth vpon hym that made thee, who can (as his will is) eyther twine it harder to last the longer, or vntwine it agayne to breake it the sooner? Doest thou not then remember the saying of Dauid a notable kyng, to teach thee a miserable wretch, in his 104. Psalme, where he sayth thus: MarginaliaPsal. 104.When thou takest away thy spirit (oh Lord) from men, they die and are turned agayne to their durst: but when thou lettest thy breath go forth, they shall be made, and thou shalt renue the face of the earth. Remember the saying of Christ in his gospell: MarginaliaMath. 10.Whosoeuer eeketh to saue his life, shal lose it: but whosoeuer will lose his life for my sake shall finde it. And in the same place: MarginaliaMath. 16.Whosoeuer loueth father or mother aboue me, is not meete for me. He that will follow me, let him forsake himselfe and take vp his crosse and follow me. MarginaliaThe crosse for Christes sake.What crosse? the crosse of infamy and shame, of misery and pouertie, of affliction and persecution for his names sake. Let the oft fallyng of those heauenly showers, pearce thy stony hart. Let the two edged sword of Gods holy word shere asunder the sinowes of worldly respectes euen to the very marrow of thy carnall hart, that thou mayest once agayne forsake thy selfe and embrace Christ. And lyke as good subiectes wyll not refuse to hasard all in the defence of theyr earthly and temporall Gouernour, so flie not lyke a white liuered mylkesop from the standyng wherein thy chiefe captayne Christ hath set thee in array of this life. MarginaliaPsal. 26.Viriliter age, confortetur cor tuum, sustine dominum. Fight manfully, come life, come death: the quarell is Gods, and vndoubtedly the victory is ours.

But thou wilt say, I will not breake vnitie. What? not the vnitye of Sathan and his members? not the vnitie of darckenes, the agreement of Antichrist and his adherents?MarginaliaAntichrist also hath hys vnitie, which is not to be kept. Nay thou deceauest thy selfe with the fonde imagination of such an vnitie as is among þ^e enemies of Christ. Were not þ^e false Prophets in an vnitie? Were not Iosephes brethren & Iacobs sonnes in an vnitie? Were not the Heathen, as the Amelechites, þ^e Pheresites & Iebusites in an vnitie? Were not the Scribes and Phariseis in an vnitie? Doth not kyng Dauid testifie: Conuenerunt in vnum aduersus dominum? Yea theeues, murtherers, conspiratours haue their vnitie. But what vnitie? Tully sayth of amitie: Amicitia nō est, nisi inter bonos. But marke my friend, yea friende, if thou be not Gods enemy: there is no vnitie but where Christ knitteth the knot among such as be his. Yea, be wel assured, þ^t where his truth is resident, there it is verified that hee himselfe saith: Non veni mittere pacem in terram, sed gladium &c. but to set one against an other, the sonne against the father, and the daughter against þ^e mother in law. Deceaue not thy selfe therfore with the glittering and glorious name of vnitie: for Antichrist hath this vnity, not yet in deede, but in name. MarginaliaThe agreementes of euill men is no vnitie, but a conspiracye.The agreement of ill men is not an vnitie, but a conspiracie.

Thou hast heard some threatnings, some curses, & some admonitiōs out of the scripture to those that loue thēselues aboue Christ. Thou hast heard also þ^e sharpe & biting wordes to those that deny him for loue of life: Saith he not: MarginaliaMath. 10.He that denyeth me before men, I wil deny him before my father in heauen? And to the same effect writeth Paul. Heb. 6. MarginaliaHeb. 6.It is impossible (saith he) that they which were once lightned, & haue tasted of the heauenly gift, and were partakers of the holy ghost, and haue tasted of the good worde of God, if they fall and slide away, crucifiyng to themselues the sōne of God a fresh, & making of him a mocking stocke should be renued againe by repentaunce. And againe saith he: MarginaliaRom. 10.if we shall willingly sinne after wee haue receuied the knowledg of his truth there is no oblatiō left for sin, but the terrible expectation of iudgement & fire, which shal deuour the aduersaries. Thus S. Paule writeth, and this thou readest, and doest thou not quake and tremble?

Well, if these terrible & thundring threatninges can not sturre thee to cleaue vnto Christ, & forsake the world: yet let the sweete cōsolations & promises of the scriptures, let example of Christ & his Apostles, holy Martyrs and Cōfessours encourage thee to take faster hold by Christ. Harken what he sayth: MarginaliaMath. 5.Blessed are you whē mē reuile you, & persecute you for my sake: reioyce and be glad, for great is your reward in heauē: for so persecuted they the prophetes that were before you. Heare what Esay the prophet saith: MarginaliaEsa. 52.Feare not the curse of men, be not afraide of their blasphe-