MarginaliaIohn. 12.Marginalia1556. Aprill.Therefore the God of that true peace and comfort, preserue & kepe vs, that we neuer obey such false flattering, which at length wyl pay vs home once for all, bringyng for temporall peace and quietnes, euerlasting trouble, vexation, and disquietnes: for these vayne and transitory goodes, extreme losse and vtter dammage of the eternall treasure and inheritaunce: for this mortall lyfe, depriuation of the moste ioyful lyfe immortal: finally, the entrance into endles death most miserable, vnmeasurable payne and torment both of body and soule.

MarginaliaThe strait way of Christ better then the broad way of this world.Nowe conferring these two scholemasters together, let vs consider the thyng well, and determine with our selues, which way we ought to take, and not to take the common brode way which seemeth here most pleasant, & that þ^e most part of people take. Surely I iudge it to be better to goe to schole with our maister Christ, and to be vnder his Ferula and rod (although it seeme sharpe and greeuous for a tyme) that at the length we may be inheritours with him of euerlasting ioy, rather then to keepe company with the Deuyls scholers, the adulterous generatiō, in his Schole that is all full of pleasure for a whyle, and at the ende to be payd with the wages of continuall burnyng in the most horrible lake, which burneth euermore with fire and brymstone without any ende. What shall then these vayne goodes and temporall pleasures auayle? Who shal then helpe when we crye incessantly, wo, wo, alas & weale away, for vnmeasurable paine, griefe, & sorow? O let vs therfore take heede betime, & rather be content to take paynes in this worlde for a tyme, that we may please God. Our Saueour Christe the true teacher saith: MarginaliaIohn 15.Euery braunch that bringeth not forth fruite in me, my father wyl take away.

It is also not written in vayne: MarginaliaEccle. 41.The children of the vngodly are abominable children, and so are they that keepe company with the vngodly.MarginaliaVngodly company to be auoyded. What doth he els, I pray you, that resorteth to the ministration & seruice that is most repugnant & contrary to Christes holy testament, there keepyng styl silence, and nothing reprouyng the same, but in the face of the world by his very deede it selfe, declareth himselfe to be of a false, feareful, dissembling, fayned, & vnfaithful hart, and to haue layd awaye from hym the armour of light, discouragyng as much as lyeth in hym, al the residue of Christes host, & geuing a manifest offēce to þ^e weake & also cōfirmyng, encouragyng, and reioysing the hartes of the aduersaryes in all their euyll doyng? By which example he doth shewe hym selfe, neyther to loue God, whom he seeth to be dishonoured and blasphemed of an Antichristian Minister, nor yet his neighbour, before whom he should rebuke the euyl, as it is expressely commaunded in Gods holy law, where it is sayd: MarginaliaLeuit. 18.Thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, that thou beare not sinne for his sake. Wherefore let such a one neuer fantasie to deceyue hym selfe, MarginaliaGods stipēd commeth not, but to such as play his souldiours.that his name is registred in the booke of lyfe, to haue the stipend of Christes souldier, except he doo the duetie and performe the parte of a faythfull and right true souldier, as other haue done before. For suche fearefulnes cōmeth not from God, as testifieth S. Paul, saying: Marginalia2. Tim. 1.God hath not geuen vs the spirit of feare, but of power and of loue. Be not ashamed, saith he, to testifie our Lorde, but suffer aduersitie also with the Gospell, through the power of God, which saued vs, & called vs with an holy calling.

MarginaliaFearefulnes in Christes cause disproued.To be now feareful when most neede is that we shoulde be of strong harts, is vtterly þ^e reiectyng of the feare of god, and plaine vnfaithfulnes & disobedience to the expresse commaundement of our saueour Christ, which saith in his holy gospel: MarginaliaMath. 10.Feare not them that kyl the body. &c. For what faythfulnes doo we expresse towardes hym, when he sayth thus to vs, & yet we declare in our doings the very contrary, beyng euer feareful, euen as the vnbeleuyng Israelites, whiche vnfaithfully feared Gods enimies the heathen Cananites, where as he had oftentymes geuen them cōmaundement by his true Prophet Moses,MarginaliaNum. 13. 14. to do the contrary? for the which cause, al the whole number of that sect were destroyed in processe of tyme in the wyldernes, & enioyed not the pleasant lande of promise. MarginaliaExample by the fearefull Israelites.Whiche was a bodyly figure shewed before, & now agreeing to the promise of the heauēly inheritance, which shall be geuen to none other, but onely to al such as with loue vnfayned, be wholy bent, without any feare of man, to fulfil Gods holy wyl and pleasure. But al they that perteyne to the liuely fayth to the winnyng of the soule, wyl faythfully sticke to the cōmaundement, trustyng most firmely & faythfully, that he that gaue the same, wyll also geue strength plentifully to perfourme it euen in the weakest vessels of all, as we haue heard and seene by many and diuers examples, he only be praysed therfore.

S. Peter saith: Marginalia1. Pet. 3.Feare not though they seeme terrible vnto you, neither be troubled, but sanctifie the Lord God in your hartes. MarginaliaPhil. 1.Onely (saith S. Paul) let your conuersation be as it becommeth the gospel of Christe. Continue in one

spirit, and in one soule, labouring as we do, to mainteine the faith of the gospel, and in nothing fearing your aduersaries: which is to them a token of damnatiō, and to you of saluation, and that of God: for vnto you it is geuen, that not only ye shoulde beleue in Christe, but also suffer for his sake. Wherefore let vs be right wel assured that we shall yelde a most strayt reckenyng and accompt, if we transgresse the sayd moste wholesome preceptes geuen vs of our Maister Christe and of his apostles, and nowe in this troublesome tyme wherein the Gospell is persecuted, shewe our selues feareful souldiers: as it is manifestly declared in the Reuelation of S. Iohn, where it is written: MarginaliaApoc. 21.That the fearefull shall haue their part with the vnbeleuyng, and abominable, in the lake that burneth with fire and brymstone, whiche is the second death. Again, it is written in the same booke for our warnyng: MarginaliaApoc. 3.Because thou art betwixt both, and neyther cold nor hote, I wyl spue thee out of my mouth.

Nowe therfore good Christians, these true testimonies of Gods liuely word deepely cōsidered & waied let vs chieflye stand in awe of his most terrible iudgements, and be not as they that presumptuously tempt hym. MarginaliaEsay. 8.Let hym alwayes be our feare and dread. He nowe chasteneth, he nowe nurtureth vs for our profite, MarginaliaProuer. 3.delightyng in vs euen as a louing father in his beloued chyld, to make vs perfect, MarginaliaHeb. 12.& to haue vs to be partakers of his holynes. He now iudgeth vs, not vtterly takyng away his euerlastyng loue and mercy frō vs, as he doth from the malignāt & wicked, Marginalia1. Cor. 11. 2. Reg. 7.that we should not be condemned with the wicked world: but if we now refuse his most louyng chastising, and folowe the worlde we must needes haue our portion with the worlde. MarginaliaMath. 7.Wide is the gate & broad is the way which leadeth to destruction, and many there be which goe in therat. But strayt is the gate & narrow is the way that leadeth vnto lyfe, & fewe there be that finde it. Oh how much better is it to goe this narowe waye with the people of God, then to enioy the pleasures of sinne for a tyme? In consideration whereof: let vs without any more slacking & further delayes in this great warnyng by Gods louyng visitation, submit our selues betyme vnder his mighty hande, Marginalia1. Pet. 5.that he maye exalt vs when the tyme is come. And thus I wholy cōmit you to hym, & to the worde of his grace, whiche is able to builde further, beseeching you most hartily to pray for me, that I may be strong through the power of his might & stand perfect in al thynges, beyng alwayes prepared & ready, looking for the mercy of our Lord vnto eternal rest, & I wil pray for you as I am most boūd. So I trust he wil graciously heare vs for his promise sake made vnto al faythfull in his dearly beloued sonne Christe our alone Saueour, whose grace be with your spirite, most deare Christians, for euer. So be it.

By your Christian brother, Iohn Hullier
a prisoner of the Lord.

¶ Iohn Hullyer being of long tyme prisoner and now openly iudged to dye for the testimony of the Lord Iesus, wisheth hartily to the whole congregation of God, the strength of his holy spirit, to their euerlasting health both of bodye and soule.  

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This letter was first printed in Rerum, pp. 538-40. It was reprinted in 1563, Letters of the Martyrs (pp. 523-26) and all subsequent editions of the Acts and Monuments. Several copies of thisletter survive in Foxe's papers: BL, Harley 416, fos. 17v-18v and ECL 262, fos. 111r-113r.

MarginaliaAn other letter of Iohn Hullier to the congregation of Christes faithfull followers.I Now (moste deare Christians) hauyng the sweete comfort of Gods sauyng health, and being confirmed with his free spirit (be he only praysed therefore) am constrayned in my conscience, thinking it my very duetie to admonishe you, as ye tender the saluation of your soules, by al maner of meanes to separate your selues from the companye of the Popes hyrelings, consideryng what is sayd in the Reuelation of S. Iohn, by the angell of God, touchyng all men. The wordes be these: MarginaliaApoc. 14.If any man worship the Beast and his Image, and receiue his marke in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drinke the wyne of the wrath of God, whiche is poured into the cup of his wrath, and he shall be punished with fire and brymstone before the holy angels & before the lambe, and the smoke of their torment ascendeth vp euermore. Marke wel here good Christians, who is this beast, & worshippers, that shal be partakers of that vnspeakeable torment. MarginaliaHe exhorteth the faythfull to separate themselues from the Popes marked ministers.This beast is none other but the carnal & fleshly kingdome of Antichrist, the Pope with his rabble of false Prophetes and Ministers, as it is most manifest: which to mainteyne their high titles, worldly promotions and dignities, doo with much crueltie dayly more and more set forth and establishe their owne traditions, decrees, decretals, contrary to Gods holy ordinances, statuts, lawes, and commaundementes, and wholy repugnaunt to his sincere & pure religion and true worshippyng.

Nowe what doo they els but worship this Beaste and his Image, who after they had once already escaped from the filthynes of the worlde, through the knowledge of the Lord and Saueour Iesus Christ, Marginalia2. Peter. 2.are yet againe tangled