lested, except it were Iulianus, or Basilius which expelled one Zeno, and was afterward expelled him selfe: or Valende, besides these we read of no Emperour to come to ruine, as the other before mentioned. Ex lib. Hist. tripart.

And thus haue ye in a brief summe collected out of the Chronicles, the vnquiet and miserable state of the Emperours of Rome, vntill the tyme of Christian Constantine, with the examples no lesse terrible than manifest, of Gods seuere iustice vpon them, for their contemptuous refusing and persecutyng the faith and name of Christ their Lord.

Moreouer in much like sort and condition, if leysure of time or hast of matter would suffer me a little to digresse vnto more lower tymes, and to come more neare home the like examples I could also inferre of this our countrey of England, concernyng the terrible plagues of God against the churlishe and vnthankefull refusing or abusing the benefite of his truth.MarginaliaBritaines.
Gildas. First we read how that God styrred vp Gildas to preach to the old Brittaines, and to exhorte them vnto repentaunce, and amendement of life, and afore to warne thē of plagues to come, if they repented not. What auayled it? Gildas was laughed to scorne and taken for a false Prophet, and a malicious preacher. The Britaines with lusty courages, whorish faces, and vnrepentaunt hartes, went forth to sinne, and to offend the Lord their God. What folowed? God sent in their enemies on euery side, & destroyed them, and gaue the land to other nations. Not many yeares past, God seying idolatry, superstition, hipocrise, and wicked liuyng vsed in this Realme, raysed vp that godly learned man Iohn Wickleffe, to preach vnto our fathers repentaunce, and to exhort them to amend their liues, to forsake their Papistry and idolatry, their hipocrisie, superstitiō, and to walke in the feare of God, his exhortations were not regarded. He with his Sermōs was despised.MarginaliaWickleffe & his bookes condemned and brent for an heretike after his death. His bookes and he him selfe after his death were brent, what folowed? they slew their right kyng, and set vp three wrong kynges on a row, vnder whom all the noble bloud was slayne vp, & halfe the commons therto, what in Fraūce, and with their owne sword in fightyng among themselues for the crowne, and the Cities and Townes decayed, and the land brought halfe to a wildernes, in respect of that it was before. O extreme plagues of Gods vengaunce. Since that tyme euen of late yeares, God once agayne hauyng pitie of this realme of England raised vp his Prophets namely William Tyndall, Thomas Bilney, Iohn Frithe, Doctour Barnes, Ierome Garret, Antony Parson, with diuers other, which both with their writings, & Sermōs earnestly labored to call vs vnto repentaunce, that by this meanes the fierce wrath of God might be turned away from vs. But how were they entreated? how were their paynefull labors regarded? they themselues were condemned and brent as heretikes, and there bookes condemned and brent as hereticall. The tyme shall come sayth Christ, that whosoeuer killeth you, will thinke that he doth God hye good seruice.MarginaliaIohn. 16. Whether any thyng since that tyme hath so chaunced this Realme worthy the name of a plague, let the godly wise iudge. If God hath deferred his punishmēt, or forgeuen vs these our wicked deedes, as I trust he hath, let vs not therfore be proud and hye minded, but most humbly thanke him for his tender mercies, & beware of the like vngodly enterprises hereafter. Neither is it here any neede to speake of these our lower and latter tymes, whiche haue bene in kyngHenry, and kyngEdwardes dayes: seyng the memorie thereof is yet fresh, and can not be forgotten. But let this passe of this I am sure, that God yet once agayne is come on visitation to this Church of England, yea and that more louingly and beneficially then euer he did afore.MarginaliaGods benefites toward Englād. For in this his visitatiō he hath addressed many abuses, and clensed his Church of much vngodlines and superstition, and made it a glorious Church if it be compared to the old forme and state. And now how gratefull receiuers we be, with what hart, study and reuerence we embrace that which he hath geuen,MarginaliaA caueat for England. that I referre either to them, that see our fruites, or to the sequel, which peraduēture will declare. But this by the way of digression. Now to regresse againe to the state of the first former tymes, it remaineth, that as I haue set forth the iustice of God vpon these Romaine persecutors: so now we declare their persecutions raised vp agaynst the people and seruaūtes of Christ, within the space of three hūdred yeares after Christ. Which persecutions in number commonly are counted to be. x. beside the persecutions first moued by the Iewes in Hierusalem and other places agaynst the Apostles.MarginaliaS. Stephen the first ringleader of all Christes Martyrs. In the which first S. Stephen the Deacon was put to death, with diuers other moe, in the same rage of tyme either slayne, or cast into prisō. At the doing wherof, Saule the same time playd the doughtye Pharisie, beyng not yet conuerted to the fayth of Christ, wherof the history is plaine

in the Actes of the Apostle set forth at large by S. Luke.

MarginaliaSaint Iames the Apostle, brother of Iohn martyred.
Act. 12. After the Martyrdome of this blessed Stephē, suffered next Iames the holy Apostle of Christ, & brother of Iohn. Of which Iames, mention is made in the Actes of the Apostles, the. xij. chap. Where is declared, how that not long after the stonyng of Stephen, kyng Herode stretched forth his hand, to take and afflict certaine of the congregation: among whom Iames was one, whom he slew with the sword, &c. Of this Iames Eusebius also inferreth mention, alledging Clement, thus writing a memorable story of him.MarginaliaHist. Eccles. lib. 2. cap. 9.
Ex Clemente Septima Hypolyposeon. This Iames (sayth Clement) when he was brought to the tribunall seate, he that brought him (and was the cause of hys trouble,) seyng him to be condemned, and that he should suffer death: as he went to the execution, he beyng moued therewith in hart and cōscience, cōfessed hym selfe also of his owne accord to be a Christian.MarginaliaA notable conversion of a wicked accuser, and after a martyr. And so were they both ledde forth together, where in the way he desired of Iames to forgeue him that he had done. After that Iames had a litle paused with him vpon the matter, turnyng to him: Peace (saith he) be to thee brother, and kissed hym: And both were beheaded together. an. 36.MarginaliaNicanor one of the seuen Deacons with. 2000. other martyred.
Ex Dorotheo in Synops.

Dorotheus in his booke named Synopsis testifieth, that Nicanor one of the. vij. Deacons with. 2000. other which beleued in Christ, suffred also the same day, when as Stephen did suffer.

MarginaliaSymon a Deacō martyred. The sayd Dorotheus witnesseth also of Simon, an other of the Deacons, Byshop afterward of Bostrum in Arabie, there to be burned. Parmenias also an other of the Deacons suffered.

MarginaliaS. Thomas the Apostle suffred. Thomas preached to the Parthians, Medes, and Persians: Also to the Germanes, Hiraconis, Bactris, & Magis. He suffred in Calamina a Citie of Iudea, being slayne with a Darte.

MarginaliaSymon Zelotes crucified. Simon Zelotes preached at Mauritania, and in the countrey of Aphrike. And in Brittania he was likewise crucified.

MarginaliaThaddeus the Apostle slayne. Iudas brother of Iames, called also Thaddeus, and Lebeus, preached to the Edessens, and to all Mesopotamia. He was slayne vnder Augarus kyng of the Edessens in Berito.

MarginaliaSimon Cananeus crucified. Simon called Cananeus, whiche was brother to Iude aboue mentioned, and to Iames the younger, whiche all were the sonnes of Marye Cleopha, and of Alpheus, was Byshop of Hierusalem after Iames, and was crucified in a Citie of Egypt in the tyme of Traianus Emperour, as Dorotheus recordeth. But Abdias writeth that he with his brother Iude, were both slayne by a tumult of the people in Suanyr a Citie of Persidis.

MarginaliaMarke the Euangelist burned. Marke the Euangelist, and first Byshop of Alexandria, preached the Gospell in Egypt, and there drawen with ropes vnto the fire, was burned, and afterward buryed in a place called there Bucolus, vnder the reigne of Traianus Emperour.

MarginaliaBartholomew the Apostle crucified and beheaded.
Ex Ioan. de Monte Regali. Bartholomeus is sayd also to preach to the Indians, & to haue conuerted the Gospell of S. Mathew into their toung. Where he continued a great space doyng many miracles. At laste in Albania a Citie of greater Armenia, after diuers persecutions, he was beaten downe with staues, then crucified, and after beyng excoriat, he was at length beheaded. Ioan. De Monte Regali.

MarginaliaAndrew the Apostle crucified for the Gospell.
Ex Hieronymo in Catalogo scrip. Eccles. Of Andrew the Apostle & brother of Peter thus writeth Ierome, in his booke De catalogo scriptorum Eccles. Andrew the brother of Peter (in the tyme and reigne of Vespasianus, as our aunciters haue reported) did preach in the. 80. yeare of our Lord Iesu Christ to the Scythiās, Sogdians, to the Saxons, and in a Citie whiche is called Augustia, where the Ethiopians do now inhabite. He was buried in Patris, a Citie of Achaia, beyng crucified of Egeas the gouernour of the Edessians: hetherto writeth Ierome, although in the nūber of yeares he seemeth a litle to misse, for Vespasianus reached not to the yeare. 80. after Christ.MarginaliaEx Cipriano. lib. De duplici Martyrio.
Ex Bernardo serm. 2. de Sanct. Andrea. But Barnarde in his secēd Sermon, and. S. Ciprian in his booke De duplici Martyrio, do make mention of the confession and Martyrdome of this blessed Apostle, wherof partly out of these, partly out of other credible writers we haue collected after this maner, that when as Andrew beyng conuersaunt in a Citie of Achaia called Patris, through his diligent preaching had brought many to the faith of Christ: Egeas the gouernour knowyng this, resorted thether to the intent he might constrayne as many as did beleue Christ to be God, by the whole consent of the Senate, to do sacrifice vnto the Idoles, and so geue diuine honour vnto them. Andrew thinkyng good at the beginning to resist the wicked counsell, and the doynges of Egeas, went vnto hym saying in this effect vnto him:MarginaliaThe wordes of Andrew to the Counsell. that it behoued him which was a Iudge of men, first to know his Iudge which dwelleth