MarginaliaAnno 1556. March.forting them, yea and last of all suffered death her selfe for the testimony of her God, which is the liuing God. Thus I beseech God to send you grace and strength to stand fast to the Lorde, as shee did, and then you shall be sure of the same kingdome that she is sure of: to the which kingdome I pray God bring both you and me. Amen.

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By me William Tyms prisoner
in the Kinges Bench.

MarginaliaAn other letter of Will. Tyms to his friendes in Hocley.THe grace of God the Father, through the merites of his deare sonne Iesus our Lord and onely Sauiour, with the continuall ayde of his holy and mighty spirit, to the performance of his wil, to our euerlasting comfort, be with you my deare brethren, both now and euermore. Amen.

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My dearely beloued, I beseeche God to rewarde the greate goodnesse tht you haue shewed vnto me, seuen folde into your bosomes: and as you haue alwayes had a moste godly loue vnto his word, euen so I beseech him to geue you grace to loue your owne soule, and then I trust that you will flee from al those thinges that shoulde displease our good and mercifull God, and hate and abhorre all the companye of those that woulde haue you to worship God any otherwise then is conteined in his holy worde. And beware of those maysters of Idolatrye, that is, these papisticall Priestes. My deare brethren, for the tender mercy of God, remember well what I haue sayd vnto you and also written, the which I am now ready to seale with my bloud. I prayse God that euer I liue to see the daye, and blessed bee my good and mercifull God, that euer he gaue me a body to glorify his name. And deare hartes, I do now write vnto you for none other cause, but to put you in remembraunce, that I haue not forgotten you, to the end, that I woulde not haue you forgette me, but to remember well what I haue simply by worde of mouth and writing taught you. The which although it were moste simplye done, yet truely, as your owne conscience beareth me record: and therefore in any case take good heed that you do not that thing which your own conscience doth condemne. Therefore come out of Sodome and goe to heauenward with the seruauntes and martyrs of God, least you be pertakers of the vengeance of God that is comming vpō this wicked natiō, from the which the Lord our God defend you, and send vs a ioyfull meeting in the kingdome of heauen: vnto the which God bring you all. Amen. Thus now I take my leaue of you for euer in this world, except I be burned amongst, you whiche thing is vncertayne vnto me, as yet.  

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By me your poorest and most vnworthy
brother in Christ, W. Tyms, in New-
gate, the 12. day of April, condemned
to dye for Christes verity.

MarginaliaAn other letter of W. Tyms to the faythfull brethren in his parish.THe euerlasting peace of our deare Lord and only sauiour Iesus Christ, with the sweete comfort of his holy & mighty spirite, to the encrease of your fayth, to the perfourmance of his will, and to your eternall cōfort in the euerlasting kingdome of heauen, be with you, my deare brethren and sisterne both now and euer, Amen.

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My most deare brethren & sisterne in our Lord and sauior Iesus Christ, I haue me most hartely cōmended vnto you, with harty thankes for all the great liberality that you haue shewed vnto me, & specially now in this time of my necessity, whē that God hath sēt my poore wife a childe in my captiuity:  

which is no litle care to me, so to prouide, that I might keepe both the child & my wife from the Antichristian church: the which thing: I thanke my good god, through his most gracious prouidence, I haue yet done though it be (as you know) great charge, not to me, but to þ^e congregation of God: & it greueth me that I haue bene so chargeable to thē as I haue bene, & specially you my deare brethrē, I being so vnworthy a member as I haue bene, & also of so small acquintance: but such is the mercifull goodnes of God, so to moue your hartes with charity towards me. And as he hath moued your hartes so to doe, euen so I beseech God to geue you power to forsake & refuse al thinges the which be displeasant in his sight, & to do al things which be requisite to a Christiā: & send you grace to go forwardes in the same as you haue godly begon, neither fearing fire nor sword. And my most deare hartes, remember well the simple playne doctrine the which I haue taught you & also writtē vnto you, which was þ^e trueth, & for a testimony of the same, I trust that you shall shortly heare, or els see that I wil seale the same with my bloud. And in the meane time I desire you al to remember me in your prai-

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ers, as I know you do, & as with Gods helpe, I will doe for you, that God for his deare sonne Christes sake, will so finish the dayes of our pilgrimage, that we may rest together with Abrahā, Isaac & Iacob, in the euerlasting kingdome of heauē: to the which I beseech the eternall God for his Christes sake to bring both you and all yours. Amen.

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By me William Tyms.

MarginaliaA letter of W. Tyms to his sisters in the Lord Colfoxe, & Glascocke.GRace & peace from God the father of al mercy, through the merites of our deare sauiour Iesus Christ be perceiued & felt in the harts of you my dearely beloued sisters in the Lord, by the mighty working of the holy Ghost the comforter, both now and euermore. Amen.

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My most dear and entyrely beloued sisters in the Lord after my most harty commendatiōs, according to my most boūden duty, I do as I am accustomed, or at least boūd to doe: that is, I geue you warning of your enemies, which be the Papistes, and take good heed to them, for they serue a crafty mayster, yea, and as S. Peter saith, he slepeth not, but goeth about like a roaring Lyon,. seeking whō he may deuour. Marginalia1. Pet. 5.For your old familiar frendes or worldly companions, when they see that you will not runne to the Idols Temple with them, it will seeme a straunge thing vnto them, that ye runne not to the same excesse of ryot, as S. Peter sayth, and therfore they will speak euill of you, rayle on you, and persecute you.Marginalia1. Pet. 4.

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But my deare sisters, let it not trouble you, for it is but to try you, and let it not seeme a straunge thing vnto you. But when they doe so, remember wherefore it is, and for whose sake, euen because you wil not forsake God as they doe. For the hatred they beare you, is for the word of God, and then it is Gods cause, and I tell you hee will reuenge it. MarginaliaRom. 13.And therefore if ye bee rayled on and troubled for his sake, thinke your selues most happy. For if you suffer with the Patriarches, Prophetes, and Apostles, then shall you be sure to be partakers of the same ioy that they are in. Yea you haue heard by the worde of God howe cruelly the tyrauntes alwayes haue persecuted the true members of Christ, as he himselfe hath promised, that they shall do vnto the end of the word.

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By the way I will bring to your remembraunce MarginaliaStephen for the same Gospell put to death.the holy Martyr S. Stephen, who for fauouring, for maynteyning, and defending the same doctrine that we now suffer for, was called a blasphemer, and stoned to death at Ierusalem. MarginaliaAntipas. Iason. Act 7.And Christes Apostles were diuerslye afflicted the world ouer, for the same by this viperous generation. Antipas the faythfull witnes of Christ was slayne at Pergamus. Iasan for receiuing of Paule and Silas with other disciples & teachers of the Gospel, was brought before the coūsell at Thessalonica, and accused for a seditious traytor agaynst Cesar. No maruell therefore though at this daye we be vexed on the same sort, mainteining the same cause, & fauoring the teachers therof. Is there any other reward folowing the true seruantes of God now, thē hath bene afore times?MarginaliaApoc. 2. 3. 1 Thess. 2. Rom. 19. Act. 17. Iohn. 16. Act. 9. Phil. 2. Luke. 21. Iohn. 1. 3. 1. Cor. 6. No surely, for so hath Christ promised. And if they haue persecuted him, needes must they persecute his members, if they haue called the mayster of the house Belzebub, so will they do his houshold: You shall be hated of all men (sayth Christ) for my names sake.MarginaliaMath. 10.

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It is no new thing my deare hartes, to see the true mēbers of Christ handled as in our dayes they be, as it is not vnknown to you how they be cruelly entreated, & blasphemed w^tout any reasonable cause. For heretickes must they be taken, which folow not theyr traditions. MarginaliaChrist may as well be called an hereticke as these men.And then they may as wel cal christ an heretick, for he neuer alowed their dirty ceremonyes. He neuer went a procession w^t a Cope, Crosse, or Candlesticke. He neuer censed Image, nor sang Latine seruice. He neuer sate in confession. He neuer preached of Purgatory, nor of the popes pardōs. He neuer honored sayntes, nor prayed for the dead. He neuer said masse, mattins, nor euensong. He neuer cōmaunded to fast Fryday nor Vigil, Lent, nor Aduēt. He neuer halowed church nor chalice, ashes, nor palmes, candles, nor bels. He ueuer made holy water nor holy bread: with such like. But suche dumbe ceremonies, not hauing the expresse cōmaūdement of God, he calleth the leauen of the Phariseis and dānable hypocrisy: admonishing his disciples to beware of thē. MarginaliaMath. 16. Luke. 12.He curseth al those that addeth to his word such beggerly shadowes, wiping their names cleane out of the booke of life MarginaliaDeut. 4. Apoc. 22. Psal. 68.S. Paule sayth, they haue no portion with Christ, whiche. wrap themselues agayne with such yokes of bondage.MarginaliaGala. 4.

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Therefore my deare hartes, seeing that our good God hath by the light of his holy word deliuered vs frō al such darck, blind, dumbe, beggerly traditions of men, MarginaliaGala. 5.stand fast in the libertye wherewith Christ hath made you free, and