he fast in his goode lyfe thoughe he saw few so affected to gether wth righteouse Lott nothing returned from his holy conversation notwthstanding the multitude of wycked Sodomites on every side but the one and the other proceded and parsisted in there pietie In lyke sorte stand you fast quite you lyke men procede as spirituall souldiers and so to finishe as true Christians and then the garland to come ys yours wth the present peace of consciens wch in this lyfe vs the cheyfe reward of true Godlynes The other part of gentlemen so naked of the weddinge garment as they be voyde of oyle in there lampes lovinge better to follow the crye of there hownds then eyther to heare the voyce of the preacher or to imitate your Godly example I wyshe vs all to pittie and pray for theme that make so small accowmpt of religion and good lyfe otherwyse then of there belly God and ladie pleasure who therby as they seme to be flatt Atheysts and therefore in most wofull case so the papisticall gentlemen as fauls harted to gospell and Prynce as they be addicted to romishe Idolls be as vnfitt for civill office and auctoritie as by want of faythe they are yet for the Kingdom of glorie whervnto the Lord frame and convert theme in the tyme of his yourpose and pleasure But you good gentlemeÌ„ must think on the dignitie of your profession of the servant knowing moch to do his maysters will on the brevitie of your dayes of the best exercises to be had therein and in tyme of your recreations to glorifie God and to beware of prophanations takinge greate delight in your graciouse God not alone for your welthe health leysure and libertie but cheyfly for his illumininge spirit the feare of the Lorde and for that by grace you discearne your selves to stand the contreyes in steade and your good examples to be as glasses for theme to looke in Then may that circuit be cownted happie conteyninge so vertuouse an examplar as the congregation most blessed to have before theme a Godly and learned teacher Therfore for the better approbatioÌ„ of your state and degrees to be a warrantable caullings from God so myghtelie denyed of sum fyrst as you are curteouse and gentle vp the guyde of your names so in other things to be fownde wthin rule and good order ofte wthin the lords how 's as a sure recorde you be of the same lyvinge stones and helpinge members lovers of the Prynce proctors for her good causes but more specially for Gods and that in good sort wth whome you must lyve beyond the tyme of all Prynces helpinge gentlemen but not hurtinge neyghbors of the poore in the coÌ„treys Lykewise you worshipful of â—yne acquayntans both discrete and of good carriage of your selues I pray you preferr the holynes of religion by being found truly religiouse that so your fellowe gentlemen may be ashamed to speake evill of your good profession wheÌ„ they shall se you hate vice love vertu releyve the poore to bringe vp your familie in the knowlege and reverens of God as I have knowen you to have donn sum in the cittie and more in the contrey of wch nomber there be to few and theme over basely estemed though of great price before the Lorde and his people redemed In the meane tyme my worshipfull freynds I humblie crave the helpe of your prayers in this farr distans occasioned partly by sum doctorly frownes partly by my daughters letters and by greate boasts to se suche en Englishe churche here as nompareille and so yt ys par derrriere and finally throughe rashe trust in sum not so trustie wherby the oulde man was hether transported to be of his God iustly and gently corrected And further to premonishe bothe you and the worshipfull in the exchange I wijshe you beware of the dangerouse opinions of suche Englyshe Anabaptists bred here as whose parsons in part wth more store of there letters dothe creps and spreade amongest you in cittie and contrey The wch perilouse herysies wherewth they be so lately infected dyd not only procede of obstinacie in error but of pryde and singularitie wth the want of love and humilitie to kepe vnitie and peace amonge theme selves when they came over And as by my privat letters I have forewarned sum particuler frepuds so by this symple and forrayne labor I intended a more generall sithens I heard that one of this companie in Norwich intendeth to indure shortly an execution against hym By wch premonishement I would gladly make you more carefull and watchefull to prevent the invisible sower of darnell a monge the good wheate And so no leff to seke the right armure of prouffe and shilde of defens for our devine causes wherby to foyle theme that intend to defyle others then they seke fauls armure by wrest of scripture wth wyle weapons to make vnlawfull resistans against the most holy and auncient fayth of the vniuersall churche the wch not to manteyne and defend in sum measure by the O Christian reader and every true member of the same were suche threason to the Catholyke faythe and to her obiect Iesus Christ as the Turcks Iews and Papists should be farr better then theye bp reason in there blynde zeale they studie and labor all they can to support there fauls religions and to gaynesay the contrarie And darest thow of what condision so ever tushe and make light of this as thoughe yt appartayned not to the God forbid Gentlemen warned of the opinions of the Anabaptists Fyrst our Englishe and Outche here howld that Christ toke not his pure fleshe of the Virgin Mary and do denie her to be his naturall mother Secondly that the Godheade was subiect to passions and to deathe wch ys Impassible Thyrdly that the infants of the faythfull ought not to be baptysed Fourthly that the soules do slepe in grave wth the bodies vntill the resurrectioÌ„ Fyfthly that Maicstrates ought not to put malefactors to deathe Sixtly they condemne all warrs and Subiects in armure in the feyld Seventhly they denyt the article of predestinatioÌ„ they denye the L. day And finally they savour moch of the opinions of fre wyll and the merit of works You se now how nedefull yt ys for men to be armed and to be strong in the fayth so wastinge and wthstode in these latter dayes to be more otenpied in prayer and scripture then of custome seinge Sathan now whettens his hornes by Gods parmission to goore the more dyrefully for our further exercise and tryall And in charitie foresee as you may that suche smothe parsons and papers do not infect the poore symple so vnable to wthstand there subtill and and paynted reasons For once stayned therewth they shall as hardly be delyvered as the intangled byrd from the lyme bushe because yt ys as a rustie cancker eatinge throw wthout recoverie by eyther gentle ople or the hard stele no nor by the flaminge fyer no more then there
and by consequent the very Sonne of man that the two natures remaine distinct wth that wch ys proper to theme and yet to be but one Christ beinge hym self God-man that ys Man-god and yet notwthstandinge his Deitie ys not his humanitie nor his humanitie is not his Deitie This beinge moste true it followth that the proprieties of the humanitie as to be borne to eate drinch to die and to be buried ought to be attributed to God I meane the second parson and yet not simplie according to his Devinitie but in asmoche as he ys God-man and on the other syde that wch is proper to god may be attributed to this man as to be the Sonne of God eternall almightie and to be ever all not simplie in his humanitie but in asmoche as he ys Man-God The wch scripturely speche S. Paul vseth thus that the God of glory was crucified agayne that God redemed the church by his blodd and S. Luke sayeth that wch was conceyved in the wombe of the Virgin was the Sonne of the most highe and therfore yt may be sayde that Marie was the Mother of God in asmoche as he was Man-god That yf he wch was so conceyved and borne were not verie God how should he be our saviour and yf the same were so spoken in regard of his Deitie what maner of Deitie should that be to take his Deitie in the Virgins wombe As on the other side all the suffrings attributed to the only Sonn of God ought to be also vnderstode in asmoche as he is God-man and not simplie after his Deitie distinctlie considered in wch regard the Apostle dothe not barely saye that God was visible but addeth in his flesh And S. Iohn confesseth not simply to have sene the glory of the word but therto addeth the worde was made fleshe S. Peter speakinge of his fuffrings sayeth not simplie for as moch as Christ hathe suffred but addethe in the fleshe wch was nedefull for our salvation because he ys Man-god that suffred and not simplie God For a conclusion yt ys God-man that hathe fought and suffred in his humanitie and yt ys the Man-god wch hathe conquered by his Devinitie To the Anabaptist T.M. prisonner at Norwch SOm loving brother signifie vnto hym Fyrst he so soddanly stepping from his spirituall mother to a new stepdame reiecting the swete foode of the one and lickinge vp the poyson of the other that therefore his suffringe ys as compforthless as yt ys wshe and perilouse not only in regard of his badd opinions but in iustifienge his horrile errors and yll cause of bare 80. yeres continuans he condemnethe the vniversall churche consistinge on the faythfull Sede of Abraham in all quarters of the world frustratinge the preachinge of the gospell and Sacraments in all congregations before and after that tyme and deprivinge all martyrs sithens the comminge of Iesus Christ frome the hope of there salvation by grace and martyrdome Wyshinge that as he ought to distinguishe betwene true martyrdome and fauls so to discerne betwene the seared consciens from the malignant spirit and the salutiferous consciens from the holy Spirit the one gloriousely paintinge an evill cause by his subtill elippinge and wrest of scripture throw the wch he eubowldeneth the erringe and presumptuouse hart to suffer for error and the other revealinge the simple truthe by playne recorde of the worde of truthe no less rightlie illumininge then as trulie sanctifieng and compfortinge humblinge and mekeninge vntill Ioyfull and constant suffring the voice of Gods people being the voice of God crieng Amen to the same I am in feare that he and suche of my contreymen be more infected wth arrogant knowlege then by grace sanctifyed wth faythfull humblenes And let hym learne a lesson of the penitent theyse suffringe wth our savior for as the one in his desperat howldnes capled on Christ sayenge yf thow he that Christ save thy self and vs so the other humbled and fearinge God rebuked hym and there wth made suche a lyvely confession of Christ to be God and man as those herpticks may tremble at Gods greate iudgements for comminge so short or rather to be contrarie to the same Fyrst he caulled hym Lorde and prayed vnto hym as God the bringer of soules to his Kyngdom and next he caulled hym man sayeng this man hathe donn nothinge worthie of death wch was as excellent a confession as yt was a miraculouse conversion A rude ignorant theyfe of so wycked a lyfe as moch vnacquainted wth learning as wth vertu to make suche a sownd confession as yt may beseme you and your betters to esteme hym a holy Patterne to follow beinge therein nothing behynd Peter and the rest of the Apostles so longe tyme taught of there mayster Wherefore two fowld presoner and the rest in lyke bonds here at libertie advowchinge that the corporall eyes and hands of the Apostles saw and felt the incomprehencible Devinitie and that the same was deade in yt self and buried I pray you tell me fyrst in the parson of a man consistinge on a terrestiall and spirituall substans could ever his soule be eyther sene or felt in the handlinge of hym and will you not moche more confess that the Apostles cowld neyther se nor fele the gloriouse Devinitie of Christ so wth houlding yt self vnder the tabernacle of his bodie next tell me what glorie Maiestie brightnes or Kyngly estate dyd this poore theyfe se wth his corporall eyes in one so base and so vildly crucifyed at that tyme he neyther saw that splendor and glory as the Apostles dyd at his transfiguration nor the heavens open as Iohn dyd when Christ was baptised and thridly tell me how be saw hym to be his Lorde and God able to further hym to his Kyngdom and glory who was in the same reproche and ignominie wth hym and his fellow surely he had other clerer eyes to se God vnder the vayle of his flesh then yet ys granted to you Anabaptists even spirituall eyes and the inward sight of the hart Deceyve not your selves in sayenge that you confess Christ to be God and man when yt ys nothing so in averitie but rather vnder a clowd because yt ys wth this addition that he ys the celestiall Sede of the father or as may destone sayeth a man come from heaven Yf a fauls Christ be not fownd amonge the Anabaptists I know not where ells And what true peace of consciens can you have in suffringe for suche a forged Christ as the true Christ fore warnethe vs to be ware of and not to beleve Dare you confess that the soule of a man when the bodie is deade and buryed ys a lyve as yt ys in dede and yet will blasphemousely say that the God head of Christ dyed when his humane nature only was subiect to deathe when a man hanges on the geobet we comprehend bothe bodie and soule in sayeng the man ys hanged the man ys dead or thus the man eateth drincketh slepeth all wch ys true towching the parson of man but when we speake distinctly of the natures then neyther dothe the soule dye nor ys buried neyther eateth drincketh nor slepeth Further way and consider you Anabaptists whether you be the only spowze of Christ and the spirituall sede of Abraham specifyed to be lyke in nomber to the starrs of heaven or to the dust of the perthe or whether to you alone and to uone other churches the graces and giftes of the holy Ghoste were fyrst and last geven sythens Pentecost or whether so many thowsand martyrs sithens Christ his assention dyed in the Anabaptisticall fayth or in ours and whether yt was you that S. Iohn beheld so greate a multitude wch no men could nomber of all nations that stode before the Lambe yf you so thinck you arrogantly err wth the papists and arrians and asmoch deceive your selves as maliciousely accuse vs and the whole churche of God reiectinge you and your vilde opinions sythens the fyrst hatchinge therof by your grandsire Storck You seke to enclose the church wth in your straight corners as a childe that would lathe the whole sea into a little hole or as the papists that impryson Christ his Royall bodie in there wafer cake God open your eyes Lykewyse you my contreymen of another kynd and company removing from campion to Norden and from thence to Amsterdom and now miserably rent devided and scattered here and there Nordeners who though you howld the fundamentall poynts of our fayth wth affection to good things yet yt ys wth an vntempered zeale vnder moch weakenes contencions and discentions ioyned wth overwening and wrangling wherby you have brused the tender reedes quenched the smoking flaxe and driven sum into labarinthes and others into fowle errors God touche your harts to be warned by there perrylls and not by singularitie to fall wth them into suche errors to be less loftie and more lowly to esteme better of Gods churches abowte you and to bragg less of your owne wthout Pastor and sacraments for these 3. peres And the Lorde geve you repentans for the want of love yeare concorde and humilitie the lack wherof ys the cause you rather destroy then buylde marr then make scatter then gather Wherfore you se what your busie and vnskyllfull medling wth the discipline commes to So that as yt ys not fitt for little children to handle sharp edged tooles evenso as vnfitt for vnexperienced youthes to deale wth the hâ—â—es of opening and shutting of byndinge and loosinge and wth the sharpe swerde of excommunication a worck more beseminge grave and wyse heades vnder more stayednes then you of suche rashenes and vnadvysednes mowntinge above all churches I spare particularities The Lorde bless you and vs all wth wysdome and grace Amen FINIS
in the gospell Blessed are the poore in spirit The wch noble vertu ought to be desirable to Lords ladies and the greatest Threasurers in the world That yf by grace thow haste the rytches of the soule be never ashamed nor greved but rather humbled at the povertie of thy bodie For thy head and Captayne was poore in his byrthe in his lyfe and death and previe to thie base estate because he in wysdome ordayned yt so sayeng by his servant St. Iohn I know thy tribulation paciens and povertie And you worshipfull ritche yt ys rather Christian honor then any dishonor to your degrees for to have now and then suche Godly poore at your tables to be made partakers of Gods creatures wth you as havinge sum interest in theme and so to distinguish betwene the Lords speciall poore and the prophane poore and bothe to be succoured for his sake Sum Printers and stacioners at certayne tymes haue there meting there and therfore are wthin the compass of this freyndly gretinge Prynters Fyrst I acknowledge the Arte to be moste profitable excellent and necessarie for church and common welthe and God highly to be praysed for revealinge that synguler knowledge vnto mē and also to be prayed vnto for less abuse and more right vse of the same by Printinge and fellinge suche good bookes grownded on scripture as in crease knowledge vertu and the feare of God no less then for the mayntenans of laws and civill order But as the greate nomber of Printers haue compiled more bookes then men haue braynes to conceyue memories to retayne or money to buy so the multitude of there worcks over dulleth and burdeneth and ys a greate stopp to the best and fittist readings And therfore for the better vtterās of so many ydle bookes in shopps and stalls me thincks in good pollicie the wyse and worshipfull sorte of that compame might do well to procure a staye and sum rest to be had for there over werped presses but especially for mens weake memories For manie vnhappie wytts practys to followe good writers and to the greate hurt of the churche do make huge heapes or cartlodes of fond and folyshe bookes from the wch fault I esteme the Godly Printer to be free and therfore he hym self ys to be well estemed of as his good travell and labor to be commended But suche of that caullinge in my natyve contrey as haue neyther care nor consciēs to print and publishe vayne and vnprofitable prophane and hurtfull pamphletes to the offens of God and men fillinge the peoples heades emptieng there purses wth the abuse of there eyes and eares by there fables or skossinge devices are bothe to be reproved and restrayned For as God hathe his holy and learned servants in citties and contreyes that studie and penne forthe worthie worcks for his glorie and to the benefirt of his church so the devill hathe his seducing secretaries or pennslaves in secret corners to serve the humors of suche had instruments and the affections of rude readers I have knowen in Powles churche yarde sum perilouse aswell as popish and supersticiouse bookes sould previly to the yll disposed by suche as I pray God to geue theme true repentans Shipmaisters and maryners of good interest in the exchang you also be nedefull members for Prynce people and state venturinge your ships goods and lyves by transporting of commodities from sundry contreyes and nations behowldinge more plentie of Gods wonderfull worcks his corrections and deliverances his helpe at a pinche to sum and his sodaine and corporall Iustis to others and therfore the more bownd to dread and feare hym as a Iudge and Lord to obey hym as our soveraigne mayster and to loue hym as a favorable father who returninge you saufe to contrey wyfe and acquayntants Marytiers then as Noye escapinge the greate flod dyd buyld an alter and offred to the Lorde so you to offer hartie thancks to reioyce and to lyve in good order to stand still on your watch and to remember that you must to the Sea agayne to abyde all tydes and weather For they that serve the Lorde and avoyde ryot in the quyet haven shall surely be hearde and helped in the tyme of storme In all my tyme on seaboorde the Lords greate schoule howse as I have knowen nōbers that were of another disposition so I trust the tyme hath not changed you yet lyvinge as yt hathe donn sum others changinge lyke the moone The Sea was the fyrst correctinge preacher for the space of xvj yeres wch caulled me from moche follie and that gave sum entrans to know and feare the Lord and therfore amongst so many learned and lyvinge preachers blessed be his name for the Sea my dumbe and fearefull teacher in wch navigable arte I spent the pryme of myne peres when schole had bene more firt yf habilitie had served wch will not suffer me to forget that wch I would you ever to remember namely that God is merveylouse in all his worcks and worthie to be moche thought on in your Sea stormes swellinge waves cross tydes dangerouse races longe travers in contrarie wynds the ship on hull the heline on lee full hawse in tumbling roades when shipwrack is fearedwthout fast howld of cable and aricker stepeless and fearefull nights fower beere and beanes ofte tymes in steade of byskett cowld watches and wett clothes paynefull and pumpinge leakes hale bollinge to double the poynt a luff from the rock rowmer from the sand steere at an yuch or miss the haven a fogg at the entrans storme and bellow on poope besyde myne acquayntans wth your sprung masts torne sales from the parde and suche lyke quicknings to draw all maryners nere vnto God or to harden theme further of to the devill as schollers eyther bettered or made worce by correction for as sum roote of Godlynes draweth the Godly to be more Godly so that begon roote not beinge norrished as fyer wth wodd yt becomes weaker and vanisheth at lengthe tyll they be sylthie and more fylthie yea a traytor to all goodnes as Iudas to his mayster Wherfore lovinge mates and bretherne bethinck that the crowne of glorie is set forthe vnto vs neyther in the beginninge nor in the middest but in the end of the race Sathan and flesh cast many blocks in our way not alone to hynder vs from the holy parseverans after we haue runnthe greater part of the waye but sumtymes to breake of sodaynly mens good begynnings Our cheyfe stryving must be for parseverans and the same wth good courage for the crowne that we strive and labor for ys worthie of running The Apostle to Timoth. sayeth continew thow in the things wch thow haste learned And the Hebr. sayeth that we are made partakers of Christ yf we kepe sure vnto the end that begynninge wherewth we are vpho wlden Let vs then learne to complaine agaynste the burden of our corruptions for that they hynder our marchinge forwards vnto goodnes For the