leaue father ande mother / ande cleaue to hys wife And they two shal be one flesh / now are they not tweyne but one flesh Let no man therfore putt a sonder whyche God hath coupled together i. Cor. vij To avoide whoredome / let every man have his owne wife / and let every womaÌ„ have her owne husband / let the man geue vnto the wyfe due benevolence / lykewyse also the wife vnto the maÌ„ The wife hath not power ouer her owne bodye / but the husbande / and lykewise the man hath not power ouer hys owne body but the wife Tob. vj. d and vij a Ioel. ij â— Wythdrawe not your selues one from an other / excepte it be with the consent of bothe / for a tyme / that ye maye geue your selues vnto fastinge and prayer / and then come to gether againe / least sathan tempte you for your incontinencie Hebr. xiij a Let wedlocke be had in price in all poiÌ„tes / ande leet the chamber be vndefyled For whorekepers and aduouterers God wyll iudge The Lorde fauoureth man ande wife that agre well together Eccl. xxâ— and xi d Eccl. xxâ—â— â— Happie is the man that hath a vertuous wyfe / for the nombre of his yeares shal be double A woman shall not separate her selfe from her husbande / but if she separate her selfe / that she remayne vnmaried / or be reconsyled to her husbande i Cor. 7. d A woman that is in subiection to the man / is bounde vnto the lawe whise the man lyueth / but if the man die / then is she lowsed from the lawe that coÌ„cerneth the man Rom. dij â— Math. v. d If she be with an other man / while her maÌ„ liueth / she shal be called a wedlokbreaker But if the man be dead / then is she free froÌ„ the lawe / so that she is no wedlocke breaker / if she be with an other maÌ„ Of the state of Vyrgyns i. Cor. vij a I saye to them that are vnmaried / and to widdowes saieth S. Paule It is good for them that they abydâ— also as I do i. Tim. v. b But if they can not abstaine / let them mary / for it is beter to mary / theÌ„ to burne i. Cor vij c As concerning virgins / I haue no coÌ„maundement of the lorde / neuertheles I saye my good meaninge / as I haue obteined mercy of the lord to be faithfull I suppose it is good for the present necessite / for it is good for a maÌ„ so to be Arte thou bouÌ„de vnto a wyfe seke not to be lowsed Arte thou lowsed froÌ„ a wife / seke not a wife If a damsel make a vowe vnto the lord / while she is in her fathers house / and vnmaried / aÌ„d her vowe or baÌ„de that she maketh ouer her soule / coÌ„meth to her fathers eares / ande he holde his peace therto / then all her vowes ande bandes that she hath bounde hir selfe with all ouer her soule / shall stande in effect Numâ— xâ—â— Of the state of Wyddowes 2. â—imo 5. 〈◊〉 ij â— Cor. j. She that is a ryght widdowe / and desolate / putteth her trust in God / and continueth in prayer and supplication night and daie But she that liueth in pleasures / is dead / euen yet alyue Gala. vâ— b A wyddowe must be without blame But if ther be any that prouideth not for his owne / and speciallie for them of his houshold / the same hath denyed the faith / ande is worse then an infydell i. Petr. ij i. Tim. v. b Let no widdowe be chosen vnder thre score yere olde / ande soche one as was the wyfe of one man / and well reported of in good workes / if she haue brought vp children well / if she haue bene harbarrowes / if she haue wasshed the saintes fete / if she haue ministred vnto them which were in aduersyte / if she were continually geuen to all maner of good workes i. Petr. iiij But the yoÌ„ger wyddowes refuse For whan they haue begonne to waxe wantonne against Christ / they wyll mary / hauinge their dampnation / because they haue broken the fyrst faith Besydes this they are ydell / and learne to ronne aboute from house to house Not onely are they ydell / but also tryflynge and busybodyes / speakinge thinges which are not comly The vowe of a widdowe / ande of her that is deuorced / all that she bindeth her selfe withall ouer her soule / shall stande in effecte vppon her Num. â—â—â— Exhortacion to the Ryche of this worlde If riches encrease / sett not your harte vppon them Psal lxj b Eccl. xiiij a It becommeth not a couetous man aÌ„d a nigarde / to be riche / ande what shulde a niggarde do with golde he that with all his carefulnes heapeth to gether vnrightuously / gathereth for other folkes / aÌ„d an other man shall make good chere with his goodes He that is wicked vnto him selfe howe shulde he be good vnto other men Howe can seche one haue any pleasure of his goodes There is nothing worse / theÌ„ when one disfauoureth him selfe and this is a rewarde of his wickednes If he do any good / he doth it not knowing therof / and against his wyll / and at the last / he declareth his vngraciousnes Prouer. 17 Eeccl iij a A nigard hath a wicked eye / he turneth a waye his face / and despiseth his owne soule A couetous mans eye hath neuer ynough in the porcion of wickednes / vntill the tyme that he wyther away / aÌ„d haue lost his own soule eccl xiiij b eccle iiii a Tobi. iiii b Luk. 16. b A wicked eye spareth bread / and ther is scarcenes vppon his table My sonne do good to thy selfe of that thou hast / ande geue the lord his due offeriÌ„ges Do good vnto thy frende before thou dye / aÌ„d according to thy abilite reache oute thyne hande / and geue vnto the poore A rich man ought to submitte him self / and not to reioyse in his goodes Iob. i. â— Charge them whiche are riche in this worlde / that they be not proude / nor truste in the vncerteine riches / but in the liuiÌ„g God which geueth vs abundauntly all thinges to enioye theÌ„ That they do good that they be riche in good workes / that they giue and distribute with a good will / gatheringe vp treasure for them selues / a good foundacioÌ„ / against the time to come / that they may laye hande on eternall lyfe i Timo. vâ— Math. 6. c Gyue almes of thy goodes / and turne neuer thy face froÌ„ the poore for almes deliuereth froÌ„ death / aÌ„d suffreth not the soule to come in darkenes Tobi. iiii b A great coÌ„forte is almes before the hye God / vnto all them that do it Genes iij Let neuer pride haue rule in thy minde nor in thy worde for in pride begaÌ„ne all destruccioÌ„
that vsury maye be vsed withall / that the lorde thy God maye blesse them all that thou takest in hande Deu. xxiij Exod. xxij Leu. xxv Whan one of thy brotheren is waxed poore / in anye citie within thy lande / whiche the lorde thy God shall geue the / thou shalt not harden thine harte / nor withdrawe thyne hande from thy poore brother but shalt open thine hande vnto hym and sende him / according as he hath nede Deut. xv a 1 Ioh. vij c Beware that there be not a pointe of beliall in thine harte / that is / thinke not that he shall not geue it the againe Rom. x. â— For if thou lokest not frendly vppon thy brother / and giuest him nothing then shal he crye ouer the vnto the lorde / ande is shal be counted synne vnto the. But thou shalt giue him For because of it / shall the lorde thy God blesse the in all thy workes / and in all that thou puttest thy haÌ„de vnto The laÌ„d shall neuer be without poore / therfore coÌ„mauÌ„d I the and saye / that thou open thine hande vnto thy brother / whiche is nedy ande poore in thy lande Deut. xxiiij If thou lende a poore bodie saith god thou shalt not lye downe to slepe with his pledge / but shalt delyuer hym his pledge againe whan the Sonne goeth downe / that he maye slepe in hys owne raiment / and blesse the / so shall the same be rekened vnto rightuousnes / before the lorde thy God Psal xiiij a Lord saith Dauid who shall dwel in thy tabernacle Who shall reste vppon thy holy hyll He that sweareth vnto his neighbour and disapointeth him not He that geueth not his money vpon vsurie / and taketh no rewarde against the innocent Ezec. xviij If a man be Godly ande do the thinge that is equall and right / he greueth no bodie / he geueth his detter his pledge again / he parteth his meate with the hungrie / he clotheth the naked / he leÌ„deth nothing vppon vsurie / he withdraweth his hand froÌ„ doyng wronge / he handleth faithfully betwixt man aÌ„d man Math. xxv Psal xiiij a This is a rightuous man / he shall surely lyue / sayth the Lorde God Eâ—â—â—h xxij Thou haste receaued gyftes to shed bloude Thou hast taken vsurie aÌ„d increase Thou hast oppressed thy neighbours by extorcion / ande forgotten me / sayth the lorde God He that hath pitie vppon the pore / lendeth vnto the lord / and loke what he laieth oute / it shal be paide him againe Pro. xix c Exhortacion to Whooremongers and Fornicatours Prouerb v. Prou. vij a The lyppes of an harlotte are a dropping honycombe / and her throte is softer than oyle But at the last she is as bitter as wormewoode / aÌ„d as sharpe as a two-edged swerde Her fete go downe vnto death / and her steppes pearse thorowe vnto hell She regardeth not the path of life / so vnstedfast are her wayes that thou caÌ„st not knowe them Heare me therfore O my sonne aÌ„d departe not from the wordes of my mouth Kepe thy waye farre from her / ande come not nygh the doores of her house That thou moorne not at the last when thou hast spent thy bodye and goodes and then saye Alas / why hated I nurtoure Why did my harte despise correccion Wherfore was not I obedient vnto the voyce of my teachers / ande harkened not vnto them that enfourmed me Prou. v c Iob. 31. a My sonne / why wylt thou haue pleasure in an harlot and embrace the bosome of an other woman For euerye mannes wayes are open in the sight of the lorde / aÌ„d he pondereth all their goinges Prou. 23. c The mouth of an hariot / is a depe pit / wherin he falleth that the lorde is angrie wythall A folish restlesse woman / full of woordes / and soche one as hath no knowledge / sytteth in the doores of her house vppon a stoole aboue in the citie / to call soche as go by / and walke strayght in their wayes Prou. ix â— Who so is ignorauÌ„t saith she set hiÌ„ come hither / and to the vnwyse / she saith stolen waters are swete / ande the breade that is priuelie eaten / hath a good taste But they coÌ„syder not that death is there and that her gestes go downe to hell He that loueth harlottes / spendeth awaye that he hath Pro. xxix a Turne awaye thy face from a beautyfull woman and loke not vppon the fayrenes of other Eccl. ix a Mat. v. c Many a man hath perisshed thorowe the beautie of women / for thorowe it / the desyre is kindled as it were a fyre A whoore is a depe graue / and a harlot is a narrowe pytte Prou. xxiij Proue xxâ—â— She lurketh lyke a thefe / and those that be not a ware she briÌ„geth vnto her Let vs not committe whooredme as some of them did / and fell in one day thre and twentie thousand i. Cor. x. a i. Tess iiij Ephes iiij Toby vj. d Rom. i. e The will of God is / that ye shulde abstaine from whooredome / that euery one of you shuld knowe howe to possesse hys vessell in holines and honour / and not in the lust of concupiscence / as the heathen / which knowe not God Ephe. i â—â— c Math. xij d Let no fylthie communication proceade oute of your mouth / but that which is good / to edify withall And greue not the spyrite of God / wherwith ye are sealed vnto the daye of redemption 1 Cor. 6. â— Flee whoordome All sinnes that a maÌ„ doth / are without the bodie But he that committeth whooredome / synneth agaiÌ„st his owne bodie Knowe ye not that your bodie is the Temple of the holighoost Whome ye haue of GOD / ande are not your owne Gal. d. c i. Cor. vj. b Aduouterers / whooremongers / fornicatours aÌ„d vnclene parsons / shall not inheret the kingdome of God Ierem. v. d Shulde I then saith the lorde for all this haue mercy vppon the Thy childreÌ„ haue forsaken me / ande sworne by them that are no Gods And albeit they were bounde to me in mariage / yet they fell to aduourrie / and haunted harlots houses In the desyre of vnclenly luste / they are become lyke the stoned horse / euery maÌ„ neieth at his neighbours wife Ezech. xxi Ierem. ix Shulde I not correct this / saith the lorde And shuld I not be auenged of euery people that is lyke vnto this Exhortation vnto dronckardes Iob. xxj â— Wo be vnto them that ryse vp earlye to vse them in dronkeÌ„nes / aÌ„d yet at night are more supperfluous in wine In whose companies are harpes and lutes / â—abrettes and pipes But they regarde not the worke of the lorde / and consyder not the operation of his handes Prou. iij. a Wo be vnto them that are conning meÌ„ to suppe oute
Iesus christ our lorde and Sauiour So be it Afther that thou hast praied on this maner seīg that we be all sinners it shal be expedient if thou hast conuenient leasure therunto to confesse thy selfe on this maner vnto God the father The confessyon of our synnes vnto God the father O Almightie God ād heauenlie father / maker of heauen and earth / I confesse my selfe vnto the / euen from the very harte / that I am a miserable / wretched and abhominable synner Ande haue wickedlie transgressed all thy holy commaundementes / and the diuine preceptes of thy Godlie will The synnes alas which I haue cōmitted in my flesh against the are so great and so excedingly encreased / that they are no lesse innumerable then the sandes of the sea And they thrust me downe euen as an intollerable burden In these wicked synnes oh lorde God haue I hitherto walked according to the wil of the prince of the world / whiles I dyd that that was pleasaunt to the flesh ande euell lustes / thorough vayne thoughtes / the blindnes of my harte / the outwarde pretence of Godlynes and fained faith This came to passe Ah wretche that I am because that I dyd neuer aernestly stryue against the suggestiōs of Sathan / nor the concupiscences or desyres of the world / nor yet the lustes of my flesh But fylthilie obeied them a thousād tymes more / than the admonicions of thy holie spirite O lorde my God It came to passe also / that I dyd set nought by thy Godly counsell / despised thy holie name / and feared thy vengeaunce and heauy displeasure nothing at all But what soeuer I haue in this behalf offended thy moost Godly maieste / it sore repēteth me / ād the faulte greueth me euē vnto the very harte And if it were not o moost mercifull father that thou haddest layde vp mercy in the bowelles / bloude ād woundes of Iesus Christ thy sonne ande our lorde / for so manie as vnfainedly repent and trulie beleue be their synnes neuer so great and manie / I shulde see none other waye / but throwe my selfe downe headlong through desperation into the bottomles pit of hell But for as moche as thou haste sett thy welbeloued sonne Iesus Christ / to be our mediatour and mercie stocke And haste promised grace / mercy and forgiuenes of synnes to as many as aske it in his name / through faith in his bloude Therfore in this tyme of grace and mercye / I myserable synner come nowe vnto the / ande desire the my lorde God that thou wilt graunt me / thorowe that our lorde Iesus Christ / a right ande true faith And for his sake / forgiue me all my synnes / and make me to walke dayly more and more in a newe harte / and in the frutes of the holy ghoost / that I maye vtterly despise all the vngodly lustes of this worlde / and that I maye be founde continent / pure of liuing temperate / good rightuous / honest / diligent in all goodnes / meke / mercifull / modest / humble and ready to forgiue soche as offend me / euen from the very harte And so lyue all the dayes of my lyue accordyng to thy dyuine wyll and true feare That I maye die to the world / to all sinne and to my selfe And with a good confydence and mery harte / loke for the comminge of the lorde / ād my sauiour Iesus Christe To whome with the and the holy ghoost / be all honour ande glorie for euer and euer So be it Thou mayest if thou wilt after thy confessyon / saye the lordes prayer called the Pater noster And so commending thy selfe vnto God fall to some honest ād vertuous exercyse / according vnto thy calling But what so euer thou doest / do it with purenes of harte / and with synglenes of eye Yea so do it / as though God were present / and loked vppon the / as vndoubtedly he doth The prayer to be sayde when thou goest to bedde O God the almightie lord / by whose ordre ande wyll the night ande darknes do nowe approche / wherin we shal giue our selues to quiet and slepe We moost instauntly desyre the / that thou graciously receaue vs into thy tuicion ande kepinge / that the prince of darkenes do not hurte vs with his terrous and feares And although we must slepe / because of oure feblenes / yet let oure harte and minde wacche vnto the. Go thou before vs / and shewe vs the waye as a piller of fyre / that we maye followe the so well in rest / as in busynes ande occupations of this lyfe And graunt that we be not founde in thy syght / children of nyght ād darkenes / but of daye and lyght / through Iesus Christ our lorde So be it An other Prayer THys our mortall body / whiche through synne daylye decayeth ād diminissheth / must at the last altogether perish ād become earth / wherof it is come and made ād then shall our vanitie / whiche we through our owne ignoraunce / haue made vnto our selues / take an ende But moost mercifull creatour and maker of all thinges / vouchsafe so to breake / deuide and dyssolue me / thy poore creature who am gathered / knyt and made of the / and graunt that I maye alwayes haue in minde / thy dissolution / and of whome I am knit together / hauing an eye to what place I must go to thintēt that I / not being prepared / be no brought without nuptiall or brydall garment / before thy iudgement seate For like as whē the daye is ones past / we giue our selues to rest / euē so must we / this life being ended / rest in the death Nothing is more lyke vnto life / then the daye / ande nothing more like vnto death / then the night And nothing so lyke the graue or sepulchre as the couche bedde or bedsteade Thus / good keper ād defēder frō all euell / graūt vs / nowe lying in impotencie and feblenes / of our selues / that / through the / we maye be preserued this night from all the assaultes of the deuell of hell AMEN Whan thou goest to thy labour or worke Prayer O Moost kinde and gentle heauenly father / thou knowest / and hast also taught vs / howe great the weakenes of mā is / so that man without thy Godly helpe can do nothing Thus vouchsafe to sēde vs thy holie spirite / that he may strengthen / stirre ande moue our vnderstanding and reason / in all thinges that we this daye outwardely shall go aboute and take in hande / or of that we inwardlie shall thinke or haue in minde / to the intent that it may all be done to thy glorie / ād to the proffyt of our neighbour So be it Whan a man is bounde towardes anye Iourney Prayer THys our lyfe / most mercifull lorde / is nothing els but a pilgrimage and through fare / for we haue here