trust in him sterue for hūger die of cold perish through nakednes It hath not bin heard of that the righteous hath bin forsaken or his seede begge wāting bread For they that know the Name of the Lord wil trust therin for he forsaketh not them that seeke after him Seeke after the kingdome of God the righteousnes therof all these things shal be ministred vnto you saith Christ If he be true that maketh this promise why should we feare hunger colde or nakednes If he be not to be trusted why will we take on vs his Name If we cannot denie him but to be most iust of promise as he is in deede we argue our selues of to much hypocriticall incredulitie when we saye that we woulde gladly suffer these for his sake sauing for feare to want necessaries in our neede and that wee shall not be able to abyde it And he hath promised no lesse assistaunce ayde and comfort in all kinde of persecution whether it be imprisonment banishmēt losse of life or any membre Yea because we should not faint in prison waxe feble in exile giue ouer through feare of the bitter pangs sharpe prickes of death he hath promised not only to be reuenged on our persecutors but also to be present with vs to helpe cōfort deliuer vs. Wherfore he hath willed vs in the day of our troubles to cal vpon him adding this promise that he wil deliuer vs Wherunto the Prophet Dauid did so trust feling the comfortable trueth therof at sundrie times in many and daūgerous perils that he persuaded him self al feare set apart either of one painefull daunger or other whatsoeuer yea if it were to walke in the valley of the shadow of death that he should not haue cause to feare comforting him self with this saying which was Gods promise made vnto vs al For thou art with me Thy rod thy staffe euē they shal cōfort me Is Gods staffe waxed so weake that we dare not leane to much now theron lest it should breake Or is he now such a chāgeling that he wil not be with vs in our troubles according to his promise Wil he not giue vs his staffe to stay vs by and reache vs his hande to holde vs vp as he hath bene wonte to doe If he be the selfe same God and no chaungeling when we be put into prison or led into captiuitie he goeth with vs or throwen into the sea to be drowned he doeth not leaue vs or cast into the raging fyre he is with vs to this ende either to deliuer vs from the violent force of them vtterlie or at the least so to comfort vs in the middes of them that we should rather take pleasure therein then feele payne Wherefore he cryeth vnto vs continually Feare not thou litle flocke feare not them that can doe no more but kil the body that is their vttermost but now the Lord that made thee O Iacob and he that fashioned thee O Israel saith thus Feare not for I will defende thee I wil call thee by thy name thou art myne when thou wentest in the waters I was by thee that the strong floudes should not plucke thee away when thou walkest in the fier it shal not burne thee and the flame shal not kindle vpō thee For I am the Lord thy God the holy one of Israel thy sauiour Let the cruel Papistes rage and roare let the obstinate Sodomites fret and fume let the rablemēt of Antichristes souldiours the deuils owne deare dearlings threaten with sacke sworde faggot and fire yet if God be with vs who can be against vs the mightie strong holy one of Israel hath made a faithfull promise that he wil be with vs defend deliuer vs. This promise sufficeth to a Christian to arme him against all feare of trouble anguishe persecution hunger nakednes perill sworde and death for that none of al these can separate vs from God but we shall ouercome and haue the ouerhand in all these things through the aide and comfort of him who hath loued vs for he is a faithfull God which wil not suffer vs to be tempted aboue our strength but shal in the middes of temptation make a way to come out that we may beare it Who nowe weying these promises dare surmise that God will not ayde comfort and strengthen you in all necessities And will you thinke he is not able to performe the thing he willeth Is the arme of the Lorde shortened Shall not he who is able to raise of stones children vnto Abraham be of power to comfort relieue defend whom he hath already made If we be assured of his wil which his promise teacheth vs we neede not doubt of his power for whatsoeuer him pleaseth he doeth in heauen earth the sea and in al deepe places If we beleue his promise all things are possible yea there is nothing but it is easy of him to be done As a mighty Captaine who hath vnder his gouernment many souldiers seruants hath thē so at his cōmandement that when he biddeth thē go they go whē he saith abide they abide when he willeth them to do this or that they obey his word so is paine pleasure grief ease sicknes health life death at the becke cal of God that they come go at his appointmēt as the faithful Centurion confesseth in the Gospel Yea he worketh so forcibly in his children that leane wholy vnto his promise that he maketh to them of paine a pleasure of grief an ease of sicknes health of death life as cōtrariwise to the vnbeleuing pleasure ease health life is a weary irksome painful death When you were in prosperitie had the true religion of Christ amōg you were so strōg within your selues as no foreine Prince could inuade and ouercome you the Lord of hosts turned al vpside down in the twinkling of an eie hath wrapt you vp in aduersity choked your whole realme with false superstition giuen you vp into the rule and gouernmēt of such leane locusts stinging serpēts spiteful spāgers as no people haue bene heretofore plagued withall And is the Lords power not so able to deliuer his from these miseries to restore his true religion and vanquishe these Sodomitical Babylonians as it was to giue them vp for a time to be chastened into their subiection Let the Idolatrous Papistes ascribe their victories and whole felicitie vnto their Idols and God of bread yet our hope is in the Lord who hath made heauen and earth who can and wil for his owne glories sake shewe him selfe to be the onely God of might in giuing ouerthrowe to these Idolatours with a sodaine confusion when they thinke thē selues most sure and looke least for it Let them nowe for a while fret and fume against the Lord and his Christ shake of his yoke and breake his bōdes in sunder Yet is the Lord in his holie temple
his abiding is in heauen his eyes beholde these sonnes of men and laugh them to scorne and at the length shal talke with them in his furie powring vpon them from heauen snares fyre and brimstone whose cup and portion shal be burning storme and tempest Let them persuade them selues and beleeue darkenes to be light trueth falsnes blindnes sight and life death and bring this to passe that mens eyes may seeme with a skinne or slime of superstitious ignorancie to bee couered and made blinde yet can the Lord and also will when he seeth time restore light trueth sight life againe to the aduancement of his owne glorie the comfort of his Church and vtter confusion of his enemies Folowe therefore after the Lord crye vnto him with the two blind men desire him of his mercy to restore your sight mistrust not but he is able to doe it saye with them that you so beleeue and the Lord wil make you answere and performe it in dede after your faith be it vnto you If you truste in the Lord and confesse him to be omnipotente why should you feare the crueltie of Antichrist who afflicteth Christ in his mēbers persecuting and punishing their soules with superstition idolatrie and vnbeliefe and afflicting their bodies with hunger imprisonment exile and painful death Hath not God aforetime assisted his to wade thorowe and ouercome the paines of all these yea in the middes of the bitter stormes to take great pleasure And is he of lesse power to helpe vs shall not we now by his assistance be so able to abide and take pleasure in paines as our brethren haue bene before vs My brethren be strong in the Lord and through the power of his strength learne to whatsoeuer estate God shal call you therewith to be content knowing how to be lowe how to exceede euery where and in al thinges instructed both to be full and to be hungrie both to haue plentie and to suffer neede yea to do all things through Christ who strengtheneth you by whom also you shal ouercome For if you be troubled on euery side yet shall you not be without shift when you bee vexed with pouertie you shall not be vtterly without somewhat wrapt in persecution not forsaken therein cast downe yet perishe not that the excellencie of the power may bee Gods and that you may onely glorie in the Crosse of Christ By the crosse he entred into glorie and they that are his must enter in the same way The Princes had no power ouer him further then was giuen them from aboue neither haue they ouer you no not to plucke of one heare of your head for they be all numbred and not one falleth away without the will of your heauenly Father who worketh all things for the best to all them that loue him And woulde we not haue all things worke to our most aduantage In worldly things we seeke after most gaine and wil we neglect that in heauenly things For to winne a small summe of money we will take vpon vs a farre iourney in daunger of robbing in perils of drowning and let for no payne perswading our selues that God wil be with vs assist and prosper vs in all our trauayle and shall wee refuse to traueile by land to passe the seas to suffer what paine soeuer thereunto belongeth to winne the penny of euerlasting life mistrusting that God will not be with vs ayde and further vs in whatsoeuer painefull perill we shall come in O blinde incredulitie that makest easy things to seeme hard by working an vnwillingnes in the mindes of men whome thou rulest If men forsake their own willes submitting them selues wholy vnto Gods will what thing can bee to harde But if we will followe the appetites and delicate nicenesse of our owne willes what can be easy Crye therefore with Christ deare brethren Not our wylles but thy will O heauenly Father be done So eschue troubles as may stande with his good will and pleasure When they come vpon you embrace them willingly suffer them patiently wade thorowe them faithfully for that is his good will and pleasure Folowe the example of Christe of the Prophetes Apostles and holy martyrs who were not wedded to their owne willes but submitted them selues wholy vnto Gods will who wrought so with them that in pouertie they wanted not necessaries in prison among rauening Lions they liued harmeles in the middes of fyre they burnt not in the most cruell torments they felt no payne and trusting to the faithfull promise and mightie ayde of their heauenly Father desired rather to be exercised vnder the crosse to die with Christ then to be at ease and liue with the world Abraham with his Father Thare forsooke his natiue countrey and from thence was commaunded to depart into a countrey whereof he neither knewe the name where it was neither what cōmodities were therein for men to liue withall neither yet could he abide there any whyle for a great dearth did oppresse the whole land so that he was compelled to flye into Aegypt where he was in daunger of much displeasure for he perceiued before he entred that he must forgoe either his wyfe or els sustaine daunger for keeping her Hee was constrained oftentimes to remoue his habitation not without great losse trauayle and perill Iacob also went forth of his natiue countrey into a straunge place partlie for that his father would not that hee should be ioyned in mariage with the daughters of the Idolatours of that countrey partly to flye the crueltie of wicked Esau his naturall brother where he serued Laban fourteene yeres for his two daughters in keeping his sheepe a painefull kinde of labour Afterwarde in his olde daies was constrained by the force of a great dearth to remoue into Aegypt where his ofspring was grieuously molested many yeres Ioseph was solde by his brethren to the Ismaelites and by them vnto an Aegyptian where he susteined great paine and perill in a straunge countrey The Prophete Ely being persecuted by the wicked Iezabel fled from post to pillar The Prophete Daniel with a great number of good and godlie Israelites were caried into Babylon captiues there to liue in captiuitie in a straunge countrey among their deadly enemies The Apostles of Christ and many godly men and also women in their time forsooke all they had and went into straunge coūtreis for the Gospels sake And after their time to this our time the Ecclesiastical histories are full of the examples both of men and also women that left landes and goodes fled their countreis and did choose rather in an vnkoth and vnknowē land to liue in hardnes with freedom of conscience to serue God after his wil then to tarie at home in wealth with bondage of conscience and dishonour the Lord in disobeying his holy will. It is not read that any of these did murmure grudge to leaue their houses landes goodes and natiue
faith the bloudie woundes of your sauiour and redemer and these being considered what are our greatest griefes but fleabites in comparison besides that inward anguishe and passion of the soule farre passing his outwarde apparent pangues whereby he felt the seuere iudgement and wrath of God the rewarde of our euil deserts Come you hither Sister with your heauie burthen and here refresh you for here is the well and the water of life receiue you hence the most comfortable aqua vite stilling downe from the crosse of oure redeemer and peacemaker Christ Iesus the righteous God hath laide vpon you some kinde of crosse but none such as his owne Sonne your Sauiour hath borne before you God hath thought good for some purpose appertaining to his glorie to put you to some paines O why should you or any of vs grudge to take on vs the yoke of God he hath not spared his deare and onely Sonne to make him a mā a seruant a sacrifice for our soules redemption which were once solde vnder sinne the slaues of Satan But were it happie were you if it were so in deede that you had to pledge your sauiour where he hath begun vnto you if that you hong on the crosse together with him had you not then comfort enough by you could you not well content your selfe to be baptized with his baptisme whose handmaid I know you will not denie your selfe to be is it not enough for the seruant to be serued as his master were you in the place of the penitent theefe crauing his pardon as he did hang together with our sauiour would you haue despaired would you haue mistrusted might you be comfortlesse would you not reioyce But you will say he had his Sauiour present before his eyes But O you of litle faith if you haue not as good assurāce of mercy as he do you not cōsider that by the iudgement of our Iudge they are most blessed which beleue and see not But he happie mā heard those ioyfull wordes at his redemers mouth To daie thou shalt bee with me in paradise And is that sufficient why then haue not you as sure an obligation the warrant of his word his testament sealed with his most precious bloud or els are you left out of that will Doth he not say vnto you as directly as to any other Come vnto me and I shall refresh you Doth he not say vnto you Aske and haue seeke and find knocke and it shall be opened are you not assured of that absolution in the daye of the Lord his appearance Thy faith hath saued thee goe thy waye in peace are you not to be numbred among them to whom it shal be said Come ye blessed of my father when that Christ saith vnto you he that beleueth hath euerlasting life when that he saieth I bring the water of life I am the bread of life I am the vine you are the braunches I am the good shepherd the true Messias the redemer of the worlde the physition of the sicke comming to saue that which is lost in al these can you not picke out that promise to be with him in paradise I dare not doubt Sister that you are to seeke concerning these thinges you haue I nothing mistrust laide the foundation of your fayth on Christ the right rocke of saluation then can you no more doubte then if you had the possession of paradise alreadie euen as it was prepared for you from the beginning seing that he made the graunt that hath the whole matter in his handes and in whome there is no guile Stand therfore stand stiffe and fall not let not go this handfast which if you doe no winde or weather may rise in the worlde that shall any whit moue you or your so sure building standing on so good a groūd and so sounde a rocke S. Iohn in his first epistle setting Christ Iesus before thē to whom he writeth This we write vnto you saith he that your ioy might be full Verely Sister if we coulde fully consider Christ with his mercie and merites our heartes might not but be filled vp full with ioy for there is nothing so sowre but in Christ it becommeth sweete and sauourie there is no want of any earthly thing but Christ supplieth with a greater measure The braunches that abide in that vine no weather may make them to wither and although they seeme for a season much like to the naturall vine to be as drie and rotten stickes such as men would scarce gather vp in the way yet the heauenly husbandman so cherisheth and tendereth them that in time which he knoweth to be most conuenient euen then they shal shew themselues in their kinde and freshly flourishe in their fruits when all other flowers are faded and other trees which are not planted by him may not longer stand for their rotten roots Let vs therefore stand a litle and see what more comfort we may sucke out of that fresh and fruitfull vine so shall our hearts receiue ioye and our ioye shal be full You haue no landes nor liuinges I thinke in deede any thing superfluous but yet competent and if you were much more needie euen vtterly destitute yet you haue not to take great thought for the matter seeing Christ telleth you you shall haue life euerlasting paradise is your inheritance his owne kingdome is your possession Companie in deede is comfortable but be it that you were berefte of the companie and comfort of your brethren and sisters yet the true Christian cannot be solitary S. Iohn saith If we walke in the light as he walked we haue felowship with him And he him selfe saieth he will not leaue vs comfortlesse or solitarie yea he wil be present with vs vnto the worldes ende that is with all his at al times sending vs the Comforter his holy spirit If we do that which he commaundeth vs then he accompteth vs his friendes his brethren his sisters and that which is chiefest because it is endlesse after we haue rūne out our course we shal be with him in Paradise making continually that prayer for vs vnto his Father which he began here on earth Father I will that they which thou hast giuen me be with me where I am that they may beholde my glorie Beholde you shall beholde the glorie of Christ what then will you take thought for any piece of worldly estimation All the glorie of man saith the Prophet is as the flower of the fielde sone ripe sone rotten but the crowne of glorie which you shall receiue by Christ is incorruptible once founde neuer loste once ripe neuer rotten what neede you passe vpon the wicked earthly Mammon whereas you be most assured of that treasure laied vp for your store in heauen euen Christ Iesus the riches of the riche and high God of heauen It would be a comfort for you peraduenture to haue an head and husband to defende you in
our comfortes I haue but somewhat assaied to playe Iohn Baptistes parte I am not he of whom you must receiue this good gifte but you must looke toward an other Therefore I say vnto you of him whose shoolatchet I am not worthy to vnloose Behold the Lambe of God who bringeth this comfort with him a salue me thinkes sufficient to heale all sores as that he is that Lambe that taketh away the sinnes of the worlde Nature hath so prouided that if we receiue any wound in the head the whelke that is in the hande the corne that is in the foote we soone forget lose the sense thereof O consider Sister howe your head was wounded then shall your handes and your feete the lesse grieue you Nowe againe our head is whole triūphing in heauen why then should our hearts be heauie on earth as though the head had forgotten the bodie or any part thereof No Sister doubte you not he will not suffer an heare to perishe of that bodie which he so dearely purchased seeing that this mightie Michael hath subdued our archenemy that terrible dragon and subtill serpent with his petie captaines death and hell what should we be so much moued with any force of the fleshe or any mischiefe that the worlde may worke vs Yea here also your Sauiour speaketh cōfortably vnto you saying Be of good there I haue ouercome the world Seeing that he hath broken the head of our enemy what should his taile so much trouble vs seing hee hath taken away our sinnes what should any sorowes remaine amongst vs if we sorowe not for our sinnes why doe we lament for any other earthly trifle So Sister if your eye be fully fixed on Christ your redeemer seing his paines and his patience you may not but quiet your selfe considering his merites and his mercie you can nothing mistruste but he that tooke away the greater burthen of your sinnes will also open you a waye out of your sorowes so that nowe you haue no occasion left of mistrust in the goodnes of god For he that gaue vs his Sonne howe should hee not with him giue vs all things also and now your ioye must needes be full as S. Iohn saieth Say not then you are in miserie for you see present remedie hauing good assurance of eternall felicitie And if a mā should aske you how you proue your state to be miserable I am sure you can not proue so fast as I can disproue You will say I am an abiect in the world I answere the more meeter for God the liker you are to your Sauiour so saieth the Apostle to your comfort and mine The vile thinges of the worlde things despised and things of nought hath God chosen I am sad and pensiue you will say my meat doth mee no good I enioye not the world But these are no arguments hereby to conclude miseries For euen the holy and happie Dauid had such sugar and sauce to his meate he mingled his bread with ashes and where was most likelyhood of rest his bed he watered with teares so that of your sorow it selfe you may receiue comfort because that shorte worldly sorowes are but a passage vnto vnspeakeable incredible and eternall ioye and consolation Our Sauiour saith they are happie that lament for they shal be comforted but hee setteth a woe vpon those that laughe so that by his iudgement happines and heauenly happines he speaketh of commeth rather by lamenting then laughing Yea God himself wil take the paines to wipe away the teares of the eyes of such as sheade any vnder the crosse especially in the cause of his Christ You haue litle comfort peraduenture in the worlde yet I am sure more then Lazarus in his penurie or Iob in his perplexitie and the lesse you finde on earth the more belike you shal haue in heauen You knowe the answere to the riche man in the parable that he had his earthly pleasure for his portiō But what an exchange made Lazarus euen eternal pleasure for temporal penurie If you haue not your portion with the riche man here you may the lesse doubte to haue parte and place with Lazarus in the kingdome of god And here let Christ be your comforter You shall lament saith he but the world shall reioyce and in him hee saith you shall haue peace O see that pitifull and sauing Samaritan how he powreth wine and oyle into your woundes euen the peace of conscience the peace of God that passeth all vnderstāding If the world hate you saith he you know that it hated me before you if our Sauiour hath lead vs the waye what should we sticke at the matter where as he hath ouerlept so great blockes why should we stumble so at euery strawe which the deuill casteth in our way The Apostle saith If we suffer with him we shall raigne with him and if we die with him we shall liue with him O Sister let vs not shrinke from our Captaine whome we see already to be a conquerour Let vs prepare our selues patiently to abide the pleasure of God let vs exercise patience in the lighter that we may the better beare the greater burden Let vs liue and die with our Sauiour let vs suffer with him in all patience that we may reigne with him in glorie to the which the afflictiōs of this world with all extremitie as S. Paul hath cast the matter are nothing comparable We hope to haue our part in the kingdome of Christ Iesus let vs not then looke for it there where he hath tolde vs it is not to be found Let vs not seeke after worldly wealth or earthly felicitie let vs not looke here to rule the roste but to be rosted rather of Rulers Our kingdome is where Christ reigneth let that content vs knowing that his kingdome is aboue all powers al things being in subiection vnder his feete Here I leaue you Sister betaking you to Christ who couereth you as one of his chosen chickens vnder the shadow of his cōfortable winges against whom as long as you liue neither the world which he hath cōquered neither death which he hath swallowed vp neither the gates of hel which he hath closed vnto you shal any thing preuaile That which I haue said I haue said once peraduenture as good vnsaid but Christ cōtinually cōforteth you with his sweete promises and euerlasting word of saluation he still crieth vnto you Be of good chere I haue ouercome the worlde reioyce in this sayth he that your name is written in the booke of life Betake you therefore wholy to him reioyce in his crosse resorte to his word whence as out of paradise you may gather flowers sufficient to fill you with ioye And if it hath pleased almightie God any thing to refreshe you with this my poore posy his wil be done his name be glorified Amen I haue my rewarde and he the God of all consolation graunt vs the
heauenly comfort of his holy Spirit that peace which the world can not giue and that constant patience in all his fatherly corrections that we be not founde false hirelings but true and trustie seruants no bastard children but by vnfained faith the blessed posteritie of the blessed Abraham and true regenerates of God by our Sauiour Christ And the holie sanctifying Spirit of trueth and God be blessed for euer Amen A verie godly and learned Exhortation to suffer patiently imprisonment exile or what miserie soeuer els may happen to a man in this life for the profession of the Gospel of CHRIST IESVS IF the worlde hate you good Brethren and thereupon with sundrie afflictions and griefes do moleste and vexe you marueile not with grudging but prayse GOD with patience who in this fornace fashioneth you to the lykenesse and image of his owne Sonne whome the worlde hath hated from the beginning for whose sake also in no wise it can loue you but with moste spitefull hate will pursue you euen vnto the death for that you are chosen by Christ from the worlde to walke foorth and bring out fruite which shall continue to sanctification whereof the end shal be euerlasting life For as a riche and beautifull Harlot full of amorouse filth with a painted face wantō looks trimme araye fayre wordes large promises great giftes with the entisement of quiet wealthie and pleasant life allureth them on whom she casteth loue yet at the end rewardeth them with pockes piles fighting brawling and most shamefull death whom if she can by no meanes entise to folow her fancie she hateth so deadly that she ceaseth not but causeth the whole rablement of her bawdie bawdes ruffling roysterkins with brawling bragges shamefull slaunders subtill surmises quarreling questions and falsly fayned accusations to vexe trouble and bring to destructiō So the Princesse of the world that most filthie harlot wooeth Gods children espoused vnto his sonne Christ to breake their faith and trouth to him plighted and to become her dearlings setting before their eyes all the kingdomes of the worlde and the glorie thereof promising with holowe holines subtill suspicion falsely fained religion and a pokefull of such pretie persuasions that if they wil fal downe and worship as she doeth she will giue vnto them all these same for then shall they be her owne deare dearlings and she will loue them as her owne but the end shal be most dreadful damnation Whom if she cannot perswade neither by one way or by other vnto her loue from Christ their best and onely beloued spouse she conceiueth so great an hatred against them that she stirreth all her champions with might maine to doe them displeasure in their goods to worke them hatred of their friendes to impayre their good name to punishe their bodies to offende their consciences to make their life yrksome vnto them and moste cruelly without mercie to kill them yet whose death is most precious in Gods sight and hath to rewarde a most glorious resurrection Thus the worlde hath serued our deare and best beloued Christ before vs for our sakes who was giuen into the handes of this harlot to be thus cruelly dealt withall for to be vnto vs a patern which we should folow an image after which we must be fashioned painted forth before our eyes in the Scriptures to teache vs to folowe his trace with patience and in running this race to cōceiue comfort hoping after victorie through fayth in him who both gaue vs warning of the paine and lest we should faint to comfort vs promised victorie saying In the world shall you haue affliction but in me peace be of good cheare for I haue ouercommed the worlde To fight with a puissant enemie whose courage was neuer abated whose strength is inuincible and who hath bene oftentymes assailed by many but neuer vanquished might discomfort a weake heart and cause it to giue ouer at the first without further resistance But for so much as this stern madame with all her chiualrie and force is so ouercome and weakened to our handes that she is not able to resist what countenance so euer she makes much lesse able to ouercome such as doe stoutly withstand her malice and crueltie how faint hearted cowardly milksoppes may we be iudged that wil be abashed and may not abyde the lowring countenance of a feeble maymed and beaten bragger especially seeing that in striuing faithfully against her and her souldiours the losse of renowme here is the purchasing of eternall glorie the losse of worldly goods the gayning of heauenly riches the losse of a miserable and short life here the winning and very entrance into a ioyfull and euerlasting life in heauen Is the friendshippe of the worlde so deare to vs that therefore we should not esteeme Gods fauour Ought our goods wife children friendes landes and possessions so much to be regarded that for to saue them we should forsake the heauenly riches and euerlasting inheritance Ought we to be so desirous to liue here that for a short life and vnpleasant we will purchase an euerlasting and most painefull death But the burthen of pouertie is importable hunger imprisonment exile is intolerable the bitter stormes of persecution and the sharpe showres of death are so insufferable that we feare least we shoulde not be of power to abide and passe thorow them and therefore do thinke it better to sit still then to rise take a fall better not to enterprise the conflict then in the middes for lacke of strength through faintnes to giue ouer with shame and runne away How delicate fearfull and therefore vnwilling the fleshe is to suffer common experience teacheth al men hauing any feeling of them selues perceiue and chiefely they who setting all persuasions of the fleshe apart haue of full purpose and resolute determination with them selues entred into the schoole of sufferance beginning at Christ his crosse and so forth to learne therein onely to glorie can by that they feele in them selues best declare For as the deadly foe to mankinde assaulted our deare brother Iesus Christ then most hotly after he perceiued by plaine tokens that he was Gods Sonne bent by the crosse and contempt of the world to enter into glorie with the firie dartes of famine pouerty ignominy shame afterward with the feare of death on the other part with plentie riches honour possessions and glorie of the whole world knowing most perfectly that these perswasions should be most strong to moue persuade the fleshe to refuse the crosse weying the paines the trauail with one eye the pleasant wealthy honour with the other so he ceasseth not to assayle Christes mēbers with the self same entisements to cause the fleshe to abhorre the crosse and seeke after ease but then most busilie when he perceyueth the heart moued by Gods Spirit to cōtemne these as vanities and to seeke after true wealth quietnes and glorie And