¶Gabriel the Aungel and Embassa­dour of god speaketh.

WHerfore are ye sadde o ye men mortall? Wher­fore do ye walke as per­sons desolate dismayd & altogyther conforte­les? Wherfore do ye sygh, wepe, sob and take thought. Wherfore do ye wrynge your handes, & teare your heere? Whye rather do ye not re­ioyce? Why do ye not eleuate and lyfte vp your heades, walkyng ple­saūtly? Why do ye not loke w ^t smy­lynge countenaunces? Whye do ye not putte oute of youre hertes all thought & care? Why do ye not so cō pose & set youre selues, that all the gesture of youre body maye frācke­ly [Page] & wyth a lustye courage, declare youre ioye, myrth, gladnes, felicite and pleasaūce? Ther is, beleue me, not one cause of sadnes: but of gladnes many ye & innumerable. For God is nowe nomore an enemy vnto you, The great loue of god toward vs but a dere frende. He is be­come of a cruell iudge, a mercifull sauyour, & of an austere and fearce LORDE, a bounteous and gentle fa­ther, of an extreme reuenger, a tender forgyuer, to be shorte, he is now become the very same vnto you, y ^• a moost tender, moost gentle, moost louynge, moost bounteous, mooste kynde, moost benefycial, moost liberal, most benygne father is to y ^• his natural sonne, whome he moost in­t [...]erlye loueth, and tenderly inhal­seth aboue al the other. Howe ther­fore can ye be sadde? Howe can ye any otherwyse than reioyce and be mery, seynge that al doloure, all so [Page] rowe, all care, all grefe, all payne, al perrell, all trouble, all daunger, all disquietnes, all hatred, all malyce, all emnite, all maliuolence, all euell wyll, all wrathe, all displeasure, all desyre of vengeaunce, and all that euer is cōtrary to your ioye & plea­saunce, to your health and cōforte, to your rest and tranquilitie, is vtterly extinguysshed & so put awaye for euer and euer, that you whiche are of Gods faythful cōgregaciō, o­bediēt to his word, & redy to accomplysshe his moost holye and deuyne wyll, Ioh. iii. shall neuer after this perysshe & fall out of fauour, but haue eter­nall lyfe. And all this is come to passe thorowe Gods grande merci­es by the glorious natiuite & Miche. v. moost blessed byrth of his welbeloued son Iesus Christe, Math. ii. whiche this daye is borne of a pure & cleane virgine in Bethleē a citie of Dauyd, Luke. ii. thorowe [Page] the meruaylous and wōderfull operaciō of the holy Ghost, Math. i. y ^e he shoulde be a sauyoure, yea and an omnisul­ficient sauyoure to saue his people, that is to saye, so many as beleue in hym, from theyr synnes, and from the daunger of Sattan, that they maye be made inherytours of eter­nall glory.

These newes out of heauē Luke. i. am I Gabriel the Aungell and Embassa­dour of God sent for to declare vn­to you, ii. Cor. x. that ye maye vnfaynedly reioyce not in vayne & worldely thynges, Phil. iiii. but fyrste in the LORDE GOD your sauyour, & afterwarde in cele­stial and heauenly thynges, Collos. iiii & euer more be thankefull for them, i. Thes. ii. follo­wynge worthy this inestimable be­nignite & vnspeakable goodnesse of God y ^e father thorow Iesus Christ, that these synguler benefytes may not at any tyme seme to be shewed [Page] vnto ingrate and vnthankeful personnes.

Me thinke I se you nowe begin to reioyse and skyppe for ioye, yea and seriously to triumph as persō ­nes ful of francke courage at y ^• hearynge of these moost pleasaunt and ioyfull newes, which thyng certes to me is no vulgare delectacion & smale pleasure.

But that you maye reioyce vn­faynedlye, & knowe that ye in dede haue an vrgente & weyghtye cause to be glad, yea and that with a con­tynuall myrth, and suche a ioye as ought to be immortall & neuer dye: I wyl reherse to you in what dam­nable state ye were in, The knowldge of our selues maketh vs to fle vn­to christ for socoure. before these moost confortable newes were sent vnto you from the mooste glorious and imperial seate of y ^e mooste bles­sed Trinite, that you perceyuynge your owne miserable cōdicion, may [Page] the more seriouslye reioyse in those swete and delectable newes.

God in the begynnynge, The ereacion on of man as the holy scriptures testifye, Gene. i. created mā accordyng to his owne similitude, Sop. ii. lykenes & ymage, i. Cor. xi. y ^• is to saye, ii. Cor. iii. he in dued hym with immortalyte, [...]ol. iii. wyt, Ephe. iiii. reason, Psal. viii. sapience, iustyce, free wyll, mercy, goodnes, holynes, truethe, & all perfeccion, and gaue hym impe­ry and rule ouer all lyuyng creatures, constitutynge hym in ioyefull Paradyse a gardē full of pleasure, that he should worke in it & kepe it, geuyng hym also authorite, power & lybertye to eate of euery tree in y ^e garden, saue only of y ^e tree of knowledge of good and euel. Gen. i. yf man dyd eate of that neuer so sone, The death [...] Adam and what it is. god tolde him before, y ^t he should dye the deth that is, fall from the glorious state wherin than he stode, become mor­tal, wretched, synfull, miserable, seruyle, [Page] thraull, captyue, & a very bōd slaue to Satan, hated of god, voyd of all goodnes, bent to al myschefe, the sonne of perdicion, a fyre brand of hell, a vessell of yre and wrathe. All these thynges dyd God tell be­fore to Adā, Rom. ii. that he myghte be pru­dent, Ephe. vi, wyse & circumspecte, and the better inarme himselfe w ^t courageous valeaūce to fyght agaynst the crafty and subtyle assaultes of his enemy,

Not longe after Satan, Esay. xiiii. whom God before had throwen out of heauen for his arrogācy and pryde, ii. Pet. ii. en­uyeng man that blessed & gloryous state wherin he dyd remayne, desy­rynge also hys lyke perdicion, full craftely and lyke a wyly serpent, i. Pet. iii. attēpted the womā as y ^e more frayle vessell, & redy to be deuycte & ouer come, so that at the last thorow hys subtyl and crafty perswasions, she [Page] gaue place to y ^• tortuous & wylye serpent, Ioan. vii. y ^• father of lyeng, i. Tim. ii. & wyckedly transgressed Gods moost holy cō maundement. Gen. iii. For Satan told her playnly, The crafty assautes of Satan. that there was no daun­ger in eatyng of that fruyte, which was forbyddē, neyther should they dye the deathe, though they so dyd, yea rather theyr eyes should be opened, and they shoulde be as goddes knowynge good and euell. The woman beyng enflamed with these honylycke and swete entysementes, seyeng also that the tree was good to eate of, fayre to the eye, and ple­saunt to beholde, All is not gold that shinethe. toke the fruyte of it, dyd eate, and afterward gaue of it to her husband, whiche dyd eate in lyke maner, so y ^t streyght wayes both theyr eies were opened, & they saw that they were naked, that is, perceyued ryghte well, y ^t they were nowe become miserable wretched, [Page] synfull, redacte to extreme calami­te, behold what syn [...]e doth. and vtterlye fallen from the fa­uour of God for the transgressiō of his mooste blessed precepte, whiche thyng made them to be very much ashamed, and to hyde thē selues frō the face of God. O miserable & pitefull chaūge. O chaunse more perryllous than it can be expressed. The misera­ble [...]al of mā Nowe is a man become of immortall mor­tall, of good euel, of righteous wyc­ked, of wyse folysh, of holy prophane of vertuous yll desposed, of fre bōd, of mercyful cruel, of godly deuilysh of faythful vnfaythfull, of spiritu­all, carnal, of true false, of a vessel of mercy the vessell of wrath, of y ^e sōne of God the sōne of the dyuell, of the heyre of glory the heyre of damnacion. Psal. xlviii. Alas whan man was in honour he perceyued it not, and therfore is he nowe becomme euen lyke vnto a brute beast. Gene, vi. He is altogyther wythout [Page] the spiryte of God, he is all car­nall and fleshelye, therfore can not gods spiryte abyde in hym, i. Cor. ii. neyther can he perceyue those thynges that pertayne to the spirite of God, yea & that is more to be lamented, not Adam alone is fallen into this dāp­nable state, Rom. v. but also al his posterite. For thorowe this his faulte & wyc­ked synne, Gene. iii. all the earth with the in­habitātes therof are accursed. All we are dāpned in Adam. So that so many as come of thys olde Adā, are dāpned, cursed & throwen from the fauour of God. This one transgression of Gods cōmaunde­ment hath made you al subiecte to the yoke & tyranny of Satan, ii. Cor. v. and bonde to euerlastynge damnacion. Adam is youre father, and you are his childrē. Loke therfore in what case he is, in the very same are you. Adā is carnall, Ioh. iii. therefore are ye car­nall. Adam is wicked, Ephe. ii.. therefore are [Page] ye wycked. Adam is the sonne of wrathe, therfore are ye the sōnes of wrath. Adā is a lyer & nothing but vanite, Psal. xv. therfore are ye liers and no thyng but vanite. Adā is captyue & bonde prisoner to Satan, synne, deth & hell, therfore are ye captiues and bond prisoners to Satan, syn, death and hell. Howe can it other­wyse be? Iohn. iii. That whiche is borne of flesshe is flesshe. Math vii, Do mē gather gra­pes of thornes, or fygges of briers? So lykewyse euery good tree bryngethe for the good fruyte: but a cor­rupt tree bringeth forth yll fruyte. A good tree can not bryng forth yil fruyte, nother a corrupte tree good fruyte. Euen as it is impossible for a sower crabbe tree to brynge forth sauery and swete apples, so is it impossible for a synfull man drowned and buryed all in synne, I meane Adā, to beget any other thē synne­full, [Page] vngodly and wicked chyldren. Luke. vi A good tree oute of the good trea­sure of his herte, Math. xii. brīgeth forth that which is good. And an yll man out of the yll treasure of his herte, bryngeth forth that which is yll. Nowe was Adam euell, therfore whatsoe­uer he brought forth, mu [...]te nedes be euell. Rom. v. Yea verely by the synne of this one mā Adā, euel was brought forth vpon all men vnto dāpnaciō. By the dysobedyence of hym were ye all made synners, Ephe. ii. and by nature the sonnes of wrathe. For this one mānes faulte dyd synne enter into the worlde, & thorowe synne, death, and so came death vpon all men, Rom. v. in so muche as all ye haue synned. Psal. l. Ye were therfore begotten in synne, cō ceyued in synne, & brought forth in synne. None of you al are pure, but euery one is polluted wyth vngod­lynes. Rom. iii. Ther is no differēce, all haue [Page] synned, and want the glory of god. Ye are corrupte and become abho­minable in youre studies, Psal. xiii. there is not one that doth good, no not one for the LORDE hath loked from heuen vpon the children of men, for to se yf there were anye that hathe vnderstandynge or seakethe after God. But all are fallē from y ^• true waye, they are become all togyther vnprofitable, Rom. iii. there is not one that doth good no not one. Their throte is lyke a wide mouthed graue, they worke deceyte wyth theyr tonges, the poysō of adders is vnder theyr lyppes. The frutes whych we bryng forth by Adam. Theyr mouth is ful of cur­synge & bytternes, theyr feete are swyfte to shed bloud. Destruction & wretchednes are ī theyr wayes, they knowe not the waye of peace, neyther is there anye feare of God before theyr eyes. Theyse are y ^e synful, wycked, and dāpnable fruytes [Page] which you full of synne, wyckednes and dāpnacion brynge forth. Gen. ix. Your mindes & thoughtes also are prone to euel at al tymes. Ye are not a­ble once to thynke a good thought of youre selues. ii. Cor. iii. Who beyng borne of a woman can appeare pure and cleane in the syghte of God, Iob. xxv. before whome the starres are not pure?

What is thā to be thoughte of mā, which is nothynge but duste and a very worme? [...]. xx. Who is able to sai, my herte is cleane, and I am pure frō synne? Ye haue al synned, ye are all become vncleane, Esai. xlvi. all youre ryghte­ousnes are lyke a cloth polluted w ^t menstrue. Ye are fallen as a leafe, and youre iniquityes haue caryed you awaye as the wynd. i. Ioan. i. Yf ye say, that ye haue no synne, ye deceyue youre selues, Iere. xvii. & the trueth is not in you. For your herte is wycked and inserutable. Ye are vnprofytable [Page] seruasites. Luk. xvii Yea ye are Hypocrites and wycked, Esa. ix. and. liii. and the mouthes of you al haue spoken folyshnes. Al y ^• sorte of you haue gone astraye as shepe, euerye one haue walked af­ter his owne fantasye. Psa. iiii. Ye all are of stuburne harte, Iere. iiii. ye loue vanities & seke after lyes. To be shorte, ye are folysh people, vnwyse chyldren and madde. To do myschefe ye are wyse ynough, but to do good ye are very fooles.

Here may ye se as in a clere mirroure youre deformyte, youre bot­ches, youre sores, youre greuous woundes. What we are of ourselues. Nowe maye ye learne what ye are of youreselues, certes very fleshe, that is to saye, al that e­uer noughte is, enemyes to God, louers of your selues, captyues to Satan, and fyrye brondes of hell. What remedy? What shyfte wyl ye fynd: Whyther wyl ye go? to what [Page] coast wyl ye turne you? Ps. cxxxviii. Howe wyll ye escape the fearce wrath of God? Whyther wyll ye go from hys spy­rite. Whyther wyll ye flye from his face? Yf ye go vp into heauen, he is there, yf ye go downe to hel, ther is he redy also. Yf ye take your flyght in the mornynge, & dwel in the fur­thest parte of y ^• see, verely his hand wyll retche you there, yea and hys ryght hand shall catch you. What wyll ye do nowe? to flye profyteth nothynge, to abyde also bryngethe dampnacion. Thus se you that y [...] can not escape by no meanes. To demulse, mitigate & swage y ^• deuyne yre & Gods wrath ye are not able. Your syn hath made God angry w^ you. What haue ye nowe I praye you, wherwith ye may please him? your selues as ye haue hearde here to fore, Ephe. ii. are the children of wrath be gotten in synne, Psal. l. conceyued in syn, [Page] borne in synne, Ioan. iii. carnall, wycked and vngodly, your herte is corrupte, Iere. xvii. vncleane, stynkynge, flowynge wythe iniquite, arrogāt, puffed vp, proud hatyng God, louyng it selfe, full of hypocrisy and all euell. Esai. xxxiiii [...] Your fruy­tes are lyke vnto your selues, y ^• is, detestable in y ^• syght of God. What [...]ertu thē can ther come out of such corrupte and polluted place? Iacob. iii. What purenes can ther flow out of a puddle so fylthy, so dyrtye, so vncleane, so stynkyng, so vnsauery? Thus se ye that ye haue no waye to pacyfye Gods wrath, whiche ye haue styred vppe agaynst youre selues thorowe your owne wickednes. O dolor [...]us calamitie, [...] myserable wretched [...] nesse. What ther­fore remayneth, but only that you loke for all cruel and greuous thin­ges. Helles mouthe is open & redye to swallow you vp. The fyre of hel which shall neuer be quenched, tari­eth you. Euerlastynge tormentes, [Page] Intollerable punishments, perpetual turmoylynges abyde you. Ye are appoynted to the place, Math. xxii. where we­pyng & gnasshyng of teth is, Act. xxv where the fyre is inextinguible, Psal. xxxvi where the worme of them that be there, neuer dye. What wyll ye do nowe? What shyf [...]e wyll ye fynde? Of y ^• lawe. Wyll ye fulfyl the lawe whiche God gaue you by Moyses, Iohan. iii. and so pacifye his wrath? Gene. vi. But this to do ye are not able. i. Cor. xv. For of your selues ye are nothynge but flesshe and cleane without God. Rom. viii.

Flesshe and bloud can not possesse y ^• kyngedome of God. They that are flesshly, regarde those thynges that pertayne to the flesshe. And the de­syre of the flesshe is death. Yea the desyre of y ^• flesshe is emnite agaynst God. For it is not subiecte to the lawe of God, neyther canne it be by any meanes. They that are in the flesh, can not please God. Yea they [Page] that lyue after the flesshe, shall dye▪ And he that hath not Gods spirite, Gene. [...] pertayneth not to God. Now haue not ye the spirite of god, Gala. v in asmuch as by Adam ye be all flesshe (for the flesshe lusteth agaynst the spirite, & the spirite agaynst the flesshe) howe than wyll ye fulfyl the lawe to ape­ase Goddes wrath.

Moreouer the lawe is spiritual that is, The law is spirituall. it requireth not only poly­tyke & cyuple workes, Rom [...]. vii but also the pure affectes, and cleane mocyons of the spirite, and must be fulfylled not with the externall worke only, but also wythe a francke and free herte, i. Ioh. iii [...] doing the workes of the law, not of constraynte & for feare of pu­nyshment, but of loue. For perfecte charitie or loue casteth out feare.

But as the law is spirituall, so are ye carnall, that is, prone and redye to all noughtines, buryed in synne [Page] and no lesse bonde to Satan, than a bought slaue is obstricte & bonde vnto his mayster. Nowe is the law & you of a contrary nature. When then shall ye agre? Rom. vii The lawe, I confesse, is holy, i. Timo. i & the precepte is holy, righteous & goood, but ye are vnholy, wicked & euel. How wil ye thē accomplysh the lawe, that ye maye pacify Gods wrath, & deserue remissi­on of youre synnes thorowe youre owne merytes and desertes? Cā he that is deade erecte & lyfte vp hym selfe? Can he resume & take agayne his armonies? Can he recouer new strengthes? Cā flesshe teach flesshe no more to synne? Cā the Egle commaund her selfe no more to flye? Cā the Dolphynne cease to swymme? Iere. xiii Can the man of Inde chaunge hys skynne? and the catte of the moun­tayne her spottes? Nether cā ye of your selues cease to be y ^• ye are, nor [Page] yet worke good, which so long haue ben exercysed in euel The lawe kylleth, ii. Cor. iii. it gyueth not lyfe. Rom. iiii. The lawe worketh wrath, displeasure & dam­nacion, it purchaseth not grace, fa­uoure, mercye, remission of synnes, peace and tranquilite of cōscience. For cursed is euerye one that aby­deth Deu. xxvii. not in all thynges y ^• are wryt­ten in the boke of the lawe that he maye do them. Gal. iiii. No man fulfyllethe the whole lawe, ergo no man is iu­stifyed by the lawe, but rather cur­sed and brought to dampnacion. Iacob. ii.

For he that kepeth the whole lawe, and yet offende the in one, is made gylty of them all. Ioan. vii. Moses gaue you a lawe, Act. xv. and yet none of you all do fulfyll it. Neyther ye nor youre fa­thers were euer able to bere y ^• yoke of the lawe. Who euer entred into the glorye by the fulfyllynge of the lawe? Gal. v [...] Wyl ye therfore seke to be iustifyed [Page] by the lawe, ye are vtterlye fallen from that which ye soughte. You not knowynge the righteous­nesse of God, and sekyng to stablysh youre owne ryghteousnes, Rom. [...]. can not be made subiecte to the ryghteous­nes of God. Why y ^• law was gyuen. The lawe was gyuen you by Moses from God, not that you shoulde seke to be made ryghteous by it, which is a thynge impos­sible, but that it shoulde declare to you the wyll of God, proue the obe­diēce of your her [...]e, kepe you in an honest and godly trade of lyuynge, [...] refrayne you from wycked doynge, represse ydolatry, swearing, vngodlines, disobediēce, thefte, māslaug­ter, adultrye, false wytnesse. &c. set before your eies your abhominable wickednes and synful lyuyng, that you may learne to knowe your sel­ues, and make the more hast to ap­proch vnto Gods mercy. Romo. ii. For by y ^• [Page] lawe commethe the knowledge of synne: [...]. xx. Ye should not haue knowen synne but by the lawe. Deut. v. For ye had not knowen concupiscence excepte the law had sayd, Gala. iii. thou shalt not co [...]ytte. Rom. iii. The lawe is a schole mayster to teache you what ye ought to do. Whose admoniciōs, warnynge and instruccions, seynge ye folowe not nor obeye as it teachethe, and as ye oughte, it rather cōdēpne thā saue you, kyll then quicken you. For no fleshe shalbe iustifyed by y ^• workes of the lawe in y ^• syght of god. Rom. iii [...] Your laboure therfore in thys behalfe is vayne, Gala. v. seynge that ye seke Gods fa­uour, remission of synne, iustifica­ [...]ion, saluacion, and eternall glorye by y ^• workes of the lawe only. The [...] of the olde law. Why­ther wil ye now fly? wil ye pacyfye Gods wrath by offrynge vp the sa­crifyces of the ceremoniall lawe?

This also is in vayne. For yf y ^• workes [Page] of y ^• moral law, [...] vii. I meane the. x. commaundementes, brynge no mā to perfeccion, and are nothyng lesse thā able to pease y ^• deuine wrath by cause of theyr vncleanes whiche do y ^• cōmaūdemētes, yea rather which do thē not, how thā cā this be brou­ght to passe by external ceremonies which are nothing but types fygu­res, [...] x. cloudes, & shadowes of good thi [...] ges to cōe? Here therfore do ye no thing els thā as the commune Prouerbe is, go about to make an Ethiop whyte. For as touchynge youre sacrifyces, it is manyfest by diuers places of the scriptures, that God hath no pleasure in thē. [...] vi. Wherfore, sayeth he, do ye brynge vnto me en­lence out of Saba, and swete smel­lynge Calamus oute of farre coun­trees? Youre burnt offrynges are not accepted, and youre sacrifyces haue not pleased me. [...] vii. Agayne, put [Page] youre burnte offringes to your sa­crifices, & eate y ^• flesh, for I dyd not speake with youre fathers, neither dyd I commaūd thē on y ^• daye, whā I broughte thē oute of the lande of Egypte, any thyng at all of burn [...]e offringes and sacrifices, but I commaūd thē this word, sayeng: Heare you my voyce, & I shalbe your god, and ye shall be my people, walke in euerye waye that I haue cōmaun­ded you, that ye may prosper. But they would not once heare me, nor geue attendaunce to me, but they followed their owne pleasures, and walked in the lewdnes of theyr malicious hertes, so that they fel clene frō me. Esai. i. To what purpose do ye of­fer vnto me the multitude of your sacrifices, A [...]mos. v. sayeth the LORDE? I am full of them. Mala. i. The burnte offringes of youre wethers, and the fatte of youre fatlynges, and the bloude of [Page] youre calues, of your lambes & go­tes woulde not I haue. Whan ye come before my syghte, who requy­reth these thynges of your hādes? Offer I praye you, no more Sacri­fyce to me thus in vayne. Your en­sence is abhominacion to me. Your Sabbothes and holye dayes by no meanes can I away with. He that offereth an oxe, is lyke to hym that kylleth a man. He y ^t sleyeth a beast, is lyke vnto hym that braynethe a dogge. [...]sal. lxvi. He that offereth an oblaciō, is lyke vnto hym that offereth swy­nes bloude. Here le ye y ^t God hathe no pleasure in these externall sacri­fices, but rather abhorreth them.

Then perceyue you full well, that this is no waye to delyuer your selues out of captyuitie, & to obtayne the fauoure of God. Thīges of a good in­ [...]ent. What wyll ye now do? Wyl ye inuent new thiges of your owne fātasy, & offer thē to [Page] God of a good intent, that by this meanes he maye be the more mercyfull to you? This also is yet mooste vayne. For yf thynges prescribed & commaunded of God himselfe, can not [...]btaynē for you remyssyon of your synnes, what shall than your dreames, youre fantasies, your in­uencions, your good intētes, your godly zeles, Deut. iiii do in this behalfe? Prouer. xx [...] Ue­rely ye are in a miserable case. Apoca. xxii. For ye maye not put any thynge to the word of God, nor yet plucke ought from it. Ye muste walke in the way that God hath appoynted you, neyther maye ye declyne on the ryghte hande nor on the lyfte hand. Deut. xii [...]. xiii. Yea ye maye not do to your LORDE god y ^•, which ye thynke best in your owne eyes, but that only whiche he com­maundeth you. Here therfore is no euasion, nor way to escape y ^• fearce plages of God. Certes the longer [Page] ye wrastle and entāgle your selues in this behalfe, the worsse ye are, so farre as I can perceyue, so vnable are ye of your selues in any poynte to satisfy Goddes wrath, & to make hym your frende.

What refuge then can ye nowe inuente? Our deseruīg is euerlastyng dā nacion yet is there nothynge be­fore your eyes set, but only desperacion & eternall death, for ye haue deserued no other, & y ^e rewarde of syn is death. Rom. vi. Certes the hooke is layde at the roote of the tree that euery tree that bryngeth forthe not good fruyte, shalbe hewen downe & caste into the fyre. Math. iii. Howe nowe wyll ye escape from the wrathe that is to come? [...]ii [...]. Es. xv Wo be vnto them that synne and kepeth not my cōmaundemen­tes, sayeth y ^e LORDE, surely I wyll not spare thē. Sinners shalbe tur­ned into hell, Psal. ix. yee and all those peo­ple that forget God. For God shall [Page] raygne snares vpon synners, Psal. xi. fyre & brymestone, Psa. lxvii. storme and tēpest shall be parte of theyr cuppe. As smoke decayeth, so shall the wycked decay, and as waxe meltethe before y ^• face of the fyre, so shal synners perysh before the face of God. Eccl. xii. The moost hy­est hateth synners, & he wyll be reuenged of the wycked. Ecc. xviii. The soule y ^• hath synned, psa. xxxiii. shal dye. i. Pet. iii. The counte­naunce of the LORDE is vpon them that do euell, i. Ioan. iiii that he may roote the remembraūce of thē out of y ^• erth. Deut. iiii.

He that cōmytteth synne, Heb. xiii. is of the dyuell. Eccl. xli. For the dyuell synneth from the begynnynge God is a consu­myng fyre. It is a dreadfull thyng to fall into the hādes of the lyuyng god. Wo be to you therfore O ye vngodly men, which haue forsakē the lawe of the LORDE that moost high god. If that ye be borne, in cursing shall ye be borne, & yf ye dye, in cur­sīg [Page] also shalbe your part, The miserable captiui [...] of mā. what wil ye now do? Here ye se nothyng but malediction, cursynge, wrath, ven­geaunce, destruction, perdicion, dā nacion. Here perceyue ye no waye to escape the greate displeasure of god, but only to precipitate & caste your selfe headlong into hell pytte to be burnte w ^t the continuall fla­mes of that moost terrible and gre­uous fyre. Remedye is there none, all conforte is gone, besydes sorowe and mournyng, nothing here doth appeare, o the miserable case, wher­in ye stonde.

Me thynk I se you nowe agayn very sory, much lamentyng, wryn­gyng your handes, tearyng youre heere, cursynge the tyme of youre byrth, hauyng pleasure in nothing walkyng as persons īdistresse, void of al consolacion and conforte, verely I haue broughte you into thys [Page] case y ^• your ioy afterward should be the greater, The knowledge of our selues ledeth vs to christ. and that you shoulde haue the more pleasaunte and ioyefull newes, whiche I nowe bringe to you oute of heauen. For no man knoweth what a precious thyng a Phisicion is, excepte fyrste of all he sealeth hymselfe diseased, & percey­ueth that he hath nede of a Phisicion, yf he intende to enioye the benefyte of health. Mat. i [...] They that are strōge haue no neade of a Phisicion, but they that are sycke. Nowe therfore heare agayne your moost pleasaūt newes, Ioan. xv. and. [...]vi. that youre sadnes maye be turned into ioye, & that youre ioye maye be ful and perfecte.

God, perceyuynge in what my­serable case Adam and all his posterite Gen. iii. was set thorowe the brekynge of his moost blessed and holye com­maundement, [...]ap. ii. agayne that by the enuy of Satan, death was come o­uer [Page] all the worlde, [...]it. iii. wyllynge of his owne free mercye withoute ony of your merites or desertes, to shewe hym selfe of no lesse puissaunce, to saue man, that the dyuell was to condēpne hym, sayd at that present to Satan, whan Adam had offen­ded: [...]en. iii. I wyll set emnite betwene the and an woman, betwene thy seede and her seed, and that selfe seed shall treade downe thy heade. The begynning of our saluaciō is Christ here [...] Promy [...]. O mooste swete and confortable promyse. O moost heauēly word of grace. Here is y ^e begynnyng of your ioy & glad­nes. In Adam were ye all lost, but ī this seed of a womā are ye al saued But who is thys seede? Not Abell, [...] [...]oche, Abrahā, Isaac Iacob, nor Dauid. Who then? Uerely euē the sonne of God, euen Iesus Chryste, Esay. vii. which w ^tout y ^• seed of mā by y ^e won­derful operaciō of y ^e holy ghost, Mat. i. dyd take very flesh of y ^• moost pure vir­gyn [Page] Mary, Luke. i Gene. iii Christ [...]uer­cōmeth Sa­tan for vs. & is this day borne īto y ^• world. He is this seed of a woman, which shal trede downe the head of this serpent, y ^• is to say, destroy his power, delyuer you out of captiui­te, set you agayne at lyberte, recon­cyle you to God y ^• father, purchase remission of youre synnes, obtayne the holy Ghost for you, & make you fellow heyres w ^t hym of eternall glory. Satan, synne, death & hell, with all theyr armye shall nowe no more agaynste you preuayle. i. Cor. x [...] For by this seed of a woman Iesus Christ your LORDE, hath God gyuē you the vi­ctory. So that nowe with tryum­phant hertes and reioysynge spiry­tes, Dse [...]. xiii. ye may say, O deth wher is thy styng? O hell where is thy victory? For nowe is he borne, whyche shall [...]aye death, & delyuer you from the power of deathe, yea from deathe it selfe shall he redeme you. And hell [Page] shall he swallowe vp, so that Satā shall haue no more domynion ouer you.

Moreouer in this seed alone Ie­sus Christ shall all nacions be bles­sed. In christ we are blessed. In Adā ye all were cursed, Gene. xi. i. but in Christe ye be all blessed. Gala. iii. Adam brought to you wrath and displea­sure, but Christ bryngeth loue and [...]auour. Mark what we are by Adā, & what by Christ. Adā is the author of synne, death and dampnacion, but Christ is the author of goodnesse, lyfe and saluaciō. Adam casteth you downe into hell, but Christ lyfteth you vp to heuen. Adā maketh you fyre brā des of hell, but Christe maketh you inheritours of eternall glorye. By the synne of Adā many were dead, but by the goodnes of Christ, grace hath come vpon many. Rom [...]. v. By the wic­kednesse of Adam synne came vpon all men vnto dampnacion, but by the righteousnes of Christ saluaciō [Page] is come vpon al men vnto the iusti­ficacion of lyfe. By the disobediēce of Adā, many were made synners, but by the obedience of Christe many are made rygtheous. Thus se you y ^• in Christe ye are blessed, that is, pardoned of your synnes & receiued īto fauour. Furthermore this is he, Gen. xiix. of whome Iacob dyd prophe­cy that he should come beyng loked for & desyred of all naciōs. Deut. xvii. This is that Prophet whome God promi­sed to Moses that he woulde rayse vp amonge his brothers, [...]. xvii. & put hys wordes in his mouth, so that who­so euer wyll not heare hym, shall perysshe & vtterly be destroyed. Exo. xii. This is he whyche was fygured in the Nu. xxi. olde lawe by so many tipes, Ex. xvi. vii. ceremonies and shadowes. i. Pa. xvii. This is that kynge whose kyngdome God pro­mysed vnto Dauid to corroborate & establysshe for euermore. This is [Page] that euerlastynge preeste, Psal. xxx. Psal. cix. Esa. lxiiii. Psa. cxliiii Luk. x. after the order of Melchisedech. This is he, whome so manye kynges and Pro­phetes haue desyred to se. And now is he cōe which so lōg hath ben desyred. How much blessed & fortunate are ye therfore, vnto whom it hath chaūsed to se this day? ye maye wel reioyse, Psa. xlvi. & clappe youre handes for ioye. Io. iii. xii. For he is not borne to be vnto you a tyrant, a fearce LORDE, a cruell iudge, an extreme reuenger, but a swete sauyour, a gentle LORDE, a bountyous fauourer, a mercyfull forgyuer. Mat. i. Whyche thynge ye maye well perceyue by his name, for hys name is IESVS, Iesus by enterpretacion is [...] gyuen vnto hym of God hys father by the Aungell, which by true interpretacion, is a SAVIOVR. For he it is that shal saue his people frō theyr sinnes. Marke he shal saue them and not condēne thē. If he had had a rigorous name [Page] ye myghte well haue ben afearde of hym, but his name is full of swete­nes, pleasare, delectacion & cōforte. And because ye shoulde not feare to come vnto hym, Christe be­came poore for to make vs rytche. Luke. i. Psal. viii Heb. ii. Ioan. xvii Mat. viii. ii. Cor. viii beholde he is not borne royallye after y ^e maner of the wordly Prynces set out w ^t gallant pompe, but humbly, mekely & lowe­ly. For he lyeth symply, in a maun­ger wrapped in vyle cloutes, whan not withstandynge he is LORDE o­uer all thinges both in heauen and in earth. But his kyngdome is not of this worlde. For he hathe not so much as a place wher he may lay his head. Thus is he become poore, that by his pouertye ye shoulde be­come rytche. O howe muche are ye bounde to this poure newe kynge & sauiour, which when he was in the forme of God, Philip. ii ye very God himselfe toke vpō him y ^• shape of a seruaūte, and became very mā for your sake. [Page] Yf she had not done thus, Christ alone sauethe, and makethe vs cleane from all synne. certes ye had ben damned for euer and euer. For youre synne was so haynous & great, that it coulde not otherwyse be taken awaye but only by hym.

By him, yea by hym alone are all youre synnes put awaye. He it is, yea he it is alone, which putteth a­waye your iniquities for his owne sake, & wyll remember thē no more. A righteous God, Esaie. xliii Esaie. xlv & suche a one as saueth, is there none but he alone. He is that lambe of God, Iohan. i. which ta­keth awaye the synne of the world. He is that sauyour, which is come into the world for to saue synners. He it is, Tim [...]. li Actum. iiii. in whose name and in none others vnder heauen, men must be saued.

Moreouer dyuers graue, The vrgent cause of christes byrth. weightye & serious causes are there, why it was conuenient that this youre sauiour should be borne. Fyrst, that [Page] in asmuch as ye all are greuous sinners & haue broken all the cōmaundementes of God, he shoulde fulfyll the lawe for you, Christ dely­uerethe vs frō the curse of the lawe. delyuerynge you from the curse of the lawe, wherun to ye are bounde, or els saued could ye be by no meanes. And this shall this chylde, whiche is nowe borne, do for you: I meane, satis [...]y the law before he ascende agayne vnto his father, & set you free from the male­diccion and curse of the lawe. Rome. x. For Christ is the perfecte fulfyllynge of the lawe vnto iustificacion for eue­ry one that beleueth. Gala. iii. Christ shall redeme you from the curse of y ^• lawe, whyle he is made accursed for your sake. Deut xxi For it is writtē, cursed be eue­ry one y ^t hāgeth vpō a tree. O what ioyfull trdinges are these vnto you for to heare, y ^• Christe shall delyuer you from the curse of the lawe, and restore you vnto lyfe, whiche before [Page] were dead?

Secondly seyng that the world is without all knowlege of god, Christ tea­cheth truely the wyll of his Father. corrupte with Idolatrye, poysoned w ^t theyr owne ymaginacions, drowe­ned with Ipocrisy, and altogyther s [...]t on wickednes (the head Prestes Bisshops, lawers, Scribes & Pha­risees corruptyng the holy scriptu­res on such maner with theyr pestilent gloses) it is necessary that this Christe the wisdomme of the father come downe, & redresse theise great absurdities, reducyng & bringynge the deuyne Scriptures agayne to theyr true sence, that men maye for sake all Idolatrye, all vngodly doc­tryne, all wycked customes, & lerne to knowe the true God. [...]an. iii. And sure­lye as he is come from God to be a mayster & teacher, so wyll he vndoutedly teache godly thynges. For he that cōmeth from heauen, is aboue [Page] al men: And that he hathe sene and hearde, that wyll he testify. For he whome God hath sent, speaketh the wordes of God. For God gyuethe not hym the spyrite, Esay. lxi. Luke. iiii. to a measure. But the spyryte of God is plente­ously vpon hym, because he hath an noynted hym, to preach glad tidynges, to y ^• poore hath he sente hym, y ^t he should heale the broken in herte, preach delyueraunce to prysoners, syght to the blynde, and frely set at libertye them that are brused, and declare the acceptable yeare of the LORDE. Esa. xi. Esa. ii. The earth shalbe full of the knowlege of the LORDE. All naciōs shall resorte vnto hym. They shall saye one to another, come, let vs go vp to the mount of the LORDE, & to the house of the God of Iacob, & he shall teache vs his wayes, that we maye walke in his pathes. The people that walke nowe in darkenes, [Page] shall se a great lyght, Esa. ix. Mat. iiii. & they y ^• dwell in the land of the vadowe of death, shal haue the lyght shyne vpon thē Christ shal multiply the people and encrease theyr ioye also. He shall make them to reioyse, euen as men that make mery in heruest, & as mē that haue gotten the vyctory, whē they deale the spoyle. For he shall breake y ^e yoke of y ^t peoples burden. The wolfe shal dwell with y ^e lambe, Esa. xi. & the catte of the mountayne shall ly with the goate. The calfe the ly­on, & the shepe shall dwel togyther, & the yonge chylde shal not once be afearde of them. The calfe and the beare shall fede one with another, & theyr youngelynges shall take theyr reste togyther. And the lyō lyke as the ore shal eate chaffe. And the in fant so soone as it is wened, shal lye playeng vpon the hooles of adders and the chylde that is wened shall [Page] put his hande into a cokeatrycesnest. They shall not hurte, nor they shal not kyl in al Gods holy moun­tayne. For the earth shalbe full of the knowledge of the LORDE, euen as though the water of the see flo­wed ouer the earth. O what a syn­guler plesure is this for you, which hitherto of blind gides haue blyndly be led in all kynd of Idolatrye & wyckednes to the great daunger & peryll of your soules health (for yf the blynd lead the blynd, Math xv. bothe fall into the dytch) to haue such an hea­uenly teacher cōmyng downe from the bosome of god the father, Ioan. iii. Tit. i. which can not ly, but wyl purely & syncerly teach you al trueth, Ioan. xvi [...] Sap. xv. that ye may vndoubtedly knowe the true God, whych thynge is euerlasting lyfe, & cōsummate or perfecte ryghteous­nes. Can any newes be brought vnto you mor [...] ioyfull than these? He [Page] is truly to much brutal, that reioy seth not at the hearyng of them. Christ confirmeth his doctrine w ^t myracles.

Thyrdly he shal not onlye wyth all syncerite enforme you of the de­nyne wyl of his celestial father, but he shal also worke manye straūge & wonderfull myracles amonge you, mat. vii i. mat. [...]x. [...]u. xi. mat. xii. Luk. xii. Ioan. xi. mat. ix. Luk. v. to cōfyrme his doctryne, & to shewe that he is vnfaynedly y ^• true Mes­sias, which so many yeres was promised before to come. For he shal restore the sycke to theyr healthe, the blynd to theyr syght, the deathe to they hearynge, the domme to theyr speakyng, the halte to theyr goyng the madde to theyr whole mynde, y ^• possessed of y ^e dyuel to theyr perfect state, the dead to theyr lyfe, the syn­ful to grace & vertue. Then as the Prophet sayeth, shal the eyes of the blynde be made to se, and the eares of the deafe shalbe opened. Thē shal the halte skyppe as the herte, & the [Page] tonge of the domme shalbe losoned. They shall wa [...]ke as persones dely­uered & set at liberty of the LORDE. They shal turne and come into Sion with prayse, & euerlastinge gladnes shalbe vpon theyr head. Ioye & myrthe shall they haue, sorowe and mourning shal fly from thē. Whose herte reioyseth not to heare theyse moost plesaūt & cōfortable newes?

Fourthly he shall watch, Christ is ou­res & al chri­stes good dedes are oure good dedes. Luke. ix. Math. iiii. pray & fast exercysyng all kynde of benefy­cence and vertue, yea & that not for hymselfe shall he do theise thynges, but for you, for your helth, for your cōmodite, profyte & saluacion. All y ^t euer he shal do, shalbe done for your sake. i. Cor. i. His watching, fastynge, pray­enge, almes dedes, & al that euer he dothe, shall be done for you. All hys good dedes shalbe yours. His rygh­teousnes, holynes & godly lyfe shall be youres. Christes dedes muste ne­des [Page] be youres, Esai. ix Christe is oure newe yeres gyft. for Christ himselfe is youres. This Chylde is borne for your sake, & this sonne is giuen vn­to you. He is your new yeres gifte. He that hathe not spared his owne sonne, Ioh. iii. Esai. [...]iii Rom. viii. but hathe geuen him for all you, how is it possible but y ^t w ^t this his sonne he muste nedes geue you all thynges. Who shall nowe ther­fore attēpte any synne agaynst you that be the electe and chosen people of God? It is God that iustifiethe & maketh you righteous, who then is he that cāne condempne you? O moost blessed & ioyfull tidynges.

Fyftely when he hath full godly on this maner both lyued verteously, Of y ^• deth of Christe. and also preached purely the de­uyne wyl of his celestial father, Iohan. vii the Bysshoppes, the head Preestes, the Scribes & Pharisees,) whiche tho­row theyr obstinate blyndnes & pretensed malyce shall euer hate hym, [Page] [...]aye in wayte to snare him ī his sermōs calūmate his moost godly doc­tryne, Mat. xxii. Math. xi. Iohn. viii. Iohn. xii. Math, xi Math. xii. obscure his mooste pure & ir­reprehensible name) shall at y ^• laste growe into so great a malyce & fu­ry against Christ, that they shall neuer cease vntyll they haue cruellye slayne him. Iohn. vii [...] Iohn. [...]. Iho [...]. vii. Iohn. ii. Luke. xxiii Mat. xxvi Luke. xxiii Iohn. xix. For they shall reporte him to be a glotton, a wynebybber, a frende of Publicās & sinners, one that casteth out diuelles by y ^• helpe of Beelzebull prynce of the dyuels, a Samaritane, one possessed withe a diuell, one all togyther set a mad­dinge, a seductour and deceyuer of the people, a destroyer of Gods temple, an herityke, a traytoure, & one that forbyddeth to paye tribute to Cesar. They shal make his owne disciple to betraye hym thorowe gyf­tes & rewardes. They shall brynge in false wy [...]nes agaynste him for to condēpne him to death, They shall [Page] brynge him before the tēporall iud­ges. Marke. xv. Beholde the payn [...]s that Christ suffe­red for vs. They shall laye many thynges to his charge vniustlye. They shall mocke him, they shall rayle on him, they shall spytte on hym, they shall buffet him, they shall scourge hym, they shal put a crowne of thorne on his heade, they shall nayle hym on a crosse, they shall pricke him euē to y ^e herte with a speare, they shall for very despyte hange him betwene two theues, and cruell murtherers, as thoughe he were the chefe & princy­pall. No kynd of torment or vilany can be inuented. but the very same shall they exercyse vpō him. [...] For frō the sole of the foote, to the toppe of the hed, shall ther be no whole place ī his most blessed body. O cruel fury & furious cruelnes. All these thīges shall he suffer not for his owne, but for your sake, for your health & sal­uacion, [...] yea & that wyllyngely. H [...] [Page] shal gyue his body to thē y ^• stryke, & his chekes to thē y ^t plucke thē. Hys face shall not he turne awaye from thē that rayle & spyt on hym. Esay. l [...]iii. Lyke as a shepe shal he be led to be slayne, and lyke a lambe before the clypper shal he hold his peace, nether shal he once opē his mouth. Thus because it is his pleasure, shall he offer hym selfe vpon the altare of the crosse, Colo. i▪ & by hys moost precious bloude paye our raūsome. Mat. vi [...]. Esay. lii. By this his glorious passion shal he take vpon hym your infyrmities, & beare awaye youre synnes. By his moost blessed woundes shal al your iniquities be putte awaye. Al your synnes shalbe layd on his backe. His bloud shall make you cleane from al your synne. By his bloude shal ye haue remission of your synnes. i. Ioan. i. Col [...]. i. i. Pet. i. Tit. ii. By y ^e precious bloude of this Christ, as of an immaculate and pure lambe shal ye be redemed [Page] from the tyrany of Satan. By y ^• oblacion of Christe shall ye be made free from al wyckednes, Col. i. delyuered from the power of darkenes, & caried into the gloryous kyngedome of God. Ioan. i. For he is the lambe of GOD whiche taketh awaye the synne of the worlde. Mat. xviii Luke. xix. This is that sonne of man, which is come to saue that which was lost, & not to destroy the soules of mē, but to saue thē. And al this shall come to passe by the ob­lacion & offryng of his owne moost precious & blessed body. For he shal by your Bysshop, Heb. x. not suche one as also shall haue nede to offer for hys owne synnes, but for youres onely, nether shal he be like y ^• bishoppes of y ^• old law, which offer dayly for y ^• sinnes of y ^• people suche sacrifyces, as can neuer take away sinne, nor yet make men perfecte. Heb. vii. But this your Bysshop shalbe godly, innocēt, fautles, [Page] segregated from synners, and made higher then y ^e heauēs, whiche shal not nede, as the other Bisshop­pes do, dayly to offer sacrifices first for hys owne synnes, & afterwarde for the synnes of the people. The one [...] ­cri [...]ice of christes deth serueth for euer to put away sines▪ For he beynge without al synne shall once for all offer hymselfe. And this one sacrifyce or oblacion of hys mooste blessed bodye shal be able to saue so many as beleue in him, euen to the vttermoost Christ beynge the Bys­shop of good thynges to come shall enter into y ^• holy place by hys own bloud, & fynd euerlastyng redēpciō. He thorow the holy Ghoste shall offer hymselfe immaculate to God, Heb. ix. & pourge your conscience from deade workes to serue the lyuynge God. Hē once for al offeryng vp him selfe shall take awaye the synnes of ma­ny. Hob. x [...] By the oblacion of the bodye of Iesus Christ done once for all, shall [Page] you be sanctifyed. With one obla­ciō shall he make perfecte for euer­more thē that are sanctifyed. Here se you of what īestimable pryce the sacrifyce of Christ your bysshop is. The vertue of it neuer ceaseth, The vertue of christes sacrifice ne­uer ceaseth, but endu­reth in per­fect strēgthe for euer and [...]uer. but endurethe in perfecte strengthe for euer & euer, y ^• the sinnes of y ^• fayth­ful repentant maye be forgyuen at all tymes by it. Christes bloud shall not crye for vengeaūce, as y ^• bloude of Abell dyd, but for mercy, grace & fauour. Gen. iiii. Yea by Christes bloud shall all thynges both in heauen & e [...]the be pacifyed, apeased, set at a stay, Colos. i. & reconcyled to God the father aboū ­dātly. Heb. x. So that nowe ye shalbe purged of al your synnes by this one & omnisufficiente oblacion of Iesus Christe your Bisshop. Esa. lxiii. For he alone shal treade downe the wynepresse, & take vpon his backe the great & importible burden of your synnes all. [Page] He by his death shall slaye death & ouercome Satā, Ozee. xii. synne, hel, desperacion, & all y ^• euer maye be agaynste you. So y ^• nowe ye shal be made so cleare, as though ye had neuer offē ded. Ye shall now be so set at liberty as though before ye had neuer ben in captiuite. And all this shall come to passe by the deathe alone of thys yonge chylde nowe borne, whose body shall be the alone sacrifyce of all your synnes, Augustinus in Manual, Cap. xxii. vnto the which as vnto an holy ancker ye muste alwaye ronne for ayde, refuge & succoure, trustynge assuredly, that his death [...]s youre whole hope, youre meryte, youre refuge, helth, lyfe & resurrec­cion. Mark [...] For youre meryte is the com­passion & excedyng mercy of Christ your LODRE, ye are not w ^toute me­ryte, so longe as y ^• LORD of mercyes doth not fayle, And yf the merytes of the LORDE be many, than are ye [Page] plenteous in merites. The more a­ble y ^• he is to saue, the more safe and w ^toute daūger are ye. Thus se you what a great occasiō ye haue to re­ioy se in the deathe of the LORDE Christ your alone sauyour, wherby so many synguler & great commo­dities shall chaunse vnto you. [...]. vi. God forbydde therfore that ye should re­ioyse in ony thynge at all, saue only in the crosse & death of your LORDE Iesus Christ.

Syrtely but in asmuch as it is not sufficient that this youre newe hynge Iesus Christ do dye for your synnes, Of the resurreccion of Christ. Roma. iiii. except he also ryseth againe for youre iustificacion, therfore do I also declare vnto you these moost ioyful & cōfortable newes, y ^t after he be once dead & buried he by y ^• power of his deite shall gloriouslye ryse a­gain y ^• thyrd day frō deth to life for your iustificaciō accordīg to y ^• holy [Page] scriptures. Ozee. vi For God his father shal make him alyue after two dayes, & vpon the thyrde daye he shall rayse hym vp, & he shal lyue in his syght. As Ionas was ī y ^e belly of a whale thre dayes & thre nightes, Ionas. ii &. iii so shall y ^e sonne of man be in the herte of the earth thre dayes and thre nightes. And as Ionas by y ^• power of God came out of y ^• whalles belly y ^e thyrd daye, Math. xii so in semblable wyse shall this Christ by y ^e puissaūce of God his fa­ther ryse agayne y ^• thyrd daye from deathe to lyfe. i. Cor. xv By this glorious re­surreccion of Iesus Christ, shall ye gette the victory of Satan, synne, death, Roma. iiii hell, desperacion. &c. By this glorious resurrecciō of Iesus christ shall ye be made ryghteous in God the fathers sight. Ioan. [...] By this glorious resurrecciō of Iesus Christ shal heauen gates be opened for you, which so longe haue ben sparred. Ioan. v. By this [Page] glorious resurrecciō of Iesus christ shall ye also ryse agayne, & enter īto euerlastyng lyfe. i. Petre. i. By this glorious resurrecciō of Iesus christ, shal god of his excedynge mercy beget you a new into euerlastyng hope, & an immortall heritage, which is kepte for you in heauē. Ioan. ii. For Christ is y ^• resur­recciō & lyfe, he y ^• beleueth in him, al though he be dead, yet shall he lyue, & euery one that lyueth & beleuethe in hym, shall neuer dye. Here se you in howe ioyfull and mery a state ye shall be set by Christes moost glori­ous resurreccion. What is here but that moueth & styreth vs to ioye & gladnesse? To muche brutall is he which at the heryng of these moost swete & delectable newes dothe not seriously reioyse.

Furthermore after that thys LORDE Iesus Christ is risen agayn from death to lyfe, Of Chry­stes ascen­cion. & hath continu­ed [Page] here vpō the earth certayne day­es mat. xxviii▪ shewyng himselfe vnfaynedly to mat. xvi. haue risen vnto his disciples & Luke. xxiiii. cer­tayne other, Ioan. xx. than shal he by the wō derfull power of his Godhead ascēd vp into heauē very God & Act. i. very mā in the presence of his disciples, Heb. i. that they maye be faythefull wytnesses hereof to other, & sytte downe on y ^• right hand of God his father, as e­qual God concernynge his dette w ^t his father in all vertue, puissaunce strength & power. Ioan. xiiii▪ By this his meruaylous ascencion shall he go & pre­pare places for you in y ^• house of his eternal father. For he is y ^e way, the trueth & the lyfe. Ioan. xii. No man cōmethe to y ^• father but by him. Ephe. iiii. But this his meruaylous ascēciō shall he drawe you all vnto him. Psa. ixvii. By this his mer­uaylous ascēciō shal he gyue diuers spiritual gyftes vnto you thorowe the sendyng of y ^e holy ghost y ^• swete [Page] cōfortour, Ion. xiiii. and .xvi. which shal lede you into al trueth. Although he ascēde vnto his father, yet wyll not he leue you cōfortles. mat. xxiiii. For by his deuyne spirite he wyll be w ^t you euē to the very cō summacion & ende of the world. Ios [...]e. i. He wyll not leaue & [...]orsake you. Heb. xiii. For he is called Emanual, math. i. whych is by in­terpretaciō, Esa. vi. God is with vs. Ioan. xiiii. For he is that God which wyl euer accompany you so lōge as ye abyde in his worde. Yea he wyll come & dwell w ^t you. He wyll offer himselfe to you, euen as a gentle & louynge father doth to his moost tēder childrē. [...]. xxvi. For this his promyse, I wyll, [...]. Cor. vi. sayeth he, dwell amonge thē, & be conuersant among thē, I wyll be theyr God, & they shall be my people, yea I wyll be theyr father, & they shalbe my sō nes and doughters.

Agayne though Christ shall syt on y ^e ryght hand of God y ^e father almyghty, Christ alone is oure mediatoure and aduocate. [Page] yet shal he not be ther ydle & vtterly fallē frō sekyng your pro­fyte. Rom. ix. For he shall ther continuallye pray & make intercessiō to God his father for you. He. vii. &. ix. This mā Christ Ie­sus is youre alone mediatoure, i. Tim. ii. so y ^• yf onye of you dothe synne, ye haue him to be your aduocate, i. Ioan. ii. euen Ie­sus Christ y ^• righteous. And he it is y ^• obtayneth mercy for your syn­nes. Ioan. xiiii. and .xvi. Whatsoeuer also ye aske of the father in his name, he wyll surelye gyue it you. What wyll ye desyre more? Are not these comfortable & swete newes to heare, Esa. ix. y ^• you haue this daye so precious a iewel borne amōg you, yea & gyuen you frely? Uerely youre ioye oughte to be so great, y ^t it coulde not be expressed. B [...]t let vs hear mo ioyful tidīges.

Whā y ^• tyme is ones come y ^• this world shall haue an ende, Of christes cōminge to y ^• iudgement▪ Mat. xxv. then shal this your LORDE and kynge Iesus [Page] Christ come full gloryo [...]y from the right hand of his father in his ma­iesty, i. Cor. xv. i. & before him shall be gathered al naciōs. Thes. iiii. For at y ^• voyce of y ^• arch­angell & trōpe of God shall all peo­ple ryse out of the erth, Esa. xxvi. w ^t theyr bodies both faythfull & vnfaythfull. Ioan. v. They y ^• haue done good, Rom. xiiii. shall come forth into y ^e resurrecciō of lyfe, ii. Cor. v. but they y ^• haue done euell, Rom. ii. i. into y ^• resurrecciō of dānaciō. Cor. xv. All shal be presēt before the iudgyng place of Christ. [...]. iii. Euery mā shal receyue accordynge to theyr dedes. Thā shal you which are his faythful people receyue for your corruptible body, an īcorrup­tible body, for your mortal body an immortal body, & euen such one as shal be lyke to his owne gloryous body. It hath not yet appered that ye shal be. i. Ioan. iii. But knowe ye that yf he ones appeare, ye shall be lyke vnto him, for ye shal se h [...]m as he is, This [Page] day of iudgement shalbe to the wic­ked & vnfaythfull, Sop [...] [...] Ioel. [...]i. a daye of wrath, a daye of trouble & heuines, a daye of calamite & misery, a day of darkenes & myst. Amos. v. They shall walke as mē beyng blynde, because they haue of fended the LORDE, & theyr bloude shalbe shed as y ^e dust, & theyr bodies as dūge hylles. Neyther shall theyr syluer & golde be able to deliuer thē in that daye of the LORDES wrath. For to thē it shalbe sayde. Mat. xxv. Departe from me ye cursed into euerlasting fyre, which is prepared for y ^e dyuell & his Aungels. But y ^e daye to you, which are his faythfull people, and obedient to his worde, shalbe a daye of cōsolacion, cōforte, ioye & myrthe w ^t all gladnes. For to you it shal be sayd: Mat. xxv. Come ye blessed chyldrē of my father, inheryte y ^• kyngdom prepa­red for you from the begynnyng of the worlde. i. Thes. iiii. For ye shall be taken vp [Page] in the cloudes for to mete y ^• LORDE in the ayre, and so shal ye euer he w ^t the LORDE in glory. But who is a­ble to expresse what ioy, what plea­sure, what myrthe, what gladnesse ye shal haue in heauē. Esai. xliiii The eie hath not sene, & the eare hath not herde, neither hath it entred īto y ^e herte of man y ^• God hath prepared for them that loue hī. Ye shall se him face to face, vpon whom Aungelles desyre to loke. Esai. [...]xv With sorowe, care, thought▪ payne or deathe shall ye no more be entangled. Apo. v [...]. & x [...]i. God shall wype away al teares from your eyes. Esaie. li. Your ioye, your gladnes, youre myrth shall be perpetuall. All the pleasure of this world cōpared to the leest ioy of he­uen is nothynge. Apo. xxi For this celestiall citie is of pure gold, lyke vnto clere glasse, & the foūdacions of the wal­les of this citie are garnisshed with all maner of precious stones, the gates [Page] are of fyne pearle. Yea the stre­res of this heauenlye citie are pure golde. It hath no nede of the sonne neyther of the Moone to lighten it. For the brightnes of God doth lighten it, Esaie. ix. & the lambe is the light of it. Dani. xii. In this citie shall ye glyster as the shynyng of heauē, & shalbe as y ^e ster­res, Mat. xii. worlde without ende. Ye shalbe as y ^• aūgels of God y ^• are in heauē, Ye shall be pyllers in y ^e tēple of god. Apoc. iii. Ye shall be clothed w ^t whyte garmē tes, ye shall sytte w ^t Christe vpō his seate, ye shall eate Māna y ^• is hyd. ye shall eare of y ^• tree of lyfe, which is in the myddes of the Paradise of God. Apo [...]. ii. Ye shall haue a whyte stone, & in the stone a newe name wrytten, which no man knoweth sauyng he that receyuethe it. Iacob. i. Ye shall receyue the crowne of lyfe, which the LORD hath promised to thē that loue him Ye shall receyue the vncorrupty [...] [Page] crowne of glory. i. Pet. v. Ye shal receiue the crowne of righteousnes, which the LORDE a ryghteous iudge in y ^• daye shal gyue to all thē that loue his cō mynge. i. Tim. iiii. To conclude, ye shall accor­dynge to his promyse receyue euer­lastynge lyfe, i. Ioh. ii. in the whiche ye shall lyue w ^t god the father, and this his sonne Iesus Christ your Lord and Sauiour, with the holy Ghost one very God worldes without ende, to whome alone be all honour & glory for euer and euer. i. Tim [...]. i▪ Amen.

¶A brefe rehersall of all those thynges that go before.

THus haue I declared vnto you the moost swete, moost confortable, moost plesaūt, & moost meri newes out of heaue at the cōmaundement of the hyghest & puissaūt God. Roma. v Ye se ī how miserable a case ye are redacted and [Page] fallen by the synne of Adā, Ephe. ii▪ & howe that by hym ye are all damned and made y ^• sonnes of wrath. Ye se that of your selues because of youre im­perfecciō, ye are not able to do any good thyng, that maye satisfy y ^• de­uyne wyll & apease Gods wrathe. Ye se that y ^• workes of the lawe can not make you fre in y ^• syght of god, ii. Cor. iii. neyther are ye able of youre owne strenth & free wyll so pure [...]y, so spi­ritually to do thē as the law requi­reth, Rom. ii [...]. that you may obtayne remis­syon of youre synnes by doynge of them. Heb. x▪ Ye se also that the sacrifyces of the olde lawe can neuer putte a­way synne, Dent. iii [...] ▪ xii. xiii. & as for workes of your owne inuenciō are mooste of all im­ꝑfecte, & mooste vnapte to purchase grace & fauoure. Thus se you that of youre owne selues, of your owne polecy, of your owne righteousnes ye are not able to escape the daūger [Page] of dānacion, yea rather dānaciō it selfe, Therfore dyd I declare vnto you the cōfortable newes out of he­uē, shewyng you that God, not for the workes of righteousnes that ye haue done, Tit. iii. which in dede are none, but of his owne free & great mercy hath vouchedsaufe to preserue and kepe you from the daūger of Satā sinne, death & hel, [...]uk. ii. yea and y ^t by this his welbeloued sonne Iesus Christ which this daye is borne in the cy­tie of Dauid to be the sauioure of y ^• world. mat. iii. So that for Iesus Christes sake God is well pleased with you.

Ye haue heard that y ^• lawe hath condēned you, Den. xxvi [...] in asmuch as ye are trāsgressours of it, Gel. iii. and hath made you accursed. Frō this cursse of the lawe shal christ delyuer you, not frō the lawe it selfe, that you shoulde lyue vngodly, Ephe. v. & after a remisse and dissolute maner (for such haue no in [Page] heritaūce in y ^• kyngdome of Christe & of God) but from the curse, serui­tude, bondage, damnaciō of y ^e lawe. For he shall fulfyll y ^• whole law euē to the vttermoste. math. i. And hys fulfyl­lynge shall be accepted before God the father for the fulfyllynge of so many as beleue in him. Rom. [...]. And he set­tyng you at libertye from the curse of the lawe, Eze. xxxvi. shall gyue you a newe herte, & put in you a newe spirite, & he shal take away your stony herte & gyue you a fleshly, Iere. xxxi. that is, a softe & gentle herte, redy to enclyne to y ^• accōplyshment of Goddes wyll. Heb. viii. He shal gyue his lawes into your myndes, & wryte them in your hertes, y ^• you maye euer after franckely and with a free spirite fulfyl them.

Ye haue hearde how this Christ shall brynge you oute of the darke­nes into the lyght of trueth by the syncere declarynge of hys fathers [Page] wyll. Ioan. viii. For he is the lyght of y ^• world, & God hath gyuen hym to be a wit­nes vnto the people, Esay. ix. a captayne & a mayster amonge the heythen. Mat. iiii. And this his doctryne shall he confyrme with such miracles, Esay. iv. as shall euydētly shew & proue that he is that true Messias, whiche was promysed to come. Dan. ix.

Agayne ye haue hearde y ^• all his good dedes are youres. Rom. viii. For with hī hath God the father also gyuē you all thynges, i. Cor. i. so that he is your wys­dome, your righteousnes, your sāc­tificacion and redempcion.

Ye haue herde also that he shall offer himsele for you to God the fa­ther an oblacion & swete swellynge sacrifice vpō the Altare of the crosse & that by this one oblacion & sacri­fyce of his mooste blessed body done once for all, Ephe. v. all your synnes shall be put away, ye shal be made perfecte, [Page] and wasshed from all deformitie so cleane by christes bloud, Ephe. v. as though ye had neuer offended heretofore.

Ye haue hearde agayne that as christ shal dye for your sīnes, Rom. iiii. so shal he ryse agayne for your iustificaci­on, Hebre. ii. i. obtaynynge for you the victory of synne, Cor. xv. death and hell, Ozee. xiii. y ^• that his moost glorious resurreccion.

Ye haue heard y ^• after he is once rysen agayne, he shal here remayne certayne dayes, & than ascende cor­porally into heauen, Mat. xvi. & sytte downe on the ryght hande of God y ^e father Actum. i. sendynge downe the holye Ghoste, Hebre. i. which shall lede you into all trueth. Ioan. xvi.

Ye haue hearde also that Christe syttynge on the ryght hand of God the father shall not be ydle, i. Timo. ii. but styll prouyde & seke youre helth. i. Ioan. ii. He shall be your mediatoure & aduocate. Roma▪ vii▪ He shall make contynuall intercessyon for you. Hebre. vii. He shall pleate youre cause [Page] before God his father. He shall a­uaunce your matter before the de­uyne presence. i. Iohn. ii. Yf ye at any tyme excite or styre vp gods wrath against you thorowe your iniquitie, he shall streyght wayes apease it, and make God the father, styll youre louynge father, which elles would be to you an extreme reuenger.

Ye haue herde agayne y ^• Christe at y ^• laste daye shal come gloriously frō y ^• right hād of his father to iuge the quicke & the deade, Math. xxv & howe that after the iudgemente is once done, Esai. lxiiii. ye shall enter into glory with hym, i. Cor. ii. lyuynge for euer after in such ioye, pleasure & gladnesse, as can not by any meanes eyther be expressed by tong, or cōceyued in herte. All these cōmodities, Math. [...]. pleasures & profyttes shal ye haue by this your new kīge & sauiour Iesus Christ, [...]uke. ii. which this day is borne in Bethleem a citie of [Page] Dauid. What more pleasaunt and thanckeworthye newes coulde be brought to you then theise? What coulde haue set suche a ioye in your hertes, as the hearynge of these ne­wes? Cā any thyng lyke vnto these chaunse vnto you, so great, so wel­come, so acceptable, so ioyful? Uerely yf ye seriously cōsyder the misery wherwith ye were obruted & ouer­whelmed before, ye shall easlye per­ceyue that ye haue an earnest cause to reioyce. No prisoner, no captiue, no bond slaue was euer in so great captiuite & thraldome, as ye were, before these news were brought to you. I [...] a prisoner reioysethe for his delyuerance oute of pryson, whiche once muste nedes haue an ende, yf none otherwyse, yet at the leest by death, howe great a cause thē haue you to reioyse for your deliueraūce which were captiues & prisoners to [Page] that horrible monsture and pestise­rous serpent euen Satā hymselfe, yea and that not for certayne yea­res, but for euer worldes wythout ende. Neyther was it youre body a­lone, that was in captiuite and bō ­dage but your soule also, both your body & soule were captyue to hym, so that yf this your newe kynge, re­demer & sauioure shoulde not helpe you, it could none oth [...]rwyse be but that you must nedes haue ben damned, cast into hel fyre, ther to burne to wepe, to lamente▪ for euer & euer remediles. But frō this moost gre­uous destruccion shal this chyld Iesus Christ delyuer you, & make you heyres of euerlastynge glory. What a cause haue ye nowe to reioyse? Your ioy can not be expressed, your gladnes is vnmeasurable.

Therfore seynge ye shall receyue of this youre newe kynge so many, [Page] so greate, so inestimable benefytes, loke that ye be not vnthanckefull. Receyue this your sauioure w ^t en­brasyng armes. Psal. ii. Runne vnto hym, yf not w ^t the feete of your body, yet w ^t the feete of your mynde. Know­ledge hym to be your alone & omni­sufficient sauioure, Act. iiii. & that there is none other name gyuen vnto men vnder heauen, Mat. xvi. wherin they must be saued, Esa. vii. but only this name of Iesus Christ. Ephe. ii. Confesse hym to be the true sonne of the lyuynge God, Ioan. xiiii. whiche hath nowe taken flesshe of y ^• mooste pure and cleane virgin Marye for your sake. i. Cor. i. Confesse him alone to be your peace, Eze. xxxiiii. lyfe, Colos. i. helth, i. Tim. ii. defence, goodnes, wisdom, righteousnes, sancty­ficacion, redēpcion, pastoure, shepe­hearde, Bisshoppe and heade. In al youre trouble resorte to hym as vnto a strong Bulwarke, y ^• you maye ease you of your miserable burdens [Page] Poure out your hertes before this LORD. i. Ioan. i. Knowe him to be your alone mediatour & aduocate. Ioan. xvi. Aske al thinges in his name. Esay. xlix. Dout nothyng of his greate goodnes & exceadynge mercy towarde you. Can a woman forget the chyld of her wombe, and y ^• sonne whom she hath borne? And thoughe she doth forgette hym, yet wyll not he forget you. For beholde he hath wrytten you vp vpō his hā des, math. xi. so y ^• euer ye are in his syght. He wyll vndoubtedly ease you of your burdens, Esa. xliiii. be they neuer so great. Apo. xii. If ye thurst, Ioan. vi. he wyll gyue you of y ^• wel of y ^• water of lyfe frely. If ye hūger he is that bread of lyfe, which came downe from heauē. If any mā eate of that bread, he shall lyue for euer. If ye be sycke, mat. ix. he is a Phisicion, re­dy to cure & heale all your diseases. If ye be bonde and in seruitude, Ioan. viii. he wyll make you free, & set you at ly­berite. [Page] If ye be dead in sinne, Ioan. xi. he is the resurrecciō & lyfe. Ioan. viii. If ye walke in darkenesse, he is the lyghte of the worlde. He that foloweth him, wal­keth not in darkenes, but shal haue the light of life. Rom. x. If ye be poore, he is rytch vnto all thē y ^• cal vpon hym. If ye be wicked, prophhane & folysh he is righteous, i. Cor. i. holye & wyse. If ye be oppressed wyth syn [...]e, Ose [...]. xiii, deathe of hell, i. Cor. xv. he hath subdued them al. If ye feare the wrath of God the father, i. Tim. ii. he is youre mediatour, aduocate & attonement maker. i. Ioan. ii. If ye haue condemned youre selfe thorowe synne, Mat. i. he is a sauiour, Rom. x. & wyll saue his peo­ple from theyr synnes. What wyl ye haue more? Ye wante nothynge, but he wyll supplye it for you aboū dantlye, & to the vttermoste. Feare not therfore to come to thys youre newe kynge Iesus Christe. Luke. [...]. For the very cause of his cōminge is not to [Page] destroye, but to saue the soules of men.

Receaue hym therfore with ioy­full hertes. An exortaci­on to the di­ligente do­yng of good workes. Forsake all ydolatrye & vayne supersticiō. Beleue in hym alone. Put your affiaunce & truste in none other but in him only. And let not this your fayth be dead, but agile, quicke, lyuysshe, & myghty in operaciō. Let it be such a fayth, as worketh by loue. Fyrst lette youre fayth brynge forth an earnest loue toward God, Gala. v. and oute of this loue toward god, let such a loue procede toward your neyghbour, that out of that loue ther maye sprynge plē ­tie of good workes. Psal. i. Be lyke vnto a good tree, Mat. xxi. which bringeth forth her fruyte in due tyme. Gala. vi. Be no baren & vnfruytful fygge tree vnles y ^• ma­lediccion & curse of God fal on you. While ye haue tyme, worke good to al mē. For God hath not delyuered [Page] you from the power of your enemi­es, & of all suche as hate you, y ^t you should styll cōtinue euel, or returne to your old wickednes, but that ye set at libertie and voyd of all feare, should serue him in holynes & Luke. i. righ­teousnesse before hym all the dayes of our lyfe. Rom. viii. The lawe of the spiryte of lyfe throwe Christ Iesus hathe made you free from the lawe of syn & death. Gala. v. Notwithstandyng though ye be cal [...]ed into libertie, yet let not youre libertie be an occasion to the flesshe, but by loue serue ye one ano­ther. i. Pet ii. Be as free not hauyng y ^• liberte for a cloke of wickednes, but euē as the seruaūtes of god. For Christ hath not of his owne mere bountie delyuered you from the myserable seruitude of Satan, that ye should runne agayne to that your enemy, but that ye should serue him, which hath shewed you such great kynde­nes. [Page] Ye are nowe Christes all togy­ther, Make [...]well. therfore must ye loke what he wyll haue you do. For yf he be punished, whiche disdaynethe to fulfyll the cōmaundement of a terrestiall & earthly Prynce, in what case thā are ye, yf ye do eyther cast awaye or despyse the cōmaūdement of an he­uenly gouernour? Certes ye ought so to institute & order youre lyfe, y ^t it should serue Christ your captain on such maner, that Satan should haue nothinge to do with you, nor ye w ^t hym. For he that doth synne, is the seruaunt of synne. Iohan. viii. Therfore ought you to caste awaye all synne from you, & gyue your mynd to purite & holynes of lyfe, & euer studye to mayntayne mutuall loue. Math. vii. For not euery one that sayeth, LORDE, LORDE, shall enter into the kynge­dome of heauen, but he that doth y ^• wyll of God whiche is in heauen. [Page] He that pertayneth to Christe, ii. Cor. v. is a newe creature. Gala. v. And they that be­longe vnto hym, haue crucified the flesshe with the lustes therof. Therfore yf ye be souldiers of Christe, de­clare it in outwarde workes, For it is a poynte of notable vnshamefastnes to bost your selues that ye per­tayne to Christes army, & yet do nothynge at all that he commaūdeth. He that sayeth that he dwelleth in him, i. Ioh. ii. ought to walke as he hath walked. i. Ioh. i [...] ▪ If ye saye, that ye haue fel [...]ow­shyp with Christ, and yet walke in darkenes, ye ly & do not the trueth. But yf ye walke in lyghte, as he is lyghte, than haue ye fellowshyp to­gyther, & the bloud of this your sa­uiour Iesus Christe Goddes owne sonne makethe you cleane from all synne.

Wherfore yf ye wyll enioy these moost confortable & pleasaunte ne­wes, [Page] whiche I haue broughte from heauen and haue now declared vn­to you, forsake all wickednesse, and enhaulse al godlynes, reiecte al ydolatrye, and practyse the true wor­shyppynge of God, Gala. v. caste awaye the workes of the flesshe and put on the fruytes of the spirite, mortifye olde Adam. and become newe men, to be shorte, Math. v. let your lyght so shyne before men that they maye se youre good workes & glorify your father which is in heauen, to whome wyth thys your newe kynge and omnisuffici­ent sauyour Iesus Christ Goddes owne sonne, and the holy ghost that mooste swete confortoure, be all ho­nour and glorye worldes withoute ende. AMEN.

¶Gyue the glorye to God alone.