therefore are faith, hope, charity, righteousness, truth, patience, prayer unto God; and our sword, wherewith we smite our enemies, beat and batter and bear down all falsehood, is the word of God. With these weapons, under the banner of the cross. of Christ, we do fight, ever having our eye upon our grand Master, Duke, and Captain, Christ, and then we reckon ourselves to triumph, and to win the crown of everlasting bliss: when enduring in this battle without any shrinking or yielding to the enemies, after the example of our grand Captain,. Christ, our Master, after the example of his holy prophets, apostles, and martyrs: when, I say, we are slain in our mortal bodies of our enemies, and are most cruelly and without all mercy murdered down like a many of sheep; and the more cruel, the more painful, the more vile and spiteful is the kind of death, whereunto we be put, the more glorious in God, the more blessed and happy we reckon, without all doubt, our martyrdom to be.

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And thus much, dear lovers and friends in God, my countrymen and kinsfolk, I have spoken for your comfort, lest of my death, of whose life you looked peradventure sometimes to have had honesty, pleasures, and commodities, ye might be abashed or think any evil whereas ye have rather cause to rejoice, if ye love me indeed, for that it hath pleased God to call me to a greater honour and dignity, than. ever I did enjoy before either in Rochester or in the see of London, or ever should have had in the see of Durham, whereunto I was last of all elected and named: yea, I count it greater honour before God indeed to die in his cause (whereof I nothing doubt) than is any earthly or temporal promotion or honour, that can be given to a man in this world.

And who is he, that knoweth the cause to be God's, to be Christ's quarrel, and of his Gospel, to

be the common weal of all his elect and chosen children of God, of all the inheritors of the kingdom of heaven who is he, I say, that knoweth this assuredly by God's word, and the testimony of his own conscience, as I, through the infinite goodness of God, not of myself, but by his grace, acknowledge myself to do: who is he, I say, that knoweth this, and both loveth and feareth God; indeed and in truth, loveth and believeth his master, Christ, and his blessed Gospel, loveth his brotherhood, the chosen children of God, and also lusteth and longeth for everlasting life who is he, I say again, that would not or cannot find in his heart in this cause to be content to die?

The Lord forbid, that any such should be, that should forsake this grace of God. I trust in my Lord God, the God of mercies and the father of all comfort, through Jesus Christ our Lord, that he, which hath put this mind, will, and affection by his holy spirit in my heart, to stand against the face of the enemy in his cause, and to choose rather the loss of all my worldly substance, yea, and of my life too, than to deny his own truth: that he will comfort me, aid me, and strengthen me evermore even unto the end, and to the yielding up of my spirit and soul into his holy hands, whereof I most heartily beseech his most holy sacred Majesty, of his infinite goodness and mercy, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Now that I have taken my leave of my countrymen and kinsfolk, and the Lord doth lend me life and giveth me leisure, I will bid my other goodfriends in God, of other places also, farewell. And whom first or before others, than the university of Cambridge, where I have dwelt longer, found more faithful and hearty friends, received more benefits (the benefits of my natural parents only excepted),

than ever I did even in mine own native country, wherein I was born.

. Farewell, therefore, Cambridge, my loving mother and tender nurse. If I should not acknowledge thy manifold benefits, yea, if I should not for thy benefits at the least love thee again, truly I were to be counted ungrate and unkind. What benefits hast thou ever, that thou usest to give and bestow upon thy best beloved children, that thou thoughtest too good for me? Thou didst bestow on me all thy school degrees of thy common offices, the chaplainship of the university, the office of proctorship, and of a common reader: and of thy private commodities and emoluments in colleges, what was it that thou madest me not partner in? First, to be scholar, then fellow, and, after my departure from thee, thou calledst me again to a mastership of a right worshipful college. I thank thee, my loving mother, for all this thy kindness, and I pray God, that his laws and the sincere Gospel of Christ may ever be truly taught and faithfully learned in thee.

Farewell, Pembroke Hall, of late mine own college, my cure, and my charge: what case thou art in now, God knoweth; I know not well. Thou wast ever named since I knew thee (which is now thirty years ago) to be studious, well learned, and a great setter forth of Christ's Gospel and of God's true word. So I found thee, and, blessed be God, so I left thee indeed: woe is me for thee, mine own dear college, if ever thou suffer thyself by any means to be brought from that trade. In thy orchards * (the walls, butts, and trees, if they could speak, would bear me witness) I learned, without books, almost all Paul's Epistles, yea, and, I ween, all the

There is a walk in the garden of Pembroke college still dis tinguished by the name of Ridley's Walk. ED..

canonical Epistles, save only the Apocalypse. Of which study, although in time a great part did depart from me, yet the sweet smell thereof I trust I shall carry with me into heaven: for the profit thereof I think I have felt in all my lifetime ever after, and, I ween, of late, whether they abide there now or no, I cannot tell, there were that did the like. The Lord grant that this zeal and love toward that part of God's word, which is a key and true commentary to all holy Scriptures, may ever abide in that college so long as the world shall endure.

From Cambridge I was called into Kent by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, that most reverend father and man of God, and of him by and by sent to be vicar of Herne in East Kent: wherefore, farewell, Herne, thou worshipful and wealthy parish, the first cure whereunto I was called to minister in God's word. Thou hast heard of my mouth oft-times the word of God preached, not after the popish trade, but after Christ's gospel: oh, that the fruit had answered to the seed! and yet I must acknowledge me to be thy debtor for the doctrine of the Lord's supper, which at that time, I acknowledge, God had not revealed unto me: but I bless God in all that godly virtue and zeal of God's word, which the Lord by preaching of his word did kindle manifestly, both in the heart and in the life and works of that godly woman there, my Lady Fiennes. The Lord grant, that his word took like effect there in many other more.

Farewell, thou cathedral church of Canterbury, the metropolitic see, whereof once I was a member. To speak things pleasant unto thee I dare not, for danger of conscience and displeasure of my Lord God: and to say what lieth in my heart, were now too much, and I fear were able to do thee now but little good. Nevertheless, for the friendship I have

found in some there; and for charity sake, I wish thee to be washed clean of all worldliness and ungodliness; that thou mayest be found of God after thy name, Christ's church, in deed and in truth.

Farewell, Rochester, sometime my cathedral-see, in whom (to say the truth) I did find much gentleness and obedience: and I trust thou wilt not say the contrary, but I did use it to God's glory and thine own profit in God-oh, that thou hadst and mightest have continued and gone forward in the trade of God's law, wherein I did leave thee! then thy charge and burden should not have been so terrible and dangerous, as I suppose verily it is like to be (alas!) on the latter day.

To Westminster, other advertisement in God I have not now to say, than I have said before to the cathedral church of Canterbury: and so God give thee of his grace, that thou mayest learn in deed and in truth to please him after his own laws, and thus fare you well.

Oh! London, London, to whom now may I speak in thee, or whom shall I bid farewell? Shall I speak to the Prebendaries of St. Paul's? Alas! all, that loved God's word and were true setters forth thereof, are now, as I hear say, some burnt and slain, some exiled and banished, and some holden in hard prison, and appointed daily to be put to most cruel death for Christ's gospel sake. As for the rest of them, I know they could never brook me well, nor I could ever delight in them.

Shall I speak to the see thereof, wherein of late I was placed almost and not fully by the space of three years? But what may I say to it, being (as I hear say I am) deposed and expulsed by judgment, as an unjust usurper of that room. Oh! judgment, judgment, can this be just judgment, to condemn the chief minister of God's word, the pastor and