A Golden Chain

When I heard the law truly preached how that I ought to love and honour God with all my strength and might from the low bottom of the heart, because he did create me Lord over it, and my neighbour, yea mine enemies as my self inwardly from the ground of my heart, because God hath made them after the likeness of his own image, and they are his sons as well as I, and Christ hath bought them with his blood, and made them heirs of everlasting life as well as I: and how I ought to do whatsoever God biddeth, and to abstain from whatsoever God forbiddeth, with all love and meekness, with a fervent and burning lust from the centre of the heart. Then began my conscience to rage against the Law and against God. No sea, be it never so great a tempest was so unquiet, for it was not possible for me a natural man to consent to the Law that it should be good, or that God should be righteous which made the law: in as much as it was contrary unto my nature, and damned me and all that I could do, and never showed me where to fetch help, nor preached any mercy ^abut only set me at variance with God, & provoked & stirred me to rail on god, and to blaspheme him as a cruel tyrant. And indeed it was not possible to do otherwise, to think that God made me of so poisoned a nature, and gave me an impossible law to perform: I being not borne again by the spirit, and my wit, reason, and will being so fast glued, yea nailed and chained unto the will of the devil. This was the captivity and bondage whence Christ delivered me, redeemed, and loosed me. His blood, his death, his patience in suffering rebukes & wrongs and the full wrath of God, his prayers and fastings, his meekness & fulfilling the ⟨p. 619⟩uttermost points of the law, appeased the wrath of God, brought the favour of god to me again, obtained that God should love me first, and be my father, and that a merciful father, that would consider my infirmity and weakness, & would give me his spirit again, which he had taken away in Adam, to rule, govern and strengthen me, and to break the bands of Satan, wherein I was so straight bound. When Christ was on this wise preached, and the promises rehearsed which are contained in the book of God (which preaching is called the Gospel or glad tidings,) and I had deeply considered the same:

When I heard the law truely preached howe that I ought to loue and honour God with all my strength and might from the lowe bottome of the heart, because he did create me Lord ouer it, and my neighbor, yea mine enemies as my selfe inwardly from the groūd of my heart, because God hath made them after the likenesse of his owne image, and they are his sonnes as well as I, and Christ hath bought them with his blood, and made them heires of euerlasting life as wel as I: and how I ought to do whatsoeuer God biddeth, and to abstaine from whatsoeuer God forbiddeth, with all loue and meekenes, with a feruent and burning lust from the center of the heart. Then began my conscience to rage against the Lawe and against God. No sea, be it neuer so great a tēpest was so vnquiet, for it was not possible for me a naturall man to consent to the Law that it should bee good, or that God should be righteous which made the law: in as much as it was contrarie vnto my nature, and damned me and all that I could doe, and neuer shewed mee where to fetch helpe, nor preached any mercie