A16573:651
The complaint of verity, madeThe complaynt of veritie, made
The complaint of verity, made by John Bradford. An exhortation of Matthew Rogers, unto his children. The complaint of Raufe Allerton and others, being prisoners in Lollers tower, & written with their blood, how god was their comfort. A song of Cain and Abel. The saying of master Hooper, that he wrote the night before he suffered, upon a wall with a coal, in the new In, at Gloucester, and his saying at his deathThe complaynt of veritie, made by Iohn Bradford. An exhortacion of Mathewe Rogers, vnto his children. The complaynt of Raufe Allerton and others, being prisoners in Lolers tower, & wrytten with their bloud, how god was their comforte. A songe of Caine and Abell. The saieng of maister Houper, that he wrote the night before he suffered, vppon a wall with a cole, in the newe In, at Gloceter, and his saiyng at his deathe
London: printed for Owen Rogers?, 1559
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
In this his sin, though a great while he lay asleep, (as many do now a days, God give them good waking) thinking that by the Sacrifices he offered, all was well, God was content: yet at length, when the Prophet by a Parable, had opened the poke, and brought him in remembrance of his own sin, in such sort, that he gave ⟨image 50⟩judgement against himself: then quaked he, his Sacrifices had no more taken away his sins, then our Sir Johns Trentals, and wagging of his fingers over the heads of such as lye asleep in their sins (out of the which when they are awaked, they will well see, that it is neither Mass nor Matins, blessing nor cursing will serve,) then I say, he cried out, saying: Peccavi, Domine: I have sinned, saith he, against my Lord and good God, which hath done so much for me. I caused indeed Uriah to be killed, I have sinned, I have sinned. What shall I do? I have sinned, and am worthy of eternal damnation. But what saith God by his Prophet: Dominus (sayth he) transtuli• peccatum tuum, non morieris: The Lord hath taken away thy sins, thou shalt not die. Oh good God, he said, but, Peccavi, I have sinned: but yet from his heart, and not from the lips only, as Pharaoh and Saul did, and incontinently he heareth: Thou shalt not die, the Lord hath taken away thy sins: Or rather hath laid them upon an other, yea, translated them upon the back of his Son Jesus Christ, who bare them, and not only them, but thine and mine also, if that we will now cry but from our ⟨image 51⟩hearts, Peccavimus: We have sinned, good Lord, we have done wickedly, enter not into judgement with us, but be merciful unto us after thy great mercy, and according to the multitude of thy compassions, do away our iniquities, &c. For indeed, God is not the God of David onely: Idem Deus omnium, He is the God of all: So that, Quicunque inuocaverit nomen Domini, saluus erit. He or she, whosoever they be that call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved. In confirmation whereof, this History is written, as are also the other which I have recited, & many more which I might recite. As of Manasseh the wicked king, which flew Isaiah the Prophet, and wrought very much wickedness: yet the Lord showed mercy upon him being in prison, as his Prayer doth teach us. Nebuchadnezzar, though for a time he bare Gods anger, yet at the length he found mercy.