The Saints Encouragement in Evil Times, Title page – Dedication
THE Saints Encouragement IN EVIL TIMES: OR OBSERVATIONS Concerning The MARTYRS in generall, with…some memorable Collections OUT OF
Foxes three Volumes.
Martin Luther.
The Covenant and Promises.
Living and dying by faith.
By EDWARD LEIGH Esquire.
REVEL. 14. 13.
Blessed are the dead which die in the LORD,
Mori timeat qui ad secundam mortem de hâc morte transibit. Cyprian de mortal.
LONDON, Printed by A. M. for William Lee and Thomas Vnderhill, 1648.
TO THE CHRISTIAN READER.
READER,
THe Church even in her Infancy, the Christian Church was under the Crosse, Stephanus lapidatus, Jacobus trucidatus, saith Austin, Stephen was stoned, and James beheaded. The Church hath had two kinde of persecutions, When any common calamity befell the people or State, as famine, dearth, pestilence, they straightway imputed it to the Christians, saying, that they and their wicked religion were the cause thereof. Christianos ad Leonem. Tertul. Away with them to the Lion, to the stake.one from Rome ethnicall, the other from Rome Papall. After the Apostles what a continuall storme arose against Christians, which lasted three hundred years under the ten monsters of men those bloudie Emperours, Nero, Domitian, Trajane, Antoninus, Severus, Maximinus, Decius, Valerianus, Aurelianus, Dioclesianus, whose rage was such as a man could not set his foot in Rome, but tread on the graves of Martyrs▪ Nero was the Authour*Consule Commentarios vestros, illic reperietis primum Neronem in hanc sectam…tum maxime Romae orientem Caesariano gladio ferocisse: Sed tali dedicatore damnationis nostrae gloriamur. Qui enim scit illum, intelligere potest non nisi grande aliquod bonum à Nerone damnatum. Tertul. Apol. cap. 5. of the first grand persecution, wherein Saint Peter (as it is said) and Saint Paul were martyred at Rome, with others innumerable, and Jacobus Iustus at Jerusalem, whence Tertullian inferred, That the Gospel must needs be a precious thing, because Nero hated it.
Dioclesian raised the tenth and extreamest persecution*Vide Euseb. lib. 8., wherein Churches were overthrown, Bibles burnt, whole Cities razed, women hanged upon trees naked with their heads downwards. The Christians yet in that time under the Heathen Emperours had many lucida intervalla, many breathing spaces under Princes not altogether so bloudy. But the Popes have persecuted the Protestants for six hundred years together, and that without any intermission.
I might exemplifie in many of their cruell practices▪
1. In their wars against the Waldenses and Albigenses.
2. In the Massacre of France, in which the rivers were died with bloud.
3. In our tempora Mariana Queen Maries daies; Who hath not heard of bloudy Bonner and Gardiner?
4. In the rebellious insurrection in Ireland, and the cruell butchery of above 200 thousand Protestants there. Platina writes of seventeen thousand martyred by Dioclesian; but Meterane writes of 50 thousand slaughtered by the Pope only in the Low-countries, aud that in the time of Charles the 5th ▪ Natalis Comes of sixty thousand in France only in one year. Iulius the second in seven years shed the bloud of above two hundred tho… sand Christians.
Antichrist is drunk with the bloud of the Saints, Revel. 17. 6. and 18. 24. In her, that is, Babylon, now Rome, was found the bloud of Prophets, that is, of all those that preacht the Word of God, and of Saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth; They were put to death by the authority of the Pope. Some hold that the bitterest persecutions of the Church of God are yet to come, but two considerations may much support the spirits of Gods people.
1. The shortnesse of the Persecutours lives, and their miserable ends for the most part.
2. The good that comes to the Church of God by affiction and persecution. I will not speak of the short lives of many Popes, and the short reign of Queen Mary *Of all since the conquest her reign was the shortest, only excepting that of Richard the tyrant, but much more bloudy then was his. Speeds Chro. in Q. Marie., nor of the miserable end of many persecuting Emperours, but shall out of Foxes Martyrology, instance in the exemplary punishments of some of the persecutours of our Martyrs. George Eagles (alias,Foxes Acts and Monum. 3d vol. pag. 1023. Trudge over the world) hid himself in a Corn-field, and by the benefit of the height of the Corn, and breadth of the field he had escaped, had not Ralph Lurdane one of his persecutours with more malicious craft, climbed a high tree to view over the place, and so descried him.
This persecutour a lewd fellow of life for theft and whoredome, within a few years after he had apprehended the foresaid George Eagles for gain of money, he himself was attached of felony for stealing a horse, condemned and hanged in the same place and Town of Chelmesford, where George Eagles before suffered martyrdome. A Bishop coming to Stephen Gardiner (Bishop of Winchester) on his death-bed, put him in remembrance of Peters denying his Master; Foxes 3d vol. p. 95.he answering again: said, That he had denied with Peter, but never repented with Peter, and so both stinkingly and unrepentantly died. See also in Fox a notable story of the death of Dr Whittington a persecutour.Doctour Storie was a great enemy to the Protestants in Queen Maries daies, but in Queen Elizabeths reign he being beyond sea was by a handsome wile brought over into England, Fox ubi supraand suffered as a Traitour, on whom the boyes sung these verses, D. Story for You I am sorrie,
The hangman must have Your gown:
Your father the Pope, could not save You from the rope;
For all his triple crown.
Secondly, The people of God like Commomile, the more they were trod on the more they did spread, and (like Rabbets in frosty weather) did thrive under persecution. One*Mr Manton on Rev. 2. 3. saith, Martyrologie and catechizing were the great engines by which the reformers battered down Poperie. Jerome compares the state of the Ch…rch under Constantine and some Christian Emperours with that under Dioclesian and some persecuting Emperours: under the former the Church increased much Potentia & divitiis, in power and wealth, but diminished virtutibus, in vertue▪ How strangely was that promise accomplished in England and France, Mat. 25.Whosoever will save his life shall lose it; and whosoever will lose his life for my sake, shall finde it.
William Wolsey Martyr being in prison sent by another a noble to Richard Denton with this commendation, That he marvelled he tarried so long behinde him, seeing he was the first that delivered him the book of Scripture into his hand, and told him that it was the truth, desiring him to make haste after as fast as he could. Foxes Acts and Monum. 3d vol. p. 433This money and message being delivered to Denton almost a year after Wolsey was burned, his answer was this. I confesse it is true, but alas I cannot burn. But he that would not burn in the cause of Christ, was afterward burned against his will; for his house was set on fire, and while he went in to save his goods he lost his life. On the contrary, some that were in prison, and purposed to suffer for the truth, were …y the death of Queen Mary happily preserved, that being a true observation which*Dr Hall. one hath, As good husbands do not put al their corn to the oven, but save some for seed, so doth God ever in the worst of persecutions.
When Henry the fourth of France had conquered his enemies, he turned Papist, and gave this reason of it, That he might settle himself in peace and safety. Ravilliak who slew him, confessed that the reason why he stabbed him, was, because he was of two religions. It is well noted by a Reverend Divine*Dr Gouge on Exod. 13. 13., That the book of martyrs was in high esteem all the days of Queen Elizabeth: All Churches by authority were injoyned to have it, so as all that would might read it. There was scarce a family of note that had it not, it was usuall to spend the long winter evenings in reading it. By the constancy of Martyrs therein set out, people were much encouraged to stand to that faith which was sealed by their bloud. Whether the killing of the two Witnesses be near at hand or no, I determine not, but sure there is likelihood enough of troubles and persecutions to Gods people, therefore I conceive these severall Tracts, Of the Martyrs in generall, and Concerning our English Martyrs, Of Martin Luther a couragious Reformer, Of the Covenant and Promises, Of living and dying by faith may be very suitable to our times.
But some may urge, that for the first subject concerning the Martyrs, there was a book long since published, stiled, The Mirrour of Martyrs, usefull that way. I deny not but that book might be profitable to divers Christians, who either wanted money to purchase or leasure to reade the large book of Martyrs: But my drift in this worke is to excerp onelyonly (among the many dicta facta of the Martyrs) those speeches and acts of theirs, which were specially observable. Master Co…ton (who composed the book before mentioned) hath confusedly jumbled divers things together: some of which are ordinary, though others may be remarkable, and I believe he mistakes in that which he hath of Voes, it being not consonant to the originall whence he took it. He hath also the same thing twice of Iohn & Christopher Waid. I hope therefore (though I have many things the same with Cotton, that this work will be of speciall use to those, who would not be ignorant of the living speeches of dying Christians. The Saints are best toward their end; so it was with Jacob and Moses, as appears in his excellent song made a little before his death,Deut. 32. so David, Solomon, what an excellent Sermon and praier did our Saviour make a little before his death.John 14. 15. 16. and 17. chap. I have likewise long since put forth a Treatise of the Covenant and Promises, yet having collected divers new Observations of that excellent subject, (for some of which I was beholding to two of our worthy Lecturers*Mr Marshall and Mr Strong. at Westminster) I thought good to adde this Tract to the rest, it being of speciall use alwaies for Christians, especially in evil times. Thus hoping God will blesse these my endeavours for the good of his people, I rest
Thy true Christian Friend EDWARD LEIGH▪