Biblia the Byble, that is, the holy Scrypture of the Olde and New Testament, faithfully translated in to Englyshe.

The XVIII. Chapter.

NEuertheles thy sayntes had a very [ A] greate light (and the enemies herde their voyce, but they sawe not the figure of them.) And because they suffred not y^e same thinges, they magnified the: and they y^t we∣re vexed afore (because they were not hurte now) thanked the, and besought y^e (o God) y^t there might be a difference. Therfore had they a burnynge piler of fyre to lede them in the vnknowne waye,* 1.1 & thou gauest them the Sonne for a fre gift without eny hurte. Rea¦son it was, that they shulde want light & to be put in the preson of darcknes, which kep∣te thy childrē in captiuyte, by whom the vn¦corrupte light of the lawe of y^e worlde was for to be geuen. Whan they thought to slaye [ B] the babes of the righteous (one beinge laied out,* 1.2 and yet preserued to be leder vnto the o∣ther) thou broughtest out the whole multi∣tude of the children,* 1.3 and destroydest these in the mightie water. Of that night were ou∣re fathers certified afore, that they knowin∣ge vnto what oothes they had geuen credē∣ce, might be of good cheare. Thus thy peo∣ple receaued y^e health of the righteous, but the vngodly were destroied. For like as thou hast hurte oure enemies, so hast thou promo¦ted vs whom thou calledest afore. For the righteous children of the good men offred se¦cretly, & ordred the lawe of righteousnes vn¦to vnite: y^t the iust shulde receaue good and euell in like maner, singinge prayses vnto y^e father of all men. Agayne, there was herde an vnconuenient voyce of the enemies, & a piteous crie for childrē that were bewayled. The master and the seruaūt were punyshed [ C] alike, the meane man and the kynge suffred in like maner. For they all together had innu¦merable that dyed one death.

Nether were y^e lyuinge sufficient to bury y^e deed, for in y^e twincklinge of an eye,* 1.4 the no¦blest nacion of thē was destroyed. As oft as God helped thē afore, yet wolde it not make thē beleue: but in y^e destruccion of y^e first bor¦ne they knowleged, that it was y^e people of God. For whyle all thinges were still, & whā y^e night was in y^e myddest of hir course, thy Allmightie worde (o LORDE) leapte downe frō heauē out of y^e royall trone, as a rough mā of warre, in y^e myddest of y^e londe y^t was destroyed: & y^e sharpe swerde perfourmed yⁱ straite cōmaundemēt, stādinge & fyllinge all thinges w^t death: yee it stode vpō y^e earth & reached vnto the heauen. Then the sight of the euell dreames vexed them sodenly, and fearfulnesse came vpon them vnawarres.

[ D] Then laye there one here, another there half deed half quyck, and shewed the cause of his death. For the visions that vexed thē, shewed thē these thinges afore: so that they were not ignoraunt, wherfore they perished.

The tentacion of death touched the righ¦teous also, and amonge the multitude in the wyldernesse there was insurreccion, but thy wrath endured not longe. For the fautlesse man wente in all the haist,* 1.5 and toke the bat¦tayll vpon him, brought forth the weap•• of his ministracion: euen prayer and y^e cēsours of recōcilinge, set himself agaynst y^e wrath, and so brought the misery to an ende: decla∣ringe therby, that he was thy seruaunt. For he ouercame not the multitude with bodely power, ner with weapēs of might: but with the worde he subdued him that vexed him, puttinge the in remembraunce of the ooth & couenaūt made vnto the fathers. For whan the deed were fallen downe by heapes one vpon another, he stode in the myddest, paci∣fied the wrath, and parted y^e waye vnto the lyuynge.* 1.6 And why•• in his longe garmēt was all the beuty, and in the foure rowes of the stones was the glory of the fathers grauē, and thy maiesty was written in the crowne of his heade. Vnto these the destroyer gaue place, and was afrayed of them: for it was only a tentacion worthy of wrath.

Notes

• * 1.1

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• * 1.2

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• * 1.3

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• * 1.4

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• * 1.5

  〈◊〉〈◊〉 16 g
• * 1.6

  〈…〉〈…〉. b. c