The triall of the supremacy wherein is set fourth ye unitie of christes church milita[n]t geue[n] to S. Peter and his successoures by Christe and that there ought to be one head bishop in earth Christes vicar generall ouer all hys churche militant: wyth answeres to the blasphemous obiections made agaynste the same in the late miserable yeres now paste.

The .xviii. probation.

Peter alone euer as head spake for al, as it is both in the ghospel and in Thactes both

before christes ascension, and after: his sayinges & doinges also sufficiētly set forth his pri∣macy, and declare euidently y^t he had the keies only, y^t he had y^• blyssing onely, & that al was there spokē by christ to him (as by priuelege) only: & this cau∣sed hī euer still to take vpon hī as he did, and that in sundrye places of thactes: as ī the cho∣singe of Mathias to supplye Iudas rowme,* 1.1 ī excusīg thap∣postles frō drōkēnes,* 1.2 in ma∣king the sermon at receiuinge tholy ghost, when he couerted 3000. at once to christ. And here marke y^t Peters name alone (as it is in the probation next before) is expressed.* 1.3 Why shuld he so haue bene seperated frō thother, but for preeminence

& superiority? Againe, he alone healed the lame man Iohn being then presēt (saying that which I haue I ge•••• the, v∣singe the singuler number) at what time he alone made y^e .iii. sermon al being then present: where also ye se that the firste miracle after Christes ascen∣sion was wrought by Peter, and al the sermōs yet stil made by Peter: He also aunswered the rulers for healing y^e lame mā▪* 1.4 he alone vsed thauctority in punishīg Anany & Saphire & likewise ī subduing simō Ma¦gus.* 1.5 &c.* 1.6 besyde th{is} all the other apostels are put w^tout names in their doīges: by thandes of thappostels (sayth luke) many miracles wer wrought.* 1.7 &c. but Peters name is still expressed:

peters shadow (saith he) cured many, wher as thappostels w^t laying on hādes healed them. And here marke also ī y^t point y^e diuersity. Yea & Peters ••emi¦nēce playnly appeared both in y^e visiō, actes y^e .x. where he on∣ly had then shewed vnto hī y^e re¦ceiuīg & vnitīg of y^e heathēs, & also ī y^e .xv. of y^t actes ī pacifiīg y^e strife about y^e Legals, where Peter as first & chiefe (yea & y^t in y^e presence of Iames beinge Bishop there) answered to the matter & gaue h{is} sētence fyrst, vnto whō Paule & Barnabas w^t other did cōsent: & then S. Iames which there by Peter (as Chrisostō witnesseth) was appointed bishop last of all re∣cited the decree as it was mete for hī to do being bishop there.* 1.8

But of th{is} ye haue more decla¦red in y^e answere to y^e .xii. & .xiii obiections. And therfore now to our purpose: do not these thī¦ges (I pray you) sufficientlye proue Peters superiority and ••eminence? yea did not Peter in al these (if I mighte not ra∣ther say y^e holy ghost speaking in Peter) shewe him selfe to be chefe of thappostels, & to haue ••eminēce aboue thē al? Sure∣ly if it had not bene his office appointed to him by God, he wold not stil haue ben so bold, yea so malapert, & arrogāt, as at euery time to take y^e preemi¦nēce vpō him: & namelye as to speake first ī an other mās see, the bishop being present.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Act 1.
• * 1.2

  〈◊〉〈◊〉. 1.
• * 1.3

  Act. 1.
• * 1.4

  Act. 4.
• * 1.5

  Act. 5.
• * 1.6

  act. 8.
• * 1.7

  act. 5.
• * 1.8

  ••o. 97. in Ioa.