The first examinacyon of Anne Askewe lately martyred in Smythfelde, by the Romysh popes vpholders, with the elucydacyon of Iohan Bale.

The Conclusyon.

HEre hast thu (gentyll reader) the first examy∣nacyon of the faythfull martyr of Christ Anne Askewe wyth my sym∣ple elucydacyon vpon the same. Wherin thu mayst clerely be holde our Byshoppes & prestes so spiry∣tuallye * 1.1 to be occupyed now a dayes, as is the gredye wolfe that rauenouslye rō∣neth vpon hys praye. For the tyrannouse be hauer in their cruell predecessours ha ue they no maner of shame. Neyther yet cepōt they their owne blasphemouse trea son agaynst God and hys veryte, what though their most wretched conscyēces do daylye accuse them therof. The kynge * 1.2 dome of God, whych is a true faythe in hys worde, or a perfyght knowlege of the gospell, do not they seke to vpholde. But vyolentlye they speake yll of it, trou ble it, persecute it, chace it, and bannish it, bycause it is of hym and from within Luce 17. The kyngedome of the pope, * 1.3 whych cometh with outwarde obserua cyon of dayes, persones, places, tymce,

meates, garmētes, & ceremonyes, they magnyfye aboue the mone, bycause it is from without, and to their peculiar aduaūtage in the loyterynge reigne of ydelnesse.

They haue thought and yet thynke by their terryble turmoylynges to turne ouer all, & to chāge the most noble enter prise of our kynge, yet ones agayn layser * 1.4 lye, to their popes behoue. But the god∣lye wyse mā Salomōsayth, There is no polycye, there is no practyse, noo, there is no counsell that can anye thynge preuayle agaynst the lorde, Prouerbio∣rum 21. They recken that with fyre, wa∣ter, & swerde they are able to answere all bokes made agaynst their abuses, & * 1.5 so to dyscharge their inuyncyble argu∣mentes (for otherwyse they haue not assoyled them as yet) but trulye they are sore deceyued therin, as shall wele ape∣re. They suppose by consumynge of a score or ij. i•• the fyre, they haue gotten the felde of the lambe and hys host. Apoca. 17. No, they rather by that mea * 1.6 nes, adde strength therunto, and so de∣mynysh their owne. I dare boldelye saye

vnto them, that by burnynge Anne As∣fewe and her. iij. cōpanyons, they haue one thousande lesse of their popysh be∣leue than they had afore. They thynke * 1.7 also by condempnynge and burnynge our bokes, to put vs to sylence. But that wyll surelye brynge double vpon them, if they be not ware, Apoca. 18. For if we shuld be styll. the verye stones wolde speake in these dayes, Luce 19. And de∣tect their horryble treason agaynst God and the kynge.

If they mynde to holde their ydell offices styll, and here after to haue pro∣fyght * 1.8 of their olde sale wares, as Di∣riges, Masses, & soche other. My coun∣sel were that they ded by them, as they now do by their pope the great mastre and first founder of them. A subtyle sy∣lence is amonge them cōcernynge hym, and hath bene euer sens hys first put∣tynge downe. Ye shall not now heare a worde spoken agaynst hym at Paules crosse, nor yet agaynst hys olde iuglynge * 1.9 feates. And in dede it is a good wyse waye to sett hym vp agayne. Wynchestre and Sampson made a lyttle bragge at

the begynnynge, to seme yet to do sum∣what, but sens they haue repented, and made a large amēdes for it other wayes Fryre Peryn begāne to wryte in defen∣ce * 1.10 of their monstruouse Masse, but now of late dayes, and he can not fynde ther∣in one blasphemouse abuse iustlye to be reprehended. Men saye, there be craftye knaues abroade in the worlde in all age•• Well, thys polytyck sylēce wold do wele also parauēture i other matters. For the more ruffelynges they make, & the mo * 1.11 re murther they do, for that ydell kynge dō of theirs, the more clere the veryte apereth, and the more vyle their sorce∣rouse wares. For the more dyrt be sha∣ken (they saye) the more it stynketh.

So outragyously to rayle in their prea chynges, of the noble and lerned Ger∣manes * 1.12 (whych of all nacyons loueth our kynge most inteyrlye) for secludynge their pope and changynge their masses, they do not most wyselye for themselues. They are not so ill beloued of their cun∣••aye merchaūtes, whych customablye tra uayle thydre, but they know what is the•• both sayd & done agaynst thē. By that * 1.13 meanes came Peryns boke of hys iij.

most ydolatrouse & foxysh sermōs, first of all to my hādes. Wherin he rhetorycal lye calleth them, in the hote zele of hys Romysh father, the erronyouse Germa∣nes, subtyle witted heretykes, obstynate aduersaryes newe fangled expositours, peruerse sacramētaryes, blasphemouse apostataes, wycked wretches, deuylysh lyars, lewde lyuers, & abhomynable be∣leuers, with soche otherlyke. But certay nelye I knowe, that they wyll one daye be euē with hym & with other lyke apes of Antichrist, for it. Whā the popes gre * 1.14 at dāsynge beare, a proude prākynge pre late of thers, was the last yeare with the emprour Charles at hys fourth goynge agaynst the seyd Germanes, hys brag∣gynge begles were not ashamed to boast it in the open stretes of Vtrecht in Hol∣lande, that the pope shuld agayne haue hys full swaye in Englāde. Of a lykely hode they knowe there, some secrete my steryes in workynge. I saye yet, be ware of that subtyle generacyō, whych seket•• not els but to worke all myschefe.

Gentyll and soft wyttes are oft ty∣mes offended, that we are now a dayes so vehement in rebukes. But thys wolde

I fayne knowe of them, what modestye they wolde vse (as they call it) if they * 1.15 were compelled to fyght with dragos. hyders, and other odyble mōsters. How pacyēt they woldebe and how gentyll, if a rauenouse wolfe came vpō thē, they hauynge able weapon to put hym a syde Surelye I knowe no kynde of Christen charyte to be shewed to the deuyll. Of non other nature is Moses serpent, but to 〈◊〉〈◊〉 vp the serpentes of Pharaocs sorcerers, Exod. 7. If we ded suffre anye longar the oke groue of Baal to stan∣de aboute the aultre of the lorde, we shuld modye offende hys cōmaundemēt. * 1.16 Iudi. 6. If I shuld holde my peace, and not speake in thys age, the veryte so blas phemed, my conscyence wolde both ac∣cuse me and condempne me of the vn∣consyderaunce of my lorde God. Mo∣re * 1.17 precyouse is the thynge whych is in daylye controuersye and parell (whych is now Gods true honoure) than is all thys worldes treasure here. What Chri sten hart can abyde it, to se the creature yea not of God but of man, to be wor∣shypped in the stede of God, and saye

nothynge therin?

Salomon sayth, there is as wele a tyme to speake, as a tyme to kepe sylen∣ce, and a tyme as wele to hate, as a * 1.18 tyme to loue, Ecclesiastes 3. With a per fyght hate, lorde (sayth Sauid) haue I hated those bloudthurstye enemyes, whych were in their presumpcyō agaynst the, Psalme 118. Stronglye and with most myghtye stomack, are hypocrytes to be inuaded, whych wyll not geue pla∣ce to the reryte. Marke how myght elye Moses resysted Pharao, Helyas kynge * 1.19 Achab, Helyseus Ioram, Zachary Ioas, Daniel the ydolaters, Iohan Baptist the Pharysees and Herode, Steuē the Iewes, the Apostles the Byshoppes & prestes. Christ rebuked hys dyscyple Pe∣ter, & bade hym, come after hym deuyll, Math. 16. Yet called be Iudas hys fryn de, Math. 26. Necessarye is it that the elect flocke of God, do hate the vncleane fowles, whych yet holde their habyta∣cyon in Babylon, Apoca. 18. Iohan wy∣cleue and Iohan huss confesse in their * 1.20 writynges, that they were by stronge force inwardlye constrayned of God to

worke agaynst the great Antichryst Erasmus boldelye vttered it, that God for the euyls of thys lattre age, hath prouyded sharpe phesycyanes. Quenche not the sprete (sayth S. Paule) despyse not prophecyes, 1. Thessalon. 5. I put * 1.21 my ernest wordes into thy mouthe (sayd the lorde to Hieremye) that thu shuldest both destroye and buylde. Hieremye 1. 〈◊〉〈◊〉 thys suffyse ye concernynge our rebukes, for they are Gods enemyes whom we inuade.

If ye perceyue it and fele it on the other syde, that the waues of the see are great also, and doth horryblye rage in these dayes, Psalme 92. Cōsydre agayne * 1.22 (sayth Dauid) that the lorde whych dwelleth on hygh, is a great dele mygh tyer than they. As he is of power to cea∣se the storme and to make the wether caulme, Psalme 106. So is he able to change a fynges indignacyon (whych is but deathe) into most peaceable fauer and louynge gentylnesse, Prouerbiorum 16. For the hart of a kynge is euermore * 1.23 in the hande of God, and he maye turne it whych waye he wyll, Prouer. 21. Hys

eternall pleasure it is, that ye shuld ho noure your kynge as hys immedyate my nyster cōcernynge your bodyes and lyues 〈◊〉〈◊〉. Petri 2 and that ye shuld with all ••en tylnesse obeye the temporall rulers. Ro∣mano. 13. But soche spirytuall hypo∣crytes, both Byshoppes and prestes, as are continuall haters of hys heauenlye verite; wolde he that we shuld holde for * 1.24 most detestable apostataes and blasphe mouse reprobates, as ded Christ and hys Apostles whych neuer obeyed them, but most sharpelye rebuked them, Mathei 23. Acto. 20. and 2. Petri 2. The grace of that lorde Ihesus Christ, be euer with them, whych ryghtlye hate that sy∣nagoge of Sathan, as ded Anne Askewe,

Amen.

God standeth by the generacyon of the ryghteouse, Psal. 13.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Byshop∣pes.
• * 1.2

  Kynge•• of God.
• * 1.3

  Popes kynged••.
• * 1.4

  A change
• * 1.5

  Polycye.
• * 1.6

  No felde.
• * 1.7

  Bokes.
• * 1.8

  Counsell.
• * 1.9

  Sylence.
• * 1.10

  Perryn.
• * 1.11

  take hede
• * 1.12

  Germa∣nes.
• * 1.13

  Peryns sermons.
• * 1.14

  Wynche∣stre.
• * 1.15

  modestie
• * 1.16

  Oke gro ••e.
• * 1.17

  Cōscyēce.
• * 1.18

  hate thē.
• * 1.19

  Exāples.
• * 1.20

  Wycleue, and huss.
• * 1.21

  Sprete.
• * 1.22

  Waues.
• * 1.23

  ••are & 〈◊〉〈◊〉.
• * 1.24

  Abhorre.