¶ Which Abrahā, contrarie to hope, beleued in hope y• he should be y• father of many na∣tiōs, accordyng to y•, which was spoken: Euē so shal thy seede be, as the starres of heauē, and the sande of the sea And he faynted not in the fayth, nor yet considered his owne bodye, whiche was now deade, euen when he was almost an hundred yere olde: neither yet that Sara was paste chyld bearyng He staggared not at the promise of god through vnbelief, but became strong in faythe, and gaue god the prayse, beyng full certified, that he whiche had promysed, the same was able also to make it good. And therfore was it reckened to hym for righteousnes.
And in dede wel worthy was the strong & constante fayth of that good olde man, to haue gods fauour, whiche vpō a trust of goddes promise, in suche thynges cōceyued a sure hope wherin by course of nature there was no hope to be cōceyued: in so doing aswell knowleging the faythfulnes of god y• promise maker, as also his great & almighty power. And thoughe hymself was feble, and his wyfe lykewyse passed temyng, yet nothyng doubted he, but that he shoulde be father of many nations, and the begin¦ner of suche an infinite posteritie, as is the number of sterres in heauen, euen as god sayde vnto hym, when he had broughte hym into the fieldes and shewed hym the firmament ••et thycke & replenished with sterres, say∣ing: As thou art not able to number these sterres, ••o shall thyne ofspryng be innumerable. And albeit at that tyme the same promyse by reasō of his feble age semed neither apparent nor lyke to be trew, yet weake & feble as he was in bodely strength, he faynted not in y• strēgth of fayth, nor as mis∣trusting people do, sought for profes how these thinges myght be done or not done, nor cōsydered his dry & barayne body euē thē worne out, & not a∣ble to haue issue, as which was thē wel nighe an hundred yeares olde: nor yet consydred his wyues age neither, whose floures by reason of age were dryed vp, ī suche sort y• though himself had not ben past al strēgth to beget a chylde, yet was she passed chyld bearyng & vnable to cōceyue. No suche thyng (I saye) remēbred he, nothing mistrusted he, nothing staggered he, but surely & with al his heart leaning & trustyng vnto y• promyses of god (as strong in fayth as he was in body weake, being in despayre of his own power,) conceiued a most sure trust vpon the power of him y• made the pro¦myse: and in al this matier chalengyng nothyng to hymselfe as his own, gaue ouer the whole prayse and glorie to god only, whome he by his sure and constant fayth, both testified to be true of promise, as whiche woulde deceyue no man, & lykewyse to be almightye, as whō he thoughte able to perfourme his promise were the same neuer somuche passyng all worldly strength.