of sin for Christ's sake; and fifthly, to live in virtuous and godly life, to honour God, and to shew his obedience to God's law, that by sin is transgressed.

And these parts of penance (which be the very true and only medicines against sickness and sin) be known only by God's laws. For by the law of God sin is known, detested, and forsaken. If it be heard or read by men that pray unto God, they may understand it. Faith also believeth that remission of sin is shewed, opened, and offered by the Gospel: wherein be contained God's merciful promises towards sinners. And those promises sinners receive by faith, which believeth that whatsoever God hath promised in Christ, he will perform it. Faith doth credit and receive forgiveness of sins by the operation of God's holy Spirit in the poor sinner. The sinner studieth and liveth a virtuous life, being led by the Holy Ghost, and worketh to serve God with such works, as God's holy commandments command every true Christian man to work and to do. And for the better assurance and farther establishing of his repentance and acceptation into the favour of God by believing the Gospel, the poor sinner useth and receiveth the holy sacrament of Christ's precious body and blood, in remembrance that Christ died to be his medicine against sin, and the effect thereof.

Wherefere, now that it pleaseth God for our offences to shew by plagues and sickness how he is offended: let us all, that be ministers of the church and watchmen of the people, call upon them diligently to "repent and believe the Gospel," and to live a godly and virtuous life, that for Christ's sake he may turn mercifully his plagues from us; and give us his most gracious favour to preserve his universal church, our most godly sovereign Lord and King, King Edward the Sixth, his Majesty's most honourable council, and the whole realm. So be it.

May 18, 1553.

(WRITTEN IN EXODUS, XX. DEUTERONOMY, V.)

COLLECTED OUT OF THE SCRIPTURE CANONICAL

BY

JOHN HOOPER.

WITH CERTAIN NEW ADDITIONS MADE by the SAME

MASTER HOOPER.

"Come and see." John, i

At London,

Imprinted by Robert Waldegrave for Thomas Woodcocke.

A. D. 1550.

UNTO THE CHRISTIAN READER.

I COMMEND here unto thy charity and godly love, Christian reader, the Ten Commandments of Almighty God (Exod. xx. and Deut. v.), the which were given to this use and end, diligently to be learned and religiously observed., My mind and commentaries in them I beseech thee to read with judgment, and give sentence with knowledge, as I doubt nothing at all of thy charity or good willing heart towards me and all well-meaning persons. But forasmuch as there can be no contract, peace, alliance, or confederacy between two persons or more, except first the persons that will contract, agree within themselves upon such things as shall be contracted, as thou right well knowest: also, seeing these Ten Commandments are nothing else but the tables or writings that contain the conditions of the peace between God and man, and declare at large how and to what the persons named in the writings are bound unto the other (Gen. xvii. 22. Jer. vii.), "I will be your God, and you shall be my people;" God and man are knit together and united in one. Therefore it is necessary to know how God and man were made at one, that such conditions could be agreed upon and confirmed with such solemn and public evidences, as these tables be, written with the finger of God. The contents whereof bind God to aid and succour, keep and preserve, warrant and defend, man from all evil both of body and soul, and at the last to give him eternal bliss and everlasting felicity. (Exod. xix. 5, 6. Deut. iv. 20. Matt. xi. 28.)

Man is bound on the other part to obey, serve, and keep God's commandments, to love him, honour him, and fear him above all things. Were there not love and amity between God and man first, the one would not bind himself to be master, neither the