lawfull / is a light questiō. First to vse thē for the breakinge of strife / as when partenars / their goodes as equally diuided as they cā / take euery mā his parte by lott / to auoyde all suspiciō of disceytfulnesse: & as y^e appostles in y^e first of y^e Actes / whē they sought a nother to succede Iudas the traytoure / & .ii. persones were presentes / thē to breake strife & to satisfie al parties / did cast lotttes / wheter shuld be admitted / desirynge god to teper thē & to take whō he knew most mete / seynge they wist not wheter to preferre / or haply coude not all agre on ether / is lawfull ad in all like cases. But to     abuse them vn to y^e temptinge of God & to cōpell him therwith to vtter thinges wherof we stōd in doute / when we haue no commaundemēt of him so to do / as these hethē here dyd / though God turned it vn to his glorie / can not be but euell.

¶ The hethen scepmē asstonied at y^e sight of y^e miracle / feared God / prayed to him / offered sacrifice & vowed vowes. And I doute not / but that some of thē or haply all came therby vn to the true knowlege & true worshepinge of God & ware wōne to God in theyr soules. And y^s God which is infinite mercifull in all his wayes / wrought their soules health out of y^e infirmite of Ionas / euen of his good will & purpose & loue wherewith he loued them before the world was made / & not of chaunce / as it appereth vn to the eyes of the ignoraunt.

¶ And that Ionas was .iii. dayes & .iii. nightes in the bely of his fish: we cā not therby proue vn to te Iewes & īfideles or vn to any man / y^t Christ must therfore dye ād be buried & rise agayne. But we vse y^e ensample ād likenesse to strength the faith of the   weake. For he that beleaueth the one can not doute in y^e other: in as moch as the hād of God was no lesse mightie in preseruīge Ionas aliue agenst all naturall possibilite & in deliuerynge hī safe out of his fish / thē in reysynge vpp Christe agayne out of his sepulchre. And we maye describe y^e power & vertue of y^e resurrecciō therby / as Christ hī selfe boroweth y^e similitude therto Mat. xij. sayēge vn to y^e Iewes that came aboute him & desyred a signe or a wōder frō heuen to certifye thē that he was christ: this euell & wedlockebreakīge naciō (which breake y^e wedlocke of faith wherwith they be maried vn to God / ād beleue in their false workes) seke a signe / but there shal no signe be geuen thē saue y^e signe of the Prophete Ionas. For as Ionas was .iij. dayes ād iij. nightes in the bely of the whale / euē so shall the sonne of man be .iij. dayes & .iij. nyghtes in the herte of the erth. Which was a watch word / as we saye / & a sharpe threateninge vn to y^e Iewes & as moch to saye as thus / ye harde herted Iewes seke a signe: loo / thys shalbe youre sygne / as Ionas     was reysed out of the sepulchre of his fishe & then sent vn to the Niniuites to preach y^t they shuld perish / euen so shall I ryse agayne out of my sepulchre & come & preach repentaunce vn to you. Se therfore when ye se y^e signe that ye repēt or else ye shal suerly perish & not escape. For though the infirmities which ye now se ī my flesh be a lett vn to youre faythes / ye shall yet then be with out excuse / when ye se so greate a miracle & so greate power of god shed out vppō you. And so Christe came agayne after y^e resurrecciō / in his spirite & preached repētaunce vn to them / by the mouth of his appostles & disciples / & with miracles of y^e holy gost. And all that repented not perished shortly after ād were for y^e most parte slayne with swerde ād y^e rest caried awaye captiue in to all quarters of the world for an ensample / as ye se vn to this daye.

¶ And in lyke maner sens the world beganne / where soeuer repentaunce was offered and not receaued / there God toke cruell vengeaunce immediatly: as ye se in y^e floud of Noe / in the ouerthrowēge of Sodō   & Gomor & all the contre aboute: & as ye se of Egipte / of the Amorites / Cananites & afterwarde of the very Israelites / & then at the last of the Iewes to / ād of the Assyriens and Babyloniens and so thorout all the imperes of the world.

¶ Gyldas preached repētaunce vn to y^e olde Britaynes that inhabited englōd: they repented not / & therfore God sent in theyr enimies vppō thē on euery side & destroyed thē vpp & gaue the lōd vn to other naciōs. And greate vengeaunce hath bene takē in that lande for synne sens that tyme.

¶ Wicleffe preached repētaunce vn to oure fathers not longe sens: they repēted not for their hertes were indurat & theyr eyes blinded with their awne Pope holy rightwesnesse wherwith they had made theyr soules gaye agenst the receauinge agayne of y^e weked spirite that bringeth .vii. worse then hym selfe with him & maketh y^e later ende worse then the beginninge: for in open sinnes there is hope of repentaunce / but in holy ypocrisie none at all. But what folowed? they slew their true & right kinge ād     sett vpp .iii. wrōge kīges arow / vnder which all the noble bloud was slayne vpp ād halfe the comēs therto / what in fraunce & what with their awne swerde / in fightīge amonge thē selues for y^e crowne / & y^e cities and townes decayed and the land brought halfe in to a wyldernesse in respecte of that it was before.

¶ And now Christ to preach repētaunce / is resen yet ōce agayne out of his sepulchre in which the pope had buried him and kepte him downe with his pilars and polaxes and all disgysinges of ypocrisie / with gyle / wiles and falshed / ād with the swerd of al princes which he had blynded with his false marchaundice. And as I dowte not of y^e ensamples that are past / so am I sure that greate wrath will folow / excepte repētaunce turne it backe agayne and cease it.

¶ When Ionas had bene in te fishes bely a space & the rage of his conscience was somewhat quieted ād swaged and he come to him selfe agayne and had receaued a lytle hope / the qualmes & panges of desperaciō which went ouer hys hert / halfe ouercome /