I see my blood layed for ( my beloved ) and so my daies and testimonies drawing to an end for ought I knowe : and therfore I think it my dutie to leave behinde me this testimonie of my love towards so deare a sister and so loving a wife in the Lord as you have ben vnto me . First then I besech you stand fast in that truth which you and I professe at this present in much outward discomforte and danger . Let nothing drawe you to be subiect to antichrist in anie of his ordinances . Let your soule and pour bodie be far from those assemblies which yelde either knowne or secrete submission vnto the ordinances of the beast . that is to receave his marks eyther in the right hand or the forhead / as the spirit of God sayeth . Rev. 13.16 . For this are you forbidden to doe vnder the payne of Gods eternal wrath . Rev. 14.9.10.11 . 2 Cor. 6.14.15.16 . & 1 Cor. 3.16.17 . Rev. 22.18.19 . Deu. 12.30.31.32 . &c. Againe ( my beloved ) / continewe a member of that holy societie whereof nowe you are / where the Lord in his ordinances raigneth : for here and in all such assemblies the Lord dwelleth by the presence and power of his spirit Mat. 18.20 . & 28.20 . Exod. 29.45 . Leui. 26.11.12 . Here he is a mightie protection and defence readie at hand Isay . 26.1 . & 4.6 .. And his ordinances you knowe / hath he greatlie comaunded to be kept and observed . Psal. 119.4 . Oh our soules are to reioyce in these waies more then in all substance and treasure Psal. 119.14 . And the loving kindnes of the eternall is for ever and ever towards them and theyr seed that remember his ordinances to doe them . Psal. 103.17 18. Whereas all those are accursed that err from his statutes and diminishe from the obedience they owe vnto his Maiestie . Psal. 119.21 . Reu. 22 : 19. Psal. 119.118 . I pray you mark these places with all such like in the word / against all those that maketh a slayght matter eyther not to walke in the wayes of God or to be subiect vnto small corruptions as they accompte them & be enarmed with the power of the word against all such lying delusions . Lok . 2 Cor. 6.14.15.17 . In conclusion my dear wife and sister / loke not at anie earthlie thingh / consecrate your selfe wholly / both soule / bodie / husband / children / and whatsoever you have vnto the Lord your God / let them not be dearer vnto you then his worship and service / knowe / it knowe it to be an vnspeakable preferment for you / that he voutchsafeth to take eyther your selfe / or anie of yours to suffer affictions with him and his gospel here vpon earth . Luk. 18.30 . Mat. 19.29 . And I am perswaded that you have vndergone the profession of the truth vpon the condition set downe by our saviour Christ . Luk. 14.26.27 . that is to hate all in respect of his gospel . Fear not the want of outward things / for the Lord careth for you and yours . Remember what is set downe . Heb. 13.5 . Luk. 12.31 . The Lord is my God and yours / and the God of our seed . I knowe if you and our pore children continewe / that they shall see a blessed reward even in this life for these smale and weak suffrings of ours for the interest and right of Christ Iesus / for I am assuered that the Lord wil give a breathing time / a confortable rest vnto his pore Church in this life . And my good wife / if you or anie of mine live to see those daies : remember and let my pore children remember to declare in Syon the vengeance of the Lord our God and the vengeance of his temple against babel : and that the Lord God hath brought forth our righteousnes in rewarding that wicked antichristian religion as it hath done vnto vs . Ier. 50.28 . and 51.10.35.36 . and 50.15 . Reu. 18.6 . In the meane tyme wait pacientlie the Lords leasure / he is not forgetful of you and yours especiallie of his pore Church / he cannot denie himself and the truth of his promises you know 2 Tim. 6.5 . Be much and often in prayer day and night / much in reading and meditation of his word / and you shall find that he will graunt you yours harts desiere / according to his good pleasure & will . Pray with your pore familie & children morning and eavening as you doe . Instruct them and your maide in the good waies of God . See that no day passe over your head wherin you have not taught them ( especially her ) some one principall of the truth . Think the tyme greatlie gained / as I have often told you that is spent in the word of the Lord. Psal. 1.1.2 . Iosh. 1.8 . Amongst other places of the word wherin I would have you to be conversant in regard of these tymes / I pray you to read Mat. 10. Luc. 12. Iohn . 14.15.16 . and 17. chapters . Psal. 37. Isay . 60.61.62.63 . chapters : Marke everie day what petitions you make vnto the Lord / that you may have eyther strenght and confort of your faith in the inioyng of the things you aske and so may returne thankfulnes vnto him / or continewance of pacience in expecting and wayting for his mercie / And be not wearie in attending vpon his good leasure / for in due tyme shall we receave if we faynt not / for yet a verie little while / and he that shall come will come and will not car●e . Heb. 10.37 . Above all things pray that the Lord would restore bewtie vnto his Church and so would overthrowe the cursed religion of the Gomaine Antichrist in everie parte thereof / observe your owne especiall infirmeties and wants / and be earnest with the Lord that he would doe them away / and consume them by the power of his spirit . Remember me also and my brethren nowe in bonds / that the Lord would assist vs with the strenght and comfort of his spirit to kepe a good conscience and to beare a glorious testimonie vnto the end : yea be not void of hope / but I may be restored agayne vnto you by your praiers / and therfore also be earnest with him for my deliverance . If the Lord shall end my days in this testimonie / as blessed be his name howsoever it goeth / I am readie and content with his good pleasure / kepe your self my good Helen here with this pore Church / you may make as good refuge and stay here as anie where else for your outward estate / though you could not / yet I knowe that you had rather dwell vnder the wings of the God of Israell in povertie with godlie Ruth / then to possesse kingdomes out of the land of Canaan / and whatsoever shift you make kepe our pore children with you that you may bring them vp your selfe in the instruction and information of the Lord Ephes. 6.4 . I leave you and them indeed nothing in this life / but the blessing of my God and his blessed promyses made vnto me a pore wretched sinner / that my seed / my habitation and familie should be blessed and happie vpon the earth / and this my sister I dout not shal be fownd an ample portion both for you and them / though you knowe that in hunger often in could often / in povertie and nakednes we must make an accompt to professe the Gospell in this life . And teach them I beseech you even nowe in their youth that lesson indeede / which was the last that I taught them in word / and that is / that / If they will raigne with Christ they must suffer with him : and acquaynt them now in theyr youth with the basenes and meanes of the Gospel : teach them that they are not to loke for great things in this life / but everie day to make accompt that they are to yeeld theyr lyves and whatsoever they have for the truth . Break their affections betymes while they are yet greene / by instructions out of the word and corrections meet for them yet you knowe that parents must not be bitter vnto their children . Eph. 6.4 . especiallie smiete not the elder child over hard / because you knowe the least word will restrayne her / when they are capabell of anie handie labour / I knowe you will not let them be idell Yf possiebell you can / let them learne / both to read and also to wryte / howsoever it be whether theyr bringing vp be better or worse vnder your hand or under the hands of others I their father doe here chardge them when they come to yeares of discretion as they shall answer in that great daie of iudgement that they ioyne themselves with the true profession and Church of Christ / wherin nowe I goe before them / the which charge of myne that they may kepe / I besech you my good wife to put them often in mynde of the fame and what a blessing will ensue vnto them if they keepe it / as also what a iudgement will surelie followe if they neglect it . Ier. 15.18 . And withal be carefull in case you should not be able to kepe them all with you that they be brought vp with some of the Church with bread and water rather then be clad with gould with anie ( howe forward soever they seeme to professe ) that yeeld anie obedience vnto the antichristian ordinances / for with such they cannot chuse but be leveaned with corruptions . I knowe my good Helen that the burden which I laie vpon thee of . 4. infants wherof the elder is not . 4. years olde will not seeme anie wise burdensome vnto thee / yea thou shalt fynd that our God will be a father vnto the fatherlesse and a staie vnto the widowe .

But here my most dear sister and wife / I agaiene advise you not to be a widowe long after my daies / for you knowe the ordinance of God / that it is good for a man not to be alone / so is it a great blessing for a woman to have an head . And although to be maried bringeth care and troble with it outwardlie / yet is that holie order accompanied with that comfort in this life / as of all outward things I judg it to be one of the greatest blessings for man or woman to be maried in the Lord if they cannot conteine . Onelie take heed in your choyse / that first he with whom you match be of the same holy faith and profession with you / next that he be meet to be your h●ad / even such a one as you think fit to governe you as a head and rule you as a Lord : And in this choise loke not vnto welth or estimation in the world / yet rather chuse many blessings then one if you may but onelie respect the feare of God and the meetnes of the party . Thus having hethervnto disburdened my self of my dutie towards you and care over you and your pore children / in some part / nowe to come vnto my selfe / I am I thank my God in great comfort in him though vnder great trialls of my weaknesses / not for feare of anie flesh I thank my God but in consideration of myne owne wants / rebellion / disobedience and vnthankfulnes vnto his maiestie / but in regard of men and in respect of the cause of my GOD wherin I stand . I feare not anie power or strenght of man whatsoever and I am this howre most willing to laie downe my life for the word of my testimony / and I trust shall be onto the end . I was taken you knowe at Ratliffe the 22. of the 3. month March 1592. caried the 24. before M. yong comitted by him close vnto the Counter Poultry : caried before M. Yong agayne the 26. of the same month 1593. wher was D. ●angham and his brother preachers both / sent as M. Yong sayd by my Lord Keeper to confer with me . I answered that I reverenced the authoritie of my Lord Keeper and the rest of her Maiesties Counsel / but as for pryvate conference / in as much as my cause was made publik and that my adversaries had my writtings in ther hands / wherby I moved the Parlement in the cause / I saw no reason why I should yeeld vnto any . I desyred publike vpō●quall conditions : heare after great heat vttered by M. vaugham / and some warmnes on my part I was sent agayne close whence I came . The 28. of the same month I was called for by M. Yong to confer with M. D. Balgue of the Temple / where agayne I desyred an equall tryall set downe 4. of the speciall heads / and the conditions / toke a copy of them / and so departed / after manie reasonable words given vnto me by M. Yong The 2. of the 5. month Aprill came M. D. Crook . M. Grennham and M. Temple vn●● the prison to confer with me , both of christian charitie / and also having authoritie thervnto as they sayd : I refused all private intermedling in so publik an action / shewed them the things offred by me vnto M. Yong and accepted for the tyme in good parte by him / demanded whether they had authority to condescend vnto those equall conditions / and so I would confer with them or with any : They sayd no : and therfore after much needles speech departed / M. Temple very jniuriously taking away whether I would or not / the copy of that which I gave vnto M. Yong / wherof he sent me a copy the 5. of the same month but retayned myne owne . Vpon which day I was sent for to the sessions house wher was Syr Georg Barnes as I take it M. Yong M. Dale the Deane of westmynster and an other of the Clargy / they offred me an othe which I refused because it was against conscience and lawe : protesting notwithstanding that I heald lawfull to take an othe before a magistrate : then they examined me of my going with Edward Graves / I answered in deed that I lay at an jnn at Hodsden with him about the tyme then spake / but I would goe no f●rther to answer them in this poynt thus far but no further I answered he●●● both because they knewe of it before and especially for some other respects then moving me . After this they dealt with me about my being in Scotland and / in the middest of which discourse they sent me away / It was playne with the but especially with M. Yong : Herin this is most memorable that alleaging Numb 35. 33. they set it downe as an article against me though I read the very words vnto them they are so lamentablie ignorant / and lay wayt for blood so cruellie that certaynlie th● Lords hande is not far of . The Lord shew mercy vnto vs and them / from my har●… I wish it . I cannot see but that they thirst after my blood : Therfore pray for me and desyre all the Church to doe the same .

To drawe to an end / salute the whole Church from me especiallie those in bunds / and be you all much and hartely saluted in the Lord . Let none of you be dismayed . Th●… Lord will send a glorious issue to Syons troubles . Yet you must all be prepared for suffrings / I see no other likelyhood : Let not those which are abroad mysse to frequen●… the holy meetings : Salute my mother and yours in Wales : my brethren / systers an●… kindered ther. And my God knoweth / yea your self knoweth howe earnestlie and often I have desyred that he would voutchsafe my service in his Gospell among them t●… the winning of ther soules for evermore vnto him . Salute your parents and myne i●… Northampthone / with my poore Kinsman Ienkin Iones and M. David also / thoug●… I had not thought that anie owtward respects would have made him withdrawe hi●… showlders from the Lords wayes / but the Lord will drawe him forward in his goo●… tyme . Salute all ours in Scotland vpon the borders and every way northward / especially M. I●ell / always deare vnto me . Christ Iesus blesse thee and them all my beloved even for ever and ever . Let it not be knowne vnto anie save vnto the party tha●… shall read this vnto you / that I have written at all as yet / I gote meanes this day t●… writte thus much wherof no creature lyving knoweth . The 6. of the 4. month April 1593. in great haste with manie teares and yet in the great spirituall comfort of my soule