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Letters of John Bradford: Letters 41 - 45

By John Bradford


      Letter 41. To One by whom he had received much comfort and relief in his trouble and imprisonment

      The mercy of God in Christ, peculiar to his children, be evermore felt of you, my dearly beloved in the Lord. Amen.

      When I consider with myself the benefits which God has showed unto me by your means, if I had so good and thankful a heart as I would I had, I could not with dry eyes give Him thanks, for certainly they are very many and great; and now, being yet still the Lord's prisoner, I receive from him more benefits by you; for which I think myself so much bound to you, my good brother, although you were but the instrument by whom God wrought and blessed me that I look not to come out of your debt, by any pleasure or service that I shall ever he able to do you in this life. I shall heartily pray unto God, therefore, to requite you the good you have done to me for his sake; for I know that which you have done, you have done simply in respect of God and his word. May he therefore give you daily more and more to be confirmed in his truth and word, and so plentifully pour upon you the riches of his Holy Spirit and heavenly treasures, laid up in store for you, that your corporeal and earthly riches may be used by you as sacraments and significations thereof,othe more to desire the one, that is, the heavenly, and the less to esteem the other, that is, the earthly. For Satan's solicitation is, so to set before you the earthly, that therein and thereby you should not have access to the consideration of the heavenly; but, like one bewitched, should utterly forget them, and altogether become a lover and worshipper of the earthly mammon, and so fall to covetousness, and a desire to be rich. By that means he desires to bring you into many noisome amp hurtful lusts; as nowadays I hear of many which have utterly forsaken God, and all his heavenly riches, for antichrist's pleasure, and the preserving of their worldly pelf; which they imagine to leave to their posterity, whereof they are uncertain, though they may be most certain they leave to them God's wrath and vengeance, to be sent in his time by visitation, if they in time repent not heartily, and prevent not the same by earnest prayer. Wherein, my good brother, if you are diligent, hearty, and persevere, I am sure God will preserve you from evil, and from yielding yourself to do as the world now does, by allowing in bodily fact in the Romish service, that which the inward cogitation and mind disallows. But if you are cold in prayer, and consider earthly and present things only, then shall you fall into faithless follies, and wound your conscience; from which God evermore preserve you, with your good wife, and your babe Leonard, and all your family, to which I wish the blessing at God, now and for ever, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

      I pray you give thanks for me to your old bed-fellow, for his great friendship, for your sake, showed to me when was in the Tower.

      john Bradford.

      Letter 42. To a faithful friend and his wife, resolving their doubt why they ought not to go to auricular confession

      The merciful God, and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which loves us as a most dear father, and has towards us the affection of a most tender mother towards her children, so that he can no less think upon usoalthough of ourselves, we be most unworthy, and deserve nothing less, than she can think on her only begotten child in his distress; yea, if she should forget her child, as some unnatural mother will do, yet will he never forget us, although for a time he seem to sleep, that we might have occasion to call loud, and awake him. May this good God keep you, my dear brother Nathanael (Nathanael was not his proper name, but for his godly simplicity and singleness of heart in the way of the Lord, M. Bradford called him so; see Fox), and your good yoke-fellow, my heartily beloved sister in the Lord, in all things, now and for ever, to his glory and your eternal comfort; and also, of his goodness, may he grant you both the feeling of that hope, which undoubtedly he has laid up in store for you both, far surpassing the store and provision, not only which you have made, but all the world is able to make. I trust he has already wrought in you; but I beseech him to increase it more and more, and kindle in you a hearty longing for the enjoying of the same; which if once felt and had indeed, then the means by which we come thereto cannot be so greatly dreaded, as most men dread them; because either they want this feeling altogether, or else, because the sense of this present time, and things therein, are as a mist, to the hiding of those things from our sights lest we should run and embrace them by hearty prayer; the spirit whereof God grant us, and, indeed, we should attain enough in this behalf, if we continued therein.

      Respecting auricular confession, wherein you desire my advice for your good yoke-fellow and family, my most dear brother, I am as ready to give it as you to desire it; yea, more glad, forasmuch as half a suspicion was in me, at the least with respect to my dear sister, your wife, of a loathing of my advice, as if too much had been given; where, indeed, I should lament my too little feeding you spiritually, as both out of prison and in prison you have fed me corporally. But as I always thought of her, so I yet think, that she is the child of God, whom God dearly loves, and will, in his good time, to her eternal comfort, give her her heart's desire; in sure feeling, and sensible believing of this, which I would she had often in her mind, namely, that he is her God and Father, through Christ Jesus, our dear Lord and Saviour A greater service to God she cannot give, than to believe this. If Satan say she believes not, let her not answer him, but the Lord; and say, "Yea, Lord, help my unbelief, and increase my poor faith, which Satan says is no faith: make him a liar, Lord as always he has been, is, and shall be." Undoubtedly sooner or later, God will graciously hear her groans, and keep all her tears in his bottle; yea, write them in his book of account, for he is a righteous God and has no pleasure in the death of his creatures. He loves mercy; he will return, and show her his mercy; he will cast all her sins and iniquities into the bottom of the sea; and the longer he tarries, as he does it but to prove her, so the more liberally will he recompense her long looking, which no less pleases him, than it grieves now her outward Adam. For the mortification whereof God uses this cross; and, therefore, if she desire to bear the same, doubtless God will make her able to bear it; and, presuming upon his goodness and strength, let her cast herself wholly upon him; for he is faithful, and will assuredly confirm, and bring to a happy end, that good which he has graciously begun in her. Which I desire him to do for his own glory and name's sake. Amen, Amen.

      And now to the matter. Confession auricular, as it was first used and instituted, which was by the way of counsel-asking, I take to be among those traditions which are indifferent, that is, neither unlawful, nor necessarily binding us, except the offence of the weak could not be avoided. But to consider it, as it is now used, I write to you but as, I think, and what my mind is, which follow no further, than good men by God's word allow itoto consider it I say, as it is now used, methinks it is plainly unlawful and wicked, and that for these causes:

      First, because they make it a service of God; a thing which pleases God of itself; I will not say meritorious. The bringer of this, my brother, can tell you at large how great an evil this is.

      Secondly, because they make it of necessity (necessary for salvation, editor), so that he or she that uses it not, is not considered to be a good Christian.

      Thirdly, because it requires of itself an impossibility that is, the numbering and telling of all our sins, which no man perceives, much less can utter.

      Fourthly, because it establishes and confirms, at the least allows, praying to saints; Precor Sanctum Mariam (I implore Saint Mary, editor), you must say, or the priest for you.

      Fifthly, because it is very injurious to the liberty of the gospel, to affirm which, in example and fact, I take to be a good work, and dear in God's sight.

      Sixthly, because, as it is used, it is a note, yea, a very sinew of the popish church; and therefore we should be so far from allowing the same, that we should think ourselves happy to lose any thing in bearing witness there against.

      Seventhly, because, instead of counsel, you would receive poison thereat, or, if you refuse it under Sir John's Benedicite (the Romish priest's blessing, editor), you should no less there be wounded in the briers.

      Eighthly, because the end and purpose why we go thither is, for the avoiding of the cross, that is, for our own cause, and not for Christ's cause, or for our brethren's advantage; for since they make it so necessary a thing, and a worshipping of God, it cannot but be against Christ, and the freedom of his gospel; and the same thing teaches us, that it is against the advantage of our brethren, which either are weak, or strong, or ignorant, or obstinate. If they are weak, by your resorting to it, they are made more weak; if they are strong, you do what you can to weaken their strength; if they are ignorant, you help to keep them such by your act; if they are obstinate, your resorting to it cannot but rock them asleep in their obstinate error respecting the necessity of this rite and ceremony. These causes recited, show you what I think in this; but my thinking must no further bind you than a man's thought should do, except the same is grounded upon God's word, which binds indeed, as I think it does herein. I doubt not but you, weighing these causes, and especially the two first and the last, if you pray to God for his Spirit to direct you, and thereto ask the advice of this my good brother, and other godly learned men, I doubt not, I say, but you would be guided to do that which is best in God's sight, although in the sight of the world, perhaps, you should be counted foolish and precise. But be at a point with yourselves, as the disciples of Christ, which had forsaken themselves, not to follow your own will, but God's will, as you daily pray in the Lord's prayer.

      Be willing to carry the cross of Christ, lest you carry the cross of the world, the flesh, or the devil: one of these crosses you must carry: three of them bring to hell; and therefore the more part go that way, which is a broad way: only the first brings to heaven; and but few go that way, as well because the way is strait, as also because few walk in it. Howbeit, though it is strait, it is but short; and the few are many, if you consider the godly, as the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, martyrs, confessors, and Christ Jesus, with all his guard and train. Think not scorn to come after them which are gone before you, and after them which now go before me, in whose number I trust I am appointed to be one; and I beseech you pray for me, that God would vouch me worthy that honour. Our sins deserve plagues, prisons, and the loss of all that we have, therefore if God removes our sins out of sight, and sends us prison, or loss of goods and living for his name's sake, oh, how happy are we! My dear hearts in he Lord, consider this, and be assured, that he which loses any thing for Christ's sake, the same in his posterity shall find it here and in heaven elsewhere. As for being unable to answer for your faith, it shall be enough to desire them to dispute with your teachers. Faith stands not in disputing; I think few of the unlearned, if it came to disputing, could defend the Godhead of Christ and many other articles. Pray for me. Lack of paper makes this end. Commend me to my good brother H. B. and me good sister, his wife. I pray them to pray for me. I trust by this bearer to hear how you do.

      John Bradford.

      Letter 43. A letter to N. and his wife

      God's mercy in Christ I wish you to feel, my dear brother, with my faithful sister, your wife, now and for ever. Amen.

      Having this occasion, I could not but write something as well to put myself in remembrance of my duty toward God for you both, in thankfulness and prayer, as to put you in remembrance of me, and your duty toward God for me, in praying for me, for I dare not say in thankfulness for me. Not that I would have you give no thanks to God for his wonderful great and sweet mercies towards me, and upon me, in Christ his Son, but because I have not deserved it at either of your hands; for you both know right well, at least my conscience accuses me, that I have not only not exhorted and taught you, as both my vocation and your deserts required, to walk worthy of that vocation which God has made you worthy of, and with trembling and fear to work out your salvation; that is, in the fear of God to give yourselves to great vigilance in prayer for the increase of faith, and to a wary circumspection in all your conversation, not only in works sand words, but also in thoughts, because God is a searcher of the heart, and out of the heart comes that which defiles us in God's sight. I have, I say, not only not done this, but also have given you example of negligence in prayer, watching, fasting, talking, and doing; so that woe to me for giving you such offence. Partly for this cause, dear brother and sister, God has cast me and keeps me here, that I might repent and turn to him, and that you might also by his correction of me be more diligent to redress these things and others, if they in your consciences do accuse you.

      My dearly beloved, heavy is God's anger fallen upon us all, doleful is this day. Now antichrist has all his power again. Now Christ's gospel is trodden under foot. Now are God's people a derision and prey for the wicked. Now the greatest of all plagues is fallen,othe want of God's word;oand all these we, yea I alone, have justly deserved. Oh! that as I write, "I alone," I could with David, and with Jonah, in my heart say so! but I do not, I do not; I see not how grievously I have sinned, and how great a misery is fallen upon me for my unthankfulness for God's word, for my hypocrisy in professing, preaching, hearing, and speaking of God's word; for my not praying to God for the continuance of it; for my not living it thoroughly as it requires, &c. I will speak nothing of my manifest evils, for they are known to you well enough.

      Dear brother and sister, say the like with me for your own parts, and join your hearts with me, and let us go to our heavenly Father, and for his Christ's sake beseech him to be merciful unto us, and to pardon us. O good Father! it is we that have deserved the taking away of thy word; it is we that have deserved these thy just plagues fallen upon us; we have done amiss, we have dealt unjustly with thy gospel, we have procured thy wrath, and therefore just art thou in punishing us, just art thou in plaguing us, for we are very miserable. But, good Lord, and dear Father of mercy, whose justice is such that thou wilt not punish the poor souls of this realm, which have not yet thus sinned against thee, as we have done, (for many yet never heard thy word,) and whose mercy is so great, that thou wilt put our iniquities out of thy remembrance for Christ's sake, if we repent and believe; grant us, we beseech thee, true repentance and faith, that we, having obtained pardon for our sins, may through thy Christ get deliverance from the tyranny of antichrist, now oppressing us.

      O good Father! which hast said, that the sceptre of the wicked should not long lie upon and over the just, lest they put forth their hands to iniquity also, make us just, we pray thee, in Christ's name, and cut asunder the cords of them that hate Sion; let not the wicked people say, Where is their God? Thou, our God, art in heaven, and does whatsoever it pleases thee upon earth.

      Oh! that thou wouldst in the mean while, before thou deliverest us, Oh! that, I say, thou wouldst open our eyes to see that all these plagues come from thee; and all others which shall come, whatsoever they are, public or private, they come not by chance nor by fortune, but they come even from thy hand, and that justly and mercifully; justly, because we have and do deserve them, not only by our birth-poison still sticking and working in us, but also by our former evil life past, which by this punishment and all other punishments thou wouldst have us to call to our remembrance, and set before us, that thou might put them from before thee; whereas they stand so long as they are not in our remembrance,oto put them away by repentance.

      Mercifully, O Lord God, dost thou punish, in that thou dost not correct to kill, but to amend, that we might repent of our sins, ask mercy, obtain it freely in Christ, and begin to suffer for righteousness' sake; to be part of thy house, whereat thy judgment begins,oto be partakers of the afflictions of thy church and thy Christ, that we might be partakers of the glory of the sameoto weep here, that we might rejoice elsewhereoto be judged in this world, that we might with thy saints judge hereafter the worldoto suffer with Christ, that we might reign with him oto be like to Christ in shame, that we might be like to him in gloryoto receive our evils here, that we might with poor Lazarus find rest elsewhere; rest, I say, and such a rest as the eye has not seen, the ear has not heard, nor the heart of man is able to conceive.

      Oh! that our eyes were open to see this, that the cross comes from thee to declare thy justice and thy mercy, and that we might see how short a time the time of suffering is; how long a time the time of rejoicing is to them that suffer here; but to them that will not, how long and miserable a time is appointed and prepared; a time without time in eternal woe and perdition, too horrible to be thought upon. From the which keep us, dear Father, and give us more sight in our souls to see this, and that all their dearest children have carried the cross of grievous affliction in this life; in whose company do thou place us, and lay upon us such a cross as thou wilt make us able to bear, to thy glory and our salvation in Christ; for whose sake we pray thee to shorten the days of this our great misery which is fallen upon us most justly; and in the mean season give us patience, repentance, faith, and thy eternal consolation Amen. Amen.

      And thus, dear hearts, I have talked (methinks) a little while with you, or rather we have all talked with God. Oh! that God would give us his Spirit of grace and prayer! My dearly beloved, pray for it, as for yourselves so for me, and that God would vouchsafe to make me worthy to suffer with a good conscience for his name's sake. Pray for me, and I shall do the like for you. This 20th of December. I pray you give my commendations to all that love me in the Lord. Be merry in Christ, for one day in heaven we shall meet and rejoice together for evermore Amen.

      John Bradford.

      Letter 44. To my good brother Augustine Berneher

      (Augustine Berneher was a foreigner and an attendant upon Bishop Latimer. He was a faithful minister, and in Queen Mary's reign attended very diligently upon those who were prisoners Or the Lords sake.)

      Mine own good Augustine, the Lord of mercy bless thee, my dear brother for ever. I have good hope, that if you come late at night, I shall speak with you, but come as secretly as you can; howbeit, in the mean season, if you can, and as you can, learn what master G. has spoken to Doctor Story and others. The cause of all this trouble, both to my keeper and me (Bradford was at this time fill the Poultry Counter, the keeper of which treated him with a degree of kindness not usually shown to the martyrs, editor) is thought to come by him. It is said, that I shall be burned in Smithfield, and that shortly. The Lord's will be done. Behold, here I am. Lord send me. Ah, mine own dear friend! I am now alone, lest I should make you and others worse. If I should live, I would use the company of God's children more warily than ever I have done. I will bear the Lord's anger, because I have sinned against him. Commend me to my most dear sister, for whom my heart bleeds: the Lord comfort her, and strengthen her unto the end. I think I have taken my leave of her for ever in this life, but in eternal life we shall most surely meet and praise the Lord continually. I have now taken a more certain answer (view, editor) of death than ever I did; and yet not so certain as I think I should do; I am now as a sheep appointed to the slaughter. Ah, my God! the hour is come, glorify thy most unworthy child. I have glorified thee, says this my sweet Father, and I will glorify thee. Amen. Ah, my beloved, praise God for me, and pray for me, for I am His, I hope; I hope he will never forsake me, though I have above all others most deserved it; I am the most singular example of his mercy; praised be his name therefore for ever. Cause Mistress Perpoint to learn of the sheriff, Master Chester, what they purpose to do with me, and know, if you can, whether there is any writ forth for me (issued for his burning, editor). (Psalm ci.) I am like an owl in the house, and as a sparrow alone on the housetop. Ah, my Augustine! how long shall God's enemies thus triumph; I have sent you this of the baptism of children to write out; when this is done, you shall have other things. Pray, pray, mine own dear heart, on whom I am bold. The keeper tells me, that it is death for any to speak with me, but yet I trust that I shall speak with you.

      John Bradford.

      Letter 45. To mine own good Augustine

      Dear brother Augustine, I cannot but be beholden to you in my need, and therefore I write as I do. Come hither (the Poultry Counter, editor) betimes, I pray you, in the morning, and use so to do; for then I think you shall speak with me. Also come late in the evening, and let me know whether in the day time I may send for you. Pray Walsh to steal you in, as I hope he will do. If he bring you in, then shall this which follows not need: but I write this doubting the worst:oFirst, desire my man William to make all things ready for me, for I am persuaded I shall go into Lancashire there to be burned, howbeit they say I must first go to the Fleet. Then desire him to hearken early in the morning whether I am not conveyed away before men be aware. Also I pray you, desire Robert Harrington, who I hope will go with me, to look for that journey. Visit often my dear sister, and although I cannot now write unto her, as I would, (for all things are more strange here, and the case more and more perilous,) yet tell her that I am careful for her, desire her to be of good comfort. God shall give us to meet in his kingdom. In the mean season I will pray for her as my dearest sister. Of truth I never did love her half so well as I now do, and yet I love her not half so well as I would do: she is a true daughter of Abraham. I pray thee heartily be joyful my, good brother, and desire all my friends so to be; for I thank God, I feel a greater benefit than all the bishops in England can take from me. Praise God and pray for me, mine own dear heart in the Lord, whom I hope I shall never forget.

      Your poor brother in the Lord,

      John Bradford.

      To these letters of Mr. Bradford above specified, here is adjoined a letter of the said Bradford, written to certain of his faithful friends, worthy of all Christians to be read wherein is described a lively comparison between the old man and the new, also between the law and the gospel; containing much fruitful matter of divinity necessary for Christian consciences to read and understand. Fox.

Back to John Bradford index.

See Also:
   Letters 1 - 5
   Letters 6 - 10
   Letters 11 - 15
   Letters 16 - 20
   Letters 21 - 25
   Letters 26 - 30
   Letters 31 - 35
   Letters 36 - 40
   Letters 41 - 45
   Letters 46 - 50
   Letters 51 - 55
   Letters 56 - 60
   Letters 61 - 65
   Letters 66 - 70
   Letters 71 - 75
   Letters 76 - 80
   Letters 81 - 83

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