then? For so much as he was man, he received comfort at the angel's hand, as it accords to our infirmity. His obedience, his continuance and suffering so pleased the Father of heaven, that for his Son's sake, be he never so great a sinner, leaving his sin and repenting for the same, he will owe him such favour, as though he had never committed any sin.

The Father of heaven will not suffer him to be tempted with this great horror of death and hell to the uttermost, and above that he is able to bear. Look for it, my friends, by him and through him, he shall be able to overcome it. Let us do as our Saviour Christ did, and we shall have help from above, we shall have angels' help, if we trust in him; heaven and earth shall give up, rather than we shall lack help: he saith, "He is an helper in time of need."

When the angel had comforted him, and when this horror of death was gone, he was so strong, that he offered himself to Judas, and said, "I am To make an end, I pray you, take pains, it is a day of penance (as we use to say), give me leave to make you weary this day. The Jews had him to Caiaphas and Annas, and there they scourged him and beat him, they set a crown of sharp thorns upon his head, and nailed him to a tree, yet all this was not so bitter, as this horror of death, and this agony that he suffered in the garden, in such a degree as is due to all the sins of the world, and not to one man's sins. Well, his passion is our remedy, it is the satisfaction for our sins. His soul descended to hell for a time.

Here is much ado: these new upstarting spirits say, Christ never descended into hell, neither body nor soul. In scorn they will ask, was he there, what did he there? What, if we cannot tell what he did there? The creed goeth no further, but saith he de

scended thither. What is that to us, if we cannot tell, seeing we were taught no further? Paul was taken up into the third heaven: ask likewise what he saw when he was carried thither? You shall not find in Scripture, what he saw, or what he did there. Shall we not therefore believe that he was there? These arrogant spirits, spirits of vain glory, because they know not, by any express Scripture, the order of his doings in hell; they will not believe, that ever he descended into hell. Indeed this article hath not so full scripture, so many places and testimonies of Scripture, as others have : yet it hath enough, it hath two or three texts: and if it had but one, one text of Scripture is of as good and lawful authority as a thousand, and of as certain truth. It is not to be weighed by the multitude of texts.

I believe as certainly and verily that this realm of England hath as good authority to hear God's word as any nation in all the world. It may be gathered by two texts, one of them is this: "Go into the whole world, and preach the Gospel to all creatures." Again. "God will have all men to be saved:" he excepts not the Englishmen here, nor yet expressly nameth thein, and yet I am as sure, that this realm of England, by this gathering, is allowed to hear God's word, as though Christ had said a thousand times, "Go preach to Englishmen, I will that Englishmen be saved."

Because this article of his descending into hell cannot be gathered so directly, so necessarily, so formally, they utterly deny it. This article hath scriptures two or three; enough for quiet minds; as for curious brains, nothing can content them. This the devil's stirring up of such spirits of sedition, is an evident argument, that the light is come forth. For his word is abroad, when the devil rusheth,

when he roareth, when he stirreth up such busy spirits to slander it. My intent is not to entreat of this matter at this time. I trust the people will not be carried away with these new arrogant spirits: I doubt not but good preachers will labour against them.

But now I will say a word, and herein I protest, first of all, not arrogantly to determine, and define it: I will contend with no man for it, I will not have it be prejudice to any body; but I offer it unto you to consider and weigh it. There be some great clerks that take my part, and I perceive not what evil can come of it, in saying, that our Saviour Christ did not only in soul descend into hell, but also that he suffered in hell such pains, as the damned spirits did suffer there. Surely, I believe verily, for my part, that he suffered the pains of hell proportionably as it correspondeth and answereth to the whole sin of the world. He would not suffer only bodily in the garden, and upon the cross, but also in his soul, when it was from the body, which was a pain due for our sin. Some write so, and I can believe it, that he suffered in the very place, and I cannot tell what it is, call it what ye will, even in the scalding house, in the ugsomness of the place, in the presence of the place, such pain as our capacity cannot attain unto. It is somewhat declared unto us, when we utter it by these effects, by fire, by gnashing of teeth, by the worm that gnaweth on the conscience. Whatsoever the pain. is, it is a great pain that he suffered for us.

I see no inconvenience to say, that Christ suffered in soul in hell. I singularly commend the excecding great charity of Christ, that for our sakes would suffer in hell in his soul. It sets out the unspeakable hatred, that God hath to sin. I perceive not that it doth derogate any thing from the dignity

of Christ's death, as in the garden, when he suffered, it derogates nothing from that, he suffered on the cross. Scripture speaketh on this fashion; "He that believeth on me, hath life everlasting." Here he sets forth faith, as the cause of our justification; in other places as high commendation is given to works; and yet are the works any derogation from that dignity of faith? No. And again Scripture saith, "He was delivered for our offences, and he rose again for our justification." It attributeth here our justification to his resurrection; and doth this derogate any thing from his death? Not a whit. It is whole Christ. What with his nativity, what with his circumcision, what with his incarnation, and the whole process of his life, with his preaching, what with his ascending, descending, what with his death, it is all Christ, that worketh our salvation. He sitteth on the right hand of the Father, and all for us. All this is the work of our salvation. I would be as loth to derogate any thing from Christ's death, as the best of you all. How inestimably are we bound to him, what thanks ought we to give him for it! We must have this continually in remembrance: "For thee, we are in dying continually."

The life of a Christian man is nothing but a readiness to die, and a remembrance of death. If this that I have spoken of Christ's suffering in the garden, and in hell, derogate any thing from Christ's death and passion, away with it, believe me not in this, if it do. It commends and sets forth very well unto us the perfection of the satisfaction that Christ made for us, and the work of redemption, not only before witnesses in this world, but in hell, in that ugsome place, where, whether he suffered, or wrestled with the spirits, or comforted Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, I will not desire to know. If yo

like not that which I have spoken of his suffering, let it go, I will not strive in it, I will be prejudice to nobody, weigh it as ye list, I do but offer it you to consider. It is like his soul did somewhat the three days that his body lay in the grave. To say he suffered in hell for us, derogates nothing from his death; for all things that Christ did before his suf fering on the cross, and after, do work our salvation. If he had not been incarnate, he had not died; he was beneficial to us with all things he did.

Christian people should have his suffering for them in remembrance. Let your gardens admonish you, your pleasant gardens, what Christ suffered for you in the garden, and what commodity you have by his suffering. It is his will ye should so do, he would be had in remembrance. Mix your pleasures with the remembrance of his bitter passion. The whole passion is satisfaction for our sins, and not the bare death, considering it so nakedly by itself. The manner of speaking of Scripture is to be considered. It attributeth our salvation now to one thing, that Christ did, now to another, where indeed it pertained to all. Our Saviour Christ hath left behind him a remembrance of his passion, the blessed communion, the celebration of the Lord's supper alack! it hath been long abused, as the sacrifices were before in the old law. The patriarchs used sacrifice in the faith of the seed of the woman, which should break the serpent's head.

The patriarchs sacrificed on hope, and afterward the work was esteemed. There come others after, and they consider not the faith of Abraham, and the patriarchs, but do their sacrifice according to their own imagination: even so it came to pass with our blessed communion. In the primitive church, in places, when their friends were dead, they used