God! defend this realm from Papistry, and maintain thy true religion!"

One of the first acts of the Queen was to send for Hooper to answer to the two charges, of intrusion into the See of Worcester, during the life of Bishop Heath, and of accusation of Bonner, who was deprived of the See of London in 1550 for contumacy, to make way for Ridley. His friends foresaw the storm, and advised him to flee. No," said he; "once I fled and took me to my feet; but now, because I am called to this place, I am thoroughly persuaded to tarry, and to live and die with my sheep." On his arrival at Richmond, on the first of September 1553, he was taken before the Queen and Council on a pretext of debt to the royal treasury, the better to conceal the odiousness of his imprisonment on account of religion, after sustaining a load of invective from Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester. He gave the Warden of the Fleet five pounds, as a fee for certain privileges on entering the gates; but the man no sooner received the money, than he made a complaint to Gardiner, who ordered the prisoner to close custody in the Tower chamber; but after three months he was allowed, at the instance of one Mrs. Wilkinson, to take his meals with the warden and his wife, who were bigoted Papists, and used to try to irritate him to say something which they might report, while he was interdicted converse with his friends. In consequence of fresh representation by the Warden he was more closely confined, having straw for his bed till some good people sent him a pallet; and in the neighbourhood of the common sewer, the stench of which made him so ill that he was often fain to call for relief, but to no purpose, though he paid high fees as a baron of the realm, and after deprivation, as a private gentleman.

a

On the 11th of March 1554, he

was called before the Bishops of Winchester, London, Durham, Llandaff, and Chichester, who sat on a commission under the Chancellor.-Ch. "Well, Master Hooper, are you a married man?"H. "Yea, my Lord, and wish not to be otherwise, till death unmarry me."-Dur. "That is matter sufficient to deprive you."-H. "That it is not, my Lord; except ye do against the law." Here the commissioners conferred, and then indulged in coarse jesting, while the spectators hooted. This was followed by vulgar abuse, and a dispute between the Bishop of Winchester and the prisoner on the meaning of certain texts, and the obligation of certain canons, respecting clerical celibacy. At length Judge Morgan railed at him, and charged him with cruel oppression at Gloucester; after which, Day, Bishop of Chichester, observed, that the Council of Ancyra, which preceded that of Nice, was against the marriage of priests. Then the Chancellor and others cried out, that he had never read the Councils. "Yes, my Lord," said Hooper;" and my Lord of Chichester knows, that this Council of Nice, by means of Paphnutius, decreed that no mi'nister should be separated from his wife." Finding themselves baffled, they changed the mode of attack. Dur. "Do you believe the corporal presence in the Sacrament?" -H. "There is no such thing, neither do I believe it."-Win. "What authority have you for not believing the corporal presence?"-H. "The authority of God's word. It is said, whom the heaven must receive, until the times of restitution of all things."—Win. "He may be in heaven, and in the sacrament also."-When the prisoner would have replied, the bystanders became clamorous, and the notaries were directed to make out his deprivation on the grounds of contumacy on the subject of

marriage, and the denial of transubstantiation.

Another examination occurred on the 22d Jan. 1555, at the Bishop of Winchester's house in St. Mary's Overy; when that prelate exhorted him" to forsake the evil and corrupt doctrine preached in the days of Edward VI. and return to the unity of the Catholic Church, and acknowledge the Pope's Holiness to be the head of that church, according to the determination of the whole Parliament; on which conditions the Queen would show him mercy."-H. " Forasmuch as the Pope teaches doctrine contrary to that of Christ, he is not worthy to be counted a member of Christ's Church, much less the head. Wherefore I shall in no wise condescend to any such usurpation, nor do I reckon that the Catholic Church which calls him head; for the church only heareth the voice of her spouse Christ, and will not follow a stranger. Howbeit, if in any point to me unknown I have offended the Queen's majesty, I shall most humbly submit myself to her mercy, if mercy may be had with safety of conscience, and without the displeasure of God." -Win. "The Queen will show no mercy to the enemies of the Pope." A third examination took place on the 28th; but as he continued firm, he was committed, with Rogers, another Protestant, to the care of the Sheriffs, to be confined in Southwark Compter till nine the next morning; when, as they came out, he said, " Well, brother, must you and I take this matter first in hand, and begin to burn these faggots?""Yea, Sir," answered his companion, "by God's grace.""Doubt not," replied he, "but God will give it." The next day they were brought again before the Commissioners, when they were both degraded and ordered to the Clink, a prison near the Bishop of Winchester's house. For security against attempt at rescue, Hooper

was conducted to Newgate at night; but many persons who awaited his return, came out with lights, saluting him and praising God for his constancy, while he intreated their prayers. During the six days that he lay in Newgate, Bonner and others endeavoured to convert him both by promises and threats, and reported that he had recanted; on which he sent out a solemn denial. Bonner read him the sentence of degradation, in which he was styled a priest. Rogers and he were delivered over to the secular arm; the former suffered in Smithfield; but the latter heard with joy that he was to be executed at Gloucester, hoping to confirm in death the truth he had taught in life.

At early dawn on the 5th of February a body of the Queen's guards received him from the Sheriffs near St. Dunstan's, and immediately proceeded to Gloucester. He arrived at Cirencester about eleven o'clock on the 7th, and dined at the inn of a woman who hated the truth, and had always spoken evil of him. She burst into tears; and seeing his cheerfulness, confessed that she had often said, he would not endure if put to the trial. At five o'clock he was met about a mile from Gloucester by a weeping crowd. He ate a hearty supper; and having slept a little, passed the rest of the night in prayer and meditation. In the morning. Sir Anthony Kingston, who had been his friend, but was now appointed one of those who were to superintend his execution, came to him in deep distress, exhorting him to choose life, if yet he could, for life was sweet and death bitter; to whom he replied," that his advice was friendly, but not so friendly as he could wish--that death to come was more bitter, life to come more sweet-and that he came to die at Gloucester because he would not deny the truth he had

taught there."-" Well, my Lord," said Kingston, "may God support you! To you I owe the knowledge of the truth; for I was an adulterer before 1 heard your instructions."

He was led to execution on the morning of the 9th, in a cloak belonging to one Ingram, at whose house he lodged, a hat on his head, and a staff to support him, having contracted rheumatism in his confinement. Being forbidden to speak to the people, he looked cheerfully on those whom he recognized, or lifted up his eyes devoutly to heaven. Arriving at the great elm before a college where he used to preach, he smiled at the stake and faggots, and kneeling down prayed for half an hour on the clauses of the Creed. In the midst of his supplication, a box was laid before him, which he was told contained a pardon if he would recant; but he cried, "O, if ye love my soul, away with it, away with it!" He then added this emphatic address: "Lord, I am hell, but thou art Heaven! I am a sink of iniquity, but thou art a merciful Redeemer! Have mercy then on me a wretched offender, according to thine inestimable goodness. Thou that art ascended into heaven receive me, albeit so unworthy, to share thy joy, where thou sittest in equal glory with the Father. For well thou knowest why I suffer, and why the wicked persecute thy servant: not for my sins against thee, but because I will not allow of their wicked doings, to the polluting thy. blood, and denying that truth in which by thy Spirit thou hast instructed me. I have endeavoured, as thereunto ealled, to set forth thy glory. Thou seest, my Lord and God, the torments prepared for me. What is impossible with man is possible with

thee. Therefore, strengthen me of thy goodness, that in the fire I break not the rules of patience; or else assuage the terror of the pains, as shall seem most to thy glory!"

He prepared himself for the stake by giving the cloak to the Sheriffs, that it might be restored to the owner; but wished to die in his doublet and hose, which was prohibited, and he was stript to the shirt, which he decently disposed. A bladder of gunpowder was fastened under each arm, and between his legs. Three iron hoops being prepared to fasten him to the stake, he put one round his waist, saying, "I am assured this will do; God will enable me to endure without so much fastening." At first the faggots being green, and the wind blowing away the flame, his legs were only scorched. More fuel was supplied, when his lower extremities were burnt, while his vitals remained untouched; yet he prayed mildly, "O Jesu, receive iny spirit!" then wiping his eyes in agony, he cried, "For the love of God, give me more fire!" The executioner excited more flame, but still he survived. He then beat his breast till one arm fell off, when he continued beating with the other, and moving his lips in prayer; nor did he expire till he had borne his torments for nearly. three quarters of an hour.

Among some excellent letters written during his confinement is one to his beloved Anne, whom he had sent over with his children; to Bullinger. This friend wrote him a long epistle from Zurich, full, of godly consolation and exhortation to the English confessors of Christ to persevere, fight the good fight, and be faithful unto the end; as Christ was their Captain, and all the prophets, apostles, and. martyrs, were their fellow soldiers.

JOHN, v. 2-4.-Now there is at Jerusalem, by the sheep market, a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in, was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.

AMONG the wonders which existed in Judæa, in the time of our blessed Saviour, may well be reckoned the pool of Bethesda; of which the evangelist St. John has here given such a particular description. The word "Bethesda" signifies the house of mercy; and this pool was so called, no doubt, on account of the mercy of God which was displayed there in healing many of the impotent persons who came to its waters for relief. For the accommodation of those who came, five porches were built, in which the sick might wait with greater convenience for the expect ed blessing. The numbers who came or were brought to this "house of mercy" were very great, and consisted of persons afflicted with all kinds of incurable diseases; for it was a house of mercy, not merely for the cure of any particular disorder, but for all kinds of maladies to which the human frame is subject. The means of cure were altogether miraculous. The pool did not contain water of any medicinal quality; it had no natural efficacy to heal, nor would the mere bathing in it have produced any good effect; but its healing power was communicated at one particular time by the immediate interposition of God.

"For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the

water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in, was made whole of whatsoever disease he had." Such was the pool of Bethesda; and as almost all things under the Jewish dispen÷ sation were typical of good things to come, so this pool may be considered as a striking representation of the Gospel salvation, and of the means which God has in mercy appointed for saving sin-sick souls by Jesus Christ.

1. The pool of Bethesda was open for the healing of all manner of sickness and disease: so in the Gospel there is a fountain open for sin and uncleanness. "In that day," saith the prophet," there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness." (Zech. xiii. 1.) This fountain is the blood of Christ, which, as the Apostle St. John testifies, "cleanseth us from all sin.” (1 John, i. 7.) Here then is a striking resemblance between the pool of Bethesda, which was open for the cure of all diseases, and the Gospel pool-the fountain of the blood of Christ, which is open for the cleansing of all sin. At the pool of Bethesda diseases of long standing, of great inveteracy, and which had baffled the skill of physicians, yielded in a moment to the miraculous power of the waters, if they were used at the appointed season, and according to the directions given. In like manner, sins of long continuance, of the deepest die, of great power, and corruption, so that no human aid can remove them, are washed away in the blood of Christ, if the sinner comes and applies in God's appointed way, with a penitent heart and lively faith. And as the pool of Bethesda was for the cure of all diseases, so it was open to all who came to be healed; in like manner, the fountain of Christ not

only "cleanseth from all sin," but it cleanseth all who come to it: "for God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John, iii. 16.) "Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." (Rev. xxii. 17.)

2. The name also of this pool was very significant of the Gospel salvation. It was called "Bethesda," the house of mercy: in like manner, the way of salvation through Christ is a dispensation of mercy. It is through the mercy of God that a Saviour came into the world; or, to use the more emphatic words of Zacharias, "Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the Day-spring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." (Luke, i. 78, 79.) God might justly have left the whole human race to perish in their sins, as he did rebel angels; but in mercy he interposed to rescue fallen man from that dreadful state into which sin has brought him. As it was mercy which led the Almighty to send an angel down at a certain season to the pool of Bethesda; so it was mercy that induced him to send his only begotten Son into the world to save sinners. "In this was manifested the love of God towards us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him." (1 John, iv. 9.) And as it was an act of mercy in God to send his Son into the world, so it is an act of mercy when any sinner is brought truly to believe in him, and to follow him in newness of life. "But God," says St. Paul, "who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ (by grace ye are saved), and hath raised us up together, and made

us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace, in his kindness towards us through Christ Jesus." (Eph. ii. 4-7.) Every poor diseased person that was healed at the pool of Bethesda was an instance of divine mercy, and so is every poor sinner that is saved through Christ. It is in mercy that the sinner is led to feel his lost condition by nature, and his need of a Saviour. It is through mercy that he comes to Christ seeking salvation in his name: through mercy that he finds acceptance with God; that he obtains deliverance from his sins, and a good hope of everlasting life. It is through merey that he is enabled in some measure to live to the glory of God; for he is "kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation." (1 Pet. i. 5.) It is through mercy that he finishes his course, and gets to heaven. It is all mercy; and thus the way of salvation through Christ is like the pool of Bethesda, a dispensation of mercy to all those who actually receive benefit thereby.

3. The accommodation for the sick at the pool of Bethesda may remind us of that provision which is made according to God's providence and grace for bringing sinners acquainted with their Saviour. The pool of Bethesda had five porches for the accommodation of impotent persons, that they might be always at hand to receive the benefit at the appointed season when it was to be conferred; that they might be upon the spot to seize the favourable opportunity, and wait for it without inconve nience and danger to themselves. 1n like manner, God has so ordered it in his providence, that there are means appointed for bringing sinners acquainted with the Saviour. We have reason to be thankful for that external provision which is made for the admi