WHen I consider the present state of things, with how strong and power­full delusions the great enemie of mankinde goeth a­bout to ouerspread the whole Church, la­bouring by all meanes, that the flouds of vn­truths, belched from his wide throat, might carrie away that Glorius woman cloathed with the Sunne, crowned with Starres, and treading vpon the Moone; I haue iust reason, [Page 2] with all humilitie and becomming reue­rence, to take into consideration that graci­ous instruction, which his Maiestie, in his Me­ditations vpon the 20. chapter of the Reuelati­on, raiseth and enforceth by occasion of the Deuils loosing, by the rising of Antechrist, namely, that Whereas the iustice of God, in re­spect of mans falling wilfully from the truth (as Paul saith) iustly did send to the world the great Abuser with efficacie of lies; as well to tyrran­nize spiritually ouer the conscience by heresie, as corporally ouer their bodies, by the ciuill sword. Therefore we must feare to fall from the truth re­uealed, and professed by vs, that we may be free from the like punishment. For assuredly, though I dare not say, that euerie falling away from the truth, with what circumstances soeuer it may be qualified, is a sinne against the Holy Ghost; yet I thinke I shall not stray from the iudgement of the most and best Diuines, if I affirme that the sinne against the Holy Ghost is neuer committed, but there must necessa­rily concurre a wilfull and obstinate deniall of a knowen and inwardly confessed truth, or A withholding and keeping of it backe in vn­righteousnesse.

Which sinne of sinnes, because lamenta­ble experience teacheth euery man whose eies are open, that it is stealing vpon vs: The Lord in mercy hath not only frequently pro­tested [Page 3] against it in his word, denouncing iudgement without mercie, to all them who shall dip hands or hearts in the guilt thereof: But also by signes and wonders, by strange and vncouth prodigies, hee giues warning that he folds not his hands together like a sluggard, loth to pull them out of his bo­some, or like such a God as the wicked faine (because they would faine haue it so;) seeth not, neither vnderstandeth any thing. But that his eyes behold all the wickednsse that is done vpon all the earth; as if hee had no more than one particular person to attend vnto: and that hee is whetting his sword, and making ready his quiuer full of arrowes against impenitent sinners, and such as will not feare his name.

His aboundant mercies indeed will not suffer his iustice to take vengeance of sinners, before hee haue (according to his owne Law, in case of Israels making warre against other cities and nations) offered peace and recon­ciliation vnto vs: But for all that, when he seeth his loue despised, his long-suffering con­temned, and all his couenants trodden vnder foot; Hee is at length accustomed to shew himselfe the Lord of his promise; and that all his former patience proceeded not (as it fals out many times with men) from feare of op­position, or the greatnes of the delinquents; [Page 4] but only and meerely from his immeasura­ble loue, which hateth nothing that he hath made, and is so loth to punish, that if all had continued in their primitiue order and crea­ted puritie, the verie Word had neuer beene named, nor had the thing it selfe euer beene created.

I should not haue spoken so much, nor with so much confidence vpon this occasion, had I not knowen that the same God who alwayes hath written the texts of these pre­dictions with his owne hand, hath likewise ordinarily giuen this Interpretation of them; and withall that admonitions, whether in season, or out of season, cannot hurt; It be­ing a happy occasion, whatsoeuer by any meanes draweth vs to amendment of life. Let not Philosophie wrangle with me for neg­lecting her, when I am employed in the ser­uice of our common Mistresse, Diuinitie; I willingly giue vnto her the knowledge of immediate and second causes; but shee her selfe hath taught me, to giue vnto God the ordering and disposing of Nature, and a con­stant influence into the least effects, which she produceth.

It were an hard matter for me to say, that Parelij (so the Gracians call an appearance of many Sunnes together;) and Paraselenai (which are when it seemes that many Moons [Page 5] appeare at the same time) are caused by the reflexion of the beames of those Planets, from an equally condensed cloud interposed be­tweene them and vs; as Rainebowes are (by the refraction of their beames) from an hol­low, waterish, or dewie cloud, vnequally con­densed or thickned (which is the cause of the varietie of colours) as is plaine by a three square glasse, which representeth more co­lours, or at least more liuely than are in the Rainebow. Of which who so are desirous to see more, may read Seneca largely discour­sing thereof, in the first booke of his Naturall questions, the 11, 12, 13 chapters, and diuers others.

And was there none among the many thousands of Israel, that could satisfie the a­mazed multitude, concerning the causes of thunder and raine; but that they must fall to such a deiection vpon the sight and hearing of them, as is expressed, 2 Sam. 12. 18, 19. Certainly, the vnsafe curiositie of mankinde, when it hath gained credit in some things, scornes to acknowledge his ignorance in any thing, as we see by them, who being beleeued, or thought to speake probably in the disclo­sing of the causes of Snowes, Dewes, and Raines, haue from thence assumed vnto them­selues to bee able to giue naturall reasons of the Deluge, of raining of Bloud, Milke, Wheat, [Page 6] Stones, Woll, Iron, and such like, whereof ma­ny histories written by credible Authors doe make mention. How much better and safer is it for vs, though these things bee granted possible by Nature; yet since it cannot bee denied that they are not ordinary in Nature, to take the aduantage of them for the preuen­ting of that wrath, which, whether it be prog­nosticated by these ostents, or no, will surely be reuealed from Heauen vpon vs, when the measure of our iniquitie shall be filled.

Were wee at that point with God, where we should be; we needed not to be affraid at the signes of Heauen; simply and positiuely wee need not feare them; as though they could hurt vs, without the impulsion of his hand which made Heauen and earth; or as if, though hee had commanded his Army Royall of all creatures to march against vs, and the Heauens themselues to fight against vs, as against Sisera, yet it were not in his power, vpon our repentance to sound the retreat, and make them all retire, and againe to renew the league betweene the stones in the street and vs. But when wee see the signes the same, and know our sinnes the same, God will, without doubt, rather accept of an humble feare, that trembles at the hand, that shakes the rod, than of a presumptuous and vnreasona­ble confidence, that he who punished the periury [Page 7] of Troy, should loue the lies of Rome, (to vse S. Augustines words) or to vse the phrase of Scripture, that hee who punished Iudah for three transgressions should winke at Israel for the multitude of her rebellions.

When there were three Sunnes seene at Rome, which by little and little did all grow into one bodie, It was answered by the Col­ledge of Southsayers, that it portended the vniting of the three parts of the world, (which then were only knowen) Asia, Africke, and Europe into one Empire; Grande specta­culum (saith mine Author) & quod grandia significauit; This was in the yeare after the worlds Creation 3923. and after the building of Rome, 711. about 41. yeeres before the in­carnation of our blessed Sauiour, M. Aemi­lius Lepidus, and L. Munat. Plancus being Consuls. The successe proued it true; for shortly after, so much of the world, as was either knowen, or worth conquering, ac­knowledged the Soueraigntie of the Romane Empire: Had these lately seene three Sunnes, (whereof I am to speake) appeared but twen­tie yeares sooner, wee might peraduenture haue hoped they had but foretold, what wee haue since found true, The happie vnion of these three mightie Kingdomes, in our bles­sed Peace-maker: But seeing they come too late to foretell it; let vs hope they come not [Page 8] too late to confirme it vnto him and his po­steritie, as long as the Sunne and Moone en­dure.

Notwithstanding, euen at that time, there were some that on the other side did stiffely maintaine, that these three Sunnes could not presage any good vnto the Romane Empire; but rather a diuision and distraction of that Imperiall power, as indeed it proued true; for the yeare following began the Triumvi­rate of Lepidus, Caesar, and Antonie, which made way vnto Caesars Monarchy, the period of the Romanes libertie, and the beginning of the decay of their greatnesse. And certainly, it hath not been often seene or obserued, that such Prodigies haue beene fore-runners of any good vnto the place where they were seene: howsoeuer, vpon a turning of the hearts of the people vnto God, without question, God can turne the threatned plagues vpon the heads of the Heathen, and such as haue not knowen his name.

The like apparition of three Sunnes and so many Moones which happened in Italy in the yeare of Grace 1164. was thought to presage the great dissension of the Princes Electors in chusing the Emperor, and the schisme which lately followed in the See of Rome. And what the three Sunnes which three yeeres af­ter were seene in Poland might seeme to fore-shew, [Page 9] the Chronicles of that Countrey doe sufficiently demonstrate.

And to passe by many other; those three Sunnes which were seene at Magdeburge vpon the 21. of March 1551. about seuen of the clocke in the morning, accompanied with se­uen Rainebowes: and the three Moones ap­pearing the night of the same day: the three Sunnes appearing againe in the same place, the 21. of Aprill following, accompanied only with three Rainebowes, might probably bee thought to fore-shew the straight siege, which (by the command of Charles the fifth) Maurice the Duke of Saxony▪ and Albert Mar­quisse of Brandenburge laid against that Citie by the space of fifteene moneths; whereby the Citizens were driuen to great extremi­ties, though afterward they made their peace vpon good conditions.

What should I speake of the three Sunnes appearing ouer Vinarium a little Citie in Do­ringia the tenth of Februarie 1555. Or of the like in France before the battell of S. Quintins? Because according to the Spanish prouerbe, Da lueng as vias, lueng as mentiras; From farre countreyes, foule lies: I will come close to our owne times, and our owne home; nay, as our Sauiour sayd, Regnum Dei est intra vos, The Kingdome of God is within you: So will I say, It is not beyond the seas, that thou [Page 10] shouldest say, who shall goe ouer the sea for vs, and bring it to vs, and cause vs to heare it, that we may doe it? But the thing is very neere vnto thee, yea euen before thine eyes to see it: And therefore the more inexcusable are they, that either will not beleeue it, or reflect no more vpon it, than if they beleeued it not: How­soeuer, thus it was.

Vpon Saturday the 22. of December last, at Tregnie, a market-towne in Cornewall, well knowen to Cornish men, in respect of his neerenesse to Falmouth, about eleuen of the clocke before noone, the Sunne being vnder a cloud, it was obserued that from the bodie of the Sunne there proceeded a more scatte­red and dispersed light than was wont, as if the bodie of the Planet had beene greater than it had formerly beene: But this being attributed only to the brightnesse of some cloud betweene him and vs, little notice was taken thereof, till about a quarter of an houre after, this diffused light seemed to con­center, as it were, and gather to three heads, which in short space appeared to the view of the beholders to be three Sunnes, of equall lustre and brightnesse, and placed as neere as could bee ghessed in a Triangle; all shining cleere, and scattering their beames with so great light, as that the eye of man could not fasten vpon any one of them more than ano­ther. [Page 11] And yet which is remarkable, the light of the day was not increased, other­wise than in a cleare Suune-shine day, at such time of the yeere it is accustomed to be; so that they who were in their houses could not, by reason of any such symp­tome, take notice thereof.

This strange and extraordinarie sight made the people (who were assembled there in great number that day, as being market-day) to forsake the streets and o­ther places, where any thing might inter­pose it selfe betweene it and them, and to betake themselues into open places, whence they might the better discerne it; where they, with feare and amazement, did a great while gaze vpon it, not being able to discerne which was the naturall Sunne, and which his aduentitious and Mimicke reflections. They that were of better iudge­ment, ghessed them to be distant one from the other about two degrees, or two and one third.

Nor were they only that were at Tregnie partakers of this fearefull and preternatu­rall oftent; but as many as dwelt within foure or fiue miles round about were, or might haue beene eye-witnesses vnto it; peraduenture, not in so plaine and conspi­cuous [Page 12] a manner, because the cloud was not either of height or largenesse: but it is a­uouched by some Gentle-men of good worth and qualitie, that being that day foure miles from Tregnie into the land­wards, about twelue of the clocke, they did plainly see and discerne it.

At the same time, and so long as these three Sunnes appeared, there were seene in the aire, iust opposite vnto them, and al­most due North three Rainebowes, two of which were the one within the other, but the third, against the course of nature, had his center in the Zenith of that place, and was almost contiguous vnto the other two, hauing his backe almost ioyned to theirs. That Rainebowes should appeare, we know it to be no wonder, and that so many Rainebowes as Sunnes, wee beleeue it possible; but that any Rainebow should bee greater than a semi-circle, or haue his center aboue our Horizon, is a thing which elder times haue not beene so well acquainted withall.

These Sunnes and these Rainebowes con­tinued in the manner abouesayd, from a quarter of an houre after eleuen, vntill halfe an houre after twelue; at what time the light of the Sunnes, beginning by little [Page 13] and little to grow weake, the thicke cloud got the victory ouer them, and tooke them away from the eyes of the beholders; and at the same time also the Rainebowes their attendants vanished, and left the day a lit­tle troubled, (but much more the mindes of the people;) yet about one of the clocke, or soone after, the Sunne brake out againe in his wonted and accustomed man­ner, and the rest of the day was cleere and free from clouds.

Since this strange apparition, namely vpon the tenth of Ianuary last, there hap­pened in Deuonshire, yet not farre from the other place, being on the edge of Corne­wall, another wonder, which did as much affright the eares of men, as this did their eyes: For in the afternoone of that day, being the Thursday after Twelfth day, there were heard in the aire, vnusuall cracks or claps of thunder, resembling in all points, the sound of many Drums together, some­times beating Charges, sometimes Re­treats, sometimes Marches, and all other points of warre: which after it had conti­nued a good time, it seemed that the same thunder did most liuely expresse many vol­leyes of Small-shot, and afterward the like volleyes of Ordnance, with so great, and yet [Page 14] so distinct noyse, that many of them who dwelt neere the sea, went toward the shore to see what it might meane, as verily sup­posing there had beene some great sea-fight neere vpon that Coast. These seuerall fearefull noyses were againe and againe re­newed in the same order, till at length, with an horrible and extraordinary cracke of thunder, there fell in a ground of one Robert Pierce, where there were diuers worke-men planting apple-trees, (which ground lay neere the house of one Master George Chidley) a thunder-bolt, if I may so call it, being a stone of three foot and an halfe in length, of two foot and an halfe in bredth, and one foot and an halfe in thick­nesse, the substance whereof was in hard­nesse and colour not much vnlike a flint, as appeares by many peeces thereof, which are shewed vp and downe by many credi­ble and honest Gentle-men, who with their own hands brake them off from the maine stone. After the fall of this stone, which with the weight thereof was cleane buried in the ground aboue a yard deepe, the thunder ceased, and people began as much to wonder at that which they now saw, as they had lately done at that, which with so much feare & amazement they had heard.

[Page 15] You haue now heard a simple, plaine, and short narration, of some great and feare­full wonders, what the causes of them were, we all may peraduenture coniecture, though none of vs can demonstratiuely shew: What the effects of them shall be, I scarse thinke any man can coniecture; sure I am, no man can certainly tell; It is nei­ther safe nor good for vs to be Poliman­ticks, but in all patience and prepared reso­lution, to submit our selues to the will of God, we may well determine it the dutie of euerie Christian.

I had here put an end of this short and vnpollisht discourse; but that being in hand with it, there was brought vnto me a briefe (but excellent) and simple narration of the massacres committed by Papists, vp­on the persons of more than 400. men, wo­men, and children, of the Reformed Religi­on, in the Valletelline (a place in the Grisons Countrey among the Rhaetian Alps, of good importance for many respects) both in Ti­rano, Teglio, Sundrio, and Malenco, and di­uers other places of the Countrey neere adioyning: the ninth, tenth, and eleuenth of Iuly 1620. wherein, though I confesse there be such examples of crueltie and in­humanitie, as a Turke, Infidell, Iew, or any [Page 16] other sauing a Papist, would blush and tremble at; yet not conciding so aptly with this purpose, I will for the present o­mit them, and (which agreeth better with this argument) only touch vpon such Prodi­gies, as the Author of that Treatise, who as an eye-witnesse reporteth what he saw and felt, ‘Et quorum pars magna fuit.’ affirmeth, to haue beene seene and heard in those places, both before the Massacre and after; and thus they are word for word with the Italian coppie.

To make an end now where I began, at home and amongst our selues; though this briefe narration was not by me intended, as a pious fraud, to make men afraid where there is no cause of feare; yet howsoeuer the truth of it bee, (for I will not engage my faith vnto you for the certaintie of it, though in my selfe I bee well enough satis­fied thereof, in respect of the credit of such as reported it, as hauing beene eye-wit­nesses:) Let others please themselues in [Page 20] the perswasion, that, ‘Nihil est in istis terri­bile nisi ipse timor,’ (as Seneca speakes) There is nothing fearefull in these things, but the feare it selfe: yet the wise will bee admo­nished by euery occasion, ‘Et quod aequum est sperare, & ad id quod iniquissimum est se com­pararet;’ both (as wee say in honest English) to hope the best, and to prouide for the worst; which how to doe, as becommeth Christians, no man hath better taught vs, nor in fewer words, than our Soueraigne himselfe in the end of his Meditation vpon 1 Chron. 15. vers. 25, 26, 27, 28, 29. First, by constant remaining in the puritie of the truth, which is our most certaine couenant of saluation, in the only merit of our Sauiou [...]: And next, by reforming our defiled liues, a [...] becomes regenerate Christians, to the great glory of our God, the vtter defacing of our ad­uersaries, the wicked, and our vnspeak­able comfort, both here and also her [...]after.

Amen.