106.

God the Father. 1 This is my stedfast Créede, my faith, and all my trust, That in the heauens there is a God, most mightie, milde and iust. A God aboue all gods, a King aboue all kings, The Lord of lords, chiefe gouernour of heauen and earthly things. Maker of Heauen. 2 That power hath of life, of death, of heauen and hell, That all thing made as pleaseth him, so woonderfull to tell: That made the hanging Skies, so deckt with diuers lights, Of darknes made the chéerfull daies, and all our restfull nights. The earth. 3 That clad this earth with herbe, with trées, and sundrie fruites, With beast, with bird, both wild and tame, of strange and sundrie suites: That intermixt the same with mines like veines of Ore, Of siluer, golde, of precious stones, and treasures many more. The waters, frost and snowe. 4 That ioyned brookes to dales, to hilles fresh water springs, With riuers swéete along the méedes, to profit many things: That made the hoarie frosts, the flakie snowes so trim, The honie deawes, the blustering windes, to serue as pleaseth him. The seas. 5 That made the surging seas, in course to ebbe and flo, That skilfull man with sailing ship, mought trauell to and fro: And stored so the same, for mans vnthankfull sake, That euery nation vnder heauen mought thereby profit take. The soul of man. 6 That gaue to man a soule, with reason how to liue, That doth to him and all things else, his blessing dailie giue: That is not séene, yet séeth how man doth runne his race, Whose dailie workes both good and bad, stand knowne before his face. Thunder and plagues. 7 That sendeth thundring claps, like terrours out of hell, That man may know a God there is, that in the heauens doth dwel: That sendeth threatning plagues, to kéepe our liues in awe, His benefites if we forget, or do contemne his lawe. Full of mercie. 8 That dailie hateth sinne, and loueth vertue well, And is the God of Abraham, Isac, and Israell, That doth displeasure take, when we his lawes offend, And yet amids his heauie wrath, his mercie doth extend. Christ the Sonne. 9 This is that Lord of hostes, the father of vs all, The maker of what ere was made, my God on whom I call: Which for the loue of man, sent downe his onelie sonne, Begot of him before the worldes were any whit begonne. Christes birth. Christ, God and man. 10 This entred Maries wombe, as faith affirmeth sure, Conceiued by the holy Ghost, borne of that virgine pure; This was both God and man, of Jewes the hoped king, And liued here, saue onely sinne, like man in euerie thing. Christ, our Messias. 11 This is that virgins childe, that same most holie Preist, The lamb of God, the prophet great, whom scripture calleth Christ, This that Messias was, of whom the Prophet spake, That should tread down the serpents head and our attonement make. Christes passion. 12 This Judas did betray, to false dissembling Jewes, Which vnto Pilat being Judge, did falsely him accuse: Who (through that wicked Judge) and of those Jewes despight, Condemned and tormented was, with all the force they might. 13 To liuing wight more euill, what could such wretches do? More pearcing wounds, more bitter pains, than they did put him to? They crowned him with thorne, that was the king of kings, That sought to saue the soule of man, aboue all worldly things. Christes death. 14 This was that Pascall lambe whose loue for vs so stood, That on the mount of Caluerie,[1] for vs did shed his blood: Where hanging on the Crosse, no shame he did forsake, Till death giuen him by pearcing speare, an ende of life did make. Christes buriall. Christes descension. 15 This Ioseph séeing dead, the bodie thence did craue, And tooke it forthwith from the crosse, and laid it in his graue, Downe thence he went to hell, in vsing there his will,[E479] His power[2] I meane, his slained corps in tumb remaining still. Christes resurrection. Christes ascension. 16 From death to life againe, the third day this did rise, And séene[E480] on earth to his elect, times oft in sundrie wise: And after into heauen, ascend he did in sight, And sitteth on the right hand there, of God the father of might. Christ shall be our iudge. 17 Where for vs wretches all, his father he doth pray, To haue respect vnto his death, and put our sinnes away: From thence with sounded trump, which noise all flesh shall dread, He shall returne with glorie againe, to iudge the quicke and dead. The Iudges sentence. 18 Then shall that voice be heard, Come, come, ye good to mée, Hence, hence to hell you workers euill, where paine shall euer bée: This is that louing Christ, whom I my Sauiour call, And onely put my trust in him, and in none else at all. God the holy Ghost. 19 In God the holy Ghost, I firmely do belieue, Which from the father and the sonne a blessed[3] life giue, Which by the Prophets spake, which doth all comfort send, Which I do trust shall be my guide, when this my life shall ende. The Catholike Church. 20 A holy catholike Church, on earth I graunt there is, And those which frame their liues by that, shall neuer do[4] amis: The head whereof is Christ, his word the chiefest post: Preseruer of this temple great, is God the holy Ghost. The Communion of Saints. 21 I do not doubt there is a multitude of Saints, More good is don resembling them, than shewing them our plaints: Their faith and workes in Christ, that glorie them did giue, Which glorie we shall likewise haue, if likewise we do liue. Forgiueness of sinnes. 22 At God of heauen there is, forgiuenesse of our sinnes, Through Christes death, through faith in it, and through none other ginnes: If we repentant here, his mercie dailie craue, Through stedfast hope and faith in Christ, forgiuenes we shall haue. Mans resurrection. 23 I hope and trust vpon the rising of the flesh, This corps of mine that first must die, shall rise againe afresh: The soule and bodie euen then, in one shall ioyned bée, As Christ did rise from death to life, euen so through Christ shall wée. Life euerlasting. 24 As Christ is glorified, and neuer more shall die, As Christ ascended into heauen, through Christ euen so shall I: As Christ I count my head, and I a member of his, So God I trust for Christes sake, shall settle me in blis. [25] Thus here we learne of God, that there be persons thrée, The Father, Sonne, the holy Ghost, one God in trinitée, In substance all like one, one God, one Lord, one might, Whose persons yet we do diuide, and so we may by right. [26] As God the Father is the maker of vs all, So God the Sonne redéemer is, to whom for helpe we call, And God the holy Ghost, the soule of man doth winne, By moouing hir to waile for grace, ashamed of hir sinne. [27] This is that God of gods, whom euerie soule should loue, Whom all mens hearts should quake for feare his wrath on them to moue: That this same mightie God, aboue all others chiefe, Shall saue my soule from dolefull Hell, is all my whole beliefe.