icause he hadd
lyued long with an vncleane poeple.

The histories of the heathen do teache vs the same thinge.
Alexander that gret and mightie kinge of Macedonia / who by the
force of armes / and most notable victories / hadd subdued the
greatest parte of the whole worlde / Euen he hymself was
ouercomme with the maniers of the Persians.

And vppon whom of right / as vppon a conquered poeple / he shuld
haue laied lawes / to haue brought them to that seuere kinde of
lyfe which the Macedonians vsed / euen he as a man conquered and
ouercomme of ther maniers / suffered hymself to be so shamefully
misused / that he did take vnto hym their kinde of araye / their
lowse delicacie / their pompe and pride / and set. furthe hymself
to be worshipped of them as godd. And so being corrupted he did
allow that fall from the maniers of the grecians / through which
he did sustayn great reproche amonge the wise / and mutche
hatred amonge his souldiours / and that not vnworthilie. Besids
this / we must knowe / that if these men do without ony Rule or
godly end keape such companye / and be familiarly conuersant
with the vnbeleauers / except that in theise the fruite of their
conuercion do quickly appeare / and of the other also it be by
all meanes ernestly sought / both in the reprouing of their
vnbeleif / and in alluring them to the truithe / It doth happen
that ther conuercion is hindred by such companie and
familiaritie. For whilest the vnbeleuers do se that the
faithfull do lyue so frendly / and familiarly with them / they
do iudge forthewith that their supersticion / and vnbeleif / is
not so wicked a thinge / nor yet a thinge so to be abhorred and
condenned / as it is reported / yea thus maye they be brought to
imagin / that they maye be saued though they do perseuere / and
contynue in their vnbeleif. For if it wer otherwise (shall they
thincke) theise goode and godly men / wold not be thus familiar
and frendly with vs.

I do omitt to speake of this / that many other of the brethern
ther ar / which by the example of this conuersacion / do
persuade themselues that they maye do euen the self same
thinge / and so do beare with the wicked / and do wincke at
their euell / bicause that they haue seen other men do so before
them And thus it commith to pas / that by the example of sum
men / this euell spreadith it self abroade so that in the end /
our faith and Religion / is euen layed forth for the wicked and
vngodly / to mocke / an