[153] and
Frear Maltman, sergeantis of Sathan,[154] apt for that purpose. The day
appointed to thare crueltie approched, the two poore sanctis of God war
presented befoir those bloody bowcheouris: grevouse war the crymes that
war layed to thare charge. Kennedy at the first was faynt, and glaidly
wald have recanted. But whill that place of reapentance was denyed unto
him, the Spreit of God, which is the Spreit of all conforte, begane to
wyrk into him, yea the inward conforte begane to burst furth, alsweall
in visage, as in tung and wourd; for his countenance begane to be
chearfull, and with a joyfull voce upoun his kneis, hie said, "O eternal
God! how wonderouse is that luf and mercy that thow bearest unto
mankynd, and unto me the moist cative and miserable wrache above all
utheris; for, evin now, when I wold have denyed thee, and thy Sone, our
Lord Jesus Christ, my onlye Saveour, and so have casten my self in
everlesting damnatioun; thow, by thy awin hand, has pulled me frome the
verray bottome of hell, and mackis me to feall that heavinlie conforte
which tackis fra me that ungodly fear, whairwyth befoir I was oppressed.
Now I defy death; do what ye please: I praise my God I am readdy." The
godly and learned Jeronimus, rayled upoun by those godless tyrantes,
ansured, "This is your houre and the power of darknes: now sytt ye as
judgeis; and we stand wrongfullie accused, and more wrongfullie to be
condempned; but the day shall come, when our innocency shall appeare,
and that ye shall see your awin blyndness, to your everlesting
confusioun. Go fordward, and fulfill the measur of your iniquitie."
Whill that these servandis of God thus behaved thame selfis, aryseth a
variance betuix the Bischope and the beastis that came from the
Cardinall; for the Bischope said, "I think it better to spayr these men,
nor to putt thame to death."[155] Wharat the idiot Doctouris offended,
said, "What will yo do, my Lord? Will ye condempne all that my Lord
Cardinall and the other Bischoppes and we have done? Yf so ye do, ye
schaw your self ennemye to the Kirk and us, and so we will reputt yow,
be ye assured." At which wordis, the faythless man effrayed, adjudgeed
the innocentis to dye, according to the desyre of the wicked. The meak
and gentill Jerome Russall conforted the other with many confortable
sentences, oft saying unto him, "Brother, fear nott: more potent is He
that is in us, then is hie that is in the world: The pane that we shall
suf