THe Monsterous and unnaturall shapes
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of these Chyldren & dyvers lyke brought
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foorth in our dayes (good reader) ar not
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onelye for us to gase and wonder at, as
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thyngs happenyng either by chaunce, or
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els by naturall reason, as both the old, and our Phy-
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losophers also holde now a dayes: and without anye
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farther heede to be had therto, or els as our common
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custome is, by & by to judge god onely offended wyth
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the Parentes of the same, for some notoryous vyce or
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offence reygning alone in them: But they ar lessons
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& scholynges for us all (as the word monster shewith)
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who dayly offende as grevously as they do, wherby
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god almyghtye of hys greate mercy and longe suffe-
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raunce, admonysheth us by them to amendmente of
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our lyves. no lesse wycked, yea many times, more then
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the parentes of suche mysformed bee. That this is
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true they shal wel perceyve, the ryghtly wey and consi-
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der the aunswere of oure Saviour Chryste unto hys
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Dyscyples, askyng hym whether weare greatter sin-
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ners, the blynde hym selfe, either els hys parentes,
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that he was so borne: To whom our savyour Chryst
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aunswered, that neyther he, neyther they were faul-
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tye therin, but that he was therfore borne blynde, to
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thend the glory of God myghte be declared on hym,
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and by him. The same also appereth in another aun-
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swere made by our savyour Chryste to them, whyche
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tolde hym of the Galleyans, whom Pontius Pylate
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put to death for theyre rebellyon agaynste Augustus
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theyr Emperoure, wherein he declareth (as also
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by those .xviii. persons on whom the Towre by Sylo
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fell) that there were as great offenders remaynynge
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alyve, as any of them were. Wherfore he eftsones ad-
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monyshed them to amendment of lyfe in generall: or
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els by their examples threatened them with as grea-
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vous dystructyon, as fell uppon any of them. These
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examples moved me (good reader) in consideracyon
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