And therefore the deep darkness of the midnight maketh men who stand out of faith and out of good hope in God to be in far the greater fear in their tribulation, for lack of the light of faith, by which they might perceive that the uttermost of their peril is a far less thing than they take it for.  But we are so wont to set so much by our body, which we see and feel, and in the feeding and fostering of which we set out delight and our wealth; and so little (alas) and so seldom we think upon our soul, because we cannot see that but by spiritual understanding, and most especially by the eye of our faith (in the meditation of which we bestow, God knows, little time), that the loss of our body we take for a sorer thing and for a great deal greater tribulation than we do the loss of our soul.  Our Saviour biddeth us not fear those lions’ whelps that can but kill our bodies and when that is done have no further thing in their power with which they can do us harm, but he biddeth us stand in dread of him who when he hath slain the body is able then beside to cast the soul into everlasting fire.  Yet are we so blind in the dark night of tribulation, for lack of full and fast belief of God’s word, that, whereas in the day of prosperity we very little fear God for our soul, our night’s fear of adversity maketh us very sore to fear the lion and his whelps for dread of loss of our bodies.  And whereas St. Paul in sundry places telleth us that our body is but the garment of the soul, yet the faintness of our faith in the scripture of God maketh us, with the night’s fear of tribulation, not only to dread the loss of our body more than that of our soul—­that is, of the clothing more than of the substance that is clothed therewith—­but also of the very outward goods that serve for the clothing of the body.  And much more foolish are we in that dark night’s fear than would be a man who would forget the saving of his body for fear of losing his old rain-beaten cloak, that is but the covering of his gown or his coat.  Now, consider further yet, that the prophet in the afore-remembered verses saith that in the night there walk not only the lions’ whelps but also “all the beasts of the wood.”  Now, you know that if a man walk through the wood in the night, many things can make him afraid of which in the day he would not be afraid a whit.  For in the night every bush, to him that waxeth once afraid, seemeth a thief.

I remember that when I was a young man, I was once in the war with the king then my master (God absolve his soul) and we were camped within the Turk’s ground many a mile beyond Belgrade—­would God it were ours now as it was then!  But so happed it that in our camp about midnight there suddenly rose a rumour and a cry that the Turk’s whole army was secretly stealing upon us.  Therewith our whole host was warned to arm them in haste and set themselves in array to fight.  And then were runners of ours, who had brought those sudden tidings, examined more leisurely by the council, as to what