THE TRUE STATE OF ICELAND ad. 



1592. 



are tormented, we utterly stand to the deniall of that : 

 and we thanke God & our Lord Jesus Christ from the 

 botome of our hearts (who hath delivered us from death 

 & hell, & opened unto us the gate of the kingdome of 

 heaven) because he hath instructed us more truely, con- 

 cerning the place, whether the soules of our deceased 

 countrimen depart, then these historiographers doe tell 

 us. We know and maintain that the soules of ye godly 

 are transported immediatly out of their bodily prisons, 

 not into the Papists purgatory, nor into the Elysian 

 fields, but into Abrahams bosome, into the hand of God, 

 & into the heavenly paradise. We know and maintaine 

 concerning the soules of the wicked, that they wander 

 not into the fires & ashes of mountaines, or into visible 

 ice, but immediatly are carried away into utter darkenesse, 

 where is weeping & gnashing of teeth, where there is 

 colde also, & fire not common, but far beyond our 

 knowledge & curious disputation. Where not onely 

 bodies, but soules also, y^ is spirituall substances are 

 tormented. And we do also hold, y* the Islanders are 

 no whit nearer unto this extreame & darke prison, in 

 regard of the situation of place, then the Germans, Danes, 

 Frenchmen, Italians, or any other nation whatsoever. 

 Neither is it any thing to the purpose, at all to dispute 

 of the place or situation of this dungeon. It is sufficient 

 for us, that (by the grace and assistance of our Lord 

 Jesus Christ, with whose precious blood we are re- 

 deemed) we shall never see that utter darknesse, nor 

 feele the rest of the torments that be there. Now let 

 us here shut up the disputation concerning the hell 

 of Island. 



[The tenth 



125 



