A   This is a true say&ebar;ge: Yf a m&abar; covet þe; office of a Bi&esset;hoppe, he desyreth a good worke. But a Bi&esset;hoppe must be blamelesse, ^note the hu&esset;b&abar;de of one wife, sober, discrete, manerly, harberous, ^note apte to teach: Not geuen to moch wyne, no fighter, not geuen to filthy lucre: but gentle, abhorrynge stryfe, abhorrynge couetousnes: ∧ one that ruleth his awne house honestly, hauynge obedient children with all honestye. (But yf a man can not rule his owne house, how shal he care for the congregacion of God?) He maye not be a y&obar;ge scolar, lest he be puft vp, and fall in to the iudgment of þe; euell speaker. He must also haue a good reporte of them which are without, lest he fall in to the rebuke and snare of the euell speaker.

B   Likewyse must the ^note mynisters be honest, not double tonged, not geuen to moch wyne, nether vnto fylthie lucre, but hauynge the mystery of faith in pure conscience. And let them first be proued, and then let them mynister, yf they be blamelesse.

Euen so must their wyues be honest, not euell speakers, but sober and faithfull in all thinges. Let the mynisters be, euery one the hu&esset;b&abar;de of one wyfe, and soch as rule their children well, and their owne housholdes. ^noteFor they that mynister well, get them selues a good degree and greate libertye in the faith which is in Christ Iesu.

These thinges wryte I vnto the, trustinge shortly to come vnto the: but yf I tary l&obar;ge, that then thou mayest yet haue knowlege, how thou oughtest to behaue thy selfe in Gods house, which is the congregacion of the lyuynge God, the piler and grounde of trueth: and without naye, greate is that mystery of godlynes. ^noteGod was shewed in the flesh: was iustified in the sprete: ^note was sene of angels: was preached vnto the Heythen: was beleued on in the worlde: ^note was receaued vp in glory.

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