After that the ten tribes had fallen away from God by the wicked and subtle counsel of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in stead of his true service commanded by his word worshipped him according to their own fantasies and traditions of men, giving them selves to most vile idolatrie and superstition, the Lord from time to time sent them Prophets to call them to repentance: but they grew ever worse and worse, and stil abused God’s benefits. Therefore now when their prosperity was at the highest under Jeroboam the son of Joash, God sent Hoséa and Amós to the Israelites (as he did at the sametime Isaiáh and Micah to them of Judah) to condemn them of their ingratitude: and where as they thought them selves to be greatly in the favour of God, and to be his people, the Prophet calleth them bastards and children born in adulterie: and therefore sheweth them that God would take away their kingdom, and give them to the Assyrians to be led away captives. Thus Hoséa faithfully executed his office for the space of seventie yeres, though they remained stil in their vices and wickedness, and derided the Prophets, and contemned God’s judgements. And because they should neither be discouraged with threatenings only, nor yet flatter them selves by the sweetness of God’s promises, he setteth before them the two principle parts of the Law, which are the promise of salvation, and the doctrine of life: for the first part he directeth the faithful to Messiah, by whom only they should have true deliverance: and for t he second, he useth threatenings and menaces to bring them from their wicked manners and vices, and this is the chief scope of all the Prophets, either by God’s promises to allure them to be godlie, els by threatenings of his judgements to fear them from vice: and albeit that the whole Law contain these two points, yet the Prophets moreover note peculiarly both the time of God’s judgements and the manner.