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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A39998	The hierarchical bishops claim to a divine right, tried at the scripture-bar, or, A consideration of the pleadings for prelacy from pretended Scriptural arguments, presented and offered by Dr. Scott, in his book intituled, The Christian life, part II, A.M., D.D. in his Enquiry into the New Opinions, &c., and by the author of the second part of the Survey of Naphtali ... / by Thomas Forrester ...	Forrester, Thomas, 1635?-1706.; Scott, John, 1639-1695. Christian life.; Monro, Alexander, d. 1715? Enquiry into the new opinions.	1699 (1699)	Wing F1596; ESTC R4954	340,417	360

the Prelatical form inverts and destroys As for Commisions of Assemblies which the Surveyer next quibles about We say that it is no extrinsick Judicatory exercising any extrinsick power but a more Compendious meeting of the whole Assembly with their Conjunct power for the purposes delegated and limited both as to the Time and Object of their power and are accountable to the ensuing Assembly for their Administration What the Surveyer adds touching their power to punish all Ministers who will not obey their Acts c. It is palpably impertinent for no Censures or Punishments were to go beyond the Limits of their Instructions and Commission nor ever did or could Assemblies engage to own them any otherwise so that in whatever point they did Malverse the Assembly was still as an equal Judge to be Appealed unto The Surveyers Fourth Ground and Instance P. 201. is That in the Texts under Debate our Lord supposes some of his Disciples in Comparison of others were to be great and chief in respect of Power and Authority else the Speech were not to the purpose And that our Lord directs such as attained to this Chiefty and Greatness to Demean themselves Humbly and Usefully let him be as the Younger which is no Direction to Undervalue such but only prohibits an Affectation of Honour separat from the worthy Work mentioned 1 Tim. 3.1 Ans. This Popish Gloss of Bellarmin and others we have already at large Confuted which as we have above made appear establisheth and fixeth the Popes Mitre instead of Levelling against it as this Text certainly doth Protestant Divines more appositely to the Scope and Contexture have told the Papists that our Lord said not he who by my Appointment should be Chief or enjoy a Principality or Supremacy but he that from the bad Disposition of Iames and Iohn would seek this must in place thereof endeavour and emulat Spiritual Faithful Diligence in the Ministerial Duties and thus to be Chief in Vertue and Reward That this Popish Gloss of a supposed Lawful Chiefness or Principality in the Church so overthrows the Scope that it makes our Lord rather to have Inflamed than Quenched by his Answer the Ambitious Sute of the two Brethren and the Disciples Emulation thereupon That this Gloss will prove the Disciples Concernment in the Enquiry anent the Person who was to be Chief The Survey●r though apparently excluding a Civil Chiefness or Kingly Power yet allows a Spiritual Principality His Caution that the Clause let him be as the Younger will not import a Direction to Undervalue such is fruitless and impertinent since the Lord recommends therein a humble Ministerial Diligence as is said The Bishops Work 1 Tim. 3. is the Work and Office of the Laborious Pastor and Scripture Bishop but the Aspiring Seeker of a Chiefness which the Surveyer would bring within the Compass of that Text is condemned with the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Diotrephes who aspired after the same For what he adds of the Motive drawn from our Lords Humility We have above made appear that in the Series of their Arguing he and his Fellows doth underprop by such a Notion and Gloss of this Passage a Primacy or Papacy It is enough that we add here that our Lords Exemplary Humility who is the Master of the House is in this place presented the more strongly to enforce his Servants abhorring all Ambitious Usurpation one over another since they are all Fellow-Disciples and Servants The Surveyers Fifth Ground and Counter-Instance P. 202. is this in Summ That our Lord mentioning in this Prohibition the Authority not of Kings over Chief Grandees but over their Subjects were our Gloss of his discharging all Governing Superiority admitted it would reach a Prohibition of Government over the People and therefore our Lord discharges not the Rule of one or some Ministers over Ministers but only the Lordly and Earthly Way of it Ans. As the Dominion and Arbitrary Power which our Lord here discharged is certainly such as respects both Ministers and People Church Members and Church Officers and a fortiori as reaching Church Officers because respecting Church Members Whence the Apostle Peter Copying out this Direction of his Master exhorted Ministers not to Lord over Gods Heritage So we have made appear that the Power and Dominion of the Hierarchical Bishop is such as encroaches upon the just Liberties both of Ministers and People robbing the one of their Decisive Suffrage and Jurisdictional Power the other of their just Liberty in the Call of Ministers and in other things Here again we may notice how this Surveyer overshoots still his Mark and wanders from the Point while endeavouring to prove that an Official Inequality of Pastors is not here prohibited And drawing his Proof from the supposed Superiority of Apostles over ordinary Pastors Again the Surveyer acknowledged that there is here discharged a Dominative Worldly and Lordly Government and thus the Text forces him to give a Deadly Blow to his Darling Prelats who owne the Title Name and Thing of Lordship and both Civil and Spiritual Dominion they being owned as Spiritual Lords and Lords of the High Court of Parliament The next Scripture made use of for Presbyterian Government and against Episcopacy which the Surveyer P. 203. undertakes to Answer is that Passage Matth. 18.17 If thy Brother trespass against thee c. go tell the Church c. Whence he saith we argue That Christ our Lord giving out the great Charter of censuring Iurisdiction to be exercised among his Subjects doth not give that Power to one Man a Bishop but to the Church and one Man cannot be a Church In Answer to this the Surveyer in the first place professes to disclaim Erastus way which denys an inherent Discipline and Government in the Church for correcting Offences and keeping Ordinances in Purity Which contradicts his Zealous Pleading for the Kings Ecclesiastick Supremacy in this Pamphlet as it was then established by Law and screwed up to the highest pinacle of an Arbitrary Dominion so that the Prelats were declared to Act as his Commissioners accountable to him in their pretended Ecclesiastick Administrations and the Government it self is in our Laws called and owned as his Majestie 's Ecclesiastick Government But though the Surveyer pretends to disowne Erastus way yet he spends a considerable Discourse in fighting with their Weapons In order to this Scope he tells us That a Course is here prescribed for charitable removing privat Quarrels arising among Brethren both to gain their Friendship and their Souls too from the guiltiness of the Breach of Charity which he tells us is clear from v. 21.22 And from the paralel Luk. 17.2 3 4. Hence he inferrs that our Lords Direction is in Limitation to privat Injuries and not be extended to the whole Latitude of all Offences to which this Direction cannot be extended Ans. First It is evident that our Lord here prescribs this Method of removing Offences viz. That when more privat Means reach not

THE Hierarchical Bishops CLAIM TO A Divine Right TRIED AT The SCRIPTURE-BAR OR A CONSIDERATION of the Pleadings for PRELACY from pretended Scriptural Arguments Presented and Offered By Dr. SCOTT in his Book intituled The Christian Life Part II. A. M. D. D. in his Enquiry into the New Opinions c. And by The Author of the Second Part of the Survey of Naphtali Exposing their Bold Pervertings of the Scriptures pleaded by them and Vindicating the Sound Sense of the Scriptures brought in Debate from their Scope and the Judgment of Protestant Writers The Whole issuing in a clear Discovery of the Solid Grounds of Presbyterian Government in opposition to Prelacy By THOMAS FORRESTER Minister of the Gospel and Principal of the New Colledge in St. Andrews ISAI 9.6 The Government shall be upon his Shoulder HEB. 3.5.6 Moses Faithful in all his House as a Servant But CHRIST as a Son over His own House EDINBURGH Printed by Iames Watson on the North-side of the Cross M. DC.XC.IX To the Right Honourable PATRICK Earl of MARCHMOVNT Viscount of BLASONBERRY Lord POLWARTH of POLWARTH REDBRAES and GREENLAW c. LORD HIGH CHANCELOR Of the KINGDOM of SCOTLAND MY NOBLE LORD THAT these Sheets do appear in publick under the Patrociny of Your Lordships Honourable Name Flows from the same Motives offered in the late Dedication of this Nature Not to insist upon the Proofs of your Lordships undeserved Respect to me or my more immediat and Personal Knowledge than many others of my Capacity of your Lordships Christian Fortitude and Unbyassed Stayedness in such a Tryal of your Faith and Patience and Juncture of searching Tryals as may Justly be called the Persecutionis turbo The Affinity of the Subject and Scope of this Work doth Justly Plead for the same Patrociny As Pastors are set for the Defence of the Gospel have a special Concern in the Vindication of Opposed Truth so the Magistrate according to his Capacity being a Keeper of both Tables hath by his Office an unexceptionable interest in this Important and Honourable Employment It is an additional Argument in point of Equity and True Honour that the Writings Examined do highly asperse and cast a base Imputation upon the Nations Authority and Laws as if Erecting and Maintaining yea and engaging His Majesty in the Maintenance of a Government of the Church cross to Apostolick Institution and the Churches Universal Practice such as is eversive of True Unity and Order a Nursery of Novel Bigotrie tending to Revive the late Bloody Broils infesting these Kingdoms None will doubt when the Honour of the Nation is thus Wounded Rulers Concern in a Just Vindication But the Ground appears yet of a Higher Import and Elevation if it be supposed that the Government Aspersed is that Divine Frame appointed by the Ascended Saviour of the World Recorded in his perfect Testament and Sealed with his Blood and the Exercise of his Kingly Office as Political Head of His Visible Church Who will doubt in this Case that this King of Kings requires of Rulers a Proof of their Faithfulness to him in a Suitable Vindication and Assertion of this His Interest The High and Honourable Character wherewith your Lordship is Dignified hath no doubt made upon your Heart such an Impression of the preventing Goodness of GOD as will excite to a due endeavour of the Best improvement thereof and the Scriptures of GOD presents many strong Arguments to this Scope in the Instances of such who have been fitted for the most Eminent pieces of Services to GOD's Church in their Generation by preparatory Tryals in His Furnace of Affliction and sometimes unexpected promotions have had such a Comfortable Issue We know by whom Hamans Mischievous Plot was defeated and what Argument Mordecai made use of to excite to Act for this great Interest when Carnal Wisdom and Prudence offered a strong Disswasive that Glorious 〈◊〉 who owns Promotion to places of Eminency as his Prerogative who changes the Times and Seasons removes and sets up according to his Pleasure hath told us that he knows them by Name Surnames them hol●● their hand and hath a special Eye upon them whom he calls for his Servant Iacobs sake to do him Service It is Considerable that one of the best of Men and best of Rulers had this in a sadly wrong Step Objected as an Aggravation of Guilt that GOD had Raised him up when he was little and low in his own Eyes There is a time when GOD not only gathers the Outcasts but confers Honour upon them He hath his Fire in Sion and Furnace in Ierusalem at that Furnace He sits as a Refiner intent upon this Work To be brought forth out of this Furnace of Affliction as Gold in proof of GOD's having Chosen a Man in the same is a great and pregnant Blessing but to be brought forth as a polished Instrument of signal and Honourable Services to him and His Interest is a double and Crowning Blessing especially when Tentations upon the right and left Hand are vigorous and strong The Promoting of the Glory of this Great and Gracious GOD in Maintaining and Contending for His Truth and Interest the true Established Doctrin Worship Disciplin and Government of this Church is that which in the first place is to be intended and all other Concerns in a due subserviency thereunto It is worthy of Observation which is Recorded of one of the Wisest Men and Rulers that his First Care was the Building the House of GOD he finished it in Seven Years but was in Building his own House Thirteen Years thereafter and when this work was wholly perfected 1 King 6.37 38. 2 Chron. 8.1 his preparing his Store Cities his Fenced Cities and taking Care for his Tribute and Navy was his Secondary and reserve Work The Iewish Historian Iosephus hath this Remark upon it and gives us this account viz That this First work of Solomons was by GOD's special Assistance perfected in so short a time but the Palace though its Magnificence was Inferior to the Temple yet the Materials thereof not being so long prepared and the House being to be Built for the King and not for GOD it was the more slowly brought to Perfection That the whole of your Lordships Walk in this Eminent Station may Demonstrat to the Refreshful Observation of all the Lovers of our Sion that GOD hath Preserved and Polished your Lordship in all preceeding Tryals to be a Honourable Instrument of Raising of this decayed and desolate Church a Successful Maintainer of Equity and Justice and that this your Faithful acquittance may yeild Solid Peace Embalm and make Savoury your Name in after-Generations and be found a Successful mean of entailing the Choisest Family-Blessings upon Your Lordships Posterity is the Serious Prayer of MY NOBLE LORD Your Lordships Devoted and most Humble Servant T. E. The PREFACE WHAT the Israel of GOD had to Complain of many times from my Youth have they Afflicted me hath been the Lot of the

that his Restricted Sense thereof above expressed is foolish and impertinent or prove the Exception thereof out of that Precept and the Service and Ministry therein enjoyned him by the Apostle when he is thus exhorted to do the Work of an Evangelist and make fall Proof of his Ministry But now the Dr. will Answer the Objection taken from this Precept enjoyning the Exercise of an Evangelistick Office And First He tells us There was Good Reason for it No doubt of that Good Reason a Church Officer be enjoyned Diligence in his Office But why Good Reason in the Dr's Sense Because saith he Many among the Ephesians were Infidels Here is a Reason of this Precept rare to be found elsewhere But even granting this to be one Partial Ground that this was the only or main Ground of the Precept and that his Work as an Evangelist was only of this Nature is among the rest of the Dr's Magisterial Dictats and gratis supposita He adds That it is no where insinuated that he was only invested with that Authority that agrees to the Notion of an Evangelist separated and distinguished from either Bishop or Presbyter Here the Dr. speaks of an Evangelists Office separated and distinguished from that of Bishop or Presbyter Whereof he hath given us no distinct Account As for that Sense in Reference to Preaching which he hints as that of Eusebius and his own we have made appear how cross it is to the Sense exhibit by Sound Divines and that Timothy had an Office distinct from Bishop or Presbyter which consequently this Precept enjoyns so that it is enough for us that he was invested and in that Precept is supposed invested with such an Evangelistick Office as is inconsistent with the Office of the Bishop whom he pleads for And to this purpose it is observable that the Term Evangelist being thrice only used in the New Testament viz. Act. 21.8 Eph. 4.11 and in this Precept Since in the other two Places it is taken for the Extraordinary Function above described why not also here Besides tho Extraordinary Functions communicat in General Names with Ordinary as when Apostles are called Presbyters or Elders yet he cannot shew that Extraordinary Names are m●de use of at least so Emphatically as in this Precept to point at Ordinary Functions If we Paralell this Complex Phrase or Phraseology as the Dr. speaks with the like in Scripture Language this may be convincingly made good as when we read of Signs of an Apostle 2 Cor 12.12 Commands of Apostles 2 Pet. 3.2 Foundation of Apostles Eph. 2.20 Where the Term designs a peculiar Office And thus it must be when the Work of an Evangelist is enjoyned to Timothy So that if the Office and Work of an Evangelist which is in the Sense of sound Divines extraordinary and expired be ascribed to both these persons and found incompatible with the Work and Office of a Prelat the Dr's Evasions are evidently found nought Suppose a person enjoyned to do the Work of a Parent a Magistrat or a Husband none will doubt that the peculiar Relations and Duties of Parents Magistrats and Husbands are here intimat As likewise if a Pastor be enjoyned to do that Work the same is held out The Dr. will have it no where insinuat That Timothy was invested with that Authority that agrees to the Notion of an Evangelist separated and distinguished from either Bishop or Presbyter If by Separated Distinguished he understand an higher formal Office than that of Bishop or Presbyter the Passage above mentioned clearly proves it admitting the Evangelists Office to be of that Nature State and Rank above exprest If by Separate he understand such as is formally distinct from the Office of Bishop or Presbyter and of another specifick Nature the Precept doth likewise clearly insinuat this If by Only Invested he mean such an Office as cannot exert the Acts or Duties competent to Scripture Bishop or Presbyter this is impertinent to the purpose and there is no need of such Insinuation The Apostles and Evangelists were invested properly and formally with their Apostolical Evangelistick Offices which Eminenter had included therein the Pastors Work and Duties This doth abundantly discover the Dr's empty Quiblings ensuing to be mere impertinent Shifts Such as that one may do the Evangelists Work who is higher Sed quid hoc ad Rhombum the Apostles performed the Duties and Work of Pastors But that therefore there is no peculiar Office of a Pastor distinct from that of Apostle is a palpably weak Consequence And will he say that when a Pastor is commanded and enjoyned his Work there is no peculiar Office and Duty supposed because his Office is Eminenter contained in that of Apostles and that they performed and were enjoyned the same Duties The Dr's next Instance is as foolish Daniel saith he did the Work of a King yet was no King Dan 8.7 He is indeed said to do the Kings Business in a passive Sense That is performed Service to the King as the meanest Servant does his greatest Masters Business in serving him But he that will hold that upon this account he may be said to do the Work of a King That is performed the Royal Acts of his Regal Office and such as are peculiar thereunto or that this phrase hath the same import as Timothy's being enjoyned to the Work of an Evangelist hath a Crack in his Intellectuals We are told next P. 111.112 That Philip was an Evangelist Act. 21.8 yet also one of the seven Deacons mentioned Act. 6. But had no power to confirm the Baptized nor to ordain to Ecclesiastick Offices by imposition of Hands as Timothy Ans. First That Philip continued in the Office of a Deacon when called an Evangelist is more than he offers to prove or will be ever able to do The Belgick Divines with Diodiate others take the Office of Evangelist here for the extraordinary expired Function above described And consequently to be the same with the Office of Timothy Thus also Pool 2 d. Part paralelling this Passage with 2 Tim. 4.5 and Eph. 4.11 And upon the last Clause wherein mention is made of his Diaconate they assert that having discharged the Office of Deacon well he did purchase to himself this Good Degree as 1 Tim. 3.13 Judicious Calvin upon the place offers the same Sense of the Evangelists Office Inter Apostolos Doctores medii erant c. That they had a midle Function betwixt Apostles and Doctors and an Office next to that of the Apostolat that they might every where preach the Gospel and were sett to no fixed Station or Post. Whence he concludes that his Diaconate at Ierusalem was only transient or for some time exercised by him and that thereafter he was assumed to be an Evangelist since otherwise it had not been warrantable to him to leave Ierusalem and reside at Cesarea He further adds That he is not here proposed as a voluntar Deserter of his Office

impeach the intrinsick ordinary Authority of the Church Officers in the inflicting of that Censure though this Miraculous Effect attending the same were ascribeable to Apostolick Authority Again the Surveyer in the Series of his Reasoning shutting up both the Sentence in its self and this Miraculous Appendant which two he must needs distinguish unless he totally deny the Right of Excommunication in the Churches within the Sphere of an Apostolick Prerogative renders useless and casts a blot upon several Clauses of the Sacred Text such as their Solemn Meeting together here enjoyned and that expresly in order to the delivering of the Man to Satan which doth include the intire Sentence and Punishment and that this Punishment is expresly said to be inflicted by many viz. the Church Officers as distinct from the Church Members for thus they are called in Opposition to the Collective Body Besides that the Apostle in this Passage joyning first in their gathering together and then mentioning his Spiritual Confirming Presence holds out that the first was an Authoritative gathering together the other a Confirming Approbation for their Encouragement in this Exercise of their intrinsick Power and Authority as all Sound Interpreters take it Again the Separating here enjoyned must be an Active Iudicial Separating this Person from them as the Leper and Unclean Person under the Law was thus separat from the Congregation which doth import an Authoritative Interest of Church Rulers in putting forth this Censuring Act whereas the Surveyer makes it a consequential withdrawing only from a Person already Censured The Surveyer in his third Answer tells us That though a Censuring Power were in these Church Officers it can make nothing for us unless we could prove they were single Presbyters in the Modern Notion There were Prophets here above ordinary Officers who might have this Power and it is uncertain whether ordinary Presbyters were here settled Ans. The Surveyer hath forgot that he hath acknowledged upon that Passage 1 Cor. 12. That there were here such Pastors and Teachers as will include the Bishops and likewise Presbyters Besides that the Apostle diversifies the Ordinary and Extraordinary Gifts v. 8.9.10 Likewise he knew there were in Corinth many Instructers and such as were settled in every Church Act 13.1 2 3. Compared with Ch. 14.23 Viz. Preaching Elders and Presbyters so that he could not with any Shadow of Reason suppose they were all extraordinary Officers And in a word if he asserted there were here mixed Officers he not only made the Power and Authority of the extraordinary Officers to swallow up that of the Pastors but likewise he crossed his monopolizing this extraordinary Power in the Apostle Again since he could not say the Apostle in these Injunctions doth by distinctive notes or Apostrophees diversify the Ordinary from the Extraordinary Officers in the point of this high Jurisdictional Act he baffled and excluded his First Answer And in a word giving by this Answer a Jurisdictional Power and Authority in this Act to a Collegiat Meeting of Church Officers and asserting that it was joyntly thus put forth by them he did thus bid farewell to my Lord Bishops singular prerogative in this Matter and generally in Point of Government His last Answer is That if this Power were supposed in the ordinary Church Officers of Corinth they might have had this by delegation and Commission of the Apostle But where did the Surveyer read this Commission What account can he give of such a delegated Power beyond the Essential Authority of Pastors to deliver to Satan purge out the old Leaven to meet together for this great Jurisdictional Act And why was the Apostle Paul so fatally Cross to the Diocesan Prelat as not to deliver this Commission to him But we must know this Chimerical fancy stands upon the strong Pillar of this infallible Surveyers may be or might be and this is all the proof we must expect But what is the last shift and dead lift We are told next That this Instance of the Church of Corinth is but one which cannot make a Rule without the sure knowledge of the Divine Direction which the Apost●les had to keep an uniform course in such ext●rnal Matt●rs Ans. As none will say that the Apostles did constitute the Christian Church as a speckled Bird with a Hetrogenous or various Mixtures of forms of Government so in this P●int they had their Masters great Rules and Measures prescribed to them and such Rules as overthrows the Hierarchical Bishop First We may remind the great Rule in Mat. 18. recommending a subordination of lesser to greater Judicatories pointing likewise at the Collegiat Meeting of Church Officers as the proper subject of the Jurisdictional Power in opposition to what he pleads for viz the concentring this in one Prelat Next what surer direction can we have in this Point than that the Apostles are found Establishing wherever a Church was gathered such Officers as have Names and Titles of Intrinsick Official Power and Authority ingraven upon them and are found exercising an equal Official Power in Government Thus in the Passage now debated and 1 Cor. 12.28 Comp. with Eph. 4.11 and with Act. 14.23 Tit 1.5 7. Heb. 13.7 17 1 Thes. 5.12 Presbyterian Writers do exhibit a large account and induction of these Names and Titles importing Authority Such as that of Presbyter or Elder Act. 15.2 4 with 20 17 1 Tim. 5.17 1 Pet. 5.1 A Title of Political Rulers Iudg. 8.14 Thus expressed by the LXXII Interpreters The Title of Bishop importing a Power and Charge over the Flock Act. 20.28 Phil. 1.1 1 Tim. 3.2 Tit. 1.5.7 A word made use of also by these Interpreters to point at the Civil Magistrats Power Num. 31.14 The Title and Name of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies Conductor Captain Governour Leader A word setting forth the Power of Civil Rulers Deut. 1.13 2 Chron. 5.1 And thus they are distinguished from the Church and Saints Heb. 13.7 17 24. The Title of Stewards over the Lords House and Family Of Pastors and Shepherds who are to feed Pedo and Pabulo a Title likewise attributed to the Civil Magistrat Isa. 24.28 comp 1 Cor. 4. 1. Luk. 12.42 Gal. 4.2 Rom. 13.2.3 Now our Lord Commanding his Apostles to Disciple all Nations or form them into Churches and the Apostles pursuant to this Commission being found to have placed such Officers in the Churches and these being found exercising a joint Official Authority in greater and lesser Judicatories either the Apostles Divine Direction herein must be acknowledged and their walking up to it in this Point of an uniform Mould of Government or their Faithfulness in the execution of their great Trust is impeached and called in Question Thu we have seen that after this pregnant Text hath tossed this Pitiful Sursveyer from one extream to another in seeking some shift of Answer and driven him upon the Pinacles and Precipies of contradictory Answers all his fantastick quiblings issueth in this miserable shift of