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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A91809	A looking glasse for the Anabaptists and the rest of the separatists: wherein they may clearly behold a brief confutation of a certain un-licensed, scandelous pamphlet, intituled, The remonstrance of the Anabaptists, by way of vindication of their separation. The impertinancies, incongruities, non-consequences, falsities, and obstinacy of William Kiffen, the author, and grand ring leader of that seduced sect is discovered and laid open to the view of every indifferent eyed reader that will not shut his eyes against the truth. With certaine queries, vindicated from Anabaptisticall glosses, together with others propounded, for the information and conviction, (if possible) the reformation of the said William Kiffen and his prosylites. / By Josiah Ricraft, a well willer to the truth. Published by authority.	Ricraft, Josiah, fl. 1645-1679.	1645 (1645)	Wing R1430; Thomason E299_9; ESTC R200250	22,283	33

in these two things 1. By their ravenous disposition and 2. By their often snarling with their teeth So you shall sinde false Prophets in Sheeps clothing they are alwayes raveming after honours and therefore like Dogs creep into Kings houses that they may be looked upon as followers with the best of the Kings houshould-Servants and ravening after riches to feede in the fairest pastures of a Kingdome crying Give give and therefore run from living to living where they may have the greatest injoyments of the world and 2 ly they will be alwayes snarling with their teeth that is ready to devoure and persecute all that shall in a way that is more holy then their own derogate from their honours and names and fat injoyments in the world I cease to apply this but desire the Lord to give you discerning eyes to see between light and darknesse Thus at present have I given you a breif Answer to your Queries leaving them to the tryall of Truth and you in the perusall of them to the direction of him that leads into all truth ever resting Yours so far as be shall know his duty William Kiffen The Reply FOr your Answer to this my sixt Querie you labour and indeavour to put off from your selfe and the rest of your Teachers those Characters expressed in those Scriptures quoted by passing by all save one and insisting a little upon that by a glosse of your owne and the truth is all the other Scriptures doe so fully decipher you that the verie reading of them without anie comment at all shewes you to be one of those men meant in those Scriptures And if the Reader will take the paines to turne to them he will confesse as much I will but point at two or thrée of them Acts 20.30 Rom. 16.17.18 and 2 Pet 2.1 2 3 17 18 19. For how evident is it that you make it your worke to draw disciples after you and that you serve your owne bely when you could not live on your owne trade contentedly but you must take this course to serve your belly And for your owne description of true Prophets from false which you say Christ compared true Prophets to Sheepe and that it is the nature of Sheepe to feed in the shortest commons It is evident that you and your faction are not silent under your sufferings nor contented with the meanest imployments and shortest commons of this world but seeke to get the best you can and are capable of and that you are not silent under your sufferings witnesse your master whom you served John L●lborne whose railings and revilings against the high Court of Parliament and the Assembly and those two pious and worthie Gentlemen Master Prin and Doctor Bastwicke And for further conviction of you that you are like false Prophets according to your owne description in ravening after honour and riches call to minde the examples of your predecessors recorded so much in many histories as of John of Leyden Munster c. and though some of you now pretend that you will suffer and that you are contented with a meane condition just as the Fox loves no grapes but it is onely then when he cannot reach them but there is alreadie so much discovered of your faction in this kingdome that if they could get anie power in their hands it is evident they would be ravening wolves after the lives and estates of those that are not of their way even as they now raven after the seducing of soules Thus I have done with your replies to my six Queries wherein I have beene the larger that I might give you and your mis-led disciples the more full satisfaction with all the rest of your poore mis-led Anabaptists in England and in so doing it is for truth and not for victorie and I pray God both you and they may more séek peace and love truth then erroneous crueltie I shall advise all of you to studie conscience more then controversies that are above your reach he that hewes above his head makes the chips fall into his owne eies and more to busie your selves at home then abroad in faulting your owne soules rather then the Church of Christ in studying a true constitution or grace in your own hearts rather then in quarrelling at the constitution of our visible Churches so shall you doe lesse harme to others more good to your selves ANd now to shur up all though you have given no satisfaction at all to any one of my six Queries propounded as I have made it to appeare to an capable and impartiall judgement yet that I may bring you to some conviction of your errour and apprehension of the truth I desire you to bestow your most serious and composed thoughts upon these further Queries ensuing and to give me if you are able A bri●fe per●inent rationall resolution to the same without vagaries invectives and improper circumlocutions such as may become a man that hath the use of reason the feare of God and familiar acquaintance with the holy Scriptures Querie 1. Vpon what Scripture ground can you satisfie your conscience that you did not greatly sinne against Christ the Church and your owne soule in leaping from your private secular vocation into a publike Ecclesiasticall office Querie 2. By what authoritie doe you take the honour to your selfe to become Pastor of a Church without proportionall qualifications for that office and regular vocation to that function seeing none may take such honour to himselfe except he be called as was Aaron nor did Iesus Christ glorifie himselfe to be made a High Priest without unction from the Father Heb. 5.4 5 6. Querie 3. How can you chuse but broach errours deceive soules pervert the Scriptures belie the Spirit of God and build abundance of hay stubble and such like trash upon Gods foundation whilest you presume to expound the Scriptures to others your selfe wanting the necessarie helpes of the Originall Tongues wherein the Scripture was written and of the Liberall Arts requisite for the interpreting of everie line in Scripture without which you wholy preach and your followers beléeve by an implicit faith Querie 4. Whether doe not you contract upon your selfe the dreadfull guilt of the blood of all those soules which you have seduced unto or abetted in you Anabaptisticall and schismaticall errors and when Iesus Christ the great Shepheard of the Sheepe shall appeare what will you answer him Querie 5. How can you make it appeare by anie probable colour of Scripture that either our Ministers are false and Antichristian or our Churches false and unchristian as your partie are often vaunting Quetie 6. Whether have not you and the rest of the separation more really and perniciously opposed and retarded the reforming of our Church which you crie downe for her corruption then all the Prelaticall Papisticall Atheisticall opposites of the Antichristian faction and is not this a high offence against the Church of God for which you ought to be déeply humbled Querie 7. By what light of Scripture or sound reason can you oppose the supreme Parliamentarie authoritie in restraining of prophanenesse schisme and heresie in punishing of incorrigible obstinacie in reforming a Church corrupted in protecting a Church reformed and in conveening of an Assemblie of godly Orthodor Ministers to draw up their advice according to the ●ord of God for such ends and purposes and strengthning their determinations with their civill sanction Querie 8. Whether is not the government and discipline of the Church according to the dependant Presbyterian way undoubtedly held forth in the Word of God as Christs New Lestament-government and all other governments méere humane invention or what can you produce out of the Scripture to the contrary Querie 9. What Scripture can you produce which either in expresse termes or by cléere infallible consequence disallowes the baptizing of Infants of one or both faith-professing parents and by what warrant dare you presume to rebaptize any persons whose Infant-baptisme no Scripture condemnes whose rebaptizing no Scripture allowes Querie 10. By what Scripture grounds can you prove that stinted formes of Praise and Prayer to God are simply and absolutely in themselves unlawfull and if they bee not in themselves intrinsecally evill why may not Christians sometimes comfortably use them according to Christian prudence and liberty Love the truth and peace Zach. 8.19 Doe nothing against the truth but for the truth 2 Cor. 13.8 It is the advice of him who although he abhorres your errours yet wisheth well to your soules Iosiah Ricraft FINIS

A Looking Glassē FOR THE ANABAPTISTS AND THE REST OF THE SEPARATISTS Wherein they may clearly behold a brief Confutation of a certain un-licensed Scandelous Pamphlet Intituled The Remonstrance of the Anabaptists by way of Vindication of their Separation The Impertinancies Incongruities Non-consequences Falsities and Obstinacy of William Kiffen the Author and grand ring leader of that seduced Sect is discovered and laid open to the view of every indifferent eyed Reader that will not shut his eyes against the Truth With certaine Queries vindicated from Anabaptisticall Glosses together with others propounded for the Information and Conviction if possible the reformation of the said William Kiffen and his Prosylites By Josiah Ricraft a well willer to the Truth 1. John 4.1 2. Tim 3.6 Dearly beloved beleeve not every spirit but try the spirits whether they are of God for many false Prophets are gone out into the world for of this sort are they which creepe into houses and lead Captive simple women laden with sins led away with divers lusts Published by Authority London Printed and are to be so●d by Peter Cole in Cornhill at the signe of the Printing P●esse And John Hancock in Popes-head All●y 1645. Courteous Reader I Had not troubled the Presse in this scribling age had I not accidentally met with an unlicensed Scandalous Pamphlet in print in Answer to six Queries I had heretofore propounded in behalfe of a friend of neere relation but to my knowledge I never saw the man to whom I propounded them unto but by credible hands I am certified he pretends a new light and takes upon him to set up A new found Church and by this means seduceth and draweth away mens wives children and servants to be his prosylits to the great grief of those that should have the power and government over them And now finding my opposit so ready and bold to Print without Authority and some friends very earnest with me to Answer It prevailed with me by consent of Authority to put forth this my ensuing Discourse with certaine Queries more into the world with my opposits wandering discourse for the satisfaction of all sides and parties and to stop the mouthes of all I have here laid it down as it came written with his owne hand and name subscribed thereunto to my hand and not as it was most falsely added to and taken from in the printing to cover his nonsensicall absurdities which any judicious man may discern It is my intent to speake to his Answers to my Queries so far as they seeme to have any colour of reason or argument in them but where I finde him impertinent and extravagant I give him leave to wander alone in the middest of his own mistakes which are very many Now kinde Reader impartially peruse this my short Treatue before thou passe they sentence as many do now adayes because they are prejudiced at the matter though never so true or the Person though never so godly because neither Person nor matter agrees with the temper of their opinion I wish England at this day could not witnesse this truth with grief to see that monstrous Hydra of opinions and divisions upon divisions with sub-divisions and these increasing daily pleading Toleration with a brasen brow and an impudent face not fearing to abuse that ever to be honoured high Court of Parliament of England with that faithfull Kingdome of Scotland and the right Reverend the Assembly of Ministers of England and the rest of our honoured Arthodox Ministers and the two worthy Patriots Mr. William Prynne of Lincolns Inne Esq with Mr. Doctor Bastwick And if this lawlesse generation may proceed under the vizor of a Liberty for tender Consciences our condition will suddenly be worse then it was in the time of the Bishops in their lordly height for instead of a prodigall Hirearchy we shall have a turbelant Anarchy but to prevent both It shall be my prayers to God to put it into the hearts of those truely Noble and right Honourable ones who sit in the Stern to guide and preserve the tottering Ship of this Kingdom to use means to the height of their powers to bring it to the Haven of happinesse a setled Reformed goverment amongst us which they and we both have entred into a Covenant to perform in every of our places according to our powers That God may be one and his name one in the three Kingdoms So prayeth he who is a well willer and Servant to Englands friends in Jesus Christ to serve them JOSIAH RICHAFT A Looking Glasse for the Anabaptists and the rest of the Seperatists QUIERI I. BY what Warrant of the Word of God doe you Seperate from our Congregations where the Word and Sacraments are purely dispensed Kiffens Answer This Queire seemes to import thus much that from such Congregations where the word and Sacraments are purely dispensed men ought not to seperate but that men are and ought to seperate from such where the word and Sacraments are not purely dispensed Your Queare seemes to grant but however though it should be denyed those scriptures plainly proves Rev. 14.8.9.10 more fully manifested in Rev 18 1 2 3 4 5. Esa 52 2. and more at large spoken of 2 Cor 6 14 to the end as also Practised by the Apostle Paul himselfe in Acts 19 8 9 10. But now Sir here lies the Quest that your Congregations be such as where the word sacraments are purely dispersed then we sin you justly charge us with sisme for seperating from you but that it be not so that your congregations are such but one the contrary such as doe not dispence the word Sacraments purely then wee doe well and you sin in charging us for sisme in doing what the word commands and the Saints practised and therfore we haveing nothing to prove that the word and sacraments are purely dispenced among you but your bare afirmation it cannot satisfie our Consciences and I marvell how it satisfieth you doeth not the word o● God like a two edged sword fight against you may not that scripture Iustly be aplyed to you Ier 1 7 9 10 11. for do you not dayly admit and suffer to be amongst you such as doe according to Gods word leaven the whole lamp 1 Cor 5 6 and doe not purely despence the word upon you for their he●ling the spirit of Christ saith such glorying is not good and the feast of the Lord ought not to be keept with them and I pray you shew me what pure institution have you for the baptising of Children which is one of your great sacraments amongst you what can you finde for your practise herein more then the durty pudle of mens inventions and therefore when the Sacraments are purly administred according to the pure instritutions of the Lord Iesus and when you have dispenced the word and power of Christ for the cutting of all Drunkards Fornicators Covitious Sweraers Dyers and all abominable and filthy persons stand together

and greater judgments then was inflicted upon the breaches of the same as Heb 2 15 c 3 1 to 9 CHAP 10 21 to 31 12 Col. 22. to the end do declare and therefore we cannot nay we dare not but continew in these our practices and witnes the truth of it even by suffering though others oppose it The Reply AS for your Answer to this my third Querie in stead of shewing what grounds you have from the word of God to be A member much lesse a Minister of such Congregations as yours are In stead of giving reasons from the word of God in such materiall points and practices which might satisfie the consciences of men you run out into extravagant exclaimings against our Church and Congregations about the power of the Civill Magistrate superstitious consecrations of Tithes and Offerings of the people despising of Prophesie and disobedient to commands rejecting of the word of God concerning the purging of the wicked from the godly which were they all true according to your relation and further supposing them to be so it were not a sufficient ground of leaving our Church yet you need further grounds from the word of God for your positive separation and for making and erecting such Churches as yours are or joyning to be a member of any such Church I doe not deny but there may be some causes as many learned Divines shew wherein Christians may lawfully separate negatively and may goe and joine themselves as the case may fall out to some other publike Reformed church when as yet to erect and set up a new separated church is schisme And I doe in the fcare of God more particularly renew my former Querie What Scripture warrant or example have you as a private man to take upon you a publike worke namely one of the most publike and solemne works the building of a Church of Christ a worke that in all the New Testament where Christian Churches are recorded was never taken in hand but by eminent publike persons both for office and gifis Apostles or other eminent Ministers at least so that it is evident you are without all call and a meere intruder upon other mens offices and to speake to you in your owne words and phrases which you use You goe not according to the patterne in the Mount And for the other branch of the Querie What ground you have to be a Minister of any such congregation You did wisely to passe over that wholly in silence as being too hard for you to answer and in stead of that to fill up your pages with other rabble in which you hope the Reader might quite lose the sent of that question But I will now renew that branch of the Querie and in stead of putting it by way of question to you now I doe positively declare to you That you are so far from having any warrant to be a Minister of any such congregation as that you have not the least warrant to be a Minister of any at all But your taking upon you to bee a Minister to dispence the Word and Sacraments is a greater sinne and disorder then ever any was in the constitution of the Church of England since Reformation And for ignorant illiterate men the lowest of the people such as your self to take upon you to be a Minister of God a guide of soules is such an intolerable usurpation prophanation of Gods name that without great repentance you will finde one day to your cost that fulfilled of our Saviour The blinde lead the blinde and both fall into the ditch Paul that great Apostle speaking of the ministeriall calling saith Who is sufficient for these things now if such persons as you are may be Ministers Who is not sufficient for these things The sin of Ieroboam cleaves to you and to your Tribe that you make Priests of the lowest of the people which were not of the sonnes of Levi and whosoever will hee consecrates himself and becomes a Priest of your way I wish you with feare and trembling to reade and God give you grace to consider 1 King 12.31 and 1 King 13.33.34 with Hosea 4.6 and Rom. 10.15 wherein you will finde that in stead of a warrant for your selfe and such as you are to he Ministers your Ministery will become sinne unto you to cut you off and to destroy you from the face of the earth God rejects you that you shall be no Minister to him and that you should not preach he never fending you for the most wise God never sends fooles on his errand But now those things which you would charge our Churches with as grounds to justifie your separation are not truth For the fr●st of your charges wee answer That in the very times of the Bishops by the Orders of the Church there were rules for purging the wicked from the godly and separating the precious from the vile both in their Rubrickes and Canons as namely to keepe away ignorant and scandalous persons from the Sacrament of the Lords Supper and many godly Ministers even in these daies did in severall Congregations notwithstanding the illegall and tyrannicall carriage of the Prelates practise the same But any ingenious man would marvell what bold face you had at the time of writing of that you call your Remonstrance to charge upon us the rejecting of the Word of God given by Christ for the purging of the wi●k●d from the godly and our remaining obstinate to him When as your conscience must tell you that hundreds of Ministers at this very time doe kéepe away ignorant and scandalous persons from the Lords Supper and that the Assembly of Divines called by authoritie of Parliament for reformation of the Church have long agoe agreed on the separating the precious from the vile according to these Scriptures Matth. 18. and 1 Cor. 5 Yea and you know that the godly Ministers of England generally and the people are daily labouring for Reformation in this way As for your second extravagancie know you slander the Civill Magistrate which is no strange thing for you to doe it being one of the Characters of Anabaptists to despise dominions and speake evill of dignities in saying They are so hasty to command all both rich and poor to subject to their worship whether their conscience be brought over to see whether it be a truth or no or else they may not live amongst them or use any traffique with them To this there needs no other confutation but the suffering of you and your fellowes to goe on in your separated Churches without subiection to their Worships as you phrase it And the Civill Magistrate may do well to take notice of your unthankfulnesse and unkind requitall to belye them thus considering their great long-suffering and patience towards you But know when the Civill Magistrate shall be pleased by Lawes and Ordinances to command all to submit to the true worship of God and the true government of the Church

and not suffer you and such like to goe on in your Schismes and Heresies they doe no more then they may lawfully doe yea then what is their duty to doe and this is so farre from being any lawfull ground of forsaking our Church that on the contrary the not suppressing of Sects and Schisms by their power and authority were a juster ground of separation For it is apparent by the example of the godly kings and Magistrates as Asa Josiah and others that they looke to it that the worship and house of God were reformed according to the word and commanded and caused all the people to stand to it 2 Chron. 34.31 32. As for your third ground brought to justifie your separating from us in that we quench the Spirit and despise Prophesie know it is your ignorance in not understanding the Scripture makes you say so for your selves will be found to be the men that quench the Spirit and despise Prophesie in despising the publike Ministery of the word and you could not have quoted a place against your selves more then that is for by the interpretation of learned men upon that Scripture 1. Thess 5.20 is meant the publique ministery of the word as being the great Ordinance of God against the quenching of the Spirit and your Sect of all others is knowne to be a despiser of the publique ministery And as for a fourth ground brought by you to name no more they being so frivolous The maintenance of Ministers by Tithes I wish you to consider of that Scripture 1 Cor. 9.13 14. where the Apostle shews that they that minister about holy things live of the things of the Temple and they that wait upon the Altar are partakers of the Altar which is meant of Tithes And the Apostle speaking of the maintenance of the Ministers under the Gospel saith Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel Now observe the Apostles words he doth not say The Lord hath ordained but even so the Lord hath ordained how so but as he speakes in the 13. vers namely of Tithes and Offerings as you call it if you say not by Tithes and by Offerings then it concernes you to make it appeare either out of the old or New Testament where ever God hath ordained that they that preach the Gospel should have any other fixed maintenance but Tithes And it is certaine by this place that God hath somewhere in the word ordained their maintenance And for conclusion to your Answer to my Third Querie supposing that through want of discipline we had not nor should not have a purging of the wicked from the godly yet for private persons to forsake our Churches were not justifiable neither the want of prophesying take it in your own sense suppose it were a defect of something of an Ordinance yet it would not justifie your separation and so I might say of all the rest And were it not that I had beene so large already I might shew you how that the suffering of evill persons in the Church yea the neglect of somewhat commanded being an affirmative duty could no way warrant your becomming a member much lesse a Minister of any such separate congregation And let me make it your owne case whether your suffering of many of your members to live in disobedience as wives to their husbands children to their parents and servants to their masters lawfull commands and further living in backbiting railing and reviling not of private persons only as they have some of them to their shame beene convicted of but also of the high Court of Parliament of England with our Brethren of Scotland with the Ministery of both Kingdomes and all the Reformed Churches which sinnes are as great as drunkennesse and are put by the Holy Ghost in the Catalogue of vilest sinnes Rom. 1.30 backbiters disobedient to parents And in the 1 Cor. 5.11 the plact brought by you for not comming to the Lords Supper in our Churches because of drunkards doth as expresly forbid to eat with railers which you and your members are notorious enough for and this by your rule were a sufficient ground for your members to forsake your Churches and set up new in their roomes QUERIE IV. WHat warrant have you to admit into your separate Congregations silly seduced servants children or people Kiff Ans I see our separated Congregations stick very hard upon your stomacks therefore as I have laboured to helpe you to digest our separation so I hope I shall give you something from the word of truth that may remove your imbitterednesse of spirit against our Congregations And first know this that infinite love which hath redeemed a people to God out of Nations Tongues and Kindred hath also made them Kings and Priests unto God to reigne with him in his spirituall Kingdome here on the earth Rev. 5.9 10. and that all those which are begotten by the immortall seed 1 Pet. 1.23 even those new borne Babes that have tasted of the Lords bounty and come to that living and precious stone the Lord Jesus being themselves living stones are built up a spirituall house being made a holy Priesthood to offer up spirituall sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ 1 Pet 2.1 to the 11. verse and being quickned by Christ are raised with him to sit together in heavenly places Eph. 2.5.6 being by one spirit baptized into one body 1 Cor. 12 13. the old man being buried with him Rom. 6.4 and the new man put on Gal. 3.27 Col. 3.10 thus having an entrance to the Father the building being thus coupled together by the same spirit groweth to an holy Temple and so becomes an habitation to the Lord Eph. 2.18 to 22. which assembly we are not to forsake Hebr. 10.25 but to exhort one another daily Hebr. 3.12 13. having received gifts by the same spirit we are to dispence them for edification 1 Cor. 12.47 1 Pet. 5.10 Rom. 12.3 to 9. to these congregations hath Christ promised his presence Mat. 28.19.20 and 18.19 20. Rev. 7.13 14 15. and 21.2 3. and 22.13 Now then that we can prove our selves to be such congregations as are before spoken of or at least wise such as doe sincerely and truly strive according to that light wee have to be such then I hope you will be so farre from despising such gatherings of the Saints together as that you will not deny them to receive in members and to dispence such gifts for the edifying one of another as the Lord hath given us and this I shall labour to doe in the answere to your next Querie and wheras you demand what warrant we have to receive sillie seduced servants c. we answer it is well knowne to you we receive in none as members with us but such as has beene members of your Church at the least 16 20 or 30. yeers and that they be sillie when they are received members among us surely they