and ever of a sad gravity that they may win such check sometimes those who be of nature over-confident and jocond others were sent more cheerefull free and still as it were at large in the midst of an untrespassing honesty that they who are so temper'd may have by whom they might be drawne to salvation and they who are too scrupulous and dejected of spirit might be often strengthâ—'d with wise consolations and revivings no man being forc't wholly to dissolve that groundwork of nature which God created in him the sanguine to empty out all his sociable livelinesse the cholerick to expell quite the unsinning predominance of his anger but that each radicall humour and passion wrought upon and corrected as it ought might be made the proper mould and foundation of every mans peculiar guifts and vertues Some also were indu'd with a staid moderation and soundnesse of argument to teach and convince the rationall and sober-minded yet not therefore that to be thought the only expedient course of teaching for in times of opposition when either against new heresies arising or old corruptions to be reform'd this coole unpassionate mildnesse of positive wisdome is not enough to damp and astonish the proud resistance of carnall and false Doctors then that I may have leave to soare a while as the Poets usâ— then Zeale whose substance is ethereal arming in compleat diamond ascends his fiery Chariot drawn with two blazing Meteors figur'd like beasts but of a higher breed then any the Zodiack yeilds resembling two of those four which Ezechiel and S. John saw the one visag'd like a Lion to expresse power high autority and indignation the other of count'nance like a man to cast derision and scorne upon perverse and fraudulent seducers with these the invincible warriour Zeale shaking loosely the slack reins drives over the heads of Scarlet Prelats and such as are insolent to maintaine traditions brusing their stiffe necks under his flaming wheels Thus did the true Prophets of old combat with the false thus Christ himselfe the fountaine of meeknesse found acrimony anough to be still galling and vexing the Prelâ—ticall Pharisees But ye will say these had immediat warrant from God to be thus bitter and I say so much the plainlier is it prov'd that there may be a sanctifi'd bitternesse against the enemies of truth Yet that ye may not think inspiration only the warrant thereof but that it is as any other vertue of morall and generall observation the example of Luther may stand for all whom God made choice of before others to be of highest eminence and power in reforming the Church who not of revelation but of judgement writ so vehemently against the chiefe defenders of old untruths in the Romish Church that his own friends and favourers were many times offended with the fiercenesse of his spirit yet he being cited before Charles the fifth to answer for his books and having divided them into three sorts whereof one was of those which he had sharply written refus'd though upon deliberation giv'n him to retract or unsay any word therein as we may reade in Sleiden Yea he defends his eagernesse as being of an ardent spirit and one who could not write a dull stile and affirm'd hee thought it Gods will to have the inventions of men thus laid open seeing that matters quietly handled were quickly forgot And herewithall how usefull and available God had made this tart rhetorick in the Churches cause he often found by his owne experience For when he betook himselfe to lenity and moderation as they call it he reapt nothing but contempt both from Cajetan and Erasmus from Cocleus from Ecchius and others insomuch that blaming his friends who had so counsel'd him he resolv'd never to runne into the like error if at other times he seeme to excuse his vehemence as more then what was meet I have not examin'd through his works to know how farre he gave way to his owne fervent minde it shall suffice me to looke to mine own And this I shall easily averre though it may seeme a hard saying that the Spirit of God who is purity it selfe when he would reprove any fault severely or but relate things done or said with indignation by others abstains not from some words not civill at other times to be spok'n Omitting that place in Numbers at the killing of Zimri and Cosbi done by Phineas in the heigth of zeal related as the Rabbines expound not without an obscene word we may finde in Deuteronomy and three of the Prophets where God denouncing bitterly the punishments of Idolaters tels them in a terme immodest to be utter'd in coole blood that their wives shall be defil'd openly But these they will say were honest words in that age when they were spok'n Which is more then any Rabbin can prove and certainly had God been so minded he could have pickt such words as should never have come into abuse What will they say to this David going against Nabal in the very same breath when he had but just before nam'd the name of God he vowes not to leave any alive of Nabals house that pisseth against the wall But this was unadvisedly spoke you will answer and set downe to aggravate his infirmity Turne then to the first of Kings where God himselfe uses the phrase I will cut off from Ieroboam him that pisseth against the wall Which had it beene an unseemely speech in the heat of an earnest expression then we must conclude that Ionathan or Onkâ—los the Targumists were of cleaner language then he that made the tongue for they render it as briefly I will cut off all who are at yeares of discretion that is to say so much discretion as to hide nakednesse Whereas God who is the author both of purity and eloquence chose this phrase as fittest in that vehement character wherein he spake Otherwise that plaine word might have easily bin forborne Which the Masâ—reths and Rabbinicall Scholiasts not well attending have often us'd to blurre the margent with Keri instead of Ketiv and gave us this insâ—lâ— rule out of their Talmud That all words which in the Law are writ obâ—cenely must be chang'd to more civill words Fools who would teach men to speak more decently then God thought good to write And thus I take it to be manifest that indignation against men and their actions notoriously bad hath leave and autority oft times to utter such words and phrases as in common talke were not so mannerly to use That ye may know not only as the Historian speaks that all those things for which men plough build or saile obey vertue but that all words and whatsoever may be spoken shall at some time in an unwonted manner wait upon her purposes Now that the confutant may also know as he desires what force of teaching there is sometimes in laughter I shall returne him in short that laughter being one way of answering A Foole according to his folly
small credit for their cause to have found such an assistant as this babler hath devis'd me What other thing in his book there is of dispute or question in answering thereto I doubt not to be justifi'd except there be who will condemne me to have wasted time in throwing downe that which could not keepe it selfe up As for others who notwithstanding what I can allege have yet decreed to mis-interpret the intents of my reply I suppose they would have found as many causes to have misconceav'd the reasons of my silence TO beginne therefore an Apology for those animadversions which I writ against the Remonstrant in defence of Smectymnus since the Preface which was purposely set before them is not thought apologeticall anough it will be best to acquaint ye Readers before other things what the meaning was to write them in that manner which I did For I do not look to be askt wherefore I writ the book it being no difficulty to answer that I did it to those ends which the best men propose to themselves when they write But wherfore in that manner neglecting the maine bulk of all that specious antiquity which might stunne children but not men I chose rather to observe some kinde of military advantages to await him at his forragings at his watrings and when ever he felt himselfe secure to solace his veine in derision of his more serious opponents And here let me have pardon Readers if the remembrance of that which he hath licenc't himselfe to utter contemptuously of those reverend men provoke me to doe that over againe which some expect I should excuse as too freely done since I have two provocations his latest insulting in his short answer and their finall patience I had no fear but that the authors of Smectymnus to all the shew of solidity which the Remonstrant could bring were prepar'd both with skill and purpose to returne a suffizing answer and were able anough to lay the dust and pudder in antiquity which he and his out of stratagem are wont to raise but when I saw his weake arguments headed with sharpe taunts and that his designe was if he could not refute them yet at least with quips and snapping adagies to vapour them out which they bent only upon the businesse were minded to let passe by how much I saw them taking little thought for their own injuries I must confesse I took it as my part the lesse to endure that my respected friends through their own unnecessary patience should thus lye at the mercy of a coy flurting stile to be girded with frumps and curtall gibes by one who makes sentences by the Statute as if all above three inches long were confiscat To me it seem'd an indignity that whom his whole wisdome could not move from their place them his impetuous folly should presume to ride over And if I were more warme then was meet in any passage of that booke which yet I do not yeild I might use therein the patronage of no worse an author then Gregory Nyssen who mentioning his sharpnesse against Eunomius in the defence of his brother Basil holds himselfe irreprovable in that it was not for himselfe but in the cause of his brother and in such cases saith he perhaps it is worthier pardon to be angry then to be cooler And whereas this Confuter taxes the whole discourse of levity I shall shew ye Readers wheresoever it shall be objected in particular that I have answer'd with as little lightnesse as the Remoustrant hath given example I have not beene so light as the palme of a Bishop which is the lightest thing in the world when he brings out his book of Ordination For then contrary to that which is wont in releasing out of prison any one that will pay his fees is layd hands on Another reason it would not be amisse though the Remonstrant were told wherefore he was in that unusuall manner beleaguer'd and this was it to pluck out of the heads of his admirers the conceit that all who are not Prelaticall are grosse-headed thick witted illiterat shallow Can nothing then but Episcopacy teach men to speak good English to pick order a set of words judiciously Must we learne from Canons and quaint Sermonings interlin'd with barbarous Latin to illumin a period to wreath an Enthymema wth maistrous dexterity I rather encline as I have heard it observ'd that a Jesuits Italian when he writes is ever naught though he be borne and bred a Florentine so to thinke that from like causes we may go neere to observe the same in the stile of a Prelat For doubtlesse that indeed according to art is most eloquent which returnes and approaches neerest to nature from whence it came and they expresse nature best who in their lives least wander from her safe leading which may be call'd regenerate reason So that how he should be truly eloquent who is not withall a good man I see not Never the lesse as oft as is to be dealt with men who pride themselves in their supposed art to leave thē unexcusable wherin they will not be better'd there be of those that esteeme Prelaty a figment who yet can pipe if they can dance nor will be unfurnisht to shew that what the Prelats admire and have not others have and admire not The knowledge whereof and not of that only but of what the Scripture teacheth us how we ought to withstand the perverters of the Gospell were those other motives which gave the animadversions no leave to remit a continuall vehemence throughout the book For as in teaching doubtlesse the Spirit of meeknesse is most powerfull so are the meeke only fit persons to be taught as for the proud the obstinate and false Doctors of mens devices be taught they will not but discover'd and laid open they must be For how can they admit of teaching who have the condemnation of God already upon them for refusing divine instruction that is to be fill'd with their own devices as in the Proverbs we may reade therefore we may safely imitate the method that God uses with the froward to be froward and to throw scorne upon the scorner whom if any thing nothing else will heale And if the righteous shall laugh at the destruction of the ungodly they may also laugh at their pertinacious and incurable obstinacy and at the same time be mov'd with detestation of their seducing malice who imploy all their wits to defend a Prelaty usurp◠and to deprave that just government which pride and ambition partly by fine fetches and pretences partly by force hath shoulder'd out of the Church And against such kind of deceavers openly and earnestly to protest lest any one should be inquisitive wherefore this or that man is forwarder then others let him know that this office goes not by age or youth but to whomsoever God shall give apparently the will the Spirit and the utterance Ye have heard the reasons for which I thought not
my selfe exempted from associating with good men in their labours toward the Churches wellfare to which if any one brought opposition I brought my best resistance If in requitall of this and for that I have not been negligent toward the reputation of my friends I have gain'd a name bestuck or as I may say bedeckt with the reproaches and reviles of this modest Confuter it shall be to me neither strange nor unwelcome as that which could not come in a better time Having render'd an account what induc't me to write those animadversions in that manner as I writ them I come now to see what the confutatioÌ„ hath to say against theÌ„ but so as the confuter shall hear first what I have to say against his confutation And because he pretends to be a great conjector at other men by their writings I will not faile to give ye Readers a present taste of him from his own title hung out like a toling signe-post to call passengers not simply a confutation but a modest confutation with a laudatory of it selfe obtruded in the very first word Whereas a modest title should only informe the buyer what the book containes without furder insinuation this officious epithet so hastily assuming the modesty wch others are to judge of by reading not the author to anticipate to himself by forestalling is a strong presumption that his modesty set there to sale in the frontispice is not much addicted to blush A surer signe of his lost shame he could not have given then seeking thus unseasonably to prepossesse men of his modesty And seeing he hath neither kept his word in the sequel not omitted any kinde of boldnesse in slandering t is manifest his purpose was only to rub the forehead of his title with this word modest that he might not want colour to be the more impudent throughout his whole confutation Next what can equally savour of injustice and plaine arrogance as to prejudice and forecondemne his adversary in the title for slanderous and scurrilous and as the Remonstrants fashion is for frivolous tedious and false not staying till the Reader can hear him prov'd so in the following discourse which is one cause of a suspicion that in setting forth this pamplet the Remonstrant was not unconsulted with thus his first addresse was an humble Remonstrance by a dutifull son of the Church almost as if he had said her white-boy His next was a defence a wonder how it scapt some praising adjunct against the frivolous and false exceptions of Smectymnus sitting in the chaire of his Title page upon his poore cast adversaries both as a Judge and Party and that before the jury of Readers can be impannell'd His last was A short answer to a tedious vindication so little can he suffer a man to measure either with his eye or judgement what is short or what tedious without his preoccupying direction and from hence is begotten this modest confutation against a slanderous and scurrilous libell I conceave Readers much may be guest at the man and his book what depth there is by the framing of his title which being in this Remonstrant so rash and unadvised as ye see I conceit him to be neere a kin to him who set forth a Passion Sermon with a formall Dedicatory in great letters to our Saviour Although I know that all we do ought to begin and end to his praise and glory yet to inscribe him in a void place with flourishes as a man in complement uses to trick up the name of some Esquire Gentleman or Lord Paramont at Common Law to be his book-patron with the appendanâ— form of a ceâ—emonious presentment wil ever appeare among the judicious to be but aâ— an insuls and frigid affectation As no lesse was that before his book against the Brownists to write a Letter to a prosopopoea a certain rhetoriz'd woman whom he calls mother and complains of some that laid whoredome to her charge and certainly had he foldeâ— his Epistle with a superscription to be deliver'd to that female figure by any Post or Carrier who were not a Ubiquitary it had beene a most miraculous greeting We finde the Primitive Doctors as oft as they writ to Churches speaking to them as to a number of faithfull brethren and sons and not to make a cloudy transmigration of sexes in such a familiar way of writing as an Epistle ought to be leaving the track of common adresse to runne up and tread the aire in metaphoricall compellations and many fond utterances better let alone But I step againe to this emblazoner of his Title page whether it be the same man or no I leave it in the midst and here I finde him pronouncing without reprieve those animadversions to be a slanderous and scurrilous libell To which I Readers that they are neither slâ—nderous nor scurrilous will answer in what place of his book he shall be found with reason and not inke only in his mouth Nor can it be a libell more then his owne which is both namelesse and full of slanders and if in this that it freely speaks of things amisse in religion but establisht by act of State I see not how Wickleffe and Luther with all the first Martyrs and reformers could avoid the imputation of libelling I never thought the humane frailty of erring in cases of religion infamy to a State no more then to a Councell it had therefore beene neither civill nor Christianly to derogate the honour of the State for that cause especially when I saw the Parlament it selfe piously and magnanimously bent to supply and reforme the defects and oversights of their forefathers which to the godly and repentant ages of the Jewes were often matter of humble confessing and bewailing not of confident asserting and maintaining Of the State therefore I found good reason to speak all honourable things and to joyne in petition with good men that petition'd but against the Prelats who were the only seducers and mis-leaders of the State to constitute the government of the Church not rightly me thought I had not vehemence anough And thus Readers by the example which hee hath set mee I have given yee two or three notes of him out of his Title page by which his firstlings feare not to guesse boldly at his whole lumpe for that guesse will not faile ye and although I tell him keen truth yet he may beare with me since I am like to chafe him into some good knowledge and others I trust shall not mis-spend their leasure For this my aime is if I am forc't to be unpleasing to him whose fault it is I shall not forget at the same time to be usefull in some thing to the stander by As therefore he began in the Title so in the next leafe he makes it his first businesse to tamper with his Reader by sycophanting and misnaming the worke of his adversary He calls it a mime thrust forth upon the stage to make up the breaches of those
a most inhumane cruelty they who have put out the peoples eyes reproach them of their blindnesse Just as the Pharisees their true Faâ—hers were wont who could not indure that the people should be thought competent judges of Christs dâ—ctrine although we know they judgâ—d farre better then those great Rabbies Yet this people said they that knowes not the law is accurst We need not the autority of Pliny brought to tell us the people cannot judge of a minister Yet â—haâ— hurts noâ— For as none can judge of a Painter or Stainâ—ry but he who is â—n Artist that is either in the Practick or the Theory which is often separated from the practick and judges learnedly without it so none can judge oâ— a Christian teacher but he who hath either he practâ—ze oâ— the knowledge of Christian religion though not so artâ—â—lâ—y digeâ—eâ— in him And who almost of the meanest Christians hath not heard the Scriptures often read from his childhood besides so many Sermons and Lectures moâ—e in number then any stuâ—ent heard in Philosohy whereby he may easily attaine to know when he is wisely taught and when weakly Whereof three wayes I remember are set downe in Scripture The one is to reade often that best of books written to this purpose that not the wise only but the simple and ignorant may learne by them the other way to know of a minister is by the life he leads whereof the meanest understanding may be appprehensive The last way to judge a right in this point is when he who judges lives a Christian life himselfe Which of these three will the Confuter affirme to exceed the capacity of a plaine artizan And what reason then is theâ—e left wherefore he should be deny'd his voice in the election of his minister as not thought a competent discerner It is but arrogance therefore and the pride of a metaphysicall fume to thinke that the mutinous rabblâ— for so he calls the Christian congregation would be so mistaken in a Clerk of the Vniversity that were to be their minister I doubt me those Clerks that think so are more mistaken in themselves and what with truâ—nting and debaushery what with false grounds and the weaknesse of naturall faculties in many of them it being a maxim in some men to send the simplest of their sonnes thither perhaps there would be found among them as many unsolid and corrupted judgements both in doctriâ—e and life as in any other two Corporations of like bignesse This is undoubted that if any Carpenter Smith or Weaver were such a bungler in his trade as the greater number of them are in their profession he would starve for any custome And should he exerâ—ise his manifacture as little as they do their talents he would forget his art and should he mistake his tools as they do theirs he would marre all the worke he took in hand How few among them that know to write or speak in a puâ—e stile much lesse to distinguish the idea's and various kinds of stile in Latine barbarous and oft not without solecisms declaming in rugged and miscellaneous geare blown together by the foure winds and in their choice preferring the gay rankness of Aâ—uleius Arnâ—bius or any moderne fustianist beâ—ore the native Latinisms of Cicero In the Greek tongue mâ—st of them unletter'd or unenter'd to any sound proficiency in those Attick maisters of morall wisdome and eloquence In the Hebrew text which is so necessary to be understood except it be some few of them their lips are utterly uncircumcis'd No lesse are they out of the way in philosophy pestring their heads with the saplesse dotages of old Paris and Salamanca And that which is the main point in their Sermons affecting the comments and postils of Friers and Jesuits but scorning and slighting the reformed writers In so much that the better sort among them will confesse it a rare matter to heare a true edifying Sermon in either of their great Churches and that such as are most humm'd and applauded there would scarce be suffer'd the second hearing in a grave congregation of pious Christians Is there cause why these men should overween and be so queasie of the rude multitude lest their deepe worth should be undervalu'd for want of fit umpires No my matriculated confutant there will not want in any congregation of this Island that hath not beene altogether famisht or wholly perverted with Prelatish leven there will not want divers plaine and solid men that have learnt by the experience of a good conscience what it is to be well taught who will soone look through and through both the lofty nakednesse of your Latinizing Barbarian and the finicall goosery of your neat Sermon-actor And so I leave you and your fellow starres as you terme them of either horizon meaning I suppose either hemisphere unlesse you will be ridiculous in your astronomy For the rationall horizon in heav'n is but one and the sensible horizons in earth are innumerable so that your allusion was as erroneous as your starres But that you did well to prognosticat them all at lowest in the horizon that is either seeming bigger then they are through the mist and vapour which they raise or else sinking and wasted to the snuffe in their westerne socket Sect. 11. His eleventh Section intends I know not what unlesse to clog us with the residue of his phlegmatick sloth discussing with a heavie pulse the expedience of set formes which no question but to some and for some time may be permitted and perhaps there may be usefully set forth by the Church a common directory of publick prayer especially in the administration of the Sacraments But that it should therefore be inforc't where both minister and people professe to have no need but to be scandaliz'd by it that I hope every sensible Christian will deny And the reasons of such deniall the confuter himselfe as his bounty still is to his adversary will give us out of his affirmation First saith he God in his providence hath chosen sâ—me to teach others and pray for others as ministers and Pastors Whence I gather that however the faculty of others may be yet that thâ—y whom God hath set apart to his ministery are by him endu'd with an ability of prayer because their office is to pray for others And not to be the lip-working deacons of other mens appointed words Nor is it easily credible that he who can preach well should be unable to pray well when as it is indeed the same ability to speak affirmatively or doctrinally and only by changing the mood to speak prayingly In vaine therefore do they pretend to want utterance in prayer who can finde utterance to preach And if prayer be the guift of the Spirit why do they admit those to the Ministery who want a maine guift of their function and prescribe guifted men to use that which is the remedy of another mans want setting them their tasks to read whom the Spirit