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A44217
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The Holy Ghost on the bench, other spirits at the bar: or The judgment of the Holy Spirit of God upon the spirits of the times. recorded in Holy Writ. / And reported by Richard Hollinworth ...
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Hollingworth, Richard, 1607-1656.
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1656
(1656)
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Wing H2494A; ESTC R29484
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37,097
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128
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THE HOLY GHOST ON THE BENCH OTHER SPIRITS AT THE BAR Or the Judgment of the Holy Spirit of God upon the Spirits of the Times Recorded in Holy Writ And Reported by Richard Hollinworth Mancuniens London Printed by J. M. for Luke Fawn and are to be sold at his Shop at the Signe of the Parrot in Pauls-Churchyard 1656. To the Reader Gentle Reader IF thou beest Pious and Prudent and lovest Gods truth and the Churches Purity and Peace This plain Piece will not be unacceptable to thee The Subject is seasonable and suitable enough and I have endeavoured to handle it so far as I meddle with it solidly satisfactorily and also succictly omitting Illustrations Illations yea and Applications also that thou mightest have much fruit in a few small Leaves and not read long for a little If the Doctrine be sound I shall leave thee to make the use My desire and design is the suppression of sin and wickedness and whereas wickedness according as one or other of the three enemies of our salvation is predominant is either fleshly as Adultery Fornication Gluttony Drunkenness Or wordly as Covetousness injustice oppression extortion Or Divelish as Schism Heresie Blasphemy Contempt of Magistracy Ministery and other Ordinances of God The first of which was too much indulged in former times and the third to say nothing of the second is as much indulged in these times I am not now to fight against flesh and blood but against the spiritual evils of the times which are both sins and judgments and shew both mans wickedness and Gods wrath and are to say no more as leavening Matt. 16.6.11 12. Gal. 5.9 Antichristian 1 Ioh. 2.22 and 4.3 and 2 Ep. Ioh. v. 7. Sathanical Ioh. 8.44 1 King 22.22 1 Tim. 4.1 2. Act. 13.10 2 Tim. 3.8 as prophaneness is though now more practised Preached and pleaded for then formerly I am not able to encounter with them my self alone when these enemies come in like a flood the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a Standard against them I desire not to speak any thing my self but to hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches and to report what judgment he gives as he hath left it on Record in holy Scripture in which are written the great things of the Law and the gracious glorious things of the Gospel O let them not be accounted a small thing The ensuing Tract doth represent that the holy Ghost doth as it were cite or summon and cause several spirits to be apprehended and brought to Tryal and that he sets down certain distinctive Signes and Symptomes of the Spirit of God and other Spirits And Lastly That he doth examine and determine some particular cases brought before him concerning the Spirit of Prayer the Spirit of Prophesie the witnesing Spirit the Ministerial and Anti-ministerial Spirit And when this Treatise hath made this representation it gives up the Ghost It hath been my hearts desire and Prayer that I might represent these judicial proceedings aright It is my hearts desire and prayer that thou mayest receive them aright And that the high and holy Spirit of God may be with thy Spirit and with the Spirits of all Saints and particularly with the spirit of him who is the least of all Saints Manchester March 1. 1655 6 R. H. An Epistle Good Reader I Cannot conceal the contentment that I took in this little but judicious Treatise when it was brought to me for perusal The communications of Gods Spirit are made matter of scorn by some and by others a meer pretence what more usual now then for fanaticall persons to pretend to a peculiarity of the Spirit as the filthy Gnosticks in the primitive times gave out that all others were carnal they only were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 spiritual men as having a special presence of the Spirit in them Vide Iraeneum Lib. 5. to adversus heresis cap. 11. passim alibi and therefore their pride is supposed to be taxed by the Apostle Jude vers 19. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sensual not having the Spirit that is by their bruitish practises they plainly shewed they had least of that Spirit to which they did pretend Tertullian when he turned Montanist wrot a Book Adversus Psychicos against the carnal or animal men intending thereby the Orthodox But this is not all how often do such kind of persons father the Brats of their own carnal hearts upon the Holy Ghost and intitle the suggestions of the Devil that evil spirit to the impulsions of that holy Spirit of promise by whom we are sealed to the day of Redemption Therefore it much concerneth the Ministers of the Gospel to vindicate the honour of God and to put people upon trying the Spirits and in a matter of such concernment to give them the best light they can You will bear with me a little in my folly for uch I account it to be to acquaint the world with the course of my private Ministery and indeed bear with me 2 Cor. 11.1 whilest I tell you that considering the necessity of the present times wherein some deny the Personality and God-head of the Spirit others counterfeit his Presence and Operations and many mishapen and monstruous conceits are obtruded upon the world concerning both I thought I could not better serve the present truth and accomplish the ends of my Ministery than by clearing up the whole Doctrine of the Spirit as touching his Godhead and Personality His Effusion first upon Christ as the Head sensibly at his Baptism Mat. 3. On the Apostles as the chief Agents and Factors for his Kingdom on the day of Penticost Act. 2. Then upon all Beleivers till his second comming especially on the Ministers of the Gospel who are ordinarily presumed to have a more plentiful measure of the Spirit according to that place which they sustain in the body Next my work was to state the manner of his Presence the quality of his Operations in Inlightning Sanctifying Witnessing Comforting Strengthning Quickning awakening thoughts of and desires after our blessedness in Heaven more especially the influence of the Spirit upon the duties of Prayer and Preaching And after all this I took occasion to speak of resisting grieving and quenching the Spirit on the one side and of gratifying and glorifying the Spirit on the other in all which discourses I mainly intended a Direction to Christians to guide them in the tryal of Spirits and whilest I was considering of making this work more publiquely useful how happily am I prevented by the pains of this Godly Learned and judicious Authour who hath treated of the same things almost in the same Method and that in such a succinct and strengthy way that if thou complain of any thing it will be of want of Words not of Matter so Much being spoken in so Little a compass for my part I cannot but profess my joy That the Lord hath inclined the heart of such an able person to such an Argument Now
the blessing and the Principality and Priest-hood which was annexed to the primogeniture though Esau prophanely sold it and Rebecca dealt indirectly about it yet the Lord confirmed it Gen. 25.31 32. Then the Tribe of Levi was separate to be Priests and Ministers to the Lord instead of all the first-born Numb 3.40 and Aaron was consecrated an High-Priest and after him Eleazar though the High-Priests office did not long continue in his family possibly the High-Priests in that troublesome and changeable time had sinfully complyed with toleration that every man might do what is right in his own eyes Iudg. 17.6 21.25 and with the wandring of Priests and Levites for want of setled maintenance Iud. 17.6 19.1 and therefore Eli of the Family of Ithamar was made Priest who also again being indulgent to his Sons that were horribly prophane the Priesthood returned to the family of Eleazar in Zadok and there God remembred Phinehas Num 25.13 whom others succeeded even in the time of the captivity for though they did eat the bread of affliction and drink the water of affliction yet their eyes did see their teachers according to Gods promise Isa 30.20 Ier. 33.18.21 and sundry of their Priests did return with them from captivity Ezra 2. Yea the Priests and Levites were continued till Christs time Zachariah of the course of Abiah and his Wife of the Daughters of Aaron is mentioned Luc. 1. and Christ bade them show themselves unto the Priests Matth. 8.4 bade them hear the Scribes and Pharisees sitting in Moses chair Matth. 23.1 and hee appeared before the High Priest and answered for himself Act. 23. To tell of the manifold corruptions and depravations of the Priesthood mentioned in Canonicall and Jewish Church-story what Idolaters Apostates Traytors some of them were what traditions and humane inventions they observed what sects schismes seditions wars tumults murthers they were guilty of what buying and selling what placing and displacing chopping and changing there was of the High Priests Office the High-Priests executing the Office sometimes by turnes and sometimes yearly as is conceived in Christs time Ioh. 11.49 and sometimes the High Priests Office was conferred on those that were not of Aarons Line nor of any of the other Levitical Families and one Ananelus one of the Priests of Babylon was thrust into that office I say to expresse these things largely would fill a volume and yet the Lord you see preserved the essence of the Priesthood in the midst of all these confusions and corruptions Jesus Christ had all the Priesthood of the Old Testament concentred in him therefore he is called our High Priest Heb. 3.1 or the chief Officer of the Old Testament a Priest after the order of Melchisedeck the greatness of whose Priesthood the Apostle proves by his blessing Abraham and tything him Heb. 7.2.4 5 6. and consequently of the Priesthood of Jesus Christ who receiveth Tythes of whom it witnessed that he liveth v. 8. hath an unchangeable Priesthood and is able to save to the uttermost them that come to God by him v. 22.24 25. So was he also the Father and Fountain of the ministry of the New Testament which at first was in Christ alone hence he is called also our Apostle Heb. 3.1 Prophet Act. 3.22 Evangelist Isa 41.27 Chief Bishop or Pastor 1 Pet. 2.25 Doctor Matth. 23.10 Diaconus or Minister Rom. 15.8 As Adam the first Minister of the Old Testament was a King a Priest and Prophet so also was Christ The encrease and growth of the Church was the occasion of the severall Ministers Officers and offices of the Church this appears by express Scripture in the Apostle Matth. 9.36 c. Matth. 10.1 in the 70. Disciples Luc. 10.1.2 in the seven mentioned Act. 6.1 2 3. c. Jesus Christ when he ascended up on high he gave guifts unto men some Apostles some Prophets some Evangelist some Pastors and teachers for the work of the ministry Ephes 4.11.12 Christ was the chief Pastor 1 Pet. 25. then the Apostles Ioh. 21.15 which was a three fold renewing of the Apostolick commission because his threefold denial of Christ seemed to degrade him then the Presbyters 1 Pet. 5.2 Acts. 20 28. Christ was the Arch-Bishop 1 Pet. 2 25. Apostles Bishops Act. 1.20 then the Presbytors Act. 20.28 Tit. 1.7 God sent Christ he sent the Apostles Iohn 20.21 Christ ordained twelve Mark 3.14 Ioh. 15.14 And the Apostles did not only themselves ordain Church-Officers Act. 14.23 1 Tim. 4.14 but also directed yea and charged others also to ordain that there might be a succession of the Ministry after their departure 1 Tim. 3.1 c. and 5.21.22 2 Tim. 2.2 And doubtless Timothy Titus and others concerned were careful to observe and keep their directions and charge and Jesus Christ himself promised he would be with the Apostles not only all their days but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 all days and successions of times 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is frequently taken for the end of the world by the same Evangelist Mat. 13.39 40.49 24.3 and therefore includes a promise of being not only with the Apostles Prophets Evangelists extraordiâ—ary and temporary Officers but also with Pastors and Teachers their ordinary successors to the end of the world and in performance of the said promise we do not only read of Bishops Elders Pastors and Rulers Ministers in the Epistles of Paul but also Angels Elders Prophets Stars which Christ holdeth in his own Right Hand who walketh also in the midst of the seven golden Candlesticks in the Book of the Revelation which is a Prophetical History or Historical Prophesie of the Principal Passages of the Church of God unto the end of the world that the holy Bible might one way or other relate the Principal concernments of the Church from the Creation of the world to the consummation thereof In Revel 4.4.6 7. There was a Throne a place of Gods sitting amongst his people as in the Tabernacle or Temple and four and twenty Elders by which we must understand the Presbiters or Bishops of the Church not the Saints or private members For first Never are private members called Presbiters Priests in contradiction to their Officers Secondly They are said to sit upon Thrones and have Crowns on their Heads Thirdly This seems to allude to the twenty four courses of Priests that waited on God in the Temple Fourthly One of those Elders Rev. 7.14 speaking of the 144000d. of every Tribe 12000d. saith these are they not we are they as making a difference between the Elders and other Saints and by the four Beasts are meant the Christian Churches through the four Quarters of the world alluding to the encamping of the Israelites which did bear in their four Standards the same beasts that are here mentioned they that expound this Prophesie clean contrary ways yet they grant that the Ministers are signified if not by the Elders yet by the four Beasts In Rev. 7. the Tribe of Levi