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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	authority_n	church_n	great_a	2,263	5	3.1125	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A44794	The heart of New-England hardned through wickednes in answer to a book, entituled the Heart of New-England rent, published by John Norton appointed thereunto by the General Court. The doctrine of the Quakers uindicated [sic], his ignorance manifested, and his lying doctrines brought to light and judged with the word of truth, and truth cleared from his aspersions and slanders. By him that waits to see the throne of righteousness exalted above all deceit. Francis Howgill.	Howgill, Francis, 1618-1669.	1659 (1659)	Wing H3166; ESTC R223647	32,471	42

THE HEART OF New-England HARDNED THROUGH WICKEDNES In Answer to a Book Entituled the Heart of New-England Rent Published by John Norton appointed thereunto by the General Court The Doctrine of the Quakers Uindicated his Arguments made void his Ignorance manifested and his lying doctrines brought to light and Judged with the Word of Truth and Truth cleared from his Aspersions and slanders By him that waits to see the Throne of Righteousness Exalted above all Deceit FRANCIS HOWGILL And the rest of the men which were not kil'd by the plagues repented not of the works of their hands neither repented they of their Murders nor sorceries nor worshippings of Devils Revel. 9. 20 21. LONDON Printed for Thomas Simmons at the Bull and Mouth near Aldersgate 1659. NOw when the Lord of life and glory is appearing in his Power as in the days of old and his goodness mercy and truth as in the years past and the riches of his Grace Salvation which he maketh to flow forth and spring forth from the great deep now when he is manifesting his light from his holy habitation his saving health from his dwelling place that the sons of men might be partakers thereof and praise him who liveth for ever and ever who is the Author of Eternal Salvation unto them that believe the pit of darkness hath also opened its mouth and out of it many unclean spirits doth arise and foggs and mists of darkness Ignorance and Error is also arisen out of it to hinder the light from shining and to darken the Air that the Son of Righteousness might not be beheld and would dam up the way that the springs of life might not refresh the City of God and his tender plants that so the Prince of darkness and the King of the bottomless pit might not lose his Dominion for this end hath he mustred up and is mustring up all his men of War with their several weapons and all the Engines of wickedness to resist the Lamb of God who is risen to make War in Righteousness that so the Kingdom of darkness might still be established and the Subjects thereof live at ease and peace in Egypt and Sodom where Christ and the witnesses are flain I say for this end hath he sent out his men of War to resist the work of the Lord which is to destroy the Devils work one of his Champions more stout then his fellows is come out with his weapons of War which are most of them borrowed and not his own and the City in which he hath encompassed himself is a refuge of lies but however he appears with the face of Authority and subscribes himself John Norton Teacher of the Church of Christ at Boston in New England who was appointed thereunto by the order of the General Court his Book he calls The heart of New England Rent at the blasphemies of the present Generation or a brief tract concerning the Doctrine of the Quakers shewing the destructive nature thereof to Religion Churches and State Now whether John Norton was appointed of the General Court to be Minister of Boston or he was appointed by the General Court to tell lies how the heart of New England is Rent whether he intends should be believed the Reader may judge for his words may be understood of both however John Norton hath manifested his Master that it was not Christ who appointed him to be Minister at Boston but the General Court that appointed him neither was it Christ nor his Spirit that set him to work to publish lies to the World that the heart of New England was Rent but the General Court neither was it Christ nor the General Assembly that ordered him to write this Book which he calls a Tract concerning the Doctrine of the Quakers but the General Court they have ordered thee to tell lies and thou hast received thy Commission and acts it and shewes it to the World and the sign thereof is by the appointment of the General Court before we go any further men of understanding will Judge whose Minister whose Souldier whose Warrier John Norton is and at whose appointment and Commandment he Ministers and Wars and hath cleared himself to be no Souldier of Christ no Minister of Christ but appointed to Minister and to War at the appointment of the General Court and so what will be brought forth by him in his Tract as he calls it afterwards as to Minister Grace to the hearers and Readers the Reader may Judge seeing that he is a Minister by the will of Man and his work is appointed by the General Court and doth John Norton believe that People will receive his Testimony as that the heart of New England is broken and Rent when as the blood-thirsty cruelty and Barbarous actions and inhumane acts of cruelty and the noisome smell and a bad example have you given to the World and the Laws and appointments and orders of that General Court of Boston and New England stinkes in the Nostrils of all sober People which is sounded through the World and your State is as it was with Israel when blindness hapened unto them through their unbelief the effect of it manifested their Apostacy the Judges then judged for rewards the Priests Preached for hire and Prophets devived for mony and the People loved to have it so in their unbelief and then ●id the Rulers grind the faces of the Poor and chop them in pieces as flesh for the Caldron even as you have done banished some from their Habitations some from their Wives and Children and some you have seized upon their Lands taken away their goods by the Appointment and Order of your Courts by which thou art made a Minister and appointed to tell these lyes and to utter forth deceit to cover your wickedness and to strengthen the Devils Kingdom and the subjects thereof against Christ and his Kingdom who came not to destroy mens lives but to save them who came not to lay burdens but to take off burdens who came not to destroy the Poor and Needy but to relieve the Oppressed And have not your General Courts done all this and much more which they may see and behold with confusion of face And when they have whipt them and scourged them fined them and imprisoned them ceized upon their Lands taken away their goods wasted their Estates banished them upon pain of death and when nothing hath remained of all their Estates have ordered their Children to be sold for Bond-slaves and this by the appointment of your General Court and for no other cause but because they would not put off their Hats to their Equals or come to your publick Assemblies Oh! un-heard-of and unparallel'd wickedness the name of your General Court and the Appointments and Ordinances thereof will be crowned with infamy and reproach from Generation to Generation but this is com'd to pass that your hypocrisie might be made manifest and your skirts uncovered that your shame might appear

in the operation thereof being in the transgression it convicteth reproveth accuseth and condemneth for evil and therefore it cannot be the light of life to him till it be received closed with obeyed and followed and then the back is turned upon the transgression and man is come out of the darkness and therefore the Apostle spoke well and understandingly according to knowledge that which was ordained for life wrought death in him that was because the Law was against him and he in the contrary nature to it the ignorance of many wise men so accounted in this generation is such that when they see or feel contrary effects they judge there must needs be contrary subjects or objects because there are different effects for now the same light which shewes evil and accuses for it and judges for it there is one operation and excuses him that loves it and obeyes it here is another operation that which convinceth the world of sin of Righteousness of Judgement and that which consolates and gives peace to the believer is the self same spirit so here is not two spirits or two lights so that he which kindles a fire in the Earth and appears in flames of fire and rendreth vengeance upon all them that obey not the Gospel which is the Power of God here is one work or operation of Christ the same bringeth Peace Joy and gladness and refreshment and makes the springs of life to buble up in them that believe here is another operation yet the same Christ these things I write to inform thee and all where this may come that that is truely an appearance of Christ which sheweth sin and condemns it in any measure and he alone is the Judge of the quick and the dead and if all Judgement be committed to the Son then to be Judged for lying for stealing and for wronging any man it is the work of Christ and the work of the Son Oh man thou hast much to repent of and thy ignorance is great which hath called Christ the light or the light of Christ or the light of life darkness and contradistinct to the Spirit and worse then grosse darkness so this is thy conclusion against the first of John and the 9. that Christ hath not enlightned every man or all men that come into the world but all men so qualified of every sort so then by thy conclusion the first of John and the 9. verse gives an uncertain sound like the 17. of John and 22 so then its qualifications of men that procures light from Christ and so it s not of Grace but of debt but if it be of debt which is owing unto a Person so qualified then it is not of gift but thou errs in thy Judgement for it is by the gift of righteousness that Justification comes upon all that believes it is not this or that qualification before their conversion which is any cause of Gods enlightning them but it is the free love of God unto man without exceptions or respect of Persons that he hath lighted every man to the intent that all and every man might see his Error and depart from it and turn to him that shewes him it who would have all men saved and come to the knowledge of the Truth and such is the large love of God unto whole man-kind which thou wouldst restrict and bind up to such and such Persons so qualified as though qualifications of Persons were a Meritorious cause wherefore Christ was bound to give them light this is rank Popery and not according to the Doctrine of godliness And thou citest the 2 Pet. 1. 19. We have a more sure word of prophesie where unto you do well that you take heed as unto a light that shineth in a dark place untill the day dawn and the day Star arise in your hearts hence it is inferred thou saith that after the reception of the Spirit there is no need to attend to the Scripture and so thou goes on and sayes the word of prophesie is the Scripture of the Old Testament that thou art to take heed unto untill the day dawned and the day Star arised in their hearts and that untill signifies for ever Asw. And here thou art in confusion I know none that makes any such inference but thy self for the Scripture is seen most clearly who know the day dawn and the day-star arisen in their hearts and first thou sayes we are to understand the Word of Prophecy the whole Scripture and then in the same page saith that Peter expounds the word prophesie of the Old Testament onely so then Peters Exposition by thy account and thine is different thou sayes he spoke of the Old Testament and thy interpretation is of the whole Scripture but thou hast mist it both of Peter and thy self for Peter wrote unto People in that Epistle in several States yet they all might be said to be believers according to a proportion of faith given unto them and in that which thou hast cited 2 P●t. 1. 19. we have also a more sure word of Prophesie Here is to be understood first a sure word Secondly a more sure word for the Apostle in that Chapter speaking of their diligence towards them that did believe and declared unto them that they had not followed devised fables when we made known unto you the Power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ but are eye witnesses of his Majesty verse 16. and heard the voice from this excellent glory this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased when we were with him in the Mount this was as sure a word to the Apostles as any that ever the Prophets had spoken before was to them and so the Old Testament could not be more sure then this which they had from the excellent glory but this was not so sure unto them to whom Peter wrote and this was only the Apostles Declaration but the word of prophesie unto which he exhorted them unto was nearer them then any of the Prophets words or the Apostles Testimony of what they had heard in the Mount the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophesie to wit that which bears witness against sin and to righteousness from this the Prophets spoke and this was that publike thing or Spirit and they that speak not from it speak from a private spirit of their own and this word of Prophesie or that wherein they could see or foresee things to come they were to take heed unto as unto a light which shined in a dark place and this was the more sure word which he directed to which in all thy Book thou quarels against and through this they saw the appearance and knew the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in Power and great Glory and did see the day dawn and the day Star arise in their hearts and they were to attend to this not onely before but also after for by the Word of his Testimony the Saints did overcome and