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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88815	The Antichristian Presbyter: or, Antichrist transformed; Assuming the nevv shape of a Reformed Presbyter, as his last and subtlest disguise to deceive the nations. / By Richard Laurence, Marshal-Generall.	Lawrence, Richard, d. 1684.	1647 (1647)	Wing L674; Thomason E370_22; ESTC R201297	13,810	23

to cut the Parliaments throats and by destroying them wholly to inslave and vassalage the people for ever Thus you see what ever he faith you never know what hee meanes till the last What he did in this kind I shall not need to rehearse to you wofull experience I hope hath convinced you though I am able to particalarize as many of his wicked cruell and barbarous actions as any one man in England But for further satisfaction I shall refer you to Faringdon in Berkeshire to Prince Maurice his march through Somerset and Dorsetshire to Gorings Horse in Devonshire and Cornwall to Prince Ruperts march through Lancashire to Layton-Buzzar and Wooburn in Bedfordshire the Queens shriving of Burton upon Trent And if you please to make each of these a Bishop I shall furnish you with as many Rapes Murders Robberies and unheard of Cruelties as shall make them a sufficient Diocesan Priesthood Thus have I endeavoured to trace Antichrist in his own steps to describe his habits discover his practises and have given thee some hint of his actions to this end that if ever thou seest him or hear of him again thou mayest know him For be you sure as long as there is so many great and spiritual Livings in the Kingdom so much Glebe-land and other good things called Tythes He will not out he will assume some other shape he cares not what it is so he may but do his work and receive his wages which is as you have heard to rob kill and destroy you and will make you pay him well for it too Now let me intreat thee by the way to take notice what a wonderfull deliverance God hath wrought for thee by the hands of those men which this Monster would have turned thy hand against that if ever Nation or People ow'd themselves to a Parliament this Nation doth And though there be many Sons of Belial which had rather see the Kingdom ruined so they might have the destroying of it by fighting against them then to have it setled in truth and peace by them yet let them know with all the enemies they have in the world that if that God which hitherto hath been their wisdome and strength doe keepe them close to the work they have begun viz. to lose the bands of wickednesse to take off heavie burdens to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoake though all the power of Hell and Earth should set up themselves against them The Lord of Hosts is our strength why should we fear the God of Battell is our salvation why should we be afraid But now my honest Country-men after all this care taken and hazzards run and bloud spilt when the Parliament with all the rest of their faithfull friends scattered abroad from their owne horns in the Kingdomes service had thought their work had bin done and nothing remained but to receive the fruit of their former labours which is an equall participation with the rest of the free-born people of England of their liberties and priviledges due to them in their severall places and callings yet even while they were all crying peace peace behold warre There appeares another Generation of Earth and Hell like that Beast in the 13. of the Revel vers 11. Whose appearance is like a Lambe and yet speakes like a Dragon his voyce being nothing but of war and bloud-shed Many thousands of such as the Parliament had at their mercy and hath given them their liberties and estates upon easier terms then some thousands of their own friends have preserved theirs by taking their parts And yet all the practice of these men is in speaking evill of the Parliament indeavouring to render them odious to the People saying they are all Independent and will have no King with a thousand such false aspersions and lyes making their boasts they are confident of another day and that the war is not yet begun that they hope to see the Tyde turnd ere long with many such expressions That while the Parliament is disbanding their Armies slighting their Garrisons indeavouring by all possible meanes to ease the people of their burdens they have so long groan'd under by reason of the warre These servants of that wicked One are sowing a new seed fomenting a new warre And because their old Names of Papists Malignants Cavaleeres c. are grown so odious to the people Therefore this cunning High Priest of theirs Antichrist teacheth them to call themselves Presbyterians For saith he by so doing with some other tricks I have wee shall gain the Scottish Nation with a considerable Party in the City to those we have there already and set it ●ard to make a division in the House by being in th● likenesse of P●esbyterians till such time as we have gotten the King into his power and a considerable Army of French and our Catholick Brethren in Ireland about him And then we will put the Scots in minde that they were the Beginners of all our troubles and that they have been twice proclaimed Rebels for fighting against this King We will then tell them of the old saying It is no deceit to deceive the Deceiver We will then put London in mind of their former Zeale to the Parliaments Cause and let them know our good Ki●g hath often times called them the Rebellious City and had long agoe given them us for our Arrears We will then tell our Presbyterian Brethren of their infirmities our faithfull Brother Bishop Maxwell reckons up in his Book entituled Issachars Burden We will then convince them as they would have convinced the Independents with an Ordinance against Heresie and Blasphemy c. Thus friends if ye have not resolved to say its dark when the Sun shines if ever your parsons tell you so you may see this Spirit of Malignanc●e and Antichrist in all parts of the Kingdome in the shape or likenesse of Presbyters If there were but a Garrison slighted or Souldiers disbanded where the Parliament conceives them uselesse to the Kingdome they are told it is because they are Presbyterians If there be but an Officer cashiered in the Army for the most vild misdemeanour that can be committed be it Drunkennesse of Swearing or Whoring or plundering c. be cryes out it is because he is a Presbyterian And thus I could instance in many particulars but I reserve them for future occasion And if this trick be but a little better learned the Parliament shall not call in a Malignant to pay his Composition but hee will presently cry out he is sequestred for being a Presbyter Nor punish a Priest for Faction in the Pulpit in endeavouring to render the Parliament odious to the People but he will cry out he is a Presbyterian As if the being a Presbyterian were a tolleration to commit all kind of wickednesse without controll As if Faction and Sedition with Drunkennesse and Swearing c. in Presbytery were as absolute Jure Divino as their Government Nay further

THE Antichristian Presbyter OR ANTICHRIST TRANSFORMED ASSUMING THE NEVV SHAPE OF A Reformed Presbyter as his last and subtlest Disguise to deceive the NATIONS REVEL 13.11 13. And he had two hornes like a Lambe and he spake as a Dragon and he doth great wonders so that he maketh fire to come down from Heaven on the Earth in the sight of men And he deceiveth them that dwell upon the Earth by reason of those miracles By RICHARD LAURENCE Marshal-Generall Printed for the Timly information of the People 1647. The Epistle to the READER CHRISTIAN READER I Would not have thee flatter thy expectation by thinking to meet with something in this Discourse that should tend to the setting up or casting down any one practice or opinion now received or held forth by the Believers of severall judgments in this Kingdom which are but as so many Bubles risen upon the water And when a strong gale of that Spirit which bloweth where it listeth shall breath upon them they shall all break and fall and shall become a pure River of living water clear as Chrystall proceeding out of the Throne of GOD and of the Lambe But that which J do heer endeavour to hold forth to thee is only a discovery of that Mystery of Iniquity which assumes shapes and formes of Religion for no other end but to destroy both Moral and Divine Rights and Priviledges And having had occasion by reason of my employments in the Army to ride through most parts of this Kingdome very lately I have observed these things which I here represent to thee hoping that not only Thou but those whom England hath chosen to be their Overseers and God hath used to be their Deliverers will observe what Vipers they have in their Bosome such as hold forth an Apple in their mouth but have stings in their hearts such as only kissed with an intent to betray That which moved me to pen it was out of conscience to that Covenant which many of these Deceivers have swallowed down it would be well for the Kingdome if there were more Covenant-Keepers though fewer Covenant-takers J shall direct thee to what followeth rest thine in that everlasting Covenant which doth not only bind us but affect us in truth and faithfulnesse one to each other R. L. A briefe Discovery of old Antichrist in the new shape of Presbytery EXperience teacheth us that it hath ever been the way and practice of that man of Sin that mystery of Iniquity that enemy to all peace and righteousnesse commonly called by us Antichrist and known to us onely by the names of Pope Jesuite and Papist c. to transform himselfe into that shape or likenesse which he conceived would he most advantagious to his designes For before the time of this Parliament we thought he had onely dwelt at Rome and Spain c. among the Papists and that the hanging of those halfe-score men for the Gun-powder Plot had frighted him cleare out of England But while we cried Peace Peace behold trouble And when he thought the time of our desolation d●ew nigh then the time of our deliverance was at hand For when he saw there was no remedy he was very forward to have a Parliament thinking they would have done as some had done before them to have given all the peoples rights and priviledges to the King to purchase to themselves great estates in Court But God gave us men of publick spirits which resolved to offer up themselves and a●l that was deare to them to maintain the peoples rights and priviledges so much invaded by the great-Ones of this Kingdome and their Ha●…ers And before they were well warmed in their seats there came petition after petition and complaint after complaint they could not tell which to heare first many of them wondring the pe●ple should lie under such heavie oppressions and yet be so silent And when they began to enquire into the businesse they found the people were like a Horse in a quagmire the more they strove the deeper they sunk For though they had appealed from Court to Court the higher they went the worse they were This seemed strange to them that in such a place as England was where there were so many grave and learned Divines such a powerfull Ministery the whole Kingdome being lookt at as a Church of Jesus Christ there should be such unheard of oppression and tyranny And enquiring into the cause of these things they began first to enquire whether that old enemy of mankind which was alwayes a deceiver of the people Antichrist was not crept in among us again Which made Henry the eighth spill so much innocent blood in this kingdome hanging to day a Papist for his Religion and the next day a Protestant for his Religion Having his reigne in burning and destroying religious people in this Kingdome untill the end of Queen Mary and was wholly cast out of Church and State as we thought by the Parliament in the reigne of Queen Elizabeth After which we grew secure we thought Antichrist had been but of one religion Then they began to enquire what Papists were about the King thinking they might be the cause of all this mischiefe for they had not heard that this deceiver had been any thing but a Pope or Jesuit or Papist at least But when they had found out the truth of the businesse this cunning Sophister had turned Protestant a zealous common-prayer-Common-prayer-book man and would goe to Church twice a day at least And after they found it was Antichrist indeed onely changed his shape they began to search further to see how large his dominion was And well knowing he doth not use to trouble poore folk much they began first at the Court and going with the King to the Church there they found him as busie as could be bowing to the Altar and reading Common-prayer and singing the Letany with a great deale more such stuffe And when he had done that up start he into the Pulpit in the likenesse of the Kings Chaplain and there he tells them the King was accountable to none but God for his actions and that all his subjects enjoy'd was wholly at his disposing whether liberties priviledges or estates c. and those that would not say so were traytors And after further enquiry they found him in all the chief Offices about the Court and for feare he should not be neere enough to the King he was crept into bed to him A little after they found he was not onely about the Kings person but was gotten into most of the chiefe places of Judicature in the kingdome They found he had been a great Privy-Counsellor for many yeares and had been acting many wicked designes tending to the inslaving of the people and destroying Religion He had been the onely means of procuring Ceremonies and a Book of Common-prayer to be imposed upon the Church of Scotland And because they would not submit they being imposed by the Kings authority he