Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	call_v	old_a	scripture_n	2,142	5	5.5182	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93645	Christs innocency pleaded: against the cry of the chief priests. Or, a brief and plain reply unto certain papers received from William Thomas (called) Minister of the Gospel at Ubley. By Thomas Speed, a servant of the Jesus Christ, who was at the request of the bloody crew of chief priests, and teachers, crucified at Jerusalem.	Speed, Thomas, b. 1622 or 3.	1656 (1656)	Wing S4904; Thomason E865_1; ESTC R207594	52,531	75

sheeps cloathing but are within ravening Wolves who are such as their Predecessors the Scribes and Pharisees were Painted Sepulchres all glorious without but within full of rottennesse With those that witnesse against such doe I close yea and am ready with thousands more in the Nation to bear my testimony against them even unto bonds and unto death But why doe you not come where these false-witnesse-bearers are as you all them and manifest them to be such that so the People may beware of them You and your brethren of the Clergy have a rare faculty of conquering men in the Pulpits with whom you never spake and riding triumphant over those who never had liberty or opportunity to return you an Answer You are very excellent at confuting men at the greatest distance and damning things and persons for errors and Hereticks in the absence of the concerned And so you meet worse measure to many that are innocent then Pilate and the Jewes did unto Christ viz. by condemning them not only without a cause but before they are heard T. S. I ask did you receive that gift by the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery which Timothy did or did you only imitate c. W. T. If Timothy received extraordinary gifts in that way to that we doe not pretend as being proper to those times c. T. S. The gift that I asked you whether you had received was that which Timothy received by the laying on of hands which he was exhorted to stir up which the Scripture doth no where call extraordinary And if this be the gift you pretend not to I thinke in that you doe well not to pretend to that which you never received But why doe you then pretend to Timothy's Ministry if you pretend not to his gift And as for your distinction betwixt that laying on of hands that did confer extraordinary gifts and that which did promote ordinary I disown it as that which the Scripture knoweth not but is a distinction of your own creating It 's usuall with those that call themselves Ministers in the Nation when they practice that which the Scripture alloweth not to help themselves by some groundlesse distinction or other and if they are demanded touching the qualifications of the Ministers of Jesus Christ in Scripture then to disclaime any pretence to them as such as were proper to those times and were not the holinesse patience sobriety meeknesse freedome from the love of filthy lucre and coveteousnesse found in the Ministers of Jesus Christ mentioned in Scripture also proper to those times If you lay claime to them it were well if you would shevv that they are indeed vvithin you by bringing forth more of the fruits of them in your conversations then at this day you doe You call the ceremony of laying on of hands a fit signe of your being appropriated unto God T. S. Many amongst you that received this ceremony are found vvalking in the paths of the Devil being svvearers drunkards revilers and openly prophane and are you not ashamed to say that that ceremony is a signe of their being appropriated unto God And as for the most of the rest of you you are hardly come to so high a pitch of holinesse as the Scribes and Pharisees who drew the blood of Christ in witnessing the outside of the Pot cleansed Is there among the most ignorant any eye so blind to whom your spots of pride coveteousnesse envy oppression are not visible And are you yet such as are appropriated unto God They that are appropriated unto God are found doing the will of God and working the works of God but so are not most of you who set up your owne wills in opposition to the will of God and whose works are not such as were wrought by the holy men of God mentioned in the Scripture You say further touching Imposition of hands that you own it as a very antient ceremony and signe of consecration and of the blessing of God setling on them so consecrated T. S. Doe the Scriptures any where call that Imposition of hands of which we were speaking used on those that were made Deacons a signe of consecration And is it also a signe of the blessing of God setling on them that receive it Hath not imposition of hands been used on those that are enemies to God and goodnesse such as are before mentioned And doth the blessing of God settle on such Is the blessing of God or the woe and the curse to the Idol Shepheard and slothfull Hireling that maketh it his businesse to feed himselfe and to persecute the poor flock of Christ You cannot avoid giving these the blessing also who are for the curse for these also had that mock-shew and empty imitation of laying on of hands by the Bishops and their Presbyters used on them Next you spend some time to prove that laying on of hands is not the foundation of your call To which I shall only say That you esteem it so much the foundation of your call that you judge him no Minister that hath not received it and whoso hath received it you presently esteem him a Minister After this having demanded of you an example in Scripture where any of the Saints or Ministers of Jesus Christ did persecute any man for conscience sake You Answer W. T. That bad Ministers should persecute is no wonder c. T. S. Then from your owne lips we may conclude that they that doe persecute are bad Ministers And then how few are there to be found that are good Is not the blood-thirsty spirit of Saul manifestly seen in the generality of those that call themselves Ministers in the Nation Have not they who conscientiously refused to join with them in their will-worship for severall years past yea and at this day been the objects of their wrath and violence And what have been the obstacle to their execution of as great cruelty on the Saints in these dayes as Saul did on them in those save that as his commission was of equall extent with his will these have had their wills to persecute larger then their commissions And whereas you say that divers who assume to themselves the name of Saints doe persecute the generall company of ordinary Ministers and doe in their scolding Books cast all the reproach they can upon them I Answer They who were Saints of old mentioned in the Scripture did call an Idol Shepheard by his name and a greedy dumb Dog by his name and if any that are called Saints doe at this day call the same persons by the same names I know no reason why you should call it persecution unlesse it were persecution in the Prophets of the Lord mentioned in Scripture who did the same If any there be who charge those with that of which they are not guilty I am no Patron of them but doe judge them Revilers When I ask you in the next place for an Example in Scripture where any of