of the Beast which is 666. By this number I do not understand any set number and that the parts and members of the Beast are no more nor lesse but thereby I understand is meant a full and compleate number as before was shewed As all the parts and members of a man ioyned together make a whole perfect man so doe the particular parts and members of the Beast make a perfect and entire Beast Thus briefly according to the ability which God hath given me I haue gone over this chapter wherein is briefly set forth the workers of iniquitie which haue and yet still doe prevaile over Gods people under the title of Ministers of the Gospell and Church of Christ as they were represented under the forme of three severall Beasts The first Beast representing the Generall Councells or as the Papists call it the Catholick Church The second Beast representing the Pope And the third Beast the Provinciall Councels which were established by the Pope The which three Beasts bearing rule and dominion in these times whereinto wee are fallen and being enemies and opposers of Christ and his Kingdome it doth behooue us to know them to end that wee may eschew them and their evill wayes and seek after the truth making straight steps unto the Kingdome of God Now that we our selues may make particular use hereof it is necessarie for us to examine the Nationall Synode or Convocation confisting of the Prelacy and clergie of this Land who whilst they remained under the yoke and bondage of the church of Rome and whilst they exercised their power which was first given them by the Pope for and in the behalfe of that church and dominion they were they very Image of the first Beast before mentioned But being now separated from the Pope and Church of Rome they thinke as it should seeme that their spirituall Pontificall power and authority which they exercise is lawfull and warrantable and to bee submitted unto They being gathered together boast themselues to bee the representatiue body of the Church of England and the true Church of Christ and that they haue power to make Lawes and Canons for governement thereof and for the worship of God which all men ought to yeeld obedience unto as appeareth by divers of their books of Canons But wee are not to take this upon their word but to make triall thereof by the word of God whether it be true or false If the word of God did giue them such power and authority then indeed wee were bound in conscience to yeeld all ready obedience to their Lawes and Canons But the most wise God and disposer of all things who knoweth the vanity of mens mindes would not haue his people to hold their faith in respect of mens persons and at their pleasure to alter and change the same and therefore did not giue to any of his Ministers power to make Lawes in matters of Religion and for the worship of God but gaue them power onely to teach the Nations to obserue the things which hee had commanded them as in the eight and twentieth chapter of Mathew the nineteenth twentieth verses And the Apostle Paul biddeth the Corinthians 1. Cor. 11. 1. to bee followers of him as hee followed Christ And in the same Chapter hee also saith That which hee had received of the Lord hee delivered unto them Acts 15. Also the Assembly of the Apostles and Elders of the Church of Ierusalem they would not impose any yoke of bondage upon the Churches of Christ but held it to be a tempting of God so to doe as before hath been shewed And this agreeth with that in Deutr. 12. 32. Whatsoever I command you take heed you doe it Thou shalt put nothing thereto nor take ought therefrom By which Scriptures it is plaine that the chiefest Ministers of the Gospell had no such power as these Prelates presume to haue as we shall finde by examining their particular Canons and Constitutions of which for examples I will onely note some few of their late and best reformed Book made An. 1603. in the first yeere of the Kings Maiesties raigne by which it will be apparant that they passe the bounds of the subjects of Christ and that they haue no power from him to make such lawes but by so doing they usurp the place of God to reigne in mens consciences for unto him onely it doth belong to make Lawes in matters of Religion and for the worship of God to which men are onely bound to yeeld obedience without adding or detracting and that for this their presumption they are liable to the curse of God being indeed the Image of the Beast here spoken of that is originally sprung from the Dragon and hath received power of Law-making from him Concerning the first and second Canons wherein they pretend their zeale for the abolishing of all forrein power repugnant to the jurisdiction of the Kings Majestie over the Ecclesiasticall estate he being the highest power under God to whom all men owe most loyall obedience and that his Maiesty hath the like authority in Causes Ecclesiasticall as the godly Kings had amongst the Iewes To these I doâ— most willingly assent and agree And further doe desire that as the Pope so the Prelacie with all their Antichristian Adherents which usurp spirituall power and superiority aboue the Maiesty of Christ Iesus being a strange and forraine generation brought in and established in this Land by the Pope of Rome may also bee abolished and cast out after him for by them the Pope liues in hope hereafter to be served as he hath been heretofore to the great vexation of the Kings and Princes of this Land yea to the losse of their Crowne and liues But to be short I will proceed to mention some few of their canons whereby iniquity is established for a Law and their beastlinesse discovered In the third canon it is enacted that whosoever shall affirme the Church of England by Law established not to be a true and Apostolicall Church teaching and maintaining the doctrine of the Apostles that person shall be excommunicated ipso facto That there are some yea many doctrines of the Apostles maintained in the Church of England I do not deny so there are in the Church of Rome But that the Ecclesiasticall state or spirituall body politick which is called the Church of England which consisteth of Arch bishops Diocesan Lord Bishops Suffragans Deanes Arch-deacons Prehends Canons Chancellors Commissaries with the rest of the Clergie as heads and guides of that body to go before and the whole multitude of the Layitie as they call it which is as the Tayle to follow those Heads that this politicall Body is the Spouse and church of Christ as they affirme in their seuenth eigth and ninth canons that I do deny For first if it were true that they are the Ministers of Christ and members of the Body of Christ which is his Church we should finde warrant for them
like a Leopard c. By the resemblance and likenesse of a Leopard was signified that this Beast should be foule and full of spots as is shewed in the 18. Chapter Babylon is become the habitation of Diuels and the hold of fowle spirits and the cage of every vncleane and hatefull Bird. The filthinesse of this Beast is apparant in that he doth by force and Armes compell all sorts of wicked and ungodly people to be of his societie and refuseth none but the godly therefore fitly was he thus prefigured Secondly by the qualitie and disposition of the Leopard was signified that this generation should bee subtill and craftie in getting their prey They boast themselues to bee the Church and Spouse of Christ but if it be so whence then had they that infinite store and aboundance of worldly wealth and riches wherewith they exceed in deliciousnesse of liuing This was not the condition of Christ and his Disciples the Lord himselfe had not whereon to lay his head but in that respect was more destitute then Foxes which haue holes and then Birds which haue nests his Disciples wanted gold and silver and had no certaine dwelling place whence therefore had this generation their lands liuings and Lordships Their Castles Mannors Houses and Princely Palaces It will bee said of the donation and gift of Emperours Kings and other great States and of the charitable deuotion of all sorts of people But how were people brought to bee so full handed to this generation To bring this about much slight craft and nimblenesse of wit was vsed first people were made to beleeue that what they gaue to the Church was to the maintenance of the Ministerie of the Gospell and for the comfort and reliefe of the poore and therefore should be a sacrifice so well pleasing to God and meritorious as that it should receiue great reward at his hands herewith the mindes of religious and devout people were so much moued that they thought nothing too much to giue to the Church by meanes whereof Churches began to grow rich Secondly people were made to beleeue that the worshipping of Images and relickes of Saints and building of Churches Chappels Oratories c. and endowing them with Lands Tenements Parsonage and Vicarage houses c. was an effectuall way to haue favour with the Saints and to procure their prayers and intercession for them By these and such like meanes this wylie and crafty generation deluded the people and made themselues rich and robbed Christ of his honour who onely is our Advocate to God And furthermore they gathered in heapes of wealth by Masses Pilgrimages Pursse-pennance Offerings and such like Marchandises wherein their subtilty and craft was prefigured by a Leopard a beast subtill by nature whose propertie is to lie in waite for her prey and slylie to catch it as the Cat doth the Mouse and in that respect doth well resemble the Antichristian Clergie that subtill generation But further it is added that the feete of this Beast were as the feete of a Beare The Leopard is more nimble to catch then the Beare but the Beare is more strong and eager to hold fast that which hee hath seased vpon then is the Leopard both these properties this generation hath nimble to catch and greedy to hold they catch by slight but hold by force and therefore in catching resemble the Leopard but in fast holding the feete of a Beare To this it is added that the mouth of this Beast was as the mouth of a Lyon And by this another property of the Antichristian Clergie was foreshewed for as the Lyon when hee hath taken his prey roareth upon it at whose roaring the beasts tremble So this Generation being thus exalted and made rich and hauing gotten their prey they terrifie the small Beasts of their Forrest roaring with curses and excommunications against any be he Prince or Pesant that shall presume to part stakes with them or meddle with their prey or diminish their portion but an Egge or an Onion That these be the properties of this Generation needs no proofe it is manifest by daily experience Here therefore wee may learne what to esteeme and iudge of the Antichristian Clergie together with those Multitudes People Nations and Tongues out of which they haue sprung and over which they are set and supported namely that they are a monstrous and beastly generation excelling in craft covetousnesse pride crueltie and all iniquity and therefore not to be esteemed as they boast themselues to be a holy Catholick Church and Spouse of Christ which cannot erre c. And by this wee may see how lamentably the Nations haue beene deluded and led into errour and vngodlinesse by their Guides and Leaders Now it followeth that unto this Monster the Dragon gaue his power and his Throne and great authoritie Here is declared of whom the Prelates and Clergie haue received their spirituall Lordships power authoritie and iurisdiction to devise and make spirituall Lawes and Canons to erect spirituall Courts and create Officers to beare rule and exercise dominion over the Nations euen from the diuell they haue not any lawfull authoritie from God but an vsurped authority from the diuell whose instruments they are to advance his kingdome and to persecute the Saints which obey God rather then men And here wee may obserue that they are rightly called spirituall Lords because originally they proceed from that Prince that ruleth in the aire the spirit that worketh in the children of vnbeleefe but withall in stead of spirituall Lords Lawes Courts and Officers call them spirituall wickednesses and so wee giue them their right title and being such if we will fight the good fight of faith wee must by witnessing what they bee wrastle against them and not submit vnto them but stand fast in that liberty wherewith Christ hath made vs free and not be intangled with any yoke of bondage and that we may wrastle and prevaile we must take vnto vs the whole Armour of God Ephes 6. Further Iohn saith that he saw one of the heads of the Beast as it were Ver. 3. wounded to death and his deadly wound was healed and all the world wondered after the Beast By this Head which was as it were wounded to death was signified the reviving of Priesthood the mysterie whereof in few words is this The workers of iniquitie in this Antichristian Kingdome having ordained this order of ministery called Priesthood whether it were in imitation of the Iewes or Heathen it is doubtfull but certaine it is that because it wanted externall sacrifices it came short both of the Iewish Priesthood and also of the Heathen so that it was a lame and wounded Priesthood and was not respected In time it came to passe that they found out a sacrifice as is to bee seene in their mass-Masse-booke which was the transubstantiating of bread and wine into the very Bodie and Bloud of Christ really and substantially as they vse to speake and teach
in his Testament wherein is set downe the Ministers which hee hath set in the Church namely Apostles Prophets Evangelists Pastors and 1. Cor. 12. Ephes 4. 11. Teachers and also their office and administration But in all the new Testament no Arch-bishops nor Lord-bishops no Deanes nor Arch-deacons Prebends Priests nor canons no chancellors nor commissaries and other their court officers nor any such administration as they challenge and execute can there be found they are a strange generation that is risen up out of the earth for earthly-minded and vaine men haue invented them and therefore the body which consisteth of them cannot of right be acknowledged to be the Body of Christ whose Ministers in respect that they are called according to the commandement of Christ are from heaven But it is indeed the Image of the first Beast whose mouth was as the mouth of a Lyon his body like a Leopard and his feete as the feete of a Beare an ougly compounded and deformed monster And as their names are strange and different from the Ministers of Christ so is their practise contrary they are not servants to the Flock and Church of Christ and helpers of their ioy but they are authors of their woe challenging and exercising Lordship and dominion over their faith for in stead of a due administration of the word of God they haue mingled a cup of fornication for the people to drinke that is devised a forme of booke-worship with orders rites and ceremonies which they haue imposed on the people under the title of Divine Service and which they must obserue without adding thereto or taking any thing from it as in the 4. 6. 7. 8. and 14. canons Further they are not painefull preachers but lazy Lords they are not followers of Christ and of his word but are contemners thereof casting it behind their backs and will not be reformed nor ruled by it they are Lawmakers much like Nebuchadnezar for as he would destroy all that would not worship his golden Image So whosoever doth refuse to yeild obedience to their Lawes shal be most severely punished as is playne by diverse penalties annexed unto their Cannons In consecrating and ordeyning Preists they are like to Ieroboam for as he consecrated whome he would of the basest of the people to be the Preists of the high places which he had set up so doe they ordeyne for the most part ignorant fellowes to be their parish priests and inferior Ministers wherein though they doe most absurdly yet will they not be contradicted as we may see by the 57. Canon where it is sayd whosoever shall refuse to comunicate with a dumbe and unpreaching Minister Let him be excommunicated And although their owne Doctors complayne and cry out against it yet they will not amend amongst the rest it is worthy to be observed what their owne great Champion profound Mr. Hooper sayth viz. That both Arguments from light of nature Lawes and Statutes of scripture the Canons that are taken out of auncyent Synodes the decrees and constitutions of sincerest tymes the sentences of all antiquitte and in a word every mans consent and conscience is against ignorance in them that have the cure and charge of soules If it be so how unreasonable and beastly is it for the Prelats to ordeyne allowe and approve of such for the Ministers of Christ of which there are many hundreds in the land whome the Prelats are not ashamed to forbid to expound the Scriptures as in the 49. Canon where it is sayd that some of their parish priests shall not take upon them to expound in their cure or elswhere any Scripture or matter or doctrine but shall onely study to reade c. It is greatly to be wondered at that so many grave heads as were gathered together and sate consulting about these matters should breed and bring forth such absurd and impious Canons If there were nothing else this allowance of dumbe Ministers is sufficient to shew the vanitie of their mindes and the darknesse of their foolish hearts So that we may truely say of them that when they professed themselves to be most wise by exalting and making themselves equall with God in making lawes for the government of his house the Church even then they became most foolish and void of judgment As for the best sort of their parish Preists which are men of learing and gifts they must also be confined within their limitts they must worship God according to the rules prescribed them by these their spirituall Fathers as in the 38. Canon If any minister shall omitt to use the forme of Prayer or any of the orders or Ceremonies prescribed in the Communion Booke let him be suspended and if he doe not conforme within the space of a moueth let him be deposed The absurdities and blasphemies conteyned in that Comon prayer Booke are many which having been discovered and layd open by divers treatises already published in print I will omit onely this I will add that in the imposing of that service Booke or any other this great iniquitie is committed by the imposers therof That they doe exalt themselves both against Christ who is ascended into heaven †Ephes 4. 8. 11. 12. and hath given gifts to his Ministers for the gathering together of the Saincts for the worke of the ministery and for the edification of the Church his body and also they exalt themselves against the holy Ghost who onely hath power ‡ Rom. 8. 26. to helpe our infirmities to furnish men with gifts to worship God aright Further their preachers may not teach against their corrupt Church state and Ministrie though they know it to be Antichristian nor against the forme of worship prescribed in the said comon prayer Booke nor against the ceremonies nor the government of the church of England by Archbishops Bishops Deanes Archdeacons and the rest that beare office in the same nor against the manner and forme of making and consecrating Bishops Preists or Deacons nor against the Lawes and Ordinances Ecclesiasticall established in the sayd Church whosoever transgresseth in these things shal be excommunicated ipso facto as is playne in the 4. 6. 7. 8. 54. Canons Thus by excommunicating and cursing they labour to mainteine and defend their corruptions but not one iote of Scripture dare they shew and no marvell seeing the whole scriptures are against mens inventions and traditions of which nature these abuses are being left here by the Pope and reteyned and renewed by his Prelates As they may not teach against these things so on the contrarie they may not teach the true and right way which Christ hath prescribed in his Testament how we must worship God nor how the true Church of Christ ought to be gathered and constituted the Ministers thereof ordained nor the manner how it ought to bee governed as appeareth in the 9. 10. 11. and 12. Canons By which we may see in what bondage their Preachers are