renders all Discourse vain and inessectual Or is it possible to convince those men by Reason that will deny the evidence of Sense Besides how can there be either end or fruit of writing where a man shall not only musunderstand things that are plain but impute to his Adversary Words and Sayings of his own coyning and proceed to the bitterest reproaches thereupon and in the mean time omit to take notice of Matters of moment Therefore I have entituled this Discourse CONTROVERSIE ENDED for I am bold to affirm that it must either be ended here or if not It may be continued infinitely upon the same grounds What remains then to be done but earnestly to beg of God through Jesus Christ that he would give them repentance to the acknowlegment to the Truth O Holy Jesus who wast dead but art alive and livest for evermore who wast crucified through weakness but livest through the Power of God to whom God even thy Father hath given al Power in Heaven and Earth who canst be touched with the feeling of our Infirmities for thou wast in all things tempted as we are Have pity upon these men who some of them have a zeal of God but not according to knowledge work in them Humility and enlighten the eyes of their minds that they may acknowledge thee to be their Lord and the Mediator between God and Men that they may no longer despise that Knowledge and Faith of thee which is by Preaching or Tradition through the Holy Scriptures but may contend earnestly for the Faith which was once delivered to the Saints Have morey upon me O Lord pardon mine Infirmities and judge whether I have not been as careful not to wrong them in this Work as I would have them or any man to be of not injuring me and grant that it may be fo benefit and advantage to many and that thou mayest be glorified thereby Amen POSTSCRIPT NOw it will appear whether there be any prudent and houest men among the Governing Quakers by their dealing with W. P. for this Book of his for I appeal to the Reader whether he thinks there be any such inconsiderable Society of Christians in England that would not either have requir'd a publick acknowledgment of his Offence or have disown'd that Member which should have wrote in their Desence a Book of 138 papges and but two of them that is p. 130 and 131. that have any pertinency of Auswer to their Antagonist's chief Argument and that also which is there alledg'd to be partly false and altogether inconsequent save against himself But to contain many pages that directly confirm and aggravate the Charge brought against them and moreover to be so stuff with palpable calumnious and self-praysing untruths and virulent Language that it makes their Cause and Dealing odious in the sight of sober men all which I have prov'd W. P. to have done in relation to the Quakers It will easily appear to the considering Reader that I have for brevity sake omitted to impprove many Advantages which my rash Adversary has given me contenting my self to in timate them and so proceed And he that has diligently and judiciously read my Epistle and his Answer may perceive that I have not so much as intimated divers things of much advantage to my Cause and Person Among those is that Passage in p. 136. where he essayes to answer some of my Reasons for keeping my Name from them and sayes very civilly That I horribly bilie them why wherein Not in this That there are some of their Writers that make it a great part of their Answers to Books the reproaching the Author Let this very Book of W. P. be an Instance How many Sheets must it have wanted if all of that kind had been substracted Not in this That they are very Rhetorical in that point I am perswaded W. P. could not Rhetoricate so well in the praise of any Person in the World G. Fox not excepted as he hath in reproach of me He has taken up one of Muggleton's peculiar Phrases wherewith to abuse me and my Friends calling us Serpentine Associates It 's like Muggleton had us'd it in W. P's hearing and W. P. according to his nature was taken with it and so bestowed it upon his next Adversary Neither in this do I belie them that if they had my Name then it must be considered what Party I am of and accordingly all that is odious or so reputed either in the Doctrine or Practice of the whole Party must be raked up against me Let his Book be witness whether he has not dealt so with me even upon a suspition of my name But saith he we never charg'd the infirmities of a single Person further then upon that guilty Person unless he were connived at or justifyed in his wickedness by any whole Party Now here lies the Wit If any part of the Charge be not found apparent all the rest how manifest soever must go for a horible lie But W. P. kind Man will not put me to much trouble in searching for an Instance It is but turning back to p. 7. and there I find a single Person described as it were in a Hue and Cry and his being wanting in the very Alphabet of common civility attributed plurally to him and me at least and I think to all the Party that W. P. assigns for us Has he not then rak'd up against me what is odious or so reputed both in the Doctrine and Practice of a Party and of a particular Person Which he can never prove me guilty of justifying in that case Another Instance shall be of an elder date see the Epistle to G. Whitehead's Divinity c. where G. F. tells the Presbyterians and Independents that when the people of God called Quakers were gathered together in divers places to Worship God then you said They were plotting together against Oliver whom some of you called the Light of your Eyes and Breath of your Nostrils to bring in King Charles If they can make it appear which I much doubt that one or another Presbyterian or Independent did suggest any such thing against them it can never be believed by any sober Man that that Person was connived at or justifyed therein by one or both Parties Presbyterians or Independents and yet here G. F. and J. S. impute it to them both indefinitely and that so as thereby to insinuace that the Quakers were generally at least esteemed Friends to the King and sufferes upon that account But the Presbyterians and Independents Friends to Oliver and Enetnies to the King and the Quakers O the Candour and Simplicity of G. Fox O the Modesty and Meekness of W. Pen Again Inreference to their calling men Tinker or Tayler W. P. replyes We never told the World mens Trades in a way of detraction or reproach our Souls abbor it When he has taken shame to himself in the ingenuous acknowledgment to the World of those untruths I have prov'd him guilty of then he may better be believed In the mean time who can believe that G. W. did not call Bunyan the Tinker by way of detraction when he adds immediately a rayling envious man and in a late Pamphlet calls rayling Language Tinkers-Rhetorick Besides Tinker is a term of reproach and he that is such may by Stature be punished as a Rogue FINIS The Book intituled The Spirit of the Quakers tryed c. is to be had at the Elephant and Castle heat the Royal Exchange in Cornhil London Why may not he prophane Scripture to abuse men Mystery Epist It had been to be desired that he had not failed in his English in this place The instances of these things out of G. F's Book are to be seen in my Epistle p. 5 6. The Mystery of the great Whore I suppose they will not deny that writing to all the Worlds in defence of Religion is Speaking or Preaching or equivalent * Here this great Linguist has forgot to write good English that is his Mother Tongue What an unworthy thing is it in W. P. to intimate p. 67. that I would have the Text rendered Haec est lux illa vere quae venientem in mundum illuminat omnem hominem Ambiguitatem sustulisset See p. 68 c. W.P. p. 13. W. P. p. 117. P. 127. Divinity of Christ Pref. P. 119. He chargeth me p. 61. with driving at the Divestigating Christ of all right to eternal Divinity This is learned non sense G. F's spirit could never elevate him to such a degree of Jargon Besides except he can produce some Author for it which I am perswaded he cannot I shall conclude him the first that ever us'd the word divestigate or divestigare in any sense whatsoever Though the word One is not in the Hebrew in some Texes where he so confidently puts an Emphasis Yet eight lines after himself confounds and abuses Scripture Heb. 2.16 with Rom. 4.5 Non-sense as was observed before pag. 68. pag. 92. Tradita
omitted his many reproachful and virulent expressions Besides I doubt not but to make it as evident as the Sun at noon that W. P. is himself guilty of those very Crimes which he falsly charges upon me and in those very Instances Before I came to the main Argument of my Epistle to the Quakers I addressed my self to them by way of Introduction wherein I gave some reasons of that manner of Argument which I intended This Mr. P. first falls foul upon and by the honesty and discretion he useth here we may judge of his performance in the whole Treatise In his first and second Sections the Reader may take notice how greedily he catches at the commendations I give of some of them I said there were honest-hearted amongst them and he saith He is pleased to allow us at least a great many among us to be honest-hearted It may as well be understood of some few Is he not a modest man If his Neighbour say Honest-hearted he will have it at least a great many honest-hearted I said Whilst some of you excel in many things c. But W. P. like a man that will rob his Neighbour for praise rather than go without it saith thus Sect. 2. If we excel in all things as he confesseth Here W. P. has committed a double falsity 1. He puts all for many and 2. the Quakers indefinitely for some of them I have look't among the Printers Errata's whether he had not corrected all by many but find no such thing And if I should grant him that error without good reason yet the other piece of falsity viz. putting we the Quakers in general for some of them will abide by him to the gross injury of me and the shame of himself Doth he call me idle Boaster and at the same time vainly boast of the praise I never gave them In his third Sect. He calls those praises which by falsifying my words he wrings out paying them their due In his fourth Sect. he saith of me Nor doth he less then palpably belie us in telling the World we condemn all virtuous Persons whatsoever if not of our own Perswasion And yet I cannot understand his Answer to be less than an implicite concession of the Charge Sure I am G. F. denies the Worship and whole Religion of all Sects that differ from the Quakers It seems I belie them with a matter of truth which because it is not plausible W. P. would palliate You may see what he 's resolv'd on He saith Sect. 5. Christ's Person which he meaning me prejudicially sayes we deny is c. My words are these But you seem at least to deny his Person Is there no difference between denying and seeming to deny But I shall have occasion to speak further of this matter Only the Reader may take notice all along of his great honesty in quoting my words But this is a trivial fault in comparison with that which follows W. Penn Sect. 8. But saith he he promiseth for the future to decline this way of proceeding and withal to avoid the use of both Scripture and Reason c. I will not saith he give him the lie but I hope he will not say I am uncivil if I tell him He has already â—â—ntradicted himself and broke his word with us for within eight lines he that promised to relinquish all personal reflection layes to our charge c. And in p. 92. he has it up again and gives me the lie in plain English which he saith here he will not give me He words it thus First Then he has broke his word with us which in plainer English is he has told us a lie in assuring us at the beginning he would deal with us neither from Scripture nor Reason and yet undertakes both Now Reader have patience to hear my words which run thus But it is not my design at this time to take a full view of you And indeed I have found it very fruitless to deal with you by way of Reason and Scripture for your leading men c. It follows in my next page I will not therefore now deal with you so much by Arguments drawn from Reason and Scripture and depending purely upon the understanding and mind but by such Arguments whose evidence depends mostly upon the outward Senses Now let the sober Reader judge on whom the lie is to be fixed and whether I have not sufficient reason to tell him He is both uncivil and unchristian Behold here the infallible Minister the Censor of the World and of other mens foul language Behold the Spirit of Truth vindicated Let me beg of thee Reader to read his Book See how he treats me and what himself deserves Acknowledge the special hand of our Lord Jesus in giving up this man to these shameful failings in the very entrance of his work Pag. 15. Upon occasion of my savine they look upon themselves as led by an infallible Spirit this plain English-man takes up his Post and will defend this That God's Holy anâ—Vn-erring Spirit is or should be the proper Judge of Truth Rule of Faith and Guide of Life among men I commend him for his wit I have charg'd G. F. with about fifty such failures as for which he condemns his Adversaries to be perverters of Scripture and consequently Deluders and Blasphemers W. P. here in vindication of him enters into a long discourse of two and thirty pages to prove from Scripture Reason and humane Authority That G. F. is or if he is not should be led by an infallible Spirit for his Hypothesis is no other way to his purpose 1. I do not only willingly grant but contend for it That there was in G. F. at that time when he wrote his Mystery c. a Conscience which had he hearkened to he should thereby have been a Law to himself and it would not have suffered him to be guilty of such things as he condemns in others 2. I grant also that this Rule is infallible viz. That he that judgeth another for any thing is inexcusable if he do the same thing himself I grant 3. that God is the Author of this Conscience Light or Knowledge 4. That G. F. might have known the Rule aforesaid by a good use and improvement of his own understanding but I suppose he came to the knowledge of it by some outward Teaching or Tradition especially by the Scriptures And so 5. the Spirit of God may in a true and good sense be said to have taught G. F. that Rule because it inspired those that preached and wrote that Rule in the Scriptures 6. That the Spirit of God was ready to have assisted him in walking according to that Rule 7. That it may be God did by his Power and Providence work upon him toward obedience Lastly Perhaps the Spirit of God did at that time when he was about to disobey suggest to him his Duty and Rule But there is little reason to think so
led by that Spirit When the truth of any matter in question is to be tryed by a written Testimony and that writing may be produced he that shall then instead of the determinate words of that Testimony produce other words to the prejudice of his Neighbours cause shall be counted forger and lyar And I nothing doubt but that G. F. if he had dealt so with other writings of civil concern as he has done with the holy Scriptures would by this time have lost his ears And it would not have excus'd him in such a change to have urged that his own knowledge and testimony were of greater cortainty and vilidity than the words of that written Testimony forasmuch as Party concern'd acknowledg'd no such matter 7. G. F. in accusing Professons of perverting Scripture in the Instances cited follows his own Judgment and Principle and not theirs for the makes it an Argument of the Quakers their being sent of God because they speak of Scripture right as it is but Professors the contrary and tells them they run into all absurdities that give their meanings to Scripture Lastly such is the unhappiness of W. P's undertaking in this matter that almost all his reasonings and scornings too against me in vindication of G. F. turn directly to his condemnation For because Prefessons do not acknowledge any other common Rule of Faith but the Scriptures it was necessary therefore for G. F. to confute them by express Scripture especially in that he had undertaken so to do and dar'd them to go to a tryal at than Tribunal See the Epistle to his Mystery I have been long in the answer of this Allegation because it seems to be the only thing of weight in his whole Book but you see how it disserves him Having now seen my Argument against G. F. confirm'd and improv'd with much bitterness by W. P. under pretence of vindicating him I might here fairly conclude but having added to my Argument in my Epistle that he had not only done to same or the like to that which he condemn'd in other but much more and that which was really conclemnable and urg'd my Instances to prove that also it may perhaps be sit for me to say something in vindiation of them or some of them from W. P.'s exceptions Though indeed if the Reader would but take the pains to compare my Epistle with his Answer and what I have here already written I might well spare mine and his further labour in this Matter But because every Reader may not have opportunity so to do I will proceed The first instance I have spoken to already The second Instance is form John 1.7 where G. F. applies that to the Light which John speaks of the Baptist vis That all men through him might believe Which taken as it is spoken proves that the preaching of John Baptist was a means of bringing all men to believe and consequently that the true Light may light every man by the foolishness of preaching or outward means which is contrary to the Quakers Doctrine of the Light and is avoided by his perverting the Text. The third Inst in from 2. Cor. 4.6 For God who commanded the Light to shine out of darkness hath shined in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ G. F. hath it thus When as Paul said that the Light which shined in their hearts to give the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ 1. He puts the light insted of God 2. He leaves out Light immediately before of the knowledge 3. The whole Sentence is non-sense and notwithstanding all this W. P. has the face to tell his Reader He obtrudes an arrant lie upon our very senses and call me wretched Scribler How idle How frivolous c. The error that 's couch'd here is 1. That God and Christ the Light are not distinct but all one 2. That by Light here is not meant Knowledge 3. That this Light is not an effect of Creation 4. Inst from Col. 3.10 where G. F. reads them for him and so takes away from us a proof that the New Man there spoken of is created W. P. saith in his defence If he did put Them for Himit is not false but if we in common discourse say you for thou he 'l say it's false 5. Rom. 2.15 G. F. puts Conscience for Thoughts because Conscience was more easily drawn to signifie the uncreated Light in every man 6. John 7.38 There he puts Christ's helly for the Believers belly to countenance the foresaid Notion 7. 2 Cor. 2.16 G. F. applies that to the immediate Word which is plainly spoken of the Apostles And W. P. that he may be true to his way of abusing me falsly saith I undertake to prove him to be an Impostor for putting the before Death and Life which the Translation doth not Did ever man make less conscience of what he wrote 8. Col. 1.23 Putting was for is to prove inward preaching without outward I have spoken of it before 9. 2 Cor. 13.5 Within you for in you to countenance as he supposes their Doctrine of God's immediate Light 10. 2 Cor. 3.6 G.F. saith The Scripture said The Letter was dead and did not give Life W. P. blames me for referring these words to this Scripture which is the nearest I can find but he finds no Scripture nearer to which to resen it How captious he is Paul saith The Letter â—illeth speaking of the first Covenant as W. P. confesseth but G. F. intends that the outward dispensation of the New Covenant in the Scriptures is dead An Opinion that has done no small mischief in the World 11. I have charged G. F. that twenty times or more as I suppose he denies that the Scripture is called Word but saith it is called a Treatise Acts 1.1 And yet that word there rendred Treatise is the same which is rendred Word when applyed to Christ But W. P. to help at a dead lift saith G. F. intended The Word of God by way of excellency Which of G. F. his Adversaries did ever affirm it was 12. But W. P. can desend him in any thing even when he obtrudes upon his Reader the grossest absurdity instead of Scripture and will not have it to be any more than a trivial Objection against his infallible Prophet when he saith And so to the Word Christ Jesus Him by whom the World was made before is was made This G. F. puts in a Scripture Letter and this he repeats in his Book at least seven times without any variation the eighth time he has it thus By which the World was made before it was made It 's evident enough he has respect to John 1.3 Without him was not any thing made that was made What saith his Chamption now But is there no allowance to be had for curt Expressions eseapos of the Pen oversight in Compositors and Errors in the Press
Wife and is now G. Fox's concerning whom he gave forth a Paper that his marriage with her was a sigure of the Marriage between Chirst and the Church Likewise that his Marriage was above the state of Adam in his Innocency in the state of the second Adam who never fell Thus I find it reported by a certain Quaker in a Letter a notable piece to his Friend The same person faith That upon two occasions persons kneel before G. Fox though 't is done in a very private manner and but by a few the one is when he sends them forth to Administer the other is upon some misdemeanour committed by a Minister who acknowledging his fault upon his bended knees George absolves him My next Argument was thus Christ saith Be ye not called Kathegetai but he doth not forbid them to be called Kyrioi and we find in Scripture Philip called by Strangers Kyrie and Paul and Silas Kyrioi and Chirst himself mistaken for a Gardener by a notable Disciple called Kyrie and all without rebuke therefore the compellation of Kyrie is not forbid in Kathegetes If it be our Lord Jesus himself as well as the Apostles will be brought under suspicion of conniving at sin in a place where he had opportunity to correct it And besides the inspired Writers giving us no notice of any failure in any of these cases the Scripture and practice of Christ and the Apostles and Primitive Believers will be so far from being of Example and Teaching to us that they will be a temptation to us unto evil and as Mr. P. sayes like the shadow of the true Rule that is an evening shadow which is five times as long as the substance it self Let the Reader see now if he can pick any thing out of W. P's answer but evasion and shuffle He saith indeed in excuse of our Lord's silence in the case that he never particularly check't Peter for denying him which how parallel to this case let the sober Reader judge and how boldly our Lords innocence is called into question and how lamely defended And whether G. F. would have incurred that suspicion of guilt in the like Circumstances or the only Scripture of his Life and Doctrine wrote by the Quakers left him under it 31. As for his defence of Women speaking in the Church it 's like the rest meer shuffle Judge what a pliant Conscience this man has who can accuse some that he had nothing to do with of making John speak equivocatingly because they do not expound Scripture to his sense and me a little before of strange irreverence to Holy Writ for restranining the Text which himself also restrains and here behold what a sense he puts upon 1 Cor. 14.34 35. as if he were expounding one of the old Poetical Fables But at length he comes to this I permit not an unlearned or ignorant Woman to speak in the Church And Did the Apostle permit or Do the Quakers permit unlearned or ignorant men to speak in the Church I said The Apostle forbids Women by Sex in those cases wherein he allows men by Sex to speak in the Church Where 's his Answer Find it that can He tells us of Women's labouring in the Lord Helpers in Christ Jesus Servants of the Church as if they might not do all that without speaking in the Church where there were men enough qualified for that work He tells us of Women prophesying for among them the Quakers any profound vehement prattle may serve for that but I never yet heard of a Quaker that spake an unknown Tongue And yet one would think they needed it enough when they are sent to the Indians or to the Great Turk 32 33 34 35 36. These five Instances Jam. 3.2 Ephes 5.25 Heb. 10.27 Joh 2.10 2 Pet. 1.4 the change of the Phrase in the two first and last and the defect in the third and fourth do all favour their doctrine of Perfection which is indeed a Doctrine of Sin and Imperfection for he is a persect Man according to them who sins not against his immediate Light or Conscience and so their Persection is consistent with all manner of sins of Ignorance of Error proceeding from any passion as is most manifest in these two G. F. and W. P. who must be accounted perfect men notwithstanding all their blasphemics against God and Christ and conrumelies against men which I have evidently demonstrated And then it 's consistent with sins of Omission in great plenty for whil'st they deny the Worship and whole Religson of all but themselves they must of necessity want that love toward them which is due to Christian Brethren Behold here a sort of Christians without either Faith in the true Christ or love to his faithful Servants 37. And it 's not a little mischief that has been wrought by that Notion of God's working all in us and for us which G. F. will have the Apostle to say and W. P. beings three Texts from whence he infers it as if I had charged G. F. with a false Infexence and not false Scripture 38. Our Translation hath Isa 8.20 If they speak not according to this Word it is because there is no Light in them But G. F. You that speak not according to that Rule it is because you hate the Light in you And W. P. instead of vindicating him rails at me Who knows not what that change meant 39. That G. F. may disparage the places wherein other Christians worship God saith Is God worshipped in Temples made with hands And would have his Reader take that for Scripture W. P. saith nothing to it 40. I shew'd in my Epistle p. 27. what Error of the Quakers is countenanced by G. F.'s putting is for was 2 Cor. 5.19 as if there were no work done by Christ for reconciling men which he was not and is not alwayes a doing I shew'd also that G. F. said God was in Christ reconciling himself to the World But W. P. takes no notice of it He seems to have wrote his Book only for the Quakers or those that either never read my Epistle or else have forgot it Upon the whole Matter for I have exceeded my intended brevity let the impartial Reader judge of W. P's and my performance in tals Argument And whether I have not prov'd by evidence of sense what I undertook viz. That G. F. is a false Prophet a Lyar or Impostor Yea whether W. P. himself hath not confirm'd unawares this Sentence concerning him Whether it is not horrid impiety for these men to pretend the guidance of God's infallible Spirit in what they write and to run in to such Absurdities Falsities and pernicious Errors as I have prov'd them guilty of Whether it will not be great folly in me or any man henceforward to write or indeed to speak to these men concerning Matters of Religion except perhaps further to discover their deceit whilst they practise such unheard-of Equivocation in their words as