Refuge which was a better proportion than our Glebe-Land and in value might be esteemed the Twelft part of the Land of Canaan Wherefore T. E. is mistaken again in affirming the Levites had no share in the Land Thirdly He alledges That the present Clergie have Offerings as well as the Levitical Priests And here he hath a large Bill of Names some of which we never heard of and yet he ends with an c. as he uses to do when he can reckon no more but after all this the Sums paid for some of these are so small and the others are so occasional that the present Clergie get not half so much in one year by these as the Levites and Jewish Priests did in a few Months by their Offerings For 1. They had their part of all their Sacrifices and Offerings made in the Temple 2. Their share of all the Feasts made there 3. A part of all Free-will Offerings and voluntary Oblations three times a year all the Jews coming up to Jerusalem and none coming empty 4. The First-born of Cattel or the Price as also the Price for Redemption of all the First-born of Men at Five Shekels apiece i. e. 12 s. 6 d. of our Money Numbers xviii 16.5 The Price of Persons dedicated by Vow coming sometimes for one Person to Fifty Shekels i. e. 6 l. 5 s. of our Money Levit. xxvii 2. with other things there mentioned So that our Offerings are not valuable in respect of theirs Fourthly He urges That all the Officers of the Temple were maintained out of these Pray' what all was there to be maintained None besides the Levites except the poor Nethinims who were Gibeonites and did the drudgery of the Temple All other Officers of the Temple were Levites who had none to keep but these Nethinims which were their Servants for all mean Offices Fifthly He says Out of the Tythes provision was made for the fatherless the widow and the stranger Deut. xiv 28 29. This is another mistake if he mean these were provided for out of the Levites Tythe T. E. had need go and read over Godwins Antiquities (n) Lib. 6. c. 3. where he will find this Provision was not made out of the first or Levites Tythe but out of the second Tythe which was to be spent in Feasts at Jerusalem two years and the third to be laid up at home for the Levite the fatherless the widow and the stranger so that the first Tythe was still paid intire and the Maintenance of these indigent Persons went out of the Peoples Profits So full of ignorance and mistakes is this Man in every thing he deals with We conclude therefore That the Charge is much easier now to our People than it was to the Jews under the Levitical Law § 44. In the Conference you had given two Reasons why the Apostles took no Tythes 1. Not of the Jews because their own Priests were in possession of them 2. Not of the Gentiles because of their unfixt Station To this T. E. replies pag. 351. I pray' who fixed your state of life who divided Provinces into Parishes and set up Parish-Priests Was it not a Pope Never did any Man pretend to write of things he understood so little as T. E. doth of Ecclesiastical Matters This all-knowing Quaker doth not understand that the Apostles themselves fixed Bishops and Pastors in the several Cities they had converted Timothy at Ephesus Titus in Crete giving them Commission to ordain and fix others in lesser Cities He knows not how Eusebius and other Historians reckon up the very Persons in all eminent Churches ordained and fixed there by the Apostles It will be news to him to tell him That in the very beginnings of Christianity wheresoever the Gospel was once planted there were strict Canons made against the Clergie of one Diocess going into another to Officiate Let it suffice to tell him That the General Council of Chalcedon ordains That whatever Clergie-man was ordained without a Nomination to some certain Church wherein he was fixed his Orders should be null (o) Can. 6. And to let him see we had a fixed Clergie in Britain long before Augustine's coming over he may read in a Synod held by S. Patrick among the Britains Anno 456. this Canon Let there be no wandering Clergie-man among the People (p) Can 3. ap Spelm. The Britains also had fixed Archbishops and Bishops and Priests long before the Popes of Rome so much as directed any thing here And when the Saxon Heathens who had disordered all things were converted to Christianity Honorius fifth Archbishop of Canterbury first divided all the Country in his Province into Parishes that he might allot to every several Minister a several Flock to take care of (q) Godwin de Praesul Angl. p. 59. circa annum 640. though Spelman attribute this to Theodorus about twenty or thirty years after But none can suppose this was the first fixing of Parish-Priests onely the first after the sad Inundation of Saxon Paganism And now we see T. E. hath neither Learning nor Truth in him who attributes our fixing to a Pope when the Apostles themselves shewed the way in this Practice not intending that any vagabond Speakers should be allowed after once the Christian Church was setled § 45. I hope when T.E. considers how wonderfully God opened the Hearts of the first Christians not onely to give the Apostles Meat and Drink but to sell all and give the Price to them he will upon second thoughts correct that Passage pag. 352. and allow this to be an extraordinary and miraculous Providence of Gods to encourage their first Beginnings And since all those fervors and excesses of Charity are now ceased I think we have reason to admire the Wisdom of our Ancestors who provided a fixed and certain Maintenance because there was no likelyhood of such Miracles of Charity to be found in after-times T. E. saith indeed they sold their Estates voluntarily pag. 353. which is most true and we do not desire any to sell them involuntarily now But when our People sell all voluntarily as they did we will quit our Claim to Tythes till then we desire the Quaker will let us quietly enjoy our ordinary Maintenance and we are well content § 46. When you soberly advise the Quakers to pay their Tythes for Conscience-sake in Obedience to the Kings Command T. E. replies pag. 354. We must not for Conscience-sake yield an Active Obedience to every Command of a King He misses the Mark again for the paying of Money or Money-worth when our Lawful Governors impose it is a piece of Passive Obedience If the King should bid the Quaker turn Minister and take Tythes his doing that were Active Obedience but to pay them especially unwillingly as the Quakers do is a piece of Passive Obedience to which a Man ought to submit quietly for Conscience-sake and in point of Obedience to the Authority imposing it though it be never so much
Right to be maintained And he shews what Maintenance was due to the Jewish Ministers affirming that Christ had ordained even so that we should live of the Gospel that is the Rights of God under the Gospel and the acknowledgments made to him for the mercy therein revealed The things of the Christian Temple and Altar were to be our Maintenance And is not this to say What the Maintenance is not a word in all this who should pay it And for the Instances of the Ox the Souldier the Shepherd and Vine-dresser Can these as S. Paul brings them in belong to those who pay the Maintenance Doth the Ox pay his Master Maintenance or the Souldier give his Prince a Stipend It is the Ministers whom S. Paul compares to the Ox for profitableness to the Souldier for hazards to be undergon to the Vine-dresser and Shepherd for pains and care And all the Instances do shew the contrary to what this Abuser of Scripture would squeeze out of them The Ox must not be starved who is willing to work though he be not actually imploy'd by him that feeds him and so of the rest As for the latter place Gal. vi S. Paul tells them they must give the Ministers a part of all their good things And is not that a declaring what the Maintenance is The Apostle saith indeed He that is taught in the Work must give this But that is to distinguish Christians from Heathens of which the World was then full The Heathen was not bound to maintain the Gospel Ministers but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Catechumen the Christian who was or might be taught if his own laziness or pride or obstinacy hindered not He was to give the Catechist or Minister a part of all his goods So that still this proves not T. E's foolish Inference That none must contribute to a Ministers Maintenance but those that are taught by him actually for these Places say nothing against a Gospel Ministers receiving Maintenance from all professed Christians so that unless the Quakers will own themselves Heathens they cannot be excused from paying Tythes And because T. E. puts in this device meerly to excuse his Fellow Quakers from paying our Dues I will let him see the fallacy of this Arguing First considering the state of things then and secondly with respect to the condition they are in now First According to the Quakers Principles the Christians of old were all immediately taught by inward Revelation And if so what need any Gospel Ministery at all what need of outward Means what need had they to have any Teachers of the Word Or with what equity could this Teacher require maintenance of them that had no occasion for his Teaching at all The Quaker forgot himself when he granted a Gospel Ministry and a general Maintenance for such since being taught without Means overthrows all this And the Christians to whom S. Paul writ might upon these Principles have pleaded an exemption from giving any Maintenance at all Secondly But now that there is according to T. E. a General Maintenance established by Divine Authority and that pious Men have given a certain part of the profits of their own Lands for this maintenance How unjust a thing is it for the Quakers to with-hold this Maintenance upon pretence they are not that is They will not be taught Let this exact Parallel Case shew their dishonesty herein Suppose a Pious Man an hundred Years ago did endow a Free-School with twenty pounds per Annum to be raised out of the Profits of a parcel of Ground worth two hundred pounds per Annum that is the Tenth part of the Profits on condition that all the Boys in such a Town should be taught gratis Now suppose there be a Master legally invested in this School resident at it and ready to teach all the Boys of that Town if they will come it being the same trouble to him to teach ten as twenty But it may be not above ten of twenty Boys within that Town will come to be taught the rest are Truants and do not come If T. E. himself were the Heir or Tenant to this two hundred pounds per Annum would he think it just or reasonable to stop ten pounds of the twenty because half the Boys do not come to be taught Doth not the Masters legal Title and willingness to teach give him a just right to the whole stipend And will not all Men say the Occupier of the two hundred pounds per Annum is a Knave to withhold any part of it on this pretence And yet this is the very case between the present Clergy and the Quakers and surely none will think Christ or his Apostles would countenance the unjust detaining of other Mens Dues upon such weak pretences § 10. T. E's second device to take off his former Grant of a General Maintenance established by Divine Authority is pag. 286. That Christ hath expressely set down what this Gospel Maintenance is viz. onely meat and drink Matth. x. 10. Luke x. 6 7 8. 1 Cor. ix 4. Truly this seems somewhat strange that T. E. should first say Divine Authority had onely established a Maintenance in general and in the next page but one affirm That the same Authority hath particularly expressed what this maintenance must be If Christ have allotted the particular Maintenance then he hath not left it to generals If he have established it onely in general then hath he not expressed the particulars One of these must be false for indeed there is a manifest contradiction But moreover this unfortunate Interpreter never meddles with any place of Scripture without abusing it and betraying the folly of that Spirit which is in him For these places of S. Matthew and S. Luke were spoken upon a particular occasion of sending Disciples into the Neighbouring Cities of Judea and Christ gave them special Rules appropriate to that Mesiage onely and to apply these Rules to all Ministers or to the general Commission he gave them afterwards is the most ridiculous and absurd thing imaginable When the Apostles went to the prejudiced and unbelieving Jews with the first news of the Gospel Meat and Drink was as much as they could expect and Christ bids them to take that and be contented But he doth no where forbid them to receive more if good Men freely gave it to them And if Christ according to T. E's fancy had determined Meat and Drink for the onely Gospel Maintainance then the Apostles had been great Sinners in receiving the price of Possessions sold and dedicated Acts iv Chap. v. If they had been taught by T. E's Spirit they must have returned them back again and so must S. Paul have done the wages he took of other Churches 2 Cor. xi 9. and those liberal Presents he received from the Philippians Phil. iv 18. Yea and our Quaker must needs exclaim against S. Paul for daring to be so bold that when his Master had expresly set down
Meat and Drink for the Gospel Maintenance He should ordain that Believers should give their Teachers part of all their Goods or good things Gal. vi 6. But we shall rather believe T. E. contradicts himself than that the Apostles contradicted their Master and therefore shall conclude That the Quaker abuses our Lords words in apylying them to be a determination of the onely Gospel Maintainance and especially if he would make them a standing Rule for the succeeding Ministry after the Church was settled the folly whereof I shall shew more fully § 27. § 11. And now having removed his vain exceptions I shall go on to shew That our Lord Jesus and his Apostles have sufficiently established Tythes for the maintenance of the the Gospel Ministers and that they may be proved also out of the Now Testament to be due Jure Divino First in regard there is no repeal of Tythes in all the New Testament which shews that our Lord left these in the same state as he found them excepting onely so far as concerned that Priestood which was to be abolished so far as they were Gods Right and an acknowledgement of his Supremacy and Bounty so far as they were Moral and a necessary Provision for his Ministers so far as they were founded on the Law of Nature and Primitive Revelation and grounded on an Eternal Reason our Saviour did not revoke them no nor any thing else so established And if Tythes had been the only thing of this kind to be abolished it seems necessary there should have been an express Revocation of them which we are sure there is not and therefore expressa nocent non expressa non nocent (t) Reg. Jur. 195. And we may reasonably believe That Jesus intended they should remain of Divine Right as they had been reputed alwayes before Secondly But this is not all for there are positive Laws which do fairly intimate that Tythes were to be the Maintenance of the Gospel-Ministers when the Church was settled For besides our Saviour's affirming Tythes ought to be paid Math. xxiii 23. The Double Honour or the Elder Brothers Portion due to the Presbyters 1 Tim. v. 17. The Order for a Bishop to be given to Hospitality which cannot be maintained without a large Income 1 Tim iii. 2. The remark of Melchisedec's receiving Thythes of whose Order Christ and the Gospel-Ministers are Hebr. vii I say besides these which plead only a probability there are two plain places first that of S. Paul 1 Cor. ix 14. affirming That like as the Jewish Priests and Levites lived of the Tythes and Oblations under the Law even so there was a special Ordinance of Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 either by word of mouth or Revelation That they who preach the Gospel should live of the Gospel that is of those good things which should be dedicated and offered in gratitude for the Gospel For this word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies not onely a Good Message but the Reward given for it as well in LXX 2 Sam. iv 10. as in other Authors as Mr. Mede hath fully proved (u) Med. Diatr in loc And the Blessed JESVS who ordained this did incline the hearts of Pious Christians to dedicate Tythes and other Oblations made in gratitude for the Gospel And now that such Dedications are made we enjoy them as well by the Ordinance as the Grace and Providence of Christ and therefore Jure Divino What was given in acknowledgment for the love of Jesus shewed in the Gospel was Jesus his Part and he who hath now all power given him in Heaven and Earth hath here assigned his and his Fathers Part to the Ministers of the Gospel and this Assignation gives them a Right thereunto Jure Divino But secondly Lest any should say This Text supposeth something will be given but doth not enjoyn the Christians to give We have another Law directed to the People containing both their Duty and the Ministers Right Gal. vi 6. Let him that is taught in the Word communicate unto him that teacheth in all Good things Gr. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is Let the Christians make the Ministers of the Gospel partakers or sharers with them in all their Goods For 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies to distribute or give some part to another so that he may participate with us Rom. xii 13. Phil. iv 15. and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies Earthly goods Luke xvi 25. Yea the Fruits of the Earth are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Luke xii 18. and hence Beza interprets it Ex omnibus bonis Now surely T. E. will not say We have no other Goods or good things but Meat and Drink If we be so poor some excuse may be made but if we have any other Good things Corn Hay Wool increase of Flocks and Herds c. we must not appropriate them all to our own use but we are enjoyned 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to distribute some part of all these Good things or Goods to God's Ministers Some part he must have of all our Goods and in all reason that part ought to be the Tenth For a Tenth was given by the Patriarchs before the Law a Tenth at least by the Jews under the Law This was the Part which God made known to be his by Revelation the part which the Heathens had learned by Primitive tradition to dedicate to their Gods The Part which God approved in the Jewish Polity and which Christ never disapproved The Tenth was a part so reasonable and so known so acceptable to God so acknowledged by Men and so certainly due to God before that there is no reason to doubt but that this is the share or portion of Gospel-Ministers And so good Men of old understood it to be and therefore communicated this Tenth Part to God and his Ministers and therein both expounded and obey'd this Apostolical Injunction The People must Communicate and that to the Gospel-Ministers and they may claim Jure Divino to have a part of all their Good things even the same part which was alwayes known to be God's Part and so need not be particularly expressed here There is but one Objection against this viz. That Tythes are not mentioned in the Gospel or Epistles to be the very Part To this therefore I reply thirdly There are very good Reasons why Tythes are not mentioned in the New Testament by Name viz. First To avoid all occasion of scandal to the Jews whose Priests were then in possession of them and though the Synagogue was dead yet it was to be decently buried whereupon many things were suffered a while to run in their old Channel till the whole Jewish Polity was destroy'd And it would have been used as a prejudice to the young beginnings of the Gospel if the Preachers had presently claimed the Maintenance which others were legally instated in And we see in S. Paul 1 Cor. ix that even where they had a right and authority in the first and
Masters Rules when they preached to the Gentiles We must not think saith Calvin on this place that there is a standing fixed Law prescribed to all Ministers of the Word while the Lord is commanding the Preachers of his Doctrine what he would have them do for a little time which piece of Ignorance hath deceived many so far that they would reduce all Ministers to this Rule without distinction (x) Calv. Com. in Harm Evang p. 218. Yet our Quaker is so confident of his absurd Exposition that secondly He saucily asks Kings and Princes where Christ gave them power to alter that Maintenance and set up another in the room of it arrogantly telling them in Corah's phrase having forgot the Censers already Numb xvi They take too much upon them unless they can shew where Christ gave them such Authority But let me ask this bold Questionist where Christ forbid them to give a better Maintenance He bid the Apostles be content with Meat and Drink but he did not forbid them to take more if it were freely given nor did Christ any where forbid those to whom the Gospel should be preached to give them any more It seems by T. E. that whatever any gave more than Meat and Drink was a contradicting Christs Command if it were but a Coat to cover their nakedness which is not mentioned in Christs Command No doubt he will ask the Primitive Believers who gave them order to sell their Estates and give them to the Apostles He will say They took too much upon them Was ever so much Folly and Impudence conjoyn'd Is it any affront to Christ to give nobly to his Service Or did Solomon do any injury to God to take away the ambulatory Tabernacle fit for the unfixed State of the Church and build a stately Temple Such exchange can be no robbery But because T. E. so pertly calls for a Command I shall tell him that an Hint is a Command to a Soul that loves God There is enough in that Divine Precept to put the forward Charity of a devout Christian upon giving Tythes at least Gal. vi 6. to give their Teachers a share of all their good things and 't is sure they will not give a little share who read They that sow plentifully shall reap plentifully 2 Cor. ix 6. The Tenth part was given by the Patriarchs chosen by God the Father paid by the Jews and not repealed by Christ and why should they give any less or other part Here then was their Authority to give Tythes to Gods Ministers Thirdly He says For any Magistrate to set out Tythes for a Maintenance is a direct opposition to Christ because they were commanded by God in the Levitical Law and Christ hath taken away Priests Law and Tythes all together How proves he this By Hebr. vii The Verse he cunningly leaves out being conscious to himself he had father'd a Lie on that Chapter in which there is not one word of Christs taking away Tythes no nor in any place of the New Testament Christ took away that Priesthood but he left another Priesthood which needs as much and deserves as good a Maintenance as that of Levi and therefore he never repealed the Law of Tythes And since it was so likely that Christians should pitch upon this same Tenth part which Jews and Gentiles had known to be consecrated to these Uses if Christ had disallowed this part it seems necessary there should have been an express Caution in Scripture against Tythes but since there is no such thing but onely a pretended Revelation to T. E. and the rest of his Quakers no body will believe Tythes were designed by Christ to be repealed And indeed T. E's Revelations will be of as little credit since it is likely he will not scruple to belie the Holy Ghost who hath forged Christ's Hand twice in this Paragraph first in saying He appointed that for a general and constant Maintenance which was onely on a special occasion secondly in affirming Christ had taken away Tythes which he never did repeal Thus this insolent Quaker makes our Lord to seal and cancel whatever pleases his Party § 28. We noted before it was his usual way to evade all serious Answers by some petty Cavil of which we have another Instance here For you having proved Tythes might be lawfully given and shewed that the Givers were the Right Owners of them asked If they might not do what they would with their own No saith T. E. pa 321. they might not spend it upon Harlots nor waste it prodigally nor make an Idol of it If the Quaker had been one of the Labourers in the Vineyard 't is like he might have drolled thus upon the Master thereof who in the Person of God saith Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with my own Matth. xx 15. T. E. would have answered No he might not put it to an evil use c. Whereas it is evident that as God there is speaking generally but is to be understood of Just uses so is it with your words here And this is to be understood in all general Expressions As if one promise his Friend that he will do for him whatever he will it must not be extended to oblige him to lie forswear steal or kill at his desire Those Deeds saith the Civil Law which hurt our Piety Reputation or Modesty and generally all things contrary to good Manners are to be reckoned Impossibilities and it is to be supposed we cannot do them (y) Papin L. Filius 15. de inst Cond How wilfully therefore doth the Quaker pervert your meaning which plainly was That a Man may do any thing fit or just with his own Why doth he instance in things manifestly evil and positively forbidden to make a Parallel for Tythes Can he prove Tythes as evil as Whoredom as Idolatry or Prodigality and as positively forbidden If so we will grant the Owners could not give their Estates to such an Use But till then he talks at random meerely to avoid the force of this Argument viz. The Owners were legally possessed to Tythes and might dispose them to so pious an Use as the Maintenance of God's Service is They might put their whole Estate to what just Use they pleased and therefore might give Tythes to so just an Use as God's Service § 29. On the former Foundation T. E. saith pag. 322. If Ethelwolph might not do what he would with his own much less might he give away other Mens It is affirmed by our most knowing Men That the Saxon Kings had all the Land in England in Demesn and therefore in charging all England with Tythes they charged no more than their own which is the reason of that seeming difference among the Historians who record this Charter Terrae meae and Regni mei since the whole Kingdom was his own Land in Demesn But to let that pass T. E. must needs be an egregious Dissembler to pretend here that