that they might avoid persecution that in Christ Iesus neyther circumcision avayleth any thing nor vncircumcision but a new creature meaning that such as were graffed into Christ by faith vnto salvation from their syns they need not care in this estate for having or wanting the outward Jewish signe of circumcision but labour for that which it signified namely to become new creatures dying dayly vnto syn and living vnto righteousnes which fruits ar vndoubted testimonies that they ar in Christ. But H. N. corrupteth the words first saying Ther avayleth before God and then adding in Christ Iesus wrought in the Love meaning that a new creature in Christ which Christ is wrought in the Love for so he thinketh Christ to be the Lovely Being in vs as before is shewed this new creature avayleth before God for righteousnes and safe-making from our syns as his words elswhere are Thus careth he not how he wrest or what he add vnto the scriptures so as they may seem to serve his turn That the reader may see his deceit I wil shew what is his veyn and manner of reasoning Two things are given vs of God through Christ. 1. justification and 2. sanctification Justification is by the forgivnes of our syns for Christs sake and for the death that he once suffred for vs himself alone on the crosse whervpon followeth our blessednes and salvation and this justification we apprehend by faith alone After which foloweth the work of Christ in vs by sanctifying our bodies sowles and spirits and making vs conformable to his death burial and resurrection and furnishing vs with fruits and graces of the Spirit which being fruits of faith in Christ following the same are no cause of our justification or blessednes for that we have freely before given vs of grace Now coÌ„meth H. N. and he taketh this latter point of Sanctification and al such scriptures as speak therof and putteth it in place of the former to weet our justification making this our new birth and these fruits of faith to be the very cause of our happines righteousnes it self yea and Christ himself Which deceitful reasoning of his may further be manifested by a type and shadow of our redemtion shewed to our fathers traveling towards their outward rest in Canaan as we do now travel towards our eternal rest in heaven They in their journey were stung by fyrie serpents and many of them died To save them from this death a serpent of brasse was set vp on which who so looked was without any other salves or medicines healed of his deadly wound Then being thus healed they went forward on their way fought against the Amorites and other enimies and won the promised land and this they were to doe before they could have possession of the same If H. N. had then lived and should have perswaded the people that not the looking vp to the brazen serpent but their after journeyes and battel 's against the Amorites did heal them of their stings should he not haue belyed the work of Gods grace who without any work or war of theirs did heal them freely even so doth he in this The venim of Synn by the fyrie serpents the Devils tormenteth men and bringeth them to death Jesus Christ is lifted vp vnto vs as was the Serpent in the wildernes vnto whom we looking vp by faith are throughly healed After this God unployeth vs in a holy life and Christian warfare to subdue our lusts and affections and bring forth fruites of the spirit in sanctification Now coÌ„meth H. N. and telleth vs this holy life this Christian warfare is our righteousnes our safemaking from our syns and is Christ himself Thus is he an enimie vnto the grace of God and hinderer oâ—â—mans salvation seeking to procure it by the works of the law by which no flesh shal be saved and in stead of Christ would give vs an idol of his own fiction After this as vnsavourly and to as little purpose he alledgeth an other scripture wher Christ as he sayth in the day of judgemeÌ„ts shal find faulty al flesh in their righteousnes as he saith I shal rebuke the world of their righteousnes Ioh. 16. First it is to be observed that Christ spake these words of the Comforter the Holy Ghost which he being gone away would send to his Apostles Ioh 16. 7. as after came to passe Act. 2. 33. and sayth when he is come he will reprove the world c. but H. N. allegeth this that Christ himself should do it and falsifyeth our Lords words putting I for He the reason wherof seemeth to be for that H. N. holdeth not a distinctioÌ„ of the three persons in the Godhed as we professe according to the scriptures but ignorantly shuffleth and confoundeth al. Secondlly he addeth to the scripture saying their righteousnes wheras Christ sayth onely that the Holy Ghost should convince the world of righteousnes which may as wel if not better be vnderstood of Christs righteousnes then of the worlds especially seing the reason therof is rendred thus Of righteousnes because I goe to my Father Now though one may vnderstand it otherweise of the worlds feighned righteousnes yet is it overmuch boldnes in H. N. to put his own vnderstanding in sted of the text it self for this is the meanes to corrupt Gods pure word even as the mans hart is most corrupt Thirdly he referreth this to the day of judgements which is far from Christs meaning for he promiseth the efficacy and power of the Holy Ghost in his servants whiles he is absent from them before the day of judgemeÌ„t as the text sheweth to any wise hart But wherfore doth H. N. put in this may we think Doubtlesse to draw men vnto himself for he is the Comforter promised yea he is Christ himself and this day and time of his preaching is the day of judgements This is evident by his own words otherwhere For in his First Exhortation he thus writeth According to al the testimonies of the holy spirit of Love this gracious word and his service of Love is the Light and the day of the true judgement wherwith God with his holy ones accomplisheth and wherwith also he wil accomplish his judgement vpon the earth according to the truth In the Gospel of H. N. it is also thus written For behold in this present day the glorious coming of our Lord Iesu Christ with the many thowsaÌ„ds of his Saincts becommeth manifested which hath set himself now vpon the seat of his majesty for to judge in this same day which the Lord hath ordeyned or appointed the whol world with equity and with faithfulnes and truth according to his righteousnes And agayn in the same book Behold and consider my beloved how wonderfully God worketh in his holy ones and how that now in this day or light of the Love the judgement seat of Christ
vs to be our own saviours we our selves must conquer the death divil and hell for as wee have heard our own Lovely Being that is H. Ns. Christ. And wheras the Apostles teach vs that forgivnes of syns is by Gods imputation of Christs righteousnes and death and not imputing our syns vnto vs and that our fayth in Christ is imputed vnto vs for justice Rom. 4. 6. 8. 24. 25. 2 Cor. 5. 19. H. N. hath put imitation in stead of imputation saying that through the dayly God-service and offring in the Holy in the taking vp of our crosse in the Imitation of Christ in his death we obteyn the remission of syns Therfore he willeth vs to follow after Christ in his suffring for those are the dayes of affliction heavines and death wherin Christ hath gone before vs in the Holy for to prepare vs throuh the same death of the crosse the everlasting forgivnes and redemtion of syns Agayn in his book called The spiritual land of peace he telleth vs of an Instrument wherwith all enimies be overcome This instrument of victorie is the crosse of Christ not that which Christ of whome we read in the scriptures died himself on and triumphed in the same over the principalities and powers Col. 2. 15. but that which we bear in imitation of Christ it is named patience or sufferance such as is mentioned Heb. 12. 1. Iam. 5. 7. and it sayth H. N. is the true altar in the Holy vpon the which the true meat offring is that is given to the faithful beleeving travellers to eat and also the true drink offring that is given them to drink which meat offring is named the flesh or body of Iesu Christ and the drink offring is named the blood of Iesu Christ. And the same body and blood of Iesu Christ is vnto the constant faithful traveiler in the proceeding on in his pilgrimage a true mediator to lay away the syn in the flesh to establish the promises with him that are made to the Fathers Thus the things which are spoken of Christ and his oblation of himself and of our partaking therof by faith this man perversly applyeth to our own patient suffrings and maketh Patience to be our victory contrarie to the evident doctrine of the Apostle who sayth that it is Faith 1 Iohn 5. 4 5. Agayn the scriptures teach not that our Christianlike nature but that Christ himself in his own person for vs by death destroyed him that had the power of death which is the Divil and so delivered al vs his children which for feare of death wer all our life time subject to bondage Heb. 2. 14. 15. but H. N. teacheth that Christs death is our like suffring as appeareth by his First exhortation where he sayth that the man ought in his yongnes to learn to take vp his crosse on him to follow after Christ his Saviour in his like suffering and death of the crosse and to shew forth patience with Christ against all the assaultings vntil that all the enemies or adversaries of the Lovely life through the death of Christ that is in maner of suffering be vtterly vanquished By these wordes and the scriptures which he quoteth it is playne that he meaneth our own suffrings in imitation of Christ to be our vanquishing the enimies and our salvation which heresie he every where out of his own carnal wisdome vrgeth and perswadeth to the dishonor of our Lord Jesus and magnifying mens own sufferings and merits And if we look further what H. N. meaneth by his Death Divil and Hel we shal find these also to be idols and fictions of his own that in deed his victory is like his Christ even erroneous fabulous and blasphemous The holy scriptures teach vs of a death in syn when men are wholly given over therevnto Ephe 2. 1. contrary to which is a death to syn by sanctification of life Rom. 6. 2. They teach vs also of a death for syn that is a reward of eternal punishment in hel Rom. 6. 23. Gen. 2. 17. Iam. 1. 14. called the second death Rev. 2. 21. 20. 14. Vnto which the Divils and all reprobate men shal be condemned for ever and ever for their syns at Christs appearing Mat. 25. 41. 46. Now H. N. playing the part of the old Serpent which perswade Evah that she should not die perswadeth his disciples that here in this present world and life is death and hel so the judgement the fyre the condemnation threatned in the scriptures he maketh fantastical imaginations or humane affections For as with him the Love and to walk in the Lovely vertuous Being is Christ himself so on the other hand inveighing against them that speak evil by the service of Love and the minister of the same he sayth their false Being is the Divil the Antichrist the wicked Spirit the kingdome of Hel and the Majestie of the Divil himself Now the punishment for this is the Sentence which H. N. who as we have heard vaunteth that he sits on the throne of Christ to judge the world pronounceth his condemnation of the false Being is eternal death and hel fyre as appeareth by his Crying voice where he calleth al men to himself to Come al and cōfesse their syns and make known vncoveredly the inwardnes of their harts to the end that they may become justified or purged from all their synnes and received into the holy Communialty of the Love when as now in thissame day the wicked world becommeth judged with the Lords mighty hand Which wicked world sayth he is reserved or kept in store til vnto this same day of the Love to the fyre of hell for to be condemned in the self same day of the Love for evermore to her eternal cursing judgement of the fyers cruel vehemencie And a little after he addeth Verily now in thissame day when as now all vngodly and all selfwise with al vnrepentant persons and false harts of the scripture-learned c. inherite with much smart and grief in the vehement crueltie of the fyre of hel the terrible condemnation then shal the people of God namely the whol communialty of the Love of Iesu Christ c. rejoyce them in all Love c. And that this their joy is like Epicures in this present world and life and in their counterfeyt regeneration and godded estate he elswhere playnly confirmeth saying that in their citie of Peace there is a watchman on the wal therof that hath a trumpet named After-this-time-no-time-more and that the watchmā foūdeth out of the same last time as out of the last trumpet the sound of the everlasting life after the which there is no life more to be wayted for for the same life continueth for evermore Therfore in the conclusion of his Crying voice when he had bidden all Come now hither to the Love and her service he addeth Come now al hither to
creator and the creatures between whose Being there is no comparison Which things if he would not learn of the H. scriptures because he scorneth scripture learning yet might he have learned of Philosophers and heathen men who have sayd that though by certayn demonstration it is manifest that a divine artizen hath procreated vs yet by no reason or wit can we perceave what his essence or being is That God is One alone separated from all who cannot be explayned nor perceived that he is the first simplicity incomprehensible incomparable vniform that he cannot be known or found out yea that it is neyther possible to find him out nor lawful to serch him out And many like speeches have the Pagans spokē of God more divinely soundly and religiously a great deal then this Epicure H. N. the God of the Familists hath written in his blasphemous pamphlets After he hath thus described the vpright Christian Baptisme as he sayth or washing in the name of the Father he proceedeth with his Baptisme in the Name of the Son of whom he sayth that he is conceived of the holy Ghost and born of the holy Virgin Mary And that thissame Son of God beareth in vs our synnes c. and that he vnder the obedience of the Love of his Father is gone before vs therin for that we should in like manner follow after him vnder the obedience of his Love in his death of the crosse to the safemaking of vs from our synns become incorporated to him with his like death and baptised or washed vnder the obedience of the Beleef in his Name or safemaking and bury even so through the beleef the old man c. to the forgiving and releasing of our synns through his name or safemaking to the end that we might even so through Iesu Christ obteyn the renewing of our spirit and mind in an vpright life and resurrection from the dead with Christ in the appearing of his Majesty And that this is the vpright Christian Baptisme in the name of the Son and is the true forgivnes and purging of our synns through Iesu Christ. And all that thus folow not Christ are no Christians nor yet baptised in the name or salvation of the Son Here is an other puddle of heresie for men to be washed in in the name of H. Ns Christ. Of whom he first telleth vs that he is conceived and born whereas we beleeve in that Christ which was conceived and borne now many yeres ago But the Nicholaitans have a Christ in them to weet their Lovely Being as before is shewed Neither is their fayth setled on one Jesus borne heretofore in Israel but they themselves are born of the virgin Mary as their Father H. N. teacheth them in his Gospel saying the vpright children of the beleef which had their discent out of the seed of the faith of Abraham and the pure virgin Mary as also from the holy Ghost were known to be the true seed of Abraham because the same seed was the seed of the promise of God the Father was likewise in his mind according to the spirit the likenes of God his Father also spirit spiritual of the godly nature being according to the wil of God wholly minded w th God These vpright children of the beleef ar the Familists themselves if we wil beleev them they are born of the holy Ghost and of the pure virgin Mary and are not onely their own saviours but as a little before in the same place he writeth the seed out of the faith of Abraham out of the pure Virgin Mary is the true seed of promise to the blessing of all generations of the earth Thus do these caytiffs take to themselves the honour of Christ and though the Prophet telleth vs but of one child that is born vnto vs which should be prince of peace should order and stablish the kingdome of David forever yet these tel vs of many children of the pure virgin Mary as being that seed of promise in whom al generations of the earth should be blessed How they have this strange birth we may gather by H. N. his learned interpretation of the name Mary which he sayth signifieth a Doctresse for the doctrine of H. N. is that wherby his disciples are born anew as elswher he expoūdeth that to be born of the virgin Mary out of the seed of David after the flesh is of the pure doctrine out of the seed of Lov. Now Mary caled in Greek Mariam in Hebrew Mirjam I find in the scripture to signify their rebellion Nehem. 9. 17. which name very fitly agreeth to the Familists Doctrine but how or in what tongue it signifieth a Doctresse themselves I suppose can hardly shew vnlesse vpon H. Ns authority who as he hath given them a new gospel so also a new language farr differing from the language of Canaan wherby they may make what meaning and gather what allegories they lyst from words and none must suspect any vnwisedome to be in them Secondly H. N. sayth that thissame Son of God beareth in them their synns wheras that Son of God in whom the scriptures teach vs to beleev hath washed vs from our synns in his own blood and put thē away by the sacrifice of himself for he was wounded for our transgressions his own self bare our syns in his body on the tree and died for vs. How erroneously then doth H. N. perswade that Christ beareth in vs our synns Thirdly he sayth that Christ is gone before vs for that we should in like maner follow after him vnder the obedience of his Love in his death of the crosse to the safemaking of vs from our synns so teaching vs to save our selves by imitation of Christ this being all the benefit we have by his death that it is an example vnto vs how to do likewise Wherin H. N. sheweth himself to be a greater enemy to Christianity then was Caiaphas who sayd it was expedient that One man should die for the people and that the whol nation perished not so prophesying that Christ should die for the nation wheras H. N. would have men die themselves for their own salvation that so they might all perish for ever But we have otherweise learned the true Christ who was delivered to death for our syns and is risen agayn for our justification That as by one man the first Adam syn entred into the world and death by syn and so death went over all men so by one man the second Adam Christ we might reign in life and as by one mans disobedience many were made synners so by the obedience of one many might he made righteous Fourthly H. N. teacheth that men are baptised vnder the obedience of the beleef in his name or safemaking and bury even so through the Beleef the old man
fal down before idols wil deny their God of Love and wil worship the Papists God of bread in the Masse yea wil cōfesse or deny any point of doctrine and submitt vnto any Gods-service or religion And if they wil thus doe in things concerning God how much more may we think they wil so doe in things concerning men That if any Prince should be so wicked as to forbid al mariage on payn of death and cōmand or permit a community of womē or whordome these mē rather thē y e māly creature should perish would not spare to defile their bodies as wel as their sowles in al manner filthynes Yet syn they not as they perhaps think if their God of Love have their hart in hold and they be obedient to the requiring of the service of the Love for as H. N. sayth They know not of any other religion or godservice then of the service of Love But let vs further see if we can comprehend what H. Ns. position here doth imply If it be Gods wil that the manly creature should live and this be absolute and without restraynt then may not the Magistrate put any to death for any crime or make warre vpon any occasion for H. N. wil tel the magistrate he made not the natural man wherfore he cannot belong vnto him but vnto God his wil is that al shaped creatures should live and that it mought goe wel with them This Anabaptistical error is built on H. Ns. rotten ground and that the Familists doe indeed deny the vse of the sword vnto the Magistrate contrary to Pauls doctrine Rom. 13. and al vse of warrs may appear by H. Ns. words otherwhere complayning of the Land of ignorance which is every where but in his Familie that they make there many swords halberds spears bowes arrows guns pellets powder armor or harnesse c. for that the tyrannical oppressors and those that have a pleasure in destroying should vse warr battel therwithal one against another And because the taking away of the sword is the frustrating of the magistrates office for wherfore serveth he if not as for the wealth of the good so to take vengeance on them that do evil therfore it followeth necessarily that they condemne al magistracie in the church as do also the Anabaptists for H. N. sayth of his lovely city that no man reigneth over an other and that pleaseth God wel namely that the one man of God reigneth not over the other Thus vnder a colour that Gods creatures al should live he would abolish Gods ordinances who hath commanded that some malefactors should die and not live and bring confusion vpon civil polities as he hath vpon Christian religion Agayn in that he sayth al shaped creatures should live and then the manly creature so wel as any other wil it not folow also herevpon that Beasts must live may not be killed for the food of man For they are shaped creatures and made by God not by vs and so by H. Ns. learning cannot belong vnto vs and therfore may not be killed for our sustenance though God do playnly permit it in his law Gen. 9. 3. Deut. 12. 20. 21. 22. And so here is another doctrine of Divils as the holy Ghost caleth it comprehended in this Oldest Fathers deep head whiles by consequence he commandeth to absteyn from meates or els his ey-sight fayled him when he set down this reason But the Apostle gathereth quite contrary to this man as namely because The earth is the Lords and the plenty therof therfore we may eat al flesh 1 Cor. 10. 25. 26. Accordingly should H. N. if he had savoured the things of God have reasoned and concluded The Lord made our bodies and our sowles therfore it belongeth vnto vs to look that with both we glorify him The body is for the Lord therfore not for fornicatiō the body is the temple of the holy Ghost therfore it may not be prostrate before idols for what agreement hath the temple of God with idols the body is the Lords therfore it may not sit at the table of Divils and whatsoever the hethens or Antichristians offer they offer vnto Divils and we cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of Divils Thus should H. N. if any Christian wisedome or grace had been in him have collected and inferred and not as now he doeth perswade the two daughters to communion with the church of Rome which the holy Ghost caleth the habitation of Divils because their bodies or lives are the Lords and it belongs not vnto them to lay down their natural lives for the testimony of Jesus at any time But if H. N. had known in any world what the true life meaneth he would not so have disswaded from suffring temporary death for the Gospels sake This present life which he so much estemeth is a dying dayly as the Apostle teacheth the true life is when the body having been sowen in dishonour shal be raysed in glory Of which raysing vp this Sadducee H. N. is vtterly ignorant as after shal be shewed and in his ignorance perverteth al religion and even reason it self for to maynteyn a momentany natural life though it be to the perpetual damnation of body and sowl in hel His conclusiō what the man must forsake that he may be recōciled to God not any thing els but his own life that is the man of syn c. is like his premisses ful of guile and errour and what truth is in it is against himself Erroneous it is to say or to insinuate that we may be reconciled to God by any thing that we can forsake be it syn or what els For our reconciliatiō to God is wrought by Christ alone not by ourselves when we forsake synn of which poynt we have before spoken Guileful it is to say or insinuate that Christ in willing vs to forsake our lives for his sake meant that by so doing we should be reconciled to God or that we do so esteem of any martyrs death The man doth by it as Christ signified of Peters death glorify God vnto whom he was before by Christs death reconciled False it is to say a man must not forsake any thing els but his own synful life for Christ telleth vs further of forsaking howses brethren sisters father mother wife children lands for his names sake and these I trow are not also the Man of syn that lieth hid in mans hart But it was farr from H. Ns hart to forsake any of these for Christ he loved his sensual life so wel Erroneous it is that our synful life is that man of synn spoken of 2 Thes. 2. of which poynt is to be spoken in the next place And this onely truth that we should forsake our own synful life overthroweth H. Ns doctrine and his disciples practise For syn it is and a continual synful