Flyer Me thinkes it should be true that the â—â—ues of Satan should onely serue â—atan in their ministrie as the Gallyâ—aues with Ores do serue the Turkes Lieftenant Anabapt A very good comparison whose Seruant one is his workes they doe For no one can serue two Maisters specially so crosse as Christ and Antichrist Flyer I pray you sir then what be the Arâ—â—cles of your fayth Anabap. For that friend remember what is written in Ezek. 43.11 When they be ashamed of all that they haue done shew â—â—em the forme of the house and the patâ—â—rne thereof and the going out thereof and â—he comming in thereof and all the fashion thereof and all the ordinaunces thereof c. â—â—ploying thus much that the Holy mysteries are not to be reuealed but â—nely to such a soule as is first ashaâ—ed of all by-pathes of false worship â—or the Childrens Bread is not to be â—st vnto Dogs that will ball against â—â—e trueth nor Pearles vnto Hogs â—â—at wallow in their owne shame Flyer I am ashamed of my standing not only with the Protestant but also with the Separist and Priuate and I firmely betake my selfe to your Fayth till death vs depart Anabapt The Deaw of heauen come vpon you To morrow I will bring you into our sacred Congregation that so you may come to be informed in the Fayth and after that to be purely Baptized Flyer Thankes reuerend man of God I thinke sir you are some Minister your selfe Anabapt That word Minister fitteth not I am a Prophet of the Lord spoken of in the eleuenth of the Reuelation which in homely apparaile as Sackcloth doe bewayle the peoples sinnes protesting against the Beast that come out of the bottomlesse Pitte And as I had in vision this night the Beast in time shall put mee to death for the Holy testimonie But an Angell hath comforted mee and sayth that before that time I shall turne the hearts of many Fathers to the Children and the heartes of Children to the Fathers least otherwise the great power should smite the Earth with cursing Flyer O sir mee thinkes the spirit of life is entred hoâ—te into mee Mee thinkes I could leape into that passage-Cart and prophecie Fire vpon England and all English Sectaries Anabapt Stay holy Proselite thou must first be Baptized and haue some diuine Vision from aboue And so being made a perfect Emâ—usiast thou shalt be able to turne backe the Floodes of Iordane But stay one is at our heeles If wee fall into any talke of Religion lay you your hand of your mouth and be silent Flyer I will O miraculous Prophet THE THIRD DIALOGVE Betweene Anabaptist and the Legatine-Arrian Legatine-Arrian WEll ouer-taken Father goe you vnto Midleburghe Anabap. I doe sir. Legat. ar I would be glad of your company and so much the rather for that you are gray-headed and Moses commaundeth such Youth as I am to rise vp before tâ—â— gray-headed Anabap. Thou sayst well sonne and I am glad thou readest Moses with some obseruance Legat. ar Without such diuine reading and obseruatioÌ„ Man is worse then a Dog What religion are you of Father Anabapt Of the true Christian religion Legat. ar Professed according to what what forme Father For the Papistes professe him according to one forme the Protestants after another forme and so the Puritaines Brownistes Anabaptistes and others Anabapt I professe him sonne after that manner which is reuiled by the name of Anabaptistes though Ana-baptisme or Râ—-baptization is a thing we be not ashamed of but rather glory in as hauing onely power from the Lord to deliuer that seale of Baptisme Legat. ar Are you Baptized then Anabapt I am sonne Legat. ar And I am of minde that there is no true Baptisme vpon the earth Anabapt Not in the earth I pray thee sonne say not so The coâ—â—â—egation I am of can and doth administer true Baptisme Legat. arr Say you so Father Your congregation as appeareth in Sleydan is but as of the last day Was not the true Church according to S. Iohns Uision in the Reuelation to be for manie yeares inuisible and not to be seene in the earth Anabapt That is certainely true And so I thinke my Brother that heere walketh with vs your countryman forsooth is accordingly minded Flyer I am Legat. ar I am of the same minde and therefore conclude therevpon thus The Church being to be latent and inuisible for many yeares so that her place was no more to be found it must accordingly follow that there could be no more a visible Church till some notable men were surred vp of God to raise it againe out of the dust Anabapt I graunt that And notable men haue we had Legat. ar The men that began the frame of the Church of Israel were Moses and Aaron The men that began the New-testaments Church were the Apostles All these were furnished with the guift of Myracles for the perswading of their hearers For without Myracle they could not be beleeued to come from God for establishing a new Church-pollicie Now Father who were the first layers of your Churches foundation They must bring Myracles with them or who but mad-men will take them for new Founders Anabapt My sonne wee haue had sundry men that haue been myraculous Legat. arr Indeed Sleidan recordeth your Snapper-doling and some others that were marueilous for their Dreames wherevpon they practised all filthines and intollerable bloodshed But to passe by that and the like Of whom had the first of your people his Baptisme The first had it doubtlesse in the Church of Rome and so consequently from Antichrist and Adam the first being impure we that follow can be no better As is the first fruite so be the branches New Baptisme there can not be till there come new Apostles New Apostles there can not be who are not endued from aboue with myracles Myracles we heare of none onely of idle Dreames and so consequently no true Baptisme in the earth nor any one true visible Christian Anabapt Doe you not beleeue your selfe to be one Legat. arr Not for alter an vtter ceassing of visible Christianitie there can be no raysing vp of that worke to visible appearance till Ministers haue begun it who may by Myracle confirme their calling For not our Sauiour Christ would so much as abolish the Shadow and establish the Substaunce but he would first vnto the people cleare his calling by an effectuall declaration of Myracles And what are you that you should be beleeued of your bare words Anabap. I perceiue sonne that thou art against all Churches and all Churches against thee as was the hand of flouting Israel turned out of Abrahams house the father of beleeuers Legat. ar You are au old Dunse to liken mee vnto Ismael a figure of Reprobates For you and others once graunting that y e Church according to that in the Reuelation chap. 6.14 represented by the Heauens departing once away as a Scrowle when it is rowled must needes therevpon conclude that
there could be no more a true Esse of the Church till from God some myraculous Ministerie should breath new life into the people as of Stones raysing vp Children vnto Abraham Anabapt A true Esse What is that I hold my life it is somewhat of the Romane beastes language Legat. arr I despise the seauen headed Monster more then you Neither care I a straw for Hebrew Greeke or Latine for thankes to his diuine Maiestie I neuer was an Uniuersity-man much lesse an Academicall Diuine or Theologue nor haue I troubled my selfe about the Beastes tongue Only as in reasoning I haue bin pressed with such a word I haue obserued it for slaying another time the Medianite with his owne sword Anabapt Fowle Heretike I would thou knew it I hate this prophane learning and language so well as thou I am a Prophet of the true Church and yet get my lyuing by making of Swordes the first calling I was trayned in Legat. ar Whia sir foole you hold the Magistrate to be onely an Ordinaunce since Christes time without the Church and that the vse of the Sword is vnlawfull You therefore in making Swordes doe vphold Bloodshed and Warres which otherwise you hold vnlawfull And so a raucke hypocrite Anabap. Sawcie princocks the Apostle hath charged vs to walke in the same calling wherein we were called to be Christians but when I was called to be a Christian I was a Sword-maker therefore in that called I ought to continue Legat. ar Gray head and greene minde by like proportion I reason thus The Apâ—stle commaundes a man to walke in the same calling a man was of when he was called to Christianitie But when I was called vnto Christianitie my calling was to keepe an Whore-house therefore being now called to be a Christian I ought yet to keepe an Whore-house Country-man take heede of him for vnder his pâ—aine habite voyde of Silke Ueluet and Pearse and yet I warrant thee of as softly English cloth as his Purse could purchase there lurketh all counterfaite dealing He would be thought most aduerse to the Romanistes and yet in the doctrines of Predestination Freewill Iustification mayne fundamentall poyntes he iumpeth one with them besides that execrable Heresie that Christ had a Corporall nature from Heauen not from vs wherevpon must necessarily follow that then he could neuer satisfie Gods iustice for vs. Anabapt Heauens-power how great is thy lenitie in bearing with such blasphemie Faythfull Proselite hanke in thine eare come to me there to night or tomorrow morning and thou shalt be inspired from aboue with power to resist all the deuises of such Charmers charme they neuer so wittily Farewell deare Proselite for I will trudge before least my eares become receptacles of his vnhallowed breathinges THE FOVRTH DIALOGVE betweene the Flyer and Legatine-arrian Legatine-arrian DEare Countryman may I be so bold as to inquire wherefore you came into these parts Flyer Good sir to speake the truth I came from the Separistes in London with full purpose to ioyne with that Church of them which is in these partes But meeting with this man as I came from Flushen where I landed and discoursing with him about Religion I verily resolued to ioyne with him and his Congregation But perceiuing by your Dialoguizing with him that all is meere foolerie to beleeue that either Hee or Brownist or Mal-content is of any true Church yea that there can be no Christian communion till a myraculous Ministerie be stirred vp of God for baptising people and calling them into Christian communion I herevpon haue giuen him the bagge Fish where he shall he shall haue no Fish of mee And therefore good sir seeing it pleased the Almightie to saue mee myraculously from seas and I perceiue it was for keeping mee to be instructed of you my humble desire is to vnderstande of you what a soule is to doe in this case there being not onely no true visible Church on the earth but also no true visible Christian I beseech you pray for mee or else I know not what shall become of mee Legat. ar Pray for you I may but pray with you I may not Prayer with one is an action of communion as for example if I should say Our Father Giue Vs this day our bread Forgiue Vs our sinnes Lead not Vs into temptation this should imply that you and I were in communion or christian fellowship But before that myraculous Ministerie as afore shall come and gather the Gentiles into such communion and Elias come for calling the Iewes there can be no such fellowship and therefore no such prayer When I come at my Chamber I will pray for you Flyer I pray you sir let me next Sabaoth day haue accesse vnto your Congregation for I doubt not but you haue some Congregation heere in Zeland Legat. ar How sillily you speake I haue all this while taught you that there is no Church nor visible Christian in the world as yet seeing no myraculous Apostles haue yet been sent to Baptize people and call them into communion and you talke of a Church Besides it is a notable badge of Antichrist for any christian Congregation vpon the Sabaoths conuention or any other time of the Churches meeting to admit of any vnbeleeuer or stranger to the fayth vnto the Pastorall exercise For is it not written in 1. Cor. 14.22 Prophecie serueth not for them that beleeue not but for them which beleeue Flyer Then I perceiue that all such as I haue left behinde me haue serued Antichrist in hypocrisie for they suffer any Infidell to come vnto their exercise of Prophecie or Preaching But my Countrimen the Flyers haue herein sinned aboue all for they permit infidelious Marchantes and others to come on the Thurseday vnto their exercise of Prophecie when ten to one by reason of some brabling canse then to be pleaded the Congregation meeteth â—ayeth and departeth without any Prayer at all or exercise of their propheticall guiâ—tes Legat. arr Propheticall guiftes Propheticall fooleries Tom Lace-seller and Abraham Pin-seller so I thinke M. Henry Barrow spoke in the Fleete must come out and spatter their meaninges and this must be called the exercise of Prophecie Flyer O excellent man of God I am sory that we be come notâ— into the tayle of Midleburghe for that will brake off our Discourse Legat. arr O prophane speach you should haue sayd into the Suburbs of Midleburghe Flyer The word Suburbs I tooke to be â— word of Latine and so of the Beastes language which made me to auoyde it Legat. ar Therein I commende your zeale For in their Translations they cannot be contented to say My God my God why hast thou forsaken me but before it they must put downe their prophane Latine Elj Elj lamasabâ—thenj Nor can be contented to say God hath sent the spirit of his Sonne to cry Father but they must turne it Abba father At Amsterdam I once checked a Preacher that is now in England for such fooleries
would pray you to walke home with me to take part thankfully of such as God shall send for the present Flyer I thanke you sir. Hauing gotten the Citie againe on my backe methinks I am as the Prodigall that hauing left a company of filthy Swine behinde him hath got his Fathers house on his bead where he may feed comfortably and sleepe safely CERTAINE POSITIONS NECESSARILY to be held for auoyding errour first touching the Church secondly Antichrist Touching the Church 1 THE Church of God had a visible beeing vpon Earth from Adam vnto Christ or else S. Lukes draught of the Genealogie were to small or no purpose 2 The Church of God from Christes time hitherto hath and to the worlds end shall haâ—e as true a visibilitie as the former Christ hauing no lesse care ouer his Church in her Ful-age then he had before in her Non-age 3 But as the Church of the olde Testament was not alwayes alike visible so neither this of the new Testament 4 For as the Church is compared to the Moone so in the Moone we see much change inowe more and inowe lesse seeable and lesse glorious And howsoeuer sometimes she be quite latent and hid to some part of the Earth yet to some otherpart of the Earth she is euer patent and visible And euen so it is with the Church in this life 5 And as she is compared to a Wheat-field in the middest whereof some enemie doth secretly sowe Tares So she consisting of the Children of the Kingdome shall haue to her griefe Children of the wicked in midst of her bosome Howsoeuer at the first plantation by the Apostles through all Natiâ—ns she was excellently visible yet afterwardes her Field is ouergrowne with euill to the vexation of waking Ministers And so she is to continue with grieuance of spirit till the great Haruest time that there can be a seperation made without violence vâ—â—o her body 6 As she was represented by Salomons Temple which is inowe all beauteous and rich Inow robbed and spoyled anone consumed to the Earth but afterwardes as Ezekiel saw raysed vp with greater glory Euen so the Church in her beginning was glorious by Kinkes bringing their Crownes to it she became Rich. Afterwards sacrilegious persons fleeced her of her Plate carrying it into the house of their God Belly not Bell. And in the end she shall be layde flat with the Earth and passe as refyned through Fire But an happy ResurrectioÌ„ shal be made to the augmentation of her glory-eternall And that and no other is her Re-plantation 7 Idolatrie set vp in the Hy-places of Israel from the time of their Schisme from Iudah till their deportation it neuer caused a Nullitie of the Church howsoeuer a Diminution And therefore it was that the Lord not onely called Israel his people but also raysed vp Prophets vnto them continually hauing also amongst them whole schooles of Prophets and Prophets children euen in the corruptest times The same may be sayd of Iudah when Idols were reared vp in the Temple The like also may be remembred of Israel in Aegipt Ezek. 20. 5. c. The reason is rendred sometimes for the sakes of a few he spareth many Sometimes againe he will not take the aduantage against her for his owne names sake 8 Sometimes the Church restes in orderly constitution as in Iudeâ— sometimes shaken out of order as was the Apostolicall Church at Ierusalem and caryed away captiue as the Iewes were for seauentie yeares And yet whether in Constitution or out of Constitution ordred or disordred she was trueâ—y visible Secundum Maius Minus A lesse priuiledge the Church of the New Testament cannot haue 9 That Commaundement in Math. 18. Tell the Church is an affirmatiue iniunction as is that Three times a yeare euery male shall come to Ierusalem As these three times a yeare could not be obserued when they were in Captiuitie so neither the Church could be told but when she was vnscattered and in some tollerable constitution Commaundements Affirmatiue do not alwayes binde but Negatiues doe No euill forbidden may be done at any time but many Affirmatiues enioyned may sometimes be lawfully vndone because the occasion or meanes of doing them is lacking The Romanistes therefore presse that Dic Ecclesiae to no purpose 10 The Church so alwayes hauing some visible face it must ineuitably follow that Hel-gates neuer preuayled against her And so by consequent that that doctrine of Fayth in Christ which Peter peached in Math. 16. it neuer fayled in the Church but of some of her members haue been held and preached truely and effectually and so that is the Euerlasting Ghospell spoken of in the Reuelation which in the last times maugre the Beast is preached as farre as the Heauens extend Touching Antichrist and Antichristianisme 1 ANtichrist implyeth either one that is opposite vnto Christ or one that taketh falsely vpon him the place of Christ. If he take vpon him the place of Christ it is as the counterfaite Lambe in Reu. 13. to dispense saluation by a contrary meanes as is the doctrine of Iustification before God by Workes the Ghospell saying the contrary Not by Workes but by Fayth 2 As he is opposite vnto Christ so specially and in Scripture-sense in a manner onely for that he teacheth a contrary Ghospell that is A glad tydinges contrary to that of Christ and so it comes to the former according to his title Antikeâ—menos obserued from the 2. Thess. 2.4 giuen also in 1. Cor. 16.9 to such as opposed to the foundation of Fayth preached by the Apostle Sottish therefore be such Schismatiques as haue taught that euery euill is Antichristianisme They may as well say that euery one of Gods Children hath Antichristianisme in him and in sinning whatsoeuer sinne he is an Antichrist And as foolish haue they been who conclude all vnder any Apostaticall Pope to be damned as lymmes of Antichrist when as vnder the most corrupt regiment many howsoeuer ignorantly stayned with sundry euils haue held the Ghospels foundation euen the doctrine of Iustification most truely and soundly Sed vno mâ—lo concesso sequuntur Infinita 3 Antichristianisme so properly vnderstood is a matter of Doctrine not of Discipline a matter of Fayth not of externall Policie And not of any Doctrine or any Fayth but a Doctrine opposite to that Fayth which is to be had in Christ Iesâ— onely for perfect iustification Anâ— that aduerse Doctrine is as that stinâ— of the Locust-scorpion in Reuel 9â— which exceedingly payneth the seâ—duced soule bringing it to plaine desâ—peration For howsoeuer the doctrinâ— of Iustification by Workes doth lookâ— amiably at the first blush yet wheâ— that soule shall lay her Workes to thâ— ballance of the Law it shal be so farrâ— from finding comfort in it as it shalâ— dispaire seeke by vntimely deathâ— to strangle the Remembrance of it 4 The Antichrist or Antikeimenisâ— considered then as one Man is
thâ— whole corporation of such people aâ— teach an opposite ground to the ground of the Gospell wherevpon vnhappily they may build much other euill but all that is of the By noâ— of the Mayne and yet condemnable also With which By or euill accidentes the truest Church and Christian in this life hath is and shal be more or lesse cumbred and yet noâ— â—â—erefore Antichristian seeing she and â—ey be sound in the foundation of â—â—e Gospell For the Foundation â—eld there may be Straw and other â—ooleries through ignoraunce or â—eaknes buylded vpon it â—othing â—utable to the ground and yet the â—uilder saued though as the Apostle teacheth it be as by the Fyre But a contrary foundation layd and held till the end it auayleth nothing what Golde and Siluer was builded vpon it for the foundation sinketh and man and all standing vpon it perisheth 5 This Man of sinne then must be considered not onely in the whole as one Corporation but also in the partes or members which concurre to the beeing of that Body and both of them according to their Place or situation The principall members of that body are registred of S. loâ—n in his Apocalips to haue the Seauen hilled Citie Rome for their place The members in subordination to the former are of him compared to Waters for their multitude variable noyâ—â— of language because that Rome wâ—â— to haue people of many Languageâ— subiect to the Doctrine that shoulâ— flow from that Sea What soule theâ— soeuer whether in the Church of England or other true Church shall submit it selfe to Antikeimenisme it longeth to the Romish-head And whatsoeuer soule within the territories of Rome shall submit it selfe to the contrary foundation which is in Christ Iesus such a one appertaineth to that body whereof Christ is the head and indeed is a fellow member with vs. For euery one that walketh eateth and sleepeth in a Kinges Court is not therefore of that Court noâ— euery one that dwelleth and hath ordinarie communion with a Kingdome is therefore one with that King in the foundation of subiection None therefore can iusâ—ifie all within a true vsible Church nor condemne all that be within the Beastes visible Kingdome seeing all Within it are not essencially Of it Beeing one in the foundatioÌ„ one is so Essencially of it but â—f seuered in the fundamentall poynt of obedience then such a one is but a member Accidentalâ—y And Accidents specially proceeding of weaknesse may burne and be consumed without detriment to the foundation or him that in humility resteth vpon it 6 Which ground held the Romanist is easily answered Hee asketh Where our Church was 200. yeares since I answere As there might be some part of the Church in some part of the earth though to vs vnknowen euen as wee are vnknowen to some partes of the earth so our Church hath been where their Synagogue hath been and many of the members of it still persecuted by them Besides they were to come into the Church as Tares came into the Wheat-field by way of vsurpation not right And this the Apostle foretolde when he sayth that the Antikeimenist should sit in the Temple of God God reared a spirituall Temple at Rome as appeareth in the Apostles Epistle to that Church but afterwardes the Man oâ— sinne entred into the Lords House and there not only laboured to ouerturne the foundation laid in Christs-blood but also layd a contrary ground as fast as he could pull vp the other Vpon which that Church became for constitution like vnto the ten Tribes of Israâ—l when their Calues were reared vp Which Calfe since in the time of the Romanistes is turned to a Bull howsoeuer we with Iudah cannot meet with the Popes Bull but we baite him The veritie of all this will better appeare when hauing read the Epistle to the Romanes it shal be examined whether wee or they be furthest departed from the veritie of that Doctrine which that Church first held And then I am sure that their part of the Cake is like to prooue dough Amen But as for the Romanist he fals into the errour of the left hand and that kind of errour may come to be touched in his season Thus briefly touching the Church and that her aduersary Anti-christ THE SHEPHEARDS Elegiaque Epilogue YOu Shepheards of our Lawnes leaue off your layes Alacke for woe these be no ioying dayes While many of our Sheepe do peake aside Staring for Daintrels in their height of pride O welladay then prowling Reinard teares And learing Wolues do take them by the eares And from their iowles do squeaze the crimsen die Where-with life endes Accurst Phlebotâ—mie Or if you needes must strayne an Oten-pipe O let ' be greene so shall it cry and shrike And bubble foorth some iucy fainting teares Which may procure some mones of all it heares A neede of Iakobs Staffe if e're to beat Backe these blood-suckers which make Lambes their meaâ— Poore Lambes their meat alacke and welladay Wring hand in hand in roume of Roundelay Aminta'â— Crowne fâ—â— she was worth a Crowne Her Head I found last day aback the Downe There litle Lucrece with her specked powle Was fleest of all her Wooll poore pretty sowle But as she ready was to gasp last breath I came goodhaâ— and rescued her from death Black VVill that time was joorring of the Fox And so escapt with losse alone of locks Great Megge was tangled in a cursed Bryer Bald-paâ—ed all like to an holy Frier That lately had been in the Pollers hands I troe she will no more come in these bands But ayes me man aback the Poplar tree Where Shepheards eate their shaled Pease with glee And in the Trench about that Table square Compact of Dazy soddes but now all bare There there woes mee three Tups haue left their lyues With sundry seores of their poore Lambs and Wyues Heere lyes a lock and there a scrap of skin The botthom of the Trench the bloods lyes in And then vile sacriledge the vpper seat Where Vmpire of the Shepheards sits at meat There there the Wolues haue trampeled and trod And cast their Gorge vpon the Royall sodde Yee Shepheards of our Lawnes it resteth All Ioyne heart and hand for keeping of our Stall Wee negligent haue been indeed too long While cruell Cattle are become too strong Wee sing of matters farre beyond the Sun While all this mischiefe heere at home is don I feare I feare that some in Shepheards pay Be one in night with Wolues with vs â— the day Iwis our Maister can but take it euell His Sheepe through lacke of food run to the Deuell Not euery Sonet is for selfe-same turne For some câ—use ioy and some enforce to moorne Strow strow that fodder fore your Charges faces Which may them keepe from foraigne vncouâ—h places And with your eye so lead them in the way As sylly-soules they may no longer stray They may no longer stray but able bee Through all their flattring stratagems to see Meane time I moorne I moorne Maryahs stray Returne that Sheepe ô Lord ô Lord I pray Returne I humbly pray Returne them all That truly long vnto our Maisters stall FINIS Errata Page 25. lyne 20. read implying Pag. 33. line 17. read Midianite Pag. 34. line 12. read calling Pag. 46. line 11 read Antichriâ—t Page 53. line 4 read peaceable Math. 24â—23 c. Math. 7.15.16 c * This phrase is vsed in Prouerbs 10.21.31 18.20.21 c. Isai. 65.5 2. Tim. 3.6 * Ezek. 3.6 Gala. 3 1â— * A beeing * Io. L. a Weauer * Ioh. 6 68 * 2. Thess. 2.4 * Gal. 1.6 7 8 9. § Math. 13 24. c * 1. Cor. 11.29 c. * 2. Tim. 2.5 * Luke 3.23 c. Math. 16.18 ch 28.20 Reu. 12 17. ch 21 2-3 Gal 4.26 * Math. 13. 24. See for this my Antidoton * 1 Cor. 3 16. 2. Cor. 6.16 * 1. King 12. 18. * As Elias Eliâ—â—a Hoseih Amos Ionah with others * In Reuel 14.6 it would be turned The euerlasting Ghospel rather then An eueâ—lasting Ghâ—spel * Gal. 2.16 * 1. Cor. 3. 11 12 13 14 15. * 1. Cor. 3.15 * 2. Thess. 2. 3. 2. Thess 2.4