one and the same Faith Why do not all believe the self same Articles and Divine Verities if the Scripture it self clearly and distinctly propose them to all Where the Rule is certain all that is measur'd by it is Uniform and of the same quantity As is manifest by a Pound by a Quart by an Ell by a Bushel and the like And therefore if the Scripture of it self without the help of any Interpreter be unto Men a sure Rule a certain and stinted measure of Faith it doth to all that Read or Hear it measure shape and square out one and the same Belief one and the same Religion one and the same Worship of God. But this is evidently false Ergo evidently also false it is that the Scripture of it self without the help of an Interpreter is a sure Rule and Guide in matters of Faith. For what is more manifest then that several Readers left to the guidance of the Scripture it self and not tyed to any Interpreter do gather out of it several and opposite Faiths and Religions though they use all Humane Diligences to understand them rightly and be never so Learn'd never so well skill'd in the Greek and Hebrew Tongues This is evident by the several branches of Protestants before-nam'd Who all take the Scripture it self as they say and pretend for their Guide and Director in matters of Faith and Religion And yet they differ and contend so infinitely as they do Which differing and contending we must not conceive to spring in them meerly from Malice and the Spirit of Contention But rather from the Obscurity of the Scripture and the depth and profundity of the Mysteries therein contain'd In which our weak understandings may easily mistake and may easily be deluded by the Devil if we want the help of a sure and Infallible Interpreter This I think understanding Protestants will not deny And therefore if they will have the Scripture to be a Sure Rule to direct their Faith and Religion by will they nill they they must admit of and adjoyn to the Scripture a sure un-erring and Infallible Interpreter thereof But such an one it is impossible for them to find unless they will leave the Protestant and return to the Catholick Faith again For seeing they reject the Interpretation of Fathers of Councels of the Ordinary Doctors and Pastors of the Church And hold that the Church of Christ may err yea and hath shamfully and perniciously err'd for above these thousand years where will they find an Vn-erring Interpreter of the Scripture Or in whom hath God plac'd this high most necessary and most important Office If he hath not placed it in the Doctors and Pastors of his Church which he hath ordain'd to Perfect his People and to keep them from wavering in matters of Faith Ephes 4. And which the Holy Ghost hath plac'd in the Flock of Christ Act. 20. To govern the Church of God Hath he placed it in the Temporal Magistrates of Kingdoms and Common-wealths Or in some one Temporal Magistrate to whom God hath committed the Teaching and directing of all Nations If God hath not placed this most needful Office in General Councels consisting of the Learned Sages and Prelates of the Church hath he plac'd it in the Parliaments of England consisting for the most part of unlearned Lay-men I think no Sober Protestant will say so Neither will any Vnderstanding Protestant I think fly here to the private Spirit And make thereby every Crack-brain'd Scripturist an Infallible Interpreter of Gods Word For if hither he fly not only a Quaker an Anabaptist a Presbyterian but a Taylor also a Button-maker Weaver or Cobler will make his Party good with any Doctor the Protestants have and dart Text for Text with him for whole Hours together without loosing one Inch of ground Till Church Authority the deadly Weapon of the Papists be urg'd against him By urging which against these Fanatick People Protestant Prelates do not a little or sleightly Wound themselves they being as blame-worthy indeed if not much more for resisting the Authority of the Catholick Church of Christ as these are for resisting the Authority of the Church of England Nevertheless I approve not but detest the Male-peart boldness of these and the like Ignorants Who transgressing the bounds to them prescrib'd and entring upon to their own Perdition the smoaking mount of the Holy Scriptures Exod. 19. wherein God doth speak to Moses and Aaron and deliver his Sacred Oracles to be by them made known to his People dare take upon them to interpret the same and to search into and Sense the Profound Mysteries of God wickedly betrampling with their Impure Feet and Polluting with their base Conceits those pure but deep Fountains of Heavenly Verities It being their Duty to Learn and not to Teach Yet I cannot but pitty their Mislead Zeal Which if it were steer'd by the True Church of Christ would Inrich their Souls with the precious Jewels of many Christian Virtues whereas now it is likely to be the utter ruine of them Neither can I but greatly blame those who to draw these weak and unwary People off and to seperate them from the Breast of the Catholick Church At which they were securely nourish'd with the Milk of Celestial Doctrine Meat befiting their state and Weakness did put the Bible into their Prophane Hands inviting them to the Gospel to the Pure Light and Liberty of the Gospel And assuring them that those Sacred Volumes were easie to be understood and that in them they were to seek for the Truth of Gods Religion as being ordain'd by him for the Reading and Instruction of all And to facilitate this desir'd separation those New Teachers spar'd not to Disgrace with all Art and Cunning the Rank and Dignity of the Prelates of the Church and to Vilify Church-Authority Proclaiming it to be Tyrannical And that to urge men to believe as the Church doth Teach was no less than plain Butchering of Consciences But when these New Masters had effected what they sought and by the help of Temporal Power had brought Multitudes of People under their Command Then presently they stept into the place of the Antient Prelates Took their Authority upon them and in matters of Faith and Religion would have all to dance after their Pipe all to believe not what they themselves Learn'd out of the Book of God but what these men thought fit to propose That Book now being too hard for Vulgar People for the Unlearn'd sort Who now must stand below and not ascend and enter upon that obscure and smoking Mountain But must hear Moses and Aaron must hear Authoriz'd Teachers must obey the voice of the Church viz. Of Saxony of Geneva of England and must follow in Saxony one Faith in Geneva another in England another Now they must learn the Law of God from the mouth of Teachers allow'd of by the Commonwealth and be ty'd to believe what they propose And therefore in Saxony
unto us and to guide us in Matters of Faith and Religion if ever they mean to repress justly the Irreligious boldness of Fanatical Interpreters and to see Peace again restored to the Christian World. Which Root of Dissention is no other thing than that liberty to Read and Interpret the Holy Scriptures which the Protestant Religion instilleth into Men while it denieth the Infallibility of the Church admitteth of no certain and un-erring Judge of Controversies to whose definitive Sentence all are bound to submit and maketh the written Word of God of it self without an Interpreter the sole Rule of Faith by which all Men ought to square out their Belief and Religion By all which it appeareth to be manifest That according to the Grounds and Tenets of the Protestant Religion the Sacred word of God is not only unprofitable but even hurtful and pernicious to Mankind for want of a Sure Interpreter appointed by God to guide us in Faith and Religion to the right Sense and Meaning thereof As beside the Reasons given the manifold Examples of divers unfortunate Men do convince who by over-boldly searching into the Bible have either crack'd their Brains or fallen into despair or turned Jews Turks or Atheists or imbraced absurd and ridiculous Opinions for what made Hacket formerly Naylor and others lately to give themselves out for New Christs What made so many false Prophets and Prophetesses appear in the late Confusions of England Or what occasion'd then so many Sacriledges Barbarities and Cruelties but too much poring into and medling with the Bible Question VIII Whether the State of the Great Family City Kingdom Commonwealth Army of Jesus Christ that is of his Church do require a Supream Spiritual Head or no ALL understanding Protestants will easily grant that no Family City Kingdom Commonwealth Army or Navy can be fittingly and rightly ordered and govern'd without some Head or Supream Magistrate to whom Subjects may have recourse and from whom they may receive Directions as need shall require Which being so I demand of Protestants whether the State in Earth of the Great Family City Kingdom Commonwealth Army of Jesus Christ that is his Church doth of necessity require for the fit Uniform and peaceable Government thereof a Supream Head a Supream Spiritual Magistrate to whom the Subjects thereof may have Recourse and from whom they may re-receive Directions in matters of Faith and Religion as need shall require To deny the Necessity of such a Supream Magistrate for the fit Government of the Church of Christ consisting of Men yea of so many several Nations differing in Laws Customs Affections Empire and the like is manifestly against Reason And to affirm that although such a Magistrate be extreamly needful for the due Government of His Church yet he neglected to provide Her of any such is to accuse him of want of Wit and Discretion for there was never yet amongst Civil People so simple a Founder of a Commonwealth or so simple a Law-maker that ordained no Supream Power in his Commonwealth no Interpreter of his Law no Judge to decide and end Controversies Christ then being Founder of the best Commonwealth that ever was and maker of the best Law that Mankind ever received it can be no less than Blasphemy to affirm that he left this his Noble Common-wealth without a Supream Magistrate to whom his People might have recourse and his Divine and Evangelical Law containing so many obscure Verities so many profound Mysteries without an Interpreter without a Judge to decide and end Controversies Moreover If Christ hath ordained no such Supream Magistrate Head or Guide of his Church in things Spiritual appertaining to Faith and Religion it seems to follow clearly and manifestly that every man is at liberty to believe what he list and to practise what Worship of God he thinks best What Unity then in Faith what Uniformity in the Worship of the Divinity can there be in the Church of Christ Or what sure means have Christian People to know who be right and who Heretical Believers Or to discern their true Prelates whom they are bound to obey Heb. 13. 17. from False Prophets from Heretical Teachers whom they are to shun under pain of Damnation Matth. 7. Tit. 3. Yea How can any man be proved to be a false Teacher if there be not some known true Teacher If no man hath Power and Authority from God to direct the Faith of others If no man be bound and obliged by Christ to Believe or to Teach as an other would have him how can any man be justly esteemed to Believe or Teach amiss Or why should he be reputed to Believe or Teach amiss if he be not bound to limit and square out his Faith and Teaching by the Judgement and Discretion of some other Wherefore either we must say that the Church of Christ is not to be obeyed that false Prophets are not to be avoided that no man doth Believe or Teach amiss so long as he Believes and Teaches well in his own Judgement and that no man is or can be in respect of Men an Heretick or a false Prophet All which is contrary to the Word of God and plainly overthroweth all Christianity or else we must affirm as the certain Truth is that God hath ordained and appointed some to teach and to direct others what they ought to Believe and Practise to obtain Life everlasting and others to be taught and guided What will Protestants to this Will they deny all possibility of Vnity and of Order in the Church and Family of Christ or else will they grant as Reason and as the Truth requires that God hath ordained some visible Ministerial Head some Supream Spiritual Magistrate in his Church to whom all may have Recourse in the Affairs of Religion and by whom all are bound to be directed in Points of Faith and in the Practise of his Divine Worship If this they grant I demand which is this Head this Spiritual Magistrate and in whom doth reside this Supream Spiritual Power and Authority Doth it reside in Supream Spiritual or in Supream Temporal Magistrates If in Supream Temporal doth it reside in one or in many If in one who is this Supream Temporal Magistrate Who hath Power and Authority even by Gods Ordination to direct the whole World all the Nations of the Earth in matters of Faith and in the Practise of Gods Worship And how is this proved out of the Word of God If this Supream Power reside not in any one Supream Temporal Magistrate Doth it by Gods Ordination reside in many that is in the Supream Temporal Magistracy of each Common-wealth in such sort that the Supream Temporal Magistrate Prince or King of each Commonwealth or Kingdom hath Power and Authority from God to direct the Subjects thereof in Faith and to appoint them what Religion they shall follow what Worship of God they shall practise If so then the Subjects of each Commonwealth are bound under Pain of
they must not budge from Luther in Geneva from Calvin in England from the Belief Establish'd by Parliament Which if they do presently they are urg'd and sometimes born down by Church Authority Presently excellent and pithy Sentences extolling Church Authority and shewing the Necessity thereof are Alleadg'd Magnify'd urg'd in Sermons in Books out of the Scripture out of Tertullian St. Cyprian Lirinensis and other Fathers Notwithstanding that these very Sentences through the sides of these poor Ignorants do deadly stab the Hearts of those which alleadge them for disobeying that very Church Authority which these Sentences speak of and commend But with what Equity if I may be so bold as to ask with what Security of Conscience do these Authoriz'd Teachers proceed against these Zealous Ignorants for following that Belief which they gather out of the Word of God put into their Hands by these their Teachers and force them to follow another which by the very Rules and Tenets of these men they cannot but esteem Superstitious May they not justly say If the Scripture only be the Rule of Faith why do ye not permit us to believe what we find therein If it be easie to be understood why do you punish us for holding that Doctrine which we gather out of it If it be not easie why do you put it into our Hands If we are not bound to believe in Points of Faith any thing that is not expresly in the Scripture why will ye force us to believe and practice that which there we find not If Church Authority is to be rejected why do you interpose yours If it be a Butchering of Consciences to force men to Believe as the Church doth Teach Why do you force us to Believe as you Teach If you contemn the Authority of the â—ver Visible Church why do you force us to Reverence and to stoop to yours What signes do you shew what Miracles do you work to demonstrate unto us that your Church Authority is rather to be Follow'd rather to be Obey'd than the Church Authority of the Antient Fathers of the General Councels of the ever Visible Church of Christ If Church Authority be to be Follow'd be to be Reverenc'd be to be Obey'd Restore Us to that which Hoary Autiquity which Succession of Prelates which Consent of Nations which Excellent Sanctity which Manifest Miracles do commend unto Us. If it is to be rejected leave us to Gods Word and force not our Consciences against that Light which shineth unto us in Reading the same Thus may these misled People now complain against those who having drawn them out of the Bosom of the Catholick Church do now endeavour to Inthrawl them to themselves But much more terrible I fear will be the Bill of Complaint which one day they are likely to put up at the Chancery Bar of Heaven if a speedy and serious Course be not taken to restore these misled Souls again to the secure feeding of their Mother Church Which God of his Mercy bring to pass for the Eternal Happiness both of Them and their Leaders Question VII If God hath left no sure and un-erring Interpreter of his Word in Matters of Faith How can it be defended That the Holy Scriptures are not Unprofitable and even Pernicious to Mankind PErchance some Protestants not able to give a satisfying Answer to my Question about the Interpreter of the Scriptures will affirm That God hath not ordained any certain Interpreter of those his Sacred Oracles but hath left them to the scanning and guess of all Readers whatsoever But then I demand How it can be defended that these Divine Books are not hurtful yea and even pernicious to Mankind For evident it is that they may be taken in divers and opposite Senses Yea evident it is that they are de facto so taken by several Learned Men. Who following no surer Interpreter than the strength of their own Wit and Learning do gather out of them contrary Faiths and Religions and several worships of God Of which some of necessity must be false and hurtful to all that follow them for False Religions are ever hurtful yea plainly pernicious to those which follow them as more clearly hereafter shall appear And indeed three things are questionable about the Holy Scriptures which without the help of an un-erring Interpreter authorized and enabled by God himself to guide us to the Truth about them can never be rightly and fittingly decided The first is Which Books are Canonical and truly the Word of God And which are not The second is Which Translation is good right authentical and which is not The third is Which is the true and right meaning of the Holy Ghost in this or that Text or Sentence of Scripture touching upon some point of Faith About the sense whereof the Learned do contend Which being so divers People perswaded in their Consciences that the Scriptures are Divine Books and really the Word of God And that by believing them rightly and by following that Religion which they teach they may obtain Life Everlasting Will earnestly endeavour to search out the true meaning of them Which they being not able every where to find by their own natural Forces without the help of a sure Interpreter directed by the Holy Ghost They will pick out divers false Senses yea and Religions out of the Scriptures by mistaking their right meaning Which they will repute the true meaning of them being not tyed to any Interpreter and will defend Tooth and Nail to the assured Perdition of their own Souls and theirs whom they draw after them and to the raising of several Factions endless Contentions and bloody Broils amongst Christian People as we see fallen out since the rising of Luther For each of those who thus search the Scriptures without regarding any Infallible Interpreter will easily perswade himself that is the right meaning of the Holy Ghost which he hath lighted upon and that the true Light of the Gospel which shineth to him in reading and scanning the Word of God and that therefore it standeth him upon if he will not betray the Truth and lose his own Soul to stick firmly thereunto and to strive even to death to maintain the same Yea sometimes such Searchers of God's Word esteem themselves bound in Conscience to bandy with all the force they can against those who seek to Ruine what they would Raise From which manner of perswasions have proceeded not only great varieties of Religions and great Animosity in the defence of them but all the furious Garboils also and bloody Contentions about Religion which now for above these Hundred Years have miserably turmoil'd the Christian World and yet are likely further to turmoil it unless Christian Princes open their Eyes to behold the true Root of these Dissentions and how absolutely necessary it is to admit of some one Infallible and Un-erring Interpreter of God's Word authorized and enabled by the Holy Ghost to deliver the true Sense thereof