in the false Jews Examinations it is our great mercy that God restrained him from inventing lyes of us for out it had come we must have shared with Lieutenant Collonel Hobson whom here the Gent. present to the world from the Jows mouth a person of credit As a slighter of Ordinances a neglecter of Family Duties For say they the Jew was much pressed by one how he could stand under the power of Lioutenant Collone Hobosons pravers being so long in his Family To which he plainly answered That they used no Family Duties while he was there How Gospel-like had it been if these Gent. had enquired the truth before they had thus published defamed the Lieutenant-Colonel living but ten miles distance I hope he will vindicate himself and shew that he dare not expose himself and Family to that direful curse Ier 10.25 Pour out thy fury upon the Heathen that know thee not and upon the Families that call not on thy Name Having thus wounded the reputation of the Lieutenaut-Colonel they are pleased again to let fly at the Administrator and his Allies for crying up the false Jews Confession To which I answer That if it be well weighed by the judicious Reader as the Confession of a Iew it will appear a very full Confession of a Messiah come in the Flesh For the Gentlemen have dealt most unworthily in concealing that part of his Declaration wherein much of the excellency of a work of grace exquisitely counterfeited by him is contained most in juriously breaking off with a Caetera desiderantur When I demanded of M. Hammond whether he would have denied the Iew Baptism upon this Confession He answered Yes because of his many lies But when I replyed That his lies were unknown to me at that time Nay then said he I should have not denyed him And now I suppose the Gentlemen have not forgot any one passage they have let fly every way at the Church of Hexham at the Administrator at their dear Friend at the Lieutenant-Colonel at Captain Everard at the Army and before they have done My dearly beloved and most cordial Fellow-Labourer will be brought upon the Stage by them Really the Administrator hath as good company as he could wish in this alone the Gentlemen have been courteous 'T is no small mercy my dear Brethren and Friends that you and I are counted worthy to suffer shame for his Name who hath suffered the Fathers wrath for us Heb. 10 32 33. 't is one Gospel-mark of illumination Partly whilest yee are made a gazing stock both by reproaches and afflictions and partly whilest ye became companions of them that were so used And here I present you with the false Iew truly and faithfully as it was written with his own Hand The substance of the Declaration and Confession which was made at the publike Meeting-House at HEXHAM the fourth Moneth the fifth Day 1653. By IOSEPH BEN ISRAEL ROM 11.1 I say then hath God cast away his People God forbid For I also am an Israelite of the Seed of Abraham of the Tribe of Judah Benjamin Men Brethren and Fathers MY purpose is to declare unto this Congregation first my Descent and Education and secondly the great work of my Conversion I verily am a man which am a Iew of the Tribe of Iudah Act. 23. born in Mantua a City in Lombardy a Province of Italy trained up in the Religion of my Fathers and brought up in the choicest learning of my Countrey and having attained unto eight Languages I betook me setiously to the Study of Philosophy where meeting with Plato sirnamed Divine Trinum per unum Socrates and Hermes Trismegistus I found such light in the glorious Mystery of the Triunity that I was wonderfully surprized and amazed and the more that Heathens should come to the knowledge of this most excellent Doctrine O Lord said I how shall those Philosophers rise in judgment against us who have more light even sepher hattorah the Book of the Law the former book rendred them inexcusable but what will become of us who have the revealed Will of God I had not gone three foot-steps in this way but I found Elohim in the plurall number compounded with a singular word Bara created upon which my meditation was much raised to admire this mysterie when passing on a little further I met with Nangas haadam betrolmenu Let us perfect man with our Image Why us but that we should understand the plurality holden forth in the Creator this drew my Meditations first towards the Christians Messiah But now Satan the professed enemy of Christ of al that set their faces towards heaven told me that these were but fancies and delusions of my own brain shall the Heathenish Philosophers be a rule for my Religion no I will follow the Law under which I was born and educated Behold the power of Satans snares and behold the vileness of mine own heart forsaking this blessed light and rejecting all these holy motions returning to my former old waies again But here through the goodness of God I found no rest but very much trouble and anquish of spirit But O the loving kindness of God! whose design graticusly appeared to bring me to the knowledge of himself even from our own way of worship Our Doctors chuse out a place to say every Morning and Evening Shemang Israel Adonay Eloheinu Adona echad Hear O Israel the Lord our God the Lord is one Immediately upon this I find thrice Elohenu Jehovah Iehovah the Lord c. O Brethren I cannot express the heart-searchings and movings that were upon me at that instant which with my former Meditations engaged my soul in a firm belief of the blessed Three in One which most sacred Trinity I do invocate as a witness of the sincerity of my heart holding concurrence with my words O Holy of Holies Father Son and Spirit Searcher of the heart and Tryer of the reins be pleased to give strength and courage to avow thee grant that my lips may enunciate truth and deal with thy servant according to the integrity of his heart After diligent enquiry of the Lord Jesus Christ I did in heart confess him as the most high God taking upon him our nature but then Satan sets upon me with fresh and violent temptations which caused me to break forth O my soul it s for thee I care go I back to the Law I lose thee and thy case my body go I forward to those that profess this Messiah and behold gross and abominable Idolatry look upward and behold a just and jealous God the punisher of it look about thee and behold all thy friends ashamed of thee and thy neerest relations our sing thee and the Messiah whom thou believest But can this be the true Messiah whose disciples are so notoriously wicked wallowing in all kind of sin and woful Idolatry In the midst of these perplexities and distractions of spirit I was almost swallowed up of despair And
while I thought of returning to the way of my Fathers reading in the holy Scriptures I discovered many gross untruths and corruptions of the Doctors as concerning the in carnation of Christ Behold a Virgin shall conceive and bear a Son Isaiah 7.14 they render Gnalmah a corrupted woman which is no sign or wonder at all namely for a corrupted woman to conceive and bear a Son So for the sufferings of Christ instead of caru they digged or pierced Psal 22.16 they read caari as a Lion that so they may cast a mist upon the true Messiah And now the good hand of Providence brought to my view the Syriack and Greek Copies of Guido Fabricius Boderianus and by comparing these with the Law and the Prophets I found all Prophecies fulfilled in Jesus Christ without contradiction which through the goodness of God raised me to a full resolution Avoid Satan the enemy of my soul I will delay no longer but fly to Christ come Lord the desire of my soul lead me in the way of life Now I resolved to leave my Country and Friends and to go over the Alpes to find a people professing the true Messiah not in Legal waies but in spirit and truth for the Papists go on the same way that my own people do altogether Legally ex opere operato rest on the work done and by their horrible idolatry to Pictures and Images are a grievous stumbling block unto the Jews and were a great obstruction to my conversion Coming into Germany instead of finding comfort to my poor soul by Communion with Christians in a spiritual way of worship without human Traditions I find their great Idol Consubstantiation and many other Idols of their own inventions this is not Christs way I will not enter this way no more of this Lord what shall I do I will not go without my business Away I go to Hessen where all are Calvinists here Organs Forms and wicked lives turned away my heart from them So that from Hamburg I came into England and while I was thus seeking Christ without in the way and order of his holy Gospel I found him also within to the exceeding joy of my soul Blessed be thou King Jesus who lives in thy Saints by Faith communicating thy self through thine Ordinances thou shewest me my lost estate in Adam and the only way of recovery in thy self When we come to a sight of our own undone condition then we see the necessity of a Savior and the danger of our souls without Christ and then Christ lovingly cloathes the poor sinner with the pretious Robes of his own Righteousness Fleshly Privileges intitles none to any thing of Christ Though I might c. See Phil. 3.4 Lord Jesus present me at the day of judgement before the Father in these long white Robes I disclaim all other coverings whatsoever I counted gain before I now count loss for Christ yea doubtless and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Iesus my Lord for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but dung that I may win Christ and be found in him Phil 3.7 not having mine own righteousness which is of the Law but that which is through the faith of Christ And since my Lord Iesus hath appointed Ordinances for his people that have him within them enthroned in their hearts and that I am called upon to arise and be baptized I do here avow thee Lord Iesus my true Saviour and I rejoyce in thy Church and People thy precious Saints who do here walk through thy grace according to thy Rule and holy Commands I do here solemnly vow thee my Lord and King thy Saints and Ordinances and now I heartily desire all the people of God to pray for me that the residue of my days may be spent according to this beginning O Lord Iesus who hath appointed Ordinances and sufferings for those who shall reign with thee in glory shew the desire of my soul is to thee do thou therefore convey the grace of Ordinances into my heart that I may live to the honor of thy name as becommeth thy professed servant waiting for thy second coming So come Lord Jesus and tarry not Baruch Adonay lengolam vanged Amen ve Amen Scripsit propria manu R. Josephus B. Israel Heb. Mant. I having thus with much brevity discovered the glorious work of God in my souls union with the Lord Jesus Christ I shall add somwhat more in reference to that communion with his people under which I now walk and wherein I greatly rejoyce That it may appear to all the world that my present actings are not bottomed upon selfish carnal principles but upon reall and clear convictions of spirit My answer therefore to them that shall demand of me a reason why I entred into communion with a people who are injuriously termed Anabaptists is this When first it pleased the Father of lights to shine into my soul with the lights of the glorious Gospel of a Christ he set my soul a longing to find out a people whose lives were suitable to the profession of Christ and both conformable to the Rule of his Word Whiles I was thus longing comming to Hamburg I heard great things of Christians in England It was welcome news to me but alas how to attain to such a people I knew not Many difficulties appeared a dangerous voyage by Sea uncertainty of ever comming thither by reason of the present troubles upon the Seas and in case I should arrive there I knew of no liberty or protection granted to our People in that Nation so that although I might escape the danger of the Sea yet I feared the Laws of this Common-wealth would not suffer me to live when I was come on Shore And here my Faith fainted so that unbelief prevailing upon me being resolved to run all hazzards rather than fall short of what I sought for I made a lye my refuge and sought self-preservation under falshood by denying my Nation and Descent and giving out my self to those in the ship with me to be an English-man Which failing of mine I now bewail and craving pardon through Christ do believe I shall receive it at the hand of the Father for I did it ignorantly through slavish fear and unbelief such things among the Jews being counted no sin Yet the Lord who is rich in mercy notwithstanding this mis-carriage was pleased to bring me safely to Newcastle where I heard of Lieutenant-Collonel Paul Hobson who upon my address to him courteously entertained me and shewed me many favors De cujus in me humanitate mallem tacere quam pauca dicere After three weeks abode with him I desired to see the order and fellowship of the Saints at Hexham In answer to my desires he recommended me by his Letter to the Minister of the Baptized Church who together with the whole Church received me gladly and in a way becoming
BANNERS of LOVE Displaied over the Church of Christ walking in the Order of the Gospel at HEXHAM By the out-stretched Arm of the King of Saints against the Jesuitical Design lately attempted by the false IEW. OR An Answer to a Narrative stuff'd with Untruths by four Newcastle GENTLEMEN ISAIAH 4.5 And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of Mount Sion and upon her assemblies a Cloud by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night for upon all the glory shall be a defence ISAIAH 54.17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgement thou shalt condemn REV. 2.2 Thou hast tryed them which say they are Apostles and are not and hast found them lyars LONDON Printed by Hen. Hills and are to be sold at his house at the sign of Sir John Old Castle in Py-Corner 1654. To the Church of Christ walking in the Order of the Gospel at HEXHAM MY DEARLY BELOVED THe Crown of my rejoicing in Christ through whom he is pleased to convey divine consolations for the sweet refreshing of my weather-beaten soul surrounded with storms on every hand from Rome from the World and which is most sad from my late familiar friends the professed servants of the same God whom we adore O my Beloved what measure have you and I met with from unreasonable and wicked men since by a separation from the world we made a visible profession of the faith of the Gospel You know the many plotted lies that have been invented and vented by Satan and his children That there were 12 persons to be baptized at Naward Castle whom I called my Apostles and said that I was their God That I have taken 12.14.20 a person for baptizing them That some have seen me drunk on the Rodâ— That I robbed a man neer unto Corbridge That I was sent for to Newcastle and so to London to suffer That some whom I baptized presently run mad had the Palsie were blind have been drowned have hanged themselves and many such like untruths But Deut. 33.16 Isa 43.1 2. through the good will of him that dwelt in the Bush you have been preserved in the midst of these flames so that from the first day until now you have been living Monuments of his unspeakable mercy not a hair of any of your heads perished being more than conquerours through him that loveth us his banners of l ve have been continually over us he hath drawn out the hearts and affections of his Churches to own you their gratious spiritual Epistles from London Lempster Leith Stokesley Lancashire and Cheshire have raised and exceedingly refreshed your spirits and the Lord return seven fold into the bosoms of those precious ones O what a rich stock of prayers have you going a mighty interest in the Churches of Christ who are terrible as an Army with Banners The late Jesuitical attempt to ruin you Christ discovered seasonably and blasted the Adversary yea and turned it to your singular advantage and wonderful increase in number and grace who could imagine that so many pretious souls should be added to the Church of Hexham upon this detection of the Impostor most men thought it would have been your ruin but as upon the discovery of those grand Hypocrites in the first pure Church Acts 5.14 so hath the Almighty blessed and prospered you But now alas your flourishing condition hath I fear stirred up a spirit of emulation in those congregations that differ from your judgement who under a pretence of publishing the false Jew have mightily laboured in his design to supplant you who being but a young Vine and of tender Grapes had more need of careful dressing and constant dews of consolation and instruction than such discouragements and defamations as that you readily imbrace any whether Sheep or Goats if they be but of your opinion in Baptism that you even the whole Congregation are given up of God to believe lies These and such like aspersions are sad and grievous especially from those who have pretended to build with you giving a secret stab as it were in the midst of a brotherly salute but t is your mercy that Christ deals better cherishing your souls with his most sweet and chaste imbraces as his most loving faithful Spouse carrying you in his blessed Arms and folding you in his bosome of love that Nest and Hive of sweetness taking all your reproaches affronts and indignities as done unto himself while he leads you through the green Pastures and feeds you with marrow full of fatness by the still waters hiding you in his Pavilion and in the secret of his Tabernacle from the strife of tongues thus the Eternal God is your refuge and underneath are the Everlasting Arms. Wherefore be incouraged in the Lord ye children of the most High and remember what I have sometimes taught you That the Saints trials shall end in triumph your Night of Misery will have a most glorious Morning of Victory And though it be sad to suffer by Professors yet consider that Christ suffered by his own professed people so did Paul Acts 21.20 with 28. and other pretious Saints Did you ever hear of a Church increasing as God increaseth you without great afflictions and persecutions Do not consult with flesh and blood but behold the works and wonders of the Lord how he baffles the carnal conceits of men Remember what a signal token of divine approbation was shewed but a moneth since at Muggleswick in the cheerful submission of many pretious souls to your despised Ordinance of Baptism the very same day that it was cryed down by a Boanargis who soon fell sick and so dyed the whole night following being spent in Prayer and declaring the work of grace upon their souls a Vigil to be observed and in the morning buried with Christ in Baptism Some of you have been secretly instructed and marvellously convinced of Disciple-baptism onely while you have been under the preaching of Infant-springling Live up to these mercies you pretious Saints let your holy humble walking crown Christ 1 Peter 2.12 and more and more confute the adversary So stand fast in the Lord my dearly beloved And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly You Phil. 4.1 Rom. 16.20 whose prayers prevailed for my life from a late extreme sickness would surely have me live Why now I live 1 Thes 3.8 2 Cor. 11.2 if you stand fast in the Lord I have espoused you to one Husband O my dearest let your shining conversation so adorn your profession that I may give up my account with joy and present you as a chaste Virgin to Christ when transported on Angels wings to the Kings Palace we shall be lovingly received into our Masters joy with Well done and Well come This is the life the joy the hope of him who intirely and unfeignedly loves you Hexham 6 mon. 20 day 1653. Your servant for
their profession After such a people I especially enquired 1. the Lord having convinced me that there was no way of becomming a visible Disciple of the Lord Jesus but by Baptism and that Faith was necessarily to precede the administration of it The Scripture through which the Lord was pleased to break in with a conviction in this particular upon my spirit was that of Mark 16.16 confirmed by the constant practice of the Disciples in the History of the New Testament neither did I ever meet with any plain Scripture thwarting this light but many concurring to confirm me in the truth I had received So that Hic sisto pedem till they who walk by a rule preposterous to this can shew me a clear and plain Scripture for such their walkings To bottom Ordinances upon mens inferences how rationally soever deduced is not to me consistent with the faithfulness of the Messiah who was the great Apostle and Prophet of his Church and left not his houshold without plain directions how he would have them to go in and out before him in all wel-pleasing and not to depend upon the extracts of the wisest of Mens Reasonings For Moses who was but a Servant in whose House from my youth up I have been educated was so faithful as in plain terms to lay down every Ordinance which God would have us to make the Rule of our obedience And shall we suspect his Master would be less faithful or deficient No in no wise But secondly I did the rather enquire after such a People because their manner of Administring of Baptism is very clear to me to be most consentaneous to the mind of the Lord Christs institution which is by a total immersion of the Party baptized under water When I consulted with the best Phylologists in the Greek tongue whether Sacred or Prophane I found all Vno Ore profess That 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to dip or put over head as the Dyar doth his Cloath into his Liquors which is confessed to be the genuine meaning of the word even by those who are professed Adversaries to the carrying on of Baptism by immersion Let me give you one instead of many and that an eminent one it is learned Spanhemius in his Dubia Evangelica Dub. 24. Partis tertiae Thus much the Gent. had in print which they willingly concealed ad calcem where having discussed ex professo quid 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifie concludes that this exposition is to use his very terms Syncera conformis significationi verbi communi Christianorum immo omnium Graecè doctorum calculo comprobata And this sense of the word is received and retained by the learned Translators in the most eminent Languages of West Christendome The Italian and the Spanish retain the Greek word Baptesimo The High and Low Dutch render it Doop and Tauff which signifie a total immersion and Eu tauffen to baptize as is well known to those that are knowing and acquainted in these Languages Add hereunto the conformity between the Greek Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and tebilah in our Language which is a total Immersion as appears by that expression our Nation gives concerning a Woman going to purifie her self in Water after the daies of her separation because of her uncleanness she is said to go lattevillah to be hid over Head and Ears I shall only add this one Testimony of our Rabbines which when I found comformable to the practice of the Disciples of the Messiah in the carrying on of this Ordinance of Baptism as it is held forth in the Scriptures by immersion of the Parties to be baptized it was of great weight and authority with me and it is this In sepher Jalkut O nitzachon set out by R. Mulhusino argel letalmidei talui lalechet litvilah it is a custome of the Disciples of the hanged man for my Nation in mentioning of Christ Periphrase him by contempt talui the hang'd man to go to the place of Immersion to be hid over head and ears in Water And thus the Lord having made plain my way before me and bringing me to a people walking according to the light which through the Scriptures confirmed by the Testimony both of the learned in my own and other Nations who was I that I should resist God and turn away from those whom God had discovered to my poor wandring soul to be a people walking in the way of his own appointment and according to those convictions that were upon my spirit For whose Communion I do exceedingly bless God and wherein I greatly rejoice The Lord Christ having given into my spirit abundance of joy and refreshing as a signal token of his good liking and gratious approbation of this my undertaking warming my heart under the full discovery of that Promise made good to me both in the union of my soul to himself and giving me into the imbraces of and communion with his People Him that commeth to me I will in no wise cast out John 6.37 Now to God onely wise who hath shewed me these grear things the God of my Fathers keeping Covenant for ever who hath not taken his mercy from me nor suffered his Truth to fail but hath taken one of the out-casts of his antient Israel and brought it home to himself To him be glory and Dominion throughout all Ages Amen Amen Tamvenishlam tehillah leel barach Josephus Ben Israel ex Judaeo Christianus The Administrators Animadversions upon this Declaration and Confession wherein the glorious Order and Method of the Highest shines forth 1. IT is observable that the Lord Jesus Christ was pleased to manifest himself to this poor soul that asked not after him to advance him as a living Monument of free grace and mercy like as the Woman of Sychar comming to Jacobs well to draw water for her bodies comfort met unexpectedly with a living Fountain of distinguishing grace freely streaming out to her soul So was the Lord pleased while this Jew was pumping the water of Philosophy for the accomplishment of the outward man to open the glorious Fountain of the Divine Nature for the blessed information and to the great admiration of his Spirit until that happy season blinded with the Traditions of his Fathers O the distinguishing love of God! Rom. 11.7 2. The Gospel-like order of this great work deserves our most serious thoughts that high and wonderful doctrine which the Almighty laies for a sure Foundation in his heart is it whereon eternal blessedness depends And this is life eternal That they might know thee the onely true God and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent Joh. 17.3 He is first awakened as it were by Esays Vision the discovery of that glorious infinite blessed Three in One Holy Father Esa The Lords antient people the Jews have ever accounted it great blasphemy to call God a Person 6.3 Holy Son John 12.41 Holy Spirit Acts 28.26 and other Foundation can no