that God who was Witness to what he said would also be his Judg and by no means acquit him Now how oft you have broken the Commandment in this which is the main sense while you have been very strict to keep it in the other I need not tell you N. C. You must tell me or else I must tell you that you are like the Devil a false accuser of the Brethren C. Your Ministers can tell you a great deal better than I who were wont to complain of this as one of the most grievous sins of the times that so many had forsworn themselves by breaking their Solemn League and Covenant You covenanted for instance to extirpate Heresy and Schism and such great diligence was used in this point that they grew faster and to a greater height than ever had been known among us So Mr. Case tells the Parliament in his Thanks-giving Sermon for the taking of Chester p. 25. And asks them how it comes to pass that these abound more than ever they did and that under their Noses There is such a numerous increase saith he of Errors and Heresies as I blush to repeat what some have affirmed namely that there are no less than an hundred and fourscore several Heresies propagated and spred in this Neigboring City And many of such a Nature as that I may truly say in CALVIN'S language the Errors and innovations under which we groaned of late years He means under the Bishops were but tollerable trifles childrens play compared with these damnable Doctrines Doctrines of Devils Nor is he alone in these complaints but Mr. Edwards * Epist Ded. to both Houses before his Gangraena 1. part craves leave to be free with them and to tell them that Sects had been growing ever since the first year of their sitting and every year increased more and more No sooner had they put down the Common-Prayer but down went the Scriptures themselves together with it which many among us saith he slight and blaspheme The Images of the Trinity Christ Virgin Mary and the Apostles were ordered to be broken down and at the next stroke there were those that overthrew the Doctrine of the Trinity opposed the Divinity of Christ spoke Evil of the Virgin Mary slighted all the Apostles The Parliament cast out the Ceremonies in the Sacraments the Cross and Kneeling and then the People in many places cast out the Sacraments themselves Baptism and the Lords Supper The one took away Saints dayes and some of the other made nothing of the Lords-day The superfluous maintenance as he calls it of Bishops and Deans being cut off immediately the necessary setled maintenance of all Ministers was cryed down and denyed too Nay the Bishops their Officers being gone there were many that would have thrown away all Ministers after them A great deal more you may find there to the same purpose if you have a mind but he seems to sum up all in this the Fourth Commandment was taken away in the Bishops dayes so he is pleased to calumniate them but now we have all ten Commandments taken away at once by the Antinomians yea all Faith and the Gospel denyed by the Seekers He would have inserted this clause sure if he durst the Third Commandment is now taken away by the Parliament For I pray you my good Friend what remembrance had they of the dreadful name of God to whom they had lifted up their hands What a trifle was that sacred Oath now accounted That water of life which as Mr. Case fancied * Sermons about the Covenant p. 66. had kept all the Nation from giving up the ghost was dead it self and had not the least spirit remaining in it to quicken these Covenanters to extirpate Heresies Nor would all the expostulations of their Ministers put any life into them But as these complainers had violated other obligations in taking that Covenant so now their Masters set it at naught and to serve the ends of State continued to connive at those things which they promised to root out For a great while after this I find no less than three of your Divines in their Epistle to the Reader before Mr. Pooles book against Biddle renew their Complaints that the whole body of Socinianism which walkt only in the Dark and in Latin in the Bishops time was now translated into English Many bold Factors for those Blasphemies which in those times durst not appear disseminating now their Heresies without fear both publickly and from house to house Which by the way may instruct you who are to be charged with a great part of the guilt and mischief of such Books as the Sandy-Foundation i. e. the Doctrine of the Trinity Shaken and several others lately published In short this was a thing so notorious that Mr. Case moves the Parliament in that Thanksgiving Sermon p. 30. that there might be a solemn fast to humble and afflict their Souls for Covenant-violations and wherein the Covenant might be renewed in a more solemn and serious manner with God N. C. These were hot spirits and might be too forward to charge the Covenanters with taking Gods name in vain when they were not guilty of it C. But you will not say that the greatest part of the London-Ministers were rash and heady Now if you read their Seasonable exhortation to their respective Parishes printed 1660. you will find they complain of the Odious scandals of those that profess themselves the People of God particularly of their self-seeking under pretence of the publick good and their unparalel'd breach of all civil and sacred Oaths and Covenants both to God and Men. N. C. This I confess is a sad story C. Consider then I beseech you if these Leaders and great Professors were so guilty what shall we think of the common People who took the Covenant hand over head as we say being totally ignorant of several things to which they swore nay were taught by Mr. Case in his Sermons about the Covenant p. 41. to take it though they did not understand it N. C. I cannot believe you C. Go to the Book then and believe your own Eyes There you will find he alledges the Example of Josiah for it who renewed the Covenant when he was a Child and of Nehemiah who made the Women and Children do the like He was sensible indeed that there is a great difference between that which was Divine and this which was but the Device of men and therefore would perswade them that they were bound no further by this Oath than they should find the things contained in it to be according to the Word of God But it is plain I shew'd you the last time the Parliament did not allow any Body to expound the Covenant but themselves And beside this they sware without any limitation to preserve things as they stood in the Church of Scotland where for any thing they knew there might be as absolute a Tyranny as is exercised under the
one of your Ministers was that he went to live under the Gospel And when they inquired of the welfare of their Friends the current Phrase was How do the Christians of such a Town According to the import of which language Mr. Bridge takes the boldness to call us Gentiles in the eares of the House of Commons * Fast Serm. Nov. 29. 1643. telling them that the Horns the Kings party may push and scatter for a time but the Carpenters viz. the Parliament shall fray them away and cast out these Gentiles And another bold Writer * Paraenetick to the Parl. and Assembly for Liberty 1644. tells them that the Army had often put the Armies of the Aliens to flight and therefore must be considered Nay he is so profane as to say take heed of resisting the Holy-Ghost for that mighty works have been done by these men you cannot deny p. 12. Miracles it seems were revived again to convince us who were either poor Legalists or Heathen Idolaters Yea God did by a continued series of Miracles and wonders if you will believe the Rump of the Parliament * Declar. of 27. Sept. 1649. exalt his name in the eyes of this and neighbor Nations by their means But alas we were the most reprobate and hard hearted of all other Aliens that could not be converted Vncircumcised Philistines in Mr. Case's language Nay Amalekites with whom the Lord would have war for ever N. C. Now you grosly abuse them C. Read the Preface to Mr. W. Bridges his Sermon * Preacht before the House of Com. Febr. 22. 1642. and judge whether I be guilty of that fault or no. N. C. What doth he say C. He tells you that the business of Christs Kingdom is lookt upon by the squint-eyed multitude under an Hexapla of considerations N. C. What 's an Hexapla C. Nay you must not trouble your self about his phrase for he tells you in the conclusion of that preface It is such as I can speak and I desire to be thankful it is no worse considering my deserts N. C. Well then let 's hear it as bad as it is C. After he hath done with the Theological the Historical and the Legal he comes to the fourth consideration which is Critical And what 's that think you N. C. You would not let me ask Questions and therefore I 'le make no answer to yours C. You would never guess if you did nor can the most Critical of you all tell why he gave it that name for it is only this My money shall never help to kill men To which he Answers well if you hinder the killing quelling of those who would both kill and quell us ours our Religion Kingdom you become friends of Gods enemies and ours and resolve to make peace with them with whom God hath resolved to have war Exod. 17. ult What think you now did not this man look upon us as Amalekites and wish the Servants of the living God to whom he addresses his Hexapla of considerations would have war with us eternally Do you not see what is like to become of us if men of this Spirit have Power again proportionable to their Will must not our name be blotted out and must not he be accursed that doth the work of the Lord negligently N. C. I pray no more Questions C. And then all your Victories will be called once more the return of prayers which you take to be as powerful as the lifting up of Moses his hands And all the Miseries which befal us the day of the Lords vengeance for the blood of his faithful servants For I must tell you another effect of your Pride is N. C. Do not put me among that number C. Their pride then is to think every favour that is done them to be their due and so they are bound to thank no body for it God they fancy makes the wicked serve them and causes them to do that for their sake which they had no intention to do And on the contrary if any justice be done upon any of themselves presently it is voted persecution cruelty enmity to the People of God and hatred of his Truth and Ways But let them exercise never so great oppression tyranny and cruelty upon their Neighbors it shall be cryed up as zeal for God and his cause Love to justice and pure Religion at least excused as a fulfilling the Decrees of the Almighty spoiling the Egyptians and acting for the Lord in the day of Vengeance N. C. This is your time and so you may say what you will against Christ's witness-bearing people while they are in their sackcloth condition It is now only their witnessing time but C. But what Why do you make a stop N. C. The times will mend and the Witnessing time they say will be over C. You would have me think then that you speak their sense not your own But I perceive you are a little taken with those new Phrases of the Witnessing time and witnessing work As indeed it was alway the humor of your party if a noted man invented an unusual Phrase presently to form their mouths to that new mode of speaking Just like a pack of Hounds that when one begins to open immediately all sollow and almost deafen one with the noise When a Preacher for instance from that text David served his Generation by the will of God raised this impertinent Observation That it is our duty to mind Generation-work instantly all Pulpits sounded with this Doctrine of Generation-work That was the phrase in those days In so much that you should hear both Minister and people bewailing it in their prayers that they had not minded Generation-work more Which made some good innocent souls that were not acquainted with the secret blush when they first heard it and wonder what they meant And to say the truth that was a hard matter to tell For the Presbyterians I think meant nothing but reforming according to the Covenant the Lord having given them such an Opportunity as the General Assembly speak in their Answer * Presented 25. Aug. 1642. to the Declaration of the Parliament of England Where they tell them that when the Supreme Providence gives opportunity of the accepted time and the Day of Salvation no other work can prosper in the hands of his servants if it be not apprehended and with all reverence and faithfulness improved And withall they add This Kirk when the Lord gave them the calling considered not their own deadness nor staggered at the promise through unbelief but gave glory to God And who knows but the Lord hath now some controversie with England which will not be removed till first and before all the Worship of his name and the Government of his house be setled according to his will This was their Generation-work But others meant by this Phrase the pulling down every thing that they imagin'd Antichristian Presbytery and all And some went so far as to
This without doubt hath wosully insuared your peoples Consciences and is one great reason they are so full of fears and scruples They have been taught not to rely upon impartial Reason but to seek still for a place of holy Scripture to be their guide and warrant So Mr. W. Bradshaw a famous Divine Defence of his Book of Lots against Mr. Balmford whose name I know you reverence confessed to Mr. Gataker that he was often troubled to satisfy some in their Cases propounded to him though he gave them never so good reason for his Resolutions because they would not therewith be satisfied unless he could produce some place in Scripture for every particular Thus infinite perplexities doubts and scrupulosities must needs arise in mens minds as Mr. R. Hooker well expresses it and stops and rubs without any end be cast into the course of mens lives concerning their ordinary and civil affairs if the light of Reason shall be suppressed and men shall be constrain'd burn it never so clearly not to proceed by it in ought they are to do till they have had solemn access first to the written Word and fetch'd light from some particular sentence in it for the farther confirmation of them therein And thus I may add the Scripture came to be basely wrested and bended from its proper sense and meaning to serve their particular occasions And in their great Ignorance they went away better satisfied with a fanciful and impertinent application of it to their present business than if the soundest Reason in the world had been offered to them Only this in time was the mischief of it that by this means they found a Way to justify unlawful Actions and supported their Confidence in those wayes against the most evident Reason But it 's possible you will not regard what I say nor Mr. R. Hooker neither being one of those you call blind and superstitious writers Let me send you therefore to Mr. Calvin who tells you that if you understand not your Liberty about things in themselves indifferent there will be no quiet in your Consciences no end of Superstitions Many indeed think saith he that we are fond to move disputation about the free eating of flesh about the free use of dayes and garments and such other small trifles as they think them But there is more weight in them than is commonly thought For when Consciences have once cast themselves into the snare they enter into a long and cumbersome way from whence they can afterward find no easie way to get out If a man begin to doubt for instance whether he may use linnen Sheets Instit L. 3. cap. 16. Sect. 7. Shirts Handkerchiefs and Napkins neither will he be out of doubt whether he may use those of Hemp and after that of coarser stuff Nay he will begin to weigh with himself whether he cannot sup without Napkins and be without Handkerchiefs If he think dainty meat to be unlawful at length he shall not with quietness before the Lord eat either Brown-bread or Common meats when he remembers that he may yet sustain his body with baser food If he doubt of pleasant Wine afterward he will not drink even that which is dead with peace of Conscience last of all he will not be so bold to touch sweeter and cleaner water than other Finally at the length he will come to this point to think it unlawful as the common saying is to tread upon a straw lying a cross For the Question is not light and small being no less than this whether God will have us do this or that whose Will ought to guide all our Counsels and Actions N. C. I know none that are troubled with such idle scruples as these C. That may proceed from the dulness and shortness of their thoughts which never let them see into what endless Labyrinths their principles will lead them I am sure such rules as these have been so improv'd by your Ministers that in an ignorant zeal they deny you your lawful Liberties and lay upon you unnecessary Restramts And on the other side intice you to hear controversies and all manner of Doctrines saying that no part of the Counsel of God must be suppressed and conceiving the People would be defrauded if they were not admitted to these disputations They make no difference as my Lord Bacon * Wise and moderate Discourse of Church affairs printed 1641. since published in his Resuscitatio 1657. observed long ago between Milk and Strong-meat and to speak again in his words which now come to my mind what I said before in my own they seek to prove every thing by express Scripture or else imagine it is not to be allow'd and then that constrains them to wrest it and make conceited inferences and forced allusions And as for preaching it hath been in a manner made necessary to sanctifie every Ordinance which is another very ignorant Conceit There are many have thought saith he that it is almost of the Essence of the Sacrament of the Lords Supper to have a Sermon before it This hath brought Liturgies and firms of Divine Service into contempt and made those to be despised who had not the faculty of constant preaching As for those that could not preach at all they have been alwayes reproached by you in so strange a manner that it hath been another occasion of corrupting our Religion and bringing the holy Ordinance of God into contempt N. C. It 's impossible you should rather say the quite contrary C. Hear me a little and then judg These poor men were in a manner constrain'd by your rude clamours to take upon them to expound the word of God though very unable for it and thereby exposed too early even Preaching it self to the laughter and scorn of those that had some Wit to discern but no goodness to pitty their Weakness They were loth to hear themselves called Idol-Shepherds that had Mouths but could not speak a word from God and so rather than endure this reproach they entertain'd the people with their Glosses Paraphrases and Discourses upon the holy Scripture and called all the Word of the Lord though never so absurd and sensless Silence I confess had better becom'd them than straining themselves to speak what they did not understand but yet consider how hard it was to resist the temptation to open their Mouths as oft as they could whereby at once they might both avoid the contempt and odious brand of a dumb dog and also get a great reputation with the Ignorant multitude of an able painful Minister of God's Word And as for those who had some abilities to expound the Scriptures and exhort the People they were called upon with so much earnestness to preach the Word in season and out of season that they knew not at last what to preach They were forced to step up into the Pulpit and make a noise when they had little or Nothing to say By which means the Holy
by forbearance all this while they have fretted like a Gangrene into the Bowels both of City and Country And I fear we have kept their Counsels so long that many of them are already past cure and we almost remediless in our rents tending unto Ruin Narration of some Church Courses in New England by W. R. p. 51. Nay do not frown as if I were too sharp and severe They are not my words but some of your own against the Independent Brethren and may with as much or more justice be now applied to you all N. C. I think there are other courses more dangerous than those that ought to be lookt after Prophaneness I mean is the great thing which both you and we ought to set our selves against and that I must tell you abounds more among you than any where else C. I cannot tell N. C. What cannot you tell Whether prophaneness should be opposed by both with the greatest Vigour C. Be not so fierce First I cannot tell whether Prophaneness abound more now than it did in the days when you reigned I told you the last time what the Assembly told the Parliament of the sudden growth of wickedness since they began to sit And I am sure it was not checkt in the following years but the seasonable exhortation of the greatest part of the London Ministers complained no longer ago than 1660. of the great Wickedness broken loose among us which it seems was chained and bound up while the Bishops governed and as a great instance of it tell us in the conclusion of that sad Lamentation that some as we are credibly inform'd are grown to that height of wickedness as to worship the Devil himself p. 10. And then secondly I cannot tell whether the Wickedness that hath so much abounded beyond that in Elder days be not in great part to be imputed to your selves For all the time you declaimed against the Ignorance and blindness of the people you cast many fearful stumbling-blocks before them as an honest Suffolk-man told you some years agone while they could not but see or hear your scornful censuring and condemning others greedy panting after and gasping at the Riches Honors Mournfull Complaint to the Knights and Burgesses of that County 1656. and Preferments of this World fraudulent circumventing and over-reaching your Neighbours cruel revenge upon those you judged your Enemies when you had power bitter quarrelling and contending one against another and yet notwithstanding all those sins which might have justly caused you to lye in the Dust they saw you lifted up boasting of the glorious times you had made proudly appropriating to your selves the honourable name of Christians Saints and the godly Party Nay the people were not so blind but they could see how you measured the Saint-ship of your selves and others rather by some private opinions or small punctilio's of worship than by the great things of Faith Righteousness and Mercy For they found some men whose profession of Christianity was attended with these accounted no better than civil men while others were cryed up for Saints and Godly who were much deficient in them Besides your Ministers took no care to Catechise the youth in the Country Nay brought that Ordinance into such Contempt that to this very day a man is not thought to do his Duty who spends the afternoons of the Lords day in that instruction They heard nothing but Orations in the Pulpit morning and evening and those God knows very sorry ones in most places As for the Sacrament of the Lords Supper a great many honest-hearted people were frighted from it You made such lofty Rails as he observes about the Table that few or none of the poor people could come at it As if you thought it a matter of great piety to confine the Members of Christs Body to a little room and cause his Death and Passion to be known and remembred only by a few As if it were an honour to Christ and an advantage to the world that his name and memorial should perish from the hearts and mouths of a great part of the people professing his Name and ingaged in Covenant to him Nay in many places they never saw it administred to any at all for many years Your Ministers chusing rather to deprive themselves and others of whom they had a good opinion of this Heavenly Banquet than afford it to many well-meaning though no talking people And so while they complained of their living in known sins they themselves lived many years in a notorious omission of this Duty Sometimes indeed they would invite men to this feast but then by their preaching they hindred and discourag'd the most if not all in a Country-congregation as if they were too forward to acknowledg the benefits of Christ and keep up his remembrance In short many of them accounted the people no better than Heathens and upon that score would not baptize their children and thereby indeavoured to make them so and quite thrust them out of the flock of Christ O that you would all search your hearts as that honest man said to find out the true root of this Spirit of Separation and observe narrowly whether under other specious pretences or with some pious intentions there were not a bitter root of pride and haughtiness causing you to affect singularity and desire to appear alone to the view of men thinking it below your worth to be found in Communion with those whom in opinion you have laid so much below your selves But let that be as it will Thirdly I cannot readily tell which are worse the Publicans and Harlots or the Scribes and Pharisees This I know that there have a long time been a great many of the last who justified themselves and lookt upon all others as abominable Dr. Burges * Fire of the Sanct. uncov an 1625. in the preface I remember tells us with a great confidence that those who kept heretofore such a frantick coyle about ceremonies and thought they never took their level right but when at every bolt they shot they struck a Bishops cap sheire off his head were more fantastical Ignorant Proud self-willed negligent and deceitful in their particular callings than many whom they despised and condemn'd to hell for Carnal men As any observing Eye might easily discern Now what to think of these men in compare with the other let honest Martin Bucer tell you who was one of the first Reformers and whose name I know you cannot but reverence as well as I on many accounts N. C. How do you know what Martin Bucer saith C. I understand a little Latin and besides I have seen the latter part of his Comments on the Prophet Zephaniah translated into our tongue where he tells us towards the Conclusion That there were some among them under a pernicious Mistake abhorring only these gross things to wear brave clothes to fare deliciously to drink and swill to whore to heap up riches carefully to
on all the Subjects under the Pain of being incapable of any Office if they refused it But now you will be free from all imposition of this Nature And an Oath enjoyn'd by the King and both the Houses under no severer penalty than a small Restraint is look't upon as a grievous Oppression There are those likewise that can remember when the Commons alone put out another Order about some of the affairs of Religion But now a Law enacted by the Kings Authority is thought an high invasion of Christs Prerogative and he must not meddle in matters of his Worship The reason is any thing may be done by any Body to advance your fancies but nothing against them by no creature in the World Nay we have not forgotten the time when Mr. Case used this Argument among others to perswade the People to take the Covenant * Sermons about the Covenant p. 64. because Antichrist and his faction had prosper'd so much by entring into Covenants therefore the People of God should try what this way will do which hath been so advantageous to the enemy For God said he may make use of that Stratagem to ruin their Kingdom which they used to build it But now if any of us say that the same Persons have maintain'd a great reverence in the people to their Religion by many Stately Ceremonies splendid Vestures and Pompous Rites and therefore we may hope to keep the Ordinances of God from contempt by a few solemn and grave Ceremonies by decent habits and such rites and gestures as may beseem the dignity of our Religion presently you raise an out-cry against us and the People are told that we are Popishly affected of an Antichristian spirit and imitate Idolaters For which I can assign no cause but this that then the Argument was for you and now it makes for us And you are resolved to serve your selves by all means though it be by approving and anon rejecting the very same things If a thing like you well it shall go very hard but you will find some Scripture for it And if none speak plainly you will torture and draw some or other to be on your side and labour to prove that they signifie according to your meaning But if a thing dislike you then you ask for plain Scritprue Nothing will satisfie unless we shew it you in express terms It is Superstition Will worship any thing but good unless we produce a text in so many words to confirm it Of the same shifting humour was the late Army as appears by their unparalel'd Story which in brief is this On the 20. of April 1653. they turn'd their Masters whom they had long served out of doors as a company of Self-Seekers who minded their own private more than the publick Good About six years after finding the good Spirit declining which formerly appeared among them in carrying on the great work those are their Canting expressions and the good old Cause it self become a reproach they were led to look back and examine the cause of the Lords withdrawing his wonted presence from them And among other things they remembred what Injuries they had done to the remnant of the long Parliament and that they were eminent asserters of that Cause and had a special presence of God with them and were signally blessed in that Work And therefore invited them by their Declaration of May 6. 1659. in which you may find these things to come and sit again promising to yield their uttermost Assistance for their sitting in safety Would you not imagine now that they would for ever reverence these Eminent these Blessed men and that to oppose them in their great work would be in their opinion to fight against God to drive away the good Spirit and to endeavour to destroy the Cause of God And yet it was not long before they were of another mind They held themselves for all this to be the greater Saints the Army of the living God and so immutably setled in his favour that they should not lose it do they what they would And therefore as soon as ever the Parliament refused to act according to their mind they refused to yield their obedience When they voted some of their Commissions void and resolved to govern the Army by Commissioners in stead of a Lieutenant General these late penitents could see nothing of God any longer among them The special Presence of God vanished and in a moment disappeared So that on the 13th of the next October they lockt up the doors of the House set themselves once more above their Masters and in an insolent manner declared * Declara agreed at Wallingford House Octob. 27. all their Orders Acts pretended Acts or Declarations and all proceedings thereupon had or done on Munday the 10. of that Month and on Tuesday and Wednesday following null and void to all intents and purposes in as full and ample a manner as if they had been never done And immediately after they pact the Men away after these Acts and Orders Nay this they did notwithstanding that they had stiled themselves several times but five dayes before this 10. of October Your faithful Servants the Army and professed that having diligently inquired into their hearts and wayes Humble Represent and Petit. Octob. 5. they found nothing among them but faithfulness and integrity to the Parliament concluding their address in this manner that notwithstanding all endeavours to the contrary they would by the help of God be found faithful to them Were not these gallant fellows Wonderful constant to their Principles and Professions Mightily overawed by the presence of God Single-hearted and faithful to their word Yes by all means you must needs say for of such as these a great part of the Churches of the Saints is now composed And faithful they were to themselves and that was enough Constant to this principle that they were alway in the right and what would you have more They could Cant still in Scripture language and therefore God was not withdrawn from them They could fast and pray still and had a power to turn even the Lords-day into a day of Humiliation and therefore the Good Spirit had not forsaken them They hated Antichrist that is us and were resolved to burn the flesh of the Whore with fire so still remained the Army of the Lord of Hosts For as if they had some such work in hand as the Apostles had they call upon all the Godly in the nation to say on their behalf who are sufficient for these things and to cry aloud for them before the Throne of Grace that the Lord himself would appear and carry on his work in their hand And great reason there was to expect it since they had once more injur'd those who asserted his cause and done that very thing for which as they said he had before withdrawn his wonted presence from them O the Impudent foreheads of these Men O the
therefore it was not amiss to hear him As for the rest I should not have troubled you with their conjectures had it not been to let you see First what they think of us whom they call the Antichristian the Popish party the Gentiles and Nations the followers of the Dragon and such like Names Secondly what they think themselves who are in their own esteem the Witnesses of Christ Jesus the Godly party the Saints that are to rule the Nations with a rod of Iron the followers of the Lamb who are to ascend to Heaven the Seat of Justice and do execution upon us Lastly What a Sandy Foundation their hopes are built upon and how confident they are and well perswaded of themselves without any cause at all And that indeed is the chiefest thing I aimed at To make you sensible they have no ground for that high opinion they have conceiv'd of their own wisdom and insight into the things of God they being blindly lead by their own Imaginations and passionate Desires while they think they understand and see more than all the Wise men in the World So the last man but one that I named brag'd and vapoured glorying that he had found out that truth which none of the wicked should understand neither Priest nor Prophet Rulers nor Seers All is hid and covered from them and the reason is because they drank of the Cup of the Whore of which if a man take but one Sip he is utterly incapable to have the Visions or mysteries made known to him And therefore he triumphs in this manner over all our Nobles and Clergy Who will beleive of all our great men and learned Prelates that Jesus Christ is come in the Clouds of Heaven and is set down upon the Throne of Judicature in his Saints and Witnesses to judg that man of sin No indeed they had more wit And yet this the man thought in his self-conceited Wisdom to be as clear as the Sun N. C. I am fully satisfied that they were much out of the way And therefore more words are needless C. That the way you might have said and Spirit of Mr. Bridg is mostly and chiefly to be out of the way N. C. I leave those conceits to you C. And you will leave it to me also for you take no notice of it to tell you the cause of all this N. C. Because I do not know it C. It 's easy to see that is nothing else but their pride and vain conceit of themselves as if God would reveal all his secrets to them and hide them from others For they are the Watch-men upon the Tower the Embassadors of Christ the Angels of the Churches the Lords Worthies And they that follow them are the Holy ones the Dear people of God the little Flock the Lambs of Christ the Meek of the Earth the Redeemed ones and the Remnant of Jacob. Nay as soon as ever any person comes to hear them preach they hope there is a work of Grace in their hearts and that they begin to savour the things of God and to desire the sincere Milk of the Word As for our Ministers Alas poor Creatures they are the False Prophets blind Guides Idol Shepherds that have eyes indeed but cannot see at all And our people are the World the Wicked the children of the Evil one Enemies of God and such as remain still in Egypt At least the vail is before our eyes or we have taken a sip of the Cup of the Whore and that sends up such fumes into our heads that we cannot possibly discern the mysteries of God Hence it is that the meanest of you takes himself to be wiser than the best of us than any of our Bishops and Priests nay the whole Clergy put together And if we will not have such a man in the same esteem that he hath himself presently we are lookt upon as enemies of the power of Godliness formal fellows or meer moralists that hate the true seed N. C. Doth not David tell us that God had made him wiser than any of his Teachers C. See how you still equal your selves with men inspired From which vain conceit and arrogant Opinion I make no doubt it is that you take every sudden fancy and strong imagination that comes into your head to be an Inspiration of God And that you are so adventurous and bold in expounding the Holy Scriptures as if it were given you in that moment as it was the Apostles what you should think and what you should speak Nay so deep have you drunk of this Witches Cup and are so intoxicated with self-conceit and self-love that you imagine all your Devices and forms of Religion and Government must be received by all the world For your mind is the mind of God and your words the Oracles of God So even Mr. Edwards himself seems to fancy Epistle before his Antapolog when he exhorts all people that were waving and hung doubtful between Presbytery and Independency to wait upon God in that way of his and Assembly of so many learned and Godly men to see What he will be pleased to speak by them N. C. What is this to all the World were they bound also to listen to what this Oracle would utter C. You are too quick I was going to add that as they think themselves the best people here so the best in the world and look upon the Reformation it self as needing a Reformation And therefore hoped that if they setled Religion among us according to their mind there would be a pattern from the Word set up in this Island for an example to all other kirks abroad Thus the Commissioners of the general Assembly of the Kirk of Scotland tell us * Directions to Ministers anent Malignants p. 12. and therefore call upon the Ministers to stir up themselves and the people in Truth and Unity because say they it will be a powerful means to preserve our Religion and to propagate the same to other Churches groaning under their several burdens and panting for such a Reformation as the Lord in Mercy hath granted us And accordingly they indicted the Fast I told you of on the Lords-day for the promoting Unity in Religion and Uniformity in Government and the advancing the Kingdom of Christ i. e. their Discipline every where N. C. None excepted C. No. For Mr. Case tells the Commissioners of the General Assembly * Epistle before his book called The quarrel of the Covenant dedicated to them that God had honoured their Nation in making them the first fruits and pattern of a thorough and Covenant-Reformation to us and all the rest of the Christian World And withal sayes I am humbly confident that the same shore shall not bound this Covenant which bounds the now two Covenanting-Nations But as it is said of the Gospel so it will be Verified of this Gospel-Covenant The Sound thereof shall go into all the Earth and the Words of it to
the End of the World * P. 62. of that Book N. C. Strange Presumption C. I suppose he could have found a text for it in the Revelation if you had presumed then to question his humble confidence For I observe the General Assembly tell his Majesty that if they may but have that Unity in Religion and Uniformity of Church-Government in the two Kingdoms which they petition him for it will appear then that the unhappy Commotions and Divisions among us were but the * Letter to his Majesty July 27. 1642. Noise of many Waters and the Voice of a great Thunder before the voice of Harpers harping with their harps which shall fill the whole Land with Melody and mirth and the name of it shall be the Lord is there The place to which they refer you know is 14. Rev. 2. Now immediately after this joy and Melody there follows as you may see v. 6. an Angel flying in the midst of Heaven having the Everlasting Gospel to preach unto every Nation kindred tongue and people That is as Mr. Case perhaps might have expounded it this Gospel-Covenant St. John saw upon the wing about to fly to the end of the World N. C. No man could be so absurd C. What greater absurdity is there in this than in the application which the general Assembly make of the foregoing words to the same purpose N. C. I approve of neither C. But then possibly they might have perswaded you it was a good exposition when Mr. Case made you believe the Covenant was an Ordinance of God and Holy Ordinance * V.P. 8. and other place of the fore-cited Book a pure and Heavenly Ordinance yea one of the most special and solemn being a joyning Ordinance which strikes the main stroke between God and us the Marriage knot whereby God and a people are made one a piece of Divine Worship and as far as I can discern a more holy or higher Ordinance in his esteem than the Sacrament of Christs Body and Bloud N. C. For shame do not abuse men C. I am far from it as you may see if you will but consult his Answer to this Objection which some made against it It is needless say they to take the Covenant or rather a prophanation of so holy an Ordinance since we have done it over and over again in our former Protestations and Covenants To which he replies * Pag. 40. You receive the Sacrament of the Lords Supper once a month that is but a Seal of the Covenant Consider it be convinced N. C. I am convinced of this that you do not bely him C. Very well And therefore he exhorts the Ministers to indeavour to sanctifie the people for so holy a Service as the taking of it and tells the people they must get their hearts into an holy Ordinance frame Just as if they were going to a new mount Sinai to be entred into a new Religion and seperated from the Nations to be a peculiar people zealous of the Covenant And indeed he all along makes it of the same nature with that Covenant which the children of Israel made or renewed with God and so confidently applies all the places of Scripture which speaks of that to this holy service that one cannot tell by any thing he says but this was the Covenant which the Holy Books speak of Nay some of them when the Covenant came into England lookt upon it as the Ark of Gods presence as Mr. Feak tells us * Beam of Light upon the account of which they should certainly prosper And Mr. Case I remember tells us this was the sin of England in former times That our Fathers knew not this service it was hid from them they regarded it not and those times of Ignorance God winked at or God lightly regarded them N. C. Sure he did not imagine all our Pious Ancestors to be Heathens C. You shall judge by and by what thoughts these men have of us all when I have told you that in the strength of these high towering thoughts and lofty imaginations they taught the people to go to battle against their Soveraign and to fancy the Lord march't before them They were confident they should prevail because they were the Jacobs and we but Esau's and the Elder must serve the Younger nay we the seed of the Serpent and they the seed of the Woman and so they must wound our head i. e. give us an incurable mortal blow Thus they were taught by Mr. H. Wilkinson in an Epistle before a Sermon * Preacht before the Parliament 25. Octob. 1643. of his in which he tells the Parliament again that they have to do with a brood of Serpents p. 13. at the best that we are but a piece of Papal Christendom as his phrase is p. 8. Nay when the pride and passion boiles up to its height then they look upon us and the rest of the world but as Infidels and Pagans What other construction can you make of the letter of the Scots in Ireland to the General Assembly * Convened at St. Andrews in July 1642. In which they desire them to send over some Ministers to them God having now opened a fair door to the Gospel by the banishment of the Prelates and their followers Nay they call to them as if they made an address to so many Apostles and the Protestants in Ireland were but so many Heathens Pitty poor Macedonians crying to you that you would come and help us c. Send able men to help to lay the foundation of Gods house according to the pattern And agreeable to this Petition they returned an Answer * August 6. of the same year in the Apostolical language telling them though they are loth to stretch themselves beyond their own measure yet they dare not be wanting to the inlargement of Christs Kingdom And so they send them some men to plant and to water according to the directions of Jesus Christ and the Doctrine and Discipline of that Kirk wishing that they who are sent may come with the full blessing of the Gospel of peace and that they will with all chearfulness embrace make use of the message of Salvation Who would not think that reads this if he were a stranger to our Countrey that some few Christians in that Island had sent for some Apostolical men or Evangelists to plant the Gospel among a Pagan People And that the Prelates and Ministers under their obedience had been but so many Heathen-Priests that nurs'd up the Nation in barbarous Ignorance Such is the goodly conceit they have of themselves and their horrible contempt and scorn of all others From whence it is that they call us the Nations asking their people when they do any thing that we do Why do you imitate the Customes of the Nations And there used I remember to be no phrase more common than this when a man removed his dwelling to a place where
Writings were applied according to their present fancy and handled in a very careless and Superficial manner A bold Face and a ready Tongue were fain to supply the place of good Reason and well digested Thoughts Fire of the Sanctuary uncovered p. 310. Loudness as Dr. Corn. Burges once told you was made to serve instead of matter For they found if they were but earnest the people accounted them very zealous preachers and imputed their want of matter to their wisdom and desire of edifying Not to their want of study or ability And it was their custome to say He preaches to the Conscience He stands not upon deep learning He reproves sin boldly and if it was other mens not theirs so much the better For the very truth is the people do not love to hear nothing but their duty or to hear it frequently repeated And some taught them in time to call this Legal-preaching Gospel Sermons were then to be contrived nothing but Christ and free Grace to be preached And because they grew weary even of hearing these so often over there was a necessity to device Novelties or else not preach so many Sermons The last would by no means be admitted and so the Scriptures were to be squeazed new notions invented delicate new phrases coyn'd and indeed a new Religion made to please the people Could it for instance have entred into the head of any man from those words of Isaiah before mentioned to talk of Believers being big with sin and to make such observations as these that it is our Glory to be Christ's Ewes and that when a man is big with young and cryes O my belly my belly here is a point of comfort that Christ is sweet to such persons could a man I say have ever thought of such things as these but that he was to strain the words as far as ever fancy could stretch them because he must have soon done with the Text had he given only the proper sense of it and the people have soon done with him had he not sought out some new Inventions They were at least to be courted with some sweet and indearing phrases and called O Blessed Ewes O Believing Ewes and O Believing Bees that suck the honey of sin hatred out of the Wormwood of sin acted And told that Christ accounts their stammerings sweet Meih Meih saith the little one and the mother counts it Musick And so no doubt do the people count this puleing sort of preaching O he is a sweet man sayes one an affectionate man saith a second a melting preacher saith a third because he layes them to the Dugs of Christs Love and bids them suck or but open their mouths and cry Meih of if they cannot assures them Christ will do it for them Not considering all this while that he entertains their fancy with the fulness and freeness of those Breasts and leaves their thoughts hanging and admiring there meerly because he is dry and empty himself and hath nothing else to say N. C. O Sir we find that they are never drawn dry C. You must say so who can fancy you drink up rivers when they give you but a sip and see with much satisfaction some Sips of Christ streaming through a poor creature Epist to the Reader And truly as long as there are Streams and Beams your Poets will never want rhymes nor these Preachers stand in need of Reason For Beaming and Streaming will do the business at any time and make them pass for extraordinary men Especially if they have the confidence to say as this man doth that Chrtsts spirit brought that Text Isaiah 40.11 to his hand and that his soul hath tasted some sweetness by what Christ gave in upon that subject For so you must believe if you will be kind and sweet as he is that the Holy Ghost hath made him overseet of the flock of God and bid him feed his Lambs and that Christ gave in to him this sense of the prophets words that he will be sweet to his believing Ewes when they are big with Sin And indeed it is craftily done to intitle Christ to their Dotages for were it not for that there are scarce any so stupid that would not despise them But consider then how modest these men are who had rather Christ and his blessed Spirit should bear the reproach of being Authors of such absurd Glosses and ignorant Comments than honestly acknowledg that they are the fruit of their own Fancies which would soon be drain'd if they did not supply them with such Inventions N. C. There 's no danger of that for they are very full men as you have often heard me say C. So they are very full of impertinent allegations of the holy Scripture of tautologies absurd resemblances childish fancies and false reasonings and yet withall very full of Confidence and self-Conceit which to say the truth you are all full of a very few excepted N. C. You are full of wrath C. That 's a part of your pride and self-conceit to call truth by the name of wrath passion and bitterness And to pretend withall that whosoever speaks any thing against you is an enemy of God unacquainted with Religion a formal superstitious or moral man But take it as you will and think of me as you please I say that in my observation there is scarce a dram of that virtue called Modesty to be found I will not say in one but in a whole Country of you You are generally full of your selves highly conceited of your own understanding impatient of contradiction in so much that my Lord Bacon tells us he knew some of your way who thought it a tempting of God to hear or read what might be said against them By which you may see this is no new humour but runs in the very spirit of the party who cannot think that any understand so much as themselves of the things of God and imagine the Spirit guides them which must not submit to reason and that no man hath any true Goodness in him that is not one of them Upon which account they ever supposed all men of whom they had any good thoughts to be of their way in their hearts nay all other of any parts to be against them meerly for the love of the World This I will evidently prove to have been a long time the humour even of your eminent Professors if it shall be contradicted And it is the cause I believe that they complain so heavily if any man reprove any of them as if there could never be found even in good men something worthy of Reproof or as if that which we reprove in them were an undoubted part of their goodness But they will take the liberty not only to reprove but to rail upon us as much as they please say when they have done as Mr. Saltmarsh did to the Assembly I bope you will pardon me Epistle Dedicat before his Book against Mr.
be Usurers and others of the like Kind but in the mean time Arrogance fastidious disdain of their Brethren to languish about frivolous questions factions reproach of God's Word slanders against his Ministers easily to believe lies and being rashly believed or or perhaps by an evil suspition suggested to spread and scatter them abroad these and such like things saith he pass with them sometimes for Virtues Nay they think themselves thrice Holy while they walk about with a stoical Superciliousness bended Brows and sad Countenance while they wear mean clothes and rattle all mortals in the ear not so much with grave Words as with claps of Thunder crying out that all is naught and wicked That which I have experience of as he goes on and have good assurance of its truth by certain observation why should not I testifie to the Glory of Christ and the Admonition of the Brethren Of those who abound so much in accusing the vices of others whom every Garment that is a little more neat every little Entertainment that is more plentiful every Word that is more merry and pleasant doth much offend that are always complaining concerning the want of Excommunication I have found very few that I may not say none who do not labour with remarkable conceit of themselves insufferable contempt of their Brethren incredible impatience of any neglect of them and sometime with other more grievous Evils Besides that they are in a manner alway addicted to new and strange Opinions which tend only to Schisms and nothing to Edification Now Heresie is a fruit of the flesh and doth far more mischief than all Drinkings Whorings or Adulteries On the other side among those persons whom they detest no less than Heathens because of a life more remiss and the riches of the World and a certain splendor or bravery I have found very many who as they acknowledg themselves obnoxious to sin so they think of themselves most humbly and of their Neighbours most Benignly they are very candid in their Thoughts and equal in their Judgments concerning others always accounting themselves the worst c. And when the Cross that they have deserved lies upon them nothing is more patient than they none hazard themselves more for the Lord. These things I have certain knowledg of and why may I not declare them to his Glory And I call him to witness that in speaking this I mean nothing less than to set any brand on a more severe mortification of the flesh and renouncing of worldly things or to incourage those that live remisly or indulge any desire of the flesh No I pray the Lord that he would give me and all his chosen grace to use still more sparingly the things of the body our selves that we may impart them more liberally to the Poor May we have grace also so to observe our Tongues that even a little Idle word do not escape us but all that is ours may be directed to Profit and Edification I have written these things and annexed them to my Comments God knows for no other cause but that I might admonish the Brethren who have the grace to live frugally and severely and to be free from outward Offences first of all diligently to watch the Devil lest he infest them with inward ones and while he permits them to avoid those external Vanities and Delicacies he bring them in love with inward and far more mischievous Evils that is to please themselves and to delight themselves in the condemning of others and then to sport themselves and play the wantons idlely in novelty of opinions from whence break forth openly Grudgings and Hatreds then Factions Sects and unspeakable Scandals in the Church That which follows I shall omit as not being so much to my present purpose though otherwayes worthy of your notice which was to shew what opinion wise and holy men have had of that Spirit which now rules in you and so conclude what we are to direct our zeal most against and assault with the greatest vehemence For your part it is manifest you oppose Conformity with might and main and study by all means to keep up the Separation as for Us it is your desire we would set our selves wholly against Prophaneness and let you alone But we cannot thus abandon our selves and throw off all care what becomes of our Church We hate prophaneness and are resolved to oppose it but we hate Pride and self-conceit and faction and Separation and we are resolved to beat down these too And I must tell you withall that our Blessed-Saviour was more frequent and more severe in his reproofs of the Scribes and Pharisees how like you and those of Mr. Bucers time are to them let the impartial judg than he was of the Publicans and Sinners And whatsoever you think now heretofore I am sure your Ministers granted thus much that the Devil Gain's more by Schisms than by coldness in Religion and that he had rather draw men from their first love to a fiery and indiscreet Zeal Confut. of the Separat agreed upon by many Ministers and published by Mr. Rathband 1644. than to lukewarmness and indifference For first hereby he staggers many others who were well setled and makes them children again in understanding and turns them about with every wind of Doctrine and secondly he deprives those men of the happy means of recovery which they might have easily enjoyed had they remained in the fellowship of the Church And would to God you would once more sadly consider whether those many revolts that since the first separation have been made from your gathered Congregations to monstrous Opinions and filthy Practices have not been a just Punishment of you for your too high Valuation of your selves and uncharitable separation from us What construction you make of such things we know not they are the words of the Honest man I mention'd before but to us that are more Ignorant it seems very strange that Mournful Complaint whereas you fished with so great a Mash that scarce one of a hundred was taken by you and admitted into your Churches out of this hundreth part of yours more should be found revolting to absurd foolish nay pernicious Opinions than of the Ninety nine parts you left behind It ought in my poor opinion to put you into a just suspition and serious re-examination of that way from which there is so easie a transition to so many dreadful delusions and through which so many have already passed over unto the enemy N. C. Let those examine who are most concern'd in it My mind is full of something else C. What 's that N C. You have repeated so often the Schism as you call it or Separation that is made from your Church that I perceive it is the great thing that sticks in your stomack and which angers and frets you so much And indeed Mr. Bridge told us it would do so in one of those Sermons you mention so oft
Christ that now are or ever were N. C. Pray do not say so C. They have granted me that for 1400. years there never was any Church with which we might hold Communion if not with ours And I will prove that there hath been none for these 1668. years N. C. You are strangely bold C. No bolder than Mr. Calvin who will give you good satisfaction if you read the Chapter to which I referred you that the Church of the Jewes in our Saviour's time and the Apostolical Churches afterward tolerated greater Vices in manners and fouler Errors in Doctrine than were in any Church from which in his days a separation was made And I will shew you distinctly either now or when you will require it that those Churches planted and watered by the Apostles had those Corruptions in Doctrine Worship Manners Discipline and Government which cannot be pretended to be in ours And yet there was no separation of some Members from the rest Nay the Apostles notwithstanding all these speak very well in general of some They call them all Believers and Saints And none knew then any other Men of the World and Vnbelievers but Pagans such as did not acknowledg Jesus to be the Lord. N. C. I am loth to give you so great a trouble But I pray answer me one Scripture which seems to be against this when it saith The Apostles separated the Disciples Act. 19.9 C. Admirably argued The Apostles separated the Disciples from those that were not Disciples and therefore we may separate Disciples from Disciples N. C. How say you C. The Apostles I say were sent to preach the Gospel and make Disciples to Christ baptizing them into his Name who believed on him Those who would make profession of Christ they gathered into a new Church from among the Jewes and Pagans who disown'd him And accordingly here in this City having won some to believe and made them Christs Disciples they separated them from the rest of the Jewish Synagogue who blasphemed Christ and would acknowledg no other Religion but that of Moses to be a distinct Society by themselves and no longer Members of the unbelieving Synagogue From whence you would inferr that one Christian is to be separated from another Christian and believers gathered from believers if one part appear to us Pious and the other Vicious Which is just as if the Apostles out of those few Disciples separated from the Jews had made another lesser Church separated from the rest of the Disciples N. C. I see my Error plainly And shall remember hereafter if I can not merely to nibble at the Scripture as you called it but take it altogether But Mr. Bridge affrights us horribly with one place which prophesies he sayes of the greatest separation in the latter dayes that ever was It is in the Revelation where the Spirit cryes Come out of her my people that you be not partaker of her sins There shall be the greatest separation and that provokes the Antichristian party as his words are p. 179. of the Book before mention'd C. I remember them very well Rev. 18.4 But do you still take Mr. Bridge for a Prophet Have I not shown you what a rare Seer he is in the Revelation N. C. I have heard others beside him mention this place Mr. Case I remember gave us this reason to hope that God would be gracious to England Englands Incouragement to wait on God p. 69. and that Babylon should shortly fall because he had begun with such a distinct and audible voice from Heaven to call his people out of Babylon saying Come out of her my people c. Rev. 18.4 her Idolatrous bowings cringings Altars Crosses and cursed Ceremonies false Worship false Doctrine C. You need say no more I have it perfectly in mind as well as you And you were wont I know in those days to believe that they knew the designs of Heaven as well as if they had been Counsellors of State in that kingdom And conceived the News they told you of what was coming as sure and certain as if they had layn in the Bosom of St. John as he did in our Saviour's But I hope by this time you are convinced they were only drowsy dreamers that knew nothing of his Mind And see that they are but like a poor Mouse which having but one hole is easily caught Babylon Babylon was all they had to say then and thither they run now These are the Magical sounds whereby they would astonish you The Mystical words whereby they practise all their Sorceries upon you Stop but your ears against these and you are free from their Enchantments for they can never prove that the Church of England is this Babylon from whence his people are call'd or that she hath taken so much as one sip or kiss'd the Cup of her Fornications N. C. I never askt them indeed to prove this C. No You took it very lovingly upon their word And ran after those whom you fancied and were inamoured of with an implicit Faith as if you had tasted too deep of the Cup your selves If you did but hear them say Mystery Mystery the very word you know in the forehead of the whore presently you bowed to them and thought you were under the teachings of an infallible Spirit And you remember I suppose very well that those two and all the rest of the Ministers that were wont to preach before the Parliament and in the greatest Congregations generally chose their texts out of the Old-Testament seldom out of the New unless it were the Revelation N. C. What of that C. By which means they furnished themselves in an abundant measure with such Comparisons as did them admirable service They could easily contrive it so that they might seem such a select number as the Jewes the peculiar people of God and we like the Aegyptians and Babylonians or what other accursed Nation they pleased And so applying all those places which spoke of them to us and our times they excited in you the same hatred against us that was in the Jews against those Nations and made you think it as necessary to separate from us as for the Jews to come out of Babylon Nay by a wonderful Art or prodigious Inchantment rather which argues your great dulness they first raised your fancies put words into your mouths and taught you to expect all that they had a mind should shortly come to pass and then they made the expectation they had wrought in you an argument that it should come to pass Thus I remember one of your Divines incouraged the Parliament to expect the overthrow of Babylon because said he the General talk throughout the Houshold among the Domesticks is Mr. H. Wilkinson Sermon upon Zach. 18.19 pag. 21. that Christ their King is coming to take possession of his Throne This they not only whisper but speak publickly Now you know before Kings go to a place their purpose is first known among
therefore I find his Majesty was fain for the satisfaction of the two Houses so his words are to make a further concession and to profess he would not insist upon any provision for continuance of the use of the Book of Common-prayer in his Majesties Chappel for himself and his houshold nevertheless he declared he intended to use some other set Form of Divine Service c This was 4. Novemb. 1648. But nothing would satisfie unless he would do according to the Directory they would not allow a Set Form in his own House no though he declared in a further explication of his mind that he could not with a good Conscience communicate in a publick Form of Divine Service and Administration of Sacraments where it is wholly uncertain what the Minister will say to God and told them he hoped they would not think it reasonable to offer any violence to the conscience of their Sovereign For in their answer d Novemb. 20. they tell him twice though they would not force his conscience yet desire it may be informed and rectifyed that so it might agree with theirs who were his great Council that is they would not call it by that name but he must either agree to them or be as he was And so in fine he was content to wave even a Set Form e Reply Nov. 21. Do you not see now how we were deceived by this word Liberty and that the King himself could have no benefit of it Had you not a great care of tender Consciences and were exceeding nice in pressing men to that wherein they were not fully satisfied Certainly his Majesty had reason to say f Declar. of Jan. 18. after votes of no addresses If it be Liberty of conscience they desire he who wants it is most ready to give it And what do you think of his Majesties earnest desire to have some of his Chaplains attend him a Which he made February 17. 1646. Was it not barbarous to deliberate one moment whether it should be allowed or no especially by those who cryed up Liberty so much And yet he was fain to renew his Message to them the next month b March 6. and to represent the necessity of it for the guidance of his Conscience But still they stop their ears to his desires for in his Answers to their Propositions c May 12. 1647. he respites his answer to what concerned the Covenant because he could not give a resolution in a matter of Conscience till he might be assisted with the advice of some of his own Chaplains which had hitherto been denyed him Nay when he was at Carisbrook d Message of Aug. 10. 1648. I find him complaining that he had none about him except a Barbar which came down with the Commissioners that ever he named to wait upon him A piece of rigor and barbarism greater than is ever used by Christians to the meanest prisoners and greatest Malefactors e Icon Basil c. N. C. I know the words But what is this to penalties C. You led me out of the way and yet not altogether for you may see by this that Christian Liberty is but a Phrase and signifies nothing when any but your selve challenges the benefit of it But if you would hear any more of the other I must tell you the Independents were for some punishments though more mild than yours For which I must refer you to Mr. Burroughs f Irenicum pag. 36. 37. and not stay to recite his words at length who tells you men may be restrained by Violence from publishing gross Errors notwitstanding their plea of Conscience and that some trouble may be laid in their way who hold Errors of less moment so far as to take off the wantonness of their spirits and neglect of means Nay where men by their weakness render themselves less serviceable to the Common-wealth or Church he saith they may be denyed some priviledges granted to others of which he gives you instances N. C. What No respect to tender Consciences C. Yes But if a man be proud and turbulent in his carriage and dispise his betters the same Person tells you you may be sure the Devil is in his will rather than in his Conscience For though an erroneous conscience may cause one to hold fast an Error it doth not put him upon proud scornful and turbulent behaviour When a man by reason of his Conscience it may be the weakness of it differs from his Brethren he had need carry himself with all humility and meekness and self-denial in all things ☞ Consider how well you follow this Rule who are so peremptory and proud c. He should be willing to be a servant to every man in what lawfully he may that thereby he may shew to all that it is not from any wilfulness but meerly tenderness of his Conscience that he cannot come off to that which his Brethren can do whom yet he reverences and in his carriage towards them shews that he esteems them his betters But if a man that is weak very much beneath others in Parts and Graces he might have said any one that dissents from the Generality of Christians and his Governours where he lives shall carry himself high imperious contemning and vilifying those who differ from him and be contentious with them there is great reason to think the corruption is in the will rather than any where else And if there should be some conscience yet in those men their heart distempers may justly forfeit their right of pleading their conscience Those who oppose them if they do it in a Christian way nay justifie what they do before God and say to him when he calls them to an account for their dealing so with those that professed Conscience Lord we were willing to have dealt with them in all tenderness if we could have seen conscientiousness in their carriage But we saw nothing but scornfulness pride imperiousness turbulency conceitedness we could see nothing of the Spirit of Jesus Christ acting them in their way * You may read this in Mr. Burroughs Ib. p. 32. c. Thus he also resolves this question How shall we know a man to be obstinate when he opposes the judgment of many more godly and learned than himself 1. If he oppose the common principles of Christianity 2. If in other matters his carriage be turbulent and altogether unbeseeming a Christian differing from his Brethren 3. Where there is neglect of those means of Information which he hath nothing to say against Lastly If he so cross his own principles that he appear to be self-condemned †Ib. pag. 92. Think ☞ I beseech you whether this be not your case N. C. I have a number of things to say but I see you are in hast and therefore will let them alone C. You may propound them some other time if upon consideration of these things you be not satisfied And