Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	able_a	faith_n	wise_a	2,479	5	6.1564	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B07159	A most humble supplication of many the Kings Maiesties loyall subiects, ready to testifie all civill obedience, by the oath, as the law of this realme requireth, and that of conscience; who are persecuted, onely for differing in religion, contrary to divine and humane testimonies as followeth..	Murton, John.	1621 (1621)	STC 563.7; ESTC S95969	22,236	39

the wheat and tares grow together in the world untill the Harvest Mat. 13. And so in humble manner we proceed CHAP. I. The doctrine of the Holy Ghost contained in the sacred Scriptures is the rule of faith and not any Church Counsell Prince or Potentate nor any mortall man whatsoever Proved BY the Scriptures themselves which are the writings of Moses and the Prophets The Evangelists and Apostles These are a sufficient Rule to trie all faith and religion by Our reasons are 1. They are inspired of God and are able to make us wise unto salvation and perfect to every good worke 2. Tim. 3.15 Secondly because these writings were written that we might have certainety of the things whereof we are instructed Luke 1.4 That our joy might be full 1. Ioh. 1.4 and that we might beleeve and in beleeving might have life Ioh. 20.31 Thirdly we are cōmanded Not to presume or be wise above that which is written 1. Cor. 4.6 For with this weapon Christ put to flight the devill Mat. 4. and taught his Disciples Luk. 24.27 46. and Paul taught Christ Iesus Act. 17.2 The godly are commended for searching the Scriptures Act. 17.11 and commanded to search them Ioh. 5.39 and they that vvill not beleeve these Writings will not beleeve Christs vvords nor one that should come from the dead Ioh. 5.47 Luke 16.31 If any Papist or Atheist aske how vvee know all or any of these Scriptures to be inspired of God Wee answer The eare saith Iob 12.11 discerneth words and the mouth tasteth meate for it selfe And as the eie discerneth the light of the Sun so doth our spirit discerne these Scriptures to be of God and that for these reasons First in regard of the majestie wisedome and Grace of them from all other writings For there is as great glorie in these Scriptures as in the making of this vvonderfull vvorld which may evidently be seene Secondly by their teachings which excelleth all humane teachings leading us from Satan from this world and our selves to God in holinesse faith love feare humilitie Thirdly the true events of them or fulfilling of the Prophesies conteined in them Fourthly the consent and agreement of all the parts of them the like wherof cannot be shewed of so many severall Writers since the vvorld began Fiftly the admirable preservation therof against time and tyrants all which could not extinguish them Sixtly the devill and his instruments rage against those that practise the doctrines conteined in them Seventhly the conversion of thousands to God by the power of the doctrine of them Eightly the vengeance of God upon such as have not obeyed them Ninthly the acknowledgement of them by the verie professed adversaries thereof Tenthly the miracles from heaven confirming them Eleventhly the sight of a Saviour to man is onely from them And lastly the simplicity of the Writers and plainenes of the writings For God hath chosen the meane contemptible and despised to publish the mysteries of his will These are sufficient to perswade that these holy Writings are inspired of God and so able to make us wise to salvation and perfect to every good worke These Scriptures conteine the Law and Testimonie and if any Councell Church Prince or Potentate speake not according to this word it is because there is no light in them Esa 8.20 but we are commanded to hold them accursed Gal. 1.8.9 For whosoever shall adde unto these things God shall adde the plagues written herein and who so shall take away from those things God shall take his name out of the booke of Life and out of the holy Citie and from those things that are written Revel 22.18.19 Much by us shall not need to be vvritten in this thing it is so evident and so generally acknowledged except the Papists onely we will bring some humane Testimonies The Protestants affirme Whites Way to the Church Dedicated to the Bishops pag. 12. That it is the doctrine of the Church of England Article six that the Scriptures comprehended in the old and new Testament is the Rule of Faith so far that whatsoever is not read therein nor cannot be proved thereby is not to be accepted as any point of faith or needfull to be followed but by it all doctrines taught and the Churches practice must be examined and that rejected which is contrary to it under what title or pretence soever it come unto us And further they say pag. 1. That the Pope or any mortall man should be the rule that must resolve in questions and controversies of faith is an unreasonable Position voide of all indifferency when common sence teacheth that he that is a Party cannot be a Iudge And againe p 17. Which is the Church is controversall which is the Scriptures is not therefore let that be the Rule which is out of doubt Againe pag. 44. The Scriptures containeth the Principles of our faith and shall we not beleeve them Or cannot we know them of themselves infallibly without we let in the authority of the Church This and much more the Protestants have written sufficiently confirmeth That no Church nor man whatsoeuer may be a Rule or Iudge in matters of Faith but onely the holy Scriptures and whosoever teacheth or practiseth otherwise they must hold maintain the Papists Creed or Colliers faith which the Protestants so much detesteth mentioneth p. 6. out of Staphilus his Apologie Thus The Collier being at the point of death tempted of the devill what his faith was answered J beleeve and die in the faith of Christs Church being againe demanded what the faith of Christs Church was that faith saith he that J beleeve in Thus the devill getting no other answer was overcome and put to flight by this faith of the Collier every unlearned man may trie the spirits of men whether they be of God or no by this faith he may resist the devill and judge the true interpretation from the false and dis erne the Catholique from the Hereticall Minister the true doctrine from the forged For if this answer of the Collier and the Papists conclusion upon it be not sound but detestable as the Protestants confesse and cry woe unto the Papists for the same and that justly Then is it no lesse detestable in the Protestants or any other to require or force any to yeeld so in Religion and Faith that upon such a temptation he hath no better answer to make then as the Collier to say I beleeve and die in the faith of the Church or of the Prince or of the learned For being demanded what that faith is if he be not able to prove it by Gods word conteyned in the Scriptures it is no better then the answer of the Collier The faith that I beleeve in c. Oh how manie millions of soules in this Nation not Papists but Protestants live and die and have no other faith then this CHAP. II. The interpreter of this Rule is the Scriptures themselves and the Holy

of your Majestie your Highnes your Honors your Worships to take pitie on us our poore wives and children or his heavenly Majestie release us by death Will not succeeding ages cry out against these cruell courses of the Protestants as well as they crie out against the crueltie of the Iewes and Papists Yes we are assured they will as many millions doe in other Nations at this day The Scriptures declare the cause of the blindnesse of the learned Iewes was Not the obscurity of the Scriptures but that they winked with their eyes lest they should see and lest their honour and profite should decay and come to nothing Ioh. 11.48 and because their feare towards God vvas taught by mens Precepts and because they looked to their own vvay and to their owne advantage and had rejected the word of the Lord and because they builded their Sion with bloud and Ierusalem with iniquitie and sought their own Honour and not Gods So the cause of the blindnesse of the learned Papists in denying the Scriptures to be the onely rule of faith is not the obscurity of the Scriptures but they receiving not the love of the Truth God hath given them up to strange and strong delusions and the cause of their not receiving the love of the truth being all those afore-named in the Iewes And the Protestant well observeth that the causes why the Papist deny the Scriptures onely sufficiencie and strive so much for their Churches Authoritie are two First That they might make themselves Iudges in their own cause For vvho seeth not that if the Church be the rule of faith and theirs be the Church which way the verdit will goe Next For that the greatest points of their Religion have no foundation on the Scriptures So that take away the Scriptures and establish their Religion but establish the Scriptures and their Religion vanisheth and that Mother of whoredomes that glorified her selfe as a Queene shall be consumed for her Merchants that are wexed rich through her pleasure and profites shall waile and weep The which they now seeing shut their eyes lest they should see that that should bring them from those Honours Profites and Pleasures In like manner it may easily be judged by everie indifferent heart that the cause why the learned of this land will be blind in not ceasing to constraine men to practise that in Gods worship in which they have not faith nay vvhich is contrarie to the light of their consciences is Not the obscuritie of the Scriptures But their winking with their eyes lest they should see that that would take away their honours profits and pleasures For if Bribes blinde the eyes of the wise Deut. 16.19 then honours profits and pleasures much more For who seeth not if none should be compelled to practice any thing in Gods worship but what they have faith in which will make them read willingly and worship holily then the Honours Profits and Pleasures of the learned men in respect of Spiritualty would decay although your Majestie might lawfully give them what temporall Honours Profits and Pleasures your Highnesse liked of These are the true causes of the blindnesse of the learned For so Christ saith Ioh. 5. How can yee beleeve when yee seeke honour one of another and seeketh not the honour that is of God And how can men but be blind in Gods mysteries vvhen they look to their own way for their own advantage and for their own purpose For having rejected the word of the Lord what wisedome is in them they have no answer of God that build up their Syon for so they account their Churches or professions vvith bloud and Ierusalem with iniquitie If these learned could free us from the Lords wrath or that they might answer for us and we be free it were safe for us to submit our selves and captivate our judgements and practise to them but seeing they cannot so much as deliver their own soules and that if the blind leade the blind both must fall into the ditch Mat. 15. and everie one give account of himselfe to God Rom. 14. and be judged by his own workes done in the flesh 2. Cor. 5. and that the soule that sinneth shall die Ezek. 18. vvee dare not follow any mortall man in matters of salvation further then wee know him to agree vvith Gods meaning in the Scriptures Paul the holy Apostle of Iesus Christ taught that we should follow him no otherwise then he followed Christ 1. Cor. 11.1 yea Christ himselfe sent men to the Scripture to try his doctrine Ioh. 5. The Apostles suffred their doctrine to be tryed and commended them that tryed it Act. 17.11 And the Protestants confesse White pag. 127. This doctrine was never misliked till a Church arose up whose silver being drosse and whose milke poyson could not endure the tryall which being true that we may trie why may we not also judge and practise according as Gods Spirit shall direct us in our tryall If a man should drinke poyson and know it to be poyson were he not in a worse estate then hee that should doe it ignorantly not knowing thereof even a murtherer of himselfe in the highest degree so he that drinketh spirituall poyson knowing it for so it is unto them they not having faith in it he is in a worse estate even a murtherer of his owne soule in the like degree And therefore that Church or those learned that vvill suffer their doctrine to be tryed and yet constraine men to receive it and practise it when upon tryall their consciences are convinced of the falshood thereof are worse and doe more highly sinne then they that constraine a blind conscience though both be evill Wee despise not learning nor learned men but doe reverence both it and them according to their worthinesse onely when it is advanced into the seat of God and that given unto it which apperteineth to the Holy Ghost which is to leade into all truth then ought all as Hezekiah did unto the brazen serpent detest it and contemne it CHAP. VI. Persecution for Religion is against the Law of Christ FIrst himselfe commanded Mat. 13.30 vvith 38. Let the Tares and wheate grow together in the world untill the end of this world Secondly the same Christ our Lord commandeth Mat. 15.14 that they which are blindly led on in false Religion and are offended at him for teaching true Religion should be let alone deferring their punishment unto their falling into the ditch Thirdly hee reproved his Disciples vvho would have had fire to come downe from heaven and devoured those Samaritanes that vvould not receive Christ saying Yee know not of what spirit yee are the Sonne of man is not to destroy mens lives but to save them Luke 9.54.55 which plainely proveth that Christ vvould have no man hurt for Religion although they be refusers of him Fourthly the Holy Ghost teacheth the servants of the Lord must not strive but be gentle towards all men suffering the evill