Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	apostle_n	receive_v	tradition_n	2,537	5	8.9791	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88565	Illumination to Sion Colledge. Wherein, their calling to the Ministery (the foundation whereof not being built upon Christ) is dissipated, their arrogancy hereupon manifested, the extent of magistrates power in generall defined; the execution of the late King, and the seculusion of the late members of Parliament farther justified; the former declarations of Parliament and Scriptures which they cite, explained; their objections from the Covenant, removed in the grammaticall sense thereof; and the Parliament and Army from their aspersions in all vindicated. Being for answer, to the representation of their judgments, in a letter to the Generall, January 18. last: serves also to their vindication: and in part to a pamphlet intituled, Essex Watchmens watch-word: likewise in effect to a later libell (supposed Mr. Loves, intituled, A vindication of the ministers from the aspersions (alias the Etymologies) of Mr. Price, in his Clerico Classicum, &c. To which latter pamphlet, is annexed a briefe answer to what is not so fully hinted in that to the Ministers. / By J.L. as cordiall and fervent a thirster after the nations prosperity, as any.	J. L.	1649 (1649)	Wing L31; Thomason E558_4; ESTC R205842	44,054	37

refuse a meeting was contemptible But that your matter might seem the stronger you ascribe your selves a large circuit viz. the Ministers of London in defence of this your peremptory refusall under that stile when the●e are as many sound holy conscientious and almost if not quite as many learned and yet contrary minded men whose title is as good to the Mini●tery as your selves therein But being carryed on with that lust of self esteem and continuance in the kingdome you convert the reproofs in scripture unto wicked men to those that oppose and resist this lust as a sin in you and whereas you should lift up your voices as trumpets to shew the people their transgressions as swearing drunkenesse whoredome pride and the like and against the Magistrates for bearing the sword in vain herein you excite the people to more sin which is fle●●ly contention and opposition being far distant from your assumed title Minisers of the Gospel and so should be of peace But justly may that wo be pronounced against you Woe be unto them that speak good of evill and evill of good Is 1.5 ●0 which put darknes for light and light for darknes that put bitter for sweet and sweet for sowre But in your 2 page you discover that so openly of your selves that needs not be discovered to you for your words are had a conference beene desired with 〈◊〉 o●●h to have g●●e● you resolution whether the wayes wherein at present you are walking are agreeable to the word of God we should have delivered our judgements c. There needs no farther testimony of your ambition or discovery of those ends for which you first engaged and complyed in deposing the Bishops though you yet continue your Ordination from them and conjunction would supply their places then these your own aspiring words whereby you demonstrate that you would be as claiming a sole right thereunto the Armies counsellors as if the spirit of God rested upon you onely that none could discern what is agreeable to Gods word or what is rationall and essentiall to the peace and freedome of the kingdome in the establishment of a civill government the word of God not prescribing every particular expedient therein but your selves and as if there were no Ministers that had the same title to the preaching of the Gospel that sided with the Army and that you are the onely men to be enquired off concerning the minde of God in his word but your conjunction herein may well be compared to theirs in Ezek. 22.25 there is a conspiracy of her Prophets in the middest thereof like a roaring lion raving the prey they have devoured souls c. Many poor souls have been allured to depend upon your doctrine as infallible and so are deceived through your usurping and maintaining such a sole right to explicate the scriptures especially upon mens traditions humane grounds degrees in leaning which if any expedient at all as receiving it by tradition yet one of the least 1 Cor. 1.26 when the Apostle saith expressely not many wise men after the flesh c. but God hath chos●n the foolish things of the world to confound the wise that are so esteemed by the world and vile things of the world and things which are despised Verse 28. such as Coblers and Tinkers let their outward calling be never so mean by reason whereof they are contemned by the world and thought unworthy as to the exposition of the scriptures yet these hath God chosen of the world and things which are not in the worlds appr●h●nsion and their own likewise capable of such preferment to bring to nought to render vain and unprofitable not onely to themselves but those also John 9.41 by whom they were esteemed things that are and none else besides them in their own estimation and the worlds likewise which say they sco but therefore their sin remaineth Nay unto babes shall the hidden misteryes of the kingdome of heaven be revealed to men of small capacities Matth 11.25 in the esteem of such as have fle●●y wisdome such babes for that the spirit of God is powerfullest purest simplest and discernably so where least of humane helps are a●joyned in Christs accompt have suitable spirits for Gospel revellations But remember you self conceited and so ascribing men that Wo unto them that are wise in their own eyes Isa 5.21 and prudent in their own sight But had the Army questioned the lawfulnesse of their wayes in which they are as confident pro that they are good as your selves cont and hereupon had invited you to a conference you should have met And have given in this as your advice that instead of proceeding further in such unwarrantable courses they should have testified their timely and godly sorrow for which so clearly against the direct rule of the word they have already acted Who would have thought that such self confident men in that you peremptorily conclude the Armies wayes are against the word of God though your interpretation thereupon as hereafter appears makes the scriptures irreconcileable should at a conference seek so much advantage from men as to desire they should so much as question much lesse deny the justnesse of their wayes about which they were to conferr for those that question the legality of their proceedings may easily be perswaded that they are illegall But you still page 3. finde fault with your invitation As is say you your wayes were already granted by us we were onely invited to contribute our assistance in prosecution of what you had undertaken which we conceive to be out of your Spheare Whe would think that men that would seem to be so conscientious as you do should grumble that the Army by their invitation did repute you better then you were yet I believe you mista●e them in it for they could not be ignorant of the publique impertinent and seditious opposition you made and still make against them therefore it would be folly to thinke they should invite you to contribute assistance to their proceedings which they know you so greatly did and doe though undeservedly vilifie and all this from a meer conception that they act out of their Sphear gives more just ground to believe that you are exceedingly transported with some affianced lust thus inconsiderately to act out of your s●heer even to the reproach of your profession by contending for such a power which the word of God allowes not in any and wherein to comply with you 〈◊〉 ● 1 is to contradict the Apostles rule that bids us have no fellowship with the unsrui●full w●rks of ●●rknesse but reprove them rather You proceed now more particularly though inconsiderately in that you forget the * The 〈…〉 the 〈…〉 fast president of attempt against lawfull aut●ority countenanced and ●●●tted if not by verball justification yet in silence by you to demonstrate the by you so conceived unjustnesse of the Armys ways by their by you called late attempts

likely willingly digresse yet it is too much veritied upon many of you that make a trade and pin your livelihoods upon the pre●ching of the Gospel notwithstanding your abilities to the contrary but if the Apostles thought it expedient to work much more may you whose authority is not so good refer your selves to the benevolence of your Congregations or at least not ungospel-like to contend for a reward now I say though you wave the particular end of the Apostles words yet I shall answer a little to them in your own sense therefore in the next place you say one of the Apostles traditions is Put them inminde to be subject to prin●ipallities and powers and to obey mag●●● T●● ●2 1 Fo● 13 1 2. and to let every soule be subject to the higher powers c. These te●● h●th in effect been already answered the lesse therefore will now serve now th●n seeing magistrates have a power above them viz. the people the originall of their authority it is clear that the Apostle exhorts obedience in the people D●●● ●8 ●6 F●●● 33.2 non co●junction as they are the center and top of the magistrates power sed d●●●s●● as they are private persons else you will civide the scripture and make the fountain dependant on the streams and the master on his servants Again he minded them of this obedience either as a Church which I rather believe or as members of a State if as a Church though this interpretation wi●● h●●● good therein likewise then what you infer is as wide from the then present trans●●●tions of the Parliament and Army as spirituall things are from tempo●●ll And if as members of a State y●ur application of this text is altogether ●●●ti●ent seeing it is granted that private persons ought to obey lawfull magr●●ates in lawfull causes But ●his 〈◊〉 t●xt you quote seems to ●●g●a reason of obedience to magistrates yet far from Rom. 13.1 2. ●ur sense the text saith Let every soul be subject to the higher powers for there i●to po●er but of God the powers that ●e are ordained of God whos●e●er therof ●or ●●ieth the power resisleth the ordinance of God and they that resist shall receive to the●selves damnation Now to open this scripture in opposition to your sense of it I shall premise these things viz. full that there are powers immediatly ordained of God or by an immediate particula● command from God 1 S●●● 17. 1 〈◊〉 13. 2● 〈◊〉 3.9.3 that is when God doth particularly institute such or such a person to be a magistrate thus God commanded Sam●● to single our Saul the s●ist King and the same Prophet afterward to ●●●int Davi● the youngest of his br●●h en● in like manner was J●hu though a servant to the successive King his master in●●ituted theref●re th● text commands not subjection in this sense there ●eing no such ordi●ation now But. Secondly there are powers mediately ordained of God that is God hath committee ●●t to a people 〈…〉 6 1● to constitute their own Officers whethe● high or lo● n●w when a people hath thus elected with power invested their own magistrates upon that generall limitation to their respective Offices viz. to doe equity and righteousnes in all the particular acts thereof as far as the p●●●l● a●● convinced of them then that people are injoyned by your precited text 1 〈◊〉 1● 9 as private persons to obey them in lawfull commands as the mediate ordinance of Go● but it being clear as before amply demonstrated that the lawfull auth●rit● you speak of had not this qualification or at least acted not up to it it is 〈◊〉 that this text injoyned not obedience to them but conseque●tly oppos●●● the contrary of subjection and the Army is to be justifica as upon many o●●●r grounds so upon this therein Thirdly and lastly in answer to the same text there are powers permissively ordained by God that is such that God doth not prevent or oppose but suffereth to be and these are illegal tyrannicall oppressive powers which God is said to ordain as he is said to do evil by permitting it to be done * Amos 3.6 now for any to think that God is the author of evil because he permits it or that God ordains otherwise then permissively and enjoyns tyrannicall powers because he doth not appear against them is to charge God with injustice it being against his attribute of justice to enjoyn obedience to an unjust power it is indeed to make God the author of sin so far as an unjust power is sinfull and therefore that the Apostle might manifest as I believe the justice of God herein he limits our subjection to a condition by rendring a reason thereof which though you omit yet is the very qualification of our subjection the command is Be subject to the higher powers c. but why For or because he that is the magistrate is the minister of God for thy wealth c. this is the very Hinge upon which the power of magistracy hangs Rom. 13.4 but take away the Hinge and the doore must needs be down that is if the magistrates actings for the wealth of the people dyes their power dyes with it now if omissions of much more commissions against the common wealths good by oppressions in designing self-interest and the like makes the power of Magistrates extinct wherein likewise we are bound to resist them it being the complaint of God that none are found in a Nation to oppose the exercise of an unjust power whether in Princes by shedding of blood or in Prophets by divining lies or in the people most likely in their Representatives by oppression The Lord saith Ezek. 22.30 I sought for a man among them that should make up the hedge and stand in the gap before me for the land that I should not destroy it but I found none not onely to stand in the gap by Prayer but make up the hedge put thorns in their way and as the Margin hath it which should shew himself zealous in my cause by resisting vice in the like neglect Isa 59.16 God wondred that no man offered himself to do judgement and how acceptably did God take it Numb 25.11 that Phineas though a private man did execute justice upon Zimri and Cosbi though the chief of their families and though he had no particular command for what he did and so not a rule as some of you say yet it is a renowned example approved by God himself unto us In case of the like neglect in others to act up to that generall and universall command viz. the execution of judgement and justice as he did and such may expect the same blessing if they respect the same end therefore the Parliament and Army that had both equity and power and were entrusted unto that opposition which they made against your tho the major partie in Parliament in their sought to be established oppression and therein to infringe

of the Ministers you so much esteem As to the dayes of union you speak of it is confest in the Bishops dayes we were under the p●wer of such conformity that the truth could hardly appear but be suddenly supprest with some reproach or other upon it at which time likewise there were daily declinings from that little light there was if these be your dayes for other I know none of union and so desirable the mercy of God in freeing us from them is ill requited by you otherwise you much degenerate from that generall duty Doe as you would be done to to endeavour a compulsive conformity by others unto your way since you so much pleaded for and against the restr●nt of liberty in the worship and service of God when attempted to be● imposed on you under the Prelaticall prevalency Neither therefore can our separation be reputed Schisme or Faction criminall since upon the same grounds as your selves did we avoid the continuall flashings of conscience in our faces that attend a compulsive worship As to that forced interpretation you make of Mr. Price his words viz. Which is all the benefit thou hast received by the exchange of this late Diocesse for the Province of London that therefore he would rather have London a Diocesse then a Province I say this interpretation is meerly forced seeing the words are only the result of a discovery of what little benefit hath accrued by that change from which had the conditions thereof been rightly managed we did expect and might accordingly have enjoyed our hearts content the benefit intended In a word he mislikes the ill use of the change not the thing it self but should I yeeld to what you would imply in them I tell you we should never have been so willing had we known your intentions before hand to have assisted with our temporall estates to depose a coercive power in the Bishops to exalt it in you and so more irksom from whom we expected better as David from his friends it indeed not being worth a tythe of seven yeares such expense warre and trouble only in name and not in nature the province of London for its Diocesse Again to your exceptions against his quotation of Gregory viz. That it is the language of the Beast and therefore makes it incogitable that he should study it I answer that in Mr Loves sense if he will avoid the language of the Beast then he must avoid preaching and praying with many other good words and deeds that they both speak and do But secondly as there is the greatest motive upon Christians to perform some good duties lest they should come short of Heathen that doe the same so doth this reproofe lye heavier upon the Ministers that are found seeking to themselves names of vanity which even the Beast as you call him did reprove But secondly Mr. Love is very captious to comment so much upon an errour in printing viz. 323. for 32. and I cannot but think himselfe believes to be a mistake therein and yet inlargeth halfe a side upon it Truly it 's a signe he wanted good matter enough when he causlesly insists so much upon circumstances neither can he keep himselfe close to this but upon the mistake growes very pastionate and tels us though directed onely to Mr. Price yet we must all expect the same since that if we persist to justifie the ki●ling the King as h● calls it c. Gregory the Executioner may not mistake our necks to be more then we have Who would have thought that Mr Loves Nature should differ so much from his Name What a bitter spirit doth he here discover He tels us plainly what we might expect se●●dice if he were our judge at least that we should despaire of him as an ad●ocate though it came to that extremity by his own party but blessed be God that we are not as yet fallen into your hands neither rewarded you evill for evill though ●bstra●tively considered it is no evill to render you impartially according to your deserts But I rather desire concord Th●n thirdly Mr. Love would fain justifie his brethren and himselfe likewise from seeki●g those names of vanity that Gregory there reproves as universall Bishop and the like but all this will not serve for in seeking the same authority that is denominated by those names though for shame of the world you omit the names thmeselves yet you are liable to the same reproof it being intended to the sought for arrogant authority not so much the name of the person Again what though you should not seek after the same names and substance though in comparison there is none in it of vanity yet in seeking others really vain you are as culpable For Christ never allowed a sole power to his Apostles to preach the Gospel and unfold the Scriptures them onely and none besides them but the Ministers though they come not in by the doore yet assume this power And though you say that they seek no other names but what Christ gives viz. Ministers of the Gospel Preachers of the Word Embassadours of Christ but I am sure they want his commission yet Christ never ascribed these names to an Academicall University calling to a vain calling And therefore as to the unclean all things are unclean so for the Ministers upon so vain a title to assume these names is absolute vanity and one act hereof by the way I shall mind you of and that is because Ministers you shall see some young boyes with hardly a haire in then faces take the wall of some that are thrice better both in estate and age but if you mend not you 'l work out your selves To conclude this answer I cannot but take notice how Mr. Love hath all this while laboured to vindicate the Ministers left they should fall under that Pope Gregories reproof and the●efore cannot but grant 't is just and yet in his first answer thereto calls it the language of the ●●●●st This is a plain contradiction in his own words and is the mark of a ●aw no●●●e then any thing he can fix upon the person he would reproach therewith Again to what he chargeth the Army page 8. for kindling the flames of a second warre and therefore alledgeth these reasons viz. That one while they erred up the King closed with the Maligna●●● c. And at another time forced the Parliament as he calleth it to Nonad trasse● c. these did irritate the Malignants to now insurrections c. To this I answer That this s●●lenesse in the Army as you call it is no lesse justifiable then that of a wise and tender he ●●ed Father towards an obstinate disobedient child the Father will first assay all meanes as mild pe●●wa●ions and gifts and if that will not doe then threatnings and long fo●b●a ance and stripes before he delivers up his child to the Judge to be stoned Thus wh●●●●ll m●anes would not prevaile with the King there was no way