Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n
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A57308
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The serpent's subtilty discovered in a plain answer to a lying scandalous paper, lately came from Leonard Letchford, who calls himself rector of Hurst-Pierpoint in the county of Sussex.
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Rigge, Ambrose, 1635?-1705.
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1663
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Wing R1490; ESTC R217999
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16,680
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not be rightly said to be the Devil in L. L. who sends the servants of God to prison for practising of prayer holy duties which the Lord hath led them to perform as he hath done many of late years and as for any extraordinary motions which the Quakers doth own as Christ in them which differeth from or standeth in no conjunction with the Scripture I charge L. L. to produce any such that the Quakers either own or practise or else let shame cover his face from condemning the Innocent without a cause Pr. 2. Affirmation And now he may boldly adventure to become a seducing and an erronious Devil having drawn him from the rule which is the written word which he calls sometimes the declaration of the mind of God I suppose he means to other men who are in darknesse he calls the Quakers to have recourse to some voice within him which was Saul 's delusion I verily thought that I might do many such such thingâ— Acts 26. to attend upon some new revelations and declarations of the mind of God which he hath not given to other men and which are not contained in that dull and dark lant horn of the Scriptures as they esteemed it if this Devil play as he doth with the Quaker may not the dreams of St. Frances and St. Anthony the Revelation of St. Bridget and St. Katharine come to be of higher esteem and to be preferred before the Scriptures Popery Popery is not this making way for unwritten traditions a bringing them into credit to the slighting of the written word of God Answ As for the Devil being a seducing erroneous spirit this hath been his practise many ages having drawn both the Priests and their followers from the life and power of God in Christ Jesus which only redeems out of Satans Kingdome but as for drawing the Quakers from the rule of righteousnesse or the word of God this he neither is nor I hope shall ever be able to do for it is the sword of the Spirit by which we have and doe quench all his fiery darts which either he or any of his ministers hath or can shoot against us but where dost thou read of a written word to be the rule if thou canst prove such a word by the Scriptures bring it forth now because thou hast urged that so often to make us odious who cannot call the Scripture that which it doth not call it self but a declaration we can truly call it because the holy men of God did so call it as thou mayst read Luke 1. 1 2. which plainly demonstrates that the Scriptures or writings of the holy men of God from the beginning was called a declaration And the word was God Joh. 1. 1. And Christ who was one with his Father his name was called the word of God Rev. 19. 13. And the Bereans were noble because they received the word and then searched the Scriptures Act. 17. 11. which again makes a manifest difference between the word and the writings which was first received before they could rightly search the Scriptures for if we had not received the word of God and thereby searched the Scriptures we could not have found out the deceivableness of the Priests so much as we have done And as for the Dâ—vil calling the Quaker to some voice within him this was never the Devils call but the call of God as thou maist read Deut. 30. 13 14. And it was not the word of the Devil in Paul who said the righteousness of faith saith the word is nigh thee even in thy hearâ— mouth that thou maist hear it do it Rom 10. 6 7 8. here he called them to a voice within as God called Moses as I have shewed above it was not the Devil that led Paul to say Christ spoke in him 2 Cor. 13. 3. whose voice he both heard and exhorted others to hear And to say that that was the light within Saul when he said I verily thought c. this is an absolute lye for that was the same Spirit of darkness and delusion which now leads his Successors to think they do good service in persecuting the Church of Christ and the members of it who follows their evil thoughts as he did but when he came to know the true light word and power of God this brought into captivity every thought unto the obedience of Christ as he himself affirmed 2 Cor. â—0 5. and then instead of being a persecutor he was persecuted by them who followed their evil thoughts and among such who now follows their evil persecuting thoughts instead of the true light of Christ Jesus the imaginations of their own brain is more esteemed then the sound Truths declared in the Scriptures and as for St. Frances St. Anthony and Bridget I know no such Saints but if they follow their own dreams imaginations it is but as the Priests doth at this day who sets up that from Scripture which bears no testimony unto it which is but meer Popery in the ground though covered with a more fair cloak Pr. 3. Affir He is in the Quaker a proud supercilious uncharitable censorious Devil to cloak and colour which he gives him leave to be outwaâ—dly and in shew a reserved and humble and grave and abstemious and abounding with sanctimony and self-denial as the most religious Monk or Hermite or the strictest Votary in the Church of Rome that he is not in lewdness like other men there lieth the foundation of his spiritual pride if he had not this boast of the Devil could not hope to make him half so like himself who is the king of pride though he never wore ribonds nor lace nor band strings to judge and censure condemn all men who are not in their way by calling themselves the blessed of the Lord the followers of the Lamb the counsel and nobility of the Royal seed is such a piece of diabolical pride and uncharitableness the devil were a very fool should he not be willing to give them the glory of that deep humility and self-denial as the renouncing of a hat band a pair of cuffs and a band string Answ Was that a proud supercilious uncharitable censorious Devil in John who said we know we are of God the whole world lyeth in wickedness 1 Jo 5. 19. was their gravâ— humbleness abounding with sanctimony self-denial to be judged as L. L. would judge the Quakers whose light so shines before men that the worst of their enemies cannot but see acknowledg to their good works yet the Devil having no just occasion against them that way to satisfy his malice to make them odious would brand them with spiritual pride or liken them to the strict votaries in the Church of Rome therby to cast dirt in their faces for which God will them judge But as for the Church of Rome time may manifest whether the Priests or the Quakers are more like to her in principle
The SERPENT'S SUBTILTY Discovered In a plain Answer to a lying scandalous Paper lately came from Leonard Letchford who calls himself Rector of Hurst-Pierpoint in the County of Sussex HIs Paper is stiled Something drawn up for the good Christians information and the Quakers edification in which he goes about to villifie the Quakers as much as in him lyeth by slanders and false accusations and lastly to charge them as his fore Fathers did Christ with having a Devil ten particular wayes but is no more able to make it appear to be truth against the Quakers then his Progenitors could against Christ and his followers in the dayes of old And therefore is his lyes and false accuâ—ations returned upon his own head which may serve for the universal good and satisfaction of all honest people who hath any scruple left in them concerning the Quakers From him who is a real friend to all good Christians but a living witnesse against all false accusers and slanderers of the Truth whose name amongst men is Ambrose Rigge And first to his Charges 1. LEon Letchford saith A Quaker is one whose pride tells him that the Pinacle of the Temple is a fitter place for him then the feet of Gamaliell one who scorns to be any ones Disciple yet undertakes to teach all though he knows neither what he he saith nor whereof he affirms Answ This charge is very false against the Quaker whom the Lord in the riches of his love and mercy to him hath brought both from his pride and the Pinacle of the Temple and from the feet of such Pharisees as Gamaliell was Acts 5. 34. at whose feet Saul was brought up who was a persecutor of the servants of God Acts 22. 4. binding and delivering both men and women into prison as his posterity now doth who are and hath been brought up at the feet of such Pharisees as Gamaliell was and are as blind persecutors as ever Saul was in binding and delivering into prison both men and women as he did let all the Goales throughout England be witnesses hereunto But the Quakers are brought to the feet of Jesus to learn of him whose Disciples they are yet are not greater then their Lord whom the blind Pharisees called the Prince of Devils Mat. 9. 34. Mark 12. 24. and so it is no marvell why such as Leon. Letchford calls them of his houshold after the same name Mat. 10. 25. and as for any mans Disciples the Quakers are not for what they have received hath bot been from man neither were they taught it by man but by the Revelation of Jesus Christ as Paul testified Gal. 1. 11 12. Priest 2. Charge Or he is one whose businesse is to deliver out their own traditions and new coyned truths to the world rather then to receive the Scripture truths in the love of them and so one who hath provoked God to send him strong delusions and to give him up to believe a lye that he might be damned Answ As for delivering out our own traditions and new coyned truths to the world this is a most horrid untruth for that truth which we deliver to the world is the most ancient upon the face of the earth besides it even the same word which was from the beginning by which many are begotten to God into the faith fellowship of his own Son this word was before traditions was Judges them all in whomsoever they appear this is the ancient truth and faith which was once delivered to the Saints and hath brought the Quakers to receive the Scripture truths in the love of them by which they see under the sheeps cloathing which such ravening wolves as L. L. hath been so long covered with all but would not he have called the appearance of Christ in the flesh in that way and manner of ministration of life wherein he never appeared before new coyned truths if he had been in their dayes who cryed against several things and changed several things which God commanded and established in the first Covenant as the Temple and the Priesthood and the Law and would he not have called this new Doctrine as the Philosophers Epicurians and Stoicks said of Paul Acts 17. 18. and others in the same nature who asked if they might know what this new Doctrine was whereof he spoke for they said he brought certain strange things to their ears others said he seemed to be a setter forth of strange Gods vers 18 19 20. thus they censured him in their carnal dark minds which led them to call the Doctrine of Christ a new Doctrine as Leo. Letchford doth of the same Doctrine now preached by Quakers Pr. 3. Charge When you see him in his outward formal Pharisaical garb his glittering outside beyond other men wherein he boasteth not a little you may look upon the Devil in him transformed into an Angel of light Answ As for outward formal Pharisaical garb and glittering outside this is all denied by the Quakers but where the outside is foule there the inside cannot be clean for as the tree is so is his fruit according to Christs words Matth. 7. but as for boasting of our glittering outside this is a false charge which the Lord will Judge thee for but that righteousness with which we are covered is not of our selves but of him who hath covered us with his white raiment as the spirit of God bears us witness And because of this is the Priests rage so great against us even to bloud it self as the same generation was against him who could never be satisfied till they had his life of whom all the Prophets and Apostles gave testimony that he was the Son of God though the chief Priests with the Scribes called him a Devil and if the Devil were transformed in us into an Angel of light we should be more esteemed by L. L. and his Brethren then we are at this day Pr. 4. Charge When he meets with the commands of Kings and Magistratee though not contradicted by Scripture or never so concordant to it he is that Demoniack in the Gospel and you may look upon the Devil in him as that unruly fiend who breaks all bonds and chains asunder and whom no man can â—ame Answ As for the commands of Kings and Magistrates which are not contradicted by the Scripture or concordant to it our Soules are subject unto not for wrath but for conscience sake yea to every Ordinance of man which is for the punishment of evil doers and for the praise of them that do well 1 Pet. 2. 13. for which end alone King and Râ—lers were ordained of God and whosoever resisteth such as such resisteth the Ordinance of God but the Devil was not in the three Children who resisted Nebuchanezzans command Dan. 3. when it was contrary to the command of God and his worship neither was the Devil as an unruly fiend in Daniel though he resisted the command of Darius the King Dan. 6. 10. when it was