of God in that state sinneth not and he that sinneth not is not in a state of Condemnation for he doth Righteousness and he that doth Righteousness is Righteous as God is Righteous Hoâ—y as he is Holy Pure at he is Pure and Perfect as he whose Child he is is perfect and is as so not in the Alienation Reprobation and Rejection but in the Love Acceptation or Iustification And whereas our Divines talk as if that only were perfect to which nothing can be added that 's a false ignorant and blind assertion for as there is a perfection such is that of God which admits of no addition so there is a true perfection that is without any â—mperfection sin aâ—d corruption which is capable of addition to which more maybe added and such is that of man who may be truly said to be perfect and not imperfect yet to grow on to a fuller measure and stature of that divine nature grace and holynesse which was perfect and not imperfect before though not so perfect but that a greater degree in it may be attained as he that thrives in iniquity which is defect and imperfection becomes thereby more and more imperfect Adam in innocency was perfect and so perfect in righteousnesse that he had no unrighteousnesse or imperfection and though not without temptaâ—ion as Christ was not who never sinned yet clean from all transgression Yet not so perfect as to be utterly uncapable of any addition to that glory he then stood in And Christ Iesus himâ—elfe was a perfect child of God from the womb as to the divine nature he was born in yet grew in stature and was one who did no evill in whom was no sin nor was any guile found in him nor was he in a damnable condition and that gift of the grace and wisdome of God that was in him was perfect grace and wisdome and the least degree of grace that any Saint hath is perfect grace a perfect and not an imperfect gift of God according to the Rule and Measure of which as every one walketh he is so far perfect though but a Babe and yet Saints may grow therein from Babes in nature to young men in Stature which of young men though it is not the highest stature in the Church here on earth yet obtains to so much strength as to overcome the wicked one and from thence to be old men of full growth and age more intimately acquainted with God the Father and to the unity of the knowledge of the Son of God the very measure of the Stature of the fulnesse of Christ himselfe And therefore thy saying T.D. that Babes and young men are imperfect p. 18. as I do not and that true grace is imperfect and true obedience and good works are imperfectly good and sin and evill perfectly evill and such like is such a Whim-wham as shewes thy selfe to be yet so imperfect as no Babe in Christ is in thy understanding of the things of God and such a saying as hath nothing in it if I may without absurdity Tune it back to thee in thy own imperfect Tone but perfect imperfection flat falshood deep darknesse and meere confusion So that all true good is perfectly good and all that 's really evill is properly evill all true light of what kind soever in the least degree is in its kind perfectly light and all darknesse properly darknesse and all that 's properly and truly term'd righteousnesse in the meanest measure is as perfectly righteousnesse as all kind of unrighteousnesse and as all sin is really the transgression of a Law for there 's no transgression where is no Law and the least transgression of the Law in the least part is really or properly sin so every act of true obedience to the Light or Law is though but in part and not so perfect a conformity yet truly and properly and perfectly aâ—co fâ—â—miâ—y to it and not a violation of it and such a perfect Act of obedience as is not only not disobedience but so absolutely contrary to an act of disobedience as that it deserves not the reward of an of act disobedience which is condemnation but consequently the contrary which is non-condemnation which can amount to no less then acceptation or which is much at one Iustification from all guilt for there 's none contracted and salvation from that wrath which is to come and which comes upon none for any obedience but on all the Children of disobedience only Thus every thing but sin and imperfection is perfectly what it is truly and thoâ—e works are not truly good however falsly so cal'd that are not perfectly good and what work is truly good is perfectly good And of this sore are all the works of Christs working by his Spirit in our persons viz. as truly and perfectly good in genere if not gradu as those he wrought in the same Spirit and Power in his own who never yet did any work that is evill or but imperfectly good Yea as truly an perfectly good as both the worst and the best that you do without him are really and properly evill and consequenly being contrary to your evill works which merit condemnation meritorious of that contrary reward of acceptation or justification And no lesse then this last dost thou T.D. to the contradicting thy selfe in thy other sayings confesse to us thy selfe in these words evill works which are the violation of the Law deserve damnation Ergo good works which are the fulfilling the Law deserve Salvation and as thou saift so say we we know no good works such but Christs and say I I know no works of Christ that â—re not such and that deserve nor Salvation Whether those that were wrought by him in that single person which was crucified 〈◊〉 Ierusalem or those that are wrought by him in his Saints though thou seem'st to thy self to be so wise whose folly therefore is the more manifest to all men as to know a Christ and as to know some operations and good works and righteousnesse of that Christ wrought by him alone in his Saints and by them received from him and whereof Christ himselfe is the Author which thou art so far from owning any justification by and from esteeming so highly of as they deserve that as to any such gain as iustification deserved for us or derived to us thereby thou disclaimst them utterly as meere dung and losse and filthy rags and absit Blasphemia doom'st them down to hell as deserving no better then your wickednesses and your own miscal'd righteousnesses do the merit of which is neither more nor lesse then condemnation and all this he that is minded to trace thee p. 15.21.22.23 in thy Meandrous talkings to and fro in and out where thou dancest the Hay up and down in the Clouds of contradiction and confusion cannot chuse but take notice of unlesse he be so blind as that his eyes can see no farther then his nose reaches For mark p.
he calls it though insufficient to direct for Iustification and Salvation yet was useful for two ends 1. To restrain from sin 2. Besides this end God hath another that they might be inexcusable who sinned against the light in them and God might be justified in his Sentence and Iudgement upon them Rom. 1.20 that thâ—y might be without excuse who held the Truth Mark how the light in all is called the Truth which men withhold in unrighteousness therefore it must be the Righteousness of God it self that is revealed from Heaven and justifies in unrighteousness and when they knew God glorified him not as God neither were thankful but were filled with unrighteousness though they knew the judgement of God that they that commit such things are worthy of death v. 29.30 Whence it is that Gods judgement is proved to be according to Truth Rom. 2.2 and God found to be true though every man a lyar Ignorance of the law Mark again how they call it the law by which is the knowledge of sin the transgression of which is sin which Paul calls spiritual holy just and good these men all but natural and sometimes no better then diabolical being not to be pleaded by them that sin against the innate light of their own spirits forasmuch as that fact must needs be voluntary which is done against the knowledge and judgement of a mans own conscience Thus far these men of the Light within it condemns say they but cannot save accuses cannot excuse Rep. Monstrum Horendum c. cui lumen ademptum What are our Ministers become Monsters now adayes that take on them the name of Seers for poor people and yet have never an eye to see the Truth withall themselves Is there any Law in the World that being broken brings penalty accusation cursing judgement or condemnation upon the Transgressors that does not as well hold guilâ—less acquit clear justifie and save from the said cursing and condemnation its obeyers and observers 1. Consider its impossible that any light should leave without excuse and condemn a man when sinned against and not excuse justifie and keep out of condemnation when it 's answered for what I wot can condemn that man who walks up in exact obedience to that law or measure of light be it never so little which is lent him in particular to live by Where there is no Law nor Light at all there is no sin imputed Rom. 5.12 where no Law is broken there is no transgression to condemnation for such sin is Anomia no other then the transgression of the Law and that in such particulars only wherein it is made known for to him that knows to do good and doth it not to him it is sin Iam. 17. not to him that never did nor could for if Abimelech had took to himself Abraham's Wife for his own not knowing but that she was his Sister only as she said he had been clear and not guilty nor had sin been impured to him or laid to his charge to condemnation though the fact had been sin in it self yet not sin unto his dâ—amnation Whereupon he pleads when the Lord comes by the Light o the thing upon him Wilt thou slay a righteous Nation In the integrity of my heart and innocency of my â—ands have I done this and God answers Yea I know thou didst it in the integrity of thy heart Gen. 20.4 5 6. Can that possibly leave men without excuse or plea for themselves in their condemnation when God comes to enter into judgement with them that must be understood and believed by them never to have put them by the best improvement thereof and attendance to it as I. O. and T. D. say the light of God in all does not utcunque cui attendatur so much as in possibility of Salvation nor was sufficient had they never rebelled against it to have excused and acquitted them in the sight of God cannot they that have no Light and Grace more then what had they obeyed and answered it would not have rendred them accepted in his sight they being also personally particularly peremptorily predestinated to be damned and to be disobedient to the light that they might be damned as our Divines say from 1 Pet. 2.8 Iude 3.4 when God comes to plead in no other but a righteous way against them and to damn them for that sore appointed disobedience to it and to reckon and reason with them thus Why would you die and not live A I live I had much rather ye should have lived then died but that ye would your selves destroy your selves when in me was help and I would have helped you and therefore sent my Son a Light to lead you to life not to condemn but to save you had you walked in it for hating and want of walking in which alone it is that ye now must be condemned for ever had I not sent you light and spoken to you by my self and Son you had had no sin but now seeing ye knew my Will and did it not in the doing of which ye should have entred my Kingdome but stopt your ears closed your eyes despised my counsel set at naught all my reproof to you this is sin for which he have no cloak plea c. nor excuse or if you have let us hear it I say cannot such plead again Lord it is true thou art out Soveraign and mayest do with thy own as a Potter with his clay and dash us to pieces at thy pleasure but thou art also a God of righteousness and Truth who hast said thou wilt do right as the Judge of all the earth and thou wilt not do that thy self which thou damnest others for doing as thou didst Pharoah for requiring men to make such a tale of brick as they had not sufficiency of straw for and we hope thou wilt not damn us for not doing what thou know'st we never could being never sufficiently impowered by thy self we trust thou wilt not condemn us at least not with the sorer condemnation as accessary to our own death and for not coming to Christ that we might have life and for want of coming to the saving knowledg of thy Self Mind and Will and for not obeying the Gospel of our Lord Jesus and for nor coming to him in his light and not believing in him as our Saviour and for want of improving our talents to the utmost to our salvation for non-improvement of which alone and for non-obedience to which Light and Gospel alone and non-belief only in which Christ thou now tellest us we must perish which Gospel had we obeyed which Christ had we believed in as our which saving knowledge of thee if we had had which talent or talents had we improved to the best we should not have perisht but have had everlasting life foraâ—much as it was told us for truth from thee by these that say they are thy Ministers if they did not lie and however they made us
or accuse according as the Consâ—ience thereby enlightned bears inward witness both of the Ius and the fact and that the moral instinct of good and evil that is within by that is seconded by a self-judgement i. e. an inward justifying clearing and acquitting as it s answered or else a terrifying and condemning as it s transgrest This therefore is another argument of the common Lights sufficiency to save from condemnation such as walk by it from which I may conclude it Arg. 16. That which can and doth excuse its observers does not only serve to restrain sin and to leave he transgressors of it without excuse but also save from condemnation but the Law in the heats of Heathens excuses it observers witness Rom. 2.15 from which place ye are fain all to confess the same where it s said That by the work of the Law which the Heathen shewed written in their hearts their inward thoughts not only accuse but excuse yea very Ethnicks are not left without Plea or excuse by it if it be not sufficient to save as is shewed above asd as T. D. confesses page 40. 1 Pamp. We may suppose quoth he the Heathen might say had we known of a remedy we would have made use of it therefore it not only leaves without excuse when men violate it but saves from condemnation such as obey it That 's a strange unheard of kind of Law that kills as well its keepers as its breakers or that takes vengeance on the violaters of it and cannot keep the keepers of it from the vengeance of it neither yet T. D. sayes page 5. 2 Pamp. The Light condemns the Heathen when they disâ—bâ—y it but cannot save them though they do obey it indeed he adds without Christ and so say I too but that Light is in them from Christ and so if it save them as it does if they obey it it saves them not without him for it s he that saves them by it but our Diviners Divine enough to the contrary to the utter confutation of themselves in this when by their own confession the common Light in the Conscience they more commonly then properly call Natural doth not only accuse such as go from it but also excuse such as keep to and walk by it within themselves for is not Iustification non-condemnation absolution and consequently Salvation from guilt and wrath where excusation is as well as guilt wrath and condemnation where accusation and no excuse Is it possible there should be any condemnation where no transgression but an answering to the Law lent men to live by for sin as before is but the transgression of the Law or Light that every one hath and as where no Law is so where no breach is of the Law where it is there 's no transgression and where the Conscience gives a good answer and the heart by the Light in it that shews Ius and Factum condemns not doth God condemn is there not acceptance boldness and confidence toward him as there is fear terrour wrath and condemnation from God where it doth condemn yea your selves confess it yet the Law in the heart the Light is sufficient to accuse yea and excuse well and ill doing respectively but not to save justifie or give life say our light treacherous Prophets dark Divines and lifeless Leaders Ob. The Letter kills cannot give life Rep. True but why is it but because it s desobeyed and cannot give ability to any to do what it requires The Law or Light and Gospel and All kills such as transgress it I say the Gospel it self condemns but whom is it none but such as hate and take not heed to it that thereby they may come from under the curse and death into the life it calls for else it being the power of God to the Salvation of such as believe in it Life should be by the Light one way more then it could come by by the Letter for the Letter could keep them that keep it from the Curse denounced in it to the breakers of it yet cannot give any an ability to keep it But the light is not only able to acquit justifie clear absolve secure and save from wrath all such as believe in and obey it but al o to enable such as look to it and impower them more and more to obey and walk by it and consequently by the letter which cannot be transgressed by such as abide in the light all such as singly come to it and continue waiting on the Lord in it Object The Law cannot give life if it could righteousness should be by the Law Gal. 5.21 Rep. True the Law in the letter the Old Testament which he there speaks of as in opposition to the New which is the Gospel the Light and Spirit cannot in regard of the weakness of flesh to fulfil it and its weakness to enable any to the fulfilling of it for the Righteousness declared and required therein must be performed or else it utters nothing but accusation and cursing and yet to perform that Righteousness the letter can no wise impower But the Law which is the light in the Spirit that is and comes from Christ into the Conscience is the Law of Life forasmuch as howbeit it taketh vengeance en mens inventions and ministers first judgement and condemnation to the transgressors for transgression and wrath on the evil doer and his evil deeds yet when it hath condemned sin in the flesh wherein it is committed so long till it hath condemned it out of the flesh and brought forth judgement in thâ—se that wait on it unto victory over the sin that is judged it ministers the righteousness and the peace and the liberty from the sin and the Life of God it self it requires calls for and through the Judgement leads too and then justifies those whom it hath this way enabled to perform it In both which respects though the Law of the letter is not so yet the Law of the Spirit of Life which is the Light in Christ and in us from him sith it both 1. enables the followers of it to fulfil it and 2. secures from wrath and condemnation the fulfillers of it who e're they are Iew or Geâ—tile such as have the letter without or have it not that obey it it is not sufficient only to accuse the rebels against it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and condemn them within themselves but also as utterly insufficient to save and bring to life utcunque ei attendentes such as never so punctually observe and perform it as our Preachers prate it is altogether even every way sufficient to save to the utmost all such as come to God by Christ from whom it comes and to Christ in it According to Rom. 8.1,2,3,4 There is now therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ Iesus who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit For thâ— Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Iesus hath made me free from the
of God and Christ within leading them back into it out of that corrupt one by which Light they are a law to themselves before God are said to perform by nature what things are required in the Law which are as ye say moral duties indeed yet such as saving your ignorance in that are truly righteous and acceptable with God and evangelical being done in Christ though they know not his person whilst done in his light for men may do much by the light that comes from the Sun while they see not the body of the Sun it self and be guided and strengthened to do much by the Light of God and Christ that is his Will and acceptable and good though yet they have not heard of nor known him so much as some that hear and read of such things by the letter as to his appearance in that body of flesh or meer external incarnation Witness Cornelius whose Prayers and Almes were heard and accepted being done by one that feared God and eschewed the evil which by the light he had discovered whilst as yet he had not heard of Christs personal Birth Life Death or Resurrection Acts 10.1.2 c. Yea every moral duty that is done in some obedience to the light that is in the Conscience and not for base ends and glory of men which ends have been and are found more among many Literarists Iews and Christians too then among many that by them have been lighted as Heathens are Evangelical also yea whatever is done from an honest and not selfish principle in the Light or Law in the heart is of the same nature as that both Moral and Evangelical Law is even spiritual and holy and iust and good and all transgression that is acted against the Law is not only against the Light of God and Christ whose Commandment that is and against the Gospel or free Promise of life held forth also therein but also against nature not that corrupt naâ—uâ—e into which men are run for the sin is committed in that but that divine nature or similitude of God or right Reason in which men stood at first til they ran out into a reasonless kind of Reason of their own which is not after God a remnant of whose nature is in man still and his light in the Conscience which is right Reason it sâ—lf leads to itâ— and therefore all sinners who are in the deeds of darkness and out of the true faith of Christ which is in his light are said to do things contrary to nature though pleasing and answerable to the viperous nature they are gone out into Rom. 1. 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32. and to be without natural affection or against nature unnatural and unreasonable 2 Tim. 3.3 2 Thes. 3.2 and wicked for all men that have the true Light in them have not Faith in it I say then the Heathen who have not the letter by the Light of God which is saving are a law unto themselves and do shew the work of the Law written in their hearts their Conscience also by the Law inlightned bearing witness within them and their thoughts thereby accusing and excusing one another so that the Law is not only a light and saving but universal also and common in some measure to all men To which may be added as an Argument Ad hominem at least to the stopping of their mouth in proof of the universality of Christs enlightning All men another consideration out of R. B. and I. T. his own Book and that is the need that all men that come into the world have of Light from Christ and the universal necessity of Christs enlightning them all because of that universal corruption and blindness which is asserted by them to be in all men at birth P. 24 25. John 1.9 Where it is said of man coming iâ—to the world must be meant say they of humane birth and accordingly this point is thence say they deducible That every one that comes into the world needs light from Christ which Position say they is true 1. Because every man is boâ—n destitute of spiritual light in the things of God concerning his duty and the way of salvation 2. Because every man is liable to death and trouble and wrath and evil from God as he is born into the world and Christ came into the world to remove both these sorts of darkness and none else can do it These are the express words of these two men R. B. I. T. from which howbeit they most unreasonably conclude against our doctrine saying The former of these overthrows the main Position of the Qua. That every man hath a light within him sufficient to guide him so as that following it he may please God and be saved without the light of Scriptures or preaching of publick Teachers Yet I do and may most truly argue and conclude to the fuller establishing of the said Position from their own words on this wise Arg. 17. If every man that comes into the world needs light from Christ and there be a necessity of Christs enlightning in regard that every man is irrecoverably lost else and not some only then Christ doth enlighten so far at least as to a possibility for salvation every man and not few men only otherwise God were as is abovesaid a most apparent respecter of mens persons as he is not and his wayes were not equal as they are and his words were not true as they are when he sayes he would have all men to be saved unless they will die and to come to the knowledge of the truth and such like nor were his clearing himself and charging of men that perish right as it is when he sayes their destruction is of themselves but in him is their help nor were his Iudgements iust and righteous as they are in condemning men for not believing in the light while they had it when they never had it nor were his pretended great Love rich Grace matchless Mercy to All peâ—ple in Christs birth Luke 2. â— Iohn 3.16 17 18. so sincere as it is but raâ—hâ—r feigned sith else he did not so much as put them all into a possibility of coming out of their mâ—sery but rather left a thousand to one to perish in it unavoidably without remedy nor were his fairest offers of salvation and life to all if they will walkin his light so fair as they are but meer mockage since else he had not given them any measure of any such light as could lead them to it nor were his saying What could I have done more for them that I have not done any other then a lye as it is not since else he had not done so much as was needful yea so absolutely necessary towards their living that it was not possible they should live without it when he both could should and ought in equity by some measure of true light to have made them capable to come to life and see their
for the sin he hath once committed he hath and the sins by which Iohn and they had sinned of old were theirs or else they needed no Saviour nor purging as cursing men possibly might be sins of which Iames and them he writes to could not say we have no such for such and such were some of you saith Paul to the Saints 1 Cor. 6. But now ye are washed sanctified justified by the Spirit c. So that if we confesse he is faithfull and just to forgive and that 's not all though the Priest stops there but to cleanse us from all unrighteousnesse yea the blood of Iesus his Son doth in praesenti cleanse us from All sin If then there be any filth remaining theres not a cleansing from all but if as the Text sayes it was to some it be from all then there 's none at all remaining so as to be committed or acted to defilement though the Saints may be said to have it in and about them so as to be tempted to it while it is fully under them yet temptation to it is not transgression And the same may be said of 2 Cor. 7.1 let us cleanse though Paul himself was cleansed from all uncleannesse of flesh and Spirit then which I know no more pâ—rfecting holinesse in the fear of God who say I commands not impossibilities to the visible Churches in which sundry were who were not clean as Christs Saints and true Disciples are through the word he speakes to them nor cleansing but some waxing worse and worse Ioh. 13.10 11 16 3. Phil. 3.18 19. much lesse doth Christ command no to his true Ministers as fast as false ones hasten to that fruitlesse work if there own doctrine were true in his Name to command what is impossible yet even to the little children in the Church does Iohn write that they sin not 1 Ioh. 2.1 as well as of the young men in commendation that they are strong and have overcome the wicked one and yet there are Fathers beyond all these Next to G. W. mentioning Phil. 3.15 as many as be perfect c. in proof of perfection here T. D. Replyes well-nigh a whole page full of worth nothing which is scarce worth noting on any other account then to shew how 't is worse then nothing to his own purpose 1. He tells us that 's spoken of grown Christians that were perfect in comparison of Babes Rep. That every Babe in Christ is perfect as to the divine nature which assents to no sin much lesse acts it I have shew'd above but if all that are born of God were not perfect yet that some are T. D. there confesses and if but one it proves the possibility of it which we plead against him and he pleads against 2 He tells us that perfect in Scripture is put for upright and these are made Synonimous and of the same import Rep. True Perfect and upright are one and both import no lesse then a man that sins not Eccles. 7.29 Adam in innocency was perfect it 's said God made man upright For while any are upright they are answerable to the Law or Light lent them to live by which sin is the transgression of and so no transgressours and while they transgresse that Law they are not perfect nor upright but crooked and so accounted Whether it be Iob himself whom T. D. so much instances in and insists on p. 10. 1. Pamp. and p. 6. 2. Pamp. or David himselfe or any other Therefore while David stood in integrity and uprightnesse as mostly he did it preserved him and God so accounted him and justified him as an upright man as he did Iob. 1.1 in the same case but where he turn'd aside into the deceit defilement God held him not upright but hypocriticall false filthy and sinfull much lesse did he therein hold him guiltlesse and justifie him as most ignorantly T. D. delivers it that he did p. 38. 1. Pamp. even when he was guilty of adultery and murder in which juncture nevertheless T.D. sayes he was not in a condemned state but in a justified estate The Scripture exempts him from justification so far that it vouchsafes him not that denomination of an upright man in that matter of Vriab but brands him with the name of a pittylesse blood guilty man a secret evill doer in the sight of the Lord a despiser of him and his comandement and a causer of Gods enemies to blaspheme his Name Psal. 51. 2 Sam. 12.6 9 10 12 14. Howbeit this one thing by the way is worth noting concerning T. D. not for any good that is in it or in T. D. as touching his demeanour in it that when he speaks of the Saints good and duty that they do he says that 's not perfect but an unclean thing dung and filthy rags yea that he calls sin and iniquity p. 7. 2. Pamp. They sin quoth he in doing good duties holy for the matter are iniquity for the manner â—f performance but when the Saints as in Davids caâ—e commit Adultery and Murder he pronounces them blessed as having no guile nor guilt in their Spirit but sincere which is the same with upright or perfect see p. 11. 1. Pamp. David quoth he Psal. 32.2 Pronounces the man blessed which hath no guile in his Spirit or sincere which himselfe was at that time though under the guilt of a great sin v. 5. which is by interpreters supposed to be the same sins for which psal 51. was composed Rep. Here 's Doctrine of Divinity with a witnesse when the Saints do the best good they sin their holy things are all as an unclean thing their righteousness is dung filthy rags though T. D. holds also that Paul had no righteousness which was not Christs p. 22. 1. Pamp. nor any righteousnesse but what from Christ he received their performing duty at least is no lesse then iniquity but when they are under the guilt of such great sins as Adultery and Murder oh blessed men they at that time have no guile in their Spirits are in sincerity or to speakin the diminutive Phrase by which sometimes he lessens the foul faults and great sins of the Saints at the worst but under infirmity But be it this or be it that greater or lesse better or â—â—â—se infirmity or iniquity good or evill duty or dung righteousness or rags holy or unclean the upshot of all is this the men are blessed men what ere they do they are never in a condemned but ever in a justified estate and let their works be as they will perfect or not perfect good or duty which they call unclean dung iniquity or filthy rags their persons though thus sinning are ever Saints and believers which together with their works are accepted with God who yet say I never accepted any such works as are iniquity and sin nor any Persons while they are the workers of them And as to the remnant of T. D's talk in answer to â— â— which is
they hold that as the Sun is appointed in nature to be the light of every man that cometh into the World though shutting our eyes may exclude it So Christ is by office the Sun in the world of grace giving men actually all the gracious light they have being sufficient himself to enlighten all and giving them an illuminating word which is sufficient in its own kind to do its own part though many are blind and for their sin are deprived of the communication of this light why all this we maintain as well as they do they say that all this light within us and without us is to be hearkened to and obeyed why what man did they ever speak with that 's a Christian no Christians indeed say I but too many Antichristians that denyeth it See what a deal of the Quakers doctrine concerning learning only at Christs light is here uttered by these men R.B. I.T. who yet hate the self same doctrine at their hearts when the Quakers teach it also in many other places they teach much more to the same purpose putting men on to attendance to the light yea even the light within every man as p. 40 41. This light usefull for two ends First To restrain men from excesse of sin c. As he gave a Law to the Iewes because of transgression to restrain them or abate punishments so to other people he gave a law in themselves to prevent the extirpation of the Nations by bridling them in their lusts thorow conscience of sin and fear of punishment Secondly Besides this God hath another end that they might be inexcusable who sinned against the light in them and God justified in his Sentence and judgment upon them Observe how this light within is owned by them as the Law of God which T.D. affirming the work of the Law only to be there yet denyes to be in the heathens hearts to the contradiction of these men and of himself also in that other plaee p. 16.2 pamp Where to go round again he confesses much of the holy matter of the Scripture to be written upon the hearts of the heathens and that to be their Rule I say as the Law of God which is spirituall holy just and good and to be obeyed for else transgression of it could not be sin deserving judgment for sin is no other then the transgression of the Law So p. 82.83 they go on thus If the light shine into thy soul from Christ so as any convictions or discoveryes of truth from Christ get into thee and some convictions they confesse all havâ— by the light within take heed thou hold it not in unrighteousnesse nor seek to quench it Rom. 1.18 Wrath to all that hold truth in unrighteousnesse when lust imprisons light no entrance for the light of Christ into that soul there must be a love of the light It s the greatest sign of a man willfully evill when he hates the light and it s a good sign of a man truly good when he can delight in that light mork which discovers his own euills What light is that which discovers a mans own evills but the light within the letter without doth de jure only the light within doth de facto discover mens own evill Christ hath determined this to be the great condemnation that men love darknesse rather then light or else the Heathen could not be condemned say I who have and yet hate the light within for they have no letter without for that 's the sign they side with the Prince of darknesse and men that do truth come to the light that their deeds may be manifest c. The more light is rejected the more purely voluntary any sin is when men are willingly ignorant they are incurably evill c. Each person is to make their use of the light within him so far as it is light and usefull Certainly it concerns every man so far as to look to the light within him mark that he do not as t is said of some Job 24.13 Rebell against the Light which Text in Iob I. O. interprets of the letter but I. T. to the confutation of I. O. truly with us of the Common light within men A mens conscience is so far a law to him that though it cannot of it self justifie which is contrary to Rom. 2. which sayes their inward thought as well excuses the Heathen when they do well as accuses when they do ill and excusation and justification or to excuse clear justifie are all one yet it may condemn him So p 37. they go on thus God hath imprinted in all even the most Barbarous people some relique of light though in some it is so small that may be say we for all have not the same but all some measure of Gods light which these men somtimes call darknesse delusive and dangerous and degrees vary not the nature of the case that it can hardly be perceived whether there be any sense of sin or wrath of duty or reward of God or Devill Heaven or Hell Secondly Some people that never had the Gospell nor the Law made known to them as the Jewes and Christians have had yet have attained to so much knowledge and practice of morall duties Mark morall duties are the main things of the Law and required in the morall Law viz. To do as we would be done by which faith Christ is the Law and Prophets Math. 7. The sum substance and upshot of all and more then all offering and sacrifice so that the Iews failing in these weightiar matters viz. Iudgment mercy faith c. all outward oblations and observations were abhorred that in some acts of righteousnesse temperance chastity fidelity and such vertues they have equallized at least in respect of their outward demeanour toward men if not exceeded not only Iewes who had the Scripture as our Scribes have and search as much in it but also the more shame for the most of you filthy fruitlesse faithlesse Christians the while whom very heathens will therefore judge the most Christians Thirdly And in the knowledge of God though therein they were most defective yet they attained to so much knowledge and right apprehension of him as enabled them to correct the Vulgar errours concerning God See how far beyond our vulgar Christians and very Christian Clergy men that have the letter to boast talk trade on the light within hath led the very Ethnicks that have heeded it by these mens own confession But they go on yet further preaching up the light with the Qua thus p. 84. It will concern those who own Christ as their light to judge themselves and their wayes by his light This act of self judgment is within faith I.O. Seconding that morall instinct of good and evill that is imprinted by God on the Conscience from the innate light therein It is the great benefit of the light that it doth make manifest Eph. 5.13 Thus by the light of Christ the evill
as in many more if they do not Maliciously mis-represent us yet at best they most Miserably mis-understand us not well heeding these things that hereunder follow 1st That the Qua. themselves hold not out as attainable such a Perfection of Holynesse Grace or Glory as to degree here as admits of no addition of a greater degree of it hereafter for of the increase of Christs Image Glory and Kingdom there is no end but such a Perfection only as is without unholiness or committing any Sin or Transgression as whereby there is a perfect Defacing and Destroying in them the Works the Old Contracted Ugly Image of the Devil Anger Hatred Envy Wrath Blood Cruelty Uncleanness Drunkenness and all such like Lustings to Evil which whoever areÌ„ not purged from before can never enter into the Kingdom of God and Christ which is that Incorruption that Corruption cannot Inherit Full Deliverance from the doing of which Evills is a true perfection of Holiness according to the measure of it though not so great a measure of it but that hereafter there may be more as Adam in Innocency had no Sin yet not so much of God Good and Glory but that it might possibly be Augmented The Elect Peter writes to received the end of their Faith the Salvation of the Soul which is from Sin or nothing by him who was manifested a Light into the world to this end even here to Destroy the Works of the Devil 2dly That we hold not out a Condition of full Freedom from Temptation which if any be without he is wise enough to keep it to himself and not to prattle of it to the Priest who for all his Preaching against it can't with patience hear of turning yet from all Transgression And lest any should think of me as more then I yet am I am not yet that man who ere he is that 's free from Temptation but in our several measures what we witness in our selves by the Power of God and Gospel of his Light and Grace viz. a Liberty not to Sin which is that some long for but from Sin and a freedom from following any Lust and an Ability such as we found not while we were where Priests their people are to walk not after the Flesh but after the Spirit and to be saved from Sinning though not from sins Objecting it self to us and from Transgression though not from Temptation So it is a True State of Perfection and a State of True Perfection or else Christ himself who was often Tempted Matth. 4. yet never sinned was not Perfect 3dly That we hold not as there are some that sillily suppose of us saying the Qua. say they are so perfect they cannot Sin an Impossibility of those mens sinning who while they sin not are Saints for the Denominations of Sinners and Saints do tollere se invicem so as he who is a sinner while such while sinning is no Saint as T. D. dotes and he who is a Saint or Holy One clean from sinning is no Sinner specially not as David was while in his Guilt and Filth of Murder and Adultery as T. D. dreams also for no Sinner is a Saint while sinning nor is any Saint a Sinner while a Saint or Holy One but a Possibility only not to sin as men take heed to themselves by the Word and Light Non posse peccare is one thing and Posse non peccare is another and the Divines can see it so sometimes when they please though they will not own their own Distinctions when the Qua. make them They say men must needs sin while in this world measuring others by themselves who are yet sold under sin and so under a necessity of committing it and falling under the Law of it and because we own them not in their Extream which of the two is fartheâ—t off from the Truth they dream we are in the other so as to say men after they once one the Light cannot sin Thus the Vile Person Churl whose Instruments are Evil destroyes the poor with lying words when the needy speaketh right things for we say that men though they ought not to sin yet may or may not sin according as they heed the Light or heed not the Light which is the Power of God against it by which Psal. 119.9 a young man heeding it May cleanse his way not Must necessarily whether he heed it or no Let him that standeth take heed left he fall To say men must sin is one thing can't sin is another may or may not as the Light is kept to is the Truth 4thly That we Doctrinally hold not out such a full Freedom and Attainment of Poâ—er over Sin per Saltum at once or at the first Step of a Person from the Darkness wherein he dwelt toward the Light so that after once Converted to the Light only and to wait in it there 's a full Deliverance witnessed without any more ado as our National Ministry who are oft more willing to mistake us then rightly to understand us make it out in their muddy medlings against the Qua. before their people but that those that turn to the Light in their Consciences which Reproves and Condemns even the most Secret Sins in the flesh and obey it and abide by it waiting patiently on the Lord in the Way of his Judgments while the Spirit thereof and of burning passeth to the purging away the Filth Dross and Tinn to those only as well as to all those at last Judgement shall be brought forth into Victory over the Sin that 's Judged the Righteousness of the Law fulfilled by the Power of Christ in them bringing it near to such as Thirst after it and Revealing it in the Light from Faith to Faith Rom. 1. And the Salvation of God from sin which shall once come and not tarry to such as thus quietly hope and wait for it Isa. 42.12 13. Lam. 3.26.27 We say not it's the work of meer man nor of a day but the Work of Christ which in due time he will without failing and being discouraged in it perform and bring to passe for the Battle is not ours but the Lords in such as stand still beholding and following him in the leadings of his Light to the Rooting out of all Iniquity and Establishing of Equity in the Earth to the accomplishing of the work of Regeneration or begetting men back from the Image and Nature of the Devil and life of sin through the Death and Blood of Christs Cross which being but begun in the first Act of Conversion to God which our Prieâ—ts to the deceiving themselves and people think is Regeneration enough for them and to serve their turn though their turning to God as they call it be not yet from Darknesse Sin and the Power of Satan to God in his Light neither but from some one empty dead literal Form of Profession or other to another they look for the fulness of as to freedom from sin
thus p. 14 15. there is not Par Ratio for the merit of good and evil works and that they are not absâ—lute contraries because our evil works are perfectly evil but our Good works â—aist thou are but impeâ—fectly good yea Isa. 64.6 all our Righteousnesses not our unrighteousnesses onely are as filthy Rags Rep. To this I retuâ—n as followes viz. If by that Teâ—m OVR Good Works thou intendest no other then those of your own which ye call good when thou sayest of them that they are but imperfectly good I yield to it as Truth indeed that your good works and your evil works are not absolute contraries one to another but rather both alike of one and the same sort stamp and general kind that is to say both of them evil works for your evil works being by your own confession perfâ—ctly evil your good works as ye stile them for good they are not while done by the evil-doer that hates the light being alâ—o by confession but imperfectly good and for so far from being truly good that what ever they are in your own in Gods Account they are no better then evil they are really evil too yeaâ— as to the nature done in though not as to their meaâ—ure â—as realy evil as the other and not your unrighteousnes onely but also your own Righteousness being by the like true concession but filthy Rags they are not absolute Contraâ—ies but Con-naturals as your best good and worst evil is for as two evil spirits may be both Devils though not Devils both of one Hair but one a little bâ—nâ—ker t'other respectively somewhat whiter then the other so your two sorts of works whereof ye call one good the other evil one your Righteousness t'other unrighteousness are both alike evil and wickedness though one carries a fairer face before it than the other Neither did I as thou dost pag. 54 that the Gospel gives life upon imperfect obedience then affirm and so G.W. tells thee p. 20. of his Reply to thee who either didst or would'st not it seems understand me so well as he others that imperfect works and the Righteousness which is as filthy Rags do deserve Iustification neither did I ever nor shall I now go about to prove by the Rule of Contraries a contrary desert of your unrighteousness or evil works and of such Righteousness and Good Works as yours are which both you and I acknowledge are but imperfect and so no better then evil unrighteousness and filthy Rags so as to conclude from thence that as your evil merits damnation so your good merits Iustification nay in stead of Arguing about these from Contraâ—iorum Câ—ntraâ—ia est Ratiâ— of contraâ—ies there 's contraâ—y consequence I must say rather Paâ—ium Par est Raâ—iâ— Similium Similis consequentia things that are alike are of a like desert therefore your evil and your good in name differing yet in kind agreeing being evil and filthy Rags both alike do both alike as truely deserve condemnation from him as they are both alike abâ—minaâ—ion before the Lord. But if by that Term OVR Good Wâ—rks of which thou â—ayest they are but impâ—fectly good thou intendest those of Christâ— own woâ—king in and by us and all his Saints of which he beâ—ng the Authour though we in and under him the Actours thereof I said before Vix ea nostra voco I deny any of these to be as thou callest them but imperfectly good and both affirm and shall prove them all to be really good and as so truly contrary to both your confessed evil and but conceited good works which yet really are but evil and not onely so but perfectly good also and in that respect more absolutely contrary to all your own both worst and best workâ— the best of which though cal'd by you at least imperfectly gâ—od are yet at best no better in kind then as perfectly evil as the other saving the baldness of that Phrase perfectly evil which yet being thy own thou maist the better and must however bear it from me In proof of which though it seem but a mad mans mad Divinity to you more mad Divines and possibly a meer Paradox to many more then meer Parish Priests yet let it be considered That every thing that can be truly according to God not after the manner of erring men onely said to be good or Righteousness though so but in part yet is as perfectly so as it is truly said so to be for howbeit all that which is but in part is by our Academical Rabbies who count all plain Countrey Russet-Coats but Rusticks in comparison of themselves counted but imperfect and commonly so called as if in paâ—t and imperfect were ever Synonomous and all one so that in their benighted minds they oft render that place 1 Cor. 13. as T. D. till he was corrected did at the Dispute thus viz. when that which is perfect is come then that which is imperfect whereas that which is in part and but aliqualiter not yet aequaliter or so perfect as the other is is opposed to that which is more perfect to its degree only yet as to its nature which different degrees do never alter for that gradus non variant naturam Rei is received for truth by all that which is truly good Righteousness Light Uprightness Holiness Truth though but some part of that fuller measure that once shall be yet is not onely Really the same but as perfectly the same in suo genere as that which is perfect in degree also is in its kind that is to say as perfectly Good as perfectly Righteousnâ—â—s c. as Good Righteousness Light Grace Uprightness Holiness Truth is in the highest measure Every dâ—am of Grace is perfectly Grace every degree of true Good perfectly Good every grain of Holiness perfectly Holiness as every spark of fire is perfectly fire and perfect fire and every drop of water perfect water as well as the whole Ocean as every Babe as to the nature is perfectly a man and a perfect man as he is that is a man in stature Holiness in the least measure of it is the gift of God and I know no imperfect gift that he giveth who is the Giver of every good and peâ—fect gift and every one of whose gifts is perfect all that is perfect is of God and all that is perfect which is of God from whom no imperfect thing can come and all true Good and Holiness is of God and all Sin Unholiness Unrighteousness Imperfection is of the Devil and all that is imperfect whic his of the Devil from whom no thing that 's good or truly perfect can come and all sin is properly nothing but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 transgression defect and imperfection it self and whoever sinneth is born of the Devil and he that is of the Dâ—vil while so is not born of God nor in a state of Salvation nor in the Election but in the Reprobation and Rejection and what is born
obedience of Christ within his Saints one while saying one thing of it anon another sometimes that its Christs own wrought by him received from him sometimes their own even that own of theirs which is imperfect dung losse and 〈◊〉 Rags which was theirs long before ere they knew him Sometimes in another sense then that the spirit calls them both their own and his own also somtimes this sometimes that now that it serves for nothing being but imperfectly good unlesse filthy Rags be good for anything then that as very losse and dung as Paul counted his own that it serves him for something viz. to fit for heaven but not to enright to it as the same in himselfe dâ—th and so its tantum but not quantum now that its no lesse then losse of life to expect life upon it then that as imperfect as it is the Gospell gives life upon â— so it somtimes this and sometimes that sometimes himself well know not what Thus that single double righteousnesse whereof man is the Actor but whether himselfe or Christ the Author is scarce distinctly determined by T.D. Heating about in the tossing Cock Bâ—at of T. D.'s brain advanced one while up to the highest heaven and by and by debaâ—ed again to the depths of Hell like men in a Ship that are whiffled up and down in a troubled Sea which the wicked who are never well in their wits nor soundly stablish in the truth are ever like to of whom one may say with the Pâ—â— Iamjam Tacturos Sydera Sumna putes Iamjam Tacturos Ta ta aâ—igra putes and with the Prophet Pal. 107.26.27 They Mount up to the heavens they go down again into the depths They â—eel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man and 〈◊〉 their wits end Never did I read or see in so small a piece of work so many Ringles and Rounds as T.D. makes and runs in except I. O's who in many things makes whether so many or more I cannot yet say but I am sure many as plain round O's and Cris Crosses to himselfe as most men can likely do it that set not themselves to it in so little a compass as his is contained in since I began to dive into the Bottomlesse pit of that thing call'd Divinity or â—o discern the shallow divinations of the so deemed deep Divines CHAP. 4. HAving hewed my way to it throw those craggy contradictions of T.D. to himselfe about it and dispersed and vanquisht some of the dark vapours wherewith he had vailed that Question that lyes between us I shall now vent my verdit on it in a more plain open view and having negatively declared whose righteousnesse and good works justification and life is not given upon and discarded all those of meer mans own as Dâ—ng Losse Rags Imperfect and what ever T.D. falsly charges on us as affirming it or affirms himselfe of life given upon imperfect obedience and meetnesse to inherit it by Pauls own which he renounced of no worth to give any influence into these matters I shall shew whom and whose good works and righteousnesse life comes by and is given upon yea I here positively affirm that by none but Christ alone Iustification unto life can come nor is there either title to the inheritance or fitnesse to possesse it by any other good works or righteousnesse save those of the Lord Iesus only whose only and all whose works even in the very least degree thereof when or whereever wrought are perfectly good when the best of meet mans are as T.D. sayes but imperfectly good which is as much as to say imperfect-perfect things every truly good thing being properly perfect and every perfect thing properly good and every imperfect thing properly evil and every evil imperfect or rather defect and imperfection it self and every perfect thing good for somthing and every imperfect perfect thing without Gods wisdome who orders sin to his own glory and is easily able to bring good out of evill being properly per se good for nothing Yea this stone of Israel Gen. 49.23 Christ which was ever set at nought by you builders who seem to your selves so much to build upon him but are seen more then any to build beside him and stumble at him is now again become the head in the Corner Act. 4.11.12 Neither is there salvation in any other nor any other name under heaven given among men whereby they must be saved then that of the Lord our righteousnesse who is not here in this world simply so accounted as 't is simplicer satis accounted on by our Acâ—demicks and then made to us of God Wisdome Righteousnesse Sanctification Redemption hereafter in the world to come but so ready made to us here and that perfectly too so far as he is perfectly trusted to and hâ—ped in 1 Pet. 1.13 for salvation Salvation from God to such as expect not more the pardon and forgivenesse of what is past then puâ—ging from and power to forgo all sin and all unrighteousness in due time to come who have the witness within themselves of all iniquity to be as they waite on him so truly done away and remited as though they meet with temptation as Christ did which is not transgression if withstood not to be done nor at all committed any more 1 Ioh. 1.7.9 2 Cor. 7.1.119 Psal. 1.2.3 And this peculiar priviledge and high prerogative hath he who is the head and hath as he is well worthy in all things the preheminence over his body which he is the Saviour of purchased to himselfe by his free humiliation and bâ—eience to death even the death of the Grosse to be in perfect power to save to the uttermost all that shall ever come unto God by him Now much if not most of this is in general granted and assented to by all viz. that Iustification to life and Salvation is by none but Christ and by no other righteousnesse but that which is most peculiaâ—ly and properly called his and not mans but still the Question about which subâ—judice lis est viz. what Christ it is for T.D. makes two at least if not more viz. a Christ within and a Christ without and what righteousnesse of Christ it is for T.D. makes two righteousnesses of Christ also viz. one within us and another in him without us by whom and upon which the title to Iustification and the inheritance comes And to this I answer that as I know no other person nor thing that gives us title to salvation then Christ and his righteousnesse so I know no other Christ then that one which the Scripture speakes of that dyed at Ierusalem and was crucified in the great City spiritually called Sodom and Egypt and was an immaculate Lamb slain by the beast from the foundation of the World by whose blood his Saints ever were and still are redeemed and cleansed from all their sins and by the eating and drinking whose flesh and blood they have life in themselves
this T. D. confesses it p. 17. ' t is true quoth he that the same Spirit is in Christ and in his Saints but then he hath a double bolt for all this wherewith to shut us out from justification by that Spirit in Christ as in us 1. The Spirit in us doth not conform us to the Law fully quoth he notwitstanding your vain assertion of perfection Rep. I never said that the Spirit of Christ in you did conform you fully to the Law if when thou sayst conform us thou meanst your selves for ye are farenough from perfection to whom it seemes A vainâ—assertion A Doctrine of Devils to talk of or reach it and how should the Spirit conform you to the Law who though you have it striving in you and reproving you of sin yet do in the stiffnesse and uncircumcis'dnesse of your hearts and eares alwayes quench grieve resist it refuse to be led by it and will not walk after it but after the flesh But the Saints and such onely are all those that walk after it and not after the flesh it eitheir conforms them to the Law and that fully too or else what doth it conform them to Partly the Law and partly the Lust Partly to it selfe and partly to the flesh Doth it lead any into any sin which is transgression of the Law Or onely out of all sin all such as give up to be guided by it If any be at all deform'd it is because they conform to the flesh and follow it and stop the Spirit but if any conform to the Spirit and follow it it will conform them fully to the Law and not to the forms fashions foolish fellowships and lusts of the world but transform them from all these by the renewing of their minds and lead them to perfect holynesse in the fear of God thy vain assertion to the contrary in any wise norwithstanding Thus the 1 st bolt is broken but 2ly quoth he if the Spirit did conform us to the Law fully yet were not that conformity the merit of justification Rep. Oh strange that T.D. should deem there 's strength in this to stand out against us by which is far weaker then the former Doth the Spirit working holinesse in our natures and persons not merit justification which is non-condemnation are Christ and his Spirits works of lesse or worse merit in one time place and person then another I judg'd they had been every where and alwayes alike and of like good desert from the dignity of the person doing them or else T.D. lyes p. 15. of his 1. Pamp and especially that their good works which are the fulfilling of the Law deserve non-condemnation 1 justification or else T.D. lyes again in that same page but sith the Spirit of life and works of holinesse in our nature and persons conforming them fully to the Law do not as T.D. p. 15. said before they did from the dignity of Christs person deserve non-condemnation for their conformity to it or transgression of it merits one thing or other good or evill and we use to say no truly good work deserves evill more then an evill work merits good we will take it for granted that T.D. thinks the Spirits conforming us to the Law deserves condemnation and so let it stand that all people may understand the Blasphemy and Folly of it Thus T.D. pulls hard to have his own again but what he can't win by force of false position hee l see if he can beg it back from us in these following fawning Questions I would fain know what or whether precedent holynesse in the Saints merits subsequent holynesse or whether the exercise of what they have is the meritorious cause of what they have not or of perfection especially if the Law of sin intends the corruption of nature as the Law of the spirit of the life does holynesse of nature I would be instructed how a nature in part corrupted can deserve totall freedome and I am sure the first work of the Spirit renewes our nature but in part Rep. If I should grant T.D. in the negative all he asks as he thinks I will my negative or denying or saying Nâ— were such answer to his Questions as he desires but if I should say yea to all his Queâ—yes it dashes him down and denyes all he would have and yet I must say yea to most of them if I say the truth Therefore T.D. I say yea to some and nay to some To the 1st I answer yea that precedent holynesse in the Saints merits subsequent holynesse and to the ad I answer yea the exercise of what the Saints have is a meritorious cause of what yet they have not And sith thou askest what precedent holynesse the Saints exercising of when they have it deserves subsequent holynesse or what they have not I answer all that is the fruit of the Spirit in them and the gift of God to them whether Active or Passive if to merit be to be worthy of a thing by right of promise at least 'T was given to the Saints both to believe and suffer Phil. 1. Yet they were worthy of the Kingdome for which they suffered by beleiving the Testimony of it and suffering for it 2 Thess. 2. 'T was the gift of God by promise to such as fight and ouercome to walk with Christ in white and the gift of God to the Saints that they could sight and by his strength overcome yet they shall walk with me in white faith Christ for they are worthy 'T was Gods gift to do his Commandements yet for all that the doing thereof deserves that they yet have not and without the doing of which they should not enter by Right gives right to enter the Citty and eat of the Tree of life Rev. 22.14 Five Talents and two and one were Gods gift yet as he that did not encrease and improve what he had merited at least the losse of it so they that exercised the 2 and the 5 merited the doubling of theirs and by promise had Right using what they had and being faithfull in few littles to many and to more abundance and to the joy of the Lord Much more I might say but T.D. denyes in this the Doctrine of his fellow Divines who tell that the improvement of 〈◊〉 grace as they call it deserves not the gift of speciall but the improvement of special grace deserves more of that still So that though they deny a meritorious transition a genere ad genus from exercising of one kind of grace say they men deserve not another kind as he that improves riches deserves not righteousnesse Yet a desert say they there is by the exercise of some grace of one kind of more of the same kind as he that is holy deserves more holynesse and he that sowes to the Spirit of life shall have life everlasting as he that sowes to the flesh reaps a crop as all persons are to do suitable to their seed of more
perceive saith Peter Act. 10. 34. 35. and he who is not blinded may perceive it also that God is now no respecter of Nations one above another nor of persons in the Nations so as to give his Statutes Judgements Laws Rule and saving means of Life if the Letter were so to one Nation or Person and not in any measure to another but in every Nation he that feareth God whose fear is to depart from what evil his Light in the conscience makes manifest and worketh righteousness which none do who live not by that and all do who live by it for sin is no other then the transgression of that Law which is the Light is accepted with him Arg. 14. Again let me argue with thee I. O. out of thy own words if others will not answer affirmatively and assent to this as truth yet thou I. O. must who asserts it for truth thy self for this Argument in â—oâ—idem verbis is no other then thine own for with reference to Ioh. 1.9 the very place that we argue the self-same from thou thy self though intentionally against us yet unawares really arguest for us on this wife viz. The Light and Illumination mentioned in this place Ioh. 1.9 are Spiritual without all controversie and pertaining to the Regeneration by Grace not Natural and so pertaining to the Creation for in the same sense in which men are said to be darkness are they said to be enlightned else the Apostles speech would be aequivocal but men are not said onely Spiritually but universally also to be darkness therefore are they by Christ not spiritually only but universally also enlightned And as Contrariorum eadem est ratio so Contrariorum contraria est ratio not only in the same sense in some respects but also in other respects in the very contrary sense to that wherein men are darkned by the Devil are they enlightned by Christ but All mankind is not only spiritually and universally but also damnably darkned by the Devil therefore mankind is not only spiritually and universally but also savingly enlightned by Christ. From what hath been said and shewed above then I affirm that the Grace and Light in the conscience which in some measure or other is from God and Christ given in common to All men is not only universal but saving and though most are by it no more then accused reproved condemned and left without excuse and not â—astified nor saved yet there wants not sufficiency in it to save and that men are not saved but mostly condemned by it 't is only because they answer not the Mind of God revealed in it but love the darkness more then it which they hate to come to as Christ saves because their deeds are evill whereas did they but glorifie him answerably to what he requires of them who noâ— exacts nor expects from any the doing more of his Mind and Will then what he one time or other manifesteth to them to be his Will concerning them in their own consciences they should not be without excuse nor stand condemned in Gods sight but be accepted justified and saved from the wrath which comes only on the Children of disobedience it being the Power of God as sufficient to the excuse and Salvation of those from sin and wrath that obey the measure of it in themselves as to subject those to accusation rejection judgement wrath and condemnation that rebel against it To all the abovesaid Arguments therefore I shall subject this one after the prosecution of which in proof of the sufficiency of that Light to save which is given in common to All men I shall take some notice of R. Bs. and I. Ts. arguings to the contrary Arg. 15. That Light which rebel'd against 〈◊〉 sufficient to accuse and condemn and render a man guilty reprobate or reproved is if obeyed sufficient to excuse clear justifie save from condemnation and render approved But the Light in all is sufficient to condemn all that rebell against it therefore to save as abovesaid such as obey it The Minor is your own the Major I shall proceed in proof of And here since I am so neer it I shall take occasion to refell that foolish conceit and dream of our Divines in which both thou T. D. I. O. I. T. R. B. are all Four found for in most of this main matter of the light ye run parallel and are coincident except now and then a crosse whet each to other concerning the non-sufficiency of the Light to save however improved though yielded to be sufficient to leave excuselesse and condemn for here ye dance between these two Stages still in your stickles with the Qua. against the Light cutting capers to and fro with your legs acrosse and sliding out of one fâ—orry shift into another when they tell you the true Light of God which is but one and that not natural but supernatural though in never so many different degrees in mens hearts is common to All ye yield for ye cannot stand against it that it is so but then it is not saving when they prove it saving ye yield it is saving but then not common which that it is both I have shewed above against you All some words only here as to that absurdity it is sufficient to leave man inexcusable if not obeyed and to condemn him but not to save justifie or render him accepted if obeyed That the whole body of the Gentiles are enlightened and that by Christ thou T. D. dost sometimes confess in Terminis as I have shewed above though at other times thou denyest it but thou addest p. 3. 1 Pamp. not by Christ with the knowledge of salvation alias secundaunte with a light sufficient to save Salvation is of the Iews i.e. among such as have the letter only and by the law of the letter without I speak but thy sense p. 3. 1 Pamp. I. O. also denies this same light however attended to to be sufficient to bring to justification of life or salvation that still he ascribes to his only all sufficient Greek and Hebrew Text and outward Scriptures Ex. 4. S. 17. Lumen hoc utcunque ei attendatur non est ullo respectu salutare sed in rebus omnbius divinis finem ultimum quod attinet mera tenebra caeâ—itas So S. 20. Sufficientiam quidem habet ad Antapologesian ad salutem non-item This Light indeed is sufficient to accuse and condemn but not so to save So T. D. again p. 40.1 Pamp. natural light so ye call it still is to this purpose to leave men without excuse Rom. 1.20 so that they cannot say as we suppose the Heathens might Had we known of a remedy for our misery we would have used it But as for salvation many Ages and Generations neuer had one offer of it and among those who hear the Gospel it is offered to more then it is intended R. B. and I. T. say the same p. 40. The Gentiles light by Nature so
Law of sin and death For what the Law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin condemned sin in the flesh That the righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit Thus then it is evident that the Law of God which is not the letter of it but the light is powerfull and sufficient to save save only that men turn from and transgresse it and that it is universal and in all men is as evident out of Rom. 2.13 14. where it is said that those ye call Heathen who have not the outward literal copy of it do shew the work of the Law written in their hearts which wâ—rk of the Law T. D. who yet grants the Law it self to be spiritual in his meer natural understanding calls natural as if the work of the Law of God which is Spiritual and perfect were not spiritual as the Law it self is which work or effect of the Law Psalm 19.7 8 9. is said to be the conversion of the sâ—ul rejoycing the heart enlightning the eyes cleansing purifying c. and not only the shewing of sin and good and censuring for the obedience oâ— disobedience as T. D. dotes who undertaking to teach G. W. what the work of the Law is and how it differs from the Law it self p. 3.2 Pamp. understands neither what he himself sayes nor whereof he affirms which works of the Law the Scripture there mentions which diâ—covers T. Ds. ignorance of the works or effects of the Law if they be natural I know not what â—s spiritual and yet to get out of that absurdity in proof of it he runs into another saying in the next clause thus viz. the Heathen do by nature the things contained in the Law as if that were corrupt nature in the Heathen that did conform them to the Law when as the nature there spoken of by which they are said to do the things of the Law is that rature after which God at first made man upright and after his own Image in righteousness and holiness of truth before they sinned and run out into their own inventions and so fell short thereof which nature and image is in it self â—are divine perfect in reason and understanding and doing thâ— Mind and Will of God though men mostly become degenerated from that into another swinish brutish nature even the nature and image of the Serpent the subtillest of beasts of the Devil and Satan himself and so of men as they were made become beasts of the field and of noble Vines of Gods planting in his Garden at first and wholly a right seed turning from the light into the darkness of their own vain thoughts and imaginations became a seed of evil doers and a degenerate plant of a strange Vine unto the Lord in which staâ—u corrupto and by which contrary nature not created by God but contracted to themselves the other nature image and glory of God which when man sinned crept inward lies hid and covered in them till by the Light of God which is given to that end they are as by a line or clew led down into themselves and through the laborynth of their own learning and lusts which lies a top of it to find it out again and till by the said light the house be swept and the lost money seen and that swinish nature destroyed and the lost sheep sought out and saved and till the works and image of the Serpent who hath in the dark stampt his own likeness on them be again defaced and till the tares which he hath sowed in the night while men slept in the field or inner world of the heart and that earth which hath overgrown the other and brought forth briaâ—s and thornes weeds neetles thistles c. which is accursed be burnt up and consumed from above that which brings forth herbs meet for the Masters use to which the blessing is by the spirit of judgement and of burning in which selfish nature which is that of Cain and Ishmael and Esau the three Elder that have no acceptance men will be sacrificing serving and glorying in Righteousnesses and Church-works of their own devising which All are abomination with God because done in that same nature still in which they are disobedient sinning and serving divers lusts and so by that nature become as well in their very righteousness as in their wickedness children of Gods wrath Ephes. 2.2 Tit. 3.2 incurring his displeasure by their doing of such things as are not only besides but against the Law or Light of God in the Conscience and contrary to that pure primitive nature by which only as men by the light come back to it as many do without the letter the things contained in the holy Law can be done And this contradicts that grosly absurd sottish false blind and ignorant Assertion of T. D. which as A. Parker related to me he uttered in a discourse with him at Sandwich before many people since those three more publick disputes held by R. H. G. W. and my self with him and his Confederates and Associates against us who yet are at odds amongst themselves some Prclatick some Presbyterian some Independent viz. that it is the corrupt nature by which the Nations are said Rom. 2. to do the things contained in the Law Which is I say the grossest absurdity false doctrine and contradiction to the Scripture that can well-nigh possibly be given for by that corrupt sinning nature by the yet T. D. is not ashamed and blushes not to say men do the things câ—ntained in Gods Law alias keep obey observe conform to Gods Law which is the pure light shining in the Conscience that is spiritual holy just and good that never did nor can pâ—ssibly consent to the least sin or do other then reprove and condemn it in the heart I say by that corrupt nature which men have by the fall from God who made them upright contracted to themselves which is the very enmity it self against God and all good men do and can do no other then sin against God and do the things that are not contained or commanded in but are contrary to the Law and walk in the trespasses and sins in which they lie dead according to the common course and custome of the World while it lies in the wickedness not minding the light according to the Prince of the power of the Air the Spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience and have their conversation in the lusts of the flesh fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind drinking in iniquity as naturally as the beast drinks in water without satisfaction working uncleanness with greediness 1 Iohn 2.1 2 3 14 18 19. and so are by that nature children of wrath But in respect of which said pure primitive nature some Gentiles that have not the letter but the Light
them and also millions of men who have the Light in them that condemns and reproves them for their Rebellion against it are not conformable thereunto and therefore they both have and need such a Light within them Antecedent to that renewing and need also to be called upon to turn unto it that they may thereby see how conformable they are to this evil world and non-conformable to that Will of God that they may thereby first know the good Will of God which is manifested in that Light and secondly by obeying that Light be conformed to that Will and no more unto the world but transformed by the renewing of their minds So that whereas they conclude all men ought to be renewed after Gods Image c. therefore All have it not I contrariwise conclude All ought to be renewed according thereunto c. therefore All have a light sufficient to lead them as théy follow it into the Image of God Their ninth is a sottish shameful Tergiversation a Re substrats from the Question into another matter as clear contrary to the subject in hand as light and darkness are to each other yea instead of persevering to prosecute the proof of their Proposition concerning the non-sufficiency of the Light in All men they fall a proving the insufficiency of the darkness in All men to be a sufficient rule to life and safe guide of men unto God at the end of which they entail a most abominable lye against the Quakers saying The Qua. prescribe that unto men as their Rule which God counts their Curse and what 's that Scilicet the thing that of All things the Quak. of all men who call men to Gods Light within do call men out of viz. the counsels imaginations and lusts of their own hearts which men say the Qua. walking in and bâ—ides the Light of God and hearkening to and not to the Voice of God which I. O. confesses page 44. though in his folly he calls it Natural to be Gods Light in every conscience come under the Laws curse and make their own misery great upon them The Aâ—gument is briefly thus To leave a person to hâ—s own imagination lust to walk in his own counsel in his own way which is all one as to leave him to the Light within him is reckoned as the greatest Curse and Iudgement to a man from God for refusing to hearken to Gods Voice as the Text shews Psa. 81.11.12 Therefore the Light within each person is of it self no safe guide Rep. That the Qua. call to the Light within and to stand in the Councel of God which is the Light within which condemns all the lusts of mens hearts and their own vain counsels and imaginations is most true But if ye be not past shame be ye ashamed and blush both at your own blaspheming the Light of God and belying of the Qua. who in your blindness for which Wo is unto you except ye repent Isa. 5. cal good evil and light darkness and cannot see to put a difference between Gods Light and mans lust the Councel Law and Way of God in every conscience which leads to life blessing and peace and the vain wayes and thoughts of man and Law of sin that lusts to envy and all evil and leads to cursing and condemnation And secondly cannot understand the Qua any otherwise then as calling men to their own hearts lusts when they expresly and in Terminis ca'l Ad men to that Light of God in them which makes manifest and condemns every ones own lust in every heart Generation of Vipers where did ye ever hear or hear of any Qua. or any one that 's owned by them in their Ministry prescribe mans own counsel imagination or hearts lust to him as their Rule Do they not as Iohn Baptist did bear witness to that true Light which enlightaeÌ„th every man that cometh into the world Do they not as Christ did call men to walk and believe in the Light while they have it that they may be the children of it least utter darness come as 't is already on your selves so that ye know not whether ye go upon them Do they not with Paul whom ye wot to have received some message to turn men from it speak to men to turn from the darkness to the light from the power of Satan the Ruler of the darkness of this world unto God Do they not tell men with Peter That there 's a sure word of Prophesie for them to which they do well to take heed as to a light that shines in the dark place of their hearts till the day dawn and the day-star arise there Do they not with Iohn tell men That God is Light and in the Light and that in him is no darkness at all and that if men be their form never so fair say they have fellowship with God and walk in darkness and the lusts of the flesh as Papists Pralaticks Presbyterians Independents and other our-side Professors do they do but lye and do not the truth but if they walk in the Light as God is in it then God and they have fellowship together and there the Blood of his Son is felt clearsing from all sin which ye say men cannot be thoroughly cleansed from while they live here and so harden men in their own hearts lusts and is all this of the Qua. a prescribing to men their hearts lusts as their rule Do you understand Christ Paul Peter Iohn and All the Prophets calling to the Light Isa. 2. as Isaiah Come ye let us walk in the Light of the Lord he will teach u of his wayes we will walk in his paths so as ye do us when we restifie the same truth often in their own words as calling men to follow their own wayes thoughts counsels imaginations hearts lusts If ye take us as intending so when we call to the Light why not them If not them why us who say the same Is the word Light more offensive more unsavoury more difficult to be understood more savouring of lust more sounding like lust out of our mouths whom ye superlatively abhor then out of theirs whom ye now superstitiously adore But so it alwayes fell out as I.O. truly sayes page 59.60 61. that scarce any Prophet that spake in the Name of God had any approbation from the Church in whose dayes he spake people being so eminently perplexed with false Prophets in the latter dayes of the Iewish Church especially both as to their number and subtilty speaking lyes against the truth therefore no marvel it is so now in these last dayes of the Church of the outside Christians and as the next Age to that which flew them began still to build Sepulchres in remembrance of them so the time is neer to come wherein ye or your Successors who cast out the name of Gods People called Qua. as evil now shall what ere ye dream be forced to say there 's a Seed among them which sincerely serves
the affirmative both according to the Poets and the Prophets Quis legit haec Per so Isa. 53 who believeth our Report vel duo vel neme few or none Adde to this these considerations in proof thereof If sin be Christs Enemy in his Saints which none denyes then must it be destroy'd in them before not after death for the last enemy that is to be destroyed is death But the 1 st is true therefore this latter Again the perfecting of the Saints is the very end of Christs Ministry to the Church-ward Eph. 4.11 12 13. which end it must accomplish in this life or not at all for it ceases in that to come as Scripture and prophecy and all such mediums do as I.O. confesses being accommodated presenti huic statui to this present world onely Ex. 3. S. 39. and if it be not here attainable and freedom from sin not possible to be accomplished then ye make Christs Ministry as imperfect as your own absit blasphemia the perfection of every thing consisting in nulla alia re quoth I.O. Ex. 3. S. 24. no other thing then in its sufficiency to attain its end And in every discipline that quoth he is to be counted imperfect which sinem propositum suum assequi potis non est is not of force to effect its propounded end Yea not onely the 1 act of regeneration which is all ye count as attainable here but also the 2. Act or Consummation and perfection of it is attainable and is the very end of the true spirituall Ministry of Christ which is his gift and infallible for the Text runs so concerning that Ministryes continuance here which ceases after death till we all come into the unity of the Faith and Knowledge of the Son of God i. e. to know him all alike and to one perfect man even to the measure of the stature of the fulnesse of Christ So that all that are truly born from above of water and the Spirit not Bastards born of flesh into a talk of the new birth that yet know it not into the divine nature of Christ may come up into the measure of his stature to be as he is in whom is no sin to walk as he walk'd in this world 1 Ioh. 2. 6. 1 Ioh. 4.17 or else the end of the Ministry is frustrated And to say that God appoints a means to an end no way attainable I.O. Himself detests that as his principles are and so do all that hold that undenyable maxime that Deus nil facit frustra Again t is the end of the Scripture quoth I. O persicere omniae to perfect All things pertaining to our salvation Therefore perfect salvation from sin is here attainable otherwise the Scripture is not perfect as I. O. sayes it is to its own end sith it ceases in the world to come as he confesses also therefore though he contradict himselfe so as to say the Scripture obtains not its end here yet if his saying that it does obtain its end and its end is saving the soul be true this ad hominem is an Argument out of his own mouth sufficient to evince to the stoppoing of it a possibility of being saved from sin in this life Again they that walk not after the flesh and fulfill not the lusts of it sin not for sin is the fruit and effect of the lust which must conceive be consented and yielded to before sin can be brought forth Iam. 1.14.15 a man must be led away of his own lust before he sins But there be some that walk not after the flesh that fulfil not the lust of it Yea they that are in Christ Jesus to whom is no condemnation which condemnation by the Law is where ever sin is which is the transgression of the Law Rom. 8.1 yea more expressely they that are in Christ are new creatures the old things the old man and his deeds 2 Cor. 5. Rom. 6. Eph. 4. Which is renewed after the Image of him who created him in righteousness and holyness of truth not a meer imputed one a meer computed one an imaginary one a sound of words a talk not a shadowy one not a shew of holinesse where it is not substantially inherently indeed and in truth but a sinning under the name of Saints Yea more expressely yet from Rom. 8. If Christ be in in you the body is dead because of sin and Rom. 6. how shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein such there are in whom Christ is and these are dead to sin and those that are dead to it live not in it it is mortified in such in facto esse not in fieri only i.e. mortifying ever as long as we live yet never dead till they be dead as our dead Divines deliver Ye most expressely of all Gal. 5. they that are Christs and some are his though the pleaders for sin and the Devils dwelling in them till they dy are none of his have in praeterito crucified the flesh not with the actions of it onely but also with the affections and lusts thereof And though there is a time of dayly dying I dydayâ—y saith Paul 1 Cor. 15. in the light which is the crosse of Christ to the caâ—nailmâ—nd to the world and the lust of it which passeth away before him that doth the will of God and abideth eveâ— Yet there is a time of being crucified to the world with Christ and the world unto such which Paul witnessed 2 Cor. 12. And howbeit 14. yeares before that Paul hast a Thorn in the flesh a Messenger of Satan to buffet him least through many Revelations he should be exalted above measure whence the Ministers of the night and darknesse argue a maâ—â—i ad mâ—nus that Paul sinned while he liv'd much more must others not heeding that his Thorn was but a Temptation to prevent his transgression and therefore noâ— a transgression of itself for Christ was tempted yet never sinned and beside though it lay haunting and attempting him and was not soon removed yet on his prayer that grace was given which was sufficient to support him under it so that he fell not by it yet if it had proved a transgression 't would not have proved him that sine'd 14. yeares ago to have been a sinner now much lesse to have sinned so long as he lived and so to have been an as for example for all seeming Saints to argue from that they may safely and must unavoidably continue sinning to their dying day Therefore salvation from sin is attainable in this life Yea this very conclusion here inferr'd is in plain termes asserted by Peter of the Saints 1 Pet. 1. of whom he sayes that they received the end of their faith the salvation of their souls which salvation I say till is from the sin which slayes and separates it from God or else from nothing Moreover such as walke after the Spirit and in the light and are led thereby these sin not nor do
same Fate in that kind hath attended this of mine which hath ever yet attended both the Scripture and His I. T 's and all other Books too of any Bulk in their passage through the Press As for the Faults that have befallen this as they are not very many considering the greatness of the Impression and the smalness of the Print so they are too many to passe altogether Unmended Unminded Unmentioned also Whereupon excepting such as being more gross are with a Pen already rectified to the Readers hand of such as are not mended I shall mention some wishing Him to mend the rest in his own mind Yet some of these hereunder noted were espied and amended before they were wrought off wholly at the Press In the 1. Exercitation page 24. line 13. read Kings p. 28. l. 18. r. stout standing p. 70. in the Margent r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 80. l. 10. r. there p. 90. l. 3. r. life p. 116. l. 31. r. if all p. 144. l. 15. 16. r. more then good ones evill once for more the good ones evil which is set twice ore In Exerc. 2. p. 12. l. 30. r. thou shootest p. 66. l. 11. 12. r. live in sin p. 137. l. 21. r. Rounds p. 164. l. 33. r. and l. 35. r. such silly In Ex. 3. p. 5. M. for emulâ—ate â—enuclâ—ate p. 35. l. 7. r. stirs strifes M. r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 64. M. for ut r. at p. 37. mar r. divinus p. 312. mar r. Scripturae Author p. 132. l. 19. r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p. 136. l. 12. r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 l. 13. r. upholder p. 141. l. 5. r. for the Scriptures l. 14. r. malicious p. 154. mar r. Synonimous p. 174. l. 8. r. more then thâ—se p. 187. l. 17. r. streining In Exerc. 4. p. 3. 1. 12. blot out we p. 9. 1. 20. blot out of p. 13. 1. 17. r. no indirect l. 39. r. but by p. 133. l. r4 r. Apage p. 16. l. 18. r. and in p. 205. l. 9. r. denomination p. 221. mar r. Israél Midian Ahaz In the Appendix p. 24. l. 13. r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In the two sheets at the end p. 1. l. 18. for have have r. have Sundry more Typâ—graphical Errors probâ—bly there are uncorrected then I can on a sudden cast my eyes on by some of which possibly the sense is interrupted but of all that are I may safely Say with I. O. in his Vindication of the Entireness to a Tittle of the Originall Texts bate all such as are Evident mistaâ—es consisting only in superfluity and redundancy of unnecessary â— deficiency of words necessary to the sense of the place that is to say Aâ— of what sort soever and then there will be few or none at all In a word Let Every Reader do the Printers that wonted Right of Winking at their wonted doing Wrong And as I by their Failing have fallen under the Common Fate so I ask no more but that Common Favour of Non-Imputation of their Faults to Me â— as Mine Typographi â—e Reputentur Amici S. F. THE PREFACE John Owen who hast been stiled Doctor in Divinity and Dean of Christ-Church Coll. Oxon. and Thomas Danson stiled M. A. Minister of the Gospel at Sandwich in Kent and late Fellow of Magdalen Coll. Oxon. I Have taken a view of three books of you two lately extant against the People commonly called Quakers namely of thy threefold Thing I. O. or double-tongu'd piece of Divinity doings about the Letter and the Light lyingly relating in other parts of it partly and in its Latine part principally to the Quakers Also T. D. of thy two little fardâ—es of much falshood generally superscribed with these two untrue Titles viz. 1 The Qua. folly made manifest to all men in Auswer to R. Hub. 2 The Qua. Wisdome descends not from above in Answer to G. Whit. replying to the other For the Truths sake which now lies at stake openly between you two and them I am minded as moved in way of Reply to say something to both your Books and to your selves and the world also about them I intend not a total Translation of that forraign Language wherein that foresaid Latine part of thine I. O. in which thou fight st most fiercely with thy fore-nam'd Friends was written so much of that shall serve as will serve the turn of such Truths as I hâ—ve plead against thee in the service of nor a total transcription of either of your books they are not worth it not yet an Answer to every falsity that is found therein Hoc opus luc labor est they are more then my measure of Arithmetick can easily reach to reckon up But a due Expostulation with you both on the Quakers and the Truths behalf an Animadversion of some at least of those many absolute absurdities follies confusions false doctrines flat contradictions to yourselves which are eveâ— and anon therein uttered by you a Subversion of your Topsie-Turvies who set the chief things ye have to do withall Aâ—chi-podialiter as it were with the heels upwards a Blowing away of those blasphemies lies calumnies opprobrious titles disdainful subsannations unjust accusations spiteful aspersions abominable abuses breatâ—d out by you against the people abovesaid whom all that curse shall once see and say are a Seed whom God hath blessed and to be short an Examination of many such matters in every part of both your Books how scamblingly soever they lye here some and there some in them as I find bear any reference to the Qua. or to those Doctrines viz. 1 Of Iustification by the Righteousness of Christ in us 2 Of the Letters not being the only Foundation and Rule of Faith and holy life 3 Of the Infallible Spirits Inspiration and Infallible direction of his Ministry at this day 4 Of the Vniversal love and grace of God to all men 5 Of the True saving Light of Christ enlightning every man in the world 6 Of the Attainableness of perfect purity or freedome from sin in this life in each of which ye differ from them and which against you both and your Adherents are held forth by them Sundry false and grosly absurd businesses against the Light and its Children may not improbably be briefly noted as they lye most notably obvious to every common capacity in the nine Sermons of Iohn Tombs B.D. which came piping hot from the Press while this of mine to you two is coming to it put out by R. Baxter which pair of blind Brethren as much enmity threatning and Thunder without Lightning as hath been between them hitherto against each other are it seems like Herod and Pilate now made friends together against Christs Light so as to make one Head though two Horns wherewith to thrust it down if they could for which a Rod a Rod in the Lords hand is already ready for the back of Baxter who and his once Heretical and Heterodox but now Reverend and
Title of the Quakers Folly under a meer empty seeming shew of manifesting whereof to all men thou hast more truly in the eyes of wise men and more fully manifested thy own and that so egregiously that Petulanti splene Cachinno some man of a light spirit and ticklish spleen so much concern'd in the all manner of ridiculosities thereof as I and my two Friends of Truth Rich. Hubberthorn and Geo. Whitehead who together with me who am very much are not a little belyed therein would have sent them home to their Author long since with no other Rod at their backs then some loud laughter thereat before the world they being worthy of little better Reply Howbeit I have answered them hitherto with no other then sober silence partly because the first is captivated already from doing so much mischief as it was designed to and both before and behind too well besieged to do any great Execution against the Truth being a Priori beset by a Book of R. Hubberthorns which it gives as it faith it self p. 34. a short Answer to a Posteriori by a Book of G. Whiteheads in which it is as soberly and â—ufficiently replayed to and partly if not principally because as I.Os. three Treatises have one with another as he saith Arctissimum materiae seu Doctrinae consortium so thy two books have with his as to the Doctrinal parts such an affinity in subject and co-incidence of matter being both di putatory more or less against the self-same truths the Qua. tell that in answering the one the other remains not unanswered and as to the Narrative parts of both which are full of false Narrations if two false tongues of two lying Linguists be like one another haud Linguae dissidium scarce more difference in Language then thus that as I.Os. book tells tales in some so both thine do in some other particulars against the Qua. insomuch that I saw I might as also I accordingly do though the bulk hereof thereby become bigger and the time of its coming out to publike view a little later then was once intended in replying to I.O. in many places wherein he and thou T. Danson who eodem horrendo â—ercussi scotomate dance the Râ—unds often together in the dark do meet in one easily interpose such a general Answer and render such a round Reply to thee and thine together with him and his as by which the Truth I singly seek to vindicate may be truly served though what I do is scarce so smarting a Rod as by thy two abusive businesses is truly deserved and that what is fit to be said by way of Answer to thee that is so over-p'us that it can conveniently come in neither directe nor collateraliter as miscellaneous among the matter that mainly relates to I.O. might as it is here and as it is but meet be clapped on as additional at the beginning I shall begin with the Wings of thy two Pamphlets each of which hath two waxen ones a piece viz. an Epistle and a Narrative which by the help of those lyes and false tales they are as with so many Peacocks tails behung with they fly so high at the face of the Sun itself even the Light and Truth of the living God that they melt of themselves before the heat thereof and must at last lye as low though they sore aloft for a while as the very Pit of Perdition the smoak of which together with their Fellow Locusts they first came out from These their two respective wings whereof I know not which to call the left and which the right so sinister are they all and so little dexterity is therein any of them being a little cropt or closely clipt the barebodies of both T.Ds. Divinity books as they will never soundly recover of those wounds that each of them hath had already from the hands of of G.W. and L.H. respectively replying to them so of the further bruises which they together with I.Os. Academical Ousets and hasty Assaults of the same Generation of Just ones are like to meet with in this ensuing encounter they will be disinabled from flying abroad so fast as to do any mischief where the night spends and the day dawns though they may possibly live so as to crawl and creep about a while in some Collegian Cells and other such like dark corners of the earth My Entrance shall be at thy Epistles in the first of which thou T.D. sayest Perhaps the Reader will wonder that thou shouldst meddle with such a Generation as the Quakers and think thy time hangs on the lug and will not off at any considerable rate Rep. I confeâ—s I am one of those Readers that more then think thou mightst have spent thy time far more considerably and to better purpose to have fully fell on with the Qua. in that good work then to fall upon them for it so fouly as thou dost of calling thy rude people to repentance from all sin into perfect purity and holiness the very thing thou pretendest to have thy wages for But when I consider the old Proverb that all Trades must live and that thine as well as that of the Lawyers is no longer liv'd then while people live and die in trespasses and sins I wonder no more then at Demetrius and his fellow Silver-Smiths of like occupation who by that cast of keeping men in sinful blindness having their wealth throw dust into the ayr against the Light that would lead them out that thou and thy muddy Generation meddle so much as ye do to muddle mens minds against such an Enlightening and Purifying a Generation as the Qua. are and besides Prov. 20.3 Every fool will be medling as Iannes and Iambres were as thou and I.O. are to manifest the Qua. notorious folly in these daies till they most notoriously manifest their own T. D. Thou tellest 'T was never thy ambitiÌ„on to appear so publikely as in print Rep. It had not need unless thou hadst better ware then thou hast the darkness which vents it in thee is the likeliest place to put it off in it being not vendible in the light T. D. That hadst thou consider'd the likelihood of the Qua. printing which would necessitate thine thou shouldst likely have waved any discourse with them Rep. Insipient is est dicere non puraâ—om It s as much Innocencies ambition to appear openly in the service of Truth as 't is the guise of Guilt to hide its head Thou mayst well think the Qua. who are in the truth it self which thou art not yet so much as truly in the words of will not be out-weigh'd by the wind of one that as thou sayst thou didst chuses rather to out-word them and whether thou appear any more publikely for thy lyes and doctrines of vanities yea or nay yet the truth which may be a while opprest never sapprest will now lye no more hidden under the black dawb of darkning School-distinctions but will appear
of Masters Reverend Sirs c. under the disguise of Servi Servorum-Dei are indeed no less then Masters of all mis-rule and Domini Dominorum Terrae T. D. Thou tellest us alluding to a saying of the Bishop of Alâ—f concerning the Protestants that if the Qua. have Orthodoxos mores an Orthodox conversation yet they have Haereticam fidem an Heretrodox or Heretical belief Rep. Herein thou shewest thy self to be as well as in other things one of the blind Grand Children of that blind Papistical Bishop who can'st not discern how impossible it is that an Orthodox true right or good Gospel conversation should proceed from an Heretical or false faith Silly man Does not true Faith purifie the heart and life work by that love which works no evil give victory over the world with the lust thereof c And does any perfect purity of heart or life any true love that works no ill any victory over the world any truly good manners righteous works holy actions honest or godly conversation flow from an Heterodox unsound untrue dead Heretical false faith Is not that a dead and unprofitable faith and such is yours who deny any perfect purging from sin in this life which doth not avail to the purging of the heart and life Which overcomes not the world And is not all purity and love and victory over the worldly lust c. the necessary effect of a true Faith and of that only and no other and can there possibly be a bad false faith where there are truly good works and an holy life In thy yielding here that the Qua. have a right conversation thou not onely givest thy self the lye in other places where thou accusest them as wanting not having so much as moral honesty as p. 11.2 Pamp. and p. 5. of the Narrative but also to the proving thy own faith consequently to be false evincest the Qua. Faith to be true and not Heretical for good manners and a righteous wel-ordered conversation cannot flow from a false or from any but a true living justifying Soul-saving Faith or Belief within aud if the Heretical faith for so ye will needs call the true one bring forth the right life and the Orthodox for so ye will call your own fruitless one be seconded with and shewed by a prophane conversation then give me our Heretical and take you your Orthodox belief unto your selves give me the Faith that purifies works no ill gives victory over sin and is both proved and perfected by good works shew me T. D. thy faith without thy good works I will shew thee my Faith by my works for where the life is right the Faith cannot be amiss and while the life is crooked corrupt and rotten the Faith is not pure right nor sound yet I know the Clergy will needs count the Qua. Faith Heretical let their life be never so innocent being themselves most in love with that Faith in Christ if they could find it our once that can allow and assure them of not onely Salvation from wrath when they dye but while they live also a vain conversation and no little liberty to sin T. D. Thou say'st G. W. layes the most innocent truths under the odious Imputation of Antichrists deceits Rep. If those 20 of thy Antichristian deceitfull Doctrines with G. W. sees down as thine at the end of his Reply to thee are the most innocent truths with thee that we may be delivered for ever from embracing those as Truths shall be my earnest desire and Prayer to God for myself and all men to whom I wish deliverance from darkness and deceit it self and from delâ—â—sion and damnation for sure I am the contrary to those however ownâ—â— by thee because of the blindness of thy heart are the most innocent soul-â—â—ving Truths of Christ. T. D. Thou tel'st thy Reader thou trustest he will be confirmed in his bad opinion of the Quakers Rep. Here thou confessest thy opinion of the Qua which thou seekest in thy first book to beget men to and in thy second to confirme them in is a bad opinion out of thy own mouth from thy own pen art thou judged as no Minister of Christ but an evill doer oh thou improfitable Servant art thou sent of God are not all that are indeed sent of him as thou in word pretendest only to be sent to turn men from bad to good and to confirm them in those good opinions yet behold T. D. Trusts that the people to whom he Ministers will being by his writings converted thereunto be confirmed in their bad opinions of the Qua. Can more be done by any man in discovery of his own folly nakedness not to say iniquity and wickedness to all men then is here by T. D. Was there ever the like seen save among such Ministers as are like to T. D. himself that a Minister should confess to all the world the end of his endeavours to be the converting of his Hearers and Readers to Bad and the confirming them in their Bad opinions yet T. D. thus writes to his Reader I trust thou wilt be confirmed in thy bad opinion of the Qua. Herein T. D. thou justifiest the Qua. as no such Bad people as thou would'st Render them to be at other times for if they were so indeed it were not a Bad but a Good because not a false but a true and iust opinion to think so Badly as thou speakest of them but since thy own self stilest it a Bad opinion of the Qua. which thy care is to confirm men in to think ill of them it evinces them not to be such evil ones for if men be bad indeed it s a good opinion to deem them to be Bad and to think of them as they are yea because the Devill is Bad A Lyar A deceiver he gives the Devill but his due and does well speaks and thinks well who has that good and true opinion that he is a wicked Lyar and Deceiver and who speaks and thinks no better of him then he is But if it be a Bad opinion to think ill of a man and to be of opinion that he is Bad and Naught it must needs be that that man is Good else 't were not Bad but Good and just to judge him Bad the Goodness and Badness of every opinion consisting in no other thing then in the truth and falshood of it respectively and the Badness of a mans opinion about another man arising ever from the goodness or innocency of that other man lie thinks Badly of Indeed were the Qua. such Bad men as thou belyest them to be and had'st thou said I trâ—st thou wilt be confirmed in thy opinion of the badness of the Qua. thou had'st then spoken according to what thou now evilly and falsly thinkest of them and also the opinion thou seekest to confirm men in about their Badness would be as Good and thy endeavours to confirm them in it as Good as ours are who
because the Priests are generally vile and naught do endeavour to bring people who are begâ—iled into the false and bad opinion of them that they are good and men of God Ministers of Christ and such like when it s nothing less to that good true and right opinion of them that they are but Ministers of mens making and men of Sin and not of God But â—â—th the Qua. are excepting such as are so named for comming among them who are no more of them nor owned by them then all they are Israel that are called Israel an Innocent Honest Trueâ— Iust Righteous Pure Peaceable people and thou say'st its a Bad Opinion of them to think of them as ill as thou would'st have men in that as Caiphas the Priest of old not of himself but as he was ordered unawars to speak more truth of Christ then he himself was aware of thou hast said truly and judg'd thy self as an unjust and evill doer in begetting in peoples minds Bad Opinions of Good men and justified the Qua. as a generation of Iust Ones against thy will T. D. Thou say'st thou shalt blow away the dust the Qua. raise with their Feet Rep. Throwing Dust in the Aire casting mists and thereby blinding men from seeing the Light and Gospell that 's the work of Demetrius the Silver Smith and his Companions who by the craft of holding up false Worships had their wealth and not of Paul the Qua. who are men of like occupation with him these make no Trade of Preaching much less of hiding the Gospell as ye do but seek to publish it freely and what in them lyes to make it without charge T. D. Thou shuttest up thy Epistles to thy Reader with thy short Prayers to this purpose that thâ—se men the Qua. may proceed no further but that their folly may be manifested to all men 2 Tim. 3.9 And that we henceforth be no more Children tossed too and fro with every wind of Doctrine by the sleight of men and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive but speaking the Truth in love may grow up into him in all things which is the Head even Christ is the earnest Prayer of Thy Servant for Iesus sake T. D. That thou maist not know the depths of Satan as they speak Rev. 2.24 But maist hold fast that Doctrine which thou hast already v. 25. is the Prayer of Thy Servant in the work of the Gospel T. D. Rep. Thou art very full of these ejaculatory supplications but thy ejaculations against the Qua. be ever too short to enter into the Eares of the Lord of Hosts to obtain ought of that thou desirest thou maist save thy breath and keep thy Darts to thy self they do but reflect back upon thee dream what thou wilt in the darke as to thy audience and acceptance we know as well as he who e eyes Christ opened heretofore Ioh. 9.24 to 32. that God heares not sinners much less such as thou art who not only beleivest thou maist but even must sin also while thou livest and so regard'st iniquity as to plead against those as broaching of the Devils Doctrine who plead a perfect purging and freedom from it in this world Wert thou a Worshipper of God and doer of his will which none doth while he sins though thou dreamest men may be in a justified Estate while Committing of Adultery and Murder he would heare thee for his spirit would then guide thee to aske according to his will and such things only as are well pleasing in his sight and to make intercession for his Saints and not against them as thou often dost and thou should'st know also as they do that thou hast the things thou desirest of him 1 Ioh. 5.14 15. but poore wretched man that thou art it s now quite otherwise thy sins lye at the doore and shut out thy Cains Sacrifices from comming up as incense in the sight of God so that thou fallest and loosest daily more and more for all thy Prayers the Qua. both have and will proceed yet further and by the Wisdome of God in them will both the Lyars the Lyâ—ns mouths be stop't at laâ—â— and thine and thy fellows folly be manifested to all men as that of old Iannes and Iambâ—s was who in their corrupt minds withstood and resisted Mâ—ses and the Truth 2 Tim. 3.9 and while thy self and all that heed the wind of thy Doctrine unless ye take more heed to the light within shall be henceforth as ye have been hitherto as Children tossed too and fro and driven like the Weathercock which way so ere the wind blowes and turned about as the Priest and his Parish ever hath been into what posture mould or mouldy Religion soever the times happen to settle in the Qua. who are stated on that Corner Stone ye builders refuse on the suâ—◠〈◊〉 the Râ—â—â—â—f agâ—s Christ the Light of the world and Life of all that hear his Voyce will stand upright and not fall nor be wiâ—dâ—d about any more by the â—light of the Shepheards that have driven them from Mountain to Hill in the dark and gloomy day nor catcht by the cunning Craftiness whereby the Clergy lye in wait to deceive but know not so as to own or approvâ— yet so as to â— Scâ—â—n and disprove the depths of Satan as they speak and when thou and thine shall be forced to let go what ye have and holdâ— and hold forth for the Doctrine of God by tradition from men the Qua. shall hold fast what Doctrine they have already learnt from God himself and shall not in that thy Complementall form of words who as the old Servus Servorum Dâ—i doth when that he may be Dâ—mâ—rus Dâ—miâ—orum is that he more desires subscribest thy self thy Servaut in the work of the Gospel for Iâ—sus sake while thou art indeed one of those Master Ministers that serve for filthy Lucres sake against both Iâ—sus and his Gospel but denying your usurped Mastership be made able Ministers of the Gospel or New Testament not of your dead Letter but of the Life and Spirit and speaking the truth in Love and not lies in Envy and Hypocrisie as ye do grow up into him in all things even into his likeness and the Image measure and Stature of the fullness of him who is the Head even Christ into whose likeness though ye live like the Devill here ye look to grow in the world to come only and not before Thus far as to thy petty pair of painted Prologues and as really piteâ—s as seemingly pious Apologies or Epistolary Prefaces to thy two Paultry Pieces CHAP. II. Now as to thy two more Notorious Narratives whereby as by the Epistles on the one so thy two Butterflies are on the other side as with so many wings born up and furnished to fly apace through the world that is in love with lyes I shall need to say the less to them by how much some of the many lves
said as the same Seed did to the same sort of Seers whom God sent of old to a Rebellious people lying children that would not hearken to the Law of the Lord See not Prophecy not Soft and Gentle and not Right and Rough things are agreeable to to the duty of this day the Qua. speech the words whereof I have set down in the Margin referring both thee T.D. and the Sandwich doters on thy dowby-doings to a Printed sheet â—old by Tho. Simmons at the Bull and Mouth stiled the Prophet approved by the words of his Prophecy coming to â—ass where ye may read the residue of the Message from the Lord in that place of the Popish Priests consecrating falsly called Christ-Church in London on that day was deemed such a disturbance as was punisht with an orderless New-Gate imprisonment by the multitude at the present ratified by the Rulers order when they were more at leasure from their voluptuous feasting which iniquity of appointing men to preach to them in their own wills and time whether God appoint them yea or nay of despising the true Prophets true Words and trusting in the fraud of the fulse ones and in their own perversness and staying thereon Isa. 30.9 10 15. was then unto them as it ever was to the same generation as a breach swelling out in a high wall whose breaking came suddenly as at an instant for by the 13th of the same month they who were so hand in hand against Righteousness were turned tail to tail against each other for their wickedness yea the Lord spared them not but brake them as the breaking of a Potters vessel that is broken in pieces so that in the bursting of those brittle Potsheards of the earth there is scarce found a sheard of so much uâ—e as to take fire from the hearth ' or water withal from the pit Now as to the very great distuâ—bance thou sayest they made this is but the old Tone of the Tithe-taking Tide-turning Tune-serving Truth-belying Teachers and the wonted out-cry of that Noun-Adjective Ministry thou belongest to that cannot stand nor subsist of themselves without leaning for encouragement defence assistance and maintenance to meeâ— humane Laws to prop them up in the propagating of their meer humane Gospel who like the loud-lying women that having no better shift than to cry whore first are ever hideously bellowing out against the Qua. to the tune of Heresie Heresie disturbance of the Ministers to the Magistrates so that if any Qua. come quietly in and speak or do but ask that Reason which every Christian is bound to be ready to give of his hope to every one that asketh him in meekness and feare they strait call out to have them Punisht as the Iews neither did Act. 13. nor do at this day which said Ministers being in propriis Talpae in alien is linces are more sharp-fighted towards the good behaviour of one Qua. quietly questioning with them or saying any thing to them soberly that is of God then the misdemeanour and tumultuousness of twenty of their own unquiet Spirits stirred up by the Devill to call us Râ—gues-Faces Quaking Doggs to break Windows and bring in Dâ—ggs to fight and such like beastly and Bear-like behaviour in our solemn Assemblies till they are wearied with their own Pains towards us and our Patience towards them under it as well while we are speaking as we are moved of the Lord in our own allowed meetings as in theirs witness their leading a Bear through the place where the Qua. were Preaching publickly at Hith and also the rudeness of some of those that are under thy own Tuition T.D. at Sandwich and belonging to the Flock thou there feedest or rather feedest on who when G. F. E. B. my self and many others were publickly met in quiet in a place of our friends procuring shrew Stones and Gunpowder squibs that fired among us not so as to move us to cry out to the Rulers of Disturbance yet so as to give good occasion to the Lord to permit though ye forget it a sad fire to fall out within the Town no longer after then the next morning Thus ye men of Sin make men of God offenders for a word and hate them as of old they did that reprove sin within the Gate so that when any such stirrs arise upon occasion of the Gospels preaching as did in the Prophets and Apostles days which the Lords Messengers now are no more accessary to as causes then they then were it s still laid to the doore and put on the score of Truth and the Tellers of it which because none else will own it must hear it till against the foul mouth'd Beast the Lambs innocency be cleared as the light which till then may truly say of all mischief that falls out where he utters his voyce Cum nemini obtrudi potest itur ad me The Lambs cauâ—e is better then the Wolfs when charg'd by him for troubling the water with only drinking at the Fountain but the Wolfs Teeth are sharper then his and therefore the Innocent must be devoured And whereas to such like tales as thou hast told as abovesaid thou prefixest the conclusion thou inferrest in these words viz. T. D. What affronts these wretches offer to the Worship of God is notoriously known Rep. I â—ay your Parish Worship is not so truly the Worship of God as 't is true that ye so call it but that of the Qua. who Worship him in Spirit and Truth in the inner parts which ye are out of which those poor Wretches your Parish people are by your lyes instigated to offer such abominable affronts to as Beaâ—ings Buffetings of men in and draggings of them oâ— their own meetings as are notoriously known all the Land over is the true Worship of God indeed which except ye repent in time O ye Priests and Parish-people and own the truth 't were better for you and them that ye had never been born then offer such affronts to as ye do but full well may ye offer affronts to our Worship when ye stick not to do the like to your own Rule of all worship even to that ye call the Word of God for if the Scripture which is a true writing of it were as truly the Word of God as ye say it is ye bawlk not as occasion is to do despite to that witness the ungodly guise of those Giddy Heads about Westminster who when by G. F. holding out the Bible to them they were askt in the mid'st of their mad hurlings of Mud and Kennell dirt as they mostly do upon the Qua. in their meeting there to this purpoâ—e whether they would do such despite unto the Scripture which they say is their Rule and the Word of God ceased not to be dirt that their Word of God any more then they did from dirting him who held it out to thorn T.D. Another of thy Remarkable passages in the first Narrative is of one of
Narrative only and the other more wickedly then wisely made and drove on very devoutly in both but especially in thy first without either care or good councâ—l consideration or conscience Truth or Righteousness sense or reason fear or wit are these T. D. That the Qua. intend to prosecute the promotion of their Principles by that bloody way of persecution with the outward sword 2. That the Qua. are doubtlesly acted by the Antichristian or Romish faction and do drive on the Popish work and Papistical design and of Qua. become Papists and further for this Lye splits it self into two parts one concerning the Qua. in generall the other concerning my self in particular that I.S.F. am probably and appear to be not only a Rank Papist but also 〈◊〉 Iesuit holding complyance with the Pope serving the Sea of Rome such like of which more at large by and by Rep. As to the first of these thy two Lyes of the Qua. it lies thus palpably ayerred in thy own words T. D. The truth is the Qua. now declare their intentions to propagate their perswasions by the sword whereas they were want to pretend to so much meekness or peaceableness that they would hold neither speaâ— nor sword Rep. Here 's the charge An Arrand Lye yet a Truth if four or five more Lyes will Serve to prove it if not men must take it for truth on no other Acconuâ— then this because T.D. who tels so many Lyes that he deserves not to be believed when he speaks the truth doth falsly Say so for thy pieces of proof which are too piteous to prove thy main false Charge were they all true are as to the truest information that I can get thereof every of them false Charges and a pack of Lyâ—s like to that they are brought in proof of The first Proof is this slender Story At a Late Meeting of the Qua. in Hurst Pierpoint in Suffex He that undertook to be Speaker called out to the Priest who accidentally pasled by saying we will have you all down for now our day is come The second this Tale. And a oâ—her Qua. in the Parish â—f Nuthurst in the same Counâ—y did say to a Godly person of good quality in that Parish that he no more cared to kill one of the Priests as he styled the Ministers then he would to kill a Dog The Third This Wicked Lye And another Qua. Way-laid the Minister of Covehould a very worthy Reverend man at his return from a Fast and justled him upon the high way as he kept it haviâ—g his Wife behind him and drew out his Sword which he had by his side about half way which was a shrewd presumption that he intended the Minister mischiâ—f but that some neighbours that came from the Fast Coming up to them prevented it and they do usually give oâ—t threatning speeches against the Ministry aâ—d their Friends Rep. In answer to these three I here subscribe such information as came from the mouths or hands of sundry Sâ—ssex men living in and about these Parishes or Places T.D. Relates these matters of a truth to have been done and spoken in three or four of which are it seems members of those two Parishes of Nuthurst and Covewold in such wiâ—e as follows These three Charges or slanderous Accusations as they appear to us Coming to our hands we who are Inhabitants in the County of Sussex near adjoyning to these places where the Author saith these things were done one of us dwelling in one of these Parishes which he makes mention of have a good and perfect knowledge of these men who are called Quakers and that They are men of better Qualifications then to offer such violence or to give out such terms as is here Charged upon them Therefore for better satisfaction to ourselves as also for the sake of others who may be deceived in believing such things by giving Credit unto them without a surer ground then because they are come forth in Print to a publike view also from such A hand whom they might think would not be so dishonest as to be the Author of things that are not true Upon these Considerations and others which might be mentioned we undertook to search out the matter with some diligence that all who desire may be truly informed and who have prejudice in themselves neither against one sort of people nor another because of names or differing in judgment as we have not our selves who are now about to satisfie of this matter that truth may appear and that every action may be tryed by it in and among all sorts of people Bryan Wilkinson Humphery Killingbeck So for the first accusation which the Author makes mention to be spoken at Hurst he hath caused a lie to be printed as also the other two for there were no such words spoke nonly the friend that did speak some words from whence this report might arise might ask the Priest of Hurst what they would do if the powers of the earth should for sake them these words its like were spoken And as for the second accusation and slanderous lie which he saith was spoken by a Quakeâ—s in the Parish of Nuthurst we whose names are here under written did go unto the man whom the Author calls godly and of good qualitie unto whom he said these words were spoken to know the truth of this thing And his answer to us was as he and some others were drinking together there was one amongst them did say that it was no more sin for to kill a wicked man then a Swine Thomas Wyly Nicolas Manard Though there was one who went under the name of a Quaker who did dwell in Nuthurst Parish whom the man which the Author calls godly and of good qualitie did say was the man that spoke these words above mentioned which are otherwiâ—e then what is Printed Yet this man he caâ—ls Quaker that should say these words hath not dwelt in the Parish of Nuthurst neither in the County of Sussex this two year and half and above neither hath he been in these parts of so long time as can be sufficiently proved and the cause of this might arise above a year before he went a way And as for the third slanderous accusation the Minister of Cavehold which the Author of this scandalous Book calls a very reverend man we whose names are here under mentioned did go unto this Minister of Cavehold in Sussex the 16th day of this eleventh month 59. For to have him to set his hand against this Scandal Because we knew that there was no such thing offered by them from which this slander might arise And his Answer to us was that there was three Caveholds in Englaâ—d and that it might be at some of them But he said that he knew the man T.D. that set forth the Book and that he had one of them himself and he said he would send to the man to enquire of him and if he meant Cavehold
Commandements and Traditions of men and of the Pope himself in many things still and yet because they did not so much as he appointed them in matters of more moment but were unclean and wicked refusing to walk in the good old way of the Light which was the way before Moses and the letter was turning away their eare from hearing the Law in the heart which is the light were not only vain but abominable in the very best of their Oblations In Preaching therefore in order to Gods acceptance of us and our good works which are not outward worships where the heart and life are yet defiled but where a new Creature created after his own Image of God in Christ Iesus to good works in his nature and by his Power though in it's own person doth perform them is as an utter exclusion of all your own so no fair In-let to any of the Popish Rubbish will worship meer self service and unprofitable devotion for these being only done by man are neither good nor accepted of God But to Teach and maintain and plead for evil works as necessary to be done while we are in this life and Teach down the doctrine of perfecting holinesse and perfect purging our selves from all uncleannesse of flesh and Spirit while we are here in the body which Paul taught up as a doctrine of devils and to deny the possibility of performing this duty of not sinning and make such a grosse state of sin as that was which David stood in when he was guilty of adultery and murder consistent with Gods acceptance of men and their justification before him and that the Saints as some call them in such a pickle while they are in sin up to the ears even in such a case are not in a condemned but in a justified estate and that if the Saints own heart condemn him and his own conscience tell him that God doth not accept him and that his estate is bad in such a bad sinful case and not good it 's defiled and lyes and testifies falsehood to him and leads him into a wrong opinion of himself and that the Saints may be blessed men as David was having no guile in his spirit but sincere upright after Gods own heart though under the guilt of so grosse and great sins when the Scripture saith the contrary viz that David was upright before God saving in that matter of Vriah wherein indeed his very heart was false and rotten and to affirm to the encouragement of men in their imperfections and infirmityes by which name they stile the Saints grossest iniquities as T.D. does contradictorily to himself in other places that the gospel gives life upon imperfect obedience all which and more ejusdem Farraginis is done and utter'd by T.D. and such as own him therein in the 11.19.45.47 pages of his 1. Pamphlet as they were by word of mouth at the disputes This is to strengthen the hands of the wicked that they cannot return from their wickednesse for how is it possible they should do it when 't is preacht and believed as impossible to be done this is to sow soft pillows under their elbowes that they may sleep on securely in sin and take their rest for its all but infirmity and no inpreachment to his justification nor to his standing accepted and in covenant with God that a Saint does and their 's no condemnation to them that are Saints and in Christ no though they be in transgression in which who is say I is out of Christ and not a Saint and though they walk not after the Spirit as all that are Saints and in Christ Jesus do but after the flesh and in a word a very fair In-let to a very worse matter then that whole mare mortuum of the Popes Beggerly observations even no better a matter then the very whole bundle of the Devils own Bag and Beastly Baggage So then I see not hitherto and am perswaded never shall till I come to see as T.D. does in his floting fancy many things with his eyes shut how any Doctrines of the Qua. even such as they and I hold with any more then what we hold flatly against the Popish Priesthood do either conclude my complyance with them or make any way for the incoming and abiding without its own speedier Ruine of their Romish Baggage or how our parochiall Priesthoods preaching and practice too doth any other then uphold the Butt end thereof and preach their own câ—mplyance with those their Brother Ravens in many matters But T. D's Biggest Bolt and weightest Bullet as he counts at least lyes yet behind and that is our doctrine of good works as needful to that use of our justification before God here he iudges that Omne tulit punctum he hath fully hit the white and that this will do if all the rest die and fallen the fault of favouring and fathering the Popish cause upon me as some Iâ—suit if all the other fail Good works for necessary uses viz to manifest faith to be true to sanctify to make meet for the possession c. T.D. and his Associates in words and doctrinally more then practically maintain as much as any but to maintaine good works not only to the use of our sanctification but our justification and to justify not only deâ—laratively in the sight of men but also formally in the sight of God not only to approve a beleiver but absolve a sinner p. 8. not only to fit for but to give right to the inheritance p. 22. not as concurrent and concomitant only but as cooperative and constitutive together with faith and coincident as a cause in the case of our iustification to let good works be accounted not only Via ad Regnum but also carsa Regnandi as your Scools distinguish yea and further yet to dispute it not in these Terms barely of good works but in these Terms of OUR good works and lastly higher yet to rank them so high in order of causes as not only Instrumental with faith but a deserving or meritorious cause of justification This is notorious yea so grosse and Popish that we may well Rank you thinks he among the Papists p. 58. as at least a bringer in of their Baggage yea now quoth T.D. of me p. 14. you shew your self a rank Papist indeed Rep. Ipse dixit T.D. hath said it who of all those Seers with his eyes in Sandwich or else where who giving heed to him from the least to the greatest saying of him This man is the great Power of God have hiâ— hitherto bewitched with his Simonical Sorceries can do any other then believe it to a Tittle This stroke enters with so deep a dint into the thoughts fancies and faith of many that 't is supposed by some we Qua. shall never be able to lick our selves whole of the deadly wound it brings with it both to the doctrines that we maintain as Truth and to our selves also whom we maintain to be no
Esau have I hated said of those two single Peâ—sons of which our intricate Expositors interpret that Text before those two children and single pair of twins came out of Rebeccaes wombe neither doth that Text Rom. 9.11 12 13. say so in terminis as our Academical Arithmeticians usually wrong repeat it for the Text sayes that before they had done either good or evil or were boâ—n either it was said to her the elder shall serve the younger and that 's true enough that he did both in the single Type and the foresaid double Anti-type and it s witnest in the Saints whom the world knows not to be truth at this day that the elder doth serve the younger which was an underling to the elder a great while but of the other it s said thus not as it was said unto her but as it is written Jacob have I loved Esau have I hated and where and when was this written before the two-single Persons of Iacob and Esau were born or had done either good or evil I trow not but if our benighted Seers look again they 'l see it was written by Malachi the last Prophet whoâ—e Prophecy was not before but after they were born and had done all the good or evil they ever did in the body yea so long after all this was written that the mens bodies both were 100ds of years before that both dead and rotten And to inculcate this a little further let thus much tâ—e considered that howbeit T. D. denyes Iustificâ—â—ion and Life to be given â—s myself do somewhat more then himself who falsly accuses me of it upon my obedience or good works or Righteousness of Ours onely and properly so called for as much as all Ours as well as Our selves as in the fall without Christ and his in us are as an unclean thing and â—ung and liss and as filthy Rags before the Lord and as he speaks improperly imperfectly good which is no other then evil as I said above or imperfect or to use his own Phrase still imperfect obedience which is but disobedience nevertheless the good works righteousness and â—bedience of Christ in us as well as his without us being when but in part or in the least degree perfect and the fulfilling of the Law tuliter qualiter and not defective or transgressive of the Law for as we have of our selves no other so he hath none such nor are any of his his operations or obediences imperfect or a violation or breaking of the Law and either a violating or fulfilling breaking or keeping of it every deed is that is done at all even these are such by which Iustification may doth and must come if at all and upon which the Gospel gives life And if any doubts it as T. D. himself does or rather denyes the Truth of it I need go no further for an Argument ad hominem then to T.D. himself who p. 45. sayes the Gospel gives life upon imperfect obâ—dience from whose own imperfect speech in that particular I may Argue and perfectly conclude the Truth asserted of the worth weight and vnloar of Christs obedience in his Saints every part of which is perfect a minori aâ— maâ—us if I may be candidly construed in my cauting back to him in his own Language of Imperfect Obedience Thus Arg. If the Gospel gives Life upon imperfect obedience as evrs onely is if any can properly be so called then upon perfect obedience such as at Christs within us and without us is much more But Secundum re T. D. the Gospel gives life upon imperfect obedience therefore upon Christs good works Holy Operations Righteousness and Obedience in us which is perfect and not imperfect much more And if T. D. shall strive by the serpentine sublety to save his head this way by saying he intends by that Term of imperfect obedience not any obedience or righteousness of our own wrought by us without Christ but that wihch is as he sayes Pauls was his own that he received from Christ which own of his Paul counted less and dung Our Own received from and wrought in us by Christ yet let him remember at least 1. that then he calls the gift of Righteousness by Faith received from God and Christ from whom comes every good and perfect gift but not any insufficient defective or imperfect that I or any ever read of imperfect And whereas he may yet twine say that he intends not in such a sence as I take the word imperfect in for evil defect insufficiency to its end or so but for 〈◊〉 onely or a less measure or degree of that fulness every part of which is also in a sense perfect let him 2. consider what I said above viz. of no good heavenly spiritual thing or gift that comes down from above from Christ and the Father of lights that which is but in part is any where no not in 1 Cor. 13. or truly can be called imperfect for the earnest and first fruits of the Spirit and Grace is Spirit and Grace and good as the whole is that its a part of and not imperfect but perfect as the other is perfect and so all that 's born of God is truly Holy as God is Holy and perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect and sins not as he sins not nor can being of the incorruptible non-sinning Seed for all that sins is of the Devil and thereby are manifest the Children of God and of the Devil that that is of God overcometh the world and that which overcometh the world is not overcome by the world but keepeth himself that the evil one toucheth him not and sinneth not as he doth and doth no other that is begotten to it by the Devil and is of the Dâ—viâ— and he that sinneth not doth Righteousness and he that doth Righteousness is Righteous as God is Righteous Pure as he is Puâ—e and so in some measure perfect though not in the same measure perfect as his heavenly Father is perfect that is bearing his perfect Image in his meaâ—ure and not part of Gods and part of the Devils as an Infant in nature bears the perfâ—ct Image of a man in stature and not Centaure-like part of a mans Image and part of a beasts and not having a mixture of sin with his Grace as thou whether more fooâ—ishâ—y or falsly it matters not sith it s both in a great degree supposedst as thou saist p. 18 I meant when in Answer to thy Question viz. Whether thâ—râ— be any true Believers who are not perfect At the Dispute I Replyed There are degrees among Believers little Children young Men Fathers and these things may serve as my Answer to that piece of folly and falshood of thine now I am up on 't for whatever thou T. D. supposest I mean I suppose and mean no such matter when I say perfect for every true Believer and Sanctified one by Christ though but in part is as truly though not â—o totally perfect
continually excluded and the glory of all to be given still to God and not flesh man and selfe so that while Iudas could blame none but himselfe for being damned so Paul and the rest though they wrought out their own Salvation yet could blesse none but God who wrought in them of his good pleasure 〈◊〉 to work will and dâ— for their being saved by his grace 1 Cor. 4.7 1 Cor. 15.10 Eph. 2.8 3.8 Phil. 2.12.13 So that all along the gift of both faith and good works are both called grace yea grace is no grace yet to Salvation from sin while men remain in their sins and unsaved by it and while the grace or gift of Gods righteousnesse remaines onely in Christ without them save onely that they are in a possibility to be saved and while they yet witnesse not him and it by him within themselves to the destroying of the works and Image of the Devill which when they do then and not before let them praâ—e of â—â—ace as they will they know the grace of God in Christ Iesus and then all 's grace and by grace and not of works or themselves or any righteousnesse of their own that they can thank for it whatever they work in the light and leadings of it in Preaching Praying Service Worship and what ere they have are enjoy act beleive endure or suffer for his name And so grace and works grace and the righteousnesse of Christ within us when mans own which ye yet are onely in and establishing your selves by who hate the light and are out of it is denyed as Rags as it is by us do not destruere but ponere se invicem so well stand together in the matter of our justification that indeed neither of them can stand in it without the other Neither is grace at all excluded as T. D. injudiciously judges from any hand in iustification by our asserting it to be of works of this nature and establishing this inhaerent righteousnesse of Christ in us thereunto but by this alone is grace perfectly ectablished Neither are these in opposition each to other as T. D. sayes they are as immediate contraryes as mens evill works and these good works of Christ in man were by me affirmed to be but rather individually the same and whereas T.D. saith our justification cannot be a debt and a free gift both in respect of us to what was said above which might serve to answer this I adde my denyall of that position of his with my grounds thereof for howbeit in respect of the same time it cannot be a debt and a free gift too yet in respect of the same persâ—ns with reference to dâ—fferent times and seasons it may for as it was nothing but meer mercy to lost man and free grace gift and goodnesse to man on Gods part and not any debt or desert from God on maâ—s part that 1 st engag'd or mov'd God to give his Son and to make promises in the Gospell to give his free gift of life eternall and to make Christ the Author of it to all them that obey him and the meer grace of Christ to us to come into the world a Light and give himselfe a Ransom for all and to promise to give life to all that come unto him and to God by him that they might have Life and Salvation to the utmost yet seeing as I may say so God and Christ have by free grace that moved them to make it thus put themselves freely into mans debt on Terms of their obedience they are man performing the conditions on his part since then in justice bound to perform it and so to the same Subject mankind from whom God at 1 st was altogether free and to whom he was rich in mercy and infinitely free in giving Christ and making promises he is since on account of his truth engaged if man be not waâ—nting to him selfe to make it good and as it is in the like caâ—es among men that promise which pitty meer mercy moves to make piety and equity require its making good so 't is here and it s no such newes but to such as are novices in the faith to understand that which to the same persons was grace and free gift at 1 st becomming a matter of desert and due debt at last So that though glory be to the grace and mercy of God which onely moved him to say when the wicked turnes from his wickednesse and does what is lawfull and right he shall not dye his iniquity shall not at all be mentioned to him yet the wicked turning Gods wayes are not so equall as he pleads they are Ezek. 18. Against man whose wayes and thoughts are all crooked and unequall if he do not now justify and forgive the reforming evill doer and having in his free favour said it that he that confesseth and forsaketh his siSs shall find mercy Iohn saith 1 Iob. 1.8 If we now confesse our sins not God is gracious and mercyfull though that be Originally the ground of all and to be magnified over all his works and is oft exprest to the wicked repenting as the grand cause of Gods remitting 55. Isa. Let him forsake his way and thoughts and turn to the Lord for he is gracious but saith Iohn God is faâ—thfull and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness So having refuted T. D's irrefragable Argument as he stiles it from that Scripture Rom. 11. Which I confesse is irrefragable in truth but that T. D. wrests it being one of those unlearned and unstable ones in the truth that Peter saith 2 Pet. 3. Wrest Pauls Epistles and other Scriptures to their own destruction I return to proceed in that which I went away from by this profitable Parenthesis viz. to shew how the Scripture ascribes the inheritaâ—ce as not onely meet for them that are meet for it but their due de jure that do his Commandements Râ—v 22.14 Blessed are they that do his Commandements that they may have right to eat of the tree of life and to enter throw the Gates into the Citty but without are Dogs c. 1. without the Citty and without Right to it as well as without meeâ—nesse for it who if they were other 1. doing the Commands they should have both meeâ—nesse worthynesse and right and jure hereditario by right of heirship according to the promises made in that behalf should both duly and keeping the condition no otherwise then deservedly inherit it as he that having a promise of the inheritance of a Citty in case he will adventure to storme and overcome and win it fighting and overcoming accordingly though the promise of it at 1 st on such Termes was a gift may then claim it for his inheritance as of debt and desert which it is not onely fit and meet he should have as on terms of promise on anothers part performance of the Terms required on his own who ever helpt him in
it he is worthy as the right heir one that hath due Title to it accordingly to enjoy and inherit And indeed the very word inherit which is so often-used both in the negative where the wicked are excluded as no unrighteous one shall ever inherit and on the positive and promissive hand where the righteous are included as he that overcometh shall inherit all things doth if men were not praepossest with prejudice against the truth and with blind principles which as its harder to knock an old peg out of its hole then to knock a new one in when that 's out there 's more ado to drive out of them dispossesse them of and draw them from then would be to draw them to own the plain truth if the darkness were once dispeld import no lesse then an entailing the Title of the Kingdome to the good works and fruits of the Spirit in us which are the Termes on which it is promised on any name or thing abstract from these which yet T. D. is so absurd as his fellow A B C Daâ—ians in the School of Christ are as to make in no wise a cause but onely an effect of our justification and of our standing entitled to it on things without us that are nothing to us abstract from these Whereas if that be true as it is in their own Schools that quo pâ—sito panitur quo sublato tâ—llitur effectus c. That upon the being of which the effect ever is upon the not being of which the effect can never bâ— must needs be the cause of that effect it s most uncontrâ—lably true that the good works and fruits of the Spirit in us are not the fâ—uits and effects but the causes of some kind or other of our justâ—fication and as the cause of every sort if it be but causa sine qua non as they speak the cause that gives no influence but only is a meer hangby yet necessarily too as a Cipher is in order of nature evermore before the effect so is our Sanctification so antecedent to our justification even in the sight of Gâ—d that contrary to our Schâ—â—lmens Figments who say justification is 1 st of the two so that God lookes on us as just while unjust before he makes us just I say till our Sanctification is our being counted holy in Gods sight can never possibly be Ob. And though it s said he justifieth the ungodly Rep. I say yea justification is ever of ungodly ones yet never in but from their ungodlinesse as Sanctification and Salvaâ—ion is of sinners but not in but ever from their iniquityes he cleaâ—s the guilty but by no meanes no not Christs blood so Exod. 34.7 as to cleare the guilty while in their sins or hold them guiltlesse as T. D. dreames he did David while they are guilty of Adultery and murder and while they are taking his name in vain crying Lord Lord but not doing what he sayes naming his name but not dâ—parting from eniquity he makes Christ to such as believe in his Light Wisdom Righteousnesse Sanctification and Redemption but what ere some count he in no wise counts him so to any any further then he doth so make him he sees no sin in Iacob nor traâ—sgression in Israel but it is because there it s done away and remitted not by pardon without purging but so as not to be committed any more or if it be there 's new guilt contracted and the sin imputed till again remitted on returning but this Israel to whom he is so truly good are them that are of a clean heart Psal. 73. He will speak peace unto his people and his Saints while they walk in wisdome but let them not return any more to folly for if they do they do they must again hear more rough reproâ—f from him then ever and find him speaking in wrath and vâ—xing in his sore displeasure there is a blessed man to whomâ—he will not impute sin whose iniquityes and transgressions are covered but t is he in whose Spirit there 's no guile Psal. 32.1 So that I marvail what our Priests mean by Salvation Iustification Redemption and such like when they say a Saint or a Sinner what should I call their mongrell seed may be in a State of Salvation while they are in the guilt and filth of their sins for I know but two things Christ saves his people from viz. from their sins and from the wrath which is to come and I know no Salvation at all from the wrath which is the effect till there be a Salvation from the sin which is the cause of it for posita caus a pâ—nitur effectus as well as sublata tollitur and I am sure none is there as yet from the sin where men are not onely in it and it in them but singing loath to depart and pleading for a necessary abode of bâ—th these themselves and sin together while themselves are abiding in the body Yet T.D. so thinks that to stand in sin which is in the Reprobation and yet to stand within the lists of Gods love and Election will stand so well both together that David stood justified in Gods sight in that which if men had seen him in he would not have been justified in their sight who love sin more and hate it lesse then God does and yet all this altogether But T.D. thou hast heard of God onely by the hearing of the ear as yet by hearsay from thy self and sâ—lf blinding Brethren but when thine eye comes to see him and he comes neer thee to judgment whâ—se comming who in sin can abide and who in iniquity can stand before him who is as Refiners fire to the drosse and Fullers Sope to the filâ—h thou shalt for all thy seeming Saint-ship Abhor thy selfe before him and repent thy sâ—lf that ever thou talkedst of mens being in a state of justification before him while under the guilt of sin as purer Saints then thy selfe have done that have thought the same as thou dost in very dust and ashes and that walking in the fruits of the Spirit and holinesse of truth must go before the sight of Gods face in peace and that the sinner shall not see his face and live thy selfe shalt see whether eâ—er thou come to walk holily yea or nay But alas to what purpose is it to tell our Pâ—iests this when they tell in effect the same one to another yet believe not what they say themselves but contradict it out of their own mouths as soon as tâ—eâ— have done like Lâ—â—ards making good plain Prints with their feet in the Sandy ways they run in yet dashing them all out as the go with their long bushy tailâ—s they say no lesse then that Sanctification goes before justification in the sight of God though they see it not while they say faiâ—h which they confesse is a fruit of the Spirit the gift of God a part of our Sanctification is that that as an instrumentall cause of it
goes before â—ustification as that by which we are and without and before which we cannot be accounted â—ust in the sight of God yet by and by again they tell us that justification which is by faith and so not before but after it goes before Sanctification whereof faith they say is a part and that the leadings of the Spirit and its fruits among which justifying faith is reckoned up as one 5. Gal. Aâ—ea fâ—uit and effect of our bâ—ing not under the Lawes penalty that is of our justification from the guilt of sin so T.D. p. 16. Sometimes to escape and slip away from the shame of this absurdiâ—â— and contraction they tell us or at least some of them that Iustification of Saints or sinners for I am to seek still what to call the Creatures they call Saints for if I call them Saints it loaths me to call such sinners Saints as they Term so yea If they be Saints which some so call Then guilty sinners are Saints al And if I call them that commit sin the Servants of sin as Christ did Iohn 8. and not Saints and Children of God they will be ready to loath me I say then they tell us that Iustification of sinning-Saints painted and Saint-like sinners in the sight of God is without and before Faith or any thing else even before sin was or men either from all Eternity and from all sins pastnor present I can't say here because the sinning Subjects of this Iustification are not yet extant in the world but from all that ever is to come and Faith by which the Iustification comes is but an Instrument whereby the Evidence of this long-since Iustification in Gods eye comes in to men and manifests it to their eye whereby the sinners themselves know it and as for other fruits of the Spirit which are all the fruits of Faith too which I confess to be the first in being of all work truly good so that without it 't is impossible to please God and whatsoever is not of it and in it but out of it and out of the Light in which it is if true is but sin these are onely as Evidences to us and to others that the Faith we have is justifying and true c. and not dead and fained and fit for nothing So say they In Gods sight we are justified freely from of Old without Faith or good works that follow and flow from it either this we know and are assured of that Faith is oppâ—sed to it self as a work in the business of Iustification and that Faith is imputed to us as being in stead of a perfect personal righteousnese or that 't is the meritorious cause of our Iustification I utterly deny quoth T. D. p. 24 25. but Faith without works is that by which we are formally justified but the other that is good works that by which we are declaratively justified in Pauls sense who Rom. 3.28 sayes We are justified by Faith onely without the works of the Law a sinner is absolved I wot he means in his own Conscience for I know not when T.D. reckons or whether at all God holds an Elected Saint guilty if not David while he was guilty of Adultery and Murder In Iames's sense Iam. 2.14 who sayes By works a man is justified and not by Faith onely a Bâ—liever is approved ' quoth T.D. p. 8. out of Diodat whose words he useth which approbation of a Believer in his Faith as true is both in himself and before men so as they usually say by good works a mans Faith is evidenced to himself within and others without to be a true living Faith and so consequently his Iustification with God to be surely known which was but could not be seen or known to be before Rep. Now therefore a word or two to the grant of our Antagonists that Iustification is before in Gods sight but it can't be known to be by us or others nor evidenced to us so that we can stand as justified ones or approved in our own sight and other mens till we be sanctified and have both Faith which is a fruit of the Spirit and other fruits of the Spirit which if true that Faith works by as love a pure heart victory over the world temperance peaceableness gentleness and such like Is it so Friends that no man can appear to himself to be approved and justified in Gods sight nor to himself or others be known that he is so till he comes to believe and do other good works of Righteousness which first declare the thing so to be I wonder then how ye dare talk and affirm that to be before good works which before good works ye confess cannot be known so to be will ye ever be in your wills thoughts inventions and traditions intruding your selves into that ye have not seen and confess cannot be seen to be as you say it is vainly puft up in your fleshly minds and entring into and venturing to reveal and vent out Gods secrets which ye say are secret and hidden to man saying they are so and so before the time you say they are first revealed to you in And telling men they are justified before God and loved before they do any good and bidding them believe this for true Doctrine from you that 't is so till they come to do good works and that that 's the onely Evidence whereby you can discern that thing so to be which yet you say is so before either by you or them it is discerned In his own secret thoughts say you and bosome Councels the thing stands so that we are justified but it s not revealed to us to be so neither can we know it to be so that we are justified but from the time of our bringing forth fruits of Righteousness Do not secret things belong to God onely and things that he reveals when he reveals them and not before to you and your children to talk of Are ye not like natural bruit beasts in this that you oft speak evil of that truth ye know not and oft tell that for truth which is not so when ye know it not and even confess it cannot be known to be till evidenced by good works and yet you will say 't is of a truth before any of those good works by which onely the Evidence of it comes to you be brought forth in you 'T is true there be many things in esse Reaâ—â— before they be in esse cognâ—scibili Real before they be visible though this Iustification of yours before Sanctification in Gods sight which ye yield is before Sanctification but Sanctification before it in your own sight and in the sight of all men is not one of those invisible Realities but if may so say an apparent Real visible non entity rather and fancy of your own brain but what things soever are in truth to us they are not so as that we in truth and of a truth can say so or so they are
till the time that we come to see them and that come forth which is the onely Evidence which we come to see them by and he that pâ—ates of that thing as being so or so which to him is not yet known so to be is a buisie body whose tongue runs afore his wit his lips before the light that would lead him out of darkness his thoughts not a little out-run and out-reach his Reason Tum demum apud nos res dicuntur fieri cum incip unt patefieri to us things are onely as they appear so that whoever perks up and prates of what he knows not and of matters that yet to him are not which work which is that of the Priests in many things he that shall count him that 's in it a wise man shall by my consent be canonized a fool for his labour Iustification in Gods sight of a sinner is say the Priests before any Sanctification is at all in him but neither the sinner can know that there is any such matter as pardon of his sin or that he stands just in Gods sight appears not at all to himself not yet is it evident to us who tell him 't is so neither can we know it any more then he till Sanctification appear in him from which as that which goes before it ever in our eyes we come to the sight â—f it yet if he will believe us who speak of a thing we know not and talk we know not what and if he will take our words for it that his Iustification is before he be Sanctified who have no other Evidence of it our selves or whereby to make it Evident to him but this of his Sanctification which is evermore that which goes before the other for ought we see or can discern and if he will trust us implicitly at a venture he may but if he will not say I he may safely chuâ—e And as to that speech of thine out of Diodaâ—us I dare say it was not a Deo datus concerning good works justifying a man declaratively and serving in Iames's sence to approve a Believe in the sight of men for there 's not Truth in 't if meant so onely and exclusively of their use to Iustifie formally and absolve a sinner in the sight of God as it must be if it serve that turn at all to which thou usest it yea I contrarily affirm yet not denying but that they do declaâ—e before men the Faith of him that professes to believe in Christ to be true and not hypocritical that they also tend as well as that tâ—ue Faith they flow from to justifie formally and absolve sinners in the sight of God And though Paul Rom. 3.27 concludes that a man is justified by Faith before God without the deeds of the Law yet he never concluded as you cloudy Expositors of him conclude of his words which ye wrest beside his Right to your wrong meanings any such maâ—â—er as that a man is justified before God without the good works of the Gospel between which of Christs in his Saints and those of the Law which are mens own done without Christ of themselves ye never distinguishing run so far into confusion as ye do which deeds of the Law done in mans own thoughts willings and runâ—ings and not in the Light and Spirit of Christ the Power of God never reach the thing that is run after that is the fulfillâ—ng of it without which there is no life for the Law requires brick but affords â—o 〈◊〉 good works but it gives no strength to weak man in the flesh and faâ— wherewith to perform â—o the Letter onely kills and onely the Spirit givâ—s the Life So both Paul and Iames and we as much as Diodate and T. D. do for ever shut out them yea and so much more then any of you do we deny the deeds of the Law so done as to the doing us any good toward our absolution before God by how much we do both in our Life and Doctrine establish onely the deeds of the Gospel while you who doctrinally exclude the Laws deeds do yet practically establish them to your Iustification for howbeit in words ye establish Faith as that by which ye stand justified formally before God yet that faith ye act who believe God accepts your persons and perfâ—â—mances without his Righteousness inherent in your selves and while ye are yet impurged and not so much as believing you can or must be here purged from your sins is far from the true Faith of the Gospel being no other then the false faith or true fancy of those who were of Moses and the Law that trusted in lying words that could not profit them Jer. 7. Isa. 1. Isa. 58.3 who thought God did them wrong if he justified and accepted them not in their fastings and services though they never fasted from their iniquities nor loosed the bands of wicdedness as if when they had been at their formal humiliations for a day they had procured some dispensation to let Hell loose again and were then delivered to do abomination this kind of barren leafy lean-faith of yours who look for life in it is one of those deeds of theirs who were of the Letter and Law and not that of them who are of the Gospel Faith which formally justifies before God which who are of are blessed with faithful Abraham But now as to the Faith and other good works of the Gospel which all are the works of God himself and Christ Iesus working them in his Saints among which Faith in the Light is the first from whence others come without which they cannot be any more then it can be true without them and by the Name of which Faith for as much as all follow it all the rest are denominated in grâ—ss John 6. This is The work of God that ye believe on him whom he hath sent these are the Righteousness of Christ and of his Saints which is One the being of which in them and in him and not their being in him and not in them is counted by God to them as their Righteousness nor doth the Faith without them any more then they without it both which concur as one cauâ—e thereunto obtain formal Iustification in the sight of God So that there is a doing some and sometimes the same material good which deserves no good nor acceptation but rather evil and reprobation from God being not good formally but evil before him while the same that does material evil also does that good and such was Cains sacrifice which was else as good as Abels yet had noacceptance by Right as the other had because sin lay still at the door and 't was not the Righteous one but the evil-doer that did the good and the sinner whom we know God heareth not who had he done as bene as it was bâ—num that he did and offered it as well as the thing ofâ—ered was good had been justified as well as his Brother If
Ye King a Requiem to your Souls saying with him Luke 12. Soul thou hast been disquâ—eted perplexed and intangled about these considerations as all men are more or less without exception how thou mayest be Reconciled and at Peace with God or have an attonment for that guilt which Super naturally thou art sensible of and how thou maist attain to true blessedness and come to the enjoyment of God and thou hast miserably groped up and down in the dark not able to â—â—me to any satisfaction what will become of thee in time to come and no way able to stand against the uncontroleable convictions of thy own self-condemning Conscience yet now Soul take thine ease eat drink and be merry there 's merit enough in store laid up in the Righteousness that Christ wrought in that single body of his that long since liv'd and died at Jerusalem for the sins of many years past present and to come so that there 's no need of any Righteousnesse to be wrought as in order to thy Justification and Peace with God in that sinful body of thine own it must may safely fith the Righteousness by which thou standst justified in thy sins as T.D. sayes David did in his murder and adultery resides without thee in another person â—â—n as long as it lives let the Popâ—sh Merit-mongers run when they have no good works of their own to their Treasury of the Saints meritoriâ—us gâ—â—d works the merit of which they buy of the Pope for money and by which they have indulgence and pardon for all sin for many years to come and let the Qua. run to that Righteousness they talk of which is to be wrought by Christ in the persons of men before ere they can be justified with God here 's that which shall administer to all and every one of us satisfaction as to all these things as Plenipotentiary to the quieting and calming of our spirits and cut off any further enquiries after such a thing as Goodness Righteousness Holiness though that of Christs own working as the Qua. say in our selves in order to our peace with God here 's that that gives us wherein to acquiesce and wherein we will be satiated viz The Doctrine of the Scripture which gives as glorious incontroleable a conviction of Peace with God by Christs Righteousness without us not within us as the Qua. prate as that Light in our Consciences they tell us of gives uncontroleable convictions of our sins there it s revealed to those say I the eyes of whoâ—e understanding are blinded by the God of this world that its Christ without and not Christ in us or else the Devil and his Doctors are blind say I which is the hâ—pe of glory and upon which we are lookt on as no Reproâ—ates So that O Soul I would not have thee to cry out of wrath and wo nor sing to thy self of Iudgement but of mercy to the Lord do thou sing yea I must needs cry out 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I have found an easie broad way to Life by applying the good of another to my self as mine as truely as if it were in me inherent so that I need not turmoil myself as some do and as the Qua. who cant beleeve that what Christ has is theirs till they see it conveyed and derived from him by way of participation to themselves We can beleive that all that Christ hath is ours though all that we have is our own and need not be forsaken for his sake I have found that without me which in vain the Qua. seek elsewhere as within them waxing foolish in their Imaginations viz. the businesse of attâ—nement reconciliation and acceptance with God which they are contriving to find by Christ within them to the producing of such horrible effects and fruits as tedious doing good and induring evill for their Tenets as we are loath to expose our selves toâ—â— What have they not done What have they not suffered What miseries extitusque infelices have not the Qua. puld upon themselves ubivis gentium quo impelluntur Fanatici by their faith and doctrines of Devils so I.O. of Qua. doctrines Ex. 3. S. 35.36 and T.D. and T. Rumsey of perfect holynesse in this life let them meditate terrour and dream of dread and bring themselves into Bondage we will cast these troublesome things far away from our thoughts though we do sin and he that commits sin is the servant of sin as they tell us yet whatever bondage we are in to sin we will not be under the spirit of bondage so far as to fear wrath or dread any danger so long as with such a glorious soul appeasing light which say I is the Devill transformed into an Angel of light in you the doctrine of satisfaction and attonement by the blood of Christ the Son of God comes in upon us This is that that astonisheth us another way so that we can't be astonish't nor afraid of any amazement about the matter of our our sins this conquereth all the Quaâ—â—â—s of conscience this ravisheth and satiateth our souls that though we may yea must sin while we liâ—e yet they have been already reckond for with one that is Our Righteousnesse without us though his Image is not formd nor his righteousnesse wrought in our selves This is the designed of the Apostles discourse to the Romans to prove justification by faith without works of ours by Christs righteousnesse imputed to us as ours to justification before it be infuâ—ed to our sanctification when the Devill is blind say I Oh with what glory and beauty to them that see so much as we do in the worlds glory and the lust thereof with what full and ample satisfaction this Doctrine breaks out this is that we looked for this is that we were sick for want of the knowledge of being wounded by the light of God in our consciences for our sins and withall in such love to them as to be loath to leave them or depart from them viz. to beare of a way or Saviour whereby to be sav'd in them and that we have now found and though we once câ—yed out 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and were at our wits ends feeling our selves sinking to hell yet this Christ without us without whom we also are feeling neither him us nor our selves in him this and not in the imaginary Christ of the Qua. within them is the stone by which we will stay our minds in as perfect peace as we can by putting away the sense of sin and the evill day far from us Ex. 2. S. 28. Dicat quod quis que volet ex hac opinionem non dimovebimur Though I say these things are in truth the sum and substance of your sayings the very Image proportion lively pourtraiture of your dead faith which ye count living and saving and justifying and what not Yet as the Lord lives you l find it dead even thou I.O.T.D. and your fellowes as well as we have done who
is not possible to attain to such a purging as this in the body no not by the very All-healing herb of grace it self His Antidote to preserve the Saints from too deep a sense of their sins is this whereas the Qua tell them that if the light in their own consciences accuse and condemn them from the face of God for sinning there 's no God nor Christ that holds them guiltlesse sith that of God within is his witnesse and vicegerent that what it sayes and judges in them is as the voice of God himselfe and if that create trouble man cannot create solid Peace Tush quoth T. D for to the same purpose he talkes though not in totidem verbis p. 19. what tell you us of Conscience conscience is often erroneous and not rightly guided in the very Saint Talk of conscience to the wicked its office is to be a witnesse against them for their sins which if it do not check them but tell them God loves justifies and accepts them when they sin it s defiled 1 Tit. 15. and leads them into a wrong opinion of their estates in that it testifies that their estate is good when it s nothing lesse for to the impure is nothing pure but unto the pure all things are pure and when the Saints sin and are defiled thereby the office of conscience as a witnesse in them if it do its office is to cleare and comfort and speak peace and if it offer to trouble them when they fall throw infirmity into fowl enormity and dare be so bold as to darken their evidence of Gods love and of their justification in his sight when they are guilty as David was once of things not fit to be named among Saints yet I dare be so bold as to say it is defiled in the Saints and testifies falshood to them also in saying that their estate is bad when for all their sins it is good no lesse then it tells lyes to the wicked that their estate is good when it s nothing lesse Thus we have the unconquerable and that uncontrolable comfort which T. D. Administers to the Saints when they become sinners and fall into the same folly and filth with other wicked men who is very a Boanerges or Son of thunder as he is in a few slight words more thâ—n the same solid power with Peter and Iohn to the wicked yet to the Saints of his own coyning is he another Barrabas or Son of Consolation I mean not another of the same with him who confirmed the Saints in their goodnesse and grace but another of another kind that comforts confirmes and chears up his sinfull Saints in their sins and dawbs them over who are dirty enough already if such he Saints as he sayes are with his own more dirty doings who would have them live as justified in Gods sight and as uncondemned in themselves as Saints whilst ore head and eares in their sins But will all this hold T.D. little did I once think ever to have seen such a dish of doctrine drawn by a divine from Tit. 1. 15. though unto the pure all things are pure was wont the same way to be wrested by the Ranters and for my own part had I been minded to look for such a licentiâ—us piece of Libertinisme as he would learn men from thence as I am far from it knowing that in maxima libertate there 's minima licentia yet I should sooner have lookt for a needle in a bottle of hey as they say then have lookt for the like from thence or have scrap't in that Scripture to find it if T.D. had not told me it had been there where yet for all his telling me of a justification of a Saint in his sins I cannot yet find or see such a thing nor any else I beleeve but such as are as blind as himselfe for the light in the conscience of both good and bad doth tell them infallibly what they are and testifie to the face of the best man in the world that God doth not justifie him while he sins which witnesse of God within their own hearts is greater then the witnesse of man and will have audience at last when it begins to speake out when such a one as I may easily be slighted who witnesse onely for God from it and therefore I shall say but little more to this matter neverthelesse when T.D. and his unâ—ust justified ones come once to feel it stand upon its feet which like an innocent just hâ—ly Lamb hath been hitherto slain by the beast within them because it torments them with telling too much truth great fear will then fall on such as see it and have made merry over it in its captivity and at the same time there will be a great Earthquake and lightnings and voices and terrible thunderings and great hail out of heaven the Plague whereof shall be exceeding great every stone perhaps about the weight of a Talent Rev. II. Rev. 16. the storm of which shall overthrow their open hiding places and sweep away their refuge of lyes and disanull the Covenant which these D unkards of Ephraim have made with death and hell and passe over them like an overflowing scourge so that they shall be all troden down by it Iudgement also shall be laid unto the line and righteousnesse to the plummet Isa. 28. To take a more exact account of them before God then they are willing to give of themselves who now not knowing the goodnesse and grace of God within them which in his love as a light is given to teach and to lead them unto Repentance Tit. 3. 13. Rom. 2. 4. to 13. Are in the hardnesse and impenitency of their hearts treasuring up wrath to themselves against the day of wrath and the Revelation of the righteous Iudgment of God whâ— in the day when he shall judge the secrets of men by Christ Iesus the Light according to the Gospell that Paul himself preached will mark in his righteous Iudgment Render to every man according to his deeds viz. to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory honour and immortality eternall life Yea glory honour and peace to every soul of man mark that worketh good But unto them that are contentious and do not obey the truth but obey unrighteousness indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish upon every one that doth evill without respect of persons yet the Iew first who say they are Jewes and are not but do lye and are the Synagogue of Satan and also to the Gentile then shall they know that such as sin whether without the law or in the Law in the Letter shall be judged respectively by that letter such as have it and all by that light in the conscience by which all are a Law to themselves and that it is not the Hearers and Preachers and Praters against the Laws justifying but the doers of the Law onely by the power of Christ which onely does it
them to trouble them with that tedious transformation of them from the fashions of this old world by the renewing of their minds into a new Creature but onely adde or leave them to adde iniquity unto their iniquity that when the iniquity of these sinâ—ul Saints is at the height the Rewaâ—d of Christs Righteousness may be given them But seeing there 's no such haste nor much need to make mad folks run who can find the way fast enough to Hell whether facilis discersus Aâ—â—rnâ— the descent is easie and the Devil eager and skilful enough to drive them without T. D.s doctrine to help him I shall check the wilde Aâ—lies Colt in his course which lacks much more to be fetcht in with the Spirits Bridle then forc't on with T.Ds. Anti-Scriptural Spurre in order whereunto I deny the first Proposition of T. Ds. last Argument as utterly untrue for that Scripture 2 Cor. 5. ult tells us not so as he faith it tells us it doth not say as Christ was made sin for us sâ— we Righteousness in him as T.D. Repeats it to the perverting of it as by his perverse Readings Repetitions Rendings Renditions sundry silly senses and manifold foolish meaning he perverts many more But it faith of God that he made him sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the Righteousness of God in him and that 's another matter then T.D. makes of it who first writes it down the wrong way and then wrests it to a worse end for if it were truely so but that Text sayes not that it 's so as T.D. mis-rehearses it then to transpose his own words p. 38. as Christ is no sinner by inhaerent defilement but by imputation onely so his Members must for ever be no Saints by any inherent holiness or purity but imputation onely and as Christ never was the Subject inhasionis of what we were such Subjects of viz. sin lust filth envy hatred and other works of the flesh which the Light condemns but was accursed for them onely as things done by us and not him so we mâ—st never be such Subjects as he was of the contrary graces and fruits of the Spirit Love Ioy Meekness Temperance c. but must onely be saved for them as things done by him but never from them to all Eternity but remain as he was in all points of misery cursedness affliction infirmity evil and sorrow tribulation temptation like unto us transgression and sin onely excepted Heb. 4.15 So in all points of Mercy Blessedness Ioy Peace Power Glory Rest good Consolation and Happiness like unto him Inherent Grace Righteeousness and Holiness onely excepted and so the Body that is united to that head must abide absolutely for ever as filthy as the head it self perfectly holy which is a doctrine as false as falshood can make it and a matter not onely Ridiculous and Monstruous to Imagine but more monstruously Ridiculous if that meer Imagination should be true Humano capiti cervicom pictor Equinam Iungere si vellet Risum Teneatis Amici And if T. D. the summe of whole doctrine from the Scripture is this viz. as the Iust once suffered for the unjust but was never made inhaerently unjust by his injustice so the unjust are saved for the Iust ones sake but must never be made inhaerently just by his justice shall yet insist upon it as at all inferred from that place I desire him in order to his satisfaction to the contrary to eye it a little better as it is in the Greek and then instead of Arguing thus as he falsly does that As Christ was made sin So we are made Righteousness by imputation not inherence he may as I do find good ground from thence to Argue thus viz. if Christ was made sin but by imputation onely not inherence and we Righteousness not by imputation onely but inherence then not so â—â— he was made sin for us are we made the Righteousness of God in him but in another manner But the former is true therefore the latter In proof of the former let it be well weighed how the Apostle when he sayes God made him sin for us uses the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is of a far more shallow and slender signification then that he uses when he saith that we may be made Righteousness of God in him viz. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is a word of a deeper dye for howbeit they both are rendred by this Term Made in the English Text yet do found forth two different sorts of makings whereof the one is not so Real and Substantial as the otheâ— for the words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 though they do signifie a true making sometimes and may truly be translated facâ—o efficio and passive efficior yet is at most but a making of a more as I may so say sleightby external and accidental kind then the other sometimes such a one as amounts to no more then a meer accounting or reckoning a matter to be so or so as it is thereby said to be made wereupon they are sometimes rendred not onely in many other secondary sense as by afficio 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 afficio te malis also by causo pono propono Redulo colloco sometimes simul when one is said to be made a Child an Heir that is not so born by aduptâ— but used also sometimes to express existrimo and to signifie the making of a thing no otherwise then by meer â—ptimation and computaâ—ion and so God is said here to make Christ sin for us who knew and did no sin in himself but the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies such a solid sort of making as gives the thing not a meer notional and accountative but a Real and no less then a true natural being so or so as it is thereby denominated to be made for if more can be its more then sio factus sum I am made even no less then Nascor gignor natus genius siam I am so or so bern so by birth so by nature not by some meer external fabrication or function as a dead painted Picture that hath the shew shadow and name and not the life and being of what it represents much less by meer fiction imagination or bare empty computation onely but by a Real infusion impartition and conveyance of the nature of the efficient itself into the effect so that it is according to the measure thereof as truly inhaerent and Resident in the one as in the other as the nature of the Vine in the branches 'T is to be observ'd that when ever we are said to be made anything truly Really that Christ was so when ever Christ is said to be made anything that he Really was it is exprest mostly if not ever by that Verb 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 when the Saints are said to be the Sons of God though adopted because they were once degenerated into another seed by Sin into that
corruption And if purchase may be granted to be meritorious of what is purchased he that useth a lower ministration 1 the Office of a Deacon well purchaseth to himself saith Paul,1 Tim. 3 A good degree and great boldness in the faith in Christ Iesus and he that will entertain holynesse and Christ when he knocks to come in deserves to have the Devill and uncleannesse driven out by him whose work it is to destroy the works of the Devill and the very end of his comming into the World as till a man does he deserves the Devill should dwell in him still as he must do and not Christ because 〈◊〉 existens proh betalienum And as to the last Query about which T.D. would be instructed as I see he had need I say no corrupt nature deserves totall freedom but the holy nature which is in bondage to the corrupt nature which is the enmity and to be slain and never reconciled for it is the Devills that deserves to be freed from the other that usurps over it as Esau did over Iacob a while the heir of all and as the seed of the woman deserves to be delivered from the enslaving seed of the Serpent And as for the Spirits renewing our nature but in part at 〈◊〉 that 's true but every part of that renewed nature is perfect and perfectly renewed in a measure and not partly renewed and partly corrupted as I shewed T.D. above every part of that which in its nature is perfect being truly perfect as the whole is So having totally taken away two of T. D's miserable mistaking answers to two of the 4 above named Scriptures whence we disputed with him the justification of Saints by the gracious works of Christ and his Spirit in them and not those in Christs Person onely it matters not much now I am gone abroad from following the first I began upon fully to an end if I fall upon that in Tit. 3.7 and make as quick a Riddance of his gracelesse answer to that and thâ—n I shall have no more to do but go to an end with that in I Cor. 6.11 which I am a little digres't from proceeding in for a while and with that I shall make an end for altogether as to this time with T.D. about the way of our justification by the holynesse righteouscesse and grace of Christ as inhaerent in us Our Argument is much what the same yet somwhat stronger then T.D. relates it p. 24. viz. that the grace of eternall life being that grace which ver 5. though oppos'd to the works of righteousnesse which we work of ourselves without the Spirit yet is the same that 's otherwise call'd washing of regeneration and the renewing of the holy spirit it follows that we are justified by the washing of Regeneration and Spirit of Christ within renewing us To this T. D. saying in word I am much mistaken in deed mistakes himselfe much more in his semi-demi answering thus viz. that grace there is meant not of Sanctification but of the savour of God which is manifest in the donation of his Son to us imputation of his Righteousnesse and acceptance of us as Righteous in him Rep. What a messe of gracelesse grace is here of T. D's making here 's grace with a witnesse almost all manner of grace mentioned as materiall and of moment in the matter of justification but one which is of so much use that all the rest are in a manner uselesse till it come in and which makes all the rest grace so that to say no more then then truth they are no grace to us before it or without it and that viz. Sanctification while others are included is onely and alone excluded Poor Sanctification it s set aside it s thrust out still from entring the lines of Communication among its fellows T. D. stands against the dore so that if he may Rule the Rost men shall be in favour with God and contrary to what Divines commonly say when they say as they do all that Sanctification manifests Iustification and the favour of God have it manifested too in the donation of his Son to them the imputation of his righteousnesse and acceptance of them as righteous in him and so consequently a Title to the inheritance the Kingdome Glory and all the good that heaven affords to all eternity but washing Regeneration Sanctification Renovation by the Spirit Sanctification and Saâ—vation from the sins which sins deserve the wrath the curse and the condemnation which Salvation from the sins alias Sanctification must be before any well grounded hope of escaping the codemnation curse and wrath to come can be had this latter sort of grace is shut out for a wrangler by the wrangling contenders against the truth who had rather obey unrighteousnesse then it and their lusts then him they call their Lord and Saviour and must be none of the ingredients among the company of causes of mens acceptance with God and being accounted Righeous by him but if they be not Righteous and Holy must be counted to be so without it and if they be so must be counted so by that which resides in another person by which till it come into themselves they are not made so and without it by the being of which as in themselves and not as in another they can onely 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be truly made and really become Righteous and Holy and so that grace which mainly if not onely as it is a gift gives the proper name and nature of grace to all the other grace may say of it self cum nemo extru di potest itur ad me when none ought to be excluded as not meant where every grace God is mentioned in the Gospell I onely am left out alone and they seek my life also But Go too T.D. thou must not have thy wicked will in this wise against Gods about this thy so bold a bolting out of this grace of Sanctificatin from concomitating and concurring together with faith which is but a part of it the whole Series of the particular graces of which generall grace of Sanctification are all fruits of the Spirit in the matter of our being counted just in the sight of God But as blindly buisy as thou art to tell us in a far other sense then Paul does that if it be of grace then not of works and if of works not of grace yet I must tell thee that albeit it be of grace and as Paul sayes truly Rom. 11. and in this 3. Tit. 5. not of works of Righteousnesse which we work in our own wills wisdom and strength in obedience to the Law without Christ and the Spirit who onely can conform us to it and fulfill it in us otherwise grace indeed is no more grace but it being of grace that kind of work is no more work Yet it is not so of grace as that the fruits of the Spirit Sanctification Washing Renewing and the works of Christ in us are excluded
gives out his goodly colour in the Glass or that the picture of a Prince or eminent person is in esse reali cognoscibili and in all propriety of speech so to be called the very Prince or person him self it is but the Image of or the Map of the City London Rome Jerusalem is the very City it represents so that he bereaves it of its proper name that will not allow it to to be any otherwise but figuratively so called Now as to the Scriptures being the Word of God and evidently known to be so or evidencing themselves to be so and that of right and properly they are to be so called all which thou J. O very absolutely averrest I do here as absolutely deny confessing that if they be so or can be evidenced so to be they ought accordingly so to be called or else not for tum demum propriè dicuntur resfieri quoad nos cum incipiunt patefieri what is not so is not known to be so much less can challenge that as its proper name so that if in essereali they can be made appear to be the Word of God then I give the rest for granted or if I make it appear that they are not so then all wise men that not for want of ignorance of it yet do not will once grant that they are not so infallibly known as J.O. avouches they are to be the Word of God and that the Word of God is not the proper name of the Scriptures so distinctly and abstractively understood as is above said And seeing that thou J.O. art first out in the field appearing for them it s but meet that I should first examine what thou urgest in way of evidence for their being the Word of God and so subjoyn what I have to say truly of them against what falsely thou hast said And seeing that which thou thy self layest as the very basis and foundation of thy whole brittle building and of all that divine Authority ascribed by thee to the Scripture of its being owned sub paena to be submitted to as the Word of God on peril of eternal damnation is its Divine original and is best also to be first medled with that the bottome being shaken and shewed to be unsound the body of sticks and straws thou buildest thereon which is torn and shattered not a little within it self as it stands untouched in the eye of any intelligent and observant Reader may yet with the more ease and less labour be shaken to the ground I shall enter first at the front of thy Formidable forces and begin to undo where thou beginnest to do thy Do which yet will not be so much in one sense to undo as truly to do Right to the Truth about the letter which thou wrongest in uttering so many utter untruths concerning it as thou doest J. O. The whole Authority of the Scripture in it self depends solely on its Divine original pag. 2. This Original is the basis and foundation of all its Authority pag. 28. Rep. As to the Divine original of the Scripture which is the first and fundamental matter that in the very original or first Chapter of thy first Treatise thou pleadest on its behalf as in proof of its Divine Authority or Right to be owned as the Word of God I deny not but that it is of Divine original and so one way or other is every thing else that hath a truly good and honest being yea the very Devil himself as a creature of God though neither any of his deeds which are sin which is deceit and defect nor himself quà 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as he is a Deceiver and as immediate an original from God as any meer writing or Scripture in the world hath this Scripture hath and some little of it such an immediate emanation from God as neither the most of it self hath or ever had nor yet the best that ever any holy man of God was the Pen-man of now hath or ever had I acknowledge that Scripture which is the present subject had at its first giving out to men for a few words of that outward writing the mee◠writing or letter of which yet though the matter still remains and ever will when all writing fails is lost and perished out of the world as well as the original manuscripts of the holy men who wrote the rest was written more miraculously at first then with the hands of holy men namely some with such Fingers as came out from the wall by God◠appointment in Belshazzars carousing Room Dan. 5.24 25 26 27 28. and some with no less than the Finger of God himself Exod. 32.18 16.32 15 16. 34.1.28 Deuter. 9 10. 10.12 But what of all this that the meer Transcripts of that Text which was so immediately though little or none of it so immediately from God as J.O. contends neither or at least none at all of it immediate unto us that our modern Transcripts I say thereof which is all that is immediate to us and which J.O. who confesses all the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or first writings to be lost busies himself to prove to be so are at all immediately come forth from God to us or that that letter which was most immediately penned from Gods own hand is thereupon evinced to be truly and in proper location the Word of God or any more then externa mera licet vera Imag◠〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a meer though true outward copy expression or express Image as vox omnis is and Scripture too ad intra of the Word of God which is that only that is written of and not the writing of it This I both dare and do deny again J.O. or any other that asserts it yet what a deal of stress doth J.O. put upon his strict and strong Asseveration of this throughout his first Chapter insomuch that he layes the whole load of his cause and makes all his labours to lean upon this weak Reed and broken Basis the falseness shallowness and sandiness of which as he manages this matter viz. the manner of the Scriptures coming out from God by then I shall have a little examined it will shew it self unable to bear up the weighty Fabrick of the Scriptures being the Word of God which is the Babel that he builds upon it against a storm I shall here take notice of some at least of J. O.'s foolish false fictitious and self-contradicting talk about that prime Prop and Pillar on which his grand Proposition that the Scripture is assuredly and infallibly known to be the Word of God and all his proofs thereof are grounded viz. The Divine Original of the Scripture CHAP. II. I Shall consider this matter of the Scriptures Original both Absolutely taking notice of a few of thy false and foolish fancies about it and also Relatively as it 's laid by thee as the Basis of the Scriptures Divine Authority or being th◠Word of God J. O. The Laws
perfect voluntary cause nothing but what is perfect is to be expected for nothing could hinder God being willing to reveal his will from revealing it perfectly but either because he could not which is not consistent with his infinite Wisdome and Omnipotency or because he would not which in no wise agrees with his goodness and grace therefore he hath given out a perfect Revelation of his will Reply This is the first medium whereby thou seem'st to thy self Artificially to have proved the minor of thy first Arâ—eficial Argument for the Scriptures being such an onely absolutely perfect Rule and Revelation of God and his Will that there 's now no need of any other way of Revelation either of him or it but all else whatsoever by his Spirit and Light within as in order to the knowing of God his Will and our duty to him and our obtaining eternal life beside the Scriptures are superfluous uselesse needlesse unprofitable fictitious and to be rejected as such with abhorrency and detestation And this minor of thy Prosyllogism should haue been thy expresse Conclusion in thy last Argument instead whereof being likely ashamed to infer it in its proper terms they are so fordid fottish false foolish blinde brutish beastly blasphemous grosly detestable and abominable thou entailest a conclusion at the tail of it which is not contradicted by any but aliud a negato quite another thing then that which is denyed yea even the same that we and all other men own viz. That God hath given out a perfect Revelation of his Will Which who doubts of Who denies but that God gives out his will certainly sufficiently to all men But whether that Revelation of his will be made to all men by a meer Letter without so certainly perfectly at this day that in order to knowing and doing it by every man savingly his Light and Spirit within is superfluous needlesse unnecessary uncertain and no less then fictitious and odious to assert needful which is the lye thou labourest to defend or by his Light Word and Spirit within certainly and perfectly sufficiently to every individual in order to his doing his own duty without an outward Letter or Writing as it was before any Writing was and is still where no such Writing is and no less so where such Writing is also which is the truth the Qua. maintain against thee this is the Question between thee I.O. and the Qua. which thou rovest and ramblest from making Premises which pretend to have Promises in them of proving thy absurd Opinion and then concluding at Random that which iâ— nihil ad Rhombum just nothing at all to thy purpose insomuch that as an old Cardinal that had been long absent from Rome going once to the Election of a Pope and seeing such shuffling and patching and and shifting and canvâ—sing ' and daubing doings in a business of such moment as the choice of the infallible Chair-man for the whole Church said no more but Siccine eliguntur Pontifices Romani and so took his horse and rode away turning his back upon Rome resolving never to see it more So seeing how little Logical the Theological Disputations of our Vniversity Doctors in Divinity are and what pinching and cutting and curtailing and serpentine twining and turning things upside down and shifting and shuffling to shut out the plain truth as held out to them by honest Country Qua. and to escape the force of the two edged sword of the Spirit or Word of God from wounding their hairy Scalp what moping and mincing and mangonizing there is among them who having left off to walk by Gods right Rules cannot walk well nor keep close to their own wrong Rules neither is it enough to make any well-meaning honest-hearted Countrified Schollars that have long discontinued from the Vniversities ashamed and sorry and sick to see such sorry doings at the Nursing Mothers and to say Siccine disputant Academici nostrates Do our Modern Doctors dispute thus at the Vniversities surely wee 'l never look after them more nor send our Sons thither to learn Logick or train them up there to know honestly and uprightly and rightly how to reason much less to make them Ministers of the Gospel But to let the illegitimacy of the conclusion pass and suppose it to have been expressed in its own due Terms let 's see how it will follow from those premises he infers it from that the Letter without the Light and Spirit within Memorandum still that he stiles those most blasphemously uncertain perillous unprofitable and in no wise necessary means of knowing Gods will and our duty and of coming to life and such as are to be rejected and detested as fictitious and counterfeit is the onely perfect Rule of Revelation of Gods will any more then from the self same premises it will follow contrarily to him that the Light and Spirit within are the only perfect certain sufficient Rule of Revealing Gods will without the Letter or Scripture without Surely had I.O. been Magister Avtis his Arts-master in this his Arteficial Argument he would have left it out altogether and not have urged it as he doth to the prejudice of his cause for it doth him ten times more detriment then advantage For whereas it is generally concluded among you all and by you two I.O. and T.D. my present Antagonists in particular as much by any thougâ— yet you both vilifie the the said inward Light what ye are able under the names of natural obscure darks dim low and to salvation insufficient principles and means of the Revelation of his will imagination figment Nescio quid nihil meer dictates of our own conscience blinde and corrupt that God declares and reveals himself his Soveraign Power Authority Righteousness Holiness good and evil many sins and duties and several divine Attributes and that indispensible moral obedience which he requireth of us as his creatures subject to his Law by some Light from himself and principles of conscience and his own voyce therein and those motions that are inlaid by his own hand in mens mindes and that they make a Revelation of him as to the purposes mentioned and shew the work of his own Law written in mens hearts and are able to plead their own divine original and discover their Author from whom they are and in whose name they speak even Gods without any other witnesses further evidence or reasoning without the advantage of any considerations but what are by themselves supplied without the least contribution or assistance from without Whereas I say all this is granted by you of the inward Light we plead for to be a â—erâ—ain profitable perfect sufficient Rule of knowing God and means of revealing of his will to us and our duty to him in order to life without a Letter against you who plead the Scripture and Letter only to be so without the inner Spirit and Light to say nothing how in effect the cause is little less than wholly
turn away much people saying God is not worshipped in Temples made with hands but within onely in Spirit and Truth talking as if they would teach us as if they heard Gods voice and not we who search the Scriptures and expound the Law and have the Key of knowledge have been train'd up in the Scriptures in reading the holy letters but these we take notice of them that they are ignorant unlearned men yet they say we are unstable and unlearned and wrest Scriptures to own destruction but whence hath this man letters having never learnt at Universities as we have done away with them and their Scripture no more holy Scripture now the Canon is compleated the Standard sealed no immediate motion now no such mission as the Prophets had now no speaking by divine inspiration now no Divine authority in any mans writings now though they write not others but the same Divine truths as of old no extraordinary infallible â—uidance of men by the infallible Spirit of God now and suchlike Thus they said then and thus our wise Ignorants at Athens say now of the same Spirit that then spake in Paul pressing others now to write or speak to them of their woâ—shâ—pping an unknown God seeing their Universities given wholly to Idolatry and thus I.O. one of the sore men against the truth What will these Bablets say and in a manner so they say all But slay friend Gods arm is not shortned neither is the mouth of God more made up now then formerly from making out and manifesting his own mind immediately from himselfe in the minds and consciences of men and women so as that men may without manifest imprudence not to say impudence imagine so ignorantly as in effect I.O. doth that God spake his last to the Sons of men and all that ever he meant from his own mouth to make known of his will to any man when Iohn had at the command of Christ written that pretious Revelatio â—which God gave unto Christ to shew to his servants who was pleased to signifie it unto them by the hand of his servant Iohn and when once in after ages a Syned of some honest men who we know not upon some some mistakes and sailings which weâ— I.O. confesses Tr. 2. c 2. S. 4.5 They were lyable to establish so much as they could get together which was but little 't is like of that much that was written of the transcribed Copies of the holy mens Histories and Apostles Epistles and letters to particular Churches and private persons and canoniz'd it together with the writings of Moses and the Prophets into such a standing Rule of faith and manners for all ages to come that whatever should from thenceforth be found as not a little was even of the Apostles own and some of Christs own writings and whatever should be written after that with pretence as much hath been since then not in pretence onely but in truth of motion from the same holy spirit should be shut out for ever from standing in their Canon sith it came not in at that time to their hands and be ever of so low esteem as not to be own'd among the rest under so much as the name of holy Scriptures with them but as to all ends uses and purposes for which all holy Scripture is written be utterly raced out of the Record cancel'd made void and of none effect while those few they Authoriz'd because of their Stamp of the onely Standard upon them must be had in as high if not an higher Esteem Honour and Authority then the Light it selfe from which directing holy men in the writing thereof they had all the being they have at all as holy Scriptures Let not I.O. in any wise say so for there are yet though himselfe is none of them 7000 of the people of Christ in England that bow not the knee to Baal many of whom as they are under the new Testament i.e. the Spirit and not under the old i.e. the letter where thou yet art have even both men and women the promises thereof made good unto them concerning the gift of the holy Spirit of the Lord and power to prophecy which of old also the true had Mic. 2. and of judgment and of might to declare unto the rebellious house of Iacob and Israel even the Heads and Princes thereof if they abhor judgement and pervert all equity and the Priests and Prophets thereof that Preach for hire and Divine for money and build Sion with blood and Ierusalem with iniquity and yet leane on the Lord and say is not the Lord among us none evill shall come upon us their sins and their transgression And to use thy own words I.O. p. 331.332 to thy self who are much in the dark as thou utterest them to such as are further in the dark behind thy self much more to the same purpose will same of them be found to say when men of outward wisdome and learning who are as they think able to instruct them shall condescend personally so to do Yea of myself I will not speak who by the grace of God am what I am and if the least measure of that grace be imparted to me among other of his servants that I should Preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ it is to one that for ought I know is of all the rest least worthy or rather most unworthy of it but I am bold to say so much and no more then what will stand as truth against thine or any others gain sayings that there are some who do not more professe themselves to be then they are indeed inspired by the holy Spirit whose messages and ministrations whether by voice or writing are so immediate from the mouth of the Lord that your not receiving nor submitting to them on that account but rejecting and denyall thereof with such rigour as ye do doth justify your predecessors in all ages who rejected and slew those that spake to them in the name of the Lord and speakes out in plain terms your imagination to be this that you may with safety to your selves reject them whom God sends yea to go on yet for a while much what in thy own words Tr. 1. C. 3. S. 9 10.11 12 There are some whether they work miracles yea or nay as thou confessest most of the Prophets did not that 's nothing to thee who pretend not to this inspiration falsely but both can and do to youward insist upon this that being 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 divinely inspired their doctrine is to be recieved by you as from God and in their so doing it will be found in due time to be your sin even unbeliefe and rebellion against God not to submit to what they speake in his name as that of his word they receive from his mouth and this is not onely pleaded and insisted on by some but also whether their Testimony be received or not received by you preachers and the
if they leave the plain paths of uprightness to walk in the wayes of darkness and come not to the light that shines in their consciences sciences and the Law of God which is not far off but nigh in their hearts that they may know and do it but hate and abhor it and persecute the Ministers and children of it and make to themselves crooked paths whatsoever walketh therein shall not know peace yea Iudgement shall be far from them and Iustice never overtake them and they shall wait for light but behold obscurity and for brightness but shall walk in darkness and groap for the wall like the blind as if they had no eyes and stumble at noon-day as in the night aâ—d be in desolate places as dead men and roar like Bears and mourn sore like Drues and look for Salvation but none shal come because their transgressions are multiplied before the Lord and their own sins testifie against them and their transgressions are still with them and as for their iniquities by the light within they know them transgressing and lying against the Lord and departing away from God while they pretend to draw nigh unto him speaking still oppression and revolt conceiving and uttering from their heart words of falshood turning Iudgement away backward and causing Iustice to stand afar off causing truth to fail in their streets and shutting out of Equity that it cannot enter making a prey of him that departeth from iniquity and mocking the Lord and making him believe as far as they can with their flattering words and sained turnings unto him that they love his truth his light and his life yet in truth saying in their hearts to God depart from us we desire not the knowledge of thy wayes There are such who blow the Trumpet as of old the Prophets did to the same tune and the like to this that is above whose Trumpet gives as certain a sound as theirs did also and not such an uncertain fallible one as that of the Priests And these Theopneustoi or divinely inspired persons in their writings speakings call for attendance reception and submission not with that Supreme Authority I confess which I. O. as falsly as foolishly both supposes and saves T. 1. C 3. S. 8. Antient divinely inspired Scripture calls for which is quoth he not only in comparison with but also in opposition unto all other wayes of coming to the knowledge of God his Mind and Wâ—ll c. For by his leave or besides it either the Light and infallible Spirit it came forth from may not only well compare with its fallible and falsified self as people now have it transcribed translated twisted and twined which way any unrighteous writers either of it or on it any men-pleasing Praters Tythe-taking Talkers or time-serving Turn-coats are pleas'd to take it and turn it and wrest it to their own present ends and future ruine but alâ—o may well and doe challenge attendance to themselves with far more supream and uncontroulable authority then it can yea as the sâ—â—e and only meanes of coming to the knowledge of God his Mind and Will whom and which all the Scribes and Scripture-searchers in the world nor have nor can know without the light and Spirit any more then the old ones did Ioh. 5. Matth. 22. Or then anyone can see the outward Sun by any light but that which shines from itself Matth. 11.27 1 Cor. 2.10 11 16. And so in opposition to all outward Scripture it self as that which may define God and declare of him and of his mind and will and yet gives not the knowledge of either the knowledge of whose things if we believe I. O. T. 1. c. 1. s. 16 depends wholly and solely on his own pure divine revelation thereof by himself which revelation is so far exprest indeed in the Scripture as that there it is written of but is expresly made onely in the heart where it pleases the Son to reveal the Father and the Father to reveal the Son in men Gal. 1.15 16. Eph. 1. Col. 1.23 I say then not with that Supream Authority which is peculiar onely to the Light Spirit and Word within though ignorantly attributed yea and appropriated too by I O. to the outward writing yet with the same uncontroulable Authority as the letter doth they call for attendance even from their Theopneustia or divine inspiration which To Theion or Power of God that accompanieth them in their ministration is enough to convict I. O. and all the Wolves of these times that bark and howl against the Light and mis-judgâ— the many messages that come to them from the Lord as rejecters of such as God sends and justifiers of them who flew such of old as spake to them in the name of the Lord. Nevertheless as I. O. saith too truly T. 1. c. 3. s. 9. It alwayes so fell out that scarce any Prophet that spake in the name of God had any approbation from the Church in whose dayes be spake so it falls out now to the true Prophets among all the false Churches of these latter dayes from whom they find lesse Approbation and the same Reprobation as the former did from those evill Generations wherein they spake Ier. 47.3 Matth. 5.12 21.33 to 38. 23.29 Luke 17.25 26 27 28. Iohn 9.29 Acts 7.52 24.5 And this comes to passe by reason of the same innumerable prejudices that attend these their givings out of truth either in speech or writing as did the other whose writings are not freed as I. O. fancies from the prejudices that at first attended them but attended with more then at the first writing thereof thorough the infinite alterations mis-transcriptions mis-translations mis-constructions and mistakes of all sorts they have since been liable to by the fallibility and infinite variety of Scribes thorough whose hands they have passed Which said innumerable prejudices that now attend the modern Prophets as did the first arise from the same Root with those that attended them in their respective Ages viz. 1. Partly the supposed interests of them that write and speak by way of Prophecy or immediate motion 2. Partly the personall infâ—â—mities homely appearances stemmering lips uneloquent rude crude indigested unsound non-sensicall sound of words as they seem to unintelligently understanding I. O. Ep. ad lectorem Ex. 3. s. 17. and formes of speech which the Babes vf Christ seem to him to babble in when they drop their doctrine as the dew at the Command of God to the Drunkards of Ephraim not all as once but as it were guttaâ—im Precept upon precept line upon line here a little and there a little Ezek. 21.2 Amos 7.16 Isai. 28.9 10 11 13.2 Partly the mean out-side of most of these inwardly glorious sons and daughters of the King Psal. 45.13 whose cloathing ad extra is not as their own within and the worlds without and its Ministers often is of wrought gold nor yet is it so much of Plush Jippoes Hose behang'd before
Name of God was blasphemed for their sakes insomuch that Paul saith Rom. 2. the very uncircumcision as to the Flesh and Letter doing in the Light by which they were made a Law to themselves by nature not corrupt nature as T. D. thinks nor by the pure nature in a measure restored without or abstract from the Light the things of the Law were better to God then the literal professing Iew and more just and justified to the very judging of them who by boasting of the Letter and Circumcision without broke the Law in the heart and less lyable to wrath then the other which shews how God counts more on obedience in Morals Spirituals Evangelicals without the Letter and literals then on all Burnt-offering and Sacrifice and lifeless conformity to the Letter Yet the Heathen themselves by the Light in the Conscience though videntes meliorae by it they did mostly deteriwa sequi see much and do little at least came to know in a measure within themselves the very righteous Iudgments of God that thâ—se that did such things as they did are worthy of death Rm. 1.32 And thou I.O. confessest the same in thy words above-recited Iudicio Dei se subesse cogu scunt and the Light within and moral instinct of good and evil by it seconded by a self-iudgement placed in us Yea Ioh. 16. The Light and Spirit of Christ the Saints Comforter that walk in it is in the Office of a Convincer to the world of Sin and Iudgement the Law which is the Light in all is spiritual Rom. 7.14 Ob. And if ye say we grant that but what of the Gospel of the Righteousness of God and the riches of his Grace in Christ and what of Christ can be known in that Light Answ. If ye will needs count the Iudgement and wrath of God which is a depth unsearchable by any that look only in the Letter which only tells of his wrath or by any save such as living in the Light have come to feel it within themselves for who knows the power of thy wrath saith the Psalmist none say I but such as waiting in the Light have felt the weight of his hand while Judgement and Condemnation passed on their evil deeds I say if ye will reckon Wrath Iudgement and the Ministration of Condemnation none of the things of God none of his deep things nor the things of his Spirit and Gospel because your eyes are out but reckon it to the Law or Old Testament only and not to the Gospel to which yet it truly belongs or New which is the ministration of righteousnesse and mercy Yet I answer further that not only Iudgement and Wrath but the Righteousness Salvation Mercy and Grace of God in Christ and Christ himself is preached and revealed in the same Light in which the Iudgement and Wrath is revealed as it is the effectual work of the Law in the hâ—aâ—t to accuse reprove and condemn him that doth evil so Vâ—sinet Apello I appeal to your selves who assert it is is it not its work to excuse acquit justifie him within himself who declines the evil and does the contraâ—y Good Is there true righteous Iudgement done where as well mercy comfort peace and acceptation with God is not ministred to the innocent though Abimelech the Heathen when they are found in integrity of heart to Gentile as well as Iew as terrour râ—proof rejection and wrath to every soul that doth evil Iew or Gentile Beside say not the Texts afore-cited that the Spirit convinces the world of Righteousness as well as of sin and Iudgement and that in the same Light which is indeed the Gospel and call'd by Paul so and the Power of God unto Salvation in which the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men that withhold the truth told them by God himself and his Light in them in unrighteousness the Righteousness of God also is even therein revealed from faith to faith among the Iust that turn to and own the Light and live by faith in it Rom. 1 I know and see how page 3. 1 Pamp. T D would make a difference if he could tell how that he might maintain his natural or rather suâ—te natural diâ—course about the meer naturalness of that Light that shews Sins Duties Divine Attributes between that one Light say I in which the wrath is revealed and in which the righteousness is revealed where in answer to that unanswerable saying of Paul about the To Gnoston Tou Theou when G.W. used it against him thus Thou sayest 't is meant of a Natural Light whereas 't is said to be the knowledge of whatsoever is to be known of God Rom. 1.19 T.D. replyes thns sillily the Apostle intends that what might be known of God without the preaching of the Gospel was known to the Gentiles verse 16.17 'T is by the Gospel that the righteousness of God is revealed Rep. As if we must think the Apostle in that phrase Whatever is to be known of God is manifest in men excluded and excepted the Light of the Gospel and inward Word of which he talks elswhere Rom. 10. That it s nigh to men in their hearts And Col. 1.23 is preached viz. in every creature under heaven and meant only some nescio quid I know not what kind of manifestation that hath nihil commune cum Scripturis holds no Analogy with the Scripture because T.D. makes his shallow sensless say-so on the place whose Reply but 't is his usual way when he has nought else to say to make what additions to and alterations of a Text he pleases and then to say when there 's no such matter either expressed or implyed it intends so and so or it intends not so though so said God indeed in many Texts makes offer of Salvation to all but intends it only to a few by All is meant Some by in us in Christ and many of the like sort is not worth any other Reply then to tell him it 's not worth a Rush and G. Ws. saying to him out of Paul stands o're T. Ds. head still for To Gnoston what is to be known of God is any thing that tends to mans Salvation without such an exception as T.D. adds to the making of Paul there as he does God and the Penmen in many more Texts dissemble like to T.D. himself so as to speak one thing and intend another that destroyes the very sense of his own words But saving T Ds mis-meaning of that matter assuredly enough the same that reveals the wrath reveals the righteousness retro and that that reveals the righteousness is a measure of the light of the Gospel of Gods rich Grace and Goodness that is given to Impenitents to lead them to repentance if they obey it and so to forgiveness and life or otherwise to leave them without excuse when having trifled away the time of Gods long-suffering and forbearance in rebellion against the light
Spirit also by himself as saying one thing and meaning another and so would set the Spirits words and the Spirits meanings at odds and together by the eares against themselves Christ enlightens only such men as are spiritually inlightned Nor secondly if he had said so would it have followed that every individual man is not enlightned for of a truth every individuall man is not only enlightned but also spiritually enlightned for he that is enlightned to discern spiritual things good or bad spiritual wickednesses or spiritual righteousness many sins and duties and divine attributes which are all spirituall objects and some of them some of those things of the Spirit which the meer natural man without the Spirits revealing cannot know because they are spiritually discerned that man must be spiritually enlightned so out of a better Bow then the Devils even that of Iosephs which abides in strength I shoot back T Ds second Arrow again thus against himself as that which hath done us no harm howbeit he meant it otherwise it being in his mind to have mischief'd the Truth viz. Christ enlightens every man that is spiritually enlightned witness T D p 36 but every individuall man is more or lesse even spiritually inlightned i. e. to discern spiritual objects which by the Spirits revealing them only and not naturally but spiritually only or by the Spirit are to be discerned witness T D again p 1 therefore Christ inlightens every individuall man 3 T D who hath mostly two hath here a third string to his Bow left the two first should not hold from which he shoots thus viz. He enlightens some of every Nation Kindred Tongue and People as the phrase is Rev. 5.9 Repl. And this however he meanes pinchingly yet is true too in terminis that Christ enlightens some every where a number in all Nations as he expresses it over again p. 36. for the termes all and every one are conclusive continually of some but that Arrow reaches not far enough to wound our universal construction so long as the termes some a number many without a but put to them whereby to bolt out othersome which is wanting here though elsewhere added and by and by to be talkt with is not exclusive of all men of every man nor of any man and so his bow and bolts shoots too short to hit the Butt still Nor is the Phrase Rev. 5 9 which T D in his fancy fellows and Identifies with this in Iohn 1 9 like it in any wise for one is enlightens every man in the world the other Redeemed us out of every Nation c. were it Redeemed every man in every Nation and made every man in every Nation and Kindred c. a King a Priest to God c. then it had been somewhat neeâ— a Kin to it indeed Thus T D by his single self with all his sharpest shafts or sorry shifts can make nothing stick to the gaining of any ground against us nor so much as to stirre us a hairs breadth from our interest in it much lesse to storm us out of the strong Hold we have in that high place of Scripture wherein the Qua. stand over the head of the Serpent to the bruising of it Let us see sith vis unita fortior what the joyned forces of him and I. O. together can do for they two who fight as under from that Text in some of their several senses against the Qua. fall in together in one of their four or five senses even that which hath the least sense and reason in it of all the rest and so of two make one most senselesse head against the Qua. and the Text and the Truth or true sense of the Spirit no lesse plainly imported and implyed to any but that darkness which comprehends not the true light when it shines in it then it is plainly end evidently exprest therein That sense I shall joyn issue in against them both at last but there lies on single sense of I O wherein T. D. joyns not with him wherewith I. O. shoots out of the same Bow as hard as he can against us though too short to hit or hurt us the which must be shot back again upon himself first in the service of the Qua. and the Truth which it serves perfectly while not at all themselves nor their own false doctrine and then I shall have the more Field-Room to fight them both in about the other The sense of I. O. which is not only his own neither though T. D. appears not to own it with him for I have seen others besides as himself seeking to shuffle off the Truth with it is this viz. Christ coming into the world inlightens every man and this sense seems to be ushered in with a deal of pâ—mp and ceremony as if I O was confident of carrying the cause by it when it first Center'd within his conciet and so intended to act his Triumph over the Qua. before his effecting of the victory I shall set down some of his triumphant matter wherein he marches on towards the Text where he meets us and make some occasionall notes on some crosse whets to himself and halts and inter-feeres he makes by the way I. O Videanâ—us porro quid contra garriunt Fanatici ut que operam dent quacum ratione aliqua insanire videantur c. Ex. 4. S. 23 24. Le ts see quoth he what the Quakers prate to the contrary and how they do their best to shew that they are not mad without some Reason but they bring no new thing they are old worn out Arminian matters they bring a thousand times confuted already they have nothing more frequently in their mouth then those words concerning Christ John I. 2 They never make a more horrid out-cry then when they come upon this place here they fain wonderfull triumphs to themselves and not a little cast ignominy on their adversaries Repl. No otherwise I say still do we reproach then as the Virgin of Sion Isai. 37.21 22. Despised laughed to scorn shook her head at the insolent filliness of the haughty Assyrian that reproached blasphemed exalted his voice and lifted up his eyes on high against the Holy One of Israel in his Truth and People o're whom he looked so superciliously as if he would pluck them out of Sion by the eareâ— when he was not so much as to shoot an Arrow that should reach to do any execution there No otherwise then as plain Ephraim the people and the honest hearted Sons of Sion are at this day in the Spirit and Power of the Lord to be raised against thy silly-seemingly-wise Sons O Greece and to be made against you Greekish Scribes and Disputers of this world as the Sword of a mighty man and a polished Shaft and his Bow and Arrows and Battel-Axe in his hand to beat down aud break in pieces the Horse and his Rider and as the Potters Clay the works of them that turn Gods things
appear only to a few Besides your selves tell vs of a Common Grace which is vouchfased to All men But Friends a few words with you and to all you Followers and Fainers of this Fantastical piece of meer falsity not to say foolery who in the night while men sleep dream out this dark and Grace-darkning Doctrine of Divinity which with the abundance of Absurdities and Confusions that are concatenated to it make up such an incredible kind of Creed such a Braky messe of Belief such a Labâ—rynth of lightlesse Literature such a Wilderness of wondrous Wisdome as no wise men nor any but such drunkards of Ephraim as lie like Briars and Thornes enfolded together in one false Faith that at last they may be consumed as stubble fully dâ—y can find any other then a winding way into nor when he is in any other way easily out of but that of the Spirit of God which searcheth and traceth out all the twinings and turnings of the Serpent upon his Rock Are you not yet ashamed the night being so far spent as it is in England and the day so nigh at hand to them that watch for it to appear upon the stage ye may well say not without a Blush as T.D. does before the world with such a Gospel of glad Tidings to it and all Mankind in it as this That God loves all mankind wills not unless they will the death of any of them nor of any sinners but had much rather they should turn from their wickedness and live and would have them all come to repentance and life and not any to perish but all to come to the acknowledgement of the Truth that in it unless they hate and turn from it and then his Justice and Wrath hath place to shew it self to so many persons they might be saved and hath sent Salvation among them in his Son the Light of the World and Word of Life not bolting or excluding any from it but such as put it away from them and thereby judge themselves unworthy of eternal Life and Bath so loved the World as to send his only Son into it to such as were else lost and likely else to perish not to condemn them further but to save them even qua sic as lost so consequently all men quatenus ipsum ever including de omni from condemnation or that alias to that end intent or purpose that unlesse against his honest true sincere wishing and woulding otherwise they needs will they might not perish but have everlasting life and so loved men also as to send his Messengers among them to make universal Proclamations of his large love to all mankind and in his name to publish glad Tidings of great Ioy even to All people and the good will of God toward men An indefinit phrase in a necessary matter equivalent to an universal and to call to every one that will to take of the water of life freely without exception of any positively personally or nominatim who exclude not themselves by their own personal unbelief of his Love to them and refusal to come and without accounting any unworthy of his Supper but such as come not when call'd and put not on the wedding Garment which renders them as taking away all their sins guilt and filth beloved accepted pure and justified in his sight as well as fit and meet to come into his holy presence as by their own righteousnesse that they work and not Christ in them they are not any more then by unclean things dung losse and filthy rags and send out Hue and Cry also to summon all in to himself and blown a Trumpet too even to All people to come and welcome promising to the removing of all obstacles and and objects of discouragement and giving good ground of hope to every man that there is mercy with God for him whatever his sins have been if he come in time before the dore be shut and while God calls and woes and knocks at the dore of his own heart within by the motions of his Spirit that he will receive all comers and though they have râ—n a whoring from him after many other Lovers and few men will receive their wives again that so do yet returning he will receive them so that whoever comes to him he will in no wise cast out but as he hath sent his Son a Propitization for the sins of the whole World and provided plenteous Redemption and purchased Salvation by his blood sufficient for them All so that he is able to save to the uttermost and will too effectually All that come to God by him and that it is his will they should All come also and reveals and publishes it as his will too expostulating very angrily with all men too for despising the riches of his Grace for not being led to repentance in the day of his long-suffering and salvation by his goodness telling them he waits upon them that he might be gracious to them saying O that thou wouldst hearken to me that thy peace might be as a River wilt thou not be made clean for thus cry out Clergy to All people where they preach when shall it once be Why will ye die people I have no pleasure in it that ye should and if any do I delight not in the death of him that doth but that he will and there is no remedy unless I alter my unchangeable will as I will not for mans wills sake fith I have done so much for him already that he may be saved unless he chuse to perish which will of mine is that the soul that sins and turns not from his wickedness that he may live shall die for ever and the very wicked turning from his wickedness and doing right shall not die nor yet have his sins mentioned unlesse he turn back from his righteousnesse into sin again and then be must die and though I forgave him before yet he taking his fellow servant by the throat after I must lay him up for the whole debt Wherefore why why will ye die turn turn your selves and live and work out your own salvation with fear and trembling for I have done my part a friends part towards you I have wrought in you both to will and to do of my free grace of my good pleasure it wants but your putting that into act which I of my free Grace have put into your power and your willing and doing accordingly and your getting up and trading with your Talent and turning to the light that I have entrusted you with and reprove your evil deeds by will ye alwayes resist my holy Spirit when it moves in your hearts and be stiffe-necked and stubborn Turn yon at my reproof though ye are fools scorners delighting in scorning and I will pour out my Spirit upon you and make known my words to you if not as I call and ye refuse so the time will be ye shall cry and I will not bear you because ye
stood been deceived and believed but a lye a matter that was no such matter viz. That Christ died for every individual of them if they would believe it â— so his wrath shall abide on them the more heavily for ever even because they believed not the testimony God gave by his Ministers openly of his Son that he died for them whom yet he died not for but only for a few Elect one And so whereas God sayes He that believes not the testimony that God gives of his Son viz. that he gives Eternal Life by him to every man that believes in him makes God a lyar If every man should believe in him as they all are bid and take the testimony of the Life by him to themselves to be true either some must believe a lye since he died not for every man but for some only as they say or else their testimony is a lye and they All lyars which is indeed the truth who testifie that God gave his Son intentionally but for a very few when Gods own testimony of him is That he gave him a Ransome for All. And moreover if they walk not in the Light they have to Salvation they shall be condemned therefore upon the account of the highest crime of All which Light that each individual hath notwithstanding never was Salutare so much as sufficient to guide them to Salvation but Naturale a thing that was too weak to such a business and fines salutares quod aâ—rinet mers tenebrae Caeritas as I.O. Are ye not ashamed thus to ingross the Grace of God which is great to All among your selves and a few like your sinning selves who think that ye shall scape as Gods choice elected ones upon your blind confidence of it the wrath of God though ye are found living and dying in the same evills and not purged from sin nor believing ye ever shall be while ye live here for the sake of which wrath must come for ever on all others as on children of no other disobedience then that ye live and look to die in some degree of your selves Seemeth it a small thing to you O ye wofnlly blind pitiful or rather pitiless Shepherds of this English Israel as ye call it to eat up the good pastures your selves and in your fancies feed your selves and a few choice ones more ye count upon that lie in wickedness as the rest of the world with all the fine things of the Gospel freely fully fairly and unfainedly offered to All as well as you as things truly intended to your personally from everlasting but to the most only extended without any true intent that ever they shall have them so impropriating the benefit of Salvation to your sinful selves as if ye were such whom God so indulges as to wink at your infirmities and justifie you in and under the guilt of them if ye should happen with David to fail and slip aside into adulteries and murders whilst other mens failings and infirmities of a less hideous nature must be the faults and hainous crimes which God will shew no Saving Mercy as not intending it to them what e're he talks to a thousand to one of those that commit them that unavoidably upon the account of a certain Inherent necessity of sinning drawn out of Adams Loyns together with their very being as men from under which necessity God never intends to help them so far as to give them sufficient Grace or Light to guide and lead them out of it or into so much as a liberty of doing better and all this before they have ever actually in their own persons so much as forfeited their share in that special Grace or favour of his that is in common offered to all men by any Personal Rebellion and disobedience and so interesting your disobedient selves still as Gods Darlings in all the riches of his Grace but detruding a thousand to one for the Elect are very few with you as little disobedient as your selves irresistably into the depth of condemnation preaching out that which is your meaâ— as their poyson and so designed to be from Eternity without reference to any default in their own persons but such as is derived on them only from Adams action Seemeth it nothing to you to eat up all the good pasture among a few of you but ye must tread down as mud and dirt and soul the residue with your feet and make all other people but your pretended Saints and Elect Ones to eat and drink that Doctrine about Gods Grace and Gospel which ye make no Grace or Glad tidings but gall and wormwood and Sad tidings when ye have trodden and fowled in this filthy pudly wise with your feet Ezek. 34.18 19. By these and the like sowrestuff which is like Colloquintida in pottage do you spoil all your dainties ye set before men in your pretended Gospel Ministry of Gods large Love rich Grace and matchless mercy to mankind with your tenders of things to All men from God that yet ye say God intends not to All to whom you tender and he by you extends them make men Tantalize and set them all a gaping and staring after that which yet you tell them All may not must not cannot have because God purposes to give them but to a few Hereby ye make your selves and God too like your selves a Lyar in one or other of his wills and a meer mocker of men out of your mouths Hereby you make your selves from God Ministers of impossibilities to men ye must go about be paid largely for your pains too to call All men to do that on peril of eternal ruine and condemnation which yet on pain of condemnation too you charge them to believe as truth the contrary to which is Herefie the most of them neither can do nor ever could nor shall ever be vouchâ—afed any ability by God sufficient to perfoâ—m it hereby do you not only coop up the infinite saving special Grace of God into a corner as I have shewed but make it utterly of none effect to a thousand to one of mankind nor through any default or defect in the particular persons that have no share in it but in a certain Common Grace that can do them no good as to Salvation only helps on their condemnation and given to no other end but to leave men more lyable to wrath without excuse as ye say that on the account of Adams sin only which particular act of his hath lâ—ft all men for ever under sin wrath guilt and incapacity to live without Gods Grace which he yet will not vouchsafe but to a few which upon a personal appointment thereto must necessarily be saved and cannot chuse while all the rest are as personally peremptorily decreed to dumpation alias never to be so helped but that they must lye under the guilt of Adams old sin and add new ones to incur a thousandfold more wrath upon their heads and condemnation
well as for any and that there is this good ground for each particular man to believe it for himself because All without exception of any sinner in the World that does not exclude himself by his not coming are freely without respect of persons invited to come and this ground also that as he is truly without mâ—ckage held out to All and All bid to come so God is willing they should come and have the Salvation and to that end hath sent his Son not to condemn but save them and his Son his Ministers to intreat them to be willing as he is and reconciled to him as he is to them and they declare from him according to Gods words in the Scripture that he died for aâ—l and every man is a Propitiation for the sins of the whole World and died for the ungodly and came to save them and heal the sick and seek the lost and such like and therefore every man may conclude its for him one as well as another that can say he is a man lost sick sinful ungodly and of the World and that God hath also wrought in them of his good Pleasureâ— to will and to do and therefore now they must up and be doing and work out their salvation which if it be not wrought out God hath done his part and the fault is only in their own particular persons and yet in Adam too and God is no hard Master but hath given to every one one talent at least which if he hides he will be cast into utter darkness and weep and gnash his teeth at the remembrance of it that once he might have been happy had he not been wanting to himself and been an unprofitable servant with what he had and had not in his own person still Mark put the Salvation from him and hated the Light and instruction and that God requires of men but the improvement of his own and much more to this purpose which all is sound true plain wholesome and saving Doctrine And then to come with a new tale whereby all the good grounds before laid for every man that is called thereto to come and believe upon are utterly razed and removed and to tell them that though all are call'd invited outwardly yet an hundred to one are by a Decree in Gods secret Counsel so secluded by Adams sin that they cannot come nor have any right to Christ he did not so much as die for them but for some Elect ones nor offer himself for the most but a few though God indeed sayes All every man sinners ungodly the lost the whole world and makes offers to all where his Gospel is preached yet by All and such like universal terms we must understand God and Christ meaning another matter far otherwise then they say for in innumerable places where God says Omnis All it s the Elect only one of a thousand he means so I.O. 't is an usual thing for God and Christ to speak words of a doubtful sense If we object But it s the most ordinary and literal sense of the words and the very letter of the words so imports Tush Tush quoth T.D. never talk of that man I tell thee 't is usual with Christ to speak words of doubtful sense so that his meaning may be mistaken when his words are taken in the most ordinary and literal sense and so 't would be here if by every man we should understand every individual man I know and confess the words import so John 1.9 but the indefinite phrase so T.D. calls it though every man is an universal hath a restrained sense as elsewhere in the Scripture Christ tasted death for every man when as he died but for a certain number and the meaning of those words cannot be as the letter of them dâ—th import for then the Scripture would contradict it self but it must be if not in the other way in which I said it might me then in this way as I say that every man is not every individual man so T.D. And besides as God intends not the Salvation to all it s offered to so all it s offered to on pain of sorer condemnation if they believe it cannot believe it nor accept it and he offers it to All upon condition of acceptance Indeed could you suppose that all would take him at his word and accept his offer they should have the benefit thereof but that must not be supposed on pain of being Heretical in the Faith for 't is not Orthodox that men can come to God when he calls them nor accept of what he proffers nor believe in him whom he bids them believe in that he died for them in particular whom if they should believe in that 't is so then 't is so in deed in truth that he died for them else not as if he died not for sinners qua sinners and lost but qua believers which is absurd for men must have this first as a ground to believe upon that he died for them because for All every one sinners ungodly lost Rom. 4. Rom. 5. while yet sinners otherwise they have no ground on which to believe nor can any man that does believe with any Faith save that which is but meer fancy believe that Christ died for him in particular but as he died for All. For thus a man may safely conclude Christ died for every man for sinners lost ungodly the whole world therefore for me But bid a man believe Christ died for him in particular tell him he died not for All but for one of a thousand the Elect only and tell him also as T.D. does the Maisters know not the Elect and ye cannot assure him he is that one of a thousand one of those few Elect ones nor he himself neither know or be assured of it till after he believes it and ye utterly take away the ground he is to believe upon for he will argue thus rationally against you or expostuâ—ate with you to the shewing of your exhorting him to believe to be a piece of frivolous foolery Arg. Ye bid me believe Christ died for me has Salvation for me which God by you offers to me and you call me to come to him for it as that which without hypocrisie or feignedness God would have me to enjoy being not willing I should perish But what ground would ye have me to come upon or of assurance I shall be welcome or accepted in my acceptance or of believing assuredly that God is really willing I should have it Ans. It s sufficient for all Arg. That 's not the Question I doubt not but there 's sufficiency enough in Christ to save All to the utmost that come to God by him but what 's that to me that 's not a sufficient ground for me to believe upon many things are sufficient for many things to many more men then are ere the better for them as some greedy Grandees have many thousand pounds a year
condition of acceptance to all and could ye suppose all would take him at his word and accept his offer they should have the benefit Rep. But that must not be supposed from the Principles of thy personal Election of a few and blinding all the rest from the very birth nay cannot be supposed thou shouldst say could suppose they could take God at his word and accept for by thy Principles and I. Os. of denying the saving ability so to do the most they to whom it 's not intended can no more accept or believe then 't is possible if they should believe they should obtain that which they are personally and absolutely reprobated from so long before for if God do not will not give hath not given as ye say he hath not some measure of the saving Grace whereby to believe and accept it to all whom he offers life to on that condition of acceptance but calls and requires them to believe and accept what he knows they cannot without him this makes him as much a Mocker of men still as such a merciless Tyrant and Arrand Hypocrite as shall stand aloof off from one hungry that is lockt in the stocks with a dish of meat in his left hand and a Pole-Axe in his right saying why wilt thou starve thou self-murdering man come to me and here is meat for thee I am freely willing thou shouldest have it and not perish never coming neer to unlock him all this while nor bringing the meat within his reach but if thou wilt not come I will knock thy brains out and so because he comes not when yet he knows he cannot runs on him pretending to do just Vengeance on him for his wilfull refusing his own help when he might alias never might have had it and cuts him to pieces indeed for he that on pain of punishment death and condemnation if the Terms be not performed tenders Life and Salvation on Termes and Conditions utterly impossible to be or ever to have been performed by the person to whom the tender is unless a Grace be given him which yet never shall be is an Hypocrite and a Tyrant and such a one ye make God by your Doctrine who yet is no such but that ye belie him as such as he that shall say he truly desires to make me his Heire and so tenders me a good Estate conditionally I will take a journey to the Man in the Moon first to get it confirmed there when I come back again but if I refuse to go thither he will kill me and so because I cannot climbe up to the Moon falls on me and puts me to death indeed Arg. 7. Moreover Gods offer of Salvation to many to whom he intends it not on conditions he knows they cannot perform without him and yet not so much as enabling them all to perform them when he might but some few only to whom he intends it makes God a Respecter of Persons as R. H. truly said of it when yet God is no Respecter of Persons as the Scripture saith but in every Nation Men that fear him and work righteousness are accepted with him and not otherwise T. D. To that of making God a Respecter of Persons this answer will suffice did God give Salvation to some who accept not of it out of particular fancy to them but exact of oâ—hers that acceptance and for default thereof deny them Salvation then there might be some ground for the cavil but now that its offered upon equal termes there is none Rep. Does not God upon your blind Principles of personal Election or loving of a few out of a particular Fancy to them and peremptory Reprobation and hating the most of Mankind before they were born without respect to foreseen good or evil to be done in time in their own persons excepting the respect to Adams sin which the Sublapsarians prate of against the Supralapsarians whose blind wranglings whether Election be ex massa corrupta or pura are not more wearisome toilsom then they are both noâ—some and loathsome to look upon by any that love and know the Truth give Salvation to some out of fancy who accept it no more then others but as he as you say makes them to do it by an irrestible power which he denies to the other and exact of the other that obedience he enables them not to and that for default thereof not only deny them the Salvation but also damn them down into double condemnation Does not God do so I say according to your Principles and if so then is there not a ground by thy own confession for that Assertion thou call'st a cavill i.e. that God by your doctrine is doctrinally made a Respecter of persons And whereas thou sayest Salvation is offered to men on equall termes and therefore there is no ground to assert God a respecter of persons I say 't is the Truth we hold indeed that 't is on equal termes tendered to men so far at least that till some put the word of life from them and the salvation that is sent to them so making themselves unworthy of it when others receive it it is so brought by Christ the Light that the whole World might be saved as well as some of it 1 Iohn 2.3 Iohn 3.17 and where it is offered there are none to whom it is not as sincerely intended on condition of acceptance as it is to some and so God is in truth no respecter of persons But darest thou say and is it not a contradiction to thy self for thee T.D. as thy Principles are to say Salvation is offered on equal Termes who saidst above that among those where the Gospel is preached Salvation is offered to more then to whom it is intended if it be truly intended to any one and not truly intended to every one to whom it is offered but it is for all the fair offers absolutely decreed a few shall have it and shall not chuse but perform the condition of it which is acceptance and as absolutely decreed that the most shall never be enabled to perform the said condition of acceptance which is exacted of them and so shall unavoidably go without it are these equal Termes Is not this offer upon as unequal termes as if a man should tender to two condemned prisoners bound up in chains that they shall both live if they will come out of prison but if not they shall be more cruelly executed for refusal intending to unlock one of them that he may come forth and to light lead and compel him irresistably to come forth also that he may have the benefit of the Pardon and live and as absolutely intending to leave the other lock'd under restraint in his chains utterly devoid of any liberty to come forth to the end that he may cut him off from any benefit of the promised Pardon and take double vengeance on him for non-acceptance thereof and are these equal Termes are these wayes so equal as God
perfectly be washed from their filthiness The 22. is no other then the same with the 21. though alluding to two other Texts from which they fetch them viz. Iudg. 17.6 Psal. 106.39 In those dayes there was no King in Israel but every man did that which was right in his own eyes and they went a whoring with their own inventions where they make doing after mens own thoughts conceits inventions and looking to or following the Light within us Synonimous and this last a sign of wicked men and going a whoring from God and departing from God unsafe and such like concluding thus viz. The truth is God forbid the following of our own supposed light as the greatest impiety which the Quakers place all their godliness in Rep. This is nought but another impudent lye against the Quakers as well as a most evidently foolish extravagancy from the Question which is not about our own supposed Light but some measure of that undoubted Light of God which though ignorantly by you stiled natural yet is not denied to be true Light and that from God and not our own supposed only so to be The Quak. place none of their godliness in such meer supposed light as ye do who suppose the ignis fatius of your dark and silly sâ—nses and suppositions on the Letter as sufficient light for all people to live by their faith stands not in mans wisdome nor in that Science of you opposite Schoolmen which is falsly so called and supposed but in that real infallible Light within which is the Wâ—sdome and Power of God and as for Al departure and going a whoring from God and his Light within after mans own inventions and thoughts in things of God which is that impiety of the Priests that God forbids and abominates we deny and abhor it also The 23. which is from the first of the two last Texts and the 24th which is from Pro. 14.12 are both also besides the business and urg'd in disproof of that sufficiency of supposed light and the way that seems right only in mans eyes and is not so this we have nothing to do with but deny it against the Priests who unawares to themselves are walking therein as the way to death but that we plead for is the true Light Iohn 1.9 which lightens every man and is the only true way that leads to life And whereas the consequence of their 23. seems to be to this effect If every man had a light in him sufficient to guide him in right and good wayes then Kings and Rulers should not punish men for walking in the wrong and evil wayes that seem good and right in their own eyes Rep. I contrariwise conclude that if men had not such a light in them as is sufficient to guide them in good wayes then Kings and Rulers should not punish them for going into evil wayes for as 't were an unjust thing to require not of him that seeing will not see as those Math. 13. of such a blind man as never could see to see the right way which was never shewed him and to punish him for not walking therein so were it in Rulers to punish men for following filthy wayes and evil things if they did not videre meliora i. e. see and know how to do better for to him who knows good and does it not evil and declines it not both which are known by the light that is in the world i. e. in men though some for want of heed say the light in the conscience shews the evil but not the good to him only it is sin to condemnation The 25. from Prov. 22.6.15 concludes That if each man have some such true light in him then there 's no need of training up children in whose hearts foolishness is bound up in the way they should go by the rod and teaching for what need of the rod say they then to drive fully out Rep. I reply to drive it out and bring them into the way of wisdom which is in them and seen by them but not much heeded till they smart far it as well as the way of Folly This Argument holds as much against Gods correcting such whom ye confess to know his will and do it not as against our correcting children whom we correct for not doing what we know they know they shold do for no father but he that 's foolish will whip his child for any thing as a fault but that which his child knew to be so So fools come to be plagued sayes the Spirit because of offences they fly out into that if they be not incorrigible they with the wife may look well to and ponder their goings Our Doctrine concerning All mens knowing in some measure by his Light within themselves the good will of God destroyes not but establishes the whip for the Horse the Bridle for the Afs and the Rod for the back of such fools as turn aside from the truth that 's told them into folly nor does this any more conclude against teaching children then mâ—t with both which it is consistent for the end of our teachings of both are to turn them to attend to the Light and Truth it self within them that doth teach them yea even children as they come to a few years of Discretion I remember well that before I could read the Scripture which I could read when very young I knew by that of God in me and not from my Parents only whose witness without could not have been credited therein by me had not the Witness of God which is the greater testified the same within my self that I should not lye and was judged with fears of wrath if ever I made a lye as children are apt to do to escape a whipping for a lesser fault If then it be ask't why we teach men and children I answer to bring and turn them as Paul was sent to do from the darkness in which they walk beside it into the Light Which whether they walk in it or no is yet in them and because they are not come to it as all true men do but hate and decline it with the evil ones whose condemnation it therefore is because though they come not into it it is already come into them Iohn 3.19.20.21 And with this short self-same Answer now it s brought into my spirit I shall here wipe out of the way a whole parcel of pedling Queries of R. Baxter about the the Light as they lie together in his Epistle to the Reader before I. Ts. book into the pit of darkness from whence they were exerted R. B. Q. I. I would fain quoth he be resolved in these few Questions How comes it to pass that all Nations that never beard the Gospel are utterly void of Faith in Christ when the Nations that have the Gospel do generally know him more or less Aus To say nothing how little true knowledge of God is in these Nations that he grants have the Gospel
Spirits are to be tryed by if not by that measure of the Spirit of Truth it self which convinces the world of Sin Righteousness and Iudgement and leads its followers into all Truth Ob. If any say it can't be that Spirit of God nor his Light in men the Qua. call to for that 's one of the things to be tryed try the spirits whether of God or no and that which is to be tryed cannot be the rule of Tryal Ans. I answer why not Did you Schoolmen never learn that Lesson your selves which ye teach to others viz. that Regula which is alwayes quid Rectum is mâ—nsura sui obliqui The strait Rule must ever be the Rulâ— or measure of it self as well as of that which is crooked and faulty Doth not the light manifest it self to be true light as well as the darkness to be truly darkness and does not the Sun as well shews it self to a man to be the Sun as it shews a dark Cloud or smoak not to be it and why may not the inward light which is truly and indeâ—d is only it fallible be truly said to be Autopiste believed for it self sake and to be the Rule of Tryal that must try all spirits and sayings but its own yea it s own also as I. O. falsly sayes nor more nor less but the self-same of the outward fallible because flexible Letter which flows forth from it I say 't is true we are to try all spirits and things but as what man knows the things of a man but the spirit of a man within himself even so the things of Gâ—d knows no man but the Spirit of God and that Spirit in which that Spâ—rit of God reveals them 1 Gor. 2 What shall we try Light and Daâ—kness by but by the Light I know our Divines say try all spirits by the Scripture all lâ—ghts so called whether they be true or pretended by the Letter But herein they discover their own dancings of the Rounds still in the night of their own thoughts and in the midst of the mist of darkness foramuch as no otherwise then as when we ask them what 's the Rule they go by in their Analogical Faith they say the Scriptures and when we ask them what 's the Rule they go by in their interpreting â—f that Rule of their Faith i.e. the Scriptures they tell us the Analogy of their Faith even so when we ask them what are ye to try the Scriptures by whether they are of God or no they say by the Spirit yea though other things may be accessary yet the testimony of the Spirit is necessaâ—y and only all-sufficient to this puâ—pose so sayes not only Bâ—ll in his Caâ—echize but also all the Builders of Babel and Worshâ—ppers of Baal in what form soever excepring Popish Priests who are in a worse extreme and deny as no Rule for their own Traditions sake both Scriptures and Spirit altogether but when we ask them but how shall we try that Spirit of God whether of God or no for we are not believe every spirit to go round again they tell us by the Scriptures and thus the poor Clergy are cozened and how those they Lord it over should scape dâ—lusion and creep out of their Babylonish confusion I know not till they come to that and some such thing there is or else there 's no infallâ—ble knowledge of any thing which is of a certainty past all demonstâ—ation sâ— that as to a blind man it can't be proved so to a seeling man in need not and that is the Light of God in the Conâ—cience which as heeded and according to the measure of it shews both it seâ—f and darkness truth and deceit good and evil what God would have each man do for his own particular and what to decline de Iure what sins he lives in that he should forgo what sins he does or does not forgo de facto e.g. lying cozening cheating drunkenness adultery murder doing that ill to oâ—hers be would not have done to himself and such like finalâ—y what manner of man he is upright or wicked a tâ—ue man or an hypocrite c. And all this though internally and spiritually yet as truly and infâ—llibly as with his bodily eyes by the Light of the Sun or but a candle he sees himself and with his natural animal understanding he perceives himself to be a man and not a Beast Their 28. from Psal. 139.23 Search me O God and know my heart try me and know my thoughts and see if there be any wicked way in me and lead me in the way everlasting is thus If David had a Light within him of it self a sufficient and safe guide to God he should no need Gâ—d to search know and try him he might have led himself but 't is otherwise with David therefore he knew he had not a Light within him And to this tune also I. O. belying the Qua. represents them as saying they need not any teaching having a Light within them for a much as themselves are Autodidactoi taught of themselves Ex. 3. S. 20. Opus non habent vel Doctrina c. cum ipsi sunt Autodidactoi si iis fidem adhibere 〈◊〉 sit Rep. Oh most absurd and abominable how do evil men and seducers war worse and worse decâ—iving and being deceived 'T was darkness gross enough to gain-say the being of a sufficient light to guide to God in All mâ—n but this is grosser yea no leâ—s then groapablâ— to deny it to be in aâ—y men for if it be in any men it is surely in the Saints and if in them then in Davâ—d whom they own as one yet behold the M. As. and B. Ds. of our times tell us now that David himself who sayes Thy word have I hid in me that I might not sin against thee Pâ—a 119. which word â—he calls a Lamp to his feet and a Light to his paths had not a Light within him as a sufficient safe guide to lead in the way everlasting and consequently the Saints to whom nemine obstante Paul sayes according to Mâ—ses the word is nigh thee in thy heart the word â—f Faith which we preach had none of it in them as well as sinners But that they may not insanire sine ratioâ—e they give a reason for it such as 't is viz. If David had a Light of God within him sufficient c. he need not Gâ—d to search know try and lead him he might have led himâ—elf not heeding that all the Saints that are taught by the Light and in that learn in silence in all subjection are not Autodidactoi as these men suppose but as Paul saith all Saints are Theodidactoi learning of Christ and taught of God 1 Tâ—es 41.9 That the Qua. deny all Teaching but that of God or men moved by the same Liâ—ht and Spirit by which God teaches yea I acknowledge freely that he that teaches himself and learns not of God but leans to his
As after a long unquiet quarrel with the Qua. who call men to no other at all about the Light and Spirit of Christ as such foolish fires as will lead men into nothing but Bogs and Praecipices page 84. and much more of that sort themselves fall a calling and commending all men to the same in many good words of exhortation specially in the last Sermon of their book which consists of Exhortations to the Light Doctrine or Teaching of Christ within excepting here and there as the manner of most Parish Ministers is a Perenthesis or interpositition of now and then some dirty dashes and filthy flerts against it to sence men off from ever coming too neer it lest it make them wiser then their Teachers and Leaders and so lead and take them off from taking much more heed to the wind of their whiffling words and tangling talk of Truth for Tith So they are principled against the foresaid perfections atainbleness in this life as is evident in other of Baxter's and T s his works Yet in this Book of theirs that I have at present to do with I mind not at present where they contradict it but are found in sundry expressions much rather confirming and preaching it unawares and ministring Mediums in proof of it E.G. p. 12. where they tell us thus R.B. J.T. Christ leads alwayes in the right way so that whosoever follows him Rep. And some do surely these men are not so ignorant sure as to deny that R.B. J.T. Shall be directed aright in his way be guided into the way of peace Rep. That must needs be out of all sin for every sin or transgression is the wrong way the way of wickedness and there 's no peace saith God unto the wicked And p. 13. where they tell us thus R.B. J.T. Christs words have such precepts and revelations as make a man Spirituall Heavenly Wise like unto God Rep. Which if any sinner be and be not rather Carnall Earthly Foolish unlike God and lke the Devill then I am yet to seek and if these sinners and pleaders for mens necessity of sinning while they live and yet call themselves Saints can tell me otherwise let them tell me what a Saint and what a sinner is and p. 1.4 Where they tell us thus R.B. I.T. All that Christ spake Rep. Whose Speeches were and are successefull to accomplish their end among some at least assuredly or else let these men speak it out if they dare that Christ never obtains his end in speaking to any at all to whom he speakes R.B. I.T. It was to ease the burthen Rep. And such the least in is where ere it is whether it be felt or no. R.B. I.T. to direct to God Rep. Whom no sinner in his sins can come to R.B. I.T. to reform the evils in Gods worship Rep. Whom no evill doer or sinner in his sins can worship any more accceptably then Cain whose sacrifice was shut out while his sin lay at the door or then David himself whose prayer would not be heard if he regarded iniquity in his heart and every one does so more or lesse while in the least he commits it or else surely he would not commit it no man doing that he hath no regard at all unto but he who remaines yet under the Devills power taken captive by him at his will having not yet attained to that liberty wherewith Christ euen here makes many free and even here is by him attainable if men with Paul who throw the warfare at last attain'd it be sincere in the same way of pressing after it R. B. I.T. To take men off from Covetousness Hypocrisie and such evills as are Pernicâ—â—us Rep. And if the least motion to sin if assented to not else be any otherwise then so and not in some measure pernicious though some great ones may be more greatly pernicious then other some let that of God in the conscience of these men judge when Paul sayes the motions of sins which warr'd in his members while he was yet under the Law and not in the Liberty of Christ and but in the Combate and short of the Conquest brought forth fruit in him unto death and Iames c. 1. That if lust be but perrmitted to conceive as it does in such a degree as any one is led away after it it bringeth forth sin and sin when it s finished or brought forth e. into its being as it is when lust is but assented to and the mind genders to gether with it it bringeth forth death R.B. J.T. With what ever else might bring nigh to God Rep. Whom all sin even the least in some meaâ—ure though some more then some separates the soul from R.B. J.T. And Alienate men from this present evil world Rep. Which every man is nigh to more or lesse till he be totally taken off and alienated utterly from the corruptions that are in it through lust R.B. J.T. And accordingly so were and are the effects regeneration or new birth Mortification of the deeds of the Body the Salvation of Man Rep. And if these were and are as ye say they were and are not only the ends but also the effects of what Christ spake or speakes then by such as continue to heare his voice and follow him and not such strangers to him as ye are and so some did and now do yea ever all his own shâ—â—p all these things in time even here both were and are attainable and attained also that ye speak which are ipsissima the very things we plead against you for in the point of perfect freedom from sin wherein ye oppose us viz. Mortification of the deeds of the body which is never effected till every sin be destroyed or subdued so as not to be so much as assented to much lesse acted the very least being a deed or member of the body of it and mortification effected no lesse but somewhat more if more can be then a common killing in our common English acceptation of it even a mangling the dead body of it all to pieces Regeneration which however taken by our dimm Divines for the first act of conversion onely or beginning to face about from sin towards God is a real new birh or being begotten back into that divine nature which man in sin is degeneraled from and not onely so but also as taken in its right latitude and consummation not initiation only for the thing or end effected so ye speak and not prosecuted onely the growth up in that image of Christs divine nature in whom was no sin to the very measure of the fulness of his stature Eph. 4. and salvation of man which is not in but from the sin first before ever there be any right rejoycing in God or any true salvation from the sorrows that are entail'd to it by him who came to save his people from their sins Who in this sense mainly is sent forth as a light to enlighten us and raised up
a believers person with his works are accepted with God though his works be not perfect G. W. Answering thus viz. here he would have believers like the Priests who sin in the best of their performances as they confesse but I say the believers workes are wrought in God and these works of God are perfect As for our confession quoth T. D. 't is agreeable to Scripture There 's not a man on earth that doth good and sinneth not Eccles. 7.20 i.e. That sinneth not in doing good inquity of holy things is spoken of Exod. 28.38 Duties which are holy for the matter are iniquiâ—y for the manner of performance Rep. By which it seemes T.D. judges there is such a continuall course of sinning in the Saints as that they cannot cease from it at all for if while they are doing good and performing duty they are sinning and doing iniquity then how much more while they are doing materiall evill and iniquity it self and so consequently cease not from it at all Which if they do not then how do they cease as T.D. sayes they do here 's another stabb with his own Daggeâ— which T.D. gives himself whose words are such Swords to himself and agree â—o well together by the eares among themselves that a man need but bring them out upon the open Stage where such as are minded to behold the battell may see them falling out and fencing against each other and killing both their Master and one another And now I have that passage upon this occasion under hand one word more to it aâ—oâ—e it passe for 't is not worth returning to it again if a believers works which as G. W. truly said are wrought in God and say I by God in them T. D. himselfe from Isa. 26.12 dares not deny it any more then I do deny that all maâ—s â—on righteousnesse wrought of himselfe before and out of faith in the light are dung unclean things and filthy rags from Isa. 64.6 Phil. 3.8 If I say a believers woâ—kâ— be not perfect and his doing good be sin and his duties iniquity let me ask thee T.D. doth God who works the believers works in them work works that are not perfect but imperfect and if thou say what he works at first in believers is but in part of what he will do from 1 Cor. 13. Now we know in part c. Rep. Remember what I told thee above that in part is one thing and imperfect is another grace holinesse c. in part is a perfect gift evâ—ry dram of it as well as the highest degree of it though 't is not so much in measure as every spark of fire is perfect fire though not so great a fire as the flame it comes from But what do I talking of not pâ—rfâ—ct thou countest the best performances of the best Saints evill sin iniquity does God then who works all his Saints works in and for them absit blasphemia work evill sin and ini quity 2 Thou sayst though a believers works are not perfect but the best of them sin and iniquity yet God accepts both believers and their works hath iniquity then acceptance with God t is more then I can yet receive for truth unlesse thou scratch and scrape out of the Scripture such texts as tell us he hath no pleasure in it I know he taketh pleasure in his Saints Psal 149. but that shewes that such as you who take pleasure in pleading for iniâ—uâ—â—y are none of the Saints what ere ye call your selves that he take pleasure in Ye use to say to God in your prayers O Lord thâ—u art of purer eyes then to behold the least iniquity without abhoâ—ring it and the subiects of it and such like yet to go round again behold T.D. sayes believers works are sin iniquity and yet God takes pleasure in or accepts bâ—th the believer and his works Finally I know so much of such Saints as your selves are Isa. 1.10 to 20. that 't is iniquity even your solâ—mn meetings and appointed fasts and feasts but God takes no pleasure in them yea his sâ—ul hates loathes and detests them But he hath a people and a sort of Saints ye know not whose solemn meetings and sacâ—ifices are as incense before him who are not sinners as ye confesse ye are in all they do nor are their duties and doings of good by his power sin evill and iniquity and these and their services while ye and all yours are a smoak and stink in his nose are a sweet smelling savour to â—im in all the good they do 3. As to a mans falling into sin again after he hath once ceased from it I know no necessity of that which is the matter ye have to prove or else ye prove nothing at all to your own purpose who hold that men must needs sin while they are in the body and cannot possibly do otherwise but I know a necessity let men sin as often and as long as they will of ceasing to siâ— and of leaving it off before they leave the body otherwise if they dy not to it but but live in it till they dy and dy in it as Christ threatned the Pharisees they should do 't were good for them had they never been born there being no place for repentance from or purgation from it after death and notwithstanding your pretended necessity of aâ—l mens sinning while they breath bodily here on earth yet I know not only A necessity as aforesaid unless they mean the Tree lying as it falls as ye use to preach and the eternall Judgement finding all men as death leaves them to be remedilessly miserable for ever but a possibility also by the grace vouchsafed if themselves be not wanting in its improvement of ceasing finally from sinning while in the body nor sith T. D. confesses the Saints do cease from sin and its continued couâ—se is broken off in them can any man tell me why theâ—e should be less possibility of ceasing from sin or more necessity of sinning to morrow then to day or next day then to morrow and from that time of a mans first abstaining from what evil the Light in his conscience convinces him of and condemns him for and so successively onward to his lives end the same power that kept him to day being as all-sufficiently able as he keeps to it though the Temptation daily comes to keep him from the transgression to morrow and the next day and even for ever And who can tell me why he that withstood one temptation to any transgression by the Light and Power of God may not as well if in his will he turn not from the same Power which is alwayes nigh and ready to keep him withstand another and â—o another and so all so as to escape the transgression And why he that was not drunk nor lewd nor proud nor injuriâ—us nor wâ—cked nor unrighteous nor deceitful nor abominable nor disorderly to day must needs be so another time his being
his Commandements Next T. D. as he relates p. 11. 1 pamp asking me whether I could produce one single example of a perfect Saint in our sense I told him yea instancing in Zachary and Elizabeth Luke 1. 6. who were both Righteous before God not before man onely but before God walking in all the Commandements of God not in some few or many but all and Ordinances of God blameless To this accounting for more then that he then said though 't is one to as little purpose as the other first quoth he how appeares it that righteous before God is meant of a perfect inherent Righteousnesse seeing a believers person with his works are accepted with God though his works be not perfect And in proof of this imperfect and crooked conceit of his own he coats Heb. 11. 4. By faith Abel offered a more excellent Sacrifice then Cain by which he obtain'd witness that he was righteous c. and then adds that blameless is meant but comparatively as Phil. 2.15 that ye may be blameless and harmless the Sons of God without rebuke c. in which same sense he sayes Luke 4. understands the Phrase to which he adds Phil. 3.6 where Paul while a Pharisee sayes he was blameles as touching the righteousness of the Law which he was onely externally conformable to and how Zachariah was at the same time blamed and also punish't for his unbelief Rep. in which piece of Reply of his 1st something is true but nothing to T. D's turn but rather such as serves the truths turn against his but 2d something most abominable confused false and fained viz. That a believers person with his works are accepted with God though his works be not perfect For how ere T. D's calls and counts men as he does dain'd Saints and Believers c. while their works are not perfect and not only not perfect but abominable also wicked sinful filthy hypocritical deceitful gross iniquity Adultery Murther and despite to the Commands of God as Davids acting in Vriahs matter are called Psal. 5.1 2 Sam. 13. guiltless c. yet no such imperfect evil workers while so are any more deem'd upright by God then David was who was not vouchsafed the name of upright in that case 2d much lesse are such as are not perfect but evil works such as are at best but unclean dung iniquity and filthy rags yet such and no better does T. D. call the duties and as to the manner the best performances of himself and his sort of Saints of any acceptance at all as I have shewed well nigh newly above but rather an abhorrency in the sight of God by what person soever acted nor was Davids adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Vriah nor himself as acting it nor any service he did or Sacrifice he offer'd while under the filth and blood-guiltnesse and unrighteousnesse of it till he had throughly repented of it was wasn't from it and recovered out of it any more accepted as a sweet smelling savour with God then the adultery of another man then Cains murder of Righteous Abel and the persons and performances of all such unrighteous livers whose very Sacrifices while they are such God hath no more respect to then he had to that of Cain whose seed they are whose Image and nature while they are doing so wickedly they all beare and are found in David himself as so doing not excepted which Sacrifice of Cain though else perhaps as costly as his brothers had together with his person no such acceptance as Righteous Abel and his had because at that time he was an evil doer and then 't was the evil doer that did the good Sin lay at the door and kept the Sacrifice from acceptance as it ever does where ere it lyes for where and while there is a turning away the care from the law ther 's the wicked one there the person and the performance are both a stink before the Lord yea the very prayers of the wicked are abominable And in bringing Abel for an instance of a believers person and his works being accepted with God though his works be not perfect He quite cuts the throat of his own cause for both Abel and his works were true and perfect and righteous before God and so they are both cal'd Mat. 23. 35. Heb. 11. 4. 1 Iohn 3. 12. while Cain and his works are both call'd evil and of the Devil and therefore had Abel and his works acceptance when Cain and his had none because he was righteous not so esteemed of God while he was not so indeed as T. D. deems who because he so does deems that God as himself deems those and theirs to be good and righteous which in themselves inhaesive are nothing lesse but saving that contrary account T. D. supposes God to have thereof really rather evill and unrighteous For had Cain bin righteous and done well in other matters he had done well in offering and bin accepted if thou do well shalt thou not be accepted but because he did Bonum and not Bene being an evil doer and a sinner when Abel being righteous did both and was accepted yet he was not accepted in his material doing that which else was good in which case Israels most solemn assemblies were Iniquity as those of Saints and believers are not notwithstanding T. Ds. say so because their hands were defil'd with blood and their fingers with moral iniquity So by faith which purified Abels heart and wrought by love and overcame the world in him and the lust thereof and which was both made and proved to be true and perfect by his works did Abel and so all true Saints and believers also do come to offer a more excellent and acceptable Sacrifice then that of Cain and his wicked Race by which they obtain not mans but Gods own testimony that they are righteous as Zachariah and Elizabeth both did in the place and case now in hand which Testimony of God who counts no things to be other wise then they really and truly are is true and will stand against all T. D's tattlâ— to the contrary and will be believed before his by every true believer though many such nominal believers as himself is will believe no more of what God himself declares plainly by such holy ones as wrote the Scripture then what they list and that 's little or nothing at all of that that leaves them no license at all to please the lust and therefore the Righteousnes blamelesness Innocency harmlesness of the Sons of God themselves Phil. 2. 14. that are found in all good conscience towards both and without rebuke before both God and men whose blameless and righteous works which are from God himself and not of themselves Isa. 26. 12. 54. 17. deeper dye then that of Pauls own Exact Pharisaical Traditional External Conformity to the meer outward Letter or Law of a Carnal Commandement in matter of external Ordinance which yet to the full was as
good as any of that Religion or Righteousness of our morally unrighteous Pharisaical Christians now gloryed in by our literallists legallists must be made no other then parralel'd with that of man Phil. 3. 6. which had no more also then the Testimony of man as to that denomination of blamlesness Righteousnesse yet was in truth because lying in outward observation of fleshly ceremony more than inward Righteousness and morality no more worth than meer dung with God and as to justification of any one in his sight that doted on it As to that of Zachariah's being guilty of acting sin at that very time in which be as said to be Righteous for which he was punished with dumnes whereupon I told him then that in Elizabeth their was no fault found however and so one instance might stop his mouth who call'd for an instance of one single person only but quoth he shee might be no more free from sin then he though there 's no mention of any sin of hers Rep. I prov'd her to be blameless and righteous from the Text it self it lyes in him to assign some sin of hers if shee had any but that he cannot do but confesses there 's no mention of any So that instance stands ore his head still and whereas at the Taile of his double Tale about his and her sins he tells another to make them three viz. that my mouth was stopt and I was silenced had nothing to Reply because I thought fit to be silent when enough was said T. D. doth but mistake himself for 't was his own mouth that was then stopt insomuch that I saw and heard some of those that stood about him take notice of him as meerly cavelling in that matter but he that chuses to Outword them he cavills with though to little purpose must chuse to have the last word if he can But whereas T. D. sayes thus but in a word to put it out of doubt Zachariah was at that time found guilty of the sin of unbelief and was punisht for it I say it s more then he will ever prove while he lives that he was so at all much lesse in the very time of which its said that he was Righteous For 1st that time was before the time of his not-believing of which its said that in it he was Righteous But 2d in a word to put it out of doubt and bring both instances clear ore his head again ther 's no such thing mentioned in the least of Zachariahs sinning much lesse of being punisht for his sin for howbeit he did not so fully at first as he did after believe the Angells news of his having a Son it being very unlikely sith his wife and he both were very old and thereupon desired honestly a sign by which he might the more assuredly know and give credit to it as others without sin desired in like cases the like before him yet is he neither blamed nor threatned nor lesse puisht as T. D. dreams with dumbnesse for not believing till he had a sign as for a Sin but his dumbnesse was given as an answer of his desire of a sign and as a sign of the certainty of the thing that he might the more undoubtedly believe it Eccle. 1.18.19.20 whereby shall I know this glad Tidings quoth Zachariah for we are old Behold quoth the Angel thou shalt be dumb till the day that these things shall be performed since thou believest not my words which shall be fulfilled in their season There remains one Scripture more that T. D. urged against perfection which he desired my answer to at the propounding of which he sayes I was silenced and yet brings me in himself as answering to it in the very next words that I spake at all whereby men may see how he makes a matter of nothing of it to utter lies and to prove them to be lyes as soon as he has done The Text is Eccles. 7.20 there is not a just man upon earth that doth good and sinneth not the sum of my answer which T. D. renders as raggedly as he can so that men may not tell what to make of it was this viz. There are no dwellers upon earth that sin not but there are some that have a bodily abode upon earth whose dwelling is not on earth but in Heaven whose conversation or Politeuma or habitation Mil. 3.20 cheif businesse being abode and dwelling is in Heaven whom all the inhabitants of the earth or earthly minded men on all whom the day of the Lord comes as a snare Luke 21. viz. the Beast and his worshippers who are said to dwell on earth Rev. 11.10 do Blaspheme Rev. 13 6. and these people of God in Heaven who also are Heaven where God himself dwells Isa. 57. Isa 66. Rev. 18.20.19.1 Sin not as all they do wo to them therefore that are inhabitants of the earth for the Devil is cast out of Heaven and hath no place there and is come down to the other in great wrath But they that are in Heaven are on Mount-Sion with the Lamb redeemed from the earth and in their mouth is found no guile for as the Lamb himself who is their Saviour is unspotted doing no evill so are they without fault before the Throne of God Rev. 14.1.3.5 which answer of mine which was also G.Ws. is mine here again to T.D. so far was I then from using it as a meer evasion as T. D. sayes he verily believes I then did in mine own Iudgment and intention But T. D. not well knowing what to reply to it replyes nothing at all to it in his Rejoinder but p. 7.2 pamp calls it absurd and not worth a further reply then what he gives p 13. 1 pamp which is so jejune that I can find nothing in it but skin and bone he tells us the Iust man being in Heaven in our sense excludes not his local being here on earth Rep. Nor do we say it does though he there thinks we do think so but what of this we deny not his bodily and local abode here on earth T.D. who can do no other then give us all our questions cannot and therefore doth nor deny but confesse it that he hath a present being also in Heaven and that 's as much as we need wish him to yeild to as in order to the yeilding us our cause and if he should deny a true real being of the Sons of God in Heaven while they are locally and bodily here on earth we should force him to confesse it from Iohn 3.13 where it s said of the Son of man mark in praesenti that he is in Heaven while yet he stood bodily on the earth He tells us we run very low in this answer but alas it is too high for him who is on earth with all his reason to reach any sound Reply to as in us seems to be without us and inward to be outward to him who lives
not in Heaven within but on earth without so to him that stands as T.D. doth on his head with his heals upwards and his head down towards the Earth where his feet and heels onely should be as downward seems to be upward so does upward to be downward But so it seems to the great Whore that rides the Beast or that Woman that 's cloathed in Scarlet and for a time tramples the Holy City under feet Rev. 17.4.11.2 yet things seem no otherwise then they are to the Woman cloathed with the Sun who hath her head Crowned with the Starrs and all fading sublunary Glory and the Moon it self under her feet Rev. 12.1 As to T. Ds. trifling reply to what R H. urg'd from Heb 12 23. where Paul sayes the Saints were come to mount Sion the City of the living God the New Ierusalem into which let T.D. esolve himself whether any uncleannesse or defilement can enter from Rev 21.7 and to Myriards of Angels and to the general Assembly and Church of the 1st being whose Names are written in Heaven And to God and to Iesus and to the Spirits of Just men perfected with all whom let T. D. who sayes that place imparts not the perfection of any man on earth Resolve himself whether one dram of darkness or uncleanness can enter into Communion if 2. Cor. 6.14.15.16.17.18 and 1 Iohn 1.3.4.5.6.7 be true much more so as to make one body with them as T.D. Divines it doth as to that I say so far as it is fit to be replyed to G.W. hath done it whose reply stands unshaken by that feminine tempest or stood of impertinent words wherewith T.D. who sayes much to as litle purpose would seem to patch up a return and what G W said in short the body of Christ is perfect may be ventured among wise men to stand as it does against T D's little less then Blasphemous Counter-position that the body of Christ is not perfect for his particle yet whereby he mends that matter saying not yet perfect because some that belong to it are yet unborn this helps him not a tittle who holds with I O. the Scripture to have bin of old from Moses a perfect Rule and Canon I speak ad hâ—minem their own sense not mine whilst many books of it were yet not written and so I shall vouchsafe it no more then so and the rather because that reply of T D to G W was replyed to some months since but that it was neglected to be printed by such as were intrusted to see it done and whether it yet may or may not be printed before this of mine be out I cannot say Unspeakably much more might be said both in disproof of such Toyes as our Dâ—vines talk against it by and in proof of that possibility of a perfect living without sin before death then I shall here take notice of yet 3. or 4 things that are upon me I am free to give some small bint of T D tells us God will have us excercis'd in that work of mortifying sin while we live therefore lest we should have no more worke to do nor worlds to conquer there must be no full conquest over the world nor perfect mortification of the lust of it till we be dead so some tell us Gods Children would be proud if he should not keep them down corruption as well as affliction being a most effectual means to make ashamed God will leave as he did once Caananites to excerise the Israelites and he as Thorns in their sides some sins in his Saints unsubdued as long as they love to humble and prove them and shew them what is in their hearts and such like Rep. But I trow where would pride it self be which is none of the least sins if the Saints come by the Blood and Power of Christs Light and Grace which only humbles to be fully freed and cleansed from all sin and uncleannesse of flesh and spirit and to perfect holiness in the fear of God will not pride it self then be brought down as well as other sins and Humility alone be Exalted Some tells us from 1 Kings 1 48. The man lives not that sins not Rep We say that ther 's no man that lives who hath not sinned and as Iohn sayes he is a lyar that sayes otherwise of himself but because men have sinned and have sin must they never be purg'd is there a necessity that they who now have it and now sin must needs have it and must needs sin till they dye and if they may cease from sinning as our Divines also but that they forget themselves tell us they may yea must or dye for ever every tree lying for ever as it falls and there being no Purgatory after death I say if they may and must before they dye is it then unpossible that they should and if they may ne'r so little before they dye suppose a day a week a year leave sinning may they not by the same power and light live without it 2 3 or many years before but that as the plain truth is they are in love with it and loath to part with it till it parts with them and to take heed to that light and grace that is given of the Lord to lead them out of it to repentance from it and to learn them to deny it and to live without it Godly Righteously and soberly in this present world in which neglect the hands of the evil doer are strengthned by our dirty dawbers who tell them they must leave sin all sin little sins and yet to go round again that they cannot possible leave all while they live So strengthening the hands of the wicked that he can't return from his wickedness by such pleasing sing-songs and lullabies as these not a just man uppon earth that does good and sins not and the Saints have their infirmityes and David himself was overtaken with Adultery and Murder and yet stood accepted with God and was even when under the guilt of those gross sins not in a condemned but in a justified estate and Prov 29. who can say I have made my heart clean and such like Not heeding that though none can nor do we assert any such thing that we have any sufficiency of our selves to good yet alsufficiency is in God and his grace is sufficient so that God can if men look to him in his light make clean the heart and man a young man in whom youthful lusts are strong by the Power of God and taking heed to his way by his word in his heart may cleanse his way and so some do though they are but few nor does Who can say I am clean from mine iniquity not one Exclude all from cleannesse implying only as often such interogations do no otherwise then thus viz that few can for though an interogation affirmative of this sort for the most part concludes negatively yet not alwayes universally so but some are included in
the deeds of darknesse which are sin For the light and Spirit lead none into sin But there be such as walk in the light in the day in which if a man walk saith John he stumbles not 1 Ioh. Much lesse fallsâ— There be some that walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit and are led by the Spirit and those that are led by it are not under the Law the lash of which they would be under as all sinners are if they transgressed it but under grace And these are the Sons of God those that are born of God whom the world knowes not 1 Ioh. 1 2 3. for they are his hidden ones Psal. 83. against whom they take crafty councel as against an impure generation though they purify themselves even as Christ himselfe is pure whilst such as know neither the Sons of God nor whose Sons themselves are while they sin are that generation that 's pure in their own eyes though not yet washed from their filthiness nor meaning to be so here Who ever walkes after the Spirit and no more after the flesh and lusts of it at it seems by that very Text Rom. 8. some do to whom alone there 's no condemnation because no sin for they are in Christ so out of the transgression in the light out of the darknesse in but one of which a man can be at one time such sin not who ever they be unless T.D. I.O. and the whole Gang of blind guides who tell people that none but that person that Christ appeared in a Ierusalem ever were shall or can be fuâ—ly freed from sinning in this world will being â—ore shooes in that sink of sottishness run ore boots too so as to say the Light and Spirit leads such as follow and walk after it into lust and sin Therefore there are some that live without sinning And this is one infallible Argument from the very letter it self if it were not become now as a Book sealed to the learned lookers into it that freedom from sin was attainable by the power of Christs light and the grace of God which alone even we say is sufficient to that end and was attained by Paul and others then and therefore may be now even in this life in that Panâ— declares concerning Law of the Spirit of life which is in Christ Iesus the head from whence as the holy ointment it runs down to the Skirts of the Garment and as the unction 1 Ioh. 2. abides in his body teaching all things it had made him free from the law of sin and death of which Law of sin and death he relates in that 7. Chapter that he was once wretched by reason of its carrying him captive to it self of its motions of sin working in him and bringing forth fruit in him unto death of its warring in his members against the Light or Law of God in his mind by which he had the knowledge of sin in the very lust of it as that he should not covet nor lust to envy anger uncleanness c. Which the Scribes and Pharises Mat. 5. and Paul himself while a Pharisee looking into the lâ—tter without only as he did from a child knew not till he turn'd to the light within and came to the Law in the Spirit till he and it came to look each other in the face from which time and not from his looking into the letter he saw the Law in the spirituality holinesse righteousness and goodnesse 〈◊〉 and for all his former formality and strict pretence to unrighteousness profession of a letter ad extra his own meer naughtinesse and carnality as that of one that was still sold under sin and a committer of it in the sight of God from whose wrath that old drosty dunghilly righteousnesse of his own Phil. 3. which was not Christs as T. D. blasphemously belyes it to be p. 22. 1. Pamp. could not deliver him till he witness'd himselfe cloth'd with another even that righteousness which is of God by faith in Christ not imputed onely but imparted also to the true sanctification as well as justification of every one that believeth which passages nevertheless of that 7th chap. to the Romans and that 12. of his 2d Ep. to the Corinthians our senseless Seers have made among others one of their main common places from whence to prove the very contrary even that there is no such freedom from sin while in the body but that of necessity it must be acted by the Saints themselves while they breath upon this outward earth For say they if Paul complained of a body of sin and death while he liv'd and how he was sold under sin and carryed captive to the Law of it and of the Law of sin waâ—ring in his members against the Law in his mind so that he could not do the good he should but when he would do good evill was present with him and also of a Thorne in his flesh a Messenger of Satan to buffet him as he does 2 Cor. 1 2 3. c. and all this after his conversion to his dying day Then much lesse can any other Saints expect to be set so free from sin by what power soever in this life as to live and not sin and such like But Paul did so therefore what man can do otherwise Who can ever live and not sin Thus they argue against Qua. as a damnable sort of Hereticks that deliver a doctrine of Devils because they hold out as attainable that hellish thing as they count it call'd holiness and such freedom from sin in this life so as not to commit iniquity any more not considering all this while that Paul in those terms speakes what he once was yea even after his conversion to the light till sin was wholly subdued by the light condemning it in his flesh and bringing forth in him judgement over it into victory and not of what he was at the writing thereof in which time he sayes the Law of the Spirit had made him free from that Law of sin Not yet heeding at all that the Thorn in the flesh was not a transgression but a temptation with which God exercised him that he might shew the sufficiency of his own grace to support and keep him from transgression even from that sin of being exalted above measure and that no lesse then 14. years before he wrote this and not just then when or while he wrote it much lesse a transgression that remain'd unmortified in him till his dying day One argument more I shall urge from I O's own book thus viz If perfect Salvation from sin be the proper end of the Scripture and it be perfect to that its end and does perfect it and yet does what it does in this present world or nowhere to which it is accomodated only and ceases to do ought into the world to come then that perfect Salvation must be wrought out by it or here or no where at all But
reward is the division of their tongues confound and jumble both together into one They tell us one while that truth Christ tells his Disciples Matth. 5. That except our righteousnesse exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees whose lives yet ad extra as to all outward appearance were as exact as they were strict in many Religious observations we shall in no case enter into the Kingdom Whereby they intimate we must live walk and obey Gods Holy Truth and will though by Christs assistance yet personally more spiritually then they Yea they tell us what the Gospel requires from us though it is to be done by Christ in and for us is a more total abstinence from evil and even lusting to it then the Law and so the Gospel to call for more full self-denyall then the Law if ere we live The one saying Thou shalt not commit adultery the other Thou shalt not lust the one Thou shalt not steak the other Thou shalt not covet the one Forswear not thy self the other swear not all the one thou shalt not kill the other Thou shalt not be angry without cause Otherwhiles to go round again They make the Law require more full and exact obedience to God then the Gospel The Law gives not life without perfect obedience quoth T.D. The Gospel gives life upon imperfect obedience 4. Again They tell us one while that is when they preach to their people and see no Quakers among them the same truths the Scriptures tell us concerning God that He is of purer eyes then to behold the least iniquity that God John 9.31 Accepts not owns not hears not sinners says to such as work it and depart not from iniquity Depart from me all ye workers of iniquity I know not whence ye are Matt 7.22 Luke 13.27 And though forgiving iniquity to the penitent when they confesse and forsake sin yet by no means clearing the guilty while they lye in impaenitency under sin Exod 34.7 That if the heart condemn God in greater then it and knows all and what the Light in the conscience speaks in way of that self-judgment that 's placed in us and seconds it to justification or condemnation accusation or execusation there needs no witnesse to convince a man quoth I.O. p 43.45 that it speaks it from God it discovers it's Author from whom it is in whose name it speaks So that if that as it does every sinner holds guilty God whose mind it speaks holds not guiltlesse Yea That he who justifies the wicked condemns the just even they both are abomination to the Lord as Pro 17.15 and much more of that sort i e when the Qua tell the same truths to turn men from all sin which is transgression or iniquity for not the least sin is equity that I know of then in opposition to the Qua they wheel about And Otherwhiles As if God were another manner of God Who because its impossible by the power of his own grace to be fully freed and perfectly purged from all sin here will give indulgency to his sinning Saints to go round again They tell us other tales of him whereby if Pro 17.15 be true they represent him as doing that in the doing of which he must be an abomination to himselfe viz 1. That he condemns the just witnesse T.D. who tells us that here the best works and personal performances of Beleevers and Saints themselves are imperfect sin iniquity dung losse unclean filthy rags though done by Christ in them And yet to go round again That God accepts alias is well-pleased delights and takes pleasure in both these Beleevers and their wicked works Witnesse the Supralapsarian Predestination Preachers who represent God as loving of few only as Iacob hating most men personally with Esau qua sic as men the creatures of his own Creation to shew his wrath power soveraignty over them as the Potter over the Clay of the same lump the Mistery of which matters of Iacob and Esau their meer mans wisdom sees no more into then a Moles eye into a Milstone not onely before they had done either but without reference to either good or evil foreseen to be done in time by either Adam their supposed Representative or themselves and the Sublapsarians also who represent God as by Praeterition at least rejecting most on the Account meerly of Adams single act without a respect to any personall actions of their own The least and best of which two do doctrinally make God a Condemner for ever of Millions of just innocents yea very infants as they blush not to infer for one fault of their Father Adam for whose only eating the sowr Grapes all the childrens teeth must be set on edge contrary to what God sayes now who will have that Proverb used no more but sayes as the soul that sinneth shall dye for his own so every man only for his own iniquity and not the son for the fathers any more then the father for the sons 2. That he condemns not but clears the very guilty justifies the very wicked and ungodly that not from for the Qua know that he justifies many ungodly Ones from their ungodlinesse they repenting not resisting his Spirit by which he would purg them but giving up to become the Godly whom only he hath chosen Ps. 4. but even in the most wicked and ungodly Actions and even whilest under the guilt of most abominable Transgressions so wearying the Lord whom they speak well of sometimes as a God of True-judgment with their evill words of him at other times when they say with the wicked Priests of whom God by Malachi complains ch 2.17 of such as do evil that they are good in the sight of the Lord and he delighteth in them or where is the God of judgement as if he who changes not and said of old Shall I count them pure c. Mic 6.11 did change and become another kind of God at one time then he is at another viz to count men righteous even while such treasures of wickednesse are in the house of their hearts as render them no lesse then wicked scanty and abominable and to count men as I know not that ever he did pure with their wicked ballances with their bag of deceitful weights while they are full of violence and speak lyes and their tongue is deceitful in their mouths Witnesse not only all other his fellow Pillow-sowers under their arms and Soothers up of sinners in their sins and Daubers of Evill-doers with the smooth untempered Morter of their Peace peace when there is no peace saith my God unto the wicked but T.D. himself above all the rest who p. 38. Pam 1. not only sayes but still stands to it and owns it or'e and or'e again as grosse as it is and Iustifies it for truth in his Reply to R. H. who charges it on him Justly as a grosse absurdity which I have above also more at large replyed to that
what they will let earthly Kings set themselves Rulers take counsel together as they will it s in vain if against the Lord and his anointed Christ Jesus his Son in his Saints whom he will set as his King in the Conscience and in his holy hill of Sion But rather kisse the Son lest he be angry and ye perish for ever from the way of your own peace for if his wrath be kindled yea but a little blessed are all they only that trust and hope in him Psal. 2. Contradictions and Rounds about the modern infallible teachings of Gods infallible Spirit III. As to our doctrine of the present guidance of Christs Church and Ministry by his own infallible spirit They tell us sometimes or at least yeeld to us when we tell them that at this day they only that are led by the Spirit of God are the Sons of God that if any have not Christs Spirit and the guidance thereof which is an infallible Spirit and guidance for we know no fallible Spirit that he hath nor fallible guidance that that Spirit hath which leads undoubtedly all men and Ministers that follow it and not the lustings of the flesh against it into no sin out of all errour into all truth being truth it selfe and no lye and that some there are now that are led of that Spirit and walk after it and not after the flesh as then there were Rom 8. Gal 5. By and by they finding themselves erring and contradicting one another and no betier guided in things of God then by their own thoughts uncertain conjectures crooked conceits whereby they crosse one another in their several senses meanings about the one mind of Christ in that one writing which they call their Rule because they follow their own flashy fancies and not the Spirit and measuring all others by themselves To go round again they tell us another thing and make it no lesse then a matter of meer pretence and high presumption not so much as safely to be supposed that a man should be now Theopnuestos divinely inspired or infallibly guided by Gods Spirit in these dayes as it that Spirit did not continue his infallible but afforded only some kind of fallible guidance to his Church Ministry now and led them as R.B.I.T. also say the Light within did the Heathen p. 68. in somethings well in most into crooked and dangerous wayes and that makes these men sometimes bid men Attend and sake heed to it sometimes again cane pejus et angue reject detest and take heed of it as I shall shew more by and by Witnesse I.O. in the places above talkt with where he talks down all Divine inspiration and guidance now a dayes by the infallible spirit as matters but falsely pretended to p. 5 6. 63. 167. c. And T.D. who denys his own Ministry to be infallible and thereby proclaming those to be but fools who follow it accuses the Qua of falsehood with a witnesse for once offering to affirm this truth that theirs which yet is truly Christs Ministry is infallible As quoth he to the infallibillity of their Ministry 3 Jurates of Sandwich will testifie that they did affirm their Ministry to be infallible Which if it were not say I I would yeeld our selves to be as very fools who suffer for it as those would be who also suffer for attending to it Contradictions Confusions Rounds concerning the large love and rich mercy of God to all mankind IV. As to the doctrine of Gods great grace universal love and rich mercy to all men they extoll it in their Proclamations of it one while as an infinite boundlesse bottomlesse Bounty matchlesse Mercy endlesse Large love exceeding rich grace lifting up their voyces among all people to this or the like tune O the rich infinite unexpressible unconceiveable incomprehensible love of God in Christ Iesus to all mankind to the whole world so hath he loved the world a sic without a sicut that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever beleeves in him might not perish but have everlasting life God sent not be Son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through him might be saved he is not willing any one of you should perish but that all should come to repentance and be saved in the acknowledgement of his truth Therefore Ho every one that thirsteth come ye to the waters come and buy Wine Milke but without mony without price God is free of what he hath onely the Priests that have freely received and should as freely give give them their Fees let them have Money and Price and Pay and Augmentations and Maintenance enough God looks for nothing Come unto Christ all ye that labour and are heavy laden here 's rest for all your souls The Spirit and the Bride say come and who ever will let him come and take of the water of life freely Obje Oh but we are sinners will God own us Answ Art thou a sinner then who ere thou art thou art one of those Christ came to save become to save that which was lost to take away the sins of the world Obj Oh but we are great sinners wicked wretches such as never were the like multiplying sins transgressions is there any hope for us Answ If we confesse our sins he is faithful and just to forgive them pardoning iniquity transgression and sin Christ hath received gifts for the rebellious he tasted death for every man he is a propitiation not for some only but also for the sins of the whole world He opens the door of salvation to all His tender mercies are over all his works he delights to magnifie his mercy above all it rejoyceth against judgement Come all and welcome none shall be cast off in any wise that come to him he would have all to come he is not willing that any should perish Behold I bring you glad tydings of great joy to all people a Saviour is borne unto them from God there 's peace proclaimed good 〈◊〉 towards men Though they are enemies to him by wicked works yet God is in Christ reconciling the world to himselfe not imputing trespasses to any that will be reconciled unto him He swears that he hath no pleasure in the death of him that dyeth but had much rather that the wicked should turn from his wickednesse and live and therefore he hath sent his Son a Light to the Nations and so to be his Salvation even to the ends of the earth and this he also declares to men as his good will to them all and calling to all to look to him and be saved universally freely truly without mockage tendering peace to all offering salvation to all men intending no otherwayes then he sayes that every individual that turns to him shall have it and hath wrought in them to will and to do and now would have them will do hath given every one a Talent in which Trading he shall
yet T. D. sayes much of the truth of the Scripture is written on the hearts of the Heathen and that so much of it as is there written is their Rule so by consequence mens Rule can't of it self warrant mens actions to be right that are regulated by it Oh the Rounds of these men yea Tomb. and Baxter blush not in proof of that their lye as boldly as blindly to assert in the same page that Paul in his bloody persecutions and sins followed the light within him and counted it his great sin that he had so done though they confesse as before that all light in all men is from God and Christ and that the light some of which all men have from God and Christ though dim in regard of its small measure gives them to discern sins dutyes and divine Attributes and leads them to much of God and more morallity fidellity chastity temperance righteousness which the Letter sayes are the fruits of the Spirit then most Christians have attained to Yea so blasphemously seeme they to speak in the same page of the light within which the Qua. follow and call to which is no other then that of God in men that convinces them of sin as to intimate that men may as the Quakers say they do follow the light within them and yet their practice be of the Devill The Prince and Ruler only of the darknesse in men and not from Gods Spirit yea say they there if following the dictates of a mans own Conscience i.e. the leadings of the light in it could warrant his actions the most horrid acts of Idolaters Papists Pagans Mahometans Fanaticks i. e. mad men should be free from censure and controul Thus to their own shame confusion and self contradiction who one while speak well of it they speake abominably of the light within as if all the wickednesse that is in the world came to passe by following the light within the conscience the going away from which into mans own vain imaginations and vile inventions into the dark for not taking heed to the â—ouncell of God i. e. his light in the heart is the only cause of all abomination without which light shining and mens loving the darknesse and evill deeds which it condemns more then it there could be neither sin as â—hrist sayes nor condemnation Iohn 3.19 Rom. 8 1. As to go round again to their own confutation themselves intimate in the very next words p. 41 42. which are thus If a man do that which he thinks to be evill that is by the lights dictating it so to be in his own Conscience as they hinted just before though it were good and lawfull in it selfe it would be sin to him yea that man that doth good against his conscience is hut an hypocrite in so doing though the thing in if self be right and good When a man doth evill which his conscience tells him is so he commits a sin of the highest degree as to him that knowes to do good and doth it not to him it is sin Iam. 4.7 That is sin in an high degree hence great horrour of spirit hath attended them that have omitted good which their conscience told them they should do and much more horrour in them that have done evill against their conscience as in the case of Iudas Spira and other instances might be given Without which acting against conscience there 's neither sin nor horrour say we with John and Christ Ioh. 15.24 1 Ioh. 3 20. but peace as themselves hereunder confesse i.e. assurance of Gods acceptance acquittance non-condemnation justification And therefore say they if the Qua intended no more then this by bidding men look to the light within them And no more then that do we intend God knows though the blind Guides who can't see Wood for Trees hating us are minded to make men mistake us as miserably as themselves mistake us that men should take heed that they omitted not the good their own consciences told them they ought to do and that they did not the evill their consciences judged to be so we should accept of their warning Surely it will concern you as to look that your conscience be not erroneus As it ever is when and never is say I but when it erres from the light of God within it for the heart is a dark place of it self but as the true light shines in it 2 Pet. 1. 19. and heeds not that So when your conscience is rightly informed to follow it and when it goes wrong As it never does say I but when it goes from its guide the light yet to suspend the act which it condemns Till by the light it come to approve of what it ignorantly condemned if you desire peace It seemes then by these men as well as the Qua doctrine that peace is no where to be had but in walking according to the light in the Conscience there will say they be no plea to acquit him before God or to quiet his own spirit who proceeds to act according to the light in his own conscience And a sin against the light of nature So they stile that voyce of God in the conscience still is so much the more damnable in that it is against the most irrefragable evidence Mark how they somtimes yield the light in the conscience of all to be a far clearer evidence then that of the letter it self and more dangerous to resist in reference to which they somtimes to go round again call the light within but obscure meer darknesse and blindnesse and not so dangerous nor damnable to resist but rather dangerous yea no lesse then damnable to follow He that doubteth say they with Paul is damned if he eat because he eateth not of faith for whatever is not of faith is sin Mark how themselves affirme with Paul and us that faith without which nothing is pleasing to God out of which all that 's done is damning to be a faith in that light of Christ which is in the conscience Wo be to him cry they as we also do who condemns himself in what he allowes and contrariwise say we and Paul and consequently themselves happy is he and he only who is not condemned in himself that is by the light in his own conscience in what he allowes Thus absolutely do these Light-haters somtimes themselves blesse approve and applaud the light which otherwhiles they brawl and bark against when it s own children the Qua appear to justifie it Somtimes to go round again as absurdly do they bolt out bitternesse and blasphemies against that light which forgetting how unawares they confesse the truth to the Qua otherwhiles they so eminently applauded as good and of God c making it somtimes pernitious dangerous yea in the highest degree damnable to neglect it at othertimes to go round again pernitious dangerous and in the highest degree damnable to attend to it As p. 68. Among the Gentile Philosophers there was light but
Ebriaris sic titubâ—sque ' grotas Haud dubes nunc nunc dubitas 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 O Sacerdos 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Quî sit 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Quod scis hoc nescis quast in Orbe Rotas Vertis Hûc Illûc modo circa Rotas Fluctuas curris modo retro Rotas Undique Rotas Usque dum rotas rotulasque Rotas Nectis in Rotis rotaÌ„timque Rotas Tota dum TENET toÌ„tätimque Totas OPERA ROTAS ROTAS OPERA TENET AREPO SATOR Dixi haud magis malus Piscator ac Tu ac Tui O Sacerdos estis pâ—ssimi Pisces qui ni Regeneremini Rejiciemini in aeternum In Vi Via Vita Virtute ac Veritate Domini si Salvabimini Salvetotâ— Sam Fisher. FINIS Christ's Light SPRINGING Arising up shining forth and displaying it self thorow the whole World from under that Priestly Darkness wherewith it hath been clouded and overcast by the space of one Thousand two Hundred Sixty years in this our Antichristian-Christian World Sect. 1. OUr Testimony and that Truth to which We bear Testimony who by those to whom Wo is forasmuch as they Tremble not at the Word of God are scornfully stiled Quakers is no different thing nor another but plainly One and altogether the same which all the Holy Men and Prophets of God hâ—ve have held forth as also Christ himself and all his Apostles and Ministers as many as have spoken as they were moved of God from the beginning of the world to this very day 2. For even as They whose Testimony who even few or none either believed or received so We who are of her children of all and only whom Wisdom is justified give Testimony to Wisdom it self not the wisdom of this world nor of the Princes of this world who come to nought but to that hidden Wisdom which none of the Princes of this world knew for had they known they would not Crucifie the Lord of Glory the Wisdom of God is a Mystery even the Light of the Lord God and Jesus Christ who are Light and in whom is no darkness at all yea to that glorious Light that is now arising to enlighten that Holy City New Ierusalem where now there is to be no more night into which nothing shall in any wise enter that defileth 3. Concerning which Light Christ himself said to Paul being now truly converted to it which he persecuted before throw the blindness of his mind I now send thee to the Nations to open their eyes and to turn them from the darkness to the Light from the Power of Satan unto God that they may receive Remission of sins an inheritance among those that are sanctified by faith that is in me 4. Neither was this the business and Ministry which Paul onely received of God that he might fulfil it but Iohn alâ—o testines that this was the Message which he together with the rest of Christ Ministers had received from Châ—ist himself to declare which was also fâ—om the beginning not any new thing however it might seem new as being clouded till the darkness was past and the true Light shined again out of the darkness that sometime clouded it but the old thing which was from the beginning namely that God is Light and in him is no darkness at all and that If we say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness we lie do not the truth but if we walk in the Light as he is in the Light we have mutual fellowship with him and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all Sin moreover that who saith he is in the light and hateth his brother is in darkness even until now 5. Concerning which Light of God of which the Scripture every where speaketh and from which inlightning the Penmen thereof the Scripture it self was given forth which also was which also shined in the heart of man long befere the Scriptures were we together with the Scripture the writers thereof do testify this self same thing namely that a certain measure certain beams were of old and now are given of God in the conscience of every of them to the sons of men who although God made them after his own Image upright blameless have yet sought out to themselves both various and vain inventions and corrupted their wayes and erred and as to any help they can have from themselves are in a manner wholly perished from the true God from the true knowledge of him whom truly to know is Life Eternal and from all Communion with him to shine in their dark heart as a Light in a dark place to bring them back through the condâ—mnation of their evill deeds word and thoughts and of that whole Chaos of confusion and corruption that came in by the fall which condemnation this Light will bring on all that take good heed to it and through the mortification of that old man and body as well as of death as sin with all its earthly members and in a word of all whatever in man is contrary to the Image and Will of God and turn them back unto God unto that primitive state of purity righteousness and innocency from which they departed to worship Images in their own imaginations to know and to worship the true God who is a Spirit truly in Spirit in Truth with which worship onely the Lord is worshipped according to his will and lastly to enjoy such Spiritual Peace Communion with him as none are by any means possible as is aforesaid capable of while they are alienated from him by the darkness of iniquity while they remain in their Transgression incorrigible and unconverted 6. For both Iews and Gentiles as it is written are concluded all under sin there is not one Righteous no not one there is none that under standeth there is none that seeketh after God they are all gone out of the way they are altogether become unprofitable there is none that doth good no not one their throat is an open Sepulchre with their tongues they have used deceit the poyson of Asps is under their lips their mouth is full of cursing and bitterness their feet is swift to shed blood wasting and misery is in their wayes and the way of peace they have not known there is no fear of God before their eyes so that every mouth is stopped and the whole world become guilty before God for al have sinned and fâ—ll short of the glory of God 7. This is the state of all maâ—kâ—nd seperated by the fall from the Light into the darkness among whom even all of what oever Sex Nation Language Condition or Age at least that is capable to discern between good and evil I say all may say within themselves we are lost we are gone down headlong into the utmost darkness into extream damnation from God Neither is their any other way to life exhibited but by Iesus Christ the Light of
the Scripture which only Testifies of him without ever coming to him that they may have the life or to the Pope I leave it A little time will now detect it howbeit some may go one way some another and like to like and each to what and to whom he best loves and likes but Christs Sheep to whom he onely gives Eternal Life they will assuredly heare his voice which who doeth not must be cut off from among his people 9 Our Doctrine of the Vniversal grace and general love of God to all mankind in giving Christ Intentionally to be a Saviour to all that all that are lost in the fall of the first man may be in possibility and true capability of Redemption and Salvation by him without a bolt by any personal Reprobation of the most therefrom with no reference to their acting any evill and that unchangeably before they had a being unless themselves pâ—nendo obicem debarr themselves from the benefit thereof by Rejecting the council of God against themselves by an obstinate resisting the strivings of his Spirit with them to bring them to it and a wilful putting away of the word of eternal life when by Christ its brought nigh even in their hearts and mouths that they may hear and do it this is no fair In-let to their Bag and Baggage This perhaps is assented to as truth by the Papists the more shame for the most of our hypocritical Churles that gainsay it who would be but must be no more called liberal and bountiful while they are bold to utter errour against the Lords large love as if he were such a niggard as themselves who care not how few men be saved provided that their ever-sinning-selves be not damned but elected to be saved in their sins without being perfectly purg'd from them before they die by Christ of whom they must yet once know what yet they will not that he came to save all people from all sin who aâ—e willing to be saved and not to give any such darlings of his as they darkly deem themselves to be an allowance in the least or a dispensation to sin throw infirmity till they die and then to save them from the desert thereof after death the Instruments of which vile Chuâ—lâ— aâ—so are evil to destroy the poor people of God with their lying words when they speak no other then right things But what if the Romish Clergy do hold such a general grace of God they are by so much the more of a noble spirit then your selves who deny it in the owning of that most pretious truth if they were not far worse then yourselves in other mattters And as for us called Qua. who preach it here for Truth as against I. O. and T. D. it must anon be prov'd to be in the proper place as we take neither it nor ought else to be truth by tradition from Papists or eâ—e the more because they own it but as our selves have received it from the muoth of God so I hope you wise men will grow wiser by then I have done then to judg we must either reject truth it self if their Church once hold it or else be judged to be of them while we hold it with them and as in holding it out freely as we do other Truths we neither fill nor feed as you do your own by holding In the Truth their as Hypocritical as Hydropical Bag so it being no worse then that Golden Gospel Truth which ye Divines darken so much by your dirty distinctions and meer guilded glosses could we make such â—a fair In-let for it that it might shine forth in its brightness as it once will do from one end of England to another we should in so doing usher in no part of their Baggage But indeed your selves in standing against it have not only stor'd your Bag more then is fit for men to do that make a Trade of treading down the Truth But have brought in a piece of Babylonish Baggage of your own as bad if not worse then all the Popes for its all one to me what outward Religion men be of true or false Papism or Protestanism or whether they have any at all among them yea or nay if it be so as our personal Electionists absit blasphemia breath it forth verbatim or at least doctrinally and in effect that the mercy of the Almighty which is said to abound to and over all and extend beyond all his other works and his infinite large and incomprehensible love to all men is yet no larger then may be comprehended in that little corner whereinto they croud it so as to say that one of a thousand only are decreed to be saved and a thousand to one of the Sons and Daughters of men without respect to any evil foreseen in their proper persons to be acted in time are from all eternity decreed by God himself and that unchangeably and everlastingly to be damned For then that one of a thousand shall assuredly be saved and a thousand to one as inalterably perish and die eternally and this or that outward Religion is no remedy against that which was so ordered long before the poor Creatures had any being And as one said once unto me for whom t will be better then he deserves if our God take him not at his word viz he would not own that God that would own a Qua. to be one of his Children so say I but not so desprately as he did the other I know and own no other God but him who will own all to be his Children who will unfainedly own him to be their Father and save all them that are truly willing in his way to be saved from their sins by him who never yet declared himself willing to save any in them who sent his Son a light in the world not to condemn it but to that intent that the world which loving darknesse rather then light will needs be damned through his Light notwithstanding might be saved and will shew mercy upon all them who will have pitty upon themselves so far as not to despise the riches of his grace and reject his unfained tenders and honest offers thereof when they are made neither do I own him to be my God for my God is a God of mercy and truth to all who without any respect to their personal rejectings thereof in time wills never to have mercy upon thâ— most who would have any to perish and not have all to come to Repentance who would not truly have all as well as some to be Saved and come to the knowledge of the Truth who hath any pleasure at all that the very wicked much more that the innocent should die that delighteth in the death of him that dieth and had not really rather that he should turn from his wickednesse and live that means any otherwise then he sayes or is quite contrary to what he seems to be in his speeches to either good or bad
that hath two wills within himself whereof one is contradictory to the other that reveals his will to be this that he 's no â—â—specter of persons but all men as they do shall have that the soul that sins shall die but that that turns and does righteousnesse shall live that men die at their own wills and choice not his and yet hath a secret will within himself which as secret as they call it yet our Priests will be twatling of it openly ever and anon as if they knew it as well as the other wherein he wills and chuses that a few only shall live and irresistably by them or ought they shall ever do a thousand to one shall die that sends out his Son as a mocker of most men by calling them all to believe every one that he is his and is come to be his Saviour when yet he died not for every individual but contrary to his Revelation in the Scripture gave himself a Ransom not for all but only for a few that makes an ofâ—er of Salvation to all by Christ but intends it only to some few that sends out his Ministers with a lye in their mouths for a truth it is not say our Mâ—nisters yet they will preach it viz that Gâ—ds love and good will is truly towards them all and every one may lay claim to it as well as any one when yet according to their doctrine at other times there 's no such matter as this but his love is only to some certain ones which he secretly Selects and yet he can't do it so secretly neither but they must tell on 't to as many as they tell the other that sends his Ministers to make every man believe that Christ died for him in particular which if every man should believe according to their other will of God which but that they are Tel-tales should be called his secret will which is that he gave not Christ to Tast of death for every man but for very few most men must believe a very lye and yet if every man believe it not for himself he must be damned too for not believing of that which according to themselves still is no Truth but a very notoriouslyâ— that condemns the world of Sin Iohn 16. because they believe not in Christ as their Saviour and yet leaves the world which say our preachers Christ died not to save for he died only for such as are not of it without any Saviour that is theirs to believe in that on pain and peril of his eternal displeasure Requires men like Pharoah whom he plagu'd for his cruelty in the self same case to make such a Talâ— of Bâ—ick and yet yeelds them no straw wherewithal to do it but leaves them to go look it where they can He that doth thus and much more of the like nature which the doctrine of such as deny the Vniversal grace of God doth in effect Represent their God as doing may be own'd as a God by such as make him one and by the Ministers of his own making yet is not owned by me to be the true God of Gods but a God of his own Ministers own making to themselves after the Image of their own vain Imaginations yet such a God as this are I. O. T. D. I. Tombs R. Baxter and the whole Diacony of Dâ—vines that deny the death of Christ for all men devising and Imagining to themselves of whom till they come to know and own the true God which is mine in his mercy truth and faithfulnesse a little better then they do or can by that dark lantern of their own understandings in which they are poring after him in the Letter only besides his own light and spirit in which only he is seen as he is I must say so much and of my self together with them that whosoever is the father of myself or of them we are not yet one and the same Fathers Children 10 Our Doctrine about good works and our Preaching and Maintaining and pleading for good works as necessary for many good uses against T. D. or any other this is no fair In-let to the Pâ—pish Bag and Baggage for all good works as are so indeed and not only so suppoâ—ed by such as call good evil and evil good are of God and Christ Jesus the truth and none of the Pope nor of his Priests nor any other meer man that I know of neither are there any that can truly be so called for what thou or the Pope or any Papists or Protestants falsly call good works is another case not at all pertaining to our purpose to be found for ought I see in his whole Budget of Religious Implements nor in the whole Masse or Magazine of his Massy matters and 't is more then I shall see while I see you but besides much more against that light in which only that is done which goes for good in the account of God if there be any good works truly good to be found yet among the best of your own I know you have a whole warehouse of Religious works such as they are which you are accustomd to call good as they do theirs but what your good works are in your own sight is one and what they are in the sight of God is another Question there is a Generation wo to them that are wise in their own eyes prudent in their own sight yet very fools in the sight of God there is a Generation wo to them also that call evil good and good evil put darknesse for light and light for darknesse bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter there is a Generation O how lofâ—y are their eyes and their eye-lids lifted up wo to them also for they are a stink in his nostrills and as smoak in his nose before the Lord that are pure in their own eyes and yet are not nor ever mean to be while they live fully washed from their filthynesse I have read of a Generation that had more good works as they count them to count upon then all the National Churches of either Protestants or Papists and works more good as to the matter of them if what matter God requires may be counted better then what is required by meerly man all whose whole Treasury of Solemn Services out of which they offer'd to him was yet in the fight of God esteemed but Trash so long as t was the sinner only that so served and sacrificed and no other then Cain the evil doer still that did that good such were all the haughty Mincing Daughters of Zion that walk't with stretcht out necks and bosted in the Bravery of their Tinkling Ornaments their New-moons Sabbaths burnt Offerings Prayings Prayses Fasts and Feasts in which when they drew near to God they did no more then what he by Moses had appointed as ye do for which you have your labour for your paines who worship not after his own praecepts and doctrines in outwards but after the