be banished from the civil state And therfore lastly as he casts dishonour upon the name of God Mr. Cotton not having felt the miseries of others can bee no equall judge of them to make him the Author of such cruell mercy so had his soule been in my soules case exposed to the miseries poverties necessities wants debts hardships of Sea and Land in a banished condition he would I presume reach forth a more mercifull cordiall to the afflicted But he that is despised and afflicted is like a lamp despised in the eyes of him that is at ease Iob. CHAP. VIII Mr. Cotton Yea but he speaks not these things to adde affliction to the afflicted but if it were the holy will of God to move me to a serious sight of my sinne and of the justice of Gods hand against it Against your corrupt Doctrines it pleased the Lord Jesus to fight against you with the sword of his mouth as himselfe speaketh Rev. 2. in the mouthes and testimonies of the Churches Brethren against whom when you overheat your selfe in reasoning and disputing against the light of his truth it pleased him to stop your mouth by a sudden Disease and to threaten to take breath from you But you instead of recoiling as even Balaam offered to doe in the like case chose rather to persist in the way and protest against all the Churches and brethren that stood in your way and thus the good hand of Christ that should have humbled you to see and turn from the error of your way hath rather hardned you therin and quickned you only to see failings yea intollerable errors in all the Churches and brethren rather then in your selfe Answer In these lines an humble and discerning spirit may espie First a glorious justification and boasting of Himselfe and others concurring with him Secondly an unrighteous and uncharitable censure of the afflicted To the first I say no more The lanthorâ—e of Gods word must alone try who fights with the sword of Gods mouth the same word of God but let the light of the holy lanthorne of the word of God discover and try with whom the sword of Gods mouth that is the testimony of the holy Scripture for Christ against Antichrist abideth And whether my self and such poore Witnesses of Jesus Christ in Old and New England Low-Countries c. desiring in meeknes and patience to testifie the truth of Jesus against all false callings of Ministers Whether Mr. Cotton persecuting or the answerer persecuted bee likest to Balaam c. Or Mr. Cotton however in his person holy and beloved swimming with the stream of outward credit and profit and smiting with the fist and sword of persecution such as dare not joyn in worship with him I say whether of either be the Witnesses of Christ Jesus in whose mouth is the sword of his mouth the sword of the Spirit the holy word of God and whether is most like to Balaam To the secâ—nâ— his censure It is true it pleased God by excessivâ— labours on the Lords dayes The answerers profession concerning his sicknes which Mr. Cotton upbraids to him and thrice a week at Salem by labours day and night in my Field with my own hands for the maintenance of my charge by travells also by day and night to goe and return from their Court and not by over-heating in dispute divers of themselves confessing publikely my moderation it pleased God to bring me neare unto death in which time notwithstanding the mediating testimony of two skillfull in Physick I was unmercifully driven from my chamber to a Winters flight During my sicknes I humbly appeale unto the Father of Spirits for witnes of the upright and constant diligent search my spirit made after him in the examination of all passages both my private disquisitions with all the chief of their Ministers and publike agitations of points controverted and what gracious fruit I reaped from that sicknes I hope my soule shall never forget However I mind not to number up a catalogue of the many censures upon Gods servants in the time of Gods chastisements and visitations on them Scripture history experience can witnes the censures upon Gods servants in their afflictions both in Scripture History and experience Nor retort the many evills which it pleased God to bring upon some chief procurers of my sorrows nor upon the whole State immediatly after them which many of their own have observed and reported to me but I commit my cause to him that judgeth Righteously and yet resolve to pray against their Evils Psal 141. CHAP. IX Mr. Cotton In which course though you say you doe not remember an houre wherein the countenance of the Lord was darkned to you yet be not deceived it is no new thing with Sathan to transform himselfe into an Angel of light and to cheare the soule with false peace and with flashes of counterfeit consolation Sad and wofull is the memorie of Mr. Smiths strong consolation on his death-bed which is set as a seale to his grosse and damnable Arminianisme and Enthusiasme delivered in the confession of his Faith prefixed to the Storie of his life and death The countenance of God is upon his people when they feare him not when they presume of their own strength and his consolations are not found in the way of prefidence and error but in the wayes of humilitie and truth Ans To that part which concerns my self the speech hath reference either to the matter of justification or else matter of my affliction for Christ of both which I remember I have had discourse For the first I have exprest in some conference as Mr. Cotton himselfe hath also related concerning some A soule at peace with God may yet endure great combats concerning sanctification with whom I am not worthy to be named that after first manifestations of the countenance of God reconciled in the blood of his Son unto my soule my questions and trouble have not been concerning my reconciliation and peace with God but concerning sanctification and fellowship with the holines of God in which respect I desire to cry with Paul in the bitternes of my spirit O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death Secondly it may have reference to some conference concerning affliction for his Names sake in which respect I desire to acknowledge the faithfullnes of his word and promise to be with his in 6 troubles and in 7 through fire and water making good 100 fold with persecution Affliction for Christ sweet to such of his servants as suffer ought for his names sake and I have said and must say and all Gods witnesses that have borne any paine or losse for Jesus must say that fellowship with the Lord Jesus in his sufferings is sweeter then all the fellowship with sinners in all the profits honours and pleasures of this present evill world And yet 2 things I desire
exceeds the beds of men who are but dust and ashes Secondly The first Christians the best pattern for all Christians now I answere the converted Jews although they saw not all the leavenings of the Pharises yet they mourned for killing of Christ and embraced him in his Worship Ministry Government and were added to his Church and O that the least beames of light and sparkles of heat were in mine owne and others soules which were kindled by the holy Spirit of God in those famous converts at the preaching of Peter Acts 2. The true Christ now in his Worship Ministrie c. being discerned and repentance for persecuting and killing of him The power of true repentance for killing of Christ being exprest there necessarily follows a withdrawing from the Church Ministry and Worship of the false Christ and submission unto the true and this is the summe and substance of our contraversie Concerning the confession of sinnes unto Iohn Mr. Cotton he grants the Disciples of Iohn confest their sins the Publicans theirs the Souldiers theirs the people theirs but saith he it appeares not that they confest their Pharisaicall pollution And concerning the confession Acts 19. 18. he saith it is not exprest that they confest all their deeds Ans If both these confest their notorious sins as Mr. Cotton expresseth why not as well their notorious sinnes against God their Idolatries Superstitious Worships c. Surely throughout the whole Scripture the matters of God and his Worship are first and most tenderly handled his people are ever described by the title of his Worshippers and his enemies by the title of Worshippers of false gods and worshipping the true after a false manner and to prove this were to bring forth a candle to the bright shining of the Sun at noon day CHAP. XIX His third answere is Mr. Cotton But to satisfie you more fully and the Lord make you willing in true meeknesse of Spirit to receive satisfaction the body of the members doe in generall professe that the reason of their coming over to us was that they might be freed from the bondage of humane Inventions and Ordinances as their soules groaned under for which al so they professe their hearty sorrow so farre as through ignorance or infirmitie they have bin defiled Beside in our daily meetings and specially in the times of our solemne Humiliations we generally all of us bewaile all our former pollutions wherewith we have defiled our selves and the holy things of God in our former adminstrations and communions but we rather choose to doe it then talke of it and we can but wonder how you can so boldly and resolutely renounce all the Churches of God for neglect of that which you know not whether they have neglected or no and before you have admonished us of our sinfullnes in such neglect if it be found amongst us I answer with humble desires to the Father of Lights Answer for the true meeknes and wisdome of his Spirit here is mention of humane Inventions and Ordinances and defiling themselvs and holy things of God in former Administrations and Communions How can a soule truly oppose Antichrist that endures not to have his name questioned and yet no mention what such Inventions and Ordinances what such Administrations and Communions were We rather choose to doe it saith he then to talke of it which makes me call to mind an expression of an eminent and worthy person amongst them in a solemne conference viz. What need we speake of Antichrist can we not enjoy our liberties without inveighing against Antichrist c. The truth is I acknowledge their witnes against Ceremonies and Bishops but that yet they see not the evill of a Nationall Church notwithstanding they constitute only particular and independant let their constant practice speake in still joyning with such Churches and Ministers in the Ordinances of the Word and Prayer and their Persecuting of my selfe for my humble and faithfull Mr. Cotton witnessing against a nationall Church and yet holding fâ—â—â—owship with it and constant admonishing of them of such unclean walking between a particular Church which they only professe to be Christs and a Nationall which Mr. Cotton professeth to separate from But how could I possibly be ignorant as he seemeth to charge me of their state when being from first to last in fellowship with them an Officer amongst them had private and publike agitations concerning their state and condition Impossible for the answerer to be ignorant of their Church estate as Mr. Cotton pretendeth with all or most of their Ministers and at last suffred for such admonitions to them the miserie of a Winters Banishment amongst the Barbarians and yet saith he You know not what we have done neither have you admonished us of our sinfullnes CHAP. XX. Mr. Cotton Mr. Cotton A third Scripâ—ure which I produced was Haggai 2. 13 14 15. desiring that the place might be throughly weighed and that the Lord might please to hold the scales himselfe the Prophet there telling the Church of the Jewes that if a person unclean by a dead body touch holy things those holy things become uncleane unto them and so saith he is this Nation and so is every work of their hands and that which they offer is uncleane whence I infer'd that even Church Covenants made and Ordinances practiced by persons polluted through spirituall deadnes and filthines of Communion such Covenants and Ordinances become uncleane unto them and are prophaned by them Mr. Cotton answers Your purpose was to prove that Churches cannot be constituted by such persons as are unclean by Antichristian pollutions or if they be so constituted they are not to be communicated with but separated from But the Prophet acknowledgeth the whole Church of the Jews to be unclean and yet neither denies them to be a Church truly constituted nor stirs up himselfe or others to separate from them Ans I acknowledge the true constitution of the Church of the Jewes and affirm that this their true constitution was the reason why they were not to be separated from for being a Nationall Church The 〈◊〉 of the Iewes a Nationall Church truely constituted therfore not to bee separated from Death and captivity in the nationall church typed out spiritual death captivity in the particular ceremoniall and typicall their Excommunication was either putting to death in or captivitie out of that ceremoniall Canaan Hence Salmanassars carrying the â—â— Tribes captive out of this Land is said to be the casting of them out of Gods sight 2 Kings 17. which was their Excommunication Accordingly in the particular Christian Churches Christ Jesus cuts off by spirituall death which is Excommunication or for want of due execution of Justice by that Ordinance in his Kingdome he sells the Church into spirituall captivitie to confused Babylonish Lords and Worships and so drives them out of his sight Now from the consequent of this place in
will be accepted of the Lord and who can tell but that he may blesse it to you also if by his help I endeavour to shew you the sandines of those grounds out of which you have banished your self from the fellowship of all the Churches in these Countries Answ First I acknowledge it an holy Character of an heavenly Spirit Will-worship varnished over with the glittering shew of Humility to make ingenuous true acknowledgement of an uncircumcised lip yet that discerning Spirit which God graciously vouchsafeth to them that tremble at his word shall not only find that not only the will worships of men may be painted and varnished over with the glittering shew of humility Spirituall priâ—e may swell out of the sence of a mans Humility Coloss 2. but also Gods dearest servants eminent for humility and meeknes may yet be troubled with a swelling of spirituall pride out of the very sence of their humility It pleased God to give Paul himselfe preventing physick against this distemper in the midst of Gods gracious revelation to him Humility most unseasonable in setting up will-worship or persecuting others And what an humble argument doth David use when himself advised by Nathan went about an evill work out of an holy intention to wit a work of will worship in building the Temple unbidden Behold I dwell in an house of cedars but the Arke of God in a tent 2 Sam. 7. Humility is never in season to set up superstition or to persecute Gods children CHAP. II. Secondly I observe his charge against me for not hearkning to a twofold voice of Christ first of the whole Church of Christ with me Unto which I answere according to my conscience and perswasion I was then charged by Office with the feeding of that flock and when in the apprehension of some publike evils Publike sins the cause of publike Calamities must be faithfully discovered by spiritual watchmen the whole Countrey profest to humble it selfe and seek God I endeavoured as a faithfull Watchman on the walls to sound the Trumpet and give the Alarum and upon a Fast day in faithfullnes and uprightnesse as then and still I am perswaded I discovered 11 publike sins for which I beleeved and doe it pleased God to inflict and further to threaten publike calamities Most of which 〈◊〉 if not all that Church then seemed to assent unto untill afterward in my troubles the greater part of that Church was swayed and bowed whether for feare of persecution or otherwise to say and practise what to my knowledge with signes and groans many of them mourned under I know the Church of Colosse must say to Archippus Coloss 4. Take heed to thy Ministry Faithfullnes to God and Man though for present Censured will give rejoycing in day of Death and judgement c which he may negligently and proudly refuse to hearken to But let my case be considered and the word of the Lord examined and the difference of my case will shine forth and my faithfullnes and uprightnes to God and the soules of that people will witnesse for me when my soule comes to Hezechiahs case on his death bed and in that great day approaching For my not hearkning to the second voice the testimony of so many Elders and Brethren of other Churches because I truely esteem and honour the persons of which the New-English Churches are constituted The Popish argument from Multitudes I will not answere the argument of numbers and multitudes against One as we use to answere the Popish universalitie that God somtimes stirs up one Elijah against 800. of Baals Priests one Micaiah against 400. of Ahabs Prophets one Athanasius against many hundreth of Arrian Bishops one Iohn Hus against the whole Councel of Constance Luther and the 2 Witnesses against many thousands c. David and the Princes and 30 thousand of Israel a type of Gods best servants reforming yet not after the due Order Yet this I may truly say that David himself and the Princes of Israel and 30 thousand Israel carrying up the Arke were not to be hearkned to nor followed in their as I may say holy rejoycings and Triumphings the due Order of the Lord yet being wanting to their holy intentions and affections and the Lord at last sending in a sad stop and breach of Vzzah amongst them Perez Vzzah as he hath ever yet done and will doe in all the Reformations that have been hitherto made by his Davids which are not after the due Order To which purpose it is maintained by the Papists themselves An excellent confession of â—he Papists concerning Scripture and by their Councels that Scripture only must be heard yea one Scripture in the mouth of one simple Mechannick before the whole Councel By that only do I desire to stand or fall in triall or judgement For all flesh is grasse and the beautie of flesh the most wisest holiest learnedst is but the flowre or beautie of grasse only the word of Jehovah standeth fast for ever CHAP. III. Thirdly Mr. Cotton endeavoureth to discover the sandines of those grounds out of which as he saith I have banished my selfe c. I answere I question not his holy and loving intentions and affections Good intentions and affections in Gods people accepte with God when their indevours perish and burn like stubble c. and that my grounds seem sandie to himselfe and others Those intentions and affections may be accepted as his person with the Lord as David of his desires to build the Lord a Temple though on sandy grounds Yet Mr. Cottons endeavours to prove the firm rock of the truth of Jesus to be the weak and uncertain sand of mans invention those shall perish and burn like hay or stubble The rockie strength of those grounds shall more appeare in the Lords season and himself may yet confesse so much as since he came into New England he hath confest the sandines of the grounds of many of his practises in which he walked in Old England Many grounds seemed sandie to Mr. Cotton in Old England which now he confesseth to be rockie and the rockinesse of their grounds that witnessed against them and himself in those practises though for that time their grounds seemed sandie to him When my selfe heretofore through the mercy of the most high discovered to himself and othereminent servants of God my grounds against their using of the Common Prayer my grounds seemed sandie to them which since in New England Mr. Cotton hath acknowledged rockie Mr. Cotton formerly perswaded to practise Common Prayer but since hath writt'n against it and hath seen cause so to publish to the world in his Discourse to Mr. Ball against set Forms of Prayer But because the Reader may aske both Mr. Cotton and me what were the grounds of such a sentence of Banishment against me which are here called sandie I shall relate in briefe what those grounds were some whereof he