in the robbing of a glorious Church in the deliberatâ— breaking of so many sacred Oaths and Engagements in the ruine of so many thousand families in the â—nsnaring so many thousand souls by irreligious engagements to maintain these men in their wickedness but must all this be disguised with pretensions of piety and reformation Can they find no other answer for themselves when they are pressed with arguments drawn from Reason Law Scripture but must they father all their wickedness upon God himself â—y deriving it from the direction of his sacred Spirit Mâ—st the Dove of peace and love be entitled to their â— erciless bloody executions Must the Spâ—rit of meekness and condescertion be made the Patron of their Tyrannie and Ambâ—tâ—on The spirit that worketh sorrow and reluctancy for sin be brought to countenance their justification and perseveranâ—e in sin Oh let it never be told in Gath nor published in the streets of Ascalon Let â—ot the unbelieving Jews nor the sons of Mahoâ—er nor the Savage Indians ever come to hear what a generation of vipers and prodigious monsters hath been hatched and fomented under the sunshine of the Gospel How will our Enemies abroad reproach and Blasphemâ— our Religion when these shall be underâ—…ood to be the fruits of it in its faâ—sly pretended puritie and Reformation Whether that Blasphemy which the scribes that came from Ierusalem were guilty of in attributing the dispossession of unclean spirits which they saw our Saviour did by the finger of God to be done by Beelzebub were specifically that irremisâ—ible Blasphemy against the Holy Ghost I will not determine But this I will say That to Attribute the works of the most high God to Beelzebub and to attribute the works of Beelzebub to the most highGod are Blasphemies of the same Parallel if any thing make the difference it s the Quo animo of the iniquity For men to say when they have nothing else to say in defence of their Enormities that what they do they do by the dictate and direction of Gods holy spirit is so bold and fearful a Blasphemy that I am ready to tremble at the naming of it But whether these pretences derive from malice or obstinacy or a dissembled Iustification of what they know to be Guilt of an high nature I cannot possibly determine I shall from hence admire only the power and prevalency of this charm of Infatuation that will neither suffer men to look upwards towards their God nor inwardly upon themselves nor backwards upon their guilty actions but hurries them on with Corah Dathan and Abiram into a Justification of their Rebellion against Moses and Aaron and God himself so long till they are swallowed up quick of Death Desperaâ—ion And therefore my advise shall be the same that Moses gave the rest of the people that were not of that Conspiracy Depart I pray you from the tents of these wicked men and touch nothing of theirs or touch not with them lest yee be Consumed in their sins And let every man that would preserve the life of his Happinesse in the comfort and cleernesse of his conscience say with good old Jacob O mâ— soul come not thou into their secret mine honor be not thou engaged or do not subscribe their engagement lest thou eate of such things as please them and thy mind and thy Conscience be defiled and ensnared to thine inevitable ruin And this I conceive may not be propounded unseasonably unto such as either have twisted with these men without repenting all this time of the error of their doings or such as are at present their secret friends and Agents or such as may hereafter be tempted into a Compliance either for fear of their present power or which is worse for filthy Lucre sake And for our brethren and friends of the Scottish Natâ—on I could wish they would seriously consider of this one thing That the best way to satify the fears and jealousies which are at present upon them and their councelâ— and the best assurance they can give his Majesty of their sincerity unto him in all respects must be taken from the sight and the Sorrow and the humble owning of those errors wherein they were unfortunatly engaged against his Royal Father I shall not hunger after any of their Confessions whether Publike or private nor will I adventure to Censure their intendments Only I hope I may have leave to entertain some fears that they will not set this King upon his Fathers Throne till themselves have set themselves in the stool of repentance on another score then what hath been lately practised in Scotland The best way I can proâ—ound for them to set a Crown of gold on this Kings head is to have their hearts thoroughly pricked with those thornes they platted in his Fathers Crown if they are really ambitious of the honour of restoring the rights of the Crown and revenging the blood of their martyred Soveraign upon his cruel enemies they need not be ashamed in some measure to begin with themselves But if a professed Recantation be too severe a pennance for men that would be thought they cannot err yet let their hearts â—e but affected with such a close and inward sorrow as that The searcher of all hearts may accept of it and let their resolutions for the time to come be such as that the God of Truth and mercy may blesse and prosper them into on ample ripe harvest of true Christian Honour and that the world may read the disavowing of their former errors if in no other character yet in the sincerity and gallantry of their future actions and atchievements Having shewed the Nature Causes and Symptomes of Spiritual Infatuation and with a faithful and impartial hand searched this wound unto the bottom shall I now with the Priest and the Levite passe by and leave a soul stript and robbed and wounded unto death and take no care no Compassion upon so sad a spectacle What Is there no Balme in Gilead for this deadly wound Is there no oyl of mercy to be applyed to the obstinate and obdurate sinner Doubtlesse so long as there is life there is Hope and so long as theâ—e is Hope the Physitian cannot fairely desert his Patient And because it is safer erring with too much Charity then with too little Because it is an inconsiderate Temerity to confine the boundlesse Ocean of Gods mercy to the narrow mouthed bottles of our own uncertain fallible Conception I shall open a door of Hope as far as the unerring Oracles of God shall authorize me and the first thing I shall pâ—opound to the Inâ—atuated spirit is That there is a possibility of being Cured I know well there is a Iudâ—cial kind of Hardnesse when God withdrawes the sweet influence of his Grace and delivers a man up unto himself without ever looking more after him That there is a sin unto Death â—hat strikes the Church with Dumbnesse that sâ—e cannot pray for it
1 King 18. 19. These factors for the kingdom of darknes are so clearly described by the pen of the holy Ghost and with such particular marks upon them for caution and discovery that notwithstanding all their fine spun arts I should wonder my self into an astonishment to see in a Church where the Prophets Evangelists and Apostles are so often read and preached a people so strangely cosened and ensnared as we have been but that I read that Rebellion is aâ— the sin of witchcraft These must give me leave notwithstanding all their power and influence to do mischief to enter a little into their discovery and though they are very changeable in their shape and complexion yet by the help of that light that searcheth even between the joynts and marrow I shall shew you these wandring stars that so all men thâ—t would not make shipwrack of faith a good conscience may know their danger and lâ—arn at last to fear God and honour their King and to meddle no more with those men who are thus wantonly and desperately given to change Prov. 24 21. And this I take to be no digression at all from the Text since it was the fate of this people to whom the Prophet addresses himself to be ruined by the frauds of their false Prophets who by preaching smooth things unto them laid them fast asleep in their own security and would never suffer them to Ier 14. 15. hear of sword or fâ—mine till they were surprised by these judgements past all recovery We read in Scripture of three sorts of false Prophets there were some whose predictions were very true and yet themselves were false Prophets because their hearts and affections were very false and â—nsincere Such a one was Balaam of whose prophesâ—es we read Num. 24. It s said of him that he heard the words of God and saw the visions of the Almighty v. 4. and by verrue of this illumination he prophefied of Edom Amaleck and the Kenite of the future prosperity of Israel spake partie ularly of Iacobs star which was to rise many hundred yâ—ers after And yet we find this unerring Prophet in his visions brandeâ— by two Apostles S. Iude and S. Peter for loving the wages of unrighteousnâ—ss and was rebuked for his iniquity Iude 2. 2 Pet. 2. 15 16. the dumb Ass speaking with mans voice forbidding the madness of that Prophet Thus Caiphas the Iewish high Priest was a Prophet He prophesied in Ioh. 11. 50 51. the general that it was expedient that one mâ—n should dy for the people and particularly that Jesus should dy for that Nation and this was most true otherwise not â—haâ— Nation only but all the Nations in the world had perished everlastingly And yet the Evangelical history tels us that Caiaphas was notorious conspitator against that innocent Lamâ— of God who was slain for the whole woâ—ld Baâ—…am and Caiphas spake both well but did extremely ill both spake as they were inspired only with this difference between them Balaam knew what he spake but Caiphas did not God opened his mouth as he did the mouth of Balaams Asse which spake true but in the mean time knew not what she spake There is another sort of false Prophets who have been ever employed by the father of lies for the promoting and dispersing of delusions and impostures Thus 400. Prophets are employed and governed by one lying spirit to seduce Ahab to fall at Ramoth Gilead 1 Kin. 22 6. Thus Hananiah prophesied falsly of the Israelites return out of Babylon and strengthned his prophesie by breaking Ier. 28. 10. 11. a yoke from off the prophet Ieremiahs neck and all this for no other purpose but to make the people trust in a ly Jer. 28. 15. And that these Prophets might have the greater credit with the people it was somtimes permitted unto them as unto the Egyptian sorcerers to do miracles to give signes and wonders otherwise that caution of Moses had been in vain Deut. 13. 1 2. If there arise among you a propbet or a dreamer of dreams and giveth thee a signe or a wonder and the sign or wonder come to pass c. by which it appearâ— that the Prophet might be a false Prophet and yet the wonder the sign might have an exact accomplishment only to try the people whether they did love the Lord their God with all their heart and with all their soul Dâ—ut 13. 3. The third sort of false Prophets were such as whether they spake True or false were out of question false Prophets and false in their prophesyings too and that on anoâ—her ground namely Because they intruded themselves into thâ—t Sacred employment without Commission saying thus saith the Lord when the Lord never spake at all by them Of such as these God himself seems to complain of The Prophets prophesie lyes in my name I sent them not neither have I commanded them neither spake unto them they prophesie unto â—ou a false vision and Divination and a thing of nought and the deceit of their heart Jer. 14. 14. These were a kind of over active Prophets that make more hast then good speed They were not sent yet they ran saith another text tâ—ey were not spoken unto yet they prophesied Ier. 23. 21. Of this sort especially are those swarms of Locusts which have so miserably and perniciously invaded our Coasts And therefore to wipe off any scandalous aspersion which may fall upon our Church or Religion by reason of these Boutefeus and firebâ—ands we must professe with S. â—ohn E nobis egressi sunt sed non erant ex nobis These nâ—toâ—…ous Antichrists went out from us 1 Ioh 2. 19. Math. 12 22. and have been seen among us but they were never of us A man may demand of these as of him in the Gospel friend how caâ—nest thou in hither not having a wedding garment So frieâ—ds how came ye into the Church of England without Ordination and Orders Iesus we know Act. 19. 15. and Paul we know and all their lawful successors we know but who ye are we know not We know you pretend to have a Commission from Iesus Christ with so much intemperate boldnesse as if you were the only persons employed and entrusted by him But pretend you what you will we know what Iesus Christ hath concluded of such as you are Ioh. 10. 1. He that entreth not by the dore into the sheepfold but climbeth up some other way the same is a thief and a robber Our Saviour himself was the dore to his Apostles and his Apostles and their Successors the dore to all that ever were admitted shepherds in a regular and Aposto'ique manner The Ministeâ—s of the Gospel are called Stewards 1 Cor. 4. 1 and Ambassadours 2. Cor. 5. 20 Now for an Ambassadour to move in an employment withoâ—t a Commissâ—on is a presumption of so high a nature that I think the Law makes it Treason I' me sure Reason declares it a
little on our selves in this particular I could wish the strong delusions I speak of dwelt only on the other side the salt water I do not intend to meddle with our Councels and publike Transactions which by many men are thought to savour somthing of insatuation I shall ever pray for Gods blessing upon them but otherwise understand them to be both withoutâ— above the sphere of my profession But let us reflect upon our selves as we are christians and upon our conversations as they are exposed to every eyâ—…s not the world strangely cheated and abused by false ghosts when light is so ordinarily put for darknesâ— and darkness for light Good for evil and evil for good When that which is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sigâ—… of God and that which is most vile abominable in the sight of God is mâ—… acceptable plausible in the â—steemâ—… men To give you an instance or two The murther of Abel by Cain his brother was an act so soul and horrid that God thought fit to punish it immediately with no less then an hell of horror and trembling And to prevent the imitation insection of so soul a crime a law was presentâ—y enacted Gen. 96. Who so sheddeth mans blood by man shalâ— his blood be shed and the reason is there added â—or in the image of God made bâ— man The shedding of innocent blood in Manasses was a sin that the Scripture declares God would not pardon And 2 King 24. 4. yet the Divel hath put so fair a glosâ— upon this soul sin that the world pleadâ— a necessity that this scarlet siâ— be woâ—… with the Buff coat and that man that is not preresolved to chaleâ—ge the field â— there attempt the butchering of his Christian brother and perhaps his laâ—… friend and in that stab at God himselâ— in his own image upon the least drunken or passionate provocation is noâ— thought fit to associate with any gentleman Thus by vertue of a wild notion honour which is no more honour thâ—… the mire in the streets is gold mâ—… are sent away many times to Gods Tribunal of Justice with their blood about their ears and all their murtherous intendments in their hearts without the allowance of â—ne hours time to make up their accounts with God Thus are men hurried away to their eternal ruine by the power of a strong deluâ—…on without ever considering or expostulating with themselves Have not I put my self out of the protection of my heavenly father have not I put my self into the pofsession of the divel Am I not going about a most desperate and horrid employment am I able to pray or believe or perform any act of Christian duty as becoms a Christian Is there not a ly in my right hand So that according to this wild principle of honour That man must lie under the brand of a Coward that will not be damned for company or at least that will not run a desparate hazard to dare his own damnation Again The Treason of Judas was so desperate and abominable that the traitor himself was thought â—…t to be his own Executioner and without troubling either Judge or Jury or witness in his condemnationâ— Iâ—das conveys him self to his own place Act. 1. 25. and yet this Traytor Divel is now grown so plausible both in the Court and in the Camp that a man is thought a weak brain'd sool that hath not so much of Judas in him as to betray his Lord and Master Quid dabitis ego tradam what will ye give me and I will beâ—ray a Fort a Garison an Army into your hands may well be the motto of this false age sor its foul Treasons and Conspiracies Nay so strong is the delusion grown that we begin to disclaim the very principles of Religion Justice and Honour and think those prophets little lesse then mad men that would hold us to those safe easie and unerring rules as if we were possessed with that profane and desperate spirit of Jehoram the son of Ahab who in the extremity of siege famine rejected the Lord and the counsel of his prophet saying behold this evil is of the Lord what should I wait for the Lord any longer 2 Kin. 6. To come yet closer unto our selves Have we not reason to suspect we are under the power of an infatuation or delusion when those sins which at first we committed not without great trembling and hâ—rror are now by custome and acquaintance growâ— so plausible and familiar that we can hug them in our bosoms and ly down upon our pillows without the least disturbance arising from the thought of them is there not an apparent witchcraft in the pleasures of sin when our very judgements become changed and perverted by the vileness and loosness of our afsections and notwithstanding all the curses and threatnings of Gods word denounced against our beloved sins yet we can bless our selves in our own apprehensions and say we shall have peace though we walk on in the imaginations of our own deluded spâ—rits is it not a strange vanity Deut. 29. 19. of mind to believe that God will un-God himself and lay aside that glorious attribute of his Justice which is essential to his nature to indulge and comply wiâ—h us in our sinful enormities I will not rashly or severely conclude of any mans condition I shall rather entreat you all to be your own private conâ—essors and ask your selves whether these and such like perswasions are not lodged in your boâ—oms What may I not be Christian enough with some few secret sins reserved or â—s there not time enough hereafter to lay them aside when the lusts of the flesh the lusts of the eys and the pride of life have had their seasonable satissactions must I account with God for tâ—ose oaths that slip from me unawares as insensibly as my breath passeth from me or for that deliberate Perjurie without which I cannot save my Estate my Wife and children from extreme misery shall I deprive my self of the benefit of my Saviours death for living a litle or a litle longer to my self To my proud envious and ambitious self To my vain sensual and vitious self I am not so wicked and debauched as many others and there are many that passe for eminent and wise men that are as wicked as my self These I take to be the pleasing dreams and delusions of our Corrupt and seduced hearts In answer where-unto you must know that the Generality of iniquity doth not lessen or abate the guilt of it Leprosie is not lesse Leprosie because it hath overspred the whole body nor is the Pestilence of lesse danger and infection because every house in the street is infected wâ—th it These thoughts if they were searched to the bottom I believe would be found to arise from no lesse then secret Atheisme And if men would speak out their language would differ little from him that said Tush God hath
Angels hath given this priviledge unto mâ—n He may take his choise whether he will be judged Here or Hereafter by himself or by another God hath made us all Châ—ncelours â—n our own Causes with this proviso That if we will deal truly and impartialâ—y with our selves that is if we will Summon our selves to â—ppear before our selves arraign our selves before the Tribunal of our own Consciences and there Examine Indite convict and condemn our selves we shall not come into any further condemnation If we would judge our selves we should not be judged of the Lord. But if we will not judge our selves we must stand or fall according to the Sentence of another Most Certain it is that we must all appear before the Iudgement seat of Christ that every one may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad S Iohn in a vision saw the dead small and great stand before God and the books were opened and another book was opened which was the book of life and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books according to their works They are Books in the plural that shall be opened The Book oâ— Nature The Book of the scripture The Book of Conscience And out of these books several accuâ—…ons will be framed The Divel that Grand acâ—useâ— will sâ—and soâ—th and plead against us The abused Creature will accuse us of excesse and luxurie The souls of the holy martyrs will 〈◊〉 us with oppression and blood guâ—…iâ—…e The Sacred Oracles of God will 〈◊〉 â—s with infidelâ—ty aâ—d Contempt and our own guilty Consciences instead of pleading for us will give up a verdict against us The only way thâ—n to supersede the judgement of that day is to call our selves to an account beforehand To agree with our adversary quickly whilst we are in the way lest we be delivered up unto the Iudge and the Iudge send us to that prison from whence there is no Redemption To riâ—le every cranny and coâ—ner of our hearts To bring sorth our murthering lusts our bosom Traytors and to use them as Ioshua did the five Kings that were hid in the cave of Makkedah that is set our feet upon their necks and slay them in the sight of all the world And this if we do we shall not fail of such a part in the first Resurrection as will secure us from the blow both of the second death and second judgement also So that it is in our own choise who shall pass sentence upon us whether our own selves or else some other person And what shall we be able to say for our selves in that great and terrible day of the Lord why the sentence of eternal death should not pass upon us when God hath given us the space of 10 20 30 40 50 60 years for the performance of so easie a task so reasonable a service and we have not done it We see with what malicious dexterity and boldness blood-thirsty and deceitful men manage the Tryals and desâ—gn the executions of persons of the highest quality and merit but how cold how dull and indisposed in enquiring after the guilt of their own wretched souls Certainly such men as they may be thought to be strongly infected with this disease of Infatuation so it may be feared they are very far removed out of the way of their recovery who have so much of other arens so little of their own guilt before their eyes A Cure then ye see there is for the Infauated soul and the first step to that Bethesda pool which cureth all diseases is by a descent of humiliation But do not mistake your selves It is not every sâ—gh or sad look no nor every tear that concludes a solid humiliation for sin There is a great difference between an humble man and a man that is humbled there are many of us God help us that are humbled and driven into great straits and extremities persons that have lived in their own Countries with great charity and hospitality towards others that have neither what to eat nor wherewithal to be clothed themselves And yet I fear were our purses as full of silver as our hearts are full of sin we should soon find the way to our former pride and luxury Physitians are wont to cure vomiting by a vomit and bleeding by letting of blood And truly the best cure I can prescribe for all our secular sorrows is by adding more sorrow and compunction for our sins then I fear resides in our dejected spirits I have dwelt long enough upon the severeâ— part of the Cuâ—e it may be demanded of me what are the messages of the Gospel to be delivered by Boanerges the sons of thunder Sure the world has â—ore then enow of such that take a great deal of pains to bring men unto Hell gaâ—eâ— by representing unto them the horrors of a damned Condition and the iâ—reâ—overable Estate of all the world besides themselves but then their Art fails them in bringing them back again They can bring the soul into a deep dejection but they know not how to raise it again They are good at the Corrasive but to seek in the application of the Cordial Like our Refoâ—mers in England they are deâ—…erous in pâ—lâ—ing down but they know not how or what to build in the place of it These are ignorant if not â—ll natured Physitiansâ— that please themselves with wounding when they know not how to heal make work for their own mercinary and adulterate Art to practise on shaping their Cures too often accordâ—ng to their incouragements and though they will not sell the gifts yet they can find a way to sell the Comforts of the Holy Ghost for mony and advantage Now in the Samaritans Cure of the wounded man that fell among hâ—eves as he journied from Ierusalem to Iericho we find two ingredients wine and oyle not wine alone or oyle alone but both first wine to search afterwards oyl to supple Thus when S. Peter sound his auditory pricked in their hearts he presently applies an Evangelical Cordial and tells them that the promise was made unto them and unto their children even as mâ—ny as the Lord should call Thus S. Paul directs the Church at Corinth to deliver up the incestuous person to Satan for the destruction of the flesh but it was for no other end but that the spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus For the Churches censure having humbled him he writes a second Epistle to the same Church both to forgive him and to comfort him lest perhaps he be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow And indeed the more we are broken with sorrow and contrition the more firm and compacted shall we find our confidence and assurance in Gods mercy For though self-humbling be the certain fruit and effect of faith yet faith is not so clear and conspicuous till repentance hath scoured off the rust but