of that Scripture contrary to that of the Apostle Peter Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost Besides if Paul had not the Spirit at that time then he had lost it unlesse you say he had not the Spirit while after he had written the seventh Chapter to the Romans Also the Apostle Paul complaineth in his Epistle to the Corinthians saying That a thorn in the flesh the messenger of Sathan to buffer me which is taken to be some corruption Also the Apostle writing to the Galathians saith For the Flesh lusteth against the Spirit and the Spirit against the Flesh and these are contrary the one to the other So that ye cannot do the things that ye would according to what he said of himself before Also the Apostle Peter that Pillar of the Church which the Papists your Fathers do so much boast of that he could not erre as you Quakers say of your selves To passe by his sin in denying Christ before Christ suffered you may read in the Epistle to the Galathians that the Apostle Paul withstood the Apostle Peter to the face because he was to be blamed Why for what the Apostle saith That before the Jews he dissembled fearing them of the Circumcision and that Barnabas was also carried away with their dissimulation But saith the Apostle When I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the Gospel Now this sin of theirs was not a sin of Ignorance but of Knowledge dissembled and now I am writing of Barrabas I call to minde that great strife that was between Paul and him that although they were put apart together for the ministery of the Gentiles had travelled through many regions and preached unto them the Gospel that then they should so fall out one with the other that they should parâ— asunder there must needs be a fault either in Paul or Barnabas and surely they both had the Spirit of Christ at the same time and were Justified and Sanctified Also this passion of theirs bringeth to minde what the Apostle James writeth concerning the Prophet Elias That he was a man subject to like passions as we are that you may read of him in the Book of Kings Now if Elias that was taken up into Heaven was a mah subject to passion and Paul and Barnabas dare you Quakers say you are more holier then they I the Apostle saith That in many things we offend all and was not the Apostle a true teacher because he taught such doctrine as you say our Ministers are not Also the Apostle John saith If we say we have no sin we deceive our selves and the truth is not in us Minde the Apostle doth not say if you but we putting himself within the nnmber Also he saith If we say that we have not sinned we make him a lyar and his word is not in us I marvel not that you Quakers do so often give Men the lye seeing you give God the lye for so saith the Apostle that knew better than you for you know not your own hearts if you did you durst not so speak you never yet knew the Spiritual meaning of the Law that the least evil thought or motion to sin though not acted is a breach of the pure Law of God if you did then would you say and pray as the Prophet David did Who can understand his errors cleanse thou me from secret faults or sins If the Prophet David who was a man after Gods own heart and a pen-man of holy Scripture confessed that who can which interrogation is a negation none can understand or know all the secret sins of his life prayed to God to pardon them Do you Quakers know more and are you more holy than he I know you are so in your own opinions But I shall have occasion hereafter to discover the falsenesse of your opinion in that particular Now to make this appear more plain consider that there is no need of Christ his mediatorship propitiation or intercession for if the Church and people of God do not sin why then doth the Apostle John say And if any man sin we have an advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous And he is the propitiation for our sins Minde the Apostle saith We have an advocate and he is the propitiation for our sins the Apostle includeth himself within the number Also the Apostle Paul saith to the Romans Who shall lay any thing to the charge of Gods elect why Minde the Apostle doth not say for they have no sin But it is God that justifieth who is he that condemneth it is Christ that died yea rather that is risen again who is even at the right hand of God who also maketh intercession for us he includeth himself Also the Apostle to the Hebrews Wherefore he is able also to save to the uttermost them that come unto God by him seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them Now consider that this intercession of Christ is necessary for the Saints in regard of their best works For the Prophet Esay saith in the name of the whole Church But we are all as an unclean thing and all our Minde rigteousnesses are as filthy rags Also the Apostle Paul saith of himself Yea doubtlesse and I count all things but losse for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I have suffered the losse all things and do count them but dung that that I may win Christ Now the Apostle counted his righteousnesse which is of the Law to be such that he might be found in Christ not having his own righteousnesse but that which is through the faith of Christ This intercession of Christ for the Saints for to take away the pollution of their best actions was typified by the High-priest Aaron was to have a plate of pure gold and engraven upon it holinesse to the Lord. And it shall be upon Aarons fore-head that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things that the Children of Israel may be accepted before the Lord. A Mans best works as they come from Man are unclean because there is corruption in the best men for all men are conceived and born in sin as David confesseth of himself Behold I was shaped in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me Now this original corruption is in the best Man what ever you say or think to the contrary Now as water that is pure and clean in the fountain if it run or come through a corrupt pipe or channel it will be foul and unclean even so the Spirit of God in Man being the fountain from whence all good cometh is pure and clean but passing through Mans corrupt nature becometh defiled And therefore you may read that the Angel stood at the Altar having a golden Censer and there was given unto him much Incense that he should offer it
they are not the abler Ministers but lesse able and yet I doe not deny but they are lawfull Ministers being lawfully called But I wonder that you make these things to be a ground of their unfitnesse which is rather a ground of their fitnesse for do you not read of the schools of the Prophets and Paul doth thank God that he spake with tongues more than they all which he would not have done if it had been a sin so to do and Paul was brought up at the feet of Gamaliel a learned man in all tongues and if there had been no Scholars that had learned the Hebrew and Greek tongues I wonder how we in England should have understood the Scriptures seeing the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the other in Greek and they are not so perfectly translated but that there is need of the Hebrew and Greek tongues to explaine some texts of Scripture And for the Latine tongue how many learned godly men have written severall excellent books in the Latine tongue usefull in the Church which we had neither known nor understood if they had not been translated out of the Latine tongue into English And besides the Latine tongue is a help to Reading and Writing in the English tongue and by this we may see what friends Quakers are to Religion that would have no helps either for understanding or reading But the Apostle saith that a Bishop must not be a novice and the Apostle Peter saith that there are some things in Paul his Epistles hard to be understood which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest as they do also the other Scriptures unto their own destruction and are not you Quakers such unlearned unstable persons who plead against Learning And that you are unstable doth appear because for the most part you have been of severall opinions in Religion running from one opinion to another and now grow obstinate for the most part in your opinions But I know your objection that Peter and the rest Apostles were not brought up at Schools nor had no humane Learning To which I answer that as they had an extraordinary Call so God did in an extraordinary manner endow them with the gift of Tongues as you may read in the Acts of the Apostles where it it said They were all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance Now when I see or hear you Quakers have the gift of Tongues to speak all manner of Languages without being taught in a miraculous extraordinary manner as the Apostles had then shall I believe you have such an extraordinary Call as the Apostles had and till then I shall believe you are a company of deluded bewitched people To say no more to this particular but beware the Geese when the Fox preacheth who hath more Subtily then Learning or Solidity And now I shall answer your third ground against our Ministers Because they study for what they teach To which I answer that the Apostle Paul writing to Timothy saith Give attendance to reading to exhortation to doctrine neglect not the gift that is in thee which was given by prophesie meditate upon these things give thy selfe wholly to them that thy profiting may appear to all Take heed unto thy self and unto thy doctrine continue in them and is not Meditation study if you say it is not then read what the Apostle saith in the second Epistle to Timothy Study to shew thy self approved unto God a workman that needeth not to be ashamed rightly dividing the word of truth You Quakers are wiser than the Apostle you say your teachers need not study and Timothy was I believe more able to preach without study than any of your Quakers who take upon them to Teach without study and therefore I marvel not that your Teachers Men and Women speak so much nonsense and use so many vain repetitions of the same things But for dividing the Word or Doctrine which the Apostle exhorteth Timothy to use I never heard among any of the Quakers so oft as I heard them speak also the Apostle exhorteth him that is a Minister to wait on Ministering or he that Teacheth on Teaching the Apostle would that they should make it their businesse or whole work Give thy self wholly to them saith Paul to Timothy I know your objection is that the Apostles preached without study and Paul did work and we Quakers have the same spirit that the Apostles had To which I answer That as the Apostles had an extraordinary Call so they were indowed with extraordinary gifts above any man of an ordinary Calling and although all Ministers have the same Spirit the Apostles had yet have they not the same measure of the Spirit for as the Apostle saith there are diversities of Gifts but the same Spirit to one is given by the Spirit the word of Wisdome to another the word of Knowledge to another the working of Miracles to another Prophesie but all these worketh that one and the self same Spirit dividing to every man severally as he will Now if you Quakers have the same measure of the Spirit as the Apostles had why do you not work miracles as the Apostle did when I see that then shall I believe you can Preach without study and tâ—ll then I shall believe you Prate and not Preach And now I come to answer your fourth ground which is that our Ministers study old Authors the writings of the antient Fathers and Popish Writers For answer to which I do marvel how you Quakers know those antient Fathers to be Popish Authors seeing most of their writings are in Latine and you count it a sin for a Minister to learn Latine and surely if you Quakers had formerly learned the Latine tongue yet now you dare not read Latine books wherefore you have no ground to say they are Popish Authors from your own knowledge but from hear-say of others and so you are a false witnesse-bearer But it is no new thing for you to count all men Popish that are not of your wild opinions but if you had not plowed with the Papists heifer you had never known nor learned so many of their errors as I shall prove hereafter you have but I do believe it is lawfull for a Minister to read Popish Authors and to study what they read else how shall they know what they hold and how to confute their errors unlesse they do as you do take all by hear-say But the the Apostle saith Try all things and keep that which is good and the Apostle writing to Titus that he should oppose those that say against the truth for saith he There are many disobedient and vain talkers and deceivers of mindes chiefely they of Circumcision whose mouths must be stopped which subvert whole houses teaching things which they ought not And that their mouths might be stopped the Apostle alledgeth what one of
but also to strengthen and confirm those that are converted that they may grow in Grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ though you Quakers say you are so perfect that you cannot grow in knowledge nor grace Also know that were it not for our publick Ministers people would in time grow Atheistical and become like Savage bruitish Heathens as for those sins which you say do abound among Teachers and People I say it is no new thing for you Quakers to accuse revile and slander all men that are contrary to your judgement But if such sins did abound among us that doth not prove our Ministers to be no true Ministers nor our Churches to be no true Churches for I have proved that there hath been as great sins in the first age of the Church as in Corinth Galatia Thessalonica and the Churches of Asia and yet they were all true Churches and the Ministers true Ministers but for your selves you are like the Pharisees that could finde faults in others but could see none in themselves And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy Brothers eye but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye which bringeth me to the tryal aud examination of the perfection among you Quakers that it may appear whether you be the innocent Lambes of Christ the holy Seed the Called the chosen of the Lord the Witnesses the Saints the children of the Light the perfect ones for so you write in your Paper but it had been better if it had been written or spoken by others than by your selfe but you follow your Fathers the Pharisees who praised themselves and your Fathers the Papists who say they are the only true Church which cannot erre as you Quakers say of your selves Wherefore I shall now endevour to examine your perfection whether you have that perfection which the Scripture doth hold forth and teach I have at large proved the perfection which our Ministers teach to be by Faith alone in believing what Christ hath suffered and done for us Also I have proved that there is no perfection in our selves that is to say no man is able perfectly to keep and fulfill the whole Law in thought word and deed but you Quakers say that Christ hath abolished the Law an old Antinomian error which hath been often confuted wherefore I shall not trouble my self about it but I shall exaamine whether you Quakers do perfectly keep and obey the commands of Christ and his Apostles and whether you walk according to the example of Christ and his Apostles Now Jesus Christ hath given forth several commands which you Quakers do not obey but teach men that they ought not to be obeyed now Christ saith that whosoever shall break one of these least Commandements and shall teach men so he shall be called the least in the Kingdome of Heaven that is none at all Now if Christ threaten such as teach men to break one of the least of the commands of the Moral Law how do you think to escape that teach men to break his commands which he gave forth with his own mouth in the time of the Gospel and that neer the time of his Suffering and Ascension but you will say this is a false accusation wherefore it remaineth on my part to 〈◊〉 it And to that end I shall first begin with that 〈…〉 which Christ gave to his eleven Disciples And Jesus came and spake unto them saying all power is given unto me in Heaven and in earth Go ye therefore and teach all Nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you and lo I am with you alway unto the end of the world Now I do affirm that this command of Christ was given by him not to the Disciples only but in them to all the Ministers of the Gospel that shall succeed them unto the end of the world and that this command of baptizing in the name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost is the baptizing with Water which ordinance is to continue unto the end of the world or Christ his second coming Now you Quakers do deny the observing of this command of Christ and teach men not to obey the same but say it was a command that was to continue only for a time untill the coming of the Holy Ghost this several of your Teachers have affirmed unto me at several times and Jona Dell in his book called A voice from the Temple saith that Baptism and the Lords Supper were but ceremonies that were to last but for a time Wherefore I shall prove that this command of Christ to his Disciples was to continue in the Church untill his second coming and was not to cease at the coming of the the Holy Ghost as you say it is Now Minde the words and they do plainly prove it for Christ saith I am with you alway even unto the end of the world Now the Apostles did not live alway unto the end of the world but some of your company say by the end of the world Christ doth not mean the time of dissolving of all things in the world or Christ his second coming but till the world was ended in them and that was when they were perfect but consider what an absurd interpretation this is for if that be the meaning then it must needs follow that Christ left the Apostles when the world was ended in them but I would know where you finde the end of the world in Scripture to be taken for the end of the world in a Man but while you go about to defend one error you run into many but I shall shew from the Scripture that this ordinance of Water-Baptisme was practised in the Church after the sending of the Holy Ghost and after the Holy Ghost was received by many In the Acts of the Apostles we read that the Apostles were all filled with the Holy Ghost Surely no Quaker ever had such a measure of the Spirit and yet the Apostles after that baptized with Water as we may read in several places in the Acts to instance one which may serve in stead of many the Apostle Peter being sent for by Cornelius by the Lords own appointment and coming into Cornelius's house preached the Gospel unto him and many other Gentiles And to him give all the Prophets witnesse that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins While Peter yet spake these words the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word Minde Peters Preaching is called the Word Then answered Peter Can any man forbid Minde Water that these should not be Baptized which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Now can you tell how to deny this practice of the Apostle Peter if Christ his meaning
were that this Baptisme should last but while the coming of the Holy Ghost then did not Peter know Christs meaning for he obeyed that command of Christ baptizing them after they had received the Holy Ghost But as you are ignorant of the Covenant of Grace so are you ignorant of the Signes or Seals of the Covenant for when God made a Covenant with Abraham he gave Circumcision for a signe or seal of that Covenant And ye shall Circumcise the flesh of your fore-skin and it shall be a token of the Covenant between me and you Also the Apostle saith that He received the signe of Circumcision a seal of the righteousnesse of the Faith which he had yet being nncircumcised Now as Circumcision was a sign and seal in the time of the Law before Christ his coming in the flesh so hath Christ ordained Baptisme a sign and seal of the righteousnesse of Faith in the time of the New Testament to the end of the world according to that of the Apostle Peter in the dayes of Noah while the Ark was a preparing wherein few that is eight soules were saved by Water The like figure whereunto even Baptisme doth now save us that is it is a sign or seal of Salvation by the resurrection of Jesus Christ who is gone into Heaven and is on the right hand of God Minde he saith Baptisme doth now save us I never read of a Light within us that saveth us Also the Apostle John saith that as there are three that bear record in Heaven the Father the Word and the Holy Ghost so there are three that bear witnesse in Earth the Spirit and the Water and the Blood and these three agree in one Now by Water can be meant no other thing than the Water in Baptisme that as Water doth wash away the filth of the Body so doth the Water in Baptisme witnesse that Christ by his Blood hath washed away the filthinesse of sin but one of your Teachers asked me if I were so Ignorant to believe that the Water in the Thames or any other Water could do a mans Soul any good To which I answer that Water simply considered in it self it hath no such vertue but consider it in relation unto Gods Ordinance used according to his command and appointment it is profitable to the Soul But you speak and believe like Naaman the Assyrian who coming to the Prophet Elisha to be cleansed of his Leprosie when the Prophet sent him word to only go and wash himself in the waters of Jordan seven times he was in a great rage saying Are not the Waters of Damascus better then all the Waters of Israel he considered not that Gods command doth give vertue and efficacy to the thing for which it was appointed and this cleansing of Naamans Leprosie by the Water of Jordan was an emblem or type of our Baptisme we know God did make the Walls of Jericho fall by the blowing of Rams hornes because he had commanded and appointed so it is a great sin to disobey Gods command although the thing commanded seem never so smal and contrary to our sense and reason We know what the Lord did unto Moses because his Son was not Circumcised according to Gods command And it came to passe by the way in the Inne that the Lord met him and sought to kill him Now if the Lord would not bear with Moses his neglect of Circumcising his Son how do you Quakers think to escape Gods displeasure who not only neglect Gods Ordinance of Baptisme but also teach that it is abolished and uselesse and make a meer mock at Water-baptisme but the Apostles of Christ did highly esteem of that Ordinance of Baptisme I Christ himself did not only command it but honoured it in being Baptized himselfe who had no need of it for himself but that he might be an example unto us for saith he Thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousnesse Minde Christ calleth it righteousnesse Also God the Father did highly honour Baptisme in that he opened Heaven at the Baptisme of Christ and sent the Spirit descending like Dove and lighting upon him and a voice from Heaven saying This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased And as God the Father Christ his Son and the Apostles did honour this Ordinance of Baptisme so did the Ministers of the Gospel since the Apostles dayes highly esteem the same I shall alledge what Calvin writeth concerning Baptisme I hope you do 〈◊〉 count him a Popish Father in his 23. Sermon on Gal. 3. 17. his words are these And in good sooth all of us professe the Gospel and yet we shall finde a number of people that know not the true use of Baptisme nor whereto it availeth nor to what end it is ordained but such shall pay dearly for taking such a pledge at Gods hands he will shew them that it is too costly a thing to be abused for as much as it is said to be a Seal whereby we are assured of the benefits of Christ his Death and Resurrection that whereas many have lived some twenty some forty some fifty years in the world without knowledge to what end they were Baptized it were better for them that they had been born dead and to have been sunk a hundred times in the earth than so to have unhallowed so holy a thing And therefore let us bethink our selves the better and learn that although there be but a little water cast upon our heads yet notwithstanding it is not a vain figure for the Heavens are opened upon us and God speaks in it as it were from Heaven and Christ is there present with his blood as witnesses of the usage and operation of the Sacrament Let us think well upon these things and let them be well rooted in your hearts by which you and all others may see what an esteem Calvin had of Baptisme Also in his fourth book of Institutions chap. 11. concerning Baptism his words are these Baptisme is a token and proof of our cleansing or to expresse my minde better it is like a sealed Charter whereby God confirmeth unto us that all our sins are cancelled and abolished that they may never be rehearsed nor imputed Also Beza in his Annotations upon the fifth chapter to the Ephesians ver 26 27 Christ loved the Church and gave himselfe for it that he might sanctifie it and clense it by the washing of water through the word that he might make it unto himself a glorious Church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing o Baptisme is a token that God hath consecrated the Church to himselfe and made it holy by his word that is his promise of free Justification and Sanctification in Christ p because it is covered and clad with Christ his justice and holinesse I have written what these two eminent Ministers did believe and maintain concerning Baptisme who lived in the Church of
before Christs coming in the flesh than we Christians in the dayes of the Gospel since his coming for to be out of the pale of the Church was counted an unholy unclean condition I they were counted Doggs by Christs own words It is not lawful to give Childrens bread unto Doggs and without are Doggs and if the children of the Church of the Jews were externally holy by being visible members of the Church and Christians children unholy because no visible members of the Church Are not our children in a worse condition than theirs and so we have lesse priviledge than they now the Scripture declareth that the Church and People of God in the dayes of the Gospel have far greater priviledges than the Church of the Jews and this Christ himself sheweth where he saith Verily I say unto you among them which are born of women arose there not a greater then John Baptist notwithstanding the least in the kingdome of Heaven is greater than he whereby Christ would teach us that John the Baptist was the greatest among all the Prophets that went before him because he had the presence of Christ pointing at him Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world and yet the least believer in the Kingdome of Grace is greater than he because Christ had not then actually suffered for sin nor was not risen from the dead but the least believer doth now by Faith see Christ hath actually taken away sin by his Death and Suffering and is risen again for our Justification Also Christ saith Blessed are your eyes for they see and your eares for they hear for verily I say unto you that many Prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see and have not seen them and to hear those things which you hear and have not heard them And are not these great priviledges Also the Apostle writing to the Hebrews in the eleventh Chapter writeth a Catalogue of the faithfull and in the end concludeth And all these having obtained a good report through Faith received not the Promise God having promised some better thing for us that they without us should not be made perfect The Apostle Peter also testifieth the same Teaching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signifie when it testified before hand the Sufferings of Christ Minde and the glory that should follow unto whom it was revealed that not unto themselves but unto us they did minister the things which are nâ—w reported unto you of which Salvation the Prophets have inquired and searched diligently who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you By which Texts of Scripture ye may plainly see that the Church and people of God in these times of the Gospel have greater priviledges then the Church of the Jews and therefore our Children as well as theirs have the priviledge of being outward visible Members of the Church which is only by Baptism But you Antibaptists and the Anabaptists say that although Believers have now greater priviledges then the Jews yet it doth not follow that our Children are to be admitted visible Members of the Church because there is no express command nor example for baptizing Children To which I answer that whatsoever may be proved from the Scripture by consequence to be the scope and meaning of the Scripture it is sufficient proof and that is already made good But seeing you do both stand to have express word of Command or express Example I shall desire you or either of you to shew me one command or example in Scripture for the baptizing of those that are grown up whose Parents one or both were Christians by professing the Gospel of Christ Now if you have no rule nor example in Scripture as I am sure you have not why do you condemn another when you Anabaptists are more guilty in that you baptise those that are of years whose Parents profess the Gospel of Christ and were formerly baptised in the name of Christ Unless you count all those that profess the Gospel of Christ to be Heathens that are not of your Churches which is a most uncharitable opinion But you farther object that the Apostles baptibaptized none but such as did beleive and make a profession of their Faith To which I answer that it is more then you can prove seeing the Apostle baptized Housholds and it is more then you can tell there were no Children in those Housholds unlesse you know it by revelation Secondly I say that those whom the Apostles baptized who were of years were such as were converted from Judaisme or Heathens and neither they nor their Parents ever professed the Gospel of Christ and did any of you or any other know any of our Ministers baptize any Jews Turks or Indians not professing the Gospel they have baptized some that have come from those parts after they have been converted and made a profession of their Faith according to the example of the Apostle Thirdly I answer that elect Infants may have the root or habit of Faith though not the act of Faith if you believe Christs words For Christ called a little Child unto him and set him in the midst of them and said who so shall receive one such little Child in my name receiveth me but whoso shall offend one of these little ones mind which believe in me By which words it doth appear that elect Infants may have the seeds of grace in their hearts we read that some have been sanctified from the womb and that must be by the Spirit for so the Text saith speaking of John Baptist And he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost mind even from his Mothers womb It is the opinion of many ancient and modern Ministers that elect Infants do ordinarily recieve the Spirit in or at their Baptism as Christ at his Baptism had the Holy Ghost descending like a Dove and lightning upon him Now Christ was full of the Holy Ghost before for in him dwelleth all the fulnesse of the God-head bodily And therefore the descending of the Holy Ghost at that time was to teach us to have a high esteem of that ordinance as most of our protestant Ministers do hold and teach and as Dr. Burges doth at large prove in his Book called Baptismal Regeneration Where this point of elect Infants ordinarily receiving the Spirit or seal of the Spirit in their Baptism is fully handled with all objections against it answered and I do the more press this point because the Baptism of Infants is so much slighted neglected and contemned by many in our days For I suppose that elect Infants being meer patients in the work of Regeneration are as capable of the Spirits sealing or applying the blood of Christ for the remission of their sins as those that are of Age for if there were a power in Adam by hâ—s sin
that ye be not judged saith Christ and in the fifth Verse sheweth that this rash judging is a note or character of an Hypocrite Thou Hypocrite first cast the beam out of thine own eye Also the Apostle Paul to the Romans Thou art inexcusable O man whosoever thou art that judgeth Judge nothing before the time untill the Lord come who both will bring to light the hidden things of Darknesse and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts But why dost thou judge thy Brother or why dost thou set at nought thy Brother for we shall all stand before the Judgement Seat of Christ Then every one of us shall give accompt for himself to God Let us not therefore judge one another Who art thou that judgest another mans servant he standeth or falleth to his own Master We are all the Lords servants and are all at his disposing and appointment and therefore what have we to do to judge any particular man or woman Much less to judge and condemn all the Churches that are not of your minds and judgements to be Antichristian and in the state of condemnation and that they know only the Letter and History of the Scripture and that you only know the mystery and meaning of the Scripture like the Pharisees that judged and condemned all that were not of their Sect. Thâ—â— people that know not the Law are cursed Now consider what a most horrid uncharitable thing it is to judge all the Protestant Churches before you sprang up to be false Heretical Churches for then Christ had no Church for sixteen hundred years for there were none of your opinions heard of while these late years and then Christ was a head without a body And is it not a most unchristian thing to judge and condemn all for Hereticks and the brood of Antichrist that are nâ—t of your wild opinions Surely you make the Church of Christ to be a very small remnant far lesse than Christ hath made them for though Christs flock be a little flock comparatively in regard of the great multitude of the world yet consider them apart in themselves they are a great multitude as you may read in the Revelation of St. John the Divine if the word Divine do not offend you And I heard the number of them which were sâ—aled and there were scaled an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the Children of Israel After this I beheld and lo a great multitude which no man could number of all nations and kindreds and people and tongues But if none but Quakers are of the number surely they might soon be numbered By all which you may see that your practise in judging and condemning all that are not of your opinions is contrary to the command and example of Christ and his Apostles and therefore you are not perfect and now I come to a seventh particular of your practise The seventh particular is your rayling and revyling against those that are against your opinions for proof whereof I need go no farther then your own Letter where you say my speaking was barking like a Dog that I vomited up my poysonous stuffe and you call all our Ministers Antichrists Ministers Hierlings such as recieve the wages of Balaam and are in the way of Cain and is it not the same Language you all use both in your writings and conferences Witnesse Naylors books and Fox his books and Burroughs and Tomlinson in which there is such rayling reviling Language as cannot be paralell'd from any differing from us in Religion calling our Ministers dumb dogs wolves sorcerers serpents wandering stars seducers deceivers false prophets Antichrist lyars and say all our preaching is an Idol with many other such like stuffe and for your words in reasoning with any that is contrary to your opinions I believe you can and do go beyond any Billingsgate Scolds I have had experience of your Language by what I have heard Thou Lyar thou great Whore of Babilon thou Serpent thou Divel thou Heathen with many other such like reviling speeches to my self and others Now I pray consider how contrary this is to the command and example of Christ and his Apostles Our Lord and Saviour when he was reviled reviled noe again See that none render evil for evil unto any man Speak not evil one of another He that speaketh evil of his brother and judgeth his brother speaketh evil of the Law Christ and his Apostles when they were brought before the Priests and Elders being falsly accused never used such reviling Language as you do use The Apostle Jude met with such spirits in his time these despise Dominion and speak evil of dignities Yet Michael the Arch-Angel when contending with the Devil about the body of Moses durst not bring against him a railing accusation But said The Lord rebuke thee But these speak evil of those things which they know not Michael the arch Angel durst not bring a railing accusation against the devil but you dare bring railing accusations against men I against good men against the Ministers of Christ and against Magistrates Christ commanded his Disciples to love their enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you but in stead of loving your enemies and praying for them you revile them and curse them with which I shall conclude this particular that you are not the perfect innocent Lambs of Christ as you call your sevles in your letter The eight particular practice used by you contrary to the command and example of Christ and his Apostles is your silent meetings which is a usual practice among you to come together and sit still hanging down your heads like so many dumb Idols liker then Christians Now when Christ did come with his Disciples he opened his mouth and taught them and when he was with his Disciples alone his practice was to teach and instruct them either by asking questions or instructing them but never read of his sitting still and being silent Also the Apostle exhorteth the Hebrewes Not forsaking the assembling of our selves together as the manner of some is but exhorting one another The Apostle never said assemble your selves together and be silent that ever I could read And the Apo. Jude saith these be they who separate themselves sensual having not the Spirit but ye beloved building up your selves on your most holy faith praying in the holy Ghost It seems that those who separated themselves as you do had not the Spirit and did probably when they met sit still and be silent and yet pretended to be the onely holy people but they did not build up themselves in the faith praying in the Holy Ghost but ye beloved building up your selves on your most holy faith in the Holy Ghost But if they sit still and be silent they doe
first lay down this proposition that all Ministers since the Apostles days are not called immediately by an extraordinary call as the Porphets and Apostles were but mediately in an ordinary way of calling Which calling is not the calling of men but the calling of the Holy Ghost because that calling which the Holy Ghost hath revealed in the Scripture and that I shall prove by Scripture for after that he was ascended into heaven Judas being faln from his Apostleship and another to be chosen in his room the Apostles being met together concluded from what was written in the Scripture that another should take his charge wherefore they presented two out of the number of those who was conversant among them from the Baptism of John and they prayed and gave forth their Lots and the Lot fell on Matthias and he was numbred with the eleven Apostles No man pretended that he had the Spirit and therefore that was a sufficient call neither did God call any by revelation or a Voyce from Heaven to that place of an Apostle in his room Also after the Apostles had gathered Churches they ordained Elders by election in every Church and the Apostle Paul saith that he left Titus in Creet that he should ordain Elders in every City and the Apostle writing to Timothy saith Despise not the gift that is in thee which was given thee by Prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery or Eldership And Paul directed him whom to make Bishops or Elders And also the Apostle doth not only direct him but also charge him among other things that he should lay hands suddenly on no man One of your Speakers or Praters at one of your meetings at VVilliam Bond 's house hearing some in the Street threaten to pull them out of the house cryed out lay hands suddenly on no man as if the Apostle had meant of striking men suddenly But the Apostle saith that a Bishop or Elder must be no striker By which you may see how you are mistaken in the meaning of Scripture who pretend to have the infallible Spirit by which the Scripture was written as I have heard some of your company say And Jona Dell in his Book called The Voyce from the Temple writeth But your Spirit of error in misapplying Scripture is plainly discerned by all that have the Spirit of discerning and now I pray mind these things to use your own phrase and consider of these Texts of Scripture here written and let the Light of the Scripture enlighten your dark minds to see that those who have an external call as well as an internal call are the lawful Ministers of the Gospel and such are our Ministers Can you believe that God hath appointed order and government in a Common-wealth and in a Family and hath appointed none in his Church Now is it a sufficient warrant for a man to execute the Office of a Justice of the Peace a Constable or any other office in the Common-wealth because he hath sufficient gifts and inward qualifications without an outward call by those who are in authority either by Commission or otherwise and it is lawful for any man to execute the the Office of a publick Minister without a lawful call from those who are in publick Authority But I know your opinions are against all order or offices in the Church and so much you write in your paper making it to be a great fault that our Teachers bear rule Now that I may show you your error mind these Scriptures that prove Ministers to be Officers and such officers as are to rule in the Church The Apostle Paul writing to Timothy saith If a man desire the Office of a Bishop or Elder he desireth a good work and shewing how he ought to be qualified saith he must be one that ruleth well his own house else how shall he take care of the Church And the Apostle writing to the Corinthians saith That God hath set some in the Church first Apostles Secondarily Prophets Thirdly Teachers helps to Government Also the Apostle writing to the Romans saith All Members have not the same Office Wherefore he that is a Minister let him wait on Ministering or he that Teacheth on Teaching he that ruleth with diligence Also the Apostle writing to the Hebrews saith Remember them that have the rule over you and who are they the Apostle saith such who have spoken unto you the Word of God and in the same Chapter Obey them that have the rule over you and submit your selves for they watch for your souls But though you are like Korah and his company who were many Two hundred and fifty Princes of the Assembly famous in the Congregation men of renown who gathered themselves together against Moses and Aaron and said as you Quakers do to other Ministers and Magistrates you take too much upon you seeing all the Congregation are holy and the Lord is among them So you say Have not we the same Spirit the Apostles had Are not we all holy wherefore do you Priests take so much upon you But what became of those men God caused the Earth to open and swallow them up and take heed lest God show some special Judgement upon you by delivering you up to blindnesse of mind and hardnesse of heart Korah and his company had the same prâ—â—ences that you have but know it is not the inward gifts and qualifications only that makes a publick Teacher as I have proved but the lawful ordaining a man to that office and a man that is so called although he want the power of that which he teacheth as the Sons of Ely were lawfull Priests because lawfully called though they were wicked men and the Pharises and Scribes Christ saith sit in Moses Seat all therefore whatsoever they bid you observed that observe and do but do not ye after their Works for they say and do not Now by their sitting in Moses Seat was that it was their office or calling to teach the Law and therefore Christ spake both to the Multitude and to his Disciples to hear them and Judas was a true Apostle and one that preached as the rest of the Apostles for it is said he had part in this Ministery But all those who are authorized for that work ought to be careful that they ordain none but such who are inwardly fitted and called and to that end the Apostle chargeth Timothy that he lay hands suddenly on no man but to try and examine both himself and others of his fitnesse and ability lest he be partaker of other mens sins Consider what I have here written in answer to your first Ground And now I shall answer your second Ground which is because they go to Oxford or Cambridge and learn Latine Hebrew or Greek To which I answer I know many Ministers that never went to these places to learn these languages and yet think
salvation he hath covered me with the robe of righteousnesse And as this righteousnesse was typified prophesied of and promised in the Old Testament so did Christ accomplish the same for saith Christ It becometh us to fulfill all righteousnesse wherefore the Apostle Paul saith But of him are ye in Christ Jesus not in your selves who of God is made unto us wisdome and righteousnesse and sanctification and redemption He is made wisdome for our folly he is made righteousnesse for our unrighteousnesse and sanctification for the corruption of our conception birth and conversation and redemption for our bondage the same Apostle also to the Romans saith But now the righteousnesse of God without the Law is manifested being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets even the righteousnesse of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ The Apostle calleth it the righteousnesse of God because wrought by him that is God to shew the worth virtue and excellency of the same also the Apostle saith For if by one mans offence death reigned by one much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousnesse shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ Therefore as by one mans disobedience many were made sinners so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous Minde the Apostle saith as and so that is as by Adams sin or disobedience we were made sinners so by Christs obedience we are made rigteous this is the wedding garment without which we have no acceptance but are abominable and filthy in Gods sight as Christ saith to the Church of Laodicea Thou saist I am rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing and do not you Quakers say the same in effect for they thought they were rich by doing good works and had need of nothing do not you Quakers say you are so perfect by what you do and suffer that you have no need of any teaching or exhortation reproof or admonition But what said Christ to them and take it home to your selves And knowest not that thou art poor and wretched and miserable blinde naked because they were destitute of the true wisdome righteousness of Christ hasted to a wisdome righteousness in themselves But Christ saith I councel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire that thou maist be rich white raiment that thou maist be cloathed and that the shame of thy nakednesse do not appear which is the merits and obedience of Christ to put him on as the Apostle saith this is that righteousnesse that Christ said Except your righteousnesse shall exceed the rigteousnesse of the Scribes and Pharisees ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdome of Heaven The Pharisees thought themselves the only righteous people in the world as you do for said the Pharisee I thank God I am not as other men nor as this poor Publican for I do many good works like those Hypocrites spoken of by the Prophet Esay Stand farther off for I am holier than thee But they were ignorant of the righteousnesse of Christ as the Jewes were who went about to establish a righteousnesse of their own works for saith the Apostle They being ignorant of Gods righteousnesse and going about to establish their own righteousnesse have not submitted themselves unto the righteousnesse of God Again What shall we say then that the Gentiles which followed not after righteousnesse have attained to righteousnesse even the righteousnesse which is of faith But Israel which followed after the law of rigteousnesse hath not attained to the law of righteousness Wherefore because they sought it not by faith and this the Apostle knew by himself as may appear by his own words Touching the righteousnesse of the Law blamelesse But he was an enemy to this righteousnesse of Christ because he was ignorant of the same and are not you Quakers ignorant of this rigteousnesse Faith for some of your Speakers have said to me when I have spoken the same things among you that here with Hold thy peace and speak no more thy dirty puddle thy stinking stuff and some of you in your printed Pamphlets have written against this Doctrine of Justification by faith But may I not justly return the same unto you hold your peace and speak no more nor write no more your dirty dungy righteousnesse For if the Apostle Paul counted all his righteousnesse to be but dung in comparison of the righteousnesse which is of God by Faith well may I count and call yours so for while you pretend to be the only friends of Christ you are his greatest enemies I Traitors to Christ and his Gospel Traitors to his Church and Children and Traitors to your Bodies and Soules seeming great friends to all these but betraying every one of these with a Judas his kisse because you are enemies to this perfect righteousnesse of Christ by faith by which alone we are justified and saved But you maintain a perfection within you by the Spirit saying that you are freed from all corruption of sin Wherefore having at large proved that all believers are perfect by Justification I shall now prove that all those who are perfectly Justified are not perfectly freed from all sin and corruption in themselves and then I shall answer your objections against both And to make this appear to be true according to the Scriptures I shall first lay down this proposition That all Believers are Justified by the blood and righteousnesse of Christ are sanctified by the Spirit of Christ which Spirit of Christ doth remain and abide in them together with the body of sin which I shall plainly prove to that end know that this body of sin is sometimes in Scripture called Flesh sometimes Concupisence Now you do deny that there is both Flesh and Spirit in one person which is the thing that I undertake to prove by the Scripture Wherefore minde what Christ saith to his Disciples The Spirit is willing but the Flesh is weak The Apostle Paul saith It is no more I that do it but sin that dwelleth in me and after that When I would do good evill is present with me and yet in the next verse I delight in the Law of God after the inward man But saith he I see another Law in my members warring against the Law of my minde Now dare you say the Apostle had not the Spirit of Christ at that time seeing he saith he delighted in the Law of God which none can do that have not the Spirit of God Besides consider what a grosse error and absurdity will follow by denying the same which is this that if Paul had not the Spirit at that time then was not the Spirit the author
Congregation and if any through ignorance doe sing that which is not sutable to their condition may not or must not others in the same congregation sing those things that are sutable to their condition That the Psalmes to be read by such is no sin unless you count reading the Scripture to be sinne and why may they not as well sing them as read them seeing the one is a duty as well as the other they may sing them doctrinal as well as read them doctrinal as the truths contained in the Psalms and such may be convinced by singing them as wel as reading them as in the particulars objected O Lord I am not puft in mind may not a proud person be convinc'd that he ought not to be proud and when a wicked man singeth My heart is bent to keep thy Law may not he thereby be convinced and taught by that Doctrine that his heart ought to be bent to keep the Law That it is ignorance of a mans own condition and of the matter contained in the Psalmes to think or say that the Psalmes are not sutable to our conditions for every Psalm setteth forth either the Attributes and workes of God and his Christ or else describeth the estate and wayes of the Church and People of God or describeth the estate and wayes of the wicked or else it doth lively express mine own affections and afflictions temptations and comfort But whatsoever the matter of the Psalm concerneth either of God or his Christ the godly or the wicked my self or others the good or evil estate of one or other it ever ministreth fit matter and occasion to me of singing forth the prayses of the Lord since the name of God is to be blessed in and by all whether it goe well or ill with our selves or others and I believe that there is no condition the Church is or can be in in general nor no condition which any Member is or hath been in but there are Psalms sutable to the same and several Clerks are able to chuse such Psalms as are fit and sutable for all times and for all states and conditions of the Church and sutable for all Ordinances and sutable to all Doctrines And lastly the general practice of the Churches of Christ is to me a thing much to be considered and that it was the practice of the Churches of Christ after the Apostles dayes several Histories do testifie as Mr. Cotton doth largely prove in his book written in defence of this Ordinance of singing of Psalmes against the Antipsalmist But you follow the Papists your Fathers who are as great enemies to singing of Davids Psalmes as your selves and I could wish that some Protestants were not too much tainted with that Opinion The Papist in contempt of singing of Psalmes call them Genevah Jigs as you Quakers and other Sectaries the brood of Antichrist scoff at our Ministers and people for singing of Psalmes calling them Hopkins Jigs But I hope I have sufficiently proved that we follow the example of Christ and his Apostles and all reformed Churches and that you do sin in not following the command and example of Christ and his Apostles and therefore are not perfect and so I pass from this particular in which I have been the longer in regard I have been so often opposed by you for practising this duty And now I come to a fourth particular in which you walk contrary to the rule of the Scripture and that is your practice in suffering and maintaining women to teach in your meetings which you call your Church Now this practice I have not only heard of but am an eye and ear witness of having heard two several women speak and teach in your meetings where I heard them speak such nonsensical erronious stuff that it is a shame to write it And this practice is justified and maintained in Print by one of their chief teachers Richard Fanworth for so he saith is his name in the flesh who hath written a Pamphlet called A woman forbidden to speak in the Church the Grounds examined the Mystery opened the Truth cleared and the Ignorance both of Priests and People discovered where by the way take notice that where ever the letter of the Text doth speak directly against your errors then you say there is a Mystery in it and that none can open but your selves But where the Letter of the Scripture seemeth to speak for your errours then you say away with your mystical meanings the Scripture is to be understood as they speak according to the Letter which I have often heard from your own mouths and read in your books Wherefore I shall indeavour to prove Mr. Fanworths Mystery opened to be the mystery of iniquity proceeding from the spirit of Antichrist being directly against the Doctrine of Christ contained in the Scripture For saith the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians Let your women keep silence in the Churches for it is not permitted unto them to speak but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the Law And if they will learn any thing let them aske their husbands at home for it is a shame for women to speak in the Church also the Apostle to Timothy Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection But I suffer not a woman to teach nor to usurp authority over the man but to be in silence Object But you Quakers say that there is a mystical meaning which none know but your selves And that is that by the woman is meant the flesh and by the speaking is meant the Spirit which is in the Saints and that may speak in the Church whether in man or woman male or female this Farnworth writeth in opening the Mystery Also Sarah Blackbury when I alledged the Apostles words to her in William Bonds House after she had been three or four hours there a teaching or prating on the Lords day she made me this Answer thou art the woman for thou art Flesh that is weak and therefore thou art to keep silence and I may speak because I have the Spirit by which the Scripture was written but thou hast not the Spirit and therefore hold thy babling for thou knowest not the meaning of the Scripture To which I replied but what is meant by the Husbands that the women are to learn of and to ask them at home To which Susan Bond answered Christ was the Husband and of him they were to be taught and Sarah Blackbery seemed to like the Answer well for she made no exceptions against it neither can she nor any one else if their doctrine be true that they all have an infallible Spirit and cannot erre else they cannot be perfect for error is sin and I shall prove this to be an error when I have taken away the false Vizzard which you have put upon the these Texts of Scripture Wherefore to shew you your error I shall shew you the great
and holding it awry with dejected countenances which as I said before is usuall among you Quakers Now to shew you your error in these things mind what the Lord saith by the Prophet Isaiah concerning the Hypocriticall Jews in his time to bow down the head as a bulrush and Christ doth describe the hypocrites in his time by the same saying they are of a sad countenance for they disfigure their faces Now consider how contrary these practises are to what the Scripture holds forth in the dayes of the Gospel the Prophet Isaiah prophesiing of Christs coming in the flesh saith Sing unto the Lord a new song and his prayses from the end of the earth ye that go down to the Sea and all that is therein the â—sles and the Inhabitants thereof By the Isles some Interpreters do understand our Islands of Britain And fear not I have redeemed thee I have called thee by my Name thou art mine Therefore the redeemed of the Lord shall return and come with singing unto Sion and mind everlasting joy shall be upon their head they shall obtain gladness and joy and sorrow and mourning shall flee away I even I am he that comforteth you who art thou that thou shouldest be afraid How beautiful are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings that publisheth peace that bringeth good tidings of good that publisheth salvation thy watch-men shall lift up the voice With the voice together shall they sing break forth into joy sing together mind The Ministers of the Gospel their feet are beautifull they bring good tidings of peace and salvation they shall lift up the voyce with the voice together with the people shall they sing contrary to the practice of your teachers or praters who revile against singing But the Prophet David prophesiing of Christs Kingdom saith The voice of rejoycing and salvation is in the Tabernacles of the the righteous and this salvation made the Virgin Mary to sing My soul doth magnifie the Lord and my spirit hath rejoyced in God my Saviour and this salvation caused the heavenly Host to sing Gods prayses saying Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace good will towards men And Christ said to his Disciples Rejoyce that your names are written in heaven and the Apostle Paul saith The Kingdom of God is not meat and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost The Apostle did not place the Kingdome of God in meat and drink nor apparel as you Quakers do And the same Apostle exhorteth the Philippians to rejoyce in the Lord and to rejoyce in Christ Jesus and rejoyce in the Lord alway and again I say rejoyce and he commendeth the Thessalonians that they received the word in much affliction with joy of the Holy Ghost and exhorteth them to rejoyce evermore and this joy of the soul though it be inward in the heart yet it is manifested in the countenance an outward gesture as Salomon the wise saith A merry heart maketh a chearful countenance and a sad heart a dejected countenance aâ—â— example we have in Cain having a guilty conscience it is said his countenance fell and the Lord said unto Cain Why art thou worth and why is thy countenance fallen The Lord would have Cain know that his countenance did discover the guilt of his inward part his soul I cannot believe that those who have true inward peace and joy can have such heavie dejected countenances as most of you Quakers generally have I can know you by your countenances though I never saw you before nor heard you speak and I wonder not that you are generally of such heavie dejected countenances because you do not believe that you are justified by faith but by what you do act and work or by what is acted and wrought in you Now the Apostle saith Being justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom also we access by Faith into this grace wherein we stand and rejoyce in hope of the glory of God and hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts and not onely so but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have now received the Attonement Oh that the Lord would by his Spirit perswade your hearts to believe this Doctrine of Iustification by faith alone and then I doubt not but you would soon change your countenances And yet I know the natural constitution of the body doth much prevail with many for those that are of a melancholy constitution cannot so well express the joy and comfort in the heart as those that are of another temper and it is my charity to believe that most of you Quakers are of that melancholy temper which doth much help forward your Quaking fits and your dejected countenances But if your hearts were well grounded in the Doctrine of Justification by free grace it would bring you some of your quaking fits and would make you strive to express the peace and joy of your hearts by your countenances for I believe it is a sin to walk so heavily with such dejected countenances because I conceive it bringeth dishonour to God that his people should walk so as if God had never sent a Christ to save them and redeem them and purchased heaven for them is he not gone to prepare a place for them It is for wicked men who have not tasted nor seen the goodnesse of the Lord in the Land of the Living whose portion is only in this Life so to walk Also it is a sin because it is a means to hinder others from coming into the society and company of the godly for will not they think and say Surely these are none of Gods children that look as though they never had any joy or comfort in all their lives I have heard some persons say when they have come to the Quakers meetings to hear them and seeing in what posture they sit hanging down their heads sighing and groaning I will never be of this Religion for these people look like a company of condemned persons that were going to be executed liker then Christians that hoped to be saved by Christ Wherefore I conclude this particular that this your practice of Quaking and dejected carriage is a sin and therefore you are not perfect And so I come to the tenth and the last which I shall trouble you and my self with The tenth perticular practise much used by you Quakers is Lying now that ling is a sin I need not trouble my self to prove I hope you will all confess it I wish I could convince you that you are guilty thereof which I hope I shall plainly prove and first Do not you say that you are perfect free from all sin which I have already proved to be false therefore you maintain a lie nay you do make God a lier
abroad if the reading of other books beside the Scriptures be not necessary unless you believe what some of your fellow Quakers have said that James Naylors books are of as Divine authority as the Scriptures because he is inspired by the same Spirit the Prophets and Apostles were when they writ the Scripture in which you are like your Fathers the Familists for such like Titles and Stiles I have read in their books written by H. N. and have heard some Familists call them his Gospels and that they 〈◊〉 of equal authority with the Gospels of Jesus 〈…〉 such blasphemous Familists and Quakers errors good Lord deliver us And the Lord open your eyes that you may see your errors that you have patched up your new Religion with the old errors of the Papists Arminians Anabaptists Antinomians and Familists and the Lord give you hearts to repent and do your first works A POST-SCRIPT Courteous Reader SInce the writing the foregoing answer to the Quakers I had some conference with a woman Quaker one of my ancient friends whose name I forbear to mention about the said answer after which the said friend did write me a letter the Contents whereof were as followeth That my written paper is higher then Vanitie because as she saith I confessed that I was not led by the infallible Spirit therefore it must needs be flesh for the Spirit of God is infallible and cannot erre which she desireth I would consider by the light of Christ that convinceth me of sin and that lest I be found fighting against God wherefore she saith in love to thy soul I warn thee Wherefore lest the said woman or any other Quakers should say that I have not answered all their Objections I resolved to answer the said letter though the things objected in the said letter are in part answered before yet for a more full answer I desire the said friend and all other Quakers whether friends or enemies to mind and consider what I have written in answer to the said letter Having received thy letter I was moved to write an answer to shew thee thy error in misunderstanding and misreporting my words for I neither writ nor said that I was not led by the infallible Spirit but said that I doe not pretend to an infallible spirit so as that I cannot erre For I say that all the faithfull are led by the Spirit of Christ which Spirit is infallible but I say they are not so led by that Spirit that they cannot erre which is the thing you maintain but I deny And yet I say that all the Prophets and Apostles were led by the Spirit infallibly guiding them in writing the Scriptures so as that they could not erre and that all the faithful are led by the Spirit so as that they erre not in the foundation or fundamentals of Religion but in other things I say they are subject to erre and the best men that ever lived that that we read of in Scripture have erred Christ Jesus who was God and Man excepted and this I shall plainly prove by Scripture the Prophet David a man after Gods own heart and a Penman of holy Scripture said Lord who knoweth the errors of his life clense me from my secret sins Psal 19. 12. and he having a mind to build the Temple and spake his mind to the Prophet Nathan the Prophet said to the King Go do all that is in thine heart for the Lord is with thee they being both Prophets were both mistaken they were not infallible for that night the Word of the Lord came to Nathan to the contrary that David should not build the Lords House but his Son Solomon but you Quakers will say this was before Christ his coming in the flesh and before the fulness of the Spirit was sent wherefore mind what is written in Scripture after that time There arose a dissention and a disputation among the brethren about Circumcision and Paul and Barnabas with others were sent to Jerusalem to the Apostles and Elders to have their advice and there were great disputations between them about it no one pretending by an infallible Spirit to determine the same were not Paul and Barnabas led by an infallible Spirit what need they then to have gone to Jerusalem to the rest of the Apostles and Elders surely if they had been infallible they made a needless journey and the rest of the Apostles and Elders made a needless disputation Also there arose a doubt amongst the Corinthians about believing husbands having unbelieving wives and believing wives having unbelieving husbands and other things concerning which they wrote unto the Apostle Paul to determine the matter Was there never a man among them that had an infallible spirit so as that he could not erre surely then they were no Quakers for then they needed not to have sent to the Apostle to have the matter determined and the Apostle in his answer concerning some thing saith I speak this by permission and not by command and concerning Virgins I have no commandment from the Lord yet I give my judgement I suppose saith the Apostle but had he been a Quaker and of your opinion would he not have said why or what need you write unto me to know the lawfulness of these things are you not all led by an infallible spirit that cannot erre But the Apostle was so humble and modest that he said I suppose he would not say I am sure or I know certainly I having an infallible spirit I cannot erre No the Apostle confesseth of himself and others we know but in part But you Quakers say you have such an infallible spirit that you cannot erre But God resisteth the proud and hath promised to teach the humble also the Apostle saith If any man build upon this foundation gold silver precious stones wood hay stubble where the Apostle plainly proveth that Christians do sometimes build upon the foundation wood hay and stubble that is some things of their carnal spirits for there is some carnality in those that are in Christ for saith the Apostle I speak unto you as unto carnal even as unto babes in Christ now there being flesh as well as spirit and sence and reason as well as faith in every christian is it any wonder that they sometimes erre And therefore honest Luther saith That there being flesh as well as spirit and sence as well as faith in the best men that therefore sometimes that will fall from their tongues and their pens that savours of the flesh as well as of the spirit and of sence as well as of faith and therefore saith he All Christians should be like the clean beasts that chew the Cud and devide the Hoofe that is they should meditate and examine what they hear and read by the Scriptures and devide the truth from the error as those men of Barea did they searched the Scriptures to see whether those things which they heard were according to