upper House of Bishops who have sometimes a considerable Influence in the Election of the very Clerks 3. The Rector may please himself with his Power of making new Laws all the Power we plead for is a Liberty for Parish-Ministers to execute the Laws of Christ in the exclusion of the Scandalous and the admission of such as are duly qualify'd for Gospel-Ordinances The Parish-Ministers or Priests as he calls them and yet is unreasonably angry with us for calling them so have Power to Heprove and Suspend for a Time We had this before in the Preface A Private Person may Reprove they can Suspend from the Lord's Supper for a time i. e. till the next Return of the Carrier or about 14 Days and then they are obliged to deliver up all to the Ordinary with whom the Offender often commutes for his Crime and returns as Impenitent as he went except he repent that he has parted with so much Money When he has made his Peace with the Ordinary or his Commissary or Chancellor the Minister must admit him or be proceeded against himself for disobeying his Superiours Is their any Presilent for this in the Gospel Did Christ or his Apostles Establish this sort of Discipline Mr. G. Challenges J. O. to prove out of Scripture That ever any Ordinary Presbyters did Excommunicate P. 126. We have but few Instances of Excommunication in Scripture but we have proved already That the Corinthian Presbyters and consequently all others had Power to Judge i. e. to decree Excommunicated as the Rector explains it those that are within 1 Cor. 5.12 See Rom. 16.17 2 Cor. 2.6 2 Thess 3.6 Can the Rector who so liberally demands Scripture-Proofs give us any Instance of Presbyters Suspending for a Fortnight If he can find no Proof in Scripture That ordinary Presbyters did Suspend at all from the Communion how dare they do it for a Fortnight If he finds by Scripture they may Suspend how dare he condemn our Presbyters for Suspending Persons until they see some evidences of their Repentance But since he calls for Proofs let him shew us some Proof out of Scripture for the Power of Lay-Chancellors to Excommunicate or some Instance of commuting Penance for a Sum of Money I have read in Scripture of the Priests eating up the sin of the People and setting their Heart on their Iniquity Hosh 4 8. The Covetous Priests then got a small share out of the Sacrifices occasioned by the sins of the People Iev 6.26 10.17 but our Commuters ingross the whole Offering to themselves It is odd to hear a Man call for Scripture-Proof who cannot pretend to any Scripture-Proof for abundance of things which they Practice and Impose as Conditions of Communion on Ministers and People Tliis Gentleman has a measure and a measure that is a double measure one for himself and Brethren and another for the Dissenters Were he willing to be determined by the Scripture as he pretends our Controversies would be soon at an end He ignorantly affirms Ibid. That the Presbyterian Bishops as he calls them are at best but the Executioners of the Lay-Elders Will I know but very few of the Congregations call'd Presbyterian that have any Ruling Elders at all and those that have receive them only as Assistants to the Ministers and not as Rulers Superiour to them J. O's First Argument to prove that Presbyters may Ordain is because they are Scripture-Bishops Plea p. 12 13. He proves the Identity of Bishops and Presbyters in the New Testament times and some Ages after To this Argument the Rector answers 1. He grants they were the same in the New Testament P. 126 127. and were the Ordinary Rulers of the Church but Timothy and Titus were above them Nothing but the brightness of Truth could extort such a Confession from him for 1. If Presbyters and Bishops were the same in the New Testament let him shew us who had Power afterwards to distinguish them 2. If they be the same they have the same Powers Therefore if the Bishop has Power to Ordain so has the Presbyter If the Presbyter has no such Power no more has the Bishop Thus he has kindly Established our Argument but I hope his Episcopal Friends will not impute it to any ill design in him for he is full of good Will to their Cause and it is their own fault that they have chosen no better an Advocate 3. But he hopes to come off by saying that Timothy and Titus were above the Presbyters or Bishops for hereafter you must take them for one and the same Timothy and Titus Evangelists were above the Bishops What then It is as natural to infer thence That Presbyters are above Bishops as that Bishops are above Presbyters Not only Evangelists but Prophets and Apostles were Superiour to Ordinary Ministers But no Example has been yet produced that one Ordinary Minister was Superiour to another Ordinary Minister No instance can be given in the New Testament of any one meer Presbyter that was Superiour to another Presbyter If there must be some Church-Officers called Bishops Superiour to Presbyters because Evangelists were so by the same reason there ought to be some Church-Officers Superiour to Bishops because the Prophets were Superiour to the Evangelists and another sort of Church-Officers Superiour to them also because the Apostles were Superiour to the Prophets He Subscribes to J. O's Assertion P. 128. That there were several Bishops in one Church in the Apostles Days and that those mention'd in Scripture were not of our English Species Therefore by his own Confession English Bishops are not Scripture-Bishops But there was an Order of Church-Officers above these Presbyter-Bishops saith he as we have demonstrated in the Churches of Crete and Ephesus There were no less than three Orders above them that is Apostles Prophets and Evangelists each of them extraordinary Church-Officers Eph. 4.11 design'd for the Planting of the Christian Church as the ordinary Pastora and Teachers were appointed for the propagating of it unto the end of Time The Foundations were to be laid by those extraordinary Church-Officers the Superstructure to be carried on according to the Platform they left us by ordinary Officers J. O. Prov'd out of Justin Martyr and the Syriac Version of the New Testament That Bishop and Presbyter were the same in the Ages after the Apostles P. 13 14. This the Rector prudently overlooks He thus Paraphraseth on 1 Tim. 5.17 They who Rule well P. 129. and also labour in the Word and Doctrine deserve better than they only who Rule well but don't withal labour in the Word and Doctrine Here he supposes that some in the Church may Rule well who don't Labour in the Word and Doctrine But who are these He will not say Bishops for then the Presbyter who Rules well and Labours in the Word and Doctrine is worthy of more Honour than the Bishop that he will not like There remains no other but the
judg'd by the Nobles They put us in a worse Condition say the Confederate Nobles then God would have the Pagans to be in when he said Render to Caesar the things that are Caesars and to God the things that are Gods We Decree and Enact that from henceforth no Clerk or Lay-Man bring any Cause before the Ordinary or his Delegate except it be that of Heresie Matrimony or Usury That so our Jurisdiction being revived and that they who are enrich'd by our Impoverishment may be reduced to the State of the Primitive Church They conclude in the Words of the Emperor's Letter It was always our Intention to oblige the Clergy of every Order especially the greatest to continue the same in the Faith that they were in the Primitive Church leading an Apostolical Life M. West ad An. 1247. p. 217 218. and imitating the Humility of the Lord Jesus The Civil Dominion of the Clergy was one of the main Grievances of the Bohemians which they would have redress'd in the Council of Basil Fox's Acts and Mon. ad An. 1438. Their Delegates Disputed fifty Days upon this and three other Articles in the Council The Lordly Titles and Dominion of the Clergy were very offensive to several Confessors and Martyrs in this Kingdom before the Reformation That eminent Light of his Age Jo. Wickliff affirm'd Non stat purè Clericum absque Mortali peccato civiliter dominari that it was a Mortal Sin for a Clergy-Man to exercise Civil Dominion My Lord Cobham calls the Possessions and Lordships of Bishops the Venom of the Church Swinderby Wals Hist p. 208. a learned Confessor and Martyr as Mr. Fox thinks hath these Words If Men speaken of worldly Power and Lordships Fox ad Ann. Do. 1413. and Worships with other Vices that reignen therein what Priest that desires and has most hereof in what Degree soever he be he is most Antichrist of all the Priests that ben on Earth John Purvey Fox ad A. D. 1390. a Learned Writer against Popery whom Thomas Walden calls the Library of Lollards and Gloser upon Wickliff saith It is a great Abomination that Bishops Monks and other Prelates Ibid. p. 5.30 Edit 1576. be so great Lords in this World whereas Christ with his Apostles and Disciples never took upon then secular Dominion He adds That all Christians ought to the utmost of their Power and Strength to swear that they will reduce such shavelings to the Humility and Poverty of Christ and his Apostles William Tindal that famous Instrument of Reformation who was burnt in Flanders by the Instigation of the English Monks because he had translated the Scriptures to the English Tongue writes That it was a shame of all shames and a monstrous thing that Bishops should deal in Civil Causes See his Works p. 124. and in p. 140. What Names have they My Lord Bishop my Lord Arch-Bishop if it please your Lordship if it please your Grace The brightness of this Truth hath shined upon some Doctors of the Roman Church in the darkest Times Ocham wrote against the temporal Dominion of the Pope and Prelates Gen. 45. ad An. Dom. 1338. Ad nihilum deducens potestatem Papae Praelatorum in temporali Dominio Acts and Mon. p. 667. as Nauclerus tells us One of the Cardinals in the Council of Basil in a warm Speech for Amedeus Duke of Savoy Candidate for the Popedom hath these Words I have often consented unto their Opinion which said it was expedient that the Temporal Dominions should be divided from the Ecclesiastical Estate For I did think that the Priests should thereby be made more apt to the Divine Ministry The Roman Pagan Priests medled not in Civil Affairs because if they had they must of Necessity either 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 neglect the Worship of the Gods or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 prejudice the Citizens by omitting the Duties owing to the one or the other which would often interfere Plut. Quest Rom. ult The very Light of Nature taught the Heathen that the Service of the Gods and Attendance upon secular Imployments were inconsistent For this Reason the Apostle forbids the Ministers of Jesus Christ especially Bishops To entangle themselves with the Affairs of this Life 2 Tim. 2.3 4. I will conclude this Head with a Passage or two out of Mouns Jurieu's Pastoral Letters to the persecuted French Protestants In his first Pastoral Letter Past Let. 1. p. 4 5. he thus animadverts upon The Pastoral Letter of my Lord the Bishop of Meaux These Gentlemen are well advanc'd since the Authors and Founders of Christianity who call'd themselves plainly by their own Names without any other Title than that of Servants of Jesus Christ and Apostles of our Lord. My Lord's St. Peter and St. Paul had forgotten to set the Character of their Grandeur on the Front of their Pastoral Letters or Epistles 'T is not very Edifying to see the marks of Pride and worldly Vanity on the front of a Pastoral Letter He adds a little after Do not suffer your selves to be abused by those that tell you that in some Protestants States the Bishops retain the same Honours The Bishops of England have this to say for themselves that they are Peers of the Realm to which State and Condition the Name and Title of my Lord doth appertain and belong But besides I am perswaded that the wiser of these Gentlemen will willingly sacrifice these Titles which do not suff ciently bespeak the Humility of a Minister of Jesus Christ to a general Reformation in the Church when it shall be receiv'd I hope by this Time the Reader is convinced how impertinently Mr. G. Appeals to the Quakers Pref. p. 4. whom he calls indifferent Persons and honest in this Case because they have quarrell'd not at the Title of Lord only but at that of Master also Jesus Christ and his Apostles the General Council of Chalcedon the Fathers Princes Confessors and Doctors here witnessing against the Lordly Titles and Dominion of Bishops were no Quakers J. O. will not contend for the Title of Master which Mr. G. in Conformity to his indifferent Quaker doth not think fit to give him in his whole Book 3. A third Way saith the Rector is to accuse us of symbolizing with Papists p. 5. I cou'd wish there were no occasion for this Charge Our Disagreement with the Church of England is in those things wherein she agrees with that of Rome and in which both of them disagree with the Practise of the Apostles and the Reformed Churches abroad He tells us out of Euseb Lib. 1. it should have been Lib. 2. c. 16. That Mark constituted Churches in Alexandria that so great a Multitude both of Men and Women there embraced the Christian Faith c. These Churches Mark govern'd and after him Bishop Anianus as is shew'd in these Papers This Quotation he the rather produces because it has been over-look'd of late This
Vt eorum Presbyteri more Pontiâ—icum novos crearent Presbyteros Hist Arg. p. 339. ad A. D. 1389 That their Presbyters after the manner of Pontifs or Bishops created new Presbyters affirming that every Priest had as great power of binding and loosing and performing all other Ecclesiastical Acts as the Pope himself hath or can give This was not a case of meer necessity for they assert an inherent Power in Presbyters to Ordain These Presbyters made by Presbyters were the eminent Witnesses against Anti-christian Usurpations in this Land and many of them Sacrificed their Lives for the Testimony of Jesus Their Ordinations though private by reason of the Iniquity of the Times were many and considerable If they Ordain'd Ministers in K. Rich. II. time as Walsingham saith they did Vbi supra much more under K. Henry IV. and the following Reigns when they could not have Episcopal Ordinations if they had desired them the Bishops being become their mortal Enemies and conspiring their Destruction by the bloody Statute de Haereticis comburendis and Arch-Bishop Arundel's wicked Constitutions In the Year 1401. I find one of their Presbyters burnt at Smithfield Walsingham according to the old Popish Hypothesis that none but Bishops cou'd Ordain calls him Pseudo-Presbyter Hist p. 364 a false Presbyter In the Year 1414. William Cleydon an inveterate Lollard as the Monk calls him made his own Son a Priest In tantam dementiam ruerat ut etiam silium proprium sacerdotem constitueret Hist Arg. p. 390. Act Mon. ad A. D. 1391. It is not to be doubted but he was a Presbyter himself though not Popishly Ordain'd and with the Assistance of others Ordain'd his Son Mr. William Swinderby an Eminent and Learned Confessor in the Sentence which the Bishop of Hereford past upon him is said to pretend himself to be a Priest Had he been Ordain'd by a Bishop he had been a real Priest in the Bishop's account but having no such Ordination he calls him a pretended Priest Mr. W. Thorp went to the Lollards and by them was sent to Preach The Arch-Bishop of Canterbury tells him Ibid ad A. 1407. p. 514 516. That no Bishop would admit him to Preach and that he was not sent or licensed by them They could not submit to Episcopal Ordinations Ibid. without taking unlawful Oaths as Mr. Thorp saith to the Arch-Bishop before whom he proves the Truth of their Mission from the Success of their Ministry in the Conversion of Souls Letters of Licerse from the Bishop were invented here about this time to obstruct the course of the Gospel Since this aforesaid witnessing of God saith he sufficeth to all true Preachers we think that we do not the office of Priesthood if that we leave our Preaching because that we have not or may not have duly Bishops Letters to witness that we are sent of them to Preach John Purvey a Learned Writer against Popery saith in one of his Books That every holy Man who is a Minister of Christ although he be not shaven is a true Priest Ordain'd of God Act Mon. p. 529. although no Mitred Bishop ever lay his Character upon him We read of Four Ministers in the famous Congregation at Hamersham who all died Martyrs for the Truth Tho. Man call'd Dr. Man one of them confessed that he had turn'd 700 People to his Doctrine He was burnt in Smithfield Another of them Tilesworth call'd Dr. Tilsworth was burnt at Amersham The third Rob. Cosin otherwise call'd Dr. Cosin was burnt in Buckingham The fourth was hang'd in the Bishop of Lincoln's Prison The three former were formally declared Hereticks and delivered up to the Secular Power but none of them are own'd for Priests by their Judges or degraded by them which they must have been by the Popish Laws had they been Ordain'd by Bishops before the Secular Arm could reach them One Tho. Arthur who at length Abjured as several others did and yet afterwards died Martyrs about the Year 1531. as he answer'd to some Articles of Wickliff's Doctrine laid to his Charge told the People Good People if I should suffer Persecution for the preaching of the Gospel of God Ib. p. 973. yet there is sâ—ven Thousand more that would preach the Gospel of God as I do now Note here 1. That the Preachers of Wickliff's Doctrine were very numerous here at this time Mr. Arthur affirms them to be 7000 perhaps he puts a definite for an indefinite Number alluding to the 7000 in Israel that had not bow'd down the Knee to Baal It cannot be denied but by 7000 he intends a great number 2. This great number of Ministers must be Ordain'd by Presbyters for the Bishops would send none of them as was observed before They clog'd their Ordinations with such hard conditions as the Conscientious Lollards could not comply with and used all the precautions possible to hinder their Preaching We see here notwithstanding the severe Persecutions against the poor Lollards they grew and increas'd exceedingly as the Israelites in Egypt and had so many Thousands of Faithful and Laborious Ministers who must be Ordain'd by Presbyters the Bishops being their Sworn Enemies and obliged by their Pontifical Oath to extirpate them The Lollards here were a Branch of the old Waldenses as we prov'd before and as may be gathered from that Passage in Rainerius who saith Contra. Wald. c. 4. There is hardly any Country into which this Sect hath not made a shift to creep And being I am upon this Quotation I will observe one thing in Rainerius he saith they were more pernicious to the Church of Rome than any other Sect for three Reasons 1. Because more lasting for some say that it hath been ever since the time of Silvester and others deduce it since the time of the Apostles 2. Because more general there is hardly any Country into which it hath not crept 3. Because all others are abominable to God for the immanity of their Blasphemies but this of the Waldenses only carries with it a great shew of Piety because they live justly before Men and believe truly of God and all the Articles of the Creed only they blaspheme and hate the Roman Church If they are so Ancient as Rainerius seems to confess and had no Bishops as I have prov'd J. O's Assertion That they had no Bishops for 500 Years holds good nay he might have said 1500 Years according to this account of Rainerius I hope I have sufficiently prov'd that the Waldenses had Superiour Bishops for 500 Years last past and Explain'd or rather Vindicated his Learned Neighbour's as he calls it but indeed J. O's Quotation He concludes his Preface with a strong presumption and moral assurance of the uninterrupted Succession of Orders p. 17. It should seem if I understand him that a strong presumption and moral assurance are one and the same with him which most will acknowledge to be very different things Or
Apostle but Apostles Superiour to them Acts 15.2 and so were Prophets and Evangelists But we do not find that they were under the Inspection of one Apostle Prophet or Evangelist more than another but Subject to all and willing to be guided by them as there was occasion 4. Were not the Apostles Heads of the Bishops also This we have proved already The Superiority of the Apostles over the Presbyters doth not in the least diminish their Power as such it was fit they should act under the Inspection of the Apostles who were Infallibly Assisted by the Holy Ghost After a great deal of needless labour to himself and Reader at length he grants P. 25. That Timothy was Ordain'd by the Presbytery of which Paul was the principal Head Here you have his own Confession That Timothy was Ordain'd by the Presbytery Truth is great and will one time or other extort Self-condemning Testimonies out of the Mouths of Adversaries But he adds That Paul was the principal Head of this Presbytery Head is an Ambiguous Word If he means by it Supreme Governour it belongs properly to Jesus Christ who is the Head of the Church and Head over all things to it Eph. 1.22 5.23 No Apostle is ever call'd Head much less principal Head either of the Church or of the Presbytery in all the N. Testament It 's a Title the Pope of Rome affects If he means a subordinate Governour as I presume he doth he was no more the Head of this Presbytery than of all other Presbyteries not only in Churches Planted by him but in all others to whom the Spirit guided him His Power was the same in Rome and Coloss where he found Churches Established by others as in Ephesus or Corinth where lie settled Churches himself If the Apostle join'd the Presbytery with him in Ordination as the Rector confesseth he did it is sufficient to demonstrate That Presbyters have an inherent Power of Ordaining The Apostle's being President of the Presbytery makes no more for Bishops than it doth for Presbyters for neither of them pretend to Succeed the Apostles in the extent of Apostolical Power and all Presbyteries have a Moderator or President for Order's sake Upon the whole Matter it 's clear to me P. 27. saith Mr. G. That the Presbytery spoken of 1 Tim. 4.14 includes the Apostle Paul 1. He told us before that Paul was included in the Words by Prophecy now he includes him in the Presbytery Let us see what Sense this Interpretation makes The gift that is in thee which was given thee by Prophecy i. e. Paul and Silas with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery i. e. of Paul and ordinary Ministers The Gift according to this Interpretation was given by the laying on of the Hands of Paul with the laying on of the Hands of Paul risum teneatis 2. The Apostles are distinguished from the Presbytery Acts 15.23 IV. The Fourth thing he hath undertaken is to consider Paul's 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 By Prophecy P. 28. with the laying on of the Hands of the Fresbytery Heace he infers That Timothy was properly Ordain'd by Prophets in the presence or witness and with the consent of the Presbyters 1. J. O. Prov'd in his Plea p. 47 48. that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 used promiscuously in the N. T. which Mr. G. takes no notice of 2. Himself applies 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as well as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to Paul by affirming that he is included in the Presbytery 3. He forgot himself in saying That Timothy was properly Ordain'd by Prophets for he own'd p. 25. That he was Ordain'd by the Presbytery Truth is one and the same but Error is inconsistent with it self 4. The laying on of the Hands of the Presbytery signifies more than their presence witness and consent for the presence witness and consent of the People was requisite as he confesseth but they never laid on Hands in Ordination 5. He makes Paul one of the Presbytery the laying on of his Hands according to this Hypothesis signify'd no more than his Presence and Consent Thus in denying Ordination by Presbyters he destroys Apostolical Ordination and consequently that which is Episcopal He Flurts at the Learned and Judicious Dr. Owen whose Name will live in the Church of God when such Men as he are written in the Dust He disingeniously makes the Dr. to say That we are Justify'd by Faith with good Works P. 29. that Faith is the Instrument whereby Justification is convey'd and good Works wherewith it is conferr'd He shou'd have shew'd the place where Dr. Owen saith so but this he cou'd not do The Words are his own and easily betray the Author though he wou'd fain father them upon the Doctor Dr. Owen saith according to the Scriptures That we are Justisy'd by Faith without Works the Rector makes him to say we are Justisy'd by Faith with Works In the next Lines he contradicts himself and explains the Drs. with Works by without Works for he affirms That the Presbyters contributed no more unto Ordination than good Works in the Drs. Opinion do unto Justification that is nothing at all 1. He told us once That the laying on of the Hands of the Presbytery signified Ordination P. 25. afterward it signified only Consent P. 28. and here it signifies nothing at all We must crave the help of his Learned Neighbour who communicated a Quotation in J. O's Book to him to reconcile him to himself 2. It seems good Works contribute something to our Justification in the Rector's Opinion he declares himself fully of that Opinion in the next Paragraph and saith He is so far of the Drs. mind that in Justification Faith is the first and chief Instrument of Conveyance This implies That good Works are a secondary and subordinate Cause of Justification I will put this Gentleman in mind of a Passage or two in the Book of Homilies St. Paul declareth nothing here upon the behalf of Man concerning his Justification but only a true and lively Faith And yet that Faith doth not shut out Repentance Hope Love Dread and the Fear of God to be joyned with Faith in every Man that is Justify'd but it shutteth them out from the office of Justifying so that altho' they be all present together in him that is Justify'd yet they Justifie not all together * Serm. of Salvat Part 1. P. 13. Edit 1673. In the Second Part of the same Homily †P. 15. Ib. we have this remarkable Passage This Faith the Holy Scripture teacheth us this is the strong Rock and Foundation of Christian Relligion this Doctrine all old and ancient Authors of Christ's Church do approve this Doctrine advanceth and fetteth forth the true Glory of Christ and beateth down the vain glory of Man This whosoever denieth is not to be accounted a Christian Man nor for a fetter forth of Christ's Glory but for an Adversary to
which mentions this Journey of Tychicus to Ephesus was written about the same time 6. It is agreed by all That Paul was not set at Liberty in his last Imprisonment at Rome but he was delivered from the Confinement mention'd in the Second Epistle to Tim. Chap. 4.17 Therefore that Epistle was not written in his last Bonds He was delivered out of the Mouth of the Lion that all the Gentiles might hear the Gospel That is that he might go about and preach the Gospel to many Nations This is agreeable to the account that the Fathers give of his Preaching the Gospel to several Nations after his Imprisonment Hence it 's evident saith Estius †Est. in Loc. That this Epistle was not written in Paul 's Last Bonds 7. It is undeniable that Luke accompanied Paul to Rome Acts 27. 28. He includes himself all along in the Narrative he gives of their dangerous Voyage to Rome and speaks in the first Person plural Chap. 28.16 When we came to Rome He was at Rome with Paul when he wrote the Epistle to the Colossians which was written in his First Bonds as is confess'd Col. 4.14 And so he was when Paul sent the Second Epistle to Timothy 2 Tim. 4.11 Therefore this Epistle was Penn'd during his First Bonds 8. He mentions his Cloak c. which he left at Troas with Carpus 2 Tim. 4.13 These were left there as it seems as he was going among his Nation in Judea Acts 20.16 where he had no occasion for his Roman Habit which might have proved inconvenient in Judea among his own Countrey-Men who were too much prejudiced against him already Acts 21.21 and to whom he was desirous to render himself acceptable by all Lawful Compliances Acts 21.26 But now he was at Rome he had need of his Roman Garb which was the Pallium or Cloak There is no Evidence of his passing by Troas to Rome in his last Journey thither nor can any reason be given why he should leave his Cloak there as he went to Rome and Roman Colonies but it looks Rational enough that he should do so when he was going into Judea and that he should send for it in his first Imprisonment at Rome whither he was carried Prisoner from Judea And therefore this Second Epistle was Written in his first Bonds 9. It should seem he was under a favourable Confinement when he writ the Second Epistle to Timothy for he mentions only one Chain 2 Tim. 1.16 and so doth Luke in Acts 28.20 which speaks of his first and favourable Confinement Eph. 6.20 In his Second Imprisonment he was more severely handled as all agree Now such as were in strict Custody were bound with two Chains Act. 12.6 Hence it should seem to follow that this Second Epistle to Timothy which speaks but of one Chain was Written in Paul's First Imprisonment which was more favourable than the Second 10. Demas was with Paul at Rome in his First Imprisonment Col. 4.14 but the tediousness of Paul's Confinement and the love of this present world which is inconsistent with patient Suffering tempted him to forsake the Apostle 2 Tim. 4.10 We read nothing of his being there in his Second Imprisonment but we are sure he was there in his first Imprisonment and that he left him in his Bonds 2 Tim. 4.10 which we may rationally conclude were his first Bonds I will not mention Paul's leaving Trophimus at Miletus sick 2 Tim. 4.20 which might well be when he went in Bonds from Judea to Rome as we observ'd before Nor will I insist upon Erastus abiding at Corinth 2 Tim. 4.20 Rom. 16.23 Acts 19.22 when Paul sent for Mark from thence unto him That he was at Corinth when Paul wrote his Second Epistle thither may be gathered from 2 Cor. 8.19 * Vid. Lightf Vol. 1. p. 311. who was chosen of the Churches to travel Mark was chosen by the Church of Jerusalera Acts 12.25 and by the Church at Antioch Acts 13.5 It 's true Paul had taken some distaste at Mark Acts 15.39 but he was reconciled to him again as appears from 2 Tim. 4.20 We have prov'd already that Mark was sent for in Paul's First Imprisonment therefore his Reason that Erastus abode at Corinth to supply Mark 's Absence refers to the same time These Reasons put together may be sufficient to satisfie any unbiass'd Man for nothing will convince Prejudiced and Interessed Persons that the Second Epistle to Timothy was Written in Paul's first Bonds and therefore his First Epistle must be written before his First Bonds when he was in Macedonia or thereabouts 1 Tim. 1.3 Acts 20.1 2. Unless any will say That his Second Epistle was Written before the First It is remarkable that this Epistle has more Characters and all concurring of the Time in which it was written than any one of Paul's Epistles the Holy Ghost so ordering the Matter for the Conviction of such as are willing to receive the Truth There is one Passage in this Epistle which hath occasioned some Doubt about the time of it viz. 2 Tim. 4.6 I am now ready to be offer'd and the time of my departure is at hand Which some have understood of his approaching Martyrdom 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I am prepared or ready for death as the Sacrifices were for Offering this seems to respect his Martyrdom as near at hand But if we compare this with other Scriptures it will be evident that he speaks not of an approaching Martyrdom but that he was grown old and worn with Travels and hard Labour and could not now last long And besides all this in Bonds at present and so in continual danger Thus Lightfoot Hammond and others understand the place and that this is the meaning of it will further appear 1. He useth the same Words in the Epistle to the Philippians which was written in his first bonds Phil. 2.17 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 if I be offered upon the Sacrifice of your Faith 2. He speaks the same thing in different Expressions some Years before Acts 21.13 I am ready to dye at Jerusalem 1 Cor. 4.9 God hath set us forth to be as it were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 appointed to death 1 Cor. 15.31 I dye daily So in 2 Cor. 4.11 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 we are always delivered unto death 3. That a sudden Martyrdom is not intended in 2 Tim. 4.6 appears from v. 17 18. I was delivered and the Lord shall deliver me Much like that in 2 Cor. 1.10 Who delivered us from so great a death and doth deliver in whom we trust that He will yet deliver us 4. Suppose the words should imply some apprehensions of his approaching Death that he had long before 2 Cor. 1.8 9. We despaired even of life but had the sentence of death in our selves 5. The Apostle was now grown aged as is evident in the Epistle to Philemon Written in his first Bonds Philem. v. 9.22 and a Prisoner not knowing how God would dispose