Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A90603
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The mysticall vvolfe. Set forth in a sermon preached in the Church of Edmond the King, in Lombard-street. / By E.P.
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Pagitt, Ephraim, 1574 or 5-1647.
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1645
(1645)
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Wing P183; Thomason E27_9; ESTC R8274
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23,897
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45
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thou broken downe the hedges of this thy Vineyard which thy right had had plantted the Boare out of the Wood and the wilde beast out of the field doth devour Oh remember not against us our former iniquities let thy tender mercies prevent us for we are brought very low 2. Why God suffereth false Prophets in his Church Resp. 1. For the punishment of the ungodly as St. Paul affirmeth Because they received not the love of the truth that they might be saved Therefore God shall send them strong delusions that they should believe a lye {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} That all might be damned that believed not the truth St. Basil hath a Contemplation why the Devill hath so many servants who is the enemy of mankinde and God so few who hath created us and redeemed us c. The reason he saith is not because the Devill hath spoyled God of his Kingdome but because men loved not the truth God gave them over to be slaves to the Devill Were it possible that men should be so carryed away to believe lyes and fooleries but that they are given over to a reprobate sence 2. God suffereth false Prophets in the Church for the tryall of the godly There must be saith St. Paul Heresies among you that they which are approved may be knowne The Lord proveth you saith Moses whether you love the Lord your God The Uses that we should make of this is First in these distractions to bee more diligent to seek after the truth If Arrius had not so wickedly denyed the Deity of Christ the deep mysteries of the holy Trinity had never beene so accurately determined by Athanasius and other learned Doctors If the Manichees had not so shamefully railed upon the old Testament the learned Doctor St. Augustine had never taken so much paines in answering their lewd Objections If the Brownists and other Sectaries had not so impâ—dently disgorged their malice upon our Church calling her Whore of Babylon c. The learned men of our Age had never by their writings so sufficiently cleared her innocencie in the hearts of understanding men The second use is that the Shepheards should use double diligence taking heed to themselves and to the flâ—cke over which Christ hath made them overseers and to double treble our prayers to the great Shepheard of soules that he would lead us in the paths of righteousnesse for his names sake Let no man slight prayer which is the armour of the Church of great force one onely example I will cite out of Theodoret who reporteth that Alexanders prayers prevailed more against the Arrians then Athanasius profound learning When the Arrian Bishops with the Emperours power threatned to bring in Arrius into Alexanders Church the next day hee prayed all night after this manner O Lord if it be thy will to bring Arrius into my Church then let thy servant depart in peace but if thou wilt be favourable to thy Church of which I am sure then turn thine eye upon the Arrians The next day when the Arrians came with great pâ—mp to have taken possession of his church Arrius going aside his bowels brake asunder like Iudasses Let us earnestly pray to God to keep these hereticks out of our churches let us call upon him with David How long Lord wilt thou be angry with thy people that pray And thus much what false prophets are and why God suffereth them Their outward description in which he setteth downe 1 their Intrusion 2 Insinuation 3 Dissimulation {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} their intrusion they come they have no calling these false prophets are not sent Paul asketh how they can preach except they besent And this standeth with good reason every true Minister standeth in Gods room being the Lords Embassadour to deliver his wil who dare do this unsent This did the Devil in Paradise and the heretick Arrius as the Alexandrian Synod affirmeth No man taketh this honour to himself but he that is called of God saith the author to the Hebrewes They come but whence come they from the schools of the Prophets No but many of them from mechanick trades as one from a stable from currying his horses another from his stal from cobling his shooes and these fit them downe in Moses chaire to mend all as Embassadors of Jesus Christ as heralds of the most high God These take upon them to reveal the secrets of the most high to open and shut heaven to save soules You may reade of such priests that Jeroboam provided but they were for his calves fit for calves As for the Lords Priests the Majesty of the King and dignity of the Priest hood concurred in one person viz. in the first borne from the beginning to Moses In the Gospel Christ preferreth St. Iohn Baptist before all the Priests and Levites before him and St. Paul commandeth them to have double honour and so they have bâ—en esteemed in all ages either christian or prophane in whom there hath beene any Religion at all But to returne to my Text to heare these base fellows to discourse of the holy Trinity of Gods eternal decree and other deep points of divinity you may hear the mad men in Bedlam to prate as wisely as they are not they that run after such men as mad as they May not Almighty God say to these Prophets what hast thou to doe to declare my statutes or that thou shouldst take my Covenant into thy mouth seing thou hatest instruction But they will aske why they may not preach aswel as Peter who was a fisherman and Paul a Tent-maker c. To these I answer that these were immediatly called by our Lord and enabled with gifts fit for so high a calling as to heale the sicke to cleanse Leapers to cast out Devills The holy Ghost came upon them and they spake divers languages They had all manner of learning both humane and divine Neither hath Almighty God alwayes left such presumptuous wretches unpunished Korah Dathan ond Abiram and the 250. Princes who would take upon them to sacrifice with strange fire the earth opened swallowed some of them and fire from heaven consumed the rest Elimas going about to turne the Deputy from the faith was stricken with blindnesse Arrius dyed in a Jakes voyding his bowels with his excrements as Theodoret recordeth Manes was excoriated by the Persian King Montanus and his two mad prophetesses hanged themselves Nestorius tongue was eaten up with worâ—es Anastasius the Emperour a great defender of the Eutychian heresie was smitten with a Thunder-bolt Nicomedia a place where the Arrians were appointed to meet was swallowed up with an Earth-quake and Antioch a nursery of faction and heresies was shaken with an Earth-quake and afterwards burnt with fire from heaven And of late dayes Iohn of Leiden King of the Anabaptists with Knipperdolling and
THE Mysticall VVolfe Set forth in a Sermon Preached in the Church of Edmond the King in Lombard-street By E. P. LONDON Printed by Marie Okes and are to be sold by Robert Trot at his Shop under the Church of Edmond the King 1645. To the Right VVorshipfull Sir NICHOLAS RAYNTON Knight and Alderman of London and to Mr. WILLIAM GIBBS Alderman and Sherâ—ffe of the said City and to all his loving friends who have been Church wardens assisting him As to the Right VVorshipfull Mr. Walter Rogers Mr. Robert Smith Mr. Samuel Bridge Mr. Thomas Soane Mr. Henrie Geirie Mr. Thomas â—aton Mr. Iohn Bludworth Mr. Nicholas Cook Mr. Anthony Crosse Mr. Ambrose Brumskill Mâ— Tobias Dixon Mr. Iohn Niclas Mr. Iaspar Clayton Mr. Andrew Hâ—de Mr. George Denham Mr. Iohn Rogers Mr. Spencer Vincent Mr. â—ohn Smith Mr. Richard Kimble Mr. Francis Patâ—s Mr. Peter Worster Mr. William Devâ—nshâ—re and to all his other loving parishioners and to his loving friends and fellow labourers Mr. Iohn Hopkins and Mr. Iohn Davis Old Ephraim Pagitt Rectoâ— of Edmonds the King in Lomb. wisheth all happinesse MUnster writeth that there are no Wolves in England which is a great blessing and in a manner peculiar to our Kingdome in which our Shepheards may securely feed their flocks without dread of those ravenous beasts who are to sheepe most mischievous The like might I have said of Mysticall wolves for 40. year and more of my Pastoral charge in which I had no dread of them But now I live to see with griefe of heart grievous Wolves broken in among us not sparing the flocke Therefore the counsell that St. Paul gave to the Presbyters of Ephesus I will put you in remembrance of that is To take heed to our selves and to the flock whereof the holy Ghost hath made us over-seers It is reported concerning the mother of Gregory Nazianzen that she dreamed when she was conceived of that worthy light of the Church that shee had in her womb a white mastiffe which by his barking should drive the Wolves from the sheep-fold And whereas some of you with many other pious Citizens have erected sundry Lectures in this City in which divers Nazianzens now preach who I hope with the assistance of our religious patriots assembled in Parliament will drive away not only the Romish but all other ravening wolves from the Sheep fold of our Lord Jesus Christ For my owne part although by reason of my age I cannot barke loud much lesse bite Yet whereas about 60. yeares agoe I published in print 28. Sermons of Lavaterus upon Ruth Now not knowing how soon I shall put off this my Tabernacle I publish this sermon of my own preached among you when the plague of heresie first began among us and this I dedicate to you to whom I confâ—sse my selfe much obliged Most humbly entreating Almighty God to blesse you with abundance of all gifts and graces in this world and eternall glory in the world to come Your old Pastor Ephraim Pagitt THE Mystical VVolfe Beware of false Prophets which come to you in Sheepes cloathing but inwardly they are ravening VVolves Math. 7. 15. IN the former two Verses our Lord telleth his Disciples of two waies in which all mankind walke The one a broad way that leadeth to destruction in which many walke The other a narrow way which leadeth unto life which few finde In this verse like a most loving kind friend he forewarneth his Disciples of the chiefe impediments hindering in the way viz. False Prophets The journey of the Israelites to the Earthly Canaan was a type of our journey to the Heavenly And did not one false Prophet Balaam do them more mischiefe in their journey then Og the Gyant King of Bashan Sehon King of the Amorites and all their enemies beside Yea could the Devil himselfe in his owne likenesse have beene more noxious and hurtfull to the Church of God then some Hereticks have been As one Hereticke Arrius denying the deity of Christ in a manner infected the whole Christian world The like did another false Prophet called Eutyches denying his humanity affirming the immensity of Christs divine nature to have swallowed up his humane now if Christ had not been man how could he have dyed for us sinners And if not God how could hee have wrought the salvation of mankind Time will not serve me to relate what mischief false prophets have done by the instigation of the Devill neither need I Our poore Church hath sence enough of it groaning under the burthen of them at this present and especially they that have cure of soules may with great griefe of heart complaine of Infants not brought to the Sacrament of Baptisme of multitudes refusing to receive the holy Communion of the accounting of the Lords prayer abhominable and the Apostles Creed defective and banishing the ten Commandements out of many of our Churches The miseries of this time are infinite and who layeth hand to help Is not our help only in the name of the Lord upon whom our mother the Church hath taught us to call from all false doctrine and herisie from hardnesse of heart and contempt of thy Word and Commandements good Lord deliver us These words are part of our Lords holy sermon in the Mount which containeth A Premonition in which there is A Caution in this word {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} A description of them whom wee are to beware of whom hee 1. Describeth generally by their Title Ealse Prophets 2. Particularly by their Externall shew they shall Inward disposition being Ravening wolves 1. Intrude themselves 2. Insinuate 3. Dissemble And of these as God shall enable me I pray God that this Text may be as profitable to you as fitting And first I purpose to speake of false prophets how dangerous they are and of the caveat in the last place which will be then more acceptable to you you seeing the great danger that you are in by them {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} of false prophets The word Prophet is used in Scriptures First for a fore-teller of things to come derived from the word {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} which signifieth to divine or fore-tell Secondly in a larger sense for all Ministers and Teachers Our Lord biddeth us beware not of Prophets but of false prophets or such as pretend themselves to bee Prophets The word signifieth lying prophets Saint Peter termeth them {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} lying teachers who privily shal bring in damnableheresies St. Paul calleth them {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} speaking lies in hypocrisie Take heed of such also as pretend that they speake immediatly from God by revelation as the illuminated Anabaptists Familists and other Enthusiasts make their proselytes beleeve or from the Oracle of Gods Word by an especiall insight given them from above to interpret Gods Word Again from such as turne the truth of God into a lye