â—â—nne then had the Disciples of Christ committed this sinne For the Lord did oftentimes discover heavenly truths unto them yet notwithstanding they beleeved not 4. Every forswearing and denying oâ— the truth of the Lord Jesus are not this sinne Francis Spyra forswore the truth oâ— Christ and denyed the same against the Knowledge of Conscience and against the voice and dictate of the Spirit yet for all that some thinke that he obtained mercy Also Peter denyed and forswore the truth of the Lord Jesus yet not damned 5. I will shew you what sinnes of Knowledge be and will shew you how they come to be the sinne against the holy Ghost 6. I will discover unto you what the sinne against the holy Ghost is 7. I will discover the Reason why it is a sinne unpardonable 8. Who the persons be that commit that sinne 9. With what knowledge they must be endued that commit this sinne These nine particulars I shall endeavour to draw into one compleat body as if I had named them one by one I say all sinnes committed against Knowâ—edge and Conscience are not the sinne against the holy Ghost If it had been that sinne then had David committed the sinne against the holy Ghost for he sinned against his Knowledge and Conscience wittingly willingly and contrivingly As for instance in the matter or Uriah First he sinned seeingly Secondly he sinned by the way of sinfull fore-cast For the first he sinned seeingly in that he saw that Bershebah was with-child he thought to have fathered the child upon innocent Uriah although he never knew of the begetting of it he thought if that he could have got this good man unto his hands all had beene well much more if Uriah had beene with his wife Take notice I pray you how David seemingly loved this good man Vriah 2 Sam. 11. 8 12. And David said unto Vriah Goe downe to thine house and wash thy feet And Vriah departed out of the kings house and there followed him a messe ef meat from the king And David said unto Vriah camest thou not from thy journey why then didst thou not goe downe to thy house And David said unto Vriah Tarry here to day also and to morrow I will let thee depart I say here was Davids faire love to Urias for his owne selfe-ends for the preventing of that open shame which was comming upon him I am verily perswaded that his Conscience told him then that he had sinned in this matter of Uriahs wife and that made him by might and policy to seeke some cloake to cover his shame for if that he had not knowne it it had not beene a sinne to covet his nighbours wife especially to commit adultery with her he would never have sought out for a cloake to have covered his shame I say his knowledge was so effectuall by education that he knew the breach of the seventh and the tenth Commandement the tenour whereof is thus Thou shalt not covet thy neighbours wife Also he knew the breach of the sixth Commandement Thou shalt not kill Yet I say by way of sinfull fore-cast he knew how to act the breach of the sixth Commandement as you may see how he acted his wicked action by a wicked Agent he had no better way to contrive the death of so good a man as Uriah was but onely making of Joab an Agent to make Vriah privily to carry the secrets of his â—wne death as by this Story at large appeaâ—eth in 2 Sam. 11. 15 16. And it came to â—asse in the morning that David wrote a letter to Joab saying Set Uriah in the fore-front â—f the hottest battell and retyre ye from him that he may be smitten and dye In these words you may observe Davidsâ—â—nfull fore-cast for the bringing about of â—is sinfull action he would not be seen to â—ave a hand in this good mans death yet the holy Ghost doth to all posteritie set â—orth That this holy man David had a hand â—n Uriahs death 2 Sam. 12. 9. Thou hast â—â—aine Uriah with the sword As if the holy Ghost had said thus Though unto the eye of the world thou art not seene to have a and in this good mans death yet this seâ—ret act of thine is not hid from the All-seeing eye of Jehovah I pried into thine heart and there I saw thy secret intention â—cted before ever thou didst use the outward meanes to bring it to passe Yea I saw in thine heart the Agent that thou didst assigne for to bring to passe this thy sinfull action I saw all thy turnings and windings concerning Uriah which by thee were contrived and because thou didst go so cunningly to worke to make the world believe that thou hadst no hand in this mans death I therefore thought good to discover to all posterities after thee that which thou didst so secretly act and contrive I will relate the chiefe heads of thy proceedings concerning Uriahs death Although thou didst use Joab as thy Agent to act thy wicked intent and purpose yet I will lay the guilt of that sinne not upon Joab the Actor but upon thee the contriver thereof Thou hast killed Uriah with the sword I could relate more of it then this but I stand not upon a publique relation but only to let the world see that thou art not without publique sinnes I did looke upon thee at that very time of sinning as upon a perfect man Save onely in the matter of Urias 1 King 15. 5. David because he would be sure of the death of so good a man as Vriah was he went politickly to worke That if there were but two or three men slaine Vriah without question might be one of them as appeared afterwards in the 2 Sam. 11. 17. And it came to passe when Joab observed the City that he assigned Vriah unto a place where he knew that valiant men were And the men of the Citie went and fought with Joab and â—here fell some of the people of the servants of David and Vriah the Hittite dyed also In the 2 of Sam. 12. 5. see how holy David seemed to be sorrowfull when the Prophet Nathan came unto him and spake parabolically concerning Vriahs death and concerning the coveting of his wife See I say how David expressed sorrow for Vriahs wrong not yet being convinced of his death untill God by the ministry of Nathan did set home the sinne and also the guilt thereof upon the Conscience of this good man David I say that although this good man David did sinne grievously both wittingly and contrivingly yet he sinned not that sin against the holy Spirit Yea although David sinned deepely against his owne knowledge and conscience yet he found and obtained pardon 2 Sam. 12. 13. And Nathan said unto David The Lord hath put away thy sinne thou shalt not dye I say that mercy which he obtained from the Lord is called in the Scriptures His sure mercies Isa. 55. 3. Jehovah had sworne that
Latine tongue and expressed such heavenly expressions that no Reprobate could expresse the like heavenly expressions ☞ If you doe but looke into the book called The Relation of Francis Spyra therein you may see more fuller of him then my tongue shal expresse at this time my conscience bidding me keep within the compasse of Christian charitie judging him to be a glorified Saint in heaven using in I say the time of his distresse such unexpressable words which I in all the dayes of my life never heard nor read of could be in any dying or living Reprobate I doe also bring in S. Peter who with him denyed the truth forswore that he never knew him whom formerly he professed yea wittingly though not willingly he denyed the Lord Jesus who by his most precious blood bought him yet he for all that found and obtained pardon For it is said that the Lord Jesus after he had denyed him looked back upon him Then saith the Text Peter remembred the words of Christ who said unto him Before the cock crow twice thou shalt deny me thrice Then he remembred the words of Christ and went out and wept bitterly I say Christ told him that Satan had a desire for to winnow him as wheat was sifted But Christ told him that he had prayed him that his faith should not fayle Luk. 22. 31. intimating thereby that this fall of blessed Peter was but a permission of Satans temptation and tryall of his faith rather then eternall rejection to shew unto after-posterities that Satan may sometime by permission have power given him to batter the faith of the strongest Saint and to make him sometime lye downe in sorrow as the holy Ghost useth the phrase in Esaiah 50. 10 11. This Peter after his Conversion or after the manifestations of pardon he was more couragious then before And the reason why blessed Peter fell so grievously was as I conceive only to let him know that the strength he had was not his owne neither could he stand by that strength but onely in and by the strength of a stronger then himselfe was and afterward to make and to cause him to wait on the Lord that so he in the time of want might renew his strength as the holy Ghost doth use the phrase in Isaiah 40. 31 32. The sinne of unbeliefe which some maintaine to be the sinne against the holy Ghost is not this sinne If it had bin this sinne then had there some of Gods Worthies committed this sinne As for instance Moses although a beleever and faithfull in his place Heb. 3. 2. 5. yet in the very time of tryall was found unbeleeving Numb. 20. 11. And to shew that he was found unbeleeving the Lord told him that he should not bring the people into the Land of Canaan as the 12 vers. tells you Zachariah though a just man as the word testifieth Luk. 1. 6. yet he was found unbeleeving vers. 20. and to shew unto all posteritie this that it was a sinne God did inflict a temporall judgement upon his body Also blessed Thomas although a beleever yet he was found unbeleeving Joh. 20. 25. And to confirme that which I have spoken reade to the 26. vers. In which vers the Lord Jesus stoops unto the act of Thomas his unbeliefe and and confirming his faith with his willingnesse to cure his unbeliefe I will but give you one instance more to confirme what I have hitherto spoken concerning this sinne of unbeliefe which is also supposed of some to be the sinne against the holy Ghost I will bring in these places which they unskilfully name to prove this sinne of unbeliefe to be the sinne against the holy Ghost I say the Disciples of Christ were in the maine poynt of Faith found unbeleeving questioning the truth which Christ did formerly and at that time discover unto them Mark 9. 10. Luk. 24. 21. And to shew that it was a sinne not to beleeve he gently reproves their unbeleeving spirits v. 25. 26. and afterwards labours by the expposition of those Prophets which had before prophesied of him was now since his resurection manifested to be a cleare truth which they before beleeved not vers. 27. And thus I have proved ☜ that the sinne of unbeliefe which some maintaine to be the sinne against the holy Ghost is not this sinne I come now to handle their proofes which they produce for their consequences Ioh. 8. 24. If you beleeve not that I am he yee shall dye in your sinnes Upon these words I thus paraphrase The Lord Jesus convinces the Jewes of their unbeliefe because that they beleeved not that he was the Christ And the reason of their unbeliefe was because they beleeved not that it was he that was to come even the Messias but they looked on him with a carnall eye being I say more carnall then spirituall looking onely for a King whose Kingdome and Reigne shall be altogether temporall And so I say dreaming to Reigne with him in this world they looked that he should have established and restored that their Kingdome But then they seeing the personall presence of Christ so contemptible as the Prophet Jeremiah saith and also the Prophet Isaiah His presence shall be by us not desirable or contemptible When we see him he shall have neither forme nor beauty Therefore these Jewes when they saw Christ with their naturall eyes onely they did not beleeve that he was he which was to com And in the 18. vers. There the Lord Jesus tells the Jewes That he was one that did beare witnesse of himselfe and that the Father did also beare witnesse of him And in the 19. vers. They had a â—esire that he would shew them his Faâ—her Whereupon he tells them That if â—hey had knowne the Father they would also have known him And from hence did 〈◊〉 second cause of their unbeliefe arise And â—ur Saviour Christ tells them plainly That â—f they did not beleeve he was that Christ â—hey should dye in their sinnes Another place is the 1 of Judges 5 vers. How that the Lord having saved the people out of the Land of Aegypt afterwards destroyed them that beleeved not Also Mark 16. 16. He that beleeveth not shall be damned Joh. 3. 18. He that beleeveth not is condemned already because he beleveth not in the Name of the onely begotten Sonne of God Unto this place I doe thus reply That our Lord Jesus doth not absolutely speake of an eternall condemnation if it were spoken of an eternall estate of condemnation then must the Elect themselves be in that estate for their is no difference Rom. 3. 23. The Elect themselves before they be in the estate of faith are first in the estate of unbeleeving 2 Cor. 6. 11. Such were some of you but now ye are washed but yee are sanctified but yee are justified in tâ—â— Name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spâ—â—â— of our God In these words you may see the condâ—tion of beleevers set forth
unto you hoâ— that they are prone unto all manner of sinâ— as well as the sinne of unbeliefe but noâ— you see a blessed change in them Therâ—â—fore the sinne of unbeliefe cannot be 〈◊〉 sinne against the holy Ghost as some ideâ—â— have affirmed I now will in a word or two shew yoâ— how that the Saints of God can fall into 〈◊〉 unpardonable sinnes though they may faâ—â— into many great sinnes as you heard Yet say for the comfort of all distressed consciences that are incumbred with false feare from false grounds whose feare becauâ—â— their sinnes appeare great in their apprehension and so from a false ground as said before Therefore from hence they conclude that they have sinned against the holy Ghost and that thus their sinnes are unpardonable Therefore for the helping oâ— such poore distressed consciences out of these false feares and to satisfie their consciences that they have committed this unpardonable sinne I addes these two reasons â—â—r their satisfaction The first Reason is this because all the â—â—ints of God are all borne of God Joh. 5. 18. That is they are Regeneraâ—â—d and thus made new creatures Joh. 3. 3 â—â—d so are saved Tit. 3. 5. and clensed Cor. 6. 11. by the Spirit of their God â—â—d so enter in with the Lord Jesus who is â—â—e doore Joh. 1. 10. and enter into the â—â—ait gate Luk. 13. 24. who is the Way the truth and the life Joh. 14. 6. You Saints that are full of false feares â—â—t me speake unto you I say that you cannot commit this unpardonable sinne beâ—â—use the Father gave his Sonne unto this â—â—ery end and purpose for to redeeme his â—â—ople from their sinnes Tit. 2. 14. I say â—ehovah hath for his owne names sake forâ—â—ven all your sinnes Isa. 43. 23 44 22. â—er 31. 22 32 31 33 33 6. And Heb. â— 12. Mich. 7. 18 19. Psal. 103. 13. Who 〈◊〉 a God like unto thee that will pardon the â—â—iquities of the remnant of his heritage and â—ill subdue them into the bottome of the Seas The second Reason is The Lord Jesus â—nd his Saints have all one onenesse â— Cor. 5. 7. They that be joyned unto the Lord Jesus they be one Spirit yea one â—â— union one in love one with the Lord Jesus and with all the three Persons in all the glorious Trinitie See to this purpose Ioh. 17. 23 25 26. I in them and they â—â— me I say God is aboundantly glorious unto beleevers yea to multiply pardon Isa. 55. 7. And for a farther Relation of Gods froâ— mercy in pardoning of those that turn unto him I note these severall places 〈◊〉 Scriptures for confirmation 2 Chron. 30 9â— 33 12 13. Gen. 18. 15. Exod. 6. 1 9 11 26 â— 7 20 6 34 7 8. Numb. 20. 8. Deut. 4. 30 31 5 10 17 18 28 1 15 v. 30 1 11 32 4 3 6 10. 2. Sam. 7 8 9 15 12 13 24 10 11 13 1 King 8. 23. Levit. 20. 5 10. Nehem. 9. 17. Psal. 21. 7 35 5 7 5 10 86 5 10 111 4. Psal. 145. Isa. 30. 18 54 8 9 10 55 3 7. Ier. 12. 15 16 18 8. Ezek. 18. 32 33 14 15 16. Hos. 2. 14 19 23. Ioel. 2. 13. Ion. 4. 2. Ier. 3. 2 12 14 Luk. 1. 50 58 72. Luk. 18. 4 6 36. Luk. 7. 47 23 34 43. Rom. 4. 7. 2 Cor. 1. 3. Ephesi 2. 4. 1 Tim. 1. 13 15 16 18. These places of Scripture doe set forth the freenesse of Gods love unto all beleevers Yea I say they doe shew the freenesse of Gods love in his shewing of mercy and in manifesting of it unto all beleevers who I say shall never come into condemnation because the Lord Jesus Christ hath cast out of them the sin of condemnation Rom. 8. 1. Thus you may see that all beleevers be happy and blessed Oh! the blessednesse of that man as it is in the originall Rom. 8. 32 â—9 vers. Who shall lay any thing unto the charge of Gods chosen It is God that justifieth Who shall condemne It is Christ which is dead yea rather which is risen from the dead who is also at the right hand of God and maketh request for us Who shall separate us from the love of Christ shall Tribulation or Anguish or Persecution or Famine or Nakednesse or Perill or Sword As it is written for thy sake are we killed all the day long we are accounted as sheepe for the slaughter In these words the sure state of the saints is set forth unto us to shew Gods Omnipotent will and purpose which never changes It is not the Divell nor any belonging unto him can alter Gods â—ove to his Saints or doe them any wrong Christ I say hath set them in a glorious libertie Gal. 5. 1. Ioh. 8. 38. Now I come to shew unto you what the sinne against the â—oly Ghost is The sinne against the holy Spirit iâ— when a man hath been inlightned with the heavenly truth Christ Jesus by the holy Spirit of the Father who is that Spirit of truth spoken of Ioh. 14. 26. Whose office is to seale us unto the day of redemption Ephesi 4. 30. And then not onely strive against that truth but also blaspheme that truth as the Jewes did saying He casteth out Devillâ— by Belzebub the Prince of the Devills And thus shall wittingly and willingly against the checks of his owne conscience persecute that truth in his members the Saints because he knows that it is the truth therefore he is of purpose resolved to oppose that sacred truth and to despise that sacred light wherwith he was inlightned also esteeming that sacred blood of Christ as nothing treading it under foot And thus out of a pernicious spirit most wickedly persecutes the truth in his members even the sons and daughters of truth because he knowes that they are the subjects of that sacred truth This is the sinne against the holy Ghost I say The persons that commit this sinne must be knowing persons and men of knowledge Such a one was Julian the Apostate ☞ who notwithstanding his certaine knowledge of Christ to be the Sonne of God yet against knowledge fell off and became a great persecutor of Christ They must be such as are acquainted with the Truth even the Lord Jesus being enlightened with the saving Light of the holy Spirit such were the Scribes and Judas and many other Reprobates which the Scripture speakes of in many places Judas sinned against his Knowledge and Conscience Cain also in like manner against Knowledge and Conscience his Conscience at that very time informing him that Elshaddai the strong and omnipotent God had respect unto the offering of righteous Abel and that his person was accepted according unto the rule of the Law perfect shall it be accepted Although Cain knew that God had a respect unto his brother Abel and to his offering yet notwithstanding hee did against his knowledge persecute his brother as S. Iohn sayth Abels