Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	believe_v	know_v	scripture_n	4,632	5	6.0584	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A78074	A stop to the false characterizers hue-and-cry and a reproof to their unfruitful works of darkness. Wherein the folly of B.C. and L.K. is greatly manifested and their malice & envy detected.	Lamboll, William.; Buy, John.; Key, Leonard.; Coale, Benjamin.	1685 (1685)	Wing B6349A; ESTC R217572	21,097	29

to us whom thou call'st so mal Preachers in Reading thy Queries were first directed and sent before they were printed as thou sayst in pag. 3. And in the written Coppy thou sentest us they are directed to be answered by any in Reading so that it seems as if thou hadst thought the Packets had been sent by some of us in Reading But if so thou wert out for we sent no such Packets nor do we think any body would send Packets by the Post on purpose to put honest men to charges as thou B. C. often suggestest without any other reason But were not the Packets you speak of your own Books that you have printed and spread about the Countries And have not you and W. R. and others of your Company expended a great deal of Money in printing and spreading your malicious spightful and conceited Books And although you have been at so much pains and charge to do Mischief we never heard you thought much or complain'd of that so that we may well think your clamour about the charge of Postage is rather to vent your bitter Minds against those you call formal Preachers than for parting with your Money which at the highest Reckoning you have set down amounts not to above 3 s. 8 d. But it is most likely it is your state and condition open'd unto you in what was written upon those Books or in those Packets you speak of that hath so much disquieted you tho now you go about to place it upon the charge it may be thinking that may have the fairest shew in it to carry off your work with a shew of Justice in your Complaint but that Covering is too narrow Qu. 10. And are these the Fruits of a Christian Spirit or from them that are apostatized from it Let any that have any understanding of the things of God judge Answ We don't think it the fruit of a Christian Spirit for any to send great Packets by Post on purpose to put honest men to charge neither is it at all likely the Packets you speak of were sent on purpose to put any of you to charge To us it seems far more probable that whoever sent the Packets you mention had a better end and purpose in sending them than to put honest men to charge But you should do well to consider what Fruit of a Christian Spirit you have shewed in taking occasion from this 3 s. 8 d. charge to publish your envious and scandalous Pamphlet to the World thereby as much as in you lies making the Truth a Scorn and the Professors of it a Reproach and a By-word to the Ungodly and Prophane whom you have feasted with your own Folly Is this the Fruit of a Christian Spirit Let any that have any understanding of the things of God judge whether you have not preferr'd your 3 s. 8 d. before the honour of god and the Prosperity of his blessed Truth Had you been of a Christian Spirit you would have valued the honour and Reputation of Truth above Three Shillings and Eight Pence But your opposing the good Order of Truth your Writing Printing Publishing to the World your Malicious Scandalous Books and Pamphlets your shutting Friends out of their Meeting-house and denying them their Rights and Properties are such Fruits as sufficiently demonstrate to all that have an Understanding of the things of God what Spirit you are of Qu 11. And have not you according to your Power been like them before mentioned considering your standing in giving bad Names both in your Prayers and also Preaching calling such dark Spirits that could not joyn with you about your Forms and that they were gone in the way of Cain c. when you know in your Consciences that many that you so brand are blameless both in Life Conversation and Doctrine Answ If by them before mentioned thou meanest the Church of England Presbyterians c. thou shouldst remember thou chargest them in thy second and third Queries with using Violence and casting into Prison which thou knowest in thy Conscience we have not done and therefore not like them And whether they give bad Names in their Prayers and Preaching we know not but we know whom thou art like in thy fly Suggestions of Slander and Falshood What those Forms are that thou hast so o ten reflected upon us for thou hast not yet particularly mentioned so thy general Clamour does but beat the Air Thou seemest to run against all Forms without distinction as some others of thy company have done one saying The way of Truth is without Track and another said It was like the way of a Young man with a Maiden And if there be no Impression of Form left behind one liked it well though it be contrary to the Scriptures of Truth where the Apostle bids Timothy hold fast the form of sound Words And if such of you as have 〈◊〉 these things and the like be called dark Spirits we think you have no cause to be offended thereat for none but dark Spirits would ever have broached or held such dark things as these nor do we know or believe such to be blameless in Doctrine to say nothing of their Conversation that hold such dark Doctrines as these Dost thou think him blameless in Doctrine that holds the Way of Truth to be like the Way of a Ship in the Sea and the way of a young Man with a Maider which the Scriptures compare to the way of an Adultrous Woman Is this blameless Doctrine or the Doctrine of dark Spirits Dark Spirits indeed you are who are gone from the Light of Christ Jesus in your selves and are joyned to the Spirit of Darkness which hath prevailed over you So that what the Apostle said with joy to the Ephesians Ye were sometimes Darkness but now are ye Light in the Lord may with grief be turned backward upon some of you unto whom it may be as truly said Ye were sometime in some measure Light in the Lord but now Darkness is come over you again and your Spirits are become dark And though ye retain a Notion of the Light and Spirit to talk of and deceive by yet the Work thereof you resist and set your selves in your dark Minds to oppose and revile what is brought forth thereby And the ENVEY you have manifested plainly shews you are going into the way of Cain And the calling such Dark Spirits is not giving bad Names but giving suitable Names to bad things But surely if you had intended to charge others with giving bad Names you should have forborn to have given so many bad Names your selves as your Pamphlet in almost every page is stuft with Qu 12. And was it not the Elders of Israel in days that are past that gave unrighteous judgment and did condemn the Innocent And hath it not been so in our days witness the Paper that was signed by sixty six against their Innocent Brethren in the North And may not the same Cry be sounded

that was set up in the dayes of Daniel which the Lord did and will confound Answ This being a long Query had need be answered in several parts First thou sayst Now it is come to the formal Quakers turn The Formal Quakers are in reality your selves but we understand thy Speech and know whom thou meanest by formal Quakers even the Antient Brethren and Labourers in the Lords Vineyard with all the faithful Friends that having held fast their Integrity to the Lord have stood and do stand VVitnesses in Gods Power against the deceitful creeping Spirit that hath got an entrance and habitation among and in you and by and through you endeavours to draw back the Lord's People from the true Order of the Gospel and from their diligent Care and Watchfulness over themselves and one another therein into a false Liberty and a licentious Loosness These are those thou Stigmatizes with the brand of formal Quakers And now thou sayest It is come to the formal Quakers turn What is this It that is come to their turn to use Violence Excommunicate east into Prison This is and must be the sense of thy Words if thy Words have any sense in them This String thou hast harped on all along This is it thou taxest the Church of England with in thy second Query Compelling and using Violence In thy third thou queriest Whether the Presbyterians did not do like the Church of England which thou explainest to be Excommuncating and cast into Brison In thy fourth thou askest Did not the Baptists do like the former which was to Excommunicate and cast into Prison In thy fifth thou askest Hath it not been so with all other Sects which still relates to the same thing Excommunicating and casting into Prison is come to the formal Quakers turn This is a false suggestion Leonard and of an high Nature Where 's thy proof Whom have those thou callest the formal Quakers cast into Prison Whom have they used Violence to You and your Company 's shutting Friends out of their Meeting houses and nailing up the Meeting house Door looks somewhat like an act of Violence on your parts to wards those you call formal Quakers But what act of Violence have they done to you Whom of you have they cast into Prison Is not this suggestion of thine an horrible Slander Is not this Libelling What else is this but as B. C. says in your Pamphlet to have an unbridled Tongue tht will accuse and not prove and ask Questions to no purpose except to slander and abuse men Besides we cannot but take notice how slily thou dost link together Excommunicating and casting into Prison as if they were alike evil alike to be avoided and condemned This savours of a loose Spirit that would tolerate all disorderly and scandalous Persons in the Church have none cast out how corrupt soever which is the design of the wicked One against which God's faithful People in all Ages have watched and warred and at all times under every Dispensation as occasion hath offered and need required have used and exercised that just and necessary Power which God hath alwayes invested them with of disowning and casting out and testifying against whatsoever was hurtful and scandalous to the Body and this how grievous soever it be to you alwayes will be as it alwayes has been in the true Church And whereas thou askest Are not they whom thou scornfully ca●lest formal Quakers with all their Strength and Might c. setting up the Form that they have made c. and giving it higher Names then any that have gone before We answer Nay there is in these Words of thine a base Insinuation For neither have Friends made a Form nor are they setting up any Form but what the Power of god leads into nor do the use Strength and Might outwardly muchless are they getting all the Strength and Might they can in most places as thou most falsly and enviously suggests to set up any other Form but tht the Spirit of the living God in and through his People hath set up as to his divine Wisdom seemed most advantagious and serviceable for his Truth and People and by the strength and might of his own eternal Arms of Power he hitherto hath maintained and will maintain and preserve it against all the poysonous Darts of every envious Tongue Thou sayest Some have had the Confidence to say and Preach penly That what * We neither set up nor contend for any Form but what the Spirit and Power of God leads into and justifies in THEY had set up was to keep things sweet and clean Notwithstanding many things thou sayest have happened amongst them in many places which is a Stink and a shame to mention c. In this we believe thou slanderest those Some thou speakest of Who-ever said or preacht openly or privately that what THEY had set up was to keep things sweet and clean this sounds like Truth but like one of thy slanderous Suggestions We own no Form or Order of Mens setting up any further then men are or may be Instruments in the Lords hand The holy God by his holy pure Spirit hath set up his own holy Order in and among his People and the end of it is to keep things sweet and clean and that 's the Reason the unclean Spirit in you rages so against it and them that stand up for it And it any thing hath hapned which is a shame to mention thou Leonard if thou hadst not been past Shame might have been ashamed to have so much as hinted it knowing whom it will gratifie and also considering how it hath been a●d is with many of that Party thou appears an Advocate for Thou goest on and sayest Yet calling them holy Orders c. 'T is thou and you that in your scoffing flouting Spirit use to talk of holy Orders c. We say God is an holy God and he is the god of Order and the Order which he is the God of and hath set up in his Church is an holy Order They that love Holiness love it They tht are for Unholiness and Looseness contend against it And Leonard had not Envy blinded thy Eye and strangely clouded thy Understanding even as a Man thou wouldst not have publisht thy Weakness and Folly as thou hast done in this matter If any thing hath happened amiss among those that profess the Name of the Lord doth that prove either tht the order of Truth establisht amongst us is not Holy or hath not a tendency to keep things sweet and clean Is the Scripture of Truth or the Spirit of God e're the less holy because some unholy Professors of it don't observe it but walk contrary to it Did not the holy Ghost in the Apostles dayes set up an holy Order in the Church of Christ Was not the intent of it to keep things sweet and clean and from running into Disorder Yet too many things happened among them that bore the Christian