wisdome and Truth that the Disousser should publish the delights of Christ in a confussed way without distinguishing things that differ and so not dividing the Word aright It is true that Christ delighteth not in the bloud of men but shed his owne for his bloudiest enemies and gainsayers to wit whilst they gainsaying him and bloudily persecute him or his out of ignorance In this case indeed he prayeth for them and dieth for them Father forgive them they know not what they doe Luk. 23.34 whilest wee were enemies Christ died for us Rom. 5.8 10. But to say that Christ delighteth not in the bloud of men who after the acknowledgement of his Truth doe tread the bloud of his Covenant under foote and wittingly and willingly reject him from reigning over them To hold it forth that Christ delighteth not in the bloud of such men or that he would not have such molested by the civill Sword who gainsay Christ known and professed and joyn with his enemy Antichrist in blaspheming and persecuting Christ and his Saints This the Discusser can never make good to be the word of Christ It is indeed to publish the glad Tidings of the Gospel not to the humble and meeke Lambes of Christ but to the seed of the Serpent to sow pillowes under all elbowes to make the hearts of the righteous sad whom God would not make sad and to strengthen the hands of the wicked in their Apostacy from the truth and malignity against it Christ hath pronounced it upon earth and ratifyed it in Heaven Those mine enemies that would not that I should reigne over them bring them hither and slay them before my face Luk. 19.27 Are these the words of him that delighteth not in the bloud of his bloudyest enemies and gainsayers when the Lord Jesus sendeth forth his servants to powre out bloudy vengeance upon Antichristian emissaries and openeth the hearts mouthes of his Saints to praise him for thus judging Rev. 16.4 7 Is this to proclaime a Magna-Charta of highest libertyes even to his gainsayers and to such as joyn with his enemy Antichrist Time was when Jehu justly demanded What peace what hast thou to doe with peace so long as the whor domes of thy Mother Jezebel and her witcherafts are so many 2 Kings 9.22 And are the times now so farre changed that the Sword of Jebu shall proclaime peace to Jezebel and peace to all that call her mother and peace to her whoredomes and peace to her witchcrafts and then to blesse our selves with a glorious expectation That soone shall every Brow and house be stucke with O live branches The Lord keepe us from being bewitched with the Whores cup lest whilst wee seeme to detest and reject her with open face of profession wee doe not bring her in by a back doore of Toleration and so come at last to drink deepely of the cup of the Lords wrath and be filled with the cup of her plagues Amen CHAP. 79. Touching the Modell of Church and civill Power composed by Mr. Cotton and the Ministers of New-England and sent to the Church of Salem c. Examined by the Discusser and Answered THis Title or Inscription which the Examiner setteth up of this Modell holdeth forth to the world a double falshood 1. That the Modell was composed by Mr. Cotton and other Ministers of New-England This is one falshood What other Ministers of New-England did in it themselves know But for Mr. Cotton I know that he was none of them that composed it 2. That this Modell was sent to the Church of Salem if he meane sent by those Ministers as the following words imply for the confirmation of their Doctrine that is another falshood The Ministers themselves that composed the Modell doe deny it Howsoever the Modell came to Salem the Ministers say it was not sent by them But see when men are left of God openly and boldly to write against the truth in matter of Doctrin how readily and freely they can write and speake falshood in matter of fact It is therefore lesse marvell that in Answer to the preface of the Modell he breaketh forth into such vast hyperboles That the Modell awakeneth Meses from his unknowne Grave and denyeth Jesus yet to have seen the earth A speech as devoid of reason as of truth The observation of Moses Lawes doth not awaken Moses out of his grave nor is there any reason it should The validity of Lawes doth not in reason depend upon the life or resurrection of the Lawgiver the Examiner himselfe I suppose would not doubt but the Lawes of Moses were of force to the Israelites in the Land of Canaan when yet Moses was dead and buried before their entrance into the Land Neither did their observation of them awaken Moses out of his grave but argued his Lawes to be in force as well after his death as whilst he was yet living If it be said That Christ at his coming in the flesh when he was buried himselfe buried also the Lawes of Moses with him in his grave Then the Examiner should not have said that the Modell raised up Moses out of his grave but that it raised up Christ out of his grave If it be said againe the Examiner saith It denyed Christ to have seen the earth which was of as ill consequence Be it so but yet still this maketh nothing to the rasing up of Moses out of his grave I Answer further Neither doth it at all deny Christ to have seen the earth For Christ came not to destroy the Law of Moses Mat. 5.17 Neither the Morall Law for in the sequele of that Chapter he doth at large expound it and establish it No nor did he come to destroy the judiciall Lawes such of them as are of Morall equity Or else the Conscience of the civill Magistrate could never doe any act of civill justice out of faith because he should have no word of God to be the ground of his action if the Lawes of judgement in the Old-Testament were abrogated and none extant in the New As for the exception which the Examiner taketh against the Preface It is as easily avoided as Objected If saith he the civill Magistrate even the highest being a Member of the Church be subject to Church-Censure how can this stand with their common Tenent that he must keepe the first Table Reforme the Church be Judge and Governor in all causes as well ecclesiasticall as Civill Secondly how can a Magistrate both sit on the Bench and stand at the Bar of Christ Jesus Is it not as impossible as to reconcile east and west together Yea is not the Text in Isa 49 23. Lamentably wrested to prove both these Reply One Answer may easily remove both Exceptions And that one Text doth expresly hold forth both these Points which the Examiner conceiveth to be so irreconcilable For if Princes be nursing Fathers to the Church as that Text speaketh then they are to provide that the children of
ignorant and scandalous persons drunkards whoremongers despisers and persecutors of them that are good Prophane swearers that have not so much as a forme of godlinesse but doe utterly deny and deride the power of it Answ This is indeed just matter of mourning and lamentation to all the Saints of Christ and may be also in due order just warrant of some degree of separation from them as from a corrupt Church It cannot but offend and deeply grieve the spirit of a Christian to sit downe at the Lords Table and drinke the bloud of the Lord with such who may be ready the next day to spill the bloud of sincere Communicants as Puritan Round-Heads But whilest the Saints of Christ continue amongst them the mixt fellowship of ignorant and prophane persons doth not evacuate or disanull their Church estate The store of malignant and noysome humours in the body yea the deadnesse and rottennesse of many members in the body though they may make the body an unsound and corrupt body yet they doe not make the body no body When the Prophet Isaiah complained that in the Church of Judah from the soale of the foote to the crowne of the head there was no soundnesse in it but wounds and bruises and putrifying sores yet whilest there was a Remnant amongst them of faithfull Saints they were not yet no Church they were not yet Sodome and Gomorrha though but for that Remnant they had been as Sodome and like unto Gomorrha Isa 1.6 with 9. Say not though Hierusalem and Judah were at that time degenerate yet they had been at first an holy Nation a faithfull Citie Isa 1.21 and so had a true constitution which the Churches of England never had For 1. I might answer That though in regard of some prime members Hierusalem was counted a faithfull Citie and the Nation Holy by Priviledge of their Covenant yet for the body of the people Hierusalem was alwayes a City of the provocation of Gods wrath from the day they built it Jer. 32.31 32. And for the body of the Nation Moses charged them Yee have alwayes been rebellious against the Lord since the day that I knew you Deut. 9.7.24 And Stephen protesteth against them They had alwayes wont to resist the Holy Ghost they and their fathers Act. 7.51 2. I doe not understand but that according to Scripture those corruptions which doe not destroy a Church constituted the same do not destroy the constitution of a Church The Church is constituted and continued by the same Grace 3. The estate of the Churches of England was not corrupt in their first constitution Baronius himselfe confesseth that England received the Gospel ten yeares before Rome and that from the Ministery of the Apostles and Apostolick men who doubtlesse constituted the English Churches not after the manner of Rome which was then Pagan but after the Apostolick Rules and Patternes This may suffice touching the matter of the English Churches Now touching the second thing objected which was from the efficient cause of their constitution It is said they were gathered not by the preaching of the Gospel by which Churches should be planted and constituted but by the Proclamation of Princes Answ 1. The efficient cause of a Church is a thing without the Church and so no essentiall cause of the Constitution of a Church The Proclamation of King Hezekiah and of the Princes drew on multitudes of Apostate Israelites to the Communion of the Church at Hierusalem and many of them in much pollution yet neither their own pollution nor the Proclamation of the King and Princes did evacuate their Church-estate but encourage them rather in their Church-worke 2 Chron. 30.5 to 9. and verses 11 12.17 18 19 20. It was no pollution to the second Temple at Hierusalem that it was built by the encouragement of the Proclamation of Cyrus Ezra 1. Answ 2. Wheresoever there be visible Saints gathered into a Church they were first gathered by the Ministery of the Gospel For Proclamations cannot make Saints but the word of the Gospel onely If any hypocrites or time-servers doe for feare joyne themselves with the Saints in such a worke though their fellowship may weaken and blemish the worke yet it doth not destroy it Thus much touching the constitution of their Parishionall Churches Now touching their Nationall Constitution it standeth partly in their Nationall Officers Archbishops Bishops and their Servitors partly in their Nationall Synods and convocations and partly also in their Nationall Ecclesiasticall Courts The Examiner is not ignorant that by the Grace of Christ we have withdrawen our selves and our Churches also from this Nationall Constitution and from all Communion with them If it be said But we still keepe Communion with the Parish-Churches in hearing the Word there who doe subject themselves to these Nationall Officers Convocations and Courts Answ 1. Though the Parish-Churches were lately subject to them it was a burden which as they did discerne the iniquitie thereof they groaned under and now by the mightie Power of the gracious Redemption of the Lord Jesus they have shaken off through the helpe of the Honorable and Religious Prudence and Piety of the Parliament 2. Though those Nationall Courts in their Officers did for many yeares tread downe the Parish-Churches yet they did not extinguish their Church-estate The Text is plaine The Gentiles that is men of Gentile-like prophanenesse and malignitie and iniquitie who had the keeping of the Church-Courts they did tread downe the Holy City Rev. 11.2 Tread downe I say but not destroy the Holy City Yea though the Translation reade it They did tread it downe or Tread it under-foote yet the Originall word may be rendred somewhat more mildly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 may expresse their walking upon it or else the Peripateticks were a more violent sect then either their Principles or their Practise did declare them I come now to speake of the second Falshood which the Examiner chargeth upon the English Churches which was the falsenesse of their Ministery which wherein it lyeth he should have done well to have told us for himselfe disliketh it in me to wander in Generalities But for our selves we are farre from that supercilious and Pharisaicall arrogancy as to condemne such for false Ministers in whom we finde Truth of Godlinesse Truth of Ministeriall Gifts Truth of Election and acceptance unto Office by true Churches of Christ Truth of sound wholesome and soule-saving Doctrine and Truth of holy and exemplary Conversation And such are all the Ministers whom either the members of our Churches affect to Heare or our Churches doe allow them ordinarily for to Heare And when I say Truth I speake it not in opposition to Eminency for sundry of them excell in Eminency of sundry of these things but in opposition to the falshood which the Examiner objecteth I know not what exception lyeth against their Ministery to argue it of falshood save what hath been excepted and answered already touching the constitution
Chapter Onely 2. Things more remaine in this Chapter which may not passe without some touch 1. That he saith Gods People in all their awakenings acknowledge how sleightly they have listned to the checks of their owne Conscience This the Answerer pleaseth to call sinning against Conscience for which he may lawfully be persecuted to wit for sinning against his owne Conscience Wherein there is found a double falshood 1. That he saith I call the sleight listnings of Gods People to the checks of their Conscience their sinning against Conscience For I speake not of the sinning of Gods People against Conscience but of an Heretick subverted turned off from the Foundation much lesse doe I call their sleight listnings to Conscience to be Hereticall sinning against Conscience 2. Least of all doe I say that for such sleight listnings to the checks of Conscience he may lawfully be persecuted to wit as for sinning against Conscience Thus men that have time and leasure at will will set up Images of clouts and then shoot at them The 2. Thing in this Chapter which I said might not passe without some touch is that having fastned upon me a conclusion which is none of mine but an invention of his owne He addeth howsoever it be painted over with vermillion c. yet he hopeth to manifest it to be the overturning and rooting up of the roote of all true Christianity and absolutely denying the Lord Jesus to be come in the flesh Whereto I Reply no more but this If he doe manifest that which Magnanimously he undertaketh It may happyly be also manifested by the helpe of Christ that it will overturne no conclusion of mine But howsoever let him remember it was a proverb in Israel Let not him that girdeth on his Armour boast himselfe as he that putteth it off 2 Kings 20.11 CHAP. 15. A Reply to his fifteenth Chapter touching the admonition and rejection of an Heretick THe first and second Admonitions in the place of Titus were not Civill or corporall punishments on mens persons or purses But they were the reprehensions convictions exhortations and perswasions of the word of the Eternall God charged home to the Conscience in the Name and Presence of the Lord Jesus in the midst of his Church Which being despised and not hearkened unto in the last place followeth rejection which is not a cutting off by heading hanging burning nor an expelling out of the Countrey and coasts but the dreadfull cutting off from the visible head and body Christ Jesus and his Church Spirituall cutting off by Excommunication Defender All this the proofes of this in this Chapter I willingly consent and subscribe unto nor doth this touch any conclusion of mine at all much lesse Discusse or shake it For though I said indeed that for an erroneous and blinde Conscience even in Fundamentall and weighty Points It is not lawfull to persecute any till after Admonition once or twice according to Tit. 3.10.11 Yet in alledging that place to prove that Conclusion I intended no other persecution but the Churches prosecution against such an Heretick by excommunication no syllable in my conclusion looketh at more If it be said but Excommunication or any other Church-prosecution cannot fitly be called persecution Yes verily excommunication is a persecution and a lawfull persecution if the cause be just offence as the Angell of the Lord is said to persecute the wicked Psalm 35.6 But the Excommunication is a cruell and bitter persecution If it be without just cause and due order yea and the more greivous persecution by how much the more greivous it is to a Christian man to be excluded from the Communion of the Saints then to be banished from a civill Society sure it is the Lord Jesus accounteth it a persecution to his Disciples to be delivered up unto the Synagogues and to be cast forth out of the Synagogues Luk. 21.12 with Joh. 16.2 CHAP. 16. A Reply to his sixteenth Chapter touching To leration in Points of lesse moment Discusser For a third Position or Conclusion the Answerer gave this that in things of lesse moment whether Points of Doctrine or Worship If a man hold them forth in a spirit of Christian meeknesse and love though with zeale and constancy he is not to be persecuted but tolerated till God may be pleased to manifest his truth to him This conclusion I acknowledge to be the Truth of God yet 3. things are very observeable in the manner of laying it downe 1. That such a Person may be tolerated till God may be pleased to reveale his truth to him upon the same ground the Apostle calleth for meeknesse and Gentlenesse towards all men and towards such as oppose themselves 2. Tim. 2. because it may be God may give them repentance Hence a soule that is lively and sensible of Gods mercy cannot but be patient and gentle towards the Jewes towards the Turkes yea to all the severall sorts of Anti-Christians yea to the Pagans and to the wildest sort of the Sonnes of men who have not heard of the Father and of the Sonne c. Yea not onely be patient to such but also to pray for such yea and to endeavour their participation of the same grace and mercy Defender This nothing shaketh no nor so much as toucheth our cause or defence we thinke it unlawfull for the Church to censure such as are out of the Church And for the Civill State we know no ground they have to persecute Jewes or Turkes or other Pagans for cause of Religion though they all erre in Fundamentalls No nor would I exempt Anti-Christians neither from Toleration notwithstanding their Fundamentall Errors unlesse after conviction they still continue to seduce simple soules into their damnable and pernicious Heresies as into the Worship of false Gods into confidence of their owne merits for Justification into seditious conspiracyes against the lives and States of such Princes as will not submit their Consciences to the Bishop of Rome Which if the Discusser shall in the sequell pluck off as the silken covering of an Image as he calleth it we shall further attend him Discusser 2. I observe from the Scriptures he quoteth for this Toleration Phil. 3. Rom. 14. how closely yet I hope unadvisedly he maketh the Churches of Christ at Philippi and Rome all one with the Cities of Philippi and Rome c. Defender No such matter I never thought these Scriptures to belong at all to the Cities of Philippi or Rome Paul writeth to both the Churches not only to tolerate but to receive their weake brethren who dissent from them in matters of lesse moment but to the Cities I never read any Epistle of his Who would ever imagine the Discusser should be so farre transported beyond all bounds either of reason or truth or candor as to surmise the Answerer should conceive That what those Churches must not tolerate in their holy communion that the Cities of Philippi and Rome must not tolerate within the compasse
Truth CHAP. 19. A Reply to his nineteenth Chapter Discusser That the Lord intendeth not Doctrines or Practises in this Parable It is cleare For 1. The Lord Jesus expresly interpreteth the good seed to be Persons those the children of the Kingdome The Tares also to signify men and those the children of the wicked one ver 38. Defender If the Discusser had cast his eye a little lower he might have found that Christ interpreteth the Tares not onely to be Persons but things 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 all things that offend as well as those that doe iniquity ver 41. But I shall not stick upon that at all let the Tares be Persons whether Hypocrites like unto true Christians or holders forth of scandalous and corrupt Doctrines and Practises like unto sound Discusser 2. Such corrupt Doctrines and Practises are not to be tolerated now as those Jewish observations were for a while Rom. 14. nor so long till the end of the world For can we think that though the Lord tendered the tender conscience of the Jews in the observation of the difference of meates and drinks which were sometimes his owne Ordinances that therefore Persons must be now tolerated in the Church for I speake not of the Civill State in superstitious forbearing and forbidding of flesh in Popish Lents and superstitious Fridayes c. Defender Who can tell what this Discusser would have The Tares he would have to be Persons not corrupt Doctrines and Practises And yet when he commeth to prove that corrupt Doctrines and Practises are not to be tolerated he proveth it from the unlawfulnesse of tolerating corrupt persons for can we thinke saith he that persons must be now tolerated in the Church in the superstitious forbearing or forbidding of flesh in Popish Lents and Fridayes Such is the inconstancy of the spirits of men whose hearts are not stayed and steered by the Spirit of Truth that sometimes Tares must not be corrupt Doctrines and Practises but persons because Tares and so persons must be tolerated till the Harvest not so corrupt Doctrines and Practises And yet all the reason given why corrupt Doctrines and Practises must not be tolerated is this because Persons that hold them forth must not be tolerated CHAP. 20. A Reply to his twentieth Chapter what is meant by Tares Discusser The Originall word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifying all those weeds which spring up with the Corne as cockle darnell Tares c. seemeth to imply such a kinde of people as are commonly and generally knowne to be manifestly differing from and opposite to the true Worshipers of God c. Defender 1. It is not true that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifyeth all those weeds that grow up with the Corne. For they be a speciall weed growing up cheifely amongst the wheat but when it commeth to the earing it groweth more like to Barley yet having a narrower leafe fatter and rougher and a leaner seed in a prickly barke bearing a purple flower as Dioscorides testifyeth Now this is farre from a description of all sorts of weeds that grow up with Corne. 2. Neither is it true that Tares are commonly and generally known assoone as they appeare For Hierom who for a time lived in Jury testifyeth that Inter triticum et zizania quod nos appellamus lolium quamdiu herba est et nondum culmus venit ad spicam grandis similitudo est et in discernendo aut nulla aut perdifficilis distantia Comment Mat. Cap. 13. Yea the Text it selfe though the Discusser deny it holdeth forth as much For the servants of the Husbandman in whose Feild the Tares were sowen by the enemy did not discerne the tares from the wheat till the blade was sprung up and brought forth fruit for then it was and not till then that the Tares appeared to be Tares Mat. 13.26 what though the Text holdeth forth no such time wherein the servants doubted or suspected what they were It is like enough they did not suspect them at all by reason of the grandis similitudo the great likenesse that was between them whilest they were both in the blade Which still maketh good the Exposition that Tares are not bryars and thornes but so like to the wheat that till they come to earing the one cannot be discerned from the other Discusser The one appeared as soone as the other and when the wheat put forth its blade and fruite the Tares were as early they put forth themselves and appeared also 2. There is such a dissimilitude and unlikenesse between them that as soone as Tares and wheat sprung up to blade and fruite every husbandman could tell which is wheat and which is Tares Defender It s true the Tares put forth their blade assoone as did the wheat and appeared above ground one as early as the other but they were so like one to an other that the husbandmen could not tell which was wheat and which Tares till the blade was growen up and they both brought forth their fruite And though when they both brought forth their fruite there was no apparent dimissilitude yet still it is evident that at first the dimssilitude did not appeare The Tares may therefore still stand for Hypocrites who are so like at first unto good Christians that they cannot easily be discerned one from another till in processe of time the difference of the fruite discover them Discusser But when was it that the House-holder gave charge to let them alone was it not after they appeared and were knowne to be Tares which should imply by this interpretation of the Answerer that when men are discovered and knowne to be Hypocrites yet still such a generation of Hypocrites in the Church must be let alone and tolerated untill the Harvest or end of the world which is contrary to all Piety order and safety in the Church of the Lord Jesus as doubtlesse the Answerer will graunt Defender If the Answerer know his owne minde as well as the Discusser doubtlesse the Answerer will not graunt that it is contrary to all piety and order and safety that hypocrites knowne hypocrites be tolerated in the Church till the end of the world For though it be against the safety of the Church when the Officers or body of the Church prove hypocrites for that threatneth a dis-churching Rev. 2.5 yet till the fruits of hypocrisie grow notoriously scandalous and ripe for Church-Censure it is not contrary to all piety and order safety to suffer them but rather more safety to suffer them least some of Gods own Saints true wheat who for a time may degenerate and bring forth like fruit with the Tares be plucked up with them If foolish Virgins be cast out of the Church the wise Virgins may be sometime found sleeping as well as they Mat. 25.5 CHAP. 21. A Reply to his Chap. 21. VVhat is meant by the world and more of the Tares Discusser 2. The Tares cannot signifie hypocrites in the Church for
the field wherein they both grow is interpreted by Christ himselfe to be the world which lieth in wickednesse and is a wildernesse of wilde Beasts Fornicators Covetous Idolators c. In this world as soone as the Lord Jesus hath sowen the good seed the Children of the Kingdome true Christianitie or the true Church the enemy Satan presently in the night of Securitie Ignorance and Error soweth the Tares which are Antichristians or false Christians Those the Ministers and Prophets of God would straight runne to Heaven for fiery Judgements from thence to consume them But the Sonne of man commandeth a Permission of them till the end of the world when Goats and Sheep Tares and Wheate shall be eternally separated c. Defender Answ 1. It is true Christ expoundeth the Field to be the world ver 38. But he meant not the wide world but by an usuall Trope the Church scattered throughout the world as Christ is said to have loved the world Joh. 3.16 and to be the Propitiation of the sinnes of the world 1 Joh. 2.2 Reas 1. Else there had been no place for the servants wonder at the appearing of the Tares Sir didst not thou sow good seed in thy field from whence then hath it Tares ver 27. Did ever any of the servants of Christ wonder or saw any cause to wonder that the world should be full of Fornicators Idolaters Murderers Robbers c Was it ever otherwise since the world was replenished with Inhabitants Reas 2. What calling had the Ministers or Prophets of Christ to offer to pluck up all such notorious vicious persons out of the world Did ever any Ministers of Christ demand such a Question of Christ Wilt thou have us goe and gather up all notorious vicious Persons out of the world As they doe indeed demand the like concerning these Tares in Christs field ver 28. Reas 3. The Discusser himselfe reckoneth up Goats and Sheep as parallell with Wheat and Tares as generally Interpreters doe Now evident it is that Goats were cleane Beasts as well as Sheep cleane for food yea and cleane also for sacrifice and yet they were tolerated not onely to live in the same world but in the same Church For after the destruction of Antichrist when purest times of the Church shall come the Members of the Church shall all of them be Virgins none Idolaters though some wise and some foolish all of them servants though some thristie some unprofitable all of them cleane though some Goats some Sheep And therefore the Kingdome of Heaven that is the Church is at that time resembled to such a mixt state after the ruine of Antichrist and conversion of the Jewes untill the coming of Christ to Judgement Mat. 25.1 c. Answ 2. If the Field should be the world and the Tares Antichristians and false Christians it is true Satan sowed them in Gods Field but he sowed them in the Church The mystery of their Iniquitie did secretly work in the very bosome of the Church till in processe of time it grew so ranck and grosse as transformed the Churches that drunke it up into spirituall Babylon But if Antichrist be an Apostate and Antichristianitie Apostasie then it was first sowen in the field of the Church and not of the wide world Answ 3. It is not the will of Christ that Antichrist and Antichristians and Antichristianitie should be tolerated in the world untill the end of the world For God will put it into the hearts of faithfull Princes as they have given their Kingdomes to the Beast so in fulnesse of time to hate the whore to leave her desolate and naked and to burne her flesh with fire Rev. 17.16 17. And after this we reade of a visible state of a new Hierusalem which shall flourish many yeares upon Earth before the end of the world Revel Chap. 20. Chap. 21. Chap. 22. Neverthelesse I willingly grant that the first fruits of Antichristians and false Christians may be reckoned up amongst the Tares which Satan sowed in the field of the Church which afterwards grew to be Briars and Thornes and so destructive to the wheate that the wheat could not be suffered if discerned to live amongst them Discusser But Christ the wisdome of the Father would never in opening this Parable so farre obscure it or to call the Church the world Nor doth it agree with the nature of the Church or Garden of Christ to be styled the world Defender It is no impeachment to the wisdome of Christ to call his Elect Churches and Saints throughout the world by the Name of the world Else Paul spake not by the wisdome of Christ when he said God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himselfe 2 Cor. 5.19 And though the Church within it selfe be a Garden and severed from the world yet all the Churches being scattered and dispersed throughout the world it is no more an improper speech to call the Church the world then to speake of Christ as dying for the world when he dyed for his Church CHAP. 22. A Reply to his 22. Chapter more of Tares Discusser In the former Parable the Lord Jesus compared the kingdome of Heaven to the sowing of seed The true Messengers of Christ are sowers who cast the seed of the word of the Kingdome upon 4. sorts of ground which 4. sorts of grounds or hearts of men cannot be supposed to be of the Church nor will it ever be proved that the Church consisteth of any more sorts or natures of ground properly but one to wit the honest and good ground And the proper work of the Church concerneth the prosperitie and flourishing of this sort of ground and not of the other three sorts In the field of the world then are all those sorts of grounds High-way-side stony thorney Hearers as well as the honest and good ground And I suppose it will not be said by the Answerer that these three sorts of bad grounds were Hypocrites or Tares in the Church Defender Answ 1. But what if the Answerer will say so It may be contrary to his supposall but not to the Truth For I demand did not Christ himselfe who was the chiefe Sower did not he Preach and sow the seed of the word to all those foure sorts of Hearers And yet he was the Minister of Circumcision Rom. 15.8 and Preached seldome to any but to Church-Members Members of the Church of Israel Answ 2. It 's an error to say The Church consisteth of no more sorts of Hearers but one the honest and good ground for if the children of Church-members be in the Church of the Church till they give occasion of rejection then they growing up to yeares become some of them like the High-way-side others like the stony others like the Thorney as well as others like the honest and good ground Answ 3. Though it be not the proper work of the Church to attend the prosperitie and flourishing of the three sorts of bad ground to
of the mouth of the Lord Jesus for he shall begin to be consumed long before by all the seven vials of the wrath of God Revel 16. which have bin and will be in powring out many ages before the great Harvest of the end of the world Yea I beleive also He shall be destroyed many ages before then as the Apostle John foretelleth in Chap. 20.21.22 of the Revelation And though it be translated in 2 Thess 2.8 The Lord shall destroy him with the brightnesse of his coming yet the word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth as well and more firstly signifie Presence then comming The Lord will destroy Antichrist with the brightnesse of his Presence in his sacred and Civill Ordinances sundry ages before the brightnesse of his comming to Judgement Otherwise we should set John Paul at variance who spake by one and the same Spirit of Truth CHAP. 27. A Reply to his 27. Chap. Discussing a doubt how Ministers may be bidden to let Antichristians alone in the Civill State Discusser If it be objected These servants whom the Householder commaundeth to let the Tares alone seeme to be Ministers or Messengers of the Gospell How shall it belong to them to plucke up the Tares or to let them alone if by the Feild be meant the world Ans The Apostles and in them all that succeed them received from the Lord a threefold charge 1. To let them alone and not to pluck them up by Prayer to God for their present temporall destruction 2. Not to prophecy or denounce a present destruction or extirpation of all false Professours of the Name of Christ T is true many soare and fearefull plagues are powred out upon the Roman Emperors and Roman Popes yet not to their utter extirpation untill the Harvest 3. Not to pluck them up by stirring up Civill Magistrates and powers to punish and persecute all such persons out of their dominions as worship not the true God according to his revealed will in Christ Jesus T is true Elijah thus stirred up Ahab to kill all the Preists and Prophets of Baal but that was in the figurative state of the Land of Canaan not to be matcht or paraled by any other State but the Spirituall State or Church of Christ in all the world putting the false Prophets Spiritually to death by the two-edged sword and power of the Lord Jesus as that Church of Israel did corporally Defender These 3. Interpretations of Let them alone are all of them so many evasions slippery evasions sought out by the subtile wit of man to winde out from under the Authority of the Truth and word of Christ For 1. Why should not the Ministers of Christ Pray either to pluck them up out of their Antichristian Idolatryes or else to pluck them up as the Plantations which our Heavenly Father hath not planted He that may Pray daily for the comming of Christs Kingdome He may and doth and ought to pray for the comming downe of all opposite Kingdomes The Saints under the Altar that prayed against the delay of vengeance on the Roman Emperors Revel 6.10 may more justly pray against the delay of vengeance on the Roman Antichrists What though the State of the Roman Antichristians was to continue for sundry ages before their finall extirpation Yet they were to expect vialls of Gods indignation to roote them out by a graduall extirpation in sundry of their cheife branches and pillars long before the extirpation of their whole Kingdome And what though the Saints in old Babell were to pray for the Peace of the City as wherein themselves might finde Peace Yet the Saints that live not in such Anâ—ichristian Territoryes they may safely pray for the hastning of the redemption of their brethren out of the Antichristian bondage and there withall pray for the hastning of the ruine and desolation of the Antichristian Kingdome Besides Certaine it is from the Word of Truth that the Antichristian Kingdome shall be destroyed and rooted up by Christian Princes and States long before the great Harvest of the end of the world as hath been shewen a bove And either such Princes must performe this great worke without Prayer and then it were not sanctified to God 1 Tim. 4.4 5. Or if it be a sacrifice sanctified to God they must pray for their desolation before they inflict it And all the seven Angells who powre out their vialls on the Antichristian State tending to the rooting of it out by degrees They either pray for the successe of the vengeance of their vialls or else they doe not powre them out in faith which were contrary to the spirit of such holy Saints who come out of the Temple opened in Heaven and are cloathed with pure and white linnen and have their breasts girded with golden girdles Rev. 15.6 2. If John the Apostle have Prophecied and denounced the destruction and extirpation of Antichristian Idolaters and their whole State why may not a Minister and Messenger of Christ according to the measure of light received open those Prophecyes and apply them with severe threatnings against thme and their State Yea but they may not apply or denounce them to their present destruction or extirpation Yes to the present destruction of some or other Antichristian Idolaters in every age though the State may continue wasting till the time appointed It might as truely be said the Ministers of Christ are forbidden to denounce present or speedy destruction to any murtherers whoremongers Tyrants extortioners because though some of them may fall under many sore and feareful plagues yet there will never want a company of such wicked doers till the Great Harvest the end of the world Besides what if a messenger of Christ should not denounce present destruction yet he cannot be said to let them alone who is hewing at them to bring them to destruction many yeares before It is not every stroake with an Axe that felleth an Oake it may be not an hundred not a thousand stroakes yet no stroake is lost that maketh way for the felling of it at the last Neither can he be said to let the Tree alone that striketh and heweth at it every day So he that heweth at the Antichristian State every day by Prayer and Preaching He doth not let it alone though it may stand many a yeare after It will fall the sooner and with more facility for every stroake 3. Nor can it be the meaning of Christ in commanding his Ministers to let the Tares alone to forbid them to stirr up Princes and States to the rooting out of Antichristian Idolaters and all such false worshippers as destroy the Truth and Religion of the Lord Jesus For amongst all the Angells that powred out their vials upon the Antichristian State it is not credible that none of them should be Messengers of the Gospell And when the ten Kings shall burne the City of Rome and leave it desolate and naked It is not credible
tamed unholy holy Christians Antichristians How sad an evidence is this that the soule of the Answerer hath never yet heard the call of the Lord Jesus to come out from those unconverted Churches from that unconverted Antichristian-Christian world c. Defender Reply 1. When we come to those Arguments truly and fairly collected out of this place of Timothy which is not till the next chapter we shall God willing consider what Truth and fairnesse they hold forth which if it be found wee shall consider whether they be of force against the Truth witnessed by me In the meane time for Answer to his demand what I should meane by the unconverted Christian in Creete Answ I must take it upon his credit that I spake at all of any unconverted Christian in Creete Mine owne copy is not extant with me And the Transcript which with much seeking I found hath it instead of unconverted Christians in Creete unconverted persons in Ephesus As indeed Timothy was left at Ephesus when Paul wrote to him his first Epistle as is evident 1 Tim. 1.3 and Titus it was who was left at Creete Tit. 1.5 But whether Timothy was then at Ephesus when Paul wrote his second Epistle to him is not so certaine But wheresoever he was as being an Evangelist he was not limited to a certaine place doubtlesse there wanted not unconverted persons amongst whom the Members of the Church lived Yea but they were not unconverted Christians for it is as much as unconverted Converts c. Answ It must lye upon the Discussers credit whether I used at all such a phrase or no sure I am I cannot hitherto after much seeking find mine owne hand-written copy which might cleare the mistake both of Creet for Ephesus and unconverted Christians for unconverted Persons But let it not seeme strange to him to heare tell of unconverted Christians or unconverted Converts There is no contradiction at all in the words When the Lord saith that Judah turned unto him not with all her heart but fainedly Jer. 3.10 Was she not then an unconverted Convert converted in shew and profession but unconverted in heart and Truth Let him then consider his own phrase here misapplyed whether this be the Language of Canaan or the Language of Ashdod Jeremies Language is the Language of Anathoth not of Ashdod Reply 2. If the Discusser looke at it as a true but sad experience of my unconverted estate from unconverted Churches and that the Lord Jesus never yet called me to come out of them because I speake if I doe so speake of unconverted Christians living amongst them I must be contented still to lie under that imputation from him I never knew that Church yet nor ever read of it in which there was not or at least might not be found some unconverted Christians unconverted Converts Judas was found in Christs Family Ananias and Sapphira in the Apostolick Primitive Church Balaam and the Nicholaitans were found in Pergamus and Jesabel in Thyatira Besides I have not yet learned nor doe I thinke I ever shall that the children of beleiving Parents borne in the Church are all of them Pagans and no Members of the Church or that being Members of the Church so holy that they are all of them truly converted And if they be not alwayes truly converted then let him not wonder nor stumble at the phrase of unconverted Christians But if the Discusser doe sadly observe it that my soule hath not yet heard the call of the Lord Jesus to come out of unconverted Churches truly I have just cause not without sadnesse and mourning to consider and to pray that he might consider what call of the Lord Jesus his soule hath heard to come out not onely out of unconverted Churches but converted too yea out of all Churches Discusser Againe I observe the haste and light attention of the Answerer to these Scriptures as commonly the Spirits of Gods children in matters of Gods Kingdome are very sleepy for these persons here spoken of were not unconverted Christians in Creete whom Titus as an Evnngelist was to convert but they were such Opposites as Timothy to whom Paul writeth this Letter at Ephesus should not meet withall Defender Whether such words be found in the copy of my Answer to the Letter I leave it to the Discussers credit As I said even now mine owne copy I cannot after much diligent search finde the Transcript which I have found hath it otherwise the unconverted Persons in Ephesus whom Timothy as an Evangelist was to seeke to convert But if my copy doe speake as he reporteth Then 1. I doe not deny but have just cause to acknowledge mine owne haste and light attention and sleepinesse in the matters of Christs Kingdome not onely in this passage but frequently else in the race of my Christian course of life The Disciples themselves Christ found sleepy Matth. 26.40 how much more may he find me sleepy 2. The Discusser might have imputed it as well to my hast to gratifie his earnest desire to Answer his friends Letter and to my confidence in his love that for hast to satisfie him mistooke one place and person for another and was not so attentive to peruse and examine the copy sent by me to him as I would have been had I sent it to an Adversary 3. The case is all one in the matters of Christs Kingdome whether I had named Timothy or Titus Ephesus or Creete For the persons were both of them Evangelists and the places of them both such as had unconverted persons in them and like enough unconverted Christians too Ephesus had evill persons amongst them whom they could not beare Rev. 2.2 as well as Creet had amongst them such as were alwayes lyars evill Beasts slow bellies Tit. 1.12 4. The Discusser that observeth haste and light attention and sleepinesse in another one would thinke would be more vigilant and attentive himselfe He that saith as the Discusser doth in his parenthesis that Paul wrote this Letter to wit his second Epipistle to Timothy at Ephesus taketh it for granted that which without some hasty lightnesse even the same which he blameth in my selfe he cannot beleive that Paul wrote his second to Timothy at Ephesus There is no word in the Epistle that speaketh of Timothies being at Ephesus when Paul wrote that second Epistle His calling of an Evangelist did not permit him to tarry long in a place and the first Epistle to Timothy is thought by the Learned to have been written one of the first of all Pauls Epistles next after those of the Thessalonians But the second Epistle to Timothy was written last of all the Epistles when Pauls time of departure was at hand 2 Tim. 4.6 And when Paul writeth 2 Timothy 4.12 that he had sent Tychicus to Ephesus It is not likely he would have written so to Timothy if Timothy then had been at Ephesus For Timothy would have knowne that Tychycus had been at Ephesus or if Tychicus
dispencing and pressing of spirituall matters for the immediate producing of spirituall ends as for a Magistrate to draw his sword to compell all his Subjects to the obedience of the faith if Christ and to the profession of it But this is not unfitting nor improper That a Magistrate should draw his sword though not in matters spirituall yet about matters spiritual to protect them in peace and to stave off the disturbers and destroyers of them It were improper and unfitting for carpenters to bring their Axes and Hammers to build up the spirituall Kingdome and Church of Christ But yet their tooles are fitting to build up scaffolds that the people may draw neere to heare the Word by hearing be brought on to faith and salvation CHAP. 45. A Reply to his 45. Chap. Discusser TO Batter and take a strong Hold or Fort men bring not a first and second Admonition and after obstinacy Excommunication But they bring Canons Culverings Sakers Bullets Powder Musquets Swords Pikes weapons suitable and proportionable On the other side to batter downe Idolatry false worship Heresy out of the soule and spirit It is vaine Improper unsuitable to bring the usuall weapons of persecutors Stocks Whips Prisons Swords Gibbtts Stakes But against these spirituall sirong holds in the soules of men spirituall Artillery and weapons are proper and mighty through God to subdue every thought to obedience Defender Let this stand as it shall for me It nothing toucheth the Question in hand It is farre from me to allow the Civill Magistrate to make use of his Civill weapons to batter downe Idolatry and Heresy in the soules of men but for this end he is to use spirituall weapons and all Lenity and wisdome in the improvement thereof But if the Idolater or Heretick grow obstinate as the Apostle saith waxe worse and worse deceiving himselfe and others to the destroying or corrupting and disturbing of others now the Magistrate maketh use not of Stocks and Whipps for these doe not remove but exasperate the malady but of Death or Banishment that may cut him off from opportunity of spreading the leaven and Gangerne of his pernicious wayes whether in Doctrine or practise It is one thing to speake oâ— Heresie and Idolatry in the Abstract another in the Concrete Heresie Idolatry and all spirituall wickednesse cannot be rooted out of the hearts of the sonnes of men but by spirituall weapons But Hereticks and Idolaters may be restrained from the open practise and profession of their wickednesse by the Sword of Justice and such weapons of Righteousnesse Discusser But though these weapons were proper yet they are unnecessary For if spirituall weapons in the hand of Church Officers be able mighty and sufficient and ready for the Lords worke either to save or to kill the soule c. How doth the Magistrate come in to help but as if the Lord had no power Defender This is a meere pretence in the mouth pen of the Discusser For he having cut off all the Churches of Christ and all Church Ordinances and Church-weapons from off the face of the earth for these many ages past and I know not for how many yeares yet to come If Civill weapons be debarred from defending Religion upon pretence that Church-weapons are sufficient and and then no Churches nor Church weapons to be found upon the face of the earth then let all Seducers to Apostacy Idolaters Hereticks let them all rejoyce in an open doote of liberty safety which the Discusser hath set wide open before them If Civill States must not and Churches cannot come in to helpe the Lord shall the curse of Meroz be so avoided because the Lord wanteth not power to help himselfe But I might reply further that though spiritual weapons are mighty through God and sufficient to those ends for which the Lord appointed them which are to purge out leaven from their holy communion and to mortify the flesh of offendors yet that is not supersedeas to Civill Magistrates to neglect to punish those sins which the Church hath censured if the persons censured do proceed to subvert the truth of the Gospel or the peace of the Church or the salvation of the people The rest of the Discussers discourse in this chapter are as Jude speaketh clouds without water words without matter CHAP. 46. A Reply to his Chap. 46. Discussing Rom. 13. Discusser This Scripture Rom. 13. which it pleaseth the Answerer to quote how hath both himselfe and many excellent servants of God wrested not as Peter writeth of the wicked to their eternall yet to their owne and others tempor all destruction by civill warres and combustions in the world Defender This charge is a greivous crime if it be truly proved a greivous slaunder if it be not proved The rest of the Chapter proveth it not but that onely which I willingly graunt that this 13th Chapter to the Romans exhorteth unto subjection to Magistrates unto love to all men which are duties partaining to the second Table Howbeit though subjection to Magistrates and love to all men be duties which concerne the second Table a point which needed no proofe yet this inference will not here follow That therefore Magistrates have nothing to doe to punish any violation no not of the weightiest duties of the first Table It is a cleare case amongst the duties of the second Table people may be exhorted to honor their Ministers and children may be exhorted to honor their Parents But will it thence follow that therefore Ministers have nothing to doe with matters of Religion in the Church or parents in the Family CHAP. 47. A Reply to his Chap. 47. Discusser THere be excellent and precious servants of God in their time who have absolutely denyed the 13. of the Rom. to concerne any matter of the first Table Defender I will not stand upon the last use in that Chapter put you on the Lord Jesus Christ which I hope the Discusser himselfe will not deny much lesse say that any Excellent and precious servants of God doe absolutely deny that such a Duty concerneth the first Table But what is it that the servants of God say Discusser Calvin saith this whole Discourse concerneth Civill Magistrates and therefore in vaine doe they who exereise Power over Consciences goe about from this place to establish their sacrilegious Tyranny Defender Calvins Judgement herein as generally in other points is sound and agreeable to the Text but not at all favouring the Discussers Imagination This whole Disputation saith he is of Civill Governments whereupon this inference is according to his owne true meaning and scope therefore it doth nor concerne Church-Government Therefore such Church-Governours as upon pretence of this Text doe make Lawes without the word and besides the word to bind Conscience and to usurp power over Consciences they in vaine goe about to establish their sacrilegious Tyranny from this place But what is this to the point in hand Church-Governours
under them But they all were strangers from the life of God yea most averse and opposite yea cruell and bloudy Persecutors of the Name and followers of Jesus and yet unto these is subjection commanded Now then I argue If Paul had commanded this subjection to Romane Magistrates in spirituall causes to defend the Truth to punish Hereticks neither of which they could discerne nor judge of but by Trust from others as Pilate condemned Jesus he must in the Judgement of all men have put out the eye of Faith and Reason and sense at once Defender Not in the Judgement of all men for besides Calvin and Beza whose Judgement you have heard all those Interpreters who expound this place in the Romans of the Magistrates power in punishing spirituall evill doers as well as corporall they none of them doe so judge that Paul in commanding the Churches to yeild subjection unto civill Magistrates in matters of Religion did put out the Eye of Faith and Reason and sense at once For first it is one thing to yeild subjection to the unrighteous Decrees of Ignorant and Pagan Magistrates another thing to obey their Ordinances in matters of Faith and worship and Government of the Church The former of these Christians did yeild unto the Romane Magistrates even subjection unto the Death the other they neither did nor ought to yeild as knowing God was to be obeyed rather then men Secondly though it be true whilst the Romane Emperours and Magistrates were Pagans and Persecutors they were incompetent Judges to discerne and give Sentence in the spirituall matters of Christian Religion yet the word of Christ who commandeth a Duty commandeth all the necessary meanes which tend to that Duty And therefore in giving them a Power and charge to execute vengeance on evill doers and that in matters of spirituall unrighteousnesse against the Church as in matters of Civill unrighteousnesse against the Common-wealth It behoved them to enquire and listen after true Religion to heare and trie all and upon serious deliberate and just scruting to hold fast that which is good and so prevent the disturbance thereof by the contrary It was no vaine charge of the Holy Ghost Psal 2 10 11 12. If Christ have an Iron Scepter in his hand to crush all States and Kingdomes Emperours and Princes as well as private persons Be wise now therefore ô yee Kings be instructed yee that are Judges of the Earth serve the Lord with feare rejoyce unto him with trembling Kisse the Sonne least he be angry and yee perish in the way Thirdly the cases of Religion wherein we allow Civill Magistrates to be Judges are so fundamentall and palpable that no Magistrate studious of Religion in the feare of God but if he have any spirituall discerning as all truly Christian Magistrates have and even Pagans have discerned between innocent Christians and turbulent Seducers he cannot but judge of such grosse corruptions as are unsufferable in Religion as hath been opened above Though we reserve to the Prophets and Churches Judicium Propheticum as hath been said above yet we allow Judicium Politicum to Civill Magistrates studious of Truth as all ought to be and the Judgement of Discretion unto all Christians But as for such Magigistrates as are meerely naturall and Pagan though Christians be bound to subject themselves unto them with patience yet such Magistrates ought to forbeare the exercise of their Power either in protecting or punishing matters of Religion till they have learned so much knowledge of the Truth as may enable them to discerne of things that differ But this forbearance of theirs is not for want of Authority in their callings nor for want of Duty in their Consciences but for want of evidence to them in the cause In which Case Magistrates are wont to forbeare their exercise of their Power and to respit Judgement even in Civill causes not for want of Authority or Duty to doe Justice But for want of ripe and full cognizance of the Cause CHAP. 49. A Reply to his Chap. 49. Discusser VVHy then did Paul himselfe appeale to Caesar Acts 25. unlesse that Caesar though he was not yet yet he ought to have been a fit Judge in such matters Answ Paul appealed to Caesar not to judge the cause of his Religion but to defend him from civill violence and slanderous accusations about sedition mutiny civill Disobedience c. From which Caesar as a supreme civill Magistrate ought to defend him Defender This appeale of Paul to Caesar doth evidently hold forth three things 1. That there is a lawfull and needfull use of civill Magistracy unto Christians 2. That Church Officers even of highest ranck the Apostles themselves and other Ministers are subject to civill Authority as well as private Christians 3. That Paul did submit to Caesars Judgement-seate the tryall of his innocency as well in matters of Religion as in civill conversation For he pleadeth his innocency that he was guilty in none of those things whereof they did accuse him and for tryall hereof he appealeth to Caesar ver 11. Now the things whereof they did accuse him were offences against the Law of the Jewes and against the Temple as well as against Caesar ver 8. And offences against the Law of the Jewes and against the Temple were matters of Religion And yet even in these Paul appealeth to Caesars Judgement-seat for tryall of his innocency Discusser But if Paul in this Appeale to Caesar had submitted his Religion which was the cause of Christ his Ministery and Ministration to the Romane Emperours Tribunall he had sinned First against the light of Reason Secondly against the cause of Religion Thirdly against the holy Calling of a Christian Fourthly against his owne calling of Apostleship Fifthly against the holy name of God c. Defender All these sinnes might with some colour have been charged upon Paul if he had appealed to Caesar to Judge whether his Religion or Ministery or Ministration were of God or no. But that was no point of his Appeale But whether his Religion or Ministery or Ministration were guilty of any capitall crime against the Law of the Jewes or against the Temple or against Caesar Now in this case Paul might safely appeale to Caesar and that to the Honour of God of his Apostolick and Christian Calling and to the glory of his Religion The Reasons against Pauls Appeale in this case are but bul-rushes CHAP. 50. A Reply to his Chap. 50. Discusser HAving dispatched two Arguments against the founding of the civill Magistrates power in spirituall causes in Rom. 13. First from the Testimony of Calvin and Beza the second from Caesars incompetency and insufficiency to Judge of spirituall matters I come now to the third Argument taken from the nature of the Magistrates weapons he hath a Sword and that Sword is a civill Sword a Sword of civill Justice which being of a materiall and civill nature serveth for the defence of Persons Estates Families Liberties of
a City or civill State and for the suppressing of uncivill and injurious Persons or Actions by civill punishment And therefore this Sword cannot extend now as it did in Israel of old to spirituall and soule causes to spirituall and soule punishments Defender I easily hold with the Discusser that the civill Sword doth not extend to spirituall and soule punishments But if the civill Sword ought to extend to the defence of civill men in civill Liberties then why not also to the like defence of Churches and spirituall persons in their spirituall Liberties It is the Office of the civill Magistrate to governe his people in righteousnesse And if spirituall Liberties be in righteousnesse due to spirituall persons as well as civill Liberties to civill persons doubtlesse the Magistrate is defective in Rules of righteousnesse if he onely attend the defence of the civill people in their civill Rights and neglect to defend his spirituall people in their spirituall Rights What though the Sword be of a materiall and civill nature so it was in the Old Testament as well as in the new It can therefore reach no further either then or now then unto the punishment of men in bodily life or civill Liberties But it can reach to punish in these things not onely the offenders in bodily Life and civill Liberties but also the offendors against spirituall Life and soule Liberties What though it be called a civill Sword in common speech It is not a Scripture-phrase so to call it It may as fitly be called the Sword of God as well as the Sword of warre is so called Judges 7.20 which the Discusser guilefully or else unskilfully distinguisheth in this chapter from the civill Sword Now if the Sword of the Judge or Magistrate be the Sword of the Lord why may it not be drawne forth as well to defend his Subjects in true Religion as in civill Peace And as Magistrates are called in common speech civill Magistrates so are they called also in the Language of the Sanctuary Gods Psal 82.1.6 If civill Magistrates are to attend to civill matters are not Gods to attend to Gods matters It was wont to goe for a good Argument â conjugatis homo sum humani nihil â me alienum puto But now by the Discussers Doctrine the Magistrate may say Ego dignatione Divinâ Deus sum Psal 82. quatenus autem Deus sum Divina omnia â me aliena puto Now farre be all such reasonlesse and Paganish yea worse then Paganish Atheology from us Worse then Paganish I say for Pagan Princes accounted their Religion their chiefe care prima cura sacrorum And can a Christian forbid the care of Religion to Magistrates I say not without blushing but without trembling Object But Magistrates were called Gods in the Old Testament not so in the New Now under Christ all Nations are meerely Civill without any such Typicall holy respect upon them as was upon Israel a Nationall Church Ans It is written in the New Testament the Kingdomes of the world are become the Kingdomes of the Lord and of Christ Rev. 17.15 And if the Kingdomes be Gods Kingdomes and the Kingdomes of Christ then the Kings of those Kingdomes are Gods Kings and Christian Kings and what Title is there in all the New Testament that either derogateth from the Titles or Office of Kings Though the Nations now have not that Typicall holinesse which the Nation of Israel had yet all the Churches of the Saints have as much Truth and reality of holinesse as Israel had And therefore what holy care of Religion lay upon the Kings of Israel in the Old Testament the same lyeth now upon Christian Kings in the New Testament to protect the same in their Churches CHAP. 51. A Reply to his Chap. 51. Discusser A Fourth Argument from this Scripture Rom. 13. I take in ver 6. which is a meerely civill reward for the Magistrates worke Now as the wages be such is the worke but the wages are meerely Civill Custome Tribute not the contributions of the Saints or Churches of Christ c. Defender The Contributions of the Saints and Churches are truly called by the Apostle carnall things Romans 15.27 and againe 2 Cor. 9.11 But shall a man therefore thus reason as the wages be such is the worke But the wages are carnall things therefore such is the worke of the Ministers of the Gospel to whom such wages are paid It is true the contributions of the Saints may be called Holy because they are given to God and by his appointment to the maintenance of such as minister in his house about his holy things But these are mentall relations no reall differances in the thigns given to Magistrates and Ministers The wages given to them both are carnall things And consider them both in their proper ends as the rewards given to Ministers are given for their service about holy things so the rewards given to Magistrates are given for their service about righteous things Now if the Purity of Doctrine worship and Government be righteous priviledges of all the Churches in the Common-wealth surely Magistrates doe not well deserve all their wages that suffer the Churches to be bereaved and dispoyled of their spirituall priviledges which is the greatest and best part of their Birth-right Besides the Apostle commandeth the Churches and Saints not onely to pay to Magistrates Tribute and Custome which are civill things but also to poure out all manner of Prayers and Supplications Intercessions and given of thanks for them 1 Tim. 1.1 2. And surely these are spirituall dues and not Earthly And therefore Magistrates owe to the Churches and Saints some Spirituall recompences which the Apostle also there nameth that we may live a quiet and peaceable Life in all godlinesse and honesty ver 2. If therefore the Churches and Saints be not suffered to live a quiet and peaceable Life in Godlinesse and honesty or if they be suffered to live a quiet and peaceable life in ungodlinesse and dishonesty the Magistrates fall short of returning spirituall recompence for the spirituall Duties and services performed for them Discusser Lastly that the Spirit of God never intended to direct or warrant the Magistrate to use his power in spirituall affaires and Religions I argue from the Terme or Title given by God to such civill Officers to wit Gods Ministers ver 6. Defender One would thinke the Argument would rather evince the contrary For what is a Minister but a Servant and what is a servant but he that is at his Masters command for his efficient cause and for his Masters ends as his finall cause How shall then a Magistrate carrie himselfe as a Minister of God and yet fall short and intended so to doe both of Gods Commandements in his Lawes and of Gods worship and glory in the execution of them Discusser But at the very first blush any man will acknowledge a double Ministery the one appointed by Christ in his Church to order the
Request of the generall Councel of Nice Banished Arius with some of his fellowes Ecclesiast Histor l 1. Cap. 19.20 The same Constantine made a severe Law against the Donatists the like proceedings against them were used by Valentinian Gratian Theodosius as Augustine reporteth in Epist 166. onely Julian the Apostate graunted liberty to Hereticks as well as to Pagans that he might by Tolerating all weeds to grow choake the vitalls of Christianity Which was also the practise and sinne of Ualens the Arian Queene Elizabeth as famous for her government as most of the former It is well knowne what Lawes she made and executed against Papists Yea and King James one of your owne Witnesses though he was slow in proceeding against Papists as you say for Conscience sake yet you are not ignorant how sharply and severely he punished those whom the Malignant world calleth Puritans men of more Conscience better Faith then the Papists whom he Tolerated Discusser First for mine owne part I would not use an Argument from the number of Princes witnessing in profession or practise against persecution for cause of Conscience c. Truth and Faith must not be received with respect of persons pretious pearles are found in muddy shells The most High chooseth the poore of this world to be witnesses to his Truth and Buchanan dying was going thither whether few Kings were comming Defender This Chapter then might have been spared for it neither maintaineth his cause nor refuteth my answer to his friends Argument but yeeldeth up the invalidity of the Argument from such a Topick place As from the number and votes of Princes But by his leave the answer which I gave to his argument is not taken from the like number of Princes but from the greater piety and presence of God with those Princes who have professed and practised against Toleration It is truly said Suffragia non sunt numeranda sed ponderanda Heroicall wisdome magnanimity and zeale is not the lesse to be esteemed because it is found in the spirit and counsel and practise of Princes CHAP. 59. A Reply to his Chap. 62. Discusser Secondly I observe how inconsiderately I hope not willingly the Answerer passeth by the reasons and grounds urged by these three Princes In King James his speech he passeth by that golden Maxime that God never loved to plant his Church by bloud Defender The Discusser is mistaken when he saith I passed over their reasons and grounds inconsiderately though he hopeth not willingly for indeed I passed them over willingly but not inconsiderately For I well considered either the reasons wanted weight or else did not impugne the cause in hand For instance this speech of King James That God never loved to plant his Church by bloud though it be a Truth of weight yet it doth not touch this cause It is farre from us to defend the planting of Churches by bloud that is to compell men to yeeld themselves to the fellowship of the Church by bloudy Lawes or poenalties the Church of Christ admitteth no members but a willing people Psal 110.3 Neverthelesse that hindereth not but as the Church was purchased and planted by the bloud of Christ so he that shall goe about to supplant and destroy the Church of Christ his bloud may justly fall upon his owne head Discusser Secondly That civill obedience may be performed by Papists this was another reason of King James passed over by the Answerer Defender No marvell that I passed it over for I did not finde it in the Letter For though the King say as the Letter reporteth him I onely declared to be secured for civill obedience which for Conscience cause they were bound to performe yet the King doeth not say That civill obedience may be performed by Papists standing stedfast to the rules of their owne Religion For if the Bishop of Rome upon pretence of hereticall pravity shall excommunicate a Protestant Prince dissolve the Subjects Oath of Allegiance to him depose him dispose of his Kingdome In this case which often falleth out how can civill obedience be performed by the Papists Discusser Thirdly The Kings third ground is his observation in Revel 20. That persecution is a true certaine note of a false Church The wicked are Beseigers the faithfull Beseiged Defender I subscribe to the King that persecution properly so called that is the oppression of any for righteousnesse sake is a note of a false Church but nor a certaine note For againe I say that persecution properly so called may be sometime found in the true Church For which of all the Prophets did not the Church of the old Testament persecute Acts 7.52 And yet that persecution was not the true and certaine note of a false Church For then God had left no true Church upon the face of the earth But this I graunt That such persecution where ever it is found It is a degree of falshood and A postacy in that Church But what a vast distance is there between the just censure of Apostasticall and Hereticall seducers and disturbers of the Churches peace and truth and between persecution As for the other speech The wicked are beseigers the faithfull are beseiged It may well be said of the seige spoken of in that 20. of the Revelation But if it should be put for a universall Maxime Royall Authority cannot make it good Divinity When the ten Christian Kings shall hate the Whore of Rome and eate her flesh and burne her with fire Rev. 17.16 I suppose the Discusser will not say the wicked are Beseigers the faithfull are beseiged Discusser In King Stephens speech of Poland he passeth by the true difference between a civill and a spirituall Government I am said Stephen a civill Magistrate over the bodyes of men not a spirituall over their soules Defender King Stephens speech may well stand and the cause still untouched The Magistrate is a Ruler over the Bodies of men not over their soules He cannot command their soules nor binde their Consciences nor punish their spirits It is the Lord alone can reach them That which the King or Magistrate can doe or doeth in this case is to punish the bodyes of men for destroying or disturbing Religion Discusser To confound these is Babel and Jewish to seeke for Moses and bring him from his Grave c. Defender It is Babel indeed for civill Magistrates to make Lawes to binde Conscience and to excommunicate transgressors of those Lawes But to punish false Prophets and Seducers of Gods people to Idolatry was never the practise of Babel but it was and is their practise not onely to Tolerate them but to advance and encourage them If it were a Jewish seeking of Moses and a bringing him from his Grave to punish Seducers for Idolatry then after Moses was buried that Law Deut. 13. was abrogated But his buryall and Gods hiding of the place thereof was rather a confirmation and establishment of it then any Abrogation or Impeachment
of it For may it not justly be conceived That the Lord therefore hid the place of his buriall least the Children of Israel knowing it might goe a whoring after his Sepulchre and it may be offer sweet incense upon it and so such false worship against the law of Moses might come to be Tolerated for honor to the body of Moses But Christ hath abolished a Nationall State or Church which Moses set up in Canaan Though Christ abolished a Nationall Church-State and instead thereof set up a Congregationall Church yet Christ never abolished a Nationall Civill State nor the Judiciall Lawes of Moses which were of Morall equity but established them rather in their place and order He that shed his own bloud to plant his Church did never abolish that Law which enacted that his bloud should be upon him who should supplant his Church If Christs bloud goe to plant it let the false Christs bloud goe for supplanting it Discusser In the King of Bohemias speech the Answerer passeth by that Foundation in grace and Nature that Conscienee ought not to be violated and forced it is a spirituall Rape Defender This was not passed by but prevented in stating the Question where it was said it is not lawfull to censure any no not for error in Fundamentall points of Doctrine or Worship till the Conscience of the offendor be first convinced out of the word of God of the dangerous error of his way and then if he still persist It is not out of Conscience but against his Conscience as the Apostle saith Tit. 3.11 so he is not persecuted for cause of Conscience but punished for sinning against his Conscience Discusser The King observeth that most lamentably true experience of all ages That persecution for cause of Conscience hath ever proved pernicious c. Defender No experience in any age did ever prove it pernicious to punish seducing Apostates after due conviction of the error of their way Wherein did the burning of Servetus prove pernicious to Geneva or the just execution of many popish Preists to Queene Elizabeth or to the english State But the Kings speech may passe if it be meant of persecution properly so called to wit Oppression of the faithfull for the Truths sake yea if it be the punishment of any for error If not Fundamentally pernicious either to Religion or Church-order and that after conviction of Conscience persisted in with obstinacy Discusser Lastly the Kings observation of his owne time that Persecution for cause of Conscience was practised most in England and such places where Popery reigned Implying as I conceive such practises commonly proceed from the great Whore whose Daughters are like their Mother all of a bloudy nature as commonly all wolves be Defender It is no marvell if I passed by this observation in the Kings speech For there is no such observation there to be found If the Discusser had well observed it himselfe he would have found it was not the speech of the King but of the Prisoner And the persecution he speaketh of was not of Antichristians or Hereticks or Idolaters but onely of such as the world nick-named Puritans or the like and of them too without conviction of the error of their way But in that the Discusser maketh England a Daughter of the great Whore and of a bloudy nature like her Mother he speaketh as some other of the rigid Seperation have done before him But I could never yet see awarrant from the rule either of Truth or Love for such a speech Did ever the holy Scripture call any Church an whore that worshipped the true God onely in the Name of Jesus and depended on him alone for righteousnesse and salvation Is it not the part of a base childe or at least a base pare of a childe to call his Mother whore who bred him and bred him to know no other Father but her lawfull Husband the Lord Jesus Christ CHAP. 60. A Reply to his 63. Chap. Discusser NOw Thirdly In that the Answerer observeth that amongst the Romane Emperors they that did not persecute were Julian the Apostate and Valens the Arian Whereas the good Emperors Constantine Gratian Valentian and Theodosius they did persecute the Arians and Donatists Let it be for an Answer It is no new thing for godly and eminently godly men to performe ungodly actions nor for ungodly persons for wicked ends to act what in it selfe is good and righteous c. Defender This may goe for a truth but not for an Answer The Letter would Justifie Toleration of Religion from the judgement and speeches of three Kings I Answered that was no Argument for I could bring him Kings more in number and greater in the sight of God and man who judged it meet not to tolerate Hereticks nor turbulent Schismaticks To this the Discusser Answereth sometimes the Godly doe that which is evill and the wicked that which is good This I say is a Truth but doth not take away my Answer but by a Petitio Principij a begging of the Question That Kings alledged by him did that which was good but the Kings alledged by me though better persons did that which was evill CHAP. 61. A Reply to his Chap. 64. Discusser THe unknowing zeale of Constantine and other Emperors did more hurt to Christ Jesus his Church and Kingdome then the raging fury of the most bloudy Neroes In the persecution of those wicked Emperors Christians were sweet and fragrant like spice pounded in Morters But those good Emperors persecuting some erroneous persons and advancing the Professors of some truthes and maintaining their Religion by the materiall Sword by this meanes Christianity was eclipsed The Professors of it fell asleepe Cant. 5. Babel was usher'd in and by degrees the Churches of the Saints were turned into the Wildernesse of whole Nations Rev. 12.13 untill the whole world became Christian or Christendome Those good Emperors intending to exalt Christ but not attending to the command of Christ Jesus to permit the Tares to grow in the Field of the world they made the Garden of the Church and Field of the world all one c. Defender If the unknowing zeale of Constantine other Christian Emperors did more hurâ— to the Church then the raging fury of bloudy Neroes It was not because the raging fury of those Persecutors was more accepted of God then this unknowing zeale of the good Emperors For though the unknowing zeale of the one was finfull yet it was the friut of humane frialty Error Amoris But the rage of the others was divelish fury Amor Erroris Besides the unknowing zeale of the good Emperors lay not in punishing notorious Hereticall Seducers nor will the Discusser be ever able to shew that the Church of Christ suffered any hurt at all by that meanes The contrary is evident Constantius and Valens by Tolerating and favoring the Arians the whole world became Arian Ingemuit orbis Christianus et miratus est factum se esse Arianum
Prophets and seducing Teachers doe bring downe showers of Gods blessings upon the civill State 1 Kings 18.40 41. Fifthly it is an honour to Gods Justice that such Judgements are executed Rev. 16.5 6 7. Discusser But such Executions in Queen Elizabeths dayes had raysed almost all Europe in combustion the warres of 88. the Spanish Invasion had speciall respect to this And had not the Lord borne witnesse to his owne Law and to his people herein by defeating the Intendments of their Enemies it might have been the ruine both of England and the Netherlands which are the words of Mr. Cotton himselfe on the third Viall Defender The words Answer for themselves The Devill and his Instruments raged against such Lawes and such Executions but God bare witnesse to both by mightily defeating the Invasions and Conspiracies of Enemies Discusser It is no Argument that God bare witnesse to his people in such Deliverancies and Victories For 1. Events and Successes come alike to all and are no Arguments of Love or Hatred Defender Events and successes are indeed no Arguments of a mans spirituall Estate of the Love or hatred of God to a mans person in which sense Solomon speaketh Eccles 9.1 2. But otherwise they are ordinary witnesses good Events of a good cause if it be well handled ill events of an ill cause or at least of the ill handling of a good cause Psal 1.3 4. Jer. 22.15 16 17. Discusser Secondly Papists in their warres have ever yet had both in Peace and warre victory and Dominion And therefore if successe be the measure God hath borne witnesse to them as in the Warres between Charles the fift and some Germane Princes where the successe was various between Philip of Spaine and the Low-Countries the King of France and his Protestant Subjects sometimes winning sometimes loosing But most memorable is the History of the Waldenses who fought many Battles against three succeeding Popes with various successe But the finall successe and Victory fell to the Popedome and Romish Church in the utter extirpation of those Waldensian witnesses Defender Reply 1. I will not inquire of the meaning of the words how the Papists in their warres have had both in Peace and Warre Victory and Dominion But this I cannot excuse from contradiction that the Papists in their Warres ever had the Victory and yet have often fought with various successe sometime winning sometime loosing Nor can I tell how it standeth with Truth that Papists in their Warres ever had the Victory since Queen Elizabeth ever had the Victory over them Reply 2. Though Papists have fought with various Successe it is Gods manner to nurture his people with some crosses that they might at length learne to fight not in their owne strength but in the Lords Reply 3. The story is evident that the Waldenses never lost Battell but when they complyed with the Papists and trusted more in their false pretences then in the Lord. Neither is it true that the finall successe ef the Victory fell to the Romish Church to the utter extirpation of those Waldensian witnesses For it never came to an utter Extirpation of them but only to a dispersion into sundry Countries of Europe as Bishop Vsher sheweth in the last words of his Booke De successione Christianarum Ecclesiarum But dispersion is one thing utter exterpation is anoother Seed is dispersed and the more multiplyed but exterpation tendeth to withering and destruction Certaine it is the Waldenses long after those warres and that dispersion wrote Letters to Luther and Calvin which are extant to this day Discusser It is most true what Daniel in his 8.11 and 12. Chapters and John Rev. 11 12 and 13. Chapters write of the great successe of Antichrist against Christ Jesus for a time appointed Defender Not against Christ Jesus for who ever warred against him and prevailed Job 9.4 But true it is against his servants Antichrist prevailed for a time appointed but it was when either the Saints suffered for the Truth and then the Saints were the true Conquerours or else when they complyed with the corruptions of the times and then though their cause was good yet they handled it ill Discusser Gods servants are all Conquerours when they warre with Gods weapons in Gods cause and worship as in Rev. 2. and 3. Chapters and in Rev. 12. they overcome the Dragon in the Romane Emperours by three weapons the bloud of the Lamb the word of their Testimony and not loving their lives unto the death Defender It is true those are the weapons of the Ministers of the Gospel and those are also the weapons of private Christians but if the Magistrate be the Minister of God in bearing his sword then the Sword also is a weapon of God which when it is drawne out in Gods cause and worship according to God with confidence not in the arme of flesh but in the Lord of Hosts it goeth forth Conquering to conquer Rev. 17.14 with Rev. 19.14.19 20. Gideons Sword was the Sword of the Lord Judg. 7.20 CHAP. 65. A Reply to his Chap. 68. Discussing the Testimonies alledged from Ancient and later writers and first that of Hilary Discusser THe last Head of Arguments produced by the Author against persecution was from the Judgement of Antient and later Writers to some of which the Answerer pleaseth to answer Defender Some of which as if any of them were omitted or as if all of them were not answered compare the Prisoners Letter and my Answer together and see if I have balked any one of them Discusser If it be a marke of the Christian Church to be persecuted and of the Antichristian or false Church to persecute then the Churches cannot be truly Christian according to the first Institution which either actually themselves or by the civill Power of Kings and Princes given to them or procured by them to fight for them doe persecute such as discent from them or be opposite against them Defender I say againe if persecution be properly taken for the punishment of the Innocent for Truth or Righteousnesse sake it ought not to be found in a Christian Church but is usually found in a false and Antichristian Church but I cannot as the Discusser doth make it a marke of the Christian Church to be persecuted and a marke of a false Church to persecute For a Marke is such a signe as belongeth omni soli semper as a marke of the Church must agree to every Church and at all times to the Church and onely to the Church But to be persecuted is not found in every true Church at least not at all times For after the conversion of Paul unto the Faith of Christ the Churches had rest throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria Acts 9.31 shall we say they were then no true Christian Churches because they wanted this marke of the Church to be persecuted Againe wee read that after the destruction of Antichrist the Churches of the Saints shall have rest
the Colledge that he might be trained up to knowledge for the help of his Country-men But no violent course taken with them at all to constraine them to the Faith or Profession of Christianity The time is hastning we hope when all the vials of Gods wrath will be poured out on the Antichristian State and then we looke for the fulnesse of the Gentiles to come in and with the Jewes multitudes of Pagans But till the seven plagues of the seven Angels be fulfilled wee cannot easily hope for the entrance of 〈◊〉 New multitudes of men into the Church according to the word of the Lord Rev. 15.8 No man that is no man out of the Temple no Pagan was able to enter into the Temple till the seven plagues of the seven Angels were fulfilled But to returne to our Discusser he speaketh at randome when he intimateth that we walke not by Rule but partially as if we permitted not the like liberty of worship to our Country-men nor to the French Dutch Spanish Persians Turkes Jewes which wee doe to the Indians For we Neither constraine them to worship God with us nor restraine them from worshipping God in their owne way Persians Turkes and Jewes come not amongst us those of other Nations of Europe when they doe come amongst us their manner of Worship is not taken notice of amongst us Our Country-men worship God with us for the most part if some of them come not to our Assemblies by reason of the distance of their dwellings from us they have Liberty of publick prayer and preaching of the word a-amongst themselves by such as themselves choose without disturbance Discusser The Answerer addeth a further Answer to Tertullian for whereas Tertullian had said that one mans Religion doth neither hurt nor profit another the Answerer saith it must be understood of private Worship or of Religion professed in private Otherwise a false Religion professed in publick by the Members of the Church or by such as have given their Names to Christ will be the ruine and Desolation of the Churches Rev. 2. Whereto I Answer 1. Those that are Members of the Church and those that have given their names to Christ are all one the distinction therefore is unsound Defender The Discusser must excuse me though I doe not take them for all one For men of yeares must give up their names to Christ before they can be received Members into the Church as is evident Isaiah 56.6 7. Therefore they are not all one the one precedeth the other Discusser I answer secondly that Tertullian doth not there speake of private but of publick worship and Religion Defender Tertullians speech may possibly be meant of either publick or private But as I said to make the speech true it must either be understood of private or if of publick profession of Religion it must be understood not of Christian but of Pagan and of Pagan during the time of Gods Patience and their ignorance But after God revealed the Truth of the Gospel-Religion to them it was not safe to continue a publick Profession of Pagan-Religion for after the White-Horse hath revealed the Gospel a Red and Black and pale-horse follow to avenge the rejection of it upon the Romane-Pagan-Empire Revel 6.2 to 8. Discusser I answer thirdly although it be true in a Church of Christ that a false Religion or Worship permitted will doe hurt according to those Threats of Christ Rev. 2. yet in two cases I beleive a false Religion will not hurt which is most like to have been Tertullians meaning 1. A false Religion out of the Church will not hurt the Church no more then weeds in the Wildernesse will hurt the inclosed Gardens nor poyson hurt the body when it is not touched or taken yea and Antidotes are received against it 2. A false Religion and worship will not hurt a Civill State in case the worshippers breake no civill Law And the Answerer elsewhere acknowledgeth that the civill Peace is not broken where the civill Lawes are not broken And this onely is the point in Question Defender If this onely be the point in Question where then lyeth the controversie for if I say as the Discusser saith I doe that the Civill Peace is not broken when the Civill Law is not broken and if a false Religion or worship doe not hurt the civill State unlesse the Worshippers breake some civill Law then where lyeth the pinch of the controversie But I would not have the Discusser mistake himselfe I doe not remember that I have any where said that the civill Peace is not broken where the civill Law is not broken He saith I say so elsewhere If he meane that I say so in the Modell drawn up by my Brethren the Elders of those Churches he wrongeth and polluteth himselfe much Crimine falsi when he saith that Mr. Cotton with the rest of the Ministers of New-England composed that Modell of Church and civill power It is no new thing with him to say I did that which I did not that Modell was drawen up by some other fellow-Brethren but not by me There is a Truth in the speech which they speak rightly understood but not as the Discusser here taketh it For first what if no civill Law be made for the establishment of Religion nor against the violation of the Fundamentalls of it this very defect of so needfull a Law may bring the wrath of God upon the civill State as did the defect of a King in Israel Judg. 21.25 Againe secondly there may be a Law made for the establishing of true Religion and it though it be violated yet the Discusser will say no civill Law is violated because no Law concerning the second Table is violated But that is his mistake to thinke the civill Lawes concerne onely the outward Estate of the People and not their Religion That is a civill Law whatsoever concerneth the good of the City and the propulsing of the contrary Now Religion is the best good of the City and therefore Lawes about Religion are truly called civill Lawes enacted by civill Authority about the best good of the City for the promoting and preserving of that good of the City But having thus spoken to his second case first wherein he saith a false Religion will not hurt a civill State I come now to his first which was that a false Religion will not hurt if it be out of the Church no more then weeds in the wildernesse will hurt the inclosed Garden But what if the Garden be inclosed in the midst of a wildernesse what if the weeds grow so neere the inclosure or hedge round about the Garden that they easily creep into the Garden what if every blast of wind blow the seeds of the weeds into the Garden which are ready to overspread the Garden and to choak the good herbes The Discusser will say they that keep and dresse the Garden should weed them out True so they ought to their best endeavour But
to the soules and Consciences of men Secondly that the Church of Christ doth not use the Arme of secular power to compell men to the true profession of the Truth For this is to be done with spirituall weapons whereby Christians are to be exhorted and compelled But this saith he hindereth not That Christians sinning against the Light of Faith and Conscience may justly be censured of the Church by Excommunication and of the civill Magistrate also in case they shall corrupt others to the perdition of their soules This Joynt-confession of the Answerer with Luther to wit that the Government of the civill Magistrate extendeth no further then over the bodyes and goods of their Subjects not over their soules who seeth not that hereby is given a cleare Testimony that either the spirituall and Church Estate the preaching of the word Baptisme Ministery Government thereof belongeth to the civill body of the Common-wealth that is to the bodies and goods of men which seemeth monstrous to Imagine or else that the civill Magistrate cannot without exceeding the bounds of his Office meddle with those spirituall Affaires Defender A man that is willing to open his eyes may easily see that though the Government of the civill Magistrate doe extend no further then over the bodies and goods of his Subjects yet he may and ought to improve that power over their bodies and goods to the good of their soules yea and by promoting the good of their soules he may much advance the good of their outward man also The bodies and goods and outward Estates of men may expect a blessing when their soules prosper Though God may keep his Saints low in outward Estate that grow fastest in Godlinesse yet sure Godlinesse hath the Promises of this life and of a better 1 Tim. 4.8 And such as first seeke the Kingdome of God may expect all these outward things to be cast in upon them If it seeme a monstrous thing in the eyes of the Discusser to imagine that the good Estate of the Church and the well-ordering of the Ordinances of God therein should concerne the civill good of the Common-wealth it may well seeme monstrous to him to imagine that the flourishing of Religion is the flourishing of the civill State and the decay of Religion is the decay and ruine of the civill State But such Virgine soules as follow the Lamb wheresoever he goeth Rev. 14.4 would be loath to goe to live in such a Common-wealth to whom it should seeme monstrous that the things of God should belong to them And therefore the Magistrate need not to feare that he should exceed the bounds of his Office if he should meddle with the spirituall affaires of the Church in Gods way It is true if he shall meddle with the execution of a Ministers Office as Vzziah did or if he shall set up humane Inventions in Doctrine Worship Government in stead of Christs Institutions as David brought the Arke of God upon Oxen instead of the shoulders of the Levites Or if he shall thrust in Jeroboams Priests upon the Church and cast out faithfull Ministers or if he shall make Lawes to bind Conscience in all these or any such Like he exceedeth the bounds of his Office But if he shall diligently seeke after the Lord and read in the word of the Lord all the dayes of his life Deut. 17.19 that he may both live as a Christian and rule as a Christian if he shall seeke to establish and advance the Kingdome of Christ more then his owne If he shall incourage the good in a Christian course and discourage such as have evill will to Sion and punish none for matter of Religion but such as subvert the Principles of saving Truth which no good Christian much lesse good Magistrate can be ignorant of or at least such as disturbe the Order of the Gospel in a turbulent way verily the Lord will build up and establish the House and Kingdome of such Princes as doe thus build up his Discusser Againe necessarily it must follow that these two are contradictory to themselves which yet both of them are Mr. Cottons Positions the Magistrates Power extends no further then to the bodyes and goods of the Subject and yet The Magistrate must punish Christians for sinning against the Light of Faith and Conscience and for corrupting the soules of men Defender If the Christian Faith and a good Conscience be a part and a great part a chiefe part of the good of Christians then these two are so farre from contradicting one another that they establish one another For if a Magistrates power extend to the preserving of the Goods of the Subject and to the punishment of the Impeachers or purloyners thereof then he falleth short of his duty if he suffer their Faith and good Conscience to be corrupted or dispoyled without revenge Againe this I say further which also will easily avoyde appearance of Contradiction suppose by Goods were meant onely outward Goods and that the Magistrates power extended no further then the bodies and goods of the Subjects yet though he have no power over Faith and Conscience he hath neverthelesse lawfull power to punish such evill doers in their Bodies and goods as doe seduce his people to make shipwrack of Faith and a good Conscience For in seeking Gods Kingdome and Righteousnesse men prosper in their outward Estates Matth. 6.33 otherwayes they decay Besides I doe not remember that this Proposition is any of mine which yet the Discusser fastneth upon me that the Magistrates power extendeth no further then the bodies and Goods of his Subjects I doe not deny the Truth of it rightly understood but it seemeth to me somewhat too loose and confused for me to owne it as mine own For the Magistrates power may be said to extend no further then the bodyes and Goods of his Subjects either as the Subject of his power or as the end of his power If Goods be meant outward Goods and the Magistrates power be said to extend no further then to the body and Goods of his Subjects as to the Object of his power the Position is true But if it be meant of the end of his power as if a Magistrates power reached no further then to the preservation of their bodyes and outward Goods it is false For the Adequate end of the Magistrates power is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 benè administrare Rempublicam well to governe the Common-wealth Now can it be well with a Common-wealth that liveth in bodily health and worldly wealth but yet without Church without Christ without God in the world But though God for a time may preserve a civill State in health and wealth through his Patience and bounty especially till meanes of Grace be offered to them yet after meanes of Grace be offered they cannot long expect bodily health or wealth to be continued to them if they neglect or despise or depart from so great salvation Witnesse the Romane Empire which though it
abounded in worldly blessings till the Lord Jesus came riding forth amongst them upon a White Horse of the Gospel of his Grace yet after they neglected so great Salvation then followed a Red Horse of Warre and a black Horse of Famine and a Pale Horse of Pestilence and other Judgements which much impeached both the health and wealth of that State and would have ruined it had it not cast away her Idolls and advanced the Scepter of the Lord Jesus Now the God of all Grace be pleased at length to shake the heart of this Discusser that he may not thus delight to seduce himselfe and others against the Light of Grace and Conscience against Reason and Experience Discusser Againe in the Answerers Joynt-confession with Luther that the Church doth not use the secular power to compell men to the Faith and Profession of the Truth he condemneth as before I have observed 1. His former implication that they may be compelled when they are convinced of the Truth of it Defender This implication where it was formerly observed it hath been formerly cleared from implication of Contradiction I have never said that after men be convinced of the Truth they may be compelled to the Profession of it by any penalties but onely by withdrawing such favours as are not comely or safe for faithlesse persons Discusser 2. He condemneth their owne Practise who suffer no man of any different Conscience and worship to live in their Jurisdiction unlesse he depart from the Exercise of his owne Religion and worship differing from that allowed of in their civill Estate yea and also actually submit to come to their Church Defender This charge of the Discusser let him consider if it be not contradictory to his owne Relation chap. 60. where he saith wee permit and tolerate the Indians in their Paganish worship which wee might restraine Yet here he saith we suffer no man of any different Conscience or worship to live in our Jurisdiction Neither is it true that we suffer no man of any different Conscience or worship to live in our Jurisdiction For not to speake of Presbyterians who doe not onely live amongst us but exercise their publick Ministry without disturbance there be Anabaptists and Antinomians tolerated to live not onely in our Jurisdictions but even in some of our Churches Yea saith the Discusser but they must actually submit to come to our Church I cannot say nor doe I beleive that any man is compelled to come to our Church against his Conscience Nay we are so farre from that and that the Discusser is not ignorant of that our Churches doe not expostulate with our Members who heare in England no not then when there was more difference from us in manner of worship then through the mercy of God now there is The which the Discusser himselfe hath declared to have been no little Offence unto himselfe Which maketh me the more to marvell that he should now charge it upon us that we compell all to come to heare in our Churches against their Consciences when he is wont to be offended that we suffer them to heare in any true Church though polluted according to their Consciences Discusser Howsoever they cover the matter with this varnish that none are compelled further unto their Churches then unto the hearing of the word unto which all men are bound yet it will appeare that Teaching and being taught in a Church Estate is a Church-worship as true-and proper a Church-worship as is the Supper of the Lord Acts 2.46 I cannot call to mind that either upon that colour or any other any man in this Country was ever compelled to heare the word of God in any of our Churches in this Country But there is indeed some colour for the varnish he speaketh of but not that which he pretendeth our compulsion of any man for to heare but a controversie with himselfe upon another occasion as I remember The Discusser sometimes endeavoured to draw away the Church of Salem whereof he was sometime Teacher from holding Communion with all the Churches in the Bay because wee tolerated our Members to heare the word in the Parishes of England Wee to satisfie him in that held forth that which here he calleth a varnish that hearing was a common Duty lying upon all men where the word of God was truly taught He replyed as he doth now that Teaching and hearing in a Church-Estate is Church worship Acts 2.46 To which we gave Answer as now againe That though Teaching and being taught in a Church-Estate be Church-worship according to Acts 2.46 yet it is not a Church-worship but to such as are in a Church-Estate To all it is an holy Ordinance of Gods worship and a Christian Duty And though Teaching and hearing doth imply a Relation yet not a Church-relation There is a relation between a Teacher and a Learner in any Art or Knowledge and there may be a nearer relation between a Preacher and an Hearer in case the Hearer be begotten to God by such a Sermon even the same relation as is between a spirituall Father and Sonne but this doth not amount to Church-relation and Communion till there passe some mutuall profession of Covenant explicit or implicit between them A Pagan Infidell may come into a Christian Church-Assembly to heare the word and may be convinced and converted by it as suppose he in Corinth 1 Corinthians 14.24 25. yet is he not therefore joyned in Church-Estate and Fellowship with them without profession of acknowledgement and acceptance Discusser Secondly all persons Papist and Protestant that are Conscientious have alwayes suffered upon this ground especially that they have refused to come to each others Church or meeting Defender It is too large an Hyperbole to affirme that all persons that are Conscientious whether Papist or Protestant have alwayes suffered upon this ground Are no men conscientious but such as have suffered upon this ground are there not many that were never put upon this Tryall and are not many conscientious that never scrupled this point and are there not many conscientious that have suffered upon other points that never suffered upon this point Besides though many conscientious Protestants and Papists doe refuse to heare in each others Assembly or Church it is not because such hearing doth implant them into their Church-State but out of feare to be leavened with their corrupt Doctrine or polluted with some other part of false worship CHAP. 71. A Reply to his Chap. 74. Touching the Testimony of the Papists against Persecution Discusser AS for the Testimony of the Popish Booke saith the Answerer wee veigh it not as knowing what ever they speake for toleration of Religion where themselves are under Hatches yet when themselves come to sit at Sterne they Judge and practise quite contrary as both their writings and judiciall proceedings have testified to the world these many yeares But for Answer to him though both their writings and practises have been such yet the
for these are the dayes of vengeance when the Antinomians deny the whole Law the Anti-Sabbatarians deny the Morality of the fourth Commandement the Papists deny the Negative part of the second Commandement It is a wofull opportunitie that God hath left Mr. Williams to now to step in and deny the Affirmative part of it also as the Papists doe the Negative and so He and the Papists to combine together to evacuate the whole second Commandement altogether For take away as Mr. Williams doth all Instituted worship of God as Churches Pastors Teachers Elders Deacons Members publick Ministery of the Word Covenant Seales of the Covenant Baptisme and the Lords Supper the Censures of the Church and the like what is then left of all the Institutions and Ordinances of God which the Lord established in the second Commandement against the Institutions Images and Inventions of men in his worship But it is an holy wisdome and righteousnesse of the Lord that he that refuseth the Communion with the Churches of the Saints should joyne in communion with the enemies of the Saints even Antichristians and that in such a worke as to blot out and extinguish that holy second Commandement of the Law The violating whereof kindleth the jealousie of the most High and the observation thereof would have opened a doore of mercy to a thousand Generations It is no vaine word of our Saviour He that shall breake one of the least Commandements and shall Teach men so to doe he shall be called the least in the kingdome of Heaven This advice would I shut up this Point withall if I had any hope of an open eare in him to heare it he that separateth from all Churches and all Ordinances let him at last separate also from himselfe and so he shall then be better able to discerne the way to returne againe unto holy Communion with the Lord and his people Let me conclude this Preface with this Advertisement to the Reader who may perhaps marvell that I now so much against my usuall custome should lay open the nakednesse of another to publick view I blesse the Lord I am not ignorant That love covereth a multitude of offences and that the Disciples of Christ when they are reviled are taught to Blesse And therefore were the case meerely mine own and all the reproaches and slanders cast upon my selfe had terminated in my selfe I should have been as a deafe man and as a dumb man that openeth not his lips But when through my sides not onely so many Elders and Churches in this Countrey who had as much or more influence into his sufferings as my selfe and yet none of us any further influence then by private and publick conviction of himselfe and of the demerit of his way yea when Courts of Justice suffer for Justice sake yea further when the Truth and Righteousnesse of God also suffer for inflicting just recompence of reward upon the disturbers of Civill and sacred Truth and Peace and under pretence of maintaining Liberty of Conscience Purity of Conscience is violated and destroyed In such a case as this just it is and equall rather that the name of an evill-worker should justly suffer then that the name of God called upon Judgement seats upon the Churches of Christ and upon the Ministers of the Gospel should unjustly suffer for his sake To his CHAP. I. MY Letter to Mr. Williams which he undertaketh to Examine and Answer began it seemeth with this Compellation of him Beloved in Christ For I considered he had been not onely a member but an Officer of the Church at Salem and though from thence he was then Excommunicate yet I took the Apostles Commandement for a Rule Account him not as an enemy but Admonish him as a Brother 2 Thes 3.14 If a Brother of the Church though cast out of the Church yet not cast out of Christ then in Christ at least in judgement of charity And if in Christ though but in judgement of charity yet in charity to be Beloved But saith Mr. Williams how can it be well-pleasing to Christ that one beloved in Christ should be so afflicted and persecuted by himselfe and others for such causes as to be denyed the common ayre to breath in and a civill cohabitation upon the same common earth yea and also without mercy and humane compassion be exposed to winter miseries in an howling Wildernesse Answ If Mr. Williams may be Judge in his own cause himselfe hath been persecuted without mercy and without humane compassion And which the more concerneth my selfe to enquire into he hath been so persecuted by me and some others but chiefly it should seeme by me for I onely am charged herewith by name and those others who ever they were are not so much as described much lesse expresly named But such Priests and Persons as be thus partiall in the Law the Holy Ghost threatneth to make them base and contemptible in the eyes of all the People Mal. 2.9 Which the Lord give him to foresee and feare that he may timely prevent such a Judgement But to weigh his words particularly Persecution is the affliction of another for Righteousnesse sake Now two things it will be requisite for Mr. Williams to prove to make good his charge 1. That the cause for which he suffered was a cause of Righteousnesse 2. That he suffered this Persecution which he complaineth of by me And to make this latter charge good in such manner as he layeth it upon me it were further requisite that he should prove two things more 1. That my selfe was the principall mover and actor in this his Persecution for I onely am singled out by name 2. That this hath been evidenced to him by two or three witnesses at least if he account me for an Elder of a Church 1 Tim. 5.19 But whether he account me for an Elder or no Elder I claime no priviledge of Office yet I require attendance to an eternall Law of morall Righteousnesse One witnesse shall not rise up against a man for any Iniquity or for any sinne at the mouth of two witnesses or at the mouth of three witnesses shall every word be established Deut. 15.15 But on the contrary if it doe appeare that the cause for which he suffered was not for Righteousnesse sake and that the affliction which he did suffer was not put upon him by me at all much lesse in any eminent and singular manner then it will behoove Mr. Williams in Conscience to understand that himselfe is the Persecutor as of other servants of God so of my selfe especially For it is a case judged by the Holy Ghost that he who mocketh or reproacheth any of the least of Christs little ones for walking in his way he is a Persecutor Gal. 4.29 It hath been the lot of the faithfull of old to be tryed by cruell mockings Heb. 11.36 If a man be publickly accused to the world as a Persecutor in case the accusation be proved true Persecution is a
is lovingly and respectively sent for and to convince them of the errour of their way before the Lord and to seek to bring them back againe to the Bishop and Shepheard of their soules Sure I am that in a case of greater defection of the Churches of Galatia then Mr. Williams imagined was found in the Church of Salem Paul did not reject them but professed I desire saith he to be present with you now and to change my voyce for I stand in doubt of you Gal. 4.20 Mr. Williams acknowledgeth in the next Paragraph That the Church of Colosse might say to Archippus Take heed to thy Ministery and that Archippus might negligently and proudly refuse to hearken to them but for his case his faithfulnesse and uprightnesse to God and the soules of the people will witnesse for him when his soule shall come to Hezekiahs case on his death-bed and in the great day approaching I do not know but that Archippus might as justly refuse to hearken to the Church of Colosse as Mr. Williams to the Church of Salem What though Colosse was more eminent in gifts then Salem yet the mutuall power and subjection of Pastor and people dependeth not upon eminency of gifts but upon the Institution of Christ and their mutuall Covenant and Relation If it had been a negligent and proud part in Archippus as Mr. Williams confesseth to refuse to hearken to the lawfull voyce of the Church of Colosse admonishing him of his slacknesse in his Ministery I know not but it might be such a like part in Mr. Williams to refuse to hearken to the voyce of the Church of Salem admonishing him to take heed of deserting his Ministery Whether is a greater sinne in a Minister not to fulfill his Ministery or to desert his Ministery Neither doe I know but that Archippus might have pretended the like evasions with Mr. Williams if not fairer For he might plead there were amongst them such as spoyled them through Philosophy and vaine deceit after the Traditions of men and Rudiments of the world and not after Christ Col. 2.8 that beguiled them also in a voluntary humilitie and worship of Angels not holding the Head ver 18 19. Yea so farre that themselves come to be dogmatized with the Traditions of men ver 20 21 22. And why might not then Archippus as justly refuse to heare the Church of Colosse as Mr. Williams refuse to heare the Church of Salem Let not Mr. Williams please himselfe in suiting his faithfulnesse and uprightnesse to Hezekiahs case Hezekiah faithfully and uprightly endeavoured and through grace procured the reformation of the Apostate Church of Hierusalem in the dayes of his Father Ahaz But Mr. Williams in stead of reforming one Church renounceth all For his neglect of hearkening to the second voyce the voyce and testimony of so many Elders and Brethren of other Churches He saith because he truely esteemeth the Persons he will not answer the Argument of numbers and multitudes against one as our men are wont to answer the Popish universalitie that God stirreth up sometimes one Elijah against eight hundred of Baals Priests c. But this he saith that David himselfe and the Princes of Israel and 30000. of Israel carrying up the Arke were not to be hearkened unto in their holy intentions of rejoycings and triumphs when the due order of the Lord was wanting to them In which case one Scripture in the mouth of a Mechanick is to be preferred before a whole Councell Answ I will not here observe as Mr. Williams doth in a like case in Chap. 38. of his Bloudy Tenent his hast and light attention to the Scriptures which himselfe alledgeth The Text speaketh but of 450. of Baals Priests 1 Kings 18.19 Now for him to multiply them to 800 is to fetch in also the Prophets of the Groves the Prophets of Jeroboams Calves whom the Text expresly distinguisheth from the Prophets of Baal But to let that passe as not materiall to the Argument no more then the misquotation which he observeth of Titus for Timothy we will not reply as the Papists doe against single witnesses let him call for fire from Heaven as Eliah did and we will submit the testimonies of many to one single witnesse No we call not for Miracles at his hand but let him produce one testimony of holy Scripture rightly understood and applyed against the advice and voyce of those Elders and Brethren and then though he be but one yea though that one were but a Mechanick too we shall gratifie his demand and by the Grace of Christ be ready rather to hearken to him then require that he should hearken to us Meane while we answer him as the Apostle did to the Corinthians 1 Cor. 14.36 What came the word of God out from you or came it unto you onely It is true David and the Princes and the 30000. of Israel were not to be hearkened unto nor followed in their disorderly carrying of the Arke because the word of the Lord had given expresse order to the contrary requiring that the Kohathites should beare the Arke upon their shoulders and not touch it least they dye Num. 4.15 Let him shew us the like order violated by us and we shall freely excuse him yea and justifie him in not hearkening to us nor following of us But suppose some one Prophet or Brother of Israel had discerned the disorder of David and of the whole Congregation of the 30000. of Israel and had therefore not onely refused to follow them but had proceeded further as many of Christs Disciples did with him Joh. 6.66 to goe back from them with an utter Apostasie and to walke no more with them no not though they were willing to reforme their disorder if any were made knowne to them Would Perez Vzzah have justified that Or did that disorder of David and of that Congregation of Israel dischurch them all from fellowship with God or discharge their Brethren from having any fellowship with them as with the Church of God TO CHAP. III. HIs third Chapter is taken up in answering to a Phrase in my Letter in which I had said I endeavoured to shew him the sandinesse of those grounds upon which he had banished himselfe from the fellowship of all the Churches in this Countrey The summe of his Answer is That his grounds were the firme rocke of the Truth of Jesus and that my endeavours to prove them sandy are but the weake and uncertain sand of mans Invention which shall therefore perish and burne like hay or stubble And the Rocky strength of his grounds shall appeare in the Lords season and that my selfe also may yet confesse so much as I have since I came to New-England confest the sandinesse of the grounds of many of my Practises in Old England and the rockinesse of their grounds that witnessed against me and them for Instance that himselfe had discovered to me and other servants of God his grounds against the use of the
there as Legall would he count it a mercy to be pluckt up by the rootes him and his and to endure the losses distractions miseries that doe attend such a condition Reply The Examiner is falsly and foully mis-informed when he saith I was about to separate some few yeares since from the new English Churches as Legall For I never counted them as Legall Churches nor was I ever about to separate from them as Legall or otherwise so uncleane that a good conscience might not hold communion with them without sinne The truth is There was a Generation of Familists in our own and other Townes who under pretence of holding forth what I had taught touching union with Christ and evidencing of that union did secretly vent sundry corrupt and dangerous errors and heresies denying all inherent righteousnesse and all evidencing of a good estate thereby in any sort and some of them denying also the Immortalitie of the soule and Resurrection of the body When they were questioned by some Brethren about those things they carried it as if they held forth nothing but what they had received from me Whereof when I was advertised to cleare my selfe I publickly Preached against these errors Then said the Brethren to the erring party See your Teacher declares himselfe clearely to differ from you No matter say the other what he saith in publick we understand him otherwise and we know what he saith to us in private Yea and I my selfe could not easily beleeve that those erring Brethren and Sisters were so corrupt in their Judgements as they were reported they seeming to me forward Christians and utterly denying unto me any such Tenents or any thing else but what they received from my selfe All which bred in sundry of the Countrey a jealousie that I was in secret a Fomenter of the Spirit of Familisme if not leavened my selfe that way Which I discerning it wrought in me thoughts as it did in many other sincerely godly Brethren of our Church not of a Separation from the Churches as Legall whom we truely embraced and honoured in the Lord but of a Remoovall to New Haven as being better knowne to the Pastor and some others there then to such as were at that time jealous of me here The true Ground whereof was an inward loathnesse to be troublesome to godly mindes and a feare of the unprofitablenesse of my Ministery there where my way was suspected to be doubtfull and dangerous I chose therefore rather to meditate a silent departure in Peace then by tarrying here to make way for the breaking forth of Temptations But when at the Synod I had discovered the corruption of the Judgement of the erring Brethren and saw their fraudulent pretence of holding forth no other but what they received from me when as indeed they pleaded for grosse errors contrary to my judgement and thereupon bare witnesse against them and when in a private conference with some chiefe Magistrates and Elders I perceived that my purpose of removall upon such differences was unwelcome to them and that such Points needed not to occasion any distance neither in place nor in heart amongst Brethren I then rested satisfied in my abode amongst them and so have continued by the Grace of Christ unto this day But now to returne to Mr. Williams his Question In the time of this Difference would I count it saith he a mercy to be pluckt up by the rovtes me and mine and to endure the losses distractions and miseries that doe attend such a condition Answ Yea truely if those jealousies and differences had still held I should have accounted it and then did account it a mercy to see a doore open for remoovall And therefore in my heart chose it and purposed it as a way of wisdome and mercy But whereas he talketh of plucking up by the rootes the Metaphor is too Catachresticall An old Tree pluckt up by the rootes is not like to grow againe but neither he nor I was exposed to such an Eradication we might have remooved with our selves whatsoever mooveables we had and what we could not remoove we might put it off sooner or later unto others for a valuable consideration So that though wee had been plucked up by the rootes our rootes had not been dried up but would have sprung forth againe to our comfortable supportance It is a question altogether impertinent which the Examiner putteth in the next place Whether if the Inhabitants in New-England were permitted to enjoy in Old-England their Congregationall way whether then Mr. Cotton himselfe if be were seated in Old England againe would count it a mercy to be banished from the Civill State For that is not at all the Question in hand but this whether if there were no Congregationall Churches in Old-England unto which we might joyne without sinne whether then it were a mercy to be thrust out And verily for my selfe and I doubt not for many a thousand more I should account is a mercy to be hastened out yea if I lingred to be thrust out in such a case If many thousand godly persons in this Countrey did not make the same account how came we to dwell here as we doe this day Neither yet doe I make God the Author of such cruell mercy in them that were the causes of our casting out as he calumniateth For the Instruments of any unjust dealing with the servants of God may be cruell when yet the hand of God in ordering such a worke may be most mercifull The hand of God was most mercifull to Joseph in casting him out of his Fathers house into Aegypt when yet the hand of his brethren was defiled with bloud-guiltie cruelty When the Examiner concludeth that if I had been exposed to the miseries poverties necessities wants debts hardships of Sea and Land in a banished Condition he presumeth I would reach forth a more mercifull Cordiall to the afflicted and therefore looketh at himselfe afflicted as a Lampe despised in the eyes of him that is at ease Job 12.5 I desire the Lord might be pleased to open his eyes by such afflictions wisely to consider whether he be not out of his way when he meeteth with such miseries poverties debts hardships Surely when God hedgeth in the way of his people with thornes he calleth them to returne to their first husband for then it was better with them then now Hos 2.6 His banishment was doubtlesse no cause of such afflictions Divers others have been cast out of the Countrey as well as he and yet God hath generally rescued them from affliction prospered their estates before his eyes But when he chooseth rather to betake himselfe to merchandise by Land and Sea unto which he was never brought up then to serve the Lord and his People in dispensing spirituall food to them in a Church-way no marvell if the Lord doe not shine upon his way but expose him to debts necessities poverties miseries hardships by Sea and Land It is farre off from
me to despise his afflicted condition but the truest mercifull cordiall to his afflicted estate would be to perswade him that he is out of his way and still blesseth himselfe though God both crosse his estate and blast his spirit in such a way As for my being at ease as he calleth it had he been a little longer acquainted with the faithfull discharge of a Ministers office he would not judge it such a state of ease If I durst allow my selfe to seeke and take mine ease I should sooner choose a private solitary condition in his Wildernesse then all the throng of employment in this numerous society TO CHAP. VIII IN his 8th Chapter Mr. Williams rehearseth and examineth those words of my Letter wherein to helpe him to a serious sight of his sinne I said that it pleased the Lord Jesus to fight against his corrupt wayes with the sword of his mouth in the mouths and testimonies of the Churches and Brethren Against whom when Mr. Williams over-heated himselfe in reasoning and disputing against the light of his Truth it pleased the Lord to stop his mouth by a sodaine disease and to threaten to take his breath from him But he in stead of recoyling as even Balaam offered to doe in the like case chose rather to persist in his way and to protest against all the Churches and Brethren that stood in his way c. In these lines the Examiner telleth us an humble and discerning Spirit may espie first a glorious justification and boasting of my selfe and others concurring with me secondly an unrighteous and uncharitable Censure of the afflicted Reply Whether is it a more glorious boasting to challenge to a mans selfe an humble and discerning Spirit as the Examiner doth here and elsewhere in this Treatise or to ascribe the glory to Christ in fighting with the sword of his mouth in the testimonies and labours of the Churches and Brethren against his corrupt wayes Surely when our glorying is not in our selves but in the Lord Jesus we are allowed so to doe by the Holy Ghost Isa 45.25 In the Lord shall all the seed of Israel be justified and shall glory Object But is it not a glorious boasting of our selves when as wee make the sword in our mouths and testimonies to be the sword of the mouth of Christ when as the holy Scripture putteth the sword of Christ in the mouths of such witnesses as himselfe and some others who in meeknesse and patience testifie the truth of Jesus against Antichrist and against all false Callings of Ministers And whether is Mr. Cotton swimming with the streame of outward credit and profit and smiting with the fist and sword of Persecution or himselfe and such other the witnesses of Christ most like unto Balaam Reply 1. The quicknesse of the Examiners wit over-runneth his judgement for I did not compare him to Balaam as like much lesse as most like but as unlike For that which Balaam would have done I said he would not doe 2. Let the light of the holy word of God discover and judge whether the sword of the mouth of the Lord Jesus be found in his mouth and his fellowes or in the mouths of the Churches and Brethren here and let the tryall be upon this very Point whether witnesseth for Christ or for Antichrist 1. We witnesse that Christ was never so farre overthrowne and overcome by Antichrist but that still the Lord Jesus hath preserved a Congregationall Church one or more especially since the Reformation of Religion by the Ministery of Luther and Calvin and other Ministers of Christ in the dayes of our Fathers The Examiner witnesseth that since the Apostasie of Antichrist Antichrist hath so farre prevailed against Christ and his Kingdome that he hath no Church nor Church-Officers left upon the face of the earth to this day 2. Wee witnesse the godly persons visible Saints confessing their knowne sinnes and professing their faith are fit materialls for Church-fellowship The Examiner witnesseth that the Churches which consist of such visible Saints are nullities unlesse they discerne every spot and pollution of Antichrist and forsake it for Instance unlesse they see the Antichristian pollution of the Ministery in England and doe refuse to heare the word from it 3. We witnesse that Persons qualified with a convenient measure of spirituall gifts fit to lead Gods people and chosen and elected by a Congregation of visible Saints and ordained and set apart unto the worke of the Ministery have received a lawfull calling from Christ to that office The Examiner witnesseth against this as a false Calling upon what pretence himselfe better knowes then I. 4. We witnesse that it is lawfull for the King of England to give a Patent to a certain number of his Subjects to transplant themselves out of England into America and to possesse such Lands as the Providence of God layeth open before them between such and such Degrees of the Horizon Provided that his Subjects adventure not upon such acts as the Patent never intended as to murther the Natives or to dispossesse them by violence or fraud of their lawfull Possessions but either to plant themselves in a vacuum Domicilium or if they sit downe upon the Possession of the Natives to receive the same from them by a reasonable Purchase or free Assignement The Examiner witnesseth against all such Patents and Preacheth it to be unlawfull for Magistrates to execute Justice upon the English by them and that it is necessary to repent of receiving such Patents and to returne them back againe into the hands of those Princes or of their Successors from whom they received them 5. We witnesse that it is lawfull for Magistrates especially in time of danger to offer to the Subjects under them an Oath of Fidelity whether they be regenerate or unregenerate Mr. Williams witnesseth it to be utterly unlawfull so to doe an Oath for confirmation of Office being peculiar to Christ and an Oath being a worship of God not meete for unregenerate Persons to take into their mouths 6. Wee witnesse that if a Church refuse to hearken to the voyce of Magistrates in delaying the Election or ordination of such an one to Office whom they finde to be troublesome to the State then it may be lawfull for Magistrates to delay the granting of the Petition of such a Church for Lands that lie convenient for them Mr. Williams witnesseth that in such a case the Church whose Petition is so delayed may write Letters of Admonition to all the Churches whereof such Magistrates are members to require them to grant without delay such Petitions or else to Proceed against them in a Church-way Now let the Churches of Jesus Christ and all the Saints on earth judge in whether sort of these witnesses the word and Spirit of Christ or Antichrist breatheth As for the deciphering which the Examiner maketh of Mr Cotton as swimming with the streame of outward credit and profit and smiting with the fist and
amongst them And this libertie he did use and might have used to this day without any disturbance to his Civill or Church-Peace save onely in a way of brotherly disquisition but it was his Doctrines and Practises which tended to the Civill disturbance of the Common-wealth together with his heady and busie pursuite of the same even to the rejection of all Churches here These they were that made him unfit for enjoying Communion either in the one state or in the other When he reckoneth me and me onely by name as one of the most incensed against him I reckon it as one of his usuall exorbitant Hyperboles unlesse by Incensed he meane one that with some others were most kindled and stirred up to endeavour his satisfaction And then his terme Incensed though it be not an Hyperbole yet it is an Acurology Neither doe I remember that he hath any cause to say that I gave him a Testimony of godlinesse For his godlinesse I leave it to him who is the searcher of hearts I neither attested it nor denied it Every brother in the Church though he may be called a brother in Christ as Christ is the Head of the visible Church and being cast out of the Church though he may be admonished as a Brother and so have some reference still to Christ yet godlinesse requiteth a Participation of the Divine Nature I speake in Peters sence 2 Pet. 1.4 by the power of the Spirit of Grace conforming us to fellowship with Christ and his Churches the which things have not so evidently appeared to me I speak it with griefe either in his spirit or in his way these many yeares And yet I deny not others may discerne more Power of Godlinesse in him then I doe and may speake of him accordingly But it was no uncharitable speech of Paul to tell the Galatians and that before all the Churches that he stood in feare of them Gal. 4.10 The life of faith from whence springeth both the truth and the Power of Godlinesse is very repugnant to Self-fulnesse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Faith emptieth a man of self-confidence and maketh him apt to acknowledge with Agur Truely I am more foolish then any man Prov. 30.2 But the Lord help us to tremble before him If he leave us though but a while to our selves we can soone learne to reigne as Kings like the Corinthians without Church-Officers or the Ordinances of Christ 1 Cor. 4.8 TO CHAP. XII HIs 12th Chapter is taken up in Examining and Answering a speech of mine That godly persons are not so enthralled to Antichrist as to separate from Christ Else they could not be godly persons His Answer is That this cometh not neere the Question which is not concernign personall godlinesse or Grace in Christ but the godlinesse or Christianitie of worship Whereupon he distinguisheth of Christ as considered two waies 1. Personally as God-man c. 2. As Head of his Church In the former sence he acknowledgeth they cannot be so enthralled to Antichrist as to be separate from Christ in the latter they may Reply This distinction of Christ is inconveniently expressed as was the like once before For the membra dividentia the parts of the division are coincident Christ as God-man is the Head of the visible Church But his meaning I apprehend and accept Christ God-man is Head both of the invisible Church and of the visible As he is Head of the invisible Church so he is received by faith As he is head of the visible so he is received by profession of the true faith both of the grace of faith and of the Doctrine of faith The proper fruit whereof is holy worship and professed subjection to the Rule of the Gospel Now for his application of his Distinction in the generall I doe approve it and doe willingly acknowledge that a godly person may be through ignorance or negligence so farre enthralled to Antichrist as to be separate from Christ taking Christ as Head of the visible Church For he may fall into such fundamentall Antichristian corruption in Doctrine or Worship or Government as either may justly prevent his admission into the Church or being in the Church and yet through pang of Temptation continuing obstinate in his corruption after conviction he may justly be excommunicate out of the Church But lest I may seeme to hover and so to vanish in Generalities whilest I onely speake of Antichristian corruptions in generall I shall willingly Instance in some Particulars which may give light to others of like nature It is an Antichristian corruption in Doctrine to accept any Propitiatory Sacrifices for our reconciliation but the death of Christ only It is a like corruption to look for Justification from sinne in the sight of God by our own works It is an Antichristian corruption in worship to worship Angels or Saints or Images It is an Antichristian corruption in Government to take the Pope to be the Head of the Church and such an Head as hath Power to make Laws to binde the Conscience to authorize Scripture to be Canonicall to adde other Books to Scripture with like Authoritie to be himselfe the onely Authenticall Interpreter of Scripture and Judge of Controversies These and the like corruptions are such as make Antichrist a Sonne of Perdition and them that are led by him to fall into like Perdition with him Of one of these Points Paul saith They that hold it hold not the Head Col. 2.18 19. Of another of these Paul saith They that hold it are abolished from Christ Gal. 5.4 The like wee may say of all the rest Yet in times of former darknesse some of the faithfull members of Christ might and were for a time entangled with a yoke of Bondage in some or most or all of these Particulars out of which the Lord at length rescued them by variety of Temptations and by some breaking forth of light in the mouths of some of his witnesses in every age But whilest any of them walked in these or like corruptions they might justly be debarred from admission into Church-fellowship or standing fast in them after conviction they might justly be cast forth out of Church-fellowship But there be other corruptions and Antichristian corruptions too which because they doe not subvert the Foundation neither of faith nor of Church-order I would not say that they separate from Christ no not as he is the Head of the visible Church For then if some whole Church were leavened with them they might soone cease to be a Church But we see the contrary in Scripture the High Places were tolerated in Judah and yet Judah ceased not to be a Church And by like proportion some more high and eminent Power may be given by some Churches to their Officers according to an Antichristian Patterne in some measure and yet they not cease to be a Church David and all the Congregation of Israel might bring up the Arke of God in a Cart after the manner of the
Philistims and yet not disanull their Church-estate And by like proportion so may a Church of Christ take up some orders as the carting of some part of their worship upon a Book after the manner of Antichrist and yet not forthwith evacuate their Church-estate But this let me further adde that a godly person may have some kinde of communion so farre as hearing the word from a Minister well gifted by Christ to whose calling some corruption may cleave both in his Church-estate and in his Ordination And yet neverthelesse no Antichristian Pollution at all may cleave or redound to the hearer by his hearing of him And this being the Principall Exception which the Examiner taketh against some of the members of our churches against all the churches for their sakes we shall further God willing cleare when the Examiner putteth it upon us in the sequele Meane while we professe as we doe beleeve that such an action is not any Church-cōmunion with Antichrist nor doth so enthrall the People of God unto Antichrist as to separate them from Christ no not as he is Head of the visible Church The Answer which upon occasio of this Point the Examiner giveth to the Papists Question Where was your Church before Luther though it seeme to him well and good yet it gratifieth the Papists and straitneth the holy Counsell of God in Scripture The Question saith he is thus well answered to wit That since the Apostasie of Antichrist Truth and the holy Citie according to the Prophecy Rev. 11. 13. have been troden under-foot and the whole Earth hath wandered after the Beast yet God hath stirred up witnesses to Prophecy in sackcloth against the Beast during his 42 moneths Reigne Neverthelesse these witnesses have in their times more or lesse submitted to Antichrist and his Church Worship Ministery c. And so consequently have been ignorant of the true Church that is Christ taken for the Church in the true Profession of that holy way of worship which he himselfe at first appointed This Answer giveth away the cause to the Papists They demand Where was your Church before Luther This Answer giveth it for granted that since the Apostasie there was no particular church extant in the world This fully satisfieth their desire and expectation for if there were no Church of Christ in the world for so many Centuries of yeares till Luther then they readily conclude That their Church of Rome was before Luther the onely Church in the world For they urge it and I know not how we can fairely deny it that the Church of Christ even that Church to which the keys of the kingdome are committed which is the visible Church is that against which the Gates of Hell shall not be able to prevaile and so not all the Power of Antichrist If then the visible Church of Christ shall never cease and yet during all that time of the Apostasie of Antichrist no Church was extant in the world but the Church of Rome then during all that time which is not yet expired the Church of Rome is and hath been the onely Church of Christ these many ages Besides as this Answerer gratifieth the Papist and maketh the promise of Christ Mat. 16.18 19 of none effect so it straitneth the Counsell of God in the very Texts of Scripture alledged by himself For in that Text Rev. 11. where the outward Court is given to the Gentiles that is Ecclesiasticall Courts given to Antichrist his Clergy v. 2. There also a rod or reed is given by the Angel unto John to measure the Temple of God and the Altar and them that worship therein v. 1. Which evidently holdeth forth that even then there was somewhere extant the Temple that is the visible Church of Christ which had communion with Christ as Head of the Church there called The Altar and the Temple was furnished with true worshippers and all measured according to the Patterne of Apostolicall Rule What if Ecclesiasticall Stories be deficient in telling us the times and places of their Church-Assemblies Is therefore the Word of God deficient or the Church deficient because humane Stories are deficient Great hath been the industry and vigilancy of Satan and Antichrist to blot out as much as in them lay all Monuments and Records of such holy Assemblies but yet sometimes their own Inquisitors confesse that the Churches of the Waldenses or men of that way have been extant a tempore Apostolorum Furthermore evident it is that when the Dragon persecuted the woman that is the Church the Church fled into the Wildernes and was there nourished for a time and times and halfe a time Rev. 12.14 which is all the time wherein the Beast reigned Rev. 13.5 And wherein the Gentiles having obtained Rule in the Court trod downe the holy Citie under-foote Rev. 11.2 Moreover evident also it is that all the Angels or Ministers of Gods wrath that poured out their Vialls upon the Antichristian State did all of them issue forth out of the Temple and out of the Temple as then opened Rev. 15.5 6 Which argueth that the Temple or Church was not onely then visible but openly visible not visible onely to the secret Assembly of the true worshippers but openly conspicuous to them that had not seene it before Now how all those seven Angels should come out of the Temple and it openly visible and all of them poure out their Vialls upon the Antichristian State by seven Degrees to the utter desolation of it and yet no Church extant either before Luther or since Luther till the utter extirpation of Antichrist passeth all my comprehension TO CHAP. XIII HIs 13th Chapter is taken up in Examining and Answering a second Answer which I gave to his Objection propounded above in Chap. 10. The Answer was this as he setteth it downe Secondly we deny that it is necessary to Church-fellowship that is so necessary that without it a Church cannot be That the members admitted thereunto should all of them see and expresly bewaile all the pollutions which they have been defiled with in their former Church-fellowship Ministery worship Government c. If they see and bewaile so much of their former pollutions as did enthrall them to Antichrist so as to separate them from Christ and withall be ready in preparation of heart as they shall see more light so to hate more and more every false way This we conceive to be as much as is necessarily required to separate them from Antichrist unto fellowship with Christ and his Churches c. For Answer hereunto the Examiner desireth three things to be observed 1. Mr. Cottons own Confession of that two-fold Church-estate worship c. The former false or else why to be so bewailed and forsaken The second true to be embraced and submitted to Reply This observation is more then is intended or can justly be gathered from my words For even a true Estate of a Church Worship Ministery c. may be bewailed
shape of an Answer but as little substance The greatest Question here saith he would be whether the Corinthians in their first Constitution were separate or no from such Idols Temples And this Mr. Cotton neither doth nor can deny A Church estate being a state of marriage unto Christ Jesus and so Paul professedly saith He had espoused them as a chaste Virgin unto Christ 2 Cor. 11. Reply 1. To put any substance into this Answer or any force pertinent to the cause in hand it must be no great Question but cleare out of Question that these Corinthians in their first constitution were cleane and absolutely separate from such Idolls Temples and that not onely locally but in their soule and iudgement minde and heart utterly cut off from such uncleane Touches so that they both undoubtedly saw the evill thereof and from their hearts abhorred it and forsooke it For all these Acts of coming off in a way of separation from the Churches of England he requireth from us as absolutely necessary to enter into a true Church-estate Now if he thinke that Mr. Cotton to use his words neither doth nor can deny that in their first constitution they were thus separate from Idolls Temples I must professe though not to him yet to all that love and seek the Truth without prejudice that I both can and doe deny it that in their first constitution they were locally separate from Idolls Temples it is likely enough or else I suppose the Apostlewould have admonished them thereof in their first Plantation But that in their minde and judgement they saw the evill thereof and did in heart and soule bewaile it and confesse it before the Apostle and their Brethren and so enter into solemne Covenant expresly against it this is altogether incredible to me For would not the Apostle then out of his faithfulnesse have reproved them as well for their Apostacy as for their Fellowship in Idolatry Would he not as well have rebuked the prevarication of their Covenant as their pollution of their communion with Pagans What though a Church-estate be a state of Marriage unto Jesus Christ May not a married Spouse of Christ be ignorant of some part of her marriage-dutie towards him And what though Paul professe He had espoused them as a chaste Virgin to Jesus Christ May not he call them a chaste Virgin who had seene and bewailed their former worship of Idolls though they neither bewailed nor saw the evill of feasting with their neighbours in Idolls Temples Reply 2. Though the Examiner make it a great Question whether a Church can be truely constituted that in her first constitution is not seperate from all uncleane Touches so as both to see them and come out of them howsoever they may fall into such sinnes afterwards yet I looke at it as an ungrounded distinction to require more purity to the being of a Church in her first constitution then is necessary to the being of it after it is constituted I should thinke the longer a Church hath enjoyed communion with the Lord Jesus Christ the more shee ought to grow both in knowledge and purity Where more hath been given the more will be required of the Lord. Yea I conceive it more agreeable to the word of Truth that God will sooner separate from a Church constituted for their whorish pollutions then deny them Church-estate for the like pollutions in their first constitution The people of Israel were not constituted a Nationall Church till the Lord gave them Nationall Ordinances and Nationall Officers and entered them together into a Nationall Covenant Exod. 19.5 6. Their Church-estate before was rather domesticall dispersed into severall Families When they were thus constituted a Nationall Church and afterwards fell into an Idolatrous crime the Lord directed Moses to breake the Tables of his Covenant between them and did also seperate his Tabernacle from them till upon their repentance he renewed communion with them Exod. 32.19 with Exod. 33.3 to 7. But yet the like Idolatry if not worse being found in the same People when they dwelt in Aegypt it did not hinder the Lord from accepting them unto a Nationall Constitution of a Church-estate To CHAP. XVII XVIII XIX HIs 17 18 19. Chapters are taken up in Examining and Answering my Answers to his second Objection which he made to prove a Necessitie lying upon Godly men before they can be fit matter for Church fellowship to see bewaile repent and come out of false Churches Ministery Worship and Government To prove which his first Objection or Argument was taken from Isaiah 52.11 2 Cor. 6.14 15 16. Whereto we have returned a Reply in the former Chapters His second Objection was taken from the Confession made by Johns Disciples and the Proselyte Gentiles before admission into Church-fellowship Mat. 3.6 Act 19.18 Whence he gathered That Christian Churcher are constituted of such members as make open and plaine confession of their sinnes and if any sâ—â—â—es be to be confessed and lamented Jewish or Paganish then Antichristian drunkennesse and whoredome much more c. Yea every sipping of the Whâ—res Cup. To which Objection of his to passe by all verball velitations for I love not to take up time about words the substance of my Answer was two-fold 1. That it was not necessary to the Admission of members that they should see and bewaile the sinfulnesse of every sipping of the whores Cup as he called it though the Whores cup doe more intoxicate the minde then the drunkards Cup doth the Body because bodily drunkennesse and whoredome are such notorious and grosse sinnes that no man having true Repentance in him cannot but be convinced of the sinfulnesse of them and of the necessitie of repentance of them in particular if he doe remember them But the whores Cup being a mystery of Iniquitie the sinfulnesse of every sipping of it is nothing so evident and notorious as that every repentant soule doth at first discerne it And therefore as the 3000. Converts Acts 2.37 to 47. were admitted into the first Christian Church upon the Profession of their repentance of the murther of Christ though they neither saw nor confessed all the superstitious leavenings wherewith the Pharisees had bewitched them so here c. Yea and the Disciples of John whom he instanceth in though they did confesse their sinnes the Publicans theirs the Souldiers theirs the People theirs to wit the notorious sinnes incident to their callings yet it doth not appeare that they confessed their Pharisaicall pollutions And the Gentiles in Act. 19.18.19 Though they confessed their curious Arts and burnt their conjuring Bookes yet it doth not appeare that they confessed all their deeds Whereunto the Examiner returneth a two-fold Answer 1. That spirituall whoredome and drunkennesse is not indeed so easily discerned as corporall but yet not the lesse sinfull but infinitely transeendent as much as spirituall sobriety exceedeth corporall and the bed of the most High God exceedeth the beds of men who are but
dust and ashes Reply 1. It is an exorbitant Hyperbole to make every passage of spirituall whoredome a sinne infinitely transcendent above bodily whoredome For spirituall whoredome is not infinite in the act of it but onely in respect of the object of it to wit in respect of the infinite God against whom it is committed And is not bodily whoredome infinite in that respect also Can a man defile himselfe with bodily whoredome and not sinne against the infinite God What saith Joseph Gen. 39.9 2. What if spirituall whoredome though lesse evident be more sinfull then bodily The nature of true Evangelicall Repentance standeth not in seeing and bewailing every sinne no nor alwayes of the greatest but of those which are most evident and notorious A Christian man may more safely omit repentance of greater sins if unknowne then of lesse sinnes knowne I suppose the Israelites were guiltie of many Idolatries and superstitions in the dayes of Samuel yet their repentance was chiefly fastned upon their asking of a King of which they were then principally convinced 1 Sam. 12.19 And such Repentance was then accepted of the Lord and of Samuel ver 22 23. The very truth is the ground and roote of the Examiners Error in this case is That he maketh Church-Covenant to be no better then a Covenant of workes whereas indeed if Church-Covenant be not a branch of the Covenant of grace the Churches of Christ are not built upon Christ In a Covenant of workes all sinnes must be avoyded or if not avoyded yet repented of expresly and the greatest sinnes most But in Evangelicall Repentance God dealeth not with us after our sinnes nor rewardeth us according to our Iniquities Psal 103.10 The Grace of Christ is not given either to his Church or to any Christian upon the perfection of our Repentance nor upon our Repentance of our greatest sinnes in the greatest measure But if the heart be truly humbled for any knowne sinne as sinne though the sinne knowne be often lesse hainous then others unknowne yet God accepteth his own worke and putteth away all sinne in the acknowledgement of one Yea in sinnes that be knowne the compunction of the heart is sometimes more expressed for the occasions and inducements of the sinne which are lesse hainous then for the greater sinnes which are more grievous and dangerous Solomon in his solemne Repentance in the Booke of Ecclesiastes doth more expresly bewaile his entanglement with lewd women Eccles 7.27 28. then all his Idolatrous Temples and worship which were erected and maintained at his charge By the Examiners Doctrine Solomon had never been received and restored to the Church upon that Repentance His second Answer is That though the converted Jewes did not see all the leavenings of the Pharisees yet they mourned for killing of Christ and embraced him in his Worship Ministery Government c. and thereupon necessarily followeth a withdrawing from the Church Ministery and Worship of the false Christ c. Reply This answer doth not reach the defence of his cause to wit That it is absolutely necessary unto Church-fellowship to see and bewaile not onely actuall whoredomes but also whorish speeches gestures appearances provocations Yet here he granteth that the converted Jewes did not see all the leavenings of the Pharisees which yet were such as in the end of that Paragraph he implyeth they had deteined them under a false Christ But whereas he saith that they by embracing Christ in his Worship and Ministery there necessarily followed a withdrawing from the Church Ministery and worship of the false Christ It may truely be Replyed 1. That he will not grant us that liberty that upon our embracing of Christ in his worship Ministery there necessarily followeth our withdrawing from the Church Ministery and Worship wherein we had been formerly polluted in any sort Is not this to deteine the glorious Truth of our Lord Jesus with respect of Persons 2. It is evident by the Story that some of those members of the Church of Hierusalem who had been leavened by the sect of the Pharisees they did neither see nor bewaile nor did come off from fellowship with the Pharisees in their Ministery and false Doctrine which taught the necessitie of Circumcision and of the whole Law of Moses to justification and salvation Acts 15.1.5 As for the confession of sinne by the Disciples unto John Baptist Mat. 3. and by the Gentiles unto Paul Act. 19. though it be not said that the one sort confessed their Pharisaicall pollutions nor the other all their Deeds Yet saith he if both these confest their notorious sinnes as Mr. Cotton confesseth why not as well their notorious sinnes against God their Idolatries superstitions worships c Surely throughout the whole Scripture the matters of God and his worship are first and most tenderly handled c. Answ It is not true that the matters of Gods worship and defects there are alwayes most tenderly acknowledged throughout the Confessions of the Saints in Scripture Solomon in his Repentance was most sparing of confession of his Idolatrous Temples and worships And the People in Samuel did more repent of asking a King then of all their other sinnes and yet their Idolatries were then flagrant 1 Sam. 12 9 10 11. Besides wee never reade of such deepe Humiliation of David for carting the Arke after the manner of the Philistims as of his bodily adultery with Bathshebah and murder of Vriah The substance of my other Answer to his former Objection which was to prove a necessitie lying upon godly men to see and bewaile their pollutions in a former Church-fellowship before they can be fit matter for a new It was to this purpose that we have not been wanting through the guidance of the grace of Christ to performe that which he pleadeth for so farre as God hath called us to it the which I expressed in my Letter in two particulars 1. That the body of our members doe in generall Professe that the reason of their coming over to us was that they might be freed from the bondage of humane Inventions and Ordinances under which as their soule groaned there so they have professed their sorrow so farre as through ignorance or infirmitie they have been defiled there 2. That in our daily meetings especially in the times of our solemne Humiliations we doe generally all of us bewaile all our former Pollutious wherewith we have defiled our selves and the holy things of God in our former Administrations and Communions the which we have rather chosen to doe then to talke of and therefore doe marvell that he should so resolutely renounce us for that which he knew not whether we had neglected or no and before he had admonished us of our sinfulnesse in such neglect if it had been found amongst us Whereto his Answer is That we make no mention what such Inventions and Ordinances what such Administrations and Communions were which we confessed and bewailed Reply And yet lest he should
too much wound his own Conscience with such a generall charge he acknowledgeth That we have borne witnesse against Bishops and Ceremonies and doe constitute onely particular and Independent Churches and have therefore so farre at least seene the evill of a Nationall Church But I dare say further that his own Conscience beareth him witnesse that we have witnessed also both in Profession and Practise against Prescript Liturgies and mixt Communions both in Church-fellowship and at the Lords Table What hath been then wanting to us That we doe not fully see the evill of a Nationall Church How doth he make it to appeare By two Instances By our constant Practise in still joyning with such Churches and Ministery in the Ordinances of the Word and Prayer and by our Persecuting of him for his humble faithfull and constant admonishing of us for such an uncleane walking between a particular Church and a Nationall Reply Our joyning with the Ministers of England in hearing of the Word and Prayer doth not argue our Church-Communion with the Parish-Churches in England much lesse with the Nationall Church as hath been shewed above in Chap. 14. Besides when Jeroboam heard the word from the young Prophet of Judah and joyned with him in Prayer I demand whether in so doing he joyned in Church-Communion with the Nationall Church of Judah If yea then was the Church of Judah pollutedly the uncleane Communion of Idolatrous Jeroboam If not then the Examiner may easily discerne how weake an Argument it is to argue our Communion with the Nationall Church of England from our members joyning in the Hearing of the Word and Prayer in the Parish-Churches of England His second Instance to make it appeare That we see not the evill of a Nationall Church from our Persecuting of him c. In this I choose rather to blame his memory then his conscience But the one of them is much to blame in that it maketh him so farre forget himselfe and the Truth as boldly to avouch a notorious falshood That we Persecuted him for his humble and faithfull and constant admonishing of us of such uncleane walking between a particular Church and a Nationall It is one notable falshood to say that he did constantly admonish either our Elders or Churches of such an offence much lesse humbly and faithfully If he did so admonish us where are his witnesses His Letters his Messengers sent to us Besides It is another falshood and no lesse palpable that we did persecute him for such admonishing of us It hath been declared above upon what grounds the sentence of his Banishment did Proceed whereof this Admonition which he pretendeth was none of them neither did they persecute him at all who did so proceed against him Now whereas in that Passage of the Letter even now recited I said He knew not what Professions we had made in our Churches of our Humiliations for former Pollutions nor had he admonished us of our defects therein He demandeth how be could possibly be ignorant of our estate who had been from first to last in fellowship with us an Officer amongst us had private and publique agitations concerning our estate and condition and at last suffered for such Admonition to us the misery of a Winters Banishment amongst the Barbarians Reply As if every man in fellowship with us an Officer amongst us one that had private and publique agitations with us must needs know what our members professed in their admissions to the Church or what our Elders confessed in their dayes of solemne Humiliation when himselfe was generally absent both on the Lords dayes and on the dayes of solemne fasting Or as if the private and publique agitations that he had with us were taken up about our Communion with a Nationall Church I am yet to learne what Arguments he did propound to us in that cause what convictions he left upon us When he is still so full of the miseries of his winters banishment amongst the Barbarians it maketh me call to minde a grave and godly speech of a blessed Saint now with God reverend Mr. Dod Where sinne lyeth heavy afflictions lyeth light where affliction lyeth heavy sinne lyeth light TO CHAP. XX. THe maine Objection which Mr. Williams made against the Estate of our Church-members was chiefly this That though he acknowledgeth them to be godly yet not sufficiently separate from Antichrist And that he endeavoured to prove 1. From the Texts that call for separation from Babylon Isa 52.2 Cor. 6. Rev. 18.2 From the confession of sinnes made by Johns Disciples Mat. 3. and the Proselyte Gentiles Acts 19. To both these we have returned Answer already His third Objection followeth from Haggai 2.13 14 15. where the Prophet telleth the Church of the Jewes That if a Person uncleane by a dead body doe touch holy things those holy things become uncleane to him And so saith he is this Nation and so is every worke of their hands and that which they offer here is uncleane And from hence he argueth That even Church-Covenants made and Ordinances practised by persons polluted through spirituall deadnesse and filthinesse of Communion they become uncleane to them and are prophaned by them which he solemnely desireth might be advisedly weighed Whereto my Answer was That if he had well weighed this place himselfe he would never have alledged it to his purpose His purpose was to prove that Churches cannot be constituted of such members as are uncleane by Antichristian pollutions or if they be so constituted they are not to be Communicated with but separated from To prove this you alledge said I this place where the Prophet acknowledgeth the whole Church to be uncleane and yet neither denieth them to be a Church truely constituted nor stirreth up himselfe or others to separate from them If you say why but they were uncleane I answered Be it so But were they therefore no Church truely Constituted Or to be separated from Did not Haggai and Zachary themselves Communicate with them And did they not call others also to come out of Babel to Communicate with them even whilest Joshua the High Priest was still polluted with his uncleane Garments Zach. 2.6 7. with Chapt. 3.8 Whereupon I tooke occasion to cleare up to him the occasion and scope and true sence of the words at large as may appeare in the Letter which having gathered up I said That if he did apply it to the Point in hand it would reach nothing neere to his purpose Hypocrites in the Church yea and godly sincere Christians themselves whilest they attend to the world more then to the things of God as at that time the Jewes did both their persons and their labours and their Civill Oblations are uncleane in the sight of God Therefore the Church of Christ cannot be constituted of such or if it doe consist of such the People of God must separate from them You might well have gathered Therefore the Church of Christ and the members thereof must separate
first of these I answered in my Letter That in stead of halting betwixt Christ and Antichrist the Lord hath guided us to walke with an even foote between two extreames so that we neither defile our selves with the remnants of pollution in other Churches nor doe we for the remnants of pollution renounce the Churches themselves nor the holy things of God amongst them which our selves have found powerfull to salvation This moderation so farre as we have kept it in preaching or printing we have seene no cause to repent of it But if any shall shew us cause why we should repent of it we shall desire to repent of it yea and to repent that we repented no sooner The Examiner here undertaketh to prove this middle walking to be no lesse then-halting of which we have cause to repent And this he endeavours to prove to me out of mine own Confessions First saith he Mr. Cotton himselfe confesseth that no Nationall Provinciall Diocesan or Parish Church wherein some truely godly are not are true Churches Secondly He practiseth no Church-estate but such as is constituted onely of godly persons nor admitteth any unregenerate or ungodly persons Thirdly He confesseth that a Church of Christ cannot be constituted of such godly persons who are in bondage to the inordinate love of the world Fourthly That if a Church consist of such Gods people ought to separate from them Reply If these which he calleth confessions of Mr. Cotton have been stumblings to him I shall by the helpe of Christ soone remove them out of his way For I doe professe that I never made any such Confessions but looke at them all as contrary to my judgement both in former times and to this day For the first Though there were no truely godly persons in a Church yet if there be such as professe godlinesse such as they call visible Saints to meete together in a Congregation to worship the Lord and to edifie one another in the administration of his holy Ordinances I doe beleeve there is truth of Church-estate It is true I doe beleeve and confesse that God requireth more then profession of godlinesse even sinceritie of holinesse in Church-members and it is no small sinne in them if it be wanting But what if some if most if all beleeve not Shall their unbeliefe make the faith of God of none effect God forbid Rom. 3.3 4. If an hypocriticall Church were no Church then an hypocriâ—â—call Minister were no Minister and his administrations nullities Cultus institutus in the whole latitude of it as Churches Min isteries Seales Censures c. they are all ordained for the Elects sake And the Elect God would have them to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 without carefull scruples and distractions If truth of Churches and Ministeries and Ordinances depended upon the personall sincerity of the godlinesse of the dispensers the Elect of God would ever be intangled with inextricable scruples touching their coÌ„munion here or there with this or that Church or the administrations of the Officers thereof But God hath called us in peace For the second part which he maketh of my Confessions he had said true if he had said I endeavour such a thing that our Church should be constitute of godly persons but I doe not say I have attained it for God seeth not as man seeth man looketh at the outward appearance but the Lord regardeth the heart 1 Sam. 16.7 And sure I am we looke at Infants as members of our Church as being foedurally holy but I am slow to beleeve that all of them are regenerate or truly godly As for the third and fourth point which he maketh of my Confession That a Church of Christ cannot be constituted of godly persons taken with the inordinate love of the world or that a Church consisting of such ought to be separated from These are onely his own palpable mistakes of those words of mine which I expressed as the summe of his words which he through hast conceived to be mine whereof we have spoken in the 20th Chapter Let him not say as he doth that when I would not have Parish Churches to be separated from for the remnants of pollutions I mean onely Ceremonies and Bishops neither let him say that I doe extenuate and mince the roote masse and substance of the matter of Nationall Churches though for the greater part unregenerate by naming onely a remnant of pollutions For he knoweth we wholly avoyde Nationall Provinciall and Diocesan Government of the Churches by Episcopall Authority He knoweth also we avoyde their prescript Liturgies and Communion with openly scandalous persons in any Church-order He knoweth likewise or at least may know that it is a continuall sorrow of heart and a mourning of our soules that there is yet so much of those notorious evills which he nameth still continuing in the Parishes worldlinesse ignorance superstition scoffing swearing cursing whoredome drunkennesse theft lying I may adde also murther and malignity against the godly suffered to thrust themselves into the fellowship of the Churches and to sit downe with the Saints at the Lords Table But yet I count all these but remnants of pollution when as the substance of the true estate of Churches abideth as I opened above in their Congregationall Assemblies And in so speaking I follow the holy patterne of the Prophet Isaiah who acknowledging a great forsaking or Apostacy in the midst of the Land yet resembleth the estate of the Church to an Oake whose substance is in it when the leaves fall off and maketh the holy seed to be that substance Isai 6.12 13. TO CHAP. XXII THe second offence which the Examiner tooke at our neglect of the Churches of the separation Was the reproach of himselfe and others at Salem for their separation To which I answered in my Letter That I knew no man who reproached Salem for their separation nor did I beleeve that they did separate Howsoever if any did reproach them for it I did thinke it a sinne meete to be Censured but not with so deepe a Censure as to excommunicate all the Churches or to separate from them before it doth appeare that they doe tolerate their members in such their causlesse reproachings The errors of men are to be contended against not with reproaches but with the sword of the Spirit But on the other side the failings of the Churches are not forthwith to be healed by separation It is not Chirurgery but Butchery to heale every sore in a member with no other but Abscission from the body Whereto the Examiner answereth That the Church of Salem was knowne to professe separation and publickly reproached yea he could mention a Case wherein shee was punished for it implicitely Reply This answer is so implicit that I cannot make an explicite answer to it That which I said was I knew no man that reproached Salem for their separation nor did I beleeve that they did separate His answer is That the Church of Salem was knowne
hearts are not forestalled with prejudice or partiality judge whether his reasons alledged to convince us of such a sinne the strongest whereof were answered in my Letter to him and have been againe refuted in this Reply have been of such convincing power as that wee for not hearkening to him must needs lie under the guilt of an ulcer or Gangrene of obstinacy and that after conviction I may therefore well call it not Chirurgery but Butchery to cut off not onely so many members of Christ but also so many Churches of Christ from fellowship with Christ before any ulcer or Gangrene of obstinacy was discovered to us Nay I feare I might speake a further word and yet I would be loath to speake any doubtfull thing but surely my memory much faileth me or else he broke forth into this separation before he gave us any grounds of his separation at all or of our conviction of any such sinne as might deserve such a Censure And whether that be Butchery or Chirurgery let the upright judge But saith he if it be Butchery to separate conscientiously and peaceably from the spirituall communion of a Church or Saints what shall it be called by the Lord Jesus to cut off persons them and theirs branch and roote from any Civill being in their Territories c. Because their Consciences dare not how domne to any worship but what the Lord Jesus hath appointed and being also otherwise subject to the Civill estate and Lawes thereof Here be many extenuations and mincings of his own carriage and as many false aggravations of Guilt upon his sentence of Banishment and the Authors of it As 1. In that he was cut off he and his branch and roote from any Civill being in these Territories because their Consciences durst not bow downe to any worship but what they beleeve the Lord had appointed Whereas the truth is his Banishment proceeded not against him or his for his own refusall of any worship but for seditious opposition against the Patent and against the Oath of fidelitie offered to the people 2. That he was subject to the Civill estate and Lawes thereof when yet he vehemently opposed the Civill foundation of the Civill estate which was the Patent And earnestly also opposed the Law of the generall Court by which the tender of that Oath was enjoyned and also wrote Letters of Admonition to all the Churches whereof the Magistrates were members for deferring to give present Answer to a Petition of Salem who had refused to hearken to a lawfull motion of theirs 3. That he did but separate from the spirituall society of a Church or Saints whereas he both drew away many others also and as much as in him lay separated all the Churches from Christ 4. In that he maketh the cutting off of persons them and theirs branch and rush from civill Territories a farre more hainous and odious offence in the eyes of the Lord Jesus then himselfe to cut off not onely himselfe and his branch and rush but many of his neighbours by sedition from spirituall Communion with the Churches and all the Churches from Communion with Christ As if the cutting off persons them and theirs branch and rush from the Covenant and spirituall Ordinances in the Church were a matter of no account in respect of cutting off from Civill Liberties in the Territories of the Common-wealth 5. In that what himselfe did he predicateth as done conscientiously and peaceably as if what the Court had done against him they had not done conscientiously also and with regard to publick peace which they saw he disturbed and stood stiffly in his own course though he was openly convinced in open Court as I shewed before that he could not maintaine his way but by sinning against the light of his own Conscience As for his Marginall note wherein he chargeth Mr. Cotton to be deeply guilty of Cruelty both against Consciences and bodies in persecuting of them I will onely Answer thus much partly from David partly from Job If the Lord have stirred him up thus to reproach me as Shimei did him I hope the Lord will looke upon mine affliction and requite me good for all his slander this day or this yeare 2 Sam. 16 12. But if he himselfe who without cause is mine adversary hath whet his tongue like a sword and his bow to shoot out his arrowes even bitter words Psal 64.3 as he frequently doth in his Booke surely I shall take his booke upon my shoulder and bind it as a Crowne to me Job 31.36 TO CHAP. XXIII HIs 23. Chapter examineth a speech of mine which might tend to the dishonour of the Separation as the reproach against Salem had done before My Speech was That God had not prospered the way of Separation which least it should be mistaken I interpreted not in respect of outward prosperitie for they found more favour in our native Countrey then those who walked in the way of Reformation which is commonly reproached by the name of Puritanisme The meetings of the Separatists might be knowne to the Officers in the Courts and winked at when the Conventicles of the Puritans as they call them are hunted out with all diligence and pursued with more violence then any Law can justifie But I said that God had not prospered the way of Separation in that he had not blessed it either with peace amongst themselves or with growth of grace such as erring through simplicitie and tendernesse of Conscience have growne in grace have growne also to discerne their lawfull libertie to returne to the hearing of the Word from English Preachers To give Answer to this the Examiner bestoweth many Chapters His first Answer is that which is not unworthy to be attended to by all whom it concerneth That doubtlesse the Lord hath a great Controversie with the Land for their such violent pursuit and persecution of both For both of them have borne witnesse to severall truths of the Lord Jesus Albeit I deny not the one party might have borne witnesse to more points of Truth the other might have borne witnesse to fewer and so have lesse exceeded bounds of Truth To make the English Churches and their Ministeries and their Worship and their Professors either nullities or Antichristian is a witnesse not onely beyond the truth but against the Truth of the Lord Jesus and his word of Truth But for their sufferings The Puritans saith he have not suffered comparatively to the other as but seldome Congregating in separate Assemblies from the common And none of them suffering unto death for the way of Non-Conformitie Indeed saith he the worthy witnesse Mr. Udall was neere unto death for his witnesse against Bishops and Ceremonies But Mr. Penry Mr. Barrow Mr. Greenwood followed the Lord Jesus with their Gibbets and were hanged with him and for him in the way of separation Many more have been condemned in dye banished and choaked in Prisans whom I could produce upon occasion Reply Paul accounteth
not first a Puritan For as Mr. Can hath unanswerably proved the grounds and principles of the Puritans against Bishops and Ceremonies and prophanesse of people professing Christ and the necessitie of Christs flock and discipline must necessarily if truly followed lead on to and enforce a separation Reply 1. If there were hardly ever any conscientious Separatist who was not first a Puritan then it seemeth that if there be any Conscience in the Separatists it was first wrought in them by the Ministers of those whom he calleth Puritans 2. Say it were true that he pretendeth That the principles and grounds of Puritanisme did enforce Separation yet I doe not understand what it maketh to the point in hand 3. Neither doe I understand how it suiteth with the Examiners profession who is wont to renounce all communion with Antichristian inventions so frequently to take up into his mouth and pen the Nickname of Puritans which was at first devised by Sanders the Jesuite to cast a reproach upon the persons and way of reformers to render them suspicious and odious to the State The righteous hand of the Lord struck him with madnesse who invented the name nor doth he delight in them that delight to take up a reproach against the innocent 4. How unanswerably Mr. Can hath proved the necessity of Separation from their grounds and principles I will not judge because I have not seene his Booke But to separate from the Churches of England as no Churches or false Churches from their Ministery as a false Ministery from their Sermons as false worship from their professors as no visible Saints And to prove all this out of the Principles and grounds of those holy Saints of God whom he misnameth Puritans will require a strong efficacy of delusions to make it appeare probable to a sad and judicious spirit that is not sorestalled with prejudice or partialitie But the Examiner proceedeth in his Answer to enquire What should be the Reason why the Separatist who witnesseth against the Roote of the Constitution it selfe should finde more favour then the Puritan or Non-conformist And he telleth us Doubtlesse the reasons are evident 1. Because most of the Separatists have been poore and low and not such gainfull Customers to the Bishops their Courts and Officers Mr. Ainsworth himselfe though a worthy instrument of Gods praise lived upon nine pence in the weeke with roots boyled c. Reply In part I will not deny some truth and weight in this reason But take it for granted and it doth but confirme what I said that the Separatist found more favour then the Non-conformist whatsoever the reason was The second reason that he giveth is That it is a principle in nature to preferre a professed enemy before a pretended friend The Separatists have been looked at by the Bishops and their adherents as knowne and professed enemies whereas the Puritans have professed subjection and submitted to the Bishops their Courts their Officers their Common Prayer and worships And yet the Bishops have well knowne with no greater affection then the Israelites bore the Aegyptians cruell task-masters Reply 1. What the Non-conformists did beare it was no more then they thought they might beare with a good Conscience according to the light they had received If they did beare more then what in Conscience they judged lawfull to be borne they had no reason to beare with themselves in so doing But if the Bishops bore the lesse with them in such their subjection it was because they looked at them not as pretended friends but as more dangerous enemies as knowing both that the Lord was with them which made Saul the more afraid of David 1 Sam. 18.28 29. as also that the grounds which they gave of their judgement and practise were more agreeable to Scripture and to the judgement of all reformed Churches and therefore more likely in time to prevaile to the utter overthrow of their usurped Hierarchy But as for the Separatists the Bishops did not discerne either the Lord going forth in like sort with them or their grounds so likely to subvert their freehold Though the Separatists struck at the roote of the Constitutions of their Churches which was indeed a greater blow then to strike at the roote of Episcopacy yet because the Episcopacy saw that the Separatists struck at the things of Christ together with themselves they knew such stroakes would not much hurt their standing The next word which the Examiner answereth is unto that I said God hath not prospered the way of Separation neither with peace amongst themselves nor with growth of grace His answer is 1. That want of peace may befall the truest Churches of the Lord Jesus as them at Antioch Corinth Galatia Reply The distraction at Antioch was soone healed by the Counsell of the Synod at Hierusalem which is a way of peace which the Churches of the rigid Separation have not knowne nor will condescend unto which makes their dissentions destitute of hopes of reconciliation without separation one from another The like may be said of the Churches of Galatia and Corinth I doe not read their differences were healed by Separation but by listning to Apostolicall Counsell 2. His second Answer is that it is a common Character of a false Church maintained by the Smiths and Cutlers shop to enjoy peace none daring for feare of civill punishment to question or differ c. Reply Though it be a common Character of a false Church to enjoy a forced and violent peace yet it is a peculiar Character of a true Church to enjoy holy peace with God and one with another which where it is wanting there is something else wanting either in their Faith or Order 3. His third Answer is That Gods people in that way have sometimes long enjoyed sweet peace and soule contentment in England Holland New-England and other places c. Reply The Answer had been more cleare and evident if he had named those Churches who have long enjoyed such peace in that way in that way I say of rigid Separation separating from the Churches of England as altogether false in their Constitution Ministry worship and therefore refusing to heare the word in the best of the Parish Assemblies It is a wise Proverb of a wiser then Soloman The back slider in heart from any Truth or way of God shall be filled with his owne wayes They that separate from their brethren further then they have just cause shall at length find cause or at least thinke they have found cause just enough to separate one from another I never yet heard of any instance to the contrary either in England or Holland And for New-England there is no such Church of the Separation at al that I know of That separate Church if it may be called a Church which separated with Mr. Williams first broke into a division about a small occasion as I have heard and then broke forth into Anabaptisme and then into Antibaptisme and Familisme
and now finally into no Church at all But whereas I said God had not prospered the way of the Separation as not with peace amongst themselves so neither with growth of Grace He answereth for growth of Grace though some false brethren have crept in yet Satan himselfe cannot but confesse that multitudes of Gods witnesses reproached with the names of Brownists and Anabaptists have kept themselves from the errours of the wicked and doe grow in Grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus c. Reply It is an unwelcome Subject to goe about to convince others of want of growth in Grace especially when wee speake of Churches and that before wee have in a more private manner dealt with them I looke at it as more seasonable to provoke our owne Churches to more growth of Grace at home For even true Churches as that of Ephesus Revel 2. may decay in their first love Onely thus much I would say the first Inventor of that way which is called Brownisme from whom the Sect tooke its name it is well knowne that he did not grow in Grace but fell back first from his owne way to take a Parsonage of a Parish-Church in England in Northamptonsheire called a Church God so in a strange yet wise providence ordering that he who had utterly renounced all the Churches in England as no Church should afterwards accept of one Parish-Church amongst them and it called a Church and from thence he fell to Organs in the Temple of his owne Church as I have been credibly informed and from thence to discord with his best hearers and bitter persecution of them at the last It is not Gods usuall manner of dealing to leave any of the first publishers or restorers of any Truth of his to such fearefull Apostacy from his Grace though I Judge not his finall Estate I will not rehearse what I read in printed Books of the unkind and ungracious and unbrotherly dealings of some of note in that way whilst they maintained the rigor of it That which the Examiner himselfe hath rehearsed in this very chapter may suffice to shew what growth of Godlinesse was found in that Church the Officer whereof himselfe styleth a worthy Instrument of Gods prayse and surely he was a man that deserved well of the Church for sundry of his Learned and painfull and profitable labours One would hope that where the Lord blesseth a people with growth of godlinesse the people would grow best under the best Ministers of that way Mr. Aynsworths name is of best esteeme without all exception in that way who refused Communion with hearing in England And if his people suffered him to live upon nine pence a week with roots boyled as the Examiner told us surely either the people were growne to a very extreme low Estate or else the growth of their godlinesse was growen to a very low ebb TO CHAP. XXIIII IN his 24. and 25. Chapters the Examiner giveth Answer to that speech in my Letter That such of the Separation as erring through simplicity and tendernesse have growne in Grace have growne also to discerne their lawfull Liberty for the hearing of the word from the English Preachers This I speake with respect to Mr. Robinson and to his Church who as he grew to many excellent gifts both of Grace and nature so he grew to acknowledge and in a Judicious and godly discourse to approve and defend the lawfull Liberty of hearing the word from the godly Preachers of the Parishes in England But in this 24. Chapter the Examiner answereth nothing against the truth of my speech Onely he telleth of foure sorts of Backsliders from sundry Truthes of God whom he hath observed to be left of God to sad and exemplary spirituall Judgements But because he speaketh of such as have decayed in grace and I speake of such as grow in grace his instances come not neere the point in hand I easily beleive that Hypocrites may grow from evill to worse deceiving and being deceived 2 Tim. 3.13 But a sincere humble Christian though he may start aside for a season yet Christ is not wont to leave him so but seeketh up every stray-sheep of his and bringeth them to heare and know his voyce in the mouthes of his Shepheards TO CHAP. XXV IN this 25. chapter because I had said as they have growne in Grace they have growne in discerning their lawfull Liberty to heare the word from the English Preachers He tels us he might here engage himselfe in a controversie with me but that neither the Treatise will permit nor is there need since it hath pleased the Father of Lights to stirre up the spirit of a faithfull witnesse of his Truth in this particular Mr. Canne to make a large and faithfull Reply to a Booke printed in Mr. Robinsons name tending to prove such a lawfull Liberty Reply Mr. Cann is unknowne unto me and his Booke also which I have not had the Liberty to get in these remote ends of the world I shall willingly bestow the reading of them if they come to my hands and God give opportunity especially if I see the spirit of a faithfull witnesse in them which the Examiner extolleth Onely I am apt to thinke as young men grow in yeares and gifts they will also grow up to the mellow-mildnesse and softnesse and moderation of riper age as Mr. Robinson in many things did Now from the name of English Preachers which I used in my speech the Examiner though he seeme to decline the engaging of himselfe in a controversie about hearing of them yet he taketh occasion to enter into a threefold discourse about them The first in this chapter concerning this title English Preachers Secondly concerning hearing them in chapter 26. Thirdly concerning their calling in chap. 27. The summe of his discourse about the title of these Preachers standeth in these particulars First that Mr. Cotton acknowledgeth the ordinary Ministers of the Gospel to Pastors Teachers Bishops Overseers Elders and that their proper worke is to feed and governe a truly converted holy and godly people gathered into a flock or Church-Estate And not properly Preachers to convert beget make Disciples which the Apostles and Evangelists properly were so that according to Mr. Cottons confessions English Preachers are not Pastors Teachers Bishops Elders but Preachers of glad newes Evangelists men sent to convert and gather Churches Apostles c. Secondly yet the Examiner confesseth that at the Pastors feeding his flock and at the Prophets prophecying in the Church an unbeleiver coming in may be convinced c. but this is accidentall c. Thirdly the Examiner acknowledgeth that it pleased God to worke personall Repentance in the hearts of thousands in Germany England Low-Countries France Scotland Ireland c. Yea and who knoweth but in Italy Spaine and Rome also c. but all this hath been under the notion of Ministers feeding their flocks not of Preachers sent to convert the unconverted and unbeleiving Reply 1. Though
the Ordinances is an humane corruption and so if he will an humane invention yet I doe not hold nor ever did that their Parishes were onely an humane invention For I beleeve the Lord Jesus hath the truth of his Churches and Ministery and worship in them notwithstanding the inventions of men superadded to them Reply 2. Though I doe beleeve there is as true Communion in the ministration of the Word in a Church-estate to wit to such as are in Church-estate with the Minister of the Word as in the Seales Yet it is farre from me to hold and from any principle of mine to inferre that there is as true Communion in the ministration of the Word to every hearer as in the Seales for then we might as easily admit our Indians to the Seales as we doe admit them daily to the ministration of the Word Reply 3. It is a malignant and Satanicall misconstruction of the intentions of such godly persons who out of sincere affection to spirituall growth doe heare the Ministry of the Word from godly Preachers in England to accuse them before God and Angels and men that they doe it to avoyd the Crosse of Christ to wit persecution which may be avoyded in a great measure if persons come to Church It is well knowne that sundry of them are so sincere and constant in their profession that as they have suffered much for the cause of Christ against humane corruptions in Gods worship so they would be ready to suffer yet more for neglecting to come to Church if they suspected any humane corruption at all in it Againe It is well knowne that any stranger in London by removing now and then his lodging may escape not onely persecution but observation for a longer time then any of our hearers are ordinarily wont to sojourne there Besides in this time of universall freedome from all persecution during this long Parliament why doe not our members of these Churches forbeare to heare the Word in the Parishes now when there is no feare nor danger at all of persecution for not coming to Church His sixt and last particular consideration is That how ever Mr. Cotton saith He hath not found such presence of Christ and evidence of the Spirit in such separate Churches as in the Parishes What should be the reason of their great rejoycings and boastings of their own separations in New-England in so much that some of the most eminent amongst them have affirmed that even the Apostles Churches were not so pure Surely if the same new English Churches were in Old England they could not meete in Old England without persecution which therefore in Old England they avoyde by frequenting the way of Church-worship in the Parishes which in New-England they persecute Reply 1. The Examiner might easily have satisfied himselfe in this consideration if he had been willing to understand that which he knoweth to be our meaning He knoweth very well and hath often told us of it before that we our selves in our Churches doe practise some kinde of separation here to wit separation not from the Churches in Old England as no Churches but from some corruptions found in them In such Churches as so separate wee never speake of them that we had not found the presence of Christ or evidence of the Spirit in such Churches But I speake of such rigid Separatists Churches as renounce the Churches and Ministery and worship and Saints of England as if they were all false or none at all and therefore utterly doe refuse to heare the word in their Assemblies which is such a way of separation as I told him in my Letter the Lord Jesus never delivered nor any of his Apostles after him nor any of his Prophets before him Of which he taketh no notice nor giveth any ground either from Christ or his Apostles or Prophets for such practise but putteth us off that we practise separation our selves and rejoyce therein as if our separation and theirs were both of one nature and measure which indeed differ as much as I said before as Chirurgery and Butchery Reply 2. When he telleth us We boast of our separations in New-England yea so farre as that some of our most eminent have said that even the Apostles Churches were not so pure I must needs professe I never heard nor read of such a speech but onely in this Examiners Booke The speech it selfe savoureth I know not whether of more ignorance or arrogancy or blasphemy The broadest speech in this kinde that ever I heard to fall from the lips of any in this Countrey was that of Mr. Williams himselfe who whilest he lived at Salem as I am credibly informed would say That of all the Churches of Christ in the world the new English were the most pure and of all the new English the Church of Salem I am so well acquainted with the liberty and boldnesse of the Examiners tongue in calumniations that untill I know the name of that eminent person whom he reproacheth to have so spoken he must give me leave to feare either a mistake or that which is worse Reply 3. It is a double calumny but suitable to many other of the former that wee in New-England doe persecute the way of separation whether the one kinde of separation or the other It is true of neither for we practise the one and tolerate the other And againe that we frequent the parish-Parish-Churches in Old England to avoyd persecution Unlesse mens tongues were their own I wonder how they can allow themselves to speake so excessively at random These his six Considerations having so little considerable truth or waight in them I justly said That he in withdrawing the people of God from hearing the voyce of Christ in so many Congregations both in New-England and in Old did not helpe Jehovah against the mighty but Satan against Jehovah and against the mighty Ordinances of his Word and Ministry But he answereth that he helpeth the zealous soules of the Separatiâ—n and he helpeth us to seeke the Lord Jesus without halting How he helpeth them I know not unlesse it be by depriving them of many precious meanes of grace which they might enjoy by hearing the Word in either England or unlesse by his own example he now helpe them Proficere in peius to separate further from all instituted worship of the Lord to cast off their own Churches Ministery Worship as they have cast off others before that so they might seeke for that which will never be found under the Sunne new Apostles to make all things new And as little doe I know how he helpeth us to seeke the Lord Jesus without halting unlesse it be to seeke him as he himselfe doth without Church-Ordinances For the Conclusion of his Booke he is willing to take up the conclusion of my Letter That whosoever will not kisse the Sonne that is will not heare and embrace the words of his mouth shall perish in their way Psal 2.12 This word is established in heaven and will take place in the earth throughout all generations But least this word might profit himselfe as selfe-love is apt to apply a word of threatening to any rather then to it selfe he applieth it to Mr. Cotton and to every soule to whom these lines of his may come seriously to consider in this Controversie if the Lord Jesus were himselfe in person in Old or New-England what Church what Ministery what Worship what Government he would set up and what persecution he would practise toward them that would not receive him For Answer let me say in a word this point hath been seriously considered already and let it be still considered and pondered in the Ballance of the Sanctuary and doubtlesse for the first of these points it will be found that if the Lord Jesus were here himselfe in person he would set up no other Church nor Ministery nor worship nor government then what himselfe hath appointed in his Word which though the Examiner and many others have sought and searched what enormities they might finde in it yet they have wearied themselves and found nothing So true is the faithfull promise of the Lord Jesus that he hath built his Church upon a Rock and the gates of Hell shall not prevaile against it nor against the Ordinances thereof And for the latter point What persecution the Lord Jesus if he were on earth would practise against those who would not receive him The Answer is neere at hand and is written for the warning of all gain-sayers Those mine enemies which would not that I should reigne over them bring them hither and slay them before my face Luk. 19.27 And yet I would not be so understood in alledging this Scripture as if Christ did allow his Vicegerents to practise all that himselfe would practise in his own person For not all the practises or acts of Christ as the Examiner seemeth to intimate but the Lawes of Christ are the Rules of mans Administrations But of that more distinctly in due time if the Lord shall give libertie to enquire further into the Examiners Bloudy Tenent To the Lord Jesus be the kingdome power and glory Amen FINIS
separation of holy from unholy penitent from impenitent godly from ungodly And that to frame any other building upon such grounds and foundations is no other then to raise the forme of a square house upon the keele of a Ship which will never prove a soule saving true Arke or Church of Christ Jesus according to the patterne Reply I cannot acknowledge what he saith that I have not duely considered that all the grounds and principles leading to oppose Bishops and Ceremonies c. doe necessarily conclude a separation of holy from unholy c. For I have considered and well weighed after my slender measure that they doe indeed conclude a three-fold separation of holy from unholy 1. Doctrinall that the Minister of Christ whilest he liveth amongst such dissolute and scandalous persons he is to separate them in the application of his doctrine between the holy and unholy between the precious and the vile so as to make sad the hearts of the wicked whom God would have to be made sad and to strengthen the heart and hands of the righteous whom God would have to be comforted Secondly A practicall separation in a mans own person that what a man findeth upon those grounds and principles to be unwarrantable and sinfull he doe forbeare the same in his own practise and disswade others from the same by his doctrine and example Thirdly An Ecclesiasticall separation that when a man cannot continue in fellowship with such a Church but that he shall be compelled to the practise of some sinne or of necessitie to communicate with the sinnes of others then after all good means used in vaine to redresse those evils meekly to separate and withdraw himselfe from fellowship with them in Church-Communion as one that cannot enjoy the good which is found amongst them without partaking in sundry evils that cleave to them Thus farre I have considered the grounds and Principles of Reformation of which the Examiner speaketh and doe finde that they doe necessarily conclude a separation of holy from unholy thus farre But I confesse I have not considered nor can I finde out by any further due consideration that the principles and grounds of Reformation doe necessarily conclude a separation from the English Churches as false Churches from their Ministery as a false Ministery from their worship as a false worship from all their professors as from no visible Saints Nor can I finde that they doe either necessarily or probably conclude a separation from hearing the word preached by godly Ministers in the Parish-Churches in England Nor can I finde that the building of our Churches in these ends of the world is the raising up of a square house upon the keele of a Ship unlesse it be the Arke of Noah for as the soules in the Arke were saved from water so we finde by experience and good evidence from the word that the Lord blesseth our Church-Communion and administrations with soule-saving efficacy through his grace in Christ Thirdly The third particular which the Examiner saith I have not duely considered is The multitudes of holy and faithfull men and women who have witnessed this truth from Queene Maries dayes by writing disputing and suffering farre above what the Non-conformists have done c. Reply This particular hath been considered above in Answer to Chapter 23. Fourthly The fourth particular which he desireth might be better considered Is our own practise and profession Our practise in constituting our Churches of none but godly persons and uniting them into a body by voluntary mutuall Covenant and adding none to them but persons carefully examined and approved and entering by way of confession both of their sinnes and of their faith Our practise also in suppressing other English who have attempted to set up a Congregation in a Parishionall way Our profession in the late Answer we gave to many worthy persons whom yet we account godly Ministers and people that we could not permit them to live in the same Common-wealth together with us if they should set up any other Church and Worship then what our selves practise Reply 1. Our practise in the constituting and ordering our own Churches here holdeth forth what matter and forme and order of the Church we doe beleeve to be most agreeable to the patterne set before us in the Gospel of Christ And our not receiving all commers unto the Communion of the Lords Table and other parts of Church-fellowship saving onely unto the publick hearing of the Word and presence at other duties it argueth indeed that such persons either thinke themselves unfit materialls for Church-fellowship and so they never offer themselves to us or else that we our selves conceive them to be as stones standing in need of a little more hewing and squaring before they be layed as living stones in the walls of the Lords house All which amounteth onely to this That we doe consider and bewaile the defects of the Churches of England in receiving ignorant and scandalous persons to all the liberties of the Lords Table and of his house as other wayes But it doth not at all argue neither is it our minde it should argue their Churches and worship and Ministery and members should all of them be separated from as false or none at all Our practise in suppressing such as have attempted to set up a Parishionall way I never heard of such a thing here to this day And if any such thing were done before my coming into the Countrey I do not thinke it was done by forcible compulsion but by rationall conviction But as for our profession that wee should answer many worthy Ministers and people in England that wee could not permit them to live in the same Common-wealth with us if they varied from us I have cleared it above in Answer to Chapt. 11. to be a notorious falshood and but that I know the Devill is able to create slander of nothing as God is able to create truths of nothing I should thinke it incredible that any man who hath been in New-England should be able to say as the Examiner here doth that we persecute the Parishes in New-England and yet frequent the Parishes in Old England Fiftly The fift particular which he thinks I have not duely considered is That in the Parishes which Mr Cotton holdeth but inventions of men how ever they would have liberty to frequent the worship of the Word yet they separate from the Sacraments And yet according to our own Principles there is as true Communion in the ministration of the Word as in the Seales What mystery saith he should be in this but that here to wit in Old England the Crosse of Christ may be avoyded if persons come to Church Reply 1. It is an untruth that Mr. Cotton holdeth the Parishes to be but inventions of men for though I hold that the receiving of all the Inhabitants in the Parish into the full fellowship of the Church and the admitting of them all unto the liberty of all