Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	church_n	scripture_n	speak_v	4,012	5	5.0509	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A54908	The spirit of error, found and discovered, in the accounted pastors and teachers of the island Bermuda, in the VVest-Indies their principles and practice also tryed by the true spirit, and found to be contrary to the Scriptures of truth, and disproved by them, though pleaded for by the strongest arguments, the said teachers could bring forth : in an answer to some queries that were sent unto them, by us called Quakers : which answer was subscribed with all their names hereafter mentioned : their deceit unfolded for the peoples sake of the island / by ... Richard Pinder.	Pinder, Richard, d. 1695.	1660 (1660)	Wing P2264; ESTC R10836	20,271	25

of the first Founders and Owners of that Colony so that by your Preaching the Inhabitants are not put to one peny more charges by us say you Answ But nevertheless though you have not your Wages from them whom you Preach unto this doth not make it that you are no Hirelings for we believe you make little matter whom you have it on so you have it And who is there that knoweth the state of that Island and doth not know how much the people thereof are oppressed by them whom you say payes you your Salaries that it is still but the money of Oppression For doth not the Inhabitants of the Island whom you preach unto pay unto them of whom you receive your Wages one peny half peny forth of every pound of Tobacco that they send for England except they get it away by stealth which is accounted great Oppression much more then that of Tythes And do not they your Masters who Hire you tell the Inhabitants of the Island that they take that penny half penny out of every Pound of Tobacco in part for paying you your Wages And also for your challenging of us whom you account your Adversaries to prove that the Inhabitants are put to one penny charge by you for your Preaching We say You need not have made such a great challenge for we can easily prove and bring the Inhabitants to witness for us that you put them every year to many a penny charge by Repairing the Houses you dwell in and if they do it not just when you would have them will you not frown at them So this your cover is ripped open and your challenge returned upon your selves that your nakedness more and more appears for the day hath broken forth which makes all your deceit manifest and Praises be unto the Lord many he hath visited by it who begin to see your folly and weakness concerning the things of God and are declining from you that they may be brought to know the Lord their Teacher by his Law which he hath written in their hearts and this is the Lord fulfilling for his own mercy sake in spite of all envious men who gnawes their Tongues for grief and pain Again the Priests say in their Answer to our 17th Querie which was concerning their Preaching by an Hour-glass That they have the Warrant of the custom of the Churches of God for it which they say is a sufficient Warrant against all contentious spirits and they bring 1 Cor. 11.16 to prove it by Answ That place of Scripture doth not speak any thing of the Apostles preaching by an Hour-glass as you do that we can justly contend for the Truth against your Deceit in this And I charge you three Priests to prove where ever there was such a Custom among the true gathered Churches who was gathered by the Spirit of the Lord and witnessed Praying and Prophesying by it Are you not ashamed to scandalize the Churches of God in saying it was their custom to preach by an Hour-glass But will any that have read the Scripture believe you Certainly none but who are willingly as blind as your selves Again The Priests to prove the sprinkling of Infants lawful they bring the Command of God to Abraham to Circumcise And they say sprinkling of Infants which they call Baptism came in in the room of it For they say Though they be different in the External Sign yet they are one and the same in the Inward and Spiritual Grace signified by the Signs for they say both Baptism and Circumcision signifie a being in Covenant with God and Gods Command to Abraham to Circumcise will warrant Baptising of Infants Answ As for sprinkling of Infants that without controversie was never commanded of God but is an Invention of the Popes who commanded it to be done with the sign of the Cross and though you have left it off and are become disobedient to your father the Pope yet nevertheless he was the first Author of it Though you disobey his Command and will not do it with his sign the Cross but do it after your own Invention and so you are found acting contrary to the Apostles Rule by adding your own Inventions For they never received a Command neither gave a Command to sprinkle Infants and so you are found out of their Rule and your fathers Rule the Pope also and are not faithful to his Church which is your Churches Mother that you as Rebellious Children kick against him yet you may thank him for first Instituting this Ordinance as you call it of sprinkling Infants which you in your ignorance say The Command of God to Abraham to Circumcise will warrant you in But all whose eyes God hath opened out of that great slumber you are in sees that the Command given to Abraham to Circumcise will no more warrant you in sprinkling of Infants your way than it will do the Pope in his way For we know Circumcision was given a Seal unto Abraham of the righteousness of Faith which he had being uncircumcised Rom. 4.11 but as for your sprinkling of Infants we know nothing that it is a Seal of except of your own ignorance And as for your saying that sprinkling of Infants came in the room of Circumcision do you not think that all whose understanding the Lord hath opened by his eternal Spirit will take notice of your ignorance and blindness in this thing For Circumcision as you may read Rom. 2.28 29. is not that of the Outward in the Flesh but is of the Heart in the Spirit c. That all who are not blind may see that Circumcision of the Heart with the Spirit endeth that of the Outward in the Flesh Gal. 5.6 1 Cor. 7.19 Gal. 6.15 That as for your sprinkling of Infants it is but a meer Invention and was never commanded of God as Circumcision in its time was neither ever was it practised among any we read of that in the Apostles daies by the Spirit was gathered into fellowship with the Lord for they spoke of one Faith one Baptism and were Baptised by one Spirit into one Body and so was in oneness of mind and judgement one with another for the Spirit by which they were Baptised into the death and suffering of Christ made them of one mind and soul which you three Priests who plead for the Popish institution sprinkling of Infants are not For do you not differ among your selves about it One crying of it up to be done after his way and to whose Children he will and another another way to whom he will and so are in your ignorance at difference amongst your selves But do you not think people begins to take notice of you and to see your folly though you joyn all your Forces together against the Truth and though you joyn in union with Death and Hell and make lies your Refuge Yet Judgement is laid to the Line Righteousness to the Plummet and Hail shal sweep away the refuge

appeared and their Merchandize spoiled begin to lament and mourn and because in a day misery is come upon them in which they gnaw their Tongues for pain and blaspheme against the Lord and his Tabernacle which now is witnessed to be with men whose day hath appeared to make their abominations manifest and to the discovering of the secrets of their hearts that their Blasphemy against the Lord and his Tabernacle they utter forth because of their sorrow that is come upon them For though they cry to the Mountains and Hils to cover them yet they cannot defend them for a consumption is determined against them entred into their own bowels that Behold when they look for Day Night then cometh upon them and when they look for safety from the Hils and Mountains even sudden destruction cometh upon them that Blackness of Darkness compasseth them about and the deeper they dive to hide their counsel from the Lord the greater will their misery be and the sooner will their measure of iniquity be filled up that the Lord with the Beesom of his wrath may sweep them away For do we read in all the Scriptures that the false Prophets in any generation uttered forth such folly and Ignorance as the false Prophets in this generation do And though you three of Bermuda lay long hid that the envy which was in your hearts against the heritage of God did not so much appear as it did in some of your Brethren yet the Lord hath sought you out that the deceit of your hearts might be made manifest and laid open and that was the end for which I was moved to send my Queries unto you and not that I wanted satisfaction as to my own particular in the things whereof I Queried but that your Belief and Judgement might be brought forth For as many may know you are the least of many hundreds of the men of Darkness which have uttered forth their folly and ignorance in passing their judgements upon us whom God hath made as a terrour unto all the wicked and upon the Gospel of Light which we bear testimony unto which hath enlightned every one that cometh into the World about which Light the most of my Queries unto you was which were sent unto you subscribed with my own name and with George Rofé who also hath given his testimony against you both by his Word and Writing And I having now received an Answer to my Queries I may here set down some of your principal Arguments laid down therein with my Reply unto them that both may be sent into the World that all who fear the Lord may judge thereof The Priests say in answer to the first Querie That there may be a light in man reproving and convincing of sin and yet not sufficient to lead unto life For they say Such a light was in Judas And they say There is a Natural Light in man which Reproveth sinne Answer The Light which convinceth the World of sin is the Spirit of Truth and Christ said It should lead them into all Truth Joh. 16.8 So for you three Priests to say that the Light which convinceth of sin is not sufficient to lead unto Life you might as well say Christ spoke not truth when he said That the Spirit which reproveth the World of sin should lead into all Truth And Judas he turned from the Truth when he betrayed the Innocent into the hands of sinners And when he took money of such envious men as you are for so doing in whom a persecuting spirit soon appeared as you may remember your seeking to the Magistrates to have us banished who witnessed against all deceit and deeds of Darknesse and against your natural Light and against your Preaching by your Natural Learning which the Light that convinceth of sin discovereth to be contrary to what the Apostles Preached who received their Gospel not of man neither was taught it by man Gal. 1.1 but by the Revelation of Christ who hath enlightned every one that cometh into the World that through him all might believe and receive life But his Light condemns all such Unbelievers as you are The Priests say in their Answer to another Querie That the Light which discovereth corruption is from Christ but not given to all men Answer The Light which discovereth corruption is One in all John 3. the same to him that believeth as it is in him that believeth not For Christ whose Light convinceth of sin is He that is to judge all Nations of men that be upon the face of the whole earth Yea all you Unbelievers are to be judged by him and according to the Light which he hath enlightned you withal will Judgement be given and you receive reward according to your deeds So it is good for you all now while you have time to give regard to the Light which convinceth of sin and discovereth the corruptions of your own hearts and it will let you see that such as say all are not enlightned with a measure of it are Deceivers and speak contrary to the Scriptures in so saying As you may read 1 John v. 9. The Priests say again That light may be in a man two wayes First they say By proceeding from In-bred Principles brought into the World with him as water is in a Well where it springeth Secondly They say Light may be in a man by infusion or instruction by him that wanted it as water is put into a Well Answer Where do you read that any of the true Prophets Christ or his Apostles told people of light being in them two waies This is but a piece of Sophistry to blind people withall to tell them of light being in them two waies And see how in this you are contrary to the Scriptures For did not the Lord say He would give a Light to the Gentiles which should be his salvation unto the ends of the earth Isa 49. And doth not Simeon say of Christ That he was given a Light to lighten the Gentiles Luke 2.32 And did not Christ himself say I am the Light of the World John 8.12 And did not he say It was the Condemnation that Light was come into the World and men loved Darkness rather than Light because their deeds were evil John 3.19 And did not John say He enlightneth every one that cometh into the World John 1.9 And did not the Apostle say That the light which shined in their hearts gave them the Light of the Knowledge of the glory of God in the face ●f Chr●st Jesus 2 Cor. 4.6 So you that are speaking of two Lights are them that darkens Counsel by uttering words without knowledge who tell of an In-bred light which is as water springing in a VVell and of light infused which is as water put into a VVell That you three Priests may read your selves by your own comparison who tell people of light being infused into them by hearing you tell your meanings of the Scriptures and their

of lies and your agreement with Hell shall be broken and your Covenant with Death disannulled that the Truth may appear unto all who have a desire to walk therein from under that sad sable Cloud of Obloquie which thou Nathaniel White used to tell of which indeed lies thick upon thee that thou canst not see that thou art fallen into the snare but joyns with the other two Priests Brown and Burre in those things which sometime thou wouldst have been ashamed to have owned and pleaded for But evil men and Seducers wax worse and worse deceiving and being deceived That this is written for the sake of such in that Island of Bermuda as might be deceived by you by your perverting and scandalizing the Truth in your envy and hatred against it 2 Tim. 3.13 which no little hath appeared since first the Truth was bore testimony unto before you and your Hearers a Remnant of which the Lord will yet gather from the mouths of all such dumb Shepherds that he might teach them himself according to his Promise and put his Law in their mindes and his fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from him Heb. 10.16 The Priests in their Answer to our last Querie which was concerning singing Davids conditions in Rime and Meeter To this they say That God is no respecter of Persons but giveth the same condition to all his servants And they say They have an express Command for singing of Psalmes Col. 3.16 Jam. 5.13 And the example of Christ and his Apostles Matth. 26.30 Acts 16.25 And they say If we think that we can find more fit Psalms than Christ acknowledged to be holy Scripture we may speak our mindes and they say they will answer it Answ None of these Scriptures which you have mentioned speak any thing of singing Davids Prayers Quakings and Lamentations in Rime and Meeter as you do for Davids Psalms were turned into meeter by the Protestants since they turned from the Papists Neither do we believe that your Hearers whom you sing with are in Davids conditions but are as far from them as you Covetous Teachers are your selves that we know and believe that you cannot admonish one another in Psalms Hymns and spiritual Songs nor sing with grace in your hearts unto the Lord which that place of Scripture which you mention saith Col. 3.16 For you are such whose hearts are exercised with Covetous Practices who have forsaken the right way and are following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor who loved the wages of unrighteousness as you do 2 Pet. 2.14 15. That you are far from Davids Condition and from singing unto the Lord with grace in your hearts for they are carried away with Covetousness as your fruits make it manifest in your so much pleading and preaching for filthy lucre which Christ and his Apostles whose words you Covetous men are not ashamed to speak of declared against And you need not tell us of Christs owning Davids Writings to be holy Scripture for we know that David was a man that feared God and hated such covetous practices as you are found guilty of But we know no command Tho. Sternhold nor John Hopkins had nor yet the New-England blood-thirsty-men for putting his Writings in Rime and Meeter neither to adde their own Inventions to them to make them that Drunkards and Swearers might sing them in a Tune which even thou Nathaniel VVhite dost often bid them keep when they are not diligent in singing as thou wouldst have them but misses Tune And that place you mention Mat. 26.30 speaks nothing of Christ and his Apostles singing Davids Writings but saith they sung an Hymn And we know Paul sung Praises unto the Lord as in Acts 16.25 though he was put into the Stocks and received many Stripes for reproving the Spirit of Divination in the Woman who through South-saying brought in her Master great gain but when he saw the hope of it was gone he went about to persecute the Servants of the Lord in whom the Spirit of Truth was and haled them before the Magistrates as Nathaniel White George Rofe was for speaking to thee that when thou perceivedst that thy deceit was like to be laid open to the people cryed out to the Magistrates beseeching them not to let him speak there But Nathaniel VVhite if thou hadst spoken nothing but sound words which could not have been condemned why didst thou not stand by them For if thy Church be the true Church it is built upon that which the gates of Hell cannot prevail against But you Priests being erred through Covetousness and your Church being of her off-spring which is to be burned with fire and you having lost the Spiritual Weapons you are fain to fly to the Mountains and Hills for defence but they cannot defend you nor cover you but your deceit and nakedness daily appeareth as it doth in this thing your pleading for the singing of Davids Conditions in rime and meeter which conditions you your selves never knew that though you say God giveth the same Condition to all his Servants yet you are not come to the Servants state but are with many of your hearers like a company of untamed Heifers who are not accustomed to the yoke nor are not yet come to know the fear of the Lord which is the beginning of wisdom nor to depart from iniquity which is the good understanding that you are not like to sing with the Spirit and with understanding so long as you live in those things which the Spirit testifies against That if you three Priests truly search your selves and let the Witness of God rise in you it will let you see that you are such as James speaks of in that place you mention Iam. 5.12 who were fallen into the condemnation and so are short of the condition James speaks of in ver 13. in which every one that was afflicted might pray and he that was merry sing Psalms For you may also read Jam. 1.22 That he whose tongue is not bridled his Religion is vain And how had Jonathan Burre his tongue bridled when he called George Rofe Butter-whore and prating Asse But it may be Nathaniel White thou wilt say thou dost not own him in it but tell me then how it comes to passe that thou joynest with him and Brown in pleading for such things as here before-mentioned which was set down in you● own Paper by way of Answer to our Queryes which Paper was given into my hands with all your Names to it And many things more I might have gathered out of it than here is by which I might have manifested your erring from the Scriptures of Truth but so much here is discovered of your Blindness and Ignorance of the things of God that any who love the appearance of the Witness of Truth in themselves may easily see of what sort of Teachers you are And you the Inhabitants of Bermuda who are following on after those Traditions which these men which before I have spoken of lead you unto that you may confider what you joyn with and receive for Doctrine for as you may read in the Scripture there were some that taught the Commandments of men for Doctrine and so through their own Traditions made void the Law of God Matth. 15.9 Mark 7.11 Col. 2.14 20 21. and the Righteousness which is of Faith which who cometh to know knows it to end all those things which stood in the Law contained in Ordinances and divers Washings and such things which was imposed until the time of Reformation that the Seed should come which ends all the Types Figures and Shadows and gives to see beyond all external things which the minds of people are after until they come to feel that Righteousness which is of Faith revealed in them which saith on this wise Say not in thy heart Who shall ascend into Heaven that is to bring Christ down from above Or who shall descend into the deep that is to bring up Christ again from the dead But what saith it the Word is nigh thee in thy mouth and in thy heart that thou mayest do it and this is the Word of Faith which we preach Deut. 30.14 Rom. 10.6 7 8. THE END LONDON Printed for Robert Wilson at the Sign of the Black-spread-Eagle and Wind-mill in Martins Le Grand 1660.