Doctrine that was delivered in the Promises of the Old Testament concerning the Messiah And for the same reason there was no necessity that Miracles should be wrought by our Reformers it being their Business not to teach any new Doctrine but to restore what was already taught and formerly confirmed by Miracles And it is moreover to be observed that neither our Saviour nor his Apostles did insist upon Miracles alone as the only Test of the Truth of their Doctrine but in conjunction with the Predictions and Prophecies of the Old Testament which were fulfilled in our Saviour's Person and in his Works and Doctrine as may appear by our Saviour's own method which he took for the conviction of others Luke 24. 25 26. where he appeals to all that the Prophets have spoken concerning himself And by his referring them to the Scriptures for their information John 5. 39. And so St. Peter corroborates the Testimony of the Resurrection of Christ with David's prediction of it Acts 2. 22 24. And refers likewise to the Prophecies of the Old Testament as the most sure Rule 2 Pet. 1. 16 17. And St. Paul in his preaching said none other things than those which the Prophets and Moses did say should come Act. 26. 22. So that the Jews were to receive our Saviour and his Doctrine not barely upon the account of his Miracles but as in conjunction with the Doctrine and Prophecies of the Old Testament and so as having all the concurrent Characters of a Divine Revelation And we have much less reason now to receive any Doctrine from any Persons or Church upon the account of any Miracles wrought or pretended to be wrought by them unless it be likewise conformed to the Doctrine of the Scriptures already delivered and confirmed by which it is to be tried We are also forewarn'd in the Scriptures that it may please God sometimes to permit Signs and Wonders to be wrought for the trial of Men whether they will adhere to the True Doctrine already delivered and sufficiently confirm'd And the false Prophets and Teachers shall make use of such Methods to propagate their false Doctrines Therefore this can be no proper Mark or Character of a true Prophet true Doctrine or a true Church Thus Deut. 13. 1 2 3. If there arise among you a Prophet or a Dreamer of Dreams and giveth thee a Sign or a Wonder And the Sign or Wonder come to pass of which he spake unto thee saying Let us go after other Gods which thou hast not known and let us serve them Thou shalt not hearken to the words of that Prophet or that Dreamer of Dreams â—or the Lord your God proveth you to know whether you love the Lord your God with all your Heart and with all your Soul. Mat. 24. 24 25. False Christs and false Prophets shall arise and shall shew great Signs and Wonders that if it were possible they shall deceive the very Elect. Behold I have told you before Is not this a fair warning 2 Thess 2. 9. That wicked One viz. the Son of Perdition his coming shall be after the working of Satan with all Power and Signs and lying Wonders This is the very Mark and Livery of the Son of Perdition Rev. 13. 13 14. And he doth great Wonders viz. the Beast that had Horns like a Lamb so that he maketh Fire come down from Heaven on the Earth in the sight of Men and deceiveth them that dwell on the Earth by the means of those Miracles that he had power to do in the sight of the Beast And some it seems shall be deceived thereby For the Spirit speaketh expresly that in the latter Times some shall depart from the Faith giving heed to seducing Spirits 1 Tim. 4. 1. The so many pretended Miracles of the Romish Church then give us cause of suspicion that all is not right It is for them to pretend to Miracles that want other confirmation of their Doctrine but when we preach only the Doctrine already confirm'd we do not need them Gal. 1. 8. But though we or an Angel from Heaven preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preach'd unto you let him be accursed It is in vain to alleadg Miracles to confirm a false Doctrine for it is not the preaching or apparition of an Angel is enough to recommend it and if not so then not any other Miracle So that we are to try the Doctrines now not by Miracles but by its consonancy to and correspondency with the Doctrine of the Scriptures already establish'd And we must judg of the Miracles themselves by the Doctrine and not the Doctrine by them And as we are to judg of the Doctrine so we are to judg of the Church that teacheth it And have cause to suspect Miracles now as the Marks of Deceivers who we are foretold shall pretend to them than to take them as Tests of true Doctrine or Marks of the true Church It is the Character of the Pharisees never to be contented with the Miracles that have been sufficiently wrought but still to expect more Mat. 16. 1. But we are contented with the Miracles already wrought by our Saviour and his Apostles And since we teach no other Doctrine than what was taught by them we may say of good right that their Miracles are our Miracles and that they authorize our belief So that we shall think not one jot the worse of our selves now for want of this Mark nor one jot the better of the Church of Rome for its pretending to it CHAP. VIII That St. Peter was supreme Pastor and Governour under Christ and had a primÌ„acy of Dominion over the Church and that the Pope is so as his Successor Catechism Roman par 1. de 9. Artic. Symbol §. 11. THis is the main Foundation of all the glorious Pretences of the Bishop and Church of Rome Upon this it is that they arrogate so great Authority to themselves over all the Churches of Christ throughout the World and over all their Members The Roman Church is defined to be the Mother and Mistress of all Churches Fourth General Council of Lateran Can. 2. Council of Trent Sess 7. Can. 3 c. And the Roman Bishop defined to be the Vicar of God and Christ and the Successor of St. Peter and to have the supreme Pastorship over the Vniversal Church Council of Trent Sess 6. de reformat cap. 1. Sess 15. cap. 7. But the very Foundation of all that St. Peter had such an Headship and Rule over the whole Church above the rest of the Apostles is overthrown by many Texts of Scripture Mark 10. 42 43 c. Jesus called unto them and said Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise Lordship over them and their great Ones exercise Authority upon them But so shall it not be among you but whosoever will be Great among you shall be your Minister and whosoever of you will be Chiefest shall be
A COLLECTION OF Texts of Scripture WITH Short Notes upon them And some other Observations against the Principal Popish Errors IMPRIMATUR Julii 9. 1688. Guil. Needham LONDON Printed for W. Booker over against the King's-Head Inn in Old-change 1688. The Epistle to the Reader IT is agreed on all hands that the Mind and Will of God revealed to us howsoever the Revelation be made is the proper and adequate Rule of Conscience by which we are to direct both our Faith and Practice And that the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament contain at least a part of this Divine Revelation is granted by the Church of Rome it self From whence it will clearly follow that whatsoever is contrary to that Revelation which we have in the Holy Scriptures ought not to be received for Divine Doctrine and Truth unless we will suppose an inconsistence in Divine Revelation or that God doth contradict himself which none will have the folly to assert We must remember therefore how we have received and heard in the Holy Scriptures and hold that fast And if there be any Doctrine or Tradition which contradicts the Doctrine of God delivered in the Holy Scriptures or makes his Commandment therein contain'd of none effect we are taught by our Saviour to reject it So that if an Apostle or an Angel from Heaven and much more if a Father or if a Church preach to us any other Gospel than what is therein delivered to us we should do the same Whether the Doctrines that are contested between us and the Church of Rome are of this Nature is the Question in dispute To make a right Judgment of which we need but consider the several Doctrines and then compare them with the Holy Scriptures and observe their agreeableness and disagreeableness thereunto To assist the Reader in which is the Design of this small Treatise wherein you have a Collection of the chief Points in Controversy between us and in the head of the several Chapters is first set down the Romish Doctrine as it is defined and received or generally taught in the Church and then the Texts of Scripture are subjoined with short and easy Notes and Observations deduced from them to apply them to the present purpose whereby it is easy to make a Comparison between the several Doctrines and the Scripture and the Contrariety between them will be manifest to the meanest Capacity But yet that it might be made more useful to prevent all misunderstanding and to make the Matters in Difference the more clear where it was thought needful the Controversies also are briefly stated and some farther Considerations added and the principal Objections are briefly obviated So that it is hoped it may be of good use to all that desire to be guarded against the Errors of Rome especially to those that have not Mony to buy or Time or Capacity to read and understand larger or more learned Discourses for whose service it was principally intended And some such Thing in so plain and easy a Method seemed to be desired The Gentlemen of the Church of Rome we may be sure will not be pleased with this Method because we do not take the Scriptures in their Sense and with their Interpretations But those we think are Comments which destroy the Text and therefore we have no mind to them And we should not have the Text neither by their good will for they do not love that that dangerous Book should come into the hands of the Common People for fear lest they should think that the Text is against them But however they endeavour to make themselves Masters of the Sense and Interpretation that that may be for them Thus if the Text be ready to strike them they put out its Eyes by the Exposition that it shall not know how to direct its Blow and then they are safe enough But we cannot think our selves obliged to take every thing upon trust that they say But they refer us also to Tradition and the Consent of the Fathers for the understanding of the Scripture-Doctrine which we are not against But unless we will take this Tradition and this Consent of the Fathers from their Mouth likewise they will not be pleased So that as they would have it our Faith must be ultimately resolved only into the present Voice of their Church And we must not condemn any of her Doctrines because they say they shall not be condemned that is they will be Judges in their own Case for fear of the worst It is well known that we make use of Tradition and the Judgment of the Fathers as well as they And we do not fear to refer our selves to them in the Matters contested between us but then they must give us leave to make use of Tradition a little more Catholickly than they do and not to seek it only from the Voice of their Church For we hope as long as we have Eyes we may read the Fathers as well as they and we do not know why we may not as well understand their Sense as also the Sense of the Holy Scriptures having the same means for it only the worst is we want Infallible Parts which we do not know but they may want as well as we But what is it but a great derogation from the Holy Scripture and the Holy Ghost the Author of it to think that of it self it is equally apt to deceive as to instruct to induce into Error as to lead into Truth What is this but to level it with the Heathen Oracle that spake always with that ambiguity that no Body knew what to make of it and therefore they were as soon deceived by it as not But yet is not this in effect the very Sense of the Church of Rome Or why else doth she so studiously with-hold the Bible from her Members for fear lest they should have more hurt by it than good if they take it by it self What is this but under pretence of taking care of her Children to call her Father and Husband whom she pretends so great respect to all to naught and to commend her self that she hath more tenderness and love to her Children than they But is it not rather her own Grandeur and Height which she takes care of which these Doctrines do subserve to And therefore she is resolved to maintain them and must use the means for it which iâ— by with-holding the Light that would discover them For it is to be truly feared that if the Bible were in every one's Hand and read with any attention it would soon scatter this Darkness which the Church of Rome well perceives And if that be to deceive the Scripture will deceive And if Instruction consists only in learning their Errors the Scripture will never instruct us to the World's End So that in this the Church of Rome is in the Right and is a very wise Mother for her self but let others judg how kind she is to her Children or
XXVIII That those Masses are to be approved and commended where the Priest communicates alone 172 XXIX That the Sacrament is to be administred in one kind only and the use of the Cup kept from the People 175 Some Prejudices of the Church of Rome answered Sect. 1. They accuse our Doctrine of Novelty 181 2. They say we had no Call 184 3. They Object to us the Divisions that are amongst the Reformed 188 That there are some Places more Holy than others and that it is a Work of Piety to go in Pilgrimage to them 192 That the Sacraments do confer Grace by the Work done 196 Of the Holy Scripture and Traditions CHAP. I. That all saving-Truth is not contained in the Holy Scripture but partly in the Scripture and partly in unwritten Traditions which whosoever doth not receive with the like Piety and Reverence as he does the Scriptures is accursed Concil Trident. Sess 4. Decret de Can. Script COntrary to that which is written in the second Epistle to Timothy Chap. 3. vers 15. The holy Scriptures are able to make thee wise unto Salvation through Faith which is in Christ Jesus That which is able to make us wise unto Salvation contains in it all saving Truth that is all that is necessary to be known in order to Salvation For how else can it make us wise to Salvation How can the Holy Scripture make us wise unto Salvation if it doth not contain all saving Truth or all that is necessary to be known in order to Salvation Vers 16 17. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction for instruction in Righteousness that the Man of God may be perfect throughly furnished unto all good Works Mow if the Man of God who is to instruct others and to declare to them the whole Counsel of God so far as is necessary for their attainment of Salvation be perfectly instructed for the discharge of his Duty from the Scripture then the Scripture must needs contain all saving Truth or all that is necessary to be known both by him and every particular Christian in order to Salvation And note that it is not our part to show what those Scriptures then were which the Apostle here intends they being confessedly the same which are still contained in the Canon of it But whatever they were it is plain from the Apostle that there is no saving Truth but what is contained in them which yet doth not derogate from the usefulness of those Books which were added to the Canon afterwards whatever they were they being useful however as Comments upon the former to clear up what was before less clearly delivered or to declare some Truths of less necessary importance though all that was necessary to Salvation was delivered before So that we must needs apprehend the Scripture as it is now to be a compleat Rule of Faith without taking in any thing of unwritten Tradition to piece it up or compleat it Before Divine Doctrine was committed to writing Men had no other Rule but natural Light or immediate Revelation or Tradition of what was before made known And when the Lives of Men were long Divine Doctrine might better be conveighed this way than it can be now And in our Saviour's the Apostles Time this might serve the turn for the present Age in which there was a continuation of extraordinary Gifts and especially to the immediate Auditors of these inspired Persons But in the shorter Age of Men this was not thought a safe or sufficient means to conveigh down Divine Doctrine to the following Ages And therefore it was thought more expedient to put down in writing what was to be made known to after-Ages for the more sure preservation of all such Truths from Corruption and to be a standing Rule to which they might have recourse upon all occasions Thus God himself wrote the Ten Commandments in Tables of Stone And Moses by God's direction wrote the Law as the Prophets afterwards did their several Prophecies or a brief Summary of them For it is said 2 Tim. 3. 16. All Scripture is given b◠inspiration of God. And sometimes we find express direction for the writing of some things which were to be transmitted to future Ages As Exod. 17. 14. Write this for a Memorial in a Book And Isa 30. 8. Now go write it before them in a Table and note it in a Book that it may be for the Time to come for ever and ever And Psal 102. 18. This shall be written for the Generation to come Whereby is intimated the great need of writing then to conveigh a certain notice of things to future Ages and which implies the Incompetency and Insufficiency of Tradition for that purpose And when once it had pleased God to commit the Holy Rule to writing we find the Scripture commended for a perfect Direction Psal 19. 7. The Law of the Lord is perfect converting the Soul. And Tradition is no where commended or any order given to have recourse to it in any case but to the Holy Scripture alone Thus Isa 8. 20. To the Law and to the Testimony if they speak not according to this Word it is because there is no Light in them Thus Joshua was directed to govern himself in all his Actions by the same Holy Rule and therein should prosper and do wisely Josh 1. 7. That thou mayst observe to do according to all the Law which Moses my Servant commanded thee Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left And vers 8. This Book of the Law shall not depart out of thy mouth but thou shalt meditate therein day and night that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein The same also did Joshua prescribe to his Successors Chap. 23. 6. And the King when he sat upon the Throns of his Kingdom was to write him a Copy of this Law in a Book and read therein all the days of his life Deut. 17. 18 19. And this was the way to have him prosperous and to prolong his days Here is nothing at all left to Tradition nor any recourse to be had to it but to the written Law alone intimated as perfect to all the intents and purposes of a good and holy Life There were no other Ordinances to be observed but what were contained in the Law which forbad all Additions Deut. 4. 2. Ye shall not add unto the Word which I command you neither shall you diminish from it So again Chap. 12. 32. so Prov. 30. 6. Add thou not unto his Words lest he reprove thee and thou be found a 〈◊〉 For this the Children of Israel were condemned Jer. 32. 35. that they built the high Places of Baal to consecrate their Sons and their Daughters unto Molech which I commanded them not The Reformation of the Church therefore under Jehoshaphat that good King was made by the Scripture That was their Rule alone 2 Chron.
there arose another Generation after them that knew not the Lord nor yet his Works which he had done for Israel And the Children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord and served Baalim And they forsook the Lord God of their Fathers which brought them out of the Land of Egypt and followed other Gods of the Gods of the People that were round about them and bowed themselves to them and provoked the Lord to anger And they forsook the Lord and served Baal and Ashtaroth How was the Face of the Church disfigured at that Time when they publickly worshipp'd false Gods He that would see the several Ecclipses of the Church of Israel then let him read this History of the Judges particularly Chap. 2. 3 4 6 10. And 2 Chron. 15. 3. When Israel was for a long season without the True God and without a teaching Priest and without the Law. In the Reign of Rehoboam the Son of Solomon ten of the twelve Tribes of Israel revoked from the Service of God and publickly worshipp'd the Calves in Dan and Bethel which were made by the Commandment of Jeroboam 1 King. 12. And if you desire to see how much the Face of the Church was disfigured and how often the Service of God was interrupted read the History of the Kings The ten Tribes were the greatest part of the Church of Israel But in them the Church was so obscured in the Time of Ahab that Elijah complained 1 King. 19. 10. The Children of Israel have forsaken thy Covenant thrown down thine Altars and slain thy Prophets with the Sword and I even I only am left and they seek my Life to take it away God had indeed reserved to himself 7000 Men that had not bowed their Knees to Baal And 1 King. 18. 4. When Jezebel had put to death the Prophets of the Lord Obadia took an hundred Prophets and hid them by fifty in a Cave and sed them with Bread and Water So that there was a Church then left in Israel but iâ— was so obscured that Elijah himself could not see it In the Kingdom of Judah also there was sometimes the same obscure State of the Church As in the Time of Ahaz 2 Chron. 28. 24 25. For Ahaz gathered together the Vessels of the House of the Lord and cut them in pieces and shut up the Doors of the House of the Lord and he made him Altars in every corner of Jerusalem And in every several City of Judah he made high Places to burn Incense unto other Gods and to provoke to anger the Lord God of his Fathers Repeated again 2 Chron. 29. 6 7. There was no other Church of God then upon Earth but what was among the Children of Israel and Judah and there was not any one Temple dedicated to the Worship of the True God but that at Jerusalem But yet you see that was prophaned the Service of God banish'd Idolatry establish'd And what external Form of a Church then was there there where the true God was not acknowledged or served So in the Time of Manasseh 2 Chron. 33. 4 5. Who built again the high Places which Hezekiah his Father had broken down and he reared up Altars to Baalim and made Groves and worshipped all the Host of Heaven and served them Also he built Altars in the House of the Lord whereof the Lord had said In Jerusalem shall my Name be for ever Which was as great a Promise as ever was made to any Church and if there had been any Promise designed ever to secure the State and Splendour of the Church in any place 〈◊〉 â—ould think this had been such an one If 〈◊〉 had been but a like Promise made or half 〈…〉 said of the Church of Rome what confiâ—â—nt boasting and brags should we have had yet you see Jerusalem and the Temple filled with Idols And it is moreover to be observed that at this time the State of the Church was so corrupt that there were no Copies of the Law to be found extant among the People but the Book of the Law was found in the restoring of the Temple by Josiah at the reading of which as a new thing the King was mightily terrified 2 Chron. 34. 18 19 20. which is a plain Argument that the Law was but little known and the Copies of it generally lost And the Prophet Jeremy saith Jer. 11. 13. That according to the number of thy Cities were thy Gods O Judah And according to the number of the Streets of Jerusalem which is yet called the Holy City Matth. 27. 53. have ye set up Altars to that shameful thing to burn Incense unto Baal And what Corruptions did the Prophet Isaiah complain of before Chap. 1. In the time of the Captivity the whole Land was a desâ—lation and an astonishment Jer. 25. 11. the Temple of Jerusalem was demolish'd and the Service of God beaten down So in the New Testament there are Prophecies of great defections and much obscurity that there should be in the Church 2 Tim. 4. 3 4. For the time will come that they shall not endure sound Doctrine but after their own Lusts shall they heap to themselves Teachers having itching Ears And they shall turn away their Ears from the Truth and shall be turned unto Fables So 1 Tim. 4. 1. The Spirit speaketh expresly that in the latter Times some shall depart from the Faith giving heed to seducing Spirits and Doctrines of Devils or rather Doctrines concerning Demons or a sort of under-Gods or angelical Mediators with God speaking lies in hypocrisy having their Consciences â—eared with an hot Iron forbidding to marry and commanding 〈◊〉 abstain from Meats How well doth this agree to 4. Church of Rome Rev. 12. 6. The Woman by which the Church is represented fled into the Wilderness where she hath a place prepared of God there to lie hid for a time during the rage of the Dragon It is very unjust and unreasonable then to demand that at all times we should shew the visible State of the True Church Rev. 13. 15 16 17. The time is prophesied of that the second Beast shall cause that as many as will not worship the Image of the former Beast shall be killed And he causeth all both small and great rich and poor free and bond to receive a Mark in their right hand and in their forehead and that no Man might buy or sell save he that had the Mark or Name of the Beast or the Number of his Name And how should the Church then during this Tyranny have a visible and flourishing State And the Papists themselves allow that in the time of Antichrist there shall be an universal defection for a time It is certain in Fact that many Churches founded by the Apostles themselves have quite fallen away to Mahometanism And in the time of Athanasius the whole World almost was become Arian And in the Ages just before the Reformation the Purity of the Church was so