Christ yea or no see Gala 1.8 And if hee doth not repent his Judgement is passed already by the spirit of truth who cannot lye And then againe hee beginneth to charge mee for pleading for Reverent gestures to worship God in as well as in spirit The which I confesse I did For page 27. I asked where it is said in Scripture that God is not to be worshipped with reverend gestures of the body as well as in spirit and truth To which hee answereth And whereas thou art pleading for reverend gestures to worship God in as well as in spirit I say in at that doore came your Altars your bowings your surplices and conformities wherein the teachers of this Nation was leading back to Rome the mother of these witchcrafts if God had not stopt the way by his hand And now have you got a little peace and thither are you turning againe even in bloody persecuting against all who witnesse against you who testifies against these false wayes c. To which I answer that for ought I know there is no man enforced to worship either with Reverend gestures or without nor any man persecuted or troubled for any such things by any of the powers of this Nation And therefore this is a lye and a slander against those in Authoritie as is well knowne I need not proove it But I onely asked whether the Scripture forbid Reverend gestures of the body as well as in spirit and truth To which he doth not answer properly but sheweth his dislike thereof and that they testifie against such false wayes and gestures set up by the man of sinne In which he clearely condemneth the practice of Christ himselfe Luk. 22.41 And of Poter Act. 9.40 And of Paul Chap. 20.36 Chap. 21.5 Eph. 3.14 And of Daniell Dan. 6.11 And of Solomon 1 Kings 8.54 and 2 Chron. 6.13 And that as unlawfull and the pleading for the lawfullnesse of it an opening of a doore to Altars and bowings Surplices and conformities c. and a making way for an unparalelld persecution and a hasting on to destruction which he sees saith he to be the end of our Reverend gestures And saith he will not the gestures of the Saints serve your worship that which lookes so much out neglects that within so you plead against the Spirit Oh prophane and ungodly spirits It is not enough with them to slander the Magistrates and all that are in authoritie but they will slander the footsteps of the Lords anoynted even the Lord Jesus himselfe and all his anoynted ones from the beginning of the world who have all practised such Reverend gestures in their worshipping of God And then he saith will not the gestures of the Saints serve your worship Oh damnable hypocrisie are they Saints that reproach the practise and footsteps of the Lords anoynted see Psal 89.51 see whose enemies they are And doe they not therein Reproach the footsteps and wayes and gestures of all the Saints that ever lived on the earth And yet they will call themselves Saints as so alwayes did the Popes and Papists that were Devills incarnate and as absolute enemies to the Saints of God and so by consequence to the Lord himselfe as any in the world But for all his scornes it is the practise of the Saints that will serve our worships and all the Saints gestures that were Saints indeed wee cordially approve and account it lawfull to follow their stepps as occasion requires But as for the gestures of Saint James Naylor nor these his doctrines and slanders they will not serve our worships to approve or practise because the Spirit of truth and holines Ingageth us otherwise wee are naturally ingaged by the Spirit of God out of Reverend Respect to his glorious Majestie to serve him with Reverence and godly feare knowing that hee that is our God is a consuming fire see Heb 12.28 29. But if hee that privily slandereth his neighbour shall be cut off see Psal 101.5 Of how much sorer punishment shall hee be counted worthy that slandereth and Reproacheth even the sonne of God and his Reverend gestures in his prayers unto God Can this be any lesse then cleare despite unto the spirit of grace see Heb 10.29 It is a fearefull thing to fall into the hands of the living God see verse 31. It is no strange thing to mee to reade his scornes and reproaches and slanders and censures that in all his bookes hee houldeth forth and fumeth out most bitterly and maliciously against others or my selfe considering his fullnesse of venome and malice cannot be kept in but must burst forth like filthy vomit against the Lord of glory as in this appeares I shall not therefore much care nor take any great notice what hee saith by mee but shall as breifly as possible answer his maine points and referre the Reader to the bookes themselves for Resolution where the wickednesse lyeth for I desire no more but that they reade them both and then let them Judge Againe Pag. 15. hee falleth to worke about the Ministers which is the third maine head saying Thy third thing is for thy maintenance and for thy Ministerie I answer as for my maintenance there is not one word in all my booke as the Reader may see and that hee maketh lyes his Refuge when hee hath nothing to answer that is like the truth And as for Ministers maintenance and for the poore I have pleaded it and prooved it also and that from divers grounds and arguments from Scripture yea and Gospell foundations such as James Naylor never heard before nor have they been published before that I know off either by word or writing as I said in my Epistle the which hee calleth boasting but doth not nor cannot make it appeare to the contrary in the least neither can hee contradict the truth thereof nor blame them justly by any Rationall or spirituall argument though hee reciteth many of them as though hee intended a confutation but in the end cometh off with a faile perverting both my words and meaning that hee might finde breadth for a Reproofe which are but poore shifts for so eminent a Quaker For saith hee and that thou may get something or make a shew for this Religious worke thou art about and that thou may seeme to be a charitable man as Judas did thou putst in the poore with them but seeing there is as much difference betwixt them and the poore as betwixt Masters and beggers I shall therefore set the poore by themselves concerning whom I say be as liberall to them as thou wilt I answer that for my ends in this hee must not be Judge But for what cause hee should set apart the poore by themselves who were ever joyned together by the Lord himselfe when tithes were commanded they to have part as see And whom God hath joyned together I dare not seperate neither did the Apostles in the primitive times but what was given was distributed to all as
yet I thought it not proper to mee in regard I am not going to betray him nor did not intend it in my Treatise but onely to discover him and his false doctrines and pernicious wayes nor did offer him either a kisse or any thing else that shewed any love or respect to his wayes And therefore in this sence I disowne it and if hee meane it otherwise the Rest of his booke maketh it a lye For then he beginneth in his old manner and telleth mee how I boast of my booke and what honour I seeke in owning what hath been done allready against a poore despised scorned helplesse people and that there is a lamentation for us especially though wee see it not and that wee will see it in the end and telleth us this is not the way to honour against whom we are joyning yet some of us will not be warned To which I answer that I did commend my Treatise but not my selfe and that to ingage the reading of it And as for seeking of honour to my selfe I am not conscious to my selfe of any such thing and know by that James Naylor is guided by a lying spirit which is not of God for the Spirit of God would never have taught him any such false furmises and such absolute lyes Wherein he goeth on telling mee that I said in my last the Spirit of God taught mee to let other men praise me and not my owne mouth strangers and not my owne lipps but saith he thou hast forgot that teaching or rather never knew it to which I answer That my words are these to wit that through the grace of God here are diverse arguments and doctrines for provoking to good works which have never yet that I know off been published before either by word or writing from Gospel foundations but in this Treatise And this I affirme againe that it is a truth let James Naylor or any man else produce any thing to the contrary if they can But this is all nothing in commendations or praising of my selfe but of the Treatise onely and that not as mine but through the grace of God and therefore this may be sett amongst the Rest of his manifest lyes Againe saith he in thy booke there is foure things which thou wouldest stand for and proove if thou couldest First That the Letter is the Word Secondly Against the light of Christ being sufficient Thirdly A large maintenance for those thou calls Ministers Fourthly Creature-Worships and nationall customes thou would binde us too To the first I answer as I did then that if he meane by the letter any part of Scripture I did assert and doe so againe and did prove it to be the word of God as so if he meane it as he hath printed his answer for page 3. he saith that I goe on to prove that there are many words of God and that what God hath spoken is his word and what Christ hath spoken is the word of God and that the Scriptures given by inspiration of God are words of God and that every word of God is pure All which he saith are things never by James Naylor denyed Now hee having confessed too all these assertions first that there are many words of God and that what God hath spoken is his word c. And yet immediately after contradicting himselfe he saith And yet I say the word is but one which is the word whether spoken or not spoken If this be not a cleare contradiction to confesse first that there are many words of God and that all Scripture given by inspiration of God are words of God and yet deny that there is any word of God but one Sure he imagineth that none but simple deluded Quakers will reade his assertions who thinking him infallible can beleeve any thing that he asserteth as Papists doe the Pope For suppose one should aske him whether the word he speaketh of is God yea or no I suppose he would answer yea he is God for Christ is the Word and Christ is God Now he hath confessed that there are many words of God and such as are so called in Scripture But is every word in Scripture that is called the word of God and that properly because God hath spoken it I say is it God because it is the word of God How many Gods would James Naylor reckon for many words of God he hath owned and if every such word of God is God there must needs be more Gods then one though with us there is no God but one nor did we ever say that the Scripture is God but the words and word of God and that he here confesseth that all Scripture given by inspiration of God is the words and word of God as is proved in my Treatise and here confessed by him But if all Scriptures are the words of God and yet he affirmeth the word is but one and that word is Christ Then by his Logicke it must needs follow that there is no Christ but the Scriptures nor any God but the Scriptures nor any word of God but the Scriptures and so hee denyeth the eternall essentiall word which is Christ or else maketh the Scriptures to be hee and so confoundeth himselfe and his maine assertion to wit that the Scripture is not the word of God against which assertion is all our quarrell For we doe not nor never did deny that Christ onely is the essentiall word and not the Scripture and this essentiall word is God yet we say as so he confesseth that the Scripture is also the word of God and is properly so called in Scripture in regard it is spoken by his inspiration And that it is not blasphemy to call the Scripture the word of God but the blasphemy is theirs that so assert Nor can all his wicked evasions helpe him to evade the dint of these arguments As when he further saith that a man may have all the letter either in his hand or in his braine and yet have not the word I answer suppose wee graunt it that a man may have all the Scripture in his hand and yet not have Christ which is the essentiall word yet he cannot have the Bible in his hand but he hath the Scripture and that Scripture is the expresse word of God and properly so called and that in Scripture and this is confessed also by him for there is no writings which wee call Scriptures but in the Bible and all those Scriptures are given by inspiration of God and all Scriptures that are given by inspiration of God he hath acknowledged to be the words of God and it is not properly called Scripture that is not written And that which was written aforetime was written for our learning that wee through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope And woe unto such as cannot finde comfort in them for strengthning of their hope for there is little hope of such men but how much lesse hope is there of such
render it a perswasion of Sathan for us to follow it art not thou hee the Apostle speakes on 1 Tim. 6.3 4 5. I answer that if James Naylor have any Scripture Rule that bindeth us to it I will observe it and confesse my errour in pleading against it But this Scripture hee bringeth hath nothing in it to this purpose but against it the words are these which hee citeth but in part least it touch himselfe to wit If any man teach otherwise and consent not to wholesome words even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ and to the doctrine which is according to godlinesse hee is proud knowing nothing but doating about questions and striffes of words whereof cometh envy strife Raylings evill surmisings perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth supposing that gaine is godlinesse from such withdraw thy selfe Now I know nothing by my selfe but I doe consent to the wholesome words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the doctrine which is according to godlinesse But is this doctrine according to godlinesse to binde us up to the word thee and thou because it was the ordinarie language of Christ and his Apostles when there is no such obligation in any of their words and yet they tould us all things that pertained to life and godlinesse and kept backe nothing but declared even the whole counsaile of God see Job 18.2 3. for the word you to a single person How long will it be ere you make an end of words mark and afterwards we will speak Wherefore are wee counted as beasts and reputed vile in your sight But if this were intended then wee must not varie in our prayers from the words of the Lords prayer or the prayers of the Apostles upon paine of damnation But carnall men make carnall interpretations such as Nicodemus did not knowing what it meant to be borne againe unlesse he should enter into his mothers wombe first Nor no more doth James Naylor what that doctrine is which is according to godlinesse and therefore maketh this carnall use of it which was never intended by the Holy Ghost and therefore it is hee that is doating about questions and striffe of words which produce no better fruits but as the Apostle relates and yet hee is puft up with pride and triumpheth as if hee had got a great conquest But doth James Naylor consent to the doctrine which is according to godlinesse why then doth hee make such a carnall interpretation which was never intended I say it was never intended let him proove it to the contrary if hee can let him proove any unwholsomnesse or ungodlinesse in using the word you to a single person from any Scripture ground else hee but doateth and befooleth poore simple people and bringeth them into a suare without a cause I referre the Reader to my booke for further satisfaction by reason Againe hee saith thou pleads for bowing unto men and putting off the hatt and sayes the Spirit of God teaches it wherein thou belyes the Spirit of God I answer a very heavie charge if it were true but the lyar is one of the Quakers who might have quaked to have writt this charge Considering I tould him this curtesie is included under that command to wit Bee yee courteous and tender-hearted towards all men And that it were easie to proove that bowing of the body was the customarie Reverence in old time But I rather asked them what courtesie at all they shew to any man upon any occasion And that taking off the hart is a proper Reverend duty to those whom wee honour and doe and ought to reverence is easie to proove And that wee are commanded to honour all men so that if wee know them to be dutyes either of love or honour wee are bound to use them Nay that if they be proper expressions either of love or honour and that wee have any spirit of love or honour in us it will naturally ingage us to use such expressions one to another if wee were not so commanded Now for bowing of the body this is cleare from examples and those unrepeald by the coming of Christ For as the Apostle adviseth women that professe the feare of God to follow the examples of Sarah and other holy women So I thinke I may from the same ground advise to follow the example of Jacob and other holy men my ground is from Now it is well knowne that before Jacob mett his brother Esau hee bowed himselfe to the ground seaven times untill hee came neare to his brother And so also did his wives and children and maids see Gen. 33.3 4 5 6 7. Now this bowing and calling him Lord was but to his brother and that prophane Esau and yet the Spirit of God ingaged him to this humble and courteous demeanour and to such humble appellations calling him My Lord. Now this being cordiall was no honour but such as cometh of God Nor doe I seeke either honour from James Naylor nor any other neither care I for it And therefore I said that by my consent they shall never be perswaded to use them at all till their cordiall love and respects ingage them sincerely to it I onely pleaded for the lawfulnesse and engagement that lay upon us to use it for it is not proper for them till the spirit of love and honour be in them for they should but deceive us as so I said in my booke And for courteous and honourable and respective appellations see Luke the 1.3 to Theophilus most excellent Theophilus and Paul to Aprippa Oh King Agrippa and to Festus though hee thought him to be mad Most Noble Festus see Acts 26.19.25 This was not like that spirit in the Quakers by which they were guided And for putting off the hatt when wee expresse any courtesie or honour or Reverence either to God or men it is clearely Required of men by the Apostle Paul 1 Cor. 11.7 For saith he a man ought not to cover his head for as much as hee is the Image and glorie of God That is to say hee ought not to cover the Majestie of God which appeareth in his face but unvaile his countenance which is much in shew upon any occation according to the temper of the heart and minde whether it be tempered with love or anger love maketh the countenance amiable and chearfull and an honourable Respect is much seene in the humble feare of the countenance And so is anger and scorne on the other part for the temper of a mans spirit will appeare in the forehead and eyes and can scarce be dissembled And therefore if there be any love or Respect and honour in the heart it will naturally ingage us to uncover it neither need wee be ashamed of it for such affections are Reall fruits of the Spirit of God which ought not to be vailed but discovered and exprest according to the truth and sinceritie thereof they being lovely in themselves and much inducive to the
should blame him for producing that Scripture Rom. 10.8 11. That I bring not one Scripture that saith the letter is the word 12. That I set my selfe in the stead of Christ These last five are in pag. 2. 13. Hee calleth mee an exalted wretch 14. That I confound my selfe in what I would disproove the truth these pag. 3. 15. That hee denyed but that the Scriptures given by Inspiration of God are words of God 16. That the Jewes had all the Scripture in their hand or in their braine and yet had not the word 17. That I deny the letter it selfe and the letter denyes mee 18. That I bring those Scriptures Rom. 7. to wit the Law is spirituall and Prov. 3.1 to oppose the new Covenant and the Law in the heart these pag. 4. 19. That all the Scriptures I bring turne against mee and for the truth 20. That I steale Scripture words out of Scripture to plead for pride and vaine-glory and creature worships and an Idoll Ministrie contrary to Scripture set up in will and inventions of men in my booke these pag. 5. 21. That of the words of God there is a famine and greatest amongst such as trade with the letter 22. That I increase in mischiefe and know not the plant of Gods renowne how it growes nor what the increase of God is 23. That they know what it is to grow in Christ and that Christ is in them these pag. 7. 24. That I bring Scriptures to proove the light of Christ Insufficient pag. 8. 25. That mine eye was so much abroad to discover errours in James Naylor till I could not see mine owne 26. That I have drunke deeply of the Cup full of abominations and errours from the mother of confusions 27. That the meanes I am pleading for is come through so many severall hands till it have lost both life and power these pag. 9. 28. That I love mine iniquities and am pleading for them pride Imperfection and fulse worships pag. 10. 29. That I am hee who turnes the Scriptures as a nose of wax to plead for such things as the Scripture condemnes 30. That as a meanes to turne people to that light within James Naylor is 31. That I am one of those people that are of no understanding therefore hee that made mee will have no mercy on mee 32. That I have got the Serpents subtiltie to thrust in my words to abuse the Scriptures pag. 11. 33. That I shall one day know that I have blasphemed against the spirit and gift of God pag. 12. 34. That now wee have got a little peace wee are turning backe to Rome 35. That wee pleade against the Spirit pag. 13. 36. That I am hee who am leading forth from the kingdome of God within 37. That the Ranters are my brethren all of one kingdome in the flesh and the lusts thereof pag. 14. 38. That by reviling the workes of Righteousnesse and teachings of the Spirit and spirituall light I have made it odious for any man to follow as the Devill himselfe 39. That my third thing is for my maintenance and for my Ministers 40. That I put in the poore with the Ministers that I might seeme charitable like as Judas did pag. 15. 41. That I have sett a stint for Ministers maintenance and for the poore though before I denyed it pag. 16. 42. That accounting such spirituall fathers who have not begotten us is to account of a lye and that I teach them to it pag. 20. 43. That my booke hath a heape of confusion in it fitt for the fire 44. That I preferre the Devills pride and the worlds fashions before the example of Christ and his Apostles 45. That such as I preferre the words of pride before the words of Christ 46. That I belye the Spirit of God for the Spirit of God forbids bowing unto men and putting off the hatt 47. That wee seeke honour of men and grudge if wee have it not 48. That the demeanour of Christ and his Saints is become a Reproach and not manners and courtesie to give us content 49. That wee are seeking for that honour which God is laying in the dust 50. That there is much more such stuffe in my booke not worth reading nor answering which rises out of the corruption of mine owne heart and busie minde and that Ishmaell-like my hand is against every man and eyes abroad but cannot see mine owne folly but am boasting of it pag. 27. 51. That wee have found out so many words in our inventions and so many lights and all without us that wee are become heart-blinde 52. That the Lord God and the Lambe will they worship for ever FINIS
shew any the least Scripture that so much as tendeth to such a doctrine nor his spirit neither But these evading shifting reviling answers in stead of rationall and proper answers doe clearely hould forth his conviction and obstinance against the light it selfe concerning this maine point so much controverted I shall therefore follow him to some other point to wit hee telleth mee pag. 15. that I aske in what part of Scripture is the Gospell called the letter or the preaching of faith the preaching of the letter I say thou shouldst aske thy selfe this question who would make the letter the Gospell and the preaching of faith litterall which I say are both spirituall and spiritually preached And I aske thee againe where did ever I call the Gospell letter or the preaching of faith letter and so take thy challenge backe againe To which I answer that I tould him that I finde it in a little booke written by Thomas Polard in answer to Richard Farnworth that they call the Scriptures carnall and a dead letter and say it will never bring a man to the knowledge of God but that all that is gotten from the Scripture is but braine knowledge And that I finde in a booke of Naylors against Thomas Moore how hee answereth this to wit being asked by Moore whether the writing of the Prophets and Apostles be a dead letter hee answereth that without the Spirit it is see in my booke pag. 4th And it is cleare in the 12 page of this his answer where hee saith speaking of the Devill that hee would keepe in the letter but from the spirit of which the letter declares And saith also to us and the rest of the world you have long counted the Scriptures to be the word of God but the Devills kingdome is standing still in the heart and so must be till there be account of the word that is nearer then the letter From all which expressions it is cleare that that which wee call the Scriptures hee calleth the letter and a dead letter Now wee call the contents of the Bible both the old and new Testament the holy Scriptures and so hee will not deny but they are Now these Scriptures hee owneth but as carnall and a dead letter wee call them spirituall and the words of God Therefore hee calleth all the Scriptures the letter And the Gospell being contained in the Scriptures which is glad tydings and good newes that shall be to all people the which was therefore called the Gospell And it was written for our learning that wee through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope the which Gospell was also preached from the beginning yea even to Adam and Eve that they might have hope and comfort thereby to wit that the seede of the woman should breake the Serpents head And wee shall not deny that the Gospell is spirituall and so is the Law also But wee must not deny but both this Law and Gospell are written for our learning And if they be written it must needs be legible to us or it will not serve for our learning if wee want it for the present and have it not written in our hearts for if faith come by hearing and so by reading as so it doth sometimes then it entereth first by the eare to wit by hearing or else by the eye to wit by reading And if wee cannot reade what is written in the hearts of one another not being omnitient but by hearing them speake or seeing them act or reading an expresse of their minds in writing how can wee learne what is the minde and will of the Lord from that which is written if it be not legible and that in letters Suppose us as ignorant for the present not having either Law or Gospell as yet in our hearts how shall wee beleeve in him in whom wee have not heard Implying that it is not a thing to be expected that all should have it by Immediate inspiration but by the hearing of it preached which is the ordinarie meanes whereby the Lord conveyeth it to the soule as hath been shewed before and that from Scripture grounds Now that which hee calls the letter wee call the Scripture and so it is for it was written and is therefore Scripture because written yet wee dare not call it a dead letter but lively Oracles a spirituall word a word in which there is spirit and life to such as beleeve and receive them in love yea wee doe call the Scripture the word of God And doe but aske James Naylor what else that is which is called by the Apostle the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God If it be not the Scripture yea that which is written in the Bible which hee calleth the letter see Eph. 6.17 Aske him I say whether this sword of the spirit which the Apostle calleth the word of God be meant of Christ who is the essentiall word and who is the spirit or it be meant of the Scriptures which are the expresse word of God and so as a sword or weapon in the hand of the spirit both defensive and offensive against our adversaries upon all occations yea Christ himselfe used it against the Devill when hee tempted him and against the Scribes and Pharisees and that as the best and fittest weapon to incounter them with But if this sword of the spirit be not the spirit it selfe but the sword or instrument in the hand of the spirit and yet is called the word of God Then it is not blasphemy but good Scripture language to call the Scripture the word of God but the blasphemy is theires who call it carnall and a dead letter as hath more largely been shewed before in this Treatise Now in these expressions of James Naylor hee denyeth to call any thing Gospell but the spirit or any thing Scripture but the spirit or any thing the word of God but the spirit And so the Scripture with him and the glad tidings of the Gospell contained therein must of necessitie either be called the spirit and so also God or but a dead letter and not the word of God and so not the sword of the spirit wherein how clearely contradicteth himselfe and his owne confessions as hath been shewed before and also the plaine expresse Scripture as any Rationall man may easily perceive that will but reade and consider so that his conviction is cleare from his owne confessions concerning these two maine points of his doctrine which I may well call the maine substance of that Gospell which hee preacheth and of all his bookes which hee writeth namely to teach us to eye that spirit and word and light within and desert the Scriptures and the teachings of men as a dead and vaine and fruitlesse meanes for leading into and guiding in all the wayes of God c. The which Gospell I now leave to the Judgements of all that are truely Judicious whether it be not another Gospell then the Gospell of