BABILONS DEFENCE Broken down and one of Antichrists Warriours DEFEATED In an Answer to a Scandalous Pamphlet Intituled THE QVAKER-JESVIT OR Popery in Quakerisme Put forth by one William Brownsword who calls himself Minister of the Gospel at Kendal In which the Doctrines of the Quakers so called are more truly stated than he hath stated them and fully manifested and clearly proved by the Holy Scriptures to be the sound doctrines of Truth In opposition to his false Slanders of them to be Popery In which also it is fully manifest that our practices are the practices of truth for which we have the holy Prophets and Ministers of Christ for our Example Wherein it is clearly manifest that he hath no more true ground to compare us to the Monks than the Enemies of truth had in Generations past to compare the holy Prophets to Idolators who practiced such things in obedience to God in their Age as we practice in obedience to God in our Age being a true testimony that many of the things that he hath said concerning us and our Religion are false With a few Queries to him concerning those Doctrines and Practices in which he hath compared us with the Papists By John Stoery Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsly for my sake Mat. 5. 11. As many were astonied at thee his visage was so marr'd more than any man and his form more than the sons of men Isai 52. 14. LONDON Printed for Robert Wilson at the Black-Spread-Eagle and Wind-mill in Martins near Aldersgate 1660. Babylons Defence broken down and one of Antichrists Warriours Defeated In an Answer to a Slanderous Pamphlet Intituled The Quaker-Jesuite Or Popery in Quakerisme c. WHereas a Lying Pamphlet being come to my hands of William Brownswords who professes himself to be a Minister of the Gospel at Kendal but his Fruits and Practices doth rather demonstrate him to be a Minister of Anti-Christ and of that Generation that cryed Report and we will report it who ever did and doth report their lies and slanders against the Innocent to make the truth odious who are of that generation that shuts the Kingdome of God against men neither entering by Christ the light themselves nor suffering them that would but endeavours to perswade people that it is Popery and dangerous to hearken to the light of Christ within them and so endeavours to divert them from the means of recovery out of the shaddow of death and grosse darknesse which hath over spread the whole world out of which there is no way or means but in and through Jesus who is the true light of the world and did so testify of himself that all people might believe in him to have Life and Salvation who redeems mankind out of sin and saves from destruction and gives Eternal Life to as many as believes in him and leads out of darknesse all them that follow him in whose light all Nations of them that are saved must walk In which light is the Saints Union known and the Blood of the Lamb witnessed which was shed for many to remit sin And thou who would instigate people against the light of Jesus and endeavours to perswade that it is Popery to exhort people to hearken to the spirit of truth or light of Christ in them neither enters by him thy self nor is willing to suffer others but the day is appeared and the everlasting light is manifesting which will discover all thy deceits and thy refuge of lyes shall be swept away and thy slanders will return upon thy own head in the day when the Lord pleads with thee for all thy hard speeches and rewards thee according to thy doings Whereas Thou calls thy Pamphlet the Quaker-Jesuite Or Popery in Quakerisme Answer The people of God who are by the world in scorne called Quakers do deny thee and the Jesuites and all theirs and thy doctrines that are contrary to the truth and distructive to mens salvation and as for thy saying there is Popery in Quakerisme No Popery thou hast or canst prove to be amongst us or any doctrines that 's contrary to the holy Scriptures and Gospel of Christ therefore will these thy sayings and slandrous words that there is Popery in Quakerisme return upon thy own head and be thy burden at last Except thou confess thy fault and Repent And whereas thou further calls thy Pamphlet A cleare discovery that their doctrines with their proofs and arguments are fetch out of the Counsel of Trent Bellarmine and others Answ Our doctrines which are the wholesome doctrines of the Gospel of Christ which we have not received of man neither were taught by men but by the Revelation of Christ are not fetch out of the Counsel of Trent Bellarmine and others but it is no wonder that thou being blind saith that our doctrines are fetch out of the Counsel of Trent Bellarmine and others when thou sayest those good and wholesome sayings Of the holy Scriptures and Apostles of Christ which thou thy self hast quoted as proofs which we bring for our doctrines are fetch out of the Counsel of Trent Ballarmine and others was the Counsel of Trent Ballarmine and others the Original of those Scriptures or are they Popery and we Papists for bringing them to beare testimony of our doctrines Canst thou behold thy work again and not be ashamed when thou seest thy folly and Ignorance made manifest unto all that have the least measure of true knowledg Is thy Pamphlet a cleare discovery that our arguments are fetch out of the Counsel of Trent when here is not not any of our arguments in all thy Pamphlet but onely a few doctrines stated in such a manner as hath pleased thee to state them but our doctrines which are the wholesome doctrines of truth which thou hast not nor canst not disprove but thy own self hast quoted the Scriptures which doth in effect prove the things of which we say Therefore let that mouth be for ever stopped that sayth they and their proofs which is the words of the holy Scriptures are fetch out of the Councel of Trent Bellarmine and others And so thy slanders of us and our doctrines and the holy Scriptures shall returne back upon thy own head until thou confess thy folly and repent and do no more so wickedly And thou further saith that their practises are fetcht out of the Rules of Popish Monks Answ It is utterly false for our practises have we not received as traditions from them neither do we walk by their rules but by the rules of the Spirit of Truth by which we are led from that which is evil and through which we receive power to practice that which is good which spirit is become our leader into all truth and will abide with us for ever Whereas thou begins thy Disswasive Exhortation saying Beloved The respect that I beare to your Souls the Trvth's and Church of
Acts 10. 34. where Peter saith of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons Sixthly where thou sayest there is no absolute decree of Election and reprobation from Eternity and sayest see a late Confession of Faith by Burroughs To this I say there is no such position in his confession of faith as thou here hath asserted but that we do believe that their is a state of Election and Reprobation as is there confest and faithfully acknowledged Seaventhly thou sayest that the Scriptures are not the Rule this is charged upon them by the Ministers of New-Castle as thou sayest To this I say as many as are begotten of the immortal seed to a lively hope by the word of God which abides for ever are his sons and children and such are led by the Spirit of God and it is their rule and not the letter Rom. 8. 14. and yet such are not Papists nor to be parallel'd with Bellarmine who shews the Scriptures are not necessary for they acknowledge that they are necessary that the man of God may be perfect and throughly furnished unto all good works 2 Tim. 3. 17. Eighthly thou compares us to the papists for saying the baptisme of Infants is not to be proved by the Scripture and quotes Bellarmine for calling it a tradition that 's no where written To this I say though we are no Papists yet I believe that Bellarmine confesses in this thing more truth than thou for it is very like it is a tradition which in its beginning was instituted by the Papists Church yet however this I am sure of that it is not recorded in the Scriptures of truth that ever God commanded it or any of his Ministers whom he sent forth practiced it therefore the Papist and thou that preaches it up as an ordinance of God is required to prove if you can when God ordained it or any of his Apostles practiced it and if you cannot Confess you have taught for ordinances mens traditions and seeing the Papists do confesse it is a tradition well may you Protestants doe the same for you had the practice of sprinkling Infants from them and in this you have drunk the whores cup. Ninethly whereas thou sayest that one day of seaven which we call the Lords day is no more than any other day and that it is without divine Authority To this I say further there is no command of God in the Scriptures for observing the first day of the week as a Sabboth of rest by ceasing from all bodyly labour of man servant or maid servant cattle and stranger that is within our gates as there was a command of God to the Jewes to observe the seaventh day and keep it holy to the Lord for a Sabboth of rest to them their sons and daughters man-servants and maid-servant cattel and stranger that was within their gates which Sabboth unto them was a signe and thou further sayest we make it Tipecal in which thou compares us to Bellarmine which comparison is altogether unequal for though Bellarmine counted it Tipical yet we make it not Tipecal for it was the seaventh day and not the first day which we say was a signe and concerning the first day of the week if thou hold that it was commanded by divine Authority as the seaventh day once was when thou writes again shew when it was commanded and where the holy Scriptures testifies of any such Command Tenthly whereas thou sayest that we say the Lords Supper as administred in your Churches is nothing but a bit of bread and wine and that we speak scornfully of it To this I say when thou writes again I desire thee to shew us an example if thou canst where ever the Apostles and true Church mett together in a Steeple House or Idolls Temple and broke bread in such a form and manner among unconverted people as you do calling it the Lords Supper or a Sacrament but the Lords Supper which is so in truth we do freely own and whereas thou compares us with the Papists in saying we speak scornfully of that which you call the Lords Supper in this I say thy comparing of us with them is altogether unequal for we do not speak scornfully of it but where we see either the Papists or you in an error we do rather pitty you than scorn you and desires that you may be recovered out of all error and be saved in the day of the Lord yet we do despise and reject the vain traditions of men which is practised for the worship of God by you Eleventhly thou sayest that wee affirm that Protestants Ministers are no Ministers of Christ that we use the vilest Language against you that we can invent deny your call and say you came from Rome c. Answ If thou meanest by Protestant Ministers of such of you as seeks for your gain from your quarters and Preaches for hire and makes a bargain for so much a year these practices being the same as the false Prophets and Papists are in doth in some measure demonstrate that your begining was from Rome for no example can you shew for those practices aforementioned among all the Holy Prophets or Ministers of Christ that have been since the begining And whereas thou sayest that we use the vilest language that we can invent against you I Answer this is utterly false for no vile language do we use or invent against you but the language of truth telling you plainly without flattering of the evil of your wayes that you may repent and in thus doing we have the holy Prophets of old for our example Twelfly that we have the same spirit of Infallability that the Apostles had To this I say further both we and all Gods children who are of the little flock have the same Infallible Spirit according to its measure and manifestation which is given to every child of God to profit withall 1 Cor. 12. 7. and both thou and all that say they have it not but counts it Popery for any to confess they have it art so far from being a Minister of Christ that both thou and they that have it not are not yet of his flock for the Apostle saith plainly if any man have not the spirit of Christ he is none of his Rom. 8. 9. and yet he was no Papist nor with them to be parallel'd no more are we that confesse we have the Spirit of Christ I having rightly stated and vindicated our doctrines against thy slanders and proved them by the holy Scriptures to be the wholesome and sound doctrines of the Gospel I shall go on to lay open and reply against thy slanders and falsities concerning us in which thou hast compared us with the Popish Monks but it had been more wisdome and more like a Minister of Christ to enquired truly into our practices before thou had given judgement upon us or have compared us to the Popish Monks in whose discipiline thou sayest we seem to be admirably
Christ much endangered by secret and unweared actings of the Emissaries of Rome Answ Though thou dost endeavour in this thy Disswasive Exhortation to perswade the Inhabitants of Kendall That wee called Quakers are Romes Emissaries by which the Truths of Christ are much endangered yet Romes Emissaries we are not neither are the Truths of Christ endangered or opposed by us as thou thy self hast confessed in the fourth position of the leaventh page of thy Pamphlet where thou confesseth Wee never opposed any fundamental truths that thou heardest of Therefore in this position thou hast cleared us from being Romes Emissaries by which truth is indangered which in thy Disswasive Exhortation thou hast endeavoured to perswade the Inhabitants of Kendall wee are Here the Inhabitants of Kendall may see thy envy and confusion who would have them to believe That wee are such by whom the truth is endangered And yet thy own tongue in contradicting thy envious disswasion is made to cleare us saying That wee never opposed any fundamental truths that ever thou heardest of which is truth For fundamental truths wee have not opposed at any time And as concerning the Church of Christ I say this It is builded upon the Rock which Romes Emissaries nor the gates of Hell can never prevaile against For all who are of the true Church and body of which Christ Jesus is the head and in his light dwells and walks by it they see and is able to diserne betwixt Truth and Error the doctrines of Christ and the doctrines which are preached by the Papiâ—…s and thee which thou wouldest instigate into the inhabitants of Kendall to cause them to believe that we their country men well known to some of them are Papists and that our doctrines are Popery but all thy labour in slandring us is in vain and thy asserting that our doctrines are Popery to no purpose for thou neither hast or ever canst confute them by the holy Scripture and Truth therefore in the end thy slanders will returne upon thy own head and unrighteous sayings be thy burden whereas thou speaks of a Quaker Jesuite at Bristol mentioned by Mr. Prynne as thou calls him That his sayings was made appear to be false and a slander I shall refer the Reader to the Answer of his scandallous paper Intituled The Quakers unmasked Put forth by William Prinne wherein his slanders is made to appear and he is found with a lye in his mouth Whereas thou goes on saying occasioned a late serious publique disswasive of you from the Church and Doctrines of Romes under what name soever and by whomsoever they were propounded to you and especially as they are propounded by the Quakers Answ It is utterly false to say the Quakers propounds Romes Doctrines either to the Inhabitants of Kendal or any other people for no other doctrines have we preached but the doctrines of Christ which we are able to prove and maintaine by the sound Arguments of Truth and Scriptures to be the doctrines that tends to the Salvation of Souls And when thou writes again give under thy hand positively what doctrines they are thou calls Romes doctrines propounded by the Quakers and name the man or men that is owned to be Ministers of Christ among us that thou call'st Quakers that did propound or preach them and till then let this slander reture into the uncleane bottle from whence this and all the rest of thy slanders hath come And thou sayest the charge of false-hood against me by them hath produced this demonstration of the truth of what I had publiquely asserted which I hope will tend to settle you against their way Answ This demonstration of Lies and Slanders doth not any way clear thee from my charge against thee in the â—ight of any who rightly understands the controversy betwixt thee and us but rather is an adding sin to sin and a heaping up wrath unto thy self against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgement of God for the thing that was desired of thee by me was as thou behind our backs had devulged publiquely in the Steeple-House that our principles and doctrines was Popery That thou would give us a faire Meeting where all might heare the discourse betwixt ther and us And if thou could by the Scriptures prove our doctrines to be Popery or contrary to the Scriptures and distructive to mens Salvation then would we lay them down if not but we on the contrary could manifest our doctrines to be truth and according to the Scriptures then as thou had publiquely spoken against our doctrines calling them Popery thou shouldest publiquely confess thy fault and this was the substance of what I said to thee in the street of Kendal and thou being not able to manifest that to be true which thou had publiquely asserted concerning our principles and doctrines this charge is still good against thee till thou publiquely acknowlege thou hast wronged us And whereas thou further sayest in these doctrines which are peculiarly Romes doth the doctrines of the Quakers conspire and may therefore be called Popery without falsehood Answ I say of this as of the rest of thy slanders that it is altogether untrue for no doctrines do we preach and hold forth but the doctrines of the Gospel of Christ and for the defence of them and manifestation that they are true against thee and all that oppose them we can bring pertinent testimonyes out of the holy sayings of the Prophets Christ and his Apostles Words who preached the same Gospel and Doctrines before us and no doctrine of ours if rightly stated and as we preach them hast thou parallel'd with the Papist and thier doctrines but thou mightest as well have parallel'd the doctrine of the Apostles with the doctrine of the Papist as it will after more fully appear in our own stating the vindication and proof of our doctrines to be true which thou hast not neither ever canst confute or disprove by the truth or Scriptures Therefore thy slander of our doctrines will returne back upon thy selfe having replyed against some of thy slanders and untruths cast upon us and our doctrines I shall go on to the right stating and more full manifestation of our doctrines to be the sound and wholesome doctines of Truth though thou hast parallel'd them with the Papists that it may appear more fully that wherein thou hast parallel'd our doctrines with any thing they say which is truths in themselves thou might as well a parallel'd the Apostles with them because they may hold some of the same truths in the unrighteousnesse which the Apostles held forth and we hold in the righteousnesse and thou thy self confesses they hold some truths I. Doctrine that light which John came for a witnesse of that all men through his testimony might believe which doth light every man that comes into the world which is Jesus Is sufficient to convince of sin and lead to repentance all them thâ—… to his call hearken and is
worshipped him after the strictest manner then held forth and this from our Infancy and upon what ground thou should charge us with being Jesuites and Papists I know not except it be to prove and shew thy self both ignorant slanderous and ridiculous amongst thy own hearers who doubtless some of them may say we know they are not such as thou hast said and the Witness in their consciences may prove thee a lyar and out-date thy book as an old Almanack â—it for the fire and thou hast wholly missed thy mark if thou thoughtest to lay a stumbling-block before thy Flock concerning us by this means of accusing of us falsly this shall do thee no good but turn to an offence against thy own self and as thou thought to do to others so shall it be done to thee and thou and thy work shall be rejected the one as ignorant and vain the other as ignorance and vanity for we are known to thy hearers to be neither Jesuits nor Papists but they can tell that thou art a false accuser in this And for thee to accuse us where we have been so well known renders thy selfe both ignorant and hatefull And it doth many wayes appear That wee are not Papists partly as I have said we were not such in the dayes of our Infancy neither educated nor practised therein but were zealous against Popery even from our childhood as the People of Kendal very well knows who can witness for us and against thee that we were neither such nor yet lovers of them but were altogether zealous against them from our childhood as I have said And it is evident we have been no such since we were reproached by the name of Quakers for we have given divers testimonies by writing in divers particular books which I might mention against the Church of Rome as knowing Her not to be the true Church of Christ but a false Church made up of Apostates originally and being Idolators in their Worship Church Ministry and whole Religion this testimony we have borne at sundry times and upon divers occasions sometimes we have given our testimony by writing against them plain affirmations and sometimes in answer to their writings against us and divers of us have been moved to go into their Dominions and declare the Word of the Lord against their Idolatryes And also divers of our friends forbearing their witness against the Church of Rome have suffered great and cruel things some until death and some at this day are in their Inquisitions and Goals and under suffering by them even for this cause for we have a large testimony and witness to give against the Church of Rome And by what we have testified in word and writing and by what we have suffered from them for so doing it well appears that we are not Jesuites nor Papists and with what face thou could accuse us it makes us to wonder at thy impudency seeing thou hast so little ground for it but hast upon thy malice thus falsly accused us without any just cause at all but this thy work which thou hast done shall return into thy own bosome with the reward of Judgement except thou repent and sin no more Yes but sayest thou you are Papists for why Such and such doctrines and practises you hold forth and the like is held forth by the Papists and this proves that you are so Answ Alas friend thou hast mightily discovered thy ignorance and folly in thus proceeding and in thus judging for doubtless the Papists may hold the profession of some truths in doctrines and practises unto this day even as thy own Brethren did confess at a certain Meeting of Dispute they affirmed to me that there were many saving truths held by the Church of Rome and seeing that they hold that Christ Jesus is the Saviour of the World and that by him people comes to eternal life and that he was born and died and rose again and seeing they hold that Saints must deny the world and forsake sin and the evil of the world These doctrines and practises with many others they do hold in words and appearance which are saving doctrines and practises in themselves though not to them but because they hold these things must the People of God either deny these doctrines and practises or else be accounted Jesuites and Papists for holding of them And would not this be unrighteous Judgement according to which thou hast judged us But I must tell thee we do hold the truth in righteousness both in doctrine and practises even upon this account because the Spirit of the Lord hath and doth lead us into all truth both in doctrine and practises And though the Papists may hold the profession of the same truth in words and outward appearance yet this is no ground for us to deny the truth as it is in Jesus nor yet a sufficient ground for thee to accuse us to be Papists but because thou art both ignorant and wicked therefore thou hast thus proceeded and thy work is a very scorn to many that are not Quakers and they see thy errour and ignorance in thy proceedings And wouldst thou thus be dealt withall And you Priests of England shall we judge you according to thine own rule might not I lay you to the line of Judgement and may not I instnace many particular things both in doctrines and practises which are held forth by the Ministers and Church of England and the Jesuites and Papists they hold the very same and shall we therefore conclude lawfully that all the Ministers of England and their People are Papists Oh man behold thy folly and what a snare thou hast laid for thy self and how thou art fallen into the pit which thou hast digged for others And further consider some of those doctrines and practises which thou hast charged upon us are proveable and exemplary in the Scriptures even by the Apostles who held forth and practised the same things and because we hold and practise the same therefore we are accounted Papists from this rule because the Papists profess the same like as if it were errour to say Christ is the Son of God because the Devil said so and like as if it were an errour to believe there is a God because the Devils believe so and by thy false proposed rule thou might have proved the one as soon as the other and thou might have said the Quakers are Devils why because the Devils confest Christ and they believe there is a God and therefore they are devils and would this be good Logick And such is thy Logick thou illiterate man Why this is thy work the Papists they hold such and such things and the Quakers they hold the same and therefore the Quakers are Papists Behold the substance of thy work thou vain man thou and thy work are both ridiculous to sober-minded people Now indeed if thou couldst have instanced such doctrines and practises held forth by us which the Papists do
hold forth which is neither provable nor exemplary in the Scriptures then thy colour had been more fair and thy pretence more spacious But because thou hast truly instanced nothing against us neither in doctrine nor practise but what we can prove sufficiently by the Scriptures therefore thy work is invalid even to many that are not of us For say they if this be Popery to follow the example of the Apostles in doctrine and practises its better to be a Papist then a Protestant for why the Protestants holds forth many doctrines and practises which are not proveable by the Scriptures and I might instance in many things that this is true even that you Ministers of England doth hold forth in doctrine and practise many things which is not proveable by the Scriptures but in some things even contrary to the Scriptures And what if I should compare thee and thy Brethren in some of your doctrines and practises which you hold and the Papists hold the same which is not according nor proveable by the Scriptures will not the conclusion fall upon thee and you that you are Popish Jesuites and like unto them as instance a few things amongst many you are made Ministers by Natural Learning and Languages through the attainment of such Arts and Sciences at Schools and Colledges which the Apostles were not and not by the immediate gift of the Spirit of God as the Apostles were and in this very way and manner are the Ministers of the Church of Rome made and sent forth And moreover by the Authority of the Church of Rome and by the Papists were your Colledges builded and ordained for the very use and end which you make of them and those Revenues as Tythes and other things which you yet uphold even your orders habits and formalities at Schools were given and ordained even in the daies of Popery and by the Whore of Romes Authority and you are in the very practise of that which they practised in this particular and you hold up and maintain that which the Papists instituted and first ordained and therefore are not you Papists and upholders of Popery let the witness in every mans conscience judge for you are doing and upholding the very same things which the Papists do which the Apostles never did and by thine own rule you are therefore Papists Again you are maintained in your Ministry by Tythes Gleab-lands Easter reckonings yearly stipends and so much by the year and settled in a Parochial way and thus were never the Apostles nor found in such practises but the Jesuites and Papists they are in the practise of such things that first instituted and ordained them in this Nation and herein you follow their example and not the example of the Scriptures and therefore we may conclude that you are Papists and follows their spirit and you practise what they practised even without any example at all in the Scriptures Again you sprinkle Infants and sayes it is the Baptisme into the Visible Church and Original Sin is thereby washed away and it is a Seal and a Sign of Regeneration and of the Covenant and this practise and doctrine the Papists hold forth and were indeed the first Founders and Ordainers of this practise and doctrine and it hath never been proved yet to us from the Scriptures but you hold it forth and the Papists they hold forth the same and therefore it may be concluded that you are Papists and yet upholds Popery by these and many other things that I might mention which you do and the Papists do the same and without any proof or example in the Scriptures or any of the Apostles doth fully demonstrate that you are more guilty of Popery then we are and Popery remains yet amongst you and these practises are but a few of many I might mention and this is but a hint at things which more largely might be spoken to and it is occasioned upon thee by thine own proceedings And I must tell thee that you are a company of shameless men to cry out against the Church of Rome for is not She your Mother and did not your Religion your Church and Ministry and Worship for the most part of it spring out of her bowels Yea it may easily be proved that the general part of your Worship doth consist of such practises brought forth in such a manner as was first instituted by the Whore of Rome both the practises themselves and the very manner of their performances and this may easily be proved and therefore you are shameless men to cry out of your Mother who hath made such fair provision for you She hath instituted and taught you a way for making of Ministers and She hath instituted and taught you a way of maintenance by Tythes and so much a year and she hath provided you your very houses for worshipping in for your Churches were her Mass-houses not many years ago And thus She the Whore of Rome your Mother hath made a large provision for you She hath taught you a way of Baptisme as I have mentioned and she hath taught you also the way of persecuting people for good conscience sake it was She that kill'd and destroyed persons for good conscience sake and it was She that forced and imposed Faith and practises upon peoples consciences contrary to the Spirit of God which you Ministers yet practises in part Many things I might instance to illustrate you to be like unto the Papists and even such as have sprung out of the Church of Rome But the Nation is begun already to see your shame and folly and if I were silent the Lord will not forget to repay his enemies with vengeance and the day of the Lord is at hand wherein his Judgements shall be known in the earth And thus I have measured thee according to thy own rule and I do leave it to the Witness of God in thy own Conscience and to all thy Parishioners to whom indeed I do wish well and that they might come to the knowledge of the things that belongs unto eternall life that they might be saved And ye people of Kendall and there abouts Oh that you would consider Oh that you would come to be taught of the Lord and every one of you to receive the Spirit of God which is the free gift of God that it might lead you into all truth according to the promise of the Lord for this is his promise That all his Children shall be taught of him his Law shall be written in their hearts and his Spirit put in their inward parts and they shall all be taught of the Lord and his Spirit shall lead them in all the wayes of righteousnesse Oh! how long will it be ere you come out of Idolatry and out of Antichristian wayes which long you have walked in and not only you but all Christian Nations for great hath been that darkness that hath been upon the world since the Apostles daies for Christ in his
daies he said False Prophets should come and should arise and deceive many and the Apostle John he said in his time that there was then already many false Prophets gone out into the world and the world went after them and the false Prophets which Christ prophesied of should come in the last times the Apostles saw were already come and coming in their daies and it was then the last time 1 Joh. 4. and such were they as you may read that were covetous and taught for filthy lucre and through covetousness made merchandize of people and such were they that preached for hire such as these even Wolves in Sheeps cloathing Christ said should come and the Apostles saw were coming in even in their daies and abundance of such as these have over-spread the Christian Nations for many ages so it is not as though the false Prophets were but coming now for that Scripture signifies and plainly saith that the false Prophets and Antichrist did come in even in the Apostles daies and most of the Apostles themselves were Martyred and the Churches of Asia were running into Idolatry and back-sliding from the truth even before the Apostles decease and John in the Revelations he saw what was to come to pass that Power should be given to the Beast and to the Dragon the Devil over all Nations Kindreds and Tongues and that the Martyrs blood should be shed and the Witness slain and the Woman the true Church should fly into the Wilderness and that the Whore the false Church should cause all Nations even the Kings of the earth should drink the Whores Cup and Antichriâ—t should rule and Myâ—…ery Babylon as a Quean should sit upon Peoples Multitudes and Nations and the Saints Blood should be drunk by the false Church the Whore These things John saw was to come to pass in his time as you may read in the Revelations and since Johns daies within these sixteen hundred years we know they have been brought to pass and fulfilled so the present time is not now as though deceivers were but newly comed in for the Nations of the earth have long been deceived by Antichrist in sheeps cloathing and the Lord is now again gathering People from them so be not deceived in your hearts neither be ye ignorant concerning the times and seasons for its the time of the Womans returning out of the wilderness and she shall be adorned with the same gifts and parts that she had in the Apostles dayes and all shall walk in the light of the Lamb and the marriage of the Lamb shall come and the Devil shall be chained to deceive the Nations no more these things will the Lord bring to pass and we are hapned to be even in the beginning of this time of the Churches returning and the fulfilling Gods promises for the light of the Lord hath appeared and the everlasting Gospel must be preached again through the world and this is Gods promises as you may read in the Revelations Therefore be not ignorant but now consider and let the fear of God be in your hearts for the day of vengeance will suddenly come upon the ungodly and them that are not prepared but wants the Oyl in their own Lamps they shall be shut out and left in utter darkness therefore consider now you have time the day of the Lord is at hand And yet though great darkness hath been over the Nations yet the Lord had his people that is a few in every Nation some in every age that were sincere in their hearts did fear the Lord in Spirit and did desire after him and that were in a measure humble before him some such have been among Papists and Protestants in all ages who have according to their present time been zealous in their way towards God and such have been dear to the Lord at all times who sought after him and suffered for him for their present testimony against sin and iniquity as it was manifest to them and such sincerity of heart in any we never have judged Though we say as for the matter of Government Discipline or Ordinances and as for Ministry the Call to it and maintenance of it all this both among Papists and Protestants of all sorts for the generality of it hath been wholly Antichristian Their Church Government Ordinances Worship their Ministry its Call its Maintenance hath been Antichristian and not according to the example of the Apostles And this we judge even by the Spirit of the Lord Though the sincerity in no man nor amongst any sort of people do we judge yet the constitution of Churches and the Worship and Ordinances and Ministry as it hath stood for many ages both among Papists and Protestants we do judge and deny by the Spirit of the Lord. Much more might be said as in these things but if any of you Parishioners of Kendall desire any further knowledge of these things or to be acquainted with our Principles we have given forth divers Books though they have been rejected hitherto yet the time is at hand when those truthes which we have declared both by word and writing shall be pretious throughout the world And we do not impose our Religion upon people by force of external laws as Papists and Protestants have done by Antichrian power But we do leave what we declare by word or writing to the witnesse of God even in all mens consciences thereby to be approved and though we have been sufferers and yet may for good conscience sake yet we are not ashamed of the truths which the Lord hath given us the knowledge of But in all boldnesse and in the fear of God we confidently give forth our witnesse by the Spirit of the Lord. And as for this our answer it is sufficient to you and your Minister and no more needs be said till we hear a reply and further then it is possible the testimony of truth may be given and I would desire that you and he would sincerely compare this and his together and then judge of the one and of the other even by the witnesse of God in your own consciences Here follows certain proposalls which was sent to William Brownsword about a year ago which are worthy here of Inserting that he may yet answer to these things for he would neither meet me to dispute these things nor give me any answer by writing And indeed it had been more equitable for him first to have answered these things than to have gone and sent forth such a foolish book against us and all these things being compared together I doubt not but some of you may be truly Informed and your understandings opened which is my earnest desire that so it may be unto you and that ye may come to a good understanding and perfectly disern betwen truth and error and true Ministers of Christ and deceivers London the 12th Month 59. FOrasmuch as a Paper I have seen which is given abroad in the Country the