Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n
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A67263
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A discoverie of the beasts being an exposition of the XIII chapter of the Revelation of Jesus Christ : wherein all true Christians (yet in Babylon) are admonished to come out, and the anti-Christians fore-told what their plagues will be / by I.W.
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I. W.
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1641
(1641)
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Wing W41; ESTC R6846
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38,588
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101
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suffered in any Kingdom or Common-wealth and so they blaspheme the Tabernacle of God in a high degree as if Gods people were a company of ungodly rebels and wicked conspiratours but the righteous Lord will in due time visit his people and rebuke his enemies And on the other side for Gods people now to deny the kingdom of the Beast that is as they call it the holy Catholike Church Militant to be the true Church of Christ To refuse to partake and communicate with them in their abominations delusions and unlawful works of darknes is adjudged disobedience schisme and contempt of the power and authorty of the Church To speak against their proceedings sedition disturbance of the peace of the Church heresie impiety and what not Thus they adorne the Harlot which corrupteth the earth with her fornications with the title of the Church and Spouse of Christ and Tabernacle of God and so blaspheme the Tabernecle of God as if it were not a communion of Saints by calling and profession but an habitation of Divels an hold of foule Spirits and a Cage of every unclean and hatefull Bird. Further it is said of the Beast that it did blaspheme those that dwelt in heaven that is the Saints departed this life Those that dwell in heaven are then blasphemed when it is said of them that they take it as an honour done unto them when we make them our Patrons build them Temples set up their Images offer and pray unto them and make them Mediatours between Christ and us for by this they are made not onely Idols but also favourers and chief maintainers of Idolatry They are also blasphemed when the doctrine which they taught and practised is condemned for heresie or when erronious doctrines vaine traditions superstitious rites ceremonies and customes are fathered upon them as received from them by Tradition as unwritten verities but the world hath been brought to believe that Saints in heaven might by these means be as it were bought and sould between Priest and people wherein they have been highly blasphemed Moreover it is said that it was given to the Beast to make warre with the Saints and to overcome them and power was given him over all Kindreds and Tongues and Nations Warre is made with the Saints when they are accused to Rulers and Governors to be Heretikes Schismaticks wicked and ungodly persons and they may then be said to be overcome whem their accusers are justified and they condemned according to this this Scripture hath been fulfilled and verified Great and of long continuance have been the warres which the Beast hath made with the Saints and many have been the victories of this kinde which the Beast hath had against them as the Histories and other records of the Nations do plentifully witnes It was given to the Beast to make warre with the Saints when Rulers and Governours gave way to the Beast to devise and make laws at their own pleasure concerning Religion and the worship of God and then to condemne for Delinquents and evill doers all that would not observe those Laws How free and forward Rulers and Governours have been to give such power unto the Beast they themselves have felt by long and wofull experience for much woe hath the Beast wrought not to the poore and meaner sort of the Saints onely but even to Emperours and Kings and all degrees of people and therefore it is said in the words following that power was given unto this Beast over every Kindred Tongue and Nation So that the exaltation thereof was such as to be a Father above all fathers to every Kindred a Lord above all Lords to every Tongue a King above all Kings to every Nation Thus was this Beast exalted and sate as a Queen triumphing over them having all of all degrees brought in bondage unto her Dominion which was a just recompence upon their heads that gave such power unto this Beast yet see how the world was herein deluded they were not captives against their wills but in blind devotion had this Beast in most high reverence as being a devine power ordained and given by God and not from the Dragon Thus did the Lord give them over to be deluded by this Beast as a just reward of their vngodlynes in that they receaued not the loue of the truth but tooke pleasure in vnrighteousnesse Further it is declared in the words following That all that dwell vpon the earth must worship him that is the Beast whose names are not written in the booke of the life of the Lamb slayne from the foundation of the World by those that dwell on the earth is ment those that have set their habitation there and choose rather to enioy the prosperitie of the world and plesures of sinne together with the Beast then to sufffer affliction for the truth and for witnessing against the Beast these are they that worship him that is receaue their precepts and rules for their doctrine and wholesome instuction and observe their ordinances and Lawes as perfect rules of eqitie and righteousnesse casting the word of God declared in the holy scriptures be hind their backes and treading his Ordinances vnder their feete making farre more conscience not to eate an Egge on Friday then to steale or to commit adulterie But of such it is said that their names are not written in the Booke of life of the Lamb which was slaine from the beginning of the world That is they are not of the number of Gods Elect and Choosen in Christ and given vnto him for his portion and heritage whose condition is to be hated despised persecuted and afflicted in the world for righteousnes sake in whom the Lamb Christ Jesus as in his members hath been slaine since the beginning of the world which condition those which cannot brook and endure but count it a pleasure to live deliciously for a season and take delight to enjoy the pleasures of sin may thereby be discribed not to have their names written in the Book of life Concerning these things it is added If any man have an eare let him heare As if it should be said few there be which have an eare to heare these things For who can indure to heare that Catholike Church which they account to be spirituall holy and heavenly to bee compared to a Beast ugly in forme and horrible and monstrous in nature Who can endure to heare that Power that Throne and that authority which they believe to be of God to be said and affirmed to be of the Dragon that old Serpent the Divell and Satan Who will believe that a righteous God would give way to his enemies the workers of iniquity so farre to prevaile and so long time as for many hundred years together to delude the Nations to bring them into bondage and to keepe them in slavery And that a few poore despised people of no reckoning in the world here one and there another should see more and be wiser then
held Canonicall and those that contradicted the same were therefore cast out and condemned as Heretikes This was the manner and the occasion of the rising of this Beast out of this turbulent Sea And here by the way observe 〈◊〉 1.17 That every good giving and perfect gift is from above from the Father of lights But this Beast is from the Sea beneath not from above and therefore not belonging to the kingdome of Christ But an adversary and enimie thereof Of this Beast it is said that he had 7 heads a thing which is monstrous in nature And therefore by this wasforeshewed that the dominion represented by this beast should be a monstrous dominion Concerning these heads let this be considered That the whole state or society of the Antichristian Sea is of two sorts of people the one sort they call the Cleargie the other sort the Layetie Of these the Cleargie are as heads and guides to direct and go before and the Laietie as the body or rather the tayle to follow after Again by the same policy their Cleargie are sorted into seven orders or degrees namely to speake in their language 1. Iamtores sets ostiarij 2. Lectares 3. Exorcistie 4. Acolithi 5. Subdiaconi 6. Diaconi 7. Sacerdotes These are the seven orders of the Antichristian Cleargie As for Popes Cardinals Patriarches Arch-bishops Bishops Arch-deacous c. they are titles of Dignity and not of order For the Pope is but a Priest concerning his orders and when he stands at the Altar and faith Masse he doth that as Priest and not as a Pope and so of all other degrees This considered it may well bee said of the Anti-christian Synagogue and State that it is as a Monster with seven heads As for the Ministers which God hath ordained to be in his Church they are first Apostles secondly Prophets thirdly Teachers c. 1 Cor. 12.28 c. See also Rom. 12.6 7 1. Eph. 4 11 12 13. And these onely were given for the gathering together of the Saints for the work of the Ministery and for the edification of the body of Christ. Not some to have a bunch of Keys with a charge of the doors of this or that Temple or Cathedrall Church Another to have a book to read to the people things which neither he nor they did understand A third to have a Book of Conjurations or Charmes with charge to read them or say by heart to such as were distracted of their wits or possessed with Divels and to put their hands upon them A fourth to have a Taper or Wax-candle with a Candlestick to carry before the Priests and Deacons in doing their service A fift to recive of the people oblations and offerings and to deliver them to the Deacon to carry to the Altar to read the Epistle and to stand by the Preist while he was saying the Masse A sixth to be the Bishops spie and intelligencer to informe him of such as be irregular and observe not their orders to read the Gospell attend the Priest at the Altar c. A seventh to consecrate the Hoast as they call it and then to offer it as a sacrifice propitiatory for the quick and dead These are not they which God hath given to be in the Church But these are they whereof the Antichristian Cleargie consisteth for whosoever is one of that Cleargie is one of these seven orders be he Pope Prelate or else whatsoever and to note and foreshew this point of policy this Beast which IOHN saw had seven heads If any shall thinke this to be a vaine frivolous and strange interpretation to understand by the seven heads of the Beast these seven order of the Cleargie as thinking those heads to betoken things of greater note and importance Let such consider what account and reckoning is made of such persons as have received the Sacraments of Orders and holy tonsure in the kingdome of the Beast and they shall finde the interpretation not impertinent but very agreeable For a time there was since the writing of this prophesie Vide Concil Matisconen secundum Can. 9.10 when the meanest shrimp that was within these holy Orders as they call them was held to be of that dignity that the chiefest and worthiest secular Iudge in a Kingdom was held unworthy to judge or censure them for any trespasse or fact how notorious wicked and manifest soever because they had received holy Tonsure and were thereby consecrated and set apart unto God to be his portion and heritage and to pray for the people and therefore were exempted from all secular jurisdiction and power such was their dignity accounted to be and still is where that kingdom prevaileth and hath the dominion yea ever in this Land that quarrell hath cost the King his Crown as it is to be seene in the Histories of the Reign of King IOHN and not his Crown onely but his life also Now if the meanest of them be above the dominion of any King or secular Iudge and secular Iudges be the heads of the people whom God hath appointed to beare rule over them well may these be said to be as heads in the kingdom of the Beast wherein these shavelings are holden to be so holy and high in dignity and degree As this Beast which Iohn saw had seven heads so likewise it had ten hornes whereby was foreshewed that as the Kings of the Medes and Persians were shewed and represented to Daniel by the two hornes of the Beast which he saw in his vision so the Kings of many Kingdomes should be as garders and defenders of the Antichristian kingdom and state And that this Scripture hath been fulfilled to the uttermost by the Kings of the Nations is so manifest that none can be ignorant of it that are of judgement and experience And it was just with the Lord to make the Kings of the earth vassals to this Beast because they received not the love of the truth but took pleasure in urighteousnesse they would not forsake their sins to live godlily righteously and soberly as all must do that will attaine salvation but they would live after their lusts and for their sins they would make satisfaction by building of Churches and Monasteries c. and endowing them with Lands Rents and other Revenews by means whereof those which traded like Merchants in those many waters the kingdom of the Beast grew rich and wealthy and became the great men of the earth Furthermore John faith of the Beast that he saw that it was like a Leopard c. By the resemblance and likenesse of a Leopard was signified that this Beast should be foule and full of spots as is shewed in the 18 Chapter Babylon is become the habitation of Divels and the hold of foule spirits and the Cage of every unclean and hatefull Bird. The filthinesse of this Beast is apparant in that he doth by force and Armes compell all sorts of wicked and ungodly people to be of his