subject to sudden alterations And to carry on those designes as the care and faithfulnesse of those that are intrusted with a Parliamentary Power ought in the fear of God to be engaged so to help foreward the performance of the work it self in our dayes let it be free for Forreigners to represent their thoughts concerning the means without which these designs cannot possibly and by which they may infallibly be carried on to some perfection And to this end the nature of the main thing aymed at namely the glory of our God being made known the means by which it may be advanced and in order thereunto the way to settle the Common welfare of the State will evidently appear The glory of God then is chiefly made known and manifest in the fruits of his goodness to his people where is to be discerned who Gods people are and what the fruits of his goodnesse are unto them The People of God are they that know his name in Christ that own it and will be called by it that worship him in spirit and truth according to his revealed Word and Will by Christ and that through Christ alone make him their refuge The fruits of his goodnesse to this his people are these 1. That having revealed himself unto them and called them effectually to himself out of this evill world they are set unchangably under the Banner of his love in the new Covenant and his Spirit Word and Ordinances dwell with them 2. That by this Spirit Word and Ordinances they are inabled and directed to serve him all the dayes of their life in righteousnesse and holinesse being freed from the power and fear of all their enemies 3. And that they have a sure hope to possesse a Kingdome that can not be shaken when the things that are shaken shall be removed As in the enjoyment of these blessings Gods people is made happy so in the appearance thereof upon them his glory is made manifest unto the world He then that will in his place advance the manifestation of this glory ought to further according to his abilitie Gods people to stand under the enjoyment of these blessings Now if it be asked by what means and how can the manifestation of this Glory be advanced by Men To this it may be Answered That no man can advance it otherwise then by setting himself to become a receptacle thereof and by conveying in his place the evidence thereof unto others From whence it will follow that if the Members of this Parliament are men who have indeed set themselves to be receptacles of these fruits of Gods goodnes if they know the true advantage how to make right use of their places for God and if they really will lay to heart how they ought to convey the manifestation of his goodnesse to their own Nation and the men of this Generation then we may infer that this Design will certainly prosper in their hand and be carried on by them in their present station but if any void of these thoughts be enclined to envy and jealousie against his neighbours for private occasions or against those who have managed the publique affairs of State if he thinks of quarrelling with them and how to ravell into their matters odiously making use of his place to carry on some designe against them let him look to his own heart in the fear of God let him judge that a heart in that frame is no receptacle of the goodnesse of God and consequently is not upright towards the main aym of a Parliamentary Station and calling whence will follow that he who is possessed therewith and led therewith can never approve himself in the Trust committed unto him either honest towards God and his people or faithfull to the State Now if such a one being conscious to himselfe that he is judged by these words which discover the error of his way shall desire to make streighter paths for his feet least that which is lame in his poore and narrow soul be turned out of the way let him not slight the plain suggestions which here are to be made but seriously with a single Christian eye reflect First upon himselfe Secondly upon the people of God and Thirdly upon the present state of the Common-wealth of England Reflecting upon himselfe let him be jealous over his own soul and seek to discerne the frame of that Spirit by which he was ledd that he may know with what Christian Inclinations towards God and men he stands in his place for if he cannot judge himself how shall he be able as a parliament member ought to judge and rectifie others If he cannot take the beam out of his owne eye how shall he take the mote out of his Neighbours If then he is willing to go out of himselfe and to lay himselfe aside that he may be capable to serve others through love if he shall be desirous to receive all to the glory of God as Christ hath received us and in like manner to be received by all If in this way of receiving and being received he hath gotten his minde composed to mannage the publique concernments of Christianity without murmuring and disputing without wrathfull mallice and strife being enabled in meeknesse to receive and to hold forth to all the light which he hath received If he hath been taught in bearing with dissenters to discerne their principles to make a difference between those that keep the foundation and those that overturne it to deal patiently with all that they may recover themselves out of the snares of the devill and if he hath studied the wayes of Peace of Truth of Righteousnesse to be found not only blamelesse and harmlesse towards all men as he would have all men to be found towards himselfe but also to hold forth the word of life and to shine as a light in that life before men If we say reflecting upon himselfe he discern without flattery in his own spirit this frame wrought by grace or a sincere desire and breaking forth of endeavours to have it wrought he may entertain hopes to become through mercy serviceable and usefull in his place for the advancement of Gods glory amongst his people But if to these thoughts and desires his spirit is an utter stranger if with these motions and endeavours he hath not at all been hitherto acquainted let him judge himself in the presence of the Lord before he be judged and condemned let him not play the hypocrite to meddle with holy things and take the name of our God in vain whiles his heart is far from him For the Lord will not hold him guilty who taketh his name in vaine Let him not presume above his line nor meddle with that whereunto he is not called nor set apart for no man can be a Vessell of Honour in the hand of the Lord for the house of his glory to serve therein whom he hath not endowed with these Principles and inclinations by which
to be made manifest unto the world and whosoever in his place of trust in England or else where hath no sincere aim to glorify God in the manifestation of this truth whereunto all the forenamed duties by the Spirit and Word are made subordinate in holding it forth unto the world by his people he cannot approve his conscience to be upright towards God for the concernments of his Saints and the truth of Christianity not faithfull to the Commonwealth whereof he is a member because it is knowne that no Commonwealth of this world shall henceforth subsist long or finally prosper but in order to the Kingdome of Jesus Christ as grounded upon this and upheld by this way of settlement Isa 60.11 12. Therefore in the third place if he will reflect upon the present state of the Commonwealth of England and doth know that Christ by his kingdome doth uphold the pillars of the Earth till he shall inherit all Nations and that the Commonwealths of the world have a being only till his Elect be gathered out of them and that in seeking the kingdome of God first and his righteousnesse to be settled in a Commonwealth all other welfare will be added unto it If these Maximes are known and presupposed then the temporal concernments of a State may and ought to be laid to heart in the next place and therein the duty of a faithfull Patriot and good Commonwealths man seriously considered whereby every one who is not void of all reason and honesty will be taught in such a juncture of time to lay aside in his publick place all private interests and grudges and look to the present common concernment wherewith the Parliament is intrusted in respect of men Which we conceive is briefly this To preserve the safety and to continue the peace of the Nation at home To procure the prosperity and to maintain the Credit thereof abroad Therefore his faithfulness will be to imploy his abilities industry and authority to make use of the means and wayes which God and Nature hath fitted and put in his hand to further these purposes of which means our thoughts we hope may be offered here and as they are without partiality so they will be received without prejudice by all that are intelligent To preserve then the safety it is absolutely necessary that some apparent and allowed form of Government be settled therein because the experience of all ages agreeable to sound reason doth shew that nothing doth ruine a people so suddenly and so absolutly as Anarchy which is a state wherein no Government being visible it is free for every one to do by himselfe in private and towards others in publick whatsoever his own fantasie or his unruly passion doth suggest unto him which needs must fall out when there is no common Rule to walk by nor any due respect had to any superiour Now how farre the Government settled in a great multitude of men whose humours and capacities being by nature education and custome many wayes different and in some things opposite yet have all alike an equall hand in the Government of a Nation doth naturally tend to a perpetuall unsettlement of all rule in a Commonwealth and consequently to an unlimited permission for every leader of a party to get power and thereby to oppose and disturbe the way of such as dissent from him or for every member of a party to do for himself what ever seemeth good in his own eyes we say how far a Government so constituted in the hands of such a multitude doth naturally tend to a perpetuall unsettlement of all bonds of humane spirituall civill and naturall societies we shall not set our selves to lay open it may be seen daily abroad in all meerly popular Governments nor will it be needfull nor is it expedient in this discourse for proof hereof to make any observation upon the changes lately fallen out in England by reason of such a way of Government but it will suffice to take notice that no Forreigners ever could perceive any ground of safety or settlement in that Commonwealth till it hapned that the Assembly which in the year 1653 was called and acted as a Parliament perceiving its own insufficiency by reason of its divisions within it self to settle matters in a right frame did resigne the power of Governing into the hands of a few over whom a Head was set which hath since given sufficient proof to the world both of his faithfulnesse to his Nation and of his Abilities to Govern with Diligence Courage Foresight Moderation and it is believed abroad that as long as he shall continue in the fear of God and not be lifted up in his heart his course will not be interrupted and as long as this course which by him and his Counsell is taken shall continue without interruption that the State will be more and more settled in a flourishing condition and not only remain safe within it self but become daily more and more formidable to all that are enemies unto it Upon which consideration as all Forraigners who wish well to England for the Interest which in the Common Cause of Protestants by this Mans conduct it hath begun to embrace do stand amazed at the wonderfull hand of God in raising him beyond all mens thoughts and in keeping him against so many desperate plots so they hope that the faithfull in the land and the Patriots of the Commonwealth in their supream Assembly will no lesse be sensible than Forraigners are of this strange Providence and in this their Meeting set their hearts to concur with it and carry it on not only by a confirmation of the Authority with the limitations already agreed upon but by an addition of that respect thereunto which will make it more considerable and unquestionably receivable according to the Fundamental Statute laws of the Nation by all as well at home as abroad For by such a settlement of the Government the safty of the State will be in all humane appearance henceforth secured from all dangerous commotions and conspiracies which otherwise will never be wanting so long as the Pretenders to an absolute government have power or can conspire with the enemies of the State to disturbe the quiet thereof and repossesse themselves of their pretensions Thus then the safety of the Nation may be secured at this time from many dangerous plots namely by this addition of Authority to the Government and consequently by this means the Peace thereof at home will also be continued and confirmed because the quietnesse of a State depends upon the Authority of the ruling Power which cannot rest long setled in the hands of a Multitude chiefly when there is a necessity of managing a War abroad whereunto the united strength and Counsel of a Nation must concur to make it successefull And how far the government of strength and Counsel can be managed by a multitude successefully to continue is not easily conceivable in notion far lesse approved
of the wisedome of the Nation the credit thereof is thus farre raised again by a Protector what might be done if it had a King of such an Heroick spirit and able conduct We looke upon the Nation therefore as raised from the dead and set upon its feet to act in its true interest from which it was heretofore kept back Formerly the Spaniard had his snares upon all the Counsells but these are now broken And we make no doubt but the Wise and Generous Representatives now assembled will maintain the Credit of the Nation against him The successe of the warre hitherto hath not been such as could bring gain Seldome is it seen that the beginning of a warre is gainfull but we conceive it hath not been undertaken so much for gain as for Justice and Reputation and in this respect we find it very succesfull both in reference to the cause and to the event which may be foreseen by those that are intelligent The Protestant Cause in Europe is sensible of it and although in such a vast enterprise the event cannot be suddenly apparent to all yet it may be perceived that in a short time being continued it will certainly ruin the great enemy of the peace of Europe and drain the fountain of his power and break the Antichristian yoak which hitherto for the Papal Interest he hath put upon the conscience of all Christians who have dealt with him We mean the Inquisition by which he is an open enemy to all Christian freedom A Tyrannie of the highest nature that can be imagined and under which all deserve to lye whose spirit is so base as not to joyne in opposing it till the upholders of it be made as contemptible as ever they intended to be eminent by their affected Monarchy And if there were no more in the quarrel but this alone The Reputation of England will be glorious for ever in the mindes of all men of Piety and Honour for lifting up a banner against it when the rest of the world did fit still under it We see daily that some Nations make warre with their Neighbours for raising Taxes of money or infringing the liberty of their Trade and should not all Christian States become sensible of such abominable taxing of the persons and lives of their Subjects and of the infringment of the whol liberty of their Gospell profession it shall therefore henceforth truly be said that no Nation is sensible of true liberty but England and that all deserves to be slaves that take not up this quarrell with it And chiefly those who for the love of filthy lucre either strengthen the hands of Tyrannie by assisting him in his occasions of warre or withdraw their strength and the assistance due to those that do oppose him Therefore we are confident that the pious generous Representatives of the highly esteemed Nation of England will not be wanting in supplies or stick at extraordinary charges Herein then what ever the event of the warre may be will the Piety the Justice and the Courage of the Nation be renowned to all Christian posterity that they alone have stood up for the freedome of conscience not for themselves alone but for all that make profession of the truth and this should raise the spirits of all honest men so much the more by how much it is apparent that Christ hath raised a man as it were out of nothing beyond all mens expectation to take this worke in hand Whence the successe of the enterprise cannot be doubted of seeing it is the way of God to evidence miraculously his power and to overthrow the mightiest of the earth by that which hath the least appearance Blessed be his Name for it and let all that love him in truth say Amen There is one thing more wherein the Reputation of England is concerned which although it is not so apparent to the world as the former enterprise yet in it self it is no lesse considerable and to the intelligent who have notice of it is a matter of no lesse rejoycing We have heard of it and conceive if it be prosecuted of which we doubt not as it is hopefully begun it will advance the spirituall interest of Saints in one another and the kingdome of Christ thereby more effectually then the breaking of the outward tirannical power of the Adversarie can do It is the Designe of taking away the divisions which are amongst Protestants and setting a Religious correspondency a foot amongst them for the propagating of the Truth wherein they are agreed At this Designe as the godly on both sides are comforted and raised in Spirit to hope chearfully for a blessed enlargment of the knowledge of the Son of God so the Adversaries of the Truth are more then ordinarily startled and troubled at the apprehension of the event which is no small presage that the Lord is going along with the design and should be an encouragement to all intelligent Men to joyn in the work because that which the enemies of the Truth fear most all that have received the truth in the love thereof should seek most to bring to passe This work of a Correspondency between England and Foraign Protestants for the interest of the Gospel was one of the wise resolutions and proposalls which the Parliament in the year 1641. in their Remonstrance to the late King made as to be one of the effects of their Domestick Reformation then intended but the unfortunate Man followed a contrary course to the way proposed and did not only decline the Reformation but corresponding with the enemies of the Gospel opened a doore unto them to bring in their Superstition into England and Scotland and to enlarge it in Ireland But God hath disappointed wonderfully all those designes as hath been evident to all the world therefore having begun with them when they were at the height of their undertaking to overthrow it we may assuredly conclude that he will also make a full end For he hath declared his purpose that he will arise for his people to shake terribly the earth and what he hath purposed who shall disannull it And when his hand is streched out to execute his purpose who shall turne it back Therefore let all that are upright in heart be strong to work with the Lord for the uniting of his Saints that their light may break forth as the noone day and the glory of the Lords goodnesse may be seen upon them Let none look back as Lots wife did to regret the losse of temporal conveniencies but all look forward to follow the footsteps of the Almighty who is gone forth of his place to shew himself on the head of his people united in his fear love to lead them unto rest and the honour of England is to march in the Front before all the rest whom the Lord employs in this his enterprise These are the hearty expressions of our wishes from abroad towards you most Noble Senators and towards the Nation whom you represent that as by the good hand of God upon the Spirit of your leaders you are become honorable among your Friends and terrible to your Enemies so you would strengthen his hands in the workes whereon the Lord hath set him and with him joyne your Counsell and strength to help the Lord against the mighty Remembering that it is not alone by outward power that deliverance will be wrought to the people of God but by the Spirit of the Lord By the Spirit of love and unity amongst your selves of Righteousnes and love towards all that erre by ignorance and are not made the accursed thing and of faithful confidence and hope towards God If you entertain the Motions of this spirit and despise not the suggestions which from a single heart we have offered as the testimony of our affections for your welfare We are sure the Lord will be with and will go before you and the God of Israel will be your rereward he will make you as a polished shaft in his quiver to peirce through the very heart of his enemies and that it may so fall out you shall have with the constant hearty prayers to Almighty God for your prosperity in due time also the faithful hands of your humbly affectionate freinds abroad who are known to the Lord whom you serve and who know you in him by his service FINIS
the Nations and fitted only to raise the spirit of a discontented party to move towards some change or other although it cannot know either where to rest or what course it would shape to come to a setlement Thus having expressed our hearty wishes towards that which we conceive to be the fundamentall well-being of the State and Nation we shall not need to extend our thoughts much further to speak of the Superstructures of Prosperity and Credit how they may be built thereupon For these will naturally spring up as branches out of a fruitfull tree well rooted and well planted The State being the Tree the root thereof is the honesty of the heart of the Rulers towards God their Nation for to advance his glory their welfare The body or stem thereof is the frame of Laws to settle the Government in a way of Justice to preserve peace and enjoy freedome well ordered The main Branches that grow up from hence are the Prosperity and Credit of a Nation and although these two branches take their growth commonly together so that the one is seldome without the other yet in the Notions of their nature they are distinguished and the means whereby each of them is maintained and procured are neither immediately the same nor so nearly linked together that they cannot be separated otherwise all the wayes and meanes of outward prosperity suppose the Spanish massacring of poore Indians contrary to faith given to gain Riches and Power would be counted honorable But to speak briefly our sense of the nature and means of these two we offer it thus That Prosperity in our motion is nothing else but the flourishing condition of a people by the increase of Riches and Strength and that Credit or Reputation is nothing else but the honorable esteem which others have of a people in respect of their Vertues namely Piety Justice Truth Faithfullnesse Constancie Courage Wisdome and such like whence it appears that although it falls out in the world that a rich and strong people are cōmonly in esteem with their neighbours and such as are in good esteem with all may grow in riches and strength yet the proper and direct wayes and meanes of procuring true Credit and Reputation are different from those which procure and uphold Riches and Strength The proper meanes to procure Riches is Industry applied to Husbandry and Trade under the notion of Husbandry we comprehend aswell that Industry which is above ground about the fruits of the earth and all animate living creatures which move upon it as that which is under ground about Minerals and Stones and such like Under the notion of Trade we understand all industry used to purchase to prepare to transport and to put off commodities by Land or by Sea to which we refer all manner of Manufactures which beget all trade and the Art of Navigation which foments all Trade and is fomented by the industry of Fishing All these Advantages England has to inrich it self withall as much if not more then any one nation whatsoever if then Industry to improve these advantages be not wanting nothing can be wanting to make the Nation flourish in wealth Now to stir up industry in people not dull but by nature lively and active is no difficult matter if their leaders be awake and lay to heart the way to settle them in a course thereof which may be done by observing the advantages which by reason of sloth or for want of skill being neglected by their own are laid hold of and improved by others To this effect should be searched into what the variety of native commodities most proper to the Nation is and what there is of common Commodities which others have also what store there is of each sort how much of each the Nation it self consumes how much want thereof is amongst Foraigner how both sorts of commodities should be improved by Manufactures how most advantagiously brought abroad to the utmost Market how the trade should be regulated to be just and lasting how the commodities made most merchandable the transport safe from Pyracy how the Sea Ports should be made not onely commodious Harbours for Fleets but Magazins for the transportation of foreign commodities from one Nation to another Such like matters must be thought upon in the way of a State to make a People industrious and prosper in wealth and being wealthy there will be means to put themselves in a posture of strength when ever it is needfull Yet although wealth helps much to further strength neverthelesse strength consists not in it but it consists chiefly in the wayes of raising peoples courage to be fit for action in the uniting of their minds and resolutions to stand for a common cause interest in the training up of youth to hardship and to the experience of action by Sea and by Land and to the subjection unto discipline of all which things we have nothing to suggest but this only that we conceive it belongeth to the wisdom and faithfulnes of those who are intrusted to regulate the State of a Nation to reflect upon these things for the benefit thereof and consequently to hear the advices of the most experienced men in every kind either within or without the Nation to put it in a way of more industry then hitherto hath been observed in it and we wish that the envy of Judah and Ephraim in point of Trade may not onely cease but be brought to a Coalition upon common grounds and rules of profit and pains The last thing which we have in our wishes is that the maintaining of the Credit of the Nation may as well be understood as cared for by those to whom it is intrusted It cannot be unknown to any who hath been abroad at what a low rate the Nation hath been valued at by all Neighbours before this last change is befallen to it wherein it has gotten a Protector to go before it it becomes us not to say what we know of this matter and certainly in regard of this it was in no small danger both at home and abroad undervalued because Nations subsist and flourish no lesse by Credit and Reputation amongst their Neighbours than by force for the successe of force is uncertain But God was pleased to give beyond all imagination that successe unto the Parliament forces under the conduct of their Generals which raised to a considerable degree the Reputation of the Nations courage which seemed to be lost Afterward the excesse of their Courage Resolution begetting unexpected changes made the world stand in doubt of their wisedome But now that which was disesteemed is admired The true Friends which are none but true Protestants find cause to glorifie God and looke upon his hand with hope in the Changes The enemies which are all Popish Agents and base Spirited Politicians are at a stand and in a maze not knowing where to find their way concerning England If from under such a low esteem