things cometh the Wrath of God upon the Children of Disobedience Now consider all you that call your selves Ministers and others in Christendom so called Christ Jesus is the Seed's-Man and he sows the good Seed which is in Man's Heart now some Hearts be a High-Way and those Fowls in them that are bred by the foul spirit take it away and some is sown upon Stony Ground where 's not much Earth but is scorch't by the heat of Persecution and some again is sown upon the Thorny Ground Thorny Hearts where it grows a while and then the Thornes the Cares of the World choaks it but that which is sown upon Good Ground brings forth good Fruit abundantly to the Glory of God and Christ the Seed's-Man Now Christ in a Parable 〈◊〉 speaks of a Housholder that sowed good Seed in his Field and his Servants said Didst thou not sow good Seed whence then hath it Tares He answered An Enemy hath done this They replyed Wilt thou that we go and gather them up Nay saith he lest ye gather the Wheat also let both grow together till the Harvest The Field is the World the Good Seed are the Children of the Kingdom of Christ the Tares are the Children of the Wicked One the Enemy that sowed them is the Devil the Harvest is the end of the World and the Reapers are the Angels So Christ he would not suffer his Disciples to gather the Tares lest c. Now what 's the matter with you and others who will be Gatherers when Christ hath forbidden you lest you pluck up Wheat instead of Tares seeing it is the Angels Work to sever the Wheat from the Tares and the Wicked from the Just And therefore whose Servants have you been in all Christendom who will venture the gathering of the Tares and instead of them have been plucking up the Wheat as witness all the Martyrs and Bloody Persecutions since Christ's time but these Tares at the End of the World the Angels shall cast into the Fire where shall be Weeping and Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth c. And Luke 9.55 When Christ sent to a Village of the Sameritans to make ready for him and they did not receive him his Disciples said Lord Wilt thou that we command Fire to come down from Heaven to consume them even as Elias did but Christ rebukâ—t them saying Ye know not what spirit ye are of the Son of Man is not come to destroy mens lives but to save them Now mark If the Disciples of Jesus Christ did not know themselves what spirit they were of who would have had Fire to come down from Heaven upon such as would not receive Christ how do you know what spirit you are of and all those since the Apostles dayes that do persecute people about Religion by Imprisoning them c Now had they and you known what spirit you are of you would not Persecute but seeing you do not therefore it is you will have the People of God persecuted and so are under the Rebukes of Christ who came to Save and nor destroy And therefore since you do not know what spirit you are of your selves we cannot trust our Bodies nor our Souls nor Spirits in your hands And you see you have no Command from Christ or the Apostles to persecute for Christ saith All Power is given to me both in Heaven and Earth c. What to do To destroy the Devil and his Works the Enemy the Adversary and Destroyer of Mankind Christ he is so far from that that he commands us To love one another and to love Enemies but this Command hath been little regarded in Christendom Christ spake to such as built the Sepulchres of the Prophets and garnisht them whom their Fore-Fathers had killed and yet these Builders killed the Son Have not we the same Builders now that would kill him and persecute him where he is revealed in his People Truly ye bear witness that you allow the Deeds of your Fore-fathers who did kill them and their Children built and garnisht their Sepulchres that so all the Righteous Blood from Abel to Zacharias yea to this very day will come upon this Generation of Persecutors whereof in our dayes we have seen sad Examples how the Lord hath cut several of them suddenly off who have been found persecuting his People and Beloved Ones his dear Lambs And saith Christ The Servant that says in his Heart My Lord delays his coming and begins to smite his Fellow-Servants and Eat and be Drunken the Lord will come in a day when he looks not for him when he is not aware of it and will cut him assunder and will appoint him his Portion with Unbelievers Mat. 12. And therefore take ye heed who smite the Servants of God and Hand-Maids of God lest the Lord come in a Day or in an Hour when you are not aware and cut you assunder with his sharp two-edged Sword and appoint you your Portion with Hypocrites and Unbelievers and therefore the People of God are alwayes to be in a readiness waiting for the Appearance of the Lord Mat. 24. And Blessed is that Servant that the Lord finds so doing he will make him Ruler over his House that gives them their Meat in due season Now consider you Strikers this and all you Smiters and Persecuters you do not watch for Christ's coming no no but you put the Day and Hour afar off and you do not know how soon either of them may come of cutting assunder and of your Weeping Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth and your Portion which you are like to have with Hypocrites And Christ further saith Luke 19.27 Those mine Enemies which would not that I should Raign over them bring hither and slay them before me Now consider this you that will not have Christ to Rule and Raign in his People no nor in your selves Do you think that you shall escape the Sword of his Judgments and of his Mouth and the Wrath of the Lamb And did ever Christ though he was called a Blasphemer and as Belzebub and that he had a Devil and a Deceiver yet though he had all Power in his Hands given to him in Heaven and in Earth yet he did not persecute any of them but rebuk't his Disciples Neither did he give any such Command or Advice to his Apostles but rather the contrary viz. That they should love one another and love Enemies Now then who hath given you this Power to persecute and beat another mans Children and Servants Let us know your Original and your Antiquity Now whereas you may say That Lay-men and Mechanick Men are not to meddle with the Scriptures but you onely that have got the Original of Hebrew Greek and Latine I Answer Was not the beginning of the Originals in Babel For was not all the Earth of one Language before And had not Pilate these Originals when he crucified Christ And did he not write a Title upon his Cross in Hebrew Greek and Latine
you And did not the Apostle speak of a company that were Heady High-minded and Lovers of Pleasures more then Lovers of God Self-willed and Covetous that had got a Form of Godliness but denyed the Power thereof from whom he commandeth to turn away read your selves in 2 Tim. 3.3 4 5. And truly Friends I must needs say to you I never heard so much debauch'd Language and Hellish Lyes as has been cast unjustly and wickedly upon me since I came into this Island which grieves my Soul that ever such should be in Peoples Mouthes and that you Ministers should gladly be Entertainers if not the Fomenters and Preachers of them where-with you have filled and poysoned Peoples minds with wicked Lyes I say and false and filthy Slanders and so corrupted them O! how can ye be otherwise called then Teachers of Lyes and Lyars even such as love and make a Lye Rev. 22.15 and such as are given up to believe Lyes see their sad End in Rev. 21.27 And when you cannot with all your Lyes provoke and stir up the Magistrate to Persecution then you persecute us with your Tongues But I hope that many of the Magistrates will come to see you so as that you shall not get to ride on them and spur them on for if you should you would make them your Drudges just as the Priests of old spurred up Pilate when they got over him to Persecute and Crucifie our Lord and Saviour But consider it well the same spirit and nature is in you that would Crucifie Christ who is revealed now in his People For have there not been Sauls among you with their Packet of Letters to Persecute the People of God in this Island of late read but Priest Lessley's and some other Priests Petition which they sent or delivered to the Governour and Council here a Copy whereof is hereunto annexed And what hath he and others done this last Assembly convened 't is well known Were not the Chief Priests the Authors of Saul's Packet for had he not a Packet from them But now it seems you Chief Priests are grown more bold for you can go your selves with your Packets to this last Assembly I say O! is it not a Shame that you who call your selves Ministers of the Gospel should go to the Magistrate to perswade them to persecute Christians And do you think that the Magistrates have no other Work to do in this Island even to do Justly and to love Mercy and walk Humbly with God and to take Care of the Preservation and Right Governing of the people in Righteousness and in Holiness and that every man may be preserved in their respective Estates and to see that all do to others as they would have others do unto them and to see that the Island may be preserved in Peace and to take Care of that which is for the Good of this Island and Property of its Inhabitants As for Religion that belongeth to God for it came from God and Christ Jesus who is the Author of every mans Faith and sets up his Worship which is in the Spirit and in the Truth and is to rule in the Hearts of his People who receive that Religion from above that is pure and undefiled in God's Sight and so God and Christ must have a place in man to dwell in to wit the Heart that so he may have his Due his Worship and Honour from and by them But to return to your Slandâ—â—â— namely that I should hang ribbons upon peoples arms and that I brought a young Women from England to be nought with her And that I should lie with my Sister and such-like stinking and filthy Lyes have you and your Auditors reported of me which no sober man I am sure will give Credit to being full well known that I was never tainted or blamisht with any such Uncleanness So that with David I may say False Witnesses did rise up they laid to my Charge things that I knew not Psal 35.11 Certainly many of you are and have been naught your selves this way else you would have vertue in your mouthes rather then have such things as a modest Ear abhors yea such filthy stuff and wicked Lyes as these which came from the Devil who is the Father of them are your Parishes fill'd with For I would have you know that I abhor detest and scorn such things it being well known in England I say that I was never tainted with the least Unclean action nor thus taxed till I came here amongst you but what is in your own Hearts that you cast upon me so that ye fulfil Christs Words who foretold They should speak all manner of Evil against you falsly for my Name 's sake And indeed it is for Christ's sake that you do it So that we can be exceeding glad and rejoyce in Christ Jesus in that it is for his sake that we are thus evil spoken of But know this and be assured of it the time will come that he will appear for our glory and to your shame and confusion For We would have you to understand that we have an esteem of our Bodies for our Bodies the Lord hath honoured with his mercies and they are Vessels of his honour and Temples of Christ and of God and of the Holy Ghost and not for Adultery and Fornication Truly I could not but wonder and stand amazed to hear of such soul beastly and unmannerly and uncivil Language as I have heard since I came here What is this Gospel Teaching O but consider what the Scriptures speak concerning slanderous Tongues and of lying Lips and of such as have Venom under their Tongues and the Poyson of Asps What do you not believe that God will judge for these things and sweep away the Refuge of Lyes and take the Reproach from off his People Would you have the same Measure measured to you as you have done to me and the rest of us Surely you have not had so much as Common Civility or Humanity much less Christianity for if you had had either you would have come and spoken to me when I was in the Island and not have railed against me behind my back and incensed others against me Was this Humane or Christianly or Neighbourly done Judge ye But alas what shall I say I do very much fear that the Hand of the Lord God will suddenly come upon many of you with his swift Destruction The Lord did visit and that not very long since this Island with two sore Judgments the one of Fire the other of the Plague but alas what Repentance what Change have they wrought in you and upon you What saith the Prophet of the Lord in Isa 26.9 When thy Judgments are on the Earth the Inhabitants of the World will learn Righteousness But alas are you not rather worse then you were before and hardened more then you were before Pharoah-like as it is in the 10th verse Let Favour be shewn to the Wicked yet
Shall not I visit for these things saith the Lord Shall not my Soul be avenged on such a Nation as this A Wonderful and Horrible Thing is committed in the Land the Prophets prophesie Falsly and the Priests bear Rule by their means and my People love to have it so What will you do in the End thereof Now consider Do you not bear Rule by your meanes and do not the People love to have it so and was not this a horrible thing committed in the Land and reproved by the true Prophet And yet will you hold up that which he reproved And read Jer. 23. Such as prophesie Lyes in the Lord's Name and the Lord never sent them and he never commanded them And Vers 11. He saith both the Prophet and the Priests were Prophane and the Lord had found their Wickedness in his House and therefore thus saith the Lord I will feed them with Wormwood and make them to drink the Water of Gall For from the Prophets of Jerusalem is Prophaneness gone forth in all the Land I never sent them saith the Lord yet they ran I never spake to them yet they prophesied How long shall this be in the Hearts of the Prophets that prophesie Lyes Yea they are Prophets of the Deceit of their own Hearts which think to cause my People to forget my Name by their Dreams And these were they that did steal the Word from their Neighbours Behold saith the Lord I am against them for these are them that cause my People to Err. Read the Chapter throughout and read your selves by it wherein as in a Glass you may see your Physiognomy whether you be like Jeremiah or them And in Isa 56. He was a true Prophet and spoke forth freely And do not you make a Trade of his words read from the 10th verse to the end his Watch-men are blind they are all ignorant they are all Dumb Dogs they cannot bark sleeping lying down loving to slumber yea they are greedy Dogs that never have enough and they are Shepherds that cannot understand they all look to their own Way every one for his Gain from his Quarter Mark that who looks for his Gain from his Quarter Are ye not found among them walking in their Steps Come say they we will fetch Wine and we will fill our selves with strong Drink and to morrow shall be as to day and much more abundant And in Ezek. 13. you may see what Morter-Makers they were and what Builders and how that God would break down their Wall that they had built even such as had prophesied a Vision of their own brain a lying Divination and yet the Lord had not spoken to them nor sent them and these went to polute God's People for Handfuls of Barley and for Pieces of Bread as you may read in the Chapter throughout And see if you be not found in the steps of such as the Prophet reproves and who with your Lyes have made the Hearts of the Righteous Sad and strengthened the Hands of the Wicked that he should not return from his Wicked Way But God will deliver his People out of your hands and ye shall know that he is the Lord. And in Ezek. 34. when the Lord sent Ezekiel his Prophet to cry Wo against the False Prophets and Shepherds who fed themselves and cloathed themselves with the Wooll c. when they should have fed the Flock But the Diseased they did not strengthen the Sick they did not heal the Broken they did not bind up neither brought again that which was driven away but with Force and Cruelty have they Ruled but the Lord will gather his Sheep from their Mouthes and is gathering of them and hath gathered many that they may not be a Prey unto you any more and he hath set one Shepherd over them Christ Jesus So read this Chapter throughout And read Mich. 3. where you may see whether or no you be not in the steps of them whom he was sent to cry out against Thus saith the Lord concerning the Prophets that make my People to Err that bite with their Teeth and cry Peace and they that put not into their Mouthes they prepare War against them And have we not found it so Did you not say a Blessing to us and preach Peace to us while we put into your Mouthes but when we could not put into your Mouthes did you not prepare War against us and did not the Lord say That the Son should go down upon you and it shall be dark unto you the Priests teach for Hire and the Prophets divine for Money yet you lean upon the Lord and say Is not the Lord among us none Evil can come upon us And therefore shall Sion for your sakes be ploughed up as a Field and Jerusalem shall become a Heap and the Mountains of the House as the high places of the Forrest So now mark what Barrenness and Heaps of people comes to let your own Consciences and the People judge And Mal. Chap. 2. And now O ye Priests this Commandment is for you If ye will not hear if ye will not lay it to heart to give Glory to my Name saith the Lord of Hosts I will send a Curse upon you and will curse your Blessings yea I have cursed them already because you do not lay it to heart Behold I will corrupt your seed and spread Dung upon your Faces the Dung of your Solemn Feasts and one shall take you away with it So consider your selves whether you be not under this Curse or no by your practice And in Mat 23. There you may see how Christ taught the Multitude and his Disciples both but take notice how we shall know them that walk out of his Commands read the Chapter throughout They to wit the Scribes and Pharisees loved to have the uppermost Rooms at Feasts and the chief Seats in the Synagogues and greetings in the Markets and to be called of Men Masters and to go in Long Robes and that which they do is to be seen of Men But be not ye called of Men Masters for one is your Master even Christ and all ye are Brethren and he that is greatest among you shall be your Servant c. Mark this Command do not you scoff at And he that will not give you the Cap and the Knee the World's Manners lying in such things you call them Ill-bred Clowns but see how many Woes Christ pronounceth against such as walk in their steps And if you had been in the Prophets and Christ's dayes you would possibly have called them Railers And you may see in the latter end of Matthew what a Rage the chief Priests and Elders were in against Christ though they could tell by Scripture when Herod had gathered them together where Christ should be born For you may see in the 27th Chapter When the Morning was come all the Chief Priests and the Elders of the People took Counsel against Christ Jesus to put him to
And had not he your Originals and was not he an Orthodox man and yet could not see Christ And did not the Priests and the Jews speak Hebrew naturally And the Grecians was not Greek their Natural Language and yet they could not see Christ nor could any of the Priests open Scriptures to the People but incensed them against Christ as you may see John 19. And is it not said in the Revelations That the Beast and the Whore had Power over the Tongues Rev. 13.7 And doth not the Apostle there call the Tongues Waters Chap. 17.15 And in 1 Cor. 13.8 Doth he not say That Tongues shall cease And where are your Originals then Now the Original viz. the Word is not that it that makes Divines for was not John the Divine a Fisher-man and who made him a Divine was it not Christ the Word that made him so For they had no Colledges nor Universities nor Schools to serve Seven Years in as Mechanick Men do and when they are out of their Time then they set up where they can have the best Trading And was not Paul a Tent-Maker and Aquila and Priscilla Tent-Makers and was not Luke a Physitian and was not Mathew called from the Custom and Peter and others of the Apostles were they not Fisher-men and yet were they not Preachers And were not Abraham and Noah Husbandmen and Isaac a Husbandman and a Grazier and was not Lot a Grazier and an Husbandman and were not Moses and David Shepherds and did not Moses keep his Father's Sheep in the Wilderness and David his Father's and was not Jacob a Shepherd twenty years with Laban his Uncle whom he faithfully served and was not Elisha a Plowman and Amos a Herdsman a Keeper of Cattel and a Gatherer of Fruits and what were the rest of them And so were not these Lay-men as you term them and these Mechanick-men that gave forth the Scriptures And can you make a Trade of Lay-men's and Mechanick-men's words whom you allow and approve of and yet will not suffer Lay-men and Mechanick-men to Preach and Teach and Speak now adayes I pray you consider and read the Scriptures and read your selves Did any of these serve Seven years at the School before they went to preach and learn the Seven Liberal Arts or Sciences whereof Musick is one are not they accounted by you University men as the Seven Seals of that Book spoken of in the Revelations and so is the Arms of your University at Oxford which is as much as to say That you are the only Persons that are fit to open those Seals and is not this to give John the Lye who said None was found worthy to open the Seals of the Book but the Lamb the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah Rev. 5.1 2 3 4 5. But what Parsonages or Vicaridges and Benefices had these Lay-men these Mechanicks these Husbandmen these Graziers Shepherds Customers Plowmen Herdsmen and other Tradsmen for Preaching and giving forth these Scriptures or what had Paul and his Fellow-Teat-Makers or Peter and his Fellow-Fisher-Men I pray you let 's see some Scripture for your Revenues and Parsonages Christ saith They shall take no Scrip nor Purse no Money with them and they should be contented to eat such things as are set before them And is there any thing more in the whole World got by any Trade now adayes by all them that serve Seven years or by the Husbandmen before mentioned now in the World that get more by their Callings than you do who call your selves and are called Priests and Ministers all Christendom over both amongst Papists and Protestants than you do I say by these Shepherds words and Plowmen Fishermen and Tent-makers words who never served seven years at your Colledges which were given freely forth at first by which you now get such great Revenues that you will not suffer any others neither Shepherds Plowmen nor Husbandmen nor Fishermen nor Tole-Gatherers hardly to meddle with their Fellow-Fishermen Fellow Plowmen Fellow-Husbandmen Fellow-Shepherds words I pray take the right Measure and the right Weights and measure your selves and see whether you would be so served your selves And do you think that you can open such men's words before mention'd with your Tongues and Languages now Whereas Pilate and the Jews and the Grecians could not open them then and are there better Tools think you to open them now then there were then not a whit It was said by one of your acknowledg'd and own'd Fathers St. Augustine so called upon that verse The Kingdom of Heaven suffers Violence c. saith he to this purpose A company of poor Mechanick and Tradesmen Tinkers Weavers and Cobblers c. do take the Kingdom of Heaven by Violence when such great Doctors and Learned as we are thrown down to Hell But further Is it not written in Isa 54.13 c. All thy Children shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be the Peace of thy Children In Righteousness shalt thou be Established c. And many shall gather together amongst them but not by me saith the Lord. Whosoever shall so gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake and no Weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper and every Tongue that shall rise up against thee in Judgment thou shalt condemn c. Now mark Is not this fulfill'd now adayes upon them that are Taught of God yea by you Ministers so called And in John 6.45 where Christ speaking to the Jews saith he It is written in the Prophets They shall be all taught of God every man therefore that hath heard and learnt of the Father cometh unto me Now this we witness this day and therefore it is that there is so much murmuring against us And in Rom. 10. The Word of God is nigh thee even in thy Mouth and in thy Heart That is the Word which we Preach saith the Apostle which every one is to Hear and to Obey And the Apostle relates in Acts 2. when the professing Jews mockt the Apostle saying They were drunk with New Wine Peter answering told them it was the third Hour of the Day and so not likely to be in Drink But this is that which was spoken of by the Prophet Joel And it shall come to pass in the last dayes saith the Lord I will pour out of my Spirit upon all Flesh and your Sons and your Daughters shall Prophesie and your young Men shall see Visions and your old Men shall dream Dreams and on my Servants and on my Hand-maids I will pour out in those days of my Spirit and they shall Prophesie Now this same we witness in our days as the Apostles did in their days And we see your Sun is turned into Darkness and your Moon into Blood verse 20. and your Sun is gone down and your Stars are fallen from Heaven as was prophesied in the Revelations And in Heb. 1.1 2. God at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the
Ministers of Christ Nam est haec Tunica Filij tui you understand me though certainly Christ never sent them and so consequently will never own them to whom he doth and will say namely to these Priests that say they Prophesied in his Name and in his Name cast out Devils Depart ye Workers of Iniquity I know ye not What saith Paul Gal. 4.28 c But as then he that was born after the Flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit what follows even so it is now Christ I say never sent such but Antichrist that is one contrary to and against Christ though they care not to mind or heed it neither will they believe it But such are of those that as Scripture saith Ran before they were sent as in Jer. 23.21 32 c. I have not sent these Prophets saith the Lord yet they Ran mark that I have not spoken to them yet they Prophesied Behold I am against them that Prophesie False Dreams and do tell them and cause my People to Err by their Lyes and by their Lightness yet I sent them not and commanded them therefore they shall not profit this People at all saith the Lord. Mind that well For whom the Lord of Hosts who is KING of Kings and LORD of Lords sends commissionates or imployes as Ambassadors upon his Errand he sends them Dove-like with an Olive Branch of Peace and Love in their Hearts and with Words of Reconciliation in their Mouthes out of his Ark which the Apostle terms The Ministry of Reconciliation 2 Cor. 5.18 to wit to Reconcile God and Man Offended God and Rebellious Offending Man to publish the Gospel of Peace and proclaim Glad-tidings of Good Things whose Feet are Beautiful Rom. 10.15 and Good-will towards poor and undone Man Now consider if so how far short do you come who falsly pretend and profess your selves to be the Ministers of Christ in these our dayes of the true Apostles and Ambassadors of the Lord Jesus the only Ruler of Princes and Prince of Peace in that their day Who notwithstanding pretend your selves to be Ministers of Reconciliation and yet are found and experimented to be Ministers of Separation Divisions and Persecutions even to Nasty Prisons Bonds and Blood who instead of putting on the Spiritual Armour to fight the Lord's Battels do Harness your selves and prepare War to fight the Old Dragon's and the Devil 's and Antichrist's Quarrels Who instead of handling the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God and Power of God to Salvation use a Sword of Steel so that I may say to you as the Apostle said to him whom he calls an Instructer of Fools and a Teacher of Babes Rom. 2.20 c. Thou that sayst or preachest a man should not Steal dost thou Steal Thou that sayst a man should not commit Adultery c. Mark well that So say I. Thou that sayst a man should not be Drunk art thou Drunk Read Isa 28.7 8. But they also have Erred through Wine and through Strong Drink are out of the Way The Priest and Prophet have Erred through Strong Drink they are swallowed up of Wine they are out of the Way through Strong Drink they Err in Vision they Stumble in Judgment for all Tables are full of Vomit and Filthiness so that there is no place clean Again Thou that sayst a man should not commit Adultery dost thou commit Adultery Read Jer. 29.21 23. Which Prophesie a Lye unto you in my Name because they have committed Villany in Israel and have committed Adultery with their Neighbours Wives and have spoken Lying words in my Name c. And mind you not that Whoremongers and Adulterers God will Judge Heb. 13.4 And such shall not enter the Holy City New Jerusalem Rev. 21.8 The Lord I say sent his Ambassadors to proclaim Peace whereas you sound forth a Trumpet to Alarum Battels and to Provoke Instigate and Stir up to Wars to Fightings and Imprisonings to Destroy Kill and Murder Nations and Families and Persons in the particular even such whose Desires and utmost Endeavours are to live Peaceably Harmlesly and In-offensively towards God and towards Men as they persecuted Paul And yet I say such is the Cain-like spirit of too too many amongst you who seek the utter Ruin and Destruction and thirst after the Blood which is the Life of the Poor Despised People of God Whereas Christ acertains us whose Steps you should follow to do Well That he came not to Destroy Men's Lives but to save them But you on the contrary walking in Antichrist's Bloody Steps and so contrary to his Noble Precept and Practice are come it seems here to this Island not to save men's Lives but to destroy them not to seek after their Good but their Goods insomuch that the Inhabitants Eyes begin to be open which you had shut so as that they in measure see your Deceits and Juggles whereby now you do clearly manifest whose you are so that he that runs may read who as Scripture of Truth saith Fight with the Fist of Wickedness Whereas an Evangelical Bishop that is a True Minister of Christ should be Blameless Sober and of Good Behavior not given to Wine no Striker nor Greedy of Filthy Lucre nor Covetous Now Mark Are not you on the contrary guilty of all these Things if not of much more But Friends let me tell you in Seriousness That unless you Repent if it be not too late already if Time be not past and your Day over if I say you be not sealed up to Destruction as many of God's People witness their sealing up unto Salvation Repent I say betimes ere the Dismal and Dreadful Decree be gone forth from the Presence of the Lord against you who are found beating your Fellow-Servants or rather the Lord's Servants who are not your Fellows it had been better you never had been born as he said of his Betrayer mind that well and that a Mill-Stone were hanged about your Neck c. you know what follows For alas what will become of you when the Righteous Judge shall come to Judgment who will then after a strict Inspection Reward every man according to his Works O! Whither then will you or can you betake your selves to hide you from the Wrath of the Lamb when he shall say Bring hither those mine Enemies that would not have me to Rule over them and Slay them before me this is the Portion of such You may indeed cry to the Mountains and to the Hills to the Greater and to the Lesser to hide you from Him but alack all in Vain for that will not avail that will not prove a Sufficient Cover no it will be to your great Grief Horror and Amazement found too Short a Covering If you be as you pretend your selves to be the true Orthodox and not Hetrodox that is the True Evangelical Ministers of Christ Where are your Evangelical Fruits Where is your Love your Righteousness your Meekness your
Death And in Matth. 26. there assembled together the Chief Priest and Elders of the People unto the Pallace of the High Priest named Caiphas and consulted how they might take Jesus by Subtilty and so kill him And Judas Iscariot one of the twelve went unto the Chief Priests and covenanted to betray him unto them for thirty Pieces of Silver and so he delivered Christ unto them For he came with a great multitude with Swords and Staves from the Chief Priests and Elders of the People and so apprehended him and brought him before the High Priest and Scribes and the Elders of the People And the Chief Priest and the Elders and the Council sought False Witnesses against Jesus to put him to Death and yet found none At last there came two False Witnesses and said This Fellow said He would destroy the Temple of God and in three dayes build it up And the High Priest rose up and said to Jesus answerest thou nothing What is it these witness against thee And Jesus held his peace What would you have said would you not have answered He was guilty And the High Priest adjur'd him by the Living God to tell him whether he was the Son of God And when Jesus confest the truth then the High Priest rent his Cloaths and said He hath spoken Blasphemy what think you And they answerd He was guilty of Death And they spit in his Face and buffetted him Here is the Work of the Priests and smote him with their hands and mockt him and said Prophesie to us thou Christ who it is that smote thee And the chief Priests and Elders perswaded the Multitude to ask Barabbas and to destroy Jesus the Just And so is it not the practice of you now to let the Thieves Murderers and Adulterers and Drunkards at Liberty and persecute the Just And after they had Crucified him the chief Priests and Pharisees came to Pilate flattering and saying Sir We remember that this Dreamer said while he was yet alive After Thee Dayes I will Arise again therefore let the Sepulchre be made sure until the third day lest his Disciples come by Night and steal him away and so say unto the People He is arisen from the Dead so the last Error will be worse then the first See what a pittiful Fright these Priests were in whose Cause was not good But when Christ was risen indeed and the Watch had acquainted the Chief Priests of all things that were done concerning Jesus then they assembled together with the Elders and took counsel and gave the Souldiers a large sum of Money to say His Disciples came and stole Him away by Night while they slept So if in case this should come to the Covernours Ears we will secure you said the chief Priests and the rest See how they were Teachers of Lyes here And after Christ was risen see what work the Priests made against his Disciples in the Acts of the Apostles chap. 4. What an Assembly there was of them in examining the Apostles and how they threatened them That they should speak no more in the Name of Jesus nor teach but their Answer was Whether it was right to obey God or Man judge ye So they threatned them and let them go And in Acts 5. See how the High Priest was full of Indignation and all that were with him against the Apostles and laid hands on them and put them in Prison So this was the Work still of the Priests all along you see and how the Lord still Delivered his People And in Acts 7. You may there see the High Priest and his Council examined Stephen and at last put him to Death So that you may see their Work was against Christ and his though they had a Profession And in Acts 9. See there how Saul breathed out Threatnings and Slaughter against the Disciples of Christ and how he went to the High Priest and desired Letters to go to Damascus and he had his Packet with him but the Lord met him by the way and sent him upon a contrury Arrand as he hath met with many in these latter dayes Praises be to the Lord forever But afterwards when Saul was turned Paul which signifies Marvelous in Acts 14. you may see how the Professing Jews stirred up the Gentiles and made their minds evil-affected against the Apostles As it s now the manner of Professors this day who are without the Possession to stir up the Rude Multitude against the Professors and Possessors of Christ. And in Acts 20. There you may see how the Jews laid wait for Paul on purpose to destroy him And in Acts 21. how the Jews cry'd out Help Men of Israel against the Apostle and the people ran together and took Paul and went about to kill him had he not been secured by the Captain who was a Heathen And in Chap. 22. Paul there acknowledgeth what he was when he followed the High Priest and how there were more then Forty Men that had bound themselves with a Curse That they would neither Eat nor Drink till they had killed Paul and this they declared to the Chief Priests and Elders who did not reprove them but the Captain delivered him again For those that had bound themselves with a Curse were of the Jews and of the Gang of the Chief Priests And in Chap 24. See there how Ananias the High Priest and Elders came against Paul with many Accusations but still he was delivered out of their hands And how the High Priest and chief of the Jews came to inform against Paul to Pestus Acts 25. And so you may see how they to wit the Priests still continued and persisted in their sad Work of Persecution and Blood all along both against the Prophets of old and against Christ and the Apostles then and against Christ now who is manifested in his Children and People And here you may see that the Birth born of the Flesh persecutes him all along I say that is born of the Spirit from Generation to Generation And what soul clamarous Words and corrupt Language they had against Christ and his Prophets and Apostles which were the Fruit of the Evil Spirit and so is now where-ever it is and with such unfruitful Works of Darkness there is no Fellowship to be had but rather to reprove them And therefore let all Bitterness and Anger and Wrath and Clamour and Evil-speaking be put away from you with all malice Eph. 4.31 32. and Fornication and Uncleanness and Covetousness let it not be once named amongst such as becometh Saints Eph. 5.3 and also all Filthiness Foolish-talking and Jesting which are not convenient but rather giving of Thanks to God through Jesus Christ the Redeemer For this we know That no Whoremonger nor Unclean Person nor Covetous Man which is an Idolater hath any Inheritance in the Kingdom of God and of Christ and they that think or speak otherwise are such as deceive the People with vain words and for such