Power but of God the Powers that be are or lained of God This or that Form of Civill government is of God mediately i. e. by the means of man 1 Pet 2.13 Submit your selves to every Ordinance of man for the Lords sake Wherefore yee must needs bee subject not only for weath but also for Conscience sake Rom 13.5 Concerning the Power of the Civil Magistrate in matters of Religion See in the next chapter That Visible Politica-Charches Church-Officers and Church-Ordinances are Gospel-Institutions appointed by Christ to continue to the end of the world appeareth as followeth briefly That Commandement which Pâ—â—â— gave to Timothy is to be kept untill the appearing of our Lord Jesus 1 Tim 6.14 But Visible political-Political-Church estate is part of that CoÌ„mandment which Paul gave to Timothy 1 Tim 3.15 Therefore Visible political church-estate is to continue untill the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ i. e. to the end of the world The word Commandment relates generally to all conteined in this Epistle prescribed unto Timothy to be observed Whence Beza readeth it pâ—eception rather then Precept This is part of that Depositum that great thing deposited which the holy Apostle so frequently affectionately calleth upâ—n his dear Timothy to see unto Yea and sometime forbeareth not as with a severe and most vehement adjuration to charge bin with the custody of 1 Tim 5.13 14 20. I give thee charge in the sight of God O Timothie keep that which is committed to thy charge Either God since the institutioÌ„ of the Ceremonial worship Polity of Israel by Moses hath changed the Rule of Political Church-estate more then once or he hath left his people without any Rule as concerning Political church-estate or else the Political church-estate instituted in the Gospel is to continue to the end of the world But since the institution of the Ceremonial worship Polity of â—srael by Moses God hath changed the Rule of the Political estate of the Church but once Heb 12.26 27. And it is not a trueth to say that he hath left his people without any Rule as concerning the Political estate of the church Heb 3.5 6. 1 Tim 3.14 15. 1 Cor 14.33 Therefore the Political Church-estate instituted in the Gospel is to continue unto the end of the world Pastors Teachers are Church-Officers Pastors Teachers are to continue to the end of the world Therefore Church-Officers are to continue unto the end of the world The Apostle Ephe. 4.11 12. having instructed us concerning the institution use of Pastors Teachers proceeds verse 13. to inform us concerning their duration where unto that question how long are Pastors Teachers to continue He hath prepared an answer long since in those words till we all come in the Vnitie of Faith of the knowledge of the Sonn of God unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fullnes of Christ. Wee have in the text presented before us the duration of these Officers described from two periodical and indubitable notes First the meeting of all the elect in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God Secondly the attaining of all believers unto a perfect man or he full stature of Christ. By the first understand the effectual calling together with the perfect agreement of all the Elect in the faith By the second the perfection of Christ mystical The head and members Christ all believers make one mystical person or one mystical-bodie The perfection whereof is heâ—e held forth by a metaphor taken from the full stature of the body natural after which there is no augmentation Now the perfection or full stature of the body mystical after which it receiveth no augmentation imports two things First that no member shall then be wanting secondly that every member shall be perfect From the premises it being manifest that these two periodical notes shall not be untill the end of the world therefore as manifest it is that Pastors and Teachers being to continue untill then they are to continue unto the end of the world Those three verses are as Aarons rod an argument were it alone sufficient quite to take away the murmurings of the people Yet for the further satisfaction of the Reader touching the Gospel-ministry two things may here not unseasonably be spoken to 1. Concerning the nature of extraordinary Gospel-ministers 2. Concerning immediate mission of persons in these dayes Touching the first Church-Officers are Extraordinary i. e. but for a time as Apostles Prophets Evangelists Ordinary i. e. such whose function continueth and is standing at all times To the constitution of an Apostle four extraordinary gifts concurred 1. A Call immediately by Christ Matthias substituted in the place of Judas is elected by Lot which was a divine vote Acts 1.26 Paul hath a vision of Christ and heareth a voice from heaven Acts 26.16 1 Cor. 15.8 2. Plenitude and amplitude of the power of the Keyes i. e. all Church-power in all Churches John 21.21 Mat. 28.19 Mark 16.15 3. Infallible assistance in their administration when called thereunto 2 Pet. 1.20 21. 4. Power to work Miracles 2 Cor 12.12 The Prophets were called immediately by the Spirit their work was to interp et dark Scriptures by a special gift without study Acts 13.1 15.32 1 Cor 14.24 Prediction of things to come Acts 11.27 28. 21.11 Joel 2.28 Aâ—ts 2.9 Luke 2.36 Acts 21.9 Evangelists were extraordinary Ministers called by the Apostles as ordinary Ministers are by the Church Such were Timothy Titus Quest Touching the querie whether we have any Scripture warrant to expect persons immediately sent of God in these dayes Answ We have no promise of any such ministry in our times The last dayes Acts 2.17 are by some senced as relating to the last dayes of the Jewes immediately preceding the dreadfull famous destruction of that Nation According to them called the great terrible day of the Lord. Thus James chapt 5.3 speaking of the wealthy Jewes saith that they have treasured up their wealth as fire against the last dayes i. e. against those times of destruction when their wealth should but do them a mischief marking them out as prizes preyes for the enemy But this interpretation is left to free disquisition The Apostles seem not so to have expected any succession of Apostles Hence in their life time they appointed Elders in every Church Acts 14.23 And left behind them a prescribed form as a directory of the Churches concerning persons to be called by man into the Ministry successively in the ages to come 1 Tim 3 Titus 1. But though we have no promise of any such ministry yet in the Scripture we have frequent prediction caution of pretenders to immediate mission of deceivers false Apostles false Prophets false Teachers Speakers of lyes in the name of the Lord with Command and directions to try them not by their own profession for that is no
great thing if the ministers of Satan transform themselves into the ministers of Righteousness 2 Cor 11.15 Nor so much by their Conversation for the trueth were not true if such ravening Wolves did not come in sheeps cloathing as by their doctrine by which fruit they are in an especial manner to be known Mat. 7.16 Iohn 2 Epist 9 10. Yea and upon just tryal so farr ought we to bee from being moved by them in point of our faith as confidently to pronounce them Anathama's But though we or an Angel from heaven preach any other Gospel unto you then that yee have received let him be accursed As we said before so say I now again if any man preach any other Gospel unto you then that yee have received let him be accursed Scepticks all others are heÌ„ce beseeched to consider what unmovednes and firmnes in fundamentalls Christ looks for especially from those who would acquit themselves as Church-members in reference to such deceivers Though we have no Scripture warrant to expect immediate missions and have both frequent and solemn cautions concerning the rising of false pretenders therunto yet it being also a trueth that the holy One of Israel hath not limited himself herein When any arise with the gifts prementioned and with the fruits both of doctrine life conformable to the Scripture they are accordingly to be received in the Lord. The Lords Supper is a Visible-Political-Church-Ordâ—nanceâ— and is to continue unto the end of the world For as after as yee eat this bread drinke this Cup yee shew forth the Lords death untill he come 1 Cor. 12.26 In these words saith Paraeus is a tacite promise of the conservatioÌ„ of the Church unto the end of the world Baptisme is a Visible-Political-Church-Ordinance and is to continue unto the end of the world Teach and Baptise c and loe I am with you alwayes to the end of the world Mat 28.19 20. Therfore visible political-Church-ordinances are to continue unto the end of the world Object 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which in our translation we read world signifieth an Age and according to this version the text alledged speaks not of the continuance of Baptism unto the end of the world but unto the finishing of the age viz of that ministration or of the Apostles age Answ The trueth of the premises already evicted concludes this evasion a falsity Hence it would follow that the instant of John's death the last surviver of the Apostles the instant of the dissolution of Church order was the same But that John did not thus understand Christ yea that Christ did not thus understand himself witness besides his silence of any such notion in his Epistles to the other Churches his writing expresly to the Church of Thyatira that it was the precept of the Son of God concerning that Church that they should hold fast the doctrine they had received part whereof was chuâ—ch-estate not till John's death but till Christ's Comming Rev. 2.25 Namely to Judgment If the words be understood by any of his speciall comming to them by their personal deaths the like also being to be understood concerning others it effectually makes void this objection Add hereunto that John by that formidable Anathema chap 22.18 19. secureth the obligatory observance of all the words of the Revelation wherein is mention of Political church-estate as also of the rest of the sacred Canon according to the judgment of the best orthodox interpreters untill the second comming of Christ Rev. 22.7 12 20. Neither did Ignatius who lived in the time of the Apostles outlived Iohn thus understand Christ Witness those Epistles which are acknowledged by orthodox learned Criticks in antiquity as genuine wherein he attesteth unto owneth many churches then in being by honouring of them with the express titles of the Churches of Christ This objection renders the motion of Christ retrograde viz first forwards from the daâ—ker dâ—spensation of the law unto a more cleare dispensation of the Gospel and then backwards again unto a dâ—spensation more dark then that of the Law wherein the people of God may we credit the objecter are for 1500 yeares left without a Rule without Order without Seales without any sent by Office to preach unto them or any Church-Ordinance That the English translation is apt and renders not onely a true sense of the word but also its proper sense in this place appeareth from a particular indiction of its various acceptions in the New Testament 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 according to its proper notation signifieth such a duration as is without an end for EVER Hence in reference unto duration it is used in diverse notions 1. For everlasting Iohn 12.34 6.51 4.14 14.16 2 Pet. 2.17 The objecter reading the word in these and many other texts the Age of a man must therewithall a firm that the residence of the Holy Ghost the state of grace heaven and hell shall continue but the age of a man 2. It is used also for a duration that is long viz for all the tract of time from its beginÌ„ing untill such a Term then spoken of Iohn 9.32 3. For the whole course of time Mat. 13.39 40 49. 4. For the Vniverse or frame of Creation it â—elâ— which is the Subject of time that duration being an insepperable adjunct thereof Thus it is rendered worlds Heb. 1.2 11.3 importing in born the visible world The world 2 Coâ— 4 4. speaking of this world as contradâ—stinct from the world to come For there are two worlds this world Iohn 12.31 and that world Luke 20.35 This present world 2 Tim 4.10 and the world to come Ephe 1.21 This is the subject of the duration of time that of the duration of Eviternity Of the premised expositions the reader may soon perceive both from the subject matter spoken of and the collation of other Scriptures that the third acception only agreeth with the text presented unto consideration and that this acception fully agree to therewith There is yet in the Gospel according to some learned men another acception of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 namely for the whole course of the time of the Gospel-dispensation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 after the abrogation of the Mosaical-dispensation at the ascention of Christ This is called the last Age of the world after which there is no other to be looked for by us here as after old age man is to expect no other age in this life but death which putteth an end unto his time And the Scripture as they conceive in this notion of age relates to a very notable distribution of famous account amongst the jewes of the time before and after the Messiah into two ages The first is called the Age before the Messiah the then present age the age of the jewish state The secoÌ„d the Age after the Messiah the future age the age of Christianitie Not inconformably whereunto Tobit speaking of the second Temple rebuilded
in a needy condition seduced the inferiour sort especially such as were pinched with penury into a perswasion that it was lawfull for them to help themselves Thereby procuring an insurrection of Sixty thousand for the while carrying all before them commiting diverse murthers many outrages unto the entering awing of London the terrour of the King jeopardy of the whole Realme Iohn Woll is pestilent but Iohn of Leyden is much more pestilent The strength of this temptation lyeth not in the reason of it but in it's compliaance with corruption Such is man's propensness to the world that where it offers it self he is apt to hasten to it though by a way which inferreth the perdition of the soul No marveil if that Religion which hath made the way to salvation and to the worlds enjoyment both the same and quick easy be much followed though not for Religion sake yet for the worlds sake Howsoever Becold might smile in his sleeve at the fallacy of his Religion yet therein he found sweet in that it promoted him from a Tayler of Leyden to be King of Jerusalem yea of the whole earth and that all Princes must obey him had their revelations prevailed To possess our hearts the more throughly with the pestilence of the heterodoxie impleaded consider the dismall effects which have followed upon the practices of such who have acted according to these principles Caspar Swenckfield an eloquent but unlearned man spread his errours about 1520. The confession of the Divines of Mansfield condemneth him Anno 1555 and testifieth that he hath troubled the church thirty yeares About 1522 Nicolas Storke of whom before rejects the Scriptures as being a carnal literal Rule holds forth revelations thereupon the extirpation of the Magistrate with a renovation of the world wherein Righteousness should dwell Out of this school came Muncer About 1524 arose Thomas Muncer who in his letters stiled himself Thomas Muncer the servant of God with the sword of Gideon against the ungodly He cryeth down books and the letter of the Scripture saying the Spirit was Leader and Rule to believers Amongst other things he teacheth parity amongst men rejection of Dignities Community of goods that all the world should abide in the liberty wherein it was at first created Of his dangerous attempt in Alstad to destroy the Princes innovate the Government change the times we heard also before In Mulhuisen an Imperial Citty in the Province of Turingia he so wrought upon the people that they changed their old Magistrates chose new ones of Muncer's way whence arose many troubles Many people leavened with his doctrine defist from their ordinary Labour when they had need of any thing they took from those who had it whether they would or not In Swaben Francony the husbandmen labourers take up armes to the number of Forty thousand they drove away the Nobles imprisoned some according to the French Historiographer they slew many of the Nobility sacked burnt their Castles fortresses as the fetters of their liberty At last he Henry Pfeiffer pretending a vision from heaven gather forces with a numerous companie take the field fight with the princes are taken put to death 1525. In these tumults of Muncer were slaine first last fifty thousand of the people according to some one hundred thousand About 1533 John Becold an Hollander of Leyden by occupation a Taylor commeth to Munster a Citty in Westphalia with one Cniperdoling where with their adherents followers having gotten some advantage into their hand Command is given that such who were not rebaptised should be put to death as Pagans and wicked but these troubles were issued by composition In February 1534 contary to their Faith promise they secretly fill the Citty with their own party In the beginning they talked of nothing but spirit Holiness they said it was not lawfull for a Christian to be a Magistrate and that it was not lawfull to bear armes But after they had gotten power into their hands then it was lawfull to seize the publick armes to take the Town-house to choose Magistrates to their mind to reject those who were ordained of God to thrust themselves into their places They that before cryed Repent Repent now change their voyce and cryed Depart Depart if you will not die Pillaging stripping honest people of all they had forcing them out of house Citty with their wives and little ones all that were not of their mind without regard to age or sex Where saith the Author are those fair speeches now which were wont to be in their mouths Do not resist evil He that will take away thy coat give him thy cloak also They command Community of all goods upon pain of death they abolish Schooles and Courch-assemblies Spanhem historic Narrat Cap. 2. yea so far saith Spanhâ—mius proceeded the madness of this villanous fellow meaning John of Leyden that by the craft of a gold-smith of Warrendorp suborned by him who feigned a revelation inspiration and the blockishness of the bewitched people This scum of the earth was set upon a Kingly throne excercised a stage-player-like Kingdom in an oppressed Citty prepared himselfe Princely furniture and attendants useth all manner of cruelty with whoredoms murders unheard-of tyrannie distributed amongst his followers Principalities Dukedoms at his pleasure by his messengers every where stirring up the country-people to mutinie and rebellion yea attempted such mischiefs as will scarce find Credit with posterity ascribing to himself this frantick title John King of new-Jerusalem King of righteousness over the whole world Upon a Revelation of one of their Prophets Henry Hilvers viz that three rich Citties Amsterdam Deventer Wesel were given to them they attempt to take Amsterdam May 10 1535. and that so unexpectedly wilâ—ly and resolutely as that the Citty was not saved out of their hands without some danger and much bloodshed At Munster the King provideth a great Supper the people sit down to the number of four thousand the King Queen Courtiers wait upon the table Supper almost finished the King gave unleavened bread to all saying Take eat declare the death of the Lord. Then the Queen presented the Câ—p saying Drink declare the death of the Lord. Afterwards the King Queen waiters supped as they were at supper the King ariseth saying he had a commission from the father Accuseth a souldier which had been taken that he was a Traitor as Judas and with his own hand haveing cut off his head returneth to sit down at the table by way of merriment reciting what he had done King Becold beheads Elise one of his Queens and wives in the market-place because she had said that she did not believe it was pleasing to God that the people should thus perish through famine At length Becola Chipperdoling and Cretchting being taken with the Citty which they held till June 25. 1538. were tortured with burning pincers