work or give them a reward for what they do are partakers of their evil deeds As the adversaries of the Jews hired men to hinder the building of the temple Ezr. 4.5 They hired counsellers against them to frustrate their purpose all the days of Cyrus So some men that are adversaries to these Meetings and are ashamed to appear in this odious work themselves do hire men fit for their turn to carry on this evil design Let such persons remember what a mark of displeasure the Lord left upon the Moabites for hiring Balaam to curse Israel Not only the men of that generation but their posterity was excluded for ever from coming into the Congregation of the Lord for this sin Neh. 13.1 2 On that day they read in the book of Moses in the audience of the people and therein was found written that the Ammonite and Moabite should not come into the congregation of God for ever Because they met not the children of Israel with bread and with water but hired Balaam against them that he should curse them Howbeit God turned the curse into a blessing All that clense their hearts from sin and walk according to the rule of the Word are as dear to God as the children of Israel were of old yea they are God's Israel Ps 73.1 Truly God is good to Israel even to such as are of a clean heart Gal. 6.16 As many as walk according to this rule peace be on them and mercy and upon the Israel of God And if God were so angry with the Moabites for hiring Balaam to curse Israel that he would not suffer them to come into the Congregation of the Lord for ever Then how much more will God's anger be kindled against those that profess themselves Christians and yet hire vain persons to persecute such as are Israelites for worshipping and serving the Lord Inf. 3. Are these Informers guilty of such a great sin then let me advise such as are or hereafter may be tempted to turn Informers in the words of Solomon Prov. 1.10 11 12 13 14 15. My Son if sinners entice thee consent thou not If they say come with us let us lay wait for blood let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause We shall find all precious substance we shall fill our houses with spoil Cast in thy lot among us let us all have one purse My Son walk not thou in the way with them refrain thy foot from their path Let no proffer of any reward tempt you to persecute innocent men for serving God for such as lye in wait against the innocent lye in wait to destroy their own soul Prov. 1.11 18 Let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause They lay wait for their own blood they lurk privily for their own souls It is mentioned by the Psalmist among the Characters of those that shall inherit the Kingdom of Heaven that he must be one that will not be hired by any reward to do any hurt to an innocent man Ps 15.1 5 Lord who shall abide in thy tabernacle and who shall dwell in thy holy hill He that back-biteth not with his tongue nor doth evil to his neighbour nor taketh reward against the innocent Remember our Lord Jesus when the Devil offered him all the Kingdoms of the world and all the glory of them to have committed one act of sin he rejected his proffer with disdain Matt. 4.6 7 8. As the gaining the whole world could not tempt Christ to consent to one act of false worship So no gain should tempt you to disturb the true worshippers of God that worship him in Spirit and Truth So as to hinder one act of true worship Inf. 4. Let the Friends Relations and Acquaintance of these Informers as they love their Souls pity them and pray to God for them and reprove them for their sins and plead with them to turn from their evil ways If you let them go on in their sins without reproving them you have no love for their souls but you hate them in your hearts Lev. 19.17 Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour and not suffer sin upon him And if they do not or will not hearken unto you plead with God for them that he would give them repentance and pull them as fire-brands out of the fire before they fall into everlasting burnings And watch your seasons to deal with them when God shall lay affliction upon them that is a good season to be dealing with them for they that are as the deaf adder in the day of prosperity and will not hearken unto any good counsel have their ears open to instruction in a day of trouble Job 36.8 9 10. Inf. 5. If these Informers and their adherents be guilty of such great evils then it concerns those that are placed in the condition of watch-men upon Mount Zion to warn them of their sin and to warn others also that they be not partakers with them in their sins For if they dye in their sins and they have given them no warning their blood will be required at their hands Ezek. 3.17 18 Son of man I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel therefore hear the word at my mouth and give them warning from me when I say unto the wicked Thou shalt surely dye and thou givest him not warning nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way to save his life the same wicked man shall dye in his iniquity but his blood will I require at thy hand Inf. 6. Caution to those that are sufferers by these Informers Let neither the greatness of their sins nor the greatness of your sufferings who are persecuted by them provoke you to return evil to them for the evil they have done unto you Rom. 12.17 Recompence to no man evil for evil Vengeance belongs unto God and not unto us and therefore we must not go about to avenge our selves on those that injure us v. 19 Dearly beloved avenge not your selves but rather give place unto wrath for it is written Vengeance is mine I will repay saith the Lord. Our Lord Jesus hath taught us that we must love pray for and do good to the worst enemies we have in all the world even such as hate us curse us use us despitefully and persecute us Matt. 5.44 But I say unto you love your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them that despitefully use you These men are the rod of God and therefore look beyond the instruments to the hand of the Lord who correcteth you that he may make you partakers of his holiness and humble your selves under his mighty hand and turn to him that smiteth you and then the Lord will turn all your sufferings to your advantage And as you must not offer any violence to these men so neither should you fret nor be cast down at their prosperity
unto thee against Israel and against Judah and against all the nations It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them that they may return every man from his evil way that I may forgive them their iniquity and their sin I observe here 1. Jeremiah had no assurance that the Jews would read or hear what he wrote there was only a probability of it It may be the house of Judah will hear Yet he was commanded to write in a book the judgments of God that hung over their heads for their sins 2. When Jeremiah was hindered from preaching as he formerly had done ver 5. I am shut up I cannot go into the house of the Lord. God prescribed this way as the most likely means to bring them to repentance for Jeremiah to write unto the Jews Write all these words that I have spoken to thee against Judah It may be the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them that they may return every man from his evil way 3. Though these Informers should not hearken to the counsel that I have given them yet whether they will hear or whether they will forbear it is the mind and will of God that sinners should be called to repentance Ezek. 2.7 And thou shalt speak my words unto them whether they will hear or whether they will forbear for they are most rebellious 4. Scorning is a great sin and bringeth down mighty judgments Prov. 19 29. Judgments are prepared for scorners Jer. 22.28 Now therefore be ye not mockers lest your bands be made strong Yet though these Informers should prove scorners we must not conclude their case desperate but use means to bring them to repentance both reproving them for their sin and letting them see there is mercy for them if they will turn when they are reproved for their sins Prov. 1.22 23. How long ye simple ones will ye love simplicity and the scorners delight in scorning and fools hate knowledg Turn at my reproof behold I will pour out my spirit upon you I will make known my words unto you But if they will persist in their sins and scorn those means that are used to bring them to repentance their scorning will not hurt me but themselves Prov. 9.12 If thou scornest thou alone shalt bear it And let such persons consider what is said Prov. 3.34 Surely he scorneth the scorners And Prov. 1.24 to the 32. 5. If none of these Informers should vouchsafe to read what I have written for the convincing them of their sin yet it may fall into the hands of their friends and relations and they may hereby be put upon mourning and praying for them and endeavouring their conversion 6. As for their being enraged at what I have written I shall reply 1. Our Lord Jesus spake nothing but the truth yet many of the Jews were so incensed against him that they would have thrown him down headlong from an high hill Luk. 4.28 29. And all they in the synagogue when they heard these things were filled with wrath and rose up and thrust him out of the City and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their City was built that they might cast him down headlong Yet he did not forbear reproving them for their sins though he was hated by the world on this very account for testifying that the deeds thereof were evil Joh. 7.7 The world cannot hate you but me it hateth because I testifie of it that the deeds thereof are evil Yea though their hatred arose to such an height as that they wont about to kill him yet he taught them and reproved them for their sins v. 14 19. Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went into the Temple and taught none of you keepeth the law why go ye about to kill me Joh. 8.40 And now ye seek to kill me a man which hath told you the truth 2. If God shall touch any one of their hearts and reclaim them from their evil ways instead of being enraged they will bless God and be thankful to them whom God makes instruments of keeping them from sin When David was kept by Abigails advice from shedding of blood he was thankful to God for putting it into Abigails heart to come to him and thankful to her for her good counsel 1 Sam. 25.32 33. And David said to Abigail Blessed be the Lord God of Israel which sent thee this day to meet me and blessed be thy advice and blessed be thou which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood and from avenging my self with mine own hand Nabal was a son of Belial who had requited David evil for good To be kept from persecuting the servants of God is as great a favour as to be kept from avenging a mans self on a son of Belial And if David was so thankful to God the author and Abigail the instrument of his preservation from sin why should not these men in stead of railing and fretting say in their hearts Blessed be the Lord God of Israel that sent this man to shew us our sin and blessed be he and blessed be his advice To prevent mistakes and the uncharitable censures that some may be ready to pass upon this ensuing discourse I do freely and sincerely declare that I have no design to take off any Magistrate Officer or any other persons from using all due care and diligence to prevent tumults and Insurrections but only to lay open the greatness and prevent the growth of their sin who under a pretence of preventing seditious Meetings do suppress religious Exercises The discovery of the folly of these men and their practises being a likely means to put a stop to their sinful proceedings as the Apostle speaks of those that resist the truth 2 Tim. 3.9 But they shall proceed no further for their folly shall be manifest unto all men as theirs also was CHAP. I. THere are certain men risen up in this Nation called INFORMERS whose trangression saith within my heart that they are wandred out of the path of life and are going on apace in the broad way that leads to destruction I have not only heard of them but I have met with some of them in the very act of their sin When I had considered their ways I thought my self obliged to endeavour the turning them from their sinful courses For I find in the Law of Moses a strict charge given to him that meeteth his Neighbours Ox or Asse going astray to bring it back though his Neighbour be his enemy Exod. 23.4 If thou meetest thine enemies Oxe or his Asse going astray thou shalt surely bring it back to him again It is a greater act of Charity to bring back a sinner that is gone astray from God than to bring back an Oxe or an Asse of our enemies that was gone astray from him And we are under stronger obligations to endeavour the
of all the righteous blood that hath been shed upon the earth since the world stood which if it were well considered and believed and laid to heart were enough to fill the heart of these men with unspeakable horror Ps 69.22 23 24 25 26 27 28. Let their Table become a feare before them and that which should have been for their welfare become a trap Let their eyes be darkened that they see not and make their loins continually to shake Pour out thine indignation upon them and let thy wrathful anger take hold of them Let their habitation be desolate and let none dwell in their tents For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten and they talk to the grief of him whom thou hast wounded Add iniquity to their iniquity and let them not come into thy righteousness Let them be blotted out of the book of the living and not be written with the righteous Observe here 1. A Catalogue of dreadful curses such as may make a mans ears tingle to hear of them 2. The Persons against whom and the cause for which they are denounced and they are such as persecute the people of God for this very Sin of persecution v. 26. For they persecute him c. 3. The person that imprecates or as some by a Spirit of Prophesie foretells what should befall Persecutors and that was David who in this Psalm represents and personates our Lord Jesus And so we may look upon it as our Lord Jesus cursing and foretelling what curses should come upon those that should persecute him and his members Now let us consider what these curses are which David or rather our Lord Jesus foretells should come upon Persecutors Their blessings shall be cursed their table shall be their snare and that which should have been their welfare become a trap v. 22. Their eyes shall be darkned that is they shall be smitten with spiritual blindness and their loins shall shake continually that is they shall be as unable for any good work as a man whose loins shake continually or else a guilty Conscience shall make them shake for fear even where no fear is v. 28. God will pour out his indignation upon them pouring out signifies the abundance of wrath as when the clouds are said to pour down rain it implies abundance of rain and his wrathful anger shall take hold of them it shall not only fall upon them but abide and take such hold as they shall not get from it v. 24. God will give them up to their hearts lusts and punish this Sin by letting them go on in their Sins by adding one Sin to another which is a sore judgment And will not let them come into his righteousness that is will let them dye in their Sins will not let them partake of his mercy and favour will not let them have any share of the righteousness of Christ v. 26. They shall be cut off from the land of the living and have no part with the righteous in the world to come v. 27. God will visit their families and posterity with desolating judgments v 25. This shall be the portion of them that persecute the members of the Lord Jesus if they continue in this Sin without repentance See another Scripture Ps 7.13 He ordaineth his arrows against the persecutors And wo to those men against whom the great God the Lord of Hosts ordaineth his arrows And whereas he saith not his Arrow but he ordaineth his arrows against the Persecutors it implyeth that God hath several sorts of judgments in store for Persecutors both judgments in this life and the life to come It may be you will say we see Persecutors of righteous men are in a very dreadful condition but we hope we are not guilty of this great Sin of persecution by our molesting these men in their meetings and causing their goods to be taken from them Did we hale them to Prisons or cause them to be put to death then we might justly be called Persecutors but seeing we do not take away their lives but their goods we hope we are no Persecutors Ans 1. All injuries done wittingly to righteous men either in word or deed especially when they are troubled for righteousness sake are persecutions Ishmael did not offer any violence to the life person or estate of Isaac He did but mock him Gen. 21.9 yet he is charged with persecuting Isaac Gal. 4.29 But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit even so it is non Job's friends did not afflict his body nor touch his estate nor disturb him at his devotion only they grieved his Spirit by their reproaches and uncharitable censures of him and they are charged with the guilt of persecution Job 19.21 22. Have pity upon me have pity upon me Oh ye my friends for the hand of God hath touched me why do ye persecute me c. David speaking of his Persecutors tells us one way whereby they persecuted him was by talking and speaking those things which caused him grief Ps 69 26 They persecute him whom thou hast smitten and talk to the grief of them whom thou hast wounded If uncharitable censures reproaches scoffs be a degree of persecution how can you wash your hands from the guilt of this Sin who call their meeting to worship God by reproachful terms who disturb them in their devotions carry them before Magistrates and cause their goods to be taken from them 2. Though you do not take one drop of blood from these men yet if you hate them and what you do to them proceed out of hatred then are you Murtherers in God's account and shall have no inheritance in the Kingdom of God 1 Job 3.15 Whosoever hateth his Brother is a murtherer and you know no murtherer hath eternal life abiding in him As unchast lusts are adultery in God's account and he that lusteth after a woman though he never touch her hath committed adultery with her in his heart Mat. 5.28 So malicious actions are Murther and he that hateth his brother though he offer no violence to his life hath murthered him in his heart I will not charge you with hatred I leave that to God and your own Consciences But this I will say I cannot understand how your actings are consistent with love For love worketh no ill to his Neighbour Rom. 13.10 3. By taking away their livelyhood whereby their lives are preserved you are guilty before God of taking away their lives For a mans livelyhood is in Scripture accounted his life else what means that Scripture Deut. 24.6 No man shall take the nether or the upper-milstone to pledge for he taketh a mans life to pledge Why is the taking the upper or nether milstone to pledge the taking a mans life to pledge but because it is the taking that which is the means of preserving his life by procuring him a livelyhood 4. By hindring them in the exercise of their Ministery
a love to these men you would pity them under their affliction Job 6.14 To him that is afflicted pity should be shewed from his friend Be it so that God hath a controversie with them it doth not become you to trample them under your feet Is 47.6.11 8 Arg. As they are Ministers of the Gospel your sin is exceeding great in hindring them in the exercise of their Ministry and persecuting them for Preaching the Gospel For 1. To misuse the Lord's Messengers and his Prophets is a sin that brings down wrath without remedy 2 Chr. 36.15 16. And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers but they mocked the messengers of God and despised his words and misused his Prophets until the wrath of God arose against these men until there was no remedy 2e God will smite through the loins of those that rise up against his Ministers Deut. 33.12 Bless Lord his substance and accept the work of his hands smite through the loins of them that rise up against him and of them that hate him that they never rise again This is Moses his Prayer which he puts up for Levi when he was blessing the Children of Israel before his death v. 1.8 The tribe of Levi was separated by the Lord to bear the Ark of the Lord and to Minister to him and to bless in his name Deut. 10.9 And therefore what is here spoken of Levi belongs to all the Ministers of the Gospel what Moses prays for in the behalf of Levi that God will do to the Ministers of the Gospel and to them that rise up against them He will bless their substance and accept their works he will strike through the loins of them that rise up against them And what is that 1. He will give them a fatal stroke he will give them such a deadly wound that they shall never recover it he will break in pieces their power and strength The loins may signifie a mans strength Joh. 40.16 Lo now his strength is in his loins 2. He will not only punish themselves in a dreadful manner but he will visit this their sin upon their posterity from generation to generation persecuting the Ministers of the Gospel is a sin which God visits not openly upon the fathers but the children and the childrens children unto the third and fourth generation Exod. 20.5 The loins does signifie a mans posterity 1 Kings 8.19 Thy Son that shall come out of thy loins 3. The loins signifie sometimes the mind or understanding as 1 Pet. 1.13 Gird up the loins of your mind And if loins be taken in this sense the meaning is Lord give them up to a reprobate mind and that is a sore judgment and a very dreadful token of the wrath of God Rom. 1.18.28 And it 's usual with the Lord to smite the enemies of his Ministers with this judgment And it 's rare if ever such persons rise again that are thus smitten of God Now those whose loins God will strike through that they rise not again are such as hate and such as rise against the Sons of Levi that is the secret and the open enemies of the Ministers of the Gospel There are some that hate them but conceal their hatred these are secret enemies and there are some that manifest their hatred by rising up against them these are open enemies 3. The Ministers of the Gospel are Christ's Embassadors sent into the world to treat of peace between God and men 2 Cor. 5.20 Now then we are Embassadors for Christ as though he did beseech you by us we pray you in Christ's stead be ye reconciled to God What injuries are done to an Ambassador of an earthly Prince he takes them as ill as if they were done to his own person If the Ambassador be reviled plundered imprisoned interrupted in the delivery of his message the Prince takes this as ill and will punish it as severely as if it had been done to himself So doth the King of Heaven who is King of Kings take all injuries done to his Ambassadors as done against himself 1 Thess 4.8 He therefore that despiseth despiseth not man but God who hath given us his holy Spirit And what is said of despising is true of all other affronts and injuries which are offered to the Ministers of the Gospel the Lord takes them as done to himself Obj. If these men were Prophets or Apostles and could work miracles if then we should molest them we should think our selves worthy of death One might fear the wrath of God should break forth upon us but they are but ordinary men subject to the same passions and infirmities as other men are and therefore we can't think there is such danger in opposing them Ans 1. Ordinary Pastors and Teachers are of God's sending and appointing they are of divine institution as well as Prophets and Apostles 1 Cor. 12.28 God hath set some in the Church first Apostles secondarily Prophets thirdly Teachers after that Miracles Eph. 4.11 He gave some Apostles some Prophets some Evangelists and some Pastors and Teachers It is God gives and God sets Pastors and Teachers in his Church as well as Apostles Prophets and Evangelists 2. The Apostles and Prophets though holy men of God and guided by an infallible Spirit yet were but men subject to the like passions as we are Elias was an eminent Prophet yet is said of him Jam. 5.17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are Barnabas and Paul were eminent Apostles yet when the men of Lystra would have adored them as Gods and done Sacrifice to them they cryed out Sirs why do you these things we also are men of like passions with you Act. 14.15 They that despise the Ministers of the Gospel in those days would have despised the Prophets and Apostles had they lived in their days for they that were enemies to the power of Godliness despised the Apostles and Prophets then even as many do now the Ministers of Christ Take an instance of the Apostle Paul who though he was full of the Holy Ghost yet some thought and spake contemptibly of him 2 Cor. 10.2 Some think of us as though we walked according to the flesh v. 10. His letters say they are weighty and powerful but his bodily presence is weak and his speech contemptible Many other vilifying expressions were given concerning this Apostle which I forbear to mention 3. A man may be a true Minister of Jesus Christ and yet be able to work no miracles John the Baptist was a true Minister and lived in the time when the gift of miracles was frequently given yet it 's said of him John did no miracle Joh. 11.41 And some that had the gift of miracles were destitute of true Grace Matt. 7.23 24. And therefore we should not decry a man as no Minister of Christ because he can't work miracles especially seeing working of miracles is now ceased 4. Our Lord Jesus would have every one
dying Joash the King of Israel wept over him and said My Father my Father the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof 2 King 13.14 Intimating that Elisha by his Prayers was a greater security and protection to Israel than all the chariots and horsemen that were in Israel Now if righteous men are blessings to a Nation if they are the strength and security of a Nation the persecuting and afflicting them must needs be prejudicial to a Nations welfare 3. The persecuting these men weakens the Protestant and strengthens the Popish interest in this Nation For these men both in their Preaching and Writing have appeared eminently against the Popish Doctrine and it 's not long since that we were called both by the King and Parliament to humble our selves by fasting for the growth of Popery in the Nation And that which weakens the Protestant and strengthens the Papal interest must be acknowledged to be prejudicial to the Nation by all that are well affected to the Protestant Religion 12. The Informers are guilty of smiting their fellow-servants and that is a provoking sin when a man without just cause shall smite his fellow-servant especially if he smite him for doing his Master's work Matt. 24.48 49 50 51. But if that evil servant shall say in his heart my Lord delayeth his coming And shall begin to smite his fellow-servants and to eat and drink with the drunken The Lord of that servant shall come in a day that he looketh not for him and in an hour that he is not aware of and shall cut him asunder and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth I would mind the Informers of several things from this Scripture which do nearly concern them 1. These are in God's account evil servants that smite their fellow-servants without a cause If that evil servant smite his fellow-servant 2. God usually gives up such as smite their fellow-servants to sensuality that they prove sottish persons companions of Drunkards Smite his fellow-servant and eat and drink with the drunken 3. Smiting fellow-servants brings swift and unexpected destruction The swiftness of the judgment is implyed in that God takes men oftimes in the beginning of their sin And shall begin to smite his fellow-servants The unexpectedness of the Judgment in that sometime he does not give a days no not an hours warning The Lord of that servant shall come in a day that the looketh not for him and in an hour that he is not aware of 4. Utter destruction will be the portion of such as smite their fellow-servants And shall cut him a-sunder If a man be cut and slash'd in his body he may be healed of his wounds but if he be cut asunder he is destroyed without remedy 5. Such as smite their fellow-servants shall have their portion among hypocrites in the bottomless pit where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth And shall appoint him his portion with hypocrites where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth And why with hypocrites It is either because whatever pretences such may make of zeal they are but hypocrites in God's account that smite their fellow-servants or it is because of all men hypocrites shall have the greatest portion of torment in the other world as being the chiefest of sinners in Is 33.14 If they reply This Scripture doth not concern us Informers but such as have power in Church or State and abuse their power to the vexing of their fellow servants Ans I grant that Grotius expoundeth this place of Pastors who do either themselves or who stir up Magistrates to vex and deal cruelly with other Ministers and Christians for reproving them for their corrupt opinions or sinful lives or for differing from them in some circumstantial things 2. If it be taken in this sense yet it will reach the Informers for like sins shall have like judgments If Superiors for abusing their power shall be so sorely punished then these Informers who are Inferiour persons must not think to escape the Judgment of God while they incense the Magistrate to vex and molest those that are faithful and peaceable only they differ from others in some circumstantial and disputable things CHAP. III. The Informer's Pleas answered Plea 1. IF we did know or think that these were righteous men we would not persecute them to gain the whole world but we look upon them as Phanaticks Factious persons Schismaticks Pestilent fellows Seducers of the people Troublers of the Nation yea the very worst sort of men and therefore we do think we well to persecute them and do what lyeth in our power to suppress them Ans 1. This was the same way which the Jews used to persecute the Prophets Jesus Christ and his Apostles they said all manner of evil against them falsely and then persecuted them not as righteous men but as evil doers Matt. 5.11.12 Blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsly for my sake rejoyce and be exceeding glad for great is your reward in heaven For so persecuted they the Prophets which were before you So persecuted they the Prophets How By reviling them and speaking all manner of evil against them falsly and persecuting them under the notion of evil doers and not as righteous men The Jews would not own that they stoned Christ for righteousness sake or any of his good works but gave out that he was a blasphemer and they stoned him for blasphemy Joh. 10.33 The Jews answered him and said For a good work we stone thee not but for blasphemy because thou being a man makest thy self God 2. When you have spoken all the evil you can of these Ministers that are called Non-conformists you cannot say worse of them than the Jews spake of the Prophets and the Apostles and our Lord Jesus Christ himself yet not only Jesus Christ but the Prophets and Apostles were righteous men Do you look upon these Ministers to be Phanaticks or Mad-men So Paul was censured as a mad-man Act. 26 24. Paul thou art beside thy self much learning hath made thee mad Yea the Jews thought and said Christ was mad and gave out that the Devil was in him and wondred that any would go to hear him Joh. 10.20 Many of them said He is mad and hath a Devil why hear ye him Do you question the authority of these Ministers to Preach the Gospel So did the Jews question Christ's Matt. 21.23 And when he was come into the Temple the chief Priests and Elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching and said By what authority doest thou these things and who gave thee this authority Will you not believe these men to be true Ministers of Christ So it was with the Jews they would not believe Jeremiah to be a Prophet of the Lord but thought he made himself a Prophet We find Shemaiah writing thus to Zephaniah Jer. 29.26 27. The
Lord hath made thee Priest instead of Jehoiada the Priest that ye should be officers in the house of the Lord for every man that is mad and maketh himself a Prophet that thou shouldest put him in Prison and in the Stocks Now therefore why hast thou not reproved Jeremiah of Anathoth which maketh himself a Prophet to you Do you give out that it is not the Lord that stirs up these men to Preach the Gospel but the people set them on out of evil and seditious designs So said they of Jeremiah Jer. 43.2 3. Then spake Azariah and Johanan and all the proud men saying unto Jeremiah Thou speakest falsly The Lord our God hath not sent thee to say Go not into Egypt to sojourn there But Baruch thê son of Neriah setteth thee against us to deliver us into the hand of the Caldeans that they might put us to death and carry us away captives into Babylon Do you look upon these Ministers as pestilent fellows movers of sedition ring-leaders of the Sectaries and do you inform against them as such to the Governours So did the Jews look upon the Apostle Paul Act. 24.1.5 6. Tertullus informed the Governour against Paul We found this man a pestilent fellow a mover of sedition among all the Jews through all the world and a ring-leader of the sect of the Nazarens who also hath gone about to prophane the Temple Do you look upon these as the troublers of the Nation So did Ahab look upon Elijah 1 Kings 18.17 When Ahab saw Elijah Ahab said unto him Art thou he that troubleth Israel Are they aspersed as though they were enemies to the King So was Elijah represented to Ahab 1 Kings 21.20 Ahab said to Elijah Hast thou found me Oh mine enemy Are they looked upon as none of the King's friends that shew kindness to these men when they fall into their hands Thus the Jews cryed out to Pilat that if he released Christ he would be looked upon as no friend to Caesar Joh. 19.12 From thenceforth Pilat sought to release him but the Jews cryed out If thou let this man go thou art not Caesar's friend Do you think these men are not fit to live in the Nation nor in any other part of the world and that it would do well if they were put to death So the Jews thought and said of the Apostle Paul Act. 22.22 Away with such a fellow from the earth for it is not fit he should live Not to instance in more particulars when you have vilified and reproached these Ministers as much as possibly you can you cannot esteem or speak worse of them than the blessed Apostles were esteemed and spoken of in the world 1 Cor. 4.9 10 11 12. I think God hath set forth us Apostles last as it were appointed unto death For we are made a spectacle unto the world and to angels and to men We are fools for Christs sake we are weak despised persecuted defamed We are made as the filth of the world and are the off-scowring of all things unto this day And therefore the reproaches of the world can be no evidence against them that they are not righteous men or true Ministers of Jesus Christ 3. Your revileing and reproachful language that you give these men is so far from excusing your sin in persecuting them that it is a great aggravation of it For reviling language will shut a man out of the Kingdom of God 1 Cor. 6.9 10. Know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God Be not deceived Nor thieves nor covetous nor drunkards nor revilers nor extortioners shall inherit the Kingdom of God Revilers are in the Catalogue of those that shall not inherit the Kingdom of God And if any think he may be a reviler and yet go to Heaven he deceiveth himself He that calleth his brother fool is in danger of hell-fire Matt. 5.21 But I say unto you whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of Judgment and whosoever shall say to his brother Racha shall be in danger of the Counsel But whosoever shall say Thou fool shall be in danger of hell-fire To call the servants of Christ factious seditious persons is as bad or worse than to call them fools And therefore they that use this opprobrious language are in danger of hell-fire And I may add this further if you would be partakers of the Kingdom of Heaven you must not only your selves forbear to reproach men that fear God but you must not believe nor entertain the reproaches that you hear from others Ps 15.1 Lord who shall abide in thy tabernacle who shall dwell in thy holy hill He that backbiteth not with his tongue nor doth evil to his neighbour nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour 4. It bordereth upon the sin against the Holy Ghost to speak evil of those men out of envy and hatred concerning whom we are perswaded and convinced in our Consciences that they are righteous men Mark 3.28 29 30. Verily I say unto you All sins shall be forgiven unto men and blasphemies wherewith soever they blaspheme but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness but is in danger of eternal damnation because they said he hath an unclean spirit The occasion of Christ's telling the Scribes that the sin against the Holy Ghost was a sin that should never have forgiveness was this Because they said he had an unclean spirit Whenas they could not but be convinced by his Doctrine and his Works that he was a holy man Hear what Grotius saith upon the place Hâc comminatione usus est Christus quia videbat illos agnoscere intra se vim divinam sed invidiâ odio comminisci calumnias ut plebem averterent atque ita quod Dei erat diabolo ascribere 5. Enquire into the lives and conversations of these men before you pass such hard censures upon them and if you go to the places where they have lived you shall find them well reported of for good Works In the Colledges where they were Students and many of them Fellows you shall find they were sober peaceable of good behaviour trained up Pupils that were committed to their trust carefully and faithfully and have left a good name behind them If you enquire in the places where they exercised their Ministery you shall find they Preached sound Doctrine were of an exemplary conversation lived peaceably with all men had the hearts and affections of their people and in their sufferings have exercised much patience and contentation And what ground then is there for your loading them with reproaches Plea 2. These men are not obedient to authority but meet together to Preach and Pray contrary to the Laws of the Nation and therefore we cannot look upon them as righteous men but we count them rebels and think we ought to do what we can to suppress them We do not persecute them for Praying and