A35867	----	A dialogue between an East-Indian brackmanny or heathen-philosopher, and a French gentleman concerning the present affairs of Europe Tryon, Thomas, 1634-1703. 1683 Approx. 37 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 13 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-07 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A35867 Wing D1301 ESTC R32400 12670072 ocm 12670072 65478 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A35867) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 65478) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 1525:21) A dialogue between an East-Indian brackmanny or heathen-philosopher, and a French gentleman concerning the present affairs of Europe Tryon, Thomas, 1634-1703. [2], 22 p. Printed and sold by Andrew Sowle ..., London : 1683. Attributed to Tryon by NUC pre-1956 imprints. Reproduction of original in the Harvard University Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Toleration. Religious tolerance. 2003-02 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2003-03 SPi Global Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2003-04 Olivia Bottum Sampled and proofread 2003-04 Olivia Bottum Text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-06 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A Dialogue Between An East-Indian BRACKMANNY OR Heathen-Philosopher , AND A French Gentleman Concerning the Present Affairs of Europe . LONDON : Printed and Sold by Andrew Sowle at the Crooked-Billet in Holloway-Lane , in Shoreditch , 1683. A Dialogue between an East-Indian Brackmanny , or Heathen Philosopher , and a French Gentleman , &c. Heathen . SIR , I will not be so inquisitive as to ask what Accident or Occasion brought you into these Oriental Regions . Be it either Curiosity , or Business , a natural desire of improving your Understanding , or intention of Commerce , I speak you heartily welcome , and shall to my power be ready to serve you , esteeming it both my Duty and my Happiness , to do good Offices to all the Creation , and especially to Strangers , as standing many times most in need of them . French-man . Worthy Sir , your Civilities have rescued me from that common Error of thinking , that out of Europe or the Pale of Christendom dwells nothing but Rudeness and Barbarism . I find no less Courtesie in this , than in the other Hemisphere ; and perceive People may be born at some thousand Leagues distance , under different Climates , and where the same Stars are never seen ; nay , which is more , under various Religions and Rites of Worship , wholly strange to each other , and yet may agree well enough , if they would give their Minds to it , in the practice of the common Duties of Humanity . Heathen . There is no doubt of it Sir ; for the Modes and Customs of your Country differ just as much from Ours as Ours do from Yours ; and therefore we are not for that variety to scorn or laugh at , much less hate and plague each other ; but rather impartially consider which is most agreeable to Nature , to the noble divine Principle , and the real benefit of humane Life — But waving this Discourse , pray what is the present News in Europe ? French-man . That Question will lead us to the very Antipodes of what we were discoursing of ; for nothing is more frequent among us than Contentions , Controversies and Wars . Heathen . For what , I pray ? French-man . Some for Empire , some for Glory , but most about Religious points , and the nearest way to Heaven . Heathen . Now in my Opinion , neither of these things should administer occasion for such Violences and Confusions . For if men considered the weight and cares of Empire , those that are without it would rather fly from than fight for it . And that Prince's Dominions are wonderous small that cannot imploy all his Vertues in meliorating his own Subject , rather than in invading , oppressing and ruining those of his Neighbours . Nor can I understand , that any Glory is to be got by destroying men . I think 't is rather matter of Praise to beget them . Your Alexander and your Caesar ( for we have heard of their Names , and the former spread the Venom of his Ambition even into these parts ) made some Millions Fatherless , yet could neither of them boast of one Son of his own , but both dyed Childless . And then for Religion , that methinks should teach you quite the contrary , especially your Christian Doctrine , which ( I have heard ) enjoyns you to love your Enemies , to turn the left Cheek to him that smiteth you on the right , &c. French-man . 'T is very true , the Principles of our Religion are such , but the general Practice now-a-days runs quite contrary . Heathen . And yet Practice is the Life of any Religion : If you do verily believe those Principles of Christianity to be true , why do you not follow them in your Conversations ? If you do not believe them , why do you call your selves Christians ? If you do believe them , and yet resolve not to practise them , you are wilful obstinate Rebels , and greater Affronters of Christianity than we that do not make profession of it . Can any thing be more absurd than to turn Earth into a kind of Hell , under pretence of driving men to Heaven ? and to commit Murders and Cruelties for the sake of the God of Life and Love ? Alas , Sir ! the infinite Deity delighteth not in Manslaughter ; Strife , War and Contention enter not into his Tabernacle : Above , all is clear , bright , serene , calm and quiet ; 't is in the lower Regions of the Air only , that Storms are generated , and Thunder and Lightning break forth . God is no Respecter of Persons , but ( as your own Prophets say ) every one that doth well is accepted of him ; he causeth the blessed and glorious Body the Sun to shine on the just and unjust , and commands the sweet Influences of the Coelestials to fall upon all : The Blessings of the four Worlds are equally distributed to all men , as well Inferior as Superior . He sustains and preserves the universal Systeme of Nature by the hand of his out-spread Providence ; and when the Sons of Men , by their sinful Vanities , Oppressions and Violences have awakened his Wrath , he does not presently dart down the Thunder-bolts of his Vengeance on their guilty Heads , but first sends his Brackmannys to tell them of their Evil , and call them to Repentance . And if Man-kind will walk in the right Way , and dwell in the everlasting Regions of Bliss , they must endeavour to imitate their Creator , whence our Seers call Man the Image or Likeness of God , and the Horizon of both Worlds , since in him the superiors and inferiors are united . Now if People would study to be truly like their Maker , Violence , War and Oppression would have no place in the World. French-man . I perceive you are much for peace and quietness ; yours is a strange Religion indeed that will not allow of the Noble Feats of Arms , and the Arbitrament of the Sword. Heathen . For ought I can hear , your Religion allows the same as little as mine , and threatens , that whoever uses the sword , shall perish by the sword . French-man . And yet the Cause , or at least the Pretence of most of our Wars is Religion ; and 't is by the Profession of Arms that men amongst us become great and honouroble . Heathen . If Killing be so honourable , Butchers sure with you are a worshipful Company . French-man . Butchers of Beasts are but meanly regarded , but Butchers of Men are celebrated as the only Hero's . Heathen . And after what fashion , I pray , do these Hero's live ? French-man . For the most part , they are such as love to eat to Gluttony , and think that day ill spent wherein they are not drunk ; their Discourse is nothing but Boasts and Rhotomontado's , intermixt with such horrid Oathes and Blasphemies , that modest men tremble more at their Talk , than for fear of the fury of their Arms ; where-ever they come they carry Ruin and Confusion with them , destroying Men and debauching Women , deflouring of Virgins , ravishing of Matrons , Robbing , Plundering , firing of Houses , devouring what they can , and destroying the rest is , their Profession and Delight ; and this they call Living at Discretion . Heathen . If these be the Christian Hero's , I wonder what are your Devils ? I hope these are none of those that you said do contend so much about the Right way to Heaven . French-man . Yes , I 'le assure you , none more ready to Kill and Damn all that will not be of the Religion they pretend to . We have in our Country a parcel of People called Hereticks and Hugenotes , their Conversation is generally Iust and Honest , and they are Peaceable and Obedient to their King , and as ready to serve him , and do good to their Neighbours as any : But they will not joyn with us in our Religions , Opinions and Ceremonies . Heathen . As how , I pray ? French-man . Why , they will not acknowledge our supream Caliph at Rome to be Infallible : They will not say their Prayers to a Statue , an Image , or a Picture , because they fancy those fine things can neither hear them , nor help themselves : They will not own that the Bone , or a piece of the Garment of a man who is himself many Years agone dead and rotten , can Cure them of Diseases , or preserve them from Dangers ; But especially when we give them a piece of Bread , and tell them 't is Flesh , Blood and Bones , they think 't is Bread still , and are so impudent as to believe their own Eyes before the dictates of our Priests . Heathen . Why ! Do you your selves believe and practise these Absurdities ? French-man . Ye marry , and would Burn you too , if you were in some parts of Christendom , and durst say you did not believe them as well as we . Heathen . Then I bless the good and infinite Beeing , that I have no business in such a Christendom . But pray proceed with the Story of your Hugenotes . French-man . We endeavoured to suppress and root them out by severe Laws , and open Wars , but finding that Course ineffectual , we resolved upon a Stratagem to cut them off ; pretended to be very kind to them , and that we desired a perfect Reconciliation , and to that purpose made a Match between one of the chief of that Party and a great Lady of ours ; to solemnize this Wedding , the principal Hugenotes repaired from all parts of the Kingdom , and had the greatest Assurances given them of Friendship . But one Night whilst they suspected nothing , Souldiers being drawn together , at a certain Hour fell upon them in all parts of the City , destroying Men , Women and Children , so that in two or three Hours time , there were above ten Thousand of their dead Bodies flung naked into the Streets , and the Channels flowed with their Heretical Blood : And at that time Messengers were sent to other Cities and Towns to do the like , so that in a few dayes there were above forty Thousand of them slain . Was not this a noble expression of Zeal for Religion ? Heathen . God keep such bloody Zeal still from our Indian Territories . Do your Priests allow of such doings ? French-man . Allow ! Yes and applaud them too , they are the Men that excite us to these gallant Exploits , and for a Reward for these Services , do forgive us all our Sins , and assure us of Heaven . Heathen . I know not what they may pretend ; but this I know , that God is Love , and that such barbarous Cruelties are to him an Abomination ; And to speak truth , so long as men continue Obstinate , Revengeful and Contentious , and suffer the wild savage Nature , and bitter Spirit to reign in their Hearts , neither Men nor God can forgive them ; for Inequality and Discord cannot move Equality : such a Spirit is contrary to the divine Nature , and therefore cannot expect Forgiveness till 't is changed and transformed . For men cannot draw nigh to the Fountain of Benignity , nor be heard of the Soveraign Beeing , but as they become like unto him , for every like is moulded by its likeness ; Blood requires Blood , but the Merciful shall find Mercy from the God of Peace and Compassion , whose Mercies never fail . For this cause we have for many Generations totally abstained from all Violence , Oppression and Killing , either of Man or Beast ; for the Groanings and Miseries of those Creatures that suffer Wrong , are the beginnings of Trouble and Sorrow to those that do it , and do certainly stir up and awaken the fierce Wrath in Nature , as the Loadstone attracts Iron . French-man . These are pretty Notions , but methinks impracticable : For if we Europeans should live the Life you talk of , and lay aside Arms , and not vindicate our Religion and Liberties by the Sword , we should be over-run , and be made the greatest of Slaves . Have not you heard of the Inroad made ( at this Instant ) by the Turks into Germany ? Now would you have us stand with our Arms a cross , and suffer them to over-ran all Christendom ? Heathen . I pray , what do you account the occasion that moved the Turk to this Expedition . French-man . Why , the Emperor of Germany in certain of his Territories , had some of those Hereticks that I described to you but now , and he would force them to be of his Religion , and to compell them thereunto , seized on their Priests , and clapt them into Dungeons and Prisons , where they were starved and pined away in Want and Misery ; and others he sold for Slaves , and sent Souldiers amongst them to kill and destroy all that would not Conform to his Ceremonies : Hereupon they took Arms in their own defence , and observing their Brethren to live free from such Violences , and enjoy their Religion under the Turks , paying only such Tribute , they desire the Turk to protect them , which offends the Emperor , and so the Quarrel encreasing , the Turk sends an Army against him . Heathen . This confirms and illustrates what I assert ; for here you see this Deluge of Calamity had not happened to Germany , had they not first stirred up the Wrath , and caussesly vexed their Neighbours . It appears plainly these Flames arise from Sparks of their own kindling ; besides , Experience shews that none are such Vassals , and subject to so many Miseries as those that give themselves to the use of Arms , viz. to Guns , Swords , and the like Weapons of wrath , and most of them perish by the use of them . For our own parts , 't is true we do live in subjection , and under the burthen of many great Taxes , which are levied on us at the pleasure of the Princes we live under ; but then they protect us from the Injuries of the Multitude , allowing us our free Egress and Regress through their Dominions , and unquestioned Liberty for the Exercise of our Religion and manner of living : They do not endeavour to peep into our Breasts , and examine our Opinions , or punish us for not thinking as they do . We go freely about our occasions ; nor do they permit every Idle Fellow to take away our Goods , nor give us abusive Words , or hurry us to loathsom Prisons ; nor are our Sons forced into the Wars : They threaten no Punishment to us , provided we do not offend the civil Laws ; for they matter not what gods we worship , nor after what fashion , so we are just to men , and live peaceably , and pay our Tribute . If they have our Money , they know they cannot want Men that will Fight for two Pence a day : But we value our Health , our Lives , Liberties and Religion , more than Money . We all drink Water , and the fragrant Herbs , wholsom Seeds , Fruits and Grains suffice us abundantly for Food : Our Stomachs are clean , our Appetites sharp , so that we taste the inward Virtue of each thing , and sing Songs of Praise to the Creator , who affords unto us the plenty of the Earth , and the pleasant Dews of Heaven ; so that as Fish live in the Salt and Brackish Ocean , and yet their Flesh is fresh and sweet ; so we in the midst of a tempestuous troublesom World live Calm , and as it were in Paradise . French-man . I am glad to hear you esteem your selves so happy ; there are few Mortals that are so content with their Lot , but are whining , repining , complaining , and alwayes on the Tenter-hooks of new Hopes and Desires . Heathen . And the reason is , because they forsake Nature , and let loose their Desires , which having once cast off the Bridle of Moderation , run on without stop or Bounds . French-man . But I perceive you are for Liberty of Conscience , and that every one may follow his own Opinion and Phantasie ; and if so , we should have a mad World ; such a License is destructive to Government , and the very Nurse of Rebellion . Heathen . I do not well understand what you mean by Opinion and Phantasie , People will think as they list , do you what you can . But this I know , that he that fears God , and hurts not his Neighbour , oppresseth not the Creation , and obeys the civil Laws of that Country he lives in , and freely pays all Duties and Tributes to the Princes that protect him , is a good and faithful Subject to God and his King. Nor have we any temptation to Rebellion , for to us all Governments are alike , as long as they protect us from Violence . I have read something of your Europian Affairs ; and if I mistake not , in France , Spain , &c. where the Laws are to force People to be all of a mind , there have been abundance more Rebellions , Insurrections , Plots and Conspiracies against the Government , than in Countries , where Liberty of Conscience is publickly allowed ; whence I rather infer , that not the indulging , but restraining Liberty of Conscience is the grand Cause of those Disorders amongst you . 'T is certain , every man ought to have Liberty in Well-doing , and to be punished only for the contrary . And we Baunians scarce know any thing that is a greater Evil , than for men to Contend , Hate , Envy , Oppress , Fight and Destroy one another , because they are not in all particulars like themselves : For men naturally are as various in their Intellects , as in their Shapes , Forms and Complexions ; for the Shape and Form of every Body is according to the Nature , Equality or Inequality of the Spirit . The Lord hath made all things to differ ; there is not any two things in the four Worlds alike in all particulars ; therefore whosoever is offended with another , because he is not perswaded , or does not understand just as he does , is in truth offended with his Maker , who is the author of that Variety . If two things were exactly in all respects alike , they must become the same ; the nearest similitude of things is made by casting them in a Mould , and yet even then they differ . French-man . You say right , and therefore to make all mens Vnderstandings of asize , our Church-men prepare Moulds for them , viz. Creeds , Liturgies , Systems of Divinity , and the like , wherein they cast and fashion all mens Vnderstandings , so that none but must own those , though he do not understand a Word of them ; nor must dispute them ; though his Heart and his Brain tell him they are false and impious . Heathen . This is much such an Uniformity as I have heard in some of your Books , was practised by the Tyrant Procrustes , who dwelling near a common Road , seized all Travellers , and carried them to his Bed , which was framed exactly for his own Stature , and if their Bodies were longer , chopt off their Feet or Heads to make them fit , and if too short , strained their Bones and Sinews out with Engines to a due proportion ; Was not this Gentleman a great lover of Decency , Order and Uniformity ? If there were not Variety , there would be no Motion , for it is the various working Power , and as it were Strife between the Properties that causeth all Vegetation and Manifestation ; if there were but one thing , there would be nothing , or a standing still , which the Iews great Prophet seems mystically to shew , when he saith , God made all things out of Nothing : For there was no Manifestation or Appearances before God moved himself on the Face of the Waters ; which moving , seems to signifie the Strife of the various Forms , Qualities and Properties of the hidden Nature , without which nothing could be generated . But here I must be silent , for we are counted Heathens already , and I do not know what worse Censures may pass upon us , if we too far explain those Notions , which though founded in Nature , are yet so disagreeable to the Conceits and Practice of the Multitude . But this we are sure of , that men ought not to hate or suppress any thing but Evil ; for Man's most deadly Enemies are within himself ; whence one of the wisest of the Iews Kings affirmed , That he that overcame his own Lusts and Passions was a greater Conqueror than he that subdued a City . French-man . For my own part I shall for the future be more careful how I credit Reports ; we in our Country are told by our Learned , that you are meer Heathens , Infidels , Idolaters and Worshippers of the Sun , Moon , and all the Host of Heaven . Heathen . I nothing wonder that you Europians should be mistaken about us , who live so remote , since you seem so little to understand the Opinions of each other amongst your selves , every one misrepresenting the Sentiments and Doctrines of all that differ from him . 'T is true , we do highly esteem and admire all the heavenly Host , and those Refulgent Quires of the Coelestials , especially that glorious Eye of the World , the Sun , as being the Handy-Works and Wonderful Powers of the incomprehensible Creator , and think it part of our Duty to express our Gratitude and Veneration to the one only Fountain whence all those amazing Wonders proceed ; for he that contemns the Streams cannot truly honour the Fountain . Do not your own Prophets teach you to Honour Rulers and Governours , because they derive their Government from God ▪ And if you do not only worship and bow the Knee one to another ( who are at best but brittle animated Dirt ) but also reverence the Works of your own Hands , as a man cloathed in goodly Rayment , and the like , how much more ought we to have in high Veneration those wonderful Fountains of Light , Heat , Motion and Vitality , which are the manifested Powers of God , and his upper Vice-gerents and Lieutenants over the lower World ? Did not you tell me but now that you esteemed your Hugenotes worthy of Death or Persecution , because they would not pay Esteem and Adoration to a few painted Clouts , the Pictures of their fellow-Creatures , which you call Saints , not knowing whether they be truly so or not ; and yet will you condemn our Brachmans , for directing their Esteem to these glorious Master-pieces of the Creation ? If you count such lifeless pittiful things , as Wood and Stone , or things painted and fashioned by Man , fit to be Representations of your Godds , and means whereby to enliven your Phantasies and Minds to an higher degree of Devotion ( which was the sole intent of the first Inventers of those things ) what regard then ought we not to have of those living Powers of God , the Coelestial Bodies , by whose sweet and friendly Influences all created Beeings are preserved and nourished ? What is more exciting to a well-disposed Mind than to behold that glorious Body the Sun , with the innumerable Train of Stars , and the various Species in the four Worlds ? or what doth more ravishingly declare the Greatness , Goodness , and eternal Wisdom of the immense Creator ? This is a Book we study , in which the grand Charter of Nature , and the holy Mysteries of God are recorded , and we think we do not Err in preferring it before the endless and contentious thwarting Volumns of the Talkative Philosophers and Wrangling School-men . French-man . I have been told , and you seem to own it , That you will not Kill any of the inferior Creatures , nor eat their Flesh ; but I pray , hath not Man power to do as he pleaseth with those Creatures ? and were not the made for that very purpose ? Heathen . God hath made all Creatures inferior to Man , who hath freedom to use and do unto them all as he pleaseth , having free will to chuse either Good or Evil ; but he that follows the better and leaveth the worse , chuseth the better part , and is made God's Friend , and in Amity with all the Creation ; for man is a likeness of all things , and contains their true Natures and Properties ; and therefore whatever he giveth himself unto , the same becomes strong in him , be it Virtue or Vice : For which cause , our well-advised Fathers commanded us , our Wives and Children , to abstain from all kinds of Violence and Oppression , especially to those of our own Species , that thereby our Souls might be preserved from being precipitated into Wrath , and so retain Humanity , and the more noble Faculties of our Souls unspotted , as well as our Bodies rendred wholsom , clean , and fit to be Temples for the divine Spirit , esteeming Abstinence , Cleanness and Separation to be the true Paths that lead to all external and eternal Bliss ; it being in our Opinion an unfit , and altogether unworthy thing , that the great , noble and immortal Soul of Man should so much degenerate from its high and illustrious Birth , as to joyn or suffer it self to be incorporated with the low and savage Nature of Beasts . Nor do we think it lawful for us to heat our Veins , and distemper our Blood with Wine , since Water more kindly quencheth our Thirst ; the innocent and fragrant Herbs and Fruits of our Gardens afford us ample Satisfaction ; and we should be ashamed to make our Bodies the Graves of the inferior Creatures ▪ And though our Princes are sometimes harsh and severe to us , yet we pacifie them with meek , submissive and humble Behaviour . And since as little as possible we can , we hurt not any thing , therefore nothing hurts us , but live in perfect Unity and Amity with all the numberless Inhabitants of the four Worlds , doing by them as we would be done unto , whereby we dis-arm their Rage , and their Fury finds no place against us . French-man . But pray tell me how long you have led this kind of Life ; and whether your Sons and Daughters do follow your Religion and Examples ; for amongst the Europians nothing is more common than for Youth to degenerate , and wander after the Multitude , and abandon their Fathers Rules , especially if they should be but half so singular as you are . Heathen . As for the Antiquity of our Course of Life , I think for the greater part , I may date it from the Worlds Original . Your own Doctors teach , that Adam , the first man , was placed in a Garden , and that the green Herb and Tree bearing Fruit was to be to him for Meat ; and do generally agree that afterwards , at least during the old World , viz. to the time of the Flood ( which was in the Year of the World , 1616. ) eating of Flesh was not allowed or practised ; and though afterwards it was practised , yet 't is probable it did not obtain with all : But there is reason to believe that still the better and more reserved sort did abstain ; For about the Year of the World , 3300. ( near the time that your holy Records mention Ierusalem to be besieged by Nebuchadnezzar ) we find the famous Philosopher Pythagoras flourishing , who expresly taught his Followers ( which by reason of his Parts and Virtues were not a few ) not to eat any Flesh , but content themselves altogether with Vegetables ; and this great man travelling for the acquest and diffusion of Knowledge into divers parts , left not our India unvisited , and there planted this wholsom Doctrine , which ever since hath not wanted Observers , derived down by a continual Succession to our Times . 'T is true , our Ancestors have obliged us to some things , which may seem frivolous and vain , as not to kill any kind of Vermin , which are very offensive to the Life of Man : But indeed these Prohibitions well regarded , shew their more deep Wisdom and Fore-sight ; for they did consider , that their Philosophy would not only be embraced by Wise Men , but also by a great number of Fools ( as the most part of all men are , in one thing or another ) and if they should have permitted them to have killed any kind of Creatures , the Foolish would have concluded , they might by the same Rule as well kill others , and so by degrees come to kill men , as most other Nations do . Besides , not only our cleanly regular temperate Lives free us from many of those Vermin wherewith others are troubled , but we take it for a Rule , that such as would live an abstemious separated Life from Evil and Violence , must refrain from some things that are lawful , as well as from those that are unlawful ; as one of your Prophets says excellently , All things are lawful , but not expedient . Touching our Sons and Daughters , they all constantly follow our Foot-steps , and it hath very rarely been known , that any of them have forsaken the Precepts of their Fathers ; being descended from a Root of Temperance and Equality , they are naturally Sober and Temperate , for they use not Tippling-Houses , nor spend their Patrimony in drinking Wine , Gaming , Debauchery and Gluttony ; so that the more Children we have , the Richer we esteem our selves , they proving no more chargeable to us than Lambs do to Sheep : They all marry Wives of our own Tribe and Religion , and there is no dispute about either Portion or Joynture : Their greatest Pleasure and chief Recreation is to contemplate the Heavens , and their glorious furniture , the Sun , Moon and Stars in their various Motions and Configurations , as also the pleasant Gardens , Groves and Fountains , and to free the Inhabitants thereof from the Tyranny and Bondage of men as much as in them lies : And so through the whole course of our Lives , abstaining from all that tendeth to Evil , and promoting what we can the good of the whole Creation ; we endeavour to imitate the adorable Maker and Conserver of the Universe , whose Off-spring we are , and in whom we live , and move , and have our Beeing . French-man . You have not only gratified my Curiosity , but in several things informed my Vnderstanding . And I heartily wish that your Virtue and Morality were crowned with true Christianity , and our Christianity embellisht with the real practice of your Virtue , Temperance and Moderation . And so bid you Farewell . To shew that the recommending Abstinence from Flesh , is no new upstart Conceit , I shall here add those notable Verses of the ingenious Poet Ovid , written above 1600 Years ago , in his Metamorphosis , as I find them translated by Sandys , where he brings in the famous Philosopher Pythagoras ( from whom the Indian Bannians derive their Doctrine ) thus discoursing . FOrbear your selves , O Mortals , to Pollute With wicked Food , Corn is the generous Fruit. Apples oppress their Boughs , plump Grapes the Vine , Thousand sweet Herbs and savoury Roots combine With beautious Flowers of most fragrant scent , Your nice and liquorish Pallates to content . The prodigal Earth abounds with genele Food , Affording Conquests without Death or Blood : But Beasts with Flesh their ravenous Hunger cloy , And yet not all ; Horses in Pastures joy , So Flocks and Herds : But those whom Nature hath Endu'd with Cruelty and savage Wrath , Wolves , Bears , Armenian Tygers , Lyons , in Hot Blood delight . How horrible a sin ! That Intrails , bleeding Intrails should Entomb ! That greedy flesh , with Flesh should fat become ! Whilst by the Livers Death the living lives , Of all , which Earth , our bounteous Mother gives , Can nothing please , except they Teeth in Blood And Wounds , and stygian Fury be imbrew'd ? Naught satiate the wild variety Of thy rude Paunch , unless another dye ? That good old Age , that innocent Estate , Which we the Golden call , was fortunate In Herbs and Fruits , her Lips with Blood undy'd ; Then Fowls through th' Air their Wings in safety ply'd The Hare then fearless wandred o're the plain , Nor Fish by their Credulety were slain ▪ Not taught , was Man , that fawning Treachery , All hv'd secure , till he that did envy ( What Daemon e'er it was ) those harmless Cates , And cramb'd his Guts with Flesh , set ope the Gates To cruel Crimes . But first , these slaughtering harms , A fire of zeal at holy Altars warms ; Enjoyning Sacrifices with the Blood Of Savage Beasts , which made our lives their food . Thus the wild Boar for rooting up the Corn , And leaving painful Plow-mens hopes forlorn , Was thought to merit Death : Vine-brouzing Goats Do next to angry Bacchus yield their Throats . What harm have poor Sheep done , whose Udders swell , And yield of Nectar a perpetual Well ? Supplying man with their soft Wool , and are Alive than Dead , more profitable far . Or what the Ox , a Creature without Guile Inur'd to Patience and continual Toil ? He most ungrateful is , deserving ill The gift of Corn , that can unyoke , then kill . The Husband-man that Neck with Ax to wound , Is too severe , that plow'd his stubborn Ground ; So oft Till'd , so many Crops brought in , Yet not content therewith , ascribes the Sin , To guiltless Godds , as if the Powers on high In Death of labouring Innocence could joy . Whence springs so dire an Appetite in man To interdicted Food ? O Mortals ! can Or dare you feed on Flesh ? Henceforth forbear , I you intreat , and to my words give ear , When Limbs of slaughtered Beasts become your Meat , Then think and know , that you your Servants Eat . FINIS . 
A44834	----	An answer to a declaration put forth by the general consent of the people called Anabaptists in and about the city of London which declaration doth rather seem a begging of pardon of the Caveliers then [sic] a vindication of that truth and cause once contended for : I seeing so much wickedness ... / from a true lover and owner of the people called Quakers ... Richard Hubberthorn. Hubberthorn, Richard, 1628-1662. This text is an enriched version of the TCP digital transcription A44834 of text R16813 in the English Short Title Catalog (Wing H3218). Textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. The text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with MorphAdorner. The annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). Textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. This text has not been fully proofread Approx. 55 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 13 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. EarlyPrint Project Evanston,IL, Notre Dame, IN, St. Louis, MO 2017 A44834 Wing H3218 ESTC R16813 13623498 ocm 13623498 100861 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A44834) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 100861) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 791:20) An answer to a declaration put forth by the general consent of the people called Anabaptists in and about the city of London which declaration doth rather seem a begging of pardon of the Caveliers then [sic] a vindication of that truth and cause once contended for : I seeing so much wickedness ... / from a true lover and owner of the people called Quakers ... Richard Hubberthorn. Hubberthorn, Richard, 1628-1662. Burrough, Edward, 1634-1662. Answer to a declaration of the people called Anabaptists. 24 p. Printed for Thomas Simmons ..., London : 1659. "The Baptists in their Postscript for a confirmation of a seal to their confusion, they have subscribed these names following, viz. Henry Jessey ... [et al.]" "An answer to a declaration of the people called Anabaptists," by E. Burrough: p. 12-24. Reproduction of original in Huntington Library. eng Jessey, Henry, 1603-1663. Anabaptists -- England -- London -- Early works to 1800. Toleration -- Early works to 1800. Society of Friends -- England -- London. A44834 R16813 (Wing H3218). civilwar no An answer to a declaration put forth by the general consent of the people called Anabaptists, in and about the city of London. Which declara Hubberthorn, Richard 1659 10812 5 5 0 0 0 0 9 B The rate of 9 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the B category of texts with fewer than 10 defects per 10,000 words. 2004-12 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2005-01 SPi Global Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2005-04 Judith Siefring Sampled and proofread 2005-04 Judith Siefring Text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion AN ANSWER TO A DECLARATION Put forth by the general Consent of the People called ANABAPTISTS , In and about the CITY of LONDON . Which Declaration doth rather seem a begging of Pardon of the Caveliers , then a Vindication of that Truth and Cause once Contended for . I seeing so much Wickedness , Confusion , Fear and Unbelief in so small a thing in Vindication of themselves publickly to the Nation , it was upon me to Answer something to it ; and my end in so doing is rather to Instruct them , then to Shame them . From a true lover and owner of the People called Quakers , ( above all Flatterers ) because I see they have not bowed their knee to Baal , nor Worshipped the Power of the Beast under any diverse Colour whatsoever , but walks in that Righteousness which must establish the Nation , RICHARD HUBBERTHORN . The Baptists in their Postscript for a Confirmation or a Seal to their Confusion , they have subscribed these Names following , viz. Henry Jessey John Tombes Richard Wollaston Henry Tull William Kiffen William Warren John Battee John Clement Edward Cresset George Gospright John Sowden Benj. Hewlin Edward Harrison Samuel Tull Edward Green Edward Grainge Richard Dean Edward Roberts Henry Knollys John Spilsbury John Gosnold Samuel Stanton Thomas Cooper Henry Hills . London , Printed for Thomas Simmons , near Aldersgate , 1659. An Answer to a Declaration put forth by the general Consent of the People called Anabaptists , in and about the City of LONDON . FRiends , called Anabaptists , whereas you say , You are mis-represented to the Nation ; 1. As such as are opposite to Magistracy . 2. As such as would destroy the publick Ministry of the Nation , who differ from you in some things about Religion 3. That you do Countenance the People called Quakers in their irregular practice . 4. That you endeavour a Toleration of all miscarriages in things Ecclesiastical and Civil , under pretence of Liberty of Conscience . 5. That ye design to murther and destroy those that differ from you in matters of Religion , thereby endeavouring to make you odious to some people fearing God ; And also to incense the rude Multitude against you , to provoke them ( if possible ) to destroy you , &c. Unto the First of which you say , Though we cannot Answer in justification of every individual person that is of our Profession in matters of Religion ; yet we can say this , and prove it to all the world , that it hath been our Profession , and is our real practise , to be obedient to Magistracy in all things Civil ; and willing to live peaceably under whatever Government is or shall be established in this Nation : for we do believe and declare Magistracy to be an Ordinance of God , and ought to be obeyed in all lawful things . Answ. For you to give up your selves willingly and peaceably unto whatsoever Government is or shall be established in this Nation , without any limitation , and to submit unto any Power or Magistracy that doth or shall Rule , as the Ordinance of God , without any limitation or qualification , is far below that Spirit which was once in some of you in that Profession , for you have told of having the Lawes regulated according to the Scriptures , and of having Judges as at the first , and Counsellors as at the beginning ; and then not to submit to what Government soever , but that which is according to Equity and Justice . And what do you bear Arms or Fight for , if not for a Government according to Truth , and that Righteousness may establish the Nation ? Some have judged this to be the very Design and End of the War and Controversie against many that was Governours and Magistrates , and was by some called The Ordinance of God , and the higher Power ; And if now you resolve to live peaceably , and submit to whatever Government shall be established , then your Fighting is at an end : And if Charles Stuart come , or any other , and Establish Popery , and Govern by Tyranny , you have begged Pardon by Promising willingly to submit and live peaceably under it as the Ordinance of God . And if Jereboam come to Reign and set up Calves to worship , and cause the People to sin , yet you will submit and live peaceably and quietly under it , accounting it the Ordinance of God . And if a Pharaoh come to Rule , he that bears Rule must be counted a Magistrate , and a Magistracy must be accounted the Ordinance of God by you , and peaceably submitted unto ; and whatsoever Government they set up by their Act will be accounted lawful things , and you must submit to them , else you have proved your selves all Lyars ; but some did judge that ye had been of another Spirit . To the Second you say , As for the Publick Ministry of the Nation , who differ from us in the matter of Baptizing Infants , and some things in Church Government ; we are so far from endeavouring to destroy them , that we judge they ought to have the Liberty of their Conscience therein ; and that it is our duty to stand by them , and preserve them ( so much as in us lies ) from all injury and violence . Answ. It seems then that there is not so much difference betwixt them and you as will make them Antichristian and you Christian : and there is a near Complyance when as it is your duty to stand by them , and preserve them , while they are Baptizing Infants ; But can you stand by them and preserve them , and not tell them that it is Anti-christian , or contrary to the Scriptures ? And do you think that they will do as much for you , as to stand by you while you are plunging your Members in the Water ? And although you do so as you say , is not this Contradiction to your selves in what you say in the same Paper ? For do you not say , That you will not Tolerate any miscarriages in things Civil or Religious ; and whether is not this a miscarriage in things Religious to baptize Infants ? and whether do you not Tolerate this miscarriage in them , while you stand by to preserve them in it , as you say from injury and violence ? but who doth offer any violence to them which you are their guard against ? but the Priests will hardly believe you , and if they ever have power , that will not pardon you for so saying , and therefore you had better have been silent , then have shewed your weakness and ignorance for nothing . To the third you say , Concerning the people called Quakers , it is well known unto all , ( that are not wilfully ignorant ) there are none more opposite to their irregular practices then we are , nor are there any that they have exprest more contradiction to in matters of Religion then against us , though their provocation therein hath not put us in the least on a desire of depriving them of their just liberty , while they live morally honest and peaceable in the Nation . Answ. Is not this secret smiting without a cause ? what irregular practice is that which you accuse them of and will not mention ? is this honestly done ? what are they worse then the Episcopal Priests you mention to them , wherein they differ from you ? and why not to the Quakers ? is it enough for any man to believe that they are irregular , because you say so without any proof ? or dare you not mention wherein you judge it so , least they should disprove you ? but you say , there is not any they have expressed more contradiction to in matters of Religion , then against you . Answ. That is false , for they have more contradicted the common Priests of the Nation , as their books and sufferings will witness , although they have according to truth contradicted you , and also have more of your contradictions and confusions to declare concerning you , which is not yet published ; but what do you account their irregular practises ? is it because their yea is yea , and their nay is nay in all their communications ( and yours not so ? ) or is it because they cannot swear at all ? or is it because they cannot have any mans person in admiration because of advantage , or because they cannot respect the person of the rich , nor honour the person of the mighty ? is it because they do unto others as they would have others to do unto them , or because they speak the Truth every one to his neighbour without partialitie or hypocrisie ? or is it any thing relating to these things above named , if not , in your next mention in what , or else the wise in heart will judge you to speak onely from your imaginary conceit ? but what is your end in so secret smiting them ? do you think to excuse your selves by accusing them ? and who is it that doth charge you with countenancing the Quakers in their practises , either Regular or Irregular ? I know none that hath any ground so to charge you , but to men of understanding who can see beyond words , you rather appear to be begging a pardon of the Episcopal and Presbyter , and the wilde Boyes and Apprentices of London , by accusing the Quakers as hereafter will appear , and that fearfulness and unbelieving is entered into your hearts , and so your spirits is betrayed into a slavish fear , but if ever you be accepted or owned of God , you must own that for your strength which the Quakers live in , and if ever any Rule for God in this Nation , they must own that light , life and spirit which they are guided by , and then they will not despise , but have unitie with the Quakers . To the fourth you say , Whereas we are further charged with endeavouring an Vniversal Tolleration of all miscarriages both in things Religious and Civil , under pretence of Liberty of Conscience , it is in both respects notoriously false . And we do before the Lord , that shall judge both quick and dead , yea , before Angels and Men , declare our utter detestation of such a Toleration ; for in matters Civil , we desire there may not be the least Tolleration of miscarriage in any , much lesse in our selves . Nor do we desire in matters of Religion that Popery should be Tolerated , the blood of many thousands of the people of God having been barbarously shed by the Professors thereof , or any Persons tolerated that worship a false God , nor any that speak contemptuously and reproachfully of our Lord Jesus Christ , nor any that deny the Holy Scriptures , contained in the Books of the Old and New Testament , to be the Word of God ; and yet we are not against tolerating of Episcopacy , Presbytery or any stinted form ; provided they do not compel any others to a compliance therewith , or a conformity thereunto . For whatever composers of any form of worship , may possibly err , it is derogating from God , and his Holy Word , and injurious to men to compel any to the Practise thereof . Answ. What confusion is here , and contradiction both to your selves and to the example of Christ ? as to Religion you will not tolerate Popery , because the blood of many of the people of God have been barbarously shed by the Professors thereof , neither will you have any persons tolerated that worship a false God , nor any that speak contemptuously and reproachfully of the Lord Jesus Christ , nor any that deny the Holy Scriptures contained in the books of the old and new Testament to be the Word of God . And yet you are not against tolerating of Episcopacy , Presbytery or any stinted form ; why will you not tolerate Popery as well as Episcopacie ? hath not the Professors of Episcopacie murthered and slain , and do labour to murther and slay the people of God as well as the Papists ? and why will you tolerate the Common Prayer among the Episcopacie , and not the Mass among the Papists , seeing that the Mass was the substance out of which the Common-Prayer was extracted ? hear is nothing but partialitie , to tolerate one thing and not another of the same kind , and why will you not tolerate the persons of those that worship a false God , nor the persons that deny the Scriptures to be the word of God , nor the persons of those that speak contemptuously nor reproachfully of the Lord Jesus Christ . An. If you will not tolerate their persons , then you will murther or destroy their persons , and herein you have proved the accusation against you to be true , that you have a design to murther and destroy those that differ from you in matters of Religion ; as for instance , those that worship a false God , they differ from you in maters of Religion , and you will not have any of their persons Tolerated , then their persons must be destroyed for differing from you in matters of Religion ; and they that deny the Scripture ( that is the writings ) to be the Word of God ( that is to be Christ ) whose Name is called the Word of God , you will not tolerate their persons , then you will destroy them , because they differ from you in matters of Religion , and those that speak reproachfully of Jesus Christ , you will not tolerate their persons , then you will destroy their persons , because they differ from you in matters of Religion ; and thus having contradicted your selves , you have also contradicted the example of Christ , for he came among those that worshipped false Gods , even Stocks and Stones , and Graven Images , the works of mens hands , and he was not against tolerating their persons , neither came he to destroy mens lives because of such things , but had a Gospel to Preach unto them , whereby they might learn to know the living God , and turn from dumb Idols , and those that spoke Reproachfully against him , and said he had a Devil , yet he was not against Tolerating their Persons , but Preached the Kingdom of God to them , and did bid them seek it and the Righteousness thereof ; and told them that the Kingdom of God was within them ; and he was among such as denyed that there was a God , or Christ , Resurrection , Angel or Spirit ; and this is more then to deny the Scriptures to be the Word of God , which indeed is words and not the Word . And Christ was not against Tolerating of any of the Persons , as you have express'd your selves to be , and so shewed forth a murthering Spirit ; but seeing that you will not have any Person Tolerated that worships a false god , what must be done with their Persons ? But what difference is there ( in the Ground or Cause of Toleration ) between those that Worship a false god , or they which Worship the true God in a false way ? and if the Persons of neither of those should be Tolerated , then the Toleration would but reach a little Compasse : But who must be Judge of that Blasphemie , Contempt , or Reproach spoken against the Lord Jesus Christ ? Was it not Blasphemie in the Apostles dayes , for one to say he was a Jew , and was not , Revelations 2. verse 9. And is it not as great Blasphemy now to say that he is a Christian , or a Believer , that is not ? And must not any person be tolerated that speak such works ? And must not such a Person be tolerated that denies the Scriptures to be the Word of God ? then it appears they must not be tolerated that faith , in the beginning was the Word , as John 1.4 . Nor that say that Christ is the Word , and that the Scriptures are they which testifieth of him , as Joh. 5. And if we search out your toleration to the bottom , it will be reduced into this compasse , That none shall be tolerated but those that say as you say , and professe what you professe ; and you among your selves are as a Kingdom divided that cannot stand , and you are not they which are fit to Rule in the Nation to prescribe Liberty nor give Toleration ; but if you had been of Christs Spirit , you would have professed Toleration , and not destruction unto all Persons in matters of Religion , and then they that have the Gospel of Christ may minister it freely among those that worship a false god , and among those that worship the true God ignorantly , and minister it among the Papists , Episcopal & Presbyterie , Heathens , Turks and Pagans , which are all out of the way , and so to convince the gain-sayers , so that all the wicked impositions , cruelty , Persecution and killing one another about Religion would cease , and then the Gospel of Peace which is the power of God would Rule over deceit , and Truth and Righteousness would increase and spread over the Nations ; but you have appeared to be of a Spirit of Confusion and Contradiction ; for when you have spoken against Tolerating the Persons before mentioned ; Yet you say ( in Contradiction to it ) you are not against Tolerating Episcopacie , Presbyterie , or any stinted Form , provided they do not Compel any others to a Compliance therewith , or Conformitie thereunto , &c. Now consider , and let even your own foolishness correct you ; Is not the Papists which ye have excepted against , a stinted Form ? And are not those that worship a false god , a stinted Form ? And are not the Sadduces that deny that there is either God , Christ , Angel , Resurrection or Spirit , a stinted Form ? And is not the Jewes a stinted Form although they speak contempteously of the Lord Jesus Christ , which before you have said you will not Tolerate their Persons because they speak contempteously of the Lord Jesus Christ ; and now you say you will Tolerate , because they are a stinted Form : How must the Jewes be Converted who have spoken contempteously and reproachfully of the Lord Jesus Christ , calling him a Deceiver , a Blasphemer , and that he ●ad a Devil , seeing you will not Tolerate their Persons until they be Converted ? And how shall the Heathens that worship false gods be Converted , seeing their Persons must not be Tolerated ? And what must be done with those many hundreds of Congregations in England which worship God in the Spirit , and yet do deny the Scriptures ( as Words and Writings ) of the Old and New Testament to be the Word of God , but do confesse them to be a Testimony of the word , and of him who is the Beginning and End of the Words , in whom , and by whom they all come to be fulfilled to the Saints , What must their Persons be done with , seeing they must not be Tolerated ? But you may say , That those things was spoken in your haste , or at least in your fear , whereby you were surprized in the Vproar of the rude Boyes and Apprentices of London ; but a little fear entering into the Hypocrisie doth try your Spirits , and cause you to bring forth the intents of your hearts , as in your Paper is manifest . To the Last you say , Forasmuch as we are Charged to Murder and Destroy those that Differ from us in matters of RELIGION , We do not only abhor and detest it , as a cursed practice ; but we hope have approved our selves , both in this City and the Nation to the contrary , notwithstanding the great provocation of some , who have endeavoured our Ruine . For that we desire is just liberty to men , as men ; that every man may be preserved in his own just rights ; and that Christians may be preserved as Christians , though of different Apprehensions in some things of Religion ; in the prosecution whereof , our lives shall not be dear unto us , when we are thereunto lawfully called : The Designs of our Adversaries in these Calumnies are to mis-represent us to some People fearing God ; and also to incense the rude Multitude against us , purposely to provoke them ( if possible ) to destroy us . Answ. In what you have before expressed , you have more given then taken away the occasion of this Charge against you , by your instancing the not Tolerating of such persons before mentioned ; for if you did ( as you say ) desire the just Liberty of men as men , then every man without respect to Apprehensions , Perswasions or Worships , as a man and person should be Tolerated , that those who are Christians might inform them of the true God when they worship false gods ; and hereby you give great occasion unto those that seek occasion from you , when you with a general Consent cry against Tolerating the Persons of so many sorts of People about Differing from you in Religion ; and as for some of them whom ye would accuse as Irregular , many by experience can witnesse , That neither Weapon nor Tongue formed against them can prosper ; and the time may come when you may be glad to be upholden with a little of their strength , and not to Reject those whom God hath , doth , and will own for his People in the middest of their Enemies ; for God hath made them even as Eyes to behold the Spirits of men , and the Changings of their wayes , and to give them a Reproof in due season when they darken wisdom and confound their matter by words without knowledge , in false fears and haste when they are out of Patience , and out of Faith in God , as the Baptists here have done , and the fearful and unbelieving cannot accomplish the Righteousnes of God , neither will he bring forth his intended Work by them ; but such as are of a true Spirit , that looks onely at the Glory of God and setting up of his truth , who are come to the spiritual weapons , & doth not wrestle with flesh and blood , but with the powers of darkness and with Spiritual wickednesse , and such as are not false Accusers of others , but seeks the good of all men , such will the Lord honour and exalt in his work , and they shall perfect his praise . So Friends , You have been hasty to utter words before the Lord , for which his Reproof justly comes upon you ; Therefore let your words be few , and mind the fear of the Lord God which is the beginning of wisdom , and that will slay your false fears , from which unsavoury & unsound words hath proceeded ; for your Religion is vain while your tongue is not bridled , for it is better to be still and keep silence , then to utter words from the line of Confusion ( that is stretched over you ) thereby to get a name in the Earth , which Line all people walk in , but those who are led by the Spirit of God to speak words that cannot be condemned , for it is the Spirit of the Lord God and his Power which must slay the Enmitie in you which is the ground of your prejudice and hard Speeches against the Lambs of Christ , which when that is slain within , then those evil Fruits of the Lips will cease without , and then the fountain of life will open in you which brings forth Fruits of another nature ; and when the Fruits of your Lips is Truth , Rightteousness , and Peace , then will you have followship with the Father and the Son , and with us who walk in his Light . AND whereas to the said Declaration of the Baptists , something was Written in Answer to part of it in short by another hand , not knowing the one of the other , but being found to be both of service as to return their wickednesse upon themselves , it is thought meet that the same also be hereunto annexed ; And here is also something in Answer to some particular Positions drawn up by the Independants , so called , wherein their folly and weaknesse is also discovered , and all may see what enmity lodges in the hearts of all men against the despised people called QUAKERS . An Answer to a Declaration of the People called Anabaptists , in and about the City of London , wherein their weakness and ignorance is discovered under their own Hands to the City and Nation , as hereby may appear . FRiends , Whereas your Declaration consisteth of Five Particulars , four , of which is not or so much concernment to me to Answer ; but as for one of them , for the Nations sake , and for the Truths sake , and that you may be reproved even you the heads and Principal men of your congregations , and because you are such under whose hands your Declaration passeth , therefore in that consideration with many others , this I return as an Answer to you , and to the City and Nation , in pursuit of yours that hath proceeded from a heart of Unbelief , and unto evil and malicious intents against a despised People whom the Lord hath owned , and will own though you and the whole world do reject them . And whereas you say , You are mis-represented to the Nation , that you do countenance the People called Quakers in their Irregular Practice ; And to clear yourselves you say , It is well known to all there are none more opposite to their Irregular Practises then we are , ( say you ) nor are there any that they have exprest more contradiction to then against us , though their provocation therein hath not put us on a desire ( say you ) of depriving them of their just Liberty while they live Morally honest and peaceable in the Nation , &c. Answ. Oh ye Heads and principal men , and ye chief Pastors , Elders , and Members ( so called ) of Churches , What have ye done ? and wherefore have you thus proceeded , why have ye renounced an innocent People that never did you harm , nor ever gave any offence unto you , saving in crying against the deadnesse of your forms and traditions , and seeming Religious practises , and reproving evil in you ; Alas for you ( ye accounted wise men ) do you judge an advantage will be unto your selves in this thing ? Or do you think to work a disadvantage unto us by your Renouncing and denial of us ? I must tell you , we are not troubled hereat for our own sakes , neither is any part of our hope or confidence concerning you made void , for we never looked upon some of you to be otherwise then our enemies in your hearts . Oh ye Hipocrites whom God will judge because of your hypocrisie , who now so much as in you lies ( if it were in your power ) you would leave us to the mercilesness of cruel men , you would save your selves , and leave us to the mercy of the Devil ; but though you renounce us , yet the Lord hath owned us , and will own us to your grief ; and what are you become our accusers ? are you become chargers of us with irregular practise ? are you endeavouring to make us more odious in the eyes of wicked men then we are for righteousness sake ? but wherefore have ye done this ? Is it to save your selves from reproaches ? Have you therefore reproached us , and have you sought to make us vile that your selves might appear free ? and have you thought to gain the favour of the wicked , & to make a peace with your Enemies by reviling of us unto them ? Is this your end , O ye Dissemblers , to reproach us to the Nation and City behind our backs ? You Church Members so called ) and Teachers , and Pastors , and Principal men that would save your selves and gratifie the Devil and joyn in union with the wicked , and make your selves friends with them by slandering and renouncing the peaceable people , who are more so then your selves , and none of them guilty of ●rregularitie as much as some of you ; though you would fawn upon the Nation and City by renouncing of us , as if we were irregular and so and so ; But do you think the Nation and City have not taken notice ? or however hereby they may . What if I say unto them and you , that none of the Quakers ever were so instrumental by illegal opposition , for the turning out of Parliaments and changing the Government of this Nation into confusion , like as some of you Anabaptists have been ; and this the City and Nation may take notice of the irregularitie of some of your selves , who have been instrumental even by illegal Opposition , and perfect Tyrannie in mens account , and Treacherie also to the turning out Parliaments , and thereby wronging the Nation for their own advantages ; so that the practise of some of you hath been more unlawful and con●●●rie to Law then ours hath been , and the City and Nation may take notice of it ; as your Declaration is to them , so is this my Answer ; never any Quaker ( so called ) in War-like posture hath stood in Defiance , and been instruments to turn out peoples lawful Representatives ; Did not some of your brethren , even of the Anabaptists , take Commission from the late Parliament , and no lesse then vowing Fidelity to them , and yet presently rising in opposition to them , and turning them out of Doors ? and was not this treachery and hypocrisie , and irregularitie ? And can the Nation charge any of them called Quakers with any such work ? no they cannot ; but some of the Anabaptists they may , even with this and other the like illegal dealing ; And more I might instance , and not only charge behind your backs falsly as you have done of us , but I may affirm to your faces , and justly prove these and such things upon you ; but why have not you named what irregular practise the Quakers are guilty of ? I charge you you subscribers against us , and accusers of us to prove your accusation , I say I charge you before the Lord and this whole Nation and City to prove your accusation , and to instance what particular practises performed and owned amongst us , either in Relation to just Government in Church or State that are irregular , and you shall have a Reply , though you say , There are none more Opposite to our irregular practice then you are . Oh how fain would you flatter and fawn upon our Enemies to make peace with the Devil ; how would you creep by craft and joyn into a League with our and your Enemies ? And how fain would you be at peace with them and leave us even to their mercilesness if it were in your power ? Have we ever dealt thus by you ? Have we ever sought to render you Rebels and Traytors to the Nation as you in effect have done to us ? have we ever sought occasions against you , and to present you to the Nation as vile as we could for to save our selves , and leave you to the wil of your Enemies ? this have you done to us , and we leave you to be rewarded even by the Lord who will never renounce us , nor cast us out , though you do in such a time as this , a time of confusion and distraction , wherein if the Lord did not appear to be our Defence more then men , we should be swallowed up of our Enemies ; and must you , even a Separate People , Members , Pastors and Ministers of Churches ( so called ) Renounce us at this season , on purpose to have us destroyed so much as you may ? Well , we have not dealt so with you , neither do we desire to uncover your nakedness to the Nation , you had not had thus much if you had not been the occasion of it your selves ; and surely what you have done in this particular , some of your own Members will not accept it from you with thanks to you ; but I shall say more to you , when I have under all your Hands the particular Practises which you charge to be irregular ; and though there hath been and is Contradictions between us and you in matter of Religion , and difference in particular Practises about Church and Ministry , and Orders , &c. Yet what is this ? This was amongst our selves , though hereof you have no reason to boast , as of any Victory that you have obtained over us in any such Controversie , neither hath the Spirit of God so appeared in that Authority among you , as that you have gained any from us to you , but rather the contrary ; but what of these Contentions ? we have never so contended with you , as that we have hated your persons , or sought to betray you into the hands of devouring mouths , the Lord is our witness in this , though you have done contrary ( even sought to betray our persons in this your work ) and I must tell you dishonestly and undiscreetly have you done in this matter , who never could unto this day in any contest between us about Religious matters Convince us of Error or Irregular practises , though now you have accused us to the whole Nation , and not as in a way of Debate about Religion , but as in matter of State Irregularity ; whereby plainly appears that you seek to betray us , even our persons into the hands of our merciless enemies , and you would make peace with them , and deliver us into their merciless hands ; and thereby shewed hatred , not unto us as upon the account of Religion only , but even hatred to our persons , and hath accused us as of personal irregularitie ; and so hath not shewed love to our persons , but rather sought our destruction : Oh ye wicked men to whose charge God shall lay this iniquity of treachery and unfaithful dealing to us , even as with brethren , which is the most deceitful iniquity . And alas for you , what are your desires of depriving us of our just Liberty ? God shall give us Liberty , and from him we shall enjoy it whether you will or no ; and for our just liberty we shall not be beholding to you , though I must tell you , if our Liberty were in your power it is greatly to be doubted , and even your own dealing in this your Declaration gives occasion For it , that our Liberty would be enslaved if it were in your hands , but we bless the Lord it is in his hand & not in yours ; for so much of Treachery towards us hath here appeared , even in giving us up ( so much as in you is ) to the will of our Enemies , and the Spirit is in you which would betray Brethren , that for the time to come we can never Trust you ; but we do not give our Power to you to enjoy our Liberty from you , nor ever shall ; And if we walk Moraly honest and peaceable in the Nation , it is more then you do in this matter , for this your practise is not Morally honest in Accusing of us behind our backs to the Nation , and City , and Authorities thereof of Irregularity , &c. though as I have said never any of us had so great a hand by open opposition tending to make war in the Nation as some of you in some things I might instance , even for their sakes to whom you have accused us , and that we are more peaceable then some of your selves the Nation and City knows ; Have we thrust our selves into Arms , and sought Offices and Places , and Commands as some of you ? Have ever any of us appeared in Actual Arms against Parliament & Nation as some of you ? Have we given the City or the Nation by any visible appearance to fear a war from us , as you have done ? Let the Nation & City , & the witness in all mens Consciences judge ; so that we are known to be peaceable as much or more then your selves , for we have never sought to you to take up Arms with us , as some among you have sought to others , which may demonstrate that we are as peaceable in the Nation , if not more then you ; and so you needed not to have premised such a thing on our behalf . And thus I have in short returned your secret Treachery upon {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} own heads , and Answered that same part of your Declaration wherein I and the Truth , and the whole flock of God was any way concerned ; and as for the rest of your Declaration I will not seek Occasions against it , though in some other things also therein exprest , I might search out your Hearts , and discover the rottenness of them ; and where you say you declare Magistracy to be an Ordinance ; &c. might not I tell the Nation and City that you are not content with Magistracy , except of your own Sect ; And might not I say , Why were not you contented with that Assembly of men that last Sat ? And wherefore was it that you even some of you Anabaptists were the chief Instruments with Swords in your Hands to Dissolve them , and so were Instruments in bringing the Nation into present confusion . And whereas you speak of the publick Ministers of the Nation , you are far from endeavouring to destroy them ( say you ) and it is your duty to stand by them and preserve them from all violence and injury , &c. To which I answer , What are you about to make a League and a Covenant with Antichrist ? Have you for these many years been opposing them in words , and are you now recanting of what you have done when you are sensible of a danger upon you ? and will you now bind your selves to stand by them and preserve them from all injury , and even as they are Ministers too ? But let me ask you , Do you look upon them to be Ministers of Christ , or of Antichrist ? If true Ministers of Christ , wherefore do you oppose them and cry against them in your Pulpits , and hath formerly your selves and some of your Brethren yet do publickly oppose them both by word and writing , Oh! ye hypocrites . But if they are Ministers of Antichrist , then how is it that you will stand by them and preserve them as such , and would bind it upon them as their duty to stand by and preserve you ? Is not this a League with Hell and Death ? are you turned backwards into love and affection towards them again , and so lost your former Principles ? And is your Zeal quite grown cold , or are you now onely flattering and dawbing with the Ministers , because you see danger from them , while you seek but greater advantage against them ? they may indeed tell you they look upon you as not destroyers of their wayes and practises , neither to ease the Nation from any burthen which they have laid upon it ; for it is manifest though you deny them in some particulars some of you , yet you can cry against that in some of them , and yet uphold the same thing ; I may lawfully instance that some of your Brethren , some in this Nation , and some in Ireland takes or have lately taken Tithes for Preaching , and have yearly stipends , and so much by the year out of the States Treasure for Preaching , 100 l. 200 l. and 300 l. a piece by the year , which indeed doth shew that you are not intending to destroy their oppressing and abominable practises , but the rather that you would turn them out of great Places and Benefits , and turn your selves in ; Oh! deceit and wickedness which I am forced to lay open upon this occasion of your own just provocation hereunto ; and as for their preserving you and you them against such as do oppose you , they may easily joyn with you in this , if they could hope in your faithfulness , for some of you and your Members have shewed as much enmity , have been open Persecutors , even as they and their Members have been , and your Members have been sending the People of God to Prison , and persecuting them even as the Common Priests of the Nation : and you appear to be guided by the same spirit in many things , and if they be Antichristian in their wayes and practises , its sure that you are not of Christ , because you are like unto them in nature . And in that you say , you would have none tollerated in their Religion that deny the Scriptures to be the Word of God , but you would tollerate Episcopacy , Presbytery or a stinted form , &c. say you . To which I say , I know that spirit which you are of , if it had its full Authority would tolerate none but your selves , for your spirit in nature differs not from the spirit of the Church of Rome ; And what are you now for tollerating Episcopacy , who were once your selves ( in your Zeal for God , when your sincerity was not darkned , nor your hearts so much corrupted through places of honour , and through such things as now they are ) Instruments to the pulling down of Episcopacy , and will you now tollerate it again , and help to set it up , and build what you have destroyed , as if you recanted of what you had done , but plainly shewing that you are not of the same Spirit that once you were of , but have lost sincerity , and can embrace Idolatry , for once ye were the men that did oppose it , and did violently help to pluck it down ; but now you are for tolleration . Oh! unconstant men this is to you , not herein discovering my Judgement in the case , and if Episcopacy , why may not Popery be tollerated ? seeing they are one and the self same in ground and nature , and not much different in appearance , and you may agree to tollerate a stinted form in others , because your selves are in a stinted form also ; for what is yours else but a form , crying up your water and bread and wine , and differing from the world onely in these outward things , when as the City and Nation knows you are men as covetous , as worldly minded , as ambitious , as self-seeking of honour and places as any others in the Nation , and your Religion appears to be a ●tinted form as much as others ; Alas poor men , you have discovered your hearts in your Declaration , and according to the corruption thereof I cannot but answer you ; and there are some that deny the Scriptures to be the Word of God , and say they are the Words of God , and a Declaration , and a Treatise of what the Saints believed and enjoyed ; and Christ is the Word of God , that may in time to come be tollerated in their Religion in this Nation , though you have renounced them : but while they are owned and regarded of the Lord , they respect not your love nor hatred who are mortal men , and your breath in your nostrils , and must fall and perish as the dung in all your beauty , and your profession of Religion , before the coming of the Son of God . And in your Post-script you say , you have under your hands sent forth your Declaration in behalf of your selves , and others of your Judgement ; but I must tell you , I do believe there are some even of those called Anabaptists which will reject your work , and to them my answer is not , for I spare them : but to you fearful hypocrites in a time of danger , that have in this juncture of time renounced us without ground or reason in the sight of God , but for your ends , as if you would gain the favour of the Nation and City by denyal of us , and looking upon your selves to be reproached because of us , when as you are a company of unworthy men , even unworthy of our reproaches , and to escape them have denied us , as seeming to clear your selves , but you are deceived in this matter , and it shall turn to work against you in the Nation , and in the City ; for we have a more surer witness in their Consciences , even in the Consciences of all people that we are of God , then you have ; for take but away your outward water , and bread and wine , and some few outward practises , & what do you differ from the worst sort of men in the Nation ; for doth not pride and hypocrisie , and self-love , and covetousness , and the love of this world abound amongst you , as much as amongst any others ? the witness in peoples Consciences knows it , which shall be a witness for us and against you . You may indeed have gained League with the worst sort of men in the Nation , but you have not gained the sincerity in people , and while we have that on our side to witness for us , take you the rude multitude , for we are not discouraged at all concerning this thing , but the rather do glory in the Lord though we be denied of all , for though men forsake us , yet the Lord careth for us ; and your own doing shall return upon your own heads : and thus much is sufficient to the substance of your Declaration , and if I receive any reply , I shall expect it under the hands of you all , that I may further search and discover you unto your selves , and to the Nation . And whereas there is a Manuscript goes aboad , consisting of five Particulars , which is said that it was delivered in to the Committee of Safety , as Advice and Councel to them : but who the Authours of it are is something uncertain , but certain it is , that some of the called Independant Ministers and Pastors were the chief Promotors of it , and in the Coppy which was delivered to my hands , it is said , These five Particulars were the result of a little Synod made up of Presbyterians , Independants and Anabaptists ; but whether it is so or no I leave that , and would say something to some of the Particulars , and even to the Committee of Safety and Officers of the Army , and all others of the Nation for their better information , then the same Paper describeth to them . The third Particular consisteth about the Magistrates Power in matters of Faith and Worship , and the Authours say , Though they greatly prize Christian Liberty , yet they profess utter dislike and abhorrency of an Vniversal toleration , as being contrary to the mind of God in his Word . Answ. It appears the Authours are lovers of themselves , and prizers of their own Liberty , but not of the Liberty of others , but do utterly dislike and abhor the Toleration of others , which may indeed be more righteous then themselves , and this is no less then the very Principle of the Whore of Rome , which Promotes her own Liberty and makes others slaves , and abhors Toleration to any but themselves ; and they plead Scriptures as well as you for proof of their Religion , and they will say all that differs from them are contrary to the Scriptures , even as you say , when as there is very little better foundation in the Scriptures for your Religion then there is for theirs ; and it is doubtful to many what Religion this day extant is perfectly according to the Scriptures ; but yet thus much may be said , that Church and that Religion which are not in the same Spirit as gave forth the Scriptures , are not according unto the Scriptures , and he that can distinguish of this , and who it is that hath the same Spirit that gave forth the Scriptures , are onely able to Judge what Religion is according to the Scriptures ; But can the Authors shew plainly out of the Scriptures that their Religion is onely according thereunto , and all others the contrary ? and until they prove this , why may not the Rulers that are or may be in this Nation , give Toleration unto other sorts of people as well as to the Independants the supposed Authours of this Paper ? The fourth Particular consisteth concerning Tithes , and say they , The taking away of Tithes for Maintenance of Ministers , until as full a Maintenance be as equally secured and as legally setled , tends very much to the distruction of the Ministry , and Preaching of the Gospel in these Nations . Answ. Alas for you poor ignorant Creatures , ye foolish men , that seems to have no understanding of the Ministry and Gospel of Christ ; Do you indeed think that the true Ministry of Christ and the Preaching of the Gospel depends upon Maintenance by Tithes ? Oh! ye Robbers of God , who have secretly dishonoured him in your hearts , and publickly disgraced him as much as in you lies to the Nation , as if he were not able to save his Ministrie and the Preaching of his Gospel from destruction if Tithes be taken away ; Surely , you err in your Judgements , and have no acquaintance with God , nor with his Ministry nor Gospel ; who have thus dishonoured him in setting up that Maintenance by the forcible and unjust oppression of Tithes , to be the preserving of Ministry and Gospel , and as if Tithes were the upholding of Ministry and Gospel ; and you have thus falsly and wickedly measured God , his Ministry and Gospel , by the wickedness of your own hearts , who seems to be indeed of those Hirelings that cheats Souls for money , and runs for the gift like Baalam , and for the lucre like the evil beasts and slow bellies ; and so I do believe that your false Ministrie indeed and your feined pretence of Preaching the Gospel doth depend upon great sums of money and upon large maintenances , & we believe that indeed is the chief Reason of your Preaching and of your Ministry , and it is very possible that your Ministry and Preaching may fall which is Antichristian , when Tithes and Hire is taken away , which Ministry dependeth thereupon , but the true Ministry and Preaching of the Gospel will God maintain and uphold 〈…〉 of Tithes being vanquished , and I hope some of the Rulers of this Nation and officers of the Army will not believe your advice ; But yet you seem to be willing to renounce Tithes if you could have as full a maintenance setled another way , so that however great maintenance comes , you regard not , so you can have that , whether by this way of oppression or the other , it s your maintenance you love and followes after , and seekes unto the Powers of the Earth for that end ; and how equally and Legally Tithes have been setled which you seem to affirm , let all good People judge ; given they were , and setled first in our Nation , by the Popes Authoritie , to be the maintenance of that Whores Ministers , and all the Laws which gave them and setled them have been Antichristian and oppression in the Nation , and there is the guilt of blood and of cruel unjust sufferings lying upon this Nation in that very cause of Tithes , and the hand of the Lord is gone out against it , and against all contenders for it , and God will redeem the Nation from under it , though you be putting your strength to uphold it through your Hypocritical Prayers and Preaching and flatteries with God and men . The fifth particular is , these Authors desire that countenance be not given unto nor trust reposed in the hands of Quakers , being persons of such Principles that are destructive to the Gospel and inconsistent with peace and civil society . Answ. Here your wickedness and the malice of your hearts is let forth against the despised People , for their righteousness sake ; & this spirit of yours would not onely discountenance them but destroy them from the face of the earth , if it were in your hands , and you are worse then Baalam ever was , and far more blind then he , for you are as it were seeking inchantments against the People of God for money , and you see not the goodly tents of Jacob as he did , nor the People that are altogether blessed ; Oh! ye envious persons that are even a preparing as much as in you is the destruction of a peaceable People , and that would keep them in slaverie under you , and you would have the countenance of the Powers of the earth , but they must not , and you would monopolize all the places of trust for advantage to your selves , and you would hardly allow the People of God a place on the ground ; Oh! ye sinful hypocrites and flatterers and slanderers of the just , but what need you have made such preparation against them , do they seek places of honour among you , do they delight in great places among men ? do they love to be great in this world ? nay their Kingdom is from above , and they reject the countenance of the Beasts Authority , and they reject any confidence that the dragon and unjust powers can repose in them , and you need not have been afraid in this matter , and thereupon slandered us , and have back-bited us to the Powers of the earth ; what do you fear ? Even the thing which you fear will God in a Judgement bring upon you , and there is a Government to be set up in this Nation , even that which is of the Lamb ; and your Antichristian Monarchy the Beast with all his Heads and Horns shall fall to the ground , and the Lord may bring your fear upon you to your utter confusion , though you are making defences all that you can for your selves and your Kingdom , and this seems to be a day wherein every mans heart is tryed , and every man and sort of People is pouring forth the malitiousness of their hearts against the poor People in scorn called Quakers ; what say the Papists and Episcopal men ? Quakers are a new Sect and deceivers , &c. and what say the Presbyterians and the Independants of them ? Oh! they are Seducers , they are Witches , they are false prophets , they are Vagabonds not worthy of countenance , &c. nor any place of trust in the Nation , &c. What say the Anabaptists of them ? O they are Blasphemers and Hereticks and irregular Persons and distructive to Gospel , &c. This and such like is the cry of these and all sorts of People against the poor dispised People whom the Eternal God hath made dreadful unto them all , who shall be the Rod in his hand to break them and confound them , and utterly to destroy their Antichristian Kingdom ; for they are beloved of the Lord though hated of all men , and though the whole body of the Beast and Antichrist and every Horn of his Head do set themselves to War against the Lamb and his followers , and though all these sorts of People mentioned and some others do at this very day pour out their fury and malice against this People , yet shall they not be confounded , for their trust is in the living God , and as sure as the Lord lives , the fear that People have of the prosperity of this People shall come upon them , and without Weapon or Arm of flesh , or the multitude of an Host of men will their God dash their Enemies to pieces ; and all ye Sects whatsoever that are risen in opposition against us , what do we regard your fury and madness against us ? What do we fear your revilings , you uncircumcised Philistines , we mock at your terrour , and we reject your strength as the strength of a straw , we dispise your Authority which is not of God , as the Authority of so many Bryars and Thorns , we can glory over you in the Lord , what are you , and from whence did you come , is not Babylon your City ? and is not the great Whore your Mother , and the Mother of Harlots your Nurse ? And what is your growth but even like the grass of a Summers growth that 's soon cut down and withered , and like the leaf of a Summer tree that utterly perisheth in Winter ? The mighty day of the Lord is at your door , confusion is begun amongst you , and the sword of one may destroy another , and the strength of one shall rear another , and the remnant that is left shall be destroyed , and we must overcome them without Sword or carnal Weapon , and this shall come to pass in a day ; and the eye that is yet blind shall see it , and the child that is yet undelivered shall be a Conquerour over the Beast , and over his Image , and over all you false Sects , and over every Horn that is risen up in envy against the Lamb and his followers , the time of the Lambs Kingdom is at hand , behold , behold ye mountains of the earth , the sentence of Eternal vengeance will pass upon you , ye Hypocritical Professors ; ye Pastors , Elders , Members and Ministers of Churches ( so called ) the Decree of the Almighty is coming out against you , you have provoked him by your wickedness towards him and his People , even to the destruction of your own selves ; wherefore tremble before the Lord , for his dread and the weight of his hand shall be upon your Consciences . Oh Nation , mourn over thy iniquities which have provoked God against thee , and if men turn not unto him , his sore Judgment will be upon thee , we are not for this party or the other , neither do we justifie one side in opposition to another , for we see the earth is corrupted , and all sorts of men that are this day striving one sort , against another , are in a wrong way and in a wrong spirit , and we cannot side with any of them , but we rather mourn over the Nation who is torn in pieces by the Ambitious spirit of her pretended Rulers , and we desire the repentance of all , and not the destruction of any , and we are for Gods part and not for men . E. BVRROVGH . THE END . 
A69913	----	A defence of the Duke of Buckingham, against the answer to his book, and the reply to his letter by the author of the late Considerations. Penn, William, 1644-1718. 1685 Approx. 7 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 5 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2005-12 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A69913 Wing D816A ESTC R856 12952581 ocm 12952581 95998 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A69913) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 95998) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 735:10 or 1255:16) A defence of the Duke of Buckingham, against the answer to his book, and the reply to his letter by the author of the late Considerations. Penn, William, 1644-1718. 8 p. Printed for W.C., London : 1685. Caption title. Imprint from colophon. Attributed to William Penn. cf. NUC pre-1956 v. 448, p. 405. This item appears at reels 735:10 and 1255:16. Reproduction of original in Huntington Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in Oxford and Michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet QA standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. After proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. Any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. Understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of TCP data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. Users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a TCP editor. The texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the TEI in Libraries guidelines. Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Buckingham, George Villiers, -- Duke of, 1628-1687. -- Short discourse upon the reasonableness of men's having a religion. Short answer to His Grace the D. of Buckingham's paper. Toleration. 2005-07 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2005-08 Apex CoVantage Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2005-09 Jonathan Blaney Sampled and proofread 2005-09 Jonathan Blaney Text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A DEFENCE OF THE Duke of Buckingham , Against the Answer to his Book , And the Reply to his Letter . By the Author of the late Considerations . I Remember at the time when Chancellor Hyde was at his heigth at Court , a Poor Woman who got her Living by a piece of Ground which her Old Husband used to Digg , carrying her Garden-stuff one day to Market , and not Selling it , comes Home exclaiming , that she could not Sell her Beans and Cabbages ; and should never have any good Market any more , so long as that filthy Hyde was Chancellor . I know not the AUTHOR ( whosoever he be ) of the Discourse which came out for an ANSWER to His Grace the DUKE of 〈…〉 ; but the Argumentation of the Gentleman has really , as to the main point of his answer to the design of that Generous DUKE ( when the rest is Impertinence ) the force only ( and prejudice ) of what was said by this Woman . There are some in the Nation that have been , and that are for Liberty of Conscience ; some that have been , and that are of the Wisest of the Nation ( such as my Lord Bacon , and my Lord Chief Justice Hales ) who have shewn their Minds still against the Stiffness of these Church-Men , who never would be got , when time was , to condescend in lesser things for the sake of greater . And there comes this Gentleman now , and he Argues , That therefore all the Plots , all the Rebellions , all the Evils that have befallen the Kingdom , must be Imputed to such Men , and such Principles . The Argument really is the Reasoning of this Woman : Socrate ambulante fulguravit . Socrates going abroad , it Lightened ; This Lightning did a great deal of hurt ; Therefore Socrates must be sent to Newgate : Therefore Liberty of Conscience must be put to Death . I deny the Argument . These Fanaticks ( say these Disputers ) are unquiet ; Therefore they must be Prosecuted . I say , No ; but therefore give them Liberty of Conscience , and they will be unquiet no more . A Carrier had two Horses , one of them being Galled through the negligence of his Man , the Man unknown to his Master gets the Saddle fitted to his back , and all is well : One day a New Hostler , perceiving nothing , puts on the false Saddle ; The Horse going out , Winches , and casts off his Pack . The Master being enraged , falls a beating the Horse ; but the Man that understood the matter , does but change only the Saddles , and both the Horses go quietly along . I will appeal to any Man of Sense , though of never so little Reason , whether Ease , Happiness , and Plenty are likeliest to make People Turbulent , or Oppression ? Take off the thing that pinches , take off Prosecution , do but change the Saddles , and set them both aright , and see then whether the Church-men or the Fanaticks , and Catholicks will be most Governable . Let this King give that Liberty which his Predecessors refused , and you shall see whether this King will not be beloved above all that went before Him. I pray go over to Holland , go any where else , where Liberty is granted , and see , if People Rebel in such Places . I am ashamed , that Men should have need of Spectacles to see the Sun ! There are some , I know , upon the Duke of Buckingham's sending out these Papers , have aspersed him for another Shaftsbury , as if he would make himself Head of the Fanaticks : There are others apt to cry out , He is undermining the Protestant Religion , and designs Popery : But as I know that my own self do design nothing but the Publick Benefit , so do I judge of his Graces undertaking : That is , as the undertaking of a Person over whom a great Reason , and the Love of his Countrey does predominate , with Indifferency to the Church-men , the Fanaticks , and also those of the Romish Perswasion . The Truth is , The attempt of the Duke at this time for Liberty of Conscience , looks to me to proceed from such a Spirit as the Enterprizes of Dion , Epaminondas , Timoleon , and such like , who were Liberators of their Countrey : In comparison of whom , the Conquests of Caesar , Alexander , and Pyrrbus , who sought themselves and their own Greatness , were but Spoil and Latrociny . The Papers Writ against him , the Duke himself hath thought fit to take Notice of in a Letter , which Letter having one thing in it that is enough to make him Print it , [ to wit , The Explanation of the Kings Promise ] the rest of it I count comes to this Signification , That the Author is by no means to be made his Grace's Match , but to be left to others : Unto whom also , one of them being come out already , I 'le leave him . Neither , indeed , is the Field here proper for his Grace to Descend into ; it being the Parliament House only , which is the fit place ; where this cause is to be Fought , where he will meet with his Equals , and where we shall know who shall carry it . As for the Replyer to the Dukes Letter , who Insists only upon the same thing , which the Answerer does , the Distractions , Miseries , Regicide , in the late Times , and therefore the Government must Fence against them by denial of Toleration , I must add ( this being nothing still but the Fallacy non causae pro causa before ) that , As the Answer is not worthy the pains of the Duke , so the Reply does require no Body's . Although indeed , in the Paper of Considerations moving to a Toleration , come out since both , there is one little Parenthesis , viz. [ Stated Rightly , that is , of All , so far as they are Tolerable , whereof the Wisdom of a Parliament is the fittest Judge ] does Preoccupate all Objections , and stops the Throat of this Flap-Mouth Argument . Entred according to Order . LONDON , Printed for W. C. 1685. 
A91792	----	Fifty questions propounded to the Assembly, to answer by the Scriptures: whether corporall pnnishments [sic] may be inflicted upon such as hold different opinions in religion. By S.R. Richardson, Samuel, fl. 1643-1658. This text is an enriched version of the TCP digital transcription A91792 of text R201507 in the English Short Title Catalog (Thomason E388_11). Textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. The text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with MorphAdorner. The annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). Textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. This text has not been fully proofread Approx. 19 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 5 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. EarlyPrint Project Evanston,IL, Notre Dame, IN, St. Louis, MO 2017 A91792 Wing R1407 Thomason E388_11 ESTC R201507 99862008 99862008 114155 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A91792) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 114155) Images scanned from microfilm: (Thomason Tracts ; 62:E388[11]) Fifty questions propounded to the Assembly, to answer by the Scriptures: whether corporall pnnishments [sic] may be inflicted upon such as hold different opinions in religion. By S.R. Richardson, Samuel, fl. 1643-1658. [8] p. [s.n], London, : Printed, 1647. S.R. = Samuel Richardson. Signatures: A⁴. Annotation on Thomason copy: "May 20th". Reproduction of the original in the British Library. eng Westminster Assembly (1643-1652) -- Early works to 1800. Toleration -- Early works to 1800. Persecution -- Early works to 1800. A91792 R201507 (Thomason E388_11). civilwar no Fifty questions propounded to the Assembly, to answer by the Scriptures:: whether corporall pnnishments [sic] may be inflicted upon such as Richardson, Samuel 1647 3481 4 0 0 0 0 0 11 C The rate of 11 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the C category of texts with between 10 and 35 defects per 10,000 words. 2007-05 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2007-05 Aptara Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2007-06 Emma (Leeson) Huber Sampled and proofread 2007-06 Emma (Leeson) Huber Text and markup reviewed and edited 2008-02 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion FIFTY QUESTIONS PROPOUNDED To the ASSEMBLY , to answer by the Scriptures : whether corporall punishments may be inflicted upon such as hold different opinions in Religion . Yee are bought with a price , be not the servants of men . 1 Cor. 7. 23. Yee suffer fools gladly , 2 Cor. 11. 19. and yet I may not be suffered . By S. R. London , Printed , 1647. Fifty Questions , &c. WHether corporall punishments can open blinde eyes , and give light to darke understandings ? 2 Whether carnall punishments can produce any more then a carnall repentance and obedience ? 3 Whether the destroying of mens bodies for errours , be not a means to prevent their conversion , seeing some are not called untill the eleventh houre : and if they should be cut off for their errours the seventh houre , how should they have come in ? Mat. 20. 6. 4 Whether those who would force other mens consciences , be willing to have their own forced ? 5 Whether it be wisdome and safe to make such sole Judges in matters of Religion , who are not infallible , but as lyable to erre as others ? 6 If a father or Magistrate have not power to force a virgin to marry one shee cannot love ; whether they have power to force one where they cannot believe , against the light and checks of their own consciences ? 7 Whether the Scripture makes the Magistrate Judge of our faith ? 8 If the Magistrate may determine what is truth ; whether we must not beleeve and live by the Magistrates faith , and change our religion at their pleasures ? and if nothing must be preached , nor no books of Religion printed , nor be allowed to passe , unlesse certain men may please to approve and give their allowance thereto , under their hands , whether such doe not by this practice , tell God , that unlesse he will reveale his truth first to them , they will not suffer it to be published , and so not known to be ( even with him ) notwithstanding the Magistrate may and ought to hinder the printing and publishing of that which shall be against the safety and welfare of the State . But we must distinguish between matters civill and religious : we question their power in the latter . Also , whether the Licenser setting his hand to the booke to licence it ( he being a Priest by his ordination , and from the Pope ) be not the marke of the beast spoken of , Revel. 13. 17. And whether all such as have gone to them to licence the truth ought not to repent of it , and do so no more ? Also whether these men be fit to be Licencers of the truth , who when the truth hath been tendred them to be licenced , they have confessed the truth of it , as they have been free to licence it ; but refused , because they durst not ? And whether it can be made appear , that God hath revealed his truth first to these Ministers of England , and so the first spreaders of it ? Instance , who opposed the Prelates , the Ministers or the people , first ? And so of the rest . 9 Whether it be not the command of Christ , that the tares ( those that walke in lies ) and the wheat ( those that walke in the truth , should be let alone , and the blinde ( led in a false Religion ) which are offended at the declaration of the truth should be let alone Mat. 13. 30 , 38. Mat. 15. 14. 10 Whether he was not reproved that would have fire from heaven to devoure those that reject Christ , Luk. 9. 54 , 55. 11 Whether the servants of the Lord are not forbidden to strive , but to ▪ be gentle towards all ? 2 Tim. 4. 2. 12 Whether the Saints weapons against errours , be carnall or no : 2 Cor. 10. 4. 13 Whether it was not Christs command , that his Disciples when they were persecuted , they should pray , and if cursed , blesse ? 14 Whether the Scriptures declare , that the Saints should persecute others , and whether the gentle lambs of Christ can serve the Wolves so , seeing he sent his as sheep among wolves , and not as wolves among sheep , to kill and imprison , Matth. 10. 16. 15 Whether Christ hath sayd , He will have an unwilling people compelled to serve him ? 16 whether ever God did plant his church by violence and blood-shed ? 17 Whether tares may not become wheat , and the blinde see , and those that now oppose and resist Christ , afterwards receive him : and he that is now in the devils snare , may get out and come to repentance : and such as are Idolaters , as the Corinthians were , may become true worshippeers , as they that are strangers may become Gods people ? 18 Whether to convert an Heretick , and to cast out unclean spirits , be done any other way then by the finger of God , by the mighty power of the Spirit in the word ? 19 Whether he that is not conformable to Christ , may not at the same time be a good subject to the State , and as profitable to it as any ? 20 Whether men that differ in Religion , may not be tollerated , seeing Abraham abode among the Canaanites a long time , yet contrary to them in Religion , Gen. 13. 7. & 16. 13. and he sojourned in Gezer , and King Abimelech gave him leave to abide in his land , Gen. 20. 21 , 23 , 24. And Isaac dwelt in the same Land , yet contrary in Religion , Gen. 31. The people of Israel were about 430 years in Aegypt , and afterwards in Babylon , all which time they differed in Religion from the State , Exod. 12. 2 Chron. 36. Christ and his Disciples differed from the common religion of the State , Acts 19. 20. and when the enemies of the truth raised up any tumults , the wisdom of the Magistrate most wisely appeased them , Acts 18. 14. & 19. 15. 21 Whether it be not better for us , that a Patent were granted to monopolize all the comand cloth , and to have it measured out unto us at their price and pleasure , which yet were intollerable ; as for some men to appoint and measure out unto us what and how much wee shall beleeve and practice in matters of religion . 22 Whether there be not the same reason that they should be appointed by us what they shall beleeve and practice in religion , as for them to do so to us , seeing we can give as good grounds for what wee beleeve and practice ( as they can do for what they would have ) if not better . 23 Whether men heretofore have not in zeal for religion , persecuted the Son of God , in stead of the son of perdition ? 24 Whether it is not a burden great enough for the Magistrate to govern and judge in civill causes , to preserve the subjects rights , peace and safety ? 25 If the Magistrate must judge and punish in matters of religion , the Magistrate must ever be troubled with such persons and such causes : and if after his conscience be convinced , hee had no such power , or see that it was truth he punished ; what horrours of conscience is he like to possesse ? 26 Whether he is fit to appoint punishments , that is not fit to judge ? 27 If the Magistrate must punish errours in religion , whether it doth not impose a necessity that the Magistrate is to have a certainty of knowledge in all intricate cases ? and whether God calls such to that place , whom he hath not furnished with abilities for that place ? And if a Magistrate be in darknesse , and spiritually blind , and dead ; be fit to judge of light , of truth and errour ? and whether such be fit for the place of the Magistracy ? then whether it be not a scruple to a tender conscience to submit to such in civill causes , because not appointed to that place by God ? whereas if the Magistrates power be onely civill , the doubt is resolved , because such as may be fit for Magistrates , and men ought in conscience in civill things to submit unto them . 28 Whether there be any Scripture that saith , that any mans conscience is to be constrained , and whether the Magistrate can reach mens consciences ; and whether he be fit to make a law to conscience , who cannot know when conscience keeps it , and that cannot reward conscience for keeping it , nor punish the conscience for the breaking of it ? 29 Whether it be not in vain for us to have Bibles in English , if against our souls perswasions from the Scriptures , we must beleeve as the Church beleeves ? 30 Whether the Magistrate be not wronged , to give him the title of Civill Magistrate onely , if his power be spirituall ? 31 Whether laws made meerly concerning spirituall things , be not spirituall also ? 32 Whether if no civill Law be broken , the civill peace be hurt or no ? 33 Whether in compulsion for conscience , not only the guilty , but the innocent suffer also ? As if the husband be an heretick , his sufferings may cause the innocent wife and children shall suffer as deeply also ? 34 Whether such as are spiritually dead , be capable to be spiritually infected ? 35 Whether God will accept of a painted sepulcher , a shadow , a meere complement of obedience , when the heart is dead and rotten , and hates God and all that is good ? God hath no need of hypocrites , much lesse of forced ones : God will have those to worship him , as can worship him in spirit and truth , John 4. 36 Whether the Scriptures appoint any other punishment to be inflicted upon Hereticks , then rejection and excommunication ? Tit. 3. 10. 37 Whether freedome of conscience would not joyn all sorts of persons to the Magistrate , because each shared in the benefit ? 38 Whether those states ( as the Low Countries ) who grant such liberty , doe not live quietly , and flourish in great prosperity ? 39 Whether persecution for conscience doe not harden men in their way , and make them cry out of oppression and tyranny ? 40 Whether some corporall punishments would not make thousands in England face about to Popery as it did in Queen Maries time . 41 Whether laws made concerning religion , have not always catched the most holy men : witnesse Daniel , and the three children : the rest will be of what religion you will . 42 Whether the Saints crave the help of the powers of this world to bring Christ to them ; or fear their powers to keep him from them ? 43 If no religion is to be practised , but that which the Common-wealth shall approve on : what if they will approve of no religion ? shall men have no religion at all ? 44 Whether the Saints ought not to continue their Assemblies of their worship of God , without , or against the consent of the Magistrates ; they being commanded to do so , Mat. 28. 18 , 19 , 20. Heb. 10. 25. By an Angel from God , Acts 5. 20. It was the Apostles practice ( who were not rebellious not seditious ) Acts 4. 18 , 19 , 20 , 23. and 5. 22. 28. 45 Whether Uniformity in Religion , in the State , doe not oppresse millions of souls , and impoverish the Saints bodies ? 46 Whether Gods people have not disputed and taught a Religion new worship , contrary to the State they lived in , and spread it in travelling and open places ; as appears , Acts 17. 2 , 17. and 18. 48. yet no origancy and impetuousnesse . Yea , contrary to publike authority in the Nations Uniformity , in false worship , Dan. 3. the three children ; so the Apostle , Acts 4. 5. The Saints have openly witnessed , that in matters spirituall , Jesus was King , Acts 17. 7. and for this Christ suffered ; as appears by his accusation . Iohn 9. 19. Jesus of Nazareth King of the Jews , Psal. 2. 6. Acts 2. 36. Gods People have seemed the disturbers of the civill State , upon the Apostles preaching , there followed uprores , and tumults , and uprores , at Iconium , at Ephesus , at Ierusalem , Acts 14. 4. Acts 19. 29 , 40. Acts 21. 30 , 31. 47 Whether Jesus Christ , appointed any materiall Prisons for Blasphemers of him ? Whether notwithstanding the confidence of the truth they have , to which they would force others , whether the Bishops , their Fathers , &c. have not been as deeply mistaken ; for now they , are found to be Antichristian . 48 Whether it be not a naturall Law for every man that liveth , to worship that which he thinketh is God , and as he thinketh he ought to worship ; and to force otherwise , will be concluded an oppression of those persons so forced . Whether it be best for us to put out our eyes , and see by the eyes of others who are as dim-sighted ? In my judgment , your judgement is a lye : will ye compell me to believe a lye ? compell ye a man to be present at a worship which he loaths ? 49 Eyther the Civill , or the Spirituall State must be supream : which of these must judge the other in spirituall matters ? if the Magistrate , then hee is above the Church , and so the head of the Church ; and he hath his power from the people : ( to govern the Church ) whether it will not follow , that the people , as a people , have originally as men a power to govern the Church , to see her do her duty , to reform and correct her ; and so the Spouse of Christ , wife of Christ must be corrected according to the pleasure of the World , who lye in wickednesse ? 1 Iohn 5. What power a Church hath over a Magistrate , if he● be a Member of the Church : if Members , they may be excommunicated , if so discerning . Reason 1 Because Magistrates must be subject to Christ , but Christ censures all offendors , 1 Cor. 5. 4 , 5. 2 Every brother must be subject to Christs censure , Mat. 18. 15 , 16 , 17. but Magistrates are Brethren , Deut. 17. 5. 3 They may censure all within the Church , 1 Cor. 5. 1● . 4 The Church hath a charge of all the soules of the Church , and must give account of it . Heb. 13. 17. 5 Christs censures are for the good of souls , 1 Cor. 5. 6. but Magistrates must not be denied any privilege for their souls , else they by being Magistrates , should lose a priviledge of Christs . 6 In which priviledges , Christians are all one , Gal. 2. 28. Col. 3. 11. Sins of Magistrates are hatefull and condemned , Esay 10. 1. Mich. 3. 1. It s a Paradox , that a Magistrate may be punished by the Church , and yet that they are Judges of the Church . 50 Whether every man upon that Religion , which in his conscience he is perswaded is true , whether hee doth not upon the truth thereof venter his soul . If that Religion the Magistrate , be perswaded be true , he owes a three-fold duty . First , Approbation , Esa. 49. Revel. 21. with a tender respect to the truth , and the Professours of it . Secondly , Personall submission of his soul to the power of Jesus his government , Matth. 18. 1 Cor. 5. Thirdly , protection of them , and their estates from violence and injury , Rom. 13. to a false Religion he owes . 1 Permission ( for approbation he owes not to what is evill ) as Matth. 13 30. for publike peace and quitenesse . 2 Protection of the Persons of his subjects ( though a false worship ) that no injury be offered to the persons or goods of any , Rom. 13. Object . The Kings of Judah compelled men to serve the Lord , Ergo , Kings may now compell , &c. Answ . They who lived under the Jewish worship only were compelled , strangers were not . Secondly , they were not compelled to any thing , but what they knew and confessed was their duty , 2 Chron. 6. 12 , 13 , 14 , 15. Thirdly , if they did compell , their actions were not morall to obliege other Kings to do so . May not the Prelates by the same reason alleage the order of the Priesthood for their Episcopacy , as you for the Kingly . Fourthly , the Kings of Israel did not imprison Schismaticks , Pharises , Herodians , &c. Fifthly , the Kings of Israel had extraordinary profits to direct them what to do infallibly ; these Kings have none such to direct them . Sixthly , if the Law be morall ; where is it set down in Christs Testament ( which is to be our Rule ) that the Magistrate shall compell all to his Religion : for to another he will not . Object . Then every man may live as he list . Answ . Had not he as good live as he list ; as live as you list ? Object . Then it seems errours may be suffered . Answ . If truth may be suffered also , it will prevail against Errours . It s no more in their power to hinder Errours , then it was in the power of the Prelates to hinder mens preaching , writing , and speaking against them . If you can hinder Satans suggestions , and the vain imaginations of mens hearts , and expell the darknesse in men , and place light in stead thereof ▪ and hinder men from speaking each to other , then you can suppresse errours , else not , the Lord only can surprise Errours by the mighty power of his Spirit with his Word , and wee believe hee will certainly do it in his time to his glory , and the comfort of his people , Amen . One thing more I desire to know why the Priests of England assume to themselves the title of a ( Divine ) is it because they are exercised in Divine Truth , or because they pertake of the Divine Nature , or both , if so , then many Tradesmen may as well have the title of Divine given them as well as they , because they pertake of the Divine Nature , and are as much exercised in matters Divine , as the most of them , but it is a question to mee , whether the title Divine is to be given to any man , but only to God alone ; whose being , is onely Divine . FINIS . 
A48884	----	A letter concerning toleration humbly submitted, etc. Epistola de tolerantia. English Locke, John, 1632-1704. 1689 Approx. 126 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 38 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-01 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A48884 Wing L2747 ESTC R14566 11845307 ocm 11845307 49822 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A48884) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 49822) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 540:9) A letter concerning toleration humbly submitted, etc. Epistola de tolerantia. English Locke, John, 1632-1704. Popple, William, d. 1708. [8], 61 p. Printed for Awnsham Churchill, London, 1689. First published in Latin, with title : Epistola de tolerantia : Goudae, 1689. Translated from the Latin of John Locke by Popple. Attributed to John Locke. cf. NUC pre-1956. Reproduction of original in Bristol Public Library, Bristol, England. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in Oxford and Michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet QA standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. After proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. Any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. Understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of TCP data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. Users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a TCP editor. The texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the TEI in Libraries guidelines. Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Toleration. Freedom of religion -- England. 2002-06 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2002-08 SPi Global Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2002-09 Jennifer Kietzman Sampled and proofread 2002-09 Jennifer Kietzman Text and markup reviewed and edited 2002-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A LETTER CONCERNING Toleration : Humbly Submitted , &c. LICENSED , Octob. 3. 1689. LONDON , Printed for Awnsham Churchill , at the Black Swan at Amen-Corner . 1689. A LETTER CONCERNING TOLERATION . There will be published in a few days , AN Agreement betwixt the Present and the Former Government : Or , A Discourse of this Monarchy , Whether Elective or Hereditary . Also of Abdication , Vacancy , Interregnums , Present Possession of the Crown , and the Reputation of the Church of England , &c. By a Divine of the Church of England , &c. Foxes and Firebrands : Or , A Specimen of the Danger and Harmony of Popery and Separation . A Third-Part . An Hundred and fifty three Chymical Aphorisms : To which , whatever relates to the Science of Chymistry may fitly be referred . Done by the Labour and Stidy of a Country Hermite , and Printed in Latin at Amsterdam , Anno 1688. Sold by Awnsham Churchill in Ave-mary Lane. TO THE READER . THe Ensuing Letter concerning Toleration , first Printed in Latin this very Year , in Holland , has already been Translated both into Dutch and French. So general and speedy an Approbation may therefore bespeak its favourable Reception in England . I think indeed there is no Nation under Heaven , in which so much has already been said upon that Subject , as Ours . But yet certainly there is no People that stand in more need of having something further both said and done amongst them , in this Point , than We do . Our Government has not only been partial in Matters of Religion ; but those also who have suffered under that Partiality , and have therefore endeavoured by their Writings to vindicate their own Rights and Liberties , have for the most part done it upon narrow Principles , suited only to the Interests of their own Sects . This narrowness of Spirit on all sides has undoubtedly been the principal Occasion of our Miseries and Confusions . But whatever have been the Occasion , it is now high time to seek for a thorow Cure. We have need of more generous Remedies than what have yet been made use of in our Distemper . It is neither Declarations of Indulgence , nor Acts of Comprehension , such as have yet been practised or projected amongst us , that can do the Work. The first will but palliate , the second encrease our Evil. Absolute Liberty , Iust and True Liberty , Equal and Impartial Liberty , is the thing that we stand in need of . Now tho this has indeed been much talked of , I doubt it has not been much understood ; I am sure not at all practised , either by our Governours towards the People in general , or by any Dissenting Parties of the People towards one another . I cannot therefore but hope that this Discourse , which treats of that Subject , however briefly , yet more exactly than any we have yet seen , demonstrating both the Equitableness and Practicableness of the thing , will be esteemed highly seasonable , by all Men that have Souls large enough to prefer the true Interest of the Publick before that of a Party . It is for the use of such as are already so spirited , or to inspire that Spirit into those that are not , that I have Translated it into our Language . But the thing it self is so short , that it will not bear a longer Preface . I leave it therefore to the Consideration of my Countrymen , and heartily wish they may make the use of it that it appears to be designed for . A LETTER CONCERNING TOLERATION . Honoured Sir , SInce you are pleased to inquire what are my Thoughts about the mutual Toleration of Christians in their different Professions of Religion , I must needs answer you freely , That I esteem that Toleration to be the chief Characteristical Mark of the True Church . For whatsoever some People boast of the Antiquity of Places and Names , or of the Pomp of their Outward Worship ; Others , of the Reformation of their Discipline ; All , of the Orthodoxy of their Faith ; ( for every one is Orthodox to himself : ) These things , and all others of this nature , are much rather Marks of Men striving for Power and Empire over one another , than of the Church of Christ. Let any one have never so true a Claim to all these things , yet if he be destitute of Charity , Meekness , and Good-will in general towards all Mankind , even to those that are not Christians , he is certainly yet short of being a true Christian himself . The Kings of the Gentiles exercise Lordship over them , said our Saviour to his Disciples , but ye shall not be so . The Business of True Religion is quite another thing . It is not instituted in order to the erecting of an external Pomp , nor to the obtaining of Ecclesiastical Dominion , nor to the exercising of compulsive Force ; but to the regulating of Mens Lives according to the Rules of Vertue and Piety . Whosoever will lift himself under the Banner of Christ , must in the first place , and above all things , make War upon his own Lusts and Vices . It is in vain for any Man to usurp the Name of Christian , without Holiness of Life , Purity of Manners , and Benignity and Meekness of Spirit . Let every one that nameth the Name of Christ , depart from iniquity . Thou , when thou art converted , strengthen thy Brethren , said our Lord to Peter . It would indeed be very hard for one that appears careless about his own Salvation , to persuade me that he were extreamly concern'd for mine . For it is impossible that those should sincerely and heartily apply themselves to make other People Christians , who have not really embraced the Christian Religion in their own Hearts . If the Gospel and the Apostles may be credited , no Man can be a Christian without Charity , and without that Faith which works , not by Force , but by Love. Now I appeal to the Consciences of those that persecute , torment , destroy , and kill other Men upon pretence of Religion , whether they do it out of Friendship and Kindness towards them , or no : And I shall then indeed , and not till then , believe they do so , when I shall see those fiery Zealots correcting , in the same manner , their Friends and familiar Acquaintance , for the manifest Sins they commit against the Precepts of the Gospel ; when I shall see them prosecute with Fire and Sword the Members of their own Communion that are tainted with enormous Vices , and without Amendment are in danger of eternal Perdition ; and when I shall see them thus express their Love and Desire of the Salvation of their Souls , by the infliction of Torments , and exercise of all manner of Cruelties . For if it be out of a Principle of Charity , as they pretend , and Love to Mens Souls , that they deprive them of their Estates , maim them with corporal Punishments , starve and torment them in noisom Prisons , and in the end even take away their Lives ; I say , if all this be done meerly to make Men Christians , and procure their Salvation , Why then do they suffer Whoredom , Fraud , Malice , and such like enormities , which ( according to the Apostle ) manifestly rellish of Heathenish Corruption , to predominate so much and abound amongst their Flocks and People ? These , and such like things , are certainly more contrary to the Glory of God , to the Purity of the Church , and to the Salvation of Souls , than any conscientious Dissent from Ecclesiastical Decisions , or Separation from Publick Worship , whilst accompanied with Innocency of Life . Why then does this burning Zeal for God , for the Church , and for the Salvation of Souls ; burning , I say , literally , with Fire and Faggot ; pass by those moral Vices and Wickednesses , without any Chastisement , which are acknowledged by all Men to be diametrically opposite to the Profession of Christianity ; and bend all its Nerves either to the introducing of Ceremonies , or to the establishment of Opinions , which for the most part are about nice and intricate Matters , that exceed the Capacity of ordinary Understandings ? Which of the Parties contending about these things is in the right , which of them is guilty of Schism or Heresie , whether those that domineer or those that suffer , will then at last be manifest , when the Cause of their Separation comes to be judged of . He certainly that follows Christ , embraces his Doctrine , and bears his Yoke , tho' he forsake both Father and Mother , separate from the Publick Assemblies and Ceremonies of his Country , or whomsoever , or whatsoever else he relinquishes , will not then be judged an Heretick . Now , tho' the Divisions that are amongst Sects should be allowed to be never so obstructive of the Salvation of Souls ; yet nevertheless Adultery , Fornication , Vncleanness , Lasciviousness , Idolatry , and such like things , cannot be denied to be Works of the Flesh ; concerning which the Apostle has expresly declared , that they who do them shall not inherit the Kingdom of God. Whosoever therefore is sincerely sollicitous about the Kingdom of God , and thinks it his Duty to endeavour the Enlargement of it amongst Men , ought to apply himself with no less care and industry to the rooting out of these Immoralities , than to the Extirpation of Sects . But if any one do otherwise , and whilst he is cruel and implacable towards those that differ from him in Opinion , he be indulgent to such Iniquities and Immoralities as are unbecoming the Name of a Christian , let such a one talk never so much of the Church , he plainly demonstrates by his Actions , that 't is another Kingdom he aims at , and not the Advancement of the Kingdom of God. That any Man should think fit to cause another Man , whose Salvation he heartily desires , to expire in Torments , and that even in an unconverted estate , would , I confess , seem very strange to me , and , I think , to any other also . But no body , surely , will ever believe that such a Carriage can proceed from Charity , Love , or Good-will . If any one maintain that Men ought to be compelled by Fire and Sword to profess certain Doctrines , and conform to this or that exteriour Worship , without any regard had unto their Morals ; if any one endeavour to convert those that are Erroneous unto the Faith , by forcing them to profess things that they do not believe , and allowing them to practise things that the Gospel does not permit ; it cannot be doubted indeed but such a one is desirous to have a numerous Assembly joyned in the same Profession with himself ; but that he principally intends by those means to compose a truly Christian Church , is altogether incredible . It is not therefore to be wondred at , if those who do not really contend for the Advancement of the true Religion , and of the Church of Christ , make use of Arms that do not belong to the Christian Warfare . If , like the Captain of our Salvation , they sincerely desired the Good of Souls , they would tread in the Steps , and follow the perfect Example of that Prince of Peace , who sent out his Soldiers to the subduing of Nations , and gathering them into his Church , not armed with the Sword , or other Instruments of Force , but prepared with the Gospel of Peace , and with the Exemplary Holiness of their Conversation . This was his Method . Tho' if Infidels were to be converted by force , if those that are either blind or obstinate were to be drawn off from their Errors by Armed Soldiers , we know very well that it was much more easie for Him to do it with Armies of Heavenly Legions , than for any Son of the Church , how potent soever , with all his Dragoons . The Toleration of those that differ from others in Matters of Religion , is so agreeable to the Gospel of Jesus Christ , and to the genuine Reason of Mankind , that it seems monstrous for Men to be so blind , as not to perceive the Necessity and Advantage of it , in so clear a Light. I will not here tax the Pride and Ambition of some , the Passion and uncharitable Zeal of others . These are Faults from which Humane Affairs can perhaps scarce ever be perfectly freed ; but yet such as no body will bear the plain Imputation of , without covering them with some specious Colour ; and so pretend to Commendation , whilst they are carried away by their own irregular Passions . But however , that some may not colour their Spirit of Persecution and unchristian Cruelty with a Pretence of Care of the Publick Weal , and Observation of the Laws ; and that others , under pretence of Religion , may not seek Impunity for their Libertinism and Licentiousness ; in a word , that none may impose either upon himself or others , by the Pretences of Loyalty and Obedience to the Prince , or of Tenderness and Sincerity in the Worship of God ; I esteem it above all things necessary to distinguish exactly the Business of Civil Government from that of Religion , and to settle the just Bounds that lie between the one and the other . If this be not done , there can be no end put to the Controversies that will be always arising , between those that have , or at least pretend to have , on the one side , a Concernment for the Interest of Mens Souls , and on the other side , a Care of the Commonwealth . The Commonwealth seems to me to be a Society of Men constituted only for the procuring , preserving , and advancing of their own Civil Interests . Civil Interests I call Life , Liberty , Health , and Indolency of Body ; and the Possession of outward things , such as Money , Lands , Houses , Furniture , and the like . It is the Duty of the Civil Magistrate , by the impartial Execution of equal Laws , to secure unto all the People in general , and to every one of his Subjects in particular , the just Possession of these things belonging to this Life . If any one presume to violate the Laws of Publick Justice and Equity , established for the Preservation of those things , his Presumption is to be check'd by the fear of Punishment , consisting of the Deprivation or Diminution of those Civil Interests , or Goods , which otherwise he might and ought to enjoy . But seeing no Man does willingly suffer himself to be punished by the Deprivation of any part of his Goods , and much less of his Liberty or Life , therefore is the Magistrate armed with the Force and Strength of all his Subjects , in order to the punishment of those that violate any other Man's Rights . Now that the whole Jurisdiction of the Magistrate reaches only to these Civil Concernments ; and that all Civil Power , Right and Dominion , is bounded and confined to the only care of promoting these things ; and that it neither can nor ought in any manner to be extended to the Salvation of Souls , these following Considerations seem unto me abundantly to demonstrate . First , Because the Care of Souls is not committed to the Civil Magistrate , any more than to other Men. It is not committed unto him , I say , by God ; because it appears not that God has ever given any such Authority to one Man over another , as to compell any one to his Religion . Nor can any such Power be vested in the Magistrate by the consent of the People ; because no man can so far abandon the care of his own Salvation , as blindly to leave it to the choice of any other , whether Prince or Subject , to prescribe to him what Faith or Worship he shall embrace . For no Man can , if he would , conform his Faith to the Dictates of another . All the Life and Power of true Religion consists in the inward and full perswasion of the mind ; and Faith is not Faith without believing . Whatever Profession we make , to whatever outward Worship we conform , if we are not fully satisfied in our own mind that the one is true , and the other well pleasing unto God , such Profession and such Practice , far from being any furtherance , are indeed great Obstacles to our Salvation . For in this manner , instead of expiating other Sins by the exercise of Religion , I say in offering thus unto God Almighty such a Worship as we esteem to be displeasing unto him , we add unto the number of our other sins , those also of Hypocrisie , and Contempt of his Divine Majesty . In the second place . The care of Souls cannot belong to the Civil Magistrate , because his Power consists only in outward force ; but true and saving Religion consists in the inward perswasion of the Mind , without which nothing can be acceptable to God. And such is the nature of the Understanding , that it cannot be compell'd to the belief of any thing by outward force . Confiscation of Estate , Imprisonment , Torments , nothing of that nature can have any such Efficacy as to make Men change the inward Judgment that they have framed of things . It may indeed be alledged , that the Magistrate may make use of Arguments , and thereby draw the Heterodox into the way of Truth , and procure their Salvation . I grant it ; but this is common to him with other Men. In teaching , instructing , and redressing the Erroneous by Reason , he may certainly do what becomes any good Man to do . Magistracy does not oblige him to put of either Humanity or Christianity . But it is one thing to perswade , another to command ; one thing to press with Arguments , another with Penalties . This Civil Power alone has a right to do ; to the other Good-will is Authority enough . Every Man has Commission to admonish , exhort , convince another of Error , and by reasoning to draw him into Truth : but to give Laws , receive Obedience , and compel with the Sword , belongs to none but the Magistrate . And upon this ground I affirm , that the Magistrate's Power extends not to the establishing of any Articles of Faith , or Forms of Worship , by the force of his Laws . For Laws are of no force at all without Penalties , and Penalties in this case are absolutely impertinent ; because they are not proper to convince the mind . Neither the Profession of any Articles of Faith , nor the Conformity to any outward Form of Worship ( as has already been said ) can be available to the Salvation of Souls , unless the truth of the one , and the acceptableness of the other unto God , be thoroughly believed by those that so profess and practise . But Penalties are no ways capable to produce such Belief . It is only Light and Evidence that can work a change in Mens Opinions ; which Light can in no manner proceed from corporal Sufferings , or any other outward Penalties . In the third place . The care of the Salvation of Mens Souls cannot belong to the Magistrate ; because , though the rigour of Laws and the force of Penalties were capable to convince and change Mens minds , yet would not that help at all to the Salvation of their Souls . For there being but one Truth , one way to Heaven ; what Hopes is there that more Men would be led into it , if they had no Rule but the Religion of the Court , and were put under a necessity to quit the Light of their own Reason , and oppose the Dictates of their own Consciences , and blindly to resign up themselves to the Will of their Governors , and to the Religion , which either Ignorance , Ambition , or Superstition had chanced to establish in the Countries where they were born ? In the variety and contradiction of Opinions in Religion , wherein the Princes of the World are as much divided as in their Secular Interests , the narrow way would be much straitned ; one Country alone would be in the right , and all the rest of the World put under an obligation of following their Princes in the ways that lead to Destruction ; and that which heightens the absurdity , and very ill suits the Notion of a Deity , Men would owe their eternal Happiness or Misery to the places of their Nativity . These Considerations , to omit many others that might have been urged to the same purpose , seem unto me sufficient to conclude that all the Power of Civil Government relates only to Mens Civil Interests , is confined to the care of the things of this World , and hath nothing to do with the World to come . Let us now consider what a Church is . A Church then I take to be a voluntary Society of Men , joining themselves together of their own accord , in order to the publick worshipping of God , in such a manner as they judge acceptable to him , and effectual to the Salvation of their Souls . I say it is a free and voluntary Society . No body is born a Member of any Church ; otherwise the Religion of Parents would descend unto Children , by the same right of Inheritance as their Temporal Estates , and every one would hold his Faith by the same Tenure he does his Lands ; than which nothing can be imagined more absurd . Thus therefore that matter stands . No Man by nature is bound unto any particular Church or Sect , but every one joins himself voluntarily to that Society in which he believes he has found that Profession and Worship which is truly acceptable to God. The hopes of Salvation , as it was the only cause of his entrance into that Communion , so it can be the only reason of his stay there . For if afterwards he discover any thing either erroneous in the Doctrine , or incongruous in the Worship of that Society to which he has join'd himself , Why should it not be as free for him to go out as it was to enter ? No Member of a Religious Society can be tied with any other Bonds but what proceed from the certain expectation of eternal Life . A Church then is a Society of Members voluntarily uniting to this end . It follows now that we consider what is the Power of this Church , and unto what Laws it is subject . Forasmuch as no Society , how free soever , or upon whatsoever slight occasion instituted , ( whether of Philophers for Learning , of Merchants for Commerce , or of men of leisure for mutual Conversation and Discourse , ) No Church or Company , I say , can in the least subsist and hold together , but will presently dissolve and break to pieces , unless it be regulated by some Laws , and the Members all consent to observe some Order . Place , and time of meeting must be agreed on ; Rules for admitting and excluding Members must be establisht ; Distinction of Officers , and putting things into a regular Course , and such like , cannot be omitted . But since the joyning together of several Members into this Church-Society , as has already been demonstrated , is absolutely free and spontaneous , it necessarily follows , that the Right of making its Laws can belong to none but the Society it self , or at least ( which is the same thing ) to those whom the Society by common consent has authorised thereunto . Some perhaps may object , that no such Society can be said to be a true Church , unless it have in it a Bishop , or Presbyter , with Ruling Authority derived from the very Apostles , and continued down unto the present times by an uninterrupted Succession . To these I answer . In the first place , Let them shew me the Edict by which Christ has imposed that Law upon his Church . And let not any man think me impertinent if , in a thing of this consequence , I require that the Terms of that Edict be very express and positive . For the Promise he has made us , that wheresoever two or three are gathered together in his Name , he will be in the midst of them , seems to imply the contrary . Whether such an Assembly want any thing necessary to a true Church , pray do you consider . Certain I am , that nothing can be there wanting unto the Salvation of Souls ; Which is sufficient to our purpose . Next , Pray observe how great have always been the Divisions amongst even those who lay so much stress upon the Divine Institution , and continued Succession of a certain Order of Rulers in the Church . Now their very Dissention unavoidably puts us upon a necessity of deliberating , and consequently allows a liberty of choosing that , which upon consideration , we prefer . And in the last place , I consent that these men have a Ruler of their Church , established by such a long Series of Succession as they judge necessary ; provided I may have liberty at the same time to join my self to that Society , in which I am perswaded those things are to be found which are necessary to the Salvation of my Soul. In this manner Ecclesiastical Liberty will be preserved on all sides , and no man will have a Legislator imposed upon him , but whom himself has chosen . But since men are so sollicitous about the true Church , I would only ask them , here by the way , if it be not more agreeable to the Church of Christ , to make the Conditions of her Communion consist in such things , and such things only , as the Holy Spirit has in the Holy Scriptures declared , in express Words , to be necessary to Salvation ; I ask , I say , whether this be not more agreeable to the Church of Christ , than for men to impose their own Inventions and Interpretations upon others , as if they were of Divine Authority , and to establish by Ecclesiastical Laws , as absolutely necessary to the Profession of Christianity , such things as the Holy Scriptures do either not mention , or at least not expresly command . Whosoever requires those things in order to Ecclesiastical Communion , which Christ does not require in order to Life Eternal , he may perhaps indeed constitute a Society accommodated to his own Opinion and his own Advantage , but how that can be called the Church of Christ , which is established upon Laws that are not his , and which excludes such Persons from its Communion as he will one day receive into the Kingdom of Heaven , I understand not . But this being not a proper place to enquire into the marks of the true Church , I will only mind those that contend so earnestly for the Decrees of their own Society , and that cry out continually the Church , the Church , with as much noise , and perhaps upon the same Principle , as the Ephesian Silversmiths did for their Diana ; this , I say , I desire to mind them of , That the Gospel frequently declares that the true Disciples of Christ must suffer Persecution ; but that the Church of Christ should persecute others , and force others by Fire and Sword , to embrace her Faith and Doctrine , I could never yet find in any of the Books of the New Testament . The End of a Religious Society ( as has already been said ) is the Publick Worship of God , and by means thereof the acquisition of Eternal Life . All Discipline ought therefore to tend to that End , and all Ecclesiastical Laws to be thereunto confined . Nothing ought , nor can be transacted in this Society , relating to the Possession of Civil and Worldly Goods . No Force is here to be made use of , upon any occasion whatsoever : For Force belongs wholly to the Civil Magistrate , and the Possession of all outward Goods is subject to his Jurisdiction . But it may be asked , By what means then shall Ecclesiastical Laws be established , if they must be thus destitute of all Compulsive Power ? I answer , They must be established by Means suitable to the Nature of such Things , whereof the external Profession and Observation , if not proceeding from a thorow Conviction and Approbation of the Mind , is altogether useless and unprofitable . The Arms by which the Members of this Society are to be kept within their Duty , are Exhortations , Admonitions , and Advices . If by these means the Offenders will not be reclaimed , and the Erroneous convinced , there remains nothing farther to be done , but that such stubborn and obstinate Persons , who give no ground to hope for their Reformation , should be cast out and separated from the Society . This is the last and utmost Force of Ecclesiastical Authority : No other Punishment can thereby be inflicted , than that , the Relation ceasing between the Body and the Member which is cut off , the Person so condemned ceases to be a Part of that Church . These things being thus determined , let us inquire in the next place , how far the Duty of Toleration extends , and what is required from every one by it . And first , I hold , That no Church is bound by the Duty of Toleration to retain any such Person in her Bosom , as , after Admonition , continues obstinately to offend against the Laws of the Society . For these being the Condition of Communion , and the Bond of the Society , if the Breach of them were permitted without any Animadversion , the Society would immediately be thereby dissolved . But nevertheless , in all such Cases care is to be taken that the Sentence of Excommunication , and the Execution thereof , carry with it no rough usage , of Word or Action , whereby the ejected Person may any wise be damnified in Body or Estate . For all Force ( as has often been said ) belongs only to the Magistrate , nor ought any private Persons , at any time , to use Force ; unless it be in self-defence against unjust Violence . Excommunication neither does , nor can , deprive the excommunicated Person of any of those Civil Goods that he formerly possessed . All those things belong to the Civil Government , and are under the Magistrate's Protection . The whole Force of Excommunication consists only in this , that , the Resolution of the Society in that respect being declared , the Union that was between the Body and some Member comes thereby to be dissolved ; and that Relation ceasing , the participation of some certain things , which the Society communicated to its Members , and unto which no Man has any Civil Right , comes also to cease . For there is no Civil Injury done unto the excommunicated Person , by the Church-Minister's refusing him that Bread and Wine , in the Celebration of the Lord's Supper , which was not bought with his , but other mens Money . Secondly , No private Person has any Right , in any manner , to prejudice another Person in his Civil Enjoyments , because he is of another Church or Religion . All the Rights and Franchises that belong to him as a Man , or as a Denison , are inviolably to be preserved to him . These are not the Business of Religion . No Violence nor Injury is to be offered him , whether he be Christian or Pagan . Nay , we must not content our selves with the narrow Measures of bare Justice : Charity , Bounty , and Liberality must be added to it . This the Gospel enjoyns , this Reason directs , and this that natural Fellowship we are born into requires of us . If any man err from the right way , it is his own misfortune , no injury to thee : Nor therefore art thou to punish him in the things of this Life , because thou supposest he will be miserable in that which is to come . What I say concerning the mutual Toleration of private Persons differing from one another in Religion , I understand also of particular Churches ; which stand as it were in the same Relation to each other as private Persons among themselves , nor has any one of them any manner of Jurisdiction over any other , no not even when the Civil Magistrate ( as it sometimes happens ) comes to be of this or the other Communion . For the Civil Government can give no new Right to the Church , nor the Church to the Civil Government . So that whether the Magistrate joyn himself to any Church , or separate from it , the Church remains always as it was before , a free and voluntary Society . It neither acquires the Power of the Sword by the Magistrate's coming to it , nor does it lose the Right of Instruction and Excommunication by his going from it . This is the fundamental and immutable Right of a spontaneous Society , that it has power to remove any of its Members who transgress the Rules of its Institution : But it cannot , by the accession of any new Members , acquire any Right of Jurisdiction over those that are not joined with it . And therefore Peace , Equity , and Friendship , are always mutually to be observed by particular Churches , in the same manner as by private Persons , without any pretence of Superiority or Jurisdiction over one another . That the thing may be made yet clearer by an Example ; Let us suppose two Churches , the one of Arminians , the other of Calvinists , residing in the City of Constantinople . Will any one say , that either of these Churches has Right to deprive the Members of the other of their Estates and Liberty , ( as we see practised elsewhere ) because of their differing from it in some Doctrines or Ceremonies ; whilst the Turks in the mean while silently stand by , and laugh to see with what inhumane Cruelty Christians thus rage against Christians ? But if one of these Churches hath this Power of treating the other ill , I ask which of them it is to whom that Power belongs , and by what Right ? It will be answered , undoubtedly , That it is the Orthodox Church which has the Right of Authority over the Erroneous or Heretical . This is , in great and specious Words , to say just nothing at all . For every Church is Orthodox to it self ; to others , Erroneous or Heretical . For whatsoever any Church believes , it believes to be true ; and the contrary unto those things , it pronounces to be Error . So that the Controversie between these Churches about the Truth of their Doctrines , and the Purity of their Worship , is on both sides equal ; nor is there any Judge , either at Constantinople , or elsewhere upon Earth , by whose Sentence it can be determined . The Decision of that Question belongs only to the Supream Judge of all men , to whom also alone belongs the Punishment of the Erroneous . In the mean while , let those men consider how hainously they sin , Who , adding Injustice , if not to their Error yet certainly to their Pride , do rashly and arrogantly take upon them to misuse the Servants of another Master , who are not at all accountable to them . Nay , further : If it could be manifest which of these two dissenting Churches were in the right , there would not accrue thereby unto the Orthodox any Right of destroying the other . For Churches have neither any Jurisdiction in Worldly matters , nor are Fire and Sword any proper Instruments wherewith to convince mens minds of Error , and inform them of the Truth . Let us suppose , nevertheless , that the Civil Magistrate inclined to favour one of them , and to put his Sword into their Hands , that ( by his Consent ) they might chastise the Dissenters as they pleased . Will any man say , that any Right can be derived unto a Christian Church , over its Brethren , from a Turkish Emperor ? An Infidel , who has himself no Authority to punish Christians for the Articles of their Faith , cannot confer such an Authority upon any Society of Christians , nor give unto them a Right which he has not himself . This would be the Case at Constantinople . And the Reason of the thing is the same in any Christian Kingdom . The Civil Power is the same in every place : nor can that Power , in the Hands of a Christian Prince , confer any greater Authority upon the Church , than in the Hands of a Heathen ; which is to say , just none at all . Nevertheless , it is worthy to be observed , and lamented , that the most violent of these Defenders of the Truth , the Opposers of Errors , the Exclaimers against Schism , do hardly ever let loose this their Zeal for God , with which they are so warmed and inflamed , unless where they have the Civil Magistrate on their side . But so soon as ever Court-favour has given them the better end of the Staff , and they begin to feel themselves the stronger , then presently Peace and Charity are to be laid aside : Otherwise , they are religiously to be observed . Where they have not the Power to carry on Persecution , and to become Masters , there they desire to live upon fair Terms , and preach up Toleration . When they are not strengthned with the Civil Power , then they can bear most patiently , and unmovedly , the Contagion of Idolatry , Superstition , and Heresie , in their Neighbourhood ; of which , in other Occasions , the Interest of Religion makes them to be extreamly apprehensive . They do not forwardly attack those Errors which are in fashion at Court , or are countenanced by the Government . Here they can be content to spare their Arguments : which yet ( with their leave ) is the only right Method of propagating Truth , which has no such way of prevailing , as when strong Arguments and good Reason , are joined with the softness of Civility and good Usage . No body therefore , in fine , neither single Persons , nor Churches , nay , nor even Commonwealths , have any just Title to invade the Civil Rights and Worldly Goods of each other , upon pretence of Religion . Those that are of another Opinion , would do well to consider with themselves how pernicious a Seed of Discord and War , how powerful a provocation to endless Hatreds , Rapines , and Slaughters , they thereby furnish unto Mankind . No Peace and Security , no not so much as Common Friendship , can ever be established or preserved amongst Men , so long as this Opinion prevails , That Dominion is founded in Grace , and that Religion is to be propagated by force of Arms. In the third place : Let us see what the Duty of Toleration requires from those who are distinguished from the rest of Mankind , ( from the Laity , as they please to call us ) by some Ecclesiastical Character , and Office ; whether they be Bishops , Priests , Presbyters , Ministers , or however else dignified or distinguished . It is not my Business to inquire here into the Original of the Power or Dignity of the Clergy . This only I say , That Whence-soever their Authority be sprung , since it is Ecclesiastical , it ought to be confined within the Bounds of the Church , nor can it in any manner be extended to Civil Affairs ; because the Church it self is a thing absolutely separate and distinct from the Commonwealth . The Boundaries on both sides are fixed and immovable . He jumbles Heaven and Earth together , the things most remote and opposite , who mixes these two Societies ; which are in their Original , End , Business , and in every thing , perfectly distinct , and infinitely different from each other . No man therefore , with whatsoever Ecclesiastical Office he be dignified , can deprive another man that is not of his Church and Faith , either of Liberty , or of any part of his Worldly Goods , upon the account of that difference between them in Religion . For whatsoever is not lawful to the whole Church , cannot , by any Ecclesiastical Right , become lawful to any of its Members . But this is not all . It is not enough that Ecclesiastical men abstain from Violence and Rapine , and all manner of Persecution . He that pretends to be a Successor of the Apostles , and takes upon him the Office of Teaching , is obliged also to admonish his Hearers of the Duties of Peace , and Good-will towards all men ; as well towards the Erroneous as the Orthodox ; towards those that differ from them in Faith and Worship , as well as towards those that agree with them therein : And he ought industriously to exhort all men , whether private Persons or Magistrates , ( if any such there be in his Church ) to Charity , Meekness , and Toleration ; and diligently endeavour to allay and temper all that Heat , and unreasonable averseness of mind , which either any mans fiery Zeal for his own Sect , or the Craft of others , has kindled against Dissenters . I will not undertake to represent how happy and how great would be the Fruit , both in Church and State , if the Pulpits every where sounded with this Doctrine of Peace and Toleration ; lest I should seem to reflect too severely upon those Men whose Dignity I desire not to detract from , nor would have it diminished either by others or themselves . But this I say , That thus it ought to be . And if any one that professes himself to be a Minister of the Word of God , a Preacher of the Gospel of Peace , teach otherwise , he either understands not , or neglects the Business of his Calling , and shall one day give account thereof unto the Prince of Peace . If Christians are to be admonished that they abstain from all manner of Revenge , even after repeated Provocations and multiplied Injuries , how much more ought they who suffer nothing , who have had no harm done them , forbear Violence , and abstain from all manner of ill usage towards those from whom they have received none . This Caution and Temper they ought certainly to use towards those who mind only their own Business , and are sollicitous for nothing but that ( whatever Men think of them ) they may worship God in that manner which they are persuaded is acceptable to him , and in which they have the strongest hopes of Eternal Salvation . In private domestick Affairs , in the management of Estates , in the conservation of Bodily Health , every man may consider what suits his own conveniency , and follow what course he likes best . No man complains of the ill management of his Neighbour's Affairs . No man is angry with another for an Error committed in sowing his Land , or in marrying his Daughter . No body corrects a Spendthrift for consuming his Substance in Taverns . Let any man pull down , or build , or make whatsoever Expences he pleases , no body murmurs , no body controuls him ; he has his Liberty . But if any man do not frequent the Church , if he do not there conform his Behaviour exactly to the accustomed Ceremonies , or if he brings not his Children to be initiated in the Sacred Mysteries of this or the other Congregation , this immediately causes an Uproar . The Neighbourhood is filled with Noise and Clamour . Every one is ready to be the Avenger of so great a Crime . And the Zealots hardly have the patience to refrain from Violence and Rapine , so long till the Cause be heard , and the poor man be , according to Form , condemned to the loss of Liberty , Goods , or Life . Oh that our Ecclesiastical Orators , of every Sect , would apply themselves with all the strength of Arguments that they are able , to the confounding of mens Errors ! But let them spare their Persons . Let them not supply their want of Reasons with the Instruments of Force , which belong to another Jurisdiction , and do ill become a Churchman's Hands . Let them not call in the Magistrate's Authority to the aid of their Eloquence , or Learning ; lest , perhaps , whilst they pretend only Love for the Truth , this their intemperate Zeal , breathing nothing but Fire and Sword , betray their Ambition , and shew that what they desire is Temporal Dominion . For it will be very difficult to persuade men of Sense , that he , who with dry Eyes , and satisfaction of mind , can deliver his Brother unto the Executioner , to be burnt alive , does sincerely and heartily concern himself to save that Brother from the Flames of Hell in the World to come . In the last place . Let us now consider what is the Magistrate's Duty in the Business of Toleration : which certainly is very considerable . We have already proved , That the Care of Souls does not belong to the Magistrate : Not a Magisterial Care , I mean , ( if I may so call it ) which consists in prescribing by Laws , and compelling by Punishments . But a charitable Care , which consists in teaching , admonishing , and persuading , cannot be denied unto any man. The Care therefore of every man's Soul belongs unto himself , and is to be left unto himself . But what if he neglect the Care of his Soul ? I answer , What if he neglect the Care of his Health , or of his Estate , which things are nearlier related to the Government of the Magistrate than the other ? Will the Magistrate provide by an express Law , That such an one shall not become poor or sick ? Laws provide , as much as is possible , that the Goods and Health of Subjects be not injured by the Fraud or Violence of others ; they do not guard them from the Negligence or Ill-husbandry of the Possessors themselves . No man can be forced to be Rich or Healthful , whether he will or no. Nay , God himself will not save men against their wills . Let us suppose , however , that some Prince were desirous to force his Subjects to accumulate Riches , or to preserve the Health and Strength of their Bodies . Shall it be provided by Law , that they must consult none but Roman Physicians , and shall every one be bound to live according to their Prescriptions ? What , shall no Potion , no Broth , be taken , but what is prepared either in the Vatican , suppose , or in a Geneva Shop ? Or , to make these Subjects rich , shall they all be obliged by Law to become Merchants , or Musicians ? Or , shall every one turn Victualler , or Smith , because there are some that maintain their Families plentifully , and grow rich in those Professions ? But it may be said , There are a thousand ways to Wealth , but one only way to Heaven . 'T is well said indeed , especially by those that plead for compelling men into this or the other Way . For if there were several ways that lead thither , there would not be so much as a pretence left for Compulsion . But now if I be marching on with my utmost Vigour , in that way which , according to the Sacred Geography , leads streight to Ierusalem ; Why am I beaten and ill used by others , because , perhaps , I wear not Buskins ; because my Hair is not of the right Cut ; because perhaps I have not been dip't in the right Fashion ; because I eat Flesh upon the Road , or some other Food which agrees with my Stomach ; because I avoid certain By-ways , which seem unto me to lead into Briars or Precipices ; because amongst the several Paths that are in the same Road , I choose that to walk in which seems to be the streightest and cleanest ; because I avoid to keep company with some Travellers that are less grave , and others that are more sowre that they ought to be ; or in fine , because I follow a Guide that either is , or is not , clothed in White , and crowned with a Miter ? Certainly , if we consider right , we shall find that for the most part they are such frivolous things as these , that ( without any prejudice to Religion or the Salvation of Souls , if not accompanied with Superstition or Hypocrisie ) might either be observed or omitted ; I say they are such like things as as these , which breed implacable Enmities amongst Christian Brethren , who are all agreed in the Substantial and truly Fundamental part of Religion . But let us grant unto these Zealots , who condemn all things that are not of their Mode , that from these Circumstances arise different Ends. What shall we conclude from thence ? There is only one of these which is the true way to Eternal Happiness . But in this great variety of ways that men follow , it is still doubted which is this right one . Now neither the care of the Commonwealth , nor the right of enacting Laws , does discover this way that leads to Heaven more certainly to the Magistrate , than every private mans Search and Study discovers it unto himself . I have a weak Body , sunk under a languishing Disease , for which ( I suppose ) there is one only Remedy , but that unknown . Does it therefore belong unto the Magistrate to prescribe me a Remedy , because there is but one , and because it is unknown ? Because there is but one way for me to escape Death , will it therefore be safe for me to do whatsoever the Magistrate ordains ? Those things that every man ought sincerely to enquire into himself , and by Meditation , Study , Search , and his own Endeavours , attain the Knowledge of , cannot be looked upon as the Peculiar Possession of any one sort of Men. Princes indeed are born Superior unto other men in Power , but in Nature equal . Neither the Right , nor the Art of Ruling , does necessarily carry along with it the certain Knowledge of other things ; and least of all of the true Religion . For if it were so , how could it come to pass that the Lords of the Earth should differ so vastly as they do in Religious Matters ? But let us grant that it is probable the way to Eternal Life may be better known by a Prince than by his Subjects ; or at least , that in this incertitude of things , the safest and most commodious way for private Persons is to follow his Dictates . You will say , what then ? If he should bid you follow Merchandise for your Livelihood , would you decline that Course for fear it should not succeed ? I answer : I would turn Merchant upon the Princes command , because in case I should have ill Success in Trade , he is abundantly able to make up my Loss some other way . If it be true , as he pretends , that he desires I should thrive and grow rich , he can set me up again when unsuccessful Voyages have broke me . But this is not the Case , in the things that regard the Life to come . If there I take a wrong Course , if in that respect I am once undone , it is not in the Magistrates Power to repair my Loss , to ease my Suffering , nor to restore me in any measure , much less entirely , to a good Estate . What Security can be given for the Kingdom of Heaven ? Perhaps some will say that they do not suppose this infallible Judgment , that all men are bound to follow in the Affairs of Religion , to be in the Civil Magistrate , but in the Church . What the Church has determined , that the Civil Magistrate orders to be observed ; and he provides by his Authority that no body shall either act or believe , in the business of Religion , otherwise than the Church teaches . So that the Judgment of those things is in the Church . The Magistrate himself yields Obedience thereunto , and requires the like Obedience from others . I answer : Who sees not how frequently the Name of the Church , which was so venerable in the time of the Apostles , has been made use of to throw Dust in Peoples Eyes , in following Ages ? But however , in the present case it helps us not . The one only narrow way which leads to Heaven is not better known to the Magistrate than to private Persons , and therefore I cannot safely take him for my Guide , who may probably be as ignorant of the way as my self , and who certainly is less concerned for my Salvation than I my self am . Amongst so many Kings of the Iews , how many of them were there whom any Israelite , thus blindly following , had not fall'n into Idolatry , and thereby into Destruction ? Yet nevertheless , you bid me be of good Courage , and tell me that all is now safe and secure , because the Magistrate does not now enjoin the observance of his own Decrees in matters of Religion , but only the Decrees of the Church . Of what Church I beseech you ? Of that certainly which likes him best . As if he that compells me by Laws and Penalties to enter into this or the other Church , did not interpose his own Judgment in the matter . What difference is there whether he lead me himself , or deliver me over to be led by others ? I depend both ways upon his Will , and it is he that determines both ways of my eternal State. Would an Israelite , that had worshipped Baal upon the Command of his King , have been in any better condition , because some body had told him that the King ordered nothing in Religion upon his own Head , nor commanded any thing to be done by his Subjects in Divine Worship , but what was approved by the Counsel of Priests , and declared to be of Divine Right by the Doctors of their Church ? If the Religion of any Church become therefore true and saving , because the Head of that Sect , the Prelates and Priests , and those of that Tribe , do all of them , with all their might , extol and praise it ; what Religion can ever be accounted erroneous , false and destructive ? I am doubtful concerning the Doctrine of the Socinians , I am suspicious of the way of Worship practised by the Papists , or Lutherans ; will it be ever a jot the safer for me to join either unto the one or the other of those Churches , upon the Magistrates Command , because he commands nothing in Religion but by the Authority and Counsel of the Doctors of that Church ? But to speak the truth , we must acknowledge that the Church ( if a Convention of Clergy-men , making Canons , must be called by that Name ) is for the most part more apt to be influenced by the Court , than the Court by the Church . How the Church was under the Vicissitude of Orthodox and Arrian Emperors is very well known . Or if those things be too remote , our modern English History affords us fresh Examples , in the Reigns of Henry the 8 th , Edward the 6 th , Mary , and Elizabeth , how easily and smoothly the Clergy changed their Decrees , their Articles of Faith , their Form of Worship , every thing , according to the inclination of those Kings and Queens . Yet were those Kings and Queens of such different minds , in point of Religion , and enjoined thereupon such different things , that no man in his Wits ( I had almost said none but an Atheist ) will presume to say that any sincere and upright Worshipper of God could , with a safe Conscience , obey their several Decrees . To conclude . It is the same thing whether a King that prescribes Laws to another mans Religion pretend to do it by his own Judgment , or by the Ecclesiastical Authority and Advice of others . The Decisions of Church-men , whose Differences and Disputes are sufficiently known , cannot be any founder , or safer than his : Nor can all their Suffrages joined together add any new strength unto the Civil Power . Tho this also must be taken notice of , that Princes seldom have any regard to the Suffrages of Ecclesiasticks that are not Favourers of their own Faith and way of Worship . But after all , the principal Consideration , and which absolutely determines this Controversie , is this . Although the Magistrates Opinion in Religion be sound , and the way that he appoints be truly Evangelical , yet if I be not thoroughly perswaded thereof in my own mind , there will be no safety for me in following it . No way whatsoever that I shall walk in , against the Dictates of my Conscience , will ever bring me to the Mansions of the Blessed . I may grow rich by an Art that I take not delight in ; I may be cured of some Disease by Remedies that I have not Faith in ; but I cannot be saved by a Religion that I distrust , and by a Worship that I abhor . It is in vain for an Unbeliever to take up the outward shew of another mans Profession . Faith only , and inward Sincerity , are the things that procure acceptance with God. The most likely and most approved Remedy can have no effect upon the Patient , if his Stomach reject it as soon taken . And you will in vain cram a Medicine down a sick mans Throat , which his particular Constitution will be sure to turn into Poison . In a word . Whatsoever may be doubtful in Religion , yet this at least is certain , that no Religion , which I believe not to be true , can be either true , or profitable unto me . In vain therefore do Princes compel their Subjects to come into their Church-communion , under pretence of saving their Souls . If they believe , they will come of their own accord ; if they believe not , their coming will nothing avail them . How great soever , in fine , may be the pretence of Good-will , and Charity , and concern for the Salvation of mens Souls , men cannot be forced to be saved whether they will or no. And therefore , when all is done , they must be left to their own Consciences . Having thus at length freed men from all Dominion over one another in matters of Religion , let us now consider what they are to do . All men know and acknowledge that God ought to be publickly worshipped . Why otherwise do they compel one another unto the publick Assemblies ? Men therefore constituted in this liberty are to enter into some Religious Society , that they may meet together , not only for mutual Edification , but to own to the world that they worship God , and offer unto his divine Majesty such service as they themselves are not ashamed of , and such as they think not unworthy of him , nor unacceptable to him ; and finally that by the purity of Doctrine , Holiness of Life , and Decent form of Worship , they may draw others unto the love of the true Religion , and perform such other things in Religion as cannot be done by each private man apart . These Religious Societies I call Churches : and these I say the Magistrate ought to tolerate . For the business of these Assemblies of the People is nothing but what is lawful for every man in particular to take care of ; I mean the Salvation of their Souls : nor in this case is there any difference between the National Church , and other separated Congregations . But as in every Church there are two things especially to be considered ; The outward Form and Rites of Worship , And the Doctrines and Articles of Faith ; these things must be handled each distinctly ; that so the whole matter of Toleration may the more clearly be understood . Concerning outward Worship , I say ( in the first place ) that the Magistrate has no Power to enforce by Law , either in his own Church , or much less in another , the use of any Rites or Ceremonies whatsoever in the Worship of God. And this , not only because these Churches are free Societies , but because whatsoever is practised in the Worship of God , is only so far justifiable as it is believed by those that practise it to be acceptable unto him . Whatsoever is not done with that assurance of Faith , is neither well in it self , nor can it be acceptable to God. To impose such things therefore upon any People , contrary to their own Judgment , is in effect to command them to offend God ; which , considering that the end of all Religion is to please him , and that Liberty is essentially necessary to that End , appears to be absurd beyond expression . But perhaps it may be concluded from hence , that I deny unto the Magistrate all manner of Power about indifferent things ; which if it be not granted , the whole Subject-matter of Law-making is taken away . No , I readily grant that Indifferent Things , and perhaps none but such , are subjected to the Legislative Power . But it does not therefore follow , that the Magistrate may ordain whatsoever he pleases concerning any thing that is indifferent . The Publick Good is the Rule and Measure of all Law-making . If a thing be not useful to the Common-wealth , tho it it be never so indifferent , it may not presently be established by Law. And further : Things never so indifferent in their own nature , when they are brought into the Church and Worship of God , are removed out of the reach of the Magistrate's Jurisdiction ; because in that use they have no connection at all with Civil Affairs . The only business of the Church is the Salvation of Souls : and it no ways concerns the Common-wealth , or any Member of it , that this , or the other Ceremony be there made use of . Neither the Use , nor the Omission of any Ceremonies , in those Religious Assemblies , does either advantage or prejudice the Life , Liberty , or Estate of any man. For Example : Let it be granted , that the washing of an Infant with water is in it self an indifferent thing . Let it be granted also , that if the Magistrate understand such washing to be profitable to the curing or preventing of any Disease that Children are subject unto , and esteem the matter weighty enough to be taken care of by a Law , in that case he may order it to be done . But will any one therefore say , that a Magistrate has the same Right to ordain , by Law , that all Children shall be baptized by Priests , in the sacred Font , in order to the purification of their Souls ? The extream difference of these two Cases is visible to every one at first sight . Or let us apply the last Case to the Child of a Iew , and the thing speaks it self . For what hinders but a Christian Magistrate may have Subjects that are Iews ? Now if we acknowledge that such an Injury may not be done unto a Iew , as to compel him , against his own Opinion , to practice in his Religion a thing that is in its nature indifferent ; how can we maintain that any thing of this kind may be done to a Christian ? Again : Things in their own nature indifferent cannot , by any human Authority , be made any part of the Worship of God ; for this very reason ; because they are indifferent . For since indifferent things are not capable , by any Virtue of their own , to propitiate the Deity ; no human Power or Authority can confer on them so much Dignity and Excellency as to enable them to do it . In the common Affairs of Life , that use of indifferent things which God has not forbidden , is free and lawful : and therefore in those things human Authority has place . But it is not so in matters of Religion . Things indifferent are not otherwise lawful in the Worship of God than as they are instituted by God himself ; and as he , by some positive command , has ordain'd them to be made a part of that Worship which he will vouchsafe to accept of at the hands of poor sinful men . Nor when an incensed Deity shall ask us , Who has required these , or such like things at our hands ? will it be enough to answer him , that the Magistrate commanded them . If civil Jurisdiction extended thus far , what might not lawfully be introduced into Religion ? What hodge-podge of Ceremonies , what superstitious Inventions , built upon the Magistrate's Authority , might not ( against Conscience ) be imposed upon the Worshippers of God ? For the greatest part of these Ceremonies and Superstions consists in the Religious Use of such things as are in their own nature indifferent : nor are they sinful upon any other account than because God is not the Author of them . The sprinkling of Water , and the use of Bread and Wine , are both in their own nature , and in the ordinary occasions of Life , altogether indifferent . Will any man therefore say that these things could have been introduced into Religion , and made a part of Divine Worship , if not by Divine Institution ? If any Human Authority or Civil Power could have done this , why might it not also injoyn the eating of Fish , and drinking of Ale , in the holy Banquet , as a part of Divine Worship ? Why not the sprinkling of the Blood of Beasts in Churches , and Expiations by Water or Fire , and abundance more of this kind ? But these things , how indifferent soever they be in common uses , when they come to be annexed unto Divine Worship , without Divine Authority , they are as abominable to God , as the Sacrifice of a Dog. And why a Dog so abominable ? What difference is there between a Dog and a Goat , in respect of the Divine Nature , equally and infinitely distant from all Affinity with Matter ; unless it be that God required the use of the one in his Worship , and not of the other ? We see therefore that indifferent things how much soever they be under the Power of the Civil Magistrate , yet cannot upon that pretence be introduced into Religion , and imposed upon Religious Assemblies ; because in the Worship of God they wholly cease to be indifferent . He that worships God does it with design to please him and procure his favour . But that cannot be done by him , who , upon the command of another , offers unto God that which he knows will be displeasing to him , because not commanded by himself . This is not to please God , or appease his Wrath , but willingly and knowingly to provoke him , by a manifest Contempt ; which is a thing absolutely repugnant to the nature and end of Worship . But it will here be asked : If nothing belonging to Divine Worship be left to human Discretion , how is it then that Churches themselves have the power of ordering any thing about the Time and Place of Worship , and the like ? To this I answer ; That in Religious Worship we must distinguish between what is part of the Worship it self , and what is but a Circumstance . That is a part of the Worship which is believed to be appointed by God , and to be well-pleasing to him ; and therefore that is necessary . Circumstances are such things which , tho' in general they cannot be separated from Worship , yet the particular instances or modifications of them are not determined ; and therefore they are indifferent . Of this sort are the Time and Place of Worship , the Habit and Posture of him that worships . These are Circumstances , and perfectly indifferent , where God has not given any express Command about them . For example : Amongst the Iews , the Time and Place of their Worship , and the Habits of those that officiated in it , were not meer Circumstances , but a part of the Worship it self ; in which if any thing were defective , or different from the Institution , they could not hope that it would be accepted by God. But these , to Christians under the liberty of the Gospel , are meer Circumstances of Worship , which the Prudence of every Church may bring into such use as shall be judged most subservient to the end of Order , Decency , and Edification . But , even under the Gospel , those who believe the First , or the Seventh Day to be set apart by God , and consecrated still to his Worship , to them that portion of Time is not a simple Circumstance , but a Real Part of Divine Worship , which can neither be changed nor neglected . In the next place : As the Magistrate has no Power to impose by his Laws , the use of any Rites and Ceremonies in any Church , so neither has he any Power to forbid the use of such Rites and Ceremonies as are already received , approved , and practised by any Church : Because if he did so , he would destroy the Church it self ; the end of whose Institution is only to worship God with freedom , after its own manner . You will say , by this Rule , if some Congregations should have a mind to sacrifice Infants , or ( as the Primitive Christians were falsely accused ) lustfully pollute themselves in promiscuous Uncleanness , or practise any other such heinous Enormities , is the Magistrate obliged to tolerate them , because they are committed in a Religious Assembly ? I answer , No. These things are not lawful in the ordinary course of life , nor in any private house ; and therefore neither are they so in the Worship of God , or in any religious Meeting . But indeed if any People congregated upon account of Religion , should be desirous to sacrifice a Calf , I deny that That ought to be prohibited by a Law. Melibaeus , whose Calf it is , may lawfully kill his Calf at home , and burn any part of it that he thinks fit . For no Injury is thereby done to any one , no prejudice to another mans Goods . And for the same reason he may kill his Calf also in a religious Meeting . Whether the doing so be well-pleasing to God or no , it is their part to consider that do it . The part of the Magistrate is only to take care that the Commonwealth receive no prejudice , and that there be no Injury done to any man , either in Life or Estate . And thus what may be spent on a Feast , may be spent on a Sacrifice . But if peradventure such were the state of things , that the Interest of the Commonwealth required all slaughter of Beasts should be forborn for some while , in order to the increasing of the stock of Cattel , that had been destroyed by some extraordinary Murrain ; Who sees not that the Magistrate , in such a case , may forbid all his Subjects to kill any Calves for any use whatsoever ? Only 't is to be observed , that in this case the Law is not made about a Religious , but a Political matter : nor is the Sacrifice , but the Slaughter of Calves thereby prohibited . By this we see what difference there is between the Church and the Commonwealth . Whatsoever is lawful in the Commonwealth , cannot be prohibited by the Magistrate in the Church . Whatsoever is permitted unto any of his Subjects for their ordinary use , neither can nor ought to be forbidden by him to any Sect of People for their religious Uses . If any man may lawfully take Bread or Wine , either sitting or kneeling , in his own house , the Law ought not to abridge him of the same Liberty in his Religious Worship ; tho' in the Church the use of Bread and Wine be very different , and be there applied to the Mysteries of Faith , and Rites of Divine Worship . But those things that are prejudicial to the Commonweal of a People in their ordinary use , and are therefore forbidden by Laws , those things ought not to be permitted to Churches in their sacred Rites . Onely the Magistrate ought always to be very careful that he do not misuse his Authority , to the oppression of any Church , under pretence of publick Good. It may be said ; What if a Church be Idolatrous , is that also to be tolerated by the Magistrate ? I answer . What Power can be given to the Magistrate for the suppression of an Idolatrous Church , which may not , in time and place , be made use of to the ruine of an Orthodox one ? For it must be remembred that the Civil Power is the same every where , and the Religion of every Prince is Orthodox to himself . If therefore such a Power be granted unto the Civil Magistrate in Spirituals , as that at Geneva ( for Example ) he may extirpate , by Violence and Blood , the Religion which is there reputed Idolatrous ; by the same Rule another Magistrate , in some neighbouring Country , may oppress the Reformed Religion ; and , in India , the Christian. The Civil Power can either change every thing in Religion , according to the Prince's pleasure , or it can change nothing . If it be once permitted to introduce any thing into Religion , by the means of Laws and Penalties , there can be no bounds put to it ; but it will in the same manner be lawful to alter every thing , according to that Rule of Truth which the Magistrate has framed unto himself . No man whatsoever ought therefore to be deprived of his Terrestrial Enjoyments , upon account of his Religion . Not even Americans , subjected unto a Christian Prince , are to be punished either in Body or Goods , for not imbracing our Faith and Worship . If they are perswaded that they please God in observing the Rites of their own Country , and that they shall obtain Happiness by that means , they are to be left unto God and themselves . Let us trace this matter to the bottom . Thus it is . An inconsiderable and weak number of Christians , destitute of every thing , arrive in a Pagan Country : These Foreigners beseech the Inhabitants , by the bowels of Humanity , that they would succour them with the necessaries of life : Those necessaries are given them ; Habitations are granted ; and they all joyn together , and grow up into one Body of People . The Christian Religion by this means takes root in that Countrey , and spreads it self ; but does not suddenly grow the strongest . While things are in this condition , Peace , Friendship , Faith and equal Justice , are preserved amongst them . At length the Magistrate becomes a Christian , and by that means their Party becomes the most powerful . Then immediately all Compacts are to be broken , all Civil Rights to be violated , that Idolatry may be extirpated : And unless these innocent Pagans , strict Observers of the Rules of Equity and the Law of Nature , and no ways offending against the Laws of the Society , I say unless they will forsake their ancient Religion , and embrace a new and strange one , they are to be turned out of the Lands and Possessions of their Forefathers , and perhaps deprived of Life it self . Then at last it appears what Zeal for the Church , joyned with the desire of Dominion , is capable to produce ; and how easily the pretence of Religion , and of the care of Souls , serves for a Cloak to Covetousness , Rapine , and Ambition . Now whosoever maintains that Idolatry is to be rooted out of any place by Laws , Punishments , Fire , and Sword , may apply this Story to himself . For the reason of the thing is equal , both in America and Europe . And neither Pagans there , nor any Dissenting Christians here , can with any right be deprived of their worldly Goods , by the predominating Faction of a Court-Church : nor are any civil Rights to be either changed or violated upon account of Religion in one place more than another . But Idolatry ( say some ) is a sin , and therefore not to be tolerated . If they said it were therefore to be avoided , the Inference were good . But it does not follow , that because it is a sin it ought therefore to be punished by the Magistrate . For it does not belong unto the Magistrate to make use of his Sword in punishing every thing , indifferently , that he takes to be a sin against God. Covetousness , Uncharitableness , Idleness , and many other things are sins , by the consent of all men , which yet no man ever said were to be punished by the Magistrate . The reason is , because they are not prejudicial to other mens Rights , nor do they break the publick Peace of Societies . Nay , even the sins of Lying and Perjury , are no where punishable by Laws ; unless in certain cases , in which the real Turpitude of the thing , and the offence against God , are not considered , but only the Injury done unto mens Neighbours , and to the Commonwealth . And what if in another Country , to a Mahumetan or a Pagan Prince , the Christian Religion seem false and offensive to God ; may not the Christians for the same reason , and after the same manner , be extirpated there ? But it may be urged further , That by the Law of Moses Idolaters were to be rooted out . True indeed , by the Law of Moses . But that is not obligatory to us Christians . No body pretends that every thing , generally , enjoyned by the Law of Moses , ought to be practised by Christians . But there is nothing more frivolous than that common distinction of Moral , Judicial , and Ceremonial Law , which men ordinarily make use of . For no positive Law whatsoever can oblige any People but those to whom it is given . Hear O Israel ; sufficienly restrains the Obligation of the Law of Moses only to that People . And this Consideration alone is Answer enough unto those that urge the Authority of the Law of Moses ; for the inflicting of Capital Punishments upon Idolaters . But however , I will examine this Argument a little more particularly . The Case of Idolaters , in respect of the Iewish Commonwealth , falls under a double consideration . The first is of those Who , being initiated in the Mosaical Rites , and made Citizens of that Commonwealth , did afterwards apostatise from the Worship of the God of Israel . These were proceeded against as Traytors and Rebels , guilty of no less than High-treason . For the Common-wealth of the Iews , different in that from all others , was an absolute Theocracy : nor was there , or could there be , any difference between that Commonwealth and the Church . The Laws established there concerning the Worship of One Invisible Deity , were the Civil Laws of that People , and a part of their Political Government ; in which God himself was the Legislator . Now if any one can shew me where there is a Commonwealth , at this time , constituted upon that Foundation , I will acknowledge that the Ecclesiastical Laws do there unavoidably become a part of the Civil ; and that the Subjects of that Government both may , and ought to be kept in strict conformity with that Church , by the Civil Power . But there is absolutely no such thing , under the Gospel , as a Christian Common-wealth . There are , indeed , many Cities and Kingdoms that have embraced the Faith of Christ ; but they have retained their ancient Form of Government ; with which the Law of Christ hath not at all medled . He , indeed , hath taught men how , by Faith and Good Works , they may attain Eternal Life . But he instituted no Common-wealth . He prescribed unto his Followers no new and peculiar Form of Government ; Nor put he the Sword into any Magistrate's Hand , with Commission to make use of it in forcing men to forsake their former Religion , and receive his . Secondly . Foreigners , and such as were Strangers to the Commonwealth of Israel , were not compell'd by force to observe the Rites of the Mosaical Law. But , on the contrary , in the very same place where it is ordered that an Israelite that was an Idolater should be put to death , there it is provided that Strangers should not be vexed nor oppressed . I confess that the Seven Nations , that possest the Land which was promised to the Israelites , were utterly to be cut off . But this was not singly because they were Idolaters . For , if that had been the Reason , why were the Moabites and other Nations to be spared ? No ; the Reason is this . God being in a peculiar manner the King of the Iews , he could not suffer the Adoration of any other Deity ( which was properly an Act of High-treason against himself ) in the Land of Canaan , which was his Kingdom . For such a manifest Revolt could no ways consist with his Dominion , which was perfectly Political , in that Country . All Idolatry was therefore to be rooted out of the Bounds of his Kingdom ; because it was an acknowledgment of another God , that is to say , another King ; against the Laws of Empire . The Inhabitants were also to be driven out , that the intire possession of the Land might be given to the Israelites . And for the like Reason the Emims and the Horims were driven out of their Countries , by the Children of Esau and Lot ; and their Lands , upon the same grounds , given by God to the Invaders . But tho all Idolatry was thus rooted out of the Land of Canaan , yet every Idolater was not brought to Execution . The whole Family of Rahab , the whole Nation of the Gibeonites , articled with Iosuah , and were allowed by Treaty : and there were many Captives amongst the Iews , who were Idolaters . David and Solomon subdued many Countries without the Confines of the Land of Promise , and carried their Conquests as far as Euphrates . Amongst so many Captives taken , so many Nations reduced under their Obedience , we find not one man forced into the Jewish Religion , and the Worship of the True God , and punished for Idolatry , tho all of them were certainly guilty of it . If any one indeed , becoming a Proselyte , desired to be made a Denison of their Commonwealth , he was obliged to submit unto their Laws ; that is , to embrace their Religion . But this he did willingly , on his own accord , not by constraint . He did not unwillingly submit , to shew his Obedience ; But he sought and sollicited for it , as a Privilege . And as soon as he was admitted , he became subject to the Laws of the Common-wealth , by which all Idolatry was forbidden within the Borders of the Land of Canaan . But that Law ( as I have said ) did not reach to any of those Regions , however subjected unto the Iews , that were situated without those Bounds . Thus far concerning outward Worship . Let us now consider Articles of Faith. The Articles of Religion are some of them Practical , and some Speculative . Now , tho both sorts consist in the Knowledge of Truth , yet these terminate simply in the Understanding , Those influence the Will and Manners . Speculative Opinions , therefore , and Articles of Faith ( as they are called ) which are required only to be believed , cannot be imposed on any Church by the Law of the Land. For it is absurd that things should be enjoyned by Laws , which are not in mens power to perform . And to believe this or that to be true , does not depend upon our Will. But of this enough has been said already . But ( will some say ) let men at least profess that they believe . A sweet Religion indeed , that obliges men to dissemble , and tell Lies both to God and Man , for the Salvation of their Souls ! If the Magistrate thinks to save men thus , he seems to understand little of the way of Salvation . And if he does it not in order to save them , why is he so so sollicitous about the Articies of Faith as to enact them by a Law ? Further , The Magistrate ought not to forbid the Preaching or Professing of any Speculative Opinions in any Church , because they have no manner of relation to the Civil Rights of the Subjects . If a Roman Catholick believe that to be really the Body of Christ , which another man calls Bread , he does no injury thereby to his Neighbour . If a Iew do not believe the New Testament to be the Word of God , he does not thereby alter any thing in mens Civil Rights . If a Heathen doubt of both Testaments , he is not therefore to be punished as a pernicious Citizen . The Power of the Magistrate , and the Estates of the People , may be equally secure , whether any man believe these things or no. I readily grant , that these Opinions are false and absurd . But the business of Laws is not to provide for the Truth of Opinions , but for the Safety and Security of the Commonwealth , and of every particular mans Goods and Person . And so it ought to be . For Truth certainly would do well enough , if she were once left to shift for her self . She seldom has received , and I fear never will receive much Assistance from the Power of Great men , to whom she is but rarely known , and more rarely welcome . She is not taught by Laws , nor has she any need of Force to procure her entrance into the minds of men . Errors indeed prevail by the assistance of forreign and borrowed Succours . But if Truth makes not her way into the Understanding by her own Light , she will be but the weaker for any borrowed force Violence can add to her . Thus much for Speculative Opinions . Let us now proceed to Practical ones . A Good Life , in which consists not the least part of Religion and true Piety , concerns also the Civil Govrnment : and in it lies the safety both of Mens Souls , and of the Commonwealth . Moral Actions belong therefore to the Jurisdiction both of the outward and inward Court ; both of the Civil and Domestick Governor ; I mean , both of the Magistrate and Conscience . Here therefore is great danger , least one of these Jurisdictions intrench upon the other , and Discord arise between the Keeper of the publick Peace and the Overseers of Souls . But if what has been already said concerning the Limits of both these Governments be rightly considered , it will easily remove all difficulty in this matter . Every man has an Immortal Soul , capable of Eternal Happiness or Misery ; whose Happiness depending upon his believing and doing those things in this Life , which are necessary to the obtaining of Gods Favour , and are prescribed by God to that end ; it follows from thence , 1 st , That the observance of these things is the highest Obligation that lies upon Mankind , and that our utmost Care , Application , and Diligence , ought to be exercised in the Search and Performance of them ; Because there is nothing in this World that is of any consideration in comparison with Eternity . 2 dly , That seeing one Man does not violate the Right of another , by his Erroneous Opinions , and undue manner of Worship , nor is his Perdition any prejudice to another Mans Affairs ; therefore the care of each Mans Salvation belongs only to himself . But I would not have this understood , as if I meant hereby to condemn all charitable Admonitions , and affectionate Endeavours to reduce Men from Errors ; which are indeed the greatest Duty of a Christian. Any one may employ as many Exhortations and Arguments as he pleases , towards the promoting of another man's Salvation . But all Force and Compulsion are to be forborn . Nothing is to be done imperiously . No body is obliged in that matter to yield Obedience unto the Admonitions or Injunctions of another , further than he himself is perswaded . Every man , in that , has the supreme and absolute Authority of judging for himself . And the Reason is , because no body else is concerned in it , nor can receive any prejudice from his Conduct therein . But besides their Souls , which are Immortal , Men have also their Temporal Lives here upon Earth ; the State whereof being frail and fleeting , and the duration uncertain ; they have need of several outward Conveniences to the support thereof , which are to be procured or preserved by Pains and industry . For those things that are necessary to the comfortable support of our Lives are not the spontaneous Products of Nature , nor do offer themselves fit and prepared for our use . This part therefore draws on another care , and necessarily gives another Imployment . But the pravity of Mankind being such , that they had rather injuriously prey upon the Fruits of other Mens Labours , than take pains to provide for themselves ; the necessity of preserving Men in the Possession of what honest industry has already acquired , and also of preserving their Liberty and strength , whereby they may acquire what they further want ; obliges Men to enter into Society with one another ; that by mutual Assistance , and joint Force , they may secure unto each other their Proprieties , in the things that contribute to the Comfort and Happiness of this Life ; leaving in the mean while to every Man the care of his own Eternal Happiness , the attainment whereof can neither be facilitated by another Mans Industry , nor can the loss of it turn to another Mans Prejudice , nor the hope of it be forced from him by any external Violence . But forasmuch as Men thus entring into Societies , grounded upon their mutual Compacts of Assistance , for the Defence of their Temporal Goods , may nevertheless be deprived of them , either by the Rapine and Fraud of their Fellow-Citizens , or by the hostile Violence of Forreigners ; the Remedy of this Evil consists in Arms , Riches , and Multitude of Citizens ; the Remedy of the other in Laws ; and the Care of all things relating both to the one and the other , is committed by the Society to the Civil Magistrate . This is the Original , this is the Use , and these are the Bounds of the Legislative ( which is the Supreme ) Power , in every Commonwealth . I mean , that Provision may be made for the security of each Mans private Possessions ; for the Peace , Riches , and publick Commodities of the whole People ; and , as much as possible , for the Increase of their inward Strength , against Forreign Invasions . These things being thus explain'd , it is easie to understand to what end the Legislative Power ought to be directed , and by what Measures regulated ; and that is the Temporal Good and outward Prosperity of the Society ; which is the sole Reason of Mens entring into Society , and the only thing they seek and aim at in it . And it is also evident what Liberty remains to Men in reference to their eternal Salvation , and that is , that every one should do what he in his Conscience is perswaded to be acceptable to the Almighty , on whose good pleasure and acceptance depends their eternal Happiness . For Obedience is due in the first place to God , and afterwards to the Laws . But some may ask , What if the Magistrate should enjoyn any thing by his Authority that appears unlawful to the Conscience of a private Person ? I answer , That if Government be faithfully administred , and the Counsels of the Magistrate be indeed directed to the publick Good , this will seldom happen . But if perhaps it do so fall out ; I say , that such a private Person is to abstain from the Action that he judges unlawful ; and he is to undergo the Punishment , which it is not unlawful for him to bear . For the private Judgment of any Person concerning a Law enacted in Political Matters , for the publick Good , does not take away the Obligation of that Law , nor deserve a Dispensation . But if the Law indeed be concerning things that lie not within the Verge of the Magistrate's Authority ; ( as for Example , that the People , or any Party amongst them , should be compell'd to embrace a strange Religion , and join in the Worship and Ceremonies of another Church , ) men are not in these cases obliged by that Law , against their Consciences . For the Political Society is instituted for no other end but only to secure every mans Possession of the things of this life . The care of each mans Soul , and of the things of Heaven , which neither does belong to the Common-wealth , nor can be subjected to it , is left entirely to every mans self . Thus the safeguard of mens lives , and of the things that belong unto this life , is the business of the Commonwealth ; and the preserving of those things unto their Owners is the Duty of the Magistrate . And therefore the Magistrate cannot take away these worldly things from this man , or party , and give them to that ; nor change Propriety amongst Fellow-Subjects , ( no not even by a Law ) for a cause that has no relation to the end of Civil Government ; I mean , for their Religion ; which whether it be true or false , does no prejudice to the worldly concerns of their Fellow-Subjects , which are the things that only belong unto the care of the Commonwealth . But what if the Magistrate believe such a Law as this to be for the publick Good ? I answer : As the private Judgment of any particular Person , if erroneous , does not exempt him from the obligation of Law , so the private Judgment ( as I may call it ) of the Magistrate does not give him any new Right of imposing Laws upon his jects , which neither was in the Constitution of the Government granted him , nor ever was in the power of the People to grant : much less , if he make it his business to enrich and advance his Followers and Fellow-sectaries , with the Spoils of others . But what if the Magistrate believe that he has a Right to make such Laws , and that they are for the publick Good ; and his Subjects believe the contrary ? Who shall be Judge between them ? I answer , God alone . For there is no Judge upon earth between the Supreme Magistrate and the People . God , I say , is the only Judge in this case , who will retribute unto every one at the last day according to his Deserts ; that is , according to his sincerity and uprightness in endeavouring to promote Piety , and the publick Weal and Peace of Mankind . But what shall be done in the mean while ? I answer : The principal and chief care of every one ought to be of his own Soul first , and in the next place of the publick Peace : tho' yet there are very few will think 't is Peace there , where they see all laid waste . There are two sorts of Contests amongst men ; the one managed by Law , the other by Force : and these are of that nature , that where the one ends , the other always begins . But it is not my business to inquire into the Power of the Magistrate in the different Constitutions of Nations . I only know what usually happens where Controversies arise , without a Judge to determine them . You will say then the Magistrate being the stronger will have his Will , and carry his point . Without doubt . But the Question is not here concerning the doubtfulness of the Event , but the Rule of Right . But to come to particulars . I say , First , No Opinions contrary to human Society , or to those moral Rules which are necessary to the preservation of Civil Society , are to be tolerated by the Magistrate . But of these indeed Examples in any Church are rare . For no Sect can easily arrive to such a degree of madness , as that it should think sit to teach , for Doctrines of Religion , such things as manifestly undermine the Foundations of Society , and are therefore condemned by the Judgment of all Mankind : because their own Interest , Peace , Reputation , every Thing , would be thereby endangered . Another more secret Evil , but more dangerous to the Commonwealth , is , when men arrogate to themselves , and to those of their own Sect , some peculiar Prerogative , covered over with a specious shew of deceitful words , but in effect opposite to the Civil Right of the Community . For Example . We cannot find any Sect that teaches expresly , and openly , that men are not obliged to keep their Promise ; that Princes may be dethroned by those that differ from them in Religion ; or that the Dominion of all things belongs only to themselves . For these things , proposed thus nakedly and plainly , would soon draw on them the Eye and Hand of the Magistrate , and awaken all the care of the Commonwealth to a watchfulness against the spreading of so dangerous an Evil. But nevertheless , we find those that say the same things , in other words . What else do they mean , who teach that Faith is not to be kept with Hereticks ? Their meaning , forsooth , is that the priviledge of breaking Faith belongs unto themselves : For they declare all that are not of their Communion to be Hereticks , or at least may declare them so whensoever they think fit . What can be the meaning of their asserting that Kings excommunicated forfeit their Crowns and Kingdoms ? It is evident that they thereby arrogate unto themselves the Power of deposing Kings : because they challenge the Power of Excommunication , as the peculiar Right of their Hierarchy . That Dominion is founded in Grace , is also an Assertion by which those that maintain it do plainly lay claim to the possession of all things . For they are not so wanting to themselves as not to believe , or at least as not to profess , themselves to be the truly pious and faithful . These therefore , and the like , who attribute unto the Faithful , Religious and Orthodox , that is , in plain terms , unto themselves , any peculiar Priviledge or Power above other Mortals , in Civil Concernments ; or who , upon pretence of Religion , do challenge any manner of Authority over such , as are not associated with them in their Ecclesiastical Communion ; I say these have no right to be tolerated by the Magistrate ; as neither those that will not own and teach the Duty of tolerating All men in matters of meer Religion . For what do all these and the like Doctrines signifie , but that they may , and are ready upon any occasion to seise the Government , and possess themselves of the Estates and Fortunes of their Fellow-Subjects ; and that they only ask leave to be tolerated by the Magistrate so long until they find themselves strong enough to effect it ? Again : That Church can have no right to be tolerated by the Magistrate , which is constituted upon such a bottom , that all those who enter into it , do thereby , ipso facto , deliver themselves up to the Protection and Service of another Prince . For by this means the Magistrate would give way to the settling of a forrein Jurisdiction in his own Country , and suffer his own People to be listed , as it were , for Souldiers against his own Government . Nor does the frivolous and fallacious distinction between the Court and the Church afford any remedy to this Inconvenience ; especially when both the one and the other are equally subject to the absolute Authority of the same person ; who has not only power to perswade the Members of his Church to whatsoever he lists , either as purely Religious , or in order thereunto , but can also enjoyn it them on pain of Eternal Fire . It is ridiculous for any one to profess himself to be a Mahumetan only in his Religion , but in every thing else a faithful Subject to a Christian Magistrate , whilst at the same time he acknowledges himself bound to yield blind obedience to the Mufti of Constantinople ; who himself is intirely obedient to the Ottoman Emperor , and frames the feigned Oracles of that Religion according to his pleasure . But this Mahumetan living amongst Christians , would yet more apparently renounce their Government , if he acknowledged the same Person to be Head of his Church who is the Supreme Magistrate in the State. Lastly , Those are not at all to be tolerated who deny the Being of a God. Promises , Covenants , and Oaths , which are the Bonds of Humane Society , can have no hold upon an Atheist . The taking away of God , tho but even in thought , dissolves all . Besides also , those that by their Atheism undermine and destroy all Religion , can have no pretence of Religion whereupon to challenge the Privilege of a Toleration . As for other Practical Opinions , tho not absolutely free from all Error , if they do not tend to establish Domination over others , or Civil Impunity to the Church in which they are taught , there can be no Reason why they should not be tolerated . It remains that I say something concerning those Assemblies , which being vulgarly called , and perhaps having sometimes been Conventicles , and Nurseries of Factions and Seditions , are thought to afford the strongest matter of Objection against this Doctrine of Toleration . But this has not hapned by any thing peculiar unto the Genius of such Assemblies , but by the unhappy Circumstances of an oppressed or ill-setled Liberty . These Accusations would soon cease , if the Law of Toleration were once so setled , that all Churches were obliged to lay down Toleration as the Foundation of their own Liberty ; and teach that Liberty of Conscience is every mans natural Right , equally belonging to Dissenters as to themselves ; and that no body ought to be compelled in matters of Religion , either by Law or Force . The Establishment of this one thing would take away all ground of Complaints and Tumults upon account of Conscience . And these Causes of Discontents and Animosities being once removed , there would remain nothing in these Assemblies that were not more peaceable , and less apt to produce Disturbance of State , than in any other Meetings whatsoever . But let us examine particularly the Heads of these Accusations . You 'll say , That Assemblies and Meetings endanger the Publick Peace , and threaten the Commonwealth . I answer : If this be so , Why are there daily such numerous Meetings in Markets , and Courts of Judicature ? Why are Crowds upon the Exchange , and a Concourse of People in Cities suffered ? You 'll reply ; Those are Civil Assemblies ; but These we object against , are Ecclesiastical . I answer : 'T is a likely thing indeed , that such Assemblies as are altogether remote from Civil Affairs , should be most apt to embroyl them . O , but Civil Assemblies are composed of men that differ from one another in matters of Religion ; but these Ecclesiastical Meetings are of Persons that are all of one Opinion . As if an Agreement in matters of Religion , were in effect a Conspiracy against the Commonwealth ; or as if men would not be so much the more warmly unanimous in Religion , the less liberty they had of Assembling . But it will be urged still , That Civil Assemblies are open , and free for any one to enter into ; whereas Religious Conventicles are more private , and thereby give opportunity to Clandestine Machinations . I answer , That this is not strictly true : For many Civil Assemblies are not open to every one . And if some Religious Meetings be private , Who are they ( I beseech you ) that are to be blamed for it ? those that desire , or those that forbid their being publick ? Again ; You 'll say , That Religious Communion does exceedingly unite mens Minds and Affections to one another , and is therefore the more dangerous . But if this be so , Why is not the Magistrate afraid of his own Church ; and why does he not forbid their Assemblies , as things dangerous to his Government ? You 'll say , Because he himself is a Part , and even the Head of them . As if he were not also a Part of the Commonwealth , and the Head of the whole People . Let us therefore deal plainly . The Magistrate is afraid of other Churches , but not of his own ; because he is kind and favourable to the one , but severe and cruel to the other . These he treats like Children , and indulges them even to Wantonness . Those he uses as Slaves ; and how blamelesly soever they demean themselves , recompenses them no otherwise than by Gallies , Prisons , Confiscations , and Death . These he cherishes and defends : Those he continually scourges and oppresses . Let him turn the Tables : Or let those Dissenters enjoy but the same Privileges in Civils as his other Subjects , and he will quickly find that these Religious Meetings will be no longer dangerous . For if men enter into Seditious Conspiracies , 't is not Religion inspires them to it in their Meetings ; but their Sufferings and Oppressions that make them willing to ease themselves . Just and moderate Governments are every where quiet , every where safe . But Oppression raises Ferments , and makes men struggle to cast off an uneasie and tyrannical Yoke . I know that Seditions are very frequently raised , upon pretence of Religion . But 't is as true that , for Religion , Subjects are frequently ill treated , and live miserably . Believe me , the Stirs that are made , proceed not from any peculiar Temper of this or that Church or Religious Society ; but from the common Disposition of all Mankind , who when they groan under any heavy Burthen , endeavour naturally to shake off the Yoke that galls their Necks . Suppose this Business of Religion were let alone , and that there were some other Distinction made between men and men , upon account of their different Complexions , Shapes , and Features , so that those who have black Hair ( for example ) or gray Eyes , should not enjoy the same Privileges as other Citizens ; that they should not be permitted either to buy or sell , or live by their Callings ; that Parents should not have the Government and Education of their own Children ; that all should either be excluded from the Benefit of the Laws , or meet with partial Judges ; can it be doubted but these Persons , thus distinguished from others by the Colour of their Hair and Eyes , and united together by one common Persecution , would be as dangerous to the Magistrate , as any others that had associated themselves meerly upon the account of Religion ? Some enter into Company for Trade and Profit : Others , for want of Business , have their Clubs for Clarret . Neighbourhood joyns some , and Religion others . But there is one only thing which gathers People into Seditious Commotions , and that is Oppression . You 'll say ; What , will you have People to meet at Divine Service against the Magistrates Will ? I answer ; Why , I pray , against his Will ? Is it not both lawful and necessary that they should meet ? Against his Will , do you say ? That 's what I complain of . That is the very Root of all the Mischief . Why are Assemblies less sufferable in a Church than in a Theater or Market ? Those that meet there are not either more vicious , or more turbulent , than those that meet elsewhere . The Business in that is , that they are ill used , and therefore they are not to be suffered . Take away the Partiality that is used towards them in matters of Common Right ; change the Laws , take away the Penalties unto which they are subjected , and all things will immediately become safe and peaceable ; Nay , those that are averse to the Religion of the Magistrate , will think themselves so much the more bound to maintain the Peace of the Commonwealth , as their Condition is better in that place than elsewhere ; And all the several separate Congregations , like so many Guardians of the Publick Peace , will watch one another , that nothing may be innovated or changed in the Form of the Government : Because they can hope for nothing better than what they already enjoy ; that is , an equal Condition with their Fellow-Subjects , under a just and moderate Government . Now if that Church , which agrees in Religion with the Prince , be esteemed the chief Support of any Civil Government , and that for no other Reason ( as has already been shewn ) than because the Prince is kind , and the Laws are favourable to it ; how much greater will be the Security of a Government , where all good Subjects , of whatsoever Church they be , without any Distinction upon account of Religion , enjoying the same Favour of the Prince , and the same Benefit of the Laws , shall become the common Support and Guard of it ; and where none will have any occasion to fear the Severity of the Laws , but those that do Injuries to their Neighbours , and offend against the Civil Peace ? That we may draw towards a Conclusion . The Sum of all we drive at is , That every Man may enjoy the same Rights that are granted to others . Is it permitted to worship God in the Roman manner ? Let it be permitted to do it in the Geneva Form also . Is it permitted to speak Latin in the Market-place ? Let those that have a mind to it , be permitted to do it also in the Church . Is it lawfull for any man in his own House , to kneel , stand , sit , or use any other Posture ; and to cloath himself in White or Black , in short or in long Garments ? Let it not be made unlawful to eat Bread , drink Wine , or wash with Water , in the Church . In a Word : Whatsoever things are left free by Law in the common occasions of Life , let them remain free unto every Church in Divine Worship . Let no Mans Life , or Body , or House , or Estate , suffer any manner of Prejudice upon these Accounts . Can you allow of the Presbyterian Discipline ? Why should not the Episcopal also have what they like ? Ecclesiastical Authority , whether it be administred by the Hands of a single Person , or many , is every where the same ; and neither has any Jurisdiction in things Civil , nor any manner of Power of Compulsion , nor any thing at all to do with Riches and Revenues . Ecclesiastical Assemblies , and Sermons , are justified by daily experience , and publick allowance . These are allowed to People of some one Perswasion : Why not to all ? If any thing pass in a Religious Meeting seditiously , and contrary to the publick Peace , it is to be punished in the same manner , and no otherwise , than as if it had happened in a Fair or Market . These Meetings ought not to be Sanctuaries for Factious and Flagitious Fellows : Nor ought it to be less lawful for Men to meet in Churches than in Halls : Nor are one part of the Subjects to be esteemed more blameable , for their meeting together , than others . Every one is to be accountable for his own Actions ; and no Man is to be laid under a Suspition , or Odium , for the Fault of another . Those that are Seditious , Murderers , Thieves , Robbers , Adulterers , Slanderers , &c. of whatsoever Church , whether National or not , ought to be punished and suppressed . But those whose Doctrine is peaceable , and whose Manners are pure and blameless , ought to be upon equal Terms with their Fellow-Subjects . Thus if Solemn Assemblies , Observations of Festivals , publick Worship , be permitted to any one sort of Professors ; all these things ought to be permitted to the Presbyterians , Independents , Anabaptists , Arminians , Quakers , and others , with the same Liberty . Nay , if we may openly speak the Truth , and as becomes one Man to another , neither Pagan , nor Mahumetan , nor Iew , ought to be excluded from the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , because of his Religion . The Gospel commands no such thing . The Church , which judges not those that are without , wants it not . And the Commonwealth , which embraces indifferently all Men that are honest , peaceable and industrious , repuires it not . Shall we suffer a Pagan to deal and Trade with us , and shall we not suffer him to pray unto and worship God ? If we allow the Iews to have private Houses and Dwellings amongst us , Why should we not allow them to have Synagogues ? Is their Doctrine more false , their Worship more abominable , or is the Civil Peace more endangered , by their meeting in publick than in their private Houses ? But if these things may be granted to Iews and Pagans , surely the condition of any Christians ought not to be worse than theirs in a Christian Commonwealth . You 'll say , perhaps , Yes , it ought to be : Because they are more inclinable to Factions , Tumults , and Civil Wars . I answer : Is this the fault of the Christirn Religion ? If it be so , truly the Christian Religion is the worst of all Religions , and ought neither to be embraced by any particular Person , nor tolerated by any Commonwealth . For if this be the Genius , this the Nature of the Christian Religion , to be turbulent , and destructive to the Civil Peace , that Church it self which the Magistrate indulges will not always be innocent . But far be it from us to say any such thing of that Religion , which carries the greatest opposition to Covetousness , Ambition , Discord , Contention , and all manner of inordinate Desires ; and is the most modest and peaceable Religion that ever was . We must therefore seek another Cause of those Evils that are charged upon Religion . And if we consider right , we shall find it to consist wholly in the Subject that I am treating of . It is not the diversity of Opinions , ( which cannot be avoided ) but the refusal of Toleration to those that are of different Opinions , ( which might have been granted ) that has produced all the Bustles and Wars , that have been in the Christian World , upon account of Religion . The Heads and Leaders of the Church , moved by Avarice and insatiable desire of Dominion , making use of the immoderate Ambition of Magistrates , and the credulous Superstition of the giddy Multitude , have incensed and animated them against those that dissent from themselves ; by preaching unto them , contrary to the Laws of the Gospel and to the Precepts of Charity , That Schismaticks and Hereticks are to be outed of their Possessions , and destroyed . And thus have they mixed together and confounded two things that are in themselves most different , the Church and the Commonwealth . Now as it is very difficult for men patiently to suffer themselves to be stript of the Goods , which they have got by their honest Industry ; and contrary to all the Laws of Equity , both Humane and Divine , to be delivered up for a Prey to other mens Violence and Rapine ; especially when they are otherwise altogether blameless ; and that the Occasion for which they are thus treated does not at all belong to the Jurisdiction of the Magistrate , but intirely to the Conscience of every particular man ; for the Conduct of which he is accountable to God only ; What else can be expected , but that these men , growing weary of the Evils under which they labour , should in the end think it lawful for them to resist Force with Force , and to defend their natural Rights ( which are not forfeitable upon account of Religion ) with Arms as well as they can ? That this has been hitherto the ordinary Course of things , is abundantly evident in History : And that it will continue to be so hereafter , is but too apparent in Reason . It cannot indeed be otherwise , so long as the Principle of Persecution for Religion shall prevail , as it has done hitherto , with Magistrate and People ; and so long as those that ought to be the Preachers of Peace and Concord , shall continue , with all their Art and Strength , to excite men to Arms , and sound the Trumpet of War. But that Magistrates should thus suffer these Incendiaries , and Disturbers of the Publick Peace , might justly be wondred at ; if it did not appear that they have been invited by them unto a Participation of the Spoil , and have therefore thought fit to make use of their Covetousness and Pride as means whereby to increase their own Power . For who does not see that these Good Men are indeed more Ministers of the Government , than Ministers of the Gospel ; and that by flattering the Ambition , and favouring the Dominion of Princes and men in Authority , they endeavour with all their might to promote that Tyranny in the Commonwealth , which otherwise they should not be able to establish in the Church ? This is the unhappy Agreement that we see between the Church and State. Whereas if each of them would contain it self within its own Bounds , the one attending to the worldly Welfare of the Commonwealth , the other to the Salvation of Souls , it is impossible that any Discord should ever have hapned between them . Sed , pudet haec opprobria , &c. God Almighty grant , I beseech him , that the Gospel of Peace may at length be preached , and that Civil Magistrates growing more careful to conform their own Consciences to the Law of God , and less sollicitous about the binding of other mens Consciences by Humane Laws , may , like Fathers of their Country , direct all their Counsels and Endeavours to promote universally the Civil Welfare of all their Children ; except only of such as are arrogant , ungovernable , and injurious to their Brethren , and that all Ecclesiastical men , who boast themselves to be the Successors of the Apostles , walking peaceably and modesty in the Apostles steps , without intermedling with State-Affairs , may apply themselves wholly to promote the Salvation of Souls . Farewell . PErhaps it may not be amiss to add a few things concerning Heresy and Schism . A Turk is not , nor can be , either Heretick or Schismatick , to a Chrishian : and if any man fall off from the Christian Faith to Mahumetism , he does not thereby become a Heretick or Schismatick , but an Apostate and an Infidel . This no body doubts of . And by this it appears that men of different Religions cannot be Hereticks or Schismaticks to one another . We are to enquire therefore , what men are of the same Religion . Concerning which , it is manifest that those who have one and the same Rule of Faith and Worship , are of the same Religion : and those who have have not the same Rule of Faith and Worship are of different Religions . For since all things that belong unto that Religion are contained in that Rule , it follows necessarily that those who agree in one Rule are of one and the same Religion : and vice versa . Thus Turks and Christians are of different Religions : because these take the Holy Scriptures to be the Rule of their Religion , and those the Alcoran . And for the same reason , there may be different Religions also even amongst Christians . The Papists and the Lutherans , tho' both of them profess Faith in Christ , and are therefore called Christians , yet are not both of the same Religion : because These acknowledge nothing but the Holy Scriptures to be the Rule and Foundation of their Religion ; Those take in also Traditions and the Decrees of Popes , and of these together make the Rule of their Religion . And thus the Christians of St. Iohn ( as they are called ) and the Christians of Geneva are of different Religions : because These also take only the Scriptures ; and Those I know not what Traditions , for the Rule of their Religion . This being setled , it follows ; First , that Heresy is a Separation made in Ecclesiastical Communion between men of the same Religion , for some Opinions no way contained in the Rule it self . And Secondly , that amongst those who acknowledge nothing but the Holy Scriptures to be their Rule of Faith , Heresy is a Separation made in their Christian Communion , for Opinions not contained in the express words of Scripture . Now this Separation may be made in a twofold manner . 1. When the greater part , or ( by the Magistrate's Patronage ) the stronger part , of the Church separates it self from others , by excluding them out of her Communion , because they will not profess their Belief of certain Opinions which are not the express words of the Scripture . For it is not the paucity of those that are separated , nor the Authority of the Magistrate , that can make any man guilty of Heresy . But he only is an Heretick who divides the Church into parts , introduces Names and Marks of Distinction , and voluntarily makes a Separation because of such Opinions . 2. When any one separates himself from the Communion of a Church , because that Church does not publickly profess some certain Opinions which the Holy Scriptures do not expresly teach . Both these are Hereticks : because they err in Fundamentals , and they err obstinately against Knowledge . For when they have determined the Holy Scriptures to be the only Foundation of Faith , they nevertheless lay down certain Propositions as fundamental , which are not in the Scripture ; and because others will not acknowledge these additional Opinions of theirs , nor build upon them as if they were necessary and fundamental , they therefore make a Separation in the Church ; either by withdrawing themselves from the others , or expelling the others from them . Nor does it signifie any thing for them to say that their Confessions and Symboles are agreeable to Scripture , and to the Analogy of Faith. For if they be conceived in the express words of Scripture , there can be no question about them ; because those things are acknowledged by all Christians to be of Divine Inspiration , and therefore fundamental . But if they say that the Articles which they require to be profess'd , are Consequences deduced from the Scripture ; it is undoubtedly well done of them who believe and profess such things as seem unto them so agreeable to the Rule of Faith. But it would be very ill done to obtrude those things upon others , unto whom they do not seem to be the indubitable Doctrines of the Scripture . And to make a Separation for such things as these , which neither are nor can be fundamental , is to become Hereticks . For I do not think there is any man arrived to that degree of madness , as that he dare give out his Consequences and Interpretations of Scripture as Divine Inspirations , and compare the Articles of Faith that he has framed according to his own Fancy with the Authority of the Scripture . I know there are some Propositions so evidently agreeable to Scripture , that no body can deny them to be drawn from thence : but about those therefore there can be no difference . This only I say , that however clearly we may think this or the other Doctrine to be deduced from Scripture , we ought not therefore to impose it upon others , as a necessary Article of Faith , because we believe it to be agreeable to the Rule of Faith ; unless we would be content also that other Doctrines should be imposed upon us in the same manner ; and that we should be compell'd to receive and profess all the different and contradictory Opinions of Lutherans , Calvinists , Remonstrants , Anabaptists , and other Sects , which the Contrivers of Symbols , Systems and Confessions , are accustomed to deliver unto their Followers as genuine and necessary Deductions from the Holy Scripture . I cannot but wonder at the extravagant arrogance of those men who think that they themselves can explain things necessary to Salvation more clearly than the Holy Ghost , the Eternal and Infinite Wisdom of God. Thus much concerning Heresy ; which word in common use is applied only to the Doctrinal part of Religion . Let us now consider Schism , which is a Crime near a-kin to it . For both those words seem unto me to signifie an ill-grounded Separation in Ecclesiastical Communion , made about things not necessary . But since Use , which is the Supream Law in matter of Language , has determined that Heresy relates to Errors in Faith , and Schism to those in Worship or Discipline , we must consider them under that Distinction . Schism then , for the same reasons that have already been alledged , is nothing else but a Separation made in the Communion of the Church , upon account of something in Divine Worship , or Ecclesiastical Discipline , that is not any necessary part of it . Now nothing in Worship or Discipline can be necessary to Christian Communion , but what Christ our Legislator , or the Apostles , by Inspiration of the Holy Spirit , have commanded in express words . In a word : He that denies not any thing that the holy Scriptures teach in express words , nor makes a Separation upon occasion of any thing that is not manifestly contained in the Sacred Text ; however he may be nick-named by any Sect of Christians , and declared by some , or all of them to be utterly void of true Christianity , yet indeed and in truth this man cannot be either a Heretick or Schismatick . These things might have been explained more largely , and more advantageously : but it is enough to have hinted at them , thus briefly , to a Person of your parts . FINIS . Books lately Printed for Awnsham Churchill at the Black Swan at Amen-Corner . AN Historical Account of Making the Penal Laws by the Papists against the Protestants , and by the Protestants against the Papists . Wherein the true Ground and Reason of Making the Laws is given , the Papists most barbarous Usage of the Protestants here in England , under a Colour of Law , set forth ; and the Reformation Vindicated from the Imputation of being Cruel and Bloody , unjustly cast upon it by those of the Romish Communion . By Samuel Blackerby , Barrister of Grays-Inn . Fol. A Modest Enquiry , Whether St. Peter were ever at Rome , and Bishop of that Church ? Wherein , I. The Arguments of Cardinal Bellarmine and others , for the Affirmative , are considered . II. Some Considerations taken Notice of , that render the Negative highly Probable . Quarto . The Spirit of France , and the Politick Maxims of Lewis XIV . laid open to the World. Quarto . Memorials of the Method and Manner of Proceedings in Parliament in Passing Bills : Together with several Rules and Customs , which by long and constant Practice have obtained the Name of Orders of the House . Gathered by Observation , and out of the Journal-Books , from the time of Edward VI. Octavo . Dr. Burnet's Tracts in Two Volumes . Vol. I. Containing , 1. His Travels into Switzerland , Italy and Germany ; with an Appendix . 2. Animadversions on the Reflections upon the Travels . 3. Three Letters of the Quietists , Inquisition , and State of Italy . Vol. II. 4. His Translations of Lactantius of the Death of Persecutors . 5. His Answers to Mr. Varillas : In Three Parts . Twelves . A Collection of Texts of Scripture , with short Notes upon them And some other Observations against the Principal Popish Errors . Twelves . The Fallibility of the Roman Church , Demonstrated from the Manifest Error of the Second Nicene and Trent Councils , which Assert , That the Veneration and Honorary Worship of Images , is a Tradition Primitive and Apostolical . Quarto . A Demonstration that the Church of Rome , and her Councils , have Erred ; by shewing , That the Councils of Constance , Basil , and Trent , have , in all their Decrees touching Communion in one Kind , contradicted the Received Doctrine of the Church of Christ : with an Appendix , in Answer to the XXI . Chapter of the Author of A Papist Misrepresented , and Represented . Quarto . A Treatise of Traditions , Part I. Wherein it is proved , That we have Evidence sufficient from Tradition ; 1. That the Scriptures are the Word of God. 2. That the Church of England owns the true Canon of the Books of the Old Testament . 3. That the Copies of the Scripture have not been corrupted . 4. That the Romanists have no such Evidence for their Traditions . 5. That the Testimony of the present Church of Rome can be no sure Evidence of Apostolical Tradition . 6. What Traditions may securely be relied upon , and what not . Quarto . A Treatise of Traditions , Part II. Shewing the Novelty of the pretended Traditions of the Church of Rome ; as being , 1. Not mentioned by the Ancients of their Discourses of Traditions Apostolical , truly so called , or so esteemed by them . Nor , 2. In their Avowed Rule , or Symbol of Faith. Nor , 3. In the Instructions given to the Clergy , concerning all those things they were to teach the People . Nor , 4. In the Examination of a Bishop at his Ordination . Nor , 5. In the Ancient Treatises designed to instruct Christians in all the Articles of their Faith. 6. From the Confessions of Romish Doctors : with an Answer to the Arguments of Mr. Mumford for Traditions ; And a Demonstration , That the Heathens made the same Plea from Tradition as the Romanists do ; and that the Answer of the Fathers to it doth fully justifie the Protestants . Quarto . All these four Books Written by the Reverend D. Whitby , D. D. An Exhortation to Charity ( and a Word of Comfort ) to the Irish Protestants : Being a Sermon Preached at Steeple in Dorsetshire , upon occasion of the Collection for Relief of the Poor Protestants in this Kingdom , lately fled from Ireland : By Samuel Bold , Rector of Steeple . Quarto . Foxes and Firebrands , or a Specimen of the Danger and Harmony of Popery and Separation , First , Second , and Third Parts . Sir W. Temple's Observation on Holland . — Miscellanea . Mr. Selden's Table-Talk , or Discourses on various Subjects . A List of the present Parliament , Lords and Commons , Present Case stated about Allegiance to King William and Queen Mary . Debates of the late Oxford and Westminster Parliament . Monsieur Ierew's Accomplishment . Octavo . Scripture-Prophesies , Compleat : in 2 Vol. Octavo . A New System of the Revelations . Twelves . Voyages of Syam . Octavo . Obedience due to the present King , notwithstanding our Oaths to the former : By a Divine of the Church of England . The late Lord Russell's Case , with Observations upon it . Writ by the Right Honourable Henry Lord Delamere . Fol. Considerations humbly offered for taking the Oath of Allegiance to King William and Queen Mary . Quarto . Mr. Masters of Submission to Divine Providence . Dr. Worthington of the Resurrection . Octavo . An Answer to Bishop Lake's ( late of Chichester ) Declaration of his dying in belief of the Doctrine of Passive Obedience , &c. Dr. Carsael's Assize-Sermon at Abingdon , Aug 6. 1689. Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A48884-e410 Luk. 22.25 . 2 Tim. 2.19 . Luke 22.32 . Rom. 1. Gal. 5. Matth. 18.20 . Exod. 22.20 , 21. Deut. 2. 1 Cor. 5.12 , 13. 
A50771	----	Religio stoici Mackenzie, George, Sir, 1636-1691. 1663 Approx. 180 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 96 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2004-08 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A50771 Wing M195 ESTC R22472 12743307 ocm 12743307 93164 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A50771) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 93164) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 696:30) Religio stoici Mackenzie, George, Sir, 1636-1691. [2], 5-8, 23, 159, [1] p. Printed for R. Broun, Edinburgh : 1663. Errata: p. [1] at end. Reproduction of original in Union Theological Seminary Library, New York. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. EEBO-TCP is a partnership between the Universities of Michigan and Oxford and the publisher ProQuest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by ProQuest via their Early English Books Online (EEBO) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). The general aim of EEBO-TCP is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic English-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in EEBO. 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Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 1660-1688. 2004-03 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2004-03 Apex CoVantage Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2004-04 Judith Siefring Sampled and proofread 2004-04 Judith Siefring Text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-07 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion RELIGIO STOICI . Acts 1. 11. — Ye men of Gallile , why stand ye gazing up into heaven ? EDINBURGH . Printed for R. Broun , 1663. THE STOICK To his CENSURERS . I Am , by Religion , a Protestant , and such confide little in merit ; and by Humour , a Stoick , and such are most inconcerned in censures : Wherefore , as I intend to rival none of these who court fame , I hope none of these will asperse me ; and if I obtain truce from them , I know none else will attaque me . The multitude ( which albeit it be said to have many heads , yet , was ever known to have few brains ) will doubtless condemn me for enveighing against vanity , whilst I my self am so vain as to write Books ; and will pronounce me as ridiculous in this , as these Philosophers were of old , who denyed motion whilst their tongues mov'd in their cheek ; to whom my return shall be , that finding many ( even of such as I know will censure me ) be-myred in the puddle of error , I have , in this Essay , proffer'd them my assistance , with an intention , not to shew my strength , but my compassion . I am no such fool , as to shew these Philistines the Sampsons-lock wherein my strength lyes , which doubtless their cruelty would never spare . Others , who , by their gravity , ( or serious dulness ) have sublimated themselves above the rabble , will possibly accuse my Studies of adultery , for hugging contemplations so excentrick to my employment . But , these may know , that thir Papers are but the pairings of my other Studies , and because they were such , I have flung them out into the streets . Neither can I understand , how it proves a Lawyer to be remisse in his imployment , that he takes leisure to reach a little helebor which lyes by him , to such poor persons , as because of their phanatick melancholy stand much in need thereof . This discourse is intended to be a medicine , and such never rel●sh well nor receive commendation from their pleasantesse , but from their profit , and are not to be censured by their taste , but by their operation . There are many things in this small Peece , which may seem heterodoxe to such as defie custom , and worship the Dagon of authorized tradition : Yet , who knows but my Watch goes right , albeit it differ from the publick Clock of the City ; especially where the sun of Righteousness hath not , by pointing clearly the dyal of Faith , declared which of the two is in the right . I acknowledge the Church to be my Mother ; neither will I offer to scratch out my Mothers eyes when they perceive my errors : yet , I believe that a childe may differ from his mothers judgement , in things wherein her honour is not concerned : But , I will wed no opinion without her consent who is my Parent ; or , if I have wedded any , it is in the power of the Church and it's Officials , to grant me a divorce . I submit my self and this Tractat to her and their censures , and desires none to believe me or it , but in these things only wherein I believe her and them . As for others , since I have taken the liberty to write , I were unmannerly if I refused them the liberty to censure and really it pleases my humour , 〈…〉 see curres bark and snarle at wha 〈…〉 hold out to them . G. Mk. THE STOICKS Friendly ADDRESSE To the PHANATICKS Of all SECTS and SORTS . THe mad-cap Zealots of this bigot Age , intending to mount heaven , Elias-like , in Zeals fiery Chariot , do , like foolish Phaeton , not only fall themselves from their flaming seat , but by their furious over-driving , invelop the ●●rld in unquenchable combustions ; 〈◊〉 when they have thus set the whole Globe on a blaze , this they tearm a new light . It is remarkable in Scripture , that Jehu , who drove furiously , and called up the Prophet to see what zeal he had for the house of God , was even at that instant , doing it more wrong then ever was done to it by unconcerned Gallio , who flantingly cared for none of those things . And that none of all the apostolick Conclave desired ever fire might rain from above upon mis-believers ; except the Sons of Zebedee , who immediatly thereafter , arrived at that pitch of vanity , as to desire to sit in heaven upon Christs right and left hand . And that Peter , who was the first who did draw a sword in his Masters quarrel , was likewayes the first who denyed him . Firy Zeal blows soon up , such combustible mater as the Sons of Zebedee ; and that flash being spent and evaporat , a fall follows , as befell Peter . As that body is hardly cureable , which entertains such ill-suited neighbours as a cold Stomach and a hote Liver ; So , the body of the visible Church may be now concluded to be in a very distempered conditon , when it 's Charity waxeth cold , and it's Zeal hot , beyond what is due to either ; and these feaverish fits of unnatural Zeal , wherewith the Church is troubled in it's old and cold age , betokens too much that it draws near it's last period . The inconsiderableness likewayes of our differences , and inconsideratness wherewith they are persued , induces me to believe , that the Zeal now a-la-mode , is not that holy Fire which is kindled by a coal from the Altar , but is that ign's fatuus , or wild-fire , which is but a Meteor peec'd up of malignant Vapours , and is observed to frequent Church-yards ofter then other places . I am none of those who acknowledge no temples , besides these of their own heads . And I am of opinion , that such as think that they have a Church within their own breasts , should likewayes believe , that their heads are steeples , and so should provide them with bells . I believe that there is a Church-militant , which , like the Ark , must lodge in it's bowels all such as are to be saved from the flood of condemnation : but , to chalk out it's bordering lines , is beyond the geography of my Religion . He was infallible who compared Gods Spirit to the wind which bloweth where it listeth , we hear the sound of it , but knows not whence it comes , or whether it goeth . And the name graven upon the whit-stone , none knows but he who hath it . Eli concluded Hannah to be drunk , when she was pouring out her soul before her Maker : and Elias believed , that the Church , in his dayes , was stinted to his own person ; and yet God told him , that there were seven thousand in Israel who had not bowed their knees to Baal : why then should any private Christian determine , magigisterially , that , wherein the greatest of Prophets erred ? The reed wherewith the Temple was to be measured , Rev. 11. 2. was only entrusted to an Angel ; and yet he had not in commission , to measure the Court that was without , because it was given to the Gentiles . And albeit , Rev. 7. the number of the Iews who were saved is determined ; yet , the number of Gentiles is left indefinit , and said to be numberless . There is nothing more ordinar , then for each Nation to confine the Church within themselves . And in that Nation again , one corner will have themselves the Sanctum Sanctorum of that only Temple ; albeit our Saviour in His Gospel assures us , that men shall come from all corners of the world , and sit down with Abraham , Isaac and Jacob. And John in his Revelation tells us , that multitudes of all Nations , Kindreds and Families , were seen following the Lamb. Upon this same block do these likewayes stumble , who put the bolt of their uncharitableness upon the gates of heaven , to debar whole Professions , such as Lawyers and Physitians , from entring in thereat ; notwithstanding that the abovecited place tells us , that there were only twelve thousand of the tribe of Levi the Priest chosen , and the like number was prickt ; in the tribe of Judah , the Law-giver : Aaron the Priest did mould the golden calf , and not Moses the Iudge ; and Korah and Dathan were Levits , and yet mutined against their Magistrates . I say not this to disparage that holy Function : For , none shall wish Aarons rod to flourish more then my self ; and ordinarily , these who love not to touch the Lords anointed , will likewayes be sure , to do His Prophets no harm : but , I say it to take off an aspersion which hath stain'd too long , and too injustly , these of my own profession . Is not the Church our common Mother ? albeit , I confess , she is likewayes their Nurse , in a more particular way ; and since there is heavenly Mannah enough to aliment us all , why should Christans de ny to admit their brethren to an equal partage ? It grieves me sore to see my mother the Church tortur'd like Rebecca , by carrying strugling twaines in her pained bowels . And seing all Christians are but pilgrims here , I admire that these pilgrims should leave off to journey , and stand skirmishing and fighting with all such as will not travel their road . And albeit we acknowledge , that the Spirit of God takes pains , and is sufficient for leading all men in the way wherein they should walk ; yet , we must compell them , as if either He needed our help , or we resolved to share with Him the glory of their conversion . Thus God ( who loves us all infinitly better then one any of us doth another ) leaves us , upon our own hazard , a freedom in our choice , albeit we poor miscreants compell one another , denying to our fellow-creatures that freedom which he allowes all the Creation . I wish we would consider how each man eats , drinks , cares for his family and performes all common duties , rational enough without any compulsion ; and yet , in the affairs of Religion , wherein doubtless man is led by a far more infallible assistance , there are many slips committed , daily and grossly , notwithstanding of all the pains taken , and force used by one man towards another . Thus it fairs with us as with Patients , whom when the Physitians stints to a narrow dyet , then they loath even that food , which their unreined appetite would never have rejected . And this makes me apt to believe , that if Laws and Law-givers did not make Hereticks vain , by taking too much notice of their extravagancies , the world should be no more troubled with these , then they are with the Chimeras of Alchimists and Philosophers . And it fairs with them as with Tops , which , how long they are scourged , keep foot and run pleasantly , but fall how soon they are neglected and left to themselves . In order to which , it was wittily observed by our great King James the Sixth , that the Puritans of his age strove with him , and yet ceded at first , in a difference between them and the Shoe-makers of Edinburgh : For , not only pleases it their humour to contend where they may gain honour and can loss none , but likewayes , by contesting with Monarchs , they magnifie to the people their pious courage , assuring the world , that such attempts require a particular assistance from heaven ; and when their jangling hath extorted some concessions from the Magistrate , ( as ordinarily it doth ) then they press that success as an infallible mark of the Jure-divinoship of their quarrel . Albeit , I confess , that when these , not only recede from the canonized Creed of the Church , but likewayes incroach upon the Laws of the State , then , as of all others , they are the most dangerous ; So , of all others , they should be most severely punished . Opinion , kept within it's proper bounds , is an pure act of the mind : and so it would appear , that to punish the body for that which is a guilt of the soul , is as unjust as to punish one relation for another . And this blood-thirsty zeal , which hath reigned in our age , supposes our most mercifull God to be of the same temper with these pagan Deities , who desired to have their Altars gored with blood ; and being devils themselves , delighted in the destruction of men : whereas the Almighty , who delights not in the death of a sinner , but rather that he should repent and live , hath left no warr and upon holy Record , for persecuting such as dissent from us ; but even then when He commands that the Prophets , who tempts others to idolatry , should be slain , yet , speaks He nothing of punishing these who were seduced by them . And why should we shew so much violence in these things whereof we can show no certain evidence ? as ordinarily we cannot in circumfundamental debates . Are we not ready to condemn to day , as Phanatick , what yesterday was judged Jure-divino ? And do not even those who persecuted others for their opinions , admire why they should be , upon that score , persecuted themselves ? So that ( victory depending upon event ) we legitimat the persecutions , to be used by others , against our selves , by the persecutions used by our selves , against others . Our Saviour forbids us to pluck up the tears , lest the wheat be pulled up with it ; and how can the most pious persecutors know , that the Saints are not destroyed with the sinners ? It is remarkable , that our Saviour disarmed zealous Peter , even when he was serving Him in person , in His greatest straits , and against the most profligat of His enemies , the Iews : and that to prevent the irregular zeal even of the first and best of Christians , the blessed Apostles , their divine Master thought it fit to arme them not with swords , but with scrips , and to root out of their hearts all thoughts of violence , did oft inculcat in them , that His Kingdom was not of this world ; convinceing them by an excellent argument , that He had no need of armes or armies ; for else He could have commanded thousands of Angells . Did ever God command the Iews to war against any neighbouring nation because they were Pagans ( a quarrel which would have lasted till all the world had been conquered ) Or , did our Saviour leave in legacie to his servants , that they should force others to turn prosylits , which doubtlesse he had done , if he had resolved to allow such a rude mean of conversion ? All which makes me admire , why in our late troubles , men really pious , and naturally sober , could have been so transported , as to destroy whom they could not convince , and to perswade these who were convinced , that Religion obliged them to destroy others . My heart bleeds when I consider how scaffolds were dyed with Christian blood , and the fields covered with the carcasses of murthered Christians ; and its probable , that there were more damned by unprepared deaths , in the fields , then were saved by peeping Sermons in incendiary Churches ; and in this , I admire the clemency of our Royal Master , who , albeit His cause was more just then theirs , albeit He might have convinced them by obtruding to them their own practices : yet , hath rather chosen to command with His Scepter then His Sword. But , if the glory of God were the mark at which these do levell , Why bestow they not their zeal , rather in converting such as scarce know or acknowledge that there is a God ? And why are they more enraged against these who agree with them in most things , then these who dissent from them in all ? Take not Christians more pains to refute one another , then to convince Gentiles ? And stand not Episcopists and Presbyterians at greater distance , then either do with Turks and Pagans ? And to evidence , that rather humour then piety occasions our differences , we may easily percieve , that the meaner the subject is , the heat is alwayes the greater . If I had ever known so much as one whose faith had been the trophy of a debate , I should allow of debates in maters of Religion : but seeing men cannot be convinced by miracles , it were ridiculous to presse conversion by arguments . All the Divines in Europe could not press the best founded of their contraverted and polemick truths , with so much scripture , or so many miracles as our blessed Saviour did His own divinity ( which is the foundation of all truths ) And yet the Iews and all the world besides , slighted this infallible doctrine ; And to evidence that there is a season of grace , independent from arguments , did not many thousands turn prosylits at Peters sermon ? whom all our Saviours homilies and miracles could not perswade . If one should say , that the testimony of a few fisher-men should not be believed in a mater of so great consequence , as is the salvation of the whole world , especially when they did depone as witnesses , in a matter wherein both their honour and livelyhood was concerned , might not this stagger some mean Christian ? And yet I believe these truths so much the more , because such as these were its first asserters ; for , certainly it is one of the greatest of miracles , that so few , and so illiterate persons were able to convince the whole world . Thus we see , that one may account that a miracle which another looks upon as a folly ; and yet , none but Gods Spirit can decide the controversie . Maters of Religion and Faith , resembling some curious Pictures and optick Prismes , which seems to change shapes and colours , according to the several stances from which the asp●cient views them . The ballance of our judgments hath ●atched such a bruise by Adams fall , that scarce can we by them know the weight of any argument . But , which is worse , there is as great a defect in our partial weighing , as in the scales themselves : For , when we take either the pro or con . of any controversie into our Patronage , we throw alwayes in arguments into that scale , wherein our own opinion lyes , without ever taking leisure to consider what may be alledged for the antipode proposition : and then , when we receive an answer , our invention is busied , not in pondering how much conviction it hath in it , but by what slight it may be answered ; and thus either passion , interest or frequent meditation , are still the weights which cast the ballance . This firy zeal hath likewayes made an other pimple flash out in the face of the phanatick Church , and that is , a conceit that the Saints have the only right to all Gods creatures , the wicked being only usurpers and not masters of them : But , I have heard this opinion ( so beastly is it ) confuted by Balaam's asse , who could tell it's Master , Am not I thine own asse ? When Aaron and the people did covenant without Moses , then every man did bring his ear-rings to make up the golden calf . And we have lived in an age , wherein we have seen our Countrey-men , like the Chaldeans , take the furniture both of the Temple and of the Kings House , and carry them away to their Babylon of confusions ; and in an age wherein sober men were forced to lend monies , to buy for their own armes the heavy shekles of slavery , Tantum Religio potuit suadere malorum . Religion doubtless aims at two great designes , one is like the first Table , to perswade us to adore God Almighty . Another is to perswade us , like to the second Table , to love our neighbour , and to be a mean to settle all these jealousies , and compesce all these animosities which interest might occasion ; and this appears by the Doxology jubilyed by the Angels at our Saviours birth , Glory to God , and peace and good-will towards men . And therefore , as every private Christian should be tollerated by his fellow subjects , to worship God inwardly according to his conscience ; So all should conspire in that exteriour uniformity of worship , which the Laws of his Countrey injoins . The first remark which God made of us after the Creation , was , that it was not fit for man to be alone ; there was only one Ark amongst the Iews by Gods own appointment . And seing the Gospel tearms the Church Christ's Spouse , it were absurd to think , that He will divorce from her upon every error or escape ; especially , seing His blessed mouth hath told us , that under the Gospel it is not lawfull to divorce upon all occasions ; and if He will not for these , deny her to be His Spouse , much less should we deny her to be our mother . May not one , who is convinced in his judgment , that Monarchy is the best of Governments , live happily in Venice or Holland ? And that traveller were absurd , who would rather squable with these amongst whom he sojourns , then observe these rites and solemnities which are required by the Laws of the places where he lives ? What is once statuted by a Law , we all consent to , in choosing Commissioners to represent us in these Parliaments where the Laws are made ; and so if they ordain us to be decimated , or to leave the Nation if we conform not , we cannot say , when that Law is put to execution , that we are opprest ; no more then we could complain , if one did remove us legally from these Lands which he purchas'd from our Trustee , whom we had impowered to sell it . As David said to Saul , 1 Sam. 26. 20. why went the King out to catch a flea ? So may I say to our great Divines , why contravert they about shadows ? Is it fit that Christians , who find it too great a task to govern their private souls , should be so much concerned how the Church is governed by others ? Wherefore , seing many have been saved who were most inexpert in these questions , and that foolish zeal , passion , and too much curiositie therein , hath damned many , I may conclude , that to pry in these , is neither necessary , because of the first , nor expedient , because of the last . Since discretion opened my eyes , I have alwayes judg'd it necessar for a Christian , to look oftner to his Practice of Piety , then to his Confession of Faith , and to fear more the crookedness of his will , then the blindness of his judgment , delighting more to walk on from grace to grace , working out the work of his own salvation with fear and trembling , then to stand still with the Galileans curiously gazing up to heaven . True Religion and undefiled is to visit the widow and the fatherless ; and the dittay drawn up against the damned spirits shall be , That when our Saviours poor ones were hungry , they did not feed them ; when they were naked , they did not cloath them , without mentioning any thing of their unbelief in maters of Controversie or Government . And therefore I hope , that these to whom I address my self in this Discourse , will rather believe me to be their friend , because of their piety , then their enemy , because of their errors . THE VIRTUOSO , OR STOICK . ALbeit man be but a statue of dust kneaded with tears , moved by the hid engines of his restless passions , a clod of earth , which the shortest feaver can burn to ashes , and the least shower of rheums wash away to nothing ; Yet makes he as much noise in the world , as if both the Globes ( these glorious Twaines ) had been un-wombed from that formless Chaos , by the midwifry of his wit ; he speaks thunder , looks lightning , breaths storms , and by the eloquence of his own vanity , perswads himself that his commands are able to unhinge the Poles . From which boundless pride , I considently conclude , that if a natural Instinct , or as the Stoicks terme it , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , had not irresistably bowed his faith to assent to a Deity , he had never , neither upon design nor in complyance to custom ( as Atheists alledge ) suffer'd to creep into his Creed , that there was one greater then himself , who could rein his affections , and bound their effects , according to the dictates of his irresistable will. And albeit Regiments of Arguments , levyed both from the stately fabrick of heavens arched Pend , and from the inimitable embroidery of earths flowry Boul , be requisite for conquering the infidelity of others , and for rendring them tributaries to that all-forming Essence : Yet , doth my faith render up the arms of it's depraved reason , and turn Prosolyte to this divine truth , upon the sole sight of one of these dying Atheists ; who , upon any surprisal , do with amazement throw up their eyes to heaven , as if they sent their looks in ambassade to beg assistance from thence ; and cry , God save me , as if these beastly souls , when attaqued unexpectedly , knew whence their health were to be expected : Like to other sick brutes , who when assaulted by sickness , are , by the hand of that same storge and instinct , led to some herb or flower , which is an Apothecary shop appointed by nature for them . Neither think I these arguments which are twisted together of three propositions so strong as these Instincts are ; where truth , like the Sun , seems to dart home it's light in one unperceiveable act , whereas in these , pur-blind nature may be mistaken , not only in judging of the truth of either of the three parts , but likewise of their connexion and allyance . I know that that miscreant , who began his hell upon earth , by being burnt at Tholouse for theorick Atheisme , did upon his first approach to the Fire , cry , O God : Whereupon , being taxt by the assisting Jesuit , answered , that these and such like expressions were the offspring of custom : But poor soul , he might have considered , that seing he had creept from his cradle into that error , and had run his glass to it's last sand , in propagating that hellish conceit : That therefore this expression was rather a confession then an escape , rather the product of a rational soul then of depraved custom ; for as it was in it self a divine truth , so it was in him contrary to a settled habit . There is another Caball of Atheists , who think that this Beleef was at first ; but the quaint Leger-de-main of some strongly-pated States-man ; who to over-awe the capriciousness of a giddy multitude , did forge this opinion of a rewarder of all humane actions : And to enforce this , do instance Numa Pompiluis , and Mahomet , whose palpable cheats grew up in their successors into religions ; and whose inventions were received with as much bigotrie , by the wisest of men , as is that Deity which is now the object of our adorations . Wherefore ( say they ) seing the rational soul hath failed so oft , and so absurdly in its discoveries , how , or why , should we submit our selves slavishly to it's determinations ? For that which doth at some times erre , can never at any time be concluded infallible . To these I answer , that albeit , as to the particular way of worship , the world is oft times deluded . And albeit , even as to their apprehensions of this incomprehensible Essence , multitudes be some times misled ; Yet , these staggering Fancies fix this great Truth , that there is a Supream who must be adored : For if this innate Instinct did not coopere with these impostures , in gaining an assent no their fictitious Religions and Hierarchies , it were impossible for any humane Authority to establish Principles so remote from reason , and to subjugate by these even the mildest tempers . But I take the root from which these errors do spring , to be , that the twilight of darkned reason glimpsing to man , that impressa of the divine Image , which though much decayed , yet rests still upon his soul ; and not being able , because of the faintness of his light , and the decay of that divine Impressa , to discern exactly what that Deity is , with whose image it is signeted ; believes implicitely with a profound respect , any who hath the confidence to obtrude any knowledge of it upon them . Concluding in the conclave of their own thoughts , that none durst contemn so far , that omnipotent Thunder-darter , as to vend their own Fancies for sacred Oracles . And albeit these hood-winked Nations did erect a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in their own hearts , wherein all these Vice-gods were worshiped ; Yet were all these but representations of the true God ; for His Omnipotency and Power was adored in their Mars ; His Omniscience in their Appollo , &c. And it is very probable that the Heathens admired so each attribute of God Almighty , that they thought each deserved distinct Altars ; so that their errors had their rise from rather too much then too little respect ; and that as the same Ocean receives several names from the several shoars it washes , so , according to the several operations of the most High , did these deluded Pagans establish several Deities . But that all these did ultimatly terminat in one , is clear from the Inscription of that Athenian Altar , To the unknown God ; from the designation of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , from their common feasts or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; from the adjunct of Delphicus given to Appollo , which in Greek signifies unus ; as Macrobius observes , from their Altars erected , Disque Deabusque omnibus , and from the general invocation of all the Deities joyntly subjoyned to all their particular sacrifices . So that the great and all comprehending Idea , wherein he is represented , as in one big mirrour to us , was by them broke in pieces , and in each of these pieces taken alone did they see a Deity , though much abridged ; Whereas all these pieces , when set together , did represent but one , and each piece did then shew but a part . But to evidence that our belief of a Deity is not a state and traditionall imposture , I would willingly know if ever the skilfullest of Sathans emissaries was able to induce the world to believe that there was no God ; which ( doubtless ) might have at some occasions contributed much to some mens politick designs , and which that rebell would have attempted , if either God had not restrained him , or himself had not known it imprestable . And it is most remarkable , that the first promoters of that divine Doctrine were persons , who , both by precept and practice , decryed Ambition and declined State imployments ; and so it were absurd to think that they invented these in subordination to State Projects . There is also much force in that Argument , wherein from the nature of prophesying , is concluded the being of a God : for , to foresee , is doubtless a way of seeing , far above the reach of humane nature ; man not being able to conclude but that , What is possible upon both parts , may come to pass upon either of its parts . And hence it was , that the Heathens themselves termed this prediction divination , as if it could not be but divine . As also , if there were not a God , but that this were a fiction , it would follow , that errour and delusion ( such as this ex hypothesi ) were able , and actually did , of all other things , frame a man's soul most to virtue : and that the best of men ( such as are the adorers of a Deity ) were both the greatest cheats and block-heads . All which , are absurdities to be hiss'd at by all who are masters of the meanest portion of humane reason . There lurketh much curious contemplation in pondering , how that albeit the parents of all heathnish Religions , have been incomparably the chiefest witts in their times ; for else they could not have impress'd the spirits of their disciples with such abstract principles ; Yet , all their Models , seem repugnant to common reason : and they have chois'd to teach principles which seem ridiculous . Thus the Fictions related by the Poets of their gods , the Rites used by the Romans , and the Fopperies of the Alcoran , are absurdities unworthy of a rational belief , if man were not acted by an innate principle , to place the mysteries of Religion above his reason . By which we see , that the imputation cast upon the Scriptures of their contrariety to reason , chocks likewayes the principles of all Nations : and certainly , if there were nothing revealed to us in Religion , but what the short line of our reason might fadom , the omnipotency of God , and the weakness of our own reason , should remain still unknown : and seing our reason is only suitable to our nature , certainly if that infinit essence and it's mysteries might be comprehended by that same reason , which measureth things finit , we might conclude God to be finit likewayes ; and is it not impudence in us who know not the ebbing and flowing of the sea , nor the reason why the Adamant draweth the iron , to repine because we cannot comprehend the essence of God Almighty ? and then vainly to conclude , that because we cannot grasp within the short armes of our understanding , the vast bulk of the Deity , that there is no Deity ? A conclusion as absurd , as if one should say , that when the nimble wings of an arrow transport it above our sight , it did leave off to be , when it left off to be perceived . And I am of opinion , that mysteriousness suits rarely well with divine Truths , the finest things using alwayes to be best wrapt up : thus if we listen to our hid inclinations , we will find a pleasing veneration in reserved silence ; and our curiosity will swiftly follow , what by it's retiredness fleeth from us : silent groves whose bush-top trees lay their heads together , as in a conspiracy to resist the Sun's entry , and powder its light with Sables , creat's a veneration in us . And as the Heathens did choise groves , So did the primitive Christians light their Devotions with torches and candles , intimating thereby that umbrag'd silence was an excellent Shryn for sincere devotions ; and in this sense , it may be , the Word of God is said to be a Lantern to our steps , and the seven Churches are compared to seven Candlsticks . Did not our Saviour teach His disciples in parables ? and was not the Ark vailed from the eyes of the people ? the Pagans dispensed their divinity in Hieroglyphicks ; and amongst humane Writers , the most mysterious carry still the Lawrels : And why should we vainly wish to comprehend the nature of the Deity , seing Moses , God's intimate , and minion , could not have that allowance ? And God himself , when for our necessary instruction He would discover something of Himself to us , is forced per 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ( as Divines speak ) to discover Himself in a stile borrowed from humane frailty , and to express His infinit affections by our disordered passions . I believe , that Socrates , natur's greatest disciple , and the Deity 's protomartyr , was a prosolyt of the same faith , which we profess , and had his large soul illuminated by that Sun of righteousness , whose refulgent rayes are now the bright torches of the christian Church . Neither is my belief in this staggered by the silence of his co-temporary Writers , as to this particular : seing these , not being of the same perswasion with him , but being convinced of his moral worth , did descrive his opinions suitably to their own apprehension . Thus did these pagan Historians admire the great Saviour of mankind , only for His morall accomplishments , without reaching these divine principles , by which He was acted . The Stoicks likewayes were in all probability , a tribe of Iohn Baptist's , and God having resolved to purge the Universe of its original unrighteousness by that blessed Manna which came down from heaven to give life to the world , did by their doctrine of abstemiousness , as by a spare dyet , prepare its body for receiving that divine Dose . And certainly , if men had disbanded that execrable troup of lusts , against which these preached , and had listned ( as the Stoicks Book of Discipline injoyned ) to their own private consciences , and had by retiredness abstracted themselves from the reach of temptations , it had facilitated much their conversion : for if the young Lawyer , who came to consult Christ how to draw up his Securities of heaven , and of his portion there , had believed their Oracle , which decry'd riches as the unnecessary baggadge of man's life , and the mudd which clog'd the wings of the souls contemplation , and kept it from soaring its natural pitch , he had never refuised our Saviour's yoke , because he was commanded to sell all and to give it to the poor . Thus likewayes if the rich glutton had dyeted himself according to the scant prescript of their allowance , his scoarched tongue had not stood in need of a drop of watter to allay it's thirst . Neither had Nicodemus needed to have mantled himself in the darkness of the night , when he came to our Saviour , out of fear , lest he should have been discovered ; seing their doctrine might have taught him , that fear was a passion , unworthy to be lodged in the soul of man : And that there is nothing here , which a man either should , or needeth to fear . But albeit neither instinct nor faith , were able to convince us infallibly of this truth ; Yet is it both more satisfying , and more safe to embrace this opinion , then its contrary . More satisfying , because man's summum bonum here , being lodged in the tranquillity of his spirit ; That which can best plaine and smooth the rugged and uneven face of his frequent and inevitable misfortunes , must be doubtless the most carressable of opinions : wherefore , seing nothing can strengthen so much man's frailty , nothing check so soon his dispair , nothing feed so much his hope , nor animate so much his courage , as to believe that there is a God , who beareth the heaviest end of all our crosses upon the shoulders of His love ; who is able to turn , or arrest the giddie wheel of fortune by the strong hand of His Omnipotency ; and who twisteth Lawrels of inimaginable joyes for the heads of these who fight under his banners . If a man leaned not his weary soul upon this divine Rest , he were not only an enemy to nature , but even to his own happiness . What rocks of danger could men escape , if blind-fortune did sit at the helme , and if vertuous persons complain , as affairs are presently stated ? that their merites are not weighed with indifferency enough in the Scales of justice , What might be expected , if hazard got the ballance to mannage ? And these who leave their native countries , when they perceive that the Law beginneth to render its Oracles in an unconstant Stile , and with a trembling voice , behooved to leave the world , if this Anarchy were by Atheisme established ? For as a wise Stoick well observed , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . It were impossible to live in a world , void of God and void of providence . It is likewayes most safe ; for if there be a Deity , doubtless these obdured Atheists , whose obstinacy hath conjured their consciences to a constrain'd silence , and brybed these infallible Witnesses , to depone what suited best with their wild resolutions , or rather neglected resolutly their sincere depositions : then certainly , the just flames of that God's indignation , whom they have disclaimed , will heat for them a furnace in hell , beyond what the other damned spirits shall meet with in their torture . Whereas albeit there be no tribunall , from which such a thunder-bolt sentence may be darted , nor no supreme Judge by whom our actions shall be canvass'd , Then these who have paid their adorations at His altars , shall be in no danger . Wherefore , seing it should be the task of a Virtuoso , to turn out all such thoughts as may raise a mutiny in his breast ; it were a foolish toy in him to entertain Atheisme , which is a Nurcery of disquietness : for whose breast could enjoy a calme whilst a concernment of so much weight , as his externall portion , did hing from the weak threed of a mere may be , and of such a may be , as marches so near with a will not be ? But if ye would know , what disquieting vapours Atheisme sends up to the brain , when it is once drunk in : go to the horrour creating beds of a dying Atheist , whose roaring voice , might awake the most lethargick conscience that ever the devil Iull'd a sleep . There ye shall know by the Urinal of his eyes , and the water standing therein , what convulsion-fits his soul suffers ; and shall learn from his own mouth , how grievously his diseased soul is streatched upon the rack of despair : then it is , that the voluminous Registers of his conscience , which did ly formerly clasp'd in some unsearcht corner of his memory , are laid open before him , and the devil who hitherto gave him the lessening end of the Prospect , to survey his sins in , turns now its magnifying end to his fearfull eye . It should be then the grand design of a Philosopher , to order his own breast aright , before he go abroad to view the Works of the Creation ; least if he leave its door unbolted , the devil steal from him his richest Jewel , whilest he sweats to enrich his contemplation with what is of far less consequence . It is no wild fancy to think , that Atheisme hath been the product of Superstition : for certainly , many who were by humour Gallio's , finding that Religion exacted from men such inhumane homage to its recognizance , as was the sacrificing children amongst the Heathens , wearying Pilgrimages , and hectick Lents amongst Christians , did resolve rather to deny than to adore such Deities . Thus Lucretius revolted upon Agamemnon's sacrificing his daughter Iphigenia for the grecian safety , crying out , Tantum Religio potuit suadere malorum . And thus Petronius ▪ Arbiter a monck of the same Cell , says that , Primus in orbe deos timor fecit , fulmina coelo Cum caderent — And to prevent this , our Saviour doth oft inculcat , that His yoke is easie and His burden is light . And doubtless , as the straightest line is alwayes the shortest ; So the most rational designes are alwayes easilyest effectuated ; and as Seneca hath excellently observed , Licet Deus non esset , tamen non peccarem ob peccati vilitatem . There is something of meanness in the gallantest , and most alluring sin . And this is most energetically exprest in Scripture , whilst it is said that the wicked weary themseles by their sins . A principle , which not only the magisterial Authority of God's Spirit , but our experience likewayes places above the reach of all scruples : for are not the inquietuds , the cheats , and palliated parricids , and sacriledges brooded by ambition , the churlishness and close-handedness parented by avarice , effects unworthy to be father'd upon any rational soul ; And at which we should scarlet our cheeks with blushes , as well as ●npale them through fear , and should stand as much in awe of our consciences , as most do of a Deity ? Yet , it may be we are in a mistake , whilst we place Superstition in the excess of such adorations , as are either commanded or indifferent : for seing the object of our adorations , God Almighty , is in Himself infinit , we can never exceed either in our respects to Him , or in the expression of them . Excess being only admissible , where the object is finit , and where we attribute mor then is due , which can never be here . Thus if Kneeling be lawfull at any occasion , I hardly see why it is not lawfull to kneel at all occasions . And if these exteriour rites and ceremonies ( some whereof are allow'd in all Churches ) be judged requisit , for expressing our vassalage and subordination to God our maker , either they are altogether unwarrantable , or else we should proportion them ( as far as in us lyes ) to that infinit object . And seing the Angels are said to cover their faces with their wings before Him , the Patriarchs to fall upon their face and worship ; and our adorable Saviour , in that conflict wherein He represented sinfull man , is by Matthew remark'd to have fall'n upon His face , by Mark to have fall'n upon the ground , and by Luke to have kneel'd . What is crawling man , that he should account such gestures fond Superstition ? It would appear then , that Superstition consists in man's worshiping God by meanes unlawfull , such as are children-sacrifices , and such like , whereby His divine attributes are mis-represented , and tainted with cruelty , or tyrannie , and not in an excess , in such expressions of our respect as are in themselves lawfull . And if there be any strength in that argument , wherein we inforce the being of God , from the harmonious consent and assent of all Nations : certainly , by that same argument , we may establish the decency , if not the necessity , of Ceremonies . For , what Nation bowes to Altars , without profound and external submissions ? And , who lodges upon the surface of our Globe , who payes not as the reddendo of their Charter to these gods whom they worship , ceremonial Adorations , wrapt up in most submissive Rites ? That God made all things for His glory , is an expression , which ( I think ) looks not well at the test of reason , and hath no warrand but unwary custome : for beyond all question , His glory was so brim-full formerly , that it neither needed , nor could recieve any considerable accession from this small drop . And besids this , the innate apprehension we have of doing any thing for one's glory , dyes this expression with some guilt ; Yet , I confess , we may warrantably say , that when perverse man calls His power in question , or controverts His being only wise ; that then , God for our instruction , and the vindication of His own glorious Attributes , doth many things for His own glory . And in this sense , the Scripture saith , that God will punish the wicked , and deliver His people , for His own glory . And wherever it is said , that God doth , or createh any thing , for His own glory , it is doubtless in this sense ; in which man ( who is made after His image ) may act for his own glory without any vanity ; albeit to act for his own glory in the first sense , were in him criminal . It is then more probable , that God being infinitly good , and all good being sui communicativum , that His design in creating the world , was to communicate and display His goodness : and upon this base probably hath Aristotle reared up his errour , of the worlds existency from all eternity : for , seing God was ab aeterno infinitly good , and that good is still communicative : he did ( it may be ) conclude , that ab aeterno , God did communicate His goodness : which could only be to creatures . And therefore it was necessar that there should have been a world : and some Philosophers have aver'd , that the world flowed from God per emanationem , ab aeterno , as beames are lanced out from the body of the Sun. Albeit I be none of Aristotle's Partisans , nor holds my philosophy of him as my Superior ; Yet I cannot but think , that God hath communicated His goodness to worlds prior to ours , which is but of 5662 years standing . But I am not so arrogant as to determine the time of the first worlds birth , nor how many Cadets it hath had , resolving to leave its Date , blank , to be fill'd up by some arrogant Pretender . Neither should I accuse mine own thoughts of Heresie , for concluding , that probably there are presently thousands of worlds co-existing with ours , whereof some , it may be , are governed by Maximes . If not contrair , yet at least differnt from these which are our Canons . All which worlds , albeit they were actually subsisting , would ly in the bosome of the large imaginarie Spaces , but like so many small balls in the corner of a large Tennis-court . I shall not for confirming this opinion , cite , with an ignorant french Curate , the parable of the Lepers , where it is said , Nonne sunt decem mundi ? because I know that it was wittily answered , Sed ubi sunt reliqui novem ? That Eternity is all present , and that in it , there is neither preterit , nor future , is but a conceit , and a needless mysterie imposed upon our belief , which is really more mysterious then the Trinity ; who knows but it is founded upon an expression in Cicero , wherein Eternity is call'd aeternum instans ? For how then can it be said , that God was before the world ? for was is preterit , and before the world there was , as themselves alledge , no time ; and so there was a was in eternity . Is not God call'd by Himself Alpha and Omega , first and last , the one whereof is preterite and the other future ? And it is said , Rev. 16. 5. O glorious God , who art , and wast , and shalt be . And if it be answered , That this is only fitted to our capacities ; certainly , that is all is craved : for , doubtlesse there is no such reall thing , as these three measures of time , even in things finit and created ; for they ow their being only to our conceit , as well in the one as in the other . And when God descriv'd Himself by His name JAH I am , it was not mean't , that no measure of time could be attributed to Him , but the present ; but rather , that what He was , was to man incomprehensible . And that all we could know of Him , was that He existed ; and by that expression , that all things to Him are present , was mean't , that by His Knowledge intuitive , ( as Divines terme it ) He comprehends all things which were to be , as if they were really present ; and this is spoke , not of his being , but of his knowledge . Neither can it be concluded that if was or shall be , may be attributed to God , then He must be mutable , and that was , denotats mutation ; for as I said formerly , these are but termes , not really existing , and so cannot import any real mutation . How God imployes His uncontrolable Scepter , after what fashion He governs this lower world , and in what characters He writs His eternal Decrees , hath been the arrogant study of some mad-cap Pedants , who talk as magisterially of His Decrees , as if they were of His cabinet Councel . And albeit to deterre such bold intruders , He destroyed thousands of His ancient people , because they look'd into His Ark ; Yet , such is the petulancie of some latter Witts , that they must needs look in to His unsearchable bosome , and there marishall all His Decrees , and conceit they understand His way of working ; and thus in disputing of objects , infinitly removed by their obstruseness from their sense , they shew themselves more ridiculous , then these who would dispute concerning the qualities of an object , before it come so near , as that they may know of what species it is : for seing it is a maxime , that there is nothing in our understanding , which hath not past to it thorow our senses , and that the things of God are immaterial , and so fall not under the cognizance of our senses ; It must be folly to think , that any humane scrutinie can find out mysteries that are so unsearchable , except they be imparted to them by immediat revelation ; a kind of correspondence which I concieve few now a dayes holds with heaven . Yet , I confess , it is as hard to confute their fictions , as it is impossible for them to come by the knowledge of them . But as this study is unattainable , so it is unprofitable for seeing God's art of governing the world , and His Decrees of saveing or damning its Citizens is a trade we shall never be able to practise , Why should we have such an itch to understand it ? It should be enough to us , to be saved , albeit we know not how , or by what manner of Decrees ; except we be of the same mettal with that foolish patient , who would not be cured , because the Physician would not shew him how the cure was to be composed , and what were its ingredients . And is it not the Zenith and top-branch of madness for us to pry into Go'ds unsearchable Decrees , who know not how our neighbour's calf is formed in its Dames belly ? It was a narrow Omnipotency , which some mean spirit'd Heathens allowed their Iupiter , when they conceited that he wanted leasure to dispose of trifles . Non licet exiguis rebus adesse Jovi . For if the twinkling of an eye , were not time sufficient for God to dispose upon all the affairs of this world , then there might be a greater power then His ; and the power to dispose so suddainly , were wanting to his Omnipotency , and so He were not infinit , and consequently no God. Neither was the Rodomontade of Alphonsus , King of Portugal , more pious then this ; when he alleadged that if God had made use of His advice in framing the world , He had helped many things in it , which he now could justly taxe of errour . These two extremes , are the two Poles , whereon the globe of Atheisme turns it self ; some , out of an impious humility , complementing God out of His Authority , by denying that He disposes of the meaner size of business , and others detracting from His providence , in attributing His operations to chance and fate , or branding them with injustice or imprudence . There are among School-men two opinions which dispute victory with ( almost ) equal forces . The one whereof , will have God the sole agent , and to make use of secundary causes , only , as of ciphers , these say that it is not fire which burns , but that God burns ad praesentiam ignis ; nor water which cools , but that God cools ad praesentiam aquae : which is , in my opinion , the same thing as to say , that God jugl'd with man ; and as Charmers do , presented ingredients , but wrought by hid means . In too near an affinity with this , is the Doctrine of Predestination as some teach it , wherein they will have man to play the mere spectator in his own Salvation : and albeit there be a free and full tender of mercy made to lost man , yet will not allow him any power to embrace or reject it ; judging this one of the necessary appanages of God's Omnipotency , that He doth save or condemn ex mero beneplacito , never considering , that the question is not , what God can do , but what He doth : And that it derogats nothing from His Omnipotency , that He will not damn poor sinners , who according to their Doctrine cannot be blamed for their obstinacy ; because it was never free to them to do otherwise : and how ( I pray you ) could the sluggard in the parable , have been punished , for not improving his talent , and laying it up in a napkin , i● God had by His Decree cast an insolvable knot upon that napkin , wherein it was laid up ? The other opinion , will have secundary causes the sole agents ; and teaches , that God in the first moulding of each creature , did dote it with innate qualities , sufficient to act every thing requisit for its subsistence ; but in sign of its subjection to its Maker , reserved to Himself , as His prerogative royal , a power to bend and bow these inclinations upon extraordinary occasions , for the good of the Universe , or when His infallible Omni-prudence should think expedient . Thus , when that Alleyeing eye of the world , the Sun , was first turn'd off the frame , it had in Commission to sow its influences over the world without any retardment ; Yet was its motion arrested , and turn'd back by an extraordinar warrand in the dayes of Ioshua and Zedekiah . Thus they make the creatures resemble a Watch , which after it is once compleated , goes by its own Springs and Wheels , without the Artist's continual assistance . Yet , when either its motion becomes irregular , or when the owner finds it fit , it is unpeec'd , or hath its Index put forward or backward at his pleasure . And this last , seems to suit best with the principles , both of Christianity and Stoicisme . With Christianity , because it gives a check to presumption , and suffers not man to think himself the sole arbiter of his own condition ; because God can easily quash these babylon-like fancies , which his topless ambition is still a building ; and to his despair , because a lift from the strong arme of Providence , may heave him up above all his difficulties . This corresponds best likewayes with Stoicisme , because it pulls the hands of a sluggard from his bosome and setts them awork to prepare for himself , and not to repose his unreasonable hopes upon divine Providence ; which only keeps these from sinking , who endeavour to swimme . This likewayes takes from man , all excuse of sining , not suffering him to lay over his vitiousness upon Providence , a shift too ordinar amongst such , as misunderstand the tashless Doctrine of the reformed Churches . This opinion makes us likewayes understand , what the Heathens meant by fortune , which they termed giddie ; what the Stoicks meant by fate , which they confessed to be irresistable ; and in what sense Philosophers concluded , that each man could hammer out his own fortune . As to the Pagan's fortune , it cannot be thought , that seing it was by themselves confess'd to be blind , that they could trust it with the reines of the admirably manag'd world . And seing they confess'd , that it was alwayes stagering and unconstant , it cannot be thought that they could ascrive to it , all these curious and just events , which they themselves admired hourly . Wherefore it is probable , that the Philosophers , having through the prospect of nature , and by an uninterrupted experience , observed , that man ( who acted from a freedom of spirit unrestrained , either by providence or starr-influences as to his ordinar operations ) was of a volatile and capricious humour ; therefore they concluded , that the state of humane affairs , which was framed and unframed at his ill-fixt pleasure , behoved necessarily to be most subject to changes . And that seing the victories of Cesar , depended upon the inclinations of his souldiers , who by abandoning him , would fetch his prosperity away with them : they had reason therefore to terme his fortune Frail and exposed to hazard . Thus the advancement of the restless Courtier is uncertain , because it hings from the humor of his Prince , whose spirit hath some allay of unconstancy , as well as hath that of the fearfull subject , who trembls under his Scepter . And thus the oyl-consuming Student , can promise himself no applause , because the paralytick hand of the multitudes fancies , holds the scales wherein his abilities are weighed . In fine , fortune was nothing to these Ancients , but the unbodyed freedom of man's will , considered abstractly from all particular persons and the innate qualities of all other creatures , ( which , because they are mortal , must therefore be changable ) then which nothing is more inconstant , nothing more blind . The other branch of divine Providence , which consists in the supreme Authority , whereby God makes all humane inclinations run sometime against the byasse of their specifick nature , was by them termed fate . And this in their mythologie they fabled to be an Adamant chain , which they fastned to the foot of Iupiter's chair , meaning by its adamantine nature , that it was hard to be brok like the Adamant ; and by fastning it to Iupiter's chair , that it was the product of the Almighty's power . Thus fortune and fate , were to them but the right and left hands of christian providence . These embodyed angels , the Stoicks , finding that fortunes megrim could not be cured , nor fates decrees rescinded , and yet resolving , in spight of all external accidents , to secure to themselves a calmness of spirit ; did place their happiness in the contempt of all these follies , whose blossomes fortune could not blast , and sought for happiness in an acquiescence to all which providence did unalterably decree ; So that neither fortune nor fate could stand in the way of their happiness , because they slighted the one , and submitted to the other . And in this sense , each man in their schools , was admitted to be Master-of-work to his own fortune : and that without disparaging the omnipotent power of the great Fortune-maker , in submission to whom their happiness was plac'd . Albeit the knowledge and acknowledgment of a God , be the basis of true Stoicisme , and a firmer one then any the Heathens could pretend to ; Yet , that knowledge of Him , which by the curiosity of School-men and the bigotrie of Tub-preachers , as now formed in a Body of Divinity , is of all others the least necessary and the most dangerous . And whereas we did see God but in a Glass formerly , that Glass is now so misted and soyl'd by each Pedant's flegmatick breath , that it is hard to see Him at all , but impossible to see Him there . And to extend a little that mysterious analogy ; we are said to behold God here , as in a Glass , and as objects are best percieved in the smoothest mirrors ; So the plainest descriptions of Him , are still the truest : for when He is seen by Atheists in the globe-glass of their infidelity , He appears less then really He is , when beheld by the Pagans in the multiplying Glass of Paganisme , He appears many ; and when He is look't upon in the magnifying Glass of Superstition , though He appear but one , Yet He is misrepresented , because He is represented , as more terrible then He desires to appear : and ordinarily the better cut Glasses are , and the more artificiall , the worse the face is by them represented . That first Curse which did sowe all the world with briers and thorns , did , of all other things , fall most heavily upon the soul of man. Which because it was chief in the transgression , ought in reason to have been most tortured in the punishment . And now his disquieted spirit , is daily pierc'd with the prickles of thornie disputes and debates : which , as like briers , they produce no fruit fit for alimenting that noble half of man , which is his rational soul ; So do they , like thorns , pierce his tender conscience , and to screw his torments to their highest pinn ; the thoughts of God , and of settlment in Him , which like balme should cure these sores , is become that hemlock , which occasions his distractions , and poysons his meditations . For , albeit the Heroes of the primitive Church , did give milk in abundance to Infant-christians ; Yet , many of their successors , have mixt it so with the tart vinegar of contention , that that milk beginns now to crudle , and so is become loathsome to the appetite of tender believers . For , most of Church-men , being idle , and concieving , that if they taught only the holy Scriptures , their vocation might by Laicks be undervalued as easy ; and that they would be denyed that applause , which was due to quaintnesse of wit , especially in a setled Church , wherein Church-men could not draw reverence from the people , by Oracles , as did the heathen Priests ; nor by prophecies and miracles , as did the Servants of the most High , under the old and new Testaments . Did therefore , according to their private inclinations , frame each to himself a new kind of Divinity . The more pragmatick sort , and these whose humour was edged with choler , invented polemick or controverted divinity . And so by an intestine and civil war of opinions ▪ raised within the bowels of Religion ; did waste and pillage that holy Canaan , which formerly slowed with the milk of sincere Doctrine , and the honey of divine Consolations . And then , that precious blood , which formerly purpled only pagan-scaffolds , dyed now the swords of fellow-believers : who , to propagate their private judgment , buried Churches under their rubbish , fed the birds of heaven with the carcases of pious and reverend Church-men ; and by the mad hands of bigott opiniastrity , brok to pieces all the sacred bonds of natural and civil duties : and thus they raised the devil of contention , whom they could not lay again ; and made this Itch of disputing , turn the Scab of the Church . Others again , in whose brains sullen melancholy , form'd phantomes and ideas , invented scolastick Theology ; and these , in abstract cells , erected a Mint-house for coyning the dross of their own contemplations , into wonderfull bombast notions : and to make them go current , in the suffering Church , gave them the impressa of Theology . A third sort , not able to soare their pitch in the sky of Invention , resolved to set up a correspondence with heaven : and this they called enthusiastick , or inspired , Theology . And their Cabbins were Post-houses , where one might know what was resolved lately in the conclave of heaven , whether the King or Parliament was to wear the Lawrels , and what should be the issue of our pious rebellions . These could likewise cast the horoscop of your salvation ; and invented a species of Physiognomy , whereby they could tell if the marks of Grace dwelt upon a face , and if one had the traicts of an elect child of God. After this fashion did they prophesie their own fancies , and call that Providence only which made for them . There wants not some likewayes , who , out of a well meaning desire , to make the lamp of truth darte its rayes with the clearer splendor , snuff it so nearly , that they extinguish it quyt : and leavs us nothing but the stink of its snuff ; like some curious Physicians , who purge so frequently , that they destroy the body entrusted to their cure . We in this Island have met with some of these Charletans , who , I am confident , purged oftner both Church and State , then Luke , the beloved physician , would have prescrived , if we had had the good fortune to have been his Patients . The talest witt is not able to reach heaven , albeit ( I know ) many disjoint their witts in stretching them too high in the inquiry of its mysteries . Neither impute I our short-coming in the knowledge of these mysteries , solly to their obstrusness ; but , I believe , our meditations are more clouded in relation to these , then really they need to be , because of their innate frailty : for we see , that some who are masters of much reason in things humane , betray much solly in their devotions : wherefore ▪ I am induced to believe , that it fares with the soul in this , as usually it doth with the body , whose pulls are proportionally the weaker , as the thing grasp'd-after is plac'd above its true reach . And so these arrogant Pretenders pull but faintly , because they raise their meditations too high on their tip-toes : whereby they are disabl'd from imploying all their naturall vigour , in pulling at these weighty and sublime Truths , which they catch , not by that corner which is nearest , as meanner witts do , ( and so are more successfull ) but endeavour a fetch at what in Divinity is highest , by which effort , their endeavours are fainter , then these whose spirit is of a lesser size . And these colossus witts , become the greatest Hereticks , as these ordinarily are most burnt , whose fingers oftest stir up fires , and as Chirurgians have moe cuts and wounds , then any other Mechanicks , who handle not so oft these wounding tools . It is not fit that mortal man should wrestle too much with these mysteries , least his reason , like Iacob , be forc'd to come off , halting . Nothing hath more busied my thoughts , then to find a reason why the Heathens , who were as assiduous and zealous too in the worship of their gods , as we Christians , did never frequent Sermons , nor knew no such part of divine Service ; whereof ( probably ) the reason was because their Governors ( whose commands amongst them were the sole jure-divinoship of all Ecclesiastick Rites ) feared , that Church-men , if they had been licenc'd to harangue to the people , would have influenc'd too much that gross body : which was the reason likewayes , why in the primitive Church ( as one of their Historians observes ) ex formula populo praedicabant , tantum antiquitas timebat 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . They preached only approved Sermons , so much did antiquity fear these leaders of the people , a practice , as is reported , lately renewed by the Duke of Russia : and this seemeth also to have been the reason , why all Liturgies have prick't texts for their Preachers , lest if they had been left a freedom in their choice , they had chose such as might , in the letter , have suited best with such seditious Libels as are now obtruded upon the people , in lieu of pious homilies , at remarkable or festival occasions . Yet , I think , that our late Doctors , who can find all Doctrine in any text , would easily have eluded that canonick designe . If we should parallel the homilies , which these renowned Fathers have left , as Legacies , to posterity , with these which our age runs after , we would find , that the first were pointed lessons of mortification ; which , like Moses rod , could draw gushes of tears from the rocky hearts of the most obdured sinners ; whereas many of these last are but State-gazets , wherein the people are informed , what are the resolves of the civil Magistrate : And whereas their first institution made them Ambassadors of glad-tydings betwixt God and His people , they have made themselves Heraulds , to denounce warres betwixt God's Vice-gerent and His subjects . Thus , Peter's successors will oft times , like himself , rather draw the sword then watch for their Master . And since our Saviour hath disarmed them , as He did Peter , and filled their hands with the keyes , these who offend them are sure to get over the head with these . I confesse , God hath not left His Church without some skilfull Pilots , to lead in His servants , with security , to the harbour of Salvation : to whom this Discourse and it's Author shall pay all respects . Most of all Churches do , like coy maids , lace their bodies so strait , that they bring on them a consumption ; and will have the gates of heaven to have been only made for themselves : and as this nigardliness hath possest Churches , so from that root hath stem'd the churlishness of some private Christians , who will allow God but a most inconsiderable number of these whom He hath admitted to make up His visible Church . Thus , some Pastors will only admit two or three to be guests at the Lord's Table , allowing no wedding garment , but what is of their own spinning : and others , with their uncharitable hands , blut the names of all their acquaintances out of the Books of Life , as if they were keepers of His Registers and Rolls ; and will only have seats kept in the Church , triumphant , for three or four Sisters , who are so srugal of their devotions , as to spare them at home , to the end , they may be liberal in publick . But both these should consider , that the new Ierusalem is said to have moe gates then one ; that Iohn in his Revelation tells us , that numberless numbers were seen following the Lamb ; and that it is not probable , that the wise Framer of the world made such a spacious dwelling as heaven , to be inhabited by so inconsiderable a number : whereas hell ( in the geography of believed tradition ) is only the small kernel of this small shell the earth . I know , that many are called and few chosen ; and that the way is strait , and few enter in at it : But we should consider , that these chosen , are said to be few , in respect only of these many who are called . Which is most certain ; for ten Parts of eleven are Pagans or Mahumetans , ( and all are called ) of that elevnth part , many are malitious Hereticks ; and amongst the residue many are flagitious and publick sinners ; So that albeit the greatest part of the regular members of the visible Church were sav'd , Yet the number would be small in comparison of these others : The body of the visible Church , must ( like all other bodies ) be compounded of contrary elements . And albeit I am not of opinion , that this body should be suffer'd to swell with humours , yet I would not wish , that it should be macerated with purgations . It 's nails ( though but excrementitious parts ) should not be so nearly pair'd , as that the body may bleed ; yet , they should be so pared , as that christians may not scratch one another . They should feed , not upon blood , but milk : and they are unmannerly guests , who will not suffer others to sit at their Masters table with them . It pleases my humour to contemplat , how , that albeit all Religions war against one another ; yet , are all of them governed by the same principles , and even by these principles , in effect , which they seem to abominat . Thus , albeit the cessation of miracles be cryed down by many , yet , do the most bigot relate , what miracles have been wrought by the founders of their Hierarchies , and what prophesies they have oraculously pronounced . And seing all confess , that God , in our dayes , breaks the prosperous upon the same Wheel , on whose top they did but lately triumph ; making fortune adopt the opprest in their vice ; why should we talk so much of the ceasing of miracles ? For , doubtless , these effects are in policy , as contrair to nature , as are the swimming of iron , or sweetning of rivers ; or rather more : Seing in the first , mans will is forc'd ( without which , such revolutions could not be effectuated ) whereas in the last , dull and sensual qualities are only wrested : which , as they are not so excellent , so , doubtless , are not able to make such resistance as the Soul of man : Yea , I should rather think , that the world being become old , must , doubtless , be more dim-sighted ( as all old things are ) then formerly ; and therefore , God doth now present greater objects of admiration to our eyes then He did formerly : For , man is become so atheisticall , that if God did not presse His meditations with such infallible testimonies of the being of an irresistable power , he would , doubtless , shake of all resolutions of submitting . Thus , we see that in all the tract of Iohn's Revelations , miracles grow still more frequent , the nearer the world draweth to it's grave ; and , like all other bodies , the weaker it becomes , the more subject it is to all alterations , and the less is nature able to resist . And it would appear , that if miracles were requisit at first , for the establishment of Religion , even when no older Religion was to cede to it , and to make an exit at it's entry ; much more , should miracles be necessar , for fixing any Religion against the received constitutions of a previously settled Church . But to prosecute my first design , it is remarkable , that albeit infallibility be not by all , conceded to any militant Church ; yet , it is assumed by all : Neither is there any Church under the Sun , which would not fix the name of heretick , and account him ( almost ) reprobat , who would refuse to acknowledge the least rational of their Principles : and thus these Church-men pull up the ladders from the reach of others , after they have by them scal'd the walls of preferment themselves . That Church-men should immerse themselves in things civil , is thought excentrick to their sphere , even in ordine ad spiritualia : And yet , even the Capuchins , who are the greatest pretenders to abstract Christianity and Mortification , do , of all others , dipth most in things civil . The Phanaticks enveigh against Presbyterian Gowns . The Presbyterian tears the Episcopal lawn Sleeves , and thinks them the whore of Babel's shirt . The Episcopist slouts at the popish Robes , as the livery of the beast . The Antinomian emancipats his disciples from all obedience to the Law. The Protestant enjoyn good works , and such are commanded , but place no merit in them . The Roman-catholick thinks he merits in his obedience . The Phanatick believs the Lords Supper but a ceremony , though taken with very little outward respect . The Presbyterian allowes it , but will not kneel . The Episcopist kneels , but will not adore it . The Catholick mixeth adoration with his kneeling . And thus , most of all Religions are made up of the same elements , albeit their asymbolick qualities predomine in some more then in others . And if that maxime hold , that majus & minus non variant speciem , we may pronounce all of them to be one Religion . The Church , like the river Nilus , can hardly condescend where it's head lyes ; and as all condescend that the Church is a multitude of christians , so joyn all their opinions , and you shall find that they will have it to have , like the multitude , many heads . But in this ( as in all Articles , not absolutely necessar for being saved ) I make the Laws of my countrey to be my Creed : and that a clear decision herein is not absolutely necessar for Salvation , is clear from this , that many poor Clowns shall be saved , whose conscience is not able to teach their judgments how to decide this controversie , wherein so many heads have been confounded , so many have been lost , and so many have been shrewdly knockt against one another ; from which flinty collisions , much fire , but little light , hath ever burst forth . God , by His Omniscience , foreseeing , that it was too dazleing a sight for the pur-blind eyes of man's soul , to behold Him invironed with the rayes of divine Majesty , did bestow upon us , three mirrours , wherein we might contemplat Him ( as we use to look upon the Sun in a tub of water , not daring eye His native splendor ) the one was the mirrour of the Law , the second is the works of the Creation , and the third is the Soul of man , which He Himself hath told us is framed after His own glorious Image . As for the first mirrour , the Law ; God knowing that instinct , or as we terme it , a natural conscience , were compleat digests of all that man was to observe ▪ He did make that mirrour very little , a volumne of only two pages ; but that mirrour is , of late , so mullered about , by marginal Notes and Commentars , that the mirrour it self is almost over-spread by them ; and it is very observable , that in the holy Registers , the Law is still abridged , but we never see it enlarg'd : For , albeit the fundamental Laws of both Tables were packed up in narrow bounds , yet our Saviour sums them in these two , fear the Lord thy God with all thy heart , and , love thy neighbour as thy self . And the Apostle Paul , in his divine Epistles , professes , that he desires to know only Christ , and Him crucified : So , that I am confident , that if our Saviour were to preach in person , once more to the world , He would enveigh against our Casuists , as much as He did against the Jewish Talmudists ; for , the one as well as the other , are equally guilty of burdening the shoulders of weak christians , with the unnecessary trash of humane inventions . For , I remember to have seen a late Casuist , dispute contentiously amongst his other cases , whither Tobacco , taken in the morning , did break a commanded fast or not ? To which , after a feaverish conflict , his wisdom , forsooth , returns this oraculous answer ; That if Tobacco be taken at the nose , it breaks not the fast , but if it be taken at the mouth , then it breaks the fast . Which , because I made a Collasterion betwixt the Casuists and the Talmudists , I shall only mention out of the Talmude ( which was the Iews comment upon the Law ) a case , exactly parallel to this : wherein is decided , that if a man carry a burden on the Sabbath day , upon both his shoulders , then he is guilty of breach of Sabbath , but that he is not guilty if he carry it upon one shoulder . As to my own private judgment , ( which I submitt to my spiritual tutors ) I think , that seing the conscience of man , is the same faculty with the judgment when conversant about spiritual imployments ( as the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which imports a knowledge reflexive upon a man 's own self , doth abundantly evidence ) that therefore , as there are judgments of different tempers ; So there are likewise consciences of different frames : and which vary as much amongst themselves , as natural constitutions do . And therefore , as the same Dose would prove noxious to one constitution , wherein another would find his health ; So in one and the same act , that resolution may be saving to one conscience , which may condemn another : for , seing God hath kindled a torch in each mans breast , by whose flame he may see what path he should beat . In which sense it is said , Prov. 20. 27. That the understanding of man is the candle of the Lord ; and can that light mislead ? And seing man must be answerable according to what it prescrives to him , doubtless it is fitter that he should hearken to the reiterated dictates of his conscience , than to the resolution of any School-casuist : and that for the same reason , that it is more rational to obey the Law it self , than the wisest Lawier , who may either be deceived himself , or have a design to deceive others . For if God hath endued man with every thing necessary for working out the work of his own Salvation , with fear and trembling , He hath doubtless bestowed upon him an internal touch-stone , by whose test he may discern betwixt good and evil ; seing to command man to walk uprightly , and not to bestow on him eyes to see the road , were to command a blind man to walk , and to punish him if he went astray . And as the composure of man's body , would be imperfect and manck , if he wanted a palate to discern bewixt the tast of what is wholsome , or what is putrid ; So if the soul of man were not able to know its own duty , and by the palate of a natural conscience , to difference betwixt lawfull and unlawfull : certainly the soul might be thought to be but ill appointed . Thus , beasts are by an intrinsick principle taught their duty , and do accordingly shun or follow what is convenient for them , without consulting any thing from without . And shall man be less perspicacious , or more defective then these ? As also seing man is oftimes by thousands of occasions , removed far from the assistance of Chair or Pulpit-informers ; and in that his retiredness , hath most of these cases to be resolved : it were absurd to think that he then wants sufficiency of help for their resolution . And it is most observable in Scripture , that men are oft check'd for quenching the Spirit , but never for not consulting Casuists . I know it may be thought , that when the soul of man rages at sometime in a feaver of lust , revenge , or some such sin , that then the conscience may rave ; Yet I dare say , that albeit the soul , out of an inordinat desire to enjoy its own pleasures , may set its invention a work , to palliat the sinfulness of what it desires ; yet by some secret knell , the conscience sounds still its reproof . And I dare say , that never man erred without a check from his conscience ; nor that ever any sinned , after an approbation obtained from his conscience of what he was about : and when we assent to these Doctors , is it not because our consciences , or our judgments ( which are the same ) assent , to what they inform ? which evidences , that our consciences are more to be believed , then they , by that rule , Propter quod unumquodque est tale , &c. but to convince us of the folly of our addresses to these Doctors . It may , and often doth fall out , that that may be a sin in me , which a Casuist pronounces to be none , as if my breast did suggest to me , that it were a sin to buy Church-lands ; if thereafter I did buy them , it were doubtless a sin , albeit my Doctors , following the Canons of their particular Church , assured me , that the sale of Church-lands were no sin in it self . I am confident then , that this Casuist divinity , hath taken its rise from the desire Church-men had to know the mysterie of each man's breast , and to the end , nothing of import , might be undertaken without consulting their Cell ; perswading men , that in ordine ad spiritualia , their consciences , and consequently their Salvation , may be interested in every civil affair . And to confirm this , it is most observable , that this trade is most used by Iesuits and Innovators , who desire to know all intrigues and subvert all States , whereas the primitive Church knew no such Divinity , neither hath its Doctors left any such Volumns . It may be urged , that seing the conscience is but a reflex act of the judgment , that as the judgment is an unsure guid , the conscience cannot pretend to be infallible ; and that the one , as well as the other , is tutor'd by the fallacious principles of sense and custom : And I my self have seen my Lands-lady , in France , as much troubled in conscience for giving us flesh to eat in Lent , as if she had cast out the flesh of a christian to be devoured by dogs ; and so Atheisme may attribute to custom , these inclinations whereby we are acted-on to believe a Deity ; and may tell us , that the Mahumetans find themselves as much prickt in conscience , for transgressing their Prophets canons , as we for offending against the moral Law. And thus the adoring of a Deity might have at first been brooded in the councilchamber of a States-mans head , and yet might have been , at that time by the vulgar , and thereafter by the wisest pates , worshipped with profound respects : Yet , if we pry narrowly into this conceit , we shall find in it something of instinct previous to all forgeries possible . For , what was it ( I pray you ) which encouraged , or suggested to these Politicians , that such a thing as the Deity might be dissembled to their people for their imposing that cheat , presupposed some pre-existing notion of it ? Or , how entred that fancie first in their wild heads ? Or , how could so many contemporary , and yet far distant , Legislators , fall upon the same thoughts , especialy , it being so remote from sense ; and for framing of which idea , their experience could never furnish a pattern ? Conscience then must be something else then the fumes of melancholy , or , capricio's of fancie ; for else , roaring Gallants , who are little troubled , or can easily conquer all other fancies , would not be so haunted by these pricking pangs ; which if they were not infallibly divine , behooved to be meerly ridiculous , and to want all support from reason or experience . There is another fyle of cases of conscience , which is a Cadet of that same family ; and these are such cases as were the brood of these late times , which , like Infects and unclean creatures , may be said generari ex putri materiâ : an instance whereof , was that famous Sister , who ask'd if she was oblidg'd to execute her catt for killing a mouse upon the Sabbath . This was a Theology , taught by old dotting Wives , and studied by State-expectants , who , to gain applause , and in hope to mount Preferment 's Sadle , made use of this gilded stirrop . I shall not inveigh against this foppery , seing it hath not possest mens conceit so long , as to have prescrived the tittle of Divinity ; but , like a meteor , which , because it is fixt to no Orbe , and is but a mass of inflamed vapours , doth therefore disappear immediatly , how soon its substance flashes out ; and its ashes are now entomb'd in the same clay with its brother twain , that pious Non-sense , wherein God Almighty was treated with in familiar and not in superiour . As God did light the candle of a private conscience , in each private breast ; So hath He hung up the lamp of the Scriptures , in the body of His Church ; and these we may call the conscience of the Church , whilst triumphant . Which some , by the breath of their vanity , and stormes of their passion , endeavour to blow out , whilst others , make no other use of its Light , then to shew them where to find a jest . And within the armes of this division , ly folded , all the prophane race of mankind . As to these first ( who should be first , because they are Sathan's first-born , and so deserve a double portion of this reproof ) they contend , that the Scriptures are writen in a mean and low stile ; are in some places too mysterious , in others too obscure ; contain many things ineredible , many repetitions , and many contradictions . But these miscreants should consider , that much of the Scriptures native splendor is impared by its Translators , who , fearing to fall within the verge of the curse pronounced against such as should pair from , or adde to , any thing contained in that divine Book , were , and are willing , that their Translation should want rather the lustre , then meaning of the Original . As also of all Tongues , I believe the Hebrew admits least of a Translation ; especially into northern Languages : for as these Nations differ least in their expressions , who , because of their commerce or contiguity , have the most frequent converse . So doubtless ▪ the Iews and we , by this Rule , should in language hold the least correspondence . And because there is no pure fountain of this Tongue left , besides the Bible , it must be hard to understand its expressions , wherein the Translators can find little or no help from the variety and collation of Authors . And seing this Book was penn'd indifferently , for all Ages , Nations and Sexes , it was sit that its stile should have been condescending : for these who are tall , can pull the fruit which hangs low , whereas these who are low , cannot pull what pearch's high . And it is very observable , that where the fruit is greatest and ripest , there the branch whereon it hangs , bowes lowest . When God appeared to Elijah , Kings 19. there came first a terrible wind , thereafter a great earthquake , and then fire ; and yet God was in none of these , but spoke in the shrill small voice . His divine Providence hath so order'd it , that our conviction cannot be ascrib'd to the fard of Eloquence nor slight of Logick , but merely to the truth of what is therein represented : our Saviour , will with clay and spitle , illuminate our eyes , as He did these of the other blind man in the Gospel . And such is the strength of His divine Arme , that He can vanquish Sathan , misbelief and ignorance with any weapon . And as we think the Sun's circumference but little , because it is situated so far above us ; So we conclude these truths and excellencies but mean , because they are plac'd above our frail reach , and will blame the Scriptures , when the fault lurks in our selves , that great Physician will cure us , like an artist , with simples , specifick for our disease , and not like a Charletan , with perfumed and gilded nothings . It is not allwayes the best mettal , which carries the pleasingest impressa ; nor doth the painted candle cast the clearest light . There are many things in Scripture , which because of our frailty , appear ( like a staff in the waters ) to be crooked , albeit they be streight . Why Abraham should have kill'd his son Isaac ; or the Israelites have borrowed and not restored the egyptian Ear-rings , staggers not my belief : for these belong'd to God , and neither to Abraham , nor the Egyptians : and so God might have given order to any He pleased to recieve them : and these who obey'd , were no more guilty , then such are , who by order from the Master , recieve what he did formerly lend to others . And as to its repetitions ▪ they differ , no doubt , from one another ; albeit we ( who think all things removed , though by a little distance from us , of one shape ) judge ill , in judging otherwayes . And as an excellent person hath well observed , God hath appointed these reiterated expressions , to be as so many witnesses , to convince Hereticks and others , who should call the meaning of any one place in question , or wrest it by what preceeds or followes it . As to these others , in whom the wine of God's consolations , ( by being winded in the crackt vessels of their heads ) turns into the tart vinegar of prophane Satyres , I condole their condition : for , that stomach must be very corrupt , wherein the best of aliment putrifies most ; and probably , that indigested milk , being converted in excrementitious bile and humours , may cast them in a feaver which shall never cool to all eternity . I pity likewayes these , who , out of an in-advertent ( and as they think , sinless ) humour , jest with these divine truths ; like foolish children , who love rather to sport with their meat then eat it . These , albeit they intend not to prophane Scripture , yet , they vilifie it : And we may say of the Bible as of taking of God's name in our mouths , which must not only , not be done upon design , to blaspheme and diffame Him ; but must not be taken but upon necessity , and , like the Shew-bread , must be used only when we are in straits . I have been too guilty of this last sin my self ; and therefore , least I should make no attonement , I have rather resolved to appear before the world , in the dust and sackcloath of this silly Discourse , a Pennance , really , to me very great . When I consider how various and innumerable are the actions of men , and that in all these , they need particular instructions from above the Poles , I admire why there are so many passages in Scripture , from which our necessity may expect no assistance . And therefore , least I should think , that in Scripture there is any waste of words , I am induced to believe , that there run 〈…〉 allegory in that holy Book from Genesis to Iohn's Revelation , and that it 's mystical sense is that which deserves the name of God's Word . Might we not have admired why the Story of Hagar and her bastard is there voluminously descrived , and what the Church or private Devotion was concerned therein , if Paul , Gal. 4. 24. had not discovered the mystery to us ? By which things , another thing is meant : For , these two mothers are the two Testaments , the one which is Agar , of mount Sinai , which gendereth into bondage , &c. I might here relate many excellent allusions to prove this , but I shall satisfie my self with one which I did read in one Doctor Ever●t ; who , preaching upon Ioshua , 15. 16. Then Caleb said , he who smiteth Kirjath-sepher and taketh it , even to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife . And Othniel took it , &c. saith , that Caleb signifies a good heart , Kirjath-sepher the city of the Letter , Achsah the Vision , Othniel God's opportunity . And so the mystical sense runs , a good heart saith , that whoever will take in ( and smite , as Moses did the rock ) the Letter of the word , shall have the vision which lurks under it discovered and given to him . And God's own time is the only mean for accomplishing this : As also , it is most remarkable , that that City which was called Cirjath-sepher before it was taken in , or , the city of the Letter , was , after it was conquered , called Debi● , which signifies an oracle ; so that the Word or Letter is no oracle , till it be once , as it were , taken in and overcome . Since the reading of which Sermon , I believe that one may profit more by an hebrew Lexicon , then by a thousand English Lectures . These who detract from Scripture , by attributing the production of miracles , to natural causes , do not much disparage the power of God , but ( though against their depraved intention ) cry rather up his omnipotency : For certainly , if these miracles were produced by secondary causes , then doubtless , that productive faculty was bestowed upon them by the Almighty ; and if he can make the creatures produce such strange effects , much more is he able to effectuate them himself ; as it is more difficult , for a great Master , to form curious and admirable Characters when he leads a schollars hand , then when he writes them with his own ; for , such help may be called resisting assistance . I cannot likewise but blame many of our Preachers , who rather break then open holy Texts ; and rather make new meanings , suiting with their private designes , then tell the meaning of the Spirit . Who would not have laugh'd to hear a Presbyterian observe , from the first chapter of Genesis , first verse , that whilst Moses relates what God made , he speaks nothing of Bishops ; by which it was evident ( said Don Quixot's Chaplain ) that Bishops were not of divine Institution : a conceit as ridiculous as that of a Priest , who hearing Maria spoken of for to signifie Seas , did brag that he had found the Virgine Mary named in the old Testament . Albeit I think preaching no part of divine Worship , hearing being no adoration ; yet , love I to go to Church , were it but to see a multitude met together , to confess that there is a God : But , when I go to hear I care not whom , knowing that Christ elected Fisher-men to preach down infidelity , when it was in the ●uff of it's pride : and that Paul ( the most signal Trophe of our christian Faith ) was sent for confirmation , not to Peter or Iames at Ierusalem , but to Ananias , one of the meanest amongst the Disciples . And seing our Salvation , by preaching , is a miracle ; it is still so much the greater by how much weaker the instruments are . When the Pulpit was a mount Sinai , from which the Law was thundered , or a mount of O lives , whereon our Saviour's glorious transformation was to be seen , then were Sermons to be honoured ; but , since it is become a mount Calvar , whereon our blessed Saviour suffers daily , by scandalous railings , Sermons are now become unfavoury for the most part . I hate to see that divine place made either a Bar , whereat secular quarrels are , with passion , pleaded ; or a Stage , whereon revenge is , by Satyres , satisfied ; or , a School-chair , from which un-intelligible questions are mysteriously debated ; but amongst all these innovations , introduced by our infant Divines . I hate none more then that of giving reasons for proving the Doctrine , which being Scripture it self , can be proven by nothing that is more certain . As for instance , when the Doctrine is , that God loved us freely , how can this be proven more convincingly then thus , my Text sayes it : and that is idem p●r idem , a most unlogical kind of probation . When I then go to Church , I should love to spend my time in praises and prayers ; which as they are the only parts of adoration , so are they the natural imployments of the Church , either Militant or Triumphant : Yet , it displeases me to hear our young Pulpitires skrich and cry , like Baal's Priests , as if God were no nearer them then the visible Heavens . It honours much our imployment , that God Almighty was the first and great Law-giver ; and that our blessed Saviour stiles himself our Advocat . And it is an amazing wonder that we are tyed only by ten Laws ; whereof seven were enacted doubtless for our advantage and respect , more immediatly the security of the creature then the honour of the Creator , and are such restraints as men behoved to have laid upon one another , and which nature layes upon us all . And albeit I laugh at the jewish Cabala , which sayes , that the moral Law was written , two thousand years before Moses , in black letters , at the back of a clear burning fire : Yet , can I not approve Tertullian's wit , who endeavours to find all these ten in the prohibition made to Adam . There are indeed some sins which scarce a consequence can bring within the verge of these Commandments . As for instance , Drunkenness : Yet , these are such as are so destructive to our nature , that there needs no Law be made against them . So that the Priest hit wittily , to whom that sin being confess'd , enjoyned as an Pennance , their being drunk a second time ; which makes me conclude , that if Drunkenness were to be ranged under any of these Laws , it would fal most naturally under that , Thou shalt not kill . Albeit the fourth Commandment seems to respect only the honour of God , and that the creature seems to be no wayes bettered by it : Yet , our more serious observation will discover , that all be-labouring creatures , as it were , expect an ease the seventh day more then any other . Whether it be , that nature is by custom framed to that expectation , I cannot tell : But , we see that God choic'd that number to be the year of jubile amongst his own people , and that it is the period of all the several consistencies in our life , infancie , pubertie , &c. And for this reason Physicians observe , that the child born in the seventh moneth is stronger then that which is born in the eight ; because in the seventh it is come to a knot , by passing whereof , in the eight it is in a state of imperfection : But , what the mystery of this holy Climaterick is , I refer till we come to that Sabbath of rest , whereat we ordinarly arrive , after seven times nine years hath snowed upon us . We may think , that if God had intended , that one and the same day of the week should have been appropriated to have been a Sabbath , He had designed each day by a special terme , and had commanded , that a day of such a designation , should have been sequestrated for a Sabbath ; and that by designing only the seventh day He did leave a liberty to employ any day of the seven for that use . Yet , it is remarkable , that Mosos nor the jewish Church durst not attempt the change of their new-years day ; but that the Almighty was pleased to bestow a peculiar sanction upon that alteration : For , Exod. 12. 2. He commands , that the moneth wherein the Israelites came from Egypt , should be , by them , reputed the first moneth of their year . Wherefore , seing each Nation chalks out a divers Sabbath , it would appear that there is something of humour in it as well as of Religion . The Venerious Mahumetan chooseth Friday , or , dies Veneris ; The dull Iew dull Saturn's day ; The warlick Parthians Tuesday , or , Mars-day ; The cheery Europeans Sunday . And albeit the Christians are influenc'd only by inspiration ; yet , I am confident , that the heathens did follow that for Religion , which suited best with their natural temper . But this is a meditation which should travel no where beyond a mans private breast , lest it meet with enmity and beget scandal . It would puzle a heathen much to hear , that he who breaks one of these Laws , is guilty of the breach of all : But , it troubles not me , seing all these Laws are made to shew our obedience , and the breach of any one of them shewes our contempt of Him who is the author of all . And it may be this was typified in Moses's breaking both Tables with one passionat fling , after he came down from the Mount : For , if this breaking of them had not been pre-design'd for some hid end ▪ doubtless he had been reproved for his negligence . However , we may from this learn the desperate nature of passion , which made Moses , who was the meekest man upon earth , break all the Laws of God in one act . It might be also argued , that seing all the Laws of the second Table were enacted for , and respect ultimatly , the advantage of man , that where man is not wronged , there the Law cannot be broke . And thus , if a married man should have liberty from his wife to take another woman , this could be no more reputed adultery , then it could be reputed theft to take what belongs to our neighbour , himself consenting ; and that for this cause , Iacob's begetting children with his wifes maids , is not in Scripture reproved as adultery , because they were given to him by her self for that effect : but , seing the practice of all the world condemns this conclusion , far be it from me to press it further . Albeit the judicial Law ( which may be justly called the judicious Law ) is commonly reputed to be but the municipal Law of the Jews ; yet , seing it was thundered from mount Sinai with so much pomp , and is ingrost in the Books of holy Truth , and seems nearlier related to reason then any other Law , I admire why it should not be religiously observed by all Nations : especially seing , as it is , the exactest picture of Justice that ever was drawn , so it hath this of a picture in it , that it seems to look directly upon all who behold it , albeit they be placed ( amongst themselves ) in directly opposite , situations and stances . Thus this Law suits even with contrary tempers , and the unequal complexions of all Nations . I know that the ceremonial Law is likewayes insert amongst the other holy Canons , and yet binds not us who live under the jurisdiction of the Gospel : But , the reason of this seems to be , because these did immediatly concern the jewish Church , and were conversant about these holy things . And so , seing the old Testament is a description of their Hierarchy , and of God's way of working in these times , I wonder not to see these ceremonies amidst other sacred truths , and yet not observed , seing they are expresly abrogat . But , if the judicial Law , which respected not the Hierarchy of that Church , was obligatour only whilst the jewish State was in being , I admire why the Spirit of God took so much pains , first to penn it , and then to deliver it so Canon-like to posterity . And since it is a principle in Law and reason , that Laws must still stand in vigor till they be expresly abrogat , and must not be derogated from by consequences or presumptions , I admire why this Law , which God hath enervat by no express Text , should be now look'd upon as Statutes nowise a-la-mode . It is true , that our Saviour , when the woman , convicted of adultery , was brought to Him , did not , according to that Law , pronounce the sentence of death against her ; whence some think , that Church-men , following their Masters example , should not give their suffrage in criminal cases , and have only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , a bloodless Jurisdiction ; for , they are appointed to be Nurses , not Chyrurgions . But , it is as true , that our Saviour professed in all the tract of His life , that He came not to be a Judge in things temporal , and His design in that place was only to convince them of their own sinnes , and not to absolve her , not to abrogat the Law : and therefore He desired him who was freest from sin , to cast the first stone at her . And whereas it is conjectured , that these words which our Saviour stoop'd down to write in the clay , immediatly thereafter was an abrogation of that Law ; this is a Geomancy more wilde then any lesson which is alledged to have been read in the mysterious face of Heaven , and should never be taught but in a Rabbies cabalastick Gown . And whereas it is alledged , that there are many precepts in that corpus Iuris , which respects only the humor of the Jews , I admire why that can be urged ; for certainly , theft , murder , and these other crimes punished there , are the same crimes which reigns amongst us ; and so why not punishable after that same manner ? Neither are the humors of these Jews more different from ours , then was the genius of the Romans ; and yet , few or no Nations refuse to cast their modern Laws in that antique mould . And it is very probable , that as God did , in the moral Law , teach man how to be just in his own actions , so He would likewayes instruct him by a judicial Law , how to administrate Justice to others . What can perpetuate a Law more then that the Authority whereby it is enacted should be obligatory in all ages , and the reason whereon it is founded should be eternal ? and in what Laws do these two qualities appear more , or so much , as in the judicial Laws of the Jews , where the eternal Law-giver was Legislator , and the occasion , productive of them seemed rational ( and necessar ) to His infallible omniscience ? and if in any of these statutes , our purblind judgments cannot see a present conveniency , we should rather impute that to our own simplicity , then charge it as a guilt upon His divine Statutes ; and are there not many municipal Laws in each Country , which have no hedge about them to keep them untrampled upon by wanton and too curious wits ? But , that excellent Maxime , Omnium quae fererunt Majores nostri , non est reddenda ratio , ne que certa sunt , incerta redderentur ; a reason must not be rendred for all that our Ancestors have enacted , lest what is now certain , become then uncertain . Albeit a Law enacted only by humane Authority , seem unreasonable or inconvenient ; yet , it retains it's vigor till it be abrogat by the same , or a higher Authority , then that whereby it was first statuted ; and the Law sayes , that nihil est tam naturale quam unumquodque eodem modo dissolvi quo colligatum est . And , seing the moral and judicial Laws are twisted so together , and are oft incorporated in one statute , as Levit. 20. 10. Deut. 22. 22. where adultery is forbidden , and the adulterer is to die the death : how can we think the one half of this Law obligatory for ever , and yet neglect it 's other half , wherein the punishment is specified , and which appears to have been the scope of the divine Law-giver ? For , the world needed not so much to have been acquainted , that adultery was a sin , as that that sin deserved death ; and if we allow our capricious humor the liberty to reject what we think inconvenient , we may at last arrive at that pitch of licentiousness , as to abrogat , by our practice , whatever choaks our present humor . There are many things much mistaken in that Law , which makes the dissonancy betwixt it and our Law , appear so much the greater . As for instance , it is concluded , that by that Law , no theft was punishable by death ; whereof this is given as a reason , because there is no proportion betwixt goods and life ; and that all that a man hath he will give for his life , whereas this argument would prove , that no guilt but murder should be punished with death ; and so this dart rather flees over then hits the mark at which it is level'd . And if this argument concluded , why should adultery have been punished with death by that Law , seing there seems no proportion betwixt that guilt and death ? For , if vita & fama be in Law equiparat , by that same Law , pecunia est alter sanguis . But , if there be no proportion betwixt goods and life , and if the punishment of theft ; when it is aggrag'd to it 's greatest height , cannot , in their opinion , reach so far as to be capital . Why was it , that by that Law nocturnal theevs might have been killed by those who found them ? Exod. 22. 2. For , it appears against reason , that more should be permitted to a private and passionat party , then to a dis-interested Judge . And it is clear by 2 Sam. 12. 5 ▪ that theft was in some cases capital : For , there David vows , that he who took his neighbours one sheep , and spared his own many , should surely die ; which being spoke by a just King to an excellent Prophet , and not reproved , must not be thought a flash of passion , but a well-founded sentence . Were not likewayes two theevs crucified by the Jews at the same time with our ever glorious Saviour ? which must not be thought a romish execution , seing the Law of the Romans allowed no such punishment for theft : I judge therefore , the reason why murder and adultery were punished with death , rather then all thefts , to have been , because theft may be repaired by restitution , but murder and adultery cannot . And albeit the judicial Law commands restitution only in the theft of an ox or sheep , ( things of small moment , and which may be stollen to satisfie rather hunger then lust ) yet , I see no limits set to Judges , commanding them not to inflict a capital punishment in extraordinary cases : For certainly , he who steals , may , for ought he himself knows , be about the committing of murder , seing to steal what should aliment any poor one , is , in effect , the same thing as to murder him . It is much controverted , if this Law prohibits self-murder , and I think it doth : For , we are commanded to love our neighbour as our self ; and so , since we are commanded not to kill our neighbour , that same Law must likewayes forbid our killing of our selves . But the reason probably , why no express Text did forbid that sin , was , because the Spirit of God knew that the natural aversion we have against death , would , in this , do more then supply a Law ; and that these who would be so desperat as to neglect the one , would never be so pious as to obey the other . Or else , God hath been unwilling , by making such a Law , to intimate to the world , that such a sin might be committed . Yet , it seems strange , that many are in Scripture related , as Saul and others , to have killed themselves , against whom no check stands registrated in holy Records . But , I stop here , intending to bestow a whole Tractat upon the judicial Law , a task hitherto too much neglected . The second mirrour , wherein God Almighty is to be seen , is that of His creatures ; and in that a Virtuoso may contemplat His infinite power , as in the other he may see His admirable justice . It is very observable , that when God , or His Prophets , would prove His greatness , the Sun , Orion and the Leviathan , are made use of as arguments . And when the Spirit of God descrives the inimitable knowledge of Solomb● , bestowed upon him by God , as an extraordinar mark of His favour , he sayes not , that he understood the quirks of Philosophy , or notions of Divinity ; but , it is said , that he knew all from the Cedar of Lebanon to the Hysope that grows upon the wall . And in earnest , it is strange , that when man comes into the gallery of this World , he should take such pleasure in gazing upon these ill-drawn fictions , which have only past the pencil of humane wit , and should not fix his admiration upon these glorious creatures , which are the works of that great Master ; in framing whereof , God is content to be said to have spent six dayes , to the end , that man might admire the effects of so much pains ; whereas His omnipotency might , with one fiat , have summoned them all to appear , apparrell'd in these gorgeous dresses which now adorns them . And it is as strange , that man , having that huge volumn of the Creation to revolve , wherein is such an infinit number of curious tale-duces , to feast his eyes with curiosity , and to futnish his soul with solid knowledge ; he should notwithstanding spend so much oyl and sweat , in spinning out ens rationis , materia prima , potentia obedientialis , and such like untelligible trash , which , like cob-webs , are but envenomed dust curiously wrought . And because the Gross of mankind was so gross , as not to understand God's greatness by the abstract idea's which instinct presented to him : Therefore , to teach that sensual croud , by the trunchmanrie of sense He hath bestowed upon them this mirrour , wherein they may see how infinit He is in power , who made Nothing so fruitfull , as to bud forth in this glorious crop of creatures , which now inhabits the surface of heaven and earth . I admire that such Philosophers as have had their faces wash'd at the font , can allow of Monsters , and define them to be the preter-intentional works of nature , wherein nature miss'd of her design , and was not able to effectuat what she intended : For , if nature and providence signifie the same thing in the Dictionary of christianity , it were blasphemy to think , that providence could not be able to effectuat what it once designed . All the creatures are indeed but as clay in the hand of this great Potter ; but , it were impious to think , that His art can be mistaken in framing any Vessel : wherefore , I am apter to believe , that all these creatures which the Schools term Monsters , are rather the intentions , then errors of nature ; and that as nature doth nothing without design , so it doth nothing without success . And thus I rather admire nature in these , for her cunning variety , then upbraid her with insufficiency and weakness . Neither term I an Hermophrodite , man or woman , according to the prevalency of that Sex which predomines in it , no more then I think that the Painter , when he hath delineated curiously an exact Marmaid , resolved to draw either a woman or fish , and not one distinct creature , peec'd up of both . And doubtless this error did at first proceed from mans vanity ; who concluded , that every frame which answered not that idea , which resides in him , was the effect of chance , and not of nature ; as if nature had been obliged to leave in the bibliothick of his head , the Original of all such Peeces as was to pass it's press . Seing God , in His survey of the Creation , called all that He had made good , because they were usefull . I conclude , that these are the best which are the most usefull . And albeit I condemn prodigality of ignorance , in preferring a diamond to a capon or sheep ; yet , do I not condemn such of vanity , as shine with these sparkling creatures : For , since God made nothing , which He did not destinat for some use , and seing most of these serve for no use else , doubtless , the wearing of them is most allowable . Yet , can I not allow of these gaudy compounds , which men creat to themselves ; as if something had been still wanting after the Creation was finished ; wherein man could supply God , and art , nature . The bestowing a hundred pounds upon a Tulip , or a thousand on a Picture , are not to me the meer rants of luxury ; but are courses pre-ordained by the Almighty , for returning to poor Artisans , that money , which oppression did at first most injustly screw from their weary hands . It is our ignorance of nature's mysteries which perswads us , that some , if not most of the creatures , serve rather for beautifying the universe , then for supplying necessity , an error which experience daily confutes : So , these herbs which of old cloathed only the uninhabited mountains , do now deserve their own place in Apothecaries shops . And it is most observable , that the Scurvy growes no where but where the disease rages , which is cured by it : Seing God loved variety in the Creation , He cannot hate curiosity in man , these two being correspondents ; and the one without the other would be but as flowers to the blind , or musick to the deaf . I laugh at the fruitless pilgrimages of such as travel to Ioppa or China , to satisfie their curiosity ; there being a Tredaskins closet in each Tulip , and a Solomon's Court in each Lilly of the field . And seing mens tempers are so various , it was no wonder that the creatures ( which ▪ were made for his use ) should have been made proportional to his humor : But , seing art hath in many things copied nature to the life , I think not the Symetrie nor variety to be seen amongst the creatures such an infallible argument for proving the being of a God. As is instinct , which all the art of men and Angels cannot counterfit ; and herein is it , that that grand Magician must acknowledge the finger of his Maker , seing here his own art fails . These who expect equal excellency in all the parts of this curious Fabrick , do not understand wherein its Symetrie consists . All the strings of an Instrument sound not equally high , and yet they make up the harmony : the face of the earth looks in some places deform'd and parcht ; and yet it is there the mother of rich mines ( as if God intended to bestow a great portion where He bestowes an ill face ) and what we think deformities , were placed there as patches , and are no more blemishes , then the spots are to the Leopards . I confess , that at first it puzl'd much my enquiry , for what end these mountains were made so near neighbours to the devided clouds : and I once imagin'd , that these were rather the effects of the flood , then creatures at first intended ; and were but the rubbish and mud which these impetuous waters had heap'd up in a mass : But , I was thereafter disswaded from this conjecture , by the 8. Chap. Prov. where wisdom , proving it's antiquity , sayes , that it was with God before the heavens were prepared , and the mountains setled ; by the scope of which Text , it is clear , that the heavens , hills , and the rest of the Creation , are said to bear one date . It is then more probable , that God foreseeing that the lust of conquest would , like the needle of the Compass , look oft north ; as is evident by comparing all the Monarchies ( first the Assyrian , then Grecian , then Roman , now German ) did therefore bound ambition , as it were , with high hills , ( albeit since , ambition hath found a way to climb over them ) as if He told them , that they should march no furder . Thus , it is very observable , that the northern parts of one Kingdom are alwayes more barren then the southern limits of the Country which lyes to the north of it . The north of England more mountainous and barren then the south of Scotland , albeit it ly nearer the Sun ; the south of England more pleasant and fertile then the north of France ; and the south of France then the north of Italy , &c. We must like wayes consider , that nature brused it's face so when it fell in Adam , that it did then contract many of these blemishes which now deform it ; and that as it waxes old , it 's native beauty is the more deformed by furrowed wrinkels . We cannot judge what it was in health , by it's present distempered condition , wherein it groans and travelleth in pain , as the Apostle tells us . And the differences betwixt these two states may be known from this , that God , when He compleated the Creation , saw that all was good ; whereas Solomon , having reviewed it in his time , saw all to be vanity and vexation of spirit . The third mirrour , wherein God is to be admired , is man. This is that noble creature which God was pleased to mould last of all others , not willing to bring him home , till , by the preceeding Creations , He had plenished his house abundantly for him . And albeit in the creation of all other creatures , it is only said , that God spoke , and it was : Yet , when man was to be framed , the cabinet Council of heaven was call'd ▪ and it is said ( let us ) as if more art had been to be shewed here , then in all the remanent Fabrick of the terraqueous Glob , and glorious Circles of heaven . It is likewise very observable , that albeit all the fishes of the sea were formed by one word , all the beasts of the field by one act , &c. Yet , God was pleased to bestow two upon the creation of man ; by the first , his body was created out of the dust , and thereafter , was breathed in , his soul. And albeit transient mention is only made of all other Creations ; yet , the history of mans Creation is twice repeated , once , Gen , 1. 27. and again , 2. 7. And , least that foreseen deformity , wherewith he was to be besmear'd after his fall , should make it be questioned , that at his first creation he had received the impressa of God's Image , this is oft repeated : For , in the 26. ver . Gen. 1. it is said , Let us make man in our image ; and then again ▪ and after our likeness . And in the 27. verse , So God created man in his own image ; and again immediately thereafter , in the image of God created he him . Yet , I am confident , that this image is so bedabled in the mire of sin , and so chattred by it's first fall , and this divine impressa , and print , so worn out , by our old and vicious habits , that , if this genealogy had not been so oft inculcat , we could not but have called it in question , albeit our vanity be ready enough to believe a descent so royal and sublime . Wherefore I must again admire the folly of Atheists , who , by denying a Deity , cloud their own noble birth-right . But , albeit man be made after God's image , yet , that can be no argument to conclude , that therefore God may be made after man's image , or represented under his figure , as the Anthropomorphits foolishly contend , no more , then if we should conclude , that because a Copy may be taken off an Original , therefore an Original may be taken off a Copy . Neither is this representation salv'd from being idolatry , by alleaging , that the image is not worshiped , but God , who is represented by it : For , it hath been well observed by an ancient Father , that idolatry in Scripture is called adultery ▪ And it is no good excuse for an adulteress , that she did ly with another because he represented her husband to her , and resembled him as a Copy doth it's Original : Yet , seing nothing is room'd in our judgment and apprehension , but what first entred by the wicket of sense , it is almost impossible for man to conceive the idea of any thing but vested with some shape , as each man's private reflections will abundantly convince him , As the boundless Ocean keeps and shews it 's well drawn images , whilst it stands quiet , with a face polisht like a christal cake , but losses them immediately , how soon it 's proud waves begin to swell and in rage , to spit it's froathy foam in the face of the angry heavens ; so , whilst a stoical indolency and christian repose smooths our restless spirits , it is only then , that the soul of man can be said to retain that glorious image of God Almighty , with which it was impress'd at it's created nativity . But , when the waves of choler begin to roar , or the winds of vanity to blow , then that glorious image is no more to be discerned in him , then the shadows and representations of in-looking objects are to be seen and discerned in the disquieted bosom of the troubled waters . The stings of a natural conscience , which , according to each mans actings , creats to him either agues of fear , or paradises of joy , do by these ominating presages , convince us of the immortality of the soul : and seing we see its predictions , both in dreams , in damps of melancholy , and such like enthusiastick fits , followed by suteable events ; why may we not like wayes believe its predictions , as to its own immortality , it being the prudence of a Virtuoso to lay hold of every mean , which may allay the rage of his hereditary misfortunes ? And to what end would the soul of man receive such impressions of fear and hope , if , by its mortality , it were not to be stated in a condition , wherein its fears and hopes were to have suteable rewards or punishments ? Moreover , seing God is just , He will punish and reward : and therefore , seing He punishes and rewards not men according to their merits , or demerits here , there must be doubtless a future state wherein that is to be expected . But , that which convinces my private judgment most of this truth , is , that the noblest Souls , and the sharpest sighted , do , of all others , most desire the state of separation , and have the weakest attaches to this life ; which must doubtless proceed from an assurance of immortality , and that it hath , from the Pisgah of its contemplation , got a view of the spiritual Canoan : For , seing the brutishest of creatures abhors annihilation , as the most aversable ill in nature , doubtless the soul of man , which is the most divine of all creatures , would never appete this separation , if by it it were to be extinct , and to be no more . And how absurd were it to believe , that man's soul should be made after God's image , and yet conclude it mortal , a quality repugnant to any thing that is divine ? As also , how can the soul be thought to perish with the body , seing these accidents which destroy the body cannot reach it ? how can the heat of a feaver burn , or rheums drown , that which is not corporeal and cannot be touched ? And , seing man's least peccadilio against God Almighty , is against one who is infinit , were it not absurd to think , that it could be proportionally punished in the swift glass of man's short life ? then which , nothing is more finit , or sooner finished . As the soul is God's Image , So it's products are the images of His admirable operations . Do not Mathematicians creat eagles , doves , and such like automata's ? And spring not flowers from the Chimists glasses ? And thus art , which is man's offspring , doth ape nature , which is the workmanship of the Almighty : and therefore , seing the soul can with one thought grasp both the Poles , can dart out it's conceits as far as the furdest borders of the imaginary spaces , creat worlds , and order , and disorder , all that is in this which is already created ; it 's strange to think it to be either corporeal or mortal : For , if it were corporeal and a mass of blood , it's actings would be lent and dull , neither could it's motions be so nimble and winged , as are these of our agile spirits . It were impossible for our narrow heads , to inn all these innumerable idea's ( which are now in them ) if these were all corporeal , and if these be not corporeal , that which produces them most be doubtless incorporeal , seing simile generatur à simili ; and dull flesh and blood could never produce such spiritual emanations . As the soul is God's Image , so in this it resembles Him very much , that we can know nothing of it's nature without it's own assistance : like a dark lanthron , or a spy , it discovers every thing to us , except it self . And because it refuses us the light of it's candle , whilst we are in the quest of it's mysteries ; therefore it is , that our re-searches of it's nature are gropeings in the dark : and so ofttimes vain , if not ridiculous . Avicenna , Averroes , and the remanent of that Arabian tribe , admiring it's prodigious effects , did attribute our spiritual motions to assisting Angels ; as if such admirable notions could not be fathered upon less sublime causes ; which Cardan likewayes thinks , do offer their assistance and light to sensitive creatures , but that the churlishness of their mater will not suffer them to entertain such pure irradiations . This disparages so much humanity , making man only a statue , that it were against the soul's interest to admit of any such idea's : For , as it tends more to the Artists praise to cause his products move from hid and internall springs , then from extrinsick causes ; as we see in Watches and such like . So it is more for the honour of that great Artist , and more suteable to the being and nature of His creatures , that all it's operations flow from it self , then from assisting but exteriour co-adjutors ▪ which makes me averse from Aristotle's opinion of the motion of the spheres by intelligences . And it were absurd to think , that men should be blamed or praised for those effects which their assessour Angels could only be charged with . The Platonicks alleaged , that all souls existed before their incarceration in bodies ▪ iin which state of pre-existence , they were doted with all these spiritual endowments , which shall attend them in the state of separation : and that at their first allyance with bodies , their native knowledge , was clouded , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , with the putting off knowledge for a time , till , by a reminiscentia , their intellectuals revived , as by a resurrection . And Origen added , that these souls were , according to their escapes , committed in the state of their primitive separation , yoaked with better or worse bodies ; a shift taken , in all probability , by him , to evite the apprehension of God's being injust , for nfusing innocent souls , in bodies which would infect them ; and by drawing them in inevitable snares , at last condemn them , or at least their infusion was the imprisoning these who were not guilty ; a difficulty which straits much , such as maintain that the soul is not ex traduce . What the hazard of this opinion may be , my twilight is not able to discover . It may be , that the Stoicks mistake in making the souls of men to be but parcels , decerpt from that universal anima mundi ( by which they doubtless meant God Himself ) was occasioned by a mistake of that Text , that God breathed into man's nostrils , the breath of life : concluding , that as the breath is a part of the body which breathed it , So the soul behoved to be a part of that divine essence , from which , by a second consequence , they concluded , that the soul , being a part of that divine beeing , could not suffer , nor undergo any torments ; as is asserted by Seneca , epist. 29. Cicero , tusc. 5. and defended by their successors , these primitive hereticks , the Gnosticks , Manichees and Priscillianists . But this bastard is not worth the fostering , being an opinion that God hath parts , and man real divinity , and is doubtless a false and flattering testimony given by the soul to it self : For , seing the soul is , by divine Oracles , told us to be made after God's Image , it can be no more called a part of God , then the picture should be repute a part of the Painter . Aristotle ( like the devil ( who because he knows not what to answer , answers ever in engines ) tells us , that anima is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , a terme fitted to exercise the empty brains of curious Pedants , and apter to beget , then explicat difficulties . Neither believe I , that his three souls , which he lodges in man , to wit , the rational , sensitive and vegetative , do differ more amongst themselves , then the will , understanding and fancy differ from the two last ; So that his arithmetick might have bestowed five souls upon man , as well as three : But , seing he , and many of his disciples , believe these to be three and yet these three to be but one ; I admire why they should be so nice , as not to believe that pious mystery of the holy Trinity : whereof in my opinion , his trinity of the soul is as apposit an emblem , as was the conceit of a simple Clown , who being askt , how he could apprehend the three glorious persons to be but one ? did fold his garment in three plates , and thereafter drew out all the three in one ▪ As the herauldrie of our reason cannot blazen the souls impressa ; So can it not help us to line out it's descent : and such would appear to be the excellency of that noble creature , that heaven and earth seem to contend , the which shall be the place of it's nativity . Divines ( who are obliged to contend for heaven , because they are it 's more immediat Pensioners ) will have it to be created and infused : whereas Philosophers ( ambitious to have so noble a compatriot , and willing to gratifie nature , which aliments their sublime meditations ) contend , that it is ex traduce , and is in generation , the bodies other twinne . And albeit it would appear from Scripture , that God accomplish'd the Creation the first seven dayes , and that nature did then pass child-bearing : Yet , that , in my judgment , must be meant of the Creation of whole species , and not of individuals , and to press the souls not traduction ; I shall lend only one argument , not because it is the best , but because it is my own . We see , that there where the soul is confess'd to be ex traduce , as in bruits and vegetative creatures , that nature , as it were , with a pencil , copies the young from off the old . The young Lyons are still as rapacious and roaring as were their Syers , from whose loyns they descended : and the Rose being pous'd up by the salt nitre which makes it vegetative , spreads the same leaves , and appears with the same blushes or paleness that beautified it's eye-pleasing predecessors . The reason of which continual assimulation , preceeds from the seeds , having in it's bosome , all these qualities and shapes , which appear thereafter in it's larger products , whereof they were but a mappe or index . Whereas man resembles never , at least not oft , these who are called his parents ; the vitious and tall father , having oft low , but vertuous children ; which shows , that the soul of man is not derived by generation , and that the soul bestowed upon the son's body , is most different and assymbolick to that which lodged in the father . And this may be further confirmed by that excellent passage , Prov. 20. 27 , where it is said , that the understanding of man is the candle of the Lord. Our soul is God's Image , and none can draw that Image but Himself ; we are the stamp of His divine nature , and so can only be formed by Himself , who is the glorious Seal . From this divine principle , that man's soul is made after God's Image , I am almost induced to believe , that prophesie is no miraculous gift bestowed upon the soul at extraordinary occasions only , but is a natural ( though the highest ) perfection of our humane nature : For , if it be natural for the stamp , to have impress'd upon it all the traits that dwell upon the face of the Seal , then it must be natural to the soul , which is God's impressa , to have a faculty of foreseeing , since that is one of God's excellencies . Albeit I confess , that that Stamp is here infinitly be-dimm'd and worn off ; as also , we know by experience , that men upon death bed , when the soul begins ( being detached by sickness from the bodies slavery ) to act like it self , do foresee and foretell many remote and improbable events : and for the same reason do I think predictions , by dreams , not to be extraordinary revelations , but rather the products natural of a rational soul. And if sagacious men can be so sharp-sighted in this state of glimmering , as to foresee many events which fall out , why may we not say , that man , if he were rehabilitat in the former state of pure nature , might , without any extraordinary assistance , foresee and prophesie ? For , there is not such a distance betwixt that foresight and prophesie , as is betwixt the two states of innocency and corruption , according to the received notion , which men have settled to themselves of that primitive state of innocency . From the same principle , may it likewayes be deduced , that natural reason cannot but be an excellent mean , for knowing , as far as is possiible , the glorious nature of God Almighty : He hath doubtless lighted this candle , that we might , by it , see Himself ; and how can we better know the Seal , then by looking upon it's impression . And if Religion and it's mysteries , cannot be comprehended by reason ▪ I confess it is a pretty jest , to hear such frequent reasonings amongst Church-men , in matters of Religion . And albeit faith and reason be look'd upon as Iacob and Esau , whereof the younger only hath the blessings , and are , by Divines , placed at the two opposit points of the Diameter ; yet , upon an unbyassed inquiry , it will appear , that faith is but sublimated reason , calcin'd by that divine chymical fire of Baptisme ; and that the soul of man hath lurking in it , all these vertues and faculties which we call Theological ; such as faith , hope and repentance : for else David would not have prayed , Enlighten , Lord , my eyes , that I may see the wonders of thy Law ; but rather , Lord bestow new eyes upon me . Neither could the opening of Lidea's heart , have been sufficient for her conversion , if these pre-existing qualities had not been treasur'd up there formerly : So that it would appear , that these holy flames lurk under the ashes of corruption , untill God , by the breath of His Spirit ( and that wind which bloweth where it listeth ) sweep them off : And that God , having once made man perfect in the first Creation , doth not in His regeneration super-add any new faculty ( for else the soul had not at first been perfect ) but only removes all obstructing impediments . I am alwayes ashamed , when I hear reason call'd the step-mother of faith , and proclaimed rebel against God Almighty , and such declared traitors , as dare harbour it , or appear in it's defence . These are such fools as they who break their Prospects , because they bring not home to their sight the remotest objects ; and are as injust as Iacob had been , if he had divorc'd from Leah , because she was tender-eyed : whereas , we should not put out the eyes of our understanding , but should beg from God the eye-salve of His Spirit for their illumination . Nor should we dash the Prospect of our reason , against the rockie walls of dispair ; but should rather wash it's glasses with the tears of unfeigned repentance . Ever since faith and reason have been , by Divines , set by the ears , the brutish multitude conclude , these who are most reasonable to be least religious ; and the greatest spirits to be least spiritual : a conceit most inconsistent with that divine parable , wherein these who received the many talents improved them to the best advantage , whilst he who had but one laid it up in a napkin . And it is most improbable , that God would choose low shrubs , and not tall Cedars , for the building of His glorious Temple . And it is remarkable , that God , in the old Law , refused to accept the first born of an asse in sacrifice , but not of any other creature . And some , who were content to be call'd Atheists , providing they were thought Wits , did take advantage in this of the Rables ignorance , and authorized by their devilish invention , what was at first but a mistake : and this unridles to us that mystery , why the greatest Wits are most frequently the greatest Atheists . When I consider , how the Angels , who have no bodies , sinn'd before man ; and that brutes , who are all body , sin not at all , but follow the pure dictates of nature . I am induced to believe , that the body is rather injustly bamed for being , then that really it is , the occasion of sin ; and probably , the witty soul hath in this , cunningly laid over upon it's fellow , that where with it self is only to be charged . What influence can flesh or blood have upon that which is immaterial , no more sure then the case hath upon the Watch , or the heavens upon it's burgessing Angels ? And see we not , that when the soul hath bid the body adieu , it remains a carcasse , fit nor able for nothing . I believe , that the body being a clog to it , m●y slow it's pursute after spiritual obiects , and that it may occasion , indirectly , some sins of omission : For , we see palpably , that eating and drinking dulls our devotions ; but , I can never understand , how such dumb Orators , as flesh and blood , can perswade the soul to commit the least sin . And thus , albeit our Saviour sayes , that flesh and blood did not teach Peter to give him his true Epithets ; neither indeed could it : Yet , our Saviour imputes not any actual sin to these pithless causes . And seing our first sin hath occasioned all our after sinning , certainly , that which occasioned our first sin was the main source of sinning , and this was doubtless the soul ; for , our first sin being an immoderat desire of knowledge , was the effect and product of our spirit , because it was a spiritual sin ; whereas if it had been gluttony , lust or such like , which seems corporeal , the body had been more to have been blamed for it . And in this contest , I am of opinion , that the soul wins the cause , because it is the best Orator . What was the occasion of the first ill , is much debated ( and most deservedly ) amongst Moralists ; for , that which was good could not produce that which was evil , seing that which works mischief cannot be called good . Nor can we ascribe the efficiency of the first evil to evil ▪ for then the question recurres , what was the cause of that evil ? And by this , the supposition is likewise destroyed , whereby the evil enquired after , is supposed to be the first evil : but , if we enquire , what could produce in the Angels that first sin , whereby they forfeited their glory ? we will find this disquisition most mysterious . And it is commonly believ'd , but by what revelation I know not , that their pride caus'd their fall ; and that they carcht their bruise in climbing , in desiring to be equal to their Creator , they are become inferior to all their fellow creatures . Yet , this seems to me most strange , that these excellent spirits whose very substance was light , and who surpassed far , man , in capacity and understanding , should have so err'd as to imagine , that equality fa●sable , a fancy which the fondest of men could not have entertained . And it were improbable to say , that their error could have sprouted at first from their understandnging ; and to think it to have been so gross , as that fallen man doth now admire it : but , why may we not rather think , that their first error was rather a crookedness in their will , then a blindness in their judgment ▪ and that they fretted to see man , whom they knew to be inferiour to themselves by many stages , made Lord of all that pleasant Creation , which they gazed on with a stareing maze . And that this opinion is more probable , appears , because this Sin was the far more bating , seing it appeared with all the charmes , wherewith either pride , vanity or avarice could busk it ; and explicats better to us the occasion of all that enmity with which that Serpent hath alwayes since pursued silly man : But , whither God will save just as many believers as there fell of the Angels , none can determine ; neither can it be rationally deduced from that Scripture , Statuit terminos gentium , juxta nu●erum Angelorum Dei. But , if it please God so to order it , it will doubtless aggrage their punishment , by rackling their disdain . And seing the Angels have never obtained a remission for this crime , it is probable , that the correspondent of their sin is , in us , the sin against the holy Ghost . For , if their lapse had been pardonable , some one or other of them had in all probability escap'd ; but , if this was not that unpardonable sin , I scarce see where it shall be found . For , to say that it is a hateing of God , as God , is to make it unpracticable rather then unpardonable : For , all creatures appete naturally what is good , and God , as God , is good ; So that it is impossible that He can be hated under that reduplication . It may be likewise conjectured , that voluntar and deliberate sacriledge is the sin against the holy Ghost ; because Ananias and Saphira , in with-holding from the Church , a part of the price for which they sold their lands , are , by Peter , said to have lied , not to man , but to the holy Ghost ; and his wife is there said to have tempted the Spirit : but , seing both of them resolved to continue in the Church ( a resolution inconsistent with the sin against the holy Ghost ) And seing many sins are more heinous , I cannot interpret this lying to the holy Ghost to be any thing else , but a sin against light , in which most penitents have been involved ; albeit , I confess , this was a gross escape , seing it rob'd God of His omnisciency , and supposed that He was not privy to such humane actings as have not the Sun for a witness . I do then conclude , that the sin against the holy Ghost may rather be a resolute undervaluing of God , and a scorning to receive a pardon from Him : and this is that which makes the Angels fall irrecoverable , and like the flaming sword , defends them from their re-entry into that Paradise from which they exile . And albeit to say , that the Angels rebellion flows from God's denying them repentance , may suit abundantly well with His unstainable justice ; yet , it is hard to reconcile it with his mercy . And this makes my private judgment place the unpardonableness of this sin , not in God's Decree , but in their obduration and rebellious impenitency : And the reason why these who commit this sin are never pardoned , is , because a pardon is never sought . That place of Scripture , wherein Esau is said to have sought the blessing with tears and not to have found it , astonishes me : Yet , I believe , that if his tears had streamed from a sense of his guilt more then of his punishment , doubtless he had not weept in vain ; and in that he tear'd , he was no more to be pitied , far less pardoned , then a Malefactor , who , upon the scaffold , grants some few tears to the importunity of his tortutes , but scornes to acknowledge the guilt of his crime : for , pain , by contracting our bodies , strains out that liquid mater , which thereafter globs it self in tears : there could ●ome no holy water from the pagan font of Esaw's eyes ; and if his remorse could have pierc'd his own heart , it had easily pierc'd heaven . Whilst others admire , I bless God , that He hath closed up the knowledge of that unpardonable sin under his own privy Seal : for , seing Sathan tempts me to sin with the hopes of an after-pardon , this bait is pull'd off his hook , by the fear I stand under , that the sin to which I am tempted , is that sin which can expect no pardon . And albeit it be customary amongst men , to beacon and set a mark upon such shelves and rocks as destroy passengers ; yet , that is only done where commerce is allowed and sailing necessar : But , seing all sin is forbidden , God was not obliged to guard us with the knowledge of that sin , no further then by prohibiting us not to sin , but to stand in awe . That first sin whereby our first Parents forfeited their primitive excellencies , was so pitifull a frailty , that I think we should rather lament , then enquire after it . To think that an aple had in it the seeds of all knowledge , or that it could assimulate him to his Creator , and could , in an instant , sublimate his nature , was a frailty to be admired in one of his piety and knowledge . Yet , I admire not that the breach of so mean a Precept was punish'd with such appearing rigor , because , the easier the command was , the contempt was proportionally the greater ; and the first crimes are by Legislators punished , not only for guilt , but for example : But , I rather admire what could perswade the facile world to believe , that Adam was created , not only innocent , but even stored with all humane knowledge : For , besides that , we have no warrand from Scripture for this alleadgiance , this his easie escape speaketh far otherwayes . And albeit the Scripture tells us , that man was created perfect ; yet , that inferres not that man was furnished with all humane knowledge : For , his perfection consisted in his adoring of , and depending upon , God , wherein we see these are exactest , whose judgements are least pestered with terrestrial knowledge , and least diverted with unnecessar speculations . And thus it appears , that these Sciences , after which his posterity pants , were not intended as noble appanages of the rational soul , but are rather toyish babies busk't up by fal'n man , whereby he diverts himself from reflecting too narrowly upon his native frailty . And thus Scripture tells us , that God made man perfect , but that He sought out to Himself many inventions , where perfection and invention seem to be stated as enemies ; and it is palpable , that these Sciences , which are by us lawrel'd and rewarded , are such , as were inconsistent with that state of innocency , such as Law , Theology and Physick . And as for the rest , it is absur'd to think , that Adams happiness did consist in the knowledge of these things which we our selves account either impertinent or superfluous . But , that which convinces me most of this , is , that we forfeited nothing by Adam's fall which Christ's death restores not to us ; wherefore , seing Christ by his own , or his Apostles promises , hath not assured us of any sub-lunary or school knowledge ; nor hath our experience taught us , that Sciences are entailed upon the Saints , I almost believe , that Adam neither possest these before , nor yet lost them by his fall . Neither think I St. Paul the more imperfect , that he desired to know nothing but Christ and Him crucified : So that the difference betwixt Adam and his successors , stood more in the straightness of his affections , then in the depth of his knowledge . For , albeit it be believed , that the names whereby he baptised the creature , were full histories of their natures written in short hand ; yet , this is but a conjecture authorized by no holy Text. It is a more civil error in the jewish Talmudists , to think that all the creatures were brought to Adam , to let him see that there were none amongst them fit to be his companion , nor none so beautifull as Eve , then it is in their Cabalists to observe , that the hebrew word , signifying man , doth , by a transposition of letters , signifie likewayes , benediction , and the word signifying woman , makes up malediction . If we should take a character of Adam's knowledge from the Scriptures , we shall find more imprudence charged upon him then upon any of his successors : For , albeit the silly woman was not deceived without the help of subtilty ; yet , Adam sinned upon a bare suggestion , and thereafter was so simple , as to hide himself when God called him to an account , as if a thicket of trees could have sconced him from his all-seeing Maker ; and when he was accused , was so simple , as to think his wives commands sufficient to exoner him , and so absurd , as to make God Himself sharer with him in his guilt , the woman whom thou gavest me , &c. There is more charm in acquireing new knowledge , then in reflecting upon what we have already gain'd , ( as if the species of known objects did corrupt , by being treasur'd up in our brains ) And this induces me to believe , that our scantness of native knowledge , is rather a happiness then a punishment ; the Citizens of London or Paris are not so tickled by the sight of these stately Cities , as strangers who were not born within their walls , and I may say to such , as by spelling the Starres desire to read the fortunes of others , as our Saviour said to Peter , when he was desirous to know the horoscope of the beloved Apostle , What is that to thee ? What can it advantage us to know the correspondence kept amongst the Planets , and to understand the whole anatomy of natures skeleton ; in gazing upon whose parts , we are oft times as ridiculous as children , who love to leaf over taliduce Pictures ; for in both variety is all the usury that can be expected , as the return of our time and pains ; and if we pry inly into this small ma●s of our present knowledge , we shall find , that our knowledge is one of the fertilest fountains of our misery : For , do not such as know that they are sick , groan more heavily then a countrey Clown , who apprehends nothing till extremity creat in him some sense ? And doubtless the reason why children and idiots endure more , and drunken men escape mo dangers then others , is , because albeit they cannot provide such apt remedies , yet , they are less acquainted with what they feel then we are . Are not these who understand that they are affronted , more vex'd then such as are ignorant of these misfortunes ? and these who foresee the changes and revolutions , which are to befall either their friends or their countries , are thereby more sadly diseased , then he who sees no further then his nose ? Our Saviour wept when He did foresee , that one stone of Ierusalem should not be left upon another ; and when Hazael askt Elisha why he wept , he told him , it was because he did foresee what mischief Hazael was to do in Israel . Let us not then complain of the loss of Adam's knowledge , but of his innocency ; we know enough to save us , and what is more then that , is superfluous . Adam cannot be thought to have been the first sinner , for Eve sinned before him ; So that albeit it seem a paradox , yet it is most probable , that albeit Adam had for ever abstained from eating the forbidden fruit , his posterity had been still as miserable as now they are ; seing the guilt of either of the Parents had been sufficient to tash the innocency of the children . For , as the Scripture tells us , who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean ? And David , in that Text , which of all others speaks most expressly of original sin , layes the guilt upon her and confesseth only , that his mother had conceived him in sin . As Adam was not the first sinner , So the eating of the aple may be justly thought not to be the first sin ; Eve having , before his eating the aple , repeated most falsely the Command : For , whereas God did assure them , that in that day they did eat the fruit , they should surely die , Eve relates it thus , Ye shall not eat the fruit , least ye die , representing only that as contingent which was most certain : and whereas God had only said , ye shall not eat of the fruit of the tree , Eve sayes , God said , ye shall not touch it ; which it may be furnish'd the serpent this argument to cheat her , ye see God hath deceived you , for the fruit may be touched without danger , why may it not then be eaten without hazard ? and it is probable , that he hath failed in the one as well as in the other . But to abstract from this , it cannot be said , that the eating of the forbidden fruit was the first sin ; for , before Adam did eat thereof , he behoved both to believe the Serpent and mis-believe his Maker , and thus mis-belief was the first sin : For , after he had credited the Serpents report , he was no longer innocent , and so he did not eat the aple till after his fall . What wiser are these Divines , who debate , whither Adams falling-sickness and sin had become heriditarie , if our predecessors had come out of his loins before he sin'd , then these who combated for the largest share of the King of Spains gold , if it had been to be devided ? In the Almighties procedure against poor Adam for this crime , His infinite mercy appears to admiration ; and God foreseeing , that man might sharpen the ax of justice too much upon the whet-stone of private revenge , seems to have , in this process , formed to him , an exact model of inquisition . For , He arraigns and cites Adam , Adam , where art thou ? He shews him his dittay , Hast thou eat of the fruit whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldst not eat ? He allows him exculpation , Who told thee ? and in order thereto , did examine the woman , upon whom Adam did transfer the guilt . And albeit nothing could escape His omnisciency , and that He did see Adam eat the aple , yet , to teach Judges that they should walk according to what is proven , and not according to what they are themselves conscious to , He did not condemn him till first he should have a confession from his own mouth . And thus , Gen. 18. 21. the Lord sayes ▪ Because the cry of Sodom is great — I will go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it , &c. And in the last place , albeit the fatal decree did bear , in that day that thou eatest thereof , thou shalt surely die , yet , were his dayes prolonged a hundred and thirty years after the sin was committed . It is too curious a disquisition to enquire how God can be said to be mercifull , mercy being the mitigation of justice , of which His pure nature cannot be capable , seing whatever He wills is just : And so He cannot be thought in any thing which He wills to recede from justice , and so can no more properly be said to be mercifull , then one Act can be both the Law and the mitigation of the Law. But I will press no point of this nature , knowing that humble modesty is the best Theology . The vatican of paganism cannot , for the male-ness of it's stile , match that matchless Book of Genesis , whereof each sentence seems a quarry of rich meditations , and each word a spell , sufficient to conjure the devil of Delphos . Might not that excellent expression , Let us make man after our image , convince any of the being of a Trinity , who deny plurality of Gods. It is wonderfull , that the Saturn-humour'd Jew can , in this Passage , mis-take his own Saviour ; and it is strange that he should not , from the triangular architecture of his own heart , conclude the Trinity of the God-head , whose temple it was appointed to be . Albeit I be an admirer of this nurse of Cabalism ; yet , I approve not the conceit of these doting Rabbies , who teach , that God from His own mouth , dited both the words and mater of the Pentateuch ; whereas , He furnish'd only to the other Prophets the mater and subject unphrased : for , not only did God promise , that He should put His words in their mouths , but likewayes , they preface thus their own prophesies , In the dayes of such a King , the Word of the Lord came to such a Prophet , saying , &c. Neither is this conceit consistent with that high esteem , which they , ( even in this ) intend for their patron , Moses ; seing it allows him less trust from his divine Master , then the other Pen-men of Scripture had reposed in them . That brain hath too little pia mater , that is too curious to know why God , who evidences so great a desire to save poor man , and is so powerfull , as that his salvation needed never have run the hazard , if His infinit wisdom had so decree'd , did yet suffer him to fall : For , if we enter once the lists of that debate , our reason is too weak to bear the burden of so great a difficulty . And albeit it may be answered , that God might have restrained man , but that restraint did not stand with the freedom of mans will which God had bestowed upon him ; yet , this answer stops not the mouth of the difficulty . For certainly , if one should detain a mad man from running over a precipice , he could not be thereby said to have wronged his liberty : and seing man is by many Divines allowed a freedom of will , albeit he must of necessity do what is evil , and that his freedom is salv'd by a liberty to choose only one of moe evils , it would appear strange why his liberty might not have consisted well enough with a moral impossibility of sinning , and might not have been abundantly conserved in his freedom to choose one of moe goods : yet , these reasonings are the calling God to an account , and so impious . For , if God had first created man , surrounded with our present infirmities , could we have complained ? Why then should we now complain , seing we are but faln to a better estate then we deserved ; seing we stumbled not for want of light ▪ but because we extinguish'd our own light , and seing our Saviours dying for us may yet re-instate us in a happier estate then that from which we are now faln . Albeit the glass of my years hath not yet turn'd five and twenty , yet the curiosity I have to know the different limbo's of departed souls and to view the card of the region of death , would give me abundance of courage to encounter this king of terrors , though I were a pagan : But , when I consider what joyes are prepared for them who fear the Almighty , and what craziness attends such as sleep in Methuselams cradle , I pity them who make long-life one of the oftest repeated petitions of their Pater noster ; and yet these sure are the more advanc'd in folly , who desire to have their names enshrin'd after death in the airy monument of fame : Whereas it is one of the promises made to the Elect , that they shall rest from their labours , and their works shall follow them . Most mens mouths are so foul , that it is a punishment to be much in them : for my own part , I desire the same good offices from my good name that I do from my cloaths , which is to skreen me from the violence of exteriour accidents . As these Criminals might be judg'd distracted , who being condemned to die , would spend their short reprival in disputing about the situation and fabrick of their gibbets ; So may I justly think these literati mad , who spend the short time allotted them for repentance , in debating about the seat of hell , and the torments of tortur'd spirits . To satisfie my curiositie , I was once resolv'd , with the Platonick , to take the promise of some dying friend , that he should return and satisfie me in all my private doubts concerning hell and heaven ; yet I was justly afraid , that he might have return'd me the same answer which Abraham return'd to Dives , have they not Moses and the Prophets ? if they hear not them , wherefore will they be perswaded though one should rise from the dead ? The Millenar's ephimerides , which assures us , that Christ shall reign a thousand years with the Saints on earth , is as sensual an opinion as that of the Turks , who make heaven a bordell , wherein we shall satisfie our venerious appetites ; for the one shews the vain glory and vindictive humour of the Saints , as palpably as the other shews the lust of the Mahumetans . If Christs reigning som any years be for convincing the world that he is the real Messiah , their heresie should have ante-dated his coming ; and his reign should rather have begun long since , when many ages were to be converted , or at least it should not have been thrust out upon the selvage and border of time , when very few shall remain to be convinc'd : and if in this they intend a displaying of Christs glory , certainly they are mistaken ; for what honour can it be for a King , to have his footstool made his Throne ? So that I think , these poor Phanaticks have taken the patronage of this error rather by necessity then choice , all other opinions and conceits being formerly pre-ingaged to other Authors . As I am not able , by the Iacobsladder of my merits , to scale heaven , So am I less able , by the Iacobs-staffe of my private ability , to take up the true altitude of its mysteries . I have travell'd no further in Theology then a Sabbath-dayes journey ; and therefore , it were arrogance in me to offer a map of it to the credulous world : But , if I were worthy to be consulted in these spiritual securities , I should advise every private Christian , rather to stay still in the barge of the Church with the other Disciples , then by an ill bridled zeal , to hazard drowning alone with Peter , by offering to walk upon the unstable surface of his own fleeting and water-weak fancies , though with a pious resolution to meet our Saviour . For , albeit one may be a real Christian , and yet differ from the Church , which sayes , that the wise men who come to bow before our Saviours cradle-throne , were three Kings , and in such other opinions as these , wherein the fundamentals of faith and quiet of the Church are no wayes concerned ; yet certainly , he were no wise man himself , nor yet sound Christian , who would not even in these bow the flag of his private opinion to the commands of the Church . The Church is our mother , and therefore we should wed no opinion without her consent who is our parent ; or if we have rashly wedded any , it is in the power of the Church and her Officials to grant us a divorce . As for my self , my vanity never prompted me to be standard-bearer to any , either new Sect , or old Heresie ; and I pity such as love to live like Pewkeepers in the house of God , busied in seating others , without ever providing a room for themselves . If there be any thing in this Discourse which may offend such as are really pious , it shall much grieve me , who above all men honours them most . What I have spoken against cases of Conscience and the like , strikes not against their Christian fellowship and correspondence , but against the apish fopperies of prentending counterfeits . It shall alwayes be my endeavour for the future , rather to drop tears for my own sins and the sins of others , then yrk for their conversion : our prayers help such as never heard them , whereas these only who read our discourses are better'd by them . Abrahams prayers prevailed more with God ( even for Sodom ) then Lot's re-iterated Sermons ; and no wonder that the success be unequal , seing in the one we have to do with a mercifull God , whereas in the other we must perswade a hard-hearted people . I intend not to purchase from posterity the title of Reformer , seing most of these have faln under the same guilt ; and have had the same fate , with that curious Painter , who having drawn an excellent face , as happily as could have been expected from the smoothest mirrour , did thereafter dash it afresh upon the suggestion of each intrant , till at last he reformed it from being any way like to the Original . Divinity differs in this from all other Sciences , that these being invented by mortals , receive growth from time and experience ; whereas , it being penn'd by the omniscient Spirit of God , can receive no addition without receiving prejudice . It is most remarkable , that our Saviours Prayers , His Sermons and the Creed , delivered to us by His Apostles , were roomed up in farr narrower bounds then these of our times , which an hidropsie of ill concocted opinions hath swell'd beyond their true dimensions : many whereof have either been brooded by vanity or interest ; or else ignorant and violent defendents being brought to a bay , by such as impugn'd their resolv'd-upon principles , have been forc'd to assert these by-blow and preter-intentional tenets ; and having once floored them , have thereafter judg'd themselves concerned to defend them , in point of Scholastick honour . Some well-meaning Christians likewayes , do sometimes , for maintenance of what is lawfull and pious , think , that they may lawfully advance opinions , which otherwayes they would never have allowed of ; and as in nature we see , that the collision of two hard bodies makes them rebound so much the further from one another , So opposition makes both parties fly into extremeties . Thus I believe , that the debates betwixt Roman-catholicks and Protestants , concerning the Virgin Mary , have occasion'd , in some amongst both , expressions , if not hereticall , yet aleast undecent . Thus a great many Confessions of Faith become , like Noahs Ark , a receptacle of clean and unclean : and which is also deplorable , they do , like ordinar dyals , serve only for use in that one meridian for which they are calculated , and by riding twenty miles ye make them heterodox . I speak not this to the disparagement of our own Church , ( which I reverence in all it's Precepts and Practices ▪ ) but to beget a blushing conviction in such as have diverted from it ; and whose conventicles , compared with our Ierusalem , resemble only the removed huts of these who live a part , because they are sick of the plague . I am not at a maze , to see men so tenacious of contrary principles in Religion ; for , man's thoughts being vast and various , he snatches at every offered suggestion , and if by accident he entertain any of these many , as a divine immission , he thereafter thinks it were blasphemy to bring that thought to the test of reason , because he hears that faith is above reason , or to relinquish it , because the common suffrage of his Country runs it counter , seing he is taught even by them , that the principles of belief must not be chosen by the Pole. And seing faith is above reason , ( albeit , as I said formerly , it would seem otherwise ) I wonder not to see even the best temper'd Christians , think that which is not their own religion to be therefore ridiculous . My design all alongst this Discourse , butts at this one principle , that Speculations in Religion are not so necessary , and are more dangerous then sincere Practice . It is in Religion as in Herauldry , the simpler the bearing be , it is so much the purer and the ancienter . I will not say that our School-distinctions are the impressions of the devils cloven foot ; but I may say , that our piety and principles scarce ever grow after they begin to fork in such dichotomies ; which , like Iacob and Esau , divide and jar as soon as they are born : and betwixt whom , the poor proposition , out of which both did spring , is like a malefactor , most lamentably drag'd to pieces . I have endeavoured to demonstrat , that dogmaticalness and paralitick scepticisme , are but the Apocrypha of true Religion ; and I believe the one begets the other , as a toad begets a cockatrice : For the Sceptick perceiving , that the magisterial dogmatist erres ( as these must erre somewhere who assert too much ) even in these things whereof he affirms , he is as sure , as of any principle in Religion , ( which is their ordinary stile ) he finding out their error in one of their principles , is thereby emboldned to contravert all . This being the scope of this Essay . I wish that these who read it would expound it as Divines do parables , Quae non sunt argumentativa ultra suum scopum . I doubt not but some will think me no less absurd in writing against vanity , whilst I am so vain my self as to write Books , then the Philosophers were judged of old , for denying motion whilst their tongues mov'd in their cheek ; but , to these my answer shall be , that finding many grovelling in their errors , I have , in this Essay , proffer'd them my assistance , not to shew my strength but my compassion . The multitude ( which albeit it hath ever been allowed many heads , yet was never allowed any brains ) will doubtless accuse my Studies of adultery , for hugging contemplations so excentrick to my employment ; to these my return is , that these papers are but the pairings of my other Studies , and because they were but pairings , I have flung them out into the streets . I wrote them in my retirements when I wanted both books and employment , and I resolve that this shall be the last inroad I shall ever make into forreign contemplations . There are some thoughts in this Peece which may seem to rebell against the empire of the Schools ; yet , who knows but my Watch goes right , albeit it agree not with the publick Clock of the City , especially where the sun of Righteousness hath not , by pointing clearly the dyal of Faith , shewed which of the two are in the error . There are some expressions in it , which censure may force to speak otherwayes then they have in commission ; yet none of them got room in this Discourse , untill they first gave an account of their design to a most pious and learned Divine : and so , it may be the lines are of themselves streight , albeit they lye not parallel with each censurers crooked rule . As this Discourse intends , for the Divines of our Church , all respect ; So all that is in it , is most freely submitted to their censure . The Author intended this Discourse only as an introduction to the Stoicks morals , but probably , he will , for many years , stop here . ERRATA . Blurres in the Copy and the Authors absence occasioned these errata's , which must be helped before reading , seing they destroy both the sense and soundness of the Discourse . IN the Preface , p. 2. l. 4. for Prophet , read Iehouadab : p. 9. f. Taps r. Tops . p. 15. l. 7. add some before Episcopists and Presbyterians . p. 16. l. 4. f. all r. almost all . In the Book , p. 24. l. 16. f. hath no , r. seems to have no. p. 2● . l. 18. f. is but a conceit , r. seems but a conceit . p. 35. l. 13. f. continual r. extraordinar . p. 58. l. 19. f. triumphant , r. militant . p. 63. l. 22. f. ever any , r. few have . p. 73. l. 10. f. excrementilius , r. excrementitius . p. 74. l. 17. f. an allegory , etc. r. that there run many hid allegories from Genesis to Johns Revelations , wherein the mystical sense deserves likewayes the name of Gods Word . p. 85. l. 8. add , yet this is but a sophisme ; for , seing our bodies are the temples of the holy Ghost , we can no more bestow them upon such uses , then a Church-warden can give the use of the Church to Taverners , p. 85. l. 13. f. thundered from mount Sinai , r. delivered in almost one context with that Law which was thundred from mount Sinai . p. 121. l. 22. f. an unbyassed enquiry it will appear , r. upon an superficial enquiry it would appear . By the Laws of his Countrey , p. 57. and elsewhere , the Author means , that Religion which is setled by Law. In other expressions , the Author recommends himself to the gloss of the readers charity . FINIS Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A50771-e1060 Atheisme . Superstition . Why the world was created . Eternity . Providence . Theology . The strictness of Churches . The Scrip tures . The moral Law. The judicial Law. Monsters . Man & his creation . The immortality of the soul. Faith and reason The fall of Angels . The sin of the Angels was the sin against the holy Ghost Man's fall . The stile of Genesis . Why man fell . The Millenaries refuted . The Authors censure of this Essay , and an account of his design His Apology . Notes for div A50771-e7180 ☞ 
A47927	----	Toleration discuss'd by Roger L'Estrange. L'Estrange, Roger, Sir, 1616-1704. 1663 Approx. 259 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 60 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2004-08 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A47927 Wing L1315 ESTC R7093 12919784 ocm 12919784 95357 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A47927) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 95357) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 986:28) Toleration discuss'd by Roger L'Estrange. L'Estrange, Roger, Sir, 1616-1704. [6], 106, [2] p. Printed for Henry Brome ..., London : 1663. Reproduction of original in Union Theological Seminary Library, New York. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. EEBO-TCP is a partnership between the Universities of Michigan and Oxford and the publisher ProQuest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by ProQuest via their Early English Books Online (EEBO) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). The general aim of EEBO-TCP is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic English-language title published between 1473 and 1700 available in EEBO. 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Freedom of religion -- Great Britain. 2003-11 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2004-01 Apex CoVantage Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2004-04 Olivia Bottum Sampled and proofread 2004-04 Olivia Bottum Text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-07 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion Imprimatur , Geo. Stradling . S. T. P. Rev. in Christo Pat. D. Gilb. Episc. Lond. à Sac. Domest . Aed . Sab. 〈◊〉 . 16. 1662. Toleration DISCUSS'D . By ROGER L'ESTRANGE . Ferre quam Sortem patiuntur Omnes , Nemo recuset . Sen. Troas . LONDON , Printed for Henry Brome at the Gun in Ivie-Lane , 1663. The Praeface . I AM not so vain , as to expect , that any Man will be either the Better , or the Wiser , for what I write ; and yet , when I consider , that God Himself , is pleas'd with Free-will Offerings ( though ne're the Richer for them ) I make That Thought my Measure : and how Incapable-soever of Doing the Publique a Service , I think my self ; yet Honestly Oblig'd to Offer it a Duty ; and This poor Little is My All. The Subject I Treat of , is , TOLERATION ; wherein ( with Modesty ) I have not ventur'd beyond my Reach : For , upon the Ventilation of the Question , It seems to mee , that it is one of the Hardest Things in the World , for the Non-conformists to say What They would have ; and one of the Easiest ( on the other side ) to Overthrow All they can say . To give the Reader a Clear , Distinct , and Impartial Prospect of the Matter , I have layd the Debate before him in Colloquy ; and under the Names of CONFORMITY , ZEAL , and SCRUPLE , are Represented the Three Grand Partyes , ORTHODOX , PRESBYTERIAN , and INDEPENDENT . That which first put mee upon this Theme , was the Great and Irregular Earnestness , that was not long stnce Employ'd , toward the Procurement of a Toleration . Concerning which , I found my self at a Double Loss : First , touching the Proposition it self ; and Secondly , about the Manner of Promoting it . As to the Former , Me'thought Toleration in Gross , was of something a Mysterious Latitude ; but upon the taking it in pieces , I perceive , that nothing can be plainer than the Meaning of it ; and the Truth is , It means [ not to be understood ] that they may be sure to make something on 't , whether it Hitts or Misses . The One way , they may do what they please ; and the Other way , there 's a Ground for a Compleynt . A Second thing that surpriz'd me not a little , was the Manner of Introducing it ; for , it was Usher'd in by All the Querulous wayes of Compleynt and Aggravation , Imaginable : Which I presume , they would have forborn , had they but been Acquainted with the Iustices Opinions ( in the 2d of King James ) upon that very Point . It was demanded by Chancellor Ellesmere , Whether it were an Offence punishable , and what punishment they deserved , who framed Petitions , and Collected a Multitude of Hands thereto , to Prefer to the King , in a Publique Cause , as the Puritans had done , with an Intimation to the King , That if He Deny'd Their Suit , many Thousands of his Subjects would be Discontented ? Whereto all the Iustices Answer'd , That it was an Offence Finable at Discretion , and very near to Treason and Felony , in the Punishment , For they Tended to the Raising of Sedition , Rebellion , and Discontent among the People . Upon the Rejection of their Suit , the Business was Husht , till of Late ; When the Revival of their Pretensions , together with the Dispersing of divers Virulent Libells , mov'd me to Gather up my Thoughts , which I here submit to the Fate of my other Weaknesses . I might say Twenty things , to Excuse the slips of my Distracted Leisures ; but I shall rather Recommend what 's worth the Reading , than Trifle away a Complement for that which is not . I caus'd a Little Tract lately to be Re-printed , under the Title of Presbytery Display'd : Who was the Author of it , I know not ; but it is Certainly , a Iudicious , and well-Order'd Draught of Their Government ; and may serve to stop Any Presbyterian's Mouth that Opens for a Toleration , which how Formidable - soever it may Appear in a Petition , is Certainly a most Pitifull Thing in an Argument . The Contents are to be found at the End of the Book . Toleration Discuss'd . INTRODUCTION . ZEAL and CONFORMITY , And to Them SCRUPLE . Zeal . GOod morrow to ye , Conformity . Conform . Welcome , Zeal . Is this your Eight a clock ? As sure as I live , A Presbyterian forfeits his Charter that keeps touch with a Son of the Church . Zeal . 'T is Late I Confess , but I could not possibly get away sooner . Conf. And I beseech ye ( if a body may ask ) what mighty business hinder'd ye ? Zeal . Guess . Conf. Why then , my Head to a Nut-shell , thou hast either been Breathing thy Girles at some Prohibited Lecture ; or getting Hands against the Act for Uniformity . Go to , speak Truth , What made You and your Ladies so early abroad this Morning ? ( for I saw ye at the Back-gate as soon as ye could well find the way to it ) Zeal . Suppose I should tell ye , that we went to a Religious Meeting . Conf. Then would I tell you again that 't is well your Wife is My Kinswoman . Ze. What 's your Conceit for That ? Conf. I should suspect she might be tempted Else to make your Head ake : For Those Assemblies which you call Religious Meetings ; What are they , but close Appointments , where the Men meet to Cuckold Authority : and the Women ( if they please ) to do as much for their Husbands ? Without Fooling , I look upon Conventicling , but as a Graver kind of Catter-wawling ; and in fine , 'T is not good to wont our selves to stoln pleasures . Ze. You will be Bitter . Conf. No no , I will not . Raillery apart , Your Wife 's a very good Lass. But where have you been in Earnest ? Ze. To tell you the very Truth , I have been , with my Wife and my Daughter , to Ioy Mr. Calamy of his Enlargement . Conf. Bless me ! Is he at Liberty then ? Ze. Yes , He is at Liberty . Do ye Wonder at it ? Conf. No , not much . But , prethee why was he Clapt up ? Ze. For Preaching . Is not That Crime enough ? Conf. That 's according as the Sermon is ; For so as a man may order the Matter in a Pulpit , I think he may with a better Conscience Deliver Poyson in the Sacrament ; for the One does but Destroy the Body , t'Other the Soul. This , poysons only the Congregation ; That , the whole Kingdome . Ze. I sent ye his Sermon last night , have ye overlookt it ? Conf. Yes : And I have weigh'd every Syllable in 't . Ze. Well , and How do ye find it ? Conf. Only a Plague-plaister , that 's made Publique for the Good of His Majesties Liege-People . Find it say ye ? If ever I live to be King of Utopia , I 'le hang him up that Prints the fellow on 't within my Dominions . Zeal . And what shall become of him that Preaches it , I beseech ye ? Conf. Perhaps I 'le spare him for his Industry ; for a Presbyterian that Preaches Sedition , do's but Labour in 's Calling . Ze. Come leave your Lashing , and tell me Soberly ; What hurt do you find in 't ? Conf. That Hurt that brought the Late King to the Scaffold . And ( in a word ) which will unsettle the Best Establisht Government in the world , with a very small Encouragement ; That Hurt do I find in 't . Ze. Truly , My Eyes can discover no such Matter . Conf. It may be you 'll see better with my Spectacles . But where 's your Brother-Scruple ? He was not with you at Mr. Calamy's , I hope . Ze. No , ye know Hee 's of another way ; I think hee 'll call upon me here by and by ; for we are to go into the City together about Business . Conf. What ever the Matter is , I have a strange Itch to day to know your Business . Prethee is't a Secret ? Ze. 'T is a Secret , to You , if you don't know 't . But what if I should Long as much now to know what 't is that makes you so Inquisitive ? Conf. I 'de save your Longing ; Nay , and for fear of the worst , I 'le prevent it . They say that you and your Brother are gathering Hands to a Petition against the Act for Uniformity . Ze. Put case we were , what Then ? Conf. In the Day that You Offer That Petition , will I and My Friends prefer Another against the Act of Indempnity . Ze. Sure ye do not take it for the same case . Have you read the Kings late Declaration of December 26 ? Conf. Yes ; and I see nothing There , but that His Majesty finds Himself Oblig'd to preserve Both Alike . Ze. Do ye Remember what he Says concerning his Promises from Breda ? Conf. Oh very well ; and I would advise you as a Friend not to mind Him too much of them : For first , His Majesty has done HIS PART in consenting to the Mature and deliberate Offers of his Parliament . 2. You have ( Many of ye ) fail'd of Yours in not Complying with the Conditions of his Royal Mercy . But to the point I am to speak with you about . Ze. Do so , What is 't ? Look ye ; Here 's Scruple come already . Conf. So much the Better , for I have somewhat to say to ye Both. Come , Scruple , I think I may thank your Brother here for This Visit. Scrup. Truly if it were Thankworthy , so you might ; for I am only come to call him away about Business into the City . Conf. Nay never talk of Business into the City before Dinner ; for , to my Knowledge , the Afternoon is time enough for your Business . Scrup. In Good Truth , we are Engag'd upon an Appointment . Conf. I know ye are , and that 's the Reason I desir'd to speak with your Brother this Morning . You Two are to be at Town-ditch this Morning , if it be possible ; or however , sometime to Day . Is 't not so ? Ze. Pray'e where have You your Intelligence ? Conf. I have a certain Familiar that tells Tales out of School . Come , Come , Resolve upon the Afternoon , 'T is but Reprieving Bishops a matter of two hours Longer . Ze. Well , Since you 'll have it so , it shall be so : but let me tell ye , your Devil deceives ye ; for we have no Design at all upon Episcopacy . Conf. Y'Intend to Petition the Parliament ; Do ye not ? Ze. It may be we do . Conf. In good time ; and what 's the Scope of your Petition ? Ze. That we may be left at Liberty to Worship God according to our Consciences . Conf. Have you well consider'd what will be the Fruit of Granting that Liberty ? Ze. It will exalt the Kings Honour , Establish the Peace of the Nation , Promote all Honest Interests ; and Satisfie all Good Men. Conf. Make That Good , and ye shall have my Hand to your Petition . Scrup. And if we do not make it Good , Wee 'll Renounce our Claim . Conf. Come Gentlemen , There 's a Fire in my Study , and we have Two Hours good to Dinner . Let 's make use of our Time. SECT . I. Liberty of Conscience Stated . Conf. IF I do not mistake ye , my Masters , the Thing ye Contend for is a Toleration . Scrup. It is so . Ze. And that we may not be Enjoyn'd ( upon a Penalty ) to do that which we think we ought not to do . Conf. Your Pardon , my Friend ; That 's not the Question , I do not Ask ye what ye would Not have , but what ye Would : Not what y' are Against , but what y' are For. I know well enough that the Act for Uniformity displeases ye ; but I would fain know when That 's gon , what will Please ye , that we may not Destroy a Law to no purpose . Ze. Allow us but a Freedome to Worship God , according to the Rule of his own word , and that Freedom shall content us . Scrup. In short , the Thing we Desire is Liberty of Conscience . Conf. Liberty of Conscience ? What Mortal can pretend to take it from ye ? Ze. Do's not the Act for Uniformity Debar us of it ? Conf. Not at all ; Your Actions indeed are Limited , but your Thoughts are Free ; What do's This or That Garment , or Gesture Concern the Conscience ? Ze. But if I believe it unlawfull to Worship Thus , or So : Whatsoever is not of Faith , is sin : Conf. At this Rate , for ought that I know , ye may Believe it unlawfull to worship at all : For ye may as well Except to every mode which is Not commanded , as to That which Is. ( But we are upon the Merits of the Cause , before we state the Question . ) Liberty of Conscience ( according to my Books ) is a Liberty of Iudging , not of Acting ; but I perceive the Liberty which You claym , is a Liberty of Practice . Ze. No matter for the Word , so long as we Agree upon the Meaning . Conf. Nay , by your favour , Zeal , we are not as yet Agreed upon Either ; for that which you seem to Ask in One sense , you Resolve to Take in Another : That is , ye Ask leave to Think what ye will , and ye Take leave to Do what ye will ; so that the Liberty You demand , is rather Matter of State , then of Religion : And to Ask , that ye may govern your selves by your own Consciences , is the same Thing with Asking to be no longer govern'd by the Kings Laws . Scrup. Cannot Liberty of Conscience then consist with Civil Obedience ? Conf. Yes , Liberty of Conscience may , but not Liberty of Action ; If Liberty of Conscience will content ye , disclaim Liberty of Practice ; But if ye must needs have Liberty of Practice , speak out , and do not call it Liberty of Conscience . Scrup. Give it what Name you please ; The Liberty I Desire , is a Liberty towards God in Matters of Religion ▪ Conf. But what do ye mean by those Matters of Religion ? Zeal . Whatsoever has the Honour of God for it's Direct and Immediate End , under which Head , may be comprised [ Ceremonies properly sacred and significant by Humane Institution ] [ Religious Mystical Habits ] [ Canonical Subscription , ] [ Holy-dayes ] — and in fine , such Inventions of Worship as are not warranted by Gods Word . Conf. So that upon the whole Matter , The Liberty you Demand , is a Liberty of Practice , in such Matters of Religion , as have the Honour of God for their Direct and Immediate End. All which , in one word , amounts to a Toleration , and so much for the state of the Question . SECT . II. Universal Toleration unlawfull . Conf. IF a Toleration you would have , it must be either Absolute , and Generall , or Limited and Partial . Scrup. Let it be Generall then , for doubtless if a Man be Oblig'd to Worship , it supposes him Free to do 't in such Manner as he finds himself Bound to do 't . Conf. This Argument of yours takes in Pagans , as well as Christians , for They have Consciences as well as Wee , and They are convinc'd that there is a God , and that That God ought to be Worship'd ; so that to grant a General License , is to Tolerate Paganisme . Zeal . But Paganisme is not within the Pale of the Question . Conf. Why then no more is Conscience ; for if you exclude Pagans , upon what Accompt is 't ? They perswade Themselves they are in the Right , You think them in the Wrong , and because of the Error of Their Way , deny them the Exercise of their Opinions ; so that your Exception lyes to the Error , not to the Conscience . Scrup. But their Consciences are Erroneous . Conf. They are so , if You may be Iudges of Them , and so are Yours too , when You come to be Iudg'd by Us. Now tell me , What Right have You to be Judges in your own Case , any more then They in Theirs ? Ze. We have a Law to judge our selves by . Conf. And , They , even without a Law , do by Nature the things contained in the Law , and are a Law to Themselves : But to look nearer Home , 'T is it seems among Christians only , that you would have a Generall Toleration ; and That in my opinion helps ye not much ; for to uphold your Claim , you must either maintain that there are no Erroneous Consciences among Christians , or that Errour of Conscience is no Sin , or else that Sin may be Tolerated . Scrup. That there are Erroneous Consciences , and that sin is not to be Tolerated , I Grant ye ; but I do not take every Error of Conscience to be a sin ( understand me , of Consciences labouring under an Invincible Ignorance . ) Conf. 'T is very true , the Formality of sin is the Obliquity of the Will ; but sin , Materially consider'd , is the Transgression of the Divine Law : and Conscience it self becomes sinfull , when it dictates against That Law. Scrup. Can there be any sin without Consent ? or any Consent without Knowledge ? or any Knowledge in a Case of Invincible Ignorance ? The Transgression of the Law implies the Knowledge of it , or at least the Possibility of knowing it ; without which , it has not the Nature of a Law , as to mee . [ The Conditions Requisite to a Rule , are These , it must be Certain ; and it must be Known : If it be not Certain , 't is no Rule ; if it be not Known , 't is no Rule to Us. ] I had not known sin ( sayes the Apostle ) but by the Law ; and in another place , [ Where there is no Law , there is no Transgression : ] From whence the Deduction is clear , that sin is not barely the Transgression of a Law , but the Transgression of a known Law ; the Inconformity of the Will to the Understanding . Conf. The Perversness of the Will being a Sin ▪ does not hinder the Enormity of the Judgment to be so too , [ Untill the Law ( says your own St. Paul ) sin was in the World , but sin is not imputed when there is no Law. ] Briefly ; The Word of God is the Rule of Truth , and All Disproportion to That Rule is Errour ; God's Revealed Will is the Measure of Righteousness , and all Disproportion to That Measure is sin . Now the Question is not , Whether Imputed or not , but whether a Sin or no ? and you cannot make Errour of Conscience to be no Sin , without making the Word of God to be no Rule . Scrup. I do not deny , but it is a fin as to the Law ; but it is None as to the Person : It is none constructively , with Him that accepts the Will for the Deed. Conf. Can you imagine , that any Condition in the Delinquent can operate upon the Force , and Equity of the Law ? Because God spares the Offender , shall Man therefore Tolerate the Offence ? David was Pronounc'd a Man after God's own Heart ; shall Authority therefore grant a License to Murther and Adultery ? Scrup. What 's David's Case to Ours ? You Instance in Sins of Presumption , and the Question is touching Sins of Ignorance . Conf. Your Patience , I beseech you : It may be Ignorance in him that Commits the sin , and yet Presumption in him that Suffers it : You cannot comprehend it , perhaps ; but the Magistrate does ; and wherein You Doubt , Authority is Certain : I could lead you now by a Thred , from the Toleration of all Opinions , to the Toleration of all Practices ; and shew you the execrable Effects of giving way to the Impulses of Deluded Conscience ; But what needs That , when Two words will dispatch This Controversie ? In Pleading for All Opinions , you plead for all Heresies , and for the establishment of wickedness by a Law. Do ye think such a Toleration as This , either fit for You to Ask , or for Authority to Grant ? Ze. But is it not Pity , ( considering our Duty is Obedience , and not Wisedom ) that a Good man should be punished for not being a Wise Man ? Conf. And do not you think we should have fine work , if a State were bound to make no Provision against Crafty Knaves , for fear of Dis-obliging Honest Fools : You 'l set no Trapps for Foxes , for fear of catching your Lambs ; and Hunt no Wolves for fear some of your Currs should stumble upon a Sheep . In short , the Honest will Obey Good Laws , and let not the Unwise pretend to Mend them . As to the sparing of the Man , ( even where 't were Impious to give Quarter to the Opinion ) I wish it could be done ; but how shall we separate the Errour from the Person ; so as to make a General Law take notice of it ? To Tolerate Both were Irreligious , and it seems to Mee Impossible to sever them . If you your self now can either prove the Former to be Lawfull , ( that is , to do evil , that Good may come of it ) or the Latter to be Practicable , I 'le agree with you For a General Toleration : If otherwise , I hope you 'l joyn with me , Against it . Ze. The Truth is , I am not yet Resolv'd to Burn for This Opinion ; but what do ye think of a Limited , or Partial Toleration ? Conf. I fear , you 'l find That , as much too Narrow for your Conscience , as the other is too Wide : but Wee 'l Try't however . SECT . III. Limited Toleration does not answer Liberty of Conscience . Conf. WEE are already Agreed , That a Toleration of All Opinions , is a Toleration of all Wickedness , and consequently Unlawfull . Come now to your Limited , or Partial Toleration , which I take to be A Legal Grant of Freedom , or Immunity , to such or such a Sect , or Way , and to no Other . Will a Toleration of This Latitude content ye ? Scrup. I See no other Choyce . Conf. Would ye have it Granted in favour of the Conscience that Desires it , or in Allowance of the Tolerated Opinion ? Scrup. With an Eye to Both ; that Nothing , which is Grievous may be Impos'd on the One hand , nor any thing which is Unlawfull Tolerated on the Other . Conf. But what if the Subject shall accompt that Imposition Grievous which the Magistrate thinks Necessary ? or That Liberty Conscientious which the Magistrate believes Unlawful ? Whether of the Two shall Over-rule ? If the Subject , Then is the Magistrate Oblig'd to Tolerate whatsoever the Subject shall think himself Oblig'd to Doe ; and This carries us back into a General Toleration ; If the Magistrate Over-rule , ( as certainly 'T is his Right , for no man can be properly said to Suffer , what he has not a Power to Hinder ) Your Plea of Conscience , is out of Doors . Scrup. By your Leave , Conformity ; I would not have Either of them Govern Absolutely and Severally in the Case ▪ For if the Magistrate be left to Himself , He may either set up a False Religion , or Suppress the Right , at pleasure ; and the People by Themselves , may as well Mistake as the Magistrate : whereas Together , the One Looks to the Other . But tell me , I beseech ye , would you have no Toleration at all ? Conf. Upon my word , Scruple ; no man is a greater friend to Toleration then I am , if I could but hit upon such a Measure as agrees with Piety , and Political Convenience : with such a Model as would probably answer the End you seem to aim at : but to Dissolve a Solemn Law for the Satisfaction of some Particulars , and at last to leave the People more unsatisfi'd then ye found them , were a Course ( I think ) not very Suitable to the Ordinary Method either of Government , or of Discretion ; and That I fear would be the Event of Satisfying your Desires in This Particular . Pray'e try your Skill , if you can contrive it otherwise , and say what 't is would please ye . Ze. An Exemption from the Lash of the Act of Uniformity . Conf. Well! What 's your Quarrel to 't ? Ze. I think it a Great Cruelty to Confine a Multitude of Differing Iudgments to the same Rule , and to punish a Conscientious People for those Disagreements which they can neither Reconcile , nor Relinquish . Conf. Why do ye then Press That Cruelty your Selves , which you Condemn in Others . For your Limited Toleration is an Act of Uniformity to Those that are Excluded . They that are taken In will possibly be well enough pleased ; but you never think of Those that are left Out : whereas you are to Consider that They that are Out , have Consciences as well as those that are In ; and Those that are In , have no more Priviledge , then They that are Out . So that , upon a fair view of the Matter , You can neither Admit All , nor Leave Out Any , without a Check either to your Conscience or to your Argument . For put Case , The King should Grant ye a Limited Toleration ; would That Quiet ye ? Ze. Yes , beyond doubt it would . Conf. Imagine it then , and your self One of the Rejected Party . Are not you as well , Now , without any Toleration at all ; as you will be Then without the Benefit of it ? Scrup. To deal freely , I would not willingly be Excluded . Conf. And is not That Every Mans Case as well as Yours ? A Limited Toleration must Exclude Some ; and why not You , as well as Another ? What Prerogative have You above Your Fellows ? Or why should not All be Tolerated as well as Any ? They can no more Abandon Their Opinions , then You Yours , and Your waies are to Them , just the same Grievances ; which ( if ye may be credited ) Ours are to You. Scrup. But are not Some Opinions more Tolerable then Others ? Do ye put no Difference betwixt Points Fundamentally Necessary , and but Accidentally so ? Betwixt the very Basis of Christianity , and the Superstructure ? Conf. Ye persue a Shadow . Who shall define , Which are Fundamentals , and which not ? If Both parties , ( according to your former hint ) There 's only a Confusion of Law , and Subjection , without any Clear , or Certain Result . If the Diffusive Body of the People , your Limited Dispensation , runs into an Indeterminable Liberty . If the Supreme Magistrate , Your claim of Conscience falls to Nothing , so that , step where ye will , You 'll Find no Footing upon This Bottom . Now to the Fundamentals you speak of ; bate but That Grand Foundation of our Faith , that Iesus Christ is come in the Flesh ; and that Whosoever Confesses that Iesus Christ is the Son of God , God dwelleth in him , and Hee in God. — Abating ( I say ) That Radical Principle ( which if we Disbelieve , we are no longer Christians ) there 's scarce One point that has not been subjected to a Controversie . In a word , The Reason of your Proposal requires Either an Universal Toleration , or None at all : unless you can find out an Expedient to Oblige All by Gratifying Some . I do not press This , as an Utter Enemy to all Indulgence ; but I would not have it Extorted by Importunity and Struggling ; nor Granted in such a Manner as to look liker a Composition then a Favour . If You should ask me indeed whether a Prince , upon Special Grace , and meer Motion , may not Grant a Toleration of some certain Opinions ; 'T is past Dispute , he May ; But the Same Freedome granted upon a Popular Claim , is quite Another thing , and neither Safe , nor Lawful . Scrup. Pray'e make me understand the Difference . Conf. 'T is only This ; If it be the Subject's Due , 't is none of the King 's : so that the People are Supreme , the One Way , and the Prince the Other . Now whether it be either Safe for a Prince to submit his Regality to the Claim of the People ; or LAWFUL for him , to devest himself of That Authority , wherewith God has Entrusted him ; lay This under your Pillow , and Advise upon 't . SECT . IV. The Non-conformists Plea for TOLERATION upon Reason of State. Conf. SInce you are not able to make out your Claim to a Toleration , from the Equity of the Thing ; Nay , since it appears ( on the Contrary ) that all Indulgences of That Quality are totally Dependent upon the Will , and Iudgment of the Magistrate ; You should do well do Leave Complaining , as if the Government did ye an Injury , ( where Effectually You have no Right at all ) and rather labour fairly to possess the world , that you are a Sort of People to whom the King may with Honour and Safety extend a Bounty . The Ordinary Inducements to Indulgence , are These Three . 1. Reason of State , wherein is propos'd either the gaining of an Advantage , or the Shunning of an Inconvenience . 2. The Singular Merits of the Party : and Here , Gratitude takes place . 3. The Innocence , and Modesty , of their Practises and Opinions : which is a strong Motive ; when Particulars may be Oblig'd without any Hazard to the Publique . To Begin with the First . What Reason of State can You now produce that may Move his Majesty to Grant the Non-Conformists a Toleration ? Scrup. If you had put the Contrary Question , Y 'had Pos'd me : Are not the Non-Conformists the Kings Subjects ? And what 's a King without his People ? Conf. The Non-Conformists are , by Birth , and Obligation , the Kings Subjects , but they are not so in Practice , and Obedience . They renounce the Law , and in so doing , they Cast themselves out of the Pale of Subjection . Ze. I suppose you will not Deny them however to be a Numerous Party , and some Experience you have had likewise of their Conduct , Unity , and Resolution ; which Moves me to look upon his Majesty , as ( in some Measure ) under a Prudential Necessity of Obliging so Considerable an Interest . Conf. So far am I from admitting any Political Necessity of Yielding , that , to My Judgment , the Necessity appears strong , and clear against it . Ze. Wee 'll waive the General Question , if You please , and speak to the Convenience of This Iuncture . Are not the Non-Conformists Numerous ? Conf. Upon the Poll , They are so ; and More now too , then they were when His Majesty came In ; and so long as they are Suffer'd , 't is to be Expected they shall Encrease daily . But you say , They are Numerous : If they be , Consequently Dangerous ; the Greater the Number is , the Greater is the Hazard ; and Therefore , because they are Many Already , and will be More , if they be Suffer'd , they are not to be Tolerated . Ze. But will not People be much more Peaceable , when they are Oblig'd , than when they are Persecuted ? Conf. Believe me , Matters are at an Ill pass , when the Prince lies at the Mercy of the People ; and certainly the Multitude will be much Quieter without a Power to do Mischief , then with it . But why do ye say , Persecuted ? They Persecute the Law , and then you cry the Law Persecutes Them. I would you 'd deal frankly with me : What is ( really ) your Opinion of the Honesty of your Party ? Ze. I do seriously believe the Non-conformists to be an Honest , Conscientious Sort of People . Conf. But they must be Knaves to make your Argument good : for , if they be Honest , They 'll be Quiet without a Toleration . If they be Dishonest , They 'll be Dangerous with it . Consider again ; If there be any Hazard , wherein does it consist ? not in the Multitude , but in the Confoederacy . A Million of men without Agreement , are but as One Single Person . Now they must Consult , before they can Agree ; and they must Meet before they can Consult ▪ so that , barely to hinder the Assembling of These Multitudes , Defeats the Danger of them . Whereas , on the Other side , To Permit Separate Meetings , is to Tolerate a Combination . Ze. Right ; but Those Meetings and Consultations are pass'd already ; for sure the Non-Conformists have been long enough Acquainted to Understand one another . Conf. So much the more Need to look after them ; and the less cause to Tolerate them : And for their Agreement in a General Disaffection ; That signifies little , without the Means of joyning in a Particular Plot. Again ; as 't is an Advantage on the One side , that the Faction know One another ; so is it an Equal Advantage on the Other side , that the King knows the Faction : which renders His Majesty at any time Master of it ; when His Royal wisdome shall direct him to suppress the heads of it . Ze. Mistake me not . I do not say 't is likely they will be Troublesome , in respect of their Judgments ; but that it is Possible for them to be so , in regard of their Number . Conf. He that Fears all Possibilities , lives in a cold Sweat. But I beseech ye , Whether do You take to be the Greater Number ? Those that singly wish to be Discharg'd from the Act of Uniformity ; or Those that would have no Law at all ? Those that are troubled because they may not Worship according to their Phansie ; or Those that are displeas'd because they cannot Live and Rule , according to their Appetite ? The Traytor would have One Law discharg'd ; The Schismatique Another ; The Idolater a Third ; The Sacrilegious person a Fourth ; The Drunkard a Fifth ; The Conventicler a Sixt ; The Prophane Swearer a Seventh ; The False-Swearer an Eighth ; The Murtherer a Ninth ; The Seducer a Tenth : And in fine ; not One of a Thousand , but had rather Command , then Obey . Shall the King therefore Dissolve the Law , because there are so many Criminals ? That were to raise an Argument against Authority , from the very Reason of its Constitution . Shall the People be left to do what they List , because a great many of them , would do what they should not ? Shall his Majesty give up his Government , for fear of some Millions possibly in his Dominions , that had rather be Kings than Subjects . Less Forcible , beyond Question , is the Necessity of the Kings Granting a Toleration , than That of Renouncing His Sovereignty ; for , doubtless , where there 's One man that is truly Scrupulous , there are a Hundred Avaritious , Ambitious , and , in fine , Irreligious persons . Zeal . I think we may better decide This Question from Experiment , and matter of Fact , than by Speculative Reasonings . Look back to the beginning of the Late Warr , and tell me ; Do not you believe that there are more Non-Conformists Now , then there were Then ? Conf. Yes , I do verily believe that there are Three , Now , for One , Then. Ze. Why then , the Odds are Three to One against you : for the Third part of This number , was Then the Predominant Interest of the Nation . Conf. I could allow you even Treble That number too , and the Reason of my Assertion would yet bear it , upon the greater Odds of strength betwixt the Faction then , and now . As for Instance : At the Beginning of the late Warr , they were Masters of the Tower , the Navy ; of all considerable Towns , Forts , and Magazines : They had a great part of the Crown , and Church-Revenues under their Command , and London at their Beck ; beside the Plunder of Malignants , and the bountiful Contributions of the well-affected . Scotland was already Confoederate with them , in One Rebellion ; and they had made sure of Another in Ireland , ( by persecuting , and with-holding the only Person capable to keep them Quiet : the Earl of Strafford ) which Broyle they further Assisted , by manifest Opposals of his Majesty's Resolutions to suppress it . [ See the Kings Speech of Decem . 14. 1641 , and the following Petition concerning the same ] Finally ; for the better Countenance of their Usurpations , They had drawn down the Representative of the People into a Close-Committee , and the Arbitrary Votes of this Seditious Conventicle , passed with the Vulgar , for the Acts of a Regular , and Complete Authority . This was the Condition of the Non-Conformists Power Formerly , but ( blessed be God ) they are not at present so Formidable . The Three Kingdomes are Now at Peace ; and we have a Parliament that 's no Friend to the Faction . The King is possest of a considerable Guard , which his Royal Father wanted : and the sword is in the wrong hand for Their business . His Majesty is Master likewise of his Rights , both of Power , and Revenue ; and his Capital-City stands Right in its Obedience . To all which may be added , that although several Particulars of the Party are as Rich , as Pillage and Pardon can make them ; yet they want a Common Stock to carry on a Common Cause : the Thimbles , and the Bodkins fail ; and the Comfortable In-comes of [ a ] Irish Adventures ; [ b ] Moneys and Plate upon the Propositions ; [ c ] confiscated Estates ; [ d ] Twentieth Parts ; and [ e ] weekly Assessments ; and a hundred other Pecuniary Stratagems ( for the Ease of the Subject ) are Departed from them . If it be so , that These people have none of Those Advantages Now remaining ; by virtue whereof they did so much Mischief before ; what Necessity can any Mortal Imagine of Tolerating These Naked , and Supportless Creatures , for fear of Dis-obliging them ? Ze. Are they more Naked and Supportless , Now , than they were before the Long Parliament ? Does it follow that they have no Power , because they do not Exercise it ? Certainly , if they be more in Number Now , than they were Then , Those Abilities that Rais'd them Formerly , may Secure them at . Present , from being thought Contemptible . Conf. 'T is true , before our Late Troubles they were as they are now ( for matter of Power ) and out of that Nothing they made themselves Considerable : yet still I cleave to my Opinion , that the same Abilities will not Now produce the same Effects ; for the world will not be Twice Cousen'd with the same Trick ; and as the Case stands , there is as little danger from their Conduct , as from their Number . Zeal . This is a little strange , me thinks , to Grant the Means , and Deny the End. The Two first Principles of Power ( Men and Moneys ) you have Allow'd them ; and it is not for your Credit to say that These people want Conduct , by whom you your selves have been worsted . If you have found them Considerable upon Experience , do not make them so Despicable in your Argument . Conf. Have a Care , Friend : For the Men that Worsted us , were a sort of People , that voted down Bishops on the wrong side of the Parliament door ; That Cry'd , They would have no more Porters-Lodge at White-Hall ; and told his Sacred Majesty in a Publique Declaration [ Aug. 8. 42. ] that the Pretence that his Person was There in danger , was a Suggestion as false as the Father of Lies could Invent — that Seiz'd the Tower , the Navy , the Kings Towns , Forts , Magazines , Friends and Revenues ; that Levied war against , and Imprison'd his Sacred Person , Usurp'd his Soveraign Authority ; Embrew'd their Hands in his Royal Bloud , and , in the very Pulpit , Animated and Avow'd the unexampled Murder . These were the Men that worsted us , and These are the People which you plead for , under the Mask of Non-Conformists . Your Patience yet a little further . The Non-Conformists are Many , beyond Question , ( for the whole seditious Party lurks under That Denomination ) but so long as they are neither in Order , nor in Office , they are not valuable . They are Wealthy too ; but so long as That Wealth lies in Particular Coffers , there 's not much fear of it , as to the Publique . Now let them be as wise as you Imagine them , That Policy which over-threw the Late King , signifies nothing to the Hazzard of This : Nay more , That which was Then , Policy , would be Now , Direct Folly. Ze. This is but Discourse : My opinion is , that if they had the same Will , and Purpose to do Mischief which you suppose they have , they do not want Conduct to their Number , to make the Necessity of Complying with This Interest , to appear evident , past Contradiction . Conf. Now Touching their Conduct . They must either do the same thing over again , or steer another course : and their Method is too Notorious to succeed the one way , as their Persons are too well known to do any good the Other . Scrup. I do not well understand what you mean by their Method ; for Wisdom , I suppose , does not confine her self to any Certain and prescript manner of working ; but shapes the Method to the Occasion . Conf. I am neither totally With you , nor Against you , in This Poynt : For as in the Menage of Publique Affairs , there is much left to Habitual Prudence , and Discretion , without need of directing every little Circumstance , or Tracing every Line ; so are there certain General Rules ; certain Dispositive Means , which all wise men conclude to be of absolute Necessity to such certain Ends. Scrup. The Question in hand is This ; Whether the Nonconformists be not an Intelligent , as : well as a Numerous and Wealthy Party ? and how far Reason of State may prevail for the Toleration of a sort of people in so many Respects considerable ? Pray speak to This. Conf. If they be very Wise , and very Many , they had need be very Honest too , there may be Danger else ; for if they be not Honest , 't is Unsafe , and consequently Imprudent to Indulge them . I think , the best Measure both of their Honesty , and Wisdom , may be taken from the Rise , and Menage of the late Warr : Wherein , I must confess , there wanted neither Craft in the Packing of the Cards , nor Conduct in the Playing of them . But what if I should Ask you now , Who were the Prime Conductors in That Enterprize ? If you say , The Non-conformists ; then They are not Honest enough to be Trusted ; ( would you have the King Gratifie the Murtherers of his Father ? ) If you say Otherwise ; Then 't was not Their Conduct that did the work , and they are not Wise enough to be fear'd . In short , ( to give them their Due , and no More . ) That which Destroy'd us Then , was the Conjuncture of the most Perfidious of Subjects , with the most Pious and Charitable of Princes : The King , in fine , was Ruin'd by his own Goodnesse . First , without the Pacification at Berwick , in 1639. the Rebellion had been blasted in the Bud ; And Secondly , his Majestye's Signing of the Bill for the Perpetual Parliament , put the English in a capacity of seconding their Scottish Brethren . These were the Two Capital Concessions that Kill'd the Royal Interest ; The latter whereof , his Majesty ( of ever blessed Memory ) reflects upon , as [ No sin of His Will , though an Errour of too charitable a Iudgement , ] and confesses that , [ He did not thereby intend to shut Himself out of dores , as some men had then Requited Him. ] There was likewise a fatal concurrence of Sedition and Popular Ignorance , to facilitate the Design . Alas ! the late King was oppress'd even by Those that thought they fought for him , before ever they knew what they did ; and the folly of the Common Souldier contributed no less to the General Fate , then the skill and malice of their Leaders . ( Beside some unhappy why-not's and mistakes in the Kings Armyes , which are not at all pertinent to our discourse . ) Ze. Admitting what you say , still it was some Degree of Conduct to Procure those Grants , and to Improve Those Means . Conf. Alas ! If Iudas his Betraying his Master with a Kisse ; If the Enflaming of the People by false , and scurrilous Invectives against their Soveraign ; — If the Erecting of a Prerogative Conventicle by the force of Tumults , and then giving it the Name of a Parliament ; — If the calling of God to Attest the Sanction of Perjury and Treason ; or if to Engage the People by a Sacramental Vow to Defend the King , and then Hang them up for Adhering to him ; — If This ( I say ) be Conduct : let No man presume to Dispute their Title to 't . But if by Conduct , you intend a course of Honourable Wisdom , you 'l hardly find any foot-steps of That Conduct , throughout the whole Transaction ▪ Yet let this pass for Conduct , and let the men that Govern'd the Design , be allow'd for Politicians ; still I maintain , that This Party , though endu'd with the Wisdom of Angels , cannot in This Iuncture ; no not in This Age , pretend again to be considerable . Ze. That 's sooner said , then prov'd . Conf. Truly , I think not much ; in regard that both Their Wayes , and their Persons are too well Known , to be either Suffer'd , or Credited . In Order to the late Warr , the Party had Two Games to play ; for they were to make an Interest both with the King , and with the People , wherein their Master-piece was shew'd imprevailing with both King , and People , to Contribute to their own undoing ; To which End , They first , Acquainted Themselves with his Majesties Dearest Inclinations ; and Next , with the Niceties , and Distresses of his Government , and Fortune : of which Discovery they made such use , as Enabled Them to Overturn the Order both of Church and State , and to perfect their long-Projected Reformation : For the late King 's Predominant Affection being Piety , and Compassion , and his most Dangerous Distress being want of Money , the Politicks of the Faction appear'd in nothing more , than in Working upon his Majestye's Goodness , and Necessities . Their Practices upon the People were chiefly employ'd upon the Two Things , which of all Others they do the least understand , and the most furiously pursue , to wit , Religion and Liberty ; wherein the Ministers were the Prime Instruments , and Alaham ( in the words of the Excellent Lord Brook ) was their Instructor . Preach you with fiery tongue , distinguish Might ; Tyrants from Kings , duties in question bring 'Twixt God and Man ; where power infinite Compar'd , makes finite power a scornfull thing . Safely so craft may with the truth give light , To Iudge of Crowns without enammelling ; And bring contempt upon the Monarchs State ; Where straight unhallowed power hath peoples hate . Glaunce at Prerogatives Indefinite , Tax Customs , Warrs , and Lawes all gathering ; Censure Kings faults , their Spies , and Favourites , Holiness hath a Priviledge to sting . Men be not Wise ; bitterness from zeal of spirit , Is hardly Iudg'd ; the envy of a King Makes People Like reproof of Majesty . Where God seems great in Priests audacity — And when mens minds thus tun'd and tempted are To change , with Arguments 'gainst present times , Then Hope awakes , and man's Ambition climes . This was the Artifice , by which the Faction skrew'd Themselves formerly into an Interest ; but alas , what would the same Thing over again avail them now ? when his Majesty ha's but to look behind him upon the sad Fate of his Royal Father , to secure Himself against all Possibility of Another Imposture . And for the Multitude , they must be worse than Brutes , in case of any New Attempt , ever to Engage against This King , upon any Man's Credit , that had his Hand in the Death of the Last ; so that we are both Wiser and Surer at Present , then we were Twenty years agoe , upon a double Accompt ; First , the Calamityes of the Last Warr are still fresh in our Remembrance , and I do not find the People generally so sanctifi'd by their . Experience , but they had rather lye still for their Real Profit , then Fight it over again for the Sound of Religion . Secondly , We are pre-acquainted with the most likely Instruments and Pretences of Raising any New Troubles . As for the Unity ye boast of , 't is very true ; that the Non-conformists Agreed against the Publique , till they found it Impossible for them any longer to Agree among Themselves ; And there 's the Utmost of their Unity . Their Resolution indeed I cannot Deny but it comes up to That in th' Epigram , That , He that Dares be Damn'd , Dares more than fight . Scrup. Wee shall do our Cause an Injury to press too farr upon Reason of State in Matter of Religion . Conf. Indeed , I think you 'l find it a hard Task , to make it out to any Man of Reason , that the Kingdom will be either the Better for Granting you a Toleration , or the Worse for Refusing it : but 't is to be hop'd that your Merits will plead better for you then your Politicks . SECT . V. The Non-Conformists Plea for TOLERATION , from the Merits of the Party . Conf. WHat ha's your Party ( Gentlemen ) Merited from the Publique , that an Exception to a General Rule , should be Granted in Your Favour ? Name your services . Ze. Wee ventur'd All to save the Life of the Late King. Conf. And yet Ye ventur'd more to Take it away : for , Ye did but Talk for the One , and Ye Fought for the Other . Ze. We ever Abominated the Thought of Murthering him . Conf. You should have Abominated the Money too , for which Ye Sold him . Scrup. Did Wee sell him ? Conf. No , You were the Purchasers . Ze. Did not the Presbyterians Vote His Majesties Concessions a Ground for a Treaty ? Conf. Yes : but withall they held him up to Conditions worse than Death it self ; and , in short , They Deliver'd Him up , when they might have Preserv'd Him ; and they Stickled for Him , when they knew they could do Him no Good. Ze. What Design could They have in That ? Conf. They might have the same Design in -48. which they had in -41. for ought that I know . To make a Party by 't ; and set up a Presbyterian Interest in the Kings Name . Ze. All the World knowes , that we were so much afflicted for his Sacred Majesties Distress , that we had many solemn Dayes of Humiliation for it . Conf. So ye had for his Successes , for fear he should get the better of ye ; and you had your Dayes of Thanksgiving too , for his Dysasters . Ze. What do ye think of Preston-Fight ? was That a Iuggle too ? Conf. I think ye should do well to let that Action sleep , for the Honour of the Kirk : for though the Cavaliers found it Great Earnest , 't is shrewdly suspected that there was foul play among the Brethren . Ze. Pray'e let mee ask you One Question : Who Brought in This King ? Conf. They that would not suffer . You to keep him out : That Party that by a Restless , and Incessant Loyalty , hinder'd your Establishments . Ze. And what do ye think of the Sccluded Members ? Conf. I think , a New Choyce would have done the Kings business every jot as well ; and Matters were then at That pass , that One of the Two was unavoydable . In fine , 't is allow'd at all hands , that the Prime Single Instrument of his Majestyes Restauration was the Duke of Albemarle . But if you come to Partyes , the very Fact appears against ye : For , though all possible Industry was employ'd to make the Next Choyce totally Presbyterian , by Disabling all such Persons , and their Sons , as ( in effect ) had serv'd the King since -41. without manifesting their Repentance for it since ; Yet , so strong was the General Vote of the People , for the Kings True Interest , and against All Factions , that All Endeavour was too little to Leaven the next Convention , as was Design'd . If ye have no more to say for the Merits of your Party , wee 'l pass on to the Merits of your Cause : Ze. Do so , and wee 'l give you the Hearing . SECT . VI. The Non-conformists Plea for TOLERATION , from the Innocence of their Practices and Opinions . Conf. COncerning the Innocency of your Practices and Opinions , must be our next Enquiry ; and how farr your Actions and Principles Comport with the Duties of Society , and with the Ends of Government . If Authority find them Regular and Modest , it will be a fair Motive to his Majesty to Grant ye an Indulgence , upon so fair a Presumption that You will not Abuse it . Ze. And we shall willingly cast our selves upon That Tryal . Conf. Go to then . But I must Ask ye some untoward Questions by the way . What 's your Opinion ( Gentlemen ) of the Warr Rais'd in — 41. was it a Rebellion , or no ? Ze. 'T is a Point we dare not Meddle with . Conf. Nay , then you falter ; for if you Thought it One , you 'ld Answer me ; and if ye think it None , you 'd think the same Thing , over again , to be none too . Suffice it , that in fact there was a Warr , and such a Warr as no Honest English Man can Reflect upon , but with Grief , Shame , Horrour , and Indignation : Can ye tell me what was the Ground of the Quarrel ? Ze. I think you were in the Right your self , when ye said , it was Religion and Liberty . Conf. I suppose , I shall not need to tell ye the Event of it ; But of which side were the Tender Consciences , For the King , or Against Him ? Ze. We were ever for the King : Witness our Petitions , Declarations , and in a most Signal Manner , our Solemn League and Covenant . Conf. Now I thought ye had been Against Him , because ye Seiz'd his Revenues , Levy'd a War , Hunted and Imprison'd his Person , and at last took away his Life . But the truth on 't is , Ye were Both : Ye were For Him in Your Words , and Against Him in Your Actions . Ze. There were many in Our Party That Lov'd the King as well as Any of You that were about Him. Conf. That is , According to your Covenant : and I do not think but that your Party Loves This King just as they did the Last . Scrup. I would his Majesty had no worse Enemies . Conf. And I say , God send Him better Friends . You Love the Bishops too I hope , Do ye not ? Scrup. Truly when they are out of their Fooleries , I have no Quarrel to the Men. Ze. And to deal plainly , I am not yet Convinc'd of their Lordships Prerogative ; nor that there 's Any Inherent Holiness in a Cope or a Surplice . But why do you Couple the Crown and the Miter so , as if no Man could be a good Subject , that 's Disaffected to Prelacy . Conf. To be Free with ye , That 's my Opinion , and I 'm the stiffer in 't , because I think you can hardly shew me , any One Non-Conformist , that upon a voluntary and clear Accompt ever struck Stroke For the King ; nor any true Son of the Episcopal Order of the Church , that ever bore Arms Against Him. Ze. What will you forfeit if I shew you Hundreds ? Conf. Either my Head , or the Cause , which you please . Ze. What do ye think of the Papists then ▪ ( but it may be you and they are all One , and so you w'ont reckon them for Non-Conformists ) Conf. To say the truth , we were All One in Loyalty to his Majesty , and to Your Eternal Reproach be it spoken , [ That the Papists should have a greater Sense of their Allegeance than many Protestant Professors ] Ze. Nay I believe a Machiavellian Jesuit shall ha'your good word , sooner then a Conscientious Puritan . Conf. Truly no ; for a Presbyterian Papist , and a Presbyterian Puritan are Both alike to mee ; and I confess , I had rather be Preserv'd by a Man of Another Religion , than ha' my Throat out by One of my Own. But , my Good Brother of the Consistory , no Slipping your Neck out of the Col ar : I was speaking of the Non-Conformists ; by which Term is properly meant , Such Persons as Refuse to Obey the Orders of the Church , whereof they Acknowledge Themselves to be Members ; so that the Point in Debate , has no Coherence at all with your Digression . To Mind you of it , the Question 's This : Whether or no the Practises of the Non-Conformists have been such , as may probably Dispose his Majesty towards the Granting of a Toleration . And now to hold you to the Question [ By Whom was the War in Scotland begun ? ] By the Non-Conformists . Ze. By whom I beseech ye was the Rebellion in Ireland begun ? Conf. By the Presbyterian Papists , but it was provok'd , and pre-dispos'd by the Presbyterian Puritans ; [ So that , next to the Sin of those , who begun that Rebellion , Theirs must needs be , who either hindred the speedy suppressing of it , by Domestique Dissentions , or diverted the Aids , or exasperated the Rebels , to the most Desperate Resolutions and Actions , by threatning all Extremities , not only to the known Heads and chief Incendiaries ; but even to the whole Community of that Nation , Resolving to Destroy Root and Branch , Men , Women , and Children ; without any regard to those usual pleas for Mercy , which Conquerours , not wholly Barbarous , are wont to hear from their own breasts , in behalf of those , whose oppressive Fears , rather than their Malice , Engag'd them ; or whose Imbecillity for Sex and Age was such , as they could neither lift up a hand against them , nor distinguish between their right hand and their left . ] These are the Words of that Evangelical Prince , that Dy'd a Martyr for That Religion , and Liberty , which He was Calumniated to have Betray'd . By whom I beseech ye , was He Persecuted , Divested of All his Regalities , Assaulted , Immur'd , Depos'd , and Murder'd , but By Your Party , Gentlemen ? By whom , was Episcopacy Destroy'd , Root and Branch ; the Law Trampled upon ; Our Churches Prophan'd ; Monarchy Subverted ; the Free-born People of England Pillag'd , and Enslav'd ; the Nation Engag'd in Bloud and Beggery ; but by the Non-Conformists ? Ze. Why do ye Charge those Exorbitancies upon the whole Party , that were the Crimes only of some Particular and Ambitious Men ? Do you believe , That it should ever have gone so far , if we Two could have Hinder'd it ? Conf. No , Indeed do I not ; and I do believe that there were Thousands in the Party that Intended it as little as your selves . Now , Me thinks , This Experience should Deterre ye , from the Project you are at this Instant upon ; Especially considering that you are upon the very Steps that led to the late Rebellion . The Method , was Petitioning ; the Argument , was Liberty of Conscience ; and the Pretext , Religion ▪ Popery , was the Bug-bear ; and the Multitude , were the Umpires of the Controversie . ▪ Nay , you have the very same Persons to Lead ye On ; and They , the very same Matter to work upon . Bethink your selves ; Ye meant no hurt ( ye say ) to the last King , and yet ye Ruin'd him : Ye may perchance Intend as little harm to This King , and yet do him as much . Not that the matter is in Your Power ; but I would not have it in your Will , and Endeavour . But enough is said touching the Innocency of your Practices : That of your Opinions , follows ; and I am Mistaken , if your Principles prove not Altogether as Intolerable as your Practices ( by Intolerable , I mean , Inconsistent with the Publique Peace ) Ze. Sure you 'll send me to my Catechism again . Conf. Nay , Marque me ; I will make it so clear to ye , that You your Selves shall Confess , that Sedition flowes as Naturally from your Ordinary , and Receiv'd Opinions , as Corrupt Waters from a Poyson'd Fountain ; and not as an Accident neither , attendant upon Your Separation , but as a form'd and excogitated Design , wrapt up , and Coucht in the very Mystery of your Profession . Ze. ' Wou'd you 'd be pleas'd to unvail the Mystery you speak of . Conf. In Obedience , I 'll Endeavour it . The most Sacred of All Bonds , is That of Government , next to That of Religion ; and the Reverence which we Owe to Humane Authority , is only Inferiour to That which we Owe to God Himself . Yet , such is the Deprav'd State of Nature , that Every man is touch'd with an Ambition ( more or less ) to gain to Himself some share in the Command of the Whole : and from hence proceed Those Struglings of Particular Persons , which we so frequently meet with in Opposition to the General Lawes , and Ends of Order and Society . So soon as This Private Humour has Emprov'd , and Ripen'd it Self into a Design , the first Maxim which appears in favour of it , is This ; that The Less Obligation must give way to the Greater ; as ( for Instance ) Reason of State must give place to Matter of Religion , and Humane Lawes to the Law Divine : which being Duly Weigh'd , what has any man more to do in Order to the Embroyling of a Nation , but to perswade the People that This or that Political Law has no Foundation in the Word of God ; to bid them Stand fast in the Liberty wherewith Christ has Made them Free : and finally to Engage the Name of God , and the Voyce of Religion in the Quarrel ? Ze. And do not You your self believe it Better to Obey God then Man ? Conf. Yes , but I think it Best of All to Obey Both : to Obey God , for Himself , in Spirituals ; and Man for God's sake in Temporals , as he is God's Commissioner . But let me Proceed . Are not you Convinc'd , that the most likely way in the world to stir up Subjects against their Prince , is to Proclaim the Iniquity of his Laws ? to tell them ( in Effect ) that They 'll be Damn'd , if they Obey ; and ( in a word ) to make the Rabble Judges of their Governours ? Ze. Well , but what 's This to Us , or Our Opinions ? Conf. I wish it were not ; but to Couch the whole in a Little , Shew me , if you can , where ever your Opinions yet gain'd Footing in the world without Violence , and Bloud : Shew me again , Any One Sermon or Discourse ( Authoris'd by a Non-conformist ) from 1640. to This Instant , that presses Obedience to the Magistrate , unless where the Faction was Uppermost ; which shrew'dly intimates , that Your Principles are Inconsistent with your Duties , and that the very Grounds of Your Government are Destructive of any Other . Ze. Make That appear if you can . Conf. I will so , and I think we shall not need to travail out of his Majesty's Dominions to Prove it . Come , Zeal ; You 're of the Classical way ; and You , Scruple , of the Independent ; Produce Your Doctors ; ( but let them be the Pillars of your Cause ) such Persons , as upon whose Judgment , and Integrity , You 'll venture the Sum of the Dispute . Ze. Soft and fair , I beseech ye ; what is 't you undertake to do ? Conf. I do undertake to prove that the Opinions of the Non-conformists , ( to say no worse ) will very hardly admit a Toleration : and , Now , By whom will ye be Try'd ? Ze. What do ye think of Rutherford ? Conf. I suppose you mean the Divinity-Professour of St. Andrews . ( Iohn Goodwin , I remember , calls him , The Chariot of Presbytery , and the Horsemen thereof ) In Truth you have pitch'd upon the Atlas of your Cause . But hear the Rabbi in his own words , [ a ] The Power of the - King is but Fiduciary . [ b ] The Soveraign Power is Eminently , Fontal●ter , Originally , and Radically in the People . [ c ] The King is in Dignity Inferiour to the People . [ d ] There is a Court of Necessity , no less than a Court of Iustice , and the Fundamental Laws must Then speak ; and it is with the People , in This Extremity , as if they had no Ruler . Ze. Well : but Rutherford is but One man , I believe you 'll find Gillespy of another Opinion . Conf. Assure your Self , Friend Mine , they all sing the Same Song [ e ] [ Let not the Pretence of Peace and Unity cool your Fervour , or make you Spare to oppose your selves unto these Idle and Idolized Ceremonies , against which we Dispute ] For [ f ] Whensoever you may omit that which Princes enjoyn , without Violating the Law of Charity , you are not holden to Obey them , for the Majesty of Princely Authority . Are not These Sons of Zeal worthy of Encouragement , think ye ? You 'll say perhaps , Gillespy is but One Man neither . Come , Come , I could shew ye Hundreds of Them ; and if you 'll but read Spottswood's History of the Church of Scotland , and his Late Majesty's Large Declaration , Printed in 1639. ye shall need go no further for satisfaction . To pass over the Desperate Opinions and Contrivances of Particulars ; as Willock , Knox , Melvil , Gibson , &c. Let us look a little into their more Solemn Actions , and read the Temper of the Kirk in their General Assemblies . 1. An Assembly is Independant , either from King or Parliament in Matters Ecclesiastical . 2. An Assembly may Abrogate an Act of Parliament , if it any way reflect upon the business of the Church . 3. It is Lawful for Subjects to make a Covenant and Combination without the King , and to enter into a Bond of Mutual Defence against Him. 4. The Major part of the Kingdome ( especially being met in a Representative Assembly ) may do any thing which they take to be Conducing to the Glory of God , and to the Good of the Church ; not only Without the Royal Authority , but Expresly Against it . Were 't not a Thousand Pitties now , to refuse This Tender Sort of Christians a Toleration ? Ze. Nay ; In good truth , I never lik't the Extreme Rigour of the Scottish Discipline . Conf. And yet 't was That you Leagu'd and Covenanted to make your Pattern ; but where do you Expect to Mend your Self , under That Form of Government ? Ze. Truly , I take our English Divines of that Iudgment to be very Pious , Moderate Persons . Conf. Never a Barrel better Herring ; That is , If they come once to Dip into the Controversie . Ze. Do not you take Mr. — for a very sober well-weigh'd Person ? Conf. Take you the Measure of him , from his own Hand . [ If a People bound by Oath shall Dispossess their Prince , and Chuse , and Covenant with Another ; they may be Oblig'd by the Latter , notwithstanding their former Covenant . ] The real Soveraignty among us , was , in King , Lords and Commons ; and if the King raise War against such a Parliament , in That Case , the King may not only be Resisted , but ceaseth to be a King. Hear now the File-leader of SMECTYMNUUS . [ The Quection in England , is whether Christ or Antichrist shall be Lord , or King : Go on therefore Couragiously : Never can ye lay out your Bloud in such a Quarrel ; Christ shed all his Bloud to save you from Hell , venture all yours to set Him upon his Throne . ( That is to say , Down with Episcopacy , and Up with Presbytery ) This is the Language of One of your Seraphique Doctors ; and the Sermon both Preach'd by Command , and Printed by Order . Take notice of his Auditory too : No less then the Two Houses , General , Lord-Mayor , Assembly , and Scotch Commissioners , Ian. 18. 1643. Scrup. You will not deny Mr. John Goodwyn ( I hope ) to be a Reverend Divine . Conf. At the Rate of Your Divinity , indeed I cannot deny it , Touching the Righteousness of the Sentence passed upon the King ; Doubtless ( says he ) never was there any Person under Heaven Sentenc'd with Death upon more Equitable , and just Grounds , in respect of Guilt and Demerit . Mr. Ienkins is of the same opinion , and so is Parker , Milton ; and , in fine , the whole Tribe of Medling Non-conformists are of the same Leven . Now , to shew ye that This Agreement comes not by Chance , you are to observe , that whatsoever is first Expos'd and Blown abroad ( by the Hirelings of the Faction ) from the Press , and Pulpit , is still Seconded ( at least , if the People Relish it ) with the Approbation of the Counsel : so that the main use of Sermons , and Pamphlets , is only to dispose the Multitude for Votes , and Ordinances . If you doubt This ; do but Compare the Doctrines of the One , with the Practices of the Other ; and you must be Blind , not to discern that they act by Consent , and Intelligence . In case of False-worship ( says the Pulpit ) and ( says the Press ) In case of Tyranny , Defensive Arms are Lawful . If the People Swallow This ; the next news ye hear , is a Vote for putting that Position in Practice . Resolved upon the Question that the King ( Seduced by wicked Counsel ) intends to make War , &c. [ May 20. 1642. ] Resolved upon the Question , that an Army shall be forthwith Raised , &c. [ Iuly 12. 1642. Ze. Will ye make the Parliament then , and the Synod , Confederate with the Rabble ? Conf. Tush , Tush ; Turbam , tam Chlamydatos , quàm Coronam voco . I speak of a Faction , not of an Anthority ; I do not meddle with Parliaments : Yet since you have such a Kindness for the very Names These People Acted under , Let me Offer ye a Word or two to Consider upon , touching That Thing , which you call a Synod . First , The men were neither Legally Conven'd , nor did They Act in the Name of all the Clergy of England : So that no Matter what They Did , as to the Validity of any thing They could pretend to do . Secondly , What was Their Employment , but to Advise upon the Cleanliest way of Shifting the Government , and to do as much for the Bishops , as the House did for his Majesty ? Will ye have the Truth on 't ? They clear'd their Conscience abundantly to Both. First ; in Their Letter to Reformed Churches Abroad , They Charge the King as the Patron of the Irish Rebellion [ Pa. 7. ] and , in short , throughout the whole Tenor of it as the most Insupportable Tyrant in Nature . Secondly , Let That ( not only Unchristian but Inhumane ) Collection of White 's Scandalous Ministers bear Witness Against Them. Wherein , without any Respect either to Truth , or Modesty , They have Expos'd so Many Reverend Names to Infamy , and Dishonour , for the better Colour of Their own Wickedness in Robbing them of their Livings . I have here laid before you , the Merits , Practices , and Opinions of the Party you plead for . If I have told ye Truth , Think on 't ; if otherwise , Disprove it . Ze. I will not Deny , but Ill things have been done : Shall All therefore be Condemn'd , for the Faults of Some ? Conf. And I will not deny neither , but there are Good people in the mixture ; shall All therefore be Indulg'd for the Honesty of some ? Try your skill , my Masters ; and if You can contrive such an Expedient , as may Relieve Particulars , without Hazzard , or Dammage to the Whole , ye shall have my Vote for such a Toleration . But before ye propound it , give me leave to offer ye such other Reasons of my Own , Against it , as have not been yet touch'd upon , and then you are at Liberty to speak to All at Once . SECT . VII . TOLERATION , causes Confusion both in Church and State. Conf. GEntlemen , To come quick to the Business ; My Exceptions to your Proposal of Toleration , shall be Reduc'd to Four Heads : My First Exception arises from the very Nature of the Thing it self ; My Second , from this Iuncture of Time wherein it is Desired ; My Third , from the Consideration of the Partyes that Desire it ; and My Last Exception , proceeds from the Reverence I bear to the Authority that is to Grant it . Now , if You please , Wee 'l begin with the First , and pass to the Rest in Order . My First Argument against Toleration , is This : It is ( in those that press it ) a Tacit Condemnation of an Establisht Law , and not without some Reflection upon the Supreme Authority it self . If there was Reason for the Making of it , There is yet More for the Observing of it ; by how much an Universal Obedience is more Profitable to the Publique , than any Particular Constitution . Scrup. It would be well , If you would bring all People to the same Mind , before ye force them to the same Rule . Conf. But it would be Ill if you should admit of no Rule at all , till you had found out One , that all the world should be pleas'd with . Scrup. We do not ask the Vacating of a Law , but the Relaxing of it . Conf. Why then , You ask a Worse Thing ; for it were Much better for the Publique , utterly to vacate a Good Law , then to suffer the Withdrawing of that Reverence which is due even to a Bad one . If the Reason of such or such a Law be gone , Repeal the Law ; but to let the Obligation fall , and the Law Stand , is , not only to Introduce , but to Proclaim a Disorder in the Government . The Law , in fine , is , an Act of Publique , and Impartial Justice , not made for This , or That Particular , but for a Common Good. My Second Exception to Tolcration , is , Because it Implyes a kind of Assent ( let me not say Submission ) both to the Equity of the Subjects Complaint , and to the Reason of the Tolerated Opinion , which , in some Degree , seems to Authorise a Separation . Now let it be once admitted , that any One Law may be Question'd by the Multitude ; the Consequence reaches to all the Rest : Let it be admitted , either , that any One sort of People may be allowed to challenge any One Law , All other Opinions have the same Right of Compleyning . Scrup. But we do not question either the Prudence of the Law-makers , or the General Equity of the Constitution ; only where God has not given us Consciences suitable to the Rule , we do humbly begg of his Majesty to bestow upon us a Rule that may comply with our Consciences . Conf. Would you have a Law made that shall comply with All Consciences ? Ye demand an Impossibility . God Himself never made a Law that pleased all people . Oh! but the Imposition under a Penalty troubles ye . Take a-away the Sanction , and what signifies the Law ? Well , but You would be exempt I perceive from the general Obligation ; so would every man else , and then there 's no Law at all : In short , Ye cannot say what ye would have . Would ye have a particular Indulgence ? Where 's the Equity of it as to Those that are Excluded ? Will ye have it Generall ? Where 's the Conscience of it , when all Heresies are entertain'd . You should consider , that Lawes are fram'd with a regard to the Community ; and they ought to stand Firm and Inexorable : If once they come to hearken to Particular Clamours , and to side with Particular Interests , the Reverence of Government is shaken . Ze. You have speculated here some Airy Inconveniences ; but where 's the Real hazard of receding from that Inexorable strictness ? ( as you call it . ) Conf. First , the Magistrate makes himself of a Party with Those that he Tolerates , against Those that he Rejects , which drawes an envy upon the Government . Secondly , The Tolerated Party becomes a Sanctuary for all the seditious Persons in the Kingdom . It was well said of one ( whom I esteem more for his Wit than his Honesty ) speaking of a Thin House of Commons ; It looks ( says he ) like a Parish Church that borders upon a Conventicle . And the very Truth of it is , A Schismatical Lecturer , is as bad as a Rosted Dogg in a Dove-house , he tolls away all the Pigeons i' th Countrey . Not that the People throng to him for the Excellency of the Man , or of the Way , but they Meet to Proclaim Themselves Masters of the Law , and to count how many Thousand souls there are , even in this sinfull Nation , that will not bow the Knee to Baal . Let them go on , and within a while , the King perhaps shall sue to Them , for the same Toleration They now begg from Him , and go without it ; that is , unless His Majesty has better luck then his Father ( which God send him , for he has several of the very same Persons to deal withall . ) Another Objection may be This ; If there be any Reason for Granting a Toleration , 't is Probable the Reason will be stronger for Continuing it ; so that , in Time , the People shall Challenge That as a Right , which They now only Demand as a Favour ; and the next Motion is into a Popular Reformation . Let me add to what I have said , that a Toleration does not only Evirtuate the Law , but it naturally produces a total Dissolution of Ecclesiastical Order , and consequently begets a Confusion both in Church and State. Ze. You speak as if there were no such thing as a Toleration in Nature . Conf. Of that in place convenient . SECT . VIII . The Danger of TOLERATION in this Iuncture . Conf. I Need not tell ye ( Gentlemen ) that I am no great friend to Toleration at Any time : but I must confess to ye , that at This time I like it worse then I have done at any Other . Scrup. When , to My thinking , there never was more need of it , nor more Hope of the Fruit of it , then is at this Instant . Are not the People ready to Tumult for want of it ? Conf. Indeed a very proper Reason why they should have it , that they may be encouraged to Tumult again , for what they have a mind to Next . How long do you believe that Government would stand , where the Multitude should take notice that their Rulers are afraid of them ? Are they ready to Tumult ? then they are not Conscientious ; and if it be not conscience that moves them , 't is Sedition . Scrup. I 'm very confident , An Indulgence would Quiet them . Conf. Can you remember the steps of the last Warr , and be of that Opinion ? What was it but That which was given to Quiet the Faction that enabled them to take All the Rest ? To give you a fresh Instance ; What could be more Pious , Gracious , or Obliging , then his Majesties Late Declaration , in Favour of the Non-conformists ? All that was possible for the King to doe , in consistence with Conscience , Honour , and the Peace of his Dominions , his Majesty has there frankly assur'd them of : and what 's the effect of all ? Are they one jot the Quieter for 't ? No , but the worse ; for no sooner was his Majesties Tenderness ( in That Particular ) made Publique , but the generality ( even of Those that had lately entred into a Regular and Dutifull complyance with the Orders of the Church ) started into a new Revolt ; which Demonstrates , that the true ground of their Separation is not Conscience , but Faction , and proves sufficiently the benefit , and necessity , of a strict Rule , and the hazard of a Relaxation : For you see , that rather then abide the Penalty of the Act , they could Conform ; but upon the least Glimpse of an Indulgence , they Relapse into a Schism . Come , Brother Zeal ; Your Friend of — shall pin the Basket. That Sermon of his that you wote of , ( at least if His it be , and several Impressions of it have pass'd as His , without any Contradiction ) That Sermon do I take to be one of the Lewdest Requitals of the Kings Mercy and Goodness that ever — But no more , Hee 's a Son of the Kirk . Take him First , as a Person whom his Majesty has Pardon'd , although a Leading , and Pragmatical Instrument toward the Ruine of his Royal Father . Consider him Secondly , as one that has been taken nibbling at Sedition , since his Majesty's Return before now , and yet been wink'd at . Thirdly , take notice of the very point of Time he has chosen for his purpose . His Contempt meets the Kings Mercy just in the Face , and his Majesty's Arms are no sooner open to receive him , then he takes that very nick of Opportunity to stabb him in . Ze. And all This Amplifying , and Passion , for Preaching , forsooth , without a Licence . Conf. The least thing in my thought , I assure ye ; for I speak to the Dangerous Scope and Application of his Sermon , without any concern at all whether he did Well , or Ill , as to the Act of Uniformity . Ze. I will not justifie his Prudence , but in my Conscience the man never meant any hurt , either to this King , or to his Father , I should abhorre him , if I thought he did . Conf. Wee 'l handle that Point at leasure : But to bring what we are now upon , to a Period . I look upon Mr. Calamy as the Mouth of the Party , and ye see with what a seditious Confidence they own his Actions , and avow his Disobedience : So that from Mr. Calamy's single Case , we are to take the Measure of the Main Question : And now I ask ye ; Whether , or no , do you hold it convenient to dispense with a Law , in favour of That Party , which at the same time both Challenges , and Defies That Law , and Despises that Mercy ? Ze. When you have made out the Fact , as you have layd it , I 'le tell ye my Opinion . Conf. Again , we are perpetually Alarm'd with Plotts , ye see ; Now what better means then a Toleration , to draw the Conspirators into a Body ? In Truth ; to gratifie a Party that thus outfaces Authority , and to do it too in the very Crisis of the Contest , is a Policy that I can't reach the Bottom of . This Thred might be drawn finer ; but I have something to say concerning the Party , as well as the Time. SECT . IX . Arguments against TOLERATION , in respect of the Party that desires it ; with , Animadversions upon a certain Pamphlet , Entituled , A SERMON Preached at ALDERMANBURY-CHURCH , Decemb. 28. 1662. &c. Conf. WE are now entring into a Large Field , Gentlemen , and that we may not lose our selves , Let us move orderly toward the Question . Your Party desires a Toleration , is 't not so ? Scrup. It is so . Conf. And what is Your Party , I beseech ye ? Where do they Dwell ? What are their Names ? Their Opinions , &c. — For to Tolerate , No body knowes Whom , or What , would be a little with the Largest , I think ; would it not ? Scrup. Truly I think it would . But to Answer your queynt Question ; Our Party is a certain number of Godly and Conscientious men , that desire a Freedom to Worship God in their own way . Conf. But now You must tell me Your Way too . Scrup. Our Way must be such a Way as is agreeable to Gods Word . Conf. Do ye mean , that it must be expressly mark'd out , and commanded There ; or will it serve the Turn , if it be only not Prohibited ? Ze. God forbid , that any sober Christian should imagine that our Saviour left his Church without a Rule , and certainly the Lord's Discipline is the best Pattern , so that we are to stick to the Ordinance of Jesus Christ , without Adding or Diminishing . Conf. Scruple , What say You to This ? for if it be so , there is but One way of Worshipping , Lawfull ; and consequently , but One way Tolerable . Scrup. In Truth , I am content to venture My Soul among Those that serve the Lord according to the Light that he has given them . Conf. So that I perceive 't is utterly Impossible to please ye Both ; for You are for several wayes , and your Brother Zeal but for One. How comes it now that You Two , that can never Agree betwixt your selves , should yet Joyn in a Petition against Us ? Scrup. We Agree in This , that neither of us would be Limited . Conf. Do not You find your self Foul now upon the Old Rock of Universal Toleration again ? I would , You 'd be but so honest Once , as to Yield , when Y' are Convinc'd . Can you either name Those Opinions , which you would have Indulg'd ; or can you Expect a Toleration for all Opinions at a venture ? Scrup. Provided they be not contrary to Gods Word . Conf. But who shall be Iudg of That ? If each Individual , You must admit Right and Wrong , promiscuously , for no man will condemn himself ; If Authority , You are concluded by an Ecclesiastical Law. Have a Care now of your old Distinction of Fundamentals , and Non-fundamentals , for then your very foundation fails ye , and ye renounce the most plausible part of your Plea , to wit , your Title of Conscience . A word now to your Brother . You are for the Holy Discipline , Zeal ; for That way , and for no Other . Ze. We are for That way which is prescrib'd in the Word . Conf. Of which way , either the People or the Governours must be the Judges . If you say the People , the Independent has the Better of ye ; if the Governours , you must submit to the Resolutions of the Church : In fine , If ye cannot say what ye would have , never Complain that ye cannot Obtain what ye Ask ; and That 's my first Reason against Tolerating the Non-conformists . They are a sort of People that would have they know not what . In which , Particular Experience bears witness against them : For , what have they done since — 41. but Overturn'd the Government , Divided the Spoyl , Enrich'd Themselves , Embroyl'd every thing , and setled nothing ? And yet my Masters there was no Act of Uniformity to hinder ye . Ze. You cannot imagine sure that all these Hurli-burlies and Confusions , were Design'd . Conf. Not All perhaps , for I believe ye thought to do your Business with less Trouble : But that the subversion of the Government was Design'd is plain , and certain ; and truly that it is now Design'd over again , is scarce less Evident : Upon which special consideration , I ground my Second Exception . Scrup. But That would be hard , to ruine so many People of God for an Uncharitable surmise . Conf. Go to Scruple ; If That be not the scope of your Monstrous Earnestness for a Toleration , pray'e tell me what is ? If ye have no end at all in 't , 't is Frivolous ; if This be your end , 't is Impious ; if ye have any other End , make it appear . Scrup. 'T will satisfie our Consciences . Conf. Heaven and Earth shall be sooner brought together then your Two Consciences ; will the Establishment of Presbytery satisfie your Conscience , or the Allowance of Liberty satisfie your Brothers ? If it be the Uniformity ye Dislike ; How come ye to Joyn with the Directory , against the Common-prayer ; with That of the Assembly , against That of the Church ? In short , Your Disagreements among your selves , are almost as Notorious as your Conjunction Against Us , and ye have given Proof to the World , that it is not possible for any thing Else to Unite you , but a Common Booty ; Witness the Contentious Papers and Disputes , betwixt Calamy , and Burton , Edwards , and Goodwin , and Others , not to be Number'd , concerning the very Point of Toleration . [ The desires of the Independents for a Toleration ( say the London-Ministers ) are unreasonable , and unequal , and many Mischiefs will follow upon 't both to Church and Common-wealth . ] Now on the other side , hear what Sterry sayes , [ Lord thou hast done Graciously , and Wonderfully , in saving us from the Bloudy Design of the Egyptian Papacy : But this last Mercy by which thou hast sav'd us from the Black Plotts , and Bloudy Powers of the Northern Presbytery , has Excell'd them All. ] Rutherford tells ye that [ Such Opinions and Practices , as make an evident Schisme in a Church , and set up two Distinct Churches , of different Forms , and Government , &c. cannot be Tolerated . ] Milton again , will have the Presbyterians to be [ Ministers of Sedition , not Ministers of the Gospel . ] With what face now can those People appear to claim a Toleration from the Publique , whose Principles are so cross , that they cannot afford it One to Another ? Scrup. Well , but supposing these unhappy Clashings among Themselves , how does that prove them in Confoederacy against the Publique ? Conf. Their very Agreement against the Government , and in nothing else , makes it evident enough : but if You 'd have it clearer , Look thorough their Proceedings . In a Petition that accompanyed their black Remonstrance of Dec. 15. — 41. You may find the Points chiefly insisted upon to be These . The Honour of the King , the Liberty , and Property of the Subject ; The Moderating of the Bishops Power ; and the Removal of some Unnecessary Ceremonies , for the Ease of Tender Consciences : Nay , so far were they from any Purpose or Desire , to let loose the Golden Reins of Discipline and Government in the Church , that they held it Requisite to Maintain a Conformity throughout the Kingdom , to that Order , which the Lawes Enjoyn'd ; and took it very unkindly that the Malignant Party should Infuse into the People , that they meant to Abolish all Church-Government ; and leave every man to his own Fancy , for the Service and Worship of God , Absolving him of that Obedience which he Owes under God unto his Majesty , Whom THEY KNEW TO BE ENTRUSTED WITH THE ECCLESIASTICAL LAW , AS WELL AS WITH THE TEMPORAL , &c. — They confess indeed their intention of Reducing within Bounds that Exorbitant Power which the Prelates had Assum'd unto Themselves so contrary both to the Word of God , and to the Lawes of the Land. To which end they pass'd the Bill for Removing them from their Temporal Power and Employments , that so the better they might with Meekness apply Themselves to the discharge of their Functions . Will ye now see the Correspondence betwixt these Gentlemens Words , and their Actions ? and First concerning the Honour of the King ; wherein This word shall suffice , that they omitted Nothing , in order to the destroying both of his Soul , Body , and Reputation , which either Craft , Violence , or Calumny could Contribute , and not to Rob either of the Two Factions of their deserved Fame , and Interest , in the Ruine of that Glorious Prince . I shall conclude with Parkers decision of the Case , The Presbyterians pass'd the Sentence of Condemnation , and the Independents executed it . Ze. I shall not pretend to Iustifie all their Actions ; but in truth my Charity perswades me , that a great part of the Mischief they did , proceeded rather from Necessity then Inclination . Conf. Will yee see then what they did afterward when they were at Liberty to do what they Listed ? They had no sooner Murther'd the Father , but immediately [ a ] They made it Death to Proclaime the Son. [ b ] They Abolisht Kingly Government . [ c ] Sold the Crown Lands . [ d ] Declar'd it Treason to deny the Supremacy of the Commons . [ e ] Null'd all Honours and Titles granted by the King since 41. [ f ] Made Scotland one Common-wealth with England , &c. Have they now kept any better Touch with the Liberty and Property of the Subject ? Let their Proceedings witness for them , [ a ] As their Tax upon the Fifth and Twentieth Part. [ b ] Excise upon Flesh , Victuals , and Salt. [ c ] A new Excise upon Allom , Copper as , Monmouth-Caps , Hoppes , Saffron , Starch , &c. [ d ] A Loane of 66666 l. 13 s. 4 d. for supply of the Scots . [ e ] An Assessement for the Maintenance of the Army . [ f ] The House of Peeres Abolisht , and a Monthly Tax of 90000 l. for the Army . [ g ] A Monthly Tax of 120000 l. [ h ] An Imposition upon Coal . [ i ] A Monthly Assessement of 60000 l. Not to Clogge the Discourse with overmany Particulars : Wee 'll see Next , What they have done toward the Moderating of the Power of Bishops , and the Removal of Unnecessary Ceremonies ? [ k ] The Archbishop of Canterbury Suspended , and his Temporalties Sequestred . [ l Monuments of Superstition Demolisht ( that is in Short an Ordinance for Sacriledge ) [ m ] The Book of Common Prayer laid aside , and the Directory commanded in stead of it . [ n ] Archbishops and Bishops Abolisht , and their Lands setled in Trustees . [ o ] Their Lands Expos'd to Sale. [ p ] Festivals Abolisht . [ q ] Deans and Chapters &c. Abolisht , And their Lands to be Sold. This is your way , my Masters , of Moderating the Power of Bishops , and of removing unnecessary Ceremonies ; and at the same Rate you have provided for Tender Consciences , witness Your Penalties [ r ] for Using the Book of Common Prayer , and your Forfeitures for not Using the Directory . Zea. Conformity ; You should Do better , not to Rip up these Old Stories again . Conf. And if you would not hear of Them again , you should Leave Doing Them again . Zea. Then it seems the whole Number must suffer for the Misdemeanours of Particulars . Conf. No ; nor the whole Party scape because of some Particulars neither . Would you ha' me open my Door to a Troop of Thieves , because two or three of my honest Friends are in the Company ? And That 's the Case . Besides : You must permit me to distinguish betwixt Particulars and the Party ; for the Party of Non-conformists , are in a Direct Confederacy against the Law ; whereas there may be divers Particulars , that are mov'd only upon a Principle of Conscience . And those that are truly Conscientious , will be known by This ; Their'll endeavour their own Satisfaction without any Importunities upon the Publique : for when they come once to joyn in a Complaint against the Law , 't is no longer Conscience , but Faction . And the Question is not Here , concerning the Integrity of certain Individuals , but how far a Toleration belongs to the Party , without any consideration of Persons . Zea. Let us suppose then that the Party may have done amiss ; I hope 't is no Sin against the Holy Ghost . Conf. Truly , with Reverence to Charity , I take it to be next a-kin to 't , in very many of them . For , First ; They sinn'd against an Evident Light , as appears from their several doublings , and contradictory Proceedings . Next , There was a Malice , Notorious ; only I hope it went no further than God's Vicegerent . But I 'le comply with the utmost of your Argument : You would have Those Indulg'd that Repent . With all my heart , if That will Content ye . For still upon That Condition , not a Soul must be admitted that Refuses to Abjure the Covenant : and There lies the very Pinch of the Question . For what the Covenant meant , every body knows , from the express Practice , and Explication of Them that made it . The League and Covenant ( says Rutherford ) was the first Foundation of the Ruine of the Malignant Party in England . And They that Impos'd it , Voted it Death for any man , having taken it , to serve his Majesty : So that whosoever Refuses to Disown the Covenant , must be Rationally supposed still to pursue the Ends of it . Which Ends are , The Subjection of the Royal Authoricy to the Conclave of the Kirk , and ( in Terminis ) the Abolition of Episcopacy ; ( which his Majesty has solemnly vow'd , and Resolv'd to Preserve ) From whence it arises undeniably , that , to Tolerate the Non-conformists that still adhere to the Covenant , is to Tolerate the Sworn Enemies both of Royal , and Episcopal Authority , and of the Peace of the Nation : and in fine , to Tolerate Those that have sworn to persist in that Opposition all the daies of their lives . From what is already said , it appears , First , That the Non-conformists are not yet Agreed what they would have , and I dare engage my self to be his Slave that clears the Proposition , farther , then that they would have This Government unsetled , and they know not what in the Place on 't . Secondly , It is manifest , that Impossible it is to Please them any longer , then while they are united in a Common Design upon us : for next to Publique Order , they are the deadliest Enemies one to another , as being Govern'd by Inconsistent Principles . Thirdly , It is past Dispute , that by virtue of That Favour which they now Aske , and under colour of Those Pretences which they now hold forth , They have render'd Themselves the Instruments of all our Late Miseries , and the Masters of the Three Kingdomes . Fourthly , It is not more Plain what they have done , then what they are now about to do ; And , that they have the same Design upon the Publique , at this Instant , which they had in 41 , is past all Controversie . Zea. Conformity , You out-run the Constable . Will you pretend to enter into Mens Thoughts ? Conf. No , I will not ; but if I should see a man throwing Wild-fire into a Magazine ▪ and He tells me that he does it to warm his Fingers ; would not you take me for an Asse , if I should Believe him ? No , no , my fair Friends . When ye see a Wise man , Frequently , and Deliberately , doing things that manifestly lead to evil Consequences , I think a very good Christian may suspect That wise man's Honesty . Zea. Come ; no more of your High-flown Notions , but out with 't in good honest English : Where 's the Wild-fire , and the Magazine that you would give us so learnedly to Understand ? Conf. Where is it Not rather ; to any man that will but look about him , without winking ? Is not That Sermon think ye that you sent me last Night a pretty Squib to cast into a populous ▪ Town , that 's Preach'd half to Gunpowder already ? Zea. And yet ye said E'en now , There was no danger . Conf. I say the same Thing still ; that is , without a Toleration . Zea. But where 's the Mischief of That Sermon I beseech ye ? Conf. The Book lies there upon the Table , and 't is Marqu'd to your Hand : but I 'm ▪ not ready for 't yet ; if you please , wee 'll look it over by and by ; and speak a word in the mean time to the Ius Talionis , to the Do as you would be done by of the Matter . You would be Tolerated by That Government , which of all Others , you your Selves refus'd to Tolerate ; Stick now to your own Rule , and tell me , With what Face can ye Demand a Toleration , or for what Sort of People ? Begin with your Clergy ; would you have Them Indulg'd ? Zea. Yes , as They are Ministers of Gods Word , They ought to be Indulg'd . Conf. That can be no Plea for Them that persecuted Gods Ministers Themselves . Charity indeed is a General Duty , but it is an Argument that belongs only to Them that Practise it ; For , They that never spar'd Any , cannot reasonably desire to be spar'd Themselves . They are in the second place not to be Tolerated ; upon the point of Scandal : For , [ Such are Declar'd scandalous , as by Writing , Preaching , or otherwise , publish their Disaffection to the present Government ] 'T is their own Law , Gentlemen ; and upon that score of Disaffection , was Introduc'd the most Barbarous Persecution of a Gospel-Ministry , that ever was heard of among Christians . I could Instance the Particulars of the Havock They made in London , the Two Universities , and finally throughout the Kingdome . Particularly , in South-Wales ; where They did not only Persecute The Ministry , but the very Gospel , by Shutting up their Churches , and Condemning the People to the Dictates and Corruptions of unbridl'd Nature . Nor was it enough to Sequester , unless They Starv'd Them too ; For They were not permitted , to live either as School-masters or Chaplains , but upon severe Penalties : a Committee of Middlesex indeed , told Mr. Lance ( a Reverend , and a Sequester'd Minister ) that He might Hedge and Ditch for his Living ( and that was the utmost of the Liberty They could Afford Them. ) I could tell ye of the Ministers that were Poyson'd in Peter-House , &c. but I shall make ye sick , and weary ; Asham'd I hope ye are already , to Plead for a Toleration of Those People against the Law , that were Thus Mercyless toward their Brethren that Acted and Suffer'd for it . But to Seal up all with an Authority : Gillespy tells ye , that [ The General Assembly hath ordain'd , that known Complyers with the Rebels , and such as did procure Protections from the Enemy , or keep Correspondence and Intelligence with him , shall be suspended from the Lords Supper , till they manifest their Repentance before the Congregation ] So that ye see we were not only Debarr'd the Common Rights of Subjects , and Benefits of Society ; but the very Comforts of our Religion were taken from us , and an Anathema pronounc'd upon us for our Loyalty ; and yet these People think it high Reason to be Tolerated Themselves , and have the Confidence to Importune it from his most Sacred Majesty , to whose Blessed Father ( and That in the Depth , and Bitterness of his Agonies ) They cruelly Deny'd the Use , and Service of his own Chaplains . [ A greater Rigour , and Barbarity then is ever us'd by Christians to the meanest Prisoners and Greatest Malefactors ] But ( continues that Pious Prince ) [ They that Envy My being a King , are loth I should be a Christian ; while they seek to Deprive Me of all things else ; They are afraid I should save My Soul. ] A word now to the Obligations we have to your Civil Authorities , as to the Freedome of our Persons and Estates . Visit but your own Acts , and be your own Iudges , ( but take the Crime along with ye ; Obedience to God , to the King , and to the Law ) Not to Enumerate your Particular , and Personal Outrages , as the Clapping of so many Honourable Persons abord , and Designing Then for Slaves , because They would not Rebel ; the Barbarous Treatment of betwixt Three and Fourscore Worthy and Loyal Gentlemen in the Business of Salisbury , that were Shipp'd away and Sold ( by AN HONEST MAN ) to the Barbados . Nor to Insist upon it , how many Honourable Persons have been Smother'd , and Starv'd in Gaoles ; how much Noble Bloud hath been Spilt both in the Field , and upon the Scaffold , &c. — I shall rather Confine my self to some few of your General Provisions for securing the Royal Party , and for the Extirpation both of that Line , and Government , to which , Providence has now again Subjected ye : which ( to run over them in short ) shall be These [ a ] An Ordinance for Sequestration of Delinquents Estates . [ b ] Delinquents Disabled to bear any Office , or have any Vote in Election of any Maior , &c. Here 's , Estate , and Legal Freedome , gone already : Now follows Banishment from One Place , and Confinement to Another . [ c ] Delinquents must be Remov'd from London and Westminster , and Confin'd within five Miles of their own Dwelling . [ d ] Correspondency with Charles Stuart or his Party Prohibited under Pain of High Treason ] and [ e ] Death to any Man that shall Attempt the Revival of his Claim , or that shall be Aiding , Assisting , Comforting , or Abetting unto any Person Endevouring to set up the Title of Any of the Issue of the Late King. These were the Conditions of Your Favours , Gentlemen , and the Tryals of Our Faith. If ye are not yet Convinc'd pray'e tell me , What was the Reason , that throughout the whole Course of your Power , ye Treated the Episcopal Party still worse then all the Rest ? Zea. Because They were the Most likely of all Others to Disturb our Settlement . Conf. Very Good , and what do ye think as to Matter of Conscience ? Did ye do Well , or Ill in 't ? or rather , Was there any thing of Conscience in the Case ? Zea. Truly I wish much of the Severity had been Abated ; but Certainly , as 't was very fit for the Civil Power to secure the Peace of the Nation ; so was the Power Ecclesiastical no less concern'd to exact a Conformity to the Lawes and Ordinances of Christ. Conf. Can you say This , and not blush to Deny the Force of your own Argument ? If ye did well in refusing to Tolerate the Episcopal Way , because ye thought it not Right ; the Reason is as strong on the Other Side , that have the same opinion Concerning Yours . If ye did well o' th' Other Side , out of a Political Regard to the Publique Peace , the same Reason lies as strong against ye That Way too : so that you must either Confess , that you did Ill Then , in Refusing a Toleration to Us , or allow that Authority does Well Now , in not permitting it to You. Do not mistake me . I am as much as any man ( to borrow his Sacred Majesty's words ) for [ Those that cannot Conform , through Scruple , and Tenderness of misguided Conscience : and for Dissenters that Demean Themselves Peaceably and Modestly under the Government . And That shall appear by and by , when we come to handle That Question . Zea. Wee 're Agreed then , if That be your Opinion : and pray'e let 's forward to my Friends Sermon now . ( A Person whom I take to be within the Limit of your Profess'd Kindness ) Conf. A Match ; and if you please , I 'le Glosse upon him to you . Lo : Eli sate upon a seat by the way side , waiting : for his heart trembled for the Ark of God , 1 Sam. 4. 13. THere 's his Text ; from whence he gathers Two Observations . First , When the Ark of God is in Danger to be lost , the People of God have thoughtful heads , and trembling hearts . ( Or , to put this Doctrine into a Gospel-Dress ) When the Gospel is in Danger of losing , when Gospel-Ordinances are in Danger of being lost , and Gospel-Ministers in Danger of losing , then the People of God have trembling heads , and careful and solicitous hearts about it . Secondly , A true Child of God is more troubled , and more solicitous what shall become of the Ark , then what shall become of Wife and Children , or Estate . He gives you in the next place , Four Reasons , Why the People of God are so much Troubled when the Ark of God is in Danger . First , For the great Love they bear to the Ordinances of God , and to the Faithfull Ministers of Christ. They cannot be silent ; they cannot but Tremble when they see the Ark of God in Danger . Secondly , They are Troubled , because of the Interest they have in the Ark. The Ordinances of God are the Iewels of a Christian , and the Treasures of a Christian , and the Loss of them cannot but Trouble them . And Iesus Christ is the Ioy of a Christian , and therefore when Christ is departing , they cannot but be much afflicted at it . Thirdly , They are Troubled because of their Accessariness to the losing of the Ark. Fourthly , The People of God are Troubled because of the Mischiefs that come upon a Nation , when the Ark of God is Lost. The Tongue of man is not able to Express the Misery of That Nation where the Ark of God is Taken . First , When the Ark of God is taken , then the wayes of Sion mourn , and none come to the Solemn Assemblies ; It was the complaint of the Church , Lam. 1. 4. That is matter of sadness . Secondly , The Ministers of Christ are then driven into Corners . And that is matter of heart-trembling . Thirdly , The Souls of Many are then in Danger , when the Gospel is gone , your Souls are in hazard : There is cause of sadness . Fourthly , The Enemies of God Blaspheme , and are ready to say , Where is your God ? Then do the Enemies of God Triumph . Fifthly , Then is Jesus Christ trampled under foot , and the Ordinances of God defiled and trampled on , and then Blasphemy and Atheism comes in like an Armed man. Zea. Very good , and what can you make out of All This ; but that The Loss of the Gospel is a Dreadfull Iudgment : The very Fear of Losing it , a Dismal Apprehension ; and that All Other Interests are as Nothing in Competition with Iesus Christ ? Conf. Agreed , Thus far all 's Right , and as it should be ; But come now to his Application . The Ark of God is ( at this instant ) in Danger of being lost , D' ye see ? Here is no less then All at Stake , the very first Dash. Ask him now , Where the Danger lies ? He Answers ye , that we have lost our first Love to the Gospel , and to the Ordinances . Is not This to Charge the Church of England with Apostacy ? Hear him again ; and set his Vanity against his Sedition . More particularly , Aldermanbury may truly fear the Loss of the Ark , and be Unchurched ; for want of a Faithfull Minister to go In and Out before them . That is to say , Famous Mr. Calamy ( for that Epithete he bestowes upon Himself ) is Remov'd , and consequently the Candlestick . Another thing that makes him fear the Loss of the Ark , is , The Abundance of Priests , and Iesuits , that are in the midst of us , and the Preaching of Popery amongst Us , and the Proneness of people to run headlong to the Garlick and Onions of Egypt again . But where are our old Eli's now , to sit watching and Trembling for fear of the Ark ? Where are our Moses ' s , Our Elijah ' s ? Our Uriahs , &c. Observe This Paragraph well . Here 's first , an Open and Express Endeavour to Startle the People with a fear of Popery , which was the very Artifice by which This very Person promoted our Late Troubles . Secondly , Here 's a direct Arraignment of the King , and of his Ministers . Where are Our Moses's , &c. — What is This but to say , Beloved , ye see , Iesus Christ is Departing , Idolatry is breaking In upon us , and Our Moses ' s , Our Ely's , never look after it . Pray'e lay it a little more to Heart , your selves . You can complain ( says he ) of Taxes , and Decay of Trading ; of This Civil Burden , and That Civil Burden : but where 's the Man or Woman that Complains of This Misery . The Loss of the Ark ? Who lays to Heart , Who Regards what shall become of Religion ? There is a strange kind of Indifferency , and Lukewarmness upon most Peoples Spirits : so they may have their Trading go on , and Their Civil Burdens remov'd , they care not what becomes of the Ark. What is This , but to bring Authority to the Barr , and set the Subject upon the Bench ? What is it , but in plain Terms , to sollicit the Multitude to a Tumult ? For Mr. Calamy knowes very well , that they have no other way in the world to do him a service in This Case , but by Sedition . And for fear of Mistakes , Note , I beseech ye , with what Care the Good man leads them to his Meaning : They can complain of Taxes he sayes , but Hee would have them Complain for the Loss of the Ark ; That is , in honest English , He would have them Clamour against the Government of the Church . The very Truth is , This Gentleman speaks both upon Experience , and Foresight ; for no man knowes better , both what it has done , and what it may do . First , as to his Foresight , Rebellion can never be made God's Cause , but by taking the Ark into the Quarrel . Next , to his Experience . This Person was one of the Five that Menag'd the Cause of the Rabble against Bishops , some Twenty Years agoe . There was compleyning for fear of the Ark too : and what Ensu'd upon it , but the Dissolution of the Government , the Scandal of Religion , and the Murder of the King ? He Blames the People next for their Lukewarmness ; Pray mark me ; They have been once in Arms already since the King came in . They make no scruple at all of Affronting the Law : They have Enter'd into several Plotts upon the very Person of his Sacred Majesty , and All This , for fear of the Ark , as the poor Wretches miserably Imagine . If This Zeal be not sufficient , I wonder what Temper it is that our Religious Salamander would perswade them to : Now take the whole Matter in Complication , and you have First , A Prohibited Minister Preaching Publiquely in Despite of a Solemn Law. Secondly , The Sermon it self is within the Reach of The Act for the King's Safety , Where It is Enacted , That what Person soever , shall Maliciously and Advisedly publish or affirm the King to be an Heretick or a Papist , or that he endeavours to Introduce Popery ; or shall Maliciously and Advisedly , by writing , Printing , Preaching ; or other speaking , express , publish , utter or declare , any Words , Sentences , or other thing or things , to incite or stirr up the people to Hatred or Dislike of the Person of his Maiesty , or the Established Government ; then every such person and persons being thereof Legally convicted , shall be Disabled to have or enioy , and is hereby Disabled and made Incapable of having , holding , enioying , or exercising any Place , Office , or Promotion Ecclesiastical , Civil , or Military , or any other Imployment in Church or State , other than that of his Peerage , &c. Thirdly , Here 's not only a Reproche cast upon the Government , but an Appeal Offer'd to the People , for the Redress of it . Now to proceed ; You have him Here , Charging upon the Peoples Consciences , the sin of not being sufficiently affected with the Danger that the Ark of God is in . It is a sign you do not Love the Gospel ; if you had any Love to it , you would be troubled more for the danger of the Ark , then for any Outward Danger whatsoever . Is not This , the very style and scope of — 43. ( I spare his former Hortatives to the Warr , even for the Credit of the Function , ) The Glory of God ( he sayes ) is Imbark'd in the same Ship which This Cause is in . again , [ When you are derided for hazarding Lives and Estates in This Cause , you must reply , It is for God , and his Religion . And what was This Cause , I beseech ye , but the Foulest Conspiracy that ever appear'd under that Masque ? ( and Those are of all others , certainly , the Foulest . ) Religion was Then in Danger , it seems : That is , the Presbyterian was not as yet sure in the Saddle ; nor would That Obstinate and Implacable Faction ever be Quiet , till they forc'd their Soveraign to confute the Imposture with his Bloud . We have it now from the same Hand , that the Ark is in Danger , and what 's that but The Good Old Cause over again , only a little vary'd in the Dress ? By the Ark , he has already explain'd Himself to Intend , the Interest of the Ejected Clergy [ Pa. 6. ] ; and what he means by pressing so deep a Concern for the Danger of it , let any sober man Imagine . He tells them first , that the Ark is in danger , and Then conjures them , as they Love the Gospel , not to Regard any Outward Danger whatsoever to save it . If This be not to Invite , Provoke , and Warrant any Violence Imaginable , either upon the Person of the King , or upon the Authority of the Law , or wherever else the Multitude shall think fit to fasten the Quarrel ; let me suffer the shame that belongs to him that 's Guilty of such an Offence . Nor shall the Project want Hammering , for hee 's over with it again and again , [ Let me beseech ye All to Declare you are the People of God in DEED , and in Truth , by following the Example of Old Eli , to be very solicitous for the Ark of God — [ Consider what a sad Condition we are in , if the Ark be Taken ; What will your Estates doe ye Good , or all your Concernments do ye Good , if the Gospel be Gone ? — What is the Glory of England ; What is the Glory of Christianity but the Gospel ? If the Gospel be Gone , our Glory is Gone . — Oh! when the Glory is Gone , who would Desire to Live ? He goes on , [ I am loth to tell you the story of Chrysostom ; he was but One Man , yet when he was banish'd Constantinople , the People all Petitioned for him , and said , They could as well lose the Sun out of the Firmament , as lose Chrysostome from among them . Oh the sad , and lamentable , and woful Condition we are in , if the Ark of God be taken ! Without any Force to his Meaning , take his Sense in few words . What will your Lives , or Estates avail ye , without the Gospel ? Petition for your Chrysostome again . ( Good Gentleman ! as if the Sole Receptacle of the Holy Ghost were Mr. Calamy's Night-cap ) Now to what End this Tends , let Any man look that is not blind . No Man runs the Risque either of his Life , or Fortune , for a Petition ; so that his Enforcing so much , the Contempt of Outward Dangers , and of all other Concernments , in comparison with the Safety of the Ark , ( which is now in Hazard ) cannot Rationally be Apply'd to an Action that carries along with it No Danger at all . Wherefore you must of Necessity , Grant , that your friend either Meant Nothing , or Worse ; and that his Pressing , and Disposing the Multitude to so great a contempt of their Lives , and Fortunes , was but a Tacit Encouragement of them to some Action that might bring Those Interests in Question . Zea. I perceive , a Presbyterian is well helpt up that has you for his Interpreter . Conf. Can you your self Acquit him ? Zea. I must confess , I think he might have Worded it with more Caution . Conf. And then his Horrible , Unchristian , Bitterness against the Government , — You have seen Smectymnuus I suppose . Zea. Yes , yes ; He is a little Eager in his Way . Conf. Come , Zeal ; I 'le Disabuse ye : What will you say , if I bring you to a Person , that shall Averre to Mr. Calamy's Face , that since his Majesty's Return , He has Declar'd Himself not Unsatisfy'd with the Government , and Discipline of the Church of England , and that only the Importunity of his Parishioners Diverted Him from accepting a Bishoprick ? You will the less wonder at This when ye Consider , how Absolutely he was For the Church , till he found it more Beneficial to be Against it . Zea. All that I shall say , is This ; Let every man speak as he finds : and so , if you please , wee 'll leave him to take his Fortune . SECT . X. Arguments against TOLERATION in Respect of the Authority that is to Grant it . Conf. COme Gentlemen , I have yet one Exception more to your Toleration , and That is upon the Accompt of the Authority that is to Grant it . From whom do ye Expect it ? Zea. From the Parliament . Conf. But what is 't you call a Parliament ? for , one while the King and the Two Houses in Co-ordination are a Parliament ; and when Ye have Screw'd out the Kings Negative Voyce , The Lords and Commons are a Parliament ; and Then down go the Lords , and the Commons alone are a Parliament ; and at Last , Out with Them too , For the Fountain of Dominion is in the People . This is the Scale of your Politicks . But to the Point in hand ; You Apply to the Parliament , and your Grievance is Matter of Conscience ; Do ye make the Civil Power a Judge of Conscience ? Zea. No , under Favour , My Desire that the Parliament will Relieve my Conscience , does not Consequently make it a Judge of it . Conf. And with Your Pardon too , How shall the Magistrate know whether your Conscience is opprest , or no , if he be no Judge of it ? One of these Two Rules He is to proceed by ; Either That of his own Particular , or the General Rule of all Consciences . If He measure your Conscience by the Former , there 's no Oppression in the Case ; for His Conscience is very well satisfy'd in That which will not down with Yours . If by the Latter , All other Consciences would be Concern'd as well as Yours , in the Violation of a General Rule : So that Evidently , your Scruples are Singular , and if you cannot bring them within his Cognizance , you must Subject them to his Authority ; and First teach him to Know when your Conscience is troubled , before ye Complain because 't is not Eas'd . Scrup. For That , Every man tells his owne Tale best , and may best be Credited in That which No body knows but Himself . Conf. And under That Colour , so Many Men as make no Conscience at all of an Imposture , shall pretend to make one of a Ceremony . Peruse the Tragedies of our Holy Leagues , Covenants , and Reformations : What Crime so Execrable that has not been Committed under the Motto of Gods Cause , and Patronage of Conscience ? What Act so Horrid , that has not past for a Divine Impulse ; and ( if it Hit ) the Author of it for an Inspired Instrument of Iustice ? Nay more ; not One Notorious Practice of a Hundred , upon the Person of a Prince , but under a Religious Vernish ; and Commonly , a Priest at the One End of it , and an Impulse at the Other . Was it not a Holy Father and the Prior of the Covent ( one of the Heads of the League ) that Confirm'd Clement in his Purpose of Murdering Harry the Third of France ? For his Encouragement ; They Assur'd him , that if he out-liv'd the Fact , he should be a Cardinal ; if he Dy'd , a Saint : and This was it that fixt him in his Determination . What was it again , that Originally Dispos'd this Monster to That Direful Villany ; but principally Seditious Sermons against the King as a Persecuting Tyrant ? [ Stimolato dalle predicationi , the giornalmente sentiva fare contra Henrico di Valois , nomi nato il persecutore della fede , & il Tiranno , &c. ] See in the same Author , the Confession of Iohn Castle , concerning his Attempt upon Harry the Great , which was , that he had been brought up in the Jesuites School , and Instructed , that it was not only Lawful , but Meritorious to Destroy Harry of Bourbon , that Revolted Heretick and Persecutor of the Holy Church [ Esaminato con le solite forme , confesso liberamento , &c. ] What was it that Animated Ravillac to his Damn'd Practice upon that Brave Prince , but ( by his own Confession ) a Discourse of Mariana's , De Rege , & Regis Institutione ? 'T was a Divine Instinct too , that Mov'd Balthasar Gerard to Destroy the Prince of Aurange [ Divine tantum Instinctu id à se patratum constanter Affirmabat , diu Tortus , &c. To conclude with that Fresh and Horrible Instance here at Home ; Acted upon the Sacred Person of the Late King. What was it , but the Operation of That Poyson in the People , which was Instill'd into them by their Ministers ? How Inconsistent then is the Liberty of the Pulpit , with the Safety of the Government ? and how Great a Madness were it to Expect , that the same Persons should Establish This Prince by virtue of the same Liberty by which They Ruin'd the Last ? You cannot certainly but Confess the Hazard to his Sacred Majesty of Granting a Toleration ; take a little Notice now , of the Indignity in proposing it . That Grace which were an Ample Reward even for the most Meritorious Services , and Loyalty , do These People Mutinously Demand as a Requital for the Contrary . Scrup. Will ye oppose the Exercise of a Charity , because it may be Abus'd . Conf. No , but I shall Oppose the Encouragement of a Confidence that Presses to be Requited for an Injury : and in truth , Your Petition properly taken , is rather a Mockery then a Request . As for the Purpose , What is 't ye stick at ? Scrup. The Act for Uniformity . Conf. Is it the Model , or the Uniformity that troubles you ? Scrup. Why truly I Except to Both ; for Neither is the Particular Act fram'd to my satisfaction , nor is it possible , that any One Form of Worship should suit All Judgments . Conf. Will Toleration suit All Judgments any better then Uniformity ? Or do ye accompt the Sanction of any One Form Whatsoever , to be Lawfull ? Scrup. Indeed I do not think it lawfull for a Magistrate to Enjoyn any thing upon a Penalty , which a Private Person may not lawfully obey him in ; nor do I think it Warrantable for a Man to Obey any Humane Command against his Conscience . Conf. Now lay together what you have said ; First , It is not Possible , that any One Form of Worship should suit All Iudgments ; and then it is not lawfull to Enjoyn any thing upon a Penalty , which does not suit All Iudgments . What is This but a meer Trifling of Government , to suppose a Law without an Obligation ? Again ; If the Magistrate cannot Impose , neither can he Tolerate ; unless you 'l suppose him a more Competent Judge of Your Conscience , then of his Own : for you Allow him the Cognisance of what he may Tolerate , and Deny him the Knowledge of what he may Impose . In fine , Your Arguments , and Opinions , duely weigh'd , his Majesty has either no Power , or no Reason to permit you a Toleration ; No Power , as You state his Capacity , and no Reason as you Disclaim his Supremacie . Scrup. I do not Oppose the Coactive Power of the Civil Magistrate , in Matters of Civil Concernment ; but I take the Case in Question to be of Another Quality , and out of the Verge of the Secular Iurisdiction . Conf. I think it will become you then , not to Importune his Majesty for the Dissolving of an Ecclesiastical Law , before you acknowledge him Vested with the Right of Making it . Ze. If you think fit ; let that Point be the Next Question . Conf. Agreed ; it shall . SECT . XI . The Proper Subject and Extent of Humane Power . Conf. AS Reasonable Nature consists of Soul , and Body ; so is the Authority that Governs it , Divine and Humane ; God , Eminently over All , and Princes Ministerially under Him , and as His Substitutes . The Dominion of our Souls God reserves peculiarly to Himself , committing That of our Bodyes to the Care of the Magistrate . Now if Power be a. Divine Ordinance , so consequently is Subjection ; for , to Imagine the One without the Other , were to Destroy the Ratio of Relatives . A sober Disquisition of This Matter , would save much Trouble that arises about the Bounds and Limits of our Duty ; how far Religion binds us , and how far Allegeance . That they are severable , we must not doubt , for Truth it self hath said it ; Give unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's , and unto God the things that are God's : But that They are only so severable , as never to become Inconsistent , is founded upon the same Immovable Rock , Let every soul be subject , &c. — a Precept of a Perpetual , and Universal Operation , and Limited neither to Time , Place , nor Persons . Ze. Your Deduction of Government , and Subjection from Divine Institution , is well enough Coucht , and that we are to Obey the Magistrate for God's sake , and in subordination to God , is Easily Prov'd , and Granted ; but I hear Nothing yet of the Particular Bounds and Terms of Humane Jurisrisdiction , What 't is belongs to God , and What to Caesar . Conf. That I confess , is the Pinch of the Question ; for One Duty comes up so close to the Other , that 't is not for Every Common Eye to passe between them . Effectually , they Touch ; but , in what Point , is of a Nice Decision . The Readyest way in my opinion , to the strict Knowledge of our Duty , is by the Lawes and Powers of the Authority ; for , 't is Requisite that a Man know the Rule , before he can Observe it . Wee are then to Consider , that the Almighty Wisdom has Invested Kings with an Unlimited Power of Commanding , or Forbidding , in all matters which God himself has not either Commanded , or Forbidden ; which Proposition Resolves it self into This Conclusion , Whatsoever God has left Indifferent , is the subject of Humane Power . Scrup. Does not That Opinion destroy Christian Liberty ? Conf. No : but the Denyal of it Destroyes Magistracy . If Kings have not This Power , they have none at all ; and it Implyes a Contradiction , to suppose any Authority in Nature without it . Scrup. But may not a Prince tye himself up in a Thing Otherwise Indifferent ? Conf. I speak of Power according to the Institution , not of Power limited by Paction . Scrup. May not the same thing be Indifferent to One , and not so to Another ? Conf. Granted ; and I pray'e follow it a little further . May not every thing Imaginable appear Non-Indifferent to some or other ; if nothing can be commanded , but what upon such a Phansy may be Disobey'd ? Scrup. Pardon me , I do not speak of Matters of Civil Concern , but of Matters of Religion . Conf. That 's all a Case ; for you cannot Instance in any One Civil Action , that may not be made Relative to Religion . But stick to the Mark ; We are upon the Extent of Humane Power : That there is such a Power ; and That Authoris'd too by God Himself , You have already granted : Now tell me , Upon what shall That Power be Exercis'd , if you Exclude things Indifferent ? One man may have a Reall Scruple ; and All the Rest , Pretend one ; Who shall Distinguish ? So that the Rule holding from One , to All , the Sacred Authority of the Prince becomes Dependent upon the Pleasure of the Subject , and the Validity of a Divine and Unchangeable Ordinance , is subjected to the Mutable Judgement and Construction of the People . Scrup. It may be You Expect the Magistrate should as well have a Power of Judging what 's Indifferent , as of Restreyning it . Conf. You may be sure , I do ; for otherwise I 'm where I was , if I make You the Judge : Is 't not all one , as to the Magistrate , Whether you Refuse upon Pretense that the Thing is not Indifferent , or upon Pretense that he cannot Restreyn a Thing Indifferent ? The Crime indeed is differing in the Subject ; for the One way 't is an Usurpation of Authority , and the Other way , 't is a Denyall of it . Scrup. Why then it seems , I am to Believe any thing Indifferent , which the Magistrate tells me is so , be it never so Wicked . Conf. No ; There You 're bound up by a Superiour Law. Scrup. Have you forgot your self so soon ? 'T was but just now , you would not allow me to be a Iudge , and here you Make me One. Conf. Right ; to your self you are , but not to the Publique : A Judge of your own Thought , but not of the Law. Scrup. At your rate of Arguing now from One to All ; Authority , methinks , should be as much Endanger'd This way , as the Other ; for All may Iudge Thus , as well as One. Conf. 'T is possible they May ; Nay wee 'll suppose an Imposition foul Enough to move them all to do so ; and yet there 's a Large Difference ; for , Diversity of Iudgment does not shake the Foundation of Authority ; and a man may Disobey a sinful Command with great Reverence to the Power that Imposes it . Scrup. You were saying even now , that my Duty to God , and to the King , could never be Inconsistent : Pray'e , How shall I behave my self , if the Prince Commands One thing , and God , Another ? I cannot Observe the Law , without Violence to my Conscience , nor Discharge my Conscience , without Offence to the Law ; What Course shall I take to avoid Enterfering ? Conf. Demean your Self as a Christian toward the Law of God , on the One hand ; and as a Subject , toward the Ordinance of God on the Other : as Considering that you are Discharg'd of your Obedience , but not of your Subjection . Scrup. Suppose the Supreme Magistrate should by a Law Establish a False Worship . Conf. Hee 's still your Prince , and even in This Complication , you may acquit your self both to God , and Caesar. Divide the Worship from the Magistrate , and in so doing , you both Fear God , and Honour the King ; and it is only This Loyal and Religious Separation of our Duties , that must set us right in the Main Controversie . Where do ye find that Kings Reign upon Condition of Ruling Righteously ? Or that we owe them less After Misgovernment , than we did Before ? Scrup. But do ye say , we are bound to Honour an Idolatrous Prince ? Conf. Yes , yes : the Prince you are bound to Honour , though not as an Idolater . Shall the Vice or Error of the Person , blemish the faultless Dignity of the Order ? By That Rule , the world must Continue without a Government , till we can find Men without Failings . Scrup. So that you allow I perceive of Distinguishing betwixt the Person and the Office. Conf. Betwixt the Frailty of the One , and the Sacredness of the Other , I do : for Kings Command as Gods , though they Iudge as Men : but I do no more allow of Dividing the Person of a Prince from his Authority , then of Dividing his Soul from his Body . Scrup. And , I beseech ye , what is that which you Call Authority ? Conf. To tell ye Only that it is Gods Ordinance , falls short , I believe , of the Scope of your ▪ Question . Wherefore take This in Surplusage . It is the Will and Power of a Multitude , Deliver'd up by Common Consent to One Person or More , for the Good and Safety of the Whole : and this Single or Plural Representative Acts for All. Take This along with ye too . The Disposition of such or such a Number of Persons into an Order of Commanding and Obeying is That which we call a Society . Scrup. What is the Duty of the Supreme Magistrate ? Conf. To procure the Welfare of the People , or , according to the Apostle ; He is the Minister of God , for a Comfort to Those that Do Well , and for a Terrour to Evill-Doers . Scrup. How far are his Lawes binding upon his Subjects ? Conf. So far as They that parted with their Power had a Right over Themselves . Scrup. Whence was the Original of Power , and what Form of Government was First , Regal , or Popular ? Conf. Power was Ordain'd of God , but Specify'd by Man ; and beyond doubt , the First Form of Goverment was Monarchique . Scrup. Nay , Certainly the Popular Form was first , for How could there be a King without a People ? Conf. So was the Son before the Father ( you 'll say ) for How could there be a Father without a Son. But the Question is First , Was the World ever without a Government , since the Creation of Man ? Secondly , Whether was first in the World , One Man , or More ? I see well enough what 'tis You 'd be at ; You would fain advance the Popular Form above the Regal : which if ye could , 't were Nothing to our purpose ; for we are not upon the Form of Government , but upon the Latitude of Humaene Iurisdiction , be the Sovereignty where it will ; and that it extends to whatsoever God has left Indifferent , is my Assertion . If you Deny This , You Overthrow All Government , ( as is already prov'd ) and if you Grant it , we are at Liberty for the next Enquiry which is concerning , SECT . XII . The Bounds of TOLERATION ; with some Reflections upon SCHISM , and SCANDAL . Conf. IT is already agreed , that Government is a Divine Ordinance ; and Order ( according to the Reverend Hooker ) is only , A Manifestation of the Eternal Law of God. So that I think , a Man may safely pronounce ( upon This Allowance ) First , that What Principle soever is Manifestly Destructive of Government , or but rationally tending to Confusion , cannot le of God. Secondly , Every Man is to Content himself in his Station as being no farther accomptable , than for what 's committed to his Charge . Under These Two Heads will be found ( if I mistake not ) whatsoever belongs to the Political Part of our Debate . We are here to enquire , not how far Toleration may be Convenient , or otherwise ; but how far Warrantable and Lawful : and I find it ( by a Reverend , and Learned Prelate ) brought to This Standard , [ In the Question of Toleration , The Foundation of Faith , Good Life , and Government is to be Secur'd . ] Wherein is compris'd a Provision and Care , that we may live as Christians toward God ; as Members of a Community toward one another ; and as Loyal Subjects toward our Sovereign . Now if you 'll admit Opinions to be only so far Tolerable as they Consist with These Duties of Religion , Morality , and Society , We have no more to do , but to apply Matters in Controversie to the Rules of Piety , and Good Manners , and to the Ends of Government . Scrup. ' T is True ; were Men Agreed upon Those Rules : But we see Several Men have Various apprehensions of the same thing ; and that which One Man takes for a Rule , Another Counts an Errour . Conf. By your Argument , we shall have no Religion , because Men Differ about the Right ; No Bible , because Men Disagree about the Meaning of it : No Rule , in fine , at all to square our Actions by , till Truth , and Reason shall be Establisht by a Popular Vote . The Law says Worship Thus , or So ; use This Form , That Ceremony , Posture , Habit , &c. — The Libertine cries No , 't is a Confinement of the Spirit ; an Invention of Man ; a Making of That Necessary which God left Free ; a Scandal to Tender Consciences , &c. — And Here 's Authority Concluded , as to the Manner of Worship . So for the Time. How do They know when Christ was Born , or Crucify'd ? Nay , They have much adoe to call to Mind when the Late King was Murder'd : but the Relief of Taunton , and the Repulse They gave the Cavaliers at Lyme : This They can very well Remember , and Celebrate Those Daies of Mercy with a most Superstitious Gravity , and Form. The Churches Fasting-Daies , They make their Iubilees ; and still it happens , that Their Consciences and the Law , run Counter . 'T is the same Thing , as to the Place ; Command Them to Church ; They 'll tell ye , there 's no Inherent Holiness in the Walls ; the Hearts of the Saints , are the Temples of the Lord. Is not God to be found in a Parlour , as well as in a Steeple-House ? In fine , What 's their Plea for All This ; but that , This is One Mans Iudgment , That , Anothers : This or That may be Indifferent to You , but not to Mee . What 's Indifference to Christianity ? This sickly Humour opens a door to as many Controversies as there are Men ; it leaves Authority , naked ; and exposes the Law to any mans Scorn , that shall think fit to Scruple his Obedience . To conclude ; This Lawless Liberty , Razes the very foundation of Government ; it creates as many Religions , as there are several Phansies ; and , briefly , the Assertors of This Liberty are of the Number of Those that are not upon any Terms to be admitted within the Pale of a Toleration . Scrup. Shall the Magistrate make me Act against my Conscience ? Conf. Shall the Subject make Him Tolerate against His ? But to proceed ; There are that place [ a ] the Soveraignty in the Diffusive Body of the People , that hold it Lawfull for the Subjects to enter into Leagues and Covenants , not only Without the Soveraign's Consent , but Against his Authority ; that call upon the People in the Pulpit , [ b ] to Assist the Forces raised by the PARLIAMENT , according to their Power and Vocation , and not to Assist the Forces raised by the KING , neither DIRECTLY nor INDIRECTLY : That Proclaym [ c ] the breach of the National Covenant , to be a greater sin , then a sin against a Command'ment , or against an Ordinance — a sin of so high a Nature , that God cannot in Honour but be Aveng'd upon 't . These are a People likewise , whose Principles stand in no Consistence either with Piety or with Government ; and can as little Pretend to the Benefit of a Toleration as the Former . There are that Asfirm , [ d ] Reformation of Religion to be the People's Duty no Less then the King 's : [ e ] and that the Pastors of the Land are Oblig'd to Reform Themselves and Religion without the King ; nay , though the King command the contrary . There are that Print [ f ] the English Episcopal Clergy to be sons of Belial ; that Press the Cutting of them off ; that scandalously Charge Them with Drunkennesse , Prophanesse , Superstition , Popishness : To the Dishonour of that Government which his Majesty has sworn to Maintain , and to the Hazard of the Publique Peace . These also do I take to be a People , whose Practices and Opinions Threaten a certain and swift Destruction both to Church and State , Wherever They are Tolerated . What security can a Prince expect , where his Mistakes are made the common Theme of the Pulpit , and where His Regalities are subjected , to the Good Pleasure of His Subjects . Ze. You do not think it Lawfull then I perceive , to Tolerate the Non-conformists . Conf. Till they renounce their Seditious , and Anti-Monarchical wayes , I must confess I do not . Ze. And which are Those I beseech ye ? Conf. Their Inconformity to the Law ; Their Doctrine of Conditional Obedience : Their Erecting an Ecclesiastical Supremacy to overtop the Prerogative Royall ; To say no more , Their Declaring the Magistrate accomptable to the People . Scrup. Conformity , You have spoken some sharp Truths , and it is to be presum'd that you 'l Allow the Liberty you Take . Whether do you believe Scandal to be any more Tolerable , than Schism ? Or , are not the Sons of the Church ( as ye call them ) as Guilty of the One , as the Non-conformists are of the Other . Conf. Scandal , My good Friend , is a General Term ; especially as you frequently apply it : and 't is but Reason for me to ask your Meaning , before I give you my Answer . To say , that the Sons of the Church are Guilty of Scandal , when , eo nomine , they appear to you Scandalous , is no more then to say , that the Sons of the Church are the Sons of the Church : for , the Church it self , the Government , and the Rites of it , are All , Scandalous to You. Wherefore I beseech ye , be a little more Particular , that I may understand what Scandal you intend , and be as plain , as playn may be . Scrup. Nay , you shall have it then , and as plainly too as your Heart can wish . Your Position is , that No Toleration can warrantably be Granted to the Hazard of Religion , Good Life , and Government . According to That Standard , You 'ld find , that the Conformists have as little Right to a Toleration , as their Neighbours ; and that the Notorious Scandal on the One side , out-weighs the Pretended Schism on the Other . But , to make my self understood ; by Scandal , I mean Publique and Habitual Prophaneness , Sensuality , Dissolution of Manners , &c. — as , by Schism and Sedition , I suppose You intend our Incomplyances with your Church-Discipline : Our Preaching up the Power of Godliness , against the Form of it , ( which You Interpret to be a Decrying of your Ceremonies ) and our Exhortings , rather to obey God than Man , ( which you are apt to take for an Affront to your Master's Prerogagative . ) 'T is true ; We cannot bring up our Consciences to your Ceremonies , and , for Refusing to doe , what we cannot Iustifie the Doing of , we are Baptiz'd , Schismatiques . This Extermination of Us from the Publique Assembly , puts us upon the Necessity of Private Meetings ; and There We are Charg'd with Plotts ; and Practices upon the State. Take it all at the Worst , It is but doing That which the Whole World agrees must Necessarily be done ▪ after such a Manner as some People Imagine we ought not to do it . So much for the Schism of the Non-Conformists . Now put the Scandal of the Adverse Party into the Other Scale , and You Your self shall hold the Ballance . Set but Your Tavern-Clubs against Our Conventicles , and ( since you will have it so ) Oppose our Plotts against the Government in the One , to your Combinations against God Himself in the Other ; ( for Atheism is become the Sport , and Wit ; the Salt of your most Celebrated Enterteinments . ) In Your own Words , [ The Eternal Verity is made a Fable ; Religion but a Scar-Crow , ( the sour Impression of a Superstitious Melancholy , ) nor , is't enough to Abandon Heaven , unless ye Invade it too ; and in the Throne of Providence , set up the Empire , and Divinity , of Fortune . When you have dash'd the Bible out of Countenance , with the conceit of The Three Grand Impostors , or some such tart piece of Drollery , ( and all This Enterlarded with Execrable , and study'd Blasphemyes ) the Man must be cast off , as well as the Christian ; and there 's the Upshot of your Familiar Conversations . If such People as These may be Tolerated , where 's your ▪ Foundation of Faith , Good Life , and Government ? Conf. We are fallen , I must confess into a Lewd Age ; and yet truly , when I consider , that This Nation has been Twenty years under your Tuition , 't is a Greater Wonder to me ; that it is not quite Overspread with Atheism , than to find it Only Teinted and Infected with it . The Reproche and Load of This Impiety , you have cast upon the Episcopal Party : but when we come to Trace the Monster to his Den , I 'm afraid we shall bring the Footsteps of Him up to your own Dore. That there are Exorbitants in all Perswasions , is a Thing not to be doubted ; and that there are in ours as well as in Others , I will not Deny ; but to Asperse the Cause for Personal Misdemeanours , is , to my thinking , very Disingenuous . If ye will Charge Personal Crimes upon the Accompt of a Party , You should be sure to Make out Those Crimes to be Rationally Consequent to the Tenents , or Actings , of That Party . Now if you can shew me Any Affinity betwixt our Principles , and Those Villanyes , you say something ; but if ye cannot , the Dust of your Argument puts out your own Eyes . Scrup. You forget that you Condemn your own Practice ; for why may not I Charge Personal Extravagancies upon your Party , as well as You do it upon Ours ? Conf. Only because there is not That Affinity ( as I said but now ) betwixt the Principles of the Party , and the Faults of the Persons ; on the One side , which I find on the Other . To make This as Clear as the Day , wee 'l open it Thus. The Episcopal Party was for the King , and 't is undenyable , that the King , and the Church , had both the same Cause , and the same Fate . The Nonconformists were against the King ; and it is There as unquestionable , that They were the Men that Destroy'd both Church , and State. So that the Issue lies within This Compass ; Whether the Soveraignty be in the King , or in the People ? If in the King , the Rebellion was on your side ; if in the People , the Guilt of the Warr lyes upon us . Now place the Power where ye please ; Do ye own the Kings Authority , or do ye Disclaim it ? If ye Disclaim it , why do ye Petition to your Inferiour ? or why should the King favour his Competitours ? If ye Acknowledge it , Wee 'l proceed upon This Grant , that the Non-Conformists were in a Rebellion ; and prove that all the Transcendent Abominations which you Compleyn of , are but the proper , and Natural Fruits , that have proceeded from That Root . Ze. You know there have been several Popular Tracts written upon This Subject ; as — some-bodyes Soveraign Power of Parliaments . Rutherford's Lex Rex , &c. that never were Answer'd yet . Conf. Well said Old True-penny . I think the Assemblyes Letter to the Reformed Churches , was never Answer'd neither . But , to be serious . There are indeed many dangerous , and seditious Treatises that lye unanswer'd ( the more 's the shame , and Pity . ) If no body were wiser then my self ; The sum of them All should be Confuted in one just Volume , and the Origina's committed to the Fire , for the security of the Future . Scrup. But you were about to tell us how Rebellion begets Atheism . Conf. Well Remembred ; and I pray'e Observe . There are but Two sorts of People that are Capable of being drawn into a Rebellion , the Weak and the Wicked ; Those that do not understand what they doe , and Those that care not what they doe . The Ordinary Stale , is Religion ; the Scene of This spiritual Imposture is the Pulpit , and the Arbitrators of the Cause are the Preachers ; by the benefit of which Conjuncture , ( to wit ) of the Weight of the Matter in Question ; [ Religion ] with the Authority appoynted to Determine it ; [ God 's Ministers ] it is no hard business for a Peinfull and Well-affected Ministry ( That is , Painfull , and well-affected in , and to the Design ) to Preach the Generality of the People into This Division : [ i. e. ] Those that cannot reach the Cheat to scruple at every thing ; and Those that go along with it , to make a Conscience of Nothing : and hence it comes , that This Kingdome is so Pester'd with Enthusiasts , and Atheists . Zea. But I tell ye again ; the Atheists are on the wrong side : The Atheists are Against us . Conf. Let me Enform ye then , that Your Proceedings have Made Atheists , More waies then One. First , The Meer Quality of your Cause , has made Atheism the Interest of Many of Your Partakers ; Who to put off That Horrour which attends them if there be a God , Endeavour to perswade themselves that there is no God at all . Secondly , The Work has been carried on under the Masque of Holiness ; and the most Desperate Atheist , is nothing else but a Crusted Hypocrite . I speak of your Religious Atheist , who has This odds of the Prophane , and Scoffing Wretch , that he abuses God to his Face , and in his own House . The Great Atheists , indeed , are Hypocrites ( sayes Sir Francis Bacon ) which are ever handling Holy Things , but without Feeling ; so as they must needs be Cauteriz'd in the End. It is Remarquable , ( as I have elsewhere observ'd ) that in the Holy Scripture there are not so many Woes pronounc'd , nor so many Cautions Inculcated , against any Sort of People as against Hypocrites . You shall There find that God has given the Grace of Repentance to Persecutors , Idolaters , Murtherers , Adulterers , &c. but I 'm mistaken if the whole Bible Yields any one Instance of a Converted Hypocrite . Thirdly , Let me tell ye , for the Honour of your Practises , that as to the Defence of Atheism , you have done more then All that ever went before ye ; upon that Noble Argument . Your People were not [ a WICKED , PROPHANE , DRUNKEN Ministry ( They would never have Setled the Ark ) but SOBER , PIOUS , GODLY Ministers , that did the Feat : — a Praying , and Reforming People . Indeed a People that would Seize a Brother's Benefice with more Reverence , then Any of our Prelates gives a Charity . Zea. Be not severe , Conformity . Conf. Then bid your Brethren leave their Gibbrish , and their Iugling ; and wee 'll to our Atheism again . Answer me Soberly , What if a State should grant a Toleration , for all men to talk of God-Almighty as they please ? Scrup. A Horrid , Impious Proposition ! Conf. Thou art the Man , Scruple ; That which you Ask is more and worse ; for the Liberty is the same , and the Danger Infinitely Greater . In Earnest , He that Looks narrowly through our Late Troubles , from 1640 to 60. will find Matter not Only to Stagger a Weak Christian , but to put a Wiseman to a Second Thought ; and to make him Exclaim with the Prophet , [ Lo , These are the Ungodly , these prosper in the World , and these have Riches in possession — Then have I cleansed my heart in Vain , and washed my hands in Innocency . To see Nye , and Marshall with their hands lifted up un-the Lord in a Holy Covenant ; Swearing to Day to Defend and Preserve the King's Majesty's Person , &c. and a while after with the same Consecrated Lips , Blessing That Cursed Vote , that Manifestly Led to His Destruction ( The Vote of Non-Addresses ) which was no more then saying Grace to the Kings Bloud . To see a Gang of Pulpit-Weather-cocks Shifting from Party to Party , till they have run through every point of the Compass , Swearing , and Counter-swearing ; and when the City was Split into more Factions , then Parishes , Still to Mainteyn , that the whole Schism was acted by the Holy-Ghost . To find the Pulpit in stead of Plain and Saving Truths Trading Only in Dark and Oraculous Delusions , and the Pretended Messengers of Peace , turn'd Agents for Bloud — To hear and see All This , and More , and the Cause Prosper too . What could the Wit of Man add more to This Temptation to Apostacy ? Lastly , I must Impute much of That Iniquity which now Reigns , to your Necessitated Toleration : I call it Necessitated , for you could never have Crush't the Government without it . That Toleration started so Many Lewd Opinions , that it was Some Degree of Modesty , for Fear of a Worse Choyce , to be of No Religion at all ; and beyond Question , Many People finding it left so Indifferent of What Religion they were ; became Themselves as Indifferent , whether they were of Any Religion or no. You have forc'd me here , in My own Defence , to be a little Sharper then I intended ; and truly since we are In thus far , and that the Schismatiques think it so Mighty a matter to hit the Prelatical Party i' th' teeth at every Turn , with the Imputation of SCANDAL ; I beseech ye tell me , Which o' the Two do you count the more Tolerable , SCANDAL , or SCHISM ? Scrup. If by Schism you mean , a Refusal to joyn with That Church where I cannot Communicate without Sin : and if you intend by Scandal , such Actions as are of Ill example , and administer occasion to your neighbour of Falling , I think 't is easily Determin'd , that the One is not to be Suffer'd , and the Other not to be Condemn'd . Conf. When I speak of Schism , and Scandal , let not me be understood , to speak of This or That Sort , or Degree of Either ; but in the Just Latitude both of the One , and the Other : That is ; without more Circumstance , Which do you take for the more Tolerable Mischief of the Two ? Scrup. Truly betwixt a Perverse-Separation , and a Notorious Scandal , I think the Choyce is hard : but I rather Incline against the Scandal . Conf. Then let me tell ye , Schism is Both ; and if ye will believe Sir Francis Bacon , [ Heresies and Schisms , are of all others the Greatest Scandals ; yea more then Corruption of Manners . ] Consider it first , as it stands in Opposition to Unity , ( which is the Bond both of Religion , and Society ) what can be more Scandalous then That which renders Religion it self , Ridiculous ? and That 's the Effect of Schism . To see so many several Factions Grinning one upon another , and yet all pretending to the same One , and Infallible Spirit ! To bring it homer , How Great a Shame and Trouble is This to Those that are within us ! How great a Discouragement to such as are without us ; and How great a Subject of Rejoycing is it to Those that are Against us ! How many ( in fine ) has it driven From us ; and how many more has it hinder'd from coming to us ! Again ; 't is seldome , ( I think I might say , never ) seen , that Schism goes Alone : and in Effect , it is but Sedition in a Disguise . For we find that our Scrupulous Dissenters , can with great Ease , and Unity , agree in a War , though not in a Ceremony . Scrup. And may there not be Conspiracies in Scandal , as well as in Schism ? There , with an Evident Design to bring Contempt upon Religion : whereas Here , we find at least a Colour , and Pretence to uphold it . Beside ; the sins which I accompt Scandalous , are , many of them , Levell'd at the Prerogative of God Himself ; and , in short , the Question is not properly , and simply , betwixt Schism , and Scandal , but betwixt Schism , and ail other sins whatsoever that may be Propagated by Conversation ; ( for That 's the Latitude of Scandal ) Zea. Again , let me observe from your own mouth , that Heresies are Scandals , and several Heresies you know , both by the Laws of God and Man , are Punish'd with Death . He that Blasphemeth the Name of the Lord , shall be put to Death . And from hence you may gather some Difference sure , betwixt the heynousness of the One , and of the Other . Conf. If you will measure the Sin by the Punishment , you 'll proceed by a very uncertain Rule : for Political Laws regard rather Publique Conveniences , than Particular Cases of Conscience . A man shall lose his Life for Picking a Pocket , and but hazard his Ears for a False Oath . But if you 'll refer the matter to the Just and Infallible Judge of all the World , ●● God Himself ; look but into that dreadful Judgement upon the Schism of Korah . Korah , Dathan , &c. rose against Moses with two hundred and fifty Captains of the Assembly , famous in the Congregation , and said unto them , Ye take too much upon you , since all the Congregation is Holy , every one of them , and the Lord is among them . Wherefore then Lift ye your selves above the Congregation of the Lord. [ And what follow'd ? ] The Earth open'd her mouth , and swallow'd Them up with their Families , and all the Men that were with Korah , &c. A fire came out from the Lord , and consum'd the two hundred and fifty Men that Offer'd the Incense . This set the Multitude a muttering against Moses and Aaron ; saying Ye have kill'd the people of the Lord. See now what came of This Muttring too : Fourteen thousand seven hundred of them were consum'd by a Plague . Zea. Well! but what if you 'll understand That to be Schism , which I know to be Conscience ? Conf. Then have you the same Freedome to be Even with me , upon the Point of Scandal ; and so the Controversie must be Endless for want of a Judge to Decide it . SECT . XIII . The Necessity of a Final , and Unaccomptable JUDGE . Conf. WHat 's your Opinion of the Necessity of a Iudge ? Ze. I 'm clearly for a Judge ; that is , for a Iudge furnish'd as well with a Competency of Understanding to Determine Aright , as with a Power and Commission to Determine . Conf. A Iudge supposes One Competency , as well as the Other ; But the Determination must be Final , and Decisive ; No Appeal From it , and no Contending Beyond it . Ze. What not in Case of Errour ? I should be sorry to see a Roman Infallibility set up in England . Conf. How you start now from the shadow of an Infallible Judge , into the Inconvenience of None at all ! You would have a Judge you say : but then , That Judg must be Questionable , in Case of Errour ; so that another Judg is to Judg Him , and the very Judg of This Judg is Himself Questionable ; and so is His Judg , and his Judges Judg ; - ( to the end of the Chapter ) In case of Errour : Which Case of Errour may be alledg'd , Wheresoever there 's no Infallibility ; and if there be no Infallibility in Nature , then by Your Rule , there can be no Iudg in Nature . Ze. I do not say but a man may Iudg Certainly in some Cases , though not Infallibly in All ; and my demand is only the Free Exercise of my Iudgment of Discretion , without being Ty'd up to an Implicit Resignation . There is ( in short ) but a Right , and a Wrong ; and the One I must Embrace , and Reject the Other . How shall I know This from That , without Enquiry ? and what am I the better for That Enquiry , if when I have Learn'd my Duty , I am debar'd the Liberty to Practise it ? Conf. You turn the Question here from the Necessity of a Judge , to his Infallibility . 'T is not a half-penny to Me , whether you make him Infallible , or Credible , or Probable ; or what you make him , or where you place him , provided that he be acknowledg'd ▪ Necessary , and Unaccomptable . Necessary , I suppose you will not stick at : for there can be no Peace without him , every man being at Liberty to wrangle , where no man is Authoris'd to Determine . Zea. What is it that either Invites Tyranny , or Upholds it , but the Opinion of an Unaccomptable-Sovereignty ? Conf. What is it rather ( you should have said ) that Excites Sedition , and Depopulates Kingdomes , but the Contrary ? and the Fiercest Tyranny , is much more supportable then the Mildest Rebellion . Zea. I shall readily allow you the Convenience of a Definitive Judgment , if you will but secure me from the Danger of a Definitive Injustice . Conf. You mistake your self , if you Oppose a Possible Injury on the One side , to a Certain Strife and Confusion on the Other . If Infallibility you cannot find , why may not the the Fairest Probability Content you ? Zea. But would you have That Probability , Govern by Unquestionable , and Authoritative Conclusions ? Conf. By any means ; Ye do nothing , else ; for where Controversies are Inevitable , and Concord Necessary ; what can be more Reasonable , than to chuse the most Competent Iudge of the Matter in Controversie , for the Concluding Umpire of the Controversie it self ? Scrup. But a man may Iudge Probably in One Case , and Improbably in Another . Suppose the Determination to be manifest Errour , or Injustice ; would you have the same Submission pay'd to 't , as if it were Equity , and Truth ? Conf. Yes ; to the Determination , though not to the Errour : You are to stand to the Authority of the Sentence , without Contesting the Equity of it : for Right or Wrong , 't is a Decision . The Principal Scope , and sure end of a Reference , is Peace : the Hopeful Event , and Issue of it , is , Righteous Judgment . Is it not well then , to be Sure of the One , and in so fair Hopes of the Other ? Put it to the Worst : You are not bound to be of the Judge his Opinion , but to be over-rul'd by his Authority : neither do you undertake that he shall Judge wisely as to the Subject of the Question , but that he shall Judge Effectually , as to the purpose of the Reference . Scrup. This Resignation may do well , in Cases of Civil Interest : but it will hardly hold in matters of Conscience . Who shall pretend to Iudge of my Conscience , beside God , and my self ? Conf. The Scripture , which is the Rule of all Consciences , shall be the Iudge of Yours . But the Question is not , What your Conscience IS , but what it OUGHT to be : not what your Private Judgment Says , but what the Scripture Means : and the thing I strive for , is a Judge of That ; A Iudge of the Rule of Faith ; which I take to be all out as Necessary as a Iudge of a Political Law. You cannot but Allow , that there are Diversities of Opinions , as well in Religion , as concerning Secular Affairs : and such is our Corruption , that we draw Poyson even from the Fountain of Life , and the Word of God it self , is made the warrant of all Crimes , and the Foundation of all Heresies . Look behind ye , and you may see a Prince Murther'd by his Subjects , Authority Beheaded by a pretended Law , and All This Defended by a Text. The Church Dovour'd by a Divided Ministry ; the Government Overturn'd by a Solemn League and Covenant , to Support it . An Arbitrary Power Introduc'd by the Patrons of Liberty , and Charity it self extinguish'd for the Advancement of the Gospel . We have liv'd to see as many Haeresies , as Congregations ; and among Those of the Classical way , a Consistorian Sarutiny Exercised beyond the Rigour of a Spanish Inquisition . We have seen some that a Abhor Idols , committing Sacriledge ; Christ's Kingdome cry'd up , till his b Divinity is deny'd : Strictness of Life Inculcated , till the very Rule of it ( the c Decalogue it self ) is Rejected . And Blasphemy hunted out of the Tavern , into the Pulpit . In short ; what Sin , and Misery have we not known , and felt , since under the Form of Liberty of Conscience , This Freedome of a Private Spirit came in Vogue ? Nor are we ever to expect better from it , till all men shall conspire to do the same thing , where every man is left to his own Gust , to do what he pleases : and whence flowes all This Mischief , and Confusion , but from a Licence of wandring from the Rule ? Shew the People a Written Law ; They 'll tell you of a Law of Nature ; and distinguish betwixt [ The d Politique Power they have given the King , and the Natural Power which they Reserve to Themselves . ] Bid them Reverence the King as the Supreme Governour : They 'll Answer you , No : Hee 's but the Servant , and Vassal of the People : his Royalty is only a Virtual Emanation from Them ; and in Them Radically , as in the first Subject . ( According to Rutherford , Parker , Goodwin , Bridges , Milton , and a hundred more ) Come to the Point of Non-Resistence , and you shall hear , that a Wheresoever a King , or other Supreme Authority creates an Inferiour , they invest it with a Legitimacy of Magistratical Power , to Punish themselves also , in case they prove Evil-doers : Yea , and to Act any other thing , requisite for the Praise and Encouragement of the Good. If it be demanded in what capacity the King may be Resisted ? hear Rutherford again b The Man who is King may be Resisted , but not the Royal Office ; The King in Concreto , may be Resisted ; but not the King in Abstracto . ] . But in what Manner may he be Resisted ; and by what Means . c He may be Resisted in a Pitch'd Battel , and with Swords and Guns . That is ; his d Private will may be Resisted , not his Legal Will ; Neither is he Present in the Field as a e King , but as an Injust Invader , and Grassator . If he chance to be slain : 'T is but an f Accident ; and who can help it ? g Hee 's Guilty of his own Death ; or h let them Answer for 't that brought him Thither . i The Contrary Party is Innocent . But This Resistence , is only Justifiable ( I hope ) in Magistrates , or Authoritative Assemblies ; as Parliaments , &c. Rutherford sayes Nay to that . All Powers must be serv'd with the same sauce , if they Abuse their Trust. k [ The People can give no Other Power , then such as God has given Them ; and God has never given a Moral Power to do Ill. ] l [ All FIDUCIARY Power , Abus'd , may be Repeal'd ; and Parliamentary Power is no Other : which , if it be Abus'd , the People may Repeal it ; and Resist them ; Annulling their Commissions ; Rescinding their Acts , and Denuding them of their Fiduciary Power : even as the King himself may be Denuded of the same Power , by the Three Estates ] and Goodwin tells us , in Little ; that a All Humane Lawes , and Constitutions , are made with Knees to bend to the Law of Nature and Necessity . Well ; but suppose the Prince has the good hap to scape Gun-shot ; and only to become a Prisoner ; You have no Law to Try him by , He has no Peers , what course will you take with him ? Milton's opinion is that b Every Worthy Man in Parliament , might , for the Publique Geod , be thought a Fit Peer , and Iudge of the King ; ] and Goodwin Dogmatizes , that c [ where there is no Opportunity , for the Interposure of other Iudges , the Law of Nature , and of Nations allows every man to Iudge in his own Case . ] Parker comes homer yet d There never was ( says he ) a greater Harmony of the Lawes of Nature , Reason , Prudence , and Necessity to warrant any Act , then may be found , and discern'd in That Act of Iustice on the Late King ; ] Now if you 'll see a piece of Treason crown'd with Blasphemy , carry your Eve Four Pages farther . e God himself had Eclips'd , yea Lost the Brightest Beam of his Divine Glory , that ever shin'd on this Lower World , if he had not some way or other , brought That Person to some Eminent , and Praeter-natural Punishment . ] Me thinks These Practices should put you , and your Cause out of Countenance . Scrup. You must understand , that though my Reason lies against Uniformity , yet I 'm no Advocate for Anarchy : and 't is with Non-conformists as with Other People ; there are Good and Bad , of All Sorts . But to go with the Moderate : Would you have All mens Consciences Govern'd by the same Rule , when 't is Impossible to bring them All to the same Mind ? Conf. Better , Particulars suffer for Incompliance with the Publique , than the Publique suffer for Complying with Particulars . Uniformity is the Ciment of both Christian , and Civil Societies : Take That away , and the Parts drop from the Body ; one piece falls from Another . The Magistrate , ( for Order's sake ) requires Uniformity ; You , and your Associates Oppose it upon a Plea of Conscience ; and the Question is , Whether He shall Over-Rule Your Opinions ; or You Over-Rule His Authority ? This Dispute begets a War , for want of a Iudge , and to Prevent that Mischief , I offer that a Iudge is Necessary . Or put it Thus : You and I Differ , and Possibly we are Both of us in the Wrong ; but most certainly , we are not Both in the Right : and yet neither of us but thinks well enough of his own Opinion . What 's to be done in This Case ? shall we wrangle Eternally ? Scrup. No ; Wee 'll rather put the matter to Arbitration . Conf. Well! but the Arbiter himself is Fallible , and may Mistake too ; or let him have the Wisdome of an Angel , he cannot please us Both : for That which seems Right to the One will appear Wrong to the Other . Shall we stand to his Award what ever it be ? If not ; take into your Thought These Consequences . You Refuse to submit because 't is Wrong : I may refuse , by the same Reason , though it be Right : ( for every Man's Reason is of Equal Force , where there is no Common , and Representative Reason to Bind All ) So that by your Reckoning ; Every man is in the Right to Himself , and in the Wrong to all the World beside ; every man's hand is against his Brother , and his Brother 's against Him. ( At least if I deceive not my self , in my perswasion , that Nature never produc'd Two persons , in all points , of the same Judgment . ) Now , if you can neither deny Confusion to be the Natural Effect of This Liberty of Judgment ; nor the want of a Regulating , and Decretory Sentence , to be the manifest Cause of This Confusion , I hope you 'll Grant me the Necessity of an Unaccomptable Judge . Scru. Is not the Word of God a sufficient Iudge ? Conf. No ; That 's no Iudge , but [ a Rule for Christians to Iudge by ] and the Great hazard lies upon the Meaning of That Rule . What swarms of Heresies have Over-spread This Land , since the Bible has been deliver'd up to the Interpretation of Private Spirits ? Scrup. You say well , if you could direct me to a Iudge that we might All Relie upon . Conf. And You say something too , if you could make appear , that None at All , is better then the best we have : or that Popular Errours , Numberless and Inevitable ( with the Dissolution of Communities to boot ) are to be preferr'd to the few , and only Possible , Failings of Authority , attended with Peace , and Agreement . But to come to the short of the Question ; This is it : Whether will you rather have , One fallible Iudge ; or , a Million of Damnable Heresies ? Scrup. Truly , as you have reduc'd it , to a Certainty of Peace the One way , and to as great a Certainty of Discord the Other ; to a Certainty of Many Errours without a Iudge , and to a bare Possibility of some few , with One ; I am content in this Particular , to think a Final Iudge Necessary . Conf. If you find it so in the Church , sure you will not Dispute it in the State , especially against an experience too , the most forcible of all Reasons . We were never troubled with Constructive Necessities ; with Cavils about the Receptacle of Power , and the Limits of Obedience : with Distinctions betwixt the Political , and the Natural Right of the People ; the Legal , and Personal Will of the Prince ; and betwixt the Equity and Letter of the Law ; till Judgment was forc'd from its Proper Course , and Channel , and the Decision of Right and Wrong , committed to the Frivolous and Arbitrary Determinations of the Multitude . Scrup. Pray'e by your Leave . I am as much for a Iudge , as You ; but not for One Judge to All Purposes ; nor , I confess , for any Iudge so Absolute as you would have him . Conf. I tell ye again ; A Iudge , and no Absolute Judge , is No Judge : and you shall as soon find the End of a Circle , as of a Controversie , by such a Iudge . Nor is it my Meaning , that One Iudge should serve for All purposes . Scrup. Will you Divide your Matter then , and Assign to every Judicable Point , his Proper Judge ? Conf. You say well ; For truly I do not take the Magistrate to be any more a Judge of My Conscience , than I am of His. Scrup. 'T is very Right ; and it were an Encrochement upon the Prerogative of God Himself , for him to Challenge it . Conf. How comes it now , that we that Agree so well i' the End , should Differ so much ' i th' Way to 't ? But I hope , the clearing of the next point will set us Through-Right : For after the setling of the Iudge , we have nothing further to do but to Submit ; and so wee 'll Forward . SECT . XIV . The Three great Iudges of Mankind , are , GOD , MAGISTRATES , and CONSCIENCE . Conf. SOme things we do as Men ; other things as Men in Society ; and some again as Christians . In the first place , we are acted by the Law of Individuals ; which Law is , in the second place , Subjected to That of Government ; and Both these Lawes are , in the third place , Subordinate to That of Religion ; i. e. the Law of God's Reveal'd Will. So that the Three great Judges of Mankind , are , God , Magistrates , and Conscience . Man , as consisting of Soul , and Body , may be again Subdivided within Himself . Take him in his Lower Capacity , and hee 's sway'd by the General Law of Animal Nature ; but in his Divine part , you 'll find him Govern'd by the Nobler Law of Refin'd Reason : which Reason , in some Respects , may be call'd Prudence ; and in others , Conscience ; according as 't is variously Exercis'd . The things which we do purely as Men , ( abstracted from any Ingredients of Policy , or Regulated Religion ) are either Natural Actions , Prudential , or Moral . Of the First sort , are Those Actions to which we are prompted by a Natural Impulse , in order to the Conservation of Life , and Beeing . Of the Third sort , are such Actions as we perform in Obedience to Moral Principles ; ( which are no other than the Divine Will veil'd under the Dictate of Humane Reason ) and betwixt These Two , lies the Region of Middle Actions ; that is , of such Actions , as although not of simple and strict Necessity , either to Life , or Virtue , are notwithstanding Useful , and Commodious , for the Guidance , and Comfort of the One , and for the Practice of the Other . The Accurate disquisition of This Interest , laies the Axe to the Root of the Question ; for nothing has Embroyl'd us more , then the Mistaken Rights of Individuals ; which Mistakes being once Clear'd , by laying open the Subordination of several Claims , and Powers , every man may take a Distinct view of his Own Province . Zea. Proceed Regularly n●●● , and State These Subordinations as you go . Conf. Content ; and we are now upon the Right of Individuals ; in which Naked simplicity of considering MAN ▪ without any regard to the ordinary motions of Providence , in the Order , and Regiment of the world , we shall yet find a manifest Subordination within Himself , and the Law of Sense , under the Dominion of the Law of Reason in the same Subject . These are the Laws which the Apostle calls , the Law of his Members , and the Law of his Will. The Former ( and the less Excellent ) Law , is the Law Sensitive ; which is no other than the Law of Self-preservation , ( indeed , the supreme Law of Animal Beings , as of Rationals , the Lowest ; ) This Law Sensitive is ( effectually ) the Manifestation of God , in the Creature . ( for what Sense does , Nature does ; and what Nature does , God does ) Zea. But what is That Power which you call Nature ? Conf. It is the Ordinary working of God in all his Creatures ; by virtue of which Divine Influence , every thing is mov'd to seek the utmost Perfection whereof it is Capable . As for the purpose . The perfection of Man , is the Congruity of his Actions , with his Reason , which is nothing else but That which we call VIRTUE . The Perfection of Beasts , is a degree Lower ; they are mov'd only by a Sensual Impulse , toward what 's convenient for them , and when they have it , they Rest. Scrup. I can but Laugh , when people are Gravell'd , to see how they run to their Impulses , and Occult Qualities ; which is but a more Learned way of saying , [ They don't know what ] Pray'e spare me a word ; what Difference is there betwixt Their Impulse , and Our Choyce ? Conf. Pre'thee be Quiet , unless thou hast a mind to have a Toleration for thy Dog. Their Impulse carries them on through a Sensitive Search , not any Deliberative Discourse : and no Election neither at last ; but only the simple Prosecution of a Determinate Appetite , without Imagining any Proportion , betwixt the Means , and the End. Scrup. But still we find that there is a Proportion ; and the Motion appears to Us , according to the Method of Reason , and Orderly proceeding from Question to Resolution . Conf. Is it Reason think ye , that makes a Dog follow his Nose , and hunt for Meat when hee 's Hungry ? Or will ye call it Choyce , if he leaves a Turfe for a Bone ? In short ; Hee 's mov'd by Instinct , toward the End ; and Sense carries him through the Means . Scrup. But why should the same Process of Means , and the same Application of Causes , be Ascrib'd only to Instinct in Brutes , and to Reason in Man ? Conf. You must take notice , that all Natural Operations , are Regular and Ordinate , by what means soever perform'd ; but it does not follow , because the Method is according to Reason , that therefore the Instrument must be Reasonable . But to Mind our Business . The Law of Self-Preservation , is a Law Common to Beasts with Men ; but not of Equal Force : for Their Sovereign Interest is Life , Ours is Virtue ; and therefore your Argument for Defensive Arms , upon Pretext of That Extremity , was but a Brutish Plea ; For , if the Consideration of Virtue be not above That of Life , Where lies the Advantage of our Reason ? Scrup. But when the Death is Certain , and the Virtue Doubtfull , who shall decide the Question ? Conf. In a Case Abstracted from the Tyes , and Duties of Religion , and Government ; Every Mans Reason Sits as Iudge upon his own Life . As for Instance ; You 're in the Hands of Thieves ; and upon This Condition , Either to Take a False Oath , or to Lose your Life . Your Conscience tells ye , you must rather Perish . But if without violence to a Superiour Duty , you can preserve your Self , you 're your own Murderer , if you do not . Thus far I think wee 're safe , and I suppose Agreed ; that Every Individual is to Govern himself by his Natural Conscience ; but when the several Particulars come to be Bundled up in one Community , the Case is Otherwise . Scrup. I am sorry to hear ye say That . Why should not every Man be Govern'd by his Own Conscience , as well in Consort , as in Solitude ? or , Will ye have it , that our Duty to God ceases , in the Act of becoming Subjects to a Civil Magistrate ? Conf. Not so quick , and you shall have it . As to your Conscience , you are as Free now , as you were before ; but your Body is no longer your Own , after you 're once admitted a Member of a Society ; and There 's the Difference . You were your Own servant before , and now you are the King 's : ( for what is Government , but the Wisdom , Resolve , and Force of Every Particular , gather'd into One Understanding , Will , and Body ? ) and This comes up to What I have already deliver'd ; that , Whatsoever God has left Indifferent , is the Subject of Humane Power . Scrup. But who shall be Judg of what 's Indifferent ? Conf. Wee 'l scan That , the very next thing we doe . You are already satisfi'd , that an Authoris'd Iudg is Absolutely Necessary , in Order to the Peace of Church and State ; and to the Ending of all Publique Differences : but we are not yet Agreed upon our Judges , or , if we were , yet in Regard our Judges are but Men , and so may Erre , [ Infallibility being departed with Christ and his Apostles , in lieu of which Living and Infallible Guides , God has in Providence given us a Plain and Infallible Rule ] It may withall be taken into thought , How far a Private Judge may be Allow'd to Opine against a Publique , in Case of a Reluctant Conscience , and ( in some sort ) to judge his Iudg. Scrup. You say very well ; for , place the Ultimate Decision where you will , 't is ( as you said before ) An Infallible Determination as to the Strife , but not so , as to the Truth ; and it comes to This at last , that every man , in some Degree , Re-judges his Judge . If I am fully convinc'd , either that the Command is sinfull in it self , or the Opinion Wicked ; I am neither to Obey the One , nor to Embrace the Other ; as being ty'd up by the General Obligation , of rather Obeying , and Believing God , then Man. Nay more ; If in Obedience to the Magistrate , I commit a sin against God ; and that Ignorantly too ; That very Act , in Ignorance , is Criminal , if I had the Means of being better Enform'd : for certainly , no Humane Respect , can justifie an Offence against God ; Now if I am bound to do nothing that is Ill , I am likewise bound , before I do anything , to satisfie my self whether it be Ill or no : for otherwise , I may swallow a false Religion for a True , and be Damn'd at Last , for not Minding what I Did ; Which I take to be Proof sufficient , that no man is so Implicitly Oblig'd to rely upon other Mens Eyes , as Totally to Abandon the Direction of his Own ; or so Unconditionally to swear Obedience to Other Mens Lawes , and Perswasions , as to hold no Intelligence at all , with That Sacred Law , and faithfull Counsellor , which he carryes in his own Bosom . Conf. Forgive me , If you Imagine that I would have ye Renounce your Reason . No , but on the Contrary , I would have ye to be Guided , and Concluded by 't , and only to Obey for Quiet 's sake , so far as you can possibly Obey in Conscience . Scrup. What if a Single Person hitts That Truth which a General Council Misses ? Which will you have him follow ? Truth , or Authority ? Conf. Why truly Both ; Truth with his Soul , and Authority with his Body : but so Remote a Possibility must not Presume to Bolster up the Thinkings of a Private Spirit against the Resolutions of Authority ; yet for the very Possibility's sake , wee 'l take That supposition likewise into our Care , and Word the sum of the Whole Matter Plainly Thus : The Church says , ye May do ; and the Law says , ye Must Do , That which your Conscience says , You Ought not to Do. How will you Reconcile your Duty , and your Conscience , in This Case ? Scrup. Very well ; for I think it my Duty to obey my Conscience , upon This Principle , that Conscience is God's Substitute over Individuals . Conf. Keep to That ; and Answer me again . Is not the Civil Magistrate God's Substitute too ? If he bee , How comes Your Conscience to take Place of His Authority ? They are Both Commission'd alike , and consequently , They are Both to bee Obey'd alike ; which is Impossible , where their Commands are Inconsistent . Scrup. The Magistrate is a Publique Minister , and his Commission does not Reach to Particular Consciences . Conf. 'T is very Right ; and on the other side , My friend Scruple is a Private Person , and there 's as little Reason to pretend that his Opinion should operate upon a Publique Law. So that if I Mistake ye not , Wee are Agreed thus far , That Every Particular is to look to One , and the King to the Whole . Scrup. I do not much Oppose it . Conf. If your Brother Zeal , would deal as candidly , with me now about the Ecclesiastical Power , as You have done in the Civill , we might make short work of This Question ; and I hope he will not deny , that the Church is as well [ a ] Authoris'd to TEACH , and INSTRUCT in all the External Acts of Worship , as [ b ] the Magistrate is to COMPELL to those External Acts. Ze. There is no Doubt , but [ c ] the Church , [ as the Church ] has a Ministerial Power , Ex Officio , to Define Controversies according to the Word of God ; and that [ d ] A Synod ▪ Lawfully Conven'd , is a Limited , Ministerial , and bounded visible Judg , and to be Believed in , so far as they follow Christ , the Peremptory and Supreme Judg , speaking in his own Word . Conf. This will not do our business yet ; for , if a Synod be but to be Believed in SO FAR as it followes Christ ; &c. They that ought to be Concluded by That Act , are left the Iudges of it , and the Credit of the Authority , rests upon the Conscience , ( or , if you please , the Phansy or Humour ) of the Believer : and so there 's no Decision . Ze. [ e ] The Truth is , we are to believe Truths Determin'd by Synods , to be Infallible , and never again lyable to Retraction or Discussion ; nor because [ So sayes the Synod ] but because [ So sayes the Lord ▪ ] Conf. Still y' are short ; for 't is not in our Power to Disbelieve what we acknowledge to be a Truth ; but That which is Truth at the Fountain , may become Errour in the Passage ; or at least appear so to me ; and what Then ? Ze. It must be look'd upon as an Errour of the Conscience , which is no discharge at all of your Obedience : from which Errour , you are to be Reclaym'd , either by Instruction , or Censure . For , the People are oblig'd to [ Obey those that are over them in the Lord , who watch for their souls , as those who must give an Accompt ; ] and not Oblig'd to stand to , and Obey the Ministerial , and Official Judgement of the PEOPLE , [ He that Heareth You ( MINISTERS of the Gospel , not the PEOPLE ) heareth MEE , and he that Despiseth YOU , despiseth MEE . ] Conf. Then I find we shall shake hands . You two , Gentlemen , are joyntly engag'd against the Act for Uniformity ; and yet ye cannot say , that it wants any thing to give it the full Complement of a binding Law : Whether ye Regard either the Civil , or the Ecclesiastical Authority . Here 's first , the Judgment of the Church Duely Conven'd , touching the Meetness , and Convenience of the Rites and Forms therein Conteyn'd . You have next , the Royal Sanction , Approving , and Authorising Those Rites , and Forms , and Requiring your Exact Obedience to Them. Now so it is , that you can neither Decline the Authority of your Iudges , nor the Subjection of your Dutyes ; What is it then that hinders your Obedience ? Scrup. That which to me is More then all the World ; It goes against My Conscience . Conf. Only That Point then , and no More upon This Subject . That God is the Iudg of the World ; that the Church is the Iudg of what Properly concerns Religion ; that the Civil Magistrate is the Iudg of what concerns the Publique Peace ; and that Every Mans Conscience is the Iudg of what concerns his Own Soul ; is already Clear'd : The Remaining Difficulty is This , How I am to behave my self in a Case , where the Law bids me do One Thing , and my Conscience , Another . To take a true Estimate of what 's before us , we must first ballance the Two Interests that meet in Competition . There is in favour , and for the Execution of the Law , ( meaning that of Uniformity , ) 1. The Personal Conscience , and 2. the Political Conscience of the King. There is likewise for the Equity of it , the solemn and deliberate Iudgment of the Church : which is , Effectually , the Publique Conscience ; and lastly , for the Observance of it ▪ there is the Duty of the Subject , ( which , if it be withdrawn , does not only invalidate This Particular Act , but it loosens the sinews of Sovereign Authority ; and , which is more , it destroyes even a Divine Ordinance ; for , take away Obedience , and Government lapses into Confusion . ) Now for the Counterpoize ; AGAINST This Law , and Thus supported , appears your Naked Conscience . Nay , That 's the Fairest on 't , It may be worse , and in Truth , any thing that 's Ill , under that name . Scrup. But what 's the World to Mee , in the scale against my Soul ? Conf. You have great Reason sure , and 't is no more than every man may challenge : That is , to Stand , or Fall , to his own Conscience : Is That your Principle ? Scrup. Yes , out of doubt ; 't is Mine , and Yours , and His , and any Man's that's Honest. Conf. Well , hold ye a little : Your Conscience will not down with This Law , it seems ; and This Law will as little down with Your Conscience . Weigh now the Good against the Bad ; What if it stands ? What if it yields ? Make the Case worse then 't is ; as Bad as Bad may be , in your own Favour , You cannot Comply with the Law ; and the Law will not stoop to You. What follows upon 't ? Scrup. The Ruine of many Godly People that desire to Worship God according to his Word . Conf. That Plea wrought little upon You from Us ; but let that pass . What Sort of Ruine do ye mean ? Ruine of Liberty ? or Estate ? ( for This Law Draws no Bloud ) State your Misfortunes I beseech ye . Scrup. No Man must Hold a Benefice , or Teach a School , but upon Terms of such Subscription , or Acknowledgement , as many an Honest Man would rather Dye , then Consent to : So that We are Distrest , not only for our Selves , as being Depriv'd of the Comfort of all Spiritual , and Heavenly Freedomes ; But our Poor Infants are Expos'd to be Undone , wanting the Means of a Religious Education . Conf. If This be All , never Trouble your Selves ; for Many an Honest Man has Out-liv'd more than this comes to . In short , there 's a Huge Clamour ; but ( God knows ) with very Little Reason . Some Particulars will possibly Suffer for want of a Toleration : and who are They ; but ( Most of Them ) the Actual Enemies of the King ; and All of Them , the Profest Opposers of the Law ? If you would see the Event of Granting what you ask ; Turn but your Face toward — 41 , and then Blush , and Repent . Do so ; and thank his Majesty for your Heads , without troubling him with your Consciences . Beside ; you 're not aware , that in Contesting with the Law , you Quarrel with your Self : There 's your own Vote Against ye ; and all this muttering is no other then your Factious Will , wrangling with your Political Consent . Yet still I say , Stick to your Conscience . Scrup. Your Raillery is ill Plac'd . Conf. Then 't is the better for my Earnest : and 't is in very , very Great Earnest that I speak it . Wee 'll come now to the Push , and , without What 's , or Why 's , lay down for Granted , that there is a Real Distance betwixt This Act , and your Conscience . How will you divide your Duty ? Scrup. I 'll follow your Advice , and Stick to my Conscience . Conf. You do the Better : now , Change Hands ; and Phansie your self the Supreme Magistrate . He has a Double Conscience . One , that concerns Himself , Th' Other his People . What his Majesty's Personal Iudgement is , has been Declar'd Abundantly ; what his Prudential Iudgment may dispose him to , lies in his Royal Brest . But be That as Heaven shall Order it , Here 's the Partition of your Rights . The King's Prerogative has nothing to do with your Conscience , and your Conscience , has as little to do with His Majesty's Prerogative . The King is accomptable to God for the welfare of his People , and You are only Accomptable to God for the Good of your little Particular . If you cannot Obey the Law ; do not : but abide the Penalty . If the Sovereign cannot Relax the Law , He 's as Free to Execute it . Your Conscience requires Liberty ; and your Governour 's Conscience requires Order , and the very ground of your Demand , is the Reason of His Refusal . Now why you should expect that your Sovereign should bring down His Conscience to Yours , when you find , upon experiment , that you cannot perswade your Own up to His , is to me a Mystery . To Conclude ; Keep your self within your Sphere , and where you cannot Consent as a Christian , Submit as a Subject . Scrup. I cannot much deny the Colour of your Argument , and yet me thinks there 's so much to be said too , for Toleration , that I 'm affraid you 'll Leave me as you found me . Conf. I 'll sterve thee first ; for thou shalt Eat no Meat till thou' rt my Convert : wherefore Go on , and do thy worst . SECT . XV. The Toleration , which the Non-Conformists Desire , has neither GROUND nor PRESIDENT . Scrup. 'T Is a most horrible kind of Persecution . Conf. Why then Government 's a most horrible Ord'nance . For the Punishment of Evil-Doers , is the one half of the Magistrates Commission : and what 's an Evil-Doer , but the Transgressour of a Law ? Scrup. But , What do ye think , when the Making of One Law is the Transgression of Another ? Conf. I think , such a Law is better Broken then Kept . But remember the Iudge , my Friend ; and know , that Laws are made for the Community , not for Particulars ; and Good , or Bad , they 're Laws still . Suppose them Cruel ; y 'had as good say , The King 's a Tyrant , as Call them so ; for the Law is no other than the King 's written Will. Now to your Persecution again ; say what ye will , y' are Safe . Scrup. Do not you take the Persecuting Party to be generally in the Wrong ? Conf. I was of That Opinion three or four year agoe . But if it be so , the Persecuted have the less reason to Compleyn , having so comfortable a marque of being in the Right . Scrup. But what can justifie the very Constitution of a Persecuting Law ? Conf. You should rather have Asked , What can justifie the Toleration of a Troublesome People ? The Law stands Fixt , and Immovable ; and yet upon a Guard too . You Attaque That , and then ye cry , That ( or the Magistrate ) hurts you : which is thereabout , as if you should Throw your self upon the point of a Sword , and then Curse the Cutler . Scrup. Christians ' will not persecute Pagans for Conscience , and yet they worry one another . Conf. And in some Cases they may have reason : for an Infidel is less dangerous to the Publique than an Apostate . And beside : the One is but giving Quarter to a fair , and Open Enemy ; the Other is to take a Snake into your Bosome . The One , in Fine , denies but your Opinion ; the Other , your Authority . Pray'e take notice by the By , That which you call Persecution , I translate Uniformity . Scrup. How shall the Magistrate Distinguish , whom he should Punish , and whom Not ? Conf. Better a great deal , whom he should Punish , than whom he should Spare . They Act ; and then he brings Those Actions to a Rule , and That shews him whether they are streight , or crooked . Scrup. How do you know but you may Persecute God Himself , in a Right Conscience ? Conf. I tell ye , you are not Punish'd for your Thoughts , but for your Actions : and you 'd Inferr , that because ( for ought I know ) Any Man may be in the Right , No Man must therefore be presum'd to be in the Wrong ; That were to grant a Sanctuary to Wickedness , and to Confound Sin with Conscience . Scrup. Does not God command , that the Tares should be let alone till the Harvest ? Conf. But if that were meant of Practical Impieties , how should Governours be a Terrour to Evil-doers ; when all Malefactors must be let alone till the day of Judgement ? Scrup. Alas ! alas ! Severity , at best , does but make Hypocrites . Conf. But , by your Leave , Forbearance does it much more : for Those that come In for Fear , never went Off for Conscience , and so were Hypocrites before : and then you never consider Those Infinite Swarms of Seditious Spirits that throw themselves into the Tolerated Party under the veile of Sanctity . In fine ; 't is much more advisable to take away the Liberty of Some , then to Grant a Liberty to All. For betwixt Those that are not Wise , where is great hazard of Errour ; and Those that are not Honest , where is great Danger of Design ( with your leave , Gentlemen ) you 'll find well nigh the Computation of your Party . But why do I stand Fencing in a Case , where all that 's good for ought , even in the Favour'd Party , runs nigh an equal Perill ? Is any honest man the better for the Last War ? ( I mean , save Those that are Forgiven ) Scrup. Then you presume a War. Conf. Or what is equal to 't ; a Standing Army , upon necessity to keep them Quiet . For in This Town , a Toleration of Religion is Cousin-German to a Licence for Rebellion : and at the best , 't is but One Ill that procreates Another . Scrup. And can you Imagine that so many restless Humours , and disturb'd Consciences , will ever be Quiet without it ? Conf. You talk of Conscience . Shew me a Conscience , make proof of a Conscience . I 'll shew ye a Thousand things like Consciences : but alas ! narrowly look'd into , what are they but meere Phansie , Artifice , or Delusion ? A company of People Thus divided ; The one half of them Deceive Us , and the other half of them Deceive Themselves ; for 't is not what every man Thinks , that is presently Conscience ; but what every body Thinks , in Congruity with the Word of God ; and of That Word , the Church is the best Judge . If Conscience Alone be sufficient , the Bible is Superfluous : Nay if Conscience , joyn'd with the Bible , be sufficient , what becomes of the Apostles Commission ; [ Go , and TEACH all Nations ? ] We shall undertake to Teach THEM , whom our Saviour has appointed to Teach US . But This is a little beside our business ; for the stress of the Question , in order to a Toleration , does not bear so much upon This Point , whether your Opinions be True or False ; as whether Safe or Dangerous . There are a sort of People that Reason by one Principle , and Act by another ; that begin with Liberty of Conscience , and end with the Liberty of the Subject : If You be of That number , There 's Death in the Pot , and no Enduring of ye . Further , Liberty of Conscience turns naturally into Liberty of Government , and therefore not to be endur'd ; especially in a Monarchy ; and to say truth , 'T is commonly the Method of Embroyling Kingdoms ; and but the Embryo of Sedition . Than which , nothing lyes opener to him that will only attend These Two Particulars : First , In those Times , when there is Generally the least care of Religion , you shall observe commonly , the most Talk of it ; and That too , among such as least understand it . If This Impulse be not Acted by Conscience , 't is from a worse Principle , and by no means to be Encourag'd ; for the Mass of the People is already in a Distemper ; and Those Out-cryes and Transports for Toleration , are but the Convulsions of a Sick Government . Secondly , Ecclesiastical and Civil Affairs are so Twisted and Enterwoven , that what Party soever clayms a Right of Freedom to the former , may be fairly suspected to have a design likewise upon the latter : For the Threds are so Enterlayd , that Both Interests make , Effectually , but One Piece ; so that the State that allowes the People a Freedom to choose their Religion , is reasonably to Expect that they will Take a Freedom likewise to choose their Government . Scrup. But why should a Toleration do worse Here than in Holland ? Conf. I would y 'had found a better Instance . But , not to Dispute how They came Thither ; let it suffice , That where They are , a Toleration would bring us . Scrup. What do ye think of Poland then ? Conf. I think , That story speaks little in your Favour , either in Respect of Their frequent Seditions , or in Regard of Their Prodigious and Heretical Opinions ; and yet They lye under the strongest Obligation in Nature to keep Them Quiet ; the Turk being their Neighbour ; which makes Their Case to be an Agreement Rather Against a Common Enemy , than Among Themselves . But back to Holland , Theirs is no Perfect Toleration : For , ye see , in the Case of Arminius ; finding Barnevelt in the Head of the Party , ( of whose Intendments , the States were at that time Jealous ) They would not upon any Terms Allow that Freedom to the Arminians , which they did to Others ; but Conven'd a Synod , and Exterminated the Sect. There 's a Great Difference too betwixt the Interest , and Condition , of Their Ministers , and Ours . Theirs Preach but upon Good-behaviour ; They live upon the States-Pay ; and upon the least Colour of Offence , They may be Turn'd off at Pleasure ; Whereas Our Clergy have a Free-hold in their Benefices for Term of Life ; and if they be Factiously Dispos'd , they may Evade the Law to do a Mischief , without making a Forfeiture . Consider next , that Their Case , was in some sort Your Own , only a Common Cause kept ye United . In fine , Nothing but the fear of a Common Enemy can withhold a Libertine-Nation from falling foul upon it self . If ye would see what work Peters , Bridges Sympson , and Ward , made in Holland , Read Bayly's Dissuasive , Pa. 75. and be Asham'd of Owning such a Party . Scrup. You see the Fruit then of driving men to the Extremity of flying their Country for Religion . Conf. You see rather , in what They did Abroad , what They would have done at Home , if They had been Tolerated ; and Particularly , Observe Their Proceedings in New-England , where They Acted at Liberty , and Govern'd Themselves , by Their Own Lawes . Bayly Reports ( from People upon the Place ) that of Forty Thousand Persons , Three Parts of Four , were not admitted to be in Any Church . If you have a mind to know any more concerning Their Heresies , Their Cruelty , Their Sedition , their Hypocrisie , &c. look into his Dissuasive again , Pa. 53. Scrup. But ye see the French Allow a Toleration . Conf. They do so ; but not a Toleration of several sorts of Roman-Catholiques ; Neither do Those of the Religion admit of any Sub-division among Themselves ; nay , They have been often Press'd to 't , and Refus'd it . Step into Germany next , and see the Deplorable Effects of This Phanatical Persuasion There : but above All , where ever the Beauteous Discipline has set her Holy Foot , All other Iudgements suffer a daily Martyrdome . To Conclude , Toleration was That which Queen Elizabeth , in all her Distresses , could never be perswaded to . Firm to This Resolution ( says Sir Francis Bacon ) not to Suffer the State of Her Kingdome to be Ruin'd , under pretence of Conscience and Religion . Yet Shee Conniv'd so Long , and the unthankful Faction made such use of Her Favours , that Shee was forc't upon the Rigour of a Strict Uniformity , to Help Her Self , and That Preserv'd Her. To say no more , The Sentence of the Late King was Given in the Pulpit , though the Blow was Struck upon the Scaffold . Zea. Not by the Presbyterians , I hope . Scrup. Truly by Them , if by Any . Conf. Well Gentlemen , while you Debate That Point , I 'le call for Dinner . SECT . XVI . At whose Door Lyes the BLOUD of King CHARLES the MARTYR ? Zea. ANd why by Them , if by Any , I beseech ye ? Was Peters a Presbyterian ? Scrup. Yes surely was he , as much as Marshall was an Independent . Zea. Go to , Let us spare Names , and Fall to the Matter . Scrup. The Question is , Upon Whom the Guilt of the Kings Bloud lyes ? You charge it upon Us ; and I , upon You. [ The Presbyterians Spoyl'd Him as a King , before Others Executed Him as a Private Man ] [ Have they not Hunted and Persu'd Him with Sword , and Fire ? Have they not formerly Deny'd to Treat with Him , and their now Recanting Ministers Preach't against Him , as a Reprobate Incurable ; an Enemy to God , and his Church ? Marqu'd for Destruction ? &c. ] [ The Covenanting-Ministers , with their Party clearly Depos'd the King , when They Acknowledg'd and submitted unto a Power , as Superiour unto His ; Levy'd war against Him , as against a Traytor , Rebel , and Enemy to the Kingdome , &c. ] [ The Scots had proceeded so far as to Imprison the Kings Person , and to Sequester all his Royal Power , which is a Temporary Dethroning , and Deposing . ] Nay hear what some of your Rabbies have not stuck to say in my Iustification [ The Removal of Prelatical Innovations , Altar-genuflexions and cringings , with Crossings , and all that Popish Trash and Trumpery , Countervails for the Bloud and Treasure shed and spent in these late Distractions ] ( and this was in — 56. ) Once more and you shall take your Turn . [ This may serve to Justifie the Proceedings of this Kingdome against the late King , who in a Hostile way set Himself to overthrow Religion , Parliaments , Laws , and Liberties . ] Zea. I could Afford you Two , for One , and Pay you in your own Coyne . [ His Capacity ( says Parker ) was at Westminster when His Body was upon the Scaffold at Whitehall Paying unto Justice for his Misgovernment , and Tyranny ] [ Think not to save your Selves ( sayes One of your Ministers to the Commons , about a Month before the King Suffer'd ) Think not to Save your Selves ( says He ) by an Unrighteous Saving Them who are the Lord's and the Peoples Known Enemies , for Certainly if ye Act not Like GODS in This Particular against men truly Obnoxious to Justice , They will be like DEVILS against you — Benhadad's Life was once in Ahab's Hand , and He ventur'd God's Displeasure to let him go . But see how Bernhadad Rewards Him for it . Fight neither with Small nor Great , but with the KING of Israel ] Conf. Come Gentlemen , Your Dinner 's Ready ; but first I Charge ye , by that Love ye bear to Truth , and Honesty ; deal Freely with me ; What 's Your Opinion of your Cause ? Zea. Wee 'll take time to Consider of it . Conf. And of your Petition too , I beseech ye . Go to ; I dare swear , there 's Neither of ye will Dye at Stake for 't . Scrup. But still I 'm where I was , as to the Favouring of Tender Consciences . Conf. And truly so am I ; where it is possible to Separate the Errour , from the Person : but to permit a Pullique Inconvenience for the Satisfaction of a Private Scruple , were ( upon very weak pretence ) to Unhinge the Law , and Consequently to Dissolve the Government . Det ille veniam facilè , cui veniâ est opus . Sen. Agamem . The END . The CONTENTS . INTRODUCTION , Pag. 1 SECT . 1. Liberty of Conscience Stated , P. 5 SECT . 2. Universal Toleration Unlawful , P. 7 SECT . 3. Limited Toleration , does not answer Liberty of Conscience , P. 18 SECT . 4. The Non-Conformists Plea for TOLERATION , upon Reason of State , P. 14 SECT . 5. The Non-Conformists Plea for TOLERATION , from the Merits of the Party , P. 24 SECT . 6. The Non-Conformists Plea for TOLERATION , from the Innocence of their Practices and Opinions , P. 26 SECT . 7. TOLERATION Causes Confusion both in Church and State , P. 36 SECT . 8. The Danger of TOLERATION in this Iuncture , Pag. 3● SECT . 9. Arguments against TOLERATION in respect of the Party ihat Desires it ; with Animadversions upon a certain Pamplet , Entituled , A SERMON Preached at ALDERMANBURY-CHURCH , Decemb. 28. 1662. P. 42 SECT . 10. Arguments against TOLERATION , in Respect of the Authority that is to Grant it , P. 60 SECT . 11. The Proper Subject and Extent of Humane Power , P. 64 SECT . 12. The Bounds of TOLERATION , with some Reflections upon SCHISM and SCANDAL , p. 69 SECT . 13. The Necessity of a Final and Unaccomptable JUDGE , P. 81 SECT . 14. The Three Great Iudges of Mankind , are GOD , MAGISTRATES and CONSCIENCE , P. 89 SECT . 15. The Toleration , which the Non-Conformists desire , has neither GROUND , nor PRESIDENT , P. 99 SECT . 16. At Whose Door Lies the BLOUD of King CHARLES the MARTYR ? P. 104 The END . Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A47927-e200 Crooks Reports Pars 2. Pa. 37. Notes for div A47927-e1090 Interest of Engl. Pa 86. P. 84. 86. 87. 94. The Non-conformists Demand . Rom. 2. 14. Laud against Fisher. pa. 197. Rom. 7. 7. Rom. 4. 15. Rom. 5. 13. 1 Joh. 4. 3 , 15. Ex. Coll. P. 2. & 3. a Ex. Coll. P. 84. b P. 339. c P. 609. d P. 764. e P. 392. Ex. Coll. P. 533. P. 494. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . P. 28. & 24. Lord Brook , Alaham , Pa. 12. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . P. 130. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 P. 93. Gal. 5. 1. a Lex Rex P. 136. b 156. c 140. d 113. e Gillespy P. 11. Engl. Pop. Cerem . f 245. Kings Declar. P. 409. P. 4●1 . P. 409. P. 413. A Sacred Panegyrick . P. 23 Defence of the Honourable Sentence passed upon the late King. Pa. 90. Ex Coll. Pa. 259 ▪ Ex. Coll. Pa. 457. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Pa. 183. The Non-conformists would have they know not what . Letter to the Assembl . Ian. 1. 45. Pag. 3. Engl. Deliv . Pa. 7. Fresh Disput. Pa. 98. Tenure of Kings Pa. 36. Ex. Coll. Pa. 2. Remonstr . Ex. Coll. Pa. 19. ☜ Ibid. The False Brother . a Part. 2. Pag. 3. b Pag. 7. Scobel Acts , &c. c Pag. 51. d Pag. 65. e Pag. 178. f Pag. 293. a Scobels Acts , &c. Pag. 41. b Pag. 60. c Pag. 73. d Pag. 75. e Pag. 128. f Pag. 8. Part 2. g Pag. 149. h Pag. 153. i Pag. 400. k Pag. 42. l Pag. 53. m Pag. 75. n Pag. 99. o Pag. 101. p Pag. 128. q Part. 2. Pag. 16. r Part. 1. Pag. 97. Ibid. The Kirks Testimony against Toleration . Pag. 10. Scobell's Acts Pars. 2. Pa. 340. Useful Case of Conscience , Pa. 19 , & 20. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . P. 207. Ibid. a Scob. Acts Pars. 1. Pa. 37. b Pa. 135. c Pars. 2. Pa. 104. d Pa. 175. e Pa. 372. Kings Declar. Decemb. 26. 1662. Pa. 8. His Majesty's Speech to Both Houses , Feb. 18. 1662. Pa. 5. Ibid. Pa. 7. Pa. 8. Ibid. Pa. 8. Pa. 9. Pa. 8. Pa. 9. Pa. 10. Pa. 11. Ibid. Pa. 12. Pa. 13. Ibid. Pa. 14. Ibid. Sermon , Iu● . 15. — 43. pag. 53 , & 51. Pa. 16. Pa. 17. Pa. 17 , & 18. ☞ Davila Delle Guer. Civ . di F●an . Lib. 10. Ibid. Lib. 14. Strada de Bello Belgico Lib. 5. The subject of Humane Power . Eccles. Polit ▪ Lib. 1. Pa. 7. a Parker , Goodwin , Rutherford , Milton , &c. b E. Cal. Noble-mans Pattern , pa. 45. c E. C. Phoenix , pa. 158 , & 159. d Rutherfords Due Right of Presbyteryee , Pa. 485. e Ibid. p. 488. f Mr. Manion's Smectymnuus , Publisht since his Majesties Return , pa. 58. ☜ Essay of Atheism . E. Calaus . Serm. Dec. 28. 1662. Pa. 21. Pa. 19. Psal. 73. v. 12. Essay of Unity of Religion . Numb . 24. 16. Numb . 16. 1. V. 3. V. 32. V. 35. V. 41. V. 49. a Rom. 2. 22. b By the Familists . c By the Antinomians . d Rutherford , Lex . Rex p. ●1 . a Goodwins Right and Might , Pa. 10. b Lex Rex Pa. 265. c Lex . Rex Pa. 324. d Pa. 269. e Pa. 334. f Pa. 324. g Pa. 273. h Ibid. i Ibid. k Lex . Rex Pa. 152. l Ibid. a Right and Might . b Tenūre of Kings , Pa. 24. c Defence of the Kings Sentence , P. 34. d English Translation of the Scottish Declaration , Pa. 18. e Pa. 22. Printed for Francis Tyton , who has Published as much since the King came in . Chillingsworths Safe Way , Pa. 57. Rom. 7. 23. Chilling● . Safe way , P. 104. a Rutherfords Due Right of Presbyt . p. 356. b Ibid. p. 352. c Ibid p 407. d Ibid. p. 415. [ d ] Ruth . Free Disp. pag. 36. Ruth . Free Disp. pa. 27. Resuscitatio Pa. 189. Common-wealth Stated , P. 72. Milton's Tenur . P. 32. Goodwin's Defence of the King's Sentence , P. 53. Parker's Scotlands Holy War , P. 17. Policy of Princes , P. 33. Robert Douglass Sermon in 51 and in the Phoenix , P. 52. English Translat . P. 18. Flesh Expiring , &c. P. 26. 
A55926	----	A third letter concerning toleration in defense of The argument of the letter concerning toleration, briefly consider'd and answer'd. Proast, Jonas. 1691 Approx. 228 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 42 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-09 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A55926 Wing P3539 ESTC R26905 09574619 ocm 09574619 43698 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A55926) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 43698) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 1338:10) A third letter concerning toleration in defense of The argument of the letter concerning toleration, briefly consider'd and answer'd. Proast, Jonas. 79 p. Printed by L. Lichfield for George West and Henry Clements, Oxford : 1691. Attributed to Jonas Proast--NUC pre-1956 imprints. Reproduction of original in the Union Theological Seminary Library, New York. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Proast, Jonas. -- Argument of the Letter concerning toleration. Locke, John, 1632-1704. -- Epistola de tolerantia. -- English. Toleration. 2003-03 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2003-05 SPi Global Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2003-06 Rina Kor Sampled and proofread 2003-06 Rina Kor Text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-08 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A THIRD LETTER CONCERNING TOLERATION . A THIRD LETTER CONCERNING TOLERATION : In DEFENSE of The ARGUMENT of the Letter concerning TOLERATION , briefly Consider'd and Answer'd . Imprimatur . Jonath . Edwards , Vice-Can . Univ. Oxon. Apr. 20. 1691. OXFORD , Printed by L. Lichfield , for GEORGE WEST , AND HENRY CLEMENTS , 1691. ADVERTISEMENT . In the Marginal References L.p. denotes the Page of the Letter concerning Toleration ; A.p. the Page of The Argument of the Letter concerning Toleration , briefly consider'd and answer'd ; and P. the Page of the Second Letter concerning Toleration . TO THE AUTHOR OF THE Second Letter CONCERNING TOLERATION . Sir , YOU would have needed no pardon for taking the same Liberty , with me , that I took with the Author of the Letter concerning Toleration . But I fear it will be found , that instead of considering my Arguments , and endeavouring to shew me the Mistakes of them , you have taken another sort of Liberty which does need pardon . You are pleas'd to tell me here in the beginning , that I have plainly yielded up the Question to that Author , by owning that the Severities he would disswade Christians from , are utterly unapt and improper to bring Men to embrace that Truth which must save them : As if those Severities which I condemn , viz. Prosecuting Men with Fire and Sword , depriving them of their Estates , maiming them with corporal Punishments , starving and tormenting them in noisome Prisons , taking away their Lives to make them Christians , &c. were all that our Author would disswade Christians from : Whereas you your self own , that the purpose of his Letter is plainly to depend Toleration exempt from all Force , from all sorts and degrees of Penalties whatsoever , even the lowest and most moderate that can be assigned . But it is well if this prove to be the greatest instance of the Liberty you have taken with me . Whether you , or I have more carefully and impartially weigh'd the whole matter in controversy between us : Whether I do yet favour some Remains of Persecution , or not : and , Whether what appears to you so very clear and evident , be the Truth , or not : Of these things , Sir , we must leave others to judge . But whether it would be reasonable and just for you , or me , were either of us in Authority , to use any Force upon the other , upon any pretence of want of Examination of our present Controversy , is no part of the Question . For no Man , I suppose , will pretend that every private Person is bound to examine this Controversy . And therefore how unreasonable and unjust soever it might be , for either of us to use Force upon the other , to make him examine this Controversy , it may still be true nevertheless , that Authority may reasonably and justly use some degrees of Force , where it is needful , to bring Men to consider and examine those , Controversies which they are bound to consider and examine ; i. e. those , wherein they cannot err , without dishonouring God , and endangering their own and other Men's eternal Salvation . The first thing , you say , that I seem startled at in the Author's Letter , is the largeness of the Toleration he proposes . For he claims it , as I observ'd , not onely for Christians , in their different Professions of Religion , but likewise for Iews , Mahumetans , and Pagans ; who , he saith , ought not to be excluded from the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , because of their Religion . Now to let me see that I ought not to think this strange , you put me in mind that we pray every day for their Conversion ; and you say you think it our Duty so to do . And so far I agree with you . But you say further , that you fear it will hardly be believed that we pray in earnest , if we exclude them from the other ordinary and probable means of Conversion ▪ either by d●iving them from , or persecuting them when they are amongst us . So that excluding them from the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , is , in your opinion , driving them from , or persecuting them when they are amongst us . Now I confess I thought Men might live quietly enough among us , and enjoy the protection of the Government against all violence and injuries , without being endenizon'd , or made Members of the Commonwealth ; which alone can entitle them to the Civil Rights and Privileges of it . But as to Iews , Mahumetans , and Pagans , if any of them do not care to live among us , unless they may be admitted to the Rights and Privileges of the Commonwealth ; the refusing them that favour , is not , I suppose , to be look'd upon as driving them from us , or excluding them from the ordinary and probable means of Conversion ; but as a just and necessary Caution in a Christian Commonwealth , in respect to the Members of it : Who , if such as prosess Iudaism , or Mahumetanism , or Paganism , were permitted to enjoy the same Rights with them , would be much the more in danger to be seduced by them ; seeing they would lose no worldly advantage by such a change of their Religion : Whereas if they could not turn to any of those Religions , without forfeiting the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth by doing it ; 't is likely they would consider well , before they did it , what ground there was to expect that they should get any thing by the exchange , which would countervail the loss they should sustain by it . And whether this be not a reasonable and necessary Caution , any Man may judge , who does but consider , within how few Ages after the Floud Superstition and Idolatry prevail'd over the World ; and how apt even God's own peculiar People were to receive that mortal Infection , notwithstanding all that he did to keep them from it . If therefore a just care of the Flock of Christ , requires us to exclude Iews , Mahumetans , and Pagans ▪ from the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , because of their Religion ; 't is plain , we may pray in earnest for their Conversion , though we so exclude them : Because though we are bound to desire their Conversion , and so to pray for it ; yet we are bound to seek it , no further than we can do it , without endangering the Subjects of Christ's Kingdom , to whom he has a special regard . But as to Pagans particularly , I confess I am so far from thinking with our Author , that they ought not to be excluded from the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , because of their Religion , that I cannot see how their Religion can be suffer'd by any Common-wealth that knows and worships the onely true God , if it would be thought to retain any jealousy for his honour , or even for that of Humane Nature . For how early or generally soever their Idolatries obtain'd in the World , through that blindness which Vice brings upon the Minds of men ; and how deep rooting soever they have taken in it : yet as they are the greatest Dishonour conceivable to God Almighty , and to Humane Nature it self ; so they are utterly incapable of any manner of excuse or extenuation ; being contrary to the natural Sense and Apprehensions of Mankind , as God himself , in the Prophet , plainly intimates . For which reason at least , I think I might well be startled at the largeness of our Author's Toleration . For whereas you say , you do not see why Pagans should not be tolerated as well as others , if we wish their Conversion ; whatever may be said for the tolerating of others , I think it is plain enough as to them , that we ought not to purchase the opportunity of conventing them , by suffering them to commit those Indignities and Abominations among us , which they call Religion , till they are converted . But as to the converting Iews , Mahumetans , and Pagans to Christianity , I fear there will be no great progress made in it , till Christians come to a better agreement and union among themselves . I am sure our Saviour pray'd that all that should believe in him , might be one in the Father and in him ( i. e. I suppose , in that holy Religion which he taught them from the Father ) that the World might believe that the Father had sent him . And therefore when he comes to make inquisition , why no more Iews , Mahumetans , and Pagans have been converted to his Religion , I very much fear that a great part of the blame will be found to lie upon the Authors and Promoters of Sects and Divisions among the professors of it : Which therefore I think all that are guilty , and all that would not be guilty , ought well to consider . In what sense I allow , that Force is improper to convert Men to any Religion , has already been sufficiently declared in my Answer ; and I shall have occasion to speak more of it afterwards . Where I say that some seem to place the advancement of Trade and Commerce above all other Considerations , you tell me that if I do not know that the Author places the advancement of Trade above Religion , my Insinuation is very uncharitable . But I thought I had sufficiently prevented such an interpretation of my words , by acqui●ting the Author but just before , of any ill design towards Religion . That there are some Men in the World , who are justly suspected of the Crime I mention , I believe you will not deny . And I assure you I did not intend , by those words , to bring any Man under the suspicion of it , who has not given just cause for it . I say ( speaking of the Toleration which our Author proposes ) I see no reason , from any experiment which has been made , to expect that true , Religion would be any way a gainer by it . And you tell me I have an experiment of this in the Christian Religion , in its first appearance in the World , and several hundred of years after . But how does that appear ? Why , you say the Christian Religion was then better preserv'd , more widely propagated ( in proportion ) and render'd more fruitful in the lives of its Professors , than ever since ; though then Iews and Pagans were tolerated , and more than tolerated , by the Governments of those places where it grew up . And is this your Experiment of the true Religion's being a gainer by Toleration ? The Christian Religion prosper'd more , you say , in those times than ever since , though then Iews and Pagans were tolerated , &c. and therefore it was a gainer by the Toleration of Iews and Pagans . Is there any manner of Consequence in this ? That the Christian Religion prosper'd more in those times , than ever since , though then Iews and Pagans were tolerated , I readily grant you . But whoever does but understand what though means , must needs see that this is so far from proving what you inferr from it , that it strongly proves the contrary , viz. that the Toleration of Jews and Pagans was rather an hindrance than an advantage to the Christian Religion . But let us see the utmost you can make of this Experiment of yours . You say you hope I do not imagine the Christian Religion has lost any of its first Beauty , Force , or Reasonableness , by having been almost 2000 Years in the World ; that I should fear it should be less able now to shift for it self , without the help of Force . And you doubt not but I look upon it still to be the Power and Wisdom of God for our Salvation ; and therefore cannot suspect it less capable to prevail now , by its own Truth and Light , than it was in the first Ages of the Church , when poor contemptible Men , without Authority , or the countenance of Authority , had alone the care of it . In which words I understand you to say these three things ; 1. That the Christian Religion prevail'd at first meerly by its own Beauty , Force , or Reasonableness , without the help of Authority , or Force . 2. That that Religion has still the same Beauty , Force , or Reasonableness which it had at first . 3. Lastly , that therefore it is now as well able to shift for it self , and to prevail , without any assistance of Authority , as it was then . Now to clear this matter , I must observe , that in the Beauty , Force , or Reasonableness , by which you say the Christian Religion prevail'd at first , without the Assistance of Authority , either you include the Miracles done by the poor contemptible men you speak of , to make their Religion prevail , or you do not . If you do not ; then the meaning of your first Assertion is , that the Christian Religion prevail'd at first without the Assistance of Authority , meerly by the Beauty , Force , or Reasonableness which it had , separate from those Miracles : Which I believe you will not undertake to defend . But if you do include the Miracles ; then your second Assertion is manifestly false : For I am sure you cannot say that the Christian Religion is still accompanied with Miracles , as it was at its first planting : And so the Conclusion you draw from thence , That therefore the Christian Religion is now as well able to shift for it self , and to prevail , without any Assistance of Authority , as it was at first , falls to the ground . You add , This , as I take it , has been made use of by Christians generally , and by some of our Church in particular , as an Argument for the Truth of the Christian Religion , that it grew and spread , and prevail'd , without any Aid from Force , or the Assistance of the Powers in being . Wherein I hope you are mistaken : for I am sure this is a very bad Argument . That the Christian Religion , so contrary in the nature of it as well to Flesh and Bloud , as to the Powers of Darkness , should prevail as it did ; and that not onely without any Assistance from Authority , but even in spight of all the opposition which Authority and a wicked World , join'd with those infernal Powers , could make against it ; This , I acknowledge , has deservedly been insisted upon by Christians , as a very good Proof of the Truth of their Religion . But to argue the Truth of the Christian Religion , from its meer prevailing in the World , without any Aid from Force , or the Assistance of the Powers in being ; as if whatever Religion should so prevail , must needs be the true Religion ; ( whatever may be intended ) is really , not to defend the Christian Religion , but to betray it . For neither does the true Religion always prevail , without the Assistance of the Powers in being ; nor is that always the true Religion , which does so spread and prevail : As I doubt not but you will acknowledge with me , when you have but consider'd , within how few Generations after the Floud , the Worship of False Gods prevail'd against the Religion which Noah profess'd , and taught his Children ( which was undoubtedly the true Religion ) almost to the utter exclusion of it ( though that at first was the onely Religion in the World ) without any Aid from Force , or the Assistance of the Powers in being , for any thing we find in the History of those Times , and as we may reasonably believe , considering that it found an entrance into the World , and entertainment in it , when it could have no such Aid , or Assistance . Of which ( besides the Corruption of Humane Nature ) I suppose there can no other Cause be assigned , or none more probable than this , that the Powers then in being , did not do what they might and ought to have done , towards the preventing , or checking that horrible Apostasy . You go on : And if it be a mark of the true Religion , that it will prevail by its own Light and Strength ; ( but that false Religions will not , but have need of Force and foreign Helps to support them ) nothing certainly can be more for the advantage of true Religion , than to take away Compulsion every where . But if this be not a mark of the true Religion ( as you have not proved it to be ; ) then what you conclude here , may not be true . That the true Religion has always Light and Strength of its own , sufficient to prevail with all that consider it seriously , and without Prejudice , I readily grant . But if , when you make it a mark of the true Religion , that it will prevail by its own Light and Strength , you mean ( as it is plain you must ) that it will always prevail in the World against other Religions , meerly by its own Light and Strength , without the Assistance either of Miracles , or of Authority ; then I must tell you , that prevailing by its own Light and Strength , is so far from being a mark of the true Religion , that it is not true , that the true Religion will so prevail by its own Light and Strength . The Instance but now given , is too great a proof of this . For if you admit that Noah's Religion was the true Religion , you must admit like wise that it had Light and Strength enough to prevail with all that should but fairly consider it . And yet , however , we find that it was so far from prevailing against false Religions , without foreign Help , that though at first it had quiet possession of the World , without any false Religion to contest its Title ; yet it did not long maintain its advantage , but notwithstanding all its Light and Strength , was within a few Generations , almost extinguish'd and lost out of the World : Idolatry prevailing against it , not by its own Light and Strength , you may be sure , ( for it could have nothing of either ; ) nor yet by the help of Force , as has already been shew'd ; but meerly by the advantage which it had in the Corruption and Pravity of Humane Nature , left ( as it is most reasonable to suppose ) to it self , unbridled by Authority . For to the corrupt Nature of Man , false Religions are ever more agreeable than the true . For whatever Hardships some false Religions may impose ; it will however always be easier to carnal and wordly-minded men , to give even their first-born for their Transgressions , than to mortify the Lusts from which they spring : which no Religion but the true , requires of them . And upon this account , though there is nothing more certain than that false Religions will never prevail by their own Light and Strength ; yet it seems contrary to Reason ( as well as to Experience ) to say that they always have need of Force and foreign Helps to support them . On the contrary , I see no reason to doubt , but the meer Agreeableness of false Religions to Flesh and Bloud , may very well support them , without foreign Helps ; whilest the true Religion may stand in need of them , not for any defects of its own , but by reason of the Folly , Perversness , and Wickedness of Men. If therefore it be no mark of the true Religion , that it will prevail by its own Light and Strength , but that false Religions will not , but have need of Force and foreign Helps to support them ( as you have not proved it is , and I think I have proved it is far from being so ; ) then it does not yet appear , that nothing can be more for the advantage of the true Religion , than to take away Compulsion every where . You say , A Religion that is of God wants not the Assistance of Humane Authority to make it prevail . Which is not simply , or always true . Indeed when God takes the matter wholly into his own hands ; as he does at his first revealing and planting a Religion ; there can then be no need of the Assistance of Humane Authority : because then , to make such a Religion appear to be his , God himself does all that is requisite to make it prevail . But when once God has sufficiently settled his Religion in the World , so that if Men will but thenceforth do what they may and ought , in their several Capacities , to preserve and propagate it , it may subsist and prevail without that extraordinary Assistance from him which was necessary for its first establishment : then he leaves it to their care , under his ordinary Providence , to try whether they will do their Duties , or not : leaving them answerable for all that may follow from their neglect . And then , if that Religion will not prevail without the Assistance of Humane Authority , ●t cannot be said not to need that Assistance to make it prevail . I guess , say you , when this dropp'd from you , you had narrow'd your Thoughts to your own Age and Country : But if you will enlarge them a little beyond the Confines of England , I do not doubt but you will easily imagine that if in Italy , Spain , Portugal , &c. the Inquisition ; and in France their Dragoo●ing ; and in other parts those Severities that are used to keep or force men to the National Religion , were taken away ; and instead thereof the Toleration proposed by the Author were set up , the true Religion would be a gainer by it . How easily soever I can imagine that , in this case , the true Religion would , for some time , be a gainer by our Author's Toleration ; because then it would be tolerated in Italy , Spain , Portugal , France , &c. where now it is not : Yet I think it is manifest enough that it does not follow from thence , that in England , or wherever else the true Religion is Nationally received , it would reap any advantage by having its present Establishment taken away , and our Author's , i. e. an universal Toleration of Religions set up instead of it . But I suppose your meaning is , that if all the World would agree to such a Toleration ; though then the true Religion would lose by it in those few places where it is now establish'd as the National Religion ; yet upon the whole matter , it would be a gainer by the bargain ; because then it would stand upon even terms with all other Religions , in so many more places , where now it is either not at all suffer'd , or at least under great disadvantages . If this be the thing you aim at : then , 1. I suppose you do not hope you shall perswade the whole World to consent in your Toleration , or that you shall prevail with Pagans , Mahumetans , and Papists every where to allow true and sound Religion the same terms with their own , ( supposing you could prevail with those of that Religion , to do this to them . ) And if that Religion alone should tolerate all other Religions , whilest it self is tolerated by none ; I think it is not easy to conceive how it would be a gainer by so doing . But , 2. Supposing your Toleration were set up all the World over : Even in that case , it is so far from being probable that the true Religion would be any way advantaged by it , that on the contrary I think there is great reason to fear , that , without God's extraordinary Providence , it would in a much shorter time than any one that does not well consider the matter would imagine , be most effectually extirpated by it throughout the World : Considering ( what has already been observ'd ) that even when the true Religion was the onely Religion in the World , it did not long continue so , but the depraved Nature of Man soon found out other Religions , more agreeable to it self , which quickly prevail'd , and overspread the World. As to the Inquisition , Dragooning , or any other such Severities , which are any where used , to keep or force men to the National Religion , I suppose I need not put you in mind that I condemn them as much as you do . You tell me the Author of the Letter says , Truth will do well enough , if she were once left to shift for her self . ( The contrary whereof has been sufficiently shewn . ) She seldom has receiv'd , and he fears never will receive much Assistance from the Power of great men , to whom she is but rarely known , and more rarely welcome . ( And yet God himself foretold and promised that Kings should be nursing Fathers , and Queens nursing Mothers to his Church : As I doubt they cannot be , if Truth does not receive Assistance from their Power . ) Errors indeed prevail by the Assistance of foreign and borrow'd Succours . ( And without it too . ) Truth makes way into our Understanding by her own Light , and is but the weaker for any borrow'd Force that Violence can add to her . ( Yet moderate Penalties may make way for Truth to men's Understanding , that so she may make way into it by her own Light. ) And then you add , These words of his ( how hard soever they may seem to you ) may help you to conceive how he should think to do service to true Religion , by recommending and perswading such a Toleration as he proposed . And now , you go on , pray tell me your self , whether you do not think true Religion would be a gainer by it , if such a Toleration establish'd there , would permit the Doctrine of the Church of England to be freely preach'd , and its Worship set up in any Popish , Mahumetan , or Pagan Country ? Sir , I have told you already , that I think it would , for a time ; though I think withall , that an universal Toleration would ruine it both there and every where else in the end . And I have told you why I think so . You add , If you do not , you have a very ill Opinion of the Religion of the Church of England , and must own that it can onely be propagated and supported by Force . But why may not I have as good an Opinion of the Religion of the Church of England , as I have of Noah's Religion , notwithstanding that I think it cannot now be propagated and supported , without using some kinds or degrees of Force ? If , say you , you think it would gain in those Countries , by such a Toleration , you are then of the Author's mind . Not so , Sir : For as I fear it would lose all at last by such a Toleration ; so I doubt not but at present it would lose vastly more by it , where it is now Nationally received , than it would gain , where false or unsound Religions are so received . But , say you , if you allow such a Toleration useful to Truth in other Countries , you must find something very peculiar in the Air , that must make it less useful to Truth in England . And 't will savour of much partiality , and be too absurd , I fear , for you to own , that Toleration will be advantageous to true Religion all the World over , except onely in this Island ; Though I much suspect , this , as absurd as it is , lies at the bottom ; And you build all you say upon this lurking Supposition , that the National Religion now in England , back'd by the Publick Authority of the Law , is the onely true Religion , and therefore no other is to be tolerated . How useful to Truth , or advantangeous to true Religion I think Toleration would be in other Countries , or all the World over , I suppose I have by this time sufficiently declared . But why you should suspect that I look upon this Island as the onely part of the World that would receive no advantage by it , I cannot imagine . If you will take my word for it , I assure you I think there are many other Countries in the World , where ( whatever their Air be ) your Toleration would be as little useful to Truth , as in England . For notwithstanding the lurking Supposition you speak of , I am far enough from thinking that the true Religion is confined to this Kingdom , or this Island . But as to my supposing that the National Religion now in England , back'd by the Publick Authority of the Law , is the onely true Religion ; if you own , with our Author , that there is but one true Religion , I cannot see how you your self can avoid supposing the same . For you own your self of the Church of England ; and consequently you own the National Religion now in England , to be the true Religion ; for that is her Religion . And therefore if you believe there is but one true Religion ; there is no help for it , but you must suppose , with me , that the National Religion now in England , back'd with the Publick Authority of the Law , is the onely true Religion . But this is not all the lurking Supposition you speak of . For you suspect me likewise to suppose , that no other Religion is to be tolerated . By which if you mean , that as this onely true Religion ought to be received wherever it is preach'd ; so , where-ever it is receiv'd , I suppose all other Religions ought to be discouraged in some measure , by the Civil Powers ; I own that I do suppose it : And I think I have shewn good reason why . But you go on , and ( speaking of this lurking Supposition , That the National Religion now in England , is the onely true Religion , and therefore no other is to be tolerated ) you say , Which being a Supposition equally unavoidable , and equally just in other Countries ( unless we can imagine that every where but in England men believe what at the same time they think to be a Lie ) will in other places exclude Toleration , and thereby hinder Truth from the means of propagating it self . How , Sir ? Is this Supposition equally unavoidable ; and equally just in other Countries , where false Religions are the National Religion ? ( For that you must mean , or nothing to the purpose . ) If so , then I fear it will be equally true too , and equally rational . For otherwise I see not how it can be either equally unavoidable , or equally just : For if it be not equally true , i● cannot be equally just ; and if it be not equally rational , it cannot be equally unavoidable . But if it be equally true , and equally rational ; then either all Religions are true , or none is true : For if they be all equally true , and any one of them be not true ; then none of them can be true . And then the least that will follow is , that we must unsuppose again , what we supposed but now , viz. that the Religion now establish'd in England is the onely true Religion . For whether we admit that all Religions are true , or that none is true ; we must unavoidably admit that there is no onely true Religion : And if there be no onely true Religion ; then neither the Religion now establish'd in England , nor any other can be the onely true Religion . There is therefore no remedy , but you must either recall this Assection of yours , or own these Consequences which flow from it . But I hope , when you have thought a little more of the matter , you will be so far from asserting that the Supposition , that the National Religion is the onely true Religion , is in all Countries equally unavoidable , and equally just , that you will acknowledge that it cannot be at all unavoidable , or just , where any false Religion is the National Religion . Otherwise , you will be forced to own that men may be bound to embrace false Religions . For whatever Religion any man does unavoidably , and justly suppose , or judge , to be the onely true Religion , that Religion he must needs be bound to embrace : because he has all the reason to embrace it , which any man can have for embracing any Religion whatsoever ; and he can no more reasonably reject it , than any other man may reject the onely true Religion . Now if this Supposition , that the National is the onely true Religion , be indeed neither equally unavoidable , nor equally just in other Countries , as it is where the True is the National Religion ; then neither will the Supposition , that therefore no other Religion is to be tolerated , be either equally unavoidable , or equally just in other Countries , as it is where the True is the National Religion . And therefore if this Supposition shall any where exclude the Toleration of the Truth , and thereby hinder it from the means of propagating it self ; the blame will lie upon those who admit that Supposition , where there is no just ground for it : who therefore must answer for the Consequences of it . The Toleration the Fruits whereof I say give no encouragement to hope for any advantage from our Author's Toleration , to true Religion , is that ( as I thought you would easily have guess'd ) which almost all , but those of the Church of England , enjoyed in the times of the Blessed Reformation , as it was call'd . And for the Fruits of it , viz. the Sects and Heresies which it produced ( some of which I say still remain with us ) how numerous , and of what quality they were , some yet living remember , and the Writers of those times do sufficiently discover . But here , whatever the Fruits of that Toleration were , you boldly say , that if the Magistrates will severely and impartially set themselves against Vice , in whomsoever it is found ; and leave men to their own Consciences , in their Articles of Faith , and Ways of Worship ; true Religion will be spread wider , and be more fruitful in the Lives of its Professors , than ever hitherto it has been , by the imposition of Creeds and Ceremonies . It seems then , with you , the rejecting the true Faith , and the refusing to worship God in decent Ways , prescribed by those to whom God has left the ordering of such matters , are not comprehended in the name of Vice. Otherwise you must allow the Magistrates to set themselves against these things likewise , if they must severely and impartially set themselves against Vice : which would not consist with leaving men to their own Consciences in them . But if you except these things , and will not allow them to be call'd by the name of Vice ; perhaps other men may think it as reasonable to except some other things , which they have a kindness for . For instance : Some perhaps may except arbitrary Divorcing , others Polygamy , others Concubinacy , others simple Fornication , other Marrying within Degrees which have hitherto been thought forbidden . And all these , it may be , will boldly say too , that if the Magistrates will severely and impartially set themselves against Vice , and leave men to their own Consciences in these things ; Vertue and good Manners would be spread wider , and shine more gloriously in the Lives of men , than ever hitherto it has done , by the help of any Laws that have been made about these matters . But , Sir , whether the Magistrates setting themselves severely and impartially against what I suppose you call Vice ; or the imposition of found Creeds and decent Ceremonies , does more conduce to the spreading true Religion , and rendering it fruitful in the Lives of its Professours , we need not examine . I confess I think both together do best . And this I think is as much as needs to be said to your next Paragraph also . As to what our Author offers in behalf of the Toleration he contends for , I thought the whole Strength of it comprized in this Argument : There is but one Way of Salvation , or but one true Religion . No man can be saved by this Religion , who does not believe it to be the true Religion . This Belief is to be wrought in men by Reason and Argument , not by outward Force and Compulsion . Therefore all such Force is utterly of no use for the promoting true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls . And therefore no body can have any Right to use any Force or Compulsion , for the bringing men to the true Religion : neither any Private Person ; nor any Ecclesiastical Officer ( Bishop , Priest , or other ; ) nor any Church , or Religious Society ; nor the Civil Magistrate . But to this you say , If it be a true Consequence , that men must be tolerated , if Magistrates have no Commission or Authority to punish them for Matters of Religion ; then the onely Strength of that Letter lies not in the unfitness of Force to convince Men's Understanding . Vid. Lett. p. 7. But if all the Reason for which the Author denies that Magistrates have any Commission or Authority to punish for Matters of Religion , ends in the unfitness of Force to convince Men's Understanding ( as , upon examination , it will appear it does ; ) then the onely strength of that Letter may lie in that , not withstanding that true Consequence . 'T is true indeed , the Author does say , in the Page you quote , that it does not appear that God has given any such Authority to one man over another , as to compell any one to his Religion : Wherein , I believe , no sober man will contradict him . But ( supposing that by compelling any one to his Religion , he means using any degree of Force , in any manne● whatsoever , to bring any one to his Religion ; ) What Reason , I beseech you , does he any where offer for his saying this , but that which he gives us in the next Page ; where he expresly affirms that the Magistrate's Power extends not to the establishing any Articles of Faith , or Forms of Worship , by the Force of his La●es , for this reason , viz. because Laws are of no force at all without Penalties , and Penalties in this case are absolutely impertinent , because they are not proper to convince the Mind , because they are no way capable to produce the Belief of the Truth of any Articles of Faith , or of the acceptableness to God of any outward Forms of Worship ; and because that Light and Evidence which onely can work a change in Men's Opinions , can in no manner proceed from them : Which I suppose you will acknowledge to be onely so many several Expressions of the unfitness of Force to convince men's Understanding . Again , say you ; If it be true that Magistrates being as liable to Error as the rest of Mankind , their using of Force in matters of Religion , would not at all advance the Salvation of Mankind , ( allowing that even Force could work upon them , and Magistrates had Authority to use it in Religion ) then the Argument you mention , is not the onely one in that Letter , of strength to prove the necessity of Toleration . Vid. Let. p. 8. But you might have consider'd , that this Argument , from the Magistrate's being as liable to Error as the rest of Mankind , concerns none but those , who assert that every Magistrate has a Right to use Force to promote his own Religion , whatever it be : Which I think no man that has any Religion will assert : And that for this reason , I could not be obliged to consider it as a distinct Argument . However , where it came in my way , I took as much notice of it as I thought it deserved . As to the Argument as I have represented it , you deny that the Fourth Proposition is any Proposition of the Author's , to be found in the Pages I quote , or any where else in the whole Letter , either in those terms , or in the sense I take it in . And yet you immediately add , that in the eighth Page , which I quote , the Author is shewing that the Magistrate has no Right to make use of Force in Matters of Religion , for the Salvation of men's Souls ; And that the Reason he there gives for it is , because Force hath no efficacy to convince men's Minds ; and that without a full perswasion of the Mind , the Profession of the true Religion it self is not acceptable to God. And then you set down the words of the Author to which I referr , viz. Upon this ground I affirm that the Magistrate's Power extends not to the establishing any Articles of Faith , or Forms of Worship , by the force of his Laws . For Laws are of no force without Penalties ; and Penalties in this case are absolutely impertinent , because they are not proper to convince the Mind . Now in what respect , I beseech you , are Penalties here affirm'd to be absolutely impertinent ? Is it not plain that the Author means they are so , as used to bring men to believe any Articles of Faith , or to approve any Forms of Worship ? And is not this exactly the Sense of the Fourth Proposition ? The other place of the Letter , p. 27. to which I referr , and which you here set down , does clearly enough contain the same Sense ; and therefore I need not add any more words concerning it . You add , But in neither of those Passages , nor any where else that I remember , does the Author say that it is impossible that Force should any way , at any time , upon any Person , by any Accident , be useful towards the promoting of true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls ; for that is it which you mean by utterly of no use . By utterly of no use , I mean the same thing which the Author does by absolutely impertinent . And whether he does , or does not say that it is impossible , &c. I am sure the least he can mean by saying that Penalties are absolutely impertinent , is , that they are so little serviceable towards the purpose we speak of , that , generally speaking , they do at least as much harm as good : For nothing less than that can make them absolutely impertinent : And that is all that I mean by utterly useless . You say further ; He does not deny that there is any thing which God in his Goodness does not , or may not sometimes gratiously make use of towards the Salvation of men's Souls ( as our Saviour did of Clay and Spittle to cure Blindness : ) and that so , Force also may be sometimes useful . But that which he denies , and you grant , is that Force has any proper Efficacy to enlighten the Understanding , or produce Belief . And from thence he inferrs , that therefore the Magistrate cannot lawfully compell men in Matters of Religion . 'T is true indeed , I do grant that Force has no proper Efficacy to enlighten or convince the Understanding , or to do the work of Reason and Arguments . But must it needs be utterly useless , or no otherwise useful for the promoting true Religion , than Clay and Spittle are for curing Blindness , unless it have the Efficacy of Reason and Arguments ? I confess I thought the usefulness of Force for the promoting the true Religion , would sufficiently appear , if it could but be shewn to be capable of doing any considerable service that way , by procuring the Conviction of the Understanding , though it be not it self capable to convince . For certainly it is one thing to convince the Understanding , and another to procure i●s Conviction . The one indeed is peculiarly the work of Reason and Arguments : but the other is done by whatever prevails with a man to consider and weigh those Reasons and Arguments which do convince his Understanding ; whether it be his own Inclination , or the Advice of a Friend , or the Command or Law of a Superior . Now though I grant that Force has no proper Efficacy to enlighten the Understanding , or produce Belief : yet I assert withall , that it has a proper Efficacy ( i.e. not a bare obediential E●ficacy , such as Clay and Spittle have in the hand of Omnipotence ; but a natural Efficacy , as a Moral Cause ) to procure the enlightening of the Understanding , and the production of Belief . And if it be in this sort useful for the promoting true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls , ( as I see no reason hitherto to doubt but it is ; ) then it may still be lawful for the Magistrate to make use of it in matters of Religion , though it has no proper Efficacy to enlighten the Understanding , or produce Belief . Where I say that Force may indirectly and at a distance do some service &c. you say you do not understand what I mean by doing service at a distance towards the bringing men to Salvation , or to embrace Truth ; unless perhaps it be what others , in propriety of Speech , call by Accident . But I make little doubt but all other men that read the place , do well enough understand what I mean by those words ; even such as do not understand what it is to do service by Accident . And if by doing service by Accident , you mean doing it but seldom , and beside the intention of the Agent ; I assure you that is not the thing that I mean , when I say Force may indirectly and at a distance do some service . For in that use of Force which I defend , the Effect is both intended by him that uses it , and withall , I doubt not , so often attain'd , as abundantly to manifest the Usefulness of it . But be it what it will , say you , it is such a service as cannot be asscribed to the direct and proper Efficacy of Force . And so , say you , Force indirectly and at a distance , may do some service . I grant it : Make your best of it . What do you conclude from thence ? That therefore the Magistrate may make use of it ? That I deny . That such an indirect and at a distance Usefulness will authorize the Civil Power in the use of it , that will never be proved . It seems then you grant at last , that Force may , indirectly , and at a distance , do some service , in the matter we are speaking of . But where , I beseech you , do I affirm , that therefore the Magistrate may make use of it ? Methinks you might remember , that I assert Force to be generally necessary , as well as useful , to bring erring Persons to the way of Truth : and that accordingly I ground the Magistrate's Authority to use Force for that purpose , upon the Necessity , as well as Usefulness of it . Now whether such an indirect and at a distance Usefulness ( as you are pleas'd to call it ) together with a general Necessity of Force , will not authorize the Civil Power in the use of it , you will perhaps be better able to judge , when you have answer'd a plain Question or two . That Force does some service toward the making of Scholars and Artists , I suppose you will easily grant . Give me leave therefore to ask , How it does it ? I suppose you will say , Not by its direct and proper Efficacy , ( for Force is no more capable to work Learning , or Arts , than the Belief of the true Religion , in men , by its direct and proper Efficacy ; ) but by prevailing upon those who are designed for Scholars , or Artists , to receive Instruction , and to apply themselves to the use of those Means and Helps , which are proper to make them what they are designed to be : That is , it does it indirectly , and at a distance . Well then ; If all the Usefulness of Force towards the bringing Scholars , or Apprentices , to the Learning , or Skill they are designed to attain , be onely an indirect and at a distance Usefulness : I pray , what is it that warrants and authorizes Schoolmasters , Tutours , or Masters , to use Force upon their Scholars , or Apprentices , to bring them to Learning , or to the Skill of their Arts and Trades , if such an indirect and at a distance Usefulness of Force , together with that Necessity of it which Experience discovers , will not do it ? I believe you will acknowledge , that even such an Usefulness , together with that Necessity , will serve the turn in these cases . But then I would fain know , why the same kind of Usefulne●s , join'd with the like Necessity , will not as well do it in the case before us . I confess I see no reason why it should not : nor do I believe you can assign any . That the Magistrate may make use of whatsoever God has at any time made the occasions of good to men ; or of whatsoever may indirectly and at a distance , or ( as you speak before ) may any way , at any time , upon any Person , by any Accident , be useful towards the promoting of true Religion ; This I do no where assert . And therefore you might have spared the Instances by which you prove the contrary . There is no doubt but God , who can do what he pleases , by what means he pleases , and even without any means , can make many things occasions of good to men , which are not apt in their own natures to be so . Nor do I doubt but sometimes , what in his infinite Wisdom he sees would be hurtful and pernicious to all other men , he sees will be good and salutary to some particular persons , and accordingly in his Goodness orders it for them . But if men should thence take occasion to apply such things generally ; Who sees not , that however they might chance to hit right in some few cases ; yet upon the whole matter , they would certainly do a great deal more harm than good ? And in all Pleas , as you tell us , for any thing because of its Usefulness , it is not enough to say that it may be serviceable ; But it must be consider'd , not onely what it may , but what it is likely to produce : And the greater Good or Harm like to come from it , ought to determine the use of it . And therefore I can easily grant you , that as Running a man through , though once upon a time it chanced to save a man's life by opening a lurking Impostume , is nevertheless no lawful or justifiable Chirurgery ; because it is always much more likely to let out men's lives , than to open lurking Impostumes : So though Loss of Estate , &c. the Gallies , and the Torments suffer'd in the late Persecution , might possibly , as directed and managed by divine Providence , bring some Persons to Repentance , Sobriety of Thought , and a true sense of Religion , &c. and so indirectly and at a distance serve to the Salvation of their Souls : Yet since consider'd in themselves , and with respect to the generality of men , these Methods , for the reasons alleged in my Answer , are justly to be look'd upon us more apt to hinder , than to promote that end ; the Success which God was pleas'd perhaps , but not bound to give them , will by no means justify them , or prove that the French King had Right and Authority to make use of them . This , I say , I can easily grant you . But how will this serve your purpose ? Will it follow from hence , that the Magistrate has no Right to use any Force at all , for the bringing men to the true Religion ? Or will any man say , that because the Magistrate may not use those Severities which are more apt to hinder , than to promote true Religion , therefore he can use no lower Penalties , though they be never so fit and serviceable to promote it ? If you say you think no Penalties at all are fit to promote Religion : to make me of your opinion , you must prove it some other way , than by alleging the unfitness of those Severities . This , I suppose , may serve to shew with how little reason you say here , that if my indirect and at a distance Serviceableness may authorize the Magistrate to use Force in Religion , all the Cruelties used by the Heathens against Christians , by Papists against Protestants , and all the persecuting of Christians one amongst another , are all justifiable . ( Not to take notice at present , how odly it sounds , that that which authorizes the Magistrate to use moderate Penalties , to promote the true Religion , should justify all the Cruelties that ever were used , to promote Heathenisin , or Popery . ) With what Ingenuity you draw me in , to condemn Force in general , onely because I acknowledge the ill Effects of prosecuting men with Fire and Sword , &c. to make them Christians , I think I may now leave every man to judge . But you say I shelter my self under the name of Severities . For , say you , moderate Punishments , as you call them in another place , ( Penalties , Sir , is my word : But since you say 't is Punishments , let it be so : These ) you think may be serviceable , indirectly , and at a distance serviceable , to bring men to the Truth . And I say , any sort of Punishments disproportion'd to the Offense , or where t●ere is no fault at all , will always be Severity , unjustifiable Severity , and will be thought so by the Sufferers , a●d By-standers , &c. Well , Sir : And what then ? Why , not to profess the National Faith , whilest one believes it not to be true ; not to enter into Church-Communion with the Magistrate , as long as one judges the Doctrine there profess'd to be erroneous , or the Worship not such as God hath prescribed , or will accept ; this you allow , and all the World with you m●st allow , not to be a fault . But yet you would have men punish'd for not being of the National Religion ; that is , as you your self confess , for no fault at all . In which words you take a liberty to put ●pon me what you please . For I neither allow , nor confess , nor would have , what you are pleas'd to impute to me . But how far that is to be allow'd , which you say I do allow , and all the World with me must allow , will quickly appear . For ( to come to the Point ; ) the National Religion is eit●er true , or not true . If it be not true , no man is bound to believe ●t : And it is no fault in him that is not bound to believe it , not to profess it . If it be true ; then either there is sufficient provision made for instructing men in the truth of it , or there is not . If there be not ; then all men are not bound to believe it ; And ( as was said before ) in those who are not bound to believe it , it wi●l be no fault not to profess it . But if there be sufficient means of Instruction provided for all ; then it must be a fault in all not to profess it ; because , in that case , it is a fault in all not to believe it . And the like is to be said concerning Communion with the Magistrate in Divine Worship . This I take to be very plain . And from hence these two things will unavoidably follow . 1. That no man ought to be punish'd for not being of any false Religion , though it be the National Religion : Because it is no fault not to be of any false Religion . 2. That all who have sufficient means of Instruction provided for them , may justly be punish'd for not being of the National Religion , where the true , is the National Religion : Because it is a fault in all such , not to be of that Religion . And so all Punishment for the sake of Religion , will not be unjustifiable S●verity . For though , where there is no Fault , there can be no moderate Punishment ; yet all Punishment is not immoderate , where there is a Fault to be punish'd . Now that which I would have , is , that this Fault should be punish'd ; but so far onely , as may best , and most generally serve to correct it , i.e. in my opinion , with Penalties below the rate of the Punishments before mention'd . Which I think you have not yet proved to be unjustifiable Severity . The taking away men's lives to make them Christians , I note as a manifest Absurdity . And you grant that there is great Absurdity somewhere in the case . And I assure you I am very well content that the Imputation should lie where it ought to lie : And I know of no occasion I have given you to think otherwise . But here , having mention'd an Example of this extreme Absurdity ( as you justly call it ) which we have in a neighbouring Country , where the Prince declares he will have all his Dissenting Subjects saved , and pursuant thereunto has taken away the lives of many of them : You are pleas'd to add the following words : For thither at last Persecution ( so , it s●ems , you call all use of Punishments for Religion ) must come : As , I fear , notwithstanding your talk of moderate Punishments , you your self intimate in these words ; Not that I think the Sword is to be used in this business , ( as I have sufficiently declared already ; ) but because all Coactive Power resolves at last into the Sword ; since all ( I do not say , that will not be reform'd in this matter by lesser Penalties , but ) that refuse to submit to lesser Penalties , must at last fall under the stroke of it . In which words if you mean any thing to the business in hand , you seem to have a reserve for greater Punishments , when lesser are not sufficient to bring men to be convinced . And will you ever pretend to either Conscience , or Modesty , after this ? For , I beseech you , Sir , What words could I have used more express or effectual , to signify , that in my opinion , no Dissenters from the true Religion ought to be punish'd with the Sword , but such as choose rather to rebel against the Magistrate , than to submit to lesser Penalties ? ( For how any should refuse to submit to those Penalties , but by rebelling against the Magistrate , I suppose you will not undertake to tell me . ) 'T was for this very purpose that I used those words , to prevent Cavils ( as I was then so simple as to think I might : ) And I dare appeal to any man of Common Sense and Common Honesty , whether they are capable of any other meaning . And yet the very thing which I so plainly disclaim in them , you pretend ( without so much as offering to shew how ) to collect from them . Thither , you say , at last ( viz. to the taking away men's lives for the saving their Souls ) Persecution must come : As you fear , nothwithstanding my talk of moderate Punishments , I my self intimate in those words : And if I mean any thing in them to the business in hand , I seem to have a reserve ●●r greater Punishments ▪ when l●●ser are not sufficient to bring men to be convinced ▪ Sir , I should expect fairer dealing ●rom one o● your Pagans or Mahumetans . But I shall only add , th●t I would never wi●h that any man who has undertaken a bad Cause , should more plain●y confess it , than by serving it as here ( and not here onely ) you s●rve yours . Where I say , I● Force b● used , not instead of Reason and Arguments , that is , not to convince by its own proper Efficacy ( which it cannot do ) &c. you say you think those who make Laws and use Force , to bring men to Church-Conformity in Religion , seek onely the Compliance , but concern themselves not for the Conviction of those they punish ; and so never use Force to convince . For , you add , pray tell me ; When any Di●●enter conforms , and enters into the Church-Communion , is he ever examin'd to see whether he does it upon Reason , and Conviction , and such Grounds as would become a Christian concern'd for Religion ? If Persecution ( as is pretended ) were for the Salvation of men's Souls , this would be done ; and men not driven to take the Sacrament to keep their Places , or to obtain Licences to sell Ale , ( for so low have these holy Things been prostituted , ) &c. Who they be that pretend that Persecution is for the Salvation of men's Souls , I know not . But as to those Magistrates , who having provided sufficiently for the Instruction of all under their care , in the true Religion , do make Laws , and use moder●te Penalties to bring men to the Communion of the Church of God , and to Conformity to the Rules and Orders of it ; I think their Behaviour does plainly enough speak them to seek and concer● themselves for the Conviction of those whom they punish , and for their Compliance , onely as the fruit of their Conviction . Nor do●s the contrary appear from the not examining Dissenters when they conform , to see whether they do it upon Reason and Conviction , &c. For where the course I speak of is held , it is ordinarily presu●eable , that when Dissenters conform , they do it upon Reason , and Conviction . And as to irreligious Persons , who onely seek their secular Advantage ; how easy is it for them to pretend Conviction , and to offer such Grounds ( if that were required ) as would become a Christian concern'd for Religion ? This is what no care of man can certainly prevent . And therefore if such Persons profan● the Sacrament , to keep their Places , or to obtain Licences to sell Ale ; this is an horrible Wickedness indeed ; but it is their own , and they alone must answer for it . But it is very unjust to impute it to those who make such Laws , and use such Force ; or to say that they prostitute holy Things , and drive men to profane them . They design by their Laws , to contribute what lies in them , to make men good Christians : But if after all that they can do , wicked and Godless men will still resolve to be so ; they will be so , and I know not who , but God Almighty , can help it . That some men would through carelessness never acquaint themselves with the Truth which must save them , without being forced to do it , ( which I suppose , ) may be very true , notwithstanding that ( as you say ) some are call'd at the third , some at the nineth , and some at the eleventh hour ; and whenever they are call'd , they embrace all the Truth necessary to Salvation . At least you do not shew why it may not : And therefore this may be no slip , for any thing you have said to prove it to be one . Where the gross and palpable Mistakes lie , appears , I suppose , in part already . But you instance in my saying that Force used to bring men to consider , does indirectly , and at a distance , some service . For here , you tell me , I walk in the dark , and endeavour to cover my self with Obscurity , by omitting two necessary parts . As , first , who must use this Force . And yet your very next words are , Which though you tell us not here ( where it would have been impertinent to tell you ; because , as any man may see , I was there onely to consider , whether Force was useful , or not ; not who was to use it : ) yet by other parts of your Treatise 't is plain you mean the Magistrate . Secondly , you tell me , I omit to say upon whom it must be used : Whereas 't is plain enough too , as I suppose , by other parts of my Treatise , that the Force I speak of , is , according to my opinion , to be used upon such , and such onely , as having sufficient means of Instruction in the true Religion provided for them , do yet refuse to embrace it . But this you would not see ; because , it seems , you thought it more for your purpose to tell me , that those upon whom , in my opinion , Force is to be used , if I say any thing to my purpose , must be Dissenters from the National Religion , those who come not into Church-Communion with the Magistrate . And then , you say , my Proposition in fair plain terms will stand thus : If the Magistrate punish Dissent●rs , onely to bring them to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper to convince them ; who can deny but that , indirectly , and at a distance , it may do service , &c. towards the bringing men to embrace that Truth which otherwise they would never be acquainted with ? &c. In which Proposition , you say , 1. There is something impracticable . 2. Something unjust . And 3. Whatever Efficacy there is in Force ( my way applied ) to bring men to consider and be convinced , it makes against me . 1. You say , It is impracticable to punish Dissenters , as Dissenters , onely to make them consider . And why so ? The Reason follows : For if you punish them as Dissenters , you punish them for not being of the National Religion . And to punish a man for not being of the National Religion , is not to punish him onely to make him consider ; unless not to be of the National Religion , and not to consider , be the same thing . But cannot Dissenters be punish'd for not being of the National Religion , as the Fault , and yet onely to make them co●sider , as the End for which they are punish'd ? Cannot this be the onely End , unless it be the onely Cause also of their Punishment ? But after all , whoever will but consider my words , will easily see that there was no manner of occasion for this Subtlety . For my words are , If Force be used not instead of Reason and Arguments , i.e. not to convince by its own proper Efficacy ( which it cannot do ) but onely to bring men to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them , &c. Where 't is plain that by onely , I exclude no other E●d of the use of Force , but onely that of convincing men's Minds by its own proper Efficacy . If you suppose ( as you seem here to do ) that I am for ●unishing Dissenters , whether they consider or no ; you are in a great mistake . For the Dissenters ( which is your word , and not mine ) whom I am for punishing , are onely such as reject the true Religion , proposed to them with Reasons and Arguments sufficient to convince them of the truth of it : Who therefore can never be supposed to consider those Reasons and Arguments as they ought , wh●lest they persist in rejecting that Religion , or ( in your language ) whilest they continue Dissenters : For if they did so consider them , they would not continue Dissente●s . 2. You say , To punish men out of the Communion of the National Church , to make them consider , is unjust . They are punish'd , because out of the National Church : And they are out of the National Church , because they are not yet convinced . Their standing out therefore in this State , whilest they are not convinced , not satisfied in their Minds , is no Fault ; and therefore cannot justly be punish'd . To which I answer : Where the National Church is the true Church of God , to which all men ought to join themselves ; and sufficient Evidence is offer'd , to convince men that it is so : there it is a Fault to be out of the National Church , because it is a Fault not to be convinced that the National Church is that true Church of God. And therefore since there men's not being so convinced , can onely be imputed to their not considering as they ought , the Evidence which is offer'd to convince them ; it cannot be unjust to punish them to make them so to consider it . What Iustice it would be for the Magistrate to punish me for not being a Cartesian , it will be time enough to consider , when you have proved it to be ●s necessary for men to be Cartesians , as it is to be Christians , or members of God's Church . 3. You say , Whatever indirect Efficacy there be in Force , applied your way , it makes against you . Force used by the Magistrate to bring men to consider those Reasons and Arguments , which are proper and suffi●ient to convince them , but which without being forced , they would not consider ; may , say you , be serviceable indirectly , and at a distance , to make men embrace the Truth which must save them . And thus , say I , it may be serviceable to bring men to receive and embrace Falshood , which will destroy them . How , Sir ? May Force used by the Magistrate to bring men to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them , be serviceable to bring men to embrace Falshood ? such Falshood as will destroy them ? It ●eems then , there are Reasons and Arguments , which are proper and sufficient to convince men of the truth of Falshood which will destroy them . Which is certainly a very extraordinary Discovery ; though such as no man can have any reason to thank you for . That God , in his just Judgement , will send such as receive not the love of the Truth , that they may be saved , but reject it for the pleasure they have in unrighteousness , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , strong delusion , i. e. such Reasons and Arguments as will prevail wi●h men so disposed , to believe a Lie , that they may be damn'd ; This , I confess , the Scripture plainly teaches us . But that there are any such Reasons or Arguments , as are proper and sufficient to co●vince or satisfy any , but such resolute and obdurate Sinners , of the truth of such Falshood as will destroy them , is a Position which I ●n●sure the Scripture does not teach us , and which , when you have better consider'd it , I hope you will not undertake to maintain . And yet if it be not maintainable , what you say here is to no purpose : For if there be no such Reasons and Arguments as he●e we speak of , 't is in vain to talk of the Magistrate ▪ s using Force to make men consider them . But however , let it be supposed , if you plea●e , that there are such Reasons and Arguments as are proper and sufficient to convince men of the truth of Falshood which will destroy them ; And , that Force applied by the Magistrate to make men consider the● , might be serviceable to bring men to receive and embrace such Falshood : What will you conclude from thence ? May it not be tr●e nevertheless , that Force used by the Magistrate to bring men to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them , but which without being forced they would not consider , may be serviceable indirectly , and at a distance , to bring men to embrace the Truth which must save them ? Which is all that I am here concern'd to make good . But not content to say , that Force my way applied ( i.e. to bring men to embrace the Truth which must save them ) may be serviceable to bring men to embrace Falshood which will destroy them ; and so is proper to do as much harm as good ; ( which seems strange enough ; ) you add ( to encreate the wonder ) that in my indirect way , it is much more proper , and likely , to make men receive and embrace Error , than the Truth : And that , 1. Because Men out of the right Way are as apt , and you think you may say apter , to use Force , than others . Which is , doub●less , an irrefragable Demonstration , that Force used by the Magistrate to bring men to receive and embrace the Truth which ●ust save them , is much more proper and likely to make men receive Error , than the Truth . But , Sir , I beseech you , how come we to talk here of what men out of the right Way , are apt to do , to bring others into their , i. e. a wrong Way ; where we are onely enquiring , What may be done to bring men to the right Way ? For that , I must put you in mind , is our Question , viz. Whether the Magist●ate has any Right to use Force , to bring men to the true Religion ? Now whereas our Author says that Penalties , or Force is absolutely impertinent in this case , because it is not proper to convince the Mind ; To which I answer , that though Force be not proper to convince the Mind , yet it is not absolutely impertinent in this case , because it may , however , do some service towards the bringing men to embrace the Truth which must save them , by bringing ●hem to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper to convince the Mind , and which without being forced , they would not consider : Here you tell me , No , but it is much more proper , and l●kely , to make men receive and embrace Error than Truth ; because ●en out of the right Way are as apt , and perhaps apter , to use Force , than others . Which is as good a proof , I believe , as the thing would admit : For otherwise , I suppose , you would have given us a better . As to what you say here , on the by , of the Mildness and Gentleness of the Gospel , which is apter to use Prayers and Intreaties , then Force , to gain a hearing : I shall onely demand of you , Whether the Mildness and Gentleness of the Gospel destroys the Coactive Power of the Magistrate , or not ? If you say it does not ; ( and I suppose you will not say it does ; ) then it seems the Magistrate may use his Coactive Power , without offending against the Mildness and Gentleness of the Gospel . And so , though they that have not that Power , can onely use Prayers and Intreaties to gain a hearing : yet it will consist well enough with the Mildness and Gentleness of the Gospel , for the Magistrate to use his Coactive Power to procure them a hearing , where their Prayers and Intreaties will not do it . But you say Force in my indirect Way , is much more proper , and likely , to make men receive and embrace Error than Truth , 2. Because the Magistrates of the World being few of them in the right Way ; ( not one of ten , let me take which side I will ) perhaps not one of an hundred being of the true Religion ; 't is likely my indirect way of using Force would do an hundred , or at least ten times as much harm as good : &c. Which would have been to the purpose , if I had asserted that every Magistrate may use Force , my indirect way ( or any way ) to bring men to his own Religion , whatever that be . But if I assert no such thing ; ( as no man , I think , but an Atheist , will assert it : ) then this is quite beside the business . But to shew me that , under another pretense , I put into the Magistrate's hands as much Power to force men to his Religion , as any the openest Persecutors can pretend to , you ask , What difference is there between punishing men to bring them to Mass ; and punishing them to bring them to consider those Reasons and Arguments , which are proper and sufficient to convince them that they ought to go to Mass ? A Question which I shall then think my self oblige● to answer , when you have produced those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince men that they ought to go to Mass. If you reply , say you , ( to this pleasant Question , ) you meant Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them of the Truth : I answer , if you meant so , why did not you say so ? As if it were possible for any man that reads my Answer , to think I meant otherwise . But , say you , if you had said so , it would in this case do you little service . For the Mass , in France , is as much supposed the Truth , as the Liturgy here . So that it seems , in your opinion , whatsoever is supposed the Truth , is the Truth : ( For otherwise this Reason of yours is none at all . ) Which evidently makes all Religions alike , to those who suppose them true . Which is the thing you must own , if you will maintain that my way of applying Force will as much promote Popery in France , as Protestantism in England . Whether this Usefulness of Force amounts to no more but this , That it is not impossible but that it may be useful , I leave to be judged by what has been said . But you proceed , and say , Force your way applied , as it may be useful , so also it may be useless . For , 1. Where the Law punishes Dissenters , without telling them it is to make them consider , t●ey may through ignorance and oversight neglect to do it , and so your Force proves useless . But where the Law provides sufficient ●eans of Instruction for all , as well as Punishment for Dissenters , it is so plain to all concern'd , that the Punishment is intended to make them consider , that I see no danger of men's neglecting to do it , through ignorance or oversight . 2. You say , Some Dissent●rs may have consider'd already , and then Force employ'd upon them must needs be useless ; unless you can think it useful to punish a man to make him do that which he hath done already . And I say , No man ●ho rejects Truth necessary to his Salvation , has consider'd already , as he ought to consider : Which is enough to shew the vanity of this Argument . 3. You say , God has not directed it : and therefore we have no reason to expect he should make it successful . The contrary of which shall be shewn in a more proper place . You add further , that Force may be hurtful : nay , you say , it is likely to prove more hurtful than useful . 1. Because to punish men for that , which 't is visible cannot be known whether they ha●e perform'd or no , is so palpable an injustice , &c. ( Which has already been spoken to . ) 2. Because the greatest part of Mankind being not able to discern betwixt Truth and Falshood , that depend upon long and many Proofs , and remote Consequences ; nor having ability enough to discover the false Grounds , and resist the captious and fallacious Arguments of Learned Men vers'd in Controversies ; are so much more exposed , by the Force which is used to make them hearken to the Information and Instruction of men appointed to it by the Magistrate , or those of his Religion , to be led into Falshood and Error than they are likely this way to be brought to embrace the Truth which mu●t save them ; by how much the National Religions of the World are , beyond comparison , more of them False or Erroneous , than such as have God for their Author , and Truth for their Standard . If the first part of this be true ; then an Infallible Guide , and Implicit Faith are more necessary than ever I thought them . For if the greatest part of Mankind be not able to discern betwixt Truth and Falshood , in matters concerning their Salvation , ( as you must mean , if you speak to the purpose ; ) their condition must needs be very hazardous , if they have not some Guide or Iudge , to whose determination and direction they may securely resign themselves . But for my part , as I know of no such Guide of God's appointing , so I think there is no need of any such ; because notwithstanding the long and many Proofs , and remote Consequences , the false Grounds , and the captious and fallacious Arguments of Learned Men vers'd in Controversies , with which you ( as well as those of the Roman Communion ) endeavour to amuse us , through the Goodness of God , the Truth which is necessary to Salvation , lies so obvious and exposed to all that sincerely and diligently seek it , that no such person shall ever fail of attaining the knowledge of it . Nor is the famous instance you give us , of the two Rainoldses , of any moment to prove the contrary ; unless you can undertake that he that err'd , was as sincere in his enquiry after that Truth , as you suppose him able to examine and judge . But ( whatever you think of this matter ) 't is plain the Force you here speak of , is not Force my way applied ; i.e. applied to the promoting the true Religion onely , but to the promoting of all the National Religions in the World. And therefore I can easily grant you all that you would have , without any the least prejudice to my Cause . For how much soever the National Religions are more of them False or Erroneous , than such as have God for their Author , and Truth for their Standard ; and how much soever the greatest part of Mankind may be exposed , by the Force which is used to make them hearken to the Information and Instruction of Men appointed to it by the Magistrate , or those of his Religion , to be led into Falshood and Error , than they are likely this way to be brought to embrace the Truth which must save them : Yet every one sees that it may be true nevertheless , that convenient Force used to bring men to the true Religion , ( which is all that I contend for , and all that I allow , ) may be very serviceable for that purpose , by bringing men to that Consideration , which nothing else ( besides the extraordinary Grace of God ) would bring them to : Which is that which I mean by doing service indirectly , and at a distance , toward the bringing men to the true Religion , and so to Salvation . You might therefore , for any thing I see , have spared the Pains you have here taken , to give me a view of the Usefulness of Force my way applied . For how confidently soever you tell ●e that it amounts but to the shadow and Possibility of Usefulness , but with an overbalancing weight of Mischief and Harm annex'd to it ; I hope I have sufficiently made it appear , that instead of proving this , you have onely trifled hitherto , and said nothing at all ag●inst my Assertion . Having thus , as you imagine , or ( to speak more properly perhaps ) as you would have it thought , destroy'd the Usefulness of Force which I had asserted , you go on to new matter of triumph . But suppose , say you , Force applied your way , were as useful for the promoting true Religion , as I suppose I have shew'd it to be ●he contrary ; it does not from thence follow that it is lawful and may be used . By your savour , Sir , I think it does follow from thence , that Force is not therefore unlawful to be used , because it is utterly useless , or absolutely impertinent : which is all that I was to shew against our Author : That being all in effect , that he says , to prove the unlawfulness of using Force in matters of Religion ; as has already been made appear , against all that you say to the contrary . But as to the Lawfulness of such Force as I take to be useful for the promoting the true Religion ; I must again put you in mind , that I do not ground it upon the bare Usefulness of such Force , but upon the Necessity , as well as Usefulness of it : as any man must acknowledge that reads my Answer : Where as I shew at large , that Force is generally necessary to bring those tha● wander , to the right Way ; so I expresly declare that I look upon outward Force to be no fit means to be used either for that purpose , or for any other , where it is not necessary , as well as useful . And therefore how useful soever you may suppose it in a Parish that has no Teacher , or as bad as none , that a Layman that wanted not abilities for it , should sometimes preach to them the Doct●ine of the Gospel , &c. yet unless you suppose it necessary withall , it will not serve your purpose . And that you cannot suppose it necessary , is evident ; because any such Parish may quickly have redress , if they will but seek it . ( Whether I have rightly framed the Author's Argument , or not , has already been consider'd . ) You say further , As Force applied your way is apt to make the Inconsiderate consider , so Force applied another way , is as apt to make the Lascivious chaste , &c. Thus you see Castration may indirectly , and at a distance , be serviceable towards the Salvation of men's Souls . But will you say , from such a● usefulness as this , that therefore the Magistrate has a right to do it , and may by Force make his Subjects Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven ? Where again I must tell you , that unless you will say Castration is necessary , as well as apt , to make the lascivious chaste ; this will afford you no advantage . Now I suppose you will not say Castration is necessary , because I hope you acknowledge that Marriage , and that Grace which God denies to none who seriously ask it , are sufficient for that purpose . But , however , this is not a like Case . For if Castration makes any lascivious person chaste ; it does it by taking away the Part upon which the Power of offending depends : Whereas the Force which I think may be used in order to the ●uring men of destructive Errors concerning the Way of Salvation , does not destroy the Possibility of erring , by taking away , or any way disabling the offending Part , but leaves men's Brains safe in their Skulls . Indeed if I had said , that to cure men of damnable or dangerous Errors , it is useful to knock out their Brains ; the Case had been exactly parallel ( as far as Usefulness goes . ) But since I say no such thing , I hope no man that has any Brains , will say it is . You add , It is not for the Magistrate , or any body else , upon an imagination of its Usefulness , to make use of any other means , for the Salvation of men's Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed . Which , how true soever , is not , I think , very much to the purpose . For if the Magistrate does only assist that Ministery which our Lord has appointed , by using so much of his Coactive Power for the furthering their Service , as common Experience discovers to be useful and necessary for that End ; there is no manner of ground to say , that upon an imagination of its Usefulness , he makes use of any other means for the Salvation of Men's Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed . 'T is true indeed , the Author and Finisher of our Faith has given the Magistrate no new Power , or Commission : nor was there any need that he should , ( if himself had had any Temporal Power to give : ) For he found him already , even by the Law of Nature , the Minister of God to the People for good , and bearing the Sword not in vain , i.e. invested with Coactive Power , and obliged to use it for all the good purposes which it might serve , and for which it should be ●ound needful ; even for the restraining of false and corrupt Religion ; as Iob long before ( perhaps before any part of the Scriptures were written ) acknowledged , when he said that the worshiping the Sun or the Moon , was an iniquity to be punish'd by the Iudge . But though our Saviour has given the Magistrates no new Power ; yet being King of Kings , he expects and requires , that they should submit themselves to his Sceptre , and use the Power which always belong'd to them , for his service , and for the advancing his Spiritual Kingdom in the World. And even that Charity which our great Master so earnestly recommends , and so strictly requires of all his Disciples , as it obliges all men to seek and promote the good of others , as well as their own , especially their spiritual and eternal good , by such means as their several Places and Relations enable them to use ; so does it especially oblige the Magistrate to do it as a Magistrate , i.e. by that Power which enables him to do it above the rate of other men . So far therefore is the Christian Magistrate , when he gives his helping hand to the furtherance of the Gospel , by laying convenient Penalties upon such as reject it , or any part of it , from using any other means for the Salvation of men's Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed , that he does no more than his Duty to God , to his Redeemer , and to his Subjects , requires of him . You add , You may be mistaken in what you think useful . No doubt of that , Sir : But you have not shewn that I am mistaken . Dives thought , say you , and so perhaps should you and I too , if not better inform'd by the Scriptures , that it would be useful to rouze and awaken men , if one should come to them from the dead . But he was mistaken . And we are told , that if men will not hearken to Moses and the Prophets , the means , appointed , neither will the Strangeness nor Terror of one coming from the dead perswade them . Very good , Sir : And what then ? Dives thought , it seems , that though Moses and the Prophets had not prevail'd with his Brethren to repent ; yet if Lazarus were sent to them from the dead , to testify what he had seen and heard in the other World ; such an Evidence as this , so much greater than Moses and the Prophets had given , of the Necessity of Repentance , would not fail of taking effect upon them . But herein Abraham assures him he was mistaken ; and t●at the true ground of his Brethren's not being perswaded by M●ses and the Prophets , was not any want of Evidence in them ( as he thought it was , ) but onely their own Hardness and Insensibility , contracted by the custom of sinning , which render'd them incapable of any impressions from the greatest Evidence that could be given . This I take to be the meaning of those words , If they hear not Moses and the Prophets , ( i.e. if they hear them not effectually , so as to be perswaded by them ; as appears by the next Clause , where the same thing is express'd by that word ; ) neither will they be perswaded , though one rose from the dead . But how does this concern the matter before us ? Is there any thing in my Assertion like this Mistake of Dives ? Do I any where say that the means appointed for the satisfying men's Minds concerning the true Religion , are not sufficient to do it , without the Assistance of outward Force ? Or , that the Magistrate is more likely to convince men's Understanding , by inflicting Penalties , than Christ's Ministers are , by preaching the Gospel ? If I had said any such thing , you might reasonably enough have put me in mind how Dives was mistaken in what he thought useful . But if I do expresly deny that Force has any proper Efficacy to convince men's Minds , and do place all its Usefulness in its Subserviency to the means appointed for that purpose , as it is apt to take off that unreasonable Aversness and Prejudice , which usually keeps those who reject the Truth , from applying themselves to those means : then though Dives was mistaken in thinking that Lazarus might be able to convert his Brethren , though Moses and the Prophets had not done it ; it may , however , be no Mistake , to think Force useful for the purpose for which I affirm it to be so . You go on : If what we are apt to think useful were thence to be concluded so , we should ( I fear ) be obliged to believe the Miracles pretended to by the Church of Rome . Never fear it , Sir ; for I assure you there is no danger of it . But it seems you think there is . For , say you , Miracles , we know , were once useful for the promoting true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls ; which is more than you can say for your Political Punishments . But yet we must conclude that God thinks them not useful now , unless we will say ( that which without Impiety cannot be said ) that the Wise and Benign Disposer and Governer of all things does not now use all useful means for promoting his own Honour in the World , and the good of Souls . And then you add , I think this Consequence will hold , as well as what you draw in near the same words . But I think it is easy to shew it will not . For in the place you intend , I speak not of useful , but of competent , i. e. sufficient means . Now competent , or sufficient means are necessary : but I think no man will say that all useful means are so . And therefore though , as I affirm , it cannot be said without Impiety , that the Wise and Benign Disposer and Governer of all things has not furnish'd Mankind with competent means for the promoting his own Honour in the World , and the good of Souls ; yet it is very agreeable with Piety and with Truth too , to say that he does not now use all useful means : Because as none of his Attributes obliges him to use more than sufficient means ; so he may use sufficient means , without using all useful means . For where there are many useful means , and some of them are sufficient without the rest , there is no necessity of using them all . So that from God 's not using Miracles now , to promote the true Religion , you cannot conclude that he does not think them useful now , but onely that he does not think them necessary . And therefore though what we are apt to think useful , were thence to be concluded so ; yet if whatever is useful , be not likewise to be concluded necessary ; there is no reason to fear that we should be obliged to believe the Miracles pretended to by the Church of Rome . For if Miracles be not now necessary , there is no inconvenience in thinking the Miracles pretended to by the Church of Rome , to be but pretended Miracles . But after all , how comes this Supposition in , That what we are apt to think useful , is thence to be concluded so ? For , whatever you would insinuate , I speak not of what we are apt to think or phansy , with little or no reason , to be useful : but of what we judge so upon just and sufficient grounds : Upon a strong Probability of Success ( which you your self seem to think sufficient , not onely to ground an opinion of its Usefulness , but even to warrant the Use of it , ) grounded upon the consideration of Humane Nature , and the general temper of Mankind , apt to be wrought upon by the Method I speak of : And upon the indisputable attestation of Experience . For how confidently soever you tell me here , that it is more than I can say for my Political Punishments , that they were ever useful for the promoting true Religion ; I appeal to all observing persons , Whether where-ever true Religion , or sound Christianity has been nationally received , and establish'd by moderate Penal Laws , it has not always visibly lost ground by the relaxation of those Laws : Whether Sects and Heresies ( even the wildest and most absurd , ) and even Epicurism and Atheism have not continually thereupon spread themselves : and Whether the very Spirit and Life of Christianity has not sensibly decayed , as well as the number of sound Professors of it been dayly lessen'd upon it . ( Not to speak of what at this time our eyes cannot but see , for fear of giving offense : Though I hope it will be none to any that have a just concern for Truth and Piety , to take notice of the Books and Pamphlets which now fly so thick about this Kingdom , manifestly tending to the multiplying of Sects and Divisions , and even to the promoting of Scepticism in Religion among us . In which number I shall not much need your pardon , if I reckon the First , and Second Letter concerning Toleration ) And if these have always been the Fruits of the relaxation of moderate Penal Laws , made for the preserving and advancing true Religion ; I think this consideration alone is abundantly sufficient to shew the Usefulness and Benefit of such Laws . For if these Evils have constantly sprung from the relaxation of those Laws , 't is evident they were prevented before by those Laws . Though the Work of our Salvation be , as you justly call it , stupendous and supernatural ; yet I suppose no sober man doubts but it both admits , and ordinarily requires the use of natural and humane means , in subordination to that Grace which works it . And therefore till you have shewn ( as you have not yet ) that no Penal Laws that can be made , can do any service toward the salvation of men's Souls , in subordination to God's Grace ; or that God has forbidden the Magistrate to serve him in that great Work , with the Authority which he has given him ; there will be no occasion for the Caution you give us , not to be wiser than our Maker in that stupendous and supernatural work . You add , When you can shew any Commission in Scripture , for the use of Force , to compell men to hear , any more than to embrace the Doctrine of others that differ from them , we shall have reason to submit to it , and the Magistrate have some ground to set up this n●w way of Persecution . To which I answer : Though no Force can compell men to embrace ( if by that you mean , to believe ) the Doctrine of others that differ from them ; yet some Force may induce those who would not otherwise , to hear what may and ought to move them to embrace the Truth . And if the Magistrate has Commission to use convenient Force , or Penalties , for that purpose ; his doing it will not be the setting up a new way of Persecution , but the discharging an old Duty . I call it so , because it is as old as the Law of Nature , in which the Magistrate's Commission lies , as has been shewn already . For the Scri●ture does not properly give it him , but presupposes it ( and spe●ks of him as antecedently entrusted with it , ) as it does also the Law of Nature , which is God's Law as well as the Scripture . But till then , you say , ( i. e. till I can shew a Commission in Scripture , &c. ) 't will be fit for us to obey that Precept of the G●spel , which bids us take heed what we hear . So that hearing is not always so useful as you suppose . If it had , we should never have had so direct a Caution against it . This , I suppose , is onely intended for the vulgar Reader . For all the Force of it lies in our English Version of the Text you mention : Which may , and ought ( the Context requiring it ) to be render'd Attend , or give heed to what you hear . And if this be the true sense of the Place , ( as any one that considers it well , will find it to be ; ) then our Saviour's Precep● is so far from being a direct Caution against hearing , that on the contrary , it requires hearing with great Attention and Consideration . Go and teach all Nations , you say , was a Commission of our saviour's : But there was not added to it , Punish those that will not hear and consider what you say . No , but if they will not receive you , shake off the dust of your feet ; leave them , and apply your sel●es to some others . Which is all very true indeed , but nothing at all to your purpose . For as our Saviour was no Magistrate , and therefore could not inflict Political Punishments upon any man ; so much less could he empower his Apostles to do it . But as he could not punish men to make them hear him ; so neither was there any need that he should . He came as a Prophet sent from God , to re●eal a new Doctrine to the World. And therefore to prove his M●ssion , he was to do such things as could onely be done by a divine Power . And the Works which he did , were abundantly sufficient both to gain him a hearing , and to oblige the World to receive his Doctrine . And accordingly , when he sent his Apostles to preach his Gospel , though as he could not , so he did not add , Punish those that will not hear and consider what you say ; yet he communicated to them the Power of Miracles , and bad them heal the sick , cleanse the Lepers , raise the dead , and cast out Devils : Which might serve altogether as well to procure them a hearing , and a great deal better , to manifest the divine Authority of their Doctrine , so as to leave them that should not embrace it , more inexcusable than Sodom and Gomorrha . And what extraordinary Gifts and Powers our Lord bestow'd after his Asscension , for the propagation of his Gospel , which were continued in his Church , in such measures as he thought fit , for some Ages after , I need not mention . But what can be concluded from hence ? That when Christian Religion was sufficiently rooted and establish'd in the World , and those extraordinary Graces were withdrawn , as no longer necessary , Penal Laws could do no service toward the preserving and promoting it ? or , That the Christian Magistrate had no Authority to make any such Laws for the preserving and promoting it ? No such matter . On the contrary , considering that those extraordinary M●ans were not withdrawn , till by their help Christianity had prevail'd to be receiv'd for the Religion of the Empire , and to be supported and encouraged by the Laws of it , I cannot but think it highly probable , ( if we may he allow'd to guess at the Counsils of infinite Wisdom , ) that God was pleas'd to continue them till then , not so much for any necessity there was of them all that while for the evincing the Truth of the Christian Religion , as to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . You add further : St. Paul knew no other means to make men hear , but the Preaching of the Gospel , as will appear to any one who will read Rom. 10.14 , &c. Faith cometh by hearing , and hearing by the Word of God. But whoever will consider ▪ as well as read the Place , will find no such matter in it . St. Paul demands here , How shall men hear without a Preacher ? But will any man say Because a Preacher , or Preaching is always necessary , therefore nothing else ●an ever be so ? If not ; then it will not follow from this Demand , that the Apostle knew no other means to make men hear , but the preaching of the Gospel . As to those words , vers . 17. Suppose the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 there , to be rightly render'd hearing , and that the word of God signifies the word preach'd Yet even so every one sees they will serve your turn but just as well as the other . But if 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be there render'd report ( and I do not see why it may not ) as it is in the foregoing verse , ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; Who has believed our report ? ) then the sense will be , Faith cometh by report , or preaching ; and preaching by the word of God , i. e. by the word of God instructing and sending the Preacher , according to vers . 15. Which sets that Text at a greater distance yet from your purpose . Where to shew the Necessity of Penalties to bring men to hearken to Instruction , and to consider and examine matters of Religion as they ought to do , I allege that such as are out of the right Way , are usually so prejudiced against it , that no intreaties or Perswasions will prevail with them so much as to give an ear to those who call them to it ; so that there seems to be no other means left ( besides the Grace of God ) but Penalties onely , to bring them to hear and consider , and so to embrace the Truth ; You demand , What if God , for Reasons best known to himself , would not have men compell'd to hear ( i. e. as far as moderate Penalties will compell them : otherwise I am not concern'd in this Demand : ) but thought the good Tidings of Salvation , and the Proposals of Life and Death , Means and Induc●ments enough to make them hear and consider , now as well as ●ere●o●●●e ? Where , first , you must give me leave to demand , How it appears that God thought the good Tidings of Salvation , &c. enough heretofore ; when he endued the Preachers of the Gospel with the Gift of Tongues , and with the Power of healing all manner of Diseases , &c. as well to bring men to hear and consider , as to believe ? Secondly I say , that if God , for Reasons best known to himself , would not have moderate Penalties used , now that Miracles are ceased ●o induce men to ●ea● and consider , he would have told us so ; and you ought to have shewn us where he has done it . You go on , demanding , What if God would have men left to their freedom in this Point , if they will hear , or if they will forbear , will you constrain them ? Thus we are siere he did with his own People , &c. But those words , whether they will hear , or whether they will forbear , which we find th●ice used in the Prophet Ezekiel , are nothing at all to your purpose . Fo● by hearing there , no man un●erstands the bare giving an ear to what was to be preach'd , nor yet the considering it onely ; but the complying with it , and obeying it : according to the Paraphrase which Gro●ius gives of the words , Ezek. 2.5 . Si●se co●●●gu●● , rectè : si non ( quod hactenus magis de illis credibile est , ob summam pertinaciam ) erunt mexcusati . However , the Penalties I defend , are not such as can any way be pretended to take away men's freedom in this Point . You add , This also is the Method of the Gospel . We are Ambassadours for Christ , as if God did beseech you by us , we pray in Christ's stead , saith St. Paul , 2. Cor 5.20 . If God had thought it necessary to have men punish'd to make them give ear , he could have call'd Magistrates to be Spreaders and Ministers of the Gospel , as well as poor Fishermen , or Paul a Persecutor , who yet wanted not Power to punish where Punishment was necessary , as is evident in Ananias and Sapphira , and the Incestuous Corinthian . But though it be the Method of the Gospel , for the Ministers of it to pray and beseech men ; yet it appears from your own words here , both that Punishment may be sometimes necessary , and that punishing , and that even by those who are to pray and beseech , is consistent with that Method . Why Penalties were not necessary at first , to make men give ●ar to the Gospel , has already been shewn . And , from the same ground , it seems not hard to conjecture , why God was pleas'd to call poor Fishermen , rather than Magistrates , to be Spreaders and Ministers of the Gospel . For as the great and wonderful things which were to be done for the evidencing the truth of the Gospel , were abundantly sufficient to procure Attention to it , without any help from the Magistrate ; so they were much more admirable and convincing , as done by the hands of such mean persons , than they would have been , if they had been done by Princes or Magistrates . To which I may add , that the Conversion of the World to Christianity , without the help , and notwithstanding the utmost resistance of the Civil Powers , was to be the great Evidence , to all succeeding Ages , of a divine Power accompanying the Gospel , and furthering the progress of it : Which Evidence would have been wanting , if God had from the beginning used the service of the Magistrate in propagating his Gospel . You demand further , What if God , foreseeing this Force would be in the hands of men as passionate , as humoursome , as liable to Prejudice and Error as the rest of their Brethren , did not think it a proper Means to bring men into the Right Way ? But if there be any thing of an Argument in this , it proves that there ought to be no Civil Government in the World ; and so proving too much , proves nothing at all . The Scripture tells us , that the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. And yet God has put the Sword into the Magistrate's hand , though he may be as passionate , as humoursome , &c. as the rest of his Brethren . So that , unless you would have no Government , or Discipline in the World , you must acknowledge , that how passionate or humoursome soever , or how liable soever to Prejudice and Error God foresaw Magistrates would be , there is not the least colour to inferr from thence , that he did not think moderate Penalties , used to bring men into the Right Way , a proper Means to bring them into it . Lastly you demand , What if there be other Means ? And then you add , Then yours ceases to be necessary , upon the account that there is no means left . For you your self allow that the Grace of God is another Means . And I suppose you will not deny it to be both a proper and sufficient Means ; and which is more , the onely Means ; such Means as can work by itself , and without which all the Force in the World can do nothing . To which I answer : Though the Grace of God be another Means , and I thought fit to mention it , to prevent Cavils ; yet it is none of the M●●ns of which I was speaking in the place you referr to ; which any one who reads that Paragraph , will find to be onely Humane Means . And therefore ●hough the Grace of God be both a proper and sufficient Means , and such as can work by it self , and without which neither Penalties , nor any other Means can do any thing ; yet it may be true however , that when Admonitions and Intreaties fail , there is no Humane Means left , but Penalties , to bring prejudiced Persons to hear and consider what may convince them of their Errors , and discover the Truth to them . And then Penalties will be necessary in respect to that end , as an Humane Means . What you intend by saying that the Grace of God is the onely Means , I do not well understand . If you mean onely that it is the principal and most necessary Means , and that without which all other Means are vain and ineffectual ; I grant it is so . Or if you mean that it is the onely necessary Means , as being able to do its work without any help of other Means ; This I have already granted . But if by calling it the onely Means , you intend to say that it does either always , or ordinarily exclude all other Means ; I see no ground you have to say it . Yes , say you : God alone can open the Ear that it may hear , and open the Heart that it may understand . But , by your ●●vour , this does not prove that he makes use of no Means in doing it . For whatever Means we may suppose him to make use of , it is he alone still that does it , though he does it by the Means he makes use of . You add , And this he does ( i.e. he opens the Ear that it may hear , and the Heart that it may understand ) in his own good time , and to whom he is gratiously pleas'd , but not according to the Will and Phansy of Man , when he thinks fit , by Punishments , to compell his Brethren . By which I su●pose you mean , that the Magistrate has no ground to hope that God will bless any Penalties that he may use , to bring men to hear and consider the Doctrine of Sa●vation : or ( which is the same thing ) that God does not ( at least not ord●●arily ) afford his Grace and Assistance to them who are brought by such Penalties to hear and consider that Doctrine , to enable them to hear and consider it as they ought , i. e. so as to be moved heartily to embrace it . If this be your meaning ; then to let you see that it is not true , I shall onely desire you to tell me , whether they that are so brought to hear and consider , are bound to believe the Gospel , or not ? If you say they are ; ( and I suppose you dare not say otherwise ; ) then it evidently follows that God does afford them that Grace which is requisite to enable them to believe the Gospel : Because without that Grace , it is impossible for them to believe it ; and they cannot be bound to believe what it is impossible for them to believe . You go on : If God has pronounced against any Person or People , what he did against the Iews ( Isai. 6.10 . ) Make the heart of this People fat , and make their ears heavy , and shut their eyes ; lest they see with their eyes , and hear with their ears , and understand with their hearts , and convert , and be heal'd ; Will all the Force you can use , be a means to make them hear and understand and be converted ? No , Sir ; it will not . But what then ? What if God declares that he will not heal those , who have long resisted all his ordinary Methods , and made themselves , morally speaking , incurable by them ? ( Which is the utmost you can make of the words you quote . ) Will it follow from thence , that no good can be done by Penalties upon others , who are not so far gone in Wickedness and Obstinacy ? If it will not ; as it is evident it will not ; to what purpose is this said ? In the next place you attempt to return my Argument . And that you may do it the more successfully , you represent it ( as you commonly do ) in such a manner , as if I allow'd any Magistrate , of what Religion soever , to lay Penalties upon all that dissent from him : Whereas in my own words it stands thus : When men fly from the means of a right Information , and will not so much as consider how reasonable it is , throughly and impartially to examine a Religion which they embraced upon such Inducements as ought to have no sway at all in the matter , and therefore with little or no examination of the proper Grounds of it : What humane Method can be used , to bring them to act like Men , in an affair of such consequence , and to make a wiser and more rational choice , but that of laying such Penalties upon them , as may balance the weight of those Prejudices which enclined them to preferr a False Way before the True , & c ? Now this Argument you pretend to retort in this manner : And I say , I see no other means left ( taking the World as we now find it , wherein the Magistrate never lays Penalties , for Matters of Religion , upon those of his own Church , nor is it to be expected they ever should ) to make men of the National Church , any where , throughly and impartially examine a Religion which they embraced upon such Inducements as ought to have no sway at all in the matter , and therefore with little or no examination of the proper Grounds of it . And therefore I conclude the use of Force by Dissenters upon Conformists necessary . And then you add , I appeal to all the World , whether this be not as just and natural a Conclusion as yours . And I am well content the World should judge . And when it determines , that there is the same reason to say , That to bring those who conform to the National Church , to examine their Religion , it is necessary for Dissenters ( who cannot possibly have the Coactive Power , because the National Church has that on its side , and cannot be National without it ) to use Force upon Conformists ; As there is to say , That where the National Church is the true Church , there to bring Dissenters ( as you call them ) to examine their Religion , it is necessary for the Magistrate ( who has the Coactive Power ) to lay moderate Penalties upon them for dissenting : I say , when the World determines thus , I will never pretend any more to judge what is reasonable , in any case whatsoever . For I doubt not but I may safely presume that the World will easily admit these two things . 1. That though it be very fit and desireable , that all that are of the true Religion , should understand the true Groun●s of it ; that so they may be the better able both to defend themselves against the assaults of Seducers , and to reduce such as are out of the Way : yet this is not strictly necessary to their Salvation : because Experience shews ( as far as men are capable to judge of such matters ) that many do heartily believe and profess the true Religion , and conscientiously practice the Duties of it , who ye● do not understand the true Grounds upon which it challenges their belief : And no man doubts but whoever does so believe , profess , and practice the true Religion , if he perseveres to the end , shall certainly attain Salvation by it . 2. That how much soever it concerns those who reject the true Religion ( whom you may call Dissenters , if you please ) to examine and consider why they do so ; and how needful soever Penalties may be to bring them to this : it is , however , utterly unreasonable that such as have not the Coactive Power , should take upon them to inflict Penalties for that purpose : Because , as that is not consistent with Order and Government ; which cannot stand , where private persons are permitted to usurp the Coactive Power : So there is nothing more manifest , than that the prejudice which is done to Religion , and to the interest of men's Souls , by destroying Government , does infinitely outweigh any good that can possibly be done by that which destroys it . And whoever admits and considers these things , I am very secure he will be far enough from admitting , that there is any Parity of Reason in the Cases we here speak of , or that yours is as just and natural a Conclusion as mine . What follows here , has been sufficiently consider'd already . You say , Faith is the Gift of God. And I say , This Gift comes , ordinarily at least , by hearing . And if the Magistrate be both warranted and obliged to use convenient Penalties to bring his Subjects to hear the Gospel ; as I think I have shewn that he is ; then , in doing so , he cannot be said to use any other means to procure this Gift to any one , than what God himself has prescribed . If , say you , all the means God has appointed , to make men hear and consider , be Exhortation in season and out of season , &c. together with Prayer for them , and the Example of Meekness and a good Life ; this is all ought to be done , whether they will hear , or whether they will forbear . But if these be not all the Means God has appointed ; then these things are not all that ought to be done . As to the first Spreaders of the Gospel , it has already been shewn that God appointed other Means , besides these , for them to use , to induce men to hear and consider . And though when those extraordinary Means ceased , these Means which you mention , were the onely Means left to the Ministers of the Gospel ; yet that is no proof that the Magistrate , when he became Christian , could not lawfully use such Means as his Station enabled him to use , when they became needful . By what Means the Gospel at first made it self to be heard , &c. without the Assistance of any such Force of the Magistrate , as I now think needful , we have seen already . But whatever Neglect or Aversion there is in any , impartially and throughly to instruct the People , I wish it amended , and that the most effectual course may be taken for the amending it , as much as you can do . But I do not see how pertinent your Discourse about this matter is , to the present Question . For when you have made the best provision you can for the Instruction of the People , I fear a great part of them will still need some moderate Penalties , to bring them to hear and receive Instruction . But this new Method of mine , viz. the useing Force , not instead of Reason and Arguments , but onely to bring men to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them , but which , without being forced , they would not consider ; Which I say , no body can deny but that indirectly and at a distance , it does some service towards the bringing men to embrace the Truth : This new Method of mine , ( as you will needs call it , though it be at least as old as St. Austin ) you tell me , was never yet thought on by the most refined Persecutors . Which may be very true , for any thing I know : Though I think it hath been both thought on , and made use of too , by all those Magistrates , who having made all requisite provision for the instructing their People in the Truth , have likewise required them , under convenient Penalties , to embrace it . But you say however , It is not altogether unlike the Plea made use of to excuse the late barbarous Usage of the Protestants in F●ance ( designed to extirpate the Reform'd Religion there ) from being a Persecution for Religion . For it seems , the French King requires all his Subjects to come to Mass. Which they cannot lawfully do , nor he lawfully require them to do . But you go on : Those who do not come to Mass , are punish'd with a witness . For what ? Not for their Religion , say the Pleaders for that Discipline , but for disobeying the King's Laws . Whether those Pleaders plead in this manner , or not , I know not . But if they do , I am sure their Plea is ridiculous , and carries nothing at all of an Excuse in it . For if true Religion , which is God's Law , forbids men to go to Mass ; then those Laws can be no Laws , which require men to go to Mass : unless Man can make Laws against God's Laws . And if those Laws be no Laws , then 't is grosly improper to talk of disobeying them . For where there is no Law , there can be no. Transgression , or Disobedience . Nor can any Act of Obedience to God ( as all Acts which true Religion requires , are ) be an Act of Disobedience to any body . Now if those Laws by which the French King requires his Subjects to come to Mass , be no Laws : and consequently their refusing to come , be not a disobeying his Laws : : 't is evident there is nothing left for which the Refusers can be said to be punish'd , but onely their Religion , which requires them to refuse . But let us see the likeness of my new Method to this Plea. So , say you , by your Rule , the Dissenters ( from the true Religion , for I speak of no other ) must be punish'd ( or , if you please , subjected to moderate Penalties , such as shall make them uneasy , but neither destroy , no● undo them . ) For what ? Not for their Religion , say you , ( So you tell me , Sir. But where , I beseech you , do I say that Dissenters from the true Religion , are not to be punish'd for their Religion ? ) not for following the Light of their own Reason , not for obeying the Dictates of their own Consciences . No , Sir : but ra●●er for the contrary . For the Light of their own Reason , and ●he Dictates of their own Consciences ( if their Reason and Consciences were not perverted and abused ) would undoubtedly lead them to the same thing , to which the Method we speak of , is designe● to bring them . You proceed : For what then are they to be punish'd ? To make them , say you , examine the Religion they have embraced , and the Religion they have rejected . Right , Sir : That is indeed the next End for which they are to be punish'd . But what is that to your Question ? which , if it be pertinent , demands for what Fault , not for what End , they are to be punish'd : As appears even by your next words ; So that they are punish'd , not for having offended against a Law ; ( i. e. not for any Fault : ) For there is no Law of the Land that requires them to examine . It seems then the Likeness of the two Pleas lies in this : The Pleaders for the French Discipline say that those who refuse to go to Mass , are not punish'd for their Religion , but for disobeying the King's Laws . And you make me say , that Dissenters are to be punish'd not for having offended against a Law. And were there ever any Twinns more like than these two Pleas are ? But as if you had forgotten the Likeness you talk'd of , you conclude with these words ; And which now is the fairer Plea , pray judge . So that the thing I am to judge of at last , is not , how like these Pleas are to each other ; but which is the fairer Plea of them . Now I confess , as you have made my Plea for me , I think there is no considerable difference as to the Fairness of them , excepting what arises from the different Degrees of Punishment in the French Discipline , and my Method . But if the French Plea be not true ; and that which you make to be mine , be not mine : To what purpose is it to enquire , which is the fairer of them ? The truth of the matter is this : The French Discipline Dragoons men , and many ( as you say ) out of their lives , for not coming to Mass ( which is no Fault , ) to make them come to Mass ( which they cannot do wi●hout sin . ) And my Method punishes men with Punishments which do not deserve to be call'd so , when compared with those of the French Discipline , for rejecting the true Religion , proposed to them with sufficient Evidence ( which certainly is a Fault , ) to bring them to consider and examine the Evidence with which it is proposed , that so they may embrace it , ( which is both lawful for them , and their duty to do . ) And which of these Methods or Pleas is the fairer , let all the World judge . Whereas you say here , that there is no Law of the Land that requires men to examine , I think the contrary is plain enough . For where the Laws provide sufficient means of Instruction in the true Religion , and then require all men to embrace that Religion ; I think the most natural Construction of those Laws is , that they require men to embrace it upon Instruction and Conviction ; as it cannot be expected they should do , without examining the Grounds upon which it stands . How pertinent the Declamation is , which makes up the rest of this Paragraph , appears sufficiently by what has been said , and will appear yet further , before I take leave of you . But that this new sort of Discipline may , as you pretend , have all fair play , you come now to enquire at large into several Particulars relating to it : As namely , Who it is I would have to be pun●sh'd : For what I would have them punish'd : With what sort of Penalties , what degree of Punishment they should be forced : And how long they are to be punish'd . And here , upon all these Heads , you discover , as you imagine , such Difficulties and Inconsistencies , as are enough to spoil any Discipline in the World , and render it just good for nothing . But I hope I have not follow'd you thus close hitherto to no purpose , but am apt to think that I have already abundantly laid open the Mistakes and Cavils upon which those Imaginations are grounded . And therefore having , as I suppose , sufficiently prepared my way , I shall , without more adoe , address my self to manifest the Consistency and Practicableness of my new Method ( as you will have it ) in the way you your self prescibe me , viz. by telling the World plainly and directly , 1. Who are to be punish'd . 2. For what . 3. With what Punishments . 4. How long . 5. What Advantage to true Religion it would be , if Magistrates every where did so punish . 6. And lastly , Whence the Magistrate had Commission to do so . Which when I have done , and by settling these Points have framed the parts of my new Engine , set it together , and shew'd that it will work , without doing more harm than good in the World , you tell me you think then men may be content to submit to it . Onely before I do this , I crave leave to take some notice of one of the Conditions you are pleas'd to lay upon me . For you require me to do it , ●ot onely plainly and intelligibly , without keeping in the uncertainty of general expressions ( which is reasonable enough , ) but likewise without supposing all along my Church in the right , and my Religion the true . Now , as to this latter Condition , I confess I do not see how you can oblige me to it . For if my Church be in the right ; and my Religion be the true ; why may I not all along suppose it to be so ? You say this can no more be allow'd to me in this case , whatever my Church or Religion be , than it can be to a Papist or a Lutheran , a Presbyterian or an Anabaptist ; nay no more to me , than it can be allow'd to a Iew or a Mahometan . No , Sir ? Not whatever my Church , or Religion be ? That seems somewhat ha●d . And methinks you might have given us some Reason for what you say : For certainly it is not so self-evident as to need no proof . But I think it is no hard matter to guess at your Reason , though you did not think fit expressly to own it . For 't is obvious enough that there can be no other Reason for this Assertion of yours , but either the equal Truth , or at least the equal Certainty ( or Uncertainty ) of all Religions . For whoever considers your Assertion , must see , that to make it good , you will be obliged to maintain one of these two things : Either 1. That no Religion is the true Religion , in opposition to other Religions : Which makes all Religions true , or all false , and so either way indifferent . Or , 2. That though some one Religion be the true Religion ; yet no man can have any more reason , than another man of another Religion may have , to believe his to be the true Religion . Which makes all Religions equally certain ( or uncertain ; whether you please ) and so renders it vain and idle to enquire after the true Religion , and onely a piece of good luck if any man be of it , and such good luck as he can never know that he has , till he come into the other World. Whether of these two Principles you will own , I know not . But certainly one or the other of them lies at the bottom with you , and is the lurking Supposition upon which you build all that you say . But as unreasonable as this Condition is , I see no need I have to decline it , nor any occasion you had to impose it upon me . For certainly the making what you call my new Method , consistent and practicable , does no way oblige me to suppose all along my Religion is the true , as you imagine . No , Sir ; 't is enough for that purpose , to suppose that there is one true Religion , and but one ; and that that Religion may be known by those who profess it , to be the onely true Religion ; and may also be manifested to be such , by them to others , so far a● least as to oblige them to receive it , and to leave them without excuse if they do not . Indeed if either of the two Principles but now mention'd , be true , i. e. if all Religions be equally true , and so indifferent ; or all be equally certain ( or uncertain : ) then without more adoe , the Cause is yours . For then , 't is plain , there can be no reason why any man , in respect to his Salvation , should change his Religion : and so there can be no room for using any manner of Force , to bring men to consider what may reasonably move them to change . But if , on the contrary , there be one true Religion , and no more ; and that may be known to be the onely true Religion by those who are of it ; and may by them be manifested to others , in such sort as has been said : then 't is altogether as plain , that it may be very reasonable and necessary for some men to change their Religion ; and that it may be made appear to them to be so . And then if such men will not consider what is offer'd , to convince them of the Reasonableness and Necessity of doing it ; it may be very fit and reasonable , for any thing you have said to the contrary , in order to the br●nging them to Consideration , to require them under convenient Penalties , to forsake their false Religions , and to embrace the true . Now as these things are all that I need to suppose ; so I shall take leave to suppose them , till you shew good reason why I should not . And now I come to give an account of the Particulars mention'd . Which I think may be done in a very few words so plainly and intelligibly , upon these Supposals as to enable any Reader to see , without any more help , to how little purpose you multiply words about these matters . Here therefore I am to tell the World , 1. Who are to be punish'd . And those , according to the whole tenor of my Answer , are no other but such , as having sufficient Evidence tender'd them of the true Religion , do yet reject it ; whether utterly refusing to consider that Evidence , or no● considering it as they ought , viz. with such care and diligence as the matter deserves and requires , and with honest and unbiass'd minds . And what difficulty there is in this , I cannot imagine . For there is nothing more evident , than that those who do so reject the true Religion , are culpable , and deserve to be punish'd . And it is easy enough to know when men do so reject the true Religion . For that requires no more than that we know that that Religion was tender'd to them with sufficient Evidence of the truth of it . And that it may be tender'd to men with such Evidence ; and that it may be known when it is so tender'd ; these things , you know , I take leave here to suppose . Now if the persons I describe , do really deserve to be punish'd ; and may be known to be such as I describe them ; then as they deserve to be punish'd ; so they may be punish'd . Which is all that needs be said upon this Head , to shew the Consistency and Practicableness of this Method . And what do you any where say against this ? 2. For what . By which I perceive you mean two things . For sometimes you speak of the Fault , and sometimes of the End for which men are to be punish'd . ( And sometimes you plainly confound them . ) Now if it be enquired , For what Fault men are to be punish'd : I answer , For rejecting the true Religion , after sufficient Evidence tender'd them of the truth of it : Which certainly is a Fault , and deserves Punishment . But if you enquire for what End such as do so reject the true Religion , are to be punish'd : I say , To bring them to embrace the true Religion ; and in order to that , to bring them to consider , and that carefully and impartially , the Evidence which is offer'd , to convince them of the truth of it : Which are undeniably just and excellent Ends ; and which , through God's blessing , have often been procured , and may yet be procured by convenient Penalties , inflicted for that purpose . Nor do I know of any thing you say against any part of this , which is not already answer'd . 3. With what Punishments . Now here having in my Answer declared , that I take the Severities so often mention'd , ( which either destroy men , or make them miserable ) to be utterly unapt and improper ( for Reasons there given ) to bring men to embrace the Truth which must save them ; I do not presume to determine ( nor have you shewn any cause why I should ) just how far , within those bounds , that Force extends it self , which is really serviceable to that end ; but content my self to say , That so much Force , or such Penalties as are ordinarily sufficient ●o prevail with men of common Discretion , and not desperately perverse and obstinate to weigh matters of Religion carefully and impartially ; and without which ordinarily they will not do this ; so much Force , or such Penalties may fitly and reasonably be used for the promoting true Religion in the World , and the Salvation of Souls . And what just exception this is liable to , I do not understand . For when I speak of men of common Discretion , and not desperately perverse and obstinate , I think 't is plain enough , that by common Discretion I exclude not Idiotes onely , and such as we usually call Mad-men , but likewise the desperately perverse and obstinate , who perhaps may well enough deserve that name , though they be not wont to be sent to Bedlam . And if the Penalties I speak of , be intended for the curing men's unreasonable Prejudices and Refractariness against the true Religion ; then the reason why the desperately perverse and obstinate are not to be regarded in measuring these Penalties , is very apparent . For as Remedies are not provided for the incurable , so in the preparing and tempering them , regard is to be had onely to those for whom they are designed . Perhaps it may be needful here ( to prevent a little Cavi● ) to note , that there are degrees of Perversness and Obstinacy and that men may be perverse and obstinate , without being desperately so : And that therefore some perverse and obstinate persons may be thought curable , though such as are desperately so cannot . ( As there are likewise degrees of Carelessness in men of their Salvation , as well as of Concern for it : So that such as have some Co●cern for their Salvation , may yet be careless of it to a great degree . And therefore if those who have any Concern for their Salvation , deserve regard and pity ; then so may some carless persons , though those who have no Concern for their Salvation , deserve not to be consider'd . Which spoils a little Harangue you give us , Pag. 43. ) And as those Med●cines are thought safe and advisable , which do ordinarily cure , though not always ( as none do : ) So those Penalties , or Punishments , which are ordinarily found sufficient ( as well as necessary ) for the ends for which they are designed , may fitly and reasonably be used for the compassing those ends . Now I do not see what more can be required to justify the Rule here given . For if you demand that it should express wha● Penalties , particularly , are such as it says may fitly and reasonably be used : this , you must give me leave to tell you , is a very unreasonable Demand . For what Rule is there that expresses the Particulars which agree with it ? A Rule is intended for a common Measure , by which Particulars are to be examined ; and therefore must necessarily be general . And those to whom it is given , are supposed to be able to apply it , and to judge of Particulars by it . Nay it is often seen , that they are better able to do this , than those who give it . And so it is in the present case : The Rule here laid down , is that by which I suppose Governers and Lawgivers ought to examine the Penalties they use , for the promoting the true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls . But certainly no man doubts but their Prudence and Experience enables them to use and apply it be●ter than other men ; and to judge more exactly what Penalties do agree with it , and what do not . And therefore I think you must excuse me , if I do not take upon me to teach them , what it becomes me rather to learn from them . 4. How long they are to be punish'd . And of this the account is very easy . For certainly nothing is more reasonable , than that men should be subject to punishment as long as they continue to offend . And as long as men reject the true Religion , tender'd them with sufficient Evidence of the Truth of it , so long , 't is certain , they offend : Because it is impossible for any man , innocently to reject the true Religion , so tender'd to him . For whoever rejects that Religion so tender'd , does either apprehend and perceive th● Truth of it , or he does not . If he does ; I know not what greater Crime any man can be guilty of . If he does not perceive the Truth of it ; there is no account to be given of that , but either that 〈◊〉 shuts his eyes against the Evidence which is offer'd him , and will not at all consider it ; or that he does not consider it as he ought , viz. with such care as is requisite , and with a sincere desire to learn the Truth : Either of which does manifestly involve him in guilt . To sa● here that a man who has the true Religion proposed to him with sufficient Evidence of its Truth , may consider it as he ought , or do his utmost in considering , and yet not perceive the Truth of it ; is neither more nor less , than to say , that sufficient Evidence is not sufficient Evidence . For what does any man mean by sufficient Evidence , but such as will certainly win assent , where-ever it is duly consider'd ? 'T is plain enough therefore , that as long as men reject the true Religion duly proposed to them , so long they offend , and deserve Punishment : And therefore it is but just , that so long they should be left liable to it . But because my Designe does rather oblige me to consider how long men may need Punishment , than how long it may be just to punish them ; therefore I shall add , That as long as men refuse to embrace the true Religion , so long Penalties are necessary for them , to dispose them to consider and embrace it : And that therefore , as Justice allows , so Charity requires that they be kept subject to Penalties , till they embrace the true Religion . Thus far you proceed in your Enquiry . But you demand that I should also tell the World , 5. What Advantage to true Religion it would be , if Magistrates every where did so punish . Where by the Magistrates so punishing , if you speak to the purpose , you must mean their punishing men for rejecting the true Religion ( so tender'd to them as has been said ) in order to the bringing them to consider , and embrace it . Now before we can suppose Magistrates every where so to punish , we must suppose the true Religion to be every where the National Religion . And if this were the case ; I think it is evident enough , what Advantage to true Religion it would be , if Magistrates every where did so punish . For then we might reasonably hope that all false Religions would soon vanish , and the True become once more the onely Religion in the World : Whereas if Magistrates s●ould not so punish ; it were much to be fear'd ( especially considering what has already happen'd ) that on the contrary , false Religions , and Atheism , as more agreeable to the Soil , would dayly take deeper root , and propagate themselves , till there were no room left for the true Religion ( which is but a foreign Plant ) in any corner of the World. 6. And lastly , Whence the Magistrate had Commission to do so . But of this I have spoken already , and need not here repeat what has been said , to shew , that the Magistrate receives his Commission so to punish as has been express'd , from God , whose Minister he is . Thus in answer to your demand , I have given a plain account of the Particulars you mention . And I shall now leave the World to judge , whether what you call a new sort of Discipline , and my new Method , be an impracticable Chimaera , as you are pleas'd to say it is . And now , having seen and examined , as you say , the main of my Treatise , you tell me you think you might here end without going any farther . And so , Sir , I think you might , for any thing you have said against the rest of it . But that I may not think my self , or any of my Arguments neglected , you promise to go over the remainder . And ●o there is no help for it , but I must wait upon you . But you must excuse me , if I do not here prove over again , that what I make to be the Author's Fourth Proposition , is really his Proposition , and that his last Proposition is wholly built upon that . You say the business of my next Paragraph is to prove , Tha● if Force be useful , then somebody must certainly have a right to use it : And that the first Argument I go about to prove it by , is this , That Usefulness is as good an Argument to prove there is somewhere a right to use it , as Uselessness is to prove no body has such a right : Whereas neither is that my Proposition , nor this my Argument . For my words are these : If there be so great Use and Necessity of outward Force ( duly temper'd and applied ) for the promoting tr●e Religion , and the Salvation of Souls , as I have endeavour'd to shew there is : this is as good an Argument to prove that there is somewhere a right to use such Force for that purpose , as the utter Uselessness of Force ( if that could be made out ) would be , to prove that no body has any such right . Where every one sees that I do not inferr a right to use Force from the Usefulness of it barely ( as you make me , ) but from the Necessity , as well as Usefulness of it . For though the utter Uselessness of Force ( if ●t could be made out ) would , as I here acknowledge , be a good Argument to prove that no body has any right to use it ; yet I never thought that the bare Usefulness of it was sufficient to prove that there is a right somewhere to use it . But if Force be both useful and necessary ; that , I think , is a good proof of it : And that is the thing I insist upon . You might therefore have spared the pains you have taken to prove that Usefulness of Punishment cannot give a Commission to punish ; or that useful Punishment from every hand is not lawful : For I never asserted the contrary . But because some perhaps may think that there is more in the Instance you here make use of , than what you intend to prove by it ; it may not be amiss briefly to shew there is not . That Instance is this : You say a man may have the Stone , and it may be useful ( more than indirectly and at a distance useful ) to him to be cut ; but yet this usefulness will not justify the most skilful Chi●urgeon in the world , by Force to make him endure the pain and hazard of Cutting ; because he has no commission , no right , without the Patient 's own consent to do so . Nor is it a good Argument , Cutting will be useful to him ; therefore there is a right somewhere to cut him , whether he will or no. Now that this Instance does not come up to the Point in question between us , is very evident . For 1. It is to be consider'd , That the Stone does not always kill , though it be not cured ; but men do often live to a great age with it , and die at last of other Distempers . But Aversion to the true Religion is certainly and inevitably mortal to the Soul , i● not cured ; and so of absolute necessity to be cured . And yet if we should suppose the Stone as certainly destructive of this temporal life , as that Aversion is of men's eternal Salvation : even so , the necessity of curing it would be as much less , than the necessity of curing that Aversion , as this temporal Life falls short in value of that which is eternal . And 2. It may be consider'd , That Cutting for the Stone is not always necessary , in order to the Cure : And that even where it is most so , it is withall hazardous by your own confession , and may kill , as well as cure , and that without any fault of the Patient . But the Penalties I speak of , as they are altogether necessary ( without extraordinary Grace ) to cure that pernicious , and otherwise untractable Aversion ; so they can no way endanger or hurt the Soul , but by the fault of him that undergoes them . And if these things be true ; if there be no such Necessity that persons troubled with the Stone should be cured of it , as there is , that such as are possess'd with an Aversion to the true Religion should be cured of that Aversion ; And i● Cutting for the Stone , be neither so necessary , nor yet so safe a Means of curing , as moderate Penalties are in the other case : Then how reasonable soever you may suppose it , that it should be left to the Patient's choice , whether he shall be cut or not ; and how true soever it may be , that the most skilful Chirurgeon in the world has no Commission , no right , without the Patient 's own consent , by Force to make him endure the pain and hazard of Cutting ; The Magistrate may nevertheless have a right to use Penalties to cure men of their Aversion to the true Religion : For 't is plain enough , these things may very well s●and together . This may suffice to shew , how short this Instance falls of the Case before us . However I shall add , That though , as things now stand , no Chirurgeon has any right to cut his Calculous Patient , without his consent ; yet if the Magistrate should by a Publick Law appoint and authorize a competent number of the most skilful in that Art , to visit such as labour under that Disease , and to cut those ( whether they consent or not ) whose Lives they unanimously judge it impossible to save otherwise : I am apt to think you would find it hard to prove , that in so doing he exceeded the bounds of his Power : And I am sure it would be as hard to prove , that those Artists would have no right , in that case , to cut s●ch Persons . Whereas you say in this Paragraph , that to justify Punishment , it is requisite that it be directly useful for the procuring some greater good , than that which it takes away ; I wish you had told us why it must needs be directly useful for that pupose : or why Penalties are not as directly useful for the bringing men to the true Religion , as the rod of correction is to drive foolishness from a Child , or to work wisdom in him . Why Force was not necessary for the first 300 years after Christ , has already been shewn . And whoever considers the acco●nt which has been given of that matter , will easily see , that unless that which made Force needless then ; does still continue ; it may be necessary now , though it was not then . But here you think you put me a very confounding Question . If , say you , your supposed Usefulness ( and Necessity , you should have added ) places a right somewhere to use it , pray tell me in whose hands it places it in Turky , Persia , or China , or any Country where Christians of different Churches live under a Heathen or Mahometan Sovereign ? But , Sir , I answer roundly and plainly , In the hands of the Sovereign . What ? ( will you say ) a right in Mahometan or Pagan Princes hands to use Force upon Christians , for fear ( as you speak ) lest mankind , in those Countries , should be unfurnish'd with means for the promoting God's honour and the good of Souls ? No , Sir : but a right to use convenient Penalties for the promoting the true Religion ; which I think is the promoting God's honour and the good of Souls . If this startle you ; then I must tell you further , that I look upon the Supreme Power to be the same all the World over , in what hands soever it is placed : And I take this Right to be contain'd in it . And if those that have it , do not use it as they ought , but instead of promoting true Religion by proper Penalties , set themselves to enforce Mahometanism , or Paganism , or any other false Religion : all that can , or that needs be said to that matter is , that God will one day call them to an account for their neglect of their Duty , for the Dishonour they do to him , and for the Souls that perish by their fault . You say , The Author having endeavour'd to shew that no body at all , of any rank or condition , had a power to punish , torment , or use any man ill , for matters of Religion ; you tell us you do not yet understand why Clergy-men are not as capable of such Power as other men . Which is said with the same Ingenuity which you have used in other places . For whoever will but consult the place , must see that the Power I speak of , is externally coactive Power , in general , and not a Power to punish , torment , or use men ill , for matters of Religion , as you make it to be . And whether the Author did , or did not give me any occasion , in a short Parenthesis to declare my dissent from those who think Clergy-men incapable of externally coactive Power , I think the fortune of Europe does not depend upon it . But it seems you wanted an occasion to shew your good will towards the Clergy , and so you made your self one . Your next Paragraph is so gross and palpable a Mistake at least , that I can hardly think fit to spend any words about it . In short thus it is . Page 18. of my Answer I have these words : That Commonwealths are instituted for these ends ( viz. for the procuring , preserving and advancing men's Civil Interests ) no man will deny . But if there be any other ends besides these , attainable by Civil Society and Government ; there is no reason to affirm that these are the onely Ends for which they are designed . Doubtless Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining of all the Benefits which Political Government can yield . And therefore if the Spiritual and Eternal Interests of men may any way be procured or advanced by Political Government ; the procuring and advancing those Interests must in all reason be reckon'd among the Ends of Civil Societies , and so , consequently , fall within the compass of the Magistrate's Jurisdiction . Where I think it is plain enough to any Reader , that by ●hose words , Doubtless Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining of all the Benefits which Political Government can yield , I design to prove , not that there be other Ends attainable &c. but that if there be , there is then no reason to affirm that the procuring , preserving and advancing men's Civil Interests are the onely Ends for which Commonwealths are designed . And yet you say here , How do you prove there be other Ends ? Why thus . Doubtless Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining all the Benefits which Political Government can yield . And least the Reader should not take sufficient notice of it , you repeat it again : The Question is , say you , Whether Civil Society be instituted onely for Civil Ends ? You say , No ; and your proof is , Because , Doubtless it is instituted for other Ends. Now , Sir , I will not say , Doubtless , when you wrote this , you were conscious that you misrepresented my Argument ; ( though it be very hard to think you were not : ) But all the World will allow me to say , Doubtless , if you were conscious , you did what no Fair-dealer would have done . Though it be very true , that the Author offers three Considerations to prove that the Civil Power neither can nor ought in any manner to be extended to the Salvation of Souls ; yet it may be true also , that he does but beg the Question , when he affirms that the the Commonwealth is constituted only for the procuring , preserving and advancing the Civil Interests of the Members of it . For certainly this Affirmation , and that which he goes about to prove by those Considerations , are not the same thing . But you say the Author does not beg the Question . For that being , Whether Civil Interest be the onely End of Civil Society , he gives this reason for the Negative ; That Civil Power has nothing to do with the Salvation of Souls . But , in my opinion , you would have come nearer the truth , if you had said ( just the reverse ) that the Question being , Whether Civil Power has any thing to do with the Salvation of Souls , the Author gives this Reason for the Negative , That Civil Interest is the onely End of Civil Society . For the very truth of the matter is this . The Question being , Whether the Magistrate has any right to use any kind of Force or Penalties , to bring men to the true Religion , the Author holds the Negative , and in order to the proving it , advances this Principle , That the Commonwealth is constituted onely for the procuring , preserving , and advancing men's Civil Interests ; or , as you express it , That Civil Interest is the onely End of Civil Society . Consequently to which he affirms , That Civil Power has nothing to do with the Salvation of Souls ; and thence inferrs the Point he undertook to prove , viz. That the Magistrate has no right to use any kind of Force or Penalties , to bring men to the true Religion , in order to the Salvation of their Souls . Now this I acknowledge to be a very good way of proving the Conclusion , if that Principle be true : But that I think no man is bound to grant : and I suppose I have shewn sufficient reason why I think so . And therefore because our Author assumes that Principle , without proving it , I said , and do now again say , that he does but beg the Question . 'T is true , he offers three Considerations afterwards , to prove the same thing which he designed to support by that Principle . But what is that to the business ? Will it follow from thence , that he does not beg the Question , when he takes that for a Principle , which his Adversaries are as far from granting , as they are from granting the Conclusion he intends to establish by it ? This you will never be able to shew . And now , say you , let us examine the truth of your main Position , viz. That Civil Society is instituted for the attaining all the Benefits that it may any way yield . But what if this which you call my main Position , be no Position at all of mine ? That which I say , is , That Commonwealths , or Civil Societies are instituted for the a●taining of all the Benefits which Political Government can yield , or for all the Ends which are attainable by Civil Society and Government : ( not , by the Civil Society , as you make it , where you pretend to set down my words . ) Now I suppose there is some difference between Civil Society , and a Civil Society or Common-wealth . A Civil Society all men understand to be a Collection or Multitude of Men living together under the same Political Laws and Government . But Civil Society is nothing else but men's living so together : That is , it is not a Civil Society , but that which makes a Collection of men a Civil Society . Neither do I say , That Commonwealths , or Civil Societies are instituted for the attaining of all the Benefits they can yield , ( as you insinuate ; ) which is very improper : For Civil Societies do onely attain and enjoy the Benefits , which Civil Society or Government yields . And accordingly I say they are instituted for the attaining of all the Benefits which Civil Society , or Political Government can yield . And this I took to be so plain a Truth , that I thought it no great boldness to usher it in with a Doubtless . And I confess I am still so much of the same mind , that I can hardly believe that any man , who has not a very urgent occasion , will make any question of it . For if what has hitherto been universally acknowledged , be true , viz. That no Power is given in vain , but to be used upon occasion ; I think a very little Logick may serve a man to draw this Conclusion from it , That all Societies are instituted for the attaining all the good , or all the benefits they are enabled to attain : Because if you except any of those benefits , you will be obliged to admit , that the Power of attaining them was given in vain . Nor will it follow from hence , that all Societies are instituted for one and the same End ( as you imagine it will , ) unless you suppose all Societies enabled , by the Powers they are endued with , to attain the same End : which I believe no man hitherto did ever affirm . And therefore , notwithstanding this Position , there may be still as great a difference as you please , between Church and State ; a Commonwealth and an Army ; or between a Family and the East-India Company . Which several Societies , as they are instituted for different Ends , so are they likewise furnish'd with different Powers , proportionate to their respective Ends. To your next Paragraph , after what has already been said , I think it may suffice to say as follows . Though perhaps the Peripatetick Philosophy may not be true ; ( and perhaps it is no great matter , if it be not : ) yet the true Religion is undoubtedly true . And though perhaps a great many have not time , nor Parts to study that Philosophy ; ( and perhaps it may be no great matter neither , if they have not : ) yet all that have the true Religion duly tender'd them , have time , and all , but Idiotes and Mad-men , have Parts likewise to study it , as much as it is necessary for them to study it . And though perhaps a great many who have studied that Philosophy , c●nnot be convinced of the truth of it ; ( which perhaps is no great wonder : ) yet no man ever studied the true Religion with such care and diligence as he might and ought to use , and with an honest mind , but he was convinced of the truth of it . And that those who cannot otherwise be brought to do this , should be a little disturb'd and diseas'd to bring them to it , I take to be the Interest , not onely of those particular persons who by this means may be brought into the way of Salvation , but of the Commonwealth likewise , upon these two accounts . 1. Because the true Religion , which this Method propagates , makes good Men ; and good Men are always the best Subjects , or Members of a Commonweal●h ; not onely as they do more sincerely and zealously promote the Publick Good , than other men ; but likewise in regard of the favour of God , which they often procur● to the Societies of which they are Members . And 2. Because this Care in any Commonwealth , of God's Honour and Men's Salvation , entitles it to his special protection and blessing . So that where this Method is used , it proves both a Spiritual and a Civil Benefit to the Commonwealth . You say I speak very improperly , or rather very mistakenly , if I call such Benefits as may any way ( i. e. indirectly , and at a distance , or by Accident ) be attain'd by Civil , or any other Society , the Ends for which it is instituted : Whereas indeed the Mistake lies on your side , ( which I must now again put you in mind of ) in thinking that by indirectly and at a distance , I mean by Accident , in your sense ; which I no where gave you any occasion to think . And therefore I can easily admit , that nothing can in reason be reckon'd among the Ends of any Society , but what may in reason be supposed to be designed by those who enter into it . ( Though I see no reason , why the Author or Institutor of any Society , especially of Civil Society , may not be supposed to design more than those usually do , who enter in●o it . ) But what follows from this ? Why , you say , No body can in reason suppose that any one enter'd into Civil Society for the procuring , securing , or advancing the Salvation of his Soul ; when he , for that end , needed not the Force of Civil Society . So that it seems , the reason why the procuring , securing , or advancing the Salvation of Souls , must not be reckon'd among the Ends of Civil Societies , is , because there is no need of the Force of Civil Society for that End : The contrary whereof has , I suppose , already be●n sufficiently made good . But whereas I say , Doubtless Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining of all the Benefits which Political Government can yield ; and therefore &c. Upon the same Grounds , say you , thus I reason . Doubtless Churches are instituted for the attaining of all the Benefits which Ecclesiastical Government can yield : And therefore if the Temporal and Secular Interests of Men may any way be procured , or advanced by Ecclesiastical Politie ; the procuring and advancing those Interests must in all reason be reckon'd among the Ends of Religious Societies , and so consequently fall within the compass of Churchmen's Iurisdiction . Well , Sir ; I admit the Consequence , and do freely own the procuring and advancing the Temporal and Secular Interests of Men , to be one of the Ends ( an inferiour , or secundary End ) of Religious Societies , &c. And what do you conclude from thence ? Why , The Church of Rome , you say , has openly made its advantage of Secular Interests to be procured or advanced , indirectly , and at a distance , and in ordine ad spiritualia ; all ●hich ways ( if I mistake not English ) are comprehended under your any way . But I do not remember that any of the Reformed Churches have hi●herto directly profess'd it . But there is a time for all things . So that it seems , what the Church of Rome has openly made its advantage of , I am endeavouring to bring it in at a back-door , to the Reformed Churches : For that I take to be the thing you would insinuate by these words . But what is it , I beseech you , that the Church of Rome has openly made its advantage of ? For I confess I do not understand what you mean by Secular Interests to be procured or advanced indirectly , and at a distance , and in ordine ad spiritualia . That some of the Bishops of Rome have made their advantage of a Power they claim'd , to dispose of all Secular matters as they thought fit , even to the deposing of Kings and Emperours , and the bestowing their Dominions on whomsoever they pleas'd ; And that they claim'd this Power as belonging to them ( at least as Bellarmine minces the matter ) not directly and immediately ( i. e. not for the procuring or advancing men's Secular Interests ) but onely indirectly and at a distance , viz. in ordine ad spiritualia ; This is very notorious , and cannot be denied . But is there no difference between Temporal Power and Politie , and Ecclesiastical Politie or Government , consisting in the exercise of Spiritual Power onely ? between Temporal Power , paramount to all the Power of the Kings of the Earth , and Ecclesiastical Politie , subject to be many ways limited and regulated by the Civil Power ? between procuring or advancing Spiritual Interests by such an infinite Temporal Power and Secular Politie , and procuring and advancing men's Temporal and Secular Interests by Ecclesiastical Politie or Government , onely as the Civil Power shall require , or allow ? Had you told us tr●ly and plainly , what it is that the Church of Rome has openly made its advantage of ; these differences would have been visible to every eye : But then your designe had been spoil'd . But you tell us , there is a time for all things ; and so I perceive there is : For otherwise we had never been troubled with such a spightful piece of Impertinence ( not to say , Nonsense ) as you have here given us . What you urge from Eph. 4. amounts to no more than a Negative Argument , and so deserves not to be consider'd . And to the rest of that Paragraph , I think enough has been said already . You say : Commonwealths , or Civil Societies and Governments , if you will believe the judicious Mr. Hooker , are as St. Peter calls them ( 1. Pet. 2.13 . ) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the contrivance and institution of man , &c. ( 'T is well for St. Peter , that he has the judicious Mr. Hooker on his side : For it seems , we should not otherwise have so much reason to believe him . ) And in all Societies instituted by man , the Ends of them can be no other than what the Institutors appointed . But here you may consider , that as St. Peter calls ( not Commonwealths , or Civil Societies , as you say , but those who administer the Government of them , viz. ) the King , or Emperour , and Governours sent by him , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , which you render the Contrivance and Institution of man : So St. Paul teaches us that the Supreme Powers are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , order'd , disposed , or set in their places by God : That they are accordingly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the Disposition , or Ordinance of God : And that they bear the Sword , and punish them that do evil , as the Ministers of God , i.e. as appointed and commission'd by him so to do : For how they can be his Ministers , for that , or any other purpose , without his appointment and Commission , is not to be understood . So that , if you will believe the Scriptures , the Civil Powers , or , if you please , Civil Society and Government are so the Contrivance and Institution of Man , as to be withall the Ordinance and Institution of God. And as to the judicious Mr. Hooker ( as you justly call him , ) if you would have it thought , that he so referrs Civil Society and Publick Government to the Contrivance and Institution of Man , as either to exclude God Almighty from having any hand in it , or to leave men to their choice , whether they will live in such Society or not , or for what Ends they will enter into it : The least that can be said is , that you do very much mistake him . For though he asserts , that all Publick Regiment arose from deliberate Advice , Consultation , and Composition between men , judging it convenient and behoveful ; there being no impossibility in Nature consider'd by it self , but that men might have lived without any Publick Regiment : And that , as to the kinds of Regiment , Nature ties not to any one , but leaves the choice as a thing arbitrary : Yet he asserts withall expresly , that we are naturally induced to seek Communion and Fellowship with others ; and that this was the cause of men's uniting themselves at first in Politick Societies ; and that , the corruption of our nature being presupposed , we may not deny , but that the Law of Nature does now require of necessity some kind of Regiment . By which it appears , that how much soever he allows , in respect of the particular Forms of Commonwealths , or Ki●ds of Government , to the Choice and Contrivance of Man ; he derives Civil Society and Government in general , from Nature , and the Law of Nature , and so from God , the Author of that Law. Now if according to the Scriptures , and even to the judicious Mr. Hooker , God is the Author and Institutor of Civil Society in general ; then the Ends of it , as your self must grant , can be no other than what He has appointed : and all that is left to the Choice and Contrivance of Man , is onely the framing and modelling Commonwealths , and the Government of them , as Prudence shall direct , for the better attaining the Ends which He has fix'd and prescribed . You say St. Peter shews , in the place you referr to , for what End Commonwealths are instituted , viz. for the punishment of evil-doers , and the praise of them that do well . But you say you do not find any where , that it is for the punishment of those who are not in Church-Communion with the Magistrate . Nor do I any where say it is . But if rejecting the true Religion , or declining the Communion of the Church of God , be doing evil ; then they that do so , are Evil-doers : and then you see what you get by St. Peter's words . But you say you are sure the Ends of Commonwealths , appointed by the Institutors of them , could not be their Spiritual and E●ernal Interests . But why not , if their Spiritual and Eternal Interests may be promoted by Political Government , as I think I have shewn they may ? Why , you say , they cannot stipulate about these one with another , ( which I suppose you explain by the following words ) nor submit this Interests to the Power of the Society , or any Sovereign they should set over it . Very true , Sir : But they can submit to be punish'd in their Temporal Interests , if they despise or neglect ●●ose greater Interests . Which is all they need to do . The News you tell us here from the West-Indies , of Com●onw●alths there , wherein , in tim● of Peace , no body has any Auth●rity over any of the Members of t●●m , is indeed very wonderful and surprizing . For I confess I thou●ht before , that there could be no Commonwealth , without Government ; nor Government , without Authority in some body , over those who are to be govern'd . To conclude , my Argument , you tell me , has that defect in it , which turns it upon my self : Because the procuring , and advancing the Spiritual and Eternal Interests of Souls , my way , is not a Benefit to the Society , but proper to do more harm than good , as you say you have proved already . Of which I shall leave the Reader to judge , by what has been said to that matter . My saying , that to argue , as the Author does , that the Civil Power neither can nor ought in any manner to be extended to the Salvation of Souls , because the Care of Souls is not committed to the Civil Magistrate , more than to other men , is onely to prove the thing by its self , is undoubtedly true in the sense of the word extended which I there take it in . However , you see I did not insist upon the matter , but was content to let it pass . And if I did not righ●ly apprehend what the Author means by that word in that place , I think I may be excused , since you were forced to go eleven Pages further to discover it . As to your next Paragraph , I think I might now wholly pass it over . I shall onely tell you , that as I have often heard , so I hope I shall always hear of Religion establish'd by Law. For though the Magistrate's Authority can add no force or sanction to any Religion , whether true or false , nor any thing to the Truth or Validity of his own , or any Religion whatsoever ; yet I think it may do much toward the upholding and preserving the true Religion , within his Jurisdiction ; and in that respect may properly enough be said to establish it . It remains now , you say , to examine , whether the Author's Argument will not hold good , even against Punishments in my way . And to shew that it will , thus you discourse : If the Magistrate's Authority be , as you here say , Onely to procure all his Subjects the means of discovering the way of Salvation , and to procure withall , as much as in him lies , that none remain ignorant of it , or refuse to embrace it , either for want of using those means , or by reason of any such Prejudices as may render them ineffectual . If this be the Magistrates business , in reference to all his Subjects ; I desire you , or any man else , to tell me how this can be done , by the application of Force onely to a part of them ; Unless you will still vainly suppose ignorance , negligence , or prejudice , onely amongst that part which any where differs from the Magistrate . But how little to the purpose this Request of yours is ▪ will quickly appear . For if the Magistrate provides sufficiently for the instruction of all his Subjects in the true Religion ; and then requires them all , under convenient Penalties , to hearken to the Teachers and Ministers of it , and to profess and exercise it with one accord , under their direction , in Publick Assemblies : Is there any pretense ●o say , that in so doing he applies Force onely to a part of his Subjects ; when the Law is general , and excepts none ? 'T is true , the Magist●ate inflicts the Penalties in that case , onely upon them that break the Law. But is that the thing you mean by his applying For●e onely to a part of his Subjects ? Would you have him punish all , indifferently ? them that obey the Law , as well as them that do not ? As to Ignorance , Negligence and Prejudice , I desire you , or any man else , to tell me what better course can be taken to cure them , than that which I have mention'd . For if after all that God's Ministers , and the Magistrate can do , some will still remain ignorant , negligent , or prejudiced ; I do not take that to be any disparagement to it : For certainly that is a very extraordinary Remedy , which infallibly cures all diseas'd persons to whom it is applied . But say you , if you say , as you do , That the Magistrate ●as Authority to lay such Penalties upon those who refuse to embrace ●he Doctrine of the proper Ministers of Religion , and to submit to their Spiritual Government , as to make them bethink themselves so as not to be alienated from the Truth : Against that also the Author's Argument holds , That the Magistrate has no such Authority . 1. Beca●se God never gave the Magistrate an Authority to be Iudge of Truth for another man in matters of Religion : and so he cannot be Iudge whether any man be alienated from the Truth or no. 2. Because the Magistrate had never authority given him to lay any Penalties on those who refuse to embrace the Doctrine of the proper Ministers of his Religion ( or of any other ) or to submit to their Spiritual Government , more than any other men . Which latter Reason , as far as it respects the true Religion ( and I am no farther concern'd in it ) is th● very thing in question between us , and therefore ought not to be offer'd as a Reason . But as to the other , I grant that God never gave the Magistrate any Authority to be Iudge of Truth for another man , or to prescribe to him what he shall believe ( for that I take to be your meaning ) in any matter whatsoever . But how does it follow from thence , that he cannot be Judge whether any man be alienated from the Truth , or no ? Can no man be Judge of that , unless he have Authority to be Judge of Truth for other men , or to prescribe to them what they shall believe ? Rectum est index sui , & obliqui . And certainly whoever does but know the Truth , may easily judge whether other men be alienated from it , or no. And therefore if the Magistrate knows the Truth ; though he has no authority to judge of Truth for other men ; yet he may be Judge whether other men be alienated from the Truth , or no ; and so may have Authority to lay some Penalties upon those whom he sees to be so , to bring them to judge more sincerely for themselves . To shew that the Care of Souls is not committed to the Civil Magistrate , any more than to other men , the Author endeavours to prove that it is neither committed to him by God , nor by the People . Now in my Answer , I think I shew that he fails as to both these Points ; so that whether we say the Care of Souls is committed to the Magistrate by God , or that it is vested in him by the consent of the People , either of these Assertions may be true , for any thing he has said to prove the contrary . Particularly , whereas he says , that no such Power ( as the Care of Souls committed to the Magistrate implies ) can be vested in the Magistrate by the consent of the People , because no man can so far abandon the care of his own Salvation , as blindly to leave it to the choice of any other , whether Prince or Subject , to prescribe to him what Faith or Worship he shall embrace : To this I answer , That as the Power of the Magistrate in reference to Religion ( or the Salvation of Souls ) is ordain'd for the bringing men to take such care as they ought of their Salvation , that they may not blindly leave it to the choice , neither of any other Person , nor yet of their own Lusts and Passions , to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall embrace : So if we suppose this Power to be vested in the Magistrate by the consent of the People ; this will not import their abandoning the care of their Salvation , but rather the contrary . And so I proceed to shew that it is every man's interest , in respect of his Salvation , that the Magistrate should have such a Power committed to him . Now what exception do you make to this ? Why , you say this is a pleasant Answer ; and you desire me to consider , 1. Whether it be not pleasant that I say the Power of the Magistrate is ordain'd to bring men to take such care ; and thence inferr , Then it is every man's Interest to vest such Power in the Magistrate ? Well , Sir ; I have consider'd this , but can by no means discern where the Pleasantness of it lies . For if the Power I speak of , be of such a nature as I have represented it ; it will follow unavoidably , not onely that the People may vest it in the Magistrate without abandoning the care of their Salvation , or leaving it blindly to the choice of another to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall embrace ; but likewise , that it is every one's Interest ( supposing it in his power ) to vest it in him . But you are pleas'd to assist me in your next words : For , say you , if it be the Power of the Magistrate , it is his . And what need the People vest it in him ; unless there be need , and it be the best course they can take , to vest a Power in the Magistrate , which he has already ? So that herein , it seems , lies the Pleasantness of what I say . But what a miserable Cavil is this ! For cannot I enquire , whence the Magistrate receives his Power ; without suppo●ing it his , before he receives it ? Or cannot I say , that the Power of the Magistrate is such in the nature of it , that if we suppose it vested in him by the consent of the People , this will not import their abandoning the care of their Salvation , but rather the contrary , because it is the Interest of the People ( supposing it in their power ) to vest such a Power in him : Cannot I say this , without implying that the Magistrate has this Power already , before the People have vested it in him ? What pretense can any man have to affirm this ? especially considering , that my words do so plainly tend , as any man may see , to shew that the Power which I claim for the Magistrate , does therefore belong to him , because it is vested in him either by God , or by the People : As it may be by either , for any thing the Author , or your self have said to the contrary . 2. Another pleasant thing which you tell me I here say , is , That the Power of the Magistrate is to bring men to such a care of their Salvation that they may not blindly leave it to the choice of any person , or of their own lusts and passions , to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall embrace ; And yet that 't is their best course t● vest a Power in the Magistrate , liable to the same lusts and passions as themselves , to choose for them . But where , I beseech you , do I say , that it is the People's best course to vest a Power in the Magistrate to choose for them ? That you do not pretend to shew : but instead of it , you say , If they vest a Power in the Magistrate to punish them when they dissent from his Religion , to bring them to act , even against their own Inclination , according to Reason and sound Iudgement ; or to bring them to consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them : How far is this from leaving it to the choice of another man to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall embrace ? Which is just nothing to your purpose . For I speak not of the Magistrate's Religion , but of the true Religion , and that proposed with sufficient Evidence of the Truth of it . And if the People do onely vest a Power in the Magistrate , to punish them when they reject that Religion so proposed , to bring them to act according to Reason and sound Iudgement , &c. I think that is far enough from leaving it to the choice of another man , to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall embrace . But it seems you have not done with this yet . For you say you do neither me nor the Magistrate Injury , when you say that the Power I give the Magistrate , of punishing men to make them consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them , is to convince them of the truth of his Religion ( whatever that be ) and to bring them to it . Which seems a little strange , and pleasant too . But thus you prove it : For men will never , in his opinion , act according to Reason and sound Iudgement , till they embrace his Religion . And if you have the brow of an honest man , you will not say the Magistrate will ever punish you to bring you to consider any other Reasons and Arguments but such as are proper to convince you of the truth of his Religion , and to bring you to that . Which ( besides the pleasant talk of such Reasons and Arguments as are proper and sufficient to convince men of the truth of the Magistrate's Religion , though it be a false one ) is just as much as to say , It is so , because in the Magistrate's opinion it is so ; and because it is not to be expected that he will act against his opinion . As if the Magistrate's Opinion could change the nature of things , and turn a Power to promote the true Religion , into a Power to promote a false one . No , Sir : The Magistrate's Opinion has no such virtue . It may indeed keep him from exercising the Power he has to promote the true Religion ; and it may lead him to abuse the pretense of it , to the promoting a False one : But it can neither destroy that Power , nor make it any thing but what it is . And therefore whatever the Magistrate's Opinion be , his Power was given him ( as the Apostles Power was to them ) for edification onely , not for destruction : And it may always be said of him ( what St. Paul said of himself ) that he can do nothing against the Truth , but for the Truth . And therefore if the Magistrate punishes me , to bring me to a False Religion ; it is not his Opinion that will excuse him , when he comes to answer for it to his Judge . For certainly men are as accountable for their Opinions ( those of them , I mean , which influence their Practice ) as they are for their Actions . Here is therefore no shifting forwards and backwards , as you pretend ; nor any Circle , but in your own Imagination . For though it be true that I say The Magistrate has no Power to punish men , to compell them to his Religion ; yet I no where say , nor will it follow from any thing I do say , That he has Power to compell them to consider Reasons and Arguments proper to convince them of the truth of his Religion . But I do not much wonder that you endeavour to put this upon me . For I think by this time it is pretty plain , that otherwise you would have but little to say : And it is an art very much in use among some sort of Learned Men , when they cannot confute what an Adversary does say , to make him say what he does not ; that they may have something which they can confute . Your next Paragraph runs high , and charges me with nothing less than Prevarication . For whereas , as you tell me , I speak of it here as the most deplorable Condition imaginable , that men should be left to themselves , and not be forced to consider and examine the Grounds of their Religion , and search impartially and diligently after the Truth , &c. It seems all the Remedy I offer is no more than this , Dissenters must be punish'd . Upon which thus you insult : Can any body that hears you say so , believe you in earnest ; and that want of Examination is the thing you would have amended , when want of Examination is not the thing you would have punish'd ? — But if in all your Treatise you can shew me one place where you say that the Ignorant , the Careless , the Inconsiderate , the negligent in examining , &c. are to be punish'd , I will allow your Remedy for a good one . But you have not said any thing like this ; and which is more , I tell you before hand you dare not say it . And whilst you do not , the World has reason to judge , that however want of Examination be a general Fault , which you with great vehemency have exaggerated ; yet you use it only for a pretense to punish Dissenters ; and either distrust your Remedy , or else care not to have it generally cured . Now here I acknowledge , that though want or neglect of Examination be a general Fault , yet the Method I propose for curing it , does not reach to all that are guilty of it , but is limited to those who reject the true Religion , proposed to them with sufficient Evidence . But then to let you see how little ground you have to say that I prevaricate in this matter , I shall onely desire you to consider , what it is that the Author and my self were enquiring after . For it is not , What course is to be taken to confirm and establish those in the Truth , who have already embraced it : Nor , How they may be enabled to propagate it to others : ( For both which purposes I have already acknowledged it very useful , and a thing much to be desired , that all such persons should , as far as they are able , search into the Grounds upon which their Religion stands , and challenges their belief : ) But the Subject of our enquiry is onely , What Method is to be used , to bring men to the true Religion . Now if this be the onely thing we were enquiring after , ( as you cannot deny it to be ; ) then every one sees that in speaking to this Point , I had nothing to do with any who have already embraced the true Religion ; because they are not to be brought to that Religion , but onely to be confirm'd and edified in it ; but was onely to consider how those who reject it , may be brought to embrace it . So that how much soever any of those who own the true Religion , may be guilty of neglect of Examination ; 't is evident , I was onely concern'd to shew how it may be cured in those , who , by reason of it , reject the true Religion , duly proposed or tender'd to them . And certainly to confine my self to this , is not to prevaricate , unless to keep within the bounds which the Question under debate prescribes me , be to prevaricate . In telling me therefore that I dare not say that the Ignorant , the Careless , the Inconsiderate , the negligent in examining , &c. ( i. e. all that are such ) are to be punish'd , you onely tell me that I dare not be impertinent . And therefore I hope you will excuse me , if I take no notice of the three Reasons you offer in your next Page , for your saying so . And yet if I had had a mind to talk impertinently ; I know not why I might not have dared to do so , as well as other men . There is one thing more in this Paragraph , which though nothing more pertinent than the rest , I shall not wholly pass over . It lies in these words : He that reads your Treatise with attention , will be more confirm'd in this Opinion ( viz. That I use want of Examination onely for a pretense to punish Dissenters , &c. ) when he shall find , that you ( who are so earnest to have men punish'd , to bring them to consider and examine , that so they may discover the way of Salvation ) have not said one word of considering , searching , and hearkening to the Scripture ; which had been as good a Rule for a Christian to have sent them to , as to Reasons and Arguments proper to convince them of you know not what , &c. How this confirms that Opinion , I do not see ; nor have you thought fit to instruct me . But as to the thing it self , viz. my not saying one word of considering , searching , and hearkening to the Scripture , whatever advantage a captious Adversary may imagine he has in it , I hope it will not seem strange to any indifferent and judicious Person , who shall but consider that throughout my Treatise , I speak of the true Religion onely in general , i. e. not as limited to any particular Dispensation , or to the Times of the Scriptures ; but as reaching from the fall of Adam to the end of the World ; and so comprehending the Times which preceeded the Scriptures ; wherein yet God left not himself without witness , but furnished Mankind with sufficient means of knowing Him and his Will , in order to their eternal Salvation . For I appeal to all Men of Art , whether , speaking of the true Religion under this generality , I could be allowed to descend to any such Rules of it , as belong only to some particular Times , or Dispensations : Such as you cannot but acknowledge the Old and New Testaments to be . You say that , Page 26. of my Answer , out of abundant kindness , when the Dissenters have their Heads ( without any cause ) broken , I provide them a Plaister . But whoever shall consider the Penalties I there speak of , will , I perswade my self , find no Heads broken , and so but little need of a Plaister . But having said there , That the Power I asscribe to the Magistrate , is given him to bring men , not to his own , but to the true Religion : And , That though ( as our Author puts us in mind ) the Religion of every Prince is Orthodox to himself ; yet if this Power keep within it's bounds ( i.e. if the Penalties the Magistrate makes use of to promote a False Religion , do not exceed the measure of those which he may warrantably use for the promoting the True , ) it can serve the interest of no other Religion but the True , among such as have any concern for their eternal Salvation ; ( and they that have none , deserve not to be consider'd ●● ) because the Penalties it enables him that has it to inflict , are not such as may tempt such persons either to renounce a Religion which they believe to be true , or to profess one which they do not believe to be so ; but onely such as are apt to put them upon a serious and impartial Examination of the Controversy between the Magistrate and them : which is the way for them to come to the knowledge of the Truth : I add these words ; And if upon such examination of the matter , they chance to find that the Truth does not lie on the Magistrate's side ; they have gain'd thus much however , even by the Magistrate's misapplying his Power , that they know better than they did before , where the Truth does lie , &c. ( Which is the Plaister you speak of . ) Now this you tell me is as true as if I should say , Upon Examination I find such a one is out of the way to York ; therefore I know better than I did before , that I am in the right . Where I shall only observe , that if you had put it , Therefore I know better than I did before , where the right way does lie , your Inference had run exactly parallel with mine . But then it would have been true too ; which was not for your purpose . You say , He that has been punished , may have examined before ; and then , you tell me , I am sure he gains nothing . Right , Sir. But neither does he lose much , if it be true , which I there add , That all the hurt that befalls him , is , onely the suffering some tolerable Inconveniencies , for his following the Light of this own Reason , and the Dictates of his own Conscience . But you go on , and say , However , you think you do well to encourage the Magistrate in punishing , and comfort the man who has suffer'd unjustly , by shewing what he shall gain by it . Whereas , on the contrary , in a Discourse of this nature , where the bounds of Right and Wrong are enquired into , and should be establish'd , the Magistrate was to be shew'd the bounds of his Authority , and warn'd of the injury he did when he misapplies his Power , and punish'd any man who deserv'd it not ; and not be sooth'd into injustice , by consideration of gain that might thence accrue to the Sufferer . Shall we do evil that good may come of it ? There are a sort of People who are very wary of touching upon the Magistrate's duty , and tender of shewing the bounds of his Power , and the injustice and ill consequences of his misapplying it ; at least , so long as it is misapplied in favour of them , and their Party . As to what you say here of the nature of my Discourse , I shall onely put you in mind , that the Question there debated is , Whether the Magistrate has any Right or Authority to use Force for the promoting the true Religion . Which plainly supposes the Unlawfulness and Injustice of using Force to promote a false Religion , as granted on both sides . So that I could no way be obliged to take notice of it in my Discourse , but onely as occasion should be offer'd . And whether I have not shew'd the bounds of the Magistrate's Authority , as far as I was any way obliged to do it , let any indifferent Person judge . But to talk here of a sort of People who are very wary of touching upon the Magistrate's duty , and tender of shewing the bounds of his Power , where I tell the Magistrate that the Power I asscribe to him in reference to Religion , is given him to bring men , not to his own , but to the true Religion ; and that he misapplies it , when he endeavours to promote a false Religion by it , is , methinks , at least a little unseasonable . Nor am I any more concern'd in what you say of the Magistrate's misapplying his Power in favour of a Party . For as you have not yet proved that his applying his Power to the promoting the true Religion ( which is all that I contend for ) is misapplying it ; so much less can you prove it to be misapplying it in favour of a Party . But that I encourage the Magistrate in punishing men to bring them to a false Religion ( for that is the punishing we here speak of ) and sooth him into Injustice , by shewing what those who suffer unjustly shall gain by it , when in the very same breath I tell him that by so punishing he misapplies his Power , is a Discovery which I believe none but your self could have made . When I say that the Magistrate misapplies his Power by so punishing ; I suppose all other men understand me to say , that he sins in doing it , and layes himself open to divine vengeance by it . And can he be encouraged to this , by hearing what others may gain by what ( without Repentance ) must cost him so dear ? 'T is true indeed , the Apostate Emperour ( who yet , by the way , was for Toleration , and talk'd much of his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) pretended to take encouragement from some of the Promises of the Gospel , to spoil and impoverish Christians , in consideration of what they would gain by it . But every one sees that this was no more than Pretense and Mockery , in one who believed nothing of those Promises , but only intended to ridicule and expose them . But had he believed the Promises made to Christians , he would have believed the Threats likewise which the Gospel denounces against their Persecutors . And can any man think he would have been so mad , as to deprive them of their Goods and Possessions , that they might gain the Kingdome of Heaven , when he knew that he should himself get nothing in the end but damnation by it ? But you say , and you undertake to prove , that this Mischief ( viz. the Magistrate's misapplying his Power ) upon my Principle , joyn'd to the natural thirst in man after Arbitrary Power , may be carried to all manner of exorbitancy , with some pretense of Right . Well , Sir ; though I do not think my self bound to take notice of all that may be done with some pretense of Right ; yet , however , let us see how you go about to prove this . Thus , say you , stands your System . If Force , i. e. Punishment , may be any way useful for the promoting the Salvation of Souls , there is a Right somewhere to use it . And this Rights is in the Magistrate . Who then , upon your grounds , may quickly find reason where it s●its his inclination , or serves his turn , to punish men directly to bring them to his Religion . For if he may use Force , because it may be , indirectly , and at a distance , any way , useful towards the Salvation of Souls , towards the procuring any degree of Glory ; Why may he not , by the same Rule , use it where it may be useful , at least indirectly , and at a distance , towards the procuring a greater degree of Glory ? For St. Paul assures us , that the Afflictions of this life work for us a far more exceeding weight of Glory . So that why should they not be punish'd , if in the wrong , to bring them into the right way ; If in the right , to make them by their Sufferings gainers of a far more exceeding weight of Glory ? But as prettily as this looks , I fear , if it be examined , it will not be found sufficient to prove even that little which you pretend to prove by it . For , first , you must give me leave to ask you once more , Where I say , If Force may be any way useful for the promoting the Salvation of Souls , there is a Right somewhere to use it ? For in the Page you referr to , the words are If there be so great Use and Necessity of outward Force for the promoting true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls , &c. Nor do I any where speak otherwise , that I know . But , secondly , let it be supposed if you please , that I say what you so often tell me I do , though I do not : Yet even so , unless it be as necessary for men to attain any greater degree of Glory , as it is to attain Glory , it will not follow , that if the Magistrate may use Force , because it may be indirectly , &c. useful towards the procuring any degree of Glory , he may by the same Rule , use it where it may be in that manner useful towards the procuring a greater degree of Glory . But that there is the same Necessity of men's attaining a greater degree of Glory , as there is of their attaining Glory , no man will affirm . For without attaining Glory , they cannot escape the damnation of Hell : which yet they may escape , without attaining any greater degree of Glory . So that the attaining Glory , is absolutely necessary : but the attaining any greater degree of it , however desirable , it is not so necessary . Now if there be not the same Necessity of the one of these , as there is of the other ; there can be no pretense to say , that whatever is lawful in respect to the one of them , is likewise so in respect to the other . And therefore thought St. Paul assures us that the Afflictions of this Life work for us a far more exceeding weight of Glory ; it will not follow from thence , even by the Rule which you make for me , but is not mine , That if men be in the right way , they may be punish'd to make them by their Sufferings gainers of a far more exceeding weight of Glory . So that your some pretense of Right , which was all that in modesty you could undertake to prove , comes at last to just none at all . But how unfortunate was I , to talk of the Magistrate's misapplying his Power , when he punishes those who have the Right on their side ! For by granting that , it seems I grant all that the Author contends for , and so give up the Cause I undertook to defend . So you tell me , Sir : and thus you think you prove what you say . For , say you , if the Magistrate misapplies , or makes a wrong use of his Power , when he punishes in matters of Religion any one who is in the Right , though it be but to make him consider ; he also misapplies his Power , when he punishes any one , whomsoever in Matters of Religion , to make him consider . Which is certainly as wonderful a Collection as any you make in your whole Letter : As any man may see , that will but compare the Magistrate's punishing in Matters of Religion any one who is in the Right to make him consider , with his punishing any one whomsoever ( i. e. any one who is in the Wrong ) in matters of Religion , to make him consider . For , first , to punish one who is in the Right , is to punish one who does not deserve to be punish'd ; which is manifestly unjust , whatever the end be for which he is punish'd . But to punish one who is in the Wrong , and refuses to consider what may convince him of the Right , ( and such onely are the persons whom I would have punish'd , ) is onely to punish one who well deserves to be punish'd ▪ which no man can pretend to be unjust . Again ; To punish one who is in the Right , to make him consider what may shew him the Right , and move him to embrace it ( which is the thing we mean here by considering , ) is vain and ridiculous ; because he does already discern and embrace the Right , and therefore needs not be made consider , to bring him to embrace it . But to punish one who is in the Wrong , and can by no othe● means be prevail'd upon to consider what may manifest the Righ● to him ; I say , to punish such a one to make him consider , is bu● reasonable and necessary ; because it is necessary for him to consider , and Punishment is necessary to bring him to consider . Now if these Cases are so widely different : If in the first o● them , the Magistrate punishes where there is neither any desert , nor any need , or use of Punishment , but in the other , he punishes where Punishment is both deserv'd , and necessary to be inflicted : Is there any imaginable ground to say , That if the Magistrate misapplies , or makes a wrong use of his Power , in the first Case , he does so likewise in the other ? Yes , you think there is . For , say you , every one is here Iudge for himself , what is Right ; And in matters of Faith , and Religious Worship , another cannot judge for him . So that to punish any one in matters of Religion , though it be but to make him consider , is by your 〈◊〉 Confession , beyond the Magistrate's Power . And that punishing in matters of Religion is beyond the Magistrate's Power , is ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) what the Author contends for . Which Demostration of yours ; if I may have leave to put it into from , stands thus : Whoever takes upon him to judge for another , what is Right in matters of Religion , takes upon him to do what no man can do . But whoever punishes any man in matters of Religion , to make him consider , takes upon him to judge for another , what is Right in matters of Religion . Therefore whoever punishes any one in Matters of Religion , to make him consider , takes upon him to do what no man can do : and consequently misapplies his Power of punishing , if he has that Power . Where if the Second Proposition were as evidently true , as the First is ; I should readily admit the Conclusion , as sufficiently demonstrated . But if that Proposition be so far from being evidently true , that , on the contrary , it is certainly false , and plainly involves a Contradiction in it ; then you must give me some better proof of the Conclusion , before I shall be obliged to assent to it . Now ( a little to examine that Proposition ; ) Why , I beseech you , does any one punish another to make him consider ? Is it not , that that other may judge for himself , of what he is required to consider ? For as he that will judge of any matter , must first consider it ; ( according to that old Rule , Si judicas , cognosce : ) So I know no use there is of considering , but in order to judging . And can he who punishes another to make him consider , that he may judge for himself of the matter to be consider'd , intend to judge for him , whom he punishes to make him judge for himself ? If this be manifestly contradictious and impossible , ( as it must be acknowledged to be ; ) then every one sees that it is so far from being evidently true , that whoever punishes any one in Matters of Religion , to make him consider , takes upon him to judge for another what is Right in Matters of Religion , that it is repugnant and absurd to say , that any man , who punishes another to make him consider , does at the same time take upon him to judge for that person , in any matter whatsoever . Thus you see with how little reason you say , that by granting that the Magistrate misapplies his Power , when he punishes those who have the Right on their side , I grant all that the Author contends for . Indeed if I had said that the Magistrate does therefore , in that Case , misapply his Power , because whoever punishes any one in matters of Religion to make him consider , takes upon him to judge for him what is Right , in matters of Religion ; you had had some ground for what you say . But that is no Reason of mine , but a● Assumption , or Supposition of yours ; and a very bad one too , as I hope has been sufficiently shewn . My following words ( which are the last you take notice of ) are these : — And all the hurt that comes to them by it , is onely the suffering some tolerable Inconveniencies for their following the Light of their own Reason , and the Dictates of their own Consciences : which certainly is no such Mischief to Mankind a● to make it more eligible that there should be no such Powe● vested in the Magistrate , but the care of every man's Soul should be left to himself alone ( as this Author demands it should be : ) That is , that every man should be suffer'd quietly , and withou● the least molestation , either to take no care at all of his Soul , i● he be so pleas'd ; or , in doing it , to follow his own groundless Prejudices , or unaccountable Humour , or any crafty Seducer whom he may think fit to take for his Guide . Which words you set down at large : but instead of contradicting them , or offering to shew that the Mischief spoken of , is such as makes it more eligible &c you onely demand , Why should not the care of every man's Soul be left to himself , rather than the Magistrate● Is the Magistrate like to be more concern'd for it ? Is the Magistrate like to take more care of it ? &c. As if not to leave the care of every man's Soul to himself alone , were , as you express it afterwards , to take the care of men's Souls from themselves : Or as if to vest a Power in the Magistrate , to procure as much as in him lies ( i.e. as far as it can be procured by convenient Penalties ) that men take such care of their Souls as they ought to do , were to leave the care of their Souls to the Magistrate , rather than to themselves : Which no man but your self will imagine . I acknowledge as freely as you can do , that as every man is more concern'd than any man else can be , so he is likewise more obliged , to take care of his Soul ; and that no man can by any means be discharged of the care of his Soul ; which , when all is done , will never be saved but by his own care of it . But do I contradict any thing of this , when I say , that the care of every man's Soul ought not to be left to himself alone ? or , that it is the Interest of Mankind , that the Magistrate be entrusted and obliged to take care , as far as lies in him , that no man neglect his own Soul ? I thought , I confess that every man was in some sort charged with the care of his Neigbour's Soul. But in your way of reasoning , he that affirms this , takes away the care of every man's Soul from himself , and leaves it to his Neighbour , rather than to himself . But if this be plainly absurd ; as every one sees it is ; then so it must be likewise , to say , that he that vests such a Power as we here speak of in the Magistrate , takes away the care of mens Souls from themselves , and places it in the Magistrate , rather than in themselves . What trifling then is it , to say here , If you cannot lay your hand upon your Heart , and say all this ( viz. that the Magistrate is like to be more concern'd for other men's Souls , than themselves , &c. ) What then will be got by the change ? For 't is plain , here is no such change as you would insinuate ; but the care of Souls which I assert to the Magistrate , is so far from discharging any man of the care of his own Soul , or lessening his obligation to it , that it serves to no other purpose in the world , but to bring men , who otherwise would not , to consider and do what the Interest of their Souls obliges them to . 'T is therefore manifest , that the thing here to be consider'd , is not , Whether the Magistrate be like to be more concern'd for other men's Souls , or to take more care of them , than themselves : nor , Whether he be commonly more careful of his own Soul , than other men are of theirs : nor , Whether he be less exposed , in matters of Religion , to Prejudices , Humours , and crafty Seducers , then other men : nor yet , Whether he be not more in danger to be in the wrong , than other men , in regard that he never meets with the great and onely Antidote of mine ( as you call it ) against Err●r which I here call Molestation . But the Point upon which this matter turns , is onely this , Whether the Salvation of Souls , be not better provided for , if the Magistrate be obliged to procure , as much as in him lies , that every man take such care as he ought of his Soul , than if he be not so obliged , but the care of every man's Soul be left to himself alone : Which certainly any man of common Sense may easily determine . For as you will not , I suppose , deny , but God has more amply provided for the Salvation of your own Soul , by obliging your Neighbour , as well as your self , to take care of it ; though 't is possible your Neighbour may not be more concern'd for it , than your self ; or may not be more careful of his own Soul , than you are of yours ; or may be no less exposed , in matters of Religion , to Prejudices , &c. than you are ; Because if you are your self wanting to your own Soul , it is more likely that you will be brought to take care of it , if your Neighbour be obliged to admonish and exhort you to it , than if he be not ; though it may fall out that he will not do what he is obliged to do in that case : So I think it cannot be denied , but the Salvation of all men's Souls is better provided for , if besides the obligation which every man has to take care of his own Soul ( and that which every man's Neighbour has likewise to do it ) the Magistrate also be entrusted and obliged to see that no man neglect his Soul , then it would be , if every man were left to himself in this matter : Because though we should admit that the Magistrate is not like to be , or is not ordinarily , more concern'd for other men's Souls , than they themselves are , &c. it is nevertheless undeniably true still , that whoever neglects his Soul , is more likely to be brought to take care of it , if the Magistrate be obliged to do what lies in him to bring him to do it , than if he be not . Which is enough to shew , that it is every man's true Interest , that the care of his Soul should not be left to himself alone , but that the Magistrate should be so far entrusted with it as I contend that he is . Having thus , Sir , as I think , consider'd all that is material in your Letter , and a great deal more ; I now referr it ( if I may use your words ) to your self , as well as to the judgement of the World , Whether the Author of the Letter , and your self , in saying no Body has a Right ; or I , in saying the Magistrate has a Right to use some degrees of Force in Matters of Religion , have most Reason . If you think the advantage lies on your side , and shall do me the favour to let me know why you think so ; I shall consider what you say , with all the care I can use , and with a mind as well d●sposed to receive Information , as your self can wish . And if upon such a consideration of what is offer'd , I find my self in an Error ; I shall freely acknowledge my Conviction with all thankfulness ; nor shall I be ashamed even publickly to retract my Error . But if instead of satisfactory Reason , I meet with nothing but Sophistry , and unfair dealing ; I am apt to think I shall content my self with what I have already said : being now sufficiently sensible , that Cavils and Impertinencies are endless , when a Man of Parts shall not disdain to make use of them . As to the Request you leave with me , That if ever I should write again about the means of bringing Souls to Salvation , I would take care not to prejudice so good a Cause by ordering it so , as to make it look as if I writ for a Party ; I do not see what need there was of i● ; having given you no occasion , that I know , to think or suspect , that in answering the Author's Argument , I writ for any Party , but God , and the Souls of men : A Party , which I hope I shall never desert . Indeed if I had misrepresented the Author of the Letter , and imposed upon him things which he never said ; if I had industriously set my self to make faults where there were none ; or had pretended to confute my Adversary by what I could not but know to be false , or nothing to the purpose : In short , if I had dealt with that Author , as I think it appears by this time his Defender has dealt with me ; then , I confess , you might well have suspected that I writ for some other Party . But if there be nothing of all this in my Answer , nor any thing unbecoming a man of Candour and Sincerity ; as you have not yet been able to shew that there is : then your Suggestion is altogether groundless , and uncharitable . What Party you writ for , when you writ your Letter , I will not take upon me to say . But I think I have too much occasion to leave this Request with you ; That if ever you write again about the Subject of our Debate , you would take care to make it look , as if you believed what you writ to be both pertinent and true . And then , as there will be less ground to suspect that you write for another Party : So there will be this further advantage by it , that a great deal less Paper will serve your turn . Sir , I am Your most humble Servant . Feb. 21 1691. Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A55926-e270 P. 1. A. p. 12 , 13 , 14. P. 6. P. 1. P. 2. A. p. 1. Iob. 17.9 , 15 , 20 , &c. Rom. 1.20 . Isai. 44.18 , 19 , 20. and 46.8 . Iob. 17.20 , 21. A. p. 4. A. p. 2. P. 2. A. p. 2. P. 2 , 3. P. 3. P. 3. P. 3. P. 3. P. 3. P. 4. P. 4. P. 4. P. 4. L. p. 9.23 , 24. P. 35. P. 4. P. 4 , 5. A. p. 2. see Mr. Edwards 's Gangroena . P. 5. A. p. 3. P. ● . L. p. 8. P. 6. A. p. 24 , 25 , 26. P. 6. P. 7. P. 7. A. p. 5. P. 7. P. 7. A. ● . 10 , 11 , 12 , 15 , 16. P. 8. P. 7. P. 8. A. p. 13.14 . P. 8 , 9. P. 9 , 10. P. 10. L. p. 3. P. 10. P. 10 , 11. A. p. 23. A. p. 5. P. 11. P. 12. P. ●2● A. p. 5. P. 12. P. 13. P. 13. P. 13. 2. Th●s . 2.10 , 11 , 12. P. 14. L. p. 8. A. p. 5. P. 14 P. 14 , 15. P. 15. P. 15. P. 15 , 16. P. 16. P. 17. P. 17. A. p. 6. P. 17. P. 18. P. 18. Iob 31.26 , 27 , 28. P. 18. P. 19. A p. 1● . P. 17. P. 19. Vid. Grot. ad M●rci cap. 4. com . 24. P. 19. Luke 12.14 . Mat. 10.8 . Vers. 15. Vid. Hen. Dodw●ll● Dissertat . in Irenaú , Diss. 2. P. 19. A. p. 10. P. ●0 . P 2● , ●1 . Acts 4.13 . P. 21. Iam. 1.20 . A. p. 10. Vid. M●t. 13.14 , 15. & Act. 28.25 , 26 , 27. P. 21 , 22. A. p. 11. P. 22. P. 23. P. 24. A. p. 5. Vid. ●ug . ●pist . 4● . & 50. P. 10. P. 25. P. 45. P. 46. A. ● . 14 . P. 41. P. 42. A. p. 26. P. 40. P. 4● , 44. P. 46. P. 46. P. 46. P. 46. A. p. 15. P. 47. Prov. 22.15 . — 29.15 . P. 47 , 48. P. 48. P. 48 , 49. A. p. 17. P. 50. P. 50. P. 51. L. ● . 6 . L. p. 6 , 7. P. 51. A. p. ●● . P. 50. P. 51 , 52. P. 52 , 53. A. p. 1● . P. 53. P. ●4 . P. 54. Rom. 13.1 . Vers. 2. Vers. 4. Eccl. Pol. lib. 1. ● . 10 . P. 55. A. p. 19. L. p. 7. P. 56. P. 56 , 57. P. 57 , 58. A. p. 21. P. 58 , 59. A. p. 20 , 21. L. p. 7. A p. 21 , 22. P. 5● P. 60. P. ●0 . P. 60 , 61 : P. 61. P. 64. P. 64. P. 64 , 65. Julianus Imp. Epist. 43. edit . Petav. P. 65. P. 66. A. p. 26 , 27. P. 67. P. 67. P. 68. 
A62888	----	The modern pleas for comprehension, toleration, and the taking away the obligation to the renouncing of the covenant considered and discussed. Tomkins, Thomas, 1637?-1675. 1675 Approx. 281 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 135 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-07 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A62888 Wing T1836 ESTC R4003 13195285 ocm 13195285 98410 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A62888) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 98410) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 553:17) The modern pleas for comprehension, toleration, and the taking away the obligation to the renouncing of the covenant considered and discussed. Tomkins, Thomas, 1637?-1675. [8], 259 p. Printed for R. Royston ..., London : 1675. Attributed to Thomas Tomkins. Cf. Nuc pre-1956. Reproduction of original in the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign Campus). Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Dissenters, Religious -- England -- Early works to 1800. Toleration -- Early works to 1800. Comprehension -- Early works to 1800. 2003-03 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2003-04 Aptara Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2003-05 Rina Kor Sampled and proofread 2003-05 Rina Kor Text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-06 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion THE Modern Pleas FOR COMPREHENSION , TOLERATION , AND The taking away the Obligation to the Renouncing of the COVENANT , Considered and Discussed . LONDON , Printed for R. Royston , Bookseller to His most Sacred Majesty . MDCLXXV . A SCHEME OF THE CONTENTS . How little Cause our Dissenters have , either for Separation or Alteration pag. 1 , 4. An Account of the Design of a Book entituled , Of the Religion of England p. 4 The Design of it inconsistent and unpracticable p. 7 , 9 The Terms of Communion , which the Church of England imposeth , are not sinful in the opinion of the most learned among the Dissenters p. 11 There is no sinfulness objected by them as to the 1. Articles p. 15 2. Liturgy p. 17 3. Canons or Ceremonies p. 23 It is no sufficient objection against our Ceremonies , that they are not by God commanded p. 25 Nor , that they are significant p. 26 Nor , that they grieve a pievish sort of men p. 29 There is no sinfulness , in that the Church imposeth new Bonds and Terms of Communion p. 36 Of the Assent and Consent ibid. Of renouncing the Covenant p. 40 Certain Articles of the Covenant , that make it dangerous not to be renounced p. 41 Artic. 1. p. 42 Artic. 2. p. 45 Artic. 3. p. 48 Artic. 4. p. 56 Artic. 5. p. 59 Artic. 6. p. 61 Of the Conclusion of it p. 63 An Instance in a known Presbyterian who did renounce publickly the Covenant , as to the most meritorious part of it , voluntarily , long before the Kings Restauration p. 69 How it comes to pass , that the Presbyterians and other Dissenters , whose Opinions and Pleas are mutually so inconsistent , do agree in their clamours for Liberty of Conscience p. 72 They themselves cannot agree , what Liberty of Conscience is , and what are its true bounds p. 74 Of Comprehension , and how little will be gained by granting it p. 77 Of unlimited Toleration p. 78 The Dissenters own Testimony against Toleration p. 81 Of Comprehension without Toleration p. 92 , 135 What the Presbyterians ought to do before they be admitted into the Church by Comprehension p. 94 , 140 , 178 What shall be done with the private mans Conscience , when it is inconsistent with that which the Conscience of the Governour dictates , whether of the two shall over-rule p. 98 Religion hath very great influence upon the Peace of any Government . 101 Magistrates , not alone in point of Interest but Conscience , are to have great care of Religion . p. 102 Objections and Authorities against this , answered . p. 105 Of the use of force in propagating Religion . p. 107 Of that Text , 2 Cor. 10. The Weapons of our Warfate are not carnal . ibid. That Objection , Force may not be used in pulling down Antichrist , therefore not in propagating Religion , retorted . p. 109 Of the Argument drawn from the Example of the Kings of Israel or Judah . p. 112 Testimonies out of Scripture for the Magistrates Authority in using force for the propagating Religion . p. 104 , 105 The Apostles when they were brought to to answer before the Governours of that time , did not deny their Authority . p. 118 Universal Toleration contrary to Scripture . p. 121 The Magistrate by becoming Christian , if he hath no addition , hath yet no diminution of his power . p. 131 Of that smalness of Difference , that is pretended between us and the Presbyterians . p. 136 A Comparison between the Severities used now against the Covenant , and those used by them in imposing it p. 142 How far they approve of Episcopacy and Liturgy p. 144 The Inconveniencies that attend Liberty of Conscience p. 146 How much Toleration is better than Comprehension p. 149 Conscience absolutely taken , no safe Rule either of Actions or Tenets . p. 152 Of the Mischiefs Liberty of Conscience is like to bring to Religion p. 153 Of new Light p. 159 Government p. 162 By what means this Liberty is dangerous to Government p. 166 The private Consciences of men are not ordinarily trusted in their common dealings p. 169 What ends they propose to themselves , that promote Liberty of Conscience p. 177 Their unwillingness to renounce the Covenant , shews how little they repent of it p. 180 Objections answered p. 183 taken from their 1. Number Ibid. 2. Merit p. 189 3. Assistance against Popery p. 190 4. Their hindering Trade p. 196 5. France & Holland have good experience of it . p. 218 6. Civil Penalties in Religion , make men Hypocrites p. 232 An Apostrophe to the Dissenting Brethren p. 235 A Postscript p. 247 ERRATA . Page 71. line 25. for what may the meaning , r. what may be the meaning , p. 120. l. 14. for into his , r. in this . CONSIDERATIONS Concerning Comprehension , Toleration , AND THE Renouncing the COVENANT . HE who endeavours to make any Alteration in a setled Government either of Church or State , is obliged by all the Rules of Justice and of Prudence to alledge some very good cause , why it is that he doth do so ; Alteration being in it self so great an Inconvenience , as that it ought not by any means to be attempted , but for some weighty Reason . Now as to the Church , as it is by Law established ( not withstanding all the fearful Outcries which of late have been made against it ) I would fain have any of our Dissenting Brethren to answer directly , Whether there be any one thing sinful in her Communion , or only some things ( as they conceive ) inexpedient ? If only inexpedient ( as there is good cause to believe , that the most considerable Persons , and those in no small numbers among them , do suppose no more ) then I would fain know , whether inexpediency alone is a sufficient and just cause of Separation ? And how well soever any particular man among them may think of the Grounds of his own Separation ; there is very good evidence , that there are abundance among themselves who do plainly perceive , and much lament it , that by the means of this present Separation , there hath been an entrance made for such Doctrines and Practices into this Nation , which are chargeable with ( to phrase it modestly ) the very highest degrees of inexpediency . When the rule and measures of inexpediency are well considered of , and regard is had to that great variety of Respects in which one and the same thing may be both expedient and inexpedient ; it will then be found , that inexpediency is a thing , which private persons cannot easily determine , indeed are no competent Judges of : Besides if it were a clear case , that in the present settlement there were something not altogether so expedient as were to be wished : Is this a sufficient warrant for any not only to mislike so much of the Law as they think capable of being mended , but withall openly and avowedly to separate , to unite and joyn in great Combinations against the Publick Constitutions , only because they are not arrived , in their esteem , at all possible degrees of perfection ? He who can submit to no Law but such a one as is exactly made to his own mind in all particulars , must resolve , for any thing I know , never to obey , as long as he lives , any Law which is not of his own making ; and not only so , but he will find that he must not obey many Laws of his own making for any long time neither : If therefore a supposed inexpediency be the utmost of the charge , as I suppose in the end it will appear to be , then all wise men should consider with themselves , Whether any fancied Alteration can be secure from equal , if not greater dangers ? And before that any such Alteration be made , it seems to be but just and equal that the New Model be agreed upon by those who do design it , and that it be proposed either to our Governours , or to the publick view , that it may be examined , before admitted ; and seeing that it is to be of lasting Consequence , it is to be hoped that it will not be too hastily concluded upon . A late ingenious Person set forth an handsome Discourse upon this Argument , entituled , Of the Religion of England , asserting , that Reformed Christianity setled in its due Latitude is the Stability and Advancement of this Kingdom . Wherein he hath attempted something like a Model of a future Settlement ; his Discourse is plausible , and desires seem to be bent on Peace , and many of his Principles look as if they did seem to tend much that way , but there seems to be this one thing very observable in his whole way of Writing , that with great Art he doth very dexterously take care not to come too close up to the Argument , and he brings his Reader even to the very Point where the business lies , and almost unperceivably steals by and passeth on to something else ; and to a narrow view it will appear plainly , that he keeps himself within the compass of such wide Generalities , that he leaves the Reader in the same uncertainties in which he found him . The Draught of his Design is to be seen , Sect. 14. pag. 28. which doth consist in these three Contrivances . First , That there is to be an established and approved Order : But , because that this alone he finds not to be sufficient ; therefore in the second place , there is to be a Provision for a sort of men who cannot come within the establishment , and they are to be tolerated under certain Restrictions : Nor is this all ; for neither the establishment alone is sufficient , neither will a Toleration of Dissenters from it suffice ; and therefore in the third place , there are another sort of men , who must be only connived at . Each of these Particulars are afterwards considered : The establishment hath the honour of the first place , and hath , as it well deserves , incomparably the greatest part of the pains bestowed upon it , and of this he tells us , Sect. 15. That it must not be loose and in●●herent , but well compacted , that it may attain the ends of Discipline , which are to promote sound Doctrine and Godly Life , and keep out Idolatry , Superstition , and all wicked Errour and Practice that tends to the vanquishing of the power of Christianity : Now these things do not require a constitution of narrower bounds than things necessary to Christian Faith and Life , and godly Order in the Church , Now is it not very plain , that such a Comprehension as is here described , that it shall be enabled to attain all these great and publick ends here provided for , hath left no place for Toleration or Connivance ? and accordingly both those things are hudled together , and in a very few words dispatched , Sect. 18. pag. 38. I shall lay them down and leave the Reader to judge upon them : As for others that are of sound Belief and good Life , yet have taken in some Principles less congruous to National Settlement , I would never be a means of exposing them to oppression , Contempt and Hatred , but would admit their Plea as far as it will go , &c. Nevertheless , their Liberty pleaded for is not to be inordinate but measured and limited by the safety of true Religion in general , and of the publick and established Order , &c. And now I shall take leave to desire those Persons , who cannot come within the Comprehension , to consider with themselves , how very little they are beholding to this their Advocate ; he hath not in the least intimated to us what kind of Principles those are which he would have connived at , as being only less congruous to a National Settlement ; nor given us any manner of mark whereby to know them : Besides , whatever Favour he doth intend for these dissenting Brethren , he hath so clogged it with many Qualifications and Limitations , that he hath rendred it so plainly useless , that I much doubt whether he did ever really intend them any favour at all . First , They must be of sound Belief and good Life , Secondly , Their Plea must be admitted as far as it will go ; Now how far that is he hath not told us : Thirdly , Their Liberty must not be inordinate , but must have two measures ; First , The safety of Religion in general : Secondly , The safety of the publick established Order . Upon these Terms , and upon the whole matter , I think , that it is no easier a thing to understand the Nature and Bounds of that Settlement which our Author is here designing , by the placing of several sorts of men in the three Ranks of , First , an establishment ; Secondly , a Toleration ; and thirdly , a Connivance , with this Reason , for the two latter ; For if God hath received them , why should their fellow-servants reject or afflict them causlesly ? Every true Christian should be tender of all that love the Lord Iesus in sincerity ; I understand , I say , as little by all this , what those Particulars are which he would have from us , as if he had contented himself with Mr. Sterry's three Forms of Believers ; and methinks the one Harangue is as edifying and intelligible as the other : Let us receive one another into the Glory of God , as Christ receiveth us , though that cloathing of the outward form be not on the same fashion in all , nor on some so well shaped as on others , to the proportion of the Body , which is Christ. The Lord Iesus hath his Concubines , his Queens , his Virgins ; Saints in remoter jorms , Saints in higher forms , Saints unmarried to any Form , who keep themselves single for the immediate embraces of their Love , in his Epistle before England's Deliverance from the Northern Presbytery . Now In these two Gentlemen of very differing Dispensations , there are three sorts of People proposed to our Care , and it is not unlikely that they may be suited each to one another : But this one thing is remarkable in that Discourse of Mr. Sterry , that the Presbyterians can , at the very best , hope for no higher Rank than that of Christ's Concubines , as being according to the tenor of that Sermon , if at all Saints , at the very best , Saints in the remoter Forms . The more moderate sort of Independents may indeed by him be accounted Queens , as being Saints in higher forms , but for Christ's Virgins , who are unmarried to any form , and keep themselves single for the immediate embraces of their love ; I cannot imagine who these should be , unless those Saints who are above Ordinances : And for my own part , I must freely profess , that for all the account which our Author hath given us of his three Contrivances of Comprehension , Toleration and Connivance , I cannot at all perceive but that Mr. Sterry's way of sorting out the several Ranks of Saints , doth well suit with , and is proportioned to it : And here let any sober man judge , whether the Settlement pretended for in the first of these three Proposals be not absolutely unsetled again in the two other . But in the next place I must go on to consider a Pretence , much oftner supposed than owned , and that is this ; Suppose that the Terms of the Communion of the Church are not only inexpedient , but really sinful ; if so , then I shall readily grant , that the Church ought not to be communicated with , while the Terms of her Communion are such . But in this part of the Argument I shall presume to say with some confidence , and I hope without offence , that however the Teachers of the separated Congregations may sometimes slily insinuate some such Jealousies into the Heads of their unwary Hearers ; yet it is not easie to find a considerable man amongthem , who will not be ashamed to own it publickly , or who doth himself really believe it . Now though this Assertion may seem to carry something of uncharitableness in it ; because that the Separation from the Church is so avowed and pressed upon the People , as if that it were highly necessary , and that Communion with the Church was highly criminal ▪ at least in the Opinion of the Teachers . It being a plain case that the People are wheedled into Separation , upon the account that they suppose their Teachers know it to be unlawful : Now as to this , I must needs say , it is shrewdly to be suspected , that there is in this case a very great Cheat imposed by the Preachers and the People upon one another , and by both upon the whole Nation ; because that it is as often evident as there is occasion for making it so , that among the Pastors and the Flock there are not many , who in a time of Tryal approve themselves to be in good earnest ; I have been credibly informed ( not to say that I am able to make it good ) that Mr. Calamy did before His Majesty , and divers Lords of the Council profess , that there was not any thing in the Constitutions of the Church to which he could not conform , were it not for the scandalizing of others ; so that in his Esteem the Constitutions of the Church were in themselves Innocent , and the whole Objection against them lay in the mistakes of other men . Mr. Tombs the Leader of the Anabaptists , hath writ a Book to shew the lawfulness of resorting to the Publick Congregations . The Author which I before mentioned assures us in behalf of the Presbyterians , that they not only maintain the Doctrine of the Church of England , but likewise communicate in her Publick Worship , in his second Discourse of the Religion of England , pag. 17. By which acknowledgment we may take an estimate of the Honesty of their Separation . Nay , I shall venture to say thus much farther , that the lawfulness of joyning in the Publick Worship is understood by the Layety as well as Clergy amongst them , is evident from these three Things : First , that there are those Persons to be named , who came to Church before the Act of Oblivion , who never did since : Secondly , that immediately after the Act of Uniformity , whilst the Hopes of Toleration were very uncertain , there was a much greater Conformity both in the City of London , and over the whole Nation than ever hath been since : Thirdly , that I have enquired and could never learn that there was so much as one example to be given of any one of all the Patrons or Proselytes of the Conventicles who did leave the smallest Office whatever , rather than he would , in obedience to a late Act of Parliament , joyn in the Prayers and receive the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper according to the Order of the Church of England : From which it doth appear plainly , that in these mens esteem , either there is no sin in communicating with the Church of England , or else , that these Gentlemen of so extreamly tender Consciences , can deliberately commit a sin , and that when they are performing the most solemn Act of Adoration of Almighty God , and with all the shews of Devotion imaginable : And seeing that these things are so , is it not huge pitty that a setled Church , and a Church in great Reputation over all the Reformed Parts of Christendom , should be run down by a meer noise of Conscience , when it is very plain that when ever there is a real Case put , where Conscience ought to shew it self , that then no such thing appears , neither is there the least evidence that it is so much as thought upon . If there be any Objection against the present Constitution ; it must be either against the Articles , the Liturgy , the Canons or the Ceremonies ; As to the Articles , there is scarce so much as one Objection pretended against them , farther than as they relate to the following Heads ; and if there were , such an Objection could not easily be alleadged by the People as a just excuse for their Non-conformity , because they are not at all concerned for to subscribe them , unless they bring upon themselves a voluntary Obligation by some Act of their own , as taking a Degree in the University : But in this Point many words are needless ; for besides the Testimony of all Churches abroad , we have at home two Witnesses beyond all exception to the Innocency and Honour of the Articles , even the two late celebrated Advocates , the one for Comprehension , the other for Toleration : The former assures us in the behalf of those whose Cause he pleads , that they do receive the Doctrine of Faith contained in the Articles of Religion , pag. 2. and again pag. 22. That they heartily embrace the English Reformation established by Law , &c. and that they do assent to the Doctrine of Faith contained in the Articles of the Church of England , and worship God according to that Faith , pag. 22. The Peace-offering doth likewise bear witness for us of that great esteem which is bore unto the Articles of the Church of England in all the Reformed Churches abroad , and withal doth assure us in behalf of the Independents at home , that as to all which is purely doctrinal in them they do fully embrace and constantly adhere to , &c. And accordingly he undertakes to profess in the name of them all ; We have no new Faith to declare , no new Doctrine to teach , no private Opinion to divulge , no Point or Truth do we profess , no not one , which hath not been declared , taught , divulged and esteemed as the common Doctrine of the Church of England , ever since the Reformation , pag. 13. Thus far therefore our way is clear , that the Doctrine of the Church is sound and esteemed to be so in the Opinion of its greatest Adversaries . In the next place therefore we are to consider , whether any reasonable Plea for Separation can be drawn from any just Exception which may be taken against the Liturgy ; and here there are two sorts of men to be considered : First , those who dislike all Forms of Prayer in general : Secondly , those who are only disgusted at some particular things in ours . As to those who are against all Forms of Prayer ; I believe that the number of them , among considering Persons , is not so great , as that any great regard ought to be had unto them ; and this must needs be so , for a reason which can never fail ; For it cannot choose but seem strangely absurd and infinitely unbecoming the great distance which is between us and Almighty God , and that great awe which we ought to bear unto him ; that all the Expressions of the Publick Devotion of every Congregation in the whole Nation should be left to the arbitrary , and especially the extemporary conception of each single Person , who is bold enough to venture upon the taking so much upon him . It were very strange if this Kingdom should at this day be ignorant , how very frequently Folly , Heresie , nay and Blasphemy , hath been uttered in such kind of Prayers ; and it is utterly impossible , that upon the indulgence of any such Liberty , such Extravagancies , can with any security be provided against ; And it is not unlikely that the greatest Pretenders to the highest Attainments in that way would be not a little out of Countenance ; If so be that their own Prayers were faithfully taken from their Mouths , and after some reasonable space of time , when they might be supposed to have forgot them , presented to their view . And that which renders this evil utterly intolerable , is this , that these Prayers which either really are extemporary else only pretended to be so ) are under that pretence recommended and regarded by the People as the only way of praying by the Spirit ; and by that very means the ever blessed Spirit is , as far as these mens endeavours can be succesful , entituled to all the Follies , Vanity , and Weaknesses , all the Sin and Errour , and even those very Blasphemies which are every day committed against him . And I think all good Christians are concerned to endeavour , that if a Liberty must be given to these Persons to go on and to abuse the People , yet however that it may be done some other way , and they not permitted to bely the Holy Ghost . As for Forms of Prayers , the great reasonableness and even necessity of them is very apparent , and in Scripture it self there are Examples enough to be produced ; and if any man pleaseth to enter upon that Argument , I no way doubt but there will be those found who will debate it with him . It shall suffice at present only to say , that our Saviour Christ did compose a Form of Prayer , and gave it to his Disciples to use : Now if , as great numbers of the People are brought to believe , that there is no praying by the Spirit , besides praying Ex tempore , then no man ever did , or ever could say Christ's Prayer by the Spirit of Christ. Now , as to the other sort of Persons , who have some exceptions against some expressions in our Liturgy ; those things have been so fully examined , that of late we have heard very little of them : And the matter of it is all along so clearly unexceptionable , and so fitted for the common use of all Christians , that all controversial Expressions were designedly avoided : Insomuch that I do not know of any considerable Sect amongst us which may not joyn with us in every expression in it , except the Socinians . Now here perhaps some Jealousies may arise in the minds of men , that if there were not some real exception against the Liturgy , then so many good Teachers would not lay it aside ; nay , and not only so , but , as far as mens Intentions can be guessed at by their words and actions , very much abhor it . Now , as to the behaviour of our dissenting Brethren in this particular , I shall desire their admirers to remember this one thing , that His Majesty not long after His Happy Restauration did put ●orth a Declaration concerning Ecclesiastical Affaires , wherein He did very graciously indulge , much to the dissatisfied Part of the Clergy , in hopes thereby to win upon them ; and in that Declaration He did propose this unto them , as a way whereby they might shew their Gratitude for so great a Condescention , That they would read so much of the Liturgy as themselves had no exception against : But with many of them He could not prevail for so much as one Syllable , not one Collect , no nor so much as one Chapter according to the Rubrick ; So much doth yielding work upon that good-natur'd Generation . Now whether this Refractoriness , as to the whole Book , and every part and parcel of it , could possibly proceed solely and altogether from Conscience , and not very much , if not altogether , from Design or Humour , let their best Friends speak . In the next place , now as to the Canons , I do not know that there doth or can●ly any Objection against them which our present Debate is concerned about ; because they are no immediate Parts of the Publick Worship , and therefore can be no cause of the present Separation , especially as to the People . As to the Canons made in the year 1640. I must needs confess , that the Scotch Commissioners did complain much against them , and some English Gentlemen made witty Speeches upon them ; but they had both of them the ill luck to confess the real cause of the Pique which they had against them , viz. The acknowledgement of His Majesties Authority as being Independent , and above all Coercion , either Papal or Popular . A Doctrine which I must needs say was very inconsistent with those Designs which those angry Patriots were at that time carrying on . And I am very much mistaken if , at this very day , a great part of that Quarrel which is taken up against the Church be not founded upon this , that it is too faithfully devoted to the Interests of the Crown ; and that many Persons are Presbyterians , Independents , Fifth-Monarchy-men , &c. as so many sanctified disguises under which they act the Part of Common-wealths-men . In the next place come we therefore to the Ceremonies ; and there indeed the noise is very great . An Excellent Person , who for his pious labours upon a noble Argument , and much more worthy of his Pen , deserves much honour , hath in this part of the Question exprest much more Concern , than , I hope , himself upon a serious review will admit the Cause to bear , in a Book entituled , Liberty of Conscience upon its true and proper Grounds asserted and vindicated , &c. hath thus expressed himself , p. 49. How may we lament over the present Imposition of the Ceremonies now enjoyn'd among us in England , which are no part of divine Truth , nor any of Christ's Institutions , but things perfectly Humane in their Creation ; and yet are enforced by the Civil Power upon the Practice and Consciences of men . Now here , with all due respect to that Learned Gentleman , I shall desire him to take notice , whether it be not an Excellency and a Felicity almost peculiar to the Church of England , that in all her Constitutions , her greatest Adversaries are forced to betake themselves to the scanning of a few Ceremonies , to find a cause , or , to speak more properly , a shew of Controversie ; and that himself in his own great Judgment hath not been able to find out any other flaw in the Matter of all her Laws , as much soever as he doth mislike the Imposition of them . As for the Cermonies themselves , the Exceptions , or at least the Clamours are very many ; That they are uncommanded by God ; that they are significant ; that they are Will-worship ; that they are teaching for Doctrines of God the Commandments of men ; and lastly , that they do give scandal . As to the Ceremonies being uncommanded by God , I never heard of any man who pretended them to be otherwise ; and therefore it is most clear and certain , that that Church doth not teach for Doctrines of God the Commandments of Men , which doth own publickly , that these are not the Doctrines of God , but only the Commandments of Man : And if any man doth mistake in this Case , which is a thing incredible that any should do so ; but if there be such a one , I am sure that the mistake is his own and not the fault of the Church : For she hath taken care to prevent it , in the Chapter of Ceremonies before the Common Prayers , wherein she declares that the Ceremonies which are retained , are retained for Discipline and Order , which upon just Cause may be altered and changed , and therefore are not to be esteemed equal with Gods Law. But however , this is plain in the nature of things , that although among the Ceremonies no one in particular is necessary , yet in general it is necessary , so far as Order and Decency is necessary , that some such there should be . But in the next place there is an Objection , supposed to be of much greater force , and that is this ; That the Ceremonies are significant : And here I must needs confess , that if they could have alledged , that the Ceremonies had been insignificant , the Objection had been much more worthy of having some notice taken of it ; because that the very nature and whole use of Ceremonies doth consist in being significant . And in this I appeal to all Mankind , whether in any one Action Sacred or Civil , any one Ceremony was ever instituted , unless it were in order to the signifying , denoting or expressing something by it . Nor is thisall ; for the Church hath taken care not only to vindicate the Innocency , but withal to declare the usefulness of the significancy of her Ceremonies in the fore-mentioned Preface ; That they are neither dark nor dumb Ceremonies , but are so set forth that every man may understand what they mean and to what use they do serve : so that it is not like that in time to come they should be abused . And after all this , methinks , our Brethren of the Presbytery should for their own sakes have had a great care of making use of this Objection , as being themselves as liable to it as any other Persons . The Authors of the Admonition to the Parliament in Queen Elizabeths days , Part 2. have recommended Sitting at the Sacrament , upon this very superstitious score of Significancy ( as in our Case they always call it ) in these words : As in the Old Testament eating the Paschal Lamb standing , signified a readiness to pass ; even so in the receiving it now sitting , after the example of Christ , we signifie Rest , that is , a full finishing thorough Christ of all the Ceremonial Law , and a perfect Work of Redemption wrought , that giveth rest for ever . And in our own dayes , in that which by them was looked upon as a considerable Act of Divine Worship and Religious Adoration , the entring into a Publick Solemn National Covenant with Almighty God , as they phrase it : The doing of this was prescribed with several Ceremonies uncommanded in Scripture , and by themselves intended to be very significant ; as it to be found by every one who pleaseth to look in the Ordinance of Febr. 2. 1643. In this Case without referring us to any Book , Chapter , or Verse ; they thought it sufficient to say , That it is ordered and ordained by the Lords and Commons in Parliament , that the said Covenant be solemnly taken in all places , and for the better and more orderly taking thereof , that these Directions ensuing are appointed and enjoyned to be strictly followed : Of which Directions the thirteenth is this , the manner of taking it to be thus ; The Minister to read the whole Covenant distinctly and audibly in the Pulpit , and during the time of reading thereof the whole Congregation to be uncovered ( which by the way is a much greater shew of Reverence than they have taken care for , either at the reading of the Ten Commandements , or our Saviour's Sermon upon the Mount ) and at the end of reading thereof all to take it standing , lifting up their Right Hand bare . Now I think that it is highly requisite for these men to consider with themselves , whether every one of all their own Pleas of the Purity and Simplicity of the Gospel way of Worship without the mixture of humane Inventions , and their bold surmises of invading the Throne of Christ by determining those things which Christ hath left free , have any the least force against the Ceremonies of the Church , which they have not against this prescribed Formality of their own , in taking the Covenant . But after all which is possible to be said in order to the clearing of the mistakes about the Ceremonies , there is an Objection which is supposed not to be capable of any answer to be made unto it ; and that is this , That be they what they will in themselves , good men are offended at them , they grieve thousands of the Godly Brethren , and though we should grant such men to be mistaken , yet we must not offend our weak Brethren . The Case of Scandal hath been so often and so clearly stated , that I shall say the less upon it ; and therefore , instead of the Argument , I shall rather choose to say something to the Persons who use it . In the first place I shall readily grant , that if any Persons are really offended at the use of the Ceremonies , in their own way of understanding that word , they must needs be very weak Brethren , and I shall only ask them the old Question , How long they will be weak ? And I shall profess my self to have no very honourable Opinion of the means of Knowledge , the Opportunities of choyce Attainments which are to be had in the Conventicles : If so be that those , who are such weak Brethren as not to be got above such silly Scruples , are looked upon to be sufficiently gifted to be Publick Teachers amongst them . In the next place I shall ask , who taught the People to be offended at a few harmless Ceremonies ? Who raised all their causless Scruples , infused so many senceless Jealousies , and not being content to have at first infused these needless fears , do still go on to nurse up and cherish them ? Who first betrayed great numbers into folly , and ever after continued to humour them in it ? He who can conform himself , and yet refuseth to do so , for fear lest his Auditory and Acquaintance should abate in their esteem or contributions towards him ; If he means sincerely , & to shew himself an honest man , he ought to deal faithfully with his Admirers , & tell them really what himself thinks , communicate the Satisfaction which he hath received , and perswade them not to be longer needlesly afraid where no fear is : It is very plain that the generality of Dissenters do entertain wild suspicions about the Service of the Church , upon no other ground than an implicite faith which they have in the skill and honesty of their Teachers . Such and such a one is a very precious and knowing man , and do you think that he would not conform , if he did not know Conformity to be a sin ? The Pastor and his Flock in this Case do mutually guide and are guided by each other ; he makes it his business to please and humour them , , and they look upon it as a great mark of their Judgment , and an infallible token of their Election to admire him . But if the weakness of these our Brethren hath so great a privilege entailed upon it , as that we must do nothing which they have taken a fancy against ; a thing in it self lawful and imposed by lawful Authority , must immediately become unlawful , if so be that any scrupulous man can be brought to entertain a foolish jealousie about it : Then is this kind of weakness endued with a very strange degree of Omnipotence ; because that upon this supposition , the very mistakes of men are able to alter the Nature of things ; A thing in it self innocent , doth according to this Doctrine , immediately become unlawful , as soon as ever that any fanciful deluded man doth erroneously conceive it to be so ; But methinks that those who pretend to be such eager asserters of Christian Liberty , as this sort of men have always done , should , of all other persons , the least endure to have it thus trifled with ; as to have it believed to be openly exposed to lie perpetually at the mercy of all the Humour , Melancholy , Artifice , Cheat and Discontent in the whole Nation . But if this be the meaning of those Texts of Scripture , where we are commanded to avoid the giving of Scandal ( as most certainly and evidently it is not ) That the Actions of all Private Men , and the Authority of all Publick Constitutions must be as often over-ruled as any single Person is , either by his own Folly or by the Arts of other men , imposed upon to believe evil of them ; then can no man tell in any matter of Action Sacred or Civil ( except in the Matters of immediate and plain divine Precept ) what one thing shall be lawful for him to do in the very next moment . But if it be thus appointed by the Apostle , That the mistakes of other Men , though we should suppose them to be well-meaning ones , are to have so uncontrollable an influence upon the Actions of all private Persons , and the Decrees of all Publick ones ; If it be thus , I say , it will thence follow very apparently , that there is a great necessity lying upon the Government , of taking care what kind of Persons are intrusted with teaching the People . For if Conscience , though never so erroneous , are of right , and by Apostolical appointment to have so great a regard had unto them ; then of all things great circumspection should be used , and security taken , for the Understanding and Honesty of all those who are intrusted to be Guides of Consciences . For if the Errors of Conscience are things of so great Authority , as to be an immediate Supersedeas to our whole Christian Liberty , to all sorts of Humane Laws , then it is the greatest Phrenzy imaginable , to grant a promiscuous Liberty to whoever pleaseth to teach and instruct the People . Alas ! the Vulgar are easily imposed upon ; and it is not impossible but that we may find in our days , what St. Paul did in his , That there are those who will speak lyes in hypocrisie because of advantage ; and bring their Auditories to admire those very Doctrines which themselves do heartily despise ; outwardly court their Hearers , and inwardly laugh at them . And in the mean time , are not Religion and Government like to be at a very fine pass ? when who so pleaseth shall have the Privilege of making all possible advantages of that very Scruple which himself was Author of ; and , when all other Objections fail , shall be allowed to plead his own exemption from all Obedience to the settled Constitutions , from the dissatisfaction of other men , who , if it had not been for him , had never entertained the least thought of being dissatisfied . But in the next place it is frequently urged , That those Terms of Communion are not looked upon as sufficient , which were always looked upon as such in former days ; but there are newer and straiter Bonds added to them ; a new Declaration of Assent and Consent : And besides all this , the Consciences of men are provoked , which otherwise would have remained silent , if not satisfied ; new Scruples are raised in the Minds of Men , which before lay buried , and which would otherwise have been quite forgot ; in that it is not thought sufficient that the Covenant should be laid aside , but that it should be formally renounced ; and not only so , but it is required that men must swear not only for themselves , but that no man else is obliged by it . Now after all this wonder , there is not any one Thing which is not very easily accounted for : For surely it hath been among men not at all unusual , nor in it self strange , that where former securities have been found too slight , to add others to them . As for the Declaration of Assent and Consent , the addition which it doth make to the former Subscriptions is not so considerable , as to raise a scruple in the mind of any man who was real in them . And I suppose that the great Mystery which is pretended to lie in the terribie sound of Assent and Consent , which the People are taught to be affrighted at , as if some dismal meaning were hid under it , is nothing else but an Art to raise their Jealousie , that so they might be the better prepared for the finding out some plot or other in the following Renunciation of the Covenant . A thing which was ordered not without great cause ; and it is very suspicious that that Cause doth not only continue , but increase , as appears but too plainly from this , That there is so great a Clamour raised upon it . And this Cause did in a great measure proceed from themselves , and that great stir which they made about the Obligation of the Covenant , in the first and second year immediately after the Restoration of his Majesty , both from Press and Pulpit : Parties were made in the City , and endeavoured to be made in Parliament , for the owning of that Obligation . It was with great confidence urged , that it was A Publick and National Oath , binding all Persons of this Nation , whether they did swear it personally or not , and all Posterity after us in their particular places ; and all that shall succeed into the Publick Places and Politick Capacities of this Kingdom , to pursue the things covenanted for : And this Obligation is for ever to remain and abide , and by no Humane Act or Power to be absolved or made void ; as , amongst others , Mr. Crofton hath endeavoured to prove at large in his famous Writings on that Subject . And , to speak the truth , if we once admit the Grounds which this Party of Men do go upon , what he doth alledge hath great reason in it ; it being very evident , that those Clauses which he doth produce out of the Covenant , do suppose all Posterity to be involved in them : And this he urgeth not as his own single Opinion , but as the Sence of his whole Party ; and , besides the Evidence of the thing , he alledgeth , The Testimony to the Truth of Jesus Christ and the Covenant , by the London Ministers , Dec. 14. 1647. several of which are at this present Preachers to the separated Congregations ; In which it is plainly declared , That it is not in the Power of any person or persons upon Earth to dispence with or absolve us from it . Nay , the Power of Parliaments , which in other cases is allowed to be large enough , is in this bound up , as Mr. Cr. tells us , p. 139. That the Parliament consisting of Lords and Commons , and that in their Publick Capacity as a Parliament , the House of Commons assembled in their House , and in formality of the Body of the Nation , with their Speaker before them , went unto St. Margarets Church in Westminster with the greatest Solemnity imaginable , did , as the Representative Body of the Kingdom , swear this Covenant : which , as a farther Testimony that it was a National Covenant , they caused to be printed with their Names subscribed , and to be hanged up in all Churches , and in their own House , as a Compass whereby ( in conformity to right , Reason and Religion ) to steer their then Debates , and to dictate TO ALL THAT SHOVLD SVCCEED IN THAT PLACE AND CAPACITY what obligation did before God ly upon the Body of this Nation . Those who plead for the removal of the Renunciation of the Covenant , either they do believe , that the Covenant doth oblige at this time , or , that it doth not oblige ; if they do believe that it doth not oblige , why may they not declare that they do believe it not to do so ? One Reason may indeed be given , why the Preachers themselves may believe the Covenant not to oblige , and yet that they should by all means avoid the declaring that they do thus believe ; and that is this , that they would have the People believe it to have an Obligation , although themselves believe it to have none . A Perswasion this , which , in some juncture of Affairs or other , they may chance to make very great use of ; and that this may not be altogether incredible their Procedure hath not been one jot honester than this amounts to in another part of the Controversie between us . It is well known that there are among them , and not among the meanest of them who have believed the Liturgy and Ceremonies to be very Innocent , and yet could be never brought to say one word to the People of this their belief ; But on the other side now , if they are really perswaded that the Covenant doth carry a lasting Obligation along with it : In that Case I shall not , during that Perswasion of theirs , desire them to renounce it ; but withall I must crave their leave to add this further , that during that Perswasion of theirs , I think it but reasonable , that the Government should cast a very watchful eye over them . And of this I shall give an account from the Covenant it self , wherein there are so many things , and of such fatal and universal consequence , covenanted for , that the whole Nation is highly concerned that no considerable Part of it should look upon themselves , and every Body else , as lying under the Obligation of the Oath of God , to watch all opportunities wherein they may accomplish such great and publick mischiefs , as will appear by a particular Consideration of the Thing it self . ARTICLE 1. That we shall sincerely , really , and constantly , through the Grace of God , endeavour in our several Places and Callings the preservation of the Reformed Religion in the Church of Scotland , in Doctrine , Worship , Discipline , and Government against our Common Enemies : The Reformation of Religion in the Kingdoms of England and Ireland in Doctrine , Worship , Discipline , and Government , according to the Word of God , and the Example of the best Reformed Churches : And shall endeavour to bring the Churches of God in the three Kingdoms to the nearest Conjunction and Vniformity in Religion , in Confession of Faith , Form of Church-Government , Directory for Worship and Catechizing ; That we and our Posterity after us , may as Brethren , live in Faith and Love , and that the Lord may delight to dwell in the midst of us . In which Article it is easie to observe many things lyable to very just and material Exceptions ; as first , By what Authority can any private man in England , if he keeps himself within his own Place and Calling , intermeddle either in the Preservation or Alteration of the Religion and Government of the Church and Kingdom of Scotland ? Nay , by what Authority can any Person in this Kingdom whatever , be he in what Publick Capacity he will ( His Majesty only excepted , or those who act by Commission from Him ) have any thing to do with the Concerns in that Kingdom ? And secondly , this first Part of the Article may upon very good Grounds be supposed to be inconsistent with the remaining Parts of it : For we are sworn to preserve the Doctrine , Discipline , &c. of Scotland , and withall , to bring the three Kingdoms to the nearest Uniformity in Religion , Confession of Faith , form of Church-Government , Directory for Worship and Catechizing ; So that Scotland must necessarily be our Pattern ; and yet in the same breath we are sworn to reform England and Ireland , according to the Word of God , and the Example of the best Reformed Churches : And it is more than possible , that our own Church , as it is already by Law established , or at least some other Church beyond the Seas , may come altogether as near the Word of God , as that of Scotland : And what is to be done in that Case ? And in the third place , all the other Dissenters whatever , besides the Presbyterians , are highly concerned to see that the Covenant is not looked upon as a thing of any obligation ; because that that is express for Uniformity , and as such , is not less than absolutely inconsistent with Liberty of Conscience ; and as hard thoughts soever as the smaller Sects have entertained concerning the Bishops ; they are much more concerned to secure themselves against not a few , nor the least Considerable , among their own dear Brethren , ARTICLE 2. That we shall in like manner , without respect of Persons , endeavour the Extirpation of Popery , Prelacy ; that is , Church-Government by Archbishops , Bishops , their Chancellors , and Commissaries , Deans , Deans and Chapters , Archdeacons , and all other Ecclesiastical Officers depending on that Hierarchy ; Superstition , Heresie , Schism , Profaneness , and whatsoever shall be found contrary to sound Doctrine , and the Power of Godliness , lest we partake in other mens sins , and thereby be in danger to receive of their Plagues ; and that the Lord may be One , and his Name One in these Kingdoms . As to the former part of this Article , that which concerns the overthrow of the established Government of the Church , I shall only say this , that the Modesty of these men is in this case very admirable , and there is no doubt to be made , but that in any other Kingdom it would be thought to be so ; in that they do expect to be admitted into the Preferments of the Church , and to be allowed to be publick Preachers in it ; and yet at the very same time , they do desire to be excused from declaring , that they are not of a Perswasion , that there doth ly an obligation by Oath upon them themselves , the whole Nation , or ( to say no more ) at least upon some other Person , who ought to be nameless , to overthrow the whole frame of the Government of that Church , which they desire to be admitted into the Preferments of , and particularly of that Bishop by whose hands they are admitted . I would fain know whether there be any other Part of the World , where any Persons dare to demand of the present establishment , that it would for their sakes so far relax it self , in order to their admission into it . Sure these menimagine , that the Church is in a very great necessity of them , that it cannot stand one moment without them ; when , in the very Terms of their Admission , they do demand no less than this , that a new Law should be made on purpose , whereby they may be privileged from declaring , whether or no it is lawful for them to suffer the Church to continue two moments longer than there shall arise an opportunity , wherein they may be able to overthrow it . As for the remaining Part of the Article concerning Superstition , Heresie , Schism , Profaneness , and whatsoever shall be found contrary to sound Doctrine or the Power of Godliness , &c. I shall leave that to our Friends of the Presbytery and their Separating Brethren to dispute about it : And it is clear enough , that they are altogether as unlike to agree in those Particulars , as I am with either of them : As lovingly as ever they may look upon one another at present , I am sure that the Covenant , when opportunity serves , will be found to be levelled as directly against the Conventicles , as against the Cathedrals . I shall observe no more in this Article besides the great Charitableness of the Conclusion , That the Lord may be One and his Name One in the Three Kingdoms : As if the Church of England followed after strange Gods , and that those ordained by her were really no other than , as they are often stiled according to the good manners which the People learn of too many such Preachers , the Priests of Baal . ART . 3. We shall with the same Sincerity , Reality and Constancy in our several Vocations , endeavour , with our Estates and Lives , mutually to preserve the Rights and Privileges of the Parliament and the Liberties of the Kingdoms ; and to preserve and defend the Kings Majesties Person and Authority , in the Preservation and Defence of the True Religion and Liberties of the Kingdom : That the World may hear witness with our Consciences of our Loyalty , and that we have no thoughts and intention to diminish his Majesties Iust Power and Greatness . This Article hath been very much and very much insisted on and gloried in for the seeming Loyalty of one Expression in it : But , in order to a right understanding ; let us consider how Affairs stood at that time : It is well known , that the Compilers and Enjoyners of this Covenant were , at that very time , in actual Arms ( I hope that it is no offence , if I say in actual Rebellion ) against the King. This very Covenant was a great Instrument by which they did carry on their Design then on foot against Him : The King was betrayed and sold by one part of the Covenanters , those from Scotland , he was bought , imprisoned , and in effect deposed by another part of the Covenanters , those in England , and by the most Loyal of them , even the Lords and Commons Assembled at Westminster ; who by their Votes of Non-address , Febr. 17. 1647. ( which , let us note , was long before the Seclusion by the Army ) did declare , First , That they will make no farther Addresses or Applications to the King : And in the fourth Vote , That they will receive no more Messages from the King , and do enjoyn that no Person whatever do receive or bring any Message from the King to Both or either Houses of Parliament , or to any other Person ; which Votes they published with a Declaration , wherein they lay down some few of those many Reasons ( as they express it ) why they cannot repose any more Trust in Him. Nay , long before that time , when the Scots complained of some rigours used towards His Majesty , as being contrary to the Covenant , the House of Commons did return them this Answer , Novemb. 18. 1646. We observe that you mention the Defence of the King twice , from the Covenant ; but in both places you leave out , in the preservation of the true Religion , &c. A main Clause without which the other ought not to be mentioned . Which very Answer themselves did afterwards receive from their own Army , in a Declaration from St. Albans , Novemb. 18. 1648. Where they reminded their Masters of their own Doctrine , The Defence of the King , say they , is to be understood with this restriction ; In the Preservation of , &c. or otherwise the whole Proceedings of Both Kingdoms in makeing and maintaining War against Him in Defence of Religion and Liberties are questionable for breach of Covenant ; since that way of preserving did probably tend to the destruction and was without any safe provision , either for his Person , or that Authority which can properly be called His , or understood in Conjunction with His Person ; but that therein His Person might probably have been destroyed under the Sword or by a Bullet , yea was ordinarily endeavoured to be so , as well as the Persons of others in Arms with Him ; and that Authority of His was certainly opposed and endeavoured to be destroyed thereby , instead of being defended . Remonstrance from St. Albans , P. 55. Indeed , about the time of the King's Murther , many of the Covenanters did declare themselves a little dissatisfied with that way of Proceeding against Him ; and did ( how reasonably upon their own Grounds , I know not ) urge the Covenant for His Preservation : But of their Behaviour in this Case , I shall give only the Account of an Author , who lived in those times when they had opportunities enough to have taken what account of Him themselves pleased . His Words are these , in a Book entituled , A short View of the Life and Reign of King Charles the First , Monarch of Great Britain , pag. 94. The Presbyterians carried on this Tragedy to the very last Act , from the first bringing in of the Scots to the beginning of the War , and from the beginning of the War till they had brought Him Prisoner to Holmby-House , and then quarrelled with the Independents for taking of the Work out of their hands , and robbing them of the long expected fruit of their Plots and Practices . They cried out against them in their Pulpits and clamoured against them in their Pamphlets for that , of which themselves were at least parcel-guilty , Et si non re at voto saltem Regicidae , &c. On the other side , the Independents , who washed their hands in the blood of the King , seemed as desirous as the Presbyterians to wash their hands of it : By them it was alleadged more calmly , that they had put Charles Stuart to death , against whom they proceeded as the Cause of so much bloodshed ; but that the King had been muthered a long time before by the Presbyterians , when they deprived Him of His Crown , His Sword , His Scepter ; of His Crown , by forcing from Him those Prerogatives which placed Him in a Throne of Eminency above His People ; of His Sword , by wresting the Militia out of His hands , by which He was made unable to protect them ; and of His Scepter , in divesting Him of His Power of calling Parliaments , and of His Negative Voyce in making those Laws by which He was to govern all Estates of Men under His Dominion : And more than so , they had deprived Him of His Natural Liberty as a Man ; of the Society of His Wife , as he was a Husband ; of the Conversation of His Children , as He was a Father ; of the Attendance of His Servants , as He was a Master ; and in a word , of all those Comforts which might make Life valued for a Blessing : So that there was nothing left for the Independents to do , but to put an end to those Calamities into which this miserable man , this Vir dolorum , as He might very well be called , had been so accursedly plunged by the Presbyterians . To which I shall only add this farther , that notwithstanding all that Loyalty which the Covenanters have so often boasted of , from the Obligation of the Covenant ; yet it is well known , that the Covenant was placed by themselves as a bar between him and his Throne , that without submitting to this , they could not endure to think of His Restauration to that ; and this to so high a degree , that even in Ianuary , 1648. Notwithstanding the apparent danger which the King's Life was known to be in , yet even then , the General Assembly of Scotland did violently oppose all courses thought upon for His Relief , and pressed earnestly , That His Majestie 's Concessions and Offers concerning Religion may directly and positively be declared unsatisfactory to the Parliament , and that there shall be no engagement for restoreing His Majesty to one of His Houses with Honour , Freedom and Safety , before Security and Assurance be had from His Majesty by His Solemn Oath under Hand and Seal ; that He shall for Himself and His Successors consent and agree to Acts of Parliament enjoyning the League and Covenant , and fully establishing Presbyterian Government , Directory of Worship , and Confession of Faith in all his Majesties Dominions ; and that his Majesty shall never make opposition to any of these , or endeavour any change thereof . Vid. Declar. of Jan. 10. 1648. Now therefore , seeing it is so plain a Case , that in the Opinion of the Compilers and Enjoyners of the Covenant ; all the fore-mentioned Violences both might and ought to have been used against the King , by vertue and in pursuance of the Covenant : It thence follows unavoidably , that His Majesty is not a little concerned to be very watchful over all those Persons who are so tender of the honour of the Covenant , that they demand it as the Condition of their Admission into the Church , that they may by no means be questioned concerning their Opinion about its Obligation . ARTICLE 4. We shall with all faithfulness endeavour the discovery of all such as have been or shall be Incendiaries , Malignants or evil Instruments , by hindering the Reformation of Religion , dividing the King from His People , or one of the Kingdoms from another , or making any Faction or Parties among the People contrary to this League and Covenant , that they may be brought to publick trial , and receive condign punishment , as the degree of their offences shall require or deserve , or the Supreme Iudicatories of both Kingdoms respectively , or others , having power from them for that effect , shall judge convenient . It is very well known what the meaning of Incendiaries and Malignants is , in this Article : And it is shrewdly to be suspected , That those who are perswaded of the Obligation of this Oath , are likewise perswaded , that those Incendiaries and Malignants , have not as yet been brought to condign punishment ; and whatever benefit the Covenanters themselves may receive by an Act of Oblivion , it is much to be suspected , that those who are covenanted against are looked upon as not capable of receiving any advantage by it : And there is reason to believe , that those who scruple the Validity of that Act of Parliament which declares against the Obligation of the Covenant , are by no means to be trusted , lest , if opportunity should serve , they would not likewise scruple the Validity of that Act of Parliament which gave them Indempnity . For thus , according to their own Grounds , they may argue , The Act of Oblivion is against the Covenant , and then it followeth in the next place , that it is against their Consciences ; It is against the Oath of God lying upon themselves and upon the whole Nation and upon all Posterity , and no humane Act or Power can absolve them or any one else from it ; and every thing done against the Covenant is null and void , the whole Nation being bound up by it to all Ages . For therefore it was That the Covenant was hung up in the Parliament , as a Compass whereby to steer their Debates , and to dictate to all , who shall succeed in that place and capacity , what obligation doth before God lie upon the Body of this Nation , as I have before observed . Now upon these mens suppositions , there is no Security to be had , but that they who passed an Act of Oblivion , to pardon any thing done against the Covenant , are involved in guilt and liable to punishment for so doing ; and are upon those very accounts to expect , when Providence shall put an opportunity into the hands of these Zealots , the very same Return which the Prophet made to Ahab , 1 King. 20. v. 42. Thus saith the Lord , Because thou hast let go a Man whom I have appointed to destruction , therefore thy life shall go for his life , and thy people for his people . The next thing which I shall observe in this Article is this , That those Persons who covenanted together , among other things , to maintain the Liberties of the Kingdom , have so far forgot themselves , as that in that very Covenant they have set up an Arbitrary Government : The Rule of condign punishment here set down , is not any known Law , no , not so much as a new one of their own making ; but , as the degree of their offences shall require or deserve , or the Supreme Iudicatories of both Kingdoms respectively , or others having power from them for that effect , shall judge convenient . By which words it is plain , that they did not look upon it as sufficient to take an arbitary Power into their own hands , but likewise did delegate it to as many else besides as they pleased . ART . 5. Whereas the happiness of a blessed Peace between the Kingdoms , denied in former times to our Progenitors , is by the good Providence of God granted to us , and hath lately been concluded and settled by both Parliaments ; we shall each one of us , according to our Place and Interest , endeavour that they may be conjoyned in a firm Peace and Vnion to All Posterity , and that Iustice may be done upon all wilful opposers thereof , in manner expressed in the precedent Article : According to the preceding Article , i. e. as shall be judged convenient . The Modesty of these men is very admirable , in that they would out-face the World , that England and Scotland were never at peace in former times , or , rather their Language is something mysterious , that the Two Nations were never at Peace till they had involved them in a War. But as in the former Article they were , as I have shewed , tender of the Liberty of the Subject ; so in this they have been very careful of the Authority of his Majesty , in that they have taken upon them to make peace with another Kingdom without him ; and withal when that very Peace was nothing else , besides their joyning Forces against him . ART . 6. We shall also according to our Place and Calling , in this Common Cause of Religion , Liberty and Peace of the Kingdoms , assist and defend all those that enter into this League and Covenant , in the maintaining and pursuing thereof ; and shall not suffer our selves directly or indirectly , by whatsoever Combination , Perswasion or Terrour to be divided and withdrawn from this blessed Vnion and Conjunction ; whether to make defection to the contrary Part , or to give our selves to detestable Indifferency or Neutrality in this Cause , which so much concerns the Glory of God , the Good of the Kingdom , and the Honour of the King : But shall all the dayes of our lives zealously and constantly continue therein against all opposition , and promote the same according to our power against all Letts and Impediments whatsoever : And what we are not able of our selves to suppress or overcome , we shall reveal and make known , that it may be timely prevented and removed : All which we shall do in the sight of God. From which Article it it is plainly to be seen , That those who do believe themselves to lie under the Obligation of this Covenant , are and ought to be looked upon as a Party already formed and combined together against the whole Nation besides , having a common Band to unite and tie them fast together : And this is such an Union as they look upon as sacred and indissoluble . And the Ends , in order to which they are thus combined , are in their esteem such , as that nothing can excuse the least intermission in their pursuance after them , besides an absolute Impossibility , and even in that case it is lawful for them only , to delay so long , as to expect a more favourable season : For they are according to this Article , Never to be wrought over to so much as a detestable Indifferency or Neutrality in this Cause of God ; but zealously and constantly to continue therein against all opposition , all letts and impediments whatsoever . And having now laid down the Six Articles of the Covenant , I shall only add a few of the last words of the large and solemn Conclusion of it ; wherein they pray God to bless their proceedings herein with such success as may be an encouragement to other Churches , groaning under , or in danger of the Yoke of Antichristian Tyranny , to joyn in the same or like Association or Covenant , to the Glory of God , the Enlargement of the Kingdom of Iesus Christ , and the Peace and Tranquillity of Christian Kingdoms and Common-wealths . It hath been often said in the behalf of the Presbyterians , that they did not engage in the late War under a less Authority than that of the Two Houses of Parliament : What Authority the Two Houses of Parliament have in raising a War against the King shall be no part of this Enquiry , nor whether the Lords and Gentlemen who at that time staid at Westminster were the Two Houses of Parliament ? Be these two things as they will , although it is not unknown what may be said as to both those Cases ; yet however the Covenant , hath informed us of another sort of Authority under which a War may be raised at any time against all the Kings in Europe : Because in these words is held forth a publick Invitation to all Subjects whatsoever , who do either really groan under , or are in any danger of any thing , which our folk have pleased to call , or themselves shall chance to fancy to be a Yoke of Antichristian Tyranny , to enter either into this or the like Association or Covenant . Now I suppose , that it is no easie task to make out , that all Kingdoms have Parliaments endued with so large a share of the Soveraignty , as that they have Authority to take up Arms against their respective Princes : And if there were such Parliaments every where , this Invitation is only made to the Christian Churches , without taking the least notice of Parliaments ; nay with a full assurance that there were no such Parliaments to be taken notice of . So that by this Doctrine the Church alone may enter into association against the State upon the score of Religion ( especially if it can but cry out Antichrist ) may engage the Subjects of all Europe against their Soveraigns , be they Princes or Commomwealths . I know very well that those who urge the taking away of the Declaration enjoyned concerning the renouncing of the Covenant , have one evasion whereby to avoyd entring into the merits of the Cause , and that is this , The seeming unreasonableness of that Clause ; Also I hold that there lieth no Obligation upon me , or any other Person from the Oath commonly called the Solemn , &c. Is it not unjust that one man should be bound to swear to the Obligations of another ? As plausible soever as this may seem , no doubt it is but an evasion ; for it is well known whom they mean by that other Person whom they suppose to be obliged ; and besides to make this Case seem much harder than it is indeed ; They endeavour to perswade us , that this renunciation is what really it is not ; for it is plain , that this Declaration is not an Oath , nor any thing like one , only we are called upon to declare what our Opinion is in a Case there put to us ; we are so far from being required in this Case unto the swearing for any one else ; that we are not called upon to swear for our selves , we do not swear that there doth ly no Obligation either upon our selves or any other Person , but only that we do not believe that there doth . And after all this , the pretence of being scrupulous about declaring any thing concerning the Obligation of any other Person hath one great reserve in it : For , the very supposal of the possibility of that is in effect to say , that the Covenant as to the matter of it is in every particular respect lawful ; for unless it be lawful in every particular respect , no Body can be obliged by it ; and if once it be granted to be a lawful Oath , it will be very easie thence to deduce that it is obligatory to more Persons than one . And thus I have taken a short review of the Covenant , wherein it is very plain that there are many things of such universal and dangerous Consequence therein Covenanted for , as do render it not altogether unworthy the care of those who are in Publick Places to consider a little with themselves , what the meaning of it is , that so many men do profess themselves to have so deep a sense of the Obligation of the Covenant , as that a Law must be made on purpose to gratifie them in that humour : The Publick Constitutions must veil to their unknown Scruples , and with the Honour of having the Wisdom of the whole Nation confess it self to have been all along mistaken , they expect to be admitted Publick Preachers ; This Plea is such a one as doth look as if it had some deep meaning in it , and ought to be thoroughly understood before admitted ; I shall end this Argument as I did begin it ▪ Either these men do believe that the Covenant doth oblige , or , they do not believe it , if they do not believe it to oblige , I cannot see what Honest Reason can be given why they should scruple to declare this their Belief ; But on the other side , if they do really believe that the Covenant doth oblige them , it is much more adviseable , that this Perswasion should keep them out of the Church , than that they should bring this Perswasion into it : And whereas the Law-makers hoped that the Peevishness of this sort of People would within some reasonable compass of time have grown weary of it self , and accordingly had provided that the Declaration against the Covenant should , within a few Years , of course have become antiquated ; the Clamours of these men have given so reasonable a Jealousie about their retaining their old Principles , as may well serve to awaken the Caution of those in Authority , so far as to put them in mind of giving New Life to their Old Act , and enlarging the terms of its Duration : For seeing that the Dissenters do value themselves so much upon their remembring the Covenant ; our Governours have no small Concern to let it be seen , that neither do they forget it . To all which hath been already said , I shall add this one Thing ; It may not unjustly seem a Cause of much wonder how it should come to pass , that the Covenant should be looked upon as a thing much more sacred and indissoluble now than it was in former Dayes ; That Correspondence which Mr. Ienkins , and a great many other London Ministers held with the Scots , for the sake of which he and others were cast into Prison , will not be denied to be in pursuance of the Obligation of the Covenant , and of that Part of it which they are alwayes glorying in , the Loyal and Meritorious Part , as to the Authority of His Majesty : Now I dare appeal to any Member of his present Congregation , whether he hath not renounced this part of the Obligation of the Covenant , in these following Words . To the Supreme Authority , the Parliament of the Common-wealth of ENGLAND . The Humble Petition of VVilliam Ienkin Prisoner . THat the Providence of God hath in the Iudgement of your Petitioner as evidently appeared in the removing of others from , & investing your Honours with the Government of this Nation , as ever they appeared in the taking away or bestowing of any Government in any History of any Age in the World. That he apprehends that a refusal to be subject to this present Authority under the pretence of upholding the Title of ANYONE upon the Earth is a refusal to acquiesce in the wise and righteous pleasure of God ; such an opposing of the Government set up by the Soveraign Lord of Heaven and Earth , as none can have peace either in acting or suffering for : And that your Petitioner looks upon it as his Duty to yield to this Authority all active and chearful Obedience , even for Conscience sake , &c. Here is a plain Renunciation of all the Obligation of the Covenant , so far as respects the King ; the good man is quit by Providence , nay did not that whole Party , as scrupulous as ever they may now seem , from that time forward ever afterward till the laying aside the Family of Cromwels , absolutely lay aside all thought of any manner of Obligation either to King or Covenant . And now after all these dangers which will be perpetually impending over us from the Covenant , and which we can never be secure from , so long as there is the least pretence remaining among us , that that Oath is at all obligatory ; there is another thing which may justly raise our wonder , and may concern us much more than the generality of us are aware , to enquire what may the meaning of it ; and that is this , to consider how it doth come to pass , that the Presbyterians and the other Sectaries do all at present unite in the Common Plea of Liberty of Conscience ; For it is very plain that in this part of the Debate between us , their Inclinations , Judgements and Interests are very different , and their Pleas utterly inconsistent . It is not so long ago , but that some alive remember it , that the sweet noyse of Liberty of Conscience made a very pleasant sound , and the Dissenters from the legal Establishment were all for a while hugely taken themselves , and did endeavour to charm each other with it ; but within the compass of a very little time , they themselves could not tell what to do with it , fell out with one another about the Nature , Bounds , and Limits of it ; and even at this very day it is a clear Case , That any Private Person , without the least entrenching upon the Authority of his Superiours , may sa●ely undertake , that all the Pretenders to Liberty of Conscience in the whole Nation , shall every one of them have their utmost wish , in the very same moment that they themselves shall all agree about it ; I must needs say that this Plea is at the first view something specious , and hath some shews of reason in it ; But if it be a little narrowly looked into , it will be found to be a fine word , which no body knoweth the meaning of , a thing which looks prettily , but is of no manner of use , which very many Persons do admire , and very few if any at all will in the least endure . And to make this evident , let us consider that this Liberty of Conscience must be either limited , or unlimited ; If limited , it is by no means to be called Liberty of Conscience ; nay , it is a plain giving up of the Cause , for it is an actuall granting , that Conscience is neither so sacred , nor hath any Right to be looked upon as so tender a thing , but that it both may and ought to have bounds and limits set unto it ; and I believe that there are Few men who are not of this mind , or , if they are not at present , a little experience will quickly bring them to be of it . Now if Conscience be to be limited , then they who do not like those limits which the Law hath already set unto it should do well ( when they have obtained lieve for their so doing ) to propose those other Limits which they see cause to desire ; and after they are agreed themselves about those Limits , let them in a dutiful manner offer them to their Superiours , alledge their reasons , and among them , let them by no means omit this one , which they so often boast of and triumph in , the great numbers , and Quality of those Persons who are agreed upon those Bounds and Limits , who will acquiesce and rest satisfied in them : And without the doing of this , the Raisers of all these Clamours do nothing else but put an intolerable affront upon the Wisdom and Authority of the Nation , to demand so importunately the Alteration of the setled Constitution , in order to the Gratification of no Body knoweth whom , why , or in what , either how far the Alteration is desired , or what is designed to be the effect of any such Alteration . Let , I say , the Dissenters , who take themselves to be considerable enough to expect a publick Change for their sakes , declare concerning Themselves and their Intentions , We are they who do desire an Alteration ; we do desire it to be made only thus far , and then we will acquiesce in it , and in our several places and Callings ( according to a known reading ) will endeavour to make all others to acquiesce in it ; and we know , that all the Sober , Serious , Peaceable , Godly , Knowing , Conscientious Part of the Nation will joyn with us in it . When the Noise-makers have done this , then , and not before , it will be seasonable to harken unto them : Upon these Terms , I say , and only upon these , their Proposals will be in a condition to be taken into Consideration : When it is once known what the desires of any Party are , then there is room for enquiry , whether or no , or how far they carry Reason in them . And it may sometimes so chance , that such demands as are not altogether reasonable in themselves , may yet in some sort be thought fit to be complied with in regard of the Number , Quality , Merits or Interest of those Persons who appear to be fond of them . In a Debate about the alteration of a Legal Establishment , there are Two things highly considerable ; 1. The Nature of the Alteration it self ; 2. The Nature of those who desire it , who they are , how many , and what kind of People . Now these are things which themselves alone are qualified to make out unto us ; and till they have done that , Authority is scarce in a Capacity to concern it self about it : For it can have no Measures to take , nor propose to it self any End ; it can neither know what Concessions to make , nor to whom ; can have no way the least assurance , either what will satisfie , or who they are who are to be satisfied . And as for the late device of Comprehension , the nature of of it is as yet unknown , and he must be a bold Man who will undertake for the Event of it . As to that which is by ordinary Persons to be understood of it , it amounts to no more than a pretty artifice of saving the Reputation of about a dozen Persons , who are sick of their present Separation from the Church , and stand in need of a plausible Pretence under which to return unto it : Their credit will not suffer them to renounce their old Principles , and they are weary of sticking longer to them . Now if the Pride of these Men should be thus far gratified , who can secure us of any great Effect from it ? Will their Hearers imitate their Teachers in their compliance upon these Terms or abhorr them for it ? And if we had any assurance in getting above these Difficulties , yet however , as to all those who do not come within the Comprehension , every one of all the Pleas of Liberty of Conscience and Persecution remain as they were before , so that such a Purchase will be upon no prudent estimate worth the price we pay for it . These Two things therefore I take to be very clear ; First , that Liberty with Bounds and Limits set to it , is not Liberty of Conscience : 2. That if any other Bounds and Limits are to be set besides those which the Law hath already set , it is very requisite , indeed necessary , that those Limits should be known before admitted , agreed upon among themselves before they be desired from their Superiours . But because I very well know that how reasonable soever this way of procedure is in it self , yet that the concerned Gentlemen will find more than a few difficulties in it ; I shall therefore enquire a little into the other Member of the fore-mentioned Division , and that is , such a Toleration as is unlimited . And here I do freely confess this , that all the Pleas which pretend to shew the reasonableness and usefulness of Liberty of Conscience do plainly prove this , if they do prove any thing at all : And the late Authour of Humane Reason hath been so much honester than many of the Writers upon this Argument , that he hath fairly owned the Conclusion which his Premises naturally do tend unto . Now that which here doth first offer it self to our Consideration , is this : How it doth come to pass that in this Part of the Argument the Presbyterians of late have observably been very silent ? There was a time when in this Case their Zeal was as warm as any mans , and nothing in the whole World was in their esteem more frightful , more intolerable than Toleration . In the year , 1644. This Point of Indulgence was a matter of high Debate , and the Dissenters from the Presbyterian way did desire the same Liberty from their Impositions which they had both of them before joyned in des●●ing from the National Settlement ; their Pretences were at least equal , they had the same natural right to Freedom which any other men had , they had the same Pleas of Christian Liberty , and besides all this they had another very good title upon which they might expect Indulgence from the Presbyterians in Point of Merit ; the same Arguments the Sectaries shewed to be in common between them both , and withall had this to add farther , that their Arms added that assistance , without which the Presbyterians could never have been able to have brought themselves into a condition , to have enjoyed that Liberty as to themselves , which the other Sects by their joynt concurrence did put them into a condition to grant , and therefore very well deserved to have received from them . But in those dayes , their dear Brethren , to whom they were much beholding for their joynt concurrence in Prayers and Arms ; their mutual Contributions of Blood and Treasure , and whom at present they smile most sweetly upon , did receive the harshest usage which was in their Power to give them , and it was no small matter of publick complaint , that they were not permitted to handle them with much greater roughness : To omit many others there then came out a Book entituled , Wholesome Severity reconciled with Christian Liberty , Licensed by Ia. Cranford , wherein we are told , that Liberty of Heresie and Schism is no part of the Liberty of Conscience which Christ hath purchased for us , but that under these fair Colours and handsome Pretexts Sectaries infuse their Poyson , their Pernicious , God-provoking ; Truth-defacing , Church-ruinating and State-shaking Toleration . To which Author I shall only add the more Publick Testimony to the Truth of Iesus Christ , and to our Solemn League and Covenant , as also against the Errours , Heresies , Blasphemies of these Times , and the Toleration of them , subscribed by the Ministers of Christ within the Province of London , December 14. 1647. Which I have already mentioned , but in this part of the Argument shall insist something more largely upon ; because they were such a Body of men as were looked upon as very considerable , and sufficiently qualified to speak the sence of their whole Party to great advantage : And besides that some of them are yet living and Preachers at this day to the separated Congregations about the Town . Now I would ●ain know of these Gentlemen , whether they are of the same Judgment now about Toleration , as they were then ? if they are , then methinks they should do very well to declare it , and so much the rather , because that by their behaviour one would guess that their minds were altered ; in that they do so far comply as to joyn Counsels and Interests with those whom formerly they bore testimony against : Again , if they are of the same mind about Toleration now as they were formerly ; then all the under Sects have great Cause in time to beware of them , ought to look upon them as very false brethren , who want nothing but opportunity to take away that Liberty which now indeed is common to them with the rest of their Brethren , but they never intended it for any but themselves . And on the other side , if they are not of the same mind about Toleration now as they were formerly ; then they ought in all Honesty to declare to the World how much they were formerly mistaken , in that they raised such fearful Outcries against that Toleration which is an innocent and an useful thing ; the giving of which is ( as it is now said ) the Duty and Interest of all Government , is indeed no other than the permitting to us that Liberty with which Christ made us free , or rather , which is the Right of Nature , the Common Birth right of all Mankind . In the Preface to the aforesaid Testimony they tell us of the spreading Heresies and cursed Blasphemies of those Times , which had born down the Authority of the Scriptures and our Solemn League and Covenant ( very fitly joynned : ) And then they add , But above all our Souls are wounded to think with wha● hope and industry , a Toleration of all these Evils is endeavoured , and with what a wellcomed boldness sundry odious Hereticks , which in other places have been banished and branded with infamy , do vent their poysonous Opinions amongst us ; as if they intended to make England a common receptacle of all the sinful Dregs of Foreign Countries as well as former Ages , pag. 29. As if all the Errours , Heresies , Sects , Schisms , Divisions , Looseness , Prophaneness , and Breach of Covenant among us , were small matters ; what secret and publick Endeavours , Projects , Methods and Practices are there amongst us to bring in an universal , boundless , lawless , abominable and intolerable Toleration , to the filling up of the measure of our Iniquities , and the pulling down God's fierce indignation upon this Nation , and pag. 30. Instead of Vnity and Vniformity in Matters of Religion , we are torn in pieces with destructive Schisms , Separations , Divisions , and Subdivisions , &c. and instead of Extirpation of Heresie , Schism , Prophaneness , we have such an impudent and general inundation of all these Evils , that Multitudes are not ashamed to press and plead for a publick , formal , Vniversal Toleration . And having thus shewed how great their Zeal was in this Case , I shall likewise lay down their Reasons for it , which with great earnestness they did express in these following Words , pag. 32. A publick and a general Toleration will prove an hideous and complexive evil of most dangerous and mischievous Consequence , if ever ( which God forbid ) it should be consented to by Authority , for hereby , First , the Glory of the most high God , will be laid in the very dust ; Secondly , the Truth of Christ , yea all the Fundamentals of Faith will be r●●ed to the very ground ; Thirdly , all Christ's Ordinances , Offices , Worship , Religion , yea and the very Power of Godliness will be utterly overthro●● ; Fourthly , thousands , and ten thousands of poor Souls which Christ hath ransomed with his own blood , shall be hereby betrayed , seduced , and endangered to be undone to all eternity . Fifthly , Magistracy and Ministry , and with them all Religious , and comely Order in the Church and Commonwealth will be plucked up by the very roots . Sixthly , Reformation in Religion , in Doctrine , Worship , Discipline and Government shall be utterly made voyd . Seventhly , England shall be swallowed up with Sects , Schisms , Divisions , Disorders , and Confusions , and become an odious sink , and a common rec●ptacle of all the prodigious Errours , Lies , Heresies , and Blasphemies , Libertinism and Profaneness in the World ; so that Rome it self shall not be a more odious puddle and cage of all abominatio●s and uncleannesses . Eighthly , the Godly shall sit down and lament among us . Ninethly , the wicked shall rise up and insult over us . Tenthly , all the Nations about us shall be amazed at us . Eleventhly , all the Reformed Churches shall be ashamed to own us , they shall all cry out against us ; Is this England that Covenanted and swore to the most High God such a Reformation and Extirpation of Popery , Prelacy , Superstition , Heresie , Schism , Prophaneness , and whatever shall be found contrary to sound Doctrine , and the power of Godliness , and after so long a travel hath she brought forth an hideous Monster of Toleration ? And again , pag. 33. Hath England heretofore had such a large share of Gospel-Enjoyments ; and doth she now render to the Lord for all his Benefits a detestable Toleration ? Dost thou thus reward the Lord , O foolish England and unwise ? Twelfthly , and to conclude , seeing we have just cause to fear , that if this Toleration be entertained among us , the Righteous God of Heaven and Earth will be provoked to plague us yet seven times more , and at last to translate his very Gospel and Kingdom from us unto another Nation : Therefore upon all these Considerations , we the Ministers of Iesus Christ do hereby testifie to all our Flocks , to all the Kingdom , to all the Reformed Churches , as our great dislike of Prelacy , Erastianism , Brownism and Independency ; so our utter abhorrency of Anti-Scripturism , Popery , Arri●nism , Socinianism , Arminianism , Antinomianism , Anabaptism , Libertinism , and Familism , with all such like , now too rife among us . It were endless to transcribe all which hath been said by the Presbyterians against Toleration ; and therefore it is not a little strange , how much for some years they have endeavoured after it : But sure their separating Brethren cannot be so forgetful of what hath been but so very lately past , as not to cast a very watchful Eye over them , to suspect their kindness , and be hugely jealous of their present Concurrence with them ; it being not very credible , that their Moderation is greater than formerly , and that which makes all the difference is no other thing than this , That their Power is not altogether so great . It hath been no unusual thing in the World for men to unite in their Endeavours in order to very differing Ends ; to dissemble for a while their mutual Resentments , and to have less kindness for those very Persons they do cabal with , than for those whom they do cabal against . A Common Interest for a while keeps them close together , and out of that they each hope for their particular Advantages ; and both sides hug and applaud inwardly their own Arts and Dexterity , in that they see the way chalked out how they shall be able to supplant their Friends , as well as ruine their Enemies . Thus the Presbyterians may at present joyn their endeavours in attaining that Liberty , which they hope in time to take away , not only from those whom they at present desire to grant it , but likewise from those who now enjoy it together with them : The Independents , Anabaptists , &c. must needs remember how the Presbyterians bore testimony against that Toleration of them which they could not hinder : They could no more endure those who fought on their side to dissent from them , than they could those who fought against them . Remember ( Gentlemen ) you all fought for Liberty of Conscience ; and yet your Fellow-soldiers would not allow you that which you shed your Blood for , and for their own obtaining of which , they were much more beholding to your Arms than to their own . The Pretences of all the differing sorts of Dissenters are so vastly distant , as to be utterly inconsistent ; and whatever Correspondence is between them at present , it ought not to be looked upon , either by themselves or any one else , as any Union or Agreement which is of late made between them , but merely as a Combination against that Settlement which they are all weary of ; and as soon as ever that is again overthrown , we shall then see that all their old Quarrels will return as formerly : The tender Consciences of divers sizes will immediatly fall as foully upon one another as ever they did : Presbytery will be stiled the Yoke of Antichrist , and Independency the Mother of Confusion ; the one will be stiled Egypt , and the other , Babel . If any Particular Sect among them doth desire Indulgence , and means nothing else besides a bare Permission to serve God in its own way : If there were nothing else but this in the Case , its Request then would with all Submission be put up single and by it self ; that so an account might be taken both of the Principles and of the Persons , how innocent the one , and how peaceable the other ; and what Influence either of them are like to have upon the present Settlement either of Church or State : And surely it ought not to be looked upon either as unreasonable or assuming , if the Government doth look upon it self as concerned to have a great regard to it self both in point of Duty and in point of Safety . And in such an Enquiry as this , the Quality , Numbers , and Temper of the Petitioners for such Indulgence are of no small Consideration . And this way of Procedure , that each single Sect should speak by and for its self , and state its own particular Case , is methinks the fairest Course which can be taken ; and such a one as those Dissenters , who are conscious to themselves of no ill meaning , should look upon as highly advisable for their own sakes : It being very obvious to the most ordinary Prudence , that it may be frequently advisable upon divers particular and material Considerations , to indulge some kinds of Liberty to such and such sorts of Dissenters , which is by no means fit to allow to others ; much less to allow promiscuously to all . But to take that course which they have always done since his Majesties Restauration , that they should all joyn in a common Cry , as if they had one common Cause , is very suspicious ; especially considering that they are divided among themselves in this very point of Liberty of Conscience , notwithstanding their Unanimity in calling for it . Some Rumours have of late been spread indeed all over the Town concerning such a kind of Comprehension as should leave no room for Toleration : how well grounded such Reports have been I will not undertake ; it is but in vain to make an uncertain guess at what kind of Proposals may possibly be offered by some Persons ; and to fancy at all adventures who they are or may be who are in any likelihood to be concluded by them . But because it is said publickly enough and by no mean Persons , That the Presbyterians , at least the chief and leading Men among them ▪ are ready now to enter into the Church , upon some reasonable Abatements to be made unto them : And when they are once gained , the other Sects will not be considerable enough to expect , that any Toleration should be allowed unto them . If this be the Case , as it is by some of themselves pretended to be , then the Case is much altered from what it lately was : Reformed Christianity in its Latitude , which came out in 1667. and the Defence of it in 1668. are express , not 〈…〉 only for Comprehension but likewise for Toleration , and besides that for a Connivence also . And a later Treatise entituled , Indulgence not to be refused ; Comprehension humbly desired , which came out 1672. is express for Toleration ; and against that part of his Design he makes this Objection : The Presbyterians in former times wrote and preached against Toleration and Indulgence , and if they do now fall in with it , they contradict themselves . To this he answers , That some did , some did not ; and there was a Reason then which ceaseth now : and besides , many of those who declared against such a Toleration are dead and gone , and there are others postnati to those times who now suffer , p. 11 , 12. So that it seems , these Two Advocates for the Comprehension were for a Toleration . If the minds of these men be changed since that time , it were not unfit that they should give Publick notice of it , especially for this Reason : It is well known , that in the private Discourses and in their printed Books , the People have been moved to express much pity toward the Dissenters , and not a few exasperated against the Government by the perpetual noise of Persecution , Liberty , Conscience , Moderation , Forbearance , Tenderness , Compassion , Indulgence ; and that this hath not been the peculiar Phrases of such or such a particular Sect , but the common language of all of them . Now if this device of Comprehension do take place , then all those Pleas as to all Parties but one will remain as formerly But if the Presbyterians do really intend to come into the Church now , upon such & such abatements to be made unto them , and finally and for ever to shake Hands with their old Brethren ; it were but reasonable to expect that they should do these two things : First , that in their present Meeting-Houses they should use so much of the Common-Prayer as they can lawfully , and mean hereafter to use , and observe so many of the Orders and Ceremonies of the Church , as they are perswaded of the Innocency of ; and take the first opportunity of declaring to their Hearers their Resolutions of Conformity , thereby to prepare them to conform likewise : Secondly , they should declare , as formerly , against Liberty of Conscience , as a thing which they do by no means approve , and are resolved never hereafter to have any thing to do with . If , I say , these men do desire that any publick distinction should be made between them and other Dissenters , they themselves should do well to own such a distinction ; if we go into their Conventicles we cannot find any such great difference in the way of Worship between the Presbyterians and others , as thence to be able to distinguish them . If we go into their Company their Complaints are much of the same strain , and not seldom in the same Syllables . If there are any among them ( as it is to be hoped there are ) who are sincere , modest , and peaceable , who mean better than their Neighbours ; The Law cannot help it if they suffer for being taken in bad Company : It is not unlikely that they might have fared much better themselves if they had not had such Partakers ; their own Case might have been looked upon as pitiable , if they had not joyned with such dangerous Adherents . If this Course ( I say ) were taken , that each Sect did urge its own Plea single , by and for it self , there were then some ground for Charity , and we might possibly have some hope , that their aims looked no higher than an Indulgence : And by so inoffensive a way of asking favour , Authority would have some ground whereupon to be perswaded , that they would use any favour which they could obtain with the very same Modesty with which they do desire it : But when they shall all unite with a joynt Consent in one and the same Clamour for that very Demand , about which themselves neither ever did , nor ever can agree ; and within which Pretence no one name is wide enough to comprehend them , besides that of Non-conformity , viz. Dissenters from the present Constitution : Of which dissent it is more than possible to alledge , not only divers , but contrary Reasons , and doth only tell us what it is they would not have , but not at all what they would have . It is but too evident , that Indulgence is not the only thing aimed at , but is only proposed in order to something else ; and the plausible name of Conscience may upon these terms be suspected to be only a handsome Artifice whereby to disguise that Combination , which no other word is solemn enough to authorize , or of compass large enough to be a sufficient shelter for ; and by which they hope to become a Match for some common Enemy : And accordingly as their success doth chance to happen in that , each Sect doth flatter it self with the particular Advantages to be reaped from it . And in this I am the more confirmed , because that the late Act of Parliament against Conventicles , which hath been the matter of so much Lamentation and Complaint , hath been so tender , even of the needless Scruples of Conscience , as to allow these men their own Fancies in their way of Worship in their own Families , and four of their Neighbours to joyn with them : But these Good men are persecuted , if they are only tolerated ; they lose their ends unless they make Proselytes , and have opportunities to form themselves into Parties . But if this Plea of Conscience be so very Omnipotent , as that it must bear all things down before it , and no other Consideration whatever must in the least presume to stand in its way : Suppose the Case should so happen , as that this Plea should become so utterly inconsistent with it self , as that it is impossible but that in one respect or other , it must necessarily be over-ruled ; and this is a Case which may occurr very frequently : As for Example , suppose that my Conscience tells me , that I ought to be of this or that Opinion , and not only so , but that I am obliged not only to entertain it my self , but withall to vent and propagate it to others ; and on the contrary , the Magistrates Conscience tells him , that he is appointed by God to be a Keeper of both the Tables , and that it is his Duty to take care not only of Peace , but Truth ; and the Doctrines which I am so very fond of are not only erroneous , but likewise of very ill consequence , both as to the Souls of men and to the publick Peace ; and that to so high a degree , as that he is firmly perswaded , and as he really believes and thinks himself able to give a very good account upon weighty grounds , that he should be much wanting , both to the Duty which he oweth to God , and the Care which he ought to take of his People , both as to their Temporal and Eternal Welfare , if he doth not make use of his Authority in the restraining me from venting any such pernicious Doctrines within his Dominions . What now is to be done in this case ? My Conscience tells me , that I am obliged to preach such and such Doctrines , as being precious and soul-saving ones , the Truths of God and Gospel-discoveries ; the King's Conscience tells him , that they are the Doctrines of Devils ( as Saint Paul did upon occasion declare some Doctrines to be ) and that he ought not to give me Liberty to preach any such in his Kingdom : What now is to be done in this Case ? Here is Conscience on both sides ; the King is as firmly perswaded as I am , and thinks himself as well informed as I either am or can be ; If the King restrains me from preaching after my own way , then I cry out that he is a Persecutor : He replies , that I am a Seducer , nay , a Blasphemer , and he neither will nor ought to suffer any such in his Countries ; either his Conscience or mine must over-rule ; Both cannot be satisfied ; one or other must necessarily either yield or alter ; or else I must Preach , and he must Punish , and the Almighty must at his own time be Judge between us ; and in the mean time as to all the purposes of this World , the King's Conscience hath reason to expect to be more Authoritative than mine , and withall he is concerned to take care both of himself and all other men , to Judge both as to his own particular , and likewise as to the Concerns of His whole Nation . If it be replied in this Case , that the King's Conscience ought to yield , because it is an Errour in Him to think that He is at all concerned in Points of this Nature ; that Religion is no part of His Care , His business is only to look after the Civil Government , and the Publick Peace ( a Pretence frequently insisted on : ) The Answer to this is very plain , and might easily be enlarged upon , as to many Particulars , I shall only mention these two Things ; First , that Religion hath a very great influence upon Civil Government , and the Publick Peace ; and therefore if so be , that the Civil Government and the Publick Peace be within His Care ; then Religion ought by no means to be excluded from it , as having so great an influence upon it . In the next place , as to the Pretence that the Magistrate is in an Errour , if he looks upon himself as concerned in this Particular ; it is more than possible , that that very Pretence will upon Examination appear to be the greater Errour : And in general the Subject is no more free from Errour than the Soveraign . And this need not seem News to us of this Age and Nation ; and to speak the Truth , it is no easie matter to find out any Age or Nation , where it hath not been sadly evidenced , that Seducers will quickly be found in great abundance , where Liberty hath been given for the People to be seduced by them : And after all this , it will be no impossible Task to make out , that Magistrates are obliged not only in Interest , but likewise in point of Conscience , to have a great Care of Religion ; and to use that Authority which they received from God , so far to the honour of him who gave it , as by no means to suffer his Truths to lie all openly exposed to all the Lusts , Designs , and Mistakes of Men ; to all the Knavery and all the Folly of Every one who is either willing to deceive , or liable to be deceived . And of this I shall now endeavour to give a brief account both from Reason and Scripture , the Necessity of the thing , and the Authority both of the Old and New Testament . But here a great many Rubs are thrown in our way , by the fore-mentioned Author of Liberty of Conscience upon its true and proper Grounds asserted and vindicated : Proving that no Prince nor State ought by force to compel men to any Part of the Doctrine , Worship or Discipline of the Gospel . London , Printed in the year 1668. Which methinks is not very different from the Doctrine of the Blody Tenent dedicated to both Houses of Parliament in the year 1644. It is the Will and Command of God , that ( since the coming of his Son Iesus ) a Permission of the most Paganish , Iewish , Turkish , or Antichristian Consciences and Worships be granted to All men in all Nations and Countries . But whatever the Assertion of our Author is either in it self , or in its Consequence , I shall briefly enquire into the Arguments he brings for it . Pag. 25. That the Civil and Ecclesiastical Power are things perfectly in themselves distinct , and ought in their Excercise to be kept so , &c. And , The Magistrate hath ways , such as Christ thought sufficient , to promote the Good of Religion , and propagating the Growth of the Gospel , without drawing the Civil Sword , which will make no more Impression in spiritual Concerns , than it will do upon a Ghost which hath no real Body , &c. And p. 28. To use force in Religion is wholly unlawful in any hand whatever ; because it is by no means appointed by Christ to bring about any Gospel-End : For the Magistrate to enforce the Laws of the Gospel by Temporal Power , or to compel Men into the Gospel by such a Power , is to act without the least Precept or Precedent ; to induce an Engine to execute the Gospel contrary to the nature of Christs Kingdom ( which is not of this World ) and contrary to the nature of all Gospel-institutions . Doth not Paul positively deliver this , That the weapons of the Gospel are not carnal but spiritual , and mighty thorough God : The Sword of the Spirit is the Weapon by which Christ doth all ; yea , by which he will destroy Antichrist , the greatest Gospel-enemy the World hath produced . The Sum of which is briefly this : 1. That Force is a very incompetent Method to be used in matters of Belief and Perswasion : 2. That it is unlawful . 1. Because Christ hath no where commanded it , we have neither Precept nor Precedent for it : 2. Because St. Paul hath plainly forbid it , where he says that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal . Now , as to these Suggestions which do frequently recurr in this Question , I shall at present only briefly touch upon them , premising this , That our Author , like to all the rest who have dealt in this Cause , is as much concern'd to answer these and all the rest of his Arguments against using the Secular Interposition in matters of Belief , as any of those he writes against ; because he himself doth very much approve and commend such Interposition where he likes the Cause in behalf of which it is made use of . Now , though this may seem strange , because it is directly contrary to his whole Book , yet it is very plain ; and I shall not expect to be believed upon my bare word , but desire the Author himself , or any one besides who makes a doubt of it , to consider these words which we have pag. 24. Constantine and the Christian Emperours after him , till the Church of Rome had cheated them into subjection , took upon them the care and oversight of all Religious things : among our selves we reap the advantage of our Kings and Princes care and Concern in that enjoyment we have of the Protestant Religion . Now this Assertion of that learned Gentleman is evidently true ; but then it happens here as it useth in the other Discourses for Toleration : When the Evidence of Truth hath forced from them one reasonable Concession , that one Concession doth plainly give away from them nothing less than their whole Cause : For , pray tell me , Constantine and the Christian Emperours are here commended for their care and oversight in Religious things ; and so our own Kings for securing to us the Protestant Religion : Now was not all this done by Laws and Penalties , and the Civil Sword , and was there any possibility of having it done any other way ? This being premised , as to the Exceptions themselves , I briefly say this ; If no force is to be used in matters of Religion , because it is an incompetent Method , as being able to reach only to the Body and Estate , but is by much too weak to reach unto the Mind ; this is a Difficulty not at all peculiar to the Gospel , but common to that with all other Dispensations . The Mind of a Man was as much a Spirit under the Law as it can be now ; and the Sword was made of as meer Matter in those days , as it can be in these : and therefore thus far the Case is one and the same . As to the Second Exception , That all Force is now unlawful , because Christ hath not commanded it , they have been told , and have had it proved to them too in many parts of the Puritan Controversie , that many things are lawful which there is no particular Command for ; that a thing becomes unlawful , not by being not commanded , but by being forbidden : And this leads me directly to the Third Exception , That all Force is plainly forbidden by St. Paul , when he says , 2 Cor. 10. v. 4. that The weapons of our warfare are not carnal . Now this saying of the Apostle is so far from being a hibition of all Coercion in the Affairs of Religion , that it doth plainly refer to a very great Coercion , which himself did in these very words threaten for to use , viz. the Censures of the Church in such a manner as to carry temporal Penalties along with them , in manner miraculous , visible and extraordinary : And therefore it followeth in the next words , that those Weapons which in themselves might be supposed weak , yet if they were better looked into would be found to have a strength from God , which they had not from themselves ; for they were not meerly carnal , but mighty through God for the bringing down strong holds : And to render it clear that these words have a penal meaning in them , it follows , that these Weapons are able to cast down imaginations , and every high thought that exalteth it self against the knowledge of God , and bringing into captivity every thought to the Obedience of Christ : And to put it out of all doubt , that those Weapons had a coercive power in them , the Apostle adds , in a stile much beyond exhortation and advice , nay , much beyond a bare reproof , that in the strength of them he would revenge all disobedience . And as for the last most pressing and convincing Consideration , That if Force was to be used in any affair of Religion at all , it was of all others the most to be justified in order to the pulling down of Antichrist , the greatest of all other Gospel-enemies : But even in that Case it ought not to be used , and therefore most certainly not in any other ; The Sword of the Spirit being the only Weapon by which Christ will destroy Antichrist , the greatest Gospel-enemy which the World hath produced . I shall not here take an advantage which I have already mentioned , that the Sword of the Spirit doth in Scripture signifie something which carries Coercion along with it ; but shall be contented that that word be understood in the common meaning of it : And upon that Supposition I believe that this Assertion of this learned Gentleman will scarce pass for true Doctrine in the Separated Congregations ; I am sure that there was a time when it would not have done so , and I never yet heard that in this Point their Minds were altered : How unlawful soever it may be for the Magistrate to make use of the Civil Sword in a Cause of Religion ; I am sure that it hath been often preached as a great Gospel Duty , though in a Rebellion , to make use of the Military one . We have not forgot how often the Zeal of the Common People was inflamed against the King , by telling them that the Cause then fought for was the Cause of God , that their Persons and Estates were all too little to be sacrificed in this Concern of Religion , and the question really was , whether Christ or Anti-Christ should be King ? And so I return to our Author . Amongst all the Arguments which are brought to prove the Compulsory Power of the Magistrate under the Gospel , the greatest weight is laid upon the practice of the Kings of Israel and Judah , and what they did under the Law in compelling men to the Worship of God then established . In the due Consideration whereof we shall find the truth in hand no wayes invalidated , and that what was then done by the Kings of Israel and Judah , cannot reasonably be now made a Rule to Magistrates under the Gospel : And that the Analogy will no way hold , may be made appear both from the different station and posture those Kings were in from all Magistrates now , and also from the different Condition of the Church then and now , and many Circumstances peculiarly relating to both . First , the Worship and Policy of the Jews , being in it self Typical , and representative of what was to come hereafter , their Government was likewise so , and in their Kings very eminently . Secondly , God was pleased in those Times upon all eminent Occasions of Reformation in his Worship and Proceedings of that Nature to send Prophets to declare his positive Mind , and to put an end to all Doubts , that could be about such things : Nay , some of the Kings themselves were Prophets immediately inspired , and did not only take care of the Worship established by Moses , but did themselves by Divine Authority bring in things of a new Institution into the Worship of God. Thus David did , and Solomon in bringing Musick into the Temple , and setling the Courses of the Priests , and were divinely inspired to write part of the holy Scriptures : No Magistrate now can pretend to any such power in themselves , nor have they any such extraordinary direction to guide them ; but are punctually obliged to whatever Christ hath revealed in the Gospel : And therefore in this respect the Analogy holds no way good . The sum of all which is , that no Argument ought to be drawn from the Examples of the Kings of Israel or Iudah , whereby to prove the Power of any present Magistrates over the Affairs of Religion ; by reason of the great difference between those Magistrates and ours , especially in these two respects : First , that they were Typical : Secondly , that in such Cases they had either Prophets sent to them , or themselves were divinely inspired . And in this part of the Argument , if I had a mind to enlarge farther than I needs must , I believe that I should find it an easie matter , to find our Authour to have committed sundry mistakes in assigning the Difference between the State of the Church , and the Condition of Magistrates , as it was under the Law ; I shall not dispute whether the Law , fulness of the Magistrate's using coercive power under the Law was Typical of this , that such coercive power should not be lawful under the Times of the Gospel : But in the second place I shall venture to say this , that several of the Constitutions made by the Iewish Kings , were such as stood in no need either of direction from Prophets commissioned for that purpose , or any immediate inspiration given in to them themselves ; And in this Part of the Debate I shall go no farther than the Instances which our Author here layes down , of bringing Musick into the Temple , the setling of the Priests Courses , Two Things certainly which without inspiration , common prudence would abundantly serve to assist any man in : But to shew how little need there is to insist upon any thing of this , I shall produce an instance of the Magistrates coercive power in Matters of Religion , which shall not be liable to any of all these , however frivolous exceptions , as having in it not any thing peculiar to the Ordinances of Moses . And I shall fetch it out of the Book of Iob chap. 31. v. 26 , 27 , 28. If I beheld the Sun when it shined , or the Moon walking in brightness , and my heart hath been secretly enticed , or my mouth hath kissed my hand , this also were an iniquity to be punished by the Iudges , &c. Here now is an offence purely spiritual , a Crime meerly against Religion , not any otherwise at all against the State , or any particular Member of it ; a sin indeed it was against God , but such an one as did consist in a meer mistake about him , and such a mistake as was in that Age and part of the World very frequently committed ; and yet it is said to be an Iniquity to be punished by the Iudges . So that it seems in the dayes of Iob , the Civil Magistrate was thought to have in himself a power , and was concerned to look upon it as a Duty incumbent upon himself , to take care not only of the safety of Himself and His People , but likewise to look after the Honour of Almighty God. Now whatever may be pretended for that Natural Liberty , which every man is now a-dayes supposed to have a full right to , to be permitted the enjoyment of his own way of Worship , we do find that things of this Nature were before the Dayes of Moses , and without relation to any of his Laws , under the Restraint and Authority of Superiours , who were to be in this as well as in any other Affairs , not only Guides but Governours . I suppose that without breach of Modesty , a man may with some Confidence affirm , that if it had not been within the due bounds of that Power which of right did belong to Abraham , that it would never have been recorded for his everlasting Honour by God himself , That he would command his Children and Houshold after him to keep the way of the Lord , not only advise or exhort , but Command , as we have it , Gen. 18. 19. And Abraham's Family was so large , as that Gen. 23. 6. He is stiled a Mighty Prince . And in this place we are to consider that it is very plain , that every one of all those Arguments , which do assert Liberty of Conscience by way of Right so far as to exempt Religion from the Authority of the Magistrate , doe , at least with equal force exempt it from the Authority of Parents , Masters , or who ever else besides : For this must needs be very evident , that if this Liberty be such a natural indefeasable right as that no humane power whatever can take it away from us , then as the Regal Power cannot take it away ; so for the same reason neither can the Paternal or Despotical : Nay farther , if so be that these Pretenders are in the Right , and that such a Liberty in Matters of Religion , and the Profession of that Liberty be one part of Liberty , with which Christ hath made us free , and which we are accordingly called upon to stand fast in , as being purchased for us by our Redeemer's Blood , then the same Argument doth return upon us again at least with equal , if not with greater force ; for as the King ought not to deprive us of any degree of that Liberty with which Christ made us free ; so neither ought any Parent or Master presume to do any such thing ; and Liberty of Conscience must upon these terms receive as little interruption in Families as in Kingdoms : No imposition must upon these terms be endured in any House , School , or Colledge , as to Forms or hours of Prayer , no Words , no nor no Gestures must be prescribed ; every Child or Servant hath the free Liberty to remonstrate in behalf of this invaluable and frequently insisted on Priviledge , that no man must dare to determine what Christ hath left free , for in Christ there is no difference of any Age or Quality , high and low in him are all alike . The chief , if not only ground of mistake in this particular is this , that in the New Testament we have not an Example of a Civil Magistrate exercising his Civil Power in defence of the Gospel : Now that which renders this Exception utterly insignificant , is this , that in the New Testament we do not read of any Civil Magistrate who was a Christian. And nothing can be plainer than this , that the Magistrates which then were did look upon Religion as a thing within their Cognizance , and accordingly , as they did not believe the Doctrine of the Gospel to be true , they did call them to account who did either profess or propogate it : And if this had been one alteration which the Gospel had brought into the World , that from henceforth Religion , contrary to the Sentiments of all former Ages , should be absolutely exempt from the Cognizance of any Magistrate , and that every man's Conscience was so sacred , as that God alone was fit to be the Judge of it ; it is not a little to be wondred at , that in this new Epocha and strange alteration of Affairs , the Apostles did take no manner of notic● of this change , and when they had so fair Opportunities and proper seasons ; as when they themselves were called in Question about Matters of Religion , did never in the least insert this in their Apologies , that Religion was no part of the Civil Magistrates business : When St. Paul was questioned about Heresie , he made no such exception against the Tribunal he was called before ; that Heresie was a thing which they had nothing to do to enquire about , but gave them an Account that the Doctrine which he preached was not Heresie . And that we may root up the very Foundation of all mistakes in this matter , it is very evident , that among all the Precepts , which we meet with in the New Testament , concerning Moderation , Condescention , bearing with one anothers Infirmities , it is very evident , that not any one of them hath any manner of Relation to our great Idol of Liberty of Conscience ; they being plainly given to private Persons , & many times in relation only to their own passions , and where not so limited to certain Cases , occasional emergencies , and with a clear reference to their not having as yet time or opportunity of being sufficiently instructed : But as for the Governours of the Church they are sufficiently called upon to watch over their respective Flocks , and to take care that Wolves do not break in upon them , they are called upon to exercise the whole power with which they were intrusted , viz. the power of Excommunication , a thing which comes so near the Question now in Debate , that it was not seldom assisted with temporal penalties : And though it is often suggested into his Argument , that the Outward Sword can act no more upon the mind of men than upon a Ghost , yet St. Paul , 1 Cor. 5. 5. was of the Opinion , that the Destruction of the Flesh ( a Phrase well known to signifie Diseases , and such like inflictions on the Body ) was a very likely method by which the Spirit might at length come to be saved . The Soul and the Body though of a distant Nature have so near an Union , such Common Interests , and so great an influence one upon another , that what doth affect the one , the other cannot choose but be so far concerned in , as at the least to consider it : And this is obvious to the most ordinary Experience , and hath seldom failed of a great Effect , whenever it hath been made trial of . And if it were not so , it would not only supercede all correction in religious Affairs , but in Civil ones likewise . Now that any such kind of Liberty of Conscience was brought into the World by the Revelation of the Gospel , as that every one should henceforward without control profess and propagate what Opinion soever he either did really or would pretend to believe , I take to be a thing so far from being according to to the Rule of the New Testament , that I must profess my self to be very much mistaken , if so be that this thing be not contrary not only to some few Texts , but to a considerable part of the whole Design of it . In the 4th of the Ephes. v. 14. we read of several Orders and Degrees of Men instituted and appointed for this very purpose , that they might take care of the perfecting the Saints , the work of the Ministry , the edifying the Body of Christ ; that we be henceforth no more Children tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of Doctrine , by the slight of men and cunning crastiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive . Now is it credible that an unbounded Licence for all manner of Opinions , was ever intended by St. Paul to be a thing to be looked upon , as being according to the mind of Christ ; who tells us of a whole Order of Men appointed by Christ , whose Duty it should be to take care , that men should not be tossed to and fro , and carried about with every Wind of Doctrine . And this Consideration will be of so much the greater force both as to the Care which ought to be taken of Souls , and withal as to the Ends of Government , and all the purposes of humane Life : If we do but keep in mind the Caution which is here given us by the Apostle , that every thing is not Gold that glisters ; that fair pretences may have very ill Designs lodged under them : The being tossed to and fro with every wind of Doctrine is it self certainly a very great Evil and of very ill consequence . But the deluded persons themselves have one good Preservative against it , when they are by such an infallible Authority forewarn'd and assured , that this doth frequently come to pass by the slight of men and the cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive : Now in this Case I would appeal to common Sense , whether it be a thing adviseable upon the scores either of Piety or Prudence , that such deceivers should have an unbounded Liberty , to seduce all those whom at any time they shall be able to impose upon ? It is plain that St. Paul was so far from being of this mind , that he calls upon the Ecclesiastical Officers in this case to make use of the highest Censures which they were entrusted with , I wish they were cut off that trouble you , Gal. 5. 12. Now I would fain know whether when this which our Apostle doth advise is done , that according to the Rules of Scripture , any one or more are cast out of the Communion of the Church upon the account of Corruption either in Doctrine or Manners , it be agreeable to common Sense , that this Person or Persons , so cast out of the Church according to the Rules above supposed , should in the same Kingdom , nay , in the same Parish , have a right to set up another ? that being cut off as a rotten Member from one Church , he may from thence assume the Privilege to create himself the Pastour of another , which he no doubt will be forward enough to tell us is a much purer one . Now the want of exercising the Censures of the Church in this very Case of false Doctrine we find to be a thing highly blame-worthy , Rev. 2. 14. where it is said to the Angel of the Church of Pergamus , I have a few things against thee , because thou hast them who hold the Doctrine of Balaam ; and Ver. 15. Thou hast them who hold the Doctrine of the Nicolaitans : Now the Governour of this Church is not charged in the least that he himself did hold these false Doctrines , but that there are those within his Communion who do hold them ; as again the Complaint is renewed , v. 20. to another Angel , I have a few things against thee , because thou sufferest that woman Iezebel , which calleth her self a Prophetess , to teach and seduce my servants to commit fornication , and to eat things sacrificed to Idols . From all which it is very plain , that this Natural or Christian Right of propagating whatever Opinion men do chance , or fancy , or pretend to be of , was a thing which St. Iohn was utterly unacquainted with , and blames the Governours of the Church for suffering a false Prophetess to teach and seduce the Souls committed to their Charge . And let any reasonable man consider with himself , whether the condition of the Common people be not lamentably expos'd to innumerable and unaccountable Dangers , if so be that by publick Authority they shall lie exposed to every one to deceive , who can and will. St. Paul , 2 Ti , . 2. 17. gives us notice of some Hereticks of his time , whose words do eat as doth a canker ; he names the Men and the Doctrines , Hymeneus and Philetus , who say that the Resurrection is past already & overthrow the Faith of some : and this Doctrine of theirs by the benefit of Liberty of Conscience hath been preached since their days ; and as often soever as that time shall come which St. Paul doth so much bewail , 2 Tim. 4. 3. That men will not endure sound Doctrine , but after their own Lusts heap to themselves teachers , having itching ears . Authority will be found useful as well as Instruction , and Government be needful as well as Exhortation . In the Second Epistle of St. Peter , c. 2. v. 1 , 2 , 3. we read of false Prophets and false Teachers who shall priv●ly bring in damnable heresies ; the consequence of which is there said to be very dreadful both to themselves and others , They shall bring upon themselves swift destruction : But this is not all , for this kind of infection is not only fatal but contagious ; as it is expressed , v. 2. Many shall follow their pernitious ways . Now if errours are so pernicious to the Souls of men , and withal of a very spreading nature , is it a thing advisable that there should be an unbounded Licence for entertaining and receiving , spreading and propagating them ? And this Consideration will appear evidently to be the more forcible , if we withal remember , that it is more than possible , that Doctrines in themselves false , may be known to be false by the men who teach them ; and with great art and demureness many may endeavour to perswade others to those things of which themselves are not really perswaded . And let no man look upon this as any harsh or uncharitable Censure of mine ; for it is so far from being a suggestion of mine , that it is in express terms taught by the Apostle , v. 3. Thorough covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you : So that Heresie may be a solemn way of setting up for a Cheat ; Separation a very gainful Trade ; the getting a Meeting-house , a religious Method of setting up a Shop , where the more numerous and ignorant his Auditors ( otherwise called his Chapmen ) are , so much the more it is in his power to put off what Wares he will , and to set what prices he pleaseth upon them . And thus I think I have made it somewhat plain , from the New Testament , that that Liberty of Conscience , which of late hath so often been called for , is nothing like any part of that Christian Liberty which the Writers of that Book did ever think of ; that they themselves did exercise , and require of others to exercise the whole Ecclesiastical Power in points of Doctrine as well as Manners ; and that was the whole Power they were intrusted with ; that this Power of theirs , though in it self wholly spiritual , was yet by an immediate interposition of God attended upon with Temporal Penalties , and by the Apostles known and intended so to be . So that in this Case it happened to them in vindicating their Authority , as it did in another in the exercise of their Charity ; they could not give the poor man who begged at the Gate of the Temple Money ; but they could give him the use of his Limbs ; they had no Silver nor Gold , but what was much better they had ; they could say , Rise up and walk : So in this Case they had not in those days the Sword of the Magistrate ; but when it was seasonable they made it evident , that the want of that was abundantly supplied by the Sword of God. Now all this being premised , there is very little need certainly for men to require a particular express Precept for the Power of the Civil Magistrate in Matters of Religion ; seing the Authority of the Civil Magistrate over the affairs which related to the Worship of God was acknowledg'd and exercised over all the World ; the Original of which practice we find to be of as early Date as Magistracy it self . It is notorious , that the Kingly and the Priestly Office was of old in one and the same Person ; and when by the appointment of God , they came to be separated , there is not the least shew that this Separation was made out of any favour to Liberty of Conscience ; nor the least in●●●uation that holy things should for all Ages and Dispensations to come be looked upon as no part of the Princes care : Nay , this is so far from being any thing like the Case , that in that very Nation , wherein that Separation was made , the Civil Power did all along retain the Right and did frequently use that Right of his in interposing authoritatively in Religious Affairs ▪ And he did do this both by the appointment of God , and at other times without any especial appointment but by his original Right of Magistracy , when there was an Exig●●●y of Affairs which did require it ; Nay , and in Matters of outward Order , and the more decent Celebration of Divine Offices , he did not always tie himself to the express Rule of the written word , but according to his own Prudence ; and what he did thus without especial Commission is in Scripture recorded with great approbation . The Instances are too well known to stand in need of being insisted on . Our forementioned Author tells us , p. 13. That a Magistrate , by becoming a Christian , hath no addition of power to what he had before , which is readily granted him ; let him have but so much , and he will stand in need of no more . They who exempt all Affairs of Religion from the Authority of the Magistrate must prove that Christ did take much from his Authority , viz. the whole cognizance of Sacred things , a Power known to have been used by Jews as well as Gentiles . And however the Clergy have been frequently and falsly traduced in this particular , that in order to Ends of the●● own they have flattered Princes with a Power , which really did not belong to them . It is well known that the Writers of Politicks have asserted this Prerogative of Princes as earnestly as the Divines have done : Instances would here be endless ▪ I shall therefore shew you the thing granted by a known Scholar , but no Divine by Profession , and that is the Excellent Grotius , Omnes ( saith he ) qui de Republica aliquid lectu dignum scripsêre , hoc jus in sacra non partem summi Imperii , sed etiam potissimam atque praecipuam vocant , de Imperio , C. 1. p. 14. Now I must needs confess that our forementioned Author doth , p. 22 , 23. not only assert the Princes Power in Matters of Religion , but proves it very well ; and at last concludes , that it is a great weakness to think otherwise : But then he adds , p. 24. That the Prince must by no means in this case use the Sword ; and having said this , he seems a little suspicious , as if that Limitation had quite spoiled his whole Concession , as indeed it doth . But his wonted courage doth immediately return again ; Nor need it see● strange that the Magistrate should have the care and oversight of that where he is not to use the Temporal Power , &c. Now , I think , it is not easie to be imagined what effectual Care the Magistrate can take but that ; our Author tells us indeed of another way , viz. He is to see it done by the spiritual means which Christ hath appointed , p. 24. But if this be all which he may do , this may be too little : For suppose those spiritual Weapons do meet with such persons , who do slight , undervalue and stand in open defiance of them ; doth all that concern and care , which our Author , but one page before , asserts the Magistrate to be intrusted with , in looking after the Honour of God and the Souls of men , amount to no more but barely this , That he is to see the Spiritual Censures of the Church made use of ; and if men have no more Religion than to despise and laugh at them , he is to stand still and look on while they are so doing ? This Learned Gentleman confesseth and contends for it , that the Magistrate is in his Station bound to take care of Gods Honour , p. 23. and yet thoroughout his whole Book he is ever afterward very zealous , that he must by no means use the Sword in order to it : Now , how a Magistrate can in his station act , where this is interdicted him , is a thing not easily apprehended . When a Magistrate , as such , declares his pleasure , common Sense tells us , that the meaning is , that if we do not bear a fitting regard to that his Declaration , it must be at our own peril ; and without this I do not apprehend how his Authority doth appear to be any greater than that of any other man. Again , if the King be to govern the People , Religion must then be a very considerable part of his Care , as being a thing wherein his Government will find it self to be very frequently and very highly concerned ; there being nothing more evident nor experienced than this , that according to the right or wrong measures which may be taken of Religion , the People may be wrought upon to do either very much good or very much evil , even as to the Affairs of this Life : There are not a few Doctrines , which this Nation is no Stranger to , which is a Prince hath not power to forbid the spreading of , God shall be extreamly dishonoured , himself be in a fair way to be deposed ▪ and his Subjects ruined ; and he shall pl●inly see all this , and upon these me●s terms not in the least be able to help it : And this naturally leads 〈◊〉 to our next Consideration , the many great inconveniencies which attend Liberty of Conscience both in relation to Religion and Government , the Worship of God , and the Publick Peace . But before I enter upon this Part of the Argument , I must again return so far back , as to take some notice of that common rumour about the Town , of such a Project in hand as will ( if the Success can be supposed to answer the great hopes which are conceived of it ) make all that Labour needles● and that is the fore-mentioned Comprehension : In behalf of which the undertakers are said usually and openly to alledge this , that if that be yielded to , there will be then no need at all of Toleration ; for , by that means the Church will be so strong by the accession of her new Friend● , that she may safely contemn , and by their help easily overcome all her other Enemies ; and withall they are Persons already so very near us ▪ that there are none but inconsiderable matters in debate between us ; for they allow Episcopacy , approve the Liturgy , abhor Sacriledge , believe our Articles , and already can and often do communicate in our Publick Worship . Now as plausible and taking soever this Plea is , yet methinks that there is no one part of it which doth not carry something of wonder in it . First , it is well known that there was a time when the Presbyterians did joyn with , invite , encourage , and protect all other Sectaries , that by their Assista●ce they might be enabled to ruine the Church ; and therefore it ought to be well considered upon , by what means it is brought about , that their Minds come now to be so f●r altered as that they will now joyn with the Church in the Suppression of all the other Sects : Nay , and very lately the leading Persons of that way did joyn Interests with the Pap●sts , and mutually engage for assistance to P●●liament other in stopping of Bills in 〈◊〉 preparing against Both of them ▪ In the next place , if the difference between us and them are so inconsiderable , as they pretend , then surely there was no need of the last War upon any Religious Account . There was no need of that grievous complaint against some of those Thing● which a Preacher at this Day in Aldersgate-street made before a Mock-Parliament , September 24. 1656. Praysed be that God who hath delivered 〈◊〉 from the Imposition of Prelatical I●novations , Altar-gen●-flections , and Cri●gings with Crossings , and all that Popists Trash and Trumpery : And truly ( I speak no more than what I have often thought and said ) the removal of those insupportable burthens counter 〈◊〉 ALL THE BLOOD and treasure shed and spent in these late Distractions ( nor did I as yet ever hear of any godly men that desired , were it possible , to purchase their Friends or money again at so dear a rate , as with the return of these , as have those 〈◊〉 Anti-Christian Yokes rei●pos●● upon us : And if any such there be I am sure that that desire is no part of their godliness , and I profess my self in that to be none of the number : Here we see that Mr. Ie●kin is very positive and express in the Case ; that the differences are so great between us , that all the blood shed , whether in the Field or on the Scaffold , was all little enough to be shed in order to the removal of so great Evils ; and yet there w●● shed in this Quarrel the Blood of the King , many of the Nobles and Gentry , & of vast numbers of all other Ranks , Orders and Degrees amongst 〈◊〉 : If the Differences between us be so inconsiderable , as it is now said , then methinks there was but little cause for that great Zeal of Mr. Calamy's , which he exprest in Guild●Hall , October 6. 〈◊〉 in order to the perswading the Ci●y unto a liberal Contribution toward bringing in the Scots , in order to the preservation of the Gospel , 〈◊〉 he several times expresseth himself in that Speech , as if the Diffe●ences were in his esteem , and in the esteem of that Grave and Reverend Assembly of Ministers there present with him , so very considerable , that the chief concerns of the Gospel did depend upon them ; and accordingly he made use of this pretence as his chief Art , whereby to wheedle the City out of their money at that time : Let me tell you , if euer ( Gentlemen ) you might use this Speech , O happy Penny , you may use it now , happy Money that will purchase my Gospel , happy Money that will purchase Religion , and purchase a Reformation to my Posterity ; O happy Money and blessed be God that I have it to lend : So that it seems these Gentlemen have two measures which upon different occasions they do make use of : When they have a mind to Collogue with Authority , then the differences between them and the regular Clergy are mere trifles and very inconsiderable ; but when there is a season offered , wherein it is safe to animate and inflame the People , the● the differences are of that moment , that no Treasure , no Blood is sufficient to be laid out in a Debate of that Concernment , or in the Words of the forementioned Speech ; If I had as many lives as I have hairs on my head , I would be willing to sacrifice all these lives in this Cause : Lastly , if the Differences between us be so very small , sure there can be no great cause for their present obstinate Separation . But if these men are really and in good earnest desirous of coming into the Church . It is very fit that in order to that they should declare whether they will leave those Principles which have hitherto divided them from it , or whether they are resolved to entertain those Principles still , or any of them : If they will leave their Principles the Churches Arms are open to receive and to embrace them ; but if they mean ●o retain their Principles , or any of them , their room may be more desirable than their Company ; for upon those terms the difference is in no likelihood to amount to any more than this , that instead of remaining in a Schism from the Church , they will thereby be inabled to make a Schism within it ; or if they are at length brought to be perswaded to part with any of their Principles , will they be so Honest as to declare that they have been so far mistaken , and desire their Followers to get out of those Snares which they in former Dayes did lay for them ; and particularly will they renounce the Covenant ? It was very good Advice which the Right Reverend Father in God the Lord Bishop of Winchester gave His Majesty , in his Epistle before the Coronation Sermon , when he reminded Him of that wise Resolution of His Royal Grandfather , Henry the Fourth , That he was ready at any time to make a Peace with any of the Leaguers ▪ but he would never make any Peace with the League . Now if they look upon it as any hard measure that they should be called upon to renounce the Covenant : Let them not at all wonder , if the Regular Sons of the Church have not forgot those rigours with which it was imposed , the many mischiefs which have been wrought , and are something apprehensive of those mischiefs which may at this day be wrought by it ; if so be that the Renunciation of it should be laid aside ; which will certainly be interpreted as at least a tacit Confession , that that Injuction was unreasonable , and such a one as a man of a tender Conscience could not submit to ; and that is a fair preparation for the Opinion that the Covenant is really a thing which doth oblige us . But because that Moderation is at this time a word much in fashion ; let us compare the Severities used in behalf of the Covenant with this which is so much complained of as being against it ▪ It is indeed , by reason of the Clamours by themselves raised about its obligation , established by a Law , that none shall be admitted to Publick Trusts in Universities , Schools , or the Church , who will not renounce its Obligation ; but the Covenanters did not think this a sufficient security in their Case ; Mr. Calamy tells us in his fore-mentioned Speech , in the name of himself and the Reverend Ministers with him , with great Joy and Triumph ; That there was not one Person in the Kingdom of Scotland who is not a Covenanter , and the●e shall not one abide among them who will not take this Covenant . Now this Mr. Calamy , from the beginning of the Long Parliament till the Day of his Death , was a Ringleader of that Party of men who do now plead for Comprehension , & do earnestly at this time desire that they may be dispensed with , for renouncing the Covenant . And if the Counsel of these Divines had been of as great Authority in the Army , as it was with the Two Houses , that which Mr. Calamy doth magnifie in Scotland would have been a pattern for the same course to be taken in England . But seeing that the Covenant is more sacred with them than the Oaths of Alleagiance and Supremacy , will they , if they should be thus far condiscended to , be so grateful to His Majesty as to declare their Opinions against the War raised against His Father ? will they in lieu of renouncing the Covenant take an Oath wherein they will assert , that the War raised by some Lords and Gentlemen sitting at Westminster , under the Name of the Lords and Commons Assembled in Parliament , by a Commission granted to Robert Earl of Essex , was unlawful , as being against the known Laws both of God and of the Nation ? If they refuse this , seeing that we know that many of these very men for whom Comprehension is desired did preach up the War , if they will not declare against it , it is shrewdly to be suspected that their mind is the same as formerly , and the only change which is , is in the posture of Affairs . But because it is now said in behalf of these men , that they allow Episcopacy , and approve of a Liturgy , nay of ours : That we may not be imposed upon by any ambiguous generality of Words ; it is but requisite that in this they would declare particularly in what sence it is that they allow and approve both these Things ; for if by things past we may guess at things present ; by Episcopacy they may mean but Presbytery ; by the Bishop may be understood a kind of a Prolocutor . Every assuming Presbyter may at any time say as one of them lately did , that he is as good a Scripture Bishop , as he w●o sate upon the Bench ; or perhaps look upon a Bishop only as a Civil Officer in order to some legal purposes : and by a Liturgy they may mean only such a ●orm of Prayers which may be either used or le● alone , or rather a thing which is ( if ever to be ) permitted only to those who are Persons of such small sufficiency as not to be able to pray without it , and so instead of being a Duty is intended meerly as a disparagement : Or it may be the Common Prayer may be allowed as a way of spending the time till the Company is got together , and then comes the Prayer which the Spirit is the immediate Author of , and which alone hath the promise of any blessing made 〈◊〉 it . Unless , I say , that these Persons be required to express their Minds very particularly in these and all other Matters of Debate between us , we shall be alway● a● a loss , how much of the Good Old Cause they resolve to stick to ; and without some satisfaction in these things we have reason to be jealous , that they have , after so many other disappointments , pitched upon this Contrivance , as a very likely one , whereby the Church may , by their admission , become divided against it self : The Pulpits may quickly be brought to speak in very different Languages , and the Hearers strangely distracted between the several abettors of the very distant Measures of the old and new Conformity . They who have kept out of the Church thus long , rather than they would not have their Wills in such and such Matters in debate between us ; it is scarce to be hoped , that when they are brought into the Church , by being yielded to in them , that they will not with the same Art and Industry keep up in the Minds of Men a good opinion of that Cause which they have so long contended for : At the least they will take what care they can , that those of their former Hearers whom they shall be able to bring along with them , ( if they shall be able to bring any store of their Hearers along with them , which is no small question ) shall for ever be kept under bondage to every one of all those scruples , by which they have been able to retain dominion over them : And they who have all along been , observably upon all occasions , admirably expert at interpreting all things to the utmost possibilities of all advantage , as to themselves and their Cause , it is not to be expected from them , that they will not interpret this Condescention as a complete Justification . And unless the Modesty and Gratitude of these men be strangely increased of late , beyond what it hath used to be , our Governours are not like to receive any other return than this ; That God hath at length begun to return again , and in some sort to own his People and his Cause : He hath now opened the Eyes of the Parliament , and let them see their Error in imposing the renouncing the Covenant ; and who knows what more a gracious God may do for so gracious a People ? And that Reputation which hath thus long engaged them to pretend their Cause of Separation to be just , can do no less than continue to engage them to avow its having been necessary . So that the Church will by this means be weakned by having one great Security taken from her ; those Men will be admitted into her , of whose Affections and Designs she hath abundant cause to be highly jealous ; and who , by obtaining their present Demands , will , according to their old Customs , be thereby emboldned with the like restless importunity to make more demands , and perhaps in a little time be inabled to take what farther they please , without so much as asking it : And by this means the People will become extremely divided , both amongst themselves and from the Government . And when that is done , there will be so many left out of this Comprehension , that the noise will not be much less than it is already : And whatever accession can be supposed to be made to the Church by the coming in of her new Friends , will be more than over-ballanced by the loss she will receive in the stability of her Principles and the Unity of her Children : She will be the less able to defend her self against the Exceptions of the Romanists , and be at no small loss for an answer to the Clamours of other Sectaries , who can pretend as great grievances , and alledge as plausible Reasons why they should be gratified ; so that the Work of Coalition ( as it is called in the newest word ) as often soever as it is done , will be just as often to begin again . As to any other Particulars of that Comprehension which is now so much endeavoured , seeing they have not thought fit to let us know them , I shall not venture to make a guess at them , but shall go on to another Contrivance , and in the Opinion of many a more promising one , and that is , Toleration , which is frequently said to be an Expedient which will gratifie many more , and more Considerable Persons than can be hoped to be brought within the Compass of any one Comprehension . Now it is by no means a thing to be wondred at , if so be that the proposal of Toleration be in it self at the first view very plausible , and in the eyes of very many Persons exceeding acceptable : It looks like a Privilege which every man hath an interest in , which , seing it is enjoyed by all alike , no man should take himself to have any cause to envy it to any other . Now this Liberty of Conscience , however it hath obtained to be the general Darling , yet , methinks , in the very name there is something which offers it self to our Consideration , which is at least worth our Enquiry ; Whether the very demand doth not carry in it an Exception against it self ? How doth it appear that Conscience hath any such absolute Right to Liberty ? Hath it no Rule which it ought to walk by ? hath it no obligation to follow any besides its own Light ? If this be not the Case , then Liberty and Conscience are two words , which are very unfit in great variety of Cases to be joyned together . I shall readily grant , that to act against our Conscience is always a sin ; but then I shall add this further , That it is very frequently a grievous sin to act according to it : Conscience may in some cases condemn , but there are very many cases wherein it cannot justifie . I know nothing by my self ( saith St. Paul ) yet am I not hereby justified ; and farther , I may self thought verily that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Iesus , &c. The Scripture tells us of seared Consciences , Reprobate Minds , Men whose minds and Consciences are defiled . From all which Expressions , it is very clear , That Conscience is not a safe Rule for any man to act by in his private Capacity . And in the next place , as Conscience is very far from being a safe Rule for any man to act by in his private Capacity ; so it is by no means advisable , that men should be so far trusted , as to teach according to it in any Publick Places : St. Paul assures us , that by this permission dangerous Contentions shall arise , by reason of the perverseness of men , when in the nature of the things there was no real Cause for them , ● Tim. 2. 14. They will strive about words to no purpose , to the subversion of the ●earers . And , ● Tim. 4. 1. he tells us of seducing spirits , who teach the doctrine of devils : Tim. 3. for many Verses together , he describes a sort of very wicked men , of whom in the close he gives this Character , That they have a form of godliness , but deny the power thereof ; that they creep into houses and l●ad captive silly women laden with divers lusts : And again we read of those who bring in damnable Her●sies ; and again , which directly cometh up to the point in hand about Toleration , whose mouths must be stopped . Thus far therefore our way is clear ; 1. That according to the Doctrine of the New Testament , Conscience is not its own Rule , is not entirely left to it self in its own way of acting : 2. That those who are allowed to be publick Preachers are not to be intrusted with an absolute Liberty of propagating whatever Opinions themselves either really are or shall pretend to be of ; of which I have already spoke , and therefore shall add no more upon that point besides the laying down some of the many Inconveniencies which will unavoidably arise upon the granting of any such Liberty in these Two Respects , 1. Of Religion , 2. Of Government . First , as to Religion ; and here the Case is very clear , that such a Liberty is the most ready way in the World to make Religion weak and despicable , by being crumbled into an unaccountable and every day encreasing variety of Sects and Schisms : What one other Contrivance can possibly be thought upon , whereby to expose Religion to the frequent and seemingly just scorn of Unbelievers than this ? That it should by publick Authority be openly exposed to all manner of ridiculous and incongruous pretences unto it , to all kinds of dotage and imposture , to all the folly and all the falseness which is to be met with among the sons of men : That every one who hath but a Freak in his Brain shall have free Liberty , if he pleaseth , to Christen it a motion of the Spirit , and every humour though never so unheard of and extravagant , shall have by Law a Priviledge ( if it will but claim it ) to recommend its self as a degree of further Light : Here we shall see men shaking all day , as if the Spirit came to them in Convulsions , and as the humour increaseth we shall see them run naked about the Streets , as if with the Old Man , they had put off all degrees of Modesty : The Scripture shall be frequently so interpreted , as that no man in his Wits can possibly understand it , it both hath and may be allegorized so far as to leave no manner of Sence or Truth in any one Word of all the History of it ; its Laws may be so commented upon , as to carry in them no manner of Obligation : Among our selves the Family of Love had gotten a Fancy that Christ was not any one Person , but a quality whereof many are partakers , that to be raised is nothing else , but to be regenerated or endued with the said Quality , and the separation from them which have it , and them which have it not , is Judgment● Now where ever this Liberty is indulged , the Grand and concerning Articles of our Faith , our Saviours taking Humane Nature upon him , the Resurrection from the Dead , and the last Judgment , are all given away in Exchange for two or three fanciful Expressions . The History of the Creation hath of old been made but an Allegory ; the Garden of Eden a 〈◊〉 Trope ; it is to little purpose to alledge that with equal Reason it might be said , that by the whole Race of mankind was not to be understood any real Beings , but only so ●any handsome Figures , and by the Universe is not to be understood a Creation , but a Strain of Wit , for Reason in such like Cases will be no more harkned to , than Scripture : So likewise it 〈◊〉 been taught , that Christ shall descend from Heaven in a Metaphor , and we be catched up into the Air in a Moral way ; The New Heavens and the New Earth are nothing else but the World changed by their Example into their Opinions : And if this Liberty be allowed , all Miracles and all Mysteries will be quickly changed into so many Whimsies ; for what is it which self-conceit cannot inspire , or madness prove , or that man admit , who cares not to know what himself means ; or whether he doth or not , if he be once got under the plausible shelter of Liberty of Conscience himself , what is it that he may not impose upon vast multitudes , who though never so well meaning in themselves , are yet liable to be overreached by the Arts of other men : The dangers of this kind are not possible to be reckoned , because they encrease and vary at their own pleasure ; neither is there any man living , who can possibly tell us how many and how gross absurdities such a Liberty as this may bring into the Nation in the very next moment . This very Devise of Liberty of Conscience , which many , who look upon themselves as wise men and no ill Christians , are fond of , is the very same , by which one of its shrewdest Adversaries did hope to drive Christianity out of the World , and that too by its own assistance ; and to that end he granted a promiscuous Liberty for all dissenting Christians to enjoy the publick exercise of their several ways , in hopes thereby to engage one of them against another , and by that means to make his advantage upon all of them : For so we read of Iulian , that when his long contrived project of restoring Heathenism began to be put in effectual execution , that this was the Course which he pitched upon , as that which was most likely to bring his Design about , to grant Liberty of Conscience to all dissenting Christians , as Ammianus Marcellinu● hath it Lib. 22. Vtque dispositorum roboraret effectum , dissidentes Christianorum Antistites cum plebe discissâ in palatium intromissos monebat , ut civilibus Discordiis consopitis quisque nullo vetante religionisuae serviret intrepibus ▪ Here was a man very tender of Consciences , but what think we was his Reason for all this Indulgence and Moderation , we may read it in the next Words , Quod agebat ideo obstinate , ut dissentiones augente Licentiâ non timeret , unanimantem postea plebe●● nullas infestas hominibus bestias ut sunt sibi ferales plerique Christianorum expertus . This wise and subtle Adversary knew very well that this was a ready way to destroy Christianity , to give a free Liberty and a full opportunity for every one who pleased to divide it : So that this sage Contrivance of ours is but the Christianity of an Heathen , the taking up the Moderate Counsels of a profest Apostate ; and our Wisdom in preserving Religion doth express it self in those very ways , by which as wise men as our selves have thought the ready way to overthrow it . Indeed it is hardly credible , that any Person who understands Humane●Nature , who considers how many are its Weaknesses , and how violent its Passions , who is a Judge of Consequences , or hath at all observed the course of Affairs , can in the least be fond of any such device as this kind of Liberty , who hath not within himself a very great Design against the present Religion of that Kingdom where he doth propose it . But , alas ! that is but a small part of this evil , even our common Christianity will be hard put to it , if it must wrestle with all the difficulties which Toleration will immediately bring upon it : That Faith is in no great likelihood of remaining long pure and sound , which is exposed to whosoever pleaseth to corrupt and to defile it There is one Principle well known amongst us , which where-ever it is admitted , there is no Doctrine of Faith whatever , nor Rule of good Life which can be able to stand before it , and that is the Doctrine of New Light , or private Illumination : This is an Evil which cannot be watched with too much Care , because it always hath it in its own Power to occasion how many and what kinds of mischief soever it self pleaseth ; and withall it is with great ease pretended to by every one who will ; and there are every day to be met with too many persons too readily disposed to be imposed upon by such pretences . Some Romanists have with great scorn insulted over the Reformation , upon the account that this evil hath made a shift to creep into it ; whereas this is a difficulty which all Religions are liable to be abused by ; a folly with which the Church of Rome doth exceedingly abound , and to which she is indebted for some of her chief Orders , as being plainly founded in it . The Quakers in England are neither more ridiculous , nor as yet so impious as the Al●●brados were in Spain , nor do the blasphemous Phrenzies of David George exceed those of Evangelium Aeternum . This is an ill Weed which will grow in all Soils , and spread exceedingly ; and Infallibility it self is but an equal Plea , and therefore is , upon such occasions , glad to call in to its assistance its Temporal Advantages . This very Pretence doth scarce leave a man within the possibility of being confuted ; what Authority is ●here to be produced which is fit to come in competition with this Perswasion , That I have an immediate suggestion from the holy Ghost : The Scripture it self hath but one and the same Original , and is of an elder Date , and , if I please , is as imperfect in respect of my Revelation , as that of Moses was in respect of that of Christ. This Evil is liable to to be as endless as Thought or Art can make it , as boundless as Imagination , and hath as great variety of shapes to appear in , as there are possibilities in the World for any man to be either willing to deceive or liable to be deceived . What a fatal Influence the now contended for Liberty of Conscience had upon the most considerable Articles of Religion , within a small compass of time , we may learn from the forementioned Testimony of the London , and the Attestation of the Cheshire-Ministers . I shall set down some of the Articles against which those Errors were , but will not defile my Paper with the Errours themselves . Against the Divine Authority of holy Scriptures ; against the Nature and Essence ; against the Being of any God ; against Christ as Mediator ; against the Obligation of the Moral Law ; against Ordinances ; against Lawful Oaths , against the future State of Mens Souls after this Life , denying the Immortality of them . But besides Religion , such a Liberty will be quickly found to have a sad Influence upon Government and the publick Peace . And as this sort of Liberty will expose Truth to perpetual and unavoidable Dangers , and withal hath left it no possibility of a sufficient Defence against them ; so it hath a natural tendency towards destroying the publick Peace : And not only so , but to the disturbance of all Societies , and even of every private Family . Opinions have a great Influence upon Actions , and engage men not only upon good , but upon very bad practices . He who is allowed to raise a Sect , hath a very fair opportunity put into his hands of making himself the Head of it , as being such a Party ; and by being permitted to have their Consciences , will have but too many opportunities of having their Persons and Purses at his disposal likewise . Hence it is , that though some Princes have been sometimes forced to suffer Dissenters from the established Profession ( by reason that they were so numerous , or so subtil , that they could not go about to suppress them without discovering how unable they were to do so ; ) yet they always looked upon such Dissenters as the next door to Enemies ; and accordingly had a perpetual Eye and Guard upon them , as those who of all other were the most likely to be the Authors or occasion of the next disturbance . It is a great mistake , though it be often found amongst the greatest Persons , That Sects are things fit only to be despised , because that men of Parts and Fortune are neither easily nor usually seduced by them : but it ought likewise to be considered , that Ambition , Revenge , Covetousness , Humour and Discontent may engage those who are not in earnest themselves seduced , to appear in all seeming earnest to seduce others . I shall readily grant , that both the Beginning and the greatest Growth of Sects are amongst the meanest people , those whose Fortunes are as low as their Understandings ; but then they do not stay altogether among them , but spread farther ; like a Pestilence , which may begin in an obscure Alley , but in a little time no part of the City or Kingdom may be free from it . Besides , are not the Vulgar People the hands , the Tools , the Instruments which the Greatest must always make use of ? And is it not known by frequent experience , that a Deception once got among them , may by a little Connivence thrive so far , as to be able to dispute for Superiority , and instead of demanding an Indulgence , refuse to give one ? And , by how much the ordinary sorts of people are less Masters of Reason than others , with so much the greater ease they may be wrought upon to engage in those Courses ; which by men who understood better , would be looked upon as evidently unreasonable . Now this is an Error which hath been frequently committed by wise men in great places : They look upon the Errors and Follies which the common People are drawn into , as things very fit to be indulged , as being only so many occasions for themselves to droll upon ; but by their so doing they have often found the return , which Abner did of sporting himself with Lives , as these mighty Sages do with Lives and Souls , 2 Sam. 2. 14. Let the young men arise and play before us ; but with him they are at last convinced , that , Ver. 26. it is bitterness in the latter end . The safety of all Government doth depend upon this , that it is certainly stronger than each single person , and in taking care of this , That as to any kinds of Union or joyning Forces together , that there may be no such things but under the guidance of the Magistrate , and by his appointment ; & so long as this is taken effectual care of , though the discontented persons be never so many , yet because they have no way of uniting ; they are but so many single persons , scattered , weak and insignificant , having no opportunities of any Common Council , they can never joyn in any Common Design . But let them once have but so much as any one Phrase to know one another by , any setled place for their constant Meetings , and a set and known company for them to meet with , and any Bond whatever which doth unite them , and they presently become a distinct People , and begin to be dangerous , as having an Interest , Counsels and Body of their own , which the Government is not manager of , nor privy to , but shall quickly find it self highly concerned by all means to provide against . Let it once be permitted to crafty , active , talking , lying and designing men , to instil into the minds of all sorts of People , the necessity , usefulness , piety , or rare excellency of any one thing or Contrivance whatever , beyond that which the present Laws and establishment doth provide for ; and is not here a most readily prepared matter for any bold Boutefeu to work upon , who will take upon him to help the Nation immediately to so fine a thing ? Hath not any such Undertaker a vast and already formed Party in all Parts of the Kingdom ? Let him but represent to them , that the present Government is the only rub in their way , between them and their so fancied happiness ; and is it not very likely that this will be the very next Consequent Resolution ; let us remove that Obstacle , so publick a good is much to be preferred before any particular Form or Family ; the welfare of the Nation is the great End , and Governours themselves were created but in order to that , and consequently are to cease as often as that End can be better attained without them . Though the pretence be nothing but Conscience , yet every discontent will joyn to make the Cry both loud and general . Schisms do of themselves naturally grow into Parties , and , besides , are most plausible Occasions for any else to joyn unto them ; the gathered Churches are most excellent Materials to raise new Troops out of , and when they are thus fa● prepared , they are easily perswaded to be at the Service of any one who will attempt to lead them on . If all men were wise and honest , if every one understood well , and would act accordingly ; upon that Supposition Conscience might have a much greater trust reposed in it than can be now adviseable : And if we could flatter our selves so far as to take that to be the Case , this would no more supersede the necessity of the coercive power of Laws in Religious matters , than it would upon the same grounds supersede it in Civil ones . For no Laws which ever were or can be in the World can possibly provide in any Degree for those large measures of Justice , Equity , Mercy , and all kinds of fair dealing , which would infallibly every where be met with , if all men did take Care to keep a good Conscience ; Truth , Justice , Temperance , &c. are things which every man's Conscience doth and must needs tell him that he is obliged to , yet were it not for fear of the Law , we should find that Conscience is not alone to be trusted in these which are her Natural and familiar Ojects : And this is a thing so known and granted on all hands , that it is not usual with men in their dealings among one another to trust purely , in matters of any moment , to one anothers Conscience . And seeing we acknowledge that Conscience may so often prevaricate in these plain and obvious things , where she is so easily found out ; we have no great cause to trust to her fidelity , that she will not also dissemble in those things which are more remote and obscure , and hidden from the very best of our discovery . Let those therefore , who plead for Liberty of Conscience , consider ; that there are two sorts of men , which ought to be provided against , to keep this contrivance of theirs from being absolutely the most senceless and dangerous in the whole World ; and upon their Grounds it doth not appear to be so much as possible to provide against them : First , those who are not honest , and these may pretend Conscience if they will , and in that Case Religion and Government ▪ Truth and Peace are like to be most admirably secured , when they are authoritatively permitted to the arbitrary Management of every designing Atheist , who will but take upon him to be an Enthusiast : And in the second place , as all men are not honest , so all men are not wise , and as the former sort may pretend Conscience , so the latter are perpetually liable to be imposed upon by the innumerable , however absurd pretences unto it : Those Laws are not fitted for the Temper of this World , which are made upon this supposition , that every one who looks demurely is presently in good earnest , that men say nothing but what they think ; let us but consider that it is very possible for men to personate , and then we shall not be very eager to desire a general License for every one who hath a mind to become a publick Cheat. And then from these diversities of Judgments , and many times when they are only different forms of speaking , there will immediately arise great Distances of Affection : For these Divisions , of Reuben there will be great thoughts of heart , sur●●zings , censures , jealousies , raylings , evil speaking , animosities , peevishness , malice , perverse disputings , & every evil way : Each Congregation will have at least some one little Proposition peculiar to its self , which all its Proselytes must be known by , which all their Thoughts must be perpetually running upon , & every one else must be called upon to come up to : the smallest gathered Church cannot hold its Members together , unless it hath some particular thing to engage them upon , & to have them known by , for they cannot with any face separate from all mankind , but they must have something to say for it , This contrivance however it be absurd and dangerous will notwithstanding that , have alwayes many who will be very fond of it ; for it is a most ready way for every forward Fellow to think himself some body , because he hath adopted himself into such a Sect ; and then the next thing which he is to think upon is to try if he can improve the Notion a little farther ; for if so , he shall be the more taken notice of : And if he finds that his addition is but a little taking , he will then forsake his Masters , to set up for himself , divide from that Church of which he hath been long a precious Member to gather a purer of his own . And so his New Light will serve most bravely for himself to shine in . But if this had been a new and unheard of Invention , the Contrivers might then have been allowed to entertain vast hopes of it ; but alas , it hath been often tryed , and hath alwayes brought Confusion along with it : And is it to be wondred at , that in variety of Worships the one doth look upon the other as erroneous , and perhaps impious ? And then how lamentably must that City be divided whose Inhabitants think themselves bound , as they love God to hate one another ; and it hath been often seen , that a Common Enemy hath crept in at these intestine Divisions , and destroyed both , while the one , by reason of different Communions , did not enough care to help the other . Be our apprehensions about divine Matters never so different , I grant that we ought not for the sake of them to be wanting in the common Duties of Humanity to one another , or in our mutual Endeavours after the publick Good. I readily grant , that to be wanting in our assistance in either of these Cases , is a great error ; but alas ! it is too general an one , and Law-makers are to consider not only what men ought , but what they use to do . Why shall I fight ( saith one ) for a Prince who is an Idolater ? and why should I ( saith another ) take any care to relieve that City which is only a Bundle of Schismaticks , the greatest part whereof are in my esteem Blasphemers likewise ? Ieroboam understood this very well , he did not cast off the true God , but only set up another way of Worship , as easily concluding that by perswading them to be of another Religion , he should easily keep them to be another Kingdom ; when their Faiths were once divided , the Nations would never care to unite again . And pray , tell me , what shall a Prince do in that Case , where are diverse ways of Worship allowed and frequented in the same Nation ? Shall he discountenance the Professors of any one , by keeping them out of all Office and Employment ? If so , he disobligeth that whole Profession , loseth so many hearts ; who sure will think themselves to be very hardly dealt with , in that they are disrespected only out of their zeal for God , and because they follow the best of their Light. And what are they like to think of such a State , which doth refuse to employ them meerly upon this account , because they have tender Consciences , and dare not be present where the Gospel is de●iled by a profane mixture of humane Inventions ? Or , Secondly , shall the Prince carry himself equally and indifferently towards all Perswasions , countenance and prefer them all alike ? This can hardly be , because that he himself must be of some one , and that will think it self not fairly dealt with , if it have not some preeminence : And when he endeavours to shew himself indifferent to all Perswasions , there will enough be immediatly ready to give it out , that he makes use of all Religions for his own ends , but himself is really of none ; and so perpaps none of them will be really for him : And thus by endeavouring to displease neither Party , he shall certainly displease them both , at least the Zealots of all sides will represent him at the best as one lukewarm , and as such , only fit to be spit out of all their Mouths . Men may talk of their fine projects as long as they please ; but surely where the Church is already so settled , as that it hath a great dependance upon the Government , and the Government hath a standing Influence upon that , those Politicks must needs be very strange , which go about to alter or unsettle or put any check upon such a Constitution : And in opposition to a Clergy thus regulated , it is no kindness sure to the Monarchy , to to go about to set up such a Ministry 〈◊〉 depends purely upon the People : And when the whole Method of the Preachers Maintenance and Reputation must consist in the various Arts by which he can either guide or follow the several Humours of each of his Congregation ; no man can tell what it is possible for a good Crafts-master to perswade the Multitude unto . But this Danger , how great and plain soever it be , yet in the opinion of the great Promoters of the desired Ecclesiastical Confusion , is so far from being looked upon as any Inconvenience , that it is in all likelihood the true and real and only Reason which makes them to be so very fond of it , to desire it with so great earnestness , and never to be put off by never so many denials and disappointments . The Church is one great rub in their way between them and the Crown ; and therefore because they find that they cannot directly demand the present removal of it , they have bethought themselves of two plausible Methods whereby to prepare the way for doing it another time : First , to open the door to let the Churches old Enemies in upon her , and for all the care which shall be taken to give them Liberty , to bring their old Enmities along with them ; and by that means the Church will be not only weakned , by being divided within her self , but besides there will be a part of her self always ready to betray her , and give her up . One sort of the Projectors desire only thus much , and that will satisfie them : Another sort there are , who think it not sufficient that the Church be only weakned within , unless there be a free Liberty for whosoever pleaseth to train up as many as he can prevail with to come and learn of them the several ways by which the Church , when occasion offers it self , may be set upon from without : And it is well known , that these Gentlemen are not unacquainted with new Models of Civil as well as Ecclesiastical Administration . And having thus pointed at some few of the innumerable Inconveniences of Toleration , I shall add once more , that some care ought to be taken of the present Device of Comprehension ; that if it be thought fit to be granted , it may be upon this Condition , That all who receive benefit by it , should be obliged publickly before their Congregations to declare their Approbation of the Liturgy , in a Form to be appointed by Authority for that purpose , and to renew that Declaration on certain Days to be likewise appointed , and to read the Common Prayer themselves , and not to leave it always to mean Persons , who shall only be appointed to slubber it over , to spend the time till the Company is got together ; and then one of the Precious Men shall come and put himself in all the most solemn Postures imaginable , and in fact say to the People ( as Dr. Heylin's Chamber-fellow was served after a short Grace ) Dearly Beloved , let us praise God better : And withal , that Security should be taken , That this Conformity of theirs be not used merely as an Expedient to keep them in publick Employment ; that so they may be the more ready , when opportunity offers it self , to assist Providence in carrying on the great Work of a thorough Reformation . And this Advice is by no means to be despised , as a thing perfectly needless , because that as great a Conformity as for ought appears is now intended , hath been formerly advised and submitted to upon this very account , to prepare Matters the better for an intended Change. This Mr. Calamy ( in his Apology against Mr. Burton , 1646 quoted in the Collection called Evangelinur Armatum , p. 47. ) alledgeth for himself to have been one of his own old Arts : As for the Service-book , let Mr , Burton know , that at a meeting at my House , it was resolved by above a hundred Ministers , after a long debate , upon divers weighty Considerations , That all that could in their Iudgments submit to the reading of some part of it , should be entreated for a while to continue so to do . To this our dissenting Brethren then present did agree , and one of them made a Speech to manifest his Concordance . This is enough to give any man satisfaction for the late laying it down . And proportionably to this , it is a thing well known , that some very well affected to the Good Old Cause , do for all that conform to the use of the Ceremonies of the Church , under the sanctified Excuse of submitting to them as Burthens . Now these , I think , are competent fore-warnings to Authority to take care to secure it self against any ill use which is possible to be made of any abatements towards that sort of People , who in this very Case do profess themselves to act without sincerity , and to make use of all the Arts which they can think of . And in the next place their great earnestness in desiring to be dispensed with for renouncing the Covenant , doth in them plainly shew a very great fondness remaining toward it , and if yielded to , would in Authority appear more than a tacit Confession , that it had hitherto been to blame in its Zeal against it . Their restleness in this is not to be wondred at , because they are sworn never to be wrought over to an Indifferency or detestable Neutrality : But that Authority should be wrought over to shew kindness to such a Combination against it self , or that any should propose it to the old Cavaliers to give leave to their old Persecutors to believe themselves under the Oath of God , to bring every one of them to condign punishment , is a thing which may justly raise all mens wonder . I confess indeed , that by the last Bill of Comprehension it was provided ( and so perhaps it may in this ) That no man should dare to say , that the Covenant doth oblige under such a Penalty , &c. But it is much to be doubted that such a Provision may not be sufficient ; for let us consider this one thing : Those Persons , concerning whom our present Debate is , are such as are to be entrusted to be Guides of Consciences , and if this Renunciation be once taken off , then they have Liberty enough to insist upon the Obligation of the Covenant amongst their Confidents , without coming within the danger of the Law. Let us remember that the Holy League in France was taken by above half the Kingdom , before the King did ever so much as hear of it . But , to make this Matter plain , I shall propose a Case very like it in our own Kingdom . Suppose that any man out of the great Tenderness which he pretends to have for the Consciences of Men , should propose that the Oaths of Allegiance and Supremacy should be by Act of Parliament taken away , upon this very pretence , That Oaths are not to be multiplied but upon great necessity ; that the Consciences of Men are nice and tender things , and ought not to be disquieted by being pried into ; and disputable Points of Government are not fit matters to be put into an Oath : Ought not such a Person to be looked upon with a very jealous Eye , as being ill affected to his Majesties Person , his Crown and Dignity ? He himself and all his Favourers will , no doubt , reply , no ; because he doth at the same time offer a Security in it self as Good and more fit to be taken , and that is this , That it shall be very punishable for any man to say , That our Soveraign Lord King Charles is not lawful and rightful King of these Realms , &c. and that the Pope hath any Power or Authority to depose the King , &c. He , I say , who should propose this Alteration , ought in all reason to be looked upon as a better Subject to the Pope than to the King. And so likewise , and for the same Reason , those , who with so great Eagerness and Importunity have so often endeavoured the taking away the Renunciation of the Covenant , ought to be very much suspected , lest they have in their Eye something which is of much higher Consideration with them , than either the Settlement of the Church or the safety of his Majesty . It now remains that I consider the great Objections which are urged against all which is already said , which are these , That Comprehension , say some , others Toleration , others both , are fit to be granted ; 1. By reason of the great Numbers who do desire it : Secondly , in respect of their great Merit , they being Persons in whom doth consist a great part of the Sobriety , Industry , Frugality and Wisdom of the Nation , and particularly the Presbyterians have deserved well of His Majesty . Thirdly , it is very adviseable to grant a Liberty at this time to these Persons by reason of the great assistance which they are able to afford us against Popery ; and Fourthly , that if a Liberty be not given , it will be a very great Inconvenience to Trade . Fifthly , Toleration of several Forms of Religion , is a thing which we may see a good effect of among our Neighbours in France and Holland : Lastly , Civil Penalties are of no use in Religion , but only to make Hypocrites . To all which pretences I return this . First , that the Numbers of these men are not in any degree so great as they do pretend ; It is indeed one of their great and old Arts to make all the shew they can possibly , and to boast of those Numbers which they cannot shew ; one who is as well acquainted with the Muster Rolls of these Parties as any man , doth plead for an Indulgence by this very Argument , that they are not so considerable as that any danger needed to be feared from them . Peace-offering , p. 8. What are we that Publick Disturbance should be feared from us , nec pondera rerum nec momenta sumus ; by what way or means , were we never so desirous , could we contribute any thing thereunto ? What Designs are we capable of ? &c. So that it seems this is an Argument which they can either use or lay aside , as occasion offers it self : They can either wheedle Authority into pity and forbearance upon the account that they are so inconsiderable , as that no danger can possibly be feared from them ; Or otherwise they can Hectour Authority , as being so considerable , as that there is no danger so great , but if they are disobliged , it may reasonably be feared from them . In the second Place , is it any wonder that these men do appear in some Numbers , considering how easily many honest well-meaning Persons may be seduced by the Zeal and vehemence of some who are seduced themselves , and the various Arts of others whose great design is to seduce as many as they can possibly : And again , are there not some Remainders of the Old Army yet alive , Committee-men , Sequestrators , Purchasers of Crown and Church Lands , and otherwise interested in the late Rebellion ? besides vast Multitudes of the Common People depending on them , who must needs be glad of so many Solemn Occasions of meeting one another , by which they keep up their Acquaintance and Correspondence , and put a very serious face upon their goad old Cause , and find many opportunities to he mutually serviceable to one another in their private Affairs , and of joyning Counsels against the Publick . And do they not breed up their Children and Relations in the very same Principles with themselves ? Now the greater Numbers there are of such People so much the greater care there ought to be taken that they be not permitted to meet together . The Meeting-place is very well fitted for a Religious Rendevouz , and the Spiritual Master of the Camp may not only deliver out his Orders at the same time with , but may stamp upon them the Authority of the Oracles of God. But in the next Place , if the Government would please but to own it self , the Numbers of these men would presently appear to be very inconsiderable ; and this hath no oftner been tryed than it hath been found to have been accompanied with good effect . In Queen Elizabeths Dayes , these mens Predecessours were very troublesome , made grat noise with their great Numbers , and the great dangers which would arise by disobliging them ; and they had some great Favourers in Court upon some accounts , which were not very Religious ; but when by reason of their Insolent Provocation in the Year 1588. When the Queen was in all her Fears from the Spanish Armado , and in a condition , as they thought to deny them Nothing ; they so far provoked Her , as to alienate Her Mind for ever from them : Their boasted of Numbers did immediately abate , and the Laws were immediately submitted to , as soon as ever they did perceive that it was but in vain to think of longer triffling with them : So likewise it hapned in King Iames His Dayes , their loud Clamours were presently silenced , as soon as ever the King declared Himself resolute at the Conference at Hampton-Court : Nor would the Act of Uniformity have had any less effect , if it had not been accompanied with a general Discourse at the same time of a Toleration to follow immediately upon it . And I appeal to the Consciences of several of the Preachers in the Separated Congregations , whether they did not leave their Livings upon this very hope , which without it they would have never done ? Besides , the Numbers of the Dissenters ought by no means to be looked upon , as an Argument for Toleration by any , because , it is not looked upon as such by themselves : This very Point being a thing about which themselves are highly divided , and would by no means if they could help it grant to one another . But besides their Numbers , they are now to be considered in point of Merit ; but this is a part of the Argument in which I do delight so very little , as that I must gratifie my own temper so far , as to say very little in it . The Faults of other men are things which I by no means delight to dwell upon , even when it is necessary , I take it to be very irksome : As they are particular Persons , I have nothing to say to any one of them , and whatever Degrees any of them have attained to in Piety and Virtue , in any kind of Intellectual , Moral , and Religious Accomplishments , I pray God that they may every day increase more and more in them , and that both here and hereafter they may receive the comfort and reward of whatever is truly good in them . But as they are a Party , I take it to be very clear , that their Merit hath not been very great , either to the Crown or Nation , and in this it were easie to be very large , for one who delights in that which to me is a very ungrateful Employment . In the Histories of Queen Elizabeth , King Iames , King Charles the First ; there is too much to be found on this Argument , and His Majesty which now is , when He was in the Hands of these men , what Usage He did receive from them , though His Royal Clemency hath been graciously pleased to pardon , yet His Loyal Subjects have not quite forgot it . As to the next Pretence , that it is adviseable to grant these men an Indulgence at this time , by reason of the great assistance which they are able to afford us against Popery : This is such an Objection which the Regular Sons of the Church will scarce be able to refrain themselves from looking upon without some Indignation : The Writings of the Bishops and Episcopal Divines have hitherto been had in great Esteem over all the Reformation ; no men thought to have had a better Cause to defend ; no men looked upon as better able to defend it : Not to mention the many Worthies in Queen Elizabeth , and King Iames His Dayes , whose Names are , both at home and abroad , had in great and deserved Honour : I shall only mention some few who since the beginning of the present Controversie have wrote against the Puritans as well as Papists , and accordingly have fell under the Indignation of both Parties , viz. Arch-Bishop Laud , Arch-Bishop Bramhal , Bishop Taylor , Doctor Hammond , and Mr. Chillingworth . How many Ages will the Nonconformists take to breed up a man equal to any one of these ? Bishop Sanderson , a Person of known Learning and Judgment , in a Preface to a Body of Sermons , Printed some Years before His Majesties Return , takes occasion to declare his Opinion concerning the Controversie between the Church of England , and Church of Rome , as it useth to be handled by the Non-Conformists ; his Words are these : That they preach against Popery , I not at all mislike , only I could wish that these two Cautions were better observed served than ( as far as I can conjecture of the Rest by the proportion of what hath come to my Knowledge ) I fear they usually are by the more zealous of that Party : First , that they do not through Ignorance , Prejudice , or Precipitancy , call that Popery which is not , and then under that name and notion preach against it ; and then Secondly , that they would do it with less noyse and more weight ▪ &c. Now it is well known , that Bishop Sanderson was a Person of great Learning and Judgment , and withall a Person of very great Humility and Modesty , and who did very little delight in undervaluing the meanest Person living ; and yet he expresseth his Thoughts concerning the Writings of the Non-Conformists against the Church of Rome , to be liable to these two not inconsiderable Defects : First , that they did not understand the Question ; Secondly , that they did not know how to pitch upon such Arguments as were fit to be made use of . And withall some Pages afterwards he adds this , That even in these times of great Distraction , and Consequently thereunto of so great advantage for the Factors for Rome , none have stept into the Gap more readily , nor appeared in the face of the Enemy more openly , nor maintained the Fight with more stoutness and gallantry than the Episcopal Divines have done , as their late Learned Writings testifie : yea and some of them such ( as beside their other sufferings ) have layen as deep under the suspicion of being Popishly affected a● any other of their Brethren whatsoever : That by the Endeavours of these Episcopal Divines some that were bred Papists have been gained to our Church , others that began to waver , confirmed and settled in their Old Religion , and some that were fallen from us recovered and reduced , notwithstanding all the disadvantages of these confused Times ; and of each of these I am able to produce some Instances . But I profess sincerely , as in the presence of God , and before the World , that I have not known ( at least I cannot call to remembrance ) so much as one single Example of any of this done by any of our Anti-Geremonian Brethren , whether Presbyterian or Independent . Now whether our separating Brethren have been improved in their Abilities , or have been more fortunate in their successes in their disputings with the Romanists since that time , it lies upon them to make out ; I am sure that the Writings of the most eminent Persons now among them were then extant : Since which time there hath indeed appeared a Body of Sermons , being the united Labours of sundry of them , but of any Miracles which either have or are likely to be wrought by them , the World both is , and it is to be feared will be for ever silent . If therefore we take these men into the Church , our Church will be so much the less defensible , as having admitted into it Persons whose Principles are no way justifiable ; and withal with express leave not to renounce the most unjustifiable of all their Principles . And for their Assistance against the Romanists , it doth not as yet appear , that it will be so valuable as to countervail the Advantage we shall give the Church of Rome by taking these into our Church . If we suffer them to remain in Bodies distinct from the Church , then the Romanists have an Advantage , if they please to use it , to take up what disguise themselves shall suppose to be fittest for them . How easie a thing is it for a Priest to set up for a gifted Brother ! And what one Opinion is there imaginable , which may not be brought in under the pretence of a farther degree of New Light ? Whether all the stories be true of Friars who have preached in Meeting-houses , I have not had an opportunity of being so well informed , as to venture to say any thing ; but I am sure , if they will , they have there fair opportunities offered : And if it be not as yet seasonable to set up directly for their own Church , they may however prepare the way by pulling down of ou●s . And notwithstanding all the Zeal which the Non-conformists do declare against Popery , it is well known that they know very well how to joyn both Counsels and Arms together : The leading Men of both Parties in Ireland were wonderfully great together , all the while that the Design was managing against my Lord of Strafford ; and here in England , in the Declaration which the King set forth concerning the Success of the Battel at Edge-hill on October 23. 1643. He hath left this Memorial to all Posterity ; All men know the great numbers of Papists which serve in their Armies , Commanders and others ; the great Industry they have used to corrupt the Loyalty and Affection of all our loving Subjects of that Religion ; the PRIVATE PROMISES and VNDERTAKINGS THAT THEY HAVE MADE TO THEM , that if they would assist them against Vs , ALL THE LAWS MADE IN THEIR PREIVDICE SHOVLD BE REPEALED , &c. As to the next Objection , That the suppressing of Conventicles will be a great hindrance to Trade : I must needs confess that this is a thing which would have great weight , if it had any truth in it . That Trade is a thing of great and general Concern , is so plain and confessed a thing , as that there is no need of spending many words whereby to prove it : Our wisest Kings have always thought themselves concerned to make Laws and all manner of provisions whereby to promote and encourage it ; and there is scarce any man so mean , but that he doth in one degree or other receive some benefit by our Commerce with other Nations . Not to enter into particulars , I shall only name one , which is indeed the Measure of all the rest , and that is Money ; which is not a thing of our own Growth , but it is a thing without which those things which are of our own Growth , cannot without great difficulty pass from one hand to another . Our Ships are our Bulwarks , nay , they are more than so ; for they not only keep other Nations from coming to us , but they carry us to them : They make the Sea to be our Earth , the whole World to be as it were our native Soil , by bringing home to our doors whatsoever groweth in any Corner of the Universe . It was Trade which brought Tyre to be called The City of Ioy , the crowning City , whose Merchants were Princes , and whose Traffickers the honourable of the earth , Esay 22. 7 , 8. It was by the benefit of Trade that this City is again said to have heaped up silver as dust , and fine Gold as mire in the streets , Zech. 9. 3. It is absolutely necessary for us , if we will be secure of our own Land , to keep up a proportionable strength at Sea. And besides this necessity in point of Safety , it brings innumerable advantages in point of improvement ; carrying from us our own Commodities which we can spare from our own use , and in return bringing us whatsoever the World doth afford , for Use , Delight , Strength or Ornament . It is a thing by which vast multitudes do alone subsist and altogether depend upon , which great numbers do thrive and flourish by ; by which his Majesty hath a brave Addition to his Revenue , and every man besides doth in his degree find many comforts and conveniencies in his way of Living : It is the great Employer and Rewarder of all sorts of Ingenuity and of Industry ; by means whereof we every day see men advanced to Wealth and Honour , to live comfortably to themselves , and with great benefit to their Country . It is a thing in it self clear , that Trade is very highly and universally beneficial , and those who are but ordinarily versed in it are able to reckon many admirable Advantages which I cannot so much as think upon . It remains now that I enquire whether there be any such Inconsistency between Trade and Uniformity in Religion , as is generally ( though without any Ground which I could ever hear ) pretended ? These Two things have in their nature no manner of Repugnancy , and if there be any Repugnancy , between them , it doth not proceed from them themselves , but from something else , which it is to be hoped may be removed , and neither of these Two things the worse for the removal of it ; and what that is I shall now enquire . It is well known that this Argument from Trade hath been used in former days , when there was no manner of occasion for it ; but however it served as a pretence , whereby to amuse the People , and make them clamour against the Government . I instance in the Case of my Lord of Strafford : What a noise was raised all over the Town , that there could be no Trade in the Kingdom till Execution was done upon him : And whosoever raiseth any such Cry shall have always some ready to joyn with him in it , because there will be always those who will want Trade : And let him but tell them that the Court and the Bishops are the only Causes of this their want , and it is no wonder if they cry out with the loudest , Down with them , down with them to the ground . Indeed if the Bishops in England did pretend to the same Power with the Presbyteries in Scotland , then indeed it might so happen that the Traders might have some cause to be jealous of them ; for those Gentlemen did at the Assembly at Glascow , 1638. pass an Act concerning Salmon-fishing ; another about Salt-pans , Roger L' Estrange , p. 330. By Act of Assembly at Dundee 1592. they prohibited all Trading with any of the King of Spain's Dominions , and they put down the Munday-market at Edinburgh , Spotswood , p. 393 , 394. But in this Case the Shoo-makers thought fit to assert their Christian Liberty against the Impositions of the Presbytery , and tumultuously gathered together , and threatned to chase the Ministers out of Town ; upon which the Market continued : Which , as that grave Historian tells us , did cause much sport at Court , where it was said , That Rascals and Soutars could obtain at the Ministers hands what the King could not in Matters more reasonable . That Trading hath , ever since the Restauration of his Majesty , been very high , notwithstanding the many complaints about it , it is very evident to any man who is never so little acquainted with the Custom-house ; but that it hath not answered to the height of all mens hopes , is not to be wondred at , if we consider some things which have hapned , which the Act of Uniformity was no way concerned in : First , there was a War with France and Holland , by which it was not to be avoided , but that many Merchants must needs become very great Sufferers : Secondly , At the very same time there was a raging Plague , not only in London but in most of the other Trading places of the Nation ; which did not only sweep away great numbers of our Trading People , but may easily be supposed to have had an unhappy influence upon Trade it self : Thirdly , To accompany these Two great difficulties there came a dreadful Fire , the loss by which is inestimable : And Fourthly , there hath been a Second Dutch War. Now there are none of all these things can happen to a Nation , but Trade must unavoidably suffer by , and feel it ; and then the wonder will be very little if we consider that we have suffered by them all . And these are things so publickly known , that it is to be admired , that men should have the confidence to take no notice of any one of them ; but if they hear of any Difficulties which the Trading People do wrestle with , presently overlook all these notorious Causes , and enter into long Harangues about Common Prayer and Ceremonies . I may add that besides the fore-mentioned Calamities ; If we are out-done in point of Trade by our Neighbours in Holland , it is not to be wondered at , if we consider the Nature of our Country , and the Manners of our People . Our Country hath in it self a great plenty of all things necessary for the life of men , which Holland hath not ; they must trade or they cannot live , which is not our Case : And if necessity makes men expert , and their being expert brings them to thrive ; it is not to be wondred at : It is this very necessity which every day makes vast Numbers among them , glad to submit to all the Labours & Hazards of all the Seas in the World , & all this purely to support their Lives with very course fare , and very small wages ; now the goodness of our Country affording to our People a more comfortable subsistence upon much easier terms than is to be had among them , is one plain cause why our People are not easily to be brought to take that pains , run into those dangers and submit to those severe terms , which with them is not less than absolutely necessary : Not to say any thing of the return of their long Voyages , what vast advantages do they make by Fishing upon our own Coasts , which we alwayes complain of , but will by no means betake our selves unto . Again he who hath got a vast sum of money by trading , hath here in England a perpetual conveniency of purchasing Land with it , and by that means he himself or his Son doth become a Country Gentleman , which in Holland is not to be done ; by which means Trade is amongst us given over , when men come to be Masters of such great sums of Money as to be best able to command it , and to reap the most considerable advantages by it : In Holland because Trade is the thing which every one is to trust to , their Wives and Children are all instructed in the Mysteries , and inured to the business of it , and so the Stock and Experience of a Family descends from Father to the Son , and increaseth from Generation to Generation : Now it is far from being a Miracle , that their Merchants should be able to out-do ours , who are frequently left by their Parents as large or larger sums of Money to begin with , as ours take themselves to be very well satisfied with and give over : They go on and improve what we look upon as more adviseable barely to enjoy , and by that means prevent an increase which would have come easily , and too often waste and consume what they in a few Years are by reason of their great Stocks inabled without difficulty to treble . And besides that different way of disposure of the plenty of the Rich which is between them and us : They make another and greater advantage of the necessities of the Poor , than we either do or can do , or it is fit for us to do : They make their People to work harder , fare harder than any of ours will do , to take smaller wages , and by that means they are something helped in being able to under-sell us : And besides the Masters of Trade do themselves live much more frugally than we do in point of Dyet and Apparel , and other heights of living , and studiously avoid many unnecessary ways of Expence , which we are ( perhaps too apt ) to be fond of . And whatever is expended must needs take off so much from Improvement ; which Consideration prevails with them to be very sparing till they are very Rich , and not to pretend to any of the wayes of Vanity , till they have brought themselves into a condition to carry on their material Concerns with the best advantage . Now is it any wonder , if there were nothing more in the Case than this , that in Trade they should much out-do us ? And there is little doubt to be made of it , that he who is better acquainted with that People than I am , will be able to reckon many other particular things wherein they differ from us in order to this great Design , which have no manner of relation to Liberty of Conscience , and which would have the same effect without it , as they can possibly have by it . As to our selves and our present Case , there are but three Things ( which I can learn ) pretended , by reason of which it is possible to be supposed , that the putting the Act against Conventicles in Execution can draw any prejudice upon Trade : First , that Merchants who are not willing to conform , will not come over and settle in England : Secondly , that the most eminent Traders being Non-conformists , they will either forbear Trading to the utter undoing of all such Workmen ( as Weavers , &c. ) who do depend upon them , or leave the Kingdom and carry their profitable Trades along with them ; which will bring a great decay of Trade here , and carry away that benefit , which England might have received , to that , whatever Country they shall please to settle in . Thirdly , That Merchants beyond Sea ( as Roman Catholicks , &c. ) will not be easily perswaded to trust their Estates in the hands of those who are not of their own Religion , and they who are , being lyable to such Prosecutions as by our Laws they are liable unto , will be fearful of having any Estates in their own hands , and look upon it as more adviseable to forbear Trading , rather than to be liable to so many Difficulties ; These are the three most considerable Objections which I have hitherto been able to meet with , and to each of these I have this to offer by way of return . As to the first , that this severity will discourage Forraign Merchants from comming over to us : It is a mistake to think that the Church of England is such a Bug bear to the rest of the Reformation , as that the Religion of that is looked upon as sufficient Cause to hinder any great Numbers of valuable Persons from coming over to dwell in the Nation . It is by no means clear that any store of them do at this time desire to transplant hither , and if they did , it is more than possible that some other of our Civil Constitutions may be greater bars in their way , than the Act against Conventicles , and particularly the want of a Register : And that Person must have more than ordinary Intelligence , who can be able to secure us , that there are such Numbers of considerable Merchants at this time designing to come over , and are diverted only by the News of the Bill against Conventicles going to be put into Execution ; as that the advantage and addition of those Persons , and that Trade to the Nation should be 〈◊〉 great , as to overbalance those many and unavoidable Inconveniencies which I have already shewed , that Religion and Government must be exposed to , by the grant of Liberty of Conscience . It doth not remain in our Memories that in Cromwel's time , when there was Liberty given to all except Papists and Prelatists , that any were by that Liberty encouraged to come over , at least not any such number as to be considerable . But suppose it should so happen , that some Eminent Merchants should design to come over ; I could never yet hear , nor am I wise enough to think upon any reason , why the Act against Conventicles should more fright them from England , than the Inquisition doth from other Countries , as Spain , Italy , and Portugal ; and yet in those Countries Merchants have their Factories , and drive their greatest Trade : Besides strangers Merchants have as much encouragement in this particular , as can reasonably be desired ; the French have their Church , the Dutch theirs ; nay , even the Iews have theirs , and all Aliens of 〈◊〉 Reformation have even by the very Act of Uniformity an express provision made for them , as to the enjoyment of their own way of Worship at the pleasure of His Majesty ; and if they do meet and keep to their own Language , they need fear no more in this Country than in any other . As to the second Thing alledged , that if the Act against Conventicles be put in Execution , the most Eminent Traders being Non-Conformists , they will leave off Trading , and by that means undo all sorts of Workmen who do depend upon them , and not only so , but leave the Nation , and carry their Trades away along with them . Now that this is a thing of more Noise than Weight , will appear if we examine it with a little Care. That some eminent Merchants are Non-conformists is undoubtedly True ; but that the most eminent are so , I am sure is not true , and could easily make it appear , if it were fit to mention the Names of particular Persons : But so far as it is true , doth any man in his wits imagine , that the Act against Conventicles will make them either quit their profitable . Trades , or fright them out of the Kingdom ? It doth neither condemn them to be hanged nor burned , neither doth it so much as touch their Persons or Estates for being Non-conformists , but permits them to be of what Religion they please , and alloweth them the free exercise of their Religion in their Families : It cannot therefore be easily imagined , that People will be so far out of their wits ( though I must confess that Fanaticism will go a great way toward putting them out of them ) as to leave their settled and profitable Trades , their Native Country , Relations and Friends , only because they cannot publickly shew the exercise of their Mode of Worship ; whereas they may freely enjoy it in their own Families , and be known to do so , without the least interruption in any of the forementioned Conveniencies : Especially considering , that Merchants of that Eminency , that their Case deserves to be taken notice of in a case of this Publick concern now under debate , are very well able to keep Ministers in thier own Houses , and may do it with far less charge and prejudice , than either going into some other Countrey , or the forbearance of their Trades will put them to . But I shall for once suppose two Things , whereof the first is evidently not true ; the second not at all likely , That the most Eminent Merchants are Non-Conformists , and that upon that account they will forbear Trading : But even upon these Terms it is to be hoped that those they deal with will not be utterly undone , whatever may be pretended : For put the Case that three or four of the most Eminent Merchants should dy , or ( which I wish did never happen ) break ; every dayes experience shews us , that the Clothiers they deal with , and consequently the Weavers , and other Workmen depending upon them , are not presently ruined , or so much as out of employment , but do immediately find other Merchants to deal with ; the Trades of those who either give over Trading , or dy , being alwayes continued by their Sons , or Partners , or shared amongst those who have been their Servants , or other Merchants who deal in the same Commodity , and to the same Places . But suppose that the putting the Laws in Execution should so far distract any Numbers , as to make them run out of the Kingdom : Let it be considered whither they will run , only into Holland , where they cannot more freely enjoy the exercise of their Religion in their own Families , nor converse more freely with one another about it , than they may do here in England . All the difference is , that here they cannot meet in great Numbers , and I leave it even to the Non-Conformists themselves to Judge , whether that one Conveniency of Meeting in great Numbers be a sufficient enticement to any rational man to exchange England for Holland ? But put the Case , that they do go into Holland , or into some other Country ; I did never yet meet with any man who could demonstrate to me how they could carry away their Trade of Merchandizing , though they were never so willing ; live in Holland they may , and drive their usual Trades here in England by their Correspondents , in which Case the Nation will only loose the common profit of their eating , drinking and wearing : But to carry away the Trade of the Nation with them , is not possible , if they leave any Merchants behind , as I am sure they will many more , and more considerable than any who will go away ; and by withdrawing themselves into other Countries , they will but leave their Trades to be shared amongst better men and better Subjects ; so that by leaving the Kingdom , instead of prejudicing , they would occasion a very great blessing unto it , by carrying away with them the Divisions , but not at all the Trade of the Nation . When the Act against Conventicles was first made , this Argument against it from Trade was much insisted on , and I remember a Story was raised about some great Dealers in the West , who had with-drawn their stock , left off all business , by which means vast Numbers of poor People , who did depend on them , were utterly undone : This Matter seemed so considerable , as that several of the most Eminent Persons in the Nation did meet together to consult about a remedy for so great , and as it was said , so growing an evil . But when this Matter came to be enquired into , I could never learn that it had any thing more than a great deal of noise in it . There is an eminent City in this Nation , inferiour perhaps to none except London , wherein this Artifice was made use of to fright the Magistrates from suppressing the Conventicles : A great rumour was spread up and down , that if they might not have Liberty to meet as formerly , then they would all with-draw their Stocks , which would be a great detriment to His Majesty , and a vast loss to the City , and leave the Poor to be provided for by their respective Parishes . But the Raisers of all this Clamour did quickly find that they had to do with those who were at least as great Masters of Trade as themselves , and accordingly it was undertaken by those who were very well able to make it good ; that if the Dissenters did think fit to withdraw their Stocks , there should immediate care be taken that the Trade of the City should be carried on to the very same height which it was at , without the least abatement , or leaving any one Work-man out of as good an Employment as he had before : It was so far from being feared , that it was desired that they would withdraw their Stocks , and that they may be the better encouraged to the so doing , provided that they would give Security that they will not Trade at all , neither by themselves , or others for them , nor in other mens Names , they shall at any time have a good sum of money given them , if that may move them to it . Let us not be vainly afraid , where no fear is : Do we know the Non-Conformists no better than so , that we should suspect them of being apt to give over their profitable Trades ? It had been a more rational Jealousie to have looked upon them as more intent upon any imaginable way of getting of Money , than on any Settlement of Religion , of what sort soever : And perhaps it would be not only no ill Experiment to destroy this Argument , but withall as likely a way to reduce them , as any which can be thought upon ; if there were a Law , That those who refuse to conform , or at least who meet at Conventicles , should not be permitted to Trade : Such a Law indeed would be terrible to them ▪ and I hope the bare mention of it will make them forbear to use this kind of threatning us with that , which to themselves alone will be , if at all , dreadful . As to the third Objection , That Merchants beyond Seas ( as Roman Catholicks , &c. ) will be afraid to trust their Estates in the hands of those who are not of their own Religion , &c. It is of so little weight as to require but a very few words ; it being evident that all kinds of Merchants at this day do correspond , and alwayes have corresponded with others not of their own Religion , Papists with Protestants , Protestants with Papists , &c. What other Pretences there are in this Case , wherein Trade may seem concerned , I do not at present call to mind , and therefore shall go on to the next suggestion why a Toleration of several wayes of Religion may not do as well here as it doth amongst our Neighbours in France and Holland . As to France , the different Professions of Religion there , hath not been without many sad effects upon both Parties , and hath so sanctified the Animosities on each side , that it hath prevailed upon both , out of Zeal to God , to let Aliens and Enemies into the Bowels of their Native Country . But their Case and ours is vastly different ; the Hugonots , who are there tolerated , have those Merits to plead which our Non Conformists have not ; and besides , they do not divide into several Communions among themselves , neither would any such thing be permitted either by the Government , or by the Reformed Church it self . As to Holland , Liberty of Conscience is a thing which they were not brought to admit of by second Thoughts , and after mature Deliberation , but were necessitated upon by the Nature of that Cause upon which they first united among themselves , and the Constitution of that Government they fell into . One part of their Cause was a Deliverance from the Impositions of the Church of Rome , as exercised after the imperious manner of the Spanish Government : Now Liberty in matters of Conscience was the most natural Word in the World in this Case to be made use of ; Freedom from the present Pressures was the thing immediately in their Eye , and many of their Neighbours at the same time had the same Aim : And as they were then only agreed what they would not have , but not at all what they would have , they invited all , that all might come to their Assistance . But besides this , one Religion was not easie to be brought into so many several Independent Governments , as go to the making up of those States . For as Sr. William Temple tells us , Chap. 2. of their Government , p. 75. They are not a Common-wealth , but a Confederacy of seven Soveraign Provinces united together for their common and mutual Defence , without any dependance one upon another , &c. Nay farther , That each of these Provinces is likewise composed of so many little States and Cities , which have several Marks of Sovereignty within themselves , & are not subject to the Sovereignty of the Province ; not being concluded in many things by the Majority , but only by the universal Concurrence of Voyces in the Provincial States . To this let us add the great Variety of Persons which by reason of the Wars and Persecutions of those times , came into , and embodied with them , out of France , Germany , England ; and is it to be wondred at , if not knowing how to agree in any one way they permitted divers ? Such a kind of Liberty therefore as is now contended for amongst us , cannot so properly be said to be given by these States , as to have grown up with them ; and though it be a part of their Nature , is one of their Inconveniencies ; and this hath not been unperceived by them . In the Affair of Barnevelt it was found that Religious Differences could find a way of intermingling themselves with State-quarrels , and the States did then think fit to make Laws about what they called erroneous in point of Doctrine . As to Religion the Effects of Liberty of Conscience are in those Countries plainly to be seen in the daily growth of Popery and Socinianism , and of men altogether indifferent , as to all kinds of Articles of Belief ; things which by the same means may be brought into England , and indeed upon the admittance of which , are not to be kept out of it . The States of the United Provinces may indeed keep themselves safe from all Disturbances which may arise from Enthusiastick Lunacies , by reason of their Garrisons and standing Army , without which no security can be had against the dangers of Toleration . And seing that the Case of England is in both these Respects very different from that of Holland , & it is to be hoped is intended so to continue , an Argument of this nature taken from them ought by no means to be looked upon as what ought to conclude us by it . Now that the Argument from Holland ought by no means to be looked upon as conclusive to us , either as to Comprehension or as to Toleration , doth appear in these Two things : 1. In the Constitution of our Government , as being very different from theirs ; 2. in the Condition of those People amongst us who dissent from the Government . 1. As to the Constitution of our Government , Comprehension is with us much more unsafe than the same thing would be in Holland ; because the Preachers do there depend altogether upon the States Pay , and have no other Tenure but during pleasure ; whereas a Beneficed Man with us hath a Free-hold , and is not to be turned out but by a legal Way : By which advantage he may fence with Authority , and may publicky deliver such things which the people may very well understand , and yet the Law may not be able to take any hold of him . And of this , I doubt , we should have sudden experience , if these men could be admited by Law into sure and certain Possessions upon their own Terms ; and I am the more apt to suspect this , because I could never yet hear that this sort of men was ever wrought upon by being yielded to : And if their Gratitude and good Nature should upon this occasion begin , it will be so much the more welcome as it is less expected . But as Comprehension among us , considering the Persons who do desire it , and their declared Principles , is much more unsafe than the same thing would be in Holland , by reason of the Constitution of our Government in reference to the Clergy ; So likewise for the same reason is Toleration more unsafe here than it would be there , if we do consider the Temper of those People who dissent from us . Holland , as I have already mentioned , hath a standing Army , and so considerable a one , that the Publick Peace shall infallibly be secured by it , whether their Preachers , or whoever else can be perswaded by them , will or no. And how confidently soever the Argument from Holland is now adays made use of , to induce us to grant the like Liberty , there was a time when this very Argument was looked upon with great scorn : The Author of Wholsome Severity , &c. doth censure the States of the United Provinces with great sharpness upon this occasion , p. 30. and compares the Toleration there given to differing sorts of Dissenters , to the Toleration given by the Pope to Courtizans . And besides , the various sorts of Perswasions there do not use to question the Lawfulness of Tolerating one another , as ours have always done . I have already shewed , that the Presbyterians would by no means tolerate the Independents , if they knew how to help it ; and I shall now in a word shew , how unwilling the Independents are to tolerate the Presbyterians , or other Sects which in their Inclinations they do not favour . And this is no new discovery of mine , but a thing which did discover it self as early as there was occasion for it , as we read in teh forementioned Book called Wholsome Severity reconciled with Chistian Liberty , p. 19. In New England there hath been Severity enough ( to say no worse ) used against Hereticks and Schismaticks . And here I must appeal to the Consciences of those who now plead so much for Liberty of Conscience and Toleration in this Kingdom ; were they able to root out the Presbyterians and their way , and could find Civil Authority inclinable to put forth the Coercive Power against it , Whether in that case would they not say , That the Magistrate may repress it by strong hand , if it be not otherwise to be repressed ? It is not without Cause that I put this Quaere to them ; for M. S. p. 50. doth allow of the Magistrates fighting against a Doctrine which is indeed Superstition , Heresie or Schism , and only pretendeth to be from God , when it is indeed from men . Also that Pamphlet called , As you were , p. 3. tells us , that it was neither Gamaliel's meaning , nor Mr. Goodwins , That every Way pretending to be from God must be let alone ; but that only we are to refrain and let it alone till we are out of danger of fighting against God , while we endeavour to overthrow it . Now I assume that there are some who plead for Liberty of Conscience , who profess that they are certain , and fully assured upon demonstrative proofs , that the Presbyterial Way is not from God nor according to the Mind of Iesus Christ : Therefore according to their Principles , they must allow of the putting forth of the Civil Coercive Power against the Presbyterial Way , &c. Mr. Sterry likewise , who was the great Preacher at Whitehall in the dayes of Mr. Oliver Cromwel , in a Sermon preached , Nov. 5. 1651. called England 's Deliverance from the Northern Presbytery , compared with its Deliverance from the Roman Papacy , upon Ier. 16. 14 , 15. It shall no more be said , The Lord liveth that brought up the Children of Israel out of the Land of Egypt ; But the Lord liveth that brought up the Children of Israel out of the Land of the North , &c. Which Sermon was Printed by Order of those Gentlemen who pleased to call themselves a Parliament , gives us such an account of the Presbyterians , as was very grateful to the Powers then in being ( though it was to the Presbyterians that they owed their very Being ; ) I shall lay down his very words : In his Epistle he saith thus ; Right honorable , I have desired in my Preaching , in my Prayers , to work with God even for the opening of the eyes of men , to see that the same Spirit which lay in the polluted Bed of Papacy may meet them in the perfumed Bed of Presbytery , &c. To which purpose I have in my Sermon represented the same Spirit which dwells in the Papacy , when it enters into the PVRER FORM OF PRESBYTERY , as FVLLER OF MYSTERY , so FVLLER OF DESPITE AND DANGER , &c. In the Sermon it self ; Many daughters have done vertuously , but thou excellest them all : So may England now say to the Lord , In many Mercies , as especially that in saving us from this bloody design of the Egyptian Papacy , thou hast done graciously and wonderfully ; but this last Mercy , by which thou savest us from the black Plots and bloody Powers of the NORTHERN PRESBYTERY hath exceeded them all . And in that Sermon he doth all along prefer the Papists before the Presbyterians , the Consequence of which doth not amount to Toleration of them : Nay , our Brethren in New-England , though their Constitution hath as much of Liberty of Conscience in it , as any Place in the World , yet have found it to be a thing so very troublesom , as that they are grown quite weary of , and have put very severe Restraints upon it : Of which in the Second Part of the Excellent Friendly Debate , p. 227. and the Third Part , p. 224. any man may be abundantly satisfied ; and it is well known that Quakers were hanged in New-England , which was a severity they did not meet with , either at Rome or at Constantinople . Mr. Edwards in his Answer to the Apologetical Narration , p. 244. draweth an Argument against Toleration from the Judgment of the Divines in New England , who are against the Toleration of any Church Government , or way but one . For the Discipline of Iesus Christ ( as we have it in Church Government and Church Covenant discussed ( Question 31. ) is not arbitrary , that one Church may practise one Form , and another another Form , as each one shall please , but is one and the same for all Churches , and in all the Essentials and Substantials of it unchangeable , and to be kept till the appearing of Iesus Christ : And if that Discipline which we here practise be ( as we are perswaded of it ) the same which Christ hath appointed , and therefore unalterable , we see not how another may be lawful : Upon which account they will not in New-England tolerate Brownists , Anabaptists , Antinomians , Quakers , and so careful they are in this matter , that they make such enquiries into the inward Sentiments of the Minds even of the Laity , as among us are not usual ; and in such Points too wherein the Publick Government is not concerned . Mr. Cotton the greatest Divine in New-England , and a precious man , is against Toleration , and holds that men may be punished for their Consciences , as appears by his Letter to Mr. Williams , & Mr. Williams his Answer , both Printed , & his Exposition on the Vials , Vial. 3. p. 16 , 17. & Vial. 4. p. 17. Where he Answers this Objection , Conscience should not be forced , and this is his Answer ; Why do you think that Hereticks were not as conscionable in the Old Testament as now ? If any man had a Conscience to turn men from God , he would have men of as much Conscience to cut them off : So that upon the whole matter it doth appear that this loud demand of Toleration is a very disingenious , nay a dishonest one ; because it is asked by those who ( if the Power were in their hands ) would neither allow it to those they now ask it of , no nor so much as permit it to one another . One Instance of their Barbarity in this kind will not be tedious ; the Presbyterians denied His late Majesty the Attendance of His own Chaplains in His own Family , for the Exercise of His own Devotion ; and as the Presbyterians denied Him the use of the Common-Prayer whilst he was alive , the Independents would not allow Him to be buried by it after he was dead . Let them reflect a little upon their own demeanour in this Case , and then be as loud as they please in crying out for Moderation ; Tenderness , Forbearance , Condi●cension . And so I go on to the last Objecti●n , that Civil Penalties do only make Hypocrites . This were an Excellent Argument against all Laws whatsoever if it were well pursued ; but on the other side I take it to be a very clear Case , that Toleration makes Hypocrites ; for it renders it safe for any man , in order to whatever end , to pretend some dissatisfactions against the present Ecclesiastical Constitutions , when in his own Mind he hath none : And this effect it hath had from the first moment of His Majesties Restauration , unto this time : Many preachers then possessed of Benefices went away from them , because the Right Owners returned to them again , and yet these men pretended Scruples against the Common Prayer and Ceremonies , and so were looked upon as sufferers for their Conscience , and have ever since subsisted upon the strength of such pretensions : Of those who by the Death of the Right Incumbents continued in their ill-got Possessions till the Act of Uniformity : How many refused to conform more out of shame than Conscience ? They could not without blushing practise those things which they formerly preached against , especially in the same place where they had done so ; and accordingly some have conformed in other Countries than where they lived before , and more did proffer it , if they could have obtained to have been provided for : And of those who did go out at Saint Bartholomews Day , 1662. How many were there who went out upon the great assurance which they had from their Agents in London of returning again in a few Weeks with Honour ? And among the People how many are there who go to Conventicles meerly to get Custom , as finding it to be a succesful way , by becoming Members of such a Church , to get the Trade of such a Party . I have now considered the Inconveniencies of that Fine Project called Liberty of Conscience , and the various pretences by which of late it hath been recommended to us : How much soever these imperfect Reasonings of mine may have fallen below the dignity of the Argument , I shall be so just to my Cause , as to refer the Reader where he may receive compleat and abundant satisfaction , viz. to those Excellent Votes of the Honourable House of Commons , February 25. 1662. where there is a full State of this Affair drawn up with an equal height of Piety and Wisdom ; the Reasons full and clear , carrying in them all the Advantages of Strength and Evidence : Those Renowned Gentlemen did then shew that they were able with their Pens to give an account of that Cause , for which very many of themselves , and , Fathers did honourably draw their Swords , and knew very well how to assert that Church by all the Rules of Christian Prudence , as well as they did formerly set inimitable Patterns of Christian Courage in suffering for it . There we may see and admire how those Glorious Worthies came up to the greatness of themselves , and of the Argument ; and indeed they were both worthy of one another , they to defend , and that to be defended ; and as nothing was ever better penned than those Reasons , so there was scarce ever a better Occasion ; the best Church in Europe , was then bore witness to by the best House of Commons which ever sat in this Nation : Those Votes shall for ever remain as a lasting Monument as of the Zeal and Religion , so of the incomparable Endowments and Abilities of those who drew them up . And now I shall presume to offer a few words to our dissenting Brethren , that they would seriously bethink themselves what the Causes of their Separation are , how few , how slight ; that they would with them compare the Effects of it , what they have been , what they are , what they may come to be : Such things have already been brought about in Church and State ( by means of those Divisions which the soberest among you did begin and foment , and none but they were valuable enough to give Support and Countenance unto ) as they themselves ( we are perswaded ) did not intend , nor would fore-see till they found it too late for to prevent them : Alterations are things which the Generality are naturally apt to be very fond of , but it is very seldom , and for a very little while , that they are found to answer the hopes conceived of them : Indeed if it were once agreed upon what those things were which would give a general satisfaction , and put an absolute end to this long and uhappy Controversie , such a Proposal were at least worth a Consideration : But if there be as great variety of Demands as Persons , and if it be as earnestly desired among great Numbers , that their Neighbours should not be indulged , as that themselves should , and we have for many years found it by a dear bought Experience , that when men are once gone beyond the Rule , they wander every where , and without end ; why should you not at last look upon it as adviseable to return to the Rule again ? Especially considering , that those of the greatest Consideration among you are not against the having any Rule at all , neither as yet have you been able to agree upon any other . If it be to be wished that there should be any Church at all , that Church must have Articles , and must have Canons ; there is not the smallest Society in the World can be kept together in order to the meanest end , but there must be some Rules which all its Members must submit unto , and be guided by : If therefore there ought to be kept up among us any such thing as the Assembling our selves together in order to the Publick Worship of Almighty God , then this must be done at some time , in some place , and after some manner , in some words , and by some Person appointed to attend upon the doing it : Now if there be nothing of all this left to be determined by humane Wisdom and Authority , but that this whole Thing with every one of all the Circumstances of it are already determined in Holy Writ : The Church of England would be so far from opposing any thing of this , that she would gladly conform in all particulars to these divine Establishments , and would be hugely thankful to any of our dissenting Brethren , if they will please to shew her whereabouts she may read the Form of publick Worship , and withal the precise Method of that Order and Decency which ought to be used in it : For she hath been hitherto so unhappy , as not to know of any but general Directions , which she hath endeavoured with all Faithfulness to pursue : But after this Discovery she will take care , that her Children shall serve God in no other way than that of his own immediate appointment , if she can but once learn Directions where to meet with it . But if there be no such way of Worship , both for the thing it self and all its Circumstances , prescribed by God ; then so much of it as is not done by God , must unavoidably be done by such men whom God hath set over us , and who in such Cases are to be to us instead of God. And let us consider , that the Ceremonies which are retained are very few , very ancient , and very becoming ; and to prevent all jealousies of the least manner of Superstition in the retaining them , the Church hath taken care to declare against all the Abuses which they were liable unto in the times of Popery . You value your selves upon being Successors to the old Puritans ; but do you imagine that they would in the least have allowed many of those things which you have been the Authors of , or at least of which you have been the Instruments , and into which we hope you were not brought by any formed Resolutions of your own , but driven upon by those necessities in your affairs which your Zeal had unawares drawn you into ? Instead therefore of being jealous of any concealed mischiefs in a few decent Rites and comely Usages , you are highly concerned to remember what have been the Evils of your own Schism , which you know your selves to have begun , and we are willing to believe did not see to the dismal end of ; and which upon your own Principles you will never be able to provide against : The Liberties which you take , have encouraged and defended others in taking such Liberties , as no doubt you have been often sorry to see your selves undeniably alledged as Patrons and Examples of . And unless you can alledge some more necessary Causes of Separation than you hitherto have been able , you must be very partial Judges in your own Case , if you do not look upon your selves as responsible for the Consequences of all those Separations , which by your Arms and Authority any else was enabled to make , first with you and after from you . Whatever suspicions you may entertain concerning Conformity , you will never be able to make a Bar strong enough to keep out the dreadful Effects of Non-conformity . If no Settlement is to be complied with , but such a one which each particular Man doth in his own private thoughts take to be the most adviseable in all respects as to Matter and Circumstance , and no longer than it doth appear to be so , then there is never like to be any Settlement in the World , at least not of any long Continuance . I shall in this Case make use only of the words of an eminent Non-conformist , in a Treatise which I have already mentioned , entituled , Of the Religion of England , asserting , That the Reformed Christianity settled in its Latitude is the stability of the Kingdom , p. 28. Such is the complicated condition of humane Affairs , That it is exceeding difficult to devise a Rule or Model that shall provide for all whom Equity will plead for : Therefore the prudent and sober will acquiesee in any Constitution that is in some sort proportionable to the Ends of Government . And again , p. 38. Nevertheless , if , when all is said , some dissatisfaction doth invincibly possess the Iudgment , in that Case Christian Humility and Charity as well as Discretion adviseth such Persons to acquiesoe in their private security and freedom , and not to reach after that Liberty that may unsettle the publick Order , and ●●dermine the common Safety . Although it be a great , a seasonable and a concerning Truth , That it is more glorious to confess an Error than to continue in one , yet because it may seem a severe Truth , I shall no more than barely mention it : If in earnest you are at least weary of divisions , do all which in you lieth on your part to put an end to them ; and this you cannot pretend to have done , till you have complied with the Publick Order as far as you believe you may lawfully , and where you cannot obey you may yet be silent . If there be a Ceremony which any one among you believes that he ought not to conform to , doth it thence follow , that he is obliged to make Parties against it , and for the sake of that one to abstain from all the rest , and to avoid all those other parts of the Church-Service and Communion , where the Rite which he scruples hath no manner of place ? Again , when from the Cause you fly into great Commendations of your Party , you should do well to avoid such expressions as , instead of tending to bespeak the Favour and Compassion of Authority , do rather tend to awake its caution and to raise its jealousie : That which doth but look like a Threatning is by no means fit for an Inferiour to put into his Supplication . Not only the Honour , but the Safety of all Government doth depend upon this , to demurr at least upon the granting of that Request , which he who puts it up doth actually take before he asks , and in the very form of his asking it , doth more than insinuate the great danger which may be in denying him . And this methinks doth appear to have been an Indecorum in your eminent Advocate in His Discourse of the Religion of England , p. 23. Sect. 11. How momentous in the ballance of the Nation those Protestants are that dissent from the present Ecclesiastical Policy : Where he tells us of their great number , their great Interest , their great Commerce , their many Relations , their great Understandings and Discretion ; and in the close of all he adds , NOR DO THEY WANT THE RATIONAL COURAGE OF ENGLISH MEN The meaning of which Words are at least very suspicious , as to the King , and as to the Church : Since the late Discourses of their Endeavours after an Union , their former Separations do not only continue , but are managed in the same manner as formerly : On their Parts we do not hear of any beginnings toward a Complyance : One man indeed there was who made a Profession of something of this , but what reserves he had in his mind , whereby to render that Profession of his insignificant , let his after-Practises teach us , and withall give us warning what trust to repose in any general though never so fair Promises . And thus I have briefly and plainly laid down some of the most obvious Exceptions against the late much discoursed of Projects , Comprehension , Toleration , and a third made up of both them : Comprehension may indeed proceed from an Excess of goodness in those who are ready to grant it ; but it is not very clear that those who are the most likely to desire it ; will be most ready to make a good use of it : Indeed as to the thing it self , it is kept so much in the dark , that it is not , except by some very few , if by any , understood , who they are who either do desire or would accept it , or upon what terms it would be either given or taken ; and as the nature of this thing is unknown , so will the Issue be most uncertain . As to those two abatements which are usually mentioned , the taking away of Assent and Consent , and dispensing with the Obligation of Renouncing the Covenant ; they are things which carry great and apparent dangers in them . He who desires to be excused from giving his Assent and Consent , can hardly be able to give any other account of that his desire than this : That he doth not believe the Doctrine of the Church , or doth not mean to conform to the orders of it . As to the other Particular , the Dispensing with the Renouncing of the Covenant ; the very Proposal is methinks a very bold one , if we consider what was the occasion of the Covenant ; who were the Authors ; the Time in which it was entred into , the ends in order to which , what are the Contents of it , & how perpetual & indispensible they have all along declared the Obligation of it to be , what Effects it hath had already , & at any time may have upon the King , the Church , the Nation , and in an especial manner , upon the Old Cavaliers . And then as to Toleration , I have shewed the Inconveniencies to be innumerable and unavoidable , which it may at any time bring upon either of them ; there is no Imposture which at this door standing alwayes open , may not enter into the Church : No Danger which by a dexterous management of such an unbounded Licence , may not have a very fair & easie passage made for it into the State. And as for any mixture of these two Contrivances , it will be so long before the Bounds and Limits can be agreed upon to be set between them ; so many things are to be considered of , before these two can with any satisfaction to either be suited to one another , that an Enquiry may I suppose be safely put off until a time of greater Leisure . The End. A Postscript to the Reader . WHen I had put an End , as I thought to your Trouble ( Good Reader ) and my own , there came to my hands a new Pamphlet , entituled , Certain Considerations tending to promote Peace and good Will amongst Protestants , very useful for the present times : The Design of which is to promote the forementioned Comprehension , which the Author doth endeavour to put a very good colour upon by laying down several Propositions ; the Third of which is this , That the late Civil Wars in England were not begun for the Extirpation of Episcopacy and Liturgy , or to settle the Presbyterian Government here , but merely for Civil Rights , as he adds afterwards . Now if this Gentleman only means , that the Grandees of the Party had in their Hearts no manner of zeal for or against any Form of Religion , any farther than as thei● other Ends and Designs were carried on by it , I shall readily grant it him ; ●ay , I shall say this farther , That , besides Religion , the Civil Rights of the Nation were but plausible Colours , by which the Leading Men of that Party did set off their other Ends ; such as Revenge , Humour , Discontent , Covetousness and Ambition . And this they were told publickly by one whom they knew to be able to make it good , in the excellent Declaration of Aug. 12. 1642. Themselves know what Overtures have been made by them , and with what Importunity for Offices and Preferments , what great Services should have been done for us , and what other undertakings were ( even to the saving the Life of the Earl of Strafford ) if we would confer , such Offices upon them . But that Religion was the thing which they did make shew of , and by which they drew abundance of well meaning but deluded People to their assistan●● , is so plain , and known so publickly , that it is no little wonder , that any should offer to outs●●● the Nation in so no●●●ious a Case . Did not every Press and every Pulpit declare against Episcopacy , Liturgy and Cere●onies ? Did not the Lords and Commons , by their Votes of March 12. 1642. resolve upon the Question , That an Army be forthwith raised for the Safety of the Kings Person , &c. and PRESERVING THE TRUE RELIGION ? &c. Did they not in Iuly following put forth a Delaration concerning the miserable Distractions and Grievances this Kingdom now lieth in , by means of JESUITICAL and wicked Cousellours now about his Majesty ? wherein they tell us over and over again of the Protestant Religion , a great Change of Religion ; That they should be for ever earnest to prevent ● Civil War and those miserable Effects which it must needs produce , if they may be avoided without the Alteration of RELIGION , &c. And in their Resolutions to live and die with the Earl of Essex , they tell us , That their Army was raised , for the MAINTENANCE of the TRUE PROTESTANT RELIGION . The Pla●e , Wedding-rings , Thimbles and Bodkins had never been brought in , if it had not been that the Cause was so often called , the Cause of God. Let any man read the Remonstrances and Declarations of the Two Houses , and then see whether Religion was not one of those things which they all along declared their Zeal for ; and accordingly in all the Parliaments Quarters , the poor Surplice , the Organs and the Common Prayer-book were the first Objects of all their Fury . But because this present Design of Comprehension is particularly intended to gratifie some Clergy-men , let us enquire under what name they recommended the War unto the People : Was it not under the name of Gods Cause ; the setting Christ on his Throne ; fighting the Lords Battels ? There is a Collection of their Sermons Printed , which will not suffer any Man to doubt of this ; out of which there is enough gathered to this purpose in , Evangelium Armatum . And This Mr. Baxter hath in a late Book confessed as to himself : When the Wars began , though the Cause it self lay i● Controversies between King and Parliament ; yet the thoughts that the Church and Godliness it self was deeply in danger by Persecution and Arminia●is● did much more to byass me to the Parliaments side , than the Civil Interest ( which at the heart I little regarded . ) This Author likewise confesseth , That whatever was the Cause at the first , it soon became a War for Religion . And Mr. Love , a Person mentioned by this Author as one of great Merit , in his Sermon at the Vxbridge - Treaty complains of the so long letting alone the Two Plague-sores of Episcopacy and Common Prayer-Book . The Seventh Proposition is this , That the Parliamentarians in the beginning of our Troubles declared , to abhorr and detest all Designs of deposing and murthering his Late Sacred Majesty . That they did declare against any such thing I readily grant , and , amongst other Reasons , for this , laid down by our Author , That it had been else impossible for them to have gained the people as they did . But that there were among the chief Contrivers of the Wars , Those who had a design upon the Kings Crown and Life , is a thing where of there is great Evidence . If it be lawful to fight with a King , why is it not lawful to kill him ? Swords and Bullets are Things which are by no means to be used against that Person which we think we ought not to destroy : And of the great danger which his Majesties Person was in at the Battel at Edge-hill , himself hath informed us in a Declaration on that Subject . And in the Remonstrance of May 26. 1642. the Lords and Commons did plainly assume to themselves a Right to depose the King , in these words ; If we should make the highest Precedents of former Parliaments our Patterns , there would be no cause to complain of want of Modesty and Duty in us , when we have not so much as suffered those things to enter into our thoughts , which all the World knows they put in act . In which words there is thus much plainly contained , That whatever former Parliaments have done , they take themselves to have a Right to do ; Now former Parliaments have been over-awed into the deposing of Kings : Now that they had their Eyes upon those particular Proceedings of former Parliaments , appears by those Words , All the World knows what they put in act : His Majesty in His Answer to that Declaration of theirs , tells us of two Gentlemen who said publickly , unreproved in the Parliament House , one , That the H●ppiness of this Kingdom did not depend upon Him , or upon any of the Royal Branches of that Root ; Another , That He was not worthy to be King of England : And as for the Royal Power it was plainly demanded from him in the Nineteen Propositions . The Eighth Consideration is this , That the Non-conforming Presbyteri●●● had both their hearts and hands in the Restauration of His Majesty to His Royal Throne , for which Mr. Love , and Mr. Gibbons lost their Heads . Of all things I should least have e●pected , that the Advocates for the Presbyterians should have insisted upon their Merits to His Majesty , or the Royal Family , for which their best Apology is the Act of Oblivion ; and if they would have insisted , yet however methinks they should of all men not have made Mr. Love the Person to have insisted on : As for that Party of the Scots , which he corresponded with ; it is no Part of their Wisdom to remind His Majesty of the Usage which he found from them . As to Mr. Love , the Learned Author of Sa●aritanism hath informed us ; p. 152. That at the Execution of Archbishop La●d , he uttered these Words with great Triumph , Art thou come Little Will ? I am glad to see thee here , and hope to see the nest of the Bishops here e're long ; and having dipped his Handkerchief in his blood , he rode with it to Vxbridge , and used these Words ; Here is the Blood of that Proud Prelate , I hope for more of their Bloods e're long . And this doth against my will lead me to the consideration of his Sermon at Vxbridge , at the time of the Treaty . Amongst many Scandals cast upon the King , he herein compares Him to Charles the Ninth of France , who after a Treaty of Peace made the Massacre , and to Antiochus , of whom we read , Dan. 11. 23. That through his Policy he shall cause Craft to prosper i● his hand , and by Peace shall destroy m●ny , and , after the League made with him he shall work deceitfully : After these great Complements toward the King , he tells us in his Preface ; 'T is the Sword , not Disputes or Treaties which must end this Controversie , wherefore turn your Plowshares into Swords , and your Pruning-hooks into Spears to fight the Lords's Battles , to avenge the Blood of the Saints which hath been spilt , it must be avenged either by us , or upon us : Let me but quote the Words of the Prophet Jeremiah , Chap. 48. vers . 10. Cursed be he that doth the Work of the Lord negligently : Cursed be he that keepeth his Sword from Blood , &c. And I will be bold to say this , that the most malicious suggestions which are insisted upon in the Votes of Non-Address are to be met with in one Page of that Sermon , p. 32. We read 'T was the Lord who troubled Achan , because he troubled Israel . O that in this our State-Physicians would resemble God , to cut off those from the Land who have distempered it . Meli●s est ●t per●at Vnus quam Vnitas . He tells us , pag. 36 , 37 , of three sorts of Persons , with whom Peace is not to be made : First , Truce-breakers : O what deceitful Work hath our Parliament met with on the very nick of Treaties for Peace , &c. Secondly , Idolaters are not meet Persons to have a Peace with , Jehosaphat was checked for having an Affinity with Ahab an Idolatrons King , because he loved him that hated the Lord , therefore wrath was upon him from the Lord : But Asa ●as commended because he removed Maachah from being Queen , because she was an Idolatress : I may say , what Jehu said to Joram , what Peace can there be so long as the Whoredoms of Jezebel THE QUEEN are so many , we may make Peace with Papists now , but who will give us assurance that they will keep their Covenants : Thirdly , men wholly under the guilt of much Innocent blood are not meet Persons to be at peace with , till all the guilt of blood be expiated and avenged , either by t●e Sword of the Law , or the Law of the Sword , else a Peace can neither be safe nor just , and pag. 42. Are Peace and Truth the Ingredients which must heal us ? O then dote not too much upon this Treaty of Peace , which is this day beginning : And again , Will the Blood-thirsty Rebels of Ireland , the Idolatrous Papists of England , the Pompous Prelats , the rest of the corrupt Clergy , and the profaner sort of the Nation , who joyn hand in hand together : Are these likely to be Patrons of Truth ? Deceive not your selves , there is little likelihood of Peace with such : What I said before , I say again , Either they must grow better , or we must wax worse , before we can agree . I should willingly have suffered these Things to sleep , but that our Author forced me upon it , by insisting upon the Merits of Mr. Love , and Mr. Love himself in his Speech upon the Scaffold justifies himself as to all that he had done in relation to the Publick Differences ; I bless my God , I am free from the Blood of all men , &c. I do declare that I dy with my Iudgment set against Malignity , I do h●●e both name and thing , I still retain AS VEHEMENT A DETESTATION of Malignant Interest AS EVER I DID : And again , I dy cleaving to all those Oaths , Vows , Covenants , Protestations , that were imposed by the Two Houses of Parliament , as owning them , and in dying with my Iudgment for them . To the Protestation , the Vow and Covenant , the Solemn League and Covenant . This Author cannot deserve any way so well of the Party he pleads for , as not to give us occasion to enquire into past Matters : For whatever Inconveniencies may be expected from Comprehension or Toleration , by the nature of the things themselves , they will be found to be very much ascertained and increased , if we consider the Persons who do desire either of them : I suppose we shall hear no more of the Merits of Love , and if this Gentleman doth think fit to change him for any other Instance : I shall advise that he would pitch upon such a Person as hath wrote nothing , nor been in any Publick Employment , lest otherwise he should force us upon those Enquiries which will be , it is to be doubted little for the credit of him whose name is brought in Question , and which I shall take very little delight in . The End. A Brief Catalogue 〈◊〉 Books newly Printted and Repri●ted for R. Royston ; Bookseller to His Most Sacred Majesty . ANtiquitates Christiane , or , The History of the Life and Death of the Holy Jesus , as also , The Lives , Acts , and Martyrdoms of his Apostles . In two Parts , the first Part containing the Life of Christ , Written by Ieremy Taylor , late Bishop of Down and Connor ; The second , containing the Lives of the Apostles , by William Cave , D. D. Chaplain in ordinary to His Majesty . The Second Part of the Practical Christian , consisting of Meditations and Psalms , illustrated with Notes , or Paraphrased ; relating to the Hours of Prayer , the ordinary Actions of Day and Night , and several Dispositions of Men. By R. Sherlock , D. D. Rector of Winrvick . A Serious and Compassionate Enquiry into the Causes of the present Neglect and Contempt of the Protestant Religion and Church of England , &c. The Third Edition . A Collection of several Treatises concerning the Reasons and Occasions of the Penal Laws . Viz. I. The Execution of Justice in England , not for Religion , but for Treason : written by the Lord Treasurer Burleig● , 17 Dec. 1583. II. Important Considerations , by the Secular Priests : Printed A. D. 1601. III. The Iesuits Reasons Unreasonable : 1662. The End. 
A47928	----	Toleration discuss'd, in two dialogues I. betwixt a conformist, and a non-conformist ... II. betwixt a Presbyterian, and an Independent ... L'Estrange, Roger, Sir, 1616-1704. 1670 Approx. 505 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 183 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2004-03 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A47928 Wing L1316 ESTC R1454 12306009 ocm 12306009 59253 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online text creation partnership. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A47928) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 59253) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 921:15) Toleration discuss'd, in two dialogues I. betwixt a conformist, and a non-conformist ... II. betwixt a Presbyterian, and an Independent ... L'Estrange, Roger, Sir, 1616-1704. [8], 350 p. Printed by E.C. and A.C. for Henry Brome ..., London : 1670. Reproduction of original in Union Theological Seminary Library, NewYork. Table of contents: p. [3]-[8] Attributed to Roger L'Estrange. cf. NUC pre-1956. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in Oxford and Michigan. 5% (or 5 pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet QA standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. After proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of 100 instances per text. Any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. Understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of TCP data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. Users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a TCP editor. The texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level 4 of the TEI in Libraries guidelines. Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Dissenters, Religious -- England. Toleration. Freedom of religion -- Great Britain. 2003-11 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2003-12 Apex CoVantage Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2004-01 Rina Kor Sampled and proofread 2004-01 Rina Kor Text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-02 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion Toleration DISCUSS'D ; IN TWO DIALOGUES . I. Betwixt a Conformist , and a Non-Conformist ; Laying open the Impiety , and Danger of a General Liberty . II. Betwixt a Presbyterian , and an Independent ; Concluding , upon an Impartial Examination of their Respective Practises , and Opinions , in Favour of the Independent . Vaevobis , Hypocritae ! LONDON , Printed by E. C. and A. C. for Henry Brome at the Gun in Ludgate-street , at the West End of St. Paul's . 1670. TO THE READER . The CONTENTS . SECTION I. UNIVERSAL TOLERATION too Wide , and Unlawful . Page 3 SECT . II. LIMITED TOLERATION too Narrow , and Disobliging to the Excluded Party . 15 SECT . III. No Toleration to be admitted , but with the Allowance of the Chief Magistrate . 18 SECT . IV. The BOUNDS of Toleration . And the Error of making Fundamentals and Non Fundamentals to be the Measure of it . 23 SECT . V. The Common Arguments for TOLERATION , Examined . 29 SECT . VI. TOLERATION undermines the Law , and causes Confusion both in Church , and State. Page 36 SECT . VII . The Non-Conformist's Plea for Toleration , upon REASON OF STATE . 43 SECT . VIII . The Non-Conformist's Plea for Toleration , from the MERITS of the Party . 52 SECT . IX . The Non-Conformist's Plea for Toleration , from the Innocence , and Modesty of their OPINIONS and PRACTISES . 56 SECT . X. The Non-Conformists demand a Toleration , which is neither INTELLIGIBLE in the Whole , nor PRACTICABLE so far as it may be Understood . 78 SECT . XI . The Non-Conformists demand a Toleration , for No Body knows WHOM , or WHAT . 84 SECT . XII . The Conjunct Importunity of the Non-Conformists for a Toleration , is not grounded upon Matter of CONSCIENCE . 87 SECT . XIII . The Conjunct Importunity of the Non-Conformists for a Toleration , is a Manifest CONFEDERACY . 96 SECT . XIV . The Non-Conformists Joynt-Pretenses FOR A Toleration , overthrown , by the Evidence of their Joynt-Arguments , Professions , and Practises AGAINST it . 114 SECT . XV. The Non-Conformists JOYNT COMPLAINTS of Hard Measure , and Persecution , confronted with their own JOYNT-PROCEEDINGS . 120 SECT . XVI . The Non-Conformists tell us , That Liberty of Conscience is the Common Interest of This Kingdom ; but REASON and EXPERIENCE tell us the CONTRARY . 128 SECT . XVII . This Kingdom has been still the Worse for Indulging the Non-Conformists , and the Party never the Better . Which evinces , that UNIFORMITY is the True Interest of This Government , and Not Toleration . 148 SECT . XVIII . The Party of Scrupulous , and Conscientious Non-Conformists , is neither NUMEROUS , nor DANGEROUS . Pag. 167 SECT . XIX . The Non-Conformists Appeal , from the Government , and Discipline of the Church of England , to the Judgment , and Practise of the Reformed Churches BEYOND THE SEAS ; Examined , and Submitted to Censure . 172 SECT . XX. The Non-Confotmists Exceptions to Our Publique Way of Worship , found Guilty of Great IMPIETY , and ERROR . 194 SECT . XXI . Whatsoever God hath left INDIFFERENT , is the Subject of HUMANE POWER . 217 SECT . XXII . No End of Controversie , without a FINAL and UNACCOMPTABLE JUDGE , from whose Sentence there shall be no Appeal . 226 SECT . XXIII . The Three Great Judges of Mankind , are GOD , MAGISTRATES , and CONSCIENCE . 238 SECT . XXIV . The Church of England charges the Non-Conformists with SCHISM , and the Non-Conformists charge those of the Church with SCANDAL . The Matter is taken into Debate . Page 256 Toleration Discuss'd , betwixt a Presbyterian , and an Independent . SECT . XXV . An Enquiry , upon a Short , and Impartial Survey of the Rise , Progress , and Issue of the War , raised by the Two Houses in 1641. Whether were more Criminal , The PRESBYTERIANS , or the INDEPENDENTS . 271 SECT . XXVI . What Party soever DEMANDS a Toleration , and yet Mainteins , that it is Destructive both of Church , and State , to GRANT one , Is an ENEMY to BOTH . 292 SECT . XXVII . In Case of a Toleration , or Indulgence to be Granted , Whether has the fairer Preten se to it ; The CLASSICAL Way of the PRESBYTERIANS , or the CONGREGATIONAL Way of the INDEPENDENTS ; in Respect of their Form of Government ? Page 298 SECT . XXVIII . Whether may be better Tolerated in This Kingdom , The Presbyterians , or the Independents ; in Respect of their PRINCIPLES , and Ordinary PROCEEDINGS ? Debated , First , With Relation to his Majesties PERSON , and AUTHORITY . 306 SECT . XXIX . The Question of Toleration , betwixt Presbytery , and Independency ; Debated , with regard to the Foundation , and Execution of the LAW . 318 SECT . XXX . The Question of Toleration , betwixt Presbytery , and Independency , Debated , with a Regard to the Rights , Liberties , and Advantages of the PEOPLE . 327 Toleration Discuss'd , By way of Dialogue betwixt a CONFORMIST , AND A NON-CONFORMIST . Conformist . LIberty of Conscience , or , No Liberty of Conscience , is the Question . What is Conscience ? Non-conformist . Conscience is a Iudicium Hominis de Semetipso , prout subjicitur Iudicio Dei. b The Judgment that a Man makes of Himself and his Actions , with reference to the future Judgment of God. Or otherwise , c It is An Ability in the Understanding of Man , by a Reflex Act to Judge of Himself in all he does , as to his Acceptance , or Rejection with God. Rutherford makes it to be d A Power of the Practical Understanding , according to which the Man is obliged and directed to give Judgment of Himself ; that is , Of His State and Condition , and of all his Actions , Inclinations , Thoughts , and Words . C. If this be Conscience , Then Liberty of Conscience is A Liberty of a Man's Iudging of Himself , and his Actions , with reference to the future Iudgment of God. N. C. Right : But then he is bound likewise to Practise according to that Judgment , and To Worship God according to the Light and Understanding which he hath , of What is that Worship which is Acceptable with him , in Matter and Manner , and not otherwise . C. So that your Liberty of Conscience is now come to Liberty of Practise . Indeed I could wish that the Advocates for Liberty would be a little more Candid in this business . They take wonderful Pains ( many of Them ) to prove , That Conscience cannot be forc'd ; It is out of the Reach of Humane Power ; God never appointed any Iudge of it ; Shall any Man pretend to make me believe , That which I cannot believe ? ( And the like ) Pressing the Argument , as if That were the very Pinch of the Case , which is just Nothing at all to the Point in Controversie . It is obvious to Common Reason , that This Suggestion cannot but create very dangerous and unquiet Thoughts in the People : For if they be denied Liberty of Conscience ( in the plain and honest English of it ) They suffer under the most Barbarous , and Ridiculous Persecution , that ever yet appear'd upon the face of the Earth . But on the other side , If their claim be stretch't to Liberty of Practise , It seems not only unreasonable , but utterly Inconsistent , both with Christianity it self , and the Publique Peace . SECTION I. UNIVERSAL TOLERATION too Wide , and Unlawful . C. LIberty of Conscience ( as you have stated it ) is An Universal Toleration for People to say and do what they please , under the Warrant and Pretext of Conscience . N. C. That is to say , In Matters properly the Subject of Conscience , with Reference to the future Judgment of God. C. By This Rule , Pagans are to be tolerated as well as Christians : For They have Consciences as well as We : They are convinc'd , that there is a God ; and that That God ought to be Worship't ; and may plead for the same Freedom , in the way and manner of their Proceeding . N. C. But Paganism is not within the Pale of the Question . C. Why then , no more is Conscience . If you say , They are in the Wrong , and so debar them the Exercise of their Opinion , because of the Error of it , your Exception lies to the Error , n●…t to the Conscience ; and may be turn'd upon your selves : For They say as much of You ; and have as much right to condemn You , as You Them : Neither have you any more Right to be Judges in your own Case , then they in theirs . N. C. Well , but we have a Law to Iudge our selves by . C. And so have They too : For , They without a Law , do by Nature the things contained in the Law , and are a Law unto Themselves . N. C. But how can that Law-have any Regard to the future Judgment of God , when they deny the Immortality of the Soul : C. There is a future Iudgment of God in This Life , as well as in the next : And the Conscience that hath no Light at all of another World , is not yet without Apprehensions of Divine Vengeance in This. Raro Antecedentem Scelestum deseruit pede poena claudo . You 'l be as much to seek now , if you restrain your Argument to Christianity ; for you must either prove , That there are no Erroneous Consciences among Christinas ; or , That Error of Conscience is no Sin ; or else , That Sin may be Tolerated . N. C. There is no doubt but there are Erroneous Consciences ; and it is as clear that Sin is not to be Tolerated : But I do not take every Error of Conscience to be a Sin ( understand me of Consciences labouring under an Invincible Ignorance . ) C. It is very true , That as to the Formality of Sin , which is the Obliquity of the Will , An Error of Conscience under an Invincible Ignorance is no Sin : But Sin Materially considered , is the Transgression of the Divine Law ; and Conscience it self becomes Sinful , when it dictates against That Law. N. C. Can there be any Sin without Assent ; or any Assent without Knowledge ; or any Knowledge in a Case of Invincible Ignorance ? The Transgression of the Law implies the Knowledg of it , or at least the Possibility of Knowing it ; without which , it has not the Nature of a Law , as to me . [ The Conditions requisite to a Rule are These : It must be Certain ; and it must be Known . If it be not Certain , it is no Rule ; If it be not Known , it is no Rule to Us. ] I had not known Sin , but by the Law ( says the Text ) And in another Place , Where there is no Law , There is no Transgression . From whence the Deduction is clear , That Sin is not barely the Transgression of a Law , but the Transgression of a Known Law ; the Inconformity of the Will to the Understanding . C. The Perversness of the Will being a Sin , does not hinder the Enormity of the Iudgment to be so too . [ Until the Law , Sin was in the World ; but Sin is not imputed , when there is no Law. ] In few words , The Word of God is the Rule of Truth , and all Disproportion to that Rule is Error : God's Revealed Will is the Measure of Righteousness ; and all Disproportion to that Measure is Sin. Now the Question is not , Whether imputed , or no ; but , Whether a Sin , or No : And you cannot make Error of Conscience to be No Sin , without making the Word of God to be No Rule . N. C. I do not deny , but it is a Sin as to the Law ; but it is none as to the Person ; It is none Constructively , with him that accepts the Will for the Deed. C. Can you imagine that any Condition in the Delinquent can operate upon the Force and Equity of the Law ? Because God spares the Offender , shall Man therefore tolerate the Offence ? David was pronounced a Man after God's own Heart ; shall Authority therefore grant a License to Murder and Adultery ? N. C. What is David's Case to ours ? You instance in Sins of Presumpt●…on , and the Question is touching Sins of Ignorance . C. I was a Blasphemer , a Persecutor , and Injurious ( says St. Paul ) but I obtain'd Mercy ( he does not say APPROBATION ) because I did it in Ignorance and Unbeleif . Again , The Magistrate has a Conscience , as well as the Subject . It may be Ignorance in him that Commits the Sin , and yet Presumption in him that Suffers it . Briefly , in pleading for all Opinions , you plead for all Heresies , and for the Establishment of Wickedness by a Law. What Swarms of Anabaptists , Brownists , Familists , Antinomians , Anti-Scripturists , Anti-Trinitarians , Enthusiasts ( and what Not ? ) have started up even in our days , under the Protection of Liberty of Conscience ? What Blasphemous and Desperate Opinions , to the Subversion both of Faith and Government ! Where 's the Authority of the Scriptures , and the Reverence of Religion , when every Man shall make a Bible of his Conscience , divide the Holy Ghost against it self , and dash one Text upon another ? He that has a mind to rake further in this Puddle , let him read Edwards his Gangraena , Bayly's Disswasive , Paget's Haeresiography , &c. To pass now from Opinions , to Practices . The Liberty you challenge , opens a door to all sorts of Villany and Outrage imaginable ; to Rapine , Murder , Rebellion , King-killing . N. C. As if any Man that has a Conscience of his own , or knows what Conscience is , could give Entertainment to so fond an Imagination , as to suppose , that God at the last day will approve of Murders , Seditions , and the like Evils : Since what is Evil in it self , and against the Light of Nature , there is no direction unto it , no approbation of it from Conscience in the least . C. But what will this amount to ? when , first , Every Man's Word shall be taken for his own Conscience : And secondly , That Conscience pleaded in defence of his Actions . That which you stile Murther , and Sedition , He 'll tell you is only a Gospel-Reformation , The Destroying of the Hittites and the Amorites , &c. So that you are never the better for tying a Man up to the Light of Nature in his Actions , if you leave him at Liberty in his Creed : For there is not that Impiety in the World , but he 'll give you a Text for it . The Adversaries of God , that refuse to enter into a holy Covenant with the Lord , and submit themselves to Christ's Scepter , may be Sequestred and Plundered , without the Imputation of Rapine ; for it is written , The Meek shall inherit the Earth : And it is no more then God's People the Israelites did to the Egyptians . Nay , if they be Refractary , they may be put to Death too , without Murder , [ Those mine Enemies , which would not that I should Reign over them , bring hither , and slay them before me . ] If any Man has a spight at the Church , it is but calling it Antichristian , and Mr. Case shall give him a Commission to take this Agag , and Hew it in pieces before the Lord. Taking up Arms against the Government , is helping the Lord against the Mighty . And King-killing it self , is justified by the Example of Ehud to Eglon. N. C. But do you believe any Man so mad , as to take these Extravagances for Impulses of Conscience ? C. Or rather , Is not he madder that doubts it ? Considering the Evidences we have both from Story and Experience , and the very Authority of Scripture it self , in favour of believing it . Does not our Saviour foretell us of False Christs , and False Prophets , that shall arise and deceive many ; yea , if it were possible , the very Elect ? Parties are engag'd in all sorts of Abomination , under the Masque of Conscience . Those of the League in Flanders , 1503. under Maximilian , bound themselves by Oath , to cast off the Yoke of Government , and to kill and slay all Opposers ; but with such regard to Religion ( I warrant ye ) that every Member of that Confederacy was to say five Ave Maryes and Pater Nosters daily , For a Blessing upon the Undertaking . The Holy League at Peronne , under Henry the Third of France , was for the Glory of God too , and the Preservation of the King : What Horrible Effects it produced , I need not tell you . Sleydan reckons upon Fifty Thousand slain in one Summer , in the Boores Rebellion in Germany , 1525. And charges the Tumult upon Seditious Preachers , whereof Muncer was chief . I shall not need to mind you of the Damned Villanies that were acted by Muncer , Phifer , ( Beold , or ) Iohn of Leyden , Rottman , Knipperdolling , Kippenbroke , Iohn Matthias , and the rest of that Gang , under the Imposture of Inspiration , and Conscience : Their Sacking and Burning of Towns , Rapes , and Massacres : And all this under the pretense of God's Command , and the Direction of his Holy Spirit . Nay , so strongly was the deluded Multitude possest with the Doctrine and Ways of their False Prophets , that the Muncerians , upon the Charge of the Landtzgrave of Hesse , stood stone still , without striking a Blow ; calling upon the Holy Ghost to their Succour ( as Muncer had promised them ) till they were all Routed and Cut off . Was it not a Holy Father , and the Prior of the Convent ( one of the Heads of the League ) that confirm'd Clement in his purpose of Murthering Harry the Third of France ? For his Encouragement , they assur'd him , That if he out-liv'd the Fact , he should be a Cardinal ; If he dy'd , a Saint . What was it again that originally disposed this Monster to that cursed Act ? Stimolato dalle Predicationi , che giournallmente sentiva fare contra Henrico di Valois , nominato il persecutore della Fede , & il Tyranno . Seditious Sermons against the King , as a Persecutor of the Faith , and a Tyrant . See in the same Author , the Confession of Iohn Castle , concerning his Attempt upon Harry the Great . He had been brought up in the Jesuites School , and Instructed , That it was not only Lawful , but Meritorious , to destroy Harry of Bourbon , That Revolted Heretique , and Persecutor of the Holy Church . [ Esaminato con le solite Forme , confesso liberamente , &c. ] What was it that Animated Ravillac to his Hellish Practise upon that Brave Prince ? but ( by his own Confession ) A Discourse of Mariana's , De Rege , & Regis Institutione . It was a Divine Instinct too , that mov'd Balthasar Gerard to Murther the Prince of Aurange . [ Divino tantùm Instinctu , id à se patratum constanter affirmabat , diu Tortus . ] To conclude now with That fresh and execrable Instance here at Home , upon the Person of the Late King : It was the Pulpit that started the Quarrel ; The Pulpit that Enflam'd it ; The Pulpit that Christen'd it God's Cause ; The Pulpit that conjur'd the People into a Covenant to defend it ; The Pulpit that blasted the King , that pursu'd him , that prest the putting of Him to Death ; and the Pulpit that applauded it when it was done . And how was all this effected ? ( I beseech ye ) but by Imposing upon the weak and inconsiderate Multitude , Errors for Truths ; by perverting of Scriptures ; and by These Arts , moulding the Passions and the Consciences of the People to the Interest of a Tumultuary Design . These are the Fruits of the Toleration you demand . Reflect soberly upon what has been said ; and Tell me , Do you think such a Toleration either fit for You to Ask , or for Authority to Grant ? N. C. The Truth is , In this Latitude there may be great Inconveniences : And yet methinks , 't is Pitty ( in Cases of some Honest Mistakes ) that a Good Man should be punished for not being a Wise Man. C. And were it not a greater Pitty , do ye think , for a State to keep no Check upon Crafty Knaves , for fear of disobliging some Well-meaning Fools ? As to the Sparing of the Man , I wish it could be done , even where it were Impious to give Quarter to the Opinion : But how shall we separate the Errour from the Person , so as to make a General Law take notice of it ? It were Irreligious to Tolerate Both , and it seems to me Impossible to sever them . If you your self now can either prove the former to be Lawful ( that is , to do Evil , that Good may come of it ) or the latter to be Practicable , I 'le agree with you for a General Toleration : If not , I hope you 'l joyn with me against it . N. C. I am not for a Toleration ( as I told you ) against the Light of Nature ; nor would I have any Pretense of Conscience admitted , that leads to the Destruction of the Magistrate , and the Disturbance of the Government . C. That is to say , You will content Your self with a Limited Toleration : which , I fear , upon the Debate , will prove as much too narrow for you , as the Other was too wide . SECT . II. LIMITED TOLERATION too Narrow , and Disobliging to the Excluded Party . C. BY a Limited Toleration we may understand A Legal Grant of Freedom and Immunity , in Matters of Religion , to Persons of such and such Perswasions , and to no Others . N. C. Or , if you please , An Exemption from the Lash of the Act of Uniformity . C. You say something , if This would do the Work. But to dissolve a Solemn Law , for the Satisfaction of Some Particulars , and at last leave the People worse then we found them , were certainly a gross Oversight . However , what 's your Quarrel to it ? N. C. I think it a great Cruelty to confine a multitude of differing Judgments to the same Rule , and to punish a Consciencious People for those Disagreements , which they can neither avoid , nor relinquish . C. Why will you Practise that Cruelty your selves then , which you condemn in others ? For Limited Toleration , is an Act of Uniformity to those that are excluded . They that are within the Comprehension , will be well enough : But what will become of them that are left out ? who have Consciences as well as their Fellows , and as good a Title to an Indulgence , as those that are taken in . Upon a fair View of the Matter , you can neither admit All , without Offence to your Conscience ; nor leave out Any , without a Cheque to your Argument . N. C. And yet I am perswaded a Limited Toleration would give Abundant Satisfaction . C. Suppose you had it , and your self One of the Rejected Party : Are not you as well now , without any Toleration at all , as you would be then , without receiving any Benefit by it ? N. C. To deal freely , I would not willingly be excluded . C. And is not That every Man's Case , as well as yours ? A Limited Toleration must Exclude Some , and why not You , as well as Another ? Or indeed , Why should not All be Tolerated , as well as Any ? They can no more abandon their Opinions , then you Yours : And Your Ways are just the same Grievances to Them , which ( if You may be credited ) Ours are to You. So that most undeniably , the Plea of the Nonconformists upon the Point of Conscience , is all alike : And since None of them have more Right to an Indulgence , One then Another , Why should any Party of them expect more Favour ; to the Exclusion and Disobligation of the Rest ? N. C. But are not Some Opinions more tolerable then Others ? Do you put no Difference betwixt Truth and Errour ? Betwixt Points Fundamental and Non-Fundamental ? Betwixt the very Basis of Christianity , and the Superstructure ? In fine , Betwixt such Principles as affect Order and Publique Agreement , and others that flow Naturally into Loosness and Confusion ? C. Without Dispute , Some Opinions and Principles are more allowable then Others : But where lieth the Right of Allowing , or Rejrcting ? Let This be first examined , and then we 'l advise upon the Opinions , and Principles themselves , what may be allow'd , and what Not. SECT . III. No Toleration to be admitted but with the Allowance of the Chief Magistrate . C. WE are agreed , first , That an Universal Toleration ( implying a License to all sorts of Wickedness ) is not upon any terms to be admitted . Secondly , That a Limited Toleration ( being a Grant of Favour to Some , and Exclusive of Others ) must needs lay a Disobligation upon the Excluded Party . The next Point will be , Where to place the Power of Permitting , or Refusing ; and from thence we shall pass to an Inquiry into the Bounds and Limits of such a Toleration as may be warrantable : Which being once settled , we are to see how far the Pretenses and Qualifications of the Parties concern'd will suit with those Measures . N. C. Grant us but an Indulgence to Dissenters of Sound Faith , and Good Life ; We ask no more . Let Nothing be imposed upon us that is grievous to our Consciences on the One Hand , and We shall never desire a Toleration of any thing that is justly Offensive to Church or State on the Other . C. But What if the Dissenters shall call that Sound Doctrine , which the Church defines Heresie ? What if the Subject shall account That Imposition grievous , which the Magistrate thinks N●…cessary ? Or , That Liberty Consciencious , which the Governour esteems Unlawful ? Who shall over-rule ? If the Subject , it follows then , That the Magistrate is obliged to Toler●…te whatsoever the Subject shall judge Himself obliged to do : And this carries us back into a General Toleration . If the Magistrate over-rule , your Plea of Conscience is out of Doors : And it is at his Choice , What sorts of Dissenters to Indulge ; and , Whether Any , or None , at his Pleasure . N. C. The World , you know , is as much divided about the Power of the Civil Magistrate in matters of Religion , as about any other part ( perchance ) of our Debate . C. We shall discourse That more at large elsewhere . But however , as to this Particular , let us come to a present Settlement , that we may clear our way as we go . If you make the People Judges of what is fit to be Tolerated , First , ( as I said before ) You are upon the Old Rock of Universal Toleration ; for ( right or wrong ) every Man will stick to the freedom of his own way . Secondly , You lay the Foundation of a Quarrel never to be reconciled . You shall have as many Factions , as Men ; As many Religions , as Fancies ; and every Dissenter shall be both a Party , and a Iudge . To imagine an Agreement betwixt the Magistrate and the Multitude , by the Common Consent of Both ; were to suppose an Accommodation betwixt Heaven and Hell , betwixt Light and Darkness ; which are every jot as Capable of it , as several of the Differences now before us . And for an Umpire in the Case , you can pretend to None . N. C. Pardon me : We have the Word of God to repair to , in what concerns Sound Faith ; and the Light of Nature for our Guide , in the Duties of Good Life . C. This is to ●…e that which was the Ground of the first Controversie , the Umpire of the Second . For what is the Original of all our Grand Disagreements , but ( as St. Augustine has it ) ●…onae Scripturae male-intellectae ; Good Scriptures ill understood ? And we are never the nearer an Accord for the Reading of Them , without another Moderator to set us right in the meaning of Them. Neither is the Light of Nature any more Exempt from false Glosses and Misconstructions , then the Bible . Upon the whole matter , you see the Absurdities and Inconveniences that follow upon placing the Judgment and Direction of Ordering these Matters of Difference , any where else then in the Magistrate : Whose Duty and Interest it is , both as a Christian and as a Ruler , to put an end to these Impious Contentions , by such Rules and Establishments as may secure the Foundations both of Religion and Government . N C. This would do well , if Men were agreed upon those Rules : But Several Men , we see , have Uarious Apprehensions of the self same thing ; And That which One Man takes for a Rule , another counts an Error . C. You are at your ●…niversal Toleration again : But pray mark the Consequences of this way of Reasoning : Be●…ause the Multitude cannot agree upon a Rule , there shall be None at all . Pursue this Argument , and there shall be no Lair , No Religion , No Scripture , No Truth , left in the World. Because Men differ , Which is the true Religion . They disagree about the Doctrine of the Bible . That which is Truth to One Man , is Heresie to another . And never was there any Law that pleased all People . Authority says , Worship Thus , or So : The Libertine cries , No , 'T is a Confinement of the Spirit ; An Invention of Man ; A making of That Necessary which God left Free ; A Scandal to Tender Consciences , &c. And here is Authority concluded as to the Manner of Worship . So for the Time. How do they know when Christ was Born , Crucified , or Raised from the Dead . The Churches Fasting-days They make their Iubile's . Videas hodie Quosdam ( says Calvin ) quibus sua Libertas non videtur Consistere , nisi per Esum Carnium die Veneris in ejus Possessionem venerint . We have many Now adays , that would look upon their Liberty as good as forfeited , if they should not maintain their Title to it , by Eating Flesh on Fasting-days . 'T is the same thing as to the Place . Command them to Church , They will tell you , There is no Inherent Holiness in the Walls : The Hearts of the Saints are the Temples of the Lord : Is not God to be found in a Parlour , as well as in a Steeple-house ? Finally , What have they to say for all This , But that This is One Man's Judgment , That Another's ? This or That may be indifferent to you , but not to me . To conclude , What One Man urges , All may ; and in All Cases , as well as in Any : Which has brought us once again to an indeterminable Liberty ; The last Resort of all the Champions of your Cause , if they be followed home . Now if you can assign any other Arbitrator of this Matter then the Civil Power , do it : If you cannot , let us proceed . N. C. Go forward then . SECT . IV. Th●… BOUNDS of Toleration . And the Error of making Fundamentals and Non-Fundamentals to be the Measure of it . C. IN the Question of Toleration ( says a Learned Prelate ) the Foundation of Faith , Good Life , and Government is to be secured : Wherein is comprised a Provision and Care , that we may live as Christians toward God , As Members of a Community toward one another , and as Loyal Subjects toward our Sovereign . If you 'l take This for the Standard of your Toleration , we have no more to do , but to apply Matters in Controversie to the Rules of Christianity , Good Manners , and Government ; and to entertein or reject all Pretensions , thereafter as we find them Agreeable , or Repugnant , to Religion , Morality , and Society . N. C. Uery well stated truly , I think . C. All the Danger is , the falling to pieces again , when we come to bring This and That to the Test. For if we differ at last upon the Application of Particular Points , and Actions , to the General Heads of Faith , and Government already laid down and agreed upon , We shall yet lose our selves in Uncertainty , and Confusion . N. C. There will be no fear of That , if we tye up our selves to Fundamentals . C. What do you mean by Fundamentals ? N. C. There are Fundamentals of Faith , that bind Us as we are Christians ; And there are Fundamentals of Practice , that oblige us as we are Members of a Community . From These Fundamentals there lies no Appeal to Conscience . In other Matters ( which we look upon as Non-Fundamental ) we think it reasonable to Desire a Toleration . C. This Distinction has a fair Appearance ; but there is no trusting to it . First , it proposes a thing neither Practicable , nor Reasonable ; which is , The Uniting of all People under one Common Bond of Fundamentals . What possibility is there of attaining such an Agreement , among so many Insuperable Diversities of Judgment , as reign in Mankind ? Insomuch , that what is a Fundamental Truth to One , is a Fundamental Error to Another ; and Every Man is ready to abide the Faggot for his own Opinion . It is also very unreasonable to exact it . God Almighty does not require the same Fundamentals from all Men alike ; But Much from Him to whom Much is given , and Little from Him , to whom Little : And from All , according to their differing Degrees , and Measures , of Grace , and Knowledg . You will likewise find your self under great Uncertainty about the Stating of your Fundamentals : For divers Circumstances , of Little , or No value in Themselves , become Fundamental in respect of their Consequences . As for Instance ; That Christ died for Sinners , I presume shall be one Article of your Faith : But whether upon Mount Calvary , or some other part of the Neighbourhood , seems of no great Moment , as to the Main of Our Salvation . And yet he that denies , that Our Saviour suffer'd upon Mount Calvary , puts as great an Affront upon the Veracity of the Holy Ghost in the Gospel , as He which denies that he suffer'd upon the Cross. N. C. I give it for Granted , that from some , more is required ; from others , less : In proportion to their Differing Gifts and Graces . But then there are some Principles , so Essential to Christianity , and so clear in Themselves , as to admit of no Dispute . C. Saving That Grand Foundation of Our Faith , that Iesus Christ is come in the Flesh ; and that Whosoever confesses , that Iesus Christ is the Son of God , God dwelleth in Him , and He in God. ( Saving ( I say ) That Radical Principle , which if we disbelieve , we are no longer Christians ) There is scarce One Point that has not been subjected to a Controversie . If you reduce your Fundamentals to This Scantling , Your Creed will lie in a very Narrow Compass : But your Toleration will be Large Enough , if you are at Liberty for the rest . Touching the Clearness of them , I do not comprehend it : For Supernatural Truths hold no Proportion at all with the Ordinary Motions of Humane Reason . If They be so clear , Tell us , What they are ; Where we shall look for them ; and How we shall know them when we have found them . N C. Where should we look for the Foundation of our Faith , but in the New-Testament of Jesus Christ ? C. But still we do not all read the Bible with the same Spectacles . To draw to an Issue ; Generals conclude nothing , so long as we are left at Freedom to wrangle about Particulars ; and you will find much surer footing upon the Foundations of Establish'd Law , then upon the Whimseys of Popular Speculation . To my thinking , the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church of England , as it is settled by Acts of Parliament , with other Legal Constitutions , for the Peace , and Order of the Government , are every whit as competent a Provision for the Good of the Publique , as your new Fundamentals . N. C. The Point is not ( as you seem to understand it ) a Competition between Our Fundamentals of Notion , and Yours of Law : But an Inquiry concerning the Limits of a Iustistable Toleration . C. Very Good : And you refer us to your Distinction of Fundamentals and Non-Fundamentals , as to a Rule , how far we are at Liberty , and wherein we are Bounded . But This will not do the work ; and I have spent the more words about it , because I find This Distinction the Ordinary Retreat of Your Party . The Truth of it is , there 's not One of a Hundred of you , but takes This Question by the wrong Handle . You make it a Question of Conscience , and Religion , What may be Tolerated , and what not : Whereas the thing falls properly under a Consideration of State. In Matters not to be Tolerated ( as in Articles of Religion ) The Magistrate is positively bound up ; In other Cases , He may chuse , whether he will Tolerate , or Restrain ; That is to say , with a perpetual Regard to the Q●…iet , and Security of the Publique . Where Particulars may be relieved , without Inconvenience to Communities , it is well : But otherwise , Private Consciences weigh little in the Scale against Political Societies : And Toleration is only so far allowable , as it complies with the Necessities , and Ends of Government . N. C. That is to say ( according to your first Resolution ) The Foundation of Faith , Good Life , and Government is to be secured : Whe●…ein I am content to close with you ; though there are some , that believe the Right of Toleration may be defended without any Restrictions . C. For Discourse sake , pray try , what you can make on 't , either with , or without . SECT . V. The Common Arguments for TOLERATION , Examined . N. C. NO Man under the Gospel ought to be compell'd to believe anything ; and if not to believe , then not to practise . C. Rutherford says well to this Point : That the Magistrate is not to force Men Positively to External Worship ; but Negatively , to punish Acts of False Worship , and Omissions of External Performances of Worship , as of Ill Example to Others : Not Commanding Outward Performances , as Service to God ; but forbidding Omissions of them , as Destructive to M●…n . N. C. It is a strange Absurdity to force Men , against their own Light , to be guided by Others , unless we are sure , we cannot mistake . C. But were it not a stranger Absurdity , to leave every Man at Liberty to set up a New Light of his own ; and then to subject the United Light of the Nation ( which is the Law ) to the Scatter'd Lights of Private Persons ? N. C. But does not One Man see that sometimes , which a Thousand may miss ? C. And because This is possible , is the Odds therefore upon One against a Thousand ? Or if so , Why may not the Church be in the Right against the People , as well as any Particular of the People , against the Church , and the Rest ? This is most Certain , that of a Thousand Differing Opinions , there can be but One Right : And a Toleration upon your supposal , is sure to set up Nine hundred ninety nine Errors : Which is the ready way to bring People to cutting of Throats for Opinions . N. C. If a Magistrate may punish all that his Conscience says are in the wrong , then All Persecutors are in the right . C. Men are not punish't for their Consciences , but for their Actions : And if a Magistrate may not restrain Liberty of Action , then All Rebellions are in the Right . N. C. The Magistrate is appointed to see That Executed which Christ hath appointed in Religion ; and Punctually ty'd up , neither to Add , nor to Diminish , either in the Matter , or in the Manner . The Manner Christ hath appointed , being as positively obliging as the Matter . C. If it be the Magistrate's Duty to see Christ's Appointments in Religion Executed , in Matter , and Manner , without Adding , or Diminishing : First , You must allow him to be a Competent Judge of What Christ hath appointed ; ( for otherwise his Commission directs him to do He knows no : What. ) Secondly , According to your Argument , there is but One Way of Worship , Warrantable ; which puts a Bar unto any sort of Toleration whatsoever . N. C. If the Magistrate has any Power over the Consciences of his People , How came he by it ? For he that hath no other , then the Light of Nature , hath as much Power , as if he were Christian ; and by becoming Christian hath no Addition of Power to what he had before . C. It is true , that Christianity ( as you put the Case ) does not confer upon the Magistrate any New Power ; but it lays upon him an Additional Obligation of Duty . While his Conscience was Pagan , He took his Measures only from Humane Prudence , and the Light of Nature . But upon his Conversion , He falls under the Dictate of a Conscience that is Further , and Otherwise Enlighten'd : And b●…comes Answerable , as well for the Establishing , Securing , and Promoting of Christianity , as for the Political Conservation of his People , and Government . N. C. Persecution may make Hypocrites , but not Converts . C. You may say the Same thing of the Law , in other Cases . That makes many Men Honest in appearance , for fear of Punishment ; that are yet rotten at Heart . Nay , I am further perswaded , that where Severity makes one Hypocrite , It cures a hundred . For so long as there is either Profit , or Credit to be got , by th●… Disguise of Religion , All Men of Corrupt Principles , and Designs will flow into the Party . But when That Temptation to Hypocrisie shall be removed ; and that they find nothing to be gotten by the Imposture , but Punishment , and Disgrace , They will soon betake themselves to a more regular Station in the Government . Many a Counterfeit Cripple has been cured with a Dog-whip . N. C. Are Heresies to be Extirpated , and Truth to be Propagated by the Sword , or by the Word ? C. If it be the Penalty you oppose ; Where the Word will not do , You your selves fly to Censures , and Excommunications , which are Punishments , as well as Corporal , and Pecuniary Inflictions ; and as little Instructive . But you are upon a Mistake : The Civil Power does not so much Pretend to the Recovery of those that are out of the Way , as to the Saving of the Rest : Nor does It properly Punish any Man , as an Heretic , but as a Seducer . Do you but let the King's Subjects alone , and He 'l never trouble Himself to Impose upon your Consciences . If it reaches not Wickedness in the Heart , It provides yet against the Infection of it , and the Scandal ; by keeping the Hands , and Tongues of Licentious People in Order . N. C. I do not deny , but that a Rigorous Law may have some Profitable Influence upon the Looser Sort : Yet still it falls heavy upon the Innocent , as well as upon the Guilty . To Know , Believe , or Profess are not in our Power : And shall a Man be punish't for want of Grace , or Understanding ? C. Though it is not in our Power to Know , and Believe , as we please ; yet to forbear publishing of our Thoughts , and Acting in Relation to Them , is unquestionably in our Power . Neither is any Man to be punish't for want of Grace , or Understanding : But yet it will be ill , if those Defects may pass for an Excuse . All manner of Impiety should then go Scot-free : for without Doubt , Let Fools be Priviledged , and all Knaves shall pretend Ignorance . N. C. No Man can call Iesus the Christ , but by the Holy Ghost : Will you punish any Man for not having the Holy Ghost ? C. No Man that hath the Holy Ghost , will deny Iesus to be the Christ : Will you punish any Man for denying Iesus to be Christ ; that is to say , for not having the Holy Ghost ? N. C. He that acts against his Conscience , Sins . C. And so does he that Acts by it , If in Error . N. C. Every Man is true to God , that is true to his Conscience , though it be Erroneous . C. Will it not then follow , that a Man may worship the Sun , or the Moon , and yet be true to God , if That Worship be according to his Conscience ? To clear This Point ; Some Consciences are Erroneous upon the score of Invincible Ignorance ; and That Insuperable Frailty is a fair Excuse : But Some Consciences again are Erroneous for want of due Care , Search , and Enquiry ; Others , out of Pertinacy : And there is no Plea to be admitted for These Consciences . N. C. How do you know , but you may persecute God , in the Conscience of a True Believer , as St. Paul did , before his Conversion ? C. If I may turn your own Reason against your self , I may do it , and yet be true to God ; if in so doing , I am true to my Conscience . But still you confound Conscience , and Practise ; whereas the Civil Magistrate pretends to no sort of Authority , or Dominion over the Conscience . And your Objection is of as little force any other way : For the Magistrate is no more Infallible in One Case , then in Another ; and may as well Dread the Persecuting of God , in the Conscience of a Murderer , or any other Criminal , as in That of an Heretick . N. C. I think we have enough : But it may be , This Toleration will please us better in the Exercise , then it does in the Speculation . C. What Hinders then , but we may try it that way too ? SECT . VI. TOLERATION undermines the Law , and causes Confusion both in Church and State. N. C. WHy may not a Toleration do as well here , as in France ? C. How do you mean ? Would you have his Majesty of Great-Britain , Tolerate Roman-Catholicks here , as his Most Christian Majesty does Protestants in France ? N. C. You speak as if None were to be Tolerated but Papists . C. Not I truly : But so it must be , if you 'l have your Toleration after the French Fashion . Can you shew me that any Non-Conforming Roman Catholicks are Tolerated There ? Nay ; Or that those of the Religion do Subdivide , or break Communion among Themselves ? Such an Instance might stand you in some stead . N. C. But is it not More , To Tolerate a Forreign R●…ligion , then to Indulge your own ? To permit Freedom of Worship to those you repute Hereticks , then to Relate a little towards your Orthodox Friends ? C. The Question is not , in Matter of Religion , whether to Favour Sound Faith , or Heresie ; but in Reason of State , whether is more Advisable , to Tolerate the Exercise of quite a Different Religion ; Or a Separation from the Church-Order Establish't . Alas ! In several Religions ( and especially where the Professors are divided by mutual Prejudice , and Principles of strong Opposition , ( as in this Case too much they are ) There 's no great fear of gathering , and engaging Parties , to the Disturbance of the Publick Peace . There is a great Gulf ( as he says ) betwixt them . And Men do not usually start from one Extreme to another , at a Leap ; But to Tolerate One Church within Another , is to Authorize a Dissolution of the Government both Ecclesiastical , and Civil . And the Defection is the more Dangerous , because it is almost Insensible . As many as will leave you , may ; and every Dissenter is double : One lost , to the Government ; Another gain'd , to the Schism : Which will quickly bring down Authority to the Mercy of the People . In fine , By Toleration , a Kingdom is divided against ie self , and c●…nnot stand . N. C. When you have taken Breath , Do me the Favour to make out what you say . C. The Demand of a Toleration , is in it self , the Condemnation of an Establish't Law ; and not without hard Reflexions neither , both upon the Equity , and Prudence of the Law makers . So that , at first Dash , here is the Law unhing'd : For If any One Law may le question'd by the Multitude , The Consequence reaches to All the Rest. N. C. We do not question , either the Prudence of the Law-Makers ; Or the General Equity of the Constitution . Only where God hath not given Us Consciences suitable to the Rule , We humbly desire such a Rule , as may Comply with Our Consciences . C. Would you have a Law that shall Comply with all Consciences ? God Almighty Himself never made a Law that pleased all People . N. C. It would be well then , that you should bring all Men to the same Mind , before you force them to the same Rule . C. But it would be ill , if there should be no Rule at all , till we had found out One that all People should say Amen to . N. C. We do not ask the Vacating of a Law , but the Widening of it . C. Why then you ask a worse thing ; for it were much better for the Publique , totally to Vacate a Good Law , then to suffer a Contempt , even upon a Bad One. If the Reason of such or such a Law be gone , Repeal the Law. But to let the Obligation fall , and the Law stand , seems to be a Soloecism in Government . You should consider , that Laws are not made for Particulars ; but framed with a Regard to the Community : And They ought to stand Firm , and Inexorable . If once they come to Hearken to Popular Expostulations , and to side with By-Interests , the Reverence of Government is shaken . N. C. But where 's the Danger of Receding from that Inexorable Strictness ? C. Here it lies . It implies an Assent , both to the Equity of the Complaint , and to the Reason of the Opinion in Question : ( If not also a Submission to Importunity , and Clamor . ) And among many Ill Consequences , It draws This after It , for One. If any One sort of People may be allow'd to challenge any One Law ; All other Sorts have an Equal Right of Complaining against All , or any of the Rest. So that a Toleration , thus Extorted , does not only unsettle the Law ; but ministers Argument to the Pretense of Popular Reformation . To say Nothing of the Credit it gives to the Disobedient , and Discouragement to those that keep their Stations : Beside what may be reflected upon the Magistrate , for Instability of Counsels . Another Exception may be This : How shall we distinguish betwixt Faction , and Conscience ? If it prove to be the former , A Toleration does the Business to their Hand . Nay , Suppose it the latter ; and that , hitherto , there is Nothing but pure Conscience in the Case ; What Security have We , that it shall not yet embroil us in Mutiny , and Sedition ? Will not the Tolerated Party become a Sanctuary for all the Turbulent Spirits in the Nation ? Shall they not have their Meetings , and Consultations , without Controul ? And when they shall see the Law Prostituted to the Lusts of the Multitude ; The Order of the Government dissolved ; and the Government it self left naked , and supportless ; What can We Expect shall be the End of these things , but Misery , and Confusion ? Nor is it all , that a Toleration is of manifest Hazard to us : But it is That too , without any sort of Benefit in Return . Shall we be the Quieter for it ? No. One Grant shall become a President for Another ; And so shall One Importunity for Another , Till we are brought in the End , either to a General License ; Or to a General Tumult . ( No matter Which ) The Rejected Party will be sure to mind you , that They are as good Subjects , and have as good Claims as Others , that are Tolerated ; upon which disobliging score , there falls an Odium , and Envy upon the Government . I think a Man shall not need the Spirit of Prophesie , to foretel these Events . For a Toleration does naturally Evirtuate the Law , and lead to a Total Dissolution of Ecclesiastical Order ; and Consequently , to a Confusion , both in Church , and State. N. C. I do not find my self much press'd by any thing now offer'd : If a Toleration unhinges the Law , 'T is but making the Law a little Wider , and then that Block is removed . And so is the Fear likewise of bringing present Importunities into President : For All Tolerable Liberties may be comprehended within that Latitude . And as to the matter of Imposing Faction for Conscience , such a Probiston secures You , as well , as the Act for Uniformity . C. I have spoken as much as Needs to this Point : If you think you have any Right to a Toleration , make it out ; and Approve your selves for a Generation of People , to Whom , the King may with Honour , and Safety , Extend a Bounty . SECT . VII . The Non-Conformist's Plea for Toleration , upon REASON OF STATE . C. THe Ordinary Motives to Indulgence , are These Three . 1. Reason of State. 2. The Merits of the Party . 3. The Innocence , and Modesty of their Practises , and Opinions . What have you to say now for a Toleration upon Reason of State ? N. C. The Non-Conformists are the King's Subjects ; and What 's a King without his People ? C. By Birth , and Obligation , they are the King's Subjects ; but if they be not so in Practise , and Obedience , They have no longer any Title to the Benefit of his Protection ; And such Subjects are the worst of Enemies . N. C. You will not deny them however to be a Numerous Party ; And a People of Conduct , and Unity : Which puts the Government under some kind of Prudential Necessity , to oblige so Considerable an Interest . C. If they be consequently Dangerous , because they are Numerous ; The Greater the Number is , the greater is the Hazard : And therefore because they are many already , and will encrease if they be suffer'd , They are not to be Tolerated . N. C. But Men will be much more Peaceable when they are Indulged , then when they are Persecuted . C. Now I am perswaded , that the Multitude will be much quieter without a Power to do Mischief , then with it . But what is your Opinion of the Honesty of the Party ? N. C. I do seriously believe the Non-Conformists to be an Honest , Consciencious sort of People . C. But they must be Knaves , to make Good Your Argument : for if they be Honest , They 'l be quiet without a Toleration : If they be Dishonest , They 'l be Dangerous with it . Consider again ; If there be any Hazard , it lies not in the Number , but in the Confederacy . A Million of Men without Agreement , are but as One Single Person . Now They must Consult , before they can Agree ; and They must Meet , before they can Consult . So that barely to hinder the Assembling of these Multitudes , frustrates the Danger of Them. Whereas , on the other side , To Tolerate Separate Meetings , is to Countenance a Combination . N. C. Mistake me not ; I do not say , 't is likely they will be troublesome , in Respect of their Temper , and Iudgments ; but that they are Considerable enough to be so , in Regard of their Quality and Number . C. Whether do you take to be the Greater Number ; Those that singly wish to be discharg'd from the Act of Uniformety ; Or Those that would have no Law at all ? Those that are troubled because they may not Worship according to their Fancy : Or Those that are displeased because they cannot Live , and Rule according to their Appetite ? The Truytor would have One Law discharg'd : The Schismatick , Another : The Idolater , a Third : The Sacrilegious Person , a Fourth : The Profane Swearer , a Fifth : The False Swearer , a Sixth : The Murderer , a Seventh : The Seducer , an Eighth : And in sine ; Not One of a Thousand , but had rather Command , then Obey . Shall the King therefore dissolve the Law , because there are so many Criminals ? That were to raise an Argument against Authority , from the very Reason of its Constitution . Shall the People be left to do what they list , because a World of them have a Mind to do what they should not ? Shall his Majesty give up his Government , for fear of some Millions ( perchance ) in his Dominions , that had rather be Kings , then Subjects ? Less forcible , beyond Question , is the Necessity of the King 's Granting a Toleration , ( if you reckon upon Numbers ) then That of Renouncing his Sovereignty . For doubtless , where there is One Man that is truly Scrupulous , there are hundreds of Avaricious , Ambitious , and otherwise Irreligious Persons . N. C. Tell me , I beseech you ; Do not you believe that there are more N●…n-Conformists now , then there were at the beginning of the Late War ? C. Yes , I do verily believe , Three to One. N. C. Why then 't is at least Three to One against You : For at That time , the Third Part of This Number was the Predominant Interest of the Nation . C. That does not follow ; for you may remember , that at the beginning of the late War , The Party were Masters of the Tower , The Navy , of all Considerable Forts , Towns , and Magazins : They had a great part of the Crown and Church Revenues under their Command , and London at their Beck : Beside the Plunder of Malignants , and the Bountiful Contributions of the Well-affected . Scotland was already Confederate with them in One Rebellion ; and they had made sure of Another in Ireland ( by Persecuting the Earl of Strafford , who was the only Person Capable of Keeping them Quiet . ) Which they further assisted , by a Gross Opposition of his Majesties Proposals , and Resolutions to suppress it . [ See the King's Speech of Decemb. 14. 1641. and the following Petition concerning the same . ] Finally , for the better Countenance of their Usurpations , the House of Commons was drawn down into a Close Committee , and the Votes of that Iunto were Impos'd upon the Nation as the Acts of a Regular , and Complete Authority . This was their Condition formerly ; but blessed be God , it is not so at present . The Three Kingdoms are now at Peace ; and we have a Parliament that is no Friend to the Faction . The King is Possest of a Considerable Guard , which his Royal Father wanted . The Militia is in safe Hands . His Majesty is likewise possest of his Regal Power , and Revenue : And his Capital City firm in its Obedience : To all which may be added , that although divers Particulars are as Wealthy as Pillage , and Pardon , can make them ; Yet They want a Common Stock to carry on a Common Cause . The Thimbles , and the Bedkins fail ; and the Comfortable In-comes of a Irish Adventures ; b Moneys and Plate upon the Propositions ; c Confiscated Estates ; d Twentieth Parts ; and e Weekly Assessments ; and a hundred other Pecuniary Stratagems are departed from them . If it be so , that these People have None of these Advantages now remaining , by virtue whereof , they did so much Mischief before ; What Necessity of Tolerating for fear of Disobliging Them ? N. C. However ; It is not for your credit , to say , these People want Conduct , by whom your selves have been worsted . C. The Men that worsted us , were a sort of People , that Voted down Bishops on the wrong side of the Parliament-house Door ; That cry'd , They would have no more Porter's Lodge at Whitehall ; and told his Sacred Majesty in a Publique Declaration [ August 8. 42. ] that The Pretence that his Person was there in Danger , was a Suggestion as false as the Father of Lies could invent . — That Seiz'd the Tower , The Navy , The King's Towns , Forts , Magazins , Friends , and Revenues : That Levy'd War against , and Imprison'd his Sacred Person ; Usurped his Sovereign Authority ; Imbrued their Hands in his Royal Blood ; and in the very Pulpit , animated , and avowed the Unexampled Murder . If These be the People which you plead for , under the Notion of Non-Conformists , never trouble your selves to go Nine Mile about , for a Toleration : But come roundly up to the Point , and desire his Majesty to deliver up his Crown . If it be Otherwise , You have overshot your self in your Challenge ; and it does not appear , that You are the Numerous , Politick , and United Party we took you for . If the Non-Conformists were the Principal Conducters in that Design , they are not honest enough to be trusted ; and I see no Reason of State , to Dispose the King to Gratifie the Murderers of his Father . If They were not so , it was none of Their Conduct that did the Work. N. C. If Societies , and Professions , shall be made answerable for the Failings of Particulars , All Communities , and Fellowships will be found blameable alike ; for there is no Order , or Way , without Corrupt Pretenders to 't : And it is not enough to say , there were Non-Conformists in the Party unless you probe , that what those Non-Conformists did , was acted upon a Principle , Common to Dissenters and that they did it , as Non-Conformists . ; ; C. This is a Defence , instead of an Answer ; as if I had now charg'd the Combination upon the Non-Conformists , when I only ask , if they were the Managers of it , or No ? This , you neither Confess , nor Deny ; And there let it rest : Since the Dilemma lies indifferently against you , whether they were , or not . ( as does already appear ) Touching the Unity you boast of , ( I must confess ) it is as eminent against your Superiours , as your Disagreements are among your selves . And take all together , I see Nothing made out as yet , to prove , that the Kingdom is likely to be either the Better for Granting a Toleration , or the Worse for Refusing it . Moreover , We are not unacquainted with your false Musters . Nine Presbyteries , of Fifty , made up One of your General Assemblies . And upon the Conference at Hampton-Court , in 1604. of above Nine Thousand Ministers , there were but Forty Nine upon the R●…ll , that stood out , and were deposed : Such a Noise ( says Spotswood ) will a few Disturbers cause , in any Society where they are Tolerated . But what if a Man should allow the Non-Conformists to be as valuable as you represent them ? It is but a kind of Pagan Argument , to urge the Worshipping of Them ( as the Indians do the Devil ) for fear they should hurt us . N. C. They that have a Power to do Hurt , have commonly a Power to do Good And no doubt of it , the Non-Conformists , under the Obligation of an Indulgence , would shew themselves as serviceable to the Common Good , as any sort of People whatsoever . ; C. What they will do , is uncertain ; What They have done , is upon Record , in Characters of Blood. Give me but One Instance , even since the Reformation , where England , or Scotland was ever the better for Them ( any otherwise , then by God's Extraordinary Working of Good out of Evil , and Take the Cause . N. C. I would it were put upon that Issue . SECT . VIII . The Non-Conformists Plea for Toleration , from the MERITS of the Party . C. WHat has your Party Merited from the Publique , that an Exception to a General Rule should be Granted in your Favour ? N. C. Many of Us ventur'd All , to save the Life of the late King. C. And yet ye ventur'd more to take it away : For ye did but Talk for the One ; and ye Fought for the Other . N. C. We ever abominated the Thought of Murdering him . C. You should have abominated the Money too , for Which ye sold Him. N. C. Who sold Him ? C. The Presbyterians sold Him ; and the Independents were the Purchasers . N. C. Did not the Presbyterians Uote His Majesties Concessions a Ground for a ●…reaty ? C. Yes ; but it was upon Conditions , worse then Death it self . They deliver'd Him up too , when they might have preserved him : And they stickled for Him , when they knew they could do Him no Good. N. C. What End could they have in That ? C. The very same End in — 48 , which they had in — 41 : To make a Party by it , and set up a Presbyterian Interest in the King's Name . N. C. All the World knows , that We were so much afflicted for his Sacred Majesties Distress , that We had many Solemn days of Humiliation for it . C. So ye had for his Successes ( when Time was ) for fear he should get the Better of Ye : And you had your days of Thanksgiving too , for his Disasters . N. C. Pray'e let me ask You One Question now : Who brought in this King ? C. They that would not suffer You to keep him out : That Party , which , by a Restless , and Incessant Loyalty , hindred your Establishment . N. C. And what do you think of the Secluded Members ? C. We 'l speak to that Point in another Place . But can you tell me What was the Ground of the Quarrel ? I suppose I need not tell you What was the Event of it . N. C. Religion , and Liberty . C. Of Which Side were the Tender Consciences ? For the King ; Or Against Him ? N. C. We were ever for the King ; Witness our Petitions , Declarations , and , in a most Signal manner , Our Solemn League and Covenant . C. Now I thought you had been against Him : because You took away his Revenue , Authority , and Life : Unless you mean that you were For Him in your Words , as you were Against Him in your Actions . N. C. There were many of Us , that lov'd the King as well as any of those about Him. C. According to the Covenant ( That is . ) And does not your Party love This King , as well as they did the Last ? I do not think but you love the Bishops too . N. C. Truly when they are out of their Fooleries , I have no Quarrel to the Men. But what makes you couple the Crown , and the Mitre still ? As if no Man could be a Good Subject , that is disaffected to Prelacy . C. Why truly , I think you can h●…rdly shew me any One Non-Conformist that ever struck Stroke for the King ; Or any true Son of the Episcopal Order of the Church , that ever bore Arms against Him. N. C. Are not you your self satisfied , that even Cromwel Himself , and divers of his Principal Officers , when the late King was at Hampton-Court , had Deliberations , and Intentions to Save Him ? and that there were Thousands in the Army , that had no Unkindness for his Majesty ? C. I do absolutely believe , both the One , and the Other ; and that the Folly , and Heedlesness of the Common-Souldier contributed , in a High Measure , to the General Fate : Nay , that his Late Majesty was oppress'd , even by those , that thought they fought for him , before they understood what they did . But yet let me Commend to your Observation , that these relenting Intervals in the Heads of the Army , did manifestly Vary , according to the Pulse of their Affairs . Which evinces , that it was a Deliberation , upon the matter of Convenience , rather then upon a Point of Conscience . But thus far however we are agreed ; That many of the Non-Conformists were engaged ; Whether upon Ignorance , Interest , or Faction , take your Choice . That is to say , upon Which of These Three you will found the Merits of your Party . We are next to Enquire , How far your Principles , and Actions , will comport with the Duties of Society , and the Ends of Government . SECT . IX . The Non-Conformists Plea for Toleration , from the Innocence , and Modesty of their OPINIONS and PRACTISES . C. IN the Question of Government , and Obedience , there are many Points , wherein the Non-Conformists agree : Many more , wherein they differ : and not a few , wherein they are altogether Fluctuant , and Uncertain . We have Nothing to do ( in this Place ) with their Disagreements , or Uncertainties ; save only in those Matters wherein they are United by Common Consent : And to Determine what Those are , will be a New Difficulty ; Unless you tell Us before-hand , What Authorities we may depend upon . Your Principles must be Known , or they cannot be Examined . Wherefore , Pray'e Direct us Where we may find them . N. C. Why truly in the History of the Reformation ; for This Controversie has been on foot from the very beginning of it , to this Day . C. If you speak of the Reformation beyond the Seas , I do not find any thing there , that comes neer our Purpose . Here is , first , Pretended , a Reformation of a Reformation ; Secondly , A Conjunction of Several Parties , and Perswasions , at utter Enmity One with Another , in a Confederacy against the Order of the Government : Whereas in the Great Turn of Affairs Abroad , I see little more then a Defection from the Church of Rome ; and People setling themselves in some other way , as well as they could . Muncer's Party in Germany , had ( I confess ) some Resemblance of the Tumults here in England , that usher'd in the late War ; both for the Medly , and for the Rabble . In Scotland indeed , there was a Contest , for the Reforming of a Reformation ; and it went high . But it was only a Struggle , for the Geneva-Discipline : Which Humour was brought over to us too , and driven on , for a while , under Q Elizabeth , with much Contumacy , and Bitterness . But our Case ( in short ) was never known in the Christian World , till the late Troubles ; and thither it is , that we must resort for satisfaction to our present Enquiry . Now whether you 'l be tried by the Declarations , Votes , Orders , and Ordinances of that Pretended Parliament that carry'd on the Quarrel ; Or by the Undeniable Doctrines , and Positions of your own Divines ; ( and those the very Idols of your Party ) is left at your Election . N. C. As for the Parliament , let them answer for themselves : We had no hand in their Proceedings . And for our Ministers , They were but Men , and may have their Failings as well as other People . If you would know our Principles ; We are for Worshipping according to the Light of Our Consciences , for Obeying God rather then Man ; and for yielding all due Obedience to the Civil Magistrate . C. All This comes to Nothing . For you may make that Light what you please ; and Qualifie that due Obedience as you list . What does all this Evasion , and Obscurity signifie ; but that there is somewhat in the bottom , more then you are willing to own ? There are a sort of People , that tell us , The War raised in — 41 , in the Name of King and Parliament , was Lawful . And That the Soveraignty was lodg'd in the Two Houses , ( Nay in the People ) in Case of Necessity . That Kings are but the Peoples Trustees ; Their Power , Fiduciary ; and the Duty of Subjects only Conditional . That Princes may be Depos'd ; Nay , and put to Death , in Case of Tyranny : And That their Persons may be Resisted , but not their Authority . That the King is Singulis Major , Universis Minor : And that the People may Enter into Covenant , for the Reformation of Religion , without the Consent of the Chief Magistrate ; nay , against his Authority ; and Propagate Religion by the Sword. They make their Appeals , from the Literal Construction of Law , to the Equitable ; from the Law Written , to the Law of Nature , and Necessity . A Man might ply You with fresh Instances upon this Subject , till to morrow morning ; But here we 'l stop : And pray'e speak your Opinion now , of Granting a Toleration , to a Party that Professes , and Teaches , These Principles ; and Acts accordingly . N. C. What is all This to the Non-Conformists ? Who are already come to an Agreement ; that , In the Question of Toleration , The Foundation of Faith , Good Life , and Government , is to be Secured . C. Very Good. So that what Party soever shall be found Guilty of the Positions aforesaid , and of Actions answerable thereunto , cannot reasonably pretend to a Toleration , from the Innocency of their Opinions and Practises . Now to Particulars . The POSITIONS of Divers Eminent Non-Conformists . I. The War raised by the TWO HOUSES in the Name of King and Parliament , 1641. was Lawful . [ I cannot see , that I was mistaken in the main Cause , Nor dare I repent of it , Nor forbear the same , if it were to do again , in the same State of Things . — And my Iudgment tells me , That if I should do otherwise , I should be guilty of Treason , Or Disloyalty , against the Soveraign Power of the Land. Pag. 486. A King , abusing his Power , to the Overthrow of Religion , Laws , and Liberties , may be Controuled , and Opposed . This may serve to justifie the Proceedings of this Kingdom against the Late King , who in a Hostile way set himself to overthrow Religion , Parliaments , Laws , and Liberties . P. 10. The Righteousness of the Parliament's Cause , is as clear , as the Sun at Noon-day . And , like the Law of God it self , in These Excellent Qualifications of it ; That It is Holy , Just , and Good. P. 6. II. The Lords , and Commons are the Supreme Power ; Nay the People , in Case of Necessity . Parliaments may judge of Publique Necessity , without the King ; ( If deserted by the King ) and are to be accompted , by Virtue of Representation , as the Whole Body of the State. P. 45. Whensoever a King , or other Superior Authority , creates an Inferior ; They Invest it with a Legitimacy of Magistratical Power to Punish Themselves also , in Case they prove Evil-doers . P. 7. England is a mixt Monarchy , and Governed by the Major Part of the Three Estates Assembled in Parliament . P. 111. The Houses are not only requisite to the Acting of the Power of making Laws ; but Co-ordinate with his Majesty , in the very Power of Acting . P. 42. When as a Part of the Legislative Power resides in the Two Houses ; as also a Power to redress Grievances , and to call into Question all Ministers of State , and Justice , and all Subjects , of whatsoever Degree , in Case of Delinquency ; It may be thought , that a Part of the Supreme Power doth reside in Them , though they have not the Honorary Title : And This Part of the Supreme Power , is indeed Capable of doing Wrong : Yet how it might be guilty of Rebellion , is more Difficult to conceive . P. 49. The Delegates of the People , in the House of Commons , and the Commissioners on the King's behalf , in the House of Peers , concurring ; do very far bind the King , if not wholly . P. 112. And when These cannot agree , but break , One from Another , the Commons in Parliament assembled , are Ex Officio , The Keepers of the Liberties of the Nation , and Righteous Possessors , and Defenders of it , against all Usurpers , and Usurpations Whatsoever . P. 130. III. KINGS are but the Peoples TRUSTEES ; Their Power , Fiduciary ; and the Duty of Subjects , Conditional . [ The King , is but the Servant of the People ; and his Royalty is only a Virtual Emanation from them ; and in Them , radically , as in the first Subject . ] So Rutherford , Parker , Goodwin , Bridges , Milton , &c. The People can give no other Power , then such as God has given Them : And God has never given a moral Power to do Evil. All Fiduciary Power , abused , may be repealed ; And Parliamentary Power is no Other : Which , if it be abused , The People may repeal it ; and resist them ; Annulling their Commissions ; Rescinding their Acts ; and Denuding Them of their Fiduciary Power : Even as the King Himself may be denuded of the same Power by the Three Estates . P. 152. Princes derive their Power , and Prerogative from the People ; and have their Investitures , meerly for the Peoples Benefit . P. 1. It is the King's Duty to pass all such Laws , as Both Houses shall judge Good for the Kingdom : Upon a Supposition , That They are Good , Which by them are judg'd Such . If the Prince fail in his Promise , the People are Exempt frm their Obedience ; The Contract is made Void , and the Right of Obligation is of no Force . — It is therefore permitted to the Officers of a Kingdom , either All , or some good Number of them , to Suppress a Tyrant . P. 120 , 121. IV. Princes may be DEPOSED , and put to DEATH , in Case of Tyranny . Every Worthy Man , in Parliament , may , for the Publique Good , be thought a fit Peer , and Judge of the King. P. 24. Where there is no Opportunity for the Interposure of Other Judges , the Law of Nature , and the Law of Nations allow Every Man to Judge in his own Gase . P. 34. If a Prince wants such Understanding , Goodness , or Power , as the People judge Necessary to the Ends of Government ; In the first place ; He is Capable of the Name , but not of the Government . In the Second ; He Deposes Himself . In the Third ; The want of Power , Deposes him . Theses 135 , 136 , 137. It is lawful for any , who have the Power , to call to Accompt , a Tyrant , or Wicked King ; And after due Conviction , to Depose , and put him to Death , if the Ordinary Magistrate have Neglected , or Deny'd to do it . It is not impossible , for a King , Regis Personam Exuere ; In a Natural , Or MORAL Madness or Frenzy to turn Tyrant , Yea Beast , Waiving his Royal Place , Violently , Extrajudicially , Extramagisterially to assault his Subjects , as Saul did David . In this Case , Men think Nature doth Dictate it ; and Scripture doth Justifie a Man , Se Defendendo Vim Vi repellere . P. 23. The Real Soveraignty among Us , was in King , Lords , and Commons ; and if the King raise War against such a Parliament : The King may not only be resisted , but Ceaseth to be a King. Thesis 358. The Lord rent the Kingdom from Saul , for sparing One Agag ; and for want of thorough Extirpation of all the accurs●…d Things , He lost both Thanks for What He had done , and Kingdom also . P. 27. Let no Law hinder Ye : If Law be to be broken , it is for a Crown ; and therefore , for Religion . — Ye are set over Kingdoms , to Root out , Pull down , Destroy , and Throw down : Do it quickly , Do it thorougly . By what Rule of Conscience , or God , is a State Bound to Sacrifice Religion , Laws , and Liberties , rather then endure , that the Princes Life should come into any Possibilities of Hazard , by Defending them , against those that in his Name are bent to su●…due them ? If he will needs thrust Himself upon the Hazard , when he needs not , Whose Fault is That ? There never was a Greater Harmony of the Laws of Nature , Reason , Prudence , and Necessity , to Warrant any Act , then may be found , and discern'd in that Act of Justice on the Late King. P. 18. Touching the Righteousness of the Sentence past upon the King ; Doubtless never was any Person under Heaven , Sentenc'd with Death , upon more Equitable , and Just Grounds . P. 90. Praised be God , Who hath delivered us from the Impositions of Prelatical Innovacions , Altar-Genu-flections , and Cringings , with Crossings , and All That Popish Trash and Trumpery . And truly ( I speak no more then what I have often thought , and said ) The Removal of those Insupportable Burdens , countervails for the Blood and Creasure shed and spent in these late Distractions ▪ Nor did I ever as yet hear of any Godly Men that desired , Were it Possible , to Purchase their Friends , or Money again , at so dear a Ra●…e , as with the Return of These : To have Those Soul-Burdening , Antichristian Yokes re-imposed upon Us. And if any such there be , I am sure , that D●…sire is no part of their Godliness ; and I profess my self , in That , to be None of the Number . P. 23. V. The PERSONS of Princes may be resisted , though not their AUTHORITY . The Man who is King , may be resisted , but not the Royal Office : The King in Concreto , but not the King in Abstracto . P. 265. [ He may be resisted in a Pitch't Battel , and with Swords , and Guns . 324. That is ; His Private Will may be resisted , not his Legal Will. 269. Neither is He in the Field , as a King , but as ●…n unjust Invader , and Grassator . 334. If He chance to be Slain , 'T is but an Accident ; and who can help it ? 324. He is guilty of his own Death ; Or let Them answer for 't that brought Him thither , The Contrary Party is Innocent . 273. ] The King's Authority is with the Two Houses , though the Person of Charles Stuart be not there . His Capacity was at Westminster , when his Body was upon the Scaffold at Whitehall , &c. P. 18. VI. The King is SINGULIS MAJOR , UNIVERSIS MINOR . The King is in Dignity Inferior to the People . P. 140. The Soveraign Power is Eminently ; Fontaliter ; Originally , and Radically in the People . 156. Detrahere Indigno Magistratum etsi Privati non Debeant , Populus tamen Universus quin possit , Nemo , Opinor , dubitabit . It is not for Private Persons to Depose a Wicked Governour : But that the Universality of the People may Lawfully do it , I think no Body questions . Fixum Ratúmque habeatur , Populi semper esse debere Supremam Majestatem . P. 9. VII . The People may enter into a Covenant for Reformation , without the Consent of the Chief Magistrate . There is much Sin in making a Covenant on Sinful Grounds , and there is more Sin in Keeping it ; But when the Preservation of true Religion , and the Vindication of Just Liberties meet in the Ground , Ye may Swear , and not Repent ; Yea , if Ye Swear , Ye must not Repent . P. 18. Not only is That Covenant which God hath made with Us , founded in the Blood of Christ ; but That also , which We make with God. P. 33. The Breach of the National Covenant is a Greater Sin , then a Sin against a Commandment , or against an Ordinance . 158. — A Sin of so high a Nature , that God cannot in Honour but be avenged upon 't . 159. VIII . RELIGION may be Propagated by the SWORD . The Question in England is , Whether Christ , or Anti-Christ , shall be Lord , or King ? Go on therefore Couragiously : Never can ye lay out your Blood in such a Quarrel . Christ shed all his Blood to save You from Hell. Venture All Yours , to set Him upon his Throne P. 23. Cursed be he that withholdeth his Sword from Blood ; that spares , when God saith Strike ; that suffers those to escape , whom God has appointed to Destruction . P. 24. In the 10 of Numbers , you shall read that there were Two Silver Trumpets ; and as there were Priests appointed for the Convocation of their Assemblies , so there were Priests to sound the Silver Trumpets to Proclaim the War. And likewise in the 20 of Deuteronomy , you shall find there , that when the Children of Israel would go out to War , the Sons of Levi ( one of the Priests ) was to make a Speech to Encourage them . And certainly , if this were the Way of God in the Old Testament ; certainly , much more in such a Cause as This , in which Cause , Religion is so entwin'd , and indeed so enterlac'd , that Religion , and This Cause , are like Hippocrates his Twins , they must live , and dye together . You have vowed in This Covenant to Assist the Forces raised by the Parliament , according to your Power , and Vocation ; and not to Assist the Forces raised by the King , neither Directly , nor Indirectly . P. 45. Now let me exhort you , not only to chuse to serve God , and to serve his Church , and his Cause , in this most Iust Defensive War , &c. 46. In vain shall you in your Fasts , with Josua , ly on your Faces , unless you lay your Achans on their Backs ; In vain are the High Praises of God in your Mouthes , without a Two-edged Sword in your Hands . P. 31. The Execution of Iudgment is the Lords Work , and they shall be Cursed that do it Negligently ; and Cursed shall they be that keep back their Sword from Blood in this Cause . You know the Story of Gods Message unto Ahab , for letting Benhadad go upon Composition . P. 26. Whensoever you shall behold the hand of God , in the Fall of Babylon , say ; ●…rue ; Here is a Babylonish Priest crying out , Alas ! Alas ! My Living ; I have Wife and Children to Maintein . I : but all this is to perform the Iudgment of the Lord. P. 30. Though as Little Ones , they call for Pitty , yet as Babylonish , they call for Iustice , even to Blood. IX . There lies an Appeal from the Letter of the Law , to the EQUITY of it : And from the Law Written , to the Law of NATURE . The Commander going against the EQUITY of the Law , gives Liberty to the Commanded , to refuse Obedience to the Letter of it . There is a Court of Necessity , no less then a Court of Justice ; and the Fundamental Laws must then speak : and it is with a People , in this Extremity , as if they had no Ruler . P. 113. The People have given the Politique Power to the King ; and the NATURAL Power they Reserve to Themselves . 151. All Humane Laws and Constitutions are made with Knees , to bend to the Law of NATURE and NECESSITY . P. 85. Here is more then enough said already ; and to go on as far as the Matter would carry us , there would be no End on 't . You are now at ●…berty , either to deny These to be the Positions of the Non-Con●… ; or to justifie the Positions themselves ; or to lay down your Plea for Toleration , upon the Innocency of their Principles . N. C. I am no Friend to These Positions : Neither can I yet quit my Clai●… , unless you make it out , that These are the Principles of the Party , which I take to be only the Errours of Individuals . C. Shew me the Party , and let me alone to prove These to be Their Principles . But if you will not acknowledge a Party , they are ( as you say ) but the Errours of Individuals ; though all the Non-Conformists in the Three Kingdoms should own them under their Hands . You call your selves Non-Confermists , and so were they , that both began , and carried on the Late War. Great Apprehensions they had of the Designs of the Popish Party . [ So have you . ] Mightily offended they were at the Immoderate Power of the Bishops . [ You again . ] Petitioners for the taking away such Oppressions in Religion , Church Government , and Discipline , as had been brought in , and Fomented by them . [ Your very Picture still . ] And for Uniting all such together , as joyn in the same Fundamental Truths against the Papists : ●…hy removing some Oppressions , and Unnecessary Ceremonies , by which , Divers weak Consciences have been scrupled , and seem to be divided from the rest . [ The very Platform of your Comprehension . ] Thus far You march Hand in Hand : I need not tell you what followed upon 't ; but Your Parts are so much alike , that it looks as if We were now again upon the first Seene of the same Tragedy . For a Conclusion , Conformity , or In-Conformity , seem'd at first to be the Sum of the Question ; and the Discipline of the Church was made the Ground of the Quarrel . The Ru●…ing Party in the Pretended Parliament , were Non-Conformists ; The Army , Non-Conformists ; The Pre●…ended Assembly of Divines were Non Conformists ; The City-Ministers , and Lecturers , Non-Conformists ; And by the Sol●…mn League and Covenant , every Man that took it , was to be a Non-Conformist , upon pain of Damnation . Now take Your Choice , ( since Non-Conformists you are ) Whether you 'l Range your selves under the Parliament ; Your Army ; Your Assembly ; Your City-Ministers ; Or Your Solemn League and Covenant : And let me bear the Blame , if I make it not as clear as the Day , That the Principles charg'd upon You , are the Principles of Your Party . As to your PRACTISES , They haue been suitable to your POSITIONS ; and All those Violences have been Exercised upon the Government , that were first Dictated in the Pulpit . The Lawfulness of Popular Insurrections ; Of Deposing , and Putting Kings to Death , under the Cloak of Reformation , has been vented as the Doctrine of Iesus Christ , even by the Oracles of your Cause : Nay ; and several of Them ( at present ) Eager Asserters of the Equity of a Toleration . And what has been the Fruit of These Unchristian-Lectures ; but the Subversion both of Church , and State : And the Murder of a Pio●… , and Gracious Prince , under Pretence of Doing God and the Kingdom Good Service ? N. C. These are Actions ( I confess ) not to be warranted . But yet my Charity perswades me , that a great part of the Mischief they did , proceeded rather from Necessity , then Inclination . C. Will ye see then what they did afterward , when they were at Liberty to do what they listed ? They had no sooner Murdered the Father , but immediately a They made it Death to Proclaim the Son. b They abolish't Kingly Government . c Sold the Crown-Lands . d Declared it Treason to deny the Supremacy of the Commons . e Nulled all Honours and Titles granted by the King since — 41. f Made Scotland One Commonwealth with England , &c. Have They now kept any better Touch with the Liberty and Property of the Subjects ? Let their Proceedings Witness for Them ; a As their Tax upon the Fifth and Twentieth Part. b Excise upon Flesh , Victuals , and Salt. c A new Excise upon Allom , Copperas , Monmouth-Caps , Hops , Saffron , Starch , &c. d A Loan of 66666 l. 13 s. 4 d. for Supply of the Scots . e An Assessment for the Maint●…nance of the Army . f The House of Peers Abolish't ; and a Monethly Tax of 90000 l. for the Army . g A Monthly Tax of 120000 l. h An Imposition upon Coal . i A Monthly Assessment of 60000 l. Not to Clog the Discourse with over many Particulars : We 'l see next , What They have Done , toward the Moderating of the Power of Bishops , and the Removal of Unnecessary Ceremoni●…s . k The Arch-Bishop of Canterbury Suspend●…d , and his T●…mporalties Sequestred . l Monuments of Superstition Demolish't ; ( That is , in short , an Ordinance for Sacriledge ) m The Book of Common-Prayer laid aside , and the Directory Commanded instead of it . n Arch-Bishops and Bishops Abolish't , and their Lands settled in Trustees . o Their Lands Exposed to Sale. p Festivals Abolish't . q Deans and Chapters , &c. Abolish't : And their Lands to be Sold. This is Your Way , Of MODERATING the Power of Bishops , and of REMOVING UNNECESSARY CEREMONIES . And This is the History ( in Little ) of the Opinions , and Practises of your Party : Drawn from matter of Fact ; Provable to a Syllable ; and Deliver'd without any Amplification of the Matter . N C. Ill things have been done , there 's no Question on 't ; But they have been done by Ill Men : And 't is not a Toleration of Faction that We pretend to , but a Toleration of Conscience . C , Which Toleration ( upon farther search ) will be found to be a meer Utopian Project , or W●…rse . SECT . X. The Non-Conformists demand a Toleration , which is neither INTELLIGIBLE in the Whole , nor PRACTICABLE , so far as it may be Understood . C. IT makes a great Noise in the World , The Out-cry of the Non-Conformists , for Toleration , Indalgence , Liberty of Conscience , Comprehension , &c. Let them but set it down in a Clear , Practicable , and Intelligible Proposition , and I dare say , They shall have it for the Asking . N. C. We do Propound , That Reformed Christianity may be settled in its DUE LATITUDE . C. By Reformed Christianity , I suppose you intend the Protestant Religion : But your DUE LATITUDE is of a Suspicious Intimation . Do not you remember a Declaration of the Two Houses ( April 9. 1642. ) for a DUE , and Necessary Reformation of the Government , and Liturgy of the Church : And Nothing to be taken away , either in the One , or in the Other , but What should be found Evil , and justly Offensive ; Or , at the least , Unnecessary , and Burdensom ? This Due Reformation ended ( as you may remember ) in a Total Extirpation of Both Liturgy and Government : And We see Nothing to the Contrary , but Your DUE LATITUDE may signifie the very same thing with Their DUE REFORMATION . Pray be a little Clearer . N. C. Then to put all out of doubt ; I would , in the first place , have An Establish't Order : Secondly ; A Limited Toleration : Thirdly , A Discreet Connivence . The Parties Comprehended in the Establishment , to be of Importance in the Publique Interest ; and of Principles Congruous to such Stated Order in the Church , as the Stability of the Commonwealth requires . I Would have the Toleration , to Extend to Those that are of Sound Belief , and Go●…d Life ; Yet have taken in some Principles of Church-Government less Congruous to National Settlem●…nt . And for Connivence ; It is to be remitted to Discretion . C. What is all This now , but an Universal Toleration , in a Disguise ? Some to be Comprehended within the Establishment ; Others to be Tolerated ; And the Rest to be Connived at . Again ; Your Establishment is to be of a Latitude , to take in several sorts of Dissenters , under such and such Qualifications . They must be of Importance in the Publique Interest ; and of Principles Congruous to such Stated Order in the Church , as the Stability of the Commonwealth requires . Ask the Dissenters Themselves concerning their own Qualifications , and They 'l tell you . that they are all of them , of Important Interests , and of Congruou●… Principles : So that this way , you are still upon an Universal Toleration . But on the Other Side , if You Consult Authority about Your Comprehension , The Preface to the Act for Uniformity will tell You , that the Establishment is as wide already as the Peace of the Nation will well bear . If you 'l Acquiesce in This Iudgment , the Case is determined to Our Hand : If you Appeal from it , You cast your selves out of the Pale of your own Project , because of your Principles Incongruous to the Reason of Government . N. C. But it appears to us , that the Stated Order of the Church may be widen'd , without any Check to the Stability of Government . C. And what will This avail You , if it appears otherwise to the Governours Themselves ? If They may be Iudges , the Strife is at an End ; but if you think to help your selves by Translating the Iudgment to the People ; After that Day , let us never expect any other Law , then the Dictate of the Rabble . It removes the very Foundations of the Government , and Carries Us headlong into Anarchy , and Confusion , without Redemption . If a Man should ask You now , about Your Importance in Publique Interest ; First ; as to the Interest it self , Whether you mean an Interest of Raising Men , and Moneys ; Or What Other ? Next ; as to the Degree , and Measure of your Importance ; How Many Regiments of the One , and How many Millions of the Other , makes up that Importance ? Would you not take Time for an Answer ? And then , We are as much at a Loss about Your [ Such Stated Order in the Church as the Stability of the Common-wealth requires ] You give Us No Satisfaction at all , Wherein the Stability of the Commonwealth consists ; Or What Stated Order in the Church that Stability requires : But here is a kind of a Moot-Point cast in , betwixt Authority , and the People , Which of the Two shall Determine , upon That Congruity , and Convenience . Your Limited Toleration too stands or falls upon the Same Bottem , with Your Comprehension : That is to say , Who shall Iudge of the Sound Belief , and Good Life , of the Pretendents to That Indulgence . As to your Connivence , You say Nothing of it your self ; and I shall Reflect as little upon it . Let me only Observe Upon the Whole ; that if you had really a Mind to set Us right , Methinks , You should not Trifle Us with these Ambiguities , and Amusements : But rather endeavour by some Pertinent , Intelligible , and Practicable Proposition , to bring Us to a better Understanding . Say , What Injunctions You would have abated ; Name the Parties You would Recommend for their Importance of Interests , Congruity of Principles , Sound Faith , and Good Life . Teach us how to know these Qualities , Where to look for Them , and Who shall Iudge of Them. Let it be made out , That the Present Sollicitors for Tender Consciences , are duly Authorized , and Commission'd to Act as the Trustees of the Respective Parties . Do This ; and Matters may be brought yet to a Comfortable Issue : But so long as You place the Conditions of your Indulgence out of the Reach of Ordinary Proof , and indeed , of Humane Knowledg , Every Man that is Excluded , shall dispute his Title to the Comprehension , without any Possibility of being Confuted ; To the Scandal of Religion , and to the Perpetual Trouble , Both of King , and People . N. C. To set forth the Propounded Latitude , in the Particular Limits thereof , were Presumptuous , both in Reference to Superiors , and to the Party Concerned in it . C. As if it were not a greater Presumption , to Alienate the Affections of the People from their Superiors , by Reflectings upon the Iniquity of the Government , then by the Tender of some Rational Medium of Accord , to Dispose the Hearts of Superiors to a Compliance with the Prayers , and Necessities of the People . But there is more in these Generalities , and R●…serves then the Multitude are well aware of ; and I am afraid , it will be as hard a matter , to bring you to an Agreement about the P●…rticular Parties to be Tol●…rated , as about the Model it self . SECT . XI . The Non-Conformists demand a Toleration , for No Body knows WHOM , or WHAT . C. THe Non-Conformists are the Party that desire a Toleration ; Pray let me ask ye , What are their Opinions ? What are their Names ? For , I presume , you will not expect a Toleration , for No Body knows What , or Whom . Are they all of a Mind ? If They were Tolerated Themselves , Would They Tolerate One Another ? Are They come to any Resolution upon Articles ? Are They agreed upon any Model of Accommodation ? Do They know What They would be At ? Or is it in the Wit of Man , to Contrive a Common Expedient to Oblige them ? N. C. There 's no Body says , that they are All of a Mind ; Or that it is p●…ssible to please them all ; Or Reasonable to End●…avour it . There are Divers among them , whose Principles will never endure any Order either in Church , or State. But what is the Sober Part the Worse for these Extravagants ? Those , I mean , who are ready to Iustifie themselves ; even according to the Strictness of your own Measures . C. If You are for such a Toleration , as shall Exclude the Wild , and Ungovernable Sects of Dissenters ; How comes it , that , in Your Writings , and Argumentations , You still plead the General Cause of Non-Conformists , without any Exception , or Distinction ? N. C. You are not to fasten a Charge of this Quality upon us ; that have already submitted Our selves , Not only to the Moderation of a Limited Indulgence , but to your own Conditions also , under that very Limitation . C. This You have done , I must confess , in General Terms ; But still I say , as to Particulars , Your Discourses are of such a Frame and Biass , as to give Credit , and Encouragement , to Every Sect of the Whole Party . N. C. I am of a Perswasion , but not of a Party : and whatsoever my Perswasion be , it is Moderate , Catholick , and Pacifick . C. And so is every Man's , if his own Word may be taken for his own Perswasion . But why a●…e ye so Nic●… , and Cautious , in the owning of a Particular Way , and Profession ; and yet so Frank , and Open , in a Clamor for the Whole Party ? You Complain that you are persecuted , and yet Obstruct the Means of your own Relief . Some , Ye say , are to be Indulged ; Others , Not. How shall Authority Distinguish of Which Number You your selves are ; so long as You remain under this Concealment ? Are You for the Presbyterians ? N. C. I am not ashamed of their Company , that are Commonly called by That Name : Yet I have no Ple●…sure in such N●…mes of Distinction . Neither my Design , nor my Principles , engage me to maintein the Presbyterial Government . C. Are You In●…endent then ? N. C. Neither . But yet I am ( as I told you ) for Tolerating Th●…se of Sound Faith , and Good Life , That have taken up s●…me Principles of Church-Government l●…ss Congruous to National Settlement . C. What Do you think of the Anabaptists , Brownists , Quakers , & c ? N C. Why truly , So it is , That Prudent , and Pious Men may be of Exceeding Narrow Principles , about Church-Order , and Fellowship : Toward Whom , Christian Charity pleadeth for Indulgence ; and , We hope , Political Prudence doth not gainsay it . C. So that you are FOR All Parties , but not OF Any . Which Gen●…rality gives to Understand , that your Business , is rather a Confederacy , then a Scruple . N. C. Make That Good if you can . SECT . XII . The Conjunct Importunity of the Non-Conformists for a Toleration , is not grounded Upon Matter of CONSCIENCE . N. C. YOu are the first Person certainly that ever undertook to make Proof of a Conscience . C. And yet Our Saviour tells Us , ( in This very Case of Hypocrisie ) that the Tree may be known by its Fruits : But however ; the best way of Proving a Thing Feasible , is the Doing of it . The Non-Conformists refuse Communion with the Church : What is it They boggle at ? N. C. a They do esteem the Ceremonies an Excess in the Worship of God. Pag. 31. b [ And Dissent from the Present Establishment of Religion , only in things relating to Outward Order , and Worship . Pa. 12 c About the Choice of some Peculiar Ways of Worship . Pa. 12. d But as to the English Reformation , Established by Law , They heartily Embrace it , and Assent to the Doctrine of Faith conteined in the Articles of the Church of England . Pa. 22. e They have no New Faith to Declare : No New Doctrine to Teach ; No Private Opinions to Divulge ; No Point , or Truth to Profess , which hath not been Declared , Taught , Divulged , and Esteem●…d , as the Common Doctrine of the Church of England , ever since the Reformation . Pa. 11. f They come up to a Full Agreement , in all Material Things , with Them , from Whom they Dissent . Pa. 30. C. If They Agree in all Material Things , it follows , that they Divide about Matters Inconsiderable ; and Break the Order , Peace , and Unity of the Church for Trifles . ( Things Indifferent , and relating to Outward Order , and Worship . ) N. C. In Prescribed Forms , and Rites of Religion , The Conscience will interpose , and concern it self ; and Cannot resign it self to the Dictates of Men , in the Points of Divine Worship . And Those Injunctions , which to the Imposers , are Indifferent ; in the Consciences of the Dissenters , are Unlawful . And What Humane Authority can warrant any One to put in Practice , an Unlawful , Or Suspected Action ? Pa. 26. C. If This be , really , Conscience ; You will be found as Cautious in venturing , deliberately , upon a Suspected Action , in all other Cases , as you are in This. But what if it shall appear , that This Fit of Tenderness only takes you , when you are to pay an Obedience to the Law ; and that you are as Bold as Lions , when you come to oppose it ? Will you not allow us to think it possible , that there may be somewhat more , in the Importunities , and Pretences of the Non-Conformists , then Matter of CONSCIENCE ? 'T is a Suspected Action to Kneel at the Sacrament ; but None , to hold up your Hands at the Covenant . You make a Conscience of disclaiming the Obligation of That Covenant , in Order to the Security of the Government : But None at all , of Leaguing your selves in a Conspiracy , for the Subversion of it . Where was your Tenderness , in Suspected Cases , when , to Encourage Rapine , Sacriledge , and Rebellion , was the Common Business of your Counsels , and Pulpits ? When it was safer to Deny the Trinity , then to Refuse the Covenant . When the same Persons , that started at a Ceremony , made no Scruple at all , of Engaging the Kingdom in Blood ; and laying Violent Hands upon their Sovereign . Is not This , Streining at a Gnat , and swallowing a Camel ? N. C. The Non-Conformists , I know , are charged with Principles , that detract from Kingly Power ; and Tend to advance Popular Faction . It is true , They have been Eager Asserters of Legal Liberties . Pag. 40. But These are Things gone and Past , and Nothing to our Present Purpose . The Wise Man says , He that repeateth a Matter , separateth very Friends . A looking back to former Discords , mars the most hopeful Redi●…egration . Acts of Indemnity , are Acts of Oblivion also , and must be so observed . Pa. 41. C. The Non-Conformists ( The Sole Actors in the late War ) were only Eager Asserters ( it seems ) of Legal Liberties : You do not deal so Gingerly with the Bishops , in the Point of Ceremonies , as to let them come off , with the Character of Eager Assertors of Legal Authorities . So that herein also , Your Consciences stumble at Straws , and leap over Blocks . Now , Whereas You will have it , that a Reflection upon former Discords , is a Violation of the Act of Indemnity ; And Impertinent to Our Purpose : My Answer is ; First , That I do not revive the Memory of former Discords as a Reproach ; But I make use of some Instances out of former Passages , to make Good my Assertion : That Your Conjunct Imp●…rtunity for a Toleration , is not grounded upon Conscience . And to shew you , that your Practises , and Professions grin One upon Another . For Conscience is all of a Pi●…ce ; Not Tender , and Delicate on the One side , and Callous , and Unfeeling , on the Other . Secondly , Suppose We should make a little Bold with the Act of Oblivion : I think We have as much right to do it , as You have to fall foul upon the Act of Uniformity . Unless you conceive , that the Mercy you have received by One Law , gives You a Privilege of Invading all the rest . As to Authority ; it is One and the Same in Both ; and if there were any place for Complaint against the Equity of a Legal Establishment , it would lie much Fairer against the Act of Indemnity . on the behalf of the Royallists , ( that have ruined their Estates and Families in the Defence of the Law ; and yet after all , are thereby condemned to sit down in Silence , and Despair ) Then against the Act of Uniformity , on the Behalf of the Non-Conformists ; Who by the One Law , are secured in the Profits of their late Disobedience ; And by the Other , are taken into the Arms of the Church , according to the Ancient , and Common Rule , with the Rest of His Majesties Protestant Subjects : The Same Rule , I say ; saying where it is Moderated with Abatements , and Allowances , in Favour of Pretended Scruples . N. C. Whereas you make the Non-Conformists the Sole Actors in Our late Confusions , You run your self upon a great Mistake : For — It hath been manifested to the World , by such as Undertook to Iustifie it , when Authority should require , [ That the Year before the King's Death , A Select Number of Iesui●…s being sent from their whole Party in England , Consulted both the Faculty of Sorbonne , and the Pope's Council at Rome , touching the Lawfulness and Expediency , of Promoting the Change of Government , by making away the King , Whom They Despaired to turn from his Hereste : It was Debated , and Concluded , in Both Places , That for the Advancement of the Catholick Cause , It was Lawful , and Expedient to Carry on that Alteration of State. This Determination was effectually pursued by many Iesuits , that came over , and Acted their Parts in several Disguises . Pag. 15. C. If This be True , and Proveable ; ( as You affirm it is ) You cannot do the Protestant Cause a more Important Service , then to make it out to the Parliament : Who ( You know ) have judg'd the Mat●…er Worthy of their Search , and have appointed a Committee to receive Informations . Pa. 2. Nay , which is more , You are a Betrayer of the Cause if you do it not . The WHOLE PARTY in England , do you say ? Prove out This , and you kill the whole Popish Party at a Blow . This was the Year before the King's Death , it seems : Whas not That within the Retrospect of the Act of Indemnity ? If so , tell me I beseech you , Why may not We take the same Freedom with the Non-Conformists , that You do with the Papists ? N. C. We shall never have done , if you lash out thus upon Digressions . Pray keep to the Question . C. As close as you please . What if a Man should shew You a Considerable Number , of the Eminent , and Active Instruments in the late War , to be now in the Head of the present Outcry for Toleration ? ( Take This into your Supposition too , that These very Persons promoted Our Troubles , This very Way ; and Proceeded from the Reformation of Discipline , to the Dissolution of Government ) Are We bound in Charity to take all their Pretensions of Scruple for real Tenderness of Conscience ? N. C. Beyond all Question ; unless you can either Evidence their Errour to be Unpardonable , or the Men Themselves , Impenitent . C. Why then let Amesius determine betwixt Us. [ Peccata illa , quae publicè fuerunt nota , debent etiam Confessione Publicâ damnari ; quià ad quos malum ipsum Exempli Contagione pervenerat , ad eos etiam Poenitentiae , ac Emendationis Documentum , si fieri possit , delet transmitti . ] PUBLIQUE SINS require PUBLIQUE CONFESSION ; To the End , that as many as were mis●…ed by the Example , may be set right again by the Retraction , and Repentance . This Conclusion pronounces All Those of the old stamp , that abused the People formerly , under Colour of Conscience ; and are now at Work again , upon the same Pretext , without a Publique Recantation , to be in a State of Impenitency : and gives Us reasonably to presume , that if their Consciences can Swallow , and Digest a Rebellion , There is no great Danger of their being Choak'd with a Ceremony . Another Thing is This ; You do not plead for Particular Iudgments ; ( In which Case , a Plea of Conscience may be allowed ) But every Man urges the Equity ( in Effect ) of a Toleration for all the Rest. In which Number , You your selves do , severally , and jointly , acknowledge , that there are a great many People of Insociable and Intolerable Principles ; such as in Conscience are not to be admitted . And yet herein also , You profess to be guided by Impulses of Tenderness , and Piety ; although in Opposition to the whole Course of your former Declarations , and Proceedings , that rise up in Judgment against You. N. C. If you grant , that there may be a Plea for Particulars , I shall not much trouble my self about Generals . C. That Point shall come on in due time . But let us look a little further yet , into the General Cause ; for if it be not Conscience , it is Confederacy . SECT . XIII . The Conjunct Importunity of the Non-Conformists for a Toleration , is a Manifest CONFEDERACY . C. THis appears , First , from the Method of their Proceedings ; Secondly , from the Natural Prospect , and Tendency of that Method ; Thirdly , from the Nature , and Quality of their Demands , and Arguments ; Fourthly ; from the Way , and Manner of their Addresses , and Applications ; Lastly ; from their Agreement in Matters of Dangero●…s Consequence upon the Peace of the Government . As to their Method ; The Non-Conformists of This Age ●…read in the very steps of their Predecessors : and This you may observe throughout the whole History of Them ; even from the first time that ever the Pretence of Popular Reformation set foot in his Majesties Dominions unto This Instant . This is not a Place for a Deduction of Particulars at length ; But a Touch from Point to Point , will not be much amiss . Wherefore , if you please , Give me a Brief Accompt of the Non-Conformists . First , What kind of People they are ; Secondly , What It is They would have ; Thirdly , What will the Kingdom be the better for Granting their Desires ? Fourthly , What are their Grievances , as the Case stands with them at present ? Fifthly , What are they for Number , and Resolution ? N. C. They are a People Zealous of Religion , Pa. 43. An Intelligent , Sober sort of M●…n , and Numerous among all Ranks , P. 25. * Peaceable , and Useful in the Commonwealth ; Sound in the Faith ; Men of Conscience ; Evident Opposers of all Errors Pernicious to the Souls of Men , and of an Evil Aspect upon the Publique Peace . C. Very Good : And were not the Conspirators that Seiz'd King Iames , at Ruthnen , ( 1582. ) as much as all This amounts to ? If You will believe either Themselves , or the Assembly at Edinburgh in their behalf . The Reforming Non-Conformists under Queen Elizabeth were Unreprovable before all Men ; Her Majesties most Loyal Subjects , and God's Faithful Servants : [ Most Worthy , Faithful , and Peinful Ministers ; Modest , Watchful , Knowing in the Scriptures , and of Honest Conversation ; ( Learned , and Godly ; says the Admonitioner , Pa. 25. And Martin Senior calls them , The Strength of Our Land , and the Sinew of her Majesties Government . The Scotch Covenanters , in 1638. out-did All This , for Zeal to his Majesties Person , and Authority : The True Religion , Liberties , and Laws of the Kingdom . And the Two Houses at Westminster , In 1642. come not behind . Them , in their Professions , for the Defence , and Maintenance of the True Religion ; The King's Person , Honour , and Estate , and the Iust Rights , and Li●…erties of the Subject . Here 's Your Character : Now to Your D●…mands , What is it You would have ? N. C. a A Reformation of Church-Government , Liturgy , and Ceremonies . b A Bearing with weak Consciences : c and A Relaxation of the Prescribed Uniformity . C. And This you will find to have been the Constant Pretence of the Non-Conformists , if you Consult their Story , from One End to the Other . [ Not to let loose the Golden Reins of Discipline , and Government in the Church ; But to Unburthen the Consciences of Men , of Needless , and Superstitious Ceremonies , Suppress Innovations , and Settle a Preaching Ministry , &c. Put the Case now , that you had your Asking ; What would the Kingdom be the better for it ? N. C. It will be the better for the King , Church , Nobility , and Gentry . [ And there is No Nation under Heaven , wherein such an Indulgence , or Toleration as is desired , would be more Welcome , Us●…ful , Acceptable ; Or more Subservient to Tranquillity , Trade , Wealth , and Peace . C. Reformation no Enemy to Her Maj●…sty and the State , is the very Title of a Desperate Libel , Printed 1590. against Both. And the Humble Motioner tells You , that it is for the Advantage of the Queen , Clergy , Nobility , and Commonalty ; That the Wealth and Honour of the Realm will be Encreased by it , &c. This was the Stile too of Our Reformers , in 1642. The Securing of the Publique Peace , Safety and Happiness of the Realm ; And the Laying the Foundation , of more Honour , and Happiness , to his Majesty , then ever was Enjoy'd by any of his Royal Predecessors . — Now speak your Grievances . N. C. We are Excommunicated , Outlawed , Imprison'd . Our Families Starved , and Begg●…r'd . P. 8. Proceeded against with Outward Punishments , Pecuniary , and Corporal , Nay Death it self . P. 9. [ And all this while Trade languishes , Rents fall , Money scarce . P. 26. Never a greater Separation ; Never a more General Dissatisfaction . P. 27. C. Pray'e say : Was it ever better , since Non-Conformists came into the World ? Was not King Iames , a Favourer of the Enemies of God's Truth , and of Dissolute Persons ? A Discountenancer of Godly Ministers ? A Promise-Breaker to the Church ; and a Perverter of the Laws ; Insomuch that No man could be assured of his Lands , and Life ? Was it any better even under the Celebrated Government of Queen Elizabeth ? a There were Citations , Degradings , and Deprivations . b Some in the Marshalsey ; Some in the White-Lion ; Some in the Gate●…house at Westminster ; Others in the Counter , Or in the Clinke , Or in Bride-well , Or in Newgate . [ How many Good Mens Deaths have the Bishops been the Cause of ? How many have they driven to leave the Ministry , and live by Physique ? Or to leave their Countrey ? [ Poor Men have been miserably handled , with Revilings , Deprivations , Imprisonments , Banishments : and Out of This Realm , they have all the best Reformed Churches through Christendom against them . [ If This Persecution be not provided for , great Trouble will come of it . How your Party demean'd Themselves toward the Late King , of Blessed Memory , in the matter of Calumny , and Reproach , You may read at large in that Grand , and Infamous Libel ; The Remonstrance of the State of the Kingdom , Decemb. 15. 1642. But after all This ; What are these People , for Number , and Resolution , that make such a Clutter ? N. C. Thousands of the Upright of the Land. Petition for Peace , Pag. 21. ] Multitudes ▪ Dissent , and Resolve to Continue so doing ; Whatever they suffer for it . Pa. 20. And to forego the U●…most of their Earthly Concernments , rather then to Live and Die in an Open Rebellion to the Commanding Light of God in their Consciences . — To Ruine Men in their Substantials of BODY , and LIFE , for Ceremonies ; is a Severity , which ENGLISHMEN will not , long time , by any means , give Countenance unto . Pa. 23. [ To Execute Extremity upon an Intelligent , Sober , and Peaceable Sort of Men , so Numerous among all Ranks , may prove Exceeding Difficult , unless it be Executed by such Instruments as may strik ●…errour into the whole Nation . P. 25. C. Was not Queen Elizabeth told of Thousands , and Hundreds of Thousands , that sighed for the Holy Discipline ? And that since neither Parliament , nor Convocation-house would take it into Consideration , They might blame Themselves , if it came in by such Means , as would make all their Hearts Ake ? The Truth will prevail ( says the Demonstrator ) in spight of your Teeth , and all the Adversaries of it . The most Unnatural , Ca●…eless , and Horrible Rebellion , that This , or ( perhaps ) any other Age in the World hath been Acqu●…nted with ( To borrow the Words of his Late Majesty ) was Profaced with a Petition in the Name of all the Men , Women , Children , and Servants , of Edinburgh , against the Service-Book : And Another , in the Name of the Noblemen , Gentry , Ministers , and Burgesses , against the Service-Book , and Book of Canons ; ●…rotesting afterwards , that if any Inconvenience should fall out , by reason of Pressing those-Innovations , it was not to be imputed to Them , that sought all Things to be Reformed by Order . This Commotion in Scotland , led the Way to Our succeeding Broils in England ; Which were promoted by the like Artifices . Great Numbers of his Majesties Subjects , Opprest by Fines , Imprisonments , Stig●…atizings ; and Many Thousands of Tradesmen , and Artificers , Empoverish't by a Generality , and Multiplicity of Vexations . [ Great Numbers of Learned , and Pious Ministers Suspended , Deprived , and Degraded . In fine , from Pamphlets , they advanced to Petitions ; from Petitions , to Tumults ; and from thence , into a Formal State of War. N. C. So that from This Agreement in Method , You will pretend to Infer a Conformity of Design . C. From This Agreement in Method ; and from the Natural Tendency of This Method , I think a Man may honestly Conclude , it can be Nothing else : and I doubt not , but upon a Sober Examination of the Matter , I shall find You of the same Opinion . The most Sacred of all Bonds is That of Government , next to That of Religion ; and the Reverence which we owe to Humane Authority , is Only Inferior to That which we owe to God Himself . This being duly Weighed , and that the Lesser Obligation must give place to the Greater . ( As for Instance ) Reason of State , to Matter of Religion , and Humane Laws to the Law Divine : What has any Man more to do , for the Embroyling of a Nation , but first to Puzzle the Peoples Heads with Doubts , and Scruples , about their Respective Duties to God , and Man ; and then , to Possess them , that This , or That Political Constitution , has no Foundation in the Holy Scriptures ? To bid Them stand fast in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made them Free , Galat. 5. 1. And Finally , to Engage the Name of God , and the Credit of Religion in the Quarrel ? N. C. And do not you your self believe it better to Obey God , then Man ? C. Yes ; but I think it best of all to Obey Both : To Obey God , for Himself , in Spirituals ; and Man , for God's sake , in Temporals , as He is God's Commissioner . But tell me ; Are you not Convinced , that the most likely way in the World to stir up Subjects against their Prince , is To Proclaim the Iniquity of his Laws , and then to Preach Damnation upon Obedience ? N. C. What if it be ? Does it follow , because Religion may be made a Cloak for a Rebellion , That , therefore , It is never to be Pleaded for a Reformation ? C. Truly I have seldom known a Conscientio●… Reformation , accompanied with the Circumstances of Our Case . Here is , first , a Character of the Non-Conformists , drawn by their own Hand ; and set off with such Flourishes of Purity , and Perfection , as if the Scribes and Pharisees Themselves had sit for their Picture . In the Second Place , You demand , partly , a Reformation ; partly , a Toleration : And in the Third , You assure Us , that all England shall be the better for 't . ( Of These Two Points hereafter . ) In the Fourth , You enlarge upon your Grievances ; and instead of applying to the Government , on the behalf of the People , You are clearly upon the Strein of Appeal to the People from the Rigour of the Government . Your Text is Liberty of Conscience ; But the Stress of your Discourse lies upon the Liberty of the Subject : The Decay of Trade , Scarcity of Money , Fall of Rents , The Substantials of BODY , and LIFE , Imprisonment , &c. Upon the Whole ; Your Writings want nothing but Form , of a Direct Indictment of King and Parliament for Persecution , and Tyranny ; And would very well bear the Translation of their being led on by the Instigation of the Devil , Not having the Fear of the Lord before their Eyes . If You can defend this manner of Proceeding , pray do it . N. C. What can be of greater Concernment to Governours ; then to Discern , and Consider the State of their People , as it is indeed ? And Why may it not be Minded of Subjects , and spoken of , without any Hint , or Thought of ●…ebellion ? Pag. 27. C. But What can be of greater Mischief to Governours , then under Colour of Remonstrating to Them , the State of their People , at the Same time , to disaffect the People , by an Odious Accompt of the Errors , Misfortunes , and Calamities of the Government ? Governours are not to be told their Faults in the Market-Place ; Neither are Ministers of the Gospel , by your own Rules , to be admitted for Privy-Counsellors . This is spoken as to the Good Office of your Information . As to the Intention of it , I am not so bold , as to Judge your Thoughts : But if You had any Drift at all in it , and Consider'd what You did , I do not see , how You can acquit your self of Evil Meaning . Suppose the Whole Invective True ; And that you suffer for Righteousness . ( to make the Fairest of it ) What Effect do you expect these Discourses may have upon the People ? and Waat upon the Magistrate ? Will not every Man conclude , that the English are the Wretched'st Slaves upon the Face of the Earth ? Neither Liberty of Religion , nor of Person , for any Man that makes a Conscience of his Ways : The Whole Nation , Groaning under Beggery , and Bondage . Now see What Effects these Impressions may reasonably produce ; and Those Effects are a●… reasonably to be taken for the Scope of your Intention . Turn now to the Magistrate , and say ; What Proportion do you find betwixt these Rude Disobligations upon the Government , and the Returns of Grace , and Favour You desire so Earnestly from it ? On the Other Side ; if your Report be False , Your Design appears still to be the same ; Only with the Aggravations , of more Animosity , and Malice in Pursuance of it . But True , or False , it is Nothing at all to the Business of Toleration , but a Palpable Transition from matter of Conscience , to matter of State. This is the Course , in General , of Our Advocates for Toleration ; and by the Desperate Sallies , they make , from Religion , to Government , in their Pamphlets , A Man may guess what it is they would be at in their Pulpits . N. C. Oppression makes a Wiseman mad ; and 't is not Generous to Descant upon every thing , that is bolted in Heat , and Passion , as if it were a formed Discourse , upon Deliberation , and Counsel . C. But is it not a strange thing ( my Good Friend ) for so many Men to be Mad at a Time ; and to be Mad the Same Way too ? If you will have it , that they mean just Nothing at all , I am content ; But if they mean any thing , and all agree in the same Meaning ; It can be nothing else but a Confederacy . The next Point makes it yet more Evident ; that is to say , The Marshalling of their Numbers , and their Thousands ; The Boast of their Interest , in all Parties , and of the Difficulty to Suppress them : The Proclamation of their Resolution to Live and Die in defence of their Opinions , with an Innu●…ndo of the Magistrates Meddling with them at their Peril . What can be the End of this Rhodomontade ; but to startle the Government , on the One Side , and to animate the Multitude , on the Other ? It is no Argument at all for an Indulgence , that they are Many , Powerful , and Resolute ; But point blank against it : Unless they can approve themselves to be Regular , Governable , and Honest . To Sum up all ; Here are Faults found in the Government ; and the People Tamper'd into a Dislike of it ; So that here 's a Disposition to a Change , wrought already . No sooner is the Multitude perswaded of the Necessity of a Reformation ; but behold the Manner of it ; It must be either by a Thorough-Alteration , a Comprehension , a Toleration , or a Connivence . And for the Principal Undertakers , You may put your Lives in their Hands ; for ( if they do not slander Themselves ) They are as Godly , an Intelligent Sort of People , as a Man shall see in a Summers Day . Now , for the Introducing of This Reformation , there is no way , but to set up the Word of God , against the Law of the Land : By the Un-Bishopping of Timothy , and Titus ; and giving the People a Sight of the Iewish Sanhed●…m , and Gamaliel's Dilemma , through a Pair of Reforming Spectacles ; By which , they discover the Divine Right of Presbytery , with One Eye ; and That of Universal Toleration with the Other ; and so become One in the Common Cause of Maintaining Gospel Worship , against Humane Inventions . The next Care is , to Gratifie the Common People ; for there 's nothing to be done , till they come ; and there is no Reason in the World , that the poor Wretches should Venture Soul , Life , and Estate , Gratis ! This is Effected , by the Doctrine of Liberty of Conscience . For Grant but every Man a Right , of Acting , according to the Dictate of his Conscience , and he has Consequently , a Liberty of Doing Whatsoever he shall pretend to be according to That Dictate ; And of Refusing to do , whatsoever he shall say is against it : By which Invention , the Laws of the Kingdom are subjected to the Pretended Consciences of the People ; and the Multitude are made the Iudges of the Controversie . Now comes in the Ioynt-Struggle of the Non-Conformists for a Toleration . This , if it may be obtain'd , puts them in a Capacity of doing the Rest , Themselves . But in Case of Opposition , Their last Resort is to a Muster of their Forces ; A Computation of their Strength , and Interests ; Which is the Very same Thing , as if they should say , in so many Syllables ; Gentlemen ; You see the Parliament does not Regard Us : We have a Good Cause , and Hands enow to do the Work , in spight of their Hearts : ●…P AND BE DOING . After This ; There wants Nothing , but the Word , The Sword of the Lord , and of Gideon , To Crown the Enterprize . If This be not a Conspiracy , tell me What Is. N. C. You say , It is ; and We deny it . C. There are strong Presumptions also of a Confederacy , to be gathered from the Nature , and Quality of your Demands . You desire a Comprehension , a Toleration ; But then you place the Conditions of it , out of the Reach of Ordinary Proof , and indeed , of Humane Cognizance . ( as is shew'd already ) So that No Body knows , who are to be Comprehended , and who left out . This looks , as if your Business were rather to enflame the Difference , then to compose it . And then , when you are prest to Name , and Specifie the Parties you plead for ; ( since by your own Confession , several are to be Excluded ) You fly still to the Generalities , of Important Interests , and Congruous Principles , and so leave the Matter utterly uncapable of any Clear , and Logical Result ; Unless you will allow Governours the Inspection of their Subjects Hearts : Or Teach us how to Reduce Wild , and Uncertain Notions , under the Prospect of a Steady Law. But the Reason of your Dealing thus in the dark , I suppose may be This : Your Design is to be carry'd on under the Countenance of the Common Cause , wherein , all those Persons are United against the Government , that would otherwise spend their Animosities , One upon Another , and break into a thousand Pieces among Themselves . Now for you to declare for any One Party , were Virtually , to declare against all the Rest , and Dissolve the Combination . Touching the Manner of their Addresses , I shall only add , ( to what is past ) that they are Invectives , against those that cannot relieve them , without any Formal Application to those that can : And tend Naturally to the Tumultuating of the People , without any Colour of Contributing to their Ben●…fit . Of their Agreement in Matters of Dangerous Consequence , enough is spoken already , to put it past all Contradiction , That Their Conjunct Importunity for a Toleration , is a Manifest CONFEDERACY . Wherefore let us now proceed from the Drift , and Design of their Pretensions , to the Morality , and Reason of Them. SECT . XIV . The Non-Conformists Joynt Pretences FOR A Toleration , overthrown , by the Evidence of their Joynt-Arguments , Professions , and Practises AGAINST it . C. DO as you would be done by , is the Precept , both of Gospel , and Nature . With what face then , can you ask a Toleration from That Government , which of all Others , your selves refused to Tolerate ? From That Prince , to whose Blessed Father ( in the Depth of his Agonies ) you cruelly deny'd the Use , and Service of his own Chaplains ? [ A greater ●…igour , and Barbarity , then is ever used by Christians to the Me●…nest Prisoners , and Greatest Malefactors . But They that Envy my being a King , are loth I should be a h●…istian While they seek to deprive me of all things else , they are afraid I should save my Soul. ; These are the Words or that Pious Prince in his last Extremity . N. C. That Rigour was the Barbarism of a Faction , Not the Principles of the Party . C. Hear your Party speak then . [ It is much , that our Brethren should separate from the Church ; but that they should endeavour to get a Warrant , to Authorize their Separation from it , and to have Liberty ( by drawing Members out of it ) to Weaken , and Diminish it , till , ( so far as lies in them ) they have brought it to Nothing ; This we think to be plainly Unlawfuf . Toleration would be the Putting the Sword in a Madman's hand ; A Proclaiming Liberty to the Wolves , to come into Christ's Flock to Prey upon his Lambs . Extirpate all Achans , with Babylonish Garments , Orders , Ceremonies , Gestures ; Let them be rooted out from among Us. You of the Honourable House , Up ; for the Matter belongs to You. We , even All the Godly Ministers of the Countrey , will be with You. Toleration makes the Scripture a Nose of Wax : A Rule of Faith to all Religions . Liberty of Conscience , and Toleration of all , or any Religion , is so Prodigious an Impiety , that this Religious Parli●…ment cannot but abhor the very Naming of it . Such a Toleration is utterly repugnant to , and Inconsistent with the Solemn League and Covenant for Reformation . It is unreasonable ( says the Defender of the London Ministers Letter to the Assembly ) that Independents should desire That Toleration of Presbyters , which they would not give to Presbyters . For With what face can I destre a Courtesse from Him , to whom I do onenly prosess , 〈◊〉 would deny the same Courtesse ? Does not this hold as well for Us , as it did for You ? N. C. You must not Impose the Iudgments of Particular Persons upon Us , as Instances of Publique Authority . C. What do ye think then of your National Covenant ? Was That an Act of Authority ? Wherein you bind Your selves by an Oath , to settle an Uniform Presbytery , to the Exclusion of all other Forms of Church-Order , or Government what soever ; ( under the Notion of Schism ) and of Prel●…cy by Name ? Are your Consciences FOR Toleration Now , that were so much AGAINST it Then ? Nay ; there are many among you , that ●…eckon your selves under an Obligation , to pursue the Ends of that Covenant , even to this very Day : And do you think it Reasonable , for a Government to grant Privileges , and Advantages of Power , and Credit , to a Party , that owns it self under an Oath of Confederacy to endeavour the Extirpation of it ? N. C. You mean I suppose of Church-Government . C. I mean of Both Church , and State. Was it not the Test of the King's Enemies , as well as of the Bishops ? Was it not made Death without Mercy , for any Man , having taken the Solemn League and Covenant , to adhere to his Majesty ? The League and Covenant ( says Rutherford ) was the first Foundation of the Ruine of the Malignant Party in England . And whoever refuses to Disclaim it , must be rationally understood , still to Drive on the Intent of it . So that to Tolerate the Non-Conformists , is to Tolerate the Sworn Adversaries , both of Royal , and Episcopal Authority : Nay , to Tolerate Those that have Sworn to persist in that Opposition , all the Days of their Lives ; Over and above the Tolerating of those upon Pretence of Conscience FOR a Toleration , that deny to Tolerate all other People , upon as strong a Pretence of Conscience AGAINST it . Where was This Spirit of Moderation toward the weak Brethren , in the Total Suppression of the Book of Common Prayer ; and the Imposing of the Directory , to be O●…served in all the Churches within This Kingdom ? [ No Ruling Elders , but such as have taken the National Covenant . No Electors of Elders neither , ( by the Ordinance of March 14. 1645. ) but such as have taken the National Covenant . [ No Ordination , without a Testimonial of having taken the Covenant of the Three Kingdoms . None to be Admitted , or Entertained in the Universities , without taking the Solemn League and Covenant , and the Negative Oath ; and Upon Conditions of Submission , and Conformity to the Discipline , and Directory . Nay further : You will find in the Four Bills , and Propositions sent to his Majesty in the Isle of Wight , ( March 1647. ) when the Two Parties , Presbyterian , and Independent were upon so hard a Tugg ; That the Presbyterian Government , and Directory seem'd to be resolv'd upon in one Line , and unsettled again , in the very next . By a Provision : That no Persons whatsoever should be liable to any Question , or Penalty , for Non Conformity to the Form of Government , and Divine Service appointed in the Ordinances ; ( then in Force ) but be at Liberty to Meet for the Worship of God ; so as nothing might be done to the disturbance of the Peace of the Kingdom . Yet in This Crisis of Affairs ; they could clap in another stabbing Proviso against Us , upon the neck of That : i. e. That This Indulgence shall not extend to Tolerate the Use of the Book of Common-Prayer , in any Place whatsoever . And at this rate , you treated the Episcopal Party , throughout the whole Course of your Power . N. C. And good Cause for it . Were not they the most likely of all others to disappoint our Settlement ? C. Agreed . But as to the matter of Conscience ; Did you Well , or Ill in 't ? Or rather , Was there any thing of Conscience in the Case ? N. C. Certainly it was very fit for the Civil Power to look to it self : And the Power Ecclesiastical was no less concern'd to exact a Consormity to the Laws , and Ordinances of Christ. C. How can you say This , and consider what you say , without blushing ? If you did well , in Refusing to Tolerate the Episcopal Way , because you thought it not Right ; the Reason is as strong for Our Way , that have the same Opinion of Yours . If you did Well on the Other side , out of a Political Regard to the Publique Peace , so do We now , upon That very sc●…re . So that you must either confess , that You did Ill , Then , in Refusing a Toleration to Us ; or otherwise allow , that Authority does Well , Now , in not permitting it to You. N. C. There might be some Plea for a little Strictness more then ordinary , in the Heat of an Eager , and Publique Contention : But methinks a Persecution in Cold Blood , does not savour of the Spirit of our Profession . SECT . XV. The Non-Conformists JOYNTCOMPLAINTS of Hard Measure , and Persecution , confronted with their own JOYNT-PROCEEDINGS . C. WHat is it that you call Hard Measure , and Persecution ? N. C. Your Unmerciful Impositions , upon Tender Consciences , by Subscriptions , Declarations , &c. There are few Nations under the Heavens of God ( as far as I can learn ) that have more Able , Holy , Faithful , Laborious , and Truly Peaceable Preachers of the Gospel , ( Proportionably ) then Those that are now cast out in England , and are like in England , Scotland , and Ireland to be cast out , if the Old Conformity be still urged . Ours is not a Wicked , Prophane , Drunken Ministry . C. That is , by Interpretation : God We thank Thee , that We are not as other Men are . — Nor even as these Publicans . But to the Matter . These People that you speak of , are set aside for not Obeying the Law : But What do you think of those , that were turn'd out of their Livings , because they would not Oppose it ? And they were dispossest too , by some of the present Complainants themselves : Who first came in at the Window , and now are turn'd out at the Door . No less then a Hundred and fifteen were Ejected here in London , within the Bills of Mortality ( besides Paul's and Westminster ) And the rest of the Kingdom throughout , was purged after that Proportion . Nor was it thought enough to Sequester , unless they starv'd them too ; for they were not allow'd to take the Employment , either of School-Masters , or Chaplains , but under Heavy Penalties . In South Wales , the Gospel was as well Persecuted , as the Ministry : The Churches shut up , and the People let loose to the Lusts and Corruptions of Unbridled Nature . The Only Pretence of Iustification that the Reformers had , was That Unchristian , and Unmanly Libel , WHITE' 's CENTURIES of Scandalous Ministers ; wherein , without any Respect , either to Truth , or Modesty , They have Exposed so many Reverend Names , to Infamy , and Dishonour , for the better Colour of their own Sacrilegious Usurpations . But take This along with you , that Loyalty in those Days past for a Punishable , and Notorious Scandal . N. C. These were Acts of Policy , and let Statesmen answer for them . But to have Men cast out of the Church , because they will not Subscribe , and Declare , contrary to their Consciences , is doubtless a most Unconscionable Severity . C. And What is it in the Subsciption ( I beseech you ) that you stumble at ? As to the Acknowledgment of his Majesties Supremacy , I suppose , you would not be thought to stick at That . And in Matters of Doctrine , you make Profession to joyn with us : So that about the Lawfulness of using the Book of Common-Prayer , and your own Submission to the Use of it , is the Only Question . Your Exceptions likewise to the Declarations seem to be very weakly grounded , unless you make a Scruple of Declaring your selves for the Uniformity of the Church , Or for the Peace of the Civil Government : In which Cases you cannot fairly pretend to be trusted in Either . But not to Extravagate . You are against the Imposing of Subscriptions , and Declarations , you say . N. C. I am against the very Imposition it self , upon any Terms ; But when They are prest upon Grievous Penalties ; They are utterly Intolerable . C. And yet when the Common-Prayer was abolish't , There was a PENALTY , of Five Pound , for the first Offence ; Ten for the Second ; And a Years Imprisonment , without Bail or Mainprize , for the Third Offence , upon any Man that should use it . So that Here was an Interdiction of Our Way of Worship upon a PENALTY ; and No notice taken of Invading the Liberty of Our Consciences . By the same Ordinance , of August 23. 1645. was also commanded the Exercise and Order of the Directory ; and That upon a FORFEITURE too : With a PENALTY , from Five Pound to Fifty , upon any Man , that should Preach , Write , or Print any thing to the Derogation of it . Now Here was Rigor , you see , on Both Sides : But no Clamor , upon the Matter of Conscience in This Case neither . How many of Our Ministers were Poyson'd in Peter-House , And Other Prisons , either for Worshipping according to their Consciences , or refusing to Act against Them ! No Man was admitted to his Composition without SWEARING ; No Man to live in the Parliaments Quarters without SWEARING . Neither were We only debarr'd the Common Rights of Subjects , and the Benefits of Society : But the Comforts of Religion were denied Us ; And an Anathema pronounced upon Us for Our Fidelity . The General Assembly in Scotland Ordain'd , That known Compliers with the Rebells , and such as Procured Protections from the Enemy ; or kept Correspondence , or Intelligence with Him , should be Suspended from the Lo●…d's Supper , till they manifested their Repentance before the Congregation . [ ●…illespy's Useful Cases of Conscience , Pag. 19 , 20. ] His late Majesty , in his Large Declaration of the Affairs of Scotland , Pag. 199. tells you , That Men were beaten , turn'd out of their Livings , Reviled , Excommunicated , Process'd , for NOT SUBSCRIBING the Covenant . And again , Pa. 202. That there was an OATH given at a Communion at F●…fe , Not to take the King's Covenant , Nor any other , but their own . Now , hear the Commissioners of the General Assembly , Iuly 25. 1648. His Majestie 's Concessions , and Offers , from the Isle of Wight , are to be by the Parliament Declared Unsatisfactory ; Unless his Majesty give Assurance by SOLEMN OATH , under his Hand , and Seal , for Settling Religion according to the Covenant ; before his R●…stitution to his Royal Power , But that I am loth to overcharge you , I could give you the History of the Spiritting several Persons of Honour for Slaves ; The Sale of Three or Four Score Gentlemen to the Barbadoes ; beside Plunders , Decimations , and infinite other Outrages , both Publique , and Private . Give me leave to mind you now a little●… of some few of Your General Provisions for the Destruction of the King's Party , and the Extirpation of that Family , and Government to which Providence has once again Subjected you . a An Ordinance for Sequestration of Delinquents Estates . b Delinquents Disabled to bear any Office , or have any Vote in Election of any Major , &c. Here 's Estate , and Legal Freedom gone already : Now follows Banishment from One Place , and Confinement to Another . c Delinquents must be removed from London and Westminster , and Confined within five M●…es of their own Dwelling . d Correspondency with Charles Stuart , or his Par●…y , prohibited , under Pain of High Treason ; and e Death to any Man , that shall attempt the Revival of his Glaim , or that shall be Aiding , Assisting , Comforting , or Abetting , unto any Person endeavouring to set up the Title of Any of the Issue●… of the Late King. Where were the ABLE , HOLY , FAITHFUL , LABORIOUS , and TRULY PEACEABLE Preachers of the Gospel , with the Tender Consciences you talk of , when These Things were a Doing ? Truly , Neither Better nor Worse , then up to the very Ears , a great many of them , in the Main Action . Some , Preaching up the Conscience of the War ; Others , Wheedling the City out of their Money to Maintain it ; and Calling for more Blood in Prosecution of it . Till in the Conclusion , The King , and the Government , fell in the Quarrel : And the Pulpits all this while at hand , to Patronize the Reformation . N. C. This Ripping up of Old Stories , does but widen the Breach , without doing any Good at all . C. If you would not hear of these things again , you should not do them again . N. C. Then it seems the Whole must suffer for some Particulars . C. No , not so . But neither must the Whole go Scot-free for some Particulars . Would you have me open my Door to a Troop of Thieves , because there are four or five Honest Men in the Company ? That there are divers Conscientious , and well-minded Men among the Non-Conformists , I make no Question . But I am yet Positive in This , that the Non-Conformists ; in Conjunction , are in a Direct Conspiracy ; and that when they come once to agree in a Publique Complaint , It is no longer Conscience , but Faction . This by the By. — Now to the Matter before Us ; I have given you a Breviate of your own Proceedings , in the very Case of your Present Complaints . Lay your Hand upon your Heart , and bethink your self , who are the Persecutors . N. C. Let the Persecution rest where it will ; I am fully perswaded , that there is no Settling of this Kingdom in a State of Security , Peace , and Plenty , without an Indulgence , or Toleration . SECT . XVI . The Non-Conformists tell us , That Liberty of Conscience is the Common Interest of This Kingdom : but REASON , and EXPERIENCE tell us the CONTRARY . C. THat We may not spend our selves in Repetition , Cavil , or Confusion ; Take Notice , that 't is the General Cause of the Non Conformists , which is coming under D●…bate . For That Toleration which the Whole Party desires , must needs be a Toleration of the Whole Party : And That I Oppose ; in Confidence , that I have Reason , and Experience on my side . We have spoken already , as to the Unlawfulness ; and somewhat likewise ; to the Dangerous Consequences of it : Together with the Unruly Opinions , and Practices of several of the Pretenders to it . We are now to look a little further into it , with a more Immediate regard to the Common Interest of the Kingdom , which we may place in the Concernments of Religion , Government , Peace , and Plenty . To begin with Religion : I do not Understand , how That which delights in Unity , shall be advantaged by Division , and Fraction . N. C. As if there could be no Unity of Doctrine , without Uniformity of Discipline . The Precept is ; One Lord , One Faith , One Baptism : And not One Way , One Form of Worship . C. I might tell you , that it is of Ancient , and Unreprovable Practice ; for every National Church to appoint its own Platform of Service , and Ceremonies ; And to require Obedience , and Conformity to That Model , and to Those Rites respectively , from all its Members . But This I shall not insist upon . There is no Precept ( you say ) for any One Way , or Form. But can you shew me , that an Uniformity of Service , and Rituals is any where forbidden ? N. C. Not in Particular : But in the General Prohibition of all Uncommanded Worship , Pag. 26. C. The Matter in short is This. Either We have a Rule in the Gospel for the Manner of Our Worship ; Or we have None . If there be No way of Commanded Worship , left us , by Christ , and his Apostles ; And all Uncommanded Worship be ( as you say ) forbidden , There must be No appointed Worship at all ; and Then , every Man is at Liberty , Not only to Worship after what Manner he pleases , but ( effectually ) to Chuse , Whether he 'l Worship , or No : Which brings in all sorts of Heresies , and Blasphemies ; and Countenances even Atheism it self . Now , on the other Hand ; If there be any Particular Manner of Worship Prescribed in the Word of God ; from That Particular Manner , we must not presume to Vary , by a Toleration of any other Way then That ; or of More , then One. Besides , that it undermines the Foundation of all Communities , to deny the Civil Authority a Right of Interposing in such Cases , as are Neither Commanded , nor Forbidden , by God. Let us next Consider the Probable Effects of a Toleration , in respect of the Parties pretending to it . Which are , either Presbyterian ; Or ( in a Sense of Contradistinction ) Independent . The Former are for a Subordination in Churches . The Other for an Independency : ( according to their Denomination ) These are for Gather'd Congregations ; The Other , for Parochial . I will not trouble you with the Argumentative Part of the Differences betwixt them ; About the Subordination , or Co-ordination of Churches ; The Redundance , or Defect of Church-Officers ; The Receptacle of the Power of the Keys , and the like : But Nakedly , and Briefly , shew you the Kindness they have for One Another ; The Regards they have for Christian Charity , in the Menage of the Quarrel ; and Then leave you your self to Judge , what may be the Event of such a Toleration , as to RELIGION . The Sectaries ( says Edwards in his Gangraena ) agree with Iulian the Apostate , P. 54. ] They are Libertines , and Atheists , P. 185. ] Unclean , Incestuous , P. 187. ] Drunkards , P. 190. ] Sabbath-Breakers , Deceivers , P. 191. ] Guilty of Gross Lying , Slandering , Iuggling , Falsifying their Words and Promises : Excessive Pride , and Boasting , P. 192. ] Insufferable Insolences , Horrible Affronts to Authority , P. 194. ] There never was a more Hypocritical , False , Dissembling , Cunning Generation in England , then many of the Grandees of those Sectaries . — They Encourage , Protect , and Cry up for Saints , Sons of Belial , and the Vilest of Men , P. 240. Gangraena's Second Part , 1646. — See Now the Other Party doe as much for the Presbyterians . The Presbyterian Government is Anti-Christian , Tyrannical , Lordly , Cruel , a worse Bondage then under the Prel●…tes ; A Bondage under Task-Masters , as the Israelites in Aegypt : A Presumptu●…us , Irregular Consistory , which hath no Ground in the Word of God. Barrow , P. 79. ] A Vexatious , Briery , Thorny , Persecuting Pre●…ytery . [ Pulpit Incendiary , P. 26. ] F●…rmidable to States , and Free Kingdoms . [ Mr. Nye . ] The Assembly is Antichristian , Romis●… , 〈◊〉 , the Plague ▪ s , and P●…sts of the Kingdom ; Baal's Priests . [ Gangraena's Second Part , 230. ] The Seed of God in This Nation has had Two Capital Enemies , The Romish Papacy , and the Scotch Presbytery . [ Sterry's England's Deliverance , P. 7. ] An Anabaptist said , that He hoped to see Heaven and Earth on fire , before Presbytery should be settled ; [ Edwards his Gangraena . ] Barrow calls the Consistorians , Dangerous , and Pestilent Seducers ; Ravening Wolves , which come to Us in Sheeps Cloathing . ] This is enough to shew you the Mutual , and Implacable Enmity , and Opposition of the Two Grand Parties , which , you are now perswading your self , might be gratified , by a Common Indulgence . Let me further Mind you , that the Strife ended not there Neither , but proceeded to Blood : And that , so soon , as they had Master'd the Government , in a Combination , under the Masque of Reformation , and Conscience ; They parted Interests , and Upon the Very same Pretext , Engaged in a Second War ; and fell foul , One upon the Other . Wherein they sufficiently Manifested to the World , that they fought , not for Forms , and Ceremonies ; but for Booty , and Dominion . No less to the Scandal of the Religion of England , then to the Ruine of the Monarchy . N. C. You are not to stop my Mouth with Instances of Tumults , and Factions , in a Peaceable Plea for Religion , and Conscience . C. Do not you know , that Toleration is as good , as an Issue in a Government ? All the Vicious Humours in the whole Body flow that way . But Suppose it Conscience ; Are the Dissenters ever to be Reconciled ? Shall we not have Nem , and Monstrous Opinions Propagated daily ? And will it not be every Man's business , to Advance the Credit , and Authority of his own Party ? Where is the Bond of Peace , in this Exercise , and Latitude of Dissention ? The Unity of the Church , in this Multiplicity of Professions ? Which is the True Religion , among so many divided , and contradictory Pretenses to it ? Or rather ; Is there any Religion at all , where there is neither Christian Charity , Stability of Principles , Reverence , or Agreement , in God's Worship ? N. C. I hope you will not deny the Protestant Interest to be the Interest of the True Religion : And undoubtedly , the bringing of the Protestants into an Union among Themselves , is the Advantage of every Protestant State , ] and of Protestancy it self . C. Past all Dispute ; and an Uniformity of Worship brings them into that Union ; Which is never to be attained , while the World endures , by a Liberty of Conscience . How was the Protestant Interest ( I beseech you ) United in the late Dissolution of Government ; When Every Man did that which was Right in his own Eyes ? Examine the Story well , and you will find Reason to believe , that the Church of Rome has gain'd more upon Us , since That Unsettlement of Ecclesiastical Order , then perchance from the first hour of the Reformation , even unto That very Day . For Liberty of Conscience , did no less bring a Civil War upon the Protestant Religion , then the Pretended Liberty of the Subject did upon the State. It turned every Man's Hand against his Brother . Every Man had a Religi●…n to Himself , and every Man's Conscience ( as I told you ) was his Bible ; and We are still to presume , that like Causes will produce like Effects . It is also remarquable , that the lowdest , and boldest Declamers against the Orders of the Church , proved likewise , the most Pragmatical , and Audacious Invaders of the Civil Peace ; The Antecedent Schism serving only for a Prologue to the Ensuing Sedition . N. C. This Arraignment of their supposed Principles , about Government , may haply proceed upon Mistake . There is Reason to think , that the many late Disputes , about Prerogative , and Liberty , are Controversiae ortae , non primae ; that they had their Rise from something else , which lies at the Bottom . C. This is but Peradventure I , Peradventure No. For if a Man may haply be in a Mistake , he may haply too be in the Right . I will grant ye likewise , that the Disputes about Prerogative , and Liberty , had their Rise from somewhat else , which lay at the Bottom . That is to say ; It was not Purity of Religion , Reformation of the Liturgie , Retrenching the Exorbitant Power of Bishops , or Scruple of Conscience , ( as pretended ) that wrought the Subversion of Church , and State ; but it was the Design , which lay at the Bottom , of Carrying on the Great Work of Overturning the Government , under Countenance of that Plausible Imposture , and Disguise . N. C. Inclinations , and Interests , more then Speculative Opinions , will be found to have born the Sway , and Caused those Active Motions , on the One Hand , and the Other . These Dogmata , or Problems about Obedience , and Government , do but little , where Mens Affections , and Concernments do not give them Spirit , and Uigor . C. It is most Certain , that Problems draw no Blood ; and We do not read , that ever any Man's Throat was cut , with a Speculation , or a Syllogism ; But yet , Inclinations , and Interests ( you allow ) may do much , towards Mischief : So that , I have what I desire , if I am but able to make it out , that Liberty of Conscience will , most indubitably , beget strong Inclinations in the People , to shake off the Yoke of Government ; and that they will not want specious Appearances of Interest so to Do. First ; The Servants of Iesus Christ ( as the Non-Conformists peculiarly stile themselves ) have This Advantage of the Subjects of Temporal Princes ; that They serve the Better Master : and the Dignity of their Spiritual Profession supersedes the Duty of their Political Allegeance . ( So often , as they shall think Good , to stand upon That Privilege ) By Virtue of which Prerogative , they do not only Claim an Exemption from the Obligation , and Reach of Humane Laws ; But a Commission also , and Authority , to Reform those Laws , ( in Case of Error , and Corruption ) according to the Standard of the Gospel . Now to this Principle , and Doctrine , do but add Liberty of Conscience ; and the People have Law , and Magistracy at their Mercy already . For First ; they reckon themselves no further answerable either to the One , or to the Other , then as they find them Warranted in , and Grounded upon the Word of God. And Secondly ; they may chuse whether or no , they will find any Law , or Magistrate , whatsoever , to be so Warranted , or Grounded ; And consequently , Whether there shall be any Government , or No. One Man's Conscience cannot allow This , or That Injunction to be according to God's Word : It may be Lawful to Another , but it is not so to Him ; and Hee calls for Indulgence , and Moderation . Another Man's Conscience swears by the most High God , that it is point-blank Against it ; and nothing will serve Him , but utter Extirpation . And whatsoever they call Conscience , must pass for Current . Every Man is to govern himself by his own Opinion ; not by Another bodies . It is no longer Liberty of Conscience , if a Man shall be run down , and concluded , by Prescription , Authority , Consent of Fathers , Scripture , Reason , and the like , without being CONVINC'D . N. C. I thought you would have shewed me in what manner , or by what means Liberty of Conscience comes to turn the Hearts , and Interests of Subjects against their Superiors , as you said you would . C. A little Patience , and I 'le be as good as my Word . It has brought us to this pass , already , you see , that it has cast the Government upon the good Nature of the Multitude , and made it purely dependent upon the Breath of the People , whether it shall Stand , or Fall. So that ( in short ) the Matter in Question , falls under these Two Considerations . First ; Whether a People , left to Themselves , either to be under the Restrient of Laws , or not , will not rather agree to cast off a Government , then to defend it . Secondly ; Whether they will not , likewise , find a very fair appearance of Interest , and Advantage , in so doing . The Former , I think , will easily be Granted , by any Man that does but advise either with the Common Practises of the World , or with Humane Frailty : Taking the World , either in Individuals , or in Parties . What says the Artificer , the Tradesman , the Farmer ? Why should We be put upon Extremities of Hard Labour , Course Fare , Rising early , and Going to Bed late ? ( and all little enough to keep our Families from starving ) any more then such , and such ; that lie wallowing in Ease , Abundance , Luxury , and Riot ? But This we may thank the Law for ; that has Appropriated those Possessions to Particulars , which God Almighty gave us in Common . Why should We be the Drudges of the Kingdom ? ( says the Day-Labourer ) The Law is Their Enemy too , because it keeps them in Awe , that they dare not Steal . It is the same Case , with Traytors , Felons , Vagabonds , and all Criminals . And so it is with Factions , and Associated Parties ; We might set up This Government , or This Church ; and We , T'other , ( say they ) if it were not for Those Accursed Laws , that make it Death to Endeavour such an Alteration . This is a True , and Naked Accompt of the Peoples Thoughts , and Reasonings , in the Point of Liberty , and Obedience : and a sufficient Proof of their INCLINATION ( not against This , or That ; but ) against any Establishment : It being the main End of Government , to secure the Community against the Encroachments , and Attempts of Particulars : Though to the very great Damage , and Ruine , ( many times ) of Private Persons , and Parties . If you be satisfied now , that the People do not Naturally love Government , you need not doubt but they will judge it their INTEREST to Remove it : Every Male-Content , enterteining himself with hopes of mending his Condition upon the Change. But Alas ! This is not an Undertaking for Single Persons , Small Parties , or Petty Factions , by Themselves apart ; but some Common Medium must be found out , for the Uniting of them All ; which , indeed , is amply provided for , in the Project of Liberty of Conscience : and does not only facilitate the Work , by drawing the Disaffected into a Body ; but it does also Countenance , and Encourage it , by Authorising the Separation . N. C. But to Me , it seems , on the Contrary , that an Indulgence would set the Peoples Minds at Liberty from Fears and Contrivances , for the avoidance of Impendent Dangers ; and encourage them to engage the Utmost of their Endeavours and Abilities , in the Businesses of Peace , and Security . ] C. As to the Security , and Peace of the Publique , if enough be not already said , you may repair to the History of our late Broils , for the rest : Where you will also find the Condition of Particulars , to have been every jote as Distracted , and Unquiet ( in proportion ) as That of the Government . You are to expect Schisms in Corporations , Companies , Families ; as well as in Religious Congregations : Divisions , as well betwixt Parents , and Children ; Masters , and Servants ; as betwixt Rulers , and Subjects : Feuds betwixt Man , and Wife ; betwixt Brethren , Kinred , Friends ; and all these Differences , variously Influenced , according to the Benignity , or Malignity of their Divided Opinions . Nor will it be any wonder , ( upon admittance of This Liberty ) to have as many Religions in a House , as Persons : where the Husband draws one way , the Wife , another ; and the Rest of the Family have Their ways by Themselves , too . And This goes on , ( to the utter Extermination of Order , Duty , and Quiet ) till they have throughly wearied themselves , with Tossing , and Tumbling from one Sect , or Profession , to another . And then , when they are at their Wits End , they commonly take up in the Church of Rome , with an Implicite Faith , in the Conclusion . Now if what I have said , may be of force sufficient to prove , that Liberty of Conscience , is destructive , both of Religion , and Government ; and of the Peace of the Kingdom , as well Private , as Publique . I cannot see how it should advance us , ( as is earnestly suggested ) in the Business of Trade , and Plenty . N. C. We shall never have a Flourishing Trade without it : Because the Pressure in these things falls generally more upon the Trading sort of Men , then any in the Nation . We may see it in the Great City , and in all Corporations : It makes many give over Trading , and Retire ; It makes others remove into Holland , and other Forreign Parts ; as it did heretofore from Norwich , to the Irrecoverable Prejudice of our Cloathing Trade , upon the like Occasion ; And it certainly prevents all Protestant Strangers to come to Live , and Trade among us . C. The Pressure ( you say ) falls most upon TRADERS : I answer , that you begin with a Non Constat ; for the Thing it self does not appear . And then , you make Traders more Scrupulous then the rest of the Nation , who are not Generally understood to be more Conscientious ; as having divers Temptations in the way of their Employments , to strein a Point of Conscience now and then ; and they are but Men , as well as their Neighbours . If your Observation be Right ; We may thank the Nonconforming Ministers , who have had the handling of them . Your urging , that want of Liberty makes many give over Trading , and Retire , does not agree with their Observation , that place their Wonder on the other side , that so many Hold ; considering the Circumstances of a long , and Expensive War with the French , and Dutch. ( The most Expensive that ever this Kingdom undertook ) And Two of the most dreadful , and destroying Iudgments that ever Almighty God laid upon this Nation , i. e. Pestilence , and Fire , one upon the neck of another . You object , the Removal of others into Holland , as formerly . Indeed it is not for the Credit of your Cause to mind us of those that formerly left us . Take the Peins to read Bayly's Disswasive , Pa. 75. and there you shall see what Work they made in Holland : Even such , that Peters himself was scandalized at it ; quitted his Congregation , and went to New-England . Bridg , Sympson , and Ward , renounc'd their English Ordination , and took Ordination again from the People . The People , after this , deposed Mr. Ward ; and the Schism betwixt Sympson's Church , and Bridg his , was so fierce , that their Ministers were fain to quit their Stations ; and the Dutch Magistrate forc'd to interpose the Civil Authority to quiet them . In New England , their Humour , and Behaviour not much Better ( according to the Report of the same Author , Pag. 60 , 61. ) Of Forty Thousand Souls , not a Third Part would be of any Church ; and such Heresies started , as a Man would tremble to Recite . If only such as These forsake us , the Land has a good Riddance . Further ; If it was to the Prejudice of our Cloathing Trade , ( This Separation ) Who can help it ? It was Their Fault to betray the Interest of their Country , by teaching the Mystery to Forreigners ; but no blame at all can be reflected upon the Government , for Refusing Toleration to such Lawless , and Unruly Libertines . Now , as to the hindring of Protestant Strangers from coming over to us , and Trading with us , It is a clear Mistake , to imagine the Church of England to be such a Bugbear to those of the Reformation abroad , as is pretended . ( Which shall hereafter be made appear ) It is not the Act of Uniformity that hinders Strangers , but the want of an Act of Endenisation ; which , perchance , the Wisdom of future Times will find convenient , for the Supply , and Repair of that Depopulation which is brought upon us by our Colonies . But to come to an Issue . How was it with Trade , when Conscience took the full Swinge ? It brought on a War ; and so it must again , or a Standing Army to prevent it . How many Families were ruin'd , on the one side , with pure Benevolence to the Cause , in Contributions , and Enterteinments to the Devourers of Widows Houses , and the Captivaters of silly Women ? And on the other side , as many were undone with Taxes , and Plunder . How went Trading on , when all Business was neglected , but Gallopping up and down to Lectures , to hear News , and Sedition ? When Prentices robb'd their Masters , and took Sanctuary in the Service ? When Publique Faith was a Tradesmans best Security ; and the whole Nation held Life , and Estate , at the good Pleasure of a Close Committee ? N. C. Let Liberty of Conscience be once FITLY given , and the Root of all Mens Hopes , and Pretensions , that desire Publique Mischief , is pull'd up . C. FITLY , will be well indeed ; But ( with your Favour ) what is the meaning of FITLY ? How shall we agree upon the Dos ? Unless you intend , that the Magistrate is to continue Giving , till the Subject shall leave Asking . And That must be : For , If ever he thinks of holding his hand sooner , he had better have done nothing . N. C. But what Colour will there be for any further Exception ? C. The very same they have now . New Scruples will bolt New Demands : And Beside ; I should be glad if you would furnish me with any one Instance , where the Non-Conformists were ever the better for Indulgence . SECT . XVII . This Kingdom has been still the Worse for Indulging the Non-Conformists , and the Party never the Better . Which evinces , that UNIFORMITY is the True Interest of This Government , and Not Toleration . C. UPon Queen Elizabeth's coming to the Crown , Those Non-Conformists , that fled , in Queen Mary's Days , and Separating from the English Congregation at Francfort , went off to Geneva , came back again for England : and with their Libels , Clamours , Private Consultations , and Meetings , gave Trouble enough to the Government for the Ten first Years of her Majesties Reign ; who was , at that time , so beset , with the Roman Catholiques , on the One Hand ; and the Puritans , on the Other , that she thought it well , upon that Pinch , to save her self , without Exercising Rigor , and Severity upon either Party . This Impunity gave them the Confidence , a while after , to declare themselves for the Geneva Discipline , and ( in the Fourteenth of Her Reign ) by an Audacious Pamphlet ( under the Title of An Admonition ) to press the Parliament to a Reformation . The Principal Abetters of This Libel were Discover'd , and Clapt up ; And soon after , out comes a Second Admonition ; telling the Parliament , in Plain English , that , if Authority would not , they must set it up Themselves . And it was not long , ere they were as good as their Words , by Erecting several Formal Presbyteries up and down the Kingdom . ( As appeared , upon Undeniable Proof , and Confession of Parties to the Combination ) They had their Synods ; their Classical , and Provincial Conferences ; Pronounc'd their Decrees : Concurring in the main against Bishops , Ceremonies , and Common Prayer . They had their Agents throughout the Kingdom , upon a strict Survey of the Value of every Benefice ; the Number of Parishioners ; Their Quality , manner of Life , and Conversation . Their Book of Discipline was long upon the Anvile ; but at length , ( about 1586. ) it was Finished , Communicated , and Subscribed : with a Promise , to observe it Themselves , and to use all Lawful , and CONVENIENT Means to further , and advance it . In Conclusion ; the whole Matter came to be Detected ; Cartwright , Snape , and several of the Ringleaders , were Examin'd , and Committed : Whereupon , Coppinger , Arthington , Hacket , Wigginton , &c. Entred into a Conspiracy for their Deliverance ; and to have the Blood of every Man that should dare to give his Vote against them , in the Star-Chamber ; nay , to Depose the Queen her self , in Case of her Refusal to promote the Reformation . And all this , not without the Privity , and Tacit Approbation of the most considerable Ministers of the Party . This was the blessed Fruit of Lenity , and Forbearance under Queen Elizabeth ; The Law Iustled out by a Faction ; A Plot upon the Life of the Queen , and Counsel , carried on , under Colour of Religion , and Reformation . N. C. Still I perceive , you pick out the foulest Cases , and Instances you can lay hold on , to Match with Ours . C. Is it not rather your Misfortune , to write after the foulest Copies ? But to the Business : What would you say , if his Majesty now in being , had Queen Elizabeth's Game to Play ? Apprehensions of his Life , from Iesuits , Both Protestant , and Papist ? The whole Generation of the Non-Conformists United against his Person , and Government , as well in Iudgment , as in Faction ? ( which are here divided into a Thousand Disagreements ) You would ( beyond all peradventure ) give the Government for lost , without an immediate Recourse to an Act of Indulgence , and Accommodation , to preserve it . But the Policy of Those Times made Choice rather of another Course ; Some were Imprison'd ; Others , put to Death ; according to the Demerit of the Offence . N. C. Are you for Punishing Inconformity with Death then ? C. No , by no means ; Hacket , you know , was not put to Death for Inconformity , but for Treason . And pray let me give You a Brief of his Story , as Cambden delivers it . He was born at Oundle in Northamptonshire ; a Poor , Insolent , Ill-natured , and Illiterate Fellow . He married a Widow , spent her Fortune in Riot ; and when he had Nothing else to Trust to , betook himself to the Imposture of Religion , and an Affectation of the Geneva Discipline : So far Ingratiating himself with several of the Prime Zealots of That Profession , that they did him the Honour to make Him of their Council , in their Grand Design , ( to the Execution whereof , He also pretended an Extraordinary Call , and Commission from Above ) He was ( in Conclusion ) Apprehended , Charged with Treason , found Guilty , Condemn'd , and Executed . Now to shew you the Devil himself , in the shape of an Angel of Light , This Hacket , as He was upon the Hurdle , in the way to his Execution , never left Calling upon Almighty God , with Hideous Outcries : And Now behold ( says he ) the Heavens are Open , and the Son of the most High coming down to Deliver me . When he was come to the Place of Execution , He prosecuted his Blaspemies , with more Horrid , and Furious Exclamations : [ Heavenly , and Almighty God ; Thou that art the Alpha , and Omega ; Lord of Lords , and King of Kings ; Thou Eternal God ; That knowest ME to be the True JEHOVAH , that thou hast sent ; Shew some Miracle from Heaven , for the Conversion of These Infidels ; and save me from my Enemies ; Or if thou dost not , I 'le set the Heavens on Fire , and with these very Hands cast Thee out of Thy Throne . I should have scrupled the bare Recital of these Blasphemies , were it not for the Desire I have , to Possess you with a Due Consideration of those Execrable Abuses , that are frequently Imposed upon the World , under the Visor of Religion . The Condition of the Kingdom was doubtless very sad , that had such Turbulent Spirits to deal withal ; and yet we find , that by One Severe Law ( of the 35th of the Queen's Reign ) Her Majesty gave her Self , and her People , Quiet , as to That Particular , for the whole Remainder of her Life . The Penalties ( as I remember ) were These ▪ Imprisonment without Bail or Main-prize , for being Present at Unla●…ul Conve●…ricles ; The Offender to be discharged , if within Three Months He made his Open Submission , and Acknowledgment , in the Form by the said Statute appointed . But in Case of Recusancy to Conform within That time , He was required to Abjure the Realm . And in Case of Refusing to Abjure ; Or of not Departing within a limited Lime ; Or of Returning without Licence , to be proceeded against as a Felon , without Benefit of Clergy . N. C. And yet you see , for all your New-modelling of Corporations ; Prohibiting of Conventicles , Removing Non-Conformists five Miles from the Place of their Usual Supports , and Influences : Nevertheless , the State Ecclesiastical hath advanced little in the Esteem , Acceptance , or Acquiescence of the People . C. This is very True ; and if Other Laws for the Prevention of Capital Crimes , were no better Executed , then That for Uniformity , Your Argument would lie as fair every jot , for the Toleration of Murder , as it does now for Schism . But however , it succeeded well with Queen Elizabeth ; and not worse with King Iames , as appears by the Story . His Majesty ( under Twelve Years Old ) took the Government of Scotland into his Hand . The Year following , the Ministers presented a Form of Church-Policy , to the Parliament then Sitting ; and upon the Debate , matters were agreed , as far as Possible , without Prejudice to the King's Authority , and the Liberty of the Subject : And These Points were either referr'd to further Consideration , or pass'd over in Silence . The Assembly took snuff at this D●…latory way of Proceeding , and , without more adoe , pass'd a Vote , for doing their own Business , without asking the Parliament leave . They began with the Arch-Bishop of Glasgow : and presently fell upon the whole Order , requiring Them to renounce their Temporal Titles , Their Civil Iurisdiction ; To decline their Votes in Parliament , and to submit themselves to a Retrenchment of their Episcopal Revenues . Their next step , was the Demolishing of the Cathedral at Glasgow : But when the Quarriers were just entring upon the Work , the Tradesmen of the Town , in an Uproar , threaten'd the Undertake●…s , and so they quitted it : But not without a Complaint to the Council , of the Insolence of the Mutineers ; Which came to This Issue , his Majesty justifi'd the Tradesmen , and forbad the Ministers any further meddling in the Destroying of Churches . And This was all the Cheque they had for so lewd an Outrage . In 1579 , The King wrote to the Ministers , not to prejudge the Decisions of the Parliament , then approaching , by the Conclusions of their Assembly ; and to Forbear the Practice of any Innovations , till their Meeting . Whereupon , instead of Complying , they proceeded to a Positive Resolution of Adhering to their Former Conclusions ; Question'd the Arch-Bishop of St. Andrews , for giving his Voice in Parliament ; and soon after , by an Act of Assembly , They commanded the Bishops , under Pain of Excommunication , not to Exercise the Office of Pastors , in any sort whatsoever , without Licence from the General Assembly ; and further directing , the Patrimony of the Church to be so disposed of , as they should judg Reasonable at their next Convention : Thus , by Degrees , growing Bolder and Bolder , upon Forbearance . The Particulars of their Usurpations would be too tedious ; I could otherwise tell you of their Iustification of the Treasonous Seizure of the King at Ruthuen ; Their Propositions , and Compleints in 1583 , with the King 's Gentle Return ; Their Covenants , and Seditious Practices , even to the Encouraging ; and Avowing of Open Rebellion . And still the more Plyant , and Easie his Majesty was , The more Contumacious , and Untractable were these People . In the End ; What with the Tumult at Edinburgh , in 1596 ; and the Ministers Band of Confederacy , immediately upon it ; The King was forced upon a Resolution of Rigor , and Severity ; and ( as Spotswood observes ) he received little or no Opposition thereafter . At his Majesties Entry upon the Government of England , the Ceremonies of his first Reception , and Inauguration were scarce over , but He was assaulted with Petitions , and Importunities about the Reformation of the Government , and Liturgie of the Church : in the Name of Thousands of Godly , Learned , and Conscientious Men , that could not Conform : Whereupon , a Proclamation was Issued for a Conference to be held at Hampton-Court , in Ianuary , 1604. So many Bishops , and Deans appointed for the Church ; and for the Petitioners , there appeared , Dr. Reynolds , Dr. Sparkes , Mr. Knewstubb , and Mr. Chadderton . The Points in Controversie , were Particularly , and Solemnly Debated ; and in the End , such Satisfaction given even to the Plaintiffs Themselves , that they all promis'd Obedience ; and Dr. Sparkes became , afterward , an Advocate for the Orders of the Church , and wrote a Treatise for Conformity . Knewstubb indeed boggled a little , and desired to know , How far an Ordinance of the Church was Binding , without Offence to CHRISTIAN LIBERTY ? Upon which General Question , The King turn'd short , and Answer'd him ; Le Roy●…s ' avisera : Let us have no more of Those Questions , How far you are bound to Obey , what the Church has once Ordeined : But Conform at your Peril . While the Business was fresh , they made a faint Pretense of Appealing to another Conference : but upon second Thoughts , they let it totally fall , and never gave the King any further Trouble upon That Subject . Thus far , you see , the Government has been preserv'd by strictness of Order , and Uniformity . We come now to those Fatalities of Tenderness , and Relaxation that destroy'd us . N. C. You never consider , that the Non-Conformists are more Numerous , and Powerful now then formerly they were , by many Degrees : and that the Dissenters Cause has got Ground upon the Church-Interest , ever since . But follow your Discourse . C. In the First of the late King ; was exhibited , in Parliament , A Petition , ( among other Matters ) for the Propagation of the Gospel , and the Restoring of Silenc'd Ministers ; to which , his Majesty , return'd a Gracious , and Yielding Answer , which produc'd a Remonstrance of Miscarriages in Government ; Insomuch , that his Majesty was forced to Dissolve That Parliament . In the Second Year of his Reign ; He call'd another Parliament , which pursu'd the same Method , and went a little Higher then the Former : So that the King was fain to Dissolve That too . In the Year following ; the King call'd Another ; and upon their Meeting , went somewhat a quicker way to work with them : Minding them , in a short , and pertinent Speech , of their Past Failings ; advising them to steer a more Peaceable Course for the Future , and not to put him upon Extremities , to provide for the Safety of his People . This change of Stile , and Resolution , in his Majesty , drew Immediately from the Commons , a Grant of Five Subsidies . The King was too Generous , and Candid to take That Present for a Bait ; and Relapsing into his former Temper of Charity , and Softness , was presently accosted with The Petition of Right ; which , after some Difficulty , and Demur , His Majesty passes : And after This , followed a Petition , Remonstrance , and Protestation , which put an End also to That Convention . Look now a little into the Scotch Affairs , and observe the Growth of the Non-Conformists Demands , from one thing to another ; till in the End , by virtue of what the King Granted them , they possest themselves of all the Rest. In their Tumults ( says his Majesty ) they complein'd only of the Service Book . In their Petition exhibited to the Counsel ; they complein'd of the Service-Book , and Canons . In their Covenant they complein of , and Abjure the Five Articles of Perth . ( although Establish't , first by a General Assembly , and Then by Parliament ) After This , they complein of the High Commission ; And Then , of Prelates Sitting in Civil Judicatories . Hereupon , His Majesty Commissions Marquis Hamilton , with full Power , and Authority , to Conclude , and Determine all such Things as should be found for the Good , Quietness , and Peace of that Kingdom : Directing him also to take the mildest Course that might be , for the Calming of those Commotions . And what Effect had this Peaceable Inclination of His Majesty , upon the Covenanters , but to blow them up into more Seditious , and bolder Practises , against the King's Authority , and the Publique Peace ? They pursue their Demands , and Clamour for a Free General Assembly , and a Parliament . His Majesty gives them all their Askings : Indicts a Free General Assembly , and a Parliament ; Disch●…rges the Service-Book , the Canons ; High-Commission ; The ur●…ing of the Five Articles of Perth : Commands the Subscribing of the Confession of Faith , and the Band thereto annexed ; in the very Form which they pretended to Impose ; And offers them an Act of Indemnity for what was past . In all which Condescentions , the King's Patience , and Mercy only served to heighten , and confirm those Men in their Undertaking , and to expose his Royal Dignity , to Contempt . In the conclusion , the King had so far gratified their Importunities , that they had nothing left to Quarrel upon , but His Majesties refusal to Abolish Episcopacy , and to admit the Authority of their Lay-Elders . From hence , they brake out into open Rebellion ; and ( when the King had them directly at his Mercy ) upon the Interview of the two Armies near Berwick , such was his Tenderness , that upon their Supplication for a Treaty , he Trusted them again , and Concluded a Pacification ; whereof the Covenanters observ'd not so much as One Article . Upon his Return to London , His Majesty ( as is elswhere observed ) passes the Triennial Bill ; Abolishes the Star-Chamber , and High Commission Court : Passes an Act for the Continuance of the Parliament . Not to insist upon the several other Concessions , concerning Ship-money , Forests , and Stannary Courts ; Tunnage and Poundage , Knighthood , &c. Now in Requital of these Benefits , the Faction Claps up , and Prosecutes his Majesties Friends ; Prefers , and Enlarges his Enemies ; Rewards the Scots ; Entertains their Commissioners ; Votes Them their Dear Brethren , for Invading Us ; Calls in all Books , and Proclamations against them . They take away the Bishops Votes ; Impose a Protestation upon the People ; Take away the Earl of Strafford's Life ; Charge Twelve of the Bishops with Treason ; Declare the King's Proclamations to be False , Scandalous , and Illegal ; Keep his Majesty out of his own Towns ; and Seize his Arms , and Ammunition . They present Him with Nineteen Propositions for the Resignation of his Royal Authority . They Vote a General , and Raise an Army against him . They Usurp the Power of the Militia , and give the King Battel ; Levy Moneys ; and Declare the Queen Guilty of Treason . After all These Usurpations upon the Civil Power , They are put to 't to bring the Cause of Religion once again upon the Stage : They enter into a Covenant ; and call in the Scots again ; They Abolish the Common-Prayer ; secure the Person of the King ; Share the Revenues of the Church , and Crown . They Sequester , Banish , and Imprison his Majesties Adherents ; and in the Conclusion , Sell , Depose , and Murder their Soveraign . This was the Fruit of that Pious , and Unfortunate Prince his Clemency , and Indulgence . Now to bring the Instance home to the present Times : What could be more Pious , Gracious , or Obliging , then His Majesties Declaration concerning Ecclesiastical Affairs , in Favour of the Non-Conformists ? All that was possible for the King to do , in Consistence with Conscience , Honour , and the Peace of his Dominions , His Majesty has therein given them a frank Assurance of . ( with their Lives , and Estates , over and above , in the Act of Oblivion ) And are they one jote the Quieter for all This ? No , but the Worse : for no sooner was the King's Tenderness , in That Particular , made Publique , but the Generality ( even of those that had lately Entred into a Regular , and Dutiful Compliance with the Orders of the Church ) started into a new Revolt : which proves sufficiently , the Benefit , and Necessity of a strict Rule , and the hazzard of a Toleration : For rather then abide the Penalty of the Act , they could Conform ; but upon the least Glimpse of a Dispensation , they Rel●…pse into a Schism . Neither do I find , that they were less Troublesom , before the Act of Uniformity , when they Preach'd at Randome , then they have been since ; Nor , to say the Truth , that they have much more Cause of Compleint , Now , then they had Then. For what are they the worse , for a Penalty , that is never Executed ? But if you will have a True Measure of their Moderation , and Good Nature : I pray'e take notice of their Proceedings upon His Majesties Commission , for the Review of the Book of Common-Prayer . We will appoint ( says His Majesty , in his Declaration concerning Ecclesiastical Affairs ) an Equal Number of Learned Divines of Both Perswasions , to Review the * same , and to make such ALTERATIONS as shall be thought most NECESSARY . So that the Alterations were to be agreed upon by BOTH PARTIES , and found likewise to be NECESSARY . Now instead of Alterations , joyntly agreed upon , They Publish a Complete Liturgy of their own ; indeed a New Directory ; but under the Title of The REFORMATION of the Liturgie . ( which in all their Books , signifies ABOLITION ) Give me the favour , next , to observe upon some of their NECESSARY Alterations . They have turn'd WEDDED Wife , into MARRIED . DOEST THOU Believe ? into DO YOU Believe ? All this I STEDFASTLY Believe , into All this I UNFEIGNEDLY Believe . These are some of the Important Scruples , that are cast into the Balance , against the Unity of the Church , and the Peace of the Kingdom . What is This , but to make Sport with Authority , and Conscience ? Laws must be Suspended ; Princes , Vilified and Importun'd ; because , forsooth , the Godly Party may not be Govern'd by Laws of their own making : Nay , by Words of their own chusing too ; So that we are like to have a Schism , for Syllables , as well as for Ceremonies . For what is the Difference betwixt WEDDED , and MARRIED , but that the One wears the Stamp of the Law-Makers , and the Other , of the Law-Menders ? Is it not now evident , that they are the worse for good usage ? And that they have ever been so ? You see the Effects of keeping to a Rule , in Queen Elizabeth , and King Iames : And we have since felt , to our Cost , the Effects of a Relaxation : which abundantly satisfies me , That UNIFORMITY is the true Interest of This Government , and not TOLERATION . N. C. Uniformity is the Interest of This Kingdom , as it is of any other , where there is any fair Possibility of Procuring it . But the Principles of Dissent have taken such Root in this Land , that you may as well think of Depopulating the Nation , as of Uniting it , upon the Points in Question . C. But I am otherwise perswaded ; and that the Party of Non-Conformists is not so considerable , as you make it . SECT . XVIII . The Party of Scrupulous , and Conscientious Non-Conformists , is neither NUMEROUS , nor DANGEROUS . C. I Am apt to believe that Party is not so Numerous as you represent it , for many Reasons , First ; I take English Mens Consciences , and their Neighbours , to be much of a Make : And I do not find the Subject of Our Controversie , to be made Matter of Conscience , by any other sort of Christians whatsoever , out of his Majesties Dominions . N. C. 'T is well we have Good Authority to the Contrary . The Preface to the Directory assures us , that The Liturgy used in the Church of England , hath proved an Offence , not only to the Godly at Home ; but also to the Reformed Churches Abroad . And Smectymnuus tells the Parliament , ( Pag. 10. ) that there is such a vast difference between It , and the Liturgies of all other Reformed Churches as that it keeps them at a Distance from us . C. We 'l talk of That anon ; and in the mean time ( with your good leave ) pursue what we have now before us . Another thing that peswades me the Conscientious number of Dissenters cannot be very great , is This. The Law has made an Ample Provision for their Relief : Leaving every Houshold , with Four more , at Liberty to Worship according to their own way . So that the Laity has no Pretense of Compleint ; Especially , those that plead for the Ordination of their own Ministers , and maintein , that Seven Persons make a Full , Ministerial , and Completely Organiz'd Church . A Man might make an Exception to your Accompt too , upon the score of Old Reckonings ; for you have ever had the faculty of Multiplication . Your Thousands at Hampton-Court , came to a matter of Nine and Forty : And we remember very well , your old way of Personating Petitions , from Multitudes of the Godly , and Well-affected , in both City , and Country ; when , effectually , the poor Innocent Papers never Travell'd farther , then from the Close Committee , to the Lobby . N. C. If you will not Credit Report , believe your Eyes . Do you not find our Meetings Thronged , and many of your Churches Empty ? C. Somewhat , of Both , I must Confess : but yet I am likewise inform'd , that you shew divers of these Meetings , as Peters did his Rings , and Bodkins , at several Places , several times over and over , to make a Noise , ond increase the Reputation of your Party . To contract the Discourse . There is a loud Clamour , and the Ministers make it . And These too , that stickle in the Cause , none of the most Conscientious neither , unless they have a Gospel we never heard of ; to Iustifie Disobedience in Themselves ; the Provoking of it in Others ; The Disturbing of the Publique Peace , and the Sowing of Dissention betwixt Prince , and People : Which is manifestly the Scope of their Writings , and Designs . N. C. That Undertaking goes somewhat too far , to pronounce upon their Designs . Do you pretend to know their Hearts then ? C. Yes ; and with very good Authority , If a Man may be allow'd to judge what Reasonable Men aim at , from deliberate Words , and Actions , that lead naturally , to such and such Certain Ends. And this Humour ( I tell ye ) of Aspersing the Government , and Teizing the Multitude , runs through all their Papers . I durst appeal to your own Soul , Whether you your self can Imagine , that a Twentieth Part of the present Plaintiffs in Matter of Conscience , are truly acted , and possest with that Scrupulosity they pretend to . Alas ! Alas ! You talk of Conscience : 'T is not what every Man Thinks , or Says , that is presently Conscience . We are impos'd upon , by Phansie , Artifice , or Delusion . Some Deceive Themselves , and Others Cousen Us. In one Word ; Whatsoever is not of Conscience , in this Medly , is Faction : And undoubtedly , the Conscientious Party has but a slender share in the Mixture . As That Party is not Numerous , so neither is it Dangerous : upon a Principle of Honesty , and Religion . No Man of Conscience , can either desire to Embroyl the Kingdom , or expect to be the Better for 't . But still have a care how ye take every thing for Gold , that Glisters . Conscience was the Subject of the last Quarrel ; Religion , the Pretext ; Popery the Bug-bear ; And the Issue of it was Dreadful . Consider with your selves ; You have many of the same Persons to lead you on ; And They have the very same Matter too , to work upon . You meant no hurt to the last King , you say ; And yet you ruin'd him : You may perchance Intend as little Harm to This , and yet do him as much . And what amends is it , when the Government is laid again in Dust , and Desolation , to cry , You were Overseen ? If you had thought it should ever have come to This , you would have cut off your Hands , or Tongues ; and I know not what . Look Back ; and Tremble at the Course you are now upon ; for you are , Questionless , in the very Track of the late Rebellion . And one may , without Breach of Charity , conclude , that No Man that was an Active Instrument in the last War , can acquit himself of a most Prodigious Impiety , and Ingratitude , in reviving , and prosecuting the same Interest , and Method now against the SON , by which , he notoriously contributed toward the Death of the FATHER . SECT . XIX . The Non-Conformists Appeal , from the Government , and Discipline of the Church of England , to the Judgment , and Practise of the Reformed Churches BEYOND THE SEAS ; Examined , and Submitted to Censure . C. IT is observable , that throughout the whole Quarrel against the Orders , and Government of the Church of England , the Non-Conformists still fly for Countenance to the Iudgment of the Reformed Churches , Abroad : And so likewise in the Question of Toleration , they Insist much upon the Practise , and Tenderness of Other Churches : As if the Ecclesiastical State of This Kingdom , were as Singular , for Tyranny , and Corruption , as , in Truth , the Litigants Themselves are for Contumacy , and Disobedience . In the Answer of the Two Houses to the Scots Declaration , 164●… . This Government , by Arch-Bishops , Bishops , &c. is Declared to be Evil , justly Offensive , and Burdensom to the Kingdom ; a great Impediment to the Reformation , and Growth of Religion : and Resolved it is , that it shall be taken away : With a Regard to the Introducing of another Government , more apt to procure an Union , with the Church of Scotland , and OTHER REFORMED CHURCHES ABROAD . And the Ministers , in the Petition for Peace , sing the same Note too : If Men ( say they ) must be cast out of the Church , and Ministry , because they are not wiser then the Pastors of most of the REFORMED CHURCHES , &c. As who should say ; The Church of England is the only Protestant Church in the Christian World , that pretends to This Way of Proceeding ; and the Protestants Abroad , are all of the Non-Conformists side . Let this Matter be fairly Examin'd , I beseech you , and we shall quickly see where the Fault lies . In the first Place ; What is the Judgment of the Reformed Churches abroad , touching the English Episcopacy ? N. C. You may read their , Iudgments in their Practises ; Or 't is but looking into the Reformation , in France , Holland , and the Neighbourhood , and you may resolve your self , in that Point . C. Truly I find nothing at all to your Advantage , which way soever I look ; Luther himself distinguishes betwixt Popish Tyrants , and True Bishops , and professes to Condemn them as Popish , not as Bishops . The Authors of the Augustane Confession profess ; that they would willingly preserve the Ecclesiastical , and Canonical Politie , if the Bishops would cease to Tyrannize over their Churches . Bucer declares himself wholly , for Bishops , and Metropolitans : And Melancthon to Luther ; You would not Imagine ( says he ) how some People are Nettled , to see Church-Polity restor'd : as if it were the Romish Sovereignty again . Ita de Regno suo , non de Evangelio , dimicant Socii nostri . As if the Quarrel were Dominion , not Religion . Calvin acknowledges , that the Ancient Government , by Arch-Bishops , and Bishops ; and the Nicene Constitution of Patriarchs , was for Orders sake , and Good Government . And delivers himself to Cardinal Sadolet , with an Anathema upon the Opposers of that Hierarchy , which submits it self to Jesus Christ. Zanchie ( the Compiler of the Gallican Confession ) observes a Change of Name , rather then of Office , throughout most of the German Churches : As Super-Intendents , and General-Super Intendents , in the place of Bishops , and Arch-Bishops : Acknowledging that by the Consent of Histories , Counsels , and the Ancient Fathers , Those Orders have been Generally allowed by all Christian Societies . Where they are in Exercise , let them continue ; and where , by the Iniquity of the Times , they have been abolish'd , they ought to be restor'd . Beza ( the rigid Successor of Calvin ) in excuse to the Arch-Bishop of Canterbury , for meddling beyond his Sphere : — We do not charge ( says he ) all Arch-Bishops , and Bishops , with Tyranny . — The Church of England hath offorded many Learned Men , and many Glorious Martyrs of That Function . If That Authority be there still , may a perpetual Blessing go along with it . This , in the Name of the whole Church of Geneva , and Addressed , To the Primate of all England . Totius Angliae Primati . Saravia , arguing for the Hierarchy out of the Apostles Canons , Beza returns him This Answer . This is no more , then what we wish might be restor'd to all Churches . [ Quid aliud hic statuitur , quam quod in omnibus locis , Ecclesiis restitutum cupimus ? The Three Kingdoms of Swede , Denmark , and Norway ( as Mr. Durell observes ) retein the Order still , of Bishops , and Arch-Bishops . In the Protestant Cantons of Switzerland , there is also a Subordination of Ministers . And so in the Palatinate ; in Hessen ; the Duke of Brandenburgh's Territories ; Anhalt , Bremen , Poland , Lithuania , &c. Come we now into France , Holland , and Geneva . And first hear Mr. du Bosc of the Reformed Church of Caen. Well-ordered Episcopacy hath most Important , and Considerable Utilities , which cannot be found in the Presbyterian Discipline . Mr. Gaches , one of the Ministers of Charenton . The best Men in our Churches ( says he ) have honour'd the Prelates of England . — The Name of Schism may do more harm to the Church in one Year ; then the Exc●…ss of Episcopal Authority can do in an Age. And again : Sin hath brought in the Necessity of Government ; and the Failings of Ministers make the Order of Bishops Necessary . Mr. le Moyn , of Rouen , pronounces it to be want of Prudence , and Charity , if any seek the Ruine of Bishops . [ I trust that his Majesty will be sure to re-establish the Authority of the English Church , and use his Power for a perfect Re-union of all the Reformed Churches ; which that be may Effect , His Majesty must preserve his Bishops . I hold it impossible ( says Mr. Gayon of Bourdeaux ) that England can ever be quiet , and flourish , but under the Episcopal Government . In Holland , Bogermannus , ( the President of the Synod at Dort ) upon a Suggestion from the Bishop of Landaff , how fit a Remedy Episcopacy would be for the Suppression of Heresies , and Schism , made this Reply ; Domine , non sumus adeò foelices ] We are not so happy , My Lord. And for Geneva , we have the Voices of the Principals of that Church also , for the Authority , and Advantage of Episcopal Government . So that if you be no better Seconded against our Ceremonies , then you are against our Bishops , you have the whole Stream of Protestant Divines against you . This is according to what I have formerly had occasion to deliver , upon This Subject . N. C. We do dissent , upon just Reasons , from the Ecclessastical Hierarchy , 〈◊〉 Prelacy , ( DISCLAIMED IN COVENANT ) as it was Stated , and Exercised in These Kingdoms ; yet do 〈◊〉 , nor ever did renounce the True , Ancient , Primitive Episcopacy , as it was Balanced , or Menaged by a Due Commixtion of Presbyters therewith . C. We are not here to Debate the Qualifications , and Limits of the Episcopacy you pretend to : but to proceed , having made it appear , that the Hierarchy , which , ( under Colour of Reduction , or Commixtion ) you formerly rooted out , and are now again undermining ; is That very Hierarchy , which you have now heard Reverenced , and Recommended by so many Venerable Testimonies . Or , if after all This , you can but produce one Publick Act of any Protestant Church , beyond the Seas , in favour of your Claim , do it ; and save your Party the Credit , of not being Single , and Particular in your Schism . What have you next to say against our Ceremonies ? N. C. All the best Reformed Churches of Christ , ( who only are Competent Iudges in this Case , and to whose Iudgment , and Example , we ought rather to Conform our selves , in Ceremonies , then to the Synagague of Anti-Christ ) do esteem those Ceremonies , Needless , Inexpedient , and Fit to be Abolished : How the Churches of other Countries approve of them , may appear sufficiently by this , that they have banished the use of them out of their Assemblies . C. Are they only NEEDLESS , INEXPEDIENT , and FIT to be Abolish'd then ? I thought you would have found them absolutely UNLAWFUL , IDOLATROUS , and upon pein of DAMNATION , not to be RETEINED . According to This Measure , What will become of the whole Frame of our Government , if it shall take you in the head , to say the same thing of every Law , and Constitution of the Land ? Ceremonies will not down with you , because they are Needless , Inexpedient , &c. I beseech you , shew me the Needfulness of Killing , and Plundring , or the Expedience of Dissolving Publique Laws , and Depopulating Kingdoms : And yet These are Matters you can Swallow , even without Chewing . Needless ? And Inexpedient ? So●…ly , I beseech you ; you are for teaching your Governours more WIT , as well as more Religion , and Conscience . N. C. ●…eep to your Text I pray'e ; for we are not now upon the Lawfulness of the English Ceremonies ; but upon an Enquiry , What Enterteinment they receive in the judgment , and Practise of other Reformed Churches : without engaging our selves in any other Consideration of their Reason , and Convenience . I say , they are banish'd out of their Assemblies , and you are at Liberty ( if you can ) to prove the Contrary . C. Let us first see how far we agree upon the Allowance of any Ceremonies at all , and where to place the Right , and Authority of Imposing them . The Church of England thinks it convenient , that every Country should use such Ceremonies as they shall think best , to the setting forth of God's Honour , and Glory , &c. Which is according to the sense of Other Reformed Churches , as appears by their several Confessions . With Us agrees , first , the Church of Helvetia . [ Churches have always used their Liberty in Rites , as being things Indifferent . which we also do at this Day . That of Bohemia likewise : [ Humane Traditions . and Ceremonies , brought in by a Good Custom , are with an Uniform Consent to be reteined in the Ecclesiastical Assemblies of Christian People , at the Common Service of God. The Gallican ; [ Every Place may have their Peculiar Constitutions , as it shall seem meet for them . The Belgique ; [ We receive those Laws that are fit , either to cherish or maintein Concord , or to keep us in the Obedience of God. That of Auspurgh ; [ Ecclesiastical Rites , which are Ordein'd by Man's Authority , and tend to Quietness , and Good Order in the Church , are to be Observed . That of Saxony ; [ For Order sake , there must be some Decent , and Seemly Ceremonies . That of Swethland ; Sueh Traditions of Men , as agree with the Scriptures , and were Ordeined for Good Manners . and the Profit of Men , are worthily to be accounted rather of God then of Man. N. C. The Question is not , about an Agreement in Ceremonies that may be Exercised without Offence , either to God , or Man ; ( according to your Instances ) but about their Liking , or Dislike , of Those in Practise among Us : As the Surplice ; Kneeling at the Communion ; The Cross in Baptism , and the like . C. As to the SURPLICE ; Mr. Durell tells you , that the Churches that Conform to the Confession of Augsburgh , have the very same Ceremonies with the Church of England : And Surplices in many Places . And further ; that a National Assembly at Charenton , Anno 1631. hath declared , that there is neither Idolatry , nor Superstition in That Worship . The Protestant Ministers also in Bohemia , Lithuania , Prussia , make no Scruple at all of Preaching in Surplices , whensoever they are called upon to Preach where Surplices are used . Nay , Calvin himself , does not approve of Hooper ' s violent Inconformity in that Point . [ De Pileo , & Veste Linea , maluissem ( ut illa etiam non probem ) non usque adeo ipsum pugnare : Idque nuper suadebam . And let Mr. Baxter pin the Basket. Some Decent Garment is necessary ; either the Magistrate , or Minister himself , or the Associated Pastors must determine what . If the Magistrate or Synod tie all to one Habit , ( Suppose it Indeoent ) yet this is but an Imprudent use of Power , and the thing it self being Lawful , I would Obey , and use that Garment . N. C. You only make mention , where it has been used , and permitted ; but you take no Notice where it has been Rejected . And then the Personal Authorities you cite , in favour of it , declare their Iudgments to be still against it . C. But only so against it , as not to Allow of a Separation , upon That Scruple . Now whereas you object the Refusal , or Rejection of it , elsewhere : It does not follow , that every Church disallows , what it does not Practise : And it shall content me , to find the Practise of so many Churches for us , and None , against us . As to KNEELING at the Communion ; the Bohemian Churches use that Posture , and so do the Churches of Poland . With whom , the French , and Dutch do so far agree , as In hoc Ritu , suam cuique Ecclesiae Libertatatem salvam relinquere . To leave every Church at its own Freedom , in that Particular . ] Mr. Baxter in his Five Disputations , does also profess , that rather then disturb the Peace of the Church , he would Kneel too ; How hardly soever he may think of the Imposition . So that in the Case of Kneeling , likewise , we have several of the Reformed Churches that joyn with us in the Practise of it , and not so much as any one of them , that appears in our Condemnation . Touching the Use of the CROSS in Baptism ; ( beside the undeniable Antiquity of the Custom ) you may hear from Mr. Durell , that The Reformed Churches of the Confession of Augsburgh , do for the most part , use it ; and that at Paris , many Children of the Church of Charenton , have been Baptized in the Chappels of the English Embassadours there , according to the Rites of the Church of England . And moreover , that only the Nonconforming English , and Scotch oppose it . I could enlarge my self , upon very good Authority , to the justification of our way of Worship , throughout , in every Particular of your Exceptions ; but I will rather chuse to encounter all your Objections at once ; by proving , that the Protestant Churches , Abroad , have as great a Reverence for the Authority , Rites , and Ceremonies of the Church of England , in the whole Frame of the Constitution , as they have a Kindness for the several Parts of it , which they do severally Exercise among Themselves . I must still be beholden to the Industry of the Reverend Durell , who has much obliged us with a clear , and Methodical Manifestation of the Agreement of the Church of England , ( as it is now Established by the Act of Uniformity ) with other Reformed Churches beyond the Seas . Sir Iohn Colladon ( one of his Majesties Physicians in Ordinary ) had the Honour to Congratulate his Majesties Restauration , from the City and Church of Geneva , and from the Protestant Cantons in Switzerland . Upon his Departure , he put this Quaere to the Rulers of the said Church ; Whether he might Lawfully Joyn with the Church of England , in Publique Worship , and receive the Holy Sacrament according to the usual Rites thereof ? It was Answer'd , That he might ; and that it was not to be Question'd . Here is also , A whole French Reformed Congregation , that hath Conformed to the Rites , and Ceremonies of the Church of England , to the great Satisfaction of the Divines of Rouen , Paris , Geneva , Bourdeaux , &c. And since the Establishment of This Church , divers Ministers have come over , from Geneva , France , Germany , Poland , Lithuania , Piemont ; Students , Elders , Private Persons : And none of them ever yet refused , either to Assist , or to Conform . Mr. de Laune , Minister of the Wallons Church at Norwich ; and Mr. Calendrin , one of the Ministers of the Dutch Church in London , have divers times Officiated in English Congregations , according to the Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England ] Without any Scandal , either Given or Taken . Nay , so far are they from disowning us , that the French Divines hold them for Schismatiques , and Punishable , that refuse Communion with us . * Bucer thanks God with all his Soul , to see the English Ceremonies so pure . N. C. And have they , I beseech you , their Set Forms ? Their Peremptory Impositions ? Their Declarations , and Subscriptions ? C. Yes , yes : All This , and more . For Set Forms , methinks you should rather tell me any one Reformed Church that wants a Set Form , then put me to the Trouble of Naming all that have . Calvin , and Beza are Positive for them . Geneva , much more severe for the Observance of them , then we are here ; Inconformity There , is cause of Banishment for a Year : And the Gallican Church makes it a matter of Excommunication . In Geneva ; Calvin Establish'd his Discipline by an OATH , both upon People , and Pastors , to observe That Form for ever after . The Ministers take an Oath of Canonical Obedience , in Hungary ; And the French Divines are not admitted , without Subscription . There 's no Imposing upon Publique Laws , with Private Scruples : No Bandying allow'd , betwixt Conscience , and Authority : He that will not submit to the Orders of a Community , Away with him . ( says Calvin ) It is not enough to take cheque at the Constitutions of the Church , under colour of a weak Conscience ( or so pretended ) but you must be fully satisfied , that the Constitution is Wicked IN IT SELF . Nay , Calvin carries it further . Suppose it really ministers Matter of Offence ; ( says he ) That will not serve to vacate the Obligation , unless it be also found to be Simply , and IN IT SELF Repugnant to the Word of God. [ Quia tamen Verbo Dei PERSE non Repugnat , Concedi potest . To provide against Evil Consequences , is the Magistrates Duty , not the Subjects . N. C. The Worship of God , is in it self Pure , and Perfect , and Decent , without having any such Ceremonies affixed thereunto ; [ And many Faithful Servants of the Lord , knowing his Word to be a Perfect Rule of Faith , and Worship , have ever been exceeding fearful of Uarying from his Will , and of the Danger of Displeasing him , by Additions , or Detractions , in such Duties . C. You will hardly find any honest President for this Nicety . ( Calvin would have given it a worse Name ) Testatum Velim ( says he ) me non de Ceremoniis Litigare , quae Decoro tantum , & Ordini Serviant : vel etiam Symbola sunt , & Incitamenta ejus quam Deo deferimus Reverentiae . He Declares himself , you see , not only for Ceremonies , of Order , and Decency ; but for Ceremonies of Significancy , and Incitement to Reverence and Devotion . And in another place , Ergone ( Inquies ) nihil Ceremoniarum rudioribus dabitur , ad juvandam Eorum Imperitiam ? Id ego non dico ; omnino enim utile illis esse sentio , hoc Genus Adminiculi . ] Will you allow of no Ceremonies then at all , ( you 'l say ) for the Instruction of the Vulgar ? You do not hear me say so ; for I am clearly of opinion ; that they are of very great use , and service to the People . Upon the Main ; The English Non-Conformists , ( as Mr. Durell well observes ) are a sort of People by themselves : and Non-Conformists , at Geneva , and Francfort , as well as at Canterbury , or London . N. C. But still , methinks , whatever our Consciences are as to the way of Publick Worship , we might yet be Indulged with an Allowance of ●…erving God among our selves . Why should a Toleration do worse Here , then in Holland ? C. I might Answer you with another Question . Why should a Commonwealth do worse Here , then in Holland ? Or Why should a Standing Army do worse Here , then in Holland ? Beside ; If you look narrowly into it , you will find the Dissenters from the Settlement There , to be rather Strangers , then Natives . English , French , High-Dutch , that flowed in to them upon the General Revolt from the Church of Rome : Lutherans , and Anabaptists , out of Germany ; Calvinists out of France ; Separatists , and Semiseparatists out of England , in the Days of Queen Mary , and Independents , since ; all which were entertein'd , more out of Regard to Policy , then Conscience ; their Business being at that time to shake off the Yoke of Spain , and Change the Government : To which End , these several Parties contributed effectually , by preparing the People for the Alteration Intended ; and inuring them to New Principles , both of Religion , and State. And yet you are not to understand Theirs to be a Perfect Toleration neither . For you see , they would not , upon any terms , allow That Freedom to the Arminians , which they did to Others ; but Conven'd a Synod , and Exterminated the Sect. The reason was , they had a Jealousie of the Arminians , for Barnevelt's sake , the Head of that Party . You are to take notice also of the great difference betwixt the Interest , and Condition , of Our Ministers , and Theirs . Our Clergy have a Freehold in their Benefices for Term of Life ; and if they be Factiously disposed , they may Evade the Law , and do a Mischief , without making a Forfeiture . Whereas Theirs Preach upon Good Behaviour ; Live upon the States Pay ; and upon the least Colour of Offence , may be turn'd off at pleasure . I need not tell you what Havock , Peters , Bridges , Sympson , Ward , made in Holland : But what they did Abroad , the same thing they would have done at Home , if they had been Tolerated . N. C. What do ye think of Poland then ? C. I think , That Story speaks little to your Advantage : take it either in Respect of their frequent Seditions , or in Regard of their Prodigious , and Heretical Opinions : And yet they live under the strongest Obligation in Nature to keep them quiet ; The Tartar , and other Powerful Neighbours , lying hard upon them ; which makes their Case to be rather an Agreement against a Common Enemy , then among Themselves . N. C. Now take all at the worst ; It is but Athanasius against the World , and The World against Athanasius . Number and Truth , are not always of a Side . C. And yet Your Multitudes make up a great part of your Argument . This however let me speak for you ; There has no Industry been wanting to Propagate your Profession . In the Year 1619. The Scotch Discipline was presented to the Synod at Dort , for their Approbation : But they would not meddle with it . Anno 1654. Upon the Reprinting ( at Geneva ) of A Collection of the several Confessions of Faith , received in all the Reformed Churches of Europe ; under the Title of , Corpus , & Syntag●…a Confessionum Fidei , &c. It was moved that the Thirty Nine Articles of the Church of England , might be left out , and the Assembly Mens Confession , put in the place : But the Motion was totally rejected ; The Thirty nine Articles Inserted , and not a Word of the Directory . They had no better luck with their Covenant neither , then with their Discipline . [ The Ministers , and others of the Consistory at Charenton , and of other Reformed Churches in France ; as also the Professours , Ministers , and Consistory of Geneva , and of other Neighbouring Reformed Churches in those Parts , were so scandalized with this Prodigious Covenant , as that they were afraid of nothing more , then this , that it would bring an indeleble Scandal upon the Reformed Churches , and alienate the Minds of all the Princes of Christendom , from ever enterteining a good Thought of their Religion . The Venerable Assembly of English Divines , and Scotch Commissioners ( as they stiled Themselves ) sent the Copy of their Covenant , and a Solemn Invitation to Seventeen Reformed Churches beyond the Seas to Ioyn with them . Their Letter should have been Latin ; But so it was , that they left it a Measuring Cast , whether they were the better Christians , Casuists , Subjects , or Grammarians . Their skill was most employ'd , in Exhorting the French Protestants to follow Their Example , and cast off the Yoke of Antichrist ; ( that is to say , of Obedience ) And in Calumniating their Sovereign , as a Confederate with the Popish Interest , to destroy the Protestancy . Which Design , was only to be obviated , by a Holy League . This was the Drift of the Address ; But we never heard Syllable of the Answer . There needs no more be said to prove the Judgment of the Reformed Churches strong , and unanimous against you ; and you had best make a Trial , if you can supply by Reason , and Argument , what you want in Countenance , and Authority . SECT . XX. The Non-Conformists Exceptions to O●… Publique Way of Worship , found Guilty of Great IMPIETY , and ERROUR . C. WHat are your Exceptions to Our Way of Worship ? Are they General ; or Particular ? Is it th●… Imposition it self , or the Thing Imposed , that displeases you ? N. C. Why truly Both. The One takes away my Christian Liberty ; and the Other , the Liberty of my Conscience . The greatest part of my Trouble , i●… the Act of Uniformity . C. Is it the Model , or the Uniformity you stick at ? N. C. Both alike ; for neither is the Particular Act fram'd to my Satisfaction ; nor is it possible that any One Form of Worship should suit All Iudgments . C. Will Toleration suite All Iudgments , any better then Uniformity ? But , I perceive , you do not accompt the Sanction of any One Form whatsoever to be Lawful . N. C. Indeed I do not think it Lawful for a Magistrate to enjoyn any thing upon a Penalty , which a Private Person may not Conscienciously Obey him in ; Nor do I think it Warrantable , for a Man to Obey any Humane Command , against the Dictate of his Conscience . C. Put This together now . First , It is not Possible that any One Form of Worship should suit All Judgments : And then , It is not Lawful to enjoyn any thing upon a Penalty , which does Not suit All Judgments . What is This , but a meer Trifling of Government ; to suppose a Law , without an Obligation ? Again ; If the Magistrate cannot Impose , neither can he Tolerate ; unless you 'l suppose him a more Competent Judge of Four Conscience , then of his Own : for you allow him to Understand what he may Tolerate , and deny him the Knowledge of what he may Impose . So that either he has no Power , or no Reason to favour you : No Power , as you state his Capacity ; And no Reason , as you disclaim his Authority . But you were saying , that the Imposition , takes away your Christian Liberty . As how , I beseech ye ? N. C. In making Those things Necessary , which Christ left Free. For wherein does Christian Liberty more concern it self , then in the Free use 〈◊〉 Indifferent , or the Forbear●…nce of Doubtful things , which we are bound entirely 〈◊〉 preserve ; And whereof , by your Ecclesiastical Injunctions , we stand Depriv'd ? C. If the King be Ty'd up , in Matte●… that are either Commanded , or Forbidden ; and the People left at Liberty , in things Indifferent : I would fain know what Authority has to work upon . But thi●… Point will fall in of it self by and by : Though enough be said already , to prove your Position utterly destructive of Order , and Society . For there is but Good , Bad , and Indifferent , in Nature : What we are BOUND to do ; What we are Bound NOT to do ; and What we may either DO , or LET ALONE . ( That is to say , without the Interposal of some Incidental Obligation to determi●… that Indifference ) The Asserters of this Doctrine , fetch their Warrant for it , out of St. Paul 〈◊〉 the Galatians 5. 1. Stand fast in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made us Free. Upon This Text they ground their Exemption . But here they prudently st●… too ; for the Context would have spoil'd all : And they might as well have Argu'd against the Efficacy of Christ's Death , from the latter part of the second Verse , as for Christian Immunity , ( in the Latitude they understand it ) from the former part of the first . The Apostle goes on in These Words ; And be not entangled AGAIN with the Yoke of Bondage . 〈◊〉 Behold ; I Paul say unto you , that if ye be CIRCUMCISED , Christ shall profit you nothing . 3 For I testifie again to every Man that is CIRCUMCISED , that he is a Debtor to do the whole Law. The Case , briefly , was This. By the Coming of our Blessed Saviour , the Iewish Ceremonies were abolish'd : Some that had a mind to Continue them , and keep the People still under the Yoke of the Law , stood for the Doctrine of the Circumcision . ( which was here the very Matter in Q●…estion ) The Apostle cautions the Galatians against it ; and not to be entangled AGAIN with the Bondage of the Law. Which amounts only to a Discharge from the Bondage of That Law to which they were before Subjected ; without extending That Liberty , to the Prejudging of Authoritative Laws , and Impositions for the time to come . As if the Apostle had Preached one thing to the Galatians , and the contrary to the Romans , Obedience , at pleasure , in one place ; and Obedience under pein of Damnation , in another . In the Second , and Third Verses , St. Paul ( you see ) clears , and presses it further . As if he had said ; Be Circumcised at your Peril . For That single Point of the Law , makes you answerable for the Performance of every Title of it . We are not ( says Calvin ) ( Perperam ad Peliticum Ordinem ) perversly to apply the Doctrine of Spiritual Liberty , to Political Order , as if Christians were to be ever the less Subject to External Government by Humane Laws , because their Consciences are set at Liberty before God. Nay , says he , in another place ; Si Ecclesiae Incolumitati benè prospectum volumus ] The Church can never be safe , without St. Paul's Decency and Order . But in regard of the diversity of Customs ; and the variety of Mens Minds , and Opinions ; It is not possible to secure any Polity , without the Authority of certain Laws ; or to preserve any Order , without some stated Form. Now so far am I from condemning any Laws conducing to this End , [ Ut his ablatis , dissolvi suis Nervis Ecclesias , Totasque Deformari , & Dissipari contendamus ] that I look upon the Removal of them , as the Dissolution of the very Sinews of the Church , and expect nothing after it , but DEFORMITY , and DISSIPATION . Nor is it to be Imagin'd , that All things should be done Decently , and in Order , ( after the Apostles Precept ) but by the mediation of certain Rules , and Observations , which may serve as so many Bonds for the Regulation of that Decency , and Order . Always provided , That Those Ceremonies be not Imposed as Necessary to Salvation , or Essential to God's Worship . From your Plea for Christian Liberty , ( which is a Proposition , in it self , destructive of all Communities ) let us now move to your next Exception , in the Matter of Scruple : wich I am afraid will be found no less Intolerable in Religion , then the other was in Government ; and Dangerous enough in Both. It would take a Man an Age to run through all the Quirks , and Niceties of the Question ; and to trace every Particular , in dispute , from the Original of its Practice , or Institution . And beside ; It were but Actum Agere ; for the Lawfulness , and the Antiquity of Bishops , Liturgies , and Ceremonies , with all the Minutes , sion : I am perswaded , it would pose the ●…est Conveyancers in this Kingdom , to draw up a Deed of Trust , to That Purpose , without a Flaw in 't . That is to say : A Commission from the Diffusive Body of the People , must be Directed to such and such Ministers , as Commissioners for Tender Consciences . From HEAVEN it never came neither , I do verily believe . For most certainly Christ , and his Apostles , never Issued out any Commission , for the Distracting of Consciences , and Societies . We read indeed of CONFIRMING the Weak , but not a Syllable , of STAGGERING them . And for the Extraordinary Ways , of Vision , and Revelation , they are not so much as mention'd . N. C. If you would have given me leave , I should have told you , e'en now , that they are Warranted by a Sense , and Impression of Conscience , in the Discharge of their Pastoral Duty : Which obliges them , [ To watch over their Flock ; To preserve them from Errours , Heresies , Divisions ; To Defend the Truth , Confute Gainsayers , and Seducers , Instruct the Ignorant , Excite the Negligent , Encourage the Despondent , Comfort the Afflicted , Confirm the Weak , Rebuke , and Admonish the Disorderly , and Scandalous . C. Here 's much against you , and no●…●…ne Word in your Favour . Instead of PRESERVING their Flocks FROM Heresies , and Divisions , your Pastors demand a down-right TOLERATION of them . And instead of Encouraging the Despondent , Comforting the Afflicted , and Confirming the Weak ; They tell the Distressed , ( for their Comfort ) that if they do any thing with Doubting , they shall be Damn'd ; and never go further , to deliver them from those Doubts ; but there they very fairly leave them , Surrounded with in●…xtricable Scruples ; and their very Souls , Broken , and Confounded with Agony , and Horrour . Whether they do Well , or Ill , now be You your self the Iudge . My Opinion is , that they have as little to say for the Conscience of their Proceedings , as any way else . First , Their very Preaching , and Writing , ( by reason of their Legal Incapacity ) is a Transgression of the Law. Secondly , In the Matter it self , they are to blame ; for it is of very evil Consequence , both upon the Publique , and upon Particulars . To sa●… nothing of their Undertaking for other Mens Consciences , which is a Privilege belonging only to God himself . That they do Ill , in disobeying the Law , and in troubling the Government , I suppose you will not deny ; And yet am I perswaded , that the very Foundation of their Plea for Separation , and Dissent , is the greatest part of the Mischief . We have Laws Ecclesi●…l , for the Ordering of the Church ; and you refuse to Obey them ▪ For what Reason , I beseech you ? N. C. The best Guide in the Case of Impositions , and Obedience , I take to be the Word of God and our Doubtings sure are very Reasonable , concerning God's Worship ▪ where the Scripture gives no Direction . Shew us where they are Comma●…ded in the Gospel , and we are ready to Obey them . ; C. The Scripture is the Rule of our Faith , not of our Outward Actions , and Practise . 〈◊〉 Whatsoever , to make up the Doctrine of Man's SALVATION , is added , as in supply of the Scriptures Insufficiency , we reject it . But does it therefore follow , that ALL things Lawful to be done , are comprehended in the Scripture ? Admit . This , and God in delivering Scripture to his Church , should clear have abrogated amongst them , the Law of Nature , which is , An Infallible Knowledge Imprinted in the Minds of all the Children of Men , directing us in the Choice of Good and Evil , in the Daily Affairs of this Life . Admit This ; and what shall the Scripture be , but a Snare , and a Torment to Weak Consciences , filling them with Infinite Perplexities , Scrupulosities , Doubts Insoluble , and Extreme Despairs . Not●… that the Scripture it self doth cause any such thing , but the Necessities of this Life , urging Men to do that which the Light of Nature , Common Discretion , and Judgment of it self directeth Men unto : On the other side , This Doctrine teaching them that so to do , wire to sin against their Souls ; and that they put forth their Hands to Iniquity , whatsoever they go about , and have not first the Sacred Scripture of God for their Direction . How can it chuse but bring the Simple a Thousand Times to their Wit●… End ? How can it chuse but v●…x and amaze them ; to be obliged in every Action of Common Life , to find out some Sentence of Scripture , Clearly , and Infallibly setting forth , what we ought to do ? Admit This , and it shall not be with Masters , as it was with him in the Gospel ; but Servants being commanded to go , shall stand still , till they have their Errand Warranted unto them by Scriptures . Thus far the Learned Hooker : in Agreement with Mr. Calvin , ( the Oracle of the other Party ) in his Chapter of Christian Liberty , who writes to this Effect . Let every Man have a care not to make things Indifferent , Matters of Religion ; for nothing can be more necessary then the right understanding of That Liberty ; without which , we shall never have any Peace of Conscience , and there will be no End of Superstition . [ Quae si aberit , nulla Conscientiis nostris futura est Quies ; Nullus Superstitionum finis ] He that Scruples the Lawfulness of Eating , or Drinking Delicacies , will by degrees , let his Scruple fall to Meats and Drinks l●…ss Delicats , and so from one thing , to another , Lower , and Lower ; ( and all this while , in a perpetual Anxiety of Conscience ) till he comes at last to satisfie himself , that what he takes , both for Quantity , and Quality , is but just sufficient to entertein the absolute Necessities of Nature . He must have a Text for every thing he does ; and not step over a Straw , without consulting Scripture first : and every Common Action is made a Case of Conscience . From this miserable Perplexity of Mind , what can be expected , but Despair , and Confusion ? Hanging , Drowning , Cutting of Throats , and all the wretched Extremities of Violence , which those poor Creatures exercise upon themselves , as their last Retreat , to avoid the Fury of a Tormenting Conscience . This is the Fruit of the Doctrine of CHRISTIAN LIBERTY ; a Dangerous , and an Impious Position ; and can have no other Aim , ( In Truth , scarce any other Issue ) than the Vacating of Humane Laws ; and the Extermination of all Principles of Duty , and Subjection out of the Hearts of the People . But to be as short as may be , you see the Effects of your Scruples ; pray'e speak a little to the Grounds of them . What Exceptions have you to our COMMON PRAYER ? And see if you do not from one end to the other , fall foul upon your Arguments . N. C. It is devised by Men. C. So are your Ministers Prayers ; and ●…l Prayers whatsoever , Scripture-Forms Excepted . N. C. It is Imposed upon the Minister , and People , of Necessity . C. The Imposition of the Directory was yet more General , Strict , and Peremptory . There was no Dispensation for a Family , and Four more , which , as it might be improv'd , takes in well nigh the whole Kingdom . N. C. But your Common Prayer is stinted , both in Matter , and Words , to be used without Variation : and so was not the Directory . C. Why may not the Church impose a Stinted Form upon the Minister , as well as the Minister , ( if he so pleases ) upon the People ? For if the Minister be left at Liberty either to keep to one Form , or to vary , at his own Election , The Congregation is at his Mercy , whether they shall have a Stinted Form , or No. Smectymnuus is so gracious as to allow of a Stinted Form , Himself ; in Case the Minister shall be found insufficient to discharge the Duty of Prayer in a Conceived way : But then it is to be Imposed on him as a Punishment : To use Set Forms , and no other . So that it is not the Unlawfulness it seems , of a Set Form , nor the Imposition , but the Inexpedience you stumble at : And the World is at a fine pass sure , when the Parliament of England shall not presume to make Laws , without asking the Si●…c'd Ministers Opinions first , about the Expedience of them . The Directory , as to the Matter of it , is as well a Stinting of the Spirit , as the Common Prayer . For in the Sulstance , and Scope of the Prayer , the Minister is limited ; only for the WORDING of it , he is at his own Freedom : And if he may but Turn ALMIGHTY and most MERCIFUL Father , into OMNIPOTENT and most GRACIOUS Lord God , the Peace is concluded . Otherwise we are to look for nothing but Fire and Sword : Lives , Laws , and Liberties , must be hazzarded i●… the Quarrel . N. C. Do you make no difference between Imposing Set Forms , upon a few Insufficient Ministers , and upon a Multitude of Others , in Common , that have the Gift of Prayer ? C. No , none at all , as to the Exemption of Any Man from the General Rule . Beside ; What Security can any Man give , that he shall continue in the Right Exercise of his Reason ? Put case your Gifted Minister should be taken with some Distemper that seizes the Brain , and Disorders , ( or but Clouds ) his Understanding : Nay , let it be only some faint , drowsie Indisposition of Body , or heaviness of Mind ; What becomes of the Assembly , under so Languid , Spiritless , ( and perchance Extravagant ) a Dispensation ? Further : The Right , and the Reason too , of Imposing upon One Minister , extends to All. Again : If a Set Form may be admitted , where the Minister is not good at Extempore ; What becomes of your Argument , I beseech ye , for the Consciences of the CONGREGATION ? Unless you understand the Weakness of the Minister to be a Dispensation for the Scruples of the People ; In which case , it may be lawful for the King and Parliament to Impose a Service-Book . And yet again : Over and above the Vanity , and the Arrogance of the Undertaking ; do me but the favour to consider , what an Irreverence , what a Prophanation of Gods Holy Worship , and Ordinances , must needs ensue upon it . The Desk is turn'd into an Oratory , as well for the TRYAL of Gifts , and Faculties , as for the EXERCISE of them : and half the Business the Congregation has at Church , is to hear Men Talk to God Almighty , upon their Probation : which is done too , ( God knows it , even at the best ) not without great Imperfections , and Failings ; witness their [ Affectations , Emptiness , Impertinency , Rudeness , Con fusion , Flatness , Levity , O●…scurity , vain , and Ridiculous Repetitions , their Sensl●…ss , and oft-times Blasphemous Expressions : ] which are but Helps at a Plunge , either to gain time for the recovery of their lost Matter , or to stop Gaps , and fill up Broken Sentences . Now where 's the Life , and Power ( as you call it ) of Devotion , all this while ; when the Whole Man is taken up , ( and all little enough too ) about Words , and Periods ; And the Ministers chief Care diverted from the Saving of Souls , to the Saving of his own Credit ? Hence proceeds That Agreement of Tone , and Emphasis , in all their Exclamations , Acted Passions , and Vain Repetitions , with now and then a Groan drawn out to a most Doleful Length for a Parenthesis . For they are all sick of the same Disease , and these Interjections give them a little Breath , and Respit , for Recollection . Now in This loss of Sense , ●…nd Order , How is it possible for the Affections of the Congregation , to keep company with the Minister in all his Wandrings , Doubtings , and Circumlocutions ? The one half of their Intention is spent in Divining ( before-hand ) what he drives at ; and the other , in unriddling his Meaning , when he has Deliver'd it . Whereas in Set-Forms , both Minister and People are freed from These Distractions , and totally intent upon the Duty of the Worship : and there is a greater Harmony , and Union of Affections , when they Pray All at the same Time , in the same Words , and for the same Thing . I might insist upon the Inconvenience of leaving Ministers at Liberty , for fear of disturbing the Publique : and tell you over and over , that in our Stinted Forms we do but joyn in the Common Privilege of Other Churches : But more then enough is spoken Already . Let me hear now what you have to say against our Ceremonies . N. C. Whereas Kneeling is Imposed , in the Act of Receiving the Lord's Supper , We desire that none may be Troubled for Receiving it Standing , or Sitting . C. You have quitted your Hold , I perceive , of Scriptural Direction , and President . For neither Standing , nor Sitting was the Tricliniary Posture . But why not Kneeling , as well as either Sitting , or Standing ? N. C. Because it is a Novelty ; contrary to the Decrees , and Practise of the Church , for many Hundred Years after the Apostles . And it has been forbidden by General Councils . And it is not Good also to shew a needless Countenance of Adoring the Bread of God. C. Can you shew me that Kneeling at the Lord's Supper has been forbidden , where Kneeling at other parts of Publique Worship has been Allow'd ? Now you your selves allow of , and Practise Kneeling in other Cases , which is every jote as contrary to the Ancient Custom , as Our Kneeling at the Sacrament . But We must not Kneel , you say , for fear of Countenanceing the Adoration of the Breaden God. To which I Answer , that First , The Doctrine of our Church speaks directly to the Contrary . Secondly , The Rubrick directs Kneeling at the Confession ; and the People continue Kneeling , at the Receiving . N. C. But with your Favour , the Rubrick does afresh enjoyn Kneeling : and order the Communion to be delivered into the Peoples Hands KNEELING . C. Right . And now take your Choice , whether we shall rather run the hazzard of being suspected to adore the Breed , because we receive it after the English Gesture of Worshipping , which is Kneeling ; or incur the same Censure , by Changing Posture , and taking it after the Ancient way of Worshipping , which is Standing ? If you can make appear , that where the Custom was to Worship Standing , they Received , Kneeling ; you say something toward the perswading of us that Worship Kneeling , to Receive Stànding . Your Exceptions throughout , are much of a Quality ; Negatively Imposing upon Authority , because you will not be Positively bound up your selves . For , You shall NOT do This , or That , is an Imposition , as well as You SHALL . Another Humour you have gotten , of Scrupling at Ceremonies , because they are made as Necessary to Salvation , as the Word it self , and the Sacraments . ( This is the Suggestion of the Petition for Peace , Pa. 8. ) Whereas it has been , and still it is the Constant Care of the Imposers themselves , by an express Solemnity of Explanation , to satisfie the whole World to the Contrary . Give us leave only for one Word more , and that out of Calvin's Institutions , concerning Scandal ; ( Lib. 3. Cap. 19. ) which you make one part of your Compleint . There is ( says he ) a Scandal GIVEN , and TAKEN . The One is the Scandal of the Weak ; the Other , of the Pharisees ; who out of a p●…rverse Malignity of Spirit , turn every thing to the worse . There is no Yielding to this sort of Men ; No Enduring , no Hearing of them : [ Qui quum in mille Impietatis Formas Duces se praebent , sic sibi agendum fingunt , ne proximo sint Offendiculo . Who , under colour of Tenderness in the Matter of Scandal , make no Conscience at all of a thousand Gross Impieties . This is His Iudgment , and Our Case : And there is no Remedy , but by concluding upon a Final , and Unaccomptable Iudge . SECT . XXI . Whatsoever God hath left INDIFFERENT , is the Subject of HUMANE POWER . C. AS Reasonable Nature consists of Soul , and Body ; so is the Authority that Governs it , Divine , and Humane : God , Eminently over All , and Princes Ministerially , under Him , and as his Substitutes . The Dominion of our Souls , God reserves Peculiarly to Himself , committing That of our Bodies to the Care of the Magistrate . Now if Power be a Divine Ordinance , so consequently is Subjection ; for to Imagine the One , without the Other , were to destroy the Reason of Relatives . A Strict , and Accurate Disquisition of This Matter , would save us much Trouble that arises about the Bounds , and Limits of our Duty ; How far Religion binds us , and how far Allegeance . That they are severable , we are not to doubt , since Truth it self has said it . Give unto Caesar the things that are Caesar ' s ; and unto God , the things that are God's . But that they are only so severable , as never to become Inconsistent , is founded upon the same Immovable Rock ; Let every Soul be subject , &c. A Precept , of a Perpetual , and Universal Operation , and Limited neither to Time , Place , not Persons . N. C. Your Deduction of Government , and Subjection , from Divine Institution , is well enough ; and that we are to Obey the Magistrate for God's sake , and in Subordination to God , is easily Prov'd , and Granted : But I hear nothing yet of the Particular Bounds , and Terms of Humane Iurisdiction ; What 't is belongs to God , and what to Caesar. C. And That , I confess , is the Pinch of the Question : For One Duty comes up so close to the Other , that 't is not for every Common Eye to pass between them . Effectually , they Touch ; but in what Point , is of a Nice Decision . The nearest way to the Knowledge of our Duty , is to apply it to the Laws , and Powers of the Authority : for a Man must first Know the Rule , before he can Observe it . We are then to consider , that the Almighty Wisdom has invested Kings with an Unlimimited Power of Commanding , or Forbidding , in all Matters , which God Himself has not either Commanded , or Forbidden : Which Proposition resolves it self into This Conclusion . Whatsoever God has left Indifferent , is the Subject of Humane Power . N. C. Does not that Opinion destroy Christian Liberty ? C. No : But the Denial of it destroys Magistracy . If Kings have not This Power , they have None at all : And it Implies a Contradiction , to suppose any Authority in Nature without it . N. C. But may not a Prince tye himself up , in a thing otherwise Indifferent ? C. I speak of Power according to the Institution , not of Power limited by P●…ction . N. C. May not the same thing be Indifferent to One , and not to Another ? C. Very Good : And will not every thing Imaginable . appear Non-Indifferent to some or other ; if nothing may be Commanded , but what upon such a Phansie may be Disobey'd ? N. C. Pardon me : I do not speak of Matters of Civil Concern , but of Matters of Religion . C. That 's all a Case ; for you cannot Instance in any One Civil Action , that may not be made Relative to Religion . But we are now upon the Extent of Humane Power . That there is such a Power , and That , Authoriz'd too by God Himself , you have already Granted . Let me but understand now , Upon what Subject shall that Power be Exercis'd ; If you exclude Things Indifferent ? One Man may have a Real Scruple , and All the Rest , pretend one . Who shall distinguish ? So that the Rule holding from One to All , the Sacred Authority of the Prince becomes dependent upon the Pleasure of the Subject ; and the Validity of a Divine , and Unchangeable Ordinance , is subjected to the mutable Iudgment , and Construction of the People . N. C. And you expect , the Magistrate should as well have the Authority of Iudging what 's Indifferent , as of Restreining it . C. You may be sure I do ; for I am but where I was , If I make You the Judge . Is it not all one , as to the Magistrate , whether you Refuse , upon Pretense that the Thing is not Indifferent , or upon Pretense , that He cannot Restrein a thing Indifferent ? The Crime indeed is differing in the Subject : for the One way , 't is an USURPATION of Authority ; and the Other way , 't is a DENIAL of it . N. C. Why then it seems , I am to believe every thing Indifferent , which the Magistrate tells me is so , be it never so Wicked . C. No ; There you are bound up , by a Superiour Law. N. C. Have you so soon forgot your self ? You would not allow me to be a Iudge , just now ; and here , you make me one . C. Right . To your self , you are one , but not to the Publique ; you are a Judge of your own Thought , but not of the Law. N. C. And does not This way of Arguing as much endanger Authority , as the Other ? For All may Iudge Thus , as well as One. C. 'T is possible they may . Nay we 'l suppose an Imposition foul enough to move them all to do so ; and yet there 's a large difference : For Diversity of Iudgment does not shake the Foundation of Authority ; and a Man may disobey a Sinful Command , with great Reverence to the Power that Imposes it . N C. You were saying e'en now , that my Duty to God , and to the King , could never be Inconsistent . How shall I behave my self , I pray'e , if the King command one thing , and God another ? I cannot observe the Law , without violence to my Conscience , nor discharge my Conscience , without Offence to the Law. What Course shall I take , to avoid Enterfering ? C. Demea●… your self as a Christian , toward the LAW of God , one the One hand , and as a Subject , toward the ORDINANCE of God , on the Other : As considering , that you are discharg'd of your Obedience in That Particular , but not of your Subjection in the General . N. C. Put Case the Supreme Magistrate , should by a Law , Establish a False Worship . C. He 's nevertheless your Prince , and even in This Complication , you may acquit your self both to God , and to Caesar. Though the Worship be amiss , The Magistrate is yet to be Reverenc'd ; and you are to divide the One from the Other ; in such manner , as still both to Fear God , and Honour the King. This Loyal , and Religious Separation of our Duties , will set us right in the Main Controversie . Where do ye find that Kings Reign , upon Condition of Ruling Righteously ? Or that we owe them Less , AFTER Misgovernment , then we did Before ? N. C. But do you say , we are bound to Honour an Idolatrous Prince ? This is not according to the Doctrine of many of our Grave Divines . C. They are never the Better Divines for That Doctrine . The Prince , I tell ye , you are bound to Honour , though not as an Idolater . Shall the Vice , or Errour of the Person , degrade the Order ? By That Rule , The World must continue without a Government , till we can find Men without Failings . N. C. So that , when it makes for your Turn , you can Allow ( I see ) of Distinguishing betwixt the PERSON , and the OFFICE . C. Betwixt the Frailty of the One , and the Sacredness of the Other , I do : for Kings Command , as Gods , though they Iudge , as Men. But I do no more approve of Dividing the Person of a Prince , from his Authority , then of Dividing his Soul from his Body . N. C. And I beseech you , What is That , which you call AUTHORITY ? C. It is the Will , and Power of a Multitude , deliver'd up by Common Consent , to some One Person , or More , for the Good , and Safety of the Whole : And This Representative Acts for All. Now on the other side , The Disposition of such , or such a Number of Persons , into an Order of Commanding , and Obeying , is That which we call a Society . N. C. What is the Duty of the Supreme Magistrate ? C. To procure the Welfare of the People ; Or , according to the Apostle , He is the Minister of God , for a Comfort to those that do Well , and for a Terrour to Evil doers . N. C. How far are his Laws Binding upon his Subjects ? C. So far , as They that Parted with their Power , had a Right over Themselves . N. C. Whence was the Original of Power ? And what Form of Government was First ; Regal , or Popular ? C. Power was Ordein'd of God , but Specifi'd by Man : And beyond doubt , the First Form of Government was Monarchique . N. C. But I should rather think the Popular Form was First : For how could there be a King , without a People ? C : So was the Son before the Father , you may say , for How could there be a Father without a Son ? But the Q●…estion is ; First : Was the World ever without a Government , since the Creation of M●…n ? Secondly ; Whether was there first in the World , One Man , or More ? But we are not here upon the Form of Government , but upon the Latitude of Humane Iurisdiction ; be the Sovereignty where it will. And my Assertion is , that It extends to whatsoever God has left Indifferent . If you deny This , you overthrow all Government . N. C , And what are you the better , If I should grant it ; unless we could All come to an Agreement , about what is Indifferent , and what not ? C. Which must be procured by the Allowance of some Iudicial Authority to dec●…de it . SECT . XXII . No End of Controversie , without a FINAL and UNACCOMPTABLE JUDGE , from whose Sentence there shall be no Appeal . C. WHen Subjects come once to Dispute Laws , The War is already Declar'd against the Government . For it is not the Equity or Iniquity of the MATTER of the Law , that is the Question ; but the AUTHORITY of the LAW-MAKER ; under the countenance indeed of somewhat that might be mended in the Law it self . And the Business comes Immediately to This Issue ; Whether the King , or the People , shall Determine , in what concerns the Good of the Community ? That is to say ; Whether the Government shall Stand , or Fall ? Whether or no we shall submit our selves quietly to be over-ruled in all Controversies , by a Definitive Sentence of Law ; ( according to the End , and Intention of Government , in its first Institution ) Or otherwise , by receding from that Common , Peaceable , and Impartial Arbitrator of all our Differences ; from our Faith given ; our Oaths , and Contracts : throw our selves back again into a State of Nature , and Dissolution ; and for want of a Moderator , leave all our Disagreements to be decided by the Sword ? ( The certain Event of all Popular Appeals , from Laws , to Multitudes ) This was tbe Ruine of us , in our Late Confusions . The Faction , you saw , could do nothing , upon the Suggestions of Right , or Wrong ; Convenience , or Inconvenience ; till they came to make Themselves the Iudges of it : And no sooner were they Possest of That Pretension , but all went presently head-long to Destruction . From Questioning the Legal Power of the King , they proceeded to the Exercise of an Arbitrary Power , Themselves : From Asserting the Subjects Liberties , to the Invading of them : And from the Reformation of Abuses , to the Extirpation of the Government . The Two Houses led the Dance , and outed the King ; The Commons did as much for the Lords ; and the People , as much for the Commons : Which comes to no more , then what was reasonably to be expected , upon turning the Course of Publick Affairs into a wrong Channel ; and subjecting the Indisputable Rights of Sovereign Authority , to the Censures , and Expostulations of the Rabble . N. C. What are those Indisputable Rights , I beseech ye ? C. I reckon ( among others ) The Power of Making Laws ; and likewise of Enforcing the Execution of them ; without admitting any sort of Demur , or Contradiction : for let the People break in once upon any One Law , and they will hardly quit their hold , till they have worm'd out , or unsettled all the Rest. In short ; I do esteem it a matter of Absolute Necessity , to the Peace , and the very Beeing of all Government , to have some Unaccomptable Iudge ; some Unquestionable Expedient of Law , or Authority , for the Ending of Controversies : The Determination to be Final , and Decisive : No Appealing from it , and no contending beyond it . N. C. What not in Case of Errour ? I could be well enough content with a Iudge ; and with Indispu●…able Laws , if you could but assure me of Infallible Law-Makers . But I should be sorry to see a Roman-Infallibility set up in England . C. So that rather then a Fallible Iudge , you will have None at all . You could be content with a Iudge , you say ; but then That Iudge must be Questionable , in Case of Errour ; so that Another Iudge is to Judge Him ; and the very Iudge of This Iudge , is Himself Questionable ; and so is his Iudge , and his Iudges Iudge ; ( in Infinitum ) in Case of Errour : Which Case of Errour may be Alledg'd , wheresoever there is no Infallibility ; and if there be no Infallibility in Nature , then by your Rule , there can be no Iudge in Nature . N. C. I do not say but a Man may Iudge Certainly in some Cases , though not Infallibly in All : and all I ask , is only a Free Exercise of my Iudgment at Discretion , without being ty'd up to an Implicit Resignation . There is but a Right , and a Wrong ; and the One I must Embrace , and Reject the Other . How shall I know This from That , without Enquiry ? And what am I the better for That Enquiry , if when I have Learn'd my Duty , I am debarr'd the Liberty to Practise it ? C. You turn the Question , from the Necessity of a Judg , to his Infallibility . 'T is all one to me , whether you make him Infallible , or Credible , or what you make him , or where you place him ; provided that he be Acknowledg'd Necessary , and Unac●…omptable . That He is Necessary , I presume you will easily afford me : for there can be no Peace without him , every Man being at Liberty to Wrangle , where no Man is Authoris'd to take up the Strife . But would you have him Unaccomptable , or no ? N. C. What greater Encouragement is there in the World , to Tyranny , then the Opinion of an Unaccomptable Sovereignty ? C. What is it rather ( you should have said ) that Excites Sedition , and Depopulates Kingdoms , so much as the Contrary ? And doubtless , the Fiercest Tyranny is much more supportable , then the Mildest Rebellion . N. C. Truly , as to the Convenience of a Definitive Sentence . I should be glad to see it ; without the Hazzard of a D●…finitive Injustice . C. You mistake your self , if you oppose a Possible Injury on the One side , to a Certain Wrangle ; and Confusion on the Other . If Infallibility you cannot find , why may not the fairest Probability content you ? N. C. But would you have that Probability govern by Unquestionable , and Authoritative Conclusions ? C. By any means ; you do nothing else : For where Controversies are Inevitable , and Concord ( if it may be had ) Necessary ; What can be more Reasonable , then to chuse the most Competent Iudge of the Matter in Controversie , for the Concluding Umpire of the Controversie it self ? N. C. But a Man may Iudge Probably in One Case , and Improbably in Another : Suppose the Determination to be manifest Errour , or Injustice ; would you have the same Submission paid to it , as if it were Equity , and Truth ? C. Yes : To the Determination , though not to the Errour : You are to stand to the Authority of the Sentence , without Contesting the Equity of it : for Right , or Wrong , 't is a Decision . The Principal Scope , and sure End of a Reference , is Peace : The Hopeful Event , and Issue of it , is Righteous Iudgment . Is it not well then , to be sure of the One , and in so fair a Likelihood of the Other ? Put it to the worst ; You are not bound to be of the Iudge his Opinion , but to be over-rul'd by his Authority : Neither do you undertake that he shall Judge Critically , as to the Subject of the Question ; but that he shall Judge Effectually , as to the purpose of the Reference . N. C. This Resignation may do well , in Cases of ●…ivil Interest : but it will hardly hold in Matters of Conscience . Who shall pretend to Iudge of my Conscience , beside God , and my Self ? C. The Scripture , which is the Rule of all Consciences , shall be the Iudge of Yours . But the Question is not , What the Conscience Is , but what it Ought to be : Not what your Private Iudgment says , but what the Scripture means ; and the Thing I strive for , is a Judge of That : A Iudge of the Rule of Faith ; which I take to be all out as necessary , as a Iudge of a Political Law. You cannot but allow , that there are Diversities of Opinions , as well in Religion , as concerning Secular Affairs : And such is our Corruption , that we draw Poyson , even from the Fountain of Life ; and the Word of God it self , is made the Warrant of all Crimes , and the Foundation of all Heresies . Look behind ye , and you may see a Prince Murther'd by his Subjects : Authority Beheaded by a Pretended Law , and all this Defended by a Text. The Church Devour'd by a Divided Ministry ; The Government overturn'd by a Solemn League and Covenant to support it : An Arbitrary Power Introduc'd by the Patrons of Liberty : The Lord's Prayer Cashier'd , to make way for the Motions of the Holy Ghost ; and Charity it self Extinguish'd for the Advancement of the Gospel . We have liv'd to see as many Heresies , as Congregations ; and a Consistorian Scrutiny , prest beyond the Rigour of a Spanish Inquisition . We have seen some that a abhor Idols , committing Sacrilege : Christ's Kingdom cry'd up , till his b Divinity is Deny'd . Strictness of Life Inculcated , till the very Rule of it c ( The Decalogue it self ) is Rejected : And Blasphemy hunted out of the Tavern , into the Pulpit . In fine ; What Sin , and Misery have we not known , and felt , since under the Form of Liberty of Conscience , This Freedom of a Private Spirit came in vogue ? Nor are we ever to expect better from it , till all Men shall conspire to do the same thing , where every Man is left to his Own Gust , to do what he pleases . And whence flows all this Mischief , and Confusion , but from a License of Wandring from the Rule ? Methinks These Practises should put you , and your Cause out of Countenance . N. C. I am no Advocate for Anarchy , though no Friend to Uniformity : And I know 't is with Non Conformists , as with other People there are Good and Bad of All sorts . But to go with the Moderate : Would you have all Mens Consciences Gobern'd by the same Rule ? ; C. Better Particulars suffer for Incompliance with the Publique , then the Publique suffer for Complying with Particulars . Uniformity is the Ciment of both Christian , and Civil Societies : Take That away , and the Parts drop from the Body ; One Piece falls from Another . The Magistrate ( for Orders sake ) requires Uniformity ; You , and your Associates oppose it , upon a Plea of Conscience . The Question is ; Whether He shall Over-rule your Opinions , or You Over-rule His Authority ? This Dispute begets a War , for want of a Iudge ; and to prevent that Consequence , I offer that a Iudge is Necessary . Or put it Thus : You , and I differ ; and possibly we are Both in the Wrong ; but most certainly we are not Both in the Right ; and yet neither of us but thinks well enough of his own Opinion . What 's to be done in This Case ? Shall we Wrangle Eternally ? N. C. No , We 'l rather put the Matter to Arbitration . C. Well ; but the Arbiter himself is Fallible ; and may mistake too : Or let him have the Wisdom of an Angel , he cannot please us Both : For That which seems Right to the One , will appear Wrong to the Other . Shall we stand to his Award whatever it be ? If not , take into your Thought these Consequences . You refuse to submit , because it is Wrong ; and I may refuse , by the same Reason , though it be Right : ( For , Every Man's Reason is of equal Force , where there is no Common , and Representative Reason to Bind All. ) So that by your Reckoning , Every Man is in the Right to Himself , and in the Wrong to all the World besides : ( for I perswade my self , that Nature never produc'd Two Persons , in all Points , of the same Judgment . ) Now , if you can neither deny Confusion to be the Natural Effect of this Liberty of Iudgment ; nor the want of a Regulating , and Decretory Sentence , to be the Cause of This Confusion , I hope you 'l grant me the Necessity of an Unaccomptable Iudge . N. C. Is not the Word of God a sufficient Iudge ? C. No : That 's no Iudge , but [ a Rule for Christians to Iudge BY ] and the great Danger lies upon the Meaning of That Rule . Witness those Swarms of Heresies , that have over-spread this Land , since the Bible has been deliver'd up to the Interpretation of Private Spirits . N. C. You say well , if you could direct me to a Iudge that we might all rely upon . C. And you say something too , if you could make appear , that None at all is better then the Best we have : Or that Popular Errours , Numberless , and Inevitable , ( with the Dissolution of Societies to boot ) are to be preferr'd to the Few , and only Possible Failings of Authority , attended however with Peace , and Agreement . The Question , Briefly , is This. Whether will you rather have ; One Fallible Iudge , or a Million of Damnable Heresies ? N. C. Truly , as you have reduc'd it , to a Certainty of Peace the One way , and to as great a Certainty of Discord , the Other ; to a Certainty of Many Errours , without a Iudg , and to a bare Possibility of some few , with One : I think a Final Iudge may be Convenient , if not Necessary . C. If you find it so in the Church , sure you will not Dispute it in the State ; especially against an Experience too , the most forcible of all Reasons . We were never troubled with Constructive Necessities ; with Cavils about the Receptacle of Power , and the Limits of Obedience : With Distinctions betwixt the Political , and the Natural Right of the People ; The Legal , and the Personal Will of the Prince ; and betwixt the Equity , and the Letter of the Law : till Judgment was forc'd from its proper Course , and the Decision of Political Controversies , committed to the Frivolous , and Tumultuary Arbitrations of the People . N. C. Nay , I am as much for a Iudge , as You ; but not for One Iudge to All Purposes : Nor indeed , for any Iudge so Absolute as you would have him . C. I tell ye again , A Iudge , and no Absolute Iudge , is No Judge : and you shall as soon find the End of a Circle , as of a Controversie , by such a Iudge . Nor is it yet my Intention , that One Iudge should serve for All Purposes . N. C. Divide your Matter then , and assign to every Iudicable Point its Proper Iudge . C. You have Reason ; for truly I do not take the Magistrate to be any more a Iudge of My Conscience , then I am of His. N. C. No doubt of it ; And it were an Encroachment upon the Prerogative of God Himself , for the Magistrate to Challenge it . C. How comes it now , that we , that accord so well in the End , should differ so much in the Way to 't ? But I hope the Clearing of the next Point will set all Right : for after the Acknowledgment of the General Necessity of a Iudge , we have nothing further to do , but to agree upon the Iudge , and so submit . SECT . XXIII . The Three Great Judges of Mankind , are GOD , MAGISTRATES , and CONSCIENCE . SOme Things we do as Men ; Other Things , as Men in Society ; and Some again , as Christians . In the first place , We are acted by the Law of Individuals ; Which Law , in the Second place , is Subjected to That of Government ; And Both these Laws are , in the Third place , Subordinate to That of Religion ; i. e. The Law of God's Revealed Will. So that the Three Great Iudges of Mankind are , GOD , MAGISTRATES , and CONSCIENCE . Man as Consisting of Soul , and Body , may be again Subdivided within Himself . Take Him in his Lower Capacity , and He is sway'd by the General Law of Animal Nature , But in his Divine part , you will find Him Govern'd by the Nobler Law of Refined Reason ; which Reason , in some Cases , we call Prudence , and in others , Conscience , according as it is Variously Exercised . The Things which we do purely as MEN , ( Abstracted from any Ingredients of Policy , or Regulated Religion ) are either Natural Actions , Prudential , or Moral . Of the first sort , are Those Actions to which we are prompted by a Natural Impulse , in order to the Conservation of Life , and Being . Of the third sort , are such Actions as we perform in Obedience to Moral Principles . ( Which are no other , then the Divine Will , as it is couched under the Dictate of Humane Reason ) And Betwixt These Two , lies the Region of Middle Actions : That is , of Such Actions , as although not of simple , and strict Necessity , either to Life , or Virtue , are notwithstanding Useful , and Commodious , for the Guidance , and Comfort of the One , and for the Practice of the Other . The accurate Disquisition of This Interest clears the Main Difficulty of the Question ; for Nothing has embroyl'd us more , then the Mistaken Rights , and Privileges of Individuals : Which Mistakes being once made manifest , by laying open the Subordination of several Claims , and Powers , every Man may take a distinct View of his own Province . N. C. If you will proceed Regularly , you are to State these Subordinations as you go . C. Agreed ; and we are now upon the Right of Individuals : In which naked Simplicity of Considering Man , without any Regard to the Ordinary Motions of Providence , in the Order , and Regiment of the World , We shall yet find a Natural Subordination within Himself , and the Law of Sense , under the Dominion of the Law of Reason , in the same Subj●…ct . These are the Laws which the Apostle calls the Law of his MEMBERS , and the Law of his WILL. The Former Law ( and the less Excellent ) is the Law Sensitive ; which is no other , then the Law of Self-Preservation . ( The Supreme Law of Animal Beings , as it is of Rationals the Lowest ) This Law Sensitive , is no other than the Manifestation of God in the Creature : for what Sense does , Nature does ; and what Nature does , God does . N. C. But what is That Power all this while , which you call NATURE ? C. It is the Ordinary Working of God in all his Creatures ; by Virtue of which Divine Impression , and Influence , Every thing is moved to seek the Utmost Perfection whereof it is Capable . As for the Purpose ; The Perfection of MAN is the Congruity of his Actions with his Reason ; which is Nothing else , but That which we call VIRTUE . The Perfection of BEASTS lies a degree lower : For they are only mov'd by a Sensual Impulse , towards what is Convenient for them ; and when they have it , They Rest. N. C. When People are gravell'd , they fly to their Impulses , and Occu●…t Qualities . Where lies the Difference ; I beseech you , between Their Impulse , and Our Choice ? C. Their Impulse carries them on through a Sensitive Search , not any D●…liberative Discourse ; And there is no E●…ection neither at last : But only the Simple Prosecution of a Determinate Appetite , without imagining any Proportion betwixt the Means , and the End. N. C. But still we find , that there is a Proportion : and the Motion appears to us according to the Method of Reason : And a very Orderly Proceeding from a Question , to a Resolution . C. Is it Reason , think ye , that makes a Dog follow his Nose , and Hunt for Meat , when he is Hungry ? Or will you call it Choice , if he leaves a Turfe for a Bone ? Now if you ask how This comes about : He is guided by Instinct toward the End ; and Sense carries him thorough the Means . N. C. But why should the same Process of Means , and the same Application of Causes , be ascribed only to Instinct , in Brutes , and to Reason , in Man ? C. You are to take notice , that all Natur●…l Operations are Regular , and Ordinate , by what Means soever performed : But it does not follow , because the Method is according to Reason , that therefore the Instrument must be Reasonable . But to mind what we are upon . The Law of Self-Preservation , is a Law common to Beasts with Men ; but not of Equal Force , and Obligation : for Their Sovereign Interest is Life ; Ours is Virtue : And therefore your late Argument for Defensive Arms , under Pretense of that Extremity , was but a Brutish Plea : For if the Consideration of Virtue be not above That of Life , Where lies the Advantage of Our Reason ? N. C. But when the Death is certain , and the Virtue doubtful , Who shall decide the Point ? C. In a Case abstracted from the Ties , and Duties of Religion , and Government , every Man's Reason sits as Iudge upon his own Life . As for Instance ; You are in the Hands of Thieves , and only This Choice offer'd you , either to take a False Oath , or to lose your Life . Your Conscience tells you , that you must rather Perish , then Forswear your self : But if you can preserve your self , without Violence to a Superiour Duty , you are your own Murderer if you do not . Thus far I think we are safe , and I suppose agreed , that every Individual is to Govern himself by his Natural Conscience . But when the several Particulars come to be bundled up in One Community , the Case is otherwise . N. C. I am sorry to hear you say That . Why should not every Man be Govern'd by his own Conscience , as well in Consort , as in Solitude , as well in Company , as by Himself ? Or will you have it , that our Duty to God ceases in the Act of becoming Subjects to a Civil Power ? C. As to your Conscience , you are as free now , as you were before : But your Body is no longer your Own , after you are once enrolled a Member of a Society . And here 's the Difference ; You were your own Servant before , and now you are the King 's . ( For what is Government , but the Wisedom , Resolve , and Force of every Particular , gather'd into One Under standing , Will , and Body ? ) And This comes up to what I have already Deliverd , that , Whatsoever God has left INDIFFERENT , is the Subject of HUMANE POWER . N. C. But who shall be Iudge of what 's Indifferent ? C. Let That be Examined the very next Thing we do . You are already satisfied , that an Auth●…rized Iudge is absolutely Necessary , in Order to the Pe●…ce of Church , and State , and to the Ending of all Publique Differences : But we are not yet resolv'd about Our Iudges ; Or if we were , yet in Regard they are but Men , and so may Erre , [ Infallibility being departed with Christ and his Apostles ; in lieu of which Living , and Infallible Guides , God has in Providence given us a Plain , and Infallible Rule ] We are now to make Enquiry , how far a Private Judge may be allow'd to Oppose , or Differ from a Publique , in Case of a Reluctant Conscience , and in some sort to Iudge his Iudge ? N. C. You say very well ; For place the Ultimate Decision where you will , It is ( as you said before ) an Infallible Determination as to the Strife ; but Not so , as to the Truth ; and comes at last to This , that every Man ( in some Degree ) re-judges his Iudge . If I be fully convinc't , either , that the Command is Sinful in it self , or the Opinion Wicked ; I am neither to Obey the One , nor to Embrace the Other ; as being tied up by a General Obligation of rather Obeying , and Believing God , then Man. Nay more ; If in Obedience to the Magistrate , I commit a Sin against God , and do it ignorantly too , That very Act in Ignorance is Crimin●…l : ( If I had the Means of being better inform'd : ) For No Humane Respect c●…n justifie an Offence against God. Now if I am bound to do Nothing that is Ill ; I am likewise bound , before I do any thing , to satisfie my self , whether it be Ill , or No : For otherwise , I may follow a False Religion for a True , and be Damned in the End , for not minding what I did . This do I take for Proof sufficient , that No Man is so Implicitely Obliged to rely upon other Mens Eyes , as totally to Abandon the Direction of his own ; Or so unconditionally to swear Obedience to other Mens Laws , and Perswasions , as to hold no Intelligence at all with that Sacred Law , and Faithful Counsell●…r which he carries in his own B●…som . C. I am so far from advising you to reneunce your Reason , that , on the contrary , I would have you absolutely guided , and concluded by it ; and only to Obey for Quiet sake , so far as you can possibly Obey in Conscience . N. C. What if a Single Person hit that Truth , which a General Council misses ? Which will you have him follow ; Truth , or Authority ? C. I would have him follow Truth with his Soul , and Authority with his Body . But it is not for so remote a Possibility as This is , to bring the Fansies and Imaginations of a Private Spirit into a Competition with Resolutions of Law , And yet for the Possibility sake , We 'l take the very Supposition likewise into Consideration , and Word the whole Matter as plainly as we can . The Church says , Ye may Do ; And the Law says , You must Do , That which your Conscience says , You ought not to Do. How will you reconcile your Duty , and your Conscience , in This Case ? N. C. Uery well : For I think it my Duty to Obey my Conscience , upon This Principle , That Conscience is God's Substitute over Individuals . C. Keep to That , and Answer me once again ; Is not the Civil Magistrate God's Substitute too ? If He be , How comes your Conscience to take place of his Authority ? They are Both Commission'd alike , and consequently , Both to be Obey'd alike : Which is Impossible , where their Commands are Inconsistent . N. C. The Magistrate is a Publique Minister , and his Commission does not reach to Particular Consciences . C. And on the Other side , You are a Private Person , and there is as little Reason for your Opinion to Operate upon a Publique Law. So that if I mistake you not , we are upon accord thus far ; That every Particular is to look to One , and the King to the Whole . Now if you would deal as Candidly with me , about the Ecclesiastical Power , as you have done in the Civil , we might make short work of This Question . I hope you will not deny that the Church is as well a Authorized to TEACH , and INSTRUCT in all the External Acts of Worship , as b the Magistrate is to COMPEL to Those External Acts. N. C. There is no Doubt , c The Church ( as the Church ) has a Ministerial Power ( Ex Officio ) to Define Controversies , according to the Word of God ; And that d A Syn●…d Lawfully Conven'd , is a Limited , Ministerial , and Bounded Visible Iudge , and to be believed in , so far as they fellow Christ , the Peremptory and Supreme Iudge , speaking in his own Word . C. This will not do our Business yet ; for to say , that a Synod is to be believed in , SO FAR as it follows Christ , seems to make Those the Iudges of That Act , that are to be Concluded by it ; and leaves the Credit of the Authority , dependent upon the Conscience , Fancy , or Humour of the Believer . For 't is but any Man's saying , that the Synod does not follow Christ , and that he trusts in it so far as it does follow Him. And this is enough to keep the Controversie afoot , without any hope of Decision . N. C. We are indeed to believe Truths determined by Synods , to be Infallible , and never again liable to Retraction , or Discussion ; Not because [ so says the Synod , ] but because [ so says the Lord. ] C. Still you are short ; for 't is not in Our Power to dis●…elieve what we acknowledge to be a Truth : But That which is Truth at the Fountain , may be Corrupted in the Passage ; Or at least appear so to Me , and What then ? N. C. It must be look't upon as an Errour of the Conscience ; which is no Discharge at all of your Obedience : From which Errour you are to be reclaimed , either by Instruction , or Censure . For the People are obliged to Obey Those that are OVER THEM IN THE LORD , who Watch for their Souls , as those who must give an Accompt ; ] And not oblig'd to stand to , and obey the Ministerial and Official Iudgment of THE PEOPLE . He that Heareth YOU ( MINISTERS of the GOSPEL , not the PEOPLE ) Heareth ME ; And He that Despiseth YOU , Despiseth ME. C. Why should not We Two shake Hands now , and Join in the Act for Uniformity ? You cannot say , that it wants any thing of the full Complement of a Binding Law ; Either in regard of the Civil , or of the Ecclesiastical Authority . Here is first , the Iudgment of the Church duely conven'd , touching the Meetness , and Conveniency of the Rites , and Forms therein Conteined . You have next , the Royal Sanction , Approving , and Authorizing Those Rites , and Forms ; and Requiring your Exact Obedience to them . Now so it is , that you can neither Decline the Authority of your Iudges , nor the Acknowledgment of your Duties ; What is it then that hinders your Obedience ? N. C. That which to Me is more then all the World , It goes against my Conscience . C. Only That Point then , and we have done with This Subject . We have already concluded , that God is the Iudge of the World ; That the Church is the Iudge of what properly concerns Religion ; That the Civil Magistrate is Iudge of what belongs to Publique Order , and Peace ; and That every Man's Conscience is the Iudge of what concerns his own Soul. The Remaining Difficulty is This ; How I am to behave my self in a Case , where the Law bids me do One Thing , and my Conscience , Another . To take a True Estimate of This Matter , We are first to Ballance the Two Interests , that meet in Competition ; The One , for the Law , and the Other , against it . There is , in Favour , and for the EXECUTION of the Law ( meaning That of Uniformity ) 1. The Personal Conscience , and 2. The Political Conscience of the King. There is moreover , for the EQUITY of it , the Solemn and Deliberate Iudgment of the Church ; which is , effectually , the Publique Conscience ; and lastly , for the OBSERVANCE of it , There is the Duty of the Subject , which , if it be withdrawn , does not only Invalidate This Particular Act , but it loosens the Sinews of Sovereign Authority ; and which is more , it destroys even a Divine Ordinance ; For take away Obedience , and Government lapses into Confusion . Now for the Counterpoise ; AGAINST This Law , and Thus Supported , appears your Naked Conscience . Nay , That 's the Fairest on 't ; It may be worse , and in Truth , any thing that 's Ill , under That Name . N. C. But what 's the World to Me , in the Scale against my Soul ? C. You have great Reason sure , and 't is no more then every Man may challenge : That is , to Stand , or Fall , to his own Conscience : Is that your Principle ? N. C. Yes , out of Doubt ; 't is Mine , and Yours , and any Man's that's Honest. C. Well ; Hold ye a little ▪ Your Conscience will not down with This Law ; and This Law will as little down with your Conscience . Weigh now the Good against the Bad ; What if it stands ? What if it yields ? Make the Case worse then it is ; as Bad as Bad may be , in your own Favour . You cannot comply with the Law ; And the Law will not stoop to You. What follows upon it ? N. C. The Ruine of many Godly People , that desire to Worship God , according to his Word . C. That Plea wrought little upon You from Us ; but let that pass . What sort of Ruine do you mean ? Ruine of Liberty , or Estate ? ( For this Law draws no Blood ) State your Misfortunes , I beseech ye . N. C. No Man must Hold a Benefice , or Teach a School , but upon Terms of such Subscription , or Acknowledgment , as many an honest Man would rather Die then Consent to : So that We are Distrest , not only for Our Selves , as being deprived of the Comfort of all Spiritual , and Heavenly Freedoms ; But Our poor Infants are exposed to be Undone , wanting the Means of a Religious Education . C. If This be All , never Trouble your selves ; for many an honest Man has out-liv'd more then this comes to . In short ; There 's a huge Clamour ; but ( God knows ) with little Reason . Some Particulars will possibly suffer for want of a Toleration : and who are They ; but the Profest Opposers of the Law ? And on the Other side , All the Friends of the Government will suffer by it . If you would see the Event of Granting what you ask , Turn but your Face toward — 41 , and then Blush , and Repent . Besides ; You 're not aware , that in Contesting with the Law , you Quarrel with your self : THERE' 's YOUR OWN VOTE AGAINST YOU ; and all this Muttering , is no other then your Factious Will , wrangling with your Political Consent . And yet I say , Stick to your Conscience : Let us now put the Case of a Real Distance , betwixt This Act , and your Conscience . How will you divide your Duty ? N. C. I 'le follow your Advice , and stick to my Conscience . C. Now change Hands , and make your self the Supreme Magistrate . He has a Double Conscience ; One that concerns Himself , the Other , his People . What his Majesties Personal Iudgment is , has been Declared Abundantly ; What his Prudential Iudgment may dispose Him to , lies in His Royal Brest . But be That as Heaven shall Order it . Here 's the Partition of your Rights : The King's Prerogative has nothing to do with your Conscience ; and your Conscience has as little to do with His Majesties Prerogative . The King is Accomptable to God for the Welfare of his People ; and You are only Accomptable to God for the Good of your little Particular . If You cannot Obey the Law , Do not : But abide the Penalty . If the Sovereign cannot Relax the Law , He 's as Free to Execute it . Your Conscience requires Liberty , and your Governour 's Conscience requires Order . Now why you should expect , that your Sovereign should bring down His Conscience to Yours , when you find upon Experiment , that you cannot perswade your Own to come up to His , is to me a Mystery . To Conclude , Keep your self , within your Sphere ; and where you cannot Consent , as a Christian , Submit , as a Subject ; that We may at last hope for some Respite from the Calamities of Sedition , and Schism . N. C. And why not Scandal , and Profaneness too ? For the Edge of your Severity might be directed to much better Purpose That way . SECT . XXIV . The Church of England charges the Non-Conformists with SCHISM , and the Non-Conformists charge those of the Church with SCANDAL . The Matter is taken into Debate . N. C. YOur Position is , That no Toleration is to be admitted , to the hazzard of Religion , Good Life , and Government . Keep to That Standard , and you will find that the Conformists have as little Pretense to a Toleration as their Neighbours : and that the Notorious Scandal on the one side , outweighs the Objected Schism on the other . C. This will scarce hold , if you come to be Try'd by your own Laws : which make it a Matter of Scandal , by Writing , Preaching , or otherwise , to publish a Disaffection to the Present Government . But Explain your self . N. C. By Scandal , I mean Habitual Prophaneness , Sensuality , Dissolution of Manners , &c. As by Schism , I suppose you intend our Incompliances with your Church-Discipline . Weigh These Two now , One against the Other , and do you your self hold the Balance . Set up your Tavern-Clubs against our Conventicles Oppose your Combinations against God Himself , to our Plots against the Government . For you must not take it Ill , if I tell ye , that Atheism is become the Sport , and Salt of your most Celebrated Enterteinments . And when you have dash'd the Bible out of Countenance , with the Story of the Three Grand Impostors , or some such Lashing Piece of Drollery , The Questioning of God's Over-ruling Wisdom , by Solemn Arguments , and the Placing of Fortune in the Throne of Providence , is that which commonly Crowns your Conversations . ; C. You should not charge Personal Crimes upon a Party , unless you can prove them to be rationally Consequent to the Tenets , and Actings of That Party . Now if you can shew me any Affinity betwixt our Principles , and These Impieties , you say something : But if you cannot , The Dust of your Argument puts out your own Eyes . I do not wonder , I must confess , to see a Nation Over-run with Atheism , that has been so many Years under your Tuition : or to find the Brat of a Conventicle laid at the Church-Door . N. C. May not We charge Personal Extravagancies upon your Party , as well as You do upon Ours ? C. Yes : If you can prove the same Agreement against Us , betwixt the Faults of the One , and the Principles of the Other , which we are able to justifie against You. The Episcopal Party , you know , stood for the King ; and it is undeniable , that the King , and Church had the same Cause , and Fate . It is as unquestionable on the other side , that the Non-Conformists destroy'd both the One , and the Other : Not by Accident neither , but by a Form'd , and Excogitated Design , wrap'd up , and couch'd in the very Mystery , and Foundation of the Schism : Your Separation from a Communion with the Church , resolving naturally into a Combination against the Entire Frame of the Government ; till in the End , by the help of a Peinful , and Well-effected Ministry , the Generality of the People were Preach'd into This Division , [ i. e. ] Those that could not reach the Cheat , were taught to Scruple at Every Thing ; and Those that went along with it , to make a Conscience of Nothing . And this is it , that has brought us to be so Pester'd with Enthusiasts , and Atheists . N. C. But let me tell ye again , the Atheists are of the Other Party . C. And let me enform you too , that your Proceedings have made Atheists , more ways then One. First : The meer Quality of your Cause has made Atheism the Interest of a great many of your Partakers ; who , to put off the Thought of a Divine Vengeance attending them , if there be a God , Endeavour ( for their own Quiet ) to perswade themselves that there is no God at all . Secondly : The Work has been carried on under the Masque of Holiness ; and the most Desperate Atheist is nothing else but a Crusted Hypocrite . I speak of your Religious Atheist , who has This Odds of the Profane , and Scoffing Wretch , that he abuses God to his Face , and in his own House . The Great Atheists , indeed , are Hypocrites ( says Sir Francis Bacon ) which are ever bandling Holy Things , but without Feeling ; so as they must needs be Cauteriz'd in the End. It is Remarquable ( as I have elsewhere recommended to your Observation ) that in the Holy Scripture there are not so many Woes pronounc'd , nor so many Cautions Inculcated , against any sort of People , as against Hypocrites . You shall there find , that God has given the Grace of Repentance to Persecutors , Idolaters , Murtherers , Adulterers , &c. But I am mistaken if the whole Bible yields any one Instance of a CONVERTED Hypocrite . Thirdly : You have done more in your Practises , toward the Vindication of Atheism , then all that ever went before ye : and he that overlooks our Story , from 1640 , to 1660 , will find matter , not only to stagger a Weak Christian , but to put a Wiseman to a Second Thought , and make him Exclaim with the Prophet ; [ Lo , These are the Ungodly , These Prosper in the World , and These have Riches in Possession . Then have I cleansed my Heart in vain , and washed my Hands in Innocency , To see the same Men , Swearing to day , with their Hands lifted up unto the Lord , in a Holy Covenant , to Defend , and Preserve His Majesties Person : And a while after , with the same Consecrated Lips , blessing that Cursed Vote , that manifestly led to his Destruction . ( The Vote of Non-Addresses ) To see Ministers , like so many Pulpit-Weather-cocks , shifting from Party to Party , till they have run through every Point of the Compass : Swearing , and Counter-Swearing : And when the City was split into more Factions , then Parishes , still to maintein , that the whole Schism was Acted by the Holy Ghost . To find the Pulpit Trading only in dark , and Oraculous Delusions , instead of plain , and saving Truths ; and the Pretended Messengers of Peace , turn'd Agents for Blood : To hear , and see all This , and More , and the Cause prosper too , What could the Invention of Man add more to this Temptation to Apostacy ? Lastly ; Your Necessitated Toleration , ( Necessitated , I say ; for you could never have Crush'd the Government without it ) started so many lewd Opinions , that it was some Degree of Modesty , for fear of a worse choice , e'en to be of No Religion at all : And without Dispute , many People finding it left to Indifferent , of what Religion they were , became Themselves as Indifferent , whether they were of Any , or No. So that the Scandal which you would spitefully fasten upon the Persons of some of our Party , is found to be Radical , and Constitutional , in the very Elements of yours . Neither is it All , that your Imputation is misplaced ; but I am afraid you 'l find your self in Another Mistake . Which of the Two , do you account the more Tolerable ; SCANDAL , or Schism ? N. C. If by SCHISM you mean A Refusal to joyn with That Church , where I cannot Communicate without Sin ; And if by SCANDAL , you intend such Actions as are of evil Example , and minister Occasion to our Neighbour , of Falling : I think 't is easily Determin'd , that the One is not to be suffer'd , and the Other not to be condemn'd . C. I do not speak of This or That sort , or degree of Schism , and Scandal ; but in the just Latitude , both of the One , and the Other . That is to say , ( without more Circumstance ) Which do you take for the more Tolerable Mischief of the Two ? N. C. Truly , betwixt a Perverse Separati●…n , and a Notori●…us Scandal , I think the Choice is hard ; but I rather incline against the Scandal . C. Now , if ye will believe Sir Francis Bacon , Schism is Both ; [ Heresies , and Schisms ( says he ) are of all others , the greatest Scandals ; yea more then Corruption of Manners . ] Consider it , as it stands in Opposition to Unity . ( which is the Bond both of Religion , and Society ) What can be more Scandalous , then that which renders Religion , Ridiculous ? And That 's the Effect of Schism . To see so many Sects , grinning one upon another , and yet All Pretending to the same One , and Infallible Spirit . Beside , that Schism seldome or never goes alone ; and in Truth , it is but Sedition , in a Disguise : For we find , that our Scrupulous Dissenters , can with much Ease , and Unity , Agree in a War , though not in a Ceremony . N. C. And may there not be Conspiracies in Scandal , as well as in Schism ? There , with an Evident Design to bring Contempt upon Religion : Whereas Here , we find at least a Colour , and Pretense to uphold it . Further ; the Sins which I accompt Scandalous , are many of them Lebell'd at the Prerogative of God Himself ; and in short , the Question is not , properly , and simply , betwixt Schism , and Scandal ; but betwixt Schism , and all other Sins whatsoever , that may be Propagated by Conversation , ( for That 's the Latitude of Scandal . ) Again , let me observe from your own Mouth , that Heresies are Scandals : and several Heresies you know , both by the Laws of God , and Man , are Punish'd with Death : He that Blasphemeth the Name of the Lord , shall be put to Death . From whence you may gather some Difference sure , betwixt the Heinousness of the On ; and of the Other . C. You will proceed by a very Uncertain Rule , to measure the Sin by the Punishment : for Political Laws regard rather Publique Conveniences , then Particular Cases of Conscience . A Man shall lose his Life for Picking a Pocket , and but hazzard his Ears for a False Oath . But if you 'l refer the Matter to the Iust , and Infallible Iudge of all the Wo●…ld , to God Himself ; look but into that Dreadful Judgment upon the Schism of Korah . Korah , Dathan , &c. rose against Moses , with Two hun●…red and Fifty Captains of the Assembly , famous in the Congregation , and said unto them , Ye take too much upon You , since all the Congregation is Holy , even every One of them , and the Lord is among them . Wherefore then lift ye your selves above the Congregation of the Lord ? [ And what follow'd ? ] The Earth open'd her Mouth , and swallow'd them up with their Families , and all the Men that were with Korah , &c. A Fire came out from the Lord , and Consumed the Two Hundred ●…nd Fifty Men that Offer'd the Incense . This set the Multitude a muttering against Moses , and Aaron ; saying , Ye have killed the People of the Lord. See now , what came of This Muttering too : Fourteen Thousand Seven Hundred of them were consumed by a Plague . You have here , not only a Dreadful Instance of God's Wrath against Schism ; but against a Schism also , carry'd on , in the Stile of Our present Non-Conformists : Two Hundred and Fifty Captains of the Assembly , Famous in the Congregation ; Which Our English Translation renders , An Intelligent , Sober sort of Men , Numerous among all Ranks , &c. These rose against Moses , and Aaron , and said unto Them , Ye take too much upon You. The Congregation is Holy , and the Lord is among Them. Wherefore do ye lift your selves above the Congregation of the Lord ? What is This , but the Language of Our Age , the common Objection against the Bishops , for Lording it over God's Heritage . The Consequences I leave before you . N. C. Give me leave now to pass an Observation upon your whole Discourse . You seem to have been very Punctual , and Methodical in the Distribution of the Parts of it . A Toleration , or No Toleration , was the Question . An Universal Toleration you found too Wide ; A Limited Toleration too Narrow ; and yet after all This , your Opinion was , that a Toleration under such and such Modifications , and Restrictions might be admitted : Upon which Terms , I was content to come to an Issue with You. Now , since This Lender of a Compliance , You have not proceeded , Methinks , with that Candour which I expected from You. But the Main Stress of your Argument lies against the Whole Party of the Non-Conformists ; And ( in effect ) against any Toleration at all : with little or no Regard to those Accommodable Points , that might have brought the Matter in Difference to some sort of Composure . C. It is very True , That I am utterly against Tolerating the Whole Party , as a Thing of Certain Inconvenience , to Religion , and Government ; and to the Ruine , no less of your selves , then of the Publique . Will Presbytery ever satisfie , the Independents Conscience ? Or will Liberty any better suit with the Presbyterians ? And yet you could both of you joyn with the Directory , against the Common Prayer ; with the Authority of the Pretended Assembly , against That of the Church ; wherein you have given Proof to the World , that you were not United upon any Consideration of Conscience , but with a Design upon a Common Booty . Ye overturn'd the Government , Divided the Spoil , Enrich't your selves , Embroiled every thing , and Settled Nothing . And yet in those Days there was no Act of Uniformity to hinder you . This is enough to make Evident , that the Non-Conformists are Intolerable , in Conjunction : But if you think fit to make a Tryal , how far any sort of them may agree with our Standard of Toleration , Apart , Plead you the Cause of the Presbyterians , and let your Brother Independent here , ( that has been a Witness to our whole Debate ) take up the Cudgels for his own Party ; Not forgetting , that In the Question of TOLERATION , the Foundation of FAITH , GOOD LIFE , and GOVERNMENT is to be Secur'd . N. C. According to what Latitude are we to understand that which you call the Foundation of FAITH ? C. According to the Latitude of the APOSTLES CREED ; wherein are conteined All the Articles of Simple Faith , which are Necessary to be Explicitly Believed . ] And whatsoever was found by Them , to be Necessary , and Sufficient to Salvation , continues so still , and ought to be so Received , and Acknowledged by Us : without insisting upon Deductions , and Consequences , as Points of Prime , and Fundamental Necessity ; though Occasionally , and Obliquely , they become Necessary too . This is the Word of Faith which we Preach , that if thou shalt Confess with thy Mouth the Lord Iesus , and shalt believe in thy Heart , that God hath raised him from the Dead , thou shalt be saved . Here 's the Foundation of FAITH : And in That of GOOD LIFE , respect is to be had to Morality , that nothing be Tolerated to the Encouragement of Loosness , Sensuality , and Dissolution of Manners . As there is an Absolute Necessity of Providing against Doctrines and Opinions of this Quality ; so I think there will be no great Difficulty , either of Discovering , or of Suppressing them : For they are of a Condition so Notorious , that they ly open to all People : and then so Odious they are , by reason of the Gross Impiety , and Scandal ; that they have no Friends upon the Face of the Earth , ( for their own sakes , I mean ) but the profest Enemies Christianity , and Nature . ( It is another Case , when they are made use of in Subserviency to a Faction . ) So that you may save your selves the Trouble of Catechising your Brethren upon These two Points , and rather spend your Time upon the remaining Caution , for Securing the Government : which will be much more to Our Purpose ; For the Matter we are now upon , is a Question , rather of Policy , then of Religion . Toleration Discuss'd , BETWIXT A PRESBYTERIAN , AND AN INDEPENDENT . SECT . XXV . An Enquiry , upon a Short , and Impartial Survey of the Rise , Progress , and Issue of the War , raised by the Two Houses in 1641. Whether were more Criminal , The PRESBYTERIANS , or the INDEPENDENTS . Presb. IN all our Arguments , and Pleas for Toleration , we are still hit in the Teeth , ( as in Bar to our Demands ) with Dangerous Practises , and Opinions The Murther of the Late King The Over-turning of the Government and that we have a mind to serve the Son , as we did the Father . Now forasmuch as the Fact is undeniable and truly the Exception but Reasonable , as to those that did it ; We are first to clear our selves of that Execrable Fact ; wherein I am content to become an Undertaker for the Presbyterians ) And to speak afterward , to the Iustification of our Principles , and Opinions . ; ; ; ; Indep . Give me leave then to Plead the Cause of the Independents ; and to observe to you , in the first place , that the Scotch Non-Conformists under King Iames were Totally Presbyterian : and so were the English Puritans under Queen Elizabeth . Presb. Were the Anabaptists , Familists , and Brownists , that started up in Those Days , Presbyterians ? Indep . Some Dutch Anabaptists came over indeed in 1560 ; but one Proclamation scatter'd them Immediately . And then for the Familists , and Brownists , you speak of ; Alas ! They gave the Executioner more Trouble then the Government , and were Supprest as soon as Detected . But the Formal , and United Confederacy was still Presbyterian ; and you must overthrow all the Memorials , and Records of Those Times to gainsay it . Briesly ; If you look forward , you will find the Presbyterians again under King Iames , at Hampton Court ; The Presbyterians again , in the several Parliaments under King Charles the First ; and so the same Hand still , to the beginning of the Scottish Broils in 1637. which was but the Midwifry of the Plot , they had been so long a Hammering . Presb. You make nothing , it seems , of the Turbulent Independents , that went away to New England , Holland , and other Parts beyond the Seas , with all the Clamour , and ●…ancour Imaginable against the Government . Indep . Not to Justifie them in their Clamour ; I must yet recommend their Departure , as a fair Testimony that they withdrew upon Conscience . For by this Secession , they put themselves out of Condition to carry on a Faction : Whereas The Presbyterians , that had a further Design in Prospect , stood their Ground , watch'd their Advantages , and gain'd their End. Presb. All this is but Talk , without Proof . Indep . It will be granted , I suppose , that the Scottish Tumults in 1637. and the R●…bel ion upon the neck of them , in 1638 were advanc'd upon a Presbyterian accompt : and consequently , that Those were of the same Leven , that Voted them Good Subjects , and Money for their peins , and Adopted them their DEAR BRETHREN , for so doing . Were not the Principals of the Faction in the Long Parliament , every Man of them Presbyterian ? Were not the Army , and Ass●…mbly , Presbyterian ; And all their Votes , Actions , and Conclusions Influenc'd accordingly ? Who were they that Invited the Scots into England the Second time ; ( Nov 7. 164●… . ) That Imposed the Covenant ; Prosecuted the War , under the Countenance of it ; and made it the Test of Discrimination , betwixt the Malignant , and Well affected Parties : That Settled the Directory , Nay the Presbytery it self ? Were not These , Presbyterians ? Who were they , but Presbyterians , that stripp't the King of his Regalities , and Revenues ; Commission'd an Army against him ; Fought him , Pursu'd him ; and in fine , brought him to utter Ruine ? Presb. You will find the Late King of another Opinion , in his Grand Declaration , of Aug. 12. 1642. where he complains of the Tumultuous Assemblies of Brownists , Anabaptists , and other Sectaries . Indep . But still you will find in the same Page , that These very People were Animated , and Countenanced , by Presbyterians ; and Acted , as the Creatures , and Servants , of That Interest . Presb. Can you say that the English , or Scottish Preshyters did ever go about to Dissolve Monarchy ? Indep . Yes : And I do aver , that the Nineteen Propositions of Iune 2. 1642. were as much a Dissolution of Kingly Government , as the very Act it self ( of March 17. 1648. ) for Abolishing it . And the Uxbridge Propositions were to the same purpose . Presb. You know very well , that after the New-Modelling of the Army , the Presbyterians were able to do nothing ; and this was a good while before the King went to the Scots . Indep . Let us see then how the Presbyterians behaved themselves , after his Majesty cast himself into the Protection of the Scotch Army before Newark , in May , 1646. Notice was Immediately given of it , to the Two Houses , by the Commissioners of the Army ; Importing their Adherence to the Covenant , and Treaty ; and that they had no fore-knowledge of his Majesties Coming . The English Army presently March'd with 5000 Horse , and 〈◊〉 , toward Newark ; and our Brethren fairly retreated with the Prey in the Foot toward Newcastle . After This , Both Parties stood at Gaze for several Months ; but not without a World of Tedious Papers , betwixt the Scotch Commissioners , and the Two Houses , touching their Ioynt Right in Disposing of the Person of the King. But in the Conclusion , The Presbyterians Compounded the Controversie for the Sum of 400000l In May they took their Sovereign into their Protection ; In the December following , they Sold him ; and in February they Deliver'd him up ; And All This , According to their COVENANT . Presb. They must needs Deliver him up , when they could Keep him no longer . Indep . They had at that time the City of London to Friend ; a Balancing Vote in the House of Commons ; a Considerable Mixture in the Army ; Scotland behind them ; ( Entire , if ever the Kings Interest came in Play ) And at least Ten Thousand Men in a Body . ( The Royal Party over and above . ) So that here was no visible Force to over-awe them : And Lowdon himself acknowledged as much , at a Conference ( Octob. 6. 1646. ) If any such Course shall be taken ( says he ) or any Demand made for Rendring of his Person , which cannot stand with his Honour , and Safety ; or which cannot consist with our Duty , Allegeance , and COVENANT ; nor with the Honour of That Army , to whom ( in time of his Extreme Danger ) he had his Recourse for Safety : It cannot be Expected that we can be Capable of SO BASE AN ACT : And if ( to shun this , and avoid occasion of Quarrelling between the Kingdoms ) He shall go to Scotland , and resent his Expulsion out of England ; and crave the Assistance of That Kingdom for Recovery of his Right to This Crown : He may in a short time , raise such Forces in Scotland , and Ireland , as with the Assistance of Forreign Princes , these Kingdoms may be made a Field of Blood , &c. By This , it appears Evidently , that They were under no Necessity of Delivering the King : And you may now see their Opinion of the Action it self . [ If it be Contrary ( say the Scotch Commissioners ) to the Law , and Common Practise of Nations , to Deliv●…r up the meanest Subject fled to them , though it be for the Greatest Crimes ; How much more would the World abroad condemn our Army , for a BASE , DISHONOURABLE Act , if they should Deliver up their Head , and SOVEREIGN , ( having cast himself into their Hands ) to be Disposed of at the Arbitr●…ment of another Nation ! Presb. But yet you saw that they Condition'd for his Honour , Freedom , and Safety . Indep . That 's a Shuffle : For upon such Terms did they render him , that they might have cast a Sheep into a Herd of Wolves , with as much Confidence , and Likelihood of Safety . You are here to distinguish the F●…ction of Scotland , from the Nation : No Country affording greater Instances of Honour , and Loyalty . Nay , I have heard ( even on This Occasion ) that upon the Kings Earnest Desire to go for Scotland , It was carried in the Negative but by Two Voices . Presb. Can you Imagine , that if they had apprehended any Danger to his R●…yal Person , they would not have ventur'd their Libes a thousand time●… over , to have sav'd him ? Indep . No , no : But on the Contrary ; They Foresaw the Danger , debated it ; and yet expos'd him : Nay , which is still worse , they reserv'd him for it . Were not his Majesties Friends kept from him , by a strict Order , at Newcastle ? Was he not Spied , and Guarded , for fear of an Escape ? And upon Information , that He intended one , Was not a narrower Watch set over him ? That they foresaw the Danger , is confest by the Chancellor Himself . Lest we should walk in the Dark , ( says he ) upon Obscurity of Ambiguous Words , I shall desire , that the Word of Disposing of the Kings Person , may be rightly understood . For Dolus versatur in Universalibus . For to Dispose of the Person of the King , as Both Houses , or Both Kingdoms shall think fit , may in some sense be to DEPOSE , or WORSE . And in a Speech to his Majesty , he goes yet further . If your Majesty ( says he ) shall refuse to assent to the Propositions ; ( which God forbid ) you will lose all your Friends , lose the City , and the Country ; and All England will joyn against you as one Man : And ( when all hope of Reconciliation is past ) it is to be feared they will Process , and Depose you , and set up another Government . Upon your Majesties refusing the Propositions , both Kingdoms will be Constreined ( for their mutual Safety ) to Agree , and Settle Religion , and Peace without you : which ( to our unspeakable Grief ) will ruine your Majesty , and your Posterity . And if your Majesty reject our Faithful Advice , and lose England by your Wilfulness , your Majesty will not be permitted to come and ruine Scotland . Pres●… . These Propositions , I suppose were of Absolute Necessity to the Well-Being of the Publique ; they would never have been brought in Competition else with the Kings Freedom , Life , and D●…gnity ) . Indep . The King was first , to Iustifie the Pr●…ceedings of the Two Houses , and to deliver up to Death , Beggery , and Infamy his Whole Party . 2. To Settle the Militia of England , and Ireland , in the Hands of the Parliament , for Twenty Years ; giving them Authority to raise Men , and Moneys . 3. To make v●…id all Honours since 1642 ; and no Peers admitted for the future , to Sit ●…nd Vote in Parliament , but by Consen●… of Both Houses : who were likewise To dispose of all Great Places , and Offices of Honour , in England , and Ireland . 4. His Majesty was to Swear , and Sign the COVENANT , and Command the taking of it throughout the Three Kingdoms ; Abolishing Episcopacy , and Settling Religion as Both Houses should Agree . Upon his Majesties Refusal to Sign These Propositions , the Scotch Declaration of Ian. 16. 1646. tells us , That there would be a Ioynt Course taken by Both Kingdoms concerning the Disposal of His Majesties Person . — With Respect had to the Safety , and Preservation of his Royal Person , IN THE PRESERVATION , AND DEFENCE OF THE TRUE RELIGION , AND LIBERTIES OF THE KINGDOMS — According to the COVENANT . And According to the COVENANT , His Majesties Person was Disposed of . Presb. And do you believe that the Two Houses would have used the King any better , if he had gone to Them ? They made it Treason Immediately , and Death without Mercy , for any Man to Harbour , and Conceal the Kings Person ; upon a Supposition , that his Majesty was then in London . This was the fourth of May ; and on the sixth , The Commons Uoted him to Warwick Castle ▪ which was Unvoted again upon the ninth . In ●…une , the Kings going to the Scots , was Uoted A Design to Prolong the War. And this was as much the Action of the Independents , as the Other was of the Presbyterians . Indep . Pardon me there , I beseech ye . You see by the Voting Back and Forward , that the House of Commons was upon a hard Tug , but the Scottish Party was totally Presbyterian . But will you hear the Kirk speak for it self , after the putting of the King into English Hands ? They Exhort their COVENANTED BRETHREN , ( the Assembly at Westminster ) to hold fast their Solemn League and Covenant : to entertein a Brotherhood , and Unity between the Nations , ( Feb. 12. 1646. ) ( but not a Syllable of the King ) Again , ( Iune 18. 1647. ) The General Assembly of the Kirk , presses the Two Houses to a speedy Establishment of the Presbytery : ( but not a Word again of his Majesty . ) And in truth , their Silence is a Favour , considering how they order him , when they speak of him : As you may observe in a Resolve of theirs , upon a Question Debated at Edinburgh . If the King be Excluded from Government in England , for not Granting the Propositions concerning Religion , and the Covenant ; and for not giving a Satisfactory Answer to the Remanent Propositions : Whether in That Case it be Lawful for this Kingdom to assist him , for the Recovery of the Government , or whether it be not Lawful ? Being put to it , We cannot but Answer , in regard of the Engagement of This Kingdom , by Covenant , and Treaty , NEGATIVE . Resolved upon the Question , 1. That the Kingdom of Scotland , shall be Governed as it hath been these last Five Years ; All Means being used , that the King might take the Covenant , and Pass the Propositions . 2. That the taking of the Scots Covenant , and Passing some of the Propositions , doth not give Warrant to assist him against England . 3. That upon bare taking the National Covenant , we may not receive him . 4. That the Clause in the Covenant , for Defence of the Kings Person , is to be understood , in Defence , and Safety of the Kingdoms . 5. That the King shall not Execute any Power in the Kingdom of Scotland , until such time that he hath Granted the Propositions concerning Religion , and the Covenant ; and given a Satisfactory Answer to Both Kingdoms in the rest of the Propositions , presented to him by both Kingdoms at Newcastle . 6. That if his Majesty refuse to Pass the Propositions , he shall be disposed of according to the COVENANT , and Treaty . 7. That the Union be firmly kept between the Kingdoms , according to the Covenant , and the Treaties . Here 's PRESBYTERIAN LOYALTY : If the King would have consented to give up his Crown ; Blast his Conscience ; Betray his Trust , and Sacrifice his Friends ; he might perchance have been allow'd the Pageantry of a Court , and some Mock-Properties of Royalty : but upon other Terms , the Kirk you see gives him no Quarter . The King is now under the Care of his new Governours ; Holdenby is his Prison ; The Question is Matter of Church-Government ; and his Majesty is prest to an Alteration . Some Two Months are spent in the fruitless Desires , and Expectations of his Chaplains , for his Advice , and Comfort : and any Two ( of Twelve in Nomination ) would satisfie his Majesty . But That could not be ; ( they said ) No , not a Common-Prayer-Book for his own Private Use. These were the Presbyterians still . Upon the fourth of Iune 1647. Co●…not Ioyce , with a Party of Horse took the King from Holdenby ; under colour of preventing other Secret Designs upon the Person of his Majesty . The next day , at a Rendezvouz near Newmarket , was Read , and Signed The Armies ENGAGEMENT : compleining of the Two Houses , and in particular , of a Vote they had Past for Disbanding the Army . ( Where Note , that the Houses were still Presbyterian ) The Sum of their ENGAGEMENT was : That they would Disband , upon full Satisfaction received , and not without it . This Liberty was menag'd all this while , with much Formality of Duty , and Respect : The Houses at every Turn advertis'd concerning the King's Motions : and ( Iune the 9th ) consulted how further to Dispose of his Majesty . Some Three days after , the Army drew toward London , and Alarm'd the City : ( contrary to an Express Order of the Houses , the very day before ) A Months Pay was their Errand , and to save Carriage , they made a step from Royston to St. Albans to receive it . On Iune the 15 , out comes a Terrible Representation , with Desires from the Army , Against all Arbitrary Powers , and Interests whatsoever : Pleading the Presbyterian Presidents , and the Principles of the Two Houses in their Iustification . The Parliament ( say they ) hath Declar'd it no Resisting of Magistracy , to side with the Iust Principles , and Law of Nature , and Nations , ( being That Law upon which we have assisted you ) and that the Souldiery may Lawfully hold the Hands of the General , who will turn his Cannon upon his Army , on purpose to destroy them . They Demanded , The Purging of the Houses ; and Retrenching the Power of Committees ; An Accompt for Publique Moneys ; A Period of the Present Session , and Limits for the Future , &c. It could not chuse but Gall the Two Houses , to see their Throats cut with their own Weapons : but still they kept up their Greatness of Pretense , and Stile ; and by an Order as Imperative as ever , they commanded the Placing of his Majesty at Richmond ; in Order to a Treaty , forsooth , for a Safe , and Well-grounded Peace , But the Army had another Game to Play ; However , what the Presbyterians would have done upon that Occasion , may be seen in what they did afterward , at the Isle of Wight , in his Majesties last Distress , and Extremity . Presb. You are willing , I find , to pass over the Barbarism of the Independents toward his Majesty , while they had him at H●…mpton-Court but there is enough yet behind , to make That Faction Odious to all Eternity . ; Indep . Truly no : but I would not spin out a Debate to the length of a History . As to the Barbarisms you speak of , let his Majesty Himself be heard . Colonel Whaley , I have been so civilly used by You , and Major Huntington , that I cannot but by this parting Farewell , acknowledge it under my Hand . Nov. 11. 1647. And again ; from Carisbrook Castle to the General , Nov. 27. 1647. The Free Liberty which you willingly afforded us to have of the use of our Own Chaplains , makes us at this time not only to Acknowledge your Former Civilities , but , &c. So that His Majesties Condition appears to have been somewhat more easie at Hampton-Court , then before it was at Holdenby . Nay , most certain it is , that the Presbyterians , even at That very Time , did the Deadly Thing that brought the King to the Seaffold . Presb. How could That be ; when the Two Houses , by Purging , and Modelling , were Subjected Absolutely to the Devotion of the Army ? Indep . Thus they did it . His Majesty was at That time , upon fair Terms with Cromwel , and Ireton ; and not without large hopes of a Final Accommodation . ( The Author of The History of Independency , ( Pa. 35. ) is positive , as to their Treating with the King ) While This was in Agitation , the Presbyterians were at work on the other hand , to break the King's Confidence in the Army ; by Imputations of Treachery , and Levity : to divert his Majesty to the Seeking of Relief elswhere ; with particular Undertakings of great Matters from Scotland , and the City of London . This way of Tampering might very well put the King to a stand : which Cromwel no sooner perceived , but he Immediately betook himself to a Course of Extremity : Irritated ( over and above , as is credibly affirmed ) by an Advise foom Argyle , in confirmation of his Jealousie . His Majesties next Remove was to the Isle of Wight : Where , for Ceremonies sake , he was presented with Four Bills ; and upon his Refusal to pass them , followed the Vote of NON-ADDRESSES . In Passing these Bills , His Majesty had not only divested Himself , and His Successors , of all Sovereignty ; but Subjected his People to the Basest , and most Absolute Tyranny that ever was Excrcis'd upon Mortals . Presb. You will not call This the Act of the Presbyterians , I hope . Indep . No , I will not : But yet I must tell you , that the Presbyterians , upon this Juncture , did every jote as much as this Amounts to . So soon as the Parliament of Scotland was thoroughly Inform'd of the Distress , and Danger of the King's Condition , the Matter was presently Debated ; and a Resolution taken to Raise an Army for his Majesties Relief . In which Proceeding , they were violently opposed by the Genral Assembly , without any regard at all to the King's Life , at that time in Q●…estion . See The Humble Desires of the Commissioners of the General Assembly to the Parliament , Pag. 13. ( We desire that his Majesties late Concessions , and Offers concerning Religion , as they have been by the Church , so may be by the Parliament declared UNSATISFACTORY . ( March 22. 1648. ) And afterward : ( Ian. 10. 1648. ) That his Majesties late Concessions , and Offers concerning Religion , may by your Lordships , DIRECTLY , and POSITIVELY , be Declared UNSATISFACTORY to this present Parliament . And that there shall be no Engagement for Restoring his Majesty to one of his Houses , with Honour , Freedom , and Safety , before Security , and Assurance be had from his Majesty , by his Solemn OATH , under his HAND , and SEAL , that ●…e shall for HIMSELF , and his SUCCESSORS , Consent , and Agree to Acts of Parliament , enjoyning the League and Covenant , and fully Establishing Presbyterian Government , Directory of Worship , and Confession of Faith in all his Majesties Dominions : and that his Majesty shall never make Opposition to any of these , or endeavour any Change thereof . This is Rivetted with a Mischief . And pray'e shew me now the Material Difference , between Precluding His Majesty by a Vote of NO ADDRESS , or by a Resolution of NO AGREEMENT : His Honour , and Conscience being equally at Stake on either side . To give you the Sum of all in short . The Presbyterians began the War ; Pursu'd it ; made the King a Prisoner ; Sold him ; and in the Depth of his Calamity , presented him with Templation , instead of Comfort . No Composition would be heard of , but the Forfeiture of his SOUL , for the Saving of his LIFE . Presb. But the Independents however , Crown'd the Wickedness with his Blood. Indep . Suppose it so : They did only Execute the Sentence , but the Presbyterians Pronounc'd it . Neither did they Execute it , as Independents ; or under colour of any Impulse of Religion , or Conscience , but upon Civil , and Political Pretexts . He was adjudged to be put to Death as a Tyrant , Traytor , Murtherer , and Publique Enemy : Not for Refusing to Enter into a Church-Covenant , or Establish Liberty of Conscience ; but upon a Pestilent Motive of Diabolical Policy , and State. Whereas , the Presbyterians persecuted him as PRESBYTERIANS ; and depriv'd him of his Royal Support , Dignity , Friends , Freedom , ( in Effect ) Life and all , because he would not renounce his Reason , and Conscience , in favour of their Government . And I am verily perswaded , that you will have as little to say for your Principles , as for your Actions . SECT . XXVI . What Party soever DEMANDS a Toleration , and yet Mainteins , that It is Destructive both of Church , and State , to GRANT one , Is an ENEMY to BOTH . Indep . AS to the Point in Question ; It lies Naturally before us to speak first to the Thing , in it self ; and we may afterward consider it in the Consequences . In the Desire of a Toleration , the Independents ask no more then they would be ready to Allow ; I wish the Presbyterians could say the like . Presb. In the large sense of Allowing all sorts of Libertines , and Heretiques , as the late Independent Government did , I do confess you have out-done the Presbyterians . Indep . And yet Those very Libertines , and Heretiques , were Your White-Boys , and Favourites , so long as they serv'd Your Ends. They had none of this Language from you , when they Tumulted against Bishops , and Common-Prayer ; Ceremonies , and Popish Lords . While they were the Instruments of Your Ambition , they were the Godly , Well-affected Party : So that Heretiques , it seems , will down well enough with your Politiques , though not with your Consciences : Provided they will content themselves to be Damn'd , and let the Presbyterians alone to Govern. Presb. The Independents made sweet work in Holland , did they not ? And where was your Spirit of Toleration , and Forbearance , I beseech you , in New-England ? Indep . You cannot say that we gave any Trouble in Holland to the State ; or that we fell foul there upon Different Iudgments . In New-England , 't is true , we excluded the Gortonists , Familists , Seekers , Antinomians , Anabaptists ; and Subjected them to the Censure of the Civil Power , as People of Dangerous Principles , in Respect both of Good Life , and Government . Which Proceeding of our●… methinks might serve to disabuse those that call Independency the Genus Generalissimum of all Errours , Heresies , Blasphemies , and Schisms : and take the Church way of New-England , for that sort of Independency . They did also exclude Papacy , and Prelacy ; The Latter , perchance , more out of Regard to a Temporary Convenience , then upon any rooted Principle of Implacable Severity . And I perswade my self , the Episcopal Party will witness thus much on our Behalfs ; that as to the Freedom of their Meetings , and way of Worship , in the late Revolutions , they had much better Quarter from the Independents , then ever they had from the Presbyterians : There was no Persecuting of Men for Covenants , and Directories : So that Thus far , the Independents have made their Professions of Liberty good , by their Practise . Presb. And are not the Classical Presbyterians as much for a Lawful Liberty , as the Congregationals ? [ L●…t there be a Toleration in Religion , excepting to Blasphemy , Treason , or Gross Errours . ] Bear with the Weak ; Tolerate the Tolerable , and for the Intolerable , we beg not your Toleration . ●…ere's the Sense and Destre of the Presbyterian Divines that were Commission'd about the Review of the Service-Book . Indep . This is only a New Song , to an Old Tune . The Presbyterians have just the same need of the Independents at this day , that they had some nine and twenty Years ago . The Author of The Discourse of Religion has many good Remarques upon the Papists , that may be very well applied to the Presbyterians ; and This for One. [ Things past ( says he ) may afford Prognostiques of things to come . So that we are to gather what you intend now , from what you did , after saying the same things before . Or if you had rather come to a Tryal , upon the Evidence of your own Manifestos , and Declarations , then upon the History of your Practises ; I shall make use of no other Testimony against you . The Presbyterians press the Demand of a Toleration , as a very reasonable Request ; and yet they Themselves have pronounc'd Judgment against it , as a thing against Conscience , Destructive of Publique Order both in Church , and State , and of the Peace of Common Society . Toleration ( says Mr. Edwards ) cannot be Condescended to , without a Breach of Oath , and Covenant . [ It is the Depth of Satan , this Design of a Toleration . He does not move for a Toleration of Heresies , and Gross Errours ; but an Allowance of a LATITUDE in some LESSER DIFFERENCES with Peaceableness . This is Candidus ille Diabolus , That White Devil , &c. The London Ministers Letter to the Assembly , in 1645. declares it Repugnant to the Solemn League and Covenant . The Commissioners of the Kirk of Scotland , do Protest , and Declare against it , as Inconsistent with , and Repugnant to the Word of God. As to the Influence of a Toleration upon Church , and State ; Mr. Edwards tells us , that The Party Tolerated will never rest Working , till they get the upper hand , and Suppress the Other . Rutherford is positive , that such Opinions , and Practises as make an Evident Schism in a Church , and set up two Distinct Churches , of Different Forms , and Government , are NOT to be Tolerated . For by their Principles they labour , each the Destruction of the other ; and this Toleration destroys Peace , and Unity . Again , The London Ministers are of Opinion , that it will produce causless , and unjust Revolts from the Ministry , and Congregations . The Peoples Minds will be Troubled , and in Danger to be Subverted . Heart-burnings will be Fomented , and Perpetuated to Posterity . The Godly , Peinful , and Orthodox Ministers will be Discouraged , and Despis'd . The Life and Power of Godliness will be eaten up by Frivolous Disputes , and Ianglings . And the whole Church of England , in short time , will be swallowed up with Distraction , and Confusion . The Kingdom will be wofully weakned also , by Scandals , and Divisions : The Power of the Magistrate will not be only weakned , but utterly overthrown , by the Anti-Magistratical Principles , and Practises of the Independents : And the whole Course of Religion in Private Families , will be interrupted , and undermined . Not to multiply Authorities more then necessary , This has been the strein of all your Proceedings : Imperiously , and Inexorably Strict , and Rigorous in Imposing upon Others ; and as Shamelesly Importune , and Clamorous for Liberty to Your selves . But what have I more to do , then to pass Sentence upon you , out of your own Mouths ? You cannot in Conscience desire a Toleration , if you understand it to be Against Conscience to Grant it . And the very Asking of That which you believe would draw a Destruction upon Church and State , is Ground enough for a strong Presumption that you Intend it . Presb. That which was a Reasonable Cause of Refusal , from the Presbyterians to the Independents , will not hold good from the Church of England to the Presbyterians : Either in respect of the Stability of our Government , or of the Sobriety of our Principles . SECT . XXVII . In Case of a Toleration , or Indulgence to be Granted , Whether has the fairer Pretense to it ; The CLASSICAL Way of the PRESBYTERIANS , or the CONGREGATIONAL Way of the INDEPENDENTS ; in Respect of their Form of Government . Indep . THe Presbyterians ( you say ) are rather to be Tolerated then the Independents , in regard of the Stability of their Government , and the Sobriety of their Principles , To speak in this Place to the Matter of their Government ; I think your Argument is very ill grounded . For in Deliberations of this Nature , the Cautions that occur to all Magistrates are chiefly These Two. First , in case of an Indulgence , that it may be placed upon a Party , which in Probability , would not disturb the Publique if they could ; But Secondly , to make sure however , ( for fear of the worst ) that they shall not be able to do it , if they would . So that whether a Stable , and United , or a Loose , and Distracted Interest may with more Security be Indulged , is the Question . Presb. You may as well ask , Whether Order , or Confusion be more Tolerable in a Government . Indep . That Order which is Necessary in the Government it self , is Dangerous in the Enemies of it . But deliver your Exceptions to the Toleration of those which you call Independents , in Regard of their way of Government . Presb. You have already , in a good part , sav'd me that Labour . But a Man shall not need to go further for an Exception , then to the very Denomination of them ; which Imports an Exemption from all Iurisdiction , both Eclesiastical , and Civil . Indep . But what will become of That Exception , when I shall tell you , that those People are no more Independent , then the Presbyterians ? [ We depend upon the Magistrate for Civil Government , and Protection ; and upon Christ , and his Word , for the Rule of our Administrations . Nay , we insist upon it , that the Congregational Way , is the only true , Original Presbytery , which is Peculiar to every Particular Church of Christ. But if you call us Independent , as in distinction to Subordinate , we are not only ready , as such Independents , to defend our selves ; but by virtue of That very Independency , we pretend to claim an Advantage over the Presbyterians . Presb. I could tell ye of your Church-Covenants , and Defensive Leagues , against the Commands of Authority . Indep . But I could speak homer to you , of your National Leagues and Covenants ; which all the World knows , are the grand Engines to disjoynt Communities , and remove the Foundations of Government . And I do not much wonder at it , where the Act of a General Assembly , Influences the Consciences of a whole Nation . As to any Covenants , and Leagues against the Magistrate ; neither do the Independents practise them , nor would they stand them in any stead , if they had a mind to play the Villeins ; for want of an Orderly Dependence , to unite , and to oblige them . Presb. And for That Reason , you Imagine , the Independents may be better Tolerated , then the Presbyterians . Indep . Truly for That Main Reason , with Twenty Great ones more in the Belly of it . It were a wild thing for a Man to apprehend any danger to a Government , from a Faction that is Divided , and Distracted within it self ; and without any Common Tye of Agreement to Unite it . And This do I take to be the Condition of the Independents , ( which for Discourse sake , we will suppose to be a Faction . ) Their Congregations are generally small ; The Members of them , gather'd up here and there , and so Scattered , and Intermix'd with People of other Perswasions , that they have neither Opportunity , nor Encouragement to joyn in a Conspiracy . Besides that in Respect of their Church-Parity , they want that ordinary Medium of Superiority , and Subjection , to link them together in a Combination , upon the Point of Common Interest . Another Difficulty will arise from the Affections of the Pastors themselves ; who are not without their touches of Disgust , and Emulation , to see themselves either Out-vied , or Deserted : the One , by Fuller Congregations ; and the Other , by the Removal of their Members from one Church to another . Presb. If I am not mistaken , you have provided against the Inconvenience of Breaking in One upon Another ; by an Obligation at your Entrance into any Church , not to forsake it without Leave . But proceed . Indep . There remains yet behind , another Obstacle , equal to all the rest : Which is ; that the Independents have no Men that are Eminent for Popularity , Interest , Great Fortunes , and Abilities , to head them . Now how it is possible for a Party under all these Disadvantages , to work any Mischief to the State , I am not wise enough to imagine . If you object , that the late Independent Government had many Persons at the Helm , that were qualified with these Circumstances . I must Answer you , that whatever they were , they did not set up Originally for Independency . Presb. So that upon the Result , to save your Party from Appearing Dangerous , you have made it Contemptible . And your Argument would have run very well in These Words . The Independents may better be Tolerated then the Presbyterians : for no Body that has either Brains , or Reputation , will own Independency . Indep . As an Interest ( you should have said ) whereupon to work any Change of Government . ( And this would have been point-blank to the Question , and your Period never the worse for 't . ) Now if my Reason be good on the behalf of the Independents , that They may be Tolerated without any Risque to the Commonwealth , upon the Considerations before mentioned : It will hold as good against the Presbyterians ; because of the very Contrary Circumstances in their Government , and Case . That is to say , They are at great Agreement in the Orderly Reduction , and Connexion of their Polity ; and they have commonly found Great Friends to uphold them in their Pretenses . My first Exception to Presbytery is , that it is a National Church-Government . And Methinks Two National Church-Governments in the same Kingdom , looks like a Sharing of the Sovereignty , and the setting up of Christs Vicar against Gods Vice gerent . And what will the People say in the Matter , but either that the Government thinks them in the Right , or else that 't is affraid of them ? The former Supposition draws the Simple into the Party upon Conscience ; and the Latter engages the Crafty upon Interest . To take it now in the Constitutive Parts of it ; The Scale of the Presbytery rises Thus : From Parochial Inspection , to Classical ; from Classical to Provincial ; and from Provincial , to National : Which Extensive Latitude , and Comprehension , does plainly discover , that there was a Design of Sole , and Sovereign Dominion in the very Institution of the Discipline . To say nothing in this Place of the Absolute , and Independent Authority Claimed , and Exercised by the General Assembly ; I shall only observe this to you : That they have the best Security in the World , for their Subjects Obedience to all their Acts , and Conclusions whatsoever . For Life , Fortune , Soul , and all lies at Stake : They Fine , Punish , Degrade , Excommunicate at Pleasure . And this is the True Reason , that from time to time , the Presbyterial Discipline has had the Countenance of so many Popular Advocates , and Abetters . For certainly , it is the best Foundation for an Alteration of State , that ever was yet laid upon the Face of the Earth ; and their Work is three quarters done to their hand , in the very Disposition of the Model . Only one Observation more , and I have done . And That is , The Provident Commixture of Laity , and Clergy in all their Counsels ; These to Attaque the Church , the Other , the State ; by which means , they may the more commodiously carry on Schism , and Sedition in their proper Seasons : and leave a Door of Preferment , and Advantage , open to all Comers . I will not say yet , that it is absolutely Impossible for a Protestant Monarchy , and this Double refin'd Presbytery to prosper in the same Soil : But if I had Money in my Pocket , I would not give any Prince in Christendom above Eighteen Months Purchase for his Crown , that should put it to the Venture . For he has nothing in the World to trust to , but Miracles : The Gratitude , Faith , Good Nature , and Pure Integrity of the Party . SECT . XXVIII . Whether may be better Tolerated in This Kingdom , The Presbyterians , or the Independents ; in Respect of their PRINCIPLES , and Ordinary PROCEEDINGS . Debated , First , With Relation to his Majesties PERSON , and AUTHORITY . Indep . THe Government of England is Monarchique ; but so attemper'd with Legal Provisions ▪ for the Comfort , and Benefit of the People , that every Englishman has his Interest in the Preservation of the Law ; as That which Intitles him to the Free Enjoyment of his Life and Fortune : So that we are to frame our Discourse with a Regard to His Majesties PERSON , and Royal AUTHORITY ; The Foundation , and Execution of the LAW ; The Rights , and Just Liberties of the PEOPLE : Utterly excluding from the Limits of Our Toleration , all Power or Pretense whatsoever , that shall presume to Usurp upon any of These Particulars . Now to begin with the First . What do you find in the Independent Way , that may endanger his Majesty , either in his Person , or in his Prerogative ? Presb. The Princes of Germany would Answer you , that your Proceedings are Sangu●…nary , and Violent : not only against your Actual Opposers , but against the very Ordinance of Magistracy it self . Indep . What are the Furies of the Anabaptists to us , that have Declared against them , as well as You ? But if you can fasten upon those of the Congregational Way , any Antimonarchical Opinions , or Practises , which are either wrap't up in the Bowell of That Profession , or naturally Issuing from thence : and make good your Assertion , by proving what you say , to have been the Formal Act of any One of our Churches by it self , or More of them in Combination , I will never open my Mouth after it , in a Plea for the Independents . Presb. It were a hard matter indeed to fasten any thing upon the Principles ●…f a Party , that professes to have no Principles , but still refers it self to the Guidance of a Further Light. Indep . And yet you can blame us for our Principles , though by your own Confession , you know not What they are . Now for the Reserve of Acting according to a Further Light ; It is exprest , in the Ordinary Form of our Church Covenant , that it is to be reach'd unto us out of the Word ; which most assuredly will not lead us into any Evil. If this be all you have to say against the Independents , I would gladly hear what Defence you are able to make for the Presbyterians : Either Simply , and in Themselves ; or else Comparatively with any other sort of People . Nay , I should not much care if you took the Iesuits Themselves for your Foil . Presb. How can you say This ? Considering , [ that Thundring of Excommunication , which has sounded in all Ages , since the beginning of the Papal Reign , against Kings , Emperours , &c. And These Practises Iustified by their Decretals , and Canons ; Divines of greatest Authority , and some of their Councils : Ascribing to the Pope a Power of Deposing Princes that are Heretical●… or Favourers of Heretiques . The Iesuits Doctrine of KING-KILLING hath made them Odious , &c. Indep . Do you tell us of PAPALEXCOMMUNICATIONS , justified by Canons , Divines , Councils ; DEPOSING of Kings for Heresie ; and the Iesuits Doctrine of KING-KILLING , & c ? The Disciple should speak Reverently of his Master : for I assure you , a Iesuits Cloak sits exceedingly well upon the Shoulders of a Presbyterian . To Discipline , must all the States within the Realm be Subject , as well the Rulers , a●… the Ruled . ( According to the Discipline of the Kirk of Scotland , Printed in London , 1647. The Person of the Magistrate ought to be Subject to the Kirk , Spiritually , and in ECCLESIASTICAL GOVERNMENT : Submitting himself to the Discipline of the Kirk , if he Transgress in Matters of Conscience , and Religion . Beza , Buchanan , ( and in truth , the whole Brotherhood ) are for the Excommunication of Princes . So that there 's Presbyterial EXCOMMUNICATION you see , as well as Papal . And in Case of Superstition , and Idolatry , the Presbyter can DEPOSE too , as well as the Pope , in Case of Heresie . Was not the Queen-Regent in Scotland ( 1559. ) Deposed , upon the Encouragement , and with the Approbation of Willock , Knox , and their Fellows ? As not doing her Duty to the Subjects ; and as a vehement Mainteiner of Superstition , and Idolatry ? Did not the Commissioners of the Kirk ( in 1596. ) threaten an Open Protestation against King Iames , and his Council , in Case of either Pardoning , or Restoring the Popish Lords that were at that time under Banishment ? As to the Iesuits Doctrine of KING-KILLING ; We are able not only to Match , but to Out-doe it , out of the School of the Consistory . There is no doubt but the Iesuits are Guilty of Delivering Doctrine that naturally leads to King-Killing Conclusions . But do ye find that ever they said in plain Terms ; It is Lawful for Subjects to take up Arms against their Sovereign , in Case of Religion ; Or that ever they Publiquely Applauded the Murther of a Prince , after the Fact was Committed ? Certainly , in this Particular , the Consistorian Copy goes beyond the Papal Original . Upon a dangerous Uproar that was raised by the Ministers , in Edinburgh , ( 1596. ) The King by Proclamation , discharged all Iudicatories from Sitting there . Whereupon the Ministers prest a Bond of Association , upon the Noblemen , and Barons ; and sent a Letter ( drawn by Robert Bruce , and Walter Balcanquel ) to the Lord Hamilton to Head them : For by the Motion of God's Spirit , and animated by the Word , the People had gone to Arms , in Defence of the Church , &c. Not to trouble you with a Rabble of Unnecessary Instances : In the Ninth Section , there has been said more than enough upon this Subject already . You shall now see the Veneration they have for the PERSONS of Princes . Gibson , in the Pulpit , denounced that Curse against King Iames , that fell upon Ieroboam : that he should die Childless , and be the last of the Race . ( An. 1585. ) which words , by the Assembly , ( with much a do , and after declining the Question , were found to be Scandalous . David Blake preached , that all Kings were the Devils Barns , and His Majesty had detected the Treachery of his Heart . For which he was cited before King and Council , and appeal'd to the Presbytery , who by their Commissioners moved his Majesty for a Surcease of the Process , with a charge , in case of refusal , to Protest against the Proceedings of the Counsel . Quasi Pulpita ( sayes Cambden ) a Regum Authoritate essent Exempta . As if Pulpits were priviledged from the Authority of Princes . Iohn Welch , at the High Church in Edinburgh , preached , that the King was possest with a Devil , and that the People might Rise Lawfully , and take the Sword out of his hand . But what is all this , in comparison with the License of the late times here at Home , when the Two Houses , and Assembly were daily entertained with Sermons and Pamphlets of this Quality , for which the Authors had their Thanks , and Imprimanturs ? But I shall rather confine my self now , to the Arbitrary excesses of the Scottish Presbytery , as the Model of the Covenanted and blessed Reformation . To come now to their Usurpation upon the Civil Power . King Iames was surpriz'd at Ruthuen ( 1582. ) under pretext of Religion , and kept 5 months a Prisoner . This Act was publiquely justified by the Assembly at Edinburgh , as done for the Preservation of the Kings Person and Religion . In the Case of Andrew Melvil : It was insisted upon , that Treason in the Pulpit , fell under the Cognition of the Presbytery , and that neither King nor Counsel , Primâ Instantiâ , ought to meddle with it . But it is a much easier matter to find what a Prince may not do , ( under the Inspection of a Presbytery ) then what he may . He must not a receive an Embassader , nor b pardon an Offender , without the Approbation of the Kirk . Nor so much as chuse his own Guards ; c Court-Officers , or Counsellers , nor Issue out any Proclamations or Decrees . They are to direct him d what Forfeitures to take , and how to dispose of them : when to Arme , and whom to Trust. If the King has a a mind to Feast an Embassader , they presenly indict a Fast e ; and Curse the Magistrates almost to Excommunication , for not observing it . Nay so little Power had King Iames with these people , that f when his Mother was under a Sentence of Death , he could not get them so much as to Pray for her , That God would Illuminate her with the Light of his Truth , and save her from the Apparent danger she was in . On the other side ; they claim to themselves the Power of Warr , and Peace ; of Calling and Dissolving Assemblies ; and whensoever they shall think fit to say , that the Good of the Church ; the Glory of God ; or any Spiritual end is concerned , They make no Scruple in the World , of Levying Armes , Men , Monies ; Seizing of Castles , and Forts ; Issuing out of Warrants for Members of Parliament . a They impose Oaths and Covenants against the King Himself ; b Encounter Proclamations with Anti Protests ; c Rescind Acts of Counsels , &c. And what 's the colour for all this Haughtiness and State ? The Ministers ( forsooth ) are Christs Deputies ; and their Acts are Christ's Ordinances ; whereas Iudges , Counsellers , and Parliaments are but the King's Substitutes , and their Laws only Humane . Presb. You are not any more to conclude against the Presbyterial Government , from the President of some Factious Assemblies , than against the Constitution of Parliaments , from the President of some Seditious Compositions and Elections . Indep . Neither do I charge these Imposing Usurpations upon the Confederacy of a Cabal , or a Faction , but upon the Original Scope , and Mystery of the Discipline ; for I find them rooted in the very Foundation of their Policy . Their Pragmatical Intermedling in Civil Affairs , and Matters of State , is warranted by their Book of Government ; where it is said , that The Minister handleth External things , only for Conscience cause : Now I would fa●…n know That Notion which may not some way or other , be made Relative to Conscience . For Limiting the Magistrate in the Exercise of his Power , they have this Plea ; that though the Ministers do not EXERCE the Civil Iurisdiction , they TEACH the Magistrate how it should be Exercised , according to the Word . So that the Prince is put to Schoole to the Masterships of his Parish , to learn every point and circumstance of his Duty . Now for the Absolute , and Boundless Iurisdiction of their General Assemblies : They tell us , not only that The Kirk is to appoint Times and Places convenient for their Meeting ; but that as well Magistrates , as Inferiours , are to be SUBIECT to the IUDGMENT of the same ; in Ecclesiastical Causes , without any Reclamations or APPEAL , to any Iudge Civil or Ecclesiastical . Is not this a Dethroning of Majesty , to set Princes , and Peasants upon the same Level in point of Subjection to their Resolutions and Decrees ? Presb. Not at all ; For the Magistrate is to assist , and maintein the Discipline of the Kirk ; And punish them Civilly that will not obey the Censure of the same . Indep . In truth it is a Goodly Office , you have allotted the Chief Magistrate ; to set him Cheek by Iowle with the Beadle of the Parish : You are to direct the Punishment , and He is to Execute it . But what if he should prove Refractary , and dispute yo●…r Authority ? In Case of Contumacy , He is as Liable to Censure ( you say ) as another person . And then you have no more to do , but to resort to your ordinary Method of Calling in the Noblemen , Barons , Gentlemen , Burgesses , and Commons to your Assistance against him . Let me now marque to you , two Passages in your Discipline , that make two shrewd discoveries . [ A Minister ( you say ) must not frequent , and commonly haunt the COURT , unless either sent by the Kirk , or called upon by Authority for his Counsel , and Iudgment in CIVIL AFFAIRS . And afterwards , you say , that , Ministers may and should assist their Princes , when required , in all things agreeable to the Word ; whether it be in COUNSEL , or PARIAMENT , or otherwise . Provided , that through Flattery of Princes , they hurt not the Publique state of the Church . Whence it appears ; First , that simple Presbyters may do well enough in Parliaments , or Councils ; though Bishops are Excluded : were it not Secondly , for the danger of creating a Kindness betwixt the King , and the Kirk ; which in consequence would frustrate the main Design . For the Prime end of this Church Policy is the Overtopping and Subjecting of the Secular Power : and it was wisely done to temper the very Foundation of it with Principles of Opposition to the Order , and well Being of Civil Government . SECT . XXIX . The Question of Toleration , ●…etwixt Presbytery , and Independency ; Debated , with regard to the Foundation , and Execution of the LAW . Presb. WHat if you had put the Question betwixt a Peaceable , and Obedient sort of people , and a Generation of men that cannot live out of Contention . Indep . The m●…n of Contention , I suppose you would have me understand to be the Independents . What 's the Quarrel to them upon the matter now before us ? Presb. Only This : that they are Intolerable in any Government . How many Plots have they had upon this Kingdom , since his Majesties Return ? There was Venner's Rising ; A Conspiracy in the North ; Another in Ireland . Indep , And all this while , y●…u forget the Rebellion in Scotland , which was professedly Presbyterian ; beside that , These disorders which you speak of , were nothing at all to the Independents : But ( one way or other ) these Instances are to no purpose without some Authoritative Allowance ; and Pray'e let us agree upon it , that only the Conclusions of the Kirk , on the one hand , and of the Church on the other , may be Insisted upon , as the Acts of either Party . Presb. I do not find that the Independent Churches ▪ come to any Resolutions at all . Indep . You have the less to say then against their Principles ; and I wish the Indep●…ents could say the same thing for the Presbyterians . How far , I beseech you , are Humane Laws Binding ? Presb. ●…o far forth as they are agreeable to the Word of God. Indep . And who shall Determine what Laws and Constitutions are agreeable to God's Word ? Presb. The Church Lawfully Constitute ; which all Godly Princes , and Magistrates ought to hear , and to obey their voice , and reverence the Majesty of the Son of God speaking in them . Indep . I need not ask what Church that is ; For Iohn M●…rellius was Excommunicate , for mainteyning in a certain Treatise , That TELL THE CHURCH , did not belong to the Consist●…ry , and the Book was burnt . But to the Poynt . If the Word of God be the Rule for Humane Laws ; and the Presbytery , the sole Expounders of the Word of God ; the Law of the Nation is at the Mercy of the Kirk already : for 't is but saying , that This or That Law is not Agreeable to the Word of God , and there 's an end on 't . Presb. The Kirk has Power to Abrogate and Abolish all Statutes , a●… Ordinances concerning Ecclesiastical Matter●… , that are found n●…ysome , and unpro●…table , and agree not with the ●…ime , or are abused by the People . Indep . If the Kirk has This Power , the Pope Himself pretends to nothing beyond it . Are not your Determinations as pere●…ptory ; and your Orders as Imperious ? But I am speaking here , as to the Latitude of your Pretended Iurisdiction . You may abrogate All Statutes ( you say ) CONCERNING Ecclesiastical Matters . And I say , on the other side , that you may upon that Ground , abrogate all the Statutes in the Christian World : for I defie the whole race of Mankind , to shew me any one Law extant , or the very supposition of a Law possible ▪ which may not some way or other ▪ be said to CONCERN Ecclesiastical Matters . Presb. You take no notice , how this Power is clogg'd with Limitations . If they be found Unprofitable , Unseasonable , or to be abused by the People . Indep . Very good : And if the Kirk shall think fit to find them so or so ; Pray'e What Remedy ? B●…t their own Avowed Actions , and Declarations , are the Best Comments upon their own Principles . Under King Iames in Scotland , nothing was more ordinary , then over-Ruling Acts of Parliament by the Acts of the Assembly : Did they not erect a Counsel of the Church in Edenborough , 1596. and take upon them to Convene , Examine , and Censure at pleasure such as they suspected to hold any Correspondence with certein Excommunicate Lords ? did they not also appoint to meet in Armes , at the Tryal of them ? Nor did they think it enough , to Rescind ▪ or supersede Acts of Parli●…ment and General Ass●…mblies : but People must be Qu●…stion'd too for yielding Obedience to Acts of Parliament , and of General Counsels under Colour of Unjust Laws . Wee 'l close this particular with the Judgment of the Commissioners of the General Assembly of Scotland , of May 5. 1648. The Authority of Parliament is one thing ; an Act of Parliament another thing . We do still acknowledg their Authority , when we obey not This or That Act. And whatsoever be the TREASON of Impugning the Authority of PARLIAMEN●… , It can be no Treason to obey GOD rather then MAN : Neither did the General Assembly of Glasgow , 1638. and such as were active for the Covenant at That time , commit any Treason , when they Impugned Episcopacy , and P●…rch Articles , although ratify'd , and strengthen'd by Acts of PARLIAMENT , and standing LAWS then Unrepealed . Presb. When we have once gotten Power into our hands , we are all too apt to abuse it . But I cannot yet perswade my self that the Root of these Practises is to be found in their Principles . Their Books of Discipline are Publick ; and no Government would ever entertein it , if there were such danger in it . Indep . How was the Covenant entertein'd ? or who would have dream'd of any harm in a League for the Preservation and Defence of the King's Majestie 's Person and Authority ? And yet the Presbyterian Interpretation , and Salvo of Subordinating his Majesties SAFETY and PRESERVATION , to the Defence of the TRUE RELIGION ( immediately following ) and the Kirks assuming to Themselves the Judgment of that Religion , brought both King and Church to Destruction . Nor can you choose but Observe the Holy Discipline , and Covenant , to be both of a Stile , and both of a Design : Their Claim concerning Ecclesiastical Matters , hooks in all Laws ; and In the Defence of the true Religion , They usurp an Authority over all Magistrates . This Discipline ( at the best ) is but a Worm at the Root of Civil Government : Wheresoever it comes , the Secular Power hangs the head , and droops upon it , and never thrives after . But to Sovereign Princes , a man might say of it , as God said to Adam , of the Apple : In the day you eat thereof , you shall dye the death . Now as it is manifestly destructive of Law in the very Foundations of it , to carry an Appeal from all Temporal Governours and Constitutions , to the Scepter and Sentence of Christ , sitting upon his TRIBUNAL in the PRESBYTERY ( the Language of Beza himself ) so likewise have they their Preparatory Artifices for Obstructing the Execution of Law , and for the Weakening , and Distracting of a Government before they enter upon the Great Work of Dissolving it . And this is effected by the Trojan Horse ( as one calls it ) of their Excommunication , that carries all the Instruments and Engines of Publique Ruine , and Confusion in the belly of it . By Virtue of this Device , they do not only impose upon all Ministers , and Courts of Justice ; but they may , when they please ( as Hooker observes ) send out their Writs of Surcease ; and fetch in the whole Business of Westminster-Hall , to the Bar of the Consistory . Or at the fairest , ( according to Beza's Distinction ) if they allow the Civil Iudg to try the Fact ( as mere Civile ) yet de Iure Controverso , Ecclesiasticum Syn●…drium constat Respondisse : The Church was to determine in matter of Law , and the Civil Magistrate after That , to pronounce Sentence , according to That Decision . Briefly , Beza gives the Presbytery the same Power under the Gospel , which was Exercised by the Synagogue under the Law. But now to the Point of your Excommunication ; and to shew you in what manner it is apply'd , to hinder the Execution of Law ; and to obstruct Civil Iustice. By One Clause of your Discipline , You may Abrogate what Laws you please , concerning Ecclesiastical Matters : And by Another ; The Minister is Authorized to handle External things , for Conscience Cause : So that your Authorit●… is without Controul in Ecclesiastical Matters ; and so is your Liberty of handling Civil Matters as Ecclesiastical . Upon which Bottom was founded an Assertion not long since mainteined at the Savoy , i. e. That the Command of a most Lawful Act is sinful , if That Act commanded may prove to any One a Sin per Accidens , Now if the Kirk shall think fit to Abrogate a Law ( as nothing more frequent ) whoever shall presume to Execute That Law , is sure to be Excommunicate : And the Supreme Magistrate himself is no less lyable to Church Censure , for not Executing That Sentence , then the Inferior Magistrate was for his Original Disobedience . The Bishop of St. Andrews ( in 1586 ) was Excommunicate for Advising King Iames to a Declaration against Certein Fugitive Ministers that were denounced Rebels ; and Contriving the Statutes of ( 1584. ) touching The Kings Authority in Ecclesiastical Causes . Knox is for Excommunication in all Crimes , that are Capital by the Law of God ; and in effect , for the Churches Tryal of the very Fact. It was not for nothing that the Two Houses held the Assembly so long in Play , upon this Point ; and in Despight of all Importunities to the Contrary , kept the staffe still in their own Hands ; and reserved to Themselves the Ultimate Appeal , in Cases of Excommunication . Presb , Was it not rather the Work of the Independents ? Who ( to say the Truth ) were as much against any Settlement at all as against That ; And against the very Convening of the Assembly it self . Indep . And they had done the State a good Office , if they had totally hindred it . But this is beside our Business . We have said enough as to the Dangerous Influence of Presbytery , upon the Security of his Majesty and the Law. It remains now to be considered , with a respect to the Rights , and Liberties of the People . SECT . XXX . The Question of Toleration , betwixt Presbytery , and Independency , Debated , with a Regard to the Rights , Liberties , and Advantages of the PEOPLE . Indep . YOU see how it is with Kings , Parliaments , and Laws , under the Dominion of Presbytery . We are now to look into the Condition of the Nobility , Gentry , Commonalty , and of the Presbyterial Clergy it self , under that Discipline : Which will best appear , by a view of the Powers which the Presbytery claims , and Exercises . But let me Commend One Note to you as Previous to that Examination . This Party has constantly screw'd it self into the World , by an Oath of Mutual Defence : Which Oath they apply as well to the Ruine and Extirpation of their Opponents , as to their own Preservation ; by making it a Test of good Affection to That Interest ; and Excluding all People whatsoever from any Office , or Benefit Ecclesiastical , or Civil , without subscribing it . You cannot deny but this Oath in the very Institution of it , is a Violence both upon Law , and Conscience ; and Consequently , that the Imposition falls heaviest upon those that make an Honourable , and Religious Scruple of their Actions . So that here is already exposed the most Considerable part of the Nation , for the Subject of their Displeasure ; with their Lives , Liberties , and Fortunes at Mercy ; as you will find upon a further Consideration of their Usurped Authority , and Iurisdiction . Presb. Leave this way of General Discourse , and come to Particular Instances . Where is it , that you find This Exorbitant Power that you talk of ? Indep . In the very Declaration of the Commission of the General Assembly of Scotland , 1648. page 53. [ The Duties of the Second Table as well as of the First : As namely , the Duties between King , and Subject ; Parents , and Children ; Husbands , and Wives ; Masters , and Servants , and the Like ; being conteined in , and to be taught and cleared from the Word of God , are in That Respect , and so far as concerneth the Point of Conscience , a Subject of Ministerial Doctrine , and in Difficult Cases , a Subject of Cognizance and Iudgment to the Assembly of the Kirk . The Dispute here was about the Assemblies Authority , in the Question of War or Peace . Is not This at one Blow to destroy the Order of all Relations , Political , Natural , and Moral ? Princes must not presume to make War or Peace ; To Enact Laws , or Abrogate ; To Spare or Punish , without Ecclesiastical Licence . The Subject must go to the Masters of the Parish , to know whether , he shall Obey Authority , or Resist it . And after the same manner it fares with Parents , and Children ; Husbands , and Wives ; Masters , and Servants ; So that there is not any Person , either Publique , or Private ; Or any Action , or Office , of Regard to Community , Family , or Alliance , that scapes their Pragmatical Scrutiny , and Inspection . Presb. So far as these Duties are matter of Conscience , there is no Doubt , but they are of Ecclesiastical Cognisance ; and further then so , they make no Pretension . Indep . But you must give me leave to tell you then , that their Consciences are larger then other Peoples . The Old Nonconformist ( as au Expedient for the settling Ecclesiastical Affairs ( Page 43. ) proposes the setting up of Work-Houses for the Poor ; the Carrying on of the Fishing Trade ; The taking off of Protections ; that none may be Imprison'd but according to Law : and the Abatement of Taxes . The Assembly at Glasgow 1638. passed an Act concerning Salmon Fishing , and another about Salt Pans . And all This I Warrant ye , so far as they concerned Point of Conscience . But if you would see , what the Consistory calls Conscience , in the full Extent , we must repair for satisfaction , to their Direction , and Practises in the matter of Conscience , and Excommunication . The Kirk proceeds to Excommunication in all Capital Crimes , where the Offender that deserv'd to dye , is suffer'd to live . And in Cases of Fornication , Drunkenness , Swearing , Cursing , Sab●…ath-Breaking , Wanton Words , Contempt of the Orders of the Church ; Oppression of the Poor ; Deceipt in Buying and Selling , by wrong Mete and Measure . Presb. Well ; and what hurt 's in all this ? Indep . None at all : But let me proceed . They Censure also Excess in Apparel , Meat , or Drink , UNCOMELY GESTURES ; Contentiousnes , without reasonable Cause ; Chiding , Brawling , VAINWORDS ; Every fault that tendeth to the Hurt of a Man's Neighbour , or to the Hindrance of the Glory of God : Whether by Force , or Fraud ; Word , or Deed ; Manifestly , or Secretly ; Purposely , or Ignorantly : And the Judgment of the whole is left to the Discretion of the Church . So that your very Thoughts are not free . [ The Spiritual Ruler ( says the Book of Discipline ) Iudgeth Both Inward Affections , and External Actions in respect of Conscience , by the Word of God. Upon which ground they take upon them to Censure the very SUSPICION of Avarice , and Pride : Superfluity or Riotousness , in Chear or Rayment . But upon Dancers , Robin Hoods , and all Games that brings Loss , they have no mercy . These particulars are extracted to a syllable out of the most Authentical Records they have to shew for the Warrant of the Scottish Discipline - ( Our Blessed Model . ) But many People perchance will make it a matter of nothing to be Excommunicate upon a Supposition that the Anathema is the uttermost spite of the Censure . They never dream of Car●…ings , Iogges , Pillories , Shaving their Beards , and Cutting half the Hair of their Heads . Banishments , Pecuniary Mu●…cts , Close Imprisonments , and all sorts of Studied Defamations . Nay , If any man refuse to Subscribe their Confession of Faith , Rule of Government , and Manner of Worship , He is forthwith Excommunicate ; and upon Remonstrance of a Commissioner from the Presbytery to the Civil Iudg , a Warrant granted , commanding him to Conform by a Day Certein , or to be OUTLAWED . If he Conform not within that time , his ESTATE MOVE ABLE is FORFEITED ; and if not within a Year and a Day , he Loses his whole REVENUE for his Life . After This , at the further Instance of the Churches Commissioner , Out go Letters of Caption , for Apprehending of his Person , and Committing him as a Rebel . And if he be not to be found ; These are follow'd with Letters of Inter-Communing , forbidding all men either Personally to Confer with him , or by Letter , or interposed Person to Correspond with him , upon Pein of the Inter-Communers being Iudged and Reputed a Rebel of the same Guiltiness . As to the General Rule of Excommunication ; no Person ( Wife and Family excepted ) is to have any Communication with the Excommunicate ; be it in Eating or Drinking ; Buying or Selling ; Yea in Saluting or Talking with Him : Unless at Commandment or License of the Ministry for his Conversion . His Children Begotten and Born after That Sentence not to be admitted to Baptism , till of Age to require it ; Unless the Mother or some special Friends , Members of the Kirk , Offer and Present the Child , Damning the Iniquity and Contempt of the Impenitent . There are that do not allow Husbands to accompany with their Wives in the State of Excommuni cation . Now upon what has been deliver'd , Let any Man Consider the Unchristian Rigor of This Disciplinary Inquisition ; not only in the Actual Tyranny of it , but in the more Miserable Consequences . First as it Scandalizes the Gospel , and makes the Death of Christ seem to be no Effect , by Imposing upon Us such Conditions of Salvation , as if the Blessed Angels should descend , and Indue Humane shapes , they were not able to perform . For it is not what Christ and his Apostles say , that will do a Man's business here , without the Urim and Thummim of the Parochial Session , and the Defects of the Written Word , are to be supplyed by Unwritten Traditions out of the Repository of the Presbyterial Cabale . In this Case it is that we are to have recourse to the Apostles Precept ; of Standing fast in the Liberty wherewith Christ hath made Us Free , and not to be intangled again in the Yoke of Bondage . ( A Yoke much more intolerable then That of the Law ; ) For the Iews had their Lesson before their Eyes , and knew what they were to do . But here , it matters not what either Scripture or Conscience says , without the subsequent Concurrence of the Presbytery : to whose Supreme , and Infallible Judgment ( and not to our own ) We are to stand or fall either to Heaven , or Hell. The Rigor of this Discipline is m●…st Un-Christian also , as it Crucifies Weak Consciences with Needless , Infinite , and Incurable Scruples ; with Scruples that Haunt , Dog , and Torment us in the most Necessary , and Ordinary Actions of Humane Life . At the Church ; at the Table ; at the Market ; at Home , and Abroad . At all Times , in all Places , and upon all Occasions , in our Words , Thoughts , and Deeds . As to Excess in Eating . It is Censurable either in the Quantity , or in the Quality . So that in the first place the Eldership is to provide One Common Gage for the Stomachs of the whole Parish , for fear of a Mouthful too much . And in the second P●…ace , it is made a matter of Salvation , or Damnation , whether a Man Eats Beef , or Venison . And so , for Excess in APPAREL . One Inch more , then to Cover your shame , is a Sup●…rfluity ; and One Peny more , in the Pound , then the Allowance of the Presbytery , is made as much as a Man's Soul is worth . It is the same thing for VAIN WORDS . A Nurse shall not dare to still her Child but with a Psalm ; and you must not presume so much as to ask What a Clock it is , without a Text ; to prove that the Question tends to Edification . But the hardest Case of all is , That of SUSPICION . The very Suspicion of Avarice , or Pride , You say , makes a Man lyable to Censure . This , methinks , is very severe , for a Man to be delivered over to Sathan , because the Brotherhood Suspects him to be Proud , or Covetous ; whether he be so , or no. Presb. 'T is to be presumed , that the Church will proceed according to a Iudgment of Charity , and Discretion . Indep . Did not the Kirk Excommunicate the whole Multitude for a Robin-Hood ? Nay at St. Iohnstons , they cursed not only the Men , that should take part with the King , but the very Horses , and Spears . ( Here 's an Excommunication by way of Advance ) Upon the Action of Duke Hamilton in 1648. the whole Party were Excommunicate ( even after the Defeat : ( as appears by the Scotch Act for Renewing the Covenant . ) In some Cases again , They are as Tender and Cautelous . Andrew Hunter ( a Prime stickler for the Discipline ) attended Bothwel as his Chaplain , in a Rebellion , 1593. But King Iames could not prevail with the Assembly to Excommunicate Him for it ; ( though no Doubt was made of the Fact ) Nay , on the Contrary , They would not be quiet , till they had got Bothwell's Pardon . And upon Gowry's attempt ( in the Year 1600. ) His Majesty required the Ministers of Edenburgh to give God thanks in their Churches for his Deliverance , and they refused it . But to the Point we were upon . As nothing can be more Contrary to the Temper and Dictate of the Holy Gospel then the Claim of this Arbitrary and Censorious Iurisdiction : It seems to me to stand in an equal Degree of Opposition to the Rules of Society , Humanity , and Reason . The KING is upon his good Behaviour to the Elders , and Deacons ( who are Iudges of others manners ) as well as the Meanest man in the Parish . He is indeed ( as is observ'd by the Author of Presbytery Displayd ) the Chief Member of the General Assembly ; but they allow him no Negative Voice ; and if he has the Fortune to be Out-Voted , he must cause the Sentence to be Executed , whatever it be , under Pein of Censure , and Consequently of Deprivation . Of Acts of Parliament , and Inferiour Magistrates , enough is spoken already . As to the State of the NOBILITY , and GENTRY , they are either Conformists to the Government , or Dissenters ; and must take their Lot in it , to be either Sovereigns , or Slaves : ( for that 's the distribution of it . ) Upon the Mayn These Domini Dominantium Challenge by their Commission to be no Respecters of Persons ; and so lay upon all Sorts , and Conditions of Men in General at their good Pleasure certein Common Impositions , Importing their Servility , and Subjection , and whose Livery they wear . I must not omit one Peculiar Obligation , the Nobility , and Gentry have to these their Gracious Masters : Which is the Easing them of their Patronages , and Presentations to Benefices , because These things fl●…wed from the Pope , and the Corruption of the Canon Law only , and are Contrary to the Word of God , and the Peoples Liberty of Electing their own Ministers . [ For ( say They ) this is altogether to be avoided , that any man be violently Intruded , or Thrust in upon any Congregation . But this Liberty , with all Care , must be reserved to every several Church , to have their Votes , and Suffrages in Election of their Ministers . Observe now , I beseech you , the Peoples Liberty , in this Choice . Violent Intrusion we call it not , when the Counsel of the Church , in the fear of God , and for the salvation of the People , ●…ffereth unto them a sufficient Man , to Instruct them . If his Doctrine be found wholesome , and able to Instruct the Simple , and if the Church justly can reprehend nothing in his Life , Doctrine , nor Ut●…erance , then we judg the Church Unreasonable , if they refuse him , whom the Church did offer ; and they should be compelled by the Censure of the Counsel , and Church , to receive the Person appointed . Here 's Liberty upon Compulsion ; and it is most Palpable , that your whole Design is the Interest of a Party . Now to the men of Ordinary BUSINESS , and TRAFFICK . The Presbytery will put an end to all their Disputes , about Free Trade , Priviledges , and matter of Commerce , with a wet Finger . Did they not by an Act of Assembly at Dundy 1592. Prohibit the Scots Trading with any of the King of Spains Dominions , under Pein of Excommunication ? And his Majesty refusing to comply with them , ( at the Iustance of the Spanish Merchants ) Did they not proceed to Censure the Merchants ? So that there shall be no Trading , but where they please : And no Markets neither but upon their good liking too . Did they not by their Proper Authority Discharge the Munday-Market in Edinburgh ? But the Shoo-makers indeed were too hard for the Elders this bout , and told them plainly , they would turn out all their Ministers by Head and Shoulders first , before they parted with their Market . Upon which Menace they were quiet . The Author of Presbytery Display'd , gives you some Instances of the Presbyteries Interposal , in Actions of Debt , and menacing Landlords , and Creditors , with Excommunication , unless they laid down the Precess : Upon Pretense Forsooth , that though it was in a Civil Cause , it had yet a Spiritual Prospect : Withdrew People from their Callings , and Hindred the Progress of the Gospel . And this is no more , then any man will reasonably Expect , that looks but with half an eye upon the very Frame , and Provision of the Discipline . Is not he a mad man , that thinks to recover a Debt at Common Law , against any Member , or Members Friend of the Presbytery , when ' ●…is but flying to the Canon of the Consistory , to silence the Dispute , and telling Him , that He is Contentious without a Reasonable Cause ? Cannot the Church put an End to Strife among Brethren , as well as the Civil Magistrate ? It is a matter of Evil Example , and tends to the Hurt of our Neighbour . If the Creditor be Obstinate , and will not take good Counsel , Out flyes an Excommunication against Him , for refusing to obey the Orders of the Church . I would now fain understand , what it is that sets so many of the MINISTERS a Gog upon this Platform ; For certeinly , They are of all Mortals the most Contemptible : ( the Iunto , and some few of the Select Ones Excepted . ) Their Discipline Divides the Church Patrimony into four Parts One for the Pa stor ; Another for the Elders , Deacons , and other Kirk-Officers ; their Doctors , and Schools . A Third for Charitable Uses : and the Rest for Repairing of Churches , and other Incidental Charges . So that the Clergy is strip'd already of 3. Parts of 4 of their Legal Maintenance , And then for the poor Pittance that is left ; so much as will keep Life and Soul together , they are allow'd in Meal , and Mault ; and totally dependent upon the Mercy of the Church for the rest . And yet for this pittiful stipend , They are to be call'd to Accompt how they spend it ; and their Wives , and Children , to be thrown at last upon the Charge of the Parish . In their Preaching , they are Limited by the Direction , and Design of their Leaders : Only Tenants at Will in their Cures ; and lyable to be Removed , Suspended , or Deposed at Pleasure . This Arbitrary Dominion , together with the Shameful Condition of their Bondage , has proved so great a Discouragement to the Ministry , that they have found themselves forc'd to Press Ministers into the Service , as they would do Souldiers . And where they find men of Abilities for their Purpose , The Civil Magistrate is call'd upon , to compel them to the Ministry . Nay rather than fail , the Nobility and Gentry must bring up their Children , to the Service , and good Liking of the Kirk , under Pein of Church-Censure . A Jurisdiction exercised according to the Latitude of This Discipline , One would think , might satisfie any Reasonable sort of People . But alas ! If they do not as much Exceed their own Bounds , in their Practise , as they exceed all other Models in their Pretensions , they reckon it as good as nothing . They can Cite People out of a Remote Iurisdiction . Deprive whole Presbyterys for Dissent . ( Kings Declaration , page 314 ) Call Nine Presbyters of Fifty , a General Assembly . ( Spotswood , p. 490. ) Demolish Churches ( 304. ) and Dispose of the Patrimony ( 311. ) and what not ? More needs not be said , as to the Empire They Exercise over King , Lords , and Commons , severally , and in divers Respects : We come now to their Usurpations upon the Common Rights , and Priviledges of Mankind . CHIDING ( as I told you ) they have drawn within the Compass of Ecclesiastical Censure . So that Masters shall not Reprove their Servants , nor Parents their Children ; without leave of the Eldership , ( to the utter Dissolution of the Order and Discipline of Private Families . ) Nay , they have taken in BRAWLING too , and made every Billingsgate Quarrel , every Brabble betwixt a Butter-Whore and an Oysterwench , a Subject of Consistorial Cognizance . Under the Censure of LEWD CUSTOMS are Comprized all sorts of Publique Sports , Exercises , and Recreations , that have been long in Use ; upon the Worshipful Pretense ( forsooth ) that they had their Original from the times of Paganism , or Popery : As Comedies , Interludes , Wrastlings , Foot-Ball-Play , May-Games , Whitson-ales , Morrice-Dances , Bear-baitings ; Nay the Poor Rosemary , and Bayes , and Christmas-Pye , is made an Abomination . Presb. And are not the Independents as much against these Fooleries as the Presbyterians ? Indep . No , we take Our own Freedom , to forbear what we dislike our selves ; and allow other People their Liberty , to Practise what pleases them . But to proceed . All GAMES that bring LOSS are Prohibited , Tennis , Bowles , Billiards ; Not so much as a Game at Stool-Ball for a Tansy , or a Cross and Pyle for the odd Penny of a Reckoning , upon Pein of Damnation . — Shortly , Boys shall not Play At Span-Counter , or Blow-Point , but shall Pay Tell to some Presbyter . — What do you think now of UNCOMELY GESTURES ? That a man shall be given to the Devil , for Lolling upon his Elbow , or set●…ing on his Back-side , in the Presence of the Deacon of the Parish . And the Like for Excess in EATING , or APPAREL . Every Bit we put into our Mouths , and every Rag we put upon our Backs , becomes a Snare to Us. It may be either too much , or too costly : and What Reformation soever the Kirk shall think fit to Order , either in our Clothes , or Dyet , must be observ'd , with the same Degree of Submission , and Obedience , as if the matter in Question were an Article of our Creed . Their Censure of VAIN WORDS is yet more Rigorous , and reaches for ought we know , to the honestest Endearments , and Familiarities of Friendship , and Conversation , even to the Exclusion of Common Decency , and Civility . But let Our Words be what they will , We are still dependent upon the good Pleasure of the Eldership , whether they will pronounce them Vain , or Edifying . But why should a man expect to scape for WORDS , where THOUGHT it self is Censurable ? SUSPICION of Avarice , Pride , &c. ( as you have heard ) He that sues to recover a Debt , shall be suspected of Avarice . He that refuses to Crouch like the Asse under the Burthen , shall be suspected of Pride . And for a Man and a Woman to be only seen together , shall be ground enough for a suspicion of Incontinency . Nay , they shall be Cited , Interrogated , Close-Committed , and put to Bread and Water upon it ; and compell'd to Swear in Propriam Turpitudinem . After all This , and that no Proof appears , and that they purge themselves upon Oath : It shall be yet Enacted by the Assembly , that if ever These two shall be seen again in Company together , unless at Church , or Market , they shall be taken pro Confesso for Guilty . A whole Volume ( says the Author of Presbytery Display'd ) might be written of Young Women by these Courses , disgraced , and Defamed : Of many Families divided , and scatter'd ; whereas before there was never any jealousie betwixt the Man and the Wife . Presb. These are Objections rather of Passion , and Extravagance , then of Argument . Indep . They are no other then such Conclusions , as the Premisses will very well bear . Presb. I have heard indeed of several Wild , and sensless Scruples charg'd upon the Independents : As that they have made it a matter of Religion to Piss abed , and ride Hobby-Horses , because it is said , Except ye become as little Children , ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven , Matth. 18. 3. Indep . Pray give me leave to requite You with three or four Presbyterian Scruples : out of Bancrofts Survey of the Pretended Holy Discipline , page 368. Move Mr. Cartwright , and some other Our Reverend Brethren to deliver their Iudgments , Whether all laying out of Hair be forbidden to all Women : especicially at their Repair to the Publick Meetings of the Church ? A Question riseth in my Mind , Whether one that Professeth Christ truly , may , according to the same Profession , delight in , and use Hawking , and Hun●…ing ; so no Unchristian Behaviour otherwise be joyned therewith . Let me know your Iudgment particularly : Whether it be in any respect tolerable for Women , that profess Religion , and the Reformation , to Wear Dublets , Little Hats with ●…eathers : great Gowns after the French , and Outlandish Fashion : Great Ruffes , and Hair , either Cu●…led , or Frisled , or set out upon Wires , and such like Devices . I would be glad to have your Iudgment in the Fourth Commandment : Whether the strict Prohibition of not kindling Fire on the Sabbath , be of the Substance of the Moral Precept . In the same Author you will find a Catalogue of Pleasant Names too . The Lord is Near. More Tryal . Reformation . Discipline . Ioy again . Sufficient . From above . Free Gifts . More Fruit. Dust. And in the next Page , he tells you of one Snape that proceeded toward the Baptizing of a Child , till they came to Name it , Richard , and then brake off , for fear it would not have prov'd a Christian , if he had so Baptized it . I cannot pass from these Phantastical Absurdities in your Practises , without some Reflection upon those in your Constitution , To say nothing of your Disagreements among your selves , about your Officers , and Discipline . What can be more Ridiculous than to Authorize a Cobler to Correct Majesty , Mechanicks to Determine in Points of Faith ? Are not your Elders joyn'd in Commission with your Ministers , for the Examination of the Person that offers himself to the Ministry , in all the Chief Points in Controvorsie betwixt us and the Papists , Anabaptists , Arrians , & c ? Are not the Elders , and Deacons fit Persons ( think ye ) to be made Iudges of Theological Niceties ; and to Admonish , and Reprove a Minister , that Propones not faithful Doctrine ? Has not your General Assembly , rather the Face of a Council of State , then of a Counsel of the Church ? ( And in Truth the Business too . ) Behold the Composition ( I beseech ye ) of the Pretended Assembly at Glasgow , 1638. Seven Earls , Ten Lords , Forty Gentlemen , And One and Fifty Burgesses , to Determine of Faith , and Church Censures . Now to take a Brief View of the whole . What greater Slavery in the world , can be imagined , then to live in Subjection to a Government ; where you shall have , neither Freedom of Conscience , Law , Person , or Fortune ? Where you shall not Speak , Look , Move , Eat , Drink , Dress your self ; Nay , not so much as entertein a Thought , but at your Peril ? And to be in This Bondage too unto the Meanest , and most Insolent of your Fellows ? For none but such will ever engage themselves in the Exercise of so Inhumane a Tyranny . And for a further Aggravation of the Shame , and Guilt of the Faction : Let me desire you , but to cast an eye upon their Proceedings , under King Iames in Scotland , and here under Queen Elizabeth ; where you shall find that they were never so Impetuous , and Bold , as when they found the King , and the State in Distress , upon the Apprehension of Forreign Dangers . And so for the Queen , upon the business of Eighty Eight : Whereas the Independents never so confined themselves to the Prosecution of their Private Interests , as to Hazard the Betraying of their Countrey to Forreigners : And particularly , in the Late Engagements at Sea , against the French , and Dutch , many of them have given Signal Testimony , and Proof of their Fidelity , and Valour . I should not have Engross'd This whole Discourse to my self , but in Persuance of a Point , wherein you have Confest before-hand , that you had nothing further to oppose : That is to say , Concerning the Principles of the Parties in Question . Neither is any thing I have hitherto deliver'd , to be taken as a Challenge , and Claim of a Toleration , of such a Quality , as to enter into a Competition with the Peace and Security , of the Publique : But This I pr●…mise my self , that if it shall appear reasonable to Authority , to allow of any Relaxation , The Independents Plea , upon all Considerations of Common Equity , and Safety , will stand good against That of the Presbyterians , From whose Triple-Crown'd Consistory ; that Lords it Over Souls , Bodies , and Estates ; Over Kings , Nobles , and Commons ; Over Laws , Magistrates , and all Sorts , and Ranks of Men , and Interests ; That turns Gospel into Law ; Communities into Deserts ; Men into Beasts ; GOOD LORD DELIVER US . THE END . Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A47928-e2140 a Amesius de Consci . b Indulg . & Toler . p. 13. c Liberty of Conscience upon its true and proper Grounds , p 3. d Free Disputation , p. 3. Indulg . & Toler . p. 13. Rom. 2. 14. Laud against Fisher , p. 197. Rom. 7. 7. Rom. 4. 15. Rom. 5. 13. 1 Tim. 1. 13. Indulg . & Toler . p. 13 , 14. Mat. 5. 5. Luke 19. 27. * In his Book of the Covenant . Mat. 24. Sleydan's Comment . l. 4. Davila delle Guer. Civ . di Fran. l. 10. Ibid. Lib. 14. Strada de Bello Belgieo , l. 5. Liberty of Consc. upon its true and proper Grounds , p. 12. Disc. of Relig. Preface . Institur . de Libertate Christiana . 1 Joh. 4. 3. ●…5 . Lib. of Consc. p. 37. Lib. of Consc. p. 38. Li●… . of Consc. p. 24. Lib. of Consc. p. 13 , 14. Lib. of Consc. p. 27. Lib. of Consc. p. 56. Ex. Coll. p. 2. 3. a Ex. Coll. p 84. b p. 339. c p. 609. d p. 764. e p 392. Ex. Coll. p. 533. p. 494. Spotswood . Hist. Scotl. p. 487. Ibid. p 479 Mr. Baxter's Holy Common-wealth . Printed 1659. Robert Douglass his Serm. Preach't at Scoone , Ian. 1. 1651. Printed 1660. I. Goodwin's Anti-Cavalerism . The Observator . Right and Might well met , Anno 1648. Parliament , Physick . Ahab's Fall. Interest of England in the matter of Religion . 1660. The Peoples Cause stated . An. 1662. Lex Rex . An. 1644. Ius Populi 1644. Declarat . touching the 4 Bills March 13. 1647. Vi●…dicia contra Tyrannos . Printed 1648. Tenure of Kings . 1649. Goodwin's Defence of the King's Sentence . Mr. Baxter's Holy Common-wealth . Tenure of Kings . 1649. A Survey of the Grand Case . Printed 1663. Mr. Baxter's Holy Common-wealth . Mr. Faircloth before the Commons . Mr. Sympson . Scripture and Reason for Defensive Arms. 1643. English 〈◊〉 ●…he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ●…nce of ●…'s ●…ce . 〈◊〉 Good●… . 〈◊〉 Poli●… of P. in●… . Lex Rex . Mr. War'●… Analysis of the Covenant . English Translation . Lex Rex . De Monarchin Absolutâ . Mr. Cary●… at Taking the Covenant . 1643. The Phaenix . E. C. Marshall's Sacred Panegy●…ique . Mr. Case before the Commons . 1644. Mr. Cala●…'s sp●…ech at Guild-hall . 1643. Mr. Cala●…y's N●…bleman's P●… 1643. Mr. Herle before the House of Lords . 1643. Mr. Strickland on a Thanksgiving . 1644. M. Bridges ▪ on Revel . 4. 8. Ex. Coll. p. 150. An. 1642. Lex R●…x . Ibid. Right and Might . Ex. Coll. Pa 2. Ibid. I●…d . Scobell Act●… . &c. a Part 2. p. 3. b P. 7. c P. 51. d P. 65. e P. 178. f P. 293. a Scobell Acts , &c. p. 41. b P. 60. c P. 73. d P. 75. e P. 128. f P. 8. Pat 2. g P. 149. h P. 153. i P. 400. k P. 42. l P. 53. m P. 75. n P. 99. o P. 101. p P. 128. q Part 2. P. 16. Disc. of Relig. Title pag. Ex. Coll. p. 135. Disc. of Relig. Par. 1. p. 28. Disc. of Relig. Par. 1. p. 38. Disc. of Relig. Par. 2. p. 22. D●…sc . of Relig. Par. 2. p. 45. Disc. of Relig Par. 2. p. 45. Disc. of Relig. Par. 2. p. 38. Ibid. a Disc. of Relig. Pars 2. b Peace Offering . c Indulg . & Toler . d Disc. of Relig. Pars 1. e Peace Offering . f Indul. & Toler . Disc of R●…lig . Pars 2. Disc. of Relig. Pars 1. Ibid. Disc. of Relig. Pa●…s 1. Disc. of Relig. Pars 1. De Conscientiâ , lib. 〈◊〉 4. cap. 15. Disc. of Relig. Pars 1. * Indulg . & Toler . p. 7. Sp●…swoods Hist. Scotl. p 320 , 322. Petition to the Queen , p. 15. Gilby . King 's large Declar . p. 66. Ex. Coll. 〈◊〉 p. 498. a Two Papers of Proposals , pa. 5. b Petition for Peace , p. 20. c D●…sc . of Relig. Preface . Ex. Col. 19. Disc. of Relig. Indulg . & Toler . p. 31. Ex. Coll. Pa 3. Ibid. 21. In●…ulg . & Tolr . Disc. of Relig. S●…otswoods H●…st . Scotl. P. 327. a Petition to her Majesty , p. 25. b Second Admon●… . p. 37. Ibid. p. 25. First Admonit . p. 2. Second Admonit . P 59. Ex. C●…ll . P. 3. Indulg . & Tolerat . Disc. of Relig. Pars 1. Large Declaration , P. 53. Ibid. p , 41 , 42. Ibid. p. 52. Ex Coll. p. 8. Ibid. p 9. Matth. 23. v. 23 , 24. Disc. of Relig. Acts 5. 38. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , p. 207. London Ministers Letter to the Assembly , Ian. 1 ▪ 1645. Harmony of the Lancashire Ministers . p. 12. Mr. Faircloth , on Iosh. 7. 2●… . Rutherford's Free Disp. p. 360. Bayly's Dissw●…sive Epist Ded. 1645. Sion-house to the Assembly , 1645. Anti-Toleration , p. 16. ☞ The Ki●…ks Testimony against Toleration p. 10. Acts and Ordinances , Part 1. p 97. Ibid. 165. Ibid. 171. Pa. 30 , 31. ☞ Petition for Peace , p. 4. 1661 , Mr. Calamy , Of the Ark , p. 21. a Scob. Acts , Pars 1. p 37. b P. 135. c Pars 2. p. 10. d P. 175. e P. 372. Disc. of Relig. Pars 1. Liberty of Consc. p. 58. Disc. of Relig Par. 1. p. 40. Dise . of Relig. Par. 1. p. 41. Indulg . & Toler . p. 24 Liberty of Consc. p. ●…8 . 〈◊〉 . Liberty of Conscience , p. 58. Cambden ' s Eliz. 1591. Cambden ' s Eliz. 1591. Ibid. D●…sc . of Relig. Par. 1. p. 24. Ann●… 1577 King 's large Dec. p. 73. Large Declar . p. 77. Ib. p. 137. * The Liturgy . Ex. Coll. p. 604. P. 13. Apol. Conf. p. 137. De Reform . advers . Eccles . p. 95. Beza cont . Sarav . p. 116. View of the Government , p. 5. Ibid. p. 6. Ibid. p. 122. Ibid. p. 125 Ibid. 138. Ibid. 140. Ibid. 146. Ibid. 118. Petition for Peace , p. 5. The Old Non-Con formist , p. 21. Cap 27. Cap. 15. Art. 32. Art. 32. Art. 15. Art. 20. Cap. 14. View of the Government , p. 5. Ibid. p. 24. 25. Ep. Bullingero , fol. 98 Baxter's Five Disputations , disp . 5. cap. 2. sect . 40. View of the Government , p. 41. View of the Gover. p. 63. Ibid. p. 73. Ibid. p. 90. Ibid. p. 92. Ibid. 64. Ib. 69 , 72. * Scripta Anglican . p. 455. Hooker's Eccles. Pol. Preface . Two Papers of Proposals , p. 7 , 8. Institut . lib. 4. ca. 9. sect . 14. Spotswoods Hist. Scotl. p. 540. Mr. Durells View of the Government , p. 173. The late Kingslarge Declarat . p. 75. Calv. Inst. li. 3. ca. 19. sect . 15. Ibid. lib 4. ca. 10. sect . 27. Petit. for Peace , p. 79. Hooker's Eccl. Pol. li. 2. sect . 8. Ibid. Ibid. Calv. Inst. ca. 9. sect . 7 Tryal of the Engl. Liturgy . p. 4. Ibid. p. 5. Page 11. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , p. 127. Proposals to His Majesty , p. 22. Ibid. p. 23. a Rom. 2. 22. b By the Familists . c By the Antinomians . Chillingworths Safe Way . p. 57 Rom. 7. 23. Chillingworth's Safe way , &c. p. 104. a Rut●…erford's Due Right of Presbyt . p. 356. b Ibid. p. 352. c Ibid. p. 407. d Ibid. p. 415. Rutherf . Free Disp. p. 36. Ibid. p. 27. Scobel's Acts , Part 1. p. 340. Essay of Atheism . Psalm 73. v. 12. Essay of Unity of Religion . Numb . 24 16. Numb . 16. 1. Vers. 3. Verse 32. Verse 35. Verse 41. Verse 49. Disc. of Relig. p 25 Chillingworth's Safe way , &c. p. 186. Rom. 10. 8 Notes for div A47928-e98230 Ex. Coll. p. 737. Ex Coll. p. 532. Interest of Engl. p. 44. Ex. Coll. p. 307. Scobel's Acts , Part 2. pa. 7. Answer to the Vote of Sept. 24. 1646. ☞ ☞ Ibid. p. 60. Old Non-Conf . p. 41. Petit. for Peace , p. 20. Par. 1. p. 6. Gangraena Part 3. p. 282. Ibid. 303. ☞ Rutherf . Free Disp. p. 267. Gangraena , p. 293. Free Disp. p. 98. Cotton's Way , p. 11. Burton's Vind. p. 18 Disc of Relig. Part 1. p 3. Ibid. p. 4. Scotch Discipline , p. 59. Ibid. p. 78. P. 79. Hist. of Reform . Printed 1644. p. 195. Spotsw . Hist. p. 418 Ibid. p. 431. ☞ Spotsw . Hist. pa. 343. Ibid. 367. Ibid. 419 : Ibid. 423 Ibid. 430. Ibid. 322. Ibid. 330. a Ibid. 324. b 398. c 419. d 405. e 334. f 354. King 's large Declaration , p. 415. a Ibid. 87. b 98. c Pag. 416. Scotch Discipline p. 79. Ibid. p. 79. Ibid. p 97. Ibid. p. 91. Ibid. 61. Ibid. 44. ad . Book of Disc. p. 92. 2d . Book of Disc. p. 〈◊〉 . S●…tsw . Hist. p. 418. Ib. p. 398 Kings large Declaration , p. 416. Declar. of the Commission . p 55. and 56. Spotsw Hist. p. 345. Page . 79. Presbytery Display'd . p. 4. Ibid. p 39. Book of Discipline . p. 56. Ibid. p 57. Spotsw . Hist. p. 436. Unchristian Rigor . Excess in Eating censurable . Apparel . Vain words . Suspicion of Pride . Spotsw . History . p. 395. Ibid. 460. Book of Discipline . p. 61 Bo●…k of Discipl . p. 97. Book of Discipl . p. 29. Ibid. p. 29. Spotsw . Hist. p●… . 393. Ibid. 394. P. 10. Book of Disc. p. 98. Book of Discipl . p. 34. Ibid. 61. Ibid. P. 35 Ibid. p. 32. Ibid. p. 44. Presb. Display'd . p. 9. Pig to Field , 1586. Ed. Brow. to Field . Walker to Field . Cholm to Field . Dangerous Positions , p. 104. Book of Discipl . p. 28. Ibid. 60. Kings large Declaration , p. 315. ☞ 
A41202	----	A brief refutation of the errors tolleration, erastianism, independency and separation delivered in some sermons from I Job. 4. I, preach'd in the year 1652 : to which are added four sermons preach'd on several occasions / by Mr. James Fergusson ... Fergusson, James, 1621-1667. 1692 Approx. 590 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 193 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2004-11 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A41202 Wing F777 ESTC R21916 12408702 ocm 12408702 61451 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A41202) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 61451) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 938:23) A brief refutation of the errors tolleration, erastianism, independency and separation delivered in some sermons from I Job. 4. I, preach'd in the year 1652 : to which are added four sermons preach'd on several occasions / by Mr. James Fergusson ... Fergusson, James, 1621-1667. [20], 365 p. Printed by George Mosman, and are to be sold at his shop ... Edinburgh : 1692. Reproduction of original in Union Theological Seminary Library, New York. Table of contents: p. [7]-[10] Errata: p. 365. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Sermons, English -- 17th century. Toleration -- Controversial literature. Dissenters, Religious -- England. 2004-06 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2004-06 Aptara Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2004-07 Judith Siefring Sampled and proofread 2004-07 Judith Siefring Text and markup reviewed and edited 2004-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE ERRORS OF Tolleration , Erastianism , Indepéndency AND Separation . Delivered in some SERMONS From 1 Joh. 4. 1. Preach'd in the Year 1652. To which are Added Four Sermons Preach'd on several Occasions . By Mr : James Fergusson , Late Minister of the Gospel at Kilwinning . EDINBVRGH . Printed by George Mosman , and are to be Sold at his Shop in the Parliament-Close , Anno Domini MDCXCII . TO THE HONOURABLE M r. Francis Montgomery OF GIFFINE . HONOURED SIR , SO soon as I resolved upon the Publication of the following Papers , I fixed on You as the only Person to whom they should be Addrest : And indeed , whether I look on the Author , or on my Self , I conceive I was many wayes Obliged so to do . For as to the Author : You are a Worthy Branch of the Noble and Ancient FAMILY of EGLINTOUN , whereof God had given Him the peculiar Charge and Oversight in the Ordinary Course of his Ministry : A Family which ( as Himself somewhere testifies ) were his great Encouragers in going about all the parts of his Function , with Joy and not with Grief ; and for which he had sent up many Fervent Prayers to the Throne of Grace , of the Effects whereof You your Self me ( Blessed be God ) yet a living Instance . It was to that Noble Patriot and Zealous Instrument of Our late Reformation , Your Grand-Father , and to the Noble Earl Your Father ( then Lord Montgomery ) and to Your most Examplarly Pious and Religious Mother , That the Author did Dedicate his Exposition of the Epistles to the Galatians and Ephesians ; And as all who have the Honour to know You , are glad to see You so Naturally trace the Religious Example of Your Honourable Predecessors , in Your firm Adhering to Your Principles , and Purity of Religion , Your Encouraging of Piety and Persons Pious , Your Streight , Sincere and Vpright Deportment towards All ( a Quality as Eminent in that Noble Earl Your Grandfather , as rare in this Generation ) so I nothing doubt , but that if it had pleased God to have spared the Author , to Publish any other of his Works , He would have looked upon Your self , as the most Proper person , to whom he should Present them . As for my self : Your Respect to the Author's Memory with your undeserved kindness to all his Relations , and to my Self in particular , Do strongly oblige me to take all Occasions for testifying my Thankful Acknowledgements . And I presume I can scarce give You a more Acceptable Testimony of my Gratitude , than the presenting You with the ensuing Papers , which tho the Publication be posthumous , yet I hope a serious perusal of them , will be sufficient to supersede any further Commendation : And indeed my near Relation to the Author , will not allow me to speak either of Him or his Works , what perhaps others might : And therefore without giving You any further trouble , but Commending You and Your Vertuous Lady to the Protection of the Almighty ; And Wishing , That as God has blessed You with an Hopeful off-spring , who are as so many Living Images of your selves , in whom you see your own Lives renewed , & who by Their Good Enclinations , do already give us cause to expect the best of Them ; So You and They may live together till You see Them prove a Comfort unto You ; And that after You are gone , They may be no less Vseful in Their Generation , than now You are ; I shall humbly crave leave to subscribe my self in all duty , Honoured Sir , Your most obliged , and most humble Servant JAMES FERGVSSON . TO THE READER . THere are divers years past , since the Reverend , Learned , and Pious Author of the following Discourses , fell a sleep in the Lord , and is gone to receive the fruit of his Labours , from the chief Shepherd of the Sheep : Yet we have in his Memory a lasting proof of the Truth of that Word , Pro. 10. 7. The memory of the Just is Blessed And that of Psalm 112 6 — The Righteous shall be in everlasting Remembrance : Their memory is Precious and Honourable : For I can truly say , though I have heard many , of high and low Degree speak of Master Fergusson , I never heard any make mention of him but with Honour and Respect , As a Man of great Piety and Learning , and Eminent for Prudence and Moderation . And I am confident , there will be no need of Epistles of Recommendation , for any of his Works , to any who either knew Himself , or have perused his Judicious and Pious Treatises , published already , on the Epistles to the Galatians , Ephesians , Philippians , Colossians and Thes●alonians . Nor am I so presumptuous , as to imagine my Testimony could raise the Esteem of any thing done by so Famous and Worthy a Man : But being his Mediate Successor to the Parish of Kilwinning , where he did for many years Labour in the Work of the Gospel ; and being desired by his Son of the same Name , I could not deny to express the esteem I have for his Memory , Though I had not the Advantage of knowing him while he lived . I am informed the following Discourses , were the subject of Divers Sermons , delivered to that People , in a time when there was much need of Warning ; It was after that through a Boundless Tolleration , a deludge of Errors had broken in upon England , and the Sectarian Army having Subdued Scotland , and dispersed themselves in all the Parts of it , Corrupt Men and Seducers among Them , did endeavour to pervert the People from the Truth : Then it was ( anno 1652. ) When this worthy Author , as a Faithful Watchman , gave to his Flock Warning of the Danger ; And that they might be rooted and grounded in the Truth , did represent to them the necessity of a sound and well-informed Judgement , in order to Holiness and Salvation ; and for that end did excite and direct them to Try the Spirits ; and afterw●rd ▪ for their further Instruction and establishment in the Truth , took notice of some particular Errors , by which they seem'd to be in greatest hazard at that time ; and did in a plain and convincing way , Refute the Errors , and Confirm the Truth , making alwayes some Practical Improvement of what he had delivered . Although the Reverend Author was known to be a great Master of School-learning , and was invited to be Professor of Divinity in the Famous University of Glasgow ( which yet he humbly refused ) yet he did not calculate these Discourses for the School or Court ; But being to speak to a Countrey Congregation , wherein were many Common People ( for whom they seem to have been intirely designed , since the Author could never be induced to Publish them in his own time ) He had such a sense of the holy Apostles example 1 Cor. 14. 18 , 19. that he choosed to speak to the edification of the meanest ; and he had a peculiar faculty of making things intricate , plain and easie to be understood . And I am confident that those who are not for pleasing their fancy with fine notions , or their ear with jingling-words , but desire to have their judgement informed , and their conscience satisfied , will find here that which will be very edifying : For his endeavour is , That Controversies be clearly stated ; And with great perspicuity and solidity doth he confirm the Truth by Scripture and Reason , and confute the contrary Error ; and all this without bitterness or wrath , but with such calmness and moderation of Spirit , wherein he did excell ; So that ( as I am informed ) divers of the English Army , though of a contrary Judgement , did resort to hear him ; I know not what effects his Teaching of these Truths had on Them , but by the Blessing of God , these of his own Flock were so established in the Truth , that not one of them was seduced from it . And I cannot but record it to the praise of God and commendation of that Congregation , and for the encouragement of any who may be invited to be their Pastor , when I , to their and my grief , am to be separated from them , to a more difficult Post ; I say , I cannot but record it , that as that Congregation of Kilwinning , hath since the Reformation , been blest with eminent learned and pious Men , Mr Glasford . Mr Bailie , Mr Fergusson and Mr Rogirs ; So they have by the Blessing of God on their labours , been kept not only Sound in the Faith , but United among themselves , when others have been wofully Divided : And they have alwayes shewed a great love to the Gospel , and all the Ordinances of the Lord Jesus , and the Ministers thereof : And I pray That their fruit may abound more and more . If some Expressions Concerning the Opinion of Independents , or Congregational Men , seem severe ; It would be remembred , that the Author doth not speak against Persons , but against Things ; And in a time when many Errors followed that Division about Church Government ; and the Debate was hot about it , and fear that it should have taken place in Scotland : But considering the Zeal these of New-England have discovered against Error , and their United way of acting in Association and Synods , when they think there is need , and the love that hath been in time of Common Tryal , and the Late Essay which hath been made for an Accomodation , betwixt Presbyterians and Them in England ; I suppose if our Reverend Author had lived until this time , he would have concluded , the Difference may be so lessened , that it need not hinder their walking together , in that wherein they are agreed , nor their Endeavours to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace . I do not know of any particular design of publishing these Discourses now , when they have been kept hid for fourty years , but that the Author's Son having long delay'd and declin'd to Publish them , though frequently and seriously advis'd to do it by many , he was advertised that some would publish the Imperfect Notes received from His mouth , in the time of Hearing , which being incorrect , might not only prejudge the Authors name , but the Truth , and others Edification . If these ( as is hoped they will ) be acceptable and useful , what yet remains unprinted of these Discourses , may see the Light in due time . There are here subjoyned Four Sermons of the Reverend Author , which the Publisher and others hope may be found of good use , and may make way for the communicating more of his Pious and Judicious Sermons , which are longed for by them who knew Him , or his other Works . It had surely been of great advantage to the Church , had it pleased God to have spared this judicious and pious Author till now , and that he had published more of his Works in his own time : But seing our infinitely wise and good God hath disposed otherwise , it becometh us to submit : But if by this , or any other of his Works , God get Glory , and the Church be edified ; The Publisher will rejoice and bless God , as having attained his end . And if the Reader peruse his Works with the same Spirit wherewith they seem to be spoken and written , I am confident he will not fail of profit . Now that the Spirit of Truth and Holiness , would lead Thee and all His people , into all Truth , and help them to edify one another in love , and that He would bless His Churches with Truth and Peace , and send out many Faithful Labourers into His Harvest with a double measure of the Spirit that was in Mr. Fergusson and other eminently holy Men who then lived , shall be the Prayer of , Christian Reader , Thy Souls cordial Well-wisher . George Meldrum . Edinburgh , June 1692. The Contents . SECT . I. OF Doctrine in general , and the Tryal thereof : Being some Doctrines raised from the Text , Introductorie to the main purpose . Pag. 1 : ad 26. Doctr. I. Error is to be Eschewed . pag. 3. Doctr. II. Orthodoxy , or a Right opinion in the matters of Truth , is as much to be stu●●ed as Holiness of Life . pag. 5. Doctr. III. As at all times , so chiefly when there is danger of spreading of Error , there is most need that Love should be intertain'd betwixt Pastor and People : Where are some directions for a Ministers carriage , in order to the keeping of the affections of his People , while he is Refuting their Errors . pag. 12. Doctr. IV. The Spirit of Error began very early to trouble the Church . Where are some Reasons for which the Lord suffers Errors to spread , pag. 16. Doctr. V. The foulest Errors go out oftentimes under fairest Names , and are backed with most specious Pretences . pag. 19. Doctr. VI. When foul Error is holden out under fair names , and backed with fair pretences , there is a danger lest People drink them in and believe them . Where are 5 things that speak this hazard . pag. 23. Doctr. VII . Ministers the Servants of God are not to clap Peoples heads , or to indulge them in this inclination of Theirs to Error , but on all hazards they are to testify against it : Where are 3 Reasons for which People ought to reverence much what warnings of this kind are given by Ministers . pag. 28. Doct. VIII . It is not Gods Way That People , because there are differences about Religion , should therefore believe no Religion : Where are 5 Directions for the unlearned to walk by , in order to difference of opinions among the Learned pag. 31. Doctr. IX . How fair soever the pretence is that a Doctrine is colloured with , It should not be taken upon Trust , but must be brought to a Tryal . Where are some Directions how to walk betwixt Popish Tyranny , and Sectarian Confusion . pag. 34. Doctr. X. The right Tryal to be taken of Doctrines preached , or any otherwise vented is , To try whether they be of God or not . Where is shown what is requisite to a Doctrines that it may be said to be Of God. pag. 38. Doct. XI . There are many Doctrines pretending to the Spirit , which yet being brought to the Touchstone will be found Not to be of God. p. 44 SECT . II. The Doctrine of Toleration Try'd , and foundnot to be Of God. Wherein , as in all the Errors following , First , The Question is stated . 2. Arguments are brought for Confirming the Truth , and vindicated from the Opposites Exceptions . 3. The Opposites Objections are Answered , and Refuted from Scripture and Reason . 4. The Truth being vindicated , is applyed to a Practical Vse . pag. 47. SECT . III. The Doctrine of Errastianism Try'd , and found not to be Of God. pag. 86. Head l. There is a Church Government 〈◊〉 forth in Scripture . ibid. Head II. The power of Church Government belongeth not to the Civil Magistrate . pag. 103 SECT . IV. The Doctrine of Independency Try'd , and found not to be Of God. pag. 123. Head I. The power of Church Government is in the Church Officers , and not in the Body of Church Members . ibid. Head. II. The highest power of Church Government is not in Church Sessions , or Congregational Elderships . pag. 150. Paragr . I. There is a Plate-form of the Government of many Congregations , by One Common Presbytry holden out in Scripture , pag. 152. Paragr . II. There is a Plate-form of Government by Synods over many particular Presbytries held forth in Scripture . pag. 167. Paragr . III. Infertor Church Judicatories are subject Superior . pag. 173 ▪ SECT . V. The Doctrine of Separation Try'd , and sound Not to be of God. pag. 191 Head I. Shewing what is required for making one a Member of the Visible Church . ibid Head II. No Separation from a true Church , or Gods Worship in the Church , because of the Sins of Fellow-worshipers . pag. 214 A Sermon Preach'd before the Synod at Glasgow , April 5. 1653. From 1 Cor : 1. 10. pag. 235. Sermon Second Preach'd at Irving , foom Psalm 51 : 6. Immediatly before the Giving of the Communion , Being a Preparation Sermon in order thereto . pag. 287 Sermon Third Preach'd at Kilwinning 11 May 1663 From Luke 7. 23. Vpon the Munday , Immediatly after the Giving of the Communion . pag. 313. Sermon Fourth , Preach'd at Kilwinning , From Acts 11 : 23. Vpon the Munday Immediatly after the Giving of the Communion . pag. 340. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE ERRORS OF Tolleration , &c. SECT . I. Of Doctrine in General , and the Tryal thereof . 1 John ch . 4. ver . 1. Beloved , believe not every Spirit , but try the Spirits whether they are of God. THE Body of this Epistle , as we shew'd when first we entred upon the handling of it , runs upon three Heads : The first is upon Marks whereby to discern real Grace , to wit , who had it , and who not . The second runs upon Exhortations to several Duties of Sanctification ; chiefly , Love to the Brethren , that Christians would Love them that Love God , Love Grace wherever they saw it . The third Head whereon it runs is , Exhortations to Constancy , in avowing Truth against Error . In this fourth Chapter there are two of these Heads , according to which we may take up the Chapter in two parts . In the First , There is an Exhortation to stand by Truth , and to beware of those who would seduce People from it : And that to ver . 7. In the second part , There is a renewing of the former Exhortations , To Love the Brethren : And a Confirmation of it , by a number of new Arguments , to the end : Both which have been handled already , and yet the Apostle returns again to them , because Exhortations against Error cannot be enough inculcate , and therefore he reiterats them again and again . In the first part of this Chapter , There is , 1. An Exhortation . 2. There are Arguments to enforce the Exhortation . The Exhortation is set down in the former part of the first verse , Believe not every Spirit , that is , lend not an Ear to every point of Doctrine covered over with a fair Name , but bring every Doctrine to the Touch-stone . There are two Things considerable in this Exhortation : First , There is the compellation he gives them , a warm and kindly Stile , Beloved ; And then Secondly , There is the Exhortation it self : And in it there are two Things . 1. What they should not do . And 2. What they should do . For the First , What they should not do . Believe not every Spirit . Some take the Spirit here for Preacher , Believe not every Preacher . And some for Doctrine , Believe not every Doctrine : But both may well be joyned together thus , Believe not every Preacher who pretends the Spirit for his Doctrine . For the second , What they should do ; It is to Try the Spirits whether they are of God. He bids them not cast at all Doctrines , because there are some Errors vented for Truths , as the natural Heart is ready to do : But , he Exhorts , that they would bring every Spirit to the right Touch stone . Thus much for opening up the words . We intend ( if the Lord give us liberty ) to speak somewhat largely on this Verse of those Doctrines or Errors which are most like to trouble our Church ; therefore we shall raise some Doctrines before hand , which may make way for what we intend . Doct. I. The First is , from the Apostles dehorting Believers from false Doctrine , by many Arguments . Hence observe , That Christians would by all means eschew any thing that may tend to seduce them from the pure Truths of Jesus Christ : Particularly , that they would beware of Error , Heresy , and any thing of that sort : Hence there are so many Exhortations in Scripture , to stand by the Truth , to be rooted in the Faith , and to eschew contrary Error : So it is a Duty lying on Christians , to be guarding and watching against Error , or what is contrary to Truth . Reas : The Reason is , because Errour is a Sin , and a very dangerous one . We shall shew the danger of it in three Things : I. It is dangerous , because of the desert of it ; It is Damnable . 2 Peter 2. 1. False Prophets are spoken of there as those who bring in damnable Heresies , that is highly , condemnable : We shall afterwads show in what respect Heresies are Damnable . 2. Errours are dangerous Sins , because they steal subtily in upon People , and people do too readily relish them : So there are many whose nature abhorres gross Sins against the second Table , as Fornication and such like ; and yet the Devil gets them hooked , by this sin of Error : Nature is born with a cry against gross Sins committed against the second Table , and so naturally there is some kind of loathing in People at them ; but it is not so in the sins of Error : Sathan can transform himself into an Angel of Light , and plead Conscience , whereas he intends to bear down Truth : So the sins of Error are dangerous , because subtile . 3. They are dangerous in this respect , that as they creep easily in ; So when once they are in , it 's hard to get them shut to the door again : And that because deluded Conscience pleads for them . People tainted with Error think themselves right , and therefore whatever is brought against them , Conscience casts at all as wrong . Now in other Sins , to wit , such as are against the Second Table , altho Affection plead for them , yet usually Peoples Light does witness against them : And so in this respect , it is more hard to get a sin of Error thrust out , where it is once rooted , than the sin of Prophanity it self . Vse . This Doctrine may serve to fit you for receiving the following Doctrines ( which if the Lord will , we are to speak of ) tending to the Refutation of divers Errors . Error in Doctrine is a subtile temtation , the temtation of the time , a dangerous temptation ; because it hath now many advantages to plead for it . Now if the Lord shall bless the following Discourses , they may prove an Antidote against it : And what we have now said , shew's how great need ye have to guard against it : It is a dangerous Sin , and so ye had need to be armed against it . Doct. II. Again , a general Doctrine arriseth from the connexion of this Chapter with the preceeding ; In the preceeding , the Apostle hath been all alongs stirring up Christians to Sanctification of Life , to eschew Prophanity , here he subjoyns an Exhortation to cleave to the Truth . Which gives us this Obeservation , That an Orthodox Judgement , or a right Opinion in the matters of Truth is as much to be studied as Sanctification of Life , and the contrary of them both is equally to be eschewed : That is to say , a Child of God is bound to guard himself , and to watch as much against Heresy and Error , in the matter of Opinion , as against Prophanity and gross Sins in the matter of Practise . We had need to clear this , because there is a conceit in People , whereby they are ready to think , that for the matter of Opinion , it makes not much what men be , many that have Error may have Grace , Grace and Error , say they , are consistent : And so if men live well it matters not much what be their Opinion . We grant indeed every Error does not destroy Grace , and Grace is consistent with some Errors , yet every Error does in so much weaken the work of Grace within a man. And secondly , Error is consistent with Grace as other dam-Sins are ; as David's Adultery was consistent with Grace . And that is the point to be proven , That Error in the matter of Doctrine is as much to be abhorred by the Child of God , as gross Sins in the matter of their Practice . Reas. We shall bring several things to clear this Truth to you , and the first is this ; Scripture doth equally discharge both : It is as much in guarding against Error as Prophanity . So in Hebr. 13 , 9. Be not carried about with divers and strange Doctrines : For it is a good thing that the Heart be established with Grace : and in Coloss. 2. 8. Bewar lest any man spoil you through Philosophy — We need not insist to multiply Scriptures to this purpose ; any that are acquaint with Scripture ( especially the Epistles of the new Testament ) will find Exhortations against Error to be as pressing as against any sin else . Secondly , as Scripture discharges both alike , so it aggravates the sin of Error as much as the sin of Prophanity . There is nothing almost that Scripture brings to aggravate gross sins against the second Table , but it uses the same to aggravate Error : In the Epistle to the Gallat . 5. 19. Adultery , Fornication Lasciviousness , &c ▪ are called the works of the Flesh : An odious name : But in ver . 20. Heresy gets the same name also , and is rekoned up amongst the works of the Flesh. So in the Epistle to the Coloss. 2 , 18. a superstitious mind is called , a fleshly mind . Let no man beguile you of your reward , in a voluntary humility . And worshiping of Angels , intruding into those things which he hath not seen , vainly puft up by his fleshly mind . And both get one name . Thus in 1 Peter . 2 , 11. If fleshly lusts be aggravated from this that they fight against the Soul , they are soul destroying sins : So Heresy and Error are branded with a worse name in the 2 Peter 2. 1 — who privily bring in damnable Heresies . Heresy is damnable a soul destroying sin , not for this respect only that they deserve Damnation ; For the meanest sin of Infirmity is damnable that way , in it self it merits damnation : therefore this Scripture must mean somewhat more when it calls Heresy damnable , than to rank it amongst our ordinary infirmities : Neither are they called damnable in that sense as if the Soul guilty of Heresy could not be saved ; For many Hereticks have repented unto Salvation : But they are called damnable sins , as other gross sins are called damnable ; that is to say justly and highly Condemnable . They are damnable because they marr the work of Grace , they marr the thriving of Grace , the lively acts of Grace ; even as Davids Adultery , ( so long as he lay under it ) did . Reas : 3 There is a third Reason to prove this point and it is this ; Stability of the heart in Grace , and stability of the mind in Truth , stand and fall together : So that upon the mind 's wavering in the matters of Truth , the heart will begin to waver in the matter of Grace also : Prophanity followeth upon Error , Error received and imbraced oftentimes endeth in Prophanity at the last : And therefore it should equally be watched against with Prophanity it self . Now to make what we have said appear viz. That Error in the matter of Truth , and Prophanity against Holiness of Life , usually go along together : Ye would first look to Experience , Experience makes this good , that Error for the most part ends in a prophane Godless Life ; Scripture experience clears it , So the Apostle Jude descrives these Hereticks he speaks of to be vile Livers : And later than Scripture Experience makes this good also , That Error and Prophanity , for the most part , follow hard upon the heels one of another : It 's true Sathan ensnares People at the first to Error , by a pretence of leading them to a more strick way than others : But the thing he is aiming at is still more loosness . Ye need not seek a more clear proof than what ye see before your Eyes : Did ever ye see a more Godless company of men than divers of those Hereticks amongst us , who were first drawn on to Error , by a pretence of walking after a more strict way of Holiness than others ? They could not joyn in worship with the Presbyterians ( many in their Churches were so prophane as they pretended ) but would gather Churches of their own , and would Joyn with none but those that had evident signs of Grace ; and so came of it . They would be stricter than God would have them , and therefore many of them have turn'd so abominably loose And so Experience aboundantly clears that Error and Prophanity do follow hard one upon another ; But we shall clear it also from Scripture : And our first proof is from those Scriptures holding forth That Error in the matter of Doctrine hath usually its rise from some unmortifyed Lust within which makes way for such an Error So Rom : 16 , 17. 18. — I beseech yo● , Brethren , mark them which cause divisions and offences , contrary to the Doctrine which ye have learned ; and avoid them . Now from whence come these divisions contrary to the right Doctrine ? v. 18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ , but their own Belly : and by good words and fair Speaches deceive the hearts of the simple . Unmortified corruptions within bloweth wind in their sails , so the root of Korah Dathan and Abiram's Error whereby they laboured to bear down Magistracy and Ministry was an unmortified root of pride within them ; They had a fair pretext for it , a pretext of Liberty ; Are not all the Lords People Holy ? And may they not rule as well as yee ? A fair pretext indeed ! but the root was pride : They could not endure to be ruled over , and so they will rule themselves : Thus when Jeroboam makes separation from the Church of Jerusalem he hath a fair pretext for this 1 King. 12 , 28 — It is too much ( saith he ) for you to go up to Jerusalem . There is the pretext ; but the root of the matter was a lust within , stirring him up to secure to himself the enjoyment of that which was not his own ; and this Ambition breeds fear , that if they go up to Jerusalem , to worship , his power would quickly turn to nothing . So ver . 27. If this People go up to do Sacrifice in the house of the Lord at Jerusalem , then shall the heart of this People turn again unto to their Lord , even unto Rehoboam King of Judah , and they shall kill me . There is the matter , a desire of Reigning was the cause of his Idolatry and Schism , an unmortified lust within was the root and rise of his Error . And secondly Scripture holds out , That as Error is the Daughter of Prophanity , so it is the Mother of prophanity ; as it rises from Prophanity , so it tends to more Prophanity , Christs words import this John 8. 31. Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him ; if ye continue in my word then are ye my Disciples indeed , If ye adhere and keep closs to the Truth , then shall ye attain to walk as my Disciples . And it imports on the other hand , That if ye drink in Error , ye shall not be my Disciples indeed . And so , as Prophanity is the Mother of Error ; So it is also the Daughter of Error , This serves to clear the point . That a Child of God should as much watch and guard against Error , as he should do against other gross Sins or prophanity of Life . For Use , This Doctrine serves for reproof first to those who would have Tolleration of all Opinions in the Matter of Religion , and no coercive mean to curb Error : And that because , say they , it may curb Piety . Which followes no more than that the suppressing of Fornication will curb Piety , the one is as dangerous as the other , and God's People may fall in the one as well as the other ; and therefore the one should be as well curbed as the other ▪ Nay I may say that that which is called Liberty of Conscience is the most capital Sin in a Kingdom : It is all one as if a King would proclaim liberty , to Drink , to Swear , to Whore , and to Steal ; for both are alike evil , and where the one is , commonly the other is also : and therefore to proclaim liberty to the one is to proclaim liberty to the other . We think there is no heart zealous of Gods Glory , but should abhorre such a thought as this . Vse 2. Secondly , the Doctrine reproves those who think Opinions are free ; Many reason thus , If ye lead an Holy Life it matters not what be your Opinion , whether for Presbytery , Independency , Arminianism , Prelacy , or Popery , your Soul is in no hazard , if ye be kept from gross Out breakings ; but this Doctrine showes , this sort of Reasoning to be a gross mistake : For , besides that Error speaks an unmortified root in the Heart . Heresie and Error in themselves are damnable , and are reckoned up among those Sins which debar from the Kingdom of Heaven , Galat. 5. verse 21. Hereticks as well as Murderers are excluded , and therefore Folks would not jest and play with matters of Religion , so as not to care what side they be on . Thirdly , this Doctrine gives another use , as ye would eschew Prophanity of Life ; so beware of Errors against the Truth : For the one of those , ends in the other . Grant the Error pretend to much of strictness , the upshot or Issue of it is still to Prophanity ; and therefore ye would advise well when tentations to Error are presented , before ye drink in any thing contrary to Truths received , if ye would not have it read in the looseness of your Life afterward . Many whose Lives were very strict , when they began first to change their Way , were in a short time led by their new Light to a Prophane Godless Life . Vse 4. Fourthly , Seeing Errors have their rise from some unmortified root within ; therefore as ye would be keeped free from Error , subdue Corruptions within . We are ready to think that Godless Men , will stand out best against Error ; But it will prove otherwise ; unmortified Lusts , of any other thing , will prove the greatest Friends to Error , such as a Lust of Pride to be Eminent ; of Covetousness , to get your Arms full of the World run as it will , a Lust of Laziness in Duties that will make you drink in that Error that casts at all Duties as needless : So , for an Antidote against the works of the Flesh , ( whereof Heresie is one , Galat. 5. verse 21. ) The Crucifying of the Lusts of the Flesh is brought as one . Doct. III. We come to the words themselves , and and therein is to be considered , first , the Stile , Beloved , A warm and kindly compellation . The point we are to raise is , from comparing the Stile with the Matter which the Apostle is about : He is to warn them to beware of Error , and yet he gives them a loving Stile , Beloved believe , &c. And it gives us this Doctrine , That as at all times , so chiefly when there is danger of spreading of Error , there is most need that Love should be entertained betwixt Pastor and People . So we find Paul labours to bear in himself on Peoples Affections , especially in Galat. 4. ver 10. and 11. Ye observe Dayes and Months , &c. I am afraid of you , lest I have bestowed on you Labour in vain . There he reproves them for their Error , And in the 12 verse he bears in on their Affection , Brethren , I beseech you be as I am , for I am as ye are , ye have not injured me at all . And so in the 2 Corinth . 12. v. 16. Through the whole Epistle he hath been speaking against their Error , and all along he bears in on their Affection , especially in the place cited . And I will very gladly spend , and be spent for you , though the more abundantly I loved you , the less I be loved , &c. Abundance of places shew his practice to have been this way . The Reason is , First , because when People begin to differ , they are ready to cast at these who differ from them , chiefly , those who would curb them : For there is still a Spirit of Pride with Error , it cannot endure to be contradicted , or , the least thing to be spoken to its own prejudice if not all the more warily , it will foam and rage , and if it cannot bear down the contrary Truth , yet it will labour to bear down him that speaks it . So Hereticks are called Murmurers , Complainers , Jude verse 16. So a Minister in reproving Error . would guard against this danger , lest he do more hurt than profit , and all the Issue of his pains be to work a prejudice against himself . And Secondly , This Argument will be the more strong , considering the evil that comes by prejudice . There is nothing that makes people run faster headlong into Error , than prejudice against Faithful Pastors . Therefore this hath been the Devil's Method , First , To bear down the Ministry , by making the people first cast at one , then at another , and so at all ; that their Ears being once stoped with prejudice at what Ministers say , their Ear may be boared to let in any Error that the Devil or his Instruments pleaseth to vent : Therefore a Minister would make it his Study so to behave himself , that there be no ground of prejudice given by him , but that all his Carriage may savour of a Resolution to entertain Love. Now because our fear is that Error may spread , and that ( if the Lord give us leave ) we intend from this Verse to speak to the most infecting Errors : We shall solve this Question , What a Minister is to do for entertaining Love : For clearing of this , we shall first shew what he is not to do , He is not to be silent at Error , for fear of Irritating and losing Affection ; That were not Love , considering what is said of the nature of Error : It is all one as if we would not reprove a loose Liver for fear of angring him . Secondly , Neither is he to speak against them in a Cold-rife manner , as if it were a thing indifferent , whether they return to a right Judgement or not : No , He must ( as he would be faithful to God ) aggravate the evil of Error to the utmost , declare its hazard , denounce what Scripture pronounceth against it , whether it anger them or not ; Better anger and loose them , than anger God. What then must he do ? Answer , As in other sins he must first reprove them , Levit. 19. ver . 17. And secondly so reprove , as it may argue Love to the person reproved , Jude ver . 23. Only there would be this difference betwixt reproving of Error and other sins , Other sins may be inveighed against without pains to convince the person reproved that such are sins , Nature is born with a cry against such ; But Error hath an erring Conscience to stand up in its behalf ; therefore the most of a Ministers work would be in convincing from the Word , that the thing he holdeth is Error : Otherwise , to inveigh against what he holdeth , without this , will harden him more , he will look on it as the Man's passion , and that he hath nothing to say from Scripture or Reason against what he holdeth . 2. In dealing with erring persons , there would be a difference put betwixt Seducers , and those who are seduced : Those who are rooted in Error , and those who are only Doubters , so Jude verse 23. For Use , Ye may see from this what a great Task Ministers have , and how great need of help there is from people to Ministers in Erring times . In some respect it is harder to deal with one Man tainted with Error , than with twice so many Prophane Livers : A prophane Mans Conscience must readily say the same that we say , and so , keep us at Reverence : But an erring Mans Conscience speaks against us , takes us to Err , and so readily cannot endure us , and yet we must speak , venturing in Gods strength : But there is need so to speak , least in speaking we loose more then we gain . The next thing that followes is , the Exhortation , Believe not every Spirit : That is , do not credit every Doctrine that hath a fair pretence , Or every Preacher that pretends the Name of the Spirit : From this we learn , That the Spirit of Error began very early to trouble the Church , in the primitive times when the Apostles were yet living , there were even then some who contradicted them to their very face ; so the averrers of Circumcision , Justification by workes , denyers of the resurrection . &c. Reas : 1. The Reason is first , because the Spirit of Error is shameless , it will affront the most convincing evidences ; for it is natures Brood , and credit is so engaged in it , that it trampleth upon all that would bear it under , if an Apostle were speaking a Sectarian Spirit would out-dare him : It is an affronted and malapert Spirit . Secondly , The Lord saw it fitting , that in the latter ages of the Church his People should be tryed by erring Spirits , and therefore , he would have the primitive times troubled with them also , that we might be the less troubled ; seeing that even the Apostles themselves were not fre'd from such like perplexity , as to have to doe with Spirits of Error . But there is an other Reason why the Lord suffers his Church , both in former times , and in latter times , to be troubled with the Spirit of Error , set down in the 1 Corinth : 11. verse 19. For there must be also Heresies amongst you , that they which are approved , may be made manifest among you . There must be Heresies , there is a must be put upon it : Now this is not an absolute necessity , but a necessity or a must be upon the supposition of Gods most wise decree , to permit wise decree , to permit and suffer those things for most wise ends ; and the end for which he permitts them to be , is First , for the tryal of Persons , and secondly , for the tryal of Truth . First , for the tryal of Persons , this End is set down in the verse cited Heresies and Hereticks must be , that they which are aproved may be made manifest among you . The Spirit of Heresie let loose , hath a discovering efficacy with it , it discovers who are of a humble frame of Spirit , and who are Proud , Lofty , Conceity , and of a Selfish spirit : It discovers who are light , weak , and easily carried away with any thing , unstable minds , as the Apostle speaks ; and who are more solid , and Ballanced with the Spirit of Sobriety , and solid Wisdom , that is from above . It discovers these who have put a price on Truth , that they will buy it , but will on no termes sell it , and also discovers those who have put no price upon it , or that will suffer little for it . That is the first end why Hereticks must be , to discover Persons and try them . And secondly , Hereticks , in the Lords wise Providence , tend to the tryal of Truths , and the making of them brighter and clearer , they scoure Truths , ( so to speak ) so that the disputs of Hereticks , and venting of Error , make Truth the brighter . The more debating there is betwixt these two , Error grows the blacker , and Truth the clearer . When the Lord hath a mind to have a Truth cleared and rooted in his Peoples Spirits , He does in his Infinite Wisdom take this way , a strange way indeed and yet making much for the purpose : He will let some Error arise to oppose the Truth , through occasion whereof more light breaks out to the clearing of the Truth . These are Reasons why Hereticks must be . Vse . The use is , seeing the Spirit of Error began so early to trouble the Church in the Apostles time , that were guided with an infallible Spirit , then ye are not to wonder that Error should trouble the Church now when there are not such infallible lights as these : The Spirit of Error is a bold darring Spirit it will dare to contradict God Himself , and find out some shift , to cast at that which God Himself sayeth : As may be seen Gen : 3. The Lord said The day thou eatest thereof thou shalt die : And Sathan contradicts it , thou shalt not surely die . And so no wonder there be such impudence seen in the Spirit of Error now , as to cast at any thing which Gods Servants say , seeing Satan still Acts the Instruments of Error . Vse . 2 But secondly , from this Doctrine learn not to quarrell with Gods most Holy and wise Providence , in that he suffers so many Errors to be . We are ready to think that if God had that care of his Church , Covenant and Cause , as men would think he had , he would not suffer such Effronted Spirits , and such Blasphemous Hereticks to prevail , and to outdare his Truth : But that is to quarrel the Lords providence and without a ground : He whose furnace is in Zion can make all the tryals of the time that arise from Error to contribute much for the clearing of Truth ; by this means he will rouse up his People to study Truth , to understand it better , to search out grounds for it , and that is one advantage ; only ye would know also , that these times will be discovering times , they will discover many a corrupt heart , many unstable hearts and light heads , many proud Spirits , and many that have Lusts lurking within them : So that many will choose that Religion that will gratify their Lusts most ; For , there is not an Error that Sathan hatches , but there is one Lust or other within People that speaks for it ; and there is nothing more ready to make People take in Error , than their harbouring of unmortified Lusts. So in . 2 Timoth : Cap : 3. The Apostle speaking of those who should be caried away with false Teachers says in the 6. v. For of this sort are they which creep into houses , and lead captive silly women laden with sins led away with diverse Lusts : Unmortified Lusts are as fuel to make the fire of Zeal for Error to burn very hot in Peoples bosom , and so Error will try People this way . Doct : V. Next observe he sayes Believe not every Spirit , that is , believe not every Doctrine that hath the name of the Spirit , and fair pretences put upon it , as if they were the Doctrines of the Spirit of God , believe them not . From this we learn. That the foulest Errors go out oftentimes under fairest names , and are backed with most specious pretences , what Fouler Errors than these spoken of here , The denying of the Son of God : And yet what fairer Names than the Spirit ? What fairer pretences than that they are Doctrines taught by the Spirit of God ? We will find this of all Errors spoken of in Scripture , for the most part , Cora● , Dathan , and Abiram's Error whereby they rose up against the Magistracy of Moses , and Preist-hood of Aaron , hath a fair pretence for it . Ye take too much upon you Moses and Aaron , are not all the Lords People Holy. And Jeroboams Error , his Idolatry in setting up the Calf at Dan and Bethel , hath a fair pretence 1 Kings 12. It is too fair for you &c. The Peoples ease , and the publick good is the thing he pretends though his design was far otherwise : And so these that urged Justification by works , and opposed the way of free Grace , and being justified by Faith , they had their fair pretences : O! say they , to cast off Workes from Justification , will make People secure wee may sin that Grace may abound ; very taking pretences all of them , and as taking as any that Error is now covered over with . The Reason of the Doctrine is from the cause for which the Tempter presents Error under fair colours , and specious pretences , which is this ; That he may make the Error the more taking : For these are the baits he puts on the hook that he may deceive and catch the simple . Therefore for use of this Doctrine , ye would not be deceived with fair pretences , or ravishinglike expressions , that Error may be fairded over with : See what the Apostle Paul sayes to this purpose 2 Thess : cap. 2 , v. 2. Where speaking against an Error , he beseeches them by the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ , That they be not soon shaken in mind , or troubled , neither by Spirit , nor by word , nor by letter as from us , as that the day of Christ is at hand . It supposes that the spreaders of that Error had all these three pretences . First● they pretended the Spirit , that it was a Doctrine taught them by the Spirit of God , accompanied by his presence in their Spirits with more than ordinary flashes , and raptures , and In-bearings of the Spirit of Light. And Secondly , that they had the word or Scripture to alledge for it . And Thirdly , they picked somewhat out of Pauls Letters for them , so would they say : In speaking against us he contradicts himself : These are fair pretences ; and yet , sayes Paul , be not shaken in mind with them . So , say I , ye would guard your self against the fair pretences which Error may have , and look not only to the out side , but to the inside of them , and then ye will find most bitter Serpents Lurking under fairest flowers . As for example , The Mother of all Error Tolleration hath a fair pretence for it , viz. that good men may Err , and so in suppressing Error ye may suppress Piety : A fair pretence , but it hath afoul end . For by this meanes Blasphemers , Denyers of God and Jesus Christ , must have Liberty to vent their damnable Errors , if so be that they can but pretend Conscience , and so stable roome must be given in Christs Church , to every unclean beast that ever was hatched in Hell. The Antinomian Errors again have a fair pretence , O say they , Christ hath become sin for us , and therefore it is taken off from us , so we are not bound to repent for it , for to say that we are to repent were to take the burthen off from Christs Back , and to put it on our own : These are specious words without solidity , but they contradict Scripture Truths where they are narrowly looked to : Peter was a justified Person , and yet when Christ looked on him He weeped bitterly : Davids sin was pardoned , and Christ had taken the burthen of it , and yet David was to Repent of it , and to be corrected for it , and so the Lord tells him that the sword should not depart from his house because he had made the Enemies of the Lord to Blasphem ; and yet sin was not laid upon David to satisfy divine Justice for it : Only he must get on the fingers to make him more warry , and to scar all Justified Persons in time coming from doing the like . We might so run through all the Errors of the time , as that of Independency , whereby power is denyed to Presbytries , O , say they , to put power in Presbytries and make them receive Appeals from Congregations , it is to Tyrannize over particular Flocks ; and therefore say they , nothing is better than that every Congregation have compleat power within themselves , and be left to their own guiding , not being countable to any Judicatory above them , but only to Christ : This seems a specious Bait for such as would have liberty , but when it is duly pondered , it will be found most contrary to Truth : For by this means , if a particular Flock should Err , and if one should suf●er wrong at the hands of a particular Session , there is no remedy to repair the oppressed man , and to bring the Erring Congregation to a right mind : and how far this is derogatory to Jes●s Christ who was perfect in all his house , any man may judge : We might run through more of them , But because we have a mind to refute these Errors by themselves , we shall insist no further here , having said enough to clear the point , that the most dangerous Errors may be born in under the fairest pretences ; and therefore ye would not take all to be Gold that glisters , take not all for Truth that is decked up with a bundle of brave , high , ravishing expressions . Doct. 6 We proceed , Believe not every Spirit , sayes he ; He speaks not this in vain . It supposes he saw an inclination in them to believe : The point of Doctrine that ariseth from it is , That when foul Error is holden out under fair Names , and backed with fair pretences , There is a danger lest people drink them in and believe them ; for John saw that hazard , and therefore gives them a Watch-word : So in the 16 of the Rom. ver . 18. For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ , but their own Belly , and by good words and fair Speeches deceive the hearts of the simple : Their baits hook'd the simple , before they were aware . We need no further proof of this , than the Example of our neighbour Church in England ; Errors which could not have been named , but People would have loathed at them : such as the Arminian Error against free Grace ; &c. Yet being decked with the name of new light they are greedily drunk in by too too many , Wee shall give some Reasons to make you sensible of this hazard : How great danger there is , when Error is in spreading , that People be taken off their feet with it : We shall point at four or five things that speaks this hazard : And the first is , the proneness of our nature to Drink in Untruths : We see this in Eva , for Error is natures brood : And , as we said , Error is the copy of some Lust , and therefore it soon infects : Truth again , it hath nothing in us , no party for it in our hearts , and therefore it is harder to make us take with it ; there must be word upon word , and precept upon precept ; we drink in Truth slowly and after much pains taken upon us , we are hut to begin to learn it ; but the Spirit of a man is quick to take up Error : Ye will find men more able in a short time to debate for Error , than in a long time to debate for Truth , I would seek no greater presumption that such a tenent is an Error than this , that as soon as it is set on fire , it runs through great numbers , and sets their Spirits on edge for it , we are not so hot for Truth , it is not our nature to be so taken with it . Reason . 2 Then there is a Second thing that speaks this hazard , and it is , the shallowness of Peoples apprehension , together with their foolish hast before they try ; From the shallowness of many it is , that they cannot put a difference betwixt a fair pretence , and a foul Error that is hid under it , and from the hast of Peoples Spirit it is that they ingage suddainly with any thing having the colour of Truth ; and being once ingaged they are still the more and more involved : These two laid together are another thing to point out this hazard . Reason 3. We may add a Third , and this is desire of Novelty in People spoken of in 2 Timoth : Chap : 4 , v. 3 — after their own Lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers , having itching ears . And they shall turn away , &c. Where by the way observe , that Lust within is the cause of drinking in Error from without : But the thing we mark , is , That they have an itching ear lusting after new things , and this comes from their little practising of old Truths . Reas : 4 There is a Fourth Reason , and it is the diversity of baits and pretences that is put upon several Errors , according to Peoples several humors : So subtile is Sathan that he puts a bait on for every appetit ; there are some that are Piously strict and are enclined so to be , both towards themselves and others , and he hath a bait to catch those , to wit , a pretence of strickness which the Error of Separation is covered with , for this Error alloweth Church fellowship with none but these that have a real evidence of Grace in them : It is a way think they to shame natural Men. Again there be some whose humor is for looseness , he puts on a bait to gratify this humor also , let them believe in Christ and let them live as they like , sayes the Antinomian , and so according to Peoples several humors , there is a bait put on by the Devil upon Error : Now when these baits and Peoples humors agree , it is like powder and fire , presently they kindle . Reas. 5 There is a fifth thing which speaks this hazard , and it is this ; The Lord , that Error may be a tryal , in his holy Justice lets out more than ordinary parts and abilities , on spreaders of Error , and on the Spirits of People when they are taken with it : The Lord for a Judgement to themselves , and for a tryal unto others , gives them as we speak , a cast of their craft , he elevates them above their ordinary Sphere , or what is their ordinary way : And this we speak not without Scripture , It is said of false Antichristian Teachers they shall come with l●ing signs and wonders ; And there is a Spirit of Error which he foretells shall accompany Error , Be not soon shaken in mind neither by Spirit nor by word , &c. In that place that we already cited 2 Thess : 2 , 2. When we look on all these things we hope we have made out the point : viz. that foulest Errors even when they are colloured with fairest pretences , there is a danger , lest People drink them in . The use of the point is , If there be this hazard then ye would be afraid of your selves , it is said , The Righteous fear alwayes . I would seek no clearer mark of any person that is like to be taken in the snare , than that they think themselves so stout and stedfast that no Error will gain upon them : and I would think it an evidence very good , when people are afraid of themselves , and do humble themselves , in the sense of their own weakness , and are employing Christ daily to bear them through , For Blessed is he that feareth alwayes . Only remember that this fear would be of the right Stamp : And for clearing this , we shall point at three or four things , wherein this holy fear does consist , specially with Reference to Error . First where ●his fear is , There will be a labouring to root Truth in the heart : Ye know , when People are affraid of losing any thing , that they will labour by all meanes to be sure of it : A man that hath this Holy fear over himself , lest he be ensnared with Error will study to gett Truth rooted in the heart . Prov : 2. 16. The Spirit of God speaketh of hiding of understanding , putting it in the secret place of the heart . A second thing accompanying this fear , is a forecasting what Truth may cost you ; there would be a fore-casting of this , and a taking an Essay of the Cross before hand , and this for fear lest that to eschew suffering ye quite the Truth , if the tryall come on you unexpectedly ; Paul while he is exhorting the Disciples to stedfastness , informs them That through much tribulation we must enter into the Kingdome of Heaven , Acts 14. 22. Then there is a third thing accompanying this Holy fear , and that is , a fear to venture on Temptations to Error , except there be a Providence putting to it , of necessity ; and this fear rises from the Sense of our own weakness to engage with , or stand the shock against Temptations , this is implyed in that direction which the Apostle Paul gives 2 Timoth : 3 , 5. At the end of the verse — From such turn away v , 6. For of this sort are they which creep into houses — : When a man is sensible of his own weakness , the fear of his being ensnared will keep him from walking among snares . A fourth thing accompanying this Holy fear is , that tho ye find these Truths ye have had once sealed to your Spirits begin to be questioned , and that ye are not able to answer what is brought against them , and so perchance your Judgment may incline to think , that what ye thought once to be Truth is now Error ; Yet where this Holy fear is , ye will rather suspect your own want of knowledge to discern , than any way suspect the Truth to be untruth ; and it will make you at least abstain from venturing even on that which your light points out for the time . Now by these ye may know what is the Fearlessness that makes People to be in danger , and it is this , when it makes thee so inconcerned that thou never Labours to get Truth brought lower than thy head : when thou never casts an account what Truth may stand thee ; when thou art so confident of thy own wit and knowledge , that thou will venture uncalled to dispute with Sectarian Spirits ; or when any thing is born in as Truth contrary to what thou hast maintained , as a Truth before , and contrary to thy Covenant engagment , thou grippes presently to it without once suspecting that thy own shallow understanding may be deceived . This , I say● speaks a fearlesness that borders neigh unto Error , Doct : VII . The Doctrine that followeth next from these words Believe not every Spirit , is , that Ministers the Servants of God are not to clap Peoples heads , or indulge them in this inclination of theirs to Error , they are not to humor them in it ; but on all hazards they are to testify against it : Therefore , sayes John , Believe not every Spirit , So also the Apostle Paul does very sharply inveigh against People , when they are beginning to tamper with Error : And lest People should say Paul and John were Apostles , and knew what was Error and what was Truth , being guided by an infallible Spirit , and that therefore they might stoutly testify against Error ; but for other ordinary Ministers , they may err as well as other People , and so it is ill reasoned from what the Apostles did to what Ministers may now do : Therefore to clear this we shall give a place where Paul bindes it as Duty on every ordinary Minister to to testify against Error . In the Acts ch : 20. v. 28. Therefore take heed unto your selves , and to all the flock , over the which the Holy Ghost , hath made you overseers , &c. And in the 29. Verse he gives an instance wherein they were to take heed to the flock , For I know this , that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you , not sparing the Flock . verse 30. Also of your own selves shall men arise , &c. So it is a duty lying on all ordinary Preachers , to watch over their People , lest they be seduced with Error , and that because First of that which we spoke of before , that Error in the point of Truth should be as much eschewed by People as other particular sins ; and therefore Ministers are bound to guard People against it . And secondly , Truth is a precious Jewel and therefore in a special manner , they ought to contend for it . And Thirdly the Souls of People ought to be pretious to Ministers , and therefore Ministers ought to watch over them , they ought to guard them against Error ; because , as other sins , so Error is a damnable Soul-destroying sin . And therefore as Ministers love Truth and Souls committed to them , so they must watch over the People , and guard them against Error . Vse I. This show's the great task lying upon Ministers at every time , but chiefly in an Erring time : we spoke somewhat of this before how difficult it is for a man to meddle with reproving of Error , more difficile than to reprove Prophanity ; because a prophane Man's Conscience is convinced of the evil of his way ; and therefore however he may be displeased with free Preaching against his sin , yet his Conscience clears the Minister ; and thus he keeps him , at least , at some reverence : But it is not so in a Soul taken with Error , the misinformed Conscience speaks for it , and ther●fore whatever is spoken against him , he casts at it as Error and untruth ; and readily the man that speaketh it may lose respect for his pains , and yet we see the Word of God binds it on Ministers to speak against it . Vse 2. But Secondly , If it be so that Ministers be bound to reprove Error and testify against it ; then the People are bound to take the word of reproof from them : we mean not that they should be so bound as what Ministers say should be the Bible , but this much we say , That People should presume as much on them as another , to ask Councel from them as much as from another ; and to respect them as much as any other : And that for these Reasons , First , because the publick Minister hath a promise which private men have not , at least not such an ample grant , as it is Matth : 28. 19. Goe ye therefore and teach all nations , &c — and lo , I am with you alway ▪ even unto the end of the World. It doth not exeem them indeed from Erring themselves ; but the promise , is there more largly given to them than to others . And Secondly Ministers as called watch men have the charge of Peoples Souls : God hath charged them with them , which he hath not charged others with : there is not a charge of Peoples Souls , laid on private men by way of office ; every one is bound indeed by way of Charity , to take a care of the Souls of others , contrair to that of Cain , am I my brothers keeper . But beside this tye of Charity lying on sent Ministers , there is a tye by vertue of a particular charge ; So that place Act : 20. Take heed to the flock over which the Holy Ghost , hath made you overseers . He hath given them a special Charge , and so they are charged in a special way with Peoples Souls . Then there is a Third Reason , it is Sathan's Method to bring in Error on People by casting in prejudices betwixt them and sent Ministers , which we have cleared sometimes from Scripture , and so it should be watched against , lest Sathans subtility prevail so far as to bring People to dis-respect their Ministers , for if that be once gained he hath prevailed very much . Doct : VIII . Now further , he sayes , Believe no● every Spirit . But bring them to the tryal . Doe not cast at all but try the Spirits , Hence take this Doctrine : It is not Gods way , that People because , there are differences about Religion , should therefore believe no Religion , that is not Gods way . So Matth : 16. we see the Apostles practise , Christ sayes unto them , whom say they that I am ? Say they , some say tha● thou art John the Baptist , some Elias , others Jeremiah , or one of the Prophets . But whom say ye that I am ? They do not Answer , we know not what to say , there are so many different sayings about thee , but say they , Thou art Christ the son of the living God. Reas : So People are not to cast at all Religion because there are differences about it ; and that because , First , that were to give way to the Devils plot ; His design in raising up Error about Religion is , to make People Atheists , so as not to care for any Religion ; and so when the use which thou makest of different Opinions , is that thou wilt believe none , Thou fulfillest the Devils design . Secondly , thou makes use of Gods Providence to thy destruction . The Lords Providence in raising up Error is , to make men seek more after the knowledge of the Truth : And when thou makest that use of it , to cast at all Religion , thou mockest the Holy Counsel of God to thy own ruin . The Use then of the Doctrine is , to reprove those of this stamp ; to wit , Prophane Atheistical men that make no differences about Religion but this : Let Church-men once agree among themselves what 's right , and what 's wrong ; untill then , the back of our hand to altogether ; that is a wofull way . Indeed there may be a doubt proposed here viz. What else shall poor ignorant People do about differences in Religion , but to lay aside the care of all , when they see every party have their own Reasons stronger than these poor People can Answer ; I Answer , there are some directions grounded on Scripture , which if we walk by , may bring us to a safe shore , amidst these rocks of contrary Opinions ; And the first is this , that for Differences that concern not Peoples practice , I would not have People trouble themselves much with them ; as for example , Our late unhappy Differences about the publick Resolutions ; the Lord hath taken the occasion of them away ; so I would not have any troubling themselves much about them : Whatever Differences in matters of practice fall in , it seems to be a safe rule , that when the occasion of such Practices are removed , all Contention about them should be laid aside . Secondly , As to the Differences wherein Peoples practice is concerned , take these Rules : First , For these that are uncontraverted Truths make Conscience of the practice of them , which will help to the knowledge of other things ; this rule Christ prescrives , John 7. 17. sayes he , If any man do his will , he shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God , &c. There is something that thy Conscience is clear of to be Duty , and although the Differences of Opinion might be some excuse to make thee keep off from these things about which there is difference , yet how art thou excused for neglect of these things which thou art convinced to be Duty , as Prayer , Reading the Word , &c. Secondly , We would know , whatever be the contrary Opinions about matters of Religion , yet there is but one true way ; and the knowledge of this one way may be attained to , by those who seek humbly after it : At least , if thou be judging thy self , and as a damned Bankrupt or D●vour by Nature , be closing with Christ , and drawing Grace from him to make thee Holy ▪ Thou wilt attain to the knowledge of as much of these things debated , as will take thee home to Heaven . A Third Direction is , That ye should beware of calling in question any of these Truths that once have been Sealed into your Spirits by the Spirit from the Word of God , 2 John ver 8. Look to your selves that we lose not those things which we have wrought , The point of Truth that People have got thus Sealed to their Conscience , should not readily be called in question . A Fourth Direction is this , That in seeking out Truth under Differences , we should beware of Loftyness of Spirit , 1 Cor. 14. 32 it is said The Spirits of the Prophets are subject to the Prophets , How much more ought the Spirits of private persons to be subject to the voice of Christs Ambassadors speaking in his Courts . This is not as if we would make Ministers Sayings the Peoples Rule to walk by : But this much will follow that in a constitute Church where Discipline is Exercised , there should be that Humility in People , that wh●n doubts arise concerning any point of received Truth within the Church , they should offer their Judgement , and the Reason of it to the Prophets and Christs Courts to be tryed , before they lay down any new Opinion as a solid Truth : That much is contained under this , The Spirits of the Prophets are subject to the Prophets , if it mean any thing at all . Doct : IX . Now we proceed . The next thing that we come to , is , what People should do , Try the Spirits , and the Rule of Tryal is , whether they are of God. The first point we learn is , that how fair soever the pretence be , that our Doctrine is colloured with , it should not be taken upon Trust : but the Spirits must be Tryed . Such we see was the practice of the B●reans , and they are commended for it , they would not take the Apostles Doctrine on trust . Act : 17. 11. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica , in that they received the word with all readiness of mind and searched the Scriptures dayly whither those things were so . They would not take the Apostles Doctrine on trust : and this is a command given by Paul writing to the Thess : 1 Epistle ch : 5. v. 21. Prove all things after he had said , despise not Prophecyings , So that Doctrines should be brought to a Tryal , whatever be their fair pretences . Reas : The Reasons are first : because foulest Errors may be coloured over with fairest pretences . And Secondly the Scripture sayes , all men are Lyars ; that is to say , all men may Err , and therefore words cannot be the Ground of Divine Faith ; for Faith must have an infallible ground as Ephes : 2. 20. And are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets , &c. i. e. the word Preached by them , and dictated by the Spirit of God. Vse . This Doctrine reproves first , the Papists that will have nothing Tryed , that comes from the Church ; but all taken upon trust , hence is it that many swallow such Monsters of Absurdities , as the Errors of Transubstantiation , Purgatory , Merite , Mals , and such like , for which they have no other ground , but because their Church sayes so ; But this Doctrine holdeth out another duty that who ever heareth any Doctrine proponed by one or other , they are bound to pass their Judgment on it , Try the Spirits . Now that we may walk betwixt extreams , the Papists on the one hand , who set up Tyranny , and these Sectaries on the other hand , who set up Confusion ; we would know there is a twofold Judgement to be passed on Doctrine : Publick Judgement , and Private Judgement : Publick Judgement again , is either , peremptorily absolute , or limited . A publick peremptory Judgement is , That which binds the Conscience to obey simply that which is spoken , and none have this Judgement , but God himself . Secondly , There is a publick Judgement which is limited , and this is a publick declaring and holding out that which is found to be God's mind in his word , which does not bind absolutely , but in so far as it agrees with the Word ; and this Judgement belongs to publick Church Judicatories met together in Christs Name : They are like the Lyon-Herauld set forth to proclaim the Royal Acts , if he proclaim that which is contained in the principal Acts , it binds ; but if he add any thing of his own , it binds not . Next , there is a private Judgement of Discretion , and this belongs to every Christian : every man in relation to his own practice , is bound to pass Sentence on what is held out to him by others , that if it be right , he may embrace it , but if wrong , he may reject it ; but his private Judgement is not binding to others . Now this private Judgement , or this Judgement of Discretion is necessary , because all men may Err ; Councils may Err , Synods , &c. And Secondly , Their Error will not excuse private Christians to follow them in their Error : sayes Christ , When the Blind leads the Blind both falls into the Ditch . And therefore there must be a Judgement of Discretion in private persons to try what they hear . And this much for guarding against the Popish Tyranny ; but least this Doctrine be abused to cast at all publick Church Judicatories , we shall next speak somewhat to guard against Sectarian Confusion : First , Although publick Church Judicatories have not Power to bind Consciences ; yet when men are in a doubt concerning a point of Truth , their Judgement ought to have more weight than the Judgement of private Men : And that not only because there are more Gifts exercised together , but mainly because there is a promise annexed to the Commission given by Christ to publick Church Judicatories , Matth. 18. 20. Where two or three are gathered together in my Name , there am I in the midst of them . And Secondly , From this it followes , that there would be a kind of loathness to differ from publick Church Judicatories ; a man's grounds would be well examined , l●st if differing from these Judicatories , they also differ from Truth . And Thirdly , when they differ they are to bear them at Reverence , although in such a point they should Err , yet for their Authority , they are to be Reverenced : This much is granted by us to Church Judicatories , but no further , They are not to be made the Rule of our Faith. Vse 2. It reproves those who are Lazie , and cannot endure the trouble of trying what they hear , but take things on trust , and have no more but such a mans Authority , he is of that Way and Opinion , and therefore they are Fire and Flint , Tooth and Nail for it , as much as if they had the Word of God for it : We have seen much of this in the unhappy Differences that have fallen out in our time , which I have no pleasure to speak much of , and therefore we proceed to another Doctrine . Doct. X. The next thing then that we observe is from what he sayes , Try , &c. whether they be of God ; that is the Tryal : The Doctrine is this , That the right tryal of Doctrine is , To try whether they be of God or not , and this point puts us to give Marks whereby it shall be known what Doctrine is of God , and what Doctrine is not of God ; and here we shall speak to two things . First , We shall show what are the marks that necessarly infer a Doctrine to be of God. And secondly we shall speak of other things that do not infer necessarly a Doctrine to be of God , but for the most part follow upon such a Doctrine . For the First , That which makes Doctrine necessarily to be of God , is , if it be according to the rule of the Word . So when the Bereans are commended Acts 17. The rule they went by in the tryal of Paul's Doctrine , is the Scripture : And this is Isa●a's rule , chap. 8. ver . 20. To the Law and to the Testimony , &c. He would have all Doctrines tryed by the Word of God : So the Word is the rule , and that Doctrine which has the Word for it , is of God ; and whatever Doctrine has not the Word for it , is not of God : All Spirits , even the Spirit of God himself , must be tryed that way : And that because the Word is a perfect rule : I give only two places of Scripture to clear the perfection of this rule . First , The heavy Plagues pronounced against those who add to this rule : The Word is so perfect , that if an Angel should come and pretend a purer Rule , Let him be ( sayes Paul ) Anathema , Gal. 1. 8. There is another place which proves the perfection of this rule according to this point in hand , 2 Timoth. 3. 16 , 17. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God , and is profitable for Doctrine , for reproof , for correction , for Instruction in righteousness . That the Man of God may be perfect , &c. So there is as much in the word of God , as may make the man of God perfect : And this in relation to Doctrine and Instruction , It is profitable for Doctrine and Instruction , It will make a man perfect in that , as well as in reproof . Vse , This reproves , First the Papists , they cast by the rule of the Word , and will have their Traditions , and their Po●es Decrees to be the rule . But of this enough already in the preceeding Doctrine . In the second place , it reproves the Sectaries , some whereof reprove the Word , they will have a higher tryal and rule to examine by ; and it is the inbearing of Gods Spirit , say they , He is the Spirit of Truth , and can he bear in a Lye : But , say we , how know they the Spirit of the Devil by the Spirit of God , except they bring it to the Word . So the Word is the Rule , yea and the last Rule . But here is a doubt which we shall speak to . This is a very hard task , may some say , for poor ignorant People to try Doctrines by the Word ; the Word it self is obscure , and every one pretends the Word , all Parties will say that they have the Word , and so it is hard for us to know what is of God , and what not , if we have no other rule but the Word : I answer it is very true , there are very few Sectaries who will not pretend the Word : And yet it does not follow that ye may cast by the Word . But Secondly , we say , although the Word be in some places obscure , and although Men of Opinions as contrary to the Word as Light is to Darkness , may every one of them wrest the Word , yet there is as much of the Word clear , if it be rightly studied , as will make a man know what is right , and what is wrong . Hence that Epithet given to the Word , The word of the Lora is a Lamp to direct thy Paths . The Word of the Lord is not unfitly compared to a Sea , wherein Elephants , i. e. men of greatest parts and Learning may swime , and readily lose their fect , how great soever their parts be , if they rely upon them . And yet it may be compared to a shallow calm running Stream , wherein Lambs , that is , men of mean Gifts , may wade , and find out Gods mind in it , if they be humble and take Gods way for searching of it . But say ye , what is that way of God wherein people may hope , so as not to miscarry in the searching out of Gods mind in his Word . In answer to this , we shall give several Directions . First , A man that would not mistake Gods mind in his Word , should be a diligent Reader of it , Acts 17. 11. — and searched the Scriptures daily , &c. it was their daily task . And Secondly , Reading of the Word should have Prayer going alongs with it , Prov : 2. 3. Yea if thou cryest after knowledge , and liftest up thy voice for understanding , ver . 4. If thou seekest her as silver , and searchest for her as for hid treasures : Then , &c. this crying and seeking is certainly in Prayer , as well as in other means . When people joyn Prayer with the Reading of the Word , they will more readily attain to the knowledge of Gods mind , Than a man that takes no more with him but his own natural parts . Thirdly , The word should be read with Meditation , Psal : 1. 2. — in his Law doth he meditate day and night . And Fourthly , with Self-denial . Prov. 3. 5. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart , and lean not to thine own understanding . We should go to the Word with a deep sense on us of our own Ignorance to seek Light from it . There are several other directions how People may be led to get the meaning of the word ; we shall speak of some . First , Obscure places being compared with these that are more clear , will be clear also : There are some places obscure , but the Lord hath been so Graciously condescending in contriving the Scriptures that there are other places to make them clear : So there is an obscure place : we are not under the Law but under Grace which at first seems to sound as if People needed not to take heed to the Law ; But there is another place , that clearly shows how we are not under the Law There is no condemnation to them that are in Christ. They are freed from the condemning power of the Law , but not from the directions of it . Secondly , in obscure and dark places of Scripture on which men according to their several Conceptions , would Father several senses , the meaning that agrees most with the ●nalogy of Faith should be taken : this is that which Paul calls the forme of wholsom words . So there is a place controverted he laid on him the iniquit● of us all , Says the Antinomians all our sins were laid on Christ , and so do what we will , we are not bound to seek pardon or mourn for t●em ; for our sins are laid on him , and so we have none : Now this gloss is contrary to the whole current of Scripture , which holds out that believers have sin in them , a body of Death . 1 John 1 , 8. If we say we have no sin we deceive our selves and the Truth is not in us . It holdeth out believers at their best condition as Mourning for sin , and praying for the pardon of sin Rom. 7. Psalm 25. 11. So that this Antinomian sense cannot be right , because it is contrar to the whole current of Scripture ; and therefore the laying of our iniquities on him , must be the guilt and punishment of our iniquity , and not the being of sin it self , which was bound upon Christ : So another place the promoters of Tolleration pleads from , is that in Phil. 3 , 15. that Counsel that Paul gives Let us therefore , as many as be perfect , be thus minded , And if in any thing ye be otherwise minded God shall reveal even this unto you : say they , there is Tolleration whatever be Peoples differences , let them walk according to their Light ; we say again , that what Paul sayes of mutual forbearance must not be extended to all Errors ; but it must only be applyed to these that were Errors of infirmitie ; As Rom : 15. 1. we then that are strong , ought to bear the infirmities of the weak , and not to please our selves . And that the opposite meaning cannot be right , because it is contrair to the current of many other Scriptures , which command Hereticks to be Excommunicat . An Heretick after the first and second admonition reject . and not so much as bid them God speed : So this is another way to know the meaning of the Scripture . And this much now for directions to help you in the study of Gods word , that you may attain to know Gods mind in it ; and so to know whether a Doctrine be of God or not . We thought to have spoken of these other marks which do not infer necessarly a Doctrine to be of God , but for the most part do follow on such a Doctrine ; but the time being now ended , I shall only name them : First , That Doctrine which is of God will have Holiness following upon it : And so that Doctrine of the Antinomians that tends to prophanity of life cannot be of God. Secondly , that Doctrine that is of God tends to exalt Christ. John 16. 15. Speaking of the Spirit of Truth , he sayeth , — he shall take of mine and shall shew it unto you . And so that Doctrine of the Papists , I mean their Doctrine of Merit , is not of God. Thirdly , That Doctrine which is of God humbles men , as Error doth fill men with pride : Thus those Sectaries that are spoken of in Jude are called Lofty ; and so the Doctrine of Separation is not of God , because whatever be the pretence of strickness that it caries along with it , there is an over-weaning conceit of the Man's self and undervaluing of others , that cleaves to this Error And Secondly , it maketh People orderly in standing for it : So is it said of Christ His voice is not heard in the streets . Now these marks as we have said do but usually follow , for because of the corruptions of men even the Doctrines that are of God may want these properties , and the Doctrines that are not of God may have a shew of them ; and therefore the first mark to wit , the word , is the adequate Rule , So that all Doctrines ought to be brought to it . Whatever be the shew any Doctrine hath , whether of Holiness , exalting Christ and free Grace , whatever shew it have of Humility and orderly carriage , in those who profess it in their avowing of it : Yet if it be not according to this Rule , ( viz. the word of God ) it is not of God. Doct : XI . We come now to our main design , to wit the Refutation of some of the most dangerous Errors of the Times . The ground of what we are to speak to this purpose is taken from the following Doctrine , which is evidently imported in the words ; to wit , That there are many Doctrines pretending to the Spirit , which yet being brought to the Touchstone will be found not to be of God. For while he bids us try the Spirits whither they be of God , He evidently insinuates that there are some Spirits which being brought to the tryal will be sound faulty , and not to be of God. I shall , God willing , give instances of this , and accordingly make it out upon the most taking , dangerous , and most Erronious Doctrines of the Times , particularly upon those following : First , the Doctrine of Tolleration . Secondly , the Doctrine of Erastianism . Thirdly the Doctrine of Independency . Fourthly , the Doctrine of Separation . Fifthly , the Doctrine of the ordinary Preaching by unsent men . Sixthly , the Doctrine of Antinomianism . And Lastly the Doctrine of Anabaptism : In all which we shall with the Lords assistance make it appear here , that however they pretend to be Doctrines warranted by the Spirit of God in his word , yet they are not so warranted , in a word we shall show they are not of God. SECT : II. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE ERROR OF Tolleration . WE shall begin with the Error of Tolleration ; of all Opinions in the matter of Religion , a Doctrine that is much cryed up among Sectaries , and a Doctrine that is very taking ; what ( thinks People ) if they get leave to serve God according to their own Conscience , they need not trouble themselves what others do . Our purpose is to show that this Doctrine , though it pretend to the Spirit , is not of God : and for this end we have read these places of Scripture whereupon we are to ground the most of what is to be said against this Error . * I begin to refute this Error of Tolleration First , because it is the Sectaries main refuge , it is their Holy of Holys wherein they shelter themselves in their grossest Errors : what , say they , it is our Conscience and who dare meddle with Conscience but the God of Conscience . Secondly , we think it needfull to begin with it ; First , because of all other Errors it is the most dangerous and damnable , in so far as other Errors do only evert these particular Truths of Scripture to which they are contrary ; but by this one Error ( this Monster of Tolleration ) way is made to evert all the Truths contained in Scripture , and to the setting up all Errors contrary to every Jote of Truth : and in the mean time there shall be no power on earth to hinder it , or take order with it , In prosecuting of this , we shall follow this Method First , we shall clear the state of the question Secondly , we shall bring our Arguments for confirming the Truth , and vindicate them from the Adversaries exceptions . Thirdly , We shall bring forth their Arguments , and shall refute them from Scripture and Reason . And Fourthly , We shall apply the whole to some practical use . First , For the state of the question , what a thing this Tolleration is that we Labour to refute : There is a two-fold Tolleration of Error : There is a Church Tolleration and a State Tolleration . A Church Tolleration is , That whereby it is pleaded that Error and Heresy should have liberty to be vented and go free even from Church Censure ; such as suspension from the Sacraments or Excommunication . There are but few Sectaries of any note that plead for Tolleration in this Latitude , and that because the Scripture is so plain against it . Paul sayes , An Heretick after the first and second Admonition reject . Therefore they are content that Church-censures such as Excommunication be inflicted on Hereticks , providing , First , that they be free from Civil censure . Secondly , That Excommunication be inflicted for no Error , but for these that are contrary to fundamental points of Truth , or as some say contrary to the very light of Nature : Upon these and no other will they have Excommunication to strike . Though this be not the main question which we are to insist upon : Yet we shall lay down some assertions contrary to their Doctrine , even in this point . And First , we do not see what reason can be brought to exeem Hereticks from civil Censure ; but the same may be brought to exeem them from Church Censures also ; If Conscience , as they say , be free from the one , what reason but it should be free from the other also ? And if fear of civil Censure against those who Err do as they say enforce the Conscience , and make People Hypocrites ; we see not but the fear of Church Censures may do the same : Or if , notwithstanding of Church Censures , the Conscience is not forced , the Service not constrained , which they grant , then notwithstanding of Civil Censure it is not forced , or the Service constrained either : And so from their own grounds this vast Tolleration of Error falls to the ground . Secondly , We cannot assent to that which they affirm , that Excommunication is not to be inflicted for any Error ; but these which are contrary to fundamental points of Religion ; and that because Christ gives us a rule upon what faults Excommunication should strick ; to wit , on every scandalous Fault done against a Brother , or the Church wherein the Offender persists obstinate , and will not be reclaimed : So Matth. 18. 17. And if he shall neglect to hear them , tell it unto the Church , but if he neglect to hear the Church , let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a Pubican . That is , Excommunicate him . Now , for what faults he is to be Excommunicate , they are set down v. 15. Moreover , if thy brother shall trespass against thee &c. So it is a scandalous Trespass wherein the offender does persist and remain obstinate , on which according to Christ's Rule , Excommunication should strick : Now sure it is , there are many Errors not contrary to fundamental Truths : such as many points of Arminianism , Antinomianism &c. which yet persisted in are Scandalous both to particular Christians and the Church ; and therefore according to Christs Rule , Excommunication should strick upon other Errors than those contrary to the fundamental Points of Religion , which is contrary to their assertion . Thirdly , Neither can we assent that Excommunication should strick on no other Errors but those contrary to the light of Nature , and that not only because of what is presently said , that Excommunication should strick against every scandalous Sin done against a Brother , or the Church wherein the offender does persist and remain obstinate ; but also according to that Rule whereby they maintain that Excommunication should strick on no other Error , but these that are contrary to the very Light of Nature ; it would follow that the publisher of these Errors following ( or the like against fundamental Truths ) should not be censured : to wit , That the Scriptures are not the word of God. That Jesus Christ was an Impostor , a Deceiver : That we are not justified by free Grace ; say according to that rule , such Hereticks should not be censured , no not Ecclesiastically ; because these Errors are not against Natures Light , but Scripture Light only ; for Natures Light teacheth not the Truths which are contrary to these Errors . This much for Church Tolleration , but , as said is , concerning this is not the present Contraversy . The main question then is , concerning State Tolleration . Concerning which some do affirm . That whatever the Church may do in Inflicting Church Censures on Hereticks , Maintainers of Heterodox Opinions : Yet , say they , no civil Punishment , such as Death , Imprisonment , Mulcts , or Fines , should be inflicted on any Error or Blasphem whatsoever ; providing the Maintainers of them carry themselves peaceably , do not trouble the State , or do evil against the Commonwealth in civil Things : We again on the contrary do hold , That it is the Duty of the Civil Magistrate to suppress Error , Heresie , and every sin against the First Table , as well as it is his Duty to suppress Adultery , Fornication , Sedition , and other sins against the second Table : And that he is not only bound to suppress Errors and Blasphemies , that are contrary to fundamental Truths , or the Light of Nature ; but all Error contrary to other points of Truth . Now for clearing the State of this Question , and freeing it from some odious Imputations that may be cast upon it : Before we come to Arguments we shall lay down these Assertions : First , We do not say that the Magistrate is bound to punish Hereticks at the first step ; Pains should first be taken to inform them , the Judgement of the Church is Antecedent , and their Labour is to convince Gainsayers : So this must go before the Magistrates Duty , they must be found Obstinate before the Magistrate medle with them , or punish them Civilly ; Especially if their Errors be not horrid Blasphemies against God and Natures Light , in such the Magistrate is not bound to give so much Forbearance . Secondly , We do not say that all Errors and Heresies are to get alike punishment ; but according to the degrees of the guilt that is in them , even as it is in sins committed against the Second Table : Murder is a more hainous Fault than Fornication , and therefore the Magistrate is bound to punish it more highly . Even so is it in Sins done against the First Table ; Blasphemies done against God , or a denying of the true God , is a higher Sin than Worshiping of the true God after a false manner ; and therefore the Magistrate is bound to punish it more severely . Thirdly , As we do not say , that every Error and Heresie is to receive the like punishment ; so neither do we say that every one that maintains the same Error is to be alike punished , for there are some that are Seducers , or Drawers on of others to Error , Disturbers of the Peace of the Church , Ring-leaders ; there are others again that are only seduced and drawn away to Error ; and these last , although they should not be Tollerate , yet the power of the Magistrate is to be exercised more sparingly towards them . So Secondly , There are some rooted in Error , confirmed in it , who will not hear Instruction : There are others that are but weak , and are seeking Light , whose way evidenceth them to be Conscientious , only for the time they are Ignorant , and in Humility seeking after Light ; and these last , the Magistrate , as all other Christians , is to bear much with , according to Rom. 15. 1. We then that are strong , ought to bear the Infirmities of the weak , &c. Now this being said to clear the question , we come to Arguments to make out this Truth , to wit , That the Magistrate is bound to suppress and punish Error , Heresie , and other sins against the First Table , as well as he is bound to punish Adultery , Theft , and other sins against the Second Table . The First Argument we bring is , from the approven practice of Kings and Magistrates under the Old Testament , from which we form an Argument thus : If it was the approven practice of Kings and and Magistrates under the Old Testament to suppress Error , Heresie and Blasphemy , then Magistrates under the New Testament are bound to do the like : But , so it is that it was the approven practice of Kings and Magistrates under the Old Testament to suppress Error , Heresie and Blasphemy and other sins against the first Table : Therefore , Magistrates under the New Testament are bound to do the like : For confirming of this Argument there are two things to be made out : First , That it was the practice of the Magistrate under the Old Testament to suppress Error and Heresie . Secondly , As it was their practice , so their practice herein is approven of God , otherwise it were not binding unto others ; for Kings and Magistrates did several things wherein they were not approven , and so not binding unto us now : The first thing then we are to clear is , that this was the practice of Magistrates under the Old Testament : And we shall begin First with Abraham's practice , Genes . 18. 19. For I know him , that he will command his Children , and his Houshold after him , and they shall keep the way of the Lord , to do Iustice and Iudgement , &c. Secondly , with Jacob who was a Magistrate in his own Family : And we shall see him employing his Power to suppress false Religion . In the 35 of Gen. vers . 2. Then Jacob said unto his Houshold , and to all that were with him , put away the strange Gods that are among you , and be clean , and change your Garments . And in the 4 verse , And they gave unto Jacob all the strange Gods which were in their Hands , and all their Ear-rings which were in their Ears , and Jacob hid them under the Oak which was by Scechem . The Third practice which we shall observe , is that of Asa in the 2 Chron. 14. vers . 2. And Asa did that which was good and Right in the Eyes of the Lord his God. verse 3. For he took away the Altars of the strange Gods , and the high places , and broke down the Images , and cut down the Groves . Verse 4. And commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their Fathers , and to do the Law and the Commandment . And in the 5 Verse Also he took away out of the Cities of Judah , the High-places and the Images , &c. And we shall find it in chap. 15. vers . 12 , 13. And they entred into a Covenant to seek the Lord God , &c. That whosoever would not seek the Lord God of Israel , should be put to death , whether small or great , whether man or woman . And in the 16. v. he employes his power in this point against his own Mother Maachah . And also concerning Maachah the Mother of Asa the King , he removed her from being Queen , because she had made an Idol , in a Grove : and Asa cut down her Idol , and stamped it , and burnt it at the brook Kidron . The Fourth practice shall be of King Manasseth . 2 Chron : 33 , 15. ( ye would mark such places for ye may have need of them ) And he took away the strange Gods , and the Idol out of the house of the Lord , and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord , and in Jerusalem , and cast them out of the City . v. 16 — And commanded Judah to serve the Lord God of Israel . The last practice that we shall name is , that of Josiah 2 Chron : 34. v. 31 , 32 , 33. And the King stood in his place , and made a Covenant before the Lord , to walk after the Lord. &c. And he caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamen , to stand to it . &c. And Josiah took away all the Abominations out of all the countries , that pertained to the Children of Israel , and made all that were present in Israel to serve , even to serve the Lord their God ; Let this suffice to make out the first point , That such were the practices of Kings and Magistrates under the Old Testament . The Second thing to be cleared is , That as these were their practices ; so they were approven practices : And this is clear ; First from Gods approbation given to them in that place before cited , 2 Chron. 14. 23. Asa gets a Testimony , That He did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. And wherefore ? For he took away the Altars of the strange Gods , and the high Places , and broke down the Images , &c. And Secondly , We find that Jehu , although he was Hypocritical , was rewarded of God , for suppressing of False Worship : In 2 Kings 10. 30. And the Lord said unto Jehu , because thou hast done well in executing that which is right in mine eyes , and hast done unto the House of Ahab , according to all that was in mine heart , thy Children of the fourth Generation , shall sit on the throne of Israel . We might bring several other evidences , that these their practices were approven of God , but what is already said may suffice . The patrons of Tolleration bring several exceptions to weaken the strengh of this Argument , which we shall propone in as full strength as they come to our hand ; and take them off : And the First exception is this , say they , The practice of Judah and Israel under the Old Testament cannot be binding to Magistrats under the New , because they were Typical Kings , and the actions they did were Typical of somewhat to be done by Christ , and so not binding to us . To this we reply . First , That however this our hold concerning the practices of the Kings of Judah and Israel after they entered Canaan who were Typical Kings ( as they say ) of this Typical Land , that they could not be binding to Magistrats now ; yet we find it was the practice of Jacob before the the Kingdom of Israel was erected , and so what he did was not done by him as a Type of Christ , but a moral duty ; and he was approven in it ; we find also when heathen Kings came to the Knowledge of God , they employed their power this way and were approven in so doing ; and surely they will not call Heathen Kings Types of Christ : We shall give one instance of this in the seventh chap : of Ezra v. 26. There a decree comes out from Atraxerxes a heathen King. Whosoever will not do the Law of thy God , and the Law of the King , let Judgment be executed speedily upon him , whither it be unto Death , or to Banishment or to confiscation of Goods , &c. Now lest it should be said this was a rash Act , and so not binding : therefore there is something in the Text equivalent to God's Approbation of it ; to wit , Ezra's Blessing the Lord that he had made such an Act Verse 27. But we give a Second Answer , to the Objection : Although it were granted that all the King 's of Israel were Types of Christ , as we do not grant it in all , especially in those who were wicked and Godless men , it does not follow that what they did in punishing false Doctrine , they Acted therein as Types of Christ : And if so , then it does not follow , that it is not binding now ; except they will say that whatever was done by any who were Types of Christ in no wayes binding unto others ; and if so they may as well argue , that what Magistrates under the Old Testament did in punishing sins against the second Table , such as Adultery , Murder , were done by them as they were Types of Christ ; and so not binding to Magistrates now : Yea , upon the same ground they may infer that Davids Prayers and Tears for sin were no copy for us to follow ; why these were Acts of one who was a Type of Christ. Yea by the same Reason , they may reject the whole Scripture of the Old Testament , as not binding unto us , because forsooth , it was written by the Prophets , and such as were Types of Christ , and so not binding to us . Thus we see what absurdity the giving way to such an exception will draw unto , and therefore it is to be rejected . But their Second Exception seems more plausible and it is this , say they , The practice of the Kings of Israel doth not argue up fully to that which we do hold , because their practice did not strike on every Error against Truth , but only Idolatry ; and not all Idolaters , but those that made Apostacy and served false Gods ; and not all of those , but these only that seduced and drew away others to serve the false God. Now it does not follow from their punishing of Idolaters , who worshiped a false God ; that therefore Magistrates are bound to punish Hereticks worshipping the true God though in a false way , This is the strength of their exception ; to which we reply . First , That though it were true which they say that the practice of the Kings of Israel did extend but to Idolaters , and those that seduced and drew away others to serve false Gods , yet it does not follow but it may be binding to Magistrates now to punish Hereticks worshipping a true God in a false way , and that because of this rule necessarly to be admitted in expounding of Scripture , that when the command of God does strick against any one sin most usual in the time , by rule of proportion , it stricks against all sins of that kind , As in the second Command there is nothing expresly forbidden but the Worshipping of God by graven Images ; and that because the worshipping of God by Images was the sin most in use at that time ; yet under graven is forbidden all wayes of worshipping of God invented by men ; and so although it were true that the practice of Godly Kings did strick but against Idolatry , yet by rule of proportion all sins of that kind should be suppressed : To which add , that when the high degree of any sins by divine Law is to be punished by death , common equity will infer , that lesser degrees of sin are to be punished by a lesser punishment at least . Secondly , to what they say , that the Magistrate did only punish Idolatry under the Old Testament . We Answer that it is false , they did punish other Errors also , and such as would be thought light of now ; and this we shall instance in several particulars . First , They punished will worship in serving the true God , and this we see by comparing two places of Scripture : The first is the 2 Kings 23 , 8 , 9. Speaking of Josiah , And he brought all the Priests out of the Cities of Judah , and defiled the high places , where the Priests had burnt incense : So he employes his Power against the high places , for the removal of their way of worship . The other place of Scripture to be compared with , is the 2 Chrov : 33. 17. ( Which tells us the nature of their high places ) Nevertheless , the People did sacrifice still in the high places , yet unto the Lord their God only . So that this worshipping on the high places , was not that kind of Idolatry whereby a false God was worshipped ; but a way of their own , whereby they worshipped the true God , and yet Josiah suppresseth even this kind of false worship . Secondly , we find that Magistrates did employ their power for suppressing of the breakers of the Sabbath day , and and punishing those that Married strange wives , which yet were not Idolaters and Apostats from the true God ; a noble example whereof is in Nehemiah 13. from verse 15 , to 21. There is a large History what pains he took to reform the People to keep the Sabbath day , therefore in the 21. v. Then I testified against them , and said unto them , why lodged ye about the wall ? If ye do so again I will lay hands on you . He threatens to employ the Civil power for suppressing of that Error , and this is not Idolatry . And Secondly , we find that the Magistrates employed their power generally , for suppressing any Error that was contrary to any Article of the Covenant : So where we read in the 2 Chron : 34. 31 , 32. And the King stood in his place , and made a covenant before the Lord — &c. And he caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamin to stand to it . And the heads of the Covenant are not only against those who were Seducers , but also against those that were seduced : So we find it in Exodus 32 , v. 20. In that Idolatry of worshipping the Golden Calf , when Moses came down from the mount in his zeal to the Glory of God , he not only punished Aaron , but also the People : and more than this , he Armes the Levits , as the avengers of God's Justice , and proclaims that every man should avenge the Lord upon his very Brother : Thus we have made out in the first Argument taken from the practice of the Kings of Israel and Judah , and have vindicated it by Scripture from their exceptions brought against it . The Second Argument shall yet be grounded on the Old Testament , and it is taken from the many commands and precepts , that are given in Scripture to Godly Kings and Magistrates and others to punish Blasphemers , False Prophets and Idolaters , Hereticks , Sabbath Breakers , and Seducers , from whence we form this Argument : That whatever was commanded to be done by Magistrates under the Old Testament as a part of their duty , this Magistrates under the New Testament are oblidged to as a part of their duty also : But Magistrates were commanded under the Old Testament to suppress Idolatry , Blasphemy , and Heresy and that they were to do as a part of their duty as Magistrates : And therefore it is a duty lying on Magistrates under the New. The thing we have to prove is , that this was a command given to Magistrates under the Old Testament and that as a part of their duty as Magistrates . And for this look over these places of Scripture Exod. 22. 20. He that sacrificeth unto any God , save unto the Lord only , he shall be utterly destroyed . There is a command given to the Magistrates . And so in Levit . 24 , 15. And thou shalt speak unto the Children of Israel , saying , Whosoever curseth his God , shall bear his sin . v. 16. And he that Blasphemeth the name of the Lord , he shall surely be put to death . So in the 13. of Deut : 1. If there arise among you a Prophet , or dreamer of dreams , and giveth thee a sign or a wonder . &c. Through the whole Chapter there are Commands given to the Magistrate to punish false worship . We shall only add another , and that is taken from the fourth Command , where a charge is laid on the Magistrate as well as the Master of a Family to make use of his power for keeping of the Sabbath , and to see to the keeping of it by others also . Thou shalt do no manner of work , thou , nor they son , nor they daughter — This Command is given to the Magistrate as well as to the Master of the Family , as appears from those things . First , By vertue of this Command Nehemiah the Magistrate of God's People , did make use of his power to punish Sabbath Breakers in that place we cited in Nehemiah 13. 21. Secondly , It appears from this that the Gates spoken of their , Nor any thing that is within thy Gates , is a term which aggreeth not to a single Family , but a whole City , even to the circuit of a whole Kingdom : of the word [ Gates ] is taken in Scripture Gene● : 22. 17 — and thy seed shall possess the Gate of his enemies : It followeth as in that respect , therefore he speaks to the Magistrate , no Master of a Family having such large power . And Thirdly , The power there spoken of , is to be extended to Strangers : now the chief care of Stangers did belong to the Magistrate , and not to the Master of a Family , therefore Nehemiah the Magistrate extends this power of his to the Strangers that came to buy and sell on the Sabbath day , Nehem : 13 , 20 The Adversary brings several exceptions against this Argument which we shall propone and take off . The First Exception is , say they , Those were Judicial Laws , and so now are expired with their Common-wealth : Answer , This is a common refuge to Sectaries where any practice is brought from the Old Testament against them , presently they cast at it upon this account as not binding to us under the New : Therefore we shall speak so much the more unto this point : By a judicial Law is meaned a Civil Law , so the force of their Argument is this : The Civil Law of one Kingdom is not binding to another , but these were Civil Lawes belonging to that Kingdom ; Therefore , they are not binding to us . To this we Answer , First , That they cannot say this of all the Laws instanced , particularly of that Law of the fourth Command : It is a Moral Law binding to all , Secondly , we Answer , the rest of these Laws are Moral and binding to all Magistrates , yea and that for these Reasons : Because First , Abraham , and Jacob , and other Magistrates that were among the Jews did practice these Laws even before the Judicial Law was given out by Moses ; and so they behooved to be Moral . Yea Heathen Kings that were not under the Judicial Law of Moses , as not being Members of their Commonwealth , when they came to the knowledge of God , they made use of their Power to suppress Idolatry , which certainly was through vertue of the Moral Law , commanding them so to do : Not the Judicial Law , that they were not under . A Third Answer we give , that though what is said were true . viz. That these Laws were Judicial : Yet it does not follow that they are not now binding to Magistrates . To understand this , there were two things in their Judicial Laws , as in our Civil Laws . Yet , there was somewhat that concerned the Kingdom in particular as that Law , that Servants should be freed from their service at the seven years end . And the Law of inheritance to be keept within the Tribe , and this part of the Law did fall with their Common-wealth . But their was another thing in their Judicial Laws , and that is somewhat of Common Equity belonging unto all , such as Laws for punishing sins done against the Moral Law ; and in this far the Judicial Law is binding to us : because there is not a syllable in the New Testament for abrogating of it , and so must bind , being given by God. And Jesus Christ and his Apostles Reason from this Judicial Law ; as in 1 Corinth : 9. 9. It is written in the Law of Moses , Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the Ox that treade thout the corn : And in several other places : so is it in the Civil Laws in other Kingdoms : as for example , That Witches should be punished by death , and burnt to Ashes , is a Civil Law in Scotland : Now there is somewhat there of Common Equity , to wit , that they should be punished by death ; but the particular way of putting them to death , to wit , whither by strangling drowning &c. or the burning of their Bodies to Ashes , is not of Common Equity : Other Kingdoms may use another way of Execution , as pleaseth them best . There is a Second Exception they bring against this Argument , say they : If their Laws were binding to us , then they would be binding according to all their circumstances : and if so , then all persons , whole Cities , yea beasts behoved to be stoned to death : For so is the Command Deutro : 13. Now say they , what Massacring would this be . To take off this exception , we Answer : There are two things in a Law , there is first , The substance of the Law , Secondly , The Circumstances of it : Now a Law may hold according to the main substance , and yet not according to these circumstances : We shall clear it in an Example , The Law of Hospitality binds all nations as to the substance of the things commanded by it , but there were some circumstances joyned with this Law , according to the nature of the people to whom it was given ; such as the washing of feet , and kisses of Charity ; and according to these it is not binding ; And so that command , That false worship should be punished , is substantial and binding unto all ; but that it should so be punished as to put Children , Women , Beasts , young and old to death , was suited according unto the temper of that People unto whom it was given , being so naturally prone to Idolatry , and therefore were by more fearful punishments to be scarred from it , and so in that respect is not binding unto others . We may add where this Law is repeated , as Exod : 22. 18. Deutr : 17. 2. 5. and Cap : 18. 20. It is only repeated in the substance of it , and the way and manner is not mentioned . Secondly , we find that Jacob and other Magistrates who were before the Law did not Execute it according to thir Circumstances ; Yea and the Jewish Magistrates as Moses and Josiah Ezod : 31. and 2 King 23 , Did not tye themselves precisely to Execute the Law according to all these Circumstances ; And so it remaines that though these Circumstances do not bind the Magistrate yet the Law according to its substance is yet binding . There is a Third Exception they bring , say they , the Magistrate under the Old Testament had an infallible Rule whereby he might know what was Heresy and what not , to wit his consulting the Lord by Vrim and Thummim . But the Magistrates under the New Testament have not this infallible Rule , and so it does not follow from the duty of Magistrates under the Old Testament , that the same should be done by the Magistrates under the New. To which we Answer , This exception suppones First , That Magistrates under the New Testament may punish those whom they know certainly to be Hereticks , and surely there are sundry Hereticks of this kind , which he may know as well as if he had consulted with Vrim and Thummim . Secondly , this exception of theirs doth suppone , that the Magistrate under the New Testament hath no way left him how to come to know infallibly what is Heresy , what not , which is false ; he hath the word of God , his Spirit speaking by it , which is more infallible than that of the Priests getting their Answer from Vrim and Tummim : For it might be doubted whither the Priest had taken up the Answer right or not ; or if he was Faithful in giving it , according as he had received it . Yea Peter sayes the word is more sure than any voice from Heaven , 2 Peter 1. Thirdly , This exception does suppone that the Magistrate under the Old Testament took this course of consulting with Vrim and Thummim , for knowing who was Hereticks , Idolaters , and who not : But this is false ▪ it was only the written Word which they consulted with , for knowing what was Heresy , what not Is● : 8. 20. To the Law , and to the Testimony , &c. And for the application of the rule to persons , that they might know who were the Hereticks , we never read that they consulted Vrim and Thummim , but used a judicial Process against the person challenged , and proved the Fact by Witnesses : So Deut. 17. 4. There must be a scandal of Idolatry upon the man challenged , And if it be told thee , and thou hast heard of it , and enquired diligently , &c. And it must be proved on him by Witnesses , verse 6. As the mouth of two Witnesses , or three Witnesses , shall he that is worthy of Death , he put to death . They except Fourthly , That in the Infancy and Nonage of the Church God Typed out things Spiritual by things Earthly , and so those Punishments were Types of Spiritual Censures , Excommunication and Hell , and therefore are not now to be put in practice : We answer First , Excommunication and Damnation were things present to the Jewish Church , and so they had no Types of them . Secondly , This is to turn Scripture to Allegories , and by this same reason we may cast at punishments of Sins against the Second Table , as being Types of Spiritual Censures , Hell and Damnation , and there is as much ground for affirming the one as the other . This much for Arguments from the Old Testament . We shall next hint at some Arguments from the New Testament . First , If so be that it were unusual for Magistrates to meddle with men in matters of Religion , then certainly Jesus Christ and his Apostles should have used this legal Defence , when the Magistrate called them before him to answer about their Doctrine , They would have said , ye have no place to challenge us for our profession , for matters of Opinion are free ; but we do not hear that they declined the Judge , or used any such Defence , for sure Christ and his Apostles would have left no lawful mean unessayed . There is a second Argument taken from Rom. 13. 4. Where speaking of the Civil Magistrate the Apostle sayeth , For he is the Minister of God to thee far good , but if thou do that which is evil be afraid , There is set down the object of the Magistrates Power and the extent of it , and it is set down indefinitly , upon him that doth evil . And therefore if Hereticks , Maintainers of falle Worship , be doers of evil , they fall under the Magistrates Power . Now that spreaders of Heresie are doers of evil , we did prove in the second Doctrine raised from this Verse , where we shew that Heresy and Error was as much to be eschewed , as Adultery and other Sins against the Second Table ; and the Magistrate as Magistrate should put forth his zeal against them as much ; and all the places commanding zeal against Error ( which are not few ) in the New Testament proves this , for they bind every one according to his place ; the Minister according to his place , and the Magistrate according to his . There is one Exception they make much of against this Argument , and it is this ; say they , By doers of evil , cannot be meaned these that are taken with Error and Heresy , and other Sins against the First Table : And that because the evil that is here spoken of , is the evil that is mentioned in the beginning of the Verse , But if thou do that which is evil be afraid , It is an evil , say they , that any that were guilty of it had need to be afraid of the Magistrate because of it , and so it is not meaned the evil of Error and Heresy against Christian Truths : For the Magistrate here spoken of , is the Roman Emperor and Senate , who themselves were Enemies to Christian Religion , and so none needed to be afraid of them for spreading Errors , but rather for mantaining Truths ; and therefore the doers of evil here meaned , must be the controveeners of the Emperors Civil Laws , and not Hereticks and such like . For Answer , This exception is grounded on a wrong supposition ; for by the Magistrate is here meaned , not only the Roman Magistrate , but all Magistrates in general doing their Duty as they ought . Paul indeed takes occasion from the Roman Magistrate to speak here what is the Duty of all Magistrates ; and it is clear from several Circumstances of the Text : We shall mark one of them from the first words of the Text , For he is the Minister of God to thee , Now sure it is , this must be meaned of Magistrates in general , and not astricted only to the Roman Magistrate ; he not being the Minister of God unto every one who was to make use of this Scripture . There is another Circumstance of the Text , proving this in the 3 V●rse , For Rulers are not a Terror to good Works . Now sure this must be expounded of the Office of Magistracy in general , and of that which Magistrates should be , and not of the Roman Magistrate , who then was well known to be a Terror unto many good Works , not only unto Christian , but also unto Moral Vertues . We shall give you only another Argument shortly taken from that Prophecy , Revel : 17. 16. A Prophecy t●at the Civil Magistrate shall bring down the Antichrist , and that Error of the Roman Religion , as a most acceptable work to God : And so the Magistrates Hand is not bound up from punishing Error and Heresy against the First Table , no more than from punishing other Sins done against the Second Table . And this much for our Arguments brought in defence of the Truth . In the Third place , we promised to bring forth some of their Arguments and solve them ; Herein we need not spend much time for this being Truth , there can be nothing said against it , which is Truth : Yet there being some nimble Spirits to propone Arguments which every one cannot answer ; we shall stay a little on this Third point also . The First thing they object is this : If so be that it were the Magistrates Duty to punish Error and Heresy then Jesus Christ would have reproved the Jews for Tollerating the Pharisees and Saduces : But so it is he never reproves the Jews for so doing : Nothing of that kind is recorded by any of the Evangelists . To this we Answer , First , That it does not follow that Christ did not reprove the Jews , because it is not written : For John sayes Chap. 20. 30. He did speak many things which are not written ; so it follows not . But Secondly , we say , although it be granted that Christ did not reprove them , yet it follows not that their neglect was not a Sin. For First , by that reason we might say that the Mgistrate should not punish Theft , because Christ speaks nothing of the punishment of it in the New Testament : Neither , Secondly , reproveth he the Church for not Censuring them , and yet it followeth not but that they ought to be Censured that way . And Thirdly , God had revealed his Will before . And Fourthly , It would have been for no purpose to have stired up the Magistrate to this Duty then , for the Sectarie● themselves had the Power that was of it . And Lastly , the Jews at this time had not the Power of Civil Punishment in their Hands , but the Romans , and so it was not in their Power to punish . There is a Second Objection which they bring from the Apostle Paul's words in the Epistle to the Philipp : 3. 15. where speaking of Differences among Christians , he sayes , Let us therefore as many as be perfect , ●e thus minded : and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded , God shall reveal even this unto you . Say they , we see what was Paul's Judgement , That notwithstanding of Differences , there should be Heart Waling or Uniting ; and therefore the Magistrate should not be stired up to Censure those who Err. To this we Answer , Paul speaks nothing there of State Toll●ration ; for then the Civil Powers were not for Christ , but of Church Toll●ration in respect of that meekness and tenderness which Christs Servants should have in inflicting of Church Censures , for fear of breaking Love : Secondly , He commandeth not all Errors to be thus Tollerated ; for so he should contradict himself in another place , where he sayes , An Heretick after the first and second admonition reject . And Thirdly , Paul limits that Tolleration that he would have here ; and that in two things . First , As to the time , how long , God shall reveal even this unto you . And Secondly , He supposes the persons differing from them should walk with them in things wherein they differ not , according to the same rule , and so make no separation . Now it does not follow that those who remained Obstinate in their Error should be still Tollerated , and that the Censure of the Church should not strick on them at all ; chiefly if it be such an Error as causes Rents and Schisms , for he sayes , Take heed to those that cause Divisions and Offences , and avoid them , Rom. 16. 17. Their Third Objection is , That this is contrary to the way the Apostles took with those that Erred , their way was to watch against them that Erred , Acts 20. 29. For I know this , that after my departing shall grievous Wolves enter in among you , not sparing the Flock . Verse 31. Therefore watch — That which the Apostle commands is , to watch against them . And in Rom. 16. 17. Now I beseech you , Brethren , mark them which cause Divisions and Offences — and avoid them . And in the 2 Timoth : 2. 24. it is said , And the Servant of the Lord must not strive ; but be gentle unto all men , apt to teach , patient . Now , say they , this is a far other way than to stir up the Civil Magistrate against those who differ from us , This Savors not of the meek Spirit of Christ. I answer , It is the Duty of Ministers to watch against Error , and that is one mean for suppressing of Error and Heresy ; but one mean destroyes not another : it does not follow that this which is in controversy is not another mean also , neither is it contrary to that meekness commanded to wait on them , more than to deliver to Satan , or to Curse , and Excommunicate Apostates , with that great Curse called , Anathema Maranatha , 1 Cor. 16. 22. They may as well say , It is contrary to Christs meek Spirit to establish the Sword in the Hands of the Christian Magistrate , according to Rom : 13. 4. For punishing Sins against the Second Table , and so under this pretence , Adulteters , Murderers , Seducers , Thieves , and all should go free unpunished . But they do far mistake the Meekness of Jesus Christ , Christs Meekness is not to let people live in their Sin , to let vile Hereticks trample on Truth , destroying Souls : And in the mean time binding up the Hand of the Magistrate , that he dare not hinder it ; this were a disrespect to Truth , and cruelty to poor Souls in danger to be carried away ; which our Lord was very tender of . There is a Fourth Objection from Matth. 13. 24. Taken from the Parable of the Tares ; where the Kingdom of Heaven is compared to a man that sowed Wheat , and the wicked one comes and sowes his Tares among it , and both is bidden let grow till the Harvest . Now , say they , by these Tares is meaned Hereticks ; therefore they should not be plucked up by the Sword of the Civil Magistrate . We Answer , If they astrict the Word Tares to Hereticks , in this sense , That the Sword of the Civil Magistrate should not be used against them ; by the same reason they may say , that they should not be disputed against , for that is a plucking up of them also . Secondly , We answer , That by the Tares that are commanded here to be suffered let grow up to the Harvest , is no more meaned Hereticks than other Scandalous Livers : And this we shall make out from Christs exponding the Parable , Verse 41 — And they shall gather out of his Kingdom all things that offend ▪ Now Hereticks are not all things that offend , other scandalous Livers offend also . Thirdly , By the Tares is meaned , Them that do Iniquity , vers . 41. Now others besides Hereticks are such . And Fourthly , If by the Tares were here meaned Hereticks , then by the [ Wheat ] are meaned only the Orthodox , and so every man that is Orthodox should — Shine forth as the Sun in the Kingdom of Heaven , vers . 43 But there are many who are Orthodox ▪ who yet are evil Livers , and so will never go to Heaven . And therefore by the [ Wheat ] must only be meaned the truly Regenerate ; and so by the [ Tares ▪ ] must not only be meaned Hereticks , but all other Evil-doers . And further , By this it would follow that Hereticks should not be Excommunicate , for that is a rooting out . But what can be meaned by the Tares then : for whatever be meaned by them , it will follow that by this Parable Verse 30 ▪ they should be tollerated ; and to say that all vile scandalous Persons should be tollerated , is more absurd than that only Hereticks should be tollerated . Answer , If we narrowly observe Christs exposition of the Parable , we will find that part where he bids , Let both grow together until the Harvest , is not exponed , although he expone the rest , which doubtless he would not have omitted , if it had been his mind that we should have built any Doctrine of this kind on it ; therefore we say this is not Christs meaning , that he would have all men ( how Godless and Scandalous soever ) let alone ; for that were contrary to other places of Scripture : But that Christ is to show that when all pains are taken by Christs Officers for purging the Church , yet there will be alwayes some Hypocrites in it , and it is Christs mind , though he hath given order to Censure scandalous Offenders , yet that his Servants should not press after such a separation of the precious from the vile , as to have all the Weeds and wicked in heart to be cast out ; lest when they gather out the Graceless Tares , they should root out also the Gracious [ Wheat ] with them . Object . 5. There is a Fifth Objection from Luk : 9. 54 : Where Christ reproves James and John for seeking fire to come down from Heaven to consume the Samaritans ; and from this they argue : That when People refuse Christ in his Person , much less when they oppose him in his Doctrine , it is not his mind that they should be punished , but admonished and waited on : But before we Answer they must prove the Quarrel was for Religion . Now this cannot be made out for the Reason why James would have ●ire coming down from Heaven , was , because of an Act of Inhumanity in denying lodging to Christ ; and that because of the great envy and hatred betwixt these two people the Jews and Samaritans . The Second Answer we give is , although the Quarrel had been for Religion , yet it makes not against this Doctrine ; because they were wholly Idolaters , utterly ignorant of the Gospel ; and our Doctrine is not that when a Nation is lying in Idolatry , that the first thing that should be done is the Magistrates sword to slay them , or to seek fire from Heaven to consume them : We say it is utterly unlawful to goe with fire and sword to force the Indians to embrace the Christian Faith ; only they should be taught , instructed and restrained from spreading Blasphemies , reproaching the Son of God &c. Our Question is whether or not a People that are Members of the visible Church , that have bound themselves by Covenant to adhere to the Christian Truths , whether or not when they fall away from Truth to damnable Error , the Magistrate may make them stand to their Covenant , as Josiah did 2 Chron : 34. 31. And he caused all that were present , to stand to it . Object . 6. The Sixth Objection is this ; say they , If Magistrates may punish Error and Heresy , then he may force the Conscience ; for what they hold , is as they profess , according to the light of their Conscience : Now to force the Conscience is a fearful sin , who dare meddle with Conscience but the God of Conscience . Answer : This Argument seems plausible ; but for Answer to it we say , Conscience cannot be forced properly , Only we say that the Magistrate may punish for , or restrain sin in such outward motions as come from an evil informed Conscience , and if this be a sinful forcing of the Conscience then it were a sin to punish those who from Conscience killed the Apostles John 16 , 2. — the time cometh , that whosoever Killeth you , will think that he doeth God Service . Yet we hope none will say the punishment of such would be a sinful forcing of the Conscience ; so it were a sinful thing to punish those who made their Children to pass through the fire unto Molech , under the name of Conscience● These and many other absurdities would follow on this Tenet of theirs , that none ought to be punished for any thing they do following the indytments of a deluded Conscience . What have there not been , and yet are , Hereticks who pretend Conscience for the vilest villanies of the World ? The Jesuits pretend Conscience for stobbing Kings and Magistrates . The G●ost●cks to have Wives common . And ancient Hereticks hath made it a point of Conscience to practice Adultery , and some present Hereticks to Marry their Sisters , so that the ●igher in Blood the Persons Married are , the Marriage is to them the more spiritual , and a number of such like villanies . Now will any think it a sinful forcing of Conscience to punish such , whatever they tatle of Conscience . But Secondly , To what they say , for the Magistrate to punish men for Error , is a persecuting of men for Conscience . To this we Answer : Then it should follow that God commanded sin to the Godly Magistrates under the Old Testament , for it is clear they had a command to punish men for Idolatry . Thirdly , if this be a persecuting of Conscience then it is a persecuting of Conscience to Preach against Error , to refute it by good Reason . To make this Consequence clear , know as there is a Persecution with the hand , so with the Tongue , and it is the bitterest Persecution that is , called job 5. 21 ▪ The scourge of the Tongue . And the mocking of Christ was one of the fearfullest Persecutions he met with he trusted in God &c. And so according to this Doctrine it were unlawful to Preach against them &c. Why ? For it is a sin to persecute them for Concience . But Fourthly , our Answer is ; It is not the hurt inferred that makes sinful Persecution , but it is the cause for which the punishment is inflicted . There is a Seventh Objection they bring against this Truth , and it is this , say they , If Magistrates were bound to punish Error and Heresy , it would lay a tye on Magistrate ; to know what is Truth , and what is Error ; Now , say they , there are many intricate Questions about the nature of Error and Truth , which the Generality of Magistrates are ignorant of , and therefore say they according to this Doctrine , we put power in the hand of the Magistrate whereby he may punish those that profess the Truth , if the Magistrate mistake , and take Truth for Error . A dangerous Doctrine , If Magistrates turn ignorant or corrupt . This seemeth plausible : But we shall Answer to it . If this Argument hold strong then it would follow that the Civil Magistrate hath no power to punish sins against the second Table ; for there are a number of difficult Questions even about these , as in some cases of Murther , Incest , matters of false Witness : And the Lord sayeth Deut. 17. 8. If there arise a matter too hard for thee in Judgement , between blood and blood , between plea and plea , and between stroke and stroke , &c. Which suppones there are many doubtful questions even about things Civil which the generality are ignorant of : and so it may fall out they may punish the honest man for the knave ; and yet this doth not evert the ordinance of Magistracy , neither doth it follow that he hath no power to punish for Civil crimes ▪ Secondly , they may argue as well against what is commanded to Masters of Families , That he receive not an Heretick within his house 2 John v. 10. and 2 Timoth : 3 , 6. For of this sort are they which creep into houses , &c. Rom : 16. 17 , 18. Now I beseech you Brethren mark them which cause divisions — and avoid them . &c. By all which he supposeth certainly they have some knowledge to judge who are Hereticks and who not ; else how could they elchew them ; and so they may argue as well against these commands , as against this Doctrine : For may they say , this is to put it on Masters of Families to know who are Hereticks , who not , to know what is Truth and what not , and this the generality of Masters of Families are ignorant of ; and so a power put on them to barr the door on honest men , in stead of an Heretick : Now when they free these Commands from these consequences we shall free this Doctrine from them also . Thirdly , Neither the word nor this Doctrine putteth a power on Magistrates to punish Truth , their power is only to punish Error : They may indeed so abuse their power , but it followeth not that therefore they have no power to punish Error : no more than because that a Godless Magistrate as Nero was , may abuse his power to oppress , Murther honest Citizens , and do other Acts of Injustice against the second Table ; that therefore the Magistrate hath no power to punish Theeves , Robbers , Murderers , because either through mistake or wickedness , he may abuse it to punish innocent Men ; whatever remedy is left for the Magistrates abusing of his power under the one , the same is left under the other , as insome cases suffering , in others resisting . There is an Eighth Objection they have against this Truth , say they , we make the mean unproportionate to the end , no outward force can convert a man and br●ng him to Christ , it makes men but Hypocrites , the blast of the Kings horn or outlawry can make no man a member of Christs body , that must be done willingly , not by compulsion , and this were to cudgell People out of their opinions . To this we Answer , That our Doctrine doth not hold forth that the power of the Magistrate is any mean to convert Souls : Only this it doth hold forth that the power of the Magistrate is a mean to restrain men from doing sinful Acts against Christ ; as Asa made use of his Civil Power to keep down Idolatry , it puts People indeed on the profession of outward Obedience , and to this it is very proportioned . And therefore Secondly , Though the blast of the Kings horn cannot make a Member of Christs invisible Body , by working Grace ; Yet it may be a mean in its own kind for making a Member of the Church visible , by with-holding from sinful Acts , and putting them on Acts of outward Obedience . A Third Answer we give , That the power of the Magistrate doth not make men Hypocrites of it self , but through the corruption of Man's heart , who makes himself an Hypocrite . The end of this ordinance , what it is in it self is set down in Deut : 13. 11. And all Israel shall hear , and fear , and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is , among you . That is the end , that they being moved by their Example , should abstain from such like worke : but that they do this Hypocritically , is from their corrupt nature , who fears him more who can kill the Body , than him who after he hath killed the Body can cast both Soul and Body into Hell. We Answer lastly if this were a good Argument why a Magistrate should not make use of his power to punish for false Doctrine because throw occasion thereof many turn Hypocrites : then say we , It should follow that the Magistrate should not make use of his power to punish Incests , Adulteries , Murders , Thefts &c. because it is the occasion of many Hypocrites , who abstain more from such , for the fear of punishment , than for the fear of God ; yea according to this Doctrine it should follow , That the Preaching of the word should be unlawful , because through the occasion of it many turn Hypocrites under it . There is a Ninth Objection they have against this Truth , and it is this , say they , By this power we give to the Magistrate to punish Error and Heresy , we give him the Power of Church Judicatories , to judge of Doctrines , Error and Heresy . In Answer to this we shall speak more fully in the 〈◊〉 Doctrine , only for the present this giving Power to the Magistrate to punish Error and Heresy , gives him not a publick Judgement to discern , what is Error , and what not , as a Judge in Church matters ; but only a Judgement of Discretion in relation to his own Act : As for Example , when the Lord gives Power to Masters of Families , not to let Hereticks come into their House , it is not a putting the Power of Church Judicatories in their Hands . IV. The last thing we promised to speak to you of , was to give you some use of this : And the First is , to reprove those who think Opinions are free , and that none ought to be punished for such , We grant as we said that there would be a difference amongst Errors , some more damnable , some less ; and so to be less punished : and there is a difference to be put amongst persons , some are seduced , some whose Conscience is Seared , some venting their Darkness , some seeking Light : In such there should be a difference observed . Again the Magistrate is to deal one way with a Community , another way with some persons , before it come to such an hight . And Lastly , He is to deal otherwise with Errors that cannot be mantained without troubling the Peace of the Church and State , and those that break not Love , nor strike not at any material point of Truth ; the last happily may be Tollerate , if the Maintaine●s of them do not evidence contempt : But not so the first . These and such like Distinctions may be to qualify this Power ; but to deny it altogether , is the most damnable Doctrine that ever was vented , the Devil cannot take a shorter course to undoe Religion , and there can be no heart zealous for God but he must loath it ; and therefore look so on it : Think not , what is that to you what others do , if ye get leave to serve God your self : Is that all your zeal for God , that if ye get leave to serve him , ye care not that all beside you Spit on his Face , and serve the Devil . Vse 2. Hence see what an Account those Magistrates have to make , who make no use of their Power this way for God , if they get their own Houses built , cares not for his , if Rebellion against themselves be curbed , cares not for the curbing of Rebellion against God. This was the Sin of the Parliament of England , though they entred into a Covenant with the most high God , That they would suppress Error and Heresy , they never employed their Power that way ; and that because they durst not for angring of their Army , and therefore God hath suffered their Army to overturn them , and set themselves and whom they please in their place ; And now they by their practice give Tollerat●on to all ; and this is the way to strengthen them . I say in the Name of the Lord , if they repent not , it shall be the way to ruine them , A people Swearing in their low condition to root out Heresy , &c. And God blessing them from that day ; and within a few years carrying themselves as if they had Sworn to do the contrary , to suffer all , encourage all , invite all the Devils in Hell to vent what Blasphemies they please ; and for their encouragement to give them Surety that no Power in Brittain shall hinder them , Was there ever such an affront done to God ? Think ye that he will sit with it ? No , if he should make the one half avengers of a broken Covenant against the other , He will not . It is noted of Asa , 2 Chron. 14. 5. Gods way , to keep Magistrates sure , and their Kingdoms quiet , is to be zealous against false Worship : No , but ( say they the way is not to anger Hereticks , they are the surest Pillars of our Commonwealth , but woe to , and will be to , that Common-wealth that is builded on such Pillars . And if Scotland , or any party in it , joyn with them on these terms , our woe is but coming . He is a jealous God chiefly in the matter of his Service , as is clear from the Second Command . The Third use is , If this be an Ordinance of God to put Power in the Magistrates hand to punish Error , it should make you scar at Error and labour to be grounded in the Truth : For we see Error is a sin that God hates , and it is a sin that God will have the Magistrate to punish , and so a sin that he himself will punish if the Magistrate do neglect it . It is natural to men to think , If they can live a good Life , it is the less matter what be their Opinion ; but the Lord Judges not so ; for as he will have other sins punished by the Magistrate , so he will have these punished also . And such as he usually punisheth himself , by fearful Plagues , when the Magistrate neglecteth his Duty , in punishing other sins , so doth he in those . We might speak much from History of fearful Judgements sent immediatly by God upon Hereticks , but we shall here close . SECT : III. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE DOCTRINE OF Erastianism . Head I. That there is a Church Government held forth in Scripture . HAving thus show'n that the Doctrine of Tolleration is not of God , I proceed to Demonstrate this also in some other of the most Dangerous Errors of the Times ; We shall begin first with these Errors which are about the Government of the Church ; and that because the Government of the Church is the hedge of the Doctrine ; for if once the Government be brangled or shaken the wild Boar of the Wilderness cometh in easily and corrupteth the Doctrine : therefore it is that the Devils main design hath been against the Government of the Church to blast and storm this Wall on all Hands . The summe of what we have to say in this is , to make out these four points : First , That there is a Government appointed by Christ in his Church distinct from the Civil Government . Secondly , We shall show that this Government is not in the hands of the Civil Magistrate , but in the hands of Christs own officers , which he hath appointed for Governing his house , By inflicting of Church Censures , enacting of Church canons , so as they are not to act by derived power from the Magistrate , and Appeals are not to be made from them to the Magistrate . Thirdly , we shall endeavour to prove , That this power of Church Government is not in the hands of private Christians , or the community of the Faithful : but in the hand of Christs own Officers , Ministers and Elders . And Lastly , We shall endeavour to prove that this Authority and Government is not in the hand of particular Congregations or particular Elderships , Independently from other Judicatories above them : but that this power is given to them , so as they must be subject to Superior Judicatories . In which propositions we will meet with these Errors that are most dangerously opposite to Church Government at this time . The First two propositions are contrary to the Doctrine of Erastians , and the last two are contrary to the Doctrine of Independents ( as they are commonly designed ) First , we shall engage with Erastianism and our Scope in this shall be as in the former , to show that however it pretend to the Spirit , yet when it is brought to the tryal it will be found not to be of God. This Doctrine or Error hath its name from the prime Author of it called Erastus , a Doctor of Medicine who upon some discontent did first vent it : to wit , That Ministers should only meddle with Preaching ; but should have no power to meet in Church Judicatories , Sessions , Presbyteries , or such like , nor should they punish Scandalous sins with Church Censures , Such as Suspension or Excommunication ; But that all power whatsoever in a Nation , both in Church and State , should be in the hand of the Civil Magistrate . This Doctrine so soon as it was vented , did get , and does yet get many followers , chiefly among state Divines , and Christians that know more of wordly policy than Christian simplicity , so that in a short time if God prevent it not , it is like to swallow up all other Controversies about Church Government , so plausible and pleasing it is to the powers of the World , who cannot well endure to have Christ Reigning besides them . Psalm : 2. 3. Let us break their bands assunder , and cast away their cords from us . Both Sectaries and Malignants do aggree in this Error , to take the power of Discipline out of the Churches hand 's . The spiritual power of Church Censures in the hands of Christs officers , is an eye sore to both of them . But to come nearer to the point , There are two heads of this Erastian Doctrine which we shall labour to refute . The First , is most gross , whereby they affirm , That there is no particular Church Government set down in Scripture ; In a word , that there is no Government in the Church by divine right ; but that this Government is left in the hands of the Civil Magistrate , whether to erect any Government at all in the Church , or not : or if he please to erect one , That he may establish That Government which suits best the well-being of the Civil state : So that according to this Doctrine the Civil Magistrate may establish Episcopacy this year , the next year he may establish Presbytry , and the third year he may cast both and establish Independency ; And if he like , He may find out a Government different from any of these , and establish it . The Second Erastian Error is this , whereby they affirm whatever Government be in the Church ( whether grounded in Scripture or not ) that according to Scripture it is in the hands of the Civil Magistrate and that he is the chief fountain of Church Government . In opposition to the first Error we lay down this Conclusion , which ( God willing ) we shall make good , That Jesus Christ the King and head of his Church hath established a particular form of Church Government in his word , which to alter is not in the power of any State whatsoever . He hath set down a way for punishing Scandals , for inflicting Church Censures , Enacting Church canons ; And hath not left this in the Arbitriment of Kings or Parliaments to set down any Government they please . In prosecuting which point we shall follow that Method we keeped in refuting the Doctrine of Tolleration . We shall First clear the State of the Question . Secondly , We shall bring Arguments to confirm the Truth . Thirdly , We shall Answer these Arguments the Adversary brings against the Truth : And so we shall apply all to Use. I. And First , for clearing the State of the Question , take thir two assertions : First , we do not affirm that all the Circumstantials of Church Government is set down expresly in the word ; But only first , That all the substantial parts of Church Government have a warrand in the word and are therein so fixed and established , as they are unalterable by any State whatsoever . And Secondly , As to the Circumstantials that relate to this Government ; we say , they are set down under general Rules , sufficient for the ordering of them : such as , let all things be done in order and to edification . Our Second Assertion is , we are not to enter here to show , what is the particular kind of Government that is appointed in the word , and what things falls under the power of Church Governours , and in what relation they are to handle them , what are the nature of these Censures , and how in all these things they differ from the Civil power : It would take long time to clear these . The thing we aim at is only , this general : That Jesus Christ the King of his Church and Lord of his House hath set down in his word a particular way for Governing of his house distinct from the Civil , which is not in the power of any State to alter . We proceed now to Arguments for comfirming this Truth . II. The first Argument is this , If so be that under the Old Testament , there was a particular form of Church Government different from the Civil , set down in the word ; then there must be also the like set down under the New ; but ▪ so it is that there was a particular way set down under the Old Testament for Governing the Church : Therefore , there must be the like set down under the new . For making out this Argument , there are two things we have to clear . The First is , That there was such a Government as this under the Old Testament warranted by the word . The Second thing to be cleared , is , that therefore and upon the same Reason there must be also the like under the New. For proving of the First , that there was a particular Government of the Church different from the Gvernment of the state under the Old Testament , We shall clear two things . First , That they had Church Judicatories different from the Civil Judicatories ; And to prove this we shall cite two places of Scripture : The First is , in 2 Chron : 19. 8 , 9 , 10. Ye may read the place at leasure ; but there are these things in it proving that there was a Church Judicatory distinct from the Civil . First , We see that there is a Judicatory made up of the Church-men of the Levits and Priests , in verse 8. Secondly , We see that the things they judged of were spiritual matters distinguished from Civil things by calling the the first sort , The matters of the Lord , And the Second , Matters of the King , v. 11. Thirdly , We see that in this Judicatory a Church-man was Moderator , in the 11 verse And behold Amariah the chief Priest is over you . And Fourthly , We see that the sentence of the Court was Execute by Church-men in the end of the 11 vers — Also the Levits shall be officers before you . All which being laid together , makes out clearly that under the Old Testament ●●●re was a Church Judicatory different from the Civil . The Second place is in Jeremiah . 26. 8. 9. 10 Where we have these things to make out the present point . First , We see that there were two Judicatories in the 8 v. There is a Judicatory of the Priests and Prophets condemning Jeremiah as a false Prophet : again in the 10. and 1● . v. We see there is a Civil Judicatory made up of States-men When the Princes of Judah hard these things , then they came up from the Kings house — &c. So it is plain they had a Church Judicatory for Church matters , as well as a Civil Judicatory for Civil matters . The Second thing that we are to speak to in order to the proving of the first point , to wit , That there was a Government of the Church different from that of the State among the Jews , is this , that as they had Church Judicatories different from the Civil , so they had also Church Censures different from Civil punishments , as we have amongst us . And First , publick confession of Scandalous sins was in use among them , we shall clear it from one place of Scripture Ezra 10. 10. 11. And Ezra the Priest stood up , and said unto them , Ye have transgressed — Now therefore make confession unto the Lord God of your Fathers , &c. There is confession of sin appointed for a fault that was Scandalous to wit , their Marrying with strange Wives . Now this confession was not only private to God , nor on a Fast day , but a personal publick acknowledgment , after particular Examination of all one by one . And we gather this from the 13. v. where it is said — Neither is this a work of one day or two — &c. And in the 16. v. Three moneths was spent on the business , so that this was a personal acknowledgment given by every one of them , after the Examination of their guilt , as we do in our Church Judicatories . Secondly , Besides this publick Confession they had the Censure of suspending Scandalous men from the Ordinances , as we do suspend from the Sacrament of the Lords Supper ; we will find this in David his appointing of the offices of the Priests . Among the rest it is recorded of Jehoiadah 2 Chron. 23. v , 19. And he set the porters at the gates of the house of the Lord , that none which was unclean in any thing should enter in . They were suspended from the Ordinances because of their uncleaness , And for the neglect of this the Priest's are reproved in Ezek. 22 v , 26. Her Priests have violated my Law , and have prophaned my Holy things : they have put no difference between the unclean and clean neither between the Holy and prophane . They let all come rushing together to the Ordinances : And for this they are reproved . Thirdly , They had among them the sentence of Excommunication , which is set down under the name of Cutting off from among the People . And in the new Testament it is expressed by the name of casting out of the Synagogue , which certainly was Excommunication . It is a Ridiculous alledgence that they say , by cutting off , was meaned the inflicting of Temporal death by the sword of the Magistrate ; for the uncircumcised Man-child , he that had touched a dead Body and did not wash after it , were to be cut off ; now who would think that such were to be put to death . The Second thing to be made out is , That therefore there must be a Church Government under the New Testament , seing it was so under the Old ; and the Reason is , because no necessity can be alleadged for a ●hurch Government then , but the same necessity is now . Is not the Church a mixed multitude now , as well as then ? is there not as great need to separate betwixt the precious and the vile now , as then ? Is not the Church now a feild of Wheat and Tares as well as then ? Is there not need to keep the Ordinances pure now , as then , by the fence of Government ? Is there not need now to suppress sin as well as then ? Is not Christ perfect in all his House as well as Moses ? Yea , in a word there can nothing be alleadged for a necessity to have a Church Government under the Old Testament , but the same may be brought to prove the necessity of it under the New. The Second Argument we bring to prove this point is taken from the native end of Church Government which is spiritual , to wit — For the edifying of the Body of Christ : Ephes : 4. 12. To gain the Soul of our offended Brother to Repentence Matth : 18. 15. It is — that the Spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus . 1 Corinth . 5 , 5. So the end of the Church Government is a spiritual end , and therefore it must have a Divine Original : Church Government whose end is spiritual can be no humane Ordinance , for such produceth no supernatural effects ; therefore it must have a higher warrand for it than that of the Magistrate . Our Third Argument is taken from this , that all the substantials of Church Government are set down expresly in Scripture , from which we make this Argument : That Government whose substantial parts are all set down expresly in Scripture , the Magistrate hath no power to alter it , or put an other in its place ; but so it is that all the substantial parts of Church Government are set down expresly in Scripture : Therefore , the Magistrate hath no power to alter it . The thing we have to make out in this Argument is this , That all the substantials of Church Government are set down in Scripture ; And to clear this we shall reckon up five things . First That Church officers have their warrand from Scripture Thess : 5 12. 1 Tim : 5. 17. Let the Elders that rule well , be counted worthy of double honour , especially they who labour in the word and Doctrine . There is a Ruler , or an officer with power to rule , established in Gods house . What they say , That by Ruling there is meaned Preaching , because Ministers guide People by Preaching , is a frivolous Exception : and that because of what is in the end of the Verse — especially they who labour in the word and Doctrine . So labouring , in the word and Doctrine , is one thing , and Ruling is another thing , and not one and the same , as their Exception affirmeth . But we shall find a more clear place for it in Heb. 13. 17. Obey them that have the Rule over you , and submit your selves There are Officers established with power to Rule , and the People are commanded to submit and give Obedience to them , and so there are Rulers , Officers established in Gods Church . Secondly , The Courts and Judicatories of the Church have a warrand in Gods word ; and for this see Matth : 18. 17 , 18. And if he shall neglect to hear them , tell it unto the Church — Verily I say unto you , whatsoever ye shall bind on Earth shall be bound in Heaven — The Adversaries are so shamless that they say , by the Church is here meaned , the Civil Magistrate , and that the complaint should be made to them : But it is sure the Civil Magistrate is not here meaned . And to prove it , The Judicatory here meaned is that whereof the Apostles should be Members , and therefore in v , 16. It is said whatever ye [ to wit the Apostles ] shall bind on earth — &c. Now sure it is Jesus Christ gives no power to his Ministers to sit in Civil Courts , and to judge of Civil business . The third substantial of Church Government that hath warrand in the word is , the subordination of lesser Judicatories to greater ; and this is warranted in Act : 15 , 2. Where Paul and Barnabas come up from Antioch , to a General Council at Jerusalem ( because the controversie in hand could not be ended at Antioch ) where there is a Court with power , They determine the Question , Censure the Schismaticks , giving them the name of Lyars v. 24. The Fourth substantial of this Government set down in Scripture is , the order of proceeding in relation to Censure . 1. By private Admonition , Then more pub●ick Matth : 18. 15. The fifth thing is , The nature and kind of thir Censures , which are not bodily , as taking● way the life ; but spiritual , to wit , Admonitions , reproofs , Casting out of the Church , Matth : 18 17 — Let him he unto thee as an Heathen and a Publican . Now from all this , It evidently appears that Christ hath set down all the Substantials of Church Government in his word : And seeing he hath done so , what man dare alter it , taking any prudential way for the good of the Church at his pleasure : Yea there is a charge given to preserve all these inviolable till Christs coming ; 1 Tim : 5. 21. I charge thee before God , and the Lord Jesus Christ , and the elect Angels , that thou observe these things , without preferring one before another , doing nothing by partiality . So that which Christ hath set down concerning the Government of his house is unalterable by any person whatsomever , till the coming of Jesus Christ. So much for the third Argument . There is a Fourth and it shall be our last , which is this , If so be that Christ hath left his House without any particular Government , only referring it to the Civil State , to appoint what Government they please ▪ it would reflect much on the wisdome of Jesus Christ ; For the Church visible is his Kingdom , his House , his Vinyard ▪ his Garden ; And shall we say that he hath appointed no Laws to Govern no Courts to guide this Kingdom , but left it to the Civil Magistrate , to appoint by whom and how it pleaseth him best : A King of Clay would not do so with his Kingdom , much less he who is the King of Glory . This for the Arguments to confirm the Truth , we shall in the next place Answer their Objections . III. The First is ( say they ) from 2 Tim : 3 , 16. The word of God is able to make a man perfect ; and therefore there is no need of Government . We Answer , This same Argument may as well strick against Magistracy . But Secondly , We say ( which we made already appear ) That the Government of the Church is grounded on the Word ; Hence their Argument proveth not , because the Government of the Church is a part of the Word , and is commanded by it ; and so it is not an adding to it : But if they say the bare Preaching of the word is enough ; We Answer , Not to detract any thing from the word Preached , which is the mean appointed by God to save Souls , yet the Exercise of Dicipline is necessary also . It is necessary ( we say ) for Three Reasons . 1. To keep the Ordinances of God from being polluted by the rushing foreward of Dogs , and Scandalous Persons . All the Preaching that can be , to bid Scandalous men keep back , will not do . Then 2. It is necessary for keeping the Church from being infected by the contagion of Scandalous men . Hence sayeth the Apostle Paul , a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump : Therefore put the incestous man from among you . 3. It is necessary for the good of the Soul that is censured : So in the 2 Thess : 3. 14 — note that man , and have no company with him , that he may be ashamed . And 1 Cor : 5. 5. Excommunication serveth for the Destruction of the Flesh , that is , To tame and mortify its Lusts : And so although the word be only the necessary mean for the converting of Souls , yet it doth not follow that the Government of the Church should not be exercised , to wit , that the word may work the better . The Second Objection is this , That all the Arguments we have to establish a Church Government by Divine right are taken from the Churches practice in the Apostles time , and commands given them ; but it does not follow that what was then , should be a rule now ; and they give this as the Reason of the difference ; because the Magistrate was then a Pagan , and so would not meddle with these things ; but the case is now otherwise when the Magistrate is turned Christian. We Answer First , By this it is granted , that Church Government was an institution of Christ , at least in the primitive times , Now sure it is that every thing instituted by Christ layeth on a perpetual obligation , except Christ in his word hath set a period , that it should be only so long : So if this Argument of theirs have any force , they must show from Scripture that Christ hath appointed this period for Church Government , so as it should be only in force under an Idolatrous Pagan Magistrate : And that the Power of it should cease under the Christian Magistrate : But no place of Gods word can be given for the proof of t●is ; But on the contrary a Command is given , That which Christ delivered to the Apostles , 1 Timoth. 6. 14 Should be keeped to his second coming , And therefore it remains a perpetual Ordinance . Secondly , We Answer , That if this were true , then the Case of the Church should be worse under the Christian than the Pagan Magistrate ; If so be that under the one , they have an Intrinsecal Power to purge and keep his Church free from Scandals , but not under the other , would not this be hard . Thirdly , We Answer , That the reasons for which the Church did exercise Government , in the primitive times , were taken from common Equity , and so are binding to the Church at all times . We find this 1 Cor. 5. 5. Where a command is given to exercise Discipline by Excommunicating of the Incestuous person : The reasons given are , First , The good of the Mans Soul verse 5. Secondly , The good of the Church to be keeped from Infection , vers . 6. Now the Church is bound to see to these at all times . We come to the Fourth thing , which is a word of Vse : And it serves 1. To reprove those who think debates about the Government of the Church useless and of no value : To what purpose is it ( say they ) what be the Government , and who governs , if sin be punished , and the Word Preached . I answer ' it is of much moment : For , from what is said it appears that Church Government is an Ordinance of God , a part of his word , and they who evert it , or gives way to the everting of it , give way to evert a part of the Word of God ; yea to the bringing down of the Government of Christs own House . It is a point of Truth that concerns no less than the Royal Diadem of Christ , and all who have got good of Truth are bound to stand for it ; yea it is more than an ordinary Truth : The question is concerning Ch●ists Kingdom , if he have a Kingdom of his own distinct from the Kingdoms of the World ; If he shall have ●is own Laws , Office-bearers , Courts , Censures , according to his will in his Word ; or if all he hath left to that purpose be to scra●ched out , and the Civil Magistrate to appoint what Laws , Rules , Courts , he pleaseth in Christs House : So it is a point relating to his Kingdom , a Doctrine to be avowed , and a point of Truth worth the Sustering for , and which some have suffered for and boasted in it , yea it is a point of Truth that hath this advantage beyond other Truths , That Christ hath suffered for it himself in his own person , for it 's clear that this was the only point he was accused on by P●late , and he avowed it Luke 23. 3. That he had a Kingdom , though not of the World , yet in the World. We shall find , that this point was chiefly laid to Christs charge in John 18. 33. 34 , 35 , 36 , 37. And this was the p●int that was driven home by the Jews 〈◊〉 Christ , John. 19. It was his 〈◊〉 on the Cross , Jesus Christ of Nazareth King of the Iews . And this was the point that straitned Pilate most , and put him to it to make Christ suffer , Joh. 19. So this point hath this advantage , that in a special manner Christ s●ffered as a Martyr for it : Should any then think it a little thing to suffer for ? God forbid . Yea we may think it an Honour . The Second Use , If so be that Church Government is an Ordinance of God , then those intrusted with it , such as Ministers and Elders , would discharge it as Service to God , so as to be countable to him ; t●ere should be an other frame of Spirit , when Men are in Church Judicatories , than when they are in Civil Judicatories : These are Ordinances of Men , thir of God , and require more than a common frame of Spirit . Alas ( we may say ) for the Unministerial like Carriage of Ministers and Elders , may justly provoke God to thro us out altog●ther . A Third Vse of this point is , That seeing Church Government is an Ordinance of Jesus Christ , then ye that are people should obey and submit to those that are over you in the Lord , otherwise if it be not t●us looked on it may provoke the Lord to remove the Hedge from us ; and if this were , God knoweth what we would be : we are evil now , but if people got leave to do every thing that seemeth good in their own eyes , we could not but be much worse : Ye see what ye are with it but know not what ye will be without it . And so much for the first Head of Erastian Doctrine . Head II. The Power of Church Government belongeth not to the Civil Magistrate . THe Second Head of Erastian Doctrine , which we are to prove not to be of God , is , That whereby they affirm , That all the Power of Church Government is in the Hands of the Civil Magistrate . And here there are some differences among themselves : some giving him all Power to dispence all Church Ordinances , and this as a Magistrate , without a Call from the Church ; and so to Preach and to Administrate the Sacraments : Others again content themselves to ascribe to him only a Power of Jurisdiction to make Church Laws , to inflict Church Censures . And herein they also differ , some puting this Power wholly in the Hand of the Magistrate : Others conjunctly with the Ministers ; a third placeth it in him as the fountain , and in Church-men but as his Deputes ; so that they are to act by vertue of a Commission from him , and meddle only with these things that he gives them Warrand for , and so to meddle with them as to be lyable to an Appeal to him as the supream Judge in all Church matters . We contrary to all these shall make out this following Assertion : To wit , That the Civil Magistrate as a Magistrate hath no Power either to Preach , or Administrate the Sacraments , nor yet to make Church Laws , or inflict Church Censures , either by himself or others as his Deputes ; but all this power doth belong wholly to Church Officers , Ministers , and Elders : Which power they are to execute without Dependency on the Civil Magistrate ; so that they are not lyable to Appeals to his Court ▪ neither hath he Power to rescind the Sentence pronounced by them . In following out of this point , we shall go on as in the former , we shall First clear the state of the question . Secondly , We shall bring Arguments for the Truth , Thirdly , We shall bring their Arguments against the Truth , and refute them . Fourthly , We shall apply the whole to some use . 1. First , For clearing the State of the Question take this assertion ; that however we do not give the Civil Magistrate Power of Church Discipline , or the power of governing the Church , yet we give him much Power about Church matters . Our Divines following the word of God , give the Christian Magistrate a threefold Power about Church matters . 1. A defensive protecting Power . 2 , A ruling Power . And 3. a Punishing Power . First , They give him a Defending Power , and that is grounded on that Promise made to the Church in Isa. 49. 23. And Kings shall be thy Nursing Fathers , &c. By this Power the Christian Magistrate is to do three things . 1. By his Power he is to encourage , countenance , and advance by his Authority and example the publick exercise of all Gods Ordinances ; and so defend the Church in her Liberties that are given to her by Christ : This was the practice of those Godly Kings under the Old Testament : So did Asa , 2 Chron. 15. to verse ●8 . and Jehoshaphat . 2 Chron. 1. 8 , 9. 10 , 11. And other Godly Kings . They encouraged others in the Service of God ; they countenanced them , and by their Authority and example allured others to the practice of Godliness ; which I ower Christian Magistrates have yet . 2. By this Power they are to provide the Church with all external Necessaries ; as publick convenient P●aces of meeting for Gods Worship , and publick Mantainance for the Church Officers , &c This we see was Hezekiah's practice 2 Chron. 31. 4. Moreover , he commanded the People that dwelt in Jerusalem , to give the portion of the Priests , and the Levites , that they might be encouraged in the Law of the Lord. And it was Jo●●ah's practice 2 Chron. 34. He repaired the House of the Lord , The publick place of Gods Worship . 3. By this defending Power of the Christian Magistrate , he is to remove all outward Impediments lying in the way of God's Worship , such as Prophanity , Idolatry , Heresy , and Blaspemy , as we did prove at length in the former Controversy . Secondly , We give to the Christian Magistrate a Ruling Power about Church matters : By this Power 1. He may convocate Church Judicatories , command them to meet , and to enact Canons , and to make rules for Governing the Church ; although he cannot make Church Laws himself : So pious Magistrates under the Old Testament did call Synods , as David 1 Chron. 23 2. And he gathered together all the Princes of Israel , with the Priests and Levites . 2. By this Power the Christian Magistrate is to confirm the acts of the Church Judicatories , and to give the force of a Civil Law : Only herein we differ from the Papists , They say the Magistrate should do this blindly , he is only ( say they ) the Churches Echo to ●ay Amen to what they conclude : But we say the Magistrate is not to do this blindly , we allow to him a judgement of Discretion to try whether what they conclude be right or not , and accordingly he is to add his Authority or not ; and yet this makes him not a Judge in Church matters , but only a Judge of his own Actions . 3. By this Power the Magistrate is to take Inspection of the Carriage of Church Judicatories , so that all things be rightly managed by them ; so as if they should conclude a point of Injustice , though he may not rescind their Act himself ; yet he may command them to resume the the matter , take it to their second Thoughts , give Reasons to the contrair , exhort them to their Duties from time to time , until the matter be rightly concluded : Only it is still the Church Judicatory that must rescind their own Act. By this ruling Power the Magistrate may do much : When the Church is corrupt he may reform it : That is , when Church Judicatories are all wrong , that they will do nothing for his upstirring , In this case the Magistrate may lay the Church Judicatory aside , and do that himself which they should do : His Power in this case is extraordinary , he may reform by his own Power , as Godly Josiah did 2 King 23. And as Asa and Jehoshaphat . At such a time Magistrates may do much this way : But extraordinary Cases are not to be made ordinary Rules . Thirdly , We give to the Magistrate a Coactive punishing power about Church-matters , and by this power we affirm that all the persons of Church-men , and their goods are lyable to the Civil Magistrate in things Civil : According to that , Let every soul be subject to the higher powers ( contrary to what the Papists teach ) so that if a Church-man should commit a Civil crime , the Magistrate by his own power may punish him ; as Solomon did Abiathar . 2. By this coactive punishing power he may see to the Observation of Divine and Church Laws , and punish those that are contemners of them by Civil punishments . There are several examples of this ; as that of Josiah He made all the People stand to the Covenant . Now , by all that is said ye may easily perceive , that We give to Caesar that which is Caesars ; although we give him not what is Gods : We give him much power about the Church , but not the power of Governing the Church . We shall clear this by a simile , how the Magistrate may have much power about Church-matters ; although not power of Governing the Church : Ye know the Civil Magistrate , or Church Sessions , have much power about matters belonging to husband and wife , Parents and Children , so as to censure and punish them for their unnatural carriage towards each other , and to see every one do duty to another ; and yet neither the Civil Magistrate nor Church Session hath Marital or Husbandly power over the Wife , or Parental power over the Children so as they might challenge the same duties from them , to be done to themselves , which the Wife oweth to her Husband , or the Children to the Parents ; the Husband and Parents only have that power : So it is here , The Magistrate hath much power about Church matters , but he hath no Church-power properly so called ; that belongeth only to Christs own officers . Secondly , For clearing of the question take this Assertion , what we deny to the Christian Magistrate in the power of Governing the Church , we deny it to him only as a Magistrate ; for so we laid it down in the conclusion to be proved , A Magistrate as a Magistrate hath no power in Governing the Church , otherwise if a Christian Magistrate be chosen an Elder , he hath power of Church Government , being joyned with the rest : Only we say as a Magistrate he hath no power to Govern the Church . II. We come to the Second thing which is our Arguments to confirm the Truth , And the first Argument is this That Jesus Christ hath given no warrand to the Civil Magistrate for the Government of his Church , and therefore he hath no right to it . 1 , We say , that Christ in his word hath given no warrand to the Magistrate for Governing his Church : And this will appear from all these places where mention is made of any warrand given to any , of Church Government ; There is no word of the Christian Magistrate in any of them , only mention is made of Apostles , Ministers and Elders : so in Matth : 16. 19. The power of Governing the Church to bind and loose is given to Peter in the name of the rest of the Apostles , but no word of the Civil Magistrate . And Matth : 18. 17. the power of Excommunication is given to the Church and if he shall neglect to hear them 〈…〉 be — &c. The Church of Ministers and Elders hath the power , but no word of the Civil Magistrate And so in Timoth : and Titus the scope of which Epistles is to instruct Ministers concerning the right way of Governing the Church , what is spoken there , is spoken to them and to Ministers succeeding to them , but there is no mention of the Civil Magistrate . And therefore we may conclude he hath no right from Jesus Christ for Governing the Church : And what he would challenge of that kind is but an usurpation and intruding unto that , to which he hath no right . Our second Argument is , If the power of the Church Government belong to a Magistrate as a Magistrate , then it belongeth to every Magistrate but this were absurd . We say , if the power of Governing the Church did belong to a Magistrate as a Magistrate ▪ then it should belong to every Magistrate , for whatever belongs to one as such , belongs to all such . Now this hath many absurdities following on it ; For by this Rule Heathen Magistrates might have power of Church Government , and be Church Governours , which were absurd ; For they are not Church Members . Then Secondly , Women might be Church Governours , for they may be Magistrates in some cases , and yet they may not speak in the Church . Yea Thirdly , By this it should follow that Children not come to age might have the power of Church Government , for they may be Magistrates , when Magistracy goeth by succession ; Now Children cannot have the power of Church Government for that power is not to be Exercised by deputies , but by the persons themselves who are intrusted with it . A Third Argument to confirm the Truth is this , That Magistrates as Magistrates are not Church Officers ; And therefore they have no power to Govern the Church . The consequence is clear , for if Magistrates have power to Govern the Church , then they must be Church Officers , if any thing make a man a Church Officer , then power to Govern the Church will do it , for State Government and State Officers are Relata , and have a mutual Relation one to another , and so must Church Government and Church Officers have a mutual Relation one to another : But in the next place it is evident , That a Magistrate as a Magistrate is no Church Officer , and that because among all that roll , set down in the word of God , wherein Christ reckons up his Officers , there is no mention made of the Civil Magistrate . Ephes : 4. There is a roll verse 11. And he gave some Apostles , and some Prophets , and some Evangelists and some Pastors , and teachers . But no word of the Civil Magistrate : and in Rom : 12 , 6 , 7. There is an other roll of Church officers , but no word of of the Civil Magistrate — whether prophecy , let us prophecy according to the proportion of Faith : Or Ministery , let us wait on our Ministering : or he that teacheth , on teaching : &c. But neither in this place or any other is there any mention of the Civil Magistrate : Only some of our Adversaries mutter somewhat of 1 Cor : 12. 28. That by Governments there mentioned is meaned the Christian Magistrate , but it is easily refuted , for the text speaketh evidently of such Governours , as the Church had at that time ; And God hath set some in the Church — &c. Now the Church at that time had no Christian Magistrate , nor for above 200 years after . So by Governments cannot be meaned the Christian Magistrate but the Ruling Elder , who is often spoken of in other places . Our Fourth Argument to prove this point is , That the Church did enjoy full power of Government within her self , and accordingly did exercise it , near 300 years , before any Magistrate was a Christian , and so the Church hath this power within her self yet . For the first part of the Argument , it is evident if we consider : First , That which is not controverted , to wit , that in the space of 300 years after Christ , there was not a Magistrate a Christian : If we consider , Secondly , That all this time the Church had full power of Church Government within her self ; and therefore Paul sayes to Timothy 1 Tim : 4. 14. Neglect not the gift that is in thee , which was given thee by prophecy , with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery . So they had power of Ordination , Power also to dispence Censures , as Excommunication . 1 Cor : 5. 4 , 5 — When ye are gathered together — To deliver such a one unto Satan , for the destruction of the Flesh , &c. And they had power to relax from Excommunication : So 2 Cor : 2 , 6. Where Paul commands to relax the Excommunicate man from that Sentence , Sufficient to such a man is this punishment , which was inflicted of many . v. 7. So that contrariwise , ye ought rather to forgive him , &c. Fourthly , They had Synods meeting together , making binding Canons to guide the Church . Act : 15. The Synod of Apostles , Elders , and Brethren meet together , determine a controversie , and Censure those who had troubled the Church . Thus the first part of the Argument is made out , to wit , That the Church did enjoy full power of Discipline within her self long before any Magistrate became Christian , And therefore it followes that this power is yet in the Churches hand , and not in the Magistrates . And that because if the Church at that time had right to dispence this power , as undoubtedly she had , then they must make it appear how Christ took this right from her and transferred it to the Civil Magistrate , which they cannot do . Our fifth Argument is to obviate that which they say , That Ministers are but the Magistrates deputes : From which we argue thus : If Church Officers in inflicting Censures be the Magistrates deputs , then whatever the Church Judicatory does the Magistrate may do it also , for none can delegate more right to ther than what he hath himself : And so by this it should follow that the Magistrate might ordain Misters himself by imposition of hands , he might Excommunicate ; And if he may do this , by consequence he might also Preach , Administrate the Sacraments &c. For what right can be pretended to the one , which may not be extended to the other ; and so there should be no need of Pastors and Teachers , but the Magistrate might do all . Our last Argument is taken from the distinction which the Scripture holdeth out betwixt Ecclesiastick and Civil power , Scripture condemneth Church-mens usurping the Civil power , and States-mens usurping the Church power : Church men are forbidden to judge or meddle with Civil things by Christ himself Luk : 12. 13 , 14. 22 25. And so the Civil Magistrate may not meddle with Church power either : There are two Kings we read of to be heavily punished for their Transgression in this kind ; Saul , for offering a Burnt-offering 1 Sam : 13. 13. And Vzziah , for burning Incense 2 Chorn. 26. 19. He would go in and burn Incense ; And therefore the Lord smites him with leprosie . And surely Reason would say , if it be a sin for Church Officers to Exercise the Civil Government , then it is a sin for the Civil Magistrate to take to himself the only supream power of Church Government , and ingross it wholy to himself . III. We come to the Third thing we promised to speak to , And that was the answering of the Opposites Arguments . The first Argument they bring against this Truth is , That Godly Magistrates under the Old Testament had the power of Church Government : And therefore so should Christian Magistrates have it under the New. Wee Answer , That their Argument proves nothing , except they also prove , that what power of Church Government Magistrates had then , they had it as Magistrates : For we grant indeed what did belong to Magistrates as Magistrates under the Old Testament , does belong to Magistrates under the New ; But it may not be granted , that that which belonged to Magistrates then under other respects , doth belong to Magistrates yet . For clearing of this , It is to be observed that there were many Magistrates extraordinary men under the Old Testament . So Moses gives out Laws and Ordinances for ordering the Church ; But we find in Deut : 18. 15. Moses was a great Prophet and a Type of Christ. The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet from the midst of thee , of thy Brethren , like unto me ; unto him ye shall hearken . So David appointed the office of the Levites that divided their courses ; But David was a Prophet 2. Chron : 8 , 14. And he appointed according to the order of David his father , the courses of the Priests to their service : Thus in another place it is shown how David did this at the direction of other Prophets , 2 Chron. 29. 25. And he set the Levites in the House of the Lord with Cymbals , with Psalters , and with Harps , according to the Commandment of David , and of Gad the Kings seer , and Nathan the Prophet : For so was the Commandment of the Lord by his Prophets . And so from these and such like practices they can no more infer the Power of the Magistrate now in Church matters , than we may infer the Power of Church-men in Civil-matters from the example of Church-men under the Old-Testament : For Church-men did meddle with Civil-Matters in extraordinary Cases : As Eli the Priest , He governed the State : And Samuel , in cutting Agag in pieces . Elisha in Anointing Jehu to be King : And Jeho●ada the Priest , in causing kill Attaliah the Usurper , and making Joash King. All which we grant were extraordinary Acts , and so cannot be an ordinary rule for Church-men to have such Power in Civil things now : And so must they grant concerning these extraordinary practices of Civil Judges , in medling sometimes with Church matters . The Second Argument they use is this , If so be that Magistrates were set over Church Officers to receive Appeals from them , it would make them afraid to go beyond their Duty : But if they have none above them , there is danger of their Ambition and abusing of Discipline . To which we answer , First , Ministers are Men indeed , and as other men , are ready to abuse their Power ; But if the danger of abusing Power be a good Argument to take Power from them , then there should be no Power in the Hands of any : For what kind of Men are there to be found , who are not in danger to abuse their Power , and so all must be left in Confusion . We give a second answer , That the same Argument may be used against the abuse of Preaching the Word , and administrating the Sacraments , For the danger is as great ; and yet the Erasitans ( the most part of them at least ) will not say that the Magistrate , for preventing of this abuse , may step into the Pulpit himself and Preach better , and Administer the Sacraments better , There is another way to curb that abuse ; and so is it in the matter of Governing the Church , there is danger indeed of abusing that Power : but we say in like manner , that for that the Magistrate may not sit down and take the Power of Church Government himself : There are other means left to prevent this danger : Which shall be our Third Answer , Wherein we shall show some of these means appointed by God for preventing the abuse of Power in the hands of the Church-Officers : First , There are some Remedies in the Church Power it self , to wit , The Subordination of Judicatories : So that although a Congregational Eldership should wrest Justice ; yet there are above them Presbyteries , and above them Synods , and above them General Assemblies . Now it may be conceived that an Act of Injustice will hardly get through all those , before it be branded with some deserved mark : But Secondly , Though all Church Officers should connive one at another , and so the Faults of Ministers go through unpunished , yet there is some remedy left even in the Civil Power : For although , for the reasons foresaid , he may not take upon him the Power of the Church Judicatory under pretence of Righting their Abuses , no more than he may take upon him to Preach , for preventing their abuse of Preaching : Yet he may do several things . 1. If Church Officers commit a civil Crime , he may curb them by his own Authority . 2. If Church Judicatories meddle to judge in Civil things which concern a mans Life or Estate , the Magistrate may make null what they conclude and punish them for abuse of Power ; for therein they medled with what belonged not unto them . 3. Grant the matter be meerly Ecclesiastick wherein they abuse their Power , yet the Magistrate may do somewhat here also : He may command them to resume the matter , he may compear in person and reason the matter , and bid them see to it in the Name of the Lord , and stir them up to judge it better , and he may go from one Judicatory to another till he get this done : As for example , If it be a censure wrongously inflicted ; But yet it is still the Church Judicatory that must ranverse their own Censure . The Third Argument they use against this Truth is , If the Power were put in the Hands of the Civil Magistrate , it would be a mean to decide all the whole Controversies about Church Government , which are managed with so much Animosity on all hands : Prelates plead that They should have the Power of it : Independents That particular Congregations : Presbyterians , That Sessions , Presbyteries , Synods , General Assemblies , should have the Power of it , the former being Subordinate to the latter , Sessions to Presbyteries , &c. Hence ariseth all our Debates : Now were not this good to take it from all , and give it to the Magistrate . We answer . It is a way to end the Difference , such as Solomon did to the two Women striving about the living Child , It shall be none of yours , A way that relished not with the kindly Mother of the Child , 1 Kings 3. 25. Secondly , We answer , This Argument may take with natural Hearts who would buy Peace at any rate ; but not with those who are taught of God To buy the Truth and not to sell it ; For it holdeth out a way to end Controversies , which is not God's : His way is to establish what is right , and to quite what is wrong : But this way tends to suppress both right and wrong , such Peace-makers will not be Blessed . Thirdly , The Presbyterians may borrow this Argument against Prelates , Independents , Erastians , and have better right to it , and so it will run thus : If Church Government were put in the hands of the Presbytery , It would establish and settle all Differences in the matter of Church Government betwixt Prelates , Independents , and Erastians : Now if this Arment be good when they use it for them , it must be also good when it is used for us : But I doubt if they will admit of such like reasoning , and so neither can we . There is a Fourth Argument they use , say they , Jeremiah appealed to the Civil Magistrate Jerem : 26. and so Paul Act : 25. He appeals to Caesar. We answer , let that place of Jeremiah cap. 26. be read , and nothing will be found to prove that Jeremiah makes any appeal to the Civil Judicatories : But Secondly , Though he had appealed , yet it does not prove that it is Lawful to appeal to the Magistrate in a Church business ; for the Sentence which the Priests had past on Jeremiah was Civil , Thou shalt surely die , v. 8. Now it was the Princes Duty to see to it . That Innocent Jeremiah should not be put to Death , especially by those who had no Powet to inflict such a punishment . As for that instance Acts 25. 10 , 11. about Paul's appealing to Caesar , it makes nothing to these purposes ; He appeals only from Festus , an Inferior Civil Magistrate to the Superior ; And this we are not against . But Secondly ; Though Paul had appealed from a Church Judicatory , yet this makes nothing to confirm their Doctrine : For the cause here whereabout Paul was to be judged , was a Civil cause , to wit , Treason against Caesar , And a thing worthy of Death . Now we do Teach , that a Church-man may appeal to a Civil Magistrate , when he is questioned about his Life ▪ and for a Civil crime ; But hence it followeth not , That we may appeal from a Church Judicatory , when the cause is Ecclesiastick and no wayes civil . Their last Objection is taken from 1 King. 2. 27. Whereof they make much , The words are , So Solomon thrust out Abiathar , from being Priest unto the Lord : From which they argue thus : Here is a civil Magistrate inflicting a Church Censure , to wit , Deposition of a Church-man , to wit , of Abiathar the Priest , Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord : Therefore , Christian Magistrates have Power to Dispence Church Censures : Yet we answer , Solomon did nothing here but what we yeild to any Magistrate , for a civil Magistrate may inflict a civil Punishment on any person whatsomever for a civil Crime ; and so was the present case : Abiathar's Fault was Treason , in assisting Adonijah to the Crown against Solomon , appointed by God to it . Secondly , The Censure inflicted by Solomon was not a Church Censure , but civil , to wit , Banishment to Anathoth , as appears from verse 26. And therefore what is mentioned in verse 27. He thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord , Is not the Censure directly intended by Solomon , but that which followed upon his Banishment from Jerusalem , ipso facto ; because the Office of the Priests could not be exercised but at Jerusalem . IV. In the last place it follows , That we give a word of use from all we have said . The First use , If so be that Jesus Christ hath appointed a Government in his House , as is proven , to be exercised by his own Officers , Then know that those Magistrates that would ingross this Power to themselves , so as to have his Courts and Censures depending on them , or rather taken away , and others put in their place , do highly incroach on the Regal Power of our King Jesus Christ. And this seemeth to be the great sin of the Times , Atheists , prophane Men , plead for it ; as looking for more forbearance to their Lusts from civil Powers , than from Christs own Courts . Civil Powers plead for it ; They are not content that Christ let Them reign , and that they let Christ reign besides them ; But they must have him thrust out of his Throne , and made to plead at their bar ; And so no wonder Christ overturn Kingdoms and Governments : It was the Parliament of England's fault , They feared lest Christs Courts should have wronged their Priviledges ; Hence they would not allow him his Priviledges : They set up indeed a Government in Christ's House , but it was a Lame one ; They durst not give Christs Courts their full Power , but so as to be their Deputes : And therefore they have dashed themselves against that corner-stone Christ Jesus , until they are struck in pieces , Their Fear is come upon them . What they feared from Christs Courts , they have met with at the Hands of their own Servants : Our Kings have still been afraid of this , and Malignants also going under the Name of Royalists ; They thought they could not get Their Throne secure if so be Christ got leave to reign besides them ; And this among many others hath made their Throne shake . O that Kings would be wise and kiss the Son , It would be their Wisdom to be faithful in what is committed unto them ; But for the Government of his House it is not in their Charter , and so a thing that will not thrive in their hands , their prudential Laws and Rules will do no good . Secondly , Yee would ground your self in this Truth ; It may cost you much , and though it should stand you never so much , it is worth the avowing . Christ himself suffered on this account ( as we have already shown ) and others of his servants have thought it their Glory to be called unto suffering for it . Who am I ( saith Master Welsh ) That he hath not only called me to be a Preacher of glad things , but also to be a sufferer for his cause and Kingdom ; To wittness that good confession , That Jesus Christ is the King of Saints , and that his Church is a most free Kingdom ; Yea as free as any Kingdom under Heaven : That she is free in her Government from all other Jurisdiction on Earth except only Christs : We are waiting ( saith he ) with joyfulness to leave the last Testimony of our blood for the confirmation of this Truth ; If it would please our God to be so favourable , as to honour us with that dignity . Thus He. And who knowes how soon he may honour some of us with that dignity : A dignity indeed to suffer for the Royal Crown and Diadem of Our Lord Jesus . SECT : IV. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE DOCTRINE OF Independency . Head I. The Power of Church Government is in the Church Officers , and not in the Body of Church-Members . THE dayes by-past we spake against the Doctrine of Erastianism , And shew you , that however it had many fair pretences , yet it is to be reckoned among those Doctrines which are not of God. We are now , with the Lords assistance , to speak against the Doctrine of Independency , Ye Remember when we entered on these controversies about Church Government , We shew you there were Four points of Truth which we should Labour to make good : The first was , That Jesus Christ the head of his Church , had appointed in his word a way for the Governing and Ruling of his Church , and that he had not left it to the power of the Civil Magistrate , King or Parliament , To establish what way of Government they please . The second point was , That this Government of the Church which Christ established in his word was not in the hands of the Civil Magistrate , to be Executed by him . Thir two points we have made good in our former Disputs against Erastianism . The third point of Truth is this ; That Jesus Christ the head of the Church hath not committed the power of Governing his Church unto the Body of Believers , To the community of Church Members : but hath established it in the hands of his own officers , Ministers , and Elders . The Fourth point of Truth which we promised to prove was this , That Jesus Christ the head of the Church hath not given particular Elderships and Church Sessions , the Supream power of Church Government in their hands , so as that there should be none above them to call them to an account ; But that they are subject in the Lord to Superior Church Judicatories ; such as Presbytries , Synods , and General Assemblies . These two last points we are to make out in Refuting this Doctrine of Independency . This Error of Independency above all other we may call a fountain Error : It is the Sluce , whereby an entrance is made to all other Errors of what sort soever . This is the Error whereby the most part of those that hath fallen from the way of Truth these years by past , have been first hooked ; They first turned Independents , yet rested not long there , but proceeded from evil to worse . Our scope shall be in this as in the former points to show , That however it hath many fair pretences , yet when it is brought to the Tryal , it will be found not to be of God. There are two main heads of this Error of Independency opposit to the two last points of Truth , which we promised to make out . The first is , That whereby they affirm , That Jesus Christ has given the power of Governing the Church unto all those that are Members of the Church , Although they be not Ministers or Elders : To the community of believers as they call it . The second Head of their Error is this , They do affirm that Jesus Christ hath intrusted particular Congregations , Elderships , or Church Sessions with the highest power of Church Government on earth ; so that there is no Judicatory above them to call them to an account . As for the first Head of their Error which we are to speak against at this time . Therein they have different Opinions among themselves ; some affirming that the power of Governing the Church is given to the Body of Church Members , the community of Believers , without the Minister and Elders ; yea a power over them to ordain them , Censure , depose them , and inflict all other Church Censures : Others give them this power conjunctly with the Church Officers , Ministers , and Elders . Secondly , Some give only the power and Authority to Govern , to the Church Members ; But for the Exercise of that power , they allow it to the Elders : Yet so as to the Peoples deputs , to whom they must give an account : Others give the People not only the power and Authority , but also the Exercise of this Government ; So that the People may sit down in Church Judicatories themselves , enact Church Canons , inflict Church Censures &c. Thirdly , Some give them the Exercise of this power only in some things ; as the Excercise of the power of Jurisdiction , to make Church Canons , and inflict Church Censures ; But not to Preach . Others give them a full Exercise of Authority to do all . We in opposition to all these , lay down this conclusion , which we shall Labour to make good from the word of God , and solid Reason ; to wit , That Jesus Christ hath not given to the Body of Church Members , or to private Christians either the power or Exercise of Church Government , neither in whole nor in part , but hath intrusted it wholly to his own Officers , Ministers , and Elders . I prosecuting this point we shall follow forth the former Method . First , We shall clear the State of the Question . Secondly , Bring Arguments for the Truth . And Thirdly , We shall propone and answer their Arguments brought against the Truth . And Fourthly , We shall shall apply the whole to some use . I. For clearing the state of the Question , Th●a it may be known what we do grant to private Christians , and what we deny , several distinctions would be given . First , There is difference betwixt Church power or Authority , and Christian priviledges : We do grant several Christian priviledges to private Christians , but these do not infer any Church power , or Authority of Governing the Church . As for Example , We do grant to the People a Power of Electing their own Officers , Ministers , or Elders , we grant to them a power to try the Spirits whether they be of God. i : e : They are not to believe blindly what Ministers say , but have a power to Try what they say in Relation to their practice , To pass a Judgment of discretion upon it , whether it be according to the word or not . We grant these priviledges to the People but none of them doth infer any Church power , which we clear in both . First , The Peoples power in Electing their Minister , doth not infer any power of Church Government in them , and that because it is not the Peoples Election or their choise that makes the Minister to be a Minister , or gives him Authority to Exercise the Ministerial calling ; but it is the Act of Ordination , by imposition of the hands of those who are Church Officers , that makes the man the Minister , and gives him Authority . We shall find this , Acts 6 , 3. where the Peoples Election and Ordination by Church Officers is clearly distinguished . Wherefore Brethren , ( say the Apostles ) look ye out among you seven men of honest report , full of the Holy Ghost , and wisdom ( there is the Peoples Election ) whom we may appoint over this busines , There is the Church Officers part : Though the People look them out and choise them , that gives them not the power of their calling untill the Church Officers appoint and ordain them . Secondly , The power of trying the Spirits doth not infer any such power or Authority of Government in the People , otherwise it should follow that the People of Berea , who did try Pauls Doctrine , Act. 17. 11. And compared it with the word whetber those things were so , had Authority over Paul , which none will affirm . A Second distinction to clear the state of the Question is this , There is a great difference betwixt those to whom the Authority of Governing the Church is given , and those for whom , or for whose good it is given : although we deny that the power of Governing the Church is given to private Believers , yet we grant it is given for them . So all Ordinances are given for the good of Believers : As it is Ephes : 4. 11. And he gave some Apostles , and some Prophets , aud some Evangilists , and some Pastors , and Teachers : For the perfecting of the Saints , &c. and in this respect 1 Cor : 3. 21 , 22. all is said to be theirs — For all things are yours , whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas , or the World , or Life , or Death , or things present , or things to come , all are yours , i. e. given for their good : But hence it will not follow , that because Church Discipline is given for them , that therefore they have the power of it ; for in this respect Paul is given to every particular believing Woman , and yet it does not follow that Women have Pauls Authority . And so the Body of the particular Church hath not this power in their hands although the power be given for their good . A Third thing for understanding the State of the Question ; We do willingly grant to private Christians power to admonish , exhort in the Lord , out of Charity : and this they may extend even to Ministers , say to Archippus take heed to thy Ministry . But this Liberty to admonish by way of Charity , doth not import any Church power in them over those whom they rebuke , no more than Pauls rebuking of Peter Gal : 2. 14. doth infer a power in Paul above Peter . So ye see what we do grant to private Christians ; and what we deny : The sum whereof is this . That Jesus Christ hath not given them any power of Church Government , or the Exercise of it , either in whole or in part , but has intrusted it wholly to his own Officers , Ministers , and Elders . This for clearing the state of the Question . II. We come now to Arguments for clearing the Truth , And the First is this , That Jesus Christ hath given no warrand to private Christians for Governing his House , or for the Exercise of this Government ; and therefore they have no right to it . The consequence must be clear : For none has right to play the part of a Governour in Christs Church , except those who have a warrand in his word for it . Now that private Christians have no warrand in his word for Governing the Church , either expresly , or by good consequence , either by precept or promise , or any thing else , it is clear from this that in several places of the Word this power is denyed unto them : So Rom : 10. they must not exercise the Power of Preaching for how shall they Preach except they ●e sent . v. 15. Now the whole communi●y of Believers cannot be sent , besides they have no ability to discharge this Office , there is but one of a Thousand that can convince gainsayers : Is apt to teach , that is ; able to cut and divide the word aright ; and so they have no power to Preach . And Secondly , From this it will follow that they have no power to Administrate the Sacraments , for Christ Jesus hath joyned both these powers in one Commission , He gives no power to any to Aministrate the Sacraments , but those to whom he gives power also to Preach Matth 28 , 19. Go ye therefore and teach all nations Baptizing them-&c . Power of Preaching , and Administrating the Sacraments go together . And so seeing the one power is denyed to them , the other must be denyed also . Thirdly , They have no power to ordain Ministers , or to execute any other act of Church Jurisdiction , for they have no ability to try Ministers gifts , there is no precept commanding them to do it , there is no practice in the New Testament proving that ever they did it , as shall be more fully cleared in answering the Arguments they bring for it ; And so they have no right to Govern the Church . The Second Argument for the Truth is this , That this Doctrine of theirs , whereby they give the power of Governing the Church to private Christians , doth overturn the order established by Jesus Christ in his House ; And therefore they have no right to it : The consequence none may doubt of ; For nothing appointed by God doth evert the order established by himself . Now that this Doctrine of theirs , whereby they put the power of Governing the Church in the hands of the People , doth evert the order appointed by Christ is clear ; Because his order is , That some be watchmen , some watched over , some Rulers , some to submit : some Governours , some to be Governed : some Sheepherds , some the flock : But if so be that all the Members of the Church had the power of Governing in their hand , then all should be overseers , watchmen , Rulers , Governours ; and none more than another , If so be that power to Govern should flow from this , That they are Church Members ; For all are so alike . The Third Argument we bring for the Truth is this , That to whomsoever Christ Jesus hath given warrand for Governing the Church , to those he gives promises of sutable abilities for discharging of that great Trust ; But so it is , that Jesus Christ hath not gifted , neither promise to gift every Christian , nor yet requireth He answerable gifts for Government from them : And therefore he hath given them no warrand for Governing the Church . For the first part of the Argument , that those to whom he gives the power of Church Government he doth also promise them sufficient abilities for their Trust , is clear , For how could it stand with the wisdom of God to commit the great affairs of his House to those whom he hath not qualified to that purpose ; Besides no instance can be given that ever he trusted any with those things , but he promised them furniture , and in some measure enabled them accordingly : So when he sendeth forth Moses , Jeremiah , Isay , &c. he giveth them furniture ; and when he sendeth out the Apostles he furnishes them for that End ; So John 20. 21 , Then said Jesus to them again peace be unto you as my Father sent me , even so send I you . There is the commission given them : and upon the back of this in v. 22. And when he had said this , he breathed on them ; &c. There is the Furniture : And so does he to Ministers whom he entrusts with this power , He promises them Furniture , Matth ; 28 , 20 — and lo , I am with you alway , even unto the end of the World. There a promise made to the Apostles , and in them to the Ministers , as appears from these following words even unto the end of the World. And so these promises could not be fully verified in the Apostles , who were to die within a little , but in Ministers their successors , to the Worlds end . Now it is very evident he hath neither made such promises to every particular believer , for Governing the Church ; neither doth he perform them unto them What ? Is every believer furnished with that measure of knowledge , prudence , and wisdom , that is required for the right managing of the affaires of Church Government ? Yea , God doth not require it of them : And so certainly it stands not with his wisdom to have committed the power of Church Government to all and every one of believers . This for ou● third Argument . Our Fourth Argument for the Truth is , If so be that the power of Governing the Church belongeth to Church Members , Then it belongeth to them either as they are gifted for it , and chosen out for that purpose : And if so , then we have our intent ; For then all are not Church Governours , but only those who are gifted and chosen , And so , Church Officers : Or it belongs to them as believers , or Church Members , and if so , then it Belongs to all , for every one is a Church Member as well as another , and every one that hath Faith , is a believer as well as another , and whatever priviledge floweth from Faith , belongs to every believer , the meanest as well as the greatest . So if the right of Church Government be grounded on Faith and Grace , then every believer , and none but believers , should have the right of it , from whence shall follow many absurdities ; as that Children as well as Parents , the simple as well as the wise ; Women as well as Men , may Preach , Administrate the Sacraments , lay on hands in Ordaining the Ministers , sit in Sessions , inflict Censures , Excommunicate , and what not . Secondly , Then none but believers should have right to Church Government . So none hath power to Baptise , Censure &c. But they that have Grace . And upon this People should have Reason to doubt whether they be rightly Baptised or not , because they know not if the Minister who Baptised them had Grace or not ; and if he wanted Grace , he had no power of Church Government by this Doctrine ; And so no power to Baptise . We bring a Fifth Argument for the Truth , and it is this , private Christians are in no place of Scripture acknowledged to be Church Governours , There are no names nor titles given to them , importing this power to be in them , as is given to Church Officers 1 Tim : 5. 17. Let the Elders that rule well , be counted worthy of double honour And 1 Corinth . 12. 28. And God hath set some in the Church , first Apostles , secondly Prophets , thirdly Teachers , &c. But no title of that kind is given to private Christians ; Yea they are set down plainly under names in opposition to Governours : As the flock to Overseers . Acts 20. 28. Take heed tberefore unto your selves and to all the flock over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers . &c. Yea and are commanded to honour , obey , submit to their Governours set over them , and distinct from them , Hebr : 13. 17. Obey them that have the rule over you and submit your selves . &c. Now it is strange to imagine , That Christ should have intrusted them with highest power of Government ; And yet in all the stiles he gives them , there is nothing imported of that power , but much of their Subjection ; Surely he hath not done so with Officers , as we have shown ; And let any discover the Reason of the difference . A Sixth Argument for the Truth is this , If so be that the power of Governing the Church be given but only to some , then it does not belong to all ; but , so it is that the power of Governing the Church is only given to some ; therefore , not to all Church Members . The first part of the Argument cannot be denyed ; For the second , That it is only given to some , see those proofs that limit this power only to some as Ephes : 4. 11. And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets , &c. Some and therefore not all 1 Cor : 12. 28. ( which we cited before ) and God hath set some in the Church , first Apostles , secondly , Prophets , thirdly teachers , There are but some that he hath set for Governing his house and therefore not all and Heb : 13 , 17. Obey them that have the rule over you , and submit your selves &c. Tim : 5. 17. ( as is likewise before cited ) There are some then that rule , to whom the rest ought to submit ; And so all are not Rulers . There is a Seventh Argument for clearing the Truth . And it is this , That power which Jesus Christ hath not set down rules and limits to order it by in his word , is not of God ; but he hath set down no Rules how to direct the managing of Church Power in the hand of Church-Members ; therefore it is not of God. The first part of our Argument , That whatever Power is appointed of God , he hath set down Rules how to order it , is very clear ; As we may prove by the Enumeration of lawful Powers : He hath set down Rules how to Regulate the Power of a King , that he play not the Tyrant ; He hath set down Rules to Regulate the Power of Masters , Parents by : So the Power in the Hand of the Church Officers is regulated , that they Rule with Diligence , Rom. 12. 8. And so through the Epistles to Timothy and Titus : But so it is that he hath set down no Rules to order Church Government by , in the Hands particular Believers . For in no place of the word will such Rules be found , Ye that are the flock govern the Pastors and feed them , watch over the People of God , lay hands suddenly on no man. I say there are no such directions given to private Christians ; and therefore this pretended Power is not of God. Our last Argument for the Truth is , If so be the Power of governing the Church doth belong to every Church-member ; then every Church-member is bound in Conscience to attend all Church Judicatories , to wait on the deciding of all Ecclesiastical questions : But what inevitable confusion would follow on this ? How long time would it take to inform People about the Circumstances of things ? How tedious would it be to hear every mans judgment to the point ? And what distractions would it be to Peoples Callings ? This certainly would bring great confusion ; And so such a Power as this cannot be from God , who is the God of Order . These are now the Arguments for the Truth . III. In the next place we shall answer their Arguments brought against the Truth . The first they use is grounded on Coloss. 4. 17. A command There is given to the Body of Believers in reference to the Minister , Say to Archippus , Take heed to the Ministry which thou hast received in the Lord. From this they infer , That People have Power to Censure their Minister ; And so have Church Authority . We answer , They make much of this Argument , and yet it is little worth : For they build their Power to Censure upon this that they have Power ( to Say ) A poor reason . So Matth. 18. 17. Say to the Church , or tell the Church : It is the same word that is here used ; But to infer from this that one man had Authority over the Church , were very ridiculous . Surely if he had commanded a judicial act of Authority , he would have said Command and Charge Archippus with all Authority , as in the like case he speaks to Timothy ; But as we shew in the state of the question , private Christians have Power to exhort and admonish one another , yea their Pastors ; But this doth not import any Power of Church-Government over others , else women who are not permitted to speak in the Church , should have Power of Church-Government , to make Church Canons , Censure and Ordain their Ministers ; For they are bound to exhort and admonish as occasion offers . Obj. 2. A second Argument they bring from Act. 11. 1. When Peter comes up to Jerusalem , verse 3. the people Challenge him saying , Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised , and didst eat with them , and verse 4 , He begins to clear himself to them , and rehearsed the matter from the beginning , &c. And from this they reason thus : That the Church hath Power to call Peter to an account ; And therefore they have Power to Censure for Scandals . It s answered first . Besides the People , there were Apostles and Brethren There verse 1. Secondly , We answer , It doth not follow because Peter purgeth himself of a Scandal unjustly laid upon him , That therefore they had Power to Censure him ; For every Christian is bound to clear himself to another Christian of that which he is stumbled within his carriage ; yet one private Christian hath not Church Power over another to Censure : So Peter was bound to clear himself before any one of them , and if he had done wrong , to take with it , but that That one could not be a Church Judicatory having Power to inflict Censure on Peter , our Opposits themselves will grant . Obj. 3. A Third Argument they bring against the Truth , is from Revel . 2. 14. I have a few things against thee , because thou hast there them that hold the Doctrine of Balaam . The Spirit of God here is wri●ing to the Church of Pergamus , And after he hath commended them for their Doctrine , he reproves them for not exercising Discipline against these Hereticks , to wit , Balaam , Iesabel and the Nicolattans . Now from this they argue , The whole Church is reproved here for not executing Discipline against these Hereticks ; and therefore they had power to do it , Otherwise they would not have been reproved for the neglect of it : But that all were reproved , they prove from vers . 13. and its connection with the 14. say they , these who are commended in the 13. are rebuked in the 14 verse , I know thy Works , and where thou dwellest , even where Sathan's seat is , &c. But so it is , that not only the Ministers and Elders , but all the People , dwelt where Sathan's Seat was : Therefore they all are reproved Answer , It followeth well that they are all reproved for one fault : But not that they were accessory to it after one and the same way . It was the Rulers part judicially to cast out these vile Hereticks : It was the Peoples part to have stirred up the Rulers to it : Now because these were neglected on both hands , both have their own guilt ; and so both reproved for their respective guilt : The People are reproved for not Mourning to God for the tollerating such like abominations ; and their not stirring up the Rulers to take course with them : But it will not follow that they were reproved for not sitting down in the Judicatory and inflicting Censures themselves , That was the Rulers fault : And therefore we deny that they are all rebuked for their accession to that guilt in the same way ; And we clear it thus , Doubtless the Teachers did not teach against these vile Hereticks ; Now there were Women there , and yet surely they are not rebuked for not Preaching against them , for They ought to be silent in the Church : So their fault , as of all other Church Members , was of another kind , to wit , Their not Mourning nor stirring up the Officers : And so it followes that it was their Duty to Mourn , stir others up to their Duty , which we grant . But not to exercise the Power themselves , for that is not the thing they are reproved for . Obj. 4. The Fourth Objection is grounded on Mat : 18 , 17 , If he shall neglect to hear them , tell it unto the Church : but if he neglect to hear the Church , let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a Publican . Whence ( say they ) the power of Church Censure is in the hand of the Church ; but so it is Church Officers are never called the Church ; Neither can they be so called without the Body of the People : Therefore the power of the Church Censures is in the hand of the Body of the People . Wee Answer , This Argument will make more against them than us , and that because they grant that neither Women nor Children have hand in Church Government , but only professing Men : Now they shall get no place in Scripture wherein the name of the Church is given to the Body of the Men Assembled without Women and Children . Secondly , We grant that the name of the Church is very sparingly given to Officers without the People : Yet we say . 1. 't is given them in some places ; As for Example Acts 18. 22. It is said of Paul. When he had landed at Caesarea , and gone up , and saluted the Church , &c. Now by the Church here certainly cannot be meaned the body of profess●rs which did amount to many thousands of People as shall appear from Acts 21. 20. In its own time : So by the Church must be meaned the Chief men and Rulers of the Church . For Paul having so short time to stay , he seeing them but at the by , could not have saluted every one , man by man ; and therefore certainly , it must be the prime men of the Church . But Secondly , The name of the Church is very usualy given to Rulers and Judges whether Ecclesiastick or Civil , without the People in the Old Testament , So Psalm 82 , 1. God standeth in the congation of the mighty : The same word rendred there Congregation is rendred the Church elsewhere ; And by the Congregation there , is meaned the Judges , and not the People : so we find it taken for the Rulers by comparing Exod : 20. 18. 19. with Deut : 5. 23. 2 Chron : 1. 3. Where Solomon takes up the whole Congregation with him : And yet that Congregation is exponed v. 2. to have been Chief-men and Rulers , so that usualy in the Old Testament , the word ( Church ) is taken from Rulers . And Thirdly , it must be so taken in this place also , for in the verse following he telleth what a Church he meaned by , v , 18 , Verily I say unto you , whatsoever yee shall bind on earth , shall be bound in Heaven : &c. Speaking to the Apostles : So it must be the Church of Rulers who are so called , because they represent the Church , doing her business wherein she is concerned . Objection Fifth , This were ( say they ) to establish a yoke of Tyranny over Church Members , if power be put in the hands of Officers to make Acts binding to them , and they to have no hand in making these Acts themselves . We Answer it is no yoke of Tyranny to instruct Officers with power to be over the People in the Lord : To Rule them according to his will ; to make use of their power not for destruction but for edification . And this is all we do teach . It s true , Church Officers may abuse their power , but there is no power were it never so good but coming in mans hand may be wrongly used . But secondly , There is as great danger of Tyranny in the Independent way , and more also , than in this ; For if the major part of the Congregation should enact what is wrong , and press it on the fewer and better part ; would not that be Tyranny ? And surely there is as great liklyhood of this , as of what they say , that the Eldership may press unjust Acts upon the Congregation : And as it is as likly , so it is more remeedless , for though a Congregation or any in it be wronged by the Elerdership , they have a Superior Judicatory to complean to , according to our Doctrine : But if the lesser part of the Congregation be wronged and Tyrannized over by the greater , according to their Doctrine , there is no power under Heaven to right the wrong , to call the oppressing party to an account : So of all Governments under Heaven Independency is the most Tyrannical . Obj. VI. The Sixth Objection they bring against the Truth is from Matth : 16. 19. Where Christ sayes I will give unto thee the keyes of the Kingdom of Heaven : and whatsoever shall be bound on earth — &c. It is agreed on by both sides , that by the Keys there is meaned , the power of Governing the Church . Now from this place they would infer that the Keys are given to the Body of the People : we shall propone and Answer Three of their Objections , whereby they labour to prove this consequence : The first is this , The Keys are given to the Church built on the Rock whereof Christ spake in the preceeding 18 , v. But sure it is , all that are believers are built on this Rock ; Therefore the power of the Keys are given unto them . We Answer , What they say that the power of the Keyes are given to the Church built on the Rock , Is said without a ground ; For he doth not say Vnto this Church built on a rock do I give the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven ; But I give it to thee Peter : Sure none needs to learn our Lord to speak ; and this change of Person is not without a Reason , in the preceeding verse , he says — upon this rock I will build my Church . Now if Christ had meaned to have established the Government in the hands of the body of the Church , he might have as easily said unto this Church will I give the keys &c. But he says not so , but changes the person , unto thee to wit , Peter will I give the keyes Besides this also every believing woman is a part of this Church built on the rock ; And yet according to their own grant , the power of the Keys is not given unto them . The Second Argument they bring from this place is this : The power of the Keys is given to those whom Peter did represent : But , Peter did represent all believers , the body of the Church : therefore , the power of the Keys is given unto them . For answer to this , we deny what is affirmed , that Peter in this place doth represent all believers , he doth but represent the rest of the Apostles , and those who were to succeed to the Apostes in Preaching the word and Administrating the Sacraments : And this we shall make good from other places of Scripture wherein the grant of this power is renewed and confirmed : The first place is John 20. 21. Then said Iesus to them again , Peace be unto you : as my father hath sent me , even so send I you , and v , 23 ; Whosoevers sins ye remit , they are remitted unto them , &c. Where it is clear the above mentioned grant is renewed , and renewed to the Apostles . Secondly , He did not only represent the Apostles , but all Ministers who succeed to the Apostles in Preaching the word and Administrating the Sacraments ; As in plain also from Matth : 28. 19 , 20. Where ye will find these things clear . 1. That there is a grant of power by Jesus Christ unto the Apostles . 2 That this grant is made there not only to the Apostles but to these who should succeed to them in Preaching and Baptizing to the end of the World : For it is said — lo I am with you alway ; even unto the end of the World. And so from this we retort the Argument on themselves , That the power of the Keys is given to these whom Peter did represent : But , so it is , Peter did represent the Apostles , and Ministers who were to succeed to them in Preaching the word &c. And therefore , the power of the Keys is given unto them . They argue Thirdly from this place that the grant of the Keys is of as large extent as Peters confession v. 16 , Thou art Christ the son of the living God. Now this Confession belongs to all believers , and so also must the power of the Keys , We Answer , 1. That the grant of the power of the Keys doth belong to all who hold out Peters Confession , hath no ground but their own Assertion . And 2. We say it is false , For this Confession belongs to all faithful Women and Children as well as men , who yet by our Opposits own concession have not the Power of the Keys . Their last Objection is taken from 1 Cor : 5. 5. Where the Apostle commands the Church of Corinth to Excommunicate the Incestous Person To deliver such a one unto Sathan , for the destruction of the flesh , that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus . Now , say they , this command is given unto all the Church , because there is no exception , and therefore not to Elders only ; As also the command is as large as the reproof in v. 2. And ye are puffed up , and have not rather mourned , &c. Now sure it is there were moe reproved than the Church Officers ; And therefore the command belongs to others than these . In Answering this Argument , we shall first retort it on themselves , For if so be the Argument hold good it would follow that Women and Children had power of Excommunication ; for if the command be to all without exception , then they are not excepted ; and if the command be given to all to whom the reproof is given , then it is to them , for doubtless Women and Children mourned no more than the men : And so they should have power to Excommunicate also : Now this were absurd and against themselves ; And so the two main pillars whereon they build their Argument , fall to the ground ; to wit , That the command is given to all without exception ; And that it is of a like latitude with the reproof . But Secondly , We Answer to the point , That all who are acquaint with Scripture know that God useth to give commands indefinitly to the whole Church , which he will not have applyed to every one in the Church but only to those persons to whom , according to their respective callings , interest , or relations , the command doth belong : We shall make this clear from 1 Cor : 14. 31. Where Paul speaketh generally to the Saints at Corinth : ye may all Prophecy one by one , &c. The command is given indefinitly to all , and yet sure it is not the Apostles mind that all to whom he writs should do this , but only they who had abilities and a Call to it ; and therefore he sayes in the preceeding 12 , chap. 29. Are all Apostles ? are all Prophets ? are all Teachers ? &c. So in 1 Thess : 5. 13. And to esteem them very highly in love for their works sake , &c. Now if this be a duty lying on all to whom the Epistle is directed , then the Ministers had been to esteem highly to themselves for their own works sake ; For the Epistle is written to them among the rest ; now this were absurd and so it must be intended for the People . So is it here the command is given indefinitly to all , yet the matter is not to be done by all , but only by some , to wit , the Church officers , and this appeareth evidently from 2 Cor. 2. 6. He was speaking to them concerning the same case in hand , to wit , the relaxing of the incestous man from Excommunication , and sayes he , Sufficient to such a man is this punishment which was inflicted of many . Now he doth not say Inflicted of all ( as they would make the words bear ) but inflicted of many : Yea ( as the learned observe ) the word ( many ) signifieth , The chief ones ; It is the same word that is Matth : 12. 41 — a greater than Jonas . So Paul explaines himself , That it was not all but the chief Ones , to wit , the Rulers , by whom the Censure was to be inflicted . And this now for Answering their Objections . IV. In the nixt place we shall come , and apply the whole purpose to a threefold Use. And the first is : Seeing this Error , as we have now made evident , it is not of God : I would have you suspecting fair pretences that a Doctrine may be coloured over with ; There is no Error that hath a fairer pretence than This hath : it is the liberty of the Saints , say they , should not they judge others ; A fair pretence ; And yet it is but the same that Korah Dathan , and Abiram had , and so we need to stumble the less at it — Ye take too much upon you ( said they ) seing all the Congregation are Holy every one of them , &c. Numb-16 . 3. The Second Vse is to private Christians , that ye would do your duty : And Secondly , Content your selves with your duty . And first do your duty , whereof many come short . Doubtless many at the hearing of this Doctrine will cast off all care , seeing the care of the Church is laid on the Officers thereof Ministers and Elders ; Nay but as we shew in the clearing of the State of the Question , although power of Governing the Church be not in the hands of all believers , yet there is a duty lying on them to admonish and exhort , even their Ministers , say to Archippus take heed to thy Ministry . Yea it is a duty lying on private Christians , that when your private Admonition doth not the business , ye are bound to delate it to the Church : We see this Matth : 16. Where Christs institutes this order v , 16. 1. To tell thy Brother privatly , and if that will not do , bring two or three moe Witnesses with thee : then if that do it not , tell it to the Church : so it is a duty lying on every Church member to admonish and rebuke , even their Ministers and Elders ; to stir them up when slack , and when that will not do , to tell it to others . And we would charge you to make more conscience of this duty than usually ye do . A second part of your duty we told you was to try the spirits in reference to your practice , ye are not bound to take a Doctrine on trust from Ministers , tho Apostles , Nay not from Angels — Though we , or an Angel from Heaven Preach any other Gospel unto you , than that which we have Preached unto you , let him be accursed . Galat. 1. 8. And private Christians come short of this part of their duty also ; many seeking no other Reason of their Faith than what Ministers Preach , it is a loose ground ; For ye are commanded to Try the Spirits . But Secondly , As ye would make Conscience of your duty , so ye would content your selves with your duty , ye would look on Church Officers and reverence them ; ye are not to say , what is more in them than in our selves , may we not be as fit as they , they may erre as well as we : Grant it be so , yet they are Gods Ordinance , appointed by the God of order , and he who reproacheth them , reproacheth his ordinance , and breaketh down the hedge appointed by God. The Third Vse is directed to Church Officers , Those whom the Lord hath instructed with this power , Ye would make use of it for Edification and not for destruction , ye should so carry your selves in your places as not to tempt the People of God to despise your Office. When the Lords People hear of an Elder to be a Tipler , or a Swearer , it is a temptation to them to despise both that Elder and his Office : Many surely in this are stumbling blocks to People , As Eli's Sons made the People abhorr the offering of the Lord. The Truth is , it is no great wonder that the Government of the Church be losing weight in the minds of many , if it were but for this one Reason , that they who are intrusted with it do not Labour to beautify it ; It is looked on by many as a place of respect and not of Office ; If a man be Richer than his neighbour , he thinks he is not respected if he be not an Elder ; and having goten the name he cares for no more : Now , is that the way either to make People respect thy Person or thy Office. Let me obtest and charge all of you who have taken on this Heavenly Calling , as ye will Answer on your hazard to Jesus Christ the chief sheepherd that ye would study by all means so to walk in it , as to beautify it , and that so much the more , as the Devil is Labouring to disgrace it . And this now for the First Head of Independency . Head II. The highest Power of Church Government is not in Church-Sessions , or Congregational Elderships . WE come now to the Second Head , And it is , That , for which mainly they are called Independents : The point they affirm is this , That every particular Church Session or Congregational Eldership is instructed with the highest power of Church Government on Earth , so that there is no power in the Church above them to call them to an account , when they go wrong , to rescind any Act once concluded , though it were never so unjust : They grant that a Synod of Ministers and Elders may meet to consult about matters , but withall affirm , that they have no Ecclesiasticall power to command in the Lord any Congregation whatsoever : So that if a man be wronged by a Session : As for instance , if he be unjustly censured ( as it may very readily fall out ) he must sit with his wrong , there is no power to right it till Christ come in the Clouds : Or if a particular Congregation divide , turn Hereticks , run wrong ( as many of the Independent Congregations doe ) there is no Church power to heal the breach , unless it be by giving an advice , which they may either follow , or not follow , as likes them best . We again grant , That particular Elderships have a power from Jesus Christ to Exercise Discipline in these things which concern the Congregation in particular ; But as for other things of more publick concernment , that is to say , Things that concern other Congregations as well as them , these ought to be handled by a Superior Judicatory ; And that even in those things of particular concernment , They are lyable to Appeals , and the inspection of the Superior Judicatory ; So that wherein they shall be found wrong , partial , or Erronious , They may be called to an account . For shewing the fashood of this Error ▪ as also for the vindicating of the Government of the Church of Scotland , that is now so much spoken against , we shall labour to make out , with the Lords assistance these Three Truths from the word of God. The first it this : That , besides the power of Church Government that Christ hath given to particular Elderships , There is also holden forth in his word , A plat-form or a Copy of the Government of many Congregations by one Presbytry over them all in common . The Second Truth that we shall make out is this : That besides the Church Government that Christ hath established by Presbytries , there is also holden out in the word greater Church Judicatories , to wit , Synods made up of Commissioners from several Presbytries instructed with power of Church Government from Christ also . And Thirdly , We shall labour to make out this Truth , That the inferior Judicatories are to be Subject to the Superior ; as Sessions to Presbytries , Presbytries to Synods , Synods to General Assemblies : So that the Superior judicatories have power over the Inferior in the Lord , to receive Appeals from them , and complaints 〈◊〉 them , to Censure them for Miscarying in the matter of Discipline , and to enact Church Canons or conclusions binding to them , which Inferior Judicatories are bound to obey in the Lord. ¶ I. There is a Platform of the Government of many Congregations , by one common Presbytery holden out in Scripture . COncerning the State of this Question I only premit this , That however we have the very name of this Presbytry whereabout we dispute holden out in 1 Tim : 4. 14. Whereby I might easily show is meaned the Presbytry we plead for ▪ yet we shall not dispute about names ; Though the Name were not , yet it is sufficient that the Thing be in it , And this we shall make good , to wit , That in Scripture is holden out a pattern of the Government of many Congregations by one common Presbytry . The proof of this point we might instance almost in all the Churches that were planted in the Apostles time : As in the Church of Jerusalem , The Church of Antioch , Ephesus , Thessalonica , Corinth , and of Rome : We might easily make it appear that those Churches were not single Congregations , but Presbyterial Churches , under one common Government : But in stead of spending of time in pointing out this in all these Churches , we shall instance it only in the Church of Ierusalem ; That by this One ye may know what to judge of the rest . And first concerning the Church of Jerusalem planted by the Apostles , we shall labour to make out thir two things . 1. That in that one Church there were many particular Congregations . And 2. That all these particular Congregations made up but one Church , and was guided by one common Presbytry , and Judicatory , set over them all in common . Which two being made out , the point we intend will appear evidently , to wit , That there was here a Government set over many Congregations in one common Judicatory ; such as our Presbytry is over all the particular Church-Sessions in the bounds . The first thing we shall make out is this , That there were moe Congregations in the Church of Jerusalem than one , and this from four grounds . First , From the multitude of Church Members that were in Jerusalem . Secondly , From the multitude of Pastors , Teachers , and Elders , that were there , moe than could get work in one single Congregation . Thirdly , From the diversities of Languages that were among the People of that Church . And Fourthly , From the way of their meeting and the place they resorted to for Gods service . And first , For the multitude of Church Members that was at Jerusalem , If we compare place with place , we will find that they amounted to many thousands , and so behooved to be moe than one single Congregation . Take a view of some of these places Acts 1. 15. they are numbred to be about ane hundred and twenty . And Act. 2. 41. there are added unto them about three thousand Souls : and then in v. 47. There is daily Addition of moe and moe — the Lord added unto the Church daily such as should be saved . Act. 4. 4. We see yet a greater increase ; There are about five thousand — and the nu●ber of the men was about five thousand , concerning which five thousand it is necessarly to be understood that they were added presently , excluding the rest of the numbers before spoken of , For the last part of the verse must be exponed according to the first part : Howbeit , many of them which heard the word believed , Now certainly that is meaned of others besides those that were before added ; and so this five thousand must be a new number , Fiftly , In Acts 5. 14. Besides all these it is said And believers were the more added to the Lord , multitudes both of men and Women . And Sixtly , In Act. 6. 7. And the word of the Lord increased , and the number of the Disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly , and a great company of the Priests were obedient to the Faith. They multiplied , and multiplyed greatly ; And these were not only the common People , but the leaders and Priests also , who doubtless would bring multitudes with them by their example : Now all these being considered , any understanding man may easily conceive , that so many thousands , as these would amount to , behooved to be cast in moe Congregations than one , and could not be one single Congregation . Before we proceed to the Second ground of our proof , we shall shew you first what they say against this : There are three things mainly they object : And the first is , That the most part of those who were converted by the Apostles were strangers , who had not their dwelling at Jerusalem ; and so did not remain Members of that Church : And for this they cite Act : 2. 8 , 9. Where it is reckoned that among the number of the hearers , there were Parthians , and Medes , and Elamits , and the dwellers in Mesopotamia , &c. To this we Answer that though those men came out of those far Countries being Godly men , who come in Expectation of the Messias his coming , who was then expected ; yet they were dwellers in Jerusalem for that time , and for this see Act : 2. 5. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews , devout men , out of every nation under Heaven . So they had taken up house and were dwelling there : And in v , 14. Where Peter began his Preaching he sayes — Ye men of Judea , and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem , be this known unto you , &c. Secondly , We answer , dwell where they please , They were Members of this Church at Jerusalem ; And this appears from several things that are ascribed to them by the Holy Ghost , which cannot be spoken of any but Members of that Church : So in verse 47. it is said — And the Lord added them unto the Church daily . Secondly , In verse 46. They continued daily with one accord in the Temple , and breaking Bread from house to house , &c. Thirdly , In verse 45. They sold their possessions , and gave their Goods into the Church Treasury , for the help of the poor . And Fourthly , We find in Act. 6. 5. That they all joyned in choosing the Deacons and Officers of the Church . Now sure these are Actions that belong to none but Church-Members . This for their First Objection . Their second Objection is this , say they , The Holy Ghost sayeth expresly , that they did meet all at one place , as if it were on purpose to evince our Argument , and that the whole multitude did come together , As for instance Act. 2. 1. it is said , They were all with one accord in one place , and in the same Chapter verse 46. They continuing daily with one accord in the Temple , &c. And it is also said , Act. 6. 2. Then the twelve called the multitude of the Disciples unto them , &c. And verse 5. And the saying pleased the whole multitude . Now to take off this exception which seems to be the most plausible of their Objections : First , Consider what we spoke from the Scripture of their number , and what thousands were in this Church : And let any reasonable man conceive how it could be possible that all those should meet in one place ; And therefore that meeting in one place must be taken in another sense : It 's observed by the Learned , That the word here turned , meeting together in one place , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth not always signify a meeting together in one room , but the agreeing of the Affection and Judgement in one thing : And for the clearing of this they cite , Act. 4. 25 , 26 — Why did the Heathen rage , and the People imagine vain things ? The Kings of the earth stood up , and the Rulers were gathered together against the Lord , &c. Now it is the same word that is there turned ( in one place ) which is here turned ( gathered together ) and certainly no place of Scripture will prove that Herod , Pontius Pilate , Jew and Gentile did all meet in one place to consult about the Death of Christ : But only they agreed in one Judgement , and hearty Affection about it : And so the meaning may well be taken thus , in t●is other place . But yet to speak to these places further : For Act. 2. 1. That they were all with one accord in one place , It makes nothing against our Argument : For the number was not then so great , as we shew it grew afterwards , and so they might well meet in one place . The same answer we give to that in verse 46. They continuing daily with one accord in the Temple . They were not then come to the full number that afterward they came to : So that although they might all have continued in the Temple at that time , yet afterwards they could not . And Secondly , We answer ; It doth not prove the point they bring it for , It is only mentioned They came to the Temple to hear the Word , but not that they were all of one Congregation , partaking of all Ordinances in one place ; For it is said afterwards , They brake Bread from House to House , meaning the Sacrament of the Lords Supper , which they did partake of from House to House in their particular Congregations : So that place makes more against our Opposits than against us : For the other place in Act. 6. 5. When the Apostles and Believers were come to a greater extent , yet the Apostles call the whole multitude to them , and it is said , The saying pleased the whole multitude . To this we answer , by the whole multitude cannot be meaned all before spoken of : And therefore we say , by the whole Multitude , is meaned a great Multitude : as in that of Luke 8. 37. Where it is said , That the whole multitude of the Countrey of the Gadarens round about , &c. It is not to be imagined that Man and Mother-Son , or every Individual Person came out to meet Christ , but only a great Multitude ; or otherwise the whole multitude may be taken , for the whole multitude of those that were present , as Luke 1. 10. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without , when Zacharias was offering Incense . Now this must not be understood that all the multitude of the People of Jerusalem was there , but only of the whole multitude that was present . This for their second Objection . Their third Objection is this : Though it be granted that the number of Believers was such before the persecution that fell out , Act. 8 , 1. Yet when that Persecution came , there were no more left than might meet in a single Congregation , for the Text faith , They were all scattered abroad throughout the region of Judea and Samaria , except the Apostles , To this we answer , That if it be granted that there were moe Congregations before this Persecution ; then it makes out the point we are to prove . But Secondly , Neither do we yeild that which they affirm , That by the persecution mentioned Act. 8. 1. The multitude was brought to such a few number , as they could make up but one Congregation ; It is said indeed , They were all scattered except the Apostles : But by this ( all ) is not meaned all the Professors , but all the Preachers , and there are several reasons to prove it ; For it is said , Saul made havock of the Church , verse 3. Now if he had meaned that all the Professors were scattered , where should Saul have gotten Men and Women to hail to Prison ; and that this was done in Jerusalem , Paul himself acknowledges , Act. 26. 10. A second thing to prove that this ( all ) that was scattered , was the ( all ) of the Preachers and not of the Professors , is that in verse 4. where it is said , They were scatered abroad , every where Preaching the Word , So that it astricts the scattering mainly to those who were Preachers : For certainly the whole multitude could not have gone to Preach the Word . And Thirdly , The Apostles remain still at Jerusalem , as appears from the first verse , Now to what end and purpose should the Apostles have stayed there behind the rest , except there had been several Flocks there , with whom they stayed with the hazard of their Lives to confort them against the Persecution , which had driven their Preachers from them . But a second answer is , That however they had been so scattered in the beginning of the Persecution , that there was no more of them than made up a single Congregation ; yet in process of time they so multiplyed , that they behooved to make up many Congregations : And for this ye may find out several places , as Act. 9. 31. They were multiplied , and Act. 12. 24. speaking of Jerusalem , The word of God grew and multiplied . But we shall take one place for all , In Act. 21. 20. where the Elders relate to Paul the exception that the People had taken at him for his going to the Gentiles — Thou seest , Brother , how many thousands of Jews there are which believe , &c. Now the word rendered thousands in the Greek is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies Ten Thousands ; so there were not only Thousands , but Ten Thousands ; yea , and many ten thousands there ; And so moe than could be Edified in one single Congregation . And that these were of Jerusalem , is clear from verse 21. They are informed of thee , &c. And from verse 22. — the multitude must needs come together , &c. Now this is from the first ground of our Proof . 2. The second ground from whence we are to prove , That there were moe Congregations in the Church of Jerusalem than one , is taken from the multitude of Christs Officers ; That there were so many that it had been a shame for them all to wait upon one flock : We find the Apostles were there , as in Act. 6. 15. about the choosing of the Deacons : We find they were also there in Acts 15. v. 6. Now besides the Apostles we find there were other Church-Officers in Jerusalem , as in Acts 11. verse last . There were Elders there , where he is speaking of Jerusalem , as it appears in verse 27. Besides there were Prophets in it , as in verse 27. of the same Chapter , And in these aayes came Prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch . And it is the Judgement of several Interpreters , that the seventy Disciples whom Christ sent out to Preach , were still at Jerusalem ; And that they were of the number of these hundred and twenty mentioned Act. 1. 15. Now let any man consider if it was likely , especially when the Harvest was so great , That so many of the Apostles should be ordinary Hearers of the Word , and only one but to speak ; especially when we consider , That when Christ sent out the twelve Disciples only , he sent them not out all together , but two by two ; and so certainly a wise man may well conclude , That there behooved to be moe Congregations there than one , yea many Congregations . This is for the second ground of our proof . The third ground is taken from the multitude of Languages that were in Jerusalem , Act. 2. 5 , 8 , 9. 10. 11. and Act. 6. Which diversity did necessitate them to enjoy the Ordinances in divers distinct Congregations in their own Language ; And that it might be so , the Spirit furnished the Apostles with diversity of Languages . The fourth ground to prove this point is taken from the way of their Meeting , which was not in void capacious Rooms built for the purpose , as we now have ; for they had not then the Civil Magistrate for them , to allow places of meeting for the purpose ; but only in private Houses , upper Chambers , Houses allowed to them by private Christians ; as Act : 2. 46. And surely it cannot be conceived that their Houses could contain so many thousands ; and therefore of necessity they could not meet all in one Congregation . Thus we have made out the first point , That there were moe Congregations than one in Jerusalem . We might prove the like in the other Churches of Ephesus , Antioch , Corinth , Rome , Thessalonica , that there were moe Congregations than one there also : And that from the multitude of Believers the Scripture speaks of , the multitude of Preachers , diversities of Languages ; But for brevities cause we pass to the other point , which is the second thing we have to make out , and it is this . II. That all these Congregations in Jerusalem were under one Government , there was one common Judicatory that Ruled them all in common , As our Presbytry is over all the Congregations within its bounds : And for clearing of this we lay down three things . The First is that although there were many particular Congregations at Jerusalem , yet they are called but one Church : so in several places they are called the Church , Act : 8. 1. 15. 4. &c. And by the way this refutes one of the Independent tenets , whereby they affirm : That the name of Church is never given under the New Testament , but to those who meet ordinarly in one place , for the discharging of all parts of Gods Worship . But to the Argument , For what reason could they be called one Church ? Not because they met together in one place for the Ministration of the word , Sacraments and Prayer ; For those were dispensed to them in their singular Congregations severally , and so certainly they are called one Church ; because they were under one Government , one Eldership above them to Govern them : As the Church of Scotland is called one Church , because all her Congregations are Governed by one General Assembly . Secondly , We add to the former , In this one Church , made up of many Churches we find there are Ruling Elders ; so we find in Act : 15. 4. and Act : 21. 15 , 18. And when they were come to Jerusalem , they were received of the Church , and of the Apostles and Elders , &c. Now they are not called the Elders of a particular flock at Jerusalem ; but the Elders of the Church ; and therefore did meet in one Common Judicatory . The force of this Argument cannot be spoken against by our Opposits , who prove their particular Elderships from the same ground as in Act : 20. 28. mentioning of the Elders of the Church of Ephesus ; From whence they Reason thus : Ephesus was a particular Congregation , we read there were Elders in this Church , therefore there was an Eldership who met together for Governing that Church in common . They must give us liberty to Reason that same way thus , We find at Jerusalem was a Church made up of many particular Churches , we find Elders in this Church ; Therefore there was an Eldership who met together for Governing of this Church or these Churches in common . But Thirdly , to make this Argument yet stronger , not only there are Elders in this Church , but we find they meet together for Acts of Jurisdiction , belonging to the whole Church in Common . For proof of this see Act : 11 , 30. The contribution that is gathered for supply of the Saints is sent to the Elders : Now what the Elders should do with it , may be gathered from a place like it Act : 4. 35. 37. where it is said : They sold their possessions and laid down the price at the Apostles feet . And distribution was made unto every man , according as he had need . So doubtless the contribution was given to the Elders , for this end that they might have distributed the same to the poor in the whole Church ; And so it was an Act of Government tending to the good of the Church . Further we find this more clear Act : 21. 18. They meet together , and Judicially set down a way to Paul for removing of a Church Scandal , by satisfying the offended , and purifying himself after the manner of the Jews , In v , 23. Do therefore this , &c. So we see their Elderships meeting together for removing a Scandal . We find a Third place to confirm this ; Act. 15. 2. 4 , We shall afterward make use of the whole Chapter to prove the power of Synods ; only this much at present to the purpose in hand . We find the Elders met , and make binding Acts to the Churches under them . So we have made out the first point , That there is a Government of many Congregations under one Presbytry holden out in the Word . The main thing our Opposits flee to at the last is this ; That granting it to be true , That there were many Congregations in Jerusalem before the Persecution in Act : 8. And that they had one Government above them ; yet that doth not infer a Government by Presbytry ; For they were Governed by the Apostles ; We read not of any Elders in that Church before the Dispersion , at which time they were brought to so few a number , that they might all meet in one place : So that though there was one common Government then , by Elders ; It inferrs not a Presbytry but a Congregational Eldership only . This is the sum of all that is said to this . For Answer , They grant to us , That after the Persecution there was a common Eldership over the Church of Jerusalem . And Secondly , We have proved that there were moe Congregations than One there , even after the Dispersion : And we have also proved that they had Elders over them in common ; so that whatever was before the Dispersion , yet even from their own concession it followeth , That there was a Presbyterial Government in Jerusalem after the Dispersion . Secondly we answer , They can hardly prove that there were no Elders in Jerusalem before the Dispersion : It s true we read not of Elders until Act. 11. But when they were first instituted , we read not . Thirdly , We answer , That though there were not Elders to govern them in common , yet it is enough for us that the Apostles did govern them in common ; for they were also Elders : So they call themselves , 2 John ver . 1. 1 Peter 5. 1. But Secondly , As they were Elders , so what they did in these Acts of Government , they did it as Elders : For what they did as Apostles is not imitable now , but what they did in Governing the Church is imitable , such as Ordaining of Officers , Distributing of Alms. Again , What they did as Apostles , one of them might do it alone ; But here they do it in Collegio , Act. 6. And reserve the Peoples part of Election to them . Now they never met together to write Scripture ; nor sought the Peoples concurrence for any Act meerly Apostolick ; so it is clear the Church was governed by them as Elders ; And so the Churches even then were under one common Eldership . And this now for the first thing we promised to make out , to wit , That the Scripture holdeth out a pattern of the Government of many Congregations by one common Presbytery . ¶ II. There is a Plat-form of Government by Synods over many particular Presbyteries holden forth in Scripture . THe Second thing we promised to make out is this , That as the Scripture holdeth forth the Power of Presbyteries , so also the Power of a Synod ; by which we mean Church Judicatories above Presbyteries , as they are above Sessions , or Congregational Elderships . I. For understanding the Question , These Synods or greater Meetings of Church Officers , are of three sorts : Some made up of several Presbyteries , and these are Provincial Synods , ( such as commonly we have twice a year ) Or they are made up of several Synods within a Nation ; and these are General Assemblies . Or Thirdly , They are made up of several Churches of several Nations , or Commissioners from them ; and these are called Universal Councils , or General Synods of the Christian World. Now all these differ from Presbyteries , not only in this . That they are more ample ; but also in this , That the Government by Presbyteries is the common ordinary way of Government held out in Scripture : But Synods for the most part are more rare , and upon particular emergent ; as Act. 15. That Synod was called upon an occasion of Division in the Church of Antioch , which troubled other Churches about . Secondly , All these kinds of greater Synods , The Provincial Synod , and the Synod of a Nation , and the Universal Councils , do not differ in Nature and kind , but only in less and more ; Wherefore it is not needful that we hold out every one of them from Scripture , It is sufficient that we hold out the Power of Synods in the general , which is to be applyed to every kind in particular : For so we find it in Scripture in other things . Particulars are infinite ; and therefore in things of one and the same kind General Rules are sufficient ; Or a Rule for one particular , which keeping the just proportion , is to be applyed to other particulars of the same kind , As Matth : 18. Christ sets down the way of walking in private Scandals , speaking nothing of publick Scandals : Not as if Jesus Christ did mean that publick Scandals should be passed over , but that the same Rule may serve for these , keeping the just proportion : Even so is it here ; If the nature of Synods be held out in the Word , that is enough , though it speak nothing of the bounds to which they should extend , whether of One Province , or of All the Provinces of a Nation ; no more than it is particularly set down in Scripture , what should be the number and bounds of a particular Congregation . There is a Third thing for clearing of this Question : The Independents and we agree in this , That the word gives ground for meeting of Synods ; only we differ about their Power : They grant that in case of Division or Scandal , Synods may meet and give their Advice in Matters doubtful ; only they say , that Synods have no Power of Jurisdiction to command others in the Lord to embrace their determinations , We on the other hand maintain that they have this Power , and that the Scripture holdeth out such a Power belonging to them . II. We might instance this in Act : 1 , In the choice of Matthias , which was done by no particular Church ; For here were the Apostles , whose Paroch-Church was the whole world : Here were the Brethren of Christ from Galilie v , 14. Some from Jerusalem v. 15. This meeting did a Church business of common concernment to the whole Christian World , and so behooved to be done by those who did represent them , And therefore this behooved to be a General Council . But to clear the point more fully , we shall take Act : 15. Where this Synod we plead for is held forth clearly : The History is plain : A difference ariseth in Antioch about Circumcision , This cannot be composed in Antioch it self ; so they send up Commissioners to Jerusalem to determine this matter , where there is a Synod of Apostles and Elders , and they determine the Question . Now that it may appear the Synod we plead for is here ; consider first , That there was a Church meeting or Judicatory here ; None may doubt of this , as is clear v , 6. Secondly , Consider , That this Judicatory is made up of Commissioners from the several Presbyteries , we see that Commissioners from the Presbytry of Jerusalem was there v , 6. And Commissioners from the Presbytry of Antioch Act : 15. 2 Paul and Barnabas and others . Now that these were Commissioners , and had voice appears from Act : 16. 4. where the decree that was then made was ascrived to all the Elders who were present . It is very likely that there were other Commissioners there also from Syria and Cilicia ; For they are joyned with Antioch in the Letter v. 23. For what other Reason cannot be imagined , except that as they were alike troubled with the Heresy as Antioch was , so they had their Commissioners there as Antioch had , And therefore these Acts are binding to them in a special manner , However it is clear that there were Commissioners from the Presbytry of Jerusalem and of Antioch , so the meeting was made up of two Presbytries ; And by the same rule it may be made up of moe . Thirdly , We would consider that this meeting made up of Commissioners from several Presbytries makes binding Acts unto other absent Churches , who were present only in their Commissioners ; And there are several things to clear this : First , They determine the Question in v , 19. 20 Secondly , They impose Their determination on the Churches to be keeped by them : So in the Letters They wrote to the Church of Syria and Cilicia v , 28. The word that is turned there a Burthen , signifies a Law or a Decree , and so we find it in Act : 16. 4. There their Conclusions are called Decrees which were ordained of the Apostles and El●ers at Jerusalem , And which were to be keeped : From all which it is clear They did make Acts binding other Congregations . Thirdly , We find they put forth an Act of Censure on the false Prophets v , 24. They called them Lyars , A brand of Infamy . It 's true They Censured them not with Excommunication , For it was time enough to doe That , when they knew they were become incorrigibly obstinate , according to the common Rule , An Heretick after the first and second Admonition reject . By this I hope , ye perceive clearly a pattern for greater Synods , a Judicatory made up of Commissioners from several Presbytries ; and these making binding Laws to other Churches , who were absent in their Persons , and only present in their Commissioners III. Their main Objection against this is , That the Apostles were here , who were guided with an infallible Spirit to determine ; and so this can be no Rule for our Synods , made up of men wanting that assistance . To this we Answer , that this if it prove any thing will make against our Opposits themselves as well as against us ; For they hold that here is a pattern of a Synod for advice , so if their Argument hold against Us in the One , It must hold also against Them in the Other . Secondly , We shew before that the Apostles were also Elders , and sometimes Acted as Elders ; Now if it can be proven that they Acted as Elders here , it breaks the strength of their Objection . But this is clear , First , Paul and Barnabas are sent by the Church of Antioch , They willingly submit Act : 15. 4 Now in their Apostolick Office they were not directed by me● , And so surely here they acted not as Apostles . Secondly , The Apostles all along go not on that way , as when guided by an infallible Apostolick Spirit ; For they state the Question , and debate it in v , 7. Now when they write Scripture , they do not use advice , nor do they debate what they shall conclude , but speake all as immediatly inspired ; But here they debate . And ●aving found Truth , By force of Reason they conclude , as any other Assembly , upon like assurance of Scripture warrand , may do , It seemeth good unto Vs being Assembled with one accord , &c. In v , 25. Thirdly , When the Apostles did determine any thing as Apostles , and were guided by the immediatly inspiring Spirit of God , then they did determine the Question fully that nothing needed to be added : But so it was not here , For Peter v , 6th gives his Judgment , That Believers were freed from the Ceremonial Law : What he saith is true indeed ; Yet it speaketh not fully to the point , untill James addeth somewhat , to wit , That however the Gentils were freed from the Ceremonial Law , yet to eschew the Scandal of the weak Jews , They were to abstain from things strangled &c ▪ v , 20. And therefore , They Acted not as Apostles , except we would say , that Peter as an Apostle intending to determine a Controversie , yet did not speak fully to the point , which were an injury to that immediately inspiring Spirit , by which they were acted in penning Scripture , Fourthly , Because the decrees of the Synod are put forth in the name and by the Authority not only of the Apostles , but Elders also , Act : 15. 22. 23. Act. 16. 4. Act. 21. 25. Now surely ordinary Elders did never concurr with the Apostles in Acts of their Apostolick office ; As penning Scripture , &c. From all that is said , it is most clear , that the Apostles here acted as Elders , leaving a Pattern for such like Judicatories upon the like occasions , to the end of the World : Which is the Second Point . ¶ III. Inferior Church Judicatories are Subject to Superiour . THE Third point we have to make out is this : That Inferior Church Judicatories are subordinate to the Superior , as Sessions or Congregational Elderships to Presbytries , Presbytries to Synods , &c. So that the greater have power of Government over the lesser : For receiving Appeals from them , Complaints of them , Enacting of Church Canons ; unto which the Inferior ought to be subject in the Lord. The point in short is , That particular Elderships are not Independent , so as to do what they please , without being accountable to any Judicatory above them ; But Presbyteries are over them in the Lord. We shall follow the former Order : First , To clear the Question . Secondly , To bring Arguments for the Truth . Thirdly , To answer Arguments against the Truth . Fourthly , To apply it to Use. I. For the First , We allow unto particular Congregations an Eldership and Power of Discipline within themselves , to judge of these things that are of their particular concernment : But as for things wherein other Congregations are concerned with them , We hold that such do belong to Superiour Judicatories according to the Rule , What belongs unto all should be handled by all . Secondly , We do not give Power to any one single Congregation above another : We say , That all Congregations ( the least as well as the greatest is equal in Power ; This way was the Bishops Tyranny , that made all the Congregations of the Diocess subject to the Cathedral Church , the Parish where the Bishop lived : So that all others were to subject themselves to it , and the great Lord Bishops Laws which he gave out in it . We do only say , That all particular Congregations should be subject to a Presbytery , made up of Elders taken from among themselves , wherein no Congregation can challenge Power more than another : The meanest hath as great Power in them as the greatest . Thirdly , We do not say that the Power of Presbyteries or Synods are absolute , so that whatever they conclude should stand for a Law ; or that they ought to be obeyed in every thing . We affirme Their Power is a limited and Ministerial Power , It is a Power in the Lord ; So that put the case , If a Presbytery or Synod should conclude a thing that is wrong , They are not to be followed blindly . We allow to every particular Christian a Judgement of Discretion , whereby they should compare the Acts of Church Judicatories , with the Rule of the Word , and accordingly either to choice or refuse : Only herein we say , First , That particular Christians should have a kind of loathness to differ from the Judicatories of the Church , arising from a secret kind of diffidence and distrust of their own Light and understanding ; so that although they are not to follow others blindly , yet they are to suspect themselves rather than them ; we mean when the matter is dubious . Secondly , We say , That when the case comes that it is evidently seen that Superiour Judicatories have gone wrong , private Christians are to differ from them indeed , yet so as to give great Reverence and Respect to the Judicatory , even when they are necessitate to dissent from their Acts , least by their furious zeal they cast all loose and into confusion . But to come to the point , The Question is , Whether all the Power of Church Government be in the Hands of particular Elderships ; And so if particular Elderships be Independent : Or if Jesus Christ hath warranted Presbyteries to be above them in the Lord. We maintain the last : And we clear our part the Controversy from several Arguments . II. The First Argument is taken from the many defects that are in this way of Independency , where the whole Power is put in one Congregation ; so as to be countable to none : We shall reckon four or five of these Defects ; and indeed very great Defects . First , According to this way of Theirs , there is no Authoritative way in Christs Church to right a man that is wronged by a particular Congregation ; As put the Case that an Eldership should wrong a man by Censuring him unjustly : According to Their way , He must sit with the wrong , there is no remedy to him till Christ come in the Clouds . There is a second defect according to this Independent way of Theirs : There is no Authority in the Church to heal Breaches in a Congregation : Put the case that a People should divide from the Elders , or the Elders among themselves , or that one Congregation may have a contest with another : Now in these cases , suppose both these Parties to be wilful , as too usually it falls out , so as They will not yeild to any Advice , without Authority to back it : Now what remedy is left in such Cases without the assistance of a Presbytery , that hath Power over both Parties , to command them in the Lord to do what is right : And can we think that Christ hath left no remedy in his House for such evils , as may so frequently fall out . Thirdly , The Independent way leaveth no Authoritative mean for holding down Pluralities of Religion ; For if so , then let a particular Congregation set up what Religion they please ; suppose it be Popery : There is no Authoritative mean to hinder it : But in the Way of Presbytery it is otherwise : Presbytery is Christs Weeding-hook to weed out Heresies ; so we observe wherever it is set up it bears Heresy down ; And no wonder ; For Judicatories are so subordinate , one to another , that what is overseen in the one , is taken notice of in the other . Fourthly ; By this way of theirs , there is no Authoritative mean for unity and uniformity in the publick service of God among Congregations ; But every one being left to themselves , will take a way of Their Own ; This Congregation one way , and that Congregation another way ; which doubtless would prove a great stumbling block to the weak , not knowing unto what Congregation to joyn , because of the great diversity among all . Put the case ( to clear it in some things whereby ye may guess at others ) that in one Congregation they would both read and expound , In another , they would only Read : In others the line were not read for singing ; And in another , it were read : In some Congregations Children were not Baptized but in time of Sermon , In others , That Baptism were Administrate at other times also : In some Congregations Two Prayers before a Sermon , In another but one : In another the Conclusion Sung , In another not . Now though the Strong would not stumble at these things , knowing that such in their own nature are , for the most part at least , indifferent ; Yet to the weak Christian they might prove a ground of stumbling ; For usually such presently stamp Conscience on that part of the difference which they like best , and hence arise contests , Janglings , and matter of renting the Church . Now there is no way in Independency left for preventing of this . Fifthly , The way of Independency leaves no remedy to a Congregation wanting a Minister , for Tryal of the next that comes ▪ Whose tryal is left wholly to the People by this way of Theirs : How slight that tryal would be , any may judge ; How few Parishes can try a Minister in his Abilities , If he be apt to Preach , convince gainsayers , watch against ravening wolves &c. Now this is remeeded in the way of Presbytery , according to Pauls Rule 1 Tim : 4. 14. That Ministers be ordained — with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery . This for the first Argument , from Five great defects in the Independent way ; Other defects also might be instanced , but these may suffice . Our Second Argument is taken from Matth. 18. 16. 17. 18. where Jesus Christ layes down a way for the removing of private Scandals , or dealing with an offending brother ; From whence we argue thus , If Christ hath laid down a way for gaining an offending brother , how much more for gaining an offending Church : It s above all doubt that a Church may offend , walk inoderly , wrest Justice . Now surely Gods care must be no less of the whole Church than of One Member : So that our consequence holds : but we assume , There is no way to heal the Scandal of an offending Congregation or particular Church , but by compleaning to a Presbyterial Church above them : This is evident , For 1. our Opposites themselves will not censure them-themselves : They cannot be both judge and party . 2. It appears from the rule of proportion , For by that same rule that private Christians are to be compleaned of to that Eldership whereof they are parts ; so the Eldership is to be compleaned of to that Presbytry whereof it is a part : and if the Christian liberty of the private Christian be not taken away by the one , so neither is the just power of the Eldership taken away by the other . Our Third Argument is from that which we handled before , That in Scripture is holden forth Government by Presbytries over single Congregations , and by Synods over Presbytries , From whence we argue thus , That the way of Governing the Church in the Apostles times was by Presbyteries and Synods ; And therefore the Church should still be so Governed . For the first part of our Argument That the way Then of Governing the Church was by Presbytries and Synods , it was proved before : So we have only to speak to the Second part of our Argument , that therefore the Church should be Governed so now : And to clear this consequence , consider these things . 1. That whatever is recorded of the practice of the Churches in the matter of Government in the Apostles times , can be for no other end but to be a Pattern for imitation to the Churches in after times , For whatsoever things were written afore times was for our learning and instruction Rom : 15. 4. 2. Those primitive Churches were planted by the Apostles ; Now who can imagine but what the Apostles did of that kind , was according to the directions given them by Christ ; A promise of whose presence they had with them in their Ministry , and if so , then their practice must be a Rule to Generations following 1 Cor : 11. 1. Be ye followers of me , &c. 3. We make the practice of the Apostles then , to be a Rule for us in other things ; As from their practice in giving the People liberty in choising their own Deacons Act. 7. We argue , That the People may choise their own officers yet : And from their practice in having Ruling Elders in the Church 1 Tim : 5. 15. We argue , That we should have Ruling Elders yet : So from their practice in having the office of Deacons we argue , That we should have them yet : And from their practice in Celebrating the Lords Supper on the Lord's day Act : 27. We argue , Therefore we should celebrate it on that day yet . Now if so be that Their practice should be a Rule to us in other things , why not also in Church Government by Presbytries and Synods ; especially seeing that we have made out , that Their practice is as clear in this as in other matters . A Fourth consideration to strengthen this Argument is this , That the Churches now have these same Reasons to move them to submit to that Government , which the Church in the Apostles times had ; and a Law or Practice is still binding , so long as the Reason of the Law remains : Now the Reasons that moved the Church in the Apostles time to submit to Presbyterial Government , was first , Because there were many things of common concernment to all the Congregations in Jerusalem , and therefore they were Governed by one Presbytry as said is : so there are many businesses of common concernment to many particular Congregations now , and therefore it should be so yet . Secondly , In Act : 15. There ariseth a controversie in Antioch , and because the controversie cannot be composed in the Presbyterial Church of Antioch , therefore it is referred unto a Synod made up of many Presbytries , all concerned in it : So there are businesses of common concernment to many Presbytries yet , and some that cannot be ended in one Presbytry , and therefore there should be Synods for composing of these things yet . And seeing the Apostles extraordinarly assisted , ( one whereof might have composed the Controversie ) would nevertheless have a Synodical Convention for ending Controversies ; Much more ought we to do it whose Gifts are far Inferior to Theirs . By all which it remains clear that the practice of the Church then in that point , is binding to us now . Argument Fourth , There is no Pattern of such an Independent Congregation , by precept or Practice in the whole Scripture , where one particular Congregation , with one Pastor , and Their Eldership , did Exercise or may Exercise all Church Government , in all its Acts , and that Independently : therefore &c. The Antecedent is true . First , An instance cannot be given of Ordination of Ministers by One Congregation . Secondly , By precept and Practice Ordination is to be by moe Pastors than one ; as Act : 1. 13. Act. 6. 2. Act : 13. 13. 1 Tim : 4. 14. So it is clear , That it is by Pastors , and many Pastors , and so cannot be by a single Congregation , where there is required , and should be ( say they ) but one Pastor . As to what they say of the Church of Corinths Excommunicating the Incestous man. We Answer , Corinth was a Presbyterial Church . And Secondly , It proves not that they might Excommunicate Independently , For if a Controversie had arisen about it , which they could not have ended among themselves , they were to have their recourse to a Synod , By the same Reason for which the Church of Antioch had , Acts 15. Argument Fifth , If so be that Congregations be Independent , And no benefit of Appeals allowed to the party grieved , Then the state of the Christian Churches were in greater Slavery than the Jewish ; But this is absurd ; For Christians are in an estate of greater liberty ; As appears from Galat. 4. 1. Therefore &c. For clearing the first proposition ▪ We lay down these things ; First , There was a Subordination of Judicatories in the Jewish Church ; As might be made out from several places , We take one 2 Chron : 19. 8. where there is a Supream Ecclesiastical Judicatory v , 10. The matters they handle come to them from other Judicatories : And Deut : 17. 8. Sheweth the matters to be handled by the supream Judicatory are such as had been before the Inferior Court , but found too hard to be judged there ; So that here was a Refuge for the party wronged by the Inferiour Court : Now if there be no such Refuge left to Christians , we may certainly say , The state of Christiansis most hard , being left under the Tyrannical sentence of the unjust Eldership , And no power to right them ; When the oppressed Jew might appeal to the Superior Judicatory . We might further argue from this , Whatever was in the Jewish Government that was neither Ceremonial , nor Judicial ; but Moral ; That is binding to us ; For the Moral Law bindeth all alike , and is not abrogate : But this , That there was subordination of Judicatories for the relief of the grieved party among the Jews , was Moral , not Ceremonial , nor Judicial . It is true that all things were determined by an high Priest , among the Jews , who was typical of Christ , and of his supremacy in Judgment : So the Papists argue ill from the high Priest to the Pope : But it is as true , That the Subordination of Judicatories for things of harder knowledge , and relief of the oppressed party , was Typical of nothing ; But Moral and of the Law of Nature , which forbids party to be judge ; which will naturally follow if there be not Subordination of Courts . Yea further we shall not find that this Law is given to Moses in the pattern upon the mount , but was taught by the light of nature to Jethro , and by him given to Moses Exod. 18. 22. It shall be that every great matter they shall bring unto thee , &c : III. We come now to Answer Their Objections many whereof we have taken off in the first two Heads ▪ As for the rest we shall not trouble you with those that are frivolous , as indeed the most part are , we shall only pitch on these that ●eem to carry some shew of Reason , and whereof they boast most . Their first Objection is from Matth : 18. 17. This Church , say they , is a Parochial Church , and Christs mind is that the business should be here ended , without any Appeal from it . Answer Christ means not only a particular singular Congregation , but also , if not mainly , A Presbyterial Church : For first , The particular Church cannot sometimes heal the distemper , as when it is divided , or when the Church it self is Scandalous , as oft may fall out by giving a wrong sentence ; So that if Christ had meaned only a particular Church should be compleaned to , and in no case a Judicatory above them , then his Remedy should have come short in curing the desease for which he intends it , which to say were no small imputation to Jesus Christ. Secondly , Christ here alludes to the Government of the Jewish Church , as appears from the Censure of the Obstinate to be reputed as an Heathen , the same which was among the Jews : And from the plainness of the speach , Tell the Church ; Which could not be otherwise understood , if he had not alluded to the Jewish Judicatory , besides which , They knew no Judicatory , for such offences as Christ spoke of to them , There being as yet no particular Church which had given its name to Christ. Now ( as we cleared before ) the Judicatories among the Jews which were to be complained to for Scandals , were not only these who were in their single Synagogues or Congregations ; But also Superior Courts , to which it was Lawful to Appeal from the lesser Courts . Thirdly , Christ meaneth here of such a Church , as were the Churches of Jerusalem , Antioch , &c. But these ( as we have already cleared ) were Presbyterial Churches or Judicatories , having the oversight of many Congregations : Now sure these being the first Churches instituted by the Apostles , must not be excluded from the power of Government given by Christ to his Church in that place . Their Second Objection is this , That the Dependency of Churches upon Presbytries layeth on a yoke of Tyranny and Subjection upon particular Congregations , equal to the Tyranny of Bishops : And if the Church must be in bondage , it is better to be subject to one Lord Bishop , than under a number of Ministers and Elders in Presbytry or Synod . For Answer , We make no other Subjection here than what the Independents themselves make ; For they make Ten in a Congregation subject to Five hundred , and the Lawes of the Five hundred to be binding to the Ten : So make we many Churches to be subject in the Lord to all their own Pastors and Elders , conveened in a Presbytry ; What more Subjection is there in the one than in the other ? Secondly , It is an unjust comparison to compare Bishops Tyranny with Presbytries . For 1. The Government by Bishops was Humane , This is Divine . 2. The Bishop being but One Man did by himself alone Govern , and that ad Arbitratum , Nor had he Any to Answer to ; But here moe Pastors and Elders are joyned together , who are by mutual advice to Rule Gods People , according to the Word of God. 3. The Government by the Bishop was altogether extrinsecal to , or without the Particular Churches : For the Bishop was none of their Members , nor yet chosen by them ; But Presbyteries and Synods are not so , They are wholly made up of Members and Commissioners from those same very Churches , where They govern , and so it is wholly intrinsecal . 4. We say Government by Presbyteries is so far from being in its own nature Tyrannical , as that it is the greatest remedy against Church Tyranny ; because it is a City of Refuge , for all these who are oppressed in their particular Congregations ; For if in the Independent Government one be wronged , he must sit with it , till Christ come and right him : Neighbour Churches may advise and request , but the Cong●egation advised , is not bound to follow it ; But h●●e when the Eldership doth wrong , there is a refuge to a Presbytery , and above them to a Synod , &c. Object : 3. Government by Presbytery layeth upon Ministers and Elders the Charge of other Flocks than these of whom the Lord made them Overse●rs , to wit , The Charge of all the Churches in the bounds of the Presbytery : They are Elders to all these Churches ; because they govern them . Answer , It followeth not that they have the Charge of all these Congregations in particular , and in every thing that concerns the Duty of an Elder ; so that they are bound particularly to Catechize , to Visit , &c. Only They are Elders to them in things common to all , And as they are joyned in the Court with others : And this is not absurd , for in our Parliament , Commissioners from Shires are Judges to the whole Kingdom : But how ? It is as they are joyned in Parliament , not by themselves alone ; It is in matters common to the Shire , not in other petty particular Affairs ; And so it is here , They are Elders to all the Congregations indeed , as they are joyned together in the Presbytery ; But not by themselves alone : In things of common concernment to the whole particular Congregation , not in these Duties belonging to every Congregation in particular . Object : 4. If this Subordination , and Judicatory above Judicatory were of Divine Institution , It s like Scripture would have spoken more plainly of it ; not leaving it to be drawn out by so many far fetch'd Consequences . Answer , We have already given sufficient Warrand for this Government by clear Consequences from Scripture ; And Consequences from Scripture are Scripture , else we must cast at many points of Divine Truth which have no other ground but Scripture Consequence : As the Trinity ; and Change of the Sabbath ; yea we see Christ himself grounding a material point , to wit , The Resurrection , upon Scripture Consequence , Mark 12. 26. 2. We must not teach God how to set down his mind in Scripture ; We perchance think , It had been a plainer way to have cast matters of Religion to so many Heads ; By which means many Controversies should have been shunned , But He hath thought otherwise : The Lord in Wisdom hath scattered the parcels of every Truth through his Book , intermixing it with other Subjects , as the Gold is in the Mine , and this to exercise his people in searching out his mind from Scripture . IV. In the last place , We come to make some Vse of what is said . And the first Vse is this , If it be so that this Government by Presbytery is grounded on the word of God , Then ye would know it is not a thing of nought we are contesting for , It 's a part of that Truth once delivered to the Saints , and a Truth of no small concernment : What would become ( think ye ) of Particular Congregations , If they had none above them to call them to an account ? What Divisions , Strifes , Heresies , Schisms would ensue ; if people were informed of these Contests that have fallen out among our Opposits themselves , where this way of Independency was followed ; The one half renting from the other , Excommunicating one another ? It might make moderate Men scar at it : But we need se●k no other evidence of this , than by looking on Scotland and England these years by past . In the Church of England , Presbytery could not be set up , Independency was pleaded for , and practised ; And what is become of it , Sathan hath vomited out a floud of Errors , that there were never more , nor more gross in any time of the Christian World ; Yea all the rotten Graves of old Heresie are digged up , and now avowed : Socinianism , In denying Christs Righteousness in the matter of Justification : Anabaptism , In denying the Baptizing of Infants : Arianism , In denying the Trinity : And many other such like . Yea there are some Errors there that were never before heard of : Some affirming , There is no Church they can joyn with : And therefore , They turn Seekers . Some are above all Preaching , Prayer and all Ordinances : And all these are the Fruits of Independency . Again , look on the Fruits of the Presbyterial Government in Scotland where it hath been in Vigour , God hath made it an Hammer for battering down the beginnings of Error : So that these twelve years bypast not any one Error hath come to any Strength : And this all under God from Presbyterial Government , being His Institution : Our Judicatories were indeed terrible , as an Army with Banners , though indeed we are now like to turn contemptible . God himself heal our Breaches . Secondly , Guard against the Errors that would draw you from this Truth ; If ye cannot carry the grounds we have been speaking of with you , yet ye may remember ye once heard this Truth confirmed from Scripture and Reason ; That so when ye meet with temptations to quite it , ye may advise well before ye yeild . I would press this ▪ so much the more , As that this Doctrine of Presbyterial Government is the Butt of Sathan's Envy , the thing he would have most gladly overthrown , As that which stands most in his way ; For so long as it stood in its integrity , We might in the Lords strength have defied the Devil to have brought Error into Scotland . And indeed it is the thing he sets himself to brangle , To get the hedge once plukt up , that so the wild Boar of the wilderness may come in . And ( believe me ) there is nothing makes me more affraid , than that through Gods permission , the Devil shall get a deludge of Error brought in on Scotland ; Because those who have been intrusted with this Government have weakned the power of it , by Divisions among our selves ; A copy is casten How that Erronious Spirits need not stand much on the Authority of Assemblies , when they would cross their Designs : We are affraid , yea we may be past ●ear and conclude . That Presbyteries , Synods , &c. have lost much of the weight They had lately in mens consciences . Only let me intreat you in the bowels of Christ , That ye would put a difference betwixt the Government it self , and the Persons who are intrusted with it ; Doe not charge the faults of the one upon the other : The best things that are may be abused ; And it is Peoples Tryal to put difference between the good of a thing , and the Abuse of it . The Government is good , and of God ; and the abuse of it is evil and of men : What is of God , cleave to it , and stick fast by it ; what is from mens corruptions , mourn for it : Pray themselves may get a sight of it : And thus ye shall walk in an eaven way . Ye had need to deal with God to ground you in the knowledge of these things ; For we know not how soon we may be put to it , to quite them : Only remember They are Truths ye have sworn to maintain with your hands lifted up on high . SECT : V. A SHORT REFUTATION OF THE ERROR OF Separation . Head I. Shewing what is required for making one a Member of the Visible Church . WE have gone through these Controversies , which are about the Government of the Church : We are now to refute some dangerous Errors of Doctrine . And first , We shall begin with the Error of Separation . The Errors of Separatists are many , but we shall only engage with two Heads of them , which are the main . The first is That which they teach concerning the Constitution of the Visible Church ; Or who it is that should be received Members of Christs visible Body . The second is That which they hold to be the duty of every sincere Christian , viz. That when they spy any corruption in a Church wherein they are Members , as if Persons Scandalous be admitted to the Lords Supper ( seeing they ought all to be Gracious who come there ) Then ( say they ) It is their duty to keep back from the Communion ; and not only so , but to quite That Church , and set up a new Church of Their own . We shall begin first with that Doctrine that concerns the Constitution of Visible Churches . And therein we shall follow our usual Order : First , Clear the Question . Secondly , Bring Arguments for the Truth . Thirdly , Answer those they bring against the Truth . And Fourthly , Apply the whole to some Use. I. First , For clearing of the Question , ye would know what Church it is concerning which the Controversy is . First , It is not that place where Gods people meet to go about Gods publick Worship , ( such as this House we now are in , which is called the Church by a Figure , improperly ) But it is the People gathered together in it ; which People are really and properly the Church ; although the House be so called , because it contains them , by an usual Figure . The Church that we are to dispute of , is made up of Men and Women : And not that which is built of Timber and Stone . Secondly , The Controversy betwixt Us and Them is not concerning the Invisible Church , that is called the Church of the First-born , Those who by vertue of their Effectual Calling are united to Jesus Christ the Head , are living Members of His Mystical Body , and draw Spiritual Influence from him . Concerning the Church taken in this Sense , There is no Controversy betwixt Us and the Separatists , but that the Members of this Church are only made up of Believers , are all gracious , because this Church is Christs Mystical Body , a Royal Priest-hood , the Lambs Wife , all fair , undefiled ▪ &c. Thirdly , The Question Then is concerning the Church Visible , which is , a Company of Men and Women , who have according to the Tenor of Gods Covenant with the Visible Church an Outward Ecclesiastical ( which is in its kind a real ) Right to enjoy the Outward Priviledges of the Children of God. This being the Church about which the Controversy betwixt Us and the Separatists is , We shall speak a litle to clear what is meaned by it ; And First , The Church is called Visible , not because the Members of it may be seen : For in that respect the Church Invisible , the Church of Believers , may be called Visible ; For the Members of it being believing Men and Women , may be seen also : But the difference betwixt the Churches in those two Senses , is taken from that which makes one to be a Member of the one Church , as it differs from that which makes one a Member of the other . That which makes One man a Member of the Invisible Church , is True Grace , sincere Faith , inward Marks thereof : Now Grace is a thing that cannot be seen by another certainly : It s true there are outward effects of it ; but they are such , that a Hypocrite may have the counterfeit of them , so as the one cannot be discerned from the other by a Beholder . The nature of Grace is only known Infallibly and certainly to God ; And therefore This Church is called Invisible . Again that which makes a Man or Woman a Member of the Visible Church is something that may be seen ▪ something that may be judged of , by those who have Power to receive Members into the Church , and cast them out from it . Secondly , We said that this Visible Church is a Company or Society of Men and Women , that have an Ecclesiastical Right to enjoy the Outward Priviledges of the Sons of God. For understanding what is meaned by enjoying of Outward Priviledges , we shall show you That there are Outward Priviledges , and Inward Priviledges of those who are the Sons of God. Inward Priviledges are Jesus Christ himself ; a Right to him , a saving Right to the Covenant of Grace , and Life Eternal ; These are the Inward Priviledges of the Sons of God : And only Believers have right to those : Painted Hypocrites have no right to them . But Secondly , There are Outward Priviledges of the Sons of God ; such as these , To be ordinary Hearers of the Word Preached : To be taken a care of by Jesus Christ his Servants : To have liberty to come to the Sacraments : These are Outward Priviledges , And these are Priviledges that a Member of the Visible Church hath a right to . We said they had an Ecclesiastical Right or a Church Right to them : That is , such a Right as gives Warrand to the Church for receiving them to enjoy these Priviledges , and yet possibly they have not a Right to them before God : As for Example , when there is a painted Hypocrite in a Congregation , who makes Conscience seemingly to use the Means : That man hath an Ecclesiastical Right to come to a Communion ; such a Right as may Warrand the Minister for admitting of him , although he have not a Right to come before God ; God will challenge the Hypocrite for coming , and not the Minister for suffering him to come . Yet we are still to consider that tho' this Ecclesiestical Right be not Saving , yet it is Real in its kind , being founded upon Gods Covenant with the Visible Church , and his Ordinance of admitting such therein . Now ye may know somewhat by this , what we mean by an Ecclesiastical Right , it 's That which gives warrand to Church Officers to admit a man to enjoy these Outward Priviledges : And so ye may know what we mean by the Visible Church whereof we Dispute . There are several differences betwixt Us and the Separatists , Concerning the Visible Church . First , They affirm That there is no Visible Church on Earth ; But a single Congregation ; As many as may meet in one place . This we refuted in the former Controversie ; by shewing That in the Church of Jerusalem there were far moe than could meet in one single Congregation ; yea many particular Congregations ; And yet are called but One Church . Secondly , They differ much from us , as also from the Truth , concerning the power They give to this Visible Church , They give them the full power of Church Government , and that Independently from any Chuch power on earth : This difference also we spoke of in the preceeding Debate ; And so we shall stand now no longer upon it . Thirdly , We differ concerning That which gives a Being to the Church Visible ; They say , To make a Society of People a Visible Church , so as to have right to partake of the Priviledges there of , It is requisite that all the Members of that Society Swear a Covenant one to another , wherein they bind themselves to submit one to another in the Lord , to walk in all the Ordinances of God , and not to leave that Society till liberty be given them by the rest : So that tho a man should be never so truely Godly and Gracious , yet if he take not such a Covenant , and if he Swear not such an Oath , He is without the Visible Church , He is in the state of a ●agan , to live and to die without any Church Ordinance . The Judgement of our Church , and that of Truth herein is this , That wherever a man comes out of one Particular Congregation ( which we call a Paroch ) to another , By his so doing he comes under a duty and Obligation , which he is bound to before God , and the Congregation also , to discharge himself in ; Namely all the Duties pertaining to a Member of that Particular Congregation or Paroch to which he comes , Although he Swear not such an Oath . We say , Secondly , he may also Swear to do these Duties . But Thirdly , To bind this on all the Consciences of the Members of the Church , to take such an Oath , so as if they take it not They are not Church Members ; We say , It is Will Worship not commanded by God , either by Practice or Precept , in Old or New Testament . We might easily prove that Jesus Christ never took This way to gather a Visible Church . But the main difference is the Fourth , and that is Concerning those who are to be kept or received Members of the Church Visible ; Or who they are that have right to these Outward Priviledges we spoke of : That which they hold in this Point is , That they would have all Visible Churches disolved , and then Churches gathered out of these , wherein none are to be received or admitted to partake of Church Priviledges , so as to be under the care of Ministers , Admitted to the Sacraments &c. but those who have evident positive signes of Grace , and these not only evident to the Minister and a few moe , but to all the Members of the Congregation , so that every one in the Congregation must be convinced , so far as men can attain unto , that he hath Grace , or else he is no Member of the Visible Church ; by which Rule they model Congregations ; But there was never a Congregation since Christ was on the earth so constitute , except Their Own ; For according to this Rule they will cast out the Two Part , and of some Congregations , leave Ten Parts and take but the Eleventh , leaving all the rest as Pagans , without Baptising their Children , or admitting themselves to any Church Priviledge : This is what They hold . As for the Judgment of our Church , and that which is according to the Word , take those Assertions . First , We hold that every man indeed that is a Member of the Visible Church ought to have Grace ; so that he sins against God and his own Soul if he have it not ; And all the priviledges he enjoyes will do him no good without it . We say in this respect , all the Members of the Church ought to have Grace ; But to say , That they so ought to have Grace , that none of them must be admitted to be a Member of the Church Visible without it , This we deny : It is ill reasoning from unanswerableness to an obligation to a forfaulture of Priviledges : For every man that is a Magistrate ought to have Grace ; so as he sins against God if he have it not ; yet a man may be a lawful Magistrate , and have the Priviledges of a Magistrate , although he have not Grace . Secondly , We do willingly grant that in the Constitution of our Church , and admitting of People to the Lords Table : Our Practice comes far short of the Rule ; There is not that care taken to purge out scandalous persons as should be , Our practice is indeed short of the Rule ; But Our Rule which we shall hold out ( as we shall prove ) is Good. To know then what is the Rule according to which we should admit men to be Members of the Church . First , There are some who are admitted to some Priviledges only , and not to all ; as to Baptism : And these are Members of the Church Incompleatly , They are Members , but not so fully ; And those are , Infants that are born within the Church Visible ; They are Members , although not to be admitted to the Lords Supper . Now betwixt Us and the Separatists herein , to wit , whether Infants should be Baptized , there is no difference . Secondly , There are some who are admitted to all Priviledges of the Visible Church ; And those are Members Compleatly and fully : And concerning those the dispute is : Who are those that ought to be admitted to all the common Priviledges of the Visible Church ? They mantain ( as we heard ) that none should be admitted but those that can give evident Signs of Grace to the satisfaction of the Consciences of all within the Church . We hold First , that if it be known that Men be Baptized . And Secondly , If they be free of Scandal . And Thirdly , If they submit themselves to the Doctrine of the Gospel , and have some competent knowledge of the Grounds of the Christian Religion , If these things I say be in a man , We hold that he is to be received , although he cannot give evident signes of the reality of the Grace of God in him to All. And this is the Controversie . II. Now we come to prove that which we hold by Arguments . The first is John the Baptist did not follow this Rule of Theirs in receiving Members to the Church , and therefore it is not the right Rule : That John the Baptist did not follow this Rule will appear , if we consider Luke 3. Wherein consider , Who it was whom John Baptized v , 21. Now when all the People were Baptized , &c. It was all the People . Consider Secondly , What he requires of this People before he Baptize them , We shall find in the preceeding words that he seeks no more than that they would be convinced that they were wrong before . And Secondly , Profess an earnest desire to amend . So we find in v , 10. And the People asked him , saying , what shall we do ? And the publicans in the 12. v , do the same , who yet were but Course Men. And in the 14 v , The souldiers likewise demanded of him , saying , what shall we do ? Now these Questions import this much , That they were convinced they were wrong , and professed at least a desire to become better ; And accordingly John instructs them , thus and thus ye shall do ; And without more ado in v , 21. He Baptizes them . Now it is not possible that John could have got positive signes from every one of them to convince him that they had real Grace ; Far less That every one of the multitude could have been perswaded in Conscience of the reality of Grace in each other ; And therefore the Rule of admiting men to be Members of the Visible Church cannot be this , That every one to be admitted should have evident signes of Grace , satisfactory to the Consciences of all : John sought not this of those whom he received , It 's true he fals very sharply on the Scribes Matth. 3 , v , 7 — O generations of vipers , who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come . But it is as true , when he hath rebuked them , as ill as they were before , seing now they professed a desire to amend , he Baptizes them in v , 11. I indeed Baptise you with water &c The same ( You ) whom he spoke to in v. 7. As is clear from the Connexion of every Verse . If it be Objected that they were not received to be Members of the Church , although they were Baptized . We shall once for all clear that Baptism sealeth up a mans right of Membership in the Church Visible . We find this from the Apostles Practice Act : 2. 41. Where the Way is how they received men to be Church Members , it is said They were Baptized &c. And those who were Baptized are said to be added to them and added to the Church v , last , So in Act. 8 , 38. The Eunuch was received by Baptism to be a Member of the Visible Church . So Saul Act : 9. 18. And Lydia Act. 16 , 15. Secondly , Circumcision was a seal of the Jews right of Membership in the Visible Church under the Old Testament , And therefore Baptism is a seal of our right to be Members of the Visible Church under the New ; For Baptism in the New Testament is come in the same place with Circumcision in the Old Testament . This is for our first Argument . The second Argument is taken from the practice of the Apostles , And it is this , The Apostles went not by that method of our Opposits in admitting Members of the Visible Church , This was not the Rule They followed : Therefore it is not the right one . We clear this was not the Rule which they followed from Act. 2. 41. Where in one day there are three thousand added to the Church . Now surely none can imagine that it was possible that every one of these Three thousand could be perswaded in conscience of the regeneration of one another . It is true Peter binds on them to Repent ; But it is as true that on their desire to be admitted to be Members of the Visible Church , and some evidence of their conviction , he receives them ; Although there were many of them did not even this much in sincerity . For Anamas and Saphira were but Hypocrits ; So no more is required of Simon Magus Act. 8. 13. And so of Demas , who afterwards forsook Paul. Yea if we look to the Rule which Christ walked by , He sought no more but a profession to follow him , and He sought no more of Judas , to make him not only a Member of His Society , but an Apostle and Minister ; Christ knew him well enough to be a Hypocrite : And yet upon his professed desire to follow him , admits him to his Company , yea makes him a Minister : So that this Rule which Separatists so much cry up , was neither followed by Jesus Christ nor his Apostles . The Third Argument we bring is this , There was never a Church before or since Christs dayes whose Members , All of them , could give evident signes of Grace to each other ; And therefore it cannot be a Rule of Gods appointing , That the Church Visible must be made up of only such . We prove the Antecedent ; Sure the Church of Israel in Moses time was not such , every Member was not such a Visible Saint , so as he was known to be Gracious ; For sayeth Moses Deut. 29. 4. Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive , &c. and oftimes they are upbraided as stiff-necked . Secondly , We must suppose the purest Churches comming nearest the Rule , to have been in the Apostles dayes , and yet the Members of those Churches were not of this kind . So the Church of Corinth was a Church that the Apostles themselves planted and Preached to , and yet we shall find many in this Church who were so far from giving evident signes of Grace one to another , That there were many there Scismaticks 1 Cor : 6. Many there Fornicators that Paul writes against : There were many there Drunkards , yea and drunk about the time of the Lords Supper . And those he reproves 1 Cor : 11. Yea there were some there who denyed some of the fundamental Points of the Christian Religion as the Resurrection : As appears from Chap : 15. So this Church of Corinth , was not such . Secondly , The seven Churches of Asia spoken of Revel : 2. 3. were Churches that had the Candlestick among them , Churches that were in Christs hand , that he took a care of , and yet they were not such , as every Member of those Churches had real signes of Grace , otherwise the Spirit of God would not have said so often , If any man have ears to hear &c. If he had not supposed that there had been in them blind , obdurate , carnal hearers . Thirdly , The same may be said of the Churches of Rome , Galatia , Thessalonica , and of all the Churches that ever we hear or read of since Christs days , never one of them was such : And therefore we may safely conclude that this Rule of Theirs cannot be Right , seing neither Christ nor his Apostles nor the Church in any Age did follow it . We bring a Fourth Argument and it is this : That cannot be a right Rule of gathering Churches , that would hold out a number of Gracious Souls from being Members : But , this Rule of Theirs would do so : Therefore , it cannot be the right Rule . For the first part of our Argument none will doubt of it . And Secondly , That this Rule of Theirs would hold out many truly Gracious , we prove it : For first there are many that have Grace , that for want of parts they cannot express the thing they have , they are so far from giving evidences of Grace to others , that they cannot satisfy themselves ; Some so Proud , some so Passionate , so Worldly , so Talkative , so Imprudent , that it will be hard for any to satisfy themselves that there is Grace in them . Thirdly , The way of some is so hid , or rather Gods way in them so hid , that for any thing People can see in them , they are nothing different from Natural Civilians , and yet many of such will make clear and satisfying discoverys of Gods Grace in them at their death : The work of Grace then appearing that was long under ground . And now according to this Rule of Theirs , these are all to be holden out of the Visible Church , and put in the place of Pagans ; And so That cannot be Christs Rule . Our fifth Argument to prove the point is this , That cannot be a Rule of admitting Members to the Church Visible , which puts the Church in perpetual danger of Renting : But , this Rule of Theirs puts the Church in a perpetual danger of being Rent : Therefore , it cannot be the right Rule . We shall clear that this Rule of Theirs puts the Church in a perpetual hazard of being Rent : For there are some more easy to be satisfied of the signes of Grace than others , so That which will be a lawful Church to one , will not be so to others . Secondly , There are some that in progress of time will grow more strick in searching : Hence that which was a true Church to him the last year , will be no Church to him this : And so this Rule of Theirs keeps the Church in a continual hazard of being Rent , of Separating after Separating , while they cast off all . This hath made the most part of all Their Churches rent , and one part to Excommunicate another . Yea hence many of that Way cast off all Churches at last , and turn Seekers ; Cast off all Serving God with others , all use of publick means , only serving God apart and by themselves alone ; Because they cannot be sure enough that any others have Grace but only themselves . There is a Sixth Argument taken from the similitudes and comparisons under which the Church Visible is holden forth in Scripture ; which similitudes do shew there is not That strictness required in admitting Members to the Visible Church as the Separatists judge ; It 's compared to a Draught net cast into the Sea , that gathereth fishes good and bad Matth : 13. Secondly , To a Field wherein is Wheat and Tares , ibid. Thirdly , It is compared Matth : 22. to a Table of Guests , where there are some with , and some without a Wedding Garment . Fourthly , It is compared to a House wherein are Vessels of Honour and Dishonour ; and to a Fold of Sheep , and Goats ; And in every Church there are many Called but few Chosen : Now how shall Tares , chaff , Goats , &c. give convincing signes of that which they have not : Certainly these Similitudes seem to speak , That there needs not so much Waling or Picking out , in admitting Members to the Visible Church , providing they be free of Scandals ; Once take them in , and and then let the Word work on them ; This great Waleing and Separation will be when the Net comes to the shoar , when the great Harvest comes , when the Sheep and Goats are severed . This much for Arguments for the Truth . III. We shall in the next answer Their Objections , whereby they labor to prove , that the Church Visible should only be made up of such Church members as can give satisfactory Signs of Grace to each other . Obj. 1. Their first Objection ( which is the most specious ) is taken from these Glorious s●●ies given to the Church in Scripture . They are called Saints ; a chaste ●●rgine spoused to Christ ; Sons and Daughters of the Lord Almighty ; and Christs mystical Body , whose Members are all Gracious : Now , say they , seing the Church hath these Stiles in Scripture , Should any be joyned to the Church , but such , who to the uttermost of our discerning have Grace ? For answer , If this Argument conclude any thing , it will conclude that none should be Members of the Visible Church , but those who have Real Grace ; for none is a partaker of Christs● Mystical Body , the Lambs Wife &c. But such only Now this , our Opposites themselves will not affirm , They grant there may be painted Hypocrites in the Church , and the Scripture saith the same ; for Ananias and Saphira , Judas , and Simon Magus , were such ; and so these places of Scripture , if they prove any thing , will prove more than They will grant . But to answer directly , ye would know that in the Church Visible there is a Company of Good and Bad , sincere Christians , and painted Hypocrites : Now the Scripture speaks of them sometimes according to the Better Part , and sometimes according to the Worse Part ; where it speaks of them according to the Better Part , it speaks so of them as if there were not One Evil Man among them all , hence are these Stiles , The Lambs Wise , Sons and Daughters of the Almighty , Called to be Saints , &c. They are so according to the Better Part. Again when it speaks of the Visible Church according to the Worse Part , it gives such names as if there were not One Good Man among them all ; it calls them Stif-necked , a Rebelious house , Children that are Corrupters ; Now , As it were ill Argued , to conclude from these places where such stiles are given to the Church , that every one within the Church were Corrupters , Stif-necked , &c. and not one seeking God : For there he gives them those Stiles from the Evil Part among them : So it is also ill argued from these places where the Scripture calls them the Lambs Wife , Sons and Daughters of the Almighty , &c. That they were All of them so ; And we shall clear it more fully from the Church of Corinth , 2 Cor , 6 , 18. They get many Glorious stiles , They are called The Sons and Daughters of the Almighty , they are called A chast Virgin , &c. 2 Cor , 11 , 2. Now there were many Schismaticks among them , some denying the Resurrection , some Vilifying Pauls Doctrine , Many who were Contentious , Drunkards , Fornicators ; so that these Stiles cannot be Verified of the Members of the whole Church , but only of the Better Part that was among them : even as men speaking of an Heap of Chaff and Corn , will call it An Heap of Corn ; Not that there is nothing but Corn in it , but because the Corn is the Best Part : And so the Church Visible ( wherein is a mixed Company ) is denominated from the Better Part sometimes in Scripture , and called Sons and Daughters of the Lord Almighty ; and sometimes from the Worse Part , and called Stiff-necked , &c. Obj. II Their second Objection is taken from Act , 2. 47. Where it is said — And the Lord added unto the Church daily such as should be saved . Say they , God added no other to the Church but such as would be saved , therefore we should adde no others . For Answer , If any thing follow from this , it would follow that none should be added to the Church but these who are Believers really , for no other will be saved : But this is against themselves : And therefore our second Answer is this , That the meaning of the words must be , That He had a chief care of adding those to the Church who were to be Saved : But it is not said that He added no other ; for the same Chapter sayes , He added moe ; v , 41 , whole three Thousand were added , and yet all those were not to be saved ; For there were Ananias and Saphira , and doubtless many other Hypocrites among them . Obj. III. The third Objection is taken from Matth , 22. 12. In the Parable concerning the Kings Banquet , where he bids his Servants go and invite to the Marriage , and finding One wanting the Wedding Garment ( says he ) — Friend , how camest thou in hither , not having a Wedding Garment ? Now ( say They ) this is a reproof to those who admitted him to this Priviledge . We Answer , This is quite contrair to the scope of the Parable , if we look to the command v , 9 , Goe ye therefore into the high-ways , &c. They are commanded to invite all , and to hold out none for want of the Wedding-Garment ; For that being Inward is only discernable by God. Indeed this Parable will shew this much , That Ministers may admit People to Communions , and yet Christ will come with an after search , and find many there whom he will cast , that Ministers have admitted : Ye ought not to think that every man that comes through a Ministers Tryal is in a good state ; The place says , That Christ found One wanting the Wedding Garment ; But it sayes not That Ministers should let none come but those that had the Wedding Garment ; And to shew that this is the scope of the Parable , see v , 14. There it is said , For many are called , but few are chosen . Ob. IV : Their fourth Objection is taken from Rev. 2. 4 , 5. The Lord speaking there to the Church of Ephesus , sayeth , Nevertheless , I have somewhat against thee , because thou hast left thy first love Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen , and repent , and and do the first works , or else I will come vnto thee quickly , and will remove thy Candelstick out of his place , &c. From whence They argue thus : None are to be admitted to the Church who will ruin the Church But , all those who cannot convincingly prove their Regeneration , will ruin the Church : Therefore they ought not to be admitted . We Answer , That the last part of their Argument is false : For there are many Gracious Persons keeping their first love , who yet can neither satisfy themselves nor others in the Truth of their Regeneration , and that will not ruin the Church . Secondly , We Answer , To the first part of their Argument , where they say that every one who hath not real Grace will ruin the Church : It is not universally true , for then there should be no Hypocrites in the Church at all , neither known nor unknown , for Hypocrites can do no other thing but that which is tending to the ruin of the Church ; Now themselves will not say That all Hypocrites are debarred ; For they admit some such ; and Scripture saith the contrair in the admission of Annanias and Saphira : And so some must be admitted , who , If God look not more to his own mercy than to their me●●t , and more to the respect he hath to others than to them , can do nothing but ruin the Church . Obj. V. Their last Objection is taken from 2 Tim : 3. 5. Having a forme of Go●liness , but denying the power thereof : from such turn away . Therefore none are to be admitted but those who can give satisfactory signes of their Regeneration . For Answer : It is a gross mistake ; For if we look to the place , Those who have only a forme of Godliness , he tells what they are , High-minded &c. v , 4. And in the 6 v , Subtile Hereticks who lead away the simple . Now we say none such ought to be admitted , for those are Scandalous : But what they say doth not follow ; For many cannot give satisfactory Signes of their Regeneration , who yet are not Gross Livers , nor Scandalous , nor seduceing Hereticks ; And so not of the number of those from whom Paul bids Turn away . And thus we have Answered the strongest of their Objections . IV. Use. I. This Doctrine being thus cleared , ye ought not to look on what our Opposites hold in this Point as a matter of small moment , neither ought ye to suffer your selves to be deceived with the pretence of strictness with which they cover it . It is a Doctrine that hath fearful Consequences : For by this , the third part of the best Churches that ever were , shall be put in no better case than Pagans themselves , to live without all ordinances , their Children without Baptism : And this will hold off many who have true Grace ; for how many are there ( even of those ) who cannot give convincing signs of Grace , either to themselves or others . By this Rule mens Consciences shall still be held in an Uncertainty , whether they may stay members of such a Church or not ; because they can hardly be satisfied , whether all in it have convincing signs of Grace or not . Now the Judgment of our Opposits is , that if the Rule be not keeped Conscientiously , Christians ought to Separate . By this Rule an insupportable Burthen is put on Christians , not only to examine themselves , but also the inward state of others : By this Rule , all the Churches that ever were in the dayes of the Prophets , Christs , Apostles , or in the Primitive Times , have been in the mist ; all living and dying without the Visible Church , and so without Baptism , and so as Pagans . As also this shew of strictness beyond whatever God hath commanded , doth ever end in looseness , as appears by the Separatists present practise ; for , what ever they speak against the looseness of other Churches , that we are but a mixture of Drunkards and loose prophane Livers ; yet there is as great looseness in their own Churches as in any other , for they make no scruple to admit Hereticks , Covetous Vain , Proud Boasters , almost of all sorts , if so be they agree with them in Principles against Presbyterians . This Rule puts men in an overweening conceit of themselves ; others are nothing to them , all are unclean or at best but civil , natural , moral Men ; but they are the Godly , Saints , and what not ? Now that Doctrine which in its natural Consequence puts People to overvalue themseves and undervalue others , is certainly not of God. This rule of theirs makes way for infinite Janglings , and carrying on of self interests , under pretence of Holiness ; for when the Rule is , That which every particular man thinks Signs of Grace , Such is the Corruption of the best , that it will not be applyed to all alike ; To some they will be too strict , to others more lax , as affection caries ; Untill at last they think all good enough , who are for Their Way ; And all others , but Natural , Worldly , and Carnal , who are not so . I may say that this hath been one of the most unhappy Doctrines that ever the Devil hatched ; For it is that whereby Sathan hath carried on his design mainly these years by past ; Many such Deceivers crying up strictness , whereby they have made themselves to be respected by some , and terrible to others , while under this pretence , they have born down Christ , Truth , and Holiness . I speak not this to countenance Looseness nor to give a dash to holy Strictness ; It is our sin ( and we are plagued for it ) that we have not walked according to our Rule ? Yet I love no further Strictness than what Christ Commands , Let us stretch out our Arms to invite sinners , to give Outward Obedience ; and then when they are in , let us Hew them with the Word and Discipline ▪ This was Christs way , And his Apostles way , as we have proved : So when Separatists say to you , That there are such sinful mixtures in your Churches , that an honest man is polluted to come among them ; And so it is better to stay in your Chambers with a few of a gracious temper , and let the rest run to the Devil ; Tell them , Christ and his Apostles made no such separation ; And ye desire to be no stricter than They were : Only this is not to plead for our coming short of Christs Rule in our practise ; That Scandals are too easily past ; That so many Ignorants are admitted to the Lords Table , is our sin , and so not to be pleaded for . This for the first Head of Separation . Head II. No Separation from a True Church , or Gods worship in the Church , because of the sins of Fellow-worshipers . WE are now to speak of the Second Head , Concerning Separation from true Churches , and the true worship of God in them , because of the sins of Fellow-worshipers . I. That which our Adversaries hold concerning this , is , That the presence of wicked men at Ordinances do defile the Ordinances to the Godly : Therefore , say they , where ever there is any corruption in a Church , or where prophane or wicked men are suffered to be in it , The Godly are bound to abstain from the Lords Table , and not to communicate with the mixed multitude ; And because they hold it is not Lawful for any to live in any Church , where they cannot enjoy the whole Ordinances of God : Therefore they maintain that the Godly are bound to Separate from That Church , and to make up a Church of their Own , by gathering out so many of the Godly that are in it , as they can get , and make a little Congregation of their own , choosing any of them to be a Minister , and some one or two to be Elders , And so they set up a Church against a Church , a Church in the Bosome of a Church . This is not a new Error , It troubled the Church of Christ long since , in the Fourth Century or somthing more than Three hundred years after Christ : The Donatists , a kind of Hereticks arose and troubled the Church for a long time , and did teach the same very thing ; Against whom the Godly Fathers of the Church in that time did write : Yet because this Error was carried on with a shew of Holiness and Strictness more than ordinary , It took such deep rooting in the mindes of some well minding People ( some of them at least ) that it could not be driven out by force of Argument , till the Lord did leave the mantainers of this Error to fall into other vile abominations , for all their pretence of Strictness ; Which made all others to loath them : And before it could be gotten rooted out of the minds of men , It troubled the Church almost 100. years together . The same is the Errour which we have now to Refute . That ye may know what is the Doctrine of Our Church , that we are sworn to , And which is grounded on the Word , in this particular , Take it up thus ; First , We hold that the Church should be reformed from all corruptions , And that wicked Scandalous men should be casten out of the Church , at least debarred from the Lords Table : This we hold , and herein there is no difference betwixt Us and the Separatists : But the Question is , When the Church Officers do not their duty ( as often it falls out ) what through negligence , and what through other corruptions , and what through a base want of courage ; so that sometimes the Rule is not put in practice ; By which means all wicked men are not kept back from the Ordinance of the Lords Table ; And some corruptions are tollerated : The Question ( I say ) is , what the Godly should do in that Case ? And concerning this we hold , First , That in such a Case , it is lawful for a Godly Person to remove his dwelling , and go dwell in another Congregation , where he may have the Ordinances more purely Administrated ; There is no tye laid on him , for binding him to remain constantly where he is , if he may conveniently remove . Secondly , We hold that if he cannot conveniently remove from that Congregation ; he may remain a Member of it without sin , although he know there be several things which God is angry with in it , providing he keep his own hands clean of these . Thirdly , We hold that as long as the Godly man stayeth in that Congregation where there are abuses of that kind tollerated , he is bound according to his place to endeavour the remedy of them , he is bound , according to Christs Rule to admonish these who are Wicked and Scandalous ; and if his admonition do no good , he is bound to delate them to the Eldership that they may be Censured : If they be Censured , It is well , he hath gained his point : But if they be not Censured , Or not so fully as he would , he is to regrate the matter to God and mourn for it . But Fourthly , We hold , that so long as he stayes in that Congregation , he is not bound to keep back from Gods Worship , As from the Lords Table , or from any part of service in it self lawful , because there are wicked men joyning with him in it : Far less is he to make a Rent in the Congregation or to draw away a number with him , to set up a little Church for themselves . And this is now the Question we are to debate about . The Separatists say , He is bound to keep back from the Communion ; If any be admitted to it who is prophane or wicked ; And that lest he be defiled with them . We say , if the Worship and service be lawful and pure in it self , He sins in keeping back from it , notwithstanding that others joyn with him in it , whom the Church Officers should keep back . We grant indeed , when the service is not pure and lawful in its self ; As for example , when Communion cannot be had except the People Kneel , And so worship the Bread : In that case , every man is bound to keep back , that would keep himself free of sin ; Not because there are wicked men going to the Table ; But because the Ordinance is gone about in a sinful way . But our Question is Concerning Worship in it self lawful ; That is to say , when a Communion is Administrated by a Minister Lawfully Called ; When that Table Gesture , which Christ himself used , is keeped at it ; When in all other things done according to his command ; What Godly Persons should do in that case , when Scandalous Persons one or moe are suffered to come to the Table : We hold , That notwithstanding of their being there , he is bound to come foreward ; And the wicked man's being there defiles only the Worship to himself , and not to those , who come in honesty . This much for the state of the Question . II. Having cleared the Question , we come to Our Arguments for the Truth ; viz. That the presence of wicked men does not defile the Worship of those that are Godly : And that the Godly should not keep back from lawful Commanded Duties , because wicked men have their hands at them . Arg I. Our First , Argument is taken from the Church of the Jews in Christs time ; Any who know the History of the Gospel , know that it was a very corrupt Church , in Christ time , in Doctrine and manners ; Their Preachers the Scribes and Pharisees were debauched Persons ; They perverted the Law , the blind led the blind : And when the Preachers were such , ye may judge what the People were ; And yet we find that Christ and his Apostles did joyn with them in the lawful Worship , For First , Christ himself came yearly up to the Feast at Jerusalem . Secondly , He is so far from commanding his Apostles , and those who believed in him , to keep back from the Ordinary Worship , because of wicked men among them , That upon the contrair he forbids them to stumble at any thing of that kind ; And commands them to come to the lawful Worship : as Matth : 23. 1. 2. Then spake Jesus to the multitude , and to his disciples , Saying , The scribes &c. Which is as if he had said do not keep back from the lawful Worship , because they are but Godless men that go about it ; What they Preach according to the word , do that , and for Their wicked life follow them not in it . Arg : II. Our Second Argument is taken from the Church in the Old Testament : We find , for the most part , many Corrupters and Graceless men that were Members of that Church ; Both of the Preachers , and People ; And yet we never find that the Godly did loath the Lawful Worship or keep back from it because of that : Yea we find , The Lord commands them to joyn in the lawful Worship ; And when they would Separate , He reproves them for it . We shall make this appear from Three or Four Times of the Church of the Old Testament . The First is , Moses Time ; There was a great mixture of prophane men in the Church at that Time ; As ye will find Deut : 32. ( only remember this all along that the Point we are speaking to , is not to plead for keeping prophane men in the Church ; We shew those should be removed ; But the Question is , when they are keeped in , what the Godly should do in that Case ; If they should turn back and leave that Church ) I say we find , Deut : 32. the Church at that time , for the most part , was not very sound , They corrupted themselves , Their spots were not the spots of Children ; yet we never read that Moses and the Godly did withdraw from the Commanded Worship , because such were at it ; yea , on the contrair , we find them joyning with them , Deut : 29. Moses enters into a Covenant with them , Preaches to them , Prayes for them : Yea Deut : 1● . 6. 7. 8. The Lord commands the People to come up to the Publick Worship , in the place where he should choose to place his name , and go about the lawful Commanded Duties : Tho ( doubtles ) there would be many wicked men among them . The Second Time of the Church in the Old Testament , which we take to prove the Point is , in Joshua's time ; there were then great mixtures of wicked men among them ; As appears from Joshua 24. 14. 23. He bids them put away the Strange Gods , So there were numbers of them corrupt in the way of Worship , and yet we find in the same Chapter v , 23. That Joshua conveens them altogether to a Solemn piece of Worship , and enters into a Covenant with God , and Preaches to them on that Subject : Now surely Joshua would not have done this , if so be the presence of wicked men did defile the Worship to the Godly : And if it had been a sin in the Godly to stay with the wicked when about Worship . The Third Time is in Elijah's time , 1 Kings 18. We find at that time there were some Godly , Seven Thousand that had not bowed their Knee to Baal ; We find also an Atheistical Multitude in verse 29. The Body of the People Halting betwixt God and Baal ; They would neither say that God was their God , nor that Baal was their God ; and yet Elijah called All together to a solemn Worship , a solemn Sacrifice ; That is gone about verse 36. And there was Preaching and Praying to that purpose . Now surely , If so be the presence of that Godless Multitude , which Elijah could not get reformed in a hast , had prophaned the Worship to the seven thousand Godly , Elijah would never have been accessory to that sin : A Fourth Time is from Solomons time to Hezekiah's : There was great Corruption tollerated in the Church then ; As Worshipping God in the High-places , as is clear through the whole Tract of the History of that time ; And there was much Prophanity of Life in that time ; which also appears from the frequent Sermons of the Prophets to that purpose ; And yet we never read that the Prophets did separate from the lawful Worship , because of that mixture in the Church : Yea on the contrary we read they did joyn with them in every Lawful Duty , 2 Chron. 15. Asa gathers all together , and enters into a Covenant with them : Isaias , Jeremiah , and the rest Preaches to them , Prayes with them . Now if the presence of Wicked Men had polluted the Service to them , then Isaias his Preaching and Praying , and joyning with the People in Worship should have been defiled to Him. A Fifth Instance is taken from 1 Samuel 2. 16. Eli's Sons the Priests were Prophane men : whereupon the Godly began to abhor the Worship ; And so it is said in verse 17. Wherefore the sin of the young Men was very great before the Lord , for Men abhorred the Offering of the Lord. And to speak the Truth , It was little wonder they did so : For in verse 22. We find the Priests were so Godless that they did ly with Women that Assembled at the doors of the Tabernacle of the Congregation : Little wonder then that the Godly did loath and withdraw : But does the Lord approve of Their withdrawing , notwithstanding of that reason ? No , We see in verse 24. Where Eli the Prophet speaks to his Sons , sayes he , Nay my Sons : For it is no good report that I hear ; ye make the Lords People to transgress : Their abhoring the offering of the Lord because of wicked men that had their hands at it , is called ( a transgressing ) ye make the Lords people to transgress . From all which it is clear . That the presence of wicked men doth not defile the Worship to the Godly , providing they come honestly themselves : And that therefore the wickeds presence should not keep them away . There is an Exception which our Opposits have against this Argument : And it is taken from the State of the Church in the Old Testament ; They say , That to separate from the Church in the Old Testament was impossible , there being no other Church to joyn with ; The Service was then annexed to the Temple ; And so the Case of the Church under the Old Testament , was far different from the Case under the New. We might answer several things unto this : As First , If so be that the presence of wicked men doth defile the Worship to the Godly , then the Godly had been bound to withdraw from the Church , even under the Old Testament , although there had been no other Church to joyn with : Better to be out of the Church Visible than to be in it , if we must sin by abiding in it . But to answer more briefly , we shall find Instances in the New Testament that make Separation unlawful , as well as in the Old , which Instances shall make up our Third Argument . Arg , III. Our Third Argument . In the Church of Corinth there was a Prophane Multitude , 1 Cor , 3 , 4. We find there were Schismaticks in it . Chap , v. v , 1. We find Incests were Tollerated , Chap. 6 v , 1. We find there were men of Contentious Spirits , going to Law before Infidels . Yea in that Chapter , We find there were some pleading the Lawfulness of Fornicatio● ; And Chap , 11. We find there were Drunkards among them ; And such Drunkenness as was most abominable ; For some came Drunk to the Lords Table , v , 21. And Chap , 15. We find there were some infected with a dangerous Heresy The denying of the Resurrection . And so a number of very offensive things were among them , But after all , the Apostle . Tho he reproves them very sharply yet he no where sayes , Ye that are Godly stay away from joyning in Worship , because of such mens joyning ; But on the contrair he approves their coming together to go about the Ordinances , Only reproving the wrong way they came in . So Chap , 11. v , 18. First of all when ye come together in the Church I hear there be divisions among you . And v , 20. When you come together therefore unto one place , &c. He doth not reprove their coming together , but suppones it as a thing Lawful , only he reproves them for their Divisions . So in the Church of Galatia , There was much corruption among them , they were Bewitched with Heretical Doctrine O Foolish Galatians who hath Bewitched you , &c. Cap , 3. v , 1 , They had begun in the Spirit but were like to end in the Flesh , v , 3. In the Church of Ephesus were many who had fallen away from their first Love , Revel , 2 , 1. The Church of Sardis , Revel : 3 , 1. Did Tollerate prophane persons such as defiled their Garments ; And yet we never read the Spirit of God commanding to Separat from worship because of them : Indeed he reproves them sharply for their Corruption ; For their falling away from their first love , For Their Tollerating Prophane wicked men ; But he sayes not All ye that are Godly turn your backs upon that Church ; Make up a new Church of your Own ; But directly approves their joyning together in what was right . So it is clear that Separation from the Ordinances is no more to be Tollerated under the New Testament than it was under the Old. Arg : IV. Our Fourth Argument to prove the point is this : The Sins of wicked Men only defile the Worship to themselves : Therefore , not to others . We shall find for this two places of Scripture : Matth. 22. In the Parable of the Guests coming into the Kings Supper , there is one that wants a Wedding Garmant verse 12. The Master of the Feast finds him out , and sayes , Friend , How comest Thou hither , And he was found Speechless . The Master of the Feast sayes not All ye Guests are defiled because this man sits with you ; As should have been said If his presence had defiled the Worship to them : But only he reproves the Man himself ; The sin is thine , and thou shall bear the blame of it . The Second place is , 1 Cor. 11. 29. He that eateth and drinketh unworthily , eateth and drinketh damnation to himself : He sayes not , He eateth and drinketh Damnation to all , but to himself . It would necessarily follow according to this Doctrine , that he did eat Judgment to all , If so be the presence of the wicked Man did defile the Ordinance , or make it sinful to the rest that Communicate with him : And therefore in the preceeeding words it is said , Let a man examine himself , &c. He sayes not when ye are coming to the Table , Let everyone of you examine your Neighbour , Which would necessarily follow , If the presence of the Wicked Man did defile the Ordinance to the rest , but all he sayes is , Let every one examine himself , &c. It 's true the permitting of a wicked person to come to the Communion is the sin of the Church Guides , but it is not the sin of Fellow Communicants , seeing he is admitted to Communicate with them : For He only defiles the Worship to Himself . Arg. V. Our last Argument to prove this Point is , That from this Doctrine of our Opposits , it would follow ; That the Dignity and Worth of Ordinances did depend on Instruments , or upon those that are partakers of the Ordinance , If so be that the sins of the Instruments , or of Fellow-Worshipers did defile the Worship : Now this is most absurd ; The Dignity of Ordinances depends on him whose they are : The Word of God , however Preached , Is His Word ; It s true we are ready to cast at the Word because of Instruments : But whoever he be that Preaches , The Word is the Word of God , and worthy to be received : And so the Sacraments , Whoever they be that joyn with Me in them , lose not their worth and efficacy to Me , who am seeking Christ in them , though worthless men have their hand at them : And the reason is , I do not Communicate with them in what they do wrong , Let God and Them reckon for that ; The root of my Communion is Christ ; In so far as They lay hold on Christ , I Communicate with them ; In so far as they do otherwise , I do not . The wicked man professes Communion with Christ , and Seals up an Outward Fellowship with the Visible Church : I Communicate with him in That : But in so far as he doth this Hypocritically , I do in as far separate from him . And this much for the Arguments Confirming the Truth . That the presence of Wicked men doth desile the Ordinances to none but to Themselves . III. In the next place we come to bring to the touch-stone the Arguments they use against the Truth , we shall shortly propound the most plausible of them and take them off . Obj : 1 : The First Objection is grounded on the 2 Cor. 6 17. Wherefore come out from among them , and be ye separate &c. This is the stongest of their Arguments : The Lord commands the Corinthians to come from among them and Separate ; And therefore ( say they ) when there are wicked men coming together with the Godly , the Godly ought to separate from them . But to shew you the vanity of the Argument we shall Answer it by reading out the rest of the verse ; For it is clear what the Apostle aims at — Be ye separate , saith the Lord , and touch not the unclean thing &c. He bids them only Separate from Sinful Actions , and not from Lawful Duties . That ye may see yet further the vanity of this Reason , Know , It was the custom in the Church of Corinth 1 Cor. 10. When Idolaters would invite some of their Christian neighbours , they would go with them , and eat with them at their Idol Feasts , and they thought they might lawfully do it , because they knew their Idols were not true Gods , and so by their eating they intended no worship to the Idol , as these Idolaters did who did eat with them , but did it only to satisfy their hunger and keep up common Friendship : Now Paul discharges them from this kind of Communion , and this is it he points at here , Be separate , Do not meddle with their Idol Feasts because it was indeed Communion with them in their Idolatry : And so it doth not follow , because Paul bids the Corinthians be separate from Heathens , in doing a thing sinful , That therefore he forbids Christians to joyn in a lawful Worship with the Church of Christ. Obj. II. Their Second Objection is taken from Rev : 18 , 4. And I heard another voice from heaven , saying , come out of her , my People , that ye be not partakers of her sins , and that ye receive not of her Plagues . But this place is pitifully misapplyed to the purpose ; For its evident that the Apostle John is there speaking of whoorish Rome , and is commanding all Gods People to Separate from the Antichristian Church ; Now let any judge if that be not loose Reasoning , We are commanded to Separate from Rome , who hath overturned the foundation of Religion , Worships the Creature instead of the Creator , therefore we are to Separate from Christs true and Purest Churches and Gods Worship in them , If so be prophane men be keeped in them : It is a senseless Consequence . Obj. III. Their Third Objection against the Truth is taken from 1 Cor : ● . 11. But now I have written unto you not to keep company &c. Say they , We are forbidden to eat our ordinary meat with wicked men , and far more we are forbidden to eat at the Lords Table with them . To this we Answer , That indeed it is the shame of Christian Churches , and our sin , that Scandalous and Ignorant Persons are admitted to the Lords Table ; But when they are admitted partly through the neglect of Ministers , and partly through abounding corruptions , It doth not follow that every private Christian is to cast himself out of the Church , because wicked men are admitted . As to this place here spoken of , It s true every tender Christian is forbidden to use Familiar Society with Fornicators , But it is not simply forbidden , as if it were unlawful at all times to eat with them ; For even Paul himself eats with Heathens Act : 27. 35. So the thing here forbidden is , That the Lords People should not use intimat Society with wicked men ; yet so as when they cannot get it eschewed , It is lawful both to eat and drink with them ; As put the case we could not get it otherwise , it were lawfu● for us to eat with them following Pauls practice And so it follows in the matter of the Lords Table , If it be in Ministers power to hold them back , if they do it , it is well ; If not , it doth not follow , that private Christians who have no power to debarr them , and so cannot get eating with them eschewed , without neglecting of a duty , are bound to Separate . Obj. IV. Their Fourth Objection is from 1 Cor : 5. 6 — Know ye not that a litle leaven leaveneth the whole lump ? Scandalous men infect the Church ; And the Church being infected , infects the Worship ; and so if I come to the Worship it is infected to me , and I do sin . Now this is a Consequence far from Pauls words , a litle leaven , sayes he , leaveneth &c. Therefore cast out the Incestous man. But he doth not say , If he be not put out ; cast out your selves . As for that they say that prophane men infect the Worship , It is without ground : It s true prophane men oftimes infect these among whom they live ; But they do not infect the worship : For the way that prophane men infect these among whom they live , is not Physical , As the Pest infects every thing it toucheth ; but they infect by their evil example : And so a prophane man may infect another man , but by his evil example cannot infect the Worship , because the Worship is not carried away with evil example , as a man is : And so if I can keep my self from following their example , the worship is pure and clean to me . Obj. V. Their last Objection is ( say they My coming to the Table with them is a countenancing of them in their profanation of the holy things : So I partake with them in their sins , & say Amen to what they do : And therefore better for me to withdraw . We Answer , this is a plausible Argument to deter People that are tender , but when tryed , it will be found weak ; For if so be this Argument do hold for Separating from the Lords Table , it will conclude also that we should not hear Preaching with them for our hearing Preaching with them is a countenancing of them , as well as our coming to the Sacrament with them ; And the wicked man profaneth the holy things in the one , as well as in the other ? And by this it should follow that Jesus Christ should have been polluted ; which were Blasphemy to speak , by His Preaching to Prophane multitudes ; For in That He countenanced them . Therefore Secondly , For a more full Answer we say , Worshipping with them is not a consenting to their sin , except it were in our power to hold them out , but not otherwise ; Thou doest say Amen to what they do profess , that They are serving God , doing the commanded Duty ; But not to Their Hypocritical Way in doing of It : Did Christ say Amen to the Pharisees way of Hearing although He Preached to Them : So neither doest thou : But as is already said Thou approves of Them in so far as They do the Commanded Duty ; But that it is done Impenitently , Thou by Thy joyning in the Worship approves it not . This for their Objections . IV. For Use , Our first is this : To regrate that there is so much occasion given to this Error in the Churches of Christ , We may regrate that there are so many of the Members of the Church Prophane and Wicked ; And that People walk not like Their Holy Calling ; We may regrate that the Officers of the Church , Ministers , and Elders , do not Purge out Scandalous Persons , Do not Labour to find Them and Censure Them , and debarr Them from Communions ; But most of all it is to be regrated , That many of those , who should Purge out others , Their Life is such that They deserve to be Purged out as Scandalous Themselves : For this cause it is that the Lord threatens to Rent the Church ; And if He should let men arise among our selves , under pretence of Pious strictness , to cast at Our Worship , We behoved to say , Just is the Lord : Although on the other hand it is no excuse , but a fearful sin to Them , who by Their carriage Rent and undoe the Church , because of some Corruptions that are in it . Use II. The Second Use is , That ye would , not think all alike Guilty that may encline to this Error of Separating from Lawful Worship , because of wicked Men's being admitted to it . It 's true there may be some Piously strict , that upon the one hand , loath at that which is Good , when they cannot get it but in wicked Mens company , And upon the other hand , because they cannot live without the Ordinances , therefore They encline to make up a Litle Church of Good Men of Their Own choise : By which means the Devil takes advantage of Their zeal to make them dishonour God by runing to the other extreme : Now although the Humour of such should not be given way to , yet those who encline this way from a desire of strictness are much to be Pitied . But on the other hand , we are not to think so of the Ring-leaders of this Error ; It hath been found by experience that such have been more carried on by a conceit of their Own Holiness , than any true Love to Holiness it self ; It hath been usually found in Heady men who had a mind to make a Rupture in t●e Church , that this has been the Method they used to walke in , To cry up Holiness in themselves , and to cry down all who differed from them , as untender : That so they might carry all with them at last ; At least to Rent and divide the Church : To such we will say nothing , but Christs Curse , and the Churches for Renting her bowels , will fall on Them. But unto the other we will speak something , that is , To those who are piously Strict and really loath at the good Service of God , because such Persons are at it who should not be there . To those I shall say ; First , Know what it your Duty . And Secondly , What is not your Duty in reference to Prophane Men ; Oft-times we mistake our Duty and leap over it , to what is not our Duty : Now your Duty in reference to prophane Men , Is not to take your hands from the Ordinance , because Their hands are at it ; To turn your backs on your Duty because Prophane Men join with you in it ; It will be but a small excuse to pretend when God reckons with you , when the Lord will say , What made you neglect such a Duty ? to say . Lord I grant it was my Duty , but I could not , because such Men were at it : Therefore ye should know your Duty in reference to those , and it is this , In the place where ye live , when ye see a fault committed , ye should tell the guilty persons of it ; If the Fault be open , and a Fault ye can get proven , ye ought to delate it to those who have power to Censure them , If so be they may be gained by this mean ; Or if not , ye have done your Duty : Or if the Church do their Duty in casting out the Obstinate , then ye have your intent : But if so be that notwithstanding ye have done your Duty , yet the Church do not Theirs , in purging the House of God : In this case , ye are to regrate the matter to God , to mourn for it , ye are to testify that ye do not approve their way , and in so doing ye have done your Duty , and may have peace : For the presence of the wicked Man makes not the work sinful in it self to you , He eats and drinks Damnation to himself , And not to you ; His presence doth not make the Worship sinful to thee ; And so it looses thee not from they obligation to join in the Worship : For if that were true , That the presence of wicked Men did defile the Worship to Thee , then Christians would be in a very hard condition : For there was never a Church so pure , but there were some admitted to it , whom a Man truly tender would think should not be there ; There was never a Church so pure but a tender Man zealously strict would find some to challenge ; And so according to that Doctrine there should be no Church that a tender Christian could joyn with ; And so he should be forced to serve God apart and by himself alone : And this hath been the Separatists way , They have Separated from one Church to another , till at last they could get none to join with ; And so turned Seekers , that is , A Sect who think there are None they can join with ; And therefore , they cast off all Publick Duties , and serve God by themselves alone ; Because they can see none so Holy as themselves . And therefore ye would suspect Zeal when joyned with Error ; And fear Error most when it is covered over with Zeal : For Error is never so dangerous , as when it gets on the mask of Zeal , It being then most cruel and most impudent : People then have no will to medle with it , lest they should seem to be Enemies to True Piety ; And therefore because it is suffered and born with , it turns impudent until it undo all . I only give One word to guard this , and so I shall end . There is not one Error that we refute , but if not guarded , Prophane Men may abuse it , and so may they This , to cast at those who are piously strict , though in an orderly way : And therefore , We say it is every Christians Duty to walk tenderly , and to be so strict towards others , as God requires of him . The thing we have Refuted as an Error is only this , That because a Man cannot get all Duties gone about by All , so strictly as God commands ; That therefore he will Separate from altogether : But withal we did show , That not only a Man should be strict on himself ( where right strictness will alwayes begin ) but also do what in him lyes , according to his Duty and Calling , That the Ordinances of God may be keeped pure by others . FINIS . A SERMON Preached before the SYNOD AT GLASGOW . APRIL , 5th . 1653. The first SERMON . 1 Corinth . 1. 10. Now I beseech you , Brethren , by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ , that ye all speak the same thing , and that there be no Divisions among you : but that ye be perfectly join'd together in the same Mind , and in the same Judgement . THIS Text begins a new Purpose , so it is not necessary to speak much for clearing of the Dependance and Cohesion : Only ye would know somewhat of the State of this Church at the time when this Epistle was written , which will help us not a little to take up the Occasion and Scope of the Words read . Paul having planted a Church at Corinth , was after driven from thence by the sury of the Jews , as appears from Acts 18. 12. In whose absence , partly through the malice of Satan , partly through the subtilty of false Apostles , the Church was rent in Factions ; some taking part with one Pastor and some with another , according to the diverse estimation they held them in , for their Humane Eloquence , great Knowledge , and other parts . The Church being thus rent , the Apostle addresseth himself timously to the Cure of this so Great an Evil : But because he was almost out of request with the most part of that People ; tho as he himself , Chap. 4. v. 15. declares , he had begotten them in Christ Jesus through the Gospel ; Therefore as a skill'd Physician being to administer a bitter Potion , he suggereth the brim of the Cup , by shewing , That whatever was Their respect to him , yet his Affection did remain the same towards them ; And this he insisteth on from the beginning to the tenth Verse , wherein he falls upon the Sore he intends to Cure , to wit , Their Factions and Schism's , Obtesting them gravly in the Name of Jesus Christ , That they would set about the Healing of these woeful Rents , before they should turn to worse . In the Words there are two things , 1 , A Duty to which they are exhorted . 2. Some Arguments moving them to set about this Duty . The Duty is last in order of the Words , and propounded in three Sentences : 1. That ye all speak the same thing . 2. That there be no Divisions among you . 3. That ye be perfectly joined together in the same Mind , and in the same Judgement . The Duty pressed in all these may be taken up in two . 1. An Evil they were to Eschew . 2. A Good which they were to Follow. The Evil to be Eschewed is in the second Sentence , to wit , That there be no Divisions or ( as it is in the Original ) Schism's among you . I shall not enter to speak of the nature of Schism , or how it differeth from Heresy ; It is sufficient for the opening up of the Text , to know what Divisions or Schisms the Apostle meaneth by here : And that is know'n from the following Verse , to wit , Their Factious sidings in extolling One Minister , and debasing Another , with many fruitless Janglings and other bad consequences following thereupon , whereof doubtless this was One , The engaging of the Ministers themselves in Parties for upholding their Dependants , So Verse 12. — Every one of you saith I am of Paul , and I of Apollos , and I of Cephas — One saith Paul is best , let us follow him : Another sayeth , Nay , but Apollos is best , we 'll follow him : A third saith , Cephas is better than them both , I 'le follow none of them : Now away with these fruitless Contests saith he . In the next place . There is the Good to be Followed , and that is threefold , in opposition to three sorts of Evils which usually accompany Schism in a Church . The first Evil accompanying Schism , is , Flat Contradiction , first among Ministers , and next among People ; when not only their Opinions do differ , but they are so hot upon the Business , that at all occasions they proclaim their Differences ▪ In opposition to this , he exhorts them To speak the same thing , that is , They would beware of Contradictions in a matter of so small importance ; Wherein they agreed , they would speak to that ; Wherein they differ'd , they would forbear others , spending their time and parts upon more edifying purpose . The second Evil accompanying Schism in a Church , is , Renting of Affections , When the Members of one Body turn cold-rife one towards another and their Affection dyeth : In opoosition to this Evil he exhorts them to be Joined together in the same Mind , or the same Affection . It 's true , the Word here rendred Mind , is used indifferently for the whole Faculties of the Soul , as the Understanding , Will , and Affections ; But the Understanding being spoken to under the Word Judgement , which followeth ; We think with some of the best Interpreters , That by the Mind here is meaned the Affections : So the thing he presseth in the second Place , is , That not only they would forbear others in the matter of their Publick Expressions , but also would labour to blow at the Coal of their almost dying Affections The third Evil accompanying a Schism , is , Difference of Judgement ; And in opposition to this , he exhorts them to be Perfectly joined in the same Judgement . The meaning is , They would labour to remove the Root of the Difference by coming to One Judgement : Not as if the Apostle had been careless what Judgement they had been of , providing they had been One ; No , the one part of every Contradiction is Truth , and there is no Truth which the Apostle would have denied for Peace . This for the Duty pressed : Next there are some Arguments perswading to this Duty . As 1. There is the Apostles Insinuation , partly in his Affectionate Exhortation , I beseech you , partly in his lovely Compellation , Brethren . 2. There is his Grave Obtestation — By the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ — That is to say , as the Name of Christ is dear to you , which ye profess so much respect unto , so set about the Cure of these Factions and Fractious Sidings and Schisms , by which His Name suffereth so much . There is a third Argument to enforce this Duty , in the words perfectly joined , whereby the Apostle hints at the great Evil the Church was under by the present Schism , and the great good they should attain to by the removal of it . The word in the Original is borrowed from the Office of Chirurgeons , and that part of it which consists in the mending of broken Bones , and setting in joynt of Dislocated Members : So it imports 1. That through occasion of the Schism they were put all out of joynt : All the Members of the Church were Dislocated , and therefore unfit , so long as they remained in that case , for doing of any good Office to the Body . 2. It imports , that their following of his Advice for removing of the Schism , would set every Member of the Body in it's own place , and so enable the Body for going about actions profitable unto it self , which now ( the whole Members being out of joynt ) it could not do . This This much for opening up the meaning of the Words . Divers points of Truth , arising from the several branches of the Text , might here be handled ; but I intend to insist upon One arising from the scope which will comprehended the most part of the rest ; It is this , Vnity in the Church , is a thing much to be laboured for and sought after ; and Division and Schism in a Church , is much to be eschewed . In prosecuting this Doctrine I shall first distinguish Vnion , That we may know what Vnion is meaned . 2. I shall confirm the point . 1. By Scripture . 2. By Reason , 3. I shall apply the Doctrine for our Vse . First then , To know what Vnion the Text and Doctrine speaks of : It 's fit you know , That there are several sorts of Union . 1. There is an Union of the Church Invisible , the tye and bond whereof is Inward Graces : All the Members of the Church Invisible are United to Christ the Head by Faith , and one to another by Love. This is not the Union here meaned , The Text speaks of a Visible Union of the Church Visible , In Opposition to a Visible Rent and Schism . Secondly , There is an Union of the Church Visible , and of it's Members among themselves . This again is twofold ; The first is That Vnion , which is necessary to the Being of a Church , and the Being of a Member : So that a Church cannot be a Church , nor a Man a Member of the Visible Church without it : Wherein this Vnion consists , is Controverted betwixt Us and the Independants . But the Doctrine meaneth not of This Vnion either ; So we insist not on it . The Vnion pressed in the Text , is such , that the Church at Corinth for the time did want , and yet remained a Church . The Union therefore here meaned is , A second sort of Union belonging to the Visible Church : To wit , That which is necessary to the Well-being of a Church ; without the which tho a Church remain a Church , yet she losseth much of her outward Beauty , her Authority is much weakned , her great work , which is the edification of her self in Love ( Eph. 4. 13. ) is much retarded : She remains a Church , but not such a Church as is described , Cant. 6. 10. Who is she that looketh forth as the Morning , fair as the Moon , clear as the Sun , and terrible as an Army with Banners ? A divided Church is not such a Church . But for further understanding of the Vnion here pressed , ye would know that this Union which is necessary to the Well-being of a Church is Threefold . 1. There is an Union in Judgement , when there is no considerable Difference among the Members of the Church , in the matter of Opinion ; When all Think the same thing . And this is here pressed , Be prefectly joined in one Judgement . 2. There is an Union in Heart and Affections spoken of Act. 4. 32. The multitude of them that believed were of one Heart , and of one Soul. And this Union is also here pressed , — Be perfectly join'd together in the same Mind , or in Love and Affection , as we shew'd in the opening up of the Words . 3. There is an Union in Practice , and that is , when whatever Difference there is in Judgement , yet it 's not openly proclaim'd : Publick Contradictions and Eristick Debates are eschewed , and an unanimous joint practice in these things , wherein there is Agreement , is followed . And this Union is also pressed in the Text , I beseech you — that ye all speak the same thing . So it 's clear the Text means all these three sorts of Union , the Doctrine intends them All , and as might be made evident , other Scriptures press them All. Only this , we would know , the Order wherein they are pressed , to wit , So as every Breach in the Former , is not to make a Breach in the Latter ; Every Difference in Judgement , is not to make a Rent in Heart or Affection ; Nor , tho a Rent be in both , doth it infer necessarly a Divided Practice , at least in these things wherein there is Agreement : And for that , the Scripture is clear , especially Philipp . 3. 15 , 16 where v. 15 the Apostle supposeth difference of Judgement among the Philippians , as to the point he is there speaking of ▪ and subjoineth for matter of Practice , v. 16. Nevertheless , whereunto we have already attained , let us walk by the same Rule , That is to say , Tho we cannot agree in all things , yet let us eschew the prolaiming of Our Differences , by Our contrary Practices . This much for the first thing , to wit , What Union the Doctrine presseth . It is an Union necessary to the Well-being of the Visible Church , particularly , an Union in Judgement , an Union in Affection , an Union in Practice : An Union all these wayes is to be sought for and laboured after , yet so as , if we cannot attain to Union in the Former , we are yet still to endeavour it in the Latter . For Confirmation of this Truth we might cite several Scriptures . 1. These wherein this Union is promised to the Church , and that as a rich Covenant Blessing , such as Jer. 32. 39. — I will give them one Heart , and one way that they may fear Me for ever — The like is in Ezek. 37. 22. 2. These Scriptures wherein this Vnion is highly commended : Especially Ps. 133. 1. Behold how good and how pleasant it is , for Brethren to dwell together in Vnity — and so through the whole . 3. These Scriptures which hold out the Mediator's Prayer to the Father for this Union , Joh. 17. 21. That they all may be one , as Thou Father art in Me , and I in Thee , that they also may be one in Vs — and so v. 23. 4. Those Scriptures where this Union is expresly enjoyned and pressed whereof there are many ; Such as Philipp . 2. 1 , 2 , 3. If there be — any consolation in Christ , if any comfort of Love , if any fellowship of the Spirit , if any Bowels and Mercies ; Fulfil ye My Joy , that ye be like minded , having the same Love , being of one accord , of one mind . And 2 Cor. 13. 11. Finally Brethren , farewel — be of one mind , live in peace — . And lastly , these Scriptures where Division contrary to Unity is condemned , as Rom. 16. 17. — I beseech you , Brethren , mark them which cause Divisions and Offences , and avoid them . But for further Confirmation of this Truth , we shall in the next place , bring foreward some Reasons , concluding the equity and necessity , of seeking after , and entertaining of Unity in the Church , which shall also serve as motives to the Duty . Reason 1. Union furthers Edification : So Eph. 4. 3. Union is pressed ; And One Fruit among many to be reaped hereby , is ( v. 12. ) the edifying of the Body of Christ. And as Unity furthers Edification , so Division marreth it ; Divisions in a Church , tho about small things , yet if stiffly mantain'd , prove a great stumbling Block to the Weak ; they are put to doubt all Truths , because Men gracious and learned doubt of some : So Division not only marreth progress in the building , but striketh at the very foundation of what is already built . Reas. 2. Divisions in a Church make the Ministers contemptible : Of all Men Ministers suffer most this way , because usually they are most active in beginning and upholding the Division ; and usually even these who have Truth for them , suffer much ( if not most ) this way : Paul , tho an Apostle , and a Man for Truth , yet he lost much of the former esteem he had amongst the Corinthians , though once they would have pluck'd out their Eyes for him , yet through the Division , their Distemper grew to such an hight , that he was look'd on as Contemptible — rude in speech — yea A Fool , and what not ? as appears from 2 Cor : 10. 10. Ch. 11. 6 , 16. Reas. 3. The Essential Unity of the Church , and the many things wherein a Church agreeth that way , should enforce this Union . The Apostle Paul , Eph. 4. draweth a strong Argument for Unity and Peace in the Church , from this Ground . The Duty is propounded v. 3. Endeavouring to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the Bond of Peace . And v. 4 , 5 , 6. it is pressed by this Argument , There is on Body , and one Spirit , — One Lord , one Faith , one Baptism ; One God and Father of all ▪ — Here are many Ones together in two or three lines , as if he had said , What a shame is it for you who are so many wayes One , to rent in pieces for a thing of so small moment . Reas. 4. Divisions in a Church turn away every Man's Eye from his main Task ; I mean from the joint opposing of Satan's main Design , to be wrangling one with another : It 's Satans Policy when he intends to bear down Truth in a Church , to set those who should oppose him most , by the Ears about smaller things , that so he may carry his point with less difficulty ; herein making use of Matchiavils ( or rather his own ) Principle divide & impera , Divide and Carry . It 's often seen that the nearer those who differ come to one another , they drive on their point against others with the greater Animosity and Eagerness ; the Jews and Samaritans were at greater variance than Jews and Heathens : And the Reason is this , The less the Difference is , they have the more hopes to bring others to their mind , hence their mutual On-setts are more furious , and their Disappointments the more bitter , the higher they were in their hopes ; and in the mean time while they mind nothing so much as to bear down one another , Satan cometh good speed in bearing down of Truth and Them and All. Reas. 5. Union when once lost in a Church , is hardly ever again attained : We read Act. 15. 39. that Paul and Barnabas parted , but we hear nothing of their meeting again . And Church History sheweth us , That Schisms in a Church for almost just nothing have continued incureable for some Generations , until not only the Authors and Ring-leaders of the Schism , but also their Disciples were removed by Death . Osiand . Gent. 4. Reas. 6. When a Rent is made in a Church , as it is hardly curable , so it still groweth wider : It is easier to know whereabout a Rent begins , than whereat it will end . The greatest of Church Divisions ( some of them at least ) have been observed to have had but small Beginnings , hence is that commonly received Maxim Omne Schisma desinit in haresin . The Faction of the Donatists at first made but a Schism separating from the Communion of the Church , upon pretence of some faulty Officers and mixed Communions , but it was not long until they fell into several Heresies . The Doctrine being thus Explained and Confirmed , from Scripture ▪ and Reason , I shall now apply it to Use. Our first Use is for Refutation . The Doctrine refutes , at least layeth a just odium upon ; the Doctrine of Separation , and that Way which is called Independant or Congregational , in so far as it is made up of such Principles , as lay a Foundation for the perpetual Renting of the Church : Of which Principles I shall reckon Four. The First is , That Principle , whereby They maintain the Lawfulness of gathering Churches , out of Churches , acknowledged by themselves to be True Churches . A most dividing Principle , in so far as it gives way for every Man to Separate from his Own , and to join himself with another Church supposed Purer , with contempt of the former Congregation . To gather Churches out of Churches , is the way to destroy , but not to heal diseased Churches ; It is to destroy many Churches for making up of One , as if one going about the Cure of a Natural Body should cut off and take out all the sound Members , and leave the rotten and diseased Members , either to Cure one another or to perish . A strange and desperate way of Cure. A Second Dividing Principle in that Way , is , The Rule according to which they will have Ecclesiastick Judgement pass'd upon their Church Members , to wit , Conviction of their Inward good Estate , which Rule being variable and uncertain , some will judge one way , some another , according as they are more or less enclined to Charity ; yea the same Man at several times , will have a various Judgement of the Inward State of another , according as the Presumptions and Probabilities , ( by which only he is led to judge of what is within , ) are more fully or sparingly represented : Hence there is a Seed of Breach upon Breach : But God hath not left his Church in the matter of Authoritative judging to walk by such uncertain Rules . A Third Dividing Principle in the Independant Way is this , That all Church Power is solely in a Particular Congregation . Hence if a Particular Congregation go wrong , tho but made up of seven Persons ( which is a competent number with them ) there is no Authoritative Mean in all the Churches of the World to reclaim them . This must needs open a Door to as many Divisions as there are Churches . A Fourth Dividing Principle is , That there is not a Catholick Visible Church , yea no Church Visible , but a Particular Congregation ; and another Principle they hold which followeth upon this , to wit , That a Minister can exerce no Acts as a Minister , to any but those of his own Flock . Hence 1. There can be no Communion of Churches as Churches , there remaine●h only a Communion of Members : There can be no Church Act from one Church , or many towards another . The Results and Determinations of the most Famous Synods , made up of never so many Churches , are to be look'd upon but as the Actings of so many private Christians . Yea , 2. Hence it will follow that there can be no Communion amongst Members of several Congregations , in publick Church Ordinances , as in hearing the Word jointly from a sent Minister , in Receiving the Seals together ; For according to this Principle a Minister cannot Authoritatively Preach , nor in any respect Administer Baptism or the Lords Supper unto any , though never so Gracious , except to those of his own Flock ; no not tho they be occasionally present when he is dispensing these Ordinances unto his Own : Which Consequence is expresly granted by some of the chief of that Perswasion . So it is a Principle which destroyeth all Communion of Churches and Members ; and therefore inconsistent with Union . Several such like Principles in That Way might be reckoned out , Concerning which the Doctrine warrandeth us to say this much ; If Unity be so necessary , and so much to be sought after , then such Dividing Principles cannot be of God. Our Second Use is for Direction : If Unity be so necessary , and so much to be laboured for , then we are to bewail that we our selves are so far , and every day a step further from it : Our Divisions grow I fear all the three wayes , and in all ranks ; Our Heads are divided , our Tongues divided , yea and our Hearts divided , Synods are divided , Presbyteries are divided , Congregations divided : Ministers divided , People divided ; yea , and in some places Families divided : Husband and Wife , Father and Son , Mother and Daughter , Master and Servant , yea and all divided . We are as Mad-men , every one eating the flesh of his own Arm. Manasseh , Ephraim ; and Ephraim Manasseh : And they together against Judah — An Evil never enough lamented , and the more to be lamented that there is no appearance how it shall be helped . There are many things may make us look upon the present Division as our saddest Affliction and greatest Weight : I shall reckon Six things . 1. The many particular Evils which upon an exact search , it will be found Our Divisions have brought upon Peoples own Spirits . How much of our precious time is spent in vain jangling , by which our Heart cannot but ●e made worse ? Many , I fear too too many so taken up with their Heads that they forget their Hearts ; the sweetness and profit of mutual converse and fellowship is much marred ; Our mutual freedom and benefit that way much impaired : Our Peace with God by our hot Debates ▪ untender Expressions , and bitter and unnecessary Reflections of times brangled and shaken . A Second Thing that may make Us look on our Present Divisions as our great Weight , is , The name of Praise which this Church hath had for Unity in times by-past amongst the Reformed Churches . In the Harmony of Confessions , the Preface to the Confession of Faith of the Church of Scotland , makes mention of this as a rare Priviledge of This Church beyond many , and that which makes Her very Name Famous among Churches abroad , That for the space almost of Sixty Years She had keep'd Unity with Purity without either Schism or Heresy . Now if Unity hath been formerly this Church's Praise , how sad and weighty is it , and how woeful men are we , that this Breach should be under our Hand ? A Third Thing to make our present Division weighty is , That it is the greatest Weight which Gods People up and down the Land lyeth under , it 's a Weight beyond all other Weights and Sufferings : And if it be their Weight , it ought for many Reasons to be much more ours . Fourthly , Our Divisions , and Courses taken for carrying them on , hath given a deeper Inward Wound , to the Government of Christ's House than all the Outward Power of the World could have done The leading of us by pairs to a Stake for our adhering to the Government and Constitution of our Mother Church , our Imprisonment , Banishment , the laying of Congregations desolate for that Cause , could not have shaken the minds of many , in relation to these Truths , so much as our own Divisions and Practices following thereupon have done . An Inward Disease is more dangerous , and weakeneth more than Outward Blows . Fifthly , Our Division may and ought to be the more weighty , the more of Judgement is in it : And certainly there is much of Wrath and Judgement in it . It is a judicial stroak ; For all see it's Evil , the most part are weary of it , and yet cannot fall upon the right way for putting an end to it : Yea , no course hitherto essayed for Union , but it hath proved an hightning of our Division ; And so it will until it come to that hight which God in His just Judgement will have it at ; However it 's clear that Wrath is in it , much of Judgement is in it , and that should make it weighty : We side one against another , and God is siding against us both . Sixthly , This should make our Division have a particular Weight with us in this Synod , That we drink most of its bitter Fruits : We are the Stage whereon this cruel Dividing Spirit acts its Game most : None in time past so United as We , but none now so Divided ; And even this may give Us sad thoughts of our Accession to the beginning and Fomenting of this woeful Rent . Our Third Use is of Direction also following upon the former , If Union be such a good ; if Division such an evil ; And if our Divisions be so much to be bewailed ; Then we ought to have some thoughts towards the making up of our breach ▪ there ought to be some guardings against these evils which may follow upon it , until it be made up . The Prosecuting of this Use , as it is the most part of our Work , so it is the most difficult ; and I fear also , considering our present Distempers , and deep Engagements lying on every one almost to his Own Way , that for the time it shall be but Fruitless : Yet being led to it by the word of Truth , and not knowing when the Lord may make it have it 's own Fruits , whether now or afterwards , I shall with the Lords help adventure on it . And therefore in pressing this Use , I shall speak to three things . 1. I shall show what things I conceive as necessary to be eyed by us while we aim at Union , if so we would have Our aim's effectual . 2. Because a Compleat Union is not soon to be expected , I shall give some Directions for the Management of Our Differences , so as the Church of Christ may have the less hurt by them at least . Lastly , I shall propound some Considerations to People , for preventing of stumbling , and making Shipwrack upon our Divisions . As to the First , I shall mention Six things we should carry alongs with us while we aim at Union . Unto all which I premit One General , as tending to give Life to all the rest , without which all our Endeavours for Union , though otherwise never so regular , though guided with never so much Prudence , though prosecuted with never so much zeal , will prove ineffectual ; and it 's this : That both Ministers and People should be more in seeking after God's Face : So long as we remain at a distance from him , no wonder we grope as Blind-men in the dark , and cannot come nigh one to another : It 's granted by all , That Jesus Christ hath much withdrawn from the Spirits of his People : There is not so much of Life conveyed by Preaching , not such access granted in Prayer ; no such delight in Means ; no such joy in his presence ; This is granted by all and in a manner regrated by all , but lamented by few ; And fewer yet make it their work to have the Lord returning and shewing himself as sometimes he hath done : And until this be , we can look for the less success of any attempts made for the removal of this our sore stroak : But if God would return , It were then easy work : One glimpse of him , filling the House with his Glory , would scatter the Clouds of mutual Jealousies , make us , as men ashamed , steal from all our Dividing Principles ; would put to silence all our turbulent Distempers ; and make us blush at our proud and selfish Animosities : O! for more of God , then would all be well . But I come to the particulars to be eyed by us while we aim at Union . First , It is not to be expected that Our Union will begin at our Uniting in Judgment , In that Question about which our unhappy Differences began . It was the Judgment of some from the beginning , that the standing at a distance in other things , until we should be united in That , should put Us at a further distance , even in That . Our Union in Practice first , will be the shortest cut to bring us unto Union of Judgement about that Question , if ever we shall come to it at all . Hence publick Debatings before the People , and such as tend to make others odious who are not of our Way , is not the way for Union . Such work irritateth , but convinceth not . It 's true no Truth may be quit for Union , No , not the least , Quisquil●a veritat●● praetiosissima , The very refuse of Truth is most precious : Yet that the positive asserting of some Truths may be forborn for Peace's sake , I believe is granted by All , and there is good reason for it : Only there is one exception here necessary , to wit , when Truth is impugned , then there is a necessity to speak for it , at least till there be such a Testimony given to that Opposed Truth , as may ●e rested upon . And in this Case some may be made unwillingly to speak , as the Apostle Paul was once in defence of his own Estimation , 2 Cor. 12. 11. I am become a fool in glorying , ye have compelled me : for I ought to have been commended of you : — As if he should say , God knows , I have no more delight to speak of this subject , than ye have to hear me , but your Indiscretion forceth me to it . A Second thing to be carried along with us , while we aim at Union , is , no union of this kind of which the Doctrine speaks , can be expected in the Church , except there be an Union in one Supreme Representative ; land that such an one whose Authority we may stand under for the present . As it is in the Civil State , so is it in the Church as to this purpose , No Union can be there , as of one actually incorporate Body , except it be under one and the same Supreme Rulers : So is it in the Church , So long as there is no agreement about One and the same Supreme Representative , under whose Authority we may stand for the present , But one part standeth for it's Authority , another is contrary unto it , or setting up another against it , In this case the matter is clear , there is no compleat Union but a fixed Schism , or at the best a strong tendency unto it . A Third thing to be eyed is , If so Our Union must be under one Supreme Representative , then such ways of Union will do no good as carry not alongs the Body : An Union if not with the Body , instead of healing , doth widen the Rent . A resolution or desire to unite with a few not caring for the rest , will not produce an union , I mean of the Church , altho it may be of a stronger Party in the Church . These few would possibly as gladly unite as others would have them , if it were not evidently a strengthening of the Breach . Fourthly , Yet a Part ought to labour with the Body for condescending , as low as warrantably can be , for Peace's sake : Only a Caveat must be here , They are so to deal with the Body to condescend for Vnion , as to beware of making a new Rupture in the Body upon their not granting : For that were in a desperate way to make a new Rent , because others will not take Our way for removing of the Old. Fifthly , If we desire an hearty cordial Vnion , it would be endeavoured without rubbing upon the Credit . 1. Of Persons . 2. Of Parties . 3. Of Ordinances . If the Credit of all can be held up , it 's well . He is no friend to Vnion that would endeavour the contrair : But if some must suffer , Love to the Publick and Zeal for God , will teach That the former is to yeild to the latter , viz. Persons to Parties , and the Credit both of Persons and Parties , yea , and of both Parties themselves , if need be , are to stoop for upholding the Authority of Divine Ordinances . A litle of this Self-denial would do much good : But how litle of it is there to be found ? Sixthly , Dividing Principles and such as tend of their own nature to obstruct Union , should be abandoned : There is One Principle often spoken of by some , and now made more publick , which if maintained , in Our judgment will close the door upon Union in hast , to wit , That it is unlawful to sit in an Assembly with those , who have enacted persecution against the Godly . And this in the sence of the Propounders , & as it is expresly , tho injuriously , applyed by them , is as much as to say , It is unlawful to joyn in any Assembly made up for the most part of those who acted in and approved of Our late Controverted Assemblies : Now if it be unlawful to joyn in an Assembly made up for the most part of such , why not also unlawful to join in a Synod or in a Presbytry likewise made up of such , yea and to join at a Communion Table where the most part are such . And indeed some ( of the People chiefly ) draw out their Principle to this full length . A Principle which ( to say no worse of it ) striketh at the very throat of Peace ; and , if stood to , makes it desperat ; and so I hope is , and will be disowned by all who cordially pretend to Peace and Union in the Church . These I conceive and many moe should be eyed by Us in Our aiming at Union , if we would have Our endeavours effectual : But because a Compleat Union in an ordinary way is not to be so soon expected , I shall in the next place give Two Directions for managing our Differences ; So as the Church of Christ may have less hurt by them at least . The first Direction is , That we ought to guard against these Tentations , which Our Standing Division may readily make way for , Whereof I shall mention Three . The First Tentation is this , An oversight of every other fault almost , whether in Ministers or Professors , providing they be true to the Party . A Party is a dangerous thing , and in nothing more dangerous than in this , That it driveth men , if not all the more tender , to take fidelity unto the Party to be the prime , if not the only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and badge of honesty , and enclines them to look on all other things , whether Corrupt Principles , or loose Practices , as excusable Infirmities . A woeful Tentation ! and destructive both to Truth and Piety ; And therefore ought so much the more to be guarded against on both hands , A Second Tentation is , The secret wishing after , and rejoycing in the Slips one of another . An Evil so woeful that David complains to God of it even in his avowed Enemies , Ps. 38. 16. — When my Foot slippeth , they magnify themselves against me . And Jeremiah complaineth of it in his false Friends , Ch. 20. v. 10. They — watched for my halting . And yet an Evil that even Good men , if once engaged in Parties , will have a Battel with , A Third Tentation upon Our standing Divided , and which is also to be guarded against , is , A bending of Our selves to the outmost of Light , and possibly beyond it , for strengthning of our selves , to the doing of these things , in relation to these who now Rule , which not long since we would have abhorred both in our selves and others . It is very possible that as Gifts blind the Eyes of the Wise , Exod. 23. So the seeming advantage unto that which we conceive Truth , may draw out somewhat like an Approbation to such like Work , from those of our own Judgement , and if these do approve , it is the less matter ( think we ) that others do disapprove : But we ought to remember there are others to sift our Actions : Forreign Churches abroad , our own Conscience , being sober and settled , and above all God the Judge of All. A Second Direction for managing our Differences , is , That we ought not to be so taken up with others as to take our Eye off from guarding against that which is Satan's main design against the Church of Christ at this time . Satan does as a subtile Warriour labour to raise a Mutiny among the Forces which should oppose him , that while they are wrangling one with another , he may carry his Point , without stroke of Sword. Being to insist a little on this Direction , I shall first speak to what I conceive to be Satan's main design against the Church at this time . 2 , I shall give some Directions to manage our Differences , So , as not to further this his main design , nor yet to be short-coming in our Duty against it . And First , For taking up what is Satan's great Design , we shall in a word or two lay before you a wonderful Contexture , as it were of God's Wisdom and Satan's Malice , since the first beginnings of the Christian Church even untill now . There is no Truth almost but Satan's Malice hath set it self in some one Age of the Church or other , to bear it down ; And God's Wisdom hath still overshot Satan , making use of his Malice in opposing Truth , for the further clearing of that Truth , which he intendeth most to obscure and darken . Satan's first design in the first Ages of the Christian Church was to beat down that great Fundamental Truth of Christs Divinity : But after long debate this Truth was fully cleared by the means of several Worthies , whose Spirits the Lord stirred up in these Ages to mantain That so much opposed Truth : Satan therefore being beat off this strong Fort of Christianity retired a little , and laboured next to bear down the Truth of Christs Humanity : But the Tru●h hereof , the more it was opposed , growing the brighter , The Lord making Light break up convincingly in the midst of Hot Debates ; Satan retired a little further yet , and bent his whole force in the following Ages against the Vnity of Christs Person : And next against the Distinction of his Natures . But Satan not prevailing this Way either , he set himself to undermine Christ Jesus in all His Offices . 1. By setting up the Infallibility of Popes and Councils against His Prophetical Office. 2. The Doctrine of Merit in the matter of Justification against His Priestly Office. 3. The Doctrine of Free-will and power of it in Man's Conversion to God , against the Inward part of His Kingly Office. And for the Outward part of it , he set himself to wrest the Scepter of Christ's Government from His own Office-bearers , and put it in the Hands of Popes , Cardinals , Arch-bishops and Bishops . But after long Contest , Truth is now aboundantly cleared and confirmed in all these . Thus , as One saith , the Lord Jesus hath been content to dispute His Ground by Inches with the Devil , until almost He hath beat him out of all ; only Satan hath no will to quit it so , it seems to us he is now giving his last and sorest On-set ; on which in a desperate way he is to venture all ; wherein his design is evident , to cast all in a Confusion . First , By trampling under foot the Outward Court of God's House , I mean the Constitution of His Church Visible , by the Doctrine of Renting and Separation ; And next to deprive the Catholick Church Visible , and all Her considerable Members , of all Government , by the Doctrine of Independancy , which confineth the whole Power of the Keys within the narrow circuit of a Particular Congregation ; whereby all the Particular Churches are left as so many small Boats in a storm , to dash one against another , having no Intrinsical authoritative Mean to make them steer an even Course without rushing one upon another . Thus Satan aimeth to cast all in confusion , that he may undo all . What in former Ages he could not do in destroying Gospel Truths by Piece-meal and one by one , he intends now to do it by whole sale , and all at once ; For if once the bottom of the Ship be split , and the Rudder broken , the precious Ware contain'd in it , can hardly be preserved . Now that Satan's main design is to deface these Truths which are about the Constitution and Government of the Visible Church , that thereby all may be covered with Confusion , appeareth , In that not only the method God hath hitherto keeped , doth point at it ; There being few other Points of Truth to clear , but also the thing speaketh for it self , the main speat of the Errors of the time running directly contrary to these ; So that certainly , as God intends to clear Truth in these , so it 's not the least part of Satan's main design against the Church of Christ at this time to obscure Truth in these . This then being Satan's design , I shall in the next place give some Directions how to manage our Differences so , as not to further this main design , nor yet be short coming in our Duty against it ; Of which Directions I shall reckon Three . First , We ought to examine Opinions and Practices , even tho by us conceived just and lawful , How far they may contribute for furtherance of that Design ; and in that respect should be more circumspect and sparing at least in medling with them . Thus the Apostle Paul Gal. 2. 3. would not Circumcise Titus , tho Circumcision at that time was a thing Lawful , as appears from his Circumcising of Timothy , Act. 16. 3. much about the same time , and yet he would not Circumcise Titus : The reason is v. 4. There were False Brethren present ; who would have taken advantage of That his Practice , to confirm themselves in their opposition to that Truth , which Satan intended most to bear down at that time ; to wit , The freedom of the Christian Church from the yoke of Mosaical Ceremonies : therefore he thinks himself bound to abstain from that practice , tho in it self Lawful , and which in some other cases would have been necessary : And that lest by That his Practice he should have been advantageous to Satan's main design against the Church of Christ at that time . It 's true Truth remains still Truth , however Satan abuse it , yet seing all grant that the venting of some Truths at sometimes is unseasonable , and so for that time may be forborn ; And seing it would seem that nothing makes a Truth more unseasonable , than when it is known that Satan will make bad use of it , for bearing down that Truth which God intends mainly to clear ; It will follow that the venting of such a Truth ought to be at least with great modesty , and much holy Circumspection , if not altogether forborn for that time . For Application of this Direction , I will not say much : Only I shall propose it to your serious thoughts , Whether or not the late Proceedings in opposition to the Supreme Judicatories of the Church , together with the Tenets whereupon they are grounded ( which for Peace's cause , and from unwillingness to give the least occasion of Irritation , I forbear to name ) whether or not , I say , These ( even supposing the Lawfulness of the Practices , and Truth of the Opinions ) seem not to have been unseasonable for the time ; as being apt to be abused for leading People upon the Errors of the time : Such as the Contempt of Ecclesiastical Judicatories ; Quarrelling the Constitution , and Separating from the Fellowship of our Church . I fear much it will be hard for People ( not acquainted with subtile Distinctions ) to conceive , that any Corruption amongst those with whom we converse , can make Civil Fellowship with them Unlawful , but it must make Church Fellowship , especially Communion-table Fellowship , with the same Persons , to be as much , if not much more , Unlawful . But I forbear , not being without hopes but that Brethren Gracious and Wise will ponder what they hold , and what they practise , when they see bad use made of it , beyond their own Intention and Purpose . There is one thing further I shall say for application chiefly upon the other hand , and it is this , Such Practices ought to be eschewed , as may prove unjust , and unnecessary Irritations unto People , to cast themselves head-long upon the Errors of the time . I do not love that any thing should be done of purpose , to make People ( as we say ) kyth or appear in their colours , I mean , to bring out these Practices , the Seed whereof thou conceives to be already within ; which at the best is to cast a stumbling Block before the Blind . I might reckon several Practices which are not only Irritating , but also in themselves Sinful ; such as , Promiscuous admissions of Clean and Unclean to the Lord's Table ; Little pains taking by Ministers to Instruct People with Knowledge ; Shewing much of Passion , but little of Reason , against Errors . There be many whose Zeal is honestly fervent against Error and Confusion , who yet by these , and such as these , are not a little indirectly instrumental to the furtherance of it . Our Second Direction how to manage our Differences so as not to further Satan's main design , is , That all , especially Ministers , would beware of such things as of their own Nature do prove , and by constant observation have proven , Fore-runners of Error and Confusion : Of which I shall reckon Three . The First thing to be eschewed , is , Unscriptural Expressions while speaking of things Religious , as , Cases of Conscience , Exercises of Mind , and Scripture Truths : An affected way of bringing forth old Truths in new and uncouth Phrases , high soaring Notions , serving more to astonish than inform the Hearers , Paul 2 Tim. 1. 13. bids , Hold fast the form of sound words , and not only of sound Doctrine : It was Calvin's Observation in his time , and severalls since , that those who coin new Words and strange Expressions , tending only to amuse the Hearers , are in hazard to be carried away themselves , and to carry others with them , unto some New and Dangerous Opinions . 2. Ye must beware lest a disgust of old Truths spread amongst the People , together with an itching after new Things , new Opinions , new Cases , new Fellowships , new Teachers . Ye'll find 2 Tim. 4. 3 , 4. That itching Ears in People go before the turning the Ear from the Truth . For preventing whereof Ministers should be much in the inculcating of old Soul-saving and Soul-humbling Truths ; And for keeping these still fresh and savory , much of the need of Christ should be pressed ; to a Soul-hungring for Christ , every bitter thing is sweet , but a Soul full of Conceit loatheth the Hony-comb . A Third Thing predisposing to Error , and so to be guarded against , is , The undervaluing of the Ministry . It hath been Satan's method in drawing on People towards Error at all times , and in no time more than these of late . First , To make them despise their Faithful Ministers ; that once getting the Ear stopped by prejudice against thes● he might get the more ready access for his Emissaries to infect them with Damnable Errors . It is the Observation of a Reverend Writer of late , speaking to the same purpose , That the Galatians were easily seduced , so soon as they were made to disgust Paul their Faithful Teacher . This much for the Second Direction for managing of our Differences so , as not to come short in defence of these Truths , which Satan is labouring most to deface . Our Third Direction , is , To be watchful over the first Buddings of Error That way : There are some lesser Errors whereby Satan scoureth the Field , and maketh way for these great Ones which he mainly intends : Whereof as to the present case I shall mention some . Concerning which , whatever we might speak from our own knowledge of the propensity of severals towards some of them ; yet I shall rather choise to speak of them in the abstract , as such , That if People should be taken with them , will make way for that Confusion which Satan mainly aimeth at . Error 1. The first whereof is , That no Man truly Godly , ought to be Censured for Opinion or Practice , which we conceive he owneth or practiseth from grounds of Conscience , tho his Opinion or Practice tend never so evidently to the Renting of the Church . Error 2. Secondly , That the presence of Scandalous Persons at the Lords Table , defileth the Ordinance unto all who Communicate , knowing such to be there . Error 3. Thirdly , That a Minister Scandalous , tho not Judicially proved such , ceaseth to be a Minister , so that it is unlawful to receive either Word or Sacrament at his hand , or to join in Discipline with him . Error 4. Fourthly , That there is no special tye upon People to countenance the Ordinance , in that Congregation whereof they are Members : But a liberty left to go constantly where they may be most edified , tho with the discouragement of those whose hands they are bound to strengthen . I have only mentioned these Tenets without Refutation , being confident that none of Christs Ministers , to whom herein I mainly speak , will own them : Only I shall point at three things Ministers should make conscience of as their Duty , in relation to these or such like . First , As it is our Duty to watch against prophanity and Scandal upon the one hand , so to be learning where any thing of this kind vents it self either in Practice or Contentious Reasoning . Secondly , We should not think lightly of such , when they do appear ; and that Because , 1. They do evidently make way for Satans great design in these times , which is to cover the Church of Christ with Confusion . 2. Because that however possibly such do not reflect so much upon our own Ministry as upon others , who we may conceive have justly procured their own grief , yet a year or two may lay them down at the door of him who thinks himself for the time at greatest distance from them , and that with so much the more weight , as that he did not resent these evils sooner . 3. Such would not be thought of lightly , Because Experience sheweth , That the simple overseeing of such , is not the way to root them out , but rather to make them take strength . And therefore the Third thing that Ministers should make Conscience of in relation to such , is , To set about the Curing of them , wherein ye are to eye two Caveats . 1. As ye would thrive so set about the Cure of One evil as not to neglect Another ; They are not to be approven , if any such be , who in their Reproofs bend themselves wholly against Error , but little against Prophanity and Vice ; neither are they to be approven , if there be any such , who pass over the reproof of Error wholly , because the Person to be reproved will hardly take with it ; or that prophane men will take occasion to mock at Piety because of it : These things require indeed that the Duty be wisely and tenderly done , but not that it be left altogether undone . A second Caveat to be eyed is , your Cure should be more in Convincing Arguments , than in Bitter Reproofs : Else it will be taken but for the venting of Passion , and that ye have nothing to say in Reason ; which will make the Disease worse . This much for the second branch of our last Use. The Third shall be some Considerations to the People , especially , for preventing their stumbling and making Shipwrack upon the present Divisions . The First Consideration is this : The Church in all Ages hath been afflicted with Divisions from the Apostles time even till now : yea , in the very time when the Apostles were alive themselves , We read Act. 15. 39. That two great Apostles Paul and Barnabas were so divided , that they parted one from another : The Word made use of in the Original , to express their Contention , signifieth , The high fit of a Fever ( a Paroxism ) It is the very word ; The Spirit of the Lord thereby insinuating , That their Contention cast them , as it were , in the rage of a Fever ; and yet the matter whereabout the contest fell out was not very great : Much like That , which was the Fountain of our woful Rent , to wit , whether Mark who had before deserted the Work , should be again employed in it , The one would have him , the other would not ; hence they part Company . And what Divisions fell out amongst the primitive Churches almost presently after they were planted by the Apostles , The Epistles of Paul to the Romans , Corinthians , Galatians , &c. make it very clear . And for the times following the History of the Church doth abundantly testify , That from the Apostles Death to this very Age , the Church hath still been shaken with Rents and Schisms , in some one place or other ; and these sometimes even amongst the most Gracious Men of those times , as Augustine , Hierom , Zuinglius , Luther , and Calvin , Together with several others , whose Names , if it were pertinent I might recite . So that ye are not to stumble at the present Divisions : There is no new or strange thing befallen Us : The Church of Christ in all Ages hath been tryed with the like . A Second Consideration to prevent stumbling at our present Divisions is , That God hath foretold Church Divisions should be , 1 Cor. 11. 19. There must be also Heresies among you — And he hath not only foretold that simply they must be , but so a● he should have an holy hand in them , Matth. 10. 35. I am come to set a man at variance against his Father , and the Daughter against her Mother — So that he hath an Holy hand in Church Divisions , he permits them to be , and for wise Reasons , whereof I shall reckon Three . 1. He permits Divisions to be , That Men's Spirits may be thereby tryed . So 1 Cor. 11. 19. There must be Heresies among you , And wherefore ? — That they which are approved may be made manifest . There is a great deal of evil lurking in Peoples Spirits , Unsound Principles in some , Seeds of loose practices in others , Pride , Conceit , and other unmortified Distempers , in a third sort ; and Divisions in a Church decipher those . 2. Divisions are sent for the clearing of Truths : This , as we shewed before , has been Gods method from the beginning , when he had a point of Truth to clear , he hath suffered men to contradict it , and the more it hath been contradicted , it hath still grown the brighter . 3. He permits Divisions to be , that in his Holy Justice they may be a stumbling block to the wicked ; If thou think there are so many Opinions , and so many Religions , that thou 'l care for no Religion , until wiser People than thou agree among themselves ; Then Church Divisions and difference of Opinions in Gods just judgment are thy Destruction . A third Consideration to prevent stumbling at our present Divisions is , That some good use may be made of them in the mean time ; I shall first speak to some Bad Uses of them which ye are to eschew : And then to speak to some Good Uses of them which ye are to seek after . 1. The First bad Use of the present Divisions is , From them to take occasion of Rejoycing , that Ministers are set together by the Ears : A woeful Use ! Thou rejoycest in that which is the Gospels shame , the Godly's weight , and God's dishonour ; and God shall rejoyce in thy shame and ruin another day for it . 2. Another bad Use is , Because of them to wish That the work of Reformation had never been begun ; as having such ills following upon it : An use which the carnal Israelites did often make of their present strait , Would God ( say they ) we had never come out of Egypt . An Use which speaks , That for all thy professed adherence to the work of God and Covenant , yet thou hast never thought upon it as His work ; else a blast of Affliction could not have put thee so soon out of love with it . 3. The giving over of your selves to a Spirit of Loosness , it being a lawless time : Some Ministers may possibly make this Use of the present Division , but it is a woeful Use , and such as will deceive : God may of purpose have sent such a time that thou may without fear fill up thy Cup , and so be taken course with afterwards for all together . 4. It is a bad Use of them , to observe only which of the wayes do afford most advantage , where the Sun of Prosperity is most like to shine , that ye may strike in there , but with a resolution , if the Wind change ye will change also : A bad Use and unworthy of a Man , much more of a Christian Man , whose Profession is to be ruled by Conscience , Scripture and Reason ; and not by self-interest and advantage . 5. The last bad Use of the present Division is , To blow at the Coal ; making it your work what ye can search out and scrape together , from the carriage of these who differ , that ye may vent it , and make them odious by it . A base uncharitable and unchristian Use. A thing so woeful that David complains of it in his very Enemies . Ps. 56. 5 , 6. Every day they wrest my words ; all their thoughts are against me for evil . They gather themselves together , they hide themselves , they mark my steps when they wait for my Soul. This is a thing I may say , which hath had it's own hand in the hightning and continuance of our Differences , if that which Solomon saith , Prov. 26. 20. be true , as it is most true , — Where there is no tale-bearer the strife ceaseth . These now are bad Uses which ye are to eschew , but out of the Eater cometh meat , there is some good Use may be made of our present Divisions , and that ye should seek after . The first good Use is , That from these separating stirs ye would labour to be convinced of abused Vnion . Our Division speaketh that Union hath not been improven aright , neither amongst Ministers nor Professors , there hath been much of carnal Joy , triffling over of time , but little and too too little of God in our Fellowship : And therefore in His just Judgement He hath given us some other thing to set our Teeth on edge with , ye should be convinced of this , and be humbled for it . A Second good use of our present Division is , Ye should press so much the more after Peace with God , If strife with men be so wasting and wearisome , what will Gods feud be ? If peace with men be so hard to get , seek the more of peace with God : Seek the more of his smileings , the more thou meets with of men's frownings : seek the more warmness in him , the more of Coldness thou meets with from men ; seek the more of Counsel and Direction from God , the more Reservedness thou finds in others from whom thou was wont to get sweet Counsel . This were a sweet use of our present Divisions ; An Exposition of Sampsons Riddle indeed ; For thus Out of the eater should come meat , and out of the bitter should come sweet . Thirdly , By these Divisions ye may discover much evil in your spirit that was before undiscovered , what a deal of Pride , not enduring to be opposed ? What Carnal Emulation at the good of others ? What rejoying at their slips ? What eagerness of spirit in the pursuit of things of little worth , when more excellent are neglected ? What violent Eruptions of unmortified nature , bending after courses unwarrantable for making of our Point good , except Grace did bear them down ? Ye find such a discovery of some things , such as may make you abase your selves before God. Fourthly , Our present Divisions may confirm us in the Main , and settle us more than ever in the belief of those so much opposed Truths concerning the Government of Christ's House , and Constitution of Visible Churches : and that because those who are divivided and oppose one another much , yet for the most part do agree in these . If a mans house stand after the shaking of many strong winds , he concluds the foundation is good , This is a strong Argument for Truth , that our Divisions Factions and oppositions , one against another , do not shake our minds in relation to it . Fifthly , Our present Divisions may be a spur to more diligence in dealing with God for helping foreward of his so much retarded Work. He is an unhappy man who , when the Ship of the Church is at the point of shipwrak , will not use violence against his own Laziness , and improve his interest with God , that he would help his tossed Church at a dead lift . Oh! that there were more of this Use ; The Generation of those that seek God are fallen asleep : many are the means that God hath used to rouze us up ; We have had the Calm Voice of the Word ; and that hath not done it ; We have had the Thunder-claps of Sad sufferings from without , and that hath not done it : And now the Earth-quakes of heart Divisions within , have shaken All : And , if God prevent not , will overturn All. And if this awake us not , Oh! Lord what will thou do next ! I shall now shut up all with the words of my Text , Now I beseech you , brethren , by the name of Our Lord Iesus Christ , that ye all speak the same thing , and that there be no divisions among you ; but that ye be perfectly joyned together in the same mind , and in the same Iudgment . I know , as matters now stand , This , and all we have spoken from it , may prove but threshing on the water , as to the thing by us intended : Yea , and very like it may be made use of for the hightning of prejudices , and further increase of Our strife ; and if so be , I am at a point what to Answer : That even this will confirm unto me the Truth of what I have said , to wit , That Our Divisions are an Evil much to be lamented ; It is a Judicial stroak , in so far as nothing can be said for the removal of it , but thereby one way or other it taketh strength ; It is a strong fire , that when water is poured upon it , blazeth up the higher ; It is a dangerous Disease in the natural body , which is so prev●lent , as to turn the very medicine applyed , unto the nature of that vicious Humour , whereby the disease is further fed and nourished . And yet tho all this should be ( which God avert ) I have another thing to say , and it is the ground of my comfort as to Our present sad stroke ; That Jesus Christ who hath found out the way to make God and man One , when they were at variance , hath ways enough to reconcile us one to another , tho Our Divisions were at a greater hight than yet they 're come to : And if he hath pleasure in us he will make us One , tho it should be on our own Expenses : He may possibly do it by sending us to one Common Goal , or some such like thing ; For our adhering to the Cause of God , Covenant and precious Liberties of the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ , That precious Trust committed unto us by him , and transmitted unto us by our Zealous and Faithful Predecessors , who in the obtaining and preservation of them , loved not their lives unto the death . If He have pleasure in us he will make us unite , and if no other thing will do it , he will make such like work as this do it : And it 's very like such like work may be ere long : For shall we look on our mother Church oppressed and bereaved of these Priviledges which are left unto her by her Lord and husband , in his Latter Will and Testament , and shall we not so much as in ways competent for us , upon all hazards resent it ? Shall stronger Powers usurp upon the Church's Right and in the mean time , shall we by our mutual janglings , encourage them to go on in this woful Work ? Or shall we resent these wrongs the less , or secretly approve of them , becasue possibly that which is our own design for weakning one another is thereby promoved ? God forbid . Now the God of Peace establish our Peace with himself , and give us Peace one with another in himself . A SERMON PREACHED AT KILWINNING , Immediatly before the giving of the COMMUNION . Being a Preparation Sermon in order thereunto . The second SERMON . PSALM 51. 6. Behold , thou desirest Truth in the inward Parts : And in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know Wisdom . THIS Psalm is one of Davids Penitential Psalms , wherein his Conscience being first awakned , and made sensible of his Sin , He pleadeth hard for God's Mercy & Grace , and especially for the Pardon of his Sin ; which Petition He insists upon most , and doth again and again inculcate it . The Words read in the First Part of this Verse , hold out somewhat which God mainly called for , and David aimed at , as a necessary Ingredient in his Penitential Address unto God ; Without which nothing he could do in any Duty of God's Service , or particularly in This which He is presently about , would have been acceptable to God , and which being obtain'd and in exercise , all He did was the more savoury ; and therefore He maketh mention of it in the midst of His Prayer and present Exercise , that thereby He may both mind His Heart , of the great necessity there was to have it , and also may chear up his weighted Spirit somewhat , in confidence that He would be accepted of God in His present Address , seing He had something of that necessary Ingredient , which God doth so much require , desire , and accept of . The thing it self is expressed by the Word ( Truth ) Behold thou desirest Truth in the inward parts , &c. Whereby is not meaned Truth in the Judgement , opposed to Error ; nor Truth in People's Words , opposed to the Sin of Lying , and speaking Untruth ; But it is Truth in the Heart and Affections , called here Truth in the inward parts ; In a word , it is the Grace of Sincerity and Singleness of Heart ; For so is this Grace often expressed in Scripture , Isai. 38. 3. I have walked before thee in Truth , saith Hezekiah ) and with a perfect , upright , or sincere Heart . And Ephes. 6. 14 Having their loins girt about with Truth , &c. That is , with Sincerity and Single-heartedness . This then is That Truth which God requires as a necessary seasoning Ingredient in all Duties , and especially in all Religious Performances ; And which David here holds out with a Behold , as the thing which above any other thing he had aimed at , and yet would aim more at , in his Penitential Address unto God. We have then in the Words , 1. A Note of Attention ( Behold ) which David prefixeth to that which he is to say ; I call it a Note of Attention , for that is the use it serveth for in this place , as I shall clear afterwards . 2. There is That which he subjoineth to this ( Behold ) The Lords Complacency and Delight in the Grace of Sincerity , and the Exercise of it , as that without which his Present Address could not be savory or acceptable to God : Thou desirest Truth in the inward parts . I shall observe Two things in General before I come to the Particulars of the Text. 1. From this , David holds out the Rule he had walked by and was to walk by for making his Present Address to God , In confessing of Sin , and pleading hard for Pardon , acceptable . Hence take this Doctrine . That it is not enough that we do somewhat of Commanded Duties , but we must labour to do what we do in some measure acceptably : David not only confesseth Sin , and pleads for Pardon , but he aims to do it in Truth , that so he may do it Acceptably ; For while he saith , God did desire Truth in the inward parts , it is evidently implyed that He aimed to have it : There is reason for this ; Because , If the thing we do be not done Acceptably and in the Right Manner , though the thing done be never so good in it self , the doing of it is but lost labour unto us : Thus though it was a piece of Commanded Duty under the Old Testament to offer up Sacrifices to God ; yet when People made not Conscience to discharge this Duty in the Right Manner , all they did was to as little purpose , as if they had done nothing at all ; Hence Isai. 1. 11. To what purpose is the multitude of your Sacrifices unto me ? saith the Lord : &c. Yea , the more excellent any Duty is in it self , and the greater good is to be had by going about any Duty in a Right and Acceptable Manner , the greater is the Hurt and Damnage which we incurr by it , when we advert not how we do it ; And when , without taking heed to our Feet , we rush foreward to it , and carry our selves but carelesly in the mean time that we are imployed about it : What more excellent , comfortable , and Soul edifying Ordinance is there than this of a Communion , which through God's Mercy ye have yet the liberty of approaching unto ? Is it not a Feast of Fat things ? of Wine on the Lees well refined , wherein we Feast with Christ and upon Christ , His broken Body is Meat indeed , the most excellent that Heaven or Earth can afford : And yet ( saith Paul ) If ye come not to this Ordinance in the Right Manner , if ye set not your selves so to go about it as that ye may be accepted in your work , if ye eat or drink unworthily without previous Examination of your selves , Ye shall eat and drink Damnation and Judgement to your selves ; Not only shall your Table prove a snare , but your meat be turned into poyson ; And therefore consider this in the entry , and labour to have it imprinted on your Hearts , That it is not enough to come rushing foreward to your Work not considering how ye come ; Your coming ought to be according to the Direction given , Eccles. 5. 1. Keep thy foot when thou goest to the House of God , &c. As at all time , so especially when ye approach unto such a dreadful Ordinance a this is , whereof the advantage is so great , if ye come Right , and the hurt and hazard so unspeakably great , if ye come Wrong . But Secondly observe yet in General , That in going about Commanded Duties in some measure Acceptably , ye ought now and then to reflect upon the Manner and Way of your discharge of Duty , even in the mean time when ye are about it : For so doth David Here , He casts an eye upon the Right Manner how He should have prayed , to wit , In Sincerity and Truth , even in the very midst of his prayer , while he saith unto God , Behold , thou desirest Truth in the inward parts , And thus Christ in Luke 8. 18. saith unto His Disciples , in the very mean time they were Hearing . Take heed therefore how ye hear : And surely our Hearts do oft turn formal , vain , wandering and lumpish , or heavy , in the Service of God , because we do not seriously mind how sinful , shameful , and unseemly it is that it should be so : A check of this kind in time , and seasonably , to a vain , straying and wandering Heart , would do much through God's Blessing to make it halt : David doth this oft , especially Psal. 43. 5. where he turns his speech from God , and gives himself a rebuke and check for the present unsuitable frame of Heart wherein he then was , Why art thoucast down , O my Soul ? ( saith he ) And why art thou disquieted in me ? hope thou in God , &c. So that this reflecting upon the Manner and Way how ye discharge Duty , even in the mean time when ye are about it , is useful : When ye find your Heart out of frame , a serious timous check given unto it , will prove an effectual mean to reclaim it : Besides , if upon your reflecting thus , ye find matters tollerably Right , and your Heart in such a frame for the Main , as the Lord requireth , it will furnish you with matter of boldness , courage , and confidence : as here it doth David , who having found somewhat of this Truth and this upright and sincere frame of Heart , in his own Inward parts , He takes ground of Confidence from That , to expect that God who had given him This , could also give him more , In the hidden part ( saith he ) thou shalt make me to know Wisdom . For Vse , This doth shortly speak two things . 1. The Service of God is a Work not of the Outward Man only , but also and mainly , of the Inward Man : The Heart and Mind of a Man must be exercised in it , if so be go rightly about it ; And that many wayes : And this is One way , The Heart must be exercised by reflecting now and then upon it self , and observing its own present frame and disposition , how it comes up to the Rule prescrived by God , for making what we do in the Service of God Acceptable . And next it speaks the great guilt of many in God's Service , A piece of the Iniquity of our Holy Things , for which we ought to be humbled ; That many times whe● our Tongue is busie our Heart is idle , when our Outward Man is present , the Inward Man is away , and gets liberty to depart from God without check or challenge . This is it that God complains of , Isai. 29. 13. — This People draw near me with their mouth , and with their lips do honour me , but have removed their heart far from me . But now I come to the words in particular 1. David prefixeth a ( Behold ) while he is to speak to that which was necessarly required for making his Adress acceptable to God : Behold is somtimes a note of Admiration prefixed to such things as are wonderful , as Isai. 7 , 14. Behold a virgin shall conceive● and bear a Son &c. And so it may be taken here , it is indeed a thing wonderful that God should desire or delight in Truth in the inward parts , or that any thing which is in us , or proceeding from us should be lovely to him ; There is such a mixture of unlovely sinful dross in every thing of that sort . But we think it doth rather serve here ( as often elswhere ) For a note of Attention ; Only taking it so , ye must consider that David's design and aim hereby is not so much to stirr up God as his own Heart , and the Hearts of others in whose hands this Piece of Scripture should come , to take heed to the following Purposes . We shall from this shortly mark Two things 1. The Hearts even of the best have need of being stirred up to take heed unto what is the Lords mind concerning the Right and Acceptable Manner in going about comman●ed Duty ; For therefore doth David see it needful to pluck his own ear ( as it were ) for making himself more attentive to this Subject , by prefixing a Behold a note of Attention unto it , Behold thou desirest Truth in the inward Parts . The Truth is , if we get the substance of Duties gone about , we are ordinarly too apt to think that it is but needless scrupulosity , to be anxious about the manner how to do it ; So are we in Prayer , So are we in Hearing , and so are we also in coming to Communions ; when ever occasion is offered , and an outward Call or invitation given us to come , there is none almost but his Conscience will challenge him if he stay aback ; But as to the qualifications of the Call , and what is required of you for coming Acceptably , It is a wonder to see with what a careless ear the most part do hear any thing of that sort ; as if the Communion were a Charm to work upon People whether they be fitted to Receive it or not ; So that Sermons for Preparation do serve ( as to many ) for no other use , but for a Customary Ceremony , and to fill up so much time . These necessary Directions which are given you to come in the right manner and the warnings you get , telling you how dreadful a thing it is to come Wrong , are minded no longer by the most part , than the mean time they hear them , and by some scarcely so long : Hence certainly it is that the Lord is not so Familiar with the Hearts of People at his Own Feast as sometimes he hath been ; It is no wonder , Because we come not as Prepared Guests with a Wedding Garment to meet with him ; Yea doubtless hence it is that the Lord doth threaten so hard to draw his Table , and to suffer men to impose upon us a Dead lifeless formal way of Worship , that therein we may see the Copy of our own Hearts , who if they get the outward form gone about , they care little for the inward Life , Power , and Substance ; and surely if ever it come to this , ( as God knows how soon it may ) that all our Religion shall consist in threed-bare Imposed Forms , and that more pains be taken by Ministers to press upon People the observance of these Forms , than the very Life and substance of Religious Performances , we must justifie the Lord in it , for that is the very Copy of our formal Hearts . Our Love to and resting on Formality may provoke the Lord to wreath the yoke of a Dead , Lifeless and Formal Service on our necks , that we shall not be able to shake it off , though we would . The Lord oftimes shapes out Cross Dispensations in the publick , according to these sinful Distempers which are common and prevalent in the Hearts of People , that therein they may see the unlovely Representation and Idea of their Own Heart Jer : 5. 31. He 'l suffer even The Prophets to Prophesy falsly , and the Priests to bear Rule by Their means , If his People love to have it so . But Secondly , The consideration of this your Dulness and Aversness to hear what is the Lords mind , concerning the Right and Acceptable Manner of going about Commanded Duties , should make you so much the more to stir up your selves , to give diligent heed unto any thing that is spoken to that purpose ; For therefore in order to his own upstirring doth David prefix a Note of Attention ( Behold ) to the purpose in hand . 1. Directions of that kind are needful to be given ; For ( as ye heard ) though ye do all that is Commanded , as to the Substance and Matter , yet if ye do it not in the Right Manner , all ye do is to no purpose , as I cleared from Isaiah 1. 11. 2 If it be needful that such Directions be given , then it is needful that ye diligently hear them , else ye cannot obey them , ye'l but leave them where ye find them , as oft-times ye do ; In which case your Hearing them doth but aggravate your guilt in the neglect of them . 3. Our backwardness and aversness to hear and lay to Heart what is spoken to that purpose ; though it be great , yet is not such , but if it be wrestled against and manfully opposed it may be overcome ; It is only Our giving way to it without resistance , which makes it strong , importunate and shameless , when our setting our selves seriously and in earnest to wrestle against it , would make it to cede , according to that word , Jam. 4. 7. Resist the Devil , and he will flee from you . I shall not insist on this , only This serves in place of a Preface for stiring you up to hear and lay to Heart what I am to say on the rest of the Text , which holds out the Lords mind ( as to one thing at least ) concerning the Right and Acceptable Manner of going about Commanded Duties , and especially This Duty which now ye are called to , of approaching to the Lords Table : The Lord desireth Truth in the Inward Parts . It 's true , not only what ye heard from the former Note , but your own experience at such times doth shew your Hearts are woefully backward to Hear and lay to Heart any thing that is spoken to this purpose ; But seeing the thing is needful , and so needful as that all your other pains , without coming up to what ye hear to this purpose , will be to no good purpose : Therefore ye ought to bestir your selves , striving in earnest against your own Backwardness : And if ye seriously set your selves to strive against it , I doubt not but ye will get it overcome , at least in part . This much for the Note of Attention ( Behold ) I come next to that which is subjoined , to . This ( Behold ) viz. The Lords complacency and delight in the Grace of Sincerity , and the exercise of it , As that without which David's present Address could not be Savory or Acceptable to God : Thou desirest Truth in the inward Parts . We 'l find Three things in the Words , For clearing what it is which makes our Performances accepted of God. 1. In general , It is somewhat which God desires , approves , or loves , Thou desirest , &c. 2. It is somewhat in the Inward Parts , not so much That which is External , and seen by Men , as what is Internal , and known only to God , and the Man 's own self . 3. One main particular hereof is condescended on , to wit , Truth , the Grace of Sincerity and the Exercise of that Grace , Thou de●irest Truth in the Inward Parts , Of all which I shall endeavour so to speak , as that therein ye may see both your bypast failings for your Humiliation , and also may see a Rule to which ye ought to Conform your selves for time to come ; As in the practise of all Duties , so especially in your Address to God at this time . First then observe , The Rule of going about Commanded Duties Acceptably and in the Right manner is God's approbation : For David doth not propose unto himself to follow That which would please his Own Humour , or the Humour of others , but that which God Desires , Loves and Approves of ; Behold ( saith he ) thou desirest Truth , &c. As if he had said , The t●ing O Lord which I aim at , is , That which thou Desires and Approves : Thus the Lord saith to Abraham Gen. 17. 1. Walk before me , and be thou perfect , He ● have His Approbation ( hinted at in the words Before me ) the Rule of his walking acceptably : This was the Rule which Christ himself when he came unto the World did walk by , Psal. 40. 6 , 7 , 8 , Sacrifice and Offering thou didst not desire — Then said l : Lo , I come — . I delight to do thy will , O my God : And there is reason for it , If we consider 1. That God is our main Party to whom we must give an account for all we do ; We must give an Account to others also , but he 'l reckon with us when all others have done with us . 2. He hath tyed us to this Rule and will reckon with us according to it , Deut. 5. 32. Ye shall observe to do therefore as the Lord your God hath commanded you : You shall not turn aside to the Right hand , or to the Left. And therefore 3. Ye must look mainly to what He approves or disapproves , else all ye do will be to no good purpose , Matth. 6. 2. They do their Alms , that they may have Glory of Men , verily I say unto you , they have their reward . This ought to make you search what is the Rule ye walk by , and to which ye labour to conform your selves most , in your walk : And for your more easie search , I shall point at some who walk not by this Rule . 1. Those walk not by this Rule , who set themselves to come up in their way not to what God desires , but to what the time , and any Party who bears ●way in the time , desire : This is the Rule which the Pharisees would have had all in their time to walk by John. 7. 48. Have any of the Rulers ( say they ) or of the Pharisees believed on him ? And it is the Rule that many walk by in all times ; they know no other Religion than That of the Times , and which pleaseth Them best who bear the greatest sway ; So that if Such should change their way every year once , They will not scruple much to change it as oft . This is the Rule which these did follow whom God doth threaten , Hos. 7. 3. They make the King glad with their wickedness , and the Princes with their Lies . They cared not what they did if so they might please their King and Rulers by it : Such are Time-servers , Men-pleasers , and so cannot be God-pleasers ; For ( saith Paul ) If I yet pleased men , I should not be the Servant of Christ. 2. Those walk not by this Rule of God's Approbation and Desire , whose highest design in the point of Duty is , To follow the Example of others ; And whose great enquiry is , not so much to know what God Desires , as what others do ; and rest upon that as sufficient that they may do the like : This is the Rule which God forbids to follow , Exod. 23. 2. Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil , &c. And Broad is the way which leadeth to destruction , and many there be that go therein : And yet it is a Rule which many follow , both as the matter what , and the manner how they do it : How many are there , that though they want not their own Convictions and Challenges for several things they themselves are conscious of , yet if there be many who are under the Power of the same Evils with themselves , they force themselves to take Peace and hold on , because there are many guilty of the same fault : Alas , That is but a very poor ground of Comfort , To go to Hell with Company , and speaks but very little zeal for God's Honour , else the more thou seest it trampled on by others , thou would be the more tender of it ; and consequently the more Common any sin is , thou should hate it the more , because God gets the more Dishonour by it : This was David's way , Rivers of Tears ( saith he ) run down mine Eyes because of the wicked who transgress thy Law. 3. Those walk not by this Rule , who walk only by that which their own Carnal Wit and Natural Reason approves ; How many are they , who though they cannot but know that God in His Word requires more exactness in their Walk , yet they rest on that which they think their own Carnal Wit thinks may suffice ; They 'll do what they can in Religious Duties , which indeed is but to do what they please ; But for further , God must forgive them : Thus they 'l medle with what is easie , pleasant , and profitable , in Religion ; But for what is hurtful , burthen some , or may bring loss , they 'l never owne that ; Because their Carnal Reason suggests unto them , that less than that may serve the turn , Religion is good , but People ought not to impoverish or destroy themselves for it : Thus many do easily dispense with themselves for the neglect of all painful Hazards and expensive Duties ; such as To deal their Bread to the Hungry , To choose Affliction rather than to sin ; Not to recompense evil with evil , but evil with good , To cleave unto Christ and Truth when the wind of Tryal and Persecution blow hard in their face . These and such like Duties are not much stood on by the Man that walks by this Rule of Carnal Reason . As also the Duty of Mortifying your Predominant , Cutting off of the Right Hand , plucking out of the Right Eye , and that painful Duty of Heart-searching , and Self-judging , as at all times , so chiefly when ye are coming to a Communion , Carnal Wit will suggest to you that such precise strictness is not needful . Now this Rule is flatly contrary to that which is here prescribed , The Rule of Gods Approbation : For the Carnal Mind is Enmity to God , and Flesh and Blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven . 4. Those walk not by this Rule whose great endeavour is to conform themselves , not so much to what God Desires , as to what they themselves find Peace in , and who if they get not troublesome challenges from Conscience for their way , do take it for granted that their way is good enough , and do never set themselves to enquire further about it : Now this is an unsure Rule : For 1. Many may have Peace in that which is just opposite to what God Requires and Desires . Ye'l see Deut. 29. 19. How the Prophane Ruffian cryeth , Peace , he shall have Peace , though he add Drunkenness to Thirst : As it were in despite of God. But , 2. Tho' thy Conscience be not thus fear'd , yet it may be sleeping , because thou takes no pains to get it awakened ; And if thou wouldst but rouze it up , and make it pass impartial Sentence upon thy Way , There are many things thy Conscience would give thee little rest in , for which now thou finds no check or challenge . 3. It would be considered , whether Conscience now and then do not give you some gentle Checks for many things , tho it wound not sore , because ye do quickly command it to silence , so that it doth not speak to purpose , being overaw'd so that it dare not speak . In either of which Cases , Peace of Mind is not a safe Rule to walk by ; For ye may have Peace in that which God approveth not . I come now to the second thing here expressed , for clearing what That is , that makes our Performances accepted of by God : It is somewhat in the Inward Parts , not so much that which is External and obvious to the Eyes of Man , as Internal and only known to God , even the hidden man of the Heart . It 's true the man who would walk acceptably , must also look to that which is External , to wit , that which God hath Commanded , according to Philip. 4. 8. Finally , Brethren , whatsoever things are true , whatsoever things are honest , whatsoever things are just , whatsoever things are pure , whatsoever things are lovely , whatsoever things are of good report ; If there be any vertue , and if there be any praise , think on these things . So he is not to over look all things External , or look on them as things indifferent , if they be Honest , Pure , of a good Report , and any vertue in them , he must set about them : Only the great Work of such a man should ly most about his Heart and Inward Parts ; how to get it brought up to Duty and keeped at Duty : For John 4. 24. God is a Spirit , and they that Worship him , must Worship him in Spirit and in Truth . The Heart is the thing which God doth mainly seek . My Son ( saith Solomon ) Prov : 23. 26. Give me thy Heart . And He doth so seek it , that if he get it not , he cares not for all the rest , Isai. 29. 13. This People draw near me with their Mouth , and with their Lips do Honour Me , but have removed their Heart far from me , &c. I might here run out in a sad complaint That the Religion of the times is almost all Out-side-work ( at least in very many ) who the longer they live make the less ado about the Heart : And is it not so , If when ye neglect the external part of Duty ye get a Challenge , but if that be discharged ye have Peace , though there be no more care about the Heart than if ye had none ? But as to your accquitting your selves in this particular of making your great work ly about the Heart and Inward parts , Try your selves but by these Three things . 1. What is your care to restrain and mortify Heart Sins , which the Apostle calls the Filthiness of the Spirit , As High conceit of your selves , and your envying of the good of others , because it overshadows you ; The Sin of Fretting and repining under cross dispensations ; of not reverencing God in , and being contented with your Lott . Try I say what your Cares and Endeavours are to mortify these and such like Heart sins ; 2. Try what Conscience ye make to Discharge Inward and spiritual Duties , which require only the Inward man to be acted in them ; As the Duty of meditating on God , keeping intercourse and fellowship betwixt your Hearts and Him , The Duty of self judging , and calling your self to an account every night of the days work , the Duty of stooping to God under Cross Dispensations , and constructing aright of every thing that God does . Try I say what Conscience ye make , to discharge those and such like spiritual Duties . 3. Try in what way your greatest Care doth run in these Duties which require both the Outward and Inward man ; Is your great Care to act from right motives , and for right ends ? or rather do ye not on the contrair take but litle care what be the frame of your Heart within , if ye but get the outward work done , and a fair out-side which none can challenge ? Is your desire not only to exercise your Tongue in Praying , Your voice and art in Singing Praises , but also and mainly , to exercise your spiritual Graces , your Faith , your Humility , your Love , your Repentence for Sin , and your joy in God ? I fear if ye try by these marks , many of us shall find , that though the Inward parts be that which God Desireth most , yet it is that whereof we do give him least , which makes a great part of our Duties to be but shadows of Duty ; They have the external draughts and lineaments , shape and proportion of Duty but no more ; they are painted Duties , like a painted man without life , a painted fire without heat , Let the tryal of your self in these , and judging of your selves for them , be a part of your Preparation : And take this for a further part of it from the same Ground , if ye would have what ye do about your Preparation , accepted of by God , let your great work ly about your Heart , how to get it brought to Duty , and wrought up to some good Frame ; for the Lord desireth mainly the Inward parts ; and where your backward , dead , and lumpish Hearts will not move or drive for you , beseech the Lord to draw them , and make them willing in the day of his Power . But now lastly , I come to the particular here condescended on as a necessary Ingredient , for making our performances Acceptable and savoury viz. The Grace of Truth and sincerity , Behold thou desirest Truth in the Inward parts . And it gives us this Doctrine That the Grace of sincerity and the exercise of it , Is abosolutely necessary for making our Duties acceptable to God ; It 's so necessary that the Lord will accept even very little where it is , when he I reject much where it is wanting : we 'l see both these if we look to the Scripture verdict of two Kings of Judah , The first is , Asa , He was guilty in many things , there were very visible defects in him as sufficient that they may do the like : This is the Rule which God forbids to follow , Exod. 23. 2. Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil , &c. And Broad is the way which leadeth to destruction , and many there be that go therein : And yet it is a Rule which many follow , both as the matter what , and the manner how they do it : How many are there , that though they want not their own Convictions and Challenges for several things they themselves are conscious of , yet if there be many who are under the Power of the same Evils with themselves , they force themselves to take Peace and hold on , because there are many guilty of the same fault : Alas , That is but a very poor ground of Comfort , To go to Hell with Company , and speaks but very little zeal for God's Honour , else the more thou seest it trampled on by others , thou would be the more tender of it ; and consequently the more Common any sin is , thou should hate it the more , because God gets the more Dishonour by it : This was David's way , Rivers of Tears ( saith he ) run down mine Eyes because of the wicked who transgress thy Law. 3. Those walk not by this Rule , who walk only by that which their own Carnal Wit and Natural Reason approves ; How many are they , who though they cannot but know that God in His Word requires more exactness in their Walk , yet they rest on that which they think their own Carnal Wit thinks may suffice ; They 'll do what they can in Religious Duties , which indeed is but to do what they please ; But for further , God must forgive them : Thus they 'l medle with what is easie , pleasant , and profitable , in Religion ; But for what is hurtful , burthen some , or may bring loss , they 'l never owne that ; Because their Carnal Reason suggests unto them , that less than that may serve the turn , Religion is good , but People ought not to impoverish or destroy themselves for it : Thus many do easily dispense with themselves for the neglect of all painful Hazards and expensive Duties ; such as To deal their Bread to the Hungry , To choose Affliction rather than to sin ; Not to recompense evil with evil , but evil with good , To cleave unto Christ and Truth when the wind of Tryal and Persecution blow hard in their face . These and such like Duties are not much stood on by the Man that walks by this Rule of Carnal Reason . As also the Duty of Mortifying your Predominant , Cutting off of the Right Hand , plucking out of the Right Eye , and that painful Duty of Heart-searching , and Self-judging , as at all times , so chiefly when ye are coming to a Communion , Carnal Wit will suggest to you that such precise strictness is not needful . Now this Rule is flatly contrary to that which is here prescribed , The Rule of Gods Approbation : For the Carnal Mind is Enmity to God , and Flesh and Blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of Heaven . 4. Those walk not by this Rule whose great endeavour is to conform themselves , not so much to what God Desires , as to what they themselves find Peace in , and who if they get not troublesome challenges from Conscience for their way , do take it for granted that their way is good enough , and do never set themselves to enquire further about it : Now this is an unsure Rule : For 1. Many may have Peace in that which is just opposite to what God Requires and Desires . Ye'l see Deut. 29. 19. How the Prophane Ruffian cryeth , Peace , he shall have Peace , though he add Drunkenness to Thirst : As it were in despite of God. But , 2. Tho' thy Conscience be not thus fear'd , yet it may be sleeping , because thou takes no pains to get it awakened ; And if thou wouldst but rouze it up , and make it pass impartial Sentence upon thy Way , There are many things thy Conscience would give thee little rest in , for which now thou finds no check or challenge . 3. It would be considered , whether Conscience now and then do not give you some gentle Checks for many things , tho it wound not sore , because ye do quickly command it to silence , so that it doth not speak to purpose , being overaw'd so that it dare not speak . In either of which Cases , Peace of Mind is not a safe Rule to walk by ; For ye may have Peace in that which God approveth not . I come now to the second thing here expressed , for clearing what That is , that makes our Performances accepted of by God : It is somewhat in the Inward Parts , not so much that which is External and obvious to the Eyes of Man , as Internal and only known to God , even the hidden man of the Heart . It 's true the man who would walk acceptably , must also look to that which is External , to wit , that which God hath Commanded , according to Philip. 4. 8. Finally , Brethren , whatsoever things are true , whatsoever things are honest , whatsoever things are just , whatsoever things are pure , whatsoever things are lovely , whatsoever things are of good report ; If there be any vertue , and if there be any praise , think on these things . So he is not to over look all things External , or look on them as things indifferent , if they be Honest , Pure , of a good Report , and any vertue in them , he must set about them : Only the great Work of such a man should ly most about his Heart and Inward Parts ; how to get it brought up to Duty and keeped at Duty : For John 4. 24. God is a Spirit , and they that Worship him , must Worship him in Spirit and in Truth . The Heart is the thing which God doth mainly seek . My Son ( saith Solomon ) Prov : 23. 26. Give me thy Heart . And He doth so seek it , that if he get it not , he cares not for all the rest , Isai. 29. 13. This People draw near me with their Mouth , and with their Lips do Honour Me , but have removed their Heart far from me , &c. I might here run out in a sad complaint That the Religion of the times is almost all Out-side-work ( at least in very many ) who the longer they live make the less ado about the Heart : And is it not so , If when ye neglect the external part of Duty ye get a Challenge , but if that be discharged ye have Peace , though there be no more care about the Heart than if ye had none ? But as to your accquitting your selves in this particular of making your great work ly about the Heart and Inward parts , Try your selves but by these Three things . 1. What is your care to restrain and mortify Heart Sins , which the Apostle calls the Filthiness of the Spirit , As High conceit of your selves , and your envying of the good of others , because it overshadows you ; The Sin of Fretting and repining under cross dispensations ; of not reverencing God in , and being contented with your Lott . Try I say what your Cares and Endeavours are to mortify these and such like Heart sins ; 2. Try what Conscience ye make to Discharge Inward and spiritual Duties , which require only the Inward man to be acted in them ; As the Duty of meditating on God , keeping intercourse and fellowship betwixt your Hearts and Him , The Duty of self judging , and calling your self to an account every night of the days work , the Duty of stooping to God under Cross Dispensations , and constructing aright of every thing that God does . Try I say what Conscience ye make , to discharge those and such like spiritual Duties . 3. Try in what way your greatest Care doth run in these Duties which require both the Outward and Inward man ; Is your great Care to act from right motives , and for right ends ? or rather do ye not on the contrair take but litle care what be the frame of your Heart within , if ye but get the outward work done , and a fair out-side which none can challenge ? Is your desire not only to exercise your Tongue in Praying , Your voice and art in Singing Praises , but also and mainly , to exercise your spiritual Graces , your Faith , your Humility , your Love , your Repentance for Sin , and your joy in God ? I fear if ye try by these marks , many of us shall find , that though the Inward parts b● that which God Desireth most , yet it is that whereof we do give him least , which makes a great part of our Duties to be but shadows of Duty ; They have the external draughts and lineaments , shape and proportion of Duty but no more ; they are painted Duties , like a painted man without life , a painted fire without heat , Let the tryal of your self in these , and judging of your selves for them , be a part of your Preparation : And take this for a further part of it from the same Ground , if ye would have what ye do about your Preparation , accepted of by God , let your great work ly about your Heart , how to get it brought to Duty , and wrought up to some good Frame ; for the Lord desireth mainly the Inward parts ; and where your backward , dead , and lumpish Hearts will not move or drive for you , beseech the Lord to draw them , and make them willing in the day of his Power . But now lastly , I come to the particular here condescended on as a necessary Ingredient , for making our performances Acceptable and savoury viz. The Grace of Truth and sincerity , Behold thou desirest Truth in the Inward parts . And it gives us this Doctrine That the Grace of sincerity and the exercise of it , Is absolutely necessary for making our Duties acceptable to God ; It 's so necessary that the Lord will accept even very little where it is , when he●l reject much where it is wanting : we 'l see both these if we look to the Scripture verdict of two Kings of Judah , The first is , Asa , He was guilty in many things , there were very visible defects in him trary to that which the Law of God required : as particularly , he caused imprison the Prophet who reproved him 2 Chron : 16 10. He did not remove the superstitious High places , and yet see what the Spirit of God saith of him 1 King 15 , 14. The High places were not removed : nevertheless Asa his Heart was perfect with the Lord all his days . Implying that because he was a sincere upright hearted man , the Lord overlooked his many other failings . So much is also implyed in Hezekiah's Prayer , and the Answer it gets from God 2 Chron. 30. 18. 19. The good Lord pardon every one that prepareth his Heart to seek God , the Lord God of his Fathers , though he be not cleansed according to the Purification of the Sanctuary , And the Lord hearkned to Hezekiah and healed the People . The other is King Amaziah 2 Chron : 25 , 2. He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord , but not with a perfect Heart . Implying that though he did many things which in themselves were Right and Good , yet because his Heart was not single , sincere , and straight , in what he did , the Lord doth not regard it ; which cleareth the thing I said before , That the Grace of Sincerity and exercise of it is so necessary , that the Lord will accept even very little where it is , and will reject much where it is wanting . Now for opening up this Grace of Truth and sincerity a litle , in order to the application of the Point : Know 1 , Sincerity is a Grace which looketh mainly to the Inside , therefore it is here called Truth in the Inward parts : If thou be a Sincere man , an Israelite indeed in whom there is no guile , Though a fair outside , may please Onlookers , because they see no further , yet it will not please thee , because thou knows it will not please God , He desireth Truth in the Inward parts . But of this already . 2. Sincerity and Truth of Heart makes a man's Tongue and Heart to go together in all his deportment , whether to God or man ; The sincere hearted Man is not a double Man , he labours to be that in effect which he gives himself out to be . Thus 1. John 3. 18 ▪ Truth is opposed to ●air words which are no more but Words ; My litle Children ( saith he ) let us not love in Word , neither in Tongue , but in Deed and in Truth . Implying where Word and Deed go not together , there is no singleness , sincerity , or Truth there . 3. Sincerity aims at the right end , and works from right , approven and spiritual motives . The Apostle Paul Philip : 1. 15 , 16. Puts this difference betwixt the sincere and unsincere man , The Sincere Man works out of love and good will to Christ and Truth , the Unsincere man again works the same Work , and as much of it , but he works out of envy and strife , For some base and by ends . This Grace of Sincerity and Truth makes a man look not only to the Substance of his Actions , that they be Right and Commanded , but also to the Manner of them , and chiefly that they be from spiritual motives and for a right end , that is , for God's Glory , Thy own Salvation , Thy neighbours good and Edification . Now for Vse , Ye would try if there be not much want and inlake of this Truth and Sincerity among Us ; It 's true every inlake and failing in the exercise of Sincerity will not prove a Man to be Unsincere ; As every act of Hypocrisie will not make a Man an Hypocrite if so he do not countenance himself in it ; If so he do bewail it and flee to Jesus Christ to get pardon for it , and strength to subdue it : It is not for this end I would have you to search and try your Inlakes in the exercise of Sincerity , that ye may give your selves over for Rotten-hearted Hypocrites : But that you may bewail it , take with it , judge your selves for it , flee to Christ to get it pardoned , and to get Grace to amend it ; And your making this use of your foul Failings , as to this point , shall be a clear evidence , that though there has been much unsincerity , and shameless Hypocrisie in you , yet ye are no real Hypocrites ▪ But the main Use of the Point is , That as ye desire to come to the Lords Table Acceptably , and in the Right Manner , so deal with God sincerely and in Truth , that is , Let your great Work ly about your Heart and Inward Parts to get some right frame and disposition put on them , whereof I spoke before ; Only an humble , hungring frame , thirsting after Communion and Fellowship with him , is a good frame at such a time . Again let your coming flow from Spiritual Motives , and level at Right and Approven Ends ; But especially deal Sincerely and in Tr●th with God , by labouring to be That indeed , which by your Act of coming to the Communion ye give your selves out for . Now ye give your selves out for many things . 1. Your Coming saith , That ye have need of Christ , and must be at him ; And therefore deal sincerely and in Truth with Christ , in searching out and being affected with the need ye have of Him. 2. Your Coming to the Lords Table speaks that ye are weary of your old Masters , and have a real mind to change them ; Now I beseech you deal sincerely and in Truth with God , and see it be so that ye are really weary of your old Lusts which formerly enslaved you ; And that ye have a mind indeed to quite them . 3. Ye do hereby give out that you have a mind to take God for your Master , to enrol your self in the List of His Soldiers to fight against the Devil , the World , your own Flesh , and every thing which is an Enemy with Him ; Deal in Truth and dissemble not with God in this : See ye come not to give God a Day , with a secret purpose to give the Devil an Year . 4. Ye do hereby give out , that you mind to close with Christ on His own Terms ; See ye deal sincerely with Him in this also ; And for this end , Ponder well and think on the Terms before hand , for if ye close a Bargain with Him on his own terms , and so deal sincerely and in Truth with him ; Ye must first take him Freely , For Come and buy ( saith he ) without money and without price . Isai 55. 1. And therefore ye must not keep back from Him , or come heartlesly to Him , because ye find no worth in your selves for which ye should be beloved by Him : If ye do so , ye deal not Sincerely and in Truth with Him. 2. If ye take Him on his own Terms , and so deal Sincerely with Him , ye must take him wholly , not only as a Priest to save you , but as a King to Rule in you : If ye mind to make no other use of Christ but to get your by-past Sins pardoned by Him , that ye may take on a new Score in time to come , ye deal not Sincerely and in Truth with Him ; ye pretend to take Him on His own Terms , and that is to take Him wholly ; And yet ye will not take Him as a King to Rule over you . 3. Ye must take him with all the hazard that may follow upon your taking of Him , ye must take him with a resolution to ●leave to him , through Well and through Woe , aswell when the World frowns upon him , as when it smiles , otherwise ye deal not Sincerely with him : For these are his own terms whereon ye pretend to close with him ; If any man ( saith he ) will be my Disciple , les him deny himself , take up his Cross and follow me . And lastly , Ye must take him Irrevocably , for it is an everlasting Covenant : So that if the next day when the sensible Fruits of a Communion do not answer your expectation , ye loose your grip and quite the Bargain , ye do not deal Sincerely and in Truth with Him. I shall shut up all I have said , by giving some motives for making you deal thus Sincerely and in Truth with him . Know 1. He is dealing Sincerely and in Truth with you ; He minds indeed to close a a most blessed Bargain with you , and with all of you who mind to take him at his Word , and to give him Credit ; And if ye will but credit him , ye shall find from experience ere long that he hath been sincere , real , and in earnest with you : And to the end ye may trust him , He gives the most speaking evidences of His Real sincerity towards you which can be given : Before ye take a tryal of him , ye have His Word for it , His Writ for it , His Oath for it , and ye shall have His Seal and Pledge of it ▪ Even , that He shall be all that to you which He gives himself out for : so that I may well say , The Lord is dealing Sincerely and in Truth with You , and therefore do ye so with Him. 2. Your dealing thus Sincerely and in Truth with Him , ( as I shew'd before ) will make him overlook your many other Failings , which otherwise he will take notice of , and reckon on your Account . 3. If ye deal not Sincerely and in Truth with Him now , it is a venture when , or if ever again ye get such another occasion to do that which ye now leave undone . Many of us have often at such times dealt deceitfully with God , our Hearts have not been straight before Him : And yet for all this , he gives us a New Offer , That notwithstanding all that is come or gone , He shall be our God , and we his People ; And if ye close with this Offer in Truth , and on his Own Terms , ye shall find him to be forth-coming according to his Offer ; But if ye shall slight him , and deal deceitfully with him , seeming to close a Bargain with him when really ye do it not , It is a venture ( I say it over again ) if ever ye get such another Offer . The shaddows of the Evening , in respect of the bright Sun-shine of Pure Ordinances we have hitherto enjoy'd , seem to be stretched out upon the Land , and our Sun drawing towards a declining ; But though that should not be , yet who is there among you can infallibly promise , That he shall ever see another Communion ? yea or hear any number of Sermons after this . And therefore while it is to day hear his Voice ▪ and harden not your Hearts : Behold Now , this very present ( Now ) is the Acceptable time and the day of Salvation ; And therefore Seek the Lord while he may be found , and Call upon him while he is near . A SERMON PREACHED AT KILWINNING , MAY 11th . 1663. Upon the Munday immediatly after the Giving of the COMMUNION . The Third SERMON . LUKE 7. 23. And blessed is he whosoever shall not be offended in Me. Beloved in the Lord , THAT place 1 Cor. 1. 23. — We Preach Christ crucified unto the Jews a stumbling block , — hath had its accomplishment in all Ages , and in no Age more than in this ; Jesus Christ and His way of working , both with Churches and Particular Souls , hath been a stone of stumbling and rock of offence to many ; yea moe and moe are stumbling still , what through one occasion or other ; many who once did seem to run well in the way to Heaven , in the way of Truth , and in the way of Piety , have either already taken up , or are in hazard to take up , such an halt , as Christ may be conceived to say , to those very few who seem resolv'd to follow him through Better and Worse , as once he said Joh. 6. 67. Vnto the twelve ( when many of his Disciples went back and walked no more with him ) will ye also go away ? I have therefore chosen this Text to speak from , now immediatly after having engaged your selves to walk in Christs Way , that thereby ye may guard against that woeful common evil of Being offended in Christ , or of stumbling and taking up an halt in his Way of Truth and Piety , notwithstanding all the stumbling blocks and rocks of offence ye may meet with : For Blessed is he ( saith Christ ) whosoever shall not be offended in me . The Words are a Part of Christs Answer to that Question propounded to Him by Two of John's Disciples at John's desire , verse 20. — Art thou he that should come , or look we for another ? Ye may wonder that John who knew Christ so well , should have moved such a Question : But the Answer is , First , Tho Souls know Christ never so well , they 'l desire and have need to know him better , and to get what knowledge they have of him confirmed to them , especially in the day of Trial ; For John was now in Prison ▪ And 2dly . They 'l desire that others may know him also ; For it appeareth from what goeth before , that John propoundeth this Question for his Disciples satisfaction , and to satisfy their Doubts more than his own . Christ's Answer hath two Parts ▪ 1. He bids them shew John what they saw him doing , Verse 22. — Tell Iohn ( saith he ) what things ye have seen and heard , how that the blind see , the lame walk , the lepers are cleansed , the deaf hear , the dead are raised , to the poor the Gospel is preached . If ye ask what makes this to the Answer of the Question ; I answer , It maketh much , for it shews he was doing that which Scripture foretold the Messias would do , Isai. 35. 5 , 6. And therefore he behoved to be the Messias . 2. In thir words he answereth a main Objection against this Truth taken from Christ's own low condition and the practice of his Followers , which made many bear off him : For they expected a Glorious Messias , a Great earthly Monarch ; And because Christ was but obscure and mean , therefore they stumbled and were offended in him : To this Christ answereth , — Blessed is he whosoever shall not be offended ( or scandalized ) in me . The word rendered here ( offended or scandaliz'd ) seems to be a Metaphor taken from Travellers , who having dashed their Foot or Leg at some stone or block in the way , do stumble or take up an halt so as they can go no further , at least advance not so quickly in the way as they did . And Secondly , while he sayes Offended in me , take this first Actively ; And so the meaning is , They should not take occasion of stumbling from any thing in Christ or in His Way . 2. It may be taken Passively , so as to point out the Way that we should not stumble nor take up an halt in ; For there are some wayes , to wit , Every sinful course and way , that it were good for People to stumble in , and turn their backs upon : But this Way wherein we should not stumble , is Christ Himself , and the Way of Truth and Piety prescrib'd by him , Blessed is he saith Christ ) who shall not be offended in me . As if he had said , Happy is that Man who taketh not occasion from Me , or any thing in My Way , to stumble or turn his back upon Me , and that course of Truth and Piety wherein I have commanded him to walk . The Words are but One entire Proposition and Sentence , I need not therefore spend time in dividing them ; But shall come to the Doctrines . First , The Lord applyeth the general Prophesies Concerning the Messias in the Old Testament to Himself in particular ; shewing they were verified in Him ; For the Words ( in me ) have in them a direct Answer to the Question propounded by John's Disciples , and shews the Messias was come ; and that He is That Messias . Whence we might mark , That JESUS CHRIST the Son of Mary , who was Born in Bethlehem , brought up in Nazareth , and Crucified in Jerusalem , is that very same Messias , who was to Come and promised to the Fathers . We might observe 2ly , That before He gave this Answer that He was the promised Messias whom they were to follow , and not to stumble at , He doth first prove by Scripture that it was so , while he hids John's Disciples tell their Master , he was doing such miraculous Works as the Scriptures did foreshew none but Christ should do . Whence we might learn , That all Questions and Debates about Religion should be determined from Scripture , and according to the Rule set down in Scripture : For here when a Question ariseth among John's Disciples , If JESUS the Son of Mary was the promised Messias ? neither John the Baptist ( than whom there was not a Greater Prophet among these that are Born of Women ) yea nor Christ himself who was Greater than he , do take it upon them to determine in it : But John sends them to Christ , and Christ sends them to the Scripture for a Solution . Thus , To the law and to the testimony ( saith the Lord , Isai. 8. 20. ) if they do not speak according to this word , it is because there is no light in them . The neglect of this Rule hath been the In-let to Humane Traditions , without , and contrary to Scripture , both in Worship and Government in the Antichristian Church : And if this Rule once be laid aside , there can be no end of Humane Ceremonies , untill all that trash which is in the Roman Church be brought in upon the Church of God : For if the Authority of a Man can make way for One , it may also make way for all the rest . But passing those , The two following Doctrines are these that I intend most to insist upon , And both of them are implyed . 1. That there are many stumbling Blocks in Christ's way , whereat People are apt to Offend , take up an Halt and stumble . And yet , Secondly , There is nothing of that kind which ought to make us stumble : For if there were not some stumbling Blocks , Christ needed not so much guard against them ; and by his guarding against them , he shews we should not stumble at them . I shall prosecute both these Poins joyntly . 1. By condiscending upon some of these Rocks of Offence from which the Jews at first , and many since , have taken occasion to stumble at Christ , to take up an Halt in his Way , and to turn their backs upon it . And 2. By making it evident that there is no ground or reason why ye should stumble at any of them . First , The Jews stumbled at the Meanness of Christs Person . They could never take him , whom they looked on as a Carpenters Son , accompanyed with a Train of poor Fisher-men , to be their long looked-for Glorious Messias . And there is a Rock like to this which many yet do break their neck upon and stumble at , to wit , the Meanness of a Ministry ; Their Spirits cannot digest to be reproved , contradicted , and ( as they think ) trampled upon , by silly Bodies : And therefore , they must have Ministers ; some of them at least , advanced to the highest pitch of wordly Honour ; As thinking it will be less disgrace to be controlled , reproved , and made to stand in awe by such ; which is in effect to stumble at the Way which God thinks meetest for saving Souls ; even that his Servants may have but little of outward Worldly Dignity , whereby the Efficacy of their work on Souls may not be imputed to them but to Him , and usually Gods own Way comes best speed , 2 Cor. 17. Paul , speaking of the mean and afflicted Condition of Christs Ministers , saith — We have this Treasure in Earthen Vessels , that the excellency of the Power may be of God and not of us . 2. The Jews stumbled at Christs Doctrine : The Doctrine of Justification by Faith laying hold on Christs Righteousness , Rom : 10. 3. They could not submit themselves unto the Righteousness of God. And his condemning of the very first Motions of the Heart to Sin ; as appears by Christs vindicating the Law from the corrupt Glosses of the Scribes and Pharisees , Matth. 5. 18. &c. Thus the Doctrine of Christ , especially the strictness of it , and that acuracy of Holiness enjoyned by it , is a stumbling Block unto many yet : How many are they who would willingly embrace Christ's Doctrine , so as to profess themselves Christians ; But to be so strick laced in your practice as that ye must dye to the World , deny your selves , pluck out the Right Eye , cut off the Right Hand , and so as ye dare not lye , no not for gain , nor Drink to Excess with your Commerads ; nor Curse and Damn your selves , no not when ye are in ●assion ; no , nor avenge your selves with your own hand when ye have gotten a wrong ; This they think sounds harsh , and must either have Liberty in things of that kind , otherwise they 'l altogether quite It. 3. The Jews did stumble at the simplicity of the Gospel and Gospel Ordinances : They could not endure the laying aside of the Levitical Ceremonies , which made the Worship of God somewhat glorious to the Carnal Eye , and therefore was that way of Religion called , Gal : 4. 2. 3. The Rudiments of the World , and Pedagogy of the Law fitted for the Church while she was in her Infancy ; as Rudiments and Pedagogues are for Babes and Children ; Now that the Jew 's did stumble at the Way of Christ because of it's simplicity , and because of the laying aside that outward dress of Mosaical Ceremonies . Is clear from the many Disputes which Paul hath throughout his Epistles to that purpose . And this hath been frequently a ground of Offence and stumbling to many since , who could not , or cannot think but God is better pleased with his Worship , when it s decked up with a number of Humane Ceremonies , that may breed ( as they think ) Humility and Devotion in the Worshipers , than when it s gone about in that plain simple way wherein Our Lord Jesus Christ hath enjoyned it . But this were to make People wiser than God ; For if he had thought such things needful , or that they would prove acceptable to him , could he not easily have commanded them ; But now he hath not only not commanded , but also forbidden any thing of that kind , Col : 2 , 20. Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the Rudiments of the World● why , as though living in the World , are ye subject to Ordinances . Touch not , Taste not , Handle not ; which all are to perish with the using after the Commandments and Doctrines of Men ? Evidently teaching that the Lord did not abrogate His own Ceremonies under the Old Testament , that men might appoint Theirs under the New. And as to that which is suggested , That Humane Ceremonies added to Worship are a means to quicken Devotion , as the Papists affirm of their Images and Relicts ; The Apostle tells us in the following 23 verse , Which things have indeed a shew of Wisdom in Will-worship and Humility — They seem to be such , but really are not : It 's but A shew of Wisdom , Devotion and Humility which is wrought by any Mean of man's Invention . 4. Men are ready to stumble at Christ and his Way , because of the sinful Infirmities of Instruments and Ministers : Let them , say they , mend their own Faults , and we will mend ours ; but as long as Ministers , the best among them , have their own Faults , some Pride , some Avarice , some Worse , Let them reprove our Faults as they please , we will hold on and be doing ; For if Sin were as ill as they say it is , would not they themselves be more afraid of it : But herein ye must know that ye stumble at the Wisdom of God : For as ye heard from 2 Cor : 4. 7. We have this Treasure in Earthen Vessels , that the excellency of the Power may be of God , and not of us . He might have Preached to you by sinless Angels ; But this makes more for the Glory of God , when he makes use of Men puzled with a Body of Death like your selves , as an Hammer in his Hand to beat down the Body of Death in others ; For we must say in this Case , no Thanks to the Preacher , but unto God. 5. Men are ready to stumble at the Scandalous Out-breakings of others : Especially of those whom Christ hath employed as Instruments for promoting his Kingdom in Peoples Hearts ; No doubt this made many stumble at Christ and his way , That Judas one of his Own Company for Covetousness did sell his Master , and hang'd himself afterwards . And indeed such Scandalous slips in those do prove dreadful Stumbling-blocks , First , To Profane men , who have no Love to Religion , but lie at a catch to lay hold on any thing whereby they may throw dirt upon it , and here they get the very thing they wish : Hence ( saith Christ ) Woe to the World because of Offences , They think themselves Happy because of Offences , For they have got that which makes Religion hateful : But our Lord saith , Woe be to them because of Offences , For they prove stumbling-blocks and break-necks to them . Again they prove dreadful stumbling blocks to Godly weak ones , whose face is thereby covered with shame , so as they have not the courage to go on in Christs Way , and set their Face against the storm of reproach , and disgrace , which is raised up with such like work : But notwithstanding , know there is no reason to stumble at Christ or his Way for any thing of that kind : Because 1. He approveth no such Scandalous outbreakings ; His Word condemns them in all , and in none more than in his Followers : Because David by his fall made the Enemies of God to transgress , therefore the sword never departed from his House . 2. He permits such Offences to be , for holy wise and just Reasons , or that wicked men may thereby get occasion , to vent that inward Spite they still carried against Religion and Godliness ; and so in Gods holy justice be permitted to break their necks upon them . And 3. That all ( even the best ) may see therein their own weakness before a tentation , and what unspeakable obligations they are under to God , That they are not made examples of humane frailty unto others , as others are to them . And 4ly That all may learn not to have the Persons of men in admiration , to love Truth and cleave unto it , not for the Piety of men who owne it , but from that worth that is in Truth it self : So as that tho the very Ministers themselves who Preach it should run away from it , or by their Scandalous outbreakings thro durt upon it , Yet ye may still adhere to it : In which case , that whereon others stumble and break their neck , should make you advance the faster in your way , and God should bring you meat out of the eater . A 6th thing that proves a stumbling block unto many is , Diversity of Opinions : There are so many Religions , and Opinions about Religion , they know not which to follow , let all men once agree among themselves and then thy , I 'l choose , but till then they 'l forbear ; and so in effect do mock at all Religion . But neither should this be : For in the deep wisdom of God There must be Heresies — that they which are approved may be made manifest . 1 Cor : 11. 19. Besides It lyeth not in the Devils power so to confound matters but that humble seekers of God will find out the right way , He that guids the blind in a way they know not , will lead such : There are proud conceity People , even tho otherwise good , and there are also Careless profane People , that is , Such as look upon all Religion as Policy ; who are most like among such uncertainties , to lose their way . 7. People are ready to stumble at Christ and his way , Because of the Quality of his followers ; It 's the Poor receive the Gospel : John 7. 48. Have any of the Rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him ? And as Christs Followers are of the poorest sort ; So usually the Cross is their Livery Through many tribulations ( saith Paul ) they must enter the Kingdom of Heaven . And who is Poor , sickly , tender , despised , mocked at , afflicted in body and mind , if Christs Followers be not ? But there is no Reason for stumbling at Christ and his Way for this ; And if thou stumble at it , thou stumbles at the wisdom of God , who 1 Cor : 1. 27 — Hath chosen the foolish things of the World , to confound the wise ; and — the weak things of the World to confound the things which are mighty ; And base things of the World , and things which are despised , hath God chosen — And as to the Cross they get noe more of it than what is needful for them 1. Peter 1 , 6 — Though for a season ( if need be ) ye are in heaveness — It is needful , and they find it needful ; so as many times they will be made to say , they could not want one dram of it ; besides that the bitter Cross makes Christ the sweeter to them , and so sweet , as to furnish them with more contentment in their Crossed condition , than a King hath , who swayeth a scepter ; Psalm 4. 6. The light of Gods countenance made David Glad &c. To this add , Their Heaven is not here ; and the Lord of purpose maketh earth bitter to his followers , that Heaven may be the sweeter when it cometh . 8. Not only common Calamities from God , but bitter persecutions from men , attend the way of Godliness ; and these make many stumble and take up an halt . Christ our Lord Matth. 13. 21. Speaks of a sort of men , who — when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word , by and by they are offended . And the experience of all times sheweth that many formerly forward do then faint : Neither want they their pretended Reasons , for they are made to suffer as evil doers , often as disloyal or seditious persons , which to some , makes sufferings more terrible than any other thing . Again , they 'l but faint and shame the Truth when they are put to it , and therefore think it better to quite it in time ; And how can they be answerable to God , to run the hazard of losing all they have in the World , and to make themselves and posterity Beggars ; To this add , what if sufferings should run higher than goods , even to their life ? They are not ready to dye , and so they may lose their Souls ; besides they yeild but in a little , but quit not all ; and therefore it is not wisdom ( think they ) to be too peremptor , These and such like Reasons make many stumble at Persecution and a suffering Lot , when it attends God's way and those that walk in it ; But there is as little cause to stumble at Christ and His Way , at this , as for the rest ; For seeing Christ our Lord and Master went to Heaven through a sea of many sad sufferings , why should it be look'd upon as a matter unbeseeming , or a ground of stumbling , that it is with the Servants as it was with their Lord , and with the Disciples as it was with their Master : Christ strives to prevent his Disciples stumbling by the same Reason , John 15 , 15. Again , a Suffering Lot hath still , when it followed Christ's Fellowers , made Christs Way , the Way of Truth and Piety , a gainer : It hath ever proven so , as might be made appear both from Scripture and Ecclesiastick History : As it was with the Apostle Paul Phi●p . 1. 12. So hath it been , and so it will be , with all Christ's suffering Followers — I would ( saith he ) Ye should understand — that the things which happened unto me , have fallen out rather to the furtherance of the Gospel : This ever hath , is , and will be , God's none-such Way , wherein none can follow him , to make his Truth , his Work , his Church , his Interests , thrive best when they are born down most : As the Children of Israel Exod : 1. 12. Who — the more they were afflicted , the more they multiplied and grew and therefore to stumble at Christ's way because of Persecution , and a suffering Lot which usually doth attend it , is nothing else but to break our neck upon the deep and infinite wisdome of God ; because he takes his own Way , the surest and speediest way , to make his Church to grow ; and will not take Ours . Besides all these pretexts and excuses of stumbling on this account may be easily answered : For tho it hath been the lot of Gods Servants , even when they have suffered for Righteousness , to be suffering in the eye of the World as evil Doers ; yet , in that case men must think it enough that they approve themselves unto God ; and that there is a day coming when their integrity shall be brought forth as the Light. 1 , Cor : 4 3 — with me ( saith the Apostle ) it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you , or of man's Judgment — he that judgeth me is the Lord. Again none ever suffered that for him which he did suffer for them ; He takes nothing from men but what he hath first given unto them , neither puts he them to more than what he doth fit and strengthen them for : It holdeth constantly , In the mount the Lord will be seen . And 1 Pet : 4. 14. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ , happy are ye ; for the Spirit of Glory and of God resteth on you — And when People are put to the outmost of what can be expected , even to lay down their Lives ; what is it but a paying of their debt a little sooner ? For once die they must : And tho they should shift the matter at that time , how quickly may God take their life from them another way ; possibly in a long lingering and pineing sickness , with greater torment , and a gnawing worm of Conscience besides : and for any loss of goods , Lands , and inheritance , that either People themselves , or others of their Relations may sustain , by cleaving to Christ's Way in a suffering time ; It is not to be valued to the loss of God's favour and countenance , which cannot but follow , if men do otherwise ; God's peace and Favour , the light of his countenance listed up , is that Hundred fold , more than houses , brethren , sisters , Children , and Lands , which a man who suffereth the loss of all these things for Christ's sake and the Gospels , shall receive even now in this life : As our Saviour teacheth Mark. 10. 29 , 30. So besides that God hath a thousand ways to make up to men any loss of that kind : at least so far , as no man who sets his face towards Heaven , shall want a competency for carrying him there , and when a man 's once there , he needs no more : Matth : 6. 33 — Seek ye first the Kingdom of God , and his righteousness , and all these things shall be added unto you . And many things may fall out that may impoverish you , in which ye will neither have that honour nor satistisfaction which attends the Christians loss for Christs sake . And tho ceding for a little might put a storm of trouble by ; yet he that is not faithful in the little , will never be faithful in that which is more ; and it is Satan's Policy at all times to draw out the cause of sufferings to small things ; As Moses's Hoof , Mordecart's Beck , and Daniel's opening of his window : In which case , to wit , the case of Confession , even small things become great . From all which It 's aboundantly clear there is no real Reason why any should stumble at Christ and his Way , because of Peresecution , or a suffering lot which usually doth attend it . But a Ninth and Last thing which makes People , ready to stumble at Christ and his Way , and not only at one piece of his way , but the whole bulk of Godliness , and turn perfect Atheists , is , The temporizing temper of Ministers ▪ When , Alas so much the more is our shame ! it is usually observed the generality of Ministers ( almost of all Countries ▪ ) are of that Religion and Way which is most in Credit , and which the sway of the Court runs most for : Thus among Papists , almost all are Papists ; In Sweden and Denmark , almost all are Lutherans : And here with Us , and in France and Holland , almost all are Calvinists : And that which increaseth the Scandal and Rock of Offence is , When it is observed they easily turn their Tongues to speak the language of all times , forewardly crying up such a Way the one year , when the Ruling Power is for it , and not only crying it up , but engaging their Credit and Conscience by the most solemn Tyes which can be imagin'd amongst Men to promote it , and pressing , with all the most serious vehemency that Men can use , upon the Lords People to do the like . And yet when times change , and that they perceive the promoting of such a Way doth not make for their Worldly interest , they will cry it as much down again : As if there were no respect to be had , either to God , Conscience , or Credit ; but only to Peoples Interest and Standing . Thus in the dayes of Constantine the Great a Godly Prince , all the Ministers almost were Orthodox : Again , in his Son Constantius his dayes , almost all of them ( even the same Men who had been at the Council of Nice and condemn'd the Arian Heresy ) turned Arians : Hence it was then said , Vnus Athanasius contra totum mundum . And as it was in that Age , so hath it been almost ever since , The sway of the Court and Ruling Power of the Times , hath carried with it the generality of Ministers too great a length , to say and unsay , as they did enjoin them . This I grant is indeed a Rock , which of any other hath in it most of Offence , a Rock whereon many a Soul hath made Shipwrack : And if the mighty Power of God did not preserve his own Elect , It were a Worlds wonder , if it did not banish all sence of Religion out of the World , making all Flesh turn Irreligious Atheists : But notwithstanding the Word of the Lord doth furnish us with something to say of this Rock also ; that there is no reason why any should stumble at Christ's Way for it . And 1. Because both Scripture and Humane Histories do shew , That though it hath been so almost in all times ; yet the Lord hath guided the matter so , that he hath still keep'd a Church to Himself . I have shewed so much already from Church History in Constantine's time : And for Scripture History , Ye know in Elijah's time , 1 Kings 19. 14. The torrent of Defection was so prevalent , that for any thing could appear to such a sagacious Man as Elijah , He , and he only , was left alone . And Rev. 3. 4. There were but a few Names left in Sardis which had not defiled their Garments with the Iniquity of the Times . 2. This may also contribute to remove stumbling , That the Lord , amongst all the most general Defections of Ministers , hath ever keeped some streight : So as the Way of Truth and Piety is not left without a Witness , and some encouragement to those that walk in it . In Achab's time there was one Elias , yea several others , tho Elias knew not of them : And in Sardis there were a few names at least , who had not defiled their Garments . Whe● the Arians so far prevailed , that it was said , the whole World groaned and wondred at it self that it became Arian , yet there was One Athanasius . And when Antichrist was to prevail , it is shown Rev. 11. 3. That notwithstanding all the Tyranny of Antichrist , and the torrent of Corruption in these times , God should have His Two , that is , tho not many , yet some few Witnesses . 3. The Lord in His deep Wisdom doth measure out such a Dispensation for heightning His Churches Tryal , And that these who keep their Garments clean may come forth as Gold. It is but an inconsiderable Tryal , and calls for little Resolution to stand it out , When all the Lord's Ministers speak one thing , lifting up their Voice as a Trumpet , and denouncing the dreadful Judgements of God on all who turn their back on Truth and Piety ; But when the generality of Ministers at any time do blow the Trumpet of Defection from the Lord , That speaks Loyalty indeed , If then , notwithstanding such Defection , People stand to the Lords Banner , and in nothing be moved from it : And that because the Trumpet gives an uncertain sound , speaking one thing one day and another thing the next : So that to stumble at Christ's Way because of this when it falleth out , is to stumble at the Wisdom of God. 4. Therefore should no Man stumble at Christ nor His Way for this , because the Lord in all times hath made it , and no doubt will yet make it , tend to the advantage of His Way in the close ; So as afterwards , times growing more favourable , the Church of God hath thereby been freed from a Fleece of Time-servers , who would never otherwayes have discovered themselves : Besides that others who through weakness , had turned aside in some degre●● with the torrent of the time , somewhat against their Heart , have been made to acknowledge their weakness to God's Glory : And so make up by their Repentance , the breach they had made on God's Way by their Fall. And consequently for any to stumble at Christ's Way because of This , is to break their neck on that , which in God's method doth make His Way most lovely in the Close . There are other Two Points yet which might be handled jointly as the former ; The one Expressed , The other Implyed , and both of them serve to confirm the last , to wit , That whatever we meet with in Christ's Way , we should not love Christ nor His Way the less : None of these things should make us take up an halt in His Way , much less turn our back upon it . For 1. It is an happy thing not to stumble at Christ or His Way : This is expressed in the Text. 2. The Man who is offended in Christ , who turneth his back upon Him because of Stumbling-blocks or Rocks of Offence in the Way , That Man is an unhappy Man and cursed . I might prosecute both these Points , but for the time I shall forbear , and only say something in Answer to a needful Question : I think one may readily ask what I call Christ's Way whereat we should not stumble ; For there are Men and Parties of several wayes , There are Papists and Protestants , Sectaries , Socinians , Formalists , Anabaptists , Prelatists or Episcop●l-men , Presbyterians , Independents , and Quakers , every one whereof , have their Own Way about Religion ; And no doubt all of them will call their Own Way Christ's Way : And therefore it is needful to know which of these wayes are Christ's Way indeed , that so we may not turn our backs upon it . In Answer to which Question , It cannot be expected ( if it were but for the time ) I can enter in a Debate concerning what is Right or Wrong , what is Christs , what is not Christs in All those Wayes ; I shall therefore only give you some general Directions for finding out what is Christ's Way amidst the tide and torrent of so many contrary Opinions : And these such , that upon the one hand I think there is no Man having his right Wits about him , with the least Grain of Piety , but he must give his Assent unto them ; And yet such as through God's Blessing , being rightly improven , shall not leave you without a Guide what to choose as God's Way , and what not . First then , I doubt not it will be taken for granted by All. That the Way of Christ whereat we should not stumble , are the Essentialls of Piety and Christianity ; I mean Faith in Jesus Christ , Repentance unto Life , Holiness and tenderness of Walk in eschewing all known Sin , and coming up to the Practice of all known Duty : This is it I intended mainly all alongs , to wit , That notwithstanding all the forementioned Rocks of Offence , ye would not turn Profligate , Profane , Debauch'd , and Irreligious Atheists ; but hold on in the Way of substantial Piety notwithstanding of all , and over the belly of all . 2. But this is not all : It 's but a loose way of Religion , and very near to no Religion at all , for a Man to pretend to no more but adhere to the Practice of substantial Duties , and the Faith of Fundamental Truths , while in other things he sayes and unsays , and rolls about with the times : For hereby they may suffer the Devil to do with the most part of Scripture what he pleases : For Truths absolutely necessary to Salvation are but few , the Lord in Mercy having so provided , that the meanest capacity may explicitly comprehend them and all of them , seing they cannot be saved without them : But tho there be some few Truths only of absolute necessity for Salvation ; yet there are others in their own kind also necessary , to wit , for Gods Glory and your own Comfort , and the Lord will have you sticking closs by these Truths once knowing them to be Truths , as well as by others ; and that because a great part of Christ's Way lyeth in a Mans adherence even to these Truths , to wit , God's Glory and the Man 's own Comfort : And a Profane loose and indifferent Spirit as to these , doth both in the nature of the thing and in God's just Judgement , beget in progress of time , Profane Indifferency and Atheism as to other more great and substantial Truths : So doth the Apostle Paul inform the Galatians , Ch. 5. 9. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump . Thus then the great Question is to know which is Christ's Way in Truths of that sort , that so we may not stumble at it : For which in the first place take Paul's Rule , Philipp . 3. 16. Nevertheless whereto we have already attained , let us walk by the same Rule . And 2 John 8. Look to your selves that we lose not these things that we have wrought — In a word , whatever a Man is perswaded on good ground to be Christ's Way , let him stick closly by That as his way , and whatever he meet with , beware of doing any thing wherein his own Heart will condemn him . I say this , because there are some Truths of an inferiour Nature , which are as clearly revealed in Scriptures as other more substantial Truths : And consequently a Man may as much be perswaded of the one as the other : And tho another Man may think , or say he is perswaded of the contrary Error that it is Truth , and be deceived : Yet it follows not that the Man who is perswaded of Truth to be Truth is deceived likewise ; There is a Man who in his Dream thinks certainly he is awake and speaking , that Man certainly is deceived : But it were a strange thing to conclude from that , that the Man who is really awake cannot know if he is so , but must alwayes suspect he may be deceived and in a Dream . This much then for things out of Doubt , and wherein a Man upon good grounds hath attained to a full perswasion of the Truth that is in them . But the greatest Question of all is , concerning Points of the Truth whereof we are not absolutely perswaded without some scruple and ground of Doubt to the contrary , how we may know what is God's Way in those . And for this I shall give you some Marks . 1st . The Light of Nature will teach us in things Doubtful to encline to the surest and safest side , and that against which least can be said : As for Example , in that Controversy concerning the adding of Sacred significant Ceremonies invented by Man to God's Worship : As ; Bowing to Altars , Kneeling at the Communion , Signing with the Cross at Baptism , &c. Those who plead such Additions to be superstitious and unlawful , do bring Deutr. 12. 32. What things soever I command you , observe to do it : thou shalt not add thereto , nor diminish from it , And such like Scriptures for a Proof . The Patrons of Ceremonies answer ▪ That God forbiddeth such Additions only which are contrary to the Word , but not such as are besides the Word neither forbidden nor commanded by it . Now that is the very Answer which Papists give to Our Protestant Divines , while we use the same Scripture for an Argument against all their superstitious Ceremonies invented by Men : And indeed if that Door be once opened , a Door is opened not only for one or two , but all the Ceremonies of the Church of Rome , for on that ground only do they plead for them : When we ask what Warrand have they from Scripture for their frequent Crossings , their use of Salt , Spitle , Exorcisms in Baptism , their use of Holy Water , Baptising of Bells , Pilgrimages , and Pennances ? They Answer it is enough of Warrand for the Church to Command them , that they are not expresly condemned in Scripture . Now seing the way that is pleaded for such Ceremonies casts up so wide a gap ; It 's sure , that to abstain from them altogether , is the safest . 2. That Way in things Doubtful is most like to be Christ's , the Chief Promoters whereof are not carried on with by-ends , self designs to acquire Worldly Honours or Riches , or Fa● Benifices to themselves , but on the contrary , the very thing they plead for , and that part of the Contradiction which they mantain , is , That nothing of that kind , further than honest Compitency , and Ministerial respect , should be bestowed on Christ's Ministers . And upon the other hand , it is a shrewd Presumption at least that such a Way is not Christ's , wherein the Chief Promoters do palpably seek themselves and their own Worldly Interests : The Apostle Paul useth to lay great weight on this Mark , especially Rom. 16. 18. — Such serve not our Lord Iesus Christ , but their own belly — So that if they seek their own Bellies they serve not our Lord Jesus Christ. And Philipp . 3. 18 , 19 — Many walk — that are the enemies of the Cross of Christ — whose God is their belly — who mind earthly things . If it be evidently seen they mind earthly things , They are but Enemies to the Cross of Christ. 3. When People doubt about several Wayes which of them is Christ's Way , they are to stick by that unto which they are most engaged , and by more solemn tyes obliged , until ( at least ) they be clearly convinced it is wrong , for very common understanding will judge That to be the surest . 4. That way which by the grant of its Adversaries hath ground in Scripture for it ; tho they also say men may change it , must certainly look more like Christ's Way than the contrary which is confessed by its prime Maintainers to have no ground in Scripture , but that the great Warrand which is given for it , doth●ly in the Authority of men . Even an heathen King Artaxerxes did know so much , that every thing in the House of God behooved to be done according to the revealed will of God ; whence he issueth forth a Decree Ezra ; 7 , 23. Whatsoever is commaded by the God of Heaven , let it be diligently done , for the house of the the God of heaven : for why should their be wrath against the realm of the King and his Sons ? Lastly , That which tends most to the promoting of Piety , and is attended most with the Fruits of a Godly life , and tender conversation in it's most eminent mantainers and followers , and this not for a little short flash only at it's first beginning and when it is as it were upon it's Tryals , but at all times when ever there was any Controversie about it , That Way I say looketh most like to Christs Way : For all His Way and every Piece of it tendeth unto That to make People lead a Godly and Holy life Titus 2. 11 — The Grace of God that bringeth Salvation , hath appeared to all men : Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts , we should live soberly , righteously , and Godly , in this present World. And upon the contrary , That way , whereof the most zealous mantainers and and followers , as to their generality have been still plagued with prophanity and looseness ; That way I say looks not like the way of Christ. Wee 'l find Christ himself doth lean no small weight on this Mark Matth. 7. 15 , 16 Where he gives a general rule whereby to try false Prophets and teachers , to wit , The Fruits and Effects which their Doctrine hath upon their own Lives and Conversations Ye shall know them ( saith he ) by their fruits : Do men gather grapes of thorns , or figs of thistles . And verse 20. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them . Now all these things are such undoubted Truths as none will get them deny'd in the general , and yet such as through Gods Blessing being rightly improven , may give People light in the former Question , To know which is Christ's Way , among the many waye● on foot in the Church of God ; so as we need not any further application , but exhort you with the Apostle Paul 2 Tim : 2. 7. Consider what I say , and the Lord give thee understanding in all things . A SERMON PREACHED AT KILWINNING , Upon the Munday immediatly after the giving of the Communion . The Fourth SERMON . ACTS 11. 23. Who when he came , and had seen the Grace of God , was glad , and exhorted them all that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. THE Scope of my Sermon yesterday from Jeremiah 3. 22. was to bring you to God : The Text in hand holds out a main Duty ye should make conscience of when ye are brought to him , and have closed with him , as all of you by your approaching to the Lord's Table profess ye have done . Your Duty now is with purpose of heart to cleave unto the Lord. I shall not run far back for finding out the Connexion of this Purpose with that which goeth before : Only ye may observe that Luke the Penman of the Holy Ghost in this History of the Acts , doth shew ( from Verse 19 of this same Chapter ) how that through occasion of that Persecution which the Church at Jerusalem met with after Steven's Death ▪ mentioned Chap. 8 ) the Gospel being preached by those who were forced to fly for their lives did wonderfully spread as far as Phan●ce , & Cyprus , and Antioch ; And many in these Regions and Kingdoms were taken with it , for Verse 21 , The hand of the Lord was with them , and a great number believed , and turned unto the Lord. Whereupon as is shown v. 22. when these tidings came to the Church at Jerusalem , They sent forth Barnabas ▪ A Man of extraordinary Parts and Calling ( for he was an Apostle , as is clear from Acts 14. 14. ) I say the Church sends him as far as Antioch , for helping foreward the Work. And in this Verse we have Barnabas his coming to them , and what he does when he comes : Who when he came , and had seen the Grace of God , was glad , and exhorted them all , that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. In which Words we have these things consideraable . 1. Barnabas his coming to Antioch . 2. We have what he saw when he came , He saw the Grace of God , to wit , The wonderful effects of God's Grace , in bringing so many to embrace the Doctrine of the Gospel . 3. We have what this sight did work upon him . 1. It made him Glad . 2. It brought a pithy needful exhortation from him to these New Converts , the sum whereof is here set down — That with purpose of heart , they would cleave unto the Lord. What Explication is needful , I shall insist on as I go through the Particulars . First , It is mentioned he came to Antioch . But we hear nothing of any great train he carried along with him , Or any great solemnity at his Reception , tho he was an Apostle the highest Office-bearer in the Church : But only that he came , doubtless in a sober way as became a Minister of Christ : It was a thing then unknown in the World for Church-men to go accompanied with Trains like Princes , and that whole Countrey sides and greatest Personages in them , behooved to wait upon their Grandeurs . It never was well with the Church of God since Church-men began to overtop Peers and Nobles . But the thing I mark from this is , That Barnabas tho an extraordinary Office-bearer in the Church and an Apostle , doth nevertheless obey the Orders of the Church at Jerusalem : For it 's mentioned v. 22. That the Church at Jerusalem sent him forth , and here , That he did come accordingly : Now what this Church at Jerusalem was , to whose Directions he subjected himself , is clear from Act. 21. 18. It was the Church of Elders or Presbyters , even a Presbytry as hath been made out convincingly these years by-past against the Independants . To the direction of which Elders , the Apostle Paul did submit himself there , as Barnabas doth here . From which it is clear , that even the Apostles and extraordinary Office-bearers of the Church were very respective and tender of that Authority which Jesus Christ hath given to His Church and the Judicatories thereof . This appears chiefly in Two things . First . When there were Churches constitute and Church Judicatories erected to manage the Discipline of the Church , the Apostles did not exercise power of Jurisdiction over these Churches by themselves alone , neither in the Ordination of Ministers , nor in the Censuring or Excommunicating of Scandalous Offenders , but tho they were without doubt universal Pastors of the whole Church , yet they did remit the same to Ordinary Church Judicatories : Thus Paul doth not Ordain Timothy to be a Minister alone , but admits the Ordinary Presbytery to do it . 1 Tim. 4. 14. Neglect not the gift that is in thee , which was given thee by prophesy , with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery . And 1 Cor. 5. he clearly speaks of the power of Excommunication as residing in the Church Judicatory at Corinth , and reproves them for their not making use of that Power in Excommunicating the Incestuous Person , and stirrs them up to their Duty . V. 4 , 5. That In the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ when ye are gathered together , and my Spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ. V. 5. To deliver such an one unto Satan , for the destruction of the Flesh , that the Spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus . A Second thing wherein the Apostles did show their respect to Church Judicatories was this which is here mentioned in the Text , That in many things they were ordered by , and subject to their directions : Thus in the place cited Acts 21. 20. The Church of Elders or Presbyters at Jerusalem give their Injunctions to Paul that for removal of an offence that many thousands of Jews had taken against him he should publictly practise some of the Jewish Ceremonies in purifying himself and shaving his head , which were at that time things indifferent : And accordingly it's mentioned v. 26. That Paul did follow their direction : All which shews that the Authority of Church Judicatories was very much tendred even by the Apostles themselves . The Bishops do indeed boast themselves to be the Apostles Successors , and their only Successors , I shall not stand upon this , It being made very clear by Protestant writers against the Papists , In the controversy about the Pope , That the Apostles had no Successors , as to what was extraordinary in their Office ; and as to that which was Ordinary in it , as to Preach the Word , Dispense the Sacraments , and exercise Church Discipline over particular Churches , That they have in these all Ministers for their Successors : But passing that , What I am now on is , That the Bishops of these latter times have encroached more upon the Power and priviledge left by Christ unto his Church and Church Judicatories , than ever the Apostles them-themselves ( whose Successors they give themselves out for ) did . For as I have cleared from the present Doctrine , The Apostles did leave the matters of Ordinary Jurisdiction to be managed by Ordinary Church Judicatories ; but so do not they , The whole Body of Christ's Ministers within a Church ( though they were all gathered together ) may neither Ordain a Minister , nor Excommunicate a Scandalous Offender , but this must be done only by the Bishop , and such as ●e doth Substitute under him for it . Again the Apostles were in some things at least subject and ordered by the Directions of Church Judicatories , but so are not They , such a Condiscendance could not stand with their Honours and Dignities . Secondly , We have in the Text what Barnabas saw among them when he came , and this is called , The Grace of God. The meaning whereof is not as if all of them had been converted and indued with saving Grace , neither doth Grace here signify Gods Grace inherent in them , but Gods Grace and free Favour which he saw in the effects of it , in that it wrought so Powerfully in bringing a great many to embrace the Doctrine of the Gospel among whom there ( doubtless ) were many sincere and real Converts , though all of them were not so . However the thing he saw was , The mighty progress and success of the Gospel ; and this occasioned by a strong and cruel Persecution ( mentioned verse 19 ) the Ministers are forced to flee from their Flocks ; wherever they go they Preach , Gods Grace and mighty Hand accompanies their Labour to the Conversion of many thousand Souls , this is the Grace which Barnabas saw . Hence take this Doctrine , That sadest Persecutions for Truth do frequently prove an occasion of the Gospels spreading : Thus it was Act : 8. 3. Saul — made havock of the Church , entring into every House , and haling Men and Women , committed them to Prison . v. 4. Therefore they that were scattered abroad , went every where Preaching the Word , Even as far as Ph●nice , Cyprus and Antioch , as it is ver . 19 of this Chapter The making havock of the Church occasioned the enlargement of the Church , which hath frequently fallen out since , which gave ground to that true and ancient saying , The Blood of Martyrs is the seed of the Church . The Reasons why the Work and Grace of God thrives best at such times may be many . As 1. Peoples Ears are then bored and readiest to drink in the Word with greediness , because then they have little other comfort left them : Affliction and Persecution is a Tasty Sawce to make the Word Relish , Psal. 141. v. 6. When their Judges are overthrown in stony places , they shall hear my words for they are sweet . 2. At such times the Servants of Christ are more diligent in their Work , as they can have access to it , and more fervent in dealing with God by Prayer for a Blessing to their Work , because the thriving of their Work is all the reward which they can then expect . And 3. The Lord doth then , usually countenance the Labours of his Servants most , because they are most despised , few do then care for them , or takes any notice of them . And therefore the Lord takes this way , both to hearten them and to put respect upon them . And 4. The Couragious , Constant and Cheerful enduring of Hardships and Sufferings for Truth , doth commend that Truth for which they suffer , unto others , even to indifferent Spectators ; and makes them enquire after it , and desirous to know what so much worth there can be in it . I shall not insist for Application , hasting forward to the latter part of the Text , Only if it be so , Then People are not to lookupon Persecution and a suffering time for Truth , whenever it comes , as so sad , so dismal , and dreadful a thing , For this at least may be expected to be lovely in it ; The same Truth which men labour to bear down , shall spread the faster and the further . And that this is so , the following Doctrine will shew . Another Doctrine ariseth from the first effect this sight did work on Barnabas , It made him Glad , for so saith the Text , Who when he came and had seen the Grace of God was glad . The Doctrine is this , That the Gospel and Truth do spread , and gain ground among People , is matter of Joy and gladness to a Godly heart , though the times were otherwise never so sad : For there were many things to make Barnabas sad at this time , If we consider 1. How they had stoned the first Martyr Stephen to death , a man full of the Holy Ghost , and used him so as if he had been the most notorious Malefactor that ever the Earth carried . And 2. The prosperous state of the Churches Enemies , the Scribes , Pharisees , High-Priests , a company of degenerate corrupt Church-men , who at that time did sit at Jerusalem , guiding all things at their pleasure , That if any did but mutter against their State and Dignity , though in the furthest part of all the Realm , their hand could easily reach them ; They needed no more but hound out a Saul with a Commission if it were to Damasc●s to take them , and bring them bound to Jerusalem . As is clear from Acts 9. 1 , 2. And 3. if ye consider his own poor condition , and that of others the Servants of Christ at that time , who were hunted from corner to corner , yea from Kingdom to Kingdom . These , and many such things as these , were at that time to make Barnabas sad , and yet this makes him take all in the better part , and in a manner digest all , That when he came he saw the Grace of God had accompanied the Labours of his despised Servants , and a rich Income of Souls to the knowledge of Christ and the Gospel . And when he saw this , he was glad ; He is in some sort so transported with it , That in a manner he forgets Stephen's death , he envyeth not the prosperous state of the Churches Enemies , no● doth much resent his Own hard lot , or that of others , who were Christs Faithful Saints and Servants . All which cleareth the Doctrine , That the spreading of Truth will make a Godly Heart Glad ▪ though the times otherwise were never so sad . Thus was it with the Apostle Paul , Philip , 1. 12. The things which happened unto me . ( saith he meaning his Bonds , Imprisonment and other harsh usage ) have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the Gospel . Whereupon v. 18. he breaks out , What then ? notwithstanding every way , whether in pretence or in Truth , Christ is Preached ; and I therein do rejoyce ; yea , and will rejoyce . For Vse 1. Try your selves by this , What it is that makes you Glad , Is it the thriving of Gods work in Souls ? The down-bearing of Sin ? The growth of Piety ? If so , It speaks thee to be a man of Barnabas temper : and upon the other hand , If things of that kind do rather make the sad ; and if the back-going of Gods Work , The destroying what he hath built , The plucking up of what he hath planted , The thriving of sin and Wickedness ▪ The general Loosness of the times ; If ( I say ) these things make thee Glad ; It speaks thee to be a man of a woful temper , a very Godless Heart . But 2. If this be a thing that will make a Godly Heart Gla● , in the saddest of times , then Pray to God for it ; that it may be so , That the Work of God may thrive in Hearts , That those woful Spiritual Plagues of Security , Deadness and Hardness of Heart may be removed , and the Gospel may take many by the Heart who never hitherto knew the Power of it . It 's easie for God to bless his Truth in the Mouth of his despised and persecuted Servants , and to make a gracious Change , tho Wickedness were at the greatest hight : And if he do it , whatever may be the other sadness of the Times , thou who art a Godly Heart shall have reason to be Glad , yea and thou shall be Glad , tho thou were lying bound in a Prison with Paul , thou shalt in a manner forget thy Sorrow , and in that thou wilt rejoyce . But I come now to the 2d . Effect which this sight did work in Barnabas ; It brought a pithy needful Exhortation from him to these new Converts : For saith the Text , — When he had seen the Grace of God he was glad and exhorted them all , &c. I observe first in general that this was the Eirand the Church of Jerusalem had sent him on , at least the Chief part of it , and that which he minded most , therefore his discharging this part of his Commission is only mentioned , even his Exhorting of them and Confirming them , by Preaching to them . Hence this is clear , That Preaching and Exhortation is one part at least of the Ministerial Office , yea and a great part of it : It is such a piece of the Ministers Duty , that both the Converted and Unconverted have need of it , and such need , That in an ordinary way they cannot be saved without it . It 's needful to the Unconverted , For Rom. 10. 17. — Faith cometh by hearing — And 1 Cor. 1. 21. — It pleased God by the foolishness of Preaching to save them that believe . It 's needful also to the Converted , as is clear both from this Text ( for after he had seen the Grace of God among them , He seeth it needful to exhort them ) and from Acts 14 ▪ 21 , 22. The Apostle Paul did Confirm the Disciples , and exhorted them to continue in the Faith , Exhortation and Preaching even to those that are already Converted , is God's mean to Confirm them . In a word , it will neither be good for the Converted nor Unconverted among us if ever it come to this ( as the Lord knoweth how soon it may come ) that Preaching shall be looked on as no part , or a very Inconsiderable part of the Ministers Duty , or a thing Indifferent whether he Preach or not , providing ye Read , Sing , or Say a Set Service , which within a little cannot but wear threed-bare to people by frequent Hearing : Alas ! how little Food is there in such like work for hungry exercised Souls ? How little stuff to rouze up or work upon the dead drouzie secure Conscience ? We read in Scripture that Apostles , Evangelists and Ministers , were sent out to preach and to mind that as a great part of their Work , yea and to mind it more than the Administration of the Sacraments , 1 Cor. 1. 17. — Christ sent me not to Baptize but to preach the Gospel . — That is , not so much to Baptize as to Preach ; But we never find they were sent out to read , say , or sing a Set Service , and much less , that they did place the stress of Religion on such a Service , Caring the less , if that were done , whether there had been Preaching or not : Alas ! Beloved , when we consider how much plain and powerful Preaching , fervent and Soul-piercing Exhortation hath been in Britain , and how little use , the Generality have made of it , and how much they have undervalued it : It were little wonder though liberty to Preach were taken from Ministers , or Preaching Ministers removed from People , and such set over them as can do no more than what any School Boy may do , even to read an Homily or old printed Preaching , and to chant over a Service Book . But I come to the Exhortation it self , or rather the sum of what Barnabas preached to them : For we may not think he spoke neither more or less than these very words : Doubtless he ran out and enlarged excellently on these Heads ; but this was the sum of what he said , He exhorted them all that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. Here we have Two things . 1. The thing exhorted to , or what he would have them do , which is To cleave unto the Lord. 2. The manner wherein he would have it done viz. With purpose or resolution of heart . As to the First , The thing exhorted to , is , to cleave to the Lord Jesus Christ , who usually gets the Name of Lord in the New Testament : And the word rendered [ cleave unto him ] signifieth also continue with him . Now the Lord to whom he exhorts them to Cleave , or to continue with , is , 1 The Lord Christ Himself , who tho Bodily absent , yet is Spiritually present , and as to the Merit , Vertue , and all the Fruits of His Death , is offered to us in the Promise : And the Way how we c●eave to the Lord thus , is , By Faith , and the continuing in the exercise of that Grace : This is it which is called Ab●●ing in him . 1 Joh. 2. 6. And Dwelling in him . 1. Joh. 4. 13. Take this then for the first Piece of this large and comprehensive Duty to which ye are here exhorted , That ye who have fled to Christ by Faith , Cleave to Christ , and Continue with him , that is , mantain what ye have do●●ein closing with Christ , beware of loosing these grips ye have laid hold on , but frequently renew them , that so ye may cleave the nearer to him . This is nece●●ary , for 1. Satan will not fail to let showers of Tentations flee at you , to drive you from Him , and make you loose your grips ; And surely ye shall be made to loose them , unless you put on a Resolution thus to cleave unto Him. 2. This Cleaving to Him , and Abiding in Him , is the cause of fruitfulness , Joh. 15. 4 , 5. I am the Vine ( saith Christ ) — he that abideth in me and I in him , the same bringeth forth much fruit : It is little wonder there be but few Fruits after a Communion , because instead of Cleaving to the Lord , and mantaining what ye have done in closing with him , and instead of doing it over again , ye do on the contrary upon the least cross Dispensation begin to question the reality of what ye have done , and to retire as Men ashamed , because ye have Hoped . Now that ye may thus mantain what ye have done in Closing with the Offer of Christ held forth in the Promise , and so cleave to the Lord in the exercise of Faith ; I shall recommend to you these Three things . 1. Labour to be tender in your Walk ; For tenderness of Walking is a Fruit of Faith , and the want of it will beget a suspition that ye have no Faith nor ever had it , and if ye suspect ye want Faith ye can have little heart to cleave to the Lord by exercising it : There is nothing which more obstructs our Boldness in adhering to our Interest in Christ , and in our Cleaving to him by Faith , than Untender Walking . 2. Dwell much in the daily sence of your Wants , this will put you frequently to employ Him : When People want Water within doors , they must of necessity run often to the Well with the Bucket to draw , but when ye wear out of acquaintance with your emptiness and Wants , and think ye have a Fountain and sufficient stock in your selves , ye'l make but little use of Faith , and seldom use making of it makes it to decay , that ye cannot make use of it when ye would . 3. Do not needlesly and without a ground call in question the reality of your former closing with him ; For that , as I told you before , will make you heartless to set to it of new ; Or however ye question the reality of what ye have done already , yet see that in no terms ye question your Right to close with him by Faith , and believe in him for time to come : For whatever thou hast done formerly , the Gospel Offer is yet at thy door , and a Command from God unto thee to close with it , and if thou hast not done it in earnest before , thy need is so much the greater to do it frequently and in earnest now . But now to proceed , By ( the Lord to whom he exhorts them to Cleave , is not only meaned The Lord Himself as he is offered in the Promise , but generally all that he hath recommended to our care , as an evidence of our respect to him , Thus we testify our respect to absent Friends by owning their Concerns and Interests , and if ye ask what these things are that the Lord Christ hath recommended to our care , I answer in two words , First , His Truth , and next his Service . So that 1. ye are to Cleave unto , and Continue in his Truth against Error ; according to what the Apostle Jude commands , V. 3 ▪ — Ye should earnestly contend for the Faith , ( to wit , the Doctrine of Faith or Truth ) which was once delivered unto the Saints 2. We are to Cleave to and Continue in his Service , whether the Duties of Immediate Worship we should cleave to these against Superstition , voluntary neglect , Will-worship and Idolatry : Or the Duties of our Particular Callings and Stations ; All which should be gone about as Service to him ; So Servants are to do their service with good will , as to the Lord , and not to men , Ephes. 6. 7. Now that Cleaving to all These is meaned by Cleaving unto the Lord , appears from Deutr. 10. 20. and 30. 20. where Cleaving to the Lord is explained by fearing the Lord , by obeying his voice , by serving him and swearing by his name . Now to speak a little to each of these . 1. Ye must Cleave to and continue in his Truth . Gaius is commended for this 3 Joh. 3. even that he walked in the Truth ; And Prov. 23. 23. we are bidden Buy the Truth and sell it not ; And ye heared from Jude , — Ye should contend for the Truth : For Error contrary to Truth is of a Damning Nature , 2 Peter 2. 1. They are called Damnable Heresies ; And Error in point of Truth makes way for Prophanity and loosness of Life , a sound Heart and an unsound Head cannot well subsist ; Therefore doth Peter 2 Epist. 3. 17. call Error — The error of the wicked ▪ For helping you to this needful Duty of Cleaving to the Lord , by Cleaving to His Truth , I shall recommend to you these things . 1. Beware of Scepticism , or making all Truths debateable , or those Truths especially which may bring you in greatest hazard to confess or cleave to : This is down right contrary to the Cleaving to Truth here enjoined . 2. Do not undervalue any Truth , say of no Truth as Lot said of Zoar , ( is it not a little one ? ) and so I may skip from it . It 's true there is a difference among Truths , some greater Truths and some smaller ; But as it is of Sins , so it is of Errors , The lesser alwise doth make way for the greater , and there is no Truth which cometh not from the God of Truth ; And therefore no Truth which ye should look on as a thing Indifferent , whether ye think so or otherwise of it : Besides in times of Defection from Truth , it is the usual Artifice of Persecuters to extenuate those Truths they labour to bear down , as things Indifferent , and very triffles ; When in the mean time their own practice doth give the●r Profession the lie ; For if they thought them things indifferent and triffles , why would they persecute M●n for adhering to them ? Besides tho some Truths be not so absolutely necessary to Salvation , but a Man may be saved tho he think otherwise , yet it doth not follow we should be careless of all such : Thus tho a Man's hand be not so absolutely necessary but he may live without it , yet he were a mad Man who on that account would wittingly and willingly cut it off : Besides an Error in some Truths , which will not damn one , may condemn another who knows at least may easily know it to be an Error , and yet will live and die in the Justification of it without Repentance . 3. Ye ought chiefly to cleave to those Truths which ye are most engaged to owne , either by God's sealing them to your Spirits , or by Catechising and Instructing you from your very Childhood in them , so that ye are put out of all doubt of the Truth that is in them , or by bringing you under most sacred Tyes of Solemn Vows and Oaths to maintain them ; I say , ye ought to look upon it as your Duty chiefly to Cleave unto such Truths . 2 Joh. 8. Look to your selves that we lose not those things that we have wrought ; And Solomon saith , It is not safe after vows to make enquiry . If a Man's Conscience grow once so wide as to let such Truths pass through either for Errors or Triffles , he may perswade himself there is not a Truth in all the Bible , if he be hard put to it that he 'l stick at , but that meeting with a pressing suitable tentation he 'l let it slip through after them 4. We are to Cleave to Truth not only by retaining the knowledge of it , and by giving assent to it in our Judgements but also by giving a modest and faithful profession and confession of that Truth on all hazards when we are called to it : This is commanded 1 Pet : 3. 15. Be ready alwise to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you , with meakness and fear , and Rom : 10. 10. — With the heart man believeth unto righteousness , and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation . This is necessary both for the honour of God , Truth being a piece of his Name which we are bound to confess Rev : 2. 13 — Thou holdest fast my name and hast not denyed my faith — And its necessary also in order to our own Salvation For whosoever ( saith our Saviour ) will confess me before men , him will I also confess before my father which is in heaven ; but whosoever will deny me before men , him will I also deny before my father which is in heaven . This now as upon the one hand it doth not justify unseasonable Confession contrary to Matth : 7. 6 — Cast not your pearls before swine , lest they trample them under their feet , and turn again and rent you ; So upon the other hand it reproves those who dar not or will not give a Confession of the Truth even when they are called to it , and much more those who deny the Truth either expresly , or Interpretativly , That is , when they do that which men are apt to take and have reason to take for a denial of the Truth , tho they do not deny it in so many words . But Secondly , We must cleave unto the Lord by Cleaving to and continuing in his Service , for that is the other thing which he hath recommended to our Care , as an evidence of our respect to him : Joshua bids the People , Take diligent heed — to cleave unto the Lord and serve him , Jos : 22. 5. Now this holds first of the Ordinances he hath appointed for his Service and Immediate Worship : Ye must Cleave to these . In order to which . 1. Beware of Will-worship , or doing that in his Worship which he hath not commanded , Colos , 2 20. Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the Rudiments of the World : Why as though living in the World , are ye subject to Ordinances ? To wit , Ordinances and Commandments of Men in Gods Service , as he explains verse 22. And he gives some instances of them verse 21. Touch not , taste not , handle not . It is true men may appoint the outward Circumstances of Order and Decency for going about these parts of God's Worship which he hath commanded ; such as are Time and Place , what hour of the day ye shall meet at publick Worship , and in what Place , and such like , which are Common both to Civil and Religious Actions ; but they may not under that pretext , appoint new practices of Worship to God , or significant engaging Ceremonies : As for example , That the Sign of the Cross be used in Baptism , As a Token we shall not hereafter be ashamed to Confess Christ Crucified ; And that Ministers Preach with a White Shirt or Surplice above their Garments , to signify the Holiness of their Calling ; or as the Ancients did ordain those who were Baptized to wear White Garments for the space of eight dayes after Baptism , To signify their being washen from Sin : For by that same Rule , They may command every one to taste Vinegar and Gall at the Communion , as a Sign that they shall not be ashamed of Christ who Died so : And to put on an Helmet , Breast-plate , and other Armour in time of Publick Worship , To signify our Resolution to Fight the Battle against Sin and Satan so long as we live ; And suck or drink in Milk publickly in time of Divine Worship , In token that by Faith we draw in the sincere Milk of the Word , that we may grow thereby . Now any may see that to command these and such like , were to appoint New Work in Gods Service , and more than to do that Work he hath appointed Orderly and Decently . Besides many things of Lesser moment and of the same nature with these ; I mean significant Ceremonies are appointed by God in his Law , to which there is yet added that Sanction , Deut. 12. 32. What thing soever I command you observe to do it , thou shalt not add thereto , nor diminish from it . So that the appointing any such things in the Worship of God is an adding to Gods Law which is there prohibited . I shall be more brief in the following Directions for Cleaving to the Ordinances of Gods Immediate Worship : And therefore 1. Beware of Irreligious Impiety in neglecting these Ordinances : Ye are commanded to wait upon them , Pray without ceasing , Despise not Prophesying ( or Preaching ) Speak to your selves in Psalms and Hymns , Give attendance unto Reading . Ye cannot cleave to the Lord in these Ordinances if ye neglect to go about them ; ye must countenance publick Ordinances , make Conscience of secret Duties . 2. Beware of Formality in going about them , by resting in an out-side work ; But above all things , strive to bring the Heart up to them , otherwise ye do not as ye ought , cleave unto them , God is a Spirit , and will be Worshiped in Spirit and in Truth , The Lord will not rockon you to cleave unto them , tho ye be present at them , if so your Heart be far away from them . 3dly . Beware of up-sitting or back-sliding from making Conscience of them , after ye have once begun ; That it be not said of you as the Apostle Paul said once of the Galatians , Ye have run well , but who did hinder you that ye should not obey the Truth . Otherwise ye do not cleave unto them . But further , This cleaving to the Lord , by cleaving to and Continuing in his Service doth hold in the Duties of our Particular Callings and Stations . And in order to your Cleaving to these , or to the Lord by making Conscience of these . 1. Do not neglect them ; I mean those Duties which ye owe , whether as Servants , or as Masters ; as Parents , or as Children ; as Husbands , or as Wives ; as Magistrats , or as Subjects : Much of the Life and Power of Religion is manifested in the Conscientious discharge of such Duties ; and a man manifests best what he hath by making Conscience of such ; Rom : 12. 11. Ye are not to be Sloathful in Business . 2. What ye do even in things of that kind , strive to do it as Service to the Lord. For ( as I have shew'd ) so much is enjoyned Servants ; Thus shall ye Cleave to the Lord , even by going about your Ordinary Calling , when ye discharge the Duties thereof as Service to Him , that is , when ye do them because He appoints you so to do , and that ye may adorn Religion , and take away all occasion of Reproach , by your Conscientious Diligence in the practice of them . 3. Let not the Duties of your particular Stations make you neglect the Duties either of Publick or Private Worship , there is time for both , ye cannot Cleave to the Lord in the Duties of the one sort , if they shall justle out the Duties of the other . 4 Strive to keep Communion with God even in the practice of such Duties , by sending up secret thoughts and pithy ejaculations to God among hands ; as Nehemiah did chap. 2. By labouring to make a Spiritual use of every thing that occurs , or which ye meet with . This much now for their cleaving to the Lord , the thing He would have them to do . I shall now speak a little only , to the manner wherein the Lord would have it gone about ; It s with a purpose or resolution , and a purpose of Heart . 1. It 's with a purpose and resolution , he would have them take on a fixed resolution to do , and that as an help to make them do : Hence take this Doctrine , That ye may cleave to the Lord and continue constant and stedfast in his Truth and Service , ye must take on a fixed Resolution and Purpose so to do , I suppose ye have taken on such a Resolution as this at your coming to the Lords Table , but tho ye have done it , yet your wisdom will be every day to renew it : David had taken on such a purpose , Psal. 17. 3 — I am purposed that my Mouth shall not transgress , yea he binds himself by an Oath to it , Psal. 119. 106 , I have Sworn , and I will perform it , that I will keep thy righteous Judgments This is that piece of the spiritual armour called Ephes : 6. 15 — The preparation of the Gospel of peace . Even a prepared , ready , resolute purpose in the Lords strength , to go on in the Way of Truth and Duty , notwithstanding of any hazard , hardship , or difficulty , I say it must be a Purpose taken on in the Lords strength , for without him we can do nothing ; For sayeth David Psal : 71. 16. I will go in the strength of the Lord God. Now ye must labour to bring up your hearts to such a Resolute Purpose as this , to go on in the Way of Truth and Duty , notwithstanding hazard , hardship and difficulty : For 1. The want of such a Resolution or Purpose will not keep off Tryal and trouble , neither will the putting of it on , hasten Tryals . Job 34. 33. Should it be according to thy mind ? he will recompense it , whether thou refuse or whether thou choose . 2. Couragious Resolution and Purpose to fear no opposition but to charge through all difficulties and hazards , is half victory Jam : 4. 7. Resist the Devil and he will fly from you . 3. When a Resolution and Purpose is once laid , to undergo all that ye may meet with in the Way of Truth and Duty , it is usually attended with cheerfulness in Duty : Now God loveth a chearful giver , when upon the contrary if an unexpected storm of Tryal and trouble come on a man before he be fully resolved to endure the worst of it , It doth at least very much damp and weaken him , if it do not wholly make him quite the way . 4. The promise is made only to the persevering and Resolved man ; He that endureth to the end shall be saved , when The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own wayes ( Prov : 14. 14. ) That is , he shall meet with some plague and judgment in his way , which will make him weary of it and be grieved of his undertaking e're all be done , tho this usually comes out of time . The Vse is for Reproof to those who are like the Israelites in Elijah's time , halting betwixt two Opinions , and can never suffer themselves to come to an even-down Resolution and Purpose on all hazards to cleave to the Lord , to his Truth and his Service , whatever it may stand them ; but do either think to put the evil day far from them , by imagining they 'l one way or other Shift it : or if they see no probability in this , but that once it will be at their door ; yet they keep themselves Irresolute , in an hovering suspense what to do when trouble cometh ; Whence so soon as they meet with a tentation , they begin to Capitulate with it , when they should Resolutely repell it , and after a little Capitulating , they 'l find out some shift or other to beguile themselves , and so do give up their armes and basely yeild . Lastly , This Purpose and Resolution to Cleave unto the Lord must be a Purpose of the Heart . It 's true every Purpose is a Purpose of Heart if it be Real ; But there are some Purposes which are not Real , but naked Convictions of the judgement , that such and such things should be done , which some are apt to take for a Purpose of Heart , when they are only of a Heart and a Heart , or of a double and deceitful Heart , but not of a single and sincere Heart : ye should therefore labour to be single and sincere in your Purpose and Resolution of cleaving unto the Lord , such a Purpose as your Heart may be engadged in it . For which cause ye must . 1. Forecast what such a Resolution may stand you , otherwise if ye look over that , or look not unto it , your Purpose will not be sincere , and ye will not stick by it : and when the thing comes ye looked not for , ye'l do the thing ye thought not : and even that which to think on now would make you say with Hazae● 2 Kings 8. 13. Is thy servant a dog , that he should do this great thing ? 2. Beware of a mixture of unsincere motives and by-ends : If ye resolve to cleave to the Lord either for temporal advantage , or to get a name of Constancy or to eschew the Imputation of Changeableness this will argue Unsincerity in your Purpose , and Consequently it will not hold out long : Let your eye therefore be single , in being acted from spiritual motives , love to Christ , love to Truth , so shall your Purpose be a Purpose of Heart 3. If your Purpose to cleave to the Lord be sincere and a Purpose of Heart , then the whole man , your soul , your body , all the Faculties of the one and Members of the other , must be ready to follow out their whole Purpose . for the heart commands the whole man , your Purposes and Resolutions which have nothing of action following , are not Purpose's of the Heart ; as when ye Purpose to cleave to the Lord in the mortifying of such a sin , and yet ye have not power to keep from the occasions which lead unto it ; ye Purpose to cleave to such a Truth , and yet cannot endure to be at the pains to get your selves rooted grounded and established in the Faith and knowledge of it . I say no more but remember the Text , and be exhorted to cleave unto the Lord , His Truth , His Ordinances , His Service , with Purpose of Heart . FINIS . ERRATA . PAGE 17. Line 1. dele Wise decree , to permit . p. 20. l : 7 , for , too fair . read , too farr . p. 58. line 7. for , in : r. is . p. 64. l : 18 : dele ( . ) add ( ; ) p : 101. l : 16 : r : is to be . p : 113. l : 2 : for , Misters r : Ministers . p : 126 : l : 25 : for I. r : In. p. 131 : l : 22 : for promise r : promised . p. 140. for Congation r. Congregation : p : 287. In the Title r. Preached at Irving . Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A41202-e2770 * The Author did in the beginning of his Sermon read several Texts of Scripture . 
A48900	----	A third letter for toleration, to the author of the Third letter concerning toleration Locke, John, 1632-1704. 1692 Approx. 920 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 179 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-01 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A48900 Wing L2765 ESTC R5673 11795063 ocm 11795063 49288 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A48900) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 49288) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 540:11) A third letter for toleration, to the author of the Third letter concerning toleration Locke, John, 1632-1704. Proast, Jonas. Third letter concerning toleration. [2], 350, [1] p. Printed for Awnsham and John Churchill ..., London : 1692. Errata: [2] p. at end. Signed at end: Philanthropus. Attributed to John Locke Cf. BLC. Reproduction of original in Bristol Public Library, Bristol, England. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Freedom of religion. Toleration. 2002-06 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2002-07 Apex CoVantage Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2002-08 Judith Siefring Sampled and proofread 2002-08 Judith Siefring Text and markup reviewed and edited 2002-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A THIRD LETTER FOR TOLERATION , TO THE AUTHOR OF THE THIRD LETTER CONCERNING Toleration . LONDON , Printed for Awnsham and John Churchill , at the Black Swan in Pater-Noster-Row . MDC XCII . The Reader may be pleased to take notice , that L. 1. Stands for the Letter concerning Toleration . A. For the Argument of the Letter concerning Toleraration briefly consider'd and answer'd . L. 2. The Second Letter concerning Toleration . P. The Pages of the Third Letter concerning Toleration . A Third LETTER for Toleration . CHAP. I. SIR , THE Business which your Letter concerning Toleration found me ingaged in , has taken up so much of the time my Health would allow me ever since , that I doubt whether I should now at all have troubled you or the World with an Answer , had not some of my Friends , sufficiently satisfied of the Weakness of your Arguments , with repeated Instances , perswaded me it might be of use to Truth in a Point of so great Moment , to ●…lear it from those Fallacies which might perhaps puzzle some unwary Readers ; and therefore prevailed on me to shew the wrong Grounds and mistaken Reasonings you make use of to support your new way of Persecution . Pardon me , Sir , that I use that Name , which you are so much offended at : for if Punishment be Punishment , though it come short of the Discipline of Fire and Faggot , 't is as certain that Punishment for Religion is truly Persecution , though it be only such Punishment as you in your Clemency think fit to call moderate and convenient Penalties . But however you please to call them , I doubt not but to let you see , that if you will be true to your own Principles , and stand to what you have said , you must carry your some ●…egrees of Force ( as you phrase it ) to all these Degrees which in Words you declare against . You have indeed in this last Letter of yours , altered the Question ; for pag. 26. you tell me the Question between us , is , Whether the Magistrate hath any Right to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion ? Whereas you your self own the Question to be , Whether the Magistrate has a Right to use Force in matters of Religion ? Whether this Alteration be at all to the Advantage of Truth or your Cause , we shall see . But hence you take occasion ●…ll along to lay load on me for charging you with the Absurdities of a Power in the Magistrates to punish Men , to bring them to their Religion : Whereas you here tell us they have a Right to use Force only to bring Men to the true . But whether I were more to blame to suppose you to talk coherently and mean Sense , or you in expressing your self so doubtfully and uncertainly , where you were concerned to be plain and direct , I shall leave to our Readers to judg ; only here in the Beginning I shall endeavour to clear my self of that Imputation , I so often meet with , of charging on you Consequences you do not own , and arguing against an Opinion that is not yours , in those Places , where I shew how little Advantage it would be to Truth , or the Salvation of Mens Souls , that all Magistrates should have a Right to use Force to bring Men to imbrace their Religion . This I shall do by proving , that if upon your Grounds the Magistrate , as you pretend , be obliged to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion , it will necessarily follow , that every Magistrate , who believes his Religion to be true , is obliged to use Force to bring Men to his . You tell us , That by the Law of Nature the Magistrate is invested with coactive Power , and obliged to use it for all the good Purposes which it might serve , and for which it should be found needful , even for the restraining of false and corrupt Religion : And that it is the Magistrate's Duty , to which he is commissioned by the Law of Nature , but the Scipture does not properly give it him . I suppose you will grant me , that any thing laid upon the Magistrate as a Duty , is some way or other practicable . Now the Magistrate being obliged to use Force in Matters of Religion , but yet so as to bring Men only to the true Religion , he will not be in any Capacity to perform this part of his Duty , unless the Religion he is thus to promote , be what he can certainly know , or else what it is sufficient for him to believe to be the true : Either his Knowledg or his Opinion must point out that Religion to him , which he is by Force to promote ; or else he may promiscuously and indifferently promote any Religion , and punish Men at a venture , to bring them from that they are in , to any other . This last I think no body has been so wild as to say . If therefore it must be either his Knowledg or his Perswasion that must guide the Magistrate herein , and keep him within the Bounds of his Duty ; if the Magistrates of the World cannot know , certainly know the true Religion to be the true Religion ; but it be of a Nature to exercise their Faith , ( for where Vision , Knowledg and Certainty is , there Faith is done away ) then that which gives them the last Determination herein , must be their own Belief , their own Perswasion . To you and me the Christian Religion is the true , and that is built ( to mention no other Articles of it ) on this , that Jesus Christ was put to Death at Jerusalem , and rose again from the Dead . Now do you or I know this , ( I do not ask with what Assurance we believe it , for that in the highest Degree not being Knowledg , is not what we now inquire a●…ter ) Can any Magistrate demonstrate to himself ( and if he can to himself , he does ill not to do it to others ) not only all the A●…ticles of his Church , but the Fundamental ones of the Christian Religion ? For whatever is not capable of Demonstration ( as such remote Matters of Fact are not ) is not , unless it be self-evident , capable to produce Knowledg , how well grounded and great soever the Assurance of Faith may be wherewith it is received ; but Faith it is still , and not Knowledg ; Perswasion , and not Certainty . This is the highest the Nature of the thing will permit us to go in ●…atters of revealed Religion , which are therefore called Matters of Faith : A Perswasion of our own Minds , short of Knowledg , is the last Result that determines us in such Truths . 'T is all God requires in the Gospel for Men to be saved : and 't would be strange if there were more required of the Magistrate for the Direction of another in the way to Salvation , than is required of him for his own Salvation . Knowledg then , properly so called , not being to be had of the Truths necessary to Salvation , the Magistrate must be content with Faith and Perswasion for the Rule of that Truth he will recommend and inforce upon others ; as well as of that whereon he will venture his own eternal Condition . If therefore it be the Magistrates Duty to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion , it can be only to that Religion which he believes to be true : So that if Force be at all to be used by the Magistrate in Matters of Religion , it can only be for the promoting that Religion which he only believes to be true , or none at all . I grant that a strong Assurance of any Truth settled upon prevalent and well-grounded Arguments of Probability , is often called Knowledg in popular ways of Talking : but being here to distinguish between Knowledg and Belief , to what Degrees of Considence soever raised , their Boundaries must be kept , and their Names not confounded . I know not what greater Pledg a Man can give of a full Perswasion of the Truth of any thing , than his venturing his Soul upon it , as he does , who sincerely imbraces any Religion , and receives it for true . But to what Degree soever of Assurance his Faith may rise , it still comes short of Knowledg . Nor can any one now , I think , arrive to greater Evidence of the Truth of the Christian Religion , than the first Converts in the time of our Saviour and the Apostles had ; of whom yet nothing more was required but to believe . But supposing all the Truths of the Christian Religion necessary to Salvation could be so known to the Magistrate , that in his Use of Force for the bringing Men to imbrace these , he could be guided by infallible Certainty ; yet I fear this would not serve your turn , nor authorize the Magistrate to use Force to bring Men in England , or any where else , into the Communion of the National Church , in which Ceremonies of humane Institution were imposed , which could not be known , nor ( being confessed things in their own Nature indifferent ) so much as thought necessary to Salvation . But of this I shall have occasion to speak in another Place : all the Use I make of it here , is to shew , that the Cross in Baptism , kneeling at the Sacrament , and such like things , being impossible to be known necessary to Salvation , a certain knowledg of the Truth of the Articles of Faith of any Church , could not authorize the Magistrate to compel Men to imbra●… the Communion of that Church , wherein any thing were made necessary to Communion , which he did not know was necessary to Salvation . By what has been already said , I suppose it is evident , that if the Magistrate be to use Force only for promoting the true Religion , he can have no other Guide but his own Perswasion of what is the true Religion , and must be led by that in his Use of Force , or else not use it at all in matters of Religion . If you take the latter of these Consequences , you and I are agreed : if the former , you must allow all Magistrates , of whatsoever Religion , the Use of Force to bring Men to theirs , and so be involved in all those ill Consequences which you cannot it seems admit , and hoped to decline by your useless Distinction of Force to be us●…d , not for any , but for the true Religion . 'T is the D●…y , you say , of the Magistrate to use Force for pro●…ing the true Religion . And in several Places you tell us , he is o●…liged to it . Perswade Magistrates in general of this , and then ●…ll me how any Magistrate shall be restrained from the Use of Force , for the promoting what he thinks to be the true ? For he being perswaded that it is his Duty to use Force to promote the true Religion , and being also perswaded his is the true Religion , What shall stop his Hand ? Must he forbear the Use of Force till he be got beyond believing , into a certain Knowledg that all he requires Men to imbrace , is necessary to Salvation ? If that be it you will stand to , you have my Consent , and I think there will be no need of any other Toleration . But if the believing his Religion to be the true , be sufficient for the Magistrate to use Force for the promoting of it , will it be so only to the Magistrates of the Religion that you pro●…ss ? And must all other Magistrates sit still , and not do their Duty till they have your Permission ? If it be your Magistrate's Duty to use Force for the promoting the Religion he believes to be the true , it will be every Magistrate's Duty to use Force for the promoting what he believes to be the true , and he sins if he does not receive and promote it as if it were true . If you will not take this upon my Word , yet I desire you to do it upon the strong Reason of a very judicious and reverend Prelate of the present Church of England , In a discourse concerning Conscience , printed in 4to , 87. p. 18. You will find these following Words , and much more to this Purpose : Where a Man is mistaken in his Judgment , even in that Case it is always a Sin to act against it . Though we should take that for a Duty which is really a Sin , yet so long as we are thus perswaded , it will be highly criminal in us to act in contradiction to this Perswasion : and the Reason of this is evident , because by so doing , we wilfully act against the best Light which at present we have for the Direction of our Actions . So that when all is done , the immediate Guide of our Actions can be nothing but our Conscience , our Judgment and Perswasion . If a Man , for Instance , should of a Jew become a Christian , whilst yet in his Heart he believed that the Messiah is not yet come , and that our Lord Jesus was an Impostor : Or if a Papist should renounce the Communion of the Roman Church , and join with ours , whilst yet he is perswaded that the Roman Church is the only Catholick Church , and that our Reformed Churches are Heretical or Schismatical ; though now there is none of us that will d●…ny that the Men in both these Cases have made a good Change , as having changed a false Religion for ●…ruo one , yet for all that I dare say we should all agree they were both of them great Villains for making that Change , becauso they made it not upon honest Principles , and in pursuance of their Judgment , but in direct contradiction to both . So that it being the Magistrate's Duty to use Force to bring Men to the ●…rue Religion ; and he being perswaded his is the true , I suppose you will no longer question but that he is as much obliged to use Force to bring Men to it , as if it were the true . And then , Sir , I hope you have too much Respect for Magistrates , not to allow them to believe the Religions to be true which they profess . These things put together , I desire you to consider whether if Magistrates are obliged to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion , every Magistrate is not oblig'd to use Force to bring Men to that Religion he believes to be true ? This being so , I hope I have not argued so wholly besides the purpose , as you all through your Letter accuse me , for charging on your Doctrine all the ill Consequences , all the Prejudice it would be to the true Religion , that Magistrates should have Power , to use Force to bring Men to their Religions : and I presume you will think your self concerned to give to all these Places in the first and second Letter concerning Toleration , which shew the Inconveniences and Absurdities of such an use of Force , some other Answer , than that you are for punishing only such as reject the true Religion . That 't is plain the Force you speak of is not Force , my way applied , i. e. applied to the promoting the true Religion only , but to the promoting all the National Religions in the World. And again , to my arguing that Force your way applied , if it can propagate any Religion , it is likelier to be the false than the true , because few of the Magistrates of the World are in the right way . You reply , This would have been to the purpose , if you had asserted that every Magistrate may use Force your indirect way ( or any way ) to bring Men to his own Religion , whatever that be . But if you asserted no such thing , ( as no Man you think but an Atheist will assert it ) then this is quite besides the business . This is the great Strength of your Answer , and your Refuge almost in every page . So that I presume it reasonable to expect that you should clearly and directly answer what I have here said , or else find some other Answer than what you have done to the second Letter concerning Toleration . However acute you are in your way in several places on this occasion , as p. 11 , 12. for my Answer to which I shall refer you to another place . To my Argument against Force , from the Magistrates being as liable to Error as the rest of Mankind , you answer , That I might have considered that this Argument concerns none but those who assert that every Magistrate has a right to use Force to promote his own Religion , whatever it be , which you think no Man that has any Religion will assert . I suppose you may think now this Answer will scarce serve , and you must assert either no Magistrate to have right to promote his Religion by Force , or else be involv'd in the Condemnation you pass on those who ass●…rt it of all Magistrates . And here I think , as to the decision of the Question betwixt us , I might leave this Matter : but there being in your Letter a great many other gross Mistakes , wrong Suppositions , and fallacious Arguings , which in those general and plausible Terms you have made use of in several places , as best served your turn , may possibly have imposed on your self , as well as they are fitted to do so on others , and therefore will deserve to have some notice taken of them ; I shall give my self the trouble of examining your Letter a little farther . To my saying , It is not for the Magistrate , upon an Imagination of its Usefulness , to make use of any other Means than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith had directed ; you reply , Which how true soever , is not , I think , very much to the purpose . For if the Magistrate does only assist that Ministry which our Lord has appointed , by using so much of his coactive Power for the furthering their Service , as common Experience discovers to be useful and necessary for that End ; there is no manner of ground to say , that upon an Imagination of its Usefulness , he makes use of any other Means for the Salvation of Mens Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed . 'T is true indeed the Author and Finisher of our Faith has given the Magistrate no new Power or Commission , nor was there any need that he should , ( if himself had had any Temporal Power to give : ) for he found him already , even by the Law of Nature , the Minister of God to the People for Good , and bearing the Sword not in vain , i. e. invested with coactive Power , and obliged to use it for all the good Purposes which it might serve , and for which it should be found needful ; even for the restraining of false and corrupt Religion ; as Job long before ( perhaps before any part of the Scriptures were written ) acknowledged , when he said , that the worshipping the Sun or the Moon , was an Iniquity to be punished by the Judg. But though our Saviour has given the Magistrates no new Power , yet being King of Kings , he expects and requires that they should submit themselves to his Scepter , and use the Power which always belonged to them , for his Service , and for the advancing his spiri●…ual Kingdom in the World. And even that Charity which our great Master so earnestly recommends , and so strictly requires of all his Disciples , as it obliges all Men to seek and promote the Good of others , as well as their own , especially their Spiritual and Eternal ●…se , by such Means as their several Places and Relations enable them to use ; so does it especially oblige the Magistrate to do it as a Magistrate , i. e. by that Power which enables him to do it above the r●…e of other Men. So far therefore is the Christian Magistrate , when he gives his helping Hand to the furtherance of the G spel , by laying convenient Penalties upon such as reject it , or any part of it , from using any other Means for the Salvation of Mens Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed , that he does no more than his Duty to God , to his Redeemer , and to his Subjects , requires of him . The Sum of your Reply amounts to this , that by the Law of Nature the Magistrate may make use of his coactive Power where it is useful and necessary for the Good of the People . If it be from the Law of Nature , it must be to all Magistrates equally : And then I ask whether this Good they are to promote without any new Power or Commission from our Saviour , be what they think to be so , or what they certainly know to be so . If it be what they think to be so , then all Magistrates may use Force to bring Men to their Religion : and what Good this is like to be to Men , or of what use to the true Religion , we have elsewhere considered . If it be only that Good which they certainly know to be so , they will be very ill enabled to do what you require of them , which you here tell us is to assist that Ministry which our Lord has appointed . Which of the Magistrates of your time did you know to have so well studied the Controyersies about Ordination and Church-Government , to be so well versed in Church-History and Succession , that you can undertake that he certainly knew which was the Ministry which our Lord had appointed , ei-that of Rome , or that of Sweden , whether the Episcopacy in one part of this Island , or the Presbytery in another , were the Ministry which our Lord had appointed ? If you say , being ●…mly perswaded of it , be sufficient to authorize the Magistrate to use Force ; you with the Atheists , as you call them , who do so , give the People up in every Country to the coactive Force of the Magistrate , to be employed for the assisting the Minis●… of his Religion : And King Lewis of good right comes in with his Dragoons ; for 't is not much doubted that he as strongly believed his Popish Priests and Jesuits to be the Ministry which our Lord appointed , as either King Charles or King James the 2d believed that of the Church of England to be so . And of what use such an exercise of the coactive Power of all Magistrates , is to the People , or to the true Religion , you are concerned to shew . But 't is ( you know ) but to tell me , I only trif●…e , and this is all answered . What in other places you tell us , is to make Men hear , consider , study , imbrace , and bring Men to the true Religion , you here do very well to tell us is to assist the Ministry : and to that 't is true , common Experience discovers the Magistrate's coactive Force to be useful and necessary , viz. to those who taking the Reward , but not over-busying themselves in the care of Souls , find it for their Ease , that the Magistrates coactive Power should supply their want of Pastoral Care , and be made use of to bring those into an outward Consormity to the National Church , whom either for want of Ability they cannot , or want of due and friendly Application , join'd with an exemplary Life , they never so much as endeavoured to prevail on heartily to embrace it . That there may be such Neglects in the best-constituted National Church in the World , the Complaints of a very knowing Bishop of our Church in a late Discourse of the PASTORAL CARE , is too plain an Evidence . Without so great an Authority I should scarce have ventured ( though it lay just in my way ) to have taken notice of what is so visible , that it is in every one's Mouth , for fear you should have told me again , that I made my self an occasion to shew my Good-will toward the Clergy . For you will not , I suppose , suspect that eminent Prelate to have any Ill-will to them . If this were not so , that some were negligent , I imagine the Preachers of the True Religion ( which lies , as you tell us , so obvious and exposed , as to be easily distinguish'd from the False ) would need or desire no other Assistance from the Magistrates coactive Power , but what should be directed against the Irregularity of Mens Lives ; their Lusts being that alone , as you tell us , that makes Force necessary to assist the true Religion ; which were it not for our depraved Nature , would by its Light and Reasonableness have the advantage against all sal●…e Religions . You tell us too , That the Magistrate may impose Creeds and Ceremonies ; indeed you say sound Creeds and decent Ceremonies , but that helps not your Cause : for who must be Judg of that sound , and that decent ? If the Imposer , then those Words signify nothing at all , but that the Magistrate may impose those Creeds and Ceremonies which he thinks sound and decent , which is in effect such as he thinks ●…t . Indeed you telling us a little above in the same page , that it is a Vice not to worship God in Ways prescribed by those to whom God has left the ordering of such Matters ; you seem to make other Judges of what is sound and decent , and the Magistrate but the Executor of their Decrees with the Assistance of his coactive Power . A pretty Foundation to establish Creeds and Ceremonies on , that God has lest the ordering of them to those who cannot impose them , and the imposing of them to those who cannot order them . But still the same Difficulty returns ; for after they have prescribed , must the Magistrate judg them to be sound and decent , or must he impose them , though he judg them not sound or decent ? If he must judg them so himself , we are but where we were : if he must impose them when prescribed , though he judg them not sound nor decent , 't is a pretty sort of Drudgery is put on the Magistrate : And how far is this short of implicite Faith ? But if he must not judg what is sound and decent , he must judg at least who are those to whom God has left the ordering of such Matters ; and then the King of France is ready again with his Dragoons for the sound Doctrine , and decent Ceremonies of his Prescribers in the Council of Trent , and that upon this ground , with as good right as any other has for the Prescriptions of any others . Do not mistake me again , Sir ; I do not say , he judges as right ; but I do say , that whilst he judges the Council of Trent , or the Clergy of Rome to be those to whom God has left the ordering of those Matters , he has as much right to follow their Decrees , as any other to sollow the Judgment of any other Set of mortal Men whom he believes to be so . But whoever is to be Judg of what is sound or decent in the case , I ask , Of what Vse and Necessity is it to impose Creeds and Ceremonies ? for that Vse and Nec●…ssuy i●… all the Commission you can sind the Magistrate hath to use his coactive Power to impose them . 1. Of what Use and Necessity is it among Christians that own the Scripture to be the Word of God and Rule os Faith , to make and impose a Creed ? What Commission for this hath the Magistrate from the Law of Nature ? God hath given a Revelation that contains in it all things necessary to Salvation , and of this his People are all perswad●…d . What Necessity now is there ? How does their Good require it , that the Magistrate should single out , as he thinks sit , any number of those Truths as more necessary to Salvation than the rest , if God himself has not done it ? 2. But next , are these Creeds in the Words of the Scripture or not ? If they are , they are certainly sound , as containing nothing but Truth in them : and so they were before as they lay in the Scripture . But thus though they contain nothing but sound Truths , yet they may be imperfect , and so unsound Rules of Faith , since they may require more or less than God requires to be believed as necessary to Salvation . For what greater necessity I pray is there that a Man should believe that Christ suffered under Pontius Pilate , than that he was born at Bethlehem of Judah ? Both are certainly true , and no Christian doubts of either : But how comes one to be made an Article of Faith , and imposed by the Magistrate as necessary to Salvation , ( for otherwise there can be no necessity of Imposition ) and the other not ? Do not mistake me here , as if I would lay by that Summary of the Christian Religion , which is contained in that which is called the Apostles Creed ; which though no body who examines the Matter , will have reason to conclude of the Apostles compiling , yet is certainly of reverend Antiquity , and ought still to be preserved in the Church . I mention it not to argue against it , but against your Imposition , and to shew that even that Creed , though of that Antiquity , though it contain in it all the Credenda necessary to Salvation , cannot yet upon your Principles be imposed by the 〈◊〉 Power of the Magistrate , who even by the Commission you have found out for him , can use his Force for nothing but what is absolutely necessary to Salvation . But if the Creed to be imposed be not in the Words of Divine Revelation ; then it is in plainer , more clear and intelligible Expressions , or not : if no plainer , what necessity of changing those , which Men inspired by the Holy Ghost made use of ? If you say , they are plainer ; then they explain and determine the Sense of some obscure and dubious Places of Scripture , which Explication not being of divine Revelation , though sound to one Man , may be unsound to another , and cannot be imposed as Truths necessary to Salvation . Besides that , this destroys what you tell us of the Obviousness of all Truths necessary to Salvation . And as to Rites and Ceremonies , are there any necessary to Salvation , which Christ has not instituted ? if not , how can the Magistrate impose them ? What Commission has he from the Care he ought to have for the Salvation of Mens Souls , to use his coactive Force for the Establishment of any new ones which our Lord and Saviour ( with due Reverence be it spoken ) had forgotten ? He instituted two Rites in his Church ; Can any one add any new one to them ? Christ commanded simply to baptize in the Name of the Father , the Son , and the Holy Ghost ; but the signing of the Cross , how came that necessary ? Humane Authority which is necessary to assist the Truth against the Corruption of humane Nature , has made it so . But 't is a decent Ceremony . I ask , Is it so decent that the Administration of Baptism , simply , as our Saviour instituted , would be indecent without it ? If not , then there is no Reason to impose it for Decency's sake ; for there can be no Reason to alter or add any thing to the Institution of Christ , or introduce any Ceremony or Circumstance into Religion for Decency , where the Action would be decent without it . The Command to do all things decently and in Order , gave no Authority to add to Christ's Institution any new Ceremony , it only prescribed the manner how , what was necessary to be done in the Congregation , should be there done , ( viz. ) after such a manner , that if it were omitted , there would appear some Indecency , whereof the Congregation or collective Body was to be Judg , for to them that Rule was given : and if that Rule go beyond what I have said , and gives Power to Men to introduce into Religious Worship whatever they shall think decent , and impose the Use of it ; I do not see how the greatest part of the infinite Ceremonies of the Church of Rome could be complained of , or refused , if introduced into another Church , and there imposed by the Magistrate . But if such a Power were given to the Magistrate , that whatever he thought a decent Ceremony , he might de novo impose , he would need some express Commission from God in Scripture , since the Commission you say he has from the Law of Nature , will never give him a Power to institute new Ceremonies in the Christian Religion , which , be they decent , or what they will , can never be necessary to Salvation . The Gospel was to be preached in their Assemblies , the Rule then was that the Habit , Gesture , Voice , Language , &c. of the Preacher ( for these were necessary Circumstances of the Action ) should have nothing ridiculous or indecent in it . The Praises of God were to be sung ; it must be then in such Postures and Tunes as became the Solemnity of that Action . And so a Convert was to be baptized , Christ instituted the essential part of that Action , which was washing with Water in the Name of the Father , Son , and Holy Ghost ; in which Care was also to be had , that in the doing this nothing should be omitted that preserved a Decency in all the Circumstances of the Action . But no Body will say that if the Cross were omitted , that upon that Account there would be any thing indecent in Baptism . What is to be done in the Assemblies of Christians for the Salvation of Souls , is sufficiently prescribed in Scripture : But since the Circumstances of the Actions were so various , and might in several Countries and Ages have different Appearances ( as that appears decent in one Country which is quite contrary in another ) concerning them there could be no other Rule given than what is , viz. decently , in Order , and to Edification ; and in avoiding Indecenci●…s , and not adding any new Ceremonies ( how decent soever ) this Rule consists . I judg no Man in the Use of the Cro●… in Baptism ; the Imposition of that , or any other Ceremony not instituted by Christ himself , is what I argue against , and say , is more than you upon your Principles can make good . Because you think your Argument for the Magistrate's Right to use Force has not had its d●…e Consideration ; I shall here set it down in your own Words , as it stands , and indeavour to give you Satisfaction to it . You say there , If such a Degree of outward Force as has been mentioned , be of great and even necessary Vse for the advancing those Ends , ( as taking the World as we find it , I think it appears to be ) then it must be acknowledged that there is a Right somewhere to use it for the advancing those Ends , unless we will say ( what without Impiety cannot be said ) that the wise and benign Disposer and Governor of all things has not furnished Mankind with compe●…nt means for the pro●…oring his own Honour in the World , and the Good of Souls . And if there be such a Right somewhere , where should it be , but where the Power of compelling resides ? That is principally , and in reference to the Publick in the Civil Soveraign . Which Words , if they have any Argument in them , it in short stands thus . Force is useful and necessary : the good and wise God ( who without Impiety cannot be supposed not to have furnished Men with competent means for their Salvation ) has therefore given a Right to some Men to use it , and those Men are the Civil Soveraigns . To make this Argument of any Use to your Purpose , you must speak a little more distinctly , ( for here you , according to your laudable and safe way of Writing , are wrapp'd up in the Uncertainty of general terms ) and must tell us , besides the End for which it is useful and necessary , to whom it is useful and necessary . Is it useful and necessary to all Men ? That you will not say , for many are brought to imbrace the true Religion by bare Preaching , without any Force . Is it then necessary to all those , and those only , who as you tell us , reject the true Religion tendered with sufficient Evidence , or at least so far manifested to them , as to oblige them to receive it , and to leave them without Excuse if they do not ? To all therefore , who rejecting the true Religion so tendered , are without Excuse , your moderate Force is useful and necessary . But is it to all those competent , i. e. sufficient means ? That 't is evident in matter of Fact , it is not ; for after all , many stand out . 'T is like you will say , which is all you have to say , that those are such , who having resisted this last means , moderate Force , God always refuseth his Grace to , without which no means is ●…fficacious . So that your Competent at last , are only such means as are the utmost that God has appointed , and will have used , and which when Men resist , they are without Excuse , and shall never after have the Assistance of his Grace to bring them to that Truth they have resisted , and so be as the Apostle , 2 Tim. III. 8. calls such , Men of corrupt Minds , reprobate concerning the Faith. If then it shall be , that the Day of Grace shall be over to all those who reject the Truth manifested to them , with such Evidence , as leaves them without Excuse , and that bare Preaching and Exhortation shall be according to the good Pleasure of the benign Disposer of all things , enough ( when neglected ) to make their Hearts fat , their Ears heavy , and shut their Eyes that they should not perceive nor understand , nor be converted , that God should heal them . I say , if this should be the Case , then your Force , whatever you imagine of it , will neither be co●…petent , useful , nor necessary . So that it will rest upon you to prove that your moderate Degrees of Force are those means of Grace which God will have , as necessary to Salvation , tried upon every one before he will pass that Sentence in Isaiah , Make his Heart fat , &c. and that your Degree of moderate Force is that beyond which God will have no other or more powerful means used , but that those whom that works not upon , shall be left reprobate concerning Faith. And till you have proved this , you will in vain pretend your moderate Force ( whatever you might think of it , if you had the ordering of that Matter in the Place of God ) to be useful , necessary , and competent means . For if Preaching , Exhortation , Instruction , &c. as seems by the whole Current of the Scripture , ( and it appears not that Isaiah in the Place above-cited , made their Hearts far with any thing but his Words ) be that means , which when rejected to such a Degree , as he sees fit , God will punish with a Reprobate Mind , and that there be no other means of Grace to come after ; you must confess that whatever good Opinion you have of your moderate Force after this Sentence is passed , it can do no good , have no Efficacy neither directly nor indirectly , and 〈◊〉 a Distance , towards the bringing Men to the Truth . If your moderate Force be not that precise utmost means of Grace , which when ineffectual , God will not afford his Grace to any other , then your moderate Force is not the comp●…tent means you talk of . This therefore you must prove that Preaching alone is not , but that your moderate Force join'd to it is that means of Grace , which when neglected or r●…ted , God will assist no other means with his Grace to bring Men into the Obedience of the Truth ; and this let me tell you , you must prove by Revelation . For it is impossible to know , but by Revelation , the just Measures of God's Long-suffering , and what those means are , which when Mens Corruptions have rendred ineffectual , his Spirit shall no longer strive with them , nor his Grace assist any other means for their Conversion or Salvation . When you have done this , there will be some Ground for you to talk of your moderate Force , as the means which God's Wisdom and Goodness is ingaged to furnish Men with ; but to speak of it , as you do now , as if it were that both necessary and competent means , that it would be an Imputation to the Wisdom and Goodness of God , if Men were not furnished with it , when 't is evident , that the greatest part of Mankind have always been destitute of it , will I fear be not easily cleared from that Impiety you mention ; for though the Magistrate had the Right to use it , yet where-ever that moderate Force was not made use of , there Men were not furnished with your competent means of Salvation . 'T is necessary for the Vindication of God's Justice and Goodness , that those who miscarry should do so by their own Fault , that their Destruction should be from themselves , and they be left inexcusable : But pray how will you shew us , that it is necessary , that any who have resisted the Truth tendered to them only by Preaching , should be saved , any more than it is necessary that those who have resisted the Truth when moderate Force has been joined to the same Preaching , should be saved ? They are inexcusable one as well as the other , and thereby have incurred the Wrath of God , under which he may justly leave the one as well as the other ; and therefore he cannot be said not to have been furnished with competent means of Salvation , who having rejected the Truth preached to him , has never any Penalties laid on him by the Magistrate to make him consider the Truths he before rejected . All the Stress of your Hypothesis for the Necessity of Force lies on this , That the Majority of Mankind are not prevailed on by Preaching , and therefore the Goodness and Wisdom of God is obliged to furnish them with some more effectual means , as you think . But who told you that the Majority of Mankind should ever be brought into the strait way , and narrow Gate ? Or that Force in your moderate Degree was the necessary and competent , i. e. the just sit means to do it , neither over nor under , but that that only , and nothing but that could do it ? If to vindicate his Wisdom and Goodness , God must furnish Mankind with other means , as long as the Majority , yet unwrought upon , shall give any forward Demander occasion to ask , What other means is there left ? He must also after your moderate Penalties have left the greater part of Mankind unprevailed on , be bound to furnish Mankind with higher Degrees of Force upon this Man's Demand : And those Degrees of Force proving ineffectual to the Majority to make them truly and sincerely Christians , God must be bound to furnish the World again with a new Supply of Miracles upon the Demand of another wise Controuler , who having set his Heart upon Miracles , as you have yours on Force , will demand , what other means is there left but Miracles ? for 't is like this last Gent. would take it very much amiss of you , if you should not allow this to be a good and unquestionable way of arguing ; or if you should deny that after the utmost Force had been used , Miracles might not do some Service at least , indirectly and at a Distance , towards the bringing Men to imbrace the Truth . And if you cannot prove that Mi-racles may not thus do some Service , he will conclude just as you do , that the Cause is his . Let us try your Method a little farther . Suppose that when neither the gentlest Admonitions , nor the most earnest Intreaties will prevail , something else is to be done as the only means left , What is it must be done ? What is this necessary competent means that you tell us of ? It is to lay Briars and Thorns in their way . This therefore being supposed necessary , you say , there must somewhere be a Right to use it . Let it be so . Suppose I tell you that Right is in God , who certainly has a Power to lay Briars and Thorns in the way of those who are got into a wrong one , whenever he is graciously pleased that other Means besides Instructions and Admonitions should be used to reduce them . And we may as well expect that those Thorns and Briars laid in their way by God's Providence , without telling them for what End , should work upon them as effectually , though indirectly , and at a Distance , as those laid in their way by the Magistrate , without telling them for what End. God alone knows where it is necessary , and on whom it will be useful , which no Man being capable of knowing , no Man , though he has coercive Power in his Hand , can be supposed to be authorized to use it by the Commission he has to do Good , on whomsoever you shall judg it to be , of great and even necessary use : No more than your judging it to be of great and even necessary use , would authorize any one who had got one of the Incision-Knives of the Hospital in his Hand , to cut those for the Stone with it , whom he could not know needed cutting , or that cutting would do them any good , when the Master of the Hospital had given him no express Order to use his Incision-Knife in that Operation ; nor was it known to any but the Master , who needed , and on whom it would be useful ; nor would he fail to use it himself wherever he found it necessary . Be Force of as great and necessary use as you please ; let it be so the competent Means for the promoting the Honour of God in the World , and the Good of Souls , that the right to use it must necessarily be somewhere . This Right cannot possibly be , where you would have it , in the Civil Soveraigns , and that for the very reason you give , viz. because it must be where the Power of compelling resides . For since Civil Soveraigns cannot compel themselves , nor can the compelling Power of one Civil Soveraign reach another Civil Soveraign , it will not in the hands of the Civil Soveraigns reach the most considerable part of Mankind , and those both for their own and their Subjects Good , have most need of it . Besides , if it go along with the Power of compelling , it must be in the hands of all Civil Soveraigns alike : which by this , as well as several other Reasons I have given , being unavoidable to be so , this Right will be so far from useful , that whatever efficacy Force has , it will be imployed to the doing more Harm than Good ; since the greatest part of Civil Soveraigns being of false Religions , Force will be imployed for the promoting of those . But let us grant what you can never prove , that though all Civil Soveraigns have compelling Power , yet only those of the true Religion have a right to use Force in Matters of Religion : your own Argument of Mankind being unfurnished ( which is Impiety to say ) with competent Means for the promoting the Honour of God , and the Good of Souls , still presses you . For the compelling Power of each Civil Soveraign not reaching beyond his own Dominions , the right of using Force in the hands only of the Orthodox Civil Soveraigns , leaves the rest , which is the far greater part of the World , destitute of this your necessary and competent Means for promoting the Honour of God in the World , and the Good of Souls . Sir , I return you my Thanks for having given me this occasion to take a review of your Argument , which you told me I had mistaken ; which I hope I now have not , and have answered to your Satisfaction . I confess I mistook when I said that cutting being judg'd useful , could not authorize even a skilful Surgeon to cut a Man without any farther Commission : for it should have been thus ; That though a Man has the Instruments in his Hand , and Force enough to cut with ; and cutting be judg'd by you of great and even necessary Use in the Stone ; yet this , without any farther Commission , will not authorize any one to use his Strength and Knise in Cutting , who knows not who has the Stone , nor has any Light or Measures to judg to whom Cutting may be necessary or useful . But let us see what you say in answer to my Instance : 1. That the Stone does not always kill , though it be not cured ; but Men do often live to a great Age with it , and die at last of other Distempers . But Aversion to the true Religion is certainly and inevitably mortal to the Soul , if not cured , and so of absolute necessity to be cured . Is it of absolute necessity to be cured in all ? Is so , will you not here again think it requisite that the wise and benign Disposer and Governor of all things , should furnish competent Means for what is of absolute necessity ? For will it not be Impiety to say , that God hath left Mankind unfurnished of competent , i. e. sufficient Means for what is absolutely necessary ? For it is plain in your Account Men have not been furnished with sufficient Means for what is of absolute necessity to be cured in all , if in any of them it be left uncured . For as you allow none to be sufficient Evidence , but what certainly gains Assent ; so by the same Rule you cannot call that sufficient Means which does not work the Cure. It is in vain to say , the Means were sufficient , had it not been for their own Fault , when that Fault of theirs is the very thing to be cured . You go on ; And yet if we should suppose the Stone as certainly destructive of this temporal Life , as that Aversion is of Mens Eternal Salvation : even so the necessity of curing it would be as much less than the necessity of curing that Aversion , as this temporal Life falls short in value of that which is Eternal . This is built upon a supposition , that the necessity of the Means is increased by the value of the End , which being in this case the Salvation of Mens Souls , that is of insinite concernment to them , you conclude Salvation absolutely necessary : which makes you say that Aversion , &c. being inevitably mortai to the Soul , is of absolute necessity to be cured . Nothing is of absolute necessity but God : whatsoever else can be said to be of necessity , is so only relatively in respect to something else ; and therefore nothing can indefinitely thus be said to be of absolute necessity , where the thing it relates to is not absolutely necessary . We may say , Wisdom and Power in God are absolutely necessary , because God himself is absolutely necessary : but we cannot crudely say , the curing in Men their Aversion to the true Religion , is absolutely necessary , because it is not absolutely necessary that Men should be saved . But this is very proper and true to be said , that curing this Aversion is absolutely necessary in all that shall be saved . But I fear that would not serve your turn , tho it be certain that your absolute Necessity in this case reaches no farther than this , that to be cured of this Aversion is absolutely necessary to Salvation , and Salvation is absolutely necessary to Happiness ; but neither of them , nor the Happiness it self of any Man can be said to be absolutely necessary . This Mistake makes you say , that supposing the Stone certainly destructive of this temporal Life , yet the necessity of curing it would be as much less than the necessity of curing that Aversion , as this temporal Life falls short in value of that which is eternal . Which is quite otherwise : for if the Stone will certainly kill a Man without Cutting , it is as absolutely necessary to cut a Man of the Stone for the saving of his Life , as it is to cure the Aversion for the saving of his Soul. Nay , if you have but Eggs to fry , Fire is as absolutely necessary as either of the other , though the value of the End be in these Cases infinitely different ; for in one of them you lose only your Dinner , in the other your Life , and in the other your Soul. But yet in these Cases , Fire , Cutting , and Curing that Aversion , are each of them absolutely and equally necessary to their respective Ends , because those Ends cannot be attained without them . You say farther , Cutting for the Stone is not always necessary in order to the Cure : But the Penalties you speak of are altogether necessary ( without extraordinary Grace ) to cure that pernicious and otherwise untractable Aversion . Let it be so ; but do the Surgeons know who has this Stone , this Aversion so , that it will certainly destroy him unless he be cut ? Will you undertake to tell when the Aversion is such in any Man , that it is incurable by Preaching , Exhortation and Intreaty , if his spiritual Physician will be instant with him in season , and out of season ; but certainly curable , if moderate Force be made use of ? Till you are sure of the former of these , you can never say , your moderate Force is necessary : Till you are sure of the latter , you can never say , it is competent Means . What you will determine concerning extraordinary Grace , and when God bestows that , I leave you to consider , and speak clearly of it at your leisure . You add , That even where Cutting for the Stone is necessary , it is withal hazardous by my Confession . But your Penalties can no way endanger or hurt the Soul , but by the Fault of him that undergoes them . If the Magistrate use Force to bring Men to the true Religion , he must judg which is the true Religion ; and he can judg no other to be it but that which he believes to be the true Religion , which is his own Religion . But for the Magistrate to use Force to bring Men to his own Religion , has so much Danger in it to Mens Souls , that by your own confession , none but an Atheist will say that Magistrates may use Force to bring Men to their own Religion . This I suppose is enough to make good all that I aimed at in my Instance of Cutting for the Stone , which was , that though it were judg'd useful , and I add now necessary to cut Men for the Stone , yet that was not enough to authorize Chirurgions to cut a Man , but he must have besides that general one of doing good , some more special Commission ; and that which I there mentioned , was the Patient's Consent . But you tell me , That though , as things now stand , no Surgeon has any right to cut his calculous Patient without his Consent ; yet if the Magistrate should by a publick Law appoint and authorize a competent number of the most skilful in that Art , to visit such as labour under that Disease , and to cut those ( whether they consent or not ) whose Lives they unanimously judg it impossible to save otherwise : you are apt to think I would find it hard to prove that in so doing he exceeded the Bounds of his Power : And you are sure it would be as hard to prove that those Artists would have no right in that case to cut such Persons . Shew such a Law from the great Governor of the Universe , and I shall yield that your Surgeons shall go to work as fast as you please . But where is the publick Law ? Where is the competent Number of Magistrates skilful in the Art , who must unanimously judg of the Disease and its Danger ? You can shew nothing of all this , yet you are so liberal of this sort of Cure , that one cannot take you for less than cutting Morecraft himself . But , Sir , if there were a competent number of skilful and impartial Men , who were to use the Incision-Knife on all in whom they found this Stone of Aversion to the true Religion ; what do you think , would they sind no Work in your Hospital ? Aversion to the true Religion you say is of absolute Necessity to be ●…ured : What I beseech you is that true Religion ? that of the Church of England ? For that you own to be the only true Religion , and whatever you say , you cannot upon your Principles name any other National Religion in the World , that you will own to be the true . It being then of absolute Necessity that Mens Aversion to the National Religion of England should be cured : Has all Mankind in whom it has been absolutely necessary to be cured , been furnished with competent and necessary means for the Cure of this Aversion ? In the next Place , what is your necessary and sufficient means for this Cure that is of absolute Necessity ? and that is moderate Penalties made use of by the Magistrate , where the National is the true Religion , and sufficient means are provided for all Mens Instruction in the true Religion . And here again I ask , Have all Men to whom this Cure is of absolute Necessity , been furnished with this necessary means ? Thirdly , How is your necessary Remedy to be applied ? And that is in a way wherein it cannot work the Cure , though we should suppose the true Religion the National every where , and all the Magistrates in the World zealous for it . To this true Religion say you Men have a natural and great Aversion of absolute Necessity to be cured , and the only Cure for it is Force your way applied , i. e. Penalties must be laid upon all that dissent from the National Religion , till they conform . Why are Men averse to the true ? Because it crosses the Profits and Pleasures of this Life ; and for the same Reason they have an Aversion to Penalties : These therefore , if they be opposed one to another , and Penalties be so laid that Men must quit their Lusts , and heartily imbrace the true Religion or else indure the Penalties , there may be some Efficacy in Force towards bringing Men to the true Religion : But if there be no Opposition between an outward Profession of the true Religion , and Mens Lusts ; Penalties laid on Men till they outwardly conform , are not a Remedy laid to the Disease . Punishments so applied have no Opposition to Mens Lusts , nor from thence can be expected any Cure. Men must be driven from their Aversion to the true Religion by Penalties they have a greater Aversion to . This is all the Operation of Force . But if by getting into the Communion of the National Church they can avoid the Penalties , and yet retain their natural Corruption and Aversion to the true Religion , what Remedy is there to the Disease by Penalties so applied ? You would , you say , have Men made uneasy . This no doubt will work on Men , and make them indeavour to get out of this uneasy State as soon as they can . But it will always be by that way wherein they can be most easy ; for 't is the Uneasiness alone they fly from , and therefore they will not exchange one Uneasiness for another ; not for a greater , nor an equal , nor any at all , if they can help it . If therefore it be so uneasy for Men to mortify their Lusts , as you tell us , which the true Religion requires of them , if they imbrace it in earnest : But which outward Conformity to the true Religion , or any National Church , does not require , what need or use is there of Force applied so , that it meets not at all with Mens Lusts , or Aversion to the true Religion , but leaves them the liberty of a quiet Injoyment of them , free from Force and Penalties in a legal and approved Consormity ? Is a Man negligent of his Soul , and will not be brought to consider ? obstinate , and will not imbrace the Truth ? Is he careless , and will not be at the Pains to examine Matters of Religion ? corrupt , and will not part with his Lusts , which are dearer to him than his First-born ? 'T is but owning the National Profession , and he may be so still : If he conform , the Magistrate has done punishing , he is a Son of the Church , and need not consider any thing farther for fear of Penalties , they are removed , and all is well . So that at last there neither being an absolute Necessity that Aversion to the true Religion should in all Men be cured : nor the Magistrate being a competent Judg who have this Stone of Aversion , or who have it to that degree as to need Force to cure it , or in whom it is curable , were Force a proper Remedy as it is not : nor having any Commission to use it , notwithstanding what you have answered : It is still not only as , but more reasonable for the Magistrate , upon pretence of its Usefulness or Necessity , to cut any one for the Stone without his own Consent , than to use Force your way to cure him of Aversion to the true Religion . To my Question , In whose Hands this Right ( we were a little above speaking of ) was in Turkey , Persia or China ? you tell me , You answer roundly and plainly , in the Hands of the Soveraign , to use convenient Penalties for the promoting the true Religion . I will not trouble you here with a Question you will meet with elsewhere ; Who in these Countries must be Judg of the true Religion ? But I will ask , Whether you or any wise Man would have put a Right of using Force into a Mahumetan or Pagan Prince's Hand , for the promoting of Christianity ? which of my Pagans or Mahumetans would have done otherwise ? But God , you say , has done it , and you make it good by telling me in the following Words , If this startle me , then you must tell me farther , that you look upon the supream Power to be the same all the World over , in what Hands soever it is placed ; and this Right to be contained in it : And if those that have it do not use it as they ought , but instead of promoting true Religion by proper Penalties , set themselves to enforce Mahumetanism or Paganism , or any other false Religion : All that can or that needs be said to the matter , is , that God will one Day call them to an Account for the Neglect of their Duty , for the Dishonour they do to him , and for the Souls that perish by their Fault . Your taking this Right to be a part of the supream Power of all Civil Sovereigns , ( which is the thing in Question ) is not , as I take it , proving it to be so . But let us take it so for once , what then is your Answer ? God will one Day call those Sovereigns to an Account for the Neglect of their Duty . The Question is not , What God will do with the Soveraigns who have neglected their Duty ; but how Mankind is furnished with your competent Means for the promoting of God's Honour in the World , and the good of Souls in Countries where the Soveraign is of a wrong Religion ? For there , how clearly soever the Right of using it be in the Soveraign , yet as long as he uses not Force to bring his Subjects to the true Religion , they are destitute of your competent means . For I imagine you do not make the Right to use that Force , but the actual Application of it by Penal Laws to be your useful and necessary Means . For if you think the bare having that Right be enough , if that be your sufficient Means without the actual Use of Force , we readily allow it you . And ( as I tell you elsewhere ) I see not then what need you had of Miracles to supply the Want of the Magistrates Assistance , till Christianity was supported and incouraged by the Laws of the Empire : For , by your own Rule , the Magistrates of the World , during the three first Centuries after the publishing the Christian Religion , had the same Right , if that had been enough , that they have now in Turkey , Persia , or China . That this is all that can be said in this matter , I easily grant you ; but that it is all that needs be said to make good your Doctrine , I must beg your Pardon . In the same Sentence wherein you tell me , I should have added Necessity to Vsefulness , I call it necessary Usefulness , which I imagine is not much different . But that with the following Words wherein my Argument lay , had the ill luck to be overseen ; but if you please to take my Argument , as I have now again laid it before you , it will serve my turn . In your next Paragraph you tell me , that what is said by me is with the same Ingenuity I have used in other places ; my Words in that Place are these : The Author having indeavoured to shew that no Body at all of any Rank or Condition had any Power to punish , torment , or use any Man ill for Matter of Religion : You tell us , you do not yet understand why Clergymen are not as capable of such Power as other Men : Which Words of mine containing in them nothing but true matter of Fact , give you no Reason to tax my Ingenuity : Nor will what you alledg make it otherwise than such Power ; for if the Power you there speak of , were externally coactive Power , is not that the same Power the Author was speaking of , made use of to those Ends he mentions of tormenting and punishing ? And do not you own that those who have that Power , ought to punish those who offend in rejecting the true Religion ? As to the remaining Part of that Paragraph , I shall leave the Reader to judg whether I sought any occasion so much as to name the Clergy ; or whether the itching of your Fingers to be handling the Rod , guided not your Pen to what was nothing to the Purpose : For the Author had not said any thing so much as tending to exclude the Clergy from secular Imployments , but only ( if you will take your own Report of it ) that no Ecclesiastical Officer , as such , has any externally coactive Power ; whereupon you cry out , that you do not yet understand why Ecclesiasticks or Clergymen are not as capable of such Power as other Men. Had you stood to be Constable of your Parish , or of the Hundred , you might have had Cause to vindicate thus your Capacity , if Orders had been objected to you ; or if your Aim be at a Justice of the Peace , or Lord Chief Justice of England , much more . However you must be allowed to be a Man of forecast , in clear-ing the way to secular Power , if you know your self , or any of your Friends desirous of it : Otherwise I confess you have Reason to be on this occasion a little out of Humour , as you are , for bringing this matter in Question so wholly out of Season . Nor will ( I fear ) the ill-sitted Excuse you bring , give your self , or one who consults the Places in both yours and the Author's Letter , a much better Opinion of it . However I cannot but thank you for your wonted Ingenuity , in saying , that it seems I wanted an Occasion to shew my good Will to the Clergy , and so I made my self one . And to find more Work for the excellent Gift you have this way , I desire you to read over that Paragraph of mine again , and tell me , whether you can find any thing said in it not true ? Any Advice in it that you your s●…lf would disown ? any thing that any worthy Clergyman that adorns his Function is concerned in ? And when you have set it down in my Words , the World shall be Judg , whether I have shewed any ill Will to the Clergy . Till then I may take the Liberty to own , that I am more a Friend to them and their Calling , than those amongst them , who shew their Forwardness to leave the Word of God to serve other Employments . The Office of a Minister of the Gospel requires so the whole Man , that the very looking after their Poor was by the joint Voice of the the twelve Apostles , called , leaving the Word of God , and serving of Tables . But if you think no Mens Faults can be spoken of without ill Will , you will make a very ill Prcacher : Or if you think this to be so only in speaking of Mistakes in any of the Clergy , there must be in your Opinion something peculiar in their Case , that makes it so much a Fault to mention any of theirs ; which I must be pardoned for , since I was not aware of it : And there will want but a little cool Reflection to convince you , that had not the present Church of England a greater Number in Proportion , than possibly any other Age of the Church ever had , of those who by their pious Lives and Labours in their Ministry adorn their Profession , such busy Men as cannot be content to be Divines without being Lay-men too , would so little keep up the Reputation which ought to distinguish the Clergy , or preserve the Esteem due to a Holy , i. e. a separate Order , that no Body can shew greater good Will to them than by taking all Occasions to put a Stop to any Forwardness , to be medling out of their Calling . This I suppose made a learned Prelate of our Church , out of Kindness to the Clergy , mind them of their Stipulation and Duty in a late Treatise , and tell them that the Pastoral Care is to be a Man's entire Business , and to possess both his Thoughts and his Time. Disc. of Past. Care , p. 121. To your saying , That the Magistrate may lay Penalties upon those who refuse to imbrace your Doctrine of the proper Ministers of Religion , or are alienated from the Truth : I answered , God never gave the Magistrate an Authority to be Judg of Truth for another Man. This you g●…ant ; but withal say , That if the Magistrate knows the Truth , though he has no Authority to judg of Truth for another Man ; yet he may be Judg whether other Men be alienated from the Truth or no ; and so may have Authority to lay some Penalties upon those whom he sees to be so , to bring them to judg more sincerely for themselves . For Example , The Doctrine of the proper Ministers of Religion is , that the three Creeds , Nice , Athanasius's , and that commonly call'd the Apostles Creed , ought to be thorowly received and believed : As also that the Old and New Testament contain all things necessary to Salvation . The one of these Doctrines a Papist Subject imbraces not ; and a Socinian the other . What now is the Magistrate by your Commission to do ? He is to lay Penalties upon them , and continue them : How long ? Only till they conform , i. e. till they profess they imbrace these Doctrines for true . In which Case he does not judg of the Truth for other Men : he only judges that other Men are alienated from the Truth . Do you not now admire your own Subtilty and Acuteness ? I that cannot comprehend this , tell you my dull Sense in the Case . He that thinks another Man in an Error , judges him , as you phrase it , alienated from the Truth , and then judges of Truth and Falshood only for himself . But if he lays any Penalty upon others , which they are to lie under till they embrace for a Truth what he judges to be so , he is then so far a Judg of Truth for those others . This is what I think to judg of Truth for another , means : If you will tell me what else it signifies , I am ready to learn. You grant , you say , God never gave the Magistrate any Authority to be Judg of Truth for another Man : and then add , But how does it follow from thence that he cannot be Judg , whether any Man be alienated from the Truth or no ? And I ask you , Who ever said any such thing did follow from thence ? That which I say , and which you ought to disprove , is , That whoever punishes others for not being of the Religion he judges to be true , judges of Truth for others . But you prove that a Man may be Judg of Truth , without having Authority to judg of it for other Men , or to prescribe to them what they shall believe ; which you might have spared , till you meet with some body that denies it . But yet your proof of it is worth remembring : Rectum ( say you ) est Index sui & obliqui . And certainly whoever does but know the Truth , may easily judg whether other Men be alienated from it or no. But tho Rectum be Index sui & obliqui ; yet a Man may be ignorant of that which is the right , and may take Error for Truth . The Truth of Religion when known , shews what contradicts it , is false : but yet that Truth may be unknown to the Magistrate , as well as to any other Man. But you conclude ( I know not upon what ground ) as if the Magistrate could not miss it , or were surer to find it than other Men. I suppose you are thus favourable only to the Magistrate of your own Profession , as no doubt in Civility a Papist or a Presbyterian would be to those of his . And then infer ; And therefore if the Magistrate knows the Truth , though he has no Authority to judg of Truth for other Men , yet he may be Judg whether other Men be alienated from the Truth or no. Without doubt ! who denies it him ? 'T is a Privilege that he and all Men have , that when they know the Truth , or believe the Truth , or have embraced an Error for Truth , they may judg whether other Men are alienated from it or no , if those other Men own their Opinions in that matter . You go on with your Inference , And so may have Authority to lay some Penalties upon those whom he sees to be so . Now , Sir , you go a little too fast . This he cannot do without making himself Judg of Truth for them : The Magistrate , or any one may judg , as much as he pleases , of Mens Opinions and Errors ; he in that judges only for himself : but as soon as he uses Force to bring them from their own to his Opinion , he makes himself Judg of Truth for them ; let it be to bring them to judg more sincerely for themselves , as you here call it , or under what pretence or colour soever ; for that , what you say , is but a Pretence , the very Expression discovers . For does any one ever judg insincerely for himself , that he needs Penalties to make him judg more sincerely for himself ? A Man may judg wrong for himself , and may be known or thought to do so : But who can either know or suppose another is not sincere in the Judgment he makes for himself , or ( which is the same thing ) that any one knowingly puts a mixture of Falshood into the Judgment he makes ? For as speaking insincerely is to speak otherwise than one thinks , let what he says be true or false ; so judging insincerely must be to judg otherwise than one thinks , which I imagine is not very feasible . But how improper soever it be to talk of judging insincerely for one's self , it was better for you in that Place to say , Penalties were to bring Men to judg more sincerely , rather than to say , more rightly , or more truly : for had you said , the Magistrate might use Penalties to bring Men to judg more truly , that very Word had plainly discovered , that he made himself a Judg of Truth for them . You therefore wisely chose to say what might best cover this Contradiction to your self , whether it were Sense or no , which perhaps whilst it sounded well , every one would not stand to examine . One thing give me leave here to observe to you , which is , That when you speak of the Entertainment Subjects are to give to Truth , i. e. the true Religion , you call it believing ; but this in the Magistrate you call knowing . Now let me ask you , Whether any Magistrate , who laid Penalties on any who dissented from what he judged the true Religion , or as you call it here , were alienated from the Truth , was or could be determined in his judging of that Truth by any Assurance greater than believing ? When you have resolved that , you will then see to what purpose is all you have said here concerning the Magistrate's knowing the Truth ; which at last amounting to no more than the Assurance wherewith a Man certainly believes and receives a thing for true , will put every Magistrate under the same , if there be any Obligation to use Force , whilst he believes his own Religion . Besides , if a Magistrate knows his R●…ligion to be true , he is to use means not to make his People believe , but know it also ; Knowledg of them , if that be the way of entertaining the Truths of Religion , being as necessary to the Subjects as the Magistrate . I never heard yet of a Master of Mathematicks , who had the care of informing others in those Truths , who ever went about to make any one believe one of Euclid's Propositions . The Pleasantness of your Answer , notwithstanding what you say , doth remain still the same : for you making , ( as is to be seen ) the Power of the Magistrate ORDAINED for the bringing Men to take such care as they ought of their Salvation ; the reason why it is every Man's Interest to vest this Power in the Magistrate , must suppose this Power so ordained , before the People vested it ; or else it could not be an Argument for their vesting it in the Magistrate . For if you had not here built upon your fundamental Supposition , that this Power of the Ma●…istrate is ordained by God to that end , the proper and intelligible way of expressing your meaning had not been to say as you do ; As the Power of the Magistrate is ordained for bringing , &c. so if we suppose this POWER vested in the Magistrate by the People : in which way of speaking this Power of the Magistrate is evidently supposed already ordained . But a clear way of making your meaning understood , had been to say , That for the People to ordain such a Power of the Magistrate , or to vest such a Power in the Magistrate , ( which is the same thing ) was their true Interest : but whether it were your Meaning or your Expression that was guilty of the Absurdity , I shall leave it with the Reader . As to the other pleasant thing of your Answer , it will still appear by barely reciting it : the pleasant thing I charge on you is , that you say , That the Power of the Magistrate is to bring Men to such a care of their Salvation , that they may not blindly leave it to the choice of any Person , or their own Lusts or Passions , to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall imbrace ; and yet that 't is their best course to vest a Power in the Magistrate , liable to the same Lusts and Passions as themselves , to chuse for them . To this you answer , by asking where it is that you say that it is the Peoples best course to vest a Power in the Magistrate to choose for them , that you tell me I do not pretend to shew ? If you had given your self the pains to have gone on to the end of the Paragraph , or will be pleased to read it as I have here again set it down for your perusal , you will find that I at least pretended to shew it : my Words are these ; If they vest a Power in the Magistrate , to punish them when they dissent from his Religion , to bring them to act even against their own Inclination , according to Reason and sound Judgment , which is ( as you explain your self in another place ) to bring them to consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them ; how far is this from leaving it to the choice of another Man to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall embrace ? Thus far you cite my Words , to which let me join the remaining part of the Paragraph , to let you see that I pretended to shew that the Course you proposed to the People as best for them , was to vest a Power in the Magistrate to choose for them . My Words which follow those where you left off , are these ; Especially if we consider that you think it a strange thing , that the Author would have the care of every Man's Soul left to himself . So that this Care being vested in the Magistrate , with a Power to punish Men to make them consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them of the Truth of his Religion ; the Choice is evidently in the Magistrate , as much as it can be in the power of one Man to chuse for another what Religion he shall be of ; which consists only in a power of compelling him by Punishments to embrace it . But all this you tell me , is just nothing to my purpose : Why I beseech you ? Because you speak not of the Magistrate's Religion , but of the true Religion , and that proposed with sufficient Evidence . The Case in short is this ; Men are apt to be misled by their Passions , Lusts , and other Men in the choice of their Religion . For this great Evil you propose a Remedy , which is , That Men ( for you must remember you are here speaking of the People putting this Power into the Magistrate's hand ) should chuse some of their Fellow-Men , and give them a Power by Force to guard them , that they might not be alienated from the Truth by their own Passions , Lusts , or by other Men. So it was in the first Scheme ; or , as you have it now , to punish them , whenever they rejected the true Religion , and that proposed with sufficient Evidence of the Truth of it . A pretty Remedy , and manifestly effectual at first sight : That because Men were all promiscuously apt to be misled in their Judgment , or choice of their Reli●…ion , by Passion , Lust , and other Men , therefore they should chuse some amongst themselves , who might , they and their Successors , Men made just like themselves , punish them when they rejected the true Religion . If the Blind lead the Blind , both shall fall into the Ditch , says our Saviour . If Men apt to be misled by their Passions and Lusts , will guard themselves from falling into Error , by Punishments laid on them , by Men as apt to be misled by Passions and Lusts as themselves , how are they the safer from falling into Error ? Now hear the insallible Remedy for this Inconvenience , and admire : the Men to whom they have given this Power , must not use it , till they find those who gave it them in an Error . A Friend , to whom I shewed this Expedient , answered , This is none : For why is not a Man as fit to judg for himself when he is in an Error , as another to judg for him , who is as liable to Error himself ? I answered , This Power however in the other can do him no harm , but may indirectly , and at a distance , do him good ; because the Magistrate who has this Power to punish him , must never use it but when he is in the right , and he that is punish'd is in the wrong . But , said my Friend , who shall be Judg whether he be in the right or no ? for Men in an Error think themselves in the right , and that as confidently as those who are most so . To which I replied , No body must be Judg ; but the Magistrate may know when he is in the right . And so may the Subject too ( said my Friend ) as well as the Magistrate , and therefore it was as good still be free from a Punishment , that gives a Man no more Security from Error than he had without it . Besides , said he , who must be Judg whether the Magistrate knows or no ? for he may mistake , and think it to be Knowledg and Certainty , when it is but Opinion and Belief . It is no matter , for that in this Scheme , replied I , the Magistrate we are told may know which is the true Religion , and he must not use Force but to bring Men to the true Religion ; and if he does , God will one day call him to an Account for it , and so all is safe . As safe as beating the Air can make a thing , replied my Friend : for if believing , being assured , confidently being perswaded that they know that the Religion they prosess is true , or any thing else short of true Knowledg will serve the turn , all Magistrates will have this Power alike , and so Men will be well guarded , or recovered from false Religions ; by putting it into the Magistrate's Hand to punish them when they have alienated themselves from it . If the Magistrate be not to punish Men but when he knows , i. e. is infallibly certain ( for so is a Man in what he knows ) that his National Religion is all true , and knows also , that it has been proposed to those he punishes with sufficient Evidence of the Truth of it : 'T would have been as good this Power had never been given him , since he will never be in a Condition to exercise it ; and at best it was given him to no Purpose , since those who gave it him were one with another as little indisposed to consider impartially , examine diligently , study , find , and infallibly know the Truth as he . But , said he at parting , to talk thus of the Magistrates punishing Men that reject the true Religion , without telling us , who those Magistrates are , who have a Power to judg which is the true Religion , is to put this Power in all Magistrates Hands alike , or none . For to say he only is to be Judg which is the true Religion , who is of it , is but to begin the round of Enquiries again , which can at last end no where but in every one's supposing his own to be it . But , said he , if you will continue to talk on thus , there is nothing more to be done with you , but to pity or laugh at you , and so he left me . I assure you , Sir , I urged this part of your Hypothesis , with all the Advantage I thought your Answer afforded me : and if I have erred in it , or there be any way to get out of the Strait ( if Force must in your way be used ) either of the Magistrates punishing Men for rejecting the true Religion , without judging which is the true Religion ; or else that the Magistrate should judg which is the true Religion ; which way ever of the two you shall determine it ; I see not of what Advantage it can be to the People ( to keep them from chusing amiss ) that this Power of punishing them should be put into the Magistrate's Hands . And then , if the Magistrate must judg which is the true Religion , ( as how he should without judging , punish any one who rejects it , is hard to find ) and punish Men who reject it till they do imbrace it , ( let it be to make them consider , or what you please ) he does , I think , chuse their Religion for them . And if you have not the Dexterity to chuse the National Religion , where-ever you are , I doubt not but you would think so too if you were in France , though there were none but moderate Penalties laid on you to bring you even against your own Inclination to act according to what they there call Reason and sound Judgment . That Paragraph and mine to which it is an Answer , runs thus . L. 2. pag. 60. I do neither you nor the Magistrate Injury , when I say that the Power you give the Magistrate of punishing Men , to make them consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them , is to convince them of the Truth of his Religion , and to bring them to it . For Men will never , in his opinion , act according to Reason and sound Judgment , ( which is the thing you here say Men should be brought to by the Magistrate , even against their own Inclination ) till they imbrace his Religion . And if you have the brow of an honest Man , you will not say the Magistrate will ever punish you , to bring you to consider any other Reasons and Arguments , but such as are proper to convince you of the Truth of his Religion , and to bring you to that . Thus you shift forwards and backwards . You say , The Magistrate has no Power to punish Men , to compel them to his Religion ; but only to compel them to consider Reasons and Arguments proper to convince them of the Truth of his Religion ; which is all one as to say , no Body has Power to chuse your way for you to Jerusalem ; but yet the Lord of the Mannor has Power to punish you , to bring you to consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince you ( of what ? ) that the way he goes in , is the right , and so to make you join in Company , and go along with him . So that , in Effect , what is all your going about , but to come at last to the same Place again ; and put a Power into the Magistrate's Hands , ( under another Pretence ) to compel Men to his Religion ; which Use of Force the Author has sufficiently overthrown , and you your self have quitted . But I am tired to follow you so often round the same Circle . L. 3. pag. 67. But it seems you have not done with this yet : For you say , you do neither me nor the Magistrate Injury , when you say that the Power I give the Magistrate , of punishing Men to make them consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them , is to convince them of the Truth of his Religion , ( whatever that be ) and to bring them to it . Which seems a little strange and pleasant too . But thus you prove it : For Men will never , in his Opinion , act according to Reason and sound Judgment , till they imbrace his Religion . And if you have the Brow of an honest Man , you will not say the Magistrate will ever punish you , to bring you to consider any other Reasons and Arguments but such as are proper to convince you of the Truth of his Religion , and to bring you to that . Which ( besides the pleasant Talk of such Reasons and Arguments as are proper and sufficient to convince Men of the Truth of the Magistrate's Religion , though it be a false one ) is just as much as to say , It is so , because in the Magistrate's Opinion it is so ; and because it is not to be expected that he will act against his Opinion . As if the Magistrate's Opinion could change the Nature of things , and turn a Power to promote the true Religion , into a Power to promote a false one . No , Sir , the Magistrate's Opinion has no such Virtue . It may indeed keep him from exercising the Power he has to promote the true Religion ; and it may lead him to abuse the Pretence of it , to the promo●…ing a false one : But it can neither destroy that Power , nor make it any thing but what it is . And therefore whatever the Magistrate's Opinion be , his Power was given him ( as the Apostles Power was to them ) for Edification only , not for Destruction : And it may always be said of him , ( what St. Paul said of himself ) that he can do nothing against the Truth , but for the Truth . And therefore if the Magistrate punishes me , to bring me to a false Religion ; it is not his Opinion that will excuse him , when he comes to answer for it to his Judg. For certainly Men are as accountable for their Opinions ( those of them , I mean , which influence their Practice ) as they are for their Actions . Here is therefore no shifting forwards and backwards , as you pretend ; nor any Circle , but in your own Imagination . For though it be true that I say , The Magistrate has no Power to punish Men , to compel them to his Religion ; yet I no where say , nor will it follow from any thing I do say , That he has Power to compel them to consider Reasons and Arguments proper to convince them of the Truth of his Religion . But I do not much wonder that you indeavour to put this upon me . For I think by this time it is pretty plain , that otherwise you would have but little to say : And it is an Art very much in Use among some sort of learned Men , when they cannot confute what an Adversary does say , to make him say what he does not ; that they may have something which they can confute . The Beginning of this Answer is part of the old Song of Triumph ; What! Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince Men of the Truth of Falshood ? Yes , Sir , the Magistrate may use Force to make Men consider those Reasons and Arguments , which he thinks proper and sufficient to convince Men of the Truth of his Religion , though his Religion be a false one . And this is as possible for him to do , as for a Man , as learned as your self , to write a Book , and use Arguments , as he thinks proper and sufficient to convince Men of the Truth of his Opinion , though it be a Falshood . As to the remaining part of your Answer , the Question is not , Whether the Magistrate's Opinion can change the Nature of things , or the Power he has , or excuse him to his Judg for misusing of it ? But this , that since all Magistrates in your Opinion have Commission , and are obliged to promote the true Religion by Force , and they can be guided in the Discharge of this Duty by nothing but their own Opinion of the true Religion , What Advantage can this be to the true Religion , what Benefit to their Subjects , or whether it amounts to any more than a Commission to every Magistrate to use Force for the promoting his own Religion ? To this Question therefore you will do well to apply your Answer , which a Man of less Skill than you will be scarce able to do . You tell us indeed , that whatever the Magistrate's Opinion be , his Power was given him ( as the Apostles Power was to them ) for Edification only , and not for Destruction . But if the Apostles Power had been given them for one End , and St. Paul , St. Peter , and nine others of the twelve had had nothing to guide them but their own Opinion , which led them to another End ; I ask you whether the Edification of the Church could have been carried on as it was ? You tell us farther , that it may always be said of the Magistrate , ( what St. Paul said of himself ) that he can do nothing against the Truth , but for the Truth . Witness the K. of France . If you say this in the same Sense that St. Paul said it of himself , who in all things requisite for Edification , had the immediate Direction and Guidance of the unerring Spirit of God , and so was infallible , we need not go to Rome for an infallible Guide , every Country has one in their Magistrate . If you apply these Words to the Magistrate in another Sense , than what St. Paul spoke them in of himself , sober Men will be apt to think , you have a great Care to insinuate into others a high Veneration for the Magistrate ; but that you your self have no over-great Reverence for the Scripture , which you thus use ; nor for Truth , which you thus defend . To deny the Magistrate to have a Power to compel Men to his Religion : But yet to say the Magistrate has a Power , and is bound to punish Men to make them consider till they cease to reject the true Religion , of which true Religion he must be Judg , or else nothing can be done in Discharge of this his Duty , is so like going round about to come to the same place , that it will always be a Circle in mine and other Peoples Imagination , and not only there , but in your Hypothesis . All that you say turns upon the Truth or Falshood of this Proposition ; That whoever punishes any one in Ma●…ters of Religion to make him consider , takes upon him to be Judg for another what is right in Matters of Religion . This you think plainly involves a Contradiction ; and so it would , if these general Terms had in your use of them their ordinary and usual meaning . But , Sir , be but pleased to take along with you , That whoever punishes any Man your way in Matters of Religion , to make him consider , as you use the word consider , takes upon him to be Judg for another what is right in Matters of Religion : and you will find it so far from a Contradiction , that it is a plain Truth . For your way of punishing is a peculiar way , and is this ; That the Magistrate , where the National Religion is the true Religion , should punish those who dissent from it , to make them consider as they ought , i. e. till they cease to reject , or , in other words , till they conform to it . If therefore he punishes none but those who dissent from , and punishes them till they conform to that which he judges the true Religion , does he not take on him to judg for them what is the true Religion ? 'T is true indeed what you say , there is no other reason to punish another to make him consider , but that he should judg for himself : and this will always hold true amongst those , who when they speak of considering , mean considering , and nothing else . But then these things will follow from thence : 1. That in inflicting of Penalties to make Men consider , the Magistrate of a Country , where the National Religion is false , no more misapplies his Power , than he whose Religion is true ; for one has as much right to punish the Negligent to make them consider , study and examine Matters of Religion , as the other . 2. If the Magistrate punishes Men in Matters of Religion , truly to make them consider , he will punish all that do not consider , whether Conformists or Nonconformists . 3. If the Magistrate punishes in Matters of Religion to make Men consider , it is , as you say , to make Men judg for themselves : for there is no use of considering , but in order to judging . But then when a Man has judg'd for himself , the Penalties for not considering are to be taken off : for else your saying that a Man is punished to make him consider , that he may judg for himself , is plain Mockery . So that either you must reform your Scheme , or allow this Proposition to be true , viz. Whoever punishes any Man in Matters of Religion , to make him in your sense consider , takes upon him to judg for another what is right in Matters of Religion : and with it the Conclusion , viz. Therefore whoever punishes any one in Matters of Religion , to make him consider , takes upon him to do what no Man can do , and consequently misapplies his Power of punishing , if he has that Power . Which Conclusion you say you should readily admit as sufficiently demonstrated , if the Proposition before mentioned were true . But further , if it could enter into the Head of any Law-maker but you , to punish Men for the omission of , or to make them perform any internal Act of the Mind , such as is Consideration . Whoever in matter of Religion would lay an Injunction on Men to make them consider , could not do it without judging for them in Matters of Religion , unless they had no Religion at all , and then they come not within our Author's Toleration , which is a Toleration only of Men of different Religions , or of different Opinions in Religion . For supposing you the Magistrate with full Power and ( as you imagin'd ) Right of punishing any one in Matters of Religion , how could you possibly punish any one to make him consider , without judging for him what is right in Matters of Religion ? I will suppose my self brought before your Worship , under what Character you please , and then I desire to know what one or more Questions you would ask me , upon my Answer to which you could judg me fit to be punished to make me consider , without taking upon you to judg f●…r me what is right in Matters of Religion ? for I conclude from the Fashion of my Coat , or the Colour of my Eyes , you would not judg that I ought to be punished in Matters of Religion to make me consider . If you could , I should allow you not only as capable , but much more capable of coactive Power than other Men. But since you could not judg me to need Punishment in Matters of Religion , to make me consider , without knowing my Thoughts concerning Religion , we will suppose you ( being of the Church of England ) would examine me in the Catechism and Liturgy of that Church , which possibly I could neither say nor answer right to 'T is like , upon this you would judg me fit to be pu●…ished to make me consider . Wherein , 't is evident , you judg'd for me , that the Religion of the Church of England was right ; for without that Judgment of yours you would not have punished me . We will suppose you to go yet farther , and examine me concerning the Gospel , and the Truth of the Principles of the Christian Religion , and you find me answer therein not to your liking : here again no doubt you will p●…nish me to make me consider ; but is it not because you judg for me , that the Christian Religion is the right ? Go on thus as far as you will , and till you find I had no Religion at all , you could not punish me to make me to consider , without taking upon you to judg for me what is right in Matters of Religion . To punish without a Fault , is Injustice ; and to punish a Man without judging him guilty of that Fault , is also Injustice ; and to punish a Man who has any Religion to make him consider , or , which is the same thing , for not having sufficiently considered , is no more nor less , but punishing him for not being of the Religion you think best for him ; that is the Fault , and that is the Fault you judg him guilty of , call it considering as you please : for let him fall into the Hands of a Magistrate of whose Religion he is , he judgeth him to have considered sufficiently . From whence 't is plain , 't is Religion is judg'd of , and not Consideration , or want of Consideration . And 't is in vain to pretend that he is punish'd to make him judg for himself : for he that is of any Religion , has already judg'd for himself ; and if you punish him after that , under pretence to make him consider that he may judg for himself , 't is plain you punish him to make him judg otherwise than he has already judg'd , and to judg as you have judg'd for him . Your next Paragraph complains of my not having contradicted the following Words of yours , which I had cited out of your A. p. 26. which that the Reader may judg of , I shall here set down again . And all the Hurt that comes to them by it , is only the suffering some tolerable Inconveniences , for their following the Light of their own Reason , and the Dictates of their own Consciences : which certainly is no such Mischief to Mankind , as to make it more eligible , that there should be no such Power vested in the Magistrate ; but the Care of every Man's Soul should be left to him alone , ( as this Author demands it should be : ) that is , that every Man should be suffered quietly , and without the least molestation , either to take no care at all of his Soul , if he be so pleased ; or in doing it , to follow his own groundless Prejudices , or unaccountable Humour , or any crafty Seducer , whom he may think fit to take for his Guide . To which I shall here subjoin my Answer and your Reply . L. 2. p. 67. Why should not the care of every Man's Soul be left to himself , rather than the Magistrate ? Is the Magistrate like to be more concern'd for it ? Is the Magistrate like to take more care of it ? Is the Magistrat commonly more careful of his own , than other Men are of theirs ? Will you say the Magistrate is less expos'd in Matters of Religion , to Prejudices , Humours , and crafty Seducers , than other Men ? If you cannot lay your Hand on your Heart , and say all this , What then will be got by the change ? And why may not the Care of every Man's Soul be left to himself ? Especially , if a Man be in so much danger to miss the Truth , who is suffered quietly , and without the least 〈◊〉 , either to take no care of his Soul , if he be so pleased , or to follow his own Prejudices , &c. For if want of Molestation be the dangerous State wherein Men are likeliest to miss the right way , it must be confessed , that of all Men , the Magistrate is most in danger to be in the wrong , and so the unfittest ( if you take the Care of Mens Souls from themselves ) of all Men , to be intrusted with it . For he never me●… with that great and only 〈◊〉 of yours against Error , which you here call Molestation . He never has the benefit of your soverain Remedy , Punishment , to make him consider ; which you think so necessary , that you look on it as a most dangerous State for Men to be without it ; and therefore tell us , 'T is every Man's true 〈◊〉 , not to be left wholly to himself in Matters of Religion . L. 3. p. 76. 〈◊〉 Words you set down at large ; but instead of contradicting them , or offering 〈◊〉 show that the Mischi●…t spoken of , is such 〈◊〉 ●…akes it more eligible , &c. you only deman●… Why s●…uld not the Care of every Man's ●…l be le●… 〈◊〉 himself , rather than the 〈◊〉 ? Is the Magistrate like to be more concern'd for it ? Is the Magistrate like to take more care of it ? &c. As if not to leave the Care of every Man's Soul to himself alone , were , as you express it afterwards , to take the Care of Mens Souls from themselves : Or as if to vest a Power in the Magistrate , to procure as much as in him lies ( i. e. as far as it can be procured by convenient Penalties ) that Men take such Care of their Souls as they ought to do , were to leave the Care of their Souls to the Magistrate rather than to themselves : Which no Man but your self will imagine . I acknowledg as freely as you can do , that as every Man is more concern'd than any Man else can be , so he is likewise more obliged to take care of his Soul ; and that no Man can by any means be discharged of the Care of his Soul ; which , when all is done , will never be saved but by his own Care of it . But do I contradict any thing of this , when I say , that the Care of every Man's Soul ought not to be left to himself alone ? or , that it is the Interest of Mankind , that the Magistrate be entrusted and obliged to take care , as far as lies in him , that no Man neglect his own Soul ? I thought , I confess , that every Man was i●… some sort charged with the Care of his Neighbour's Soul. But in your way of reasoning , he that affirms this , takes away the Care of every Man's Soul 〈◊〉 himself , and leaves it to his Neighbour rather than to himself . But if this be plainly absurd , as every one sees it is , then so it must be likewise to say , that he that vests such a Power as we here speak of in the Magistrate , takes away the Care of Mens Souls from themselves , and places it in the Magistrate , rather than in themselves . What trisling then is it to say here , If you cannot lay your Hand upon your Heart , and say all this , ( viz. that the Magistrate is like to be more concerned for other Mens Souls than themselves , &c. ) What then will be got by the Change ? For 't is plain , here is no such Change as you would insinuate : but the Care of Souls which I assert to the Magistrate , is so far from discharging any Man of the Care of his own Soul , or lessening his Obligation to it , that it serves to no other Purpose in the World , but to bring Men , who otherwise would not , to consider and do what the Interest of their Souls obliges them to . 'T is therefore manifest , that the thing here to be consider'd , is not , Whether the Magistrate be like to be more concern'd for other Mens Souls , or to take more care of them than themselves : nor , Whether he be commonly more careful of his own Soul , than other Men are of theirs : nor , Whether he be less exposed , in Matters of Religion , to Prejudices , Humours , and crafty Seducers , than other Men : nor yet , Whether he be not more in danger to be in the wrong than other Men , in regard that he never meets with that great and only Antidote of mine ( as you call it ) against Error , which I here call Molestation . But the Point upon which this matter turns , is only this , Whether the Salvation of Souls be not better provided for , if the Magistrate be obliged to procure , as much as in him lies , that every Man take such care as he ought of his Soul , than if he be not so obliged , but the Care of every Man's Soul be left to himself alone : Which certainly any Man of common Sense may easily determine . For as you will not , I suppose , deny but God has more amply provided for the Salvation of your own Soul , by obliging your Neighbour , as well as your self , to take care of it ; tho 't is possible your Neighbour may not be more concern'd for it , than your self ; or may not be more careful of his own Soul , than you are of yours ; or may be no less exposed , in Matters of Religion , to Prejudices , &c. than you are ; because if you are your self wanting to your own Soul , it is more likely that you will be brought to take care of it , if your Neighbour be obliged to admonish and exhort you to it , than if he be not ; tho●…h it may fall out that he will not do what he is obliged to do in that case : So I think it cannot be denied , but the Salvation of all Mens Souls is better provided for , if besides the Obligation which every Man has to take care of his own Soul , ( and that which every Man's Neighbour has likewise to do it ) the Magistrate also be ●…trusted and obliged to see that no Man ●…trusted his Soul , than it would be , if every Man were left to himself in this matter : Because though we should admit that the Magistrate is not like to be , or is not ordinarily more concern'd for other Mens Souls , than they themselves are , &c. it is nevertheless undeni●…bly true still , that whoever neglects his Soul , is more likely to be brought to take care of it , if the Magistrate be obliged to do what lies in him to bring him to do it , than if he be not . Which is enough to shew , that it is every Man 's true Interest , that the Care of his Soul should not be left to himself alone , but that the Magistrate should be so far entrusted with it as I contend that he is . Your Complaint of my not having formally contradicted the Words above cited 〈◊〉 of A. p. 26. looking as if there were some weighty Argument in them : I must inform my Reader , that they are subjoin'd to thos , wherein you recommend the use of Force in 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 , by the Gain those that are punish'd shall make by it , though it be misapplied by the Magistrate to bring them to a wrong Religion . So that these Words of yours , all the Hurt that comes to them by it , is all the 〈◊〉 that comes to Men by a 〈◊〉 of the Magistrate's Power , when being of a 〈◊〉 Religion he uses Force to bring Men to it . And then your Proposition stands thus , That the suffering what you call tolerable Inconveniences for their following the Light of their own Reasons , and the Dictates of their own Consciences , is no such Mischief to Mankind as to make it more eligible , that there should be no Power vested in the Magistrate to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion , though the Magistrates misapply this Power , i. e. use it to bring Men to their own Religion when false . This is the Sum of what you say , if it has any coherent Meaning in it : For it being to shew the Usefulness of such a Power , vested in the Magistrate , under the Miscarriages and Misapplications it is in common Practice observed to be liable to , can have no other Sense . But I having proved , that if such a Power be by the Law of Nature vested in the Magistrate , every Magistrate is obliged to use it for the promoting of his Religion as far as he believes it to be true , shall not much trouble my self , if like a Man of Art you should use your Skill to give it another Sense : for such is your natural Talent or great Caution , that you love to speak indesinitely , and as seldom as may be leave your self accountable for any Propositions of a clear determined Sense ; but under Words of doubtful , but 〈◊〉 plausible Signification , conceal a meaning , which plainly expressed would at first Sight appear to contradict your own Positions , or common Sense : Instances whereof more than one we have here in this Sentence of yours . For , 1. the Words tolerable Inconveniences carry a very fair Shew of some very 〈◊〉 Matter ; and yet when we come to examine them , may comprehend any of those Severities lately used in France . For these tolerable Inconveniences are the same you in this very Page and elsewhere call convenient Penalties . Convenient for what ? In this very Place they must 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , as may keep Men from following their own groundless 〈◊〉 , unaccountable Humours , and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . And you tell us , the Magistrate may require Men under convenient Penalties to forsake their false Religions , and imbrace the true . Who now must be Judg , in these Cases , what are convenient Penalties ? Common Sense will tell us , the Magistrate that uses them : but besides we have your Word for it , that the Magistrate's Prudence and Experience inables him to judg best what Penalties do agree with your Rule of Moderation , which as I have shewe is no Rule at all . So that at last your tolerable Inconveni●…●…ces are such as the Magistrate shall judg convenient to oppose to Mens Prejudices , Humours , and to Seducers ; such as he shall think convenient to bring Men from their false Religions , or to punish their rejecting the true ; which whether they will not reach Mens Estates and Liberties , or go as far as any the King of France has used , is more than you can be Security for . 2. Another Set of good Words we have here , which at first hearing are apt to ingage Mens Concern , as if too much could not be done to recover Men from so perilous a State as they seem to describe ; and those are Men following their own groundless Prejudices , unaccountable Humours , or crafty Seducers . Are not these Expressions to set forth a deplorable Condition , and to move Pity in all that hear them ? Enough to make the unattentive Reader ready to cry out , Help for the Lord's sake ; do any thing rather than suffer such poor prejudiced seduced People to be eternally lost . Whereas he that examines what Persons these Words can in your Scheme describe , will find they are only such as any where dissent from those Articles of Faith and Ceremonies of outward Worship , which the Magistrate , or at least you his Director approve of . For whilst you talk thus of the true Religion in general , ( and that so general , that you cannot allow your self to descend so near to Particulars , as to recommend the Searching and Study of the Scriptures to find it ) and that the Power in the Magistrates Hands to use Force , is to bring Men to the true Religion ; I ask , whether you do not think , either he or you must be Judg , which is the true Religion , before he can exercise that Power ? and then he must use his Force upon all those who dissent from it , who are then the prejudiced , humoursom , and seduced you here speak of . Unless this be so , and the Magistrate be Judg , I ask , Who shall resolve which is the prejudiced Person , the Prince with his Politicks , or he that suffers for his Religion ? Which the more dangerous Seducer , Lewis the XLVth with his Dragoons , or Mr. Claud with his Sermons ? It will be no small Difficulty to sind out the Persons who are guilty of following groundless Prejudices , unaccountable Humours , or crafty Seducers , unless in those Places where you shall be graciously pleased to decide the Question ; and out of the Plenitude of your Power and Infallibility to declare which of the Civil Sovereigns now in being do , and which do not espouse the one only true Religion , and then we shall certainly know that those who dissent from the Religion of those Magistrates , are these prejudiced , humourso●… , seduced Persons . But truly as you put it here , you leave the Matter very perplex'd , when you defend the Eligibleness of vesting a Power in the Magistrates Hands , to remedy by Penalty Mens following their own groundless Prejudices , unaccountable Humours , and cra●…y Seducers , when in the same Sentence you suppose the Magistrate who is vested with this Power , may inslict those Penalties on Men , for their following the Light of their own Reason , and the Dictates of their own Consciences ; which when you have considered , perhaps you will not think my Answer so wholly besides the matter , though it shewed you but that one Absurdity , without a formal Contradiction to so loose and undetermin'd a Proposition , that it required more Pains to unravel the Sense of what was covered under deceitful Expressions , than the Weight of the Matter contained in them was worth . For besides what is already said to it : How is it possible for any one ( who had the greatest Mind in the World to Contradiction ) to deny it to be more eligible that such a Power should be vested in the Magistrate , till he knows , to whom you affirm it to be more eligible ? Is it more eligible to those who suffer by it , for following the Light of their own Reason , and the Dictates of their own Consciences ? for these you know are Gainers by it , for they know better than they did before where the Truth does lie . Is it more eligible to those who have no other Thoughts of Religion , but to be of that of their Country without any farther Examination ? Or is it more eligible to those who think it their Duty to examine Matters of Religion , and to follow that which upon Examination appears to them the Truth ? The former of these two make , I think , the greater part of Mankind , though the latter be the better advised : but upon what Grounds it should be more eligible to either of them , that the Magistrate should , than that he should not have a Power vested in him to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion , when it cannot be imployed but to bring Men to that which he thinks the true , i. e. to his own Religion , is not easy to guess . Or is it more eligible to the Priests and Ministers of National Religions every-where , that the Magistrate should be vested with this Power ? who being sure to be Orthodox , will have Right to claim the Assistance of the Magistrate's Power to bring those whom their Arguments , or no Arguments can prevail on , to imbrace their true Religion , and to worship God in decent ways prese●…d by those to whom God has left the ordering of such Matters . Or last of all , Is it more eligible to all Mankind ? And are the Magistrates of the World so careful or so lucky in the choice of their Reli●…ion , that it would be an Advantage to Mankind , that they should have a Right to do what in them lies , i. e. to use all the Force they have , if they think convenient , to bring Men to the Religion they think true ? When you have told us to which of these or what other , it is more eligible ; I suppose the Reader will without my contradicting it , see how little Truth there is in it , or how little to your Purpose . If you will pardon me for not having contradicted that Passage of yours we have been considering , I will indeavour to make you amends in what you say in Reply to my Answer to it , and tell you that , notwithstanding all you say to the contrary , such a Power as you would have to be vested in the Magistrate , takes away the Care of Mens Souls from themselves , and places it in the Magistrate , rather than in themselves . For if when Men have examined , and upon Examination imbrace what appears to them the true Religion , the Magistrate has a Right to treat them as misled by Prejudice , Humour , or Seducers ; if he may use what Force , and inslict what Punishments he shall think convenient till they conform to the Religion the Magistrate judges the true ; I think you will scarce deny , but that the Care of their Souls is by such a Power placed rather in the Magistrate than in themselves , and taken as much from them as by Force and Authority it can be . This , whatever you pretend , is the Power which your System places in the Magistrate . Nor can he upon your Principles exercise it otherwise , as I imagine I have shewed . You speak here , as if this Power , which you would have to be vested in the Magistrate , did not at all discharge , but assist the Care every one has or ought to have of his own Soul. I grant , were the Power you would place in the Magistrate such as every Man has to take Care of his Neighbour's Soul , which is to express it self only by Counsel , Arguments and Perswasion ; it left him still the free Liberty of judging for himself ; and so the Care of his Soul remained still in his own Hands . But if Men be perswaded , that the wise and good God has vested a Power in the Magistrate , to be so far Judg for them , what is the true Religion , as to punish them for rejecting the Religion which the Magistrate thinks the true , when offer'd with such Evidence as he judges sufficient to convince them ; and to punish them on till they consider so as to imbrace it ; what remains , but that they render themselves to the Care and Conduct of a Guide that God in his Goodness has appointed them , who having Authority and Commission from God to be Judg for them , which is the true Religion , and what are Arguments proper and sufficient to convince any one of it ; and he himself being convinc'd of it , why should they be so foolish , as to suffer Punishments in Opposition to a Power which is in the right , and they ought to submit to ? To what Purpose should they , under the Weight of Penalties waste Time and Pains in examining , since whatever they should judg upon Examination , the Magistrate judging the Arguments and Reasons he offers for the Truth of his Religion , proper and sufficient to convince them , they must still lie under the Punishment the Magistrate shall think convenient till they do comply ? Besides , when they are thus punished by their Magistrate for not conforming , what need they examine ? Since you tell them , It is not strictly necessary to Salvation , that all that are of the true Religion should understand the Grounds of it . The Magistrate being of the one only true Religion , knows it to be so●… and he knows that that Religion was tender'd to them with sufficient Evidence , and therefore is obliged to punish them for rejecting it . This is that which Men must upon your Scheme suppose ; for it is , what you your self must suppose , before the Magistrate can exercise that Power you contend to be vested in him , as is evident to any one , who will put your System together , and particularly weigh what you say . When therefore Men are put into such a State as this , that the Magistrate may judg which is the true Religion ; the Magistrate may judg what is sufficient Evidence of its Truth ; the Magistrate may be Judg to whom it is tender'd with sufficient Evidence , and punish them that reject it so proposed with such Penalties as he also shall judg convenient , and all this by God's Appointment , and an Authority received from the wise and benign Governor of all things , I ask , whether the Care of Mens Souls are not taken out of their own Hands , and put into the Magistrates ? Whether in such a State they can or will think there is any need , or that it is to any purpose for them to examine ? And whether this be a Cure for the natural Aversion that is in Men to consider and weigh Matters of Religion ; and the way to force , or so much as incourage them to examine ? But , say you , the Salvation of all Mens Souls is better provided for , if besides the Obligation that every Man has to take Care of his own Soul , the Magistrate also be intrusted and obliged to see that no Man neglect his own Soul , than it would be if every Man were left to himself in that matter . Whatever Ground another may have to say this , you can have none : You who give so good Reason why Conformists , though never so ignorant and negligent in examining Matters of Religion , cannot yet be punished to make them consider , must acknowledg that ALL Mens Salvation is not the better provided for by a Power vested in the Magistrate , which cannot reach the far greatest part of Men , which are every-where the Conformist to the National Religion . You that plead so well for the Magistrates not examining whether those that conform , do it upon Reason and Conviction , but say it is ordinary presumable they do so ; Wherein I beseech you do you put this Care of Mens Salvation that is placed in the Magistrate ? even in bringing them to outward Conformity to the National Religion , and there leaving them . And are the Souls of all Mankind the better provided for , if the Magistrates of the World are vested with a Power to use Force to bring Men to an outward Profession of what they think the true Religion , without any other Care of their Salvation ? For ●…hither , and no farther , reaches their Use of Force in your way of applying it . Give me leave therefore to trifle with you once again , and to desire you to lay your Hand upon your Heart , and tell me what Mankind shall gain by the Change ? For I hope by this time it is not so much a Paradox to you , that if the Magistrate be commissioned by God to take Care of Mens Souls , in your way it takes away the Care of Mens Souls from themselves in all those who have need of this Assistance of the Magistrate , i. e. all those who neglect to consider , and are averse to Examination . One thing more give me leave to observe to you , and that is , that taking Care of Mens Souls or taking Care that they neglect not their Souls , and laying Penalties on them to bring them in outward Profession to the National Religion are two very different things , though in this Place and elsewhere you confound them , and would have Penal Laws , requiring Church-Conformity , pass under the Name of Care of Mens Souls , for that is the utmost your way of applying Force does or can reach to ; and what Care is therein taken of Mens Souls , may be seen by the Lives and Knowledg observable in not a few Conformists . This is not said to lay any Blame on Conformity , but to shew how improperly you speak , when you call Penal Laws made to promote Conformity , and Force used to bring Men to it , a Care of Mens Souls ; when even the exactest Observers , and most zealous Advancers of Conformity may be as irreligious , ignorant , and vicious as any other Men. In the first Treatise we heard not a Syllable of any other Use or End of Force in Matters of Religion , but only to make Men consider . But in your second , being forced to own bare-faced the punishing of Men for their Religion , you call it , a Vice to reject the true Faith , and to refuse to worship God in decent ways prescribed by those to whom God has left the ordering of it ; and tell us , that it is a Fault which may justly be punished by the Magistrate , not to be of the National Religion , where the true is the National Religion . To make this Doctrine of Persecution seem limited , and go down the better , to your telling us it must be only where the National Religion is the true , and that the Penalties must be moderate and convenient ; both which Limitations having no other Judg but the Magistrate , ( as I have shewed elsewhere ) are no Li●… at all , you in Words add a third , that in effect si●…nifies just as much as the other two : and that is , If there be s●…fficient means of Instruction provided for all for instructing them in the Truth of it ; of which Provision the Magistrate also being to be Judg , your Limitation●… leave him as free to punish all Dissenters from his own Religion , as any Persecutor can wish : For what he will think sufficient Means of Instruction , it will be hard for you to say . In the mean time , as far as may be gathered from what you say in another Place , we will examine what you think sufficient Provision for instructing Men , which you have expressed in these Words ; For if the Magistrate provides sufficiently for the Instruction of all his Subjects in the true Religion , and then requires them all under convenient Penalties to hearken to the Teachers and Ministers of it , and to profess and exercise it with one Accord under their Direction in publick Assemblies . That which stumbles one at the first View of this your Method of Instruction is , that you leave it uncertain , whether Dissenters must first be instructed , and then profess ; or else first profess , and then be instructed in the National Religion . This you will do well to be a little more clear in the next time ; for you mentioning no Instruction but in publick Assemblies , and perhaps meaning it for a Country where there is little other Pains taken with Dissenters but the Confutation and Condemnation of them in Assemblies , where they are not , they must cease to be Dissenters before they can partake of this sufficient means of Instruction . And now for those who do with one Accord put themselves under the Direction of the Ministers of the National , and hearken to these Teachers of the true Religion . I ask whether one half of those whereof most of the Assemblies are made up , do or can ( so ignorant as they are ) understand what they hear from the Pulpit ? And then whether if a Man did understand , what in many Assemblies ordinarily is delivered once a Week there for his Instruction , he might not yet at threescore Years End be ignorant of the Grounds and Principles of the Christian Religion ? Your having so often in your Letter mentioned sufficient Provision of Instruction , has forced these two short Questions from me . But I forbear to tell you what I have heard very sober People , even of the Church of England , say upon this Occasion : For you have warned me already , that it shall be interpreted to be a Quarrel to the Clergy in general , if any thing shall be taken notice of in any of them worthy to be mended . I leave it to those whose Profession it is to judg , whether Divinity be a Science wherein Men may be instructed by an Harangue or two on●…e a Week , upon any Subject at a Venture , which has no Coherence with that which preceded , or that which is to follow , and this made to People that are ignorant of the first Principles of it , and are not capable of understanding such ways of Discourses . I am sure he that should think this a sufficient Means of instructing People in any other Science , would at the End of seven or twenty Years find them very little advanced in it . And bating perhaps some Terms and Phrases belonging to it , would be as far from all true and useful Knowledg of it as when they first began . Whether it be so in Matter●… of Religion , those who have the Oportunity to observe must judg . And if it appear that amongst those of the National Church there be very many so ignorant , that there is nothing more frequent than for the Ministers themselves to complain of it , it is manifest from those of the National Church ( whatever may be concluded from Dissenters ) that the Means of Instruction provided by the Law , are not sufficient , unless that be sufficient Means of Instruction , which Men of sufficient Capacity for other things , may live under many Years , and yet know very little by . If you say it is for want of Consideration , must not your Remedy of Force be used to bring them to it ? Or how will the Magistrate answer for it , if he use Force to make Dissenters consider , and let those of his own Church perish for want of it ? This being all one can well understand by your sufficient Means of Instruction , as you there explain it , I do not see but Men who have no Aversion to be instructed , may yet fail of it , notwithstanding such a Provision . Perhaps by exercising the true Religion with one Accord under the Direction of the Ministers of it in publick Assemblies , you mean something farther ; but that not being an ordinary Phrase , will need your Explication to make it understood . CHAP. II. Of the Magistrate's Commission to use Force in Matters of Religion . THough in the foregoing Chapter our examining your Doctrine concerning the Magistrates who may or may not use Force in Matters of Religion , we have in several places happened to take notice of the Commission whereby you authorize Magistrates to act ; yet we shall in this Chapter more particularly consider that Commission . You tell us , To use Force in Matters of Religion , is a Duty of the Magistrate as old as the Law of Nature , in which the Magistrate's Commission lies : for the Scripture does not properly give it him , but supposes it . And more at large you give us an account of the Magistrate's Commission in these Words : ●…is true indeed , the Author and Finisher of our Faith has given the Magistrate no new Power or Commission : nor was there any need that he should , ( if himself had any Temporal Power to give : ) For he found him already , even by the Law of Nature , the Minister of God to the People for Good , and bearing the Sword not in vain , i. e. invested with coactive Power , and obliged to use it for all the good Purposes which it might serve , and for which it should be found needful ; even for the restraining of false and corrupt Religion : as Job long before ( perhaps before any part of the Scriptures were written ) acknowledged , when he said , that the worshipping the Sun or the Moon , was an Iniquity to be punished by the Judg. But though our Saviour has given the Magistrates no new Power , yet being King of Kings , he expects and requires that they should submit themselves to his Sc●…pter , and use the Power which always belonged to them , for his Service , and for the advancing his spiritual Kingdom in the World. And even that Charity which our great Master so earnestly recommends , and so strictly requires of all his Disciples , as it obliges all Men to seck and promote the Good of others , as well as their own , especially their spiritual and eternal Good , by such Means as their several Places and Relations enable them to use ; so does it especially oblige the Magistrate to do it as a Magistrate , i. e. by that Power which enables him to do it above the rate of other Men. So far therefore is the Christian Magistrate , when he gives his helping-Hand to the furtherance of the Gospel , by laying convenient Penalties upon such as reject it , or any part of it , from using any other means for the Salvation of Mens Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed , that he does no more than his Duty to God , to his Redeemer , and to his Subjects , requires of him . Christ , you say , has given . no new Power or Commission to the Magistrate : and for this you give several Reasons . 1. There was no need that he should ; yet it seems strange that the Christian Magistrates alone should have an exercise of coa●…ve Power in Matters of Religion , and yet our Saviour should say nothing of it , but leave them to that Commission which was common to them with all other Magistrates . The Christian Religion in cases of less moment is not wanting in its Rules ; and I know not whether you will not charge the New Testament with a great Defect , if that Law alone which teaches the only true Religion , that Law which all Magistrates who are of the true Religion , receive and embrace , should say nothing at all of so necessary and important a Duty to those who alone are in a Capacity to discharge it , but leave them only to that general Law of Nature , which others who are not qualified to use this Force , have in common with them . This at least seems needful , if a new Commission does not , that the Christian Magistrates should have been instructed what Degree of Force they should use , and been limited to your moderate Penalties ; since for above these 1200 Years , though they have readily enough found out your Commission to use Force , they never found out your moderate use of it , which is that alone which you assure us is useful and necessary . 2. You say , If our Saviour had any Temporal Power to give ; whereby you seem to give this as a reason why he gave not the Civil Magistrate Power to use Force in Matters of Religion , that he had it not to give . You tell us in the same Paragraph , that he is King of Kings ; and he tells us himself , That all Power is given unto him in Heaven and in Earth : So that he could have given what Power , to whom , and to what Purpose he had pleased : and concerning this there needs no if . 3. For he found him already by the Law of Nature invested with coactive Power , and obliged to use it for all the good Purposes which it might serve , and for which it should be found needful . He found also Fathers , Husbands , Masters , invested with their distinct Powers by the same Law , and under the same Obligation ; and yet he thought it needsul to prescribe to them in the use of those Powers : But there was no need he should do so to the Civil Magistrates in the use of their Power in Matters of Religion ; because tho Fathers , Husbands , Masters , were liable to Excess in the use of theirs , ye●… Christian Magistrates were not , as appears by their having always kept to those moderate Measures , which you assure us to be the only necessary and useful . And what at last is their Commission ? Even that of Charity , which obliges all Men to seek and promote the Good of others , especially their spiritual and eternal Good , by such means as their several Places and Relations enable them to use , especially Magistrates as Magistrates . This Duty of Charity is well discharged by the Magistrate as Magistrate , is it not ? in bringing Men to an outward Profession of any , even of the true Religion , and leaving them there ? But , Sir , I ask you who must be Judg , what is for the spiritual and eternal Good of his Subjects , the Magistrate himself or no ? If not he himself , who for him ? Or can it be done without any one's judging at all ? If he , the Magistrate , must judg every-where himself what is for the spiritual and eternal Good of his Subjects , as I see no help for it●… if the Magistrate be every-where by the Law of Nature obliged to promote their spiritual and eternal Good , is not the true Religion like to find great Advantage in the World by the use of Force in the Magistrates Hands ? And is not this a plain demonstration that God has by the Law of Nature given Commission to the Magistrate to use Force for the promoting the true Religion , since ( as it is evident ) the execution of such a Commission will do so much more Harm than Good ? To shew that your indirect and at a distance Vsefulness , with a general necessity of Force , authorizes the Civil Power in the use of it , you use the following Words ; That Force does some service towards the making of Scholars and Artists , I suppose you will easily grant . Give me leave therefore to ask , how it does it ? I suppose you will say , not by its direct and proper Efficacy , ( for Force is no more capable to work Learning or Arts , than the belief of the true Religion in Men by its direct and proper Efficacy ; ) but by prevailing upon those who are designed for Scholars or Artists , to receive Instruction , and to apply themselves to the use of those Means and Helps which are proper to make them what they are designed to be : that is , it does it indirectly , and at a distance . Well then , if all the Vsefulness of the Force towards the bringing Scholars or Apprentices to the Learning or Skill they are designed to attain , be only an indirect and at a distance Usefulness ; I pray what is it that warrants and authorizes Schoolmasters , Tutors or Masters , to use Force upon their Scholars or Apprentices , to bring them to Learning , or the Skill of their Arts and Trades , if such an indirect and at a distance Usefulness of Force , together with that Necessity of it which Experience discovers , will not do it ? I believe you will acknowledg that even such an Vsefulness , together with that Necessity , will serve the turn in these cases . But then I would fain know , why the same kind of Vsefulness , joined with the like Necessity , will not as well do it in the case before us ? I confess I see no reason why it should not ; nor do I believe you can assign any . You ask here , what authorizes Schoolmasters or Masters to use Force on their Scholars and Apprentices , if such an indirect and at a distance Usefulness , together with Necessity , does not do it ? I answer , neither your indirect and at a distance Vsefulness , nor the Necessity you suppose of it . For I do not think you will say , that any Schoolmaster has a power to teach , much less to use Force on any one's Child , without the Consent and Authority of the Father : but a Father , you will say , has a power to use Force to correct his Child to bring him to Learning or Skill in that Trade he is designed to ; and to this the Father is authorized by the Usefulness and Necessity of Force . This I deny , that the meer-supposed Usefulness and Necessity of Force authorizes the Father to use it ; for then whenever he judg'd it useful and necessary for his Son , to prevail with him to apply himself to any Trade , he might use Force upon him to that purpose ; which I think neither you nor any body else will say , a Father has a right to do on his idle and perhaps married Son at 30 or 40 Years old . There is then something else in the case ; and whatever it be that authorizes the Father to use Force upon his Child , to make him a Prosicient in it , authorizes him also to chuse that Trade , A●…t or Science he would have him a Proficient in : for the Father can no longer use Force upon his Son , to make him attain any Art or Trade , than he can pres●…ribe to him the Art or Trade he is to attain . Put your Parallel now if you please : The Father by the Usefulness and N●…sity of Force is authorized to use it upon his Child , to make him attain any Art or Science ; therefore the Magistrate is authorized to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion , because it is useful and necessary . Thus far you have used it , and you think it does well . But let us go on with the Parallel : This Usefulness and Necessity of Force authorizes the Father to use it , to make his Son apply himself to the use of the Means and Helps which are proper to make him what he is designed to be , no longer than it authorizes the Father to design what his Son shall be , and to chuse for him the Art or Trade he shall be of : and so the Usefulness and Necessity you suppose in Force to bring Men to any Church , cannot authorize the Magistrate to use Force any farther , than he has a right to chuse for any one what Church or Religion he shall be of . So that if you will stick to this Argument , and allow the Parallel between a Magistrate and a Father , and the right they have to use Force for the instructing of their Subjects in Religion , and Children in Arts , you must either allow the Magistrate to have power to chuse what Religion his Subjects shall be of , which you have denied , or else that he has no power to use Force to make them use Means to be of it . A Father being entrusted with the Care and Provision for his Child , is as well bound in Duty , as fitted by natural Love and Tenderness , to supply the Defects of his tender Age. When it is born , the Child cannot move it self for the ease and help of natural Necessities , the Parents Hands must supply that Inability , and feed , cleanse and swaddle it . Age having given more Strength , and the exercise of the Limbs , the Parents are discharged from the trouble of putting Meat into the Mouth of the Child , clothing or unclothing , or carrying him in their Arms. The same Duty and Affection which required such kind of Helps to the Infant , makes them extend their Thoughts to other Cares for him when he is grown a little bigger ; 't is not only a present Support , but a future comfortable Subsistence begins to be thought on : to this some Art or Science is necessary , but the Child's Ignorance and want of Prospect makes him unable to chuse . And hence the Father has a power to chuse for him , that the flexible and docile part of Life may not be squandred away , and the time of Instruction and Improvement be lost for want of Direction . The Trade or Art being chosen by the Father , 't is the Exercise and Industry of the Child must acquire it to himself : but Industry usually wanting in Children , the Spur which Reason and Fore●…ght gives to the Endeavours of grown Men , the Father's Rod and Correction is fain to supply that Want , to make him apply himself to the use of those Means and Helps which are proper to make him what he is designed to be . But when the Child is once come to the State of Manhood , and to be the Possessor and free Disposer of his Goods and Estate , he is then discharged from this Discipline of his Parents , and they have no longer any right to chuse any Art , Science , or Course of Life for him , or by Force to make him apply himself to the use of those Means which are proper to make him be what he designs to be . Thus the want of knowledg to chuse a sit Calling , and want of knowledg of the necessity of Pains and Industry to attain Skill in it , puts a Power into the Parents hands to use Force where it is necessary to procure the Application and Diligence of their Children in that , which their Parents have thought fit to set them to ; but it gives this Power to the Parents only , and to no other whilst they live ; and if they die whilst their Children need it , to their Substitutes ; and there it is safely placed : for since their want of Knowledg during their Non-age , makes them want Direction ; and want of Reason often makes them need Punishment and Force to excite their Endeavours , and keep them intent to the use of those Means that lead to the End they are directed to , the Tenderness and Love of Parents will engage them to use it only for their Good , and generally to quit it too , when by the Title of Manhood they come to be above the Direction and Discipline of Children . But how does this prove that the Magistrate has any right to force Men to apply themselves to the use of those Means and Helps which are proper to make them of any Religion , more than it proves that the Magistrate has a right to chuse for them what Religion they shall be of ? To your Question therefore , What is it that warrants and authorizes Schoolmasters , Tutors and Masters to use Force upon their Scholars or Apprentices ? I answer , A Commission from the Father or Mother , or those who supply their Places ; for without that no indirect or at a distance Vsefulness , or supposed Necessity , could authorize them . But then you will ask , Is it not this Vsefulness and Necessity that gives this Power to the Father and Mother ? I grant it . I would fain know then , say you , why the same Vsefulness joined wit●… the like Necessity , will as well do in the Case before us ? And I , Sir , will as readily tell you : Because the Understanding of the Parents is to supply the want of it in the Minority of their Children ; and therefore they have a right not only to use Force to make their Children apply themselves to the means of acquiring any Art or Trade , but to chuse also the Trade or Calling they shall be of . But when being come out of the State of Minority , they are supposed of Years of Discretion to chuse what they will design themselves to be , they are also at liberty to judg what Application and Industry they will use for the attaining of it ; and then how negligent soever they are in the use of the Means , how averse soever to Instruction or Application , they are past the Correction of a Schoolmaster , and their Parents can no longer chuse or design for them what they shall be , nor use Force to prevail with them to apply themselves to the use of those Means and Helps which are proper to make them what they are designed to be . He that imagines a Father or Tutor may send his Son to School at thirty or forty Years old , and order him to be whipp'd there , or that any indirect and at a distance Usefulness will authorize him to be so used , will be thought fitter to be sent thither himself , and there to receive due Correction . When you have consider'd 't is otherwise in the case of the Magistrate using Force your way in Matters of Religion ; that there his Understanding is not to supply the defect of Understanding in his Subjects , and that only for a time ; that he cannot chuse for any of his Subjects what Religion he shall be of , as you your self confess ; and that this Power of the Magistrate , if it be ( as is claimed by you ) over Men of all Ages , Parts and Endowments , you will perhaps see some reason why it should not do in the Case before us , as well as in that of Schoolmasters and Tutors , though you believe I cannot assign any . But , Sir , will your indirect and at a distance Vsefulness , together with your supposed Necessity , authorize the Master of the Shoe-makers Company to take any one who comes in his Hands , and punish him for not being of the Shoe-makers Company , and not coming to their Guild , when he , who has a right to chuse of what Trade and Company he will be , thinks it not his Interest to be a Shoe-maker ? Nor can he or any body else imagine that this Force , this Punishment is used to make him a good Shoe-maker , when it is seen and avowed that the Punishments cease , and they are free from it who enter themselves of the Company , whether they are really Shoe-makers , or in earnest apply themselves to be so or no. How much it differs from this , that the Magistrate should punish Men for not being of his Church , who chuse not to be of it , and when they are once entred into the Communion of it , are punished no more , though they are as ignorant , unskilful , and unpractised in the Religion of it as before : how much , I say , this differs from the Case I proposed , I leave you to consider . For after all your Pretences of using Force for the Salvation of Souls , and consequently to make Men really Christians , you are fain to allow , and you give Reasons for it , that Force is used only to those who are out of your Church : but whoever are once in it , are free from Force , whether they be really Christians , and apply themselves to those things which are for the Salvation of their Souls , or no. As to what you say , That whether they chuse it or no , they ought to chuse it ; for your Magistrate's Religion is the true Religion , that is the Question between you and them : but be that as it will , if Force be to be used in the case , I have proved that be the Magistrate's Religion true or false , he , whilst he believes it to be true , is under an obligation to use Force , as if it were true . But since you think your Instance of Children so weighty and pressing , give me leave to return you your Question : I ask you then , Are not Parents as much authorized to teach their Children their Religion , as they are to teach them their Trade , when they have designed them to it ? May they not as lawfully correct them to make them learn their Catechise , or the Principles of their Religion , as they may to make them learn Clenard's Grammar ? Or may they not use Force to make them go to Mass , or whatever they believe to be the Worship of the true Religion , as to go to School , or to learn any Art or Trade ? If they may , as I think you will not deny , unless you will say , that none but Orthodox Parents may teach their Children any Religion : If they may , I say then , pray tell me a Reason ( if your Argumen●… from the Discipline of Children be good ) why the Magistrate may not use Force to bring Men to his Religion , as well as Parents may use Force to instruct Children , and bring them up in theirs ? When you have considered this , you will perhaps find some difference between the State of Children and grown Men , betwixt those under Tutelage , and those who are free and at their own disposal ; and be inclined to think that those Reasons which subject Children in their Non-age to the use of Force , may not , nor do concern Men at Years of Discretion . You tell us farther , That Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining of all the Benefits which Political Government can yield : and therefore if the spiritual and eternal Interests of Men may any way be procured or advanced by Political Government , the procuring and advancing those Interests must in all reason be received amongst the Ends of Civil Society , and so consequently fall within the compass of the Magistrate's Jurisdiction . Concerning the extent of the Magistrate's Jurisdiction , and the Ends of Civil Society , whether the Author or you have begg'd the Question , which is the chief business of your 56th , and two or three following Pages , I shall leave it to the Readers to judg , and bring the matter , if you please , to a shorter I●…ue . The Question is , Whether the Magistrate has any Power to interpose Force in Matters of Religion , or for the Salvation of Souls ? The Argument against it is , That Civil Societies are not constituted for that End , and the Magistrate cannot use Force for Ends for which the Common-wealth was not constituted . The End of a Commonwealth constituted can be supposed no other , than what Men in the Constitution of , and entring into it propos'd ; and that could be nothing but Protection from such Injuries from other Men , which they desiring to avoid , nothing but Force could prevent or remedy : all things but this being as well attainable by Men living in Neighbourhood without the Bonds of a Commonwealth , they could propose to themselves no other thing but this in quitting their Natural Liberty , and putting themselves under the Umpirage of a Civil Soveraign , who therefore had the Force of all the Members of the Commonwealth put into his Hands , to make his Decrees to this end be obeyed . Now since no Man , or Society of Men can by their Opinions in Religion , or Ways of Worship , do any Man who differed from them any Injury , which he could not avoid or redress , if he desired it , without the help of Force ; the punishing any Opinion in Religion , or Ways of Worship by the Force given the Magistrate , could not be intended by those who constituted , or entred into the Commonwealth , and so could be no End of it , but quite the contrary . For Force from a stronger Hand to bring a Man to a Religion , which another thinks the true , being an Injury which in the State of Nature every one would avoid , Protection from such Injury is one of the Ends of a Commonwealth , and so every Man has a right to Toleration . If you will say , that Commonwealths are not voluntary Societies constituted by Men , and by Men freely entred into , I shall desire you to prove it . In the mean time allowing it you for good , that Common-wealths are constituted by God for Ends which he has appointed , without the consent and contrivance of Men. If you say , that one of those Ends is the Propagation of the true Religion , and the Salvation of Mens Souls ; I shall desire you to shew me any such End expresly appointed by God in Revelation ; which since , as you confess , you cannot do , you have recourse to the general Law of Nature , and what is that ? The Law of Reason , whereby every one is commissioned to do Good. And the propagating the true Religion for the Salvation of Mens Souls , being doing Good , you say , the Civil Soveraigns are commissioned and required by that Law to use their Force for those Ends. But since by this Law all Civil Soveraigns are commissioned and obliged alike to use their co●…ive Power for the propagating the true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls ; and it is not possible for them to execute such a Commission , or obey that Law , but by using Force to bring Men to that Religion which they judg the true ; by which use of Force much more Harm than Good would be done towards the propagating the true Religion in the World , as I have shewed elsewhere : therefore no such Commission , whose Execution would do more Harm than Good , more hinder than promote the End for which it is supposed given , can be a Commission from God by the Law of Nature . And this I suppose may satisfy you about the End of Civil Societies or Commonwealths , and answer what you say concerning the Ends attainable by them . But that you may not think the great Position of yours , which is so often usher'd in with doubtless , ( for which you imagine you have sufficient Warrant in a misapplied School-Maxim ) is past over too slightly , and is not sufficiently answered ; I shall give you that farther Satisfaction . You say , Civil Societies are instituted for the attaining all the Benefits which Civil Society or Political Government can yield ; and the Reason you give for it , because it has hitherto been universally acknowledged that no Power is given in vain : and therefore if I except any of those Benefits , I shall be obliged to admit that the Power of attaining them was given in vain . And if I do admit it , no harm will follow in humane Affairs : or if I may borrow an elegant Expression of yours out of the foregoing Leaf , The Fortune of Europe does not turn upon it . In the voluntary Institution and bestowing of Power , there is no Absurdity or Inconvenience at all , that Power , sufficient for several Ends , should be limited by those that give the Power only to one or some part of them . The Power which a General , commanding a potent Army , has , may be enough to take more Towns than one from the Enemy ; or to suppress a domestick Sedition , and yet the Power of attaining those Benefits , which is in his Hand , will not authorize him to imploy the Force of the Army therein , if he be commission'd only to besiege and take one certain Place . So it is in a Commonwealth . The Power that is in the Civil Soveraign is the Force of all the Subjects of the Commonwealth , which supposing it sufficient for other Ends , then the preserving the Members of the Commonwealth in Peace from Injury and Violence : yet if those who gave him that Power , limited the Application of it to that sole End , no Opinion of any other Benefits attainable by it can authorize him to use it otherwise . Our Saviour tells us expresly , that all Power was given him in Heaven and Earth . By which Power I imagine you will not say , that the spiritual and eternal Interest of those Men whom you think need the Help of Political Force , and of all other Men too , could not any way be procured or advanced ; and yet if you will hear him in another Place , you will find this Power ( which being all Power , could certainly have wrought on all Men ) limited to a certain number : He says , Thou hast given him [ i. e. thy Son ] Power over all Flesh , that he should give eternal Life to as many as thou hast given him . Whether your universally acknowledged Maxim of Logick be true enough to authorize you to say , that any part of this Power was given him in vain , and to inable you to draw Consequences from it , you were best see . But were your Maxim so true that it proved , that si●…ce it might indirectly and at a Distance do some Service towards the procuring or advancing the spiritual Interest of some few Subjects of a Commonwealth , therefore Force was to be imployed to that End ; yet that will searce make good this Doctrine of yours ; Doubtless Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining all those Benefits which Political Government can yield ; therefore if the spiritual and eternal Interests of Men may any way be procured or advanced by Political Government , the procuring and advancing those Interests must in all Reason be reckoned among the Ends of Civil Societies , and so consequently fall within the Compass of the Magistrate's Jurisdiction . For granting it true that Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining all those Benefits which Political Government can yield , it does not follow that the procuring and advancing the spiritual and eternal Interest of some few Members of the Commonwealth by an Application of Power , which indirectly and at a Distance , or by Accident may do some Service that way , whilst at the same time it prejudices a far greater Number in their Civil Interests , can with Reason be reckon'd amongst the Ends of Civil Society . That Commonwealths are instituted for these Ends , viz. for the procuring , preserving and advancing Mens Civil Interests , you say , No Man will deny . To sacrifice therefore these Civil Interests of a great Number of People , which are the allowed Ends of the Commonwealths , to the uncertain Expectation of some Service to be done indirectly and at Distance to a far less Number , as Experience has always shewed those really converted to the true Religion by Force to be , if any at all cannot be one of the Ends of the Commonwealth . Though the advancing of the spiritual and eternal Interest be of insinite Advantage to the Persons who receive that Benefit , yet if it can be thought a Benefit to the Commonwealth when it is procured them with the diminishing or destroying the Civil Interests of great Numbers of their Fellow-Citizens , then the ravaging of an Enemy , the Plague , or a Famine may be said to bring a Benefit to the Common-wealth : for either of these may indirectly and at a Distance do some Service towards the advancing or procuring the spiritual and eternal Interest of some of those who suffer in it . In the two latter Paragraphs , you except against my want of Exactness in setting down your Opinion I am arguing against . Had it been any way to take off the Force of what you say , or that the Reader could have been misled by my Words in any part of the Question I was arguing against , you had h●…d Reason to complain : if not , you had done better to ha●…e entertained the Reader with a clearer Answer to my Argument , than spent your Ink and his Time needlesly , to shew such Niceness . My Argument is as good against your Tenet in your own Words , as in mine , which you except against : your Words are , Doubtless Commonwealths are instituted for the attaining all the Benefits which Political Government can yield ; and therefore if the spiritual and eternal Interest of Men may any way be procured 〈◊〉 advanced by Political Government , the procuring and advancing those Interests , must in all Reason be reckon'd amongst the Ends of Civil Societies . To which I answer'd , That if this be so , Then this Position must be true , viz. That all Societies whatsoever are instituted for the attaining all the Benefits that they may any way yield ; there being nothing peculiar to Civil Society in the case , why that Society should be instituted for the attaining all the Benefits it can any way yield , and other Societies not . By which Argument it will follow , that all Societies are instituted for one and the same End , i. e. for the attaining all the Benefits that they can any way yield . By which Account there will be no Difference between Church and State , a Commonwealth and an Army , or between a ●…amily and the East-India Company ; all which have hitherto been thought distinct sorts of Societies , instituted ●…or different Ends. If your Hypothesis hold good , o●…e of the Ends of the Family must be to preach the Gospel , and administer the Sacraments ; and one Business of an Army to teach Languages , and propagate Religion ; because these are Benefits some way or other attainable by those Societies ; unless you take want of Commission and Authority to be a sufficient imp●…diment : And that will be so in other Cases . To which you reply , Nor will it follow from hence that all Societies are instituted for one and the same End , ( as you imagine it will ) unless you suppose all Soci●…s inab●…d by the Power they are indued with to attain the same ●…nd , which I believe no Man hitherto did ever affirm . And therefore notwithstanding this Position , the●…e may be still as great a Difference as you please between Church an●… State , a Commonwealth and an Army , or between a Family and the East-India-Company . Which ●…veral Societies , as they are instituted for different Ends , so are th●…y likewise furnished with d●…fferent Powers proportionate to their respective Ends. In which the R●…ason you give to destroy my Inference , I am to thank you for , if you understood the Force of it , it being the very same I bring to shew that my Inference from your way of arguing is good . I say , that from your way of reasonings about the Ends of Government , ` It would follow that all Societies were instituted for one and the same End ; unless you take want of Commission ` and Authority to be a sufficient Imp●…diment . And you tell me here it will not follow , unless I suppose all Societies enabled by the Powers they are indued with , to attain the same End ; which in other Words is , unless I suppose all who have in their Hands the Force of any Society , to have all of them the same Commission . The natural Force of all the Members of any Society , or of those who by the Society can be procured to assist it , is in one Sense called the Power of that Society . This Power or Force is generally put into some one or few Persons Hands with Direction and Authority how to use it , and this in another Sense is called also the Power of the Society : And this is the Power you here speak of , and in these following Words , viz. Several Societies as they are instituted for different Ends ; so likewise are they furnished with different Powers proportionate to their respective Ends. The Power therefore of any Society in this Sense , is nothing but the Authority and Direction given to those that have the Management of the Force or natural Power of the Society , how and to what Ends to use it , by which Commission the Ends of Societies are known and distinguished : so that all Societies wherein those who are intrusted with the Management of the Force or natural Power of the Society , have Commission and Authority to use the Force or natural Power of the Society to attain the same Benefits , are instituted for the same End. And therefore if in all Societies those who have the Management of the Force or natural Power of the Society , are commission'd or authorized to use that Force to attain all the Benefits attainable by it , all Societies are instituted to the same End : And so what I said will still be true , viz. ` That a Family and an Army , a Commonwealth and a Church , have all the same End. And if your Hypothesis hold good , one of the Ends of a Family must be to preach the Gospel , and administer the Sacraments ; and one Business of an Army to teach Languages , and propagate Religion because these are Benefits some way or other attainable by those Societies ; unless you take want of Commission and Authority to be a sufficient Impediment : And ` that will be so too in other Cases . To which you have said nothing but what does confirm it , which you will a little better see , when you have considered that any Benefit attainable by Force or natural Power of a Society , does not pro●…e the Society to be instituted for that End , till you also shew , that those to whom the Management of the Force of the Society is intrusted , are comm●…ion to use it to that End. And therefore to your next Paragraph , I shall think it Answer enough to print here Side by Side with it , that Paragraph of mine to which you intended it as an Answer . L. 2. p. 51. T is a Benefit to have true Knowledg and Philosophy imbraced and assented to , in any Ci●…il Society or Government . But will you say therefore , that it is a Benefit to the Society , or one of the Ends of Government , that all who are not 〈◊〉 should be punished , to make Men find out the Truth , and pro●…s it ? This indeed might be thought a sit way to make some Men imbrace the Peripatetick Philosophy , but not a proper way to find the Truth . For , perhaps the Peripatetick Philosophy may not be true ; perh●…ps a great many have not time , nor Parts to study it ; perhaps a great many who have studied it , cannot be con●…inced of the Truth of it : And therefore it cannot be a Benefit to the Commonwealth , nor one of the Ends of it , that these Members of the Society should be disturb'd , and diseas'd to no purpose , when they are guilty of no Fault . For just the same Reason , it cannot be a Benefit to Civil Society , that Men should be punished in Denmark for not being Lutherans ; in Geneva for not being Calvinists ; and in Vienna for not being Papists ; as a means to make them find out the true Religion . For so , upon your Grounds , Men must be treated in those Places , as well as in England for not being of the Church of England . And then , I beseech you , consider the great Benefit will accrue to Men in Society by this Method ; and I suppose it will be a hard thing for you to prove , That ever Civil Governments were instituted to punish Men for not being of this or that Sect in Religion ; however by Accident , indirectly , and at a distance , it may be an occasion to one perhaps of a thousand , or an hundred , to ●…udy that Controversy , which is all you expect from it . If it be a 〈◊〉 , pray tell me what Benefit it is . A Civil Benefit it cannot be . For Mens Civil Interests are disturb'd , injur'd , and impair'd by it . And what Spiritual Benefit that can be to any Multitude of Men , to be punished for Dissenting from a false or erroneous Profession , I would have you find out : unless it be a Spiritual Benefit to be in danger to be driven into a wrong way . For if in all differing Sects , one is in the wrong , 't is a hundred to one but that from which any one Dissents , and is punished for Dissenting from , is the wrong . L. 3. p. 58. To your next Paragraph , after what has already been said , I think it may ●…ffice to say as follows . Though perhaps the Perip●…tetick ●…hilosophy may not be true , ( and perhaps it is no great matter , if it be not ) yet the true Religion is undoub●…dly true . And though perhaps a great many have not time , nor Parts to study that Philosophy , ( and perhaps it may be no great matter neither , if they have not ) yet all that have the true Religion duly tender'd them , have time , and all , but Idiots and Mad-men , have Parts likewise to study it , as much as it is necessary for them to study it . And though perhaps a great many who have studied that Philosophy , cannot be convinced of the Truth of it , ( which perhaps is no great Wonder ) yet no Man ●…ver studied the true Religion with such Care and Diligence as he might and ought to use , and with an honest Mind , but he was convinced of the Truth of it . And that those who cannot otherwise be brought to do this , should be a little disturb'd and diseas'd to bring them to it , I take to be the Interest , not only of those particular Persons who by this means may be brought into the way of Salvation , but of the Commonwealth likewise , upon these two Accounts . 1. Because the true Religion , which this Method propagates , makes good Men ; and good Men are always the best Subjects , or Members of a Common-wealth ; not only as they do more sincerely and zealously promote the Publick Good , than other Men ; but likewise in regard of the Favour of God , which they often procure to the Societies of which they are Members . And , 2. Because this Care in any comm●…ealth , of God's Honour and Mens Salvation , entitles 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 his special Protection and Blessing . So that where this Method is used , it proves both a Spiritual and a Civil Benefit to the Commonwealth . You tell us , the true Religion is undoubtedly true . If you had told us too , who is undoubtedly Judg of it , you had put all past doubt : but till you will be pleased to determine that , it will be undoubtedly true , that the King of Denmark is as undoubtedly Judg of it at Copenhagen , and the Emperor at Vienna , as the King of England in this Island : I do not say they judg as right , but they are by as much Right Judges , and therefore have as much Right to punish those who dissent from Lutheranism and Popery in those Countries , as any other Civil Magistrate has to punish any Dissenters from the National Religion any where else . And who can deny but these Briars and Thorns laid in their way by the Penal Laws of those Countries , may do some Service indirectly and at a Distance , to bring Men there severely and impartially to examine Matters of Religion , and so to imbrace the Truth that must save them , which the bare outward Profession of any Religion in the World will not do ? This true Religion which is undoubtedly true , you tell us too , never any body studied with such Care and Diligence as he might and ought to use , and with an honest Mind , but he was convinced of the Truth of it . If you will resolve it in your short circular way , and tell me such Diligence as one ought to use , is such Diligence as brings one to be convinced , it is a Question too easy to be asked . If I should desire to know plainly what is to be understood by it , it would be a Question too hard for you to answer , and therefore I shall not trouble you with demanding what this Diligence which a Man may and ought to use , is ; nor what you mean by an honest Mind . I only ask you , whether Force , your way applied , be able to produce them ? that so the Commonwealth may have the Benefits you propose from Mens being convinced of , and consequently imbracing the true Religion , which you say no Body can miss , who is brought to that Diligence , and that honest Mind . The Benefits to the Commonwealth are , 1. That the true Religion that this Method propagates , makes good Men , and good Men are always the best Subjects , and often procure the Favour of God to the Society they are Members of . Being forward enough to grant that nothing contributes so much to the Benefit of a Society , as that it be made up of good Men , I began presently to give into your Method , which promises so sure a way to make Men so study the true Religion , that they cannot miss the being convinced of the Truth of it , and so hardly avoid being really of the true Religion , and consequently good Men. But that I might not mistake in a thing of that consequence , I began to look about in those Countries where Force had been made use of to propagate what you allowed to be the true Religion , and found Complaints of as great a Scarcity of good Men there , as in other places . A Friend whom I discoursed on this Point , said , It might possibly be that the World had not yet had the benefit of your Method : because Law-makers had not yet been able to find that just Temper of Penalties on which your Propagation of the true Religion was built ; and that therefore it was great pity you had not yet discovered this great Secret , but 't was to be hoped you would . Another , who stood by , said , he did not see how your Method could make Men it wrought on , and brought to Conformity , better than others , unless corrupt Nature with Impunity were like to produce better Men in one outward Profession than in another . To which I replied , That we did not look on Conformists through a due Medium ; for if we did with you allow it presumable that all who consormed did it upon Conviction , there could be no just Complaint of the Scarcity of good Men : And so we got over that Difficulty . The second Benefit you say your use of Force brings to the Commonwealth , is , That this Care in any Commonwealth of God's Honour and Mens Salvation , entitles it to his special Protection and Blessing . Then certainly all Commonwealths that have any regard to the Protection and Blessing of God , will not neglect to intitle themselves to it , by using of Force to promote that Religion they believe to be true . But I beseech you what Care is this of the Honour of God , and Mens Salvation , you speak of ? Is it , as you have owned it , a Care by Penalties to make Men outwardly conform , and without any farther Care or Inquiry to presume that they do it upon Conviction , and with a sincere imbracing of , and Obedience to the Truth ? But if the Honour of God and Mens Salvation , consists not in an outward Conformity to any Religion , but in something farther , what Blessing they may expect whose Care goes so far , and then presume the rest , which is the hardest part , and the●…efore least to be presumed , the Prophe●… Jeremy will tell you , who says , Cursed be he that does the Work of the Lord negligently : which those who think it is the Magistrate's business to use Force to bring Men heartily to imbrace the Truth that must save them , were best seriously to consider . Your next Paragraph containing nothing but Positions of yours , which you suppose elsewhere proved , and I elsewhere examined , 't is not fit the Reader should be troubled any farther about them . I once knew a Gentleman , who having crak'd himself with an ungovernable Ambition , could never afterwards hear the Place he aimed at mentioned , without shewing marks of his Distemper . I know not what the matter is , that when there comes in your way but the mention of Secular Power in your or Ecclesiasticks Hands , you cannot contain your self : We have Instances of it in other parts of your Letter ; and here again you fall into a Fit , which since it produces rather marks of your Breeding , than Arguments for your Canse , I shall leave them as they are to the Reader , if you can make them go down with him for Reasons from a grave Man , or for a sober Answer to what I say in that and the following Paragraph . Much-what of the same size is your ingenious Reply to what I say in the next Paragraph , viz. That Commonwealths , or Civil Societies and Governments , if you will believe the Judiciou●… Mr. Hooker , are , as St. Peter calls them , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Contrivance and Institution of Man. To which you smartly reply , for your Choler was up , `●…is well for St. Peter that he had the Judicious Mr. Hooker on his side . And it would have been well for you too to have seen that Mr. Hooker's Authority was made use of not to confirm the Authority of St. Peter , but to confirm that Sense I gave of St. Peter's Words , which is not so clear in our Translation , but that there are those who , as I doubt not but you know , do not allow of it . But this being said when Passion it seems rather imployed your ●…it than your Judgment , though nothing to the purpose , may yet perhaps indirectly and at a distance do some service . And now , Sir , if you can but imagine that Men in the corrupt State of Nature might be authorized and required by Reason , the Law of Nature , to avoid the Inconveniences of that State , and to that purpose to put the Power of governing them into some one or more Mens Hands , in such Forms , and under such Agreements as they should think sit : which Governours so set over them for a good End by their own choice , though they received all their Power from those , who by the Law of Nature had a Power to confer it on them , may very ●…tly be called Powers ordained of God , being chosen and 〈◊〉 by those who had Authority from God so to do . For he that recei●…es Commission ( limited according to the 〈◊〉 of him that gives it ) from another who had Authority from his Prince so to do , may truly be said , so far as his Commission reaches , to be appointed or ordained by the Prince himself . Which may serve as an Answer to your two next Paragrap●… , ●…nd to shew that there is no Opposition or Difficulty in all 〈◊〉 St. Peter , St. Paul , or the Judicious Mr. Hooker says ; nor any thing , in what either of them says , to your purpose . And tho it be true , those Powers that are , are ordained of God ; yet it may nevertheless be true , that the Power any one has , and the Ends for which he has it , may be by the Contrivance and Appointment of Men. To my saying , The Ends of Commonwealths appointed by the Institutors of them , could not be their spiritual and eternal Interest , because they could not stipulate about those one with another , nor submit this Interest to the Power of the Society , or any Soveraign they should set over them . You reply , Very true , Sir ; but they can submit to be punished in their Temporal Interest , if they de●…ise or neglect those greater Interests . How they can submit to be punished by any Men in their Temporal Interest , for that which they cannot submit to be judg'd by any Man , when you can shew , I shall admire your Politicks . Besides , if the Compact about Matters of Religion be , that those should be punished in their Temporal , who neglect or despise their Eternal Interest , who I beseech you is by this Agreement rather to be punished , a sober Dissenter , who appears concerned for Religion and his Salvation , or an irreligious prophane or debauched Conformist ? By such as despise or neglect those gr●…ate Interests , you here mean only Dissenters from the National Religion : for those only you punish , though you represent them under such a Description as belongs not peculiarly to them ; but that matter●… not , so long as it best sutes your Occasion . In your next Paragraph you wonder at my News from the West-Indies , I suppose because you sound it not in your Books of Europe or Asia . But whatever you may think , I assure you all the World is not ●…ile End. But that you may be no more surprized with News , let me ask you , Whether it be not possible that Men , to whom the Rivers and Woods a●…orded the spontaneous Provisions of Life , and so with no private possessions of Land , had no inlarged Desires after R●…hes or Power , should live together in Society , make on●… Peo●…e of one Language under one Chieftain , who shall have no oth●… Power but to command them in time of War agai●…t 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Enemies , without any municipal Laws , Judges , 〈◊〉 ●…ny ●…rson with Superiority establish●…d amongst them , but 〈◊〉 all their private Differences , if any a●…ose , by the extempory Determination of their Neighbours , or of Arbitrators 〈◊〉 by the Partie●… . I ask you whether in such a Commonwealth , the Chiestain who was the only Man of Authority amongst them , had any Power to use the Force of the Commonwealth to any other End but the Defence of it against an Enemy , though other Benefits were attainable by it ? The Paragraph of mine to which you mean your next for an Answer , shall answer for it self . L. 2. p. 56. You quote the Author's Argument , which he brings to prove that the Care of Souls is not committed to the Magistrate , in these Words : It is not committed to him by God because it appears not God has ever given any such Authority to one Man over another , as to compel any one to his Religion . This , when first I read it , I confess I thought a good Argument . But you say , this is quite besides the business ; and the Reason you give , is ; For the Authority of the Magistrate is not an Authority to compel any one to his Religion , but only an Authority to procure all his Subjects the means of discovering the way of Salvation , and to pr●…cure withal , as much as in him lies , that 〈◊〉 ●…emain ignorant of it , &c. I f●…r , Sir , you forget your self . The Author was not writing against your new Hypothesis , before it was known in the World. He may be excused , if he had not the Gift of Prophecy , to argue against a Notion which was not yet started . He had in view only the Laws hitherto made , and the Punishments ( in Matters of Religion ) in use in the World. The Penalties , as I take it , are laid on Men for being of different Ways of Religion : which , what is it other but to compel them to relinquish their own , and to conform themselves to that from which they differ ? If this be not to compel them to the Magistrate's Religion , pray tell us what is ? This must be necessarily so understood ; unless it can be supposed that the Law intends not to have that done , which with Penalties it commands to be done ; or that Punishments are not Compulsion , not that Compulsion the Author complains of . The Law says , Do this , and live ; embrace this Doctrine , conform to this way of Worship , and be at ease , and free ; or else be fined , imprisoned , banished , burnt . If you can shew among the Laws that have been made in England concerning Religion , ( and I think I may say any where else ) any one that punishes Men for not having impartially examined the Religion they have embraced or refused , I think I may yield you the Cause . Law-makers have been generally wiser than to make Laws that could not be executed : and therefore their Laws were against Nonconformists , which could be known ; and not for impartial Examination , which could not . 'T was not then besides the Author's Business , to bring an Argument against the Persecutions here in fashion . He did not know that any one , who was so free as to acknowledg that the Magistrate has not an Authority to compel any one to his Religion , and thereby at once ( as you have done ) give up all the Laws now in force against Dissenters , had yet Rods in store for them , and by a new Trick would bring them under the lash of the Law , when the old Pretences were too much exploded to serve any longer . Have you never heard of such a thing as the Religion establish'd by Law ? which is it seems the Lawful Religion of a Country , and to be complied with as such . There being such Things , such Notions yet in the World , it was not quite besides the Author's business to alledg , that God never gave such Authority to one Man over another , as to compel any one to his Religion . I will grant , if you please , Religion establish'd by Law is a pretty odd way of speaking in the Mouth of a Christian , ( and yet it is much in fashion ) as if the Magistrate's Authority could add any Force or Sanction to any Religion , whether true or false . I am glad to find you have so far considered the Magistrate's Authority , that you agree with the Author , that he hath none to compel Men to his Religion : Much less can he , by any Establishment of Law , add any thing to the Truth or Validity of his own , or any Religion whatsoever . That above-annexed is all the Answer you think this Paragraph of mine deserves . But yet in that little you say , you must give me leave to take notice , that if , as you say , the Magistrate's Authority may do much towards the upholding and preserving the true Religion within his Jurisdiction ; so also may it do much towards the upholding and preserving of a false Religion , and in that respect , if you say true , may be said to establish it . For I think I need not mind you here again , that it must unavoidably depend upon his Opinion , what shall be established for true , or rejected as false . And thus you have my Thoughts concerning the most material of what you say touching the Magistrate's Commission to use Force in Matters of Religion , together with some incident Places in your Answer , which I have taken notice of as they have come in my way . CHAP. III. Who are to be punished by your Scheme . TO justify the largeness of the Author's Toleration , who would not have Jews , Mahometans and Pagans excluded from the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , because of their Religion ; I said , I feared it will hardly be believed , that we pray in earnest for their Conversion , if we exclude them from the ordinary and probable Means of it , either by driving them from us , or persecuting them when they are among us . You reply ; Now I confess I thought Men might live quietly enough among us , and enjoy the Protection of the Government against all Violence and Injuries , without being endenizon'd , or made Members of the Commonwealth ; which alone can entitle them to the Civil Rights and Privileges of it . But as to Jews , Mahometans and Pagans , if any of them do not care to live among us , unless they may be admitted to the Rights and Privileges of the Common-wealth ; the refusing them that Favour is not , I suppose , to be looked upon as driving them from us , or excluding them from the ordinary and probable Means of Conversion ; but as a just and necessary Caution in a Christian Commonwealth , in respect to the Members of it : Who , if such as profess Judaism , or Mahometanism , or Paganism , were permitted to enjoy the same Rights with them , would be much the more in danger to be seduced by them ; seeing they would lose no worldly Advantage by such a Change of their Religion : Whereas if they could not turn to any of those Religions , without forfeiting the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth by doing it , 't is likely they would consider well before they did it , what ground there was to expect that they should get any thing by the Exchange , which would countervail the Loss they should sustain by it . I thought Protection and Impunity of Men , not offending in Civil Things , might have been accounted the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , which the Author meant : but you , to make it seem more , add the word Privileges . Let it be so . Live amongst you then Jews , Mahometans , and Pagans may ; but endenizon'd they must not be . But why ? Are there not those who are Members of your Commonwealth , who do not imbrace the Truth that must save them , any more than they ? What think you of So●…inians , Papists , Anabaptists , Quakers , Presbyterians ? If they do not reject the Truth necessary to Salvation , why do you punish them ? Or if some that are in the way to Perdition , may be Members of the Commonwealth , why must these be excluded upon the account of Religion ? For I think there is no great odds , as to saving of Souls ( which is the only End for which they are punished ) amongst those Religions , each whereof will make those who are of it miss Salvation . Only if there be any fear of seducing those who are of the National Church , the Danger is most from that Religion which comes nearest to it , and most resembles it . However , this you think but a just and necessary Caution in a Christian Commonwealth in respect of the Members of it . I suppose ( for you love to speak doubtfully ) these Members of a Christian Common-wealth you take such care of , are Members also of the National Church , whose Religion is the true ; and therefore you call them in the next Paragraph , Subjects of Christ's Kingdom , to whom he has a special regard . For Dissenters , who are punished to be made good Christians , to whom Force is used to bring them to the true Religion , and to the Communion of the Church of God , 't is plain are not in your Opinion good Christians , or of the true Religion ; unles , you punish them to make them what they are already . The Dissenters therefore who are already perverted , and reject the Truth that must save them , you are not , I suppose , so careful of , lest they should be seduced . Those who have already the Plague , need not be guarded from Infection : nor can you fear that Men so desperately perverse , that Penalties and Punishments , joined to the Light and Strength of the Truth , have not been able to bring from the Opinions they have espoused , into the Communion of the Church , should be seduced to Judaism , 〈◊〉 , or Paganism , neither of which has the advantage of Truth ●…r Interest to prevail by . 'T is therefore those of the National Church , as I conclude also from the close of this Paragraph , ( where you speak of God's own peculiar People ) wh●…re you think would be much the more in danger to be seduced by them , if they were 〈◊〉 , since they would lose no worldly Advantage by such a change of their Religion , i. e. by quitting the National Church , to turn Jews , Mahometans or Pagans . This shews , whatever you say of the sufficient means of Instruction provided by the Law , how well you think the Members of the National Church are instructed in the true Religion . It shews also , whatever you say of its being presumable that they imbrace it upon Conviction , how much you are satisfied that the Members of the National Church are convinc'd of the Truth of the Religion they profess , or rather herd with , since you think them in great Danger to change it for Judaism , Mahometism , or Paganism it self upon equal terms , and because they shall lose no worldly Advantage by such a Change. But if the forseiting the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , be the proper Remedy to keep Men in the Communion of the Church , why is it used to keep Men from Judaism or Paganism , and not from Phanaticism ? Upon this Account why might not Jews , Pagans and Mahometans be admitted to the Rights of the Commonwealth , as far as Papists , Independents , and Quakers ? But you distribute to every one according to your good Pleasure ; and doubtless are fully justified by these following Words : And whether this be not a reasonable and necessary Caution , any Man may judg , who does but consider within how few Ages after the Flood Superstition and Idolatry prevailed over the World , and how apt even God's own peculiar People were to receive that mortal Infection notwithstanding all that he did to keep them from it . What the State of Religion was in the first Ages after the Flood , is so imperfectly known now , that as I have shewed you in another Place , you can make little Advantage to your Cause from thence . And since it was the same Corruption then , which as you own , withdraws Men now from the true Religion , and hinders it from prevailing by its own ●…ight , without the Assistance of Force ; and it is the same Corruption that keeps Dissenters , as well as Jews , Mahometuns and Pagans , from imbracing of the Truth : why differ●…nt Degrees of Punishments should be used to them , till there be sound in them disserent Degrees of 〈◊〉 , would need some better Reason . Why this common Pravity of 〈◊〉 Nature should make 〈◊〉 , 〈◊〉 or Paganism more catching than any sort of Nonconformity , which ●…inders 〈◊〉 from imbracing the true Religion ; ●…o that Jews , 〈◊〉 and Pagans must , for ●…ear of infe●…ting others , be shut out from ●…he Commonwealth , when others are not , I would 〈◊〉 know 〈◊〉 Whatever it was that so disposed the Jews to Idolatry before the Captivity , sure it is , they firmly resisted it , and refused to change , not only where they might have done it on equal terms , but have had great Advantage to boot ; and therefore 't is possible that there is something in this matter , which neither you nor I do fully comprehend , and may with a becoming Humility sit down and confess , that in this , as well as other Parts of his Providence , God's Ways are past finding out . But this we may be certain from this Instance of the Jews , that it is not reasonable to conclude , that because they were once inclin'd to Idolatry , that therefore they , or any other People are in Danger to turn Pagans , whenever they shall lose no worldly Advantage by such a Change. But if we may oppose nearer and known Instances to more remote and uncertain , look into the World , and tell me , since Jesus Christ brought Life and Immortality to light through the Gospel , where the Christian Religion meeting Judaism , Mahometism or Paganism upon equal terms , lost so plainly by it , that you have Reason to suspect the Members of a Christian Commonwealth would be in Danger to be seduced to either of them , if they should lose no worldly Advantage by such a Change of their Religion , rather than likely to increase among them ? Till you can find then some better Reason for excluding Jews , &c. from the Rights of the Commonwealth , you must give us leave to look on this as a bare Pretence . Besides , I think you are under a Mistake , which shews your Pretence against admitting Jews , Mahometans and Pagans , to the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , is ill grounded ; for what Law I pray is there in England , that they who turn to any of those Religions , forfeit the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth by doing it ? Such a Law I desire you to shew me ; and if you cannot , all this Pretence is out of doors , and Men of your Church , since on that Account they would lose no worldly Advantage by the Change , are in as much Danger to be seduced , whether Jews , Mahometans and Pagans , are indenizon'd or no. But that you may not be thought too gracious , you tell us , That as to Pagans particularly you are so far from thinking that they ought not to be excluded from the Civil Rights of the Commonwealth , because of their Religion , that you cannot see how their Religion can be suffered by any Commonwealth that knows and worships the only true God , if they would be thought to retain any Jealousy for his Honour , or even for that of humane Nature . Thus then you order the matter ; Jews and Mahometans may be permitted to live in a Christian Commonwealth with the Exercise of their Religion , but not be endenizon'd : Pagans may also be permitted to live there , but not to have the Exercise of their Religion , nor be endenizon'd . This according to the best of my Apprehension is the Sense of your Words ; for the Clearness of your Thoughts , or your Cause does not always suffer you to speak plainly and directly ; as here , having been speaking a whole Page before what Usage the Persons of Jews , Mahometans and Pagans were to have , you on a sudden tell us their Religion is not to be suffered , but say not what must be done with their Persons . For do you think it reasonable that Men who have any Religion , should live amongst you without the Exercise of that Religion , in order to their Conversion ? which is no other but to make them down-right irreligious , and render the very Notion of a Deity insignificant , and of no Influence to them in order to their Conversion : It being less dangerous to Religion in general , to have Men ignorant of a Deity , and so without any Religion ; than to have them acknowledg a superiour Being , but yet to teach or allow them to neglect or refuse worshipping him in that way , that they believe he requires , to render them acceptable to him : It being a great deal less Fault ( and that which we were every one of us once guilty of ) to be ignorant of him , than acknowledging a God , and not to pay him the Honour which we think due to him . I do not see therefore how those who retain any Jealousy for the Honour of God , can permit Men to live amongst them in order to their Conversion , and require of them not to honour God according to the best of their Knowledg : unless you think it a Preparation to your true Religion , to require Men sensibly and knowingly to affront the Deity ; and to perswade them that the Religion you would bring them to , can allow Men to make bold with the Sense they have of him , and to refuse him the Honour which in their Consciences they are perswaded is due to him , which must to them and every Body else appear inconsistent with all Religion . Since therefore to admit their Persons without the Exercise of their Religion , cannot be reasonable , nor conducing to their Conversion ; if the Exercise of their Religion , as you say , be not to be suffered among us till they are converted , I do not see how their Persons can be suffered among us , if that Exception must be added , till they are converted ; and whether then they are not excluded from the ordinary means of Conversion , I leave you to consider . I wonder this Necessity had not made you think on another way of their having the ordinary means of Conversion , without their living amongst us , that way by which in the beginning of Christianity it was brought to the Heathen World by the Travels and Preaching of the Apostles . But the Successors of the Apostles are not , it seems , Successors to this part of the Commission , Go and teach all Nations . And indeed it is one thing to be an Ambassador from God to People that are already converted , and have provided good Benefices , another to be an Ambassador from Heaven in a Country where you have neither the Countenance of the Magistrate , nor the devout Obedience of the People . And who sees not how one is bound to be zealous for the propagating of the true Religion , and the convincing , converting and saving of Souls , in a Country where it is establish'd by Law ? who can doubt but that there those who talk so much of it , are in earnest ? Though yet some Men will hardly forbear doubting , that those Men , however they pray for it , are not much concerned for the Conversion of Pagans , who will neither go to them to instruct them , nor suffer them to come to us for the means of Conversion . 'T is true what you say , what Pagans call Religion is Abomination to the Almighty . But if that requires any thing from those who retain any Jealousy for the Honour of God , it is something more than barely about the Place where those Abominations shall be committed . The true Concern for the Honour of God is not , that Idolatry should be shut out of England , but that it should be lessen'd every where , and by the Light and Preaching of the Gospel be banished out of the World. If Pagans and Idolaters are , as you say , the greatest Dishonour conceivable to God Almighty , they are as much so on t'other side of Tweed , or the Sea , as on this ; for he from his Throne equally beholds all the Dwellers ●…on Earth . Those therefore who are truly jealous for the Honour of God will not , upon the Account of his Honour , be concerned for their being in this or in that Place , while there are Idolaters in the World ; but that the Number of those who are such a Dishonour to him , should every Day be as much as possible diminished , and they be brought to give him his due Tribute of Honour and Praise in a right way of Worship . 'T is in this that a Jealousy , which is in earnest for God's Honour , truly shews it self , in wishing and indeavouring to abate the Abomination , and drive Idolatry out of the World , not in driving Idolaters out of any one Country , or sending them away to Places and Company , where they shall find more Incouragement to it . 'T is a strange Jealousy for the Honour of God , that looks not beyond such a Mountain or River as divides a Christian and Pagan Country . Where-ever Idolatry is committed , there God's Honour is concerned ; and thither Mens Jealousy for his Honour , if it be sincere indeed , will extend , and be in Pain to lessen and take away the Provocation . But the Place God is provoked and dishonoured in , which is a narrow Consideration in respect of the Lord of all the Earth , will no otherwise imploy their Zeal , who are in earnest , than as it may more or less conduce to the Conversion of the Offenders . But if your Jealousy for the Honour of God , ingages you so far against Mens committing Idolatry in certain Places , that you think those ought to be excluded from the Rights of the Commonwealth , and not to be suffered to be Denizons , who according to that Place in the Romans brought by you , are without Excuse , because when they knew God , they glorified him not as God , but became vain in their Imaginations , and changed the Glory of the incorruptible God into an Image made like to corruptible Man. I shall only change some of the Words in the Text you cite out of Isaiah ; I have baked part thereof on the Coals , and eaten it , and shall I make the residue thereof a God ? shall I fall down to that which comes of a Plant ? And so leave them with you to consider whether your Jealousy in earnest carries you so far as you talk of ; and whether when you have looked about you , you are still of the Mind , that those who do such things should be disfranchised and sent away , and the Exercise of no such Religion be any where permitted amongst us ? for those things are no less an Ahomination to God under a Christian than Pagan Name . One Word more I have to say to your Jealousy for the Honour of God , that if it be any thing more than in Talk , it will set it self no less earnestly against other Abominations , and the Practisers of them than against that of Idolatry . As to that in Job XXXI . 26 , 27 , 28. where he says Idolatry is to be punished by the Judg ; this Place alone , were there no other , is sufficient to confirm their Opinion , who conclude that Book to be writ by a Jew . And how little the punishing of Idolatry in that Commonwealth concerns our present Case , I refer you for Information to the Author's Letter . But how does your Jealousy for the Honour of God , carry you to an Exclusion of the Pagan Religion from amongst you , but yet admit of the Jewish and Mahometan ? Or is not the Honour of God concern'd in their denying our Saviour ? You go on , But as to the converting Jews , Mahometans and Pagans to Christianity , I fear there will be no great Progress made in it , till Christians come to a better Agreement and Vnion among themselves . I am sure our Saviour prayed that all th●…t should believe in him , might be one in the Father and him , ( i. e. I suppose in that holy Religion which he taught them from the Father ) that the World might believe that the Father had sent him : And therefore when he comes to make Inquisition , why no more ●…ews , M●…hometans and Pagans have been converted to his Religion ; I very much fear that a great part of the Blame will be found to l●…e upon the Authors and Promoters of Sects and Divisions among the Professors of it : which therefore , I think , all that are guilty , and all that would not be guilty , ought well to consider . I easily grant that our Saviour pray'd that all might be one in that holy Religion which he taught them , and in that very Prayer teaches what that Religion is , This is Life eternal , that they might know thee the only true God , and Jesus Christ whom thou hast 〈◊〉 . But must it be expected , that therefore they should all be of one Mind in things not necessary to Salvation ? For whatever Unity it was our Saviour pray'd for here , 't is certain the Apostles themselves did not all of them agree in every thing : but even the chief of them have had Differences amongst them in Matters of Religion , as appears , Gal. II. 11. An Agreement in Truths necessary to Salvation , and the maintaining of Charity and brotherly Kindness with the Diversity of Opinions in other things , is that which will very well consist with Christian Unity , and is all possibly to be had in this World , in such an incurable Weakness and Difference of Mens Understandings . This probably would contribute more to the Conversion of Jews , Mahometans and Pagans , if there were proposed to them and others , for their Admittance into the Church , only the plain and simple Truths of the Gospel necessary to Salvation , than all the fruitless Pudder and Talk about uniting Christians in Matters of less Moment , according to the Draught and Prescription of a certain set of Men any where . What Blame will lie on the Authors and Promoters of Sects and Divisions , and ( let me add ) Animosities amongst Christians , when Christ comes to make Inquisition why no more Jews , Mahometans and Pagans were converted , they who are concerned ought certainly well to consider . And to abate in great measure this Mischief for the future , they who talk so much of Sects and Divisions , would do well to consider too , whether those are not most Authors and Promoters of Sects and Divisions , who impose Creeds , Ceremonies and Articles of Mens making ; and make things not necessary to Salvation , the necessary terms of Communion . Excluding and driving from them such as out of Conscience and Perswasion cannot assent and submit to them ; and treating them as if they were utter Aliens from the Church of God , and such as were deservedly shut out as unfit to be Members of it : who narrow Christianity within Bounds of their own making , and which the Gospel knows nothing of ; and often for things by themselves confessed indifferent , thrust Men out of their Communion , and then punish them for not being of it . Who sees not , but the Bond of Unity might be preserved , in the different Perswasions of Men concerning things not necessary to Salvation , if they were not made necessary to Church-Communion ? What two thinking Men of the Church of England are there , who differ not one from the other in several material Points of Religion ? who nevertheless are Members of the same Church , and in Unity one with another . Make but one of those Points the Shibboleth of a Party , and erect it into an Article of the National Church , and they are presently divided ; and he of the two , whose Judgment happens not to agree with National Orthodoxy , is immediately cut off from Communion . Who I beseech you is it in this Case that makes the Sect ? Is it not those who contract the Church of Christ within Limits of their own Contrivance ? who by Articles and Ceremonies of their own forming , separate from their Communion all that have not Perswasions which just jump with their Model ? 'T is frivolous here to pretend Authority . No Man has or can have Authority to shut any one out of the Church of Christ , for that for which Christ himself will not shut him out of Heaven . Whosoever does so , is truly the Author and Promoter of S●…hism and Division , sets up a Sect , and tears in Pieces the Church of Christ , of which every one who believes , and practises what is necessary to Salvation , is a Part and Member ; and cannot , without the Guilt of Schism , be separated from , or kept out of its external Communion . In this lording it over the Heritage of God , and thus overseeing by Imposition on the unwilling , and not consenting , which seems to be the meaning of St. Peter , most of the lasting Sects which so mangle Christianity , had their Original , and continue to have their Support : and were it not for these establish'd Sects under the specious Names of National Churches , which by their contracted and arbitrary Limits of Communion , justify against themselves the Separation and like Narrowness of others , the Difference of Opinions which do not so much begin to be , as to appear and be owned under Toleration , would either make no Sect nor Division ; or else if they were so extravagant as to be opposite to what is necessary to Salvation , and so necessitate a Separation , the clear Light of the Gospel , joined with a strict Discipline of Manners , would quickly chase them out of the World. But whilst needless Impositions , and moot Points in Divinity are established by the Penal Laws of Kingdoms , and the specious Pretences of Authority , what Hopes is there that there should be such an Union amongst Christians any where , as might invite a rational Turk or Infidel to imbrace a Religion , whereof he is told they have a Revelation from God , which yet in some Places he is not suffered to read , and in no Place shall he be permitted to understand for himself , or to follow according to the best of his Understanding , when it shall at all thwart ( though in things confessed not necessary to Salvation ) any of those select Points of Doctrine , Discipline , or outward Worship , whereof the National Church has been pleased to make up its Articles , Polity , and Ceremonies ? And I ask , what a sober sensible Heathen must think of the Divisions amongst Christians not owing to Toleration , if he should find in an Island , where Christianity seems to be in its greatest Purity , the South and North Parts establishing Churches upon the Differences of only whether fewer or more , thus and thus chosen , should govern ; tho the Revelation they both pretend be their Rule , say nothing directly one way or ●…other : each contending with so much Eagerness , that they deny each other to be Churches of Christ , that is , in effect , to be true Christians ? To which if one should add Transubstantiation , Consubstantiation , Real Presence , Articles and Distinctions set up by Men without Authority from Scripture , and other less Differences , ( which good Christians may dissent about without endangering their Salvations ) established by Law in the several Parts of Christendom : I ask , Whether the Magistrates interposing in Matters of Religion , and establishing National Churches by the Force and Penalties of Civil Laws , with their distinct ( and at home reputed necessary ) Confessions and Ceremonies , do not by Law and Power authorize and perpetuate Sects among Christians , to the great Prejudice of Christianity , and Scandal to Insidels , more than any thing that can arise from a mutual Toleration , with Charity and a good Life ? Those who have so much in their Mouths , the Authors of Sects and Divisions , with so little advantage to their Cause , I shall desire to consider , whether National Churches established as now they are , are not as much Sects and Divisions in Christianity , as smaller Collections , under the name of distinct Churches , are in respect of the National ? only with this difference , that these Subdivisions and discountenanced Sects , wanting Power to enforce their peculiar Doctrines and Discipline , usually live more friendly like Christians , and seem only to demand Christian Liberty ; whereby there is less appearance of Unchristian Division among them : Whereas those National Sects , being back'd by the Civil Power , which they never fail to make use of , at least as a pretence of Authority over their Brethren , usually breath out nothing but Force and Persecution , to the great Reproach , Shame , and Dishonour of the Christian Religion . I said , That if the Magistrates would severely and impartially set themselves against Vice in whomsoever it is found , and leave Men to their own Consciences in their Articles of Faith , and Ways of Worship , true Religion would spread wider , and be more fruitful in the Lives of its Professors , than ever hitherto it has done by the imposing of Creeds and Ceremonies . Here I call only Immorality of Manners , Vice ; you on the contrary , in your Answer , give the Name of Vice to Errors in Opinion , and Difference in Ways of Worship from the National Church : for this is the Matter in question between us , express it as you please . This being a Contest only about the signification of a short Syllable in the English Tongue , we must leave to the Masters of that Language to judg which of these two is the proper use of it . But yet from my using the word Vice , you conclude presently , ( taking it in your Sense , not mine ) that the Magistrate has a Power in England ( for England we are speaking of ) to punish Dissenters from the National Religion , because it is a Vice. I will , if you please , in what I said , change the word Vice into that I meant by it , and say thus , [ If the Magistrates will severely and impartially set themselves against the Dishonesty and Debauchery of Mens Lives , and such Immoralities as I contra-distinguish from Errors in speculative Opinions of Religion , and Ways of Worship : ] and then pray see how your Answer will look , for thus it runs ; It seems then with you the rejecting the true Religion , and refusing to worship God in decent Ways prescribed by those to whom God has left the ordering of those Matters , are not comprehended in the name Vice. But you tell me , If I except these things , and will not allow them to be called by the name of Vice , perhaps other Men may think it as reasonable to except some other things , [ i. e. from being called Vices ] which they have a kindness for : For instance , some may perhaps except arbitrary Divorce , Polygamy , Concubinage , simple Fornication , or Marrying within Degrees thought forbidden . Let them except these , and if you will , Drunkenness , Theft , and Murder too , from the name of Vice ; nay , call them Vertues : Will they by their calling them so , be exempt from the Magistrate's Power of punishing them ? Or can they claim an Impunity by what I have said ? Will these Immoralities by the Names any one shall give , or forbear to give to them , become Articles of Faith , or Ways of Worship ? Which is all , as I expresly say in the Words you here cite of mine , that I would have the Magistrates leave Men to their own Consciences in . But , Sir , you have , for me , Liberty of Conscience to use Words in what sense you please ; only I think , where another is concerned , it favours more of Ingenuity and love of Truth , rather to mind the Sense of him that speaks , than to make a dust and noise with a mistaken Word , if any such Advantage were given you . You say , That some Men would through Carelesness never acquaint themselves with the Truth which must save them , without being forced to do it , which ( you suppose ) may be very true , notwithstanding that ( as I say ) some are called at the third Hour , some at the ninth , and some at the eleventh Hour ; and whenever they are called , they embrace all the Truths necessary to Salvation . At least I do not shew why it may not : And therefore this may be no Slip for any thing I have said to prove it to be one . This I take not to be an Answer to my Argument , which was , That since some are not called till the eleventh Hour , no body can know who those are , who would never acquaint themselves with those Truths that must save them , without Force , which is therefore necessary , and may indirectly and at a distance do them some service . Whether that was my Argument or no , I leave the Read●…r to judg : but that you may not mistake it now again , I tell you here it is so , and needs another Answer . Your way of using Punishments in short is this , That all that conform not to the National Church , where it is true , as in England , should be punished ; What for ? To make them consider . This I told you had something of Impracticable . To which you reply , That you used the word only in another Sense , which I mistook : Whether I mistook your meaning in the use of that Word or no , or whether it was natural so to take it , or whether that Opinion which I charged on you by that Mistake , when you tell us , That not examining , is indeed the next end for which they are punished , be not your Opinion , let us leave to the Reader : for when you have that Word in what s●…nse you please , what I said will be nevertheless true , ( viz. ) ` That to punish Dissenters , as Dissenters , to make them consider , has something impracticable in it , unless not to be of the National ` Religion , and not to consider , be the same thing . These Words you answer nothing to , having as you thought a great advantage of talking about my mistake of your word only . Bu●… unless you will suppose , not to be of the National Church , and not to consider , be the same thing , it will follow , th●…t to punish Dissenters , as Dissenters , to make them consider , has something of Impracticable in it . The Law punishes all Dissenters : For what ? To make them all conform , that 's evident ; To what end ? To make them all consider , say you : That cannot be , for it says nothing of it ; nor is it certain that all Dissenters have not considered ; nor is there any care taken by the Law to enquire whether they have considered , when they do conform ; yet this was the End intended by the Magistrate . So then with you it is practicable and allowable in making Laws , for the Legislator to lay Punishments by Law on Men , for an End which they may be ignorant of , for he says nothing of it ; on Men , whom he never takes care to enquire , whether they have done it or no , before he relax the Punishment , which had no other next End , but to make them do it . But though he says nothing of considering in laying on the Penalties , nor asks any thing about it , when he takes them off ; yet every body must understand that he so meant it . Sir , Sancho Pancha in the Government of his Island , did not expect that Men should understand his meaning by his gaping : but in another Island it seems , if you had the Management , you would not think it to have any thing of Impracticable or Impolitick in it . For how far the provision of Means of Instruction takes this off , we shall see in another place . And lastly , to lay Punishments on Men for an End which is already attained , ( for some among the Dissenters may have considered ) is what other Law-makers look on as impracticable , or at least unjust . But to this you answer in your usual way of Circle , That if I suppose you are for punishing Dissenters whether they consider or no , I am in a great mistake ; for the Dissenters ( which is my Word , not yours ) whom you are for punishing , are only such as reject the true Religion proposed to them with Reasons and Arguments sufficient to convince them of the Truth of it , who therefore can never be supposed to consider those Reasons and Arguments as they ought , whilst they persist in rejecting that Religion , or ( in my Language ) continue Dissenters ; for if they did so consider them , they would not continue Dissenters . Of the Fault for which Men were to be punished , distinguished from the End for which they were to be punished , we heard nothing , as I remember , in the first Draught of your Scheme , which we had in The Argument considered , &c. But I doubt not but in some of your general Terms you will be able to find it , or what else you please : for now having spoken out , that Men , who are of a different Religion from the true , which has been tendred them with sufficient Evidence , ( and who are they whom the wise and benign Disposer and Governour of all things has not furnished with competent Means of Salvation ) are Criminals , and are by the Magistrate to be punished as such , 't is necessary your Scheme should be compleated ; and whither that will carry you , 't is easy to see . But pray , Sir , are there no Conformists that so reject the ●…ue Religion ? and would you have them punished too , as you here profess ? Make that practicable by your Scheme , and you have done something to perswade us that your End in earnest in the Use of Force , is to make Men consider , understand , and be of the True Religion ; and that the rejecting the true Religion tender'd with sufficient Evidence , is the Crime which bonâ fide you would have punished ; and till you do this , all that you may say concerning punishing Men to make them consider as they ought , to make them receive the true Religion , to make them imbrace the Truth that must save them , &c. will with all sober , judicious and unbiassed Readers , pass only for the Mark of great Zeal , if it scape amongst Men as warm and as sagacious as you are , a harsher Name : whilst those Conformists who neglect Matters of Religion , who reject the saving Truths of the Gospel , as visibly and as certainly as any Dissenters , have yet no Penalties laid upon them . You talk much of considering and not considering as one ought ; of imbracing and rejecting the true Religion , and abundance more to this purpose , which all , however very good and savoury Words , that look very well , when you come to the Application of Force , to procure that End expressed in them , amount to no more but Conformity and Non-conformity . If you see not this , I pity you ; for I would fain think you a fair Man , who means well , though you have not light upon the right way to the End you propose : But if you see it , and persist in your Use of these good Expressions to lead Men into a Mistake in this Matter ; consider what my Pagans and Mahometans could do worse to serve a bad Cause . Whatever you may imagine , I write so in this Argument , as I have before my Eyes the Account , I shall one Day render for my Intention , and Regard to Truth in the Management of it . I look on my self as liable to Error as others : but this I am sure of , I would neither impose on you , my self , nor any body ; and should be very glad to have the Truth in this Point clearly establish'd : and therefore it is , I desire you again to examine , whether all the Ends you name to be intended by your Use of Force , do in effect , when Force is to be your way put in Practice , reach any farther than bare outward Conformity ? Pray consider whether it be not that whi●…h makes you so shy of the term Dissenters , which you tell me is mine not your Word . Since none are by your Scheme to be punished , but those who do not conform to the National Religion , Diffenters , I think , is the proper Name to call them by : and I can see no reason you have to boggle at it , unless your Opinion has something in it you are unwilling should be spoke out , and call'd by its right Name : But whether you like it or no , Persecution , and Persecution of Dissenters , are Names that belong to it as it stands now . And now I think I may leave you your Question , wherein you ask , But cannot Dissenters be punished for not being of the National Religion , as the Fault , and yet only to make them consider , as the End for which they are punished ? To be answered by your self , or to be used again , where you think there is any need of so nice a Distinction , as between the Fault for which Men are punished by Laws , and the End for which they are punished : For to me I confess it is hard to find any other immediate End of Punishment in the Intention of humane Laws , but the Amendment of the Fault punished ; though it may be subordinate to other and remoter Ends. If the Law be only to punish Non-conformity , one may truly say , to cure that Fault , or to produce Conformity , is the End of that Law ; and there i●… nothing else immediately aimed at by that Law , but Conformity ; and whatever else it tends to as an End , must be only as a Consequence of Conformity , wh●…ther it be Edisication , Increase of Charity , or saving of Souls , or whatever else may be thought a Consequence of Conformity . So that in a Law , which with Penalties requires Conformity , and nothing else ; o●…e cannot say ( properly I think ) that Consideration is the End of that Law , unless Consideration be a Cons●…quence of Conformity , to which Conformity is subordinate , and does naturally conduce , or else is necessary to it . To my arguing that it is u●…just as well as impracticable , you reply , Where the National Church is the true Church of God , ●…o which all Men ought to join themselves , and sufficient Evidence is offered to convince Men that it 〈◊〉 so : There it is a Fault to be out of the National Church , because it is a Fault not to be convinced that the National Church is that true Church of God. And therefore since there Mens not being so convinced , can only be imputed to their not considering as they ought , the Evidence which is ●…ffered to convince them ; it cannot be unjust to punish them to make them so to consider it . Pray tell me , which is a Man's Duty , to be of the National Church 〈◊〉 ; or to be ●…onvinced first , that its Religion is ●…ue , and then to be of it ? If it be his Duty to be convinced 〈◊〉 , why then do you punish him for not being of it , when it is his Duty to be ●…onvinced of the Truth of its Religion , before it is his Duty to be of it ? If you say it is his Duty to be of it first ; why then is not ●…orce used to him afterwards , though he be still ignorant and unconvinced ? But you answer , It is his Fault not to be convinced . What , every one's Fault every where ? No , you ●…imit it to Places where sufficient Evidence is offered to convince Men that the National Church is the true Church of God. To which pray let me add , the National Church is so the true Church of God , that no body out of its Communion can imbrace the Truth that must save him , or be in the way to Salvation . For if a Man may be in the way to Salvation out of the National Church , he is enough in the true Church , and needs no Force to bring him into any other : For when a Man is in the way to Salvation , there is no Necessity of Force to bring him into any Church of any Denomination , in order to his Salvation . So that not to be of the National Church , though true , will not be a Fault which the Magistrate has a right to punish , until sufficient Evidence is offered to prove that a Man cannot be saved out of it . Now since you tell us , that by sufficient Evidence you mean such as will certainly win Assent ; when you have offer'd such Evidence to convince Men , that the National Church , any where , is so the true Church , that Men cannot be saved out of its Communion , I think I may allow them to be so faulty as to deserve what Punishment you shall think sit . If you hope to mend the matter by the following Words , where you say , that where such Evidence is offered there Mens not being convinced , can only be imputed to Mens not considering as they ought , they will not help you . For to consider as they ought , being by your own Interpretation , to consider so as not to reject ; then your Answer amounts to just thus much , That it is a Fault not to be convinced that the National Church is the true Church of God , where sufficient Evidence is offered to convince Men that it is so . Sufficient Evidence is such as will certainly gain Assent with th●…se who consider as they ought , i. e. who consider so as not to reject or to be moved heartily to imbrace , which I think is to be convinced . Who can have the Heart now to deny any of this ? Can there be any thing surer , than that Mens not being convinc'd , is to be imputed to them if they are not convinc'd , where such Evidence is offered to them as does convince them ? And to punish all such you have my free Consent . Whether all you say have any thing more in it than this , I appeal to my Readers ; and should willingly do it to you , did not I fear , that the jumbling of those good and plausible Words in your Head , of sufficient Evidence , consider as one ought , &c. might a little jargogle your Thoughts , and lead you hood-wink'd the round of your own beaten Circle . This is a Danger those are much exposed to , who accustom themselves to relative and doubtful terms , and so put together , that though asunder they signify something , yet when their meaning comes to be cast up as they are placed , it amounts to just nothing . You go on , What Justice it would be for the Magistrate to punish one for not being a Cartesian , it will be time enough to consider when I have proved it to be as necessary for Men to be Cartesians , as it is to be Christians , or Members of God's Church . This will be a much better Answer to what I said , when you have proved that to be a Christian or a Member of God's Church , it is necessary for a Dissenter to be of the Church of England . If it be not Justice to punish a Man for not being a Cartesian , because it is not as necessary to be a Cartesian , as to be a Christian ; I fear the same Argument will hold against punishing a Man for not using the Cross in Baptism , or not kneeling at the Lord's Supper ; and it will lie on you to prove , that it is as necessary to use the Cross in Baptism , or kneeling at the Lord's Supper , as it is to be a Christian : For if they are not as necessary as it is to be a Christian , you cannot by your own Rule , without Injustice , punish Men for not conforming to a Church wherein they are made an indispensible Part of Conformity ; and by this Rule it will be Injustice to punish any Man for not being of that Church wherein any thing is required not necessary to Salvation ; for that , I think , is the Necessity of being a Christian. To shew the Unreasonableness of punishing Dissenters to make them examine , I said , that so they were punished for not having offended against a Law ; for there is no Law of the Land that requires them to examine . Your Reply is , That you think the contrary is plain enough : For where the Laws provide sufficient means of Instruction in the true Religion , and then require all Men to imbrace that Religion ; you think the most natural Construction of those Laws is , that they require Men to imbrace it upon Instruction and Conviction , as it cannot be expected they should do without examining the Grounds upon which it stands . Your Answer were very true , if they could not imbrace without examining and Conviction . But since there is a shorter way to imbracing , which cost no more Pains than walking as far as the Church , your Answer no more proves , that the Law requires examining , than if a Man at Harwich being subpena'd to appear in Westminster-Hall next Term , you should say the Subpena required him to come by Sea , because there was sufficient means provided for his Passage in the ordinary Boat that by Appointment goes constantly from Harwich to London : But he taking it to be more for his Ease and Dispatch , goes the shorter way by Land , and finds that having made his Appearance in Court as was required , the Law is satisfied , and there is no Inquiry made , what way he came thither . If therefore Men can imbrace so as to satisfy the Law without examining , and it be true that they so fly from the means of right Information , are so negligent in , and averse to examining , that there is need of Penalties to make them do it , as you tell us at large ; How is it a natural Construction of those Laws , that they require Men to examine , which having provided sufficient means of Instruction , require Men only to conform , without saying any thing of examining ? especially when the Cause assigned by you of Mens neglecting to examine , is not want of means of Instruction , but want of Penalties to over-ballance their Aversion to the using those means ; which you your self con●…s , where you say , When the best Provision is made that can be , for the Instruction of the People , you fear a great part of them will still need Penalties to bring them to hear and receive Instruction : A●…d therefore perhaps the Remainder of tha●… Paragraph , when you have considered it again , will not appear so impertinent a Declamation as you are pleased to think it : For it charged your Method ( as it then stood ) of punishing Men for not considering and exami●…ing with these Absurdities . That it punished Men for not doing that which the Law did not require of them , nor declare the Neglect of to be a Fault , contrary to the Ends of all Laws , contrary to the common Sense of Mankind , and the Practice of all Law-makers , who always ●…irst declared the Fault , and then denounced Penalties against those who after a time set , should be found guilty of it . It charged your Method , that it allows not Impunity to the Innocent , but punishes whole Tribes together , the Innocent with the Guilty ; and that the thing deligned in the Law was not mentioned in it , but left to the People ( whose Fault was want of Consideration ) to be by Consideration found out . To avoid these Absurdities , you have reformed your Scheme , and now in your Reply own with the frankest Persecutors , that you punish Men downright for their Religion , and that to be a Dissenter from the true Religion , is a Fault to be punished by the Magistrate . This indeed i●… plain dealing , and clears your Method from these Absurdities as long as you keep to it : but where ever you tell us , that your Laws are to make Men hear , to make Men consider , to make Men examine ; whilst the Laws themselves say nothing of hearing , considering and examining , there you are still chargeable with all these Absurdities : Nor will the Distinction , which without any Difference you would set up , between the Fault for which Men are to be punished , and the End for which they are to be punished , do you any Service herein , as I have shewed you in another Place . To what I said L. 2. from p. 25 , to p. 32. concerning those who by your Scheme are to be punished , you having thought sit not to answer any thing , I shall here again offer it to your Consideration . Let us inquire , First , Who it is you would have be punished . In the Place above cited , they are those who are got into a wrong way , and are deaf to all Perswasions . If these are the Men to be punished , let a Law be made against them : you have my Consent ; and that is the proper Course to have Offenders punished . For you do not , I hope , intend to punish any Fault by a Law , which you do not name in the Law ; nor make a Law against any Fault you would not have punished . And now , if you are sincere , and in earnest , and are ( as a fair Man should be ) for what your Words plainly signify , and nothing else ; what will such a Law serve for ? Men in the wrong Way are to be punished : but who are in the wrong Way , is the Question . You have no more reason to determine it against one , who differs from you , than he has to conclude against you , who differ from him : No , not tho you have the Magistrate and the National Church on your side . For if to differ from them be to be in the wrong Way ; you who are in the right Way in England , will be in the wrong Way in France . Every one here must be Judg for himself : And your Law will reach no body , till you have convinced him he is in the wrong Way : and then there will be no need of Punishment to make him consider ; unless you will affirm again what you have denied , and have Men punished for imbracing the Religion they believe to be true , when it differs from yours or the Publick . Besides being in the wrong Way , those who you would have punished , must be such as are deaf to all Perswasions . But any such , I suppose , you will hardly sind , who hearken to no body , not to those of their own Way . If you mean by deaf to all Perswasions , all Perswasions of a contrary Party , or of a different Church ; such , I suppose , you may abundantly find in your own Church , as well as else-where ; and I presume to them you are so charitable , that you would not have them punished for not lending an Ear to Seducers . For Constancy in the Truth , and Perseverance in the Faith , is ( I hope ) rather to be incouraged , than by any Penalties check'd in the Orthodox . And your Church doubtless , as well as all others , is Orthodox to it self in all its Tenets . If you mean by all Perswasion , all your Perswasion , or all Perswasion of those of your Communion ; you do but beg the Question , and suppose you have a right to punish those who differ from , and will not comply with you . Your next Words are , When Men fly from the means of a right Information , and will not so much as consider how reasonable it is throughly and impartially to examine a Religion , which they embraced upon such Inducements as ought to have no sway at all in the matter , and therefore with little or no Examination of the proper Grounds of it ; What humane Method can be used to bring them to act like Men , in an Affair of such consequence , and to make a wiser and more rational Choice , but that of laying such Penalties upon them , as may ballance the weight of those Prejudices which inclined them to prefer a false Way before the true , and recover them to so much Sobriety and Ref●…ction , as seriously to put the question to themselves , Whether it be really worth the while to undergo such Inconveniences for adhering to a Religion , which , for any thing they know , may be false , or for rejecting another ( if that be the case ) which , for any thing they know , may be true , till they have brought it to the Bar of Reason , and given it a fair trial there ? Here you again bring in such as prefer a false Way before a true : to which having answered already , I shall here say no more , but , That since our Church will not allow those to be in a false Way who are out of the Church of Rome , because the Church of Rome ( which pretends Infallibility ) declares hers to be the only true Way ; certainly no one of our Church ( nor any other , which claims not Infallibility ) can require any one to take the Testimony of any Church , as a sufficient Proof of the Truth of her own Doctrine . So that true and false ( as it commonly happens , when we suppose them for our selves , or our Party ) in effect , signify just nothing , or nothing to the purpose ; unless we can think that true or false in England , which will not be so at Rome or Geneva ; and Vice versâ . As for the rest of the description of those , on whom you are here laying Penalties ; I beseech you consider whether it will not belong to any of your Church , let it be what it will. Consider , I say , if there be none in your Church who have imbraced her Religion upon such Inducements as ought to have no sway at all in the matter , and therefore with little or no Examination of the proper Grounds of it ; who have not been inclined by Prejudices ; who do not adhere to a Religion , which for any thing they know may be false ; and who have rejected another , which for any thing they know may be true . If you have any such in your Communion , ( and 't will be an admirable , though I fear but a little Flock that has none such in it ) consider well what you have done . You have prepared Rods for them , for which I imagine they will con you no thanks . For to make any tolerable Sense of what you here propose , it must be understood that you would have Men of all Religions punished , to make them consider whether it be really worth the while to undergo such Inconveniences for adhering to a Religion , which for any thing they know may be false . If you hope to avoid that , by what you have said of true and false ; and pretend that the supposed Preference of the true Way in your Church , ought to preserve its Members from your Punishment ; you manifestly trifle . For every Church's Testimony , that it has chosen the true Way , must be taken for it self ; and then none will be liable ; and your new Invention of Punishment is come to nothing : Or else the differing Churches Testimonies must be taken one for another ; and then they will be all out of the true Way , and your Church need Penalties as well as the rest . So that , upon your Principles , they must all or none be punished . Chuse which you please ; one of them , I think , you cannot escape . What you say in the next Words ; Where Instruction is stifly refused , and all Admonitions and Perswasions prove vain and ineffectual ; differs nothing but in the way of expressing , from Deaf to all Perswasions : And so that is answered already . In another place , you give us another description of those you think ought to be punished , in these Words ; Those who refuse to embrace the Doctrine , and submit to the Spiritual Government of the proper Ministers of Religion , who by special Designation , are appointed to Exhort , Admonish , Reprove , &c. Here then , those to be punished , are such who refuse to imbrace the Doctrine , and submit to the Government of the proper Ministers of Religion . Whereby we are as much still at uncertainty as we were before , who those are who ( by your Scheme , and Laws sutable to it ) are to be punished ; since every Church has , as it thinks , its proper Ministers of Religion : And if you mean those that refuse to imbrace the Doctrine , and submit to the Government of the Ministers of another Church ; then all Men will be guilty , and must be punished , even those of your own Church as well as others . If you mean those who refuse , &c. the Ministers of their own Church , very few will incur your Penalties : But if by these proper Ministers of Religion , the Ministers of some particular Church are intended , why do you not name it ? Why are you so reserved in a Matter , wherein , if you speak not out , all the rest that you say will be to no purpose ? Are Men to be punished for refusing to imbrace the Doctrine , and submit to the Government of the proper Ministers of the Church of Geneva ? For this time ( since you have declared nothing to the contrary ) let me suppose you of that Church ; and then I am sure , that is it that you would name : for of whatever Church you are , if you think the Ministers of any one Church ought to be hear kned to , and obeyed , it must be those of your own . There are Persons to be punished , you say : This you contend for all through your Book , and lay so much stress on it , that you make the Preservation and Propagation of Religion , and the Salvation of Souls , to depend on it : and yet you describe them by so general and equivocal Marks , that , unless it be upon Suppositions which no body will grant you , I dare say , neither you nor any body else will be able to find one guilty . Pray find me , if you can , a Man whom you can judicially prove ( for he that is to be punished by Law , must be fairly tried ) is in a wrong way , in respect of his Faith ; I mean , who is deaf to all Perswasions , who flies from all means of a right Information , who refuses to imbrace the Doctrine , and submit to the Government of the Spiritual Pastors . And when you have done that , I think I may allow you what Power you please to punish him , without any prejudice to the Toleration the Author of the Letter proposes . But why , I pray , all this boggling , all this loose talking , as if you knew not what you meant , or durst not speak it out ? Would you be for punishing some body , you know not whom ? I do not think so ill of you . Let me then speak out for you . The Evidence of the Argument has convinced you that Men ought not to be persecuted for their Religion ; That the Severities in use amongst Christians cannot be defended ; That the Magistrate has not Authority to compel any one to his Religion . This you are forced to yield . But you would fain retain some Power in the Magistrate's Hands to punish Dissenters , upon a new Pretence , viz. not for having imbraced the Doctrine and Worship they believe to be True and Right , but for not having well considered their own and the Magistrate's Religion . To shew you that I do not speak wholly without book , give me leave to mind you of one Passage of yours : the Words are , 〈◊〉 to put them upon a serious and impartial examination of the Controversy between the Magistrate and them . Though these Words be not intended to tell us who you would have punished , yet it may be plainly inferr'd from them . And they more clearly point out whom you aim at , than all the foregoing Places , where you seem to ( and should ) describe them . For they are such as between whom and the Magistrate there is a Controversy ; that is , in short , who differ from the Magistrate in Religion . And now indeed you have given us a Note by which these you would have punished may be known . We have , with much ado , found at last whom it is we may presume you would have punished . Which in other Cases is usually not very difficult : because there the Faults to be amended , easily design the Persons to be corrected . But yours is a new Method , and unlike all that ever went before it . In the next place , let us see for what you would have them punished . You tell us , and it will easily be granted you , that not to examine and weigh impartially , and without Prejudice or Passion , ( all which , for shortness sake , we will express by this one word Consider ) the Religion one embraces or refuses , is a Fault very common , and very prejudicial to true Religion , and the Salvation of Mens Souls . But Penalties and Punishments are very necessary , say you , to remedy this Evil. Let us now see how you apply this Remedy . Therefore , say you , let all Dissenters be punished . Why ? Have no Dissenters considered of Religion ? Or have all Conformists considered ? That you your self will not say . Your Project therefore is just as reasonable , as if a Lethargy growing Epidemical in England , you should propose to have a Law made to blister and scarify and shave the Heads of all who wear Gowns ; tho it be certain that neither all who wear Gowns are Lethargick , nor all who are Lethargick wear Gowns . — Dii te , Dama●…ppe , Deaeque V●…um ob consilium donent tonsore . For there could not be certainly a more Learned Advice , than that one Man should be pull'd by the Ears , because another is asleep . This , when you have consider'd of it again , ( for I find , according to your Principle , all Men have now and then need to be jogg'd ) you will , I guess , be convinced is not like a fair Physician , to apply a Remedy to a Disease ; but , like an engaged Enemy , to ' vent one's Spleen upon a Party . Common Sense , as well as Common Justice , requires , that the Remedies of Laws and Penalties should be directed against the Evil that is to be removed , where-ever it be found . And if the Punishment you think so necessary , be ( as you pretend ) to cure the Mischief you complain of , you must let it pursue , and fall on the Guilty , and those only , in what Company soever they are ; and not , as you here propose , and is the highest Injustice , punish the innocent considering Dissenter , with the Guilty ; and , on the other side , let the inconsiderate guilty Conformist scape , with the Innocent . For one may rationally presume that the National Church has some , nay more , in proportion of those who little consider or concern themselves about Religion , than any Congregation of Dissenters . For Conscience , or the Care of their Souls , being once laid aside ; Interest , of course , leads Men into that Society , where the Protection and Countenance of the Government , and hopes of Preferment , bid fairest to all their remaining Desires . So that if careless , negligent , inconsiderate Men in Matters of Religion , who , without being forced , would not consider , are to be rouzed into a Care of their Souls , and a Search after Truth , by Punishments ; the National Religion , in all Countries , will certainly have a right to the greatest share of those Punishments , at least , not to be wholly exempt from them . This is that which the Author of the Letter , as I remember , complains of , and that justly , viz. That the pretended Care of Mens Souls always expresses it self , in those who would have Force any way made use of to that End , in very unequal Methods ; some Persons being to be treated with Severity , whilst others , guilty of the same Faults , are not to be so much as touched . Though you are got pretty well out of the deep Mud , and renounce Punishments directly for Religion ; yet you stick still in this part of the Mire ; whilst you would have Dissenters punished to make them consider , but would not have any thing done to Conformists , though never so negligent in this point of considering . The Author's Letter pleased me , because it is equal to all Mankind , is direct , and will , I think , hold every-where ; which I take to be a good Mark of Truth . For I shall always suspect that neither to comport with the Truth of Religion , or the Design of the Gospel , which is suted to only some one Country or Party . What is True and Good in England , will be True and Good at Rome too , in China or Geneva . But whether your great and only Method for the propagating of Truth , by bringing the Inconsiderate by Punishments to consider , would ( according to your way of applying your Punishments only to Dissenters from the National Religion ) be of use in those Countries , or any where but where you suppose the Magistrate to be in the right , judg you . Pray , Sir , consider a little , whether Prejudice has not some share in your way of arguing . For this is your Position ; Men are generally negligent in examining the Grounds of their Religion . This I grant . But could there be a more wild and incoherent Consequence drawn from it , than this ; Therefore Dissenters must be punished ? All this you are pleased to pass over without the least Notice : but perhaps you think you have made me full Satisfaction in your Answer to my Demand , who are to be punish'd ? We will here therefore consider that as it stands , where you tell us , Those who are to be punished according to the whole Tenour of your Answer , are no other but such , as having sufficient Evidence tender'd them of the true Religion , do yet reject it : whether utterly refusing to consider that Evidence , or not considering as they ought , viz. with such Care and Diligence as the matter deserves and requires , and with honest and unbiassed Minds ; and what Difficulty there is in this , you say you cannot imagine . You promised you would tell the World , who they were plainly and directly . And though you tell us , you cannot imagine what Difficulty there is in this your Account of who are to be punished , yet there are some things in it , that make it to my Apprehension not very plain and direct . For first they must be only those who have the true Religion tender'd them with sufficient Evidence : Wherein there appears some Difficulty to me , who shall be Judg what is the true Religion : and for that , in every Country 't is most probable the Magistrate will be . If you think of any other , pray tell us . Next there seems some Difficulty to know , who shall be Judg what is sufficient Evidence . For where a Man is to be punished by Law , he must be convicted of being guilty ; which since in this Case he cannot be , unless it be proved he has had the true Religion tender'd to him with sufficient Evidence , it is necessary that some body there must be Judg what is the true Religion , and what is sufficient Evidence ; and others to prove it has been so tender'd . If you were to be of the Jury , we know what would be your Verdict concerning sufficient Evidence , by these Words of yours , To say that a Man who has the true Religion proposed to him with sufficient Evidence of its Truth , may consider it as he ought , or do his utmost in considering , and yet not 〈◊〉 the Truth of it , is neither more nor less , than to say that sufficient Evidence is not sufficient : For what does any Man mean by sufficient Evidence , but such as will certainly win Assent where-ever it is duly considered ? Upon which his conforming , or not conforming , would without any farther Questions determine the Point . But whether the rest of the Jury could upon this be able ever to bring in any Man guilty , and so liable to Punishment , is a Question . For if sufficient Evidence be only that which certainly wins Assent , where-ever a Man does his utmost in considering , 't will be very hard to prove that a Man who rejects the true Religion , has had it tender'd with sufficient Evidence , because it will be very hard to prove he has not done his utmost in considering it . So that notwithstanding all you have here said , to punish any Man by your Method is not yet so very practicable . But you clear all in your following Words , which say , There is nothing more evident than that those who reject the true Religion , are culpable , and deserve to be punished . By whom ? By Men : That 's so far from being evident , as you talk , that it will require better Proofs than I have yet seen for it . Next you say , 'T is easy enough to know when Men reject the true Religion . Yes , when the true Religion is known , and agreed on what shall be taken to be so in Judicial Proceedings , which can scarce be till 't is agreed who shall determine what is true Religion , and what not . Suppose a Penalty should in the University be laid on those who rejected the true Peripatetick Doctrine , could that Law be executed on any one , unless it were agreed who should be Judg what was the true Peripatetick Doctrine ? If you say it may be known out of Aristotle's Writings : then I answer , that it would be a more reasonable Law to lay the Penalty on any one , who rejected the Doctrine contained in the Books allowed to be Aristotle's , and printed under his Name . You may apply this to the true Religion , and the Books of the Scripture , if you please : though after all there must be a Judg agreed on , to determine what Doctrines are contained in either of those Writings , before the Law can be practicable . But you go on to prove , that it is easy to know when Men reject the true Religion : for , say you , that requires no more than that we know that that Religion was 〈◊〉 to them with sufficient Evidence of the Truth of it . And that it may be tender'd to Men with such Evidence , and that it may be known when it is so tender'd , these things , you say , you take leave here to suppose . You suppose then more than can be allow'd you . For that it can be judicially known that the true Religion has been tender'd to any one with sufficient Evidence , is what I deny , and that for Reasons above mentioned , which were there no other Difficulty in it , were sufficient to shew the Unpracticableness of your Method . You conclude this Paragraph thus , Which is all that needs be said upon this Head to shew the Consistency and Practicableness of this Method : And what do you any where say against this ? Whether I say any thing or no against it , I will bring a Friend of yours that will say that Dissenters ought to be punished for being out of the Communion of the Church of England . I will ask you now , how it can be proved that such an one is guilty of rejecting the one only true Religion ? Perhaps it is because he 〈◊〉 the Cross in Baptism , or Godfathers and Godmothers as th●…y are used , or kneeling at the Lord's Supper ; perhaps it is because he cannot pronounce all damn'd that believe not all 〈◊〉 's Creed , or cannot join with some of those Repetitions in our Common Prayer , thinking them to come within the Prohibition of our Saviour , each of which shuts a Man out from the Communion of the Church of England , as much as if he denied Jesus Christ to be the Son of God. Now , Sir , I be●…eech you , how can it be known , that ever sufficient Evidence was tender'd to such a Dissenter to prove , that what he rejects is a part of that one only true Religion , which unless he be of , he cannot be saved ? Or indeed how can it be known , that any Dissenter rejects that one only true Religion , when being punished barely for not conforming , he is never asked , what part it is he dissents from or rejects ? and so it may be some of those things which I imagine will always want sufficient Evidence to prove them to be Parts of that only one true Religion , without the hearty imbracing whereof no Man can be saved . CHAP. IV. What Degrees of Punishment . HOW much soever you have endeavoured to reform the Doctrine of Persecution to make it serve your turn , and give it the Colour of Care and Zeal for the true Religion in the Country where alone you are concern'd it should be made use of ; yet you have laboured in vain , and done no more , but given the old Engine a new Varnish to set it off the better , and make it look less frightful : For by what has been said in the foregoing Chapters , I think it will appear , that if any Magistrate have Power to punish . Men in Matters of Religion , all have ; and that Dissenters from the National Religion must be punished every where or no where . The horrid Cruelties that in all Ages , and of late in our View , have been committed under the Name , and upon the Account of Religion , give so just an Offence and Abhorrence to all who have any remains , not only of Religion , but Humanity left , that the World is ashamed to own it . This Objection therefore , as much as Words or Professions can do , you have laboured to fence against ; and to exempt your Design from the Suspition of any Severities , you take Care in every Page almost to let us hear of moderate Force , moderate Penalties ; but all in vain : and I doubt not but when this part too is examined , it will appear , that as you neither have , nor can limit the Power of punishing to any distinct sort of Magistrates , nor exempt from Punishment the Dissenters from any National Religion : So neither have , nor can you limit the Punishment to any Degree short of the highest , if you will use Punishments at all in matters of Religion . What you have done in this Point besides giving us good Words , I will now examine . You tell me , I have taken a Liberty which will need Pardon , because I say , ` You have plainly yielded the Question by owning `those greater Severities to be improper and unsit . But if I shall make it out , that those are as proper and sit as your moderate Penalties ; and that if you will use one , you must come to the other , as will appear from what you your self say : whatever you may think , I shall not imagine other Readers will conclude I have taken too great a Liberty , or shall much need Pardon . For if as you say in the next Page , Authority may reasonably and justly use some Degrees of Force where it is needful ; I say they may also use any Degree of Force where it is needful . Now upon your Grounds , Fire and Sword , tormenting and undoing , and those other Punishments which you condemn , will be needful , even to Torments of the highest Severity , and be as necessary as those moderate Penalties which you will not name . For I ask you , to what Purpose do you use any Degree of Force ? Is it to prevail with Men to do something that is in their Power , or that is not ? The latter I suppose you will not say , till your Love of Force is so increased , that you shall think it necessary to be made use of to produce Impossibilities : If Force then be to be used only to bring Men to do what is in their Power , what is the Necessity you assign of it ? only this , as I remember , viz. that when gentle Admonitions and earnest Intreaties will not prevail , what other means is there left but Force ? And I upon the same Ground reply ; If lesser Degrees of Force will not prevail , what other means is there left but greater ? If the lowest Degree of Force be necessary where gentler means will not prevail , because there is no other means left ; higher Degrees of Force are necessary where lower will not prevail , for the same Reason . Unless you will say all Degrees of Force work alike ; and that lower Penalties prevail as much on Men as greater , and will equally bring them to do what is in their Power . If so a Phlip on the Forehead , or a Farthing Mulct , may be Penalty enough to bring Men to what you propose . But if you shall laugh at these , as being for their Smalness insufficient , and therefore will think it necessary to increase them , I say , where-ever Experience shews any Degree of Force to be insufficient to prevail , there will be still the same necessity to increase it . For where-ever the End is necessary , and Force is the means , the only means left to procure it , both which you suppose in our Case , there it will be found always necessary to increase the Degrees of Force , where the lower prove ineffectual , as well till you come to the highest , as when you begin with the lowest . So that in your present Case I do not wonder you use so many Shifts , as I shall shew by and by you do , to decline naming the highest Degree of what you call moderate . If any Degree be necessary , you cannot assign any one ( condemn it in Words as much as you please ) which may not be so , and which you must not come to the Use of . If there be no such Necessity of Force as will justify those higher Degrees of it , which are Severities you condemn , neither will it justify the Use of your lower Degrees . If , as you tell us , false Religions prevail against the true , merely by the Advantage they have in the Corruption and Pravity of humane Nature left to it self unbridled by Authority . If the not receiving the true Religion be a Mark and Effect merely of the Prevalency of the Corruption of humane Nature ; may not , nay , must not the Magistrate , if less will not do , use his ●…most Force to bring Men to the true Religion ? his Force being given him to suppress that Corruption ; especially since you give it for a Measure of the Force to be used , that it must be so much , as without which ordinarily they will not imbrace the Truth that must save them . What ordinarily signifies here to make any determinate Measure is hard to guess ; but signify it what it will , so much Force must be used , as without which Men will not imbrace the Truth ; which , if it signify any thing intelligible , requires , that where lower Degrees will not do , greater must be used , till you come to what will ordinarily do ; but what that ordinarily is , no Man can tell . If one Man will not be wrought on by as little Force as another , must not greater Degrees of Force be used to him ? Shall the Magistrate who is obliged to do what lies in him , be exeused , for letting him be damn'd , without the Use of all the means was in his Power ? And will it be sufficient for him to plead , that though he did not all what lay in him , yet he did what ordinarily prevailed , or what prevailed on several others . Force , if that be the Remedy , must be proportion'd to the Opposition . If the Dose that has frequently wrought on others , will not purge a Man whose Life lies on it , must it not therefore be made sufficient and effectual , because it will be more than what is called ordinary ? Or can any one say the Physician has done his Duty , who lets his Patient in an extraordinary Case perish in the Use of only moderate Remedies , and pronounces him incurable , before he has tried the utmost he can with the powerfullest Remedies which are in his reach ? Having renounced loss of Estate , corporal Punishments , Imprisonment , and such sort of Severities , as unfit to be used in Matters of Religion ; you ask , Will it follow from ●…ence that the Magistrate has no right to use any Force at all ? Yes , it will follow , till you give some Answer to what I say in that place , viz. that if you give up Punishments of a Man in his Person , Liberty and Estate , I think we need not stand with you for any Punishments may be made use of . But this you pass by without any notice . I doubt not but you will here think you have a ready Answer , by telling me , you mean only depriving Men of their Estates , mai●…ing them with corporal Punishments , starving and tormenting them in no●…som Prisons , and other such Severities which you have by name excepted ; but lower Penalties may yet be used , for Penalties is the word you carefully use , and disclaim that of Punishment , as if you disowned the thing . I wish you would tell us too by name , what those lower Penalties are you would have used , as well as by name you tell us those Severities you disallow . They may not maim a Man with corporal Punishments ; May they use any corporal Punishments at all ? They may not starve and 〈◊〉 them in noisom Prisons for Religion , that you condemn as much as I : May they put them in any Prison at all ? They may not deprive Men of their Estates ; I suppose you mean their whole Estates : May they take away half , or a quarter , or an hundred●… part ? 'T is strange you should be able to name the Degrees of Severity that will hinder more than promote the Progress of Religion , and cannot name those Degrees that will promote rather than hinder it ; that those who would take their Measures by you , and follow your Scheme , might know how to proceed so , as not to do more Harm than Good : for since you are so certain , that there are Degrees of Punishments or Penalties that will do Good , and other Degrees of them that will do Harm ; ought you not to have told us , what that true Degree is , or how it may be known , without which all your goodly Scheme is of no use ? For allowing all you have said to be as true as you would have it , no Good can be done without shewing the just Measure of Punishment to be used . If the Degree be too great , it will , you confess , do Harm : Can one then not err on the other hand , by using too little ? If you say so , we are agreed , and I desire no better Tolera●…on . If therefore too great will do Harm , and too little , in your Opinion will do no Good , you ought to tell us the just mean. This I pressed upon you ; whereof that the Reader may be Judg , I shall here trouble him with the Repetition . There is a third Thing , that you are as tender and reserv'd in , as either naming the Criminals to be punished , or positively telling us the End for which they should be punished ; and that is , with what sort of Penalties , what degree of Punishment they should be forced . You are indeed so gracious to them , that you renounce the Severities and Penalties hitherto made use of . You tell us , they should be but moderate Penalties . But if we ask you what are moderate Penalties , you confess you cannot tell us : so that by Moderate here , you yet mean nothing . You tell us , The outward Force to be applied , should be duly tempered . But what that due Temper is , you do not , or cannot say ; and so in effect , it signifies just nothing . Yet if in this you are not plain and direct , all the rest of your Design will signify nothing . For it being to have some Men , and to some End , punished ; yet if it cannot be found what Punishment is to be used , it is ( notwithstanding all you have said ) utterly useless . You tell us modestly , That to determine precisely the just measure of the Punishment , will require some Consideration . If the Faults were precisely determined , and could be proved , it would require no more Consideration to determine the Measure of the Punishment in this , than it would in any other Case , where those were known . But where the Fault is undesined , and the Guilt not to be proved , ( as I suppose it will be found in this present business of examining ) it will without doubt require Consideration to proportion the Force to the Design : just so much Consideration as it will require to fit a Coat to the Moon , or proportion a Shoe to the Feet of those who inhabit her . For to proportion a Punishment to a Fault that you do not name , ( and so we in Charity ought to think you do not yet know ) and a Fault that when you have named it , will be impossible to be proved who are or are not guilty , of it ; will I suppose require as much Consideration as to fit a Shoe to Feet whose Size and Shape are not known . However , you offer some Measures whereby to regulate your Punishments ; which when they are looked into , will be found to be just as good as none , they being impossible to be any Rule in the case . The first is , So much Force , or such Penalties as are ordinarily sufficient to prevail with Men of common Difere●…on , and not de●…erately perverse and obstinate , to weigh Matters of Religion carefully and impartially , and without which ordinarily they will not do this . Where it is to be observed : First , That who are these Men of common Discretion , is as hard to know , as to know what is a fit degree of Punishment in the case ; and so you do but regulate one Uncertainty by another . Some Men will be apt to think , that he who will not weigh Matters of Religion , which are of infinite concernment to him , without Punishment , cannot in reason be thought a Man of common Discretion . Many Women of common Discretion enough to manage the ordinary Affairs of their Families , are not able to read a Page in an ordinary Author , or to understand and give an account what it m●…ans , when read to them . Many Men of common Discretion in their Callings , are not able to judg when an Argument is conclusive or no ; much less to trace it through a long Train of Consequences . What Penalties shall be sufficient to prevail with such ( who upon examination , I fear , will not be found to make the least part of Mankind ) to examine and weigh Matters of Religion carefully and impartially ? The Law allows all to have common Discretion , for whom it has not provided Guardians or Bedlam . So that , in effect , your Men of common Discretion , are all Men , not judg'd Idiots or Mad-men : And Penalties sufficient to prevail with Men of common Discretion , are Penalties sufficient to prevail with all Men but Idiots and Mad-men . Which what a Measure it is to regulate Penalties by , let all Men of common Discretion judg . Secondly , You may be pleased to consider , that all Men of the same degree of Discretion , are not apt to be moved by the same degree of Penalties . Some are of a more yielding , some of a more stiff Temper ; and what is sufficient to prevail on one , is not half enough to move the other ; though both Men of common Discretion . So that common Discretion will be here of no use to determine the Measure of Punishment : especially , when in the same Clause you except Men desperately perverse and obstinate ; who are as hard to be known , as what you seek , viz. the just Proportions of Punishments necessary to prevail with Men to consider , examine , and weigh Matters of Religion ; wherein , if a Man tells you he has considered , he has weighed , he has examined , and so goes on in his former Course , 't is impossible for you ever to know whether he has done his Duty , or whether he be desperately perverse and obstinate . So that this Exception signifies just nothing . There are many things in your use of Force and Penalties , different from any I ever met with elsewhere . One of them , this Clause of yours concerning the Measure of Punishments , now under consideration , offers me ; wherein you proportion your Punishments only to the Yielding and Corrigible , not to the Perverse and Obstinate ; contrary to the common Discretion which has hitherto made Laws in other cases , which levels the Punishments against refractory Offenders , and never spares them because they are obstinate . This however I will not blame as an Over-sight in you . Your new Method , which aims at such impracticable and inconsistent things as Laws cannot bear , nor Penalties be useful to , forced you to it . The Uselesness , Ab●…dity , and Unreasonableness of great Severi●…s , you had acknowledged in the foregoing Paragraphs : Dissenters you would have brought to consider by moderate ●…eties ; they lie under them ; but whether they have considered or no , ( for that you cannot tell ) they still continue Dissenters . What is to be done now ? Why , the Incurable are to be left to God , as you tell us . Your Punishments were not meant to prevail on the desperately Perverse and Obstinate , as you tell us here . And so whatever be the Success , your Punishments are however justified . The fulness of your Answer to my Question , With what Punishments , made you possibly pass by these two or three Pages without making any particular Reply to any thing I said in them : we will therefore examine that Answer of yours , where you tell us , That having in your Answer declared that you take the Severities so often mentioned ( which either destroy Men , or make them miserable ) to be utterly unapt and improper ( for Reasons there given ) to bring Men to imbrace the Truth that must save them : but just how far within those Bounds that Force extends it self , which is really serviceable to that end , you do not presume to determine . To determine how far moderate Force reaches , when it is necessary to your business that it should be determined , is not presuming : You might with more reason have called it presuming , to talk of moderate Penalties , and not to be able to determine what you mean by them ; or to promise , as you do , That you will tell plainly and directly , with what Punishments ; and here to tell us , You do not presume to determine . But you give a reason for this Modesty of yours , in what follows , where you tell me , I have not shown any cause why you should . And yet you may find in what is above repeated to you , these words , If in this you are not plain and direct , all the rest of your Design will signify nothing . But had I failed in shewing any cause why you should ; and your Charity would not enlighten us , unless driven by my Reasons , I dare say yet , If I have not shown any cause why you should determine in this Point , I can shew a cause why you should not . For I will be answerable to you , that you cannot name any Degree of Punishment , which will not be either so great , as to come amongst those you condemn , and shew what your Moderation , what your Aversion to Persecution is ; or else too little to attain those Ends for which you propose it . But whatever you tell me , that I have shewn no cause why you should determine , I thought it might have passed for a cause why you should determine more particularly , that ( as you will find in those Pages ) I had proved that the Measures , you offer whereby to regulate your Punishments , are just as good as none . Your Measures in your Argument considered , and which you repeat here again , are in these Words ; So much Force , or such P●…nalties as are ordinarily sufficient to prevail with Men of common Discretion , and not desperately perverse , to weigh Matters of Religion carefully and impartially , and without which ordinarily they will not do this ; so much Force , or such Penalties may fitly and reasonably be used for the pr●…moting true Religion in the World , and the Salvation of Souls . And what just Exception this is liable to , you do not understand . Some of the Exceptions it is liable to , you might have seen in what I have here again caused to be reprinted , if you had thought them worth your notice . But you go on to tell us here , That when you speak of Men of common Discretion , and not desperately perverse and obstinate , you think 't is plain enough , that by common Discretion you exclude not Idiots only , and such as we usually call Mad-men , but likewise the desperately Perverse and Obstinate , who perhaps may well enough deserve that Name , though they be not wont to be sent to Bedlam . Whether by this you have at all taken off the Difficulty , and shewn your Measure to be any at all in th●… use of Force , I leave the Reader to judg . I asked , Since great ones are unfit , what Degrees of Punishment or Force are to be used ? You answer , So much Force , and such Penalties as are ordinarily sufficient to prevail with Men of ordinary Discretion . I tell you 't is as hard to know who those Men of common Discretion are , as what Degree of Punishment you would have used ; unless we will take the Determination of the Law , which allows all to have common Discretion , for whom it has not provided Guardians or Bedlam : so that in effect , your Men of common Discretion are all Men not judg'd Idiots or Mad-men . To clear this , you tell us , When you speak of Men of common Discretion , and not desperately perverse and obstinate , you think 't is plain enough , by common Discretion you exclude not Idiots only , and such as are usually called Mad-men , but likewise the desperately perverse and obstinate . It may be you did , for you best know what you meant in writing : but if by Men of common Discretion , you excluded the desperately perverse and obstinate , let us put what you meant by the words , Men of common Discretion , in the place of those Words themselves , and then according to your meaning , your Rule stands thus ; Penalties ordinarily sufficient to prevail with Men not desperately perverse and obstinate , and with Men not desperately perverse and obstinate : so that at last , by Men of common Discretion , either you excluded only Idiots and Mad-men ; or if we must take your word for it , that by them you excluded likewise the desperately pe●…verse and obstinate , and so meant something else ; 't is plain , you meant only a very useless and insignificant Tantology . You go on , and tell us , If the Penalties you steak of , be intended for the curing Mens unreasonable Prejudices and Refractoriness against the true Religion , then the reason why the desperately perverse and obstinate are not to be regarded in measuring these Penalties , is very apparent . For as Remedies are not provided for the Incurable , so in the preparing and tempering them , regard is to be had only to those for whom they are designed . Which , true or false , is nothing to the purpose , in a Place where you profess to inform us , what Punishments are to be used . We are inquiring who are the desperately perverse and obstinate , and not whether they are to be punished or no. You pretend to give us a Rule to know what Degrees of Force are to be used , and tell us , it is so much as is ordinarily sufficient to prevail with Men of common Discretion , and not desperately perverse and obstinate . We again ask , who are your Men of common 〈◊〉 ? You tell us , such as are not Mad-men or Idiots , or desperately perverse and obstinate . Very well ; but who are those desperately perverse and obstinate , how shall we know them ? and to this you t●…ll us , they are not to be regarded in measuring these Penalties . Whereby certainly we have got a plain Measure of your moderate P●…nalties . No , not yet , you go on in the next Paragraph to p●…fect it , where you say , To prevent a little Cavil , it m●…y be needf●…l to note that there are Degrees of 〈◊〉 and Obstinacy , and that Men may be p●…verse and obstinate without being d●…sperately so . So then now we have your Measure compleat ; and ●…o deter●…ine the just Degrees of Punishments ; and to clear up the Doubt , who are the desperately perverse and obstinate , we need but be told that there are Degrees of Perverseness and Obstinacy ; and that Men may be perverse and obstinate without being desperately so : And that therefore some perverse and obstinate Persons may be thought curable , though such as are desperately so , cannot . But does all this tell us who are the desperately perverse and obstinate ? which is the thing we want to be informed in ; nor till you have told us that , have you removed the Objection . But if by desperately perverse and obstinate , you will tell us , you meant those , that are not wrought upon by your moderate Penalties , as you seem to intimate in your Reason why the desperately perverse and obstinate are not to be regarded in measuring these Penalties : For , say you , as Remedies are not provided for the incurable ; so in preparing and tempering them , regard is to be had only to those for whom they are designed . So that by the desperately perverse and obstinate , you will perhaps say 't was plain you meant the incurable ; for you ordinarily shift off the Doubtfulness of one Place , by appealing to as doubtful an Expression in another . If you say then , that by desperately perverse and obstinate , you mean incurable ; I ask you again by what incurable ? by your lower Degrees of Force ? For I hope where Force is proper to work , those who are not wrought on by lower Degrees , may yet be by higher . If you mean so , then your Answer will amount to thus much , Moderate Penalties are such as are sufficient to prevail on those who are not desperately perverse and obstinate . The desperately perverse and obstinate are those who are incu●…ble , and the Incurable are those on whom moderate Penalties are not sufficient to prevail : Whereby at last we have got a sure Measure of what are moderate Penalties ; just such an one , as if having a Soveraign Universal Medicine put into your Hand , which will never fail , if you can hit the right Dose , which the Inventer tells you must be moderate : You should ask him what was the moderate Quantity it is to be given in ? and he should answer , In such a Quantity as was ordinarily sufficient to work on common Constitutions , and not desperately perverse and obstinate . And to you asking again , who were of desperately perverse and obstinate Constitutions ? It should be answered , Those that were incurable . And who were incurable ? Those whom a moderate Quantity would not work on . And thus to your Satisfaction , you know the moderate Dose by the desperately perverse and obstinate ; and the desperately perverse and obstinate by being incurable ; and the Incurable by the moderate Dose . For if , as you say , Remedies are not provided for the incurable , and none but moderate Penalties are to be provided , is it not plain , that you mean , that all that will not be wrought on by your moderate Penalties , are in your Sense incurable ? To ease you , Sir , of justifying your self , and shewing that I have mistaken you , do but tell us positively what in Penalties is the highest Degree of moderate ; who are desperately perverse and obstinate ; or who are incurable , without this relative and circular way of defining one by the other ; and I will yield my self to have mistaken you , as much as you please . If by incurable you mean such as no Penalties , no Punishments , no Force is sufficient to work on ; then your Measure of moderate Penalties will be this , that they are such , as are sufficient to prevail with Men not incurable , i. e. who cannot be prevailed on by any Punishments , any Force whatsoever ; which will be a Measure of moderate Punishments , which ( whatsoever you do ) some will be very apt to approve of . But let us suppose by these Marks ( since you will afford us no better ) that we can find who are desperately perverse and obstinate , we are yet as far as ever from finding the Measures of your moderate Punishments , till it can be known , what Degree of Force it is , that is ordinarily sufficient to prev●…il with all that are Men of common Discretion , and not desperately perverse and obstinate ; for you are told , that all Men of the same Degree of Discretion are not apt to be moved with the same Degree of Penalties : But to this too you answer nothing , and so we are still without any Rule or Means of knowing how to adjust your Punishments , that being ordinarily sufficient to prevail upon one , the double whereof is not ordinarily sufficient to prevail on another . I tell you in the same Place , That you have given us in another Place , something like another Boundary to your m●…derate P●…nalties : But when examined , it proves just like the rest , amusing us only with good Words , so put together as to have no direct meaning ; an Art very much in use amongst some sort o●… learned Men : The Words are these ; Such Penalties as may not tempt Persons who have any Concern for their Eternal Salvation ( and those who have none , ought not to be considered ) to renounce a Religion which they believe to be true , or profess one which they do not believe to be so . If by any Concern , you mean such as Men ought to have for their Eternal Salvation ; by this Rule you may make your Punishments as great as you please ; and all the Severities you have disclaimed may be brought in Play again : For none of those will be able to make a Man , who is truly concerned for his eternal Salvation , renounce a Religion he believes to be true , or profess one he does not believe to be so . If by those who have any Concern , you mean such , who have some faint Wishes for Happiness hereafter , and would be glad to have things go well with them in the other World , but will venture nothing in this World for it ; these the moderatest Punishments you can imagine will make to change their Religion . If by any Concern , you mean whatever may be between these two ; the Degrees are so infinite , that to Proportion your Punishments by that , is to have no measure of them at all . To which all the Reply I can find is only this , That there are Degrees of Carelesness in Men of their Salvation , as well as of Concern for it . So that such as have some Concern for their Salvation , may yet be careless of it to a great Degree . And therefore if those who have any Concern for their Salvation , deserve Regard and Pity ; then so may some careless Persons : though those who have no Concern for their Salvation , deserve not to be considered , which spoils a little Harangue you give us , P. 43. If you think this to be an Answer to what I said , or that it can satisfy any one concerning the way of knowing what Degrees of Punishment are to be used , pray tell us so . The Enquiry is , what Degrees of Punishment will tempt a Man , who has any Concern for his Eternal Salv●…ion , to renounce a Religion he believes to be true ? And 't is answered , There are Degrees of Carelesness in Men of their Salvation , as well as Concern for it . A happy Discovery : What 's the Use of it ? So that such as have some Concern for their Salvation , may yet be careless of it to a great Degree . Very true : By this we may know what Degree of Force is to be used . No , not a Word of that , but the Inference is , And therefore if those who have any Concern for their Salvation , deserve Regard and Pity , then so may some careless Persons ; though those who have no Concern for their Salvation , deserve not to be considered . And by this time we know what Degree of Force will make a Man , who has any Concern for his Salvation , renounce a Religion he believes true , and profess one he does not believe to be so . This might do well at cross Questions : but you are satisfied with what you have done , and what that is , you tell me in the next Words , which spoils a little Harangue of yours given us , P. 43. The Harangue I suppose is contained in these Words . One thing I cannot but take notice of in this Passage before I leave it : and that is , that you say here , Those who have no Concern for their Salvation , deserve not to be considered . In other Parts of your Letter you pretend to have Compassion on the careless , and provide Remedies for them : But here of a sudden your Charity fails you , and you give them up to eternal Perdition , without the least Regard , the least Pity , and say , They deserve not to be considered . Our Saviour's Rule was , the sick and not the whole need a Physician : Your Rule here is ; Those that are careless , are not to be considered , but are to be lest to themselves . This , would seem strange , if one did not observe what drew you to it . You perceiv'd that if the Magistrate was to use no Punishments , but such as would make no body change their Religion , he was to use none at all : For the careless would be brought to the National Church with any slight Punishments ; and when they are once there , you are it seems satisfied , and look no farther after them . So that by your own Measu●…e if the careless , and those who have no Concern for their Eternal Salvation , are to be regarded and taken Care of , if the Salvation of their Souls is to be promoted , there is to be no Punishments to be used at all : And therefore you leave them out as not to be considered . What you have said is so far from spoiling that Harangue , as you are pleased to call it , that you having nothing else to say to it , allows what is laid to your Charge in it . You wind up all concerning the Measures of your Force in these Words ; And as those Medicines are thought safe and advisable , which do ordinarily cure , though not always ( as none do ; ) so those Penalties or Punishments , which are ordinarily found sufficient ( as well as necessary ) for the Ends for which they are designed , may fitly and reasonably be used for the compassing these Ends. Here your ordinarily comes to your Help again ; and here one would think that you meant such as cure sometimes , not always ; some , though not all : And in this Sense will not the utmost Severities come within your Rule ? For can you say , if Punishments are to be used to prevail on any , that the greater will ( where lower fail ) prevail on none ? at least can you be sure of it till they have been tried for the compassing these End ? which as we shall see in another Place , you have assigned various e●…ough . I shall only take notice of two or three often repeated by you , and those are to make Men hear , to make Men consider , to make Men consider as they ought , i. e. as you explain it , to make Men consider so , as not to reject . The Greatness of the Force then , according to this Measure , must be sufficient to make Men hear , sufficient to make Men consider , and sufficient to make Men imbrace the true Religion . And now the Magistrate has all your Rules about the Measures of Punishments to be used , and may considently and safely go to work to establish it by a Law : for he having these Marks to guide him , that they must be great enough ordinarily to prevail with those who are not Idiots or Madmen , nor desperately perverse and obstinate , great enough ordinarily to prevail with Men to hear , consider and imbrace the true Religion , and yet not so great as might tempt Persons , who have any Concern for their eternal Salvation , to renounce a Religion which they believe to be true , or profess one which they do not believe to be so : Do you not think you have sufficiently inst●…ucted him in your meaning , and inabled him to find the just Temper of his Punishments according to your Scheme , neither too much nor too little ? But however you may be satisfied with them , I suppose others , when it comes to be put in Practice , will by these Measures ( which are all I can find in your Scheme ) be scarce able to find , what are the Punishments you would have used . In Eutopia there is a Medicine call'd Hiera Pi●…ra , which 't is supposed would ●…ure a troublesome Disease of that Country : but it is not to be given , but in the Dose prescribed by the Law , and in adjusting the Dose lies all the Skill : For if you give too much , it heightens the Distemper , and sp●…eads the mortal Contagion ; and if too little , it does no good at all With this Difficulty the Law-makers have been perpl●…xed these many Ages , and could not light on the right Dose , that would work the Cure , till lately there came an Undertak●… , who would shew them how they could not mistake . He bid them then prescribe so much , as would ordinarily be effectual upon all that were not Idiots or Mad-men , o●… in whom ●…e Humour was not 〈◊〉 perverse and 〈◊〉 , to produce the End for which it was designed ; but n●…t so much as would make a 〈◊〉 Health , who had any Concern for b●… Life , fall into a mort●… Disease . These were good Words , and he was rewarded for them : but when by them they came to ●…ix the 〈◊〉 , t●…y could not tell whether it ought to be a G●…ain , a 〈◊〉 or an Ounce , or a whole Pound , any more than before ; and so the 〈◊〉 of their Hiera Picra , notwithstanding this Gentleman's ●…in is a uncertain , and that soveraign Remedy as 〈◊〉 as e●…er it was . In the next Paragraph you tell us , You do not see what more can be required to justify the Rule here given So qui●…k a Sight needs no Spectacles . For if I demand that it should 〈◊〉 what Penalties particularly are such as it says may fitly and reasonably be used ; this I must give you leave to tell me is a very unreasonable Demand . It is an unreasonable D●…mand , if your Rule be such , that by it I may know without any more ado the par●…icular Penalties that are sit ; otherwise it is not unreasonable to demand them by Name , if your Marks be not sufficient to know them by . But let us hear your Reason , For what Rule is there that expresses the Particulars that agree with it ? And it is an admirable Rule with which one can find no Particulars that agree ; for I challenge you to instance in one : A Rule , you say , is intended for a common Measure by which Particulars are to be examined , and therefore must necessarily be general . So general , loose , and inconsistent , that no Particulars can be examined by it : for again I challenge you , or any Man living , to measure out any Punishment by this your common Measure , and establish it by a Law. You go on ; And those to whom it is given , are supposed to be able to apply it , and to judg of Particulars by it . Nay it is often seen that they are better able to do this than those who give it : and so it is in the present Case , the Rule hereby laid down is that by which you suppose Governors and Law-givers ought to examine the Penalties they use for the promoting the true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls . Such a Rule it ought to be I grant , and such an one is desired : but that yours is such a Rule as Magistrates can take any Measure by , for the Punishments they are to settle by Law , is denied , and you are again desired to shew . You proceed ; But certainly no Man doubts but their Prudence and Experience inables them to use and apply it better than other Men , and to judg more exactly what Penalties do agree with it , and what do not ; and therefore you think I must excuse you if you do not take upon you to teach them what it becomes you rather to learn for them . If we are not to doubt but their Prudence and Experience inables Magistrates to judg best what Penalties are fit . You have indeed given us at last a way to know the Measure of Punishments to be used : but it is such an one as puts an End to your Distinction of moderate Penalties : For no Magistrates that I know , when they once began to use Force to bring Men to their Religion , ever stopp'd till they came to some of those Severities you condemn ; and if you pretend to teach them Moderation for the future , with Hopes to succeed , you ought to have shewed them the just Bounds , beyond which they ought not to go , in a Model so wholly new , and besides all Experience . But if it be to be determined by their Prudence and Experience , whatever Degrees of Force they shall use , will always be the right . Law-makers and Governors however are beholden to you for your good Opinion of their Prudence and Experience ; yet have no Reason to thank you for your Complement , by giving such an Exercise to their Prudence and Experience , as to put it upon them to find out the just Measures of Punishments , by Rules you give them , which are such , that neither your self , nor any body else can find out any Measures by . The other part of your Complement will be suspected not to be so much out of your ab●…ndant Respect to Law-makers and Governors , as out of the great Regard you have to your self ; for you in vain pretend you forbear to name any particular Punishments , because you will not take upon you to teach Governors and Law-makers , when you your self own in the same Breath , that you are laying down Rules by which they are to proceed in the Use of Penalties for promoting Religion , which is little different from teaching : and your whole Book is nothing else but about the Magistrate's Power and Duty . I excuse you therefore for your own sake from naming any particular Punishments by your Rules : for you have a right to it , as all Men have a right to be ex●…used from doing what is imposs●…ble to be done . Since therefore you grant that those Severities y●…u have named , are more apt to hinder than promote true Religion ; and you cannot assign any Measures of Punishment ( short of those great ones you have condemned ) which are ●…it to promote it , I think it Argument enough to prove against you , that no Punishments are fit , till you have shewed some others , either by Name , or such Marks as they may certainly be known by , which are fit to promote the true Religion : and therefore nothing you have said there , or any where else , will serve to shew that 't is with little reason , as you tell me , that I say , that if your indirect and at a distance Serviceableness may authorize the Magistrate to use Force in Religion , all the Cruelties used by the Heathens against Christians , by Papists against Protestants , and all the Persecuting of Christians one amongst another , are all justifiable . To which you add , Not to take notice at present how oddly it sounds , that that which authorizes the Magistrates to use moderate Penalties to promote the true Religion , should justify all the Cruelties that ever were used to promote Heathenism or Popery . As oddly as it sounds to you , it will be evidently true , as long as that which authorizes one , authorizes all Magistrates of any Religion , which they believe to be true , to use Force to premote it ; and as long as you cannot assign any Bounds to your moderate Punishments , short of those great ones ; which you therefore are not able to do , because your Principles , whatever your Words deny , will carry you to those Degrees of Severity , which in Profession you condemn : and this , whatever you do , I dare say every considering Reader besides you will plainly see . So that this Imputation is not so unreasonable , since it is evident , that you must either renounce all Punishments whatsoever in Religion , or make use of those you condemn : for in the next Page you tell us , That all who have ●…fficient means of Instruc●…ion provided for them , may justly be punished for not being of the National Religion , where the True is the National Religion ; because it is a Fault in all such not to be of the National Religi●… In England then , for example , not to be of the National 〈◊〉 is a Fault , and a Fault to be punished by the Magistrate . The Magistrate , to cure this Fault , lays , on those who dissent , a lower degree of Penalties , a Fine of 1 d. per Month. This proving insufficient , what is the Magistrate to do ? If he be obliged , as you say , to amend this Fault by Penalties , and that low one of 1 d. per Month be not sufficient to procure its Amendment , is he not to increase the Penalty ? He therefore doubles the Fine to 2 d. per Month. This too proves ineffectual , and therefore 't is still for the same reason doubled , till it come to 1 s. 5 s. 10 l. 100 l. 1000 l. None of these Penalties working , but yet by being constantly levied , leaving the Delinquents no longer able to pay , Imprisonment and other corporal Punishments follow to inforce an Obedience , till at last this gradual Increase of Penalties and Force , each Degree whereof wrought on some few , rises to the highest Severities against those who stand out . For the Magistrate , who is obliged to correct this Vice , as you call it , and to do what in him lies to cure this Fault , which opposes their Salvation ; and who ( if I mistake not , you tell us ) is answerable for all that may follow from his neglect , had no reason to raise the Fine from 1 d. to 2 d. but because the first was ineffectual : and if that were a sufficient reason for raising from the first to the second Degree , why is it not as sufficient to proceed from the second to the third , and so gradually on ? I would fain have any one shew me , where , and upon what ground , such a gradual increase of Force can stop , till it come to the utmost Extremities . If therefore dissenting from the Church of England be a Fault to be punished by the Magistrate , I desire you to tell me , where he shall hold his Hand ; to name the Sort or Degree of Punishment , beyond which he ought not to go in the use of Force , to cure them of that Fault , and bring them to Conformity . Till you have done that , you might have spared that Paragraph , where you say , With what Ingenuity I draw you in to condemn Force in general , only because you acknowledg the ill Effects of prosecuting Men with Fire and Sword , &c. you may leave every Man to judg . And I leave whom you will to judg , whether from your own Principles it does not unavoidably follow , that if you condemn any Penalties , you must condemn all , as I have shewn ; if you will retain any , you must retain all ; you must either take or leave all together . For , as I have said , and you deny not , ` Where there ` is no Fault , there no Punishment is moderate , so I add , Where there is a Fault to be corrected by the Magistrate's Force , there no Degree of Force , which is ineffectual , and not sufficient to amend it , can be immoderate ; especially if it be a Fault of great moment in its Consequences , as certainly that must be , which draws after it the loss of Mens Eternal Happiness . You will , 't is likely , be ready to say here again , ( for a good Subterfuge is never to be forsaken ) that you except the desperately perverse and obstinate . I desire to know for what reason you except them ? Is it because they cease to be faulty ? Next I ask you , Who are in your sense the desperately perverse and obstinate ? Those that 1 s. or 5 s. or 5 l. or 100 l. or no Fine will work upon ? Those who can bear loss of Estate , but not loss of Liberty ? or loss of Liberty and Estate , but not corporal Pains and Torments ? or all this , but not loss of Life ? For to these Degrees do Men differently stand out . And since there are Men wrought on by the Approaches of Fire and Faggot , which other Degrees of Severity could not prevail with , where will you bound your desperately perverse and obstinate ? The King of France , though you will allow him not to have Truth of his side , yet when he came to Dragooning , found sew so desperately perverse and obstinate , as not to be wrought on . And why should Truth , which in your Opinion wants Force , and nothing but Force , to help it , not have the assistance of those Degrees of Force , ( when less will not do to make it prevail ) which are able to bring Men over to false Religions , whi●…h have no Light and Strength of their own to help them ? You wi●…l do well therefore to consider whether your Name of Severities , in opposition to the moderate Punishments you speak of , has or can do you any service ; whether the distinction between compelling and coactive Power be of any use or difference at all . For you deny the Magistrate to have Power to compel : And you contend for his use of his coactive Power ; which will then be a good Distinction , when you can find a way to use coactive , or , which is the same , compelling Power without Compulsion . I desire you also to consider , if in Matters of Religion , Punishments are to be imployed , because they may be useful , whether you can stop at any Degree that is ineffectual to the End which you propose , let that End be what it will. If it be barely to gain a hearing , as in some places you seem to say , I think for that small Punishments will generally prevail , and you do well to put that and moderate Penalties together . If it be to make Men consider , as in other places you speak , you cannot tell when you have obtained that End. But if your End be , which you seem most to insist on , to make Men consider as they ought , i. e. till they imbrace , there are many on whom all your moderate Penalties , all under those Severities you condemn , are too weak to prevail . So that you must either consess , not considering so as to imbrace the true Religion , i. e. not considering as one ought , is no Fault to be punished by the coactive Force of the Magistrate ; or else you must resume those Severities which you have renounced : chuse you whether of the two you please . Therefore 't was not so much at random that I said , That thither at last Persecution must come . Indeed from what you had said of falling under the Stroke of the Sword , which was nothing to the purpose , I added , That is by that you meant any thing to the business in hand , you seem to have a reserve for greater Punishments , when less are not sufficient to bring Men to be convinced . Which hath produced this warm Reply of yours ; And will you ever pretend to Conscience or Modesty after this ? For I beseech you , Sir , what Words could I have used more express or effectual to signify , that in my Opinion no Dissenters from the true Religion ought to be punished with the Sword , but such as choose rather to rebel against the Magistrate , than to submit to lesser Penalties ? ( For how any should refuse to submit to those Penalties , but by rebelling against the Magistrate , I suppose you will not undertake to tell me . ) 'T was for this very purpose that I used those Words to prevent Cavils , ( as I was then so simple as to think I might : ) And I dare appeal to any Man of common Sense and common Honesty whether they are capable of any other meaning . And yet the very thing which I so plainly disclaim in them , you pretend ( without so much as offering to shew how ) to collect from them . Thither , you say , at last , ( viz. to the taking away Mens Lives for the saving of their Souls ) Persecution must come : As you fear , notwithstanding m●… talk of moderate Punishments , I my self intimate in those Words : And if I mean any thing in them to the business in hand , I seem to have a reserve for greater Punishments , when lesser are not sufficient to bring Men to be convinced . Sir , I should expect fairer dealing from one of your Pagans or Mahometans . But I shall only add , that I would never wish that any Man who has undertaken a bad Cause , should more plainly confess it than by serving it , as here ( and not here only ) you serve yours . Good Sir , be not so angry , lest to observing Men you increase the Suspicion . One may , without forfeiture of Modesty or Conscience , fear what Mens Principles threaten , though their Words disclaim it . Nonconformity to the National , when it is the true Religion , as in England , is a Fault , a Vice , say you , to be corrected by the coactive Power of the Magistrate . If so , and Force be the proper Remedy , he must increase it , till it be strong enough to work the Cure ; and must not neglect his Duty ( for so you make it ) when he has Force enough in his Hand to make this Remedy more powerful . For where-ever Force is proper to work on Men , and bring them to a Compliance , it 's not producing that Effect can only be imputed to its being too little : And if so , whither at last must it come , but to the late Methods of procuring Conformity ( and as his most Christian Majesty called it , of saving of Souls ) in France , or Severities like them , when more moderate ones cannot produce it ? For to continue inefficacious Penalties , insufficient upon trial to master the Fault they are applied to , is unjustifiable Cruelty ; and that which no body can have a right to use , it serving only to disease and harm People , without amending them : for you tell us , they should be such Penalties as should make them uneasy . He that should vex and pain a Sore you had , with frequent dressing it with some moderate , painful , but inefficacious Plaister , that promoted not the Cure , would justly be thought , not only an ignorant , but a dishonest Surgeon . If you are in the Surgeon's hands , and his Help is requisite , and the Cure that way to be wrought , Corrosives and Fire are the most merciful , as well as only justifiable way of Cure , when the Case needs them . And therefore I hope I may still pretend to Modesty and Conscience , though I should have thought you so rational a Man , as to be led by your own Principles ; and so honest , charitable , and zealous for the Salvation of Mens Souls , as not to vex and disease them with inefficacious Remedies to no purpose , and let them miss of Salvation , for want of more vigorous Prosecutions . For if Conformity to the Church of England be necessary to Salvation , ( for elfe what Necessity can you pretend of punishing Men at all to bring them to it ? ) it is Cruelty to their Souls ( if you have Authority for any such Means ) to use some , and not to use sufficient Force to bring them to conform . And I dare say you are satsf●…d that the French Discipline of Dragooning would have made many in England Conformists , whom your lower Penalties will not prevail on to be so . But to inform you that my Apprehensions were not so wholly out of the way , I beseech you to read here what you have writ in these Words ; For how confidently soever you tell me here , that it is more than I can say for my Political Punishments , that they were ever useful for the promoting true Religion ; I appeal to all observing Persons , whether where-ever true Religion or sound Christianity has been Nationally received and established by moderate Penal Laws , it has not always lost ground by the Relaxation of those Laws : Whether Sects and Heresies , ( even the wildest and most absurd ) and even Epicurism and Atheism , have not continually thereupon spread themselves ; and whether the very Spirit and Life of Christianity has not sensibly decayed , as well as the number of sound Professors of it been daily lessened upon it : Not to speak of what at this time our Eyes cannot but see , for fear of giving offence ; though I hope it will be none to any that have a just concern for Truth and Piety , to take notice of the Books and Pamphlets which now fly so thick about this Kingdom , manifestly tending to the multiplying of Sects and Divisions , and even to the promoting of Scepticism in Religion among us . Here you bemoan the decaying State of Religion amongst us at present , by reason of taking off the Penalties from Protestant Dissenters : And I beseech you what Penalties were they ? Such whereby many have been ruined in their Fortunes ; such whereby many have lost their Liberties , and some their Lives in Prisons ; such as have sent some into Banishment , stripp'd of all they had . These were the Penal Laws by which the National Religion was establish'd in England ; and these you call moderate : for you say , Where-ever true Religion or sound Christianity has been Nationally received and established by moderate Penal Laws ; and I hope you do not here exclude England from having its Religion so established by Law , which we so often hear of ; or if to serve the present occasion , you should , would you also deny , that in the following Words you speak of the present Relaxation in England ? where after your Appeal to all observing People for the dismal Consequences , which you suppose to have every-where followed from such Relaxations , you add these pathetical Words , Not to speak of what at this time our Eyes cannot but see , for fear of giving offence : so heavy does the present Relaxation sit on your Mind ; which since it is of Penal Laws you call moderate , I shall shew you what they are . In the first Year of Q. Elizabeth , there was a Penalty of 1 s. a Sunday and Holiday laid upon every one , who came not to the Common Prayer then established . This Penalty of 1 s. a time not prevailing , as was desired , in the twenty thi●…d Year of her Reign was increased to 20 l. a Month and Imprisonment for Non-payment within three Months after judgment given . In the twenty ninth Year of Eliz. to draw this yet closer , and make it more sorcible , 't was enacted , That whoever upon one Conviction did not continue to pay on the 20 l. per Month , without any other 〈◊〉 or Proceedings against him till he submitted and conformed , should forf●…t all his Goods , and two Thirds of his Land for his Life . But this bein●… not yet thought sufficient , it was in the 35th Year of that Queen c●…mpleated , and the moderate Penal Laws upon which our National Religion was established and whose Relaxation you cannot bear , but from the●…ce date the Decay of the very Spirit and Life of Christianity , were brought to perfection : 〈◊〉 then going to Conve 〈◊〉 , or a Month's Absence from Church , was to be punished with Imprisonment , till the Offender 〈◊〉 , and i●… 〈◊〉 cn●…formed not within three Months , then he was to abjure the Realm , and forfeit all his Goods and Chattels for ever , and his Lands and Tenements during his Life : And if ●…e would not abjure , or abjuring , did not depart the Realm within a ti●…e 〈◊〉 , or returned again , he was to suffer Death as a Felon . And thus your moderate Penal Laws stood for the established Religion , till their Penalties were in respect of Protestant Dissenters , lately taken off . And now let the Reader judg whether your pretence to moderate Punishments , or my Suspicion of what a Man of your Principles might have in store for Dissenters , have more of Modesty or Conscience in it ; since you op●…nly de●…lare your regret for the taking away such an Establishment , as by the gradual increase of Penalties reached Mens Estates , Liberties and Lives ; and which you must be presumed to allow and approve of , till you tell us plainly , where , according to your Measures , those Penalties should ; or , according to your Principles , they could have stopp'd . You tell us , That where this only true Religion , viz. of the Church of England , is received , other Religions ought to be discouraged in some measure . A pretty Expression for Undoing , Imprisonment , Banishment , for those have been some of the Discouragements given to Dissenters here in England . You will again no doubt , cry aloud , that you tell me you condemn these as much as I do : If you heartily condemn them , I wonder you should say so little to discourage them ; I wonder you are so silent in representing to the Magistrate the Unlawfulness and Danger of using them in a Discourse where you are treating of the Magistrate's Power and Duty in Matters of Religion : Especially this being the side on which , as far as we may guess by Experience , their Prudence is aptest to err : but your Modesty you know leaves all to the Magistrate's Prudence and Experience on that side , though you over and over again incourage them not to neglect their Duty in the Use of Force , to which you set no Bounds . You tell us , Certainly no Man doubts but the Prudence and Experience of Governors and Law-givers inables them to use and apply it , viz. your Rule for the Measure of Punishments , which I have shewed to be no Rule at all ; And to judg more exactly what Penalties do agree with it : and therefore you must be excused if you do not take upon you to teach them what it becomes you rather to learn from them . If your Modesty be such , and you then did what became you , you could not but learn from your Governors and Law-givers , and so be satisfied till within this Year or two , that those Penalties which they measured out for the Establishment of true Religion , though they rea●…h'd to Mens Estates , Liberties and Lives , were such as were sit . But what you have learned of your Law-makers and Governors since the Relaxation , or what Opinion you have of their Experience and Prudence now , is not so easy to say . Perhaps you will say again , that you have in express Words declared against Fire and Sword , Loss of Estate , maiming with corporal Punishments , starving and tormenting in noisom Prisons ; and one cannot either in Modesty or Conscience disbelieve you : Yet in the same Letter you with Sorrow and Regret speak of the Relaxation of such Penalties laid on Nonconformity , by which Men have lost their Estates , Liberties and Lives too in noisom Prisons , and in this too must we not believe you ? I dare say there are very few who read that Passage of yours , so feelingly it is pen'd , who want Modesty or Conscience to believe you therein to be in earnest ; and the rather , because what drops from Men by chance , when they are not upon their Guard , is always thought the best Interpretation of their Thoughts . You name Loss of Estate , of Liberty , and tormenting , which is corporal Punishment , as if you were against them : Certainly you know what you meant by these Words , when you said , you condemn'd them ; was it any Degree of Loss of Liberty or Estate , any Degree of corporal Punishment that you condemn'd , or only the utmost , or some Degree between these ? unless you had then some meaning , and unless you please to tell us , what that meaning was ; where 't is , that in your Opinion the Magistrate ought to stop , who can believe you are in earnest ? This I think you may and ought to do for our Information in your System , without any Apprehension that Governors and Law-givers will deem themselves much taught by you , which your Modesty makes you so cautious of . Whilst you refuse to do this , and keep your self under the Mask of moderate , convenient and sufficient Force and Penalties , and other such-like uncertain and undetermin'd Punishments , I think a consciencious and sober Dissenter might expect fairer dealing from one of my Pagans or Mahometans , as you please to call them , than from one , who so professes Moderation , that what Degrees of Force , what kind of Punishments will satisfy him , he either knows not , or will not declare . For your moderate and convenient may , when you come to interpret them , signify what Punishments you please : for the Cure being to be wrought by Force , that will be convenient , which the Stubbornness of the Evil requires ; and that moderate , which is but enough to work the Cure. And therefore I shall return your own Complement , That I would never wish that any Man who has undertaken a bad Cause , should more plainly confess it than by serving it , as here ( and not here only ) you serve yours . I should beg your Pardon for this sort of Language were it not your own . And what Right you have to it , the Skill you shew in the Management of general and doubtful Words and Expressions , of uncertain and undetermined Signification , will , I doubt not , abundantly convince the Reader . An Instance we have in the Argument before us : For I appeal to any sober Man , who shall carefully read what you write , where you pretend to tell the World plainly and directly what Punishments are to be used by your Scheme , whether after having weighed all you say concerning that matter , he can tell , what a Nonconformist is to expect from you , or find any thing but such Acuteness and Strength as lies in the Uncertainty and Reserve of your way of talking ; which whether it be any way suted to your Modesty and Conscience , where you have undertaken to tell us what the Punishments are , whereby you would have Men brought to imbrace the true Religion , I leave you to consider . If having said , Where-ever true Religion or sound Christianity has been Nationally received and established by moderate Penal Laws ; you shall for your Defence of the Establishment of the Religion in England by Law , say , which is all is left you to say , that though such severe Laws were made , yet it was only by the Execution of moderate Penal Laws , that it was established and supported : but that those severe Laws that touch'd Mens Estates , Liberties and Lives , were never put in Execution . Why then do you so s●…riously bemoan the loss of them ? But I advise you not to make use of that Plea , for there are Examples in the Memory of hundreds now living , of every one of those Laws of Queen Elizabeth being put in Execution ; and pray remember , if by denying it you require this Truth to be made good , 't is you that force the publishing of a Catalogue of Men that have lost their Estates , Liberties and Lives in Prison , which it would be more for the Advantage of the Religion established by Law , should be forgotten . But to conclude this great Accusation of yours : If you were not conscious to your self of some Tendency that way , why such an Out●…ry ? Why was Modesty and Conscience call'd in Question ? Why was it less fair dealing than you could have expected from a Pagan or Mahometan , for me to say , if in those Words you meant any thing to the Business in hand , you seemed to have a Reserve for greater Punishments ? Your Business there being to prove , that there was a Power vested in the Magistrate to use Force in Matters of Religion , what could be more besides the Business in hand , than to tell us , as you interpret your meaning here , that the Magistrate had a Power to use Force against those who rebell'd ( for who ever denied that ) whether 〈◊〉 or not Dissenters ? Where was it question'd by the Author or me , that whoever rebell'd , were to fall under the Stroak of the Magistrate's Sword ? And therefore without Breach of Modesty or Conscience , I might say , what I again here repeat , That if in those Words you meant any thing to the Business in hand , you seemed to have a R●…serve for greater Punishments . One thing more give me leave to add in Defence of my Modesty and Conscience , or rather to justify my self from having guessed so wholly b●…side the matter , if I should have said , ( which I did not ) that I feared you had a Reserve for greater Punishments . For I having brought the Instances of Ananias and Sapphira , to shew that the Apostles wanted not Power to punish , if they sound it necessary to use it ; you inser , that therefore Punishment may be sometimes necessary . What Punishments I beseech you , for theirs cost them their Lives ? He that , as you do , concludes from thence , that therefore Punishments may be sometimes necessary , will hardly avoid ( whatever he says ) to conclude capital Punishments necessary : And when they are necessary , it is you know the Magistrate's Duty to use them . You see how natural it is for Men to go whither their Principles lead them , though at first Sight perhaps they thought it too far . If to avoid this , you now say you meant it of the Punishment of the incestuous Corinthian , whom I also mentioned in the same Place ; I think , supposing your self to lie under the Imputation of a Reserve of greater Punishments ; you ought in Prudence to have said so there . Next you know not what Punishment it was the incestuous Corinthian under-went , but it being for the Destruction of the Flesh , it seems to be no very light one : And if you will take your Friend St. Austin's Word for it , as he in the very Epistle you quote tells you , it was a very severe one , making as much Difference between it , and the Severities Men usually suffer in Prison , as there is between the Cruelty of the Devil , and that of the most barbarous Jaylor : so that if your moderate Punishments will reach to that laid on the incestuous Corinthian for the Destruction of the Flesh , we may presume them to be , what other People call Severities . CHAP. V. How long your Punishments are to continue . THE Measure of Punishments being to be estimated as well by the Length of their Duration , as the Intenseness of their Degrees , 't is fit we take a View also of your Scheme in this Part. I told you that moderate Punishments that are continued , that Men find no End of , know no way out of , sit heavy , and become immoderately uneasy . Dissenters you would have punished , to make them consider . Your Penalties have had the Effect on them you intended ; they have made them consider ; and they have done their utmost in considering . What now must be done with them ? They must be punished on , for they are still Dissenters . If it were just , and you had Reason at first to punish a Dissenter , to make him consider , when you did not know but that he had considered already ; it is as just , and you have as much Reason to punish him on , even when he has performed what your Punishment was designed for , and has considered , but yet remains a Dissenter . For I may justly suppose , and you must grant , that a Man may remain a Dissenter after all the Consideration your moderate Penalties can bring him to ; when we see great Punishments , even those Severities you disown as too great , are not able to make Men consider so far as to be convinced , and brought over to the National Church . If your Punishments may not be 〈◊〉 on Men , to make them consider , who have or may have considered already , for ought you know ; then Dissenters are never to be once punished , no more than any other sort of Men. If Dissenters are to be punished , to make them consider , whether they have considered or no ; then their Punishments , though they do consider , must never cease as long as they are Dissenters , which whether it be to punish them only to bring them to consider , let all Men judg . This I am sure ; Punishments in your Method , must either never begin upon Dissenters , or never cease . And so pretend Moderation if you please , the Punishments which your Method requires , must be either very immoderate , or none at all . But to this you say nothing , only for the adjusting the Length of your Punishments , and therein vindicating the Consistency and Practicableness of your Scheme , you tell us , That as long as Men reject the true Religion duly proposed to them , so long they offend and deserve Punishment , and therefore it is but just that so long they should be left liable to it . You promised to answer to this Question , amongst others , plainly and directly . The Question is , How long they are to be punished ? And your Answer is , It is but just that so long they should be liable to Punishment . This extraordinary Caution in speaking out , if it were not very natural to you , would be apt to make one suspect , it was accommodated more to some Difficulties of your Scheme , than to your Promise of answering plainly and directly ; or possibly you thought , it would not agree to that Character of Moderation you assume , to own , that all the Penal Laws which were lately here in Force , and whose Relaxation you bemoan , should be constantly put in Execution . But your Moderation in this Point comes too late . For as your Charity , as you tell us in the next Paragraph , requires that they be kept subject to Penalties : So the watchful Charity of others in this Age hath found out ways to incourage Informers , and put it out of the Magistrate's Moderation to stop the Execution of the Law against Dissenters , if he should be inclined to it . We will therefore take it for granted , that if Penal Laws be made concerning Religion , ( for more Zeal usually animates them than others ) they will be put in Execution : and indeed I have heard it argued to be very absurd , to make or continue Laws , that are not constantly put in Execution . And now to shew you how well your Answer consists with other Parts of your Scheme , I shall need only to mind you , that if Men must be punished as long as they reject the true Religion , those who punish them , must be Judges what is the true Religion . But this Objection , with some other , to which this P●…rt of your Answer is obnoxious , having been made to you more at large elsewhere , I shall here omit , and proceed to other Parts of your Answer . You begin with your Reason for the Answer you afterwards give us in the Words I last quoted : Your Reason runs thus ; For certainly nothing is more reasonable than that Men should be subject to Punishment as long as they continue to off●…nd . And as long as Men reject the true Religion tender'd them with sufficient Evidence of the Truth of it , so long 't is certain they offend . It is certainly very reasonable , that Men should be subject to Punishment from those they offend as long as they continue to offend : But it will not from hence follow , that those who offend God , are always subject to Punishment from Men. For if they be , why does not the Magistrate punish Envy , Hatred , and Malice , and all Uncharitableness ? If you answer , because they are not capable of Judicial Proofs : I think I may say 't is as easy to prove a Man guilty of Envy , Hatred or Uncharitableness , as it is to prove him guilty of rejecting the true Religion tender'd him with sufficient Evidence of the Truth of it . But if it be his Duty to punish all Offences against God , why does the Magistrate never punish Lying , which is an Offence against God , and is an Offence capable of being judicially proved ? It is plain therefore that it is not the Sense of all Mankind , that it is the Magistrate's Duty to punish all Offences against God ; and where it is not his Duty to use Force , you will grant the Magistrate is not to use it in Matters of Religion , because where it is necessary , it is his Duty to use it ; but where it is not necessary , you your self say it is not lawful . It would be convenient therefore for you to reform your Proposition from that loose Generality it now is in , and then prove it before it can be allowed you to be to your Purpose ; though it be never so true , that you know not a greater Crime a Man can be guilty of , than rejecting the true Religion . You go on with your Proof , that so long as Men reject the true Religion , &c. so long they offend , and consequently may justly be punished ; Because , say you , it is impossible for any Man , innocently to reject the true Religion , so tender'd to him . For whoever rejects that Religion so tender'd , does either apprehend and perceive the Truth of it , or he does not . If he does , I know not what greater Crime any Man can be guilty of . If he does not perceive the Truth of it , there is no Account to be given of that , but either that he shuts his Eyes against the Evidence which is offer'd him , and will not at all consider it ; or that he does not consider it as he ought , viz. with such Care as is requisite , and with a sincere Desire to learn the Truth ; either of which does manifestly involve him in Guilt . To say here that a Man who has the true Religion proposed to him with sufficient Evidence of its Truth , may consider it as he ought , or do his utmost in considering , and yet not perceive the Truth of it ; is neither more nor less , than to say , that sufficient Evidence is not sufficient Evidence . For what does any Man mean by sufficient Evidence , but such as will certainly win Assent where-ever it is duly considered ? I shall not trouble my self here to examine when requisite care , duly considered , and such other Words , which bring one back to the same Place from whence one set out , are cast up , whether all this fine Reasoning will amount to any thing , but begging what is in the Question : But shall only tell you , that what you say here and in other Places about sufficient Evidence , is built upon this , that the Evidence wherewith a Man proposes the true Religion , he may know to be such , as will not fail to gain the Assent of whosoever does what lies in him in considering it . This is the Supposition , without which all your Talk of sufficient Evidence will do you no Service , try it where you will. But it is a Supposition that is far enough from carrying with it sufficient Evidence to make it be admitted without Proof . Whatever gains any Man's Assent , one may be sure had sufficient Evidence in respect of that Man : But that is far enough from proving it Evidence sufficient to prevail on another , let him consider it as long and as much as he can . The Tempers of Mens Minds ; the Principles setled there by Time and Education , beyond the Power of the Man himself to alter them ; the different Capacities of Mens Understandings ; and the strange Ideas they are often silled with , are so various and uncertain , that it is impossible to find that Evidence ( especially in things of a mixed Disquisition , depending on so long a T●…ain of Consequences , as some Points of the true Religion may ) which one can considently say will be sufficient for all Men. ' ●…is Demonstration that 3 1876 is the Product of 9467172 divided by 297 , and yet I challenge you to find one Man of a thousand , to whom you can tender this Proposition with demonstrative or sufficient Evidence to convince him of the Truth of it in a dark Room ; or ever to make this Evidence appear to a Man , that cannot write and read , so as to make him imbrace it as a Truth , if another whom he hath more Confidence in , tells him it is not so . All the demonstrative Evidence the thing has , all the Tender you can make of it , all the Consideration he can imploy about it , will never be able to discover to him that Evidence which small convince him it is true , unless you will at threescore and ten ( for that may be the Case ) have him neglect his Calling , go to School , and learn to write and read , and cast Account , which he may never be able to attain to . You speak more than once of Mens being brought to lay aside their Prejudices to make them consider as they ought , and judg right of Matters in Religion ; and I grant without doing so they cannot : But it is impossible for Force to make them do it , unless it could shew them , which are Prejudices in their Minds , and distinguish them from the Truths there . Who is there almost that has not Prejudices , that he does not know to be so ; and what can Force do in that Case ? It can no more remove them , to make way for Truth , than it can remove one Truth to make way for another ; or rather remove an establish'd Truth , or that which is look'd on as an unquestionable Principle ( for so are often Mens Prejudices ) to make way for a Truth not yet known , nor appearing to be one . 'T is not every one knows , or can bring himself to Des Carte●… way of doubting , and strip his Thoughts of all Opinions , till he brings them to self-evident Principles , and then upon them builds all his future Tenents . Do not think all the World , who are not of your Church , abandon themselves to an utter Carelesness of their future State. You cannot but allow there are many Turks who sincerely seek Truth , to whom yet you could never bring Evidence sufficient to convince them of the Truth of the Christian Religion , whilst they looked on it as a Principle not to be question'd , that the Alcoran was of Divine Revelation . This possibly you will tell me is a Prejudice , and so it is ; but yet if this Man shall tell you 't is no more a Prejudice in him , than it is a Prejudice in any one amongst Christians , who having not examin'd it , lays it down as an unquestionable Principle of his Religion , that the Scripture is the Word of God ; what will you answer to him ? And yet it would shake a great many Christians in their Religion , if they should lay by that Prejudice , and suspend their Judgment of it , until they had made it out to themselves with Evidence sufficient to convince one who is not prejudiced in Favour of it ; and it would require more Time , Books , Languages , Learning and Skill , than falls to most 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to establish them therein , if you will not allow them , in this so 〈◊〉 and fundamental a Point , to rely on the Learning , Knowledg and Judgment of some Persons whom they have in Reverence or Admiration . This though you blame it as an ill way , yet you can allow in one of your own Religion , even to that Degree , that he may be ignorant of the Grounds of his Religion . And why then may you not allow it to a Turk , not as a good way , or as having led him to the Truth ; but as a way , as sit for him , as for one of your Church to acquiesce in ; and as sit to exempt him from your Force , as to exempt any one of your Church from it ? To prevent your commenting on this , in which you have shewn so much Dexterity , give me leave to tell you , that for all this I do not think all Religions equally true or equally certain . But this , I say , is impossible for you , or me , or any Man , to know , whether another has done his Duty in examining the Evidence on both sides , when he imbraces that side of the Question , which we ( perhaps upon other Views ) judg false : and therefore we can have no Right to punish or persecute him for it . In this , whether and how far any one is faulty , must be left to the Searcher of Hearts ? the great and righteous Judg of all Men , who knows all their Circumstances , all the Powers and Workings of their Minds ; where 't is they sincerely follow , and by what Default they at any time miss Truth : And he , we are sure , will judg uprightly . But when one Man shall think himself a competent Judg , that the true Religion is proposed with Evidence sufficient for another ; and thence shall take upon him to punish him as an Offender , because he imbraces not ( upon Evidence that he the Proposer judges sufficient ) the Religion that he judges true , had need be able to look into the Thoughts of Men , and know their several Abilities : unless he will make his own Understanding and Faculties to be the Measure of those of all Mankind , which if they be no higher elevated , no larger in their Comprehension , no more discerning , than those of some Men , he will not only be unsit to be a Judg in that , but in almost any Case what soever . But since , 1. You make it a Condition to the making a Man an Offender in not being of the true Religion , that it has been tendred him with sufficient Evidence . 2. Since you think it so easy for Men to determine when the true Religion has been tender'd to any one with sufficient Evidence . And , 3. Since you pronounce it Impiety to say , that God hath not furnished Mankind with competent Means for the promoting his own Honour in the World , and the Good of Souls . Give me leave to ask you a Question or two . 1. Can any one be saved without imbracing the one only true Religion ? 2. Were any of the Americans of that one only true Religion , when the Europeans first came amongst them ? 3. Whether any of the Americans , before the Christians came amongst them , had offended in rejecting the true Religion tendred with sufficient Evidence ? When you have thought upon , and fairly answered these Questions , you will be sitter to determine , how competent a Judg Man is , what is sufficient Evidence ; who do offend in not being of the true Religion ; and what Punishments they are liable to for it . But me-thinks here , where you spend almost a whole Page upon the Crime of rejecting the true Religion duly tendred , and the Punishment that is justly due to it from the Magistrate , you forget your self , and the Foundation of your Plea for Force ; which is , that it is necessary : which you are so far from proving it to be in this case of punishing the Offence of rejecting the true Religion , that in this very page you distinguished it from what is necessary ; where you tell us , Your Design does rather oblige you to consider how long Men may need Punishment , than how long it may be just to punish them . So that though they offend , yet if they do not need Punishment , the Magistrate cannot use it , if you ground , as you say you do , the Lawfulness of Force for promoting the true Religion upon the Necessity of it . Nor can you say , that by his Commission , from the Law of Nature , of doing Good , the Magistrate , besides reducing his wandring Subjects out of the wrong into the right Way , is appointed also to be the Avenger of God's Wrath on Unbelievers , or those that err in Matters of Religion . This at least you thought not fit to own in the first Draught of your Scheme ; for I do not remember in all your Argument considered , one word of Crime or Punishment : nay , in writing this second Treatise , you were so shy of owning any thing of Punishment , that to my remembrance , you scrupulously avoided the use of that word , till you came to this place ; and always where the repeating my Words did not oblige you to it , carefully used the term of Penalties for it , as any one may observe , who reads the preceding part of this Letter of yours , which I am now examining . And you were so nice in the point , that three or four Leaves backwards , where I say , By your Rule Dissenters must be punished , you mend it , and say , Or if I please , subjected to moderate Penalties . But here when the Inquiry , How long Force was to be continued on Men , shewed the Absurdity of that Pretence , that they were to be punished on without end , to make them consider ; rather than part with your beloved Force , you open the matter a little father , and profess directly the punishing Men for their Religion . For tho you do all you can to cover it under the name of rejecting the true Religion duly proposed ; yet it is in truth no more but being of a Religion different from yours , that you would have them punished for : for all that the Author pleads for , and you can oppose in writing against him , is Toleration of Religion . Your Scheme therefore being thus mended , your Hypothesis enlarged , being of a different Religion from the National found criminal , and Punishments found justly to belong to it , it is to be hoped , that in good time your Punishments may grow too , and be advanced to all those Degrees you in the beginning condemned ; when having considered a little farther , you cannot miss finding , that the Obstinacy of the Criminals does not lessen their Crime , and therefore Justice will require severer Execution to be done upon them . But you tell us here , Because your Design does rather oblige you to consider how long Men may need Punishment , than how long it may be just to punish them ; therefore you shall add , That as long as Men refuse to imbrace the true Religion , so long Penalties are necessary for them to dispose them to consider and imbrace it : And that therefore as Justice allows , so Charity requires , that they be kept subject to Penalties , till they imbrace the true Religion . Let us therefore see the Consistency of this with other parts of your Hypothesis , and examine it a little by them . Your Doctrine is , That where Intreaties and Admonitions upon trial do not prevail , Punishments are to be used ; but they must be moderate . Moderate Punishments have been tried , and they prevail not ; What now is to be done ? Are not greater to be used ? No : For what reason ? Because those whom moderate Penalties will not prevail on , being desperately perverse and obstinate , Remedies are not to be provided for the Incurable , as you tell us in the Page immediately preceding . Moderate Punishments have been tried upon a Man once , and again , and a third time , but prevail not at all , make no Impression ; they are repeated as many times more , but are still found ineffectual : Pray tell me a reason why such a Man is concluded so desperately perverse and obstinate , that greater Degrees will not work upon him , but yet not so desperately perverse and obstinate , but that the same Degrees repeated may work upon him ? I will not urge here , that this is to pretend to know the just Degree of Punishment that will or will not work on any one , which I should imagine a pretty intricate Business : But this I have to say , that if you can think it reasonable and useful to continue a Man several Years , nay his whole Life , under the same repeated Punishments , without going any higher , though they work not at all ; because 't is possible sometime or other they may work on him ; why is it not as reasonable and useful ( I am sure it is much more justifiable and charitable ) to leave him all his Life under the Means , which all agree God has appointed , without going any higher , because 't is not impossible that some time or other Preaching , and a Word spoken in due season , may work upon him ? For why you should despair of the Success of Preaching and Perswasion upon a fruitless Trial , and thereupon think your self authorized to use Force ; and yet not so despair of the Success of moderate Force , as after Years of fruitless Trial , to continue it on , and not to proceed to higher Degrees of Punishment , you are concerned for the vindication of your System to shew a Reason . I mention the Trial of Preaching and Perswasion , to shew the Unreasonableness of your Hypothesis , supposing such a Trial made : not that in yours , or the common Method , there is or can be a fair Trial made what Preaching and Perswasion can do . For care is taken by Punishments and ill Treatment , to indispose and turn away Mens Minds , and to add Aversion to their Scruples ; an excellent way to soften Mens Inclinations , and temper them for the Impression of Arguments and Intreaties ; though these too are only talked of : For I cannot but wonder to find you mention , as you do , giving ear to Admonitions , Intreaties and Perswasions , when these are seldom , if ever made use of , but in Places , where those , who are to be wrought on by them , are known to be out of hearing ; nor can be expected to come there , till by such Means they have been wrought on . 'T is not without reason therefore you cannot part with your Penalties , and would have no end put to your Punishments , but continue them on ; since you leave so much to their Operation , and make so little use of other Means to work upon Dissenters . CHAP. VI. Of the End for which Force is to be used . HE that should read the beginning of your Argument considered , would think it in earnest to be your Design to have Force employed to make Men seriously consider , and nothing else : but he that shall look a little farther into it , and to that add also your defence of it , will find by the variety of Ends you design your Force for , that either you know not well what you would have it for , or else , whatever 't was you aimed at , you called it still by that Name which best fitted the Occasision , and would serve best in that place to recommend the Use of it . You ask me , Whether the Mildness and Gentleness of the Gospel destroys the coactive Power of the Magistrate ? I answer , as you supposed , No : upon which you infer , Then it seems the Magistrate may use his coactive Power , without offending against the Mildness and Gentleness of the Gospel . Yes , where he has Commission and Authority to use it . And so , say you , it will consist well enough with the Mildness and Gentleness of the Gospel for the Magistrate to use his coactive Power to procure them [ I suppose you mean the Ministers and Preachers of the National Religion ] a hearing where their Prayers and Intreaties will not do it . No , it will not consist with the gentle and mild Method of the Gospel , unless the Gospel has directed it , or something else to supply its want , till it could be had . As for Miracles , which you pretend to have supplied the want of Force in the first Ages of Christianity , you will find that considered in another place . But , Sir , shew me a Country where the Ministers and Teachers of the National and True Religion go about with Prayers and Intreaties to procure a Hearing , and cannot obtain it , and there I think I need not stand with you for the Magistrate to use Force to procure it them ; but that I fear will not serve your turn . To shew the Inconsistency and Unpracticableness of your Method , I had said , Let us now see to what end they must be punished : Sometimes it is , To bring them to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them : Of what ? That it is not easy to set Grant●…ani Steeple upon Paul's Church ? Whatever it be you would have them convinced of , you are not willing to tell us ; and so it may be any thing . Sometimes it is , To incline them to lend an Ear to those who tell them they have mistaken their Way , and offer to shew them the right . Which is , to lend an Ear to all who differ from them in Religion , as well crafty Seducers , as others . Whether this be for the procuring the Salvation of their Souls , the End for which you say this Force is to be used , judg you . But this I am sure , Whoever will lend an Ear to all who will tell them they are out of the Way , will not have much time for any other Business . Sometimes it is , To recover Men to so much Sobriety and Reflection , as seriously to put the Question to themselves , Whether it be really worth their while to undergo such Inconveniences , for adhering to a Religion which , for any thing they know , may be false ; or for rejecting another ( if that be the case ) which , for ought they know , may be true , till they have brought it to the Bar of Reason , and given it a fair Trial there . Which in short amounts to thus much , viz. To make them examine whether their Religion be true , and so worth the holding , under those Penalties that are annexed to it . Dissenters are indebted to you for your great care of their Souls . But what , I beseech you , shall become of those of the National Church , every where ( which make far the greater part of Mankind ) who have no such Punishments to make them consider ; who have not this only Remedy provided for them , but are left in that deplorable Condition , you mention , of being suffered quietly , and without molestation , to take no care at all of their Souls , or in doing of it to follow their own Prejudices , Humours , or some crafty Seducers ? Need not those of the National Church , as well as others , bring their Religion to the Bar of Reason , and give it a fair Trial there ? And if they need to do so , ( as they must , if all National Religions cannot be supposed true ) they will always need that which you say is the only Means to make them do so . So that if you are sure , as you tell us , that there is need of your Method ; I am sure , there is as much need of it in National Churches , as any other . And so , for ought I can see , you must either punish them , or let others alone ; unless you think it reasonable that the far greater part of Mankind should constantly be without that Soveraign and only Remedy , which they stand in need of equally with other People . Sometimes the End for which Men must be punished is , to dispose them to submit to Instruction , and to give a fair hearing to the Reasons are offer'd for the inlightning their Minds , and discovering the Truth to them . If their own Words may be taken for it , there are as few Dissenters as Conformists , in any Country , who will not profess they have done , and do this . And if their own Words may not be taken ; who , I pray must be Judg ? you and your Magistrates ? If so , then it is plain you punish them not to dispose them to submit to Instruction , but to your Instruction ; not to dispose them to give a fair hearing to Reasons offer'd for the inlightning their Minds , but to give an obedient hearing to your Reasons . If you mean this , it had been fairer and shorter to have spoken out plainly , than thus in fair Words , of indefinite Signification , to say that which amounts to nothing . For what Sense is it , to punish a Man to dispose him to submit to Instruction , and give a fair hearing to Reasons offer'd for the inlightning his Mind , and discovering Truth to him , who goes two or three times a Week several Miles on purpose to do it , and that with the Hazard of his Liberty or Purse ; unless you mean your Instructions , your Reasons , your Truth ? Which brings us but back to what you have disclaimed , plain Persecution for differing in Religion . Sometimes this is to be done , To prevail with Men to weigh Matters of Religion carefully and impartially . Discountenance and Punishment put into one Scale , with Impunity and Hopes of Preferment put into the other , is as sure a way to make a Man weigh impartially , as it would be for a Prince to bribe and threaten a Judg to make him judg uprightly . Sometimes it is , To make Men bethink themselves , and put it out of the Power of any foolish Humour , or unreasonable Prejudice , to alienate them from Truth and their own Happiness . Add but this , to put it out of the Power of any Humour or Prejudice of their own , or other Mens ; and I grant the End is good , if you can find the means to procure it . But why it should not be put out of the Power of other Mens Humour or Prejudice , as well as their own , wants ( and will always want ) a Reason to prove . Would it not , I beseech you , to an indifferent By-stander , appear Humour or Prejudice , or something as bad ; to see Men , who profess a Religion reveal'd from Heaven , and which they own contains all in it necessary to Salvation , exclude Men from their Communion , and persecute them with the Penalties of the Civil Law , for not joining in the Use of Ceremonies which are no where to be found in that reveal'd Religion ? Would it not appear Humour or Prejudice , or some such thing , to a sober impartial Heathen ; to see Christians exclude and persecute one of the same Faith , for things which they themselves confess to be indifferent , and not worth the contending for ? Prejudice , Humour , Passion , Lusts , Impressions of Education , Reverence and Admiration of Persons , worldly Respects , Love of their own Choice , and the like , ( to which you justly impute many Mens taking up and persisting in their Religion ) are indeed good Words ; and so , on the other side , are these following , Truth , the right Way , Inlightning , Reason , sound Judgment ; but they signify nothing at all to your purpose , till you can evidently and unquestionably shew the World that the latter ( viz. Truth and the right way , &c. ) are always , and in all Countries , to be found only in the National Church ; and the former ( viz. Passion and Prejudice , &c. ) only amongst the Dissenters . But to go on : Sometimes it is , To bring Men to take such Care as they ought of their Salvation . What Care is such as Men ought to take , whilst they are out of your Church , will be hard for you to tell me . But you indeavour to explain your self , in the following words ; that they may not blindly leave it to the choice neither of any other Person , nor yet of their own 〈◊〉 and Passions , to prescribe to them what Faith or Worship they shall imb●…ce . You do well to make use of Punishment to shut Passion out of the choice ; because you know fear of suffering is no Passion . But let that pass . You would have Men punished , to bring them to take such Care of their Salvation , that they may not blindly leave it to the Choice of any other Person to prescribe to them . Are you sincere ? Are you in earnest ? Tell me then truly : Did the Magistrate or the National Church , any where , or yours in particular , ever punish any Man , to bring him to have this Care , which you say , he ought to take of his Salvation ? Did you ever punish any Man , that he might not blindly leave it to the choice of his Parish-Priest , or Bishop , or the Convocation , what Faith or Worship he should imbrace ? 'T will be suspected Care of a Party , or any thing else rather than Care of the Salvation of Mens Souls ; if , having found out so useful , so necessary a Remedy , the only Method there is Room left for , you will apply it but partially , and make Trial of it only on those who you have truly least Kindness for . This will , unavoidably , give one Reason to imagine , you do not think so well of your Remedy as you pretend , who are so sparing of it to your Friends ; but are very free of it to Strangers , who in other things are used very much like Enemies . But your Remedy is like the Helleboraster , that grew in the Woman's Garden , for the Cure of Worms in her Neighbours Children : For truly it wrought too roughly , to give it to any of her own . Methinks your Charity , in your present Persecution , is much-what as prudent , as justifiable , as that good Woman's . I hope I have done you no Injury , that I here suppose you of the Church of England : If I have , I beg your Pardon . It is no Offence of Malice , I assure you : For I suppose no worse of you , than I confess of my self . Sometimes this Punishment that you contend for , is , to bring Men to act according to Reason and sound Judgment . Tertius è Coelo cecidit Cato . This is Reformation indeed . If you can help us to it , you will deserve Statues to be erected to you , as to the Restorer of decay'd Religion . But if all Men have not Reason and sound Judgment , will Punishment put it into them ? Besides , concerning this matter Mankind is so divided , that he acts according to Reason and sound Judgment at Auspurg , who would be judged to do the quite contrary at Edinburgh . Will Punishment make Men know what is Reason and sound Judgment ? If it will not , 't is impossible it should make them act according to it . Reason and sound Judgment are the Elixir it self , the universal Remedy : And you may as reasonably punish Men to bring them to have the Philosopher's Stone , as to bring them , to act according to Reason and sound Judgment . Sometimes it is , To put Men upon a serious and impartial Examination of the Controversy between the Magistrate and them , which is the way sor them to come to the Knowledg of the Truth . But what if the Truth be on neither side ( as I am apt to imagine you will think it is not , where neither the Magistrate nor the Dissenter is either of them of your Church ) how will the examining the Controversy between the Magistrate and him be the way to come to the Knowledg of the Truth ? Suppose the Controversy between a Lutheran and a Papist ; or , if you please , between a Presbyterian Magistrate and a Quaker Subject . Will the examining the Controversy between the Magistrate and the Dissenting Subject , in this case , bring him to the Knowledg of the Truth ? If you say , Yes , then you grant one of these to have the Truth on his side . For the examining the Controversy between a Presbyterian and a Quaker , leaves the Controversy either of them has with the Church of England , or any other Church , untouched . And so one , at least , of those being already come to the Knowledg of the Truth , ought not to be put under your Discipline of Punishment ; which is only to bring him to the Truth . If you say , No , and that the examining the Controversy between the Magistrate and the Dissenter , in this case , will not bring him to the Knowledg of the Truth ; you consess your Rule to be false , and your Method to no purpose . To conclude , your System is , in short , this . You would have all Men ( laying aside Prejudice , Humour , Passion , &c. ) examine the Grounds of their Religion , and search for the Truth . This , I consess , is heartily to be wish'd . The means that you propose to make Men do this , is , that Dissenters should be punished , to make them do so . It is as if you had said , Men generally are guilty of a Fault ; therefore let one Sect , who have the ill luck to be of an Opinion different from the Magistrate , be punished . This at first Sight shocks any one who has the least Spark of Sense , Reason , or Justice . But having spoken of this already , and concluding that upon second Thoughts , you your self will be ashamed of it ; let us consider it put so as to be consistent with common Sense , and with all the Advantage it can bear ; and then let us see what you can make of it . Men are negligent in examining the Religions they imbrace , refuse , or persist in ; therefore it is fit they should be punished to make them do it . This is a Consequence indeed which may , without Defiance to common Sense , be drawn from it . This is the Use , the only Use , which you think Punishment can indirectly and at a distance have in matters of Religion . You would have Men by Punishments driven to examine . What ? Religion . To what end ? To bring them to the Knowledg of the Truth . But I answer . First , Every one has not the Ability to do this . Secondly , Every one has not the Opportunity to do it . Would you have every poor Protestant , for example , in the Palatinate , examine throughly whether the Pope be infallible , or Head of the Church ; whether there be a Purgatory ; whether Saints are to be pray'd to , or the Dead pray'd for ; whether the Scripture be the only Rule of Faith ; whether there be no Salvation out of the Church ; and whether there be no Church without Bishops ; and an hundred other Questions in Controversy between the Papists and those Protestants : and when he had master'd these , go on to fortify himself against the Opinions and Objections of other Churches he differs from ? This , which is no small Task , must be done , before a Man can have brought his Religion to the Bar of Reason , and given it fair Trial there . And if you will punish Men till this be done , the Country-man must leave off plowing and sowing , and betake himself to the Study of Greek and Latin ; and the Artisan must sell his Tools , to buy Fathers and School-men , and leave his Family to starve . If something less than this will satisfy you , pray tell me what is enough . Have they considered and examined enough , if they are satisfied themselves where the Truth lies ? If this be the Limits of their Examination , you will find few to punish ; unless you will punish them to make them do what they have done already . For , however he came by his Religion , there is scarce any one to be found who does not own himself satisfied that he is in the right . Or else , must they be punished to make them consider and examine till they imbrace that which you chuse for Truth ? If this be so , what do you but in effect chuse for them , when yet you would have Men punished , To bring them to such a Care of their Souls that no other Person might chuse for them ? If it be Truth in general you would have them by Punishments driven to seek ; that is to offer matter of Dispute , and not a Rule of Discipline . For to punish any one to make him seek till he find Truth , without a Judg of Truth , is to punish for you know not what ; and is all one as if you should whip a Scholar to make him find out the square Root of a Number you do not know . I wonder not therefore that you could not resolve with your self what degree of Severity you would have used , nor how long continued ; when you dare not speak out directly whom you would have punished , and are far from being clear to what end they should be under Penalties . Consonant to this Uncertainty , of whom , or what , to be punished ; you tell us , That there is no Question of the Success of this Method . Force will certainly do , if duly proportioned to the Design of it . What , I pray , is the Design of it ? I challenge you , or any Man living , out of what you have said in your Book , to tell me directly what it is . In all other Punishments that ever I heard of yet , till now that you have taught the World a new Method , the Design of them has been to cure the Crime they are denounced against ; and so I think it ought to be here . What I beseech you is the Crime here ? Dissenting ? That you say not , any where , is a Fault . Besides you tell us , That the Magistrate hath not an Authority to compel any one to his Religion : And that you do not require that Men should have no Rule but the Religion of the Country . And the Power you ascribe to the Magistrate is given him to bring Men , not to his own , but to the true Religion . If Dissenting be not the Fault ; is it that a Man does not examine his own Religion , and the Grounds of it ? Is that the Crime your Punishments are designed to cure ? Neither that dare you say , lest you displease more than you satisfy with your new Discipline . And then again , ( as I said before ) you must tell us how far you would have them examine , before you punish them for not doing it . And I imagine , if that were all we required of you , it would be long enough before you would trouble us with a Law , that should prescribe to every one how far he was to examine Matters of Religion ; wherein if he fail'd and came short , he was to be punished ; if he perform'd and went in his Examination to the Bounds set by the Law , he was acquitted and free . Sir , when you consider it again , you will perhaps think this a Case reserv'd to the Great Day , when the Secrets of all Hearts shall be laid open . For I imagine it is beyond the Power or Judgment of Man , in that Variety of Circumstances , in respect of Parts , Tempers , Opportunities , Helps , &c. Men are in , in this World , to determine what is every one's Duty in this great Business of Search , Inquiry , Examination , or to know when any one has done it . That which makes me believe you will be of this Mind , is , that where you undertake for the success of this Method , if rightly used , it is with a Limitation , upon such as are not altogether incurable . So that when your Remedy is prepared according to Art , ( which Art is yet unknown ) and rightly apply'd , and given in a due Dose , ( all which are Secrets ) it will then infallibly cure . Whom ? All that are not incurable by it . And so will a Pippin-Posset , eating Fish in Lent , or a Presbyterian Lecture , certainly cure all that are not incurable by them . For I am sure you do not mean it will cure all , but those who are absolutely incurable ; Because you your self allow one Means left of Cure , when yours will not do , viz. The Grace of God. Your Words are , What Means is there left ( except the Grace of God ) to reduce them , but to l●…y Thorns and Briars in their Way . And here also , in the Place we were considering , you tell us , The Incurable are to be lest to God. Whereby , if you mean they are to be left to those Means he has ordained for Mens Conversion and Salvation , yours must never be made use of : For he indeed has prescribed Preaching and Hearing of his Word ; but as for those who will not hear , I do not find any where that he has commanded they should be compell'd or beaten to it . I must beg my Reader 's Pardon sor so long a Repetition , which I was forced to , that he might be Judg whether what I there said , either deserves no Answer , or be fully answered in that Paragraph , where you undertake to vindicate your Method from all Impracticableness and Inconsistency chargeable upon it , in reference to the End for which you would have Men punished . Your Words are . For what . By which , you say , you perceive I mean ●…vo things : For sometimes I speak of the Fault , and sometimes of the End for which Men are to be punished , ( and sometimes I plainly confound them . ) Now if it be inquired , For what Fault Men are to be punished ? you answer , For rejecting the true Religion after sufficient Evidence tender'd them of the Truth of it : Which certainly is a Fault , and deserves Punishment . But if I inquire for what End such as do reject the True Religion , are to be punished ; you say , To bring them to imbrace the True Religion ; and in order to that to bring them to consider , and that carefully and impartially , the Evidence which is offered to convince them of the Truth of it : Which are undeniably just and excellent Ends ; and which , through God's Blessing , have often been procured , and may yet be procured by convenient Penalties inflicted for that purpose . Nor do you know of any thing I say against any part of this , which is not already answered . Whether I in this confound two things distinct , or you distinguish where there is no difference , the Reader may judg by what I have said elsewhere . I shall here only consider the Ends of Punishing , you here again in your Reply to me assign ; and those , as I find them scattered , are these . Sometimes you speak of this End , as if it were barely to gain a hearing to those who by Prayers and Intreaty cannot : and those may be the Preachers of any Religion . But I suppose you mean the Preachers of the True Religion . And who I beseech you must be Judg of that ? Where the Law provides sufficient Means of Instruction for all , as well as Punishment for Dissenters , it is plain to all concerned , that the Punishment is intended to make them consider . What ? The Means the Law provides for their Instruction . Who then is Judg of what they are to be instructed in , and the Means of Instruction ; but the Law-maker ? It is to bring Men to hearken to Instruction . From whom ? From any body ? And to consider and examine Matters of Religion as they ought to do , and to bring those who are out of the right Way , to hear , consider and imbrace the Truth . When is this End attained , and the Penalties which are the Means to this End taken off ? When a Man conforms to the National Church . And who then is Judg of what is the Truth to be imbraced , but the Magistrate ? It is to bring Men to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them ; but which , without being forced , they would not consider . And when have they done this ? When they have once conformed : for after that there is no Force used to make them consider farther . It is to make Men consider as they ought ; and that you tell us , is so to consider , as to be moved heartily to imbrace , and not to reject Truth necessary to Salvation . And when is the Magistrate , that has the care of Mens Souls , and does all this for their Salvation , satisfied that they have so considered ? As soon as they outwardly join in Communion with the National Church . It is to bring Men to consider and examine those Controversies which they are bound to consider and examine , i. e. those wherein they cannot err without dishonouring God , and indangering their own and other Mens Salvations . And to study the True Religion with such Care and Diligence as they might and ought to use , and with an honest Mind . And when , in your Opinion , is it presumable that any Man has done all this ? Even when he is in the Communion of your Church . It is to cure Mens unreasonable Prejudices and Refractoriness against , and Aversion to the True Religion . Whereof none retain the least Tincture or Suspicion who are once got within the Pale of your Church . It is to bring Men into the right Way , into the Way of Salvation , which Force does when it has conducted them within the Church-Porch , and there leaves them . It is to bring Men to imbrace the Truth that must save them . And here , in the Paragraph wherein you pretend to tell us for what Force is to be used , you say , It is to bring Men to imbrace the true Religion , and in order to that to bring them to consider , and that carefully and impartially , the Evidence which is offered to convince them of the Truth of it , which , as you say , are undeniable , just and excellent Ends ; but yet such as Force in your Method can never practically be made a Means to , without supposing what you say you have no need to suppose , viz. that your Religion is the true ; unless you had rather every where to leave it to the Magistrate to judg which is the right Way , what is the true Religion ; which Supposition I imagine will less accommodate you than the other . But take which of them you will , you must add this other Supposition to it , harder to be granted you than either of the former , viz. That those who conform to your Church here , ( if you make your self the Judg ) or to the National Church any where , ( if you make the Magistrate Judg of the Truth that must save Men ) and those only have attained these Ends. The Magistrate , you say , is obliged to do what in him lies to bring all his Subjects to examine carefully and impartially Matters of Religion , and to consider them as they ought , i. e. so as to imbroce the Truth that must save them . The proper and necessary Means , you say , to attain these Ends is Force . And your Method of using this Force is to punish all the Dissenters from the National Religion , and none of those who outwardly conform to it . Make this practicable now in any Country in the World , without allowing the Magistrate to be Judg what is the Truth that must save them , and without supposing also , that whoever do imbrace the outward Profession of the National Religion , do in their Hearts imbrace , i. e. believe and obey the Truth that must save them ; and then I think nothing in Government can be too hard for your undertaking . You conclude this Paragraph in telling me , You do not know of any thing I say against any part of this , which is not already answered . Pray tell me where 't is you have answered those Objections I made to those several Ends which you assigned in your Argument considered , and for which you would have Force used , and which I have here reprinted again , because I do not find you so much as take notice of them : and therefore the Reader must judg whether they needed any Answer or no. But to shew that you have not here , where you promise and pretend to do it , clearly and directly told us for what Force and Penalties are to be used , I shall in the next Chapter examine what you mean by bringing Men to imbrace the True Religion . CHAP. VII . Of your bringing Men to the True Religion . TRue Religion is on all hands acknowledged to be so much the Concern and Interest of all Mankind , that nothing can be named , which so much effectually bespeak●… the Approbation and Favour of the Publick . The very intitling one's self to that , sets a Man on the right side . Who dares question such a Cause , or oppose what is offered for the promoting the True Religion ? This Advantage you have secured to your self from unattentive Readers , as much as by the often-repeated mention of the True Religion , is possible , there being scarce a Page wherein the True Religion does not appear , as if you had nothing else in your Thoughts , but the bringing Men to it for the Salvation of their Souls . Whether it be so in earnest , we will now see . You tell us , Whatever Hardships some false Religions may impose , it will however always be easier to carnal and worldly minded Men , to give even the first-born for their Transgressions , than to mortify the Lusts from which they spring , which no Religion but the True requires of them . Upon this you ground the Ne●…essity of Force to bring Men to the True Religion , and charge it on the Magistrate as his Duty to use it to that End. What now in appearance can express greater Care to bring Men to the True Religion ? But let us see what you say in p. 64. and we shall sind that in your Scheme nothing less is meant : there you tell us , The Magistrate inflicts the Penalties only upon them that break the Law●… And that Law requiring nothing but Conformity to the National Religion , no●… but Nonconformists are punished . So that unless an outward Profession of the National Religion be by the Mortification of Mens Lusts harder than their giving their First-born for their Transgression , all the Penalties you contend sor concern not , ●…nor can be intended to bring Men effectually to the True Religion ; since they leave them before they come to the Difficulty , which is to mortify their Lusts , as the True Religion requires . So that your bringing Men to the True Religion , being to bring them to Conformity to the National , for then you have done with Force , how far that outward Consormity is from being heartily of the True Religion , may be known by the distance there is between the easiest and the hardest thing in the World. For there is nothing easier , than to profess in Words ; nothing harder , than to subdue the Heart , and bring Thoughts and Deeds into Obedience of the Truth : The latter is what is required to be of the True Religion ; the other all that is required by Penalties your way applied . If you say , Conformists to the National Religion are required by the Law Civil and Ecclesiastical , to lead good Lives , which is the difficult part of the True Religion : I answer , These are not the Laws we are here speaking of , nor those which the Defenders of Toleration complain of , but the Laws that put a distinction between outward Conformists and Nonconformists : and those they say , whatever may be talked of the True Religion , can never be meant to bring Men really to the True Religion , as long as the True Religion is , and is confessed to be a thing of so much greater difficulty than outward Conformity . Miracles , say you , supplied the want of Force in the beginning of Christianity ; and therefore so far as they supplied that Want , they must be subservient to the same End. The End then was to bring Men into the Christian Church , into which they were admitted and received as Brethren , when they acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ , the Son of God. Will that serve the turn ? No : Force must be used to make Men imbrace Creeds and Ceremonies , i. e. outwardly conform to the Doctrine and Worship of your Church . Nothing more than that is required by your Penalties ; nothing less than that will excuse from Punishment ; that , and nothing but that , will serve the turn ; that therefore , and only that , is what you mean by the True Religion you would have Force used to bring Men to . When I tell you , You have a very ill Opinion of the Religion on of the Church of England , and must own it can only be propagated and supported by Force , if you do not think it would be a Gainer by a general Toleration all the World over : You ask , Why you may not have as good an Opinion of the Church of England's , as you have of Noah's Religion , notwithstanding you think it cannot now be propagated or supported without using some kinds or degrees of Force . When you have proved that Noah's Religion , that from eight Persons spread and continued in the World till the Apostles Times , as I have proved in another place , was propagated and supported all that while by your kinds or degrees of Force , you may have some reason to think as well of the Religion of the Church of England , as you have of Noah's Religion , though you think it cannot be propagated and supported without some kinds or degrees of Force . But till you can prove that , you cannot upon that ground say you have reason to have so good an Opinion of it . You tell me , If I will take your Word for it , you assure me you think there are many other Countries in the World besides England , where my Toleration would be as little useful to Truth as in England . If you will name those Countries , which will be no great pains , I will take your word for it , that you believe Toleration there would be prejudicial to Truth : but if you will not do that , neither I nor any body else can believe you . I will give you a Reason why I say so , and that is , Because no body can believe that , upon your Principles , you can allow any National Religion , differing from that of the Church of England , to be true ; and where the National Reli●…ion is not true , we have already your Consent , as in Spain and Italy , &c. for Toleration . Now that you cannot , without renouncing your own Principles , allow any National Religion , differing from that establish'd here by Law , to be true , is evident : For why do you punish Nonconformists here ? To bring them , say you , to the True Religion . But what if they hold nothing , but what that other differing National Church does , shall they be nevertheless punished if they conform not ? You will certainly say , Yes : and if so , then you must either say , they are not of the True Religion , or else you must own you punish those , to bring them to the True Religion , whom you allow to be of the True Religion already . You tell me , If I own with our Author , that there is but one True Religion , and I owning my self to be of the Church of England , you cannot see how I can avoid supposing , that the National Religion now in England , back'd by the publick Authority of the Law , is the only True Religion . If I own , as I do , all that you here expect from me , yet it will not serve to draw that Conclusion from it , which you do , viz. That the National Religion now in England is the only True Religion ; taking the True Religion in the Sense that I do , and you ought to take it . I grant that there is but one True Religion in the World , which is that whose Doctrine and Worship are necessary to Salvation . I grant too that the True Religion , necessary to Salvation , is taught and professed in the Church of England : and yet it will not follow from hence , that the Religion of the Church of England , as established by Law , is the only True Religion ; if there be any thing established in the Church of England by Law , and made part of its Religion , which is not necessary to Salvation , and which any other Church , teaching and professing all that is necessary to Salvation , does not receive . If the National Religion now in England , back'd by the Authority of the Law , be , as you would have it , the only true Religion ; so the only true Religion , that a Man cannot be saved without being of it . Pray reconcile this , with what you say in the immediately preceding Paragraph , viz. That there are many other Countries in the World where my Toleration would be as little useful as in England . For if there be other National Religions differing from that of England , which you allow to be true , and wherein Men may be saved , the National Religion of England , as now established by Law , is not the only true Religion , and Men may be saved without being of it . And then the Magistrate can upon your Principles have no Authority to use Force to bring Men to be of it . For you tell us , Force is not lawful , unless it be necessary ; and therefore the Magistrate can never lawfully use it , but to bring Men to believe and practise what is necessary to Salvation . You must therefore either hold , that there is nothing in the Doctrine , Discipline and Ceremonies of the Church of England , as it is established by Law , but what is necessary to Salvation : Or else you must reform your Terms of Communion , before the Magistrate upon your Principles can use Penalties to make Men consider till they conform ; or you can say that the National Religion of England is the only true Religion , though it contain the only true Religion in it ; as possibly most , if not all , the differing Christian Churches now in the World do . You tell us farther in the next Paragraph , That where-ever this only true Religion , i. e. the National Religion now in England , is received , all other Religions ought to be discouraged . Why I beseech you discourag'd , if they be true any of them ? For if they be true , what Pretence is there for Force to bring Men who are of them to the true Religion ? If you say all other Religions , varying at all from that of the Church of England , are false ; we know then your measure of the one only true Religion . But that your Care is only of Conformity to the Church of England , and that by the true Religion you mean nothing else , appears too from your way of expressing your self in thi●… Passage , where you own that you suppose that as this only true Religion ( to wit , the National Religion now in England , back'd with the publick Authority of Law ) ought to be received where-ever it is preached ; so where-ever it is received all other Religions ought to be discouraged in some measure by the Civil Powers . If the Religion establish'd by Law in England , be the only true Religion , ought it not be preached and received every where , and all other Religions discouraged throughout the World ? and ought not the Magistrates of all Countries to take Care that it should be so ? But you only say , where-ever it is preach'd , it ought to be received ; and where-ever it is received , other Religions ought to be discouraged , which is well suted to your Scheme for inforcing Conformity in England , but could scarce drop from a Man whose Thoughts were on the true Religion , and the promoting of it in other Parts ' of the World. Force then must be used in England , and Penalties laid on Dissenters there . For what ? to bring them to the true Religion , whereby it is plain you mean not only the Doctrine but Discipline and Ceremonies of the Church of England , and make them a part of the only true Religion : Why else do you punish all Dissenters for rejecting the true Religion , and use Force to bring them to it ? When yet a great , if not the greatest part of Dissenters in England own and profess the Doctrine of the Church of England , as firmly as those in the Communion of the Church of England . They therefore , though they believe the same Religion with you , are excluded from the true Church of God , that you would have Men brought to , and are amongst those who reject the true Religion . I ask whether they are not in your Opinion out of the way of Salvation , who are not joined in Communion with the true Church ? and whether there can be any true Church without Bishops ? If so , all but Conformists in England that are of any Church in Europe besides the Lutherans and Papists , are out of the way of Salvation , and so according to your System have need of Force to be brought into it : and these too , one for their Doctrine of Transubstantiation , the other for that of Consubstantiation , ( to omit other things vastly differing from the Church of England ) you will not , I suppose , allow to be of the true Religion : And who then are left of the true Religion but the Church of England ? For the Abyssines have too wide a Difference in many Points for me to imagine , that is one of those Places you mean where Toleration would do harm as well as in England . And I think the Religion of the Greek Church can ●…carce be supposed by you to be the true . For if it should , it would be a strong Instance against your Assertion , that the true Religion cannot subsist , but would quickly be effectually extirpated without the Assistance of Authority , since this has subsisted without any such Assistance now above 200 Years . I take it then for granted , ( and others with me cannot but do the same , till you tell us , what other Religion there is of any Church , but that of England , which you allow to be the true Religion ) that all you say of bringing Men to the true Religion , is only bringing them to the Religion of the Church of England . If I do you an Injury in this , it will be capable of a very easy Vindication : for it is but naming that other Church differing from that of England , which you allow to have the true Religion , and I shall yield my self convinc'd , and shall allow these Words , viz. The National Religion now in England , back'd by the publick Authority of Law , being the only true Religion , only as a little hasty Sally of your Zeal . In the mean time I shall argue with you about the Use of Force to bring Men to the Religion of the Church of England , as established by Law : since it is more easy to know what that is , than what you mean by the true Religion , if you mean any thing else . To proceed therefore ; in the next place I tell you , by using Force your way to bring Men to the Religion of the Church of England , you mean only to bring them to an outward Profession of that Religion ; and that , as I have told you elsewhere , because Force used your way , being applied only to Dissenters , and ceasing as soon as they conform , ( whether it be intended by the Law-maker for any thing more or no , which we have examined in another Place ) cannot be to bring Men to any thing mo●…e than outward Conformity . For if Force be used to Dissenters , and them only , to bring Men to the true Religion , and always as soon as it has brought Men to Conformity , it be taken off , and laid aside , as having done all is expected fro●… it ; 't is plain , that by bringing Men to the true Religion , and bringing them to outward Conformity , you mean the same thing . You use and continue Force upon Dissenters , because you expect some Effect from it : when you take it off , it has wrought that Effect , or else being in your Power , why do you not continue it on ? The Effect then that you talk of , being the imbracing the true Religion , and the thing you are satisfied with without any farther Punishment , Expectation , or Inquiry , being outward Conformity , 't is plain imbracing the true Religion and outward Conformity with you , are the same things . Neither can you say it is presumable that those who outwardly conform do really understand , and inwardly in their Hearts imbrace with a lively Faith and a sincere Obedience , the Truth that must save them . 1. Because it being , as you tell us , the Magistrate's Duty to do all that in him lies for the Salvation of all his Subjects , and it being in his Power to examine , whether they know and live sutable to the Truth that must save them , as well as conform , he can or ought no more to presume , that they do so , without taking an Account of their Knowledg and Lives , than he can or ought to presume that they conform , without taking any Account of their Coming to Church . Would you think that Physician discharged his Duty , and had ( as was pretended ) a Care of Mens Lives , who having got them into his Hands , and knowing no more of them , but that they come once or twice a Week to the Apothecary's Shop , to hear what is prescribed them , and sit there a while , should say it was presumable they were recovered , without ever examining whether his Prescriptions had any Effect , or what Estate their Health was in ? 2. It cannot be presumable , where there are so many visible Instances to the contrary . He must pass for an admirable Presumer , who will seriously affirm that it is presumable that all those who conform to the National Religion where it is true , do so understand , believe and practise it , as to be in the way of Salvation . 3. It cannot be presumable , that Men have parted with their Corruption and Lusts to avoid Force , when they fly to Conformity , which can shelter them from Force without quitting their Lusts. That which is dearer to Men than their First-born , is , you tell us , their Lusts ; that which is harder than the Hardships of false Religions , is the mortifying those Lusts : here lies the Difficulty of the true Religion , that it requires the mortifying of those Lusts ; and till that be done , Men are not of the true Religion , nor in the way of Salvation : And 't is upon this Account only that you pretend Force to be needful . Force is used to make them hear ; it prevails , Men hear : but that is not enough , because the Difficulty lies not in that ; they may hear Arguments for the Truth , and yet retain their Corruption . They must do more , they must consider those Arguments . Who requires it of them ? The Law that insticts the Punishment , does not ; but this we may be sure their Love of their Lusts , and their Hatred of Punishment requires of them , and will bring them to , viz. to consider how to retain their beloved Lusts , and yet avoid the Uneasiness of the Punishment they lie under ; this is presumable they do ; therefore they go one easy Step farther , they conform , and then they are safe from Force , and may still retain their Corruption . Is it therefore presumable they have parted with their Corruption , because Force has driven them to take Sanctuary against Punishment in Conformity , where Force is no longer to molest them , or pull them from their darling Inclinations ? The Difficulty in Religion is , you say , for Men to part with their Lusts ; this makes Force , necessary : Men find out a way by consorming to avoid Force without parting with their Lusts , therefore it is presumable when they con●…orm , that Force which they can avoid without quitting their Lusts , has made them part with them , which is indeed not to part with their Lusts , because of Force , but to part with them gratis ; which if you can say is presumable , the Foundation of your need of Force ( which you place in the Prevalency of Corruption , and Mens adhering to their Lusts ) will be gone , and so there will be no need of Force at all . If the great Difficulty in Religion be for Men to part with or mortify their Lusts , and the only Counter-ballance in the other Scale , to assist the true Religion , to prevail against their Lusts , be Force ; which I beseech you is presumable , if they can avoid Force , and retain their Lusts , that they should quit their Lusts , and heartily imbrace the true Religion , which i●… incompatible with them ; or else that they should avoid the Force , and retain their Lusts ? To say the former of these , is to say that it is presumable , that they will quit their Lusts , and heartily imbrace the true Religion for its own sake : for he that heartily imbraces the true Religion , because of a Force which he knows he can avoid at Pleasure , without quitting his Lusts , cannot be said so to imbrace it , because of that Force : Since a Force he can avoid without quitting his Lusts , cannot be said to assist Truth in making him quit them : For in this Truth has no Assistance from it at all . So that this i●… to say there is no need of Force at all in the Case . Take a co●…tous Wretch , whose Heart is so set upon Money , that he would give his First-born to save his Bags ; who is pursued by the Force of the Magistrate to an Arrest , and compelled to hear what is alledg'd against him ; and the Prosecution of the Law threatning Imprisonment or other Punishment , if he do not pay the just Debt which is demanded of him : If he enters himself in ●…he Ki●…g's Bench , where he can enjoy his Freedom without paying the Debt , and parting with his Money ; will you say that it is presumable he did it to pay the D●…bt , and not to avoid the Force of the Law ? The Lust of the Flesh and Pride of Life are as strong and prevalent as the Lust of the Eye : And if you will deliberately say again , that it is presumable , that Men are driven by Force to consider , so as to part with their Lusts , when no more is known of them , but that they do what discharges them from the Force , without any Necessity of parting with their Lusts ; I think I shall have occasion to send you to my Pagans and Mahometans , but shall have no need to say any thing more to you of this matter my self . I agree with you , that there is but one only true Religion ; I agree too that that one only true Religion is professed and held in the Church of England ; and yet I deny , if Force may be used to bring Men to that true Religion , that upon your Principles it can lawfully be used to bring Men to the National Religion in England as established by Law ; because Force , according to your own Rule , being only lawful because it is necessary , and therefore unfit to be used where not necessary , i. e. necessary to bring Men to Salvation , it can never be lawful to be used to bring a Man to any thing , that is not necessary to Salvation , as I have more fully shewn in another Place . If therefore in the National Religion of England , there be any thing put in as necessary to Communion , that is , though true , yet not necessary to Salvation , Force cannot be lawfully used to bring Men to that Communion , though the thing so required in it self may perhaps be true . There be a great many Truths contained in Scripture , which a Man may be ignorant of , and consequently not believe , without any Danger to his Salvation , or else very few would be capable of Salvation : for I think I may truly say , there was never any one , but he that was the Wisdom of the Father , who was not ignorant of some , and mistaken in others of them . To bring Men therefore to imbrace such Truths , the Use of Force by your own Rule cannot be lawful : because the Belief or Knowledg of those Truths themselves not being necessary to Salvation , there can be no Necessity Men should be brought to imbrace them , and so no Necessity to use Force to bring Men to imbrace them . The only true Religion which is necessary to Salvation , may in one National Church have that joined with it , which in it self is manifestly false and repugnant to Salvation ; in such a Communion no Man can join without quitting the way of Salvation . In another National Church , with this only true Religion may be joined , what is neither repugnant nor necessary to Salvation ; and of such there may be several Churches differing one from another in Confessions , Ceremonies and Discipline , which are usually call'd different Religions , with either or each of which a good Man ( if satisfied in his own Mind ) may communicate without Danger , whilst another not satisfied in Conscience concerning something in the Doctrine , Discipline or Worship , cannot safely , nor without Sin , communicate with this or that of them . Nor can Force be lawfully used on your Principles to bring any Man to either of them , because such things are required to their Communion , which not being requisite to Salvation , Men may seriously and conscientiously differ , and be in doubt about , without indangering their Souls . That which here raises a Noise , and gives a Credit to it , whereby many are misled into an unwarrantable Zeal , is , that these are called different Religions ; and every one thinking his own the true , the only true , condemns all the rest as false Religions . Whereas those who hold all things necessary to Salvation , and add not thereto any thing in Doctrine , Discipline or Worship , inconsistent with Salvation , are of one and the same Religion , though divided into different Societies or Churches , under different Forms : which whether the Passion and Polity of designing ; or the sober and pious Intention of well-meaning Men , set up , they are no other , than the Contrivances of Men , and such they ought to be esteemed in whatsoever is required in them , which God has not made necessary to Salvation , however in its own Nature it may be indifferent lawful or true . For none of the Articles or Confessions of any Church , that I know , containing in them all the Truths of Religion , though they contain some that are not necessary to Salvation , to garble thus the Truths of Religion , and by their own Authority take some not necessary to Salvation , and make them the terms of Communion ; and leave out others as necessary to be known and believed , is purely the Contrivance of Men : God never having appointed any such distinguishing System ; nor , as I have shew'd , can Force , upon your Principles , lawfully be used to bring Men to imbrace it . Concerning Ceremonies , I shall here only ask you whether you think Kneeling at the Lord's Supper , or the Cross in Baptism , are necessary to Salvation ? I mention these as having been matter of great Scr●…ple : if you will not say they are , how can you say that Force can be lawfully used to bring Men into a Communion , to which these are made necessary ? If you say , Kneeling is necessary to a decent Uniformity , ( for of the Cross in Baptism I have spoken elsewhere ) though that should be true yet 't is an Argument you cannot use for it , if you are of the Church of England : for , if a decent Uniformity may be well enough preserved without kneeling at Prayer , where Decency requires it at least as much as at receiving the Sacrament , why may it not well enough be preserved without kneeling at the Sacrament ? Now that Uniformity is thought sufficiently preserved without kneeling at Prayer , is evident by the various Postures Men are at liberty to use , and may be generally observed , in all our Congregations , during the Minister's Prayer in the Pulpit before and after his Sermon , which it seems can consist well enough with Decency and Uniformity ; tho it be at Prayer addressed to the great God of Heaven and Earth , to whose Majesty it is that the Reverence to be expressed in our Gestures is due , when we put up Petitions to him , who is invariably the same , in what or whose Words soever we address our selves to him . The Preface to the Book of Common-Prayer tells us , That the Ri●…es and Ceremonies appointed to be used in Divine Worship , are things in their own Nature indifferent and alterable . Here I ask you , whether any humane Power can make any thing , in its own nature indifferent , necessary to Salvation ? If it cannot , then neither can any Humane Power be justified in the use of Force , to bring Men to Conformity in the use of such things . If you think Men have Authority to make any thing , in it self indifferent , a necessary part of God's Worship , I shall desire you to consider what our Author says of this Matter , which has not yet deserved your notice . The misapplying his Power , you say , is a Sin in the Magistrate , and lays him open to Divine Vengeance . And is it not a misapplying of his Power , and a Sin in him to use Force to bring Men to such a Compliance in an indifferent thing , which in Religious Worship may be a Sin to them ? Force , you say , may be used to punish those who dissent from the Communion of the Church of England . Let us suppose now all its Doctrines not only true , but necessary to Salvation ; but that there is put into the Terms of its Communion some indifferent Action which God has not enjoin'd , nor made a part of his Worship , which any Man is perswaded in his Conscience not to be lawful ; suppose kneeling at the Sacrament , which having been superstitiously used in Adoration of the Bread as the real Body of Christ , may give occasion of scruple to some now , as well as eating of Flesh offered to Idols did to others in the Apostles time ; which though lawful in it self , yet the Apostle said , he would eat no Flesh while the World standeth , rather than make his weak Brother offend . And if to lead , by Example , the Scrupulous into any Action , in it self indifferent , which they thought unlawful , be a Sin , as appears at large , Rom. XIV . how much more is it to add Force to our Example , and to compel Men by Punishments to that , which , though indifferent in it self , they cannot join in without sinning ? I desire you to shew me how Force can be necessary in such a Case , without which you acknowledg it not to be lawful . Not to kneel at the Lord's Supper , God not having ordained it , is not a Sin ; and the Apostles receiving it in the Posture of sitting or lying , which was then used at Meat , is an Evidence it may be received not kneeling . But to him that thinks Kneeling is unlawful , it is certainly a Sin. And for this you may take the Authority of a very Judicious and Reverend Prelate of our Church , in these Words ; Where a Man is mistaken in his Judgment , even in that Case it is always a Sin to act against it ; by so doing , he wilfully acts against the best Light which at present he has for the direction of his Actions . I need not here repeat his Reasons , having already quoted him above more at large ; though the whole Passage , writ ( as he uses ) with great Strength and Clearness , deserves to be read and considered . If therefore the Magistrate enjoins such an unnecessary Ceremony , and uses Force to bring any Man to a sinful Communion with our Church in it , let me ask you , Doth he sin , or misapply his Power or no ? True and false Religions are Names that easily engage Mens Affections on the hearing of them ; the one being the Aversion , the other the Desire ( at least as they perswade themselves ) of all Mankind . This makes Men forwardly give into these Names , where-ever they meet with them ; and when mention is made of bringing Men from false to the true Religion ( very often without knowing what is meant by those Names ) they think nothing can be done too much in such a Business , to which they intitle God's Honour , and the Salvation of Mens Souls . I shall therefore desire of you , if you are that fair and sincere Lover of Truth you profess , when you write again , to tell us what you mean by true , and what by a false Religion , that we may know which in your sense are so : for as you now have used these Words in your Treatise , one of them seems to stand only for the Religion of the Church of England , and the other for that of all other Churches . I expect here you should make the same Outcries against me , as you have in your former Letter , for imposing a Sense upon your Words contrary to your Meaning ; and for this you will appeal to your own Words in some other Places : but of this I shall leave the Reader Judg , and tell him , this is a Way very easy and very usual for Men , who having not clear and consistent Notions , keep themselves as much as they can under the shelter of general and variously applicable Terms , that they may save themselves from the Absurdities or Consequences of one Place , by a help from some general or contrary Expression in another : Whether it be a desire of Victory , or a little too warm Zeal for a Cause you have been hitherto perswaded of , which hath led you into this way of writing ; I shall only mind you , that the Cause of God requires nothing , but what may be spoken out plainly in a clear determined Sense , without any reserve or cover . In the mean time this I shall leave with you as evident , That Force upon your ground cannot be lawfully used to bring Men to the Communion of the Church of England , ( that being all that I can find you clearly mean by the True Religion ) till you have proved that all that is required of one in that Communion , is necessary to Salvation . However therefore you tell us , That convenient Force used to bring Men to the true Religion , is all that you contend for , and all that you allow . That it is for promoting the true Religion . That it is to bring Men to consider , so as not to reject the Truth necessary to Salvation .... To bring Men to imbrace the Truth that must save them . And abundance more to this purpose . Yet all this Talk of the true Religion amounting to no more , but the National Religion established by Law in England ; and your bringing Men to it , to no more than bringing them to an outward Profession of it ; it would better have suted that Condition , ( viz. without Prejudice , and with an honest Mind ) which you require in others , to have spoke plainly what you aimed at , rather than prepossess Mens Minds in favour of your Cause , by the Impressions of a Name that in truth did not properly belong to it . It was not therefore without ground that I said , I suspected you built all on this lurking Supposition , that the National Religion now in England , back'd by the publick Authority of the Law , is the only true Religion , and therefore no other is to be tolerated : which being a Supposition equally unavoidable , and equally just in other Countries ; unless that we can imagine that every-where but in England , Men believe what at the same time they think to be a Lie , &c. Here you erect your Plumes , and to this your triumphant Logick gives you not Patience to answer , without an Air of Victory in the entrance : How , Sir , is this Supposition equally unavoidable , and equally just in other Countries , where false Religions are the National ? ( for that you must mean , or nothing to the purpose . ) Hold , Sir , you go too fast ; take your own System with you , and you will perceive it will be enough to my purpose , if I mean those Religions which you take to be false : for if there be any other National Churches , which agreeing with the Church of England in what is necessary to Salvation , yet have established Ceremonies different from those of the Church of England ; should not any one who dissented here from the Church of England upon that account , as preferring that to our Way of Worship , be justly punished ? If so , then Punishment in Matters of Religion being only to bring Men to the true Religion , you must suppose him not to be yet of it , and so the National Church he approves of , not to be of the true Religion . And yet is it not equally unavoidable , and equally just , that that Church should suppose its Religion the only true Religion , as it is that yours should do so , it agrecing with yours in things necessary to Salvation , and having made some things , in their own nature indifferent , requisite to Conformity for Decency and Order , as you have done ? So that my saying , It is equally unavoidable , and equally just in other Countries , will hold good , without meaning what you charge on me , that that Supposition is equally unavoidable , and equally just , where the National Religion is absolutely false . But in that large Sense too , what I said will hold good ; and you would have spared your useless Subtilties against it , if you had been as willing to take my Meaning , and answered my Argument , as you were to turn what I said to a Sense which the Words themselves shew I never intended . My Argument in short was this , That granting Force to be useful to propagate and support Religion , yet it would be no Advantage to the true Religion , that you a Member of the Church of England , supposing yours to be the true Religion , should thereby claim a Right to use Force , since such a Supposition to those who were Members of other Churches , and believed other Religions , was equally unavoidable , and equally just . And the Reason I annexed , shews both this to be my Meaning , and my Assertion to be true : My Words are , Unless we can imagin●… that every-where but in England , Men believe what at the sam●… time they think to be a Lie. Having therefore never said , nor thought that it is equally unavoidable , or equally just , that Men in every Country should believe the National Religion of the Country ; but that it is equally unavoidable , and equally just , that Men believing the National Religion of their Country , be it true or false , should suppose it to be true ; and let me here add also , should endeavour to propagate it : you however go on thus to reply ; If so , then I fear it will be equally true too , and equally rational : for otherwise I see not how it can be equally unavoidable , or equally just : for if it be not equally true , it cannot be equally just ; and if it be not equally rational , it cannot be equally unavoidable . But if it be equally true , and equally rational , then either all Religions are true , or none is true : for if they be all equally true , and one of them be not true , then none of them can be true . I challenge any one to put these four good Words , unavoidable , just , rational and true , more equally together , or to make a better-wrought Deduction : but after all , my Argument will nevertheless be good , that it is no Advantage to your Cause , for you or any one of it , to suppose yours to be the only true Religion ; since it is equally unavoidable , and equally just for any one , who believes any other Religion , to suppose the same thing . And this will always be so , till you can shew , that Men cannot receive false Religions upon Arguments that appear to them to be good ; or that having received Falshood under the appearance of Truth , they can , whilst it so appears , do otherwise than value it , and be acted by it , as if it were true . For the Equality that is here in question , depends not upon the Truth of the Opinion imbraced , but on this , that the Light and Perswasion a Man has at present , is the Guide which he ought to follow , and which in his Judgment of Truth he cannot avoid to be governed by . And therefore the terrible Consequences you dilate on in the following part of that Page , I leave you for your private Use on some sitter Occasion . You therefore who are so apt without cause to complain of want of Ingenuity in others , will do well hereafter to consult your own , and another time change your Stile ; and not under the undesined Name of the true Religion , because that is of more Advantage to your Argument , mean only the Religion established by Law in England , shutting out all other Religions now professed in the World. Though when you have defined what is the true Religion , which you would have supported and propagated by Force ; and have told us 't is to be found in the Liturgy and thirty nine Articles of the Church of England ; and it be agreed to you , that that is the only true Religion , your Argument ( for Force as necessary to Mens Salvation ) from the want of Light and Strength enough in the true Religion to prevail against Mens Lusts , and the Corruption of their Nature , will not hold ; because your bringing Men by Force , your way applied , to the true Religion , be it what you will , is but bringing them to an outward Conformity to the National Church . But the bringing them so far , and no farther , having no opposition to their Lusts , no Inconsistency with their corrupt Nature , is not on that account at all necessary , nor does at all help , where only , on your grounds , you say , there is need of the Assistance of Force towards their Salvation . CHAP. VIII . Of Salvation to be procured by Force your way . THere cannot be imagined a more laudable Design than the promoting the Salvation of Mens Souls , by any one who shall undertake it . But if it be a Pretence made use of to cover some other By-Interest , nothing can be more odious to Men , nothing more provoking to the great God of Heaven and Earth , nothing more misbecoming the Name and Character of a Christian. With what Intention you took your P●…n in hand to defend and incourage the use of Force in the business of Mens Salvation , 't is sit in Charity we take your Word ; but what your Scheme , as you have delivered it , is guilty of , 't is my business to take notice of , and represent to you . To my saying , that if Persecution , as is pretended , were for the Salvation of Mens Souls , bare Conformity would not serve the turn , but Men would be examined whether they do it upon Reason and Conviction : You answer , Who they be that pretend that Persecution is for the Salvation of Mens Souls , you know not . Whatever you know not , I know one , who in the Letter under consideration pleads for Force , as useful for the promoting the Salvation of Mens Souls : and that the use of Force is no other Means for the Salvation of Mens Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed . That so far is the Magistrate , when he gives his helping - Hand to the furtherance of the Gospel , by laying convenient Penalties upon such as reject it , or any part of it , from using any other Means for the Salvation of Mens Souls , than what the Author and Finisher of our Faith has directed , that he does no more than his Duty for promoting the Salvation of Souls . And as the Means by which Men may be brought into the Way of Salvation . Ay , but where do you say that Persecution is for the Salvation of Souls ? I thought you had been arguing against my Meaning , and against the things I say , and not against my Words in your Meaning , which is not against me . That I used the word Persecution for what you call Force and Penalties , you knew : for in pag. 21. that immediately precedes this , you take notice of it , with some little kind of Wonder , in these Words ; Persecution , so it seems you call all Punishments for Religion . That I do so then , ( whether properly or improperly ) you could not be ignorant ; and then I beseech you apply your Answer here to what I say : My Words are ; ` I●… Persecution ( as is pretended ) were for the Salvation of Mens Souls , Men that conform would be examined whether `they did so upon Reason and Conviction . Change my word Persecution into Punishment for Religion , and then consider the Truth or Ingenuity of your Answer : for in that sense of the word Persecution , do you know no body that pretends Persecution is for the Salvation of Mens Souls ? So much for your Ingenuity , and the Arts you allow your self to serve a good Cause . What do you think of one of my Pagans or Mahometans ? Could he have done better ? For I shall often have occasion to mind you of them . Now to your Argument I said , That I thought those who make Laws , and use Force , to bring Men to Church-Conformity in Religion ; seek only the Compliance , but concern themselves not for the Conviction of those they punish , and so never use Force to convince . For pray tell me , When any Dissenter conforms , and enters into the Church-Communion , is he ever examined to see whether he does it upon Reason and Conviction , and such Grounds as would become a Christian concerned for Religion ? If Persecution ( as i●… pr●…tended ) were for the Salvation of Mens Souls , this would be done , and Men not driven to take the Sacrament to keep their Places , or obtain Licences to s●…ll Ale , ( for so low have these holy things been prostituted . ) To this you here reply ; As to those Magistrates , who having provided sufficiently for the Instruction of all under their Care , in the true Religion , do make Laws , and use moderate Penalties to bring Men to the Communion of the Church of God , and Conformity to the Rules and Orders of it , I think their Behaviour does plainly enough speak them to seek and concern themselves for the Conviction of those wh●…m they punish , and for their Compliance only as the Fruit of their Conviction . If Means of Instruction were all , that is necessary to convince People , the providing sufficiently for Instruction would be an Evidence , that those that did so , did seek and concern themselves for Mens Conviction : but if there be something as necessary for Conviction as the Means of Instruction , and without which those Means will signify nothing , and that be severe and impartial Examination ; and if Force be , as you say , so necessary to make Men thus examine , that they can by no other way but Force be brought to do it : If Magistrates do not lay their Penalties on Non-examination , as well as provide Means of Instruction , whatever you may say you think , few People will sind reason to believe you think those Magistrates seek and concern themselves much for the Conviction of those they punish , when that Punishment is not levell'd at that , which is a hindrance to their Conviction , i. e. against their Aversion to severe and impartial Examination . To that Aversion no Punishment can be pretended to be a Remedy , which does not reach and combat the Aversion ; which ' 〈◊〉 plain no Punishment does , which may be avoided without parting with , or abating the Prevalency of that Aversion . This is the Case , where Men undergo Punishments for not conforming , which they may be rid of , without 〈◊〉 and impartially examining Matters of Religion . To shew that what I mentioned was no Sign of Unconcernedness in the Magistrate for Mens Conviction ; You add , Nor does the contrary appear from the not examining Dissenters when they conform , t●… see whether they do it upon Reason and Conviction : For where sufficient Instruction is provided , it is ordinarily presumable that when Dissenters conform , they do it upon Reason and Conviction . Here if ordinarily signifies any thing , ( for it is a Word you make much use of , whether to express or cover your Sense , let the Reader judg ) then you suppose there are Cases wherein it is not presumable ; and I a●…k you whether in those , or any Cases it be examin'd whether Dissenters when they conform , do it upon Reason and Conviction ? At best that it is ordinarily pr●…sumable , is but gra●…is dictum , especially since you suppose , that it is the Corruption of their Nature that hinders them from considering as they ought , so as upon Reason and. Conviction to imbrace the Truth : Which Corruption of Nature , that they may retain with Conformity I think is very presumable . But be that as it will , this I am fure is ordinarily and always presumable , that if those who use Force , were as intent upon Mens Conviction , as they are on their Conformity , they would not wholly content themselves with the one , without ever examining and looking into the other . Another Excuse you make for this Neglect , is , That as to irreligious Persons who only seek their s●…chlar Advantage , how easy it is for them to pretend Conviction , and to offer such Grounds ( if that were required ) as would become a Christian concerned for Religion , that is , what no Care of Man can certainly prevent . This is an admirable Justification of your Hypothesis . Men are to be punished : To what end ? To make them severely and impartially consider Matters of Religion , that they may be convinced , and thereupon sincerely imbrace the Truth . But what need of Force or Punishment for this ? Because their Lusts and Corruptions will otherwise keep them both from considering as they ought , and imbracing the true Religion ; and therefore they must lie under Penalties till they have considered as they ought , which is when they have upon Conviction imbraced . But how shall the Magistrate know when they upon Conviction imbrace , that he may then take off their Penalties ? That indeed cannot be known , and ought not to be inquired after , because irreligious Persons who only seek their secular Advantage , or in other Words , all those who desire at their ease to retain their beloved Lusts and Corruptions , may easily pretend Conviction , and offer such Grounds ( if it were required ) as would become a Christian concerned for Religion : This is what no Care of Man can certainly prevent . Which is Reason enough , why no busy Forwardness in Man to disease his Brother should use Force upon Pretence of prevalling against Man's Corruptions , that hinder their considering and imbracing the Truth upon Conviction , when 't is confessed , it cannot be known , whether they have considered , are convinced , or have really imbraced the true Religion or no ? And thus you have shewn us your admirable Remedy , which is not it seems for the irreligious ( for 't is easy , you say , for them to pretend Conviction , and so avoid Punishment ) but for those who would be religious without it . But here in this Case , as to the Intention of the Magistrate , how can it be said , that the Force he uses is designed by subduing Mens Corruptions , to make way for considering and imbracing the Tr●…th , when it is so applied , that it is confessed here , that a Man may get rid of the Penalties without parting with the Corruptions , they are pretended to be used against ? But you have a ready Answer , This is what no Care of Man can certainly prevent ; which is but in other Words to proclaim the Ridiculousness of your Use of Force , and to avow that your Method can do nothing . If by not certainly , you mean it may any way , or to any degree prevent , why is it not so done ? If not , why is a Word that signifies nothing put in , unless it be for a Shelter on Occasion ? A Benefit you know how to draw from this way of writing : But this here taken how you please , will only serve to lay Blame on the Magistrate , or your Hypothesis , chuse you whether . I for my part have a better Opinion of the Ability and Management of the Magistrate : What he aimed at in his Laws , that I believe he mentions in them , and as wise Men do in Bu●…nes , fpoke out plainly what he had a Mind should be done . But c●…inly there cannot a more ridiculous Character be put on Law-makers , than to tell the World they intended to make Men consider , examine , &c. but yet neither required nor named any thing in their Laws but Conformity . Though yet when Men are certainly to be punished for not really imbracing the true Religion , there ought to be certain Matters of Fact , whereby those that do , and those that do not so imbrace the Truth , should be distinguished ; and for that you have , 't is true , a clear and established Criterion , i. e. Conformity and Nonconformity : which do very certainly distinguish the Innocent from the Guilty ; those that really and sincerely do imbrace the Truth that must save them , from those that do not . But , Sir , to resolve the Question , whether the Conviction of Mens Understandings , and the Salvation of their Souls , be the Business and Aim of those who use Force to bring Men into the Profession of the National Religion ; I ask , whether if that were so , there could be so many as there are , not only in most Country-Parishes , but , I think I may say , may be found in all Parts of England , grosly ignorant in the Doctrines and Principles of the Christian Religion , if a strict Inquiry were made into it ? If Force be necessary to be used to bring Men to Salvation , certainly some part of it would 〈◊〉 out some of the ignorant and unconsidering that are in the National Church , as well as it does so diligently all the Nonconformists out of it , whether they have considered , or are knowing or no. But to this you give a very ready Answer ; Would you have the Magistrate punish all indifferently , those who obey the Law as well as them that do not ? What is the Obedience the Law requires ? That you tell us in these Words , If the Magistrate provides 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Instruction of all his Subjects in the true Religion , and then requires them all under convenient Penalties to 〈◊〉 to the Teachers and Ministers of it , and to profess and exercise it with one Accord under their Direction in publick Assemblies : Which in other Words is but Conformity , which here you express a little plainer in these Words ; But as those Magistrates who having provided sufficiently for the Instruction of all under their Care in the true Religion do make Laws , and use moderate Penalties to bring Men to the Communion of the Church of God , and to conform to the Rules and Orders of it . You add , Is there any Pretence to say that in so doing , he [ the Magistrate ] applies Force only to a part of his 〈◊〉 , when the Law is general , and excepts none ? There is no Pretence , I confess , to say that in so doing he applies Force only to a part of his Subjects , to make them Conformists , from that it is plain the Law excepts none . But if Conformists may be ignorant , grosly ignorant of the Principles and Doctrines of Christianity ; if there be no 〈◊〉 used to make them consider as they ought , so as to understand , be convinced of , believe and obey the Truths of the Gospel , are not they exempt from that Force which you say is to make Men consider and examine Matters of Religion as they ought to do ? Force is applied to all indeed to make them Conformists : But if being Conformists once , and frequenting the Places of publick Worship , and there shewing an outward Compliance with the Ceremonies prescribed , ( for that is all the Law requires of all , call it how you please ) they are exempt from all Force and Penalties , though they are never so ignorant , never so far from understanding , believing , receiving the Truths of the 〈◊〉 ; I think it is evident that then Force is not applied to all to 〈◊〉 the Conviction of the Vnderstanding . To bring Men to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper to convince the Mind , and which without being forced , they would not consider . To bring Men to that Consideration , which nothing else but Force ( besides the extraordinary Grace of God ) would bring them to . To make Men good Christians . To make Men receive Instruction . To cure their Aversion to the true Religion . To bring Men to consider and examine the Controversies which they are bound to consider and examine , i. e. those wherein they cannot err without dishonouring God , and endangering their own and other Mens eternal Salvation . To weigh Matters of Religion carefully and impartially . To bring Men to the true Religion and to Salvation . That then Force is not applied to all the Subjects for these Ends , I think you will not deny . These are the Ends for which you tell us in the Places quoted , that Force is to be used in Matters of Religion : 'T is by its Vsefulness and Necessity to those Ends , that you tell us , the Magistrate is authorized and obliged to use Force in Matters of 〈◊〉 . Now if all these Ends be not attained by a bare 〈◊〉 , and yet if by a bare Conformity Men are wholly exempt from all Force and Penalties in Matters of Religion , will you say that for these Ends Force is applied to all the Magistrate's Subjects ? If you will , I must send you to my Pagans and 〈◊〉 for a little Conscience and Modesty . If you 〈◊〉 Force 〈◊〉 not 〈◊〉 to all for these Ends , notwithstanding any Laws obliging all to Conformity , you must also confess , 〈◊〉 what you say concerning the Laws being general , is nothing to the Purpose ; since all that are under Penalties for not 〈◊〉 are not under any Penalties for Ignorance , Irreligion , or the want of those Ends for which you say Penalties are useful and necessary . You go on , And therefore if such Persons profane the Sacrament to keep their Places , or to obtain Licences to sell Ale , this is an horrible Wickedness . I 〈◊〉 them not . But it is their own , and they alone must answer for it . Yes , and those who threatned poor ignorant and irreligious Ale-sellers , whose Livelihood it was , to take away their Licences , if they did not conform and receive the Sacrament , may be thought perhaps to have something to answer for . You add , But it is very unjust to impute it to those who make such Laws , and use such Force , or to say that they prostitute holy things , and drive Men to profane them . Nor is it just to insinuate in your Answer , as if that had been said which was not . But if it be true that a poor ignorant loose irreligious Wretch should be threatned to be turn'd out of his Calling and Livelihood , if he would not take the Sacrament : May it not be said these holy things have been so low prostituted ? And if this be not profaning them , pray tell me what is ? This I think may be said without Injustice to any body , that it does not appear , that those who make strict Laws for Conformity , and take no Care to have it examined upon what Grounds Men conform , are not very much concern'd , that Mens Understandings should be convinced : And though you go on to say , that they design by their Laws to do what lies in them to make Men good Christians : That will scarce be believed , if what you say be true , that Force is necessary to bring those who cannot be otherwise brought to it , to study the true Religion , with such Care and Diligence as they might and ought to use , and with an honest Mind . And yet we see a great part , or any of those who are ignorant in the true Religion , have no such Force applied to them , especially since you tell us , in the same Place , that no Man ever studied the true Religion with such Care and Diligence as he might and ought to use , and with an honest Mind , but he was convinced of the Truth of it . If then Force and Penalties can produce that Study , Care , Diligence and honest Mind , which will produce Knowledg and Conviction ( and that as you say in the following Words ) make good Men ; I ask you , if there be found in the Communion of the Church , exempt from Force upon the Account of Religion , ignorant , irreligious , ill Men ; and that to speak moderately , not in great Disproportion fewer than amongst the Nonconformists , will you believe your self , when you say the Magistrates do by their Laws all that in them lies to make them good Christians ; when they use not that Force to them which you , not I , say is necessary ; and that they are , where it is necessary , obliged to use ? And therefore I give you leave to repeat again the Words you subjoin here , But if after all they [ i. e. the Magistrates ] can do , wicked and godless Men will still resolve to be so , they will be so , and I know not who but God Almighty can help it . But this being spoken of Conformists , on whom the Magistrates lay no Penalties , use no Force for Religion , give me leave to mind you of the Ingenuity of one of my Pagans or Mahometans . You tell us , That the Usefulness of Force to make Scholars learn , authorizes Schoolmasters to use it . And would you not think a Schoolmaster discharged his Duty well , and had a great Care of their Learning , who used his Rod only to bring Boys to School ; but if they come there once a Week , whether they slept , or only minded their Play , never examined what Proficiency they made , or used the Rod to make them study and learn , tho they would not apply themselves without it ? But to shew you how much you your self are in earnest for the Salvation of Souls in this your Method , I shall set down what I said , p. 61. of my Letter on that Subject , and what you answer , p. 68. of yours . L. 2. p. 61. You speak of it here as the most deplorable Condition imaginable , that Men should be left to themselves , and not be forced to consider and examine the Grounds of their Religion , and search impartially and diligently after the Truth . This you make the great Miscarriage of Mankind ; and for this you seem solicitous , all through your Treatise , to find out a Remedy ; and there is scarce a Leaf wherein you do not offer yours . But what if after all , now you should be found to prevaricate ? Men have contrived to themselves , say you , a great Variety of Religions : 'T is granted . They seek not the Truth in this matter with that Application of Mind , and that freedom of Judgment which is requisite : 'T is confessed . All the false Religions now on foot in the World , have taken their rise from the slight and partial Consideration , which Men have contented themselves with in searching after the true ; and Men take them up , and persist in them for want of due Examination : Be it so . There is need of a Remedy for this ; and I have found one whose Success cannot be questioned : Very well . What is it ? Let us hear it . Why , Dissenters must be punished . Can any body that hears you say so , believe you in earnest ; and that want of Examination is the thing you would have amended , when want of Examination is not the thing you would have punished ? If want of Examination be the Fault , want of Examination must be punished ; if you are , as you pretend , fully satisfied that Punishment is the proper and only Means to remedy it . But if in all your Treatise you can shew me one Place , where you say that the Ignorant , the Careless , the Inconsiderate , the Negligent in examining throughly the Truth of their own and others Religion , &c. are to be punished , I will allow your Remedy for a good one . But you have not said any thing like this ; and which is more , I tell you before-hand , you dare not say it . And whilst you do not , the World has reason to judg , that however want of Examination be a general Fault , which you with great Vehemency have exaggerated ; yet you use it only for a pretence to punish Dissenters ; and either distrust your Remedy , that it will not cure this Evil , or else care not to have it generally cur'd . This evidently appears from your whole Management of the Argument . And he that reads your Treatise with attention , wil be more confirm'd in this Opinion , when he shall find , that you ( who are so earnest to have Men punished , to bring them to consider and examine , that so they may discover the Way to Salvation ) have not said one word of considering , searching , and hearkning to the Scripture ; which had been as good a Rule for a Christian to have sent them to , as to Reasons and Arguments proper to convince them , of you know not what ; As to the Instruction and Government of the proper Ministers of Religion , which who they are , Men are yet far from being agreed ; Or as to the Information of those , who tell them they have mistaken their Way , and offer to shew them the right ; and to the like uncertain and dangerous Guides ; which were not those that our Saviour and the Apostles sent Men to , bat to the Scriptures . Search the Scriptures , for in them you think you have eternal Life , says our Saviour to the unbelieving persecuting Jews . And 't is the Scriptures which St. Paul says , are able to make wise unto Salvation . Talk no more therefore , if you have any care of your Reputation , how much it is every Man's Interest not to be left to himself , without Molestation , without Punishment in Matters of Religion . Talk not of bringing Men to imbrace the Truth that must save them , by putting them upon Examination . Talk no more of Force and Punishment , as the only way lest to bring Men to examin . 'T is evident you mean nothing less : For tho want of Examination be the only Fault you complain of , and Punishment be in your Opinion the only way to bring Men to it ; and this the whole Design of your Book ; yet you have not once proposed in it , that those who do not impartially examine , should be forced to it . And that you may not think I talk at random , when I say you dare not ; I will , if you please , give you some Reasons for my saying so . First , Because if you propose that all should be punished , who are ignorant , who have not used such Consideration as is apt and proper to manifest the Truth ; but have been determined in the choice of their Religion by Impressions of Education , Admiration of Persons , worldly Respects , Prejudices , and the like incompetent Motives ; and have taken up their Religion , without examining it as they ought ; you will propose to have several of your own Church ( be it what it will ) punished ; which would be a Proposition too apt to offend too many of it , for you to venture on . For whatever need there be of Reformation , every one will not thank you sor proposing such an one as must begin at ( or at least reach to ) the House of God. Secondly , Because if you should propose that all those who are ignorant , careless , and negligent in examining , should be punished , you would have little to say in this Question of Toleration : For if the Laws of the State were made as they ought to be , equal to all the Subjects , without distinction of Men of different Professions in Religion ; and the Faults to be amended by Punishments , were impartially punished in all who are guilty of them ; this would immediately produce a perfect Toleration , or shew the Uselesness of Force in Matters of Religion . Is therefore you think it so necessary , as you say , for the promoting of true Religion , and the Salvation of Souls , that Men should be punished to make them examine ; do but sind a way to apply Force to all that have not throughly and impartially examined , and you have my Consent . For tho Force be not the proper means of promoting Religion ; yet there is no better way to shew the Uselesness of it , than the applying it equally to Miscarriage , in whomsoever found , and not to distinct : Parties or Perswasions of Men , for the Reformation of them alone , when others are equally faulty . Thirdly , Because without being sor as large a Toleration as the Author proposes , you cannot be truly and sincerely for a free and impartial Examination . For whoever examines , must have the Liberty to judg , and follow his Judgment ; or else you put him upon Examination to no purpose . And whether that will not as well lead Men from , as to your Church , is so much a Venture , that by your way of Writing , 't is evident enough you are loth to hazard it ; and if you are of the National Church , 't is plain your Brethren will not bear with you in the Allowance of such a Liberty . You must therefore either change your Method ; and if the want of Examination be that great and dangerous Fault you would have corrected , you must equally punish all that are equally guilty of any Neglect in this Matter , and then take your only means , your beloved Force , and make the best of it ; or else you must put off your Mask , and confess that you design not your Punishments to bring Men to Examination , but to Conformity . For the Fallacy you have used , is too gross to pass upon this Age. L. 3. p. 68. Your next Paragraph runs high , and charges me with nothing less than Prevarication . For whereas , as you tell me , I speak of it here as the most deplorable Condition imaginable , that Men should be left to themselves , and not be forced to consider and examine the Grounds of their Religion , and search impartially and diligently after the Truth , &c. It seems all the Remedy I offer , is no more than this , Dissenters must be punished . Vpon which thus you insult ; Can any body that hears you say so , believe you in earnest , &c. Now here I acknowledg , that though want or neglect of Examination be a general Fault , yet the Method I propose for curing it , does not reach to all that are guilty of it , but is limited to those who reject the true Religion , preposed to them with sufficient Evidence . But then to let you see how little ground you have to say that I prevaricate in this matter , I shall only desire you to consider , what it is that the Author and my self were enquiring after : For it is not , What Course is to be taken to confirm and establish those in the Truth , who have already embraced it : nor , How they may be enabled to propagate it to others , ( for both which Purposes I have already acknowledged it very useful , and a thing much to be desired , that all such Persons should , as far as they are able , search into the Grounds upon which their Religion stands , and challenges their Belief ; ) but the Subject of our Enquiry is only , What Method is to be used , 〈◊〉 bring Men to the true Religion . Now if this be the only thing we were inquiring after , ( as you cannot deny it to be ) then every one sees that in speaking to this Point , I had nothing to do with any who have already imbraced the true Religion ; because they are not to be brought to that Religion , but only to be confirmed and edified in it ; but was only to consider how those who reject it , may be brought to imbrace it . So that how much soever any of those who own the true Religion , may be guilty of neglect of Examination ; 't is evident , I was only concerned to shew how it may be cured in those , who by reason of it , reject the true Religion , duly proposed or tender'd to them . And certainly to confine my self to this , is not to prevaricate , unless to keep within the Bounds which the Question under debate prescribes me , be to prevaricate . In telling me therefore that I dare not say that the Ignorant , the Careless , the Inconsiderate , the Negligent in examining , &c. ( i. e. all that are such ) are to be punished , you only tell me that I dare not be impertinent . And therefore I hope you will excuse me , if I take no notice of the three Reasons you offer in your next Page for your saying so . And yet if I had had a mind to talk impertinently , I know not why I might not have dared to do so , as well as other Men. There is one thing more in this Paragraph , which though nothing more pertinent than the rest , I shall not wholly pass over . It lies in these Words ; He that reads your Treatise with Attention , will be more confirm'd in this Opinion , ( viz. That I use want of Examination only for a Pretence to punish Dissenters , &c. ) when he shall find that you ( who are so earnest to have Men punish'd , to bring them to consider and examine , that so they may discover the Way of Salvation ) have not said one Word of considering , searching , and hearkning to the Scripture ; which had been as good a Rule for a Christian to have sent them to , as to Reasons and Arguments proper to convince them , of you know not what , &c. How this confirms that Opinion , I do not see ; nor have you thought fit to instruct me . But as to the thing it self , viz. my not saying one Word of considering , searching , and hearkning to the Scripture ; whatever Advantage a captious Adversary may imagine he has in it , I hope it will not seem strange to any indifferent and judicious Person , who shall but consider that throughout my Treatise I speak of the true Religion only in general , i. e. not as limited to any particular Dispensation , or to the Times of the Scriptures ; but as reaching from the Fall of Adam to the End of the World , and so comprehending the Times which preceded the Scriptures ; wherein yet God left not himself without Witness , but furnished Mankind with sufficient Means of knowing Him and his Will , in order to their eternal Salvation . For I appeal to all Men of Art , whether , speaking of the True Religion under this Generality , I could be allowed to descend to any such Rules of it , as belong only to some particular Times , or Dispensations ; such as you cannot but acknowledg the Old and New Testaments to be . In this your Answer you say , the Subject of our Inquiry is only what Method is to be used to bring Men to the true Religion . He that reads what you say , again and again , That the Magistrate is impower'd and obliged to procure as much as in him lies , i. e. as far as by Penalties it can be procured that NO MAN neglect his Soul , and shall remember how many Pages you imploy , A. p 6 , &c. And here p. 6 , &c. to shew that it is the Corruption of humane Nature which hinders Men from doing what they may and ought for the Salvation of their Souls , and that therefore Penalties , no other means being left , and Force were necessary to be used by the Magistrate to remove these great Obstacles of L●…sts and Corruptions , that none of his Subjects might remain ignorant of the way of Salvation , or refuse to imbrace it . One would think your Inquiry had been after the means of CVRING MENS Aversion to the true Religion , ( which you tell us , p. 53. if not cured , is certainly destructive of Mens Eternal Salvation ) that so they might heartily imbrace it for their Salvation . But here you tell us , your Inquiry is only what Method is to be used to bring Men to the true Religion : whereby you evidently mean nothing but outward Conformity to that which you think the true Church , as appears by the next following Words ; Now if this be the only thing we were inquiring after , then every one sees that in speaking to this Point , I had nothing to do with any who have already imbraced the true Religion . And also every one sees that since amongst those with whom ( having already imbraced the true Religion ) you and your Penalties have nothing to do ; there are those who have not considered and examined Matters of Religion as they ought , whose Lusts and corrupt Natures keep them as far alienated from believing , and as averse to a real obeying the Truth that must save them , as any other Men ; it is manifest that imbracing the true Religion in your Sense is only imbracing the outward Profession of it , which is nothing but outward Conformity . And that being the furthest you would have your Penalties pursue Men , and there leave them with as much of their Ignorance of the Truth , and Carelesness of their Souls as they please , who can deny but that it would be impertinent in you to consider how want of impartial Examination , or Aversion to the true Religion should in them be cured ? because they are none of those Subjects of the Commonwealth , whose spiritual and eternal Interests are by political Government to be procured or advanced , none of those Subjects whose Salvation the Magistrate is to take Care of . And therefore I excuse you , as you desire , for not taking notice of my three Reasons ; but whether the Reader will do so or no , is more than I can undertake . I hope you too will excuse me for having used so harsh a Word as prevaricate , and impute it to my want of Skill in the English Tongue . But when I find a Man pretend to a great Concern for the Salvation of Mens Souls , and make it one of the great Ends of Civil Government , that the Magistrate should make use of Force to bring all his Subjects to consider , study and examine , believe and imbrace the Truth that must save them : when I shall have to do with a Man , who to this Purpose hath writ two Books to find out and desend the proper Remedies for that general Backwardness and Aversion ( which depraved humane Nature keeps Men in ) to an impartial Search after , and hearty imbracing the true Religion ; and who talks of nothing less than Obligations on Soveraigns , both from their particular Duty , as well as from common Charity , to take Care that none of their Subjects should want the Assistance of this only means left for their Salvation ; nay , who has made it so necessary to Mens Salvation , that he talks as if the Wisdom and Goodness of God would be brought in Question , if those who needed it should be destitute of it ; and yet notwithstanding all this Shew of Concern for Mens Salvation , contrives the Application of this sole Remedy so , that a great many who lie under the Disease , should be out of the Reach and Benefit of his Cure , and never have this only Remedy applied to them : When this I say is so manifestly in his Thoughts all the while , that he is forced to confess that though Want or Neglect of Examination be a general Fault , yet the Method he proposes for curing it does not reach to all that are guilty of it ; but frankly owns , that he was not concerned to shew how the Neglect of Examination might be cured in those who conform , but only in those who by reason of it reject the true Religion duly proposed to them : which rejecting the true Religion will require a Man of Art to shew to be here any thing but Nonconformity to the National Religion . When , I say , I meet with a Man another time that does this , who is so much a Man of Art , as to talk of all , and mean but some ; talk of hearty imbracing the true Religion , and mean nothing but Conformity to the National ; pretend one thing , and mean another ; if you please to tell me what Name I shall give it , I shall not fail : for who knows how soon again I may have an occasion sor it . If I would punish Men for Nonconformity without owning of it , I could not use a better Pretence than to say it was to make them hearken to Reasons and Arguments proper to convince them , or to make them submit to the Instruction and Government of the proper Ministers of Religion , without any thing else , supposing still at the bottom the Arguments for , and the Ministers of my Religion to be these , that till they outwardly complied with , they were to be punished . But if ( instead of outward Conformity to my Religion covered under these indesinite terms ) I should tell them , they were to examine the Scripture , which was the sixed Rule for them and me , not examining could not give me a Pretence to punish them , unless I would also punish Conformists as ignorant and unversed in the Scripture as they , which would not do my Business . But what need I use Arguments to shew , that your punishing to make Men examine is designed only against Dissenters , when in your Answer to this very Paragraph of mine , you in plain Words acknowledg , that though want of Examination be a general Fault , yet the Method you propose for curing does not reach to all that are guilty of it ? To which if you please to add what you tell us , That when Dissenters conform , the Magistrate cannot know , and therefore never examins whether they do it upon Reason and Conviction or no , though it be certain that upon conforming , Penalties , the necessary Means , cease , it will be obvious , that whatever be talked , Conformity is all that is aimed at , and that want of Examination is but the Pretence to punish Dissenters . And this I told you , any one must be convinced of , who observes that you ( who are so earnest to have Men punished to bring them to consider and examine that so they may discover the way of Salvation ) have not said one Word of considering , searching , and hearkning to the Scripture , which , you were told , was as good a Rule for a Christian to have sent Men to , as to the Instruction and Government of the proper Ministers of Religion , or to the Information of those who tell them they have mistaken ' their way , and offer to shew them the right . For this p●…ssing by the Scripture you give us this Reason , that throughout your Trea●…se you speak of the true Religion only in general , i. e. not as limited to any particular Dispensation , or to the times of the Scriptures , but as reaching from the Fall of Adam to the End of the World , &c. And then you appeal to all Men of Art , whether speaking of the true Religion under this Generality , you could be allowed to descend to any such Rules of it as belong only to some particular Times or Dispensations , such as I cannot but acknowledg the Old and New Testaments to be . The Author that you write against , making it his Business ( as no body can doubt who reads but the first Page of his Letter ) to shew that it is the Duty of Christians to tolerate both Christians and others who differ from them in Religion , 't is pretty strange ( in asserting against him that the Magistrate might and ought to use Force to bring Men to the true Religion ) you should mean any other Magistrate than the Christian Magistrate ; or any other Religion than the Christian Religion . But it seems you took so little notice of the Design of your Adversary , which was to prove , that Christians were not to use Force to bring any one to the true Christian Religion ; that you would prove , that Christians now were to use Force , not only to bring Men to the Christian , but also to the Jewish Religion ; or that of the true Church before the Law , or to some true Religion so general that it is none of these . For , say you , throughout your Treatise you speak of the true Religion only in general , i. e. not as limited to any particular Dispensation : Though one that were not a Man of Art would suspect you to be of another Mind your self , when you told us , the shuting out of the Jews from the Rights of the Common-wealth , is a just and necessary Caution in a Christian Commonwealth ; which you say to justify your Exception in the beginning of your A — against the Largeness of the Author's Toleration , who would not have Jews excluded . But speak of the true Religion only in general as much as you please , if your true Religion be that by which Men must be saved , can you send a Man to any better Guide to that true Religion now than the Scripture ? If when you were in your Altitudes , writing the first Book , your Men of Art could not allow you to descend to any such Rule as the Scripture , ( though even there you acknowledg the Severities spoken against , are such as are used to make Men Christians ) because there ( by an Art proper to your self ) you were to speak of true Religion under a Generality , which had nothing to do with the Duty of Christians , in reference to Toleration . Yet when here in your second Book , where you condescend all along to speak of the CHRISTIAN RELIGION , and tell us , that the Magistrates have Authority to make Laws for promoting the Christian RELIGION , and do by their Laws design to contribute what in them lies to make Men good CHRISTIANS ; and complain of Toleration as the very Bane of the Life and Spirit of CHRISTIANITY , &c. and have vouchsafed particularly to mention the Gospel ; why here , having been call'd upon for it , you could not send Men to the Scriptures , and tell them directly , that those they were to study diligently , those they were impartially and carefully to examine , to bring them to the true Religion , and into the way of Salvation ; rather than talk to them as you do , of receiving Instruction , and considering Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them ; rather than propose , as you do all along , such Objects of Examination and Enquiry in general terms , as are as hard to be found , as the thing it self , for which they are to be examined : Why I say you have here again avoided sending Men to examine the Scriptures , is just matter of Inquiry . And for this you must apply your self again to your Men of Art , to furnish you with some other Reason . If you will but cast your Eyes back to your next Page , you will there find that you build upon this , that the Subject of your and the Author's I●…quiry is only what Method is to be used to bring Men to the true Religion . If this be so , your Men of Art , who cannot allow you to descend to any such Rule as the Scriptures , because you speak of the true Religion in general , i. e. not as limited to any particular Dispensation , or to the times of the Scriptures , must allow , that you deserve to be Head of their Colledg ; since you are so strict an Observer of their Rules , that though your Inquiry be , What Method is to be used to bring Men to the true Religion ( now under the particular Dispensation of the Gospel , and under Scripture-times ) you think it an unpardonable Fault to recede so far from your Generality , as to admit the Study and Examination of the Scripture into your Method ; for fear , 't is like , your Method would be too particular , if it would not now serve to bring Men to the true Religion , who lived before the Flood . But had you had as good a Memory , as is generally thought needful to a Man of Art , it is believed you would have spared this Reason , for your being so backward in putting Men upon Examination of the Scripture . And any one , but a Man of Art , who shall read what you tell us the Magistrate's Duty is ; and will but consider how convenient it would be , that Men should receive no Instruction but from the Ministry , that you there tell us the Magistrate assists ; examine no Arguments , hear nothing of the Gospel , receive no other Sense of the Scripture , but what that Ministry proposes ; who if they had but the coactive Power , ( you think them as capable of as other Men ) might assist themselves ; He , I say , who reflects but on these things , may perhaps find a Reason that may better satisfy the Ignorant and Unlearned , who have not had the good luck to arrive at being of the Number of these Men of Art , why you cannot descend to propose to Men the studying of the Scripture . Let me for once suppose you in holy Orders , ( for we that are not of the Adepti , may be allow'd to be ignorant of the Punctilio's in Writing observed by the Men of Art : ) And let me then ask what Art is this , whose Rules are of that Authority ; that One , who has received Commission from Heaven to preach the Gospel in Season and out of Season , for the Salvation of Souls , may not allow himself to propose the reading , studying , examining of the Scripture , which has for at least these sixteen hundred Years contained the only true Religion in the World ; for fear 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Proposal should offend against the Rules of this Art by being too particular and consined to the Gospel-Dispensation ; And therefore could not pass muster , nor find Admittance , in a Treatise wherein the Author professes it his only Business to inquire what Method is to be used to bring Men to the true Religion ? Do you expect any other Dispensation ; that you are so afraid of being too particular , if you should recommend the Use and Study of the Scripture , to bring Men to the true Religion now in the times of the Gospel ? Why might you not as well send them to the Scriptures , as to the Ministers and Teachers of the true Religion ? Have those Ministers any other Religion to teach , than what is contained in the Scriptures ? But perhaps you do this out of Kindness and Care , because possibly the Scriptures could not be found ; but who were the Ministers of the true Religion , Men could not possibly miss . Indeed you have allowed your self to descend to what belongs only to some particular Times and Dispensations , for their sakes , when you speak of the Ministers of the Gospel . But whether it be as fully agreed on amongst Christians , who are the Ministers of the Gospel that Men must hearken to , and be guided by ; as which are the Writings of the Apostles and Evangelists , that ( if studied ) will instruct them in the way to Heaven ; is more than you or your Men of Art can be positive in . Where are the Canons of this over-ruling Art to be found , to which you pay such Reverence ? May a Man of no distinguishing Character be admitted to the Privilege of them ? For I see it may be of notable Use at a dead-lift , and bring a Man off with flying Colours , when Truth and Reason can do him but little Service . The strong Guard you have in the Powers you write for ; And when you have engaged a little too far , the safe Retreat you have always at hand in an Appeal to these Men of Art , made me almost at a stand , whether I were not best make a Truce with one who had such Auxiliaries . A Friend of mine finding me talk thus , replied briskly ; 't is a Matter of Religion , which requires not Men of Art ; and the Assistance of such Art as savours so little of the Simplicity of the Gospel , both shews and makes the Cause the weaker . And so I went on to your two next Paragraphs . In them , to vindicate a pretty strange Argument for the Magistrate's Use of Force , you think it convenient to repeat it out of your A. p. 26. And so , in Compliance with you , shall I do here again . There you tell us , The Power you ascribe to the Magistrate is given him to bring Men , not to his own , but to the true Religion : And though ( as our Author puts us in mind ) the Religion of every Prince is Orthodox to himself ; yet if this Power keep within its bounds , it can serve the Interest of no other Religion but the true , among such as have any Concern for their Eternal Salvation ; ( and those that have none , deserve not to be considered ) because the Penalties it inables him that has it to instict , are not such as may tempt such Persons either to renounce a Religion which they believe to be true , or to profess one which they do not believe to be so ; but only such as are apt to put them upon a serious and impartial Examination of the Controversy between the Magistrate and them , which is the way for them to come to the Knowledg of the Truth . And if , upon such Examination of the Matter , they chance to sind that the Truth does not lie on the Magistrate's side , they have gained thus much however , even by the Magistrate's misapplying his Power , that they know better than they did before , where the Truth doth lie : And all the hurt that comes to them by it , is only the suffering some tolerable Inconveniences for their following the Light of their own Reason , and the Dictates of their own Consciences ; which , certainly , is no such Mischief to Mankind as to make it more eligible that there should be no such Power vested in the Magistrate , but the Care of every Man's Soul should be left to himself alone , ( as this Author demands it should be . ) To this I tell you , That here , out of abundant Kindness , when Dissenters have their Heads ( without any cause ) broken , you provide them a Plaister . For , say you , if upon such Examination of the Matter ( i. e. brought to it by the Magistrate's Punishment ) they chance to find that the Truth doth not lie on the Magistrate's side ; they have gain'd thus much however , even by the Magistrate's misapplying his Power , that they know better than they did before , where the Truth does lie . Which is as true as if you should say ; Upon Examination I find such an one is out of the way to York , therefore I know better than I did before that I am in the right . For neither of you may be in the right . This were true indeed , if there were but two ways in all , a Right and a Wrong . To this you reply here ; That whoever shall consider the Penalties , will , you perswade your self , find no Heads broken , and so but little need of a Plaister . The Penalties , as you say , are to be such as will not tempt such as have any concern for their Eternal Salvation , either to renounce a Religion which they believe to be true , or profess one which they believe not to be so , but only such as ( being weigh'd in Gold-Scales ) are just enough , or as you express it , are apt to put them upon a serious and impartial Examination of the Controversy between the Magistrate and them . If you had been pleased to have told us what Penalties those were , we might have been able to guess whether there would have been broken Heads or no. But since you have not vouchsafed to do it , and if I mistake not , will again appeal to your Men of Art for another Dispensation rather than ever do it ; I fear no body can be sure these Penalties will not reach to something worse than a broken Head : Especially if the Magistrate shall observe that you impute the Rise and Growth of salse Religions ( which it is the Magistrate's Duty to hinder ) to the Pravity of humane Nature , unbridled by Authority ; which , by what follows , he may have reason to think is to use Force sufficient to counterballance the Folly , Perverseness and Wickedness of Men : And whether then he may not lay on Penalties sufficient , if not to break Mens Heads , yet to ruin them in their Estates and Liberties , will be more than you can undertake . And since you acknowledg here , that the Magistrate may err so far in the Use of this his Power , as to mistake the Persons that he lays his Penalties on ; will you be Security that he shall not also mistake in the Proportion of them , and lay on such as Men would willingly exchange for a broken Head ? All the Assurance you give us of this , is ; If this Power keep within its bounds ; i. e. as you here explain it , If the Penalties the Magistrate makes use of to promote a false Religion , do not exceed the Measure of those which he may warrantably use for the promoting the True. The Magistrate may notwithstanding any thing you have said , or can say , use any sort of Penalties , any degree of Punishment ; you having neither shew'd the Measure of them , nor will be ever able to shew the utmost Measure which may not be exceeded , if any may be used . But what is this I find here ? If the Penalties the Magistrate makes use of to promote a FALSE RELIGION . Is it possible that the Magistrate can make use of Penalties to promote a false Religion ; Of whom you told us but three Pages back , That it may always be said of him , ( what St. Paul said of himself ) that he can do nothing against the Truth , but for the Truth ? By that one would have thought you had undertaken to us , that the Magistrate could no more use Force to promote a false Religion , than St. Paul could preach to promote a false Religion . If you say , the Magistrate has no Commission to promote a false Religion , and therefore it may always be said of him , what St. Paul said of himself &c. I say , no Minister was ever commissioned to preach Falshood ; and therefore it may always be said of every Minister , ( what St. Paul said of himself ) that he can do nothing against the Truth , but for the Truth : Whereby we shall very commodiously have an infallible Guide in every Parish , as well as one in every Commonwealth . But if you thus use Scripture , I imagine you will have reason to appeal again to your Men of Art ; whether , though you may not be allowed to recommend to others the Examination and Use of Scripture , to find the true Religion , yet you your self may not use the Scripture to what Purpose , and in what Sense you please , for the defence of your Cause . To the remainder of what I said in that Paragraph , your Answer is nothing but an Exception to an Inference I made . The Argument you were upon , was to justify the Magistrate's inflicting Penalties to bring Men to a false Religion , by the Gain those that suffered them would receive . Their Gain was this ; That they would know better than they did before , where the Truth does lie . To which I replied , Which is as true , as if you should say , upon Examination I find such an one is out of the Way to York ; therefore I know better than I did before , that I am in the right . This Consequence you find fault with , and say it should be thus ; Therefore I know better than I did before , where the right Way lies . This , you tell me , would have been true ; which was not for my Purpose . These Consequences , one or t'other , are much-what alike true . For he that of an hundred Ways , amongst which there is but one right , shuts out one that he discovers certainly to be wrong , knows as much better than he did before , that he is in the right , as he knows better than before , where the right Way lies . For before 't was 99 to one he was not in the right ; and now he knows 't is but 98 to one that he is not in the right ; and therefore knows so much better than before , that he is in the right , just as much as he knows better than he did before , where the right Way lies . For let him , upon your Supposition , proceed on ; and every Day , upon examination of a Controversy with some one in one of the remaining Ways , discover him to be in the wrong ; he will every Day know better than he did before , equally , where the right Way lies , and that he is in it ; till at last he will come to discover the right Way it self , and himself in it . And therefore your Inference , whatever you think , is as much as the other for my Purpose ; which was to shew what a notable Gain a Man made in the variety of false Opinions and Religions in the World , by discovering that the Magistrate had not the Truth on his side ; and what Thanks he owed the Magistrate , for inslicting Penalties upon him so much for his Improvement , and for affording him so much Knowledg at so cheap a rate . And should not a Man have reason to boast of his Purchase , if he should by Penalties be driven to hear and examine all the Arguments can be proposed by those in Power for all their foolish and false Religions ? And yet this Gain is what you propose , as a Justification of Magistrates inslicting Penalties for the promoting their false Religions . And an impartial Examination of the Controversy between them and the Magistrate , you tell us here , is the way for such as have any concern for their eternal Salvation , to come to the knowledg of the Truth . To my saying , ` He that is punished may have examined before , ` and then I am sure he gains nothing : You reply , But neither does he lose much , if it be true , which you there add , that all the Hurt that befalls him , is only the suffering some tolerable Inconvenience for his following the Light of his own Reason , and the Dictates of his Conscience . So it is therefore you would have a Man rewarded for being an honest Man ; ( for so is he who follows the Light of his own Reason , and the Dictates of his Conscience ; ) only with the suffering some tolerable Inconveniences . And yet those tolerable Inconveniences are such as are to counterballance Mens Lusts , and the Corruption of depraved Nature ; which you know any slight Penalty is sufficient to master . But that the Magistrate's Discipline shall stop at those your tolerable Inconveniences , is what you are loth to be Guarantee for : For all the Security you dare give of it , is , If it be true which you there add . But if it should be otherwise , the Hurt may be more I see than you are willing to answer for . L. 2. p. 64. However , you think you do well to incourage the Magistrate in punishing , and comfort the Man who has suffer'd un●…stly , by shewing what he shall gain by it . Whereas , on the contrary , in a Discourse of this Nature , where the Bounds of Right and Wrong are enquired into , and should be establish'd , the Magistrate was to be shew'd the Bounds of his Authority , and warn'd of the Injury he did when he misapplies his Power , and punish'd any Man who deserv'd it not ; and not be sooth'd into Injustice , by consideration of Gain that might thence accrue to the Sufferer . Shall we do Evil , that Good may come of it ? There are a sort of People who are very wary of touching upon the Magistrate's Duty , and tender of shewing the bounds of his Power , and the Injustice and ill Consequences of his misapplying 〈◊〉 ; at least , so long as it is misapply'd in favour of them , and their Party . I know not whether you are of their number ; But this I am sure , you have the misfortune here to fall into their Mistake . The Magistrate , you confess , may in this case misapply his Power : And instead of representing to him the Injustice of it , and the Account he must give to his Sovereign one day of this great Trust put into his Hands , for the equal Protection of all his Subjects , you pretend Advantages which the Sufferer may receive from it : And so instead of disheartning from , you give encouragement to the Mischief . Which , upon your Principle , join'd to the natural thirst in Man after Arbitrary Power , may be carried to all manner of Exorbitancy , with some pretence of Right . L. 3. p. 71. As to what you say here of the nature of my Discourse , I shall only put you in mind that the Question there debated is ; Whether the Magistrate has any Right or Authority to use Force for the promoting the true Religion . Which plainly supposes the Vnlawfulness and Injustice of using Force to promote a false Religion , as granted on both sides . So that I could no way be obliged to take notice of it in my Discourse , but only as occasion should be offer'd . And whether I have not shew'd the bounds of the Magistrate's Authority , as far as I was any way obliged to do it , let any indifferent Person judg . But to talk here of a sort of People who are very wary of touching upon the Magistrate's Duty , and tender of shewing the bounds of his Power , where I tell the Magistrate that the Power I ascribe to him in reference to Religion , is given him to bring Men , not to his own , but to the true Religion ; and that he misapplies it , when he endeavours to promote a false Religion by it , is , methinks , at least a little unseasonable . Nor am I any more concern'd in what you say of the Magistrate's misapplying his Power in favour of a Party . For as you have not yet proved that his applying his Power to the promoting the true Religion , ( which is all that I contend for ) is misapplying it ; so much less can you prove it to be misapplying it in favour of a Party . But that I encourage the Magistrate in punishing Men to bring them to a false Religion , ( for that is the punishing we here speak of ) and sooth him into Injustice , by shewing what those who suffer unjustly shall gain by it , when in the very same breath I tell him that by so punishing , he misapplies his Power , is a Discovery which I believe none but your self could have made . When I say that the Magistrate misapplies his Power by so punishing ; I suppose all other Men understand me to say , that he sins in doing it , and lays himself open to divine Vengeance by it . And can he be encouraged to this , by hearing what others may gain by what ( without Repentance ) must cost him so dear ? Here your Men of Art will do well to be at hand again . For it may be seasonable for you to appeal to them , whether the nature of your Discourse will allow you to descend to shew ` the Magistrate the bounds of his Authority , and warn him of ` the Injury he does , if he misapplies his Power . You say , the Question there debated , is , Whether the Magistrate has any Right or Authority to use Force for promoting the True Religion ; which plainly supposes the Vnlawfulness and Injustice of using Force to promote a 〈◊〉 Religion , as granted on both sides . Neither is that the Question in debate ; nor if it were , does it suppose what you pretend . But the Question in debate is , as you put it , Whether any body has a Right to use Force in Matters of Religion ? You say indeed , The Magistrate has , to bring Men to the True Religion . If thereupon , you think the Magistrate has none to bring Men to a false Religion , whatever your Men of Art may think , 't is probable other Men would not have thought it to have been besides the nature of your Discourse , to have warn'd the Magistrate , that he should consider well , and impartially examine the Grounds of his Religion before he use any Force to bring Men to it . This is of such moment to Mens temporal and eternal Interests , that it might well deserve some particular 〈◊〉 addressed to the Magistrate ; who might as much need to be put in mind of impartial Examination as other People . And it might , whatever your Men of Art may allow , be justly expected from you ; who think it no Derivation from the Rules of Art , to tell the Subjects that they must submit to the Penalties laid on them , or else fall under the Sword of the Magistrate ; which how true soever , will hardly by any body be sound to be much more to your purpose in this Discourse , than it would have been to have told the Magistrate of what ill consequence it would be to him and his People , if he misused his Power , and warn'd him to be cautious in the Use of it . But not a word that way . Nay even where you mention the account he shall give for so doing , it is still to satisfy the Subjects that they are well provided for , and not left unfurnish'd of the Means of Salvation , by the right God has put into the Magistrate's hands to use his Power to bring them to the True Religion ; and therefore , they ought to be well content , because if the Magistrate misapply it , the Great Judg will punish him for it . Look , Sir , and see whether what you say , any where , of the Magistrate's misuse of his Power , have any other Tendency : And then I appeal to the sober Reader , whether if you had been as much concern'd for the Bounding , as for the Exercise of Force in the Magistrates hands , you would not have spoke of it 〈◊〉 another manner . The next thing you say , is , that the Question ( being , Whether the Magistrate has any Right to use Force to bring Men to the True Religion , ) supposes the Vnlawfulness of using Force to promote a False Religion as granted on both sides ; which is so far from true , that I suppose quite the contrary , viz. That if the Magistrate has a Right to use Force to promote the True , he must have a Right to use Force to promote his own Religion ; and that for Reasons I have given you elsewhere . But the Supposition of a Supposition serves to excuse you from speaking any thing directly of setting Bounds to the Magistrate's Power , or telling him his Duty in that point ; though you are very frequent in mentioning the Obligation he is under , that Men should not want the Assistance of his Force ; and how answerable he is , if any body miscarry for want of it ; though there be not the least Whisper of any care to be taken , that no body be 〈◊〉 by it . And now I recollect my self ; I think your Method would not allow it : For if you should have put the Magistrate upon Examining , it would have suppos'd him as liable to Error as other Men ; whereas , to secure the Magistrate's acting right , upon your Foundation of never using Force but for the True Religion , I see no help for it , but either he or you ( who are to licence him ) must be got past the State of Examination , into that of certain Knowledg and Infallibility . Indeed , as you say , you tell the Magistrate that the Power you ascribe to him in reference to Religion , is given him to bring Men not to his own , but to the True Religion . But do you put him upon a severe and impartial Examination ; Which , amongst the many False , is the one only True Religion he must use Force to bring his Subjects to ; that he may not mistake and misapply his Power in a Business of that Consequence ? Not a Syllable of this . Do you then tell him which it is he must take , without Examination , and promote with Force ; whether that of England , France or Denmark ? This , methinks , is as much as the Pope , with all his Infallibility , could require of Princes . And yet , what is it less than this you do ; when you suppose the Religion of the Church of England to be the only True ; and upon this your Supposition , tell the Magistrate it is his Duty , by Force , to bring Men to it ; without ever putting him upon Examining , or suffering him or any body else to question , whether it be the only True Religion or no ? For if you will stick to what you in another place say , That it is enough to suppose that there is one True Religion , and but one , and that that Religion may be known by those who profess it ; What Authority will this Knowableness of the True Religion , give to the King of England more than to the King of France , to use Force , if he does not actually know the Religion he professes to be the True ; or to the Magistrate more than the Subject , if he has not examin'd the Grounds of his Religion ? But if He believes you when you tell him , your Religion is the True , all is well ; he has Authority enough to use Force , and he need not examine any farther . If this were not the case ; why you should not be careful to prepare a little Advice to make the Magistrate examine , as well as you are sollicitous to provide Force to make the Subject examine , will require the Skill of a Man of Art to discover . Whether you are not of the Number of those Men I there mention'd , ( for that there have been such Men in the World , Instances might be given ) one may doubt srom your Principles . For if upon a Supposition that yours is the True Religion , you can give Authority to the Magistrate to 〈◊〉 Penalties on all his Subjects that dissent from the Communion of the National Church , without examining whether theirs too may not be that only True Religion which is necessary to Salvation ; Is not this to demand , that the Magistrate's Power should be applied only in favour of a Party ? And can any one avoid being confirm'd in this Suspicion , when he reads that broad Insinuation of yours , P. 34. as if Our Magistrates were not concern'd for Truth 〈◊〉 Piety , because they granted a Relaxation of those Penalties , which you would have imploid in favour of your Party : For so it must be call'd , and not the Church of God , exclusive of others ; unless you will say Men cannot be saved out of the Communion of your particular Church , let it be National where you please . You do not , you say , encourage the Magistrate to misapply his Power ; because in the very same Breath you tell him he misapplies his Power . I answer , Let all Men understand you , as much as you please , to say that he sins in doing it ; That will not excuse you from encouraging him there ; unless it be impossible that a Man may be encourag'd to Sin. If your telling the Magistrate that his Subjects gain by his misapplying of Force , be not an Encouragement to him to misapply it , the doing good to others must cease to be an Encouragement to any Action . And whether it be not a great Encouragement in this case to the Magistrate , to go on in the use of 〈◊〉 , without impartially examining whether his or his Subjects be the True Religion ; when he is told that ( be his Religion true or false , ) his Subjects , who suffer , will be sure to be Gainers by it , let any one judg . For the Encouragement is not ( as you put it ) to the Magistrate to use Force to bring Men to what he thinks a false Religion ; but it is an Encouragement to the Magistrate , who presumes his to be the True Religion , to punish his Dissenting Subjects ; without due and impartial Examination on which side the Truth lies . For having never told the Magistrate , that neglect of Examination is a Sin in him ; if you should tell him a thousand times , that he who uses his Power to bring Men to a False Religion misapplies it ; he would not understand by it that he sinn'd , whilst he thought his the True ; and so it would be no restraint to the misapplying his Power . And thus we have some Prospect of this admirable Machin you have 〈◊〉 up for the Salvation of Souls . The Magistrate is to use Force to bring Men to the True Religion . But what if he misapplies it to bring Men to a False Religion ? 'T is well still for his Subjects : They are Gainers by it . But this may encourage him to a Misapplication of it . No ; You tell him that he that uses it to bring Men to a False Religion , misapplies it ; And therefore he cannot but understand that you say he sins , and lays himself open to Divine Vengeance . No ; He believes himself in the right ; and thinks as St. Paul , whilst a Persecutor , that he does God good Service . And you assure him here , he makes his suffering . Subjects Gainers ; and so he goes on as comfortably as St. Paul did . Is there no Remedy for this ? Yes , a very ready one , and that is , that the one only True Religion may be known by those who profess it to be the only True Religion . To which , if we add how you moderate as well as direct the Magistrate's Hand in punishing ; by making the last Regulation of your convenient Penalties to lie in the Prudence and Experience of Magistrates themselves ; we shall find the Advantages of your Method . For are not your necessary Means of Salvation , which lie in moderate Penalties used to bring Men to the True Religion , brought to an happy State ; when that which is to guide the Magistrate in the Knowledg of the True Religion , is , that the True Religion may be known by those who profess it to be the only True Religion ; and the convenient Penalties to be used for the promoting of it , are such as the Magistrate shall in his Prudence think fit ; and that whether the Magistrate applies it right or wrong , the Subject will be a Gainer by it ? If in either of your Discourses , you have given the Magistrate any better Direction than this to know the True Religion by , which he is by Force to promote ; or any other intelligible Measure to moderate his Penalties by ; or any other Caution to restrain the misuse of his Power ; I desire you to shew it me : And then I shall think I have reason to believe , that in this Debate you have had more Care of the True Religion , and the Salvation of Souls , than to encourage the Magistrate to use the Power he has , by your Direction , and without Examination , and to what degree he shall think sit , in favour of a Party . For the Matter thus stated , if I mistake not , will serve any Magistrate , to use any degree of Force , against any that dissent from his National Religion . Having recommended to the Subjects the Magistrate's 〈◊〉 by a shew of Gain , which will accrue to them by it , you do well to bring in the Example of Julian ; who whatever he did to the Christians , would ( no more than you ) own that it was Persecution , but for their Advantage in the other World. But whether his pretending Gain to them , upon Grounds which he did not believe ; or your pretending Gain to them , which no body can believe to be one ; be a greater Mockery ; you were best look . This seems reasonable ; That his talk of Philanthropy , and yours of Moderation , should be bound up together . For till you speak and tell them plainly what they may trust to ; the Advantage the Persecuted are to receive from your Clemency , may , I imagine , make a second Part to what the Christians of that Age 〈◊〉 from his . But you are solicitous for the Salvation of Souls , and Dissenters shall find the Benefit of it . CHAP. IX . Of the Vsefulness of Force in Matters of Religion . YOU having granted that in all Pleas for any thing , because of its Usefulness , it is not enough to say that it may be serviceable ; but it must be considered , not only what it may , but what it is likely to produce ; and the greater Good or Harm likely to come from it ought to determine the use of it ; I think there need nothing more to be said to shew the Uselesness of Force in the Magistrate's Hands for promoting the true Religion , after it has been proved that , if any , then all Magistrates , who believe their Religion to be true , are under an Obligation to use it . But since the usefulness and necessity of Force is the main Foundation on which you build your Hypothesis , we will in the two remaining Chapters examine particularly what you say for them . To the Author 's saying , That Truth seldom hath received , and he fears never will receive much assistance from the Power of Great Men , to whom she is but rarely known , and more rarely welcome , You answer , And yet God himself foretold and promised that Kings should be Nursing Fathers , and Queens Nursing Mothers to his Church . If we may judg of this Prophecy by what is past or present , we shall have reason to think it concerns not our Days ; or if it does , that God intended not that the Church should have many such Nursing Fathers and Nursing Mothers , that were to nurse them up with moderate Penalties , if those were to be the Swadling-Clouts of this Nursery . Perhaps , if you read that Chapter , you will think you have little reason to build much on this Promise , till the restoring of Israel : And when you see the Gentiles bring Thy ( i. e. 〈◊〉 the stile of the Chapter seems to import the Sons of the Israelites ) Sons in their Arms , and thy Daughters be carried upon their Shoulders , as is promised in the immediately preceding Words ; you may conclude that then Kings shall be thy , ( i. e. Israels ) Nursing Fathers , and Queens thy Nursing Mothers . This seems to me to be the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by that Prophecy , and I guess to a great many others , upon an attentive reading that Chapter in Isaiah . And to all such this Text will do you little Service , till you make out the meaning of it better than by barely quoting of it ; which will scarce ever prove , that God hath promised that so many Princes shall be Friends to the true Religion , that it will be better for the true Religion that Princes should use Force for the imposing or propagating of their Religions , than not . For unless it prove that , it answers not the Author's Argument , as an indifferent Reader must needs see . For he says not Truth never , but she seldom 〈◊〉 received , and he fears never will receive ( not any , but ) much assistance from the Power of Great Men to whom she is BVT RARELY KNOWN , and more RARELY WELCOME . And therefore to this of Isaiah pray join that of St. Paul to the Corinthians , Not many wise , not many mighty , not many noble . But supposing many Kings were to be Nursing Fathers to the Church , and that this Prophecy were to be fulfilled in this Age , and the Church were now to be their Nursery ; 'T is I think more proper to understand this figurative Promise , that their Pains and Discipline was to be imploy'd on these in the Church , and that they should feed and cherish them , rather than that these Words meant that they should whip those that were out of it . And therefore this Text will , I suppose , upon a just consideration of it , signify very little against the known matter of Fact which the Author urges ; Unless you can find a Country where the Cudgel and the Scourge are more the Badges and Instruments of a good Nurse than the Breast and the 〈◊〉 ; and that she is counted a good Nurse of her own Child , who 〈◊〉 her self in whiping Children not hers , 〈◊〉 belonging to her Nursery . The 〈◊〉 which give you 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to hope for any advantage from the Authors Toleration , which almost all but the Church of England injoy'd in the Times of the Blessed Reformation , as it was called , you tell us , were Sects and Heresies . Here your Zeal hangs a little in your Light. It is not the Author's Toleration which here you accuse . That , you know , is universal : And the universality of it is that which a little before you wondred at , and complained of . Had it been the Author's Toleration , it could not have been almost all but the Church of England ; but it had been the Church of England and all others . But let us take it , that Sects and 〈◊〉 were , or will be the Fruits of a free Toleration . i. e. 〈◊〉 are divided in their opinions and ways of Worship . Differences in ways of Worship , wherein there is nothing mixed inconsistent with the true Religion , will not hinder Men from Salvation , who sincerely follow the best Light they have ; which they are as likely to do under Toleration as Force . And as for 〈◊〉 of Opinions , speculative Opinions in Religion , I think I may safely say , that there are 〈◊〉 any where three considering Men ( for 't is want of Consideration you would punish ) who are in their Opinions throughout of the same Mind . Thus far then , if Charity be preserved , ( which it is likelier to be where there is Toleration , than where there is Persecution ) though without Uniformity , I see no great reason to complain of those ill Fruits of Toleration . But Men will run , as they did in the late Times , into dangerous and destructive Errors , and extravagant ways of Worship . As to Errors in Opinion ; If Men upon Toleration be so apt to vary in Opinions , and run so wide one from another , 't is evident they are not so averse to thinking as you complain . For 't is hard for Men , not under Force , to quit one Opinion and imbrace another , without thinking of them . But if there be danger of that ; It is most likely the National Religion should sweep and draw to its self the loose and unthinking part of Men ; who without Thought , as well as without any contest with their corrupt Nature , may imbrace the Profession of the countenanced Religion , and join in outward Communion with the great and ruling Men of the Nation . For he that troubles not his Head at all about Religion , what other can so well suit 〈◊〉 as the National , with which the Cry and Preferments go ; And where ( it being , as you say , presumable that he makes that his Profession upon Conviction , and that he is in earnest , ) he is sure to be Orthodox without the pains of examining , and has the Law and Government on his side to make it good that he is in the right ? But Seducers , if they be tolerated , will be ready at hand , and diligent ; and Men will hearken to them . Seducers surely have no Force on their side , to make People hearken . And if this be so , there is a Remedy at hand , 〈◊〉 than Force , if you and your Friends will use it , which cannot but prevail ; And that is , let the Ministers of Truth be as diligent ; And they bringing Truth with them , Truth obvious and easy to be understand ( as you say , what is necessary to Salvation is ) cannot but prevail . But Seducers are hearken'd to , because they teach Opinions favourable to Mens Lusts. Let the Magistrate , as is his Duty , hinder the Practises which their Lusts would carry them to , and the Advantage will be still on the side of Truth . After all , Sir , If , as the Apostle tells the Corinthians , ( 1 Cor. 12. 19. ) There must be Heresies amongst you , that they which are approved may be made manifest ; which , I beseech you , is best for the Salvation of Mens Souls ; that they should enquire , hear , examine , consider , and then have the Liberty to profess what they are perswaded of ; or , that having consider'd , they should be forced not to own nor follow their Perswasions ; or else , that being of the National Religion , they should go ignorantly on without any Consideration at all ? In one case , if your Penalties prevail , Men are forced to act contrary to their Consciences , which is not the way to Salvation ; and if the Penalties prevail not , you have the same Fruits , Sects and Heresies , as under Toleration : In the other , 't is true , those ignorant , loose , unthinking Conformists , do not break company with those who imbrace the Truth that will save them ; but I fear can no more be said to have any share in it , than those who openly dissent from it . For 't is not being in the Company , but having on the Wedding-Garment , that keeps Men from being bound Hand and Foot , and cast into the dreadful and eternal Prison . You tell us , Force has a proper Efficacy to procure the Enlightning of the Vnderstanding , and the Production of Belief , viz. by making Men consider . But you ascribing Mens Aversion to examine Matters of Religion , to the Corruption of their Nature ; Force your way apply'd , ( i. e. so that Men avoid the Penalties by an outward Conformity ) cannot have any proper Efficacy to procure Consideration ; since Men may outwardly conform , and retain their Corruption , and Aversion to Consideration ; and upon this account , Force , your way apply'd , is absolutely impertinent . But further ; If Force has such a proper Efficacy to procure the Production of Belief , it will do more harm than good , imploid by any but Orthodox Magistrates . But how to put it only into Orthodox Hands , is the Difficulty . For I think I have proved , that if Orthodox Magistrates may , and ought to use Force , for the promoting their Religion , all that think themselves Orthodox are obliged to use it too . And this may serve for an Answer to all you have said , P. 16. I having said , Whatever indirect Efficacy there be in Force apply'd by the Magistrate your way , it makes against you ; Force used by the Magistrate , to bring Men to consider those Reasons and Arguments , which are proper and sufficient to convince them , but which without being forced , they would not consider ; may , say you , be serviceable indirectly and at a distance , to make Men imbrace the Truth which must save them . ` And thus , say I , it may be serviceable to bring Men to receive and imbrace Falshood , which ` will destroy them . To this you with great Triumph reply . How , Sir , may Force used by the Magistrate , to bring Men to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them , be serviceable to bring Men to imbrace Falshood , such Falshood as will destroy them ? It seems then , there are Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince Men of the truth of Falshood , which will destroy them . Which is certainly a very extraordinary Discovery , though such as no Man can have any reason to thank you for . In the first place , let me ask you ; Where did you find , or from what Words of mine do you infer that notable Proposition , That there are Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince Men of the Truth of Falshood ? If a Magistrate of the True Religion may use Force to make Men consider Reasons and Arguments proper to convince Men of the Truth of his Religion ; may not a Prince of a False Religion use Force to make Men consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them of what he believes to be true ? And may not Force thus be serviceable to bring Men to receive and imbrace Falshood ? In the next place ; Did you , who argue with so much School-Subtilty as if you drank it in at the very Fountain , never hear of such an ill way of Arguing as a conjunctis ad divisa ? There are no Arguments proper and sufficient to bring a Man into the ●…elief of what is in it-self fals●… , whilst he knows or believes it to be false ; therefore there are no Arguments proper and sufficient to bring a Man into the Belief of what is in it-self false , which he neither knows nor believes to be so . A Senior Sophister would be laugh'd at for such Logick . And yet this is all you say in that Sentence you erect for a Trophy , to convince M●…n of the Truth of Falshood ; which though not my Words , but such as you in your way supply from what I said , you are exceedingly pleased with , and think their very repeating a Triumph . But though there are no Arguments proper and sufficient to convince Men of the Truth of Falshood , as Falshood ; yet I hope you will allow that there are Arguments proper and sufficient to make Men receive Falshoods for Truths ; why else do you complain of 〈◊〉 ? And those who imbrace Falshoods for Truths , do it under the Appearance of Truth , misled by those Arguments which make it appear so , and so convince them . And that Magistrates who take their Religion to be true , though it be not so , may with Force urge such Arguments , you will , I think , grant . But you talk as if no body could have Arguments proper and sufficient to convince another , but he that was of your way , or your Church . This indeed is a new and very extraordinary discav●…y , and such as your Brethren , if you can convince them of it , will have reason to thank you for . For if any one was ever by Arguments and Reasons brought off , or seduced from your Church , to be a Dissenter , there were then I think Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince him . I will not name to you again Mr. Reynolds , because you have charity enough to question his Sincerity . Though his leaving his Country , Friends , and Acquaintance , may be presum'd as great a Mark of his being convinced and in earnest , as it is for one to write for a National Religion in a Country where it is uppermost . I will not yet deny but that , in you , it may be pure Zeal for the True Re●…gion , which you would have assisted with the Magi●…ratos Force . And since you seem so much concern'd for your Sincerity in the Argument , it must be granted you deserve the Character of a well-meaning Man , who own your Sincerity in a way so little advantageous to your Judgment . But if Mr. Reynolds , in your Opinion , was misled by corrupt Ends , or secular Interest ; what do you think of a Prince now living ? Will you doubt his Sincerity , or that he was convinced of the Truth of the Religion he professed , who ventured Three Crowns for it ? What do you think of Mr. Chillingworth when he left the Church of England for the Romish Profession ? Did he do it without being convinc'd that that was the right ? Or was he convinc'd with Reasons and Arguments , not proper or sufficient to convince him ? But certainly this could not be true , because , as you say , p. 25. the Scripture does not teach any thing of it . Or perhaps those that leave your Communion do it always without being convinc'd , and only think they are convinc'd when they are not ; or are convinc'd with Arguments not proper and sufficient to convince them . If no body can convince another , but he that has Truth on his side , you do more honour to the first and second Letter concerning Toleration , than is for the Advantage of your Cause , when you impute to them the Increase of Sects and Heresies amongst us . And there are some , even of the Church of England , have professed themselves so fully satisfied by the Reasons and Arguments in the first of them , that though I dare not be positive to you , whose Privilege it is to convince Men , that they are convinced ; yet I may say , 't is as presumable they are convinced , having owned it , as it is presumable that all that are Conformists are made so upon Reason and Conviction . This , I suppose , may serve for an Answer to your next words , That God in his just Judgment will send such as receive not the Love of Truth , that they may be saved , but reject it for the Pleasure they have in Vnrighteousness , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , strong Delusion , i. e. such Reasons and Arguments as will prevail with Men , so disposed , to believe a Lie , that they may be damn'd ; This you confess the Scripture plainly teaches us . But that there are any such Reasons or Arguments as are proper and sufficient to convince or satisfy any , but such resolute and obdurate Sinners , of the Truth of such Falshood as will destroy them , is a Position which you are sure the Scripture doth not 〈◊〉 us ; and which , you tell me , when I have better considered it , you hope I will not undertake to maintain . And yet if it be not maintainable , what I say here is to no purpose : For if there be no such Reasons and Arguments as here we speak of , 't is in vain to talk of the Magistrate's using Force to make Men consider them . But if you are still of the mind , that no Magistrate but those who are of the True Religion , can have Arguments back'd with Force , proper and sufficient to convince ; and that in England none but resolute obdurate Sinners ever forsook or forbore the Communion of the Church of England , upon Reasons and Arguments that satisfy or convince them ; I shall leave you to enjoy so charitable an Opinion . But as to the Usefulness of Force , your way applied , I shall lay you down again the same Argument I used before ; though in Words less sitted for your Way of Reasoning on them , now I know your Talent . If there be any Efficacy in Force to bring Men to any Perswasion , it will , your Way apply'd , bring more Men to Error than to Truth . Your Way of using it is only to punish Men for not being of the National Religion ; which is the only Way you do or can apply Force , without a Toleration . Nonconformity is the Fault that is punish'd ; which Fault , when it ceases , the Punishment ceases . But yet to make them consider , is the end for which they are punish'd ; but whether it be or be not intended to make Men consider , it alters nothing in the case . Now I say , that since all Magistrates who believe their Religion to be true , are as much obliged to use Force to bring their Subjects to it , as if it were true ; and since most of the National Religions of the World are erroneous ; if Force made use of to bring Men to the National Religion , by punishing Dissenters , have any Efficacy , ( let it be what it will , indirect and at a distance , if you please ) it is like to do twenty times more harm than good ; because of the National Religions of the World , to speak much within compass , there are above 20 wrong for one that is right . Indeed , could Force be directed to drive all Men indifferently , who are negligent and backward in it , to study , examine , and consider seriously Matters of Religion , and search out the Truth ; And if Men were , upon their Study and Examination , permitted to follow what appears to them to be right ; you might have some pretence for Force , as serviceable to Truth in making Men consider . But this is impossible , but under a Toleration . And I doubt whether , even there , Force can be so apply'd , as to make Men consider and impartially examine what is true in the professed Religions of the World , and to imbrace it . This at least is certain , that where Punishments pursue Men like outlying Deer , only to the Pale of the National Church ; and when once they are within that , leaves them free there , and at ease ; it can do no Service to the True Religion , even in a Country where the National is the true . For the Penalties ceasing as soon as Men are got within the Pale and Communion of the Church , they help not Men at all against that which you assign as the great Hindrance to the True Religion , and which therefore , in your Opinion , makes Force necessary to assist it . For there being no necessity that Men should leave either their Vices or Corruption , or so much as their Ignorance , to get within the Pale of the Church ; Force , your way apply'd , serves only to bring them ( even in the few Christian and Orthodox Countries ) to the Profession , not to the Knowledg , Belief or Practice , of the True Religion . You say corrupt Nature inclines Men from the True Religion to false ones ; and moderate Force is requisite to make such Men consider . But such Men as , out of corrupt Nature , and for their Ease and carnal Pleasures , chuse an erroneous Religion without considering , will again , as soon as they can find their Choice incommoded by those Penalties , consult the same corrupt Nature and carnal Appetites , and without considering any thing further , conform to that Religion where they can best enjoy themselves . 'T is only the conscientious part of Dissenters , such as dissent not out of Indulgence to corrupt Nature , but out of Perswasion , who will not conform without considering as they ought . And therefore your Argument from corrupt Nature , is out of doors . If moderate Penalties serve only to work on those who are led by corrupt Nature , they are of no use but to fill the Church with Hypocrites ; that is , to make those Men worse Hypocrites than they were before , by a new Act of Hypocrisy , and to corrupt the Manners of the rest of the Church , by their converse with these . And whether this be for the Salvation of Souls , as is pretended , or for some other End , that the Priests of all Religions have generally so earnestly contended for it , I leave to be consider'd . For as for those who dissent out of Perswasion , I suspect your moderate Penalties will have little effect upon them . For such Men being awed by the Fear of Hell-fire , if that Fear will not make them consider better than they have done , moderate Penalties will be too weak to work upon them . 'T is well if Dragooning and Martyring can do it . But you add , May it not be true nevertheless , that Force your way applied may be serviceable indirectly , and at a distance , to bring Men to imbrace the Truth which may save them ? which is all you are concerned here to make good . So that if it may possibly happen that it should ever bring two Men to imbrace the Truth , you have gain'd your Point , and overthrown Toleration , by the usefulness and necessity there is of Force . For without being forced these two Men would never have considered : Which is more yet than you know , unless you are of his private Council , who only can tell when the Season of Grace is past , and the time come that Preaching , Intreaty , Instruction and Perswasion shall never after prevail upon a Man. But whatever you are here concerned to make good , are you not also concerned to remember what you say ; where declaring against the Magistrates having a power to use what may any way , at any time , upon any Person , by any Accident , be useful towards the promoting the true Religion , you say , Who sees not that however such means might chance to hit right in some few Cases , yet , upon the whole matter , they would certainly do a great deal more harm than good ; And in all Pleas , ( making use of my Words ) for any thing because of its usefulness , it is not enough to say that it may be serviceable , but it must be considered , not only what it may , but what it is likely to produce ; and the greater good or harm like to come from it , ought to determine the use of it ? You proceed and tell me , That I , not content to say that Force your way applied ( i. e. to bring Men to imbrace the Truth which must save them ) may be serviceable to bring Men to imbrace Falshood which will destroy them ; and so is proper to do as much harm as good , ( which seems strange enough ; ) I add ( to increase the Wonder ) that in your indirect way it is much more proper , and likely to make Men receive and embrace Error , than the Truth : And that , 1. Because Men out of the right Way are as apt , and I think I may say apter , to use Force than others ; Which is , doubtless , an irrefragable demonstration , that Force used by the Magistrate to bring Men to receive and imbrace the Truth which must save them , is much more proper and likely to make Men receive Error than the Truth . And then you ask me , How we come to talk here of what Men out of the right way are apt to do , to bring others into their , ( i. e. a wrong ) way ; where we are only inquiring , what may be done to bring Men to the right way . For you must put me in Mind , you say , that that is our question , viz. Whether the Magistrate has any right to use Force , to bring Men to the true Religion . Whether the Magistrate has aright to use Force in matters of Religion , as you more truly state it , ( P. 78. ) is the main Question between us , I confess . But the Question here between us is about the usefulness of Force your way apply'd ; which being to punish Dissenters as Dissenters , to make them consider , I shew'd would do more harm than good . And to this , you were here answering . Whereby , I suppose , it is plain that the Question here is about the Usefulness of Force , so apply'd . And I doubt not but my Readers , who are not concerned , when the Question in debate will not serve your turn , to have another substituted , will take this for a regular and natural way of Arguing , viz. ` That Force , your way apply'd , is more proper and likely to make Men imbrace Error than the Truth ; because Men out of the right Way are as apt , I think I may say ` apter , to use Force than others . You need not then ask as you do , How we come to talk here of Men out of the right Way . You see how . If you do not , I know not what help there is for your Eyes . And I must content my self that any other Reader that has Eyes , will not miss it . And I wonder that you should : since you know I have on several Occasions argued against the Use of Force in Matters of Religion ; upon a Supposition , that if any one , then all Magistrates have a just Pretence and Right to use it ; which has served you in some Places for Matter of great Reproof , and in others of Sport and Diversion . But because so plain a thing as that was so strange to you , that you thought it a ridiculous Paradox to say , That for all Magistrates to suppose the Religion they believed to be true , was equally just and reasonable ; And because you took no notice of the Words adjoin'd that proved it , viz. Unless we can imagine every where but in England , [ or where the National Religion is the true ] Men believe what at the same time they think to be a Lie ; I have taken the pains to prove it to you more at large in another place , and therefore shall make bold to use it here as an Argument against Force , viz. That if it have any Efficacy it will do more harm than good ; Because Men out of the right Way are as apt , or apter to use it : And I shall think it a good one , till you have answered it . It is a good and a sure way , and shews a Zeal to the Cause , still to hold fast the Conclusion , and whatever be in debate , return still to one ' old Position . I arguing against what you say for the Use of Force , viz. That Force used not to convince by its own proper Efficacy , but only to make Men consider , might indirectly and at a distance do some Service towards the bringing Men to imbrace the Truth ; After other Arguments against it , I say , that whatever Efficacy there is in Force , your way apply'd , ( i. e. To punish all , and none but , Dissenters from the National Church ) makes against you : And the first Reason I give for it , is in these Words ; Because Men out of the right Way are as apt or apter to use Force than others . Which is what you are here answering . And what can be done better to answer it , than to the Words I have above cited , to subjoin these following ? Now whereas our Author says , that Penalties or Force is absolutely impertinent in this case , because it is not proper to convince the Mind ; To which , you answer , that though Force be not proper to convince the Mind , yet it is not absolutely impertinent in this case , because it may however , do some Service towards the bringing Men to embrace the Truth which must save them , by bringing them to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper to convince the Mind ; and which , with●…ut being fo●…ed , they would not consider . Here I tell you , No , but it is much more proper and likely to make Men receive and imbrace Error than Truth ; because Men out of the right Way are as apt , and perhaps apter , to use Force than others . Which you tell me , is as good a Proof you believe as the thing would admit : For otherwise , you suppose I would have given you a better . And thus you have certainly gain'd the Cause . For I having prov'd that Force , your way apply'd , whatever Efficacy it had , would do more harm than good , have not sufficiently proved that it cannot do some s●…rvice towards the bringing Men to imbrace the Truth ; And therefore 't is not absolutely impertinent . But since you think this not enough to prove the Use of Force in Matters of Religion impertin●…nt , I shall fa●…ther shew you that Force , apply'd your way to make People consider , and so to make them imbrace the Truth , is impertinent . Your Way is to lay Penalties on Men for Nonconformity , as you say , to make Men consider : Now here let me ask any one but you , Whether it be not utterly impertinent so to lay Penalties on Men , to make them consider , when they can avoid those Penalties without considering ? But because it is not enough to prove Force , your way apply'd , utterly impertinent , I shall shew you in the next place , that were a Law made to punish not barely Non-conformity , but Non-consideration , those Penalties laid on not considering , would be utterly impertinent ; because it could never be proved that a Man had not consider'd the Arguments offer'd him . And therefore all Law-makers till you , in all their Penal Laws about Religion , laid all their Penalties upon not imbracing ; and 't was against that , that our Author was arguing when he said Penalties , in this case are absolutely impernent ; because they are not proper to convince the Mind . For in that case , when Penalties are laid on Men for not imbracing , 't is plain they are used as a means to make Men imbrace : which , since those who are careless in Matters of Religion can do without considering , and those who are conscientious cannot do without Conviction ; and since Penalties can in no wise convince ; this Use of them is absolutely impertinent , and will always be so till you can shew a way how they can be used in Religion , not as Motives to imbrace , but as Motives barely to make Men consider . For if you punish them on when they tell you they have considered your Arguments , but are not convinced by them , and you judg of their having not considered by nothing but their not imbracing , 't is plain you use Penalties instead of Arguments to convince them ; since without Conviction , those who our Author pleads for , cannot imbrace ; and those who do imbrace without Conviction , 't is all one as if they did not imbrace at all , they being not one jot the more in the Way of Salvation ; and so Penalties are absolutely impertinent . But Imbracing in the Sense of the Law , and yours too , when you say Men have not considered as they ought as long as they reject , is nothing but outward Conformity , or an outward Profession of Imbracing , wherewith the Law is satisfied , and upon which the Penalties cease . Now Penalties used to make Men in this Sense imbrace , are absolutely impertinent to bring Men to imbrace in earnest , or , as the Author calls it , believe : because an outward Profession , which in this case is the immediate end to which Penalties are directed , and beyond which they do not reach , is no proper means to produce in Men Consideration , Conviction , or Believing . What can be more impertinent than to vex and disease People with the Use of Force , to no purpose ? and that Force must needs be to no purpose , which is so apply'd as to leave the end for which it is pretended to be used , without the means which is acknowledg'd necessary for its Attainment . That this is so in your way of using Force , will easily appear from your Hypothesis . You tell us at large in your Argument consider'd , that Mens Lusts hinder them from even impartial Consideration and Examination of Matters in Religion , and therefore Force is necessary to remove this Hindrance . You tell us likewise at large in your Letter , that Mens corrupt Nature and beloved Lusts hinder them also from imbracing the True Religion , and that Force is necessary likewise to remove this Obstacle . Now in your way of using Force , wherein Penalties are laid on Men till , and no longer than till , they are made outwardly to conform , Force is so apply'd , that notwithstanding the Intention of the Law-maker ( let it be what it will ) neither the Obstacle to impartial Examination , rising from Mens Lusts , nor the Aversion to imbracing the True Religion , rising from Mens corrupt Nature , can be removed : unless they can be removed without that , which you suppose necessary to their removal . For since a Man may conform , without being under the necessity of impartial Examining or Imbracing on the one hand , or Suffering the Penalties on the other ; it is unavoidable , that he should neither impartially examine nor imbrace , if Penalties are necessary to make him do either ; because Penalties , which are the necessary Remedies to remove those Hindrances , were never apply'd to them ; and so those Obstacles not being removed for want of their necessary Remedy , must continue on to hinder both Examining and Imbracing . For Penalties cannot be used as a Means to any end , or be apply'd to the procuring any Action to be done , which a Man from his Lusts or any other cause , has an aversion to , but by putting them as it were in one Scale as a Counter-ballance to that Aversion , and the Action in the other Scale , and putting a Man under the necessity of choosing the one or the other : where that is not done , the Penalty may be avoided , the Aversion or Obstacle hath nothing to remove it , and so the Action must remain undone . So that if Penalties be necessary to make Men impartially examine and really imbrace ; if Penalties are not so laid on Men as to make the Alternative to be either suffering the Penalties or Conforming , it is impossible that Men , who without Penalties would not impartially examine or really imbrace the True Religion , should ever do either ; and then I beseech you consider whether Penalties , your Way apply'd , be impertinent or no. The necessity of Penalties is only where there is some inclination or byas in a Man , whencesoever arising , that keeps him from doing something in his Power , which he cannot be brought to without the Inconveniences of some Penal Infliction . The Efficacy of Penalties lies in this , that the Inconvenience to be suffer'd by the Penalties over-ballance the Byas or Inclination which leans the Man the other way , and so removes the Obstacle ; And the Application of this Remedy lies only in puting a Man under the necessary choice either of doing the Action , or suffering the Penalty : So that in what ever case a Man has not been put under that necessity , there Penalties have never been apply'd to the procuring that Action ; for the Obstacle or Aversion to it , has never had its necessary Remedy . Perhaps you will say it is not absolutely impertinent , because it may possibly do some Service indirectly and at a distance , and be the occasion that some may consider and imbrace . If whatever may by accident contribute to any End , may be used not impertinently as a Means to that End , nothing that I know can be impertinent ; and a Penalty of 12 d. a time laid on them for being drunk , may be said , to be a pertinent means , to make Men Cartesians , or Conformists : because it may indirectly and at a distance do some Service , by being an Occasion to make some Men consider their mispending their time ; whereby it may happen that one may betake himself to the Study of Philosophy , where he may meet with Arguments proper and fit to convince him of the Truth of that Philosophy ; as another betaking himself to the Study of Divinity , may consider Arguments proper and fit to make him ( whether it be in England , Holland or Denmark ) of the National Profession , which he was not of before . Just thus , and no otherwise , does 12 d. a Sunday , or any other Penalty laid on Non-conformity , make Men study and imbrace the True Religion ; and whatever you will call the Service it does , direct or indirect , near or at a distance , 't is plain it produces that effect , and conduces to that end meerly by accident ; and therefore must be allow'd to be impertinent to be used to that purpose . That your Way of using Force in Matters of Religion , even in a Country where the Magistrate's is of the True Religion , is absolutely impertinent ; I shall further shew you from your own Positions . Here in the entrance give me leave to observe to you , that you confound two things very different , viz. Your Way of applying Force , and the End for which you pretend you use it . And this perhaps may be it which contributes to cast that Mist about your Eyes , that you always return to the same place , and stick to the same gross Mistake . For here you say , Force , your Way applied , i. e. to bring Men to imbrace the Truth which must save them : but , Sir , to bring Men to imbrace the Truth , is not your Way of applying Force , but the End for which you pretend it is apply'd . Your Way is to punish Men ( as you say ) moderately for being Dissenters from the National Religion ; this is your Way of using Force . Now if in this Way of using it , Force does Service meerly by accident , you will then , I suppose , allow it to be absolutely impertinent . For you say , If by doing Service by accident , I mean doing it but seldom , and beside the Intention of the Agent , you assure me , that it is not the thing you mean when you say Force may indirectly , and at a distance , do some Service . For in that use of Force , which you defend , the Effect is both intended by him that uses it , and withal , you doubt not , so often attain'd , as abundantly to manifest the Vsefulness of it . Whereby 't is plain the two Marks , whereby you distinguish'd your indirect and at a distance Usefulness , from that which is by accident , are that , that by accident does Service but seldom , and besides the Intention of the Agent , but yours the contrary . First , as to the Intention , you tell us , in the use of Force , which you defend , the Effect is intended by him that uses it ; that is , those who made Laws to punish Nonconformists , designed those Penalties to make all Men , under their Power , consider so as to be convinced of , and imbrace the Truths that should save them . If one should ask you how you knew it to be their Intention , can you say they ever told you so ? If they did not , then so far you and ●…know their ●…ions alike . Did they , ever say so in those Laws ? nor that neither . Those vers'd then in the Interpretations of Laws , will tell you nothing can be known to be the Intention of the Law-makers in any Law , of which the Law is wholly silent : That Way then you can not know it to have been their Intention , if the Law says nothing of it . Whatever was the Intention of former Law-makers , if you had read with Attention the last Act of Uniformity of Car. 2. printed before the Common-Prayer Book , I conclude you would have been better satisfied about the Intention of the then Law-makers in that Law ; sor I think nothing can be plainer to any one who will look into that Statute , than that their only End in that Law was , what they have expressed in these Words , And to the end that Vniformity in the Publick Worship of God ( which is so much desired ) may be speedily effected ; which was driven with such speed , that if all concern'd had opportunity to get and peruse the then establish'd Liturgy , 't is certain they had not over-much time seriously and deliberately to consider of all the Parts of it before the Day set for the Use of it . But you think , they ought to have intended , and therefore they did : And I think they neither ought , nor could , in making those Laws , intend so unpracticable a thing ; and therefore they did not . Which being as certain a way of Knowledg as yours , if you know it by that way ; 't is possible you and I may at the same time know contraries . But you know it , by their having provided sufficient means of Instruction for all under their Care in the true Religion ; ( of this sufficient Means , we have something to say in another place . ) Penalties laid expresly on one Fault , have no Evidence that they were de-signed to mend another , though there are sufficient Means provided of mending it , if Men would make a sufficient use of them ; unless those two Faults are so connected , as one cannot be mended without the other . Now if Men cannot conform , without so considering as to be convinced of , and embrace the Truth that must save them , you may know that Penalties laid on Nonconformity , were intended to make Men so consider : but if Men may conform ; without so considering , one cannot know nor conclude those Penalties were intended to make Men so consider , whatever Provision there is made of Means of Instruction . But you will say , it is evident that Penalties on Nonconformists , were intended to make them use these Means of Instruction . because they are intended for the bringing Men to Church , the place of Instruction , That they are intended to bring Men to Church , the Place of Preaching , that I grant , but that those Penalties that are laid on Men , for not coming to Church , can be known thereby to be intended to make Men so consider , as to be convinced and imbrace the true Religion , that I deny : and it is utterly impossible it should be so , if what you say be true , where you tell us , That the Magistrates concern themselves for Compliance or Conformity , only as the fruit of their Conviction . If therefore the Magistrates are concerned for Mens Conformity , only as the fruit of their Conviction , and coming to Church be that Conformity ; coming to Church cannot be intended as a Means of their Conviction : unless it be intended they should be convinc'd , before they are convinc'd . But to shew you , that you cannot pretend the Penalty of Laws for Conformity , to proceed from a Care of the Souls of all under the Magistrates Power , and so to be intended , to make them all consider , in any Sense . Can you , or any one know , or suppose , that Penalties which are laid by the Law on Nonconformity , are intended to make all Men consider ; where 't is known that a great Number , under the Magistrates Power , are dispensed with , and privileged from those Penalties ? How many , omitting the Jews , are there ; for example , in the King of England's Dominions , under his Care and Power , of the Walloon , and French Church ; to whom Force is never apply'd , and they live in Security from it ? How many Pagans are there in the Plantations , many whereof born in His Dominions , of whom there was never any care taken , that they should so much as come to Church , or be in the least instructed in the Christian Religion ? And yet must we believe , or can you pretend , that the Magistrates use of Force , against Nonconformists ; is to make all his Subjects consider , so as to be convinc'd of , and imbrace the Truth that must save them ? If you say , in your way you mean no such Indulgence : I answer , the Question is not of yours but the Magistrates Intention ; though what your Intention is , who would have the want of Consideration , or Knowledg , in Conformists , exempt from Force , is visible enough . Again , Those Penalties cannot be supposed , to be intended to make Men consider ; which are laid on those , who have , or may have already considered : And such you must grant to be the Penalties laid in England , on Nonconformists ; unless you will deny , that any Nonconformist has , or can consider , so as to be convinced , or believe , and imbrace the Truth that must save him . So that you cannot vouch the Intention of the Magistrate , where his Laws say nothing ; much less affirm , that Force is intended to produce a certain end in all his Subjects , which is not applied to them all , and is applied to some who have attained that end already : Unless you have a Privilege to affirm , against all appearance whatsoever may serve your Cause . But to learn some Moderation in this , I shall send you to my Pagans and Mahumetans . For whatever charitable wishes Magistrates may sometimes have in their Thoughts ( which I meddle not with ) ; no Body can say , that in making the Laws , or in the use of Force , we are speaking of , they intended to m●…ke Men consider and examine , so as to be convinced of , and heartily to imbrace the Truth , that must save them , but he that gives himself the Liberty to say any thing . The Service that Force does , indirectly , and at a distance ; you tell us in the following Page , is to make People apply th●…mselves to the use of those Means , and Helps , which are proper to make them what they are designed to be . In the Case before us , What are Men designed to be ? Holy Believers of the Gospel in this World , without which no Salvation , no seeing of God in the next . Let us see now , whether Force , your way applied , can be suted to such a Design , and so intended for that End. You hold , That all out of the National Church , where the Religion of the National Church is true , should be punished , and ought to have Force used to them : And again , you grant That those who are in the Communion of the National Church , ought not to be punished , or be under the stroke of Force ; nor indeed in your way can they . If now the effect be to prevail with Men , to consider as they ought , so that they may become what they are designed to be : How can any one think , that you , and they who use Force thus , intend , in the use of it , that Men should really be Christians , both in Perswasion and Practice , without which there is no Salvation ; if they leave off Force before they have attained that effect ? Or how can it be imagined , that they intend any thing but Conformity , by their use of Force ; if they leave off the use of it as soon as Men conform ? Unless you will say that an outward Conformity to the National Church , whose Religion is the true Religion , is such an imbracing of the Truth as is sufficient to Salvation ? Or that an outward Profession of the Christian Religion , is the same with being really a Christian ; which possibly you will not be very forward to do , when you recollect , what you meet with in the Sermons , and Printed Discourses , of Divines of the Church of England , concerning the Ignorance and Irreligion of Conformists themselves . For Penalties can never be thought , by any one ( but he that can think against common Sense , and what he pleases ) to be intended for any End ; which by that Constitution , and Law whereby they are imposed , are to cease before that End be attained . And will you say , that all who are conformable , have so well considered , that they believe , and heartily imbrace the Truths of the Gospel , that must save them : When perhaps it will be found that a great many Conformists , do not so much as understand them ? But the Ignorance or Irreligiousness to be found amongst Consormists , which your way of talking forces me in some Places to take notice of , let me here tell you once for all I lay not the blame of upon Conformity , but upon your use of Force to make Men conform . For whatever the Religion be , true or false , it is natural for Force , and Penalty , so applied , to bring the irreligious , and those who are careless , and unconcerned for the true , into the National Profession : But whether it be fitter for such to be kept out , rather than , by Force , to be driven into the Communion of any Church , and owned as Members of it , those who have a due Care and Respect for truly religious and pious Conformists , were best consider . But farther , if , as you say , the opposition to the true Religion , lies only in Mens Lusts ; it having Light and Strength enough ( were it not for that ) to prevail : and it is upon that account only that Force is necessary , there is no necessity at all to use Force on Men , only till they conform , and no farther : Since I think , you will not deny , but that the Corruption of Humane Nature is as great in Consormists , as in Nonconformists ; in the Professors of , as in the Dissenters from , the National Religion . And therefore either Force was not necessary before , or else it is necessary still , after Men are Conformists : Unless you will say , that it is harder for a Man to be a Professor , than a Christian indeed : And that the true Religion , by its own Light and Strength , can , without the help of Force , prevail over a Man's Lusts , and the Corruption of his Nature ; but it has need of the help of Force , to make him a Conformist , and an outward Professor . And so much for the Effect , which is intended by him that uses it in that use of Force , which you defend . The other Argument you bring to shew , that your indirect and at a distance Vsefulness of Force your way apply'd , is not by accident , is the frequent Success of it . Which I think is not the true Mark of what is not by accident : for an Effect may not be by accident , though it has never been produced but once ; and is certainly as little by accident the first time , as when it has been produced a thousand times . That then , by which any thing is excused from being by accident , is not the Frequency of the Event , but that whereon the Frequency of the Event depends , when frequent Trials are made ; and that is the proper , natural , direct Efficacy of the Cause or Means , which produces the Effect . As in the Case before us , Penalties are the Cause or Means used to produce an End ; the proper and immediate Effect of Penalties , is to produce some Pain or Inconvenience ; and the natural Effect of that , is to make a Man , who naturally flies from all Pain or Inconvenience , to endeavour to avoid it ; whereby it naturally and directly works upon the Will of Man , by proposing to him this unavoidable Choice , of doing some Action , or enduring the Pain or Inconvenience of the Penalty annexed to its Omission . When the Pain of doing the Action is outweigh'd in the Sense of him that lies under the Penalty , the Pain , that by the Law is annex'd to the Omission , operates upon his Will , as naturally , as thirteen Ounces in one Scale , laid against twelve Ounces in the other , incline the Ballance , and bring it down on that side . And this is by a direct and natural Efficacy , wherein there is nothing of Chance . Let us see this how far this will go in your indirect and at a distance Usefulness . In your Method , the Action , you propose to be done , is Considering , or a severe and impartial Examining Matters of Religion , which you tell us , Men by their great Negligence or Aversion are kept from doing . What now is a proper Means to produce this ? Penalties , without which , you tell us , it will not be done . How now is it apply'd in your Method ? Conformity , and Mens Neglect or Aversion to it , is laid in one Scale , and the Penalty join'd to the Omission of it , laid in the other ; and in this Case , if the Inconvenience of the Penalty overweighs the Pains of , or Aversion to Conformity , it does by a direct and natural Efficacy produce Conformity : but if it produces a severe and impartial Examination , that is meerly by accident ; because the Inconvenience of the Penalty is not laid against Mens Aversion or Backwardness to examine impartially , as a Counter-ballance to that , but against their Aversion or Backwardness to conform ; and so whatever it does , indirectly and at a distance , 't is certain its making Men sev●…rely and impartially examine ( if ever that happens ) is as much by accident , as it would be by accident , if a piece of Lead laid in one Scale as a Counterpoise to Feathers in the opposite Scale , should move or weigh done Gold that was put in the Scale of another Pair of Ballances , which had no Counterpoise laid against it . Unless you will say there is a necessary Connection between Conformity , and a severe and impartial Examination . But you will say perhaps , that though it be not possible that Penalties should produce Examination but by mere accident , because Examination has no necessary Connection with Conformity , or the Profession of any Religion ; yet since there are some who will not take up any Profession without a severe and impartial Examination , Penalties for Nonconformity will , by a direct and natural Efficacy , produce Examination in all such . To which I answer , That those are ( if we may believe what you say ) so very few , that this your Remedy , which you put into the Magistrate's hands to bring all his Subjects to consider and examine , will not work upon one in a thousand ; nay , it can work on none at all , to make them severely and impa●…tially examine , but meerly by accident . For if they are Men , whom a slight and partial Examination ( which upon your Principles you must say ) sufficed to make Non-conformists , a slight and partial Examination will as well serve to make them Conformists ; and so Penalties laid on them to make them conform , can only by accident produce a severe and impartial Examination , in such Men , who can take up the Profession of any Religion without a severe and impartial Examination , no more than it can otherwise than by accident , produce any Examination in those who , without any Examination , can take up the Profession of any Religion . And in those very few , who take not up the Profession of any Religion without a severe and impartial Examination , that Penalties can do any Service , to bring them either to the Truth that must save them , or so much as to outward Conformity , but meerly by accident , that also is evident . Because all such in a Country , where they dissent from the National Religion , must necessarily have severely and impartially examin'd already , or else you destroy the Supposition this Argument is built on , viz. That they are Men who do severely and impartially examine before they choos●… . And if you lay , or continue your Penalties on Men , that have so examin'd , 't is plain you use them instead of Reasons and Arguments ; in which Use of them , you confess they have no proper Efficacy , and therefore if they do any Service , it is meerly by accident . But now let us see the Success you boast of , and for that you tell us , that you doubt not but it is so often attain'd , as abundantly to manifest the Vsefulness of it . You speak here of it , as a thing tried , and so known , that you doubt not . Pray tell us where your moderate ( for great ones you acknowledg to do harm , and to be useless ) Penalties have been used , with such Success , that we may be past doubt too . If you can shew no such place , do you not vouch Experience where you have none ? and shew a Willingness not to doubt , where you have no Assurance ? In all Countries , where any Force is used to bring Men to the Profession of the National Religion , and to outward Conformity , it is not to be doubted , but that Force joining with their natural Corruption , in bringing them into the Way of Preferment , Countenance , Protection , Ease and Impunity , should easily draw in all the Loose and Careless in Matters of Religion , which are every-where the far greater number : But is it those you count upon , and will you produce them as Examples of what Force has done to make Men consider , study and imbrace the True Religion ? Did the Penalties laid on Nonconformity make you consider , so as to study , be convinced , and imbrace the True Religion ? Or can you give an Instance of any one , in whom it produced this Effect ? If you cannot , you will have some reason to doubt of what you have said , and not to be so consident that the Effect you talk of , is so often attain'd . Not that I deny , but that God may sometimes have made these Punishments the Occasions to Men of setting themselves seriously on considering Religion , and thence they may have come into the National Religion upon a real Conviction : but the Instances of it I believe to be so few , that you will have reason to remember your own Words , where you speak of such things as , Any Way , at any Time , upon any Person , by any Accident , may be useful towards the promoting of True Religion : If Men should thence take occasion to apply such things generally , who see●… not that , however they might chance to hit right in some few Cases , yet upon the whole matter , they would certainly do a great deal more harm than good . You and I know a Country wherein , not long since , greater Severities were used than you pretend to approve of . Were there not for all that , great Numbers of several Professions stood out , who by your Rule , ought now to have your moderate Penalties tried upon them ? And can you think less degrees of Force can work , and often , as you say , prevail where greater could not ? But perhaps they might prevail on many of those to return , who having been brought into the Communion of the Church by former Penal Laws , have now upon the Relaxation left it again . A manifest Demonstration , ●…s it not ? That their Compliance was the fruit of their Conviction ; and that the Magistrate was concern'd for their Compliance only as the fruit of their Conviction . When they as soon as any Relaxation of those Laws took off the Penalties , left again the Communion of the National Church ? For the lessening the Number of Conformists , is , I suppose , one of those things which you say your Eyes cannot but see at this time ; and which you , with concern , impute to the late Relaxation . A plain Evidence how presumable it is , even in your own Opinion , that those who conform do it upon real Conviction . To conclude , these Proofs , though I do not pretend to bring as good as the Thing will admit , will serve my turn to shew , that Force , is impertinent ; since by your own Confession it has no direct Efficacy to convince Men , and by its being indirect and at a distance useful , is not at all distinguish'd from being barely so by accident : since you can neither prove it to be intended for that end , nor frequently to succeed , which are the two Marks whereby you put a Difference between indirect and at a distance , and by accident . This , I say , is enough to shew what the Author said , is true , that the Use of Force is wholly impertinent . Which , whatever other●… do , you upon another reason , must be forced to allow . You profess your self of the Church of England , and , if I may guess are so far of it , as to have subscrib'd the 39 Articles , which if you have done , and assented to what you subscribed , you must necessarily allow that all Force , used for the bringing Men to the True Religion , is absolutely impertinent ; for that must be absolutely impertinent to be used as a Means , which can contribute nothing at all to the End for which it is used . The End here , is to make a Man a true Christian , that he may be saved ; and he is then , and then only , a true Christian , and in the Way of Salvation , when he believes , and with Sincerity obeys the Gospel . By the 13th Article of the Church of England , you hold , that WORKS DONE BEFORE THE GRACE OF CHRIST , AND THE INSPIRATION OF HIS SPIRIT , ARE NOT PLEASING TO GOD ; FOR AS MUCH AS THEY SPRING NOT OF FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST , NEITHER DO THEY MAKE MEN MEET TO RECEIVE GRACE , ( OR AS THE SCHOOL - AUTHORS SAY ) DESERVE GRACE OF CONGRUITY ; YEA RATHER , FOR THAT THEY ARE NOT DONE AS GOD HAS WILLED AND COMMANDED THEM TO BE DONE , WE DOUBT NOT BUT THEY HAVE THE NATURE OF SIN . Now if it be impertinent to use Force to make a Man do more than he can , and a Man can do nothing to procure Grace , unless Sin can procure it ; and without Grace , a Man cannot b●…live , or live so as to be a true Christian , it is certainly wholly impertinent to use Force to bring a Man to be truly a Christian. To hear and consider , is in Mens Power , you will say , and to that Force may be pertinent ; I grant to make Men hear , but not to make them consider in your sense , which you tell us , is to consider so as to imbrace ; if you mean by imbracing any thing but outward Conformity . And that according to your Article , contributes nothing to the attaining of Grace ; because without Grace , your Article says it is a Sin ; and to conform to , and outwardly profess a Religion which a Man does not understand and heartily believe , every one , I think , judges to be a Sin , and no fit Means to procure the Grace of God. But you tell us , That God denies his Grace to none who seriously ask it . If that be so , methinks Force should most properly and pertinently be used to make Men seriously pray to God for Grace . But how , I beseech you , will this stand with your 13th Article ? For if you mean by seriously , so as will make his Seeking acceptable to God , that cannot be , because he is supposed yet to want Grace which alone can make it acceptable : and if his Asking has the Nature of Sin , as in the Article you do not doubt but it has , can you expect that Sinning should procure the Grace of God ? You will I fear here , without some great help in a very nice Distinction from the School-Authors , be forced either to renounce your Article in the plain sense of it , and so become a Dissenter from the Church of England , or else acknowledg Force to be wholly impertinent to the business of True Religion and Salvation . Another Reason I gave against the Vsefulness of Force in Matters of Religion , was , Because the Magistrates of the World , being few of them in the Right-way , ( not one of ten , take which side you will ) perhaps not one of an hundred , being of the True Religion : 'T is likely your indirect Way of using Force would do an hundred , or at least ten times as much Harm as Good. To which you reply , Which would have been to the purpose , if you had asserted , that every Magistrate may use Force , your indirect Way ( or any Way ) to bring Men to his own Religion , whatever that be . But if you assert no such thing , ( as no Man you think but an Atheist will assert it ) then this is quite beside the Business . I think I have proved , that if Magistrates of the True Religion may use Force to bring Men to their Religion , every Magistrate may use Force to bring Men to his own Religion , when he thinks it the True : And then do you look where the Atheism will light . In the next Paragraph , having quoted these following Words of mine ; where I say , Under another Pretence , you put into the Magistrate's hands as much Power to force Men to his Religion , as any the openest Persecutors can pretend to . I ask what difference is there between punishing them to bring them to Mass , and punishing them to bring them to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince them that they ought to go to Mass ? You reply ; A Question which you shall then think your self obliged to answer , when I have produced those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and sufficient to convince Men that they ought to go to Mass. But if you had not omitted the 3 or 4 immediately preceding Lines , ( an Art to serve a good Cause , which puts me in mind of my Pagans and Mahumetans ) the Reader would have seen that your Reply was nothing at all to my Argument : My Words were these . Especially , if you consider , that as the Magistrate will certainly use it [ Force ] to force Men to hearken to the proper Ministers of his Religion , let it be what it will ; so you having set no time nor bounds to this Consideration of Arguments and Reasons short of being convinced , you under another , &c. My Argument is to shew of what advantage Force , your Way apply'd , is like to be to the True Religion , since it puts as much Force into the Magistrate's hands as the openest Persecutors can pretend to , which the Magistrates of wrong Perswasions may and will use as well as those of the true ; because your Way sets no other Bounds to Considering short of Complying . And then I ask , What Difference there is between punishing you to bring you to Mass , or punishing you to consider those Reasons and Arguments which are proper and s●…fficient to convince you that you ought to go to Mass ? To which you r●…ply . That it is a Question you shall then think your self oblig'd to answer when I have produced those Reasons and Arguments that are pro●…er and sufficient to convince Men that they ought to go to Mass. Whereas , the Objection is the same , Wh●…ther there be or be not , R●…asons and Arguments proper to convince Men , that they ●…t to go to Mass ; for Men m●…st be pu●…h on till they have so co●…dered as to comply : And what differnce is there then b●…n punishing Men to bring them to Mass , and punishing 〈◊〉 to make them consider so as to go to Mass ? But though I pre●…d not to produce any Reasons and Arguments proper and convi●…e to convince you or all Men , that they ought to go to Mass ; yet do you think there are none proper and sufficient to convince any Men ? And that all the Papists in th●… World go to Mass without believing it their Duty ? And whosoever believes it to be his Duty , does it upon Reasons and Arguments , proper and sufficient to convince him ( though perhaps not to convince an other ) that it is so , or else I imagine he would never believe it at all . What think you of those great Numbers of Japaneses , that resisted all sorts of Torments , even to Death it self , for the Romish Religion ? And had you been in France some years since , who knows but the Arguments the K. of France produced might have been proper and sufficient to have convinced you that you ought to go to Mass ? I do not by this , think you less confident of the Truth of your Religion , than you profess to be . But Arguments set on with Force , have a strange Efficacy upon humane Frailty ; and he must be well assured of his own Strength , who can peremptorily affirm , he is sure he should have stood , what above a Million of People sunk under : amongst which , 't is great Confidence to say , there was not one so well perswaded of the Truth of his Religion , as you are of yours ; though some of them gave great Proofs of their Perswasion in their Sufferings for it . But what the necessary Method of Force may be able to do , to bring any one , in your sense , to any R●…ligion , i. e. to an outward Profession of it , he that thinks himself secure against , must have a greater Assurance of himself , than the Weakness of decayed and depraved Nature will well allow . If you have any Spell against the Force of Arguments , driven with Penalties and Punishments , you will do well to teach it the World ; for it is the hard Luck of well-meaning People to be often misled by them , and even the Confident themselves have not seldom fallen under them , and betrayed their Weakness . To my demanding , if you meant Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince Men of the Truth , why did you not say so ? You reply , As if it were possible for any Man that reads your Answer , to think otherwise . Whoever reads that Passage in your A. p. 5. cannot possibly think you meant to speak out , and possibly you found some difficulty to add any thing to your Words ( which are these , Force used to bring Men to consider Reasons and Arguments proper and sufficient to convince them ) that might determine their Sense . For if you had said , to convince them of Truth ; then the Magistrate must have made Laws , and used Force to make Men search after Truth in general , and that would not have served your turn : If you had said to convince them of the Truth of the Magistrate's Religion , that would too manifestly have put the Power in every Magistrate's hands , which you tell us , none but an Atheist will say . If you had said , to convince them of the Truth of your Religion , that had looked too ridiculous to be owned , though it were the thing you meant ; and therefore in this strait , where nothing you could say , would well sit your purpose , you wisely choose to leave the Sense imperfect , and name nothing they were to be convinced of , but leave it to be collected by your Reader out of your Discourse , rather than add three Words to make it good Grammar , as well as intelligible Sense . To my saying , That if you pretend it must be Arguments to convince Men of the Truth , it would in this Case do you little Service ; because the Mass in France is as much suppos'd the Truth , as the Liturgy here . You reply , So that it seems , that in your Opinion , whatsoever is suppos'd the Truth , is the Truth , for otherwise this Reason of mine is none at all . If , in my Opinion , the Supposition of Truth authorizes the Magistrate to use the same Means to bring Men to it , as if it were true , my Argument will hold good , without taking all to be true which some Men suppose true . According to this Answer of yours , to suppose or believe his Religion the true , is not enough to authorize the Mastrate to use Force , he must know , i. e. be infallibly certain , that his is the True Religion . We will for once suppose you our Magistrate , with Force promoting our National Religion . I will not ask you , whether you know that all required of Conformists , is necessary to Salvation : But will suppose one of my Pagans asking you , whether you know Christianity to be the True Religion ? If you say , Yes , he will ask you how you know it ? and no doubt , but you will give the Answer whereby our Saviour proved his Mission , John V. 36. that the Works which our Saviour did bear witness of him , that the Father sent him . The Miracles that Christ did , are a Proof of his being sent from God , and so his Religion the True Religion . But then you will be asked again , Whether you know that he did those Miracles , as well as those who saw them done ? If you answer , Yes ; then it is plain that Miracles are not yet withdrawn , but do still accompany the Christian Religion with all the Efficacy and Evidence , that they had upon the Eye-witnesses of them , and then upon your own Grounds , there will be no necessity of the Magistrate's Assistance , Miracles still supplying the want of it . If you answer , that Matter of fact done out of your sight , at such a distance of Time and Place , cannot be known to you as certainly , as it was to the Eye-witnesses of it , but that you upon very good Grounds firmly believe it ; you are then come to believing , that yours is the True Religion , and if that be sufficient to authorize you to use Force , it will authorize any other Magistrate of any other Religion to use Force also . For whoever believes any thing , takes it to be true , and as he thinks upon good Grounds ; and those often who believe on the weakest Grounds , have the strongest Confidence : and thus all Magistrates who believe their Religion to be true , will be obliged to use Force to promote it , as if it were the true . To my saying that the Usefulness of Force , your Way apply'd , amounts to no more but this , that it is not impossible but that it may be useful . You reply , I leave it to be judg'd by what has been said ; and I leave it to you your self to judg : Only , that you may not forget , I shall here remind you in short of some of the R●…sons I have to say so : 1. You grant that Force has no direct E●…cacy to bring Men to imbrace the Truth . 2. You distinguish the indirect and at a distance Vsefulness of your Force , from that which is barely by accident ; by these two Marks , viz. 1st . That Punishment on Dissenters for Nonconformity , is , by those that use it , intended to make Men consider : and 2d . That your moderate Punishments , by Experience , are found often successful ; and yours having neither of these Marks , it must be concluded to be useful only by accident : and such an Usefulness , as I said , One cannot deny , to Auricular Confession , doing of Penance , going Pilgrimages to Saints , and what not ? Yet our Church does not think fit to ufe them ; though it cannot be deny'd but they may have some of your indirect and at a distance Vsefulness ; that is , perhaps may do some Se●…viceindirectly and by accident . If the Intention of those that use them , and the Success they will tell you they find in the use of them , be a Proof of doing Service more than by accident ; that cannot be deny'd to them more than to Penalties , your Way applied . To which , let me add , that Niceness and Difficulty there is , to hit that just Degree of Force ; which according to your Hypothesis , must be neither so much as to do harm , nor so little as to be ineffectual ; for you your self cannot determine it , makes its Usefulness yet more uncertain and accidential . And after all , let its Efficacy to work upon Mens Minds , be what it will , great or little , it being sure to be imploid ten , or possibly , an hundred times to bring Men to Error , for once that it is imploid to bring Men to the Truth ; and where it chances to be imploid , on the side of Truth , it being liable to make an hundred , or perhaps a thousand outward Conformists , for one true and sincere Convert ; I leave it also to be judg'd what Usefulness it is like to be of . To shew the Usefulness of Force , your way apply'd , I said , Where the Law punish'd Dissenters without telling them it is to make them consider , they may through Ignorance and Oversight neglect to do it . Your Answer is , But where the Law provides sufficient means of Instruction for all , as well as Punishment for Dissentors , it is so plain to all concern'd , that the Punishment is intended to make them consider , that you see no danger of Mens neglecting to do it , through Ignorance and Oversight . I hope you mean by consider , so to consider as not only to imbrace in an outward Profession ( for then all you say is but a poor Fallacy , for such a Considering amounts to no more but bare outward Conformity ; ) but so to consider , study and examine Matters of Religion , as really to imbrace , what one is convinced to be the true , with Faith and Obedience . If it be so plain and easy to understand , that a Law , that speaks nothing of it , should yet be intended to make Men consider , search and study , to sind out the Truth that must save them ; I wish you had shew'd us this Plainness . For I confess many of all degrees , that I have purposely asked about it , did not ever see , or so much as dream , that the Act of Uniformity , or against Conventicles , or the Penalties in either of them , were ever intended to make Men seriously study Religion , and make it their business to find the Truth which must save them ; but barely to make Men conform . But perhaps you have met with Handicrafts-Men , and Country-Farmers , Maid-Servants , and Day-Labourers , who have quicker Understandings , and reason better about the Intention of the Law , for these as well as others are concern'd . If you have not , 't is to be fear'd , your saying it is so plain , that you see no danger of Mens neglecting to do it , through Ignorance or Oversight , is more for its serving your purpose , than from any Experience you have , that it is so . When you will enquire into this Matter , you will , I guess , find the People so ignorant amidst that great Plainness you speak of , that not one of twenty of any degree , amongst Conformists or Nonconformists , ever understood the Penalty of 12 d. a Sunday , or any other of our Penal Laws against Nonconformity , to be intended to set Men upon studying the True Religion , and impartially examining what is necessary to Salvation . And if you would come to Hudibras's Decision , I believe he would have a good Wager of it , who should give you a Guinea for each one who had thought so , and receive but a Shilling for every one who had not . Indeed you do not say , it is plain every-where , but only where the Law provides sufficient means of Instruction for all , as well as Punishments for Dissenters . From whence , I think it will follow , that that contributes nothing to make it plain , or else that the Law has not provided sufficient means of Instruction in England , where so very few find this to be so plain . If by this sufficient Provision of means of Instruction for all ; you mean , Persons maintain'd at the Publick Charge to preach , and officiate in the publick Exercise of the National Religion ; I suppose you needed not this Restriction , there being sew Places which have an establish'd National Religion , where there is not such means of Instruction provided : if you intend any other means of Instruction , I know none the Law has provided in England but the 39 Articles , the Liturgy , and the Scripture , and how either of them by it self , or these altogether , with a National Clergy , make it plain , that the Penalties laid on Nonconformity , are intended to make Men consider , study , and impartially examine Matters of Religion , you would do well to shew . For Magistrates usually know ( and therefore make their Laws accordingly ) that the People seldom carry either their Interpretation or Practice beyond what the express Letter of the Law requires of them . You would do well also to shew , that a sufficient provision of means of Instruction , cannot but be understood to require an effectual Use of them , which the Law that makes that provision says nothing of . But on the contrary , contents it self with something very short of it : For Conformity or Coming to Church , is at least as far from considering , studying and impartially examining Matters of Religion , so as to imbrace the Truth upon Conviction and with an obedient Heart , as being present at a Discourse concerning Mathematicks , and studying Mathematicks , so as to become a knowing Mathematician , are different one from the other . People generally think they have done their Duties abundantly , if they have been at Church , whether they mind any thing done there or no : this they call serving of God , as if it were their whole Duty ; so backward are they to understand more , though it be plain the Law of God expresly requires more . But that they have fully satisfied the Law of the Land , no body doubts ; nor is it easy to answer what was are ply'd to me on this occasion , viz. If the Magistrate intended any thing more in those Laws but Consormity , would he not have said it ? To which 〈◊〉 me add , if the Magistrate intended Conformity as the fruit of Conviction , would he not have taken some care to have them instructed before they conformed , and examin'd when they did ? but 't is presumable their Ignorance , Corruption and Lusts , all drop off in the Church-porch , and that they become perfectly good Christians as soon as they have taken 〈◊〉 Seats in the Church . If there be any whom your Example or Writing hath inspir'd with A●…uteness enough to sind out this ; I suspect the Vulgar who have scarce time and thought enough to make Inferences from the Law , which scarce one or ten of them ever so much as reads , or perhaps under●…ands when read , are still , and will be ignorant of it : And those who have the Time and Abilities to argue about it , will find reason to think , that those Penalties were not intended to m●…ke Men examine the Doctrine and Ceremonies of Religion ; since those who should examine , are prohibited by those very Laws , to follow their own Judgments , ( which is the very End and Use of Examination ) if they at all differ from the Religion establish'd by Law. Nor can it appear so plain to all concern'd , that the Punishment is intended to make them consider and examine , when they see the Punishments you say are to make People consider , spare those who consider and examine Matters of Religion , as little as any of the most ignorant and careless Dissenters . To my saying , Some Dissenters may have consider'd already , and then Force imploid upon them must needs be useless ; unless you can think it useful to punish a Man to make him do that which he has done already . You reply , No Man who rejects Truth necessary to his Salvation , has consider'd already as he ought to consider . The words as he ought , are not , as I take it in the Question : and so your Answer is , No Man who rejects the Truth necessary to his Salvation , hath consider'd , study'd or examin'd Matters of Religion . But we will let that go : and yet with that allowance , your Answer will be nothing to the purpose , unless you will dare to say , that all Dissenters reject Truth necessary to Salvation . For without that Supposition , that all Dissenters reject Truth necessary to Salvation , the Argument and Answer will stand thus . It may be useless to punish all Dissenters to make them consider , because some of them may have consider'd already . To which , the Answer is , Yes , some of them may have consider'd already , but those who reject Truth necessary to their Salvation , have not consider'd as they ought . I said , The greatest part of Mankind , being not able to discern betwixt Truth and Falshood , that depends upon long and many Proofs , and remote Consequences ; nor ha●…ing Ability enough to discover the false Grounds , and resist the captious and fallacious Arguments of Learned Men versed in Controversies , are so much more expos'd , by the Force , which is used to make them hearken to the Information and Instruction of Men appointed to it by the Magistrate , or those of his Religion , to be led into Falshood and Error , than they are likely this way to be brought to imbrace the Truth which must save them ; by how much the National Religions of the World are , beyond comparison , more of them false or erroneous , than such as have God for their Author , and Truth for their Standard . You reply , If the first part of this be true ; then an infallible Guide , and implicit Faith , are more necessary than ever you thought them . Whether you conclude from thence or no , that then there will be a necessity of an infallible Guide , and an implicit Faith , 't is nevertheless true , that the greatest part of Men are unable to discern , as I said , between Truth and Falshood depending , upon long and many Proofs , &c. But whether that will make an infallible Guide necessary or no , Imposition in Matters of Religion certainly will : since there can be nothing more absur'd imaginable , than that a Man should take upon him to impose on others in Matters of their Eternal Concernment , without being , or so much as pretending to be infallible : For colour it with the name of Considering as much as you please , as long as it is to make Men consider as they ought , and considering as they ought , is so to consider , as to imbrace ; the using of Force to make Men consider , and the using of Force to make them imbrace any Doctrine or Opinion , is the same thing : and to shew a difference betwixt imposing an Opinion , and using Force to make it be imbrac'd , would require such a piece of Subtilty , as I heard lately from a Learned Man out of the Pulpit , who told us , that though two things , he named , were all one , yet for Distinction's sake , he would divide them . Your Reason for the necessity of an infallible Guide , is , For if the greatest part of Mankind be not able to discern betwixt Truth and Falshood in Matters concerning their Salvation ( as I must mean if I speak to the purpose ) their Condition must needs be very hazardous , if they have not some Guide or Judg , to whose Determination and Direction they may securely resign themselves . And therefore they must resign themselves to the Determination and Direction of the Civil Magistrate , or be punish'd . Here 't is like you will have something again to say to my Modesty and Conscience , for imputing to you , what you no where say . I grant it , in direct words ; but in effect as plainly as may be . The Magistrate may impose sound Creeds and decent Ceremonies , i. e such as he thinks sit , for what is sound and decent he I hope must be Judg , and if he be Judg of what is sound and decent , it amounts to no more , but what he thinks sit : and if it be not what he thinks sit , why is one Ceremony preferr'd to another ? why one Doctrine of the Scripture put into the Creed and Articles , and another as sound left out ? They are Truths necessary to Salvation . We shall see that in good time , here only I ask , Does the Magistrate only believe them to be Truths and Ceremonies necessary to Salvation , or does he certainly know them to be so ? If you say he only believes them to be so , and that that is enough to authorize him to impose them , you by your own Confession , authorize Magistrates to impose what they think necessary for the Salvation of their Subjects Souls ; and so the King of France did what he was obliged to , when he said he would have all his Subjects saved , and so fell to Dragooning . If you say the Magistrate certainly knows them to be necessary to Salvation , we are luckily come to an Infallible Guide . Well then , the sound Creeds are agreed on ; the Confession and Liturgy are framed ; the Ceremonies pitch'd on ; and the Terms of Communion thus set up , you have Religion establish'd by Law : and what now is the Subject to do ? He is to conform . No ; he must first consid●…r . Who bids him consider ? no body , he may if he pleases , but the Law says nothing to him of it : consider or not consider , if he conforms 't is well , and he is approved of , and admitted . He does consider the best he can , but finds some things he does not understand , other things he cannot believe , assent or consent to . What now is to be done with him ? He must either be punished on , or resign himself up to the Determination and Direction of the Civil Magistrate , which till you can ●…ind a better name for it , we will call Implicit Faith. And thus you have provided a Remedy for the hazardous Condition of weak Understandings , in that which you suppose necessary in the case , viz. an infallible Guide and implicit Faith , in Matters ●…oncerning Mens Salvation . But you say , For your part you know of no such Guide of God's appointing . Let that be your Rule , and the Magistrate with his Co-active Power , will be left out too . You think there is no need of any such , because notwithstanding the long and many Proofs and remote Consequences , the false Grounds , and the captious and fallacious Arguments of Learned Men vers'd in Controversies , with which I ( as well as those of the Roman Communion ) endeavour to amuse you ; through the Goodness of God the Truth which is necessary to Salvation , lies so obvious and exposed to all that sin●…erely and diligently seek it , that no such Person shall ever fail of attaining the Knowledg of it . This then is your Answer , that Truths necessary to Salvation are obvious ; so that those who seek them sincerely and diligently , are not in danger to be misled or expos'd in those to Error , by the Weakness of their Understandings . This will be a good Answer to what I objected from the Danger most are in to be led into Error , by the Magistrate's adding Force to the Arguments for their National establish'd Religions ; when you have shewn , that nothing is wont to be impos'd in National Religions , but what is necessary to Salvation ; or which will a little better accommodate your Hypothesis , when you can shew that nothing is impos'd , or requir'd for Communion with the Church of England , but what is necessary to Salvation ; and consequently , is very easy and obvious to be known , and distinguish'd from Falshood . And indeed , besides what you say here , upon your Hypothesis , that Force is lawful only , because it is necessary to bring Men to Salvation , it cannot be lawful to use it , to bring Men to any thing , but what is absolutely necessary to Salvation . For if the Lawfulness of Force be only from the need Men have of it to bring them to Salvation , it cannot lawfully be used , to bring Men to that , which they do not need , or is not necessary , to their Salvation ; for in such an Application of it , it is not needful to their Salvation . Can you therefore say , that there is nothing required to be believ'd and profess'd in the Church of England , but what lies so obvious and expos'd to all that sincerely and diligently seek it , that no such Person shall ever fail of attaining the Knowledg of it ? What think you of St. Athanasius's C●…eed ? is the Sense of that so obvious and expos'd to every one who seeks it , which so many Learned Men have explain'd so different Ways , and which yet a great many profess they cannot understand ? Or is it necessary to your or my Salvation , that you or I should believe and pronounce all those damn'd who do not believe that Creed , i. e. every Proposition in it ? which I fear would extend to not a few of the Church of England , unless we can think that People believe , i. e. assent to the Truth of Propositions , they do not at all understand . If ever you were acquainted with a Country-Parish , you must needs have a strange Opinion of them , if you think all the Plough-Men and Milk-Maids at Church , understood all the Propositions in Athanasius's Creed ; 't is more truly , than I should be apt to think of any one of them , and yet I cannot hence believe my self authorized to judg or pronounce them all damn'd : 't is too bold an Intrenching on the Prerogative of the Almighty , to their own Master they stand or fall . The Doctrine of Original Sin , is that which is profess'd , and must be owned by the Members of the Church of England , as is evident from the 39 Articles , and several Passages in the Liturgy : and yet I ask you , whether this be so obvious and expos'd to all that diligently and sincerely seek the Truth , that one who is in the Communion of the Church of England , sincerely seeking the Truth , may not raise to himself such Difficulties concerning the Doctrine of Original Sin as may puzzle him , though he be a Man of Study ; and whether he may not push his Enquiries so far , as to be stagger'd in his Opinion . If you grant me this , as I am apt to think you will , then I enquire whether it be not true ( notwithstanding what you say concerning the Plainness and Obviousness of Truths necessary to Salvation ) that a great part of Mankind may not be able to discern between Truth , and Falshood , in several Points , which are thought so far to concern their Salvation , as to be made necessary Parts of the National Religion ? If you say it may be so , then I have nothing farther to enquire ; but shall only advise you not to be so severe hereafter in your Censure of Mr. Reynolds , as you are , where you tell me , that the famous Instance I give of the two Reynolds's is not of any moment to prove the contrary ; unless I can undertake , that he that erred was as sincere in his Enquiry after that Truth , as I suppose him able to examine and judg . You will , I suppose , be more charitable another time , when you have consider'd , that neither Sincerity , nor Freedom from Error , even in the establish'd Doctrines of their own Church , is the Privilege of those who join themselves in outward Profession to any National Church whatsoever . And it is not impossible , that one who has subscribed the 39 Articles , may yet make it a Question , Whether it may b●… truly said that God imputes the first Sin of Adam to his Posterity ? &c. But we are apt to be so fond of our own Opinions , and almost Infallibility , that we will not allow them to be sincere , who quit our Communion ; whilst at the same time , we tell the World , it is presumable , that all who imbrace it , do it sincerely , and upon Conviction ; though we cannot but know many of them to be but loose , inconsiderate , and ignorant People . This is all the reason you have , when you speak of the Reynolds's , to suspect one of the Brothers more than the other : And to think , that Mr. Chillingworth had not as much Sincerity when he quitted , as when he return'd to the Church of England , is a Partiality , which nothing can justify without pretending to Infallibility . To shew that you do not fancy your Force to be useful , but that you judg so upon just and sufficient Grounds , you tell us , the strong probability of its Success is grounded upon the Consideration of humane Nature , and the general Temper of Mankind , apt to be ●…rought upon by the Method you speak of , and upon the indisputable Att●…station of Experience . The Consideration of humane Nature , and the general Temper of Mankind , will teach one this , that Men are apt , in things within their power , to be wrought upon by Force , and the more wrought upon , the greater the Force or Punishments are : So that where moderate Penalties will not work , great Severities will. Which Consideration of humane Nature , if it be a just Ground to judg any Force useful , will I fear necessarily carry you , in your Judgment , to Severities beyond the moderate Penalties , so often mention'd in your System , upon a strong Probability of the Success of greater punishment , where less would not prevail . But if to consider so as you require , i. e. so as to imbrace , and believe , be not in their Power , then no Force at all , great or little , is or can be useful . You must therefore ( consider it which way you will ) either renounce all Force as useful , or pull off your Mask , and own all the Severities of the cruellest Perseentors . The other Reason of your iudging Force to be useful , you say , is grounded on the indisputable Att●…station of Experience . Pray tell us where you have this Attestation of Experience for your moderate , which is the only useful Force : Name the Country where True Religion or Sound Christianity has been Nationally receiv'd , and establish'd by moderate Penal Laws , that the observing Persons you appeal to , may know where to imploy their Observation : Tell us how long it was t●…ied , and what was the Su●…cess of it ? And where there has been the Relaxation of such moderate Penal Laws , the fruits whereof have continually b●…en Epicurism and Atheism ? Till you do this , I fear , that all the World will think , there is a more indisputable Attestation of Experience for the Success of Dragooning , and the Severities you condemn , than of your moderate Method ; which we shall compare with the King of France's , and see which is most successful in making Proselytes to Church-Conformity , ( for yours as well as his reach no farther than that ) when you produce your Examples : the consident Talk whereof , is good to count●…nce a Cause , though Experience there be none in the case . But you appeal , you say , to all observing Persons , Whether where-euer True Religion or Sound Christianity have been Nationally receiv'd and 〈◊〉 by moderate Penal Laws , it has not always visibly lost ground by the Relaxation of those Laws ? True or False Religions , Sound or Unsound Christianity , where-ever establish'd into National Religions by Penal Laws , always have lost , and always will lose ground , i. e. lose several of their Confo●…ming Professors upon the Relaxation of those Laws . But this concerns not the True , more than other Religions ; nor is any Prejudice to it : but only shews , that many are , by the Penalties of the Law , kept in the Communion of the National Religion , who are not really convinced , or perswaded of it : and therefore , as soon as Liberty is given , they own the dislike they had many of them before , and out of Perswasion , Curiosity , &c. seek out , and bet●…ke themselves to some other Profession . This need not startle the Magistrates of any Religion , much less those of the True , since they will be sure to retain those , who more mind their secular Interest than the Truth of Religion , ( who are every-where the greater number ) by the advantages of Countenance and P●…ferment : and if it be the True Religion , they will retain those also , who are in earnest of it , by the stronger tie of Co●…science and Conviction . You go on , Whether Sects and Hercsies ( even the wildest and most absurd , and even Epicurism and Atheism ) have not continually thereupon spread themselves , and whether the very Life of Christianity has not sensibly decay'd , as well as the Number of sound Prosessors of it been daily lessen'd upon it ? As to Atheism and Epicurism , whether they more spread under Toleration , or National Religions , establish'd by moderate Penal Laws , when you shew us the Countries where fair trial hath been made of both , that we may compare them together , we shall better be able to judg . Epicurism and Atheism , say you , are found constantly to spread themselves upon the Relaxation of moderate Penal Laws . We will suppose your History to be full of Instances of such Relaxations , which you will in good time communicate to the World , that wants this Assistance from your Observation . But were this to be justified out of History , yet would it not be any Argument against Toleration ; unless your History can furnish you with a new sort of Religion founded in Atheism . However , you do well to charge the spreading of Atheism upon Toleration in Matters of Religion , as an Argument against those who deny Atheism ( which takes away all Religion ) to have any Right to Toleration at all . But perhaps ( as is usual for those who think all the World should see with their Eyes , and receive their Systems for unquestionable Verities ) Zeal for your own way makes you call all Atheism , that agrees not with it . That which makes me doubt of this , are these following words ; Not to speak of what at this time our Eyes cannot but see for fear of giving Offence : Though I hope it will be none to any that have a just Concern for Truth and Piety , to take notice of the Books and Pamphlets which now fly so thick about this Kingdom , manifestly tending to the multiplying of Sects and Divisions , and even to the promoting of Scepticism in Religion among us . In which number , you say , you shall not much need my pardon , if you reckon the First and Second Letter concerning Toleration . Wherein , by a broad Insinuation , you impute the spreading of Atheism among us , to the late Relaxation made in favour of Protestant Dissenters : and yet all that you take notice of as a proof of this , is , the Books and Pamphlets which now fly so thick about this Kingdom , manifestly tending to the multiplying of Sects and Divisions , and even to the promoting of Scepticism in Religion amongst us ; and for instance , you name the First and Second Letter concerning Toleration . If one may guess at the others by these , The Athcism and Scepticism you accuse them of will have but little more in it , than an Opposition to your Hypothesis ; on which , the whole business of Religion must so turn , that whatever agrees not with your System , must presently , by Interpretation , be concluded to tend to the promoting of Atheism or Scepticism in Religion . For I challenge you to shew in either of those two Letters you mention , one word tending to Epicurism , Atheism or Scepticism in Religion . But , Sir , against the next time you are to give an account of Books and Pamphlets tending to the promoting Scepticism in Religion amongst us . I shall mind you of the third Letter concerning Toleration , to be added to the Catalogue , which asserting and building upon this , that True Religion may be known by those who profess it , to be the only True Religion , does not a little towards betraying the Christian Religion to Scepticks . For what greater advantage can be given them , than to teach , that one may know the True Religion ? thereby putting into their hands a Right to demand it to be demonstrated to them , that the Christian Religion is true , and bringing on the Professors of it a necessity of doing it . I have heard it complain'd of as one great Artifice of Scepticks , to require Demonstrations where they neither could be had , nor were necessary . But if the True Religion may be known to Men to be so , a Sceptick may require , and you cannot blame him if he does not receive your Religion , upon the strongest probable Arguments , without Demonstration . And if one should demand of you Demonstration of the Truths of your Religion , which I beseech you , would you do , either renounce your Assertion , that it may be known to be true , or else undertake to demonstrate it to him ? And as for the decay of the very Life and Spirit of Christianity , and the spreading of Epicurism amongst us : I ask , what can more tend to the promoting of them than this Doctrine , which is to be found in the same Letter , viz. That it is presumable that those who conform , do it upon Reason and Conviction ? When you can instance in any thing so much tending to the promoting of Scepticism in Religion and Epicurism , in the first or second Letter concerning Toleration , we shall have reason to think you have some ground for what you say . As to Epicurism , the spreading whereof you likewise impu●…e to the Relaxation of your moderate Penal Laws ; That so far as it is distinct from Atheism , I think regards Mens Lives more than their Religions , i. e. speculative Opinions in Religion and Ways of Worship , which is that we mean by Religion , as concern'd in Toleration . And for the Toleration of corrupt Manners , and the Debaucheries of Life , neither our Author , nor I do plead for it ; but say it is properly the Magistrate's Business , by Punishments , to restrain and suppress them . I do not therefore blame your Zeal against Atheism and Epicurism ; but you discover a great Zeal against something else , in charging them on Toleration , when it is in the Magistrate's power to restrain and suppress them by more effectual Laws than those for Church-Conformity . For there are those who will tell you that an outward Profession of the National Religion , even where it is the True Religion , is no more opposite to , or inconsistent with Atheism or Epicurism , than the owning of another Religion , ●…specially any Christian Profession , that differs from it . And therefore you , in vain , impute Atheism or Epicurism to the Relaxation of Penal Laws , that require no more than an outward Conformity to the National Church . As to the S●…cts and Un-christian Divisions ( for other Divisions there may be without prejudice to Christianity ) at whose Door they chiesly ought to be laid , I have shew'd you elsewhere . One thing I cannot but take notice of here , that having named Sects , Heresi●…s , Epicurism , Atheism , and a D●…ay of the Spirit and Life of Christianity , as the fruits of 〈◊〉 , for which you had the Attestation of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , you add these words , Not to speak of what our 〈◊〉 at this 〈◊〉 cannot but 〈◊〉 , for fear of giving offence . Whom is it , I beseech you , you are so afraid of offending , if you should speak of the Epicurism , Atheism , and D●…ay of the Spirit , and Life of Christianity ●…gst 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ? But I see , he that is so mode●… in one he will not take upon , 〈◊〉 what they cannot know he calls moderate Pe●…is or Force , may yet , in another pa●…t of the same Letter , by bro●…d Insinnations , use 〈◊〉 , wherein 't is a hard matter to think Law-mak●…rs and Gov●…nners are not meant . But whoever be meant , it is at least advisable in Accusations that are easier suggested than made out , to cast abroad the Slander in general , and leave others to apply it , for ●…ear those who are named , and so justly offended with a false Imputation , should be intitled to ask , as in this case , how it appears that Sects and Herosies have multiplied , Epicurism and Atheism spread themselves , and that the Life and Spirit of Christianity is decay'd , more within these two years than it was before , and that all this Mischief is owing to the late Relaxation of the Penal Laws against Protestant Dissenters . You go on , And if these have always been the Fruits of the Relaxation of moderate Penal Laws , made for the preserving and advancing true Religion ; You think this Consideration alone is abundantly sufficient to shew the ●…fulness and Benefit of such Laws . For if these Evils have constantly sprung from the Relaxation of those Laws , 〈◊〉 evident they were prevented before by those Laws . One would think by your saying , always been the Fruits , and constantly sprung , that moderate Penal Laws , for preserving the true Religion , had been the constant Practice of all Christian Common-wealth ; and that Relaxations of them , i●… favour of a free Toleration , had frequently happen'd ; and that there were Examples both of the one and the other , as common and known , as of Prince ; that have persecuted for Religion , and learned Men who have imploy'd their Skill to make it good . But till you shew us in what Ages or Countries your moderate Establishments were in Fashion , and where they were again removed to make way for our Author's Toleration , you to as little purpose talk of the Fruits of them , as if you should talk of the Fruit of a Tree which no Body planted , or was no where suffered to grow till one might see what Fruit came from it . Having laid it down as one of the Conditions for a fair debate of this Controversy , ` That it should be without supposing all along your Church in the right , and your Religion the true ; I add these words , Which can no more be allow'd to you IN THIS CASE , whatever your Church or Religion be , than it can be to a Papist or a Lutheran , a Presbyterian or an Anabaptist ; nay no more to you , than it can be allow'd to a Jew or Mahometan . To which you reply , No Sir ? Not whatever your Church or Religion be ? That seems somewhat hard . And you think I might have given you some reason for what I say : For certainly it is not so self-evident as to need no proof . But you think it is no hard matter to guess at my Reason , though I did not think fit expresty to own it . For 't is obvious enough there can be no other Reason for this Assertion of mine , but either the equal Truth , or at least the equal Certainty ( or Vncertainty ) of all Religions . For whoever considers my Assertion , must see , that to make it good I shall be obliged to maintain one of these two things . Either , 1. That no Religion is the true Religion , in opposition to other Religions : Which makes all Religions true or false , and so either way indifferent . Or , 2. That though some one Religion be the true Religion , yet no Man can have any more Reason than another Man of another Religion may have , to believe his to be the true Religion . Which makes all Religions equally certain , ( or uncertain , whether I please ) and so renders it vain and idle to enquire after the true Religion , and only a piece of good luck if any Man be of it , and such good luck as he can never know that he has till he come into the other World. Whether of these two Principles I will own , you know not . But certainly one or other of them lies at the bottom with me , and is the lurking Supposition upon which I build all that I say . Certainly no , Sir , neither of these Reasons you have so ingenuously and friendly found out for me , lies at the bottom ; but this , That whatever Privilege or Power you claim , upon your supposing yours to be the true Religion , is equally due to another ( who supposes his to be the true Religion ) upon the same claim : and therefore that is no more to be allow'd to you than to him . For whose is really the true Religion , yours or his , being the matter in contest betwixt you , your supposing can no more determine it on your side , than his supposing on his ; unless you can think you have a right to judg in your own Cause . You believe yours to be the true Religion , so does he believe his : you say you are certain of it , so says he , he is : you think you have Arguments proper and sufficient to convince him , if he would consider them ; the same thinks he of his . If this claim , which is equally on both sides , be allow'd to either , without any Proof , 't is plain he , i●… whose favour it is allow'd , is allow'd to be Judg in his own Cause , which no body can have a Right to be , who is not at least infallible . If you come to Arguments and Proofs , which you must do , befo●…e it can be determin'd whose is the True Religion , 't is plain your Supposition is not allow'd . In our present case , in using Punishments in Religion , your supposing yours to be the True Religion , gives you or your Magistrate no more Advantage over a Papist , Presbyterian or Mahometan , or more Reason to punish either of them for his Religion , than the same . Supposition in a Papist , Presbyterian or Mahometan gives any of them , or a Magistrate of their Religion , advantage over you , or reason to punish you for your Religion : and therefore this Supposition , to any purpose or privilege of using of Force , is no more to be allow'd to you , than to any one of any other Religion . This the words , IN THIS CASE , which I there used , would have satisfied any other to have been my meaning : But whether your Charity made you not to take notice of them , or the Joy of such an Advantage as this , not to understand them , this is certain , you were resolved not to lose the Opportunity , such a place as this afforded you , of shewing your Gift , in commenting and guessing shrewdly at a Man's Reasons , when he does not think fit expresly to own them himself . I must own you have a very lucky hand at it , and as you do it here upon the same ground , so it is just with the same Success , as you in another place have exercis'd your Logick on my saying something to the same purpose , as I do here . But , Sir , if you will add but one more to your plentiful stock of Distinctions , and observe the difference there is between the ground of any one's supposing his Religion is true , and the Privilege he may pretend to by supposing it true , you will never stumble a●… this again ; but you will find , that though upon the former of these Accounts , Men of all Religions cannot be equally allow'd to suppose their Religions true , yet in reference to the Latter , the Supposition may and ought to be allow'd , or deny'd equally to all Men. And the reason of it is plain , viz. because the Assurance wherewith one Man supposes his Religion to be true , being no more an Argument of its Truth to another , than vice versâ ; neither of them can claim by the Assurance , wherewith he supposes his Religion the True , any Prerogative or Power over the other , which the other has not by the same Title an equal Claim to , over him . If this will not serve to spare you the pains another time of any more such Reasonings , as we have twice had on this Subject , I think I shall be forced to send you to my Mahometans or Pagans : and I doubt whether I am not less civil to your Parts than I should be , that I do not send you to them now . You go on and say , But as u●…reasonable as this Condition is , you see no need you have to decline it , nor any occasion I had to impose it upon you . For certainly the making what I call your new Method , cons●…ltent and practicable , does no way oblige you to suppose all along your Religion the True , as I imagine . And as I imagine it does : For without that Supposition , I would fain have you shew me how it is in any one Country practicable to punish Men to b●…ing them to the True Religion . For if you will argue for Force , as necessary to bring Men to the True Religion , without supposing yours to be it , you will find your self under some such difficulty as this , that then it must be first determin'd , ( and you will require it should be ) which is the True Religion , before any one can have a Right to use Force to bring Men to it ; which , if every one did not determine for himself , by supposing his own the True , no body , I think , will desire Toleration any longer than till that be settled . You go on , No , Sir , it is enough for that purpose , that there is one True Religion , and but one . Suppose not the National Religion establish●…d by Law in England to be that , and then even upon your Principles of its being useful , and that the Magistrate has a Commission to use Force for the promoting the True Religion , prove if you please , that the Magistrato has a Power to use Force to bring Men to the National Religion in England . For then you must prove the National Religion , as establish'd by Law in England , to be that One True Religion , and so the True Religion , that he rejects the True Religion , who dissents from any part of it , and so rejecting the True Religion , cannot be saved . But of this more in another place . Your other two Suppositions which you join to the foregoing , are , That that Religion may be known by those who 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to be the only True Religion ; and may also be manifested to be such by them to others , so far at least , as to oblige them to receive it , and to leave them without Excuse , if they do not . These , you say , are Suppositions enough for the making your M●…od consistent and pra●…ioable . They are , 〈◊〉 , more than enough , for you , upon them , to prove any National Religion in the World , the only True Religion . And till you have proved ( for you profess here to have quitted the Supposition of any one's being true , as necessary to your Hypothesis ) some National Religion to be that only True Religion , I would gladly know how it is any where practicable to use Force to bring Men to the True Religion . You suppose there is one True Religion , and but one . In this we are both agreed : And from hence , I think , it will follow , since whoever is of this True Religion shall be saved , and without being of it no Man shall be saved , that upon your second and third Supposition , it will be hard to shew any National Religion to be this only True Religion . For who is it will say , he knows , or that it is knowable , that any National Religion ( wherein must be comprehended all that , by the Penal Laws , he is requird to imbrace ) is that only True Religion ; which if Men reject , they shall ; and which , if they imbrace , they shall not miss Salvation ? Or can you undertake that any National Religion in the World can be manifested to be such , i. e. in short , to contain all things necessary to Salvation , and nothing but what is so ? For that , and that alone , is the One only True Religion , without which no body can be saved ; and which is enough for the Salvation of every one who imbraces it . And therefore whatever is less or more than this , is not the One only True Religion , or that which there is a necessity for their Salvation , Men should be forced to imbrace . I do not hereby deny , that there is any National Religion which contains all that is necessary to Salvation , for so doth the Romish Religion , which is not for all that , so much as a True Religion . Nor do I deny , that there are National Religions that contain all things necessary to Salvation , and nothing inconsistent with it , and so may be call'd True Religions . But since they all of them joyn with what is necessary to Salvation , a great deal that is not so , and make that as necessary to Communion , as what is necessary to Salvation , not suffering any one to be of their Communion , without taking all together ; nor to live amongst them free from Punishment , out of their Communion ; will you affirm , that any of the National Religions of the World , which are imposed by Penal Laws , and to which Men are driven with Force , can be said to be , that One only True Religion , which if Men imbrace , they shall be saved ; and which if they imbrace not , they shall be damn'd ? And therefore , your two Suppositions , True or False , are not enough to make it practicable , upon your Principles of necessity , to use Force upon Dissenters from the National Religion , though it contain in it nothing but Truth , unless that which is requir'd to Communion be all necessary to Salvation . For whatever is not necessary to Salvation , there is no necessity any one should imbrace . So that whenever you speak of the True Religion , to make it to your purpose , you must speak only of what is necessary to Salvation ; unless you will say , that in order to the Salvation of Mens Souls , it is necessary to use Force to bring them to imbrace something , that is not necessary to their Salvation . I think that neither you nor any body else , will affirm , that it is necessary to use Force to bring Men to receive all the Truths of the Christian Religion , though they are Truths God has thought sit to reveal . For then , by your own Rule , you who profefs the Christian Religion , must know them all , and must be able to manifest them to others ; for it is on that here you ground the Necessity and Reasonableness of Penalties used to bring Men to imbrace the Truth . But I suspect 't is the good word Religion ( as in other places other words ) has misled you , whilst you content your self with good Sounds , and some confused Notions , that usually accompany them , without annexing to them any precise determin'd Signification . To convince you that 't is not without ground I say this , I shall desire you but to set down what you mean here by True Religion , that we may know what in your Sense is , and what is not contain'd in it . Would you but do thus fairly , and define your Words , or use them in one constant settled Sense , I think the Controversy between you and me , would be at an end without any farther trouble . Having shewed of what advantage they are like to be to you for the making your Method practicable , in the next place let us consider your Suppositions themselves . As to the first , There is one true Religion , and but one , we are argeed . But what you say in the next place , That that one true Religion may be known by those who profess it , will need a little Examination . As first , it will be necessary to enquire , what you mean by known , whether you mean by it Knowledg properly so call'd , as contra-distinguish'd to Belief ; or only the assurance of a sirm Belief ? If the l●…tter , I leave you your Supposition to make your use of it , only with this Desire , that to avoid Mistakes , when you do make any use of it , you would call it Believing . If you mean that the true Religion may be known with the certainty of Knowledg properly so call'd ; I ask you farther , whether that true Religion be to be known by the Light of Nature , or needed a Divine Revelation to discover it ? If you say ( as I suppose you will ) the latter ; then I ask whether the making out of that to be a Divine Revelation , depends not upon particular matters of Fact , whereof you were no Eye-witness ; but were done many Ages before you were born , and if so , by what Principles of Science they can be known to any Man now living ? The Articles of my Religion , and of a great many other such short-sighted People as I am , are Articles of Faith , which we think there are so good grounds to believe , that we are perswaded to venture our Eternal Happiness on that Belief : And hope to be of that number of whom our Saviour said , Blessed are they that have not seen , and yet have believed . But we neither think that God requires , nor has given us Faculties capable of knowing in this World several of those Truths which are to be believed to Salvation . If you have a Religion , all whose general Truths are either self-evident , or capable of demonstration , ( for matters of Fact are not capable of being any way known but to the by-standers ) you will do well to let it be known , for the ending of Controversies , and banishing of Error concerning any of those Points out of the World. For whatever may be known , besides matter of Fact , is capable of demonstration , and when you have demonstrated to any one any Point in Religion , you shall have my consent to punish him if he do not assent to it . But yet let me tell you there are many Truths even in Mathematicks , the evidence whereof one Man seeing is able to demonstrate to himself , and so may know them ; which Evidence yet he not being able to make another see , ( which is to demonstrate to him ) he cannot make known to him , though his Scholar be willing , and with all his Power applies himself to learn it . But granting your Supposition , That the one true Religion may be known by those who profess it to be the only true Religion ; will it follow from hence , that because it is knowable to be the true Religion , therefore the Magistrate who prosesses it actually knows it to be so ? Without which Knowledg , upon your Principles , he cannot use Force to bring Men to it . But if you are but at hand to assure him , which is the true Religion , for which he ought to use Force , he is bound to believe you ; and that will do as well as if he examin'd and knew himself , or perhaps better . For you seem not well satisfied with what the Magistrates have lately done , without your leave , concerning Religion in England . And I confess the easiest way to remove all Difficulties in the Case , is for you to be the Magistrates infallible Guide in matters of R●…ligion . And therefore you do well here also to keep to your safe Stile , lest if your Sense were clear and determin'd , it might be more exposed to Exceptions ; and therefore you tell us the true Religion may be known by those who profess it . For not saying by some of those , or by all those , the Error of what you say is not so easily observed , and requires the more trouble to come at : Which I shall spare my self here , being satisfied , that the Magistrate who has so full an imployment of his Thoughts in the Cares of the Government , has not an over-plus of leisure to attain that Knowledg which you require , and so usually contents himself with believing . Your next Supposition is , That the one true Religion may also be manifested to be such , by the●… , to others ; so far , at least , as to oblige them to receive it , and leave them without excuse if they do not . That it can be manifested to some , so as to oblige , i. e. cause them to receive it , is evident , because it is received . But because this seems to be spoken more in reference to those who do not receive it , as appears by these following Words of yours ; Then 't is altogether as plain that it may be very reasonable and necessary for some Men to change their Religion ; and that it may be made appear to them to be so . And then , if such Men will not consider what is offer'd to c●…nvince them of the reasonableness and necess●…y of doing it ; it may be very fit and reasonable , you tell me , for any thing I have said to the contrary , in order to the bringing them to the consideration , to require them , under convenient Penalties , to forsake their false Religions , and to embrace the true . You suppose the true Religion may be so manifested by a Man that is of it , to all Men so far as to leave them if they do not imbrace it , without excuse . Without Excuse , to whom I beseech you ? to God indeed , but not to the Magistrate , who can never know whether it has been so manifested to any Man , that it has been through his Fault that he has not been convinc●…d , and not through the fault of him to whom the Magistrate committed the care of convincing him : And 't is a sufficient ex●…use to the Magistrate , for any one to say to him , I have not neglected to consider the Arguments , that have been offered me , by those whom you have imploy'd to manifest it to me , but that yours is the only true Religion I am not Religion . Which is so direct and sufficient an Excuse to the Magistrate , that had he an express Commission from Heaven to punish all those who did not consider , he could not yet justly punish any one whom he could not convince had not consider'd . But you endeavour to avoid this , by what you infer from this your Supposition , viz. That then it may be very fit and reasonable , for any thing I have said to the contrary , to require Men under convenient Penalties to forsake their false Religions , to imbrace the true , i●…order to the bringing them to consideration . Whether I have said any ●…hing to the contrary , o●… no , the Readers must judg , and I need not repeat . But now I say , it is neither just nor reasonable to require Men , under Penalties , to attain one end , in order to bring them to use the means not necessary to that , but to another end . For where is it you can say ( unless you will return to your old Supposition , of yours being the true Religion ; which you say is not necessary to your method ) that Men are by the Law required to forsake their false Religions , and imbrace the true ? The utmost is this , in all Countries where the National Religion is imposed by Law , Men are required under the Penalties of those Laws outwardly to conform to it ; which you say is in order to make them consider . So that your Punishments are for the attaining one end , viz. Conformity in order to make Men use consideration , which is a means not necessary to that , but another end , viz. finding out and imbracing the one true Religion . For however consideration may be a necessary means to find and imbrace the one true Religion , it is not at all a necessary means to outward Conformity in the Communion of any Religion . To manifest the consistency and practicableness of your Method , to the Question , what advantage would it be to the true Religion , if Magistrates did every where so punish ? You answer , That by the Magistrates punishing , if I speak to the purpose , I must mean their punishing Men for rejecting the true Religi●…n ( so tender'd to them , as has been said ) in order to the bringing them to consider and imbrace it . Now before we can suppose Magistrates every where so to punish , we must suppose the true Religion to be every where the National Religion . And if this were the case ; you think it is evident ●…nough , what advantage to the true Religion it would be , if Magistrates every where did so punish . For then we might reasonably hope ●…hat all f●…lse Religions would soon vanish , and the true become on●… more the only Religion in the World : Whereas if Magistrates should not so punish , it were much to be fear'd ( especially considering what has already happen'd ) that on the contrary false Religions , and Atheism , as more agreeable to the Soil , would daily take deeper Root , and propagate themselves , till there were no room left for the true Religion ( which is but a foreign Plant ) in any Corner of the World. If you can make it practicable that the Magistrate should punish Men for rejecting the True Religion , without judging which is the True Religion : or if True Religion could appear in Person , take the Magistrate's Seat , and there judg all that rejected her , something might be done . But the mischief of it is , it is a Man that must condemn , Men must punish , and Men cannot do this , but by judging , who is guilty of the Crime , which they punish . An Oracle , or an Interpreter of the Law of Nature who speaks as clearly , tells the Magistrate , he may and ought to punish those , who reject the True Religion , tender'd with sufficient Evidence : The Magistrate is satisfied of his Authority , and believes this Commission to be good . Now I would know how possibly he can execute it , without making himself the Judg , 1. What is the True Religion ; unless the Law of Nature at the same time deliver'd into his Hands the 39 Articles of the One only True Religion , and another Book wherein all the Ceremonies and outward Worship of it are contain'd . But it being certain , that the Law of Nature has not done this ; and as certain , that the Articles , Ceremonies and Discipline of this One only True Religion , have been often varied in several Ages and Countries , since the Magistrate's Commission by the Law of Nature was first given : there is no Remedy left , but that the Magistrate must judg what is the True Religion , if he must punish them who reject it . Suppose the Magistrate be commission'd to punish those who depart from right Reason , the Magistrate can yet never punish any one , unless he be Judg what is right Reason ; and then judging that Murder , Theft , Adultery , Narrow Cart-Wheels , or want of Bows and Arrows in a Man's House , are against right Reason , he may make Laws to punish Men guilty of those , as 〈◊〉 right Reason . So if the Magistrate in England or France , having a Commission to punish those who reject the One only True Religion , judges the Religion of his National Church to be it , 't is possible for him to lay Penalties on those who reject it , pursuant to that Commission ; otherwise , without judging that to be the One only True Religion , 't is wholly impracticable for him to punish those who imbrace it not , as Rejecters of the One only True Religion . To provide as good a Salvo as the thing will bear , you say , in th●… fol●…wing words , Before we can suppose Magistrates every where so to punish , we must suppose the True Religion to be every where the National . That is true of actual Punishment , but not of laying on Penalties by Law ; for that would be to suppose the National Religion makes or chuses the Magistrate , and not the Magistrate the National Religion . But we see the contrary ; for let the National Religion be what it will before , the Magistrate doth not always fall into it and imbrace that ; but if he thinks not that , but some other the True , the first Opportunity he has , he changes the National Religion into that which he judges the True , and then punishes the Dissenters from it ; where his Judgment , which is the True Religion , always necessarily precedes , and is that which ultimately does , and must determine who are Rejecters of the True Religion , and so obnoxi●…us to Punishment . This being so , I would gladly see how your Meth●…d can be any way practicable to the advantage of the True Religion , whereof the Magistrate every-where must be Judg , or else he can punish no body at all . You tell me that whereas I say , that to justify Punishment it is requisite that it be directly useful for the procu●…ing some 〈◊〉 Good than that which it takes away ; you wish I had told you why it must needs be directly useful for that purpose . However exact you may be in demanding Reasons of what is said , I thought here you had no cause to complain ; but you let slip out of your Memory the foregoing words of this Passage , which together stands thus , Punishment is some Evil , some Inconvenience , some Suffering , by taking away , or abridging some good thing , which he who is punish'd ha●… otherwise a Right to . Now to justify the bringing any such Evil upon any Man , two Things are requisite ; 1. That he that does it has a Commission so to do . 2. That it be directly useful for the promoting some greater Good. 'T is evident by these Words , that Punishment brings direct Evil upon a Man , and therefore it should not be used but where it is directly useful for the procuring some greater Good. In this case , the signification of the Word directly , carries a manifest Reason in it , to any one who understands what directly means . If the taking away any Good from a Man cannot be justified , but by making it a Means to procure a greater , is it not plain it must be so a Means as to have , in the Operation of Causes and Effects , a natural Tendency to that Effect ? and then it is called directly useful to such an end : And this may give you a reason , why Punishment must be directly useful for that purpose . I know you are very tender of your indirect and at a distance Usefulness of Force , which I have in another place shew'd to be , in your way , only useful by accident ; nor will the Question you here subjoin , excuse it from being so , viz. Why 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not as directly useful for the bringing Men to the True Religion , as the R●…d of Correction is to drive Foolishness from a Child or to work Wisdom in him ? Because the Rod works on the Will of the Child to obey the Reason of the Father , whilst under his Tuition , and thereby makes it supple to the Dictates of his own Reason afterwards , and disposes him to obey the Light of that , when being grown to be a Man , that is to be his Guide , and this is Wisdom . If your Penalties are so used , I have nothing to say to them . Your way is charg'd to be impracticable to those Ends you purpose , which you indeavour to clear , p. 63. That there may be fair play on both sides , the Reader shall have in the same view what we both say . 〈◊〉 . 2. p. 57. It remains now to examine , whether the Author's Argument will not hold good , even against Punishments in your way . For if the Magistrate's Authority be , as you here say , only to procure all his Subjects , ( mark what you say , ALL HIS SVBJECTS ) the means of discovering the way of Salvation , and to procure 〈◊〉 , as much as in him lies , that NONE remain ignorant of it , or refuse to embrace it , 〈◊〉 for want of using those means , or by reason of any such prejudices as may render them 〈◊〉 . If this be the Magistrate's business , in reference to ALL HIS SUBJECTS ; I desire you , or any Man else , to tell me how this can be done , by the application of Force only to a part of them ; Unless you will still vainly suppose ignorance , negligence , or prejudice , only amongst that part which any-where differs from the Magistrate . If those of the Magistrate's Church may be ignorant of the way of Salvation ; If it be possible there may be amongst them , those who refuse to imbrace it , e●…her for want of using those means , or by reason of any such prejudices as may render them ineffectual ; What , in this case , becomes of the Magistrate's Authority to procure all his Subjects the means of discovering the way of Salvation ? Must these of his Subjects be neglected , and left without the means be has Authority to procure them ? Or must he use Force upon them too ? And then , pray , shew me how this can be done . Shall the Magistrate punish those of his own Religion , to proc●…re them the means of discovering the the way of Salvation , and to procure , as much as in him lies , that they remain not ignor an t of it , or refuse not to imbrace it ? These are such contradictions in Practice , this is such condemnation of a Man 's own Religion , as no one can expect from the Magistrate ; and I dare say you desire not of him . And yet this is that he must do , If his Authority be to procure ALL his Subjects the means of discovering the way to Salvation . And if it be so needful , as you say it is , that he should use it ; I am sure Force cannot do that till it be apply'd wider , and Punishment be laid upon more than you would have it . For if the Magistrate be by Force to procure , as much as in him lies , that NONE remain ignorant of the way of Salvation ; must he not punish all those who are ignorant of the way of Salvation ? And pray t●…ll me how is this any way practicable , but by supposing none in the National Church ignorant , and all out of it ignorant of the way of Salvation ? Which , what is it , but to punish Men barely for not being of the Magistrate's Religion ; The very thing you deny he has Authority to do ? So that the Magistrate having , by your own confession , no Authority thus to use Force ; and it being otherways impracticable for the procuring all his Subjects the means of discovering the way of Salvation ; there is an end of Force . And so Force being laid aside , either as unlawful , or unpracticable , the Author's Argument holds good against Force , even in your way of applying it . L. 3. p. 63. But how little to the purpose this Request of yours is , will quickly appear . For if the Magistrate provides sufficiently for the instruction of all his Subjects in the true Religion ; and then requires them all , under convenient Penalties , to hearken to the Teachers and Ministers of it , and to profess and 〈◊〉 it with one accord , under their 〈◊〉 , in Publick Assemb●…ies : Is there any prctence to say , that in so doing he applies Force only to a part of his Subjects ; when the Law is general , and excepts none ? ' ●…is true , the Magistrate insticts the Penalties in that ease , only upon them that break the Law. But is that the the thing you mean by his applying Force only to a part of his Subjects ? Would you have him punish all , indifferently ? them that obey the Law , as well as them that do not ? As to Ignorance , Negligence and Prejudice , I desire y●…u , or any Man ●…lse , to tell me what better course can be taken to c●…re them , than that which I have mentioned . For if after all that God's Ministers , and the Magistrate can do , some will still remain ignorant , negligent , or prejudiced ; I do not take that to be any disparagement to it : For certainly that is a very extraordinary Remedy , which infassibly cures all discas'd Persons to whom it is applied . The Backwardness and Lusts that hinder an impartial Examination , as you describe it , is general . The Corruption of Nature which hinders a real imbracing the true Religion , that also you tell us here , is universal . I ask a Remedy for these in your way . You say the Law for Conformity is general , excepts none . Very likely , none that do not conform ; but punishes none who conforming , do neither impartially examine nor really imbrace the true Religion . From whence I conclude , there is no corruption of Nature in those , who are brought up or join in outward Communion with the Church of England . But as to Ignorance , Negligence and Prejudice , you say you desire me , or any Man else , to tell what better course can be taken to cure them , than that which you have mentioned . If your Church can find no better way to cure Ignorance and Prejudice , and the Negligence , that is in Men , to examine Matters of Religion and heartily imbrace the true , than what is impracticable upon Conformists , then of all others , Conformists are in the most deplorable Estate . But , as I remember . you have been told of a better way , which is , the 〈◊〉 with Men seriously and friendly about Matters in Religion , by those whose Prosession is the Care of Souls ; examining what they do understand , and where , either through Laziness , Prejudice or Dissiculty , they do stick ; and applying to their several Diseases proper Cures , which it is as impossible to do by a general Harangue , once or twice a Week out of the Pulpit , as to sit all Mens Feet with one Shoe , or cure all Mens Ails with one , though very wholsome , Diet-drink . To be thus instant in season and out of season , some Men have thought a better way of Cure , than a Desire , only to have Men driven by the Whip , either in your , or the Magistrate's hands , into the Sheepfold : where when they are once , whether they understand or no , their Ministers Se●…mons ; whether they are , or can be better for them or no ; whether they are ignorant and hypocritical Conformists , and in that way like to remain so , rather than to become knowing and sincere Converts , some Bishops have thought is not sufficiently enquired ; but this no body is to mention , for whoever does so , makes himself an occasion to she●… his good Will to the Clergy . This had not been said by me here , now I see how apt you are to be put out of temper with any thing of this kind , ( though it be in every serious Man's Mouth ) had not you desired me to shew you a better way than Force , your way apply'd . And to use your way of Arguing , since bare Preaching , as now us'd , 't is plain , will not do , there is no other means left but this to deal with the corrupt Nature of Conformists ; for Miracles are now ceased , and Penalties they are free from ; therefore , by your way of concluding , no other being left , this of Visiting at home , conferring and instructing , and admonishing Men there , and the like Means , proposed by the Reverend Author of the Pastoral Care , is necessary ; and Men , whose business is the Care of Souls , are obliged to use it : for you cannot prove , that it cannot do some Service ( I think I need not say ) 〈◊〉 and at a distance . And if this be proper and sufficient to bring Consormists ( notwithstanding the Corruption of their Nature ) to examine impartially , and really imbrace the Truth that must save them , it will remain to shew , Why it may not do as well on Nonconformists ( whose , I imagine , is the common Corruption of Nature ) to bring them to examine and imbrace the Truth , that must save them ? And though it be not so extraordinary a Re●…edy as will infallibly cure all diseased Persons , to whom it is apply'd ; yet since the Corruption of Nature , which is the same Disease , and ●…inders the impartial Examination , and hearty imbracing the Truth that must 〈◊〉 them , is equally in both , Conformists and Nonconformists , 't is reasonable to think it should in both have the same Cure , let that be what it will. CHAP. X. Of the Necessity of Force in Matters of Religion . You tell us you do not ground the lawfulness of such Force , as you take to be useful for promoting the true Religion , upon the bare usefulness of such Force , but upon the necessity as well as usefulness of it ; and therefore you declare it to be no fit means to be used , either for that purpose or any other , where it is not necessary as well as useful . How useful Force in the Magistrate's Hand , for bringing Men to the true Religion , is like to be , we have shewn in the foregoing Chapter , in answer to what you have said for it . So that it being proved not useful , it is impossible it should be necessary . However we will examine what you say to prove the necessity of it . The Foundation you build on for its necessity we have in your Argument considered , where having at large dilated on Mens inconsiderateness in the choice of their Religions , and their persisting in those they have once chosen , without due Examination , you conclude thus ; Now if this be the case , if Men are so ●…verse se to a due Consideration , if they usually take up their Religion , without examining it as they ought , what other 〈◊〉 is there left ? Wherein you suppose Force necessary , instead of proving it to be so ; for Preaching and Perswasion not prevailing upon all Men , you upon your own Authority think fit something else should be done ; and that being resolv'd , you readily pitch on Force , because you say you can find nothing else , which in effect is only to tell us , if the Salvation of Mens Souls were only left to your discretion , how you would order the matter . And in your answer to me , you very considently tell us , the true Religion cannot prevail without the assistance either of Miracles , or of Authority . I shall here only observe one or two things , and then go on to examine how you make this good . The first thing I shall observe is , that in your Argument considered , &c. you suppose Force necessary only to master the aversion there is in Men to considering and examination : And here in your Answer to me , you make Force necessary to conquer the aversion there is in Men to imbrace and obey the true Religion . Which are so very different , that the former justisies the use of Force only to make Men consider , the other justisies the use of Force to make Men imbrace Religion . If you meant the same thing when you writ your first Trtatise , it was not very ingenuous to express your self in such Words as were not proper to give your Reader your true meaning ; it being a far different thing to use Force to make Men consider , which is an action in their power to do or omit ; and to use Force to make them imbrace , i. e. believe any Religion , which is not a thing in any ones power to do or forbear as he pleases . If you say you meant barely considering in your first Paper , as the whole current of it would make one believe , then I see your Hypothesis may mend , as we have seen in other parts , and in time , may grow to its full Stature . Another thing I shall remark to you , is , That in your first Paper , besides Preaching and Perswasion , and the Grace of God , nothing but Force was necessary . Here in your second , it is either Miracles or Authority , which how you make good , we will now consider . You having said , you had no reason from any Experiment or expect that true Religion should be any way a gainer by Toleration . I in●…anced in the prevailing of the Gospel , by its own Beauty , Force and Reasonableness , in the first Ages of Christianity . You reply , that it has not the same Beauty , Force and Reasonableness now , that it had then , unless I include Miracles too , which are now ce●…sed and as you tell us , were not withdrawn , till by their help Christianity had prevailed to be received for the Religion of the Empire , and to be encouraged and supported by the Laws of it . If therefore we will believe you upon your own word , Force being necessary ( for prove it necessary you never can ) you have enter'd into the Counsel of God , and tell us , when Force could not be had , Miracles were imploy'd to supply its want . I cannot but think , say you , it 's highly probable ( if we may be allowed to guess at the Counsels of insinite Wisdom ) that God was pleased to continue them till then , i. e. till the Laws of the Empire supported Christanity , not so much for any necessity there was of them all that time , for the evincing the Truth of the Christian Religion , as to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . You allow your self to guess very frelly , when you will make God use Miracles to supply a means he no where authorised or appointed ; How long Miracles continued we shall see anon . Say you , If we may be allowed to guess : this Modesty of yours where you confess you guess , is only concerning the time of the continuing of Miracles ; but as to their supplying the want of coactive Force , that you are positive in , both here and where you tell us , Why Penalties were not necessary at first , to make Men to give Ear to the Gospel , has already been shewn ; and a little after , the great and wonderful things which were to be done for the evidencing the truth of the Gospel , were abundantly sufficient to procure Attention , &c. How you come to know so undoubtedly that Miracles were made use of to supply the Magistrate's Authority , since God no where tells you so , you would have done well to shew . But in your Opinion Force was necessary , and that could not then be had , and so God must use Miracles . For , say you , Our Saviour was no Magistrate , and therefore could not inflict political Punishments upon any Man , so much less could he impower his Apostles to do it . Could not our Saviour impower his Apostles to denounce or inflict Punishments on careless or obstinate Unbelievers , to make them hear and consider ? You pronounce very boldly methinks of Christ's Power , and set very narrow limits to what at another time you would not deny to be infinite : But it was convenient here for your present purpose , that it should be so limited . But , they not being Magistrates , he could not impower his Apostles to inflict political Punishments . How is it of a sudden , that they must be political Punishments ? You tell us all that is necessary , is to lay Briars and Thorns in Mens ways , to trouble and disease them to make them consider . This I hope our Saviour had power to do , if he had found it necessary , without the assistance of the Magistrates ; he could have always done by his Apostles , and Ministers , if he had so thought ●…it , what he did once by St. Peter , have drop'd Thorns and Briars into their very Minds , that should have pricked , troubled and diseased them sufficiently . But sometimes it is Briars and Thorns only that you want , sometimes it must be Humane Means , and sometimes , as here , nothing will serve your turn but political Punishments ; just as will best sute your occasion , in the Argument you have then before you . That the Apostles could lay on Punishments , as troublesome and as great as any political ones when they were necessary , we see in Ananias and Saphira : And he that had all Power given him in Heaven and in Earth , could , if he had thought ●…it , have laid Briars and Thorns in the way of all that received not his Doctrine . You add , But as he could not punish Men to make them hear him , so neither was there any need that he should . He came as a Prophet sent from God to reveal a new Doctrine to the World ; and therefore to prove his Mission , he was to do such things as could only be done by a Divine Power : And the Works which he did were abundantly sufficien both to gain him a hearing , and to oblige the World to receive his Doctrine . Thus the want of Force and Punishments are supplied . How far ? so far as they are supposed necessary to gain a hearing , and so far as to oblige the World to receive Christ's Doctrine ; whereby , as I suppose , you mean sufficient to lay an Obligation on them to receive his Doctrine , and render them inexcusable if they did not : But that they were not sufficient to make all that saw them effectually to receive and imbrace the Gospel , I think is evident , and you will not I imagine say , that all who saw Christ's Miracles believed on him . So that Miracles were not to supply the want of such Force , as was to be continued on Men to make them consider as they ought , i. e. till they imbraced the Truth that must save them . For we have little reason to think that our Saviour , or his Apostles , contended with their neglect or refusal by a constant train of Miracles , continued on to those who were not wrought upon by the Gospel preached to them . St. Matthew tells us , XIII . 57. that he did not many mighty works in his own Country , because of their Unbelief ; much less were Miracles to supply the want of Force in that use you make of it , where you tell us it is to punish the fault of not being of the true Religion : For we do not find any miraculously punished to bring them in to the Gospel . So that the want of Force to either of these purposes not being supplied by Miracles , the Gospel 't is plain subsisted and spread it self without Force so made use of , and without Miracles to supply the want of it ' and therefore it so far remains true , that the Gospel having the same Beauty , Force and Reasonableness now as it had at the beginning , it wants not Force to supply the defect of Miracles , to that for which Miracles were no where made use of . And so far , at least , the Experiment is good , and this Assertion true , that the Gospel is able to prevail by its own Light and Truth , without the continuance of Force on the same Person , or punishing Men fo●… not being of the true Religion . You say , Our Saviour being no Magistrate , could not inslict Political Punishments ; much less could be impower his Apostles to do in . I know not what need there is , that it should be political ; so there were so much Punishment used , as you say , is sufficient to make Men consider , it is not necessary it should come from this or that Hand : or if there be any odds in that , we should be apt to think it would come best , and most effectually , from those who preached the Gospel , and could tell them it was to make them consider , than from the Magistrate , who neither doth , nor according to your Scheme can , tell them it is to make them consider . And this Power , you will not deny , but our Saviour could have given to the Apos●…les . But if there were such absolute need of Political Punishments Titus or Trajan might as well have been converted , as Constantin●… For how true it is , that Miracles supplied the want of Force front those Days till Constantine's , and then ceased , we shall see by and by . I say not this to enter boldly into the Counsels of God , 〈◊〉 to take upon me to consure the Conduct of the Almighty , or to call his Providence to an account ; but to answer your saying ; Our S●…viour was no Magistrate , and therefore could not inflict Political Punishments : For he could have had both Magistrates and Political Punishments at his Service , if he had thought sit , and needed not to have continued Miracles longer , than there was necessity for evincing the Truth of the Christian Religion , as you imagine , to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance , by Force , which is necessary . But how come you to know , that Force is necessary ? Has God revealed it in his Word ? no where . Has it been revealed to you in particular ? that you will not say . What reason have you for it ? none at all but this , that having set down the grounds , upon which Men take up and persist in their Religion , you conclude , what means is there lest bue Force ? Force therefore you conclude necessary , because without any Authority , but from your own Imagination , you are peremptory , that other means , besides Preaching and Perswasion , is to be used ; and therefore is it necessary , because you can think of no other . When I tell you there is other Means , and that by your own confession the Grace of God is another Means , and therefore Force is not necessary : You reply , Though the Grace of God be another Means , and you thought sit to mention it , to prevent Cavils ; yet it is none of the Means of which you were speaking , in the place I refer to ; which any one who reads that Paragraph wist find to be only HUMANE Means : and therefore though the Grace of God be both a proper and sufficient Means , and such as can work by it self , and without which neither Penalties nar any other Means can do any thing ; yet it may be true however , that when Admonitions and Intreaties fail , there is no HUMANE Means left , but Penalties , to bring prejudiced Persons to hear and consider , what may convince them of their Errors , and discover the Truth to them . And then Penalties will be necessary in respect to that end as an HUMANE Means . In which Words , if you mean any answer to my Argument , it is this , that Force is necessary , because to bring Men into the right way there is other HUMANE Means necessary , belides Admonitions and Perswasions . For else what have we to do with HUMANE in the case ? But it is no small advantage one owes to Logick , that where Sense and Reason fall short , a distinction ready at hand may ech it out . Force , when Perswasions will not prevail , is necessary , say you , because it is the only Means lest , When you are told it is not the only Means left , and so cannot be necessary on that account : You reply , that when Admonitions and Intreatics fail , there is no HUMANE Means left , but Penalties , to bring prej●…diced Persons to hear and consider what may convince them of their Errors , and discover the Truth to them : And then Penalties will be necessary in respect to that end , as an HUMANE Means . Suppose it be urged to you , when your moderate lower Penalties fail , there is no Humane Means left , but Dragooning and such other Severities ; which you say you condemn as much as I , to bring prejudiced Persons to hear and consider what may convince them of their Errors , and discover the Truth to them . And then Dragooning , Imprisonment , Scourging , Fining 〈◊〉 . will be necessary in respect to that end , as an HUMANE Means . What can you say but this ? that you are impower'd to judg what degrees of Humane Means are necessary , but others are not . For without such a considence in your own Judgment , where God has neither said how much , nor that any Force is necessary , I think this is as good an Argument for the highest , as yours is for the lower Penalties . When Admonitions and Intreaties will not prevail , then Penalties , lower Penalties , some degrees of Force will be necessary , say you , as an HUMANE Means . And when your lower Penalties , your some degrees of Force will not prevail , then higher Degrees will be necessary , say I , as an HUMANE Means . And my reason is the same with yours , because there is no other Means ( i. e. HUMANE Means ) left . Shew me how your Argument concludes for lower Punishments being necessary , and mine not for higher , even to Dragooning , & eris mihi magnus Apollo . But let us apply this to your Succedaneum of Miracles , and then it will be much more admirable . You tell us , Admonitions and Intreaties not prevailing to bring Men into the right way , Force is necessary , because there is no other Means left . To that 't is said , yes , there is other Means left , the Grace of God. Ay , but , say you , that will not do ; because you speak only of HUMANE Means . So that according to your way of arguing some other HUMANE Means is necessary : For you your self tell us , that the Means you were speaking of , where you say , that when Admonitions and Intreaties will not do , what other Means is there left but Force ? were HUMANE Means . Your words are , Which any one , who reads that Paragraph , will find to be only HUMANE Means . By this Argument then other HUMANE Means are necessary besides preaching and perswasion , and those HUMANE Means you have found out to be either Force or Miracles : The latter are certainly notable Humane Means . And your distinction of Humane Means serves you to very good purpose , having brought Miracles to be one of your Humane Means . Preaching and Admonitions , say you , are not sufficient to bring Men into the right way , something else is necessary , Yes , the Grace of God ; no , say you , that will not do , it is not Humane Means : 't is necessary to have other Humane Means , therefore in the three or four First Centuries after Christianity , the insufficiency of Preaching and Admonitions was made up with Miracles , and thus the necessity of other Humane Means is made good . But to consider a little further your Miracles as supplying the want of Force . The Question between us here is , whether the Christian Religion did not prevail in the first Ages of the Church , by its own Beauty , Force and Reasonableness , without the Assistance of Force ? I say it did , and therefore external Force is not necessary . To this you reply , that it cannot prevail by its own Light , and Strength , without the Assistance either of Miracles , or of Authority ; and therefore the Christian Reli●…ion not being still accompanied with Miracles , Force is now necessary . So that to make your equivalent of Miracles correspond with your necessary Means of Force , you seem to require an actual application of Miracles , or of Force , to prevail with Men to receive the Gospel , i. e. Men could not be prevailed with to receive the Gospel without actually seeing of Miracles . For when you tell us , that you are sure I cannot say the Christian Religion is still accompanied with Miracles , as it was at its first planting ; I hope you do not mean that the Gospel is not still accompanied , with an undoubted testimony , that Miracles were done by the first publishers of it , which was as much of Miracles ; as I suppose the greatest part of those had , with whom the Christian Religion prevailed , till it was supported and incouraged , as you tell us , by the Laws of the Empire : For I think you will not say , or if you should , you could not expect to be believed , that all , or the greatest part of those , that imbraced the Christian Religion , before it was supported by the Laws of the Empire , which was not till the Fourth Century , had actually Miracles done before them , to work upon them . And all those , who were not Eye-witnesses of Miracles done in their Presence , 't is plain had no other Miracles , than we have , that is upon report ; and 't is probable not so many , nor so well attested as we have . The greatest part then of those who were converted ; at least , in some of those Ages , before Christianity was supported by the Laws of the Empire , I think you must allow , were wrought upon by bare preaching , and such Miracles as we still have , Miracles at a distance , related Miracles . In others , and those the greater number , Prejudice was not 〈◊〉 moved , that they were prevailed on to consider , to consider as they ought , i. e. in your Language , to consider so as to imbrace . If they had not so considered in our Days , what , according to your Scheme , must have been done to them , that did not consider as they ought ? Force must have been applied to them , what therefore in the Primitive Church was to be done to them ? Why ! your 〈◊〉 Miracles , actual Miracles , such as you deny the Christian Religion to be still accompanied with , must have been doncin their presence , to work upon them . Will you say this was 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 a new Church-History for us , and out do those Writers , who have been thought pretty liberal of Miracles If you do not , you must consess Miracles supplied not the place of Force , and so let fall all your fine Contrivance about the necessity either of Force or Miracles ; and perhaps you will think it at last a more becoming Modesty , not to set the Divine Power and Providonce on work , by Rules , and for the ends of your Hypothesis , without having any thing in Authentick History , much less in Divine and unerring Revelation to justify you . But Force and Power deserve something more than ordinary and allowable Arts or Arguments , to get and keep them : Si violandum sit jus regnandi causa violandum cst . If the Testimony , of Miracles having been done , wore sufficient to make the Gospel prevail , without Force , on those , who were not Eye-Witnesses of them , we have that still , and so upon that account need not Force to supply the want of it : But if Truth must have either the Law of the Country , or actual Miracles to support it , what became of it after the Reign of Constantine the Great , under all those Emperors , that were erroneous or Heretical ? It supported it self in Piedmont , and France , and Turky , many Ages without Force or Miracles : And it spread it self in divers Nations and Kingdoms of the North and East , without any Force or other Miracles , than those , that were done many Ages before . So that , I think , you will , upon second thoughts , not deny , but that the true Religion is able to prevail now , as it did at first , and has done since in many places , without assistance from the Powers in being , by its own Beauty , Force , and Reasonableness , whereof well-attested Miraclesis a part . But the account you give us of Miracles will deserve to be a little examined ; we have it in these Words , Considering that those extraordinary Means were not withdrawn , till by their help Christianity had prcvail'd to be received for the Religion of the Empire , and to be supported and incouraged by the Laws of it , you cannot you say but think it highly probable , ( if we may be allow'd to guess at the Counsels of infinite Wisdom ) that God was pleased to continue them till then , not so much for any necessity there was of them all that while , for the evincing the Truth of the Christian Religion , as to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . Miracles then , if what you say be true , were continued till Christianity was received for the Religion of the Empire , not so much to evince the Truth of the Christian Religion , as to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . But in this the Leanned Author , whose Testimony you quote , f●…ils you . For the tells you that the chief use of Miracles in the Church , after the Truth of the Christian Religion had been sufficiently consirmed by them in the World , was to oppose the salse and pretended Miracles of Hereticks and Heathens ; and answerable hereunto Miracles ceased and returned again , as such oppositions made them more or less necessary . Accordingly Miracles which before had abated in Trajan's and Hadrian's time , which was in the latter end of the First , or beginning of the Second Century , did again revive to confound the Magical Delusions of the Hereticks of that time . And in the third Century the Hereticks using no such Tricks , and the Faith being consirm'd , they by dearees ceased , of which there then , he says , could be no imaginable necissity . His Words are , Et quidem●…o minus necessaria sunt pro veterum Principiis , recentiora illa Miracula , quod Haereticos ( quos appellant ) nullos adversarios habeant , qui contraria illis dogmata astruant Miraculis . Sic enim vidimus , apud veteres , dum nulli Ecclesiam exercerent Adversarii , seu Haretici , seu Gentiles ; aut satis illi praeteritis Miraculis 〈◊〉 ; an t nullas ipsi praestigias opponerent quae veris essent Miraculis oppugnandae ; 〈◊〉 deinde paulatim esse mirificam illam spiritus virtutem . Ortos sub Trajano Hadrianoque Haereticos 〈◊〉 praestigiis Magicis fuisse usos , & proinde Miraculorum verorum in Ecclesia usum una REVIXISSE . Ne dicam praestigiatores etiam Gentiles eodem illo seculo sane frequentissimos , Apuleium in Africa , in Asia , Alexandrum , Pseudomantim , multosque alios quorum meminit Aristides . Tertio seculo orto Haeretici Herniogenes , Praxeas , Noetus , Theodotus , Sabellius , Novatianus , Artemas , Samosatenus , nulla , 〈◊〉 videtur , Miracula ipsi venditabant , nullis propterea Miraculis oppugnandi . Inde vidimus , apud ipsos etiam Catholicos , sensim defecisse Miracula . Et quidem , Haereticis nulla in contrarium Miracula ostentantibus , quae tandem singi potest miraculorum necessitas traditam ab initio fidem , Miraculisque adeo jamdudum confirmatam praedicantibus ? Nulla certe prorsus pro Primaevo Miraculorum exemplo . Nulla denique consciis vere Primaevam esse fidem quam novis Miraculis suscipiunt confirmandam . The History therefore you have from him of Miracles , serves for his Hypothesis , but not at all for yours . For if they were continued to supply the want of Force , which was to deal with the Corruption of depraved Humane Nature , that being without any great variation in the World , constantly the same , there could be no reason why they should abate and fail , and then return and revive again . So that there being then , as you suppose , no necessity of Miracles for any other end , but to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance , they must , to sute that end , be constant and regularly the same , as you would have Force to be , which is steadily and uninterruptedly to be applied , as a constantly necessary Remedy , to the corrupt Nature of Mankind . If you allow the Learned Dodwell's Reasons , for the continuation of Miracles , till the Fourth Century , your Hypothesis , that they were continued to supply the Magistrate's Assistance , will be only precarious . For if there was need of Miracles till that time to other purposes , the continuation of them in the Church , though you could prove them to be , as frequent and certain , as those of our Saviour , and the Apostles , it would not advantage your cause : since it would be no evidence , that they were used for that end , which as long as there were other visible uses of them , you could not , without Revelation , assure us were made use of by Divine Providence to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . You must therefore confute his Hypothesis , before you can make any advantage of what he says , concerning the continuation of Miracles , for the establishing of yours . For till you can shew , that that which he assigns was not the end , for which they were continued in the Church ; the utmost you can say , ●…is , that it may be imagined , that one reason of their continuation was to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance : But what you can without proof imagine possible , I hope you do not expect should be received as an unquestionable proof , that it ●…as so . I can imagin it possible they were not continued for that end , and one Imagination will be as good a proof as another . To do your Modesty right therefore , I must allow , that you do faintly offer at some kind of reason , to prove that Miracles were continued to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance : And since God has no where declared , that it was for that end , you would perswade us in this Paragraph , that it was so , by two Reasons . One is , that the Truth of the Christian Religion being sufficiently evinced by the Miracles done by our Saviour and his Apostles , and perhaps their immediate Successors , there was no other need of Miracles to be continued till the Fourth Century , and therefore they were used by God to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . This I take to be the meaning of these Words of yours , I cannot but think it highly probable that God was pleased to continue them till then , not so much for any necessity there was of them all that while for the evincing the Truth of the Christian Religion , as to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . Whereby , I suppose , you do not barely intend to tell the World what is your opinion in the case , but use this as an Argument , to make it probable to others , that this was the end for which Miracles were continued , which at best will be but a very doubtful Probability to build such a bold Assertion on , as this of yours is , viz. That the Christian Religion is not able to subsist and pre●…ail in the World , by its own Light and Strength , without the assistance either of Force , or actual Miracles . And therefore you must either produce a Declaration from Heaven that authorizes you to say , that Miracles were used to supply the want of Force , or shew that there was no other use of them but this . For if any other use can be assigned of them , as long as they continued in the Church , one may safely deny , that they were to supply the want of Force : and it will lie upon you to prove it by some other way than by saying you think it highly probable . For I suppose you do not expect that your thinking any thing highly probable , should be a sufficient Reason for others to acquiesce in . When perhaps , the History of Miracles considered , no Body could bring himself to say he thought it probable , but one whose Hypothesis stood in need of such a poor support . The other Reason you seem to build on is this , That when Christianity was received for the Religion of the Empire , Miracles ceased ; because there was then no longer any need of them : which I take to be the Argument infinuated in these Words , Considering that those extraordinary means were not withdrawn , till by their help Christianity had prevailed to be received for the Religion of the Empire . If then you can make it appear that Miracles lasted till Christianity was received for the Religion of the Empire , without any other Reason for their continuation , but to supply the wants of the Magistrate's Assistance ; and that they ceased as soon as the Magistrates became Christian : Your Argument will have some kind of probability , that within the Roman Empire this was the method God used for the propagating the Christian Religion . But it will not serve to make good your Position , That the Christian Religion cannot subsist and prevail by its own Strength and Light , without the assistance of Miracles or Authority , unless you can shew , that God made use of Miracles , to introduce and support it in other parts of the World , not subject to the Roman Empire , till the Magistrates there also became Christians . For the corruption of Nature being the same without , as within the Bounds of the Roman Empire ; Miracles , upon your Hypothesis , were as necessary to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance in other Countries as in the Roman Empire . For I do not think you will find the Civil Sovereigns were the first converted in all those Countries , where the Christian Religion was planted after Constantine's Reign : And in all those it will be necessary for you to shew us the Assistance of Miracles . But let us see how much your Hypothesis is favoured by Church-History . If the Writings of the Fathers of greatest Name and Credit are to be believed , Miracles were not withdrawn when Christianity had prevail'd to be received for the Religion of the Empire . Athanasius , the great Defender of the Catholick Orthodoxy , writ the Life of his Contemporary St. Anthony , full of Miracles ; which though some have question'd , yet the Learned Dodwell allows to be writ by Athanasius : and the Stile evinces it to be his , which is also confirmed by other Ecclesiastical Writers . Palladius tells us , That Ammon did many Miracles : But that particularly St. Athanasius related in the Life of Anthony , That Ammon going with some Monks , Anthony had sent to him ; when they came to the River Lycus , which they were to pass , was afraid to strip for fear of seeing himself naked ; and whilst he was in dispute of this matter , he was taken up , and in an extasy carry'd over by an Angel , the rest of the Monks swimming the River . When he came to Anthony , Anthony told him he had sent for him , because God had revealed many things to him concerning him , and particularly his Translation . And when Ammon died , in his retirement , Anthony saw his Soul carried into Heaven by Angels . Palladius in vita Ammonis . Socrates tells us , That Anthony saw the Soul of Ammon taken up by Angels , as Athanasius writes in the Life of Anthony . And again , says he , It seems supersluous for me to relate the many Miracles Anthony did , how he fought openly with Devils , discovering all ●…heir Tricks and Cheats : For Athanasius Bishop of Alexandria has prevented me on that Subject , having writ a Book particularly of his Life . Anthony was thought worthy of the Vision of God , and led a Life perfectly conformable to the Laws of Christ. This whoever reads the Book , wherein is contain'd the History of his Life , will easily know ; wherein he will also see Prophecy shining out : For he prophesied very clearly of those who were infected with the Arian Contagion , and foretold what Mischief from them was threatned to the Churches , God truly reuealing all these things to him , which is certainly the principal evidence of the Catholick Faith. No such Man being to be found amongst the Hereticks . But do not take this upon my Word , but read and study the Book it self . This Account you have from St. Chrysostom , whom Mr. Dodwell calls the Contemner of Fables . St. Hierom , in his Treatise De Viro Perfecto , speaks of the frequency of Miracles done in his time , as a thing past question : Besides those , not a few which he has left upon record , in the Lives of Hilarion and Paul , two Monks , whose Lives he has writ . And he that has a mind to see the plenty of Miracles of this kind , need but read the Collection of the Lives of the Fathers , made by Rosweydus . Russin tells us , That Athanasius lodg'd the Bones of St. John Baptist in the Wall of the Church , knowing by the Spirit of Prophecy , the good they were to do to the next Generation : And of what Efficacy and Use they were , may be concluded from the Church with the golden Roof , built to them soon after , in the place of the Temple of Serapis . St. Austin tells us , That he knew a blind Man restor'd to sight by the Bodies of the Millan Martyrs , and some other such things ; of which kind , there were so many done in that time , that many scaped his Knowledg ; and those which he knew , were more than he could number . More of this you may see Epist. 137. He further assures us , that by the simple Reliques of St. Stephen , a blind Woman receiv'd her Sight . Lucullus was cured of an old Fistula ; Eucharius of the Stone ; Three Gouty Men recovered ; A Lad kill'd with a C art-wheel going over him , restor'd to Life safe and sound , as if he had received no hurt : A Nun lying at the point of Death , they sent ber Coat to the Shrine , but she dying before it was brought back , was restor'd to Life by its being laid on her dead Body . The like happened at Hippo to the Daughter of BASSUS ; and two others , whose Names he sets down , were by the same Reliques raised from the dead . After these and other Particulars there set down , of Miracles done in his time by those Reliques of St. Stephen , the holy Father goes on thus ; What shall I do ? pressed by my Promise of dispatching this Work , I cannot here set down all : And without doubt many , when they shall read , his , will be troubled that I have omitted so many Particulars , which they truly know as well as I. For if I should , ●…assing by the rest , 〈◊〉 only the miraculous Cures which have been wrought by this most glorious Martyr Stephen , in the Colony of Calama , and this of ours , I should fill many Books , and yet should not take in all of them : But only of those of which there are Collections published , which are read to the People : For this I took care should be done , when I saw that Signs of divine Power , like those of old , were FREQUENT also in our Times . It is not now two Years since that Shrine has been at Hippo : And many of the Books ( which I certainly knew to be so ) not being published , those which are published concerning those miraculous Operations , amounted to near fifty when I writ this . But at Calama , where this Shrine was before , there are more published , and their number is incomparably greater . At Uzal also a Colony , and near Utica , we know many famous Things to have been done by the same Martyr . Two of those Books he mentions , are printed in the Appendix of the X●… Tome of St. Austin's Works of Plantius Edit . One of them contains two Miracles , the other , as I remember , about seventeen . So that at Hippo alone , in two Years time , we may count , besides those omitted , there were published above 600 Miracles , and , as he says , incomparably more at Calama : besides what were done by other Reliques of the same St. Stephen in other parts of the World , which cannot be suppos'd to have had less virtue than those sent to this part of Africa . For the Reliques of St. Stephen , discovered by the Dream of a Monk , were divided and sent into distant Countries , and there distributed to several Churches . These may suffice to shew , that if the Fathers of the Church of great it Name and Authority are to be believed , Miracles were not withdrawn , but continued down to the latter end of the 4 th Century , long after Christianity had prevailed to be received for the Religion of the Empire . But if these Testimonies of Athanas●… , Chrysostom , Palladius , Russin , St. Hierom , and St. Austin , will not serve your turn , you may find much more to this purpose in the same Authors ; and if you please , you may consult also St. Basil , Gregory Nazianzen , Gregory Nazianzen , St. Ambrose , St. Hilary , Theodoret , and others . This being so , you must either deny the Authority of these Fathers , or grant that Miracles continued in the Church after Christianity was received for the Religion of the Empire : and then they could not be to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance , unless they were to supply the want of what was not wanting ; and therefore they were continued for some other end . Which end of the Continuation of Miracles , when you are so far instructed in , as to be able to assure us , that it was different from that for which God made use of them in the 2d and 3d Centuries : when you are so far admitted into the Secrets of Divine Providence , as to be able to convince the World that the Miracles between the Apostles and Constantine's Time , or any other Period you shall pitch on , were to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance , and those after , for some other purpose , what you say may deserve to be consider'd . Till you do this , you will only shew the Liberty you take , to assert with great Confidence , though without any ground , whatever will sute your System ; and that you do not stick to make bold with the Counsels of infinite Wisdom , to make them subservient to your Hypothesis . And so I leave you to dispose of the Credit of Ecclesiastical Writers , as you shall think fit ; and by your Authority , to establish or invalidate theirs as you please . But this , I think , is evident , that he who will build his Faith or Reasonings upon Miracles delivered by Church-Historians , wi●… find cause to go no farther than the Apostles time , or else not to stop at Constantine's : since the Writers after that period , whose Word we readily take as unquestionable in other things , speak of Miracles in their time with no less Assurance , than the Fathers before the 4 th Century ; and a great part of the Miracles of the 2d and 3d Centuries stand upon the Credit of the Writers of the 4 th . So that that sort of Argument which takes and rejects the Testimony of the Ancients at pleasure , as may best sute with it , will not have much force with those , who are not disposed to imbrace the Hypothesis , without any Arguments at all . You grant , That the True Religion has always Light and Strength of its own , i. e. without the Assistance of Force or Miracles , sufficient to prevail with all that consider it seriously , and without Prejudice : That therefore , for which the Assistance of Force is wanting , is to make Men consider seriously , and without Prejudice . Now whether the Miracles , that we have still , Miracles done by Christ and his Apostles , attested , as they are , by undeniable History , be not fitter to deal with Mens Prejudices , than Force , and than Force which requires nothing but outward Conformity , I leave the World to judg . All the Assistance the true Religion needs from Authority , is only a Liberty for it , to be truly taught ; but it has seldom had that , from the Powers in being , in its first entry into their Dominions , since the withdrawing of Miracles : And yet I desire you to tell me , into what Country the Gospel , accompanied ( as now it is ) only with past Miracles , hath been brought by the Preaching of Men , who have labour'd in it after the Example of the Apostles , where it did not so prevail over Mens Prejudices , that as many as were ordain'd to eternal Life , consider'd and believ'd it . Which , as you may see , A●…t . XIII . 48. was all the Advance it made , even when assisted with the Gift of Miracles : For neither then were all , or the majority wrought on to consider , and embrace it . But yet the Gespel cannot prevail by its own Light and Strength ; and therefore Miracles were to supply the place of Force . How was Force used ? A Law being made , there was a continued Application of Punishment to all those , whom it brought not to imbrace the Doctrine proposed . Were Miracles so used till Force took place ? For this , we shall want more new Church-History , and I think contrary to what we read in that part of it which is unquestionable ; I mean in the Acts of the Apostles , where we shall find , that the then Promulgators of the Gospel , when they had preach'd , and done what Miracles the Spirit of God directed , if they prevail'd not , they often left them : Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold , and said , It was necessary that the Word of God should first have been spoken to you : but seeing you put it from you , and judg your selves unworthy , we turn to the Gentiles . They shook off the Dust of their Feet against them , and came unto Iconium . But when divers were hardned , and believed not , but spake evil of that way , before the multitude , he departed from them , and separated the Disciples . Paul was pressed in Spirit , and testisied to the Jews that Jesus was Christ ; and when they opposed themselves , and blasphemed , he shook his Raiment , and said unto them , Your Blood be upon your own heads , I am clean , from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles . Did the Christian Magistrates ever do so , who thought it necessary to support the Christian Religion by Laws ? Did they ever , when they had a while punish'd those , whom Perswasions and Preaching had not prevail'd on , give off , and leave them to themselves , and make trial of their Punishment upon others ? Or is this your way of Force and Punishment ? If it be not , your's is not what Miracles came to supply the room of , and so is not necessary . For you tell us , they are punish'd to make them consider , and they can never be suppos'd to consider as they ought , whilst they persist in rejecting ; and therefore , they are justly punish'd to make them so consider : So that not so considering , being the Fault for which they are punish'd , and the Amendment of that Fault the end which is design'd to be attain'd by punishing , the Punishment must continue . But Men were not always heat upon with Miracles . To this , perhaps you will reply , that the seeing of a Miracle or two , or half a dozen , was sufficient to procure a hearing ; but that being punish'd once or twice , or half a dozen times , is not ; for you tell us , the Power of Miracles communicated to the Apostles , served altogether , as well as Punishment , to procure them a hearing : Where , if you mean by Hearing , only Attention , who doubts but Punishment may also procure that ? if you mean by Hearing , receiving and imbracing , what is propos'd , that even Miracles themselves did not effect upon all Eye-witnesses . Why then , I beseech you , if one be to supply the place of the other , is one to be continued on those who do reject , when the other was never long continued , nor , as I think , we may safely say , often repeated to those , who persisted in their former Perswasions ? After all therefore , may not one justly doubt , whether Miracles supplied the place of Punishment ; nay , whether you your self , if you be true to your own Principles , can think so ? You tell us , that not to join themselves to the True Church , where sufficient Evidence is offered to convince Men that it is so , is a Fault that it cannot be unjust to punish . Let me ask you now ; Did the Apostles , by their Preaching and Miracles , offer sufficient Evidence to convince Men that the Church of Christ was the True Church ; or , which is , in this case , the same thing , that the Doctrine they preach'd was the True Religion ? If they did , were not those , who persisted in Unbelief , guilty of a Fault ? And if some of the Miracles done in those days , should now be repeated , and yet Men should not imbrace the Doctrine , or join themselves to the Church which those Miracles accompanied , would you not think them guilty of a Fault , which the Magistrate might justly , nay , ought to punish ? If you would answer truly and sincerely to this Question , I doubt you would think your beloved Punishments necessary notwithstanding Miracles , there being no other ●…umane Means left . I do not make this Judgment of you , from any ill Opinion I have of your good Nature , but it is consonant to your Principles : For if not Professing the True Religion , where sufficient evidence is offer'd by bare Preaching , be a Fault , and a Eault jus●…y to be punish'd by the Magistrate , you will certainly think it much more his Duty to punish a greater Fault , as you must allow it is , to reject Truth propos'd with , Arguments and Miracles , than with bare Arguments : Since you tell us , that the Magistrate is obliged to procure , as much as in him lies , that every Man take care of his own Soul , i. e. consider as he ought ; which no Man can be suppos'd to do , whilst he persists in rejecting : As you tell us , pag. 24. Miracles , say you , supplied the want of Force , till by their help Christianity had prevailed to be received for the Religion of the Empire . Not that the Magistrates had not as much Commission then , from the Law of Nature , to use Force , for promoting the true Religion , as since : But because the Magistrates then , not being of the true Religion , did not afford it the assistance of their Political Power . If this be so , and there be a necessity either of Force or Miracles , will there not be the same Reason for 〈◊〉 ever since , even to this Day , and so on to the end of the World , in all those Countries where the Magistrate is not of the true Religion ? Unless ( as you urge it ) you will say ( what without Impiety cannot be said ) that the wise and benign Disposer of all things , has not furnished Mankind with competent means for the promoting his own Honour in the World , and the good of Souls . But to put an end to your pretence to Miracles , as supplying the place of Force . Let me ask you , whether since the withdrawing of Miracles , your moderate degree of Force has been made use of , for the support of the Christian Religion ? if not , then Miracles were not made use of to supply the want of Force , unless it were for the supply of such Force as Christianity never had , which is for the supply of just no Force at all ; or else for the supply of the Severities which have been in use amongst Christians , which is worse than none at all . Force , you say , is necessary : what Force ? not Eire and Sword , not loss of E●…ates not maiming with Corporal Punishments , not st●…ving and tormenting in 〈◊〉 Prisons : those you condemn . Not Compulsion : these Severities , you say , are apter to hinder , than promote the true Religion ; but moderate lower Penalties , tolerable Inconveniencies , such as should a little disturb and disease Men. This assistance not being to be had from the Magistrates , in the First Ages of Christianity , Miracles , say you , were continued till Christianity became the Religion of the Empire , not so much for any necessity there was of them , all that while , for the ev●…ncing the Truth of the Christian R●…ligion , as to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . For the true Religion not being able to support it self by its own Light , and Strength , without the assistance either of Miracles , or of Authority , there was a necessity of the one or the other ; and therefore , whilst the Powers in being assisted not with necessary Force , Miracles supplied that want . Miracles , then being to supply necessary Force , and necessary Force being only lower moderate Penalties , some Inconveni●…ncies , such as only disturb and disease a little . If you cannot shew that in all Countries , where the Magistrates have been Christian , they have assisted with such Force , 't is plain t●…at Miracles supplied not the want of necessary Force ; unless to supply the want of your necessary Force , for a time , were to supply the want of an Assistance , which true Religion had not upon the withdrawing of Miracles , and I think I may say , was never thought on by any Authority , in any Age or Country , till you now , above 1300 Years after , made this happy discovery . Nay , Sir , since the true Religion , as you tell us cannot prevail or subsist without , Miracles or Authority , i. e. your moderate Force ; it must necessarily follow , that the Christian Religion has , in all Ages and Countries , been accompanied either with actual Miracles , or such Force : which , whether it be so or no , I leave you and all sober Men to consider . When you can shew , that it has been so , we shall have reason to be satis●… with your bold Assertion : That the Christian Religion , as delivered in the New Testament , cannot prevail by its own Light , and Strength , without the assistance of your moderate Penalties , or of actual Miracles accompanying it . But if ever since the withdrawing of Miracles in all Christian Countries , where Force has been thought necessary by the Magistrate to support the National , or ( as every where it is called ) the true Religion , those Severities have been made use of , which you ( for a good Reason ) condemn , as apter to hinder , than promote the true Religion ; 't is plain that Miracles supplied the want of such an Assistance from the Magistrate , as was apter to binder , than promote the true Religion . And your substituting of Miracles , to supply the want of moderate Force , will shew nothing , for your Cause , but the zeal of a Man so sond of Force , that he will without any warrant from Scripture , enter into the Counsels of the Almighty ; and without authority from History , talk of Miracles , and Political Anministrations , as may best sute his System . To my saying , a Religion that is from God , wants not the assistance of Humane Authority to make it prevail ; you answer , This is not simply nor always true . Indeed when God takes the matter wholly into his own Hands , as he does at his first revealing any Religion , there can be no need of any assistance of Humane Authority : but when God has once sufficiently settled his Religion in the World , so that if Men from thenceforth will do what ●…ey may and ought , in their several Capacities , to preserve and propagate it , it may 〈◊〉 and prevail without that extraordinary Assistance from him , which was necessary for its first establishment . By this Rule of yours , how long was there need of Miracles to make Christianity subsist and prevail ? If you will keep to it , you will find there was no need of Miracles , after the promulgation of the Gospel by Christ and his Apostles ; for I ask you , was it not then so sufficiently settled in the World , that if Men would from thenceforth have done what they might and ought , in their several Capacities , it would have subsisted and prevailed without that extraordinary assistance of Miracles ? unless you will on this occasion retract what you say in other places , viz. that it is a Fault not to receive the true Religion , where sufficient evidence is offered to convince Men that it is so . If then from the times of the Apostles , the Christian Religion has had sufficient evidence , that it is the true Religion , and Men did their Duty , i. e. receive it , it would certainly have subsisted and prevailed , even from the Apostles Times , without that extraordinary Assistance , and then Miracles after that were not necessary . But perhaps you will say , that by Men in their several Capacities , you mean the Magistrates . A pretty way of speaking , proper to you alone : But even in that Sense , it will not serve your turn . For then there will be need of Miracles , not only in the time you propose , but in all times after . For if the Magistrate , who is as much subject as other Men to that Corruption of Humane Nature , by which you tell us False Religions prevall against the True , should not do what he may and ought , so as to be of the true Religion , as 't is the odds he will not , what then will become of the true Religion , which according to you cannot subsist or prevail without either the Assistance of Miracles or Authority ? Subjects cannot have the Assistance of Authority , where the Magistrate is not of the true Religion ; and the Magistrate wanting the assistance of Authority to bring him to the true Religion , that want must be still supplied with Miracles , or else , according to your Hypothesis , all must go to wrack ; and the True Religion , that cannot subsist by its own Strength and Light , must be lost in the World. For I presume you are scarce yet such an Adorer of the Powers of the World , as to say , that Magistrates are privileged from that common Corruption of Mankind , whose opposition to the true Religion you suppose cannot be overcome , without the assistance of Miracles or Force . The Flock will stray , unless the Bell-weather conduct them right ; the Bell-weather himself will stray , unless the Shepherd's Crook and Staff ( which he has as much need of as any Sheep of the Flock ) keep him right . Ergo , The whole Flock will stray , unless the Bell-weather have that assistance which is necessary to conduct him right . The Case is the same here . So that by your own Rule , either there was no need of Miracles to supply the want of Force , after the Apostles time , or there is need of them still . But your Answer , when looked into , has something in it more excellent . I say , a Religion that is of God , wants not the assistance of Humane Authority to make it prevail . You answer , True , when God takes the matter into his own Hands . But when once he has sufficiently settled Religion , so that if Men will but do what they may and ought , it may subsist without that extraordinary assistance from Heaven ; then he leaves it to their Care. Where you suppose , if Men will do their Duties in their several Capacities , true Religion , being once establish'd , may subsist without Miracles . And is it not as true , that if they will , in their several Capacities , do what they may and ought , true Religion will also subsist without Force ? But you are sure Magistrates will do what they may and ought , to preserve and propagate the true Religion , but Subjects will not . If you are not , you must bethink your self how to answer that old Question , — Sed quis custodiet 〈◊〉 Custodes ? — To my having said , that prevailing without the assistance of Force , I thought was made use of as an Argument for the Truth of Christian Religion . You reply , that you hope I am mistaken , for sure this is a very bad Argument , That the Christian Religion , so contrary in the 〈◊〉 of is , as well to Elesh and Blood , as to the Powers of Darkness , should prevail as it did ; and that not only without any assistance from Authority , but even in spight of all the opposition which Authority and a wicked World , joined with those infernal Powers , could make against it . This I acknowledg has deservedly been insisted upon by Christians as a very good proof of their Religion . But to argue the Truth of the Christian Religion , from its ●…eer prevailing in the World , without any aid from Force , or the assistance of the Powers in being ; as is whatever Religion should so prevail , must needs be the true Religion , ( whatever may be intended ) is really not to desend the Christian Religion , but to be●…ray it . How you have mended the Argument by putting in ●…eer , which is not any where used by me , I will not examine . The Question is , whether the Christian Religion , such as it was then , ( for I know not any other Christian Religion ) and is still contrary to the Flesh and Blood , and to the Powers of Darkness , prevail'd not without the assistance of Humane Force , by those aids it has still ? This , I think , you will not deny to be an Argument used for its Truth by Christians , and some of our Church . How far any one in the use of this Argument , pleases or displeases you , I am not concern'd . All the use I made of it was to shew , that it is confessed that the Christian Religion did prevail , without that Humane Means of the coactive Power of the Magistrate , which you assumed to be necessary ; and this , I think , makes good the Experiment I brought . Nor will your seeking , your way , a Refuge , in Miracles , help you to evade it ; as I have already shewn . But you give a Reason for what you say , in these following words ; For neither does the True Religion always prevail without the Assistance of the Powers in being ; nor is that always the True Religion , which does so spread and prevail . Those who use the Argument of its prevailing without Force , for the Truth of the Christian Religion , 't is like will tell you , that , if it be true , as you say , that the Christian Religion ( which at other times does ) some-times does not prevail without the Assistance of the Powers in being , it is , because when it fails , it wants the due Assistance and Diligence of the Ministers of it . How shall they hear without a Preacher ? How shall the Gospel be spread and prevail , if those who take on them to be the Ministers and Preachers of it , either neglect to teach it others as they ought , or confirm it not by their Lives ? If therefore you will make this Argument of any use to you , you must shew , where it was , that the Ministers of the Gospel , doing their Duty by the Purity of their Lives , and their interrupted Labour , in being instant in season and out of season , have not been able to make it prevail . An Instance of this , 't is believed you will scarco find : And if this be the case , that it fails not to prevail where those , whose Charge it is , neglect not to teach and spread it with that Care , Assiduity , and Application which they ought , you may hereafter know where to lay the blame ; Not on the Want of sufficient Light and Strength in the Gospel to prevail , ( wherein methinks , you make very bold with it ) but on the want of what the Apostle requires in the Ministers of it ; some part whereof , you may read in these Words to Timothy ; But thou , O Man of God , follow after Righteousness , Godliness , Faith , Love , Patience , Meekness : Give Attendance to Reading , to Exhortation , to Doctrine , preach the Word , be instant in season and out of season ; reprove , rebuke , exhort , with all Long-suffering and Doctrine : And more to this purpose in his Epistles to Timothy and Titus . That the Christian Religion has prevail'd , and supported it self in the World now above these 1600 Years , you must grant , and that it has not been by Force , is Demonstration . For where-ever the Christian Religion prevail'd , it did it , as far as we know any thing of the means of its Propagation and Support , without the help of that Force , moderate Force , which you say , is alone useful and necessary . So that if the Severities you condemn , be , as you confess , apter to hinder than promote the Gospel , and it has no where had the Assistance of your moderate Penalties , it must follow , that it prevail'd without Force , only by its own Strength and Light , displaid and brought home to the Understandings and Hearts of the People , by the Preaching , Intreaties and Exhortations of its Ministers . This at least you must grant , that Force can be by no means necessary to make the Gospel prevail any where , till the utmost has been tried that can be done by Arguments and Exhortations , Prayers and Intreaties , and all the friendly Ways of Perswasion . As to the other part of your Assertion , Nor is that always the True Religion , that does so spread and prevail . 'T is like they will demand Instances of you , where False Religions ever prevail'd against the Gospel , without the assistance of Force on the one side , or the betraying of it by the Negligence and Carelesness of its Teachers on the other ? So that if the Gospel any where wants the Magistrate's Assistance , it is only to make the Ministers of it do their Duty . I have heard of those , and possibly there are Instances of it now not wanting , who by their pious Lives , peaceable and friendly Carriage , and diligent Application to the several Conditions and Capacities of their Parishioners , and screening them as much as they could from the Penalties of the Law , have in a short time scarce left a Dissenter in a Parish ; where , notwithstanding the Force had been before used , they scarce found any other . But how far this has recommended such Ministers to those who ought to incourage or follow the Example , I wish you would inform your self , and then tell me . But who sees not that a Justice of Peace's Warrant is a shorter , and much easier way for the Minister , than all this ●…do of instruction , Debates , and particular Application . Whether it be also more Christian , or more effectual to make real Converts , others may be apt to enquire . This , I am sure , it is not justifiable ( even by your very Principles ) to be used till the other has been throughly tried . But if there be any thing in the Argument for the Truth of Christianity , ( as God forbid there should not ) that it has , and consequently can prevail without Force , I think it can scarce be 〈◊〉 in matter of Fact , that False Religions do also prevail against the Christian Religion , when they come upon equal Terms in Competition ; and as much Diligence and Industry is used by the Teachers of it , as by Seducers to False Religions , the Magistrate using his Force on neither side . For if in this case , which is the fair trial , Christianity can prevail , and False Religions too , 't is possible Contrarieties may prevail against one another both together . To make good therefore your Assertion , you must shew us , where-ever any other Religion so spread and prevail'd , as to drive Christianity out of any Country without Force , where the Ministers of it did their Duty to teach , adorn and support it . As to the following words , Nor is that always the True Religion which does so spread and prevail ; as I doubt not but you will acknowledg with me , when you have but consider'd within how few Generations after the Flood , the Worship of false Gods prevail'd against that which Noah professed and taught his Children , which was undoubtedly the True Religion , almost to the utter Exclusion of it , ( though that at first was the only Religion in the World ) without any aid from Force , or assistance from the Powers in being . This will need something more than a negative Proof , as we shall see by and by . Where I say , The Inventions of Men need the Force and Help of Men : A Religion that is from God , wants not the assistance of humane Authority . The first part of those Words you take no notice of ; neither grant nor deny it to be so , though perhaps it will prove a great part of the Controversy between us . To my Question , Whether if such a Toleration as is propos'd by the Author of the First Letter , were establish'd in France , Spain , Italy , Portugal , &c. the True Religion would not be a gainer by it ? You answer , That the True Religion would be a loser by it in those few Places where it is now establish'd as the National Religion ; and particularly , you name England . It is then , it seems , by your way of moderate Force and lower Penalties , that in all Countries where it is National , the True Religion hath prevail'd and subsists . For the Controversy is between the Author 's universal Toleration , and your new Way of Force ; for greater degrees of Force , you condemn as hurtful . Say then that in England , and where-ever the True Religion is National , it has been beholden to your Force for the Advantages and Support it has had , and I will yeild you the Cause . But of National Re ligions , and particularly that of England , I have occasion to speak more in another place . In the next place you answer , That you suppose I do not hope I shall perswade the World to consent to my Toleration . I think by your Logick , a Proposition is not less true or false , because the World will or will not be perswaded to consent to it . And therefore , though it will not consent to a general Toleration , it may nevertheless be true that it would be advantageous to the True Religion : and if no body must speak Truth till he thinks all the World will be perswaded by it , you must have a very good Opinion of your Oratory , or else you will have a very good Excuse to turn your Parsonage , when you have one , into a sine-Cure . But though I have not so good an Opinion of my Gift of Perswasion , as perhaps you have of yours ; yet I think I may without any great Presumption hope , that I may as soon perswade England , the World , or any Government in it , to consent to my Toleration , as you perswade it to content it self with moderate Penalties . You farther answer , If such a Toleration , establish'd there , would permit the Doctrine of the Church of England to be truly preach'd , and its Worship set up in any Popish , Mahometan or Pagan Country , you think True Religion would be a gainer by it for a time ; but you think withal , that an universal Toleration would ruin it both there and every where else , in the end . You grant it then possible , notwithstanding the Corruption of humane Nature , that the True Religion may gain some where , and for some time , by Toleration : It will gain under a new Toleration you think , but decay under an old one ; Would you had told us the Reason why you think so . But you think there is great reason to fear , that without God's extraordinary Providence , it wo●…ld in a much shorter time , than any one , who does not well consider the matter , will imagine , be most effectually 〈◊〉 by it throughout the World. If you have considered right , and the matter be really so , it is demonstration , that the Christian Religion , since Constantine's time , as well as the True Religion before Moses's time , must needs have been totally extinguish'd out of the World , and have so continued , unless by Miracle and immediate Revelation restor'd . For those Men , i. e. the Magistrates , upon whose being of the True Religion , the Preservation of it , according to you , depends , living all of them under a free Toleration , must needs lose the True Religion effectually and speedily , from among them ; a●…d they quitting the True Religion , the assistance of Force , which should support it against a general Defection , be utterly lost . The Princes of the World are , I suppose , as well infected with the depraved Nature of Man , as the rest of their Brethren . These , whether 100 or 1000 , suppose they lived together in one Society , wherein , with the True Religion , there were a free Toleration , and no Coactive Power of the Magistrate imployed about Matters of Religion , would the True Religion be soon extirpated amongst them ? If you say it would not , you must grant Toleration not to be so destructive of the True Religion , as you say ; or you must think them of another race , than the rest of corrupt Men , and free from that general Taint . If you grant that the True Religion would be quickly extirpated amongst them , by Toleration , living together in one Society , the same will happen to them , living as Princes , where they are free from all Coactive Power of the Magistrate in Matters of Religion , and have as large a Toleration as can be imagin'd . Unless you will say , that depraved humane Nature works less in a Prince than a Subject ; and is most tame , most mortified , where it has most Liberty and Temptation . Must not then , if your Maxim be true , Toleration quickly deprive the few Orthodox Princes that are in the World ( take it when you will ) of the True Religion ; and with them , take away the Assistance of Authority , which is necessary to support it amongst their Subjects ? Toleration then does not , whatever your Fears are , make that woful wrack on True Religion which you talk of . I shall give you another Evidence of it , and then come to examine your great Reason taken from the Corruption of humane Nature , and the Instance you so often repeat , and build so much on , the Apostacy after the Flood . Toleration , you sav , would quickly , and effectually extirpate the True Reiigion throughout the World. What now is the Means to preserve True Religion in the World ? If you may be believed , 't is Force , but not all Force , great Severities , Fire , Faggot , Imprisonment , loss of Estate , &c. These will do more harm than good ; 't is only lower and moderate Penaltics , some tolerable Inconveniences , can do the business . If then moderate Force hath not been all along , no , nor any where , made use of for the Preservation of the True Religion , the Maintenance and Support of the True Religion in the World , has not been owing to what you oppose to Toleration : And so your Argument against Toleration is out of doors . You give us in this and the foregoing Pages , the Grounds of your Fear , It is the Corruption of humane Nature which opposes the True Religion . You express it thus , Idolatry prevailing against it [ the True Reigion ] not by its own Light and Strength , for it could have nothing of either , but meerly by the Advantage it had in the Corruption and Pravity of humane Nature , finding out to it self more agreeable Religions than the true . For , say you , whatever Hardships some False Religions may impose , it will however , always be easier to carnal and worldly-minded Men , to give even their First-born for their Transgressions , than to mortify their Lusts from which they spring , which no Religion but the True , requires of them . I wonder , saying this , how you could any longer mistake the Magistrate's Duty , in reference to Religion , and not see wherein Force truly can and ou●…ht to be serviceable to it . What you have said , plainly shews you , that the Assistance the Magistrate's Authority can give to the True Religion , is in the subduing of Lusts , and its being directed against Pride , Injustice , Rapine , Luxury and Debauchery , and those other Immoralities which come properly under his Cognisance , and may be corrected by Punishments ; and not by the imposing of Creeds and Ceremonics , as you tell us . Sound and Decent , you might have left out , whereof their Fancies , and not the Law of God , will always be Judg and consequently the Rule . The Case between the true and false Religions , as you have stated it , in short , sounds thus , True Religion has always Light and 〈◊〉 of its own sufficient to prevail with all that seriously consider it , and without prejudice . 〈◊〉 or False Religions have nothing of Light or Strength to prevail with . Why then does not the true Religion prevail against the false , having so much the advantage in Light and Strength ? The Counter-ballance of Prejudice hinders . And wherein does that Str●…ngth ? The Drunkard must part with his Cups and Companions , and the Voluptuous Man with his Pleasures . The Proud and Vain must lay by all Excess in Apparel , Furniture and Attendance ; and Money , the support of all these , must be got only by the ways of Justice , Honesty , and fair Industry . And every one must live peaceably , uprightly , and friendly with his Neighbour . Here then the Magistrate's a●…istance is wanting : Here they may and ought to interpose their Power , and by Severities , against Drunkenness , Laciviousnes , and all sorts of Debauchery ; by a steady and unrelaxed Punishment of all the ways of Fraud and Injustice ; and by their Administration , Countenance , and Example , reduce the Irregularities of Mens Manners into order , and bring Sobriety , Peaceableness , Industry and Honesty into Fashion . This is their proper Business every-where ; and for this they have a Commission from God , both by the Light of Nature and Revelation ; and by this , removing the great Counterpoise , which lies in strictness of Life , and is so strong a Bias , with the greatest part , against : the true Religion , they would cast the Ballance on that ●…de . For if Men were forced by the Magistrate to live sober , honest and strict Lives , whatever their Religion were , would not the advantage be on the side of Truth , when the gratifying of their Lusts were not to be obtained by for saking her ? In Mens Lives lies the main Obstacle to right Opinions in Religion : and if you will not believe me , yet what a very rational Man of the Church of England says in the case , will deserve to be remembred . Did Religion bestow Heaven , without any Forms and Conditions , indifferently upon all ; If the Crown of Life was Hereditary , and free to good and bad , and not settled by Covenant upon the Elect of God only , such as live soberly , righteously and godly in this present World ; I believe there would be no such thing as an Insidel among us . And without Controversy 't is the way and means of attaining to Heaven , that makes profane Scoffers so willing to let go the expeclation of it . 'T is not the Articles of the Creed , but their Dury to God and their Neighb●…r , that is such an inconsi●…tent incredible Legend . They will not practise the Rules of Religion , and therefore they cannot believe the Doctrines of it . The ingenious Author will pardon me the change of one word , which I doubt not but 〈◊〉 his Opinion , though it did not so well that Argument he was then on . You grant the true Religion has always Light , and Strength to prevail ; 〈◊〉 Religions have neither . Take away the satisfaction of Men ; Lusts , and which then , I pray , hath the advantage ? Will Men , against the Light of their Reason , do violence to their Understandings , and for sake Truth , and Salvation too , gratis ? You tell us here , No Religion but the true requires of Men the difficult Task of mortifying their Lust s. This being granted you , what Service will this do you to prove a necessity of Force to punish all Disseuters in England ? Do none of their Religions require the mortisying of Lusts as well as yours ? And now , let us consider your Instance whereon you build so much that we hear of it over and over again . For you tell us . Idolatry 〈◊〉 , but yet not by the help of Force , as has been sufficiently 〈◊〉 . And again , That Truth left to shift for her self , will not 〈◊〉 well enough , has been sufficiently 〈◊〉 . What you have done to shew this , is to be seen , where you tell us , Within how few Generations after the ●…ood , the Worship of False Gods prevail'd against the Religion which Noah professed , and taught his Children , ( which 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the true Religion ) almost to the ●…tter exclusion of it , ( though that at 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 was the only Religion in the World ) without any Aid from ●…orce , or the Assistance of the Powers in being , for any thing we find in the History of those Times , as we may reasonably believe , considering that it found an entrance into the World , and entertainment in it , when it could have no such Aid , or Assistance . Of which ( besides the Corruption of Humane Nature ) you suppose there can no other Cause be assigned , or none more probable than this , that the Powers then in being , did not do what they might and ought to have done , towards the preventing , or checking that horrible Apostacy . Here you tell us , that the Worship of False Gods , within a very few Generations after the Flood prevail'd against the true Religion , almost to the ●…tter exclusion of it . This you say indeed , but without any Proofs , and unless that be shewing , you have not , as you pretend , any way shewn it . Out of what Records , I beseech you , have you●… that the true Religion was almost wholly extirpated out of the Wo●…ld , within a few Generations after the Flood ? The Scripture , the largest History we have of those Times , says 〈◊〉 of it , nor does , as I remember , mention any as guilty of Idolatry , within 2 or 300 Years after the Flood . In Canaan it self , I do not think that you can out of any credible History 〈◊〉 , t●…at th●…re was any Idolatry within ten or twelve Generations after Noah ; much less that it had so overspread the World and extirpated the true Religion , out of that part of it where the Scene lay of those Actions recorded in the History of the Bible . In Abraham's 〈◊〉 , 〈◊〉 who was King of 〈◊〉 , was also the Priest of the most High God. We read that God , with an immediate Hand , punish'd miraculously , first 〈◊〉 , at the Confusion of Babel , and afterward Sodom , and four other Cities ; but in neither of these Places is there any , the le●…st , mention of Idolatry , by which they provoked God , and drew down Vengeance on themselves . So that truly you have shewn nothing at all , and what the Scripture shews is against you . For besides , that it is plain , b●… Melchisedeck the King of Sale●… and Priest of the most High God , to whom Abraham paid Tithes , that all the Land of Canaan was not yet overspread with Idolatry , though afterwards in the Time of 〈◊〉 , by the forsciture was therefore made of it to the Israelites , one may have reason to suspect it were more desiled with it , than any part of the World. Besides Salem , I say , he that reads the Story of Abimelech , will have reason to think , that he also and his Kingdom , though Philistines , were not then infected with Idolatry . You think they , and almost all Mankind were Idolaters , but you may be mistaken ; and that which may serve to shew it , is the Example of Elijah the Prophet , who was at least as infallible a Guesser as you , and was as well instructed in the State and History of his own Country , and Time , as you can be in the State of the whole World 3 or 4000 Years ago . Elijah thought that Idolatry had wholly extirpated the true Religion out of Israel , and complains thus to God. The Children of Israel have for saken thy Covenant , thrown down thy Altars , and stain thy Prophets with the Sword ; and I , even I alone , am left , and they seek my Life to take it away . And he is so fully perswaded of it , that he repeats it again : and yet God tells him , that he had there yet 7000 Knees that had not bowed to Baal , 7000 that were not Idolaters : though this was in the Reign of Ahab , a King zealous for Idolatry ; and in a Kingdom set up in an Idolatrous Worship , which had continued the National Religion , established and promoted by the continued Succession of several Idolatrous Princes . And though the National Religions soon after the Flood were false , which you are far enough from proving ; how does it thence follow , that the true Religion was near extirpated ? which it must needs quite have been , before St. Peter's time , if there were so great reason to fear , as you tell us , That the true Religion , without the assistance of Force , would in a much shorter time , than any one that does not well consider the matter would imagine , be most effectually extirpated throughout the World. For above 2000 Years after Noah's time , St. Peter tells us , That in every Nation , he that search God , and worketh 〈◊〉 , is accepted by him . By which Words , and by the occa●…ion on which they were spoken , it is manifest , that in Countries where for 2000 Years together no Force had been used for the support of Noah's true Religion , it was not yet wholly 〈◊〉 . But that you may not think it was so near , that there was but one left , only Cornelius , if you will look into Acts XVII . 4. you will find a great Multitude of them at Thessalonica , And of the devo●…t Greeks a great Multitude believed , and consorted with Paul and Silas . And again , more of them in A●…ens , a City wholly given to Idol●…try . For that those 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , which we translate devout , and whereof many are mentioned in the Acts , were Gen●…iles , who worshipped the true God , and kept the Precepts of No●… , Mr. Mede has abundantly proved . So that what ●…ever you , ●…ho have well considered the matter , may imagine of the shortness of time , wherein Noah's Religion would be effectually extirpated throughout the World , without the assistance of Force , we find it at Athens , at Philippi , at 〈◊〉 , amongst the Rom●…ns , in Antioch of Pisidia , in Th●…ssalonica , above 2000 Years after , and that not so near being extinguish'd , but that in some of those Places the Professors of it were numerous : at Thessalonica they are call'd a great Multitude : at 〈◊〉 many : and how many of them there were in other parts of the World , whereof there was no occasion to make mention in that short History of the 〈◊〉 of the Apostles , who knows ? If they answered , in other Places , to what were found in these , as ●…hat reason is there to suppose they should not ? I think we may imagine them to be as many , as there were effectually of the true Religion Christians in Europe , a little before the Reformation , not withstanding the assistance the 〈◊〉 Religion had from Authority , after the withdrawing of Mira●…les . But you have a Salvo , for you write warily , and endeavour to save your self on all hand●… ; you say , There is great reason to fear , that without God's EXTRAORDINARY PROVIDENCE , it would in a much shorter time , than any one , who does not well consider the matter , would imagine , be most 〈◊〉 extirpated by it , throughout the World. 'T is , without doubt , the Provide●…ce of God which governs the A●…airs both of the World and his Church ; and to that , whether you call it Ordinary or Extraordinary , you may trust the Preservation of his Church , without the use of such Means , as he has no where appointed or authorized . You fancy Force necessary to preserve the True Religion , and hence you conclude the Magistrate authorized , without any farther Commission from God , to use it , if there be no other Means left ; and therefore that must be used : If Religion should be preserved without it , it is by the Extraordinary Providence of God ; where Extraordinary signi●…cs nothing , but begging the thing in question . The true Religion has been preserved many Ages , in the Church , without Force . Ay , say you , that was by the Extraordinary Provid●…ce of God. His Providence which over-rules all Events , we ea●…ly grant it : But why Extraordinary Providence ? because Force was 〈◊〉 to preserve it . And why was Force 〈◊〉 ? because otherwise , without Extraordinary Providence , it cannot be preserv'd . In such Circles , covered under good Words , but misapplied , one might shew you taking many a Turn in your answer , if it were ●…it to waste others time to trace your Wanderings . God has appointed Preaching , Teaching , Perswa●…on , Instruction , as a means to continue and propagate his true Religion in the World ; and if it were any where preserved and propagated without that , we might call it his Extraordinary Providence ; but the means he has appointed being used , we may conclude , that Men have done their Duties , and so may leave it to his Providence , however we will call it , to preserve the little Flock ( which he bids not to fear ) to the end of the World. But let us return again to what you say , to make good this Hypothesis of yours , That Idolatry entred first into the World by the Contrivance , and spread it self by the Endeavours of private Men , without the Assistance of the Magistrates , and those in Power . To prove this , you tell us , That it found Entrance into the World , and Enterta●…nment in it , when it could have no such Aid or Assistance . When was this , I b●…eech you , that Idolatry found this Entrance into the World ? Under what King's Reign was it , that you are so positive it could have no such Aid or Assistance ? If you had named the time , the thing ( though of no great mom●…nt to you ) had been sure . But now we may very justly question this bare Assertion of yours . For since we find , as far back as we have any History of it , that the great Men of the World were always forward to set up and promote Idolatry and False Religions , you ought to have given us some reason why , without Authority from History , you a●…irm that Idolatry , at its entrance into the World , had not that Assistance from Men in Power , which it never fail'd of afterwards . Who they were that made Israel to sin , the Scripture tells us . Their Kings were so zealous Promoters of Idolatry , that there is 〈◊〉 one of them , that has not that Brand left upon him in holy Writ . One of the first False Religions , whose rise and way of propagating we have an account of in Sacred History , was by an ambitious Usurper , who having rebell'd against his Master , with a False Title set up a False Religion , to secure his Power and Dominion . Why this might not have been done before Jeroboam's days , and Idols set up at other places , as well as at Dan and Bethel , to serve politick Ends , will need some other Proof , than barely saying , it could not be so at first . The Devil , unless much more ignorant , was not less busy in those days to engage Princes in his favour , and to weave Religion into Affairs of State , the better to introduce his Worship , and support Idolatry , by accommodating it to the Ambition , Vanity , or Superstition , of Men in Power : and therefore , you may as well say , that the Corruption of humane Nature , as that the Assistance of the Powers in being , did not , in those days , help forward False Religions ; because your Reading has furnish'd you with no particular mention of it out of History . But you need but say , that the Worship of False Gods prevail'd without any aid from Force , or the assistance of the Powers in being , for any thing we find in the History of those times , and then you have sufficiently 〈◊〉 , what ? even that you have just nothing to shew for your Assertion . But whatever that any thing is , which you find in History , you may meet with Men ( whose reading yet I will not compare with yours ) who think they have found in History , that Princes and those in Power , first corrupted the True Religion , by setting up the Images and Symbols of their Predecessors in their Temples ; which , by their Influence , and the ready Obedience of the Priests they appointed , were in succession of Time , propos'd to the People as Objects of their Worship . Thus they think they find in History that 〈◊〉 , Queen of Egypt , with her Counsellor Thoth , instituted the Funeral-Rites of King Osir●… , by the Honour done to the sacred Ox. They think they find also in History , that the ●…ame Thoth , who was also King of Egypt in his turn , invented the Figures of the first Egyptian Gods , Saturn , Dagon , Jupiter Hammon , and the rest : that is , the Figures of their Statues or Idols ; and that he instituted the Worship and Sacrifices of these Gods : And his Institutions were so well assisted by th●…se in Authority , and observed by the 〈◊〉 they set up , that the Worship of those Gods soon became the Religion of that , and a Pattern to other Nations . And here we may perhaps , with good reason , place the rise and original of Idolatry after the Flood , there being nothing of this kind more ancient . So ready was the Ambition , Vanity , or Superstition of Princes , to introduce their Predecessors into the Divine Worship of the People , to secure to themselves the greater Veneration from their Subjects , as descended from the Gods ; or to erect such a Worship , and such a Priesthood , as might awe the blinded and seduced People into that Obedience they desired . Thus Ham , by the Authority of his Successors , the Rulers of Egypt , is first brought for the Honour of his Name and Memory into their Temples , and never left , till he is erected into a God , and made Jupiter Hammon , &c. which Fashion took afterwards with the Princes of other Countries . Was not the great God of the Eastern Nations , Baal , or Jupiter Bel●… , one of the first Kings of Assyria ? And which , I pray , is the more likely , that Courts , by their Instruments the Priests , should thus advance the Honour of Kings amongst the People for the ends of Ambition and Power ; or the People find out these resined Ways of doing it , and introduce them into Courts for the enslaving themselves ? What Idolatry does your History tell you of among the Greeks , before Phoroncus and Danaus , Kings of the Argives , and Cecrops and Theseus Kings of 〈◊〉 , and Cadmus King of Thebes , introduced it ? An Art of Rule 't is probable they borrowed from the Egyptians . So that if you had not vouch'd the Silence of History , without consulting it , you would possibly have found , that in the first Ages , Princes , by their Influence and Aid , by the Help and Artisice of the Priests they imploy'd , their Fables of their Gods , their Mysteries and Oracles , and all the Assistance they could give it by their Authority , did so much against the Truth , before direct Force was grown into fashion , and appear'd openly , that there would be little reason of putting the Guard and Propagation of the True Religion , into their hands now , and arming them with Force to promote it . That this was the Original of Idolatry in the World , and that it was borrowed by other Magistrates from the Egyptians , is farther evident in that this Worship was setled in Egypt , and grown the National Religion there , before the Gods of Greece , and several other Idolatrous Countries , were bo●… . For though they took their Pattern of Deifying their deceased Princes , from the Egyptians , and kept , as near as they could , to the Number and Genealogies of the Egyptian Gods ; yet they took the Names still of some great Men of their own , which they accommodated to the Mythology of the Egyptians . Thus , by the assistance of the Powers in being , Idolatry entred into the World after the Flood . Whereof , if there were not so clear Footsteps in History , why yet should you not imagine Princes and Magistrates , ingaged in False Religions , as ready to imploy their Power for the maintaining and promoting their False Religions , in those days , as we find them now ? And therefore , what you say in the next Words , of the entrance of Idolatry into the World , and the it sound in it , will not pass for so very evident without Proof , though you tell us never so considently , that you suppose , besides the Corruption of humane Nature , there can no other Carse be assigned of it , or none more probable than this , That the Powers then in being , did not what they might and ought to have done ( 〈◊〉 . e. if you mean it to your purpose , use Force your way , to make Men consider , or to impose Creeds and Ways of Worship ) towards the 〈◊〉 or checking that horrible Apostacy . I grant that the entranee and growth of Idolatry , might be owing to the Negligence of the Powers in being , in that they did not do what they might and ought to have done , in using their Authority to suppress the Enormities of Mens Manners , and correct the Irregularity of their Lives . But this was not all the Assistance they gave to that horrible Apostacy : They were , as for as History gives us any light , the Promoters of it , and Leaders in it , and did what they ought not to have done , by setting up False Religions , and using their Authority to establish them to serve their corrupt and ambitious Designs . National Religions , establish'd by Authority , and inforced by the Powers in being , we hear of every where , as far back as we have any account of the rise and growth of the Religions of the World. Shew me any place , within those few Generations , wherein you say the 〈◊〉 prevail'd after the Flood , where the Magistrates , being of the True Religion , the Subjects by the Liberty of a Toleration , were lead into False Religions , and then you will produce something against Liberty of Cons●…ience . But to talk of that great Apostacy , as wholly owing to Toleration , when you cannot produce one Instance of Toleration then in the World , is to say what you please . That the majority of Mankind were then , and always have been , by the Corruption and Pravity of humane Nature , led away , and kept from imbracing the True Religion , is past doubt . But whether this be owing to Toleration , in Matters of Religion , is the Question . David describes an horrible Corruption and Apostacy in his time , so as to say , There is none that doth good , no not one ; and yet I do not think you will say , a Toleration , then in that Kingdom , was the cause of it . If the greatest part cannot be ill without a Toleration , I am afraid you must be fain to find out a Toleration in every Country , and in all Ages of the World. For I think it is true , of all Times and Places , that the Broad way that leadeth to Destruction , has had most Travellers . I would be glad to know where it was that Force , your way apply'd , i. e. with Punishments only upon Nonconformists , ever prevail'd to bring the greater number into the Narrow-way , that leads unto Life ; which our Saviour tells us , there are sew that sind . The Corrup●…on of Humane Nature , you say , opposes the True Religion . I grant it you . There was also , say you , an horrible Apostacy after the Flood ; let this also be granted you : and yet from hence it will not follow , that the True Religion cannot subsist and prevail in the World without the assistance of Force , your way apply'd , till you have shewn , that the False Religions , which were the Inventions of Men , grew up under Toleration , and not by the Encouragement and Assistance of the Powers in being . How near soever therefore , the True Religion was to be extinguish'd within a few Generations after the Flood , ( which whether more in danger then , than in most Ages since , is more than you can shew . ) This will be still the Question , Whether the Liberty of Toleration , or the Authority of the Powers in being , contributed most to it ? And whether there can be no other , nor more probable Cause assigned , than the want of Force , your way apply'd , I shall leave the Reader to judg . This I am sure , whatever Causes any one else shall assign , are as well proved as yours , if they offer them only as their Conjectures . Not but that I think Men could run into false and foollsh Ways of Worship , without the Instigation or Assistance of humane Authority ; but the Powers of the World , as far as we have any History , having been always forward enough ( True Religion as little serving Princes as private Mens Lusts ) to take up Wrong Religions , and as forward to imploy their Authority to 〈◊〉 the Religlon , good or bad , which they had once taken up , I can see no reason why the not using of Force , by the Princes of the World , should be assigned as the sole , or so much as the most probable Cause of propagating the False Religions of the World , or extirpating the True ; or how you can so positively say , Idolatry prevail'd without any assistauce from the Powers in being . Since therefore History leads us to the Magistrates , as the Authors and Promoters of Idolatry in the World , to which we may suppose their not supressing of Vice , joined as another Cause of the spreading of False Religions , you were best consider , whether you can still suppose there can no other Cause be assigned , of the prevailing of the worship of False Gods , but the Magistrate's not interposing his Authority in matters of Religion . For that that cannot with any probability at all be assigned as any Cause , I shall give you this further Reason . You impute the prevailing of False Religions , to the Corruption and Pravity of Humane Nature , left to it self , unbridled by Authority . Now , if Force , your way applied , does not at all bridle the Corruption and Pravity of Humane Nature , the Magistrate's not so interposing his Authority , cannot be assigned as any Cause at : all of that Apostacy . So that let that Apostacy have what rise , and spreas as far as you please , it will not make one jot for Force , your way applied , or shew that that can receive any assistance your way from Authority . For your use of Authority and Force , being only to bring Mento an outward Conformity to the National Religion , it leaves the Corruption and Prauity of Humane Nature , as unbridled as before ; as I have shewn elsewhere . You tell us , That it is not true , that the true Religion will preuail by its own Light and Strength , without Miracles , or the assistance of the Powers in being , because of the Corruption of Humane Nature . And for this you give us an instance in the Apostacy presently after the Flood . And you tell . us , That without the 〈◊〉 of Force it would presently be extirpated out of the World. 〈◊〉 the Corruption of Humane Nature be so universal , and so strong , that , without the help of Force , the true Religion is too weak to stand it , and cannot at all prevail , without Miracles or Force ; How come Men ever to be converted , in Countries where the National Religion is False ? If you say by Extraordinary Providence , what that amounts to , has been shewn . If you say this Corruption is so potent in all Men , as to oppese and prevail against the Gospel , not assisted by Force or Miracles , that is not true . If in most Men , so it is still , even where Force is used . For I desire you to name me a Country , where the greatest part are really and truly Christians , such as you confidently believe Christ , at the last Day , will own to be so . In England , having , as you do , excluded all the Dissenters ( or else why would you have them punish'd , to bring them to imbrace the true Religion ? ) you must , I fear , allow your self a great Latitude in thinkiing , if you think that the Corruption of Humane Nature , does not so far prevail , even amongst Conformists , as to make the Ignorance , and Lives , of great numbers amongst them , such as sutes not at all with the Spirit of ●…ue Christianity . How great their Ignorance may be , in the more spiritual and elevated parts of the Christian Religion , may be guessed , by what the Reverend Bishop , before cited , says of it , in reference to a Rite of the Church ; the most easy and obvious to be instructed in , and understood . His Words are , In the common management of that Holy Right [ Consirmation ] it is but too uisible , that of those Multitudes that croud to it , the far greater part co●… meerly as if they were to receive the 〈◊〉 Blossing , without any sense of the Vow made by them , and of their renewing their Baptismal Engagements in it . And if Origen were now alive , might he not sind many in our Church to whom these Words of his * might be apply'd ; Whose Faith signifi●…only 〈◊〉 much , and goes no farther than this , VIZ. that they come duly to the Church , and how their Heads to the Priests ? &c. For it seems it was then the Fashion to bow to the Priest as it is now to the Altar . If therefore you say Force is necessary , because without it no Men will so consider as to imbrace the true Religion , for the Salvation of their Souls , that I think is manifestly false . If you say it is necessary to use such means as will make the greatest part so imbrace it , you must use some other means than Force , your way applied , for that does not so far work on the Majority . If you say it is necessary , because possibly it may work on some , which bare Preaching , and Perswasion , will not : I answer , If possibly your moderate Punishments may work on some , and therefore they are necessary , 't is as possible , that greater Punishments may work on others , and therefore they are necessary , and so on to the utmost Severities . That the Corruption of Humane Nature is every where spread , and that it works powerfully in the Children of Disobedience , who received not the Love of the Truth , but had Pleasure in Unrighteousness ; and therefore God gives them up to believe a Lie , no Body , I think , will deny . But that this Corruption of Humane Nature works equally in all Men , or in all Ages ; and so , that God will , or ever did , give up all Men , not restrained by Force , your way modified and applied , to believe a Lie , ( as all False Religions are ) that I yet see no reason to grant . Nor will this Instance of Noah's Religion , you so much rely on , ever perswade , till you have proved , that from those eight Men which brought the true Religion with them into the new World , there were not eight thousand , or eighty thousand , which retain'd it in the World in the worst Times of the Apostacy . And Secondly , till you have proved , that the False Religions of the World prevail'd , without any aid from Force , or the assistance of the Powers in being . And Thirdly , That the decay of the true Religion was for want of Force , your moderate Force , neither of which you have at all proved , as , I think it manifest . One Consideration more touching Noah , and his Religion , give me leave to suggest , and that is ; If Force were so necessary for the support of the true Religion , as you make it , 't is strange God , who gave him Precepts about other things , should never reveal this to him , nor any Body else , that I know . To this , you , who have confessed the Scripture not to have given the Magistrate this Commission , must say , that it is plain enough in the Commission that he has from the Law of Nature , and so needed not any Revelation , to instruct the Magistrate in the Right he has to use Force . I confess the Magistrates have used Force in matters of Religion , and have been as considently and constantly put upon it by their Priests , as if they had as clear a Commission from Heaven , as St. Peter had to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles . But yet 't is plain , notwithstanding that Commission from the Law of Nature , there needs some farther instruction from Revelation , since it does not appear , that they have found out the right use of Force , such as the true Religion requires for its Preservation ; and though you have after several thousands of Years , at last , discovered it , yet it is very 〈◊〉 , you not being able to tell , if a Law were now to be made against those who have not consider'd as they ought , what are those moderate Penalties which are to be imployed against them , though yet without that all the rest signifies nothing . But however doubtful you are in this , I am glad to find you so direct , in putting Mens rejecting the 〈◊〉 Religion , upon the difficulty they have to 〈◊〉 their 〈◊〉 , which the true Religion requires of them , and I desire you to remember it in other places , where I have occasion to mind you of it . To conclude , That we may see the great advantage your Cause will receive from that Instance , you so much rely on , of the Apostacy after the Flood ; I shall oppose another to it . You say , That Idolatry prevail'd in the World , in a few Generations , almost to the ●…tter exclusion of the true Religion , without any Aid from Force , or Assistance of the Powers in being , by reason of Toleration . And therefore , you think there is great reason to fear , that the trac Religion would , by Toleration , quickly be most effectually extirpated thoughout the World. And I say , that after Christianity was received for the Religion of the Empire , and whilst Political Laws , and Force , interposed in it , an horrible Apostacy prevail'd 〈◊〉 most the ●…tter exclusion of the true Religion , and a general introducing of Idolatry . And therefore I think there is great reason to fear more harm than good , from the use of Force in Religion . This I think as good an Argument against , as yours for Force , and something better ; since what you build on is only presum'd by you , not proved from History : whereas the matter of Fact here is well known , nor will you deny it , when you consider the State of Religion in Christendom under the assistance of that Force , which you tell us , succeeded and supplied the place of withdrawn Miracles , which in your Opinion , are so necessary in the absence of Force , that you make that the reason of their continuance ; and tell us , they were continued ●…ill Force could be had ; not so much for evincing the Truth of Christian Religion , as to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance . So that when ever Force fail'd , there , according to your Hypothesis , are Miracles to supply its want ; for without one of them , the True Religion ( if we may believe you ) will soon be ●…terly extirpated ; and what Force , in the absence of Miracles , produced in Christendoin several Ages before the Reformation , is so well known , that it will be hard to find what Service your way of arguing will do any but the Romish Religion . But to take your Argument in its full Latitude , you say , but you say it without Book , that there was once a Toleration in the World to the almost utter Extirpation of the true Religion ; and I say to you , that as far as Records authorize either Opinion , we may say Force has been always used in matters of Religion , to the great prejudice of the true Religion , and the Professors of it . And there not being an Age wherein you can shew me , upon a fair Trial of an establish'd National Toleration , that the true Religion was extirpated , or indangered , so much as you pretend by it : Whereas there is no Age ( whereof we have sufficient History to judg of this matter ) wherein it will not be easy to find that the true Religion , and its Followers , suffered by Force . You will in vain endeavour , by Instances , to prove the ill effects , or uselesness of Toleration , such as the Author proposed , which I challenge you to shew me was ever yet set up in the World , or that the true Religion sufferd by it ; and 't is to the want of it , the Restraints and Disadvantages the true Religion has laboured under , and it s so little spreading in the World will justly be imputed ; until , from better Experiments , you have something to say against it . Our Saviour has promised that he will build his Church on this fundamental Truth , That he is Christ the Son of God ; so that the Gates of Hell shall not prevail against it : And this I believe , though you tell us the True Religion is not able to subsist without the assistance of Force , when Miracles cease . I do not remember that our Saviour any where promises any other assistance but that of his Spirit , or gives his little Flock any Encouragement to expect much Countenance or Help from the great Men of the World , or the Coercive Power of the Magistrates , nor any where authorizes them to use it for the support of his Church ; Not many wise Men after the Flesh ; not many mighty , not many noble , is the Stile of the Gospel ; and I believe will be found to belong to all Ages of the Church Militant , past and to come , as well as to the first : For God , as St. Paul tells us , has chosen the foolish things of the World to confound the wise , and the weak things of the World to confound the mighty ; and this not only till Miracles ceased , but ever since . To be hated for Christ's Name sake , and by much Tribulation to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven , has been the general and constant Lot of the People of God , as well as it seems to be the current Strain of the New Testament ; which promises nothing of secular Power or Greatness ; says nothing of Kings being nursing Fathers , or Queens nursing Mothers : which Prophecy , whatever meaning it have , 't is like our Saviour would not have omitted to support his Church with some Hopes and Assurance of such Assistance , if it were to have any Accomplishment before his second Coming ; when Israel shall come in again , and with the Gentiles make up the Fulness of his glorious Kingdom . But the Tenor of the New Testament is , All that will live Godly in Jesus Christ , shall suffer Persecution , 2 Tim. III. In your Argument consider'd , you tell us , That no Man can fail of finding the way of Salvation that seeks it as he ought . In my answer , I take notice to you , that the places of Scripture you cite to prove it , point out this way of seeking as we ought , to be a good Life ; as particularly that of St. John , If any one will do his Will , he shall know of the Doctrine whether it be of God : upon which I use these Words . So that these places , if they prove what you cite them for , That no Man can fail of finding the way of Salvation , who seeks it as the ought ; they do also prove , that a good Life is the only way to seek as we ought ; and that therefore , the Magistrates , if they would put Men upon seeking the way of Salvation as they ought , should by their Laws and Penalties force them to a good Life ; a good Conversation being the surest and readiest way to a right Understanding . And that if Magistrates will severely and impartially set themselves against Vice , in whomsoever it is found , True Religion will be spread wider — than ever hitherto it has been by the Imposition of Creeds and Ceremonies . To this you reply , Whether the Magistrates setting themselves severely and impartially against what you suppose I call Vice , or the Imposition of sound Creeds and decent Ceremonies , does more conduce to the spreading the True Religion , and rendring it fruitful in the Lives of its Professors , we need not examine ; you confess , you think , both together do best ; and this , you think , is as much as needs be 〈◊〉 to that Paragraph . If it had been put to you , Whether a good Living , or a good Prebend would more conduce to the enlarging your Fortune , I think it would be allow'd you as no improper or unlikely Answer , what you say here , I think both together would do best ; but here the case is otherwise , your Thinking determines not the Point : and other People of equal Authority , may , and I will answer for it , do think otherwise : but because I pretend to no Authority , I will give you a Reason , why your Thinking is insufficient . You tell us , That Force is not a fit Means , where it is not necessary as well as useful ; and you prove it to be necessary because there is no other Means left . Now if the Severity of the Magistrate , against what I call Vice , will , as you will not deny , promote a good Life , and that be the right Way to seek the Truths of Religion , here is another Means besides imposing , of Creeds and Ceremonies , to promote True Religion ; and therefore , your Argument for it Necessity because of no other Means left , being gone , you cannot say both together are best , when one of them being not necessary , is therefore , by your own Confession , not to be used . I having said , That if 〈◊〉 an indirect and at a distance Usefulness were sufficient to justify the Use of Force , the 〈◊〉 might make his Subjects Eunuchs for the Kingdom of Heaven : You reply , That you suppose I will not say Castration is necessary , because you hope I acknowledge , that Marriage , and that Grace which God denies to none , who seriously ask it , are sufficient for that Purpose . And I hope you acknowledg , that Preaching , Admonitions and Instructions , and that Grace which God denies to none who seriously ask it , are sufficient for Salvation . So that by this Answer of yours , there being no more necessity of Force to make Men of the True Religion , than there is of Castration to make Men chaste , it will still remain that the Magistrate , when he thinks fit , may , upon your Principle ; , as well castrate Men to make them chaste , as use Force to make them imbrace the Truth that must save them . If Castration be not 〈◊〉 , because Marriage and the Grace of God is sufficient , without it ; nor will Force be necessary , because Preaching , and the Grace of God is sufficient without it ; and this , I think , by your own Rule , where you tell us , Where there are many useful Means , and some of them are sufficient without the rest , there is no necessity of using them all . So that you must either quit your necessity of Force , or take in Castration , too , which however , it might not go down with the untractable and desperately perverse and obstinate People in these Western Countries , yet is a Doctrine , you may hope , may meet with a better Reception in the Ottoman Empire , and recommend you to some of my Mahometans . To my saying , If what we are apt to think useful , were thence to be concluded so we might be in danger to be obliged to believe the pretended Miracle of the Church of Rome , by your way of Reasoning ; Unless we will say ( that which without Impiety cannot be said ) that the wise and benign Disposer and Governor of all things , does not use all useful Means for promoting his own Honour in the World , and the good of Souls . This , I think , will conclude as much for Miracles as for Force : You reply , You think it will not ; For in the place I intend , you speak not of useful , but of competent , i. e. sufficient Means : Now competent , or sufficient Means are necessary ; but you think no Man will say that all useful Means are so : And therefore though , as you 〈◊〉 , it cannot be said without 〈◊〉 , that the wise and benign Disposer and Governor of all things has not furnish'd Mankind with competent Means for the promoting his own Honour in the World , and the Good of Souls ; yet it is very agreeable with Pie●…y , and with Truth too , to say that he does not now use all useful Means : Because as none of his Attributes obliges him to use more than sufficient Means ; s , he may use sufficient Means , without using all useful Means . For where there are many useful Means , and some of them are sufficient without the rest , there is no necessity of using them all . So that from God 's not using Miracles now , to promote the True Religion , I cannot conclude that he does not think them useful now , but only that he does not think them necessary . And therefore , though what we are apt to think useful , were thence to be concluded so ; yet if whatever is useful , be not 〈◊〉 to be concluded necessary , there is no reason to fear that we should be obliged to believe the Miracles pretended to by the Church of Rome . For if Miracles be not now necessary , there is no inconv●…nience in thinking the Miracles pretended to by the Church of Rome , to be but pretended Miracles . To which I answer , Put it how you will , for competent Means , or useful Means , it will conclude for Miracles still as much as for Force . Your Words are these , If such a degree of outward Force , as 〈◊〉 been mentioned , be really of great and necessary use for the advancing these Ends , as taking the World as we find it , you say , you think it appears to be ; then it must be acknowledg'd there is a right somewhere to use it for the advancing those Ends ; unless we will say ( what without Impiety cannot be said ) that the wise and benign Disposer of all things , has not furnish'd Mankind with competent Means for the promoting his own Honour in the World , and the Good of Souls . What , I beseech you , now is the sum of this Argument , but this , Force is of great and 〈◊〉 use ; therefore , the wise and benign Disposer of all things , who will not leave Mankind unfurnish'd ( which it would be Impiety to say ) of competent Means for the promoting his Honour in the World , and the Good of Souls , has given somewhere a right to use it ? Let us try it now , whether it will not do as well for Miracles . Miracles are of great and necessary use , ( as great and necessary at least as Force ; ) therefore , the wise and benign Disposer of all things , who will not leave Mankind unfurnish'd ( which it would be Impiety to say ) of competent Means for the promoting his Honour in the World , and the Good of so●…ls , has given somewhere a Power of Miracles . I ask you , when I in the Second Letter used your own Words , apply'd to Miracles instead of Force , would they not conclude then as well for Miracles as for Force . For you must remember there was not then in all your Scheme one word of Miracles to supply the place of Force . Force alone was mention'd , Force alone was necessary , all was laid on Force . Nor was it easy to divine , that Miracles should be taken in , to mend the Defects of your Hypothesis , which in your Answer to me , you now have done , and I easily allow it , without holding you to any thing you have said , and shall always do so . For seeking Truth , and not Triumph , as you frequently suggest , I shall always take your Hypothesis as you please to reform it , and either imbrace it , or shew you why I do not . Let us see therefore , whether this Argument will do any better now your Scheme is mended , and you make Force or Miracles necessary . If Force or Miracles are of great and necessary use for the promoting True Religion , and the Salvation of Souls , then it must be acknowledged , that there is somewhere a Right to use the one , or a Power to do the other , for the advancing those Ends ; unless we will say ( what without Impiety cannot be said ) that the wise and be●…ign Disposer and Governor of all things has not furnish'd Mankind with competent Mean ; for the promoting his own Honour , and the Good of Souls . From whence it will follow , if your Argument be good , that where Men have not a Right to use Force , there still we are to expect Miracles , unless we will say , &c. Now where the Magistrates are not of the True Religion , there by this part of your Scheme , there is a Right in no body to use Force ; for if there were , what need of Miracles ( as you tell us there was ) in the first Ages of Christianity , to supply that Want ? Since the Magistrates , who were of False Religions then , were furnish'd with as much Right , if that were enough , as they are now . So that where the Magistrates are of False Religions , there you must , upon your Principles , affirm Miracles are still to supply the want of Force ; unless you will say ( what without Impiety cannot be said ) that the wise and benign Disposer and Governor of all things , hath not furnish'd Mankind with competent Means for the promoting his own Honour in the World , and the good of So●…ls . Now how far this will favour the Pretences of the Church of Rome to Miracles in the East and West-Indies , and other Parts not under Popish Governments , you were best consider . This is evident , that in all Countries where the True Religion is not received for the Religion of the State , and supported and encouraged by the Laws of it , you must allow Miracles to be as necessary now , as ever they were any where in the World , for the supply of the want of Force , before the Magistrates were Christians . And then what advantage your Doctrine gives to the Church of Rome , is very visible . For they , like you , supposing theirs the one only True Religion , are supply'd by you with this Argument for it , viz. That the True Religion will not prevail by its own Light and Strength , without the assistance of Miracles or Authority . Which are the competent Means , which , without Impiety , it cannot be said , that the wise and benign Disposer and Governor of all things , has not furnish'd Mankind with . From whence they will not think it hard to draw this Consequence ; that therefore the wise and benign Governor of all things , has continued in their Church the Power of Miracles ( which yours does not so much as pretend to ) to supply the want of the Magistrate's Assistance , where that cannot be had to make the True Religion prevail . And if a Papist should press you with this Argument , I would gladly know what you would reply to him . Though thi●… be enough to make good what I said , yet since I seek Truth , more than my own Justification , let us examine a little , what 't is you here say of competent Means : Competent Means , you say , are necessary ; but you think no Man will say , all useful Means are so . If you think you speak plain clear determin'd Sense , when you used this good English Word Competent , I pity you : if you did it with Skill , I send you to my Pagans and 〈◊〉 . But this safe way of Talking , though it be not altogether so clear , yet it so often occurs in you , that 't is hard to judg , whether it be Art or Nature . Now pray what do you mean by Mankind's being furnish'd with competent Means ? If it be such Means as any are prevail'd on by to imbrace the Truth that must save them , Preaching is a competent Means ; for by Preaching alone , without Force , many are prevail'd on , and become truly Christians ; and then your Force , by your own Confession , is not necessary . If by competent , you understand such Means by which all Men are prevail'd on , or the majority , to become truly Christians , I fear your Force is no competent Means . Which way ever you put 〈◊〉 , you must acknowledg Mankind to be destitute of competent Means , or your moderate Force not to be that necessary competent Means : Since whatever Right the Magistrates may have had any where to use it , where-ever it has not been used , ( let the cause be what it will that kept thi●… Means from being used , there the People have been destitute of that Means . But you will think there is little reason to complain of Obscurity , you having abundantly explain'd what you mean by competent , in saying , competent , i. e. sufficient Means . So that we have nothing to do but to find out what you mean by sufficient : and the Meaning of that Word , in your use of it , you happily give us in these following , What does any Man mean by sufficient Evidence , but such as will certainly win Assent where-ever it is duly consider'd ? Apply this to your Means , and then tell me , whether your Force be such competent , i. e. sufficient Means ; that it certainly produced imbracing the Tr●… , where-ever it was duly , i. e. your way apply'd ; if it did not , 't is plain it is not your competent sufficient Means , and so the World , without any such Imputation to the Divine Wisdom and Benignity , might be without it . If you will say it was sufficient , and did produce that end where-ever it was apply'd , I desire you then to tell me whether Mankind hath been always furnish'd with competent Means . You have it now in your choise , either to talk impiously or renounce Force , and disown it to be competent Means ; one of the two I do not see how , by your own Argument , you can avoid . But to lay by your competent and sufficient Means , and to ease you of the uncertainty and difficulty you will be in to determine what is so , in respect of Mankind ; I suppose it will be little less impious to say , that the wise and benign Disposer and Governor hath not furnish'd Mankind with necessary Means , as to say he hath not furnish'd them with competent Means . Now , Sir , if your moderate Penalties , and nothing else , be , since the withdrawing of Miracles , this necessary Means , what will be left you to say , by your Argument , of the Wisdom and Benignity of God in all those Countries , where moderate Penalties are not made use of ? where Men are not furnish'd with this Means to bring them to the True Religion ? For unless you can say , that your moderate Penalties have been constantly made use of in the World for the Support and Encouragement of the True Religion , and to bring Men to it , ever since the withdrawing of Miracles , you must con●…s , that not only some Countries , ( which yet were enough against you ) but Mankind in general , have been unfurnish'd of the necessary Means for the promoting the Honour of God in the World , and the Salvation of Mens Souls . This Argument out of your own Mouth ( were there no other ) is sufficient to shew the Weakness and Unreasonableness of your Scheme ; and I hope the due , Consideration of it , will make you cautious another time , how you intitle the Wisdom and Benignity of God to the support of what you once fancy to be of great and necessary use . I having thereupon said , Let us not therefore be more wise than our Maker in that stupendous and supernatural Work of our Salvation , the Scripture , &c. You reply , Though the Work of our Salvation be , as I justly call it , stupendous and supernatural ; yet you suppose no sober Man doubts , but it both admits , and ordinarily requires the use of natural and humane Means , in Subordination to that Grace which works it . If you had taken notice of these immediately following Words of mine , The Scripture that reveals it to us , contains all that we can know or do , in order to it ; and where that is silent , 't is presumption in us to direct ; You would not have thought what you here say a sufficient Answer : For though God does make use of natural and humane Means in Subordination to Grace , yet it is not for Man to make use of any Means , in Subordination to his Grace , which God has not appointed , out of a Conceit it may do some Service indirectly and at a distance . The whole Covenant and Work of Grace , is the Contrivance of God's infinite Wisdom . What it is , and by what Means he will dispense his Grace , is known to us by Revelation only ; which is so little suted to humane Wisdom , that the Apostle calls it the Foolishness of Preaching . In the Scripture , is contain'd all that Revelation , and all things necessary for that Work , all the Means of Grace : There God has declared all what he would have done for the Salvation of Souls ; and if he had thought Force necessary to be join'd with the Foolishness of Preaching , no doubt but he would some where or other have reveal'd it , and not left it to the Wisaom of Man : which how disproportion'd and opposite it is to the Ways and Wisdom of God in the Gospel , and how unfit to be trusted in the business of Salvation , you may see 1 Cor. I. from v. 17 , to the end . The Work of Grace admits , and or dinarily requires the use of natural and bumane Means . I deny it not : Let us now hear your Inference ; Therefore till I have shewn that no Penal Laws , that can be made , can do any Service towards the Salvation of Mens Souls in Subordination to God's Grace , or that God has forbidden the Magistrate to use Force , ( for so you ought to put it ; ) but you rather choose ( according to your ordinary way ) to use general and doubtful Words ; and therefore you say , To serve him in that great Work with the Authority which he has given him , there will be no occasion for the Caution I have given , not to be wiser than our Maker in that stupendous Work of our Salvation . By which way of Arguing , any thing that I cannot shew , cannot possibly , cannot indirectly and at a distance , or by accident , do any Service , or God has not forbidden , may be made use of for the Salvation of Souls . I suppose you mean expresly forbidden , for else I might think these Words , [ Who has required this at your hands ? ] a sufficient Prohibition of it . The sum of your Argument is what cannot be shew'd not to do any Service , may be used as an humane Means in Subordination to Grace , in the Work of Salvation . To which I reply , That what may , through the Grace of God , sometimes do some Service , cannot without a farther warrant from Revelation , than such an Usefulness be requir'd , or made use of as a subordinate Means to Grace . For if so , then Auricular Confession , Penance , Pilgrimages , Processions , &c. which no body can shew , do not ever do any Service , at least , indirectly and at a distance , towards the Salvation of Souls . 'T is not enough that it cannot be shewn that it cannot do any Service to justify its Usefulness ; For what is there that may not , indirectly and at a distance , or by accident , do some Service ? To shew that it is an humane Means , that God has no where appointed , in Subordination to Grace , in the supernatural Work of Salvation , is enough to prove it an unwarrantable Boldness to use it : And much more so in the present case of Force , which , if put into the Magistrate's hands with Power to use it in Matters of Religion , will do more harm than good ; as I think I have sufficiently shewon . And therefore , since according to you , the Magistrate's Commission , to use Force for the Salvation of Souls , is from the Law of Nature ; which Commission reaches to none , since the Revelation of the Gospel , but Christian Magistrates ; 't is more natural to conclude , ( were there nothing else in the case but the Silence of Scripture ) that the Christian Magistrate has no such Power , because he has no such Commission any where in the Gospel , wherein all things are appointed necessary to Salvation ; than that there was so clear a Commission given to all Magistrates by the Law of Nature , that it is necessary to shew a Prohibition from Revelation , if one will deny Christian Magistrates to have that Power . Since the Commission of the Law of Nature to Magistrates , being only that general one , of doing Good according to the best of their Judgments : if that extends to the use of Force in Matters of Religion , it will abundantly more oppose than promote the True Religion , if Force in the case has any Efficacy at all , and so do more harm than good : Which though it shews not , ( what you here demand ) that it can not do any Service towards the Salvation of Mens Souls , for that cannot be shewn of any thing ; yet it shews the Disservice it does , is so much more , than any Service can be expected from it , that it can never be proved , that God has given Power to Magistrates to use it by the Commission they have of doing Good , from the Law of Nature . But 〈◊〉 you tell me , Till I have 〈◊〉 that Force and Penalties cannot do any Service towards ●…he Sa●…ation of Souls , there will be no occa●…ion for the Caution I gave you , not to be wiser than our Maker in that stupendous and supernatural Work , you have forgot your own 〈◊〉 , That it is not enough to authorize the use of Force , that it may be useful , if it be not also necessary . And when you can prove such Means necessary , which though it cannot be shewn , never upon any occasion , to do any Service ; yet may be , and is abundantly shewn , to do so little Service , and so uncertainly , that if it be used , it will , if it has any Efficacy , do more harm than good : If you can , I say , prove such a Means as that necessary , I think I may yield you the Cause . But the use of it has so much certain Harm , and so little and uncertain Good in it , that it can never be suppos'd included or intended in the general Commission to the Magistrates , of doing good : Which may serve for an Answer to your next Paragraph . Only let me take notice , that you here make this Commission of the Law of Nature to extend the use of Force , only to induce those , who would not otherwise , to hear what may and ought to move them to imbrace the Truth . They have heard all that is offered to move them to imbrace , i. e. believe , but are not moved : Is the 〈◊〉 by the Law of Nature commission'd to punish them for what is not in their Power ? for Faith is the Gift of God , and not in a Man's Power : Or is the Magistrate commission'd by the Law of Nature , which impowers him in general , only to do them good ? Is he , I say , commission'd to make them lie , and 〈◊〉 that which they do not believe ? And is this for their good ? If he punish them till they imbrace , i. e. believe , he punishes them for what is not in their Power ; if till they imbrace , i. e. barely prosess , he punishes them for what is not for their good : To neither of which , can he be commission'd by the Law of Nature . To my saying , Till you can shew us a 〈◊〉 in Scripture , it will be fit for us to obey that 〈◊〉 of the Gospel , Mark 4. 24. which bids us take ●…eed what we 〈◊〉 . You reply , That this you suppose is only intended for the 〈◊〉 Reader ; For it ought to be renderd , Attend to what you hear ; which you prove out of 〈◊〉 . What if I or my Readers are not so learned , as to understand either the Greek Original , or 〈◊〉 Latin Comment ? Or if we did , are we to be blamed for understanding the Scripture in that Sense , which the National , i. e. ( as you say ) the True Reli●…ion authorizes , and which you tell us , would be a Fault in us if we did not believe ? For if , as you suppose , there be sufficient Provision made in England for instructing all Men in the Truth , we cannot then but take the Words in this Sense , it being that which the Publick Authority has given them ; for if we are not to follow the Sense as it is given us in the Transtation authorized by our Governors , and used in our Worship establish'd by Law , but must seek it elsewhere , 't will be hard to find , how there is any other Provision made for instructing Men in the Sense of the Scripture , which is the Truth that must save them , but to leave them to their own Inquiry and Judgment , and to themselves , to take whom they think best for Interpreters and Expounders of Scripture , and to quit that of the True Church , which she has given in her Translation . This is the Liberty you take to differ from the True Church , when you think ●…it , and it will serve your purpose . She says , take take what you hear ; but you say , the true Sense is , 〈◊〉 to what you hear . Methinks you should not be at such variance with Distenters ; for after all , nothing is so like a Nonconformist as a Conformist . Though it be certainly every one's Right to understand the Scripture in that Sense which appears truest to him , yet I do not see how you , upon your Principles , can depart from that which the Church of England has given it : but you , I nd●… , when you think fit , take that Liberty ; and so much Liberty as that , would , I think , satisfy all the 〈◊〉 in England . As to your other place of Scripture ; if St. Paul , as it seems to me in that Xth to the Romans , were shewing that the Gentiles were provided with all things necessary to Salvation , as well as the Jews ; and that by having Men sent to them to preach the Gospel , that Provision was made , what you say in the two next Paragraphs will shew us , that you understand , that the Greek Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies both Hearing and Report , but does no more answer the Force of those two Verses , against you , than if you had spared all you said with your Greek Criticism . The Words of St. Paul are these ; How then shall they call on him on whom they have not believed ? And how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard ? And how shall they hear without a Preacher ? And how shall they preach , except they be sent ? So then Faith cometh by Hearing , and Hearing by the Word of God. In this Deduction of the Means of propagating the Gospel , we may well suppose St. Paul would have put in Miracles or Penalties , if , as you say , one of them had been necessary . But whether or no every Reader will think St. Paul set down in that place all necessary Means , I know not ; but this , I am consident , he will think , that the New Testament does ; and then I ask , Whether there be in it one word of Force to be used to bring Men to be Christians , or to hearken to the good Tidings of Salvation , offer'd in the Gospel ? To my asking , What if God , for Reasons best known to Himself , would not have Men compell'd ? You answer , If he would not have them compell'd now Miracles are ceased , as far as moderate Penalties compel , ( otherwise you are not concern'd in the Demand ) he would have told us so . Concerning Miracles supplying the want of Force , I shall need to say nothing more here but to your Answer , That God would have told us so . I shall in few Words state the Matter to you . You first suppose Force necessary to co●…pel Men to hear , and thereupon suppose the Magistrate invested with a Power to compel them to hear , and from thence peremptorily declare , that if God would not have Force used , he would have told us so . You suppose also , that it must be only moderate Force . Now may we not ask one , that is so far of the Council of the Almighty that he can positively say what he would or would not have , to tell us , whether it be not as probable that God , who knows the Temper of Man that he has made , who knows how apt he is not to spare any degree of Force wh●… he believes he has a Commission to compel Men to do any thing in their power , and who knows also how prone Man is to think it reasonable to do so : whether , I say , it is not as probable that God , if he would have the Magistrate to use none but moderate Force to compel Men to hear , would also have told us so ? Fathers are not more apt than Magistrates to strain their Power beyond what is convenient for the Education of their Children ; and yet it has pleased God to tell them in the New-Testament of this Moderation , by a Precept more than once repeated . To my demanding , ` What if God would have Men left to their freedom in this Point , if they will hear or if they will forbear , will you constrain them ? Thus we are sure he did `with his own People , &c. You answer , But those Words , whether they will hear or whether they will sorbear , which we find thrice used in the Prophet Ezekiel , are nothing at all to my purpose . For by Hearing there , no Man understands the bare giving an Ear to what was to be preach'd , nor yet the considering it only ; but the complying with it , and obeying it , according to the Paraphrase which Grotius gives of the Words . Methinks , for this once , you might have allow'd me to have hit upon something to the purpose , you having deny'd me it in so many other places : if it were but for Pity , and one other Reason ; which is , that all you have to say against it , is , that by Hearing there , no Man understands the bare giving an ear to what was to be preach'd , nor yet the considering it , but the complying with it , and obeying it . If I misremember not , your Hypothesis pretends the use of Force to be not barely to make Men give an ear , nor yet to consider , but to make them consider as they ought , i. e. so as not to reject ; and therefore , though this Text out of Ezekiel , be nothing to the purpose against have giving an ear , yet if you please , let it stand as if it were to the purpose against your Hypothesis , till you can find some other Answer to it . If you will give your self the pains to turn to A●…s XXVIII . 24 , — 28. you will read these Words , And some believed the things that were spoken , and some believed not . And when they agreed not among themselves they departed , after that Paul had spoken one word ; Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the Prophet , unto our Fathers , saying , Go unto this People , and say , Hearing , ye shall hear , and shall not understand ; and Seeing , ye shall see , and not perceive . For the Heart of this People is waxed gross , and their Ears are dull of hearing , and their Eyes have they closed ; lest they should see with their Eyes , and hear with their Ears , and understand with their Heart , and should be converted , and I should heal them . Be it known therefore unto you , that the Salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles , and that they will hear it . If one should come now , and out of your Treatise , call'd the Argument of the Letter concerning Toleration consider'd and answer'd , reason thus , It is evident that these Jews have not sought the Truth in this matter , with that Application of Mind and Freedom of Judgment which was requisite , whilst they suffer'd their Lusts and Passions to ●…it in judgment , and manage the Enquiry . The Impressions of Education , the Reverence and Admiration of Persons , worldly Respects , and the like incompetent Motives , have determin'd them . Now if this be the case ; if these Men are averse to a due Consideration of things , where they are most concern'd to use it , WHAT MEANS IS THERE LEFT ( besides the Grace of God ) to reduce them out of the wrong Way they are in , but to lay Thorns and Briars in it ? Would you not think this a good Argument to shew the necessity of using Force and Penalties upon these Men in the Acts , who refused to be brought to imbrace the True Religion upon the Preaching of St. Paul ? For what other Means was left , what humane Method could be used to bring them to make a wiser and more rational Choice , but laying such Penalties upon them as might ballance the weight of such Prejudices , which inclin'd them to prefer a false Way before the true ? Tell me , I 〈◊〉 you , would you not ( had you been a Christian Magistrate in those days ) have thought your self obliged to try , by Force , to over-ballance the Weight of those Prejudices which inclin'd them to prefer a false Way to the true ? for there was no other humane Means lefe ; and if that be not enough to prove the necessity of using it , you have no Proof of any necessity of Force at all . If you would have laid Penalties upon them , I ask you , what if God , for Reasons best known to himself , thought it not necessary to use any other Humane Means , but Preaching and Perswasion ? You have a ready Answer , There is no other Humane Means but Force , and some other Humane Means besides Preaching , is necessary , i. e. in your Opinion : and is it not fit your Authority should carry it ? For as to Miracles , whether you think fit to rank them amongst Humane Means or no ; or whether or no there were any shew'd to these unbelieving Jews to supply the want of Force , I guess , in this case , you will not be much help'd , which ever you suppose : Though to one unbi●…s'd , who reads that Chapter , it will , I imagine , appear most probable that St. Paul , when he thus parted with them , had done no Miracles amongst them . But you have , at the Close of the Paragraph before us , provided a Salvo for all , in telling us , However the Penalties you defend , are not skch as can any way be pretended to take away Mens Freedom in this Point . The Question is , Whether there be a necessity of using other Humane Means but Preaching , for the bringing Men to imbrace the Truth that must save them ; and whether Force be it ? God himself seems , in the Places quoted and others , to teach us that he would have Men left to their freedom from any Constraint of Force in that Point ; and you answer , The Penalties you defend are not such as can any ways be pretended to take away Mens freedom in this Point . Tell us what you mean by these Words of yours , take away Mens Freedom in this Point ; and then apply it . I think it pretty hard to use Penalties and Force to any Man , without taking away his Freedom from Penalties and Force . Farther , the Penalties you think necessary , if we may believe you your self , are to be such as may ballance the Weight of those Prejudices which incline Men to prefer a false Way before a true : whether these be such as you will defend , is another Question . This , I think , is to be made plain , that you must go beyond the lower degrees of Force and moderate Penalties , to ballance these Prejudices . To my saying , That the Method of the Gospel is to pray and beseech , and that if God had thought it necessary to have Men punish'd to make them give ear , he could have called Magistrates to be Spreaders of the Gospel as well as poor Fishermen , or Paul a Persecutor , who yet wanted not Power to punish Ananias and Sapbira , and the incestuous Corinthian . You reply , Though it be the Method of the Gospel , for the Ministers of it to pray and beseech Men ; yet it appears from my own Words here , both that Punishments may be sometimes necessary ; and that Punishing ; and that even by those who are to pray and beseech , is inconsistent with that Metbod . I fear , Sir , you so greedily lay hold upon any Examples of Punishment , when on any account they come in your way , that you give your self not liberty to consider whether they are for your purpose or no ; or else you would scarce inser , as you do from my Words , that , in your case , Punishments may be sometimes necessary . Ananias and Saphira were punished ; therefore it appears , say you , that Punishment may be sometimes necessary . For what , I beseech you ? For the only End , you say , Punishments are useful in Religion , i. e. to make Men consider . So that Ananias and Saphira were struck dead : For what end ? To make them consider . If you had given your self the leisure to have reflected on this and the other Instance of the incestuous Corinthian , 't is possible you would have found neither of them to have served very well to shew Punishment necessary to bring Men to imbrace the True Religion ; for both these were Punishments laid on those who had already imbraced the True Religion , and were in the Communion of the True Church , and so can only shew ( if you will infer any thing concerning the necessity of Punishments from them ) that Punishments may be sometimes necessary for those who are in the Communion of the True Church . And of that you may make your advantage . As to your other In●…erence from my Words , viz. That Punishing , and that even by those who are , as Ambassadors , to pray and beseech , is consistent with that Method : When they can do it as the Apostles did , by the immediate Direction and Assistance of the Spirit of God , I shall easily allow it to be consistent with the Method of the Gospel . If that will not content you , 't is plain you have an itch to be handling the secular Sword ; and since Christ has not given you the Power you desire , you would be executing the Magistrate's pretended Commission from the Law of Nature . One thing more let me mind you of , and that is , that if , from the Punishments of Ananias and Saphira , and the incestuous 〈◊〉 , you can infer a necessity of Punishment to make Men consider , it will follow that there was a necessity of Punishment to make Men consider , notwithstanding Miracles ; which cannot therefore be suppos'd , to supply the want of Punishments . To my asking , What if God , foreseeing this Force would be in the hands of Men , as passionate , as humoursom , as liable to Prejudice and Error , as the rest of their Brethren , did not think it a proper Means to bring Men into the right Way ? You reply , But if there be any thing of an Argument in this , it proves that there ought to be no Civil Government in the World ; and so proving too much , proves nothing at all . This you say ; but you being one of those Mortals which is liable to Error as well as your Brethren , you cannot expect it should be received for insallible Truth , till you have proved it ; and that you will never do , till you can shew , that there is as absolute a necessity of Force in the Magistrate's hand for the Salvation of Souls , as there is of Force in the Magistrate's hands for the Preservation of Civil Society ; And next , till you have proved that Force , in the hands of Men , as passionate , and humoursom , or liable to Pr●…judice and Error as their Brethren , would contribute as much to the bringing Men , and keeping them in the right Way to Salvation , as it does to the support of Civil Society , and the keeping Men at Peace in it . Where Men cannot live together without mutual Injuries , not to be avoided without Force , Reason has taught them to seek a Remedy in Government , which always places Power somewhere in the Society to restrain and punish such Injuries ; which Power , whether placed in the Community it self , or some chosen by the Community to govern it , must still be in the hands of Men ; and where ( as in Society of civiliz'd and setled Nations ) the Form of the Government place this Power out of the Community it self , it is unavoidable , that out of Men ( such as they are ) some should be made Magistrates , and have Coercive Power or Force put into their hands , to govern and direct the Society for the Publick Good ; without which , Force so placed in the hands of Men , there could be no Civil Society , nor the ends for which it is instituted to any degree attain'd . And thus Government is the will of God. 'T is the Will of God also , that Men should be saved ; but to this , it is not necessary that Force or Coa●…live Power should be put into Mens hands ; because God can , and hath provided other Means to bring Men to Salvation : To which , you indeed suppose , but can never prove Force necessary . The Passions , Humours , Liableness to Prejudices and Errors , common to Magistrates with other Men , do not render Force in their hands so dangerous and unuseful , to the Ends of Society , which is the Publick Peace , as to the Ends of Religion , which is the Salvation of Mens Souls . For though Men of all Rank●… , could be content to have their own Humours , Passions and Prejudices satisfied , yet when they come to make Laws , which are to direct their Force in civil Matters , they are driven to oppose their Laws to the Humours , Passions and Prejudices of Men in general , whereby their own come to be restrain'd : For if Law-makers , in making of Laws , did not direct them against the irregular Humours , Prejudices and Passions of Men , which are apt to mislead them : If they did not endeavour with their best Judgment , to bring Men from their Humours and 〈◊〉 , to the Obedience and Practice of right Reason , the Society could not subsist , and so they themselves would be in danger to lose their Station in it , and be expos'd to the unrestrain'd Humours , Passions , and Violence of others . And hence it comes , that be Men as humoursom , passionate , and prejudiced as they will , they are still by their own Interest obliged to make use of their best Skill , and with their most unprejudiced and sedatest Thoughts take care of the Government and endeavour to preserve the Common-wealth ; and therefore , notwithstanding their Humours and Passions , their liableness to Error and Prejudice , they do provide pretty well for the Support of Society , and the Power in their hands is of use to the maintenance of it . But in Matters of Religion it is quite otherwise ; you had told us , about the latter end of your Argument C. how liable Men were in choosing their Religion , to be misled by Humour , Passion and Prejudice ; and therefore , it was not fit that in a Business of such Concernment they should be left to themselves : and hence , in this Matter of Religion , you would have them subjected to the Coactive Power of the Magistrate . But this Contrivance is visibly of no advantage to the True Religion , nor can serve at all to secure Men from a wrong Choice . For the Magistrates , by their Humours , Prejudices and Passions , ( which they are born to like other Men ) being as liable , and likely to be misled in the Choice of their Religion , as any of their Brethren , as constant Experience hath always shewn , what advantage could it be to Mankind , for the Salvation of their Souls , that the Magistrates of the World should have Power to use Force to bring Men to that Religion which they , each of them , by whatsoever Humour , Passion or Prejudice influenc'd , had chosen to themselves as the True ? For whatsoever you did , I think with Reverence we may say , that God foresaw , that whatever Commission one Magistrate had by the Law of Nature , all Magistrates had : And that Commission , if there were any such , could be only to use their Coactive Power to bring Men to the Religion they believed to be true , whether it were really the true or no : And therefore , I shall , without taking away Government out of the World , or so must as question it , still think this a reasonable Question ; What if God , foresecing this Force would be in the hands of Men , as passionate , as humoursom , as liable to Prejudice and Error as the rest of their Brethren , did not think it a proper Means , in such hands , to bring Men into the right Way ? And that it needs a better Answer than you have given to it : And therefore , you might have spared the pains you have taken in this Paragraph , to prove that the Magistrates , being liable as much as other Men to Humour , Prejudice , Passion and Error , makes not Force , in his hand , wholly Un●…erviceable to the Administration of Civil Government . Which is what no body denies : and you would have better imploid it to prove , that if the Magistrate's being as liable to Passion , Humour , Prejudice and Error as other Men , made Force , in his hands , improper to bring Men to the True Religion , this would take away Government out of the World : which is a Consequence , I think , I may deny . To which , let me now add , What if God foresaw that if Force , of any kind or degree whatsoever , were allow'd in behalf of Truth , it would be us'd by ●…rring , passionate , prejudiced Men , to the restraint and ruin of Truth , as constant Experience in all Ages has shewn , and therefore commanded that the Tares should be 〈◊〉 to grow with the Wheet till the Harvest , when the infallible Judg should sever them . That Parable of our Saviour's plainly tells us , If Force were once permitted , even in favour of the True Religion , what Mischief it was like to do in the Misapplication of it , by forward busy mistaken Men , and therefore be wholly forbid it ; and yet , I hope , this does not take away Civil Government out of the World ? To my demanding , ` What if there be other Means ? and saying , ` Then yours ceases to be necessary upon that account , that there is no other Means left ; for the Grace of God is another Means . You answer , That though the Grace of God be another Means , yet it is none of the Means of which you were speaking in the place I refer to , which any one , who reads that Paragraph , will find to be only Humane Means . In that place , you were endeavouring to prove Force necessary to bring Men to the True Religion , as appears ; and there having dilated for four or five Pages together upon the Carelesness , Prejudices , Passions Lusts , Impressions of Education , worldly Respects , and other the like Causes , which you think mislead and keep Men from the True Religion ; you at last , conclude Force necessary to bring Men to it , because Admonitions and 〈◊〉 not prevailing , there is no other Means left . To this , Grace being instanced in as another Means , you tell us here , you mean , no other HUMANE Means left . So that to prove Force necessary , you must prove that God would have other Humane Means used besides Praying , Preaching , Perswasion and Instruction ; and for this , you will need to bring a plain Direction from Revelation for your moderate Punishments ; unless you will pretend to know , by your own natural Wisdom , what Means God has made necessary ; without which , those whom he hath foreknown and predestinated , and will in his good time call by such Means as he thinks sit , according to his purpose , cannot be brought into the Way of Salvation Perhaps you have some Warrant we know not of , to enter thus boldly into the Counsel of God ; without which , in another Man , a modest Christian would be apt to think it Presumption . You say , there are many who are not prevail'd on by Prayers , Intreaties and Exhortations , to imbrace the Religion . What then is to be done ? Some degrees of Force are necessary to be used . Why ? Because there is no other Humane Means left . Many are not prevail'd on by your moderate Force ; What then is to be done ? Greater degrees of Force are necessary , because there is no other Humane Means left . No , say you , God has made moderate Force necessary , because there is no other Humane Means left where Preaching and Intreaties will not prevail : but he has not made greater degrees of Force necessary , because there is no other Humane Means left where moderate Force will not prevail . So that your Rule changing , where the Reason continues the same , we must conclude you have some way of Judging concerning the Purposes and Ways of the Almighty in the Work of Salvation , which every one understands not . You would not else , upon so slight Ground as you have yet produced for it , which is nothing but your own Imagination , make Force , your moderate Force so necessary , that you bring in question the Wisdom and Bounty of the Disposer and Governour of all things , as if he had not furnish'd Mankind with competent Means for the promoting his own Honour in the World , and the good of Souls , if your moderate Force were wanting to bring them to the True Religion ; whereas you know , that most of the Nations of the World always were destitute of this Humane Means to bring them to the True Religion . And I imagine you would be put to it , to name me one now that is furnish'd with it . Besides , if you please to remember what you say in the next Words , And therefore thongh the Grace of God be both a proper and sussicient Means , and such as can work by it self , and without which , neither Penalties nor any other Means can do any thing ; and by consequence , can make any Means effectual : How can you say any Humane Means , in this supernatural Work , unless what God has declar'd to be so , is necessary ? Preaching and Instruction , and Exhortation , are Humane Means that he has appointed : These , therefore , Men may and ought to use ; they have a Commission from God , and may expect his Blessing and the Assistance of his Grace ; but to suppose , when they are used and prevail not , that Force is necessary , because these are not sussicient , is to exclude Grance , and ascribe this Work to Humane Means ; as in effect you do , when'you call Force competent and sussicient Means , as you have done . For if bare Preaching , by the Assistance of Grace , can and will certainly prevail ; and moderate Penalties , as you confess , or any kind of Force , without the Assistance of Grace , can do nothing , How can you say , that Force is in any case a more necessary or a more competent , or sufficient Means , than bare Preaching and Instruction ? unless you can shew us , that God hath promised the Co-operation and Assistance of his Grace to Force , and not to Preaching ? The contrary whereof , has more of Appearance . Preaching and Perswasion are not competent Means , you say ; Why ? because , without the Co-operation of Grace , they can do nothing : But by the Assistance of Grace , they can prevail even without Force . Force too , without Grace , you acknowledge can do nothing ; but join'd with Preaching and Grace , it can prevail . Why then , I pray , is it a more competent Means than Preaching , or why necessary , where Preaching prevails not ? since it can do nothing without that , which , if joined to Preaching , can make Preaching effectual without it . You go on , Yet it may be true however , that when Admonitions and Intreaties fail , there is no HUMANE Means left but Penalties , to bring prejudiced Persons to hear and consider what may convince them of their Errors , and discover the Truth to them : And then Penalties will be necessary in respect to that end , as an HUMANE Means . Let it be true or not true , that when Intreaties , &c. fail , there is no HUMANE Means left but Penalties : Your Inference I deny , that then Penalties will be necessary as an HUMANE Means . For I ask you , since you lay so much stress to so little purpose on HUMANE Means , is some Humane Means necessary ? if that be your Meaning , you have Humane Means in the case , viz. Ad●…onitions , Intreaties , being instant in season and out of season . i ask you again ; Are Penalties necessary because the End could not be obtain'd by Preaching , without them ? that you cannot say , for Grace co-operating with Preaching will prevail ; Are Penalties then necessary as sure to produce that End ? nor so are they necessary , for without the Assistance of Grace , you consess , they can do notbing . So that Penalties , neither as Humane Means , nor as any Means , are at all necessary . And now you may understand what I intend , by saying that the Grace of God is the only Means ; which is the Enquiry of your next Paragraph , viz. this I intend , that it is the only efficacious Means , without which all Humane Means is ineffectual . You tell me , If by it I intend that it does either always , or ordinarily , exclude All other Means ; you see no ground I have to say it . And I see no ground you have to think I intended , that it excludes any other Means that God in his Goodness will be pleased to make use of : But this I intend by it , and this , i think , i have ground to say , that it excludes all the Humane Means of Force from being necessary , or so much as lawful to be used , unless God hath required it by some more authentick Declaration than your bare saying or imagining it is necessary . And you must have more than Humane Confidence , if you continue to mix this poor and humane Contrivance of yours , with the Wisdom and Counsel of God in the Work of Salvation ; since he having declar'd the Means and Methods to be used for the saving Mens Souls , has in the Revelation of the Gospel , by your own Consession , prescribed no such Humane Means . To my saying , God alone can open the Ear that it may hear , and open the Heart that it may understand . You reply , But by , your favour , this does not prove that he makes use of no Means in doing of it . Nor needs it : it is enough for me , if it proves , that if Preaching and Instruction doth not open the Ear , or the Heart , 〈◊〉 not necessary any one should try his Strength with an Hammer or an Auger . Man is not in this business , ( where no Means can be effectual , without the assistance and co-operation of his Grace ) to make use of any Means which God hath not prescribed . You here set up a way of propagating Christianity according to your Fancy , and tell us how you would have the work of the Gospel carried on : You commission the Magistrate by Arguments of Congruity ; you find an efficacy in Punishment towards the converting of Men : you limit the Force , to be used to low and moderate degrees ; and to Countries where sufficient Means of Instruction are provided by the Law. And where the Magistrate's Religion is the True , i. where it pleases you ; and all this without any Direction from God , or any Authority so much as pretended from the Gospel ; and without its being truly for the Propagation of Christianity , but only so much of it as you think fit , and what else you are pleas'd to join to it . Why else , in the Religion you are content to have establish'd by Law , and promoted by Penalties , is any thing more or less requir'd , than is exprestly contain'd in the New Testament . This indeed is well suited to any one , who would have a Power of punishing those who differ from his Opinion , and would have Men compell'd to Conformity in England . But in this your fair Contrivance , what becomes of the rest of Mankind , left to wander in Darkness out of this Goshen , who neither have , nor ( according to your Scheme ) can have your necessary Means of Force and Penalties to bring them to imbrace the Truth that must save them : For if that be necessary , they cannot without a Miracle , either Prince or People , be wrought on without it . If a Papist at Rome , a Lutheran at Stockholm , or a Calvinist at Geneva , should argue thus for his Church , would you not say , that such as these look'd like the Thoughts of a poor prejudiced narrow Mind ? But they may mistake , and you cannot ; they may be prejudiced , but you cannot . Say too , if you please , you are confident you are in the Right , but they cannot be confident that they are so . This I am sure , God's Thoughts are not as Man's Thoughts , nor his Ways as Man's Ways , Isai. LV. 8. And it may abate any one's Confidence of the necessity or use of Punishments , for not receiving our Saviour , or his Religion , when those who had the power of Miracles were told , that they knew not what manner of Spirit they were of , when they would have commanded down Fire from Heaven . But you do well to take care to have the Church you are of , supported by Force and Penalties , whatever becomes of the Propagation of the Gospel , or the Sal●…ation of Mens Souls , in other parts of the World , as not coming within your Hypothesis . In your next Paragraph , to prove that God does bless the use of Force , you say you suppose I mean , by the Words you there cite , that the Magistrate has no ground to hope that God will bless any Penalties that he may use to bring Men to hear and consider the Doctrine of Salvation ; or ( which is the same thing ) that God does not ( at least not ordinarily ) afford his Grace and Assistance to them who are brought by such Penalties to hear and consider that Doctrine , to enable them to hear and consider it as they ought , i. e. so as to be moved heartily to imbrace it . You tell me , If this be my Meaning ; then to let me see that it is not true , you shall only desire me to tell you , whether they that are so brought to hear and consider , are bound to believe the Gospel or not ? If I say they are ; ( and you suppose I dare not say otherwise ; ) then it evidently follows , that God does afford them that Grace which is requisite to enable them to believe the Gospel : Because , without that Grace , it is impossible for them to believe it ; and they cannot be bound to believe what it is impossible for them to believe . To which , I shall only answer , That by this irrefragable Argument , it is evident , that where-ever due Penalties have been used ( for those you tell us are sufficient and competent Means ) to make Men hear and consider as they ought , there all Men were brought to believe the Gospel ; which , whether you will resolve with your self to be true or false , will be to me indifferent , and on either hand equally advantage your Cause . Had you appeal'd to Eperience for the Success of the use of Force by the Magistrate , your Argument had not shewn half so much depth of Theological Learning : But the Mischief is , that if you will not make it all of a piece Scholastick , and by arguing that all whom the Magistrates use Force upon , are brought to consider as they ought , and to all that are so wrought upon , God does afford that Grace which is 〈◊〉 ; and so roundly conclude for a greater Success of Force , to make Men believe the Gospel , than ever our Saviour and the Apostles had by their Preaching and Miracles , ( for that wrought not on all ) your unanswerable Argument comes to nothing . And in truth , as you have in this Paragraph ordered the matter , by being too sparing of your abstract Metaphysical Reasoning , and imploying it but by halves , we are fain , after all , to come to the dull way of Experience ; and must be forced to count , as the Parson does his Communicantes , by his Easter-Book , how many those are that are so broughs to hear and consider , to know how far God blesses Penalties . Indeed , were it to be measur'd by conforming ; the Easter-Book would be a good Register to determin it . But since you put it upon Believing , that will be of some-what a harder Disquisition . To my saying , ( upon that place out of Isaiah VI. 10. Make the Heart of this People fat , lest they understand , and convert , and be healed ) Will all the Force you can use be a means to make such People hear and understand , and be converted ? You reply , No , sir , it will not . But what then ? What if God declares that he will not heal those who have long resisted all his ordinary Methods , and made themselves , morally speaking , incurable by them ? ( Which is the utmost , you say , I can make of the Words I quote . ) Will it follow from thence , that no good can be done by Penalties upon others , who are not so far gone in Wickedness and Obstinacy ? If it will not , as it is evident it will not , to what purpose is this said ? It is said to this purpose , viz. to shew that Force ought not to be used at all . Those ordinary Methods which , resisted , are punished with a Reprobate Sense , are the ordinary Methods of Instruction , without Force ; as is evident by this place and many others , particularly Rom. I. From whence I argue ; That what State soever you will suppose Men in , either as past , or not yet come to the Day of Grace , no Body can be justified in using Force to work upon them . For till the ordinary Methods of Instruction and Persuasion can do no more , Force is not necessary , ( for you cannot say what other Means is there left ) and so by your own Rule not lawful . For till God hath pronounced this Sentence here , on any one , Make his Heart fat , &c. the ordinary Means of Instruction and Perswasion , may , by the assistance of God's Grace , prevail . And when this Sentence is once passed upon them , and God will not afford them his Grace to 〈◊〉 them ; ( I take it , you confess in this place ) I am sure you must confess your Force to be wholly useless , and so utterly 〈◊〉 : Unless that can be pertinent to be used , which you own can do nothing . So that whether it will follow , or no , from Mens being given up to a Reprobate Mind , for having resisted the preaching of Salvation , That no good can be done by Penalties upon others ; this will follow , that not knowing whether Preaching may not , by the Grace of God , yet work upon them ; or whether the Day of Grace be past with them ; neither you nor any Body else can say that Force is necessary ; and if it be not necessary , you your self tell us it is not to be used . In your next Paragraph , you complain of me , as representing your Argument , as you say I commonly do , as if you allow'd any Magistrate , of what Religion soever , to lay Penalties upon all that dissent from him . Unhappy Magistrates that have not your allowance ! But to console them , I imagine they will 〈◊〉 that they are all under the same Obligation , one as another , to propagate the Religion they believe to be the true , whether you allow it them or no. For to go no farther than the first Words of your Argument , which you complain I have misrepresented , and which you tell me runs thus , When Men fly from the Means of right Information ; I ask you here , who shall be Judg of those Means of right Information , the Magistrate who joins Force with them to make them be 〈◊〉 to , or no ? When you have answer'd that , you will have resolv'd a great part of the Question , What Magistrates are to use Force . But that you may not complain again of my misrepresenting , I must beg my Readers leave to set down your Argument at large in your own Words , and all you say upon it . When Men fly from the Means of a right Information , and will not so much as consider how reasonable it is , throughly and impartially to examine a Religion , which they imbraced upon such Inducements , as ought to have no sway at all in the matter , and therefore with little or no Examination of the proper grounds of it ; What Humane Method can be used to bring them to act like Men , in an Affair of such consequence , and to make a wiser and more rational choice , but that of laying such Penalties upon them , as may ballance the weight of those Prejudices , which inclined them to prefer a False Way before the True , &c. Now this Argument , you tell me , I pretend to retort in this manner : And , I say , I see no other Means left ( taking the World as we now find it , wherein the Magistrate never lays Penalties , for Matters of Religion , upon those of his own Church , nor is it to be expected they ever should ) to make Men of the National Church , any where , throughly and impartially examine a Religion , which they imbraced upon such Inducements as ought to have no sway at all in the matter , and therefore with little or no examination of the proper Grounds of it : And therefore , I conclude the use of Force by Dissenters upon Conformists necessary . I appeal to all the World , whether this be not as just and natural a Con●…clusion as yours ? And you say , you are well content the World should judg . And when it determines , that there is the same reason to say , That to bring those who conform to the National Church , to examine their Religion , it is necessary for Dissenters ( who cannot possibly have the 〈◊〉 Power , because the National Church has that 〈◊〉 its side , and cannot be National without it ) to use Force upon Conformists , As there is to say , That where the National Church is the True Church , there to bring Dissenters ( as I call them ) to examine their Religion , it is necessary for the Magistrate ( who has the Coactive Power ) to lay moderate Penalties upon them for dissenting : You say , when the World determines thus , you will never pretend any more to judg what is reasonable , in any case what soever . For you doubt not but you may safely presume that the World will easily admit these two things . 1. That though it be very fit and desirable , that all that are of the true Religion , should understand the true Grounds of it ; that so they may be the better able , both to defend themselves against the assaults of Seducers , and to reduce such as are out of the Way ; yet this is not strictly necessary to their Salvation : Because Experience shews ( as far as Men are capable to judg of such Matters ) that many do 〈◊〉 believe and profess the true Religion , and conscientiously practise the Duties of it , who yet do not understand the true Grounds upon which it challenges their Belief : And no Man doubts but who soever does so believe , profess , and practise the True Religion , if he perseveres to the end , shall certainly attain Salvation by it . 2. That how much soever i●… concerns those who reject the true Religion ( whom I may call Dissenters if I please ) to examine and consider why they do so ; and how needful soever Penalties may be to bring them to this ; it is , however , ●…tterly unreasonable that such as have not the Coactive Power , should take upon them to inslict Penalties for that purpose : Because , as that is not consistent with Order and Government ; which cannot stand , where private Persons are permitted to usurp the Coactive Power ; So there is nothing more manifest , than that the prejudice which is done to Religion , and to the Interest of Mens Souls , by destroying Government , does infinitely outweigh any good that can possibly be done by that which destroys it . And whoever admits and considers these things , you say , you are very secure will be far enough from admitting , that there is any Parity of Reason in the Cases we here speak of , or that mine is as just and natural a Conclusion as yours . The sum of what you say , amounts to thus much . Men being apt to take up their Religion , upon Inducements that ought to have no sway at all in the Matter , and so , with little or no Examination of the Grounds of it ; therefore Penalties are necessary to be laid on them , to make them throughly and impartially examine . But yet Penalties need not be laid on Conformists , in England , to make them examine ; because they , and you , believe yours to be the true Religion : Though it must be laid on Presbyterians and Independents , &c. to make them examine , though they believe theirs to be the true Religion ; because you believe it not to be so . But you give another very substantial Reason , why Penalties cannot be laid on Conformists , to make them examine ; and that is , because the National Church has the Coactive Power on its side , and therefore they have no need of Penalties to make them examine . The National Church of France too , has the Co-active Power on its side ; and therefore , they who are of it have no need of Penalties , any of them , to make them examine . If your Argument be good , that Men take up their Religions upon wrong Inducements , and without due Examination of the proper Grounds of it ; and that therefore , they have need of Penalties to be laid on them to make them examine , as they ought , the Grounds of their Religion ; You must confess there are some in the Church of England to whom Penalties are necessary : Unless you will affirm , that all , who are in the Communion of the Church of England , have so examin'd : But that I think you will not do , however you indeavour to palliate their Ignorance , and Negligence , in this matter . There being therefore a need of Penalties ; I say , 't is as necessary that Presbyterians should lay Penalties on the Conformists of the Church of England , to make them examine , as for the Church of England to lay Penalties on the Presbyterians to make them do so : For they each equally believe their Religion to be true ; and we suppose , on both sides , there are those who have not duly examin'd . But here you think you have a sure advantage , by saying it is not consistent with the Order of Government , and so is impracticable . I easily grant it . But is yours more practicable ? When you can make your way practicable , for the end for which you pretend it necessary ( viz. ) to make all , who have taken up their Religion upon such Inducements , as ought to have no sway at all in the Matter , to examine throughly and impartially the proper grounds of it ; When , I say , you can shew your way practicable , to this end , you will have clear'd it of one main Objection , and convinc'd the World that yours is a more just and natural Conclusion than mine . If your Cause were capable of any other defence , I suppose we should not have had so long and elaborate an Answer as you have given us in this Paragraph , which at last bottoms only on these two things : 1. That there is in you , or those of your Church , some Approaches towards Insallibility ; in your Belief that your Religion is true ; which is not to be allow'd those of other Churches , in the Belief of theirs . 2. That it is enough if any one does but conform to it , and remain in the Communion of your Church : Or else one would think there should be as much need for Conformists too of your Church , to examine the Grounds of their Religion , as for any others . To understand the true Grounds of the True Religion ; is not , you say , strictly necessary to Salvation . Yet , I think , you will not deny , but it is as strictly necessary to Salvation , as it is to conform to a National Church in all those things it imposes : some whereof , are not necessary to Salvation ; some whereof , are acknowledg'd by all to be indifferent ; and some whereof , to some conscientious Men , who thereupon decline Communion , appear unsound or unlawful . If not being strictly necessary to Salvation , will excuse from Penalties in the one case , why will it not in the other ? And now I shall excuse the World from determining my Conclusion to be as natural as yours : For 't is pity so reasonable a Disputant as you are , should take so desperate a Resolution as never to pretend any more to judg what is reasonable in any case what soever . Whether you have proved that Force , used by the Magistrate , be a Means prescrib'd by God to procure the Gift of Faith from him , ( which is all you say in the next Paragraph , ) others must judg . In that following ; you quote these Words of mine . If all the Means God has appointed to make Men hear and consider , be Exhortation in season and out of season , &c. together with Prayer for them , and the Example of Meekness , and a good Life ; this is all ought to be done , whether they will hear , or whether they will forbear . To which you thus reply , But if these be not all the Means God has appointed , then these things are not all that ought to be done . But if I ask you , How do you know that this is not all God has appointed , you have nothing to answer ( to bring it to your present purpose ) but that you know it by the Light of Nature . For all you say is but this ; That by the Light of Nature you know Force to be useful and necessary to bring Men into the way of Salvation ; By the Light of Nature you know the Magistrate has a Commission to use Force to that purpose ; And by the same Light of Nature , you know that Miracles were appointed to supply the want of Force till the Magistrates were Christians . I imagine , Sir , you would scarce have thought this a reasonable Answer , if you had taken notice of my Words in the same Paragraph immediately preceding those you have cited ; Which ( that you may see the Scope of my Argument ) I will here trouble you with again ; and they are these . It is not for you and me , out of an Imagination that they may be useful , or are necessary , to prescribe Means in the great mysterious Work of Salvation , other than what God himself has directed . God has appointed Force as useful and necessary , and therefore it is to be used , is a way of Arguing becoming the Ignorance and Humility of poor Creatures . But I think Force useful or necessary , and therefore it is to be used , has methinks a little too much Presumption in it . You ask what Means is there left ? None , say I , to be used by Man , but what God himself has directed in the Scriptures , wherein are contained all the Means and Methods of Salvation . Faith is the Gift of God. And we are not to use any other Means to procure this Gift to any one , but what God himself has prescribed . If he has prescribed appointed , that any should be forced to hear those who tell them they have mistaken their way , and offer to 〈◊〉 then the right ; and that they should be 〈◊〉 by the Magistrate , if they did not ; 't will be past doubt , it is to be made 〈◊〉 of . But till that can be done , 't will be in vain to say , what other Means is there left . My Argument here lies plainly in this ; That all the Means and Methods of Salvation are contain'd in the Scripture : Which either you were to have deny'd , or else have 〈◊〉 where it was , in Scripture , that Force was appointed . But instead of that , you tell us , that God appointed Miracles in the beginning of the Gospel . And though , when these 〈◊〉 , the Means I mention were all the Ministers had left , yet this proves not that the Magistrate was not to use Force . Your Words are , As to the first Spreaders of the Gospel , it has already been shown that God appointed other Means besides these for them to use , to ●…nduce Men to hear and consider : And though , when those extraordinary Means ceased , these Means which I mention , ( viz. Preaching , &c. ) were the only Means left to the 〈◊〉 of the Gospel ; yet that is no Proof that the Magistrate , ●…hen he became Christian , could not lawfully 〈◊〉 such Means as his Station 〈◊〉 him to 〈◊〉 , when they became 〈◊〉 . I said , in 〈◊〉 words , No Means was to be used by MAN , but what God himself has directed in the Scripture . And you answer , This is no Proof that the Christian Magistrate may not use Force . Perhaps when They so peremptorily interpose their decisive Decreas in the Business of Salvation ; establish Religions by Laws and Penalties , with what Articles , Creeds , Ceremonies and Discipline they think fit ; ( for this we see done almost in all Countries ) when they force Men to bear those , and those only , who , by their Authority , are chosen and allow'd 〈◊〉 Men they have mistaken their way , and offer to shew them the right ; it may be thought necessary to prove Magistrates to be MEN. If that needs no Proof , what I said needs some other Answer . But let us examine a little the Parts of what you here say . As to the first Spreaders of the Gospel , say you , it has already been those , that God appointed other Means besides Exhortation in season , and out of season , Prayer , and the Example of a good Life , for them to use to induce Men to hear and consider . What were those other Means ? To that you answer readily , Miracles . Ergo , Men are directed now by Scripture to use Miracles . Or else what Answer do you make to my Argument , which I gave you in these Words , ` No Means is to be used by Man , but what God himself has directed in the Scriptures ; wherein are contain'd all the Means and Methods of Salvation . No , they cannot use Miracles now as a Means , say you , for they have them not . What then ? Therefore the Magistrate , who has it , must use Force to supply the want of those extraordinary Means which are now ceased . This indeed is an Inference of yours , but not of the Scriptures . Does the Scripture say any thing of this ? Not a word : not so much as the least Intimation towards it in all the New Testament . Be it then true or false , that Force is a Means to be used by Men in the absence of Miracles , this is yet no Answer to my Argument ; this is no Proof that'tis appointed in Scripture ; which is the thing my Argument turns on . Revelation then fails you . Let us see now how Reason and Common Sense , that common Light of Nature , will help you out . You then reason thus . Bare Preaching , &c. will not prevail on Men to hear and consider : and therefore some other Means is necessary to make them do so . Pray what do you mean by Men , or any other of those indefinite Terms , you have always used in this Case ? Is it that bare Preaching will prevail on no Men ? Does Reason ( under which I comprehend Experience too , and all the ways of Knowledg , contradistinguish'd to Revelation ) discover any such thing to you ? I imagine you will not say that ; or pretend that no Body was ever brought , by Preaching and Perswasion , to hear and consider the Truths of the Gospel , ( mean by considering what you will ) without other Means used by those who applied themselves to the care of converting them . To such therefore as may be brought to hear and consider , without other Means , you will not say that other Means are necessary . In the next place , therefore , When you say bare Preaching will not prevail on Men ; Do you mean that 't will not prevail on all Men , and therefore'tis necessary that Men should use other Means ? Neither , I think , will Reason authorise you to draw such a Consequence : Because neither will Preaching alone , nor Preaching 〈◊〉 with Force ; or any other Means Man can use , prevail on all Men. And therefore no other Means can be pretended to be necellary to be used by Man , to do what Men by those Means never did , nor never can do . That some Men shall be saved , and not all , is , I think , past question to all that are Christians : And those that shall be saved , 't is plain , are the 〈◊〉 . If you think not this plain enough in Scripture , I desire you to turn to the 17th of the 29 Articles of the Church of England , where you will read these Words : Predestination to Life is the everlasting Purpose of God , whereby ( before the Foundations of the World were laid ) he hath const decreed by his Counsel secret to us , to deliver from Curse and Damnation those whom he ha●… CHOSEN in Christ out of Mankind , and to bring them by Christ to everlasting Salvation , as Vessels made to honour . Wherefore they which be indued with so excellent a Benefit of God , be called according to God's purpose by his Spirit , 〈◊〉 in due 〈◊〉 : They through Grace obey the calling ; They be justified freely ; They be made Sons of God by Adoption ; They be made like the Image of his only begotten Son Jesus Christ ; They walk religiously in good Works ; and at length by God's Mercy , They attain to everlasting Felicity . Now pray tell me whether bare Preaching will not prevail on all the Elect to hear and consider , without other Means to be used by Men. If you say it will ; the neceslity of your other Means , I think , is out of doors . If you say it will not ; I desire you to tell me how you do know it without Revelation ; And whether by your own reason you can tell us , whether any , and what Means God has made necessary , besides what he has appointed in Scripture for the calling his Elect. When you can do this , we shall think you no ordinary Divine , nor a Stranger to the secret Counsels of the insinitely wise God. But till then , your mixing your Opinion with the Divine Wisdom in the great Work of Salvation , and from Arguments of Congruity , taking upon you to declare the Necessity or Usefulness of Means , which God has not expresly directed , for the gathering in of his Elect , will scarece authorize the Magistrate to use his Co●…tive Power for the edisying and compleating the Body of Christ , which is his Church . Those whom God hath chosen in Christ out of Mankind , before the Foundations of the World , are called , according to God's Purpose , by his Spirit , working in due season , and through Grace obey the calling ; say you in your Article . The outward Means that God has appointed for this , is Preaching . Ay , but Preaching is not enough ; that is , not sussicient Means , say you . And I ask you how you know it ; since the Scripture , which declares all that we can know in this matter , says nothing of the Insussiciency of it , or of the Necessity of any other ? Nor can there be a Necessity of any other Means than wh●…t God expresly appoints , in a Matter wherein no Means can operate effectually , without the Assistance of his Grace ; and where the Assistance of his Grace can make any outward Means , he appoints effectual . I must desire you here to take notice , that by Preaching , which I use for Shortness , I mean Exhortation , Instruction , Intreaty , Praying for , and in fine , any outward Means of Perswasion in the Power of Man , separate from Force . You tell us here , As to the first Spreaders of the Gospel , God appointed other Means , viz. Miracles , for them to use to induce Men to hear and consider . If by the first Spreaders of the Gospel , you mean the twelve Apostles and 70 Disciples , whom Christ himself sent to preach the Gospel ; They indeed were appointed by his immediate Command , to shew Miracles by-the Power which he had bestowed upon them . But will you say , all the Ministers and Preachers of the Gospel had such a Commission , and such a Power all along from the Apostles time ; and that they , every one , did actually shew Miracles to induce Men to hear and consider , quite down , till Christianity was supported by the Law of the Empire ? Unless you could shew this , though you could produce some well-attested Miracles , done by some Men in every Age till that time , yet it would not be sufficient to prove that Miracles were appointed to be constantly used to induce Men to hear and consider ; and so by your Reasoning , to supply the want of Force , till that necessary Assistance could be had from the Authority of the Magistrate become Christian. For since it is what You build upon , that Men will not hear and consider upon bare Preaching , ( and I think you will forwardly enough agree , that till Christianity was made the Religion of the Empira , there were those every where that heard the Preachers of it so little , or so little consider'd what they said , that they rejected the Gospel ; ) and that therefore Miracles or Force are necessary Means to make Men hear and consider ; You must own that those who preach'd without the Power of Miracles , or the Coactive Power of the Magistrate accompanying them , were unfurnish'd of competent and sufficient Means to make Men hear and consider ; and so to bring them to the True Religion . If you will say the Miracles done by others were enough to accompany their Preaching , to make it be heard and consider'd ; the Preaching of the Ministers at this day is so accompanied , and so will need no assistance of Force from the Magistrate . If the report of Miracles done by one Minister of the Gospel some time before , and in another place , were sufficient to make the Preaching of ten or a thousand others , be heard and consider'd , why is it not so now ? For the Credibility and Attestation of the Report is all that is of moment ; when Miracles done by others , in other places , are the Argument that prevails . But this , I fear , will not serve your turn in the business of Penalties ; and whatever might satisfy you in the case of Miracles , I doubt you would not think the Salvation of Souls sufficiently provided for , if the Report of the Force of Penalties , used some time since on one side of the Tweed , were all that should assist the Preachers of the True Religion on the other , to make Men hear and consider . St. Paul , in his Epistle to Titus , instructs him what he , and the Presbyters he should ordain in the Cities of Crete , were to do for the propagating of the Gospel , and bringing Men heartily to imbrace it . His Directions are , that they should be blameless , not Rioters , not self-willed , not soon angry , not given to Wine nor filthy Lucre , not Strikers , not unruly ; Lovers of Hospitality , and of good Men ; sober , just , holy , temperate ; To be able by sound Doctrine , both to exhort and convince Gain-sayers ; In all things to be a Pattern of good Works ; In Doctrine , shewing Uncorruptedness , Gravity , Sincerity , sound Speech that cannot be condemned , that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed , having no evil to say of you . These things speak , and exhort , and r●…buke , with all Authority . Avoid foolish Questions , and Genealogies , and Contentions . A Man that is an Heretick after the first and second Admonition , reject . To repay you the favour of your Greek , it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which , if I may take your liberty of receding from ONr Translation , I would read avoid . The Cretans , by the Account St. Paul gives of them , were a People that would require all the Means that were needful to prevail with any Strangers to the Gospel to hear and consider . But yet we find nothing directed for the Support and Propagation of the Gospel in this Island , but Preaching , Exhortation , Reproof , &c. with the Example of a good Life . In all this Epistle , writ on purpose to instruct the Preachers of the Gospel , in the Means they were to use among the Cretans , for their Conversion , not a word about Miracles , their Power or Use : Which one would think strange , if They were the Means appointed and necessary to make Men hear and consider , and without which they would not do it . Preaching , Admonition , Exhortation , Intreaties , Instruction , by the common Light of Reason , were known , and natural to be used , to perswade Men. There needed not be much said to convince Men of it . But if Miracles were a necessary Means , it was a Means wholly new , unexpected , and out of the Power of other Teachers . And therefore one would think , if they were appointed for the Ends you propose , one should hear something of that Appointment : Since that they were to be used ; or how , and when ; was farther from common Apprehension ; and seems to need some particular Direction . If you say the same Spirit that gave them the Power of Mivacles , would also give them the knowledg both that they had it , and how to use it ; I am far enough from limiting the Operations of that infinitely wise Spirit , who will not fail to bring all the Elect of God into the Obedience of Truth , by those Means , and in that manner he shall think necessary . But yet our Saviour , when he sent abroad his Disciples , with the Power of Miracles , not only put it in their Commission , whereby they were informed that they had that extraordinary Gift , but added Instructions to them in the use of it . Freely you have received , freely give ; A Caution as necessary to the Cretan Elders , in the use of Miracles , if they had that Power ; There being nothing more liable to be turn'd to the advantage of Filthy Lucre. I do not question but the Spirit of God might give the Power , and stir up the Mind of the first Spreaders of the Gospel to do Miracles on some extraordinary occasion . But if they were a necessary means , to make Men hear and consider what was preached to them , till Force supplied their place ; and so were ordinarily to accompany the preaching of the Gospel , ( unless it should be preach'd without the means appointed and necessary to make it prevail ) I think , in that case , we may expect it should expresly have made a part of the Preachers Commission ; it making a necessary part of the effectual Execution of his Function . But the Apo●…le , it seems , thought fit to lay the stress upon instructing others , and living well themselves , upon being instant in season , and out of season . And therefore directs all his Advices for the ordering the Cretan Church , and the propagating the Gospel there , to make them attend to those necessary things of Life and Doctrine ; without so much as mentioning the appointment , need , or use of Miracles . I said , But whatever Neglect or Aversion there is in some Men , impartially and throughly to be instructed ; there will upon a due Examination ( I fear ) be sound no less a Neglect and Aversion in others , impartially and throughly to instruct them . 'T is not the talking even general Truths in plain and ●…ear Language ; much less a Man 's own Fancies in Scholastical or uncommon ways of speaking , an hour or two , once a week , in publick ; that is enough to instruct even willing Hearers in the way of Salvation , and the Grounds of their Religion : And that Politick Discourses and Inve●…tives , from the Pulpit , instead of Friendly and Christian Debates with People at their Houses , were not the proper means to inform Men in the Foundations of Religion ; and that if there were not a neglect in this part , I thought there would be little need of any other Means . To this you tell me , in the next Paragraph , You do not see how pertinent my Discourse , about this matter , is to the present question . If the shewing the Neglects , observable in the use of what is agreed to be necessary Means , will not be allow'd by you to be pertinent , in a debate about necessary Means ; when possibly those very Neglects may serve to make other Means seem requisite , which really are not so ; Yet if you are not of those who will never think any such Discourse pertinent ; you will allow me to mind you of it again , as not impertinent in answer to your last Letter , wherein you so often tell us of the sufficient Provision made for Instruction . For wherever the Neglect be , it can ●…arce be said there is sufficient Provision made for Instruction in a Christian Country , where great numbers of those , who are in the Communion of the National Church , are grosly ignorant of the Grounds of the Christian Religion . And I ask you , whether it be in respect of such Conformists you say , as you do in the same Paragraph , That when the best Provision is made that can be , for the Instruction of the People , you fear a great part of them will still need some moderate Penalties to bring them to hear and receive Instruction ? But what if all the means that can , be not used for their Instruction ? That there are Neglects of this kind , you will , I suppose , take the word of a Reverend Prelate of our Church , who thought he could not better shew his Good-will to the Clergy , than by a seasonable Discourse of the Pastoral Care , to c●…re that Neglect for the future . There he tells you , that Ministers should watch over and seed their Flock , and not enjoy their Benesices as Farms , &c. Which Reproach , says he , ( whatever We may be ) our Church is free of ; which he proves by the Stipulation and Covenant they make with Christ , that they will never cease their Labour , Care and Diligence , till they have done all that lieth in them , according to their bounden Duty , towards all such as are , or should be committed to their Care , to bring them to a Ripeness of age in Christ. And a Page or two after , having repeated part of the Promise made by those who take Orders , he adds , In this is expressed the so much NEGLECTED , but so necessary Duty , which Incumbents owe their Flock in a private way ; visiting , instracting and admonishing ; which is one of the most useful and important Parts of their Duty , how generally socuer it may be disused or forgetten . P. 187. He says , Every , Priest that minds his Duty will find , that no Part of it is so useful as Catechistical Discourses ; by means whereof , his People will understand all his Sermons the better , when they have once had a clear Notion of all those Terms that must run through them ; for those not being understood , renders them all unintelligible . Another Part of the Priest's Duty , he tells you , is with relation to them that are without , who are of the side of the Church of Rome , or among the Dissenters . Other Churches and Bodies are noted for their Z●…al , in making Proselytes ; for their 〈◊〉 Endeavours , as well as their unlawful Methods in it : They reckoning perhaps that all will be 〈◊〉 by the increasing their PARTY ; which is the true Name of making Converts , except they become at the same time good Men , as well as Votaries to a Side or Cause . We are certainly very REMISS in this of both hands . Little pains is taken to gain either upon Papists or Nonconformists : The LAW HAS BEEN SO MUCH TRUSTED TO , that that Method only was thought sure ; it was much valued , and others at the same time as much NEGLECTED . And whereas , at first , WITHOUT FORCE OR VIOLENCE , in forty Years time , Popery from being the prevailing Religion , was reduced to a bandful ; we have now in above twice that number of Years , made very little Progress , &c. Perhaps here again you will tell me , you do not see how this is pertinent to the present Question ; Which , that you may see , give me leave to put you in mind , that neither you nor any body else can pretend Force necessary till all the Means of Perswasion have been used , and nothing negl●…ted that can be done by all the softer Ways of Application . And since it is your own Doctrine , that Force is not lawful , unless where it i●… necessary ; the Magistrate , upon your Principles , can neither lawfully use Force , nor the Ministers of any National Church plead for it any where , but where they themselves have first done their Duties : A Draught whereof , a●…apted to our present Circumstances , we have in the newly publish'd Discours : of the Pastoral Care. And he that shall press the use of Force as necessary , before he can answer it to himself and the World , that those who have taken on them the care of Souls have performed their Duties , were best consider , whether he does not draw up an Accusation against the Men of that Holy Order , or against the Magistrate who suffers them to neglect any part of their Duty . For whilst what that Learned Bishop , in the Passages above cited and in other places , mentions , is neglected ; it cannot be said that no other Means but Force is lest : Those , which are on all hands acknowledg necessary and useful Means , not having yet been made use of . To vindicate your Method from Novelty , you tell me , 't is as old as St. Austin . Whatever he says in the place you quote , it shews only his Opinion , but not that it was ever used . Therefore , to shew it not to be new in practice , you add , that yon think it has been made use of by all those Magistrates , who having made all requisite Provisions for the instructing their People in the Truth , have likewise requir'd them under convenient Penalties to imbrace it . Which is as much as to say , that those Magistrates who used your Method , did use your Method . And that certainly you may think safely , and without fear of being gainsaid . But now I will tell you what I think , in my turn : And that is , if you could have found any Magistrates who had made use of your Method , as well as you think you have found a Divine that approves of it , you would have named those Magistrates as forwardly as you do St. Austin . If I think amiss , pray correct me yet , and name them . That which makes me imagine you will hardly find any Examples of it , is what I there said in these Words ; All other Law-makers have constantly taken this Method ; that where any thing was to be amended , the Fault was first declared , and then Penalties denounced against all those who after a time set , should be found guilty of it . This the common Sense of Mankind , and the very Reason of Laws ( which are intended not for Punishment but Correction ) has made so plain , that the subtilest and most refined Law-makers have not gone out of this Course , nor have the most ignorant and barbarous Nations mist it . But you have out-done Solon and Lycurgus , Moses , and our Saviour , and are resolved to be a Law-maker of a Way by your self . 'T is an old and obsolete Way , and will not , serve your turn , to begin with Warnings and Threats of Penalties , to be inflicted on those who do not re●…orm , but continue to do that which you think they fail in . To allow of Impunity to the Innocent , or the Opportunity of Amendment to those who would avoid the Penalties , are Formalities not worth your Notice . You are for a shorter and surer Way . Take a whole Tribe , and punish them at all Adventures , whether guilty or no of the Miscariage which you would have amended ; or without so much as telling them what it is you would have them do , but leaving them to find it out if they can . All these Absurdities are contained in your Way of proceding ; And are impossible to be avoided by any one , who will punish Dissenters , and only Dissenters , to make them consider and weigh the Grounds of their Religion , and impartially examine whether it be true or no , and upon what Grounds they took it up ; that so they may find and 〈◊〉 ace the 〈◊〉 that must save them . These Absurdities , I fear , must be remov'd , before any Magistrates will find your Method practicable . I having said , Your Method is not altogether unlike the Plea made use of to excuse the late barbarous usage of the Protestants in France , from being a Persecution for Religion , viz. That it was not a Punishment for Religion , but for disobeying the King's Laws , which requir'd them to come to Mass : So by your Rule , Di●…enters must be punish'd , not for the Religion they have imbraced , and the Religion they have rejected . In answer to this , in the next Paragraph , you take abundance of pains to prove , that the King of France's Laws , that require going to Mass , are no Laws . You were best to say so on the other side of the Water . 'T is sure the Punishments were Punishments , and the Dragooning was Dragooning . And if you think that Plea excus'd them not , I am of your Mind . But nevertheless am of Opinion , as I was , that it will prove as good a Plea as yours . Which is what you argue against in your next Paragraph , in the Words following , wherein you examine the likeness of your new Method to this plea. You tell me , I say , by your Rule , the Di●…enters ' ( from the true Religion , for you speak of no other ) must be punish'd ( or if I please subjected to moderate Penaltics , such as shall make them uneasy , but ●…uber destroy or undo them ) : For what ? Indeed I thought by your 〈◊〉 Book , you meant not for their Religion , but to make them consider ; but here you ask me where it is you say that Dissenters from the true Religion , are not to be punish'd for their Religion ? ` So then , it seems , in your Opinion now , Dissenters from the true Religion are to be punish'd , or ( as you are pleased to mollify the Expression , for the thing is the same ) subjected to moderate Penalties for their Religion . I think I shall not need to prove , to any one but one of your nice Stile , that the Execution of Penal Laws , let the Penalties be great or small , are Punishments . If therefore the Religion of Dissenters from the true , be a Fault to be punish'd by the Magistrate ; Who is to judg who are guilty of that Fault ? Must it be the Ma istrate every-where , or the Magisrate in some Countries and not in others , or the Magistrate no-where ? If the Magistrate no-where is to be judg who are Dissenters from the true Religion , he can no-where punish them . If he be to be every-where Judg , then the King of France , or the Great Turk , must punish those whom they judg Dissenters from the true Religion , as well as other Potentates . If some Magistrates have a right to judg , and others not ; That yet , I fear , ( how absurd soever it be ) should I grant it , will not do your business . For besides that They will hardly agree to make you their infallible Umpire in the case , to determine who of them have , and who have not this right to judg which is the True Religion ; or if they should , and you should declare the King of England had that Right , ( viz. whilst he complied to support the Orthodoxy , Ecclesiastical Polity , and those Ceremonies which you approve of ; ) But that the King of France , and the Great Turk , had it not , and so could have no right to use Force on those they judg'd Dissenters from the true Religion ; You ought to bethink your self what you will reply to one that should use your own Words ; If such a degree of outward Force , as has been mentioned , be really of great and even necessary use , for the advancing of the True Religion , and Salvation of Souls , then it must be acknowledg'd , that in France and Turky , &c. there is a right somewhere to use it , for the advancing those ends ; unless we will say ( what without Impiety cannot be said ) that the wise and benign Disposer and Governour of all things , has not in France and Turky furnish'd Mankind with competent Means , for the promoting his own Honour , and the good of Souls . You go on , and tell us , they are to be punish'd , not for following the Light of their own Reason , nor for obeying the Dictates of their own Con●…lences , but rather for the contrary . For the Light of their own Reason , and the Dictates of their own Conscience ( if their Reason and their Consciences were not perverted and abused ) would undoubtedly lead them to the same thing , to which the Method you speak of is designed to bring them ; i. e. to the same thing to which your Reason and your Conscience leads you . For if you were to argue with a Papist , or a Presbyterian , in the case ; What privilege have you to tell him , that his Reason and Conscience is perverted , more than he has to tell you that yours is so ? Unless it be this insupportable Presumption , that your Reason and Conscience ought to be the Measure of all Reason and Conscience in all others , which how you can claim , without pretending to Infallibility , is not easy to discern . The Diversion you give your self , about the likeness and unlikeness of those two Pleas , I shall not trouble my self with ; since , when your Fit of Mirth was over , you were forced to confess , That as I have made your Plea for you , you think there is no considerable difference , as to the Fairness of them , excepting what arises from the different degrees of Punishment , in the French Discipline , and your Method . But if the French Plea be not true ; and that which I make to be yours be not yours ; — I must beg your pardon , Sir , I did not think it was your Opinion , ( nor do I yet remember that you any where said in your A. &c. ) that Men were to be punish'd for their Religion ; but that it was purely to make Men examine the Religion they had imbraced , and the Religion that they had rejected . And if that were of moment , I should think my self sufficiently justified , for this my Mistake , by what you say in your Argument , &c. from p. 6 , to 12. But since you explain your self otherwise here , I am not unwilling to take your Hypothesis , as you from time to time shall please to reform it . You answer then , That to make them examine , is indeed the next End for which they are to be punish'd . But what is that to my Question ? Which , if it be pertinent , demands for what Fault , not for what End , they are to be punish'd : As appears even by my next Words . So that they are punish'd , not for having offended against a Law , ( i. e. not for any Fault ; ) for there is no Law in England that requires them to examine . This , I must confess , was to shew , that here , as in France , whatever was pretended , yet the True Reason why People were punish'd , was their Religion . And it was for this Agreement , that in both Places Religion was meant , though something else was talked of , that I said your plea was like that made use of in France . But I see I might have spared my Pains to prove that you punish Diffenters for their Religion , since you here own it . You tell me , in the same place , I was impertinent in my Question , ( which was this , For what then are they to be punish'd ? ) that I demanded for what End , and not for what Fault they are to be punish'd . In good earnest , Sir , I was not so subtile as to distinguish them . I always thought that the End of all Laws was to amend those Faults which were forbidden ; and that when any one was punish'd , the Fault for which he was punish'd was the ●…ransgression of the Law , in that particular which was by the Law commanded or forbidden ; and the End of the Punishment , was the Amendment of that Fault for the future . For Example ; If the Law commanded to hear , not Hearing was the Fault punish'd ; and the End of that Punishment , was to make the Offenders hear . If the Law commanded to examine , the Fault punish'd , when that Law was put in Execution , was not Examining ; and the End of the Punishment , to make the Offenders examine . If the Law commanded Conformity , the Fault was Nonconformity , and the End of it to make Men conform . This was my Apprehension concerning Laws , and Ends of Punishments . And I must own my self still so dull as not to distinguish otherwise between the Fault for which Men are to be punish'd , and the End for which they are to be punish'd , but only as the one is past , the other future . The Transgression or Fault , is an Omission or Action that a Man is already guilty of ; the End of the Punishment , that it be not again repeated . So that if a Man be punish'd for the Religion he 〈◊〉 , I can see no other End for which he is punish'd , but to make him quit that Religion . No other immediate End I mean ; for other remote Ends , to which this is subordinate , it may have . So that if not examining the Religion which Men have imbraced , and the Religion they have rejected , be not the Fault for which Men are punish'd ; I would be glad you would shew me how it can be the next End , as you say it is , of their being punish'd . And that you may not think my Dullness gives you a Labour without Ground , I will tell you the Reason why I cannot find any other next End of Punishment , but the Amendment of the Fault forbidden ; and that is , Because That seems to me to be the End , the next End , of any Action ; which , when obtain'd , the Action is to cease , and not cease till it be attain'd . And thus , I think , it is , in Punishments , ordain'd by the Law. When the Fault forbidden is amended , the Punishment is to cease , and not till then . This is the only way I have to know the End , or final Cause for which any Action is done . If you have any other , you will do me a kindness to instruct me . This 't is which makes me conclude , ( and I think with me all those who have not had the Leisure and Happiness to attain the utmost resining of the Schools ) that if their Religion be the Fault for which Dissenters are punish'd , Examining is not the End for which they are punish'd ; but the Change of their Religion : Though Examining may perhaps in some Men , precede their Change , and help to it . But that is not necessary . A Man may change his Religion without it : And when he has chang'd , let the Motive be what it will , the End the Law aims at is obtain'd , and the Punishment ceases . So on the other side , If not Hearing , not Examining , be the Fault for which Men are punish'd , Conformity is not the next End for which they are punish'd , though it may perhaps , in some , be a Consequence of it ; but Hearing and Examining must be understood to be the Ends for which they are punish'd . If they are not the Ends , why does the Punishment cease when those Ends are attain'd ? And thus you have my Thoughts concerning this Matter , which perhaps will not be very pertinent ( as mine have not the good luck always to be to you ) to a Man of nicer Distinctions . But let us consider your Hypothesis as it now stands , and see what advantage you have got to your Cause by this new Explication . Dissenters from the True Religion are to be punish'd , say you , for their Religion . Why ? Because 't is a Fault . Against whom ? Against God. Thence it follows indeed , that God , if he pleases , may punish it . But how will you prove that God has given the Magistrates of the Earth a Power to punish all Faults against himself ? Covetousness , or not loving our Neighbour as our selves , are Faults or Sins against God. Ought the Magistrate to punish these ? But I shall not need to trouble you much with that Question . This Matter I think will be decided between us without going so sar . If the Magistrate may punish any one for not being of the True Religion , must the Magistrate judg what is that True Religion or no ? If he must not , what must guide him in the punishing of some , and not of others ? For so it is in all places where there is a National Religion establish'd by Penal Laws . If the Magistrate be commission'd by the same Law of Nature ( for that is all the Commission you pretend to ) to judg what is the True Religion , by which he is authorized to punish those who dissent from it ; Must not all Magistrates judg , and accordingly punish those who dissent from that , which they judg the True Religion , i. e. in effect , those who dissent from theirs ? And if all Magistrates have a Power to punish those who are not of their Religion , I ask you , Whether it be of more use or disadvantage to the promoting True Religion and Salvation of Souls ? And when you have resolved that Question , you will then be able to tell me whether the Usefulness of it ( which must be determin'd by the greater Good or Harm it is like to do ) is such as to justify your Doctrine about it , or the Magistrate's use of it . Besides , your making the Dissenting from the True Religion a Pault to be punish'd by the Magistrate , puts an end to your Pretence to moderate Punishments ; which , in this place , you make use of to distinguish yours from the French Method ; saying , That your Method punishes Men with Punishments which do not deserve to be called so , when compared with those of the French Discipline . But if the Dissenting from the True Religion , be a Fault that the Magistrate is to punish , and a Fault of that consequence , that it draws with it the loss of a Man's Soul ; I do not see how other Magistrates , whose Duty it is to punish Faults under his Cognizance , and by punishing to amend them , can be more remiss than the King of France has been , and fo●…bear declaring that they will have all their People saved , and endeavour by such Ways as he has done to effect it : Especially since you tell us , That God now leaves Religion to the Care of Men , under his ordinary Providence , to try whether they will do their Duties in their several Capacities or not , leaving them answerable for all that may follow from their Neglect . In the correcting of Faults , Malo nodo 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , is not only what is justifiable , but what is requisite . But of this more fully in another place . In the next place ; I do not see how , by your Method , as you explain it here , the Magistrate can punish any one for not being of the True Religion , ( though we should grant him to have a Power to do it ) whilst you tell us , That your Method punishes Men for rejecting the True Religion , propos'd to them with sufficient Evidence , which certainly is a Fault . By this Part of your Scheme it is plain , that you allow the Magistrate to punish none but those to whom the True Religion is propos'd with sufficient Evidence . And sufficient Evidence , you tell us , is such as will certainly win 〈◊〉 where-ever it is duty consider'd . Now by this Rule , there will be very few that the Magistrate will have right to punish ; since he cannot know whether those who dissent , do it for want of due Consideration in them , or want of sufficient Evidence in what is proposed ; unless you mean by due Consideration , such Consideration that always does bring Men actually to 〈◊〉 ; which is in effect to say nothing at all . For then your Rule amounts to thus much , That sufficient Evidence is such as will certainly win Assent where-ever it is consider'd duly , i. e. so as to win Assent . This being like some of those other Rules we have met with , and ending in a Circle , Which after you have traced , you at last sind your self just where you were at setting out ; I leave it to you to own as you think sit : And tell you , if by duly considering , you mean considering to his utmost ; that then , that which is propos'd to one with sufficient Evidence to win Assent , may not be so to another . There are Propositions extant in Geometry , with their Demonstrations annexed , and that with such sufficient Evidence to some Men of deep Thought and Penetration , as to make them see the Demonstration , and give Assent to the Truth : Whilst there are many others , and those no No●…ices in Mathematicks , who with all the Consideration and Attention they can use , are never able to attain unto it . 'T is so in other Parts of Truth . That which hath Evidence enough to make one Man certain , has not enough to make another so much as guess it to be true , though he has spared no Endcavour or Application in examining it . And therefore , if the Magistrate be to punish none but those who reject the True Religion , when it has been offer'd with sufficient Evidence , I imagine he will not have many to punish ; if he will , as he ought , distinguish between the Innocent and the Guilty . Upon your Forwardness to encourage the Magistrate's use of Force in Matters of Religion , by its Usefulness , even so far as to pretend Advantages from what your self acknowledge the Misapplication of it ; I say that , So instead of 〈◊〉 from , you give Encouragement to the Mischief : which upon your Principle , join'd to the natural Thirst in Man after Arbitrary Power , may be carried to all manner of Exorbitancy , with some Pretence of Right . To which your Reply is , That you speak on-where but of the Use and Necessity of Force . What think you in the place mention'd , of the Gain that you tell the Sufferers they shall make by the Magistrate's punishing them to bring them to a wrong Religion ? You do not , as I remember , there say , that Force is necessary in that case : Though they gaining , as you say , by it this Advantage , that they know better than they did before where the Truth does 〈◊〉 ; You cannot but allow , that such a Misapplication of Force may do some Service indirectly and at a distance towards the Salvation of Souls . But that you may not think , whilst I had under Consideration the dangerous Encouragement you gave to Men in Power , to be very busy with their Force in Matters of Religion , by all the ●…orts of Usefulness you could imagine of it , however apply'd , right or wrong , that I declin'd mentioning the Necessity you pretend of Force , because it would not as well serve to the purpose for which I mention its Usefulness ; I shall here take it so , that the Reader may see what reason you had to complain of my not doing it before . Thus then stands your System . The procuring and advancing any way of the spiritual and eternal Interests of Men , is one of the Ends of Civil Society . And Force is put into the Magistrate's hands , as necessary for the attaining those Ends , where no other Means are left , Who then upon your Grounds may quickly find Reason , where it ●…utes his Inclination , or serves his Turn , to punish Men directly to bring them to his Religion . For if he may use Force because it is necessary , as being the only Means left to make Men consider those Reasons and Arguments , which otherwise they would not consider , Why may he not by the same Rule use Force , as the only Means left to make Men degrees of G'ory , which otherwise they would not attain , and so to advance their eternal Interests ? For St. Paul 〈◊〉 us , that the 〈◊〉 of this Life work for us a far more exce●…ding weight of Glory . So that whether the Magistrate may not , when it may serve his turn , argue thus from your Principles , judg you : Dissenters from my Religion must be punish'd , if in the wrong , to bring them into the right Way ; if in the right , to make them by their Sufferings Gainers of a far more exceeding weight of Glory . But you say , Unless it be as necessary for Men to attain any greater degree of Glory as it is to attain Glory , it will not follow that if the Magistrate may use Force , because it may be indirectly , &c. useful towards the procuring any degree of Glory , he may by the same Rule use it where it may be in that manner useful towards the procuring a greater degree of Glory . But that there is the same necessity of Mens attaining a greater degree of Glory , as there is of their attaining Glory , no Man will affirm . For without attaining Glory , they cannot escape the Demnation of Hell , which yet they may escape , without any greater degree of Glory . One of the Ends of a Commonwealth is , say you , the advancing Mens eternal Interests . The procuring greater degrees of Glory , is the advancing a Man 's eternal Interest . The use of Force , to make Men suffer for the Truth what otherwise they would not suffer , is as necessary for the attaining an higher degree of Glory , as using Force to make Men consider , what otherwise they would not consider , is necessary , for the attaining any degree of Glory . But you will say , Attaining Glory is absolutely necessary , but the attaining any greater degree of Glory , however desirable , is not so necessary . Now if there be not the same necessity of the one of these , as there is of the other , there can be no Pretence to say , that whatever is 〈◊〉 in respect of one of them , is likewise so in respect of the other . But there will always be a just Pretence to say , if advancing the eternal Interests of Men be one of the Ends of a Commonwealth , and that the Force in the Magistrate's hands be necessary to the attaining that End ; that then the Magistrate is obliged to use it ; whether you will think that End absolutely necessary , or as necessary as another , or no. I shall not here trouble you again with your Mistake about what is absolutely necessary , having taken notice of it in another place . Only I shall desire you to shew me , that the attaining of Glory is absolutely necessary , when next time you have occasion to affirm it . Attaining of Glory is necessary in order to Happiness : And attaining a greater degree of Glory , is necessary in order to greater Happiness : But neither of them is absolutely necessary , but in order to their respective Ends. And now though , as you say , you do not think your self bound to take notice of all that may be done with some pretence of Right : Yet , I suppose , upon cooler Thoughts , when you have consider'd of what dangerous Consequence an Argument , manag'd as yours is , may be to the True Religion , and the sincere Prosessors of it ; and what Occalion or Encouragement it may give to Men in Power warm'd with Zeal , and excited by the proper Ministers of their own Religion , to make a wrong and exorbitant Use of Force in Matters of Religion , you will another time think your self bound not to let it go abroad again without some Caution to the Magistrate in the Use of it ; without one word of Advice at least , that since it is given him , as you say , only for promoting the True Religion , he should take care and examine impartially whether what he imploys it for , be the one only True Religion . It being your Opinion whenever he makes use of Force in Matters of Religion , for the promoting any thing but that , he goes beyond his Commission , injures his Subjects , and indangers his own Soul. By this time , Sir , I suppose you see upon what Grounds I think you have not clear'd those Difficulties which were charg'd by me on your Method : And my Reader will see what reason there was for those Imputations which , with so loud an Out-cry , you laid upon me of unfair Dealing ; since there is not one of them which cannot be made good to be contain'd either in your Book or in your Hypothesis ; and that so clearly , that I could not imagine that a Man who had so far consider'd Government , as to engage in Print , in such a Controversy as this , could miss seeing it as soon as mention'd to him . One of them which very much offends you , and makes you so often tell me what I say is impertinent and nothing to the purpose , and sometimes to use warmer Expressions , is , that I argue against a Power in the Magistrate to bring Men to his own Religion : For I could not imagine that , to a Man of any Thought , it could need proving ; that if there were a Commission given to all Magistrates by the Law of Nature , which obliged them to use Force to bring Men to the True Religion , it was not possible for them to put this Commission in execution , without being Judges what was the True Religion ; and then there needed no great quickness to perceive , that every Magistrate , when your Commission came to be put in execution , would , one as well as another , find himself obliged to use Force to bring Men to that which he believed to be the True Religion . But since this was so hard for you to see , I now have been at the pains to prove it , and thereby to clear all thoseImputations . I shall not instance in any other : They are all of a like kind . Only where you complain I have not cited your Words fairly , if you can shew that I have done it any where in this or the Second Letter , to the advantage of my Cause ; or to avoid any Argument in them , not answered ; if you please to shew it me , I shall either let you see your Mistake , or acknowledg mine . And now whether you shall think what I have said worth that Consideration you promise , or take it all for Cavils and Impertinencies , to me is very indifferent . Enjoy if you please that short and easy way of answering . But if the Party you write for , be , as you say , God and the Souls of Men , it will require you seriously to weigh your Scheme , examine and put together the Parts of it , observe its Tendency and Consequences ; and in a word , consider Things , and not Words . For the Party of God and Souls needs not any Help from Obscurity or Uncertainty of general and equivocal Terms , but may be spoke out clearly and distinctly ; Needs no retreat in the round of equivalent , or the uncertainty of misapply'd Expressions , that may serve to amuse and deceive the unwary , but instruct no body ; And lastly , needs no Leave nor Allowance from Men of Art to direct both Subjects and Magistrates to the Examination of the Scriptures , wherein God has reveal'd to the World the Ways and Means of Salvation . In doing of this , in a Treatise where you profess the Subject of your Enquiry is only what Method is to be used to bring Men to the True Religion ; the Party you profess to write for would have justified you against the Rules of any lawful Art ; and no Christian Man , of what Art soever , would have denied you that Liberty : And , if I mistake not , the Party , you say you write for , demands it of you . If you find upon a Review of the whole , that you have manag'd your Cause for God and the Souls of Men , with that Sincerity and Clearness that satisfies your own Reason , and you think may satisfy that of other Men , I shall congratulate to you so happy a Constitution . But if all your magnified and necessary Means of Force , in the way you contend for , reaches no farther than to bring Men to a bare outward Conformity to the Church of England ; wherein you can ●…dately affirm , that it is presumable that all that are of it are so upon Reason and Conviction ; I suppose there needs no more to be said to convince the World what Party you write for . The Party you write for is God , you say . But if all you have said , aims or amounts to nothing more than that the Church of England , as now establish'd by Law , in its Doctrines , Ceremonies and Discipline , should be supported by the Power of the Magistrate , and Men by Force be driven into it ; I fear the World will think you have very narrow Thoughts of God ; or that that is not the Party you write for . 'T is true , you all along speak of bringing Men to the True Religion . But to evidence to you , that by the one only True Religion , you mean only that of the Church of England ; I tell you , that upon your Principles , you cannot name any other Church now in the World , ( and I again demand of you to do it ) for the promoting whereof , or punishing Dissenters from it , the Magistrate has the same Right to use Force , as you pretend he has here in England . Till you therefore name some such other True Church and True Religion , besides that of England , your saying that God is the Party you write for , will rather shew that you make bold with his Name , than that you do not write for another Party . You say too , you write not for any Party , but the So●…s of Men. You write indeed , and contend earnestly , that Men should be brought into an outward Conformity to the Church of England . But that they imbrace that Profession upon Reason and Conviction , you are content to have it presumable , without any farther Enquiry or Examination . And those who are once in the outward Communion of the National Church , however ignorant or irreligious they are , you leave there 〈◊〉 by your only competent Means , Force ; without which , you tell us , the True Religion , by its own Light and Strength , is not able to prevail against Mens Lusts and the Corruption of Nature , so as to be consider'd as it ought , and heartily imbraced . And this drop'd not from your Pen by chance : But you professedly make Excuses for those of the National Religion who are ignorant of the Grounds of it ; And give us Reasons why Force cannot be used to those who outwardly conform , to make them consider so as sincerely to imbrace , believe and obey , the Truth that must save them . But the ●…verend Author of the Pastoral Care tell you , PARTY is the true Name of making Converts , except they become at the same time good Men. If the use of Force be necessary for the Salvation of Souls ; and Mens Souls be the Party you write for ; you will be suspected to have betrayed your Party , if your Method and necessary Means of Salvation reach no farther than to bring Men to outward Conformity , though to the True Church ; and after that abandons them to their Lusts and depraved Natures , destitute of the help of Force , your necessary and competent Means of Salvation . This way of managing the Matter , whatever you intend , ●…ms rather , in the Fitness of it , to be for another Party . But since you assure us you write for nothing but God and Mens Souls , it can only be said you had a good Intention , but ill Luck ; since your Scheme , put into the Language of the Country , will sit any National Church and Clergy in the World , that can but suppose it self the True ; and that I presume none of them will fail to do . You were more than ordinary reserv'd and gracious when you tell me , That what Party I write for , you will not undertake to say . But having told me , that my Letter tends to the promoting of 〈◊〉 in Religion , you thought ( 't is like ) that was sufficient to shew the Party I write for ; and so you might safely end your Letter with Words that looked like civil . But that you may another time be a little better informed what Party I write for , I will tell you . They are those who in every Nation ●…ear God , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , and are accepted with him ; and not those who in every Nation are zealous for Humane Constitutions , cry up nothing so much as outward Con●…ormity to the National Religion , and are accepted by those who are the Promoters of it . Those that I write for are those , who , according to the Light of their own Con●…ences , are every-where in earnest in Matters of their own Salvation , without any desire to impose on others ; A Party so seldom favour'd by any of the Powers or Sects of the World ; A Party that has so few Preferments to bestow ; so few 〈◊〉 to reward the ●…ndeavours of any one who appears for it , that I conclude I shall easily be believ'd when I say , that neither Hopes of Preferment , nor a Design to recommend my self to those I live amongst , has 〈◊〉 my Understanding , or misled me in my Undertaking . So much Truth as serves the turn of any particular Church , and can be accommodated to the narrow Interest of some Humane Constitution , is indeed often received with applause , and the Publisher finds his account in it . But I think I may say , Truth ( in its full Latitude , of those generous Principles of the Gospel , which so much recommend and inculcate universal Charity , and a Freedom from the Inventions and Impositions of Men in the things of God , ) has so seldom had a fair and favourable Hearing any where , that he must be very ignorant of the History and Nature of Man , however dignified and distinguish'd , who proposes to himself any secular Advantage by writing for her at that rate . As to your Request in the Close of your Letter , I hope this will satisfy you , that you might have spar'd it ; And you with the rest of the World will see that all I 〈◊〉 in my former Letter was so true , that you need not have given me any caution for the future . As to the 〈◊〉 of what I say , I doubt whether I shall please you : Because I find by your last Letter , that what is brought by me to shew the Weakness , Absurdities , or 〈◊〉 of what you write , you are very apt to call 〈◊〉 , and nothing to the purpose . You must pardon me therefore , if I have endeavour'd more to please other Readers than you in that Point . I hope they will find , in what I have said , not much besides the matter . But to a Man who , supposing himself in the right , builds all upon that Supposition , and takes it for an Injury to have that Privilege deny'd him ; To a Man who would soveraignly decide for all the World , what is the True Religion , and thereby impower what Magistrates he thinks fit , and what not , to use Force ; To 〈◊〉 a Man not to seem 〈◊〉 , would be really to be so . This makes me pleas'd with your Reply to so many Passages of my Letter , that they were nothing to the purpose : And 't is in your Choice whether in your Opinion any thing in this shall be so . But since this depends upon your keeping steadily to clear and 〈◊〉 Notions of things , separate from Words and 〈◊〉 , used in a doubtful and undetermin'd Signification ; wherewith 〈◊〉 of Art often 〈◊〉 themselves and others ; I shall not be so unreasonable as to expect , whatever you promise , that you should ●…y by your Learning to imbrace Truth , and own what will not perhaps sute very well with your Circumstances and Interest . I see , my Design not to omit any thing that you might think looks like an Argument In yours , has made mine grow beyond the size of a Letter . But an Answer to any one being very little different from a Letter , I shall let it go under that Title . I have in it also endeavour'd to bring the scatter'd Parts of your Scheme into some Method , under distinct Heads , to give a fuller and more 〈◊〉 View of them . Wherein , if any of the Arguments which give support to your Hypothesis , have escaped me unawares ; be pleased to shew them me ; and I shall either acknowledg their Force , or endeavour to shew their Weakness . I am , SIR , Your most Humble Servant , PHILANTHROPUS . June 20 , 1593. FINIS . ERRATA . Pag. Line Read 1 21 THose 8 33 Either 13 27 Baptism . The 18 11 those who both 21 15 a Chirurgion 27 3 A. p. 20. [ In the Margin . ]   4 the Doctrine . d. P. 121. 30 26 them ? That   26 shew . 37 30 P. 27. [ In the Margin . ] 38 13 Consideration ; whoever 42 35 P. 271 [ In the Margin . ] 45 12 Penalties 46 7 their Arguments cannot prevail . 48 6 things , I 53 9 should . Yet 58 2 will not 69 8 give in to 71 13 ( for   17 himself ) it 83 15 munion , excluding 108 34 named , it will 110 28 nishments ? 119 12 learn from   14 fit , you   26 however beholden 127 7 do . If 136 19 Hearts , the 165 9 unless we 169 1 Argument . I 171 9 no. 173 24 these ends 187 33 P. 70. [ In the Margin . ] 188 20 and not 189 23 P. 70. [ In the Margin . ] 193 3 Deviation 194 9 Examination which 207 27 Religion uponr ] 217 6 Magistrate 218 11 down 220 19 Conviction : when 221 27 Conformity : 225 5 in my opinion 228 37 was replied 261 36 them . What 263 27 Asia Alexandrum Pseudomantim 265 39 Want 267 36 single Reliques 268 27 Plantins 273 24 little ; If 274 15 Administrations 277 20 uninterrupted 278 26 Parish , where 296 20 Force , 304 37 is , what 305 1 cannot , without   2 Revelation than usefulness , be   6 Souls may all be justified 311 27 consistent 313 10 the Societies   11 places   15 which Force , so 314 34 so much as questioning 315 16 Wheat   35 ligion , you 316 13 the True Religion 329 27 is not   35 points , effectual 335 10 Acknowledg'd 343 8 P. 73. [ In the Margin . ] Books Printed 〈◊〉 , and Sold by A. and J. Churchill , at 〈◊〉 Black Swan in Peter-Noster-Row . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Roman History . Forcacio's Novels and Tales . 〈◊〉 Paul 〈◊〉 Lives of the Popes of Rome . — History of the Turks . Two Vol. Rushworth's Historical Collections . Lloyd Dictionariun Historicum , Pocticum , Geographicum . Statutes of Ireland . Bolton Justice of Ireland . Sir George Wheeler's Travels into Greece . Leybourn's Dialling . 〈◊〉 Chronicle and History of the Kings of Scotland . Machiavel's Works . Thesaurus Brevium . Sir Simon Dew's Journal of Parliament , Q. Elizabeth . Dr. Brady's Introduction to the History of England . Milton's Paradise regain'd . Leybourn Cursus Mathematicus . Sir Roger L' Estrange IF sop's Fables . Bp. Hall's Contemplations . Clark Praxis Cur. Ecclesiasticis . Dr. Gibson's Anatomy . Dr. Patrick Mensa Mystica . Gentleman's Recreations . 〈◊〉 L' Clere's Logica , &c. Drelincourt of Death . Beybourn's Arithmetick . Protestant Reconciler , Compleat . Homer's 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 Minores . Royal Grammar . Gibbon's Heraldry . Partridge's Treasury of Physick . Bp. 〈◊〉 of Prayer and Preaching . Thibault's Chymistry . Glasier's Chymistry . Valerius Maximus , English. Two Treatises of Government . The Three Letters for Toleration . Some Considerations of the Consequences of Lowring Interest , and raising the Value of Money . Sir William Temple's Observations on Holland . — Misellanea . Dr. Burnet's Travels . Plato 〈◊〉 Selden's Table-Talk . Debates of Oxon and 〈◊〉 Parliaments . Titi Petronii arbitrii Satyricon , cum fragmentis AttaeceGraecae recuper at 〈◊〉 . Anno 1688. Livii Orationes selectae . 12 o. Sleidan de quatuor summis Imperiisve . Aristotle's Rhetorick , English. Dr. Whitby's several Pieces . Partridge's Astrology . 〈◊〉 Orationes , large 12 o. Lat. Guide to Heaven . 24 o. Latin Testament , the Cambridg Edition . Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A48900-e160 Chap. 1. Pag. 76. Pag. 31. Pag. 35. P. 24. P. 29. P. 27. P. 15. P. 31. P. 13. 〈◊〉 . 29. A. p. 16. P. 10 P. 53. P. 51. P. 53. P. 53. P. 53. P. 54. P. 11. P. 7. P. 〈◊〉 . L. 2. p. 48. A. p. 17. Acts IV. 2. A. p. 2. P. 121. L. 2. p. 59. P. 64. P. 65.66 . A. p. 22 A. p. 22. L. 2. p. 60. A. p. 22. L. 2. p. 60. P. 66. P. 76. P. 48. P. 50. P. 48. P. 78. P. 64. P. 22. P. 13. P. 20. P. 20. P. 63. Notes for div A48900-e9460 Chap. 2. P. 35. P. 31. Job XXI . 26 , 27 , 28. Matth. XXVIII . 18. P. 17. A. p. 18. p. 58. Matth. XXVIII . 18. Joh. XVII . 2. P. 56. P. 55. P. 57. A. p. 18. L. 2. p. 51. P. 58. P. 51. P. 58. Chap. XLVIII . 10. P. 59. P. 60. P. 61. 1 Pet. II. 13 P. 62. L. 3. p. 63. As to your next Paragraph , I think I might now wholly pass it over . I shall only tell you , that as I have often heard , so I hope I shall always hear of Religion establish'd by Law. For though the 〈◊〉 Authority can add no Force or Sanction to any Religion , whether true or f●…lse , nor any thing to the Truth or Validity of his own , or any Religion whatsoever ; yet I think it may do much toward the upholding and preserving the true Religion within his 〈◊〉 ; and in that respect may properly enough be said to establish it . Notes for div A48900-e13080 Chap. 3. L. 2. p. 2. P. 2. P. 3. P. 3. P. 62. 〈◊〉 . 4. 〈◊〉 . XVII . 〈◊〉 1 Pet. V. 〈◊〉 , 3. L. 2. p. 2. P. 13. P. 23. P. 24. P. 45 P. 24 : P. 24. P. 24. P. 51. P. 25. P. 40. P. 25. 〈◊〉 . 2. p. 24. P. 45. A. p 6 , &c P. 〈◊〉 . L. 2. p. 46. P. 48. P. 46. P. 〈◊〉 P. 48. Notes for div A48900-e17780 P. 1. P. 2. 〈◊〉 . 7. P. 19. P. 〈◊〉 . L. 2. p. 40. A. p. 24. A. p. 15. A. p. 12. A. p. 14. A. p. 12. P. 49. P. 49. Ibid. P. 49. P. 50. P. 49. L. 2. p. 〈◊〉 . P. 50. L. 2. p. 43. P. 50. P. 50. P. 50. P. 19. P. 20. P. 8. P. 19. P. 10. P. 41. P. 27. L. 2. p. 11. A. p. 13. P. 21. P. 44. P. 34. P. 11. P. 50. P. 34. P. 49. P. 34. L. 2. p. 21. P. 38. Notes for div A48900-e23910 Chap. 5. L. 2. p. 43. P. 51. P. 46. P. 50. P. 51. P. 42. A. p. 16. P. 51. Chap. 6. Notes for div A48900-e25340 P. 27. L. 2. p. 30. A. p. 5. A. p. 10. A. p. 27. A. p. 23. A. p. 11. A. p. 27. A. p. 12. A. p. 13. A. p. 14. A. p. 20. A. p. 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10. A. p. 22. A. p. 12. A. p. 22. A. p. 26. A. p. 22. A. p. 12. A. p. 21. A. p. 25. A. p. 26. A. p. 12. A. p. 10. A. p. 12. P. 48. P. 27. P. 28. P. 37. P. 26 : P. 40. P. 28. P. 2. P. 58. P. 53. P. 30 , 58. P. 26. P. 49. P. 47. Chap. 7. P. 49. Notes for div A48900-e28170 P. 7. L. 2. p 4. P. 10. P. 11. P. 11. P. 11. Ibid. P. 27. P. 7. P. 30. 〈◊〉 . 72●… 1 Cor. VIII . 13. Discourse of Conscience , p. 18. P. 21. P. 17 , 18. P. 28 , 29. P. 26. L. 2. p. 4. P. 11. Notes for div A48900-e30810 L. 2. p. 11. P. 22. P. 17. P. 31. P. 32. P. 58. P. 22. P. 22. Ibid. P. 64. P. 63. P. 22. 〈◊〉 . 37. P. 16. P. 26. P. 29. P. 23. P. 43. P. 58. P. 2. P. 16. P. 13. P. 22. P. 23. P. 58. Ibid. P. 23. Joh. V. 39. 2 Tim. III. 15. P. 76 , 77 , 78. P. 68. P. 22. L. 2. p. 62. P. 69. P. 3. A. p. 13. P. 31. L. 2. p. 64. P. 7. P. 8. L. 2. p. 64. P. 70. P. 71. P. 78. Notes for div A48900-e36850 P. 10. P. 10. 1 Cor. 1. 26. P. 13. P. 29. P. 16. L. 2. p. 30 P. 25. P. 25. P. 26. P. 18. P. 26. A. p. 5. L. 2. p. 12. L. 2. p. 14. P. 26. A. p. 6 , 〈◊〉 12. P , 6 , — 8. 〈◊〉 . 26. 〈◊〉 . 17. ●…bid . P. 22. P. 〈◊〉 P. 6●… . A. p. 6 , &c. P. 17. P. 18. P. 〈◊〉 . P. 27. P. 27. P. 27. A. p. 5. P. 28. P. 28. L. 2. p. 15. P. 28. P. 28. L. 2. p. 16. P. 29. P. 29. P. 29. P. 34 P. 3●… . P. 34. P. 35. P. 47. P. 34. P. 35. . P. 47. P. 47. P. 47. Ibid. P. 84. P. 48. P. 47. P. 51. P. 54. L. 2. p. 47. P. 〈◊〉 . A. p. 6 , — 12. P. 6 , — 8. Notes for div A48900-e47580 Chap. 10. P. 30. A. p. 10. P. 7. A. p. 2. L. 2. p. 3. P. 5. P. 37. P. 37. P. 38. P. 36. P. 36. Lightfoot Harm . of the N. T. Sect. 〈◊〉 . and 〈◊〉 . P. 36. P. 37. A. p. 6 , 12. P. 39. P. 40. P. 9. P. 7. P. 6. P. 27. P. 37. Dodwell . Dissertar . in 〈◊〉 . Diss. 2. Sect. LXV . P. 37. 〈◊〉 3. 〈◊〉 . l. 1. c. 21. Chrysost. Hom. 8. in Mat. 2. C●…cum illuminatum fuisse jam noveram . Necea quae cognoscimus , enumerare possumus . Aug. Retract . l. 1. c. 13. Que utique mecum ●…iunt . 〈◊〉 dati sunt . Cum videremus antiquis 〈◊〉 divinarum signa 〈◊〉 etiam nostris 〈◊〉 frequentari . Aug. de Civ . 〈◊〉 I. 〈◊〉 8. P. 7. Acts XIII . 46. Ver. 51. Acts XIX . 9. Acts VIII . 6. P. 24 , 25. P. 36. P. 25. P. 77. 〈◊〉 . p. 16. P. 8. P. 8. P. 6. P. 6. Vid. Pastoral Care , pag. 202. P. 6. L. 2. p. 3. P. 8. P. 9. P. 10. P. 9. p. 7. p. 13. p. 7. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of the Folly of 〈◊〉 . p. 16. p. 7. P. 10. P. 6. P. 6. Gen. XX , XXI , XXVI . 1 Kings XIX . 10. Ver. 14. P. 〈◊〉 . ActsX 35. Ver. 17. P. 〈◊〉 . P. 6. P. 6. P. 6. Psal. XIV P. 7. P. 9. Pastoral Care , 〈◊〉 . 189. * Orig. Hom. in Jos. IX . P. 25. P. 7. P. 6. P. 9. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . XXX . p-194 . & Apost . of the late 〈◊〉 P. 37. 1 Cor. 1.25 A. p. 7. L. 2. p. 5. P. 13. P. 30. P. 31. P. 34. L. 2. p. 1●… . P. 3. A. p. 16. P. 7. P. 33. P. 25. P. 51. L. 2. p. 19. P. 35. P. 35. P. 30. P. 35. P. 36. P. 20. P. 37. Rom. X. 14 , 17. P. 38. P. 38. A. p. 7 , &c. P. 11. P. 38. A. p. 11. L. 2. p. 21. P. 38. L. 2. p. 19. L. 2. p. 21. P. 39. P. 39. A. p. 6. Rom. VIII . 29. A. p. 16. P. 39. P. 40. P. 40. Ibid. P. 40. Joh. IX . 5. P. 40. P. 41. P. 41. A. p. 11. P. 41. P. 39. A. p. 6. A. p. 11. P. 42. P. 43. I. 2. p. 22. P. 43. P. 43. L. 2. p. 23. P. 43. Ibid. Past. Care , p. 115 , — 118. Past. Care , p. 201. P. 43. L. 2. p. 24. P. 44. Ibid. A. p. 16. P. 44. P. 45. Ibid. P. 8. P. 45. P. 53. L. 2. p. 26. P. 73. P. 73. P. 78. P. 68. P. 〈◊〉 . P. ●…9 . P. 78. 
A63817	----	A way to health, long life and happiness, or, A discourse of temperance and the particular nature of all things requisite for the life of man as all sorts of meats, drinks, air, exercise &c., with special directions how to use each of them to the best advantage of the body and mind : shewing from the true ground of nature whence most diseases proceed and how to prevent them : to which is added a treatise of most sorts of English herbs ... the whole treatise displaying the most hidden secrets of philosophy ... / communicated to the world for the general good by Thomas Tryon. Tryon, Thomas, 1634-1703. 1691 Approx. 1096 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 268 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-07 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A63817 Wing T3201 ESTC R30173 11255084 ocm 11255084 47166 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A63817) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 47166) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 1451:15) A way to health, long life and happiness, or, A discourse of temperance and the particular nature of all things requisite for the life of man as all sorts of meats, drinks, air, exercise &c., with special directions how to use each of them to the best advantage of the body and mind : shewing from the true ground of nature whence most diseases proceed and how to prevent them : to which is added a treatise of most sorts of English herbs ... the whole treatise displaying the most hidden secrets of philosophy ... / communicated to the world for the general good by Thomas Tryon. Tryon, Thomas, 1634-1703. [12], 500, 18 p. Printed by H.C. for R. Baldwin ..., London : 1691. Reproduction of the original in the Harvard University Library. 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Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Toleration. 2003-02 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2003-03 Apex CoVantage Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2003-04 Mona Logarbo Sampled and proofread 2003-04 Mona Logarbo Text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-06 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion The WAY To HEALTH , LONG Life and Happiness : Or , A Discourse of TEMPERANCE , And the Particular Nature of all Things requisite for the Life of Man ; As , All sorts of Meats , Drinks , Air , Exercise , &c. with special Directions how to use each of them to the best Advantage of the BODY and MIND . Shewing from the true ground of Nature , whence most Diseases proceed , and how to prevent them . To which is Added , A Treatise of most sorts of ENGLISH HERBS , With several other remarkable and most useful Observations , very necessary for all Families . The whole Treatise displaying the most hidden secrets of Philosophy , and made easie and familiar to the meanest Capacities , by various Examples and Demonstrances . The like never before Published . Communicated to the World for a general Good , By THOMAS TRYON , Student in PHYSICK . The Second Edition , with Amendments . LONDON : Printed by H. C. for R. Baldwin , near the Oxford-Arms in Warwick-Lane , 1691. TO THE READER . THat mighty Tyrant Custom has made it fashionable ( and consequently to some People seemingly necessary ) to dedicate Books , when publisht , to some great Names , whom Authors are wont to load with Flatteries , and then beg their Protection . A Course in my Opinion no less impertinent than base : For if the Writer be Conscious to himself , that he needs Pardon and such Supporters , why does he trouble the World with his Papers ? If his Intentions are good and candid , what need of such fawning Addresses ? Truth is too noble to truckle to those little Artifices , and carries in the Majesty of her unclouded Brow , both sufficient Pass-Port and Patronage ; since those that oppose her , do it at their own Peril , and at Long-run she is sure to be Victorious . I therefore decline that vulgar Method , as one that am no ways fond of running the broad Way of the Multitude . To thee , ( O Reader ) whoever thou art , is this Book entirely dedicated ; and yet I shall not so much as be speak thee to be kind and courteous ; only for thy own sake , desire thee to be just and considerate ; to weigh impartially what I offer ( I mean the Matter , not the Words or Stile ) and if still thou wilt with the deaf Adder stop thy Ears against the Voice of the Charmer , the fault and the danger will be Thine : I have discharg'd my Duty . The main design of this Treatise is to bring Men acquainted with themselves , and recommend Temperance , the most excellent ( though most neglected ) Virtue in the World , to their Practice : In a word , to perswade them to be kind to their own Healths , their own Lives , their own Souls . Nor will it be needful here to give you a Bill of Fare of the several Dishes , which this Banquet presents you with ; that 's done in the Contents of the several Chapters . All I shall say , is , that here are variety of Truths plainly delivered , which I do not know are else-where ( in Books ) to be met with ; for I have not consulted Authors in composing this Tract , to pay you , like a Banker with other Peoples Coin , or entertain you with a Rapsody of stolen Notions , as disagreeing and trivial as the Pye-bald Shreds of a Taylors Cushion . One grand Objection I fore see , viz. that I am guilty of Tautology , or have too oft repeated the same things . To this I Answer : 1. I hope you will rarely find bare Repetitions ; but although the same , or like Expressions may occur , yet still they are either attended with some Addition and Illustration , or else are improved to the explaining some other Notion . 2. Needful Truths are never too often repeated , till they are once well learnt . Many Men are slow of Apprehension , and cannot reach ones meaning without a large expence of Words : By these reiterated Strokes , I would willingly make Impression , first on thy Understanding , and next on thy refractory Will , to practise what is so necessary to thy Well-doing , that is , thy Well-being . 3. This saying of one thing over and over , when we treat of Nature , is necessary and unavoidable ; for 't is her own Dialect and Method . All the various Substances , Forms , Complexions , Constitutions and Properties , both in the Animal , Vegetable and Mineral Kingdoms , have the same Basis or Ground : There being but Seven grand Forms of Nature , whence all do proceed . An Example we have in Musick : Seven perfect Notes or Sounds produce all that admirable variety of Harmony which the World admires : And tho' a Man should compose as many Songs as Solomon , and frame an hundred Thousand Tunes and Divisions , yet these seven Notes still are the Foundation on which he builds ; so that to every Lesson , Song or Division , they must be repeated . So in the Mathematicks ( that Demonstrative Science , whereby so many rare things are effected ) the Number Ten is the extent of all natural Numeration , and Eleven is but a beginning again . And the very same Figures must afterwards continually be repeated in all Arithmetical Operations , to bring greater Mysteries to manifestation . In that most delightful Art of Representation , there are but Seven perfect Colours , and yet by these a skilful Master can paint and imitate all the Appearances in the Univese . There are but Seven Metals , and yet how many Wonders are wrought by and out of them ? In Seven Days the unbounded Jehovah created all Beings , by the power and virtue of his holy Word , which Word of Power does still both conserve and generate ; for there is no standing still of Gods power in Nature ; all things being continually repeated by the Revolutions and Configurations of the Coelestilas ; and thence it was that the Wise-man said , there was no new thing under the Sun. There are but seven Days in a Week , which are repeated fifty two times in a year ; and so from one Generation to another . Therefore , whoever will treat aright , either of divine or natural things , and their occult Vertues or Vices , must make the seven Primogenial Forms or Constellations his Basis or Ground-Work , and in all cases have recourse to them , or else he shall never truly display Natures Operations . There is yet another Prejudice may be taken , because in some particulars I have spoken what may seem too free and satyrical : But if any , with unbyassed Minds please to consider the Fopperishness of those things I speak against , and withal how destructive they are to Mankind , they will be satisfied , that such a subject deserved no other Treatment . 'T is neither out of Ill-Will or Self-Interest I have handled them at that rate ; but as I conceived they ought justly to be exposed to the Contempt of that part of the World , which so long they have Ass-ridden and seduced . That you may come to the right Understanding of Gods Law in Nature , and govern your selves accordingly , to the Obtaining Health , both of the Body and Mind , and be happy here and hereafter , is the Endeavour as well as Desire of Your Well-wishing Friend , Thomas Tryon . THE CONTENTS Of the Ensuing TREATISE . Chap. I. A Description of the four grand Qualities , whence the four Complexions proceed . How every Man may know his own Complexion ; also of Beasts and Herbs , and to what Virtues , Vices and Diseases each of them are most subject ; and what food is most agreeable to Persons of every Constitution page 1. Of the Bitter Quality , p. 3. Of the Sweet Quality , p. 6. Of the Sour Quality , p. 7. Of the Astringent or Saltish Quality , p. 8. Of the Cholerick Complexion , p. 11. Of the Phlegmatick Complexion , p. 15. Of the Sanguine Complexion , p. 19. Of the Melancholy Complexion , p. 24. Chap. II. Of the excellency of Temperance , the Knowledge of a Mans self , and the mighty Benefits of Abstinence and Sobriety , p. 33. which prepare the Body to be the Temple of the Lord , 36 , 37. Of the Prophet Daniel's refusing the dainties that came from the King's Table , p. 38. The Abstemious lives of the Rechabites a reproach to the Israelites . Also of Sampson's drinking Wine , &c. p. 39. The cause of Leprous and Maingy Diseases , &c. p. 52. The cause of catching Cold , p. 54. Of Fevers , p. 56. Chap. III. A Discourse of the several sorts of Flesh , viz. Of the Nature and Complexion of Oxen and Cows , p. 59 , 60. Of their Flesh , p. 63. The excellency of Butter , Cheese and Milk-Pottage , p. 62. Of Sheep , their Complexions and Nature , and of their Flesh , p. 64. How to know whether the Mutton be perfectly good , or not , p. 68. Of Lamb. p. 69. Of the Flesh of Calves or Veal , p. 71 , 72. Of the Flesh of Swine , and their Nature and Complexion , p. 72. Of the Flesh of Fowls , p. 75. Chap. IV. The Proper and most Natural way of preparing , viz Boyling , Roasting , Baking , Stewing , Frying and Broyling of Flesh and other Food , from p. 78. to 89. Chap. V. The seasons of the year in which most People are liable to Diseases and Mortality ; and the Reasons why so many are sick and die more at one time than another . Also , what Food is best to preserve health at that time ; shewing also the Seasons of the year in which most sorts of Flesh are unclean and aptest to contract Diseases ; and what times Men may eat Flesh with least danger to their Health . And of the Nature of Summer Fruits , how they are good , and the contrary , from p. 94. to 106. Chap. VI. Of Waters , Ale , Beer and Tobacco . To which is added the consideration of Clothing , Houses and Beds , and what great benefits arise from Moderation and Temperance in those things , p. 106. Of Water in general , both internal and external , p. 108 , 109. Of Rain-Water , and its Nature , p. 110. Of River-Water ; and the Reasons why Vallies are so fruitful , and Hills so barren . p. 112. Of Spring or Fountain-Water , p. 113. Of Pump or Well-Water , p. 114. Of Ponds or standing Waters , p. 115. Of Ale , and its nature and operation ; as also of Beer and the most proper and natural way to Brew , p. 116 , 117. How to extract the vertue of Hops , p. 122. Of Tobacco , its nature and operation , p. 124 , 125. Of Clothing , Bedding , &c. p. 133 , 134. Of particular Trades , as Carpenters , Joyners , and particularly of Sea-men , &c. p. 142. The evil effects of the Liquor called Punch , p. 144. Chap. VII . Of Grains , Herbs and Fruits , viz. Of Wheat , p. 145. Of Barley , p. 149. Of Rye , p. 150. Of Pease and Beans , p. 151. Of Kidney or French Beans , p. 153. Of Herbs , raw and boyled , p. ibid Of Colworts , Cabbage and Collyflowers , p. 156. Of Turnips , p. 158. Of Carrots and Parsnips p. 159. That the Fruits , Herbs and Grains which our own Climate produceth , are more natural and proper to maintain Strength and preserve Health , than those that come from other Countries , p. 160. The Nature and Property of Spices , Nutmegs , Cloves , Mace , Cinnamon , Pepper , Ginger , &c. p. 162. The ill consequence of their being mixed among Childrens Food , p. 164. Of Fish , p. 168. Chap. VIII . The Mischief of Variety of Meats and Drinks , and the inconveniences of improper Mixtures ; and on the other side , what Foods are fit to be compounded p. 169. A Digitation of the seven perfect Colours , shewing how there being mixed two , three or four of them together , produce their several Complexions , contrary to their own Colours , p. 170 , &c. Of Plum-cakes , which are composed of about ten disagreeing Ingredients , p. 173. Of Bread-Puddings , p. 174. Of Broth or Pottages that are heat a second time , p. 175. The Reasons why boyled Water will not keep so well as Water newly taken from the Spring , p. 177. Of Syrups , p. 178. The fatal consequence sick People are confined to , p. 179. Of Mince-Pyes , &c. p. 180. Several sorts of Food that are proper to be compounded , as bearing a simile with each other , p. 182. Chap. IX . The Reasons in Nature why Cities and great Towns are subject to the Pestilence and other Diseases , more than Country Villages . The excellency of Solitude , and Advantages of a retired Country-Life , p. 184. That Mens Actions awaken the like Property in the Coelestial Bodies , whether they be good or evil . Shewing also what Violences they be that cause Wars , Famine , Pestilential Poysons , Botches , Byles , Veneral Diseases , Fevers , Plagues , Scabs , Leprosies , Spots in the Flesh , Tumults , Burning of Towns and Cities , &c. p. 186 , &c. The excellency of a retired Country Life , p. 190. Chap. X. Of Infection or Catching-Diseases , and how they are transferred from one to another , p. 193. Chap. XI . Of Women , their Natures , Complexions and Intemperances , &c. p. 200. The original cause of Vapours or Wind , and Agues , p. 201. The Evils that attend Wantonness in Women , p. 202. The ill consequences of putting Women to hard robustick Labores and Cares , p. 205. Particular Directions for Meats and Drinks , that are proper and natural for Women , p. 206 , 207. What causes the Scurvy , p. 209. The cause of Fevers and Convulsions , p. 211. What makes Travail in Child bearing burdensom , p. 212. The Inconveniences of Men and Women lying always together , p. 215 , 216. The Evils of hard swathing and binding their Children , p. 217. 218. Food proper for Children , p. 219. To prevent Convulsions and griping pains in the Stomachs of Children . Also , of Water-Pap , p. 220. Of Melted-Butter , p. 221. Of the Quantity of Childrens Food , p. 222. Chap. XII . The cause of Surfeits , and how to prevent them , and keep the Body in Health , p. 226. The danger of Drinking after superfluous Meals , p. 229. Of Suppers , and what sort of People may use them without prejudice to their health , p. 233 , Chap. XIII . Of Windy Diseases , the Reasons thereof in Nature , and why English People , especially Women , are so much troubled there-with , &c. p. 237. The Evils of eating and drinking Food too hot , p. 238. The Mischief of eating and drinking between Meals , p. 241. Of Fatness , and what sort of People are subject thereto , as also how to prevent Fatness , p. 246. Chap. XIV . Of FLESH , and its operation on the Body and Mind : That the common eating thereof does awaken the wrathful Nature in Mankind , &c. p. 249. Of the Children of Israels eating flesh in the Wilderness , p. 251. A Paraphrase on the Apostle Peter's Vision , Arise Peter , kill and eat , p. 273. The true Rise and Ground of Nobility , as to Birth and Blood , p. 284 , &c Who are truly Noble and Honourable , p. 288. Why Flesh and Blood is so much desired , p. 291 , &c. A short Comment on Gen. 4. concerning Cain and Abel , p. 301 , &c. The cause of Wars , p. 311. Of Abraham's eating flesh with the Angels , p. 315. Concerning the Resurrection , p. 328. The grand Objection answered , viz. If all People should live on Herbs , &c. what should we do with the Beasts ? They would over-run us , &c. p. 331. Chap. XV. The Voice of the Dumb , or the Complaints of the Creatures , expostulating with Man , touching the cruel Usages they suffer from him , very naturally expressed in a pleasant and useful Allegory , p. 367. Chap. XVI . A Treatise of most sorts of English Herbs , either Physical or fit for common use ; shewing , 1st . the apt times to gather them Astrologically , when the Planet that governs them is strong and well aspected , the same being here calculated for Nineteen Years : 2dly . How to preserve and keep them without losing their Virtues : And , 3dly . The best way of using them in Posset-Drinks , Decoctions and Cordials , so as not to destroy the pure spirituous parts of them , p. 382 , &c. The Ignorance , Blindness and Deceitfulness of the Doctors made manifest , p. 396. A Copy of a learned Doctors confused Latin Bill to an Apothecary ; and some Observations thereon , p. 404. The most natural and proper way of making of Cordials with any kind of Herbs , Seeds , Flowers , Spices and Drugs , either simple or compound , p. 411. The proper and natural way of making Physical Decoctions , Posset-Drinks , &c. with Herbs , Seeds and Drugs , p. 414. How Men came first to know the Virtues of several Herbs , p. 417. Who were the great Masters of Physick , which our modern Doctors make the foundation of their skill ; and the Reasons why their Rules ought not to be ours , p. 421. Chap. XVII . Of Bugs , and from what Matter and Aliment they do proceed , and how to prevent their Generation . Of the excellency of clean sweet Beds , and perniciousness of old stinking Feather-beds . Also , several Receipts how to kill Bugs and Fleas , p. 434. Chap. XVIII . A short Discourse of the Pain in the Teeth , shewing from what cause it does chiefly proceed , and how to prevent it , p. 447. Chap. XIX . Of Marriage , and the Inconveniences of unequal Matches , p. 452. Chap. XX. How to cure Wounds , Cuts , Pricks of Thorns , and other Accidents , without Salves , Oyntments or Plaisters . Also , if any part of the Body or Flesh be poysoned , it is a certain Remedy , p. 474. Chap. XXI . Of Harmony , and the Power thereof ; the several sorts of Musical Instruments , and under what Planet and Sign each of them is , p. 479. A Dialogue between an East-Indian-Brackmanny , or Heathen Philosopher , and a French Gentleman , concerning the present Affiairs in Europe , p. 1. THE INTRODUCTION To the Whole TREATISE . CHAPTER I. A Description of the four Grand Qualities , whence the four Complexions proceed . How every Man may know his own Complexion . KNOW THY SELF , was one of the first Precepts which the Ancients dictated to the Students of Wisdom ; nor is there a greater Happiness attainable upon Earth , than to have in a Sound Body , a Sound Mind . To direct my Fellow-Mortals towards this great Point of Felicity , is the Scope and Intendment of our Pains in this Book : The Foundation-Principle of Wisdom being to understand Nature , ( which is the Art of God ) and thereby our own Frame , Powers , Faculties and Constitution , so as to imbrace what is good , wholsom and agreeable , and to eschew all that is evil and harmful ; and the End and Consummation thereof , is to know the Supream Being , Author of created Nature , and to love , obey , and enjoy him for ever . In Order hereunto , Temperance and Sobriety are sublime Gifts , and to be regarded with the highest esteem , not only for the delight and pleasure they afford the Body and Mind , but as they fortifie those that observe them against many Vices and Temptations , as well as preserve them from a thousand racking Pains and torturing Diseases , and so furnish them with the best Treasures of this World , viz. Health , not only of the Body , but also of the Mind ; for 't is that Health that sweetens all God's Blessings , and is the prime good of this Life : What advantage or pleasure is there in the highest prepared Food , or choice compounded Dishes of the rarest Dainties , in the richest or most Cordial Drinks , the gayest Apparel , or the most flattering Addresses of Honour , to a Person rackt with the Stone , or tortur'd with an Iliaca passio , or half-drown'd with an overflowing Dropsie , or burning within , like Mount AEtna , with the raging violence of a Fever ? What are Riches and Fame to a Body full of Pain ? Or who would accept of a Crown , upon condition that his Head should thenceforth perpetually Ake ? Now if the Body be distemper'd thro' disorder and superfluity , the Mind and all the Senses are presently afflicted ; if the Harmony of the one be interrupted or destroyed , the other cannot continue : For the Spirit is the original whence the Body proceded , and is the Life of every visible Substance ; and as the Properties or Qualities are in their degrees in the Spirit either strong or weak , so also they are in the Elements of the Body : That quality that doth predominate in the Spirit at the Incarnation and Birth , that very same property doth carry the upper Dominion in the Body , which is manifested by the Inclination , Shape and Form , Behaviour , Words and Works ; and this is call'd a Man's COMPLEXION , of which there are commonly reckon'd four kinds , viz. the Cholerick , the Phlegmatick , the Sanguine , and the Melancholy ; and since the true understanding of each of these , does mainly conduce to a mans knowing and right regulating of himself , we shall therefore treat of them severally . But in the first place , we will lay down a short Description of the four grand Qualities , viz. the Bitter , Sweet , Sour , Astringent or Saltish , from whence the four Complexions proceed . Of the Bitter Quality . 1. Those that are dignified with this Quality , are for the most part of strong Bodies , thick , well set , of middle Stature , of hard fierce Countenances , Visage rather round than Oval , big Bones , Hair curling , of quick piercing Eyes , bold Behaviours , ready of Speech and Apprehension , of strong powerful Spirits , able to go thro' much Labour and Action , if Intemperance do not impede , which many of this sort of People are subject to ; quickly moved to Passion , but their Fires burn too fierce to hold long ; of strong natural Heats , great Appetites , therefore they are apt to be Gluttons ; the Diseases they are most subject to , are Acute Fevers , Gout , Pox , both small and great ; Food good for this sort of People , are all sorts of Gruels , Herbs , Fruit , small Drinks , and all Food made of Milk , and every other sort that is Simple and Natural ; and the contrary they are to avoid on peril of their Healths . 2. It is to be noted , when the Sweet Quality is strong , and incorporateth with the Bitter , and hath an equal share in the government of the Life , then the fierceness of this Quality is allayed by the friendly Influences of the Sweet ; so that such Persons are of more human meek Dispositions and Inclinations , tho' they have Fire enough , and sometimes too much , because such are apt to be troubled for their Passions more than the former , and are generally of better , evener Tempers , and at times apt to be perswaded against their own Reason and Understanding , more temperate Livers , of excellent Apprehensions , both in the doing and learning of any thing ; of healthy strong Constitutions , as free from Diseases as any sort of People ; but they cannot endure Intemperances so well as the former ; also , all sorts of strong Drinks compounded , sugared , spiced , hot Food , are injurious unto them : But on the contrary , all sorts of Food of a middle or mild Nature , are very agreeable to them , and make healthy , strong , brisk and airy , fit both for the action of the Body and Mind : This sort of People are of the Cholerick and Sanguin Complexion , which is a commendable Temperature . 3. But when it shall fall out that the Sour Quality is joyned in government with the Bitter , and the Sweet Quality weak , or underneath , then such People are of harsh , four , envious Tempers , being inclined to all kinds of rude robustick Exercises , unmerciful to Men and Beasts , of cruel fierce Inclinations , being of quick Apprehensions ; but in general , they are ill-governed People , caring for nothing so much as Drinking , Gluttony , and vain Company , very passionate in their love , and hate ; great part of the rude Multitude are made up with this sort of People ; the Diseases they are subject to , are Fevers , Gout , stoppage of the Breast , Stone , Convulsions , Dropsies , and the like , according to what sort of Intemperances they give themselves unto , being great lovers of their Bellies ; it being their chief Study and Philosophy , how they may have wherewith to gratifie their Paunches , often cutting off their Lives by heady Disorders and Superfluities ; this sort of People are of the Cholerick Phlegmatick Complexion : But if they shall incline to fear the Lord , and understand the principles of their own Nature , being guided by the divine Voice of Wisdom , which continually cries out against , and condemns all the fore-mentioned Inordinances ; this divine Wisdom is sufficient to abate all kinds of Intemperances . 4. But if the Astringent or Saltish Quality , be joyned in the government of the Life with the Bitter , and the Sweet impotent , then all is poisoned ; such People being for the most part of hot-headed , harsh , cruel , violent , envious Dispositions ; their Looks are fierce , angry and poisonous ; they often hurt and wound the Healths of such who are under their dominion , by their Looks , Wishes and Words ; great Swearers , Liars , Back-biters , Deflowrers of Women , Gluttons and Drunkards , being often cut off by violent Deaths , and by the sentence of the Judge , if they do not adhere to the counsel of the love of God , which being obeyed , will regulate all the fore-mentioned Intemperances . 5. All Beasts and Cattle , as Horses , Cows , and the like , if they shall be dignified with the Bitter Quality , are strong , well-set , big boned , hardy , of great Spirits , and fierce , quick of motion , but not very handsom , fit for labour : But if Cows happen to have this Quality predominant , then they are dogged and mischievous , not very free of Milk , neither will they give much Milk : But when this Quality doth predominate in any Herb or Vegetation , then the Body is rather short than tall , strong , and full of knots , and brushy ; the Leaves harsh , cut or dented , of an unpleasant Taste , but hot , and of a warming Quality ; good Herbs in Physical operations , if the Physician hath skill to correct the Poysons of Mars and Saturn , they being great openers and movers of Obstructions : For the chief motion of Nature doth arise and proceed from the bitter Quality , and if it be not too violent in a thing , then it is the pleasure of every Life ; for when this Quality doth move with a gentle motion , it shakes and makes the whole Body to tremble , whence proceeds Laughter and all Mirth : It is a most pleasant quality when the sweet quality doth incorporate it self with it , and hath an equal share in the government of the Life . But on the contrary , when it doth predominate in any Creature , it is a fierce , furious , raging Quality , as is mentioned before , viz. a proud lofty Spirit and Power , endeavouring to bring all in subjection unto its self . Of the Sweet Quality . 1. In what Person soever this Quality doth predominate , it indues them with a meek friendly Life and Disposition , of a handsom , tall slender Body , of a smooth soft Skin , the Complexion White and Red , the Body not very strong , Hair soft and fine , of kind courteous Words and Behaviour ; their Fire burns but gently ; their Spirits will not endure much labour , care nor trouble ; all kinds of Intemperances are apt to inflame them : The Diseases they are subject to , are Acute Fevers , Quinsies , fumes and vapours flying into the Head on every occasion of trouble or little Intemperance ; also several Distempers are caused through superfluity of Blood , which is apt to abound in this sort of People ; also Boyls , Scabby , Pocky and Leperous Diseases , which do proceed from the inflammation of the Sweet Quality ; This sort of People ought to observe the Rules of Temperance , and Order in Meats , Drinks , Cares and Exercises ; their Food ought to be neither hot nor cold , but of a middle Nature , so also their Drink ought to be such as will suit the temperature of this sort of People , which I shall say some-what of in the Description of the Sanguine Complection , pag. 26 , 27 , &c. 2. But when the Bitter Quality is in equal strength , then it doth ( as is mentioned before ) abate somewhat of the friendly Dispositions and Inclinations of this quality ; and such People are of stronger and harder Natures , and of sharper Understandings . 3. When this Sweet Quality doth predominate in any Beast , then they are of a gentle , mild Dispositition , of a friendly Temper , of a handsom , well shap'd Body , not very strong : But when it doth predominate in any Herb or Tree , then the Body or Stalk is tall , slender , smooth and handsom , of white , yellow , ruddy Colours , of a fragrant smell , and full of Virtue ; such Herbs and Fruit may be eaten without further preparation ; and also they may be used Physically without any correction , if gathered under their proper Constellations , and ordered according to our directions in the Chapter of the preserving of Herbs . Of the Sour Quality . 1. Those that have this Quality predominant in them , are of middle Stature , rather short then tall , large Visages , fleshy and corpulent , slow in motion , of dull heavy Spirits , not apt to learn , great drinkers , subject to gross phlegmatick Humors and dropsical Diseases , not very strong nor healthy ; their Fire and natural heat burns but dully . 2. But if the Sweet Quality be joyned with this , and hath an equal share of government , then such People are of pleasant merry tempers , apt to laugh , of easy Faith , and a small occasion will move them , out of one thing into another , not fixed , nor of any depth , search or understanding , apt to speak much , but not wise , being like Children , laugh and cry all in a breath , very good to carry Tales and Stories from one to another . 3. But if the Bitter Quality doth predominate equally with this , and the Sweet weak or underneath , then such People are bestial , hard-hearted , cruel , inhuman , Swearers , Lyars , and the like , fit for all robustick , dirty , killing Imployments ; but they are of stronger Constitutions than the former , and healthier , and also of better and quicker Apprehensions , but of very ill Tempers . 4. But if the saltish or astringent quality doth predominate , and have an equal share in government , and the Sweet Quality weak , then this sort of People are not so corpulent nor fleshy , but taller and more slender of Stature , of sour Countenances and Dispositions , cunning in Words and Deeds , apt to Dissemble and Lye , they are also apt to bear Malice , having two Faces ; the Diseases they are subject to , are the Stone , Wind-Colick , Consumptions , and many windy Diseases and Infirmities ; if Temperance be wanting , many of this sort of People are also great drinkers . 5. When this Sour Quality doth predominate in any Beast , then such are of a dull , heavy Disposition and Spirit , apt to have great bellies and slow in motion : If in Horses , they are neither handsom nor free , dull Eyes and great Heads : If in Cows , their Milk is not so good as others , being thin : If in Herbs or Fruit , then their taste is some-what unpleasant , harsh and sour , and their Colour is of a dark Green. Of the Astringent or Saltish Quality . 1. When this Quality doth predominate in any Person , they are of a tall Stature , and for the most part slender , but of a swarthy , pale or muddy Complexion , rather Lean than Fat , generally of hardy strong Constitutions , and also of good Apprehensions ; when this sort of People do apply themselves to the learning of any Art , they attain to an excellent Understanding therein , being fixed in those things they resolve on . 2. But if the Bitter Quality doth equally govern in the Body and Senses , and the Sweet Quality weak , then such People are very sordid , Lyars , Swearers , Gluttons , Drunkards , inclined to all kind of robustick Plays and Games , as Ringing , Bull-baitings , Bear-baitings , to follow Drums and Fencers , and the like evil Communications , having strong Bodies , and fierce savage bestial Spirits , and abusers of Women . 3. But if the Sweet Quality doth interpose , and the Bitter and Astringent weak , then such Persons are more moderate in Words and Works , ingenious , apt to learn , of good Understandings , and of handsom healthy Bodies . 4. But if the Sour be joyned in government with the Astringent , then such People are more gross and Phlegmatick , and not so quick of Apprehension , slow of Motion , and of sordid Dispositions . 5. Also , it is to be noted , when this Astringent quality doth predominate in any Beast , then they are large , big boned , strong and heady , but not free of motion , but cunning and sullen : When in Herbs and Fruit , they are tall , but not handsom ; their taste is harsh , hard and unpleasing ; they are good against the Diseases of the Phlegmatick and Sanguin Complexions , if the Saturnine Venoms thereof be corrected . This is a short Description of the four grand Qualities , and their natural Operations : But this I would have every one consider , and be sensible that their Influences are not compelling on Men as they are on Beasts , except Men live as Beasts , viz. in the power and operation of the bestial Nature , as many Thousands do , and far worse , whence proceed those violent and cruel disorders in the World : But those who do turn the Eye of their Mind inward , and search and find themselves , and come to distinguish the secret workings of God and Nature , and hearken unto the Voice of the Divine Principle , which is the holy Oracle that will teach every one , ( in all particulars , what is right in the sight of the Lord , and the contrary ) the fear of the Lord , and the true knowledg of God in a mans self , and thereby furnish every one with virtue , strength and power to resist every evil Influence , though it proceed from the most harsh and worst of Complexions ; it will also teach him to tune and bring all the four Qualities into an equal accord , even as a skilful Musicianer composeth a harmonious consort in the variety of parts , or as he by skill tunes his Instrument ; for the most skilful Musicianer in the World can make no harmony , if his Instrument be not in tune ; all the various Notes and Tones of an Instrument most incorporate in each other , or else no Harmony can be made ; even so it is with the Qualities in a Man , it is as possible for him that hath learned himself to tune himself , and compose all the properties of Nature , and to play on them as a Musicianer doth on his Instrument ; so great is the power of Man , if he cast his Will and Desire into the divine Principle and Love of God , which is able to tincture and change the worst Complexion and convert it into its own Nature ; therefore let no man dare to say , and complain , that the Lord hath dealt hardly by him , that he hath made him of the harsh wild Nature : And though it be true , that many men , as their Natural Qualities , are sordid and wild ; yet nevertheless they have the true Tincture that can transmute and change all sorts of Metals into the finest Gold , even that very Word of the Lord that made and formed all things , which doth enlighten every man that cometh into the World , and blessed are all those that are obedient , and follow its Counsel ; of what Complexion soever they are , the Blessing of the Lord is with them . Thus having treated of the four grand Qualilies , I shall now proceed to discover the four Complexions , which proceed there from , and to what Virtues , Vices and Diseases each of them are most subject . Of the Cholerick Complexion . The Cholerick Complexion answereth to Fire , and that sort of People which are dignified with it , are of a strong Body , and lively active Spirit , quick both in doing and apprehending of any thing , free in Speech and of all other action , apt to Wrath and Passion , quickly affronted ; but because the Fire in them burns fierce , their Passions are quickly over , not subject to retain Anger , nor premeditate Revenge ; they are of a hardy strong Nature , generally of good Apprehensions , and Witty , but more or less so , according to the strength or weakness of the predominant Constellation at their Birth . If People of this Complexion do observe the rules of Temperance , and keep themselves within the bounds of Sobriety , then they are some of the Healthiest of men : But many of them are much addicted to Superfluity and Inordinate living , by reason of the strength of Nature , and their strong Heats , which do in many of them increase the desire to eat and drink beyond the power of the digestive faculty of the Stomach ; For in most People , in whom the Fire doth predominate , their attractive faculty and desire of eating and drinking is so very strong , that it prolongs the pleasure of eating and drinking many degrees beyond the Necessity of the Stomach , which does not only cause an heavy , drowsy Indisposition to follow , but sows Seed for many Diseases . Therefore as this sort of People are generally the greatest Eaters by Inclination , so ought they as much as in them lies , restrain the Extravagancies of their Appetite , and eat but sparingly , especially of rich , hot compounded spicy Food and strong Drinks , as Wine , Brandy , Tobacco , &c. For they are all Enemies to this Complexion , and very dangerous too , if Temperance be wanting ; for every sort of Food hath its operation in the Body , and on the Spirits by way of Simile : Therefore all such Meats and Drinks in this sort of People , if not sparingly taken , do too powerfully awaken the Central Heat , which ought not to be felt ; but when it is stirred up , does sometimes cause either a Suffocation or Evaporation of the vital Spirits , which will make all the external parts of the Body to burn like Fire , whilst the Center becomes as it were chill and cold ; For when the pure Spirits are wounded by any violence done to them , the Radical moisture consumed , the Oyl of Life set on Fire , which are Moderators and Qualifiers of the harsh Fires and Poysons in the Body , what can be expected but Destruction ? For when the pure Spirits of Oyl are any way wounded by Intemperance , then presently are awakened the fierce dark Fires in the Body ( the original of every Life ) which ought not to have been stirred ; for this Fire is of a churlish , angry , consuming Nature , whence those terrible Fevers do proceed . This Heat when it is kindled , which is never done but when some great violence is offered to the pure Spirit and Oyl , then the natural Life doth presently burn , and is in danger to be destroyed ; for the heat of this Original Fire is like the heat of Charcoal , whose pleasant Water and Moderator is destroyed in the making of it , whence that pleasant gleam of Light , and refreshing Quality in the Wood doth proceed ; so that in the Charcoal there does only remain the dark , fierce Sulphurous Fire , which does , when burning , send forth pernicious stupifying Fumes and Vapours , of an ill scent , burdensom to Nature ; for these Scents or Vapours do powerfully penetrate the Body by way of Simile , and search out their likeness , and incorporate therewith , whence disorders arise , especially in People of weak Nature , and that have but few Spirits : Even so it is in the Body , if the pure Spirits and Radical Moisture be through superfluity , or any other way disorder'd or weaken'd , then presently the dark original Fire is kindled , and manifesteth it self in its own form , and burns fierce like Charcoal , and then the Body falls into Distemperatures . Not but this dark fierce Fire that doth so violently burn , and discompose the Body and Mind , did possess the body before , for indeed it is the center of every Life : but so long as the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body were strong , and the Qualities of Nature had their operation in equality , this fierce sulphurous fire lay hid , or was captivated in the sweet Embraces of the Radical Moisture and pure Spirits , and restrained by their virtue and power , even as the pure Oyl and Balsamick Body in Wood doth moderate and qualifie the sulphurous Charcoal-heat , so long as the Wood remains intire , and no violence done to the sweet Oyl , which is the true Life of the Wood ; but so soon as this sweet Oyl is wounded , and becomes suffocated , as is done in making of Charcoal , then the fieree , poysonous , dark Fire of Saturn and Mars is awakened , being of a furious devilish Nature and Operation . The same is to be understood in every Vegetable , Mineral , and Animal , be it what it will ; If the pure Radical Spirits and Oyl of Life be any ways hurt , then the dark Wrath of Nature appears ; and if it be in the Human Nature , then the Body falls into terrible distempers , and cannot any way be recovered but by a powerful Medicine , able to incorporate it self with the fading Oyl and pure Spirits , and so reinforcing them with these foreign Auxiliaries , enables them to withstand and qualifie the fierce poysonous operation of the awakened dark Fire , and compel it to retreat to it s designed central obscurity . This Cholerick Complexion ought in a most special manner to observe the Rules of Equality and Temperance ; for the Original Fire which we have been speaking of , is very strong in them , and most apt on any disorders to be kindled , whence do proceed so many Violences done by this sort of People : Also , they generally love Arms and the Field , and a little exercise and custom will make fighting and killing of Men as familiar to them , as the killing of Sheep or Oxen is to Butchers : Therefore they ought to be sober , and accustom themselves to a mean in all things , as Meats , Drinks , Exercises , and especially in Communication , or in their outward Converse in the World. All sorts of Food and Drinks , that are rather inclined to Coolness than Heat , are most profitable to People of this Complexion ; and as in quality , so also ought they to be careful that they do not exceed in quantity , which they are apt to do more than any other Complexion , as aforesaid . Certainly Man being an Image of God , and Nature in him containing the true nature of all things ( which the Ancients significantly called a Microcosm , or little World ) 't is no absurdity to affirm , that he hath power to change and alter his natural Complexion , if he once come to know the Principles of himself , and can but distinguish the Principles of his own Nature , then may he preserve the pure essential Spirit from suffering violence ; and he can also by the same Eye of understanding , preserve the essential Vertues of all other things , according to that measure of Knowledge he hath of himself . Likewise , People that are dignified with this Cholerick Complexion are subject to acute Fevers , their central Heat being great , whence do proceed a powerful Life and abundance of Spirits : For in all Creatures that have their central Heat strong , the Balsamick Body and Radical Moisture is also powerful ; therefore such People can indure Labour beyond others : The same is to be understood in Vegetables , and other things , according to their Natures ; where-ever the central Heat is powerful , there also the Radical Moisture ▪ and sweet Oyl is strongest , wherein the natural Life doth burn and shine : An example we have in Wine , and in all sweet Fruits , especially in Sugar , in which things the sweet Balsamick Body and pure Spirits are potent , lively and brisk , and they do not only afford a greater quantity of Spirits when separated , but much stronger and fiercer than any other Vegetables that are of a lean Hungry Nature : Therefore People of this Complexion , tho' they are strong and brisk , yet if they commit Intemperances , that are beyond the power of the natural heat to throw off , then they are in far greater danger than those that are of a much weaker Nature and Complexion , for the Reason before assigned , which daily Examples do confirm ; as when such healthy People fall into Diseases , what terrible sharp Fevers do attend most of them , which destroy the Life in a few days ? Therefore the strongest natur'd People ought to be sober , and not lay heavier Burthens than Nature can bear ; for he that hath the healthiest and strongest Constitution may easily oppress it ; neither is it safe to put too much Confidence in their strength , nor to boast of it , or commit such out-rages against their own Natures , as many young People do in the way of Pride , to out-do their Fellows , and then glory in it : For the strongest Castle will quickly yield by continual Batteries . Of the Phlegmatick Complexion . Those in whom this Complexion is predominant , are not so quick and active either in the doing or apprehending of things as the Cholerick , but more slow and of a fofter Nature ; their central Heats are but weak in comparison of the former ; and if they incline to inordinate living , either in Meats or Drinks , or Idleness , they are apt to grow Fat , and their Bodies swell with gross phlegmatick Humours , because their natural heat is but weak , and the digestive faculty of the Stomach cannot make so perfect a Concoction as the Cholerick Complexion ; so that great part of their Food is turned into gross Juices , which fret the Body and make it heavy and dull : All sorts of strong spirituous Drinks do agree better with this Complexion than with the Cholerick , and if they do not exceed in quantity , will not so soon precipitate them into Fevers ; but if they drink much , it will swell their Bodies and Members to a wonderful bigness , as we see some , both Men and Women are ; which great drinking doth destroy the edge of the Appetite , and increases their desire to drink ; for their natural Heats and Stomachs are not able to make any profitable Concoction , nor separation of such quantities of Drink as they swallow down , whence are generated abundance of raw Humors , that do not only swell the Body as aforesaid , but load the Joynts with windy and watry Diseases , and also obstruct the passage of the Breast ; for all fat People have narrower passages than those that are lean and spare , and fetch their Breath with more difficulty , because the Vessels of the Stomach and Breast are contracted thro' the drinking of too much strong Drink , and eating too little Food ; and what they do eat , too rich in Quality . Yet is it very easie for this Complexion , and all others , to prevent Fatness and heavy Dropsical Humors , ( which many of this sort of People are subject to ) if Order and Temperance be but observed , with regard to both quality and quantity of Meats and Drinks , with proper exercise , especially in the open Air , and walking by River-sides and running Waters , which do wonderfully open the Passages , and beget and sharpen Appetite , and cause good Digestion : For tho' one Complexion is more apt to grow Fat than others , yet Experience teaches , that it is Idleness and Superfluity that is the grand cause thereof ; look amongst ordinary working-people in Country-Towns , and you shall very rarely see any of the Husband-men or Field-workers very Fat ; though in such places are People of all Complexions ; but Cities and great Towns are the Nurseries of fat Punchinello's , where there is good store of Strong Drink , and Wine , rich Food with ease and idleness . I am not ignorant that fat People have an Apology for themselves , viz. That they eat and drink less than many lean Folks : This is true ; but lean , spare , rawbon'd People have for the most part great Heats , which do digest and throw off all superfluous matter ; their Appetites are sharp and piercing ; also , they are generally of active Spirits , given to Labour and Action , which destroys all matter for Fatness : But most that are inclinable to the Phlegmatick Complexion are of contrary and colder Nature , as aforesaid , their Appetite not so sharp , nor digestive faculty so strong ; and if discretion , care and order with proper exercise , be not observed , great part of their Food and Drinks , for want of heat , is turned into gross raw Humours , which cause an heaviness on the Spirit , the Oyl from whence their Light of Life does shine , becomes of a watrish Nature ; therefore such People ought to have understanding in the ordering of their Lives , for want whereof , many do by various sorts of Intemperances destroy their Healths : Also , many will take and follow the Paths and Examples of others , which they ought not to do ; for what may be good Food for one , may be the contrary for another ; therefore every one ought to learn the degrees and power of his own Nature : For the differences of mens Constitutions are such , and their Natures so contrary , that 't is impossible to give any particular rule to fit every ones Conveniency ; so that there isa necessity for every one to see with his own Eyes ; and in this respect the Proverb is punctual truth , Every man ( to himself ) is either a Fool or a Physician . A man may speak somewhat that may be useful in a general way , and helpful to many , if minded , but the power of doing is in a man's self ; and if one do but in any tolerable degree know his own composition and the power of his own nature , he may very easily help himself , for man's Will is free ; and if he be well informed , and his Faith his own , and he do not make the ways of the Multitude to be his Rule , and their Faith his , as many do , then he may , and hath power by wisdom to alter his Complexion for the better . One of the chief causes why so many run themselves into Error and Diseases , and Death it self , is because they never look into themselves , nor observe the operations of their own Nature , but look what others do , that do they , and take the advice of every fool ( especially if he be a learned Fool ) without any examination whether it be proper or not . Meats and Drinks good for this Complexion are all sorts of drying warming things , as Bread eaten with Oyl ; let Butter be eaten sparingly ; Cheese is good , not new , but old ; also , all Gruels and Pottage that are made with quick Fires , and not too much boyled , but thin , brisk and lively ; for such things are easie to be concocted , and quick on the Stomach ; likewise all spicy Herbs , both boyled and raw in their Seasons , that is , betimes in the Spring , and again after Michaelmas , viz. in October and November ; but Flesh they ought to eat sparingly , especially from Iune to the last of October ; yet they may eat it more freely , and with less danger from December to the end of May , because in that time Cattel are generally fed with dry Food , which generates a firm Flesh , and Fat freer from slimy matter : Besides , the season being then cold , the natural heat is strong and more central , so that all Cattle do make a more perfect digestion , and their Stomachs are able to throw off all superfluous matter , which renders their Flesh far wholsomer than at any other time of the Year . Then also all Peoples Heats and Stomachs are more powerful than in Summer , which does in some degree cut off , even in the Bud , all superfluous matter . For Drinks , let the Person that is Phlegmatick use such as are of a warming nature ; good sound well-brewed Beer is better than Ale , except the Ale be thin , clear and free from that Yeasty quality that most Ale in Cities , especially in London , is subject unto ; Wine allay'd with Water , and sometimes a glass of Wine alone will do no hurt : also , moderate Exercises , and especially Field-Labours , near Fountains and Rivers , are profitable ; but over-long-lying a Bed is Injurious to this sort of People , as also soft Beds do weaken and make their Natures more tender ; hard Beds , as Quilts , and the like , are very useful for all Peoples Health , if they could be perswaded to it , but especially to the Phlegmatick Complexion ; nor should they ( as is too commonly used ) prevent the free Influences of the Air by Window shutters , and Curtains to their Beds , for the fresh clear Air is wonderful friendly and healthy to Persons of this Constitution . Of the Sanguine Complexion . Those that have the happiness to be of the Sanguine Complexion , are generally of affable sweet Temper , moderately quick in the doing and apprehending of any thing , of good understandings , but some-what inferior to the Cholerick , apt to take Affronts at small matters ; for they being of good even Humours themselves , expect the same treatment from others , hating all sordid Actions and Oppressions , either of Man or Beast , it being contrary to their Natures to deny the serving of their Neighbours , tho' it be against their own Interest ; they are quickly moved to Compassion ; and many who are strongly dignified with this Sanguine disposition , are of such yielding tempers , and so great haters of Controversie , that they chuse rather to lose their Right , than contend , being great lovers of Unity and Friendship , and very rarely the first breakers thereof ; they love to retaliate Kindnesses , and hate any should think they are of a churlish nature . But for the most part this Complexion is mixed either with the Cholerick , Phlegmatick or Melancholick , whereby much of the goodness and virtue is abated ; and so on the contrary , when this Sanguine Complexion is mixed with any of the other , it doth much abate the evil harsh Inclinations thereof . People of this Complexion have antipathy to all things that tend to inequality or discord ; the very thoughts of trouble will make some of them sick , they are so tender and delicate ; and for the same reason much Business is troublesom to them , and they quickly grow weary of it , being naturally of a cheerful disposition . Blood is apt to abound in them , and a little Intemperance either in Meats , Drinks or Labour , will disorder them ; therefore they ought above all People to observe and keep themselves within the bounds of Sobriety , because their Natures cannot bear overcharging so well as other Complexions . They are to forbear all sorts of Meats and Drinks , in which is advanc'd too highly any quality either in Virtue or Vice ; for all Extreams endanger their Health , and do not only over-heat their Blood , but generate too great a quantity of nourishment . The frequent drinking of Wine , or other strong drinks , as Brandy , Spirits , and stale strong Beer , and the common eating of Food compounded with store of Spice and Sugars , and all fat Flesh , and the like , these People ought to refrain , or use very sparingly ; for the Elements either of their Bodies or Minds will not admit of Inequality . Meats and Drinks that are good , not only to preserve Health , but also to maintain Strength , are all things in which there is no manifest Quality that doth too violently predominate ; for all such things being frequently eaten or drank , do beget their own Complexion ; that is , do awaken their Simile , and cause an unequal Operation in both Body and Spirits , which is the undoubted Root of most Diseases : This ought to be considered by all sorts of Complexions ; and if care were taken in this particular ; it would cut off many Distempers ; for Health is only maintained and continued by those things that are Equal in their parts , because every particular thing has a secret Power , ( when either eaten or drunk ) to incorporate its self with its Likeness in the Body , and to awaken and strengthen it , whence doth arise both Harmony and Discord , according to the Equality or Inequality of the Meats and Drinks received . This our daily Experience doth testifie , and no Wise Man can deny ; for all Meats or Drinks in which any particular Quality is too highly advanced , whether it be in Virtue or Vice , if frequently taken , prove prejudicial to the Health ; most People being in this particular mistaken , thinking , That if it doth exceed in Virtue , so much the better ; but that Opinion arises from want of understanding the Elements and Principles of their own Nature ; for as to be too much in the Sun , or too much in the Shade doth beget Complexions , so most Diseases are generated by the common eating and drinking those things that do contain too much Virtue , causing not only a surplusage of Nourishment , but setting Nature into an unequal Operation , which People of all Complexions ought , as much as in them lies , to prevent , but more especially the Sanguine . Food good for this sort of People , are all things of a simple Nature , wherein Bread hath the first place ; Milk , and various Dishes made thereof , sundry sorts of Herbs in their seasons , being well and naturally prepared ; also , Gruels and Pottage made of Oatmeal , being made thin , and quick boyled , are of an excellent Nature , cleansing and opening the Passages , they beget Appetite and help Concoction : For Oatmeal , is to be accounted the best of all Flour , by reason of its preparation , the body of the Grain being open'd and the inward Spirit as it were set at Liberty , and made more Volatile , as is done also in Malt , but more artificially , for the body of the Barley is opened to an higher degree , and therefore will give forth its spirit or Balsamick Body , when committed to Water , sooner than Oatmeal , which is done but by halfs in comparison of the other . There are likewise various sorts of Flesh and Fish that are of clean Nature , easy of Concoction , if well ordered , and free from Surfeits and other Uncleannesses ( which most Beasts are subject to , but few there be that consider it ) which are proper enough for Sanguine People to eat moderately of , provided the same be well prepared : For of all sorts of Food , People ought to have the greatest care of FLESH , not only in the well ordering it before it be killed , but also in seasoning of it with Salt , and in the preparing or dressing ; Flesh being more unclean in its own Nature than either Herbs , Fruits or Grains , which I suppose most People will confess , and that they are far more agreeable and friendly to Nature , and not so dangerous to Health ; nay , give me leave to add , that they are also more pleasant ; for its chiefly the continual custom of eating Flesh , and the conceit of the great Nourishment it contains beyond other things that makes men so much desire it ; which Opinion is false : most sorts of Flesh indeed are endued with much matter , but great part thereof is of a gross Phlegmy nature , which quickly will cause the whole to fall into Putrifaction , if the strong sharp fierce power of the Salt be wanting : And when it is salted , the matter for Putrifaction is so great , that the Salt cannot continue it long sweet , but so soon as the pure Radical Spirits in the Flesh , through time are either evaporated or suffocated , then the Salt hath no longer power to preserve it from Corruption . A man may as well say , that green Corn or Grass breeds better nourishment in Cattle , than either Hay or dry Corn , for indeed it generateth and fills the body fuller of gross Phlegmatick matter , and makes such Cattle heavy and dull , and great Bellies , apt to faintyness and Diseases ; but Hay and dry Corn generate a firmer Flesh , and more brisker spirits , makes them drink well , appear with moderate Bellies , but clean , strong Limbs , able to endure hard Labour without prejudice to their Health : The very same is to be understood of Flesh , if compar'd with Fruits , Herbs and Grains , and Food made of them , which do as far transcend Flesh in virtue and good sound clean Nourishment , and to preserve Health and Strength , as Hay and dry Corn do exceed either green Corn or Grass in the preservation of Strength and Health in working Cattle . All sorts of Food , either for Man or Beast , from which the Sun and Elements have exhaled or dryed away the gross phlegmatick Body , are not only cleanner , but fuller of Spirit and Life , not subject to Corruptions , but breed a firmer Nourishment , as all Husband-men and Shep-herds will tell you : Therefore Bread , Butter , Cheese , and all sorts of Food made of Flour and dried Fruits , are strong healthy Diet. Of the Melancholy Complexion . People of this Complexion , that have their Significator in their Radix weak , are slow , and of dull heavy Dispositions , subject to be surprized with fear and suspicions , apt to be froward , full of mental Reserves , seldom forgetting Injuries , hollow hearted , giving fair Words , when their Thoughts are quite contrary , addicted to Witchcraft , or fore-speaking of things , which sometimes do take place , when they have low poor Spirits to deal with , whose predominant Quality in Nature is weaker , and under the Dominion of their Spirits , otherwise not . For the awaken'd Evil and dark Wrath in this sort of People , viz. their vehement wishes or evilwords do carry the power of that Principle , whence they were conceived , and enter the same Principle in those to whom they are directed . And if those wrathful Spirits be not either through the strength of the predominant Quality in the Complexion , or through the power and virtue of the Holy Spirit and Faith in God , withstood and overcome ( which often is done ) then these Evil Rapes , viz. such Wishes and Words will take place , whether it be in Man or Beast ; for this evil , revengeful , dark Spirit not being so withstood , enters into the dark Centre and Poysons in the Body , and by simile incorporates there-with , awakening and strengthening them , and then the Body and all the Senses fall into Distress , and most terrible Diseases , according to what Poysons and Salts were kindled : This is called Witchcraft , and indeed is one sort of it ( there is another , which is not fit for this place ) and this sort of People are called Unlucky-Tongued . But on the contrary , if those People of the Melancholy Complexion be well dignified in their Radixes , then the fore-mentioned evil significations are abated ; nevertheless they are ponderous , and slow in learning and conceiving of any thing , but when once obtain'd , they make it their own , and improve it ; they are capable of great Learning , but they must have Time ; for this cause , all You ths born under such Constellations , are very dull in the beginning of their Studies , but if continued under good Masters , will in time exceed either Mercurial or Venerial Boys ; for they have greater and stronger Spirits , both to retain whatever they learn , and to endure more Pains and Labour to obtain any Science ; besides , they are not so apt to run out of one thing into another , being more fixt in the Root of their Natures : They are generally slow of Speech and Action ; naturally pensive and covetous , by reason that the Sanguine Nature ( which proceeds from Venus , Sol and Mercury ) is in this Complexion , as it were hid , or lockt up under the harsh Forms of Saturn and Mars , under whom such as are born , are apt to be Hard-hearted , full of Revenge , Covetous , &c. not but that they are endued with the Sanguine Nature , as well as those born under Venus , Mercury , or the Sun ; but the same is Captivated , as aforesaid , under the harsh Forms , which is the chief cause People do so much differ in their Tempers . But if you can unlock this Saturnine Cabinet , and set the Spirit at Liberty , as the Maulster does in his Saturnine Grain , viz. Barley , enfranchizing the pure Balsamick Spirits that sweeten the whole Body , you will find it debonair and jovial , and of a very agreeable Conversation : The Truth is , Strong Beer , Ale , Wine , or any spirituous Drinks freely taken , will melt down this sullen Saturnine Gravity into Mirth and Gaity ; for we daily see how free and merry such People will be , if at any time they have tipled a little extraordinarily , during the time of the Operation of their Liquor . For strong Drinks make all sorts of People more free , and to forget sorrow , because they open the gross Body , and cause the Spirits to have their free Operation ; the said Drinks being Spirituous , incorporate with its simile , viz. with the spirit , and makes it for the present more powerful ; but when the Operation of such spirituous Liquors are over , then both the Saturnine and other People return to their Natural Dispositions , but with fewer Spirits , which causeth a dull heaviness to attend most , after such Drinkings , because the Internal heat and spirits are too violently awakened , and stirred up , which caused them to evaporate ; and thence proceed Indispositions and Disorder . Great Drinkings are injurious to the Health of most that use that Trade , only this Saturnine People may sometimes drink a Cherping Glass or two , without any danger to their Health , especially when they come to forty years of Age ; for before , all sorts of strong Drink ought to be drank sparingly by such as regard their Health . It is also to be noted , that not only strong Drinks , but all other things , have an Operation on the Spirits and Bodies of Men , whether Meats , Drinks , Air , Exercise , or Communication ; were it not so , Man could not be altered within for better or worse : But what a sensible change do we find in our selves many times , between a dull heavy Day , and a brisk , clear Sun-shiny Morning ? Every thing , be it what it will , has a power of influencing and varying us ; which the Apostle seems to take notice of , when he saith , Evil Communication corrupts good manners ; and the Psalmist , where he affirms , With the Froward thou shalt learn Frowardness : The Original of all good or evil Tempers , and natural Inclinations , are according to the Nature of that form and property that did predominate at the Conception and Birth , and are made either better or worse , according to the good or ill Custom of the Place , and People they communicate with , or the Imployments they are put to , and the Meats , Drinks , Exercises , and Air they are used to . Take two Youths , one of the Sanguine Complexion , the other of the Cholerick , put the first to a Butcher , Car-man , Waterman , or any such robustick Trade ; the second to a Shop-keeper , Merchant , or some such neat Profession , and in a little time the Sanguine Lad will become more Cholorick , and the Cholerick more Sanguine . But note ; there is a two-fold possibility of altering and changing either for the better or the worse : First , Natural ; as the free Will shall consent to either Evil or Good , one being as near to man as the other , who being a compleat Image or Epitome of all things , their true Natures being contained in him , therefore he is both capable and liable to be influenced and wrought upon by every thing it meddles or communicates with , as is seen in Soldiers , most of them , when raw , and at t● first Fight , are timerous , and very apprehensive o 〈…〉 ger ; but after they are once flesht in Blood and Slaughter , they become unconcerned and remorsless , and can kill men with as little trouble or regret of Mind , as a Butcher does Sheep and Oxen , without having any particular Quarrel or Enmity , but even in cold Blood ; so great is the Power of Imployment : For as Fighting and Killing of men is the work of the fierce Wrath of God in men , and so soon as you consent with your Will to enter upon this wrathful Imployment , the center of the dark strong Wrath is awakened , and by a little custom and use , it becomes ten-fold stronger than at first ; then all doing as one would be done unto , and Tenderness and Compassion are laid aside , as if never any such Notion or Principle had been planted in Man. The very same happens in other Imployments , that Quality which therein predominates , awakens and strengthens its Simile ; for which reason , in former Ages , some that have written Romances and Love-stories in a passionate and pleasing Style , and lively Representation , have been banisht for their labour , their Works proving of very evil and fatal Consequence to Young and Amorous Minds ; for all Books , be they what they will , do bear the Image and Figure of the Spirit of him that wrote them , and so much the more , as the Imagination of the Author is more strong , which in this sort of Writers and Poets , &c. use to exceed ; and if such Books be read with attention and inclination , then they awaken and strengthen such a like Propensity in the Reader as was in the Writer , be it either good or evil . Therefore the perusal of all Play-Books , Romances and Love-stories , have , and do prove very injurious to such as mis-spend their time therein ; it is like playing with Edge-Tools , at first they are innocent , and think no harm , that look into them , but after a while , if it take with their Affections , the case is altered , they make a real change in the whole Bod●● ●nd Mind ; the Thoughts are all taken up with tho● 〈…〉 itching Idea's , and thay prove leading Cards to many real Evils and Temptations : The Son must needs fall in Love with , and Marry the Chamber-maid , and the young Lady run away with the Coach-man ; or the more impertinent Chaplain , only to act over some of those fine Intrigues which they admired with such delight in Sidney's Arcadia , or the grand Cyrus . 'T is sottish Ignorance that makes some say , What hurt can these external things or Food , Communication , &c. do unto us ? For they never consider , that every thing has power to open its own Principle ; the understanding of which ground , was the Original cause of Moses's Law of Cleanness and Separation , and the occasion of the Abstinence of all the wise Men in former Ages from this or the other sort of Food , Drinks , Habits and Communications , for they saw the inward Power and Sympathetick Drawings of every thing ; and therefore wise Pythagoras , the better to draw the wild barbarous Nations to the practice of this profound Philosophy , insinuated into them the belief of a Transmigration , or shifting of the Souls of Men , when they dyed , into other Creatures , as Cows , Horses , or the like ; with which Opinion being once possest , they would neither oppress , nor kill any sort of Beasts or living Creatures ; for then they believed they should do Violence to their departed Friends , viz. Fathers , Mothers , Children , &c. Through which Conceit and Custom they were not only much brought off from their former Cruelty and Barbarity , but betook themselves to the more wholsom eating of Fruits , Herbs and Grains , so that this wild savage People became Merciful and full of Humanity : And some of this sort of People do continue this Custom and Law unviolated to this day in some parts of the East-Indies . 2dly , The Grace , holy Light and Love of God , of which the Lord hath given a measure or portion to every individual Person ; as St. John saith , The Word of God which made all things , and without it nothing was made ; this same Word is the LIGHT OF MEN , and doth enlighten every man that cometh into the World ; This pure Spirit of Life hath power to tincture and change all evil Inclinations and harsh Tempers , which do arise from the malignant Configurations of the predominant Constellations and Complexions , if man gives up his Will , and is guided by its Counsel : This holy Light and Word is the Essential Life and Living Power of all things , the Eye of the Mind , by which man is able to distinguish the Good from the Evil in himself , and also in all other things , according to the measure he hath thereof , and the knowledg he hath of himself : It is also the true Balsamick Virtue , from whence all Friendlyness doth proceed , not only in Man , but in all other things according to their respective Degrees and Natures ; is likewise the Moderator and Qualifier of the fierce , fiery , harsh Brimstone Spirit ; and in what Complexion soever this pure Life and Power does predominate , that Person , by virtue thereof becomes of an equal friendly Temperament , both in Body and Mind ( notwithstanding his Complexion may incline him to the contrary ) it being the sweet pleasant Life in all Creatures : And the pure Balsamick Virtue and healing Quality in all Vegetables and Minerals hath its Birth and Original from this good Principle ; nor can there be any central Rest , or true Satisfaction in man , if this Principle of divine Light be not in some degree predominant ; for by its pleasant and sweet Influences all the fiery dark fierce Inclinations ( which often do arise from the Complexion ) are qualified , made more Friendly and Sanguine , if its counsel be regarded . All true Religion , doing as one would be done unto , Offices of Love and Acts of self-denyal , all Friendly and Courteous Deportment , and whatsoever hath the Name and Nature of Virtue , do universally spring up from this holy Principle of divine Love : All men seek it , because no man can have satisfaction without it , some in a right Way , others in a wrong ; and whosoever have wasted or suffocated the sweet Influences of this pure Spirit and Love of God , become thereby a Charcoal Spirit , whose sweet Water is destroyed , viz. Twice dead , and pluckt up , as it were , by the Roots , as the Apostle phraseth it , they growing of a fierce , terrible , fiery Nature , seared up in the harsh , dark original , as Lot's Wife was , because she looked back , viz. into the Original and salt Spirit , the Pillar of Salt signifying the great strength and power of God's Wrath , which was then kindled by reason of Transgression . The very same is to be understood of all Beasts of the Field , and other things ; not so indeed as it is in man , but according to the Nature of each . For those Creatures that did in the Creation arise from , and were chiefly compounded of the fierce harsh forms of Nature , whose predominant Quality stands in the Saturnine and Martial Fire , have but small portions of the Virtue and Light of this World ; for the pleasant Virtue and friendly Qualities , which the Principle of this visible World gives unto all her Children , do all proceed from the Internal Spiritual World , and this outward Principle is an Image and Likeness of the Internal ; the Invisible Spirit and Powers , are the Root of the Visible ; and whatsoever is manifested in this World in Figures , Shapes and Forms , the very same hath the Internal Spiritual Principle in Power and Virtue . And according to the degrees of the Spirit , and what property of Nature was predominant in the Radix of each Creature , such a Shape , Form , Inclination , Complexion and Disposition the Creature is endued with , be it either Animal or Vegetable ; for the Body was formed by the virtue and power of the Spirit , and there is both the nearest Affinity and Resemblance between them , as is manifest by all Creatures , in whom the dark Wrath of Saturn and Mars was predominant in their Radixes ; they are not only of an unclean , fierce terrible Spirit , but their Figures and Shapes are unpleasant and fierce , as Lyons , Tygars , Wolves , Swine , and many others , both in the Elements of Earth , Air and Water , that are unclean Devourers , and Creatures of prey , killing and feeding upon their fellow Creatures ; and as such Creatures are unclean in their Radixes , whence their Inclinations and Desires to unclean Food do proceed , as bearing the nearest Affinity with their Natures ; so their Figures , Shapes and Forms , with their suitable Inclinatious , do clearly manifest what matter they proceeded from in their Creation . This Root , the great and illuminated Prophet Moses understood by a divine manifestation , whence his Law proceeded , wherein he prohibits his People the Iews from eating of unclean Food , both Flesh and Fish , with many other Circumstances tending to Cleanness ; for that great Prophet saw by a divine and natural understanding , into the Essences and Original Qualities of every Creature , and that each thing hath a secret Power to incorporate with its Likeness , and to make that Quality strong , which in the Radix was weak , and lay as it were hid : And on the contrary , to hide and make that property weak , which in the Radix was strong ; so great is the power of Nature ; and this is not only done in the Evil , but also in the Good : Therefore all men have power , more or less , to alter and change their Inclinations and Complexions , either for the better or the worse , as they give their Wills up to practise either Good or Evil. But if People abandon themselves to their natural Inclinations , and live under the power and dominion of their Complexions , and by degrees give way to Intemperance and Evil Communications , such do oftentimes become of far worse Inclinations and Dispositions than their Complexions naturally tended unto : And on the contrary , some there are , who by the power of their Wills rigorously pursuing the Paths of Vertue and Understanding , become more Friendly , and of better Tempers than their Complexions promise : For the natural Inclinations and Influences of the Stars , have not power to captivate the Soul in Evils , if the Will gives it self up to be guided by the Holy Spirit of Iesus Christ , which will lead a man into all Vertue , and all Truth . CHAP. II. Of the Excellency of Temperance , the Knowledg of a Mans self , and the mighty Benefits of Abstinence and Sobriety . TEmperance is a divine Gift , and whosoever obtaineth the perfect Government and Knowledg of himself , is endued with the springhead of all Virtues : The fear of the Lord being the first step to all true Wisdom , both Spiritual and Natural . The Root of all Knowledg that man is capable of , is in himself : Therefore if any will understand any thing truly , he must first turn the Eye of his Mind inward , not outward , as the custom of most is ; for Man is an Image and Likeness of all things , both Spiritual and Natural ; in him is contained the true Nature of all things , and he that doth know and understand himself , and the Principles and Operations of his own Nature both in Body and Mind , and what Properties in the seven-fold Nature of this World are predominant in him , and to what his Inclinations are most naturally propensive , both as to Virtue and Vice , he may thereby not only shun many Inconveniencies , but also so much as he knows of himself , he also knows of his Creator , and of all other things . And so on the contrary , he that doth not know and distinguish the Principles of God and Nature in himself , does neither see nor know any other thing as he ought : Therefore all such who are ignorant of themselves , are subject to be changed and altered out of one Opinion into another , always leaning hard on the Shoulders of Custom , supporting their Ignorance with the truth of Tradition , having one of their Eyes , if not both , amongst the Multitude . But all true sight in divine and natural things does arise and proceed from the unalterable divine Principle or Gift of God ; for the natural man , as he is wholly blind as to things divine , so neither does he see even into Natural things any otherwise than a Beast , beholding the outward Substance , but knowing nothing of the inward Power of the Spirit ; or if such do understand any thing further or more than Beasts , it is either by Chance or Custom : But when the Eye of a man's understanding is opened in the true Spirit , he then seeth into his own Essence and Properties , and by the same sight has a prospect into the Nature of all other things , more especially if he be one that is born with a Nature adapted for the comprehension of such things . For this reason it is said — The spiritual man discerneth all things , even the deep things of God ; but nothing hurts and hinders man more from obtaining the true Knowledg of God and Nature in himself , than his looking abroad out of himself , imagining that Wisdom and Understanding is to be found and learned in and from some other thing ; neither do many consider that worthy saying of the Apostle , avouching , That whatsoever may be known of God is manifest in man ; not without Man , but within himself : Man is that City the Wise man speaks of , In whose Gates Wisdom cryes ; but if man will be gazing abroad , and not regard the inward Voice in the Heart , ( as most do not ) then he can never come to any true Judgment either in things Divine or Natural , because the Foundation of all Wisdom and Right-knowledg is within a mans self . Let us appeal to common Reason : How is it possible , if a man do not observe the particular principles and Operations of his own Nature , that he should observe and understand those of other things , whose Motions and various Operations he is more remote from , and doth not feel ? Therefore if a man would know how to rule , govern and preserve any Creature , or thing , this Wisdom and Knowledg must be first Essential in himself , and to understand in particular what things are Extream in him , and the contrary , which will much help in the way of Temperance and Moderation , with a due consideration had to the nature of the Food , the Age , Air , Imployments , &c. And also the Quantities of all those things ought to be regarded , and not to heap together too much ; this being a sure Rule of Health , if a man finds himself as lightsom and brisk after Meats and Drinks , or rather more than he was before : For the intention of Food is to Refresh Nature , and not to dull , oppress , and incommode her , as most in this particular do , especially those whose natural Heats are great , and Appetites strong . But full Meals , and too frequent use of rich Food and strong Drinks do breed too much Nourishment , which is the Original of many Diseases ; it furs and stops the Passages , generates too much Blood , and thick dull Spirits , which makes the Body heavy and lumpish , and by awakening the central Heat , causes the external parts of the Body to glow with an unnatural Flame , which obstructs the powers , so that the pure thin sweet Vapours of the Air ( which are the Refreshing Zephiri of Nature ) cannot penetrate them as they are wont to do , when the Elements of the Body are free from disorder , for then they suck them in like Spunges , which renders the Body full of Spirits , brisk , vigorous and sprightly as Virgins at a Wedding , or Boys at a Festival . But this pleasant Condition is never felt when the Body is over-fraight with Nourishment , and like a Lamp ready to be extinguisht by superfluity of Oyl ; therefore solemn Feasts , and set times for Meals , and eating and drinking whether they have Appetites or no , and other Circumstances that attend them , are Friends to Gluttony , but mortal Enemies both to Temperance and Health , when People deluge down various sorts of rich Food and Cordial Drinks in a formal Method , sitting perhaps two Hours , inticing one another to Gormandize and Guzle , not only beyond Necessity , but even above the Power of Nature : And yet not content , after they have already exceeded all bounds of Temperance with strong Foods , then with Wine , various sorts of Fruits , Tarts , Sweet-meats , and a thousand Kickshaws enricht with the East and West-Indies Ingredients , of themselves more than sufficient for a sober and temperate Meal ; in the mean time few do consider the Injuries hereby done both to Body and Mind ; for this variety hath power to prolong the pleasure of the wanton Pallate , beyond the need of Nature , or ability of the Digestive faculty . For every particular thing opening by Simile its like property in the Stomach , it comes to pass when a Person has eaten to the full , and to the satisfaction of the Pallate of one thing ; nevertheless when another of a contrary nature and taste comes , the Appetite is awakened , and he can with pleasure fall too again , and so of several Varieties , the Invention whereof at one Meal was meerly to gratifie Luxury , by prolonging the pleasure of the Pallate , which could not be done with simple Meats and Drinks : Not but that a man may eat several sorts of Food and Drinks at one Meal , without injury to Health , but then they must be Homogenial , that is , agreeable to each other ; and also he that so eateth , must as the Wise man adviseth — Put a Knife to his Throat , which very few in this Age do observe : But of this we shall speak more hereafter . As Abstinence and Sobriety does always fortifie the Observers thereof against many Evils , so they make the Body pleasant , healthful , and fit to discharge all its Functions , and prepare the mind to be the Temple of the Lord , as St. Paul calls it . Those that take Meats and Drinks only for the necessity of Nature , and observe that the Food be not stronger than she , but on the contrary , she stronger than it , such have for the most part great Spirits , and but little Flesh ; whereas Gluttons have much Flesh and little Spirits . Have not all the holy Prophets and renowned Law-givers from the beginning , been Persons of a wonderous Sobriety and Temperance , as Moses and Elias , who fasted forty days , and yet the Face of Moses shined , and he could guide his Body as if it had been a Spirit ? And several other ( indeed all ) holy men endued with divine understandings , have been remarkable for their Temperance : For the Spirits of men are not Earthly things , to receive their Nourishment through the Organs by the concoction of Meats and Drinks only , but derive their purer Aliment like Spunges through the whole Body , from the clear thin Vapours of the Air , which do powerfully penetrate the Body on all sides , but are hindred through superfluity of Meats and Drinks ; and so the Spirits in the Body , for want of being found with these refreshing Gales , become thick , and as it were suffocated . For this cause most that abandon themselves up to Gluttony and Epicurism seldom attain to Old Age , or if by means of an extraordinary tough Constitution they do rub out , 't is with Tortures and Misery , their Bodies being as full of Diseases as an Hospital . But on the contrary , many of the Sober and Temperate men have lived to great Ages , and yet very free from Distempers , with mean and spare Food , whence does proceed a cool airy Pleasantness , the sweet Influences of all the Elements freely courting the Body , which renders the Spirits many in Quantity , and fine in Quality , and thence arises lightsomness to the Body , and vigour to the Mind . The truth of this men may experience , if they will but give themselves the leisure to reflect , and consider , whether or no they do not before Meals , ordinarily find themselves pleasant and lightsom in Body and Spirits , but after they have indulged their Appetites with an overplenteous feeding , the one is heavy , and the other dull ; whereas had they but eaten temperately of simple Food , it would not only have continued their strength , but also refreshed their Spirits ; for the pure Spirit is the true Life , Pleasure , Delight , and Beauty of every Creature according to the Nature of each , and causeth the sweet Oyl to burn friendly , and shine with a comfortable Ray , if it be not wounded by disorders : This Spirit being so Volatile , and surpassing pure , that it will not endure the least Violence ; for when any Injury is offered to it , it either becomes evaporated or suffocated , and then presently the Vigour and Beauty of that thing faileth , be it either Animal or Vegetable . Therefore those that do regard the Health of the Body and Mind , ought to preserve the Spirit free and potent , which must be done by Sobriety , Gentleness and Temperance in Meats , Drinks and Exercises . The Prophet Daniel and his Companions were sensible of this , when they were courted , and also threatned with the displeasure of the King and his Servants , if they would not eat of the various sorts of Flesh and Fish that came from the King's Table ; but Daniel intreated leave to continue that clean simple Food they had accustomed themselves unto , viz. Herbs , Grains and Fruits , and pure Water for Drink . Should not we in this Age be ready to count a man a Fool , and out of his Senses , that should refuse Royal Delicates from the King's Table , and chuse to live upon such mean course Fare ? But Daniel did with a Divine Eye see into the Radix of all such things , and understood their sympathetical Operations , and therefore chose the most simple harmless Commons ; for by compounding many rich things together , especially such as contain the Animal and Bestial Nature , all such things lose their Simplicity , and the true Life and pure Spirits of each become adulterated and changed , and being destitute of its proper Virtues , becomes of another operation , which hath an evil Influence on our Bodies and Spirits , whence proceed those frequent Infirmities in most that live in the height of Dainties , the same being neither well-pleasing to God nor Nature . But on the contrary , was not the sober , clean and abstemious Livers of the Rechabites well-pleasing to the Lord ? And did not the Prophet Ieremiah call them up into the House of the Lord as a Reproach to the Children of Israel , for that they had faithfully kept the Commandments of their Father , and observed the Rule of Moderation , and contented themselves with pure Water for drink , and with mean and simple Food , and therefore he promises them , That the Sons Jonadab should never want a man to stand before the Lord : 'T is most certain the Lord hath been and is near all those that live in Temperance and Simplicity . Therefore the Apostle saith , Let your Moderation be known unto all men , the Lord is at hand . The Prophet Iohn contented himself with Locusts and wild Honey , of whom our Saviour Christ saith , That there was not a greater Prophet born of a Woman : Also , Iames the Brother of our Lord , was eminent for his Abstinence ( as Eusebius reports ) insomuch that he eat no Flesh , drank no Wine nor strong Drink , and wore no Woollen Garment , but Linnen , which is of a cleaner Radix than the other ; for Woollens do retain the Bestial Nature , as you may more manifestly perceive by the smell , if you burn them , no washing or other cleansings will purge them from that fulsom Quality which they send forth when burnt . Now this stinking Nature , so long as it continued entire , was hidden or captived , but the fire opens the gross body , and manifests the Root ; for this cause the Prophets and holy men have so often said , That the Saints and People of the Lord should be cloathed in white Linnen ; and the Priests of the Lord were to ware a Linnen Ephod ; for all Vegetives are indued with a simple innocent Nature and Operation , and therefore they have been compared to the divine Nature , because they bear some affinity unto it . Those that would have their Spirits pure and potent must use clean Food , which will extenuate the gross superfluous humours , by which the Body becomes easily penetrable ; and he that doth not preserve his body clean , the pure Spirit becomes , as it were , suffocated , whence proceeds an heavy Dullness that is not only burdensom , but hinders all Meditations , and makes the Soul uncapable of every good Work ; but Abstinence and Temperance do dignifie a man , and render him fit for the Exercise of Virtue and Piety , and is the Root of strength and fortitude . As the Mother of Sampson was commanded by the Angel of the Lord , To abstain from Wine and strong Drink , during the time of her being with Child , so was Sampson her Son , whom the Lord endued with wonderful strength ; but when he gave himself up to Wine and strong Drink , and other Intemperances , he lost all Power and Virtue , and became weak both in Body and Mind , and a prey to his Enemies . And is it not so in our days ? Of most of the Miseries and Troubles man ensuares himself , is not Superfluity a main cause ? Where-ever we see Vice , there is also Intemperance ; and where we see Temperance and Abstinency , we may justly expect other Virtues , because no superfluous matter is bred that may dull or indispose the Fancy , the Soul being watchful in Words and Works , and also keeping the Body under , which by the Power and Virtue of Temperance is subjected to the Influences of the Light and Love of God. Temperance , Cleanliness and Abstinence have greater power over the Soul and Body than most in our days imagine . Did not our fore-Fathers live to wonderful Ages in perfect Health , their Food in those days being chiefly Herbs , Fruits and Grains , and pure Wattr their Drink ? They did not make their Stomachs the Barial-places of dead Bodies , but their Meat and Drink was innocent and simple , by which they were able to check and regulate the extravagant motions of the Mind and insurrections of the Flesh : Hence some of the Antients have delivered it as a Maxim , That none could understand God and his Works , and enjoy perfect Health and long Life , but those that abstain from Flesh , Wine and Vices , bounding their Desires according to the Ends and Necessities of Nature . For where Uncleanness and Intemperance reigns , the Soul is subjected with the Body that it cannot discern things Coelestial ; but Sobriety and Purity of body and mind renders it the Temple of God , wherein his blessed Spirit delights to dwell , and communicate its Gifts and Graces . Most men will in words confess , that there is no blessing this World affords comparable to Health , yet rarely do any of them value it as they ought to do , till they feel the want of it . To him that hath obtained this goodly Gift , the meanest Food , even Bread and Water is most pleasant , and all sorts of Labour and Exercise delightful ; but the contrary makes all things nauseous and distasteful : What are full-spread Tables , Riches and Honours to him that is tormented with Distempers ? In such a condition men do desire nothing so much as Health ; but no sooner is that obtained , but their thoughts are changed , forgetting those solemn Promises and Resolutions they made to God and their own Souls , going on in the old road of Gluttony , taking little or no care to continue that which they so much desired when they were deprived of it . Happy it were if men did but use the tenth part of that Care and Diligence to preserve their minds and bodies in Health , as they do to procure Money and Riches , which many never obtain , and those that do , it serves them chiefly to procure those Dainties and Superfluities , which do generate Diseases , and is the cause of committing many other Evils , there being but few men that do know how to use Riches as they ought : For there are not many of our wealthy Dons that ever consider , that as little and mean Food and Drink will suffice and maintain a Lord in perfect Health as the poorest Peasant , and render him more capable to enjoy the benefit of the Mind , and pleasures of the Body , far beyond all Dainties and Superfluities . But alas ! the momentary Pleasures of the Throat - Custom Vanity , &c. do insnare and intice most People to exceed the Bounds of Necessity or Convenience ; and many fail through a false Opinion or Mis-understanding of Nature , childishly imagining that the richer the Food is , and the more they can cram into their Bellies , the more they shall be sterngthened thereby ; but experience shews to the contrary , for are not such People as accustom themselves to the richest compounded Foods , and most cordial Drinks , generally the most Infirm and Diseased ? For all such things contain great store of Virtue , and ought to be eaten between whiles , according to Reason and Experience ; for when the Mouth of the Stomach is open , the pleasant relish of such dainty Food does so intice and encrease the desire of eating and drinking beyond what is needful , that a man may eat too much , and yet give off with some little Appetite , of which we may be sensible by that general dulness and Indisposition which we find in our selves for two or three Hours afterwards . People are much mistaken in thinking , That so long as the Appetite desires , and the pleasure of eating continues strong , they may eat on without damage to their Health . But the truth is , this is one of the chief Reasons why men are Gluttons , and there is but little difficulty in Temperance save only in this particular , it being somewhat hard for an healthy good stomach'd man to give off eating in the midst of the Pleasure he receives by it , especially when Meats by Art are made on purpose , not only to prolong the Pallate , but also to delight it . But to him that uses himself to simple Meats and Drinks , the snare of provoking the Pallate , beyond the necessity of Nature , is removed , for such cannot intice Nature out of her way , nor awaken any other Properties or Appetites in the Stomach but its own Likeness ; whereas varieties of Food do stir up as many various Qualities in the Stomach ; so that there is still a fresh desire to each thing , till Nature is over-cloy'd . And therefore Varieties are always dangerous , if great Care and Temperance be not observed . But he that limits his Desire by Wisdom , and has the understanding both of the Quality and Quantity , may eat of sundry sorts of Food at one time , but the ignorant and unwise very rarely do it without prejudice to their Health . As the pleasure of Temperance , and the many benefits that follow Sobriety cannot be imagined by those that live Riotous Lives , so neither can the sweet influence thereof ( especially the first ) be enjoyed without some Trouble to Old Adam . There must be Self-Denial in the case , and a man must live in this World as if he were Alone ; for there is but little Company in the ways of Sobriety : When a man comes once to espouse them in earnest , presently most of his Friends and Acquaintance will suspect and condemn him as a Conceited , Whimsical Capricious Fellow , or a kind of Mad-man , because he will not run with them to the same Excess and Riot . For the Flesh and Spirit of this World have no Affinity with Sobriety and Temporance , proceeding from Fountains , whose Waters are of quite contrary Nature to others ; the one being clear and pure , which purgeth and cleanseth , preserving both the Body and Spirit in perfect Health ; the other being defiled with many Superfluities , destroys the Health of both . Therefore he that would enjoy the true Pleasures , and flourish in the Virtues that attend Sobriety , ought to be as strong as Sampson was in his innocent Life , that he may be able to cut off all superfluity in the Bud ; For it is not that which goeth into a man ( as our Saviour Christ saith ) but that which proceeds out of him . For all kinds of Intemperance are first conceived in the Heart , and if such Imaginations are not cut off or overcome by Wisdom and Temperance , then they grow strong , and become as it were essential ; and when the Spirit and Understanding of a man is captivated , then a man becomes a Tyrant to himself , and a perfect Slave to Gluttony , being defiled by every thing , Meats , Drinks , Words and Works , as the Wise man saith , Even the plowing of the Land is Evil to the Wicked ; for all Uncleanness and Defilements that happen either to the Body or Soul , do arise and proceed from Within : And if such lewd Desires , Opinions and Customs were cut off in the bud , then neither Body nor Soul would be hurt by supurfluity of Meats , Drinks , or any other thing ; for every man that commits any Intemperance , be it what it will , acts it first Within , and makes it substantial in the Spirit , and then it becomes Corporeal ; for the Body is forced to obey the dictates of the Spirit , whether good or evil ; for this cause Christ saith , That nothing that went into a man defiled him ; for he pointed , and had an Eye to the Root , whence all Evils and Intemperances arise : His Words are Spiritual , and not otherwise to be understood ; for he makes no exception , but saith , NOTHING that goeth into a man , defileth him . Which words , should they be taken in a Carnal ense , then our dayly Experience shews the contrary ; for many thousands are destroyed both by Quantity and Quality of Meats and Drinks ; but they are first defiled in the Root of their Spirits . But on the contrary , no Meats or Drinks have power to hurt or defile that man whose Heart and Desires are governed and moderated by Wisdom ; and therefore saith the Apostle , From whence proceed Wars and Fightings , all Lusts , false Imaginations and Intemperances ? Do they not all proceed from within ? For if a man be ignorant of the true Nature of things , his Understanding and Soul darkened , then he is subject to be defiled by every thing ; for if the Nature of things be not discerned nor distinguished by the Spirit , such are always liable to be defiled by every sort of Food or Drink , either in Quantity or Quality ; For where Ignorance governs , the extravagant Desires are not bounded . For , first , Every man is defiled by his desires and imaginations , as our Saviour Christ saith in another case , He that looketh on a Woman , and lusteth , is defiled thereby ; the very same is to be understood of all other Uncleannesses , both of Body and Mind , only the Evils and Defilements are greater when a man proceeds to put in practice those things which he first conceived within by Imaginations ; for no outward Uncleanness could ever hurt any man , if the inside were kept clean . If Understanding , and the pure Spirit govern within , then all unclean Desires and Imaginations are , as it were , cut off in the bud , and not suffered to proceed to a substance , and then a man is not desiled either by that which goes out , nor by any sorts of Meats , Drinks , or other things that gointo the Body . And so on the contrary , when the evil corrupt Nature is awakened , and has gotten the inward Government , then all the Desires and Imaginations are formed , and do proceed from the evil Principle , which first defiles the Soul , and then afterwards the Body . This is the very Root and Foundation of all Uncleanness , Superfluity and Intemperance ; for every property in Nature must be supported and fed on its own Food : Hence all sorts of Animals , whose predominant Quality and Ascendent chiefly proceeds from the wrathful and unclean Nature , do desire a proportionable Food , viz. raw flesh and Sordities : But on the contrary , those Animals whose Dignifications and chief Quality stands in and proceeds from the clean Nature , such Creatures also do desire clean Food : The same is to be understood in the humane Nature , according to the Principle or Property that is awakened and most predominant , so is the man either clean or unclean , good or evil , from thence are all his Desires and Imaginations framed . Thus we see that Cleanness and Sobriety in Meats , Drinks , Exercises , &c. have a greater Virtue and Excellency in them , than People think ; for their power proceeds from an inward Principle , and they endow their Observers with the Riches both of Time and Eternity ; for Temperance makes all her Lovers truly sensible of God's blessings ; How sweet is every mean thing to the sober mind ? And how ready are such men to give the Lord Thanks and humble Acknowledgments for his Mercies ? They see , feel and taste the most pleasant operation of the divine Hand in all things , their Bodies are delighted with the meanest of Food , their Minds satisfied , their Beds easie , and their sleep sound ; they are not subject to indispositions , nor molested with Fevers ; their Heads are not dulled with Fumes , nor their Stomachs oppressed with fainting Fits or windy griping Humours ; they rise as fresh as the Morning Sun , and are fit for all Exercises both of the Body and Mind ; their Radical Moisture flows freely throw every part , like a pleasant gale of Wind , which moderates the central Fires , that they burn not too violently . But this excellent state it not obtainable without Self-denial , and suffering now and then a little gentle Hunger , which cleanseth the Stomach and Passages from all superfluous Matter , frees the Spirits from all Imperfections , prevents all Obstructions , and preserves Health far better than any Physical Evacuations : It hath a certain Occult Quality , for the digestive Faculty and natural Heat is never idle ; therefore when the Stomach is not filled with superfluity of Food and often eating , it draws away all the superfluous matter that furs and stops the Passages , and which were apt to cause shortness of Breath , send troublesom Fumes and Vapours to the Crown , hinder the free Circulation of the Blood , and make the spirits impure . These Evils , and many others , Temperance and moderate Fastings do prevent ; the Stomach naturally drawing this phlegmy Substance out of all the Vessels and Passages , when Meats and Drinks come not too quick , and casts the lighter part thereof upwards , and the more gross heavier parts downwarns into the Bowels ; for this reason when a man does fast a little longer than ordinary , he will feel a kind of a gnawing or disorder in his Stomach for a little time , and then it will cease , and after some space do so again ; the occasion of which is this , the natural Heat does very powerfully draw matter unto it self for Sustenance , but finding no proper Nourishment , makes a separation of the gross phlegmy substance that lodges in the Vessels of the Stomach , and casts it forth , both upwards and downwards , and having done this , craves afresh for more work , and more proper matter of Aliment . Nor should a little Trouble ( thwarting our Humours , debaucht with ill Customs and Wantonness ) or some small Inconveniencies divert us from getting our selves possest of this Jewel Temperance , the true Philosophers-Stone , which turns all into the Golden Elixir of Health , Content and Serenity , since we see none of the little perishing Goods of this World are to be obtained without trouble and difficulty ; do not Youths serve seven years , enduring hard Labour and many other Inconveniencies for a Trade , whereby to get an outward Livelihood ? Do not Men Travel by Sea and Land through a thousand Miseries , even to the hazarding of their Lives and Liberties for Meat , Drink and a little Rayment ? And those few that do obtain their desired ends , if Temperanee be wanting , the enjoyment of them proves not only burdensom , but so full of Snares , that they had better been without them ; for Plenty has destroyed more than Necessity ( some say , than the Sword ) the one having wherewithal to gratifie his superfluous desires , and so destroy himself , which the other has not . What a deal of pains and charge are People at to please their Liquorish Pallates ? The Indies must be sent to for Rarities , and the utmost parts of the Earth for Dainties ; such abundance , such variety provided , as if all the Beasts and Fowls in Noah's Ark , with an addition of all the Fishes in the Waters , and Vegetables of Earth , were scarce enough to furnish one Luxurious Board ! And then what Curiosity in Sawces ? What fantastick Humors for Dressing ? The more extravagant and unnatural , the more genteel , and acceptable forsooth ! Whereas those things that are necessary to support and preserve the Body in perfect Health , are easily procurable , of small Charge , soon made ready , and with very little Trouble ; they are in most places ready and familiar , to be obtained with ease and pleasure , without violating Justice , or hazarding either your Conscience or your Liberty . Furthermore , Temperance is a strong Bullwark against that pernicious Enemy of Mankind , viz. Despair or suspicion of the divine Hand of Providence , against the Frowns and Causalties of this World ; What cares that man if he have not Money to buy Wine , who by use finds Water no less pleasant , and more wholsom ? Why should one bemoan not having half a score Dishes , when one will serve him not only as well , but better ? Sobriety makes a man Superior to those vain fearful repining Imaginations , whereunto most , or indeed all , superfluous intemperate People are subject , and when Poverty comes upon them , they are doubly miserable , because they had inur'd themselves to Unnecessaries before , the absence of which more torments them than any real Wants that they lie under . But he that gives the government of himself to Wisdom , and has the true knowledg of Gods Love and the eternal Principle of Light in himself , and admits it to have its Operation in the Soul and Body , and who sees with an inward Eye the great Virtue and Fortitude there is in every simple Grain , Fruit , and Herb , and who hath also bounded his desires to the necessities of Nature , there is no such great reason that such a man should trouble his head with care and suspicion , and tire his Body with over-labouring ; for Fruits , Herbs , Milk , Bread and Water are easily procured : And what sober man in the World is reduced to that extremity , as to want such things , except in universal Calamities ? Every man ought to understand , that heavyness , oppression of Nature and dulness proceed from the abundance of thick putrid Humours , which stop up the Passages and cloy the Joynts , filling them with gross moisture , so that the course of the Spirits is hindered , and they as it were suffocated , which causes various Distempers in the Body , that men would give all the World , if they had it , to be cured of , but no Physick can help them , unless the excellent Lady Sobriety be their Doctress ; for it must be a clean simple well-ordered Diet only that can fine the Blood by degrees , out of which pure Spirits are generated , in the goodnss of which , all Health , and the whole prosperity of the Body and Mind doth consist ; whereas surplusage of Nourishment destroys the Spirits and damnifies all the Senses , as that of Seeing is hurt by gross Humours that obstruct the Optick Nerves . And therefore those that are subject to weak Eyes ought to abstain from all such things as replenish the Head with Fumes , such are all sorts of fat Meat , Butter , and the like taken in too great a quantity , as also strong thick Drinks , especially such wherein Wormwood , or any strong bitter Herbs are infused ; for all such things are very hurtful to the Eyes , as experience shews . Likewise , such superfluous matter offends the organs of Hearing , and marrs the sense of Tasting , by breeding Cholerick salt Humors ; so that those who accustom themselves to Excess , generally have their Palates debaucht , and cannot give a true judgment of the state of things . Now the sorts of Food and Drinks that breed the best Blood and finest Spirits are Herbs , Fruits , and various kinds of Grains ; also Bread , and sundry sorts of excellent Food made by different preparations of Milk , and all dry Food , out of which the Sun hath exhaled the gross Humidity , by which all sorts of Pulses and Grains become of a firmer substance ; so likewise Oyl is an excellent thing , in Nature more sublime and pure than Butter : And if you do eat fat flesh , let it be sparingly , and not without good store of Bread and Herbs . There are two things in the practise of Temperance chiefly to be regarded , viz. QUANTITY and QUALITY ; the later ought to be considered by every one that is desirous to preserve Nature , but Eror in the former does generally the most mischief : For if Meats and Drinks be of a raw gross Nature , and not so well prepared as they ought to be , yet if a man eat and drink but sparingly with a perfect Appetite , the Stomach ( Nature's Laboratory ) will make better Nourishment thereof , than it can of the best Food when too great Quantities are cram'd into the Belly ; for the natural Heat of the Stomach is of a wonderful Nature , when free from these burdensom , gross Humours , it can as it were digest and kill the poysonous Juices of unclean Food , and by an innate power cast off the malignancy thereof , if the Quantity be not too great : In this case Abstinence hath been found by experience to cure most Diseases that have proceeded from Superfluity , if not gon too far ; Therefore Quantity is more dangerous to destroy Health , than Quality , tho' they are both very bad , and often meet together , and then Health is destroyed with a winged speed , which is the chief cause that there are so few , either Men , Women , or Children in perfect Health : Where can you find a Man or Woman among such as are Intemperate , who have attained to the Age of forty Years , that are in perfect Health ? The best of them being afflicted with windy and scorbutick Diseases , which are bred by eating too much in quantity , and of an evil unclean quality : These windy Diseases are also much increased by the continual eating of their Food too hot , that is , before the sulpherous moist Vapours , which are of a fierce and sharp Nature are evaporated ; for this sulpherous Heat which goes away in the moist steem or vapours , does contain the Spirits of the Fire , as also two Qualities , viz. A windy moist dulling Nature , and a fierce sharp fiery one ; the first of these is the cause of most windy Diseases , and the second does generate in the Blood a hot sharp Humour , which causeth an itching and breaking out in the flesh with spots of various colours , as also a weariness and indisposedness through the whole Body ; this likewise is the grand cause of many Leprous and Mangy Diseases , especially when the Food is gross and not well prepared , and too much in Quantity , which Maladies do often happen altogether . All Food that is prepared by fire should not be eaten till those thick sulpherous and moist steems be evaporated ; herein many are mistaken , and even Nature it self is little understood ; for the generality of People account hot Food best , and most profitable for Health , and the good Dame will be angry if her Servants delay to eat their Food whilst Hot. But the continual eating of Hot Food from the Womb has depraved their Stomachs and natural Heat , so that if they eat their Food cold , it will not give them satisfaction , although hot Food is contrary to the pure simple Nature , and the health of the Body ; nevertheless the continual use of such things have awakened their Similes in the Stomach , and that requires their continuation ; and if a man does leave them , at the first Nature seems to want them ; the like effect is produced by other unnatural Customs , as in taking Tobacco , it being a strong Martial and Saturnine Herb , of a loathsom poysonous Nature and Operation , whose predominant Quality is of a contrary Nature to the Stomach and natural Heat ; therefore the first taking of it in Pipes is both difficult and troublesom to Nature , and there is no Preparations known that will make this Herb friendly or familiar to Nature , but only the continual Custom of taking it , which does awaken and strengthen its own Quality in the Stomach , which in the beginning was weak , but by custom is become strong , so great is the power of every thing in increasing its likeness , and it becomes as though it were natural ; and there is as much difficulty to leave the use of such things ( if not more ) as there was at first to make them familiar ; the like is true in Brandy , &c. for the more unnatural and greater the extream is , the more troublesom it is to leave it . As for those who are used to eat hot Food , and are not satisfied to eat cold , a little custom will bring them to a liking of it ; for man being a compleat Image of the whole Nature of this World , and being endued with the true nature of all Elemental things , therefore Custom will make every thing , whether good or evil , familiar to his Nature . As for my own part , I have not been troubled with windy Diseases since I left eating of hot Food , which formerly I was afflicted with ; likewise the same Quantity of any sort of Food eaten Cold , when a man is a little used to it , will be much easier and pleasanter to the Stomach than Hot : for this swells the Body , sends Fumes into the head , and causeth a heavy indisposedness through the whole Body ; but there is such a sottishness and ignorance possesses most People , that they will not go out of their old Path , following their false Prophets , Custom and Tradition , esteeming themselves to be sufficient Judges in these things . Now these windy Diseases , and fiery thin salt Humours that are occasioned by the afore mentioned Intemperances , are very rarely or seldom ever cured ; for what Medicines have power to cure , when the same Superfluities are continued , which were the Original of the Diseases ? Pray where is the Medicine that will cure the French Disease , if the Person infected goes on in his old way of Wantonness ? The very same is to be understood in all other Distempers ; therefore Temperance and Sobriety are Vertues that are absolutely necessary , not only to help and cure Diseases when they have invaded the Body , but also to prevent the Generation of them ; for most Distempers , with a little help of Physick , might be mitigated , if a sober temperate Life were observed , so that by degrees little or no inconveniency would be felt ; but what hopes are there , so long as People prefer Supersluity and the pleasure of the Taste beyond Health , eating and drinking of various sorts of rich Food and cordial Drinks , to the full satisfaction of their Appetites , which break the bounds of Temperance , the Stomach not being able to make a perfect Concoctiion , so that every such Meal sows the seeds of some gross Matter and evil Juice , which by degrees stops the Passages , obstructs the Veins , corrupts the Blood , and from thence flows various indispositions , according to the nature of each mans Constitution and the degree of matter : There are but few that think that those Oppressions and Diseases proceed from a disordered Life , and a too great Quantity of Nourishment , but most will be apt to believe themselves , alledging , That they got Cold by leaving off a Coat , or by Accidental Sweating , or some other act of carelesness : Which must be a mistake ; for such things have little or no power to hurt the Health , if there be not matter before-hand ; for you may be sure , if leaving off a Coat do occasion a Cold or any kind of stoppage , there was some part obstructed before , and the radical Spirits of that part were weakened by some disorder , or else outward Colds would not have had any power to seize , that part of the Body : You may also observe , that if any Member or part of the Body be weakened by any accident , that part will first complain , when either Cold seizes it , or when there is any change of Weather ; from whence you may conclude , that the Root of all or most Diseases , is , first , some inward Contraction of matter , caused by Superfluity , or other Disorder , which have weakened the pure essential Spirits , and the Balsamick Oyl and Virtues in that part become , as it were , sower or sharp , wich infects the Blood , and then presently ariseth a loathing , and the Palate cannot distinguish the pure Relish , nor taste the goodness of any Food ; the Attractive Quality , and also the Natural Heat of the Stomach lose their strength and power , then also the Re●●ntive and Digestive Faculties do cease from their natural Operations ; for when there does happen any Violence to the pure Volatile Spirit and Balsamick Body , then presently the action of the Stomach ceases , and there begins a loathing , and the original Poysons and central Heats are awakened , which set the whole Body into a flame , which poysonous Fire lay , as it were hid so long as the pure Spirit and Balsamick Body were strong , and this continual fiery or brimstony Spirit was only a cause of motion , giving strength and vigour to the Oyl of Life , which Oyl does mix and incorporate with this sulpherous fierce Fire , and makes it more gentle and friendly ; for this Oyl is generated from this sulpherous poysonous Spirit , and is , as it were , its Sun , and shines back thereinto , and does cause it to burn more gently ; but if this pure Spirit and Oyl be by any kind of Intemperance wounded or suffocated , by overcharging Nature , then the Original Poysons and sulpherous Fires do manifest themselves in their own Forms , which were captivated and moderated so long as the pure Spirits and essential Oyl were strong ; for this essential Oyl is the true Life of Nature , and the Moderator of the original Fire , even as it is in the Fire of Wood , so long as the Wood remains intire , and no Violence done to the pure Spirits and essential Oyl , this Fire gives a most pleasant and friendly refreshing heat and light , it sends forth a bright shine and wholsom smell , very ageeable to the Pure Spirits of those that are near it ; but you will find the contrary , if you offer any violence to the Pure Spirits and essential Oyl , whence the bright shine and friendly nature of Wood Fire does proceed , as is done in making of Wood Fire into Charcoal ; for these pure Spirits and sweet Water or Oyl are suffocated in all Charcoal . For this cause the Fire of Chorcoal is not only stronger than the Fire of Wood , but it sends forth Sulpherous Fumes , which will stupifie and suffocate the pure Spirits , and dull all the Senses , and send dark Fumes into the Head ; the truth of this all People are sensible of , and it is for no other Reason but because the pure Spirits and sweet Water or Oyl in the Wood is totally suffocated in making it into Charcoal , and then the Original Poysons and fierce Fire is no longer moderated , but does burn and manifest it self in its own Nature and Form ; this makes the difference between the Fire of Wood and Charcoal , the one being pleasant and wholsom , the other the contrary , and yet they have but one Foundation ; the very same is to be understood in the Humane Nature , and in all other Creatures , and in every thing according to its Nature : For this cause , when a man has through any kind of Intemperance or Superfluity over-charged Nature , by which the pure essential Spirits are either evaporated or suffocated , and the Oyl ( whence the natural Life hath its true being ) becomes as it were sower'd and made keen and sharp , then immediately follow Fevers ; for all Fevers do proceed from the awakened Poysons ( which is the Original of every Life ) which should not be stirred or awakened : For this cause most People , when sick , are afflicted either with Internal or External Fevers , some greater , others less , according to the Age or Strength of each mans Nature , and when men dye in the strength of their Lives , and especially such as have strong Fires , what terrible Fevers will such have , which burn and consume Nature in a moments time ? But those that dye or are sick in Age , and are of weaker Heats , their Fevers are more gentle ; if People understood this , they would not be so guilty of Intemperance , and so over-charge Nature ; for the meek friendly Life will not indure any Violence or Inequality without prejudice to the Health ; for as soon as the pure Spirits are wounded or evaporated , Nature falls into an unequal motion , and then the wrathful fierce Fires are stirred up , and then Nature is in danger . Take what Creature or thing you will , if you wound the pure Spirits , the Balsamick Body presently turns sower ; for one cannot subsist without the other ; and when this is done , then in a moments time the poysonous fierce Fire does of its own accord manifest it self , which it could not do so long as the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body were strong , and did predominate , which does moderate and cause this Fire to burn more gentle ; For this cause all wise and seeing men have advised to Temperance , and have commended all simple and mean Food and Drinks , especially those things in which the Qualities of Nature stand nearest Equality ; for all such Food and Drinks do distribute and administer due and moist Nourishment to both Body and Spirits in an Harmonial way , which is very agreeable to Nature ; for all things desire Concord and Unity , it being the highest degree that Nature can attain to ; also all sorts of Food and Drinks that do chiefly consist of Equality , do powerfully beget and maintain its Likeness in the Body and also in the Mind : And so on the contrary , high rich Foods , which consist of many Ingredients , and of disagreeing Natures , and Drinks , in which the Fire burns too fierce , do often prove dangerous to Health , because such things are unequal in themselves , and except they be taken very sparingly , they awaken their Likenesses in the Body , causing Nature to be unequal in her Operations : Therefore after eating and drinking such things there follows Indispositions , the Veins glowing with Heat , Fumes , and Vapours flying up into the Head , with a dull Heaviness , which is caused by the Inequality of the Food , and the greatness of the Qantity , which do for a time ( until the natural Heat hath overcome the Food , and made seperation ) suffocate the pure Spirits and the Oyl of Life , by its gross Juices , and affording too much Nourishment ; and if such Food and Drinks be continued , there are but few Constitutions that can withstand the Inconveniencies that attend such a Life ; but Abstinency and a sober Diet , with Exercise , are the only means to abate all superfluous matter , and indeed it hinders the Generation of all offensive Humours ; ABSTINENCY is the only Physitian that a man can make use of , for it secretly does digest all kind of Obstructions , and that with great ease and pleasure to the Patient , far beyond the common and gross Drugs which Physitians administer : Also , ABSTINENCY is the most skilful Cook , giving a most pleasant taste to every mean thing , by which a simple Person becomes skilful ; for he can distinguish the Taste and the inward Sweetness of each thing , and he is thereby stirred up with an inward inclination to praise and admire God in the use of all his Blessings : ABSTINENCY does weaken and abate the Fury of the most Cholerick complexioned People , that they become more Sanguine ; it openeth the Gate of Humility , and is a Friend to Charity ; it encourageth Hope , and is the only Enemy of that base and cruel Spirit Suspicion , the universal Fomentor of mankind : ABSTINENCY is a sure Counsellor and a Conductor of all the observers thereof in the way of Truth , encreasing Faith , and causeth them to eye and follow the divine Hand of Providence , giving Peace and Tranquility to the Mind , and Health to the Body : many are the Vertues and Benefits thereof ; it also gives the advantage of Time and Opportunity , and is the fore-runner of Wisdom ; it openeth the hidden and secret Doors of Nature in a mans self , and renders him capable of all Discipline , and is the only Enemy to all Evil , and a Friend to all Vertue ; The Wise and Prudent in all Ages have accounted her their chief Friend and Guide ; by her Vertues they have overcome the inward Enemies of their Members : ABSTINENCY also preventeth the Generation of all superfluous matter , whence Diseases in the Body do proceed ; she abateth the desires , because a small matter will suffice a regular Appetite , resisting Pride , and careth not for Estimation ; she conquereth all her Enemies , and maketh no noise ; she beats ●o Drums , nor dischargeth no Guns ; she punisheth ●ot the Body with Labour , nor burdeneth the Mind with Care ; she wearieth not the Life by Sea nor by Land , to obtain that which will not stand her in stead ; she will not admit of any Controversies nor Law-suits ; she will not contend for much , because a little supplies her Wants ; she standeth still , and is silent , and yet obtaineth all things . CHAP. III. A Discourse of the several sorts of Flesh commonly Eaten . THough I have before shewn the inconveniencies of the feeding upon Flesh ( so commonly and in such excess as is now-a-days practised ) and rather recommended the Lovers of Wisdom and Health to the more innocent use of Grains , Fruits and Herbs , yet since there is no stemming the Tide of Popular Opinion and Custom , and People will still gorge themselves with the Flesh of their Fellow-Animals , I have thought fit here to give a particular account of each sort of Flesh , that at least you may chuse that which is most proper for your Constitution , and least prejudicial to your Health . Of Oxen and Cows , their Nature and Complexion . Oxen and Cows are dignified with a Sanguine Melancholy Nature , a little inclinable to the Phlegmatick ; therefore much moisture is an Enemy to these Creatures , in whom the four Humours are pretty well mixt , yet the Sanguine does predominate . As they are of an indifferent equal Tem●erature , so they are indued with harmless Properti●● and innocent Inclinations : They are clean in their Radixes , and therefore refuse all filthy Food , and the same is likewise manifest by their sweet breathings , and the Dung that proceeds from them ; whereas on the contrary those Beasts and Creatures that are unclean in their Root , do always desire and most rapinously feed on a proportionable unclean Food , as Swine , Bears , Dogs , &c. which is further demonstrated by their Shapes , Tones or Cries , ( frightful and displeasing ) as also in the fierceness of their Spirits and cruel wrathful Natures , all such Creatures are highly gratified with unclean Food , viz. Flesh , Blood , and the like . But Cows and Oxen do afford many excellent sorts of Food , no Creature being more useful or profitable unto Mankind , not only in labouring and dressing the Earth , by which it becomes fruitful , but how many sorts of most excellent Food are made of Milk ? And so natural and proper , no Fruit that proceeds from any Creature is of so great use . Milk in its own nature being so simple and innocent , and having no manifest Quality that does too violently predominate , but is indued with equality and concord , easie of Concoction , especially Raw , as it comes from the Cow , it gently cleanseth and frees the Passages from Obstructions , which strong Fat Food does generate ; it has a sympathetical Union with the Stomach and natural Heat ; it silently , and without making any disturbance insinuates its Vertues and Nourishment into all parts of the Body . Milk also being mixt with Flour ; does make some of the most healthy and wholsomest Food that can be eaten for all sorts of People and Ages , especially Children , it being heretofore their almost only Food , boiled with some Flour and a little Water , without any other Ingredients , which then in the Country was called Pap , but of late Years , in and about the City , they call that Pap which is made of Bread and Water , which is nothing near so good ; and since the frequent use of Spanish Fruits and Spices , the aforesaid simple wholsom Food has much been laid aside , which is one cause why our Children in this Age are so much troubled with Distempers in the Ioynts , viz. Rickets , and the like , hardly known in former times . Milk likewise altered and Manufactur'd ( if I may call it so ) by the good House-Wives Art and Industry , yields many other sorts of good Food , as Cheese and Butter , and many more innocent , as Milk-Pottage ( which I especially recommend ) there being such an agreement in the Ingredients , viz. Milk , Water and Oatmeal , being boiled together briskly , and not too long , as it not only affords a good Nourishment , but opens the Passages , and is of a cleansing healing Nature ; and therefore those that do frequently use it , do seldom want a good Appetite . Cheese is a wholsom healthy Food , a great strengthener of the Stomach , affording a strong firm Nourishment ; and such People as eat much Bread and Cheese , and do not want good Beer or Ale , are generally the strongest of men , abler to endure Labour and Travel , than those that feed on Flesh ; there is as much difference between the one and the other , as there is between Horses that are fed with Corn and Hay , and those that are fed with Grass : Most men being mistaken in Nature , do believe that Flesh of all other sorts of Food affords the greatest and strongest Nourishment , because 't is full of matter and Iuices ; the very same may be supposed of Grass , compared with Hay : But the Husbandman will tell you , that those Cattel that feed on Grass are weak and faintish in comparison of those that are fed with Hay and Corn ; for the Grass contains too much gross Moisture , which causeth the Nourishment to be unfirm , whence doth proceed dull heavy Spirits , the Flesh and Fat being soft and greazy , which in case of Labour , will waste , and such Cattel are apt to tire : But those that are fed with dry Food , ( whereby the gross Humidity and Phlegm is dryed away , or exhaled by the Sun and Elements ) are strong and lively , of great Spirits , quick and active , little Bellies and clean Limbs . The very same is to be understood of the Food of Men , and if men could be as well satisfied as to their Minds with eating Bread , Cheese , Butter , flour'd Milk , Gruels , Pottages , Herbs in their Seasons , and the like , they would find by Experience how wonderfully such things support Nature , beyond all the Flesh in the World ; for most of that matter which People suppose to be Nourishment in Flesh , is a gross Iuice , which turns to Putrifaction , as the gross phlegmy part of Grass does in Cattel . Butter does afford a good Nourishment , but it ought not to be eaten in too great quantity , for then it generates Choler , oyls and furs the Passages , dulls the edg of Appetite ; but moderately taken , is of good use and healthy , especially to such as are accustomed to it . Of the Flesh of Oxen and Cows . The Flesh of Oxen is to be preferred before that of Cows , it being naturally clean and wholsom , if such Cattel be free from Diseases and Surfeits ; it generates a strong firm Nourishment , having a greater affinity with mans Nature than with any other , and therefore more People love it , and will be longer before they are cloy'd therewith , than with any one particular sort whatsoever ; yet it is somewhat hard of Concoction , therefore ought to be eaten sparingly , except by strong working People ; it fills the Stomach , and for the most part gives better satisfaction than any other : It ought not to be eaten until it be well seasoned with Salt , or if eaten fresh , there ought to be good store of Salt eaten with it , and boiled in plenty of Water , which will sweeten and cleanse it from its grossness ; it likewise ought to be salted as soon as 't is throughly cold , after 't is killed ; for the longer the Flesh is kept , the harder 't is to take Salt , because by keeping , the pure spirituous parts evaporate , and then the Salt cannot incorporate it self with the Flesh ; for 't is with the pure Spirits that it delights to joyn it self , and thereby preserves them from Evaporation , and consequently keeps the Meat sweet and sound ; and therefore Meat so salted will eat much sweeter , and keep longer , and generate better Blood and Nourishment , and is easier of Concoction . If Cattel of any kind receive damage by driving , or any kind of Sickness attend them , and they be killed before they have time to recover such Injuries , all such Flesh is not only unwholsom , but it will not take Salt to keep as others will ; the Reason is this , because if the pure Spirits and Radical Moisture be by any disorders , hurt or wounded , whether it be before they are killed , or after , the Salt cannot incorporate therewith , as aforesaid , nor purge out and destroy the humid gross parts in the Flesh , whence all Putrifaction arises ; whereas when the strong powerful and sweet Spirits in Salt ( which are the inward Life thereof ) do joyn with and embrace the essential spirituous parts , it does tye or hold the corruptive parts of the Flesh captive , that they cannot proceed to Putrifaction , and for a season it will remain as a fixed Body , till by length of time those pure Essential spirituous parts , both in the Flesh and Salt , become either suffocated or evaporated through the great store of gross humidity which Flesh does contain , tending always to Putrifaction ; and when any Flesh does begin to putrify or stink , a second salting , nor any other Art , cannot recover it to its first state of Sweetness ; but if the second Salting be whilst the Putrifaction is but yet in the Bud , and not too far gone , then such Flesh may continue a little longer — In a word , If this sort of Flesh be free from the afore-mentioned Disorders , and their natural Uncleannesses , being seasonably seasoned with Salt , not keept too long , and well prepared by the House-wife , and moderately eaten , it is as sound and healthy Food for strong and working People , as any Flesh whatsoever , none excepted . Of Sheep their Complexions and Nature , and of their Flesh. Sheep are Creatures of great use and benefit to the Sons of men ; their Nature and Complexion is Sanguine & Phlegmatick , with a little mixture of Melancholy ; but the Sanguine Nature does predominate over all the other Qualities : They are dignified with a meek humble Nature , mild and friendly , and wherein all the Properties and Elements do seem to stand in equal accord , whence doth proceed those harmless innocent Inclinations , hardly any Creature in the World to be compared to them ; they have as it were a glance of the divine Light shining in them ; for if Equality and Concord had not abounded in them , our Saviour Iesus Christ would not so often have compared good and holy men unto them ; but it was , no doubt , to shew their Meekness , Innocence , and desires of doing good : For this Creature is not only to be esteemed for their Natural Vertues , but also for the manifold Benefits which they afford unto mankind both living and dead . The Flesh of Sheep , viz. Mutton , is of a clean simple Nature , of easier Concoction than the Flesh of Oxen ; it generates a good clean nourishment ; their Fat is the whitest of all Flesh , which proceeds from the equal temperament of their Body and Spirits , and the predominancy of the sweet Quality , and because the Spirits are pure and undefiled . For the white clear bright Gleam in every Creature ( be they what they will ) does arise and proceed from the divine Principle , which made all things , and is the essential Vertue and Power that does sustain and radically dwell in every Creature , and all things in this World , in each according to its Nature ; and also according to what degree it is in each Creature , they become of a more friendly gentle Nature , or the contrary . For in what Creature soever this Vertue or Gleam of Light is predominant , that Creature is of a most sweet Composition or Nature , be it either Animal , Vegetable or Mineral , for of the pure white Colour in all things , the Root is the divine Principle , its Radix is clean : Therefore in former Ages , when any would declare their Innocency , they cloathed themselve in white Garments , because it proceeded from the innocency in Nature : Also the Saints and Prophets in several places of the Scriptures by way of Simile , compare Whiteness with the divine Power and Virtue , being that the Saints and Angels are said to be cloathed in White , which was not spoken without a divine understanding of the Nature of things , which I shall forbear to speak further of in this place , though to the intelligent Reader it would be no unuseful Digression . But to return to the present subject . The Flesh of Sheep is made better or worse , according to the Accidents that do attend them ; no Flesh to be preferred before this , if they are free from Surfeits and Diseases , which this Creature is much subject to , by reason of their tender Nature ; for all Creatures in whom the four Humours and Elements of their Bodies and Spirits stand nearest Equality , are soonest wounded , if any Violence be offered . For this Creature cannot endure any violent motion without manifest prejudice ; and little over-driving will put them into such Heats as they cannot recover under a considerable time , and at last they will break out with a Mainge or Scab ; if they are folded a little too close , it will fret and corrupt their Blood , give them the Scab , and hinder them from growing ; over-wet Weather will corrupt them , and cause them to Rot in moist low Grounds , and in the best and highest Pasturage hinder them from proving so well as they would otherwise ; the very driving of Sheep and Lambs from the Market to the Slaughter-Houses , especially in London , where they are much hurried by their unmerciful drivers , and other Accidents that they meet with in the Streets , will give them the Mainge or the Scab , were they to be turn'd back to their Pastures . Therefore there is required the greatest understanding and care to preserve this Creature sound and free from these Disorders and Accidents which nothing can do , but a tender gentle usage and government , which suits their Tempers , and hath unity with their Natures : Their Flesh is far better , and more healthy in the Winter season than in the Summer , especially when the Summer proves Wet ; for as nothing more destroys and corrupts their Flesh more than wet Weather , so in great Heats their tender Spirits on every Accident are apt to be Evaporated ; also they are apt to sweat much , whence proceeds a fainty Indisposition , especially when the Sun and Year declines , the Grass being then more gross and full of Phlegmatick Juices ; therefore the Flesh of Sheep and Lambs ought to be sparingly eaten all the Summer , especially the latter part thereof ; for this ( and indeed most other sorts of ) Flesh is best in the Winter and Spring , viz. from December to Iune , or thereabouts ; for cold Weather causeth the natural Heat to be much stronger , and also more Central , sharpens the Appetites of both Men and Beasts , causeth a good Digestion , because then Nature is able to make a perfect separation of the Food , whence is generated good Blood and pure Spirits , which renders the Flesh hard and firm ; besides , the Food of most sorts of Cattel is then dry , viz. Hay , which does always breed a better and firmer nourishment than Grass or any green Food . If Sheep be killed with any of the before-mentioned Inconveniences upon them , then their flesh thereby loseth its pure sweetness and good Relish , becomes of a gross dull heavy Nature and Operation , generates abundance of unfirm Nourishment and bad Blood ; for it too hastily slips out of the Stomach into the Bowels , and has many evil Consequences , causing Gripings , and grievous Pains in the Bowels : Few do imagin the Mischiefs that do arise from the frequent eating of bad Flesh. The Marks to know whether Flesh be good after its killed , are first , That the Flesh look with a brisk white colour , and the lean of it with a lively bright Red , not with a fading fainty whiteness , nor with a dull dusky red ; for these last colours shew that the Creature was hurt and the Spirits wounded before it was killed , or the flesh kept too long after 't was killed . Another Mark to know whether the Mutton be perfectly good in every degree , is when it s prepared , either boyled or roasted , viz. if when prepared it doth retain its perfect brisk lively colour both White and Red , being plump or swelled , and of a pure sweet delightful Taste , as also by its sending forth a fragrant and inviting scent or smell , which of all Flesh , good Mutton yields the best . These are essential Rules to know the goodness or badness of Flesh , if the House-wife do perform her part in observing such Order as is both natural and proper , to be used in the preparation of Flesh , which I have sufficiently declared from the Root , in another place . Mutton is also made better or worse by the goodness or badness of the Ground it feeds on ; the best and sweetest is that of the smaller Sheep that are fed on high Hills and Pastures , where the Grass is sweeter and freer from gross Juices than lower grounds ; and as Sheep delight most in dry places , as best suiting to their Natures , so they are there forced to labour , viz. to continue feeding longer , which motion does free the Body and pure Spirits from that gross matter , which such as feed in low Pastures , where Grass is more plentiful , are subject to ; and also they are the longer before they be fat . For these and the like Reasons , those small Sheep ( if free from other disorders , which they are not so subject to as great fat Sheep are ) do always eat much sweeter and pleasanter than great Mutton bred on low rich Grounds : And therefore there is no reason why Citizens and the rich People should so much desire large great Mutton , but only for Pride and State , counting it a kind of Dishonour to have small Meat seen at their Table , though the same is not only sweeter to the Pallate , but more wholsom , as being easier digested , and generating better Blood , and is far more healthy to all sorts of People , especially for Children , and People that live soft lives , which for the most part eat the fattest and largest Mutton , and other rich Food and cordial Drinks , and for that very cause are more unhealthy than the meaner sort of People . Of LAMB . The Flesh of Lamb is much of the same Nature with Mutton , being an Excellent Food , generating a wholsom clean Nourishment , as being easie of Concoction , friendly to all Constitutions and Ages , and much better than Veal , if they be not killed too young ; 1st . Because they are clean in their own Natures ; 2dly , They have the advantage of sucking and running with their Dams , not being altogether fed with Milk , but also on Grass and Hay , according to the season of the year , which Calves for the most part are hindred from , which renders their Flesh the more unwholsom . There is no flesh either more healthy or grateful than Lamb , if free from Surfeits and other disorders , but their natures and spirits are so tender , that they cannot endure driving , or the like ; therefore Lambs that come from remote parts to great Cities , are most of them in one degree or other surfeited , or if they come thither free , yet such is their bad usage between the Market and the Butchers Shop , that 't is enough to spoil them , and make their Flesh unwholsom . Also , when this sort of flesh is eaten , the weather is for the most part Hot , which does quickly wound their tender Spirits , and cause a general faintness , which renders their flesh soft and greasie , generating a very unfirm Nourishment , and filling the whole Body full of Venomous Juices , that give a further occasion for Fluxes and Fevers to reign in August , September and October , in which time Lamb is much eaten . But if these Creatures are killed off the Common without being prejudiced by driving , or otherwise hurried , it is not only the sweetest , but may be eaten with as little danger as any . Therefore there ought to be care and understanding used in managing them ; for if the Spirit in any thing be wounded or suffocated , the Body presently becomes heavy , dull , flat , and like a lump of Earth , having neither its true natural sweetness , smell nor taste , but is dull on the Pallate , heavy on the Stomach , affording no proper Nourishment , neither to the Body nor Spirits ; its venoms do by simile beget and awaken their Likenesses , from whence proceeds Inequality and Discord , which is the Root of most Diseases , and even Death it self ; for every sort of Meat and Drink , be it clean or unclean , does by a natural and simpathetical operation incorporate its self with its likeness in the Body , and powerfully strengthen it , whence arise both concord and discord , sickness and health ; as we see in Wine , in which the Spirit is predominant , does not the drinking of it presently awaken our Spirits , and make them predominate over all other Qualities , and changes the Inclinations , Dispositions and Intentions , during the time of its operation ? but afterwards it leaves a man with sowrer Spirits than it found him , both because the Spirits of the Wine are not only evaporated , but have caused the natural Spirits to evaporate also by its simpathetical awakening of them , and as it were calling of them out of their several Centers ; the very same is to be understood in all sorts of Food , of whatsoever Nature or Quality it is : All which is worthy the consideration of all Understanding People . Of the Flesh of Calves or Veal . The Flesh of Veal is of a clean Nature , easie of Concoction , affording good Nourishment , fit both for healthy and sick People , if such may be allowed to eat flesh , which to me seems somewhat improper , especially when in their time of Health they made flesh their chief Food , it being probable that the original of the Disease was occasioned by the eating of much flesh , which is one reason why so many People in England , when sick , their Stomachs loath Flesh more than any other food ; for that food which a man does eat most of when in health , that very same , when sick he will loath , especially when he feeds most on Flesh. But if this sort of flesh be eaten too young , as too many do , at twelve or eighteen days old , then it is not so wholsom ; for it being of a soft , slimy and phlegmatick Nature , it generates an unfirm Nourishment , and it quickly slips out of the Stomach into the Bowels , and too often violently loosens the Belly , and causeth Griping Pains , especially in fat and phlegmatick People , and likewise in young Children . That Veal is best , that is five or six Weeks old , and which sucks its own Dam , and does run with her two or three days in a Week ; for no flesh is so good and free from gross phlegmatick matter as those Creatures that have the benefit of Motion in the open Air : Indeed such will not fat so soon as others that are kept up close , yet the one is much firmer and harder than the other , and affords a firmer and harder nourishment ; for that which is pen'd up and kept from the benefit of Motion and Air , great part of the food turns into a kind of phlegmy substance , especially in Calves , whose Food is all of a moist Nature . What is the reason that most Veal is so unfirm and like a Jelly , and dissolves and melts away like Grease ? It is because this is a tender Creature , and will not admit of driving , their Spirits being so weak and Flesh so soft , by reason ( as is above-said ) of their moist food , that they quickly tire , and their Flesh will alter from a white to a red colour , which all Veal naturally inclines to , tho' Milk is a cleanly and wholsom Food , nevertheless all Creatures that live wholly on it , without the mixture of other things of a firmer substance , as the flower of Corn , or the like , their flesh and spirits are but weak , especially when such Creatures shall be hindered from motion , then their flesh becomes of a gross soft and phlegmatick nature and operation , and the frequent eating of such flesh proves too often of a bad consequence , especially to all cold , phleg matick , gross People , who have weaker heats ; but to others , who have strong and hot Constitutions , this sort of flesh , if not eaten to excess , agrees well with them , and is wholsom . Indeed every one ought to know their own Constitutions , by which they shall be able to distinguish between those things that are proper for them , and their contraries ; and he that is ignorant of this , is always subject to err , and to lay heavier burdens on Nature than she can bear , whence does proceed so many Diseases and Disorders , which afflicts some almost all their days . Of the Flesh of Swine , and their Nature and Complexion . Swine are under the dominion of Saturn and Mars , and are of Complexion Melancholy and Cholerick ; their predominant Quality stands in the fierce , savage and unclean Nature , as their shapes , forms , crys and inclinations do abundantly manifest , by reason of which they would be frightful to behold , if they were not made familiar to us . The Ancient Wise Men accounted them Unclean Creatures of Prey , destructive to the Creation , neither profitable living nor dead , and did also esteem their Flesh to be of a gross fulsom and unclean Nature , subject to Putrifaction , their Fat is of a soft greasie nature : The Uncleanness of this Creature does further appear , if you burn their Fat , it does send forth a gross fulsome smell ; also its flame is not clear and bright , as the flame of other Flesh , but of a dimmish Brimstone colour , which does arise from the dark Poysons in nature , as is further manifest in Charcoal , and also in Brandy , and other distilled Liquours , when the sweet Oyl or Balsamick Body , with the pure subtle Spirits , are by any violence suffocated and destroyed , then the dark original Forms of Nature appear ; such things being burned , the flame is not bright and clear , but of a duskish dim and Brimstone colour , as I have particularly shewn in another place , where I treat of the nature of Brandy . But in England the Flesh of Swine is of great use , but not wholsom to be eaten fresh , especially in August , September or October , nor indeed in any hot Season ; this Flesh , where it is frequently eaten , does generate a gross Nourishment ; but the way that English People use for ordering it , makes it much better than otherwise it would be . That Bacon and Pork which is fed with Corn and Acorns , and have their liberty to run , is much sweeter and wholsomer , easier of digestion , and breeds better Blood than that which is shut up in the Hog-sties , such Bacon for want of Motion becomes of a more gross phlegmatick Nature , insomuch that the House-wife is put to all her shifts to make it take Salt ; for where in any thing the Phlegm does predominate , the pure Spirits are weak , and as it were , fainty and dull ; and when this doth happen in flesh , as often it does , such flesh will not take Salt , but by halves ; where the Spirit is weak , the Salt cannot penetrate nor incorporate ; for Salt cannot make the dead body living ; but such Bacon as is fed with Corn , and not over-fat , especially if they have egress and regress , such will take Salt greedily , because it is lively , brisk and full of spirits , which are a pleasant habitation for the spirit of the Salt to incorporate its self : This sort is to be preferred before all others . Also , all Swine ought to be killed in cold weather ; and after it is well salted , it ought to be rusted a convenient time with the smoke of Wood-fire or Straw , which will make it look of a brisk lively Red Colour , which does much correct that gross Quality that is contained in their flesh : And altho' Swine naturally are the uncleannest of all Creatures that are so much eaten , nevertheless if they be fed with Corn , and are singed , and killed in the pro perest Season , then well Salted , and rusted a considerable time , they are made thereby a firmer and wholsomer food than several other sorts of clean flesh that is killed in hot seasons , and eaten fresh ; and many People in Summer time had better eat Bacon that is killed in Winter and well ordered , than to eat fresh Meat , especially those that live in Cities , by reason most Cattel receive prejudice by long driving , and other accidents . But small Bacon , or Pork killed in Summer , or in a hot season , is of ill consequence , as to Health ; for then the fat is so gross and full of phlegmy matter , that it will not take salt as it ought ; besides , it obstructs Nature , and causeth Fluxes , and an internal Fever : Those that do accustom themselves to the frequent eating of Bacon , it does generate a gross strong Nourishment , and dull and heavy Spirits ; therefore such People are not so brisk and airy , but duller of Apprehension than others that eat more airy and thinner food ; for every sort of Food does by a simpathetical Operation strengthen and awaken its Likeness : Therefore it was that the most illuminated Prophet Moses did prohibit the Children of Israel from eating this sort of flesh , because the humane Nature should not be made more Bestial , Man being the Image and Likeness of all things , a little World out of the great in all particulars , which was in all Ages the chief reason why the Wise Men and Prophets made distinctions and separations in Meats , Drinks , Exercises and Communication , for they saw the inconveniences and dangers that all such things brought on man ; but in this Dark , Gluttonous and Drunken Age there is no regard had to such things , every man does imagin himself to have greater Understanding than the Ancients and Prophets ; so that there is little or no distinction made , accounting all things ( as it were ) of a like nature and operation , whence doth proceed innumerable Disorders and Diseases ; for the total Preservation of mans Health , both of Body and Mind , does consist in the Quantity and Qality of Meats , Drinks , Exercises , Communications , Customs , and the good or ill Properties of Food ; all things have a secret Power in themselves to alter and change Nature , either for better or worse , or to Vertue or Vice , according to the Natures and Degrees either of Evil or Good in each thing . Of the Flesh of Fowls . There are various sorts of Fowls , most of which men eat , some Wild , others Tame , of the two the Wild are the wholsomest for Food , their Nature is more airy and cleaner , and of a dryer substance , affording a better and firmer Nourishment , better Blood and purer Spirits than the Tame ; the cause of this is the Cleanness of their Food , great Motion , and their continual being in the open pure Air ; next , in Goodness to these , are those Fowls that have free Egress and Regress , and are chiefly fed with Corn , such do also afford a good clean Nourishment : But all such Fowls that are kept up and fatted , and crambed in Coops , being hindred both from Action and Motion , their Flesh is of a grosser substance than the former , not so wholsom , hard of Concoction , of a stronger Taste and Smell , generates a thick gross Nourishment , as indeed all other Creatures that are fed or made fat after that manner , are much the Unwholsomer , not being so Healthy , if frequently eaten , as those Creatures that are at their own Liberty ; for Motion and Action are absolutely necessary for to preserve Nature from Diseases , and other evils , not only in Men , but also in all other things ; for it Purges and cleanses the Body from all such superfluous matter which is contracted by Meats and Drinks , and other Accidents that happen to most Creatures ; it causeth the Blood to have its free Circulation , and generates pure brisk lively Spirits , as daily Experience doth teach : Therefore all such unnatural ways and inventions of fatting any Creature after such a manner ought not to be , if People have regard to their Health : For all sorts of Flesh is in its own nature not only more Unclean , but it is of a grosser substance , affording more matter for the generation of Diseases , than either Herbs , Fruits or Grains ; neither is there any Art found whereby to exhale or destroy the gross Phlegmatick part of Flesh , as there is in Fruits and Grains : Therefore Flesh will sooner fall into Putrifaction than other things , whose Humidity is exhaled by the vertue and power of the Sun and Elements . It being a general mistake , for to imagine that those Fowls , and other Creatures , that are hastily fatted by being penned up close , and having superfluity of Food , should have the best and most Nourishment : Indeed they are fuller of gross Juices and Matter , but good Nonrishment and pure Spirits and Blood , do not proceed from the gross Phlegmatick body in any Creature , but from the lively spirituous Parts ; and the more gross and phlegmy any Body is , the fewer and duller are the Spirits of that thing ; if this were not so , then Horses fed with Grass would be stronger and livelier than those that are fed with Hay and Corn. Are not all Creatures , when their Bodies are fraighted with much matter , disabled thereby to go through with their Labour or Exercise , their Spirits quickly evaporated or spent , and soon out of Breath , faint and weak ? Which comes to pass through the super-abounding phlegmy matter , which suffocates the Spirits and stops the Passages , weakening the natural Heat and Action of the Stomach . Therefore both Men , and all other Creatures , that do feed on Food that is of a dry Nature and Substance , the gross Phlegm being destroyed , as in Corn , Hay , Fruits , and many other things , and are inclined rather to Leanness than fulness , are not only stronger , and abler to endure Labour , but they have far greater and more Lively Spirits , are of quicker Apprehensions , and fitter for Exercises both of the Body and Mind , which does also further appear in all such Flesh that is so fatted , it is not so sweet , nor will it so readily take Salt , nor keep so long without falling into Putrifaction : Likewise , the fat of all such flesh , when salted , will in a little time waste and consume the phlegmy gross part , which is so strong , that the pure essential spirituous parts thereof are destroyed ; whereas the very same Creatures being fed with Corn or dry Food , having their Egress and Regress in the open Air , being killed in their season and Salted , will continue much longer than the former , being much wholsomer and more pleasant , breeding good N●urishment , better Blood and Spirits . CHAP. IV. The Proper and most Natural way of Boyling , Roasting , Frying , Baking , &c. of Flesh and other Food . THE proper and natural way to Boyl Flesh and other Food , that the Spirits and Life of it may be preserved , is , fiirst , To put your Flesh into a Pot or Vessel that is large , and can hold good store of Water : For this Element of Water being of it self sweet and pleasant , does cleanse and sweeten all things , especially Flesh , which is full of gross matter ; but you are to note , that your Flesh is not to be put into your Pot or Vessel unless it first Boyl ; for if it lie in the Water and receives Heat but Gradually , it dulls and makes flat the spirituous part thereof : Likewise when your Flesh is put into your Vessel , let your fire be increased that it may not lie long in the Water before it boyl , and as soon as it boyls , you are to uncover your Vessel , and to keep it boyling quick without intermission till it is ready for eating : The Pot or Vessel is not to be Covered any time of the boyling , for thereby the sweet and refreshing Influences of the Air are hindered that they cannot have their free Egress and Regress , which does as it were suffocate and destroy the pure and Volatile Spirits in the food : for the Air is the Life and preserver of the Spirit , and the Spirit is also the Life and preserver of the Balsamick Body in every thing ; and in what thing soever the Spirits suffer violence , the sweet Body and Oyl turneth Sower , as is most manifest in all fermented Liquors , if such Liquors be exposed to the open Air , the Spirits will evaporate , and then the sweet Body turneth Sower , and becomes of a heavy dull Nature and Operation ; but in the preparation of all gross phlegmy Bodies , the free Influences of the Air keep the Spirit Living till such Bodies are digested and the Spirits set at Liberty , then if such Preparations or Digestions be continued , the spirituous parts will also either become suffocated or evaporated , according to the Nature of the thing , as in making and preparing of Hay , the gross phlegmatick Body in Grass could not be digested or exhibited but by vertue and power of the Sun and Air ; but when they have destroyed the gross Humidity and Phlegm , if the preparation and making of it be continued , that is , the Hay continued in the Sun and Air , it will exhale , and cause the spirituous part to evaporate also . The very same or like is to be understood in the preparations of Food ; for these fiery sulpherous Fumes and Vapours which proceed out of these Vessels all the time of the Boyling , being forced back and kept in , because gradually more intense and raging , and because of the want of the free Influences of the Air , the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body are wounded , which does destroy the true Natural Colour with the pure Smell and Taste ; also , it makes it lumpish , close , heavy , dull and gross on the Pallate ; this kind of preparation is likewise heavy , and hard of digestion in the Stomach , and generates thick Blood and gross Nourishment , from whence proceeds dull indispositions , with Fumes flying into the Head : For the digestive Faculty and true Virtue of all sorts of Food , does consist in the Spirituous parts , and if any Violence be done to them in the Preparation , then such Food becomes dull and half dead ; for those Fumes and Vapours that Pots and Vessels send forth , are of a sulpherous and poysonous Nature , as you may perceive if you take up any sort of Food , when boyled , and presently whilst it is hot cover it close , which will force those fiery Fumes back , insomuch that the re-entring the Food , destroys and suffocates the pure Spirits ; therefore all such Food will not only be heavy , but it will have a dull gross Taste and Smell , very unpleasant both to the Pallate , and strong of Concoction ; the truth of this every one knows , if they would be so wise as to take notice of it ; for those sulpherous fumes that Food sends forth , as also the Vessels , is altogether of a contrary nature to the Heat and genuine Virtue of the Food , as you also may perceive so soon as the Food is prepared and taken from the Fire , this fiery Heat will of its own accord evaporate and separate it self from the Food ; it dwells no longer therewith than it is forced by the continuation of the Fire ; it hath no natural Simile with the Food ; therefore it will not incorporate its self with it , and nothing is more unnatural than to eat and drink any kind of Food whilst those fiery Steems and Fumes be in it ; for it swells the Body and generates Wind , sends Fumes and Vapours into the Head ; it also infects the Blood with a hot sharp Humour ; but this unnatural Heat is made by custom the more friendly , as you may perceive , if you give Dogs or any other Creature Pottage , or the like , whilst they are Hot , will cause a Mange in their Blood : The very same operation it hath in men , but not so violent , because of the continual use of such things . In this particular I shall be blamed by many ; For say they , I have found by Experience that cold Food will not agree with my Stomach , neither will it satisfie my Appetite . This may be true ; yet nevertheless this does not make it Healthful nor Wholsom ; for if you use your self and Stomach to the frequent eating and drinking of Physical things , your Stomach will long after them , and will not be satisfied without them . One Example we have amongst others in taking of Tobacco , which at first is most unpleasant and loathsom , but through Custom , and by degrees , it hath awakened its Simile in the Elements of the Body , and made that Quality strong , which at the first taking of it was weak , or lay as it were hid under the Qualities that did predominate ; therefore at the first taking of such poysonous or physical things , they generally disorder People , but when ( as it is mentioned before ) the continual use hath made this weak Quality strong , then it oft-times proves as great a difficulty to Refrain it , as it was to make it Friendly at the first taking , or rather more . For in Men is contained the true Nature of all things , only one Property does predominate and is stronger than the other , which Quality hath the chief dominion in the government of Life : Therefore there is a possibility in the Humane Nature to alter or change himself for the better or worse , that is , through Use and Custom of Meats , Drinks , Exercises , and Communications , viz. to make that Quality that in the Radix was weak to become strong , and on the contrary , that which was strong , weak , so great is the power of Custom , and the continual use of things ; for every thing , be it what it will , hath a secret power in its self to awaken its Simile , both in the Evil and also in the Good. Likewise there ought to be a great care taken that the Food be not over nor under prepared , of the two , it had better be a little under ; for as soon as the gross Phlegmatick Body in the Food is digested , the pure spirituous parts become Volatile ; and then if the Preparations be continued , they evaporate , and go backward towards the Center of Saturn , and so loseth its pure Colour , Smell and Taste , and becomes of a heavy dull Quality , and especially if the Vessel be close covered ; for so soon as the Egress and Regress of the Air is hindred , immediately the Spirits suffer Violence . For the pure essential Spirits , which dwell in the sweet Oyl , whence the Fire has its bright , shining , pleasant and friendly Quality , will not endure those violent raging Fumes and Vapours , their Nature being understood by their furious Motion ; and if those fiery Fumes be by the force of covering the Vessel kept in , then they become ten-fold more Terrible and Fierce , as you may perceive when any Vessel is boyling , if you uncover it , the Steems fly out like a clap of Thunder ; indeed all such Fumes and Vapours are of a dark fiery Nature and Operation ; for being kept in by force , they seek out their Center , and do by way of Simile incorporate themselves with their like spirits in the Food , or whatever else it be ; so that those fiery sulpherous dark Spirits and Fumes become stronger and more powerful in their operation ; for they being of a Saturnine and Martial Nature , the nature of Saturn is to contract , and very vigorously draw and inclose the Spirit , which Mars cannot endure , and the more Saturn contracteth , the more furious and raging Mars becomes , ( as you may perceive by the fiery quick furious Motion such sulpherous Fumes have , when you open such Vessels that do boyl ) which do wound the pure spirituous parts , and the Balsamick Body becomes wounded and sick , more especially if the preparation of such Food be continued too long ; For so soon as the gross Body or phlegmy Matter in Food is in part digested , then presently the spirituous parts appear externally , which did not only lie hid , but also the Body of the Phlegm , before the preparation , did keep the Spirits from Evaporation , which all Corporeal Bodies do ; for the Body is the House of the Spirits . Therefore great Care ought to be taken in all preparation of Food , both for Man and Beast ; and this is to be understood , that the pure Spirituous Parts and Balsamick Body cannot be preserved in the preparation of any Food , neither for Man or Beast , except that most friendly Element the Air hath its free Influences , because it is the Life , and gives the Power and Vertue to the Spirit : Also , this is to be minded , that when your gross Body in the Food is by your preparation digested , whether it be by the heat of the Sun , or by the common Fire , then ought you to proceed no further , nor continue your Preparation no longer ; for when the pure Spirituous Part becomes Volatile , the same Air which did keep and preserve the Spirit from Suffocation in the Preparation , will now cause it to evaporate , which every Country Husbandman knows in the making and preparing of his Hay , which neither the House-wife does understand nor consider in her Preparations of her Food , nor the Physitians in the Preparations of their Physick ; these things are of greater Consequence as to Health , than most do imagine . I do not desire any to give Credit to me , but I would have them so Noble as to Try whether it be so or not , Health being the best Treasure in this World , and all those that want it , do esteem and desire it more than any other thing ; tho' few do take Right Measures , when they enjoy it , to continue it . Thus much for the Right and most Natural Way of preparing Food by Boyling ; and whosoever shall observe the afore mentioned Rules and Observations , shall find great Benefit and Pleasure ; The very same Rules ought to be observed in the Preparation of All Pottages , green Herbs and Pulses , except dry-Pulses which will admit of a slower and more gentle Fire than the Green. Of Roasting of Flesh. The Roasting of flesh is a good commendable way of Preparation , and is rather sweeter than Boyling , it affords a good dry firm Nourishment , but it is some-what harder of Concoction , but very sweet and pleasant by reason that the friendly influences of the Air hath its Free Egress and regress , not being any ways inclosed , so that the pure spirituous parts are kept living , which do render it brisk and lively . There are two things to be observed in the flesh you Roast : 1st . That you have your flesh ( if Beef ) as soon as it is throughly cold , and then to give it some Salt , and to keep it in a cool place a day or two ; for if you salt it much , the Salt being of a fiery hot nature , when the flesh comes to the fire , it does ( as it were ) scorch or burn it , destroys the Spirits and sweet Oyl , insomuch that it becomes in its nature and operation hot and unpleasant , causing great thirst in the Eater : In Roasting it is also to be considered , that you have a good clear strong and equal fire , and that your flesh be placed at a convenient distance , not too near , because it will burn or scorch , and so harden the out-side , that the Heat shall not be able to penetrate into the middle thereof , so that the out-side will be too much , and the in side too little ; neither is your flesh to be too far off ; for then it flattens the Spirits , such flesh loseth its pure sweetness , with its colour and fragrant smell , being dull on the Pallate and heavy on the Stomach , in comparison of that which is placed at a convenient distance , having a continued brisk fire . The next thing that you ought to observe , is , That it be neither over nor under done , but of the two , it is better that it be under-done ; the point of time when the Preparation is at the hight , is difficult , and it can be no other way known but by its colour , smell and taste , which by a little Custom every House-Wife may understand ; for that Pallate that is used to eat and drink things well and properly prepared , can presently distinguish the contrary ; and so on the other side , those that do accustom themselves to either Foods of Drinks ill prepared , cannot distinguish the good from the evil , or the right from the wrong : The same is in the sense of smelling , as all such that do use to kill Beasts , and to be much in Slaughter-Houses amongst the dead Carkasses , the terrible Fumes and stupified Stinks are hardly smelled or perceived by them ; the same is to be understood of Tallow-Chandlers and other stinking Trades ; for every particular thing has power to strengthen and awaken its simile ; therefore there are but few that have their perfect Taste or Smell , only those that do accustom themselves to the eating and drinking such things as are well prepared , their Pallates are made the more perfect thereby : But of all the ways of Preparing Flesh , boyling is the easiest , if the Rules be followed set down in the fore-going Paragraph . Of the Baking of Flesh This Preparation is neither so wholsom nor healthful as either Boyling or Roasting , for these following Reasons : First , Most sorts of Food that are baked , are deprived both of the Element of Water , and also of the Air , which are not only the Purgers and Cleansers of all Food , but the support and life of the Spirit ; 2dly . The Air in Ovens becomes sulpherous and deadly , by reason of the stopping of it , that the reviving and refreshing Influences of this Element , has not its free egress and regress , so that the pure spirituous parts become , as it were suffocated . Nor can such flesh be supplied with convenient quantities of Water , which in all preparations of flesh is a great cleanser and upholder of the Spirits , so that it boyls in its own gross Humidity , which all flesh does plentifully afford . Also , the heat of Ovens is fiercer and more sulpherous than the heat of other Fires , where the Air has its Influences ; the Air also being confined , is of a deadly poysonous nature and operation ; it also destroys the natural Colour . Therefore flesh baked does no ways look like that which is boyl'd or roasted ; besides , it is of a strong fulsom Taste in comparison of the former , and a less quantity will cloy and fill the Stomach , more especially if such flesh shall be eaten hot , which renders it much more wholsom than cold ; for those sulpherous Fumes and Vapours that do proceed from baked Food are much more hurtful to the Health than that which is either boyl'd or roasted ; for there are but few Vessels in which Food is boyled that are or can be kept so close as Ovens . This way of Preparation is chiefly followed in Summer , especially in August , September , and October , the Air in this season being sulpherous and fainty , and the Weather hot , the making of fire in their houses is troublesom , therefore baking saves them the labour . Now at these seasons of the year flesh is unwholesom , and very apt to burden Nature , and to bring Diseases , as I have discoursed in another place , the frequent use of baked flesh in this season , with other evil circumstances which do then concur , does beget divers Obstructions , and generates an unfirm Nourishment , because most sorts of flesh at this time are more subject to Putrifaction than any other , whence so many Fevers , Fluxes , Gripings of the Bowels , and other Diseases do very frequently reign ; for Flesh in its best Condition is full of gross Juices and matter for Putrifaction , by reason of the great store of Phlegm and Humidity ; therefore it ought to be helpt as much as can be in the Preparation , which never can be well done , except there be plenty of the Element of Water , and the free egress and regress of the Air ; for those Elements have a living Power in them , by which they do qualifie and mix with it , purging and cleanfing that raw phlegmy Juice or matter , which all Flesh does afford . Also , where these two Elements have their free operation in the preparation of all sorts of Food , they preserve not only the pure Spirits , but also the sweet Balsamick Body from being suffocated or destroyed , maintaining the natural Colour , with the Smell and Taste , which makes all such Food lively and brisk , easie of Concoction , generating a far better Nourishment than any kind of baked Meat . Of Stewing of Flesh. This kind of Preparation of Flesh is much of the same nature with the former ; for it has neither benefit of the Air , nor a convenient quantity of Water ; in this and all other Preparations of Food , where these two Elements are hindered from having their free influences and operation , ( as is mentioned before ) neither Fesh nor any other Food can be well prepared ; for the radical and pure Spirits ( where these two Elements are pen'd up from having their influences ) cannot subsist , neither will the fire burn , but presently the pure Spirits and Oyl in the Wood , or other things , becomes suffocated ; for the Water and Air are the true Life and Power of every Being ; whence it comes to pass in all Preparations , both of Food and Physick , where these two Elements have not their free influences and operations , the pure Spirits become suffocated , and the sweet Oyl is turned sower , and becomes of a stinking Quality , which is the cause all sorts of Food so prepared become strong in scent and also in Taste , and it loseth its natural Colour ; if ( as I have said ) the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body be hurt , then there follows presently an alteration , and the original Quality of the dark Brimstone Spirit of Saturn and Mars gets the dominion , which was , as it were , hid before ; but so soon as the true Life is wounded , this Crude Fire becomes many degrees stronger than before , as is seen in Charcoal , and in many other things ; for these pure Spirits and Oily Body , whence the true Light hath its bright shining Quality , are the Qualifiers or Moderators of this dark fierce fire , as I have elsewhere largely discoursed of , touching the Nature of Brandy ; of this all House-Wives ought to take notice ; for if the pure Spirits and sweet Body be not preserved in the Preparations of Food , such Food is rather a Death to the Body , and also to the Spirits , than Life : The greatest Wisdom in all Preparations is to preserve the pure Spirits and sweet Body from being either suffocated or evaporated , and yet at the same time to digest and open the Body ; for the Crude matter in all Food must be digested , or else the pure Spirits cannot be set at Liberty , or freed from the phlegmy matter ; which pure Spirits and sweet Body does tincture the Food , as we see when any Food is properly prepared , which comes to pass through the Preparation , it digests the gross Crude parts , and then presently the true Spirits appear in their friendly forms , which before the Preparation were captivated or hid by the gross Phlegmy Body , the same is done in Malt , but in a higher degree . Most certain it is , that the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body cannot be supported and continued without the help of the Air and Water ; therefore it is a gross Mistake and Error amongst most House-Wives , to think that by Covering the Vessels , wherein Food is prepared , to preserve the Spirituous parts ; thereby imagining , that if such Vessels be open , that the Spirits will evaporate , which never happens till the gross Body in the Food be digested , and the Food be sufficiently Prepared , which does ( as is said before ) set the Spirituous parts at Liberty , that they become Volatile ; and then if the Preparation be continued , they will evaporate , but not before ; for in the Preparation , the Elements of Air and Water having their free Influences , keep the Spirits and Oily Body living ; and if these two Elements be Prevented , then the fiery sulpherous Fumes become so Raging that they seek out their Center , and incorporate themseves with the gross humid part of the Food , so that they greedily devour and suffocate the pure Life and sweet Oyl ; the very same is to be understood in all Physical Preparations . The Observation and true Knowledg of these things are very material , as to the preserving of Health ; but first they must be understood in a mans self ; for before a man can essentially know any thing , the Cognoscible , and the knowledg thereof must be manifested in himself , or else it is impossible for any one to know any thing Truly . Whatsoever may be known or understood of God and Nature , is essentially in man , or else he could not be called the Image of his Creator : Therefore every one ought to turn the Eye of their Understanding inward , and diligently search themselves ; which Study is Preferrable to all other things . Of Fryed Flesh. The Frying of Flesh and other Food in Pans , is a Preparation much in use in England , but not so good or wholsom as either Boyling , Roasting or Broyling : The goodness of all Food does arise and proceed from the Essential Spirits and Balsamick Body , which is the true Life and Vertue of every thing ; and if these essential Vertues do not suffer violence in the Preparation , then such Food will have a most pleasant Smell , a brisk lively Taste , very delightful to the Palate ; also , it retaineth its natural Colour , according to that colour that was predominant in the Radix of that thing , be it either White , Green , or whatsoever else , which can no way be maintained in the Food , but by the benefit and help of the Water , and the pure influences of the Air : Where the operation and influences of these two Elements are hindered , the pure Spirits do suffer Violence , which alters and changes both the colour , smell and taste , then it has a strong and odious scent , and its taste is also more unpleasing than the former , and the Stomach does not so eagerly desire it : Likewise , its true Colour is lost , or in some degree destroyed , as is most manifest by all Fry'd Flesh , it does send forth a strong fulsom smell in comparison of either Boyled or Roasted ; its Taste is stronger , and its natural Colour is chang'd by reason the pure Spirits and sweet Body are ( as it were ) suffocated by that fiery harsh heat the Pan does contain ; this Heat is more poysonous than the common heat of fire , which is caused by the Metal , whether it be Brass or Iron ; for the Fire does not only awaken the poysonous Nature that such Metal does contain , but the present Quality or oily Body in the Fire ( whence it hath its bright shining friendly Quality ) is suffocated ; therefore all such Heat that proceeds from Pans is of a harsh fierce nature and operation : The truth of this is further manifested by those that shall be Burned or scalded by such Pans , which is more poysonous , and the Flesh is harder to be Cured than what is burned by common Fire , and often proves more dangerous ; the very same matter does cause any kind of Food to have such a strong smell ; for in all Preparations that cause the smell to become strong , it is a sure sign that some Violence is done to the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body , which doth awaken the Center of the dark wrathful Nature : The very same is to be understood in all other things ; and that is the reason why Fryed , Baked and Stewed Food does send forth a stronger and fulsomer scent than other Preparations ; and all such Food will sooner cloy and dull both Pallate and Stomach , except in some few , whose Natures and Stomachs have a Simile with such Food : It is also to be noted , that the Fat which is used in Frying , that lies or runs between the thing Fryed and the Pan , is by this sulpherous Heat , and the want of the free Influences of Air , and the benefit of a convenient quantity of Water , turn'd into a stinking Oyl , which does neither retain its Colour , Smell nor Taste , but is of a contrary Nature to what it was when it was put into the Pan. For these Reasons all Fryed Food is of a stronger fulsomer Nature than either Boyled , Roasted or Broyled Meat , harder of Concoction , and does cloy the Stomach : Therefore all House-Wives and others that do prepare Food , if they regard the Health of the Body , and true pleasure of the Pallate , ought to understand the possibility of Nature in all Preparations , that they may digest the raw gross Body of Food , without offering any violence to the pure Spirits and balsamick Body , and then all such Food would be of a most pleasant Smell , Colour , and Taste ; for if the pure Spirits be kept free , and not suffocated in the Preparation , such Food becomes friendly to Nature , affording good firm and wholsom Nourishment , easie of Concoction ; the frequent eating of such Food makes a man Airy , full of lively Spirits , and of a good Complexion : So on the contrary , if they be suffocated , then presently the sweet Oyl is turned sower , or into a stinking Quality ; then such Food so Prepared will have ( as is mentioned before ) a strong Smell and Taste , not retaining its natural Colour ; for in all sorts of Food , in which the Spirituous Parts and Balsamick Body is strong , their Smell , Colour and Taste is Pleasant and Friendly . Also , it is to be noted , that most Preparations of Food , the quicker they are performed ( provided there be no violence done to the Spirit ) the better and more friendly such Food will prove ; for slow and intermitting Fires , in either Boyling or other Preparations , do flatten and dull the Spirituous Parts : Therefore no Baker can preserve the pure white Colour in his fine small Bread , if he be not quick about it ; for if any Preparation be continued too long the volatile Spirits become in a degree suffocated , then Venus , Sol and Iupiter grow weak , and according to the length of time and degrees of heat , so the natural Colours do alter and change ; for the Colours of all sorts of Food ( when Prepared ) do arise by degrees one after another gradually , and when the gross Body is digested , then the inward virtue ( which lay hid and captivated in the Body of Phlegm ) appears in its own friendly Form , with a most lively and pleasant Colour , Smell and Taste ; this is the point of Time all Preparers of Food ought to understand ; for if their Preparation be continued any longer , the operation of Nature goes backward towards the center of the Original Fire , then Saturn and Mars and their properties are presently awakened , which do cause the Colour , Smell and Taste of such Food to change : The first degree the Colour alters to , is a dusky Yellow , and if the Preparation be continued , by degrees it turns blackish , till at last it will become Black or deep Red , or of a mixed streaked Colour , all according to the Property which does predominate in the Original or dark Fire ; also , all such Food is of a gross and fulsom Smell and Taste , unpleasant both to the Pallate and Stomach . Preparing of Food is a greater Art and Mystery than many House-wives and others do think ; and if it be well and properly performed , it adds much to the preservation of the Health both of Body and Mind ; for every thing has Power to awaken its Simile in the Body . Therefore every one ought to use that care and understanding in the Preparations of all sorts of Food , that the meek and most friendly Life be preserved from suffering violence . Of Broyled Flesh. Broyled Flesh was much used in former Ages , but now it is little in Fashion , in comparison of the aforementioned Preparations ; Flesh dressed this way is much sweeter and fuller of Life and Spirit than Baked or Fry'd , by reason it does not boyl in its own fat , as the other two do ; also , it is quickly Prepared , and the gross Humidity in the flesh does freely purge and run into the Fire ; it has likewise the free Egress and Regress of the Air , the Fire being full of lively brisk Spirits , which in Ovens and Frying-Pans are destroyed , by which means the heat becomes more gross and sulpherous , like the heat of Charcoal , which does suffocate the pure Spirits , and then the Fat becomes of a heavy gross and Oily Quality , with a strong Taste and Smell ; which gross matter in Boyled Flesh is destroyed ; therefore it does not only eat sweeter , but breeds better Nourishment , if the Fire be clear and done as it ought ; the Fire of Wood does prepare all sorts of Food sweeter and better than Cole , and renders it much wholsomer ; for in all Preparations in which the Food does boyl in its own Fat , or in Fat put to it , if it hath not plenty of Water and the free influences of the Air , the gross Humidity in the Fat does suffocate the pure Spirits , and then the sweet Body ( which all Fat does afford great store of ) becomes gross and fulsom in Smell , Taste and Operation , which will quickly cloy the Stomach , and generates burdensom Humours in the Body , because the pure Vertue and Friendly Quality in Food so Prepared , is in part destroyed ; if this was understood , People would not be in love with such Preparations ; for through frequent Use and continual Custom of eating Food badly prepared , the Pallate is adulterated ; and altho such be strong and fulsom , ( which always comes'to pass when the pure Spirits are wounded in the Preparation ) nevertheless the Pallate is not capable to distinguish Tastes ; for the senses are easily made friendly ( by use and custom ) to the greatest part of things : Do not all stinking Trades ( which at first are unpleasant to the sense of Smeling ) become after a little use and custom easie to be endured , and such cannot well distinguish the Air of Tallow-Chandlers and Butchers Shops from sweet pleasant Airs : If this were not so , it would be impossible for Nature to endure those Adulterations and unnatural Preparations of Food . Therefore we see what a wonderful Power there is in every thing to awaken and strengthen its Likeness in the human Nature ; for this very cause the most illuminated Prophet Moses commanded the People of Israel that they should not only abstain from eating Unclean Creatures , but that they should also separate themselves from every unclean thing ; for he was sensible that Man was capable to be wrought on by all things , because he has a Simile with all . There is more in this than many imagin , which every one ought to consider , not only in Preparations of Food , but in all other things . CHAP. V. The Seasons of the Year in which all sorts of Flesh are most unclean and aptest to contract and breed Diseases , and also the danger of eating much green Food : And the Reasons why so many are sick and die more at one time than another . THE Seasons of the Year which are most dangerous to contract Diseases in , are from the middle of Iune to the last of October . For , 1st . This season is hot , which openeth the Pores , causeth Sweating , and as it were a continual Evaporation of the Spirits , which causeth a kind of fainty Indisposition to possess the whole Body ; for all heat , which exceeds the Medium , whether it proceeds from Seasons , Meats , Drinks or Exercises , doth gradually waste and consume the Spirits and natural Heat , and dulls the edge of the Attractive , Digestive and Retentive Faculties of the Stomach ; therefore in all hot Countries and Seasons mens Appetites are not so vigorous and quick as in cold Countries : For this reason all Superfluity and Intemperance are far more dangerous , and men are apter to contract Distempers in the one than in the other , as experience manifests ; we see that the Natives in all hot Climates are more temperate in Meats , Drinks and Exercises than they are in cold , which is one main cause why English People and others that travel into the East and West-Indies are so unhealthy , and so many have died : Experience hath taught them , that the grand cause has been Intemperance , not only continuing the same Disorders there , which they had been addicted to in their own Country , but rather increasing them , saying , The hotter the Weather , the stronger and hotter the Drink ought to be ; this Custom hath been practised by some idle sottish People that understood Nature no more than Swine ; Whereas if such who travel did take right measures in Meats , Drinks and Exercises , they would be as healthy , as in their own Countries . 2dly , In this Season People make use of variety of green Food , as Beans , Pease , Cabages , Colly-flowers , Artichoaks , &c. All which things do contain great store of Phlegmy matter , especially in cold Countries , where the Sun ( which is the central Life of all things ) has not that Power to prepare such food as in hot : Also , the Bodies of most People being accustom'd all the remaining part of the year to strong hot Food and Drinks , and then on a sudden , without gradual Progression , beginning such a kind of Diet as does beget Crudities and Obstructions , is very prejudicial to them ; for Experience does shew , that all such things are full of Phlegm , and have but few Spirits , and they very impure , comparatively , to what they were in the Spring : Therefore they ought to be eaten moderately , or else all such things do swell the Body , and fill it with gross Phlegmatick Humours , whence doth arise those heavy dull Indispositions , which do generally attend People in this Season . 3dly , It is likewise to be observed , that a great part of that green Food before-mentioned , does often lie a considerable time before they are eaten , viz. two or three days , or more , after such things are cut or gathered , especially in great Cities and Towns , some of them lie heating together a day or two before they are spent , as Beans and Pease , &c. by which means they lose their pure brisk lively Taste and Smell , their natural Colour is changed into a dull Green , mixed with a dusky Black ; they are dull on the Pallate , lie heavy on the Stomach , nothing so quick of Concoction as those that are boyled Fresh ; these things presently lose their fresh lively Spirits and Tinctures , whence doth proceed the pleasant Taste , with the most fragrant Smell and natural Colour ; if your Pallate be not too much adulterated , it will easily distinguish the one from the other . 4thly , At this time of the year the Air ( which is the Life of the Spirit in all Cities and great Towns ) is thick and sulpherous , full of gross Humidity , which has its source from many Uncleannesses such places do plentifully afford , more especially in this season , which is inamicable to the pure Spirits of all such Food ; for all green Food is naturally subject to Putrifaction , by reason of their Phlegmatick Body ; this makes them more unhealthful and dangerous than otherwise they would be , if fresh and lively . These Summer Fruits , when they have been gathered long , and exposed to the corrupt Air of the Cities and Towns , the pure spirituous Vertues and digestive Faculty is in a manner destroyed ; these Fruits , viz. Gooseberries , Currains , Plums , Cherries , Pears , Apples , &c. are endued with a very tender Spirit and Life , and being full of Phlegm and gross matter , they quickly corrupt and turn to Putrifaction , which all the eaters thereof ought to consider : Likewise it may be noted , that many of these Fruits are eaten on a full Stomach , both at Meals and immediately after , which must needs be very pernicious to Health , because they obstruct the Stomach and Passages , generating many crude Windy Humours , whereby they suffocate the pure Spirits , and turn the sweet Oyl of Life sower , whence doth proceed griping Pains in the Bowels , Fluxes , Fevers , besides Pains in the Ioynts , causing Trembling Distempers , like Agues , according to the Constitution of each Man , and the matter which is awakened in the Root . But on the contrary , if such Fruits are ripe and fresh gathered , and eaten in order when the Stomach is clean and free from being cloyed with other Food , then they are very Profitable , being most of them of an opening and cleansinn Nature ; for they gently cleanse and purge the Passages and Bowels : But all these Summer Fruits are best and safest Prepared , being mixt with things of a drying and warming Quality , or rather made into Drinks , and when such Juices have passed through Fermentation , the Phlegmy Body is digested , and the spirituous Parts set at Liberty , which do tincture the gross Body , so , that the Spirit and true Life is made thereby Predominant over the body of Phlegm ; such Drinks being drunk moderately , prove very friendly to Nature , especially to such as are Aged People , which do most need spirituous Drinks . Green Food is not capable either in Man or Beasts to generate so good Nourishment , nor so firm as dry , neither are the Spirits so brisk and lively ; the gross Juices of such Food do as it were suffocate the pure Spirits , and turn the Balsamick Body sower , as it farther appears by all sorts of Animals that live on green Food in this season , are they not apt to faint , and to be subject to many Diseases , their Flesh and Fat being soft and greasy ? but those that live on dry Food , their Bodies are freer from gross Phlegmatick matter , their Fat and Flesh is of a firmer substance , and their Spirits stronger and livelier , and more capable they are to endure Labour without Prejudice to their Health ; it is also manifested by all Grains , Seeds and other Fruits , that are cut or gathered before the Sun and Elements have dryed away or exhaled the gross Phlegmy moisture , all such things will presently Putrifie and Stink , being loaded with so great store of Humidity ; but if they be gathered the Sun and Elements having dryed away the Humid Parts , then all such things will keep sound and good for several Years ; for this cause all sorts of Food , in which Phlegm does abound , are very dangerous in this season , if Temperance be wanting , as our daily experience teaches . 5thly , In this Season the Sun also declines in strength and vigour , which being the central Power and Life of all things , they likewise do proportionably decline , as appears in Herbage ; as for Example , If you cut Grass in September , which is then the Food of most sorts of Cattel , the Hay made thereof is of a weak fading Nature and Vertue , in comparison of that Hay which was made in Iune or Iuly , which is of a lively brik strong substance and vertue ; for the Earth ( which is the Mother of all things in this Season ) is weak and impotent , because she hath already put forth her strength , and manifested her lively Vertues in the first spring or rising of the Sun ; for the Winter is the Rest and Sabbath of the Earth , in which time she recovers strength-and vertue , because she does then , as it were , cease from all her Labours , and the Vegetative Quality stands as it were still , and the more Frost and Snow , and the drier the Winter is , the more strength and vigour the Earth obtains ; such dry Weather cloaseth up the Pores , by which the strength and vertue is prevented from having any Evacuations , which is manifested by the goodness and great Increase of all Herbs , Fruits and Grains , being all filled with a Powerful Lively brisk Spirit and Vertue ; therefore in the first spring and rising of the Sun every thing rejoyceth , and becomes very fragrant by vertue of the sweet Influences of this Coelestial Body , and the Power of the Earth , so that at this time all things seem to strive with a most lively motion to manifest their most inward Vertues ; this is the time for People to eat Herbs , both Boyl'd and Raw , Sallets , and Pottages made thereof ; such Food at the Rising of the Sun are endued with a brisk lively Vertue and Strength , and of an opening and cleansing Nature , Purging the Blood , and are good against all kind of Obstructions : Also , all sorts of Diseases are by vertue of Sobriety and Temperance , and the use of good Medicines then easier cured than at any other of the Year ; it is also the Briskest and Healthiest Season , and the same Intemperances and Disorders which may be the occasion of generating Diseases in the latter part of the Summer , in this time will hardly be felt ; for now all things rejoyce , and seem to concur for the Preservation of Nature . 6thly , In this Season , viz. from the middle of Iune to the last of September , most sorts of Cattel breed many Diseases ; First , from the continual Heat and gross humid Air , which in this season is more sulpherous ; the Pleasant Influences and Spirits of the Air are dull and thick , which causes a dull and fainty Indisposition to possess the Bodies and Spirits of all Creatures ; Men themselves can witness the Truth of this . Moreover , all Creatures are more subject to sweat , by which the Spirits do evaporate ; likewise , the Food of most Creatures is Grass , which is of a gross Phlegmatick Nature , and generates not only an unfirm Nourishment , but also fills the Body full of evil Juices , the Fat and Flesh being of a soft greasy Nature , having but few Spirits , and those that are , very impure , the Blood of most Cattel being thick and gross , which is the cause their Flesh will not take Salt as at other seasons ; also , about this time most sorts of Cattel , especially those that come from remote parts of great Cities , are more or less Heated and Surfeited by Driving , and other Accidents , they being not formerly used to Driving , the Weather being Hot and Fainty , the Air thick and humid , and they being loaded with much gross Flesh and Fat , all these things concurring , makes their Flesh unwholsom , and subject to Corruption , especially Sheep and Lambs , whose Spirits and Lives are so tender , that they cannot endure any kind of violent motion without manifest danger to their Health : It is very rare that any Mutton or Lamb is good in this Season , they not being free from the aforesaid Accidents ; you may easily distinguish by the Taste , Smell and Colour of that which is killed off the Common without driving and other Accidents , and that which is killed in London with driving , the Bodies of all Creatures being in this season full of Phlegmy matter , that every little Accident will wound the Spirit , then presently the Body suffers many Inconveniencies ; and if such Cattel be kill'd before they have time to recover such Injuries , their flesh is of a dull heavy Phlegmatick Nature , the Spirits are few , and those that are are impure ; for these reasons it will not take salt nor eat sweet , as others will , which are free from such Inconveniencies ; for salt has no Power to Preserve such Flesh from Putrifaction , because ( as is mentioned before ) the Spirits are impure ; for those gross Bodies are Preserved by the Vertue and Power of the Spirit ; and in such flesh where the spirits are few and impure , and the Flesh gross and full of Phlegmy matter , the salt cannot incorporate ; therefore in this season use what Art you can in salting your Flesh , it will not eat so sweet nor keep so long without corrupting as at other times of the Year ; but on the contrary , in other seasons , and when the Flesh is free from the afore-mentioned Inconveniences , their Blood being thin , and well tempered with brisk and lively Spirits , such Flesh being salted as soon as it is cold , the Salt will greedily Penetrate it , and incorporate it self with the well-tempered Blood and pure Supirits , so that it does hold the corrupt Phlegmy part of the Flesh captive , that the humidity thereof cannot turn to Putrifaction , untill those brisk lively Spirits both in Flesh and Salt be , through length of time , wasted or suffocated , which comes to pass in six , eight or twelve Months , more or less , according to the goodness of it and well ordering , and other Accidents , and then it will fall into corruption , and there is no recovery for it ; but if the Salt had cleansed and purged the Flesh from its gross humid parts , as some say it does , then such Flesh would have kept a longer time , as all other gross Bodies will , when the Sun and Elements have dryed away and exhaled the Phlegmy gross parts , and left remaining the more firm and Spirituous , which will continue sound and good many Years , as many sorts of Corn , Fruits and Hay , which are altogether as subject to Corruption as Flesh , when green and full of Phlegmy Juices , but their Putrifaction is not so loathsom , nor so offensive to Nature ; neither will such things generate such pernicious Vermin as Flesh will , the matter in Flesh being grosser . It was not without great Reason & Wisdom that the Ancients commanded that Flesh should be eaten sparingly , & that there should be a particular care not only taken about the good state of the Bodies of such Cattel , but also in the killing and preparing of it ; the dressing and preparing of all other sorts of Food being left to every ones discretion . But the learned Prophet Moses was sensible that the common and frequent eating of Flesh was very dangerous , as to the health of the Body , and also of the Mind , if care and understanding be not used in the Preparation thereof ; therefore he gave Laws and particular Directions for the ordering and preparing of Flesh , but no mention made of other Food ; therefore Flesh in its best state , and otherwise well ordered , if much eaten , is apt to load the Body with gross Humours and evil Juices , but much more in the fore-mentioned seasons . 7thly , In this season all men do find themselves more subject to Indispositions , the Spirits dull and heavy , apt to faintness , and sooner wearied with Labour than at any other time ; the Appetite not so quick and lively ; therefore all sorts of People ought to have double the care , as to their Health , at this time , both in Meats , Drinks , and Labours , also in Quality and Quantity ; for Intemperances are not so dangerous in the Winter or Spring , Nature being then strong and able to bear , with less Prejudice : This is the time of the Year in which also most sorts of Cattel are subject to Sickness , as Sheep to the Rot , and other Cattel to Murrains . And do not almost the double Number of People sicken and die in this season ? And is not the flesh of all sorts of Fowls in hot weather lean and poor , altho they have more plenty of Food than in Winter ? But it lies not in the Quantity of Food , but in the season of the Year , and the Weather ; for all Heat , when it does exceed the Medium , evaporates and spends the Spirits , and then Nature does presently Languish , and the sweet Oyl in the Body turns ( as it were ) sower , so that there is a general weakness and fainty Indisposition in all Creatures , and their Flesh is rendered thereby the more unwholsom , and apt to breed Diseases in the Eaters thereof . If Sobriety and Temperance were observed , and other Circumstances belonging to Health , a little Physick would serve . But in this Age men may speak and write of Temperance until they are weary ; for there is not one of an hundred that is willing to observe and conform to its safe and healthful Rules ; though it cannot be denied , but that It is one of the Principal things which puts a delectable sweetness on all our other Enjoyments : But few in Health consider these things , most being rather of an approving and admiring than a Practising Temper , especially of those things they are not in Possession of ; many men also slight and have no esteem for those things they do or may enjoy , letting go the substance , and eagerly Pursuing after shadows . But seeing that in this Intemperate Age most Persons do live irregular Lives , few or none being willing to observe the Rules of Health in their Meats , Drinks and Exercises , therefore it is convenient for the continuation of Health to take Proper Purgative Medicines , both at Spring and Fall , tho they are not sensible of any manifest Indisposition ; by which means they may easily prevent the generation of matter ; for when Sickness and Distempers have invaded the Body , then it will be a difficult point to get such Medicines as are suitable to the Disease , and can by their Vertue cure them ; when the Spirits are wounded , and the Distempers and Obstructions in the Body have gotten great power over Nature , in such cases the best Medicines do often fail , most Diseases being generated gradually , as the Intemperances are committed ; for Nature ever hides the Evil Matter ( whence Distempers do Proceed ) as long as she is able ; but when once the Diseases do manifest ▪ themselves with any kind of Violence , then there is danger at hand ; most People being mistaken in Nature , for they generally attribute the cause of their Diseases to the least Intemperance or taking Cold , or the like ; never considering how many Disorders and Intemperances they have formerly committed ; every Act of Intemperance does in some degree obstruct Nature , and by degrees sows the seeds of future Diseases ; not but that outward Colds and the like do hurt Nature , and oft-times awaken the matter which lies in the inward Parts , and bring it to manifestation ; but on the contrary , when the in-side is clean and free from Obstructions , and other Evils , the body doth then very rarely receive any injury by such outward Accidents ; for Nature still endeavours to overcome and withstand the evil matter in the Body , and makes several Essays to throw such Disorders off , but if Irregularities in Meats , Drinks and Labours be continued , the Evil at last grows so great , that then Nature must bow , and Distempers take place . This is always to be noted , that if any Member or Part of the Body be weakened either by inward Obstructions or outward Accidents , as Falls , Bruises , broken Bones , &c. and the Person be guilty of any Intemperance or disorderly Living , the weak or hurted part first feels it , according to the old Proverb , The Weakest goes to the Wall. It will be convenient , if any upon particular occasions be excessive in Meats and Drinks , to observe the following Rules , which they 'l find to be very profitable . First , After full Meals and excessive Draughts , see that they fast longer than their usual time is ; this gives great advantage to the natural Heat , by which the digestive Faculty of the Stomach does by its secret attractive Power draw unto it self all superfluity and evil Juices that have been bred through Intemperance , digesting and throwing off all such matter , which might otherwise occasion Diseases ; for the action and natural heat of the Stomach is never idle , but has always its continual motion , and secret attraction , and Hunger is so powerful , that it will draw the very Flesh off the Bones : Therefore fasting after immoderate eating and drinking , is a sure Remedy to prevent Diseases and Surfeits ; drinking good store of Water-Gruel made thin and boyl'd quick the following day , without any Ingredients in it , will cleanse the Stomach and help to carry off the gross matter and evil Juices , which do proceed from Repletion . If these Rules were observed by those that abound in Meats and Drinks , there would not be so many afflicted with the Gout in the Joynts and Pains in the Limbs , Swelling and Breaking-out with so many Mangy and Leprous Diseases , which are chiefly occasioned through Intemperance and want of Exercises : Likewise all Rich compounded Foods , which are often of disagreeing Natures , do not only destroy the Health , but do dull the edge of the Appetite , taking away the true Taste and Pleasure , which good Stomachs and sharp Appetites enjoy : It may be truly said , That the Intemperate Person is deprived of all true and natural Pleasure ; for those that are continually accustomed to rich Compounded Foods , and strong Cordial Drinks , as Wine , &c. by the frequent use of them they become rather burdensom than pleasant ; the same is to be understood of those that live an idle soft Life , their whole body is as it were indisposed , their Members and Limbs often ake for want of Exercise , because they are weak ; also , their Passages are fur'd and stopped , so that the Blood becomes thick and gross , and the natural Spirits impure ; such People are on every occasion apt to sweat , being also subject to internal Heats , which do much disorder the whole Body ; but the ordinary sort of People , who are constrained to live on mean simple Food and small Drink , and to labour hard , do imagine that the greatest happiness in this World is to live an idle Life , and to have their Tables daily furnished with variety of rich Food and strong Drinks ; few of them considering that the true pleasure of eating and drinking is in having a perfect Appetite , and that without Labour no man can be brisk and lively , either in Body or Spirit , which Superfluity of rich Food , strong Drink and Idleness doth destroy , because most of such things are unequal in their parts , and so beget Inequality ; also they are endued with too great Vertue , whence doth proceed too much Nourishment , which is the Foundation of most Diseases ; for this cause mean and simple Meats and Drinks are not only most greateful to Nature , but do best support the Body in perfect Health and Strength , far beyond all the richest compounded Flesh , Fish and strong Drinks , though all such things are and may be very useful now and then , being moderately used for ●he necessity of Nature , as the Scripture saith , all Gods Creatures are good , being received with Thanks-giving : Most Meats and Drinks in their own Nature are simple and innocent ; it is generally Compositions that make Meats and Drinks not only too Rich , but also Improper . CHAP. VI. Of Waters , Ale , Beer and Tobacco ; to which is added the consideration of Cloathing , Houses and Beds , and what great Benefits arise from Moderation and Temperance in those things . THE Element of Water is not inferior to any other of the Elements , neither is Nature wanting to work wonderfully thereby ; there is so great a Necessity of Water , that without it no Animal can live , nor any Herb or Plant bring forth ; for in it is the Seminary Vertue of all things , especially of Animals , whose Seed is manifestly Watrish . The Seeds also of all Herbs and Plants , although they are Earthy , must notwithstanding be rooted in moisture before they can be fruitful . The great and illuminated Prophet Moses tells us , that before the Creation , when the Earth was without Form , the Spirit of the Lord moved on the Face of the Waters ; and in another place , that the Plants did not grow , because God had not caused it to Rain upon the Earth . Nay , so great is the Efficacy of this cleansing Element , that the spiritual Regeneration cannot be performed without it , as our Saviour Christ himself testified to Nicomedus ; and very great have the Vertues of it been in Religious Worship in former Ages , among the Prophets and Wise Men in Expiations and Purifications . Innumerable are the Benefits , and so various the Uses thereof , both in the Generation , Nourishment and Increase of things , that some of the Wise Men have concluded , that Water was the beginning of all things , and first of all Elements , and the most Potent , because it hath the mastery over all the rest , for it swalloweth up the Earth , extinguishes Flames , ascends on high , and by a most wonderful divine Hand , and the stretching forth of the Clouds , challengeth the Heavens for its Throne , whence falling down in gentle Showers and refreshing Dews , as from Natures choicest Limbeck , impregnated with Coelestial Vertues , it becomes the cause of all things that grow in the Earth . Nor is there scarce any part of Nature more full of Wonders than these liquid Regions . Iosephus tells us of a River near Sina , which runneth with a full Channel all theS abbath-Day , and then on a sudden it ceaseth , as if the Spring were stopped , and all the six days you may pass over it dry-shod ; but again on the seventh-day ( no Man knowing the reason of it ) the Waters return in abundance as before ; wherefore the Inhabitants therabouts call it the Sabbath-days River . The Gospel testifies of a Sheep-Pool , into which whosoever stepped first , after the Waters were troubled by the Angel , was made whole of whatsoever Disease he had . Many secret and admirable Vertues the Creator hath endued this Element with , as in all Ages hath been manifested ; for it being pure and clear in its own Nature , it is the only and alone thing by which all external things are purified , purged and cleansed : But if it be adulterated or incorporated with any other Liquor or Juice , then it becomes less pure , and will not so well perform its Office , yet it may make them better and more useful . Though it be a vulgar Proverb — As weak as Water : Yet I must tell you , Water is more strong and sublime than most imagine , for it contains a most ravishing and excellent Spirituous Balsamick Vertue , whence proceeds that pure sweet refreshing Quality , whereby it hath Power by its innate Vertue to digest and purifie all sorts of Food : Also , in all Preparations it is so Innocent and Friendly that it dissipates the gross phlegmy Bodies , and preserves the more essential Parts and Vertues , and keeps the Spirituous Parts living . It is not only the most plentiful and truly pleasant of all Drinks , but it supplies Nature with its friendly Moisture , and relieves Thirst beyond all other Liquors or Juices : It is so Simple , and endued with such Equality , that it insinuates its Vertue into all parts of the Body in an insensible way ; it makes no Noise , nor causes any Tumults in the Brain , nor awakens any in equality in the Body , but imparts its meek Life as it were in silence . And as Bread hath the first place of all Food , and may justly be called Concord , or a thing which God and his Hand made , Nature hath befriended with all the united good Vertues both of the Vegetable and Animal Kingdoms , and therefore no sort of Food is comparable thereunto , nor will gratifie Nature to that degree as it ought , without the help and mixture of Bread ; though yet it is not the strongest of all Foods , nor hath the greatest Nourishment , but it is the most equal in its parts , and stands nearest the Unity , for which cause it is so much desired , and justly esteemed the Staff of Life ; and we are taught to Pray for all outward Accommodations needful for our Bodies under that significant denomination of Our daily Bread , it being , besides its own nutritive faculty , a proper Ingredient to qualifie the Inequality of most other sorts of Food , and is the Foundation to all good Nourishment : The like is to be understood of Water , that being the Radix of all moist Nourishment , which mixt or incorporated with any kind of Juices , renders them fit and profitable for Mankind . Nay , ( if we may fly our Contemplations to an higher pitch ) there is a Sympathetical agreement , or some Analogy between this External Water and that Internal , of which our Saviour Christ told the Woman of Samaria , that if she did drink , she should never thirst : This Internal Super essential Water sustaineth every Being , and is the Radix and Life of the outward Water , which contains some Shadows of the secret Influences of the Water Internal ; for which reason the Prophets and good Men of old have frequently compared the one with the other , and expressed the one by the other , and also have made use of Water in Religious Mysteries as a sign of Cleansing and Purifying the Soul from Sins , and for curing Diseases , &c. as the Scriptures do testifie , Thus much I thought fit to say of Water in general , to stir up men to praise and admire the Goodness and Wisdom of the All-Creator , for the manifold Uses , Vertues and Benefits wherewith he hath endued this Element . But now let us consider the several sorts of Water . Of Rain-Water and its Nature . I name this Water first , because for several Reasons it is the best of all , if not defiled by Accidents , as by Tiles of Houses , or the Vessels 't is kept in . For , 1st . It is a light pure thin Water . 2dly . It is drawn up into the Clouds by the power and vertue of the sweet Influences of the Sun Beams . 3dly . Being carried to and fro with the Clouds by Gods divine power , it hath thereby had the greater benefit of Motion . 4thly . 'T is endued with wonderful Vertue from the Element of Air , and the sweet Influences of the Coelestial Bodies , whereby it is made more Spirituous than other Waters , and of a fat unctious Quality , of a light friendly mild Nature and Operation : Thus it mollifies the harsh Earth , making it light and tender , and causes all Plants to multiply and grow far better than any Artificial Watrings can do ; Rain-Water being ( among its other Vertues ) like Afferment or Leaven , that makes the hard compacted Earth more spirituous and penetrable , giving Life and Motion to all the Vegetable Kingdom . 5thly . Rain-Water is not only exhaled by the Beams of Heaven from the most clear and subtle Fountains , and impregnated with the Coelestial Influences , but also is , as it were , strained with the Airy Motions and Winds , which fill it with a Saline and Balsamick Vertue , when it descends ( like the Tears of a repenting Sinner ) in gentle reviving Showers , that give Vertue and Power to all Vegetables , and restore the gasping parched Earth and languishing Nature to the briskness of the Spring and joys of Autumn . 6thly . This is the lightest of all Waters , it cools and heats quickly ; it oppresses not the Stomach , or any other part of the Body , but passeth suddenly into the Ureters , having neither in Colour , Smell nor Taste any manifest Quality ; it bindeth not the Belly as some other Waters do , and is the best to be used in all Physical Operations , if it be well received , and afterwards kept from defilement . 7thly . It is to be preferred before all other Waters in House-wifery , for it Boyls all sorts of Meats better and sooner , and makes them easier of Concoction ; as likewise it Brews and Washes to greater advantage than others . Of River Water . This is next in Goodness , whose Original is Fountain or Spring-Water , and yet there is rarely any Spring-Water so good for common and general use at the Fountain-Head as in the River . For , 1st . Rivers or running Waters have great advantages by passing through various Soils and sorts of Earth , from whence it drains or sucks in a certain Unctious Vertue or Saline Fatness , which the surface of the Earth does plentifully contain , and from which Vegetation does chiefly proceed . 2dly . This sort of Water has the benefit of Motion , with the benevolent Influences of the Sun , and the Element of the Air , which purge it from its harsh earthy Qualities , and as it were open its Body , enduing it with a pure Spirituous , Airy and Balsamick Vertue , of a warming friendly Nature and Operation : This is the chief reason why River-Water is of a softer milder Nature , and will perform all Preparations in House-wifery to more advantages than Spring-Water taken from the Fountain Head ; for there most Waters retain a Saturnine earthy Quality , which the Influences of the Sun and Air , with the help of Motion do destroy . 3dly . The New-River that supplies London , is some of the best Water in England ( except Thumes Water ) it being a cut or made River that runs on the Surface of the Earth for above twenty Miles , and is not fed or increased by hungry Springs , as many other Rivers are that run through Vallies , which is their own Natural way , but Land-Floods sometimes fall into it , which augment its Vertue and Goodness , for they are the richest of Waters , draining and sucking into themselves the fat Saline Vertue of the Earth : For this reason most Vallies that lie between the Hills are so fruitful ; for the Waters that run off the Hills do wash or carry away the Salintral Vertue into them , and there it centers ; and thus Hills come not to be so fruitful as Valleys or Plains , by reason of such disadvantages : Whereas on the contray , do not Land-Floods , and the overflowing of Rivers , make Meadows fruitful from the same causes ? For when the Waters retire and sink away , they leave behind them the Saline or Spiritual Quality , that does Muck such Ground , as though it had been over-spread with substantial Dung. And indeed the very same is to be understood when a Man dungs his Land , it is not altogether the gross substance or matter that enricheth the Land , but it is the before mentioned fat Saline Quality , which the moisture of the Earth receives , and the Rains wash out of the Dung ; for if you lay a load of Dung in a heap , and let it lie a Week , two or three , and then remove it clean away from that place , and spread it thick in another place , yet that spot which the Dung lay on two or three Weeks will be more enriched than where the gross substance is spread ; for the Earth , with the help of the Rains and Dews , sucked into it self the Salintral Vertue of the Dung. Therefore in most Fields , where such heaps of Dung do lie for a while before they are spread , both the Grass and Corn is not only greener , but also much stronger , and more in quantity than in other places of the Field . 4thly . River-Water , for the Reasons aforesaid , is better for Men and Beasts to drink of , than Springs or Pump-Water ; it boyls all sorts of Herbs , Fish and Flesh better , and makes better and wholsomer Pottages ; it brews Beer and Ale to more Advantage , both in Quality and Quantity , and washes all sorts of Linnen and Woollen with less Pains , Charge and Damage to the things . This Water seems to be pretty equal in its parts , having no manifest Taste , but a certain friendly mild sweetness predominates ; and there is as much difference between the Nature and Operation of River-Water and Pump or Well-Water , as there is between Beer and Ale ; and the Excellency of the latter above the former , I shall demonstrate in its proper place . Of Spring or Fountain VVater . There are various sorts of this Water , some Better , some Worse , according to the Nature of the Earth it passes through : If Springs or Fountains proceed from a Chalky Earth , or some sorts of hot Sands , or run near the surface of the Earth , they are thereby endued with a meek soft friendly nature and operation , without any manifest harshness ; but those that run in the deep Bowels of the Earth , and through cold hungry stony places , are more hard and Saturnine , neither so wholsome for Man or Beast to drink , nor to be used in Housewifery . But though it be thus at the Fountain-Head , yet if the same run long afterwards , through various soils in the open Air , &c. it may become very good for all uses , as aforesaid . And Note : Whereas some River-Water will look of a wheyish whitish Colour , caused either by its long running without being fed by plenty of Springs , or else by Land-floods , yet in either case is not the worse to be liked , but rather the better ; for all such Water is of great vertue , of a very mild fat opening Quality , caused by the saline vertue ; which People not understanding do often refuse either to drink or use in Housewifery , calling it dirty muddy Water ; whereas the whiter any Waters look , the better they are for most uses , especially when Land-floods shall be the occasion of it , as appears by the Instances of Valleys and Meadows thereby enricht , which I mentioned but now . Of Pump or Well-Water . These likewise are capable of several degrees , better or worse , according to the nature of the Earth from whence they arise ; but they are generally of a cold hungry hard Nature , nothing so good as the former ; and such Springs as lie deepest in the Bowels of the Earth , are of a lean Saturnine Quality , in comparison of that Water which runs near the surface , being deprived of that saline nature which irritates Vegetation ; for most Earths , after you come two or three yards deep , are of a hard cold hungry Quality , and if a quantity of such Earth be exposed to the open Elements , and laid two or three foot thick , there will hardly any sort of Vegetable grow on it , until the Sun and Coelestial Influences have endued it with a Salnitral Vertue ; and as the Earth is , so is the Water , viz. of the same nature Cold and Hungry . 2. Such Waters want the Coelestial Influences and Air , nor have the benefit of Motion , or but in a very small degree ; hence they are more unwholsom than the others before treated of , and generally bind the Body , and are subject to obstruct Nature , neither will they perform the like good Offices in Housewifery . Of Ponds or Standing VVaters . Such standing-Waters as are in a kind of springy Grounds are the best , but still much inferior to running-Waters , because they have not the benefit of Motion , nor the like advantage of passing through various Soils . Such Pools or Waters as are chiefly maintained by Rain or Land floods are better or worse , according as the season is wet or dry ; for in dry seasons they not only become thick and slimy , but awaken a gross fulsome Saturnine Quality in the muddy Earth , that suffocates the pure thin spirituous parts ; so that such Waters become of a strong gross Earthy taste and smell , which is altogether contrary to the Nature of Water , and such Waters are not wholsome for Men nor Beasts . Some Husband-men do suppose these Waters to be very good for Cattle to drink , having no other reason but that they will rather drink them than others ; which is no reason at all ; for this came through Custom and Use , which makes any sort of Water familiar to nature ; and those Cattle that are used to drink Pond-Water , will refuse better Water for that , for two Reasons ; 1st . Because their Stomachs and Pallates are adulterated , and made familiar to it , so that they cannot distinguish the evil taste from the good ; 2dly . Because such Pond-Waters are of an hotter warmer Nature than o●hers , and Cattle used to them will for that very cause refuse others , just as men that accustom themselves to warm Beer cannot drink cold without some trouble to the Mouth and Teeth , though cold Beer and Ale is warmer in operation , and will more cheer the Stomach , and make the Spirits more brisk than the hot , because no fermented Liquors , whether they be Beer , Ale , Syder or Wine , will admit of the heat of fires , without violence to the pure spirituous parts ; they are so volatile , that they will presently evaporate ; therefore warm Beer or Ale will sooner become flat than that which has not been warmed ; for when the spirituous parts are evaporated or suffocated , the sweet brisk Balsamick Vertue dyes . But this hot sulpherous Quality in Pond-Water , which through custom most Cattle like , is of an evil nature and operation , because the spirituous vapours of the Air cannot so easily penetrate through its gross thickness , whence it dulls the edge of the Appetite and Stomach , breeds gross thick Blood , often is the occasion of many Diseases , and very injurious to the Milk of Cows . Besides , do not Pools and standing Waters generate various sorts of Vermin and Insects , which is caused through the Contraction of gross thick fulsom Matter for want of Motion , all which running Waters are not subject to . But although Water be Natures common drink for Man as well as Beasts , yet since now a-days Men generally betake themselves to other Liquors , we shall briefly treat of them likewise . Of Ale , and its Nature and Operation , as also of Beer . Ale hath the first place of all Drinks made with Malt , and is of greatest Antiquity : That Ale is best that is made after this manner : 1st . That the Liquor or Water that you put to your Malt be made boiling-hot , but not boyl , and then put it into your Mash-Tub or Vessel , and let it stand a little while before you put your Malt to it , which will somewhat moderate the fierce heat of the Water , thereby rendring it more capable to receive the Vertues and sweet Quality of the Malt , which violent hot Water will not do so well ; for it doth not only hurt the pure Spirituous Parts of the Malt , but will six or harden the Malt , so that the Sweetness and good Vertues will not so easily give it self forth into the Water ; also , if you put the Malt into the Water very hot , then it will Tinge , or cause the Wort to become of a red Martial Colour ; but on the contrary , the cooler the Water is when you put in the Malt , the Paler or more Venerial will the Colour of your Wort be , which is the best Colour of the two ; for all Ale that does look Clear and White is to be preferred before that which hath a high Martial Red Colour : And in some parts of England there is such Ale made , which is much liked ; but this commendable White Colour depends also upon the well making of the Malt , viz. in the Fewel and degrees of the Fire they dry or fix it with ; for if the Heat be too strong or fierce , or if the egress or regress of the Air be hindred , or any other Accident happen of the like nature , then such Malt will make Ale and Beer to look of a Reddish Martial Colour , which is not to be commended , though some ignorantly cry it up : For the predominant Quality in all sorts of Corn stands in the White , and all the pure Water and sweet Body of it proceeds from the predominant Quality of Venus ; therefore the more gentle , mild and natural the Preparation is from the beginning to the end , the more wholsom and Balsamick will the Ale be : If the Malt be dryed with too hot or fierce a Fire , whence the Colour happens to the Ale , it shews Violence done to the essential Spirits , which also happens in Brewing when the Malt is put to the Water too hot , or by overmuch boyling of the Wort , which is not commendable in Ale ; for good Ale may be made with little or no boyling ; and indeed there is not much reason for the much boyling of any sort of Drink made of Malt , except you design to keep it a great while : For the boyling of Ale doth cause a too great Evaporation of the Volatile Spirit and Balsamick Vertues , which will not endure the harsh Fire ; for this cause strong Wort will wast and evaporate as much in quantity in one Hour , as Small shall in three , and more . Besides , boyling these Liquors destroys their mild gentle cleansing Qualities , and fixes them , making them hotter and fiercer in Operation ; for the more you evaporate or destroy the sweet Body of any thing , the stronger and fiercer the Original Qualities become , and appear more external ; but so long as the pure Volatile Spirit and sweet Balsamick Body predominates , the strong fiery Original Spirit of Saturn and Mars lies as it were hid ; and seeing all the friendly and wholsom Vertues of Ale reside in the sweet Body , you ought not to destroy That by over-much boyling . Nay , I will add , that the best and most wholsom Ale may be made , and not boyled at all , as some in this Nation do , which does but wast it in Quantity , and make it worse in Quality , so that it becomes hotter in Operation , and a friend to the generation of the Stone . Every one knows , or may know by experience , that Beer heats the Body more than Ale ; the reason is , the Balsamick Vertues in Beer are in part destroyed by boyling , so that it becomes more like a Spirit , and therefore it will keep longer ; and because of its lasting , most People imagin it the best , which is a great mistake ; for they might as well say , that the best Sack drawn off by Distillation into a Spirit , is better to drink than the Sack was ; whereas I think the contrary is known to every body of common sense : The nearer you bring any thing to its Original , by destroying the balsamick Vertues and middle Qualities or vegetative Vertue , the longer that thing will keep sound ; this is manifest in all Spirits drawn from any Wines or other balsamick Liquors ; for this reason , Beer that is boyled most will longest keep from turning sour or flat ; but still , this is no Argument that it is therefore the best and wholsomest ; for the predominant Quality in all strong Beer , especially if it be kept to be ●tale , is of a fierce harsh Martial and Saturnine Heat , of a hard greedy Nature , which infects the blood with fretting eating Humours , very prejudicial to Health ; also , it generates the Stone , not so much from the Hops ( which many accuse as the chief cause ) but for that the pure sweet body is in so great a measure destroyed in the boyling it to such an height that it might keep ; not but that the Hops do help to heat the body , and cause the Stone and other Diseases , but not purely and meerly as they are Hops ; but this comes to pass from the Preparation . For Hops in their own Nature have no such operation to cause the Stone , but altogether the contrary ; for Hops are of an opening cleansing Nature , and they powerfully purge by Urine , and make excellent Medicines against the Stone & Dropsical Diseases ; but all their natural medicinal Vertues are destroyed in their being boyled in the Beer , and then there remains in them chiefly the Martial harsh fiery Property , which helps to preserve the Beer from growing flat or eager , but it augments its heat , and makes it of a harsher operation : And as the boyling of Ale destroys the sweet cleansing purging Quality , and causes it to evaporate ; just so it does by Hops , and so much the more , because in them the volatile Spirit stands , as it were external ; for the Sun and Elements have exhaled the gross Phlegmy substance , and thereby sets the spirituous at liberty , only being close stuffed into bags , preserves them from evaporating whilst there they continue ; but as soon as they come into the fierce boyling Liquor or Wort , these essential Vertues and good Qualities are destroyed and flee away ; but still there remains the original strong bitter Quality , which cannot be destroyed by boyling , except they be annhilated , for it is the Root of its Life . Now this bitter Quality in Hops is of a harsh astringent Nature , and very hot , as the original Spirit in all things is . For this cause all Beer that is boyled much , and hath store of Hops in 't , will keep a long time ; but then it heats the body and causes the Stone , if it find matter to work upon , and several other Infirmities ; so that 't is no ways to be accounted so good as Ale. For Ale is a very excellent sort of Drink , if well ordered ; and as the predominant Quality in Beer is Martial and Saturnine , Hot and Fierce , so on the contrary , that in Ale is Solar and Venerial , viz. Sweet and Balsamick , indued with a mild soft friendly Nature and gentle operation ; it sweetens the blood , opens the body and purges by Urine . Hops are very wholsome to be put into Ale in a small Quantity , but they ought not to be boyled ; but thus you may do it , fill your Copper or Vessel you use for that purpose with your Wort , make it boyling hot , then take what Quantity of Hops you please , and infuse them about half an hour , and then strain them out , not letting it boyl at all , and then for certain you have all the Vertues of the Hops that are proper for the body ; for the Wort will extract and receive the pure spirituous Parts and balsamick Vertues of the Hops in as little or less time than the hot Liquor did the sweet Quality of the Malt in the Mash-Tub : There is the very same cause and reason for the one as for the other . Likewise , the Ale ought to be throughly wrought or fermented , that thereby it may be cleansed from its Yeasty substance , which most Ale in London is clogged with , which makes it grow sour in a few days ; and besides , before 't is sour it fouls the body , and sends dull dark Fumes into the Head , palls and flattens the edge of Appetite , and disorders the Stomach . But none of these Inconveniences happen when Ale is well brewed , and has wrought as it should do , wherein special care is to be taken , that it be not set to working whilst the Wort is too hot , for that causes too violent a motion , which weakens the original Heat , suffocates and wounds the pure Spirit , which some call fretting ; and this does in some degree destroy the balsamick or sweet Body ; and whenever it happens , or that your Drink works too much or too furiously , be it Ale or Beer , it will not keep , but turn sour or eager sooner than the other that is put to work in such a degree of heat as it will but just move or ferment gently and mildly ; for if your Wort be put a working before the fiery heat or sulphurous Vapours be extinguish'd , which are of a contrary Nature to the genuine natural Heat of the Wort , as containing the fierce Spirits of the Fire , then presently the balsamick body is wounded , and turns sour sooner or later according to the degree of the motion ; for this fierce motion or working wastes the pure spirituous Balsam , and awakens the original Qualities of Saturn and Mars , viz. an astringent Eagerness , or sour hard Quality , that would not have been manifested , if this irregular Motion had not excited it . On the other side , the Wort ought not to be cold , for then the spirituous Quality becomes ( as it were ) flat ; for the Heat that proceeds from Fire , and remains in such Liquor , is a great Quickener and Awakner of all the Properties , and of good use in this respect , provided it be not too fierce . And further note , That all stale hard Beer , whether strong or small , is more or less injurious to most mens Health , especially those whose Natures are subject to breed the Stone and Gravel . Of Small-Beer . There are generally great Errors committed in brewing Small-Beer , viz. most House-Wives and some Brewers let their first Liquor stand too long in the Mash-Tub with the Malt , that is to say , an hour and a half or two hours , which stirs up and awakens a fulsom sour and keen Quality , which would be prevented , if it stood but one hour : And this is not only injurious to the Ale , or best drink , but hurts and spoils the Small-Beer that comes afterwards ; for if once the original gross keen Qualities be awakened , there is no Charm to lay them again , no Remedy or Art can help , but all such Small Beer will prove not only ungrateful to the Palate and Stomach , but breeds bad Blood , causing sharp salt Humors , which help to increase that general Disease called The Scurvy . And except Beer and Ale be every way well prepared , Water is a far better Drink , and more wholsom ; for all Small Beer made after the vertue of the Malt is washed out , is of a weak fainty sour Quality , and very injurious ; for the first and second Liquors having drained and carried away all the sweet friendly vertues , what remains is a meer loathing to Nature , only many are used to such Drinks , so that they cannot well distinguish the evil Natures and Tastes thereof . To mend the defect of this gross fulsom small Wort , many will boyl it a long time with those Dregs of Hops that have been once or twice boyled before in the Ale or strong Beer , whereby there is not the least wholsom vertue left in them , but only the strong gross astringent bitter Quality ; so that in such Small Beer ( as if People studied to do their Bodies a mischief ) there is a concurrence of evil Juices , which if you set Custom aside , are an Abomination to Nature . It is therefore to be noted , That those that will boyl Hops in Beer or Ale , ought not to boyl them more than once , that is , in one Furnace of Liquor or Wort , but infusing of Hops in boyling-hot Wort ( but not actually boyling ) half an hour , or an hour at most , is far the better way , except you brew Beer for a long Voyage at Sea. But as for those that have no such necessity , but may brew when they please , there is no reason ( if Health , and the true natural vertues of Drinks be consulted ) that Been should be kept purposely till 't is stale , and then drunk ; for since the Custom of brewing Beer in England , which is not much more than two hundred years , and keeping it till it be stale , Experience shews us , that many Diseases have thereby been occasioned , which hardly had any being before . For no Drinks or Liquors that are prepared by fire can be made to keep a long time without hurt to the balsamick and sweet Body . Therefore all stale hard Beer , be it strong or small , is neither so good to preserve Nature , nor yet so pleasant , ( except custom to a depraved Pallat render it so ) as mild Beer , especially as mild Ale , well brewed and wrought , that it become and is free from that yeasty Quality ( so loathsom , that even Nature spues it out , which the Ale in London , and many other places in England is subject to ) I say , when mild Ale is thus well qualified , there is no Drink made of Malt so wholsom , pleasant and proper to preserve Health as that . It is a great Custom and general Fashion now-a-days , to bottle Ale ; but the same was never invented by any true Naturalist that understood the in-side of things . For tho' Ale be never so well wrought or fermented in the Barrel , yet the Botling of it puts it on a new motion and fermentation , which wounds the pure Spirits and Balsamick Body ; therefore such Ale out of Bottles will drink more cold and brisk , but not so sweet and mild as the same Ale out of a Cask , that is of a proper Age : Besides , the Bottle tinges or gives it a cold hard Quality , which is the nature of Glass and Stone , and being the Quantity is so small , the cold Saturnine Nature of the Bottle has the greater Power to tincture the Liquor with its Quality . Furthermore , all such Bottle Drinks are infected with a yeasty furious foaming matter , which no Barrel-Ale is guilty of . This is chiefly caused by the second motion or fermentation ; and this yeasty substance being then excited , and finding no vent as it hath in Barrels , ( which are always open at bungs when the Drink works ) but here being confined , and without any evacuation , it grows mad and furious , so that presently it awakens the internal keen harsh Properties of Nature , which keep it ( as it were ) in a continual motion and fermentation ; and those cold keen original Qualities do in some degree devour the sweet balsamick Body , and cause it to become more cold , sharp and hungry , than the same Ale in Barrels , and also indue it with a more flatuous Windy Nature ; for which Reasons Bottle-Ale or Beer is not so good nor wholsom as that drawn out of the Barrel or Hogshead ; and the chief thing that can be said for Bottle-Ale or Beer , is , that it will keep longer than that in Barrels , which is caused by its being kept , as it were , in continual motion or fermentation . Of Tobacco . Tobacco is an Herb of Mars and Saturn ; from the first it derives its hot tart Quality , and owes its strong fulsom poysonous Nature to the latter . It makes a most excellent Oyntment , and is much safer being applied outwardly , than inwardly taken . 'T is one of Nature's Extreams , and there is no way known or Preparation found out that can destroy its poysonous Qualities , or reconcile and make it friendly to mans Nature , but only the continual use and custom of taking it ; for this cause , at the first taking , it disagrees with all sorts of Complexions , with some more , and others less , according to the degree of Antipathy it bears to each mans peculiar Nature , having a nearer affinity to some than others . It being extream hot in Operation , 't is therefore good taken in Pipes , against all cold windy and phlegmatick Humours , but the constant and common whiffling it , does not only destroy and render invalid all its Physical Vertues , but heats and drys up Nature , and powerfully consumes the Radical Moisture , causing most that use it to spit up the moist matter , which ought not to be drawn out of the Stomach by such forcible Attractions ; it being a general mistake for People to think that the more thin phlegmy matter they spit up , the better 't is for them , when in truth 't is altogether the contrary ; for if the healthiest and soundest of men take Tobacco , it will cause as great Evacuations and spittings in them , as in the most unhealthy ; for this cause the much taking of it dulls the Stomach , and takes away the edge of the Appetite ; whatever matter is superfluous in the Stomach , Nature will expel by vertue and power of the inward Heat , if Temperance be observed ; but the constant taking of Tobacco is nothing else but the constuat taking of Physick , though through Custom and Use the same ( as likewise the highest Poysons ) may be made familiar to Nature . For Man ( as we have already told you ) is a little World , and in him are contained all the Properties and Qualities of the great World , as well of Poysons as of Vertues . The nature of Man hath Affinity more or less with all things , else Custom could never cause such poysonous things to become agreeable ; yet ought not any to imagin the common use of such extreams to be the more proper or profitable unto their Health , because by violence to Nature at first , and continual practice afterwards , they can better endure them , and they seem more agreeable than they did at first . I doubt not but some may find benefit by taking Tobacco in Pipes , but then there must not be a constant taking of it ; for then the Physical Vertue will not continue ; for by habit and use such things become like common Food in the Stomach . Most People that smoke Tobacco , in the beginning forced Nature , and made her bow to their Inclinations , not for any Distemper , but of a vain wanton Humour , because of late 't is grown the fashion , and many Thousands have strained and hurt their Health , and brought many Inconveniences upon themselves , meerly to follow this bruitish Mode . Some others there are , who first learnt to take it for some manifest Distemper , which have so far been excusable ( tho yet not one of an hundred of this sort have found it a Remedy ; ) for tho Tobacco hath been of so universal an use , yet 't is no Universal Medicine . Indeed it hath and is indued with its particular Physical Vertues , as all other Herbs are , and when 't is properly apply'd , and meets with such Diseases , then it proves effectual , otherwise not : there is as much reason that any other Physical Herb should be made universal as this , but few men hearken to Reason ; for most ( like Brutes ) are carried away by Custom , and look on the Multitude , and make their uncircumcised ways their Rules , childishly saying , Sure if there were not many excellent Vertues and Benefits to be found in the use of such things , as the common taking of Tobacco , ( viz. five , six , ten or twenty Pipes a day , and as much strong Drink in one day as might well sustain five or six men a week ) such abundance of Wise and Learned Men would never practise the same ; for ( say they ) we see our Physitians and Apothecaries , and the best of our Gentry , such as have been bred in the Universities and Inns of Court. [ But it had been much better they had been of that most excellent . Imployment Iacob's Sons wereof , tho now despised . ] Nay , some of our Reverend Divines themseves will smoke as intemperately as any of the Vulgar . But all this is still but a fools Argument , to do a thing because he sees others to do it tho Reason and Experience tells him 't is prejudicial . It is not above sixty or seventy years ago since that only Gentlemen , and but a few of those took Tobacco , and then so moderately , that one Pipe would serve four or five , for they handed it from one to another ( and it seems were then so honest as not to fear infecting one another with any French Contagion ) but now every Plow-man has his Pipe to himself . In former days Canary was chiefly sold by the Apothecaries , and perhaps then when Adulteration was not so much in fashion , might be the best Cordial in their Shop . The name and use of Brandy was not known till of late ; but now the excess of all these things is become almost general amongst all sorts of People , even amongst those that count themselves most sober and Religious , and who should set Examples of Temperance to others it not being esteemed any sin to smoke two , three or four Pipes of Tobacco at a sitting , and Carrouze strong Drink , Brandy , Wine , and the like , in perfect Health , and when need or nature doth not require such things ; and yet think all 's well , if they can but follow their outward Occasions , and keep themselves from being Drunk , they never regard it , tho one of them do destroy of Gods good Creatures as much in one day , both in Value , Quantity and Quality as would suffice five or six . Still , I say , all this is not reconed any sin amongst many thousands of those counted sober People ; the common custom and frequent use of these Intemperances hides the Evil of them , which few consider , or if they do , yet they are ashamed to follow the pure dictates of Wisdom , for fear of displeasing or being hooted at by the frantick Rabble , who gaze , laugh and rail at all that will not run with them to the same Excess of Riot . There is scarce any thing in the World that has so much depraved and deprived man of his understanding , and led him aside from the simple innocent ways of God and Nature , since his original fall , as Custom and the Example of the Crowd . As in the government and ordering of Families , if the good man of the House say to his Wife , It will be best to order the Affairs of our House so and so — Yes ( presently she answers ) it is true ; but then what will People say of us ? How strangely will they talk ? And what a base Report we shall give occasion to be raised of us ? If we do only those things that are proper and necessary to preserve the Health of our Bodies and Minds , How many stingy sneaking Names will they call us , & c ? And by this learned Lecture the silly man is over-perswaded to continue on his old rode of Excess and Superfluity , to the Displeasure of God , Injury of Nature , Prejudice of his Families Health , bad Example to his Children , and imparing of his Estate ; and all this meerly to avoid the Chat and censorious Tattle of a few Gossips , the wagging of whose tongues is no more to be valued by any Wise Man , than the Chattering of Mag-pies , or the buz of Flies in Autumn . Nothing is more manifest than that there is not one of many Thousands that is guided by his own Mind , Wisdom or Reason , but the common Custom carries the day ; few ever stand to dispute whether it be good or bad , Is it a Custom , the Fashion , all the Mode ? If it be , there is no scruple to be made . The unlawful use of Tobacco , Brandy , Wine , &c. and the Intemperance therein is cloaked over by the wicked Custom of the Multitude . Would not any indifferent body wote it a sin and a high shame for a Man or a Woman to sit sotting and smoaking ten or twenty Pipes of Tobacco in a day , making the whole House stink an hundred fold worse than the Saturnine Smoke of Chimnies , and spitting & spawling as though he had taken a fluxing Potion , and continually spitting it up again , as if his Chaps had found the perpetual Motion ; Would not , I say , all this seem most Abominable , and be counted a very great Evil and Intemperance , if it were not a Custom ? The very same is to be understood in many other things . Which evil Customs and Habits all sober well-minded People ought to refrain and cast from them , and look upon them no otherwise than as Inventions and Snares laid by evil Angels to inthrall and insnare mankind , that he may keep them in Darkness , and that by such their following those evil Customs , they may be always rendred uncapable of understanding God or his own Nature . How much precious time do Men spend in smoaking Tobacco , dosing and stupifying their Senses ? And how many through such neglect of time , and the Expences , which this smoaking generally draws with it , have half starved their poor Families , and involved themselves in many Mischiefs and Inconveniences ? But to proceed to particulars . Tobacco does generally disagree most with the Cholerick and Sanguine Complexion'd People , being an utter Enemy to their Nature ; the taking of it in Pipes doth over-heat their Bodies , the Fumes and Smoke thereof do too violently penetrate and awaken the Center , which always sets Nature into an unequal motion ; for the sulpherous Fumes penetrate too furiously , which does powerfully stir up and awaken the Element of Water , the attractive and poysonous hot Qualities of Saturn and Mars being so strong in Tobacco , that rarely any can take it without much Spitting , which is Injurious to most sorts of People , except some cold Melancholy or gross Phlegmatick Complexions , who through cold windy Distempers and watry gross Humours want Evacuations ; to such it oft-times proves profitable , if not taken too frequently , but as it were in a Physical way . But for others that are in perfect Health , and especially for the Sanguine or Cholerick Complexions it very rarely ( if ever ) proves beneficial ; for it dries up and exhales that most pleasant moist Liquor , and forcibly draws it from all parts of the Body , and casts it forth by its poysonous Fumes ; and so the Body being deprived of what should keep it in Temperature , and cool all the inward parts and Vessels , and sharpen the Appetite , becomes all over hot and dry , the Appetite dull , the Stomach out of tone , and great drought or desire to drink follows ; and hence it is that the Pot and the Pipe are inseparable Companions , and still the strongest Drinks are desired by all Smoakers , for Small will not make Nature restitntion for her losses ; for every Extream begets its Likeness , and after too great Evacuations there must be Supplies . I dare from Reason and the Testimony of Experience affirm , that 't is absurd and against Nature , for either young People , or any others that are in perfect Health , to practise the common smoaking of Tobacco , it being an Herb endued with extream Qualities ; and all such things ought to be cautiously taken into the Body . I would have every one consider the possibility of Nature in all such unequal things , especially those whose predominant Quality stands in the high Poysons , and to observe the Nature and Operation of each thing , and then they will certainly find the truth of what is mentioned before . Let us take an Example in strong Drinks and Wine : The predominant Quality there is a certain Spiritual Heat , and as soon as a Man hath drunk them , he presently feels his Internal Heat or Spirits to be raised or awakened above and beyond its proper degree , if any quantity be drunk , during the time of its operation , but afterwards it leaves Nature with fewer Spirits than it found in her ; for all Meats and Drinks , and whatsoever else goes into the Body , that is unequal in its parts , does too violently awaken or kindle the Central Heats , and raise them from their several Centers , and brings Nature into an unequal Operation , consumes the Radical Moisture , and as it were burns up the sweet Oyl , and evaporates the pure Spirits ; for this cause , after the operation of such unequal things , most People are possest with an heavy Dulness and Indisposition , Fumes and Vapours besieging the Crown , the Senses stupified or disorder'd , the Stomach and Appetite furr'd and dull'd . By which effects all Men may be sensible that Nature does perfectly hate all Extreams and Inequality : But on the contrary , if Meats or Drinks be of a simple or middle Nature , and there be in them no manifest Quality predominant , then they gently insinuate their Vertues into all parts of the Body , administring both dry and moist Nourishment , and with silence and concord support the Body in Health . The Vertue of Tobacco taken in Pipes , is extracted from the Smoke thereof ; now Smoke is unusual to Nature , and a fulsom Steem or Vapour full of dark Sulpherous Saturnal Excrements , which the Fire and Light casts forth as an abomination , being void of all real Vertue ; it contains a gross Humidity , and a fierce keen Quality , very pernicious to the pure Spirits : For Smoke proceeds from the poysonous Juices and Liquor , which the Fire and Air separates and casts forth , it being a thing that all People endeavour to avoid ; and how inimical it is to Nature , is further manifested by that black sutty Substance which it leaves behind it , and by its destroying Vegetation ; for it contains two poysonous Qualities , a strong Bitter one from Mars , and a fulsom Astringent one from Saturn ; its black Colour shews that its predominant Quality is from the venomous Center of Saturn , and hence when Tobacco is burned , it sends forth a strong fulsom scent or smell ; offensive to most that are not used to it ; nay , do not the very Breaths of those that take Tobacco perfectly stink ? And does not the smoking of it so defile the common Air , that a Man may know where one hath been that takes Tobacco , they leave such a fetid Vapour behind them ? Do not all or most of our English Herbs when burned , send forth a far better Scent or Fume than Tobacco does ? And I am sure many of them would not only be less offensive , but produce better effects , as to the Cure of Diseases . When any Herb , Wood or other thing is set on fire , you may presently perceive by the scent what Quality was therein predominant , for the Fire powerfully awakens all the hidden Qualities , which could not be perceived whilst the thing remained intire . If the chief quality of the Herb or thing burnt , stand in the friendly Nature , then it sends forth , and is manifested by two Qualities , viz. a most pleasant sweet Smell or Vapour , chearing and delightful to the Senses , and also it sends forth a burthensom Fume or Vapour , which incorporates it self with the Air , and flies away in a Smoke or Steem , which is from the poysonous Root , the Original of every Life : But on the contrary , if you burn any Herb or other thing , the predominant Quality whereof stands in the Martial or Saturnine Poysons , then all such things send forth also two Qualities , viz. a very unpleasant Scent or Fume , offensive and burthensom to Nature , dulling the pure Spirits , and as it were suffocating the pleasant thin Vapours of the Air ; and also it sends forth a gross humid poysonous matter , that incorporates it self with the thickest part of the Air , and evaporates in a Saturnine Smoke ; for if there lie hid any Verrue or Vice in any thing , Fire will unlock all the Gates and discover it ; and if there be any Aromatick or Balsamick Vertue in the Herbs of Vegetables so burnt , it will appear by sending forth odoriferous and pleasant Smells : As on the contrary , ill Smells are an evident Testimony of Saturnine and Martial Poysons being predominant , which is the very Nature of Tobacco , and therefore not to be so wantonly used as commonly it is . Lastly , I would not have People imagin that there is the more Vertue in Tobacco , because the Fumes and Smoke of it will open the Body , and loosen the Belly , for it is the nature of all Smoke to open , being of a fierce keen penetrating quality that arises from the Original Poysons in Nature , whence it has also a sharp fierce humid quality that is exceeding offensive to the Eyes , like the Fumes that Onions send forth when cut . And we must likewise note , that when Tobacco was first brought into England , it was ten-fold more offensive to the Takers thereof than it is now , because their Fore-Fathers were not acquainted with the use of it , so that they could not entail any desire of it on their Posterity : For the Children that are begot by Persons , that have accustomed themselves to the common use of these unnatural things , contract a kind of unsensible Affinity with such things , as proceeding from the like matter and Essences , so that thereby there are Foundations laid for Inclinations towards the use of them : The same is to be understood in other things , as those whose Parents live much on Flesh or Fish , do lay such Foundations for an Inclination thereunto in the very Radix of their Children , that it would prove a very difficult thing for them to refrain there-from . So that every succeeding Age doth more easily and familiarly , and with the less difficulty receive these evil Customs and Habits , till in time they become almost Natural , and thence humane Nature in general becomes weaker and decayed , and Diseases come into the World with Children as part of their Essence , and Scurveys and other Diseases grow almost Universal , and all this for want of Temperance and Discretion in their Progenitors : A sad Inheritance to leave our Off-spring , when we bequeath them our Follies , and intail upon them Miseries that are but the just Punishments and natural Consequences of them ! Of Clothing , Bedding , &c. As Moderation , and a frugal Restraint , free from Superfluity or Delicacy in Clothes , Bedding , &c. does much conduce to the Health of the Body , as well as of the Mind ( which is observed but by a few ) so all over-warm Cloathing , soft Feather-Beds and close Houses render Nature so nicely tender , that upon every small Accident , the Body is subject to various Injuries . First , such usage makes all the external parts so obnoxious , that every little Cold penetrates and seizes the Body , which being by these means obstructed , there follows Coughs , Wheesings , Shortness of Breath , and innumerable other Inconveniencies . 2dly , It opens the Pores , by which there is an evaporation of the heat and spirits , causing a hot faintness to attend the whole Body ; it hurts also the digestive Faculty of the Stomach , dulls the edg and sharpness of the Appetite , causes Sweating and a general weariness in the whole Body , and disables it to perform all its Labours and Exercises . The cause of so great Inconveniencies proceeds from warm Clothes , &c. which hinder the most friendly Element of the Air from penetrating the body , whereby the Spirits become weak and fainty : For as nothing hurts the Body more than hot sulpherous Airs , so there can be nothing that does more cheer and refresh the Spirits than cold pleasant Airs , which is known by every mans Experience . 3dly , Warm and close Houses , &c. are attended with these evil Effects ; the Air , which is the Life of the Spirit , is hindred from having its free egress and regress , by the close drawing of the Window-Shutters , Hangings and Curtains , which suffocates the pure volatile spirit of the Air , benums and stupifies the Senses , and causes an Indisposition from external heat to possess the whole Body ; besides , it is pernicious to the vital Spirits , dulls the Appetite , weakens the Stomach , and depraves the senses of Tasting , and the digestive Faculty . 4thly , Soft and Warm Beds , with Curtains drawn before the Windows and about the Beds , produce these following bad Consequences , both to the body and mind ; the Air being , as it were , pen'd up , becomes hot and sulpherous , because the pure thin vapours and spirits thereof are suffocated , and so consequently must needs be very injurous to them that lie thus in their Beds : Moreover , the Air cannot penetrate the Body ; and so being destitute of Motion , the Stomach and natural Heat is deprived of its free operation ; and this is the Reason that Suppers are not so well digested , but oftimes become Noxious , causing an unnatural kind of Sleep , creating an Aptitude in the external parts to glow with a burning and unnatural kind of Heat : this ill custom is too frequently used by those who are sick , but especially those that lie in Child-bed , to whom often the consequence is more dangerous : The Chambers of most sick People are kept so very close , that it will disorder a Healthy Person to continue there three or four hours ; and if so , what detriment then do you think must of necessity attend the sick , by reason of such hot sulpherous Airs ? And indeed , considering how low and weak their Spirits are , nothing can be more hurtful to them than this is , under these Circumstances . For these pure thin vapours and spirits being destroyed by those sulpherous ones , the poysonous and deadly Vapours are stirred up , which have a powerful influence upon the Body , by way of simile , and wound the pure Spirits in the Body , causing an unnatural Heat in all the external parts , with a fainty kind of weakness . This becomes as offensive as the Heat and Air which proceeds from Charcoal , and is of the same nature and operation ; for in the making of Charcoal , the pure Spirits in the Wood , which is its true Life , or that sweet Water or Oyl , whence the Light hath its bright shining Quality , is suffocated , and in a manner destroyed ; for the Spirits are the Life of the Oyl , and the Oyl is the house and pleasant habitation of the Spirits ; and in all Preparations where the one is destroyed , the other dieth , as in this of making of Wood into Charcoal , where both the pleasant Qualities are destroyed , the free Influences of the Air being hindered , the Spirits and Oyl , which are of a friendly nature and operation , become thereby suffocated . The fire that Wood sends forth has a bright shining Light , its heat is friendly and refreshing ; but Charcoal , tho it has the same Foundation , and is Wood in the original , yet these two friendly Qualities being destroyed and suffocated in the making thereof , it comes to be of another nature and operation , as if it had not been Wood. For these Reasons Charcoal will not flame nor give a bright light , but its flames are of a sulpherous Colour ; for having lost its Moderator or friendly Life , the original Poysons take place , and its Fire becomes much stronger than that of Wood , and the heat and fumes thereof burdensom to the pure Spirits of those that are near such Fires ; the dark wrathful Vapours do awaken their simile in the Body . If this were rightly understood by a delicate sort of People in the World , I am perswaded they would not fear every small blast of wind , neither would they deprive themselves of the most pleasant and benign Influences of the Air , which keeps the essential Spirits living in every Creature , and is indeed the excellent support of the whole nature of all Beings , giving to them Life and Vigour . And therefore you dainty Dames that are so nice , that you will not endure this pleasant Element to blow upon you , unless it be in a hot and sulpherous day , in which it has not half that power and vertue that it has in cooler Weather ; you , I say , who are so Curious , do but consider a little seriously what is said , and your own experience may convince you , that there is nothing better than pure and clear Airs to cheer and comfort Nature , and to make the Spirits brisk and lively : Are there any more healthy than those whose Imployments and Exercises are in the open Air ? Are there any who can endure . Labour with less Prejudice ? Are there any who are generally more Robust ? Any that have better and sharper Appetites than they ? Likewise , those that use the Country-Air much , enjoy , in a great measure , the abovementioned advantages ; It will be very convenient then to use a Medium in reference to Clothes , Houses and Beds ; and of the two , Coolness is much safer ( from ones Birth to the Grave ) than Heat , both inwardly and outwardly . Pleasant and gentle Airs shut the Pores , that the Radical Moisture and Spirits cannot evaporate ; they strengthen Nature , give an edg to the Appetite ; the thinner and meaner a man's Clothes are , the stronger and brisker he is , and his natural Heat and digestive faculty is also the stronger ; besides , thin Clothing ( except in cold Weather ) makes People fitter for Labour , and less burdensome , preserves the natural Heat , and keeps it more Central . Therefore it is that all Creatures that are born and bred in cold Climates are stronger and better able to endure Hardship and toilsom Labour than those that live in hot Climates , and are greater Eaters and Drinkers of Strong Food and Drinks ; for this cause most People in cold Countries are inclined to the Intemperances of Gluttony and Drunkenness more than in hot , so great is the power and operation of open cold Air ; it does wonderfully strengthen Nature , and nothing can be a greater injury to Health , than for People to accustom themselves to Tenderness ; the more they do wear , the more they may , so that at last they may have need to carry their Beds on their backs ; for by degrees it weakens the Body , and causes so great a tenderness , that they find it very troublesom to have the fresh cool Air to blow upon them ; the effects are not better which rich compounded Meats and Drinks produce in those that are accustomed to them , they weaken the Stomach , and by their heat contract the Vessels of the Stomach , insomuch that with a kind of nauseating they both eat and drink , or rather they know not well what to eat or drink . This is further manifest in those that use to drink Brandy and other Spirits ; for they do so consume the natural heat , that after eating they feel their Food lie heavy in their Stomachs , and sometimes are apt to cast the Food up again ; thus it is in all sorts of Intemperances , and by the continuance or abandoning of the use of such unwholsome Liquors , you may change and alter Nature as you please , either for the better or worse . But if you will be so habituated and wedded to your unhealthful Customs , that you value not whether Nature be weak and impotent , tender and unhealthy , then you may mix your Food with all the Varieties that the East and West-Indies produce , you may make your Drink as strong and Cordial as you list , you make all your Preparations Ala-mode de France , you may Boyl and Roast all your Food to pieces , till there can be no more Nourishment ; then you may wrap your selves up in Furs , and wear a brace of Night-Caps , and bury your selves every night over Head and Ears in a Down-Bed , barricado'd with a double Range of Curtains , keep your House close , and be sure that you skreen your selves up by a lusty Cole Fire , and fortifie your Windows with those Shutters that you may see no light , nor feel any Air ; and when it is nine or ten a Clock in the Morning , look that you have a good rousing Fire in your Chambers , and Breakfast ready , and two or three hours after let a plentiful Dinner of varieties be made ready , with strong and enflaming Liquors : This is the Trade that many Thousands of this Nation use , as if they studied to bring Diseases upon themselves , and to dig their Graves with their own Teeth ; for in the midst of all their Affluences , wherein they esteem themselves happy , they are yet most miserable . But on the contrary , they who would have and preserve their Strength , and a firm Health both of Body and Mind ( which of all Terrestrial Pleasures is the greatest ) will observe these Rules : First , Let your Meats and Drinks be simple , not compounded of Variety , and of things disagreeing in their Natures ; do not exceed the bounds of that necessary Nourishment which Nature requires , lest the Natural Heat of the Stomach be thereby destroyed ; be sure that Nature be master , not the Food ; use moderate Exercise and Labour ; for nothing does more strengthen the Body and make the Spirits more brisk and lively than pains taking . As to wearing of Clothes , use such as are neither too Warm nor too Thin , of the two , the latter is the best ; for it both hardens and strengthens Nature , and has many other good effects before mentioned . It is also convenient that the Head and Breast be kept cool , for that strengthens the Stomach , and all the Vessels thereof ; it helps Concoction , and does greatly prevent the generation of Phlegms and other Crudities , which are apt to obstruct the Passages , from whence proceed Coughs , Wheesings , Shortness of Breath , and other Distempers , which Diseases do commonly invade those who accustom themselves to Delicacy and Niceness : So on the contrary , they who often go into the clear and ferene Air , whose Imployments or Diversions are for the most part in the Fields , have not only sharper Appetites , but also are not so subject to the Distempers and Infirmities of the Breast , as the former are , tho' their Clothes are but poor , mean , often wet , and their breasts bare ; yet it is undeniable but that they are more healthy than the other , notwithstanding the Intemperances they are guilty of in Meats , Drinks and Exercises ; for their business chiefly consisting of Exercise , and lying much in motion , and having the free Influences of the Air , a little Intemperance does not much hurt their Spirits : But such Disorders are not so easily thrown off by such as are accustomed to fine Food and rich Cordial Drinks , and their Spirits and heats are not to be compared to the other ; and yet tho' their Clothing be thin , their Houses and Beds cold , their Coverings light , tho' they had not quilted Caps for their Heads , nor Curtains for their Windows and Beds , nor it may be scarce any other Windows or Shutters than the Trees that grow before their Houses ; insomuch that the Fires , Beds and Houses of such would kill a great many tender Gentlemen and Citizens ; yet we see they are far more healthy and strong , and nothing so liable to Diseases as those others which are so nice and curious of themselves : And tho' their Food be course and simple , yet it does support Nature more than all the Superfluities of the other ; for this course manner of living does propagate Health and strengthens Nature , because all such things are equal in their parts ; therefore I would advise all Citizens , whose Affairs are most within their Houses , to use themselves to wear thin Clothes , and to keep small Fires , and to let their Houses be as open as may be to the Air ; for where this Element has not its free Influences , the Air in such places is thick , the pure Spirits and thin Vapours thereof become , as it were , dull and suffocated , that it cannot penetrate the Body by the way of the Pores ; whereas the Radical Spirits are in a manner supported , refreshed and kept alive by a continual sucking in , or penetration of that Element , and if there were a total intermission but for a small time , the Spirits could not subsist , but Death must needs follow ; so where the same is in part obstructed , the Spirits , by reason of hot sulpherous Airs , grow fainty , and do in a manner die away , and nothing will recover them but open clear Airs : For the Support , Life , Strength and Vigour of the Body is the Spirit , and the support and life of the Spirit is the Air ; therefore both Body and Spirits in Man and all other Creatures are not only supported in Health and Strength , by gross corporeal Meats and Drinks , but also by a pure thin , spiritual substantial Life , which the Elements of the Body and Spirits in man do continually suck in like Spunges , from all the four Elements , especially from the Air , which if it be too close pen'd up , and has not its free Influence , it becomes sulphurous , and awakens the dark poysonous fire in the body , which is the original of every Life , and this it does by simile , as I have already at large explained . — Such is the pleasant and friendly Nature of the Air , that it does 〈◊〉 a sympathetical operation give life and vigour to the Radical Moisture and Natural Heat ; for this Element hurts nothing , but preserves all , except those delicate tender Creatures who by a too great Indulgence of their unreasonable Appetites , and foolish compliance with ill Customs , willingly deprive themselves of its singular benefits ; therefore those that regard their Healths , ought not to make strong Bulwarks and Fences from the free visits of so good a friend , but rather court its Familiarity by motion in the open Fields , airy Houses , &c. I know it is a Custom in many places of the Country to plant Trees before their Houses , but I am of opinion that they are not convenient nor profitable , in respect of Health ; for it hinders the fresh breezing Gales of Wind to enter into and sweeten their Houses ; also Trees , Woody places and Vallies , do by simile attract the Clouds and moist Vapours , which are injurious to some Constitutions of men . It is likewise convenient that all sorts of People do not accustom themselves to sit by Fires , especially those made of Cole , or any other of the like Nature , because they do as it were by a natural simile dry up a Radical Moisture , exhale and suffocate the Spirits , and with too great violence open the Pores of the whole Body , and as it were , chill the whole-Body , making it thereby incapable to endure the Air , without trouble and danger of taking cold ; it also dulls the edge of the Appetite , and sends dark thick Fumes into the Head , weakens the Eyes , and causes a general indisposition through the whole body . Besides , that heat and warmth which is procured by Fires , heavy Clothes , &c. is very troublesom , in comparison of that pleasant natural Heat that is awakened by Motion and Action in airy and open places ; and there is as much difference both in the Appetite , and the whole state of the Body and Spirits , between the one and the other , as there is between Light and Darkness , the one being lightsom , airy pleasant , strong and lively , with a sharp and perfect Appetite , the other being unpleasant , cold on one side , and hot on the other , dull and heavy , of little Appetite , and that not good ; and so the body being feeble and tender , the man knows not what to eat , nor what to drink , nor what to wear , he finds every Room too cold for him , he is indisposed ; therefore he must have this and the other dainty Bit , and this and the other Cordial Drink , but all to little purpose , so long as they drive their old Trade of Superfluities in the above mentioned things : A Cup of cold Water or small Drink , and a piece of brown Bread to a well-prepared Stomach , is above all Dainties . Therefore it is a very uncomfortable thing for a man to be ignorant of himself ; for such never use things that are friendly to Nature , and the good Health both of Body and Mind ; but on the contrary are diligent to procure such things as are inimical and hurtful to it . Wisdom , which is certainly great Riches , teaches a man to put an high Estimation upon mean and simple Things , and to use them all with a thankful Heart to the Glory of God. Of particular Trades , and particularly of Seamen . The last Consideration of the great Benefit of the open Air , leads us to observe , what Callings and Imployments may be esteemed the most wholsom or best accommodated for the preservation of Health , touching which , we are in the first place to note , that all sorts of Trades that work in Wood , as Carpenters , Ioyners , and other Trades of the like Nature , are all of them wholsom Imployments , as well because their Labour consists of sundry motions of the Body , as for that the various sorts of Woods they work in , send forth most pleasant and fragrant Smells , which must needs be very refreshing to Nature ; and if those men were Temperate and Careful of themselves not to lift pieces of Timber beyond their strength , &c. they might enjoy their Health and Strength even to a good old Age. Also , those Trades and Imployments that belong to the Water , such as Sea-men and Barge-men , Skullers , &c. are healthful Imployments ; for the pleasant and wholsom Vapours which the Water always sends forth , being mixed with the friendly and gentle Breezes of the sweet Air , does powerfully penetrate all the parts of the Body , and cleanses all the passages of the Breast , makes the Lungs sound , sharpens the Stomach , giving it a good Appetite , and an easie Concoction ; it makes men lively and hardy , and the Bones and Nerves strong ; for they being still in the fresh Air , it is no wonder that they find such good Effects of it . I know no Imployment men could spend their time about with more Vigour , Health and Pleasure than This , if the Rules of Sobriety were strictly observed : But they are a fort of People whom no bounds of Sobriety can limit , such as use no Medium or Equality in their Meats , Drinks and Exercises ; for the greater part they are excessive drinkers of strong Drinks , such as Brandy , and other adulterated Spirits , which not only weaken the Natural Heat , but awaken the Original Fires , and fierce Poysons in Nature , which does cause fiery Passions and Head-strong Humors in the Mind ; and indeed they living on salt Flesh and Fish , can hardly be free from doing Violence to Nature , because the Spirituous Parts and Balsamick Body is almost destroyed in that kind of Food , and the Quality which is predominant , is of a hot , sharp and fierce Nature ; and this Nourishment being commonly taken , does heat and dry up the Radical Moisture , and cools the refreshing Vapours which proceed from the Elements of Air and Water , from whence also proceeds unnatural Droughts , and the Generation of the Disease called the Scurvy , and innumerable other Distempers : But these friendly Elements , the Water and the Air , give them often great Relief ; for otherwise they could not as they do eat and drink to such an Excess . Many men of this imploy ruin their Health by indulging too much their Appetites ; for they eating and drinking beyond measure , and without exception , when they come into hot Climates , viz. the East and West-Indies , where the Beams of the Sun are so powerful , that their Pores are opened , and they sweat continually , and their pure Spirits and Radical Moisture so much exhaled and evaporated , that they presently feel an inward Weakness and a Decay in the Natural Heat and in the Stomach , accompanied with cloudy Fumes in the Head ; causing an Indisposition and Weariness through the whole Body , and rendring Nature incapable to bear such a burthen of Intemperances as they lay upon her without manifest Prejudice . Their eating , I say , of salt Flesh and Fish , and their drinking of hot and inflaming Liquors , and observing of no fit Season , nor due proportion of time for taking of Rest , which in hot Countries should be from twelve of the Clock to three in the Afternoon : These and other Extravagances bring upon them Fluxes , griping Pains of the Bowels , and Acute Fevers ; their drinking of that Liquor called Punch is also very Inimical to Health ; For the Lime-Iuice , which is one of the Ingredients they commonly use in it , is in its Nature , fierce , sharp and Astringent , apt to create griping Pains in the Belly : These and many other Diseases are the direful Effects of their Intemperance in eating , drinking , &c. But still 't is certain none would be more Healthy than Sea-faring men , if they keep within the bounds of Moderation , and would be but content with the more simple and mean sorts of Food and Drink , as Bread , Cheese , Butter , Gruels , various Grains and Fruits , which are both mild and friendly , and would with little use and custom sufficiently supply Nature with a Nourishment both dry and moist , and that much better than the various sorts of Food which is generally allotted for Sea-men ; salt Flesh and Fish may do well between whiles , if it be sparingly and seldom eaten ; but I would advise such People not to eat too freely of the various Fruits such Countries afford , and to eat sparingly also of Flesh , Fish , &c. For all sudden Alterations and Extreams prove very noxious and dangerous to Nature , especially to such who have in their long Voyages accustomed themselves to the forementioned things . CHAP. VII . Of Wheat and other Grains , Beans , Pease , Herbs , Colworts and Colly-Flowers ; and that the Fruits , Herbs and Grains of our own Country are better , and more agreeable to our Bodies , than any brought from abroad : To which is added , some Remarks on Fish. OF all sorts of Bread , that made of Wheat is the finest and best ; some Astrologers think that this sort of Grain is under the Dominion of the Planets Iupiter and Venus . As there are several kinds of Wheat , the best is that which is hard , thick and heavy , clear , smooth , and of the colour of Gold , and which grows in fat and Limy Ground , and afterwards has heat in the Mow three or four Months , by which that raw kind of Quality that is in all Grains , may be fully digested ; the like usuage in Hay , &c. will not be inconvenient . This Grain is not only the strongest , but of all sorts of Bread the Qualities and Properties of its Nature stand in the best Equality , only the sweet and Balsamick Quality does a little predominate , which gives it that pleasant Relish and kindly Operation , far beyond all other sorts of Bread ; there is scarcely to be found any Grain , Herb or Fruit in the whole Creation so highly graduated in Nature as Wheat , or where the Forms and Qualities of Nature stand in more exact and perfect Equality ; therefore it does justly challenge the first place and preheminence of all sorts of Bread or Food ; it is the Foundation of all good Nourishment , called by the wise Man , The Staff of Life ; and our Saviour Christ compares the Heavenly and Spiritual Food of the Soul to Bread , which does not a little Illustrate the excellency thereof . Wheat ought not to be ground at Mill above a day or two before it be made into Bread ; for when the Body is broken , the pure Volatile Spirituous Parts and oily Balsamick Body , will more or less evaporate , according to the time it has lain ground , unless the Flour be packed up hard and close in Casks , as Sea-men and Merchants do when they carry it to Sea , by which means the Spirituous and Oily Quality will be some-what longer preserved ; but still when it comes to be used , they 'l find it to be much drier , and the Bread made of that Flour is not to be compared in goodness to that made of Wheat newly ground , it is neither so sweet nor so moist as the other : This Grain is so sound and firm in its Nature , that if it be not ground , it will endure to be kept for several Years , but if once broken , the Volatile Spirit , which is the preserver of all things , will evaporate , and then the sweet friendly oily Quality is quickly destroyed , and it loses its natural Smell , Colour and Taste , and generates Worms ; but when the other lively and pleasant Qualities are preserved , no Vermin will breed in it . I confess it is very hard to hit the proper Season of Reaping this and other Grains , the Medium between the time of standing too long , and cutting too soon , is to be regarded ; but of these Evils or Extremities , the lesser , which is the later , is to be chosen ; for if it be cut down three or four days before it comes to its full Ripeness , it will gain what was wanting by lying in the Sheaf , and heating in the Mow , by which means you shall not only preserve it in its natural Colour , but it will also be heavier and fuller , yielding more and better Flour : If you let it stand too long until it be over-ripe , then it will scarce recover its self ; for when this or any other Grain comes to its full strength and ripeness and it be not then cut down , the pure Volatile Spirit and oily Body begins to evaporate , as the gross phlegmy matter in any Body is exhaled and digested by the Influences of the Sun , so also the Spirituous Parts and Oily Body will be exhaled and evaporated by vertue of the same Influences , after the drying up of the former gross matter , by which the Balsamick Body is as it were captivated ; for the Sun works first in the phlegmy and gross Body , which when it is exhaled , the pure Essential Spirits and Balsamick Vertues being set at liberty , the Sun also will immediately work on them too , and dry them up to that degree , as 't will be beyond the Power and Efficacy both of Nature and Art to retrive , an example we have often of this in Hay , &c. Your Wheat by too long standing grows ( as I have already said ) not only lighter , and loses its natural Colour , and will not afford so good nor so much Bread , but it also is harder of Concoction , and creates Obstructions in the Stomach ; the wise Man says there is a proper Season for all things under the Sun , which without doubt is to be principally regarded in Reaping and Gathering of the Fruits of the Earth . If you set any value on Health , and have a mind to preserve Nature , you must not separate the Finest from the Coursest Flour , because that which is Fine is naturally of an obstructive and stopping Quality : But on the contrary , the other which is Course is of a Cleansing and Opening Nature ; therefore that Bread is best which is made of both together ; for in the inward Bran and Skin of the Wheat is contained an oily Quality , which is of a sweet friendly Nature , by reason whereof , the Bread which is made of fine and course together , will not only be sweeter , and keep longer Moist , but is also more wholsom , easier of Concoction , and does gently loosen the Belly , and if plentifully eaten , it will cleanse and free the Passages from gross phlegmy Matter , it will strengthen also more than the other Bread , made of the finest Flour , it will be harder , and appear staler at three days old , than the other will be at six or seven . It must be confessed that the Nutrimentive Quality is continued in the fine Flour , yet in the branny part is contained the opening and digestive Quality , and there is as great a necessity of the one , as the other , for the support of Health ; that which is accounted the worst , is as good and benefical to Nature as the best ; for when the finest Flour is separated from the coursest and branny parts , neither the one nor the other , have the true Operations of the Flour of Wheat . This may be illustrated by the Example of Milk , which of it self is mild and nutritive ; but when it is turned into a Curd or thick Substance , there remains a thin and wheyey part , both which has not the true Nature , Quality and Operation of Milk , the Curd being of a hard , tough and obstructing Nature , and the Whey of a cleansing cold Nature , affording but a little Nourishment . By what has been said , we may gather that the eating of fine Bread is inimical to Health , and contrary both to Nature and Reason , and was at first invented to gratifie Wanton and Luxurious Persons , who are ignorant both of themselves , and the true Vertue and Efficacy of natural things . But there is a great deal of Care and Skill to be observed in making of Bread ; that Bread which is Leavened , provided it be not too much , is the best ; for the sower Quality that is in it does much help Digestion , and sharpens the Appetite , and is altogether as pleasant to those that are used to it as Bread made with Yest ; it is both Wholsomer , and of greater Antiquity , and more agreeable to the Stomach ; likewise , that Bread is best that is light , and full of small Eyes , as they call it , being well kneaded and throughly baked ; for the good working of Bread does not only make it pleasant to the Pallat , but also renders it easier of Concoction , smooth and free from crumbling ; some make it with warm , others with cold Water , it matters not which is used , for good Bread may be made with either ; but it is to be noted , that after you have wetted and kneaded your Dough , you should let it lie an hour or two , then work it up into Loaves ; this way of doing it will make it more light and pleasant ; but let not your Loves be too big nor too little , for your Bread both bakes and eats best when the Loaves are of a middle Size . In some Countries they make their Bread with Leaven , and the mixture of the Lees of Wine , and this makes excellent Bread , but care must be taken that your Oven be not too hot , nor your Fire too quick , but it should be heated gradually ; and if your Oven chance to be too hot , let it stand a while until the fierceness of the Heat be gone , or else your Bread will not only be scorched and burned on the outside , but will be also unbaked in the in-side ; if it is not baked enough , then it is offensive to the Stomach , heavy and unpleasant to the Pallat ; if over-baked , then it is dry , and does not afford good Nourishment ; moreover , it is to be baked with a good brisk Heat , and not to stand long in the Oven , for thereby it will lose that brave Colour , wherein it resembles that which it is made of , viz. Wheat . Bread is one of the best sorts of Food , free from Corruption and other evil qualities , yet it is made better and worse according to the Judgment of those that make it , and according to the kneading and baking thereof ; that which is not well-wrought will neither bake so well , nor so soon as the other : Wheaten Bread bakes sooner without , than with Rye or Barley . Barley is of a Saturnine Grain , and of a courser and colder quality than Wheat , and affords less Nourishment ; if the branny parts be not separated from the Flour thereof , then it makes excellent Bread , and is as well Physick as Nourishment for those that are afflicted with Obstructions of the breast , especially such as have proceeded from superfluous and frequent eating of Fat Meats , and excessive drinking of strong Liquors : the Bread being of a drying and apperitive operation , helps Concoction , and cleanses Nature , and is to be preferred before fine Wheaten Bread. Our Citizens and others that live at ease , and feed too plentifully on rich and fat Meats , have their Stomachs made so slippery by the oily kind of quality of the things they eat , that the Retentive faculty of the Stomach cannot long retain the Nourishment , but letting it slip out of the Stomach , as it were , half Concocted , causeth griping Pains in the Bowels , and flatuous gouty Humours in the Joynts : Barley Bread and other mean Food , with drinking moderately , and using Field Labour and Exercises , are excellent Antidotes against these and many other Diseases . Rie also is an excellent Grain , of a cooling opening Quality , it makes some of the best Bread , if it be mixed with Wheat ; for it is not so apt to obstruct Nature as Bread made of Wheat alone : 'T is true , this Bread at first will not be very toothsome and pleasant to those that are accustomed to eat and drink of the best and richest things , neither will it appear to be so wholsom ; for it is apt to gripe a little ; but this proceeds from the Nature of the Grain , which is to open and cleanse . And I dare affirm , that they who use it will attribute many good Vertues to it , such as these : It cools the Body , it opens and frees the Passages from Obstructions , and prepares and sharpens the Appetite ; but it is to be supposed that the branny parts be used with the flour , otherwise it is not so wholsom , yet the coursest of the Bran is to be separated from the other : I have more than once told you , that the purest and finest of the Flour of most Grains is of a glutinating , clamming and obstructing Nature . But on the contrary , this Grain contains within it a certain slippery and moist Quality , which helps Concoction and sharpens the Appetite ; therefore they are not to be separated ; for as the one has a Nutrimentive Quality and Operation , so the other has a Digestive and opening Quality , the Qualities of Nature standing , as it were , in equal weight and measure , there can be no supervacuous and unnecessary Property in this or any other sort of Bread ; for when once the sweet Harmony and Concord of the parts are broken , the Nature of the thing is changed , and contrary operations must needs follow in one and the same body . That the branny and husky part is good in any Grain , it will further appear by this one familiar Example : If you give to Horses ( that commonly eat Oates ) Wheat , Barley , &c. wherein is more flour and less brau than in the other , it will heat the Blood and cause Diseases ; for as the latter is stopping and obstructive , and over-heats the body , so the other is cooling and cleansing ; but the better way of feeding this kind of Animals , is to give them the Corn in the Straw , which upon trial will be found to be excellent strengthening and nourishing Food , and that from the Straw and Chaffy part mixed with their Oates , which opens , unstops and cleanses the Passages from all kind of Obstructions : This is further confirmed , if we look into the Country , where the Peasant , that has no better than course Bread , and other hard and mean fare , is healthier , stronger , and more agile and sprightful than the City-Cormorant , whose bruitish Appetite cannot be satisfied with any other thing than the costliest and richest Varieties that Nature can afford : These latter sort of People accustoming themselves to the highest and finest Preparations of Food and Cordial Drinks , are certainly the most unhealthful Men in the World ; because this sort of Food being in its own nature too Spirituous , does prey upon the natural Heat , causing either a suffocation or evaporation of the Spirits , and contracting the Vessels of the Stomach , whereby the whole body seems to languish : Every sort of Food has its various operations upon the body and spirit of a Man , and that by way of simile . Therefore all Meats and Drinks ought to be equally compounded of a body and spirit , as most things are in themselves before the Artist makes the separation ; the Food as the Man should be compounded both of body and spirit . And to conclude , I know of no separation that should be made of the one from the other , but what is done inwardly by the act of the Stomach and natural Heat . Of Pease and Beans . Beans and Pease are Mars's Grains , being drier and courser than the former : Pease of the two are the finest and easiest of Concoction , they are both of a Windy Quality , yet being eaten when they are dryed , are not only wholsomer than the Green , but also afford a better and finer Nourishment , not so apt to generate Crudities in the Body when they are boyled in plenty of Water ; the Winter-season is the most proper time for eating of them ; for then the natural Heat being more central , the Stomach is much the stronger ; they are a good Food for young healthy People : But Green-Pease and Beans are indued with a gross Phlegmatick Nature , and being frequently eaten generate many gross raw Humours in the Body ; but in the declining part of the year , when the Sun and Elements have consumed and dryed away the gross humid parts , they thereby become firmer and wholsomer Food , and will continue good and sound for several years ; but if they be cut down before the Sun has acted its part in extracting the gross Juices , they will presently corrupt . Therefore the frequent eating of such green Pease is of evil Consequence , and detrimental to the Health ; they afford not only unfirm Nourishment , but also cause Obstructions , Fevers and Pains in the Bowels , with Fluxes and a great many other Maladies . That this kind of Nourishment is not good , will further appear by giving you an Example from Cattle , which when they are fed with green Food , as Grass or the like , their flesh and fat is soft , greasy , and full of phlegmy gross Matter , neither will it take Salt , nor keep half the time as that which is fed with Hay , Corn , and the like ; nay , they are fainter and weaker , and more apt to tire in their Labour , and to take Surfeits , than those that feed with Hay , &c. I do not say but green Pease may be eaten now and then ; for they are in their Nature opening and slippery , which is caused by the great Quantity of Phlegmy Matter that is in them : Yet these Rules should be observed in the dressing of them ; boyl them in good store of River-Water , let your Fire be quick , and your Pot open all the time of their boyling , and they are to be put in when the Water begins to seeth , and not before . By this way of Preparation they are made wholsomer than otherwise they would be . There is a sort of Bean called by the French , English Bean , but we commonly call them Kidney or French Beans , they run upon sticks like Hops ; these are mostly eaten when Green ; they are of an opening and cleansing Nature , purge by Urine , and help Concoction ; the usual way of dressing them is to boyl them in the Shells , and to eat them together . They far exceed and are much better than other Pulses that are eaten green , being in their nature and operation more mild and gentle . Of Herbs , Raw and Boyled . The best raw Sallets are made of Spinage , Parsley , Sorrel , Sage , Pepper-grass , with a small quantity of the Tops of Penny-Royal and Mint ; for all these have a chearing and warming Quality , but Lettice and Onions should be sparingly put in , because they are endowed with a gross thick Juice , and are of a poysonous Nature , sending Fumes into the Head , whence proceeds a dull kind of Drowsiness , and propensity to sleep , which is offensive to the Eyes and Brain . There are other Herbs made use of in Raw Sallets , but the fore-mentioned are the best and most material Ingredients . The proper season for eating them is from the beginning of February to the middle of Iune ; the earlier in the Spring so much the better , and the more frequently they are eaten at this season , so much the wholsomer ; for they are opening and cleansing powerfully , the Blood is purified , the natural Heat is tempered and encreased , the Spirits are made brisk and lively , the Appetite is quickned , and Concoction facilitated . Raw Herbs are a sublime kind of Food , and are to be preferred before that which is boyled ; for the pure Volatile Spirit in the Herbs , whence the Animals fragrancy proceeds , cannot endure the violence of the fire ; but in boyling , a great part of it is evaporated ; for this cause boyled Herbs lie heavier and colder in the Stomach than Raw , which is scarcely credited by any ; for they that love boyled Herbs , do generally eat much Flesh with them , and so cannot discern the operation they have : The strength and comforting Quality of every thing consists principally in the spirituous parts , which are lost in the boyling , and so they become just of another Nature ; that lively Tincture and spirituous part , which it had whilst raw can never be retriv'd by all the Ingredients Nature or Ar 〈…〉 can afford : Do not all Creatures eat their Herbs raw , and are they not sustained by them to admiration ? They are powerful Preservers of Life and Health , far beyond all the contriv'd Preparations of other Food . In most Countries of this World , the Inhabitants thereof do eat ( England excepted ) their Herbs Raw , both in hot and cold Climates : This kind of Food is preferrable to the great Quantities of Flesh , Butter , Cheese , &c. which are too often eaten among us , these latter not only affording too great store of Nourishment , but being naturally hot , they over-heat the Blood , and are heavy to be digested , by reason of the oyly fat matter all such things do plentifully contain , they dull the Appetite , and obstruct , and as it were fur the Passages . Besides the Vertues we have ascribed to Raw Herbs , God Almighty has created them for the use of Man , and they were the first Food which was allotted him , after the Fall , where he saith , Every Green Herb shall be unto you for Food : And in the first Age of the World , though their Food was scarcely any thing else but Green Herbs and pure Water , yet when was there any Generation since that time , who has lived in so perfect Health , and to so great and flourishing an Age ? The great and illuminated Prophet Moses did endeavour to wean ( as it were ) the Children of Israel from eating of Flesh in their forty years Journey in the Wilderness , and gave them Laws to distinguish between the Clean and Unclean Creatures , but you could never read of any Laws forbidding the use of green Herbs . Now the best Ingredients , to mix and eat with Raw Sallets , are Oyl , Salt , Vinegar , Verjuice , Oranges , &c. These make them warm in the Stomach , and pleasant to the Taste ; but you are not to use these Ingredients when you eat at the same with them Flesh , Butter and Cheese ; for so many Mixtures are not agreeable to Nature : Some love Sugar in their Sallets , which is better left out , if you eat Flesh , &c. with them ; for Sugar does not well agree with fat Meats , nor with Oyl , except in way of Medicine . As to Boyling of Herbs or Sallets , I shall give you an account of the best way of their Preparation , and how they shall be most conduceable to Health , which will appear by the Observation of these following things . First , Your Herbs and Pulses must be fresh gathered ; for if they be kept two or three days before they are used , or if they lie too close together , the pure Spirits which are very tender in them , will be destroyed and exceedingly diminished , the evaporation of the Spirits make them dull and heavy , affording little or no Nourishment , and that none of the best . Secondly , The Vessel or Pot in which such things are boyled ought to be large , that it may contain a good quantity of Water , for Water is an Element so friendly and clean , that it helps to preserve the Spirituous Parts , and Balsamick Body , and to digest the gross phlegmatick Substance ; it is the Sweetner , Preserver and Purifier of all things . Thirdly , You should have a quick Fire , and are not to put in your Herbs into the Pot until the Water boyl , and then increase your Fire , not suffering it to stand too long before your Pot boyl again ; when that is done , let there be no Intermissions in the boyling ; for there is nothing that does more deaden and flat the Spirits , especially in green Herbs , than slack Fires and such Intermissions . Fourthly , So soon as your Pot or Vessel boyls , then you should presently uncover it , that these Sulphurous Fumes and Vapours may evaporate , which are awakned , and forced into the Food by the Fire , and also that the fresh and friendly Influences of the Air may have its free egress and regress , for the Air is the essential Life of the Spirit : No Food can be well prepared , if the Vessel be covered . Fifthly , Your Herbs and Pulse should not be over-boyled , for then the spirituous parts and balsamick body will instantly evaporate , and your Food will become flat and heavy , losing its pure natural Colour , Smell and Taste , and is nothing so pleasant and wholsom ; it were better that it be under than over done , because of the tenderness of the green Herbs . If these fore-mentioned Rules in boyling be not observed , then such Food will lose its proper Vertue and lively Tincture , and will afford but a very dull , thick and gross Nourishment , and begets bad Blood , and many other ill Effects ; but if they be thus prepared , you may the more boldly venture on eating of Flesh with them , for they will purge and cleanse the Stomach , and help the digestive faculty to concoct that Food , which appears more difficult to be digested . Of Colworts , Cabbage and Colly flowers . Colworts are the best of the three , being of a more lively , opening and cleansing Nature and Operation than the other two , because they grow open , so that the Air , with the Sun , has its free Influences upon them , and this is also the Reason that they look of a greener and fresher Colour than many other Vegetables ; they are also more wholsom : If you boyl green fresh . Colworts , and keep them till next day , and do the like with a Cabbage , keeping it likewise till the next day , your Cabbage shall smell more gross and fulsomer than your Colworts : Also the Juice of green Colworts is of a thiner Substance , and more penetrating than that of Cabbages ; Cabbages are so close compacted , that the Air cannot penetrate them , neither can the Sun have so free and powerful Influences upon them as on Colworts , so that they become of a grosser thicker Substance , fuller of Phlegm , and gross Juices , and more subject to Putrifaction ; for the Air is the true Life of the Spirit in all Vegetables : By this and the Saline Quality in the Earth , they are preserved in their greeness and freshness ; but that which is earthed up and hid from the Air , cannot be so wholsom , and is more fading ; where the Saline Power is strong , the Vegetables are also lively and strong : For Example , lay a heap of Dung in the Field , and let it lie a Week in the Rain , and then move it , and leave no Dung on that place , and you shall presently see that the Grass in that place where it did lie , will be strong , and of a deep green fresh Colour , far beyond the Grass in the place where the Dung was spread , and the Reason is very apparent , for the Rain did wash a salt oily kind of Liquor into the Earth : The same Reason will hold in other things , as in your low Grounds , that lie between Hills and River-sides , which are more fruitful than other Fields , because the Rain does wash a certain Fat and Saline Quality from the Hills , which drains down to the lower Grounds and Vallies ; also the Rivers sometimes over-flowing their Banks , and reaching the adjacent Grounds , do leave ( when the Water retires back ) a certain fat saline Quality behind , which makes it more fruitful than otherwise it would be . Colliflowers are somewhat of the Nature of Cabbage , only they are a little sweeter , they afford but very gross Nourishment to the Body ; they generate abundance of windy and flatulent Humors , and send a great many Fumes up to the Head ; our Soil commonly is not Rich enough for them ; they are more forced by Art and Dung , than they grow naturally ; they being a Phlegmatick kind of Food , or rather more subject to Putrifaction than Cabbage , yet both the one and the other should be eaten very sparingly : But as for fresh green Colworts , they may be eaten liberally , especially by those that eat fat Flesh plentifully . Of ROOTS . Turnips are a Root of a very innocent and mild Nature ; it has several good Properties , it removes Obstructions which lie in the Passages , makes the Belly soluble , and mightily helps Concoction by its moist and slippery kind of Quality ; one may eat plentifully of this with a great deal of safety ; but of Flesh sparingly , as most Nations do ( England excepted ; ) In France , Spain and Portugal , and other Countries , a pound of Flesh , with Herbs and Roots , will make a Dinner for four or five People : But an English man will eat at one Meal a Pound or two of fat Flesh , and scarcely a bit of Bread with it ; there are but too many in this Nation that follow this dangerous and noxious custom . Turnips being a very good and wholsom Root , I recommend them to every Bodies use , especially to those that eat Flesh plentifully : I confess when they are eaten by themselves , they afford but weak Nourishment , and are a Phlegmatick kind of Food ; you must have a care what Ground you sow them in , for all sorts of Ground will not bear good Turnips ; Doctors say , that they are a Physical Root , and an Antidote and Remedy against Consumptions , and several other Diseases ; but I know no such Vertue in them , yet they are good for weak Stomachs , being easie of Concoction ; for always weak heats should have a proportionate quantity of Food . And I cannot think , as some imagin , that they are so proper for languishing Diseases , because they are of a watry cold Nature in themselves , and do breed but unfirm Nourishment ; besides , they seldom come to Maturity until the declining part of the Year , viz. September and October , &c. at which time the central heat of the Earth being weak , all its Productions are also weak , and endowed with gross phlegmy and cold Juices ; for the Sun being in its Declension , brings all things under the like Circumstance : Therefore all things , viz. Herbs and Roots which are brought forth in this Season , are of a sainty and weak Nature , neither are they so good for Food or Physick ; besides Roots are not so good in cold Countries , as Fruits and Herbs are , being generally more cold and earthy , because they want the friendly Influences of the Sun and Air : Therefore Roots have not that pleasant fragrant Smell and Taste , which Herbs Fruits , &c. have . But Turnips , Potatoes , &c. that grow almost in the top and surface of the Earth , are better than other Roots , and more familiar to our Natures than such as grow deeper in the Ground , because they participate more of the Influences both of the Air and Sun than the other ; when they are boyled in good Water , and eaten with Butter , Salt and Bread , they are good food both for the Sick and the Healthy . The Carrot is a Root next in Goodness and Vertue to this , the best sort of them are those which are of the deepest Red Colour ; when they are eat in their proper season , they are a pleasant wholsom Root , which is from the Month of July to the Month of December , or thereabout ; after that time they are not so wholsom , especially those that are taken out of the Ground and kept all the Winter and Spring . This Root being eaten presently after it is pulled up out of the Ground , and when it is well ordered , is not much inferiour to Turnips , they being of an opening and cleansing Nature , easie of Concoction , and may with safety be eaten plentifully , either without or with Flesh. The Colour of Carrots do declare that there is an excellent Vertue in them . Next to this is a Parsnip , which is a good hearty Root , yet not so good a Friend to Nature as the other two ; for they are harder of Concoction , and being eaten , are much apter to create Obstructions in the Stomach , and breed a grosser kind of Nouris●ment , and consequently a thicker and grosser Blood : It is not good to keep this Root above a day or two before 't is used , for then they 'll prove dull upon the Pallat , strong in their taste and smell , heavy and hard of Digestion , and this proceeds from the evaporation of the spirituous parts , as well before as in their preparation ; for the Spirit is the Life of the oily body , and the oily body is the House of the Spirit , and the one cannot subsist without the other ; the eating of them immediately after they are plucked up out of the Ground , must then be the fittest time . That the Fruits , Herbs and Grains which our own Climate produceth , are more Natural and Proper to maintain Strength and preserve Health than those that come from other Countries , especially from hot . Every Country and Climate does by God's Divine Appointment and good Providence , bring forth such Herbs , Fruits and Grains , as are proper and most agreeable to the Constitutions of the People born in that place , both for Food and Physick , as the Lord in the beginning did tell Adam , That every green Herb and Seed should be for Food . Do we not see that those that are born and bred in Spain or Italy , and they that dwell in Turkey do differ much from us , both in their Complexions , Manners , and also in their Customs , every Country differing from another in their distinct Inclinations and Fashions , according to the Nature of that place , and the Elevation of the Pole they are under ? And as each Country has distinct Languages , which cannot be understood by People born in other Climates ; so have they likewise different Constitutions , Inclinations and Complexions , their Herbs , Fruits and Grains differing in their Quality and Operation : These great differences both of Languages , and of all other things that is between each Country , is not caused by the Sea , which divides each Country from another , but from the differences of places ; for every Hundred Miles through the whole Universe the People differ , and their Speech ; so that if a man Travel five Hundred Miles , he shall not be capable to understand one Word of an Hundred ; Do we not see this in our own Country , where those that live in the North , cannot understand those of the West , which is caused from the differing Elevations of the Pole and Influences of the Sun , with concurring Constellations , which also causes all other things to differ both in their Nature and Operations ; for this Reason one place is more famous than another , in respect of divers things ; and if our own Country doth vary and differ so much in the compass of three or four hundred Miles , what do those remote parts that are distant from us many thousand Miles , as the East and West-Indies ? The People of those places in all particulars do much differ from us in their Complexions , Constitutions , Religions , Inclinations , Governments , Shapes and Languages ; their Animals , such as their Beasts , Birds , Fishes , &c. are all of them of a different Nature , Shape and Form from ours ; so also are their Herbs , Fruits and Grains , both those that are proper for Food , and also for Physick : Do not the Northern cold Climates give all the beasts of the Field hardy Constitutions and Natures , and warm Cloathing ? From whence come your brave thick Furs ? Do not the Creatures in cold Countries produce them ? And do not the Sheep in cold Climates afford abundance of strong Wool ? Whereas the Sheep in hot Countries produce but a little Wool , and that which is very fine ; and many of their Creatures have hardly any Wool or Hair on them . The wonderful and wise Creator hath endued every Country and Climate with such a permanent Nature , even in the beginning , as brings forth Herbs , Fruits and Grains , which are proper and most agreeable to the Natures and Constitutions of the People born in that place . And as the cold Countries produce abundance of Cloth and Furs ; so on the contrary , hot Climates afford Silks and find Calicoes , and the like , which are not proper nor useful for us , neither are ours for them : How contrary to Reason and Nature it is for men in cold Countries to cloath themselves with Silk and fine Calico ? And so on the contrary , for those in hot Countries to cloath themselves with our strong thick Woolen Cloth and Furs ? But mens Health is not so much endangered by outward Garments , as by too great an Indulgence of Nature in the use of Meats and Drinks , the one being External , and the other Internal . It is known by Experience , that the mixing of the East and West-Indian and Spanish Fruits , with our Food and Drinks , have encreased Diseases , and made the People more sickly than in former Ages , with many new Distempers , which had not any existence among us ; for most or all those things that are brought from those Countries are not proper for Food , and are also endued with contrary Natures to the Fruits and Grains our own Country produceth , as all sorts of Spices , Nutmegs , Cloves , Mace , Cinnamon , Pepper and Ginger , they are all extream hot and dry , and are not proper to be used , but in a Physical way ; and indeed we do not need them in that way neither ; for we have Herbs and Roots that grow in our own Climate more proper for that use , though the Physicians have been as willing to deceive the People , as the Merchants , by telling them the many excellent Vertues contained in them : Yet it cannot be denied but that those Spices are Excellent in their Nature and Operation , though not proper for our Constitutions , nor to be mixed among our Food and Drinks ; for that Food in which such things are mixed , does by degrees destroy the Natural Heat of the Stomach , drying up the Radical Moisture , and those cool Vapours which would otherwise refresh the whole Body , keeping of it pleasant , making the Spirits brisk and full of Life ; this pleasant Quality is destroyed by Eating and Drinking such things in which Spices , Sugars and Spanish Fruits are mixed ; it makes the Blood also of a hot , sharp , keen quality , and causes thick hot Fumes to ascend into the Head , making the Head , Hands and Feet , and all the external parts to glow with an unnatural Heat ; it deadens and dulls the Action of the Stomach , and takes away the sharpness of the Appetite ; this may be known to every one , if they would observe the operation of such things ; for they are unequal in their parts , the heat bearing a predominacy in them , they do by Similes cause all sorts of Foods and Drinks , with which the are mixed , to become like themselves , viz. Unequal , if great care be not taken : And the worst of all is , after our Stomachs are accustomed to such things , we cannot be well satisfied without them , for they are in some degree like Wine , whereof if a man drink frequently , he cannot without a great deal of Trouble , and some Hazard as to his Health , refrain from it ; the like is true in drinking of Brandy and taking of Tobacco , which Customs are far more dangerous than the former : For every sort of Food and Drink in which Nature is in its Properties Unequal , does powerfully stir up and beget its likeness in the Stomach , & causeth Nature to be unequal in her Operations ; for no sorts of Meats or Drinks do more destroy the Health and Welfare of Nature , than those that contain too much Nourishment , and whose predominant quality is too hot , which generally is the effects of all such Foods and Drinks , in which the above-mentioned Ingredients are mixed . When I consider the strange and unnatural mixture , and the variety of Meats and Drinks that are too commonly used , I cannot admire the Unhealthiness of our Age : And certainly if this Nation do continue and encrease their eating and drinking the improper Fruits , Spices , Wines , and other things that are the Products and Growths of other Countries , as has been done for these forty or fifty years last past , we shall be corrupted in our Radixes , as too many are already ; all those things being now commonly used which have greatly encouraged other Nations to make such quantities of them , as that they are become so Cheap , that it is scarcely worth the Merchants while to bring them over ; for where there was one pound of Sugar spent forty or fity years ago , now there is a Thousand ; and where there was then one quart of Wine drunk , there is now Ten Thousand . The use of Tobacco and Brandy a hundred years since was hardly known ; nay , the use of our Ale and Beer has hardly been above two hundred years , which now we account most Natural ; there is somewhat may be said against Beer , but because it is made of our own Grain , I shall not say any thing here of its Nature or Operation , having treated of it in another place . Great hath been the Increase of those Foreign Ingredients of late years , insomuch that they are esteemed good to be mixed among common Food and Drinks , as also to be taken Physically ; for you may hear many say , that Tobacco is good to prevent Fumes and Vapours from flying into the Head , and so make it their constant practice to take it . Now if this had any such operation as they say , the constant use of it would destroy its Vertues ; the same may be alledged of Brandy , Wine , Spices , &c. It is to be noted and pitied that Aged People do not only eat and drink such things as are hurtful , but they mix Spices , Sugars and Fruits among all their Childrens Food , and between whiles give them Wine and strong Drink , which must be very Injurious to their Health ; for all Children are tender , both as to their Spirits and Bodies ; and because they are growing , their Nature requires great store of moisture , which can be no otherways maintained but by a simple and mean Food and Drink : If you mix their Food with Sugars , Wine , Spices , and Spanish Fruits , they will certainly over-heat the Body , stop the Pores , dry up the Radical Moisture , hinder the pure moist Vapours of the Air that they cannot penetrate the Body : These destroy the Stomach , blunt the edg of the Appetite , contracting the Vessels of their Stomachs , making them lean or Consumptive , and in others breed abundance of gross Phlegmatick Humors , all according to the Nature of each Child's Constitution : It causeth likewise all their external parts to burn and glow with unnatural Heat , generating many Windy and Watery Diseases and Evil Juices in their Joynts : All these Maladies are much augmented by other indulgent ways Women use towards their Children , as keeping them over-warm , especially at night , and feeding of them too often and too plentifully , insomuch that their Stomachs are always fouled and furred with gross and Phlegmy Matter , their Food being too much in Quantity and too rich in Quality , which makes the Children uneasie , apt to cry , and froward , and puts their Nurses to abundance of trouble , which would be in a great measure prevented , if Temperance was observed , and Women would be content to give their Children that kind of Food that were proper for their Ages and Constitutions , and which does grow under and by the Vertue of our own Constellations ; for every Country or Climate does furnish the Natives thereof with all things , both for Food and Physick proper to preserve Nature , having more agreement and unity with our Constitutions . Is there any sort of thing brought from the West or East-Indies , from Spain or any other Country , that is to be compared to our Bread , Cheese or Butter ? Have we not a great multitude of excellent Herbs and Roots , which make good wholsom Food ? And have we not also excellent Water , which is not only the best of Drinks it self , but by the help of our own Grains and Fruits , makes various sorts of Drinks as strong as Wine ? And do we not make excellent Drink of Apples , more proper for our Bodies , and more suitable to our Nature than any of the Spanish Wines ? What is it that English People want , either for the Belly or the Back , if Wantonness or superfluity was set aside ? Are not all the sorts of Food that are of our own Growth more suitable and friendly to our Natures , than those that come from other Countries ? Are not those that live in the most remote parts of England , and far from Cities and Sea-Ports , where Mony is scarce , and such things dear , that the common People cannot buy them , most healthful and freest from Diseases ? But now those Out-landish Ingredients begin to be so much admired , that the good Dame , viz. the Farmers Wife will sell her Eggs , Butter , Cheese and Wheat to buy Sugar , Spice and Tobacco , which stand them in no stead , only to increase Intemperance and Distempers . The very Plough-men and Shepherds defile their most pleasant Air with the fulsom Fumes of Tobacco . Likewise , the common use of these things have made way for various Trades and Employments , so that a great part of the People are imployed to bring them over , and to distribute them here ; so that there is small hopes of leaving off these Superfluities ; they are become as it were Essential to the Nature of the Users ; but the chief Happiness of English People is , that their own Country does abound with all things that are needful for the support and preservation of Nature , and that every one is left to his free choice . Therefore a Wise Man may in the midst of those various Superfluities live soberly and temperately to his own comfort , and the praise of his Creator . 2. It is to be observed , that most of the Fruits and Spices that come from those hot Countries are not only disagreeable to our Natures , but even the Natives of those places do very moderately and sparingly use them , esteeming them not fit to mix with their common Food ; the same is likewise true of their Moderation in the use of Wines ; for they do not drink it as we do in that abundance , but sparingly , and mixed with Water ; besides , the frequent use of the fore-mentioned Ingredients do make English men too Effeminate , and do in no wise agree with their Constitutions ; for cold Countries do make hardy , strong and Martial People , as also Food of that Nature does by its simile maintain and preserve the Health of the Body and Mind , far beyond what is brought from those hot Climates . But if the Natives of those Countries should eat and drink those Spices and Wines in that Quantity as we do , it would as it were destroy the very Radix of Health , which is one main cause why our English are so unhealthy when they travel and live in such hot Countries ; for they continuing the same Intemperances which they accustom'd themselves unto in their own Countries ( which those places will not admit of ) their Bodies and Natures do much alter and change , when they alter the Climate ; and not only our Bodies , but also our Dispositions and Inclinations are thereby much changed . Therefore all People ought strictly to observe such degrees of Temperance in such places as are most suitable and profitable to preserve Health ; for not only all sorts of their Fruits and Food , but their Drinks also do much differ from ours , the predominant Quality whereof standing chiefly in the Nature of Sol and Venus ; and if such Fruits and Wines be not taken sparingly , they will quickly awaken their Centers and Natures in the Body , and cause the pure subtle Spirits to evaporate , as most do find after drinking plentifully of Wine or strong Drink , and eating Food in which those Rich Fruits are compounded , how indisposed will Nature be , how heavy and dull the senses , and as it were stupified ? And this is caused not only by overcharging of Nature with the Quantity , but with the Quality also of the Food , which doth so violently open the Solar and Venerial Properties of the Body by a sympathetical operation , and does evaporate the pure Spirits , and consumes the sweet Oyl , whence the pleasant Life burns ; after such Intemperance in eating and drinking , you find great alterations in the state of your Body . Some think , That the stronger the Liquor , and the Richer their Food is , the more Vertue and Strength is in it ; but the contrary is too apparent ; for nothing is more hurtful to Nature than that which contains much Nourishment ; for this cause many People are out of order , their natural strength decaying by degrees , and occasioning many Diseases to reign , which had no being in former Ages , when the use of such things were not known . In remote parts , where such Fruits and Wines cannot be procured , they are happily freed from many grievous Distempers , with which we are afflicted . But all that I can say will not convince such as are Wise in their own Conceits , nor prevent them from boyling two Quarts of Ale to one , with good store of Oatmealand Spice , and then sweetning it well with Sugar , give two or three Quarts a day hot to Child-bed-Women . Of Fish. Fish generally are cold and moist , of them some are easie , others hard of Digestion : The frequent and plentiful eating of this begets Phlegm , and a kind of cold moist matter in the Body ; likewise we are to account some of them unclean and unwholsom , others clean and wholsom , the first sort are such that are bred in muddy stinking Waters , as Ponds , &c. where the Water has no motion , or in Rivers which receive the Excrements of Cities or Towns , such Fish produce bad Nourishment , corrupt the Blood , and cause Obstructions , Scabs , Leprous Diseases , &c. If People were sensible of the hurt they do , they would no more eat them , than they would Frogs , Snails , yea , Snakes , for they all have one and the same Original , and are generated from a like matter : These Creatures , or rather Vermin ( for so I may call them ) are produced from Putrifaction , gross and unclean matter , and would be abominable to Humane Nature , if they were known to be such ; besides the Diseases they cause , they also defile the Spirits by awakning their Similies , they prove frequently to be of Ill Consequence both to the Body and Mind . These Fish that have no Scales are unclean , and the Nourishment they afford are of a moist and slimy Nature . But on the contrary , those that have both Scales and Fins , are wholsomer , and are of a dryer Substance , and easier of Concoction ; those that are bred in clear gravelly running Waters and Rivers , are sweet , pleasant and wholsom , if taken in their proper Seasons . Both the Seller and Buyer of Fishes are guilty of great mistakes about them ; the Fisher-man does commonly let them dye of themselves , or by throwing one upon another , causes one rather to suffocate another ; this way does a great deal of harm to the Fish , as well as to other Creatures , viz. Cows , Sheep , &c. But the better way is to give them a wound so soon as you take them out of their proper Element , rather than to suffocate them ; for by this , the pure Essential Spirits and Balsamick Body suffers Violence . There is a custom among some to keep Fish alive until they have a mind to eat them ; this is chiefly practised among the Dutch : Though it be a very good Custom , yet a great many commit Errors in this particular , for they are oft-times kept in a small quantity of thick standing Water , until they languish and grow weak , fainty and poor : But if you have a mind to keep them , let them be put where there is plenty of good Water : Do not put any great quantity together , neither keep them too long before you use them . CHAP. VIII . Of the Mischief of Variety of Meats and Drinks , and the Inconveniences of Improper Mixtures ; and on the other side , what Foods are fit to be Compounded . THE mixture of several things of disagreeing Natures , is common in this wanton Age to most sorts of People , except such as are constrained through pure Necessity to live on simple Meats and Drinks ; but in this adding of divers sorts of Food together , so as to render them Wholsom , or not very Prejudicial to the Health , there is required a greater Understanding than ordinary House-wives are endued with , or indeed the best Cooks ; for their business is to gratifie the Extravagant Fancies and Liquorish Pallates of those they belong to , rather than to study to prepare what is agreeable to Nature . For when you mix two , three , or four things together , if the predominant Quality in each be of contrary Natures , then such Food will produce a disagreeing Nourishment in the Stomach , whence must arise an inward Strife and Contention for mastery , so that oft-times the pure Vertues and Spirits suffer violence , and become suffocated . This is manifest in all sorts of Herbs , Woods , Earths and Drugs , which Dyers and Painters use , two of which being mixt , produce a third of a kind and nature contrary to both ; and if you add a third Ingredient of a Nature contrary to those two , it will become a fourth Species : The same thing happens in Eatables . As you alter the Taste of any simple Food by adding one or more Ingredients : So you vary its Nature , so that it becomes not only of another Taste , but a quite different Operation ; for this cause there ought to be great Caution and Discretion used in Mixing of Food , or else you bring all into Confusion : We ought to understand the Nature of each Ingredient , and what Iuices and Nourishment , two or more things conjoyned , will produce ; for each particular makes some Variation , either for the better or the worse ; for all Tasts in Food have the very same Original as Colours , and Cooks ought to be as skilful as Painters in their Mixtures , which if well observed , most People would be free from desiring such Compounded Dishes , most Men through ignorance of the Nature and Operation of things , imagining that the more both mean and rich Ingredients are mixed together , the greater and better the Nourishment : The contrary whereof is true , for such things do generally produce a Nourishment of a contrary Nature to most of the Ingredients , as is evident in Painting ; for Example , take Indigo , Ultramarine , or any Blew , and mix it with White , and it makes a Skie to what degree you please ; but then put a third , viz. mix a Pink Colour , and makes a Green , which is a fourth Colour of a contrary Nature to both the first , second and third ; also mix Verdigrease and Pink , and it makes a Green ; take Lake and Ultramarine , and it gives a deep Purple ; mix Lake and White together and you have a Pink Colour ; and if you would have the deepest Black , take the whitest Ivory you can get , and burn it , and the Ashes will perform your desire ; so likewise Copporas , Gauls and Logwood dye a Black , though none of them are so . Furthermore , it is to be noted , that there are but Seven perfect Colours in the World , which have their Original from the seven Constellations , viz. Black , Red , Yellow , Blew , Lake , Green and White , each of which does contain the true Nature of all the seven ; but that Quality that predominates denominates the Colour , and all the other lie as it were hid or captivated ; but when another or contrary Colour is mixt or incorporated therewith , then both those Colours lose their right in Nature , and thro' an inward strife and contention , there is a Third awakned , which before the mixture lay hid and captivated , and this third is of a contrary Nature to both the first ; and so you may by continual Additions of other Colours , alter it into a fourth , a fifth , a sixth , and so on ; for from an apt Commixture of these seven Colours , an ingenious Artist in Painting can imitate and represent the Colours of all things in the whole Universe : The like is to be understood of Tastes and the nature of Food , mixing of two things of contrary Qualities , produces a third Iuice different from each of them ; and if you add a third Ingredient , that is in nature contrary to both the first , it will awaken another Nature , which lay hid or captivated ; and so there arises a fourth thing , and this it performs by Simile , making that propriety in Nature strong which was weak , and causing that to become manifest , that before did disappear . As in the before mentioned Instance of mixing Blew and White that produces a Sky-colour , which is one degree of Variation ; but then mix Pink-colour with these two , and it makes a Green , which is quite contrary to both the first and second : Now before the Pink was so added , this same Green was essentially in both the Colours , but not manifest till the Pink captivated both the first and second , and made them disappear , and so brought to manifestation that Colour which before lay dormant . So great is the Power of Nature of altering , changing , and as it were new-making , where things of contrary Qualities are intermixt , and this is as strongly and really ( though perhaps not altogether so visibly ) in Foods as in Colours . Hence the Wise men in all Ages have chiefly commended Simple Meats and Drinks , for they knew some-what of the secret Powers and Operations of Nature , and were sensible that there were but very few that had understanding rightly to compound Diversities of Provisions ; this must be reckoned one of the principal Reasons why People lived so long of Old in perfect Health , because they used simple and innocent Meats and Drinks . But in our days there are but few that in their whole Lives do know the particular Operation of any one sort of Food , for they will not content themselves without various things mixed together , many of which being of disagreeing Natures , are attended with very evil Consequences : And especially ( with grief , shame and pity I speak it ) there are scarce any People in the World more guilty of Gluttony and improper mixtures of Food than the English Nation , who likewise are more guilty herein of late Years than ever heretofore ; for they have not only a great number of various sorts of Food in their own Country ( which are most agreeable to the Constitutions of the Inhabitants ) but ▪ vast quantities of Fruits and Spices , Liquors , &c. that are brought from other Countries , and the remote Regions of the World , which serve only to gratifie wanton and liquorish Pallats , and promote Gluttony and Excess . And here I shall nominate some sorts of Food , which commonly are eaten , as Examples , to demonstrate with how improper Ingredients the same are Compounded , insomuch that Nature doth abominate them . 1. Observe the composition of Cakes , which are frequently eaten , and given especially to Children as Food ; In them there are commonly Flour , Butter , Eggs , Milk , Fruit , Spice , Sugar , Sack , Rose-Water and Sweet-Meats , as Citrons , or the like : Now here are Ten Ingredients , which are of so many several Natures and Operations , but being intermixt all in one Mass , the simple and natural Vertues of all and each of them are destroyed , and changed into another Nature ; so that the predominant Quality of each of them suffers Violence , and loseth its natural Power , and there it becomes a Confusion , and the simple Taste of each thing is so intermingled and adulterated , that the Pallat cannot distinguish one from another , and the whole proves ungrateful to the Stomach , as appears in that , Should any Person be confined to such Cakes only , and make them his constant Food but for two or three Weeks , Nature would grow sick and out of order , and the Stomach and Pallat would nauseate and abominate them ; and any two of the said Ingredients make far better and wholsomer Food : For how long may a man live with Bread and Milk before Nature becomes weary ? Divers have scarce used any other Diet for many Years together : So likewise Bread and Butter , Bread and Eggs , Bread and Fruit , Bread and Sack , or other Wine , is very good Food , and a man may use any of them a long time without nauseating Nature . So that you see here , that Ten rich Ingredients mixed together do not make so good , wholsom or natural Food , as One or Two of them ; for if two things be mixed together that bear a friendly Aspect to each other , such things make but a degree of Variation , and that for the better ; for when the Ingredients are proper , and not too many , the inward or hidden Qualities in each thing are awakened and strengthned , so that such Food becomes more agreeable , and gives better satisfaction to Nature than any one sort of Food can do : As for Example ; Bread and Milk have a simile with each other , therefore a man may live a long time with it before Nature be cloy'd ; the like may be said of Bread and Butter , Bread and Cheese , &c. 2. In some other compounded Foods the case is far worse ; for in Cake all the Ingredients have attained their full Ripeness , Strength and Vertue : But in other cases raw unripe Fruits are compounded and made into Food , as green Goosberries and Sugar in Tarts , &c. where the Berries and the Sugar being both Extreams , such Food cannot therefore afford a proper Nourishment ; and if a man should be confined solely thereunto for a Month , his Nature would neither be sustained nor satisfied , because such immature Fruits are too Crude and Phlegmy , and the use of them was first brought in by foolish Nicepallated People and Gluttons . For no sort of Fruits nor Grains ought to be eaten till they have attained to some degree of Maturity , nor will they before afford any firm Nourishment , though they be never so artificially mixed with Spices , Sugars , &c. 3. It is no ways proper to mix Fruits that grow in hot Climates , as Raisins , Currants and Sugar , with Flesh and Fish , as is done frequently in Pies , Sawces , and other sorts of Food ; for the same disagreeing in their Radixes , generally prove of ill Consequence to Health , and nothing is so good , so pleasant , and so wholsom to be boyled and eaten with Flesh , as our own Country Herbs and Roots : And it is also to be noted , That all Foreign Fruits are more agreeable when mixt with our Fruits , than with our Flesh , though we have little or no need of them with either . 4. It is an ill Custom among many to compound Food by mixing unprepared things with such as are already prepared ; as for Example in those they call Bread-Puddings : Now Bread , when 't is well baked , and other Circumstances performed to it , as they ought to be , is then prepared to its highest degree of use and excellency , being the most friendly Food that ever was invented , and whatsoever preparation or alteration it passes thro' afterwards , causeth a sick faintness to attend it ; for in its first preparation or digestion its crude phlegmy , gross parts were destroyed ; and the gross Body open'd , by which the pure spirituous parts and balsamick Vertues become more volatile ; so if Bread be put to a second preparation , or goes thro' another digestion , the essential Vertues thereof are as it were totally destroyed , and all such Food has a fainty or sickish Taste and Smell , and if a man should but for a small space be confined thereunto , his Stomach and Nature would quickly grow weary and abominate it ; ( only those that do frequently use such Unnatural Preparations , do in some degree hide the fainty Quality by various mixtures ) The very same is to be understood in all kind of Food . For would any man willingly eat of Meat that is once boyled or roasted , and let be cold , and afterwards boyled or roasted again ? Or mix such Flesh with raw , and so prepare them together ? 5. This is further manifest by all Broths , and Pottages that stand to be cold , and are heat again ; when first made they are full of Life and Spirits , of a pleasant Smell and brisk Taste , grateful to the Stomach , and easie of Concoction ; but when they have been at the Fire the second time , the spirituous Qualities that in the first preparation were set at liberty , and rendred Volatile , are evaporated , and they become of a strong dull Taste and Smell . For all sorts of Food over-prepared , or twice prepared , are hurtful : For this cause Water-Pap that is made of Bread is not an wholsom Food , and no way proper for sick People or Children ; and so much the worse , when it is made fulsom and strong by the various Ingredients they add to it ; The same may be said of fermented Liquors , as Beer , Wine , &c. if they be committed to the fire , they become of a dull fiat heavy Nature , void of Spirit and Life ; or if such be put into Food , and that same Food afterwards prepared by fire , then also they lose all their pure Vertues , and there does only remain the strong original Quality , which is a Death rather than Life . This should be well noted by all House-wives , and by Nurses especially among sick People , and not make them as much Posset-drink or Broth as will serve them twenty four Hours , and when occasion is , heat it again and again , thereby destroying all its pure spirituous Parts and Vertues , till it becomes as sick and fainty as those that are to eat and drink it ; for such things are burthensom to a well-Stomach , and what then must they be to such as are sick and out of order , whose Spirits are few , and those-weak and languishing ? 6. There is another Trick of Nurses , which even the learned do often advise , viz. when People are sick , to boyl their Drink with a Crust of Bread in 't . Now both these have been prepared before , even to the highest degree ; so that by this boyling them together again , as well the Drink as the Bread lose their Vertues , and the Drink becomes as flat and dull as Pond-Water in a hot Summer day ; and then the Wise Nurse adds a lusty Quantity of Sugar to hide its gross dull fulsom Taste , which renders it still duller and heavier on the weak Stomach of the sick . Now all such Drinks are nauseous to Nature even in times of Health , so that if a well man should drink constantly of such Perboyled dulcified stuff , it would disturb Nature , and send dulling Fumes into the Head , destroy his Appetite , and cause an unpleasant heat in his Stomach , with a clammy Droughtiness , nor would it give Nature any satisfaction ; And if its effects be such on the sound , what mischief must it need do those that are already Diseased ? If a sottish Ignorance did not possess many of them that pass in the World for Learned men , great Rabbies and profound Doctors , they would certainly never act so contrary to Reason and Nature as they do : Nor do I know any Reason why good Ale or Beer should be esteemed Raw , as 't is by most , even Physicians themselves ; has it not passed thro' several Digestions , as boyling by Fire and Fermentation , which are the highest Preparations it will admit of , so that neither Nature nor Art can advance it ? For if such Liquors be committed to the fire a second time , the spirituous parts do either evaporate , or are suffocated ; they are so pure and volatile , and stand so external , that they will not endure any violent Motion or harsh Fire to touch them , without manifest Injury ; therefore all common Beer and Ale well brewed , and of a proper Age , being brisk and full of Life , is abundantly to be preferred before Drink again boyled , either by it self or with a crust of Bread. This may somewhat be illustrated even in Common-Water , which is crude in comparison of Beer and Ale , and has never passed thro' any Digestion to unlock its spirituous parts ; yet if you take such Water from the Spring , and boyl it , 't will open the crude Body , and cause the pure spirituous parts to become so volatile that they will evaporate , so that 't will be good for little or nothing , if it be not used presently . If you would know whether this be true or no , do but walk into the House of Dame Experience , Take Common-Water , boyl it , put it into a good sweet Vessel or Barrel ; then fill a like Barrel with Water from the same Spring unboyled , and keep them for further use , as Sea-faring men do for their Voyages ; then observe what follows , The Water that was boyled will stink , and never be sweet again ; but the other , tho' it stink , or rather ferment ( as some Water will do twice or thrice ) yet it will become good and sweet again for all Uses . Again , if you boyl Water in cold Weather or Frost , it will afterwards freeze sooner and be colder than such as has not been boyled . Now there must be some Reason for this , which is no other , than that the boyled Water has lost its inward spirituous or warming Nature , so that 't is become more Saturnine , cold and earthy , whence the Air has the greater Influence upon it , and causeth a quicker Congelation : So likewise it is to be observed , that if you boyl Water an hour , or any considerable time before you put in your Flesh , Herbs , or what else you would dress in it , such Food will not be so sweet nor wholsom as what is put into the Vessel as soon as the Water boyls ; or if you boyl Water an hour , and then let it stand till 't is cold , and afterwards boyl any Food in it , it will give it a strong fulsom Smell and Taste , make it hard of Concoction , affording but a bad Nourishment . All which shews , the Fire has power to open the body of the Water , causing the spirituous parts to become volatile , and makes them capable of being evaporated on a second boyling , much more than of Beer , Ale , &c. 7. There are many other Improper Mixtures that are common in time of Sickness as well as Health , as mixing several sorts of Syrups with their Drink , and making up Cordials with Syrups , which Nature doth loath ; for no Syrups are so grateful to the Stomach as White Sugar , they being naturally of a dull , heavy , flat Quality ; they are a broken body , the pure spirituous parts are suffocated , and so have not that briskness on the Pallat and Stomach as Sugar . For tho' Syrups be made of White Sugar , yet they are nothing so good , being mixed with any Drink or Food , nor so grateful , as the same Sugar ; for every time Sugar is melted down , the spirituous parts are flattened , and it cannot attain its proper natural Goodness , except it be cured again , and such an order observed as follows in Refining , for then there is a separation made , and it obtains a purer and finer Body , which is not done in Syrups ; and therefore if in Health you drink them in Beer or Wine , the Stomach doth not so well like them , nor will they be so pleasant , especially if often drunk , much more nauseous must they needs be to the sick : And especially most burthensom to weak Natures are such Syrups , when mixt with improper Ingredients and Liquors , as with cold distilled Waters of various Herbs of disagreeing Natures , and then to add ( as most do ) that which they call Epidemick Water , which makes a Cordial sicker than the Patient that takes it . I would have any moderate Person consider and judge , whether a man in good Health can without great violence to his Stomach , and disorder , sup off such Cordials , and other compounded Slip-slops as the Sick are forced continually to swallow down ? And if so , what a deplorable condition are the Sick in , when most of the things both for Food and Physick , that are ordered and prescribed by Physicians and Apothecaries , are generally nauseats to Nature ? So that when we would describe a filthy abominable Taste , we say it tastes like Physick , or like a Medicine . 'T is enough in all Conscience to make a well Person Heart-sick , to be confined but two or three Weeks to the Circumstances a sick Body is subjected unto by these Men of Method , and their Tutor'd Creatures the Nurses : For , First , he must have all his Drink boyled forsooth , with a Crust of Bread in it : This too he must drink as hot as may be endured ; and Mistress Nurse for pure Laziness will make at Once as much fulsom slip-slop as will serve a whole Day and Night ; and so the poor languishing Creature must take it heated again and again : Then Gaffer Doctor enjoyns him every two hours a quantity of his sick Cordial : and to compleat the Tragedy of his Martyrdom , there must be a rouzing Fire in the Room , tho' it be at Midsummer , the Curtains must be drawn close , and a Cloth before the Windows , so that there can scarce come the least Breeze of Wind or pure Air into the Room ; whence the imprisoned Air therein becomes sulpherous and so noxious , that such Chambers send forth such strong fulsom Scents and Fumes as will disorder the most healthy , if they continue there but a while . These are some of the abominable ( I had almost said Murderous ) courses the poor sick are confined unto , which is much to be pitied , and deserves to be remedied . — And therefore tho' this Discourse may seem a Digression , I am confident the Judicious will pardon it . 8. Another very improper Mixture , is , when People eat several sorts of Flesh and Fish at one and the same Meal ; for these two Creatures are of different Radixes , therefore being eaten together make an unwholsom Nourishment in the Body of a contrary Nature to them both , especially when the various sorts of Sawces and Ingredients of that kind are intermingled . There are some foolish Epicures that stow so many various Kinds and Natures in their Paunches , as if they would eat up all the fraight of Noah's Ark at a Mouthful , and cannot Dine without as many different Ingredients as an Apothecary puts into the Composition of Mithridate , which is said to consist of about Two Hundred . But so far were the Wise Antients from this extravagant Gluttony and Uncleanness , that such of them as did admit the eating of clean Flesh and Fish , would not use the same Vessels is preparing the one , as they did with the other , but had distinct Kettles and Platters for each , to keep them apart . 9. There is another sort of Food much eaten by the English , and more than by any other Nation , viz. Pies , which are many times compounded of Ten or Twenty several Ingredients , many of them of contrary Natures and Radixes , as first , there is the finest Wheat-flour , the course or branny part ( which contains the most opening , cleansing , digestive faculty ) being unhappily taken away , and so curiously separated , that the fine Flour thereby becomes of a stopping glutinating ( or glewing ) Nature : 2dly , There is good store of Butter mixt with it . And 3dly , Flesh , and several sorts of Spices and Spanish Fruits , and many other things , which are all baked together , and there they boyl in the deadly sulphurous Airs of the Ovens , without the Influences of pure Air , and without sufficient Liquor to help the Digestion , or cleanse and purifie the grossness of such things , but they lie suffocated in their own Juices , the Good and Evil all jumbled together , whence the whole becomes Naught ; the Nourishment such Food yields is neither proper nor wholsom ; for the Inequality of the Ingredients have destroyed all the simple Vertues of each , so that there is Confusion and Discord awakened , which in the Body irritate their Likenesses , and thence Diseases and Disorders follow . Therefore the more Wise and well-minded Persons in all Ages , whose desire was to know and fear the Lord , and assist his Hand-maid , Nature , have always chose the most simple innocent Meats and Drinks , knowing that such had near Affinity to Harmony , and had not power to beget or excite any quality or property in Nature , but what was like themselves , Peaceable and Harmless ; for the nearer the Equality and Concord any sort of Food or Drink is , the greater Power it has to preserve the Body and Mind in the like sweet Temper and Unity , which cuts off all Diseases in the Bud , and prevents their very Seeds . For this cause Water throughout the World in Primitive Times , and in most Countries to this very day , has been , and is esteemed the best Drink , for that it gives to such as drink it a full satisfaction ; whereas all other sorts of Drinks , especially those that exceed in any particular quality , do leave some desire behind , after a man has drank them , to drink more , ( though perhaps already he hath exceeded in Quantity ) ; the very same is in superfluous Food , only men cannot eat so long , nor so much as they can Drink , because Food is heavy and hard of Concoction , and requires time to digest ; whereas drink is thin and Spirituous , and therefore it quickly makes separation , and finds many ways to pass away , which Food cannot do : Therefore over-charged Meals of sumptuous Food , do often prove more dangerous to the Health of the Body than a debauch of Drinking , tho both are worse than bruitish , and very hazardous . But on the contrary , those that accustom themselves to simple Meats and Drinks , do not only highly satisfie and gratifie Nature , and preserve themselves in perfect Health , which is the reward the Lord has ordained for the Temperate , but they cut off all Superfluities ( the Seminaries of Diseases ) in the very Bud ; whereas the Gluttonous and Intemperate are liable to a thousand Snares and Inconveniencies , which makes their Bodies unhealthful and unserviceable , and beclouds their Minds and Intellectuals , so that they can neither know themselves , nor their Creator in any other thing as they ought . But still there are some sorts of Food that may be properly Compounded , as bearing a Simile with each other : As , 1. Bread , Butter , and Herbs either Boyled or Raw , as also several sorts of Roots . 2. Bread and several sorts of Fruits . 3. Bread and Milk , or Milk and Flour boyled together , with some Water and Oat-meal , and Milk and Water boyled . 4. Bread and Butter , Bread and Cheese . 5. Milk and ripe Fruits , as Milk and Apples , &c. 6. Butter and several kinds of Pulses boyled . 7. Bread , with all sorts of Flesh fit to be eaten . 8. Herbs and Flesh. 9. Roots and Flesh. 10. Bread and Eggs ; but Butter is but an improper Ingredient with Eggs. 11. Bread and Fish. 12. Oyl and Fish ; for Butter is not so good : Also Fish is wholsomer boyled in Water , than prepared any other way . I could nominate many more Mixtures , but these are the most natural and agreeable to each other , and most of them have mutual and friendly Aspects from their Radixes ; so that what variation these Ingredients do make , 't is for the better , they advancing each others Vertues . If People could be perswaded to be moderate in Quantity , and prefer such simple Viands and proper Mixtures in their food and drink , and observe to prepare their Meat according to the Rules before specified , most of those cruel Diseases now reigning and raging would be prevented . There is abundance more in the observation of these things , than the generality of People understand or imagin . All that I desire of the Reader , is , that he would be so friendly to himself to make Tryal ; for no man can be truly sensible of the Evil of any thing , except he separate himself from his Errors , and tries the contrary . Butchers , Tallow-Chandlors , Poulterers , and many other offensive Trades perceive not those filthy Stinks and Fumes which Slaughter-houses , Melting-houses , &c. send forth , except they separate themselves for a while into a more pure and cleaner Air , and then they become capable of distinguishing one from the other . For the like Reason , those that have accustomed themselves to unnatural and improper mixtures of Food or bad Preparations , their Pallates and Stomachs are become One with such things , and they can as little distinguish the pure natural Taste and Scents of Food from the contrary , as the Trades-men afore-said can the noisom fumes of their own Shops and Work-houses . There are many Thousands of brave finical Dames in this Nation that are so curious in their Houses , and in whitening their Linnen , that they themselves can hardly tell what will please them ; and yet after all , they lie on Beds that do really stink worse than Common Houses of Office , tho being used to them , they do not smell it , neither can they , so great is the power of the Evil Nature and Custom . And in these stinking Dunghills these delicate Madams spend two Thirds of their time , and surely then 't is no marvel if they are afflicted with so many Diseases and Weaknesses ; for if they did commit no other Disorders or Intemperances , this alone were sufficient to destroy their Health , as I have at large demonstrated in my Discourse of the Generation of that pernicious Vermin called Buggs . CHAP. IX . The Reasons in Nature why Cities and great Towns are subject to the Pestilence and other Diseases , more than Country-Villages : The Excellency of Solitude , and Advantages of a retir'd Country-Life . THe Reasons are , 1. That the Air , which is the Essential Life of all material Beings , is defiled by the Congregating of such Troops of People together , whose very Breath is enough to make the Air thick , hot and sulpherous . 2. The Closeness of the Streets and Houses , whereby the pleasant Influences and Salutiferous Breezes of Wind are obstructed , which does condense the Air , and render it thick and humid . 3. The abundance of Smoke that the multitude of Chimnies send forth , which is of a keen sharp sulpherous Quality , that incorporating it self with the Air , encreases its dullness , and fills it more full of gross Humidity , whence proceeds Stoppages , and many Obstructions and Diseases of the Breast , and the Blood becomes tainted with a sharp salt Humour that causes the Scurvey and a wearisom Indisposition throughout the whole Body . 4. The great Number of Houses of Easement that breath and send forth their putrid Smells and Scents into the Air , together with the various Uncleannesses that otherwise proceed from both Healthy and Diseased People , together with the Washings and Cleansings of Houses , and the fulsom Liquors Flesh and Fish have been boyled in , mixed with other loathsom and filthy Excrements , all which are continually exposed in the open Air , and do wonderfully defile it , not forgetting the Smoke , Dust and Ashes of Sea-Coal , ( where the same is used ) which is of a pernicious Nature . 5. The vast Number of various sorts of Beasts and other Creatures , that are by Droves daily slaughtered , and no care taken , but their Blood is exposed to the open Air , and runs through the Kennels as if it were clean Water , and no more notice taken of it , whereas the same does not only send forth deadly Smells and pernicious Vapours , but fills the Air with Revengeful Spirits , which are inhal'd into the Bodies of Men , and there stir up Smilies . Add to this the great Numbers of stinking Trades , which are in such places , as Tallow-Chandlers , Tanners , Dressers of Leather , Soap-Boylers , &c. All these gross Scents , Fumes and evil Vapours that Cities are subject to , especially great Cities and populous , such as Lodon , Paris , &c. their Nature being Saturnine and Martial , proceeding from the gross fierce wrathful matter , as deriv'd from things wherein the pure Spirituous parts and Balsamick Vertues are destroyed and totally suffocated , so that there does remain nothing but the gross phlegmatick Body , and poysonous Spirits , whose Fumes incorporate themselves with their Similies in the Air , and all the Elements and Stars , where by a secret and sympathetical power they awaken ( by degrees ) the wrathful and poysonous Properties ; for every particular Quality in Nature has a Key in its self to open the Gates of its own Principle , whence proceed Pestilential Airs , according to the degree of the awakened Poysons and Wrath , there being a certain sympathy between the Terrestrial Bodies and the Coelestial ; for all things both in Heaven and in Earth , have but one only ground , and flow from the two grand Principles , viz. Good and Evil. For this cause , when the original Poysons in Nature and wrathful Spirits , are by the occasions before mentioned , or any others , stirred up that they overcome the pure Vertues , they powerfully penetrate all Elements and Bodies , and wheresoever they find matter capable or disposed to receive them , incorporate themselves , and with highest diligence endeavour to destroy the good Vertues , and thence arise evil Airs and various Diseases , which suddenly seize the Bodies of Men. And this Nature doth not only in the Evil , but also in the Good , but not in a sensible way ; but in a Natural , by Likenesses , where things agree in Number , Weight and Measure , there they powerfully incorporate and rejoyce , and cast out their Contraries . A pregnant Example of this we have in Sounds ; if two Instruments of one sort be turned to an equal pitch , strike one of the Strings , and the same String on the other Instrument will shake or tremble ; this I have done my self , and also seen it done by others , so that there is no boubt to be made of the matter of fact . The very same sympathetical Power have all other things , though in some it be more Occult. What man in the World would believe the attractive Inclination which the Loadstone has upon Iron , if it did not appear to his sight ? All or most men of Reason believe that the Constellations , Signs and Elements have a particular , and also a general Influence on all Inferior Earthly Bodies , which is apparent to all our Senses , varying Times and Seasons , Night and Day , making the Earth fruitful , and the contrary ; and do not our Bodies alter as the Elements do ? And as the Influences of the Sun vary , so do all things under Heaven . How verdent and sprightly does our Mother Earth appear in fresh and rich Emdroideries , and all the Trees in new Perriwigs , and Flowers springing , and wanton Birds , with inimitable Harmony seem to welcom the approach of that great Eye of the World , when he begins to renew his Visits to us in the Spring , and all Creatures look blyth , and jolly , and the Blood capers in Youthful Veins , and nothing appears in Natures universal Face but Smiles and Gallantry : On the contrary , when he with draws his vivifying Beams , and retreats to the Chambers of the South , how dull and dejected does every thing become , and Fields and Trees stript of their Ornament and Beauty , languish like forsaken Lovers , and appear forlorn as hopeless Prisoners , and Melancholy as old Age ? Nay , if under the Protection of Truth we might Alarum lazy Tradition with a bold Paradox , without dreading Excommunication from the Vertuoso , for advancing Heresies in Philosophy , I would add , that Inferiors counter-act on Superiors , as well as Superiors on them ; that all things in this lower World have the like Influences on the Coelestial Bodies and Elements , as the Coelestials have on Sublunaries and Terrestrials , and that this mutual Influx they have one upon the other by a certain natural Attraction and sympathetical Inclination . Thus the wonderful and wise Creator has endued every thing with an Attractive and Influential Vertue ; and hence it often comes to pass that the Sons of Men by their Unclean Conversations do awaken and stir up the Wrath of the Coelestial Bodies , and by a secret , and yet powerful Attraction , draws down the malignant Configurations , which sometimes cause Epidemical Diseases , at other times Wars , Famine , &c. all according to the Nature of the Evils , or Property of Nature that was awakened . As for Example : If the People of any Town or City give way to Uncleannesses in Meats , Drinks , &c. and addicted to the Impurities of Venus , as most such places are , then by mutual Inclination the like Property in the Coelestial Bodies and Elements are excited , and by degrees contaminate the whole Atmosphere ( or parts of the Air next the Earth ) with Pestilential Poysons , causing Botches , Boils , Venerial Diseases , Fevers and Plagues , all according to the degree of the awakened Wrath , and the length or shortness of the time of its operation ; for all Plagues and Pestilential Airs , caused by Uncleanness , do by degrees corrupt the pure Spirits or venerial Properties in the Body ; for whensoever this sweet Quality is violated , the Distempers thence arising will for the most part manifest themselves in Botches , Boils , Scabs or Leprosies , and Spots in the Flesh , often accompanied with general Weakness , and a decay of the Radical Moisture . But if the Properties of Saturn and Mars be so violently stirred up or awakned , and the fierce Storms of Nature do predominate in the Hearts and Souls of Men , then follow Tumults , Wars , Burning of Towns and Cities , and such like Calamities and Devastations . For Mens evil Words and Works and Unmerciful Cruelties certainly awaken the Wrath of God in the Stars and Elements , and hasten on Judgments . No Man or Nation can escape the great Law of Retaliation , which the Creator ordained in the beginning ; for Moses's Law was the greatest and most excellent of all Laws , because it was built and had its Root in Nature ; therefore whensoever the Iews observed it , they were sure of being blessed ; for Those that were obedient thereunto did preserve the Camp of the Lord from being defiled : The Camp of the Lord is Man , and if Man keep himself from being defiled he will not awaken the Wrath of God in the Stars and Elements , but as he keeps himself clean , and from doing Violence , and obeys the Voice of Wisdom , and follows the friendly Counsels of the divine Principle of God's eternal Love and Light , then 't is most certain , that by a secret power he will awaken the benevolent Properties of the Coelestial Bodies and Elements , and attract their propitious Influences . For the Lord promised to such as were obedient , the Dew of Heaven ; but when they became Rebellious , Unclean and Intemperate , then the Lord permitted the Evil Configurations and Influences of the Coelestial Bodies to take place , and many sore Evils and Calamities they endured : This the Scriptures of Truth do testifie , and indeed it cannot be otherwise ; for it is the Eternal Law of God in Nature , That whatsoever Property or Principle Men do awaken and enter into with their free-will , whether it be good or evil , the same grows strong , and he is comprehended by it , and swallowed up in it , and made a subject unto that Kingdom ; and this both in the particular and in general , as Experience teaches ; for whensoever any particular Man gives way to any particular Evil that is a sin against God and his Law in Nature , and shall continue in the same , without Repentance , 't is certain he will pull down the Judgments upon himself ; but as Mens Sins and Transgressions are not alike , so neither their Rewards or Punishments . This is further manifested by Mens Words and Works ; doth not every word carry the Power of its Principle whence it had its birth ? For that Property that was predominate in the Word , Sound or Tone , the same , or the like Quality it does stir up and awaken in those to whom the Words or Discourses are directed , whether it be good or evil ; if the Words are formed by the Saturnine Property , then they awaken Envy , Contention , and a Morose Dogged Humour : If they proceed from Mars , then the fierce wrathful Fires are excited , and so of the rest . For if it were not so , an Angry Word would not have any power to move them to Anger to whom it is directed ; nor would Loving Speeches beget Love , nor a Meek Answer ( according to Solomons Observation ) Turn away Wrath : But as one Man has power to stir up and awaken Love or Anger in another , by his Words and Works , the same is to be understood in all other things ; for there is a proportionate similitude between Men and the Coelestial Bodies and Elements , Man being not only an Image and Likeness of God and Nature , but the Horizon of both Worlds , in which the Superiour and Inferiour Natures are conjoyned , and the Son of the Stars and Elements ; so that there is a power in Men to awaken and attract their good or evil Nature , as well as there is in the Coelestials to alter or change Mens Bodies and Minds . This many of the Philosophical Ancients have consented to , and most Astrologers are of the same Opinion : The Calculators of Nativities find by their daily Experience that Vitiousness and Intemperance in the Natives Life not only cause a very malignant Configuration of the Coelestial Bodies to take place and have its Effects , but also he that lives Intemperately is always in danger , and subject to the male Aspects of the Superiors : Whereas on the contrary it is most true , that a Wise Man ( that is temperate , just and circumspect ) may rule his own Stars . But when Persons give themselves to Inordinate Living near or about such times as the Heavens threaten them with evil Aspects , Transits or Directions , then such disastrous Influences powerfully take place . For this very reason Men are often insnared and drawn away to many Inconveniences before they are sensible of it ; for the wrathful , unclean Nature having been by degrees awakened and strengthened by its simile , either in Meats , Drinks , Imployments or Communications ( for every Property must have such Food as hath affinity therewith , or else it cannot increase , nor be brought into Manifestation , but without it , it languishes and becomes impotent in its Operation ) the Person so offending is thereby subjected to all the malignant Configurations of the Coelestial and Terrestrial Bodies : Yet if such an one shall turn to the Lord by Prayer , and abstain from the Evil Courses of this Life , he presently destroys and weakens that threatning Malignity ; and this sober and temperate Life will by simpathy strengthen the Spirit of Wisdom and Undestanding . If this were well understood , there would be more Care and Diligence used , both in particular and general , as to outward and inward Cleanness than there is : For in great Cities and Towns especially , there are many Superfluities and Uncleannesses committed against God and Nature , and therefore such places above others do suffer many Inconveniences . The unclean Vapours and evil Spirits that do arise from Blood and other Excrements , do not only awaken the Wrath in the Elements and Stars , and draw down their evil Influences , but incorporate with the common Air and defile it , which being so corrupted , nothing is more Injurious and Pernicious to the health of the Body , and also to the Mind ; for outward Uncleannesses do naturally and powerfully attract the evil Power , both Externally and Internally , because all such pernicious Scents and Smells do arise and proceed from the poysonous Root , and so bear a near affinity to the evil Angels and Spirits , and do naturally attract them . So when the Elements are disturbed by malignant Configurations and Aspects , as in great Tempests of Thunder and Lightning , and the like , the evil Spirits and Angels are very busie , and appear almost externally ; for by those malignant Configurations the Wrath in the outward Nature is violently excited , and the same being predominant in the evil Angels , they at such times become more apt and powerful to do mischief . External Uncleanness does not only pollute the Body and Senses , but also the Soul and Spirits ; for which cause some of the wise Ancients would not wear any Woolen Garments , because they are made of the Excrements of Beasts : And indeed all Hair and Wool does contain a gross fulsom impure Nature , but it lies so hidden that it cannot be perceived , unless it be set on Fire , and then it manifests it self by its filthy offensive scent . For the same Reason some of the Philosophers lived retired ; nay , many of the Holy Men and Prophets of Old ( as the Scriptures testifie ) when the Spirit of the Lord was in a more than ordinary degree upon them , and pleased to give them Visions , and make known his Will unto them , did with-draw themselves from Towns and Cities , and from the Multitudes of People into the open clear Air in Fields , Woods , Mountains , or by the most pleasant Rivers and Fountain of Water : And our blessed Saviour , Christ himself did often practise such Retreats , when he made his earnest Supplication and Prayers to the Father . Few do understand or imagin the manifold Benefits unfrequented places and clean pure Airs afford both to Body and Mind , the Senses and Intellectuals of well disposed Men , being free from those Uncleannesses Cities and Towns are subject to , both External and Internal , for in those loansom places the common Air is pure , thin and clear , free from those fulsom Vapours , Scents and gross Smells which Cities are subject to , and free from those varieties of Cursing , Swearing , and Multitudes of vain and impious Discourses which all places are liable unto , where Rabbles reside , and which wonderfully awakens the Internal Wrath , and gives many Advantages to the evil Angels and Spirits to work their vile Purposes : But on the contrary , in open serene Airs , as in Fields , Mountains , and by River-sides and Woods , there is no such Tumults , no stabbing of Heaven with dreadful Oathes , horrid Curses and frightful Execrations ; no banishing of Temperance with drunken Healths and roaring Huzza's ; no fulsom fumes of Tobacco , nor viler Steams of detestable Brothel-houses , to infect the chaste Air ; no Plays or vain Games , no Mistressing nor Revelling to spend precious time ; no clattering of Coaches , Drums , Fools , Fidlers , &c. that make such a continual Din , that a Man can hardly call his Ears his own . But on the contrary , all is sedate and serene , still as the voice of good Spirits , and quiet as the Birth of Flowers ; no noise to be heard but the ravishing Harmony of the Wood-Musitians , and the innocent Lowings of Cows , and Neighings of Horses , and Bleating of the pretty Lambs , or the like natural Tones , wherein there is nothing of disturbance or danger , because nothing of Evil , but every thing praising the Creator according to the Capacity and Nature of each . Here it was , in these and the like places that the good Angels of the Lord appeared unto the Sons of Wisdom , and taught them the true Knowledge of God and the Nature of things , and shewed them what should come to pass in future times . And whoever will obtain the true apprehension of God , of Nature , and of himself , must be separated , and chuse sometimes to sequester himself from the Tumults , Confusions and Distractions of the publick World , and Crowds of the chaffering and busling Rabble . Besides all this , Cities for the Reasons aforesaid , are more liable to contagious Diseases : And because the Nature of Infection , and how it is spread , and how to be avoided , is very little , or scarce at all understood , we shall in the next place address our selves to discourse thereof . CHAP. X. Of Infection , or catching Diseases , and how they are transferred from one to another , and that all Diseases are Catching . THE learned Moses , whom the Lord inspired with divine and humane Wisdom , commanded , that none should sit on the Saddles , lie on the Bed , nor wear the Cloathes of the distempered , which if any did , they should be pronounced Unclean , and must pass through Purification . Now if there were no possibility of Catching the Disease and Uncleanness that the Sick was infected with , wherefore should this great Philosopher and Illuminate of his Age , who saw with divine Eyes into the Secrets of Nature , command his People to observe so many Circumstances , which were not only difficult , but chargable to them ? Certainly if it had not been some real benefit to them , it would have been the greatest Folly to command them so punctually , and punish them for not observing and obeying those Rules . But far be it from us ( whatever the foolish World may dream ) to harbour such thoughts of the Law of God and his holy Prophet , That Law had its Foundation from the Center of Nature , and to demonstrate the same , we must treat of the Punishment of Uncleanness , and on the other side , of the Excellency of Cleanness and Purity , the handling of which will give satisfaction touching the things proposed , to be discussed in this Chapter . 1. All created things , in the Animal , Vegetable and Mineral Kingdoms , do proceed from One only ground ; and though the multitude and variety of them be beyond any human Number or Comprehension , yet each and every one of them doth in one degree or other contain the true Nature and Property of the whole , but more especially the humane Nature , for every Property has a Central Being in Man , both the Good and the Evil. But the Properties and Qualities are not in each Man alike , but varied ; in some , one quality of Nature is strong , in others another ; whence proceeds the difference of Mens Inclinations , Dispositions , Love and Hate ; and that Property which is strongest in the Radix , oversways and governs the whole Life : Yet even that which is weakest in the human Nature , is capable by the accession and assistance of its Similies to be made and grow very strong ; and on the contrary , strong Inclinations and Properties are made weak , all acoording to Time , Place , Imployments and Communications , or a Mans joyning himself with this or the other thing . For this cause the Philosophical Ancients made distinction of things , some being Clean , others Unclean , betwixt which they commanded a separation should be made ; but few in this blind Age do understand or regard the same , though there be scarce any sort of Learning more necessary : For those secret conveyances of Vertue and Vice , Cleanness or Uncleanness , or the transferring of Distempers from one to another , is done after an hidden imperceptible manner by way of Spirits , Glances and Rays : The natural Spirits in Men being so subtle and penetrating , as they powerfully search into all things , so that a Man cannot touch any thing , though it be ever so Impassible or hard , as Iron , Stone , or the like , but these nimble Scouts do not only penetrate it , but are more or less retained thereon ; if this were not so , the Dog would not find the Stone his Master throws among many others , nor follow him ( unseen ) by his Foot-steps ; nor could the deep-mouth'd Hounds trace the light-heel'd Hare in all her doubles and windings , and tho' she run so swift as if she scarce toucht the surface of the Grass , yet she leaves real Effluviums and Impressions enough to betray her to those persuing Enemies . Nothing can hold or withstand the Spirits , they are so thin , quick and piercing ; no Iron , Stone or Wood can resist them , but they penetrate and search the depth of all things , and also will incorporate with those hard Substances ; and if so , how much must they be imbib'd by Beds , where People lie warm and sweat , and where the Air cannot come with its refreshing Influences to cleanse and purifie those grosser Excrements , the Vehicles ( or Lodgings ) of malignant Spirits , that are continually breath'd forth by all Infirm Persons , which are so much the more retain'd therein , because all Feathers are of an hot sulpherous unclean Nature , and therefore more disposed to entertain and wellcome such unclean fulsom Vapours , which are presently awakned when others come to lie in such Beds , and readily enter and penetrate all parts of their Bodies , even to the very Center ; and especially if it happen ( as often it does ) that such Persons succeed to lie in such Beds , as have but weak Heats and few Spirits , and under the Dominion of theirs who lodg'd there before ; then those pernicious Vapours and Spirits more violently seize them , and incorporate with their Similes , and quickly awaken the sleeping Poysons , and infect the whole Mass of Blood , and thence flow Diseases , the most dangerous of all others , because they weaken and cramp Nature by degrees , stealing on gently , and mildly destroying the Health before People are sensible ; for when once any begin to feel them , then commonly they are grown incurable ; neither do the Physitians know what to administer , because they do not know whence such Distempers proceeded . But on the contrary , those People that have strong Spirits and natural Heats , and who have Dominion over the Spirits of such diseased Persons , as they shall lie with or after , or whose predominant Qualities in their Radix are of a contrary Naure , are nothing so subject to catch or receive Injuries this way , because they resist and repel such ill Vapours and Spirits , that they cannot enter or wound them . For as Diseases are received by Simile , and being weak under the dominion of the distempered Persons , so on the other side may those ill Rays be withstood by Antipathy , so as they cannot enter the Center of Life , by which means the Radical Moisture and Balsamick Vertues are preserved : Hence many do commit great Uncleannesses , and lie in all manner of Beds , and with People that are infected with loathsom Diseases , and yet are not sensibly toucht ; but as we use to say , The Pitcher never goes so oft to the Well , but it comes home crackt at last . So even these VIGOROUS Constitutions must expect by degrees to be debiliated , and at last become liable to the like Impressions as well as others . I am not ignorant that many People will be very incredulous in these matters ; 't is true , they believe that the Plague , Small-Pox , the Itch , and other Mangy and Leprous Distempers are catching , because the Effects immediately follow , and they see them externally in the Flesh ; therefore most Persons do both fear and shun communicating and lying with such ; but as to all inward Diseases of various Kinds and Natures , few or none either fear or regard them , not imagining that there is any danger of Contracting those Distempers by conversing or lying with or after those that are so internally diseased . But I must be free to tell them , that all inward Diseases , as Consumptions , Ptysicks , &c. are of a far more dangerous consequence as to Health , than Itchy or Leprous Distempers , the one being outward , the other inward ; the one hid and hard to be discovered till it is too late , but the other manifest and more easily cured . And Nature has the same power to receive inward Distempers as outward ; but whereas the latter are in the external parts of the Body , as the Flesh , or at deepest in the Blood ( as all Itchy and Leprous Distempers are ) such as catch them , have them in the same parts . But on the contrary , when the Diseases are inward , and hid in the Body , it frequently happens that such as are infected therewith , find not the ill effects in the very same parts , but elsewhere , yet arising from the same cause . Nor do Diseases thus transferred , use to make People sick in the beginning , but steal on by degrees , so that there are very rarely any Remedies applyed till it be too late . And as strong Constitutions many times keep off the Assaults of contagious Diseases ; so neither are all weak-spirited People liable to receive Injuries and Diseases this way ; for there are many who have naturally weak impotent Spirits , and consequently feeble Bodies , who yet are as free from catching Diseases as any others , because they are clean and sound , so that the Rays and pernicious Vapours , and bad Airs have no power to seize on them , wanting a Friend or Confederate Traytor within to let them in , nor can they incorporate themselves by reason of the antipathy of Nature : For as every thing or Spirit is received by its Simile , so on the contrary it is withstood and resisted by its opposite ; for this cause one is in danger of receiving Injuries this way , and another not , and contagious Airs are not fatal to all , but in the greatest Sicknesses or Epidemical Pestilences many all the while continue sound and well , and these , as well weakly People as those that are strong and healthy ; nay , many weakly People continue sound whilst those that are much more strong and healthy are seized and die : For the Air being unclean , and corrupted by the humid poysonous Vapours and Species , penetrates all parts of the Body ; and where-ever it finds matter of its own kind , or capable to receive its Influences , then it powerfully stirs and awakens the inward or central Poysons of Nature , which before lay hid or captivated in the Embraces of the sweet Oyl , and thence presently follow violent burning Fevers , which in few days cut off the thred of Life ; For every Life in its Root stands in the highest Persons , so that there is matter in every man , if it be kindled , able to destroy the Life in a moment : And therefore we often see by experience , a man sound and well one day , and the next near the Grave , or the whole Mass of Blood corrupted , as in the Small-Pox , or the like : For when the inward central Poysons are awakned , they are so strong , that they can , and do often convert the whole Body and Flux of Humors into their own Property , viz. into a Poysonous and Leprous Matter . 'T is vulgarly believed , that Distempers do oft-times seize the Body thro' Fear , which is true in a Sense ; but first it is to be noted , That the Spirit was wounded by some Gleam or Ray , and the poysons awakned before-hand ; for all fear and dread doth arise from the Spirits , which are often wounded before a man can be sensible ; hence arises that which we call a Pannick Fear , that is , a Dread , Consternation or Astonishment , which we can give no Reason for ; also the Spirits are often hurt by a Voice , or hearing a Word spoken from the Mouth of another . The very Air conveys the Speeches of diseased People , more especially if there be fit and prepared matter for Diseases , for then 't is done in a moments time insensibly ; for as soon as those dreadful Vapours incorporate with , and awaken the Poysons in the Body , presently the Phantasie and imaginative Faculty of Nature is filled with fear and dread , more or less , according to the degrees of those Poysons and strength or weakness of the Natural Spirits and Radical Moisture . It is further to be considered , that sometimes the state of the Body is such , and the Spirit so weak , that every small Intemperance , Uncleanness , ill Air , &c. will easily seize the Spirits and wound the Health ; the true Causes of which are known but to few , as when Coelestial and Terrestrial Influences do concur , then every little Accident indangers Nature ; For there are many secret Reasons why Diseases are more apt to seize the Body and Spirits at one time than at another ; and on the contrary , a man may commit extream Outrages and Intemperance at some times of his Life , and yet continue his Health ; tho' every Intemperance sows some Seeds of Diseases , if Abstinence and Cleanness duly observed afterwards do not root them out ; for these , if followed , will cleanse and purifie Nature , and digest all such Superfluities as disorders have contracted . For these Reasons a man ought never to be over-confident , or think himself secure from Sickness , which often surprizes us when least we expect it , which happens for want of the presence of , and being governed by the good Genius ; for though Distempers for the most part proceed from irregular Lives , and other Accidents of the like Nature , yet it must be acknowledged , that many cruel Diseases are occasioned by Rays , Gleams , Surprizes , Fears , Ioy , Sorrow , &c. which seize the pure Spirits , and cause a suffocation of them , so that in a Moments time the Radical Moisture and Balsamick Vertues turn eager , a loathing and weariness ensues ; and Nature having lost her way , the Stomach grows sick and indisposed , and its Action ceaseth , because the same chiefly depends on the strength and goodness of the Volatile Spirits and Radical Moisture ; then also the Pallat forfeits its property of distinguishing , whence most sick People complain they cannot taste the natural Sweetness of Meats and Drinks : If this were not so , People would not be able to live ten , twenty , or thirty days in Fevers , and other Sicknesses , with such small quantities of Sustenance . But what they take in such Sicknesses affords but little Nourishment , and that which it does is very impure ; for Nature is then in strife , and contends with her Enemy , using her utmost effects to vanquish him . At this time a skillful Physitian is very useful , and of as great an advantage to Nature as Auxiliary Recruits coming in to the Relief of an Army engaged in a doubtful Battle . It is most manifest that what Food is agreeable to one , is not to another , and so of all other things ; and therefore 't is sottish Ignorance to argue , that because one man does not receive harm by lying in , or with such a Bed or Person , therefore another shall not : For this is no Rule , as we have sufficiently demonstrated and shewed the Reasons thereof . Nor must you forget that all soft warm Feather-Beds do not only help to transfer Diseases from one to another , but also they are Unwholsom and Unhealthy in themselves , as is before-mentioned . And indeed next to Temperance in Food , nothing is more Healthy than sweet hard Beds , and to lie single , or not more than Two at most in a Bed , especially young People ; for lying alone cools the Body , and keeps it in an equal Temperature , and procures quieter Rest , and makes People more lively and brisk , preventing many Diseases and burthensom Inconveniencies . — But here I must be silent , lest the Ladies be offended . However if good Council may procure my Pardon , I doubt not but to recover their good Opinion as soon as they shall have read over the following Chapter . CHAP. XI . Of WOMEN , their Natures , Complexions and Intemperatures ; as also of their Children ; Together with an account of the Generation of all Windy Diseases . THe Nature and Complexion of Women doth differ and vary , even as Mens , some being more Sanguin , others more Cholerick , &c. But generally they are more Sanguin than Men , of weaker Heats and fewer Spirits , therefore cannot endure any Inequality or Intemperances without great danger to their Health , whether it be in Meats , Drinks , Exercises or Passions of the Mind . Their predominant Quality doth stand in and proceed from the Element of Water ; therefore are of a finer , softer , yielding Temper than Men , and their Love doth exceed that of the other Sex ; and indeed all kind of Passions do both sooner and deeper wound their Spirits . Therefore all sudden surprizes of Love or Hate , Ioy or Sorrow , are apter to destroy the Health of Women , and suffocate their Spirits , stopping the Circulation of the Blood , and causing the Body to swell , and then abundance of Wind is generated , which stops all the Passages , so that People in this condition can hardly breathe . Now the Original of all such Diseases , which are called Vapours or Wind , come thro' the weakness of the natural Heat , and because the Spirits of most Women are so Volatile , that every sudden Accident or Inequality doth either evaporate or suffocate them , during which time the whole Operation and Circulation both of the Blood and Spirits is hindered ; and so the Life seems to be in danger , which causeth a Commotion of the inward parts , as if they did arise out of their natural places , which is nothing else but certain Stoppages and Swellings of the Vessels that the Breath or Air cannot pass , and then the Body is in a kind of Agony , and trembles during the Fit , which is never long , for if it were , the Life could not continue : But thro' this agonous condition and strugling strife of the Properties of Nature , the Element of Fire is awakned , which is of a quick powerful active Quality , and doth penetrate all parts of the Body , and breaks open all the Passages , which sets Nature into a great Heat throughout all the Body , like a Fever , and then this taciturn Contraction and suffocation of the Spirits does begin to cease ; but great dry Ardors do remain a considerable time after , and by their violence do awaken the Element of Water , which causes a breathing Sweat to succeed , that is very beneficial to Nature , and gives ease , and so the worst seems to be over for the present . Now all those Diseases that cause Nature to shake and tremble , as Agues , Vapours , and the like , are caused thro' the suffocation of the Spirits , which does first awaken the Original Quality , viz. the astringent taciturn twitching Property , that does forcibly draw and contract all the inward parts , and particularly the Vessels of the Stomach , and in a moment stops all the Passages , which Nature cannot endure and live , and therefore uses her utmost efforts to get rid of those Chains , by which contention the bitter Quality is awakned ; for that Quality above all others cannot brook Confinement , but breaks open all the barricado'd Passages with its fiery and rapid Motion , and awakens the hot Property , which presently sets Nature into such a Flame , as should it continue , would soon consume her ; but these Heats do so violently hunger after and draw the Airy Quality , as its true Life , that it rouzes the Watry Element , and thereby quenches that Combustion , whereby Nature receives Relief and Refreshment . But the Original Cause of all at the first , is the wounding the Volatile Spirit , which in Women is quickly done , but Men are very rarely troubled with this Distemper of Vapours , and the like , because their Nature stands in and proceeds from the Root of the Fire , and the Properties of Saturn and Mars are more predominant in them , and therefore their natural or central Heats are greater and stronger than Womens , and consequently are of better Judgments and Abilities , both for the doing and the governing of all things : For Man was made first , and hath in himself the strong might and tincture of the Fire , which is furious and forth driving , very desirous to manifest it self . But the Tincture of the Female is from the Water , viz. from Venus . Therefore the Males of all sorts of Creatures are far hotter , and of stronger and greater Spirits , and more desirous of Copulation , or more unchast than the Females , not subject to those Uncleannesses , but fit for Generation at all Times and Seasons , which Women are not : And hence it is , and always was accounted a greater Sin and Shame for a Woman to be unchaste , than for a Man , though it is not excusable in either : And for the same Reason , Women were never allowed those Priviledges of Polygamy as Men among the Ancients . For the unchastity of Women destroys the Generation of Mankind in the Root , and brings Confusion and Desolation to Families ; so that Wantonness in Women is a Sin against God and against Nature : For the Creator in the beginning hath implanted Modesty , and given the Bridg of Chastity unto Women , and indeed unto the Females of all Creatures , by enduing them with a cold meek Temper , derived from the Element of Water , which doth allay and cool them , and therefore they are naturally more moderate , and not so hot and desirous of Copulation as Men ; and when once they have Conceived , are satisfied till such time as they have brought forth , setting aside the Consequences proceeding from a debauched Imagination , or the wanton Provocations that happen between Men and Women , which force and strain Nature ; but as for pure natural Inclinations they cease , and are as free from them as Sheep , or the Females of any other Creatures . These are the wonderful Works of the great Creator ; for if it were not so , all Generation would be destroyed and corrupted , even in the very Root , as sometimes it comes to pass among Lascivious and Petulent Men and Women , through various sorts of Uncleannesses , which are against God's Law and the Right of Nature . Do not all the Beasts of the Field observe their Times and Seasons ? And after Conception , do they not strictly withstand their Males , and not suffer them to touch them till after they have brought forth , and also brought up their young Ones , and made them capable to shift for themselves ? All which time they remain without Inclination , because the end of Nature is answered ; and this is according to the first Law of God , which all Creatures have kept ( especially the Females ) unviolated , EXCEPT WOMEN . But though I said , that Womans natural Inclinations to the Sports of Venus do cease after Conception ; yet it is not so to be understood , but that Nature in Women does remain in a possibility of being awakened , as by the ardent desires of the Mind , which if kindled , can easily stir up , the sleeping Powers of Nature , and by many other wanton ways , which are used to provoke Nature beyond the proper degree , or what is Natural , which is not only a Sin , but tends to Corrupting of mankind in the Root . Which Wantonnesses and Unnatural Courses of Life , are much furthered by sundry sorts of Meats and Drinks , exciting Nature to her damage , and corrupt the Seed , as the great number of gross adulterated Foods , and strange Mixture of Flesh , Fish , Herbs , Fruits , &c. and the too frequent drinking of Wine and strong Drinks , which heats the Seed , and provokes Nature , and make her lose her way , which is very pernicious and dangerous to all sorts of People , but more especially to WOMEN ; and therefore the Ancients did direct those of that Sex , to observe an higher degree of Temperance and Order than they prescribed to Men , as knowing that the whole Wellfare and Preservation of Mankind did chiefly depend on their good or ill Constitution : The Food therefore appointed to them was Simple and Natural , as various sorts of Herbs , Fruits , Grains , and pure Water for Drink , which are endued with simple and equal Natures , and have Affinity with the Feminine Nature , having no manifest Quality that does too violently predominate , therefore have no unequal Operation , but do administer both dry and moist Nourishment , far beyond all high prepared Foods and strong Drinks . For all sorts of Meats and Drinks do beget their Likenesses , and for that Reason mean simple things have in all Ages been Commendable , especially for WOMEN . What we have said of Diet , the same is to be understood of Exercises , and therefore the Philosophical Ancients did not count it proper or suiting their Nature , to put Women ordinarily upon any share or care of the Government or hard Labours , because of their weak Spirits and Heats ; for on all occasions of Difficulty , Labour and Trouble , they are subject to be either too Cholerick or too Sanguine , which their Nature cannot bear ; for all Inequality , be it what it will , proves Injurious to them and Children : Besides , it is very unseemly to see Women dirty , and imployed in hard slavish Drugdery , and such of them as are forced thereunto through the bad Husbandry of their Parents or Husbands , do they not by following such robustick Labours become bold , rude and uncivil , and seem to have to put off the Womanish Nature both in Words and Works ? Now this Rudeness is bad in the Males , but an Hundred times worse in the Females : For if their sweet courteous friendly Tempers and Natures be destroyed and wounded , the Generation of Mankind is thereby corrupted in the Root . Therefore Men ought not to put Women to such robust Imployments and hard Labours as many do , except pure Necessity compels them to it . It is a common Opinion , That WOMEN are more Salacious and Unchast than Men ; but the same is a great mistake , and built only on this Ground , because many Women are found easily to comply with Mens Insinuations and Temptations , which does not proceed from any natural desires of Lust or Unchastity , but from their friendly Tempers and sweet Sanguine Dispositions , many of them being naturally so Sanguine , that the very shew of Love and Friendship will presently awaken the Love-Principle in them , even before they themselves are sensible of it ; so that if a Man do but carry himself fair , courteous and kindly to them , he may command them beyond what is convenient , which many wicked Fellows knowing , make it their Business to betray them , which proves the Ruin of many . Now Men finding them thus to comply , they being ignorant of their Natures , and also of themselves , judge that of Women which they find true in themselves . And to this Scandal some vile Women have also given a further occasion by prostituting themselves to all Unchastity ; but those Abominations do not proceed from their simple natural Inclinations and Dispositions , but through their depraved Free-wills and lewd Customs , whereby they have forced Nature out of her simple way , and then such become worse and far more detestably Impudent than the most debauched of Men. But still Women as Women , and according to their simple natural Dispositions , ought by all Men to be highly esteemed and honoured ; and if they themselves were but in the least sensible of , or understood the noble Excellency of their own Complexions , Natures and Compositions , they would scorn any such base Actions , and loath themselves for their depraved state and condition , especially some of them , who have precipitated themselves into all kinds of Intemperances and superfluous Courses and evil Customs , whereby they have abused their Natures , destroyed their Healths , and intailed Diseases and many Miseries to Posterity , which is much to be pitied . But to descend to more particular Directions touching Women . 1. Their Food ought to be well prepared , neither too much nor too little , but according to the Rules in our Chapter of preparations ; for Food well prepared is not only of easier Concoction , but breeds better Blood and finer Spirits , than which nothing brings more advantage to Females , by reason of their weak Hearts ; also such good Blood breeds most excellent Milk. 2. They ought to eat and drink so moderately , that the natural Heat of the Stomach may overcome and digest it without any difficuly , so that there may no superfluous Dregs remain , as are always wont to do , where Nature is over-charged , which fills the Vessels full of sharp crude matter of a griping Nature ; for a small quatity of Meat and Drink , when well concocted , affords not only a better Nourishment , but also greater Strength , than abundance gorged down more than Nature can manage . It being a gross Error for People to imain , that a great quantity must be thrust into the Belly , or else they cannot subsist , never consulting the strength of the natural Heat : Nothing destroys the Health , and breeds evil Juices in the Body more than this Intemperance , which most People are subject to more or less ; and from hence are generated Windy Diseases and Griping Pains in the Stomach , and Fumes in the Head , which miserably afflict many of these Gluttonous People . 3. They ought as much as in them lies to forbear all sorts of rich fat Foods , that do consist of various Natures , and disagreeing among themselves ; all such Foods are heavy of Concoction , fur the Passages , dull the edg of the Appetite , and breed bad Blood : But on the contrary , all simple innocent Foods , which for the most part are easie and light on the Stomach , are most agreeable to the Foeminine Constitution , and also for their Children , as Bread , Butter , a little Cheese , Milk , Herbs variously ordered ; Flesh , but in its proper Seasons , and simply and well prepared . 4. But much Flesh , and the frequent eating thereof , does prove injurious to Women , especially those of gross Phlegmatick Complexions , whose Heats are so weak , that they are not able to make a perfect Concoction or Separation ; for such Food is apt to fur the Passages , and breed abundance of evil Juices , which fills the whole with gross Phlegmatick Humours , that makes it dull heavy and indisposed . 5. Women ought not to drink Wine or strong Drink , which are bad for Men , but an hundred fold worse for Women , especially Brandy , and all distilled Liquors and Spirits ; for all such Drinks do not only destroy the natural Heat , causing the Stomach to become cold , and attended with a sick qualmishness , but also send Fumes into the Head , weaken the whole Body , and giveoccasion for the Generation of Windy Diseases and Vapours ; and indeed all strong Drinks , if not very sparingly taken , destroy the Health of the Female Sex , being contrary to their Tempers ; for their Heats being weak ( in comparison of Mens ) and their Spirits few ; therefore every inequality is harmful to them and their Children . Besides , they are subject to various Diseases , which cannot happen to Men ; and of all these , strong Liquor is an especial promoter ; and therefore the Philosophical Ancients alotted only Water for Womens drink . And if our Women were but sensible of the ill Consequences of their frequent Sipping of strong Drinks , they would be as far from doing it as those in other Countries , there being hardly any Women in the known World that are such great Drinkers and lovers of strong Liquors as the English ; neither are any so turbulent fiery and Masculine Spirited , as accordingly they are troubled with various Diseases , to which the Women in other Countries are strangers . Furthermore , strong Drinks ( if not sparingly taken ) heat the Blood , causing sharp salt Humours to possess it , which also makes their Milk hot and windy , very prejudicial to Children ; for whatever Inconveniences the Mother suffers , the Child partakes thereof , both in the time of Pregnancy ( or breeding ) and whilst it sucks . Therefore Moderation and Temperance , both in quantity and quality , is highly necessary for them , because the whole preservation of mankind does in an especial manner depend on their prudent living . 6. If Women have regard to their own Health , and the Preservation of their Children , they ought not to eat any Food hotter than their Blood ; but after their Food is prepared , let it stand open , that the fiery sulpherous Vapours may freely pass and fly away ; for those Steems are very prejudicial to all Peoples Heath , but more especially to the Females : And this ought to be observed in Flesh above all other Food , and also in Puddings , and the like things that are of a gross strong Quality , and so have the greater power to retain those fiery Steams , which are of an hot griping windy Nature , and causing a Mank or Scurvy in the Blood , and makes the Milk windy and sharp , which violently gripes the poor young tender Babe that sucks it . 'T is true , Use not only Familiarizes the most unnatural things , but renders them as it were Natural , and in some respects almost Necessary ( witness Tobacco-smoaking , to such as are besotted to it ) so that often times the leaving off those ill Habits do prove very hard and difficult ; nay , sometimes the abrupt leaving them is as dangerous as the Evils that flow from the constant use of them , so easily is Nature depraved and turn'd out of her simple way : Thus , such as have long used themselves to hot Foods , if at any time they miss them , and are forc'd to make shift with cold , then their Stomach seems empty and unsatisfied , only because 't is depraved , and for want of a little Custom of eating cold . Hence many believe that there is good Nourishment and Vertue in hot Food , viz. better than in the same Food cold , or as warm as the Blood ; nay , many are so fond of this fiery sulpherous Steam or pernicious Vapour , that the good Dame will be angry with her Maid , if by any neglect she let this precious Steam fly away , calling all the Family to come quickly , lest the Meat be cold , and ( as she calls it ) g●●d for nothing : Whereas in truth it will be then much the more wholsom ; for those pernicious sulpherous Fumes ought to be separated from the Meat , before it be received into the Body . And a little use of eating cold Food would remove all such ill Habits , and make cold Meats and Drinks more friendly and satisfactory to Nature , and help to prevent the Generation of all windy Diseases . Furthermore , as cold Food does sharpen the Appetite , so neither will the same quantity thereof swell the Body , or indispose Nature so much as the like quantity of hot Victuals will , and the Body will feel it self more airy and lightsomer . 'T is true , hot Food will heat the Body , especially all the external parts , but then it is an unnatural heat , which is more burthensom than pleasant ; for the fiery sulpherous Steems that remain in Food after 't is prepared , are of the very same Nature and Operation , as the heat of Charcoal ; and so Experience will teach you , that 't is very unwholsom to hold ones Head over the Steems that proceed either from boyld or baked Foods , or over Furnaces , or Pots , or which proceed from Ovens ; for they take away the Complexion , and make People look Pale and Weakly ; now if their Operations externally have such a visible ill effect , how much more Prejudicial will they be when internally received , and with the Food swallowed into the Body ? Possibly in some strong Constitutions , those Inconveniences may not be felt till Age comes on , but few then are free from them , tho insensibly from what causes they proceed . Also , it is to be noted , that this fiery heat Food does retain after 't is prepared , is contrary unto the natural Heat , both of the Food and the Stomach too , and will no longer remain than whilst 't is forced by the constant heat of the Fire , and then of its own accord will separate and fly away as soon as 't is removed from the Fire in an humid Vapour , which Fumes if they be stopt by covering such Foods , so that they cannot separate and fly away , then they will re-enter , and ●●use the Meat to eat strong and fulsom . In a word , 't is nothing but Custom that makes hot Foods easie and agreeable ; but all the Custom in the World can never make them so natural and friendly as Cold , after a little use . 7. They ought to accustom themselves to moderate Exercises in open Airs , which is profitable for all People , but especially for those of the fair Sex , for it hardens and strengthens Nature , begets a good Appetite , prevents Obstructions , breeds good Blood and pure Spirits , which renders the whole Body lightsom and pleasant ; nothing next Temperance in Meats and Drinks being more profitable than moderate Motion , and Airy Houses and Rooms , and not to pen up themselves ( as many do ) in close hot Rooms with great Fires , which prevents the most pleasant and friendly Element , the Air , that it cannot have its free Influencies ; and so what Air does remain in such places , like standing Water in a Pond in the heat of Summer , corrupts and becomes thick and humid , which dulls the edg of the Appetite , weakens the natural Heat and the Functions of the Stomach ; besides , much sitting by Fires and in hot Rooms , draws forth and destroys the pure thin moist Vapours and Volatile Spirits , opens the Pores , and makes all the Body tender ; so that such People do not only become uneasie and indisposed , but subject to the Inconveniencies of catching Colds , if they do but step into the open Air. Likewise , moderate Cloathing is very commendable as to Health ; for much or thick Cloaths are apt to heat and tire Nature , and either hinder Exercises , or make them burthensom , put the external parts into an unpleasant Heat , and hinder the cool refreshing Vapours from penetrating into and relieving the Body : Therefore those that use themselves to a mean in Cloathing have better Appetites , and longer Breath'd , stronger , and not so apt to recieve Injuries by every small accident , as those that inure themselves to very warm Cloathes , hot Houses , an idle soft Life , and the like Effeminacies . 8. Women ought not to lie too long in Bed , as most of them that are of any Quality or Ability do ; their Beds being for the most part of Feathers , which are soft , hot and sulpherous , with Curtains drawn close before the Windows and about the Bed , whereby the imprisoned Air , hindred from its free Circulation , stagnates or corrupts ; and this too is very Prejudicial to their young Children , whose Heats are weak and Spirits tender , often causing Fevers and Convulsions , especially when other Intemperances concur . Besides , this soaking so long in your Bed , weakens all the Members , especially the Back , which is a principal part , and the Body being kept hot , and lying long without Motion , hinders the Actions of the Stomach , impairing so much its due Heat , that Nature wants Fire for Kitchinwork , I mean , is not able to make a profitable concoction or separation of the Food , so that great part of it turns to gross phlegmatick Juices , for which very cause many Women are stupid , weak , feeble and presently tired , and out of Breath , if they do but use any kind of Exercises , and hereby their Travel in Child-bearing is ten-fold more burthensom than otherwise it would be , witness many ordinary Country People , who have nothing the trouble at such times as our fine lazy sluggabed-Dames . Besides , ( as I have already observed elsewhere ) Feather-Beds are ponderous close Substances , in their own Nature unclean , and lying several Years in Corners , or the closest parts of Rooms seldom exposed to the open Air , they contract abundance of gross humidity , and the various diseased People which lie and sometimes dye on them , leave behind contagious Effluviums and venomous Particles , lurking perhaps for an Age , and not drawn forth till a Person happens to lie on them , whose Similes awaken them ; For Beds are continued from Generation to Generation , and not throughly cleansed once in twenty or thirty Years , and so become very prejudicial to all sorts of People , but especially to Women , who spend two thirds of their time in them ; and also to their Children , whose Natures are weak and tender , and consequently apt to receive every evil Scent and Vapour , which such Beds do plentifully send forth , which in many Constitutions by way of the Fores , penetrate all parts , and wound the Spirits , and by degrees weaken and destroy the Health : If Women were sensible of the Mischiefs attending their indulging themselves thus in their stinking Nests every day almost till Noon , they would surely be ashamed of , and detest their own Sloth and Folly therein . 9. Women in time of their Month or Lying-in , are for the most part through hard Travail , and many natural Weaknesses and other Diseases brought very low , and their Spirits weak and but few : Now in this low condition their Nurses do as it were force such great quantities of sweet strong Suppings on them , even against Nature , or more than Nature can bear ; for the Nurse and Mistress do both foolishly imagin , that there is no other way for Nature to be restored , but by great quantities of strong virtuous Food , never remembring the Rule — That Nature ought always to be stronger than the Food ; and not the Food stronger than Nature : Also , they make them drink and eat such Foods as hot as possible they can , crying , Mistress if you do not eat it whilst 't is hot , 't will be worth nothing . When in truth she gives it her so hot that 't is worse than nothing : Also , many of them will boyl Ale or Beer , with Oat-meal and Spice till it becomes thick , and then add store of Sugar , which ought not to be , because no fermented Liquor will endure a second preparation , without a total destruction to the pure Spirits and balsamick Vertues , as I have demonstrated at large in another place . Therefore the Oat-meal and Water ought to be boyled first and briskly , not too long , and then add a like quantity of Beer , Ale or Wine , as you please , and set it on the Fire , and let it be made boyling-hot , but not boyl , and then take it off the Fire , and scum the gross phlegmy part off which swims on the top , and let it stand till it be about as warm as your Blood , and then you may drink it with safety ; but always remember , that the quantity be not too great , nor the quality too strong for Nature ; your best time to put in your Spice is with your Ale , Beer or Wine , but let it be bruised , and make but a little at a time , so that you may have it fresh and fresh ; for heating such Foods , and most others , a second or third time does destroy the brisk lively spirituous parts , and renders them dull , heavy , hard of Concoction , and not so pleasant to the Pallat. 10. Most Women that have where-withal do inrich their Food and Drinks with so many forreign Ingredients , as do not only make them too rich , and consequently generate too much Nourishment , but also intice the Pallat to receive more than is needful , whereby the natural Heat and Stomach is over-charged , and the Vessels stretcht beyond their proper and natural Proportions ; so the Body swells and becomes uneasie , and Wind in abundance generated . Nor do such after eating and drinking find themselves Refreshed , which is the Intention of Food , but on the contrary , are more disordered through fullness , than they were before with hunger : Therefore it concerns all , especially such as have but weak Spirits and Heats , not to exceed either in quantity or quality , but administer proportionable Food , that the natural Heat and Stomach be not put to any difficulty to digest and concoct it ; so the pure Spirits shall thereby be preserved free from Oppressions : For all Health and Joy consist in the goodness of the natural Spirits , it being a grand Mistake in most , who think to recover lost strength by over-rich Food , strong Cordial Drinks , and great quantities ; for they but add a second charge and inconveniency to Nature ; for the Spirits that were weak before , by these Intemperances are made weaker . Likewise , all Women in this time of their Lying-in , should be advised not to drink too freely of any sorts of Liquor , especially such as are apt to breed much Milk , for fear of sore Breasts and Fevers ; let them beware of strong Drinks , because they heat the Blood and Body beyond Mediocrity , evaporate the Volatile Spirits , and awaken the Central Fires , which ought not by any means to be stirred up . 11. Cleanness in Women is a most sublime Vertue , and to be had in the highest Esteem and Veneration , because of the manifold benefits which do thence proceed , it preserves mankind in the very Root , which the great Prophet Moses well understood , whence arose his Laws of Cleanness and Separation . Many of the Ancients did not count it lawful to know a Woman after known Conception : 1st . Because then the End of Nature is answered , and also God's Law : 2dly . Because then the Inclinations to Copulation in all Females ceaseth , except in some depraved Natures , and through wanton sinful Provocations , as is before mentioned . Now this being none of the least Intemperances and Uncleannesses , ought to be considered by all People , the rather for that it strikes at the Root , and corrupts mankind in the very Radix ; But on the contrary , there is nothing more preserves the Fruit sound and healthful , than Cleanness and Separation . Also , if Men did separate themselves from Women all those proper times and seasons which Nature forbids them , and did sometimes lie alone , and keep themselves Chaste , it would render them more healthy , strong and full of lively Spirits , and more Masculine , it being an Effeminating thing for Men and Women to lie always together , making no distinction of Uncleannesses , or of Sickness , there being scarce any particular Intemperance or Uncleanness that destroys more Men , Women and Children than this ; besides , it enfeebles the Courage , and makes Men low Spirited , and also lessens their Affections , except in some few dulling Natures ; in a word , it debilitates all the parts , and brings an infinit number of Diseases : How many thousands of poor Children are yearly destroyed by the Effects of the before-mentioned Intemperances , some by Leprous Scabby Diseases , Boils and running Sores , and the Disease vulgarly called , The KING 's Evil ( but to speak Truth , it is the Mother and Father's Evil ) others with weak Ioynts and Ricketty Distempers , and many other Calamities , as Consumptions , Stoppages , Convulsions and windy Diseases . But here I am apprehensive , that I shall offend the Women by telling them the truth , and which any of them might know to be truth , if they would but look into themselves , and examine things . It being a gross Error for any to imagin that Man in the beginning was made , as to his outward Man , more corrupt , or subject to Distempers than the Beasts of the Field , all sorts of which are now an hundred-fold more Healthy than Mankind ; yet both they and Man , as to the Elements of the Body , are compounded of one and the same matter : And as the Creator has endued Man with Wisdom , Reason and Understanding above and beyond all other Creatures visible , so on the other side , there is not a Creature under Heaven of a sounder and more healthy Constitution than Man in his Original ; nay , 't is certain Man is naturally the most compleat ; for the holy Angels have always appeared in Humane shapes : Likewise , Man according to his bigness , is not only strong , but of a great Spirit , full of Vigour , and the soundness of his Primitive Constitution appears by his long Life in the first Ages : Therefore it is not through the Imbecillity of his natural Frame and Composition ( as some would have it ) that he is afflicted with such a number of Diseases , from and by means of his Intemperance and Uncleannesses , in which two Evils Men do surpass all other Creatures , and consequently are more diseased than any of them . But had Man lived in obedience to the divine and natural Law of God , he would as much have surpassed the Beasts in Health as now they do him , and Children would be as sound and free from Diseases as the young Ones of other Creatures are , had not their Parents corrupted themselves by their Intemperances in their Radix , and trained their Children up in the like Inconveniences ; and this is the true cause of Mans Imbecillities , whereby he is become inferiour unto the very Beasts as to Health : Not that he was made so in his Creation , for we do read that the Ancients were sickly and subject to this and the other Disease , nor of the immature Death or Sicknesses , either of their Women , or especially of their Children , whence we may conclude that they were sound , and not liable to so many burthensom Diseases , as we and our Children are subject to ; and this we may be the rather confirmed in , because the Scriptures do testifie , That the days of Mankind were shortned because of their Intemperances , as Gen. 6. The Violences and Intemperances of Man had corrupted the whole Earth , and all things therein , which was the grand cause of infinite Distempers , and the shortning of Life ; an example of this we have in many of the Beasts , who are exposed to the unmercifulness of Men , and more especially in Horses , who in their Radixes are one of the most healthy sorts of Creatures , of strong hardy hot Constitutions and Natures ; nevertheless , through the hard usage and strain their cruel Drivers force them unto , they become the most diseased of all others . Moreover , these inhumane Outrages , Uncleannesses and Intemperances , do awaken Gods Wrath in the Constellations and outward Elements , and powerfully , as by Simile , draw down malignant Influences , whence proceed particular and universal Calamities . Whereas if mankind did live in the observation of Gods Law in Nature , and contented himself with what was needful and suitable to his Nature , the same would not only lay a sure Foundation for Health , both of Body and Mind , but Magnetically attract the benevolent Influxes of the Coelestial Bodies , and make even this lower Life a kind of Paradise both for Innocency and pure unsullied Pleasures . 12. All Women and Nurses ought to be careful that they do not swathe or bind their young Infants too hard , which many are guilty of ; for the delicate tender Nerves and small Bones of Children cannot endure such usage without great Inconveniency , by awakning the internal heat , which spreads through all the Body , and makes the external parts glow with an unnatural heat , which makes the Child fret and cry , and that spends its strength , and puts its whole Body into disorder : And after they have thus pinion'd up the poor Infant , and wrapt it in so many Coverings , they then cover it up again in a Cradle or Bed ( but the best of the two is a Cradle ) where for the most part they are kept over-hot , and the pleasant Air prevented of having its free Influences upon them , whereby their pure Spirits are suffocated and rendred impure , the Circulation of their Blood obstructed , which occasions many Infirmities , as loss of Appetite , stoppages of the Breast , and Generation of that universal Disease the Wind , which is a mortal Enemy to Children : Also this hard binding does often deform the Body , and destroy the Proportions of the Limbs and Joynts , which are easily forced out of due place in those tender Years , which brings a great deal of uneasiness and torture to them , and proves of very evil consequence as to Health , as many of our fine-Citizens Wives , and others may know by woful Experience . Indeed these preposterous ways are so contrary and disagreeing to Nature , that thereby is destroyed the chief pleasure and delight of young Children ; but to make them amends for such their hard Usage and Deformities , if they happen with difficulty to out-live Childhood , their Parents being much concerned at the crookedness and disproportions of their Children , which themselves have chiefly occasioned , must needs send for the Iron or Steel-Bodice-maker , which rarely doth any good , but generally the contrary , putting Youth to unspeakable Misery to no purpose ; and this conceited Remedy proves of as dangerous consequence to many as the first Original Evil : Therefore these Courses ought to be avoided , for they bring many Distempers on the Body , which Nature is never able to out-grow , especially in weak Constitutions , for they infeeble the whole Body , cause the Contusion of the Breast , lay Foundations for Consumptions , and cause many to have pale thin Complexions , weak Joynts , &c. Of Food fit for Children , and the contrary : Also of Quantity and Quality . The best Food for young Children , next their Mothers Milk , is good Cows Milk raw , with some crumbs of Bread in it , always observing that it first stand till it be cold , after 't is milkt , before you give it them : For 't is a great Error in Physicians and others , to advise consumptive People to drink Milk hot from the Cow , for that Heat is of a Windy Quality that swells the Body , and sends Fumes into the Head , and is harder of concoction than the same Milk is , when 't is cold . Touching which , I desire not that any Body should take my bare Word in opposition to the Learned , but it being so easie and familiar a thing , let them try , and then they shall know by Experience . Therefore I say , in Summer your Children may eat it Cold , but in the Winter you may warm it as hot as your Blood , or if you have a desire to alter it , the best way is to boyl it , adding some Water to it with a little Flour , and sometimes Oat-meal ; but remember that it do not boyl too long , nor too thick , for that makes it of a grosser Nature and harder of Digestion , and breeds thicker Blood , which is of ill consequence to Children . I know Mistress Nurse will be offended that I talk of giving Children Raw Milk : But I must tell her , that properly the same ought not to be called Raw , because it hath passed through several Digestions and Fermentations , even to the highest degree , so that it is not inferior to Womens Milk , and much better than most of theirs , because of their Infirmities and improper Foods and Drinks . And Womens Milk may as properly be counted Raw as the Cows , to whom I know no Creature comparable for Sweetness , Cleanness and Wholsomness ; their breathing is an excellent Perfume , and their very Excrement is little less , and yet our good Dames would think it a sad business , if they should give their Children unboyled Milk ; whereas the boyling thereof destroys the wheyey part of it , and fixes it , and makes it thicker and harder of Concoction ; but on the contrary , Raw Milk , as they call it , that is , unboyled , is of a cleansing Quality , easie of Digestion , carries away downwards all windy matter out of the Stomach and Vessels , and causeth it to pass away freely , there being no sort of Food or Physick like it , so that 't is an excellent Remedy to prevent all Convulsions and griping Pains of the Stomach , attending windy Diseases in Children . And when Children begin to be capable to eat harder Food , then Bread and Butter , and Bread and Cheese will be good Food for them ; ( provided that the Cheese be not too old , nor too stale and strong , for such Cheese is very injurious to Children , heating the Blood , and causing too great a Drought . ) But most Foods that are in use in this wanton superfluous Age , are improper for Children , one of which is much in use among the richest sort , and indeed most People now-a-days feed their Children with it , viz. Water-Pap , that is , Bread and Water , supposing that sort of Food to be light of Concoction , which is a great mistake ; for Bread , the chief Ingredient therein , has already passed through the highest Preparation it is capable of ; for the first preparation in all sorts of Food does digest and destroy the crude Body of Phlegm , and sets the spirituous parts at liberty , which by a second Preparation must be destroyed ; and then such Foods and Drinks become dull and heavy , and lie hard upon the Stomach , yielding but a bad Nourishment , breeding thick gross Blood , whence proceed Stoppages , and many Infirmities of the Breast ; and are so contrary to Nature , that those that do prepare any sort of Food a second time , are forced to add some predominating strong Ingredients that are rich , as Sugar , Spice , and Spanish Fruits to hide the Qualities of the first and grand Ingredients ; for who could indure to eat Bread and Water boyled together alone , or Bread and Ale , or Bread and Wine ? And yet all these in themselves , and without any alteration , are very pleasant and wholsom . Furthermore , all fat Flesh is very hurtful to Children , for it furs and oyls the Stomach and Passages , and in some Children , whose retentive and digestive Faculties are weak , and the Expulsive strong , it quickly slips out of the Stomach into the Bowels , and loosens the Belly too violently , causing griping Pains , especially when Flesh is not good , and at some certain seasons of the Year . Likewise , all kinds of strong Drinks are Abomination unto the Natures of Children , it drys and heats them , infects the Blood with sharp mangy Humours and Diseases , evaporates the pure volatile Spirits , &c. But of all sorts of Drinks , the most fit and proper for Children is Water ; the next is small Beer that is well brewed . All kind of melted Butter and fryed Food , be they what they will , are hurtful to the Health of all People , if not very sparingly taken , but more especially to Children ; for Butter has passed through several Digestions and Fermentations that have opened the gross body , and made the spirituous parts flying or volatile , and therefore if Butter stand open a little while in the Air , it destroys the goodness and pure brisk taste of it ; but if it be committed to the Fire , then the pure Vertue is immediately suffocated or evaporated , and then it turns into a gross strong Oyl , which is very offensive to Nature ; but many to prevent its running into Oyl , will add Water to it , and keep it in motion , and so by the help of the Water , the motion and the Air , the Spirituous parts are kept living , which indeed is the best way of melting of Butter : Nevertheless , even this is grosser on the Stomach , and oyls , furs and obstructs the Passages more than Butter eaten on Bread , which is the best and most natural way of using it . The truth hereof is further manifested by this ; take Butter , Flour and Water , and make it into Paste , as they do for Pies , and then bake it , and let any of those which love such things best , be confined to live on it for two or three Weeks , and confine another to Bread and Butter , and see which will be tired first ; 't is certain he that eats the baked Bread and Butter shall presently loath it , but he that lives on the common Bread and Butter may continue to live thereon , and be well sustained , without being weary of it for many Years , and yet all is but Bread and Butter , only the preparation makes the difference . For you may observe , that all kinds of Food made of fine Flour and Butter , and baked , is of a close heavy substance , hard of Digestion , that fouls and makes the Blood thick and gross , and being first invented for Wantonness and State , are continued to gratifie the same Properties , and therefore ought to be banished Of the Quantity of Childrens Food . There are but few Mothers or Nurses but do err in Quantity as much , and more often than in the Quality of the Victuals which they take themselves or give their Children . Now over-charging of Nature is more dangerous than Food that is of a contrary Quality , or made so by improper Mixtures and Preparation , tho both are very bad . 'T is hardly to be imagined how little in Quantity and mean in Quality will gratifie and maintain Children in perfect Health and Liveliness , and therefore we should consider how difficult a point it is , even for People of mature Age , to be Temperate in eating and drinking , more especially when Meats and Drinks are made by Spices , Sugars , foreign Fruits , and other mixtures , enticing to the Pallate , the pleasure of which you must note , does always continue many degrees beyond the necessity of the Stomach , which is one of the chief causes of Gluttony . Now if it be so hard and difficult a thing for Men and Women to be Temperate , and abstain from Excess who have Experienced the Dangers , Indispositions , Relapses and the like evil Consequences thereof , how then can we expect that Children should understand when they have enough , that is , sufficient to sustain Nature , and no more ? 'T is certain all healthy Children will eat and drink to the end of the pleasure of their Pallates , and till their Stomachs loath it , more especially where such Food or Drinks are made enticing , as of late Years most are : And therefore it may be truly said , that all or most Children , are as it were taught and trained up to Gluttony from their Infancy , which has many evil Consequences . 1st , The over-charging Children with Meats and Drinks , does suffocate their pure volatile Spirits , which in them are very tender . 2dly , It stupifies all the Senses , causing dull heavy Indispositions to attend the whole Body , awakening the central Fire , which spreads it self , and causeth an unkindly heat through all the external parts , and in some weakly Constitutions brings an inward Fever that consumes the very Flesh off the Bones . 3dly , It furs and stops the Passages , breeds thick gross Blood and evil Juices , which fall down upon the Joynts and makes them feeble , and dilating the Vessels of the Stomach do so impair the natural heat and digestive faculty , that most of that excessive Food is turned into phlegmatick gross watry or windy Humours , which ascend into the Head , and causeth it to grow great , and as it were swell , being heavy and sottish , which Distemper is usually called , The Rickets , which generally proceeds from Intemperance , and the indiscreet managment of Mothers and Nurses ; for Superfluity does not only contract malignant Diseases , but makes all sorts of Children ( as well the strong and healthy , as such as are weak ) so uneasie , that thereby they are apt on all occasions to fret and cry ; it likewise makes them nasty , and of an unpleasant , dull sottish Humour , requiring double the Tendence which otherwise they would need . And when by over-gorging they have made them thus froward , then to quiet them , they presently clap more Victuals or Drink into their Mouths , and thus force them even against their Desires , as well as beyond the Necessities of Nature , more than their Stomach can bear , which continues and encreases their Disorders ; nay , they feed them till they sputter out of their Mouths , and also cast it up , which latter , many silly Women : count a good sign of Health ; whereas in truth , this Puking ( as they call it ) is a sure token indeed that such Children have strong Stomachs , but withal that their Stomachs are overcharged and disordered with too much Food ; for no healthy Stomach either Young or Old , will cast its Food up when in Health , if such Foods be eaten moderately , and be not too much in quantity , or of a contrary quality . Also , sometimes when the Stomach is too moist , and full of watry Humours , such Children and others ought to fast a while , and then eat some drying Food . But on the contrary , those Children that have weak Heats and Stomachs , tho' over charged , will seldom cast it up again , but if they do , it makes them very sick and disordered . All which Evils are not by any means to be prevented , but by Sobriety and good Order ; for all Mothers ought to give Children Meats and Drinks according to Reason , and not according to the Childrens desire ; much less ought they to force them when their Stomachs loath it , which wounds Nature in the very bud , destroying the airy lively Spirits , which Children , as all other young Creatures , are most endued withal . Observe likewise , not to give your Children Food too often , that is , not before the former is digested , which many Women do , and so destroy the poor Childrens Health , and lay Foundations for Diseases . Add to these Mischiefs of Intemperance in Children , that it dulls the Wit , clouds the Fancy and darkens the Apprehension , and so renders them more uncapable of all kind of Learning ; For Temperance and Cleanness do not only make the Body sound , healthy , light and pleasant , but strengthens the Intellect , makes the Spirits brisk and lively , helps the Memory , and gives a penetrating understanding , and fits one for all Imployments both of the Body and Mind , and lays a hopeful Foundation for Health , Strength and long life . To conclude , Cleanness and good Tendence in Children is very profitable , and their Beds ought to be clean , sweet , hard , and in airy Rooms , for their Spirits are so tender , that any gross thick Air suffocates them : And as their Coverings ought not to be too thick or heavy , so also should their Day-Garments be moderate , easie and cool , nor should they be forced to Sleep , as the Custom of some is , but to go to sleep as Nature inclines them : Also , they must not sit or lie too long without Motion ; for 't is that gives Spirit and Life to all young Creatures . It is to be noted also , that Womens Distempers , as to Windiness , and many other Weaknesses , are much encreased by their straight Garments and Lacings , which do press and wound the strength of that part , it being one main Reason of their shortness of Breath , contracting the Passages and Vessels of the Stomach , which causeth also Sickness , with pricking pains in the sides , and often sends Fumes into the Head , nothing being more Injurious to them than those Bodice and Stays , which are as stiff and hard as Boards , which makes the Stomach , Waste and Back so feeble , that many when they leave them off , they feel themselves so weak that they are forced to continue them , neither can they hardly turn themselves in their Beds , but seem as if they were unjoynted , which causeth many other Inconveniences , as growing deformed , and makes Labour and Exercises burthensom . If these Rules be followed and observed by any , they will find great benefit thereby , and be eas'd of much Trouble , and prevent a great Number of Diseases , and lay Foundations for an healthy sound Generation . CHAP. XII . The Cause of SURFEITS , and how to prevent them and keep the Body in Health . As also of large Drinking after Meals ; and of eating of Suppers . WHen any one finds himself much wearied or very hot through some violent action , or fainty through Labour , or long fasting , or any other Accidents of the like Nature , which may have wasted the Radical Moisture , and spent the pure Spirits , whereby the whole Body becomes heavy , dull and indisposed . Then to recover Nature and the Spirits , and yet at the same time prevent the Diseases called Surfeits , these following Rules are absolutely necessary for every one to observe : 1. Before eating or drinking you ought to rest , by sitting still and silent , or taking a small nap of sleep , or if conveniency will permit , go to Bed and keep your self warm for an hour , or two , or three , according to the greatness of the occasion , which will recover the Spirits and strengthen the natural Heat , and sharpen the Appetite , refreshing the whole Body , and chearing all the Senses , so that you shall not only eat and drink with tenfold more pleasure and delight , but with much more safety , as to Health . For no Meats or Drinks ( though of the highest Preparation ) have such Power to recover and restore the Spirits , and make the sweet Oyl in the Body burn clear , as Rest hath ; for which cause a man can fast longer from Food , and with less prejudice to his Health , than from Rest or Sleep . Nevertheless in some of these times of Weariness there is necessity of present eating or drinking , but then it ought to be done sparingly , and such Food as is easie of Digestion , as thin brisk Gruels , Pottages , and the like , and that in a small Quantity ; for when the Spirits are spent by any of the forementioned Accidents , the natural Heat of the Stomach is so weakned , that it cannot bear any great Quantity of Meats or Drinks , nor such Foods as are too strong in Quality , without manifest danger to the Health . All Inequality in this state is very perilous ; for when the Radical Moisture is wasted , the natural Spirits are dull and impure , which cannot be restored but only by Rest ; for the quickness and sharpness of the Stomach and digestive Faculty does chiefly consist in the Goodness and Quantity of the Radical Moisture and pure Spirits : And for this cause those that are tired with Labour , a less Quantity of strong Drink or Food will overcome them : Also , those that are endued with strong Spirits , and whose Radical Moistures are pure and free from Obstructions , have good and sharp Appetites , and can eat and drink greater Quantities without prejudice to their Health ; but on the contrary , such as have but weak Heats and few Spirits , have but little Stomachs , and faint desires to eat , their Stomachs being full before their Bellies ; and the same is to be understood when the Spirits and Natural Heat are impared and made impotent by Accidents . Therefore Rest after any kind of Weariness ( be it what it will ) is a most safe means to preserve Health , and prevent the generation of Diseases . 2. It is to be noted , that Surfeits and Obstructions are not ( as many suppose ) contracted at the first or second Inconveniency ( except the Accident or Disorder be very great ) but by degrees , every Excess sows some seeds for Diseases , which would be prevented , if care were taken , and Nature not overcharged , especially at the forementioned times , viz. when the Spirits are weakned or spent , for then the sweet Oyl and Radical Moisture immediately turns sourish , and then follows an unnatural Heat and Disorder through the whole Body , with a dizziness in the Head ; for the Volatile Spirit is the true Life and Being of every thing . Many lively Instances might be given to demonstrate this , as we see in all the Vegetations of the Earth , if the spirituous parts be any way destroyed or suffocated , that Herb , Seed or Grain decays and becomes of no use or vertue ; which is likewise manifest in all Spirituous Liquors , as Beer , Ale , Syder , Wine , &c. if by long keeping or other accidents the spirituous parts be wasted or evaporated , immediately the sweet Quality ( as it were ) dieth , and then the bitter sour astringent Properties predominate , and appear in their own Forms , which whilst the spirituous and sweet Qualities were strong , and not violated , did lie hid , being therein incorporated . So that were it possible for Man by any Art to retain the Volatile Spirit in any Liquors or other things , then such things would continue firm and good in all their parts forever . The same is to be conceived in the Humane Nature , and therefore all People ought to consider the danger the Spirit is in on all Disorders and Superfluities ; for presently the Appetite is dulled and the Pallate cannot taste or distinguish the pure Relish of any sort of Food . For where the Spirits are weak all the Properties of Nature become unequal in their operation , and rise up with a kind of violence or hunger after the sweet Oyl , with eagerness to devour it , which is the true Life , Pleasure and Moderator of all the other Properties and Qualities ; and therefore when once the same is wounded , the whole System of Nature is disordered , and all her Oeconomy disturbed . And this is really the very Root of all Distemperatures both of the Body and Mind ; which if every one did understand , and take care that Nature were not overcharged , might easily be prevented . But though Nature doth frequently complain , sigh , groan and languish under many such Inconveniences and burdens , yet few there be that ever think or consider the cause from whence such Indispositions proceed , but for the most part , through Ignorance , take wrong measures ; for if any find themselves weak , fainty , weary , and the like , they presently think to supply this defect of Nature by giving her good store of rich Food and Cordial Drinks , which for the most part do but add a second burthen to her , and proves of a more hazardous consequence to the Health , than the first Disorder , since these Indispositions generally come not for want of Nourishment , but rather the contrary , and for want of due Rest after too violent Actions or over-long continuance at them , and for lack of giving Nature proportionable Meats and Drinks , whereby the Spirits and Radical Moisture are wasted , as aforesaid ; tho' it must be confessed , That Health and Strength cannot be maintained , but by a constant supply of Meats and Drinks , yet the main thing is in the due and proper Timing thereof . Therefore weak-natur'd People at all times , and others , whenever by Labour , Travel or Fasting they are brought into a weak and fainty state , should then be more than ordinarily careful that their Meats and Drinks be not too strong , nor too much in quantity , nor of a contrary quality , but proportionable to the present strength of their Natural Heat . 3. Great drinking of Wine and strong Drinks , after full Meals of Flesh and Fish , ( most of them being of disagreeing Natures one to the other ) do often wound the health ; and that constitution is rarely known that they do not prove of evil and dangerous consequence unto ; which many of the richest sort of People in this Nation might know by woful experience , especially in London , who do yearly spend many hundreds , ( I think I may say thousands ) of Pounds on their ungodly Paunches . Many of whom may save themselves that charge and trouble they are usually at in learning of Monsieur Nimble heels , the Dancing-Master , how to go upright , for their Bellies are swelled up to their Chins , which forces them to behold the Skie , but not for Contemplation-sake you may be sure , but out of pure necessity , and without any more Impressions of Reverence towards the Almighty All-wise Creator , than their Fellow Bruits ; for their Brains are sunk into their Bellies ; Injection and Ejection is the business of their Life , and all their precious hours are spent between the Platter and the Glass , and the Close-stool and Piss-pot . Are not these fine Fellows to call themselves Christians and Right Worshipfuls ? The natural Heat being overcharg'd by too great a Quantity of rich Food , that contains overmuch Nourishment , stops the Passages , arrests the Spirits , and makes the Stomach violently attract unto it self from all parts of the Body , the pleasant moist Vapours , to help and assist her to overcome and digest that load of Victuals which they have ingorged , that often puts Nature very hard to it in her internal Laboratory , causing a kind of suffocation of the pure Spirits , drying and consuming the Radical Moisture and thin refreshing Vapours . Therefore after such Epicurean Meals , there is always an Indisposition through the whole Body , with dulling Fumes in the Head , and drouziness , that generally continues , four , five or six hours , more or less , according to the strength of each mans Constitution , and the quantity of Food . During which time the Passages of the Spirits are obstructed , the Pores stopt , so that the thin pleasant Vapours of the Air from without cannot penetrate , and thence the Blood is heated , and its Circulation hindred ; and all this by gross phlegmatick Juices arising from Superfluities , which impede the Passages and free Course of Nature . But after some hours , when Nature hath strugled with these Besiegers , and flung off their Chains , and overcome her Enemy , and forced her way , and made a separation , then the Road of the Spirits is again laid open , and the Pores are unlockt to let in the refreshing Breezes , and the Man grows brisk and lively , and fit for business . — And so indeed he might have been all this while , if to pamper a liquorish Pallate , and gratifie an extravagant Humour and Custom , he had not wilfully Ingurgitated so much Food , as thus oppressed Nature for the present ; and tho' he think now all 's over ; and is ready the very next day to attack her again with a like Debauch , yet he shall shortly find , the Dregs remain , there is a Morbifick matter left , and continually encreased , which at length being ripened into Act by some proper Aspect of the Heavens , or similary Accident on Earth , breaks forth into a most grievous Surfeit or violent Fever , and the Man is all on sire , and sighs , and languishes , and dies . And who shall pity him ? since if he would in time have hearkened to the Voice of Reason or Experience , either of them would have told him , That the sole Intention of Nature in eating and drinking is purely to support and refresh her , and not burden her ; and therefore he ought to have chosen simple Food , and the quantity not too great for the natural Heat , and then he should have found , after such eating and drinking , a certain pleasant and refreshing and chearing Joy spread through the whole Body , from the Center to the Circumference , being more brisk , lively , active and useful than before . But still , many there are , that be not content to Overcram Nature with too great a quantity of Food , but they will needs drown her too , with a deluge of Drink , pouring in such vast Quantities of Wine and strong Liquors into their foolish Hogsheads , as if they designed to make their Souls immediately swim out of their Bodies . This second Charge , especially when it comes immediately upon , or soon after the first , wounds Dame Nature to the very Heart , and sets her on fire , consuming the sweet Oyl and Radical Moisture by whole-sale , suffocates the purer Spirits , and puts the Blood ( their limpid and natural Habitation ) all into a combustion ; and the first and greatest Sufferer in this Hurliburly is the pure Volatile Spirit , Balsamick Body and pure Oyl , which is of a friendly Nature , so meek and gentle , that it cannot , without manifest danger to the Health , endure any such harsh Fires or churlish Motions . And whenever Violence is offered to this benign quality , Nature falls into a languishing , which makes the Functions of the Stomach to cease , and the Salt's spirit looseth its savour , if the Disorder happen near the Center of Life : But if only the pure Spirits and sweet Oyl of any Member be hurt , then it often falls out that the Evil and Defect remains only in that Member , and the Stomach and Center continue well ; and in such cases the Life is seldom in danger . But many Physitians , mistaken in Nature , do conclude , That the cause of such Defects proceed from some ill-habit or vitiated Tone of the Stomach , and more Central parts ; and therefore they will give strong Potions of harsh Medicines , both Purging and Vomiting , which for the most part hurt Nature , weaken the Center , help to weaken and destroy the Balsamick Vertues , and the Limb or Member afflicted grows worse ; for when in any Member the wrathful Saturnal and Mercurial Poysons and sulpherous Heats of Mars are stirred up and awakened , they will in a little time envenom the whole , and make it burn like fire with Pains , whence Swellings and Putrifactions proceed . Did People rightly understand this , they would be afraid to commit such Excess , loading Nature beyond what she can bear , by adding Intemperance to Intemperance , as first to over-gorge themselves with too much , as well as too rich Food , and then to drink such great quantities of Strong Drink after it ; these two Superfluities Nature cannot bear at one time without great Injury to Health . And therefore since some Men are such Swine as to delight to overcharge Nature with too much Drink , their safest way is to drink when their Stomachs are rather empty than full ; for hard drinking doth not very often surfeit , when the Stomach is free from Fulness ( except men drink to a very excessive pitch , and of various sorts of Drink , or such as is bad in its kind ) especially when men are at mature Age , or rather old than young ; for indeed all strong Drinks are absolutely against the Health of Young People , by reason their Blood is more hot , which being encreased , sets Nature on Fire , and precipitates them into Fury , Lust and Madness . But it may be observed , that more People do surfeit themselves and destroy their Health by Gluttony and Superfluous Eating , than by Overdrinking ( though perhaps the Sin of Drunkenness makes more noise in the World ) for Gluttony is hid in the Bud , and little or no notice taken of it , but is indeed committed by all sorts of People , both Male and Female , Young and Old , but more especially Young People and Children . And the Reasons hereof are , because Food is of a heavy gross Nature , and hard of Concoction , and requires time for Digestion , so that Nature cannot so easily rid her self of it ; but Drink doth pass through several Digestions and Fermentations , by which the spirituous parts are already become volatile , that the Stomach and Natural Heat have no such difficulty to separate it , for that is done almost as soon as it comes into the Stomach , the spirituous parts incorporating themselves with their similies , viz. with the natural Heat , as every man is sensible of , presently after the drinking of strong Drinks , which set the whole Body into an heat , if such quantity be drunk as causeth an evaporation of the natural Spirits , and the phlegmatick part thereof falleth down into the Ureters ; so that tho' it must be confessed , That superfluity in drinking is very injurious to Nature , yet being of a thin spirituous quality , it finds many quick ways of evacuation and transpirations ; therefore not so dangerous as overmuch eating ; but both are bad against Health , and great sins against God and Nature . Besides , those that are inclin'd to Drink , are manifest to all men , and so their Irregularities often restrain'd through shame , and respect to their Credit ; whereas the other gormandize publickly , and without the least Reflection , so general and customary is that Vice become . 4. The Eating of Suppers is profitable but to few , except Young People , whose Imployments are hard , and in the Fields or open Air , or such as do not make Dinners , and whose Food and Drinks are mean ; for such People may eat Suppers without prejudice , as also such as accustom themselves to eat in the morning and fast till night ; also they that be of House-Imployments . But for all sorts of People that live sedentary Lives , and are of easie Imployments , more especially those that are of mature Age , as Gentlemen and Citizens , &c. who use themselves to lie long in Bed in the Morning , and to great Dinners and rich Cordial Drinks , whose Tables are so adorned and set forth , not only with such great store of rich Food , but also with other Circumstances of great Charge , so that a sober man would not imagin that so great Cost , Pains and time should be spent thereon , except such Dinners would continue and sustain Nature several years ; but alas ! the same is all swallowed and devoured in one hour , and all the pleasure of it gone , and for real use an honest piece of Bread and Cheese ▪ should do a man three times more good than all this variety of Dainties , whose best service is to make work for the Doctors and Apothecaries , and they to provide Imployment for the Sextons ; or if they escape the Wooden Tenement and Flannel , all they have to shew in Memory of these chargeable Treats , is an empty Purse , a disordered Mind , a loathsomely sullied Soul , and an indisposed distempered Body , as full of Diseases as an Hospital . To this sort of People it is most injurious to make Suppers ; neither indeed are they good for any who live easie , and eat Dinners , because the space between Dinner and Supper is not sufficient to make a perfect Concoction , especially with those that eat much . Flesh and Fish , or Food that is fat ; for after such Food men ought to fast at the least eight or ten hours , because the oily substance furs the Passages and dulls the natural Heat and Action of the Stomach , and consequently requires a longer time for Concoction than Herbs , Seeds , Fruits or Grains . Besides , Flesh is of a grosser substance , and more phlegmatick , therefore apt to generate Obstructions , thicker Blood , and more impure Spirits , and therefore those that feed thereon ought to fast a considerable time after it ( by which means the natural Heat of the Stomach may the better digest the superfluous gross matter ) before fresh Food be taken into the Stomach again . Therefore the best times for eating , are about eight or nine in the Morning , and five in the Afternoon ; for nothing gives greater advantages to the Stomach to cleanse it self from all gross superfluous matter , than time and forbearance of eating or drinking for a fit space , which makes the edg of the Appetite sharp , and Pallate the perfect . Moreover , Suppers ( except to young People , and such as have prepar'd their Stomachs by large Fastings & Labours ) fill the Body full of Wind , and cause it to glow with an unnatural heat and unsound sleep . And yet some there are , who ( through a disorderly Life , their Natures being depraved ) are so troubled with windy Diseases , that they are forced to eat Suppers to prevent the burdensom pains of the Wind , and yet all will not do . But the most considerable thing why Suppers prove burdensom & unhealthy to Nature , is , because in the Night the Body is without Motion , and seems to cease from Action , and the Rooms are made close , and the whole Body kept much hotter than in the day , all which doth prevent the pure thin vapours of the Air from penetrating the Body ; but in the day the body being kept cooler than in the night , it is fuller of motion causing a more perfect Concoction . Therefore the most natural and approved way to Health , is to make but two Meals in 24 hours , one ( as I said ) in the Morning , the other about 4 or 5 in the Afternoon . And it is to be observed , that the strongest Food and greatest quantity ought to be eaten in the Morning , and the smaller quantity , and such as is easiest of Concoction in the Afternoon , viz. Milk-Pottage , Milk and Flour , Milk as it comes from the Cow , after 't is cold , eaten with Bread , Water-Gruels , &c. Now the Reason of this is , because in the Morning , the Spirits , thro' Rest , are restored fresh and brisk , and the Sun is not come to the Meridian , but by that time it arrives there , the Food is pretty well digested ; for you must note , that when the Sun comes to the Meridian , it doth more or less exhale or cause some Evaporations of the natural Spirits , especially in hot Seasons ; and therefore Nature is then more indisposed , dull and heavy than at other times . Also , the fore-part of the day hath spent the Spirits by Labour , Exercise , &c. For this cause most People do find themselves dull and heavy after Dinner . There is nothing that does more help Concoction than the cool refreshing Influences of the Air ; for it strengthens the natural Heat , and makes it more central ; for which cause People in cold Weather have greater and stronger Appetites , and more Spirits than in hot ; and therefore are able to endure more Action ; so likewise such as are bred in cold Countries , are harder , stronger , and for the most part longer liv'd than those that inhabit in over-hot Regions ; for Heat dries up the thin spirituous Vapours and Radical Moisture in the Body , and causes the internal Heat and Moisture ( which should serve for the help of Concoction ) to spread it self into all the external parts of the Body ; for all outward Heat does by simile draw forth the internal heat , and causes the pure Spirits to evaporate . For this very Reason mens desires are much after Drink in hot Seasons , and on the contrary for Food in cold ; thus likewise the heat of Beds , where most People wrap themselves up very warm , takes away the Appetite ; for let a man go to Bed some-what hungry , yet after he has slept , his Stomach shall seem dull , and his desire of eating gone , till his motion for a while in the Air does recal it ; and the same quantity of Food eaten for a Supper , which proves burdensom to him that goes to Bed , shall be most pleasant and lightsom to one that sits up all night , so great is the power of Air and Motion . Therefore all hot soft Feather Beds , with thick Coverings , which most People use themselves to , with Curtains drawn , &c. so that their Chambers are in the next degree to Bagneo's or Hot-Houses , are very inconvenient ; for they weaken the Back and Joynts , destroy the Appetite , and render the whole Body so delicate and tender , that every little Inconveniency is felt , and such People can scarce endure the fresh Air to blow upon them , without some prejudice to their Health , which doth increase stoppages and all Windy Diseases ; but on the contrary , open fresh Airs , Rooms that have large Windows and fair Prospects , and the Bed open , hard and clean , so that the refreshing Influences of the Air may pass freely , will strengthen the whole Body , beget and increase Appetite , and make the spirits powerful , whereby Nature does avoid many Inconveniences and Diseases . CHAP. XIII . Of Windy Diseases , the Reason thereof in Nature , and why English People , especially Women are so much troubled therewith ; Also an Account of the Inconveniency of eating and drinking between Meals . THE Generation of Windy Diseases in the Body arise from many Causes , but chiefly from Three , viz. 1. From eating and drinking of too great quantities of various sorts of gross fat Food and strong Drinks , of disagreeing Natures ; which stretch the Vessels of the Stomach beyond what is natural , and generate evil Juices of a sower keen quality , and sharp griping Nature ; for it is not purely Wind , or an airy quality , that doth so gripe and pain the Body , and send up such Fumes and Vapours into the Head ; for if it were so , Nature would find some way to discharge it , which perhaps might make a noise , but not be so painful . But this windy substance is mixed with a sharp sower thin poysonous matter that runs out of one place into another , and causeth griping pains ; and all this chiefly proceeds from Repletion , and too much Nourishment , and uncocted matter . For when Meats and Drinks are taken , that are either ill prepared or too much in quantity , or of a contrary quality to the Constitution , then the natural Heat of the Stomach and digestive Faculty cannot concoct such Foods nor make any perfect separation , nor cast out those evil Juices and Venoms , which all sorts of such Food doth contain , but especially Flesh and fat strong Meats , which are apt to lodge in Vessels , and cause Pains and Swellings ; for what part or Member soever of the Body is by any Accident made weak , these evil Humours will flow unto and seize that part in an especial manner ; thus , If the Brain be weak it causeth a violent Head-Ach to continue for several days together , with a dizziness ; but if the more central parts , as the Breast and Passages be impotent , then you shall find all the Faculties of the Stomach debilitated , and its rententive Property so impaired , that it cannot retain the Food , whence proceeds loathings and vomitings ; but on the contrary , if the Centre be well fortified with a powerful natural Heat , then the Stomach easily flings them off , and they disperse themselves into the Members and more external parts , which causeth swellings and grievous pains in the Hips Legs and Arms , or where-else it happens , often shifting from one part to another , which some call the Windy Gout , a Disease , tho' very painful , yet not so dangerous as when it lies and centers it self near the Heart and vital Parts ; for when they lodge about the Stomach , such People are not well either full or fasting ; for after eating this Humour doth so sower the Food , that it makes the Stomach sick , and subject to sower belchings , and the whole body to swell , and sickish Qualms to arise : And this enticeth many to take a dram of Brandy , or other strong spirituous Drink to help Concoction , which seems to give some ease for the present , but in a little time the same Inconveniency will return , and then again , away they run to their Doctor Brandy-Bottle , and thus come to accustom themselves to such strong fiery Liquors , whereby they yet more and more weaken the Stomach , and cause the before-mentioned Windy Diseases to encrease , so that in a little time they shall not be able to eat any Food without a Dram after it ; nay , it will come to that at last , that they will not be able to digest their Food either with it or without it , the Liquor will make such a Prey of Nature , causing the Head never to be free from dulling Fumes and Vapours . Now these Diseases are very rarely cured by any of the Medicines that are appropriated to them , because most People do more or less continue the same Disorders which were the first cause thereof . For no Medicines have such Power either to prevent or remedy these Disorders in the Body , as Temperance , Cleanness and good Order ; for they have an inward Power and certain Efficacy for that purpose ; and if Temperance be continued , it will augment the Radical Moisture and pure Spirits , and by degrees strengthens the natural Heat of the Stomach , which only hath the Power to draw all such windy gross sharp matter from all parts of the body , and so cast it out , if thro' length of time it be not become too central ; for the natural Heat hath a magnetick Vertue , that forcibly attracts all such matter as burdens Natures , even from the most inward Cavities and furthest Ciroumference unto it self , and there digests and throws it off , both upwards & downwards , if a proper degree of Temperance be observed both in quantity & quality , & fresh supplies of Food & Drink come not too often . For so powerful is this attractive Faculty of the Stomach , that it will draw the very Flesh off the Bones , as is most manifest both by men & beasts , if the Stomach be not supplied with convenient quantities of Meats and Drinks ; for this Heat which serves for concoction & separation is never idle , but always continues its motion & action , so long as the Spirits are lively , & that there doth remain any Oyl in the Lamp. For this cause moderate Fasting hath been commended by all wise men , & a clean well prepared Diet hath great Power , not only to prevent Diseases , both of the Body & Mind , but also to root them out , especially when the cause of such Diseases ( as generally it happens ) have arisen from over-charging of Nature with too great quantities of Flesh & Fish , & the more because People make no distinction between Clean & Unclean , nor of the Seasons of the Year , of the Surfeits or Diseases the Cattle are subject unto , whose Flesh they eat , nor regard the improper Mixtures of such Food , &c. 2. The second cause of Windy Diseases , I assign to be the frequent eating and drinking of Hot Foods , I do not mean such as are hot in their own nature & operation , but such as having been prepared by Fire , are eaten before those fiery sulpherous Steems are evaporated ; for they are of a very pernicions venomous quality , and altogether of a contrary Nature to the genuine Heat of Nature & particularly of the Stomach also ; for this fiery heat will no longer incorporate it self with such Foods , Broths , &c. than it is forced by the constant heat of the fire ; for as soon as they are taken from thence this sulpherous Steem or humid Vapour will hastily separate of its own accord , which does manifest that this Heat is an Alien , & that Nature casts it out as an Enemy ; for indeed it contains three venomous qualities , that are absolutely pernicious to Health , viz. 1st . The first is an harsh Fire , of a Saturnine Martial Nature , of a keen sharp fretting operation , which dulls the pure Spirits , & infects the Blood with a Maingy itching Humour . 2dly . It contains a gross deadly poysonous Water , or humid quality , that does incorporate it self with the grossest parts of the Air , & fly away in a steem or vapour ; & if Food be eaten before those fiery evil vapours be separated & evaporated , it swells the body & hurts the natural Heat of the Stomach , & insensibly , but certainly generates both Windy & Watery Diseases , filling the inward Vessels of the Body with evil & venomous Juices , sending Fumes into the Head , & disordering the whole body ; & this more especially in Women & Children , who , as we have shewed you before , are by Nature much more liable to Windy Diseases than men . 3dly . If this furious Steem be by any Vessel that covers the Meat , after 't is taken out of the Pot , or off from the Spit , so that it cannot fly away , but is stopt & turned back , or confined to stay with such Food , after 't is prepared , then will it re enter into it , and make it flat and heavy , & alter the Taste of it , so that it will be strong & gross on the Pallat , & heavy on the Stomach . It is also to be noted , that the common eating of Hot Foods does possess the Blood with a salt sharp fretting Humour , like a Mainge ; & if Children were not accustomed to such things from their Mothers Breast , it would more sensibly break out upon them in that kind : For this very Reason , in Dogs and many other Creatures , if such hot ▪ Broths or Food be given them , it will cause the Mainge in their Blood ; & the very same it occcasions in the human Nature , but not externally so manifest , because rendered more familiar by use . 3. The Third Cause , not only of Windy Diseases , but of many others , is , Peoples eating and drinking too often : Nothing more burdens Nature , or generates more crude sharp Humors ; for when fresh Food is thrust into the Stomach before the former is digested , it mixeth with the half-concocted Food , which does surprize Nature , and disturb her Work , and fouls the Stomach , causeth sower Belchings , makes the Vessels to swell , and in some Constitutions is attended with griping Pains and Indispositions through the whole Body , &c. for the natural heat is so oppressed with these continual supplies of Food , before it calls , or is ready for them , that it cannot make any perfect Separation , which is a main cause of Windy Diseases , filling the Vessels with unconcocted Juices , which powerfully obstruct the due Functions of Nature , and hinders the Circulation of the Blood and Spirits ; which is the reason , that when such People do travel or labour , and oft-times only upon the Change of Weather , they are indisposed and presently tired , and out of Breath , and troubled with an inward heat and drought , continually calling for Supplies of Drink , which does but promote Disorder , and swell the Body , and make the Exercise more burthensom . For indeed drinking between Meals , is very injurious to all sorts of People , except to those that labour hard , and sweat much ; for such may drink , but very moderately ; or else they may quickly out-do Nature ; but for others , that live easie Lives , and do not sweat , to be sipping , or rather pouring down strong Drink and Wine between Meals , does prove of very evil Consequence ; for it destroys the edge of the Appetite , and makes the Stomach disordered , always seeming as if it wanted something ; and in some Constitutions , an hot heavy dulness ; for all strong Drinks , received in a greater quantity than the Stomach can conveniently master , leave a sowr , heavy , stinking Matter behind them in the Body , which furrs the Passages with a slimy Substance , and which causeth loss of Appetite , shortness of Breath , Rheums , with sharp tickling Matter that first ascends into the Head , and offends it , and then falls back again into the Breast , and upon the Lungs , whence Coughs and Consumptions proceed . Also , in some People it begets a kind of unnatural hunger or craving in the Stomach , or a sharp gnawing Pain , which causeth many to eat , but they are never the better satisfied nor eased , but rather increase the Pain thereby . I am confident , abundance of People can witness this to be true , from their own Experience , and yet will not consider or regard the true Reason or Causes of it : For it is a gross Mistake , when any shall feel their Stomachs gnaw or gripe in this manner , to run presently to the Cupbord , and think thereby to cure that defect ; which for the most part does but increase it , and no longer gives ease than the Food or Drink is in the Mouth ; for this evil habit of the Stomach does not proceed from want of Food or Nourishment , but through sharp , crude , superfluous Matter , which dulls and disables the Natural Heat , that it cannot perform its due Office of Digestion ; for , where Food is thus too frequently cramm'd in , the digestive Faculty has not power to make separation ; which does , as it were , suffocate the pure Spirits , and then presently the sweet Oyl , or Juices of such Food , turns either of a keen , sowr , or bitter Quality , according to the disorder or nature of each man's Stomach and Constitution ; which depraved Juices disperse themselves into several parts of the Body , enfeebling the Joynts and Members , wounding the Spirits , and making room for outward Colds , and the like Accidents to take place ; for Colds do rarely seize any part of the Body , ( provided the Accident be not too extream , ) except first there be some inward defect or weakness ; as may appear by those that are troubled with stoppages of the Breast , whom every petty Accident , nay , even the alteration of the Air shall sensibly afflict . But as Nature abhors all Extreams ; so , on the other side , over-long Fasting does help to generate windy Diseases , especially in infirm People , whose natural Heats are weak , and Spirits few ; for they will soon grow fainty , and Fumes and Vapors will be apt to fly up into their Heads , and when they come to eat , a small matter makes them sick ; for too long fasting does spend and evaporate the Spirits , and waste the Radical Moisture , and hurt the digestive Faculty ; so that after eating and drinking , the Senses seem to be stupified , and the whole Body sleepy and indisposed ; and besides , after such long Fasting , People are apt to strain Nature , by taking more Meat and Drink than she can bear . Therefore a Mean is safest in all things ; for if any refrain from Food too long , the Action of the Stomach is so vigorous , and its attractive Faculty so powerful , that it preys on the natural Spirits and radical Moisture , so that you shall then find a very imperfect Appetite ; whence comes that common Saying — I have out-fasted my self ; or , My Stomach is gone . For the strength and perfection of the Palate and Stomach consists in the strength and vigor of the Spirits and radical Moisture ; therefore both superfluous eating and drinking , and also immoderate fasting , do generate Diseases , and cause Indispositions both in the Body and Mind : Therefore it is not so commendable , nor so healthy to make but one Meal in twenty four hours , as to make two moderate Meals in that space ; for otherwise there is apt to be too great an Emptiness , and too eager an Hunger , which makes People give themselves such a freedom of eating , as thereby the Vessels a●e stretched by the great quantities of Food , which makes such have great Bellies , and prove fat and gross : But though they will eat but once a day , yet many of them that are able to come by it , do give themselves the liberty of drinking lusty Evening-draughts , which do so stupifie the Senses , and heat the Blood , and furr the Passages ; so that it is no wonder that they are not prepared for a Breakfast . In a word , there is nothing so safe , nothing so pleafant as Temperance , and to observe proper times and feasons for eating and drinking , and keeping within the bounds of what is necessary , both in quantity and quality : And this we must aver , That as the world goes , few there are that hurt their Health with Fasting , in comparison of those Multitudes that destroy themselves by Superfluities : nor is it so dangerous a consequence , if any competent care be taken . It is also to be observed , That all kinds of Food ill prepared , is hurtful , and apt to forward those Windy Distempers ; for any Food that is too much or too little drest , or under or over-prepared , is prejudicial to the Health ; but over-prepared is the more hurtful of the two ( unless where it is very much too little done ; ) for over-preparation , be it of what you will , does in a great measure destroy the brisk , lively Spirits , which renders such Food of a heavy , dull , gross Nature and Operation ; so that it cannot administer such proper Nourishment , nor can the natural heat of the Stomach draw such pure Spirits from it , as otherwise it would yield ( for it cannot give what it has not . ) 'T is therefore a great Error , as to Health , to overprepare Food , as the custom of some is , viz. to boil Flesh so long till 't is ready to fall to pieces ; which many do , because the Broth should draw forth all the strength and vertue ; also , they boil it in but small quantity of Water , with the Pot or Vessel covered , by which means the Broth loseth its proper and natural Complexion , and becomes of a dull reddish Colour , mixt with black , which is very pernicious both to those that are in health , and such as are already sickly ; but especially , for weak consumptive people , whom Physicians generally order to eat of such Pottages ; for their natural Heats being weak , and Spirits low , these unnatural Preparations , & gross Foods do further the growth of their Distempers ; for all such Pottages have lost their pure spirituous parts , and volatile vertues in the preparation , and are loathsom to Nature , especially to weak people , because , by the small quantity of Water , long boiling , and the grosness of such Flesh , the lively Vertues and Tiuctures are destroyed ; and therefore such Goods lose their natural Colour , and fragrant Sent , and become strong and fulsome ; for no preparation ought to be continued any longer than the crude body be opened , and the gross matter digested ; for if it be continued longer , then the pure spirituous parts will evaporate . The Intention of kinds of Preparation , is , to digest the phlegmatick gross Parts , that thereby the spiritual Vertues may he set at liberty ; but then , if the Preparation be continued , your Fire will serve you as the Celestial Fire , viz. the Sun and Elements , do the Husband-man , when he makes his Hay , or the Malster his Malt ; for first , the Sun exhales the gross Body , and phlegmatick Parts of the Grass or Herbs , and sets the Spirit at liberty , which perfumes the whole Field with most delectable Odors ; but if this Hay be continued too long in the Sun and open Air , its spirituous Quality will also be exhaled ; and then it will become like Salt that hath lost its savour , good for little but the Dunghil . The very same is to be understood in all Preparations of Food ; for it hath rarely been known that any such gross , over prepared Broths ever did any good to such consumptive People , but rather the contrary ; for all Flesh ought to be boiled in plenty of good Water , ( and River-Water is best , ) and quickly done , even to a point , and the Broth ought to be thin , with a brisk , pleasant smell and taste , and the Flesh of a whitish colour ; such Broths , if well prepared , and the Flesh be good , will perfume the whole Room where they are . The very same is to be understood in all other boiled Foods ; as , Herbs , Roots , or Grains , be they of what sort they will , being thus naturally ordered , they will in their kind be brisk and acceptable to the Stomach , easie of Concoction , and breed good Blood , and pure Spirits ; but the common Food , and ways of Preparation , which most prescribe for sick or weakly People , are so fulsome , and strong , that the frequent eating of them is enough to make well-people sick ; it being no unusual thing for Physicians , and others , to order such Food for weak or sickly People , as they themselves , or any others that are in perfect Health , cannot endure to eat or drink ; so that the Change is much for the worse : which is much to be pitied , That Ignorance and Blindness should so possess Peoples Hearts . This I speak and write from that Understanding which the Lord of all things hath given me , in discharge of my Duty to my Brethren and Fellow-Creatures . Of Fatness . Fatness is very comely in Men and Women , when it doth not exceed the Medium , nor proceed from Idleness and Intemperance in Meats , Drinks , or Exercises . Some Men are from their natural Constitutions more apt to be Fat than others ; especially those in whom the sweet Quality is strong ; such as are the Sanguine-Flegmatick , Sanguine-Cholerick , Sanguine-Melancholy , and who are of pleasant , merry Dispositions , much inclined to Delights , but not so much to Action , as those that have the astringent , or bitter Qualities predominant ; nor are their Spirits so vigorous , or natural Heats so sharp ; and therefore their Meats and Drinks make more Humors , because the Action of the Stomach is not so strong ; neither is its attractive Faculty so powerful , so that a smaller quantity of Food does sustain them , than does others . But as these sort of People are apt to increase in Flesh and Fatness , so also do their Inclinations increase to Drink which seems more grateful to them than others , because their Heats are not so strong to concoct Food as other men's are ; hut Drink being of an easie concoction , and of a pleasant , chearing Quality , which such People delight in , having a Simile with their Natures , they take more delight in drinking , than in eating ; especially after they are arrived to a mature Age ; and also they are very inclinable to Laughter and Merriment , by reason of the abundance of sweet Oyl in their Constitution . But fat People do much differ ; some are more lively , strong , active , and long-liv'd than others ; for where the Phlegmatick Property of Nature is strong , and joyned in the Government with the Sanguine , or Sweet Quality , they are apt to grow very fat and corpulent , being slow of motion , and of dull , heavy disposition , inclined to an easie , soft Life , and to drink much ; their Fires , and natural Heats being but weak , there is not a perfect Concoction made of the Food and Drinks , but every thing tends to generate abundance of gross Phlegmatick Iuices , which swell all the Body , and Members thereof . If the bitter Quality be powerful , and share in Dominion with the Sanguine , it makes Persons merry and brisk ; but not so cumbersomly Fat and Phlegmy as the former ; because here the Natural Heats are stronger , consequently they have greater Stomachs , better Appetites , and are given more to Action , esteemed good jolly Companions ; many of them will speak well , and boldly ; they are of strong Constitutions , but great Drinkers , which oft-times wounds their Health . When the Astringent Quality is Co-partner with the Sweet , it gives People full-bodied , and fleshy , but not fat ; of healthy Constitutions , but not so pleasant-humour'd , or merry as the former : Many of this sort , are both great Drinkers and Eaters too , being inclined to Intemperances . But if Temperance , Cleanness , and proper Exercises were observed , with due Food and Drinks , there would be but very few People over-fat , let them be of what Constitution or Complexion they will ; it being an easie Matter in the beginning , to prevent it ; but after Persons are grown very fat , it is more difficult to contract Nature , and the Vessels ; yet it may well be done , but not without some Trouble . The best way to prevent Fatness in the beginning , and also to abate it , are , 1. Instead of Morning-Draughts of strong Drink , to drink or eat a Pint or more of thin , brisk Water-Grewel , light-boiled , or such as some call half-boyl'd , with only a little Butter , Bread , and Salt , but not too much Butter ; and then to walk , or use some proper Exercise for several hours . 2. Be sure let your Dinner be moderate ; not to gratifie the pleasure of the Palate . 3. Such People ought not to drink between Meals . 4. Then at Night , return again to your Water-Grewel . 5. Instead of your strong Drink and Wine , let your Drink at Meals be no stronger than Nine Shillings Beer . 6. They ought to exercise themselves in the open cold Air , which will wonderfully sharpen the Appetite , and strengthen the Stomach , and extend the Passages thereof , which in most fat People , are too narrow ; for through the abundance of gross Phlegm , they are apt to be furr'd and stopp'd : Therefore fat People cannot eat such Quantities as lean will do : They are also more short-breath'd , and sooner sweat , and are tired ; for where there is such superfluity of Flesh , the Spirit becomes weak , and more impure ; beside , so much Flesh is of it self heavy , and burthensome . For all which Inconveniencies , overmuch Fatness is to be avoided as much as in one lies ; which is best , and indeed can only be done by these Rules of Temperance , just now recited . Suppose a Man were to seek for Fat Men and Women , would he go into Country Villages , and poor small Towns , among Plough-men and Shepherds ? Scoggin sought more wisely , when he look'd for an Hare on the top o' th house . No , no , such a Man's Errand would lie in great Cities , and Market-Towns , where there is store of strong Liquors and Idleness , This all fat People ought to consider , and not to excuse themselves , as many of them do , by saying , 'T is all one , we may eat , drink , and do what we will , we shall be fat ; and such like silly Tattle ; having no more understanding of themselves , or the Nature of things , than Swine have , who are bathing themselves in the Mire , and eating themselves fat in the Sty . CHAP. XIV . Of Flesh , and its operation on the Body and Mind ; That the common eating thereof , does awaken the wrathful Nature in Mankind , &c. THough we have before in several places of this Treatise , occasionally mentioned Flesh , and that vulgar eating thereof is prejudicial , yet we esteem it a matter of such Importance , as deserves to be particularly and distinctly treated of in a Chapter by it self . For there is greater Evil and Misery attends Mankind , by killing , hurrying , and oppressing his Fellow-Creatures , and eating their Flesh , and that without distinction , than is generally apprehended or imagined . Man's strong Inclinations after Flesh , and his making so light and small a matter of killing and oppressing the inferior Creatures , does manifest what Principle has got the Dominion in him ; for had Man continued in the pure Law of God , and lived in the power of the humane Nature , and followed the Voice and Dictates of the Divine Principle , which he was created to live in , he would have been far from oppressing , killing , or eating the Flesh and Blood of the Beasts , which was not allowed him in the beginning ; for Man was created to be obedient , and to live in the power of the Divine Principle ; and therefore was put into a Garden amongst innocent Herbs , Fruits , and Grains , which were intended and ordained for his Food ; and was forbidden that Fruit in which was manifest Good and Evil , which should not have been awakened and made manifest in Men ; for all Hurrying , Hunting , Oppressing , and Killing , be it in what kind you will , arises from one only Ground , viz. from the wrathful Powers of Nature . Now Herbs , &c. have an innocent Original , and no Power to awaken , or kindle any other Properties but what are like themselves ; but the Beasts are equally endued with Wrath , Revenge , Hate , Envy , Love , and indeed with all the wrathful and sensual Passions : For which cause their Flesh , ( especially when unclean , ) and Blood was so strictly forbidden by the holy Ancients ; for the humane Nature ought not to have incorporated it self with the bestial ; otherwise God would have indulged man the freedom of eating of Flesh in his first estate , since he loves it so well ; but on the contrary , the Diet prescribed him , was this , — Every green Herb shall be unto thee for Meat : There was no mention made , or thoughts of Flesh. 2. It should be considered , That Flesh and Fish cannot be eaten without violence , and doing that which a man would not be done unto , and making destruction of God's Creatures , which are generally more profitable living than dead , ( as Cows and Sheep , which are the Creatures most eaten . ) Now killing , not only of those of our own kind , but also of any other Creatures , came in with the Transgression ; for Man was not made to be a Tyrant unto the rest of God's Creatures , nor to live in the wrathful , bestial Nature ; but in love and meekness to have dominion over all things for their good , and to maintain Unity and Concord ; which can never be done , unless he live in the Spirit of Love and Meekness ; whence ariseth that noble Vertue , Compassion ; which opposeth all Violence , as much as the Night doth the Day . This all the wise Ancients understood ; but more especially the most learned and illuminate Prophet Moses , who did use all possible Means , both Natural and Divine , to bring the Children of Israel off from eating of Flesh ; as appears first in their forty years Travel in the Wilderness , during which , they were not commonly admitted to eat Flesh ; as appears by their Murmurings after the Flesh-pots of Egypt ; which , when the Lord heard , he said unto Moses , Give them Flesh. Moses answers , Shall we kill our Flocks and Herds , or where shall we have Flesh to feed this Multitude ? Which shews , they did not use to kill and eat the Beasts in their March towards the Holy Land ; for if they did , why then do they complain for want of it ? 'T is true , the Lord gave them Flesh ; but it was in his Wrath , and to their Destruction : For they had awakened the Centre of Wrath , which provoked the Lord ; ( for Flesh cannot be otherwise procured ; ) but this they ought not to have done : for the Lord had brought them out of Egypt by his mighty Power ; that is , out of the Vanity , Violence , and Oppression ; for so Egypt rightly signifies ; and the Wilderness does intimate the Path and Way of Regeneration , that leads all that persevere in Self-denial , to the holy eternal Land of Peace , that flows with Milk and Honey : Therefore none ought to look back or murmur , that are once got through the Red-Sea , lest they fall , as the Children of Israel did , and become like Lot's Wife , Monuments of Vengeance . 3. All kind of Violence , whether towards our own kind , or upon inferior Creatures , and whether little or much , does wholly arise from the awakened Wrath of God in Nature ; and from the very same Root does proceed all Back-biting , Envy , Strife , Rancor , and Contention , and whatever else a Man can think of , that is of that Nature ; there being but one only Foundation that does generate Discord and Inequality amongst all Creatures ; and whenever any man does hurt , oppress , kill , or speak evil of any other Creature , it proceeds from this original Spring of Wrath. On the other side , from the Divine Principle of God's eternal Light and Love , doth arise and flow , as from an inexhaustible Fountain , all Friendly Qualities , Love , Good-Will , Meek , innocent Compassion , courteous Dispositions and Inclinations , and whatever can be called , or deserves the Name of Good. No man did ever strike , oppress , use violence to , or kill either Man or Beast from the excitement and power of this friendly Principle ; for all Contention , Strife , and Cruelty , is as contrary to the Nature and Operation of this Principle , as Light is to Darkness ; but from this Divine Fountain in Man , does proceed that great Law of doing unto all Creatures , as a man would be done unto ; which cannot therefore admit , that any Violences or Injuries should be done unto God's Creatures , either superior or inferior . This our great and blessed Law-giver , Iesus Christ , did demonstrate , whilst he was in the humane Property ; for all his Practices , Examples , Discourses , and Preachings unto Mankind , were tending to lead them into Peace , Meekness , and Unity ; and therefore he said unto Peter , Put up thy Sword , for my Kingdom is not of this World ; that is , My Kingdom does not consist in Wrath , Enmity , Oppression , Cutting off of Ears , and Killing ; but in Peace , Love , and Concord : So likewise have all the holy and enlightned Men in all Ages , both by speaking and writing , declared against Violence , and endeavoured all that in them lay , to draw all men to Unity ; which was the first state of Man , and which he lost by suffering his Will and Desire to enter into Violence and Inequality , viz. into dark Wrath ; which presently causeth uneven operations in his Soul , which our Saviour Christ came to seek and to save , that is , to draw the Soul of Man back again out of Egypt , through the Red Sea , and Wilderness , into the Land of Promise , a state of Innocency and Unity . For except Man do again depart from all Violence , and from under the Government of the Spirit of Oppression , and comes to know somewhat of the operation of the Divine Principle , he cannot be happy in this World , nor in that which is to come . This some of the Indian and Ethnick Philosophers seem to have been sensible of , when they used all pains and diligence to bring those Savages from Cruelties and Inhumanities , viz. from all Violence , and killing the inferior Beasts of the Field , and prohibiting them from eating their Flesh and Blood ; for Man being more highly graduated than any of the Beasts , as being indued with divine and humane Wisdom , and the Nature of all things , viz. with the Treasures both of Time and Eternity , ought not by any means enter with his Desires and Will into the savage Nature of wild Beasts ; neither should the depraved Property of Beasts be awakened in Man ; for whatsoever he joyns himself unto , or communicates with , whether it be Meats , Drinks , Employments , or Communications , that very thing , be it what it will , shall powerfully impose the true property of its Spirit on the Man , by way of Simile . Were not this so , the wise Ancients would not have made such distinctions between clean and unclean Creatures ; neither would they so strictly have commanded , that the Blood should be destroyed by Fire , or buried in the Earth , neither would the Apostle Paul have said , That evil Communication corrupts good Manners ; that is , evil Company , or the evil Spirit in ill Men , does awaken and strengthen its Likeness in the good Man , and causes the divine Principle and Voice of Wisdom to withdraw , or become captivated . And it seems our Fore-Fathers , even in this Nation , have in some degree considered the great force and power of the wrathful , savage Nature of the Beasts , and that Men by accustomed violence towards them , and their communication amongst slaughter'd Animals , were rendered rash , precipitate , fierce , and cruel , and as it were , destitute of Humanity ; and therefore by our ancient Laws , and the immemorial Customs of this Realm , Butchers , and such People as are of Killing-Employments , are not to be Iury men , as being esteemed neither fit nor capable Judges of Life and Death : And in the common Proverb , if a man be fierce , cruel , and subjected to the Spirit of Violence , we say , Such a one is like a Butcher . Nor can we but observe from daily experience , that all sorts of People that are of rude , robustick Employments , and communicate much with fierce and strong Beasts , as Bear-wards , Hostlers , Drovers , and the like , are generally headstrong , rash , fierce , surly People , and appear evidently to participate of the brutish Nature of those Animals with whom they converse . And as the Sheep is one of the most innocent of Beasts , so Shepherds have in all Ages been celebrated for the most harmless and best-humour'd of Men ; and therefore Governors , both Temporal and Spiritual , are recommended unto us under the Name of Pastors or Shepherds of the People . 4. That killing , and eating the Flesh and Blood of both clean and unclean Beasts , was not in use from the beginning , is clear from the Second Chapter of Genesis ; therefore we should consider when , and by whom the same was introduced . And first , we must note , That the first Beasts that were killed , were not Cows and Sheep , and the like useful Creatures , whose Lives are far more profitable than their Deaths ; but wild savage Beasts , and Birds of Prey , the countenance of whose Lives was prejudicial unto Mankind , and the rest of the Creatures ; nor were they hunted and slain to be eaten ; but to free Men and other Creatures from danger . But after a little use and custom of Kiillng , the Spirit of Wrath and Fierceness , by the fierce Action in the Killer , and the revengeful Spirits proceeding from the Creature killed , both concurring , was so powerfully stirred , awakened , and strengthened , that Killing became as familiar as gathering of Fruit ; and the unclean brutish Nature encreasing , they could not only kill without remorse , but began to count it a delight and pleasure , and then they could eat the Flesh , and lap up the Blood of their Fellow-Creatures , which they had slaughtered , as freely , and as greedily as Dogs and Lions , or any other wild Beasts could do it ; for by continual use of Killing and Violence , the very same savage , wild Nature of those cruel Beasts of Prey were become predominant in Men ; so that now , they could not only butcher , and eat the Flesh of Beasts with pleasure and delight ; but they could also , without remorse , torture , and slay those of their own kind ; and in some parts proceeded to eat them too , as the Canibals , who feed on Humane Flesh , and will most savourly gnaw a Shoulder of a Man , a Breast of a Woman , or the Haunches of a Child , and think it altogether as sweet and wholsome as my Lord does his Venison , or my Lady her Partridge . 5. It is to be noted , That if Mankind had continued in its primitive State of Innocency and Unity , there would have been no Hatred , Strife , Oppression , Fighting , or Killing one another , no Slaughtering of Beasts , Fish , or Birds , nor Eating their Flesh and Blood ; for that was not permitted until Man had immersed his Will into the warful , savage , unclean Nature of the worst of Beasts : For there is no Creature in the World that has any desire to eat Flesh and Blood , and tear the Creatures to pieces with violence , except those in whom the fierce , wrathful , savage Nature does predominate . And therefore after Man had awakened the Wrath , and entred into the cruel Spirit of Killing , the wise Prophets imposed special Commands not to eat the Flesh and Blood of such Creatures ; as , Swine , Dogs , Bears , Wolves , &c. But can we believe that Man was at first made like those savage , unclean Beasts of Prey , or indeed worse ? For so now he is , and does exceed in Uncleanness and Cruelty the worst of Beasts , as much as a Spar-Hawk exceeds a Titmouse ; for indeed Man is indued with all Properties and Qualities ; but the Wrath , and evil , unclean Nature ought not to have been manifested ; but the divine and humane Nature should have governed his Life ; but instead thereof , the same are now , as it were , hid in Man , and the cruel , fierce Spirit does predominate ; which makes him so near affinity with all wild Beasts , and Birds of Prey , and to desire such Food as they do ; for that Nature that is chief in the government of any Creature 's Life , be it either good or evil , clean or unclean , will stir up desires of Food suitable and correspondent therewith . This is plain in several sorts of Beasts , as those in whom the simple , harmless , clean Nature claims Dominion , delight in a like clean and harmless Food , and their Natures are satisfied therewith ; not but that there is an unclean Nature , and fierce Quality in the cleanest and best of Beasts , capable in some degree of being awakened ; for 't is not impossible by degrees and use , to teach and bring Sheep , Cows , Horses , and many other Creatures , to eat Flesh , and drink Wine , and strong Drinks ; and after a little custom , those unclean , fierce Qualities will grow so powerful , that they will not only eat and drink such things ; but also desire them ; for all Creatures have one only foundation ; and each Particular contains the true Nature of the whole , only the Qualities and Properties of Nature do differ ; so in one , one Quality is strong , in another , the contrary ; which makes that great Variation which we see and admire amongst the Creatures , as to their Dispositions , Shapes , Forms , Tones , Sounds , &c. And hence proceeds the possibility of altering , changing , strengthening , and awakening of Dispositions , Inclinations , and Qualities in each Creature . This was the grand cause in the beginning , why Man was prohibited the eating of Flesh , and Killing , and why Moses in the Wilderness did not permit the Children of Israel to kill and eat Flesh , during their forty years Travel ; for the Wilderness represents this World , which all must pass through , and deny themselves the Vanities , oppression , and Violences thereof , or else they cannot enter the Holy Land , but must fall in the Wilderness ; for those that have , through the divine Power of the Lord , escaped the hands of the Egyptians , and are got clear of the Land of Bondage , and have left Pharaoh and his Host swallowed up in the Red Sea , ought not to long or lust after the Violences and Flesh Pots of the Land of Vanity , but to continue in the Spirit of Meekness , Love , Humanity , Self-denial , and to do unto all Creatures as a man would be done unto himself ; which is the true Path of the New Life , that leads into the right-hand-way , and goes to the heavenly City . For those wise Philosophical Seers into the divine and humane Mysteries , were sensible of the manifold Evils that attended Mankind by his joyning himself with the unclean Beasts , and by killing , and eating their Flesh , which did so powerfully-awaken and strengthen the inhumane Properties in Man , that he by degrees became delighted in all kind of violent , cruel , bloody Actions , not only to the inferiour Creatures , but also to those of his own kind ; whence Cruelties and Murthers have been so mightily encouraged , that scarce any have been counted of Noble Birth and Blood , but such as have been famous Man slayers , and destroyed many of their own Species . Some of the Eastern-Sages , from a true understanding of the Law of God in Nature , declared against these Inhumanities , and sanguinary Customs ; as Pythagoras and his Followers , to this day , in some Parts of the East-Indies ; who , by their good Examples , and innocent Lives , do draw off many of the Savage People from the same , to a more pure and peaceable course of Life : For , First , They taught them the ill Consequences of Oppression , Violences , Killing , and Eating the Flesh of their Inferiours , and making themselves the Sepulchres of the dead Bodies of Beasts : And when they had done this , then it followed , that they would not strike , harm , oppress , or kill those of their own kind ; for he that does scruple to use violence unto , or kill a Sheep or Cow , will , to be sure , be far from hurting or murthering a Man. And thus for many Ages have they led peaceable and harmless Lives , in Unity and Amity with the whole Creation ; shewing all kind of Friendship and Equality , not only to those of their own Species , but to all other Creatures , hurting or enslaving none , but allowing them all those Privileges and Freedoms that the Creator had given to all the Inhabitants of the World , nor cutting off the Thred of their Lives before their appointed time : And it has been observed , that these Men , sinde their time of Love and Clemency to the Creatures , have not only been bless'd with the Goods of this World , and Dew of Heaven , far above their wild , savage Neighbours ; but also were never known to contend , oppress , fight , kill , or commit Man slaughter ; but have lived these many hundred Years in Peace and Concord with all the Creation ; whereas before they were convinced that it was an Evil to destroy , and eat the Flesh and Blood of Beasts , they made no more of killing , and oppressing Men , than a Wolf doth of devouing a Sheep , or one of our Butchers of knocking down a Cow. The very same , and far greater Advantages would come to pass amongst Christians , if they would cease from Contention ; Oppression , and ( what tends and disposes them thereunto , ) the killing of Beasts , and eating their Flesh and Blood ; and in a short time humane murthers , and devilish seuds and cruelties among each other , would abate , and perhaps scarce have a being amongst them . For Separation has greater power than most imagine , whether it be from evil or good ; for whatsoever any man separates himself from , that Property in him is presently weakned . As , suppose a man separate himself from any kind of Intemperance , Violence , or Uncleanness , and joyn himself to Vertue , then presently the wrathful , unclean Nature is weakned , and grows faint for want of its proper Food ; but on the contrary , the humane and divine Principle grows strong . Likewise , Separation does wonderfully dispel the dark Clouds of Ignorance , and makes the Understanding able to distinguish between the good and evil Principles , first in himself , and then in all other things proportionably ; but so long as men live under the power of all kind of Uncleanness , Violence , and Oppression , they cannot see any Evil therein , because the humane and divine Principles are so weak , feeble , and as it were dead , because their Counsels are continually disobey'd , and instead thereof , the Spirit of Errour is followed . For this cause , those that do not separate themselves from Uncleanness , Oppression , and the like Evils , but are contented to follow the Multitude in the Left-hand way , and resolve to continue the Religion of their Forefathers , though thereby they do but mean Custom , the greatest of Tyrants . 'T is , I say , impossible for such People ever to understand or know any thing truly , either of divine or humane Mysteries , nor can any man penetrate thereinto , except he first separate himself from all evil and unclean Ways of the Multitude , and their Customs ; for 't is the departing from Evil , and the practice of Good that crowns a Man with Wisdom , Vertue , and Understanding , and renders him capable to put the right intrinsick Value upon things , and reckon them at their true price ; for it is generally acknowledged amongst men , the highest Folly to judge of those things which they have never known , nor been experienced in : Who would ask an honest Tarpawlin-Seaman's Advice in a Law-Case , expect a Plough man should relish the Delicacies of an excellent Lesson of Musick ; or think a Cobler fit to value some curious Master-piece of Vandike , or Lilly's Painting ? So improbable it is , that men should have judgment in any Science , Art , or common Trade , if they had not separated themselves from other Matters , and applied themselves some time to such Crafts or Sciences . And yet so vain are most men , as to suppose themselves capable to judge of divine and humane Mysteries , tho' they are still hurried with the Violences , and wallow in the Uncleannesses of the Multitude , and hardly have had once in their whole Lives a serious thought about these sublime Matters , or ever applied themselves to the Practice of them . 6. By what hath been said , it may sufficiently appear , That all things are mov'd by Simile , and every particular Property of Nature , both in the Evil and Good , does eagerly hunger after such Food as is proper to maintain and nourish its own Body ; from which ground it comes to pass , that the evil and wicked Bestiality of a Nation , or particular Man , does sensibly move the Wrath of God in the outward Elements by the same way of Simile , and strengthens it powerfully , and , as it were , naturally kindling and drawing down the corrupt Nature in the Stars and Elements ; whence proceed both publick and private Calamities : On the other side , Iustice , Clemency , Ceasing from Violence and Cruelty , and walking in the friendly Way of Righteousness , Temperance and Purity , does awaken and corroborate the benevolent Influences of the Celestial Bodies , and attract Blessings and Prosperity : As witness the Iews , when they lived in the Laws of God and Nature , they were blessed with the Dew of Heaven , and the Fatness of the Earth , and with Health , and all other Benefits ; but when they broke his Commands , and ate polluted things , then was kindled the Wrath of God and Nature , and many Calamities were showered down upon them . Hence also the holy Scriptures testifie , That the Prayers of the ungodly are an abomination : God doth not hear or answer them , because they proceed from the wrathful Fountain , and have no Sympathy with the Divine Principle . But on the contrary , the Prayers and Desires of those that live in the fear of the Lord , and are guided by that divine Principle of his eternal Love and Light , are as sweet Incense in his Nostrils , and he will answer them from his Holy Hill ; for by way of Simile , they open the everlasting Doors of the Palace of Glory , and draw down , and are strengthned with the pleasant Fruits of Paradise . Thus every thing moveth towards its own Center , and powerfully attracts Matter out of all things , to nourish and maintain its own Body ; and this was the cause why the Ancients made distinctions between clean and unclean Creatures , Meats , and Communications , knowing that all things that a man doth touch , have power to make him him either better or worse . 7. Our blessed Saviour Iesus Christ saith , That Man shall answer for every idle Word : Which Saying does contain a great Mystery : So likewise we read in the Revelations , That Blessed are they that die in the Lord , they cease from their Labours , and their Works follow them . Both these Places are to be understood alike : First , Every idle Word , and also every good Word and Work do respectively proceed from two grand Fountains or Principles in Man. Now all idle and evil Thoughts , Words , Inclinations , and Dispositions , as Envy , Hatred , Back-biting , Violence , Oppression , Fighting , and Killing one another , do all proceed from the wrathful , fierce Principle , and by it are comprehended and received , as similary thereunto : On the other side , all good Words and Works arise from the Light and Grace of God , viz. from the divine Principle , which does therefore likewise receive and comprehend them . He that calleth his Brother a Fool , shall be in danger ( saith the Scripture , ) of Hell fire : The Reason is , Because every Word or Work that is framed or created from the Wrath in Man , and received by its Likenesses , if not repented of , does endanger the Soul , and is apt to precipitate the Man into the Hellish Nature ; for every Root will greedily embrace its own Fruits ; and every Word has a Key in it self to open the Gate of its own Principle , and to awaken and strengthen its own Property ; as is manifest from every Moment's Experience : Doth not the angry Words and Looks of one Man awaken the fierce Wrath in others , to whom they are directed ? The very same good Words and Works will do : A soft Answer ( says the Wise-Man ) pacifies Wrath. Every Word carries the Power of that Property or Principle that was predominant in it , or from whence it was generated ; and therefore wheresoever its Sound or Voice enters and meets its Simile , they immediately incorporate and joyn Forces , strengthening and increasing the same . If this were not so , the Apostle Paul would not have said , That Evil Communication corrupts good Manners ; nor David have avouched , With the Froward thou shalt learn Frowardness . Therefore 't is absolutely necessary for People to know somewhat of themselves , else they cannot understand from what Property or Principle each Thought , Imagination , and Word does proceed , and guard themselves accordingly . 'T is the true knowledge of God in a Man's self , that teaches Wisdom , and gives understanding of Good and Evil. 8. But there are many Thousands that hardly ever in their whole Lives do so much as enquire after that true Knowledge , which dwells essentially in Man , or mind that internal Oracle , where in Difficulties they may and ought to enquire , as the worthy Prophet David said , I will hear what the Lord will say in me : Therefore as for those that have hearkned to the Voice of Wisdom in themselves , and obtained any true Knowledge of God , they contend not about outward Forms and Modes of Religion ; for they have a more sure word of Prophecy , shining as a Light in a dark place , to which you do well to give heed ; being a guide that teacheth all Vertues , and condemneth all Vice : But on the other side , those that never turn their Eyes inward , nor regard the Voice of Wisdom , that cries in the Gate of their City , ( as the Wise Man loves to speak , ) but look abroad , and hearken after other Voices , such cannot stand alone ; they are meer Adjectives in Religion , Philosophy and Reason ; and are forced continually to lean on the Shoulders of others , and remain Darkness in themselves , as though the Lord had not given them any Salt to savour their Ways ; there being no end ( and 't were well there had been no beginning ) of Man's running after other Gods , and of worshipping of Idols ; but where the true Knowledge of God is not first attained in a Man's self , there neither can any man be satisfied with what another Man knows , because it cannot be essential to him , but may be either true or false ; because such Ear-Knowledge does not arise from the Light of a Man's Life , but is a thing accidental , foreign , and at a distance . This folding up of a Man 's own Gifts and Talents , ( which the Lord hath given every Man to profit himself withal , ) in Napkins of a supine and careless Negligence , and hiding them in the Earth , has been the chief cause of Men's running to and fro , and contending about other Mens God's , esteeming and setting up Signs , and mere Shadows , and neglecting the true Substance ; what Aristotle held , what Galen taught , what Hippocrates , or St. Augustin , or Tho. Aquinas , or twenty such noted Men have said of such or such a matter , they can tell ; but how the thing is in it self , they themselves are as blind as Bats ; and the Reason is , they are like the Old Hagg that Seneca somewhere mentions , who never put her Eyes into her Head but when she went abroad . Thus some of our silly Travellers will tell you forty Stories of France , Spain , and Italy ; but of the Rarities , the Commodities , the Manufactures , the Laws and Privileges of England , their Native Country , they are utterly ignorant . What a Madness is it for me , with toil and hazard to ramble to the Ends of the Earth , to dig in the Mines of Potosi , or pick up the glittering Dirt of Guinea , when God hath furnish'd me at home with a Soil that yields me precious Oar , much more noble and useful ? Now that these Hear-say-Men , or Book-Philosophers , called , The Learned , are as ignorant as any ( nay , commonly more than any others , ) of the true knowledge of God in themselves , appears undeniably , by their walking contrary to the Ways of Vertue , by their compelling and forcing others to their Self-invented Belly-Forms , that are utterly destitute of the Life of Truth , who do commit the greatest Outrages against God , and against his People ; but chiefly the Learned : It is they that set the Rabble on to torment the innocent and simple-hearted , and all such as are of contrāry Forms to themselves : All which are the Effects of the awakened fierce Wrath , and does declare that the Devil and Hellish Powers do predominate in their hearts , and that Love , Mercy , Meckness , and doing as a Man would be done unto , have no being in them ; and it will be so as long as Men prefer Vanity , Tradition , and their Belly , before the Man that told the Woman of Samaria all things that ever she did ; which is Iesus Christ , the true Light , that enlightneth every Man that cometh into the World. It was not therefore without deep Understanding , that the more prudent in all Ages did esteem the knowledge of themselves before all other Attainments , and recommended it as a thing principally necessary to every Man ; for all that do know the Power of God in themselves , and are guided by the Voice of Wisdom , and live in the friendly Love of God , have abandoned , and utterly exiled all Hatred , Pride , Malice , Back-biting , Fighting , Killing , Violence , and Oppression whatsoever , either of Man or Beast , and in them meek , innocent Dispositions and Inclinations do reign , using and doing unto all Creatures as one would be used and done unto ; for Violence , and all kind of Cruelty and Oppression is as contrary to such Natures , as Darkness to Light. And we may affirm , That never any Men have harmed , oppressed , killed , or used any kind of violence to any innocent Creature from the excitement or power of this Divine Principle . Therefore let every one consider this ; they that find Hatred , Envy , the Spirit of Oppression and Violence to dwell in them , may certainly conclude themselves in the fierce wrath of God ; for all such Dispositions and Inclinations do proceed from that dark Root of Bitterness , which is all contrary to the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Great is the whole Mystery of Godliness ; but especially Christ manifest in the Flesh , viz. That the eternal Love and Light of God should dwell essentially in man ; for after Man suffered his Will and Desires to enter into Vanity and Bestiality , the Lord said , It is not good nor safe for Man to be alone ; but promised him , the Seed of the Woman , the holy Principle of divine Light and Love , which will bruise the head of the Serpent in all that adhere to , and follow its Counsel ; that is , it will destroy the works of the Devil , and then all Violence and Oppression departs from that Man ; and that Saying is fulfilled , The Lord is my Strength , my Safeguard , and Portion : And every Man thus qualified , is taught of God ; Iehovah is his Tutor , and his Guide , the mighty Counsellor ; so that he will no longer run after other Gods , nor contend for any thing but Truth and Righteousness , and to live a sober , harmless , innocent Life in the sight of God and Man , and doing unto all as he would be done unto . And such purified Souls amidst all the Hurries , ( the Storms and Agitations of the World round about them , ) do securely ride at Anchor in a blissful Calm , and are satisfied with their Portions , and know their Centre , and to them all Contention ceaseth , and there is Peace on Earth as in Heaven . 9. There is no necessity for Mankind to oppress , burry , and kill the Beasts , and eat their Flesh and Blood , as many ignorantly affi●m ; crying out , What shall we do with them ? They will over run us , and eat us up , if we do not kill and eat them . But I answer ; That there is no sort of Cattel but is otherwise of use besides to be eaten ; and Horses are not eaten , and yet what Nation complains of having too many of them ? But some will say , Many of them are killed by Violence and Oppression ; which is confessed : But if there were no Horses destroyed that way , but used moderately and gently ; yet there would be no fear of having too many of them : the like may be said of other innocent Creatures . 10. The eating of Flesh , and killing of Creatures for that purpose , was never begun , nor is now continued for want or necessity , or for the Maintenance of Health ; but chiefly because the high , lofty Spirit of Wrath and Sensuality had gotten the Dominion in Man , over the meek Love , and innocent , harmless Nature , and being so rampant , could not be satisfied , except it had a proportionable Food ; and of all others , Flesh has the greatest affinity , as is mentioned before . And if all Men would refrain eating of Flesh , there would be no cause for them to complain for want of Food ; for the Almighty has in all particulars been gracious and bountiful unto all Creatures ; but more especially unto Mankind , for whom he hath spread a plentiful Table ; furnishing the whole Earth with a great multitude of variety of Herbs , Fruits , Grains , and Seeds , fit for Food , which do afford a Nourishment of a most excellent Substance , and far beyond Flesh ; as it doth appear by all that have applied themselves to such harmless , innocent Foods , especially in decayed Natures , and sick , as all with one voice consent , as well the Learned ( as they call them ) as the Simple : For when People are ill , and Nature weakned with Distempers , they all advise them to Pottages , Grewels , and various sorts of Foods made of Herbs , Fruits , and Grains ; but no Flesh must come near them during their Weakness . Now if these Vegetables and Fruits do afford such an excellent nourishment , and have such a natural and secret Power to help and recover Nature , and restore lost Health and Srength , how much more then shall they maintain and preserve it when it is restored ? But Flesh was never desired because Men found any defect in the nourishment of Vegetables , and the like ; but because it hath a Simile with that unclean Nature , and fierce Wrath that now became predominant in Man And for that Reason , the wise Ancients used so much diligence to persuade the common People from the frequent eating of it ; especially without distinction , as well because it cannot be procured without Violence , nor be eaten without being more or less infected with the Sensual and Beastial Nature ; for those fierce , revengeful Spirits that proceed from the Creature , when the painful Agonies of Death are upon it , though they make no noise , nor can externally be seen , heard , or felt ; yet they fail not to accompany the Flesh , and especially the Blood , and have their internal operation , and leave their impressions on those that eat it , by a secret , hidden way of Simile , the same whereby the Loadstone draws Iron ; there being naturally a most attractive Faculty or Vertue in each thing , especially the Animal Life , to seek out , and incorporate with its Simile . This being God's way in Nature , to move all things by Sympathy and Antipathy ; the one by its attractive power draws all things that have any Affinity with it self ; and the other dissipates all things by a contrary opposite will. And thus Men are ( not seldom ) drawn into several Inconveniences before they are sensible of it ; for Nature leaveth the Ways of Sense and Understanding , and goes on in her common Course ; there is no consideration whether it be good or bad ; but every one of her Qualities and Properties does its own work , and keeps its own way ; so that into whatsoever Quality Man does immerse his Will and Desires , that Form or Property is presently awakened , and does forcibly draw all things that have Affinity with its Nature ; by which it becomes through use and practice , very strong and powerful : As , those that fear the Lord , and live soberly and temperately , draw Vertue and Goodness out of all things , which does wonderfully strengthen and support them ; and on the contrary , those that give their Wills up unto Ungodliness , attract Poyson out of all things , which does also increase and strengthen the evil Nature in them . These are the two Tinctures that have power to open all Bodies , whether Vegetable , Mineral , or Animal , and to transmute and draw all things into their own Property respectively . Did Men understand or consider this Power of Nature , they would not so much desire Flesh without distinction , nor make it their common Food ; but rather , with the wise Ancients , would have Herbs , Seeds , and Grains in high reputation ; not only for that they maintain Men in health , strength , and agility of Body and Mind , and attribute to long Life , far beyond all Flesh ; but also , because such things have a true innocent Original , being endued with neither Love , Hate , Fear , Joy , nor Sorrow , but void of all Passions , Sense , and Perturbations ; and therefore not capable of enkindling any such thing in Man , or awaking ought but what is like themselves : Thus in their own kind they are harmless and innocent ; but Flesh is altogether the contrary , and cannot be procured without oppressing the Way of God in Nature , and causing the Creatures to sigh , groan , and cry to be delivered into the glorious Liberty of the Sons of God ; and this keeps the fierce Wrath in motion , and causeth it to break forth upon them in many and great Calamities . 11. When the Scribes and Pharisees , Mat. 15. 17. accused the Disciples for eating of Bread with unwashen hands , our Saviour Christ tells them , It is not that which goeth into the Mouth defileth a Man ; but that which proceedoth out of the Heart . This the Disciples did not understand ; and therefore ask'd Jesus , What it did mean ? Who answers , Out of the Heart proceed evil Thoughts , Murthers , Adulteries , and all kind of Intemperances . Now if the Fountain be bitter , the Streams cannot be sweet ; if the Heart be defiled , then all the Thoughts , Words , and Works are also defiled ; but if the Heart be clean , then the Cogitations and Desires are so also ; for every man becomes either clean or unclean , as he consents to , or suffers his Will to enter into the good or evil Principle in himself . Therefore no Meats , Drinks , Words , or Works have any power to defile a Man , so long as his Heart , that is , his Thoughts and Desires are clean ; for then from thence can proceed no inclination or disposition to any outward thing , but what is like it self ; for if the divine Power and Humanity ●o predominate in a Man's heart , it attracteth such Matter out of all things , as is capable to increase and nourish its own Body ; for no Man ever did , or can observe the Rules of Cleanness , Sobriety , and Temperance , before there was an inward Work and Reformation in the Heart ; for all Men are first defiled in Imaginations and Desires , before they bring it forth into Action . Gluttony , Drunkenness , and all kinds of Superfluity proceed from a contaminated Heart ; which , if it were clean , then Thoughts , Words , Meats or Drinks , Quantity or Quality would not fully him ; because his Desires would be bounded , and contented with what was needful ; but when a man is corrupted within , there is no end of wanton , vain , supersluous thoughts , and desires after those things that are needful , nor indeed convenient for him . There is a twofold manner of Defilement ; 1st . By Imagination and Desires . 2ly . The putting those Thoughts and Desires into Action ; which is ten-fold a greater Evil than the first . All good Men that have desired to live in Self denial , know this to be true ; fortho ' evil Thoughts and Desires will frequently obtrude themselves ; yet if a Man stands upon his Guard , they are easily cut off in the Bud , because they are not yet grown up to a Substance , and therefore do not bring the Soul into such a horror as attends her when a Man pursues his evil thoughts , and brings them into action . In Man are the two grand Fountains , viz. Good and Evil ; and the Scripture saith , The Right-hand way , and the Left. Now which-soever of these two Principles do carry the uppermost dominion in the Heart of Man , from thence are generated , and do proceed the predominant Thoughts , Desires , Words , and Works . This is clearly manifested in all other Creatures , as well as in Man ; ( though in a more especial manner , in the humane Nature : ) For do we not see , that according to the prevailing Property in each Beast , suitable are their Inclinations ; if it be the Sanguine , Friendly Property of Nature , then such Beasts are tame , and easily tractable , of friendly Dispositions , and pleasant Forms and Shapes ; and all such Beasts were by the old Seers , and Men of God , pronounced clean ; and they desire not , nor incline to any other sort of Food but what is clean , innocent , and of a proportionable Nature to themselves ? On the other side , those Beasts in whom the unclean , fierce , wrathful , inhumane Nature has dominion , their very Shapes and Forms shew Fierceness , their Countenances are terrible and frightful to behold , and their Inclinations are both cruel and unclean ; they are not satisfied with innocent Food , as other Beasts are ; because such harmless things have little or no Simile with the Ferocity of their Nature , which prompts them to tear and hurry their Fellow-Creatures , and eat their Flesh and Blood ; as , Dogs , Cats , Swine , Bears , Lions , Tigers , Foxes , and many others ; divers of which our Saviour likened Men unto , because he saw that the same fierce , unclean , savage Nature of such Beasts did rule in them ; and thence the said Men were more fierce , ravenous , and hungry after Blood , and all other Uncleanness , than the very Beasts of Prey themselves ; so greatly mischievous is the depraved Nature of Mankind , when he suffers his Will and Desires to enter into , and live in the power of the Wrath of God in Nature . But to eat Bread , or any other Food with unwashen hands , ( provided the Food be clean , and not too much in Quantity , nor of a contrary Quality , ) is no manner of Uncleanness , but a vain Superstition in the Pharisees , who did love to make clean the Outside of the Cup , but did not matter the Inside ; whereas the Work of Christ was to clean the Inward Man from every unclean Thought , Desire , and Inclination . And when this cleansing state can be witnessed by any Man , then no Meats , Drinks , nor other unclean thing can enter into him , so as to defile him ; because his Desires thereunto are cut off in the Bud , and utterly mortified ; for no Man ever did commit any Uncleanness or Intemperance , but first the contrivance thereof was in the Heart ; nay , when Men first think to commit an Uncleanness or Violence , there does oft-times happen in the Heart great controversie or strugling between the divine Principle , and the Wrath ; and which of these two does prevail and get the dominion , accordingly the Man acts , or forbears ; and sometimes it comes to pass , that in this inward contest , the evil Imaginations are cut off in the Bud , that is , when the divine Principle prevails , and will not susser them to proceed into Act , and attain unto a Substance ; but when the wrathful Nature gets the Day , then every unclean Thought and Desire is accomplish'd , and becomes a substantial Evil. Thus you see the grand Root and Cause of all kinds of Vertue and Vice , is inward , not outward ; each Man's Fruits manifest from what Principle they derive their Birth : The external Cleanness and Vertue is only a manifestation of what Property does reign in the Soul : Therefore the first step to Vertue , Cleanness , Sobriety , and Temperance , is to turn the eye of the understanding inward , and there examine & try what kind of Spirit rules in the Heart . This Knowledge of a Man's self , and to distinguish between the good and evil Principle of Nature in himself , is of absolute necessity to every person ; for he that cannot distinguish the two Seeds , viz. that of the Woman , and that of the Serpent within , can never be able to judge of Good or Evil , Clean , and the contrary without . A true inward Knowledge goes before Self denial : he that cannot distinguish the Properties of his own Nature , cannot know what to deny himself of , or what to embrace : But happy is the Man that getteth Wisdom , and findeth Understanding . 12. We read in the Acts of the Apostles , chap. 10. That the Apostle Peter had a Vision ; in which appeared before him all manner of Beasts , Fowls , and Creeping Things , both clean and unclean ; and the Lord said unto him , Arise Peter , kill and eat : Who answered , Lord , I have not at any time eaten any thing that is common and unclean And the Lord said , What I have cleansed , call thou not unclean : Then Peter arose , and said , Of a Truth , the Lord is no respecter of Persons , neither to Jew , nor Gentiles ; Bond , nor Free , but every one that feareth God , and worketh Righteousness , is respected and accepted of him . This Vision was intended , not so much to shew the lawfulness of eating clean Flesh , or the contrary ; but to convince Peter , and to take off the Scruple he had touching preaching the Gospel to the Uncireumcised , or Gentiles ; for in the Vision was rep resented to him all kinds of Creatures , as well poysonous creeping Vermin , as clean and unclean Beasts ; which was a true Figure of the unregenerate state of Mankind and how the bestial , fierce Wrath of the clean and unclean Beasts does reign in him ; and also , that the poysonous Qualities of all sorts of creeping Creatures and Vermin , have a being and rule in Men. This is a great Figure , which did shew our depraved state , and that the Creator did not respect one more than another , but every one that would receive the Counsel of the Divine Light , and through the good power and vertue thereof , purge and cleanse themselves from the unclean , bestial , and poysonous Nature , should be accepted of him , and that Peter should preach the Gospel freely both to Iew and Gentile : Therefore whosoever shall interpret this Text otherwise , are mistaken , as is apparent ; because , as I said but now , there were represented in the Sheet poysonous creeping things , and Vermin , never known to be eaten by any Nation or Sect ; but which did aptly denote the unclean state of Man , and that poysonous , unclean Property of all sorts of unclean Beasts and Vermin , that does rule in , and defile his Heart and Soul ; whence proceed those brutish Inclinations and Dispositions to Oppression , and all kind of Evil ; as also , Intemperances , Superfluities , Gluttony , and the desire after unclean Food ; which evil Nature and venomous Contagion Iesus Christ , the Cleanser and Purger of Souls , came to destroy ; which Peter's Vision did manifest , in that he was commanded to preach unto all Men the glad Tidings , viz. That Christ the Redeemer was come to seek and to save that which was lost , viz. the Soul of Man captivated under every inferiour , bestial , and unclean Power , which Christ by his holy Grace , and divine Power does destroy , if its Counsel be obeyed ; for no sooner does it come to have dominion in the Heart , but all those Beasts of Prey , viz. Pride , Revenge , Ambition , and Cruelty ; and those creeping venomous Vermin , Lust , Treachery , &c. are overcome , and their Principle so weakned , that in a little time they will find no place in the Soul ; for there is the same possibility and energy in the divine Principle in Man , as there is the wrathful , cruel Principle ; if the Will and Desires adhere unto , and follow the first , then that grows strong , and gets the dominion , and purgeth out of the Heart Violence and Oppession , and destroys all Sensuality : But if the Counsel of the fierce , wrathful , bitter Root prevail , then the Man's Mind becomes a Cage of unclean Birds , and is filled with Bestiality and poysonous Inclinations ; whereby Men come to exceed all the Savages of the Desart in Cruelty and Uncleanness ; and most of them that have Power , live upon the spoil of others Labours , and by killing and oppressing as well those of their own Kind , as all other Creatures . Hence , because Man that was originally formed the Image of God , and the Rival of Angels , had now so far degenerated and depraved himself , as to engross all the worst Qualities of even the worst of Beasts : The holy Sages are wont to liken some Men to Dogs , for their snarling and contention ; others to Wolves , for their ravenous Cruelty ; others to Swine , for their sottish Sensuality ; and our Saviour calls the Scribes and Pharisees a Generation of Vipers , for their venomous Qualities . Farthermore , this Vision of Peter does declare , That this evil , bestial , cruel , unclean Nature , that had gotten the dominion in Man , should be destroyed through the divine Power ; for the Lord said , Arise , Peter , kill , and eat ; That is , Mortifie the bestial Properties , and let the unclean Thoughts , Words , and Works be cut off in the Bud by the Sword of the Spirit . It was the poysonous Vermin , and violent , unclean Nature within , which the Lord would have destroyed and killed , not the Beasts without ; for Man's most deadly Enemies are those of his own Houshold ; inward , not outward : and accordingly the chief work of every good Man is internal ; and if the Heart and Soul be clean , then the Thoughts , Words , Works , Meats , Drinks , and all other things belonging to the whole Life , are also clean ; for where the divine Principle has the Ascendent , all the Thoughts and Desires are generated from the same , and relish of their Original , which does attract the pure Vertue out of all things , because it has an Unity and Agreement with its own Nature . 13. It is a grand Mistake of People in this Age , to say or suppose , That Flesh affords not only a stronger Nourishment , but also more and better than Herbs , Grains , &c. For the truth is , it does yield more Nourishment , but not of so firm a Substance , nor so good as that which proceeds from the other Food ; for Flesh has more Matter for Corruption , and nothing so soon turns to Putrifaction . Now 't is certain , such sorts of Food as are subject to putrifie before they are eaten , are also liable to the same afterwards : Besides , Flesh is of soft , moist , gross , phlegmy Quality , and generates a Nourishment of a like Nature : Also Flesh heats the Body , and causeth a Drought : Likewise , Flesh does breed great store of noxious Humours : And it must be considered , that all sorts of Beasts , and other living Creatures are subject to Diseases , and many other Inconveniences and Uncleannesses , Surfeits , Over-driving , Abuses of cruel Butchers , &c. Which renders their Flesh still more unwholsom : But on the contrary , all sorts of dry Foods , as , Bread , Cheese , Herbs , and many Preparations of Milk , Pulse , Grains , and Fruits ; as their Origiual is more clean , so being of a sound , fir● nature , they afford a more excellent nourishment , and more easie of concoction ; so that if a Man should exceed in quantity , the health wil not thereby be brought into such danger , as by the superfluous eating of Flesh. Add to this , That all kind of Vegetatives being well prepared , and the Mixtures properly made , are abundantly more pleasant and delightful to an undepraved Palate , and also to the Stomach , than Flesh , as they are also much more pleasant to look upon . What an ill and ungrateful sight is it to behold dead Carcasses and pieces of bloody raw Flesh ? It would undoubtedly appear dreadful , and no Man but would abhor to think of putting it in his Mouth , had not Use and Custom from Generation to Generation , familiariz'd it to us ; which is so prevalent , that we read , in some Countries the Mode is , to eat the Bodies of their dead Parents and Friends , thinking they can no way afford them a more noble Sepulchre than their own Bowels ; and because 't is usual , they do it with a little regret , or nauceousness , as others have when they fall aboard the Leg of a Rabbit , or the Wing of a Lark . Suppose a Person were bred up in place where it was not a Custom no kill , and eat Flesh , and should come into our Leaden-Hall-Market , or view our Slaughter-houses , and see the communication we have with dead Bodies , and how blithe and merry we are at their Funerals , and what honourable Sepulchres we bury the dead Carcasses of Beasts in ; nay , their very Guts and Entrals ; Would he not be filled with astonishment and horror ? Would he not count us cruel Monsters , and say , That we were brutified , and performed the part of Beasts of Prey , to live thus on the Spoils of our Fellow-Creatures ? Thus Custom has awakened the inhumane , fierce Nature , which makes killing , handling , and feeding upon Flesh and Blood , without distinction , so easie and familiar unto Mankind : And the same is to be understood of Men , killing and oppressing those of their own kind : For do we not see that a Souldier , who is trained up in the Wars of bloody-minded Princes , shall kill an hundred Men without any trouble or regret of Spirit , and such who have given him no more offence than a Sheep has given the Butcher that cuts her Throat . If Men have but Power and Custom on their side , they think all is well ; whence one that was going to be a Soldier , being ask'd , What he was going to do ? nimbly answer'd , I am going to break one of God's Commandments by the Authority of Custom and Law. To such People Violence , Oppression and Killing of Men and Beasts , is as easie and inoffensive as plowing of the Land , or gathering ripe Fruits ; so rarely does any consider whether it be right in the sight of God's Law in Nature ; and so sadly is Man depraved , and Self deprived of the true Understanding of Wisdom ; and yet if some of these same Men happen in a private Quarrel or Contest to kill a Man ( although it were partly in their own defence , or to have committed private Murthers , ) their Minds and Consciences have been so loaded and troubled with a sense of Guilt , that many times they have been forced to confess their Evil , though they knew their own Death would be the consequence of that Discovery ; the chief cause of which is , because Law and Custom do forbid them to kill men that way , but if two Princes have ever so little difference , or if there be none ; yet if one of them , for his own Glory , and to enlarge his Empire , have a mind to make War against his Neighbour , on pretences never so frivolous , false , or unjust , yet at the Beat of Drum , or Sound of Trumpet , he shall have a great number of Men offer themselves , and take delight to kill , oppress , burn and destroy Men , Women , and Children , without any cause given , or ever considering in themselves whether it be right in the sight of the Creator , or his Law in Nature , and without having any remorse or trouble of Conscience for the same ; but rather boast , and think the better of themselves , the more Murthers they have committed . The very same is to be understood in most other things ; but more especially in Religion . Shall we not see a Turk afflict himself for having tasted a drop of Wine ? and a Papist be mightily troubled for having eaten a Mouthful of Flesh on a Friday ? And yet the same Men , at the word , one of his Mufti , and the other of his Pope , or the command , or instigation of some bloody , sottish , Belly-God , devilish Priest , be ready , nay , zealous to kill , burn , and destroy the Innocent , and lay waste whole Countries ; all which is contrary to all kinds of Friendliness and Humanity , and also to God's Law in Nature , and to the Law of God recorded in th Scriptures ? Which shews that Men are gone from , and do trample under their feet the divine , friendly Love and Light of God , and all natural Affection and Humanity , and have immersedtheir Wills , and their whole Hearts and Souls , and precipitated them into the fiery , stern Wrath of God , having no humane clemency ; but acted by the cruel , fierce nature of Dogs , Lions , Swine , &c And as those savage Beasts do delight to kill , hurry , oppress , tear , and eat the Blood of their Fellow Creatures ; so most men place their chief delight and pleasure in hunting , killing , oppressing , and devouring , not only those of their own kind , ( which is contrary to most of the worst of Beasts ; for few of them will prey upon , or worry those of their own Species , ) but all other Creatures : None of the Elements are free from his Snares and Cruelties ; the Earth , the Air , the Sea , cannot preserve their innocent Inhabitants from his pursuits and outrages ; but he rifles the whole Creation ; and yet still all is too little to satisfie his insatiate Mind , and ungodly devouring Paunch ; so great a Tyrant and Devil is he become to all the rest of his Fellow-Citizens of the World. 'T is this proud and troublesome Thing , called Man , that fills the Earth with Blood , and the Air with mutherous Minerals and Sulphur ; no wonder then if the very sight of a Man be more dreadful to most Creatures , than that of a Bear or Lion , and they will flie from him as fast . Those Beasts that are called clean , are such as do refuse all kind of unclean Food ; for the predominate Quality in them consists in the friendly Nature , or their Properties are nearer the Equality : Therefore such Creatures , as they are more clean ; so also are they more gentle and friendly in Inclinations and Dispositions , it being contrary to their Natures to worry , oppress , or seek the Lives of their Fellow-Creatures ; but are contented with their innocent and natural Food ; they are the only useful and beneficial Creatures unto Man , his perpetual Friends , by vertue of their Fruits his Life is sustained ; but for the multitude of their Benefits , he rewards them with Oppression and Death ; nor will content himself with the good things they produce for his Sustenance ; as , Milk , Butter , Cheese , Eggs , &c. but must also kill them , and eat their Blood and dead Carcasses . Now , if Man had not suffered the Hellish , Devilish Nature to have been awakened in him , he then would not have desired , nor longed after the Oppressions and Flesh-pots of Egypt ; but would have rested content with innocent , harmless Food of the Land of Canaan ; but the wrathful Fire being so greatly moved , and predominating in the Hearts and Souls of Mankind , above and over the divine , friendly Love of God , no Food will give satisfaction unto , nor answer the hunger and desires of that awakened wrathful Property , so well as Flesh and Blood , because it is the highest Life , and hath a nearer Affinity to that predominating Quality that so bears sway in most Men's Hearts . I look upon it as a great Mistake , for a Man to say , and believe , That all these good Creatures were made to be killed and eaten , and that Men's Lives should be sustain'd thereby . The Lord made all Creatures for his honour and glory , and for the reasonable service and use of Mankind ; whom he ordered to have dominion over all Creatures ; which Man has lost , by suffering his Desires to enter into the wrathful , fierce , bestial nature , which the Humanity ought not to have touch'd ; for Man is higher graduated , and ought not to have bowed himself to those inferiour Powers , nor suffered their low , bestial Spirits to enter him ; for God made Man in his own Image , the Horizon of both Worlds , the Epitome of the whole Creation ; so that he is liable to be wrought upon by all inferiour things : If this were not so , there would not be any such danger of infecting the humane Nature by Communications , oppressing , killing , and eating the Flesh of the Beasts ; for where nothing is , there nothing can be awakened ; as our Saviour Christ said , If your Children ask you for Bread , will you give them a Stone ? There being no affinity between the Stomach and a Stone ; but on the contrary , there is agreement between Bread and the Stomach . Whatsoever Man gives way , or joyns himself unto , the same through a little custom and practice will have power to impose its own Property , and captivate the Soul : Hence it comes to pass , that Butchers , Souldiers , and all Men that are of robustick , slavish Employments , are for the most part cruel , inhumane , subject to all the savage Bestiality that the wild Beasts , and Birds of Prey are , and oft-times far worse ; for Beasts do only live in the wrath of the outward Nature ; but Man does both partake and live in the operation of the outward , and also of the hellish Nature : Therefore 't is no fit comparison to liken some sorts of cruel Men to savage Beasts ; for thereby the poor dumb Creatures are abused : They do according to their kind ; but Man was made for another Life , viz. to live in the power and operation of the divine Principle of God's eternal Light and Love ; but he has degenerated from his first state of Innocency , and many Men , by giving way to Cruelty and Violence , are become so bad , that they cannot be compared to any Creature in Nature , but merely to Devils . O! how abominable and wicked a thing it is in the sight of the Lord , and his friendly Love in Iesus Christ , for Men to take his holy Name in vain by their Swearing , Lying , Stealing , Cheating , Circumventing each other , Fighting , Killing , counting it no Evil to hurry , oppress , worry both Man and Beast , spending their precious time in Wantonness , and all kind of Superfluity of Naughtiness and Intemperance , making it a Sport and Pastime , Good-Fellowship , and Civil Neighbourhood to be drunk , to eat to Gluttony , and to keep Tables filled with Superfluities , is counted Hospitality , and a Thing of State : On the contrary , to eat and drik only for ends and necessities of Nature , of ready , simple , harmless Meats and Drinks , is held poor , base , and beggarly , and derided by most that have wherewithal to do otherwise ; making the Creator , as it were , the cause of their Wantonness ; saying , Has not God given us those Creatures freely for our use ? May we not do what we will with them ? Are they not cur own ? These are the common Excuses of these wretched Belly-Slaves , not considering that most or all those good Creatures which they spend on their Lusts , and to gratifie their wicked Inclinations , are gotten by their oppressing both Man and Beast , eating and drinking the Blood of the poor ; and the whole Creation doth groan because of their Violence and Oppression . If a Man have Ten Thousand Pounds per Annum , it is still as great an Evil for him to spend any part of it in Superfluity and Wantonness , or to gratifie his Passions or Lusts , and to live a soft , effeminate , idle Life , as it is for a mean Person that works for his Bread ; for Superfluity , Gluttony , and Idleness are equal Evlls unto all Men ; to the Noble and Rich , as well as the Poor and Ignoble ; it being the effect of a base , low , depraved & wicked Opinion amongst Men , to say , I have wherewithal , I will therefore indulge my self , eat to Gluttony , and drink to Drunkenness , lie a-bed the best part of my Life , and rise to be Idle ; I will have my Horses and my Coaches ready , steep my Brains in Wine , make my Guts a Magazine of Dainties , and stretch my lazy Limbs on Beds of Roses , and Couches of Ivory . And in this heat of Lusts and Wantonness , they get Children , and bring them up in all kind of Superfluities , Luxury , and Idleness ; so that every succeeding Generation is more corrupt than the former , sowing hellish Dispositions , and entailing them on their Posterity ; such as the Tree is , such is the Fruit ; an ill Bird , a worse Egg ; for the Seed does contain the true Properties , Dispositions , and Inclinations ; and Children being begotten from such Matter and Essences , those cruel and hellish Affections grow up with them , and become essential : Besides , Children seeing the Oppressions and Excesses of their Parents , do endeavour to imitate and follow their Examples ; so that the young idle Ones will cry , What should I work for ? Have I not an Estate ? Have not I enough to keep me without taking any Pains or Care for any thing ? Many of this sort of Lubbers deserve to be served as Alexander the Great served a King he conquered , who loved Money excessively , and therefore had a Chapel which he had filled with Gold and Silver , and therein placed his whole delight and Happiness ; which Alexander understanding , put him in amongst his Money , and shut him up with it , bidding him eat it ; and so the miserable Man starved to death upon his Treasure . Suppose a Man had ten Thousand Acres of the best Land in England , he may starve as this Prince did , if this Land be not manured by Labour and Industry : All the Land in England will not afford one Bit of Bread , unless pains be taken with it . But here some will object , and say , We are of Noble Birth and Blood , our Progenitors and Fathers have been great Lords , Nimrods , mighty Hunters ; they have ventured their Lives , and oppressed the Poor and Weak , deflowred Virgins , taken away Men's Wives by force , killed the Aged , and carried captive the Young , laid waste Cities , brought desolation upon flourishing Kingdoms , and killed , starved , ruined , and undone many Thousands of People . From these , and the like Heroick Acts of Hellish Cruelty , our Coats of Arms are derived ; wherein to shew our Nature , and wherein our Glory consists , we bear the Pictures of the most savage , useless , and rapacious Beasts and Birds that can be thought on , as , Lions , Bears , Wolves , Tigers , Eagles , &c. These are our Badges of Honour , and hence our Noble Birth , and High Blood have proceeded ; this being the true Foundation of most of that Gentility and Nobility which the World so much admires , and that serves their Posterity to boast of . But tell me , I pray you , Noble Gallants ! if ever you are at leisure to entertain one wise or serious thought ; tell me , I say , Is there not one only God that made all things ? Did not he make one Man out of the Clay or Dirt of the Earth , and breath into him a living Soul , and make him his Vice-Roy , and allot him dominion over all things , ( not one man to worry , kill , and destroy the Well-being and Peace of another , and of all other Creatures ? ) Are not those Millions of Men and Women scattered over the Face of the whole Earth , descended from this one Man ? As well the Caesars , and the Grand Signiors , the Things cloathed in Cloth of Gold and Tissue , as the vilest Beggars , and the poor tattered Boy , that stands barefoot in Frost and Snow , shivering at the foot of some Welsh Mountain ? Are we not then all own Couzens ? Our Pedigree the same , and equally ancient ? Hath not the Lord also endued this one Man's Off-spring with equal Parts , Senses , and Members , as to the Elements of their Bodies ? A fair Grecian Woman being at a Banquet , and at the Sport called Questions and Commands , with many others of her Sex , whom she perceived to bave heightned their Complexions by Painting ; when it came to her Turn , commanded them all to do as she did , and immediately called for Water , and soundly wash'd her Face ; which they doing , lost all the artificial Roses of their Cheeks , and appeared in their natural deformity ; which shewed that their Beauty was but adulterate , hers real : Just so shall we find this boasted Nobility to be nothing but Art , Fancy , Ostentation , and Vanity , if we put it to the Test. Let every man be stripp'd and left destitute of those Excrements of Beasts , and inferiour Creatures , which he is such a Fool to be proud of , and appear in his own natural Hue , and see then who can distinguish the Noble from the Ignoble ; my Lord frrm his Foot-man ; the Rich from the Poor ; In such a light , as well as in the dark , Ioan would be as good as my Lady , and perhaps better , because wholsomer . I have enquired of Chirurgions and Chymists , and they have told me , they cannot find any difference in the colour , nor any other excellency in the Blood of Peers above that of Peasants ; where then lies this famous Generosity of the red , circling Iuice , so cunningly close , that no body can find it ? Besides , I pray tell me , Hath the Noble any more Privileges by Nature's Charter than others ? Has he any more Senses than his Neighbours ? Has he as many Palates as he has Palaces ? No , no ; God hath made no more difference between the Noble , as they call them , and the Ignoble , than there is between the poor Man's Cow and the rich Man's ; the latter may probably be somewhat the fatter ; the meanest Farmer has altogether as large a Stomach , though not so large an House as his Landlord . Now for certain , if the Lord had made difference , and created one Noble and Great , and another the contrary , then he would also have endued them with some peculiar Benefits and Marks of distinction , by which one might be known from the other ; but it is not so ; there is no other Mark of distinction between them , but as is before mentioned ; Oppression and Violence both to Men and Beasts , killing , slaughtering , destroying , and the like devilish Actions , by which many have got Riches , Renown , and Authority ; this being the common Rule , he that hath done most bloody wicked Acts , and got the most Money , is most Noble , and the best Gentleman . But if those that are possessed of the Goods of this World , and that call themselves Noble , had any peculiar Marks of Dignity given them by God or Nature , inseparable from their Persons , there might seem something for them to boast of ; and yet no real ground for it , even in that case : because still they would be God's Gifts : As , suppose they were bless'd with perpetual Health , and long Life ; or if their Natures would not be glutted and distempered with continual eating or drinking , or for want of exercise ; or if they could lengthen out the pleasure of any of the Senses , without prejudice to Nature , and breaking of God's Law : But alas ! none of all this can be ; as little Meat and Drink will support an Emperor , as the meanest of Men ; all sorts are as pleasurable and grateful to one as the other ; or if there be any advantage , it lies on the poor Man's side . There is a pleasant Story of King Henry the 8th . in the first part of his Reign , riding a hunting , and being hungry , he strayed from his Attendants , and came all alone to a Monastery about Dinner-time ; where the fat lazy Abbot welcom'd him very kindly ; for hearing the King was in that County , he concluded this to be one of his Guard : At Dinner they had great Varieties , and the King fed like a Farmer on a piece of Roast-Beef ; but the Abbot , who daily crammed his Paunch with Delicacies , could scarce relish a Bit of any thing before him ; and pleasantly said to the King , Honest Friend ! I would give 500 l. I could but pick so heartily as you do on a piece of Beef . The King returned him some small Complement , and after Dinner took his leave ; about a Fortnight after , sends a Messenger for this old fulsome Abbot , and ordered him to be carried to rights to the Tower , and that he should be there kept close Prisoner , and allowed but so much Bread and small Beer a day , and no other Food . The Abbot could not imagine what he had done , to occasion such an Imprisonment ; and being thus dieted , he soon came to have a good Stomach ; and after about a Month , the King ordered the Keeper to carry him in a good piece of hot Roast-Beef , on which the Abbot fell with such violence , as if he would have eaten it all at a Mouthful : The King , who was planted in a Room where he could see how he laid about him , at last steps in , and demands his 500 l. For , says he , you said you would give it ; and I have performed the Cure , and got you a better Stomach than all the Doctors in England would have done . And so upon Payment of 500 l. discharged him . This Story is very pertinent to our Subject ; the Rich with Varieties destroy both their Appetites , and Tastes ; the poorer sort enjoy the natural pleasure of both . There are in all Men but five Senses , and four Elements ; and the Creator hath made no distinction , by giving more to the Noble than to the Poor ; but bestows them freely and equally on all ; and every man has a like benefit of them , and the Nobles and Grandees cannot prolong the pleasure of their Senses by possessing much , viz. by great and rich quantities of Food and Drinks , sumptuous Furniture , gaudy Garments , great Houses , many Servants , &c. All which , if great Prudence and Moderation be not observed , ) will rather destroy the true Delight and Pleasure of the Body and Mind , and render such as use them altogether uncapable to enjoy the common Blessings the Lord has given unto all men ; but on the contrary , every sort of simple Food and mean Drink to the wise man , and well-prepared Stomach , is like the Honey and the Honey-comb , it makes all the Senses rejoyce in each other . This being the greatest advantage and privilege any mortal man can naturally enjoy in this Life , to give Nature both in quantity and quality , what is needful for the support of Strength and Health , which very small and mean Meats , Drinks , Cloathing , & Houses will perform and such as are easily procurable with little labour to the Body , or Vexation to the Mind ; so that a Man need not hazard his Health , nor bring his Soul into Perplexity to obtain those necessary things that serve for the sustaining and prolongation of his Health and Life : But on the contrary , all those Supersluities which do chiefly serve to gratifie Wantonness and evil Imaginations , are for the most part not to be obtained without Trouble , Oppression , Violence , and the hazarding the Health , both of Body and Mind ; and when they are obtained , most People spend them on their Lust , in a base , superfluous manner , filling the Body with iucurable Diseases , and much more infecting the Soul. It must be confessed , there are some Men really and intrinsecally much more Honourable and Noble than others , viz. those that obey and keep the Commandments of the Lord , and have not violated his Law in Nature , nor spent the good Creatures of God on their Lusts , and have denied themselves Superfluities , and not done violence to , nor oppressed Man or Beast , but have lived temperately , soberly , and innocently , putting all things to that use for which they were made ; this sort of People are truly Noble , without being beholden to the Favour of Princes , the Breath of the Vulgar , or the Mercenary Paint of an Herald : But still , they must not boast of it , or ascribe it to themselves and their own Wisdom , on pain of Death ; for , alas ! what have they which they have not received ? Every good and perfect Gift ( saith the Apostle , ) cometh from the Lord , and he alone , and he always ought to have the Praise , the Honour , and the Glory , Amen . If Men had conducted their Lives in this manner , and not suffered their Desires and Wills to enter into the various Powers of God's Wrath in Nature , the whole World had been a Paradise of Peace and Love ; but now most People have precipitated themselves into the Nature of Bears , Tigers , and Foxes , and some into Dogs , Cats , Swine , Bulls , &c. Hence they seek , and make it an honourable Employ to kill and destroy one another , and he that proves most successful in this bloody Villany , dubbs himself an Hero , and his Race call themselves the Brave and the Noble , and have but little regard for others , in respect of themselves , and like Senseless Sots , account it their privilege and Right in Nature to Lord it over their Fellow-Creatures ; than which , nothing can be either mere unjust or ridiculous . There is no mark of distinction , no eminent Token whereby to demonstrate their Nobility ; for the Lord has endued the poorest and meanest of men with all the Noble Faculties of Nature , both Divine , and Humane , as liberally as the mightiest Potentates : Has not the poor Man as great Pleasure in , and Refreshment and Nourishment by eating and drinking , as the most Noble ? Is not his Sight as clear , and as perfect to behold the amazing Wonders of God's Creation ? Do not the melodious Harmonies and charming Airs of Musick delight the Pliantasie , and chear the Soul of a poor Man , as much as a KING ? And ( if we may descend to grosser Pleasures , ) have not the meanest of Men as great content and satisfaction with his poor Russet-Coated Wife , as the greatest Prince with his Gayest Bride ? Whence the Poets always feign LOVE , ( the noblest of the Passions , ) to be bred amongst the Villagers , and a Companion of Rusticks and Shepherdesses : Nay , ( to go higher , ) has not the great All Wise Creator given the most friendly Element , the Air , in Gavil-kind , to all the Sons of Men , every one enjoying an equal Portion ? And are not the greatest of Men subject to all the Injuries of the Elements , and Necessities and Accidents of Natural Life , viz. Heat , Cold , Hunger , Thirst , Diseases , and even Death it self , as much , and as frequently , and as certainly as the Poor ? And yet still men are so foolish and so vain , as to vaunt of their Great Birth , and their Noble Blood : Can any thing be mote extravagantly ridiculous ? True it is , all that are Governors , Magistrates , and Officers of the People , ought to be honoured and respected in their Places , according to their respective Dignities ; and so much the more , if they govern according to the Law of God and Nature , doing every man Justice and Right , and being a Terror unto evil doers , and a Praise unto them that do well . But this real Honour , contracted on Political Considerations of Office and Vertue , is nothing to that Fantastick Glory , derived meerly from Ancestors , and the brave Feats done by our Great-Grandsires Grand-Fathers , so much boasted of by those who please themselves in being Great , rather by their Mother's Labours than their own . 14. It is to be noted , that most sorts of Flesh and Fish , as to their operations on the Body and Senses , are not so innocent , brisk , aery , and lively , as Herbs , Seeds , Grains , Fruits , and various sorts of excellent Food made of them ; though many of our English Belly-Gods suppose Flesh to be most mighty in its operation ; but they are grosly mistaken ; and no wonder , since their Brains , Wits , and Understandings , are , through Intemperance , Superfluity , and Gluttony , sunk into their Bellies ; for Flesh is of a gross substance , dull , and heavy in its operation , fills the Body with abundance of slimy , corrupt Juices , bad Blood , and in many Constitutions , too great a quantity , and causeth the Animal Spirits to be very impure ; whence arise Boils , Scabs , King's-Evils , Leprosies , and sometimes clotted Blood , like pieces of Flesh , which lie in some of the Vessels of the Stomach , till being gathered into hard Lumps , they sorely oppress Nature , and cause Distempers , which are the Death of Multitudes . Flesh and Blood is too near of kin to the Animal Life in Man , to be a proper Food for him ; 't is like the Marrying of Brothers and Sisters : Therefore the Ancients were curious in forbidding especially the eating of the Flesh of any of those Beasts that would naturally eat the Flesh of their Fellow-Creatures ; and we need go no farther than every Man's experience , to know that all such Flesh , and also Fish , have a rank , strong , fulsome Taste , and affords a like Nourishment : Nor has Flesh and Blood grown into great reputation from the excellency of its Taste or Nourishment , but chiefly ( as we have elsewhere observed , ) from the near affinity it has with the awaken'd Wrath , and bestial Nature , which in most men predominates . Hence , when once Men have tasted Flesh , with the Blood , the Bestial Qualities are presently irritated , and so pleased , that nothing else will afford them such satisfaction , because of its great affinity with the Bestial and Animal Life ; the hunger grows so strong in many , that they will eat Flesh or Fish that stinks , and is half putrified , if they cannot have other , rather than feed upon Bread , Butter , Cheese , or the like , which is an bundred-fold beyond it , both as to Taste , Nourishment , and Vertue . The same is to be understood of all sorts of unclean Birds and Beastss of Prey : As for example ; If a Dog chance to suck the Blood , and eat the raw Flesh of any Creature , it does so violently open the gate of the fierce Quality , that the Hunger grows so great , that he becomes ten-fold more eager , revenous and fierce than before : This every one almost doth know , and if they consider it well , shall find the very same Effects in Bodies humane , as each man may feel in himself , if he be a diligent observer of his own Nature . If this had not been so , Moses , and many wise men in most Ages , had never made such strict Laws against eating of Flesh without distinction , and that such Flesh as was allowed to be eaten , should be throughly cleansed from the Blood , &c. Which rendered such Flesh far wholsomer , and to afford a better nourishment ; but not so much as our way of Killing and Dressing , which in truth , in most Creatures , ( as Cows , Oxen , &c. ) is next door to strangling ; whereby the natural Spirits are suffocated , and causes the Blood and fierce , wrathful Spirits to centre and lodge themselves in all parts of the Body , and hinders them , that they pass not so freely away , where the wound is made . This the Apostles understood very well ; We have no other Commandment to lay on you , but that you abstain from Blood , Fornications , things offered to Idols , and things strangled ; there being more Evil in all sorts of Flesh and Fish that is so killed , than most do imagine ; for when there is no Wound made , the animal , bestial , wrathful , fierce , original , poysonous Spirits become suffocated , and Death's stroke brings the whole Nature into such amazing , frightful Agonies , as few Men , or Killers of Beasts are sensible of , or endued with so much humanity to consider ; ( for if they did suffer Compassion to arise in them , their leud Trade of killing would not be so easie to them , ) I say , the central Poysons being awakened by the stroke of Death , and finding no Passage , they seize the pure Spirits , whose Habitation is the Blood , and then presently the sweet Oyl or Balsamick Property turns sower , strong , and fulsome , as is manifest every where , both in Animals and Vegetables , whensoever the pure , spirituous parts are by any improper preparation , or other Accidents , wounded , suffocated , or evaporated ; then in a moment's time the sweet , balsamick Property is depraved , and turns eager and unwholesome . Hence it is , that the Flesh of those Creatures that are strangled , does neither look so well , nor eat so sweet , nor is so healthy as other Flesh ; for when any Creature perceives its Life in danger , there is such a strugling and horror within , as none can imagine , but such only as have been near dead by the like means , it being the very same in a Beast , as in Men. This being better understood by the Ancients than now-a-days , it was therefore amongst them not lawful to kill any Creature that was to be eaten , without making a Wound ; by which means , the Blood did pass freely away , and with it the fierce , and wrathful Spirits and Poysons , and so the Flesh was purged , and freed from many sorts of Uncleanness , and even this Blood so let forth , was to be buried in the ground , or burned , and so the bestial Spirits prevented from Evaporations , or incorporating themselves with the Air , and consequently from entring into , and infecting the humane Nature with their wrathful Effluviums , and dreadful Species , that the Blood of all Creatures are full of , when killed in their health and perfect strength . The greatest Excellency and common Virtue of men's eating much Flesh and Fish , is , that it makes them surly , robustick , sordid , and of cruel , inhumane Dispositions and Inclinations ; it being the most proper for Soldiers , Hunters , Moss-Troopers , and all such as would have the bestial , savage Nature strengthened and encreased , and have a mind to be Lions and Devils , not only to their own kind , but all other Creatures ; and so long as People give their Wills up unto the fierce , proud , wrathful , poysonous Nature , we may not expect any other Trade to be driven amongst us ; whence we sind , that the meek , friendly Principle is trodden under foot : Compassion has little or no place in Man , farther than it is a Custom ; and he seems wholly given up to Rapine , Oppression , and Wickedness . Whereas on the contrary , Herbs , Fruits , Grains , and many other the like innocent sorts of Food are more pleasant to the Eye , of a better Scent and Smell , afford a more grateful Taste to the Palate , Nourishment finer , and of better Substance to the Stomach ; they are of an easier Concoction , breed better Blood , are much more readily procured ; the Creation groans not , or sighs ; there 's no Pain , Violence , or Cruelty committed in the Use of them ; they generate purer Spirits , and make the Body lightsome and pleasant , free the Mind from Dulness , Care , and Heaviness , quicken all the Senses , make a good Understanding , preserve Innocency , increase Compassion , Love , Humility , and Charity , give the Spirit of distinction between Good and Evil , Clean and Unclean , and help us with many opportunities for the study of all true Wisdom , both of God , Nature , and our selves . In a word , the Virtues both Divine and Natural , that follow Abstinence and Cleanness , are not to be numbred ; many of them I know by experience , through the mercy and good favour of the Lord : It makes a man hate all rude , vain , talkative Company , and the many Inconveniences that attend such a course of Life ; it also makes the observers thereof capable at all Seasons to speak the Words of Wisdom , either divine or humane , being but like large Glass-Windows to an House , it lets in the pleasant , light Air , by giving opportunities to all the noble Faculties of man's Soul to exercise their Functions ; it tunes the Properties of Nature ; whence proceeds most excellent Harmony ; and whoever shall try it , shall certainly find much more satisfaction and advantages than is here related , or indeed than can be expressed in Words . 15. It is farther to be noted , that all kind of Inventions and Arts that encourage Violence and Oppression , have proceeded from the fierce , harsh wrath of God , and the uneven properties of Saturn and Mars , as Gun-powder , Guns , Drums , and all Warlike Instruments of Musick . There is nothing that does more manifest this than Gun-powder ; where the pure spirituous Parts , and balsamick Vertues in all the Ingredients , are suffocated and destroyed , so that it becomes a meer composition of Wrath and Fierceness ; for every Property of Nature becomes fierce and terrible , or strong , fulsome , and poysonous , if the virtue and light thereofbe destroyed , or separated from it ; for every particular Creature or Substance , both Vegetable , Mineral , and Animal , does consist of Fire , and Light , Love , and Anger , Ioy , and Sorrow , Good , and Evil : These are the Radixes of each Subject throughout all the three Kingdoms of Nature ; and if in any thing you violate the lovely , light part , then the angry Properties appear in their own Forms ; an Instance whereof we have before mentioned in Charcoal , which is one Ingredient towards Gun-powder ; and all the rest are alike , being of a terrible , rending , tearing , devilish , fierce nature ; and in it is a true Figure of the Wrath of God in the outward nature : So likewise the sound of Drums , and all Weapons of War and Violence , proceed from the same Root of Wrath ; and accordingly the use of all such things , do much encourage and strengthen the wrathful Properties in Mankind , who , if they had not , or did not suffer their Wills and Desires to enter into the Wrath and fierce Properties of Nature in themselves , and were not acted and influenced by it , there would never have been any of those Hellish Inventions , as , Swords , Guns , Powder , Drums , Bows , Arrows , and other murthering Engines , nor any thoughts of Killing , Oppressing , and Destroying those of their own Kind , nor any other Creatures ; but Man should have kept that Dominion over the Creatures wherewith the Creator invested him in the beginning , and no Creature should have had power to have influenced him , or imposed their Properties upon him : Hence then , touching all Fighting , Oppressing , and Killing , let it be little or much , and the pretence what it will , we affirm , from a true light and ground , That the same do arise , and proceed from the fierce wrath of God , and from that devilish , hellish nature in Man , which is as contrary to the friendly Love and Light of God in Jesus Christ , as the Night is to the Day ; for if in man , or any other Creature , the evil Property do predominate , and is most manifest , there the good Qualities and friendly Light is overcome ; and so on the contrary : For every Property and Principle does manifest and bring forth its own fruit ; as our Saviour Christ says , Every Tree is known by its Fruits ; a good Tree cannot bring forth evil Fruit , nor an evil Tree good Fruit. According to what Property does rule in the Heart of any Man , such are his Thoughts , Words , and Actions ; where the divine Principle of God's eternal Love and Light doth predominate , such Persons bring forth those good and precious Fruits of Love , Mercy , Compassion , courteous Speeches , Works of Charity , and doing unto all men as they would be done unto ; but those in whom the hellish Principle bears sway , their Fruits are worse than Briars and Thorns ; such as Back-biting , Hatred , Oppression , Killing , not only inferiour Creatures , but even those of their own Kind , and working all sorts of Impiety with greediness . Therefore 't is of unspeakable moment , to be able to distinguish in our selves the Two Principles , and their respective Fruits , and to be careful to deny , and root out the Evil , and cherish , and follow the Counsel of the holy Light , which if obeyed , is sufficient to destroy all the mischievous Works of Self-hood , and the Devil ; for as the more men habituate themselves to Cruelty , Oppression , Unmercifulness , Killing , and the like , the stronger the hellish Principle of Wrath does grow , and the worse , and more cruel they become : So in the practice of Vertue , every Property and Principle grows strong by Use and Exercise ; and he that enters into the narrow Path of Regeneration and Self-denial , ought always to fear to oppress , or do unto any Creature that which he would not have done unto himself ; for Oppression , Killing , wrathful Words and Works , do belong to the Egyptians , and not to those that travel towards the Land of Canaan . An Instance of which we have in St. Iude , who said , That when Michael , the Arch-Angel , disputed about the Body of Moses , with the Devil , he did not dare to bring any railing Accusation ; not but that the good Angel might , as to Justice , have done it ; but he did not dare do it ; because he must first have entred with his Will into the wrathful , fierce Principle , or hellish nature , and awakened it in himself ; therefore he only said , The Lord rebuke thee . And for the same Reason , our Saviour Christ commands Men not to be angry , nor call their Brethren Racha , or Fools ; that is , any Name of Wrath , Malice , or Contempt . If this were rightly understood and regarded , Men would not dare to abandon themselves to such Heats , Passions , and Furies as every day we behold ; they would not make it a Trade , a Sport , a Pastime , to kill , murther , and use all kind of Violence . We read in Genesis of Lot's Wife , that she looked back towards Sodom , for which she was turned into a Pillar of Salt ; she entred into the fierce Anger and Wrath of God and Nature , which she was forewarned of ; so that she was precipitated into , and comprehended in the grand Fountain of Wrath ; that is , the original Forms of Nature , of which Salt is one ; and therefore the Prophets , and all those whom the Lord enlightned with divine and humane Understanding , and whose chief business was to reclaim men from the Snares and Evils of Oppression and Violence , and teach them the Ways of Mercy , Clemency , and Love , often threatned them with the same Judgment which befel Lot's Wife , it being the portion of all that live and die in the Spirit of Oppression . Nay , was not that great Man Moses prevented from entring into the Holy Land , because he was wrath with the Children of Israel , when they murmured , and complained for want of Water ; saying , Ye Rebels ! must we fetch Water out of this Rock for you ? Whereupon , saith the Lord to him and his Brother Aaron , Because ye believed me not , to sanctifie me in the Eyes of the Children of Israel , therefore shall you not bring this Congregation into the Land which I have given them . Here Moses and Aaron had suffered their Desires and Wills to enter into the Wrathful Centre , and Self-hood ; whence the Word Rebel was formed ; for the very Sound thereof demonstrates from what Principle it does proceed . And hence probably it may be , that the evil Angel did so dispute about , or claim a property to the Body of Moses . This therefore is a principal Point in Religion , for every one to understand and distinguish in himself from what Principle every Thought and Word does proceed ; for otherwise Men may and do precipitate themselves into the wrath and fierce original of the hellish Nature ; which , if once it get to reign in the Heart , it quickly blisters out its Venom at the Tongue in such leud Words as , Rebels , Rogue , Dog , Devil , and horrid Oaths , Curses , and Execrations ; the very sound of which is enough to declare whence they proceed ; whereas from the divine and truly humane Nature do arise and slow Words of Comfort and Consolation , those soft Answers that turn away Wrath , and all those delightful , sociable , obliging Charms of friendly Conversation , wherein consists one of the greatest Felicities of this mortal Life , and which , for ought I know , will be one main occasion to our Happiness in Heaven . And wheresoever such Words are entertained , they strengthen and increase their own Principle , both in those that speak them , and in those that hear them . Of that great Man , King David , who is sometimes stiled , A Man after God's own Heart , the Scripture saith , That the Lord did not admit him to build the outward Temple , ( which was a true Figure of the internal and spiritual Temple : ) And what was the Reason ? Because he had been a Man of Violence and Blood , which had so awakened the Principle of Wrath and Fierceness , as did very much impede the divine work , And this it will do , not only in David , but all others in whom it is kindled . No Man can do the Work of Wrath , and not awaken and strengthen the Principle which leads to such Acts , as is farther manifested by all those that are of violent Trades , and killing Employments ; although such People do not kill the Beasts in Anger , or in a way of Revenge for any Injuries pretended formerly to be done ; but do it meerly as it is their Occupation , whereby to get a Livelihood ; yet nevertheless , insensibly , and unknown to their Reason and Intention , they do by degrees irritate and corroborate the fierce Properties of Nature , and become rash , fierce , hot , and cruel . No wonder then if most of the holy Men , and Prophets , who by a divine Eye and Understanding , did pry into the hidden Mysteries of God and Nature , were strict Abstainers , and separated themselves from the Uncleannesses , Oppressions , and Violences that the superfluous , worldly Belly gods do subject themselves unto ; whose chief care is to procure such Meats and Drinks as will gratifie their Palates and Appetites ; for pleasing of which , they regard not whom they oppress , be they Men or Beasts , some of them spending as much in one day , as an hundred Men can get by their hard Labour , and all to please the wanton Lust , and momentary Pleasure of the Throat , they having but only the meer Forms and Shapes of Men , and being really void both of Humanity and Christianity . From this ground doth proceed all violent Courses and Contentions , both publick and private ; which Evils will never be remedied , except Men take up the Cross , and deny themselves , and follow the Counsel of the divine Principle , and hearken unto the Voice of Wisdom , which continually cries in the Gate of every Man's City , and happy is he that hearkens unto her ; for she is a sufficient Guide to lead every one into the pure , simple Way of Truth , and teach us from what we ought to separate our selves , whereby we may acquire Health to the Soul and Body , and the Treasures both of Time and Eternity . But none are or can be sensible of those Advantages , but such alone as are got through thé Red Sea , and the Howling Wilderness , and have entred into the Land of Canaan , for it seems too mean a thing , and the Ways that lead to those holy Virtues , are too plain for the great People of this World. But our Lord and Saviour Christ saith , My Kingdom is not of this World ; and therefore when Peter in the most just and pious Cause that can be imagined , ( viz. to preserve his innocent Master from unjust violence , ) drew his Sword , our Lord calmly bid him put it up , for the Sword cannot be drawn , but by and through the Power of God's Wrath , which does predominate in most Men's Hearts ; and this Christ came to destroy : For he preached Peace , Love , and good Will unto all Men ; and therefore his Doctrine is called , The Evangele , or Gospel ; that is to say , Ioyful News , or Glad Tidings . Some there are that do say , That if they should not kill , and eat the Flesh of the Creatures , they could not subsist or live ; which , in a bad sense , is true : For should they cease from Violence and Killing , then that cruel , wrathful , fierce Life in them , could not subsist in such vigour and strength as it does ; but must of necessity become weak , and , as it were , die ; that is , it would no longer domineer in the Heart over the friendly Principle of God's Love : But as to the Health of the Body , which is that which I mean , Herbs and Fruits will sustain Nature in every respect far beyond the best of Flesh. 16. It is said in Gen. 4. That Adam knew his Wife Eve , and she conceived , and bore Cain , and said , I have gotten a Man from the Lord ; [ that is , from the strong Powers of the Wrath in Nature ; from whence all Lordliness , Pride , and Oppression in Government ariseth . ] And she conceived again , and bore his Brother Abel ; and Abel was a Keeper of Sheep ; [ that is , a Keeper of , and Dweller in Innocency : ] But Cain was a Tiller of the harsh Earth ; [ which must be broken and torn up by Violence and hard Labour both of Man and Beast , which was the Curse that the Lord laid upon Adam . ] And in process of time , it came to pass , that Cain brought of the Fruits of the Ground an Offering unto the Lord : And Abel he also brought of the Firstlings of his Flock ; and the Lord had respect unto Abel , and unto his Offering ; but unto Cain , and his Offering , he had no respect : And Cain was very wroth , and his Countenance fell ; and the Lord said unto Cain , Why art thou wroth ? If thou dost well , shalt thou not be accepted ? and if not , Sin lieth at thy Door , and unto thee shall be his desire , and thou shalt rule over him ; [ that is , unto thee , Cain , shall be the Desire of my Kingdom of Love and Divine Light ; but if thou wilt not hearken unto its Counsel , and be obedient to my Commandments , then thou shalt rule over him ; that is , over the Divine Power , as it came to pass ; for Cain talked with Abel ; that is , the Wrath contended with the Love and Divine Power ; and it came to pass , when they were in the Field , [ that is , where the wild , harsh Nature does predominate , ] that Cain rose up against Abel his Brother , and slew him Here the Wrath prevailed over the divine , innocent Principle , and destroyed it , as it does at this day ; for those two Brothers did rightly and truly signifie the two grand Principles , and the two Seeds , that of the Woman , and that of the Serpent . And the Lord said unto Cain , Where is thy Brother ? And he said , I know not ; Am I my Brother's Keeper ? Here Cain , viz. the Property of Wrath , denied the Murther , and pretended he had done him no Evil , or knew nothing of him ; But the Lord answered , and said , What hast thou done ? The Voice of thy Brother's Blood crieth unto me from the ground ; and therefore the Lord cursed Cain , and tells him , he shall be a Fugitive , and a Vagabond . Then Cain bowed himself , and said unto the Lord , My Punishment is greater than I can bear : Behold , thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the Earth , and from thy face shall I be hid ; and it shall come to pass , that every one that findeth me , shall stay me : This Confession and Submission did so pacifie the kindled Wrath , that the Lord said , Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain , Vengeance shall be taken on him seven-fold ; and the Lord set a Mark on Cain , lest any finding him , should slay him . This Mark was the Light of the Lord , that enlightens every Man that cometh into the World , and which does more or less mollifie and withstand the fierce , wrathful Powers in Mankind ; for if this were not , the Wrath of Cain would grow so powerful , that the Children of Abel would not have any being in this World. Then Cain went out from the Presence of the Lord , and dwelt in the Land of Nod , on the East-side of Eden ; that is , he went into the outward Principle of this World , and dwelt in the Land of Vanity , at a distance from the divine Principle ; which is intimated by Eden , in which Cain did not live , but on one side of it , viz. in the operation of both the good and evil Nature , which most Men of this World do live in . And it is also said , That he built a City ; that is , he became strong and powerful in the Property of this World ; and therefore Cain was an Oppressor , and one that did domineer , and Lord it over his Brethren , and slay the divine Principle of God's Love ; and hence all Violences , Contentions , Killing , and Works of Darkness ; for Cain does truly signifie the Fountain of God's Wrath , and the original Properties of the Father's Nature ; and Abel does represent the eternal Principle of God's Love in the Son's Property : Cain intimates the Fire ; and Abel the Light : if the meek Spirit of Abel were not overcome , and murthered by the fierce Wrath of Cain , there would be Peace on Earth as in Heaven ; and as when Cain arose , and contended with , and slew Abel , he made no resistance , this was a true manifestation that the fierce Wrath had got the Victory ; but Abel's Blood cried unto the Lord. The very same is to be understood in all kind of Oppression , both to Man and Beasts ; they all by a sweet sympathetical operation call for Vengeance ; for God is no respecter of Persons or Things ; but whensoever any Creature is oppressed , the same doth from the awakened Wrath , curse the Oppressor , and send up Cries and terrible Complaints to Heaven ; which moves the Principle of God's Wrath , whence so many Judgments fall upon the People ; nor is it possible it should be otherwise , as long as the Spirit of Cain predominates in their Hearts , tearing and destroying the Peace and Well-being of one another , and of all the inferiour Creatures , far worse than the wild Savages of the Desart ; for when their Bellies are full , they do rest satisfied until they are hungry again ; but Men are become such Belly-gods , and Slaves to their Lusts and Passions , that they are never satisfied , either full or fasting ; but always contriving Mischief , and how they may betray not only those of their own kind , but also all other Creatures ; insomuch that all the Elements mourn , and are filled with the Cries , Groans , and mournful Complaints of their miserable Inhabitants . True Religion doth consist in this , as our Lord Jesus Christ taught both by Precept and Example , that Mankind do no Violence , but live in the power and operation of the Spirit of the humble , meek Spirit of Abel ; for every violent Action and Oppression , let it be little or much , or offered unto whatsoever Creatures , does as naturally and spiritually awaken in them and without them the fierce Wrath of God and Nature , as the Blood of innocent Abel did cry , & awaken the Lord ; whence Cain's Judgment proceeded . And withal , we are to remember , that the Offerings of such as live the in power and operation of the Spirit of Cain , are not accepted of the Lord , because they are tainted with the Spirit of Violence and Oppression ; for every Principle is moved by a sympathetical operation ; and therefore when Men live and act in the power of God's Love , and Light in Jesus Christ , the Offerings of such are most grateful , and powerfully attract the sweet Influences of God and Nature ; but where the wrathful Principle reigns without the Love and Light of God , it is a meer Devil , and does attract Venom and Poyson out of every thing , to the encreasing and strengthening of it self . The holy Ancients have in many other places of the Scriptures deciphered , and endeavoured to describe these two grand Fountains or Principles under the Allegory or Figure of two Brothers : But it is to be noted , that the younger always obtained the Blessing ; as the case of Iacob & Esau , and Isaac and Ishmael , which doth contain many great Mysteries ; for Ishmael is the Son of the Bond-woman , where the Forms and Properties of Nature are at strife and contention ; the same is said of Esau , that he was a rough man , and a Hunter ; which Names in the Radix do signifie strong men in the Wrath and Principle of the wild Nature , into which most men are fallen ; nor doth any Religion or Form of Godliness bring profit to the Soul , but that only that is void of violence ; and therefore the Offerings of Cain , Ishmael , and Esau , and many others , were not accepted of by the Lord ; for the fierce Wrath and violent Spirit did reign in them ; and thence their Offerings proceeded , and so could not awaken or open any other Principle , but only what was like , and from the same Root and Centre . If this were well considered , so many persons would not content themselves in Religious Forms , and giving God long Prayers , whilst all this while their hearts are full of Envy , Back-biting , Contention , Oppression , Hurrying , and Killing Men and Beasts ; most of them counting it their Right to domineer over the meek , humble Spirit of Abel ; but the Blood of Abel doth cry unto the Lord for Vengeance ; for this is the great Law of God in Nature , that there can be no Evil , Violence , or unjust Action done , be it either to the superiour or inferiour Creatures , but there must be retaliation made ; for the Groans of the oppressed have a natural Force , and powerful Inclination to open the Gate of God's Wrath , and draw down the Judgments of the Lord ; because all things were made by one , therefore they have but one only Root and Foundation , & proceeding from that one Lord and Creator , they all live and move in him , and by his Power and Spirit , and are all sustained by his divine hand of Providence , which does not respect one , and neglect another ; there being in him no variation , or shadow of Change or Passion , but equally distributes his Blessings to all his , according to the Nature of each one ; having given every thing it s well being in its self , and allotted thereto a certain number of days , and ordained proper Food for every Creature ; therefore whensoever Men shall violate these Laws of God in Nature , and work contrary unto them , by oppressing the Creatures , then the Wrath of the Creator is kindled ; for every Creature , when it is in danger of being hurt , or pursued for its Life , does as naturally and powerfully cry to the Creator for help , in their own natural Language , as Men do ; and tend and fly to that Fountain of Being and Protection ; for their Lives are as sweet , and their Desires to continue it , are as strong as Man's , 17. Here 't is like I shall be complained of , and condemned by the wise Men of this World , who count it their right in Nature , as Cain did , to domineer and Lord it over all Creatures ; who will say , The Creator hath no respect or regard to the preservation or well-being of inferiour Animals , but only unto Men ; and that his Will is , that Men should destroy , and live upon them , and use them as they please ; Were they not made for that purpose ? and if we should not destroy them , they would destroy us , &c. Thus they object ; but the Truth tells every one , That there are no Creatures that will hurt , or be injurious unto Mankind , but only Dogs , Bears , Foxes , and other of the like Nature , who are Beasts of Prey , and fierce by kind , few or none of which are eaten : But this Allegation I shall more particularly consider in its proper place . Others , more materially will urge the Authority of the holy Scriptures , to prove that killing , and eating of Flesh , was according to the Will of God ; which is true in a certain Sense ; but from the beginning it was not so ; but only after Man had disobeyed the Lord his Maker , and broken his pure Law , and imbarked his corrupt Will and tainted Desires in the fierce Spirit of Oppression , and suffered the bestial , savage Nature to predominate in him over the divine Principle of God's Love and holy Light ; as the Scripture doth testifie , Gen. 6. The Lord looked down from Heaven , and behold every imagination of Man's Heart was evil , altogether evil , and that continually : Also , the Lord said , The Earth is filled with violence , it repenteth me that I have made Man ; and the Earth was corrupt before God , and filled with violence ; for all Flesh had corrupted his way upon the Earth , &c , Here it appears , Man had with his Will and Desires entred into the violent Spirit , which had corrupted the Earth , and all things therein ; whence the desire of killing , and eating of Flesh and Blood of Beasts did proceed ; and for this reason , the Lord was so provoked to Anger , that he said , My Spirit shall not always strive with Man , for that he is Flesh ; yet his days shall be an Hundred and Twenty . Here the Lord shortned the Days of Mankind , as David saith in another place , The Wicked shall not live out half his days . If Man had not thus entred into the violent Spirit of wrath , the Lord had not destroyed Mankind ; but being thus incensed , he commanded Noah to build an Ark , ( which signifies a place of Safety , Peace , and Mercy , ) and to take the clean Beasts by Sevens , ( which is a holy Number in Nature , comprehending all Mysteries ; ) but the unclean by Pairs or Two's , which is a Number of Contention , as being the first that separates from Unity . He was likewise required to take all sorts of Food , both for himself and for the Beasts ; but there was no mention made of Flesh ; and all the Creatures , both clean , and unclean , that he took with him into the Ark , he delivered out again , after the wrath of God was assuaged ; there was no Oppression , Violence , nor Killing in all that time ; for if there had , then would the wrath have been again awakened , and Noah , with the Creatures , would have been comprehended in the same Judgment with those without the Ark : For the Ark does truly signifie the heavenly Principle of God's eternal Love , in which he has established his Covenant with Mankind ; and all Men that safeguard their desires and wills in this holy Ark , denying themselves , and abandoning all kinds of Violence , but taking with them all kinds of Food that do bear a Simile with this friendly Principle , shall be preserved from that deluge of Wickedness and Misery , wherein the rest of the World is overwhelmed . Now after this Deluge , the Lord did permit Man to eat Flesh ; but not without distinction , not with the Blood ; for Man would not be obedient , nor keep himself within the Bounds and Limits of the holy Ark of God , but turned their Wills into the wild , bestial Nature , and so longed after the Essences and Qualities of the Beasts ; whence arises the desire of killing , and devouring of Flesh. This the Lord did well know , and also his Prophets , viz. That if Man did not obey the Voice of Wisdom , and abstain front eating of the Fruit that grows in the midst of the Garden , viz. in his Heart , which is the wrathful , violent Spirit of Oppression , he should die ; which Spirit should not have been manifested , nor have had any Government in Man. As for the Tree that grows in the midst of the Garden , 't is called the Tree of Life , but not without a great Mystery ; for the Centre of Life stands in the Wrath's Property , or fierce Fire , whence proceeds the Sensibility , and knowing Part in Man ; and therefore he was forbidden to eat thereof , that is , he should not have awakened it by his Imaginations and Desires , but have continued in Resignation and Self-denial , and then the Evil would not have been manifested in him , nor have overcome him ; but as it came to pass , well might the Prophets call it The Tree of Death : For when Man did eat of the Fruit thereof , be died unto the divine Life , and lived in the Power of the fiery Spirit of wrath , which has corrupted all Flesh , even the very Earth , and all things therein . 'T was after this was come to pass , when Man had by his Longing and Lusts precipitated himself into the fierce Spirit , and wild Nature , that the Lord permitted him to kill , and eat the Flesh of the Beasts ; but it must be understood , that this License or Permission of killing , or eating of Flesh , proceeded from the wrath of God in Nature ; as the Scripture saith in another place ; Such as the People are , such is their God : For the Lord appears to every one according to what Spirit and Property they live in , whether it be in his Love or his Anger . If they live in the divine Principle of his eternal Love , then he appears to them in the same Principle , as a loving Father , and the God of all Consolation : And on the contrary , when men introduce their Wills and Desires into the fierce wrath , then the Lord appears to them in the same Spirit , dreadful and Terrible : As the Scripture saith in another place , Unto those that fear my Name , and obey my Commandments , I will be merciful and gracious ; but to those that despise my Commandments , I will be an angry , jealous God , and a consuming Fire : Or , as the Apostle saith , To one a savour of Life unto Life , to the other of Death unto Death . Thus all shall glorifie God either in his Love or Anger , and remain Monuments of his Mercy , or Trophies of his Justice . Thus it happened to the Men of old , whom the Lord permitted to kill their fellow-Creatures , and eat their Flesh ; their Cruelties and Oppressions soon awakened the Wrath of the Lord , even as the Blood of innocent Abel did ; therefore the Lord , said , He would go down and see if it were so : Which Expression of God's coming down , does intimate the kindling and awakening of his Wrath in the external Element , as it came to pass in the ensuing Deluge , when the Element of Water was enraged ; from this very Property of the awakened Wrath , did the permission proceed for killing and eating of Flesh ; as also all the Commands for Fighting , and the like ; for if the Lord's People in former Ages had continued their Obedience , and lived in his fear , there had never been any cause or foundation for Wars nor Oppression ; for , as our Saviour saith , The Tempter cometh , but findeth nothing in me ; that is , he findeth no Wrath nor Violence awakened in him , and therefore he could have no ground to work on , nor matter to entertain him , or that would suit his Principle . The like is to be understood of all Men that do live in the Power of God's Love and Light ; for whensoever the Lord suffers any to sight , or engage in War with his People , the original cause thereof hath been Sin , in that they have forsaken the ways of Truth and Righteousness , and entred into Oppression , Pride , and Cruelty , which awaken the evil Principle , and cry for vengeance , and strengthen the common Enemy of Mankind , and then the Lord suffers Wrath to take place . Now whereas Men say , It is lawful in the sight of God to fight , kill , and destroy one another , and oppress , and kill all other Creatures ; 't is true , if it be understood as it ought to be , viz. in the sight of the Principle of his Wrath , as he is a consuming Fire , and a jealous God ; but not as he is a God of everlasting Love and Mercy in Jesus Christ ; for in that respect all Fighting and other Violences are as contrary to him , as Light is to Larkness . Therefore in the Revelations , to the Souls that were under the Altar , crying to God to avenge their Cause , being slain for the Testimony of Jesus , it is answered , Rest for a season , which was as much as to say , Be still , do not awaken the Powers of Wrath ; for no Man can call for Vengeance , but from the Power of that Principle ; and therefore White Garments were given unto them ; that is , they were more replenished with the blessed Power and Vertue of the Love of God in Jesus Christ. Some may say , If we should not fight , and be ready to withstand our Enemies , and neighbouring Nations , we should quickly be brought into subjection . This is very true , if Men should leave off fighting , and yet live such wicked , ungodly Lives as they do ; but if any Nation would repent of the Evil of their Ways , and enter with one mind into Unity , and live in the power and operation of the Love of God , &c. they then should have no occasion to fear or dread any outward Enemies , having so perfectly subdued those within , they should rest secure . This the Children of Israel did often witness ; when they did fear the Lord , and refrain from Idols ; that is , when they did not set their Hearts and Affections upon the Creatures , nor live in Wantonness , &c. Then their Enemies were bowed before them , and the very sight or appearance of Ten would make a Thousand fly ; but when they did forsake the Fear of the Lord , and turned the use of natural things into wantonness , they awakened the Wrath ; by which their Enemies got many Advantages over them , and overcame them , and carried them away captive ; The very same is now-a-days amongst us ; this being a certain Truth , that will stand for ever against all gain-sayers , and evil Men , viz. That all Oppression , Violence , and Killing doth proceed from the seed of the Serpent , the Betrayer ; which I wish all our Hero's , and Fighters , and great Martial Men would well consider , and turn the Eye of their Understandings inward , and search themselves , then they would certainly find , that it is the fierce , Cain-like Spirit ▪ which reigns in them , and excites them to commit such Outrages . When the Soldiers asked the Lord Christ , What they should do to be saved ; he said unto them , Be contented with your Pay , and do violence to no Man : Which is to say , They should be Soldiers no longer ; for all Soldiers do live in the Spirit of Violence , and must kill and destroy whenever their Commanders please . So likewise Christ says to Peter , ( than whom certainly never man drew Sword in a better Quarrel , ) Put up thy Sword , those that use the Sword , shall perish by the Sword ; my Kingdom is not of this World ; that is , My Kingdom consists in Love , Mercy , Meekness , Friendliness , Peace , and good Will unto all Men. 18. It is farther to be considered , that the eating of Flesh was not permitted till after the overflowing of God's Wrath had got the dominion in Man's heart , and God ▪ had tried and proved them , and saw that they were stiff-necked , and would not be obedient unto his Commands , nor enter into the holy , divine Principle of Love and Peace , but would live in the Power of the lordly , poysonous Nature , and continually lusted after Oppression , and the Ways of Egypt ; and for this cause the Lord suffered them to be carried away into the Land of Nod and Egypt , which is a Land of Vanity , Oppression , and Cruelty , and they suffered the fierce Wrath to domineer over them ; but in process of time they cried unto the Lord , and he had regard unto them , and raised up Moses , and inspired him with divine and humane Wisdom , and made him their Guide ; for Moses doth signifie The Strength and Power of God , in his meek , friendly Light and Love ; or , A Cleanser and Purger of the People from Iniquity . This great Prophet , by the mighty power of the Lord , wrought many wonderful Miracles amongst the Egyptians , which made the Wrath to bow , or give way , and by a strong hand caused his People to pass through the Red Sea ; that is , through the fierce Wrath and fiery Judgment of the Lord , untouch'd , and unhurt , whilst the same Sea of Wrath did swallow up and comprehend the Egyptians , the Men of Sin and Vanity , with their Horses and Chariots ; that is , with all their strength and deeds . Then the Lord caused his People to travel forty years in the Wilderness , which signifies the wild Nature , which they were not to stay in ; Likewise , these forty years are an holy , mystical Number , viz. the Number of Regeneration , during which time the Lord works many Marvels , and delivers the true Israelite from inward and outward Enemies . Yet still they provoked the Lord their God to wrath , by lusting after the Flesh-pots of Egypt ; that is , the Oppression , and the Cruelty ; for the Lord did not permit them in all their March towards Canaan , to kill their Flocks or Herds , nor to eat any Flesh in those forty years travel ; for they were not to stay or continue in the wild , bestial Nature , but to pass through , and by degrees leave it behind them , and to deny themselves all those Oppressions , Vanities , worldly Lusts and Passions , which the Men of Egypt are subject unto ; that thereby they might be cleansed , purified , and fitted to enter into the holy Land : For the chief Enemies the Children of Israel met with , were their inward Lusts , Passions and bestial Spirits , which did mightily strive in them , to get the Victory over the divine Principle of God's Love , and this was the main Cause of their many Lets , Stops , and Hinderances , and the Occasion that so many Thousands did fall in the way , and never entred into the holy Land ; of which the Lord told them , That it was a Land that flowed with Milk and Honey , not with Oppression , Cruelty , Killing , and Blood , but with Milk and Honey , the Emblems of Innocency and Sweetness , and beautified with many excellent Virtues , for the maintenance of the Life and Health of Man ; but because they looked back , and longed after the Egyptian Vanities , they did fall , and could not enter into the Land of Peace . As in like case , the Scripture saith of David , That he being a Man of Violence and Blood , as having been bred up in Wars and Fighting ; therefore the Lord would not admit him to build the Temple : Which outward Temple was a true Figure of the inward , divine Temple ; for David had awakened the wrathful Powers of Nature within and without himself ; and consequently was not so fit for Temple-work , wherein there must not be heard any noise of Axes or Hammers , much less the clashing of Swords , and ratling of Spears ; these are the Musick of Babel's - Builders . But perhaps some will say , Though it cannot be proved that the Children of God did eat any Flesh in their Travel towards the Holy Land ; yet long before that , the two Angels that were going towards Sodom , to destroy it , did eat Flesh , I Answer : This is so far from being an Objection , that rightly understood , it confirms and illustrates all that I have been saying ; for , first , 't is plain , these Words are not to be understood literally ; for Angels are incorporeal ; therefore Flesh must needs be too crude and gross a Food for such intellectual Essences , void of Matter ; and therefore some more hidden meaning and signification is to be understood ; and indeed there lies couch'd a very great Mystery in this Passage . The Sodomites had by their crying Sins awakened the fierce , wrathful Principle in Nature , even in the outward Elements , which did kindle the Indignation of the Lord , and draw down the Judgment . Now out of this strong power of the kindled wrath these two Angels did proceed , which had in them the power of the same Principle , viz. the inward and outward Wrath ; and therefore it was no marvel that Abraham should kill and shed Blood at their approach , whose travelling towards Sodom , and staying here by the way , does denote the gradual kindling of the fierce Wrath ; and their eating Flesh under a Tree , or Oak , does signifie the harsh , wild Nature ; for they entred not into Abrahams Tent , ( that is , into the divine Principle , ) but hasted towards Sodom , that was in the kindled Wrath of Nature . Moreover , there were Three Angels appeared unto Abraham ; but there went but Two towards Sodom . Now I have told you , that the Number Two is a Number of Division , and intimates the strite between the Properties of Nature ; but as touching the Third Angel , the Scripture is silent ; for Three is an holy Number , and signifies the heavenly Seed , in which the Lord hath establish'd his Covenant of Grace and Mercy with Mankind . It was therefore this holy Number that brought the glad Tidings unto Abraham and his Wife , that she should bear a Son in her old age ; which is as much as to say , That the divine Principle , viz. The Love and Light should abide , and manifest it self in Abraham's Line ; for the Word [ Abraham ] does signifie , The original Properties and Strength of God in the Fire ; and his Wife , the Love or Meekness , from which Principle should be generated a Son of true Light : For Isaac does intimate the divine Principle , or Son of God , who in the fulness of time was manifested in the humane Nature . This holy Number Three , or good Angel , continued with Abraham ; that is , the divine Principle , and holy Power staid , and made intercession for the Sodomites ; for so we find Abraham immediately intreating and petitioning the Lord to save the Cities of the Plain , for the sake of such Righteous as might be therein ; but the Two fiery Angels hasted towards Sodom ; for the original Fire is fierce and quick in its motion ; and when any People have by their Transgressions kindled the Wrath of God , then there does arise an Instrument out of the same Principle , which does destroy and punish that People , as is manifested in this outward World , which is but a Figure of the inward ; for when a Prince and his People have by their Sins stirred up the Lord's indignation against them , then a neighbouring Prince or Nation is excited to be their Scourge and Punisher , though oftentimes the latter is as great an Evil-doer as the former ; for every Principle and Property both in the divine and humane Nature , does always raise up Instruments from it self to perform its own work ; for look what Property or Principle is most predominant in either a particular Person or Nation , good or evil , just or unjust , such an Angel they have given them , or is attracted by Simile : If the fierce Wrath bear sway , then the evil Angel obtaineth the Government of that Person or People , which does inwardly stir up Enmity in the hearts of Men one against another ; whence does arise all kinds of Oppression and Violence both of Man and Beasts . Besides , it is to be understood , that the Angels , both good and evil , are prompt , and always desirous to obey and attend all such as live in the power of their respective Principle , as the Scripture takes notice , That the evil Angel was ready , and offered his service to be a Lying Spirit in the Mouth of Ahab's Prophets ; for the evil deeds , and perverseness of Mankind to each other , and their oppressing the rest of God's Creatures , does as naturally awaken the fierce , dark Powers , and attract them , as the Load-stone doth Iron , whence doth proceed the Judgments , and so many Calamities . For no Extreams can continue long without alteration , as we see , if any particular Person give himself to Vanity , and commits Evil with desire and greediness , such an one cannot continue long without bringing destruction to Body and Soul : For when any Property of Nature is so violently awakened , it powerfully draws to it self all things that are capable , or have a Simile with it , viz. the evil Angels , and also the Venom out of all things , and so grows a devouring hungry Fire , that is , never satisfied till it hath consumed all the sweet Oyl and Radical Moisture , and then the Body droops , and languishes , and dies . On the contrary , Virtue and the Fear of the Lord , do with a powerful hand not only withstand and resist the baneful Influences of bad Angels , and all other evil things ; but does also attract the Virtue out of all things to the increasing and strengthening its own Principle , and innumerable good Angels are ready at all times to assist and defend the sober and upright in Heart ; as the Scripture saith , He hath made his Angels ministring Spirits , to administer to those that serve the Lord , and are in necessity . In another place , the Lord saith , Is there any Evil in the City , ( that is , in Man , ) and am not I the Lord in the midst of it ? As much as to say , I am in and through all , and govern all things in my Love , or in mine Anger ; and Man being his Image , doth in his measure the same : but the Evil should not have been awakened , or manifested in Man ; therefore he was in the beginning forbidden it ; but after he had eaten this Fruit , the Lord said , The Man is become as one of us , knowing Good and Evil. Then the Gates of Paradise were shut against him ; and it is said , The Lord drove him out of the Garden into the Earth ; that is , into the wild Nature , to labour and dress it ; and the Lord set two Cherubims on the East-side of the Garden , with flaming Swords , that did turn every way to keep the Tree of Life , lest Man should touch it , and live for ever . The East here does signifie in the Radix , the open Gate , or Eye that sees into the great Mysteries , and working Powers of the Creator . The Tree of Life does intimate the creating Power of God , and the original Forms in Nature , viz. the three grand Properties , Salt , Sulphur , and Mercury ; from whence all the variety of Complexions , Forms , and Qualities do arise ; the Cherubims , and Flaming Sword that defends this Tree of Life , do signifie the original Fire , and strong Forms of Nature , in which the Lord calls himself an angry , jealous God , and a consuming Fire . The Cherubims are the strong , fiery Angels , and great Powers of God in the working and government of all the Kingdoms of Nature ; which mighty Operations , and my stick creating Powers Man was not fit to know , after he had awakened the Wrath , and came to know Good and Evil ; for if Man should once have touched this Tree of Life , then would he have been capable to have wrought Wonders in the dark , strong , fiery , original Property , viz. the dark Magick , and changing of one Form into another ; and the creating Power of God would have been known unto Man , who then would have lived for ever in the hellish Qualities . It may be noted , That the Lord said nothing in the beginning to Adam of the Tree of Life ; but only of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil , the Fruit of this latter Tree only he should not have eaten ; for Eating signifies to nourish and strengthen , which Adam should not have suffered his Will and Desires to have longed after ; for if the fiery , wrathful Principal had not been awakened in Adam , then the Lord would not have drove him out of the Garden , that is , out of the Government of the divine Principle , neither would there have been any danger of his touching of the Tree of Life , that is , of the original , creating , strong Powers of the Lord ; for if he had continued in the Government and Operations of God's eternal Principle of Love and Light , then he would have been satisfied with the Fruit of Paradise , whose Originals sprung and proceeded from the Filial Property ; and therefore the illuminate Prophet Moses saith , God placed Adam in a Garden ; which does intimate a separated place of Pleasure , where all sorts of innocent Herbs , Fruits , Grains , and fragrant Flowers do thrust and give forth their delicate Beauties , ravishing Odours , and excellent Virtues in silence ; there being no grutching , envying , or contention amongst them , because of their different Scents , Colours , or Properties ; but all stand still , and suffer the divine hand to do with them as he pleaseth . Not but that in the most fragrant Flower , and best of Herbs and Fruits , there is the strong , poysonous Root , viz. Tree of Life ; for the Radix of every Creature stands in Poyson : And therefore in what Creature soever these original , fiery Properties are predominant , all such Creatures are of a greedy , ravenous , fiery Nature : If it be an Herb , it is poysonous , rank , and fulsome ; as on the contrary , all Things and Creatures , in which the divine Principle does predominate , the poysonous , wrathful Tree of Life lies hid and unmanifested ; as in a curious Flower , which is of various Colours , and sends forth a most fragrant Scent ; here is no Poyson , Wrath , nor evil Quality manifest , but as a Man may say , a Paradisical and most pleasant Virtue , the original Qualities are occult , because the good Properties predominate : But yet there would be no Vertue , if there were no Vice ; for these original Forms are the cause of all Motion , whence the Life and Light doth take Birth ; but if this original Fire do predominate in any thing , be it what it will , it presently becomes fierce and poysonous : Therefore when Adam did eat of the Fruit of the Tree that grew in the midst of his Paradisical Garden , that is , in the very centre of his Life ; which central Fire he was forbidden to awaken and feed on , he was forthwith turned out of the Garden of Pleasure ; which if he had not done , then the blessed , fra grant , divine Fruit would have predominated , and the evil Nature would not have been manifested , and he had still continued in Paradise , from whence he was now necessarily expelled ; for when the original Fire and strong Power was manifest in the Centre of Man's Life , he would have proceeded farther , viz into the very Centre of Nature , and become a Formerand Figurer in the fierce Wrath , and then there had been no hope of his Restauration ; therefore the Lord drove him out of Paradise , and from the Tree of Life , into the humane Nature , whose operation is in Good and Evil ; by which Means the God of Wisdom , Peace and Mercy , has through the Feminine Tincture , in the fulness of time , restored again whatsoever Adam lost , as to the Soul. For the eternal Son of Love saith , That he came to seek and to save that which was lost , and proclaimed Peace and Good-Will unto all Men ; that is , he invited them to come unto him , and he would refresh , and ease them of their Burthen ; for he saith , My yoke is easie , and my Burthen light , and you shall find rest to your Souls . And if this Voice of Wisdom were hearkned unto , Men would no longer live in the wild Nature , and bestial Qualities , nor oppress God's Creation , the Groanings thereof would no longer be heard , nor would those that are travelling to the Land of Promise , any more look back , and hanker after the Flesh-pots of Egypt , but would content themselves with the innocent food of Paradise ; nor would they murmur like the Israelites in the Wilderness , Give us Flesh , or else we die ; that is , if they did not feed upon the Fruit of the forbidden Tree , and bestial , savage Nature , and follow the Superfluities of the Egyptians , the wrathful , fiery , bestial Life would die in them , which they were very unwilling to part with ; therefore the Lord heard them in his Wrath , ( for they had awakened it , ) and in the same Principle he gave them Flesh , which darkned the divine Principle in them , and gave advantages to the Wrath , that it got the victory over them ; therefore many Thousands of them were thereby destroyed in the Wilderness ; that is , in the wild , bestial Nature , and entred not into the Holy Land ; for Bears , Lions , and the like Beasts of Prey , are not admitted to enter there : Without are Dogs , saith the Apostle . All that enter the New Ierusalem , must leave behind them Pharaoh and all his Troops in the Red Sea , and travel through all the degrees of the wild , bestial Nature , and return unto every Form and Constellation , all such Inclinations , and evil Dispositions as Men have received from them , viz. Unto the first Form , or Constellation , called Saturn , you must leave Covetousness , Envy , Suspicion , and all dark , evil Thoughts and Jealousies . Unto the second Form , called Iupiter , you must leave all worshipping of Idols , false Forms of Religion , envious , peevish Inclinations , and Persecutions , which are devilish Dispositions that do possess many ; from whence do proceed great Troubles and Discords . When you come to the third Form , called Mars , you must with him leave all Wrath , Passion , Cruelty , and Violence . With the fourth Form , called , The Sun , you must leave all Pride , High-mindedness , and Self-conceit , all Inclinations tending to Ambition and Vain-glory. But at the fifth Form , called Venus , you must abandon all Desires after unlawful Beds , all wanton Discourses , and Enticements to fleshly Lusts. When you arrive at the sixth Form , called Mercury , put away all idle Jesting , much Talking , Lying , Dissembling , and carrying two Faces , so as to appear good with the Good , and bad with the Bad. And at the seventh Form , called , The Moon , you must leave all unconstant Humors , and fickle Fancies , as also , Gluttony , and sottish , swinish Living , as to Superfluities either of eating or drinking . All these bad Dispositions and Inclinations , the Children of God , and of the divine Principle , must deny themselves , and leave them behind in the Wilderness ; for they do belong unto the wild , bestial Nature , and thither ought to return ; and none that live under their Powers , can enter into the Holy Land. 19. It may be farther objected , If Flesh had not been in some degree profitable unto the Children of Israel , and if Killing were not lawful , why did the Lord command Beasts to be killed for Sacrifices ? I answer ; The killing of Beasts for Sacrifice , is a great Figure or Mystery , which shews the depraved state of Man , and how he is fallen from his primitive Integrity and Innocency ; for it signifies , that Man by his Evils and Transgressions , had so mightily awakened the Wrath , and fierce , fiery Power of God , that it would not be satiated ; or appeased , except there were Violence used , and Blood spilt ; for all Sacrifices were made to atone and satisfie the enkindled Wrath , which after the Gate of Violence was once opened , nothing but Blood could allay ; for Man having awakened it by Sin , nothing in the Vegetable Kingdom , no Herbs , Fruits , Grains , or Seeds , would answer the ravenous Appetite thereof ; and therefore it required Blood , which is the highest Life in the humane Nature , and cannot be procured but by Violence , and has the nearest Affinity to the Wrath of any thing in the whole Creation ; whence it is said , Blood requires Blood : And this may be illustrated in every particular Man , when he does suffer the fierce Wrath and Fire to burn in him , he becomes like a raging Bedlam ; nothing can calm or satisfie him , except he doth some Mischief , kill and oppress ; for in such a Fit Blood and Revenge is sweet unto him , and assoon as he has glutted himself with Blood , that wrathful Property is satisfied : And as it is thus in the little World , the same is to be understood by way of Analogy , in the great . For this cause the Lord declared , That whoever did kill a Man , his Blood he would require at his Hands : The Reason and Equity of which Law comprehends all Creatures ; and therefore it is said , That Beast that shall shed Blood , or kill any other Beast , should be slain . So that 't is without doubt the original cause of killing of Beasts , and offering them in Sacrifice , was to see whether it would have satisfied that fierce , poysonous Wrath , which Man had so terribly awakened by his Violence , and corrupting the whole , whence the Deluge proceeded . But after the Flood , which had so swept away all Mankind , except eight Persons , to prevent the like dreadful Judgment for the future , Sacrifices , and the Blood of Beasts was used to assuage the Wrath , and to make atonement for the Sins of Men ; because the Blood of Beasts has both the nearest affinity to the original Properties of Man's Life , and also to the awakened Wrath , as well within , as without him ; for Men cannot kindle the Wrath within themselves , but they must do it without them also . But ●●ill , the Scripture saith , That the Blood of Bulls , and the like , would not satisfie the Justice , and awakened Wrath of God , nor make a perfect Atonement for the Sins of Mankind ; and therefore , besides their daily Sacrifices , the High Priest was once every Year to go into the second Tabernacle , but not without Blood , which he offered for himself , and for the People : Also it is said , that the way into the Holiest Tabernacle of all , was not made manifest whilst the first Tabernacle was yet standing ; whence it appears , that all the Sacrifices , and other Circumstances of Worship in the time of the Law , did proceed from the Wrath , especially Sacrifices and Killing , which cannot flow from the divine Principle ; for that holy Principle of Love and Light was not manifest whilst the first Tabernacle did stand ; that is , so long as the first Principle of God's fierce Wrath did predominate : But all Sacrifices , Violences , and Killing do cease in all those whom the Lord doth appear to in the power of his Son Jesus Christ ; but so long as Men are captivated in the first Tabernacle of Wrath , the Holiest of all is not manifest ; that is , the holy and good Love of God in his Son , is not known or manifested in them ; and therefore it is said , Sacrifices and Offerings for sin thou didst refuse ; that is , the divine Principle had no pleasure in Violence , in the Blood of Beasts , and Groanings of the Creation ; but then steps in the Holy Principle of Love , and saith , Lo , I come to do thy Will , O God! That is , to destroy the Works of the Devil , and establish everlasting Righteousness ; and he taketh away the first , ( that is , the kindled Wrath , Violence , and Oppression , ) and establisheth the second ; that is , his eternal Light and Love in Jesus Christ , in whom alone he is well pleased , which brings glad Tidings unto all Mankind , and to the whole Creation , especially if Men become the S●●s of God ; for then all the inferiour Creatures would be delivered into glorious Liberty . It does appear by what the Apostle saith , That all Sacrifices ; Killing , and Blood of Beasts , could not sufficiently appease God's Wrath , nor reconcile Man unto God , otherwise than as if one Man kill another ; the Blood of him that is slain doth call for Vengeance on the Slayer ; but all this while , the Principle of God's fierce Wrath is by their violence and oppression increased and strengthened ; even so it was in all Sacrifices ; Men , by their Violences had corrupted the Earth , and awakened God's Wrath , which called for Vengeance , even as the Blood of a particular Man doth on a Beast ; for all kind of Violence , be it either little or much , doth call for vengeance and retaliation , if not confessed , repented of , and by the power of the divine Love of God forsaken ; which holy Principle of God's eternal Love and Light in his Son , was not manifest unto them , ( as the Apostle saith , ) because the first Tabernacle or Principle of God's Wrath had , through their Cruelties and Evils , gotten the Ascendent over them ; so that the divine Principle could not have its operation in them , so long as they continued in their sins , committing those Violences and Oppressions ; for the first Tabernacle , or Wrath in Man , must be done away , before the second can take place ; that is , before the holy Light of the Son of God can reign and rule in our hearts ; for nothing can allay , overcome , or make the stern , fierce Wrath of the Father to bow , or satiate its fiery hunger in Mankind , but only the eternal Fountain of his meek Love in Christ ; from whom , ( as the Scripture saith , ) there does flow Rivers of living Waters ; which alone can allay the fiery Wrath , and reconcile Men to the God of Peace , and bring to nought the lofty , proud , violent Desires , and vain Thoughts and Inclinations in Man , and by its operation gives them an Eye of discerning , to distinguish of God's Love and Anger , in himself , and makes the fierce , harsh Fire of Wrath to burn more gentle ; so that instead of its raging Fierceness , it becomes a meek and cherishing Fire ; which is the pleasant motion in every Life , that tunes a Man up to an intellectual Harmony , causing all the Properties and Qualities to kiss and incorporate with each other ; whence arises a most pleasant Crasis , or Euphony of Temper , Thoughts , and Operations . A Similitude whereof we have in a Musical Instrument , that is skilfully tuned , and plaid upon , where there are various Strings and Notes , whence proceed different Sounds ; but all conspiring to make up most ravishing and delightful Harmony , the dull , melancholy , harsh , jarring Notes of Saturn and Mars , being made pleasant by the incorporating of the melodious Sounds of Venus , Iupiter , the Sun , and Mercury . Do not the Foundations of all Harmony , both in Men , and all other things , arise from the Basis , viz. from the first Principle or Tabernacle ; for if there were no Fire , there would be no Light ; so , if there were no Basis , there could be no Trebbles ; or if there were , yet there could be no Harmony , if one were without the other . What Harmony do Men make to themselves or others , when the heavy , fierce Fires of Saturn and Mars do carry the upper dominion in them ? But if the Gravity of Iupiter , and Sweetness of Venus , do interpose , then all is made delightfully pleasant . But as it is impossible for any Man to make good Harmony , that has never learned Musick , nor knows how to tune his Instrument ; because one String will be several Notes too high , and others as many too flat or low , from which can proceed no Melody , but a rumbling , jarring Noise of Discords . So impossible it is that any Man should attain to the holy Harmony of God in the Kingdom of his Love and Light , or to live in the power of Unity , except he be born again , and hath learned himself ; for the true knowledge of God in a Man's self , is absolutely necessary ; for if a Man do not understand the Treasures and holy Virtues , the Vices and Evils he always carries about him in his own Vessel , how is he like to distinguish the Natures , Properties , and Operations of those things which he shall daily meet withal within him ? 20. This degeneration of the humane Nature , is apparent from the Words of our Saviour Christ , who saw into the very Roots of their Hearts and Spirits , and yet made no scruple to call them Foxes , Sons of Belial , &c. For such inwardly they were ; as appear'd by their Works : But it had not been so from the beginning ; for if it had , Man would not have been cloathed with such a compleat Angelical form and shape as he is ; for when the Creator moved himself by the production of all things , each was cloathed with an external Body , suitable to its Spirit , and according to the degrees and nature of each Spirit , such form it attained ; for each spiritual Substance had power to attract out of all things such corporeal Matter for a Covering or Body , as had a Simile with its own Nature , as appears most manifestly by the Shapes , Forms , Inclinations , and Dispositions of each Creature . And as the internal Property and Disposition of each Creature did vary , so their outward Form and Shape did vary . Thus , where the fierce Wrath did predominate , there sprung up wild Beasts , and Birds of Prey ; but where the Qualities of Nature were more equally mixed , there were formed more benign and friendly Creatures ; as Beasts and Birds humane , tame , and tractable , called by the wise Men , clean Beasts and Birds ; and where the Spirit was more noble and great , so the Body and Form was accordingly . And as Man was in the Spirit , and primitive Properties and Qualities , greater , and more noble than any other of the Creatures visible ; so the Lord gave him a proportionable Body above all the rest of the lower Creation ; for we never read that any of the Holy Angels of the Lord appeared in any other than Humane Form : But when God has at any time permitted evil Angels to assume Shapes and Forms , they have always been hideous , monstrous , and frightful ; as , Dragons , Lions , Cats , Swine , and the like ; which may demonstrate what Principle and Kingdom they belong unto , and which would have been Man's Condition , had he not fallen into the humane Nature ; which has not only been the chief Means to preserve Man's Angelical Form , but to raise him to a Supernatural Dignity . , by the Lord Christ's assuming an humane Body , and making all them Sons and Coheirs that believe in him , and are incorporated with him : For , though Man , through Sin and Transgression , hath lost his Heavenly , Angelical Understanding and Wisdom , ( which yet shall be again restored to all those that obey the Counsel of the holy Seed , and divine Light , ) yet he did not bereave himself of his first Shape , or Angelical Form , because he fell into the Humane Nature , where every Body has the Seed in it self to produce its like Species in all respects . But as for the Spirits or Souls of most Men , they have through the desire of Vanity , Oppression , Violence , Killing both Men and Beasts , wanton Superfluity , Pride , Vain-glory , &c. precipitated themselves into the divided Forms , and harsh , fierce Wrath of God , and into Bestiality , and the savage Nature ; so that they have lost the humane Property , are grown hard-hearted , cruel , and sordid , having no Compassion , Fellow-feeling , or Mercy ; and all that do live and die in this savage , brutish state , shall in the Resurrection , when every Soul shall be re-invested with a new Body , attract such Matter out of all things , as their Spirits are capable of , and have a Simile with ; and so appear in Forms hideous , frightful and loathsome , as their Natures require ; for such Seed as Men do sow , such a Body may be expected : for so the illuminate Apostle speaks of the Resurrection , God giveth to every Seed it s own Body ; and therefore if Men sow hellish Seeds in their Lives , no wonder if they be cloathed with suitable shapes in the next World. But on the contrary , those that in their earthly Pilgrimage have retained Humanity , and introduced their Wills and Desires into the divine Principle of eternal Light and Love , and been guided by the counsel thereof , shall in that day arise in a more perfect , beautiful , and glorious humane Shape and Form , of whom Christ Jesus was the first ; for after his Resurrection he appeared in the same Shape , Form and Body as he had before his Death . 21. Consider how unpleasing it would be to most People , to behold the dead Carkasses of Beasts cut into pieces , and mangled , and all over bloody ? And how nauseous and frightful a thing it would be to think of putting those begored Gobbits into our Mouths , and feeding our selves thereon , did not continual Use and Custom make it familiar ? And how difficult a Task would it be for many People ( who do for the most part live under the power and operation of the tender , compassionate Principle of God's Love , ) to kill the Beasts for their own Food , until a little Action of that kind and custom hardens them therein ? How quickly also will the dead Carkasses putrefie and stink , defiling the Elements , both Earth and Air ? How offensive are the Places where Flesh is killed and sold ? How rude , cruel , fierce , and violent are most of those who are employed therein ? In a word , there is nothing that is pleasant , or friendly in the whole business , nor any one Circumstance that is grateful to the innocent Principle in Man ; nay , the Taste of most sorts of Flesh is strong , fulsome , and smells of the original Cruelty to all those that have for any time separated themselves from the eating thereof , or having communication with it . And indeed none are , or can be sensible how it is , nor be competent Judges of what is said here , but only such as have made Trial. Is there any comparison to be made between an Herb-Market , and a Flesh-Market ? In one there is a thousand pieces of the dead Carkasses of various Creatures lie stinking , the Chanels running with Blood , and all the Places full of Excrements , Ordure , Garbage , Grease , and Filthiness , sending forth dismal , poysonous Scents , enough to corrupt the very Air : In the other , you have delicate Fruits of most excellent Tastes , wholesome Medicinal Herbs , savoury Grains , and most beautiful , fragrant Flowers , whose various Scents , Colours , &c. make at once a Banquet to all the Senses , and nourish the purer Spirits , and refresh the very Souls of such who pass through them , and perfume all the circumambient Air with redolent Exhalations . This was the Place , and Food ordained for Mankind in the beginning : The Lord planted a Garden for him , replenish'd with all manner of ravishing Fruits and Herbs : There was no Flesh-Markets nor Shambles talk'd of in the primitive times ; But every green Herb , Fruit , and Seed shall be for Food to Man , saith the Creator . Which if it had been still observed , Man had not contracted so many Diseases in his Body , and cruel Vices in his Soul , by making his Throat an open Sepulchre , wherein to entomb the dead Bodies of Beasts ; nor should the Noble Image of the Deity have been thus shamefully defiled with Brutalities . Creatures of Sea and Land we slay , And in our Maws do bury ; And worse by half than Beasts of Prey , Are at their Fun'rals merry . How shall they but Bestial grow , That thus to feed on Beasts are willing ? Or why should they a long Life know , Who daily practise KILLING ? 22. There remains yet one Question , which I have been often ask'd , viz. If all People should live on Fruits , Herbs , and the like what should we do with the Beasts , and what would become of them ? They would grow so numerous , that they would be prejudicial to Mankind , &c. To all which I answer : 1. That these are rather Suppositions , than Arguments , meer Fancies , weak , and unconcluding , because unexperienced . There is ( and pity it is , that there is but ) little likelihood of the generality of Peoples forsaking this ill and harmful ( but too long continued ) devouring of Flesh ; and consequently there is no great force in this Objection ; yet still it may not be amiss to warn the Lovers of Virtue and Piety , to abstain , for the many Reasons aforesaid ; but these are but a few , and the Multitude will still pursue , and ingulf themselves in their accustomed Cruelties and Superfluities . 2. Should any Nation or great number of People , through the divine sight , and true Wisdom , scruple Violence , Oppression , Killing , and Eating the Flesh of their Fellow-Creatures of an inferiour Rank , the same Wisdom would teach them what to do with , and how to order the Beasts . 3. There are abundance of several sorts of these Creatures in the World that Men do not kill and eat ; and yet there are no more of them than are useful ; or not so many , as to occasion any such prejudice to Mankind , as this Objection supposes , but find room enough in their proper Elements , and the almighty Providence liberally sustains them . To instance in one most common and useful Species , viz. Horses ; they are not any where that I know of , usually killed to be eaten ; and yet I never heard of any Country in the World that complained of being over-stock'd with them . It may perhaps be alledged , That the hard usage and tyranny which Men inflict upon them , do destroy great Numbers of them . I confess this is too true ; but yet if there were no such Exorbitances committed , there would not be too many , nor would their Troops be burthensome unto Mankind : For , are there not various sorts of Birds , many of them not fit to be eaten , and others , that for the most part escape the Stratagems and Snares of the Fowler , and yet we do not find too many of them ; nor indeed shall you but very seldom find any of them dead , though they cannot hide their dead , since their Feathers would betray them : The Raven , as unfit for Food , because of its rapacious preying on dead Carcases , and the pretty Robin-red-breast , for its Innocency , are very seldom killed , and yet they do not become offensive to Men. 4. How many sorts of Beasts and Birds , both wild and tame , are there in other Countries , that are rarely killed by Men , and yet there is a natural consumption of them ; nay , there are divers kinds , whom to kill or injure , is to this day accounted ominous , or foreboding Mischief to those that meddle with them ; for which cause most People forbear to offer violence to them , unless by accident ; and yet there are no more extant in the World , than of others , whom Men make it their Business , and Interest , and Diversion to destroy . 5. If People had not occasion for so many Sheep for their Wool , or Cows for their Milk , &c. they might as easily lessen the Numbers of them , as increase them ; which every Husbandman might be sensible of , by keeping the Males from the Females , and not suffering them to generate too young ; whereby such Beasts would he larger , stronger , and more healthy ; whereas now so many Cattel are industriously bred up in many places , that when a Scarcity happens of Grass , Hay , or Corn , multitudes of them perish ; for Cattel being now become a grand Commodity , and ( as it were ) a Manufacture ; Husbandmen for the most part living at rack'd Rents , are forced to raise as many of them as possibly they can , and to keep them on improper and unhealthy Pasturages , and to over-labour both themselves and their Beasts , merely to raise Rents for their idle , extravagant Landlords , who only aim to satisfie their Pride and Superfluity . 6. 'T is certain , that God and Nature , ( who do nothing in vain , ) never created , or made more Creatures in any of the four Worlds or Elements , whether visible , or invisible , than the same would nourish and maintain ; as in the Element of Water , if there were never any killed by Men , their Mother-Element , that brought them forth , would be sufficient to nurse them up , and maintain them . The like is to be said of the Fowls of the Air , and Beasts of the Earth ; for do we not see , even in Desarts and Wildernesses , all Nature's Productions are liberally provided for , and fewer there of every Species , than in those we call Civilized Regions ? So gross an Error 't is to imagine , That if Men should not kill them , the Earth would be over-run , and that there would be so many of them as would not be sustained , but that they would be injurious to Mankind : For in truth nothing would or could hurt or injure Man , if he lived in Innocency , and did not first outrage them ; for as Innocency hurts nothing , so nothing can hurt it . 23. Now it is farther to be considered , That if any Nation or People should leave off , or scruple killing Men , and the inferiour Creatures , and eating their Flesh and Blood , from a true understanding of God's Law in Nature , and in obedience to the friendly and innocent Principle of God's Love and Light , then all Oppression , Violence , Controversies , and Killing would cease , and that excellent Saying of the Prophet would take place , viz. That every Man would be taught of the Lord : All outward Enquiries would have an end ; then would not Men build outward Temples , in which they say , They will worship God ; but in truth , they make the Seats of War , Dissention , and Controversie ; but instead thereof , Men's Bodies would become living Temples , in which his holy Spirit would have the dominion ; then the dolorous , frightful Noise of Guns , Drums , Swords , and the Tumults of Armed Men would not be heard in the Streets ; no Plotting and Contriving the destruction of each other would be ; neither would the Prince need to fear his own Warders ; nor no wounding one another by Back-biting and slanderous Speeches ; neither would the superiour World and Element be filled with the mournful Tones , and doleful Cries of the inferiour Inhabitants , nor with the wrathful , fierce Species of Man-slaughter , which doth render every Man unsafe , even from the Prince , to the Peasant ; neither would there be any vain Plays , Games , nor wanton , superfluous Treats , to waste precious Time , and destroy God's good Creatures ; then Man would not say , what should be done , and do it not ; then the inward , savage , violent Beasts of Prey would be rooted out of Man's heart , and the violent , wrathful Spirit must lose its dominion , and lay down its wrathful Arms , and Weapons of War , and become subject to the divine Principle of God's eternal Love ; neither would Men then count themselves at home in this World ; but Strangers , and Guests , that must wander hence ; then also all outward fighting , and slaying one the other for Money and Honour , would have no being ; for having overcome the inward Enemies of their Members , they would rest secure ; there being no Peace so excellent and commendable as that which is made by good living , neither in the sight of God nor Man , viz. by the Sword of God's Spirit , not by the high , lofty , domineering , envious Spirit , who , by force doth endeavour to subject all unto it self , such a Peace cannot long continue unviolated , because it proceeds from the poysonous , serpentine Root , and it hath its motion and operation where the Forms of Nature are divided , and at Enmity with each other ; also , here each Property doth with highest diligence endeavour to get the dominion ; which sometimes one doth , and then by and by another ; so that there is a continual strife and enmity for Superiority or Government ; which is the foundation of all Controversies , Violence , Oppression , Fighting , and Killing , and why Men forget God , and despise the Dictates of the innocent Principle of his Love ; which continued Violences and Oppressions do more and more kindle , and keep the fierce Wrath in motion , and by a sympathetical inclination draw on Man many sore Evils ; for every Principle or Quality becomes either strong and powerful , or weak and impotent , according as Man shall joyn himself , or live in the power and operation of , whether it be in the evil or good ; therefore it hath always come to pass , that those that have given themselves up , and immersed their Wills and Desires into the Principle of Wrath , have become strong and powerful therein , committing Intemperances , and outraging God's Law with greediness , but on the contrary , those that have separated themselves from Violence , Intemperance , and Uncleanness , and followed the Counsel of the Voice of Wisdom , they have become strong and powerful in the same Principle ; whence hath flowed all kinds of Virtue . What could hurt Man , either externally or internally , or destroy his Peace and Well-being , if he lived in Innocency ? The Creator hath not made any visible Prince greater , or ordained any to reign over him , but only the friendly Light and Love , which he hath dispossessed himself of , by stepping out of the Law of God in Nature , and so hath lost his dominion , both external and internal , and thereby hath subjected himself under the dominion of the poysonous , fierce Wrath , where Enmity , Strife , and Violence take their Birth . But this is the happiness still of Mankind , that the God of eternal Peace hath , in his Mercy , given a portion of his friendly Light and Love , to every one to profit withal ; and also Man's Will is free , if he do not suffer it to be depraved , and captivated under the dominion of the evil Nature ; for this cause , the Scripture of Truth saith , That the Lord hath set Life and Death before Man ; that is , in Man ; as also , the Right-hand Way , and the Left , and bid him chuse : The Right-hand-Way is the Principle of his eternal Love and Light in Jesus Christ ; and the Left , is his fierce Wrath ; and he that chuseth the good part , doth not only become a Friend of God's , and himself , but also to the whole Creation , and becomes incorporated into that unspotted Body , and holy Fountain of Innocency , into which state all the inferiour Creatures , as well as Man , do travel with pain , and groan to be delivered , as the worthy Apostle Paul saith ; The whole Creation groans to be delivered into that glorious liberty of the Sons of God ; this is the Land that flows with Milk and Honey : Here is Peace , and Plenty of all things ; for Unity and Innocency makes the Kingdoms of this World Emblems of Paradise : For Temperance , Cleanness and Separation from Violence , freeth the Body from great Labours and Travels , and the Mind from carking Cares , Suspicions , and Perturbations , attracting the benevolent Influences of the Celestials , and all the Host of Heaven and Earth blesseth him that lives in Innocency , because he oppresseth nor hurteth nothing : It is Violence , Oppression , and Superfluity which have broke the Unity between God and Man , and also between all other Creatures , and rendered Man the most unhappy of all others ; his wrathful Mouth is so wide , and his Paunch so large , that the Spoil and Destruction of all the numerous Inhabitants of the Elements will not content him ; he contends with all things , and therefore all contend with him ; no place is free from his poisonous Rays , and unreconciled Controversies , therefore all curse him , and he doth the same by them : Every Creature feareth Man , because he hurts and destroys their Peace ; and in so doing , he doth the same by himself , for the Groaning of those Creatures that suffer Pain and Oppression will overtake him that doth it ; but , on the contrary , those that have separated themselves from Violence , Oppression , and Superfluity , all things that are necessary for them , and for the support of Life , are near at hand , and may be easily procured , without hazarding the Health either of the Body or Mind , and without Oppression to any of God's Creatures ; as the great number of fragrant Herbs , Seeds , Grains , and Fruits , which are endued with brave innocent Properties , and many excellent Virtues , beyond Expression ; which being well prepared , and moderately eaten , do not only maintain Health and Strength , but they do beget their own Species , and innocent Properties , both in the Body and Mind , as I have before demonstrated : And whosoever shall make trial , and initiate now this innocent way of Living , shall not only make Peace with the whole Creation , but shall overcome his inward Lusts , and violent Passions , which are Man's deadly Enemies ; and then he may rest secure under his own Vine , viz. under the Government of the divine Principle of God's Eternal Love. Here all Contention ceaseth ; no hideous Cries , nor mournful Groans are heard , neither of Man nor Beast ; no Chanels running with the Blood of slaughter'd Beasts ; no stinking Shambles , nor bloody Butchers ; no roaring of Canons , nor firing of Towns ; no loathsome , stinking Prisons , nor Iron Grates , to keep Men from enjoying Wife , Children , and the pleasant Air , nor no crying for want of Food and Cloths ; no Rioting , nor wanton Inventions to destroy as much in one day , as a Thousand can get by their hard Labour and Travel ; no swearing , nor stabbing Heaven with dreadful Execrations ; no galloping Horses up Hills , without any consideration or fellow-feeling of the Creatures pains and burthens ; no deflouring of Virgins , and then expose both them and their own Seed to all the Miserie 's imaginable ; nor no Letting Lands and Farms so dear , that the Farmer must be forced to oppress himself , Servants , and Cattle almost to death , and all too little to pay his Rent ; no Disobedience of the Inferiour , nor Oppression of the Superiour ; but the first knows how to obey , and the last how to govern ; neither is there any Want , because there is no Superfluity nor Gluttony : No Noise nor Cries of wounded Men , no need of Chirurgeons to cut Bullets out of their Flesh , nor no cutting off Hands , broken Legs and Arms ; no roaring nor crying out with the torturing pains of the Gout , nor other painful Diseases , as Leporous and Consumptive Distempers , except through Age , and the Relicks of some Strains they got whilst they lived in intemperate Egypt ; neither are their Children afflicted with such a great number of Diseases , but are as free from Distempers as Lambs , Calves , or the young ones of any of the Beasts , who are preserved sound and healthful , because they have not outraged God's Law in Nature , the breaking of which is the Foundation of most or all cruel Diseases that afflict Mankind ; there being nothing that makes the difference between Man and Beasts , as to Health , but only Superfluity and Intemperance , both in Quality and Quantity . Man , in his first state , was made the soundest , healthiest , of the greatest Spirit , and the longest life'd ; as witness the Antients in the first Ages of the World : But when Man enter'd with his Will into Violence , Oppression , and Cruelty , then the Lord said , That Man had corrupted the Earth , and filled it with Violence ; that is , the Elements and Properties of the Humane Nature was corrupted , and become unequal in their Operation ; every particular Quality did endeavour to get the upper hand : Here the Harmony was broken , and Discord took place ; here was the Strife : Then the Lord shortned Man's Life , but not before he became intemperate , and did Violence , not only unto himself , but to all other Creatures ; therefore they do groan to be delivered into that first State , and glorious Liberty , Man was created in ; which if he had continued in Obedience , and lived under the Government of the innocent Principle of God's Light and Love , all the inferiour Creatures would have enjoyed all the Privileges and Liberty which were ordained for them , according to their Capacity . For this Cause , whensoever any of the inferiour Creatures are oppressed , hurt , or killed , they do , by a natural Disposition and Inclination , cry unto the Fountain whence they proceeded , and groan for Deliverance ; which will never be , until Men , with their Wills and Desires , enter into the innocent Principle of God's Love , and holy Light , whence doth arise no Disposition of Hatred , Violence , or Oppression ; it being as contrary to it , as Light is to Darkness : All Cruelty and Blood-shedding do proceed from another Fountain , as different in Nature and Operation , as the common consuming Fire doth differ from the Light thereof ; which is of a most friendly , pleasant Quality , and benevolent Operation ; but the Fire is fierce , and altogether the contrary ; yet nevertheless , the harsh Fire is the cause of the Light ; and if there were no Fire , there would be no Light : The Fire is the Father , and the Light is the Son ; and they are Emblems of the Father and Son , or of the internal Fire and Light : The Light of this internal Fire is a most pleasant , chearing Quality of Life ; but the Fire , in its own Nature , is a strong , harsh , sulphurous Property , a devouring , lofty , proud Spirit , who endeavours to consume all things , and the internal , dark Fire is its Root ; and the Scripture saith , Who can dwell with everlasting Burnings ? God is a Consuming Fire to all that are not cloathed with the Son's Wedding-Garment of Light , Love , and Innocency ; therefore the scrupling Violence and Oppression , both to Man and Beast , and denying our selves of other Vanities and Superfluities , is of great moment , and the only Path that leads Men to the holy Land , preserving both the Body and Soul in health . For this Cause , in the Beginning , the Lord put Man into a Garden , which doth truly signifie Innocency ; and gave him a great number of fragrant Herbs , Seeds , Fruits , and Grains , which are all endued with an innocent Nature and Operation ; but when he had precipitated his Will and Desires into the Principle of Wrath , then presently the Earth was filled with Violence , and the Element of his Body and Soul was corrupted ; then Distemperatures took place in him , and his Life was shortned , but not before . Therefore the Eating of Herbs , Seeds , Grains , and Fruits is of far greater consequence than most imagine , and they may justly be esteemed the Food of good Angels , for their Innocency , excellent Virtues , Fragrancies , and Odours ; and therefore they were the Food ordain'd for Man , whilst he remained in his Angelical State ; and if he had continued in Innocency , he would never have desired any other Food ; but when by Desire he awaken'd the fierce Wrath , and lived under the Power and Government of its Nature , then he could not be satisfied without doing Violence , and Killing ; for innocent Herbs and Fruits had no Simile with that Nature that had gotten the upper Dominion in him , for every Property , as I have told you before , must have its own Food , or else it cannot subsist ; then it was , and not before , that the Lord permitted Men to kill and eat the Flesh and Blood of Beasts ; which would never have been , had Man continued in Innocency : And therefore great are the Benefits , and manifold Privileges , that now do accompany all those that have attained to that state of Purity and Innocency which our first Parents were cloathed with ; their Minds being freed from Snares , and their Bodies from superfluous Labours , therefore can say ; We have no need of Lawyers ; Honesty , Justice and Prudence makes their Trade nothing worth ; and but a few Physicians , and none of them keep neither Coaches nor Chariots , they are not clothed with Gold , Silver , nor Plush Coats , our Temperance keeps them poor : The true Knowledge of God and Nature in our selves destroys the Trade of divining for Money : Our Superiours are not proud nor ambitious , neither do they spend the choicest and richest of the Earth in Courtly Gluttony , Drunkenness and Superfluity ; nor the Inferiours be not bold , surly , inhumane and swinish ; nor are any of us delighted with slanderous Speeches , nor lend our Ears to hear Lies ; nor are we pleased with the evil Reports of others that do wound those who are not present , which do chiefly serve to advance Hatred and make Divisions ; neither do we nourish such evil Passions , but take care , by the observing of our Duty ( that is , by doing unto others as we we would be done unto ) to destroy those evil Beasts of Prey in the bud : We pray for our Enemies , and praise them when they do well ; nor are we grieved when Prosperity attends them , nor rejoyce at the Evil which happeneth unto them : We are not subiect to that detestable Spirit of Scoffing , Jearing and idle Jesting ; neither do we spend whole days and nights in Drunkenness , nor waste precious Time in wanton vain Discourses ; neither are we skilled in Horse-Races , nor exhaust our Treasures by Gaming , and Night-Revelling : Our Streets are not troubled with the Cries and Complaints of the Blind , Lame , and Distressed ; nor are our Common Halls filled with the disharmonious noise of drunken Healths , and roaring Huzza's ; no fulsome Fumes of Tobacco , nor detestable Steams of Brothel-houses , to infect the chaste Air ; no Mistrissing , nor Revelling , turning Day into Night , and Night into Day ; no Merriment or Sporting at the Funeral of the Beasts ; neither do our Women spend most of their Time in lying a-bed , Idleness , nor in superfluous Inventions to gratifie their luxurious Palates , nor with playing and sporting themselves with negre nosed Dogs , who make these ravenous , unclean Savages their Day and Night-Companions , for which some have been put to death by the Sentence of the Judge , by playing , kissing , and embracing of them , sitting in their Laps , which many of them will hardly afford their Husbands the like kindness ; also sit at their Tables , feeding them with the choicest of Food and Dainties , whereas at the same time they will suffer those of their own kind to perish for Want ; which Custom and Communication is inhumane , depraved , and most detestable : Neither do we accustom our selves to Lye , nor go to drunken Clubs , to tell Stories of Dogs , Tobacco-boxes , Hunting , Riding for Wagers , Scoffing and Jearing each other , speaking lightly of their absent Acquaintance . We do not forget that Scripture that saith , Let us lay aside all Maliciousness , Guile , Dissimulation , and Evil Speaking : Neither do we celebrate any unnatural Marriages . Our young Men do hold it unlawful to marry Women past Child-bearing , or those that are deformed , diseased , or unfit for Generation , for the sake of Money , Honour , or any other base depraved Ends : Our Ways and Passages are not filled with Thieves and Vagabonds ; we fear not those of our own kind : Our Sons are not disobedient , drunken , nor riotous ; neither are our Daughters unchaste , nor idle , though their Parents be rich ( which are the Well-springs of Evil , and Mistress of Poverty ; ) neither do we surfeit our selves by Over-labour , nor put Nature on the Rack by violent Exercises , whence proceed sundry Diseases : Neither have we any occasion to be obliged to those we like not , neither do we make a boasting Shew of our Friendship : We do overcome Ingratitude by our continual Kindness and Well-doing : We fear no Enemies but those of our own House : We readily expose our Goods to those that are in want : Our Superiours hear all Complaints and Petitions readily ; neither do we detain the Rights and Privileges of any : We count nothing so profitable , noble , and honourable , as that which we give and assist our Neighbours with : There comes no Harmony into our Ears , which is more welcome than the Prayers and good Wishes of our Neighbours and Friends : We count Riches and great Substance base and abject , if possessed privately , or spent superfluously on Men's Lusts and Passions ; but on the contrary , being well employed , and put to the End for which they were given , doth innoble them , and make them magnificent , and a Blessing : The Knowledge of God , and his holy Law , in Nature , doth invite us to do good : There is no better way nor means to imitate God , than to live soberly in peace , doing good to one another , and by allowing that Liberty to our Neighbours , and to God's Creation , as we would willingly enjoy : We come in nothing nearer the Nature of God , than to cease from Oppression , and to do good : We desire to live in Peace , and to have our Liberty ; and so do all other Creatures : We do not desire to be hurt , imprisoned , banished , stoned , or killed ; wherefore then should we deal so unmercifully with any of God's Creatures , especially with those of our own kind ? All Creatures shun and dread all such Evils : God made all things by his wonderful Power , and he doth by his holy Word preserve all ; why then should we work contrary to him , seeing we cannot make one Hair either white or black ? Man is the only Prince and Governour in this World , and therefore he ought to take his Measures of Government from his Creator , whose Image he is , and not from the depraved Nature , which he , through Sin , is fallen into , where every Form and Property of Nature does , with highest diligence , endeavour to be Lord , and to domineer over each other ; which the Man of Vanity counts right , but it is a gross Errour . Man was made to live in Unity , and to have Dominion , and govern over all things : In the same Spirit of Unity , he that doth good , and lives in Peace , doth , by a magnetick Quality , draw Virtue out of all things : The fear of Want , Sickness , and even Death it self is made easie to us , by Mercy and Well-doing ; wherefore then should we fear any thing , seeing we hurt nothing ? He that lives according to God's Law , shall not die before the highest Number be accomplished ; and then Death will be easie unto him , and his Change a Comfort . We do count it an Indiscretion to condemn all that do not walk just in our Path , provided it be not an Evil against God , and his Law. Carking Cares perplex not our Minds , nor do Over-Labours tire our Bodies . We are honestly curious in the Enquiry of the Mysteries of Nature , for God doth will that Man should partake of his Secrets : Opinions nor Sensuality do not becloud our Understandings . We do not oblige our selves to follow Authors , a few Books do serve our turns : Our principal Book hath but three Leaves , by which we always pray unto the Lord , that he would teach us which is the true Knowledge of God in our selves , and the three grand Principles of the Universal Nature , wherein is contained all Mysteries , both divine and humane . We trouble not our Heads , nor spend much good Time in learning many Languages . We account , the more Paint the Glass-Windows have , the more it keeps out the Light. Neither do we account or esteem that to be Pleasure , wherein Voluptuousness is Captain ; for such Pleasures do tickle the Senses only for a Moment , and then slip away , and leave behind them a disorder'd Body , and a perplexed Soul ; the Memory of which calls for Repentance , and do ingender in the Mind Sottishness and insolency , and a Forgetfulness of all Good ; making the Body an House of Sorrow , and the Soul a Den of Thieves : Intemperance never goes alone , having many other Evils , and perverse Companions attending her ; but , at her first appearance , doth court her Lovers with a curious , painted , smiling Countenance , which doth allure and draw after her a great Train of young Gallants , by her counterfeit Beauties ; but we , through the good Favour of the Lord , know her Snares , and that she is that Woman the wise Man saith , Sits in the Corners of the Streets of Man's City , alluring and inviting the foolish Ones by her fading Delights and Pleasures ; therefore we warn our Citizens to beware of her Charms . But Vertue , who is our Captain , though at first she do appear to us with a dismay'd Face , and in modest , plain Garments , and neither decked with feigned Speeches , nor with fading Beauties , but with other most sublime and durable Riches ; as , Temperance , Cleanness , Separation , Self-denial , which is a little austere and burthensome at first to old Adam , and to those that have spent most of their days in the Intemperances and Oppressions of Egypt ; nevertheless , a little Use , Custom , and Self-denial , makes them most friendly , both to the Body and Mind ; for she freeth them both from Ignorance , vain Opinions , Self-conceitedness , and all other Snares and Troubles , and crowns the Soul with eternal Felicity : If our Children are gluttonous , idle , or disobedient to Parents , our Law and Custom constrains them to make retaliation by Servitude in our publick Houses , and Places provided for that purpose : We do not enslave our Bodies by Labours , nor put our more noble Parts on the Rack by carking Cares , to maintain our Wives and Children , because we observe order , and count that unlawful that is not needful ; a little serves and supports the necessity of Nature , where Superfluity is laid aside : The more Children we have , the richer we do esteem our selves , we do not pray and wish that we may have no more Children , and at the same time continue the Means ; neither do we hinder Conception for fear of Disgrace , Trouble , or that we shall have more Children than we can maintain ; all those things we esteem to be Sins against God , and his Law in Nature : We are contented , and highly gratified with the most pleasant Fruits of the Gardens , and desire , as much as we can , to imitate our first state of Innocency , counting every green Herb and Seed our principal Food , having a Simile with the friendly Principle in Man : We fear all Inclinations after Flesh and Blood , they smell of the Original Sin , and of the awakened , fierce Wrath of God , which renders man fitter to live in a Flesh-Market and Butcher's Shambles , than in a Garden ; there being no more affinity between Slaughter-houses , Shambles , Butchers-Shops , and Sheep , than there is between a pleasant Garden , and the Fruits that grow therein , and Dogs , Lions , Bears , and the like wild Beasts of Prey : We do not complain , and say , If we should not eat Flesh and Blood , we should die , as some will , meaning the death of the Body ; this none need to fear ; but the main thing lies occult ; they are not willing to kill and destroy the Government of the violent , wrathful Spirit , and ravenous Nature , which most Men love to practise ; all such things that support and keep that Spirit in motion , which would quickly be weakned , if Man did not supply it with its proper Food and Aliment . If Violence nor Oppression did not come into the noble Tents of Men , then Man would be like a pleasant Field in May , where there grow various sorts of fragrant Herbs , Fruits , Grains , and Seeds , of different Forms , Shapes , Colours , Beauties , Odours , and Natures ; but they have but one Mother , whence they have and receieve Virtue , Life , and Power , standing all in quietness and silence , suffering all sorts of Winds to blow on them ; they complain not , neither do they grutch or envy each other , because they are not all alike , or that one is more beautiful and fairer than another ; no , they all thrust forth their Virtues in quietness , to God's Praise and Glory ; even so it would be with Man , if he did fear the Lord as he ought , and lay aside Violence , and live in Innocency , then the Tempter would lose his labour . 2. If any amongst us be idle , gluttonous , or commit any evil , and will not amend his Life , and become sober at the first , second , or third Reproof , then they are committed to Houses and Places appointed for several sorts of Work , and there they are put to such Labour , Arts , or Trades as they shall be capable of , being well furnished with Meat , Drink , Cloathing , sweet , wholesome Chambers and Beds , there to continue until they have made retaliation ; their greatest Punishment is , they are confined to work double the time that is allotted for others , viz. twelve hours in a day ; for we do not oppress our selves nor Servants with labour ; it being not lawful among us to work above six hours in a day , which doth bountifully support us with plenty of all things ; where Superfluity is not , there needs not much labour neither to Man nor Beast , the remaining time is set apart for Prayer , Meditations , and Contemplations of the divine and natural Mysteries of God , as Arts and Sciences , and all lawful innocent Recreation : We do account none capable to know the hidden Mysteries of God and the Creation , but those that become even as Nature her self , viz. true , simple , constant , patient , and pious , no ways hurtful to any thing , viz. a regenerated Man , none else are fit for the search and speculation of divine Mysteries , but those that are thus qualified ; when by an innocent , pious Life we have made God our Friend , then the Heavens , the Earth , Elements , and all the Terrene and Celestial Influences are constrained to come to our help : We draw Peace , Love and Vertue out of all things ; for every Likeness doth forcibly draw proper Aliment out of all things , for the increase and support of its own Body , both in good and evil ; and for this same purpose we do often meet together , for our outward occasions do not hinder us , where we do speak and discourse freely , like so many Children , keeping nothing back or hidden , whether it be good or evil ; but manifesting the inward secrets of our Hearts , and the Mystical Operations of the various Properties of our own Nature , and of the Force , Power , Vertue , and Vice of each Quality , and of their rising , and continual contest amongst themselves for Mastery ; and also the manner and way the divine Principle of God in us , doth open the seven Seals , and call the Soul back out of Egypt , viz. out of Discord and Inequality , into Concord and Harmony : We do not admit of any Discourse that is not filled with Vertue and Experience , either of divine or natural Wisdom , by which the low , mean Capacities are rais'd by Simile , Use , and Custom , to some degree of Wisdom ; Silence being in much esteem amongst us , counting it a very difficult thing to hear the Voice of Wisdom , if the Ears are not first made good by Silence ; for he that cannot distinguish Sounds , cannot tune his Instrument , and consequently he can make no Harmony ; the like is to be understood of the various Voices in Man ; if he do not understand by the Sound of each Voice , and from what Centre it had its Birth , and what Property doth predominate in each Voice , then such an one cannot rightly and properly distinguish the Voice of Wisdom from others ; for this cause many do take the one for the other . We do not admire any Study so much as the knowledge of our selves , esteeming that to be only profitable both to the Body and Soul : We have but few Merchants amongst us , and those that are , are ready to break ; for their Wares have but little Credit with us : We do not need Wine , Sugar , Spices , Fruits , Drugs , nor indeed none of the Novelties brought from the West and East-Indies , accounting them not proper , nor agreeable to our Natures . We know that the Herbs , Fruits , Grains , Seeds , and Drugs , that grow under the elevation of our own Pole , are more Homogeneal . We are of the Kingly Prophet David's Mind , counting all those needless Dainties the price of Blood , for the most part procured by great hazard , trouble , and labour : And if David counted Water ( which was procured by hazard of a Man's Life , ) the price of Blood , it being a most necessary thing for the support of the Life , and he at that time in great need of it ; how much more then must we esteem those needless things the price of Blood , that are procured by the loss of Life and Health ? Our married Men and Women are not like the Moon , the farther she is distant from the Sun , the clearer and greater light she gives ; but when she draws nearer , her light is lessened : Our Women do not spend most of their time in superfluous Dressing , and decking themselves like painted or gilded Looking-glasses , which present a false Face : We love , and marry them for Vertue , more than for Money , Honour , or Beauty , because none of these things make them so Praise-worthy as Sobriety , Modesty , Obedience , and good Works : They are so friendly to us , as not to charge us , or put us to that unnecessary Labour and Trouble of rich Attire , or other Superfluities ; their modest Looks and honest Behaviours , do not only engage us to love them , but leads all that cast their Eyes on them , to Continency and Chastity : We do not know the Expences of either Apothecaries , Doctors , or Doctresses ; they prevent that by good living ; neither do they teach , or train their Children from their Breasts to Gluttony , but supply them with proper Meats and Drinks , both in Quantity and Quality , which makes them strong , lusty , brisk , and healthy , of clean , sweet Tempers , not apt to cry , or be disordered , but play like Lambs ; neither are they so subject to immature Deaths , of good Genius's , apt to all sorts of Learning , ( not subject to the Ioint-Aches , King's-Evil , Leprous Diseases , ) which do proceed from our well-Tillage and Manuring of our Ground in the beginning ; also we take care to keep it clean from Weeds , and to sow good Seed in the proper times and seasons : We do make it our business to understand the Nature and Quality of each Soil ; for some Men's Transgression the Earth is naturally subject to bring forth evil Fruit , or Vegetation not so profitable for use ; and if there be not special care taken , and industry used , the good Fruit will be over-run , and much weakned by the Thorns and Briars , and hinder the good Seed from taking Root , and so become corrupted in the Bud : We do also esteem that Country most miserable , that doth neglect the proper Tillage , and Education of Children , it being the grand Fountain of all Superfluity , Gluttony , Seditions , and Murthers , and a contempt of God's Law written in the Heart , Scriptures , and Book of Nature ; for this cause the Learned Moses commanded , That the drunken , gluttonous , disobedient sons should be stoned to Death . Therefore we have Laws and Customs that do compel all Fathers to instruct their Children in all Modesty , Honesty , Cleanness , Sobriety , and Silence before their Elders ; and we trust not the education of them to others ; for if we will not take pains with them our selves , how can we believe that others will ? We account it more profitable for them to be educated , and instructed in the Precepts of Wisdom , and Knowledge of Nature , than for us to spend our Time , wear our Health out ; and perplex our Minds to get Riches and Money , which for the most part are the very Seeds of Oppressions and Intemperances : We do not admit the importing of Wine , or any strong Drinks to be made , that is capable to make Men drunk ; not that we do esteem those brave , noble Creatures unlawful , but because the young Men , and simple , low-spirited People have not government to use it as it ought , or to the best advantage of Nature , but altogether the contrary : Therefore the Wise amongst us do refrain it , and prohibit themselves for their sakes : We had rather the excellent Fruit of the Vine should be lost , than our People destroyed in the use of it ; therefore if any amongst us , do make , or invent any sort of Drink , that will make Men drunk , they are punished with perpetual Servitude , and the Drinkers thereof with little less ; Drunkenness being the leading-Card to all Evils : We have not forgot the many Burdens , Miseries , cruel Slaveries , and Oppressions we endured whilst we remained in intemperate Egypt , though the Foolish Ones have : And if we should give liberty again to Drunkenness , Gluttony , and the like Vanities , we may justly expect the same measure , and to have no more Mercy than Pharaoh and his Troops had ; for wheresoever Superfluity , and Gluttony is , there you may be sure Oppression doth reign , which doth powerfully stir up the Wrath ; therefore the first step towards the Land of Peace , is for Men to abstain from all Uncleanness and Violence ; which the Prophets , and Holy Men of God proclaim'd in all Ages : We know that to be lawful that is needful , and sutable to Nature's wants ; being sensible that every Extreme begets its Simile , both in the Body , and also in the Mind ; whether it be Meats , Drinks , Words , Exercises , or Communications : We cannot do Violence , or oppress any thing , but first we must be strong in the fierce Wrath , whence the Violence doth proceed ; neither can we do any thing , whether in the Evil or Good , but first we must be strong in that Principle whence the Good or Evil doth proceed ; therefore it may be truly said , Wrath and Fierceness hurts all things , and all things hurt that ; but on the contrary , Innocency hurts nothing , and nothing hurts that ; it being an irrepugnable Tower against all Evil and Violence . Living well is the best defence against Men's inward and outward Enemies : It is also a custom amongst us , if any of us , by the enticement of our liquorish Palates , or other Accidents , commit any Intemperance in Meats , Drinks , or otherwise , we in all Particulars , make it publick at our Meetings , and such do , of their own free choice , appoint unto themselves a certain time of Abstinence and Separation , according to the nature of the Offence , viz. Days , Weeks , Months , or Years ; whereby our Bodies are cleansed , and purged from superfluous Matters , ( which are the Seeds of Diseases , ) by which we are preserved in health , and our Souls are freed from the Chains of that Offence , and our Minds and Spirits strengthened by the Spirits of our Friends ; Penance and Separation keep the Evil fresh in our Minds , with a continual Spur to call on the Lord for Mercy : This many of the Prophets and holy Men practised . We do account it unlawful to innoble the Carcases of slaughtered Beasts , by intombing them in our Bodies : The Flesh of Beasts is too near a-kin unto us ; therefore the humane Nature ought not to join or incorporate it self with the Bestiality : The Wood-Musicians do freely communicate with us , because we do not hurt them : All things are friendly unto us , because we are like unto them ; also the holy Scriptures do testifie the Truth of this , viz. The Lord hath made his Angels ministring Spirits , to minister to them that fear him , and live in his Love. Abstinence , Cleanness , and Separation do fortifie us , and support our Spirits , which do by a secret and natural Attraction , even as the Loadstone doth Iron , attract the Celestial Powers , by which the good Angels become prompt , and do readily serve us , and communicate to every one according to his Merits and Capacity . But on the contrary , those that have introduced their Wills and Desires into the central Wrath , and live under the divided Forms , and evil Properties , do thereby subject themselves , not only to all the inferiour , bestial Properties , but are always liable to be tempted , and give great Advantages to the evil Genius , and to the malignant Configurations of the Celestials , which forcibly attract unto them the evil Angels , which draw many into great Errors ; as , Gluttony , Drunkenness , Adulteries , Theft , and Murders ; as also , unto all vain Sports , and violent Exercises ; as , Bear-baitings , Bull-baitings , Fencing , Fighting with Dogs and Cats , Swearing , Lying , and Fighting with one another ; as also , Playing at Cards , Dice , Nine pins , and many other evil , robust , Egyptian Sports , which are the Inventions of the evil Genius , and Angels , and do all proceed from the fierce Wrath of God in Nature . It is farther to be noted , that all those that are Spectators , and love to see those violent Exercises , and vain Pleasures , and take delight to be in the presence of them , are all led and governed by the same evil Genius , and with their Wills do confent to those Villanies . O ye Multitude ! stand still , and consider what fire it is that is kindled in you , and what Fewel it is that doth keep it burning , and from what Centre it takes its Birth ; and then you will find it to be the hellish Fire , which proceeds from God's fierce Wrath , which can no ways be quenched , but by your ceasing from Evil , and standing still , and the Lord will , by his Power , part the Red Sea , and conduct you safe through his Wrath , and drown the Man of Sin , but preserve his Camp by his holy Angel. 3. But in our Country we have none of the aforementioned Sports , nor Egyptian Pastimes : We do not use Cruelty , or do Violence , neither to Man nor Beast , for fear we should become worse than Savages , as the People of Egypt , and those of the Land of Nod are ; for no Man can do Violence , and not awaken the Wrath , and violent Spirit ; for all Inclinations to Violence , do proceed from the same Spirit , and all that take delight and pleasure therein , are precipitated into it , and then this hellish Quality gets dominion , and crucifies the Son of God , ( viz. the friendly Principle of Light and Love , ) afresh , as the Scripture saith . For these Reasons our Philosophers will not admit any Violence to be done , either to Man or Beast ; because all Oppressions and Violences , whether they be little or great , have but one Root or Fountain ; the same is to be understood of Vertue ; and as Use and Custom do encrease Vertue , and make it impregnable , so doth the practice of Evil make the fierce Wrath strong and powerful : Therefore we have no Bear-baitings , to gather the rude , violent Multitude together , and to torment the Creatures of God , who bear his Image , either in his Love or Anger ; neither have we Bull-baitings , to make and force one Beast , contrary to their Inclinations , cruelly to tear another to pieces , whilst a company of People look on , that in their nature are tenfold worse than Beasts ; neither have we any Cock-fightings , nor no Festival Days , that serve chiefly to call the violent Rabble together ; nor no Whitson-Ale , or Morris-dancing ; all our Dancing and Fencing-Masters , since we came out of Egypt , have given off their Trade , and applied themselves to the Study of Wisdom ; and many of them are become excellent Proficients therein : All our Ale-houses and Taverns are put to honest uses , viz. to entertain Strangers ; and the Instruments of Musick , which were used in them , during Pharaoh's Reign , we have caused to be burned , as a Sacrifice , or Retaliation , because the Egyptians had profaned the Lord in the use of them . We have no fatted Swine , fatted Oxen , or Punchanelloes amongst us ; neither have we any of Pharaoh's lean Kine . We wear no Swords by our Sides , but all our Weapons of War are inward ; and we never use them for any other Occasion , but to defend our Souls from Viciousness . We join not Harmony , Swearing , and vain Discourses together , as the Egyptian Masters of Musick do . Our Men do not rob Women of their principal Ornament , neither living nor dead , nor adorn their Heads with theirs ; which shews ( in those that do ) a base , depraved , effeminate Nature : Most of this sort of People belong to Pharaoh's Troops , that are , or may expect to be swallowed up in the Sea of Wrath. Our Women do not gather themselves into Companies in the Streets , and there spend Time in evil Communication ; neither do they stand idling at their Doors , in painted , counterfeit Dresses , to allure the wanton Eyes of the Passers by . We have no Play-houses , neither dare we use Consorts of Musick in any such places . We do not suffer our Children to go to any of the publick Shews , and Games of Sodom , for fear they should look back , and so become Monuments of God's Wrath , as Lot's Wife was . We do not allow or suffer our young Men to run nor ride for Wagers ; neither do we suffer our Women to use robust Employments , for fear they should become rude and immodest , as the Egyptian Women are ; for the whole preservation of Mankind doth chiefly depend on their well Conduct and Temperance . We turn our Backs on all idle Discourses which serve only to invite Men to Folly , and spend precious time . Our Friends Abstinence , Temperance , and Cleanness do continually shew us the vanity of such things , and spur us on , and hasten us towards the Land of Peace . We do not look back , for fear we should awaken the Centre , the original Poisons ; and then our sweet Water would be in danger of being dried up , as it came to pass in Lucifer and his Legions ; there being but nine Figures , or degrees of Wisdom , attainable by mortal Men , the tenth Number , viz. o , is the highest ; and those that have gradually passed through the Nines , must stand still in silence , and leave off all numbering , and suffer God's Holy Spirit to work the Will and the Deed in him , as he pleaseth . We have no Butchers , Fowlers , nor any that belong to the Trade of Killing , Violence , or Oppression amongst us ; most of them revolted , and join'd themselves to Pharaoh , before they came out of Egypt , and were destroyed with his Troops in the Sea of Blood , or Wrath ; and those of them that passed through the Red Sea , were cut off in the Wilderness ; for finding their Trade very bad and low , and the nearer they came to the Land of Peace , the worse it grew ; so they began to tumult , and complain , and murmur against the Lord , that he dealt so hardly with them : Which awaken'd the Centre of Wrath , and destroyed them ; so that none of this sort of People enter'd the holy Land that flows with Milk and Honey , and not with the Blood of the humane nor bestial Nature . Neither have we any Billings-gates ; all that sort of People are our Hewers of Wood , and Drawers of Water : And but very few Inns of Court-Gentlemen , or Templers ; all of them that escaped the Egyptian Plagues were destroyed with Corah , Dathan , and Abiram , in the wild Nature of this World , or Wilderness . Neither have we many Churches , and yet have a great number of Temples , in which we worship the Lord ; but there be no Bells in them , that are compounded of imperfect Metals ; therefore we have no need of those robustick Musicians , viz. Ringers , to call the People to worship ; such Musick is too Saturnine and Martial for us : No , every one of us hath his own Bell , and none can ring , or make Musick of it , but himself ; which being skilfully handled , makes a more sweet , soft , and pleasing Harmony , than the Egyptian Bells , who are loud , harsh , and penetrating ; and all the Ringers are rude , cruel , and inhumane : Our young People do not learn to ring any Bells but their own ; which , when well learned , calls them to the Worship of God in the proper Times and Seasons , even as the good Spirit of God shall teach them , as the Scripture saith , The holy Men of God taught and spoke as the Holy Spirit moved in them . We do not admit any to be Magistrates or Governours over us , but only those that by Industry , Prayer , and Meditation have attained to a more excellent Understanding of God , Nature , and Themselves , than their Neighbours ; which doth render them fit to govern : We account none capable to govern others , that have not first learned , in all particulars , to govern themselves . It is contrary to our Philosophy to mix or compound our Food with things of disagreeing natures : We use no double Preparations ; the more simple our Food is , the more agreeable it is to our Nature , and best sustains our Healths . It is not a Custom for our Women to give , or suffer their Children to drink any kind of Beer , or Syder , whilst their Food is chiefly Milk ; there being nothing more contrary to Milk , than such sharp Liquors ; Milk being of a sweet , gentle , mild , friendly Nature and Operation , having no manifest Quality that doth too violently predominate , there being a certain Harmony between the Properties of Nature in Milk ; and therefore it hath always been found by Experience , to be the best Food for Children , and all young People ; administring proper Nourishment , in Equality , to all Parts : But on the contrary , all sorts of Beer , Syder , and other fermented Drinks , are of a sowr , keen , or sharp Quality ; and for this cause , being mixed with Milk , it turns or separates the wheyish part from the thick ; the same is to be understood , if Children or others drink after eating of Milk , if they do not forbear a convenient time , till the Stomach hath made separation , and alter'd the Property of it . Besides , the constant drinking of such Liquors do sowre the Stomach , and generate a keen or sharp Quality , which is apt to turn the Milk into an hard , tough substance , and thereby puts Nature to great difficulty to concoct or make Separation . Doth not our daily Experience shew us , that all Curd of Milk is hard of Concoction , and burthensome to the Stomach ? For this Cause , many having used themselves to drink plentifully of strong Drinks , and to the eating of compounded Food , which have so sowr'd the Stomach , and alter'd it from its simplicity , that the eating of this friendly , harmless Food becomes offensive to them , and disagreeing , especially to some particular People , whose Stomachs are , as it were , naturally inclined to generate a sowre Matter : For this cause , if any shall drink immediately after eating of Milk , it will cause them to puke up the thin , wheyish parts , whilst the hard substance remains in the Stomach , which doth foul , and hinder Concoction . For these Reasons , it is much better for all Children , and young People , whose Food is chiefly Milk , to drink Water , it being the most like Milk of any Drink , of a mild , gentle , friendly Nature and Operation , which is farther manifested by its being mixed with Milk ; they mix or incorporate themselves as one entire Body , making no variation , or separation , as other Liquors will ; and therefore it hath been found by Experience , in all Ages , to be the best , and most natural Drink for all People , but more especially for Women and Children , who are endued with tender Spirits , and gentle Heats ; and if their Meats and Drinks have not a near Affinity , both in quality and quantity , to their Natures , it will quickly put them out of Tune , and cause them to fall into Diseases , and then Nature will become unequal in her Operations . Every like doth , with highest diligence , endeavour to beget its Simile , both in the Body and Mind : Water being in its own nature so clean , simple , and innocent , that it doth not only wash and cleanse the Mouth throughly , and all the Vessels of the Stomach , from such gross , thick Matter that doth stick and furr them ; but it doth distil its moist Nourishment into all parts of the Body , without making any noise , or causing an unequal Motion , cooling and refreshing Nature ; strengthens Concoction ; thins the Blood , causing it to circulate freely ; makes the natural parts brisk and lively . For this cause , those Women and Children that do constantly drink Water , are not subject to so many Diseases as others whose practice is to drink strong Liquors . We have but one sort of Bread , which is neither coarse nor fine . We never change the Fashions of our Garments , nor deck them with Superfluity ; but they are plain , noble , and modest , sufficient to defend us from the Injuries of the Elements . We use not many Words in our Buying and Selling ; neither do we praise the things we sell , beyond the true Value ; nor dispraise the things we buy , for Interest , or without understanding the true Goodness , or Value : We flatter not those we get by , and speak lightly of better Men : We suffer not our Commodities to be undervalued , and our selves to have the Lye , without giving them Reproof , in hopes we shall get a Chap-man ; nor are we patient , when abused by our Chap-men , holding our peace for hopes of Gain ; neither are we moved to Passion for the like Affront , when Interest is not at stake . Our Nobles , Governours , and Princes are not distinguished from the meaner sort of People by their great Palaces , rich Cloathing and Ornaments , or number of Chariots , Foot-men , Horses , and the like ; they have no other Marks of Distinction , but only their white Robe . Our Clergy do not command a Day to be set apart for divine Worship , and suffer the Rich to make their Servants and Cattel work , and take no notice of them , and punish the Poor for the like Offence . We can send our Children to Market , to buy any Commodity , if they can but speak plain , and not fear being wronged : Nay , we can send them to Smithfield , to buy Horses ; for we have no Jockies or Horse-Coursers amongst us , who do make it their chief Business to sell counterfeit Wares : Neither do our Leathern Doublets stock their Cows ; that is , not to milk them in three or four Days before they bring them to Market , or expose them to Sale ; which doth not only put the Creatures to much pain , but it stints them , that they will give but little Milk the following Summer . We do not make that Day which we set apart for the Worship of God , a Day of Feasting , Drunkenness , and Gluttony : Neither do we deck our selves with rich Ornaments , to draw unto us every gazing Eye , which doth render the Mind uncapable of every good Work : Neither do we live in Superfluity , and at the same time suffer our Poor to want Bread. For this cause , those Days that are by us set apart for divine Worship , we , with one Consent , do fast , or live more than ordinarily abstemious ; which done , every one casts up his Account ; and what he doth find he hath saved of what his usual Expence is , that he gives to the use of the Poor . Also we have many other Fasting Days in the Year , as Christmass , Easter , Whitsuntide , and the like ; at which times we observe an extraordinary degree of Temperance ; and what we save thereby , we put into the Poor's Box. Also when there are any extraordinary Bargains made between Buyers and Sellers , whereas the Men of Mode do agree to have chargeable Treats , and superfluous Dinners , which we give to the Poor , and many other things of this nature : And at the Years end , every Man casts up his Account ; and for every Pound he hath increased his Stock , so many Six Pences he gives into the common Treasure , for the use of the Poor ; so that they are well provided for , and Money to spare for other necessary Uses . What we formerly spent in superfluous Feasts , Garments , and other Extravagances of this nature , we now put to good Uses ; as the Planting of Trees of all sorts , especially of Fruit , which do supply us with Drink and Food , and bring forth without plowing or sowing . Also we employ a great number of People in making of good Roads and High-ways , both for Foot and Horse , but especially for Foot , for we do accustom our selves to go on foot ; we seldom ride , except on extraordinary Occasions . We have but one Apothecary in a City , and he is admitted to sell no other Cordial but only good Wine ; neither is Wine to be sold in any other place . We never eat , or very rarely drink between Meals ; our Set-Times of Eating are at Nine in the Morning , and Five in the Afternoon : Neither do we sit an Hour or two feeding on Varieties , nor entice one another by feigned Intreaties to eat more than Nature requires ; but every one of us take as much Food and Drink as is fit and suitable to Nature , as Reason and Wisdom shall govern him . We eat many sorts of Food , without any other Preparation , but only what Nature hath done to our hands ; as Milk , various sorts of Herbs , Fruits , and sometimes Eggs : Neither do we eat any of our Food hotter than our Blood , but for the most part quite cold ; especially in Summer , and moderate Seasons . We account our selves Gluttons , if we do not feel our selves more pleasant , airy , brisk , and lively after Eating , than before . We use our selves to gentle Exercises , in open airy places . Our Beds are sweet , hard , and clean , and Chambers airy . We admit not above two at most to lie in a Bed together , nor the Young with the Old , or the Diseased with the Sound . Our Day-Garments are neither thick , nor thin ; but of the two , rather thin than thick . We count it an Evil to have our external Members to glow with an unnatural Heat after Eating and Drinking . We prevent scabby and Leporous Diseases by Temperance and Cleanness , and not by Physick . Our Women observe the time of their Uncleanness , and separate themselves , according to the great Law of Moses . Our Seers have good skill in curing Diseases by Sympathy and Antipathy : They never give Advice , nor administer any Medicine , before they have bowed themselves before the Altar , and enquired of the Oracle of God in themselves . We esteem none fit for Physicians , but only those that are , from their Radixes , born with natural Gifts , and afterwards who have learned themselves ; nor esteem any Man for his Babylonical Gibberish . We press every one , when they find themselves disordered either in Body or Mind , to stand still , and cease as much as possible from Imaginations , or lending an Ear to every Woman's Story or Medicine ; but first call on the Lord , desiring his Counsel ; and whatsoever the Oracle , or divine Principle doth shew you , ( though it be the meanest of Medicines , as Herbs , Fruits , Seeds , Drugs , or Minerals , ) that be sure to do ; as the Mother of Christ said to the Servants that waited at the Marriage where Christ wrought his first Miracle , and made Water Wine : What soever he bids you do , that do . Every mean thing becomes effectual , where the Directions proceed from the right Fountain , and if Faith and an innocent Life be not wanting . Also we prohibit our young People from eating unripe Fruits , as Apples , Pears , Plumbs , Cherries , and the like ; or eating of them after full Meals , or between Meals , or when they have been gathered and exposed to the gross Airs of Cities or Towns two or three Days : Neither is it a Custom amongst us to compound ripe and unripe Fruits together , nor lawful for any of us to eat Sweet-Meats , or delicious Tarts , after we have eaten sufficiently of other simple and natural Food . Our Custom will not admit us to intreat our Friends to eat or drink beyond what is needful . We have not forgot the great Affliction , and torturing Distempers we endured whilst we were in Captivity , and under the Government of Pharaoh's Task-masters , viz. under the unequal Oppressions of the awakened Wrath , and divided Forms of Nature , where each Property endeavours to get the Mastery ; and therefore we do continually shun , and arm our selves with the Armour of our Lord Jesus Christ , viz. by taking up the Cross , and denying our selves those Egyptian Vanities and Superfluities , which the common Enemy of Mankind doth seek , with all cunning Inventions , to enslave us again in worldly Lusts , that he may separate us from our sovereign Good ; but the Word of Truth is engraven in our Hearts , by whose Power and Virtue we withstood his Temptations , and beware of his Snares in time , and count it our chief Good that the Lord hath , in his Eternal Mercy , delivered us out of Captivity ; therefore it behoveth us to live soberly in this present World. We desire always , and in all states , to submit our selves to the good Pleasure of the Lord , for we do not know what is good , no farther than we are guided by his Holy Spirit ; it belongeth to him to determine what is most expedient for us , and his own Glory . We all hold this Maxim , That all that have throughly profited themselves in the School of Christ , do daily beat down , or keep under the Elemental Body , by denying themselves the Worldly Vanities within . We do not give Names to our Children , nor imitate the Philosophical Ancients , like Apes , without understanding the true Nature or Genius of the Child , as to call them at a venture by such Names as do express a Deity , whereas this Nature and Genius of the Child is quite contrary : This is not to imitate our first Parents ; Adam gave Names to every Creature , and Thing , according to their Natures ; that is , expressing their Natures and Properties : He did not give Names to wild , savage Beasts , that did signifie Cleanness , or friendly , tractable Dispositions and Natures ; nor call Sheep Lions , nor Lions Sheep : The Prophet Isaiah saith , Woe unto those that call Evil Good , and Good Evil ; being ignorant of the true Nature of things , and divine Mysteries , they make no distinctions between Good and Evil. Adam called his First-born Cain : Why did not he call him Abel ? No , that would be to call a Devil a Saint , and a Saint a Devil : Cain doth sound forth and signifie the strong Might and Power of the Wrath and divided Forms of Nature , which had Dominion in him ; and Abel doth , as we have told you before , signifie the eternal Principle of God's Love , viz. Cain imitates the fierce devouring Fire , and Abel the Light thereof : The very same is to be understood of Ishmael and Isaac , and Esau and Iacob ; the elder doth truly signifie the consuming Fire , and the younger the Light thereof ; the first is the Father , and the second is the Son. The Ancients did not therefore gather together all the good Names , which do express the holy divine Power , and eternal Grace and Love of God in his second Principle , or eternal Light , and call their Children by them at a venture ; no , this would have been great Impiety : Would not every sober Man count it sordid and vain to call an Angel a Devil , and a Devil by the Name of an Angel , as most of the Men of Egypt do at this day ? They name and call their Children by Names expressing the divine Virtue and Power , when as most of them do live under the Government of the evil , unclean Nature , and the Spirit that doth predominate in them is fierce and wrathful , so that they call Good Evil , and Evil Good ; which is far off from imitating the holy Men of the first Ages . This doth more clearly appear by Abram , which doth signifie the original Wrath and wild Nature of this World : Why did not his Parents call him Abraham , Emanuel , Grace , Hope , Charity , Abel , Iacob , or Isaac ? No , those Names were too sublime ; but Abram did truly sound forth and signifie his inward and outward Nature : But in process of time , when the Light of God's Grace and Eternal Mercy appeared to him , and that he believed in God , which was accounted to him for Righteousness , then the Lord said unto him , Thy Name shall no more be called Abram , but Abraham , which doth truly comprehend and signifie both the first and second Tabernacle . The Lord did not destroy or annihilate the Wrath and wild Nature ; no , that must not be ; if there were no Fire , then there would'be no Light , as our Saviour Christ saith in another Case , He came not to destroy the Law , but to fulfil it . The Lord did reinforce Abraham's Soul , and replenish it with his holy divine Principle of Love and Light ; and therefore his Name should no more be called Abram , a Thorn , or wild Thistle ; but Abraham , the Father of the Faithful . The same Order , and changing of Names was continued till Christ was manifested in the humane Nature , and afterward by all the divine Seers : Did not Christ change St. Peter's Name , because of his fixed Faith ; calling him Sephas , which signifies a Stone , or Rock ? And was not Saul called Paul after his Conversion ? The Ancients never changed Names , but first their Natures were changed : Christ called Herod a Fox , which did truly signifie his inward Nature , and what Spirit did govern in him : The same is to be understood , when the wise Ancients gave Names to their Children , Places , Cities , and other things ; which Names did always truly signifie what Property or Quality did predominate in the Child or Thing so named . This Knowledge is Angelical , which Man hath lost , by suffering his Desire and Will to enter into Vanity ; and as the Name of each Creature , which Adam gave them , doth express their Properties and Nature , so the Name of each Angel doth express and signifie their Office : The understanding each Name , and what is signified thereby , doth remain as a Mystery unto Mankind ; which is the original Language , or the true Language of Nature , the sound of each Word or Name doth declare what Property is predominant in it ; which original Language of Nature , Birds , and some other inferiour Creatures , do retain to this time , because they have not broken the Law of God in Nature , but have lived in the Simplicity thereof ; and though they are not endued with that noble Faculty of Speech , nevertheless they can , by their general Tone and Cry , as intelligibly communicate their Desires , and various Passions , as Love , Hate , Hunger , Thirst , and the like , as Men can by their distinct Dialects , viz. by altering and varying this one simple Tone , or Cry ; as when they are hungry , or want their Fellows , or if one particular Bird doth know of some Food that his Fellows are ignorant of , then he sends forth such a Tone or Sound , as does as intelligibly acquaint all those of their own Kind , as Men can by discoursing together ; for every Tone and Cry , according to the various States , Wants , and Conditions the Creature is in , such a Centre or Property is awakened , and stirred up ; and that same Property of Nature doth sign and carry the upper Dominion in Sound , Tone , or Cry , which doth intelligibly communicate and incorporate with its Simile , and awaken the same Property in all those of their own Kind that hear them ; who are thereby made sensible of their Conditions and Desires . Nay , there are some Creatures that have neither Voice nor Tone , nevertheless they can communicate their Desires and Wants to their Fellows by a mere Touch. All those , and many greater , and more sublime Gifts and Graces Man hath deprived himself of , by suffering his Desires and Will to enter into Violence , Oppression , and Superfluity ; changing and converting the natural use of things to his own Self-ends , to advance Pride , Vain-Glory , and Gluttony , and to accommodate his Lusts and Passions , which no other Creature hath done ; therefore he is troubled and perplexed with a thousand Evils and Miseries , that other Creatures are not subject to ; the Consideration and true Sense thereof doth make my Heart to ake , and my Body to tremble , having a true Sense of Man's miserable State ; for where-ever we go , if it be amongst Men , we see little else but Wrath , Cruelty , and Oppression ; as Swearing , Lying , Idle Iesting , Drunkenness , Gluttony , and Worldly Discourses : But if a Man walk into loansome Fields , amongst the Beasts , there all things are quiet and still , all Creatures praising their Creator , according to the Capacity of each . CHAP. XV. The Voice of the Dumb , or the Complaints of the Creatures , expostulating with Man , touching the cruel Usages they suffer from him . THE Tyranny of Man over his Fellow-Creatures , ( the Root of which we have discovered in the fore-going Chapters , ) leads us a little more nearly to consider the sad state and condition of those inferiour Animals under his savage Butcheries , and how ungrateful , as well as cruel , he is towards them ; for as most of them contribute to his well-being , either by bringing him in Food , as Milk , Honey , butter , Cheese , Eggs , &c. or Rayment ; as Wool , Furrs , Skins : or Ease ; as the Horse to carry him ; the Ox to draw for him , and the like , too tedious to enumerate : So is there scarce any of them , upon whom he does not extend his Rage ; and generally the more harmless and useful they are , the more barbarously he deals with them : So that as their Groans ascend up to Heaven , so their Cries fill the Earth ; and methinks their inarticulate Lamentations should reach to the Ears of our Minds , and respectively vent their several Dolours in some such kind of Expostulations . The Complaint of the Cows and Oxen. Cruel and hard-hearted Man ! Wert thou constituted our great Creator's Deputy , and Vice roy of this Universe of sublunary Beings , that thou shouldst play the Tyrant and the Epicure , and domineer with rigour over all the rest of its Inhabitants ? Dost thou in any kind imitate thy Sovereign , from whom thou dost derive thy Title ? Is not he good , and bountiful , and merciful to all the Works of his Hands , and the Preserver of the whole Creation ? and darest thou take upon thee to a Destroyer , a Killer , and daily Practiser of Cruelty ? Knowest thou not , that we inferiour Creatures were not given thee as a Prey , that thou might'st dispose of us absolutely at thy lustful and irregular pleasure , but intrusted to thy Conduct and Oversight , to be subservient unto thee , to minister to thy Necessities , to employ the Faculties of thy Soul with a devout Contemplation on our numberless Numbers , various Shapes , distinct , and wonderful Natures , &c. and thereby ravish thee with Thoughts of Iehovah's infinite Wisdom , Power , and Goodness , that hath formed , governeth , and conserveth so many Millions of wonderful Beings ? And wilt thou , instead of this noble , serene , and quiet study of worthy Faculties so divine as thou art endued with , forget thy Duty , thy Office , and all Obligations , as to be the first that disturbs this blessed Harmony , and by thy Sin , and Folly , and Madness , set all the Creation into a Tumult , and a Combustion , and exercise thy fierce Passions upon us lower Graduates in this mighty Academy , and worry , and kill , and devour us . We are God's Creatures , and by his divine Power have our subsistence , he hath formed us , and given us Shapes sutable to our inward Natures , by his admirable Wisdom , and subjected us under his good Law in Nature , which we have not at any time transgressed : With patience we endure the Summer's scorching Heat , and the Winter's Snow : We wear our own Cloaths , even those natural Coverings bestowed upon us , as the Livery of our Maker : We are not fond of Variety , when one Suit answers all the Ends of Nature as well , or better ; much less are we so vain , to glory in our Shame , be proud of that which should reproach us with Sin , and value our selves , because we have got other Creatures Excrements upon our Backs : Amongst us there are no quarrels about Gentility ; nor do we esteem or despise one another , because our Coats are of different colours , and our Horns not all of a length : We have all our Food in common , and never grutch or grumble that one eats more , or daintier than the other : We call nothing our own , but what is in our mouths ; We all drink out of one Cup : Our Drink is never too new , nor yet so old as to be soure ; nor have we any hankering Inclinations after other Liquors : Our Beds are always ready : Nor are we vex'd with the care for to morrow ; but enjoy what is present , and are satisfied : We admire not your stately Structures ; nor can our Eyes be dazled with the Witchcraft of Gold : The Stall & the Crib serve us as well as Palaces ; and all our delight is to behold the pleasant green Fields , sprouting up their delicious Herbs and Grass into our Mouths , and view the gliding Streams , or murmuring Fountains , ready to supply our Thirst. We observe our Times and Seasons of Generation ; and as we have no inclinations thereunto , until able to conceive ; so assoon as we have conceived , we will no longer endure to accompany with our Males ; nor do we make a sport of , or endeavour to pleasure our selves with that great Mystery of Nature , but only in due Seasons , for to bring forth our own Likenesses , which is the Will of the Creator , for the continuation of our own kind : Nor are we tempted with Beauty , Honour Riches , or any other thing , to act contrary to the Law of Nature : That troublesome Passion , called Love , as it is a fond , foolish Excess of Desire or Dotage , over us has no power ; yet we love , and are tender of our little Ones ▪ till they can provide for themselves , and then we leave them to the Hand of Providence : We raise no Wars or Tumults , nor contrive treacherous Plots , and Sham-Plots against each other , or against Men , We have no Weapons , but such as God and Nature have endued us with for our particular defence : And if at any time we do fight , ( for which Man must justly bear the Fault ; for if he had not transgressed the Divine Law , we never had had any such inclination at all , ) our Battels are sudden , and not premeditated Murthers ; nor are our Numbers unequal , but one to one ; and prefently are reconciled , and again in Peace : But though we live thus innocently , in the obedience to God's Law in Nature , and have not done any thing whereby to awaken his Wrath , or draw down Judgments on our selves ; yet we suffer many , and great Miseries , Oppressions , and Tyranny ; which comes to pass through the Transgression and Fall of our Prince and Governor , ( viz. Man ; ) he has violated the divine Law in Nature , and is become disobedient ; whereby he hath opened the Flood-gates of Wrath , and enthralled himself in many Miseries , and inured himself to all kinds of unjust Cruelties , and makes us groan under heavy Burthens ; and all we can do , is too little to give him satisfaction . We COWS give him our pleasant Milk ; which is not only a most Sovereign Food of it self , but being altered , and variously dressed , makes a great number of delicate and wholesome Dishes ; but this will not content them ; for after we have for several Years twice a day yielded them plentiful Meals of Milk , and every Year ( for the most part ) a Calf ; which they have rended away from us before its time , to our great affliction ; ( for 't is unnatural to take away any Creature 's Young , before it can provide for it self ; ) when they have thus bercaved us of the Fruit of our Wombs , and killed , and eaten them , yet sometimes , through Covetousness , notwithstanding all these Benefits , they will half starve us ; and if it chance that any one of us do not give good store of Milk , and bring them forth as many Calves as their Avarice expects , then our cruel Egyptian Masters cry , Hang her , knock her o' th' head ; what is she good for ? Counting nothing good , but what brings in great profit to satisfie their Lusts ; and when thus , through many Miseries we have sustained from them divers Years , then what Reward do they give us ? Why , truly they will put us into a good Pasture , and then we think this is pure kindness , and begin to forget our former Injuries ; but assoon as we have gathered our Flesh , and begin to be plump , and fat , then they swap us away for a little Money to the Butcher , and he knocks us o' th' Head , and cuts our Throats , and our kind Masters perhaps devour a piece of us ; and if our Flesh prove not so delicate as they would have it , which is their fault , then they curse us again , when we are in their Bellies . And we that are Oxen , do they not in our Youth cruelly cut us , and deprive us of the benefit of Generation ? Do they not gall our Necks almost to the Bones , with their hard and heavy Yoaks ? Do not we draw their burthensome Carriages through the deepest Dirt , and stubborn Clay ? And do we not help to Till the most stubborn Earth , that it may bring forth the Corn and Fruit for your sustenance ? And many a hard days work do we endure , until our very Hearts ake ; whilst our unmerciful Drivers prick us with us their sharp Goads , and beat us without pity or humanity ; and at last , when we are able to do their Drudgery no longer , they being not yet satisfied with our Labours , will fatten us up for the Slaughter , and feast themselves with their Carcasses , and accommodate themselves with our Skins for Leather , to make them Shoes and Boots , and other Necessaries . Nay , our Males , whom they suffer to remain capable of Generation , besides being , as it were , Pimps to them , and making them serve all the Cows in the Parish , or Lordship , for two-pence apiece : They have another wicked Trick , to bait them with Dogs , and there the Rabble , ( more Beasts than those they come to see , ) meet , and shout , and are merry , to see the poor Creatures tear , and worry , and kill one another ; and this they call Sport and Pastime . Nay , of late , in some Countries , as in Spain , the Men have no more Wit nor Grace , but they will venture to bait us themselves ; and this Fashion they are bringing up , and setting on foot in other Countries ; and if , when by their rashness , and ill practice they have enraged us , we do with our natural Arms send off Dons and Gallantillo's packing , 't is no more than they deserve , since they are so willing to expose themselves to die Folly's Martyrs . Thus all of us live in great Slavery most part of our Lives , far below that generous Liberty wherein our great and good Creator had estated us by his grand Charter of Nature , and at last we die both untimely and unwillingly , many of us cut off in Youth , or in the prime of our strength , to please the Palates of extravagant People , whose Lusts nothing but Flesh can satisfie : Have we not then just reason , O Man ! to complain of thy Injustice ? Have we not cause to keep back and restrain those daily renewed Fountains of liquid Crystal , wherewith we sustain you ; to shake off your Yoaks , and , inspired with Rage and Revenge , tear you to pieces with our Horns ? Yet we do none of these , but continue our drudging Services , and perpetual Tribute to the Milk pail , and submit our selves to your Knives , and your Axes ; and yet neither your own Cruelties , nor our submissive Patience , can mollifie you into greater Moderation ; and can we chuse then but send up our Complaints against you in a silent Eloquence to Heaven ? And can you expect any thence in return , but Showers of Judgments upon your Heads , since you have thus presumptuously opened the Fountains of Wrath , and brought in War and Destruction upon us ? The Sheep's Complaint . If Benefits might expect other Returns than Injuries , and Innocency be thought worthy of Indempnity and Protection , we should certainly enjoy as much Felicity as any part of the Creation whatsoever . For can there be any Creature that more liberally contributes to the Life and Accommodation of Man ; or that is of a softer and more gentle Temper , or behaves it self more innocently towards all the rest of its Fellow-Creatures ? For our Creator hath indued us with a meek , friendly Nature ; and we are contented to live as we were made ; the various sweet Herbs , and Flowers that grow on the tops of the Mountains , afford us ample satisfaction ; and we are delighted in Solitariness and Cleanness ; hence all the good and wise Men of old , always compared good-natured Men unto us : We are free from Covetousness ; for our Desires exceed not the Necessities of Nature : Our Imaginations do not wander after the Varieties of foreign Regions ; nor have we any occasion to travel out of our own native Countrey , into other Climates ; but sometimes we are compelled , and forced away by our covetous Keepers ; but it hath always been the worse for those that transported either us , or our Wool ; so that it seems , where-ever we come , we are a Blessing ; yet whithersoever they carry us , we need no Interpreter ; for we are not acquainted with the Babylonical Language , where one understandeth not another . Distances of Places , or various Elevations of the Pole , do not cause our Speech to differ ; for we can as familiarly converse with those of our own kind , when removed a Thousand Leagues off , as if we had still remained on Cotswold Hills , or Salisbury Plain ; for we are not subject to the Tyranny of School-Masters , or the Pedantry of Grammar , nor troubled to spend seven years under the filthy punishment of the Rod , or more cleanly Discipline of the Ferula , merely to learn a few Gibberish Words ; but we bring into the world with us one simple and general Tone , or Sound , which we can vary and alter according to the degrees of our Spirits , Affections , and Passions : When we call for our stray'd Lambs , it is after one manner distinctly understood by those of our Kind ; and when we miss our Fellows , 't is another ; but still to them intelligible , that 't is to such a purpose ; and so , when we call our Fellows into the Corn-fields , or when we have need of Pasturage , still we send forth peculiar Tones , or Bleats . Our Food , and our Drink is all simple , and natural ; and therefore we are seldom sick ; and if we are , the chief cause thereof , is our Shepherds and Guides ; who , for Covetousness of Gain , will half starve , and founder us one half of the year , and then afterwards , in the declining part of the year , when all Grass grows weak , gross , and full of Phlegm , then they put us into fresh Corn-fields , and other Pastures ; whereupon , those Diseases which were contracted for want of proper food , and by the unskilful management of our Guides , do manifest themselves sometimes by breaking out with the Scab , and various other Diseases . And also , when years happen very wet , especially when store of Rain comes in August or September , & causes Land-floods , then if our Guides be not skilful , and very careful of us , we suffer Epiaemick Diseases ; for those of our kind are so tender-natur'd , and so equally temper'd , that we cannot bear any Extreams without manifest prejudice to our Healths , more especially excessive Moisture ; for we are Phlegmatick Sanguino by our Natures , and a little inclined to Melancholy ; for this Reason , very wet , dripping Seasons , especially in the Fall of the year , prove dangerous to us ; and therefore , at such times , our Owners ought to keep us pretty long in our Folds , and to feed us on the highest Grounds , that so the sweet Influences of the Sun and Elements may dry and exhale that gross Moisture which the Night produces , before we feed thereupon ; also they should then give us some Hay or Corn in our Folds , which would not only dry up those moist Humours , but strengthen our Spirits , and enable us to withstand those malignant Dews ; But most of our Keepers are altogether ignorant of our Nature , and so not only suffer us to fall , but by their ill conduct precipitate us into many Inconveniences ; which , if we were left to the dictates of our own Instinct by Nature , we should avoid ; for we naturally delight on high ground , as Mountains , Downs , and high Corn Fields , and there we are very healthy , never afflicted with the tortures of the Stone , the trembling Palsie , the meager Consumption , the idle Gout , or the lascivious POX ; we need not your Bagnio's or Hot-Houses ; we never are troubled with your horrid , purging , and vomiting Potions , nor crammed with Bolus and Turpentine ; our Food and Drink is truly natural , and innocent , and suffer all Changes of the Elements and Seasons without complaining : Our Love is as it were universal ; and War , and Strife , and Contention are strangers to our Folds : Our Females are chaste ; our Males free from Iealousie ; and our young Ones are at once the Emblems of Innocency , and harmless Sport , and Recreation ; Cleanness and Simplicity dwell in the Root of our Lives , and the fierce , wrathful Nature terrifies and troubles our Spirits ; for which cause Wolves , Dogs , Foxes , Bears , Lions , &c. all Creatures in whose Radix the Wrath of God and Nature doth predominate , are our sworn Enemies . We are also very profitable to those that keep us ; for every Year we bring them a crop of fine , soft Wool , which covers the Nakedness of our Princes , who oft-times become proud by our Spoils ; 't is from us a most advantageous Staple-Commodity is raised , whereby whole Countries support themselves , and by which Multitudes of Merchants grow rich ; nay , our very Dung or Excrement is so rich , that it causeth the Ground to bring forth abundance of Corn : But notwithstanding all these obligations , our unreasonable Task-Masters ( Men ) are not contented ; but after they have yearly plundered us , both of our native Raiment , and the Fruit of our Bodies , ( our sportive young ones , ) and made the most they can of us living , assoon as our Females become super-annuated , and not able every Spring to furnish their voluptuous Tables with a Lamb , they call them Old Crones , and esteem them little better than Dogs and Cats ; but if they imagine they can make Money of us , they will for a small time Regale , or flatteringly feast us with store of Pasture ; and when they think we are fat enough to gratifie their extravagant Desires and Appetites , then are we sold , driven , abused , and finally have our Throats cut , and our Bodies quartered , as if we had committed Treason . Now tell us seriously , Can there be any thing more ungrateful , cruel , and tyrannical ? Do such dealings look like Man in his first state ? Do not our innocent Cries , and dying Groans under your merciless hands , penetrate the very Heavens , and awaken even the centre of Wrath ? For no Violence can be done , but Wrath must have the chief hand in it ; and 't is also certain , if Men did not live in the power of the wrathful Nature , there would be no killing ; for it is contrary both to the humane and divine Nature to destroy ; and for this cause it is contrary to the Nature , not only of our kind , but to most other clean Beasts , to eat Flesh , or kill and prey upon any of their Fellow-Creatures . But on the other side , those Beasts that are unclean , and whose predominant Quality stands in the wrathful Nature , are all , or the most of them , led by a natural instinct , and inclination , to kill and prey upon some others of the Creation ; nay , upon Man himself , if they find him at an advantage ; because those bloody , ravenous Dispositions are planted in the very Centre of their Lives ; but those of our kind , are in their Radix of near affinity to the undepraved , humane Nature . And therefore we will be bold , since we have obtained so much honour and liberty to plead our own innocent Cause , and tell our Governours , viz. ( Men , ) this serious Truth , That all Violence , as beating , hurrying , hunting , hacking , baiting , killing , fighting , rage , and contention whatsoever , be the occasion what it will , does arise from the Fountain of Marah , the Root of Wrath , and Bitterness in Nature . And if our Lord ( Man ) were so innocent , wise , and simple-hearted , as not to hurry , kill , and destroy those of our kind , and others of the like nature , then all Wars and Contention between those of his own kind , would cease ; but so long as that terrible , fierce , wrathful Spirit predominates in Mankind , there will be continual Wars , Rumors of Wars , Plots , Conspiracies , and horrid Murthers and Assassinations amongst themselves ; nor can we hope to escape their bloody hands , but our Lives must be subject to all kind of Miseries , and we must be contented to be led , not only to the Shearer , but also to the Slaughter-house in silence , as well as Innocence , and shall not lift up our Voice to repine or complain ( to them ) any more , since they served that great , and most holy Shepherd in the same manner , even the Saviour of the World , that was so far from Killing , that he laid down his Life for his Sheep . The Horses Complaint against their Masters . Has not the Creator of all Beings endued us with great Spirits , and strong Bodies ; excellent Shapes , and delicate Forms ; not only pleasant to behold , but of great use to Mankind ; bringing to them , by our Labours ; a thousand daily Benefits ? By our Strength we tear and plow up the stubborn Earth , and harrow her obdurate Clods : We carry them through Dirt and Mire , swim with them through the Waters , and bear them over dangerous places , and often hazard our Lives with willingness to save theirs : We , with great Toil and Labour , draw their Luggage in Carts and Wains ; and their fat , lazy Paunches in Chariots and Coaches : In Cases of Expedition they ride us Post , and by our help remove themselves above an hundred Miles in a very few Hours . All this we do , and are contented to do ; but what is reasonable , and agreeable to our Natures , will not satisfie the unreasonable Desires and Lusts of our Masters ; but through many Abuses , and cruel Strains , and immoderate Labours , which they force us to , even beyond the power and strength of our Nature , they have so wounded our Spirits , and destroyed our Natural Heat , that although our Creator hath endued us with great Spirits , and Bodies strong and healthful , beyond most of our Fellow-Creatures , yet we are now become liable to as many Diseases almost as our intemperate Masters are themselves . To enumerate all the Grievances we suffer , would be endless : Some of our Tyrants will gallop us many Miles , till we are all over in a Foam and Sweat , and then tie us at an Ale-house-door , in the cold Dirt , whilst they are Carouzing and Huzzaing , like mad Devils , with their roaring Companions , and never regard us , who in the mean time become founder'd , or catch the Fashions , or some other Disease , that perhaps hangs upon us as long as we live ; and when at Midnight they have finish'd their Revels , up they get again on our Backs , and switch and spur through Thick and Thin , over Hedge and Ditch , ready to break both our Necks and their own at every step , as if the Devil drove them . Others lead us with excessive Burthens ; and if we go not as fast as they would have us , then they plow our Sides with their armed Heels , and beat us without any Reason or Humanity : Nay , some of our Drivers are so possessed with a devilish violent Spirit , that for getting the value of Six Pence , they will whip and beat us like Furies , and make us draw or carry such excessive Burthens , that we strain our Eyes out of our Heads , and break our very Backs ; and if we complain , as oft-times we do , by our unwillingness to go , then they will not only belabour us with their Whips and their Cudgels , but curse us with a thousand horrid Execrations , and many devilish Wishes ; which sometimes do awaken the very Wrath of Nature in us , and makes us sullen , cross , and stubborn ; and then they abuse us yet more . Others make use of us to hunt our Fellow Creatures ; and riding us excessively , destroy many of us in that Sport , as they wickedly call it . There are another sort of things called Idle Men , or Gentlemen , ( but nothing gentle do we find from them , ) who finding some of us endued by God with great Celerity , and Swiftness of Foot , they put us upon Running of Races one with another , for to gratifie their foolish Vanity , Pride , and Covetousness . Likewise when Ambition , Malice , Revenge , or some other wrathful Passions , set Princes and Nations at variance ; or when Insurrections and Rebellions are raised , and Wars are waged ; though we have neither hand in the Quarrel , nor are like to get any share of Honour or Spoil by the Victory , yet we are forced to do a great part of the Service ; and with the hazard of our Lives , rush into the Battel ; and by being used to the Martial Sounds of Trumpets , Drums , and Guns , we become as mad and outrageous as our Riders , and seem to take delight in those Violences and Confusions ; and yet , after all our Services , sometimes our Riders , in hard Sieges , will kill and eat us : And many times , when we grow old , we are knock'd on the Head , and made Dogs-meat ; our Days shortned without any Consideration of our past Merits , and our murther'd Carcases given to feed a Company of ravenous Hounds . Is it not hard that we should be thus dealt with , and be made to undergo such terrible Slavery , as sometimes when former unreasonable Labours have drawn out our Eyes , yet even then no Rest , no Compassion is extended to us ; but , blind as we are , we are put into the Mill , and there forced to drudge out the Remainder of our Life in a Circle of Misery ? Have we not just Reason to complain of such cruel Usage , seeing we are the Delight and Pleasure of most Men , and the Companions of Princes ? And if we that are their Favourites endure such Hardships from them , what can other Creatures expect ? Nay , for all they pretend to admire and love us , yet they treat us worse than other Creatures : The Sheep and the Cows live at ease ; and Sheepherds are much more compassionate , tender-spirited People , than those that have the Government of us , for when their Lords are pleased to prepare them for the Slaughter , they put them into a goodly Pasture , where they have Rest and Plenty ; and when they are grown fat , though they kill them , yet they afford them an honourable Burial ; interring their Carcases in their own Paunches , and mixing their dead Flesh with good Liquor , and the precious Juice of the Grape , and fragrant Spices : But when we have spent all our youthful Days in over-hard Labour , and continual Travel , and suffered so many Inconveniences from Man , and for his sake contracted many Diseases ; then , to make us amends , when we are almost ready to starve , without ever cherishing us up , they knock us on the Head , an fling our Corps to the worst of Dogs , viz. filthy , ravenous , bawling Hounds . This is our Reward amongst the Sons of Men. But let Man know this for a certain Truth , That the Groaning of that Creature that suffereth Wrong , is the beginning of Pain and Torment to him that doth it ; and though we are dumb , and cannot call to our Creator after the manner of Men , with dissembling Hearts , and lying Tongues , yet we send up our Petitions to him after another Method , and in a natural way , and are sure to be heard ; for we move the Principles of Nature by a certain sympathetical Operation , which awakens the Wrath , and draws down Judgments on the Oppressors . For most of the Sons of Men are deceived , to think that it is no Evil to abuse and tyrannize over the i●feriour Creatures , as though we had no sense or feeling of our Pains . Are not we the Work of the great Creator's Hand ? And though we are not so highly graduated in Nature as Man , yet we serve him ( for the most part much more truly and constantly ) in our station , for his Honour and Glory : Do we not proceed from the very same Earth Man did ? Are we not compounded of the seven-fold Nature as well as he ? Is there any Element wanting in us ; and do not we contain the true Nature and Property of them all ? Is it not by the invisible Spirit , and wonderful Power of our Creator , that we live , and move , and have our Being ? Are we not the Sons of the Stars and Elements , even as Man himself ? 'T is true , we are not endued with the divine Principle of Light , nor have we immortal Souls , as Men have ; therefore our Creator doth not require that of us , as he doth of Man , who is the compleat Image of God and Nature , endued with Gifts divine as well as natural , and in every particular fitted to be a Prince and Governour ; but he has not stood in , nor kept to that essential Law , but proved disobedient to the Voice of Wisdom , and enter'd with his Desires , not only into the Nature of the wild , savage Beasts of Prey , but awakened the fierce Wrath , and thereby deprived himself of the divine Understanding , and true Method of Governing , and would fain be an absolute Monarch , or arbitrary Tyrant ; making nothing at his pleasure to break the Laws of God , and invade and destroy all the Rights and Privileges of the inferiour Creatures . But our Creator will retalliate all our Wrongs ; nay , the very Arts of Violence used unto us , naturally carry with them their own Punishment ; therefore all those that use us roughly , and oppress us , and such as are of killing Occupations , are generally headstrong , violent , surly , and cruel . But though we do undeservedly suffer many Miseries , this is our Comfort , our Lives are thereby shortned ; and when Death comes , we are totally released from all our Slavery , and hard Labours : But it is not so with our tyrannick Masters ; their Works will follow them to Eternity , and they cannot escape divine Vengeance , if they do not , on this side the Grave , repent and forsake all their sinful Vanities and Oppressions . Therefore , O Man ! consider thy Ways , and thy End , and what Principle is predominant in thee ; and if thou expectest to die the Death of the Righteous , remember — That the righteous Man is merciful to his Beast . CHAP. XVI . Of Herbs , the proper Seasons of gathering them , and Ways to preserve them , so as they may not lose their Virtues . GReat is the Excellency of Herbs , Plants , and Vegetables , both for Food and Physick , and almost innumerable their Virtues ; but two things are especially to be regarded : 1. That they be gathered in their proper time : And 2. So to preserve them after they be gathered , that when you have occasion to use them , they may not have lost their Virtue . As to the first , We read , Gen. I. 14. that God said , Let there be Lights in the Firmaments of Heaven , to divide the Day from the Night ; and let them be for Signs , and for Seasons , and for Days , and for Years . And V. 16. God made two great Lights , the greater to rule the Day , and the lesser to rule the Night . And the wise King witnesseth , That there is a proper Time and Season for doing all Things under the Sun. As the Creator made all things in a certain Measure of Time , so all things , both Celestial and Terrestrial , do vary and alter according to Time : The heavenly Bodies , the Planets , have their Times of Strength and Weakness ; sometimes near the Earth , sometimes remote , sometimes in friendly places of the Heavens , and agreeable to their own Natures ; thence called their Houses , their Ioys , their Exaltations ; at other times in Signs of contrary Qualities , which are called their Detriment , or their Fall ; sometimes by friendly Aspects they are assisted , and fortified ; at other times , by Malevolent Rays they are debilitated ; and hence they have variously at several Seasons respectively , their good and evil Influences and Operations in all inferiour Bodies ; especially such as are assimulated unto them , and thence said to be governed by them . Does not the Excellency of Vocal and Instrumental Harmony consist in a proper Measure of Time ? And are not the Complexions , Shapes , Forms , Inclinations , and Dispositions , both of Men and Beasts , good or evil , handsome or the contrary , according to the time of Conception and Birth , and according as the benevolent or malevolent Configurations of the superiour Constellations are at that time . Also the Lord has ordained a certain measure and number of Days for the Females of all sorts of Creatures to go with Young , viz. between the Conception and Birth : And is there not a certain Time and Season for the Sowing of all Grains and Seeds ? And as every thing is timed , the Effects are better or worse : Also there is a proper Time for the cutting of Corn and Grass , and gathering of Fruits . Every Man and Woman have their Time of Strength and Weakness , and all Beasts have the same ; so have all Herbs , Fruits , and Grains their Seasons , and proper Times , when their Virtues are at the highest ; therefore I have thought it convenient to give some Directions for the gathering of some of the most material Herbs ; and when those Constellations that govern them are strong , and well dignified , either by House , Exaltation , or friendly Configuration with the Fortunes , or by being Angular , and the like ; at which times all Vegetations are in their flourishing state , and will prove the more effectual in the curing and preventing of Diseases , more especially if the subsequent Rules of drying and preserving of them afterwards be observed . But this is to be noted , that sometimes it happens that some sorts of Herbs cannot be gathered in two or three Years time under good Influences , by reason their Significators are debilitated ; but if Herbs are gathered and preserved as we direct , they will keep two or three Years , but the first and second Year they are best . It is also to be noted , that on the friendly Aspects and Conjunctions of the Planets , the secret Virtues of Herbs are multiplied and manifested ; and if the Physician , or other User of them , knows them , and have Judgment to use them , they may perform great Cures : But if they shall take the gross , flegmy Herbs , without distinction , and administer them , without-separating the crude , earthy parts from the more spiritous and balsamick Virtues , they often prove destructive rather than sanative ; increasing the Malignity of the Diseases and Venoms in the Body , rather than expelling them . Would it not be very easie both for the Learned , and also for the Unlearned , even every one , to get an infallible Medicine , and cure every Disease , if it were true which the Ancients have left on Record of Herbs , appropriating one Herb to cure forty or fifty several Diseases , and Defects of Nature ; which do generally deceive all those that do rely upon and follow their Receipts and Traditions , as shall more at large be demonstrated from a true Ground in Nature . Here follows the Tables for the gathering of Herbs in their proper Times . A TABLE shewing the apt times to gather Herbs Astrologically , that is , when the Planets that govern them are dignified , and in friendly Aspects , being here calculated for Nineteen years . Herbs under ♄ Saturn . April & May Buckthorne , ) Plantane , ) ♐ Comfry , ♎ Cross-wort , ♒ Elm-Tree , ♒ Flexweed , ♓ Fumitory , ♎ Water-fern , ♑ Peach-Tree , ♎ Snake-weed , ♏ May and Iune Arsmart , ♏ Buckthorn , ♑ Clowns , ) Woundwor . ) ♒ Seatica Creeses , ♐ Harts ease , ♒ Horse tail , ♎ Knapweed , ♒ Knot-grass , ♎ Mullen , ♒ Redbeets , ♑ Solomons seal , ♑ Servis Tree , ♐ Shepherds purse ♑ Stinking glad Vine ♑ Tamarishtree ♎ Throughleaf ♒ Iune and Iuly Amaranthus , ♑ Byfoyle , ♒ Blewbottle , ♎ Wild Campions ♒ Dodderofthime ♒ Goutwort , ♒ Hemlock , ♑ Henbane , ♑ Nightshade , ♒ Rupture wort , ♎ Spleenwort , ♒ Woundwort , ♎ August and September . Bistote , ♒ Devils bit , ♑ Pellitory of the Oak , ♑ October and November . Black thorne , ♑ Hemp , ♒ Hawk weed , ♒ Loose strife , ♑ Medler , ♒ Moss , ♑ Popler tree , ♒ Quince tree , ♑ December . Ivy , ♒ Bl. Hellibore , ♑ Ann. Dom April May. June . July . Aust. Sept. October . Novem December . 1683 14 23 2 11 12 4 23 6 30 25 13 14 15 15 8 15 24 1684 4 14 19 29 11 21 6 17 19 1 29 9 19 27 15 24 1685 13 22 2 11 22 23 13 14 2 8 19 9 16 29 25 1686 4 13 11 21 21 7 11 16 20 15 24 6 13 16 4 1687 4 14 2 21 7 , 12 8 20 22 6 22 28 7 17 3 1688 24 22 1 19 5 , 17 6 19 8 29 4 9 20 14 1689 9 30 18 2 19 7 25 14 28   23 21 26 26 1690   5 16 22 26 7 26 21 6 31 2 19 24   1691 1 2● 5 6 5 22 1 24 7 20   12 24   1692   21 2 16 19 20 24 20   9 22   1693 17 13   17 19 28   6 30 12 28 21 5 22 1694 12 29 6 16 9 5 10 11 1 24 9 10 16 24 1695 6 24 17 24   12 21 29 4 5 10 23   28 1696 10 5 13 30 21 5 30 1 2 10 17 3 15 25 8 14 1697 9 10 18 5     1 13 23 14 28 14 27 1698 8 10 19 31   3 21 2 25 10 26 28 21 22 1699 6. 8 24 1 21 30 12     8 10 13 21 28 1 8 1700 2 20 11 12 24 27 23     6 19 20 18 29 3 19 21 1701 4 4 26 9 25 3 8 9     3 20 1 21   Herbs under ♃ Iupiter . April and May Bill-berries , ♋ Chervil , ♌ Cheas-nut , ♐ Scurvy-Grass . May and Iune Alexander , ♋ Avens , ♐ Balme , ♋ Copmary , ♋ Cinquefoyl , ♐ Dogs-grass , ♋ Endive , ♋ Rosos , ♋ White-beets , ♋ Wood-betony , ♈ Iune and Iuly Agremony , ♋ Asparagus , ♐ Burriage , ♌ Clove-Gilliflowers , ♋ Dock , ♋ Fig-tree , ♋ House-leek , ♋ Long-wort , ♓ Sage , ♐ Samphire , ♓ Sucory , ♐ August and September . Hazle-tree , ♐ October and November . Horse-tongue , ♐ Liver-wort , ♓ Ann. Dom April . May. June . July . August . Septemb. October . Novemb. 1683 19 2 9 29 27 9 16 25 7 5 31 17 14 23 1684 5 22 27 11 31 29 12 24 29 15   13 29 1685   5 24 29   20 30 31 6 31 1 12 30 16 4 13 1686     13 24 5 4 12   24 12 15 1687 9   6 21 12 27 28 29   3 10 11 23 1688 9 6 25 29       1 12 18 2 1689 4 24 25 18 12 13 16 7 21 28 6   4 7 10 1690   6 10 11 9 20 18 27   3 9 25 28 1691 15 21 25 19 23 6 14 23   11     1692 20 30 7 27   24 27 2 13 5 14 27 3 19 14 1693 15 24 13 14 27   13 1 4 7 3 5 1694 30 28 29 30 19 6 20 23 2 4 6 28 18 27 1695 12 19 21 3 3 4 30 17 31   7 9 17 5 9 1696 26 9 23 9 13 3 5 17 4 12 11 12 18 22 9 1697 15 15 28 20     21 28 20 27 29 14 27 1698     11 29 16 31 17 22 5 26   19 24 1699 5 7 18   23 1 21 5 7 10 14   1700 3 10 3 28 7 3 22 24 30 31 8 1701 9 15 26 10 9 15 16 17     15 6 9 2 18 Herbs under ♂ Mars . Iune & Iuly . Thistle , ♏ Cotton Thistle , ♏ Alheale , ♏ Barberries , ♏ Cardus Benedictus , ♈ Buck , ♏ Doves foot , ♈ Dragones , ♏ Flex-weed , ♏ Fursbush ♏ Garlick ♏ Master-wort , ♏ Pepper-wort , ♈ Ground pine , ♏ Rest-harrow , ♏ Round docks ♏ August . Ground Bassil ♏ Bucher-broom , ♏ Broom , ♏ Hawthorn Nettles , Rubarb , September . Flee-wort , ♈ Mustard , ♈ Taper-wort , ♈ Wormwood , ♈ October and November . Hawk-weed , ♏ Madder , ♏ Onions , ♏ ●in , Ann. Dom June . July . August . Septem . Octob. Novem. 1683 27 15   12 21 14 15 26 7 11 1684 7 11 4 21   21 24 13 25 26 1685   7 15 23   1 25 19   1686 2 13 29 14 18     2 30 1687 5 15   4 10 23 29 9 11   1688 28 19 15 24 1 18     1689 12 25 19 28 17 30 29   7 1690 9 14 7 4 30   7 17 26 28 1691 29 6 21 8 9 11 31 17 1692 7 13 4 28 20 25 21   11 18 1693   4 10 22     4 8 8 27 1694 6 18   13 5 18     1695 29   2 6 8 17   30 1696 6 13 21 9 28 9 25 17 1 22 19 1697 5 20 28     5 6 12 21 29 6 10 1698   3 9 12 28 18 28   13 12 1699 0 00 21 5 7 5   1 28 1700 0 21 26 3 28     30   1701 9 18 26 5 9     4 3 Herbs under ☉ Sol. April , May and Iune . One blade , ♌ Butter bur , ♐ Angelica , ♌ Burnet , ♋ Cellindine , ♌ Eye-bright , ♈ Pimpernel , ♌ Rose a solis , ♋ Rosemary , ♌ Rue . ♌ Wall-nut-trees , ♌ Iune and Iuly . St. John's Wort , ♌ Marigolds , ♌ Misselto , ♈ Small centry , ♈ Tormentile . August and Septem . Ash-tree , ♌ Bay-tree ♈ Piony , ♈ Saffron , ♌ October and November . Juniper-berry bush , ♌ Ann. Dom April . May. June . July . August . Septem . Octob. Novem. 1683   18 23 27 7 29 19 6 16 1 14 31 8 15 1684 6 22 1 9 18 23   14 19 15 22 27 26 1685 16 20 24   15 29   2 6 16 9 28 1686 5 3 20 28 7 13 18 31 15 20   8 14 1687 2 29 16 26 11 20 27   4 28 29 3 18   1688 10 16 28 10 13   16 24 28 9 3 1689 4 26 22 30 14 17 12 4 21 17 1690 6 11 13 19 21 10 20 25 26 30   1 2 9 1691 26 10   5 27 7 11 16 5 14 1692 9 7 31 13 16 26 22 23 18 29 2 11 20 1693   11 18 20 6 22 28   1 13 30 30 5 18 1694 3 12 20   3 6 18 9 26   4 8 11   1695 2 24       9 20 8 22 23 5 6 26 1696 1 26 5 20   3 21 28 23 13 18   2 10 1697   5 18 28 12 2 4 18 13 12 20 15 1698 7 19 7 31 12 29   2 5 18 25 9 19 26 1699 3 7 8 20 23 12 16 1 23 7 8 5 12 13 1700 20 2 10 21 24   21 3 5 19 8 28 1701 9 12 4 ● 14 17 5 8 19   1 9 1 Herbs under ♀ Venus . April & May Ale-hoofe , ♉ White Arehangel , ♎ Beans , ♎ Black Elder-tree , ♋ Colts-foot , ♈ Cowslips , ♎ Collibine , ♊ Common Elder-tree , ♓ Cherry-tree , ♎ Daisies , ♋ Cude Weed . ♉ Ladies bed straw , ♉ Ladies Mantle , ♉ Self-heal , ♎ Wood sorrel , ♍ Wall-Pennyroyal , ♎ May and Iune . Dwarf Eldertree , Featherfew , ♉ Diep-wort , ♎ Damask Roses , ♉ Groundsel , ♉ Hartichoaks Honey-suckles ♉ Herb Robert , ♎ Mint , ♌ Money-wort , ♉ Meed sweet , ♎ Nep ♉ Pennny-royal ♎ Plantane , ♎ Senicle , ♎ Strawberries , Iune and Iuly . Askanot , ♋ Arch Stinking ♏ Beech-tree , ♎ Bishops weed , ♋ Blackberry-bush , ♉ Burdock , ♉ Camomile , ♎ Crabs-claws , ♉ French-beans , ♉ Figwort , ♎ Golden Rode , ♉ Gromill , ♎ Gooseberry-bush ♉ Horehound , ♈ Motherwort , ♎ Mugwort , ♉ Mother of thime ♈ Ragwort , ♋ Wood-sage , ♉ Spignole , ♍ Vervine , ♉ Sow Thistle ♈ Sope wort , alias , Sothern-wood ♎ August and September . Winter-cherries , ♎ Darnel , ♉ Eringo , ♉ Peach-tree , ♎ Plumbs , ♉ Wheat , ♎ Yarrow , ♉ October and November . Garden-Parsnips ♉ Ann. Dom April . May. June . July . August . Septem . Octob. Novem. 1683   9 9 25 4 9 15 28 7 19 26 1 8 1684 28 11 28 18 21 25 1 21 23 9 15 25 13 1685 11 28 29 10 18 22 7 20 14 17 18 25 8 13 29 1686 3 5 8 2 21   3 20 1 4 5 13   1687 15 24   12 21   7 10 12 13 23   2 8 28 1688 9 14 29 17   8 24 28 29 18 26 20 1689 19 24 29 5 6 5 13 16 21 25   29 2 10 31 10 26 1690 5 6 6 21 6 24 14 16   21 3 10 17 19 1691 22 12 25 3   1 8 11 20 17 18 5 12 1692   29 2 11 23 6 28 11 23     9 14 1693 15 17 16 14 16 4 13 19 13 31 ● 7 8 28   1694 3 29 29 3 12 2 11 18 28 1 1695 6 3 26 30 12 9 19 4 6 9 25 6 9 1696 10 12 23 30   17 26 9 23 30 9 12 1 17 31 9 30 1697 15 27 12 28     4 6 28 13 23 27 1698 7 22 29 19 1 10 9 21 26 10 17 6 9 1699 16 9 18 24   12 7 21 28 13 14 5 10 17 1700 3 11 16   2 21   24 29 1701 22 29 13 14 16 26 3 10 15 3 4 2 21 Herbs under ☿ Mercury . May and Iune . Amara Dulces , ♍ Dill , ♊ Fern , ♍ Fennel , ♊ Germender , ♍ Lillies of the Valley , ♍ Parsley , ♊ Pellitory of Spain , ♊ Iuly . Jack by the hedge , ♍ Scabious , ♊ Smallage , ♊ Carraway , Horehound , Savory , October and Novemb. Maple-tree , ♊ White maidens-hair , ♍ Liquorish , ♍ Wild-Carrots , Sweet-Marjorem , ♈ Mulberry-tree , Ann Dom May. June . July . October . November . 1683 18 20 22 9 25 19 5 8 11 14 23 1684 8 19 31 29 30 4 18 24 13 15 19 22 15 1685 5 9 10 13 23 29 30 6 4 16 28 1686 20   5 11 13 14 5 6 8 12 16 30 1687   7 15 28 8 12 7 9 10 18 2 17 23 1688 9 25 5 28 6 4 19 26   1689 2 6 7 26 2 3 5 25 19 31 3 10 31 17 1690 3 12 13 31 1 24 11 6 31 17 10 24 26 27 29 1691 12 21 3 21 23 29 14 21 22 16 18 31 24 1692 31 7 11 4 6 19 22 24 19 17 20 22 1693 11 16 27 6 10 13 17 12 30 3 11 21 1694 28 19 20 30 3 16 6 8 10 8 18 24 1695 17 4 6 29 17 31 10 17 25 26 1696 9 13 20 7 9 19 21 26 10 31 10 15 25 1697 10 17 27   2 13 25 27 28 14 19 28 1698 10 1 11 16 9 12 17 9 10 24 28 1699 9 22 23 29 5 16 23 21 22 12 13 17 28 1700 2 3 16 26 27 28   20 21 31 1 15 1701 10 26 14 15 18 25   16 21 3 18 Herbs under ☽ Luna . April , May , and Iune . Adders Tongue , ♋ Water Cultropes , ♋ Chick-Weed , ♓ Coral-wort , ♋ Water-creeses , ♋ Duckmeat , ♋ Flower-de-luce , ♓ Ladysmocks , ♋ Lettice , ♓ Moon-wort , ♋ Brink-Vervine , ♋ Clary , ♈ Wild-clary , ♈ Mouse-Ear , ♋ Orpine , ♈ Poppy , ♋ Rattle-grass , ♋ White Roses , ♋ Iuly . Clivers , ♋ Cucumbers , ♋ Water-flags , ♋ Flew-elling , ♓ Water-Lilly , ♓ Purslain , ♋ White Saxafrage , ♋ Willow-tree , ♋ Looss-strife , ♋ Ann. Dom April . May. June . July . 1683 16 21 14 25 9 15 9 13 1684 5 14 23 4 14 4 26 27 1 2 24 1685 12 23 20 18 11 21 10 25 1686 8 23 2 22 10 20 29 4 15 28 1687 1 12 6 28 4 29 30 28 1688 14 28 13 29 30 6 7 1689 13 27 28 3 10 11 8 16 5 6 1690 23 24 29 2 26 7 8 7 8 1691 4 28 13 14 15 16 3 4 1692 7 30 1 9 10 7 8 20 3 30 1693 5 17 18 14 21 4 18 28 3 28 1694 3 4 19 20 21 8 18 12 1695 4 14 2 3 2 4 1 2 4 1696 9 10 29 30 1 2 18 19 2 3 30 22 23 1697 2 6 14 20 5 26 5 6 1698 21 26 10 11 26 2 16 17 1699 10 15 14 15 8 17 26 10 11 26 1700 6 14 27 2 11   18 1701 26 30 2 21 22 23 5 6 15 25 4 14 The Explanation of the Tables . FIrst , Look for the Plant that you have a mind to gather , in the Table , and that will tell you what Month they must be gathered in ; and then look in the Table of Months , and there you will find what Days will be best to gather them in . As for Example . I would know what time is best in the Year 1683. to gather Fleewort ; looking in the Table , I find Fleewort to be an Herb of Mars , and to be gathered in September ; then look underneath for September , and against the Year 1683. I find 12 and 21 , which doth shew , that the 12th and the 21th are the best Days to gather that Herb in . Again , I desire to know what time is best , in the Year 1684. to gather Scurvey-Grass in , I find Scurvey-Grass to be an Herb of Iupiter , and to be gathered in April and May ; then look in the Table underneath for April and May , and against 1684. I find 5 22 27 , 11 31. which shews that the 5 22 27 Days of April , and the 11 & 31 Days of May , are the best times to gather that Herb in ; and so of the rest . When you have gathered your Herbs in their proper Seasons , not only those you intended for Physical Operations , but also such as you keep for common uses , you are in every particular to observe the same Method and Rules that Husbandmen do in making of their Hay , that is , to dry them in the Sun , where the pleasant lively Rays of the Air have their free Influences , and to keep them duly turned , until the gross moisture , and phlegmy substance be Exhaled , or consumed by the Sun and Elements ; and if the Season be dry , the best way is to put them together as they do Hay , and let them lie out all Night ; but if not , then put them in the House at Nights , and when they are sufficiently dryed , then make strong Paper-Bags , and stuff them in as hard as possibly you can , tying them up close , and lay them in some open airy dry Room ; but in the Winter , when the Air is humid , you may dispose of them in Rooms , where Fire is kept , but not too near ; for too much , either Heat or Moisture , quickly destroys their pure Vertues ; for the Volatile parts , when the slimy Substance is digested , will not endure any Violence without manifest Injury to the whole . 2. Herbs thus preserved , are best for all uses , when they have lain together two , three or four Months in the Bags , for in that time they will heat and ferment , and pass through another Digestion , which does consume a certain fainty moist Quality , ( which the Sun and Elements could not destroy in the first preparation , without Prejudice to the whole ) whereby their pure Spirituous Parts become more free and Volatile , and will give forth their good Vertues as readily as Mault does , when they shall be put into any proper Menstruum or Liquor . Herbs , I say , thus ordered , are fit for all Physical and Common Operations ; do not the Husband-men observe all the fore-mentioned Rules in making their Hay ? viz. when they have dryed it in the Sun and open Air , not in the Shade ( as Physicians and Apothecaries do , ( who destroy thereby the Vertue of their Herbs ) then they make it into small Cocks , and let it stand two or three days , or more , as the Weather will permit ; after which , many will make it into large Ricks , viz. Almost a load or more in each , and let it stand two or three Weeks more , which does prepare and make it fitter to be made into Stacks or Mows , where it must settle very close , and heat and ferment , and so in four or five Months time it will by this second Fermentation , digest and destroy that moist fainty Quality , which all Hay newly made does plentifully contain ; After this it sends forth a finer or more pure Scent and Smell , and is far better for all Cattel : Where by the way it is to be noted , that Hay made into Stacks in the open Air , is to be preferred before that in Barns or Houses ; for the former will settle much harder and closer , because the pure thin Spirituous Vapours of the Air do penetrate it , and thereby keep the Spirituous Parts living , and free from Suffocation , or contracting any gross Humidity , which all places do abound with , where the pleasant comforting Rays of the Sun and Air are hindred from their having their free Ingress , Egress and Regress ; therefore such Hay has a more odoriferous smell , that proceeds from the goodness and strength of the Spirituous Parts , and all sorts of Cattel will chuse to eat this before any other , especially Sheep , who are of all others most curious . Whereas Hay put into Barns , &c. will not settle so hard and close , though never so much care and pains be taken in treading it down ; the Reason is , because the Sun and Air are shut out by the Walls and closeness of the Houses , so that there is great store of Humidity that suffocates the Volatile Spirits . 3. In drying your Herbs , care ought to be taken that the same be neither too much nor little ; for the Sun and Air , by their secret Influence , exhale , consume and destroy the gross Humidity and Phlegm , that before did hold the Spirituous Quality captive , which hereby is set at liberty ; as is manifest in all Herbs and Grass , whilst it remains green and unseparated ; if you smell to it , its scent is gross , fulsome and earthy ; but when the Sun and Elements have made separation , then it sends forth a Smell most Fragrant and Delightsome , perfuming the whole Field with its wholesome Odours ; But then if the same be there too long continued , the very same Influences which exhaled and destroyed the gross phlegmy Body , will also prey upon and consume the Spirituous Parts too , as all observing Husband-men do know ; and then such Herbs , or any other thing of like nature , will not have any true Vertue or Life in them . On the other side , if they be not dryed enough , the gross phlegmy Substance that remains will suffocate the pure Spirits , and cause Putrifaction , and kindle the bitter , sower and astringent Qualities , which in a short time will destroy all the pure Balsamick Vertues . 4. If any kind of Herbs be dryed in the Shade or House , they thereby lose all their good Vertues , or very much impair them ; For , 'T is the Sun and open Air that keeps the Volatile Spirits , and Balsamick Virtuers living , for want whereof , the true Life , and spirituous Properties will be suffocated and destroyed . Is not the Air of all Houses gross , fulsome and humid , if you compare it with the common Air abroad ? Are not all Insects and Vermin generated in shady dull places ? and whence is it , but through the great store of Humidity and gross Vapours , which such places do contract ? Thus Moths are bred in Garments that are kept in close places , where the Air has not its free Influences ; whereas on the contrary , the Sun Beams , and open Air , prevent the generation of such Vermin . But now contrary to Nature , Reason and common Sense , the fashion which our Lip learned Physicians and Apothecaries that serve a perpetual Apprenticeship to Tradition , practice is this . — They dry their Herbs in the Shade , and afterwards expose them to the Sulpherous Stinking Humid Air of their Houses . But , I believe , should the Learnedst Doctor or Pot-earrier of them all , tell a Country-man , that the best way to preserve the strength and natural Virtues of his Hay , were to dry it in the Shade or House , he could not but laugh at their simplicity ; for he knows that Hay so dried and made , would starve his Cattel , and that that proves the best Hay , which is made when the Sun shines clear , and in a fresh gale of Wind : For'tis the pure thin Spirituous Vapours of the Air that penetrate all Bodies , and keep the Spirits of each thing living in all Preparations . A Man would think it almost impossible , for those that make it their whole business to prepare Medicines , to be so sottishly Ignorant of the Nature of things , and the Knowledg of themselves . What a clutter do they keep with their vast Volumes of Pharmacy , and musty old Rules ? And yet when all is done , one may modestly avow , that an ordinary Husband-man has abundantly more understanding in the proper and natural way of preparing the Food for his Cattel , than these Worshipful Rabbies have either in the Preparations of their own , or Patients Food , or Physick ; and the Common People seeing what these Men of reputed Learning do , follow them like Apes , never questioning whether it be good or bad ; so verifying the Proverb , where The Blind leads the Blind , &c. Tell me , I pray , what Virtue or true Life hath Carduus , Wormwood , Centaury , Winter-Cherries , and many other sorts of Physical Herbs , when dried in the Saturnine Shades , and then exposed to the dull thick Airs of Shops , Cellars , Garrets , and Herb-womens Stalls , and other close sulpherous Places , more fit for the Generation of Vermin and Insects , than any thing else . 'T is confessed , a Man may use some of the before-mentioned Martial Herbs , as coursly as he will , nevertheless they will retain the strong fulsom bitter Taste and Qualities of Mars and Saturn , because it is the Original and very Center of their Life , and therefore cannot be destroyed , except such Herbs be annihilated ; but the pure Essential Virtues and Balsamick Body are wholly destroyed : Therefore Medicines made of any Herbs prepared , as most Physitians and Apothecaries do , are loathsome to Nature and the Stomach , and they have no power to assist Nature , or cure those Diseases which the wise Anclents have appropriated them unto . Now if Physicians and Apothecaries do not understand these things that are so plain and evident to every Shepherd and Husband-man , they may well be suspected in their Compositions ; for if the first Preparation be wrong , and the true and living Virtues destroyed , let the wisest of them all use what Art they will , they can never obtain the lost Virtue , nor make a good Medicine thereof ; indeed such Herbs and Things may serve their turn to make up their confused Compositions , which do consist of as many Ingredients as there are Weeks in the Year , most of which are of as disagreeing Natures , as Light to Darkness , or Summer to Winter ; for this cause most of their Medicines prove ineffectual ; for the Physical Virtues of most of the Simples are destroyed for want of Care and Understanding , either whilst they remain intire , or else by such an undue Composition , where things of quite different Natures confound each other . For if two things of contrary Natures he added together , they make a degree of Variation , and produce a Juice or Virtue of a third Nature ; but then , if you add a third Ingredient , whose predominant Quality is contrary both to the first and second , then such a Composition , or Medicine , does make three degrees of variation , and produceth a Juice or Vertue of a contrary Nature and Operation to both the first and second Ingredients , ( which I have particularly demonstrated from the Arts of Dying and Painting , in the Chapter Of mixtures of Food ) so that when ten or twenty several things are added together , they make such a Confusion , and as it were strife in Nature , that such Physick or Food has not the true Nature nor Operation of any one of them ; and being unnatural , the Stomach and whole Nature of Man doth loath them ; for in such Mixtures , things not Homogenial , or agreeable to each other , being jumbled together , there thence ariseth an inward and secret strife for Mastery , and so that Quality becomes strong , which before their incorporating was weak , and so & contra , making that Property appear which lay hid , and hides that which before was most manifest ; so great is the power of the Sympathy and Antipathy of things . For this Cause the Ancients did forbid those Varieties of Mixtures both in Food and Physick ; for they saw from an inward eye of understanding , the great danger of compounded Dishes or Medicines , and that the common use of them did generate compounded Diseases , which no Medicine hath Power , or any Physician Skill to Cure. Therefore the generality of Men in former Ages , and also those in this , who live on simple Meats and Drinks , and observe the Rules of Sobriety , are free from those torturing Diseases that the Superfluous and Intemperate are subject unto ; such as use due Labour and Exercises , and live on Bread , Butter , and ordinary Cheese , Milk-Pottage , Gruels , and the like , and drink small Beer , and observe the Rules of Chastity , and lie on hard Beds , few of this sort of People are troubled with the Gout , Dropsy , Stone , Palsy , Consumption , windy Diseases , or the like ; nothing being a greater Evil to Nature , than those improper and unnatural Mixtures both of Food and Physick , the first being the very Radix of Diseases , and the second does increase and prolong them . Physicians may pretend and boast as much as they will of the Excellency of their Dispensatory-Ware ; 't is certain , that such Diseases as are generated by degrees , by the frequent use and eating of compounded Foods , ( which generally consist of disagreeing Ingredients as aforesaid , and made meerly to prolong the pleasure of the Throat ) are not to be routed by all their Regiments of Compounded , Recompounded , Decompounded , and Surrecompounded Medicines , as daily Experience shews . Therefore let no Man have Faith , or repose Confidence in such adulterated confused Nauseities , but fear the Lord , and learn to know the Power of Temperance before it be too late ; for when once Diseases have invaded the Body , and wasted the Spirits , then 't is a difficult matter to root out such Disorders either by Temperance or Medicine ; but still the first has the greater Power to give Relief , there being far greater Danger in rich compounded Foods and Cordial Drinks , and compounded Potions of Physick , than most imagine , or can be sensible of , except they separate and enter into Self-denial , and observe both Quality and Quantity of Meats and Drinks , and then their Eyes will be opened , and see the Errors of those things which formerly they practiced . It is not for nothing that Mankind is so miserably afflicted with such a number of Torturing Diseases , nor is it through any Natural Defect , as some vainly suppose ; for Mankind in his Radix is the most compleat , soundest and healthiest of all Creatures , endued with the greatest and strongest natural Spirits , and had he not depraved himself by Disorders and Superfluities , would have exceeded all other Animals , as to health . Do we ever read of any of the Prophets or Patriarchs , in the first Ages of the World , that they were Sick ? No , there is not a word of their Sickness , but that they lived to great Ages in perfect Health , ( for ought we find ) and soundness of Mind and Body . There was then no need of Universities , where Men must spend ten or twenty Years meerly to read Receits over , and to learn to write a Bill of Confusion to the Apothecaries , or to put their own Eyes out , that so they might see with other Mens , nor to learn Canting words , to deceive the Ignorant . Their whole drift and design from the beginning to the end being to get Money , to live in Wantonness , Gluttony , and Superfluity . There was no occasion amongst the Ancients for this sort of People ; for every one was his own Physician ; for so long as Men studied the Knowledg of God and Nature in themselves , there was no place for this External Babylonical Building , or for the authorizing of Ignorant Pedantry for the sole Curing , or rather Killing of their Neighbours . Can any understand , or read another Man's Book , that cannot read one word in his own ? A Man's self is a Book , in which is comprehended all kind of Learning , both Humane and Divine , the Radix of all Arts and Sciences . For in this Little World ( Man ) was communicated unto the Wise Ancients the Virtues of all Herbs , Seeds , Granes , Animals , and Minerals ; for the Ancient Physicians had not Libraries of many Thousand Books , nor did they spend their time in reading other Men's Works , nor satisfied themselves with Traditions , but were contented with one Book , viz. The Knowledg of God and Nature in themselves ; and this Book they read with their own Eyes , and not with the Counterfeit Spectacles of Aristotle or Galen . If Men would but stand still from Self-hood , then would they see the Salvation of the Lord. The Old Physicians and Naturalists , when they were not well , or any of their Neighbours were distemper'd , did not content themselves with musty uncertain Receipts ; for they knew that the same Herb which has proved beneficial to the Cure of one mans Diseases , might not do any good , but rather harm to another , even though their Diseases seemed to proceed from a like Cause : And does not our daily Experience manifest the truth of this ? Therefore they in all difficult points applyed themselves to the Divine Oracle , and Holy Light in themselves , which did teach them some Herb , Seed , Grain , or the like , and also the manner how to use it , which did perform wonderful Cures , because there was an inward Virtue , and the power of the Spirit went with them ; they did not keep any certain Method with all Patients alike , as our Quacks do now-a-days ; for the same Herb , or other thing that cured a Consumption in one , they did not administer to another in the like Disease , except they were pointed unto it by their Good Genius . Herein consists the right Cure both of the Soul and Body , when man does apply himself to the right Object , with Faith in the Lord ; then will the Lord teach him in all particulars ; for the Spirit of the Divine Power can make every little and small thing work wonderful Effects . 'T is true , the Ancients did set down in writing many of those Herbs , and other things , which their Genius did teach them for the Cure of various Diseases ; but they did as little think , that after-generations would make a great Trade of getting Money by their Receipts , as the Prophets and holy illuminated men of God did , That the men of the world would do the like by their Writings ; and yet alas ! what an Huckstering there is kept now-a-days with them both ? The worthy Sayings and Writings of the Ancients cannot be understood or applyed , but only by the same Spirit that gave them forth , either in things Divine or Natural . But these things are not considered either by those that are called Divines and Physicians , or by the People : But so soon as any one finds himself disordered by Sickness , they presently run to the Doctor , and the Doctor to his Books , and out of some one of them Scrawls a Receipt , and if that won't do , the poor Creature may die for him ; for neither the one nor the other so much as think to enquire of the true Physician , viz. the never-failing Oracle in themselves , which if hearkened unto in Humility , would teach them what to do in all particulars , as it did the Ancients ; for those Herbs , and great Cures wrought by them , were not set down and recorded , that after Generations should imitate them like Apes , without the true understanding of the Spirit , but that men might see the wonderful Power and Efficacy of the Spirit of the Lord , when men do apply themselves unto its Government . If men would but stand still , and not so eagerly pursue Tradition , and the Inventions of men and Self-hood , then the good Genius would be ready and prompt to shew and instruct them in any things belonging to their Preservation : for in the way of God and Nature , every little thing is made strong and powerful ; but when men have not the knowledge of God and Nature in themselves , then all goes astray , and the true Efficacy or Virtue is not known , nor have the Applications of the best things any good effect . By what hath been said , appears the Reason why those Physical Herbs and Seeds , which the Ancients have appropriated for the cure of such and such diseases , do not cure those distempers , nor have any such Effects ; for if every Herb could accomplish such Cures as are recorded thereby to have been done , certainly there would none be sick , but All would be made whole ; but Experience shews the contrary ; Nay , are there not many living Testimonies at this day , who waiting in Humility at the Internal Altar , have been directed , such an Herb , or other thing ; and the manner of using it , which being followed , the Cure has been effected in a wonderful manner ? And yet the very same Persons at other times , in the like Distresses and Disorders , have not minded their good Genius , but looked abroad amongst the Swine for Cure , where there is neither Life , Knowledge , Power nor Virtue , but only an Ignorant busie Imitating Ape , cloathed with a Velvet Coat , and as their Course hath been , the success proved answerable ; he has perhaps purged their Purses to a Vacuum ; stuffed their Bodies with Slops ; filled their Chambers with Gally-Pots and Glasses ; weakened Nature , and strengthened the Disease , so that it carries away Life Captive at the Wheels of its Triumphant Chariot ; and all that Mr. Dunce-Doctor has to say for himself , is , That he proceeded secundum Artem , and destroyed you after the exactest method in the World. All Practice of Physick that is from Receipts and Tradition , is uncertain and abominable to Nature , more especially where there is a multitude of Ingredients mixed together , for the most part of various Natures , and contrary Qualities , as though they would force Nature into obedience , by the several sorts of Engines and Enemies of divers kinds , which they bring against her ; Whereas in truth , when there are twenty , thirty , forty , fifty , sixty or an hundred several things compounded together , and of as many distinct Natures , no man on Earth can know the Genuine operation of such a Medicine . Does not Experience shew , that in Food , if you compound ten or twenty sorts of things , the best and strongest Stomach will loath such Food after one Meal or two ; Who is there ( let his Constitution be what it will ) that would be satisfied , if he were confined to live on your richest sort of Cake-Bread , that has ten or twelve Ingredients in it ? Are not the pure natural Operations of each thing destroyed and adulterated , where various things are thus mixed together of different Natures ? And does not the Pallate and Stomach grow weary and sick , if confi●●● to such Foods ? The very same is to be understood in Physical Preparations , there being not much difference between the Apothecaries , and our more curious Cooks Compositions , both being alike preposterous and inimical to Nature . To demonstrate this , I shall here insert a learned Doctor 's Prescription . A Gentlewoman had a Son , whom being not well , she supposed was in a Consumption ; she applies her self to a Famous Doctor for Learning and Skill , who informs her , her Son was in a wasting condition ; and you must needs believe it , for he saw it in the Boy 's Piss ; Then she desired him to give her Directions how she might prevent that Consuming Distemper ? Mr. Doctor having once more peep'd in the Urinal , thrice shook his Noddle , and twice stroked the place where he should have had a Beard , perceiving the Angels to appear , was presently enlightned by the False Prophet , Tradition , to give the Gentlewoman this following Bill to the Apothecary , which does consist of no less than three and thirty Ingredients . But by that time the Apothecary had mustered up his several Slops , and compleated the Composition of Omniumgatherum , the Small-Pox began to appear , and put a period to Goodman Doctor 's future proceedings , who else , to prevent the Boy 's Consumption , would have loaded his Guts with Materials enough to half set up an Apothecary . The Receipt . R. Ol Amygd . dulc . rec . Syr. Capiat Veneris anaʒiss . Sacchar . Cant. ʒiss , mis. exactissim . Capiat cochleare unum ter quaterve in die superbibendo ℥ iv . 〈◊〉 pozem . sequent . calid . Re. Decoct . pector depurat . lb jss . Tinct . Crocj . Syr. capil Veneris ana ℥ iss . mis. fiat Apozema . R. Cons. Ros. rub . antiq . per setacerum traject . ℥ ii . Pulv. Halyʒiss . Laud. liquid . ʒi . Syr. Balsamic . q. s. m. f. Electurium de N. m. singulis noctibus . quo Capiat Quantitatem . In English. Take Oyl of sweet Almonds new drawn , Syrup of Maiden-hair ; of each one Ounce and half , White-Sugarcandy-powder one Dram and half , mix them , and take one spoonful three or four times a day , drinking after each Dose a quarter of a pint of the following Apozem warm . Take of the Pectoral Decoction depurated , a pint and half , Tincture of Saffron , and Syrup of Maidenhair , of each one Ounce and half , mix them for an Apozem . Take Conserve of Old-Red-Roses pulped , two Ounces , Pulvis Haily a Dram and half , liquid Laudanum one Dram ; Syrup of Balsom a sufficient quantity , to make it into an Electuary . To be taken the quantity of a Nutmeg every Night at bed-time . This is the Bill , whose Ingredients ( if you trace them to their Originals ) are thirty three , and their various Natures as many , disagreeing one with the other , and consequently make a Medicine of a loathing Quality , and far sicker in Nature than the distempered Patient . The very same is to be understood of most or all the things they administer under the Name of Cordials to sick languishing and dying people , as being Mixtures of cool'd stilled Waters of several sorts , with certain Syrups , Epidemick-Waters , and other like Slops , which are all great Nauseates to Nature , even in the healthiest state ; and if so , what a miserable Condition then must the Sick be in ? The truth is , men in the time of health , strength and vigour , do make the best of Cordials too common to them , viz. Wine , which many drink to the destruction of their Health , and then when they are sick , they must have a change , tho' it be for the worse ; and so they take up with these loathsome Compositions of the Apothecaries , which are so sar from being really Cordial , that they are oppressive to Nature . 'T is a thing of evil consequence to be ignorant of the most excellent and sublime Virtues of the Herbs , which our own Countrey does produce , both for all Physical Uses , and also for Food , there being no way so safe for Nature , as to apply and use simple Herbs in the Cure of Diseases ; for as simple Food is always the most harmless , as administring a proper and equal Nourishment to the Body and Spirits ; the very same is to be understood in all Physical Operations ; for the Nature of each thing is adulterated , and its physical virtue destroyed by the contrary Qualities of other intermixt Ingredients . It is further to be noted , that most sorts of Herbs , when cut in their proper Seasons , and under good Influences , and afterwards dryed according to the Rules before-mentioned , are far better than when green , for the makng of Posset-drinks and Decoctions , and also for Cordials by infusion ; for the Sun and Elements do exhale and destroy the gross earthy phlegmy substance , and preserve the pure spirituous parts , and Balsamick Virtues , and sets the Spirit free , that it becomes volatile ; which pure Virtues in all or most green Herbs are captivated by the earthy Body of Phlegm . Therefore when dry Herbs , ( which are properly preserved ) are committed to any proper Liquor , as Hot-Water , Beer , Ale ; Cyder , Wine , Spirit of Wine , &c. any of those Liquors will greedily receive the good Virtues and Spirituous parts better than they can from Herbs that are green . And when Herbs have lain together five or six Months , they are fitter for such uses than when first gathered ; and being so preserved , as before is directed , will keep good for several years . This preparation of the Sun and Elements is much to be esteemed , and no preparation performed by common Fire is to be compared therewith ; for by this Chymical Art of Nature , the more sublime Virtues and vegitative Qualities are preserved , and the gross earthy Substance destroyed ; but in all our Chymical Preparations and Separations , there is a contrary Operation ; for when the Chymist takes Herbs , and commits them to his Fire , he cannot preserve neither the pure Volatile Spirit , nor Balsamick Body or Vegitative Virtue , but only the fierce fiery harsh astringent bitter Spirits , which properties are the original of every Life , and cannot be destroyed in any preparation , though never so unnatural , except the things could be annihilated ; for this Cause all such Sulpherous fiery Liquors will not work and ferment , as all other sorts of Liquors will , even Water it self , when any Balsamick Body is joyned with it , as Sugar , or the like ; but those other Chymical Liquors are at the end of Nature , and therefore they will not admit of another Motion . Hence it follows , that all sorts of Spirits , as of Scurvey-Grass , of Salt , and many others of like Nature that are prepared by Fire , whereby the Radical Moisture , or sweet Balsamick Quality , the Volatile Spirit , and Vegitative Vertue or middle Quality are al● destroyed , have no such physical Virtues 〈◊〉 their Authors appropriate unto them . And we do affirm , that such as have the Disease called the Scurvey in their Blood , shall be as soon and as well cured , by taking every morning so many Drops of strong Spirit of Wine , as they shall by taking this sort of Spirit of Scurvey-Grass , and so of the Spirit of Salt , and others : For the harsh sulpherous Fires in Stills , where the friendly Element of Air is hindred from having its Influence , does totally destroy the pure Virtues , and opening cleansing Qualities , and there does run off only a fierce , keen , harsh , fiery , astringent , bitter , furious Spirit , which is very pernicious to Nature , and to all the friendly Virtues in the Body ; nor was it ever known that any such Spirits have given help , or cured any of those Diseases , which the Lying Authors do so much boast of . You may try whether this be true , if you take any opening , cleansing or purging Herbs , Seeds , or the like , and put them into any kind of Liquor , viz. Water , Beer , Ale , Wine or Brandy , ( the last of which those great Physicians and Masters of Art , do use to draw their Spirits of Scurvey-grass in ) ; when you have put your Ingredients into your Liquor , let them lie in it two or three days , more or less as you please , then put the Herbs and Seeds , with the Liquor , into your Still or Limbeck and draw it off , and you shall only have an harsh , strong , fiery , tart Spirit , void of all the Purging , Opening and Cleansing Qualities such Herbs or Seeds were naturally endued withal . The very same , or other as great Evils are in many other of the Physicians and Apothecaries Preparations , which ought to be considered , and their blind Traditionary senseless Ways and Methods to be abandoned , as destructive to the Health , and Well-being of Nature . It is further to be noted , that none ought to apply themselves to the ●●actice of Physick but such only as the Lord hath in their Radixes endued with proper Gifts , and natural Parts ; for 't is not sufficient for them to read other mens Works , and vapour with their Receipts , like the proud Iack-daw in the Fable , with the fine Feathers stolen from other Birds , but they ought to know the true Principles , Nature and Operation of every Herb , Plant , Animal or Mineral , that they make use of , and for what it is good , and the contrary in themselves , and also what Simples are proper to be Compounded , and what not ; For he that has no true Knowledge in himself of the Nature of things , but follows Tradition blind-fold , and trusts to other peoples Say-so's , must needs make strange work , and instead of Curing , often-times Kill ; and when he does Cure , 't is by meer chance ; Whereas Physicians ought not to administer any Medicine without true Knowledge both of his Patients Disease , and what he gives to remove it ; all things , especially where mens Lives are concerned , ought to be done with sight and judgment , and not without Faith and Prayer to God , the Creator of all things , who is the inward Virtue , Power and Life of every thing : For Faith and Prayer do Wonders , opening the inward Virtue and Centre of every mean and simple Medicine or thing , even Clay and Spittle with it , shall cure the Blind ; this all Physicians ought to be inwardly sensible of , and not put so much trust in their Authors ; for many of them have been very vain and extravagant in their Writings , telling us that such and such Herbs and other things were indued with such wonderful Virtues , and would cure such Diseases , when in truth there were no such things ; and also invented many improper Compositions , even any thing they fancied , and most of their Sayings are meer Stories , and as contrary to Truth , as Light to Darkness . Now on such a tottering Foundation , what Structure of safety can be expected to be built ? Our Modern Physicians are much like our Lawyers , if a man is like to lose part of his Estate , and will vindicate his Cause by Law , 't is twenty to one but he spends the other partto secure that , and after abundance of charge and trouble , loseth the whole : Just so if a man through Disorder and Intemperance hath in part destroyed his Health , he may be sure to destroy the other part also , if he keep close , and follow the Physicians Prescriptions , and take good store of their adulterated Medicines . We must also note , that every Patient ought to turn the Eyes of his Mind inward , and wait at the Altar of the Lord for an answer , and not to do or take any Medicines without some Assurance or Faith in the Lord of his Blessing ; nor ought any to think himself too mean or simple , because he is unlearned ; for do but read the Scriptures , and you may be satisfied , that the Lord in all Ages has plentifully given his Gifts and Graces both Divine and Natural , to the Simple and Unlearned : And as to the Learning of this World , did not our Lord Christ himself give his Father , the Author of all Beings , thanks , That he had hid the Mysteries of Salvation ( both of Soul and Body ) from the Wise and Letter-learned of this World , and revealed them unto Babes ; poor , mean and unlearned People ; Peter the Fisher-man ; Paul the Tent-maker , &c. For indeed the Rich and Learned have shut and double-bar'd the Windows of their Souls against the simple Light of Truth ; they have cloathed themselves with Vanity and Self-hood , being contented with Tradition and a Worldly puffing-up Knowledge , which serves them to swagger with , but not to do any good with , either to themselves or others ; so that there is no room for the operation of the friendly Love and Light of God ; they are so full of swelling proud Spirits , and noise and boasting : Hence it comes to pass that these Admirers of Tradition and Pocket-Learning , and the ways of the Multitude , are always apt to despise the Simplicity of the Divine Power , and Voice of Wisdom , not only in themselves , but all others ; and therefore the Lord chuseth to unfold his holy and natural Mysteries unto the Poor and Needy , and such who are not wise in their own Eyes , and whose Eye-lids are not lifted up : For nothing obstructs the Work of the Lord , and the Revelations of his Holy Spirit in men , more than Inward-Riches , Self-conceitedness , and the Babylonical-Learning of the Schools of this World , which like a too Luxuriant and not well Cultivated Soil , produce such abundance of Rank-weeds , as overtop and choak the good Seed , that it cannot attain to any maturity in the Government of a mans Life ; the same is to be understood of all outward Fulness and Intemperances : Therefore let none think themselves unworthy because they have not the Learning of Babel , or because they are simple ; for such as are unlearned and empty , if they come to the Lord in Humility and Faith , he will abundantly teach them , and plentifully fill them with all good things . The most natural and proper way of making of Cordials with any kind of Herbs , Seeds , Flowers , Spices and Drugs , either simple or compound . Take any sort of Herbs , Seeds , Flowers , Spices or Drugs , either simple or compound ( but the first is to be preferred before the latter ) the Drugs and Seeds are to be bruised or cut , what Quantity you think convenient , infuse them in Ale , Beer , Cyder , Wine or Spirit of Wine ; but remember that they do not continue above one hour in your Liquor ; but if the Quantity of Seeds , Herbs , Drugs or Flowers , be great , and but little Liquor , then half an hour will be a sufficient time for you to continue your Infusion ; the same is to be understood if your Herbs or ingredients be of a strong bitter Quality , as Wormwood , Featherfew , Tansie , and the like , your Vessel ought to be close stopt all the time of your Infusion , then strain out your Liquor , putting it into Bottles , and when 't is setled , sweeten it to what degree you think fit , with Refined-Sugar , which is to be preferred before any kind of Syrups ; for they are broken flat Bodies , like any sort of Food that is prepared twice , and therefore when mixed with any kind of Liquor or Drink , they give it a sickish fainty Taste , being dull , heavy and unpleasing to the Stomach . Which of you , that prefer the use of Syrups so much , if you were to have your Drink sweetned when you are in health , would chuse Syrups to do it with ? I believe scarce one man of an hundred , but rather White-Sugar , with which , when you have sweetened your Infusion or Liquor , prepared as aforesaid , you have a Cordial far more friendly to Nature , and more impregnated with the real and natural Virtues of the Herbs , Seeds , Drugs , &c. which you have made choice of to use , than any that is or can be drawn by Distillation , for the Reasons beforementioned . But if you let your Ingredients lie soaking two , three , four , five , Days , or a Week , more or less , as is usual for most people to do , then the pure Volatile balsamick Virtues and Tinctures will become either suffocated or evaporated ; for all sorts of Menstrums or Liquors do first extract or receive the pure subtle spirituous Qualities , especially of all such Herbs , Seeds , Grains or Flowers , as have already passed through any kind of Digestion or Fermentation , as all dry Herbs have , that are prepared according to our Rules ; and also all green Herbs that are Spicy and Aromatick do the same ; therefore if continued too long in such Liquors , the pure Virtues , and sweet spirituous parts become suffocated by degrees , and then presently appears the strong , gross , bitter , sower and astringent Qualities , which poysonous Properties do prey upon and devour the sweet Body and pure Spirits ; for which cause all such Infusions or Cordials have a strong fulsome smell and taste , and equally unpleasant to the Nose , the Pallate and the Stomach . Many Examples I could instance to demonstrate this , but I shall only name one , which is very plain , familiar and material , viz. in Brewing Alc and Beer ; First , you make your Liquor boiling hot , then put the Mault to it and stir it , letting it stand together one hour or thereabouts , and then you let that Liquor run off , and so have a brave friendly Sweet Wort. But should you have done as most Physicians , Apothecaries , and others do , viz. have let your Mault and Liquor stood infusing five or six Hours , a Day , a Week , or the like , I appeal to your selves , if your Wort would not have turned sower , sharp , keen , and of no use or virtue , except for Stilling ; whereby 't is evident , that all Infusions that are continued beyond their proper time , do lose all their good Virtues , more especially if they be such things as have already passed through any kind of Fermentation or Digestion , the gross Bodies of all such things being in a Degree opened , whereby the Balsamick Virtues become , as it were , volatile , which before lay hid or captivated in the Body of Phlegm , as is most manifest in all Grass or Herbage . Take an handful of Grass and smell to it , does it not send forth a gross , fulsome earthy smell and scent ; but if you expose the same Grass two or three Days to the Sun and open Air , which will exhale and destroy the fulsome phlegmy parts , and more earthy substance , opening the Body , and then the Spirituous parts become so volatile , that it will perfume the whole Field . And if this Preparation be not discontinued , the same Sun and Elements will exhale and destroy the good Virtues also ; and for this cause , I told you , that dryed Herbs , Seeds and Grains , are to be preferred before Green , except some Spicy Herbs , whose pure Virtues stand a degree more external than others , and such are best to be used Green : But others , when infused green , impart their gross phlegmy Substance to the Liquor . Dryed Herbs , Seeds , Grains , and the like , when committed to any proper Liquor , do more freely give forth their good Virtues , than the Green ; for the Spirituous Qualities , and sweet Body is more ready to infuse it self , than other the astringent , bitter or sower Qualities ; but they follow close at the heels of the good Virtues , and if the Infusion or Preparation be not rightly timed , then these fierce original strong Qualities will suffocate the Supple spirits , and in a moment the sweet Body turns sower , eager and astringent , and the use of all such things proves very destructive to the Health of the Body , and are very unpleasant to the Pallate and Stofor as there is a most pleasant sweet friendly Power and Virtue in all Herbs , Seeds and Grains ; so on the contrary , there is a strong gross poysonous fulsom Quality , there being nothing so good but it hath an evil in it , nor any thing so evil , but there is an essential good in it ; therefore there is required Wisdom and Understanding in all Preparations , whether for Food or Physick . The Proper Natural way of making Physical Decoctions , Posset-Drink , &c. with Herbs and Seeds , so as they may not lose their Virtues . The most essential way to make Decoctions of either Herbs or Seeds , is after this manner ; First , Take what Quantity of good River-water you shall think fit , making it boyling hot , or you may boyl it a little , ( but the former is best , viz. to make it as hot as good House-wives and Brewers make their Liquor , into which they put their Mault ; for the much boyling of Water does not only evaporate the spirituous Qualities thereof , but it fixeth it so , that it hath not that power to draw or extract the Virtue and good Properties of such Ingredients as shall be added ; for which cause few Brewers will suffer their Liquor to boyl , or their Mault to be put in too hot ) when your Water is thus hot , then take it off the Fire , and put what Herbs , Seeds , or other Ingredients you please , and let them lie in it about an hour , and then strain your Liquor from the Herbs , &c. and let it stand until it be throughly cold ; then add to it either Ale , Beer , White or Rhenish-wine , or any other Wine you shall think most convenient for your particular use , so as to make it either strong or weak , as you please , and then sweeten it with good Sugar ; but if you would sweeten it with Spanish Fruits , then you are to add the Fruit bruised at the same time as you put the Herbs into the Liquor , and let them infuse together , and it will do very well ; and when it is strained and cold , add your Wine , as aforesaid , and put it into Bottles for your use , and it will keep 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , or 8 weeks or more , as you make it in strength , and drink very pleasant and delightful , being endued with all the good Virtues of the Ingredients . Physical Decoctions made after this manner , will be as welcome to the Pallates and Stomachs of the Sick , as good Wine , Beer or Ale ; for there will be no sick fainty gross strong taste nor smell in them , as there always is in those made after the common way ; for all sorts of Beer ; Ale and Wines , have already passed through Fermentation and Digestions , which have opened the gross Body of Phlegm , whereby the spirituous parts are set at liberty , or become Volatile and External ; so that such Liquors or fermented Drinks will not admit of any other or further Preparation , especially by Fire ; for so soon as they approach it , the said Volatile Spirits become either evaporated or suffocated , and then presently the sweet Balsamick Body dieth , and turneth of an evil , sower , heavy taste and smell , and of a dead heavy Nature and Operation , having in it neither true Virtue nor Power ; therefore the Learned have no reason to oppose me in this Particular , for let us both ▪ appeal to Experience ; Take you the best Beer , Ale or Wine , and warm or boyl it , and let it stand till 't is cold , and then tell me what 't is good for ? Verily for as much as Salt is , when it hath lost its Savour . Nay , will not the very standing of such fermental Liquors open to the Air , cause the spirituous parts to evaporate , and the sweet Body to die , and become sower and eager ? It is therefore no Paradox , but a Natural Truth , that the boyling of Herbs , Seeds , &c. in Beer , Ale or Wine , does totally destroy both their Natural and Physical Vertues , and such Decoctions are a meer loathing to Nature , a Death instead of Life . In making of Posset-drink , you are to observe , when your Milk boyls , to turn it with Ale , Beer or Wine , then strain it and set it again upon the Fire , and make it boyling hot , but let it not boyl ; then take it off , and add what Herbs , Seeds or Flowers you please ; ( but if Seeds , they must be bruised ) and let them infuse half a quarter of an hour , or thereabouts , and then strain it , and your Posset-drink will taste and smell , and retain the pure essential Virtues , and lively Tinctures , which the Herbs , Seeds or other Ingredients were endued with , and be an hundred times more pleasant to the Pallate , and agreeable to the Stomach , and also much more beneficial against the Disease such Ingredients are appropriated unto , than those commonly made , wherein the Ingredients are boyled . Try and then judge . It is to be noted , That all sorts of Cordials , that are compounded with various sorts of Distilled-waters and Syrups , or with Strong-Water , as that they call Epidemick-water , are an abomination to Nature , even in perfect Health , when the Pallate and Stomach are strong , sharp and powerful ; and what are they then to weak sick People , and Languishing Natures ? For first , the Natural Physical Vertues are destroyed by ill management , and unnatural Preparation of each Ingredient before they are mixt : And secondly , the jumbling together such various things , most of which are of contrary and disagreeing Natures , is sufficient to destroy the good Virtues of the best of things ; and therefore 't is certain such Medicines and Cordials have not power to help or cure the least of Distempers ; not but many thousands after taking great quantities of their Slops may recover , and then many people slander the Doctor with a Cure , and ascribe to his Medicines mighty Virtues , whereof indeed neither the one nor the other was ever guilty : They have just cause rather to acknowledge the divine hand of God , and his Hand-maid Nature , and thereunto attribute the Recovery of their Health , and not to those sick fainty Medicaments , which generally do abundance more hurt than good . Likewise their Epidemick-water is in its own Nature of a fierce hot Quality and Operation ; and tho it be made of the best of Wine , viz. Sack , yet the Limbeck does totally destroy its pure volatile spirits , and balsamick virtues , and also the Opening Cleansing Quality of all the Herbs or Drugs that are distilled with such Liquors or Wine , so that there does remain or run off only a strong sulpherous brandish Spirit , that has no other Operation than Common-Brandy or Spirit of Wine : 'T is true , they do allay this hot fiery Nature and Quality , by adding to it Sugar , or the like , which renders it more tolerable to the Pallate and Stomach ; but the Operation is the very same as Brandy sweetned , or any other Spirits . If a strong healthy person should be confined to the Cordials , Iulips , daubing Electuaries , and great number of sick Potions , boyled Drinks , and variety of sweet Slops ( and nothing more hurts and obstructs the Stomach than sweet things ) to the close Rooms , lusty Fires , drawn Curtains , and other torturing Circumstances , wherewith Doctors and Nurses torment those whose Nature is already wounded and languishing , it would no doubt in a very short time destroy the Health of the strongest of men . Therefore I would have every Intelligible Person consider the same , and the Reasons of things , and not be led away by Ignorant Sots , who are meer Pretenders , and not Physicians ; for Physicians ought , 1st . to be born with a Natural Genius , and suitable Gifts , rendring them capable of understanding natural things . 2ly , They ought to apply themselves to the Knowledge of God , Nature and Themselves . 3ly . They ought to apply themselves to the Oracle of God in themselves , to be taught by the Voice of Wisdom , which crys in the Gates of every mans City : For he that has not Eyes of his own , and Understanding of his own , tho he be the greatest of Scholars in outward Learning , can never distinguish between Good and Evil , but is always uncertain , and all his Administrations as vain and presumptuous , as a blind mans Judgment is of Colours . 4ly . They ought to have the fear of the Lord , ( which is the beginning of wisdom ) always before their Eyes , and not make Money and sordid Interest the chief end of their Practice , as most do : For Physicians of all sorts of People , should be the most Knowing , the most Iust , the most Charitable , and the most Temperate . But whatever Titles men may have , or how many Books soever they may have tumbled over , if they abandon the study of Virtue and Piety , and aim at mercenary Lucre , and vain Glory , instead of doing Good to men , and bringing Glory to God ; 't is vain to expect any benefit from such Peoples hands ; They are all ( as the Scripture saith in another case ) Physicians of no value ; nay , they have not that Natural Distinguishing and Sense as is common to many Beasts ; for the man that is not directed by the Spirit of the Lord , is an hundred fold more ignorant of the Operations of Nature , than a Beast that lives under the Laws of Nature ; and therefore we see many Dumb Creatures have more Sense to discern what is for their Preservation than Men , and Men have learned the Virtues of many Physical Herbs from them ; as the Tortoise , when hunted by the Adder , is said to fortifie himself by eating of Originum ; and the same is said of the Stork when she has eaten Snakes , she seeks for the same Herb Originum , and finds a Remedy ; it is also related , that when the Weezle goes to fight with any poysonous Creature , it first eats Rue , whence men came to know that Originum and Rue are good Antidotes against Poyson ; so in some other Animals there is an in-bred skill and Medicinal Art , as when the Toad is wounded , 't is said , she will go to Sage or Rue , and rub the Wound , and so escapes the Danger : We are told that Swallows first taught us that Celendine is Medicinal for the Eyes , being the same wherewith they cure the Eyes of their Young Ones : The Pye when sick , puts a Bay-leaf into her Nest , and recovers : So Cranes , Daws , Partridges , Black-birds and Crows , purge their sick Stomachs with the same : It is reported , If a Lion be sick , he is recovered by eating of an Ape : The Lapwing being surfeited , cures her self with Southernwood ; the wounded Hart runs to his restorative Ditany : Swine , when stung by Snakes , eat the Snakes and are well ; and Dogs , when wounded , cure themselves by continual licking of the Wound : also they purge their nauseous Stomachs by eating of Grass , as Cats do theirs by eating the Herb Nipp . Philebotomy , or Letting of Blood , Physitians , ( as is written ) learned this practice first of a Beast call'd Hyppopotamus , living in the River Nilus , which being of a ravenous Nature , and therefore often overcharged with much eating , is wont to seek in the Banks for some sharp stub of a Reed , upon which pricking his Leg , he thereby easeth his full Body , stopping the bleeding afterward with Mud. So that some men who are curious in Observation , have learned many Medicinal Virtues of Herbs from Brutes , which they are led unto by a natural inclination , which we call Instinct , having always obeyed the Law of God in Nature , and lived under the simple Influence and Operations thereof , and do therefore retain those natural Faculties and Self-preservations which the Lord endued them with in the Creation : But Man that was made but a little lower than the Angels , and superior to all the Creatures of this sublunary World , having transgressed both the Divine and Natural Law of God , has thereby corrupted the Earth and all the Elements , and made all its Inhabitants to mourn and groan , by reason of his Violence and Oppression , by which he hath depraved himself both of the Divine and Natural Understanding , and has not the common Sense of distinguishing what is for their own preservation , so well as many Brutes have , which is much to be lamented , that man should so prodigiously degrade , dishonour and incaptivate himself . There is another thing worthy to be considered by all men , but more especially by those that apply themselves to Physick that the most celebrated Authors of that Art , and such as have written of the Nature , Virtues and Uses of Herbs , Drugs , Fruits , Seeds and Grains , and whose Rules and Prescriptions our Modern Doctors make the foundation of their Skill , and the limits of their Practice , were born and bred , and lived in places far remote from us in other parts of the World , and in different Climates , whose Productions vary as much in Magnitude , Forms and Qualities , as one Colour does from another : and as the Elevation of the Pole being either more Southern or Northern , alters the Language or Speech , and the Nature , Shape , Complexion , Inclinations and Dispositions of the People ; and the more remote each Countrey is , the greater is the Variation of their Constitutions and Manners ; and as all their Beasts , Birds and Fish , do differ in Name , Nature , Shape and Form , the very same is to be understood of their Herbs , Drugs , Flowers , Seeds , Fruits and Grains , they all differ both in their Virtues and Vices from ours ; and tho some of theirs may be , and are translated , and through a great deal or Care and Industry will grow , yet still they are not so Natural , nor are their Virtues so Genuine , as those that originally spring up from that proper matter , or Salnitral Quality , which our own Mother Earth affords under our own Elevation , and that peculiar operation of the Coelestials under which we breathe ; neither are such Exotick Herbs or Plants endued with so proper or genuine Medicinal Virtue as they have in their natural Climate . Now let us consider where and when most of the Great Masters of Physick who are the Beams and Eyes of our Doctors , and the Foundations of our Colleges ( ●lived . Hypocrates was a Grecian , of the Isle of Chios in the Mediterranian , above two Thousand Years ago . Galen , born at Pergamus in Asia , about the Year of our Lord 140. and being Physician to an Emperor , rich and high in favour at Court , he scrap'd together all the Books of Physick that he could hear of , and took the Receipts , and most material parts thereof , and set them forth as his own Works , concealing the Original Authors , and destroying their Works , which was easy for him to do so long before Printing came up , when Copies were so very few and scarce ; and by this fraud and base ambitious Trick , he became celebrated as the only Father of the Art of Healing ; and to this Day remains the Idol of the Methodists ( as they call themselves ) that is , the Sons of Tradition and Implicit Faith. These two Authors wrote in Greek , not so much to puzzle their Readers , or keep up their Learning from People , as our Modern Men write all their Bills in Latin , ( meerly that the Absurdity of their Prescriptions may not appear ) but because Greek was their natural Mother Tongue . Averroes and Avicenna were Arabians , and lived about the Year of our Lord 1160. Dioscorides was of Anoharba , a Town in Cilicia , and lived before Christ's Incarnation ; so that he and the two first were Heathens , and other two were Mahometans , and great Blasphemers of the Sacred Writings of our Blessed Saviour Christ ; These are the great Masters that Christians learn the sublime Art of healing from . Pray consider , is it likely the Holy God would communicate the Mysteries of Nature to such Idolaters ? Besides , does not Common-sense tell every man , that the Herbs , Plants , Grains , Fruits , &c. that grew in Greece , Asia or Arabia , a thousand or two thousand years ago , may be vastly different in their Natures , Properties and Effects , from those that grow with us at this Day ? Nay , 't is impossible it should be otherwise , if we consider the difference of Climates , the alterations of the Coelestial Bodies , the various Mixtures , Transplantings , Improvings , &c. of Plants , Herbs and Flowens , the different Modes of Manuring and Cultivating Ground , the change of Peoples Constitutions , the contrariety of our Northern Bodies , to those Constitutions of Asia and Greece , &c. And yet whatever these Old Doting Gentlemen have been pleased to say of any Herb , Plant or Grain , as that it is hot and dry , cold and moist , in the first , second and third Degree , that it opens , binds , purges , provokes Urine , cures such or such a Disease by an occult Quality , that is to say , ( they know not how , by a Trick it has got ) or whatever else they please to stuff their Books withal , either out of Ignorance , Misinformation , or meer vain Glory to amuse their Readers ; all this , I say , must be swallowed without chewing , and he that can remember their Tattle , counts himself a most Learned Physician . Hypocrates was a Physician in his own Country , and in a degree a knower of the Virtues and Vices of such Herbs , Drugs , &c. as his own Climate , and the Coelestials in that Elevation brought forth , but he did not know any thing of our Northern cold Countries , nor of our Beasts , Herbs , Fruits and Drugs . The very same is to be understood of Galen ( the extravagant Builder , and Luxurious Courtier ) and of all these eminent Authors which our formal Physicians do so much dote on , they were great strangers to our Climate , and to all the Productions and Vegetations thereof . Besides , the People in those Times and those Countries , did not onely differ from us as to their Natures and Complexions , but also in all or most of their Customs of Living , as in their Meats , Drinks , and the Preparations thereof : They did then , and most of them do to this Day , drink Water , and many of them go almost naked ; the use of Soft-beds , and warm close Houses was hardly known to them except to some few : Their Princes and Great Men did live more Sober and Temperate than the meanest amongst us : They were contented with such simple Meats and Drinks as their own Climate did afford , which were as easily procured as cooked ( as it were ) by Natures own Hand : They were not acquainted with that variety of rich compounded Foods and Cordial Drinks , and consequently were not subject to so great a Number of compounded or complicated Diseases as we are . Therefore simple Herbs , Seeds and the like , had greater power to cure such Diseases as were contracted from such Meats and Drinks : Nor did they accustom themselves to the eating of such great Quantities of various sorts of Flesh , both clean and unclean , without distinction , as we in the Northern Countries do ; nor were their Minds and Spirits so continually perplexed about profits or losses , or how to procure those Varieties and Rich Dainties , the enjoyment whereof is of more dangerous Consequence than the hazard and trouble of getting them . For these Reasons every simple Herb and Medicines made thereof , has much more power to cure and help such Diseases as the People of those Countreys were subject unto : And if Hyppocrates , Galen , or the wisest of them all did live in this Day , wherein all kinds of Excess and Riot do reign , with the innumerable Inventions of new Dishes , and unnatural Compositions of Food and Drinks , they would be forced to take new Measures , and alter their Ancient Rules , which were good and proper in their Time , and to their own Natives , but are adopted for us or our Times ; and therefore it is the greatest of Errors for us to appropriate such Virtues and Cures to those Herbs as the Ancients did , who wrote of the Virtue and Use of such Herbs as grew in their own Climate , and appropriated them to the Diseases that were generated in the same place , and under the same Elevation and Coelestial Influences . And although some will object , and say , That many of the same Herbs are transplanted into our Countrey . Tho the same should be true , yet all men know , and daily Experience teacheth , that in a few Years the Climate , Earth and Coelestial Influences will alter and change such Herbs or Fruits into the Nature of that Countrey where they grow ; as the Oranges of China , which of late were planted in Spain , they have there in few Years lost that Finess and Delicacy of Taste , and are become more Tart and Sharp , like the Original Oranges of that Countrey ; therefore they are forced to renew the Plants which are brought from their Natural Soil once in a few Years , tho the difference between Spain and those Climates they naturally grow in , is not so great by many Degrees , as our more Northern Countries are to Asia and Africk . Spain and Portugal are comparatively but a little distance from us , and yet you see what a vast difference there is between our Fruits and Herbs , and theirs , being quite of another Nature and Operation , 'T is true , they will grow here , but their Fruits will not come to any Maturity . Now if the Variation be so great in Countreys so near us , it must needs follow , that those Herbs , Seeds , Grains and Drugs which grow in Greece , Arabia , AEpypt , Persia , and the like remote places , must be still more different and contrary . Most of those Forreign Southern Climates naturally produce rich sweet Wines , Sugars , and delicate Fruits , as Pine-Apples , sweet Oranges and Lemons , Plantans , Coco-Nuts , Sower-Sops , &c. which are all contrary in Nature , Form and Qualities to our Fruits , and so are their Herbs , Seeds , Roots , &c. And 't is absurd to think , that the Arabians , Grecians , AEgyptians , &c. did ever make it their business to study the Virtues and Use of our Herbs , Roots , Fruits , Seeds , Beasts or Grains , whose Countrey and Productions they were altogether Strangers unto , as well as to our Constitutions , Complexions , and the manner of our Living , Meats , Drinks , Imployments , Intemperances , and the like . It is also to be noted , that the Coelestial Influences and Operations of the Stars and Elements , are not the same in one Countrey as they are in another , but according to the Elevation of the Pole , and the Neighbourhood or remoteness of that most Glorious Body the Sun ; Hence it is that in the Southern , Eastern and Western Regions of this inhabitable Globe , there are great numbers of Birds and Beasts that are not known to us , and of different Forms , Colours , Tones , Natures and Inclinations from ours ; the same is to be understood in all their Fruits , Vegetatives and Minerals . The Salnitral and Seminary Virtues of the Earth , varying also in the predominant Qualities from ours , there being a concurrence in all Countries and Climates between the Influences and Operations of the heavenly Bodies , and the earthy ; whence it comes to pass , that the people of the South are black , and the Northern white ; their Countrey generates Gold , and ours Lead , Tin and Iron ; the East-Indies yielding precious Stones , which is a Degree higher than Gold , and the West-Indies Silver , which proceeds from the powerful Influences of the Sun and Venus , but especially of the Sun , its warming Beams continuing there all the year without much variation ; and therefore their Nights and Days are more equal than in the North , where the cold harsh Properties of Saturn and Mars do bear sway : Therefore the Herbs , Drugs and Fruits that are brought forth in those remoter Regions , are not Homogenial to our Bodies , as Experience might teach us , by the great numbers of new Diseases that have of late been cantracted by the superfluous Mixtures of the East and West-Indian Ingredients with our common Food , as Spices , Fruits , Sugars , as also Tobacco , &c. which have strangely wasted the Healths of many : For the All-wise Creator of all Beings , has endued both the Heavenly and Earthly bodies with an inward Virtue , Power and Nature in every Climate and Country , so as all places do plentifully bring forth all manner of Herbs , Fruits Seeds , Drugs and Grains suitable and proper for the Sustenance of both Men and Beasts of that place , and also for Medicine , there being a Sympathetical agreement in the Radixes between the Animals of each Country , and the Vegetations thereof , both being brought forth under the same Influence . Do not our own Herbs , Fruits , and Grains , growing in our own Country , maintain the numerous Troops of brave Animals amongst us , viz. Cows , Sheep , Horses , and many others in plentiful healthy state , without the help of Foreign Vegetatives ? And are there not a great number of Medicinables likewise of our own growth , proper for the cure of those Diseases that are generated in our Elevation ? and had it not been the great happiness of England if men had known no more of Outlandish-wines , Spices , Sugars , &c. either for Food or Physick , than our Beasts do , which would have rendred us more healthy , and sounder both in Body and mind ? For in the Beginning , the Divine Word of the Lord that ( as the Scriptures testifie ) made all things , moved it self in all Places and Climates , and formed , framed and figured all Bodies , according to the Degrees of the Innate instant Qualities of each Place ; and as the property of the Seven-fold Nature and Constellation did there predominate , and as the Salnitral Properties and Spirits were internally strong or weak , good or evil , such was the Nature , Inclinations , Forms and Shapes of the Creatures in each Climate ; for every Creature was clothed with a Body according to the Nature and Degrees of the Spirit , which is the Life of all things , having an innate Power to attract proper matter for a Body of a proportionable Nature . And as the Internal Powers and Qualities are infinitely various , so are the External forms , every thing both in the Animal , Mineral and Vegetative Kingdoms , varying in Shape , Virtue and Vice. And where the Property of the Wrath did predominate in the Salnitral Quality in any Country , there did arise , and were made fierce wrathful wild Beasts of Prey , as Bears , Lyons , Tygers , &c. On the contrary , where the sweet Water and friendly Nature had Dominion , there were generated Tame , Mild Creatures , as Sheep , Cows , &c. the same is to be understood in the Vegetative and Mineral Kingdoms , and the outward Body or Signature does in all particulars manifest and shew the inward Nature of each thing to the enlightned understanding , and sagacious Naturalist , whom God and Nature have made capable of such sublime Learning . It is very Improbable ( if I had said Impossible , I had not much over-shot the Truth ) that one Herb should have specifick virtue and power to cure so many various Diseases and Defects of Nature , as the Ancients do appropriate , except such an Herb , Fruit , Seed or the like , be endued with , and have the Universal Tinctures compleat , which hath never been known ; nor is it possible that any gross Herb should have that Divine Efficacy to cure so many Different Distempers , and in various Complexions , except there be a Living Faith in the Patients , and also in the Physician , which then can make Water Wine , and Clay and Spittle an Eye-Salve , and as Christ saith , remove Mountains : as also witness the Woman that had the Bloody Issue , she believed in her heart , That if she could but touch the Hem of Christ's Garment , she should be whole ; which enabled her to press through the Throng and Multitude to touch his Garment ; where 't is to be noted , that this Woman did first press in her self by Faith through the Wrath of God , and Multitude of : Evil Properties and Inclinations , into the Divine Power and Virtue of the Son of God , which by a sympathetical Attraction , and Divine Power awakened the Balsamick Virtue , and friendly Nature first in her self , and afterwards in our Lord ; for then he enquired , Who had touched him ; At which his Disciples marvelled , because of the Multitude that pressed him ; but Christ was sensible of the Inward Kindlings , and of the secret Attractions and Influences , the Wowan's Faith had in a powerful Degree awakened , and as it were drawn forth and united or joyned it self with the friendly Divine Principle of the Light and Love of God in Iesus Christ , which healing Virtues her earnest Faith did draw forth ; and so miraculously her Cure was immediately effected ; for Christ saith , Thy FAITH hath made thee whole . The truth is , there is but One Way for the right Cure of all Diseases , both Corporeal and Incorporeal , whether they proceed from the Body or the Mind , which is by the Virtue and Power of the Good Quality and friendly Nature which the Creator hath endued every Herb and other thing with ; for as the Sickness of the Soul or Mind is nothing else but the Deprivation of the Divine Vision , viz. man's being departed from the Government and Council of the good Light and Love of God , which cannot be remedied , nor the Soul restored unto its first state of Health , Strength and Unity with God , but only by Faith , and elevating the Soul to the Divine Principles , which will reinforce all the good Powers and Virtues of God's Love , and not only render a man sound and healthy , but the same Grace-being obeyed , will maintain the Soul and Spirit in serenity ; so the very same is to be understood of all kind of Sicknesses of the Body , and Elements of the Outward Nature , Diseases being nothing else but an unequal Motion , or Contrarieties of the Properties and Qualities of Nature , which comes to pass through various Intemperances , and concurring Influences of the Elements and Coelestial Bodies , which wound the pure Volatile Spirit , and then presently the sweet Oyl and Balsamick Virtues , or Humour Radicalis , turns sour , and loseth its friendly Nature and Operation , and the harsh astringent fierce original Poysons do rouse themselves , raging and domineering , and put Nature into an agonious Condition , which can no way be allayed or moderated , but either by the Secret and Divine hand of God , which strengthens and raiseth up the half Dead or fading Oyl and wounded Spirit ; or by a Balsamick Medicine , which may by simile incorporate it self with the wounded Spirits , and Radical Moistures , and so reinforce and restore them to their former strength and power , and then immediately the raging Fury of the bitter astringent and sour Properties becomes moderated , not annihilated , and then the strife and contention of Nature ceaseth , and the Cure is effected . Therefore every Physician should understand how to prepare such a Medicine as can by its innate power and virtue thus incorporate it self , and operate in raising up the languishing powers of Nature , or else he is not fit to be called a Doctor . The Old Physick-Mongers tell us , that Mallows and Marsh-Mallows ( which differ but very little in their Qualities ) being variously applyed , will cure near Fifty Diseases or Defects of Nature , which are generated , and do proceed from as various Causes , and as Different Matters , Seeds and Radixes ; but how unlikely , improbable , nay , impossible it is , that one Herb should effect so many Disagreeing Cures , let Reason and Experience judge : Infinite almost is the variety of Constitutions , whence the same Intemperances that will load one man with fat and phlegmy gross moist Humours , occasioning various Dropsical Diseases , will in another produce Leanness and Consumption : Much drinking of Wine and Srong Liquors puffs up some Bodies , and wears away others . And the same is to be understood of all things in the Vegitable , Animal and Mineral Kingdoms ; therefore there is an absolute necessity to study to know the Properties and Qualities of a man 's own individual and specifick Nature and Complexion , and not rely upon , and trust to the adulterated Medicines , ahd phantastick Directions of ignorant Physicians , there being nothing that brings so many both Natural and Divine Benefits unto a man , as the true knowledge of himself , and is yet the least minded of any thing in this World. What pains and slavery do Youth undergo to learn a few strange Words , be able to tell the Name of a thing in Latine and Greek , or three or four Languages , and when all 's done , they know not one Tittle more of the Essence , Nature or Use of the Thing , than if they had called it ▪ in plain English , as their Granum does . What Drudgery do they submit unto to learn some ordinary Mechanick Trade ( which yet in general are more laudable by half , because more useful than many of those Crafts which idle men call Sciences ) ? others run all sorts of hazards ; the Scorchings of the Tropicks , or the Ice of the Northern Pole cannot affright them ; they 'l venture into New Worlds , and become acquainted with Stars that never peep'd into our Hemisphere , only to get a little useless , uncertain , perishing , and many times harmful and destructive Riches . They 'l be acquainted at Iava and Iapan , the Streights of Gibaltore , and the Bay of Mexico ; but all the while are meer Strangers at home , to understand their own Constitution , to know what is good and profitable for the Conservation of their Being , how to preserve their Body in Health , and their Mind in Serenity ; to make their Lives truely comfortable , and their Deaths happy : These are things that scarce any man studies for , or labours after . Greedy we are to amass White and Yellow Dirt , and fill our Houses with that Lumber , which sillily we call Goods , but utterly neglect the true Knowledge of God , and Nature in a Man's self , which does furnish one with all kind of profitable and permanent Riches , Pleasures and Delights , both of Time and Eternity ; and which yet are so easie to be acquired , as we need not serve an hard Apprenticeship , or hazard our Health or Life by Sea or Land to obtain it , But the Minds of people are set wholly upon outward Trumpety , admire nothing but Shews , and Titles and Vanity , Money and Babylonish Learning are their Idols . If a Fantastical Blade in a Velvet Iacket tells the people that one Herb will cure a hundred various Diseases in as many particular people of contrary Complexions and Natures , ( though he himself with that Herb or any other , cannot cure one of them ) ; or if he bids them jumble an hundred things together , most of them being of contrary Qualities , and tells them 't is an excellent Medicine , though he knows not the true Nature of the several Parcels , much less the Qualities of the Whole ) yet all is swallowed as an Oracle , his Authority is not to be disputed , he was a great Man , could speak several Languages , and was such a King's Doctor , and has writ abundance of Books , and keeps his Coach , and has got a bushel of Money by his Practice ; Will you question such a man's Iudgment ? Whereas , if we may speak a bold Truth , 't is certain there have been in all Ages a sort of a Letter-Learned Curers of both the Souls and Bodies of men , which have proved the Pests , the Vermine , and Evil Savage wrathful Beasts of the Earth , that have destroy'd all the good Fruits of God in this World ; and as soon as such good Fruits begins to bud in mankind , are ready with the Beetle of Aristotle , or Aquinas ( an Old Aphorism , or a New Canon ) to beat it down under their feet , and extinguish it . These are the AEgyptian Necromancers that bewitch poor people to admire and run after them ; and like our common Vagabond Gypsies , the intent and design of all their Canting and their Skill , is to have their hands crossed with a piece of Silver or Gold , and to juggle your Money out of your Pockets . For to gain the greater Veneration and Esteem , they have invented abundance of hard Words , or speak in unknown Tongues , making the people believe thereby , that they know the more of God and Nature : Whereas they are only Changers of Words , and know nothing of the Inward Virtue and Life of things , whether Divine or Natural . If a man could name any particular Herb or Disease in an hundred several Languages , what would this better him as to the Inward Virtue of that Herb , or the Nature and Cure of that Disease ? All Languages are but one in the Root , und therefore to speak with several Tongues , has never been known to make a man wise , where a good natural Genius is wanting . But unto the Study and Knowledge of God , and his Divine Principles of Love and Light , I recommend all the Lovers of Wisdom , which is sufficient to teach them all things Divine and Natural , and to heal all their Diseases ; for so saith the Kingly Prophet David , Psal. 107. 20. The Lord sent his word and healed them , and delivered them from destruction . And again , Psal. 30. 17. I cryed unto the Lord , and he healed me . So Gen. 20. 17. Abraham prayed unto the Lord , and be healed Abimelech and his Wife : Also , Moses cryed unto the Lord that he would heal Miriam of her Leprosie , and the Lord commanded , That she should be shut out of the Camp seven days , and then she was received in again whole , Num. 12. 13. And Deut. 32. 39. God speaks thus , See now , I , even I am he , and there is no God with me ; I kill , and I make alive ; I wound , and I heal , neither is there any that can deliver out of my hands . And Matt. 10. 18. Christ gives his Servants power to heal the sick , cleanse the Lepers , and raise the dead . In a word , Multitudes of Examples we have in the Scriptures of Truth , that all the Prophets and Holy men of God , who were guided and directed by his Spirit of Wisdom in all their Troubles , whether they were Diseases of the Body or the Mind , always made their Application unto the Lord , and he healed them , and taught them what means to use , that always proved effectual , though seeming never so mean and simple . Therefore let every one address to this Grand Physician , whose Arm is not shortened , nor his Mercy and Goodness diminished . But if Men will give themselves up to the Spirit of Error , Ignorance and Blindness , and live in all Intemperance , Gluttony , and Superfluity , which brings on them a multitude of Diseases , and then enquire and run after the False Prophets and Necromancers , whose Practice is meerly for Money , Honour , Pride and Estimation , studying how to deceive the people by canting Words , Plush Coats , guilded Coaches great Houses , &c. which do amuse the Rabble , and make them have great Thoughts of them , though most that have tryed their Medicines might know that they are worse than the Diseases they are prescribed against : I , say , If you follow these Courses , 't is no wonder if your Lives become burthensome unto you , and complicated Diseases torment you , and an untimely Death cut you off . For you may take a Cart Load of gross unseparated Herbs and Juices , as our Physicians use , with a Tun of their sick Decoctions , and a whole Apothecaries Shop of their Confused Compositions , and be further off from a Cure than at first . Therefore the safest Course I can direct my fellow-Mortals , is , To fear the Lord , live sober and temperate , both in the Quantity and Quality of Meats , Drinks and Imployments . And if Diseases do at any time invade the Body , by any Accidents , or through the Male-Configurations of the Constellations , or the like , then humbly to apply themselves by Prayer to the Lord , and to the Oracle of God in a man's self ; and then , as the Mother of our Lord said unto the Servants that waited at the Marriage where he wrought his first Miracle , Whatever he bids you do , that do ye ; that is , whatsoever the Divine Light or Holy Spirit of the Lord directs you to , or bids you do , that be you sure , in all particulars to observe . For the Reason , Wit , Skill , and all Knowledge of the outward man ought to be as Waiters , Tenders or Servitors , to execute and obey the Commands of the Spirit of the Lord. Men ought to stand still from reasoning and Imaginations , and wait at the Altar of the Lord , and hear what he will teach ; which Directions man ought to follow , and to act as this blessed Light , and friendly Principle of God does excite him ; for in its power and virtue consists the right Cure of Body and Soul , and in it is safe to move and abide ; Amen . CHAP. XVII . Of BUGS ; and from what Matter and Aliment they do proceed , and how to prevent their Generations . Of the Excellency of clean sweet Beds , and perniciousness of old stinking Feather-Beds . Also , several Receipts how to kill Bugs and Fleas . CLeanness in Houses , especially in Beds , is a great preserver of Health . Now Beds for the most part stand in Corners of Chambers , and being ponderous close Substances , the refreshing Influences of the Air have no power to penetrate or destroy the gross Humidity that all such places contract , where the Air hath not its free egress and regress . In these shady dull places Beds are continued for many years , and hardly see the Sun or Elements . Besides , Beds suck in , and receive all sorts of pernicious Excrements that are breathed forth by the sweating of various sorts of people , which have Leprous and Languishing Diseases , which lie and die on them : The Beds , I say , receive all these several Vapours and Spirits , and the same Beds are often continued for several Generations , without changing the Feathers , until the Ticks be rotten . Besides , we have many Feathers that are imported from several Countries , which are the Drivings of old Beds , the uncleanness whereof is not considered . As to the Nature of Feathers , they are of a strong , hot , sulsome Quality ; for Fowls , of all Creatures are for the most part the hottest , and their Feathers contain the same Nature : Therefore the constant lying on soft Feather-Beds , does not only over-heat the Back and Reins , weakening the Joynts and Nerves ; but they have power also not only to receive , but retain all evil Vapours and Excrements that proceed from , and are breathed forth by various Diseased people . Hence it comes to pass that sundry Distempers are transferred from one to another , by lying upon or in such Beds , which Distempers do secretly steal on a man by degrees , so that he cannot imagine whence the Disorder proceeds , or what the cause thereof should be . But I would not have the Reader mistake me ; all people are not subject to get Diseases this way : There are some whose Constitutions are strong , and their Natural Heat and Spirits are vigorous and lively , by the Power and Virtue whereof they withstand and repel all such evil Vapours and Scents as do proceed from such Beds , when a man is hot and sweats in them , that they have no power to seize the Spirit : But , on the contrary , when such people shall lie on such Beds , whose Natural Heat is weak , their Spirits few , and whose central heat is not able to withstand or repel those Vapours and Scents which such Beds send forth when a man is hot in them ; this last sort of people are subject to receive Injuries , and contract Diseases ; for those evil Vapours do powerfully penetrate the whole Body , and if they are not withstood by the central heat and power of the Spirits , then these evil Vapours do seise the Spirits , and incorporate themselves with their likenesses ; for every particular thing does sensibly and powerfully seek out its likeness , and wheresoever it finds its simile , it hath power to incorporate and become essential . These are the chief Reasons why one man gets Diseases by lying with Diseased Persons , and in unclean Beds , and others not . It is a general custom when men go abroad or travel , to desire clean Sheets , imagining them to be a sufficient bulwark to defend them from the pernicious Fumes and Vapours of old stale Beds ; but it is too short . For it is certain , that most or all Beds do perfectly stink , not only those in Inns and Houses of Entertainment , but others ; not but that every ones Bed does smell indifferent well to himself ; but when he lies in a strange Bed , let a man put his Nose into the Bed when he is thorowly hot , and hardly any common Vault is like it . Now this sort of Uncleanness , which does proceed from old Beds , is not only the greatest , but also the most injurious to the Health and Preservation of Mankind , and the least care is taken to prevent it . Every one that can , will have plentiful Changes both of Linnen and Woollen Garments , for if they have not , experience does shew , that the Excrements and Breathings of the Body will generate Vermin : Also , do not most people take care that their Furnitures are daily brushed and rubbed , and their very Floors washed , as tho they were to eat their Food on them ? But all this while they lie on Beds that have not been changed , or hardly aired in several years . Let an indifferent person judge which is most pleasurable and healthful , to have a clean Floor to tread on , ( which costs many a hard days labour to keep so , and is dirtied in a moments time ) or to have a clean sweet Bed to lie on ? There is no comparison to be made , the difference is so great ; the one being essential either to health or sickness ; the other an indifferent thing . If there was but the tenth part of the care taken to keep Beds clean and sweet , as there is of Clothing and Furniture , then there would be no Matter for the getting of Diseases , nor for the generation of Bugs . I woutd have all Housewives and others , consider the Reasons of these things . Are not Lice , that troublesome Vermin , bred from the breathings of the Body , for want of often change both of Linnen and Woollen ? And will not Fleas breed from the very Dust of Chambers where people lie ? Also any Woollen that hath been used about Beds , although the cold Winter have destroyed them , yet if these Clothes lie in any close place , where the Air hath not its free egress and regress , these very Garments will generate Fleas the Summer following ; but if these Clothes had never been used about Men and Women , they would never have bred Fleas ; for there is no matter of Element in Wool or Cloth for the generation of such Creatures ; but Wool , Cloth , Furs and Hair , are chiefly the Element of Moths , and sometimes of small Worms ; that is , if such are kept in places where the refreshing Influences of the Air have not their free egress ; for all such places do contract great store of Moisture , which when hot Weather comes , causeth Putrefaction , whence all such Vermin do proceed . But if those things be in daily use , and exposed to the open Element , they never breed any Vermin : so that the generation of those things are generally caused by Accidents ; not but that there is matter in the Radixes of such things for the generation of such Vermin . 2. From the pernicious Smells and putrified Vapours that do proceed from old Beds , are generated the Vermin called Bugs , ( of which , neither the Ancients , nor the Modern Writers of this Age , have taken notice ) according to the degrees of Uncleanness , Nature of the Excrements , and the closeness of the Places where Beds stand ; for some Peoples Excrements are not so unclean as others : Also , in all close places , especially in Cities and great Towns , the Spirits and thin Vapours of the Air are suffocated , which makes the same Air sulpherous and humid , whence does proceed Putrefaction . Therefore it is not to be thought a general Rule , That all Old Beds should breed Bugs , as some ( who are ignorant of the Operation of Nature ) will be apt to say , If one Bed do breed them , why not all ? No , it is according to the nature of the uncleanness , and other accidents that do happen : for where , ( as is said before ) the thin pure Air , with the refreshing Influences of the Sun and Elements , have their free egress and regress , all such matter is destroyed , whence such Vermin are produced . The Original of these Creatures called Bugs , is from Putrefaction , occasioned by stinking Scents and Vapours , which do proceed from the Bodies and Nature of Men and Women , and the mixing or incorporating of these Vapours with moist and sulpherous Airs ; for where there is no heat nor humidity , there can begin no Putrefaction . Therefore all that have attributed the generation of this Vermin to Wood , as Bedsteads , and the like , are grosly mistaken in the productions of Nature ; for there is no matter in Wood that can generate such a Vermin , it being productive only or chiefly of two Creatures in England , viz. of Wood-Lice , and a small Worm . These Wood-Lice are never generated but in places where the Sun and Air have not their free influences , so that there is store of humidity contracted ; and when the Sun comes to such Degrees of the Zodiack , this Creature is generated , which is of as different a Nature from Bugs , as Sweet-wood is from a stinking Bed. Also Wood does breed a certain small Worm , but never till the Salts Nature and Power is decayed through length of time : then the Air enters it which does presently cause it to contract a humid Quality , from whence proceeds Putrefaction , whereof when the Sun is powerful , this Worm is bred . But so long as Wood continues sound , and is kept dry , the Air having its free influences on it , I affirm , That no sort of Wood ever breeds any kind of Vermin . 3. There are many also that attribute the generation of this Creature to Hogs-Hair , which being mixed with Lime , and Houses plaistered with it , does occasion ( say they ) the Generation of Bugs . Now it is most certain that there is no possibility in Nature for this Production : for no kind of Hair ever breeds any Living Creature , except it be put into Water or Mud when the Sun is powerful , and then this Creature thus generated , retains its first Species , viz. a Hair , with a live Head , which was its Element whence it proceeded : but if you take it out of the Water , it presently dies : so also it doth when the Sun declines in heat , as most sorts of Vermin that are bred through Heat and Moisture do . But Hair being mixed with Lime , all Matter of generation is thereby totally destroyed : For Lime does chiefly contain a harsh , fiery , keen , sharp , corroding Quality ; it is so sharp , that it does destroy all Life , and is as contrary to it , as Light is to Darkness ; the predominant Qualities in it is the Salts Nature , from which no Living Creature can be produced . Besides , if there were never so much matter in Hair for the generation of such Vermin , Lime would destroy it ; for in Lime there is only a Salnitral fiery Virtue . 4. If the Reasons before mentioned be not sufficient to convince the ignorant of their erroneous Opinions in this particular , then I hope the following one will , which is more familiar to every one . It hath never been known , that this troublesome Vermin was ever seen in Warehouses , Kitchins , Parlours , Dining-rooms , or any places where Beds have never been , except they have by accident been brought into such Rooms or Warehouses , by Furniture of Chambers that have been troubled with them , tho all such places have the same Furniture as Chambers , except Beds . 5. From the same Substance or Matter whence Bugs are bred , is also occasioned the generation of many nasty Diseases in the Blood ; so that the destruction of the Matter that breeds them , is of greater Consequence than most people are sensible of : And if these following Rules be observed , I dare affirm , That the Generation of Bugs will cease , and also many other Inconveniences and Distempers that are got by this sort of Uncleanness , will be avoided . First , You are to destroy all Press-Bedsteads , which stand in Corners of Rooms , being made up with Boards so close , that the Air cannot penetrate , or dry up and consume the moist sulpherous Vapours that are contracted . These Sorts of Beds , that stand so , are apt to have them more than others . Also , you are to set your other Sorts of Beds as near as you can in the most airy places of your Rooms , exposing them to the Air the most part of the Day , with your Chamber-windows open , that the Air may freely pass , which is the most excellent Element that does sweeten all things , and prevents Putrefaction . In the Night also you ought not to have your Window-Curtains drawn , nor your Curtains that are about your Beds ; for it hinders the sweet refreshing Influences of the Air , so that the Air of all close places becomes of a hot sulpherous Nature and Operation ; the thin pure Vapours , which do wonderfully refresh Nature , are as it were suffocated : And this preventing the Influenees of the Air , is in an especial manner observable , when people are sick , or out of order , as tho the sweet pleasant Air had been the cause of their Disease : such Rooms being so very close , with great Fires in them , that if a Healthy Person do but continue three or four Hours in them , the fulsome Steams , and thick Vapours will much disorder him , and take away the edge of his Appetite : And if so , what will the Operation be on those whose Spirits are weak and disordered with Distempers ? What is more pleasant and healthful than good Air ? It chears and comforts the Spirits , it opens the Passages of the Joynts and Nerves , it purifies the Blood , creates an Appetite , increasing Strength and Vigour . But on the contrary , hot , thick , sulpherous Airs , do not only obstruct the Passages of the Spirits , but suffocate them , loading the Joynts and Nerves with evil Juices , whereby the Limbs and Members become full of pain , causing a general Tenderness to possess the whole Body , and destroying the Appetite , and the power of the digestive Faculty in the Stomach . Also , do not all Houses and Places grow Musty , and contract too great store of Moisture , if the Air be any way prevented by Window-shutters , or the like , that it cannot have its free egress and regress ? Therefore moderate Cloathing , hard Beds , Houses that stand so as that the pleasant Briezes of Wind may air and refresh them , and also Houses that are full of W●●●ows , are to be preferr'd . For where the Air hath not its free Influences , the Spirit becomes dull and heavy , this being the true Life of the Spirit in every thing . 7. Now the certain means and way not only to prevent the Generation of this Vermin , but also to preserve Health and Strength , is Straw , or rather Chaff-Beds , with Ticks of Canvas , and Quilts made of Wooll or Flocks to lay on them ; which certainly is the most easy and pleasant Lodging that can be invented ; and a little Custom will make it appear friendly to Nature , and in every respect far beyond the softest Feather-beds on which , when a Man lies down , he sinks into them , as into an Hole , with Banks rising on each side of him ; especially if two lye together , when first they go to Bed they lye close , and after a little time , when they begin to be hot or sweat , they are generally willing to lye a little further off , that they may cool themselves , but cannot do it without great difficulty and trouble , by reason of the softness of the Bed , and those Banks that rise on each side . Besides such soft Feather-Beds do over-heat the Reins and Back , making all the parts tender , and causing Sweating , and many other Inconveniences to attend the Body . Feather-Beds also are nothing so easy as Quilts , after a little time being accustomed to them ; they are also extream fulsome , and by their Heat they do powerfully dry up the Radical Moisture , causing a general Faintiness to attend the whole Body . But on the contrary , hard , even Beds , that lye smooth , are not only easy through Custom , as is mentioned before , but a Man may turn freely , both Sleeping and Waking . They harden and strengthen the whole Body , especially the Back and Reins , make the Nerves and Sinews strong , preventing the immoderate Evacuations by Sweating , and keeping the Body in a temperate Heat . Besides , such Beds may be often changed with but little Trouble and less Cost ; they send forth no stinking Fumes or ●●eams , as Feather-beds do ; but are sweat and clean . Certainly nothing is more healthy , next to Temperance in Meat and Drink , than clean hard Beds . 8. All sorts of Beds , especially Feather-beds , ought to be changed , driven or washed , at the least three or four times in a year ; or else it is impossible to keep them sweet and clean , and to prevent the Generation of Vermin , or . the other Inconveniences before-mentioned . Would not every one condemn a Man , if he should wear a Shirt a year , and lye in one pair of Sheets seven years ? Which if any should do , it would not so much endanger his Health , nor bring half the Inconveniencies on his Body , as old stinking Feather-beds do : which possibly stunk before ever they were lain on , by reason of the fulsom Excrements that the Quills of the Feathers contain . Also Feathers do certainly contain an unclean putrified Matter , that hath a near affinity with the Nature of Bugs ; and therefore Feather-beds are more apt to breed them , than Wooll or Flocks ; tho both will do it , if the fore-mentioned Rules be not observed . But if you are not willing , or so lowly-minded , as to have Straw or Chaff-beds under your Quilts , then you may have Flock-beds with Canvas-Tickings , which may be both aired and washed as often as you please , with little Trouble and Charge . If any shall question the Truth of what I have alledged concerning Beds , I desire they would please but to try the Experiment , by filling a Bed with the freshest and cleanest Straw or Chaff , which will smell very pleasant ; and having so done , let them lye on it half a year in a corner of a Room , as Beds generally stand , and then smell to it ; and instead of sending forth a Pleasant Scent , as it did at first , it will send forth a strong , fulsome , musty Steam or Fume . And if this will do so , what will Feathers do , that in the Boot of Nature are unclean fulsom Excrements , of a hot strong Quality ? Therefore they have the greater power not only to attract and suck into themselves the fulsom Excrements that are breathed forth of the Body by Sweatings , and the like ; but they have also power to retain such evil Vapours ; and when others come to lye on them , and are throughly hot , it awakens those pernicious Steams , which often bring many Inconveniencies on the Body . Besides , it is very unpleasant to lye in such Beds ; a Man must always be forced to keep his Nose above-board . Indeed each Mans own Bed does not stink or smell strong to himself , because he is accustomed to it ; neither does a Tallow-Chandler smell those horrible Scents and pernicious Fumes , that old Tallow sends forth when it is melted . But let any other Person that is not accustomed to it , be near such things , and it will be very offensive to him . Even so it is in all other stinking Trades , and things of this nature ; so that the greatest Slut in the World does hardly smell her own House or Bed stink . For in Man is contained the true Nature and Property of all things , both of Good and Evil ; therefore he is both liable , and also apt to receive all Impressions , and to be wrought on by all things he shall either communicate with , or joyn himself to , whether it be Cleanness , or the contrary . Also by Meats , Drinks , and Communication , all things have power by a Sympathetical Operation to work on Man , because he is like unto all , bearing a proportionable Nature unto all things . If People did understand this , they would prefer Sobriety and Temperance with Cleanness , far beyond what they do ; and then Men would not be subject to so many Diseases , as now they are . 9. Heat and Moisture is the Root of all Putrefaction ; and therefore Bugs are bred in Summer , but they live all the Winter , tho they are not then so troublesome . They harbour in Bedsteads , Holes , and Hangings , Nitting , and breeding as Lice do in Cloaths : But all Men know , that Woollen and Linnen are not the Element of Lice , but they are bred from the fulsome Scents and Excrements that are breathed forth from the Body . The very same Radix have Bugs ; and if there be any difference , they are from a higher Putrefaction , and therefore they are a more noisome stinking Creature . Several Receipts to destroy Bugs and Fleas . TAke a convenient quantity of unslaked Lime , and put it into some Water , and let it stand three or four days , then pour off your Water , and add to it a quantity of common Salt more or less , as you think good , ( but the stronger the Water is made , both of Lime and Salt , the better it will perform the Cure ) ; then take this Liquor and wash the Floor , and the Sides of the Wall , and the Bedstead very well two or three times a Week , for a Month or two together , ( not forgetting to give your Room as much Air as you can , by setting your Windows open most part of the day ) this Liquor will destroy both Bugs and Fleas , if other Circumstances of good Housewifery and Cleanness be observed . Another . Take Colliquinto Seeds , a sufficient quantity to make Water strong , boyl them one quarter of an hour in Water , and wash the Walls , Floot , and Bedstead with this Water two or three times in a Week in the hottest Season for a Month , or as you see occasion . This will also prevent the breeding both of Bugs and Fleas , [ But do not forget to let into your Rooms your Friend the Air. ] Another . Take Wormwood in its proper Season , dry it according to our Directions , and slip it from the stalks , and put it into White Paper Bags made flat , and prick Holes in them to let the Fumes out , and put some of these Bags between your Bed and the Sacking , Mats or Boards , and some of them under your Boulster , and also under your Bed on the Floor , and some of the same Wormwood loose on the Tester of your Bed. The Fumes and Scents of this Herb , doth not only prevent the Generation of all kinds of Vermin , but it makes the Air of such Rooms , where it lies , wholsome . Another . Take Wormwood and Rue , a good quantity , boyl them a quarter of an hour in Water , then take common Salt , and add to this Water what quantity you please , ( the stronger the better ) then wash the Sides of the Wall , Floor , and Bedstead with this Water two or three times a Week , and it will kill both Bugs and Fleas . Another . Take the Rinds or Outsides of Green Wall-nuts , bruise them , and steep them in Water three or four days , and wash your Rooms and Bedstead with it two or three times a Week , and it will work the same effect . Another . Take Wormwood and Mustard-Seed bruised , boyl them in Water a quarter of an hour , then add Salt to the Water , and wash the Wall , Floor , and Bedstead with it , which will prevent the Generation of all kinds of Vermin , if the sweet Influences of the Sun and Air be not prevented . Another . Take the Lees of Sope after you have done washing , and boyl Onions in it , then add a little Salt to it , and wash your Room and Bedstead with it . Another . Take strong Vinegar , and mix some Salt to it , and sprinkle your Room ; this doth not only prevent and kill Bugs and Fleas , but it is otherways wholsome . A Fume . Take Brimstone , and burn it on a Chafing-dish of Coles in the middle of your Room , ( but remember to shut your Windows ) this do two or three times a Week , or as often as you please , the oftner you do it , the sooner will the Cure be performed . Another . Take three or four Ounces of Genny-Pepper , more or less , burn it on a Chafing-dish of Coles in the middle of your Chamber , shut your Windows and Doors , and go out , or else it will serve you as it will the Bugs and Fleas . If you do thus two or three times a Week for a Month or two in the hot Seasons , it will destroy all kind of Vermin in the bud . Another . To conclude , There is nothing better to prevent the Generation of Bugs and Fleas , and to keep your Bed sweet , than every Morning when you rise to set open your Windows , and lay open your Bed-cloths , and so let it continue four or five hours , in which time the excrementitious Fumes , and gross humid Steems , which the Body breathed forth in the foregoing Night , will Evaporate by the help of the Air ; this is a very good way to keep the Bed sweet , and to prevent the breeding of Vermin , it being impossible for any to keep their Bed sweet , if they do not more or less observe this Rule . CHAP. XVIII . A short Discourse of the Pain in the Teeth , shewing from what Cause it does chiefly proceed , and how to prevent it . THe terrible Pains and Diseases of the Teeth do chiefly proceed from two Causes . The first is from certain filthy phlegmy Matter which the Stomach and Vessels do continually breathe and send forth , which does Lodge or Center in the Mouth , especially between the Teeth , and on the Gums ; and some People having fouler Stomachs than others , such do breathe forth very sower , stinking , phlegmy Matter , which does not only increase the Pain , but causes the Teeth to become loose and rotten : And for want of continual cleansing and washing , those Breathings , and this phlegmy Matter turns to Putrefaction , which does eat away the Gums , as tho Worms had eaten them . And this defect is generally attributed to the Disease called the Scurvey ; but it is a mistake , the Cause is chiefly , as is mentioned before , from the Stomach , or for want of Cleansings . 2. This Distemper of the Teeth and Gums does also proceed from the various sorts of Meats and Drinks , and more especially from the continual eating of Flesh , Fish , and fat sweet things , compounded of various Ingredients of disagreeing Natures , which do not only obstruct the Stomach ; but fur and foul the Mouth , part thereof remaining upon the Gums , and between the Teeth . For all such things do quickly turn to Putrefaction , which does by degrees corrupt both the Teeth and Gums . Besides , our Beds take up near half the time of our Lives , which time the Body is not only without motion , but the Bed and Coverings do keep it much hotter than the Day-garments , especially of those that draw the Curtains of their Windows and Beds so close , that the pure Spirits and thin refreshing Vapours of the Air are hindred of having their free egress and regress , which does dull and flatten the Action of the Stomach . Therefore the Night does foul the Mouth more than the Day , furring it with a gross slimy Matter , especially those that have foul Stomachs , and are in years ; for whatsoever are the disorders of the Body , the Mouth does always partake of them , which ought to be cleansed every Morning . 3. It is to be noted , That most people do also attribute the Diseases of the Teeth to Colds , Rhumes , and other outward Accidents . It is true , outward Accidents will further this Disease ; but then there must be Matter before-hand , otherwise outward Colds can have no power to cause this Pain . The same is to be understood in all Stoppages of the Breast , and other Obstructions , as Coughs , and the like . For , if any part be obstructed , or there be Matter for Distemper , then , on every small occasion of outward Colds , or the like Accidents , Nature complains . If your Teeth and Gums be sound , and free from this Matter , take what Colds you will , and your Teeth will never complain , as dayly experience doth shew . For all outward Colds and other Accidents of the like nature , have no power to seize any part of the Body , except first there be some inward Defect or Infirmity : Suppose the Teeth be defective , then the Disease falls on that part ; or if it be the Head , Eyes , Breast , Back , or any other part or Member of the Body , that is obstructed , the evil is felt in that part . Therefore if the Mouth be kept clean by continual Washings , it will prevent all Matter of Putrefaction ; and then Colds , and the like Accidents , will have no power to seize this Part , or cause this terrible Pain . Even so it is in all other Parts of the Body . 4. There are many various things , of divers Natures , prescribed by Physicians , and others , as Washes , &c. to preserve the Teeth and Gums ; but most of them , if not all , to little or no purpose , as dayly Experience teaches : For , all high , sharp Salts , and things of a sour or keen Nature , do rather cause the Teeth to perish , than the contrary ; as do all hot Spirits , be they what they will : Many have destroyed their Teeth by the frequent use of such things , and it hath hardly ever been known that any such things have ever cured or prevented the aking Pains of the Teeth , but water only . Many examples I could mention to demonstrate this ; but too tedious for this place . 5. The best , most sure , and never-failing way to prevent the Diseases and Pains in the Teeth and Gums , is every Morning to wash your Mouth with at least ten or twelve Mouthfuls of pure Water , cold from the Spring or River , gently rubbing your Mouth with your Finger , or a Cloth , and so again after Dinner or Supper , swallowing down a Mouthful of Water after each Washing : There being no sort of Liquor in the World so pure and clean as Water ; and nothing doth cleanse and free the Teeth and Gums from that foul Matter which does proceed from the Breathings and Purgings of the Stomach , and from the various sorts of Food , so well as Water : The use of other Washes is to little or no purpose ; but whosoever do constantly wash their Mouths with Water , as is before mentioned , shall find an essential Remedy . All hard Rubbing and Picking of the Teeth ought by any means to be avoided , for that is injurious to them . And whensoever you find your Mouth foul , or subject to be slimy , as sometimes it will more than at others , according to the good or evil state of the Stomach , though it be not after eating ; at all such times you ought to wash your Mouth . This Rule all Mothers and Nurses ought to observe , washing the Mouths of their Children two or three times a day ; and also to cause their Children to swallow down a little Water , which will be very refreshing to their Stomachs : For Milk does naturally foul and fur the Mouth and Teeth , and if they be not kept clean by continual washing , it causes the Breeding of Childrens Teeth to be more painful to them . 6. To keep your Teeth white , one of the best things is a piece of a China Dish , or a piece of a fine Dutch Earthen Dish , made into fine Powder , and the Teeth rubbed with it . 7. Few there be that understand or consider the excellent Vertues of Water , it being an Element of a mild and cleansing Nature and Operation , friendly unto all things , and of univesal Use : But because it is so common , and so easily procured , I am afraid that many People will be like Naaman the Syrian , when the Prophet Elisha advised him to wash seven times in the River of Jordan to cure his Leprosie ; it being the Ignorance and Folly of most People , to admire those things they do not know , and , on the other side , to despise and trample underfoot those Things and Mysteries they do know ; which the Learned in all Ages have taken notice of : For , should some People know what Apothecaries and others give them , they would despise the Physick , and have but little respect for their Doctor . All Housewives do know , that no sort of Liquor , be it what it will , will cleanse and sweeten their Vessels , but only Water ; all other Liquors leaving only a sower stinking Quality behind them , which will quickly cause Putrefaction : But Water in its own nature is clean and pure , not only for all Uses in Housewifery , and the Preservation of Health ; but the Saints and Holy Men of God have highly esteemed this Element , by using it in the exteriour Acts of Divine Worship , as having a Simile with the Eternal Water of Life , that does purify and cleanse the Soul from Sin. CHAP. XIX . Of Marriagē , and the Inconveniencies of unequal Matches . SInce the main Scope of this whole Treatise is but to set before my Fellow-Mortals the means and courses whereby they may obtain Health both of the Body and Mind , and shew them from whence the grievous Diseases of the one , and tormenting Passions of the other do proceed . And since there is nothing that more frequently brings Grief , Affliction and Distraction on the Minds of People ( and many times lamentable Diseases in their Bodies too ) than inconsiderate and unfit Marriages , I could not but think it necessary to add a few words on a subject so general and important . THis sacred tye of Marriage was instituted by God in Paradise , that the Woman might be an help-meet to the Man , and each party a Comfort and Solace to each other , and so propogate their Kind in Love and Peace ; but by Peoples corrupt manners and abuses of that holy Institution , it is now to many become the greatest Plague of human Life , where two unsociable Creatures are yoked together to each others torment , yet cannot be separated , but are forced with struggling , and goring , and kicking each other , to drudge on a most uncomfortable days work of Misery , till Death unharness them . But I shall not spend time on general Complaints , which are bootless , but come to particulars . 1. Of all sorts of Marriages , the worst and most unequal'st is for Young Men to Marry Women who are ( through years ) past Child-bearing , which as it is seldom , if ever , done but for some base , hellish , sordid , self-ends on the Man's side , and bruitish unnatural stimulations of Lust on the Womans , so it very rarely fails to be attended with its own Punishment , even in this Life , there being few sins that people are guilty of , that do more openly and shamefully contradict the Laws of God and Nature , and that too ( which renders it ten times the worse ) under colour of an holy Institution of God. In the Beginning , after the Lord created Male and Female , he said unto them , Increase , multiply , and replenish the Earth . This was the Command of the Creator , which all Mankind are obliged unto ; and whosoever breaks this Law for any particular self-ends , as Money , Gluttony , Honour Idleness , or the like Vanities , does draw upon himself the indignation of God , because he has on purpose withstood the most Natural influences and Operations of Nature , and turned them into Wantonness . These kinds of Marriages do also contradict the whole course and progress of Nature , and seems to threaten all things with a period ; and hereby man shews himself a hundred-fold worse and more depraved than the basest and most savagest of Beasts , who will neither touch their Females when they are with Young , nor after they are Old , and past Breeding . Which might be an Example unto us , if Pride , devilish Lusts and Intemperances did not possess peoples Souls . All Creatures in this World , even the very Vegetables , do strive with highest diligence to produce its Seed , wherein is contained all the Properties of the Body , and then the old Body dieth . This is the Bond of Nature , which preserves all things , and all Creatures do vehemently desire to bring forth their Likenesses , which God's Law in Nature doth by an inward impulse constrain them unto , and in the performance thereof all sensitive Creatures have the greatest pleasure and satisfaction . Every Man and Woman in the World , except some few , who have depraved themselves , has a Natural Desire to raise up unto themselves Posterity ; for without it Nature cannot be satisfied , but something seems always wanting , they have not discharged one great end of their Beeing , and will die extreamly in the Worlds Debt , how rich soever they may be accounted , When Young and Old intermarry , there is an inward , natural , and therefore unappeasable contrariety , loathing and dislike between them , whence ariseth Aversion , Hatred , Jealousie and Irreconcilable Discords , and causeth the Young Man to long after forbidden and unlawful Beds ; It takes away all the true Natural Delight and Pleasure , and renders the Mind uncapable of all Spiritual Duty , polluting the Soul and Body , whence doth proceed both Ruin and Destruction to the Health , and also to the ill-gotten Estate ; for if a Young Man could attain a Young Virgin with the same outward Advantages , viz. Money , Honour , Idleness ▪ &c. as he can have with an Old Woman , this latter sort might go without their Young Gallants . But how base a thing it is , and how unnaturally it looks that men should value Money more than the Law of God , and the satisfaction of Nature , and the raising up of Seed unto themselves , which is a thing of so great moment , that the Lord commanded , That the Brother of him that died Childless , should Marry the Wife of his deceased Brother , that he might raise up Seed unto him ; for he that dies Childless , seems to have lived to no purpose , and not to have answered that End for which he was made : Nor have we any Example in the Scriptures of Truth , that ever any such Unnatural Marriages were celebrated . Furthermore , Children do encrease Love , and makes the Affections more warm between men and their Wives , encouraging lawful Care and Diligence , both in the Father and the Mother : Nor is there any thing can make a Marriage-State tolerable , but True Natural Love and Affection , not to be altered with Troubles , when Sickness , and the like Accidents happen , there being few Married People but meet with many Troubles and Crosses , which true Love to Wife . and Children makes more easie , and encourageth each Sex to go through them with cheerfulness of Spirit : But on the Contrary , when Men meet with Disappointments and Crosses Abroad , and their Love is Cold at Home , then all 's out of Tune , and the Phantasie is set on wandering after Vanity , which gives occasion for the Wife to do the like ; And thus there is caused an Unequal Disharmonious Life , and is the Fruit of the Tree of Wrath which Mankind has stirred up through their Unnatural Lusts and Passions , which cannot escape the Divine Hand of Retaliation ; for if all the Hairs of our Head be numbred , and that a Sparrow cannot fall without Divine Providence , how then should those great Sins , which are absolutely against God's Divine and Natural Law , and against the Right of Nature ? must they not be taken notice of by his Divine Hand ? For every Principle both in the Evil and the Good doth comprehend its own Children , and also their works ; and if men , by superfluity of Naughtiness , and Devllish wantonness , have kindled the fierce Wrath , then they must not receive their Reward from another Principle . But sew there be that are truly sensible , or do consider how great a sin it is for men and women on purpose , for the sake and love of Wantonness , to hinder the ends of Nature , making a Sport and Pastime of that great formative Power , which is essencial in every man and Woman , that thereby they might produce their Species , and the Images of their Creator , which they bear ; the Word of Divine Power is always in motion , viz. a forming , figuring and shaping of all things , both Spiritual and Corporeal ; if it should cease , all things would drop into their Original . And if men would but be still , and cease from their own ways of self-hood , and from kindling the fierce wrath of God , they could not but see the gross evil of such unnatural Practices , which how odious it is , we may perceive by his fierce indignation against Onam , whom the Scripture testifies , the Lord slew , because he willfully prevented Generation , which thereby seems to be reckoned as a Degree of Murder : Therefore let all that fear the Lord separate themselves from such unfit Marriages , which ought not by any pretences to be countenanced , but condemned by all sober-minded people , as a practice of Sodom and AEgypt , and such as follow it without repentance , will be swallowed up by the Red-Sea of Divine Vengeance and Indignation . 2. Such men as through Age or other Infirmities , are so weakened , and their Natures so decayed , as they are incapable of Generation , are not fit for Marriage , nor ought to delude themselves with the pleasurable Fancies of Youth ; for the company of women in age , if there be not Strength and Temperance , is not only a Sin against God and his Law in Nature , but generally proves of ill consequence as to Health , tho' otherwise men may in the sight of God be permitted Marriage even in Old Age , that is to say , such men who are vigorous of Strength , lasting Healths ; but then it ought to be to such Women as are not past Child-bearing ; for the suitableness of Marriage is not when the Man and the Woman are of an equal Age , but when on either part they can answer that end for which Marriage was ordained , viz. the having of Issue and Posterity . But generally , as for ancient men , if it hath pleased the Almighty to take away the Wives of their Youth , it is far better they should spend the remainder of their Days single ; for Solitude does afford unto the sober-minded and contemplative Soul many excellent Advantages , both by Night and Day , it being easier for such an one to keep his Mind intent and upright , and free from cares and wandering ; for there are many infirmities that attend Women , which will always add some trouble and affliction to the Husband , more especially if there be a dear affection and respect ; besides , that Society plunges men more in the Affairs of the World , which if we mind Virtue and Eternal Happiness , as we ought to do , will prove as so many Clogs and Fetters to the Soul , and press her down to earthly Thoughts and Considerations , when she would gladly mount up to Heaven , on the soaring Wing of a Devout Meditation ; and this ought the more to be resented by Aged People , because they are certain their opportunities can be but short , because there is but little Sand left in their Lives-Glass , and 't is pity to triflle away any of it on Vanity , in making Love where no Fruit can be expected , or on the gossipping Stories of Talkative Women , that like the Nighting-gale , is become nothing but Tongue and Voice ; and much worse to be snatch'd from the sweet Contemplations of Eternity , by the perpetual bawlings and noise of an unreasouable Screich-Owle , or Croakings of a Nigh-Raven , that makes ones Bed more uneasie than a Nest of Hornets , or Regulus's Barrel stuck full of sharp Nails , whereinto he was thrust stark naked . The Inconveniences that attend Marriage in Age are many , the Benefits very few ; how ill it looks to see the Spring of Wantonness arise in the Autumn of Life , and a Man , ( according to the Vulgar Proverb ) appear like an Onion with a Gray Head and a Green Tail ; too pregnant Symptoms that they have not forgot their Youthful Vanities and Lusts , but would fain act them over again , tho Nature refuses them the means ; their Minds being as much as ever inflamed with sensual Fires , tho their enfeebled Bodies cannot keep pace with them to bring their loose extravagant Desires into act . Such Matches therefore , however they may be cloaked with the Title of Holy Matrimony , are indeed Rapes upon Nature , and lustful Sallies of a debauched Imagination , which always proves very prejudicial to the Health of the Body , and obstructs the ways of Virtue and Piety . Besides , if the Wives of such Doting Old Men happen to be Strong , Youthful and aimable , they are freequently tempted by Lude Young Gallants , to defile their Nuptial-Beds , and finding at home only Dalliance , ( enough to stir up wanton Desires ) without Ability to satisfie and allay them , they thereupon are too often led away to take wrong measures abroad , to the Destruction of their own Souls , and many times of their Bodies too , to the Grief and Disgrace of their too late repining titular Husbands , and the Dishonour and Confusion of Families . Therefore , if men on whom Age hath snowed her Silver Locks , ( which ought to be the Ensigns of Wisdom ) will enjoy Health , and Strength , and Peace , and live a virtuous quiet Life , let them beware of embarquing themselves in such unfit Marriages , which if they shall prove tolerable to themselves , as rarely it happens , yet if they have Children by former Wives , 't is great odds , but it proves a great Mischief to Them , and an occasion of such unnatural Heart-burnings and Animosities , as every prudent man would willingly prevent . 3. There are another sort of Youngsters , that are for an equality in Estates and Births , despising the innocent , simple and natural influences of agreeing Hearts , and united Affections , and all those Real , though Secret Grounds of Love , whence proceed our inclinations to affect such and such Complexions , Features or Humours ; all which is not regarded by this sort of people ; but they are meer Iockies in the Art of Wiving , and will Higgle for the other Hundred pound in Portion , and fifty pound more at the birth of the first Child , or else the poor Lass after the Wedding-Cloathes are made , must go look her an Husband ; such sordid Spirits as these , make nothing to strain Nature , and offer Violence to their own Inclinations , nay , to their Consciences too , if it may but make for their Covetous Interests . The first Question they ask , is , Has she store of Money ? If she have , that 's sufficient encouragement , whether she be of good Temper , or Virtuously inclined , or of an healthy sound Constitution , fit to bear healthy sound Children , or be a good House-wise , and of a prudent peaceful Behaviour , or have the fear of God before her Eyes , or not , they never regard ; and yet these ought to be the chief Ends and Considerations of every mon in Marriage , and not the mixing of Mannours , and joyning together of Farms , and coupling of Stocks , as if their Bags must needs mutually Engender , and breed and multiply as well as their Persons : This making of Matrimony a Matter of Money , and Miserly Parents sacrificing their Children to Mammon , is a wretched Idolatry , little inferiour to theirs of Old , who offered their Sons and Daughters to Molock they made oblations of them in Flames , which quickly devoured them ; but you deliver them up , and force them into loathed Embraces , where perhaps they languish out twenty or thirty Years in perpetual Vexations and Torment , without one hours solid Content or Satisfaction , and all this for a little Base Pelf , which never has been known to make any happy , where Content , Sobriety and Virtue have been wanting . But if God's Law , and the Influences of unbiast Nature did take place in peoples hearts , there would not be such over-looking those that have but a little Money ; the Rich and Noble then would often marry with the poor , or those they now call their Unequals : For where shall we find a healthy , fresh , rosie , straight-Limb'd , Angel-fac'd Innocent Virgin , fit for Emperours to get Princes upon , sooner than amongst the Daughters of Shepherds , or the untutor'd Troops of a poor Country-Village ? Did men live in the Power and Operation of God's Laws , and the Dictates of Nature , none of them would delude the Simplicity of Virgins , by Deceitful Kindnesses , and when they have gotten their Lewd Desires of them , then leave them , and their own Off-spring to beg their Bread , exposed to shame and want , and all the Evils imaginable , making nothing to cut off the Thread of Love , and bury Affection through the power of their depraved Wills , which is a Crying Sin , and next door to Murther . The truth is , there is scarce one Person of an hundred that make his or her choice from Wisdom , or a right Understanding , and to answer the end for which the Lord instituted Marriage in the beginning ; but if a Man have but an Estate , tho otherwise never so diseased , infirm , or unfit , all is overlook'd and excused , Money covers all Infirmities , where the heart is degenerated from Truth and Virtue , making that there Master , which if well used would be a good Servant , most People being so blind and stupid , that they dare not cast their Care , and repose their Trust in him , who by his bountiful Divine Hand of Providence taketh care for all , and preserveth all , and from whom every good Gift proceeds , both Temporal and Spiritual ; this trusting and relying on the Creature more than the Creator , is the greatest Idolatry , and that which the Lord abominates , for a Curse does follow all those who prefer their devillish Lusts , and foolish Passions , and greedy Desires of Money , before the good and holy fear of the Lord , and his Innocent Law , Themselves , Wives and Children being afflicted with a numberless Number of Diseases and Infirmities ; and what Fruit can be expected from such corrupt Trees ? Whence think ye proceed Leprous Scabby Diseases , Joint-evils , and that which they call the Kings-Evil , wherewith many thousands in this Nation of all sorts are afflicted , as also the Gout in Youth , Consumptions , and other incurable Diseases ? Are not most or all these Evils the effect of undue Marriages , Uncleannesses , and Intemperances ? And yet if a Man ask them , how came such or such a Disease , they will confidently answer , We do not know , even as it pleaseth God ; we know nothing we have done which should occasion it . Thus laying the Cause on the Lord , of all their Infirmities and Evils , never considering that it is the Reward of their own Transgression , and of their own Evil Courses , which have awakened the poysonous Properties in the Elements of the Body . 4. A fourth sort of Blame-worthy , are those who do Marry without any due Consideration of the weight and importance of what they go about ; sure a thing in which the Happiness or Misery of a Man's whole future Life is involved , and which can be done but Once , should be considered Twice before we undertake it . But many People are so hurried away with the Heat and Fury of youthful Lusts , Passions , and Wantonness , as they mind nothing but a present Satisfaction of their bruitish Desires , vainly imagining that they shall never be otherwise ; but alas ! as soon as those fiery Transports are allayed , their Love languishes , grows cold and flat ; and those very Embraces wherein they placed their highest Happiness , become wearisom , nauseous , and perhaps loathsom , and then these hot Lovers become Rude , Sordid , Stubborn , Bold , Surly , and Inhumane , having no true Natural Affection unto , nor taking any honest Care for Wife or Children , but grow Dissolute , Drunken , and Idle ; as they get Childen in the heat of Drink and Lust , so they make not the least Provision to preserve them . How many thousands of poor Women and Children are more miserable than any Creatures on the Earth , if we do but consider the Hunger , Cold , Diseases , Griefs , Vexations , and Distractions , which they endure from the intolerable Idleness , Debauchery , Crosness , or other ill Carriage , Words , and Communications of some brutified Things , whom they are obliged to call Husbands and Fathers ? 5. The Fear of the Lord being the beginning of all Wisdom , both Divine and Humane , ought to be the principal Object of every Man and Womans Thoughts , Words , and Actions , and then they would be taught by the Spirit of Truth , how they may chuse unto themselves suitable Wives and Husbands : For Marriage is as it were the Foundation either to Virtue or Vice ; and nothing can make a Conjugal Life happy , but suitable Dispositions and Virtue , and where their coming together is from a well-grounded Love , and natural Affections mutually combined to answer the End of that State , that is , to raise up Seed in the fear of the Lord , and then the Blessing of the most High is with , and upon them in all their Affairs ; and whether they have much or little of the World's Wealth , they are satisfied , as knowing that it is not Riches , but true Love that can make a married Life pleasant , or encourage Industry in the Man and Wife : But where Equality in Tempers , Years , and Virtues meet , it makes this Society the most happy of all others , there Love covers a multitude of Infirmities , Joys are doubled , Griefs divided , and all Troubles made easy . 'T is true , every Married Estate is followed more or less with Inconveniences ; for it forceth a Man to appear in the World , and thrust himself into Business , and attend and bow himself to those that perhaps he doth not much care for , or desire their Company , because they often spur him to Evil , or to do that , which if Interest were not at stake , he would not do ; and where there are six or seven more in a Family , there will unavoidably be committed many Disorders , sometimes by Servants , sometimes by Children , and seldom is it that they are all in Health long together . And if it happens that the Wife have a good esteem of her Doctor and his Physick , then she will do nothing without his Advice , which proves not only chargeable , but many times continues their ill Habits of Body , and this is apt to make Men grumble , fret , and repine ; and thereunto the other Cross-accidents usually attending Married Persons , as encrease of Charge , the uncertain Gains , and the certain Expences , the hazards of Child-bearing , the crying and noise of Children , and their Death , the Lamentation of a tender loving Wife , refusing to be comforted for her Children , because they are not : or if there be no Children , then the Discontents of Barrenness , and Rachel's out-cry , Give me Children , or else I dye . All these Troubles , Inconveniences , and many others too tedious to instance , are apt to hover round the Marriage-Bed ; and therefore it ought to be well fortified with a fixed and unalterable Love , founded on Virtue , Piety , and Iudgment , for want of which , Multitudes of both Sexes as soon as the Honey-Moon is past , and the first fervours of their Passion glutted and slipt away as a Dream , do become burthened and uneasy , and spend in vain a thousand Wishes , That they were single again . For in truth , Marriage does very rarely answer the Ends of those that chiefly propose Pleasure , Money , or the satisfaction of any particular Lust or Passion ; therefore none are happy , or can answer the End for which Marriage was ordained , but only those who chuse their Yoke-fellows in the fear of the Lord , and from a well-composed Disposition , and pure natural Affections , not having an Eye to Money , Honour , Idleness , Lusts , or a petulant Abuse of the Creative Power of God ; for Man is the Image of God , and his Son and Off-spring , therefore they ought not to take unto themselves Wives of all that they like , as the Sons of God are complained of to have done , Gen. 6. They saw the Daughters of Men were fair , and they chose unto themselves Wives of all that they liked ; not what the Lord liked ; nor in his fear , but what themselves liked ; that is , for Lust , Honour , Self-ends , which was all contrary to God's Law and Commandment ; therefore the Lord was provoked to Wrath , and they brought forth Gyants , Monsters , and Destroyers , and the Lord cut short their days . — My Spirit shall not always strive with Man , nevertheless his days shall be an hundred and twenty years . Here you see Man's Life was abridged by reason of their unfit Marriages , and the Corruption of their Conversation , whereby Mankind became corrupted in the very Root , whence proceeds not only fierce , beastial Inclinations and Dispositions , but a great number of Diseases , which many bring into the World with them , of which most are incurable . 6. There are but very few Persons that do keep to , or observe the Rules of Temperance in the use of the Marriage-Bed , but are generally too indulgent and immoderate in the Pleasures of Venus , which of all others are most inticing , and seems more natural than any other Superfluity ; but it is also the most dangerous both to the health of the Body and Mind ; for when Men give themselves up thereunto , it destroys the vigour of the Understanding , make the mind poor , base and effeminate ; and as to the Elements of the Body , it weakens and consumes them , and by degrees Contracts such Diseases as strike at , and corrupt the very Root of Nature . In a word , nothing more Unmans a Man , than this sort of Intemperance ; therefore the following Rules and Observations will be beneficial to all that shall observe them . 1st , Every one ought to be Temperate in Meats and Drinks , and to eat those things as are naturally equal in their parts , and to avoid all Rich Cordial Drinks , and Spiced Compositions , for such things over-heat the Blood , and open all the Gates of the Venereal Property , whence proceed irregular and vehement Inclinations , which ought to be avoided . Instead of such Excesses , you will do well to entertain proper Labour and Exercise , which will prevent the Generation of such Superfluous Matter , and this will be the more effectual , if sometimes you will be so kind , as by Abstinence , to give Nature time to Concoct her Crudities , and Fast at the least eight or ten hours between your Meals . For in truth , were People but sensible what Benefits attend moderate Fasting , there would not be so many secret Gluttons in the World , and a great part of that Debauchery , whereby so many Estates are swallowed , so many Families dishonoured , and so many Persons Bodies weakened and decayed , would be prevented . 2dly , All young People ought to refrain the reading the Books of Romances , Plays , &c. whose chief Subject is to treat of Wanton Love-stories , and also to avoid idle Venereal Discourses , and Lascivious Pictures , which do secretly and insensibly stir up , and strengthen the Venereal Qualities of Nature , and cause Youth to think and do that which otherwise would never have fallen within their Imagination ; and having once got possession in the Soul , they will soon wholly subdue and captivate it ; for when once a young Person of either Sex has bassled Modesty , the Life-guard of Chastity ; or if once they have suffered the fort of their Virginity to be irregularly stormed , tho they shall never so much repent of , and resolve against such Folly for the future , yet they will find it a very hard Task to obtain the Gift or Power of Continency again , tho they seek it with Tears , as Esau did his Birth-right . 'T is easier to Prevent than Repent ; and not so hard for those who never violated their Integrity , to perish therein , as for those that have once trangressed , to conduct the rest of their Lives according to the Prescripts of Chastity and Virtue ; for the latter , are for the most part subjected by every Snare to all inferior Powers , and the Vanities and Wantonness of the Flesh , whereby they commit great Outrages against God's Law in Nature . Add to this , that Lasciviousness does much lessen that esteem which Men ought to have for Women , and brings Contempt upon a Matrimonial Life , and withal contracts many incurable Diseases , and consumes the outward Substance . 3dly , As the first Errors in any kind are generally of fatal Consequence , so most young People New-married , inconsiderately lay a foundation for their future Discontents and Miseries , ( like ill Horse-men ) they Whip and Spur so at their first setting out , that 't is no wonder if they Tyre before they arrive at their Journies end , contracting Surfeits , Gouts , general Weaknesses , alteration of the Complexion , Consumptions , and other languishing Diseases , as may appear by many young Men and Women , especially Men , who grow Pale , and their Flesh wastes , and their Joynts grow feeble , and their Nerves tremble , and an universal Indisposition seizes and spreads it self through the whole Body , and then what can be expected , but that their Children should become weakly , and subject to Diseases ? Nay , many times for this very reason , they are radically tinctured with Infirmities , and branded with Diseases even in the very Womb , and thence by way of Rebound or Retaliation , variety of Diseases result back again to their Mothers , before they are yet disburthened , or can imagine from what Cause those Disturbances arise . Thus many that were brave healthy Virgins , are no sooner Married , and become Child-bearers , but they grow weak , feeble , and full of Diseases and Disorders , which is the more remarkeable , since the same , or the like , is not to be instanced in any other Creature : This should teach Men to behave themselves friendly , and with as Even and Pleasant a Temper as possible they can to their young Wives , because nothing does so much Injury to Women ( especially when Pregnant , or great-with-Child ) as a cross surly Carriage from those , from whom they expect Indulgence and a pleasant Humour . For let us complain never so much of Shrews and Scolds , yet I must do Truth that Justice , as to avow , That the Crosness and Ill-carriage of the Wives has not the hundredth part of that power to hurt and wound the Healths of Men , as the unkindness and ill deportment of Husbands have to prejudice the Women ; for that Sex being of a weak tender Nature , their Fires burn but weak , and their predominant Quality stands in the meek Element of Water , so that every little Affront from those they Love , wounds them to the very Heart , and does very often awaken , even the very Central Spirits , whereby Nature is put into an agonious trembling Condition , whence proceed Suffocations of the Spirits , and Stoppages of the due Circulations , and thence variety of Diseases . Futhermore , Married People ought not by any kind of Arts , of compounding or preparing of Meats or Drinks , endeavour to heighten and strain Nature , whereby they may be the better able to gratify their Lusts and Extravagant Wantonness ; for all such things are an Affront to Nature , and force her out of her simple way ; and tho for the present , by such Arts , the Party seems more vigorous , yet he shall soon find that the same decays , and renders him much more weak and impotent , than if he had never medled with such Abominations . Nor ought any to suffer their Imaginations , Wills or Desires to enter too violently into the Venereal Properties ; for the Imagination of Mankind is so strong and powerful , that it can kindle and awaken all the Central Properties , whereby many particular Persons , tho by their Constitutions , cold and but weakly , do yet through Imagination and strong Desires stir up Nature to a great height , even to the ruin of their Healths ; for Nature never ought to be spurred or strained , but suffered gently to go on in her own Pace , and her own Way . The lawful use of the Marriage-Bed is never hurtful to mature Age , if Nature be not stimulated on by some unnatural Course or Superfluity , either of Imagination , Meat , Drinks , Idleness , or the like , but rather makes People more lightsome and pleasant , as being a thing purely Natural ; but if raised , or forced on by Art , then there is no Intemperance or Superfluity does so soon wound the Health , or bring so many Inconveniences on both Body and Mind . 4thly , The most proper Age for Men to Marry at , is from Twenty six Years of Age to Thirty , or thereaabouts , for then Nature has attained to the highest degree of Maturity , so that the moderate use of Lawful Sheets will not hurt ; besides , at those years , it is to be supposed , Persons will ( if ever ) be come to some degrees of Discretion , Understanding , Staidness , and Moderation , to know their Duties , and how to behave themselves to their Wives and Families . There is nothing more injurious to the Health of the Body , than a too early Acquaintance with Venus , or immoderate use of her in Youth , whilst Nature is a growing , it does in some Constitutions weaken the Spermatick Vessels , and the retentive Faculty , so that Nature is never able to out-grow it . For the Female Sex from Eighteen to Twenty six , is a very proper time to alter their Condition , and of Virgins commence Women . 'T is a very ill custom People have got to Match their Daghters almost as soon as they are out of their Hanging-Sleeves , and I know no excuse for it , but the Licentiousness of the Age , which is such , that if Parents do not provide Husbands for their Daughters at Fourteen , they are ready to provide them themselves , or do worse : The Proverb is certainly true , and in more Senses than one — He that Marries a Girl , marrs a Woman ; it spoils their Growth , hastens on Diseases , causes a breed of small sickly puling Children , makes her a Mistress before she understands her self , whence ill management of the Family , and forty other Mischiefs , too tedious to enumerate . 5thly , As Nature , Reason , and the Law of God require Women to separate themselves when their Uncleanness , or Monthly Visits are upon them , ( for Conception at such times is unnatural , and fails not to intail Leprous and Filthy Diseases on the Children then begot , as Boils , Botches , Kings-Evil , &c. ) so it will be also convenient for Men sometimes to lye alone ; for the lying of Man and Wife together always in the same Bed , is apt to decrease Love , and make it cold , and also destroys the Health and Courage of Man ; whereas their separating ( provided it be done freely and prudently , and not in discontent or sullenness ) and lying alone sometimes for a season , encreaseth the strength of the Body , and makes the mind more vigorous , and renders their coming together again more desirable and pleasant ; it being an hard thing for many Men to have such esteem as they ought to have , for those things they over-tharge themselves withal , tho they be the best of Enjoyments . And this lying alone is the rather to be urged , because Women have no natural Inclination to Venereal Actions after Conception , setting aside their depraved Desires and Imaginations , arising from the provocations Men may use , which do kindle and violently stir up the hidden or sleeping Properties of Venus , and strain and force Nature out of her Way and Operation ; therefore no Woman ought to know her Husband after known Conception , till after they be delivered and well again . All the Creatures of the Field , even the whole Creation may be Examples either to teach or upbraid Mankind in this particular , yet few there be that are sensible of the greatness of this Sin , nor of the evil Consequences that attend Mankind by the Practice thereof . Indeed Custom makes the greatest Evils ▪ easy and familiar , and even excusable in the Eyes of most People , but not in the sight of God and Nature . For this cause Mankind is afflicted with many and great Perturbations and Distempers , which no other Creatures are subject unto , because Men break the good Law of God in Nature , and turn the natural use of things into Wantonness , which cannot pass unretaliated ; for the Divine Eye and Providence takes notice of all the Good and Evil Works of Mankind , and Rewards every one according to its Intrinsick Nature , which we ought to regard , and not esteem a thing Good or Lawful , meerly because Customary , and because the multitude do it , but rather for that very Reason we ought to suspect it ; for there is scarce a worse Guide than the Crowd . Few there be that ever in their whole Lives consider , or so much as imagine , that they can be guilty of any Sin with their own Wives , tho they commit all kinds of Folly , Wantonness , and Uncleanness with them . Whereas in truth , since thereby they violate the Law of God , and course of undepraved Nature , there is but very little difference , as to the Intrinsick Evil , between him that Marries an Old Woman , or him that commands his Wife at unfit seasons , as in the time of Pregnancy , or her Lunar Visits , and him that goes to Common-Harlots ; only the former is not so Scandalous , because allowed by Law or Custom , which forbid the latter ; but in the sight of God and Nature they are both grand Evils . 6thly , Intemperance is so great an Enemy to Mankind , that it corrupts both Root and Branch , as when Men overcharge themselves with Meats and Drinks , which heat the Blood , and so violently inflame and swell the Spermatick Vessels , whence proceed wanton Desires , and loose Imaginations , that vehemently impress and incorporate themselves in , and with the Venerial Properties , even as the Imagination and Desires of a Woman with Child do impress the Image of the thing longed for , on the Fruit or Child . The Seed does contain all the true Properties , and the whole state of the Mind and Sensual Powers , whether it be Good or Evil at the time of Conception , and accordingly the Fruit is endued with good or evil Dispositions and Inclinations ; and the Face or Complexion of each Child is figured or framed according as the Posture and Aspects of the Parents Faces are at the very juncture , or time of Conception , viz. whether they look Soberly , or Merry , Languishing , or with Wide Mouths , Eyes distorted , sullen , sleepy , or heavy and dull , or lively and brisk , or any other Fashion or Form , the very same will the Imagination impress on the Fruit or Child ; for Nature has a secret Power of conveyance , by Virtue of the Phantasy and Spirits , which is unperceivable to the Parents . Therefore all Fathers and Mothers ought at all times to be Sober , and keep themselves cool and low , that the Spirit of Understanding may have its Operation . For every Thing or Quality , whether it be Evil or Good , has a Key in it self to open its own Principle , and hath a Seed to beget its own Likeness in all Particulars . For this cause a simple mean Life , in which the Power of God and Nature have their Operation in equal weight and measure , is to be preferred before the Grandeur and State of this World , Sobriety , and the Fear of the Lord being the Foundation of all Virtue ; for all Health , Strength , and Vigour , both of the Body and Mind , do consist in the Unity of the Parts , and a just Temperament or Equality . As on the other side , Contrariety is the Root and Parent of all Diseases , both Internal and External . Therefore let every one apply himself to Wisdom , which will teach the Knowledg of God in a Man's self , which Knowledg and Eye of Wisdom will lead and conduct every one that is an obedient Student , into the Life of Uniformity , where every property of Nature does impress and reign in each other , sending forth Hymns and Hallelujahs , and Everlasting Songs of Praises unto the God of Unity and Order . Lastly , It is to be noted , That the Lord and Great Creator of all Beings , has subjected all Creatures unto his unalterable Law of Nature , and therefore they keep and observe their proper Times and Seasons for Generation , and consequently are more healthy and sound than Mankind ; but Man being made greater than any other Creature visible , viz. God's Image , and endued with Divine and Humane Wisdom , and a free uncontroulable Will , which he can immerse either into Evil or Good ; the Lord for this cause saith , I have set Life and Death before you , chuse ye . Now most Men inclining to the left-hand-way , are thereby precipitated into all Uncleanness , Unchastity , and Intemperance , and in all Evil do as much exceed most sorts of Beasts , as Men do excel Beasts in Wisdom ; for the Lord endued Man with the Spirit of Understanding , by which he might be a Guide and Law unto himself ; but he has degenerated , and withstood the good Counsel of Wisdom , and chosen the left-hand-way , which leads into all kind of Evil and Superfluity ; Whereas if this had not come to pass , but instead thereof , if men had chosen the right way , and lived in the Power and Operation of God's Law , then there would have been no need of Outward Laws and Magistrates , but every Man would have done what was Right and Just in the sight of the Lord , from an innate power and virtue in himself , and not for fear of external Laws ; neither would he have leaned on the shoulders of the Multitude , nor complyed with Tradition and Custom , against the Dictates of Nature and Reason . The Beasts of the Field bieng under the driving and impulse of God's Natural Law , they are wholly acted by it ; so that when Nature stirs and prompts them on , then they move , and when Nature stands still , they are quiet : This is the Way of God , and his unalterable Law in the course of natural things ; but Man has so greatly depraved himself through the power of his Free-will , always inclining to Evil , that he forceth Nature out of her simple Way , violating the Law of God , to the great hurt of his Soul and Body . But few there be that are sensible of the sublime Virtues and Benefits that accompany Sobriety and Chastity , tho the Pleasures that attend them are so many and great , and most easily attainable , if we will hearken to the Voice of Wisdom , which is the best Physician , and the best Law-giver , and the only Theology ; in a word , The opener of all Seals and Mysteries , both Divine and Humane , and Happy , yea , thrice Blessed are all they that are acquainted with , and obey it . CHAP. XX. How to cure Wounds , Cuts , Pricks of Thorns , and other Accidents , without Salves , Oyntments or Plaisters ; Also , if any part of the Body or Flesh be Poysoned , it is a certain Remedy . MANY persons happening to Cut , or Prick with Thorns or Splinters some Parts of their Bodies , or being troubled with Ring-worms , Tettors , Fellons on their Hands or Fingers , or with Common Bruises , or any the like Accidents , running presently to Chyrurgions , who for gain put them to much pain and misery , or otherwise tampering therwith , so far encrease those Maladies , that many times they grow to Gangreens and Mortifications , and their Fingers , Arms , Legs , are often forced to be cut off , and not a few have their Lives thereby shortened . To prevent which Mischiefs , I think my self obliged , in Charity ty my Countrey-men , to recommend to them an easie ready Course of Remedy , without any Charge , Trouble or Hazard , which , as has been proved by manifold Experience , will not fail to heal and cure all such Defects ; and let none slight it , for its plainness and meanness , for all the ways of God and Nature are so ; but the Inventions of proud Man are generally obscure , scarce , intricate and difficult . That which I advise is only this ; As soon as you have cut or prickt your self , or perceive any of the before-mentioned Accidents to trouble you , and that your Flesh is envenomed , suck it with your Mouth , and spurt out what you draw from it , and continue so to suck ever now and then ; the more constantly you do it , the sooner the Cure will be effected . But if the Hurt be great or dangerous , then for the more speedy and certain Cure , you ought to put Milk , or Milk and Sugar in your Mouth , and so suck the part afflicted , and then spurt it out , and repeat it several times , and then let it rest a while , and afterwards do the same again ; and if your Wound be great , or the Flesh raw , or some Flesh cut off ; then when you have done sucking of it one time , in the interim , till you come to suck it again , lay a Poultice of Bread and Milk on the place ; and next time you have suckt it , lay fresh on again . This is a certain Cure , if you continue it , and it will perform the work in a shorter time than any Plaisters , Oyntments , or any such things ; But sometimes the Venoms of such Sores are so great , that it will require a proportionate time , and in such cases it will be requisite to suck it the oftner , and you need not despair of healing it to admiration . The same is to be understood of Wens and Moles . For the Attractive Faculty of the Mouth and Stomach is so strong , that it does by a secret power and virtue draw away the inward poyson that is kindled or awakened by such Accidents , and prevents the Flux of Humors ; for when any part of the Body is hurt or wounded , the Violence does certainly stir up or awaken the Mercurial Poysons of that part , which do not only cause the Flesh to burn and heat , but those Original Poysons do so violently attract matter unto themselves , that the Wound or Hurt will quickly swell or putrifie ; for the Attractive Faculty of Nature stands in , and hath its power from the Poysons of Saturn and Mercury . Now these Venomous Spirits that are so violently awakened by the Wound , the constant sucking with the Mouth , does in a secret and most hidden , but real and certain way , draw forth from the part afflicted , which does not only cool it , but hinders , and totally prevents the flowing of the Humors , from the adjoyning part , also dislodges the poysonous matter from that very part , so that by this way of Sucking , the Member or part where the Wound happens , is rather made less than bigger ; for that which causeth any Wound to swell and putrifie , is a certain Spirituous Poyson , which this attractive Faculty of the Mouth does draw forth , and spits it away , so that then the Flesh will not heat , swell , nor putrifie . For the same Reasons , Dogs , and some other Creatures do certainly cure any Wound they receive , or other Accident of like Nature , by their continual Licking of their Hurts ; for when those hot Venoms are removed , Nature needs no other Remedy , but can help her self by her innate power . Therefore in managing of the Cure of all Hurts or Wounds , the Artist's chief work should be to allay or draw forth those original Poysonous , hot Sulpherous Spirits , that are so violent in their Operation , that they cause that part to burn , swell and rage with great extremity of Pain . For when , in any part of the Body the pure essential Spirits and Balsamick Virtues are wounded or hurt by any kind of Violence , presently the Original or fierce Brimstony Spirits are awakened , and then they appear in their own Form , which so long as the pure Spirits and Balsamick Oyl remained entire , were hid , or rather moderated and burned gently and friendly , and gave life and motion to Nature ; but as soon as the pure Oyl and Spirits are wounded , the aforesaid latent fierce Spirits break forth , and shew themselves , and become of a furious Nature and Operation . The very same is to be understood in the Vegetable Kingdom ; if you destroy the pure Spirits and sweet Oyl , or Balsamick Virtues , in any thing , then the original Forms of Saturn and Mars appear , as is manifest in Charcoal and Brandy . For all things , both Vegetables , Animals and Minerals , have but one only ground and foundation , and he that understands one , by the same Spirit may see into the Grounds and Reasons of them all ; Nay , the chief Cause and Foundation of all Diseases and Distempers in the Body is from the same Ground ; for when by Accidents or Intemperance the pure Natural Spirits and sweet Oyl in the Body suffers Violence , be it in what part of the Body it will , then presently the Poysons in that part are stirred up , and then there is pain felt there , and thence follow those terrible Feavers and Diseases that destroy Life in a moment . The Mouth and Attractive Faculty of the Stomach does not only draw forth of the Wound , Bruise or Sore , green or old , the poysonful Spirits which cause Pain and Swelling , but by a secret Balsamick Virtue heal such Hurts . But where the Hurt is full of Matter , and subject to putrifie , then it will be convenient to put the Juice of Limes , Lemmons , or some such keen sharp Juice into your Mouth , and so suck your Wound , and spurt it out , and then take more into your Mouth several times , for several days together , and not be weary in a day , as some are ; for Nature cannot destroy those kindled Poysons in an instant , but it will certainly do it in a shorter time , than either Salves , Plaisters or Oyntments , viz. in two , three or four Days , most ordinary Hurts will be cured , if you apply your Mouth to the sucking of it often , both in the Night and the Day . And therefore I commend this way of Cure , especially to the Country-people , who often fall into such ill Accidents , as Cuts , Pricks , Thorns , Splinters , Bruises and the like , which often cost them dear , viz. the loss of an Hand or a Leg : Nay , many times in small Hurts in the Flesh , having no Understanding to help themselves , but relying upon other Unskilful People , many have not only lost their Limbs , but their Lives . But such as shall use the Means before-mentioned , shall by God's Blessing prevent all such Dangers . If the Wound or Hurt happen in a place where you cannot come at it with your own Mouth , you may get some Body else to do it . Also , it is convenient , that all Wounds , Prieks or Cuts , when first made , should be made to bleed as much as may be , without prejudice to the Body ; for in the Blood the fiery wrathful poysonous Spirits pass away , and then the Cure is effected much the soonner : But such as do not bleed , nor can be made bleed , are more dangerous and not soon or easily healed . Besides , it is to be understood , when the Wound bleeds freely , there is not any suffocation of the pure Volatile Spirits , or at least wise , not in that Degree , as when it does not bleed : For which cause , all such Beasts , Fowls or Fish , as are killed to be eaten , if they bleed freely , their Flesh becomes sweeter and pleasanter to the Pallate ; and easier of concoction , and breeds better Nourishment , and is far Wholsomer and Healthier than those Creatures that are strangled in their Blood , as many Land-Creatures are commonly , and Fish in general , which is Uncleanness in the highest Degree , and proves unhealthy to the Eaters thereof . But because this Remedy here prescribed , is so easily procured without Money or Price , and so truly Natural , I am still afraid that not only the Learned , but many of the Vulgar will despise this simple way : For Man is so depraved from the innocent Ways of God and Nature , that he despiseth all in comparison of his own Art , and most men esteem and give place to those things they do not understand ; and on the contrary despise and slight the things that they do know ; and so long as any particular thing remains a Mystery , they admire , but as soon as they come to know it , they trample it under their Feet with disdain . Therefore all the Phylosophical Ancients hid the Divine and Natural Reasons of Things , because they could not find any , or very few capable of that Doctrine . CHAP. XXI . Of Harmony , and the Power thereof ; the several sorts of Musical Instruments , and under what Planet and Sign each of them is . AS the end of natural Motions is Rest , and nothing more refreshes a Mind wearied with Labours than the sweet Airs of Musick and Harmony , so now drawing towards a Conclusion of this Treatise , I shall put a period thereto with some unvulgar Considerations of the Nature of Sounds and Melody . Of all kinds of Harmony , as well Vocal as Instrumental , whose variety is beyond any Humane Number , together with the various Notes , Cryes and Tones of Birds and Beasts , the Number Seven is the Radix , viz. the seven Properties or Constellations , as is manifest by the seven Notes or Distances on Musical Instruments , for those Seven Notes are the Basis of all Musical Composition . The Number Eight is a Beginning again , or a Replication or Repetition of the same . And which soever of these Seven Forms or Constellations does carry the Upper Dominion , either in any Instrument of Musick , Words , or Voices of Men , Sounds , Notes , or Cries of Birds or Beasts , that same Property does impress its Signature thereon : The same is to be understood of the variety of Shapes , Figures and Forms in the Animal , Vegetable and Mineral Kingdoms ; and also of Colours , there being but Seven Perfect Colours , from which a Skilful Painter can very lively imitate all Appearances , Shapes or Colours in the Universe , the Number Seven being the Fountain whence all the Wonders of the Creator do proceed , it being the highest Number in the outward Principle . Thus when the Saturnine Property shall have the chief Dominion or Government in any Creature or Instrument of Musick , then the Words , Voice , Cries , Tones or Sounds thereof are sad , hoarse , heavy , slow , melancholy and unpleasant , as if they were pressed to the Centre . But when Mars shall bear sway , then their Notes , Words , Cries or Sounds are rough , loud , fieree , sharp , threatning and jarring , as if the Centre of Wrath were kindled ; for this Cause all Words of Men , Sounds of Instruments , and Notes or Tones of other Creatures , in whom the Properties of Saturn and Mars do predominate , are dolorous , melancholy and frightful , as is manifest by all sorts of Wild Savage Beasts and Birds of Prey , as Wolves , Swine , Bears , Lyons , Owles , Kites , Ravens , &c. all which are chiefly under the Regiment of Saturn and Mars . But all Creatures and Instruments , in which Iupiter is predominant , their Sound , Words , Notes and Tones are grave , constant , sweet and friendly . Where Sol rules , they are venerable , filled with Majesty , and a certain kind of lofty Grace . When the Property of Venus bears sway , the Voice or Notes are delicate , fluent , merry , charming and voluptuous , carrying with them a sweet Violence . If Mercury have the greatest Interest , then they are more remiss and various , but very sweet and pleasant . And lastly , when the Moon shall have Dominion , the Tones , Sounds or Voices are loud , shrill , wanton and unconstant , yet fluent , pleasant , merry , and fit for Revelling . It is to be noted , that every particular Creature , but more especially Man , does contain the true Properties and Natures of all these seven Forms or Constellations , but that Form or Constellation which does predominate , does sign the Words , Sounds , Voices and Notes in each Creature , and all the other do follow and intermix their Sounds and Tones in subserviency therewith , that so in some , where the Properties are near an equality , 't is a difficult matter to judge what Quality is chief ; but those that can distinguish the Forms , and what Sounds each gives , may , with regard had to the shape and figure of each Creature , be capable to determine the Complexion , and what Property has the chief dominion over it . But still , it is to be noted , That each Creature can alter and vary its Words , Voice , Sounds and Notes by an innate Power according to the state of the Mind ; for the Will in all Creatures , according to the capacity and nature of each , is the Primum Mobile , having power as it pleaseth , and as occasion and necessity requires , to stir up and awaken other Centres or Natures , either for the better or the worse , as the Will shall give it self unto , or be precipitated in any of the Seven Forms or Properties , whence often do proceed various gestures , motions , words , sounds and voices , which do vary and differ from the predominant Quality of the Complexion , being at some times more sanguine , mild and friendly , but at other times fierce and angry , or dull , heavy , venomous and melancholly , or hollow and strained , as if Nature were forced out of her way . Thus 't is apparent Man may speak friendly to one , and fierce and doggedly to another at the same time , as his occasions , passions and interests are ; for every word , sound , voice , note or cry of Men and other Creatures , does not only declare what Centre and Property it proceeded from , and which does predominate in them ; but does also stir up the like Centres or Properties , and thereby excite those of their own kind to various Passions according to the equality or inequality of the Fountain , Spirit or Form whence they were generated , either to Love , Trouble , Ioy , Grief , Pleasure , Anger , Concord , or the contrary , and so make Impressions , and impose their Properties on those to whom they were directed : Every Word , Sound , Tone or Note having the Key in it self to open the Gate of its like Property , and there to joyn or incorporate ; for this cause , Angry words beget Anger ; and on the other side , A soft Answer turneth away wrath . Whence is manifested the great power and efficacy of words , sounds and harmony , especially if the Composition shall be agreeable unto , and follow the Coelestial Harmony , it will not only impose its own Properties on the Hearers , but begets friendliness and concord , powerfully attracting the benevolent Influences both of the Coelestials and Terrestrials , changing the Affections , Intentions , Gestures , Motions , Actions and Dispositions of the Auditors , quietly alluring them to its own Property . The grave consorts of Musick , both vocal and instrumental , are true similitudes of the Harmonical state man was created in , if he had not fallen there-from , and suffered his desires to enter into Inequality , where every Form and Property does strive with all its might to be Lord over the other , and so destroys all Harmony , and is the true Original of all Inequality and Discord , which is the Root of all Violence and Oppression : Whereas on the contrary , Harmony and Concord , whether it be external or internal , is in its own Nature innocent and friendly , the true fountain whence proceeds all Ioy and Pleasure , both in Angels , Men and all other Creatures , because they all originally were derived from Unity . All Instrumental and Vocal Musick , works various effects on the Hearers , according to the Equality or Inequality of each : The grave Consorts of Organ , Viol , and Voices , beget Gravity and composed Dispositions , and work so powerfully on some Sanguine-tempered People , as to make them forget all Troubles , Sorrows and Perturbations , raising up the hidden Properties of Nature and Phantasie to a state of Unity , that is , absolute Felicity , during the time of hearing such Harmonies : But others , who are of unevener Tempers , and further from Equality , both in their Humours and Elements of their Bodies and Minds , it makes worse condition'd , melancholly , sad and dull after a little time of hearing . This new change or alteration of Disposition , seeming burdensom to them , therefore such never care to hear Musick long , but had rather be entertained with the Noise of the Multitude , the Cries of deep-mouth'd Hounds , and Discourses of Vanity . There are other musical Harmonies that are light and wanton , as of Violins , especially when they shall play such Tunes or Lessons as are composed by , and proceed from the wild airy Phantasies of Venereal Musicians , which the present Age is pestered with , whose Imaginations are vain , lascivious and extravagant ; and when such Airs meet with suitable wild , wanton , amorous , youthful Hearers , they have power to stir up and impress their own Properties on them , by incorporating with their similies . Man is capable by his Will to work and to be worked upon by all things , as he immerseth his Will either into Equality or the contrary ; if the first , then his actions , words , &c. incorporate with all things that stand in equal weight and measure , which is the joy and solace of Nature : And so , on the contrary , Inequality and Discord move by simile likewise ; and therefore the holy Scripture faith , The Prayers of the Wicked are an Abomination to the Lord ; for the God of Love and Mercy cannot be moved , nor the Divine Influences attracted , but only those that do imitate him by living in Unity and Well-doing ; and such as live under the Government of the evil , unequal fiery Nature , cannot , either by their Words , Prayers or Works , move or attract any other Quality , but what is alike to their own Nature : And consequently the Addresses of the Wicked move God in the Principle of his Anger by simile , because all their Words and Prayers proceed from an evil Root . Thus Discord is the Root of all Evil , and the corruption of every Life , both external and internal , Death it self being nothing but a Contention , Strife , Disharmony and unequal operation of Nature , where the strong original Forms of Saturn and Mars do rage and domineer , and with a fierce hunger destroy and raven up the friendly properties and preservatives of Life . All Diseases and Infirmities , both of the Body and Mind , arise from the unequal operations of Nature ; and Health is nothing but Harmony , or an Agreement of the parts . It is also to be noted , that Harmony and Concord do contain the true Properties of all Elements , Forms and Constellations , even those strong fierce forms of Saturn and Mars , whence arises Envy , Strife and Contention ; but when these are united unto , and evenly managed by the friendly powers of Nature , they are the cause of all Ioy and pleasant Melody , there being no Evil but Inequality , where Nature is divided , and every property is in Rebellion , and endeavours to be Master : Therefore the Lord said in the beginning , That all things that were created , were good ; for neither the Name nor the Nature of Evil was existent , nor should ever have been known , if the Angels and Men had continued in that Harmony they were created in . There being no Evil where the Forms and Properties of the Divine and Humane Nature are united , nor any good , where they are separated from the Divine Principle , which is the friendly Fountain that qualifies and moderates the venomous , fierce raging Properties of Saturn and Mars : So that the very same Qualities that are the Root of Sorrow and Misery , both of Men and Angels , that live in , and under the dominion of the divided Forms and Properties , are the true cause of all Joy , Pleasure and Content to others that live in Unity and Concord , where all Forms and Properties embrace and court each other , whence doth arise and proceed the most harmonious Consorts and heavenly Joy : This is manifest in all Vocal and Instrumental Musick , ( which is a lively and true Similitude of the internal and mental Harmony , as that is the Root of this outward Melody ) . Are not the Saturnal and Martial Strings and Notes as material and useful as the Iovial and Venereal ? The first being the Base and Radix of all Composition , and the latter the Trebles ; the Basis gives Majesty , and the Trebles Sweetness ; the one being the Male , the other the Female , and by their Incorporating or Embracing each other , is begotten the true Harmony both of corporeal and incorporeal Bodies ; nor can it subsist or continue where there is a separation of those Properties ; if there were no Fire , there would be no Light. Hence it appears , that every thing is either Good or Evil , as it draws near , and unites it self , or is severed from that Fountain of Unity and Harmony whence it proceeds ; for this separation is that which is called the Degeneration or Evil. And as every Creature , both in the Animal , Vegetable and Mineral Kingdoms , stands near , or afar off the Unity ; so are they either Good or Virtuous , or Evil and Poysonous , according to the degrees of the Forms and Properties of the seven-fold Nature , which being near the Equality , denominates Men to be Sanguine ; as those who are more unequal in their Compositions , in several respects , are called Cholerick , Melancholly or Phlegmatick . And so in Beasts , Birds and Fish , those that are unequal in their Frame , are fierce , cruel and ravenous ; but those wherein the Properties are more mild , friendly , tame and better tempered , are called Clean , and the other Unclean ; The same is to be understood of all Vegetables and Fruits ; not but that the evil and venomous Qualities in themselves , and rightly managed , are altogether as useful as the Pure , being the original of Life , and cause of Motion ; so that there is nothing bad that the Lord has made , but as it becomes separated from its Original state of Unity and Harmony . 2. Of all sorts of external Harmony , Vocal has the highest Graduation , and is not only best liked , but makes the greatest Impression on the Hearers ; forasmuch as it ariseth by an Harmonious consent of the humane Soul , having a nearer Affinity to their Fantasies , than the Sounds of Instruments , by which it easily penetrates by its Motions the well-tempered Air , and so into the airous Spirits of the Hearers , transferring the Affections of the Singer , and piercing even into the Inwards of the Soul. For all Harmony , both Vocal and Instrumental ( but especially the former ) have a certain secret Power to moderate various Passions and Diseases , especially when they happen to be more Mental than Corporeal ; for then if the Lessons , Compositions , Instruments and Genius of the Musician , shall by sympathy correspond , and agree with the dismayed Property of the Distempered , it will by degrees raise and strengthen the weak Properties , and bring Nature into a more equal Operation , Great , various and wonderful are the Uses , Effects and Benefits of Harmony , Unity and Concord ; it is certainly the true and real Paradisical Life ; The Instrumental and Vocal being a shadow or similitude of the Inward or Heavenly ; and as it contains many great Secrets ; so if used in the fear of God , its Effects then prove beneficial ; but if contrariwise it be practised , it becomes the greatest Curse ; for the higher any thing is graduated in Nature , if not well used , the Evil thereof becomes the greater . What Sounds and Tones proceed from the four Elements respectively . From the Earth , proceeds heavy , dull , slow , melancholly Tones and Sounds , rather a Noise than Harmony , mournful and unpleasant ; she never insnareth any by her Charms . From the Water , flow various , mixed , wanton Tones and Sounds , as it were unconstant . From the Fire , sparkles up a brisk lively Harmony , but fierce and penetrating , loud and jarring . From the Air , are breathed in sweet , ravishing , harmonious Tones and Sounds , Sanguine and delightful ; this Element being the Radix of all Sounds and Harmonies . What Planet and Constellation governs each Instrument of Musick . Bells are under Mars and Saturn , and the Sign Aries : They afford a Melancholly harsh sort of Musick , loud and penetrating ; their dolesome Tones are from Saturn , suitable to accompany dying Groans , and attend Mourners at Funerals ; their harsh jarring Sounds proceed from Mars ; They are most adopted to Robustick Natures , who generally take the greatest delight in their Harmony : Ringing , moderately used , is a good Exercise for strong Bodies ; but rude , and not so delicate and genteel , as the practice of other sorts of Musick ; and is also apt to be prejudicial by too much Violence . Drums are under the dominion of Saturn and Mars , in the Signs Capricorn and Aries , which their dull , heavy , melancholly , rattling , jarring Sounds do manifest ; for as they arise from the dark wrathful Centre in Nature ; so they carry with them the power of the same Properties , and therefore do encourage Wrath and Violence , the pleasant Element of Air , which is the Life of all Harmony , is here encompassed or penned up so close , that it cannot have its free Egress and Regress , which suffocates the thin spirituous Vapours thereof , and that causeth Sounds , heavy dull and frightful . The Air being the pleasant Life in all things , and the original of all Sounds , Voices and Harmony ; and in what Things , Instrument or Creature soever the Properties of Saturn and Mars are strong , and the sweet Influences of this Element obstructed , from that Thing or Creature can proceed no delightful Sounds or Mélody , but dull , heavy , dolorous Jarrings , Noises or Sounds ; for there is no true Life , Light , Harmony , or pleasant Sound can arise from any , in which the Properties of Nature are unequal in their qualifying or operation ; for then the wrath of Nature becomes fierce and raging , and destroys the Moderator or friendly quality , and so Nature can no longer continue in equal weight and measure . Trumpets are under the dominion of Mars , but their Sounds and Harmonies are of a two-fold Nature and Operation ; they have their fierce encouraging wrathful Sounds from Mars , and their losty Majestical Harmonies from Sol ; they afford a Masculine Musick , which encourages Warlike Inclinations and Dispositions , animating both Men and Beasts , with a certain delight and Warlike Charming . Bag-Pipes are under the dominion of Venus and Mars , in the Sign Scorpio ; this sort of Musick is sometimes used in Wars , but the Sounds and Harmonies thereof are more Effeminate and Venereal , than Martial , fitter for Peace than War , and for the Shades of Venus than the Fields of Mars , being an excellent sort of Harmony for Shepherds , to entertain their innocent Flocks with , which Sheep much delight in . Organs are under the Empire of Iupiter and Sol , in the Sign Leo ; the Sounds and Harmonies of this Instrument are Great , Noble , and full of Majesty , Sweetness , and Gravity ; they seem to be as much Divine as Humane , or to afford some Glimpse or Simile of the heavenly Joy and Consort ; in this Instrument the Air , and the pure thin Spirituous Vapours thereof have their free Influences , whence those lofty brave friendly Sounds and Harmonies do proceed . Waits are under the Dominion of Iupiter , in the Sign Libra ; the Sounds and harmonious Consorts of this Instrument are great , noble , and pleasing to Nature ; but if the Players thereon be not well skilled , they quickly awaken Mars's property , which causeth the Sounds to be a little too loud , rough , ratling , or jarring . Flutes or Recorders are a brave noble Instrument , being skilfully handled , and make some of the best Harmonies of Pipes , being agreeable to both Vocal and Instrumental Musick ; their Sounds and harmonious Tones are grave , and full of Majesty , attractive and delightful , especially in open Fields , and near Rivers and Fountains of Water , being under the Dominion of Iupiter and Mercury , in the Sign Sagitary . Flagolets are under the Dominion of Mercury and the Moon , in the Sign Cancer ; this Instrument is not so noble as the former ; its Sounds and Harmonies are more Youthful than Grave , being a good Field-Musick , more proper for Shepherds and Herds-men , or Carters , and drivers of Horses , and the like , than for Consorts in Houses , being shrill , loud , penetrating and violent ; but if well handled , it makes pleasant Harmony in open clear still Airy places . Hautboys are much of the Nature of the last , being under the Dominion of the Moon and Mars , in Cancer , a good Field-Musick , for such as look after Cattel ; but not proper for House-Consorts , unless the Player have greater skill , and a better hand than is common ; its Sounds being wild , loud , and penetrating . The Base-Viol is under the Dominion of Iupiter and Sol , in the Sign Libra ; its Sounds and Harmonies are Grave , Noble , Great and Delightful , Pleasant and Alluring : but the Musician must have skill and hand , or else Mars will spoil the Harmony by his rough jarring Sounds . Violins are under the Dominion of Venus and the Moon , in the Sign Gemini ; this Instrument affordeth much Harmony ; but it is more Airy , Brisk , Youthful and Effeminate , than Grave ; but Delightful , having a sweet charming violent Operation . The Harp is an Instrument as Excellent as Ancient ; it is endued with great Variety , and if skilfully handled , its pleasant Sounds and Harmonies quietly allure all things that are capable of its Influences , to its own property , being under the Dominion of Venus and Mercury , in the Sign Libra . The Lute affordeth most pleasant , soft , friendly Harmonies , having a sweet Violence , and Attractive Operation , but Effeminate ; 't is under the Dominion of Venus and Mercury ; its sweet attractive Sounds and Harmonies arise from the Properties of Venus , and its Variety from Mercury . The Harpsicals are under the Rule of Venus and Mars ; from the former it derives its sweet Sounds , and the jarring rough Ringings are from the latter ; but if the Musician have skill and hand , it maketh excellent Harmonies , and great Variety ; its Sign is Aries . The Gitarr is under the Dominion of the Moon and Venus , in the Sign Taurus ; the Player on this Instrument ought to have both good skill , and a ready hand , or else Mars will step in with his jarring Tones and Sounds . Cyterns and Gitterns are under the Moon and Venus , in the Sign Sagitary ; being well managed , they yield pleasant , soft , effeminate Harmonies . Of the Power and Virtue of Mental , Vocal , and Instrumental Harmony ; that it can pacifie Wrath , and the contrary . All men do endeavour by a secret and natural Inclination , to draw all things unto their own Property , Understanding and Life , whether it be good or evil , equal or unequal ; and into what property or principle soever he doth precipitate himself , that same quality does reign in his Thoughts and Will , and hath the Key in its self to unlock all Nature's secret Cabinets , and by its Rays can penetrate into the Depths ; and wheresoever it finds its Simile , there it incorporates and joyneth Forces , and so becomes strong and powerful , and its contrary is dismayed and weakened : This is manifest in all unequal passionate Words and Discourses , and also in friendly Harmonies and Speeches ; every Word , Sound or Cry , stirs up to Love , Anger , Concord or Discord , according to the principle of that Root , or predominate power from whence it proceeded . And these Sympathetick Operations of Nature and their Antipathies , have far greater power and efficacy in and upon the humane Nature , or Minds of Men , than on Inanimates , they having a near Affinity in their Basis ; therefore Concord and Discord , or Love and Anger , do move by Simile more quick than Lightning ; for all things do naturally incline to the Centre ; and as Men by Words and Actions can and do move each other to Friendship or Hate , the same is to be understood of all other things , according to the capacity of each , as all robustick , rough , killing Imployments , do secretly stir them up to Wrath , Discord and Inhumanity , as the contrary Trades do beget more humane or tractable Dispositions . And so in the same manner , and more effectually , does Musick work upon the Mind and Passions of Man : This the Kingly Prophet David was sensible of , when he harmoniz'd and play'd on his Harp to King Saul , in whose Soul he perceived was kindled the Wrath , and the unequal Powers of Nature ; which the Mental and Instrumental Harmony of David did asswage or mitigate , by awakening and strengthening its Simile , and by its friendly Influences compose , and as it were by a sweet Violence , chase away Inequality , Discord , and Enmity . For there is as great a power in Harmoney to kindle and beget its likeness , as in Wrath to stir up Discord . Thus Saul as it were unawares suffered his Will and Spirit to entertain the internal and external Harmonies , that proceeded from David , which did by a certain Gleam or Ray penetrate Saul , and incorporate with its Simile , and moderated the Dis-harmonious , Envious , Evil Spirit in Saul , raising those Properties that were too flat ; and on the other side , letting down those that were too sharp and fierce , even as a Musician Tunes his Instrument , there being a Sympathetical Operation between the inward and the outward Harmony , as appears , 2 Kings 3. where the three Kings and their Hosts were like to perish for want of Water , which came to pass through the Dis-harmony and Inequality of the Elements and Constellations ; for whensoever any Element or Property does too violently predominate , it destroys the Harmony and Well-being of the whole , and Nature becomes like an Instrument out of Tune : For this cause the Prophet Elisha called for a Minstrel or Musician , that is , for Harmony , viz. for a quiet still state of mind , not only to shew the three Kings what Life they ought to live , who were departed from Unity and Concord , but also the Prophet desired to be tuned and composed , which would render him fit for , and capable of that Divine Work which he was to do : For when the King of Israel , and the other two , came first to him , he seemed to be somewhat Angry , or in Wrath with him , saying to the King , Get thee to the Prophets of thy Father ; what have I to do with thee ? As if he should say , Thou art in the way of Wickedness , Idolatry , Violence , and Oppression . This answer was uneven , as if it proceeded from some Passion or Intemperance of Mind ; but the King of Israel not being moved to any degree of Inequality , but answered mildly and friendly , with a yielding and penitent Voice ; Oh! Nay , the Lord hath called these three Kings together , to deliver them into the hand of Moab . This Humility and Temper in the King begetting its own Property in the Prophet , he then calls for the Musician , viz. for Concord and Harmony ; and in the time of this heavenly Consort , the Hand of the Lord came upon him , and the Divine Power did arise in him , and he prophesied from an equal Motion , and holy driving both of the Divine and Natural Properties , as well of the External as the Internal Nature ; then there followed a Sympathetical Operation of the Forms , an Incorporating and Harmonizing with each other ; and so the Element of Water was excited and strengthened , which before was weakened , and made as it were to disappear by the predominancy of the Element of Fire ; for when the Elements have their Qualifyings and Operations in Equality and Concord , this is the true Musick of Nature , the Harmony of the Mycrocosm . Harmony being the true Centre of all External and Internal Felicity , wherein all things rejoyce ; as the contrary , is the Displeasure , the Vexation , the Terror , and the Torment of the whole . In the first of Chronicles we read that Four thousand of the Priests and Levites praised the Lord on Instruments of Musick by David's appointment . And 2 Chron. 5. One hundred and twenty Priests blowed with Trumpets , and so agreed with the Voices , that it seemed but one Voice , and when they lift up their Voices with the Trumpets and Cymbals , and other Instruments of Musick , the House of God was filled with a Cloud , so that the Priests could not endure to minister , by reason of the Cloud ; for the Majesty of the Lord filled the House . Here the Mental , Vocal and Instrumental Harmony of the People did by a secret attraction draw forth and incorporate its self with the inward and holy Harmony , so that the Glory of the Lord appeared externally ; there was an inward Life , Power and Agreement in the minds of the Musicians , and whole Congregation ; all was done in the Unity of the Spirit , and to the Glory of the Lord. But on the contrary , as Amos has it , Chap. 6. Those that sit on the Stool of Wilfulness , and lie on the Beds of Ease , and practise Wantonness upon their Couches , and eat the best Lambs of the Flock , and slaughter the fattest Calves of the Droves , and that sing to the Lute , and in playing on Instruments of Musick compare themselves to David , and drink Wine in Bowls , ( that is , to superfluity and excess ) and anoint themselves Effeminately with Oyl , and yet have no Bowels of Compassion , nor Commiserate the Afflictions of Joseph ( that is , the Miseries of their Brethren and fellow-Creatures ) but crucifie the Lord of Life , ( that is , the Divine Principle , by their Discord , Oppression , and Intemperances ) shall be the first that shall be led away into Captivity : For every Thought , Word and Work follows the Principle from whence it proceeds ; and as every Man shall apply Musick , or any other thing , either to the glory of God , or to his vain Glory , Vanity or Lusts , so it becomes either good or evil to him . So that what is a Blessing to one Man , proves a Curse to another ; and that which some honour the Lord withal , others do dishonour him with . And as in a well-tuned Instrument , the Strings being struck or played upon , will make the Strings of another Instrument , tuned to the same Key , to move , shake or tremble ; The same , and far greater Sympathy is to be understood in the humane Nature , though in so secret and imperceptible a manner as to outward Sense , that many Thousands are wounded or impressed with the Influences , before they perceive , or are aware of it . He that has not the Fear of the Lord , and the Knowledg of God in himself , is liable to be hurt by most things , not only in playing upon Instruments of Musick , as Amos hath it , but in and by all other things ; therefore as the Wise Man saith , Even in Plowing of Land we ought not to make others Rules our Prescriptions , so as to imitate them like Apes ; nor ought we to be froward and averse to it , because many in former Ages , or in the present , have or may use Musick as a Companion of Debauchery , or enticement to Evil , to the dishonour of their Creator , and the hurt of themselves : But all men ought to be sober , and use things to their right ends , for which they were designed by God and Nature , and then whatever they take in hand , will prove good and profitable unto them . Wherefore most convenient it is for every particular Man and Woman to search and examine themselves , that they may come to understand what Spirit and Principle has dominion in and over them ; if it be the Divine Principle and Voice of Wisdom , then it will lead them into the heavenly Harmony , where all the various Properties and Qualities of Nature do in friendly manner embrace each other , whence proceeds an eternal Peace and Consort . But they that shall find the Spirit of Envy , Strife , Back-biting , Jeering , Scoffing , Uncleanness , Vanity , Oppression , Killing , and the like , to bear sway in their Minds , and reign in their Hearts , such cannot make any pleasant Harmony , but altogether the contrary , a most unpleasant Noise , burthensome to themselves and the whole Creation . But by the way , it is to be further considered , that there is no possibility that any should obtain that sublime State of Unity and Concord , and to have Peace and Good-will for the whole Creation , except there be a continual Self-denial ; no Observations or Medium , tho they be agreeable seemingly to Scripture , will do ; Men must not stand still in the Wilderness , but press on towards Perfection in perseverance . Many in this Age have been taught this by woful Experience : At first , when the Day did begin to dawn , and the Star of God's Eternal Love to shine in them , whereby they saw the Errors of their Ways , whence did arise Self-denial and Scruples , as to the Modes and Customs of Egypt , and the vain Multitude . If such had not stood still and fixed themselves in some outward Forms , but followed like the Ancient Sages of the East , the Conduct of that heavenly Star , till they arrived at the place where the Child Iesus was born , they might have travelled without stop or hindrance , through the unequal ways of this World , and the Heathenish Customs thereof , and arrived at the Coelestial Canaan , a Land flowing with Milk and Honey , and entred into the ravishing Harmonies of the New Ierusalem . But too many , after a few Steps in this Holy Iourney , having denied themselves the Superfluities and Vanities of the World , as some would not eat Flesh , because it could not be procured without breaking the Harmony and Unity of Nature , and doing what one would not be done unto , and refrained many sorts of Plays and Vain Exercises , and Riding in Coaches and Chariots , and unnecessarily on Horses , for fear Pride should get the Dominion , going on Foot being generally esteemed Poor and Base , as tho the Creator had not given Man Feet and Legs for that use ; and also were wary of gratifying their sensual Appetites with various sorts of Meats and Drinks , both in Quantity and Quality ; but because they did not persevere , but looked back towards Sodom and AEgypt , became Pillars of Salt , and fell in the Wilderness . And the Reason is , they gave themselves liberty , and so went back by degrees , and before they were sensible , were again ensnared and entangled in the Vanities of the World , and so deprived of those blessed Talents which before they enjoyed . A wise consciencious Scruple , and Self-denial , are always the fore-runners of true Wisdom , if diligently pursued and improved , being the ways by which the Spirit of God hath dealt with Man in all Ages ; thereby giving him a right Understanding and Distinction of what things are good , wholsome , and profitable , and what not . And this tenderness hath generally the greatest power and vigour in the beginning , as all that have travelled in this way can witness ; but in process of time , if there be not great Diligence used , this Divine Seal becomes defaced , and the Scruple grows less and less , and a certain Freedom appears to the Understanding , which is the only time of Trial , and the hour of Temptation . Most lose ground when they come to this state , by purposing to themselves the using of those things moderately and temperately , which formerly they have spent in superfluity , and of late have altogether declined ; but with Colour of using moderately , many are ensnared , and by degrees led again into Captivity . It being for Example , more difficult to drink Wine with a just Moderation , than to drink no Wine at all . And 't is the part of a wise Man , if he sees an hundred things lawful , to deny himself of ninety of them , being certain of this , that every inferior thing a Man toucheth , or communicateth with , has a special Power and natural Inclination to beget its own property , and by degrees enslave the more noble Properties in Man. Therefore 't is safer to deny ones self many of those things that are lawful and mean , as well as those things that are not , because Men has Power either by Sense or Understanding , to hinder the Influences and Spiritual Impressions of Nature , if he shall joyn himself to any thing , whether it be Meats , Drinks , Imployments , or Communications ; there being no Caviates that can prevent those Inconveniences , but only Scruple and Self-denial , which has been , and alone is the first step , and also the last , to all Virtue and Wisdom . He that can regulate himself and his Imaginations , Words , Communications , Meats , Drinks , and Imployments , may preserve his Spirit pure and potent , and make his Soul thereby an unpolluted Temple of God , which is the Supream Musick attainable , where all the various Forms do incorporate and imbrace each other in an holy Consort of Love , and where there is no despising , envying , or persecuting of one another , because they are of different Forms , Shapes , Figures , Complexions , Inclinations , or Understandings , of which Vocal and Instrumental Harmony is a true Similitude . Therefore it is much to be pitied , that those that are Players on Instruments , and skilled in Musick ; be not more Temperate , Sober , Grave , and Wise ; for the wicked Wantonness and vain Lives of some of them , have brought a Scandal on Musick ; and most People being ignorant of the Nature and Eccellency of Harmony , have charged Musick as tho that had been the chief Cause of those Evils some of them have committed against God , Themselves , and the Law of Nature . But this is a grand Mistake ; for the Original Cause of all Evil and Sin proceeds from a Man 's own Lusts and Passions , and not from any outward thing . 'T is true , Man hath the two Seeds and Tinctures in himself , and as he shall give his Will up unto either Evil or Good , so he has power to attract unto himself either Virtue or Vice out of all things , and also to use them either to the Praise of his Creator , or profit of himself , or the contrary ; as the Apostle saith , Unto the Pure , all things are Pure ; but to the perverse the contrary ; for the Lord appears to every Man , either in his Love or Anger , according to what Principle he hath suffered his Will to enter into , as the Scripture saith , That the Lord is an angry jealous God , and a consuming Fire : And yet again it saith , That he is a merciful gracious God , full of Love and Pity , and will shew Mercy unto the third and fourth Generation of those that fear his Name , and live in Unity . Therefore Musick is not at all to be contemned or slighted for the badness of some that pretend to its outward Practice , for they still are Strangers to its inward Power and Efficacy . For Concord and Harmony are the best Accomplishments and sublimest Gifts that can be attained in this World , the pleasures of Time and Eternity , enduing both Soul and Body with perpetual Health , it being that happy state which Man , and all other Creatures do travel with great Desires and Groanings to be delivered unto , even that holy Unity whence all proceeded . But Unity , Concord , and Intellectual Harmony , have hardly any thing in the hearts of Men ; for if they had , then there would be Peace and Love , not only amongst Men , but to the whole Creation ; for that Paradisical State in this World , which many have hoped to see , and do expect shall come , viz. that all Mankind shall live in perfect Love , Concord , and Harmony , can never be expected to come to pass , except Men do take other Measures than hitherto they have done . For before any can attain to such a blessed harmonious Condition , he must first live in the Observation of God's Law in the outward Nature ; for the greater cannot be understood , if the lesser be not put into practice . Man cannot by his Prayers move the Lord in his holy Fountain of Love , except he lives in the Power and Operation of the same Fountain ; nor can attract the sweet Influences of the Elements and Coelestial Bodies any other way , but by living and observing the simple innocent Law of Nature . For this cause , those that live under the Dominion of the Spirit of Discord , Pride , Envy , and Contention , their Devotions cannot move the Lord in this principle of his Love and Mercy ; but on the contrary , moves him in the stern Wrath , and therefore is said to be an Abomination unto him . For this Reason there ought to be more care in every one to know what Spirit reigns in the hidden Ground of the heart , than about outward Forms : Every one that feareth God and worketh Righteousness , saith the Apostle , is accepted of the Lord ; who makes no difference of Forms ; for every Form is either Good or Evil , as the People are either Virtuous , or the contrary . Therefore it is highly necessary for every one to study the knowledg of himself , that he may understand the differences of Spirits , and from what Fountain or Property every Thought , Word , and Work , does proceed ; and to recommend and promote such Self-study and Heart-knowledg , is the scope of this whole Treatise , which being once attained unto , a Man may be able to correct himself , and Tune his own Instrument ; whence will proceed Concord , Love , and Harmony , without which there is no Satisfaction either in this World , or that which is to come : For to fear God , and keep his Commandments , is the true Musick which all Mankind ought to be skill'd in , and practise . This is both the Glory and the Happiness , the Ioy and Solace of created Beeings , the celebrated Musick of the Spheres , the Eocho of Heaven , the Business of Seraphims , and the Imployment of Eternity . Amon. FINIS . A DIALOGUE Between an East-Indian Brackmanny , OR Heathen-PHILOSOPHER , AND A French-Gentleman , Concerning the Present Affairs in EUROPE . LONDON : Printed for D. Newman , and R. Baldwin ; at the King 's - Arms in the Poultrey , and near the Oxford-Arms in Warwick-Lane . 1691. A Dialogue between an East-Indian Brackmanny , or Heathen Philosopher , and a French Gentleman , &c. Heathen . SIR , I will not be so inquisitive as to ask what Accident or Occasion brought you into these Oriental Regions . Be it either Curiosity , or Business , a natural desire of improving your Understanding , or intension of Commerce , I speak you heartily welcome , and shall to my power be ready to serve you , esteeming it both my Duty and my Happiness , to do good Offices to all the Creation , and especially to Strangers , as standing manytimes most in need of them . French-man . Worthy Sir , your Civilities have rescued me from that common Error of thinking , that out of Europe , or the Pale of Christendom , dwells nothing but Rudeness and Barbarism . I find no less Courtesie in this , than in the other Hemisphere ; and perceive People may be born at some thousand Leagues distance , under different Climates , and where the same Stars are never seen ; nay , which is more , under various Religions and Rites of Worship , wholly strange to each other , and yet may agree well enough , if they would give their minds to it , in the practice of the common Duties of Humanity . Heathen . There is no doubt of it , Sir ; for the Modes and Customs of your Country differ just as much from Ours , as Ours do from Yours ; and therefore we are not for that vanity to scorn or laugh at , much less hate and plague each other ; but rather impartially consider which is most agreeable to Nature , to the noble divine Principle , and the real benefit of humane Life — But waving this Discourse , pray what is the present News in Europe ? French-man . That Question will lead us to the very Antipodes of what we were discoursing of ; for nothing is more frequent among us than Contentions , Controversies and Wars . Heathen . For what , I pray ? French-man . Some for Empire , some for Glory , but most about Religious points , and the nearest way to Heaven . Heathen . Now in my Opinion , neither of these things should administer occasion for such Violences and Confusions . For if men considered the weight and cares of Empire , those that are without it , would rather fly from , than fight for it . And that Prince's Dominions are wonderous small , that cannot imploy all his Vertues in meliorating his own Subjects , rather than in invading , oppressing , and ruining those of his Neighbours . Nor can I understand , that any Glory is to be got by destroying men . I think 't is rather matter of Praise to beget them . Your Alexander and yo●r Caesar ( for we have heard of their Names , and the former spread the Venom of his Ambition even into these parts ) made some Millions Fatherless , yet could neither of them boast of one Son of his own , but both died Childless . And then for Religion , that , methinks , should teach you quite the contrary , especially your Christian Doctrine , which ( I have heard ) enjoins you to love your Enemies , to turn the left Cheek to him that smiteth you on the right , &c. French-man . 'T is very true , the Principles of our Religion are such , but the general Practice now-a-days runs quite contrary . Heathen . And yet Practice is the Life of any Religion : If you do verily believe those Principles of Christianity to be true , why do you not follow them in your Conversations ? If you do not believe them , why do you call your selves Christians ? If you do believe them , and yet resolve not to practise them , you are wilful obstinate Rebels , and greater Affronters of Christianity than we that do not make profession of it . Can any thing be more absurd , than to turn Earth into a kind of Hell , under pretence of driving men to Heaven ? and to commit Murthers and Cruelties for the sake of the God of Life and Love ? Alas , Sir ! the Infinite Deity delighteth not in Manslaughter ; Strise , War and Contention enter not into his Tabernacle : Above , all is clear , bright , serene , calm and quiet ; 't is in the lower Regions of the Air only , that Storms are generated , and Thunder and Lightning break forth . God is no Respector of Persons , but ( as your own Prophets say ) every one that doth well is accepted of him ; he causeth the blessed and glorious Body the Sun to shine on the just and unjust , and commands the sweet Influences of the Coelestials to fall upon all : The Blessings of the four Worlds are equally distributed to all men , as well Inferior as Superior . He sustains and preserves the universal Systeme of Nature by the hand of his out-spread Providence ; and when the Sons of Men , by their sinful Vanities , Oppressions and Violences , have awakened his Wrath , he does not presently dart down the Thunder-bolts of his Vengeance on their guilty Heads , but first sends his Brackmannys to tell them of their Evil , and call them to repentance . And if Mankind will walk in the right Way , and dwell in the everlasting Regions of Bliss , they must endeavour to imitate their Creator , whence our Seers call Man the Image or Likeness of God , and the Horizon of both Worlds , since in him the Superiors and Inferiors are united . Now if People would study to be truly like their Maker , Violence , War and Oppression would have no place in the World. French-man . I perceive you are much for peace and quietness ; yours is a strange Religion indeed , that will not allow of the Noble Feats of Arms , and the Arbitrament of the Sword. Heathen . For ought I can hear , your Religion allows the same as little as mine ; and threatens , that whoever uses the Sword , shall perish by the Sword. French-man . And yet the Cause , or at least the Pretence of most of our Wars is Religion ; and 't is by the Profession of Arms that men amongst us become great and honourable . Heathen . If Killing be so honourable , Butchers sure with you are a worshipful Company . French-man . Butchers of Beasts are but meanly regarded , but Butchers of Men are celebrated as the only Hero's . Heathen . And after what fashion , I pray , do these Hero's live ? French-man . For the most part , they are such as love to eat to Gluttony , and think that day ill spent wherein they are not drunk ; their Discourse is nothing but Boasts and Rotomantado's , intermixt with such horrid Oaths and Blasphemies , that modest men tremble more at their Talk , than for fear of the fury of their Arms ; where-ever they come , they carry Ruine and Confusion with them , destroying Men , and debauching Women , deflouring of Virgins , ravishing of Matrons , Robbing , Plundering , firing of Houses , devouring what they can , and destroying the rest , is their Profession and Delight ; and this they call Living at Discretion . Heathen . If these be the Christian Hero's , I wonder what are your Devils ! I hope these are none of those that you said do contend so much about the Right way to Heaven . French-man . Yes , I 'll assure you , none more ready to Kill and Damn all that will not be of the Religion they pretend to . We have in our Country a parcel of People called Hereticks and Hugonots , their Conversation is generally Iust and Honest , and they are Peaceable and Obedient to their King , and as ready to serve him , and do good to their Neighbours , as any : But they will not join with us in our Religions , Opinions and Ceremonies . Heathen . As how , I pray ? French-man . Why , they will not acknowledge our supream Caliph at Rome to be Infallible : They will not say their Prayers to a Statue , an Image , or a Picture , because they fancy those fine things can neither hear them , nor help themselves : They will not own that the Bone , or a piece of the Garment of a Man , who is himself many Years agone dead and rotten , can Cure them of Diseases , or preserve them from Dangers ; But especially when we give them a piece of Bread , and tell them 't is Flesh , Blood and Bones , they think 't is Bread still , and are so impudent as to believe their own Eyes before the Dictates of our Priests . Heathen . Why , Do you your selves believe and practice these Absurdities ? French-man . Ye marry , and would burn you too , if you were in some parts of Christendom , and durst say you did not believe them as well as we . Heathen . Then I bless the good and infinite Being , that I have no business in such a Christendom . But pray proceed with the Story of your Hugenots . French-man . We endeavoured to suppress and , root them out by severe Laws , and open Wars ; but finding that Course ineffectual , we resolved upon a Stratagem to cut them off ; pretended to be very kind to them , and that we desired a perfect Reconciliation , and to that purpose made a Match between one of the chief of that Party , and a great Lady of ours ; to solemnize this Wedding , the principal Hugonots repaired from all parts of the Kingdom , and had the greatest Assurances given them of Friendship . But one Night whilst they suspected nothing , Souldiers being drawn together , at a certain Hour fell upon them in all parts of the City , destroying Men , Women and Children ; so that in two or three Hours time , there were above Ten thousand of their dead Bodies flung naked into the Streets , and the Channels flowed with their Heretical Blood : And at that time Messengers were sent to other Cities and Towns to do the like , so that in a few days there were above Forty Thousand of them slain . Was not this a noble Expression of Zeal for Religion ? Heathen . God keep such bloody Zeal still from our Indian Territories . Do your Priests allow of such doings ? French-man . Allow ! Yes , and applaud them too , they are the Men that excite us to these gallant Exploits ; and for a Reward for these Services , do forgive us all our Sins , and assure us of Heaven . Heathen . I know not what they may pretend ; but this I know , that God is Love , and that such barbarous Cruelties are to him an Abomination ; And to speak truth , so long as men continue Obstinate , Revengeful and Contentious , and suffer the wild savage Nature , and bitter Spirit , to reign in their Hearts , neither Men nor God can forgive them ; for Inequality and Discord cannot move Equality : such a Spirit is contrary to the Divine Nature , and therefore cannot expect Forgiveness till 't is changed and transformed . For men cannot draw nigh to the Fountain of Benignity , nor be heard of the Sovereign Being , but as they become like unto him , for every like is moulded by its likeness ; Blood requires Blood , but the Merciful shall find Mercy from the God of Peace and Compassion , whose Mercies never fail . For this cause we have for many Generations totally abstained from all Violence , Oppression and Killing , either of Man or Beast ; for the Groanings and Miseries of those Creatures that suffer Wrong , are the beginnings of Trouble and Sorrow to those that do it , and do certainly stir up and awaken the fierce Wrath in Nature , as the Loadstone attracts Iron . French-man . These are pretty Nations , but methinks impracticable : For if we Europians should live the Life you talk of , and lay aside Arms , and not vindicate our Religion and Liberties by the Sword , we should be over-run , and be made the greatest of Slaves . Have not you heard of the Inroad made ( at this instant ) by the Turks into Germany ? Now would you have us stand with our Arms across , and suffer them to over-run all Christendom ? Heathen . I pray , what do you account the occasion that moved the Turk to this Expedition . French-man . Why , the Emperor of Germany in certain of his Territories , had some of those Hereticks that I described to you but now , and he would force them to be of his Religion ; and to compel them therereunto , seized on their Priests , and clapt them into Dungeons and Prisons , where they were starved , and pined away in Want and Misery ; and others he sold for ▪ Slaves , and sent Soldiers amongst them to kill and destroy all that would not conform to his Ceremonies : Hereupon they took Arms in their own defence , and observing their Brethren to live free from such Violences , and enjoy their Religion under the Turks , paying only such Tribute , they desire the Turk to protect them , which offends the Emperor , and so the Quarrel encreasing , the Turks sends an Army against him . Heathen . This confirms and illustrates what I assert ; for here you see this Deluge of Calamity had not happened to Germany , had they not first stirred up the Wrath , and causlesly vexed their Neghbours . It appears plainly these Flames arise from Sparks of their own kindling ; besides , Experience shews , that none are such Vassals , and subject to so many Miseries , as those that give themselves to the use of Arms , viz. to Guns , Swords , and the like Weapons of Wrath , and most of them perish by the use of them . For our own part , 't is true , we do live in subjection , and under the burthen of many great Taxes , which are levied on us at the pleasure of the Princes we live under ; but then they protect us from the Injuries of the Multitude , allowing us our free Egress and Regress through their Dominions , and unquestioned Liberty for the Exercise of our Religion , and manner of living : They do not endeavour to peep into our Breasts , or examine our Opinions , or punish us for not thinking as they do . We go freely about our Occasions ; nor do they permit every Idle Fellow to take away our Goods , nor give us abusive Words , or hurry us to loathsome Prisons ; nor are our Sons forced into the Wars : They threaten no Punishment to us , provided we do not offend the Civil Laws ; for they matter not what gods we worship , nor after what fashion , so we are just to men , and live peaceably , and pay our Tribute . If they have our Money , they know they cannot want Men that will fight for two Pence a day : But we value our Health , our Lives , Liberties and Religion , more than Money . We all drink Water ; and the fragrant Herbs , wholsome Seeds , Fruits and Grains , suffice us abundantly for Food : Our Stomachs are clean , our Appetites sharp , so that we taste the inward Virtue of each thing , and sing Songs of Praise to the Creator , who affords unto us the plenty of the Earth , and the pleasant Dews of Heaven ; so that as Fish live in the Salt and Brackish Ocean , and yet their Flesh is fresh and sweet ; so we in the midst of a tempestuous troublesome World live Calm , and , as it were , in Paradise . French-man . I am glad to bear you esteem your selves so happy ; there are few Mortals that are so content with their Lot , but are whining , repining , complaining , and always on the Tenter-hooks of new Hopes and Desires . Heathen . And the reason is , because they forsake Nature , and let loose their Desires , which having once cast off the Bridle of Moderation , run on without stop or bounds . French-man . But I perceive you are for Liberty of Conscience , and that every one may follow his own Opinion and Phantasie ; and of so , we should have a mad World ; such a License is destructive to Government , and the very Nurse of Rebellion . Heathen . I do not well understand what you mean by Opinion and Phantasie , People will think as they list , do you what you can . But this I know , that he that fears God , and hurts not his Neighbour , oppresseth not the Creation , and obeys the Civil Laws of that Country he lives in , and freely pays all Duties and Tributes to the Prince that protect him , is a good and faithful Subject to God and his King. Nor have we any temptation to Rebellion , for to us all Governments are alike , as long as they protect us from Violence . I have read something of your Europian Affairs ; and if I mistake not , in France , Spain , &c. where the Laws are to force People to be all of a mind , there have been abundance more Rebellions , Insurrections , Plots and Conspiracies against the Government , than in Countries where Liberty of Conscience is publickly allowed ; whence I rather infer , that not the indulging , but restraining Liberty of Conscience is the grand Cause of those Disorders amongst you . 'T is certain , every man ought to have Liberty in Well-doing , and to be punished only for the contrary . And we Bannians scarce know any thing that is a greater Evil , than for men to contend , hate , envy , oppress , fight and destroy one another , because they are not in all particulars like themselves : For men naturally are as various in their Intellects , as in their Shapes , Forms and Complexions ; for the Shape and Form of every Body is according to the Nature , Equality , or Inequality of the Spirit . The Lord hath made all things to differ ; there is not any two things in the four Worlds alike in all particulars ; therefore whosoever is offended with another , because he is not persuaded , or does not understand just as he does , is in truth offended with his Maker , who is the Author of that Variety . If two things were exactly in all respects alike , they must become the fame ; the nearest similitude of things is made by casting them in a Mould , and yet even then they differ . French-man . You say right , and therefore to make all mens Understandings of a size , our Churchmen prepare Moulds for them , viz. Creeds , Liturgies , Systems of Divinity , and the like , wherein they cast and fashion all mens Understandings , so that none but must own these , though he do not understand a word of them ; nor must dispute them , though his Heart and his Brain tell him they are false and impious . Heathen . This is much such an Uniformity as I have heard in some of your Books , was practised by the Tyrant Procrustes , who dwelling near a common Road , seized all Travellers , and carried them to his Bed , which was framed exactly for his own Stature , and if their Bodies were longer , chopt off their Feet or Heads to make them fit ; and if too short , strained their Bones and Sinews out with Engines to a due proportion ; Was not this Gentleman a great lover of Decency , Order and Uniformity ? If there were not Variety , there would be no Motion , for it is the various working Power , and , as it were , Strife between the Properties that causeth all Vegetation and Manifestation ; if there were but one thing , there would be nothing , or a standing still , which the Iews great Prophet seems mystically to shew , when he saith , God made all things out of Nothing : For there was no Manifestation or Appearances before God moved himself on the Face of the Waters ; which moving seems to signifie the Strife of the various Forms , Qualities and Properties of the hidden Nature , without which nothing could be generated . But here I must be silent , for we are counted Heathens already , and I do not know what worse Censures may pass upon us , if we too far explain those Notions , which though founded in Nature , are yet so disagreeable to the Conceits and Practice of the Multitude . But this we are sure of , that men ought not to hate or suppress any thing but Evil ; for Man's most deadly Enemies are within himself ; whence one of the wisest of the Iews Kings affirmed , That he that overcame his own Lusts and Passions , was a greater Conquerour than he that subdued a City . French-man . For my own part I shall for the future be more careful how I credit Reports ; we in our Country are told by our Learned , that you are meer Heathens , Infidels , Idolaters and Worshippers of the Sun , Moon , and all the Host of Heaven . Heathen . I nothing wonder that you Europeans should be mistaken about us , who live so remote , since you seem so little to understand the Opinions of each other amongst your selves , every one misrepresenting the Sentements and Doctrines of all that differ from him . 'T is true , we do highly esteem and admire all the Heavenly Host , and those Refulgent Quires of the Coelestials , especially that glorious Eye of the World , the Sun , as being the Handy-works , and Wonderful Powers of the incomprehensible Creator , and think it part of our Duty to express our Gratitude and Veneration to the one onely Fountain whence all those amazing wonders proceed ; for he that contemns the Streams , cannot truly honour the Fountain . Do not your own Prophets teach you to Honour Rulers and Governours , because they derive their Government from God ? And if you do not only worship and bow the Knee one to another ( who are at best but brittle animated Dirt ) but also reverence the work of your own Hands , as a Man cloathed in goodly Raiment , and the like , how much more ought we to have in high Veneration those wonderful Fountains of Light , Heat , Motion and Vitality , which are the manifested Powers of God , and his upper Vice-gerents and Lieutenants over the Lower world ? Did not you tell me but now , that you esteemed your Hugonots worthy of Death or Persecution , because they would not pay Esteem and Adoration to a few painted Cloats , the Pictures of their fellow Creatures , which you call Saints , not knowing whether they be truly so or not ; and yet will you condemn our Brachmans , for directing their Esteem to these glorious Master-pieces of the Creation ? If you count such lifeless pitiful things , as Wood and Stone , or things painted and fashioned by Man , fit to be Representations of your Gods , and means whereby to enliven your Phantasies and Minds to an higher degree of Devotion ( which was the sole intent of the first Inventors of those things ) what regard then ought we not to have of those living Powers of God , the Coelestial Bodies , by whose sweet and friendly Influences all created Beeings are preserved and nourished ? What is more exciting to a well disposed Mind , than to behold that glorious Body the Sun , with the innumerable Train of Stars , and the various Species in the four Worlds ? or what doth more ravishingly declare the Greatness , Goodness , and eternal Wisdom of the immense Creator ? This is a Book we study , in which the grand Charter of Nature , and the Holy Mysteries of God are recorded , and we think we do not err in preferring it before the endless and contentious thwarting Volumes of the Talkative Philosophers and Wrangling Schoolmen . French-man . I have been told , and you seem to own it , That you will not Kill any of the inferior Creatures , nor eat their Flesh ; but I pray , hath not Man power to do as he pleaseth with those Creatures ? and were not they made for that very purpose ? Heathen . God hath made all Creatures inferior to Man , who hath freedom to use and do unto them all as he pleaseth , having free will to chuse either Good or Evil ; but he that follows the better , and leaveth the worse , chuseth the better part , and is made God's Friend , and in Amity with all the Creation ; for man is a likeness of all things , and contains their true Natures and Properties ; and therefore whatever he giveth himself unto , the same becomes strong in him , be it Virtue or Vice : For which cause , our well-advised Fathers commanded us , our Wives and Children , to abstain from all kinds of Violence and Oppression , especially to those of our own Species , that thereby our Souls might be preserved from being precipitated into wrath , and so retain Humanity , and the more noble Faculties of our Souls unspotted , as well as our Bodies rendred wholsome , clean , and fit to be Temples for the Divine Spirit ; esteeming Abstinence , Cleanness and Separation , to be the true paths that lead to all external and eternal bliss ; it being in our opinion an unfit , and altogether unworthy thing , that the great , noble and immortal Soul of man should so much degenerate from its high and illustrious Birth , as to joyn or suffer it self to be incorporated with the low and savage Nature of Beasts . Nor do we think it lawful for us to heat our Veins , and distemper our blood with Wine , since Water more kindly quencheth our Thirst ; the innocent and fragrant Herbs and Fruits of our Gardens afford us ample satisfaction ; and we should be ashamed to make our Bodies the Graves of the Inferiour Creatures . And tho our Princes are sometimes harsh and severe to us , yet we pacifie them with meek , submissive and humble Behaviour . And since as little as possibly we can , we hurt not any thing , therefore nothing hurts us , but we live in perfect Unity and Amity with all the numberless Inhabitants of the four Worlds , doing by them as we would be done unto , whereby we dis-arm their Rage , and their Fury finds no place against us . French-man . But pray tell me how long you have led this kind of Life ; and whether your Sons and Daughters do follow your Religion and Example ? for amongst the Europeans nothing is more common than for Youth to degenerate , and wander after the Multitude , and abandon their Fathers Rules , especially if they should be but half so singular as you are . Heathen . As for the Antiquity of our Course of Life , I think for the greater part , I may date it from the World 's Original . Your own Doctors teach , that Adam , the first Man , was placed in a Garden , and that the green Herb. and Tree bearing Fruit , was to be to him for Meat ; and do generally agree , that afterwards , at least during the Old World , viz. to the time of the Flood ( which was in the Year of the World , 1656. ) eating of Flesh was not allowed or practised ; and though afterwards it was practised , yet 't is probable it did not obtain with all : But there is reason to believe , that still the better and more reserved sort did abstain : For about the Year of the World , 3300. ( near the time that your holy Records mention Ierusalem to be besieged by Nebuchadnezzar ) we find the famous Philosopher Pythagoras flourishing , who expresly taught his Followers ( which by reason of his Parts and Virtues were not a few ) not to eat any Flesh , but content themselves altogether with Vegetables ; and this great Man travelling for the acquest and diffusion of Knowledge into divers parts , left not our India unvisited , and there planted this wholsome Doctrine , which ever since hath not wanted Observers , derived down by a continual Succession to our Times . 'T is true , our Ancestors have obliged us to some things , which may seem frivolous and vain , as not to kill any kind of Vermin , which are very offensive to the Life of Man : But indeed these Prohibitions well regarded , shew their more deep Wisdom and Fore-sight ; for they did consider , that their Philosophy would not only be embraced by Wise Men , but also by a great number of Fools ( as the most part of all Men are , in one thing or other ) and if they should have permitted them to have killed any kind of Creatures , the Foolish would have concluded , they might by the same Rule as well kill others , and so by degrees come to kill men , as most other Nations do . Besides , not only our cleanly regular temperate Lives free us from many of those Vermin wherewith others are troubled , but we take it for a Rule , that such as would live an abstemious separated Life from Evil and Violence , must refrain from some things that are lawful , as well as from those that are unlawful ; as one of your Prophets says excellently , All things are lawful , but not expedient . Touching our Sons and Daughters , they all constantly follow our Foot-steps , and it hath very rarely been known , that any of them have forsaken the Percepts of their Fathers ; being descended from a Root of Temperance and Equality , they are naturally Sober and Temperate , for they use not Tippling-Houses , nor spend their Patrimony in drinking Wine , Gaming , Debauchery and Gluttony ; so that the more Children we have , the Richer we esteem our selves , they proving no more chargeable to us , than Lambs do to Sheep : They all marry Wives of our own Tribe and Religion , and there is no Dispute about either Portion or Joynture : Their greatest Pleasure , and chief Recreation is to contemplate the Heavens , and their glorious Furniture , the Sun , Moon and Stars in their Various Motions and Configurations , as also the pleasant Gardens , Groves and Fountains , and to free the Inhabitants thereof from the Tyranny and Bondage of men , as much as in them lies : And so through the whole course of our Lives , abstaining from all that tendeth to Evil , and promoting what we can the good of the whole Creation ; we endeavour to imitate the adorable Maker and Conserver of the Universe , whose Off-spring we are , and in whom we live , and move , and have our Beeing . French-man You have not only gratified my Curiosity , but in several things informed my Understanding . And I heartily wish that your Virtue and Morality were crowned with true Christianity , and our Christianity embellish'd with the real practice of your Virtue , Temperance and Moderation . And so bid you Farewell . To shew that the recommending Abstinence from Flesh , is no new Upstart Conceit , I shall here add those notable Verses of the ingenious Poet Ovid , written above 1600 Years ago , in his Metamorphosis , as I find them translated by Sandys , where he brings in the famous Philosopher Pythagoras ( from whom the Indian Bannians derive their Doctrine ) thus discoursing . FOrbear your selves , O Mortals , to Pollute With wicked Food , Corn is the generous Fruit. Apples oppress their Boughs , plump Grapes the Vine , Thousand sweet Herbs , and savoury Roots combine With beauteous Flowers of most fragrant scent , Your nice and liquorish Pallates to content . The prodigal Earth abounds with gentle Food , Affording Conquest without Death or Blood : But Beasts with Flesh their ravenous Hunger cloy , And yet not all ; Horses in Pastures joy , So Flocks and Herds : But those whom Nature hath Endu'd with Cruelty and savage Wrath , Wolves , Bears , Armenian Tygers , Lyons , in Hot Blood delight . How horrible a Sin ! That Intrails , bleeding Intrails should Entomb ! That greedy Flesh , with Flesh should fat become ! Whilst by the Livers Death the Living Lives . Of all which Earth our bounteous Mother gives , Can nothing please , except thy Teeth in Blood And Wounds , and Stygian Fury be imbrew'd ? Nought satiate the wild variety Of thy rude Paunch , unless another dye ? That good Old Age , that Innocent Estate , Which we the Golden call , was fortunate In Herbs and Fruits , her Lips with Blood undy'd ; Then Fowls through th' Air their Wings in safety ply'd ; The Hare then fearless wandred o're the Plain , Nor Fish by their Credulity were slain . Nor taught , was Man , that fawning Treachery , All liv'd secure , till he that did Envy ( What Daemon e're it was ) those harmless Cates , And cramb'd his Guts with Flesh , set ope the Gates To cruel Crimes . But first , these slaughtering harms , A fire of Zeal at Holy Altars warms ; Enjoyning Sacrifices with the Blood Of Savage Beasts , which made our Lives their Food . Thus the Wild Boar for rooting up the Corn , And leaving painful Plough-mens hopes forlorn , Was thought to merit Death : Vine-brouzing Goats Do next to angry Bacchus yield their Throats . What harm have poor Sheep done , whose Udders swell , And yield of Nectar a perpetual Well ? Supplying Man with their soft Wooll , and are Alive than Dead , more profitable far . Or what the Ox , a Creature without Guile , Inur'd to Patience , and continual Toil ? He most ungrateful is , deserving ill The gift of Corn , that can Unyoke , then Kill . The Husband-man that Neck with Ax to wound , Is too severe , that plow'd his stubborn Ground ; So oft till'd , so many Crops brought in , Yet not content therewith , ascribes the Sin To guiltless Gods , as if the Powers on high In Death of labouring Innocence could joy . Whence springs so dire an Appetite in Man To interdicted Food ? O Mortals ! can Or dare you feed on Flesh ? Henceforth forbear , I you intreat , and to my words give ear , When Limbs of slaughtered Beasts become your Meat , Then think and know , that you your Servants Eat . FINIS . Notes, typically marginal, from the original text Notes for div A63817-e5040 Numb . 11. 4 , 18 , 22.