THE ANSWER OF JOHN BASTWICK, Doctor of Physic, To the Information of Sir JOHN BANKS Knight, Attorney universal.  
IN WHICH There is a sufficient Demonstration, That the Prelates are Invaders of the King's Prerogative Royal, Contemners and Despisers of holy Scripture, Advancers of Popery, Superstition, Idolatry and profaneness: ALSO That they abuse the King's Authority, to the oppression of his loyallest Subjects, and therein exercise great cruelty, tyranny and injustice; and in the execution of these impious performances they show neither wit, honesty, nor temperance.  
NOR That they are either Servants of GOD or of the KING (as they are not indeed) but of the Devil: being enemies of God and the King; and of every living thing that is good.  
All which the said Doctor Bastwick is ready to maintain before King and Counsel, against them all, with the hazard of otherwise being exposed to extremest misery.  
Printed in the year 1637.   

To the Kings most Excellent Majesty.  
Most Sacred Majesty:  
THE comfort of all poor Subjects under any Kingdom and Empire, hath ever be●n this, That in all oppressions & calamities, they had a Caesar to appeal to● who, in the place of God, did defend the poor from the tyranny of the mighty, & deliver them from the cruelty of the more potent, after he had heard their just Defence and Answer for themselves; & this is the only glory of a Monarchy and of regal Government, which favour & liberty was never yet denied under Pagan Emperors to poor Christians; and the which your Highness hath never yet refused to grant to any in your Kingdoms: which hath emboldened me, a loyal, though poor Subject, in this great extremity to fly unto your Highness, who hath been most cruelly and unjustly dealt with by the Prelates, for maintaining your Prerogative Royal, and at this time suffers their merciless oppression, being denied that which hath not been hitherto refused to those, that have been reputed delinquents against sacred Mast. and to have abused the reverend judges of the Kingdom, which was the enjoying of the society of their wives and friends for their relief and comfort, and that they might put in their answer under their own hands & names when they could have no counsel, and yet these are now denied unto your poor Subjects by the Prelates. Wherefore he, amongst the rest, doth humbly appeals unto your Mast. beseeching your gracious Highness to hear his just defence and answer, especially it tending so much for the advancement of the honour of God, the honour & dignity of your most excellent Mast. & the good of the whole Kingdom; it making so much also for the discovering of the cruelty, tyranny, & unjustice of the Prelates over your loyallest Subjects, in abusing your Mast authority; their impiety also against God, their disloyalty also against your sacred Mast. with the wrong they have likewise done to your royal Father, of famous memory. All which, if he shall not be able to prove against them, he will willingly undergo what punishment any authority shall lay upon him. Therefore he most humbly beseecheth your Mast. that you would please to receive his answer, to whom he hath made it● & whom chiefly it concerneth. And he shall ever acknowledge your Princely favour in it, and shall ever pray for your Mast. happy reign, and long life● with the affluence of all divine benediction upon your Royal Person, Crown & Dignity, & your illustrious Posterity, and ever remain  
Your most truly obedient Subject JOHN BASTWICK.   

The several Answer OF john Bastwick, Doctor of Physic, 〈…〉 ents, to the Information of Sir john Basilius 〈…〉 his Majesty's Attorney General.  
THe ●aid Defendant saving & reserving to himself, now and at all times hereafter, all advantages and benefits of exceptions to the incertainty and insufficientie and other imperfection of the said Information: For answer thereunto, so far forth as concerns the said defendant; he saith, he doth with all thankfulness acknowledge his Majesty's great care & zeal at all times, for the maintenance and defence of the true Christian faith and religion, & the service of Almighty God, love, charity and concord among his Subjects; & withal, that his people● & all loyal Subjects, have great cause, daily to praise God for the happy government they have had under him, and for that they may for futurity promise unto themselves under his Royalty and Principality, especially when he hath so graciously made known his pious intentions for the good● and Welfare of Church and State, in that his Majesty's Declaration to all his loving Subjects, of the causes which made him dissolve the last Parliament, published by his Highness' special command; in the which Declaration pag. 21. his Mast. thus speaks: For we call God to record, before whom we stand, That it is and always hath been our hearts desire, to be found worthy of that Title, which we account the most glorious in all our Crown, Defender of the faith; Neither shall we ever give way to the autorizing of any thing, whereby innovation may steal or creep into the Church, but preserve that unity of doctrine & discipline established in the time of Queen Eliz● whereby the Church of England hath stood & flourished ever since, etc. These words & solemn protestation of our most pious King, cannot but stir up the hearts, loves, and affections of all his true and loyal Subjects, both incessantly to pray for his happy life, reign, & preservation, and also to the utmost of their powers to yield all subjection, obedience, yea, & their lives and liberties for the honour of his Crown & Dignity, in the number of the which Subjects the said defendant professeth himself to be, being willing and ready at all times and upon all occasions not only to lose his liberty, livelihood & estate, but millions of lives, if he had them, in defence of his Empire and prerogative royal: and doth again & again acknowledge, and that with all thankfulness, his renowned Highness' zeal & care, for the maintenance of the true religion, love, charity, and concord amongst his Subjects, and beseech the King of Kings and Lord of Lords long to continue him among us, and to put into his royal heart, to remove all those Scandals in Church & State which have been● such hindrances of the propagation of the Christian faith and true religion established in his Mast. Kingdoms (of the which he is defender, in his dominions) and the right instruction of the people in the same: who alone are most of the Prelates in general, & the Arch Prelates in special, being so far from seeking the right and due instruction of the people in the true Christian faith & religion, as the information would infer, as they spend their whole endeavours, to take away all the possibility and means of instruction, which is the preaching of the word, that is only able to save our souls, and without which, no man can believe or come to life eternal, as thousand places in sacred Writ witness; and among other, that in the 26● of the Acts, where Christ saith unto Paul, Rise, & stand up on thy feet: For I have appeared unto thee for this purpos●● to make thee a minister & witness, both of the things which thou hast seen and of those things in which I will appear unto thee, delivering th●e from the people and from the Gentiles● unto whom now I send thee, to open their eie●, and to turn● them from darkness unto light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of Sins, & inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith, which is in● m●e. And Paul was not disobedient to this heavenly vision, but preached unto all men that they should repent● & turn to God, and do works meet for repentance. And this was, and is the only way God hath appointed to save our souls by; for, Faith cometh only by hea●ing● & this preaching was all that Paul did● I came not to baptise, saith he, but to preach the Gospel, so that preaching is the effect of all the ordinances: And in another place he saith, Woe be me● If I preach not the Gospel. And in the sixth of the Acts, the Apostles told the Churchy That it was not reason that they should leave the word of God & serve Tables; and ●herefore they resolved, continually to give themselves to prayer, & to the ministry of ●he Word● And in the 4. of the Ac 〈…〉 the Rulers commanded Peter and 〈…〉 to 〈…〉 nor teach in the name of ●esus. Th' 〈…〉vered & 〈◊〉 un●o them: Whether it be right in 〈…〉 of God, to hearken unto y●u more than unto 〈…〉 ge ye: for we cannot but speak the things 〈…〉 e have heard. He●e we see, the whole office 〈…〉 the Apostles was to preach the Gospell● 〈…〉 the work, ta●ke and duty of Ministers to 〈…〉 same word of life. And Paul set hi● 〈…〉 re them for his sedulity in preach 〈…〉 mands them to follow him in thate 〈…〉 y and Titus, and all Ministers in them, to 〈…〉 stant in season and out of season in preaching the word, & they that neglect that duty are no Ministers of Christ nor of the Gospel. Yea, the Bishops themselves, and all their Priests as they call them, as we may see in the book of Ordinations, solemnly promise before God & the Church, that ●hey will be diligent in the preaching of the word of God, and publishing of the Gospel: And for the better stirring of them up to that Duty and Office they read the 20. Chapter of the Acts concerning the charge that was given the Elders and Bishops of Ephesus for their diligent preaching of the Gospel. And in most of all their prayers before their Sermons, they beseech God to bless the two fountains of all learning in this Kingdom, & that he would send out streams for the watering of ●he garden of the Church, and that he would preserve those fountains pure and incorrupt. Now, all men know how Paul planted and Apollos watered the garden of the Church, and that was by preaching, as is manifest in the 1. of the Cor. Notwithstanding all this, Viz. the charge that is laid upon them by God himself, that they should preach the word diligently, & as they love him: notwithstanding also the promise that the Bishops and their Priests have made of their particular care in preaching, which is only able to save our souls: & notwithstanding the curse that is laid upon them if they do not preach: & notwithstanding they pray, that the two ●ountaines may send out streams for the watering of the garden of the Church. Notwithstanding all the premises, the Defendant saith, That the Prelates neither preach themselves, nor will let others preach, but silence almost whole Dioceses together, and have extinguished very many of the chief burning lights amongst us, and do daily suspend ●he remnant of the most laborious & painful Ministers through England and Wales, and have deprived the people of all Souls comfort and spiritual solace, without which a man's life is miserable, to the infinite dishonour of God, & hindrance of the Christian faith, and the good institution of the people, yea and to the trouble of the whole Church and State: and therefore the Prelates are the only hinderers of the instruction of the people in their Christian faith, and the saving of their souls, and by consequence the enemies of the Church and Kingdom, for from these Priests is iniquity gone out through the whole Kingdom; and of the truth of that the Defendant now saithe all the Realm can witness, and the Prelate's practices prove, who make void the commandments of God by their vain traditions, and trample his holy & divine precepts under their feet, and stop the course of the everlasting Gospel: and therefore the enemies of Christ's Kingdom, and the salvation of their Brethren.  
Now, whereas in the Information it is sayd● That the tontriving, publishing, divulging, s●lling, venting and dispersing of defamatory and libellous Books● pamphlets and infamous Libels and Letters, are pernicious & wicked things in themselves, and of dangerous consequence to his Mast. service and the public weal of this Realm, & directly contrary to wholesome Laws and Statutes, The Defendant for his part doth absolutely in all things think the same. But whereas the Informers would make the Defendant, M. Burton● M. Prin guilty of such things, and to have envied & maligned his Mast. happy government and the good discipline of the Church, and that they have made a confederation among themselves, out of some schismatical & factious humours, and have from time to time causelessly endeavoured, as much as in them lieth, to vilify & defame his Mast. Excellent government, & the proceedings of the Courts Spiritual and within the Kingdom, & especially the Court of High Commission for Ecclesiastical causes, & that the said Confederates have within these seven years last passed, raised & laid divers false & scandalous imputations upon the proceedings of all the Courts in general, & especially of the said High Commission, and chiefly upon the Archishops & Bishops & prime judges thereof, who do equally administer justice therein, by acquitting the innocent and correcting the nocent, according to their demerit, proceeding therein with great temper & moderation; and by their wicked courses and by telling & divulging of false lies, news, and tales, have attempted to move and stir the people to disobedience and discontent against his Mast. government; & for the effecting of the said wicked designs & purposes, the said john Bastwick having been heretofore about the 10. or 12. of February in the tenth year of his Mast. reign justly censured by the said High Commission Court for writing & speaking words tending to the maintaining & upholding of schism and division in his Mast. Church of England, & opposition against the laudable orders & ceremonies of the Church, as by the said Sentence amongst other things more at large appeareth. Thereupon within these three years last passed, he, the said john Bastwick● by the advice, confede●acy● combination, abetment, help and assistance of the said Henry Burton and Mr. Prin, etc. hath unlawfully contrived, framed and wri● & without licence printed diverse epistles, prefaces, additions & other passages annexed and inserted thereunto, and all written by him the said john Bastwick or by his advice and approbation, in which book he hath causelessly & boldly enveighed against the Oath ex officio & other the ancient forms and proceedings of the said High Commission Court, etc. & against the Hierarchy of the Church, preferring a Presbyterian parity before the sacred and settled Orders of Bishops, Priests and Deacons, and in the said book hath falsely and scandalously defamed the witnesses produced against him: falsely also and maliciously taxed the High Commission Court itself and the judges therein, in general, and some of them particularly & personally; with cruelty & injustice, with want of wisdom & temperance, and that they are persuaders of his Mast. though in vain, to bloodshed, and are upholders of idolatry, superstition & profaneness, and therein farther most maliciously & falsely affirmeth, That the Archbishop & the Lord Treasurer, and the Bishop of Ely, three of the most worthy and learned Prelates of the Kingdom, that they are disgracers and contemnets of the holy Scriptures, and falsely traduceth them for Traitors and invaders of his Mast. prerogative. And in the said book are contained diverse other unlawful, scandalous & libellous passages; which being many and of various natures, is annexed unto the information as a part thereof to which he referreth himself.  
To all which large accusation, the Defendant for answer saith, That whereas these things of so foul nature & consequence, are laid upon him, Mr. Burton, and Mr. Prin, That the informers begin their accusation with a calumny. As for the defendants own partscular, he affirmeth and that truly, That for reverend and learned Mr. Henry Burton and Mr. Prin, he hath never known them otherwise then to be loyal Subjects unto his Mast. and such as in all peaceable ways and honest endeavours, have sought, wished & earnestly laboured for the promotion of the true Christian faith and religion, and such & no other manner of men, he the defendant hath ever known them and such he verily believeth they are: and therefore, as they fear God & honour the King, he is, and hath been, and ever will be, by the grace of God an a better with them; and if that in so doing and practising, it be counted either faction, confederation, or combination, he will live and dye in it. But notwithstanding of the resolution and purpose of the defendant, he further for satisfaction to the information saith, that howsoever the forenamed Master Burton and Mr. Prin, and himself, have been of long acquaintance, yet their familiarity hath been ever very little, they having not by the 4. or 5. years together neither seen nor heard one of an other, and for these three years last past the defendant saith, that he hath not seen the face of Mr. Prin nor been ever with Mr. Burton above twice or thrice as he remembreth, much less been privy or acquainted the one what the others either proceedings or intentions were: and therefore for ever doth disavows any help, counsel, advice in the making or publishing of any thing that ever he hath done, but whatsoever he hath writ it was accomplished before that they knew of it. And for the other men specified in the information, the defendant knows them not● neither by face nor name; and this he is ready to depose. And so much may suffice in general to have spoke of this matter; But now more especially; whereas he the defendant is accused of long continuance to have envied & maligned his Mast. happy government, and the good discipline of the Churchy He the defendant protesteth in the presence of God● and before the world, that it is a most false accusation, and that there is never a Subject in his Mast. dominions a more honourer of the government of his Imperial Mast. & one that desireth more the good discipline of the Church and is able to produce the testimonies of all the places he ha●h lived in, in this Kingdom, both from Magistrates & Ministers for the honesty and integrity of his life and conversation, and that in all respects he hath so demeaned himself as that he hath not only been free from vice● faction & schism, but from the suspicion of all: which testimonies he hath ready to show to this honourable Court, & the which he exhibited to ●he High Commission Court, at that time they studied most to defame him, & all this both town and country can testify, as also of the infatigable diligence, in his particular calling. How that he neglected no opportunity to do the indigentes● men good, & how that being unwearyed in his employments, he wen● through the heat of Summer, the cold of Winter, rose early & went to bed late, exposing himself at all times, to any danger whatsoever of plague and pestilence, and all to do the meanest of the King's Subjects good, never taking penny of poor nor never of servant, never suffering the most neglected creature of nature to perish for want of care or looking to, but made them all an object of his pity and of his art, giving them out of his poor competency both for their food & Physic; neither can any man say, that ever he asked the richest a farthing for any pains he took day or night for their preservation, or that he ever murmured at the smallest content thy gave him; & if the Prelates had let him follow his calling, this defendant had continued in this diligent course of life, till the day of his death. Bu● they picking a quarrel with him for writing in defence of the King's prerogative Royal against the Pope● sayings that while he writ against the Pope, he meant them, put him upon s●ch employments as he indeed thinks, will be very little pleasing to the Prelates, although he is most cenfident, that in them he hath, and shall do the King and Church good service, and so he knoweth it will appear when he is dead and gone. But because this book● is now laid unto the Defendants charge as tending to th● maintenance and upholding of schism and division i● his Mast. Church of England, & opposition against th● laudable Orders and Ceremonies of the said Churchy howsoever there be no such thing in the said Flag●ll●, ye● this Defendant desireth to give a reason unto this honourable Court for the writing & publishing not only o● that book, but of all other his writings since. And first, concerning the book for which he was censured, He saith, that he was provoked thereunto by a Popish jesuitical Doctor of Physic, who continually dared him into the field of Dispute, and set down his own themes about which he w●●ld contend, which were concerning the Pope's Supremacy and the sacrifice of the Mass. And it is well known to the Towns & country where they both dwelled, that the said defendant could never be quiet for his brags and● scribble to himself & others till he had answered, which was the sole cause of his ruin, & the which answer of his though he had long time for peace sake neglected, yet at last, he was through his adversaries importunity put upon it. Neither could he for the honour of the truth, and the honour of his Prince, both which he loves more than his life, delay it any longer: and ●herefore out of his duty to God and the King, he entered the combat with the enemy. To which duty he the defendant saith he was bound, by Christ himself, who ha●h commanded to give unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, & unto ●od the things that are Gods, which commandment of Christ's ties all Christians under obedience to a double duty which by them may not be neglected: Viz. to give unto God his due, and unto the King his. Yet for obeying of this commandment this poor defendant must be defamed, ruined, undone, and left friendless, monylesse, and in captivity, and given to the Devil, and yet say nothing. But the Defendant desireth this honourable Court to give him leave to say, as Queen Hester spoke to Ahashuerosh; if that he and his wife had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, he had held his peace: but for them to be ruined and undone because he could not see God and the King dishonoured, he the defendant cannot but speak. Let the King live for ever, and never let it be said, that he hath such a base cowardly fellow in his Kingdoms, that will suffer his imperial Mast. to be trampled upon, and suffer it in silence. For his own part, this defendant confesseth, that he is but poor, and the Prelates have made him so; but as rich in loyalty as any Subject in his Highnesses three dominions: and as ●ob said concerning God, though the Lord should kill him, yet he would trust in him: so this defendant saith, Though the King should leave him to the merciless f●ry of the Prelates, yet he will ever honour him with his life, and all that ever he hath: and as he was borne under obedience, under obedience he will dye, and will ever say vivat Rex let the King live for ever, and our gracious God put it into his Royal breast to look into the devilish plo●s of the Prelates, that do not only equalise the painted tombs in Christ's time, but far exceed them in cruelty and wickedness This he is resolved living and dying to do, ●●vito Diab●lo, to give unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are Gods, for he is bound to this duty by Christ himself neither will he ever rebel against his blessed will.  
Now, the things that belong unto God, as he is King of Kings, & Lord of Lords; and by whom alone King's reign, is an absolute command & Soveraign●y ove● his Church, and who requires of all his Subjects that they should love him with all their hearts with all their Souls, and with all their might's, and that they should not serve him by any of their own inventions. And for the manner of his worship he hath abundantly declared it in sacred writ. And Saint Paul writing unto Titus warns him● sharply to rebuke his auditor's, that they may be sound in the faith, not giving heed unto the commandments of men that turn from the Truth, & chargeth the Corinthians, that they should ●ot be servants of men, nor wise above that which is written● & says unto the Colossians, wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world● why as though living in the world are ye subject unto ordinances? and Christ himself saith, In vain do they worship him, teaching for Doctrines the commandments of men. By all which it is manifest, if Christians will give unto God that which is his, and will not worship him in vain; as they must love him with all their hearts, so he only must rule in them, & they must give him his own worship, and such service only, both for matter and manner, as he requires at their hands and commands from them, and not serve him according to men's precepts and devices: for in his worship they must not be the servants of men: for he is the only King and Lawgiver in his Church, and this is his prerogative Royal, which no man may meddle with● & this is to give unto God that which is Gods: & this duty he the Defendant saith, all Christians are bound unto. Again, for all Subjects duties towards the King the defendant saith, that must also freely & willingly be yielded, and that by special precepts, for they are commanded to fear God & honour the King, & to be subject unto his authority in all things in the Lord, & to give unto Caesar that which is Caesar's.  
Now in regard of his duty, both to God and the King, and also of his special Oath of allegiance, the defendant saith, he could do no less then that which he did in writing his book, being provoked thereunto by an enemy of both. And so much the rather, because himself and all Christians are commanded to give a reason of their hope, to whomsoever shall demand it of them, & earnestly to contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the Saints: he saith, in all these respects he could do no less in answering that Popeling then that he did, by giving unto God the right of his government in the hearts & consciences of men, & taking it from the Pope that Vicar rather of hell then of Christ, & by giving the King that jurisdiction and authority of regiment in his dominions & over his Subjects, which God hath conferred upon him● Both which Autorityes Spiritual and temporal, the Pope and Popish Bishops most blasphemously arrogate unto themselves, trampling all Divine Laws and Kingly regality under their polluted feet, making Kings and Emperors their Vassals; which is a most horrible arrogancy and usurpation, and not to be suffered by either Kings or their Subjects. And therefore when this defendant did nothing but that which by his special duty he was bound unto. If this by the Informers be thought, either schism, faction, or sedition, he this defendant is resolved to live and dye in it, and never to think any a good Subject that is not of his mind. He doth withal freely confess unto this honourable Court, that he looked for no ill usage of the Prelates for this his endeavour, which when he found at their hands it was the occasion of the writing of many other books since that time, amongst the which there is one called Apologeticus ad Praesules Anglicanos, etc. dedicated unto the privy Counsel; but whether the book that is annexed unto the Bill be the same, that the defendant knoweth not, but a book with that Title he confesses, he writ, wherein he set down the proceedings of the Prelates against himself, and their dealings towards others of their brethren; the theme of which book he the Defendant desireth the honourable Court● to take a brief relation of, at this time, that they may the better be informed of the falsity of the information. And first, for the principal theme and matter of the book, it is the State of the questions in his Flagello Pontificis for which he suffered, with the sum of the Arguments he produced for the confirmation of the truth. The questio●s arising between the Babylonian and the defendant, concerning the authority of the Pope, were these. The first, whether Christ did constitute Peter sole Monarch of the Catholic Church? The second, whether the Pope of Rome (if he be a Bishop,) as he is a Bishop, hath Authority & jurisdiction over Kings & Emperors? thirdly, whether Popish Bishops be true Bishops or no? and of the discussing of these questios, the defendant saith, his adversary was the sole cause. In the handling of the which, the Defenden● f●rther affirmeth, that he used all the caution that was possible, as he supposed for man to use, prefacing in his book, that being to dispute about the Authority of the Bishop of Rome, he desired candidly to be understood, of all men● for while he disputed of Episcopal authority, he meddled nor contended not against such Bishops as acknowledge their authority & jurisdiction from Kings and Emperors, into whose hands the government of States, Kingdomes● and Commonwealths is by God committed. For if the Popes themselves would acknowledge their immense and unlimited authority from Kings and Emperors, he the defendant there said, if they commanded nothing contrary to the will and Word of God, that he for his part out of the reverence, duty, & ● loyalty to his Prince would obey it. The Words in the Original are these. Verum de Episcoporum autoritate locutus à bonis bene intelligi cupio. Non enim litis litem moveo quatenus ab Imperatoribus & Regibus & Principibus. Terre quorum interest salutem civium tueri, potestatem, ●us & Imperium in socios totumque Dei gregem adepti sunt. Nam si Romani Episcopi imm●nsam illam & nullis limitibus circumscriptam autoritatem, indulgentia Principum acceptam ferrent, voluntati Episcopali, nihil voluntati divinae inimicum jubenti obtemperandum putem ob reverentiam Principi si volenti debitam, etc. So that the defendant having thus plainly set down his mind before, & knowing that all the jurisdiction that the Bishops in England now exercise over others is from the King, he thought himself not only secure from danger, but expected favour at least from the Bishops & their helping hand, especially, when the opposing the Pope's Authority in England, is a thing that the King and State have ever so well allowed of.  
And that this honourable Court may yet be f●rther informed of the special cause for which the Prelates are so displeased with the defendant, it was for the truly and narrowly disputing and discussing of the second question, to wit, whether the Pope of Rome (if he be a Bishop) as he is a Bishop, have Authority & jurisdiction not only over his fellow brothers but over Kings and Emperors? which the Defendant there denied for many warrantable Arguments. The sum of which he desireth here to relate unto this honourable Court, for his just and necessary defence & justification. For by the ve●ie light of nature and unanswerable reason, it is evident and manifest that where there is an equality and parity amongst men there the one doth not exceed the other in power, or Dominion, Paris enim in Parem non esse imperium inter Naturae 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 est. Now, Divine constitution hath made Bishops and Presbyters or Elders a like and equal, which that it might the better appear, the Defendant propounded there two things to be proved. The first was, That Bishops and Presbyters were by the Word of God one and the same. secondly, That Presbyters had equal Authority of Governments Ordination & Excommunication with Bishops wherein only consists their preeminency & Authority above their brethren which things being proved: it will necessarily follow, That the Pope of Rome as he is Bishop doth no way exceed other Bishops, and Presbyters they being in all things a like and equal unto him, much less hath any Authority and power over Kings and Emperors. And for the proof of the first position, the words Presbyter & Bishop do sufficiently evince i●, which in holy Scripture, though divers in sound, signify one and the same thing, as not to cite the words themselves which would be large. The Apostle Paul to Titus in the first chapter doth sufficiently show, where the words Bishop & Presbyter are confounded. And likewise in the first Epistle of Peter and the fifth Chapter, there Presbyter and Bishop signify one and the same thing. And the Epistle to the Philippians the first Chapter and the ●irst verse do●h apparently demonstrate it● and divers other places might be produced dilucidating the same thing. But the 20● of the Acts puts all out of controversy, where Presbyter and Bishop signify one & the same things for office● honour and function, so that the identity of their office● is signified by those two expressions. Neither is there a confusion of their names, with a difference still of their functions & administrations, as some would cavil: for in these places where Presbyters are called Bishops, the disputation is not about the title, but about the office signified and specified by the title. For when S. Paul exhorts the Presbyters to have an eye to their duty & charge, he useth this reason, that the Holy Ghost had made them Bishops● And the truth of ●his is so evident, that the Rhemists themselves, as learned men as any Bishops in England, and as able to maintain an error, are forced ingeniously to confess it, saying in express words in their No●es upon the 28. vers. of that Chapter. That in the Apostles times there was no difference between Presbyter and Bishop● so that for the first position, it is not only by the Word of God clearly evident, but by the very confession of the adversaries of the truth granted, as a thing without controversy. Now for proof of the second position, that Presbyters as well as the Bishop of Rome, have the power and right of Government, Ordination and Excommunication, by which in these times Bishops only exceed. Presbyters, the defendant will here briefly demonstrat it, referring those of this honourable Court, that have a desire to search into the full truth of it, to his book. And for proof that the Government was committed unto them, and that they exercised the same, it is most perspicuous out of the first of Timothy 5. where the Apostle saith, The Presbyters that rule well are worthy of double honour, especially those that labour in Word and Doctrine. By this testimony it is evident, that they had rule and government in their hands. And that they had power also of ordination and imposition of hands, it is likewise apparent out of the first Epistle of Paul to Timothy the first Chapter. For the Apostle speaking to Timothy saith, Do not neglect the gift that is in thee which is given thee for prophecy by the imposition of the hands of the Presbytery. Here also the Presbyters had the right of imposition of hands. And that they had the power of Excommunication and Absolution, it is likewise manifest from the 5. of the 1. of the Corinthians and the 2. Chapter of the 2. Epistle, where the Apostle gives them the power of casting the incestrous person out, and upon his repentance receiving of him in again. By all which Autorities of sacred writ it is sufficiently clear and evident, That the Presbyters had the Authority and power of government and rule in the Church, with the faculty also and ability of ordination & excommunication, and all this by Divine institution and express words of holy Scripture, howsoever this right and their due, was through the fraud and deceit of the Bishop of Rome, and Romish Bishops afterwards taken away from the Presbyters. Wherefore the Defendant concluded● That if there were any difference between Presbyters and the Bishop of Rome (which he denied) that then the Presbyters in dignity and honour exceeded, and that greatly the Bishop of Rome & Romish Bishops, for all these Privileges of government, ordination and excommunication are in formal words given unto the Presbyters, and no where granted unto the Bishops. And for farther illustration and proof of this, the Defendant, with many other Arguments proved, That Presbyters were better men than the Bishop of Rome, if there were any difference. The sum of which he desires this Honourable Court, to take notice of, ●hat they may more ponderously wa●gh the business in hand, and see the vanity of the information. And for the Arguments in brief, they are these:  
They who are most obedient to the Precepts● Commands, and Prohibitions of Christ, and do most diligently obey the Apostles admonitions, they are, and so ought to be esteemed, more worthy and excellent, than such, as regard neither of both.  
But the Presbyters are more obedient to the Commands of Christ, and do more diligently obey the Apostles admonitions then the Romish Bishops.  
Therefore they are more worthy & excellent.  
For the major, no man can deny, that knows loyal and obedient Subjects to their Prince and his Officers just commands, are to be preferred before Rebels, and them that regard neither of both. Now Christ and his Apostles have commanded, That all Ministers should feed the Flock of Christ diligently in preaching of the word, & administration of the Sacraments, and that they should not be Lords over his inheritance; Both which precepts and prohibitions the Presbyters do more exactly observe then Romish Bishops: for they neither preach themselves nor will let others, and are Lords over Christ's inheritance, which the Lord jesus and his Apostles have peremptorily forbid. Ergo, the Presbyters are more worthy than Romish Bishops. Again:  
That name which is and hath ever been a name and title of Dignity and Honour, is to be preferred before that which is a name of pain, labour, and solicitude.  
But the name of Presbyter or Senior, is & hath been ever a name of Honour and dignity, and a title of mighty Emperors and Princes, and the name of Bishop is a name and title of labour and travel.  
Ergo, the title and name of Presbyter is to be preferred before that of the Romish Bishops.  
For the major, none that are truly noble and learned can deny. And for the minor to omit many other places, it will evidently appear to any that will look upon the ●irst Epistle to Tim. and the 5. There the Apostle saith, The Presbyters that rule well are worthy of double honour. So that it is apparent enough, That honour and dignity is contained in that name, which deserveth both reward, reverence● & respect. And in the same Epistle the Apostle saith, Rebuke not a Presbyter, but honour him as a Father's and speaking of Bishops, he saith, He that desireth the Office of a Bishop, desireth a good work: He saith indeed a good work, but a work notwithstandig full of care, watchfulness, toil, and labour. From all which it is ratifyed, That the name and title of Presbyter is a name full of dignity, honour, and splendour, and the title of Bishop a compellation or name full of labour, anhelation, & solicitude; and therefore to be preferred before the title of Bishop, being far more excellent. Again:  
That name which whensoever it is joined with the name of Bishop, hath always the first place and precedency, that name is most excellent.  
But the name of Presbyter, when it is joined with the title of Bishop, hath ever the precedency.  
Ergo, it is to be preferred before it.  
For the major, the adversaries cannot deny it, For they conclude and establish the precedency and preminency of Peter, before the o●her Apostles, because he is often first named. And for the minor, the word of God declares it illustriously, as may be seen in the 20. of the Acts, and the first of Titus, and the fif●h chapter of the first of Peter. In all which places the names of Presbyter and Bishop being joined together, Presbyter is ever first named. To all this, Peter calls himself a Presbyter. The same doth Saint john, as if all Ecclesiastical dignity were placed in that name. But there are many arguments yet remaining to prove the dignity of Presbyters to be above that of Bishops, if there be any difference between them. For,  
They to whom in the most difficult controversies of the Church, and greatest dissensions, the Primitive Christians had ever recourse, and who the spirit of God did in a special manner assist, and who made Decrees by which the Church of God to this day is to be regulated and governed, and who the Apostles themselves made their sociats and companions in both General and Provincial Counsels, and the which had the next place unto the Apostles in their Assemblies: they are more worthy, and to be had in greater honour and veneration than the other Ministers of the Church, which are neither by name nor place known in those holy meetings.  
But the Presbyters are such, and  
Therefore the Presbyters are more worthy and excellent than Bishops.  
As for the major, the adversaries cannot doubt of that, which bestow dignity and honour upon their Bishops, according to the place and degree they had in the first Counsels. And for the minor, none can doubt of it, who hath read the 15 of the Acts and the twentyeth chapter of the same book: But they that desire to be satisfied concerning this argument at large, the Defendant desireth would read any of his books● Lastly, That the dignity of the Presbyters may yet appear, above ●he title of Bishops, it is thus evident:  
Those to whom the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven by name are committed, those are more worthy & honourable than those tha● have not that Privilege.  
But for the Presbyters, they have the Privilege of the Keys granted unto them by name:  
Ergo, the Presbyters are more honourable than Bishops.  
For the major, no good Christian will or rational man can deny it. And for the minor, he that readeth the last of james shall find it manifestly enough confirmed and proved. By all which Arguments, the Defendant did sufficiently beat down the Bishop of Rome's authority, and by the very light of reason overthew it. For if that every Presbyter be by the word of God as good a man as the Bishop of Rome if not better; and withal, if the Presbyters neither can nor may usurp authority over their fellow brethren, much less may they do it over Kings and Emperors, and by consequence and necessity of reason it followeth, that the Bishop of Rome hath no cause to arrogate such authority to himself over the whole Church as he doth: and therefore that his rule & Government is a mere usurpation and an abominable tyranny over the whole Church of God, and aught of all men to be defied, abominated, and abhorred with all his complices, as impious and blasphemous against, God●●njuriou● to Kings & Princes, and nocent to all the faithful members of jesus Christ. The recapitulation of all the wh●ch Arguments, this Defendant thought fit to make known to this honourable Court, that their illustricityes might in every respect see his innocency, who first exempted all Bishops that acknowledge their autorityes from Kings and Emperors out of the number of those against which he disputed: and secondly, never by name fought against any other but Romish Bishops, and wi●h their own arguments wounded them● And therefore he could not but take it unkindly, that when in this combat they should have helped him against the common enemy, they defending him, fell upon the poor Defendant, to his perdition, saying, that he meant ●hem, and that he was erroneous and factious in his opinions. Now if the Defendant hath erred in the discussing of these truths, the Scripture, that Word of Life, hath brought him to it, which were blasphemy to think; and therefore when they adjudged his book to be burnt, they might as well have burnt th● Scripture also, yea all antiquity and the gravest and learnedest of ancient Fathers, whose testimonies also he hath made public for the greater vindication of the truth against error and cruelty. But that the integrity of the defendant may yet more clearly appear, he most humbly entreateth this Illustrious Tribunal to hear how the business was carried against him at his Arraignment before the Prelates Bar at Lambeth, and how submissively he demeaned himself there, and how superciliously they carried themselves towards the Defendant on the contrary side. When it came to his part to speak for himself, the Advocate having formerly denied to plead his case any farther than about the witnesses testimony, which he also did very jejunely, being an Advocate of such excellent parts of learning and eloquence as he was, and also at the Bar ●enouncing i●, saying, That the Defendant should plead himself, which, when it was put upon him, he then first related unto the Assembly the Theme of the book, which was the maintenance of the King's prerogative royal. Then he told them the occasion of his writing of it, that he was provoked thereunto by a Pontifician, who often had dared him into the list of dispute● which a● last he could not deny, as he was a Christian, and as he was a Subject; for by the Word of God he told them, and by the Law of the Land, and his special oath, he was bound unto it; which Oath he also read at large in open Court, the which also all the Bishops of England, and all the judges of the Kingdom had taken, and were equally bound with him to observe. Then before he entered into the combat with the adversary, he shown, what caution he used that being to write against the Bishop of Rome & Italian Bishops, it was only as they arrogate their authority over their Brethren and the Church of God, yea, over Kings and Emperors jure divino, against such Bishops only he affirmed he did dispute & read the words of exception formerly cited at the Bar, as for such Bishops as acknowledge their jurisdiction, power and authority from Kings and Emperors; he said, he ha● no controversy against them, as he there again and again declared himself, in the number of which he the Defendant said ours were, for all the Bishops of England and in his Majst. Dominions, had; and received (or at leastwise ought so to do) their authority & jurisdiction over their brethren from him; For proof of which, he cited & read publicly the Statutes and Acts of Parliament as follow:  
First, that of the first of Queen Elizabeth of famous memory, wherein the Oath of Allegiance was ratifyed, In the which Statute there are these words, That all jurisdiction, all Superiorities, and all Privileges and Preminencies spiritual and temporal are annexed to the Imperial Crown, which by Oath he being bound to maintained could do no less being provoked by an adversary of regal dignity: He read also the Statute which was enacted in the 37. of Henrry the eight, which is, that Archb and Bish. and all other Ecclesiastical persons, have no other Ecclesiastical jurisdiction but that which they received and had by the King, from the King, and under his Royal Majest. He read also the Statute made in the first of King Edward the sixth, in these words; That all jurisdiction and Authority Spiritual and Temporal, is derived and doth come from the King's Majest. as supreme Head in the Churches and Kingdoms of England and Ireland, and that by the Clergy of both the Kingdoms, it ought no otherwise to be held or esteemed of, and that all Ecclesiastical Courts, within the said Kingdoms ought to be held and kept by no other power and authority either domestical or foreign, then that which comes from his most excellent Majesty. And that whosoever did not acknowledge and venerate this authority, that the same men are ipso facto in a praemunire, & under the King's high displeasure and indignation; as the words of the Statute run, and the mouth of the law speaks: and then with some reason's also which the Defendant produced, besides the Word of God, he shown, That no Romish Bishops had authority over their fellow brethren, nor could jure divino challenge it, much less over Kings and Emperors: and therefore so long as the defendant had the Word of God, the Laws of the Kingdom, and reason itself on his side, he told them, he thought himself reasonably secure from all danger in that place. And then applying his speech unto the right honourable and noble Lord the Earl of Dorset then present, the Defendant told his honour, that he could not but wonder, that he should stand there at the Bar as a Delinquent, for maintaining the Religion established by public Authority, the honour of the King, and the glory of his Majesty: and that one Chouny a Sussex man a laic as well as himself, should write a Book and set it forth by public authority, maintaining the Church of Rome to be a true Church, and never to have had so much in her, as the suspicion of error in fundamental points, and that this book should be dedicated to the Prelate of Canterbury, & patrionized by him (which Book● the Defendant both read and exhibited in Court) by which notwithstandig the King himself and all his Subjects were made Schismatics and heretics, to the infinite dishonour of God, our Gracious King, and King james of blessed memory, and our most holy profession and religion. This as the defendant told the Lord of Dorset, struck an amazement in him, & especially when the author of it must be favoured and countenanced by Canterbury, and for the defending of the honour and dignity of our Church and the honour of the King, the Defendant should stand as an evil doer. Now when the defendant was come thus far, and was then approaching more closely unto them all, intending more fully in the pleading of his cause to have set forth their unjust dealing, they told him, that he railed, and imperiously commanded him to hold his peace, which was the reason of his Apologeticus ad Praesules Anglicanos, where he took liberty to write that, and publish it to the view of all the world, which he would have then spoke. But after that they had silenced him, they then fell a thundering against him every one as he pleased, all of them joining in this, (one only excepted) that they censured him only for his Book; and in their censure, they unanimously agreed, that the Defendant should pay the costs of suit, a thousand pounds unto the King for a fine, be debarred of his practice, that his book should be burnt; and that the Defendant should lie in prison till recantation, and in the mean time be delivered unto Satan. And thus did the Sublime Court deal with the Defendant for doing his duty. But here the Defendant craveth favour again of the honourable Court, that he may briefly letting the puny judges and their nonsense dye in silence, say something of the Prelates haranges, because they only were the men that found themselves aggreeved a● his writing: & to say the truth, all the other are Officers under them, and are the Prelates hangs-by (he means the Doctors) to do what they would have them, as hourly experience teache●h all men. And so much the more earnestly he desireth this liberty, because it will make much for the demonstration of the justice of his accusation against the Prelates, both in respect of the dishonour they have done unto God by it, the dishonour of the King their Master, & King james of precious memory, and the wrong done to himself in particular. Now the first that entered this combat was Francis White Bishop of Ely, who in the first place most blasphemously and with many contumelyes reproached the holy Scriptures, making nothing of their divine Authority, (as all the standers by can witness) for he reviling the Defendant, said, That he had nothing in his book but Scripture, which was (as he termed it) the refuge of all Heretics and Schismatics; openly averring withal, That the Scriptures could not be known to be the Word of God, but by the Fathers, and Saint Augustin would not have believed the Scriptures to be the Word of God, had not the Church told him so. Further he said, That the Scripture could not be known & distinguished from ●he Apocrypha, but by the Father's: nor the meaning of the Scripture found out but by the Fathers & that all the Fa●hers from all Antiquity (which is most false, as the defendant in a special book hath sufficiently showed) made and proved a vast difference between Bishops and Presbyters, and that there was ever a greater excellency and Authority in the Bishop then in Presbyters; And this with an unanimous consent they all agreed in, till a base fellow Calvin (for so he termed that ever to be honoured Divine) rose up in an obscure corner of the World, & violated and overtrew all order & Authority in the Church, and would also have demolished the Authority of the Magistrates. And then turning his speech to the Defendant unhumanly: he called him Base fellow, Brazen faced Fellow, Base Dunce, and said in the face of the Court, That if he could not maintain his Episcopal Authority to be jure Divino, he would fling away his Rotchet; And so concluding with those that had gone before him in his censure, he sat down in a very great fu●y and passion.  
Af●er him came forth the Bishop of York, and in that numerous Assembly, proclaims; That jesus Christ made him a Bishop, and the holy Ghost consecrated him, and that he had not his Authority from the King, for Bishops were before Kings and that Bishops held the Crowns of Kings upon their heads, and so peremptorily averring, that the Defendant ought to be knocked down with club-Law for his ignorance, assenting with the rest in their Censure, he fell a sleep. In the third place the Bishop of London advanced forwards, speaking very loud and temerarious words against the Holy Scriptures saying, That he had thought to have found some great Matters in the Defendants book, seeing him so confident and so peremptory, but diligently reading of it, he met with nothing in it but Scripture, which, as he said, was the refuge of all Schismeticks & Heretics; & so according with his predecessors in their opinion and censure, he concluded his part of speech. But last of all came forth the Prelate of Canterbury, who with, a frontless boldness avouched his Episcopal Authority & preeminency over his brothers to be only from God, very much blaming Calvin for his factious Spirit, saying: That their Ecclesiastical Authority & the power they exercised, was from Christ jesus, and produced Timothy and Titus to prove● the same assertion and that Bishops were before Christian Kings, and they held the Crowns of Kings upon their heads; For, no Bishop no King, & those that would have no Bishops, sought to overthrow all Government, & in his censure he jumped in all things with the rest, saving in the Fine, which (as he said) he thought too little and therefore ought of mere conscience, as he told the other judges, he fined the Defendant a Thousand pounds more. But he had one thing more to speak as he said, concerning the Ch●rch of Rome, and about that he resolved publicly there to declare himself, in regard the Defendant had cast Chounyes book unto him in open Court, and of the Synagogue of Rome he spoke very honourably, affirming, That she was a true Church, and that she did not err in fundamental points; and all this he spoke in that public Sessions.  
All which the Defendant hath been forced to recite, because it makes very much for the justification of what he writ in his Apology, and that he had good ground greatly to blame the Prelates, aswell for these as for many other of their proceedings, as afterwards this honourable Court shall well perceive: And now that the Defendant may come to the things that he is charged with in the Information, as to have accused the Bishops of, in his Apology, which by the informers is termed a Libel, though it containeth nothing but a true Narration of the passages of the High-Commission Court; which he never spoke nor writ against, but only, against the abuses of the judges in it, who have turned that Court, which was of purpose apppointed by the State for the suppressing of Heresy Popery and vice● to the beating down of the Religion established by Authority, and the promotion and advancement of superstition and the molestation and undoing of the King's faithfullest Subjects, and the dear servants of God, as daily experience teacheth us, and the whole Kingdom can witness. In the writing of which book he the Defendant thinketh himself so far from being a delinquent; as he conceiveth he hath done good service to King, Church, and State, having in it vindicated and maintained regal Authority against the tyranny of the Pope, discovered also the Prelates lawless usurpations with their ungratitude to the King, and cruelties against their brethten, maintained the ho●our likewise of the Laws of the Land and the dignity of sacred Writ, (both which they slight and make nothing of) and by innumerable testimonies of learned men, proved the assertion for which he is thus traduced and envied, to be neither novel nor heretical but according to both the Divine Scriptures and all Ancient truth, & the vetustest Bishops, and by the whole clergy of England in King Henry the eights day's, as all the learned and ingenuous do well perceive and know; both at home and abroad. So that if ●he Informers with the Prelates will make this Book a libel, then let them make holy Scripture, the Laws of the Kingdom, and all the ancient records of learned Bishop's libels also: for the Defendant in ●hat, ha●h said nothing concerning the Presbytery, which is not agreeable to them all. And for ●he matters in special he is charged wi●h in the information, Viz. That he hath causelessly enveighed against the oath ex officio and other ancient forms of proceedings in that Court, and against the sacred Hierarchy & orders of Bishops, Priests and Deacons, preferring a Presbyterian parity before it. And ●●at he hath falsely and scandalously defamed the witnesses produced against him, & falsely & maliciously taxed the High Commission Court itself, and the judges therein in general, and some of them particularly and personally with cruel●y and injustice, with want of wisdom and temperance, and that they are persuaders of his Majest. to bloodshed, and are upholders of idolatry, superstition, Popery and profaneness, and further most maliciously, and falsely, affirmeth, that Canterbury, London and Ely, are disgracers and contemners of holy Scriptures, and falsely traduceth them and the rest of the Bishops for traitors and invaders of his Majest. Prerogative, and that in the said book there are contained divers other unlawful and scandalous passages against the established government and se●led discipline of the Church of England, the Bishops and Clergy, and their proceedings, which being many, and of various nature, is delivered into his Majesty Court of Starchamber.  
To all which things that he is here charged with, the Defendant will answer with what brevi●y● and the best Method he can, & doubteth nothing but whatsoever he hath writ in his Apology against the Prelates & their proceeding, shall be made evidently appear to this Court to be most true. And to begin with the things laid to his charge in the last place, that he accuseth, the Bishops to be disgracers and contemners of holy Scripture, to be invaders of his Majest. prerogative upholders of idolatry, Popery, superstition and profaneness, All which is most true, for so they are, as he hath sufficiently proved against them in that book, and doth here also add, that they have greatly dishonoured the King their Master, and King james his Father of perpetual memory all which he will briefly declare, and demonstrat to this noble Court. And that they are contemners & disgracers of holy Scripture, what can be more manifest? when they say that the Scriptures are the refuge of all Schismatics and Heretics as much as if they should say, ●he good Laws and Statutes of a Kingdom and the King's Edicts and Proclamations, are the cause of all disorder and wickedness! withal, what is it to be contemners and disgracers of the holy Scriptures, if this be not? to say, That they can neither be known to be the Word of God; nor distinguished from the Apocrypha and Profane Authors, nor be understood and the meaning of them attained unto for their obscurity but by the Fathers? If this be not to contemn sacred writ, than all Orthodox writers both in ours & all reformed Churches, and King james himself, have accused the Church of Rome most falsely, whom they prove blasphemous against God, and disgracers of the Holy Scriptures, for the same assertions, as all their learned writings witness wi●h innumerable Arguments in them for proof of the same.  
The Defendant desireth to know, what it is to profane and contemn holy Scripture, of th●s be not, to slight and vily●● the authority of it, and to proffer humane authority before it, which the Bishops did blasphemously, saying, that they cou●d not be known to be the Word of God, without the help of the Fathers, when every page and leaf of those sacred monuments breathe a divine Spirit, and they are called the lively oracles, Act. 7. vers. 38. as if the Scripture had lost his ancient lustre, ●ife, and Divinity by its antiquity, & were inferior to al● other things bo●h Natural and Artificial. When notwi●h standing there is such a Majesty and Splendour in the Scripture as it dazleth the eyes of all those that look into it, with hi● transcendent and heavenly clarity, and brightness, the eyes of whose minds the God of this world hath not blinded, yea under the very law, wh●n there was a veil before the eyes of men, so that they could not so clearly see into them as now Christians may, yet then such dignity and excellency was discerned in them, that at the first reading of them, men cried out the voice of God and not of man, & tore their garments for very anguish and fear of the threats in them, and never were so ungracious and impious to say, How shall we know these books to be the Word of God? For the holy Scriptures had ever such an innate and Domestical light, beauty, & goodness in them, and carried such testimony and witness within themselves, ever able to declare themselves Divine and holy● & to be the very word of the everliving God, that they needed borrow no help from without them, or fetched in humane witness for the declaring of their Divinity. There was no need to send unto the Prophets or the Church, in old time, to inquire whether the Scriptures were the Word of God, amongst any that were but any ●hing acquainted with the language of Canaan, as is manifestly evident in the 2 of the Kings. 22. vers. 8.10. and the 2. of the thron. 34. vers. 14, 15. 19● where it appeareth, that when the book of the law was found by Helchia the Priest in the house of the Lord, he knew it at the first reading of it, to be the Word of God; the same did the King, they were neither of them told by the Church, or any Prophets or Fathers that it was the book of the law; neither did the King send unto Hulda the Prophetess to know whether it were a true & authentic Copy; all this needed not; it needed then no Godfathers & Godmothers to Christian and give it the name of the law of God and holy Scripture, as without the with it could not have been known; there was no need of any such thing, or any humane authority for the proof of that in those times; all that were then true Israelits knew it by its own testimony to be the Word of God, and shall any man now think, that the Scriptures are more obscure and darke● and harder to be discerned by their own testimony to be Divine and holy, then when they had a veil before them, and their sacred treasuries of Divine truths were muffled up in so many types & mysteries? Certainly, this is not only great ingratitude to God's bounty, but very contempt and disgrace of holy Scriptures, that their most excellent self authority can have no credit amongst Christians without adventiciall assistance of vain man. Is not the witness & testimony of God greater than the testimony of man● If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater, saith S. john in his first epistle chap, 5. vers. 9 But the Prelates' affirme● the testimony of man is to be preferred before the witness of God, so that we ought not believe ●he Spirit witnessing but the testimony of the Fathers: for they say, the Scriptures can no● beknowne without the Fathers. Christ who was tru●h itself saith in the 5. of john. vers. 36. I have a greater witness than that of john, and what was that witness? his works, the witness and approbation of h●s Father & the Scriptures. Christ here prefers the testimony of the Scripture before the testimony of Iohn● which was the greatest of all the Prophets, and the Prelates prefer the testimony of the Fathers before the Scriptures, and is not this to contemn the holy Scriptures? S. Peter in that glorious transfiguration of Christ upon the mount, heard the voice of God the Father, & notwithstanding he saith in his 2● epistle chap. 1. vers. 19 we have also a more sound word of prophecy. And Christ himself so reverenced the holy Scriptures, that he seemeth to prefer Moses his words b●fore his own, saying, if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words? and in the person of Abraham, when Dives desired one might be sent to his Father's house, to warn his brethren. of the danger of torment that he was in, Christ saith, they have Moses and the Prophets, let them hear them. and he said nay Father Abraham; but if one-went unto them from the dead, they will repent● and he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rise from the dead. By all which testimonies of sacred writ it is evident, that if the Scripture of itself cannot prevail with men, that then there is little hope that very miracles will do them any good, for the begetting of faith in them, or bringing of them to the truth, much less the Fathers; and this by Christ's own words is confirmed unto us: yet the Prelates nevertheless, esteem of the Father's authority, more than of the sacred Scriptures. But can any man that hath but the name of a Christian think, that those that will not be mo●ed by the Majest. and authority of the Scriptures speaking in the name of the Lord of hosts, that the authority of the Fathers will prevail with them, who are not ●o be believed, but as they speak out of the holy Scriptures and by their Divine authority? Christ denies it, and therefore we are rather to believe that, than the fantasies and impious grolleries of a few ungodly men. Is not the Scripture 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and of his own & self sufficiency so able to declare its own mind and meaning, that it hath no need of the Father's help? without doubt, unless profane mouths will make it a pack of nonsense. Truly one would think that very reason might be able to convince these wretched wranglers, if they had not hardened themselves, to fight against the truth, yea and set themselves to resist th● holy Spirit of God; for if we look upon very nature, art and reason, they would convince us: for there is no natural thing but will prove and show itself what it is, and declare its own nature, as the Sun, Moon & Stars declare their own nature, and tell what they are to every beholder of them; fire by itself and of its own nature & essence is known what it is, earth and water do the same: and the same may be said of gold and silver & all other metals, they are able to witness for themselves what they are, and to distinguish their own natures from each others to any rational man. Again, All artificiale things are known what they are by their proper forms, and so are discriminated the one from the other, every one of them carrying a sufficient indication of itself. yea all humaner writings ●hew from whence they come● by the spirit they are writ with, and do show, whether the Authors & Writers of them be learned or unlearned, or be men in authority & place or not, and there needs no Commentaries upon them to tell whose they are.  
The Proclamations & Edicts of Kings and Princes do sufficiently without either marginal notes or annotations declare of themselves, that they come from imperial authority; and the Majest. & the dignity of their phrase and expression proclaim to all men that the authors of them are sacred persons, and he that should call them in question without a Council or Parliament, or the Father's and judges of ●he laws authority, would be thought no loyal Subject and not worthy to live, and that deservedly: for the very manner of their penning & writing do ever convince their Readers both of the dignity of their matter, and of the excellency of the personages that set them forth. And shall any in this age of light, be found so darkened in his judgements as to think the Word of God inferior to all natural artificial & humane things? yet so it is, to the infinite dishonour of our great God blessed for ever.  
Truly, besides the sparkles of Divinity and the Spirit of God illuminating in the Scriptures which writ them; the excellency and goodness of their object and matter, the purity, the perfection, the Antiquity, the universal consent and agreement of them● the majesty, and simplicity of the languages and speech they are writ in, the conviction that is in them of wicked & rebellious consciences, beating down & humbling the strongest Spirits, the certain event of things foretold in them, the integrity of the Writers, being far from all fraud and guile setting down their own infirmities and the weaknesses of their families, which human reason would never have done, the preservation of these Holy Scriptures in all ages from the fury of the persecuters, and out of the hands of those that studied to destroy them, the constancy of the Martyrs always that believed & kept them, and the fearful & tragical ends of such as were enemies of them, These the Defendant saith, and many more reasons there are to prove the Scriptures to be the word of the ever living God by themselves, without any Authority of Fathers. But yet one reason more● the Defendant thought fit to add, before he returneth again to the Holy Scriptures own Autority● which is sufficiently able to declare it to be the Word of God. And that is this, All things that are men's own, whether counsels, Laws, ordinances, inventions, Polityes or projects, orders of government, etc. they are agreeable ever to the corrupt nature of man or else to carnal reason, & men commonly hug their own devices. Now if the religion that is set down in Holy Scriptures or the Scriptures themselves, had ever been the fiction & excogitation of men's brains, as some profane & Atheistical men think, who suppose and say, ●hat religion was by Policy invented to keep men in awe, than the Defendant saith, that all men would willingly and without reluctation have embraced and received them and given them ever admittance and free entertainment: for the world ever loveth his own. Now it is notoriously known that no carnal men either love the Scriptures or regard them; nay it hath been always the endeavour, and the greatest plot and conspiracy of wicked and ungodly men and the adversaries of the truth either totally to extinguish them or to vilify their Authority, as K. james of renowned memory in his Apology to all Christian Princes sufficiently declareth, discovering therein, the Pope's double diligence in that business. So that were there no other reason but this alone, it were of conviction enough to prove the Holy Scripture to be ●he Word of God, because it so much opposeth impiety, wickedness, cruelty, unrightuous dealing, errors and darkness, which carnal and sensual men love mo●e then light. And whereas the Prelates with the Papists produce the Authority of the Fathers for the maintaining of what they speak, and in Court alleged that of Augustin, Where he saith, that he would not have believed the Scripture; if the Church had not told him it was the Scripture. The Defendant for his part is sorry to see such a profane Sympathy between the Prelates & Papists in these things, who deal with true Christians as the Gibeoni●s dealt with the Israëlits in the 9 of judges, who pretended they were Ambassadors, & took olds sacks upon their asses, and old tattered bottles, and clouted shoes, and ragged clothes, and pretended they came from a far Country, and so the Israëlits not taking counsel of the Lord were cozened and deluded by them: Even so the Papists and Prelates under pretence of the ancient Writers, and with their old shoes and moldy bread of uncoth antiquity, rob us of ●he truth, and take away from us ●he bread and staff of life, by which we should safely, and comfortably walk to Heaven and happiness: and under the pretence of the Fathers & their Authority they abuse and deceive the simple. But in this cause Augustin is not very useful unto them: for his Authority in this, so weighty a mat●er, is to rational men of no great validity: for the Defendant demands of any, that hath but the grace of understanding, that if Augustine would never have believed that there had been a God, without the Church had told him so, must his infidelity make others Atheists also? this will not be thought good reason amongst the learned● for then one man's imperfections should be a rule for multitudes to go to hell, & unbelief should be a virtue. And yet it is not altogether denied, but that the persuasion and report of men may be a motive to stir up men many times to the hearing & perusell of a thing, which of itself doth not always beget faith or but very little as daily experience teacheth us, but the thing itself seen or heard, is that that works and affecteth it, and makes their faith so firm and steadfast, that all though the same parties should a thousand times after deny that to be so, yet they to the death would persever in that their true believe. As for example, we see in the people of Samaria that were by the woman's persuasions brought ou● to see Christ, and in some small measure believed in him, from her relation, that he was the Messiah, yet when they had talked with him themselves, they openly affirmed that then they believed not because the woman had told them, but from more excellent reasons and grounds that they themselves had heard him. And should the Samaritan woman a thousand times after that, have denied that he had been the Messiah, they would never have been removed from their faith in Christ for all that.  
The same may be said of Nathaniel, in the first of john; to whom Philip sayda That he had found him of whom Moses spoke in the Law and the Prophets jesus of Nazarreth; and Nathaniel said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip said, Come and see. jesus saw Nathaniel coming unto him, and saith to him, Behold an Israelit indeed in whom is no guile. Nathaniel said unto him, whence knowest thou me? jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wer● under the Fig tree, I saw thee. Nathaniel answereth, & saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the son of God, thou art the King of Israel. And howsoewer Philip here was an occasion of bringing Nathaniel to Christ, yet the sight of Christ and his Miracles were the things only, that begat true faith in him, and such a faith as all the Philips in the world could never after have removed him from it again, And so was it with Augustine perhaps, that being a learned infidel or little better a Manichee, through the persuasions of learned Christians, he came to look in the Word of God, as all faith cometh by hearing; but doth it therefore follow, that that was only the cause of his faith, and perseverance in it? or if the Church had not told him so, there had been no other means for him to have come to the knowledge of the Scripture, this doth not necessarily follow. But were it granted, that had not the Church told Augustine which was the Scripture and Word of God, that he had then never believed it to be the Word, must ●his conclusion of necessity be gathered from thence, That all men must be like Augustin in this, or that the Authority of men is greater and above the Scripture? all ●hese are poor & lame consequences and not beseeming the worthy Fa●hers of the Church in open Court to publish to the infinite dishonour of holy Scripture & advancing human Authority above it, which indeed is mere blasphemy against the Holy Word of God. For would not every man accuse one of folly, if an other being a stranger and never seeing the King, and meeting him in a journey with all his Nobles richly clad, as it beseemeth noble Peers so to be, for the honour of their Master and the Majesty of his Court, and in this company where there are so many brave personages and all so excellently apparrelled● and he not knowing which was the King; should ask some of his retinue or some Courtier, which of those were the King? Now doth it follow, because at that time, the man should not have known the King without this information from some of the attendants, that the King could no other way have been known unto him or that Kings could be known no other ways but by such informations? No rational creatures will so conclude: at that time he in part believed from the Courtier's relation that it was the King. But after that he seeth the King in his Court or upon his th●one with his crown upon his head. and with all his State and Magnificence, and his Nobles in their service; with the reverence that is yielded unto him, than he believeth no longer, because the Servant told him that it was the King, but because by his own reason he is evinced of it, knowing that such attendance & such a guard ● so great pomp dignity, and State belongeth to none but Kings. And it would be thought not madness only but treason, to say, if one had not told him that it was the King, otherwise the King could not be known, or that he that told him, was greater than the King, or his Authority greater.  
The same may be said of the Holy and ever blessed Word of God, that it is a great madness & impiety to conclude. That the Holy Scripture cannot be known to be the Word of God without the Authority of the Fathers, or Church, or that the Authority of either is greater than the Scriptures; which to affirm is without doubt blasphemy in a High degree against Almighty God, and his blessed revealed will, & able to provoke his indignation upon us, because it is an error against the very light of Nature, art and reason, and the apparent Words of the Scripture: where the Word of God is called the immortal seed, 1. Pet. chap. 1. v. 23. which liveth & abideth for ever. Now all seed by its inward virtue sproutet into a blade & is by itself and his own fruits known to be what it is: So is the Scripture of itself known to be the Word of God, and as Paul saith in the 1. of ●he Cor. chap. 2. ver. 4. the Word of God is in the Demonstration of the Spirit & in power, and maketh the hearts of the believers burn with in them, as it did to those, that ●vent with Christ to Emmaus. Luke the 2●. vers. 32. and as the Apostle saith in the first to the Thessalonians the 2. chap. vers. 3. that they received the Word of God not as the word of man, but (as it is in the truth) the Word of God which effectually worketh in those that believe: and in the 4. of the Hebr. 12. Paul saith, that the Word of God is quick and powerful & sharper than a two edged Sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder the soul and Spirit, and of the reins and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. So that by these testimonies and thousands more that might be produced, it is sufficiently evident, that the Scriptures of themselves are declaratory, and by their own native and inbred splendour do conciliat Authority, & credit to themselves; neither have they any need of 〈◊〉 from man, or the Father's Authority to prove them ●●e Word of God. For before there were any Father's the Scriptures had their Authority and were known to be Divine. Neither did the Fathers or Church make them Authentic or the Word of God, no more than a Pillar maketh a proclamation to be the Kings will and pleasure, because it stands upon it, but the Church or Fathers declared them so to be, neither doth or can the very Synagogue of Rome deny this.  
How impious then and blasphemous are ●he Prelate's, that they dare thus vilify the holy Scriptures and make their authority nothing? And can any man of judgement see any reason, why one should believe the Father's more than the Scriptures? or why one should believe that these are the works of Augustin or Ambrose & should, doubt that this is the Gospel of Luke john, or that these are the Epistles of Paul? Of these things the Defendant for his part can see no reason. Neither can there any solid reason be yielded why one should believe the Fathers more than the Scriptures themselves when the Fathers are not to be c●●d●ted● but as they accord with Scripture, as the very Popish Canons & Papists themselves acknowledge; for in the Canon law thus speaks the Pope, Pa●rum quantalibet doctrina & sanctitate pollentium Scripta, ex Canon●●●● & sacris consideranda, nec cum credendi necessitate sed cum judicandi libertate legenda sunt, Neither is Baronius his opinion other, concerning the authority of the Fathers as at large may be seen in his Annals, an. 34. §. 213. and an. 44. §. 42. And for Bellarmine he is of the same mind in his 2 book concerning Counsels in the 12 chapter in these words, Sacra Scripta Patrum non sunt regula, nec hab●nt autoritatem obligandi. And when the very adversaries do thus fully express themselves, that whatsoever authority is in the Father's books and writings it is only as they harmonise and accord with the Scripture, shall any man than think or suppose, that there should yet be more authority in the writings of the Fathers, or in the Decrees of Counsels then there is in the holy Scriptures, from whence as the Fountain, those streams do issue? very reason will confound the fatuity of this devilish doctrine; for the streams & brooks are never so pure nor good as the fountain: for it is ever the fountain that gives authority of goodness, and the name of excellency to the little sucking rivers as all men know● and they commend the waters ever from the fountain they come, so that the spring hath ever the precedency and is of greatest authority, and without all controversy, as it overthroweth all reason; so it is exceedingly impious against our great God the fountain of all good and the giver of every good and perfect gift, and they that shall speak so contumeliously as the ●i●●●ps do of these Fountains of living waters ●he holy Scriptures, as they did, the Defendant w●ll ever maintain they are contemners and despisers of the holy Scriptures, and in this opinion he will live and die.  
Nei●her did they less offend in saying, that the Scriptures could not be known from the Apocryphas, without the help and authority of the Fathers: which point also the Defendant desireth this honourable Court to hear a little discussed, it being a thing of so high nature, concerning not only the glory of God, bu● the good of every man's Soul, the peace of the Church, and the tranquillity of the whole Kingdom. And therefore he humbly craveth favour that he may agitate it here a little; for the further Demonstration of the justness of his accusation he chargeth the Prelates with: viz: That they are disgracers and contemners of the holy Scriptures. They say, that the Scriptures can not be distinguished from the Apocrypha, but by the Fathers: which assertion is against sense and reason itself, & too impious for Prelates to speak: Is not this an essential property of the Scriptures of the old Testament, that they were written in the Hebrew tongue, and that they did give witness of Christ, and received authority from him, and that they were put into the hands & keeping of the elect & chosen people of God as a Treasury?  
Now the Apocrypha had none of all this honour, Neither did ever the Jews account of them as Scripture, yea to this day they reject them, Neither for these reasons only are they distinguished from the Apocrypha, but for many others, the divinity, purity sublimity appears in the Canonical Scriptures; the futility, folly and falsity in the Apocrypha are too too manifest: and is there any man so stupid & blockish, to think that this age wherein we live, cannot distinguish or discern gold from lead, without the authority of the Fathers? There is a vaster difference between the Apocrypha and the Canonical Scriptures, then is between gold and lead. Every man's reason will tell him an apparent difference between brass & beans. But if any be desirous of authority to distinguish them, will not Christ's and the Apostles suffice? The very Papists that have not abjured all honesty & goodness do freely acknowledge and confess, that those only are Canonical Scriptures, which the Apostles did ei●her write or approve of. But th●y did never approve of the Apocrypha. The Canonical Scriptures of the old Testament, did in shadows and figure's set f●rth that which th● new Testament clearly speaks. They did adumbrate, the new Testament expresseth in lively colours one an● the same thing. They consent one with an other, and yield each other mutual aid and help. Now the Apocrypha do neither foretell the new, nor are by their authority and approbation illustrated and declared. Christ commends Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms, as books without all exception, Luc. 24. and grounds his doctrine upon them, but never honours nor graceth the Apocrypha with his Commendations or widnes. How then can the Prelates without great contumely un●o the sacred Scriptures say, they cannot be distinguished and known from ●he Apocrypha but by the Fathers especially after the judgement of Christ himself is given and hath passed upon the Scriptures, for the autorizing of them to be ●he word and will of God? The Fathers as the learned acknowledge, were for their times many of them worthy of honour, but yet they were subject not to a few errors, and often agreed not with themselves, and are ever at variance with others, and have been indeed the original and cause of almost all the controversies with which the Churches are now tormented. And therefore to conclude this point, the Defendant saith, that the Prelates are disgracers and contemners of holy Scripture, when against so much light of reason and Divine authority, they say they cannot be distinguished and known from the Apocrypha but by the Fathers. Neither ●s the third Thesis & Position freer from impudence and outrage against the Scriptures, than the two former. In that they say, the meaning of the Scripture could not be known, but by the Fathers. For in this they do as much as plainly affirm, there is an other way to heaven, then by ●he Scriptures; which, if it be not a contemning and disgracing of holy Scripture, than there never was any. Nay, if it be not blasphemy the Defendant knoweth not what blasphemy is● and therefore all those that desire salvation and to go to heaven, must come to the School of the Fathers, and not to the Doctrine of the Scriptures. And how then will the poor people do, to be saved, that never knew what a Father was? Nay, how did all those go to heaven that died before the Fathers? For the Prelates, say that the meaning of the Scripture cannot be known without the Fathers, & without the knowledge of the Scripture there is no salvation. It is most manifest by these expressions of the Prelates, that they with their untempered mortar would put out the light of the Scriptures● & make them not only inferior to all men's writings, but a very pack of Nonsense; for wheresoever th●re is any sense, there can something be gathered out of it, especially if it be so large a Book. And howsoever there be many depths in Scripture, there is also great perspicuity: so that according to the ancient saying, as an elephant may swim, a lamb may wade th●re also. But if it should be so as the Prelates say, that without the authority and interpretation of the Fathers, the meaning of them could not be known & found out: then the Defendant affirmeth, they should be inferior to all other writings, yea to every Letter and Epistle that men pen with understanding: for they ever carry their own sense and meaning along with them. or to what end are they otherwise writ? If the letter that discovered the gunpowder treason had not had a match and light of understanding in it, that Popish plot had never been discovered● till by its cruel flames it had declared itself, and by the funeral of the whole Kingdom had been made known, and left those that survived and lived in perpetual mourning. If every Letter-writing and book then that is penned with judgement carry its own sense and meaning in it, and the books for which the Defendant is now questioned, and if all Proclamations, Lettreses and Edicts of Princes are easily to be understood, and carry their own interpretation with them so that none after their publication may pretend ignorance; dare any man be so bold and audacious as to say that the Letters and Proclamations of the King of heaven and God of the whole world can not be understood? when notwithstanding David saith they give light and understanding to the simple, and that by reading and meditating in the law & testimonies of the Lord he grew wiser than his Teachers; and Paul, that Timothy knew the Scriptures from his youth, 2● Tim. chap. 3. vers. 13. and notwithstanding all this, dare the Prelates affirm, that the meaning of this Scripture cannot be known without the interpretation of the Fathers? We have great cause to praise and bless God that hath so graciously afforded us better Masters to be taught by. It is good ever therefore to listen unto them. Let us hear now than what the Prophets, Christ and his Apostles have taught us concerning ●his weighty matter and of so great consequence: & let us follow their example and instruction, which lead us into all truth: and not listen to the contemners of holy Scripture. They send those that are studious of the ways to heaven, to the law and to the testimonies, Esai. 8. to Moses, the Prophets and the Scriptures, not to the traditions of the Elders and custom of antiquity. And they that bring an other doctrine are not to be listened unto, neither may we bid them God Speed. The Word of the Lord is the wa●, light and Lantern to our Feet, which send forth sufficiently the beams of truth, and shines so clearly of itself as it may be both known, proved, expounded, and unfolden by its own brightness. T●ey do as it were lend lustre unto the Sun from a smoking snuff, that from the mist of the Fathers would bring light unto ●he Scriptures. God is the Author of the Scriptures, who is the original and fountain of all light, & in whom there is no darkness. For the Prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the holy Ghost. 2 Pet. chap. 1. vers. 21. we have also a more sure word of Prophecy, saith the same Apostle, whereunto you do well, that you take heed as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, vers. 19 So that the Scriptures were of purpose penned by holy men, inspired by God him●elfe, for a direction & light to the Saints, to be guided by, and so they are termed by the holy Ghost. So that as Peter said unto Christ in the sixth of john, when he asked his twelve Disciples, if they also would go away, To whom shall we go, saith he? thou hast the Words of eternal life. Even so we may truly say, whither shall we go for light and direction to get to heaven, but to the holy Scriptures, for they have the Words of eternal life in them? and this ●ayth Christ and his Apostles; and yet notwithstanding all this excellent light, that shineth in the Scripture, the Prelates aver, they are but blind guides, and prefer humane darkness before the splendour of these sacred Oracles the Scriptures, and say, without the interpretation of the Father's ●hey can not be known; which is unsupportable blasphemy; and as much as to tell the everliving God, and truth itself, he lies. It is most veritable, that they see not the light of the Scripture, the eyes of whose minds are blinded; neither do they see the light of the Sun whose eyes are plucked out. If our Gospel be hid, saith Saint Paul, it is hid to them that are lost, in whom the God of this world hath blinded their minds, that is in infidels, lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ which is the image of God, should shine upon them, 2 Cor. chap. 4. vers. 3. 4● every one knoweth the voice of that man with whom he is acquainted, as soon as the sound of it cometh to his ears: and shall we not know the voice of God so clearly and perspicuously speaking unto us in the Scriptures? Those that are taught of God, know it, ●he true worshippers of him know and understand it, those that have any familiar commerce with heaven and in heavenly things: But worldly men and those that are given to the love of the same & are careless of heaven and happiness, they understand not the Divine language nor heavenly voice: Canany hear the voice of God, and not assent unto it without the aid and authority of the Fathers: what a contumely is this to holy Scripture! Shall God have less authority & credit among men than the Fathers? Shall we not believe God speaking unto us, and shall we believe the Fathers? Shall we not give credit to God's word, and shall we believe men? Let the dishonour of so great a contumacy against God be far from Christian obedience! Truly, the Father's being conscious of their own imbecility and weaknesses never thought themselves worthy of so great dignity as to suppose that any honour came unto the Scriptures from their interpretations and expositions, who in their writings frequently exhort their Readers not to listen what they say, but what the Scriptures of the Prophets and Apostles speak in them, and no farther to receive their authority and doctrine, than it is grounded upon the holy Scriptures, & expressions to this purpose, the Defendant saith, he could accumulate infinite out of the Fathers, which for brevity he omitteth, fearing to be over tedious, though it be a matter of greatest importance.  
Such was the modesty of ●he Fathers, fearing to be wise above that which was written, ever making the holy Scripture the rule and measure to be guided by. And in this moderation the Fathers imitated Christ, the Prophets and Apostles, who ever fetch the proof & testimony of their doctrine from the Scriptures & not as now the Prelates do, preposterously bringing authority to the Scriptures from the interpretation of the Father's according to their own sense. To the Law and to the Prophets saith Esay. 8. vers. 20. whosoever speaketh not according to that, hath no light in him. And josua that great Commander, is enjoined by God to order and govern himself and the people and the whole Common wealth according to the rule of the Scripture, josua 1. ver. 7, 8. Only be thou strong and very courageous that thou mayst observe to do according to all the law which Moses my servant commanded thee, turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayst prosper whither soever thou goest. This Book of the Law shall not go out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for than thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. And in the 23 chapter vers. 6. he saith: Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, that you turn not asides therefrom, to the right hand nor to the left. And Christ himself our great Master saith joh. 5. vers. 38. Search the Scriptures, for in them ye think to have eternal life, & they testify of me. And in the 3. of the Acts ver. 22, 23. S. Peter brings all men unto Christ to be taught by him, not in somethings only, but that Prophet must be heard in all things, and no other in God's matters must be listened unto, the words are these: For Moses truly said unto the Fathers, a Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you, of your brethren, like unto me, him shall you hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come te pass, that every Soul, which will not hear that Prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. And in the 12. of john vers. 48. our Saviour saith: He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my Words, hath one that judgeth him: the Word that I have spoke, the same shall judge him in the last day. And therefore doth it not stand with all good reason that we should guide & square our lives and actions by that word and rule only, by which we shall at the last day be judged? Paul in the 2. of the Rom. ver. 16. saith, That the secrets of men's hearts shall at that day be judged according to his Gospel, & shall not all our doctrines yea and our whole Religion be squared and regulated by the same? all good reason would dictate so. They have Moses & the Prophets saith Abraham● let them hear him, saith he, Luc. 16. ver. 29. We have Christ and his Apostles, we are only to hear them in all things, not the Father's, not the traditions of the Elder●, not the use & customs of former ages, if they descent from the holy Scriptures and written word of God. For the great Doctor of his Church telleth the Saducees, saying, Ye err, not knowing the Scriptures, Matth. 12. vers. 24. & indeed from the ignorance of the Scriptures cometh all error, they that follow the Scripture for their guide, can never stray or straggle from the right way, neither have they need to borrow the candle of the Fathers to be directed by, so long as the glorious Sun of the word shineth so clearly, and it was the eternal praise and commendations of the more noble Bereans that they did daily search the Scriptures whether the things the Apostles taught, were so or no. Acts 17, ver. 11. and Paul is greatly honoured with this applause in the 26. of the Acts ver. 22. that he taught no other things, than those which the Prophets and Moses did say should come te pass. And so Christ taught his Apostles Luc. 24, that all things ought to be fulfiled concerning him which were writ in Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.  
So that the Scriptures alone are the Foundation of all our religion; and to say that the meaning of the Scriptures can not be known without the Fathers, is an unsufferable wickedness done unto that holy book, and an infinite contempt and disgrace of it, to say it hath need of the aid of man to support it, Christ vanquished the Devil by the Scriptures Matth. 4. drove away the Saducees Matth. 22, and S. james, by the Scriptures put an end unto the great controversy of the Churches at jerusalem, & set the Churches of the Gentiles free for ever from all Ceremonies whatsoever, but those God himself had apppointed, Acts 15. and only by the Scriptures did Paul resolve all questions. So that according to Gods own instruction and direction which must ever be obeyed and listened unto, the Scriptures only & solely must be the judge, Law, square & rule of all our religion, words, & actions. Not the Authority of the Fathers, not the traditions of men, not the practice & custom of the ancient and the name of Antiquity. For they that shall prefer these things before the Word of God, or at least affirm that these Holy Oracles and Divine records cannot be understood without the Fathers, do not only blasphemously disgrace and contemn the Holy Scriptures, but neglect the great Prophet whom we ought to hear in all things, so that listening unto the voice of men before the words of this great Prophet, & accusing the Scriptures of obscurity and saying they are the refuge of all Schismatics and Heretics, is great impiety & contumacy against God, & most injurious to the Holy Scriptures. All which the Prelates being so highly guilty of, the Defendant will never be a frayed to charge them with it, that they are disgracers & contemners of Holy Scripture: withal that they are very ungrateful to the King their master, & invaders of his Prerogative Royal; all which he shall make also evidently appear to this honourable Court, and how unworthily yea profanely they have abused not only the King their now Sovereign, but his most excellent Father of pious memory. And that they are invaders of his Prerogative it i● most certain, not only by the Statutes & Laws of the Kingdom, but by this very information. For by the Laws & Statutes specified before with many others, it is solemnly enacted, That whatsoever Authority is here exercised under the King, in his Dominions, whether it be Spiritual or Temporal, whether by Archbishops, Bishops or any Ecclesiastical men, it is merely in, by, and from the King, and so ought to be acknowledged; and that all jurisdictions, superiorities; all privileges and preeminencies spiritual and Ecclesiastical, are annexed unto the Imperial Crown, & so to be acknowledged. And whosoever doth not acknowledge, that all jurisdiction and Authority both Spiritual and Temporal is derived and doth flow immediately from the King's Majesty as supreme head under Christ in these Churches and in his Kingdoms, as the Statutes declare at large, is ipso facto in a praemunire and under his Majest. high displeasure. For it is the Prerogative of Princes and the privilege that only agrees to Kings and Potentates to be absolute in their Dominions, and that all other jurisdictions & superiorityes exercised by any other in their Kingdoms, are derived from them, and that of themselves they have none, but as from the Kings. So that it is arbitrary and in the Prince's power to have or not to have such jurisdictions and preeminencies under them: And that they may abdicat or annihilate them when they please. And whosoever shall deny this, or claim any right of Government to themselves in Princes Dominions jure Divino, are delinquents against their Kings and Masters: and by our Laws and Statutes they are proclaimed enemies of the King and his Prerogative Royal, & that is true, the mouth of the Law hath spoke it. And therefore the Defendants book cannot be called a Libel, without the Laws first be proclaimed such: for the laws say, That all such persons as shall challenge any Authority unto themselves in his Majest. Dominions but from the King are delinquents against his Majest. and invaders of his prerogative Royal, & his Highness' enemies, and so they are. Now that the Prelates are such, they sufficiently declared it in the censure of the Defendant. For he reading the Statutes at the Bar, they notwitstanding affirmed, that they had not their Authority and jurisdiction from the King, but that jesus Christ made them Bishops, and bestowed their Authority upon them, and that they were jure Divino; and that they were before Christian Kings, & held the Crowns of Kings upon their heads; for no Bishop no King, and all this in a public Court of judicature and in a most crowded assembly: So that it seemeth the King is beholding to them, and not they to his Majest. And if this be not to invade the Prerogative, and to be enemies of it, and to be ungrateful unto his Highness, the Defendant knoweth not what it is to be enemies of the prerogative. The Laws say it; and therefore if the Defendant hath erred, the Laws have brought him into this error. Neither did the Prelates own Words at the Bart only, declare their disloyalty to the King, and their independency on him, but this very information which comes from the Prelates in the name of the Attorney General, sufficiently, demonstrates it. For in it, the Defendant is accused as guilty of a great crime for writing against the Hierarchy, and preferring a Presbyterian parity before the Sacred Orders of Bishops, Priests and Deacons. What the Defendant hath Writ & the occasion of it concerning the Presbytery, the honourable Court hath been informed in part, and withal, if so writing be libellous, and the Defendant have erred in it, the Holy Scripture is also libellous which were impiety to think, and hath been the cause of it, from which he varied nothing at all in that discourse: & further, the Defendant resolveth to live and die in that error concerning the parity of Ministers and Presbyters, which he is ready to prove and make good against all the host of Prelates, Doctors, Proctors, Commissaries, Officials, and Surrogats this day living.  
But the thing that the Defendant desireth the honourable Court, to take notice of, is, the contumacy of the Prelates: for they call their Hierarchy, and the Orders of their Bishops, Priests and Deacons, Sac●ed: which, if it be granted, and so be indeed, than the Prelates are from God, and not from the King, of whom they have no depences: For, speaking of the King, we say, His sacred Majesty, because God himself hath appointed Him over us; for by me, saith GOD, King's reign: and all Authority is from God: and Kings are called Gods, so that Kings are sacred Persons. But that Hierarchy should be sacred, and that there should be a holy Principality of Pastors and Ministers, the prime and foreman of which should have the Keys of Heaven, Earth, and Hell, and that he should dispose of Kingdoms and Empires, and make the greatest Potentates and Rulers his Subjects and Vassals, and should have his domineering servants under him in all Commonwealths, and Princes Courts, to pry into their royal proceedings, to their revenues riches and treasuries, to know their powers, their allies, and confederates, and be Counsellors of their most secret admission, & should have an authority and jurisdiction independent over their Subjects, and Laws, and Canons of their own making to rule by, and by them to persecute and undo them at pleasure, in the number of which are Cardinals, Patriarches, Prime-mates, Metropolitans, Arch-bishops, Bishops, Deans, and innumerable such like vermin, a member of which monstrous body our hierarchy is, the Defendant saith this is not known in Sacred Writ, nor never came from God, but rather from the Pope and the Devil Diabolus cacavitilloes. Yea the Word of God is absolutely against it. And that our Arch-Bishops, Prime-mates, and Metropolitans, are members of that body, let not only our Martyr's writings and speeches, & Henry Stubbridge his exhortatory Epistle, but even Mason's Book be looked into, concerning the Succession of Bishops, and it will be ●ound, That he derives their pedigree from Rome, and so doth P●cklington in his Book Sunday no Sabbath, wherein he saithe That our Prelates are lineally descended from Saint Peter's Chair at Rome, they being therefore a branch of that Synagogue and standing by the same authority the Pope pretends to stand, which is, as they all challenge, jure divino, they are enemies to the King, and invaders of his prerogative, and so they are justly guilty of all those crimes they accuse the Pope of, and as great enemies of God as he is, all which the Defendant hath sufficiently proved in his Apology. For they challenge their Authority jure divino, and say, That jesus Chr●●t made them Bishops, and the holy Ghost consecrated them, and that they we●e before Kings, and held the Crowns of Kings upon their heads, and the Pope says no more.  
They call also their Hierarchy Sacred; the Pope doth no more; and for the erecting of this sacred Hierarchy, Emperors & Kings must be thrust down, and made vassals of, and all Kingdoms that are under their jurisdiction, made slaves to it, and all those stinking slavelings that depend upon it, as the whole Christian world by woeful experience daily findeth. But this same term of Sacred Hierarchy, and sacred orders of Prelates, ought here a little to be discussed.  
That which is sacred, is from God. But the Hierarchy is not from God. Ergo, it is not sacred. For the minor, it is evident● That which God hath peremptorily forbid to his Ministers and Servants, and is an enemy to, that is not of God and by his institution: but he hath forbid Lordly dominion to all the Ministers of the Gospel, saying, The Princes of the Gentiles bear rule over them, but it shall not be so among you, you shall not Lord it over your Brethren: Ergo, th● Hierarchy is not of God, but of the Devil, that is the cause of all disorder and ignorance. For God forbade his Apostles, and in them all Ministers to be Lords over one an other, and set his own example before them of service, and commanded them to imitate him, and to be humble and meek, and told them plainly, That the office of Principality and Dominion belonged unto Kings and Princes; and that their employments consisted in their obedience to Kings, in praying for them, that they might live in all godly peace under them, and that they should diligently feed the flock of jesus Christ, committed to their charge, in season and out of season, as they love him, and will answer it at his last appearing● and this was all the business that Christ's Ministers & Servants were to be taken up in, they were not to be entangled with the things and affairs of this life, nor to be encumbered with worldly matters, they have special commands and precedents to the contrary, and their charge and duty assigned unto them, from which station they must not go, which is only to feed the flock with all care and diligence with the sincere milk of the Word, to preach unto them day and night, and to go before them in godly and holy example, and to neglect th●s, and to be taken up with domination, and overruling their brethren, and beating their fellow servants, is to be rebels against Christ, and to usurp that which belongeth not unto them, and which th●y ought not to meddle with: and therefore when the Prelates do not only eat up and devour this forbidden fruit, but challenge a right unto it from God himself, and say they have no depencie from the King, the Defendant maintaineth, that it is intolerable arrogancy against God & the King, and by which they are delinquents in an elevated degree of contumacy against them both. What an horrible impudency is this in the Prelates, or any Subject that vindicats their quarrel, that they dare call the Hierarchy sacred, especially, when they derive it from Rome? whom King JAMES of famous memory calls Babylon, and the Pope Antichrist, and can any man th●nke, that those that are lineally descended from Babylon, and Antic●rist (that great enemy of Christ, his kingdom and members) can be holy and sacred?  
Certainly, if the fountain be not holy, the streams cannot be holy; Yea King james is very large in that his Book to all Christian Princes, in discovering the impiety of the Hierarchy of Rome, and proves the Pope to be that man of Sin, and all the Prelates of that Sea, to be the Frogs that came out of the bottomless pit. For the Nature of Frogs (they being Amphibia) is to live upon the Earth, and in the water. Now King james saith, That the Prelates are the Frogs; for they seem to be Church men and are ever meddling in States affairs, creeping out of their stinking gunters, & are such mighty busy bodies in other men's matters, as they trouble all the Nations and Kingdoms where they devil, and enslave them all. So that if the Hierarchy be sacred, and the Prelates be the chief members of it, than they are a generation of sacred frogs, the holiness notwithstanding of the which is such as few men's impiety is greater or more dangerous to Church and State, and their usurpation upon both Autorityes deserving severely to be punished, especially for that they so abuse his sacred Mast. Authority in oppressing his poor Subjects, and trampling upon his prerogative; so that to any eye of understanding it may sufficiently appear by that the Defendant hath said, that the Prelates are not only contemners and disgrace●s of Holy Scripture; but also invaders of the King's prerogative Royal, and enemies of his imperial dignity!  
It yet remains to pove also, that they have farther dishonoured the King their Master, and King james of famous memory, yea our most Holy religion and profession, and all this in the Defendants Censure. For what any one of the Prelates did, all the other assented to, they being one Body, & it was the action of them all, though acted in the person of the Prelate of Canterbury, which was this, to magnify the Church of Rome, & defend the purity of her Doctrine, affirming openly, that she never erred in fundamental points, and was a true Church; as much, as to proclaim the King and all his Subjects Schismatics and Heretics, and that, by the mouth of the Prelate of Canterbury: which the Defendant saith is not only injurious to the King their Master, but to King james of famous memory his renowned Father, with whom for piety and learning all the Prelates together are not to be named the same year his Royal excrements are mentioned. King james that glorious and learned Prince in his Apology to all Christian Princes and States, proves the Pope of Rome to be Antichrist and the man of Sin, by many unanswerable arguments.  
He proves likewise the Church of Rome to be the whore of Bab●lon for her abominations; Spiritual Sodom for her filthiness and uncleanness. Spiritual Egypt for her enslaving the Saints and Servants of God, and all this he evinceth by irrefragable Authority, & thus taught he the whole world, his Royal Son, and all his Subjects; & persuadeth all Christian Princes, to come out of Babylon, & to shake of the yoke of the Pope. And in this faith he lived and died. And this faith is King Charles his Son and our gracious Sovereign, now Defender of, and all this is Orthodox Doctrine, which our King did preach unto us, and our Royal King now professeth; and which all his Loyal Subjects to God and his Majest. will seal with their bloods. This heroical King notwithstanding and his Divine Doctrine is stamped under foot by the Prelates, to the infinite dishonour of our most pious & clement Prince, the eternal disgrace of his most incomparable Father, and the discredit indeed of the whole Church and Kingdom, if not endangering the same: to the great hardening of the Papists in their Heretical ways, & the perverting of the Kings most Loyal Subjects, and teaching the Papists to rebel. And to all this the dignity and glory of the Scripture is offuscated by their sable mouths. So that, what can any man either say or think, of this progeny of Prelates, whose contumacy and rebellion rea●cheth to the very clouds, and what can men think of this degenerating offspring of this age? The one, that they dare against God and the King openly breathe out their blasphemies, and call evil good, and good evil. The other, that they should out of cowardice suffer their Royal King, and his most excellent Father, to be thus abused.  
But this Defendant hopeth, that this honourable Court like that noble Nehemiah with other truehearted loyal Subjects, remaining about the King, will now at last inform his Majesty of the intolerable insolency of the Prelates, of which he believeth they were formerly ignorant, or not so well acquainted, and seek by his Authority for redress, against their impudence. As for this Defendant for his part, he is resolved, though left alone, ever to say, LET THE KING LIVE FOR EVER. And although he should suffer a thousands torments from the Prelates, living and dying, he will ever cry, LET THE KING LIVE FOR EVER. And let the name of his learned and transcendent Father li●e to perpetuity. And let the enemies of the King and Gospel perish. Neither will he ever suffer to the uttermost of his power, That either the King's Honour, or the Dignity of his most illustrious Father, or the glory of our most Holy profession, or the honour of the Holy Scriptures, shall be contaminated, or Babylon or superstition advanced in his Dominions, and cruelly and injustice exercised by the Prelates over his poor Subjects, and hold his peace.  
All which evidently appear in the daily proceedings of the Prelates in their High Commission; and from their speech hourly there, & their practices through the whole Kingdom. Some of which he desireth in order to prove● that the honourable Court may be the fuller informed that he hath not causelessly in his Apology laid any crime unto their charge, which they are not guilty of.  
And now to proceed to the other things, the Defendant is charged with, Viz: that he taxeth the High Commission Court, of cruelty, injustice, want of wisdom and temperance, and that they are persuaders of his Majest. to bloodshed, and are the upholdes of idolatry, superstition, & profaneness; ●hat he scandalously defame●h the witnesses produced against him, and that he hath causelessly and boldly inveighed against the oath ex officio and other the ancient forms of proceedings of the High Commission Court. To all these the Defendant answereth as they lie. And first, whereas the Defendant chargeth them, with cruelty injustice, want of wisdom & temperance's he conceiveth he hath very good reason for that his charge, both in respect of himself and others, and in regard both of the souls and bodies & estates of men; all which they captive, enslave, or dissipate & scatter at pleasure, and in as much as in them lies, seek the ruin of.  
To say nothing of their daily practices, who condemn men without either exhibiting articles, producing of witnesses, or any legal proceedings against them, as if a man should be hanged without evidence given or indictment framed, which is the height of injustice: the Defendant saith, that their very proceedings against himself sufficiently show their cruelty, injustice, want of wisdom and temperance, & their very speeches apparently prove all these things. Neither is there such a precedent of wrong and cruelty in the whole world, that any man of what rank, order or degree soever he be, that shall write a Book in Defence of that religion that is established by public Authority, for the honour of the King & in Defence of his prerogative against a common enemy that for this endeavour of his should be ruined, he, his wife, & children cast into prison, deprived first of all possibility of livelihood, railed upon, & reviled publicly, and after all this given to the Devil, and that only for writing a Book which had nothing in it but Scripture, and in the which the Defendant thought they meant him; and that they should still prosecute him & seek his ears and the defacing of him, which they threaten. Such a Precedent of wrong & cruelty the Defendant saith cannot be produced in toto Macrocosm & therefore the Defendant in respect of his own particular, justly chargeth them with cruelty, injustice and intemperance. And in respect of all other honest men, that come under their jurisdiction, the same may be said and proved by thousands, whether one respect their souls, bodies, or goods, for they use cruelty in regard of all, sparing neither age or sex, poor or rich, young or old, bond, or free: but upon every trivial occasion, or for the meanest neglect of any one of their idlest and impious Ceremonies, or for any misprision, it is enough to have them hoist into the High Commission Court, & brought from the remotest parts of the Kingdom, to the utter undoing of them & their families, when as the greatest breach of any of the Commandments of the first table, is not once thought of.  
And in the bringing of them into troubles they deal with those poor men as they do with Bears & Bulls at Paris Garden: they first, by violence, and their Officers to their mighty expenses hale them into their Courts, and then with bands of two or three hundred pounds they tie them to their stakes & bait them three or four years together with all manner of contumelies & reproaches, vexations, expenses, calamities & torments; till they have wearied them to death, and made their lives tedious unto them, & after all this they fling him into one jail or other destitute of friends & moneys. And as if this were not enough, e●en as the persecutors of the Martyrs in the primitive times, as histories relate, dealt with the Saints, when they brought them to the slaughter, they were wont to clothe them with the skins and hides of wild Beasts, that so they might make them the more formidable, and the better animate their dogs and curs against them to tear them in pieces.  
In like manner do the Prelates & their complices in these our times deal with poor honest Christians and the true and faithful servants of the Lord, and the Kings most loyal Subjects, they make them monstrous, ugly and deformed unto all men, King & Nobles, by their relations and informations they clothe them with: saying of them, That they are maligners and enemies of government, troublers of Church and State, Seducers of the King's Subjects, making them disloyal unto their Prince, stirrers up of sedition & faction, and a thousand such crimes, setting all the people against them & in their open Courts have their orators to blanche over their defamatory false accu●ations, charging them with foul crimes, the thought of which never came into their heads; as this present information may witness. Yea in the very Court-Sermons they incense the King & Nobles daily against those, they brand with the name of Puritans and Sectaries, which all this honourable Assembly can witness; and the Defendant hath heard many Court-Sermons with his own ears in the time of his liberty, but never heard one where the Puritans as they term them, were not brought up in the Pulpit, & most shamefully & unchristianly traduced, as those that opposed the King's proceedings, and such as malign his government and trouble the peace of Church and State, and humbly besought his Majest. that some severe course might be sought & taken against them.  
These & such like sprinklings of their brotherly Rhetoric the defendant himself hath often heard, neither can this honourable Court be ignorant of the truth of this. And what is all this but great cruelty & injustice to abuse thus their brethren by malicious and false accusations, to the incensing of their Gracious King and Sovereign against them; when they are most innocent & harmless, desiring nothing more than the life, safety, prosperity & happiness of his Majesty and of his royal progeny & his flourishing reign, and would lose ten thousand lives if they had them for the honour of his crown & dignity? for they desire nothing more than to be found loyal; neither do they seek any thing more than the peac● and welfare of the Church, & the good of this commonwealths And therefore if there be any, this is cruelty and injustice in a high degree, to deal thus mercilessly with their too too much already afflictid brethren, of whom they are ever making sinister relations to King, Council and State, to the depriving of them many times of their libert●, livelyhoods and states, to the making of them & theirs ever miserable, and all this also they do in their Courts every day, defaming them as enemies of government and enemies of the Church, and casting them into prison with great Fines on their backs. And this is the cruelty they daily use in respect of their bodies, lives and estates. But yet their cruelty is greater in respect of their souls, for they have through the Kingdom of England and Wales taken away almost all their glorious painful Ministers, and ●hose that with most diligence taught the people, and sent drones and loiterers amongst them, dumb dogs, that can not bark: and is not this great cruelty to the poor Souls of men to deprive them of the food of life and to starve them?  
See what Paul saith to Bariesus the Sorcerer in the 13. of the Acts, when Sergius Paulus the Deputy of the Country a prudent man, called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God; it is said, that Elemas the Sorcerer withstood them, seeking to turn away the Deputy from the faith, to whom Saul, filled with the holy Ghost, setting his eyes on him, said: O full of all subtlety and all mischief! thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? Those than that take away the means of salvation, and hinder others from the hearing of the word, they are most cruel unto them, hindering of them of salvation itself, and such are the children of the devil, the enemies of all rightnousnes, & perverters of the ways of the Lord, the holy Ghost hath spoke it, and Christ himself saith Matth. 23. and the 13. Woe unto you Scribes & pharisees hypocrites, for ye shut up t●e Kingdom of heaven against men: for you neither go in yourselves, neither suffer you them that are entering, to go in. And in Luke the 11. and verse the 52. he saith, Woe unto you Lawyers: for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye enter not in yourselves, and them that were entering you hindered. Christ himself pronounces woe here, to all such Soule-murtherers as take away the key of knowledge from the people, and shut up the Kingdom of heaven against them, which is the greatest cruelty that can be exercised over miserable men: and yet this is the daily occupation of the Prelates, of which the whole Kingdom can witness, how that they have made most places desolate, depriving them of the bread of life, the preaching of the Gospel, and taking away the key of knowledge from them, and in stead of ●rue nourishing food they give them the husks of ceremonies, and vain traditions, and idle superstitious observations. Neither do they only extinguish and put out all their shi●ing lights, but they severely punish those that seek it, or go after it where it is; so that, if one do but go out of his own parish, where he hath no preaching, & where perhaps there hath not been a sermon seven years together, as there are many such parishes in this Kingdom; he is forthwith haled into their Courts & tormented to death, and is not this horrible cruelty? yea, if one neighbour do but go to an other, and that but to hear a Sermon repeated, when he dare not go out of his own parish, he is immediately haled into their Courts as a Keeper of Conventicles, and miserably there tormented: and is not this also great cruelty? Especially when any of their lewd parishioners may go from year to year, out of their own parishes a drinking & quaffing, and that on the Lord's day and holy days, as they call them, and have their meetings in troops and great assemblies in drinking Schools, tippling there to the great dishonour of God, and many times to the great mischief of o●hers, and the perpetrating of many ●innes, and all such though they never hear Service neither divine nor human, find favour in their Courts, and serve for witness against the generation of the just and those that fear God, & they are esteemed good Sons of the Church, though in all other things they be also never so impious.  
Neither is there any law against those children of Be●iall: neither can any man deny this that knoweth any thing, for they are the defenders of such fellows & tormentors of the most godly. And if this be not also insufferable tyranny and cruelty let every reasonable man judge. In this information his most excellent Majest. is truly and deservedly commended, that he is an enemy to Popery and all innovation of religion, as his Highness hath often declared himself, and that he doth daily frequent the Church and is diligent in hearing of Sermons. And this most eminent piety in our noble King and Sovereign, we his loyal, though poor Subjects, heartily rejoice at, desiring the Lord of heaven still to inflame his royal heart with a zeal for the glory of God & the propagation of the Gospel, and to continue in him an increase a love unto his holy word.  
Now, all men know, that King's examples have been ever the pattern for their Subjects, and it is the duty of all good Citizens & Subjects to imitate their King in all well doing, and men use commonly to say: Regis ad exemplum, the King's example is ever to be followed, and it is his royal hearts desire, that his Subjects should imitat him in that his piety. Now what a great & unexpressible cruelty is this in the Prelates towards the poor people and how great a dishonour is done to the King in it, that they will not let his Subjects be good? for it is good in the King and hightly commendable before God & men to hear the Word of God often preached, and to be diligent in the hearing of Sermons, or else the Informers would not have set it down as so singular a virtue in our royal King: and yet they punish this good in his Subjects, and it is a cause of the utter undoing of many of them if they go to Sermons, and when they are found to be diligent at the hearing of the word, & the going to a sermon into the next Parish when they have none in their own, is matter sufficient to mount them up into the high Commission, which is none of the smallest crueltyes that holy and pious men in these our day's groan under, to the infinite dishonour of God and the King, and the needle's vexation and molestation of his dutifullest Subjects, who desire to follow in that their godly Prince's example. In S. john Baptists time, it is said, That jerusalem, judea and the region round about● came all out to hear him, running after Sermons, and so they did after Christ, And it stands recorded in sacred Writ to their eternal honour, and for our imitation. For all the Saints godly examples are set down for us to imitate, and we never read that any were by the very enemies of the Gospel in those days, the Scribes, pharisees and High-Priests, molested or troubled for the same; and it is said of them that they took the Kingdom of heaven with a kind of holy violence, and their diligence in hearing the word is related ●nd told of them as a thing very honourable and praise worthy; and so it is very well related in the information of our gracious King to his immortal honour and great praise, and so it is and ever to be honoured in his Maj● and his example in this to be followed of all his obedient Subjects. And is it not a transcendent cruel●y then in the Prelates, that poor Christians in our age may neither obey the commandment of God who enjoineth us to hear in season and out of season, nor imitate the Saints of old in their pious endeavours in building up themselves in their most holy faith, nor follow the good patterns of their Kings and Governors, but they must be severely punished for it, yea undone & traduced ●or it a● evil doers? if this be not great cruelty & tyranny itself in the Prelates, there was never none: for they rob them of Heaven & earth, & all other comforts in as much as in them lieth. Nay, which is yet more, to show their cruelty, injustice & unrightuous dealing: the Prelates in the Baptism of infants constrain the Godfathers & Godmothers there solemnly to promise that they will call upon them that are baptised when they come to years of discretion of●en to hear Sermons, & to this duty are also the baptised tied.  
Now, when they are come to years of understanding, and in obedience of their promise they made by their God. Fathers and Godmothers', and perhaps being stirred up also by their exhortation to this good duty of hearing the Word, if ●hey go out to hear Sermons when they have none in their own Parishes, they are first punished in their purses and liberties, and then given to the Devil for this good work, which they notwithstanding have tied them to by special promise in their baptism and if all this be not unspeakable cruelty, tyranny and injustice there was never none in the world, and yet this is the daily practice of the Prelates through the Kingdom, as all men know. And which is yet more to be observed, in the same Sacrament of Baptism children promise there by their Godfathers' and Godmothers', or they do it for the children to be baptised; that they will forsake the Devil and all his works, the pomps and vanities of this wicked world, and are there signed with the sign of the Cross, that innocent Ceremony, as they call it, that he shall continue Christ's Faithful Soldier & fight under his banner all the days of his life against the World, the Flesh and the Devil, by the which promise he is bound to the utmost of his power always to oppose all errors, wickedness, and profaneness. Now if any in conscience of his promise either speak or write in defence of the truth, as it ought to be defended, or if he do but put in practice that which he hath promised, in opposing of Error, Superstition, profaneness, Idolatry, or the iniquities of the times, the Prelates severely punish them for it, as their daily proceedings witness, and if this be not a daring cruelty also, and great injustice, there is none exercised upon the earth: for what is unjustice and cruelty, if punishing of men for doing their duty, and keeping their promise, and performing that which the Prelates themselves have tied them to by special promise, be not?  
They teach all Christians in an other Ceremony of standing up at the Gospel and at Gloria Pa●ri, and at the Creed, to show their readiness and promptitude in fight for ●he Faith of jesus and their Holy Religion against Heresy, Popery, and all Innovations, all which, our Gracious King declares himself, that he will never allow of or suffer, and the neglect of this Ceremony will cost a man an undoeing. Now if any being taught by this Ceremony come forth to the combat, and but oppose themselves against Popery, Errors, or Innovations, in defence of the Faith, and the Honour of their King, they are punished most severely for it by the Prelates both in the High-Commission and other Courts, and Bills and Informations and Articles are exhibited and made against them as evil doers and troublers of the State, and all for doing that th●y teach them by their Ceremonies, and bind them by promises & oath to do, which is Hyperbolical tyrannies unjustice and cruelty in those reverend Fathers. It seems they would have Christians like Saint George a horseback ever mounted but never moving, and if they do chance to stir or dare be so bold as to move, they immediately are cast down and break either their ears, or their noses, or their foreheads, and it may be ●hey are also wh●pped to the bargain for being so bold, some mischief for the most part follows their endeavours, and that for doing their duty, and that which they were taught by Ceremonies, and is not this arrogant tyranny● cruelty and injustice in the Prelates to punish and that severely both the neglect and the doing also of their duty, and that they are enjoined to do? without all doubt there is no such cruelty in the world as is daily practised by the Prelates and in their Courts, of the which there might mighty volumes be made, but the Defendant hath instanced in these few things only, because● they are known to most men and obvious every day, and the Defendants condi●ion and his cause can sufficiently witness their unrighteous dealings, and that in diverse respects, for they dealt, with him against the very law and light of nature and as they would not be done by, to make him accuse himself, to admit his sworn and capital enemies, and which first informed them against him out of mere malice, as was proved by many, to be prosecutors and witnesses against him; yea to speak as it is, that the Prelates themselves should be Accusers, Parties, Witnesses, jury and judge in their owne● cause, as they all were: this the Defendant saith is unrighteous dealing, to which may be added the defending of the Pope's quarrel, to condemn him for one thing and putting those things likewise in the records of the Court, for which by the whole Court he was freed from. As for example, the Defendant was condemned only for his book, now in the order of the Court or Sentence, it is put in● that he was condemned for the other things also● which howsoever they were in themselves very ridiculous, yet it is great injustice to superadd them, and so to deal with him. Neither is that a small part of injustice to punish and condemn the innocent and justify the wicked, both which are an abomination to the Lord.  
Now they condemned the Defendant for writing against the Pope, & adjudged his Book to be burnt, and justified his adversaries and Chouny who writ in defence of the Church of Rome; and it is their daily practice to condemn books that are writ for the Honour of Religion, accusing them to be factious pamphlets: but Books that are writ for the advancement of Popery and Superstition, and in defence of the pontificality of Prelates and the magnification of the Church of Rome, ●o the trampling down of regal authority, and for the murdering & killing of Kings, for the bringing in of Innovations into a Kingdom and for suppressing of true Religion, many of which are not to be named, of these Books a man may buy shipfulls of them in Paul's Church yard, all which tend to the ruin of the Kingdom, and perverting of Religion, and the seducing of the King's good Subjects. And all other Books of Arminians, Sosinians, and a thousand such blasphemous treatises are bought and sold publicly in every Stationars shop, with the Prelates very good liking. And the greatest enemies of the truth, such as Bellarmine, Baronius, Tyrian, Cajetan, are not only publicly vented but are before the King, and in the Universities, and indeed in every Pulpit magnified with glorious titles, as, the learned Cardinal, incomparable Bellarmine, those grand impostors and perverters of the ways of God, and such as have abused King JAMES of famous memory, and blasphemously defamed our most Holy Religion; All these Authors and many more with their Books, the Defendant saith, are daily approved of, and commended by the Prelatess and such as extol the Church of Rome patronised by them and maintained. And what is it then to advance Popery, if all these doings of the Prelates be not? and what is it to favour profaneness and irreligion, if the punishing and silencing of those that write and speak against the iniquity of the times, be not? let all men judge of this with serious reason, and they will soon perceive, that in this accusation of the Prelates, the Defendant hath no way wronged them. And for their intemperance and want of wit, it is notoriously also known who rail most shamefully and unhumanelie upon all honest men that come before them, as their very speeches in their censure may witness. judges of old were wont to give Sentence in less matters being full of compassion, with tears in their eyes; neither do we read of any judges since Christ's time but of Ananias the High Priest, and Festus the Governor that they ever did revile those that were brought before them, or give them any ill language. And the one was a jew, and the other a Heathen, both enemies of Christ and Christians. But for Christian judges and them spiritual ones, for such contumeliously to abuse their brethren, as they did the Defendant, and daily do others, and to give them over to the Devil and to perpetual chains for every trivial thing, yea even for a misprision or a very surmise, and to make a man an offender for a word, and to ruin them, their wives, and children for such things, and that with scoffs, reproaches, tants and mocks, this the Defendant affirmeth, in the Prelates is both cruelty, injustice, intemperance, and want of wisdom, and so he nothing doubteth but this honourable Court and all rational men will judge.  
Neither doth his gracious● Majest. or this honourable Court as he truly believeth, know, how they abuse his poor Subjects; neither will God take this well at their hands, for it no way beseemeth those would be thought the Fa●hers of the Church so to do. For if we look upon Timothy and Titus whose successors they would be thought to be, and the rules that they followed and were guided by, we shall find a vast difference between them. Saint Paul in his 2. epistle to Timothy chap. 2. telleth him, That the servant of the Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men● apt to teach, patient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledgement of the truth, etc. And in an other place, the same Apostle saith, A Bpp. must be patient and no brawler. Now when the Prelates so exorbitantly, behave themselves, trampling all Apostolical Canons under their feet, and so basely revile the good Subjects of the King and their brethren, trampling also the sacred Scriptures under their fee●, and that with as great contempt as the Papists themselves do, advancing Popery every way, and the Defenders of it, can any deny that these are intemperate, imprudent, unjust men, and furtheres & upholders of Popery? & whereas the Defendant is charged in the information● That he accuseth the Prelates as upholders of idolatry superstition and profaneness, and that h●● defameth the witness brought against him, and hath causelessly and boldly inveighed against the oath Ex officio.  
The Defendant humbly intreateth the honourable Court that with patience they would hear his answer to these things, & then he will come to the last thing that concerns him, the Litany, and the occasion of the writing of it. What he himself hath done, he is ever resolved to seal with his best blood, & to justify and make good whatsoever he shall accuse the Prelates of. Amongst the which he acknowledgeth, that he chargeth them to be advancers of Popery, idolatry, superstition & profaneness. And so they are, as hath been already sufficiently evinced, and by that which followeth shall yet more illustriously appear. For what is it, to advance Popery and idolatry if that the Prelates daily do be it not? without, men will think that Popery only, that advanceth the Pope's Supremacy, and they Protestant's only, that go no farther in opposing that Heretical religion, when that is among many Divines counted one of ●he least controversies in Theology between Papists and us true Catholics. Greater matters I worse, hundreds there are between us. And howsoever the King blessed be God & his predecessors by the blood of their Subjects and the sacrificing of themselves, have shaken off the yoke of the Pope: yet his poor Subjects are under many Popes which deal worse with them then ever Popes did to Kings in the midst of their swellingly pride & arrogancy, yea every parish Priest and base fellow that is but a Prelates Servant, can ruin and undo the honestest man upon any information; So that for the Subjects condition it is worse, & they are in a far more deplorable predicament than they were in under the Pope, by this change; for now they have neither their consciences, their libertyes, their purses, their bodies, their limbs or lives in any security but as the Prelates & their creatures please are deprived of all, who seek continually for their blood and starve many of them in prisons, and expose them to infinite miseries and calamityes● so that they are as sheep to the slaughter, slain all the day long. And of their deadly cruelty against those that fear God the whole Kingdom can witness, and how that they make them every where most odious. But now to the matter the Defendant charges the Prelates with, viz. that they are advancers of Idolatry, superstition and pr●phanesse. And that ●hey are advancers of idolatry, who can doubt of it, that knoweth that very rudiments of Divinity or in the least measure ●a●h been acquainted with the laws of God? For as God only is and must be the object of all Divine worship, as t●e first commandment teacheth, for him only we are to serve Matth. 4. as Christ also commandeth, & to worship any other or to trust in any thing else is idolatry in a high degree: for we must love him with all our hearts and all our Soul●s and trust only in him. So likewise for the manner of his worship that must also be as he commandeth, not as we vainly conceive. For he hath said. Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven image, or t●e likeness o● any thing in Heav●n above, or in the earth beneath, thou shalt not bow down to it or worship it. By which precept for the very manner of his worship it is not le●t to our disposing, that we should ●fter our inventions serve him, Neither is ●ee to be served any other way, or by any other means than he hath in his Word prescribed, which is a large commentary upon th●t text; So that no man that hath eyes can pretend any longer that he seeth not the truth. And among all learned and Orthodox Divines this is accorded and assented unto● That ●hose, that by their own inventions, as by Images, Crucifixes, Altars, Ceremonies, or Syllables and letters, or whatsoever other means serve him, without express command from God go about to worship him, are Idolaters● and such worship is idolatry; and of this kind of service & adoration are the Samaritans guilty, of whom it is said, that they worshipped the true God, and so they did in many things, according to the Law of Moses, and had Circumcision and the Passeover, and looked for the Me●sias to come. B●t because they added their own inventions to that worship, and brought in their own devices with it, and set up a will worship, therefore the● were esteemed the enemies of God and proclaimed idolaters. Ye worship saith Christ you know no● what. So that they that according to their own pretences and inventions serve God, worship they kno● not what, and therefore are idolaters and all such Divine worship as is not prescribed by God such service is idolatry, Of which kind & nature is altar-worship, crucifix-worship, image-worship, table-worship, place worship, ceremony-worship, bread-worship, syllable worship and all such like-worship and indeed all will-worship, and whether or no the Prelates be not advancers of altars and crucifixes & place-worship, ceremony & bread-worship, and such trash, let all the Kingdom judge, And all t●ese are Popery, saving t●e worshipping of altars: for the Defendant yet never saw the Papists so basely idolatrous as to worship a naked altar: indeed where there is a Crucifix upon an altar, they bow, but never to the altar or table alone, as he is most confident the Papists themselves will acknowledge, and therefore so gross the Prelates are in their Popish performances that they exceed them in idolatry. And so it is● that those that are most vainly superstitious amongst them, they are in the readyest way to preferment, and others of a contrary mind, most contemned and vilipended, which showeth sufficiently what favoures of Popery the Prelates are. Yea for all manner of Popery, they affect it, defend it● & maintain it, and the Authors and abe●ters of it. As for a precedent, a base esteem of Holy Scriptures, preferring the Father's Authority before them, in which they are as impiously Popish as Bellarmin himself, or any other Papist. They hold also their own Episcopal Authority to be jure Divino. Likewise, they hold a real presence in the Sacrament of the Lords Supper, and that the Church of Rome is a true Church and what hold they not, that the Church of Rome holds not? And for all manner of superstition, they so advance it, as no man, that will not be superstitious can live among them or can enjoy either his Ministry if he be in orders; or if he be a laic (as they term him) his liberty. Now for superstition, it is described amongst the learned to be, when men do any thing in religion supra id quod statutum est, to be wise in God's mat●ers above that which is written, and where can any of them show, their cappings, and crouchings, and standings, & kneel, and a thousand such jackanapes tricks commanded in Scripture, as they now use; in which notwithstanding they place all holiness and religion, and the neglect of the least of which fopperies, makes all men thought not only profane, but causeth unto them severe punishment, yea utter ruin many times. Where hath God commanded in any place, to kneel in the receiving of the Sacrament? to leave Christ's example and the blessed Apostles and to follow Antichrists & his wicked Disciples, who are the cursed enemies of ●●e Lord jesus? where hath he commanded to turn tables into altars and to do worship unto them? or to venerat the Table or the walls of a Church? or to turn their faces to the East? or to cap and bow at ●he name of jesus? As for that text which is often abused in the 2. of the Philippians, there is no ground in that for that impious adulation and vain Ceremony; for if as they would have it, by that, an outward worship of the body be at the name of jesus to be yielded: then by the same text also, there is a● oral and audible confession to be made in the public assembly: for as it is said at the name of jesus every knee shall bow, so it is there likewise said, at the name of jesus every tongue shall confess jesus is the Lord, which thing was never yet practised in any Church of the world, nor by the Prelates themselves, and would bring such a confusion into all Congregations, as would perturbat all Holy duties, and bring men into an inevitable bondage and circulation of obedience which could never be ended, and by which the Heresy of the Entichites would again of necessity be revived, which the Defendant doth not think the Prelates as well as they seem to love prayer, would willingly assent unto: and yet by severe consequence it would necessarily follow, if that Ceremony upon that text be founded: and this part of obedience the Prelates have yet failed in, and therefore have served God hitherto to the halves.  
Withal this is a great indignity to jesus Christ, to worship him more by one name and title, than an o●her, and indeed it is a meet mockery of the Lord jesus, so to trifle with some of his attributes, who is equally by all to be honoured and reverenced, being one and the same person God blessed for ever, by which or in which of his titles soever his dignity is expressed. And no Kin● or Prince would take it we●l at his Subjects hands, if they should slight any of his Royal titles or give less veneration to the one then to the other. Neither is that all, but he would also take it for a great contumely and indignity done to him, and think it not far from treason as he well might if his Subjects should give equal reverence and honour to any of his Subjects that they do to him, much more if they should honour his greatest enemy with the same veneration that they do him. Yet all this is perpetrated by this idle Ceremony against the Lord jesus, and that Divine Honour which is given to God himself, is given not only to his Servants, being creatures, but to his very greatest enemy a child of the Devil, as daily experience witnesseth. For, when jesus that is ca●led justus, is named they cap & bend, & when jesus of Siracke is named, they do the same, and when jesus that is called josua, is pronounced, they likewise worship, yea when Bariesus the Conjurer that enemy of all righteousness and child of the Devil is read in the Churches, they also cap and crouch, as the Defendant himself hath often seen. So that not only the creature, but the Devil himself must communicate with the Lord of life in his divine worship by these vain, idle, and hypocritical inventions of the Prelates, which is a damnable and unsufferable wickedness in them. Yet these and innumerable more inconveniences and impieties will necessarily follow upon all humane inventions and ridiculous superstitions, of all which the Prelates are advancers to the miraculous dishovour of God, hardening of Idolaters in their heretical courses, and to the great molestation and vexation, yea and to the undoeing of thousands of good Christians and the true Subjects of the King in a year. And to speak the truth, they are more superstitious in all their apish performances, (as all Traveller's know) not only in their Cathedrals, but now in every Parish Church, than they are among the Papists themselves, as all Papists will tell you with derision, who among themselves mock at their folly. And wh●ther they be not likewise favourers of profaneness, and impiety, let their daily proceedings in their Courts be examined and looked into, who sell all manner of filthenesse for money, and by commuting give a kind of toleration for uncleanness and villante: and as for their Officers and Servants in general, they are the most ungodly ribbald swearing fellows, and for all manner of excess the basest in the whole land, ●ho make no conscience of swearing in their open assemblies, and are to speak the trueth● more like a company of Ruffians than Saints, be●ing deriders of all goodness and piety, which all those that have any commerce with them, can witness. Withal, that the most wickedly and impiously disposed varlets, are most honoured, hugged and esteemed amongst them, and will ever find more favour at their hands, than the honestests men.  
And whereas the Defendant is charged● to have causle●lie defamed the witnesses, he saith, that for them it is notoriously known, that they are a company of Sons of Beliall, sold over to work mischief's being vio●aters of the very laws of nature and hospitality, and such as have spoke so barbarousli● of the Prelates, in the time of their familiarity, as the Defendant dareth not express; and they stand upon two records in the Court of Chancery for Calumniators & malicious Traducers & vexatious men, and were there expugned with costs given to the Defendant for their baseness. And at the Informations at the Doctor's commons, they were by the judges thought unfit witnesses, and the chiefest of them told to his face, that his testimony was not to be admitted, for malice had set him a work; and withal he was proved prodigiously profane and wicked, which can yet be easily verified, as that he is an unlearned fellow: and therefore by the power of the Prelate of Canterbury, in whose eyes such wretches ever find grace, and by the means of Mr. Sir john Lamb, they procured hi● wickedness to be covered, which was fully set out in the depositions. But all the judges notwithstanding the favour he found with Canterbury, (one only excepted) at the Defendants censure, freed him from those poo●e and frivolous things they laid to his charge, and abjored their witnesses● and condemned him only for hi● Book, and the Defendant hath the depos●●ions yet to show, under the h●●d of the Court● Where they have most apparently sworn one against the other, & while they laboured to accuse hi●, they justify his honesty and proclaim themselves knaves, neither is there such another pack of villains, in the whole Country, and that do more molest and trouble their neighbours, and the place where they dwell, which they can easily do being backed by the High-Commission Court, and the Prelates. And such agents are ever fittest for their employments, that will swear or do any thing either for money or maliced and therefore the Defendant in his Apology, being to make a true relation of things, could not omit the witnesses, being his prosecutors also, and the original of all his troubles, with their barbarous ingratitude unto him, who had been next noder God the only means to preserve them from ●he jaws of famine's as the whole Town can tell: who thus requited him for all.  
And whereas the Defendant is said causelessly and boldly to h●ve inveighed against the oath ex officio, he desireth now to say something concerning that, it being put upon him. As for the oath ex officio he there only by the way spoke of it, telling the danger he was brought into by it, and how that Trajan the Emperor would not have his Subjects oppressed with it as thinking it a cruelty unsufferable. And to speak the truth, it is an oath against the Law of Nature, the Law of Nations, the Law of God, and the Law of the Land, yea the Defendant is able to confute it by their own Canon Law. But that it is against the Law of Nature and the Land it is evident: for by neither is any man forced to accuse and condemn himself, & a learned lawyer not long since proved it to be against the laws of the land. And the very Heathens condemned no man, but by sufficient witnesses, as we may see when Paul was brought before Felix, he taketh not an oath of him to accuse himself, buth saith, when thy accusers come I will hear thee. Festus likewise said, It was not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to dye, before that he which is accused, have the accusers' face to fave, and have licence to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him. But by the oath ex officio a man is condemned without either, as all the prisons almost through the Kingdom can witness. Nay, the law of God saith, that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every thing shall be confirmed; now here without any witnesses, a man is condemned. And Christ himself being questioned concerning his doctrine, he sends them to be informed of that, of those that heard him, & would not in any thing answer them, & when the woman was brought before him, being found in the fact of adultery he asketh her, saying where are thy accusers? They are gone saith she, and jesus said, I accuse thee not, neither did he force her to accuse herself. And Christ bids us if any man offend us, go and ●ell him of it privately; and than if he hear us not, after that to take witnesses, and after conviction by witnesses then to shun him. He doth not command to force them to accuse themselves. Besides, he that will swear according to God's command, must swear in righteousness, in judgement and in truth. Now by this damnable oath ex officio, he can do none of all this. For he knoweth not what to swear to, and by that oath he makes that evil which is good many times, and that good which is evil, which is great unrighteousness and untruth: he is also to accuse himself and his brethren, to the utter undoing of them all, which is horrible injustice and want of wisdom & judgement.  
Besides, an oath by Gods own appointment, is to be ●he end of all controversy. It is the last thing in a controversy and the conclusion of it, & where this end is not in an oath, it is not to swear according to Gods own appointment, but sinfully. Now the oath ex officio, is not such an oath: for that is the beginning of all molestation and strife, mischief & wicked debate, and the cause of infinite brabbles and needles vexations to themselves and others, and therefore aught to be de●ested and abominated. Further, no man is to take the name of God in vain, now in the oath ex officio, every man takes the name of God in vain. For they will never believe him though he swear by the day and by the night, whatsoever he sweareth or saith in his own defence and justification, let it be never so true as daily experience can testify; but only make it a trap and a snare farther to entangle and involve him: & therefore it being an oath against the Law of God, of charity, love & nature, it is to be detested as the devil, and so the Defendant for his part doth abhor it as he doth the devil and all his works, and as he doth all the other cu●sed and abominable proceedings of the Prelates, who spend the whole patrimony of their wit, to molest the dear servants of God, and the King's best and loyallest Subjects; By all which unrighteous dealing, they manifest themselves to be the enemies of God and the King, and as, such the Defendant writes against them, and so he yet will for the many reasons above alleged esteem of them, by what names or titles soever they be called; or whatsoever place of dignity they are in, and in this mind the Defendant will persever, till they have acknowledged their contumacy to God and the King, and repent of the same. And thus much the Defendant had to say in his own defence, concerning the things he was charged with in his Apology; and with all desireth of this honourable assembly that the o●her matters that the informers say are of diverse natures in it, may be specified: For it is an easy thing, to pick here and there a word out of best books, to do a man a mischief, & all men know Spiders will gather poison where Bees find honey, and he knoweth very well he hath many malignant enemies, and therefore desireth the favour of the honourable Court for his better defence. And now he comes to the second book, called the Litany, occasioned by the Bishop's cruelty, for they threatening him not only to starve him out of his opinion: but also with the pillory the loss of his ears the one at Colchester, the other at London, with the slitting of his nostrils, & branding of him in the forehead, and he also hearing that this decree was gone out before September last, & divulged and spread abroad by the Prelates favourits as all the Country will testify: it put him upon his devotions and made him write a Litany wherein he prayeth for deliverance from them. But whether that which is annexed to the information, be the same he knoweth not, for the informers say, that that is a profane Litany. As for the Litany the defendant made, it was a good & godly Litany, and in that ridentem dicere verum. Quid vetat? And concerning the Christening he doth confess he did invite CANTERBURY AND LONDON IN HIS WIFE'S NAME, AND THE WHORE OF BABYLON TO BE WITNESS. Which he was constrained to by reason of the penury of his friends, for the Prelates had driven away all his acquaintance, so that every body was afraid of them, nor no man durst entertain his poor wife, nor give her houseroom, though she was then great with child, and in much misery as the whole Country will justify, and in this distress and calamity he did it, & wi●hall he thought he did the Prelates a great deal of honour, that he the Defendant, should vouchsafe to have such men as they were to his Christening, & that he did join so honourable a Gossip as the Matron of Rome with them whom they so much honoured & adored, and pleaded for in this De●endents cause as Christ's true Church and Spouse, and their best beloved Mistress, presuming that he could no way disparage them by joining this Spiritual Mother with these Spiritual Fathers: and in this, the Defendant thinks he did very much grace them, inviting such a Catholic company to the baptising of his child, who he hopeth will live and die a true Christian Catholic. And wonders, that the Prelates should be so peevish as to misinterpret his ●eale to them all, especially, when he did give them their titles most magnificently, as, FATHER WILLIAM OF CANTERBURY HIS HOLINESS, AND WILLIAM LONDON MAGNIFICUS RECTOR OF THE TREASURIE. Neither did he see any reason why he should detract from Canterbury his titles: for as he is Pope of Canterbury, he is holy, and for the title of Pope it was given antientlie to all or most Bishops, and in special to his predecessor Anselmus that rebel, as all Histories do relate, and the title of Grace, is but the title of a Cardinal. Besides, that title is now revived, if fame be not a liar, which is a good plea in their Courts, and false copies from both th● universities be not dispersed and spread abroad. For the University of Cambridge in their letters greet him with Sanctissim● Pater, most holy Father the title of the Pope, & which only belongeth to the first person of the glorious Trinity, God blessed for ever, and from Oxford they give him the style of Sanctitatis his Holiness, and Edmund Reeve in his exposition of the Catechism in the Common-Prayer Book, gives the title of Holiness of times to the Bishops, & calls them Holy Fathers by their own allowance and approbation.  
Now he is a Father of the Church, and that of Canterbury, and he is William, and he is Holy, at leastwise would be so reputed, and would deem it a Scandalum magnatum to be styled profane or unholy, Ergo, Father William of Canterbury, his Holiness, and the Defendant is resolved never to detract any thing from his Holiness, but shall daily pra●, that he may grow and evermore increase in Holiness, And for the Prelate of London, he should be feeding of Christ's flock in the Pulpit, and he is at the receipt of custom telling of money, like Matthew the Publican before his calling to the Apostleship, the love of which is the root of all evil, and hath got himself no small honour by it, which the Defendant would not in the least diminish, and therefore being 〈◊〉 skilful Herald, nor acquainted with the titles of Honour they usually style men in that place, he was constrained to make use of a little of his Roman Rhetoric, and called him Magnificus Restor of the Treasury, a fi●ting honourable title as he conceived, which he doth not nor ever shall repute a Scandal, nor repent of that invitation.  
And for any other passages that are in the Litany that he made, he the Defendant is most assured, if the honourable Court heard it all, not by pieces and scrips which he most humbly desireth, they would well perceive the Defendant had good reason, for what he hath both done and writ. For this Honourable Court would then well perceive, that the Defendant never meddled with any of them, nor in the least thing impeached their dignities, till they by their delinquency against God and the King, did manifestly demonstrate they were fallen from Grace, and then as they had proclaimed themselves enemies of God and the King, he did set himself against their proceedings and will continue in so doing, though it be through all misery to the last gasp of breath, and will continually say, LET THE KING LIVE FOR EVER, AND THE ENEMIES OF THE KING PERISH, and dying, he will devoutly pray from plague, pestilence & famine, from Bishops● Priests and Deacons, good Lord deliver us. Ever meaning from usurping Popish Bishops, Priests & Deacons, and such as challenge their standing and Auto●itle jure Divino, and not from the King, as our Prela●● do. And as to all other the residue of the offences and misdemeanours complained of in the said information & examinable in this honourable Court, this Defendant saith, that he is not guilty of them or any of them in manner and form, as by the said information is supposed. All which matters this Defendant is ready to averte and prove as this honourable Court shall a ward. And humbly prayeth to be dismissed out of the same with his costs and charges against the Prelates, by vexation in this & his former suit in the High Commission most wrongfully sustained.  
FINIS.