AN ADMONITION TO All Lying Brethren, Or A Cure for the Times. showing the beginning, folly, unworthiness and danger of Lying.  PSAL. V.VI. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the Lord well abhor both the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. MICAH VI. XI.XII.XIII. 
Shall I count them pure with the wicked balances, and with the bag of deceitful weights?  
For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the Inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.  
Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee, in making thee desolate because of thy sins.  
LONDON, Printed for J. P. 1642.   

The best Cure of the Times.  
AMongst other signs and predictions of the last days, that of St. Paul is remarkable, 2 Tim. 3. This know also, that in the last deyes perilous times shall come.  
For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to Parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,  
Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure, more than lovers of God,  
Having a form of godliness; but denying the power thereof, from such turn away, &c. How well the rest of those qualities agree with these times, let others judge and consider. I shall only speak of that general and horrible sin of lying and false accusation.  
Lying was the first occasion of all evil in the World, when the devil persuaded the Woman that they should not die. And as to mankind, so it is a sore judgement upon a Nation, when God suffers them to be carried away with the spirit of delusion, with the making and loving of lies. It hath been the opinion of some, that if lying were laid aside but for one month, this kingdom's peace (with God's mercy) might be renewed, and if truth were once set forward, Peace would presently meet and kiss it. And truly they do not speak impertinently, for if dissension be compared to a fire, then lying is that which blows the coals, and makes up the blaze, and is the only practice of those that thrive and grow fat by the ruin of others; that instead of quenching the fire, warm their hands at it, and say, A ha, I am warm, I have seen the desired fire! Some Divines have distinguished them into three kinds, A merry lie, an officious lie, a pernicious lie.  
A merry lie, is when we lie for our own or others' pastime, without any other intention or harm; I can rebuke this in no better words than those of the Apostle, Abstain from all appearance of evil; and with that of the Wiseman, We must not offend, and say it was in sport: And since God (with●ut any distinction) hath threatened the destruction of all lies, we must not allow ourselves liberty in any.  
An officious lie, is when a man for the excuse or advantage or commendation of his friends, shall exceed the bounds of truth. St. Austin was so curious in this point, That when he had spoken some words of his deceased friend, which might seem to be but an high expression or rhetorical compliment; he had said, That his soul and his friend's soul were but one soul, that his life was tedious to him after the death of his friend, because he would not live by halves; and yet for the same reason he feared to die, lest in him his friend should totally perish. Yet afterwards in his book of Retractations, he recanted this speech as too lavish and affected. By this you see, what a lively and deligate feeling good men have of the least over-lashing in this kind.  
A pernicious lie, is when a man out of malice and injurious intent, shall maintain a lie to the damage of an other man's honour, life, or fortune, and that sometimes seconded with an oath. And as there is no sin that strikes so dangerously at God and men, and a man's own soul as a false oath in trial of truth; so of all sins, it should be least supposed among men, no man being properly guilty of it, that did not forthwith turn into a devil; for how can he otherwise choose that adds perjury to lying, and like Judas kisses the holy Gospel and betrays it. Let all good men take advise by this, to set a door of strength and closeness before their lips, and let nothing but truth open them, and to be wary and circumspect where they speak every truth; for goodness lies too open to treachery, because as they intend no harm, so they suspect none, he that loves truth, may fear falsehood, There may be false brethren that counterfeit Religion and discredit it. Amongst many other properties of a Puritan, King James makes lying to be one, in his second book called Basilicon Doron, or the Kingly gift presented and dedicated to his Son, as his last Will and Testament, in these words,  
Take heed therefore my Son of these Puritans, the very pests of the Church and commonwealth, whom no deserts can oblige, neither oaths nor promises bind, breathing nothing but sedition and calumnies, aspiring without measure, railing without reason, and making their own imaginations without warrant of the Word, the square of their conscience. I protest before the great God (and since I am here as upon my last Will and Testament, it is no place for me to lie in) that you shall never find among the Highlanders or border thieves greater ingratitude and more lies and viler perjuries, than among these phanaticke spirits; and suffer not the principals of them to brook your land, if you list to sit at rest, except you would keep them for trying your patience, as Socrates did an evil wife. And in the Page immediately before, I was often calumniated in their popular sermons, not for any vice or evil that was in me, but because I was a King, which to them is the highest evil.  
Therefore if men would not have their Religion suspected, and the way of truth to be evil spoken of, if they would be pure in heart, not pure by Art; if they would be those that make godliness their greatest gain, not that make a gain of godliness; then let them refrain lying as well as swearing.  
But if this lying shall reflict upon sacred Majesty, if they shall calumniate it in popular sermons (as King James) speaks, and found it by experience) if they be so presumptuous as to speak evil of Dignities, than they may very well own the other part of St. Judes' description, and I farther refer them to the 2 Sam. 16. chap. 12 verse, Although evil can have no good reason, yet it is to be considered, whether lying be not the greatest friend, and afford the best countenance and apology to swearing. If frequent lying had not begot a just incredulity, I see no reason, but the word of an honest man might have passed for an oath. I speak not this to the least excuse of swearing, but to the greater aggravation and damnation of lying, which yields to swearing even so much shelter and defence.  
To prove the malignity of this sin to be the higher, you shall perceive that to promote any cause with lies, argues want of faith, and confidence in God, want of civil faith and trust in men, want of policy, and leaves a suspicion of guiltiness, and want of goodness in the cause.  
First, want of faith in God, if they had any true affiance in the power and protection of God, if they did at all consider that God hath wisdom to instruct, and strength and readiness to assist them, That he can turn round the counsels of men, and make Achitophel politic against himself: If they did seriously believe, that God can overrule the erterprises, and dissipate the affections, and melt and amate the spirits of the strongest opposers of the truth, they cannot so much as pretend to it, that go to promote it by lies and forgeries.  
Secondly, Next it betrays a want of civil faith and trust in men, if they did not suspect men to be flagging from them, to be wavering and uncertain, if they were not afraid of their friends, they would never use such unworthy means to comfort and keep them up, fides fidem obligat, the way to make a man trusty, is to trust him, and many men have taught others to deceive them, by being afraid to be deceived. Pavor aurilia formidat, Fear is affrighted with her own supplies, and suspects the very company that comes to help it: and they want the true strength, that are fain to fortify with lies.  
Thirdly, It betrays want of policy, for though lying for a while (like false ware) be better slee'kt, and glister more, yet truth wears it out.  
Although a lie may get ground at the first going out, yet truth will overtake it, even the dullest at last will find himself to be deceived, and then men will think them most odious and detestable that have beguiled them.  
Though it may seem a trick of worldly policy to fetch in Prosolites, yet at length they gain this gift amongst men to be mistrusted when they deal plainly, and not to be believed when they speak truth, And so truth and honesty prove the best policy. There is a great deal of slavery in a bad cause; it is a miserable and wretched thing to lie and flatter, and thank, and crouch, and fawn upon every one, not to dare to offend any, and yet to suspect all, that they will not be faithful to them, that are themselves unfaithful: they fear men are falling off, and therofore they fly to this poor refuge to keep them together.  
Lastly, lying leaves a suspicion and guiltiness and weakness in the cause: I like the fancy of the Poet well, where he s●yes, That lying and spreading of false alarms and rumours amongst the vulgar, is a sign of guiltiness. 
Criminibus terrere novis hinc spargere voces,  
in vulgum ambiguas, & quaerere conscius arma.  
They make new treasons, and spread false alarms,  
And when themselves are guilty, take up Arms.  Lying argues weakness in the cause, and in the person, and therefore every true soldier abhors it. Some give these two reasons why the lie should be so hateful to a soldier. First, because it argues his cause to be such as he ought not to dare to die in, and therefore he is fain to maintain it with lies. Secondly, because it shows him to be a coward, that he is afraid of men, and dares be only valiant and presumptuous with God. Therefore let men think of lying as meanly as they will, let them invent it as readily, and set it out as plausibly, and disperse it as licentiously as they please, yet there is a fearful doom upon it, They shall never enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, They shall be reckoned amongst dogs, and murderers, and idolaters, Rev. 22.15. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. But if they shall plainly declare themselves to have no fear of God before their eyes, and that wotldly respects only move them, then let them consider that they shall not be believed when they speak truth: That Time is the wisest of all and will discover them, and then they will be odious to them whom they have deluded, That falsehood may get strength enough to ruin itself and others, but never long to flourish and establish itself.  
That although lying may hold up the flag and display false colours for a while, yet Truth will have the victory.  
Magna est veritas & praevalebit.  
The cause that's propped with lies must surely fail,  
Strong is the Truth, at length it will prevail.  
FINIS.