THE CONFESSION OF FAITH.  
Written by Sr. FRANCIS BACON.   portrait of Francis Bacon 
Printed in the Year 1641.   

The Confession of FAITH.  
FIRST, I believe, That nothing is without beginning but God, no Nature, no Matter, no Spirit, no essence, but one only, and the same God: That God, as he is Eternal, Almighty, only wise, only good in his Nature, so he is Eternally Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, in three persons.  
I believe, that God is so holy, pure, and zealous, that it is impossible for him to be pleased in any creature, though the work of his own hands, so that neither Angel, Man, nor World could stand, or can stand one moment in his eyes, without beholding the same in the face of a Mediator: And therefore that before him with whom all things are present, the lamb of God was slain before all worlds; without which eternal Counsel of God it was impossible for him to have descended to any work of Creation, but should have enjoyed the blessed and individual society of the three persons in the Godhead only for ever, but that out of his eternal and infinite goodness and love, purposing to become a Creator, and to communicate with his Creatures, that so in the person of the Mediator, the true Ladder might be fixed, whereby God might descend to his Creatures, and his Creatures might ascend to God; so that God by the reconcilement of a Mediator, turning his Countenance towards his Creatures, though not in the same height, and degree, made way unto the disposition of his most holy and sacred will, whereby some of his Creatures might stand, and keep their estates, others might fall, and be restored unto their estates, but yet remain in being, though under wrath, and corruption, all in the virtue of a Mediator, which is the great mystery, and perfect Centre of all God's ways unto his Creatures, and unto which all his other Works and Wonders do but serve and refer.  
That he chose according to his pleasure man to be that Creature to whose Nature the eternal Son of God should be united, and amongst the generations of men he elected a small flock in whom by the participation of himself he purposed to express the Rays of his Glory, all the ministration of Angels, damnation of Devils and Reprobates, universal administration of all Creatures, and dispensation of all times, have no other ends but as the ways and Ambages of God to he further glorified in his saints who are one with the Mediator, who is one with God.  
That by the virtue of God his Eternal Counsel touching a Mediator, he descended at his own good pleasure, and according to the times, and seasons to himself best known to become a Creator, and by his eternal word created all things, and by his eternal spirit doth comfort, and preserve them.  
That he made all things in their first estate good, and removed from himself leaving the beginning of all evil, and vanity unto the liberty of the creature, but reserving in himself the beginning of all restitution, and the liberty of his Grace, using never thelesse, and turning the falling, and defection of the Creature, which to his prescience was eternally known, to make a way to his eternal Counsel touching a Mediator, & the work he purposed to accomplish in him.  
That God created Spirits, whereof some kept their stand, and others fell, he created heaven, and earth, and all their Armies and Generations, and gave unto them constant and everlasting laws, which we call nature which is nothing but the laws of the Creation, which lawsneverthelesse have had three changes, or times, and are to have their fourth and last.  
The first, when the matter of Heaven and Earth was created without form.  
The second by the Interim of every days work.  
The third, by the curse which notwithstanding was no new Creation, but a privation of part of the first Creation.  
And the fourth and last, at the end of the world the manner whereof is not yet revealed. So as the Laws of nature which now remain, and govern inviolably till the end of the world began to be in force when God rested from his work, and ceased to create, but received a revocation in part by the curse since which time they change not.  
That notwithstanding God hath rested from creating since the first Sabbath, yet nevertheless he doth accomplish, and fulfil his divine will in all things, great and small, general, and particular, as fully, and exactly by providence as he could do by miracle, and new Creation, though his working be not immediate, and direct, but by compass, not violating nature which is his own Law upon his Creatures.  
That as at the first the soul of man was not produced of heaven, or earth, but was breathed immediately from God, so that the ways, and proceed of God with Spirits are not included in nature that is in the laws of heaven or earth, but are reserved to the law of his secret will, and grace whereby God worketh still, and resteth not from the work of Creation, as he doth from the work of Redemption, but continueth working to the end of the world, at what time also that work shallbe accomplished, and an eternal Sabbath shall ensue.  
Likewise that whensoever God doth break the laws of nature by miracles (which ever are new Creations) he never cometh to that point, or pass, but he hath regard to the work of Redemption which is the greater, and whereunto all Gods Saints and Martyrs do refer.  
That God created man in his own Image, or likeness, in a reasonable soul in innocence, and sovereignty, that he gave him a law and command which was in his power to keep, but he kept it not.  
That man made a total defection from God, presuming to imagine that the laws, and prohibitions of God were not the rules of good, and evil, but that good and evil had their principles, and beginnings, and lusted after the knowledge of those imaginary beginnings to the end to depend no more upon Gods will revealed, but upon himself and his own light as a God, than the which there could not be a sin more opposite to the law of God.  
That yet nevertheless this great sin was not originally moved by the malice of man, but was insinuated by the Instigation, and suggestion of the Devil, who was the first defected creature, and fell of malice, and not by temptation.  
That upon the fall of man, death, and vanity entered by the Justice of God, and the Image of God in man was defaced, and Heaven and Earth which were made for man's use, were subdued to corruption by his fall, but than that instantly, and without intermission of time after the word of gods law, because through the fall of man frustrate as to obedience there succeeded the greater word of the promise, that the righteousness of God might be made, and wrought by faith.  
That aswell the word of God as the word of his promise endure the same for ever, but that they have been revealed in several manners according to the dispensation of times, for the Law was first imprinted in that remnant of light of nature which was left after the fall being sufficient to accuse, it was more manifestly expressed in the written Laws, it was yet more opened by the Prophets; And lastly expressed in the true perfection of the Son of God, the great Prophet, and perfect Interpreter of the Law.  
That likewise the word of the promise was manifested, and revealed first by immediate Revelation and Inspiration, after by figures which were of two natures, the one the rights and Ceremonies of the Law, the other the continual histories of the old world, and Church of the jews, which though it be literally true, yet it is pregnant of a perpetual Allegory, and a shadow of the work of Redemption, which was to follow, the same promise, or Evangell was more clearly revealed, and expressed by the Prophets, than by the Son himself, and lastly by the Holy Ghost, which illuminateth the CHURCH to the end of the world.  
That in the fullness of time according to the promise, and oath of GOD, of a chosen lineage descended the blessed seed of the Woman (Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of GOD) and Saviour of the World, who was Conceived by the Power, and overshadowing of the Holy Ghost, and tookflesh of the Virgin MARIE.  
That the Word did not only take flesh, or was joined to flesh, though without conconfusion of Substance, or Nature, so as the Eternal Son of God, and ever blessed Son of Mary was one person, so one as the blessed Virgin may be truly and catholicly called Dei para, the Mother of GOD, so one, as there is no unity in universal Nature, not that of the soul and body of man so perfect, for the three Heavenly Unities, whereof that is the second, exceedeth all natural Unities, that is the unity of the three persons in the Godhead, the Unity of God and Man in Christ, and the unity of Christ in the Church; the Holy Ghost being the worker of both these latter unities: for by the Holy Ghost was Christ regenerate in the flesh, and by the Holy Ghost is man regenerate and quickened in the Spirit.  
That JESUS, the Lord, became in the Flesh a Sacrificer, and a Sacrifice for sin, a satisfaction and price to the justice of God, a Meriter of Glory, and of the Kingdom, a pattern of all Righteousness, a Preacher of the Word, which himself was a finisher of the Ceremonies, a Corner stone, to remove the separation between Jew and Gentile; an Intercession for the Church; a Lord of Nature in his Miracles: a Conqueror of death, and the power of Darkness in his Resurrection, and that he fulfilled the whole Counsel of GOD performed his whole sacred Office, and anointing upon Earth, and accomplished the whole work of Redemption, and Restitution of man to a state superior to the Angels, where the state of his Creation was inferior, and reconciled, and established all things according to the will of the Father.  
That in the fullness of time, JESUS the Lord was borne, in the days of Herod, and suffered under the Government of Pontius Pilate, being Deputy of the Romans, and under the High Priesthood of Caiphas, and was betrayed by Judas, one of the twelve Apostles, and was Crucified at Jerusalem, and died after a true and natural death, and His Body laid in the Sepulchre, the third day He raised Himself from the Bonds of Death, and arose, and shown Himself to many chosen Witnesses, by the space of divers days; and in the end of those days in the sight of many He ascended into Heaven, where He continueth his Intercession, and shall come in His appointed time in greatest Glory for to judge the World.  
That the sufferings and Merits of Christ as they are sufficient to do away the sins of the whole World, so they are effectual to such as are Regenerate by the Holy Ghost, who breatheth where He listeth of free Grace; which Grace, as a Seed incorruptible, quickeneth the spirit of Man, and conceiveth him a new the son of GOD, and a member of CHRIST, so that CHRIST having Man's flesh, and Man having CHRIST'S Spirit, there is an open passage, and Imputation whereby sin and wrath is conveyed from Man to Christ; and Merit and Life is conveyed from Christ to Man, which Seed of the Holy Ghost first figureth in us the Image of CHRIST slain, or Crucified in us in a Holy Faith, and then reneweth in us the Image of God in Holiness and Righteousness, though both imperfectly, and in degrees fare differing even in GOD'S Elect, as well in regard of the office of the Spirit, as the Illumination, which is more or less in a large proportion, as namely in the Church before CHRIST, which nevertheless was partaker of one and the same salvation with us.  
That the work of the Spirit, though it be not tied to any means in Heaven, or in Earth, yet it is ordinarily dispensed by the preaching of the Word, and administration of the Sacraments, the Covenants of the Fathers upon the Children, Payers, Reading, the Censures of the Church, the society of the godly, the cross and afflictions, Gods benefits, his judgements upon others, his great Miracles, the Contemplation of his Creatures, all which (though some be more principal) God useth as the means of Vocation and Conversion of his Elect, not derogating from his power to call immediately by his grace, and at all hours, and moments of the day, that is, of man's life, according to his good pleasure.  
That the Word of God, by which his Will is revealed, continued in revelation and tradition, until Moses, and that the Scriptures were from Moses time until the time of the Apostles, and Evangelists, in whose age, after the coming of the Holy Ghost, the searcher of all trtuh, the Book of the Scriptures is shut up, and closed, and cannot receive any new addition, and that the Church hath no power after the Scriptures to teach or command any thing contrary to the written Word; but is as the Ark wherein the Tables of the first Testament were kept and preserved; That is to say, the Church hath only the custody and delivery over of the Scriptures committed unto the fame together with the Interpretation of them; that there is an Universal, or Catholic Church of GOD dispersed over the face of the Earth, which is Christ's Spouse, and Christ's body being gathered of the Fathers of the old world of the Church of the jews, of the spirits of the faithful dissolved, of the spirits of the faithful militant, and of the Names yet to be borne, which are already written ●n the Book of Life,  
That there is also a visible Church distinguished by the outward works of GOD'S Covenant, and the renewing of the holy doctrine with the use of the mysteries of GOD, and the Invocation, and Sanctification of his holy name: that there is also an holy succession in the Prophets of the new Testament, and the Fathers of the Church from the time of the Apostles, and Disciples, which saw our Saviour in the flesh, unto the Consummation of the work of the Ministry, which persons are called of GOD by gift or Inward anointing, and the vocation of GOD followed by an outward calling, and ordination of the Church: I believe that the souls of those that die in the Lord are blessed and rest from their labours, & enjoy the sight of God yet so as they are in farther expectation of their glory in the last day, at which time all fleshof man shall arise, and be changed, and shall appear and receive from jesus Christ eternal judgement, and the glory of the Saints shall then be tull, and the Kingdom shall be given to God the Father, from which time all things shall continue for ever in that being, and estate which then they shall receive, so there are three times, if times they may be called, or parts of Eternity.  
The first, the time before Beginning, when the Godhead was without the being of any Creature.  
The second, the time of the Mystery, which continueth from the Creation to the Dissolution of the world.  
And the third, the time of the Revelation of the Saints of God; which time is the last, and is everlasting without change.  
FINIS.