A DECLARATION CONCERNING The present Treaty of Peace, between his Majesty and both Houses of PARLIAMENT.  
Containing the several Reasons, why the well-affected Subjects of this Kingdom ought to embrace either Peace, or War, His Majesty assenting, or dissenting the present Propositions, propounded by the High Court OF PARLJAMENT.  
LONDON Printed for J. H. and Hen. Hutton, 1643.   

A Declaration concerning the presene Treaty of Peace, between His Majesty, and both Houses of Parliament.  
THe Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament, (having taken into serious consideration, the manifold distempers of this Kingdom, occasioned by a malignant party, too prevalent with his Majesty, by which means this Kingdom is at this time engaged in a civil, and destructive war, through many difficulties have endeavoured all possible means to give a period to these calamities which lie, and daily increase upon this Nation, especially to close the divisions that have happened between his Majesty and both Houses of Parliament, for which end they have concluded of a Treaty, and sent such Propositions to his Majesty, as are both full of honour and security to his Majesty, and his Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.  
Yet notwithstanding all the endeavours of that high 〈◊〉 honourable Council, so malicious and envious are many men in this Kingdom, both about his Majesty, and in this City, that they labour rather to increase these divisions, then to cure those desperate wounds which their former malignancy hath made in this distracted and distepered Kingdom, they cease not, but add more fuel to that fire which flames to high already, for by their scandalous reports they daily stigmatize and brand that honourable Assembly with false and libellous reproaches, terming them factious, seditious, peace-breakers, with many other contumelious base slanders, when it is apparent, that the said reports are raised by persons of mean condition, and evil affected to the Religion and peace of the Kingdom, for all wise men know and all honest men must of necssity confess, that the high Court of Parliament hath, and doth lahour earnestly to settle a religious Peace in these his Majesty's Realms, and Dominions.  
By these delusive practices they make the world believe that they are the only desirers of peace,, when indeed they rather desire a continuance of the Wars, they having no other means to defend and maintain that cause, which they favour, (namely) Popery, and Prerogative.  
Therefore that their practices may be made apparent, & that the world may discern whether they desire a true and religious peace, or whether for some sinister end to themselves, they counterfeit, and under that notion, gain power to perfect their destructive designs, here is set down the several reasons why we ought to desire peace, or embrace War, contained in this following discourse.  

The Reasons to induce us to desire Peace.  
1. In respect of God.  
2. In respect of ourselves,  
3. in respect of Ireland,   
1. In respect of God, that the Lord of Hosts may be Slorified thereby for it must be a religious peace that must propagate the Gospel, and cause Religion to flourish and increase in this Kingdom, and not a civil and destructive War.  
That this is apparent, we may behold a pleading and bleeding precedent in Ireland, a Kingdom that not many years ago was inhabited by creatures that scarce knew that there was a God, having no other instructers, then natural instinct, yet that place being settled in Peace, it was become a fruitful plantation, being inhabited by protestant proffessors, to the Glory of God, and admiration of Foreign Nations, but on the contrary, look upon it now, involved in blood, overrun with that rebellious Rout of bloodthirsty Papists, who have the same Designs on foot here in this Kingdom to further our destruction, and root out and utterly extirpate the Protestant profession out of these his Majesty's Dominions, there you may behold how some few Month's War hath ruined and destroyed the fruits of above twenty year's Peace, so that now it is become an habitation for Wolves and Tigers, and the Temples of God, defiled with Idolatrous Images.  
Therefore this may serve as one especial reason why this Kingdom ought to seek peace, it being for the glory of God, and propagation of the Gospel; therefore I wish all men would take up the saying of Christ, Mat. 5.9. Blessed are the Peacemakers, for they shall be called the Sons of God.  
2 In respect of ourselves. That every man whose personal subsistence depends on his artificial practice, hath cause to embrace peace, I need not declare: for the remembrance of what they enjoyed by peace formerly, and the sense of what they suffer by this present war is an effectual motive to induce them to desire the same.  
3 In respect of Ireland, because without a speedy peace that Kingdom is irrecoverably lost, and made a prey to those bloody and insulting tyrants, and being lost, than we lie open to the bloody practices of the same power which hath so great a party in that Kingdom, than we have small hope to resist, being already divided amongst ourselves.  
These considerations (doubtless) have been the motives of this present Treaty, there being no desire, I presume, in any Member of that honourable Assembly inclining to war, if upon honourable terms our Religion, lives, laws and liberties may be secured.  
But on the contrary part, if the Propositions propounded by the Parliament should not take effect, than the Commons ought rather to embrace war, and that for these reasons.  

1 In respect of religion, that being God's cause.  
2 In respect of the Laws, that being the King's cause.  
3 In respect of the Parliament, that being the subjects cause.  
4 In respect of the unjustness of our enemy's cause, being an unbounded Prerogative, and an Antichristian religion (the only aim of the Papists the chief incendiaries in these unnatural wars) grounded upon flattery and ceremony, contrary to God's Word, and the laws of the Kingdom.   
1 In respect of religion. That we had many innovations crept into the Church, I think the greatest Hierarchist will not deny, and that the beginning to purge the Church of those innovations, was the first step to this division, cannot be denied. Now that a Nation ought to take up arms to oppose those that shall not only bring in such innovations and idolatrous worship into the Church, but also raise forces to abet and maintain the same, is apparent: for that land or people that shall suffer idolatry to remain in it, is threatened to be destroyed, Jer. 44.21. and how should a nation have power to purge their land of idolaters and idolatry, but by rising with one heart and one mind, like the Tribes of Israel against the Benjamites, to punish those that have committed iniquity in our Israel.  
2 In respect of the Laws, that being the King's cause: That the Laws are the authority of the King (I presume none will question) and if so, then consequently those men that shall labour to destroy the power and authority of the Law, do as much as in them lies to destroy the authority of the King, since the King's Authority is derived from the Law, and not the Law from the King alone. Now that they endeavour to destroy the Law of this Land is apparent, in their practices to dissolve this Parliament, contrary to all Law, when the King himself hath confirmed this Parlitment by a known law: in doing whereof they endeavour to destroy his Majesty's power, and make his word of no effect. Therefore for this cause all those that are true subjects to their King, are bound in this point to take up arms for the defence of the Laws, in which consists His Majesty's honour and Regal Authority.  
3 In respect of the Parliament, that being the subjects cause. That in the continuance of Parliaments consists the benefit of the subject, is apparent by the many pressures that were thrown upon them in the intervals of Parliaments, when the Laws were abused, and the subjects oppressed by those persons which should have preserved them from oppression, is manifested by these late years experience, and that by the wisdom of this Palliament those things have been redressed for the present, and those oppressors for ever disabled of the like practices, except they can compass their ends by this war, therefore we are bound in respect of our own security to join with the Parliament in the defence of this cause, which tends only to the future security and liberty of the subject.  
Lastly, in respect of our enemy's cause, an unbounded Prerogative, and an idolatrous Religion, grounded upon flattery and ceremony. That Prerogative is prejudicial to the subject, let France be your example, and that Ceremony contrary to Law and Religion, is a rag of Rome, look into Luther's Works, where he shows the reasons of his falling off from the See of Rome, and then no doubt the greatest royalist will cry down Prerogative, and the moderatest Conformist will shun their Ceremonies, and prove a Reformist, and join with the high Court of Parliament in the maintenance of a cause so acceptable to God, so serviceable to the King, and so beneficiiall to the Commonwealth.  
FINIS.