A GOOD SOLDIER, Maintaining his Militia, and Posturing himself, as the servants of the Lord, now and in all Ages, have Postured the Kingdoms; WHEREIN The Right-hand of the Lord with His servants directing their way, and blessing their Work; and all His Ordinances, Fasting, Praying, Preaching, etc. unto the Nation; is declared as mightily, as it was by the Resurrection from the dead, whether we respect a Nation or a Man only. Here is a Register of God's blessings and Satan's curses; A Record of the (〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉,) The great and admirable salvations, which God has wrought for the (Righteous) Nation, and the Man there: And of the terrible things He has done against His Adversaries these four last years. Humbly presented to the House of PARLIAMENT and Assembly of Divines. WITH A discovery of the Loyal Convert, That he is quite turned from his GOD, His KING and His Kingdom: a most disloyal person to all three.  HOSEA 14. 9 Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? for the ways of the LORD are right, and the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein. Printed by Order, on a day of rebuke and blasphemy: and in the year of earnest expectation after an Expected End, 1644.  

A GOOD SOLDIER, Maintaining his Militia, and Posturing himself, as the servants of the Lord, now and in all Ages, have Postured the Kingdoms; WHEREIN The Right-hand of the Lord with His servants directing their way, and blessing their Work; and all His Ordinances, Fasting, Praying, Preaching, etc. unto the Nation; is declared as mightily, as it was by the Resurrection from the dead, whether we respect a Nation or a Man only. Humbly presented to the House of PARLIAMENT and Assembly of Divines. By Hez. W.  EZEK. 36. 25, 33, 37. 
From all your filthiness, and from all your Idols will I cleanse you.  
I will also cause you to devil in the Cities, and the wastes shall be builded.  
I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them.  EZRA 7. 23. Whatsoever is commanded by th' God of Heaven, let it be diligently done: For why should there be wrath against the Realm. JUDGES 5. 13, 21 
The Lord made me have dominion over the mighty.  
O my soul thou hast trodden down strength.  
Imprimatur  
EDMUND CALAMY  
Printed by George Miller, dwelling in Blackfriars, 1644.   

TO THE HONOURABLE MEN, AND THE COUNSELORS; The Mighty Men, and the Men of War; The judge and the Prophet, and the Prudent, and the Ancient in all three Kingdoms: Engaged now in the work and service of the LORD, To help the LORD against the Mighty.  
AS large and spreading a Dedication almost as was the 
* Anchoran, An. 634.  Frenchman's, who dedicated a Book, not his own neither, to Prince Charles, than to all the Popes and Cardinals, Archbishops and Bishops: and to all the learned-men within and without all the Universities in all four Kingdoms. Every man abounds in his own sense, I in mine. But I conceive, and that I cannot be mistaken; That when you shall have read this short Epistle throughout, you will say, There is infinite Reason why I should dedicated these following leaves to you all, you Princes, Nobles and Worthies; and to the good people too, in all three Kingdoms: But more specially to you. You! The Lord has picked you out of Thousands; You are His peculiars; His chosen one's; He has honoured you with his own Name, Saviour's, Repairers of the breach, wide as the Sea; Restorers of the paths to devil in; Builders of the wastes, Raisers-up the desolations, which a people of God's curse have made in your LORDS Kingdoms. A marvellous honour has the Lord put upon you! A glorious work has He wrought for His Kingdoms by your hands! You are entreated now by the mercies of Christ to show mercy to your own souls, To work out your own salvation, To do the same work for your own souls, which you have done for the Nation: You are entreated to take the same way in posturing yourselves, which you have taken in posturing the Kingdoms. A most just request, It is granted. You will observe now what you have done for the Kingdoms.  
1. You have plucked down the high and lofty ones, proud Persons, and vile Things, Idols of jealousy before the eye. Pluck them down in your heart too, or else you have done nothing for your souls.  
2. You have commanded Prayer. Pray in prayer, pray servently, in your own house and closet: And if you cannot pray so, mourn that you cannot.  
3. You have opened the prison doors, and the mouths of Ministers: you have sent forth Angels (a more proper word than Bishops) To preach the everlasting Gospel (as you read.) (Truly the Lord will do Great Things for this Land, Truly He william.) That you may see it with your eyes, and rejoice with His Inheritance, labour with all your might to bring your hearts to the rule, and under the power of the Gospel.  
4. You have vindicated the LORDS Day, a day so vilified, so reproached, so blasphemed; never was day so dealt with since the beginning of days; you have vindicated That Day; Let it appear you have done it in Truth, for your LORDS Day is your delight, and you sanctify that day unto the Lord.  
5. You would keepe-off common-hands from taking the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of the LORD: You will look to your hands, that they be clean: and your vessels, that they be holy, wherein you have put that shewbread, those Holy mysteries. You are consulting about a Church way. You are resolved, with Joshua, To walk in it amidst your own house.  
6. You would bring the three Kingdoms into covenant with their God; Blessed be you of the lord But you do all this faithfully; you have liftedup your hands, to the high God, to Reform yourself and yours. Now you must not start aside. The Covenant is as a large circumference, it fetcheth a wide circuit about three Kingdoms; If you love your souls, as you do the Kingdoms, you must Centre this Covenant, every man in his own heart; you must stand to it.  
7. Active you are to quench the fire in the Kingdoms. You are as active to quench the fire in your owne-bosomes, which let alone there, may burn to the neithermost Hell, a place below the grave.  
8. You would have the Lord purge-out the Rebels out of the Kingdoms: He must do it, for it is his promise; But if you desire it hearty, you are more active in subduing the rebellions in your own heart. This is to love the Kingdoms in Truth; This is to walk in the Truth; This is to do faithfully whatever you do to the Brothers and to strangers: And why not, to your own souls? Go on and prospero, as your souls prospero. Love the Kingdoms still, and love your own souls still; Posture and strengthen the Kingdoms with one hand, your souls with the other. All this is done by the same means, in the same way. The LORD keep your hearts close to Him, and your hands to His work, which shall turn to your salvation also, through your prayers, and the prayers of all the Churches for you, and the supply of the Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen and Amen.   

A GOOD SOLDIER.  

The Reason and Use of this Treatise.  
Declaring the right hand of the Lord with His servants, in the way of working salvation for His Kingdoms: which way is so demonstrated to every man, that he must see himself stand charged in particular to work for himself in the same way, as be regards the salvation of his own soul.  
I Must necessarily suppose, that no man, in the Christian world, can be a stranger to the affairs of these times; what the condition of England (not to speak of Ireland) is at this present time; what fraud has been used to under-mine the Church, the City of God there, these many years; what forcing against her these years bypast; what forcible ways have been taken to storm it this last year, that it might be not more a City, or called by that name; This very thing, I say, how angry the Nations are; how those, who should be (as David speaks of his adversaries) the Church's guides and friends, how these have magnified themselves against her, have consulted and parleyed together (for an Assembly of Robbers, is called a Parliament in Oxford) against Thy hidden ones, saying, Come let us cut them of from being a 
Psal. 83. 4●.  Nation: that their name way be no more in remembrance: All this is well known to all, that are not willingly ignorant. So also, what ways have been taken by the friends of the LORD CHRIST (those few that have appeared for Him) so defend His Church from the furious assaults of bloody men; and how wonderful their LORD has appeared on their side; how He has taken ●o Himself power, has discovered those, that magnified themselves against Him; has exalted His right Hand in all his people's sight, in delivering, rescuing, protecting, MARVELLOUSLY separating betwixt His Friends, and His Adversaries; so maintaining His cause and His servants standing-up for His cause, against the power and policy of all opposers: All this also, is known in all the earth, 
a Isa. 12. 5.  therefore sing unto the LORD and exalt His name Jah: ●or, though the gates of hell stood all this while wide open upon God's people, yet these gates prevailed not, All this violence, and wrong could not hinder the work of the LORD, but promoted it rather in all the people's sight: Blessed be the LORD. Indeed it is the fairest and most admired prospect, that ever was seen, to stand still, and behold the works of the LORD, and the operations of His Hand, reached forth to His servants out of the clouds; yet is His Hand made visible now before all the Christian world, carrying on and steering the hand and way of his people through seas of proud waters, storms and tempests, mighty troubles, towards their promised land, a wealth place. To leave the figure and to speak properly; The Almighty's Hand, steering and guiding His peoplein and throughout this whole posturing work, is cleared now to the eye of flesh, and is wonderful in our eyes. I shall speak a little here, for it is but a little, which man can speak in this, how wonderfully the Lord has appeared for His servants all along the way, they have gone, to advance His glory; but I shall show openly the way they have gone, to be the very same, wherein all the truly noble in the world have walked, when the Lord was pleased to use their hands for the strengthening themselves, and well-posturing His Kingdoms. This way is cleared to sense and reason, and demonstrable to every man by comparing a Body natural, with a Body-politique, when there is no soundness in the one, nor in the other, but wounds and bruises, and putrifying sores 
b Isa. 1. 6. : comparing the one Body with the other, and earthly things with spiritual, every man may understand the way of posturing a Kingdom, and himself: for that is chief intended here, and of chief concernment, else the well posturing of a Kingdom will be nothing unto him.  
The whole Kingdom is but the great Body politic, whereof 
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. M. Ant. Medit. B. 1. Sect. 15. p. 12.  he himself is not a part (for so the Philosopher would not have him called, but) a member. Suppose now, that such a Body, which the natural man is better acquainted with, a Natural body, lies here before us, in the same case, as we have read and seen this great Body of the Kingdom to be-in, languishing near unto death, The whole head sick, and the whole heart faint; Suppose it so; and yet we need not make it a supposition, for so it was. We will not now go to the College of Physicians to ask them, what is to be done in this case? Whether something must be put upon the body, or something put into it? We will put something into it sure enough, so sense and reason tells us, for we are not so forsaken of both, as to clap an head-piece upon this Body, than a Breastplate, so other pieces of armour in order one after another, and than call to him, as once to Samson, up and quit thyself like a man, the Philistines are upon thee. Alas! The Body is weak, because the humours within are so strong, the spirits wasted and spent, because of something within, which must be purged forth first. If you put Armour upon him, it will but cumber him the more, and be a means to presse-out, that little spirit, which remains. The Physician for the Body knows his work here, so does the soule-physitian: If the LORD has entrusted them to discretion, they both work together, and give their directions orderly; And the main consultation is about the casting-out of the bad humours, the enabling the man to fight with his disease, and to overcome it: Here the Elders of the Church (soul-Physitians) see their work, they must pray for him [for the body under such distempers, the mind sympathising with the body, cannot pray for itself; the elders must be called-in now, and that instructeth us not to put of the great work, making peace with God, to our sick bed; we can do nothing for ourselves than, the Elders must do all, they must pray for the sick, and] as the case may be, and humours so strong, fast for him also: for some humours, as spirits, will not out by other means. Physician's will prescribe a way how to enable the patiented to fight with his disease; how he may recover his spirits, and fortify them, make them quick and lively; Than they will prescribe him a diet, how he may keep himself strong, by keeping close to his prescriptions, and to the GOD of his strength, and from all that is hurtful, may grieve the Spirit of his God, and so a worse thing fall unto him. Now put Armour upon. this man● and speak to him as to Samson, and he will do as at other times, when GOD was wi●● him, and he walked with God. It is just so in the posturing of a Kingdom, in the setting that great Body in a posture of Defence; It is as the diseased Body we read of, but of this in due place.  
I think it more pertinent to this place, to say this, That this is the very end the LORD does point at in all his sore judgements upon Kingdoms, and in all the plagues, strokes, sicknesses, sorrows, He inflicts on the children of men; This is the great end, That the plague of the heart may be discovered to every heart: Therefore 
1 King. 8. 38.  the earth is shaken terribly, that the bloodshed there may be discovered; That the Idols there may be utterly abolished; The very end, why the Lord ariseth now to shake the earth terribly: And He will not leave shaking till the Idols be cast-out to the moles and to the bats. In a word, Therefore the Lord has done, and does the evil of punishment, That He may discover to every man, the evil of his sin; And so I would descend from a general to a particular; for when I have said every man, I have, indeed, spoken to no man, for no man will think it spoken unto him: And indeed it is but a beating of the air also, lost labour, to speak unto 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, a certain man, somebody, but I know not whom, who, when you have talked about Posturing a Kingdom, the way how to set it in a good posture of Defence, will not think himself to be spoken unto, though he can think himself wholly concerned therein: for this is an old saying, and very true; he that speaks to every body, speaks to no body: and what is every body's work is no bodies work, and so by all neglected; And though every-body would share in the common blessing, yet nobody is so ready to share in the duty; he would be safe, and have his  and goods so to be, whatever become of the Ship, I mean the Commonwealth; not considering that he sails along upon the sea of the world, in the same ship; and, where others are, there is his  too, his interest is there, the public welfare concerns himself, and his own safety. But this is not all, suppose that the ship, by the care and the wisdom of the stecremen, come safe to land, yet this man's comfort shall be, but according to the proportion of his care, in seeking the preservation of the ship; Nay more than this, and so I will speak more plainly, for I intent the information of the simple; What if the Militia of the Kingdom were fully settled and maintained, what good were that, to that man, who, in the mean time, lieth quite naked, exposed to all the malice of the Devil and his own heart; what were it to him, that the Kingdom is set in a safe and good posture, if in the mean time, he himself be, as a Town without walls, or as a City whose walls are broken down; who or what will may comein, and goe-out, and make a prey there? Therefore I will point a few words directly to him, even that particular man, that looks to have comfort, safety and peace in the Kingdom's safety. That is his hope, But there is an hope, which makes ashamed, like waters dried-up in summer: Is it a true hope? Than the man has this ground, That all this time, while the Kingdom has been posturing, he has, with the good soldier, learned well to posture himself; he has not neglected to do that every day, which omitted, will be the greatest cut and grief to our hearts, on that day, the great day, when the ways and secrets of all hearts shall be opened, and all the prizes, the opportunities putinto our hands, let slip thence, and lost there, shall be presented to our knowledge: This will be the Hell indeed. Therefore, that this hope may not be a conceit only, but an Anchor, sure and steadfast, to the soul, amidst the great water-floods, It concerns this man to consider as follows:  
He has heard the Drum beat every day these three years together; It was his Alarm; he was called upon to put himself in a posture of Defence; for when the hour of temptation and sore agony comes upon him (it is come upon the world) and he be found naked, he must be left the more naked of excuse, because he was called-upon every day to maintain his Militia, to quit himself as a good soldier of Jesus Christ: He must think also, if he thinks of himself, and common reason forsakes him not, (which must needs tell him,) That sooner or later he shall meet with enemies enough to combat with, though none of those destroyers, (so busily employed now in working-out their own destruction, and against their intent, the salvation of God's people) though none of these, he meet with, yet he must look to meet with those as bad to combat with, with the Prince ruling in the air, Principalities and powers, those mighty adversaries, might and power itself; Besides, vehement winds, and a scorching season, will beaten upon the head of every man sooner or later, and down he falls, he knows not how low, unless his standing be sure upon the Rock, in a good posture of Defence; when a sickness unto death comes, than this will be, even the sense of all this, if the heart be not, at that time, as nabals was, like a stone, dead and past feeling; Before the man dies; than, I say, the sense of all this will be; The man may be now like a wild-Asse traversing his way, but in that Month he shall be 
Jer. 2. 24.  found.  
But before this day comes, who knows what terrible things he may see! He may see the tearing-up of mountains by the roots, and hurling them into the midst of the sea, as the Prophet expresseth 
Psal. 46.  the terrible commotions, concussions, distractions, which have been, are and will be in posturing times, troublous times ever, when the breaches in Jerusalem's wall are making-up; He may feel the earth trembling, Devils and men raging, garments rolled in blood; he may see Towns fired; Cities laid-wast; all  things taken from him, and what his soul loathes given into his hands, instead thereof. Than, if he hath maintained his Militia, if he be, as the good soldier, in a posture of defence, happy is he. If otherwise, neither he nor I can express how miserable his case will be; very miserable and beyond expression. Sinners in Zion, men professing the truth, but not showing forth the power thereof in their life, these shall be afraid, fearfulness and trembling will come upon him, sorrow will overwhelm him; The proud waters will go over 
Psal. 55. 5.  his head; terrors shall make him afraid on every side; brimstone shall be scattered upon his habitation. 
Job 18. 11.   
There is one thing more in this, and commands our serious consideration. Suppose this careless person should be instrumental to the posturing the Kingdom, in throwing out Persons and Things, which have troubled the peace of the same; Suppose so, while yet he himself is an unreformed person, his own Militia is quite neglected; Than this will follow, That all this he has done, though according to the command of God, is upon his score, and he shall be reckoned with for it, even for the good, he hath done, because after an ill manner. He (as was said of old) rebuked pride with another pride; he has throwne-out Idoll-people, and their Idol services, but is as Idolatrous as were they: They setup Idols before their eyes, he setts-them up in his heart: It was Jehues' case, a most notable case; He destroyed Ahab and his house, and had a word for it, the command of God, But he did it for the glory of his own name; with a zeal burning-hot, but it was for his own house, and was such an Idolater, as Ahab was: Therefore saith the Lord (it is terrible) I will avengeth blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu. This Scripture is fully and usefully cleared to me and thee, (for 
Mr Burrought upon Hosea, c. i v. 4.  there is a deceit in Generals) how dangerous a thing it is to profess ourselves teachers of others, and yet not teach ourselves; A reformer of others, and yet ourselves unreformed; An enemy to Idols standing without the man, but a friend to Idols standing-up in his own heart: This is to abhor Idols, yet to commit sacrilege. It is of great, of infinite concernment. Let me speak this over once more to the Gallio of these times, I would single him out though he is plural; I mean them, whose hearts, and hands may be with the Parliament, but they regard the things that are done, not more than Gallio did the beating of Sosthenes; To this man I 
Acts 18. 17.  would point these few words. 1. He can think it very fit that all that which exalts itself in a Kingdom, to the destruction of King and Kingdom, be taken down; the Idols there thrown away, for they make a Kingdom naked; and he can be active this way; But he hears not himself speak all this while unto himself, That it more concerns him to throwout the Idols all, which exalt themselves in his own heart against the Lord Christ, and his own peace. 2. He can, perhaps, command Prayer and Fasting also, think all this seasonable in these troublous times; but regards not how slack and cold he is at that performance in his house and closet. 3. So for the word of GOD, the power of GOD unto salvation, he can help to widen the door, to give it a free passage, and yet shut his own heart against it, not subjecting himself to the rule and power thereof. 4. So for the Lords day; he has perhaps helped to vindicate that day from its horrible pollutions, and yet the duties performed on that day, what a weariness to him? 5. So for the Covenant, he can persuade others to enter-into it, and yet not persuaded in his own heart, to stand unto it, though he has liftedup his hand to the high GOD, and subscribed his name, that so he will do. He complains of the public miseries, but indeed they are the private, that trouble him 
* 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. Isa. 1●. The Ladies saith Homer, wept hearty with Brisei over the body of Patroclus, but it was because their own Lords were slain in the same ba●tle. ; he helps to quench the fire in the Kingdom with all speed, for he fears the fire will take his dwelling place; he stands-up against the robbers and spoilers, lest they enter his own doors. I could tell him here a very apt and pertinent discourse between Lypsius and Langius, touching the troubles and miseries of Belgia; But because I suppose this man well skilled in the Latin tongue, as Gallio was, being a chief person, a Deputy, I will point only to this discourse in the 
Lips. de Constant. l. 1. c. 8.  Margin, and entreat him hearty to read it, That I may not delay the Reader any longer from taking a full view of the method, and well ordered way, the Nobles and Worthies have taken in this posturing work: than we shall see, That the Good Soldier has taken the very same way in the posturing himself: And so, by the good hand of God with him, he stands as a well postured Kingdom, more stable than are the everlasting hills, and perpetual mountains; The blast of the terrible ones against him, moves him not more, than does a blast of wind shake a wall of brass.   

CHAP. I The first work in Posturing a Kingdom, is,  
The casting-out of Abominations thence, Persons and Things The chief Heads and Leaders only named; Whereto are added, Masters of Schools and Colleges. And to the Abominable things are added, blasphemous Pictures, Divine names given to unhallowed places fignes and days. This work is first in design, last in performance: It is doing, but never done, Much is done, and mighty Reasons given, why there is no more done.  
I Must review the comparison betwixt the Civil Body and the Natural: In this, there were malignant humours as evil spirits; In that, there are malignant Persons and Things. Malignant Persons, I will but name the chief, specially those, who have Defiled the Land with blood; polluted it with Idolatries; leavened it with Atheism and profaneness; All these might be pointed at with the finger. 1. The murderers first, men of bloods, mighty hunters before the LORD, who have slain the bodies of men; spilt their precious blood like water. God will require it; At the hand of every beast will GOD require it 
a Gen. 9 5, ●.  At the hands of these beastslike-men, much more, woe unto him and them, who have spilt this blood; They have defiled the land, and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood, that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it 
b Num. 35. 33. . 2. Those, that have (what in them lay) spilt the blood of souls, for whom the LORD Christ has shed His most precious blood: Woe unto them; a double woe upon Archbishops and Bishops, who have, by their abominable doctrines and practices, slain the souls of men; so as the Church has complained bitterly, Woe is me now, for my soul is wearied because of murderers 
c Jer. 4. 3 ●. ; murderers in the highest degree 
d Illud perniciosum, quod in aternitate juguiabit, etc. Sal. ad Eccles. l. 2. ●. : The Lord has liftedup His hand against these; and by command from God's mouth, man has liftedup his hand also, and subscribed his name for the casting of these forth: for they have leavened the land with Atheism and with Idolatry, and with horrible profanations: It were endless to reckon-up singulars here, This Atheist and that Idolater, these profane persons, who swarm every where, this were an infinite work. I'll name but one single person more, but he is plural, many, if not a legion; He is the Catechiser, a Master in the School and College; Men of infinite use to the places where they are, if they study to be useful; If good, than as were the figs, very good: If bad, very bad 
e Jer. 24. 3. : The Schoolmaster, he distilleth, infuseth, droppeth into children what pleaseth them, and that is ever what is worst, whereunto corrupt nature stands most bend and baised. Children are not as we commonly say, tanquam rasae tabula, As a clean table, or paper, wherein nothing is written, but you may writ therein what you please. There is some truth in it, and of excellent use: yet, I say, children are not as clean paper; there is something written in them before the father took them into his arms, which all the fingers in the world cannot take forth: The more care is to be had into whose fingers you commit your children; and under what droppings they are set. If the little vessel be ill seasoned at first, it is more than a doubt, it will never prove good for service, or honourable use 
* Child's pa●●. c. 1, 2. etc. 9 : Much might be said here, and to very great purpose; I'll say but this, and this I will say, because I have observed nothing done or said against these men hitherto: These Catechisers if evil, are as evil as are the evil Priests; nay more corrupting, if more can be, than are those brutish Pastors; Take them together, they are altogether corruptours, All as lepers, pests and plagues in a commonwealth. So much to Schoolmasters, that there may bê eyes set upon them: So also upon Masters of Colleges, and Tutors there; These are as were the former, If bad, very bad. Children are (so they are now adays in years and understanding) transmitted too soon to the College, (a slippery place and in a slippery 
f Lubricus locus & lubrica aetas: & facilis est in eâ prolapsio, Cic.  age: (The Masters there, and the Tutors admit these children, take the Parent's money, and return home their children, Asses 
g Accipimus pecuniam & remittimus Asinos. ,) which was the old complaint; Parents may complain more bitterly now; Our children, good when we sent them to the College 
h Aula tua recipit, non sacit bonos. Child's patr. c. 9 , have spent our money there, and a precious stock of time there, and have gained nothing but what tends to their eternal loss, corruption in their judgement and manners: O the sad complaints this way! They shall be heard now: The School and the College it shall be visited; high time; for there are malignant persons many, and things not a few, I must point to these next.  
These are, I know not how many, but I will gather them-up into as short a sum as I can. 1. Idols, and Idol services, with their appurtenances, all things belonging thereunto; all these are not sooner setup, adorned and served, but a kingdom is made naked, and cast-downe. 2. With these I must rank blasphemous pictures, and representations hung up for signs 
g Holy Lamb, salutation, etc.  in many places. 3. Sacred names 
h St Saviour's. St. Faiths.  given to our meeting places, commonly called Churches: To 
i The Providence.  Ships also, and to days, which we call holy: So we should not do, for we have but one Holiday, and that is the LORDS Day; Other days there are, good days 
a Esth. 9 22.  days of praise and thanksgiving: and days of atonement, Fasting days, soul afflicting days: As for holy days, we know not where to found them, unless in Rome's Calendar: and if we have them thence, than sure we must cast them-out of ours: And greater reason yet, why it should be so; Because old Latimer said long since, The Devil has more service done him upon one holy day, than he has on ten working days. The strongest plea for keeping in these days is, That children and servants must have days for recreation. Yes, but let them not be called holy days. There shall be fit times appointed, wherein children and servants, yea and masters too, may take meet and fitting recreations; [I mean by meet, such as are recreations indeed; truly so called, comely for Christians, such as will indeed make them fit for war:] But when we have said all, or enough touching this grant or allowance, for lawful recreations, and fit times for them, yet holy days, as we ignorantly, or wickedly call them, shall be cast-out, when all is done. 4. Books next (for so some miscall them) those accursed things, so filled-up with blasphemies, heresies; such in-lets to atheism and profaneness, making roomth for Rome, and bringing-in Sodom to Jerunsalem; These shall be cast-out. To name the last first, Books (as they call them) which deny, that the Law of GOD has any coercive, or binding power; Man is a lawless creature now; let him do what he has a will to do, GOD sees him not; Though it be said every where, they did evil in GOD'S sight, yet GOD sees no sin in His children. What Book shall we hear of next? We need not question it; A Book denying the immortality of the soul, or affirming, That the soul does sleep with the body: I could tell the Reader how an Heathens book was served, who had written but doubtfully touching such a matter; It is high time, etc. but I know my place and station.  
I might be large here, and yet say little, because vile, treacherous and profane Persons are so many; and Things, defiling and destructive to a Nation, are, as many; Therefore, if I should say more, yet. I should not say the half; The half! when we shall hear what the Good Soldier will say, who will give us the life and use of all this, and speak all he knows faithfully touching his own heart, the Malignant lords there, (for every lust there, not crucified is a lord there:) And Things, yet he cannot speak the half of that evil, or malignancy, he finds within himself, his own heart; A great part whereof he never knew; A great part of it, and of the evil therein, is to him as the terra incognita to us, There is a space left for it in our Maps: So is there a prayer put-up by this man every day, for pardon of that evil, which he discerns not, but he knows it is there. Therefore sigh it will be upon confession anon, That there is more evil in one man's heart, than he can possibly take notice of; I forbear to name any more Persons or Things, which are to be found in a Kingdom, That I may take the more time to satisfy the Reader touching this objection, What is done against all these malignants, that are known, and discovered, for the cutting them of, or casting-them forth of the Kingdom, that our Kingdom may be the LORDS Kingdom; that He may comein and delight amongst us? thus now, the objections runson.  
Ob. There are many malignants not pointed at, The Blasphemer, 〈…〉 the LORDS Name, every da: Thomas proph●●e person, th● swea●er, the drunkard, and the cor●●●nt, who ●●●●heth on this side, and on that, would have all, and would lea●● his neighbour nothing at all. And for the great A●●●● the troublers, the Prince's within●er, who are roaring Lyone● 〈◊〉 Judges. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, these all are where they were they hold their pl●●●s; These murderers are lively and strong at this day; The ●abernacles of Robbers 
* Called a Parliament in Oxford, The vilest men upon earth called themselves Concillon Deorum, an Assembly of Gods.  the assemblies of wicked men (〈◊〉 to) 〈◊〉, and to stand upon their terms; If ye will Throne of Peace and think now ye may to be of yoabes, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 cibmsciences, than you musT Treat with Robbers and murderer touching that matter (those conscientious men) and 〈◊〉 them half way, where you must not give a polt, but ●am (as they call it) to plot-cats. Idolaters prevail very much and hope to prevaile-yet more; v●e and light Prophets, and b●●i●ish Priests have spread themselves throughout the Land, and leavened the same: Treacherous men, Hoth●● the Father and the son. Walker and 〈◊〉 are not out-off not not these, when Clement Walker 
* A Check to the chequer, give us a clear understanding in this matter, & makes a full answer.  who was never good for himself (yet all for himself his private wealth) and worse for the public, hunted the blood of the Righteous, hath pensioned for h●● head, who ●● worth a thousand of ours as like the father as can be● an orpament to his Country, precious in the eyes and heart● of all that are godly; to whom yet the surrender of Bristol is an grievous as it aught to be: But they see God's hand in it making way for his wrath at present, and for a wonderful salvation to His people in His own time, shortly: Thus for malignant Persons. And for Things, Idols are held up in many places still; Idol services maintained still; Abominable Books are thrust ou● here and there yet not thrust into the fire: Days are called holy still; Persons and Things are as they were: That is the sum of the objection, I cannot fr●me a short answer to all this; We are upon the prime and first work, the foundation work, for a stable and glorious building, we must go gradually on-ward and expect with patience while the mountains and Hills are made 
Zach. 4 7.  and the headstone is brought forth with shootings, crying. grace, grace unto it. So I proceed and answer. First,  
I. That indeed the cutting-off these mighty opposers should be the first work in the well posturing a Kingdom; if that were done, we should deal well enough with others. True it is, there is not a drunkard in the parish, but he is a plague there; So is a swearer, a blasphemer, a Sabbath-breaker, these are malignances, very ●●sts and plagues to the places where they live; But it cannot be conceived now that all these can be cut of. If some one man, whom the Scripture calls a ●oaring Lion, and an evening wolf●, some one chief troubler of Israel's peace, be out of; If one head, that has contrived, and plotted the down-fall of Israel, he struck-off, even this is a good beginning, and according to rule; for the striking of this one head, has weakened all hands, that were for the service, and at the back of this Head. Saul had killed many Philistines, Thousands. David has killed but one, but that one was Go●●●h, a Chieftain amongst the Philistines, Now hear what the women say, coming forth to meet King Saul; Saul hath sl●●● his thousands; 
1 Sam. 18. 5.  and David his ten thousands. Mark that; Ten thousand slain in one Goliath. that huge Philistine Captain of the H●st, that blasphemed the Living GOD. I cannot doubt to say thi● now and to affirm it, That, when Goliath was slain. Ten thousand ●●●●ies were slain at that time: for all the host of the Philistines, Gods enemies, were discomfited on that day 
* May, 12. 1641.  when this work was done A wonderful work; for He, who only does wonders did that, that is my first answer.  
II. It may suffice for present, If some Acha●●, troublers of the commonwealth and peace of Israel, be cast-downe, when they cannot be cast-out, which is done, by taking away their dominion, sovereign power, and Lordship: As King Asa removed his mother from her regency, from being Queen. And that, is a kind of death, the casting the vile person-out of his throne, taking from him his Bishopric or office; this work is done also. It is so also, in casting the Rebels-out of the heart; these are never cast-out, but these are cast-downe, subdued they are, put from their regency, out of their throne, they shall have no dominion, no power there; And that is a kind of death, as good as a casting-out, or better, the good God so ordering it, when rebels are kept so under, that they shall rather do good than hurt, clean contrary to their nature, poisonous and hurtful, yet they shall do the man good. But I have preveated myself, I answer,  
III. That this also is a great casting-downe of the Adversaries, when the Lord, against Whom they strive, degrades them, smites them in their intellectuals, makes them like a wheel, or, as the Princes of Zoan, fools, their Counselors brutish 
a Isa. 19 11. : so as they shall prosecute their own way of sin and death, to their own destruction; 
Providentia ab eo tollitur, ne etc. Solv.  make their own pit wide, and large, and than fall into it blindfold and headlong; But here the sober man will say;  
A. That the Adversaries are no fools, they are speedy in consultation, and quick for action; and if they have a victory they follow it; And though God has indeed mingled a perverse spirit, amongst them, some are for the Spanish faction, others for the French, yet all drive-on furiously to the same end; as Herod and Pilate, all are made friends, that they may unite their forces, as they against the Lord Christ, so these miscreants against His faithful servants all the world over.  
B. It is a truth, that these profane and wicked ones are wiser in their generation than are the children of the resurrection; and yet notable fools for all that; for when they say, as their Fathers before them, come let us deal wisely, let us make the people of the 
Exod. 1. 10.  land serve with rigour, and their lives bitter with hard bondage, yet in this the Lord does befool the Adversary wonderfully. For first, the hotter the furnace of the Adversaries rage is, the nearer God is to His people in that furnace: The more desolate the Land is, the more it mourneth to the LORD 
a Jer. 12. 11.  The Lord will hear the mournings of his people. 2. The Adversary does do now not more, than what the Egyptian Magicians or Sorcerers did once and again; They did but add to their own plagues; they must drink of those waters which themselves had turned into blood: So do these Adversaries now; they do but helpe-forward their own affliction; work out their own destruction; lay desolate their own land; consume, destroy their own blessings, poison their own springs; add to their own plagues; turn their own waters into blood; corrupt their own mercies. A miserable employment! A most deceitful work, to poison those waters which, when they have all done, these Egyptians also must drink: and than be made dunken with the blood they have coused, spew and fall and rise not more. And when these destroyers have done all the mischief, in the power of their hands to do, yet shall they not be able to hurt the servants of the Lord, not able to impoverish them; notwithstanding all the Adversaries rage, BREAD shall be given these servants: Their WATERS shall be sure b. The conclusion 
Isa. 33. 16. q Ac si diceret puris & integris Dei cultoribus nihil defuturum: panis evim & aquae nomine significantur omnia, Cal. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉.  is, That these Abaddons, Appollyons, These destroyers, do now with one hand workout their own destruction; and with the other hand, salvation to the Churches; so God befools His Adversaries for the present. I answer.  
iv We must not conceive that a Kingdom is not Postured till all the malignant Persons and Things be cast-out; that will never be; this casting out these, is a work still doing but never done. It is very observable, that David's triumphant song, which he sang unto the LORD in the day the Lord had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul, (who persecuted 
2 Sam. 22. 1.  him with with an open face, before all Israel and before the Sun; and was as openly punished:) This triumphant song was but David's breathing immediately before he breathed forth his last words; now these be the last words of David; Immediately before, 
2 Sam. 23. 1.  we have that triumphant Psalm, and not before. We may note this by the way; That this Posturing work, whether it be of a Nation, or of a Man only, is a mighty work, long a doing, for it is never done; I mean, not completed, not not till a little before we are speaking our last words; But I shall reserve this for a full Chapter, that we may the more fully see, how we may be mistaken in the Parliaments work, and in our own also, for this may be added hereunto;  
V That this cutting-off and thrusting-out Malignants, is indeeds, as the end is, whereof the Logicians say, That it is the first in our intention, proposition and design; but it is the last in execution: It is first intended, though it be last, yea, though it be never attained. The purging-out of Rebels is the end, the result of all Consultations, Acts and Ordinances, all these resolve and empty themselves in thither: all counsels and Acts have a tendency thereunto. It is true, we aught to be heaving at these Persons and Things as we do at some indigested bits, which clog the stomach and oppress nature, not strong enough to castthem out: So in the Body politic. But there must be an endeavour to the utmost to cast-out these oppressors. And yet the Lord may suffer these to be too hard for His people, for mighty reasons; To exercise His servants graces in their war-fare, their Faith, their Humility, their Patience.  
1. Their E●●th, That He, Who has begun this good wor●e will perfect it in ●●●own time, the ●●st time: The Lord 〈◊〉 given His servant's the neck of their Adversaries (ten Thousand necks in one 〈◊〉. Than the Lord said unto His servants, as His servant 
* Chap. 10. 2●.  Joshu● said 〈…〉 dismayed, be strong und of good courage, for thu● shall the Lord do to all your enemies against whom you fight: shall smite your enemies and stay them, and some of them you shall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 D●●●d see● ●ioliah shjaine in the ●ou● and the Bear. The drowning of the Egyptian Host in the read sea, gave the 
Isa. 5●. 9 Psal. 74. 14. Annona suit huic reposita quâ vesceret populus, Calvin, Ibid. Thank-offering, p. 55. ●ee Cure of ●eares. p. 47.  Church assured confidence for ever; It was laidup (says Calvin) as ●e●● for Israel against a dear year. When the Church was under the cruel tyranny of Anti●●hus (so Interpreters do agreed upon the occasion of that Psalm 
l Psal. 85.  Than their mouth was widest open in prayer and praise●. And read I pray you, how they 〈◊〉 bear-up themselves upon former experiences of Gods coming in unto them: Thou hast, Thou hast, six times repeated. But this is the great work, that God hac done for them; Thou hast forgiven 〈◊〉 of Thy people 
m ver. 2.  sin is pardoned (pardon my sins and do● what Thou ●●lt to me, said Luther 
n Met. Adam. vit. Luth. p. 108. ) Surely Gods salvation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 foare him 
o ver. 9  that is comfortable; The tyranny of Antiochu● seemed 〈◊〉 the people, That GOD and his salvation was forre of; no sure, God is never nearer to His people, (as a Father to his children) than when they are under the sorest 9oppressions: But the greatest mercy is behind; Thou fast given us the Lord Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, with Him, Thou canst deny us nothing; We have the greatest Blessing, SALVATION, its self; we cannot 
So the 10th verse is interpreted.  doubt of salvation now from under the bloody hands of Antiochus that tyrant; mercy and Truth are met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed each other; We can salute that 
ver. 10.  promise afar of; Let GOD alone now; He will do His people no hurt: If he holds their necks yet longer under the yoke, it shall be for their farther enlargement anon, and higher exaltation after they are humbled more: Secondly than to exercise.  
2. Their Humility, To make them humble, and to keep them so: The Lord suffe●● these Adversaries to prevail over His servants, to be as 〈◊〉 in their eyes, and as thorns in their sides, because, when they might have cast-out these Persons, and their accursed things them the servants of the Lord were slack and would not; now they would and cannot: These Adver●●●● 〈…〉 is aforesaid, to be as pricking briers and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, that the servants of the Lord may follow the commands of their LORD fully for the thrusting of them-out, as the LORD shall be 〈◊〉 in after time to put power into their hands. And for the present time they are taught to walk humbly with their God, and to common with their own hearts seriously, whether they, who are 〈◊〉 apart by God Himself to reform others are selfe-Reformers. If not, it will retard and hold-back that we call Reformation, heartily, and keep in malignant Persons and Things, to despite ou● hearts, to be unto us as vexing thorns, and grieving b●●●s. If they have not purged themselves, who are gone forth to purge 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 therens, than may they, God's people though they are, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 again before their enemies; and these enemies may standup and pro●per, as once it was 
* See Covenant Asserted. p. 14. & 1●.  This consideration prevails evenmore with the people of God, and keeps them very humble, makes ●●●lye law, and walk softly; And so they exercise  
3. Than Patience, that it may have a perfect work, 〈◊〉 wait now theirlords time, His appointed time, He is now performing his whole work upon mount Zion and not Jerusalem● when that in done, the Lord will punish these proud men, who ●●ave 
Isa. 10. ●●.  been so stout against Him; He will pluck down their stout hearts and the glory of their high looks. The Lord his discovered these enemies already; He has shown them openly, and their ●●●●●●nesse, their shame before all the Christian world: Their judgement li●greth not: and their damnation slumbreth not 
* 1. Pet. 2. 5.  The ●●●vants of the Lord can wait the Lords time, touching this matter, therefore I answer.  
VI Though the first work in the building-up and forsifying a kindgome, is ever to throw-downe to the ground all accursed Things, Altar and Images, which, not sooner made and setup, but ● Kingdom is made naked, set under foot, cast-down and undone 
b ●rod. ●●. 23. 2 Ch●o. 18. 19 : Though this was the first work, which the Princes. Priests and people of old, set their hands and hearts unto, even the breaking in pieces these accursed Things, and throwing them down [For very notable it is, how they used these dunghill things, they never left hacking, and cutting, and hewing and destroying, and buttoning, and drowning till they had utterly destroyed them all, 
* Chro. 31. 1.  I Though I say, this was the first work, yet we read, The high places were not taken away, [that is, those high places, where they served 
The high places where the people sacrificed to false gods were taken away. 2 Chro. 17. 6. The other were not taken away, 2 Chro. 20. 13.  the true God after a false manner,] these were not taken away: And the reason is given, for as yet the people had not prepared their hearts unto the God of their fathers. It relates to us fully; These high things, that do offend the people of God are not taken away; and for the very same reason. Perhaps, nay passed all question, every thing, that exalts itself, even in their own hearts, is not cast-downe, therefore these high things are not taken away: I should be large at this point, but I will proceed.  
VII. In the next place this may be noted; that this is our duty, to vow and protest against all these accursed Persons and Things; to enter into a curse for the casting of them forth; And having done so, having entered into covenant, having liftedup the hand, and subscribed the name for the casting forth all these, we must do as our vows are, use all means for the purging ourselves and the Land: That is all we can do, our duty, use the means earnestly as men inflamed with zeal, let the Lord alone with the rest: In the 
Neh. 3. 20.  last place than,  
VIII. We must not make haste; we must wait the Lords time: which is not yet: For 1, The Lord will, by the greatness of His 
Exod. 15. 16.  power, make His enemies as still as a stone: But He will first silence the murmur of His people; He will still the surging and rise in his servants hearts first. 2. The Lord will not do it till such a time, when His people are so low, and their enemies so high, that the fetching-up of his people, and the casting-down their enemies requires the putting-forth the Greatness of GOD'S Power. 3. The Lord will not deliver His people till they be fit, and meet, and prepared for deliverance; not till than. When He takes of the yoke, He will make His people go upright; He will not remove the plaster, till the wound be throughly healed; He is now searching and tenting our wounds to the bottom, which were putrified and very corrupt: The Lord will not give His people their Lands, Houses, Liberties, etc. for their corruptions to feed-upon any more; or to feed their corruptions, to be fuel to lusts; He will kill His people's lusts now, they shall reign in them no more, Amen. 4. The Lord will purge-out the Rebels all; it is His promise 
a Eze. 20. 38. ; But he will purge the hearts of His servants first. The house of  
Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame; and the house of Esau for stubble, (i e.) The Church of God shall devour all 
Obad. 18.  their enemies, There shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau, for the Lord hath spoken it. But this shall not be till the sons of Jacob be purified, till the Lord has purely purged away their dross, and taken away their tin 
c Isai. 1. 25.  The Lord is now upon His Refining work, and for that great end, His fire is in Zion, and His furnace in Jerusalem 
d Isa. 31. 9 . These children of Belial, most abominable persons, that have broken (all the yokes) the Laws of Heaven and Earth, have castoff Piety, and humanity altogether; men (if I may call them men) of no use, 
e Deut. 13. 13. Men of belial, Homines nequissimi quasi absque ●ugo, qui jugum legis Dei excusserunt: vel qui nullius frug is & utilitatis sunt. Men of less use than is their own dung. Boxed.  must yet do their Lord this service, they must serve Him as scullions, to purge, to whiten 
f Dan. 11. 35. , and to purify the vessels appointed for honour; And when that work is done, the fire from Jacob, and the flame from Joseph shall kindle upon these Adversaries: and devour them. The conclusion is, Idols and Idol men, and Idol services shall be all cast-out, when every thing, that exalts itself in His childrens hearts, shall be cast-down, and subdued (according to the line of men.) This shall certainly be, but His people must wait, and they can wait and leave God to His own time, using the means, which are mighty (through God) to bring to pass all this. These means shall be mentioned particularly and insisted upon. But now we must see how this good Soldier has quitted himself at this high point, and acted his part against these Malignants, Persons and Things within his own breast.  

§ I. The first work in well Posturing a man's self, is,  
The subduing Malignant self, and casting-down Malignant Things. A wonderful work and glorious, for which the man admires God, and freegrace, I raises God while he has any being; and toward his brethrens he is pitiful and useful as a faithful steward of what he has received.  
NOw we will take a view of a well Postured Soldier. An ordinary sight, you will say, an easy work for one man to posture himself. Whether so or not, comes now to be considered: And after due consideration, it will appear, That it is an easier matter, to subdue Kingdoms, to conquer Nations, than it is, for this man to take them captives, whose captive he was: To rule over his oppressors 
a Isa. 14. 2. , (that is) to conquer his corruptions, the Malignants in his own heart; to subdue self there. Let us take notice, by the way, what this self is; A stubborn stiff piece, like an iron sinnew, it will rather break than bent: It will persuade a man rather than stoop, to fall, though he is but to stoop to Law and Right Reason. To maintain its will, it will hazard all its peace on earth, even a Kingdom there, yea and a Crown in Heaven; such a perverse person is self. And yet, if he has set his eye upon self-righteousness, it will so glaze in his eyes, that he will think himself some great one 
b Acts 8. 9 , rich and wanting nothing, when indeed, he is wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked 
c Rev. 3. 17. . This self is subdued and abhorred. By what means, in whose strength, what a work it is, and how long a doing, will be pointed at in due time. Now we will hear, what the man speaks in his confessions, he is large there, and he cares not who hears him; His confession is; That all this Malignancy in Person and in Things (we cannot reckon up particulars,) that all this, this Malignant person is himself; and Malignant things are as himself: He will confess, That he is well acquainted with Malignant Lords ever since he knew himself: and that Malignant things troubled him more, than all the Malignants in the Kingdom, for those offended his God most of all. Certainly thus he says, That there is a desperate wickedness in his heart; and an 
J●●. 17.  inconceiveable deceit there. And surely, if we consider well on it, we shall say every man of himself, as St Paul did, O wretched man that I am. Here is no inconsistency now in words, A good man, and yet self in him, for man is supposed in a Christian: And where man is, there self is more or less, and that is himself, and 
Homo supponitur in Christiano.  much evil there is. If we see it not in the fruit, yet there it is in the seed and root, as we shall clearly discern presently: for this is manifest to all, who have eyes to see, or an heart to understand themselves, That all the malice we have been speaking of, so mightily opposing the good of the great Body, all this is but a glass, for every man to see himself in; the very model and representation of every man's own heart 
* See ●ts treasury opened, Mat. 15. 19 Mark. 7. 2●. ; he sees his own heart there, and image as he sees himself in his child, or as he sees a face in water answering a face; In a word, This man, beholding the whole world lying in wickedness, does behold therein, as in a mirror, a world of wickedness in himself. This wickedness, malignance we may call it, doth not breakeout and show its self in all alike, but there this malice is in the root and seed, and fomenting cause of all that, which we have taken notice of. And the very discerning hereof, that so it is, is the first step and degree a man takes in the way and method of maintaining his Militia, the well posturing himself. For now he sees, that the work is of absolute necessity, it must be done. 1. He first discovers an enmity, an opposition from nature within himself, to the work of Reformation; his heart flies from it as from death, for indeed it is a kind of death; and nature, which is self, is as opposite to it, as that Israelite was who counted Reforming a kill 
a Exod. 2. 14. . Nature not renewed will oppose this with all its might. And if the heart do let the Bill pass for the completing of it, it is because it is overpowered; because the thunder and hail, some strong motions and fears are upon the spirits; when those are blowne-over, self will be self still; strong holds will stand up still; strong reasonings to maintain all the Idols, the abominable things there; All this will be till self be overpowred by an Almighty power, and spoken unto by a strong hand 
b Isa. 8. 11. : Than self is mastered, than there is a yeilding-up the strong holds, there is no more Reasonings 
c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. 2 Cor. 10. 5.  with self for the maintaining of self that Malignant person: or Malignant things, Idols or Idol services. True it is, these Malignants are not cast-forth all, not nor quite subdued all: Though the Body of sin be mortified, yet the life thereof is prolonged, a and the power thereof is (as the Kingdom spoken of by Daniel) partly strong and partly broken; Lord-like-lusts, or 
Dan. 7. 17.  lust-like-Lords will storm his soul sometimes, and force a reentry. And the Lord suffers it to be so, for mighty reasons, which I must resume, in part, as pertinent to this place as to the other: for as it is in the great Kingdom, so it is in the little kingdom within a man's own breast: The man's warfare must be maintained, he must be kept waking and watchful; he must see how important a matter it is, and of what infinite concernment, That he keep close to the God of his strength, and his salvation, that is first. And  
2. This wickedness is in the heart but it is hated there; lusts are there, but not Lords there; they have no dominion there; These are put down from their Regency; he has prayed against them three times, and as often covenanted against them. Yea look what malice or evil there is, which the man cannot meet with nor cast-out (all he cannot) that remainder, he has dealt with it as the Jews of old did, the night before their great feast, with their leaven, they searched diligently for it into every corner and cranny of the house, as this man searcheth his heart; and what they could not find-out they did curse and abominate, saying, never more sour our lump: So this man deals with self and its Idols, he makes diligent search after them to throw-them-out; what he cannot cast-out, not find-out (for self has many dark corners within its self, which man's eye could never pierce into) yet he pryeth into the bottom and root of all, and this he doth curse and abominate, saying, never fruit grow thereon: And what fruit there will grow, he prayeth it may be as an untimely fruit, which never saw the sun. And so what he cannot overcome, he does hate and abhor. And mighty reason why he should so do, abominate and accurse that so fruitful seed within him: for had not the LORD, according to His servants prayer, kept down that Root from putting forth its self, according to its activeness; had He not restrained that corruption, not susfering it to bring forth according to its fruitfulness: Had the Lord suffered this cockatrice to broode-upon and hatch her eggs; had He left this sinning sin, within the man, to bring forth its own cursed fruit, than had this man been as vile as the vilest, as proud as the proudest Prelate; as Idolatrous as are he and she, who lift-up their hearts to the most lying vanities; as cruel and as bloody as are the Tabernacles of Robbers; This man might have been swearing, cursing, blaspheming, tearing, piercing the Name of his God, amongst the Irish rogues, and English monsters; This man might have been in the King's Army, a Prince there, (by nature he is no better than they) A child of wrath as others: 
b Ephes. 2. 3.  If the Lord had not been gracious unto him, added more grace, made him to differ, 
c 1. Cor. 4. 7.  he had been as one of them, a mighty hunter before the LORD, as a roaring Lion, or a she Bear, or an evening Wolf, such an one he had been, if the Lord had not overpowred his corruption, made him to differ from another wrought graciously in him, and for him, for which he admireth the Lord in His freegrace, and blesseth His holy Name. The Lord has wrought a mighty work in him, faith, by which he has overcome the world, escaped the pollutions there, the lusts of the flesh the snares of the world, a world of wickedness, (a Grace to be admired) by which he stoodout against the gates of Hell; overpowred power its self, principalities and powers; how admirable all this? This raiseth the heart, first,  
1. In admiration of free grace; And you, that were dead in trespasses and sins; What more? that is all we found in the Original; 
Ephes. 2. 1.  In our English we read this more, hath He quickened: but in the Greek only this, And you, that were dead in trespasses and sins: A mercy to be admired; has He quickened! That is swallowed-up with admiration; for it is more admirable than was the making of the world, or creating of light. There is more in this, HAS HE QUICKENED! Therefore swallowed-up with 
Job 6. 3.  admiration, as Jobs words were with exceeding grief: You has He quickened! dead as well as others, whom yet He left in the same death, to perish in their sins: You has He quickened. It is all one as if the Apostle had said, And you has He justified, ungodly though you were; For you the Father has given His Son; and the Son has given Himself to reconcile you, and to bring you near, fare of once, and an enemy though you were: And you has He loved with an eternal love, because He loved you (there is 
Deut. 7.  no other reason of His love,) He set His heart upon you, and passed over others Thousands, not worse than yourself! And you has He seen in your blood, and He said at such a time as that, to you, it is a time of love, live live: 
* Twice repeated, as well to show the greatness of His power, as the richeses of His mercy.  O admirable! He has observed thy way, wherein thou goest on frowardly, as others did, yet to thee He said, I will heal thee; 
a Ezek. 16. 8.  so He forgave thy sin and healed thee 
b Isa. ●7. 18.  All this, so admired of this soul, is contained in this, HAS HE QUICKENED!  
2. And now that God has dealt so with His servant, so visited him in his low estate, quickened him, brought him from death to life; now his heart is filled with admiration, and so is his mouth filled with praise: All without him, all within him, are called upon to praise His Holy Name. For what? The man cannot express that, he is swallowed-up in an ocean of love, from everlasting unto everlasting; and now he will lengthen out his praise, wider than the Heavens, even to everlasting. His Lord and his God has regarded him, has kept him; has held him by the hand in the most suppery ages and places; how many puddles might he have fallen into? how many mires might he have wallowed-in? had not the Lord held him upright; O how does his soul meditate praises! how does he study Mictams, Hallelujahs; and holiness! O with what Selahs, with what exaltation of heart and voice, does he sing the 103 Psalm, Bless the LORD, O my soul: you shall hear him out-anon, with what elevation of spirit will he sing this, for it is his triumphant song, which he will sing immediately before he is breathing forth his last words: Than and not till than, for all the time before he must be in a warfaring condition, as the Church is, and it is best for him and the Church both: Yet assured he is as all the faithful are, that nothing shall do him hurt now, every thing shall do him good, even his worst enemies, and he shall be more than conqueror at last; But not till immediately before his last words, than he will speak to the Lord the words of this song, The Lord has delivered m● out of the hands of all mine enemies, and out of the hand of myself; His name be praised, exalted, magnified for ever and ever, Amen. The time of his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is not yet, but yet he knows the foundation stands sure, he knows to whom he has committed his soul; he has a sure standing, he is settled upon the Rock: he stands and shall stand like a wall of brass against the blast of the terrible ones, and laughs at their storming; he is at peace with his God, and is not afraid of the beasts of the earth; 
Job 5.  The Lord is his portion, and his cup runneth-over; he is poor, perhaps, in esteem of others, but he is rich in faith; he is as a man that has nothing, and yet possessing all things. The Lord has satisfied him with the fatness of His house, even with the richest mercies; He has enough indeed, for he has God, and with Him all things. 
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Gen. 33. 11.  He is a contented man; and well he may be content, for he has the fountain: If the streams be cut-off, intercepted for a time, no matter, he is sure of the I ountaine. The Son of Righteousness shines upon his tabernacle; than the night is day to him, for the Sun makes the day, though neither Moon nor Stars appear, (i e. that is) God is all to him without the creature: the creature nothing to him without God. God is his, therefore is His servants mouth wide open to His praise. But you will ask; Are there no storms in his soul, no clouds over his spirit at any time? Yes sure, many times, you may hear of that anon; Now,  
3. Behold we how this servant of the Lord carrieth himself toward his fellow servants; he entreats them, he beseecheth them by the mercies of Christ, and, knowing the terrors of the LORD, he persuadeth with all meekness, instructing those, that oppeses themselves, 
2 Tim. 2. 25, 26.  if GOD, peradventure, will give them repentance. He is tenderhearted, forgiving another even as GOD for Christ's sake 
Eph. 4. 32. Coloss. 3. 13.  hath forgiven him: He is a friend to his enemies, if they curse him, he will bless them: for there are three considerations very mighty to prevail with him this way. 1. That God, for Christs-sake, hath forgiven him much, he knows not how much; should not he forgive that little, those few pence, (such and so small are man's offences against man in reference to those against God.) 2. That the Lord justified the ungodly. 3. That the night before He was betrayed, 
Rom. 4. 5, 5, 6.  He made a Feast for His enemies, even them who pierced Him: He gave His blood for those, who had an hand in shedding ●● blood. This is a melting consideration, and engageth the heart strongly, to give and forgive; to bear and forbear with all long suffering and meekness. We have enough touching this matter. I come now to consider the means, whereby this Soldier has thus postured himself, has attained to this height of spirit, which is observed in nothing more, than in his humble carriage, and Christian fortitude. But we must observe it first in the proceed of Parliament, the steps and ways they went in well-Posturing the Kingdom.    

CHAP. II.  
The prime and chief means to Posture a Kingdom, Prayer and Fasting;  
How prevailing Prayer is, It does all, it commands God, and God commands deliverance; Prayer and Praise go together. The Church's falls and disconifitures, particularly that at Newarke, matter ●f●nfinite use to the Church, and of high praise.  
WE have heard what the Nobles and Worthies have done towards the completing this great work, the strengthening or well Posturing the Kingdoms: We proceed as they did not in their own strength. It is not all created strength, that can do such works as these; remove such Persons and such Things;  
They sought forth and applied themselves to such means, whereby they might bring-in God to their help; They did after the old manner, which never failed the Church, they commanded the City first, than the whole Nation as Esther the Jews, fast ye for us, we 
Est●r 4. 16.  will fast also: They knew, there is a kind of malignant spirit which will not be cast-out by any other means: They took hold of the Almighty's Arm; they wrestled with Him for this thing; they prayed, they wept, and would not rise from their knees without ● 
Hos. 12. 4.  blessing; And so they prevailed for the casting-out their dead, Idol men and Idol services; so they shall root-out them, who have rootedin themselves so long: So have they thrown down their Altars, and cast-out those abominable services. They wept and they prayed, and so they became a prevailing people with their God upward to this day, and so they were delivered; So they have stricken-through many mighty men; So they have wounded ●●● heads over many (Dioceses) Countries. Prayer [I name that only because it is the principal and chief work upon that solemn day: fasting does but help to make the prayer more spiritful; It weakens the body, that it may strengthen the spirit, and heighten it; Fasting is, as I may say, the emptying duty; It shows a man, openly, a mortified man, lesser than a crumb of bread, and drop of drink: It makes him nothing-worth in himself, yea worse than nothing, an emptying duty: Prayer is a filling duty, it fills-up as fast as the other has emptied, we shall see how efficacious prayer is.] Prayer gained the income and harvest of all that spiritual seed, the servants of the Lord, now departed from us, were sowing all their life long: now that harvest comes-in. Time would fail me, to tell what the people of God have done by prayer. Prayer has done all, which has been done, for God forbidden that we should speak of any thing, which the Lord hath not wrought for, and with His people; And nothing He has wrought, but He has been sought unto, and enquired of for that thing. It is true the Lord hath given His people the greatest mercies, which they prayed not for, ELECTION before Time; His SON in the fullness of Time: All deliverances since are the fruit of the Church's prayers, though they have exceeded her prayers, and her hopes: Prayer obtained a Parliament, brought them together and their hearts-up to the work; and prayer has kept them together, has sifted them as wheat in a seive, blew away the chaff, and not a wheate-corne lost; Prayer strengthened the hearts and hands of the Worthies in throwing-downe the Bishops; It strengthened the Bishop's hands against themselves, for the throwing themselves out of the Lords House, and into prison; Prayer cast forth the brutish Pastors, and services like themselves; And prayer will strengthen the right hand of the Lord with His servants, that they shall do more and more valiantly touching that matter. Prayer shall, as it has done, bring to pass great matters; But not in its own strength (for 
* This is more fully explained in an Answer to a blasphemous Rhyme from Oxford. See Good newe● from all quarters brought unto us upon the wing of prayer.  in its self it has no more strength than has an Oaten-straw, but) as it closeth with a Promise in the hand of a Redeemer, Who is strong 
* This is more fully explained in an Answer to a blasphemous Rhyme from Oxford. See Good newe● from all quarters brought unto us upon the wing of prayer. ; in That strength the Worthies of the Lord have leapt over walls, and skipped over mountains, these have been made plains before them. I must passover here what Rescues His people have had, what strange deliverances! what discoveries the Lord has made of His right hand, with His people, and against His Adversaries, confounding them in their pride and bloody designs; It is the Lords doing and marvellous in our eyes! But He was sought unto for these things: And though we passover many things, we must not passover this; That Prayer made voided a terrible and bloody Commission, To cut and to slay all that had an hand with David (all the faithful in the Land:) and to destroy a mother in Israel. Prayer turned all the contrary way, It broke the snare, disappointing the hope of the Malignants; laid-open the pit, as deep as Hell, and hurled some chief Actors thereinto; And this opened the mouth of the righteous yet wider, made their prayer more fervent, so that it quenched a fiery-flying-serpent, some called it a Proclamation, to cut of all succours from the City of God; These hail stones and coals of fire, prayer dissolved, and quenched: The heat of the Adversaries displeasure was quite extinct by prayers fervency. Prayer did the like exploit at Gloucester; It quenched all the Granades cast into that City: so as these had no more power, notwithstanding all their storming a whole Month together, but to kill a Pig: Nor had the Adversary a Legion though he was, done so much, not killed that Pig, but by order from Heaven. In Judah is God known, His name is great in Israel; His dwelling 
●sal. 76.  place is in Zion. (Proceed,) There broke He the arrows of the bow, the shield and the sword, and the battle. There! Where? In His Tabernacle in Zion, there dwelling and walking with His people, and they conversing with their God, in His ordinances. There and than He broke the arrows and the bow; there and than He turned away the storming Adversary; than He raised the siege. When? On the seventh of September (it is written,) on that day, when the Inhabitants of Gloucester were praying and (with jehoshaphat) praising: when the Adversary was storming and ready to devour, than were the inhabitants, as that good King, praying and praising; Praise the LORD, for His mercy endureth for ever; It follows; 
2 Chro. 20. 21.  And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord, etc. So it followed than and now also, for when they were praying and praising, than the Lord broke the arrows and the bow, than He plucked the bridle in the Adversaries mouth, and away He turned him, and where is the fury of the oppressor? Praise ye the LORD for His mercy endureth for ever.  
We must not forget now how prayer and praise went-out with our Armies, marched along with them, therefore God was with them; nay He was in them in the midst of them; We must tell it out to His praise; how God was with His people in the field, how He sustained them there, even more miraculously, than Elias, by a Raven; The Ethiopians, the King's Army (they are Ethiopians unto Me says the Lord 
a Am●s 9 7. ,) these were caterers, and purvayers for God's people; These Ravens, these unclean creatures brought His people meat; So they, the servants of the Lord, forced the meat out of those Harpies claws, ●ate it, and gave praise to God: And in the strength of that meat they marched, and their God with them! He gave his people an eye to overlook all the Lions and she Bears in their way; He strengthened His people to the battle, gave them powerover their Adversaries; And brought them home as upon Eagles' wings: In all this, prayer commanded God (He is pleased so to be commanded) and so He commanded deliverances for Jacob; They shall advance God; In His Name they broke through a Troop: They setup God in His place, and so they keep the heart in its place, never out of frame, not afraid with any amazement. Time would fa●le me, if I should set down how prevailing God's people have been with their God, and how wonderfully their God has wrought for His servants and against His and their Adversaries ever since they gained Bristol; Certainly the Lord has wrought wonders for His people in every place ever since; He has wrought as marvellous things now in the North, and South, West also, as once He did, when He divided the sea, and let the ransomed passover: As marvailously has He protected, (separated) here and there betwixt His friends and His enemies, as once He did betwixt the Israelites and the Egyptians, or betwixt David and Saul, And prayer did all this; It raised that SELAHAM MAHLEKOTH 
a 1 Sam. 23. ●●. , that rock of separation, as once betwixt David and Saul, so now betwixt them, and their enemies. I must pass over that wonderful work of Providence towards Hull; There is a monument raised to the eternal memory of that salvation. I must leave every good man to his own collections; I know he has a book wherein to register the works of the Lord, and the operations of His hands, that he may muse on them; To these his collections, I will add but this, which I received from an inhabitant in Gernsey; That, that monster amongst men, a Devil incarnate, that Abaddon, Apollyon, the Governor of the Castle there, a man indeed for shape, but an evening wolf in practice; This brutish man has discharged against the Town 3000 shot of Ordnance from the Castle, and yet has destroyed neither man, woman nor child, only killed a Dog 
* Osburne has continued storming that Town these 9 Months, yet has wounded only one Man, killed a Dog, a Pig, and a Pigeon. , the lowest and basest creature in the world, yet better than man is when he has castoff his humanity. The sum of all is; Prayer and Praise (for that is always included) has done all, that has been done; for God commands Prayer; and Prayer commands GOD; and GOD commands deliverance for His people; Praise ye the Lord. We have seen part of the ways have been taken for the strengthening the Kingdom; Prayers and Praises have done great things; These have carried-forth the malignancy of the Kingdom: or obtained power against it. These have brought-in all supplies from above, and commanded deliverances for Jacob. It is the Church's confidence for ever, that prayer, closing with a promise, offered-up in the hands of a Mediator, will effect greater matters yet, than our eyes have seen, (i e.) That there is no work so difficult, not not reforming work; No way so intricate, not not a Churchway, but prayer will make it possible and passable: (Assured,) That Jacob shall never be so small, his affairs never so low, but prayer shall raise Jacob, a worm though he seem to be; and pluckup His affairs. His seed never sought God in vain, from the first day of their seeking unto this day 
* The 29 of March, a day to be written, whereon the Lord God gave His people a wonderful return of prayer, I say the Lord God, for though we give as much honour as is sitting to the chief, and all other instruments, yet to God all the glory. Joh. 14. 13, 15. 7. 1 Jo●. 8, 14. ; It is their confidence, for the time to come, for they have a promise for it, Ask what you will and it shall be done. They will ask nothing but in reference and submission to their FATHER'S will: and thence their confidence, that they are heard in whatsoever they ask; not for the duties-sake (they abominate it as a duty only, and performed by themselves) but for the promise-sake, which the Lord will make good unto them for His Son's sake, Amen. Prayer has a kind of omnipotency in it: Praise is an heavenly work too and of the highest use: I would now gather some observations from what has been said touching both, than i'll add, what the Malignants have contributed hither, to the catalogue of our mercies, and matter of our praise, and so I shall conclude. The first observation is;  
1. That our enquities, busy and overhasty thoughts, and deviding cares, about Reformation (the well Posturing a Kingdom, The time when it will be) are most vain, and disquieting to no purpose. Let us do our duty, our own work, be careful about nothing but this, that we do our work: or, if we cannot work, as we commonly call work, if we have not heads for Counsel, nor hands for Action, yet, let us do our duty; let us make our PRAYER to our GOD; that wheels all about; that does the work. And impossible it is, that a Reformation, a child of so many Prayers and Tears, (the Prayers of all the faithful, that are or have been in the world,) That a child of so many Prayers (as was said of Austin unto his mother) should perish; Perish! Not, nor stick at the birth a minute longer, than as the sticking-there shall make for the exaltation of God's arm, in the pulling-of it-forth: and the filling-top-full the hearts of His people, with comfort in its season, after they have suffered a little, that is the first observation.  
2. That their Excellencies, the chief Commanders by Land and Sea; All the Nobles and Worthies of both Kingdoms, (more dear unto us than the blood in our veins) do march-on under the safest conduct, which is, the banner of the LORD spread over their heads by the uncessant prayers of all the faithful in the world: There is not a man, woman or child in the world, that can pray, But they say, concerning this Host of God: We wish you prosperity in the name of the Lord: All the blessings in the Book of God, 
1 Sam, 25. 29.  fall down upon you every man, as the dew upon the grass: And for their enemies, them, let the Angel of the Lord scatter and slingout as out of the middle of a sling.  
3. The servants of the Lord do ascribe all unto God; All is a Napthaly, a child of Prayer; ASKED OF GOD; and the gift of GOD; And that sweetens, the mercy the deliverance; And, if it be a crosse-blow, it sweetens that too, it makes it a blessing, as it follows presently. They writ upon all their walls, Salvation, and upon their gates, their outlets and in-lets, they writ Praise, 
Isa. ●o. 18.  (i e.) they ascribe all to God. The Adversaries of the Lord not so; As Saul before them, they never get any Advantage against David, but by Treacheries, wiles, fine devices, curled policies, the depths of Satan: Therefore when David (the faithful of the Land) are, the enemy thinks, delivered-up into his hands, than he does as Saul did, bless the Ziphites, a vile, treacherous people, 
1 Sam. 23. 21.  whom GOD curseth.  
4. The servants of the Lord do not trust to an Host of men, though a thousand thousand for multitude; (such an Host Jehoshaphat 
* 2 Chro. 17.  had) yet as he, so they do trust in God, give themselves to prayer, that so they may bring Him down to their help: They set their eye as steadfastly Heaven-ward, as if they had no strength upon earth, for they know, they are not delivered by such a strength 
a Psal. 33. 16. . They on the other side, the Adversaries of the Lord, put all their trust in multitudes, as if they were gods not men; spirit not flesh. And if these fail, as fail they must, than their hearts fail, and shake within them, as a leaf shaken with the wind; And it must be so, not possible it should be otherwise, for they cannot pray; An infinite disadvantage if it were thought on! When the Adversaries Army fails (that is all flesh) all fails him; when the creature leaves him, all leaves him, for he cannot pray. But when the arm of flesh fails the righteous, it is not more, but what they expected, and they cling the faster to the arm of God, who strengtheneth most when the arm of flesh is lest in sight: When all the creatures are gone, yet God is not gone, nay than he is nearest, for than Prayer is 
a Isa. 6. 6.  poured out unto him (but dropped forth before) and than they can lift-up their heads in expectation of a glorious redemption at hand, for they can pray; An infinite advantage.  
5. God's servants praise God for their falls; for these tend to the completing of their great and glorious victory at the last. In the mean time, they falllow before their God, and rise-high in 
Quando duplicantur la●er●s ven●t Moses, Auget certamina quando liberab. t, Curysolog.  their faith, which assureth them, the lower they are, the nearer their exaltation is; and the higher their Adversaries are, the deeper their fall will be; and so I come to that which the Malignants make their jeer and scorn now, The discomfiture the servants of the LORD had at NEW ARK, 22d of March: They would have me put it down in my Catalogue, and make it matter of praise. God forbidden we should forget it; It is a matter of excellent use, than aught it to be matter of high Praise. In every thing give 
Phil. 4. 6. 1 Thes. 5. 15.  thanks, much more for such a mercy, which shall, through the Church's prayers, tend greatly to the fortifying and establishing her people. Certainly the servants of the Lord, they that are praying on the mount, and they that are sighting in the valley, all these shall receive more good from their discomfitures, especially that at Newarke, than from all the victories they have had this last year. Therefore mighty reasons there are, why the Church should make it matter of high Praise. First;  
1. The Lord shown much love towards His people in that discomfiture. Love! You will say it was a fruit of God's Anger, and sore displeasure against His people. Indeed it was; But mark we, That which causeth GOD'S Anger toward His beloved ones is LOVE 
a Erga 〈◊〉 suos ●oc 〈◊〉 bile est, ●●● Divin● causa amor est. : This is wonderful, but so it is, and that is one mighty reason why the Church should tender Praise: for,  
2. It is a resolved case, If the arm of flesh be strong, the servants of the Lord will-beare-up themselves confidently upon it: Than the Lord knaps it asunder as easily as you can break burnt slaxe. The Lord must be praised for this, for this is pure love: He will have His servants lean upon their B●loved and none other; The Lord will break them, and break them, and break them, till they say, Thou art our Rock, our strong arm every morning, and our salvation every night; in whom we can boast all the day long. This is their prayer & matter of their praise; So the Lord will bring-up the hearts of His people to Himself, no matter though He beats them down, and lays them like worms upon the earth: So He b●ings-up their hearts to close with His arm, no matter, though the Lord bring His people so low, even to whisper out of the dust.  
3. Great matter of Praise for that discomfiture at Newarke: for the servants of the Lord (simple hearted men, as were Eliakim, and Shebnah, and Joah 
b 2 King. 18. 26. , these expected a favour from Rabshakeh: So these) treated (the Malignants say and i'll take their saying) for their lives, liberties, ease of tender consciences, with the Prince of Robbers, Prince Robert, a profane and wicked man, A price of clay mingled with blood 
b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. , as was said of Nero, who had cast of humanity; Mighty only to do mischief, and to satisfy his own lusts, (as was said of another 
c Crispinu● monstrum null● virtute redemptu●, Aviiijs aeger soldque libidine fortis, Juv. Sat. 4 ●. ) The servants of the Lord (as Malignants do report) treated with this Prince, and his murderers, the vilest and most abominable persons, most notorious all over the Christian world for their faithless, treacherous, horrid and horrible- butcheries, The friends of God expected mercy from the enemies of God Now the servants of the Lord will for ever walk more humbly with their God, and humbly seek His face: for He is merciful. They will understand now, That the mercies of the wicked are cruel, that is, none at all 
d Pro. 10. 12. Plane nullae. , Ah Lord! Will the Lord suffer His servants to lie prostrate at the foot of Rabshekah, to beg a favour at his hands: Yes; That they may understand at the length, how vain their expectation is from man, but never vain from God; Praised be His Name.  
4. Great matter of praise as of prayer; We pray that the Lord would make His servants meet for deliverance, and His enemies fit for destruction. This is the only way, which the Lord takes, this casting-downe fits the servants of the Lord for their rising-up, which shall be the higher, the lower their fall was: And this rage of the Adversary fills-up their measures, heightens their destruction, for in proportion to their rage now shall their judgement be anon: It shall reach unto Heaven and be liftedup unto the skies: 
Jer. 51. 9  Certainly the Church could not have wanted any of all this, which has fallen-out at Bristol, etc. nor the discomfiture at Newarke, Through their prayer, all this shall turn to their advantage and furtherance of the Gospel. That and this will make the stink of the King's Camp come-up into the nostrils of all the Christian world; if they are not an abomination yet, they will be shortly; every man will comeout against them with their sword in their hand (without hire of money) as once they did against grievous wolves. The people of the Land have been disspirited hitherto, now the Lord has taken a course to put spirit and life into His people. The great whore, that she might put back her destruction, and reprieve her judgement, may give fair words sometimes after her manner, and yield fare to accommodate a peace. It shall not serve her turn; The arrows of the strong-ones shall be sharp in the hearts of all her friends; and the sword of the Lord shall eat her flesh and than she shall be burnt with fire 
b Rev. 17. 16. 19 18. . In the next place, we are assured, That,  
5. Now, at hearing of this news, The Adversary is-up on high, exceeding proud now; They set their mouth against Heaven, they speak proudly now; And now the righteous, they are low, speak as out of the dust; They mourn unto their God: (Great cause they should, because they were so over joyed and confident in the arm of flesh) They set their eyes steadfastly upon Him now, Who creates light and Peace (His light, His Peace is a creation, and this makes way to it) Their eye is single now upon God's arm; They had an eye and an eye before, an heart and a heart, more fixed upon the arm of flesh than on the arm of God. O praised be God, Who has, by this stroke, made His servants eye single now; And now they will pray fervently. Deliverance seems thrust-back by the hand of violence, they will fetch it on-ward again by their prayers: The time for their deliverance seems stretchedout and lengthened; 
Luk. 22. 44. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉.  they thought it near at hand, now it seems fare of: But now they will intent and stretchout their prayers after it (as their Lord Christ in His agony) more earnestly; now their prayer, it as on continued action: Praised be God for this, for it has made prayer more fervent, and also because now;  
7. The Builders of the waste places, the repairers of the breaches, I mean the Parliament, and Assemblies, all the faithful in all three Kingdoms, all these will work high now; Their words, and their actions, and their heart, and their faith, all will be upon the wing now; They will work (as he at Jerusalem's wall) earnestly, 
Neh. 3 20. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉  (i e.) inflamedly, with a zeal boiling hot for the house of God, for the Cause of God; And yet they will not trust to the Cause, though as good a Cause as ever was trusted to in the world; But this trust to the goodness of a Cause, is a greater Idol than was that in Cheapside, in the Chapel or in the Closet, for that was setup in the heart: Therefore God has smitten it, and broken it in Ancient times, and so upward to this day: And yet He has maintained His Cause when He has confounded the trust, and confidence in it, and the managers of it; A matter of infinite use, and commands our observation now.  
8. The servants of the Lord, trusted to the goodness of their Cause; they contend for the pearl in the Gospel (that is the Gospel) the Diadem, the Crown of three Kingdoms; never had men a better Cause to contend for since man was created than this is: And may they not trust to the goodness of this Cause? Yes, they may, trust and be confident, That a good Cause shall have a good issue; that it shall overcome at the last; that the Lord will bring it forth to victory; that the end shall be good. It is as much as can be said of a good man, his end shall be peace. But note we, A good Cause may be ill managed; It may be carried also by the hand of God variously, tossed-up and down, as David said of himself, like a locust; To teach us, that the goodness of the Cause does not argue the goodness of our trust: I'll add this; The goodness of the cause gives me warrant to expend my purse, and my spirits, and my life for it; But it does not warrant me to put my trust unto it: Where this trust aught to be fixed, we shall hear so soon, as we shall better understand, how vain the confidence is we put in the goodness of the Cause; It is an Idol, God has broken it to pieces: It is His manner so from days of old upward to this day. I'll instance only in two famous examples; Israel in old Elies' days [or rather when it was night with him] had a good cause in hand, which they (as we now) maintained against the Philistines, and yet they fell before the Philistines about four 
1 Sam. 4. 2.  thousand men. They trusted more yet to the goodness of their cause; and up they brought the Ark accompanied with Hophni and Phineas, and than confident of the goodness of the Cause, how bad soever themselves were, they shouted with a great shout; and 
ver. 4. 5. ver. 8, 9 ver. 10.  the Philistines were sore afraid. But their courage overcame their fear, and they fought with Israel, and slew of Israel thirty thousand footmen: and the Ark of God was taken too: and the two sons of Eli slain also. They trusted to the goodness of the Cause; It was the Lords 'Cause, the Ark was the Lords, that would save 
ver. 3.  them from the hand of their enemies. Not, but it would not, The Cause of God, the Ark of God was so fare from helping them, that it exposed them to more wrath, which they could not be delivered from, till the servants of the Lord had taken their heartsoff from the goodness of the Cause, and set their hearts fully towards the Lord, in returning to Him, according as Samuel counselled; which is very notable; for having done so, the Lord wrought a mighty salvation for His people, as you may read 
* 1 Sam. 7. . I'll pass on to another example.  
The Tribes trusted to the goodness of their cause. So they might they thought, for it had the impression and stamp of God upon it; They went-out, as our men do, by God's command, against notorious delinquenis in Gibeah, sons of Belial, as vile and abominable almost, as these are now in the King's Army, the Princes and Nobles there; God's Cause, and Gods command, and they must prospero sure, they thought. Not; notwithstanding the goodness of their cause, they fell before Benjamin heaps upon heaps, twenty and 
Judg. ●.  two thousand at one time; eighteen thousand at another: that Israel may never put confidence in a good cause after this time. And yet so Israel have done, as at this day. But I hope they will do so not more, never trust to the goodness of our Cause any more; trust God with that, and trust we to the goodness of our GOD, that trust never fails: A good God still, and if the news be bad, He can make it good: And if, as the Malignants would have it, the worst, that ever was told in Gath, yet this Good GOD can make it best of all: O that we could trust in Him, to the goodness of our God Though men be treacherous, God is faithful: though they fail, He never fails those that trust Him. 2. Let us trust to the goodness (that is) to the soundness of our conversion, our turning from Idols to serve the living God; If our conversion and turning be sound, we may trust to it, and not care for all the turn and wind of the crooked serpent, they shall do us no hurt; the changes of things here below makes no change in them, whose heart is truly changed: nor makes it any change in God; though means are weak, He is strong; though men fail, God never fails! And note we, the turn and tides of things here below, do but serve to turn our hearts unto God; to establish them there. And when the heart is setupon that bottom, though the world be turned upside-down, yet the man stands upright. The failing of man's arm, (too short at the longest extent to bring salvation) brings-up the heart to close with the Almighty's arm, which neither shortens nor lengthens, but is stretched out still. And when the heart is brought thither, than it is fixed, and not till than.  
9 The Israel of God must praise God for their discomfitures; for thereby they are instructed to discretion, to know GOD and themselves, that He is all, and does all; that they are nothing, and can do nothing. Thereby also they are wrought-up unto an acceptation 
a Leu. 26. 41.  of their punishment, to a submission, a willing resignation, and quiet yeilding-up themselves to God's dispose; Do Thou with us whatsoever seems good unto Thee 
b Judg. 10. 15. : An excellent temper of spirit after it is overpowered, and beaten down. And yet this humble and prostrate spirit, has its Reserves; Only let Thy Cause prospero; do good unto Zion. [So the LORD will, and His Cause shall prospero; and though it may seem delivered-up into the enemy's hand, yet, as the Ark did, it shall but plague the enemies] And deliver us not-up into the hands of a cruel Lord, an ungrateful snake, deliver us not unto him. [God will not do it, unless it be good for His people, so to be delivered-up, that they may know, and feel the difference betwixt the service of the God of Heaven, and the service of the gods of the world 
c 2 Chro. 12. 8: .]  
10. Lastly, When the adversary and enemy gins to fall before the servants of the Lord, he shall surely fall down to the bottom, like a millstone into the great waters. But Israel's fall is but a rise 
E●●. 5. 14.  towards their highest elevation. When (righteous) men are cast down, we must say, there is lifting-up. The righteous are cast down 
Job 21. 29.  to humble them 
* The Church never yet lost by her losses: They ever to this day risen the higher by their falls: So it will be in after ages. , and no sooner humbled but they are lifted up, they are regarded and saved; And He shall save the humble person. When the righteous are smitten into the place of dragons, when they are in a low pit, there can they spy Heaven, and see the Star of Jacob there (as we, standing on a low bottom, can see Heaven bestof all: so the righteous in their depths) I mean, when their distress is greatest, than is their trust the strongest; than they holdup their heads in expectation of a redemption drawing nigh.  
Now put all together, and see whether any victory the Church has lately had, gives us so much matter of praise, as does the discomfiture at Newarke, though as great as the enemies would make it.  
God has discomfited His people: Of mere faithfulness He has done it, because He loves them and will have them love Him, and trust Him, and seek Him servently, work for Him earnestly, sight His battles valiantly; careful still, and now more careful to remove the accursed thing. Because He will have His people trust 
Psal. 20. 7. Hos. 14. 3.  in charets and ride upon horses not more; Trust in the goodness of their cause not more; trust on the arm of flesh not more; but remember the Name of their God evermore; and their duty to be holy, who manage an holy cause. So they shall prospero, rise and stand upright for evermore, Amen.  
To summe-up all, and to put a close to this excellent Theme; It must be the same, which we should put down at the foot of all our Receipts, all the Mercy, which we receive (and we have nothing, which we have not received) either from the right or left hand of God: All are Mercies, either manifestly such (those only 
Manifest is que max●mè delect●●t: occultis quae prosunt etiam no●entibus. See Thank-offring, p. 16.  we call Mercies) or secretly such, wherewith our GOD will do us good against our wills: He must be praised for all, and this must be the close of all, O that men would praise the Lord for His goodness: and for His wonderful works to the children of men 
a ●s●. 107. 8. . Surely the Lord, as He said to Moses, has made all His goodness to pass before us also 
b Exod. 33. 19 : Even these last years He has proclaimed His Name, fearful in praises, doing wonders; O that men would praise the Lord, for,  
He gave us the Lord Christ, (a Mercy inexpressible, which we never prayed-for: but there we must begin, the beginning of Mercies, and foundation thereof) and with Him, all things; The Fountain, from Whom all the Churches fresh springs of comfort docklow in unto her; In Whom are all the Treasures, rich Ours of Grace and Glory: all praise to God for Him, through Whom God is a Father of Mercies, and a God not of some, but of all consolations. O that men would praise the Lord, etc. and for,  
2. Casting the rays of His glorious light, upon this Land first of all. O that men would praise the Lord: and for,  
3. Breaking the yoke of His burden, and the rod of His oppressor the Pope, when the Lord cast-out those six damnable Articles almost an hundred years ago; O that men would praise the Lord, and for,  
4. Giving us a Child-King, yet making him a nursing-Father: and a Maiden-Queene, yet making her a nursing-Mother: And for all the goodness, the Lord gave, through the hands of those excellent Princes (He delights to work by weak instruments,) to brothers and to strangers. O that men would praise the Lord. and for,  
5. Delivering us out of the floods of great waters: and making His Adversaries sink down there like a stone. O that men would 
56 Years ago.  praise the Lord for His goodness, and for,  
6. Not suffering the fire to kindle upon us: but consuming His Adversaries in their own furnace, which they had heated seven 
Almost 40 years ago.  times hotter than ordinary. O that men would praise the Lord, and for,  
7. His Parliament, which the LORD would have, His Adversaries give, and continued unto His Land: (O wonderful!) And when they would curse their own gift, (O abominable!) The LORD would bless it; how admirable! O that men would praise the Lord, and for,  
8. Those excellent, marvelous, distinguishing, seperating-Mercies, which the LORD hath reached-forth to all His Kingdoms, through His servants hands. O that men would praise the Lord; and for,  
9 The Parliament at Oxford; yes, though the Devil's Parliament, yet praise the Lord for that: for both the Houses there; The ignoble house of Robbers, where Littleton speaks little, (nay not one word of) Law: And the base house of Thiefs, where Ewer speaks as little Reason. O that men could praise the LORD for this Anti-Parliament. The Lord has suffered it to be setup for excellent reason, To try and prove His Parliament, whether they will not be as active for GOD, as that Parliament is for the Devil: As spiritful for the LORD Christ as those Adversaries are for Anti-christ. O that men would praise the Lord: and for,  
10. All His deliverances: Here I stand in a maze; Whoever could reckon-up the deliverances God gave to one particular person! how much less able, to accounted the deliverances to a whole Kingdom: 1. The deliverance at Edg-hill 
a October 2●, 1642. On the Lord day. , ye servants of the Lord, praise ye the Lord. 2. That at Brainford 
b Novemb. 12, Saturday. : open the month and praise ye the Lord, for that wonderful deliverance.  
3. For the deliverance at Newberry 
c Septemb. 19, 1643. ●husd●y. . O that men would praise the Lord for that. And for that near Winchester 
d March 29, 16●4. 2 Chro. 20. 26. A comfort, that comes too soon, is a discomfiture afte●wuds; what ever we think, the Lord God helps His C●u●●h always right carly Exod. 28. 36. . O that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! O that BERACHAHS', Blessings and Praises were written upon them every one, specially upon those, that came not too soon, when we desired them. O that BERACHAH, Blessing and Praise were written upon the places where, the days when, the persons by whom the Lord wrought these deliverances. O that this were engraven upon their persons, Holiness to the Lord, than men would praise the Lord for His goodness. And for delivering His servants into His enemy's hands. O that we could praise the Lord for this, for this shall tend to their eternal go●d. O that we could praise the Lord, for suffering the enemy to fire upon us, as those that would set our houses on a flame over our heads; these will kindle His servants zeal (Lukewarm before) against their own sins, and such great sinners before the Lord. Blessed be the Lord for this; God does assure His servants, that, as David's deliverance was nearest, when his Ziglag was fired 
a 1 Sam. 30. 1. , and his enemy's rage at the highest: So is His church's deliverance at hand, when He suffers His enemies to cast about the rage of their great wrath: now the Devil has but a short time 
b Rev. 12. 12. : O that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let Ireland praise the Lord, He has thrown down her Tabernacle, but it is to raise it up, and to establish it for ever. Let Scotland praise the Lord, who has wrought wonderful works there once and again; and more wonderfully will He work for them and by them, if they and we can give God all the glory: If we can make God our strong arm, He will use His servants hands, thereby to bring to pass great matters. O that we could praise the Lord (i e.) ascribe salvation to our God Let England do so, now a burning bush all on a flame, yet not consumed. Not consumed! not hurt in all this fire; She is resining, she is purifying now from all her tin, all her dross: Never in such a way to exaltation, to be made the head of Nations, and the most honourable of Kingdoms! O that men would praise the Lord, ascribe salvations to their God. Let Hull say so, a monument of salvations: Let Gloucester say so, an everlasting pillar for everlasting praise: Let London say so, the City of God, that has lain among Lions yet not devoured; amongst those, who were set on fire, yet not consumed: A City, that has been stormed with all the granadoes, that could be shot against her; Proclamations, Detestations, Commissions, all the fiery darts, hailstones and coals of fire, yet stands untouched as a monument of everlasting praise before their God; and as a mirror of Mercy and sacred providence, before the eyes of all the Christian world; that City of God so exalted, will exalt the Lord, will praise the Lord for His wonderful works, to her and her children, so preserved, so marvailously separated: and for this very end, To show that the LORD is upright: He is her rock, and no unrighteousness in Him. London will praise the Lord, for had the Adversary had power answerable to his will; (i e.) had he had an arm like God, as he thinks he has; than had he cast abroad the rage of his wrath; he had destroyed the humble persons there, and trod them down in their places: he would have commanded fire and brimstone from Heaven, and reigned it down upon London: Therefore will that City show forth the loving kindness of GOD in the morning, and His faithfulness every night, Amen. Now I descend to 
p●al. 9●. 2.  the particular, for we are lost and deceived in generals.  

§ II.  
The prime means of Posturing a man's self, Prayer, How prevailing; and how comely Praise.  
THis Soldier hath not, by his own hand, gotten himself the victory, victory over himself, in denying, in crucifying that self; victory over his Idols; casting these forth: He has not, in his own strength taken-up his cross, and followed his Lord Christ. He does not, ascribe this to his sword or to his bow. A poor man ● to standup against Principalities and powers! A poor creature to wrestle with flesh and blood; to carry forth or subdue all the filth of his heart, and to bring-in every needful grace: All this is without the sphere of nature's activity, beyond the power of all created strength; he prayed and he wept concerning all this, and so had power with his GOD: All this was a Naptal●, the fr●ut of mighty wrestlings with his God: So he quenched the fiery darts of Satan, those granadoes, and so forth, for I know not what he has done. But all is done by the good hand of his God with him; In the power of His might he has quitted himself as a good Soldier of Jesus Christ; he has done valiantly, and yet not he; not, but the grace of GOD which was with him 
a 1 Cor 15. 10 , still strengthening him and enabling him, to do all things 
b 〈◊〉 4. 1●. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. : His God has done great things for him, He has quenched those darts, put oil into the wounds those made; The more fiery and piercing those were, the wider passage they made for joy to comein, and to open the mouth the wider for praise to go forth. These great things God has done for His poor servant. He has wrought great works in him too; It was His good pleasure so, though he be nothing 
c 2 Cor. 12. ●1. ; And now this man's heart being fixed, he is as secure as any man in the world, trusting in the Lord, he is careful for nothing: If the temptation be strong, and the straight great, he does according to the counsel 
a Phil. 4. 6. , and the example 
b 2 Co●. 12. 8.  before him, once and again, and the third time, makes his prayer and supplication before his GOD: and if the temptation be not removed, and he enlarged, yet that is done which is best for him; It is sanctified; and he is made able to bear it, and a way made also to escape 
c 1 Cor. 10. 13. . Prayer now, and God's grace now, are as prevailing, and as sufficient as ever: and so he has concluded, and is careful for nothing; But in all things he gives thanks; he sees infinite reason for that, specially for his temptations, for he has ever found the way God has made to escape has been the more wonderful, the sharper the temptation, and the greater the strait has been: Honour, and glory, and praise, be attributed to this dear God for all His mercies, and loving kindnesses to His poor servant; for His Heaven here [which was more than he looked for, or was 
Joh. 16. 33.  promised,] and for all his Hell too, his losses, and crosses; his pains and his sorrows; his conflicts and his troubles, not mercies in our esteem, but mercies to him, and in his account made so, and found so to be by many experiences, therefore registered in the beginning 
See Thank offering, chap. 3.  of his calendar of mercies; Glory and praise to God for all His mercies, and loving kindnesses to His poor servant. How many are those all? he will tell you when you tell him how many hairs you have on your head, for he will not require of you, how many sands on the sea shore, or Starr●s in the firmament of Heaven; all the mercies to his soul; There he gins, with right-hand mercies, from everlasting to everlasting; all causes of, and conducing to his eternal well being: Poor man, poor in spirit, rich in faith! He never thought himself worthy to enjoy the light of the Sun in the firmament: but that the LORD the Creator thereof should lift-up the light of His countenance upon His servant! That, the dayspring from on high, should visit him! That the Son of Righteousness should arise unto him with healing in His wings. This! how admirable, how unspeakable a— mercy is this 
* See Thank-offring, ch. 3. You may commend this man, says Luther, for he is an humble man, a child may lead him: his servant may reprove him: Christ dwells and walks in him; the man is and does nothing: And if he be an humble-man, he is a thankfullman even for the lest mercy and greatest affliction; In all things he gives thanks, Luther. ! I can tell you not more of this, his own words are swallowed-up here with admiration, as Jobs were with grief: Here comein his Selahs, his Mictams, his Hallelujahs, as we read before, and shall read hereafter. All lefthand mercies (under that general he comprehends all deliverances, all mercies to the Churches, (he is much taken with them, much enlarged in his praise to God for Jerusalem, her prosperity! he prefers it before his chief joy;) very thankful also for mercies to himself, to all his round about him, and about his table, relating to their warfare here.) All mercies! he is lost and confounded in particulars here, yet by his will he would not forget one: he writes upon all mercies concerning his soul, his body; day-mercies, night-mercies, all within him, all without him, all bestowed upon his brothers and sisters, upon himself and his about him, he writes upon all, Asked of GOD; the gift of GOD; all is a kind of salvation; upon all those gates, whereat evil went-out, or mercy came-in, he writes, The salvation of the LORD: upon all those outlets and in-lets he writes PRAISE, which attends prayer evermore; He writes Praise also upon his conversation, even holiness unto the LORD, he lives unto His praise, Who has given all to him, has done all for him, wrought all in him, for all is from the LORD the God of his salvations; to whom he ascribeth all honour, and glory, and praise, from everlasting unto everlasting, for ever and ever, Amen and Amen.    

CHAP. III. The Word Preached is mighty to Posture a Kingdom.  
The propog●t●ng thereof has been and is the endeavour of all good Patriots in all age's of the world. What this Land was before the 〈◊〉 of this Sun gl●mmeted forth unto the people t●ere. What th● People we●t when covered over with the darkness o● P●pe●y. Wh●t the dark places of the earth are now. How this engageth the 〈◊〉 to promote th● Gospel with all their might; how mighty through God, yet l●ss● expectation of Peace from the world now, than ever; The Reasons why it ●ust be so: Assured Re●ce is from H●●ven, Christ's Legacy to His, in Me ●eace.  
THus victoriously have the Worthies of the Lord marched-on hitherto, not in their own strength, nor ascribing any thing to their own arm: but to the right-hand of the Lord, He has done valiantly; They brought Him down to their side; interessed Him in the Cause; lifted up their hearts and hands to Him; so they wrestled, even with strong wrestlings, and so they are prevailers, All the people of God, that little little flock, all the world over, striving with them also in their prayers. But so they could not have done, if they had not believed; and believe they could not without a word; and a word they could not have, in an ordinary way, without a Preacher: No blessing without prayer; no prayer without faith; no faith without a word, a word of promise, wherein Thou hast made me to hope, says David. This consideration and some others, which I may hint at presently, made the Worthies of the Lord very serious, and most actively-busie, as were all the Nobles and truly honoured before them, to send-forth able and faithful Ministers (Indeed the Messengers of the Churches, and the 
1 C●to. 17. 7. King's C●●on. p. 1●.  glory of Christ) To teach in all the Towns and Cities of Judah, That is the way to posture a Kingdom fully and indeed; the way the Nobles ever took, and ever succeeded-in, upward to this day. That we may raise this mercy to the height, give men their honour, and God the glory; let us make a stand here, and turn back our thoughts very fare, to the people of this Land, before the dayspring from on-high did visit them, I mean, before some ray of Heavenly light did glimmer-forth unto them. Let us consider this in the first place.  
1. What manner of people were they in those days? surely, as Agur said of himself, when he knew himself, and had some knowledge of the Holy one: These were more brutish than any 
Prov. 30 2.  man: they had not the understanding of men: and so brutish they were truly and indeed, because they knew not themselves so to be, nor had they any knowledge to be holy: That we may ru●ne-over this as quickly, as our thoughts use to do, this i'll only say; These people were than as the poor Indians are now, as Idolatrous as these: These worship the Devil now, so did the people in England than. He speak nothing of their other worship which they gave to the Host of Heaven, nor of their Arch-flamens and Flamines, 
●ilamines, I lid. , their Archpriests and Priests; the very same with ours, not so much heathenish, but altogether as unchristian, whom we called Arch-Bishops and Bishops: I'll pass over all this, that our thoughts may returne-upward again, until we come to, As it is at this day. Considerwe than in the next place, That  
2. When it pleased God to break through that thick-cloud of Atheism, by the preaching of Joseph, (for so we have it by tradition 
* That joseph of Arimathea, preached the Gospel first to this Island. ) the cloud quickly thickened again, and grew more dark all over the Heaven, by the spreading of Popery: And than the people were worse than before, abominable Idolaters; They sacrificed to Devils before, so they did than; but than they did more than ever they did before; They worshipped the Sun before, for that was most glorious in their eyes: But afterwards they worshipped the works of their own hands; and that was a more brutish worship; They made gods with their own hands, as easily as they could carve wood and stone: And than they fell down before the gods, which they had made. And observable it is, how monstrously cruel they were at that time; They devoured one another as bread; they cut one another's throat●s, as ordinarily, as they drank Ale: And to save their throats one friend was a pledge to the other, while he was drinking; whence our word so ordinarily used ever since, He pl●dge you. Who ever saw Idolaters that were not cruel; Th●y that could make gods, could make no conscience of marring the Image of GOD. And thus they have continued to make gods upward to this day: for that Art, whereto nature is very apt, is quickly learned; and once learned, nature never unlearnes it again. Now in our return upward to this day, let us consider how brutish these god-makers were in those days, how like to the gods they made.  
3. And we will reflect not farther back, than to the beginning of Elizabeth's Reign, that excellent Queen, of the sweetest memory. What a brutish people than! They that made gods, made no conscience of unmaking men, of destroying themselves made in the Image of God; To tell you one of their mad and brutish pranks: In our Northern parts, where the people always were, and now are, very expert to make gods, and can serve them as well, this their manner was, To hung up a glove in their Church, in way of a challenge, where meeting upon our sol●mne day, they made that place like our Paris-garden, where the men are more brutish now, than are the beasts there. Thus brutish they were in those days.  
And now we will come-up to, As it is at this day, and inquire, how it is now: Who are they, that have deserted the Parliament, all the faithful in all three Kingdoms, and assisted a war against them, as at this day? Who are they, that are now fighters against God; the right hands of the times; eldest sons to that Prince, that rules in darkness? Who are those vipers, that eat through their mother's womb to make their escape; Who are those but such who lived in darkness, and hated the light? Who made the lowest and basest of things (their lusts) their gods; and put from them the Holy one, would have none of Him. True it is, these mighty Nimerods', Marquesses, and Earls, and Lords, whom their horrible— butcheries, and Turkish cruelties have rendered men of Name now, but shall tender them a curse to after generations, All these were borne and lived in days of light: But they put it from them, they cared not to know the Lord; they never heard, or not cared to hear any other, but Court-Sermons, which courted them for the service of their King, never taught them how to serve the LORD of lords, and God of gods. The Sermonists there (I cannot call them Preachers) the best of them, except one, (a prime one once, the last now in esteem) were but English Senecaes' at the best, they had no more savour of Divinity 
* 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, Basil, Ep. ●●. They make such a compound of Divinity, with art and wit, as he of his Roses with spices, that they mar. ●●● the savour of it quite. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, 〈◊〉. de var. Hist. l. 4. ●. 39 , of Christ, and His Gospel, than those Epistles have. And for the Chaplains there in Court, and in their Lords houses, their Sermons there were not half so good as Senecaes' Epistles; These contain excellent humanity and morality, and good Divinity too, (if Divinity can be there, where the Name of Christ is not:) but these Court-Sermons had not that in them, which we call humanity: and for divinity, there was no more savour of it there, than there is in the white of an Egg: No marvel now that men, who thrust away the light, do walk now as men in the dark, and are yet more cruel and bloody than their forefathers were. For the people now generally all over the Land, these are as brutish as their Lords and Leaders are, and for the same reason, for their guides and Pastors are so brutish. From these premises, which we doubt not, but were throughly considered on by the truly Noble and highly Honoured now in Parliament, we must conclude, First,  
1. That the dark places of the earth are now as they ever have been, full of cruelty.  
2. That there are a people in the City, and Country (not to speak of Wales) who live in as palpable darkness, under as thick a cloud of Popery, as they did a thousand years ago 
* I know some Parishes in the very heart and centre of the Land, where neither the children now, nor their Fathers, ever ● heard the Gospel preached: ; nay their darkness now is more palpable, and the shadow of death more gross, and thick now, in these days, than in days of old, for this reason; Because some places in the City and Countries, are as Goshen was, which make the other places more dark: for a spiritual light, as does a natural, but flashing only in the face, and not abiding, does but darken the eye of the mind the more, as a natural light does the eye of the body. Moore might be added here, but I pass on, and conclude.  
3. That the Archbishops and Bishops took the readiest way that could be taken, to bring an Egyptian darkness all over the Land: For 1. They thrust the Ministers of God, (excellent men, 
I never think of that Bith●nian, but I think of our Bishops and their Curates, Lact. l. 5. 1, 2, 9, chapped.  and precious) out of God's house, and their own: and thrust the vile men into their places, such, whom Job would not have admitted to sit with the dogs of his flock. 2. They taught the people by their own example; I say, by their own example, to make gods, and than to worship before them: and that was the only way to make a people, as now they are, as brutish as stocks: and as fierce as Lions. I say nothing here how they did blaspheme the Lord and his day; I conclude.  
4. That there is not a man, I say not a man, that has hearty joined himself to the King's Army, who has not received the mark of the beast either openly in his forehead, or secretly in his hand; or he has damnation written in his forehead: not a man in the King's Army, willingly there, and on that side, who is not a Papist, or, which is as bad, an Atheist (that is) bruitishly ignorant, or notoriously profane: So I have listed that Legion, that black Regiment, the Devil's guard, under two general heads, Papists and Atheists all: And when the Nobles there shall go about to recruit their Army, as sure as the Devil is in Hell, and his angels, his ministering servants are on earth; so sure it is, they shall not found a man, hearty to their service, not one man in all the Christian world, who is not one of these two; one that knows nothing, as he aught to know, he is a Papist; or one that is brutish in knowledge, and more brutish in practice, he is an Atheist.  
5. That should the Nobles and Worthies have parleyed, as many years as they have weeks, upon a way how to remedy all this, how to make a firm Peace, and establish Truth in the Land, that these may meet and kiss each other, they could not have thought of a shorter, more compendious, and more ready way, than that they have taken. And so now I must return back again, that I may traverse the way the Worthies of the LORD have taken from the first day they sat in Parliament upward to this day: The simplest reader shall than more clearly understand, the changes and tides of things as they are at this day: and be able more than by conjecture to tell what shall be in after-days. The way they took. First,  
1. And it must be always first in all orderly proceed, They proclaimed a fast, that they and we might afflict ourselves before 
Ezra 8. ●1.  our GOD, to seek of him a right way: That must be I say again, always first, for we all know, and are assured, That the hand of our God is upon all them for good, that seek Him: but His power, and His wrath is against all them, that forsake him. Of this before. 
ver. 22.   
2. They called-in the exiles; opened the prison doors, brought forth the precious, thrust the vile into those places; they opened the Ministers mouths; and than, as matters did require, they entered into a Protestation, they avouched God to be their God; to 
May 5, 1641.  serve Him after His manner; and to stand-fast in the liberty wherein God and Man, the law of God, of Nature, of the Kingdom, of Nations had made them free: We must inquire in passage, how did this take? And answer: That there were very many, Archbishops both, and Bishops all; Princes and Nobles; Pastors and people, who refused. Ah Lord! Refused to take God for their God Refused to maintain the Diadem and Crown of three Kingdoms! Refused to stand-fast in the liberty wherein God and man had set them! Ah Lord! Indeed it is to be pitied, but not to be wondered at, if we consider the places where these people live; The Teaching they had there; and the influence that teaching had into the hearts and lives of men all over the land. I pray you let us consider, The place first, where lived they?  
1. Under the droppings or near about Cathedrals. It is as barbarous a word as the people are who live there: yet we now know what the Cathedrals are, The Bishops Churches, and the Devils Chapels: There the Bishop had his seat, and Satan has his throne.  
2. What teaching had they there, under those droppings, or near there abouts? what teaching there? None at all, no catechising, no instruction there: A Sermon perhaps there was, such as it was, which nourished no more than nuts do, which fill with wind: or 
Clem. Alex.  than Stockfish does, which, Erasmus says, nourisheth no more than does a stone. And for the places further of whereinto their Prebends there had an influence, The people were not taught at all; not that there was any Spirit good or bad, or that the people had any other souls, than what the beasts have. True it is, and not to belly the Devil, The Doctor told the people, when he came to receive his Easter book, and gather in his Tithes, That there is a God, and they must serve Him; A Devil too, and they must fly from him, and hate his works: for a heaven there is, and everlasting Joys there; And hell there is, and eternal pains there. But the people believed none of all this. That was their fault, you will say. Indeed it was. But the Doctor was foully to blame: Because, what he taught with the mouth once or twice a year, he untaught with his hands every day: for not sooner preached he the preaching, his own heart suggested to him, but away from the Church to the Alehouse, where he would drink like a swine; or if not given to that sin, (as all are not) yet to another as bad; Besides all this, he would earth himself in the earth; hunt after honours, ride after preferments furiously, as Balaam did; drown himself in the world, as if he knew no other God, as certainly he does not. And this spoiled all his Philosophy to the people; he, that told them there is a God, and than turned his back upon Him, could they believe him? He that said, there is an heaven, where the Righteous are eternally happy; and an hell, where the wicked are eternally, miserable, and yet lived like the unjust judge, that feared not God, nor regarded man; as one, that had a soul for no other purpose than a swine has (pro sale) to keep his body fresh, and sweet; could the people Trust him? Ah Lord! should I tell the Reader in the last place,  
3. What an influence these Cathedrals had, and the Priests there into the lives and manners of all round about; If I should tell how 
As Bunbury a vice person in Reading.  brutish Priests and people are in the Cities and countries round about, men without God in the world, he would not wonder, that there are so many found every where fighters against God: what can be expected from a brutish people, but to walk brutishly? What wonder is it to see men contend against God, whom they know not? To fight against the Gospel, the glory whereof they never saw, nor any more light, but what slashing in their face, blinded them the more? what wonder is it to see Pastors and people more brutish and more cruel than in ancient days, when they are more superstitious now than they were than? We are more cunning god-makers now than were our forefathers 16. hundred years ago, they were but bunglers to us: but we more unexcusable (the time of that ignorance God (over-looked) winked 
Act. 17. ●o. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉.  at): And, as is said of a cunning Gamester, The more cunning he is, the more knave he is: so, the more cunning we are, the more abominable we are, but very exact we are at that craft now, this god-making, we exceed all our fathers; for our skill, which is natural, we have confirmed by imitation: and we thank our Priests we are more brutish than the Flamines were of old, we can make many breaden gods, and wooden gods, and stone gods: and a book a god, yet not Gods Book neither, we can do more as naturally as the fire can burn, for we can make every lust a god. How can we now avouch God for our God? But you will ask me by the way.  
How do men and women make gods? The prime and chief Idolaters in all the kingdom haply never made a god with their hands?  
Very likely, but as the cunning Artificer makes gods with his hands: so there are as cunning as he, who can make gods without hands: for by bowing before this or that, be it bread, flesh, or fish; stock or stone, we make it a god, as well as we can, such an one as it is. The Lord plagued the people because they made a calf which 
Exod. 32. ●5.  Aaron made. Aaron made it, and the people made it; he made it a calf, and the people made it a god by doing such homage and service unto it, as should be done to God only. What calves were they? even such as we are, while we serve dumb Idols, the works of our own hands, or the works of our own hearts. I pray you mark that, they are Idols setup there, the Devil, the world, and the flesh: while we give such a service to them, as is due only to God, we make these our gods: We make the world a god, and the Devil a god, and pleasure a god, and the belly a god, by serving the creature more than we serve the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. And now that we are such cunning workmen at making 
Rom. 1. 25.  of gods, All the Christian world may see in what a posture we stood to a Protestation, to take God for our God; To avouch Him. But yet neither the work nor the workers did cease, The faithful all the land over, who had avouched God for their God; were assured, That God would avouch them, and them only for His people: so they followed-on to seek the Lord, in the way where He is always found: They knew they were in the way toward a glorious peace, in the pursuit of Truth: and were more confirmed in it, Because the Princes of the earth, and the heathen people there set themselves against that Peace: This made them gird-up their loins like men, and walk on, filled with the Spirit. They are not meet to do Gods work, who say there is a Lion or she Bear in the way; Who cannot master difficulties, and make use of them for encouragements; To leap over walls, and skip over mountains; In God's strength they can do all this: And so, two years after, the Worthies entered into covenant with their God; and fairly proposed it to the people; and they all took it, all that were freemen, not under the Anti-christian yoke, and had any knowledge of GOD, or how to serve Him: all these took it. Only Atheists, and Papists, (god-makers) they refused (for all these had, with their Pastors and people, made a covenant with sin, death, and hell, and they would stand to that): and to maintain their standing, their rage worked higher, if higher could be; The Adversary stormed the more, the more the Covenant of GOD pressed toward them, and the equity there-of flashed in their faces, and cleared to their eyes, how abominable, and bloody their devices were, even to destroy a mother City in Israel. But all this rage (for now hell was moved; Nay, all this while, from the first day, that the Protestation was entredinto, ever since, all the gates there were set-wide-open, but all) did serve the more to confirm and establish the servants of the Lord in their way comming-up to the LORD To join themselves to Him, in a Covenant never to be forgotten: And up they are brought three Kingdoms together, God speaking to them with a strong-Hand, and they are in a fast-Covenant with their God. (This will be the subject of the sixth Chapter.) Here only we must observe with all observation, how the Covenant takes, What letteth still, and will let till it be removed? Treacherous Prophets, and vile Priests, these must be removed; Precious and faithful, such must be put into those places, as forerunners to prepare the way of the LORD, and a people for Himself. Alas! It cannot be expected, that we, a poor dark people, should (understanding what we do) enter into Covenant to take God for our God, His Christ for our Lord, and King; His Spirit to be ruled by Him, and to walk after Him. Indeed we understand none of these things: I affirm, and can confirm it in the name of all the brutish Pastors and People all over the land, That we have not more saving knowledge of those matters, God, and Christ, and His Spirit, than the seat has whereon we sit; or than Heyly●s deaf-stone, 
a Heyly. Geog. p. 503.  or than Heylyn himself; nor possible we should; We hear our Pastor, (in name), a brutish man indeed, more brutish than ourselves (and that is more brutish than the Ox and Horse we drive) say prayers, as our summer-bird sings, still the same: he is dead, and his prayers dead; In an extraordinary way, whence should we have life? Than he reads the holy word of God; but with such unwashed hands, and unclean lips, That he makes it, as doth our sin, and unpreparedness, unclean to us also. Indeed my spirit is stirred now: I see plainly for want of knowledge we perish all. Ye Worthies of the Lord, lift-up yourselves upon the wing now, your hearts, and your Prayers, comeon, make speed to help us, carried-on as upon Eagles' wings, swiftly, strongly: deliver us, we pray you, from Treacherous Prophets, vile Priests, and brutish Pastors, our souls are wearied because of these murderers 
a Jer. 4. 31. , The LORD deliver us. Till we have Pastors after Gods own heart, we cannot avouch God for our God: we cannot enter covenant with Him: we shall do, as we have done, break all your bands, and cast from us your cords, as brutish Pastors, and people, Children of Belial, use to do. For God's sake hasten for our help, flying as upon Eagles' wings, and deliver us from these unreasonable men. Nay, though we may be so brutishly ignorant, That all our talk is of Oxen, we ask not after such a mercy for we understand it not: yet, Ask ye after 
Isai. 65. 1. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 patefact us sum vel obviam expositus. I met them who would have shunned me. 2. Chro. 30. 22. Act. 8. 30.  us, ye have your LORD GOD for an example, He manifested Himself to them, who never Asked after Him, (nor ever would); He was found of them, that sought Him not. Ye will consider this, and more which your wisdoms can better suggest, To hasten your work and speed our deliverance, by sending forth unto us those, that can teach us the GOOD KNOWLEDGE of The LORD: We might truly say, as the Eunuch did, (had we such a sense of our own ignorance) we cannot understand what we hear or read, except some man should guide us: had we a guide, an interpreter, one, that were able to expound and show us by his life and doctrine the meaning of what is read (which was the old and 
Nehem. 8. ●. and gave the sense.  good manner never to be forgotten) possible we might go from our seats in our meeting places, rejoicing, as others have done, because they had understood the words, that were declared unto 
ver. 12.  them; Though we are very forgetful, and as ignorant (the more need of a guide) though, I say, we are so, yet we forget not, what the Disciples said; our hearts did burn within us while He (the Lord 
Luke 24. 32.  Christ) opened to us the Scriptures: Than they felt that heat, and fervency of spirit, when the Scriptures were opened; the sense thereof given, than heat (An Almighty Hand working therewith) comes-into the heart; Than the spirits of men are quickened; Than the stubborn will is subdued; Than the man is pliable; than the heart yields, is flexible, ready bent, and girt, to obey in all things. Now, Speak, LORD, Thy servant heareth: now, command, Lord, Thy servant obeyeth; Nothing now too much to do, nothing now too hard to suffer; The will is subdued, it is gained; the man is taught now: Now offer him the Covenant, bid him lift-up his hand to it, and subscribe his name; yes, that he will, with all his heart, he will do it with rejoicing. We shall hear of that anon, we are but making way to it now; The only ready way, which the Worthies of the Lord (the Lord instructing them to discretion) always, and now have taken, To appoint teaching ministers for every congregation; To thrust-out the vile thence; To put in the precious there; such as may come unto us in the fullness of the blessing of the Gospel of Christ 
a Rom. 15. 29. ; such as can, by the good hand of God with them, open our eyes, turn us from darkness to light, (o how mighty, and as excellent is the work of a minister,) and from the power of Satan unto God: such ministers the Worthies endeavour now, 
Act. 26. 18.  with all their might, to sand forth, and appoint through all the land: for they would have all the people now to join and knit themselves all together as one man, to contend for God, for Religion, for the faith, against the mighty Adversaries to God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, All the Devils in Hell, and his Angels on earth, Papists and Atheists there. And this is the only way, That the Word of God be published, and that great may be the company of Preachers to publish the same. We will observe what we read now, for it will suffice touching this matter. And I saw another Angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach 
Rev. 14. 6.  unto them, that devil on the earth, etc. We must set a Mark now on that which follows, And there followed another Angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, That great City is most certainly fallen: When the everlasting Gospel goes forth, when that is preached to them, who devil upon the earth, than it is fallen, it is fallen: All falls before it, or vanisheth as Darkness before the light; superstition is fallen, it is fallen, it is certainly fallen; Heresy is fallen, is fallen, is certainly fallen; profaneness is fallen, is fallen, all this is certainly fallen. All this was setup and maintained in the dark; all this will fall or vanish in the light before the sunshine of the Gospel; The Adversary took advantage of the night, and joined shoulder to shoulder, To thrust out the faithful, and to thrust into their Rooms pastors as brutish as themselves; and than what edification could be expected but of Altars and Images and crucifixes, and such like services as brutish as these Stocks; In the Darkness Altars were raised, were raised, were certainly raised: The Adversary and enemy took the Advantage of the Night when men slept. Much might be said touching the methods, wiles and depths of Satan this way, how his ministers sought all ways, turned every stone, whereby to stint prayer, To stop the mouths of the faithful, to Thrust them out, to block up the way and passage against the Gospel, that it might not pass on with the increase of God. Blessed be God That the children of the Light and Resurrection are as wise now (almost) as were the children of darkness, and the world: They have (what they can) removed that which hath l●tted, made a mountain a plain, so as the Gospel is like to have a free passage. And than we know what follows, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great City, Mother of witchcrafts, and profanations, is certainly fallen: And in that fall Atheism, superstition, heresies, profaneness fall also; Now that the Word of God has a free passage; now that faithful ministers are sent forth to prepare the way of the Lord, to make His path straight; now Babylon is fallen, is fallen, is certainly fallen. Doubtless The Lord has thoughts of peace towards His kingdoms, I do make no doubt of it, They do not question it neither who are wiser than I, seeingmen, and have wisely considered the out-going of the Lord towards His poor ones. This I can observe, I thank God, and so does every man, who is not stark blind, that in the Cathedrals, those Dens of Robbers; (where the vile Priests and treacherous persons lay slumbering, and sleeping, (though they had blood for their pillows,) and where they thought to lie snorting in their nests for ever: In the Cathedrals where the singing-men, who divided their times betwixt the Alehouse and the Chapel, giving three hours unto that cursed place, and one unto this; where they pray-singing, and sing-praying; In these places, Churches, and Chapels, as we call them, The people are taught now out of the Word of God, what God is, and how God must be served; what prayer is, not an howling; what faith is, not a conceit in the brain, which has no bottom, but the mighty work of God there, etc. In those places, where was barrenness barrenness, the footsteps of the Lord drop fatness now upon His people there, for there the good Word of God is opened, is expounded, so as we, by the good hand of God with us, understand what we hear, and go away rejoicing, our hearts burning within us. Verily, the Lord will do great things for His land. Will! said I? He has done great things and glorious already, and yet but pawns and pledges of greater mercies; The Angels, having the everlasting Gospel, are gone forth to preach, and wherever they come, they say with a loud voice, Fear God and give glory to Him; For certainly we shall hear this voice next; Babylon is fallen is fallen, that great City, 
Rev. 14. 7.  mother of whoredoms, that has made the Kings of the earth drunk with the wine of her fornication is certainly fallen. Nay we have heard this voice, it is fallen, it is fallen, more than once already: And this voice also, Come out of her my people that ye 
Rev. 18. 4.  be not partakers of her sins, and receive of her plagues; The compliment whereof is, A drinking of the wine of the wrath of God, poured out, without mixture into the cup of His indignation: Blessed be GOD, Who has shown such a favour to His people, 
Rev 14. 10, 11.  given them Pastors after His own heart, who can preach the word, the Lord Christ unto His people; can open the treasury of Grace, and knowing the terrors of the Lord, can persuade men: Blessed be God for this unspeakable gift, Amen. What could the Lord have done more for His Land? He will give His people an heart to the prizes in their hands, and that is all. I cannot leave this point yet. Truly a wonderful thing is done in our days; In the eveningtide it shall be light; When we thought it would be the darkest time, with us; behold how lightsome! We, poor ones, thought verily, there would be no vision. Behold stand still and wonder, and give glory unto God, lights are setup in many, and are setting-up in all Congregations: It follows; The Northern Army, those locusts and caterpillars are fallen, are fallen, are certainly fallen. The mother of whoredoms shall be slain now with the breath of God's mouth: Darkness must vanish, for light is come; the everlasting Gospel is preached. I remember Luther's words a new;  
I will not buffet darkness, to beaten it away, (said he;) I will bring-in a light, and the darkness is gone: I will not so eagerly contend with the Pope, for the throwing down his Images; I will pluck them out of the heart, for I will labour to exalt the LORD CHRIST there in my ministry, and than the Idol falls. This puts me in mind of another grave speech; A grave Divine was spoken unto thus, or to this purpose; I pray you (Sr) chide that man for wearing long hair, so like a Russian. I will not, said the good old man 
a They say it was Mr Dod the oldest Minister in England. , be eager with the youth, touching that matter, but I will teach him to know himself, I'll show him the judgement of God upon long hair, (It was Absoloms' halter 
b 2 Sam. 18. 9 c 1 Cor. 11. 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, Chrysost. I●●d. Hom. 26. !) I will expound unto him, the words of the Apostle ᶜ, whereunto he must needs see how contrary he walks. I'll seek to hid pride from his eyes, and to weed it out of his heart, and if I can do so, I need not bid him cut his hair that we may see his forehead, that he may appear like a man and not like a fury: This is the point which carrieth all before it, if it be carried home; preach Christ into the heart, and than the Idol goes-out, and every thing, that exalts its self against the LORD CHRIST will be thrown down, for Christ will be Lord where He comes. I may conclude now, that myself and others as myself, cannot contribute to the battles of the Lord; yet let us contribute to this work, The setting-up a faithful Ministry in the Countries, where Satan has his throne, keeps his interest, and holds his possession by tenure of ignorance: Let us pray to the Lord, Who works and none hinders, that the Lord would pity the Countries which are under the shadow of death; that He would sand forth Angels, unto those dead folks, to preach unto them, that devil on the earth, and to every Nation and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God and give glory to Him, and so forth as we have read. Certainly wherever this voice is heard, there will be a marvelous change; the Lords name blasphemed there before, will be hallowed, reverenced, sanctified now in some suitableness and proportion to so great a Majesty; the Idol before the eyes, and in the heart, maintained before, and argued for, will be cast-out now; Gods house shall be, as it is called, an house of prayer; they shall worship him there in truth, and as He has commanded; the good word of God, and the dispensers of it, despised before, will be honoured now: The Lord's day, profaned there before, will be duly observed now, And the Covenant rejected before, will be taken now, and stood unto. Doubtless the next news we shall hear is, That Idols, and Idoll-men, and Idol services are fallen, are fallen; for the Kingdom of the Lord Christ is setup, is setup; the everlasting Gospel is preached; Angels are sent-out, are sent-out upon that message: Certainly that mother of witchcrafts must be made manifest now, as on the day she was borne, her shameful nakedness must appear; and than she shall be cut in sunder, Amen. And than it shall be with the Church as when that wicked woman was slain, The people of the Land shall rejoice, and the City of God shall be 
2 Chro. 23. 21.  quiet: than silence in Heaven, when this wicked woman, so gorgeously apparelled (yet nothing but earth about her) shall be 
Rev. 17. 4.  slain. But O that we did not expect peace before that time, a peace of the world's giving: O that we were not too hasty, and quite mistaken in our pursuit after this so fundamental, so comprehensive, such a mother blessing Peace: O that we could wait God's time with patience, and full assurance, that they, who wait for Him shall found Him, and themselves no loser's at the last. Every thing is good in its season; so is peace the better, the longer expected; and the more wholesome, and excellent, if not, as some fruits are, ripened before its time. A mercy given too soon, when we would have it, proves a judgement after ward. A calm is pleasantest after a storm: so is peace, ushered-in with war, as this peace must be: For I am mistaken quite in the book of God, and in our book of Days, Chronicles and Histories of the Church, if a sore brunt and great fight of afflictions be not yet behind: That wicked woman, the Jezabell of these last days, was long in rising, by steps and degrees to her height and zenith of her glory: She is now fallen from thence, and she falls apace, yet, by steps and degrees, not yet as a millstone: She has received a blow, an astonishing blow on her forehead, and yet the blow, hitting not so right, she has broken lose, as we know an Ox has done, and is mad with rage: the next blow will strike her at once down to the ground, 
Book of Martyrs.  she shall not need a second blow; but like a beast, whose throat is cut, she will struggle for life. All this assures us, we must expect no peace yet, unless such a peace, which the men of the world give, and that the sons and daughters of God abominate, even all offers and assays that way. They expect war now and gird-up their loins in expectation of an hard-brunt, for thus they reason, first,  
1. From ordinary observation of our ways, I say ours, a poor ignorant brutish people, they observe with what eagerness of spirit, and zeal according to our ignorance, we have contended for our Service-booke, and how we pout, and whine, and scratch, and by't too, while we have no other weapon, because our Service-booke is cast-out: What is become of our Religion, say we, how shall we pray now? how shall we serve God now? and thus we are in a rage, stark mad upon our Idol, our Mass-book, persuaded as verily that a Divinity is in that book, as a people were That the Moon was in the Ass' belly 
* L. Viu. Com. in Aug. de Civit. Dei. 10. cap. 16. : I think to tell you-out this story hereafter; In the mean time, they that are wise in heart do observe this, for thus they reason again;  
2. If we are so mad now, because that brutish service, which has made us so brutish, is cast-out of the Church; how mad will we be think they, when we ourselves must be cast-out; when we must be excommunicated, thrust away from partaking of holy bread, because of our uncleanness; when we must be delivered-up to the Devil; (for the destruction of our flesh) when this must be (certainly the time is at hand when it must be) how mad will we be than, think the wise in heart; how will we fret, and fume, and rage, and storm than? Certainly, he that considers this, though he considereth no more, and though he hears of peace, will yet harken to the counsel; he that hath no sword, let him cell his 
Luk. 22. 36.  garment, and buy one.  
A. Not need he should be at that cost, for now the prophecy is fulfilled, Out of Zion is gone forth the Law, and the word of the 
Isa. 2. 2.  Lord from Jerusalem: Angels are gone forth with the everlasting Gospel; It follows, and the people shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; Nation 
Ezra 2. 4.  shall not lift-up sword against Nation; neither shall they learn war any more; A blessed peace now, now peace, peace, a perfect peace, inward and outward, Amen.  
B. I could join with you hearty, but stay a little, nay, for aught we know, we may stay a great while. This promise was made to the Church almost three thousand years ago, it is not fulfilled yet; the Church waits the accomplishment of it now, for it shall come to pass in the last days. These days are now: But the last days contain a large length, and extent of time, they have been running-out these sixteen hundred years, and whether this prophecy shall be fulfilled in our days, or not, wise men cannot tell, some of them think not; This is my first Answer. 2. If by Peace, you understand an inward peace, that is peace indeed, than we grant; That, unto whomsoever the word of Christ comes with power, it brings this peace along with it, at last: I say, at last, for at its first coming to the heart, it finds all the opposition, that the heart can make against it; And stirs and tumults there will be within this little kingdom, within the man's breast: for there are Idols there, which must be cast-out; and he that is called a strong man, must be overcome, and his goods spoiled; which shall be at the last. At first entrance, there will be an hot contention, stirs and tumults, as was said, even these within that little kingdom, the man's own breast. And if so in that little kingdom, we need not prophesy (for we see it fulfilled before our eyes,) what stirs, tumults, oppositions, persecutions must be expected now, through all the Lords Kingdoms, now that the Angels are gone forth with the everlasting Gospel: Now that the Mountain of the LORDS house must be established in the top of the mountains, and must be exalted above the hills; now expect fire and sword, all the opposition, that Hell gates, the Devil and his angels by force and fraud can make against these Angels, who are carrying forth the everlasting Gospel; and saying with a loud voice, fear God, etc. Now the Nations are angry, the wicked gnaw their tongues; we must expect from these Nations, these Heathen, brutish people, as from an angry people, men mad upon their Idols, and with rage, nothing but fire and sword; Therefore must all, that love the Gospel, the Nation, and their own lives, all these must learn war now; they must beaten their plowshares into swords, and their pruning-hookes into spears; for never was it known, if you ask from one end of the Heaven to the other, 
You never read of an unbloody Reformation, when there was such a deformation all over the Church and State.  That the Angels liftedup their voice, saying, fear God, etc. and the angry Nations did not lift-up the sword at the same time against those Angels: That the Angels preached the Gospel of Peace, and the Heathen people, yea and men civilised, professing the truth, but denying the power, did not learn to war against it at that very time. Will these Angels expect better welcome from the world than their Master had, the Angel of the Covenant? Not sooner opened He His mouth to preach, but the people opened their mouth against Him, and reached forth their hand to cast Him down headlong from the edge of the hill: He would teach them, they would persecute Him, with the tongue and hand both. His Apostles, (men sent forth to preach,) fared no better, not one of them: But their brutish dealing with Paul is most notorious, we never read or saw the like until this very day, I'll but point to it. It must be so, and so it must be expected; These Angels, like Paul 
Acts 19  and the other Angels, will turn the world upside down, and the little world we call man there, all upside down; they will tell men as plainly as Paul did, That those are not gods which are made with hands; They will bid men fear God, worship Him, that made Heaven and earth, and the sea; this is to turn the world and men therein upside down, for it is to turn the heart Heaven-ward whereto it stood cross ever since it had a being. We cannot think now, that such turn upside down, can be without confused noise; for in this turning, Heaven & earth are brought together. We expect now the downfall of antichrist, he must fall, he must fall down, down like a millstone into the great waters, how great will that fall be! There will be a great noise sure, for all the shoulders in earth and in Hell, are conjoined to support and holdup Babylon: When all these shoulders shall crack and its pillars be broken to pieces like earthen vessels; there will be a great noise sure! We understand by reading, that the prophecy is fulfilling now, when the mountain of the LORDS house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and exalted above the hills; Now the Devil and his angels, the mountains and the hills, the Kings and Rulers on the earth will bend all their force to hinder the accomplishment of this prophecy, which does assure us, that these mountains and hills shall now be made plains, therefore the gates of Hell stand wide open now to oppose the exaltation of Christ's Kingdom; A mighty opposition, and a confused noise will be now, the rushing of Nations as of mighty waters will be heard now.  
A. Why now? does the preaching of the Gospel, or the Angels that preach it, cause this confused noise, sore pain, and trouble to the inhabitants of the earth?  
B. Yes that it does, by accident, as scholars say; As the Sunbeams 'cause the poison in a serpent to appear, & draws forth its malignancy; The Sun puts no poison there, but finds it there, draws it forth, and actuates the same. You may, for farther illustration, compare the malignant-Lords and Rulers of the world to a dunghill; (to that stinking place, the best men of the world have compared their own hearts, to a dunghill) The Sun puts no filthy sent there, nor are the Sunbeams impured or defiled by shining there, (nothing can defile the Sunbeams) but the Sunbeams upon the dunghill draws forth a filthy savour thence, makes it reak there: so the setting-up the Lord Christ upon His holy hill, does not put any rage, envy or malice into the hearts of His adversaries, the Princes of the earth and Rulers there; not, all this is in the heart before, as in its proper place; but now it is quickened, and actuated by the brightness of His coming, as the poison in the serpent, or as the filth in a dunghill by the heat of the Sun, and clearness of his beams. The main intendment of the Gospel, and of those, that preach it, is, to 'cause peace to the earth. But there is much bloodshed there, which the earth has drunk-in, and this must be discovered, yea and required also: There are many Idols there, those must be cast forth as abominable things, and that causeth the troubles, shake of Kingdoms, and earthquakes as at this day; And indeed the Nations must be shaken, before the Lord Christ can be the desire of the Nations. And this is the power of 
Hag. 2. 7.  the Gospel, or the Gospel preached with power, to shake the Nations terribly, to make the earth tremble. Than you will say,  
A. Give us our Idols again, crucifixes and Images, and our Idoll-Priests and their Idoll-services, as in our Cathedrals, and in the Kings and Queen's Chapels [where there were mimic 
Jer. ●4. 17.  actions, and antic gestures, not altogether so ridiculous as now they are in the Jews Synagogues: but altogether as abominable in God's sight there and here, yet give them those services again] for than it was better with us (as they said it was with them, when they offered to the Queen of Heaven.)  
B. The answer is near: The same, which Jeremiah made to those people of old; did not the Lord remember our do? our abominable services, came they not into His mind? So that the Lord could not longer bear, because of the evil of our do, and the abominations, which we have committed? So it may be said to us, therefore the sword devoureth as at this day; our abominable Idols setup before the eye, and kept-up within the heart, our abominable services unto them, have caused all this; and now that the light is come, and has discovered all this, so that the earth shall not longer cover her slain, nor hold fast her Idols, therefore is the earthquake.  
And now to shut-up this Chapter, with the best-counsell, and to follow the best example, let us do now as they do whose God is their portion and His peace their legacy. These do not stand expecting when peace will be in England: not when the King will come home to his Parliament (he must come home to himself first, and than all the Christian world shall hear of it, what a shaking there is in his breast) these tarry not for man, nor weight for the sons of men. They will do their duty, search their own Tents, thrust-out the Idols thence, that is first. They will seek to God always; And, not ignorant of the Devils wiles, nor of his malice, nor of his strength, that now he and his angels will cast about the rage of their wrath, discharge against the City of God (the butt and mark of their malice) all their granadoes, fiery darts, hailstones and coals of fire, so to storm the City of God; knowing all this, these servants of the Lord will take unto them the whole Armour of GOD, Theywill gird their loins with 
Ephes. 6.  Truth; fence their hearts with righteousness, their feet with Patience; They will put on the helmet of salvation, and shield of faith; they will take unto them the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: for the same word, which so shakes the earth now, and, against the nature of it, so disquiets the inhabitants of Babylon, because of their poisonous natures, will be the best weapon a man can take both for offence and defence: and will procure assured quiet, rest and peace at the last: I say, as aforesaid, at the last; for while the mountain of holiness (called the mountain of the Lord, because of its excellency, stability and perpetuity) is exalting in the heart, there will be stirs and tumults there, as are now in the world, for hills must be made level there also, and mountains must be plains; But when this mountain is exalted there, than there is peace, be the Nations never so unquiet: And so in the world, when the mountain of God's house is exalted above the hills and mountains, than Peace, Peace, a perfect peace, a peace of Gods making, a created peace.  
A. But there are fair offers and overtures towards peace now.  
B. See! what harkening there is still after a peace from the world; I pray you harken what the word of God says, which is this, That out of the same mouth does not proceed blessing and 
Jam 3. 12, 12.  cursing: as the same fountain does not sand forth, at the same place, sweet waters and bitter. These things aught not so to be, nay they cannot be: they cannot call for a curse upon the Land, and call for a blessing, a blessed Peace at the same time: The same hands cannot grievously oppress the people; and, at the same time, ease their consciences; These things aught not to be, nay they cannot be; these are the wiles, depths, and deceits of Satan, all to stop the Angel's way, that the everlasting Gospel may not be preached to them that devil in the earth; therefore we regard not what is parleyed on touching a peace of men's making; But by the good Hand of God with us, we will hear the Angel's voice, saying, Fear God, and give Glory to Him, and worship Him, as He has commanded, in Spirit and in Truth. And than, though the earthquake continued (as it is like to do, for the blood is not discovered yet, nor required, as it must be; nor are the idols cast forth yet,) yet the servants of the Lord shall not be greatly moved, though the Lord should forsake the earth, yet He will not forsake His people.  
A. Ai, But His People are very low.  
B. Like enough they may be lower; and yet not so low as their Head and Lord was. But He is risen, and the higher He is risen, the lower He was; and as sure as He is risen, so sure His Church shall rise, for they must be made like Him, as in sufferings, so in Glory. In the mean time, the Lord will give His servants quietness, and assured Rest in the most unsettled and unquiet times; Peace in God, and than Peace Peace, Peace in life, and Peace in Death, Peace Peace, a perfect Peace, Amen. And so we understand fully, what Peace is to be expected now from the world, now that the Gospel is preached there. But the servants of the Lord serve a good Master, and He has spoken to the hearts of His people good words and comfortable, In ME PEACE; be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. I come now to the devout soldier.  

§ III. The Word of GOD mighty to posture a man's self.  
Of high account, and precious use.  
THis man can speak great things of the Word of God; for, through God, it has wrought great things in Him, a wonderful change: he that was blind before, now sees, [As in making the world, light was the first creature: so in making a man every whit new, the first work is the setting-up a light in the understanding; that work is done] The Word, not as spoken by man, but spoken with a strong hand, has wrought-upon the will too, has made that pliable, and flexible, which was stubborn and stiff, as an Iron sinnew before, and clean cross to the good pleasure of God; it is wrought-up now, it is turned back: and it is as wonderful as was the turning back of Jord in or a Giant in his course: All is turned now, the whole man from darkness to light, from serving of Idols to serve the living God. By the good Word of God, received in truth, this man is emptied now, (in his measure) of himself, self pleasing, self seeking, that great idol of the world, which crams and fils-up the heart so brimful, that it leaves no roomth there, for God and our neighbour: This man is emptied of himself now, and filled with God. The first Table, the commands there, is this man's first and chief delight; and the second Table, the commands there, is next unto it; His inward man takes delight in the Law of God; He loves God above himself, and more than heaven; and his neighbour as himself: In a word, he is made poor in spirit, and rich in Faith: and all this is done by the Word of God, made mighty through God, blessed be his Name. And now how sweet is the Word of God unto him! sweeter than honey, or the honey comb: he esteems it more than his necessary food. The 
Job 23. 12.  word of God ●now he sees it, and understands it, he sees wondrous excellencies in it, therefore he meditates thereon day and night. It is his Oracle, he does all he does by direction therefrom, for it is 
Quid est Scriptura sacra nisi quadam epistola omnis o● Dei ad creaturam suam.  GOD'S mouth, his Lords will concerning his servant; A letter sent unto him from God Himself to signify His pleasure to the Children of men; It is of the highest account with him, for it makes him, as it did David, wiser than Saul and his politic Counsellors, these were David's enemies; wiser than the Doctors 
Psal. 119. 100  and Rabbins, they were his teachers: more prudent than men of large, and long experience, they are the ancients. The good word of God this fits him with counsel and strength, and all for war; This supplies him with every part, and parcel of his Armour, tells him how to put iton, and gird it unto him, even the whole Armour of God. The word of God with that he chargeth and charmeth every lust, he stills them, and they are quiet; and if they rise again to storm his soul, he stormeth them by the Word of God; he brings his Idols before that Glory, and so slayeth them before the Lord: It is light with him now, for the Word of God is in his heart; he lieth-downe with it, riseth-up with it; walks withit, it is his companion; O how safely does he go ● how wisely does he order his steps! The Word of God is a light unto him, that goes before, he follows; he sees now little small sins, if we might call (in comparison we may) any sins small, or little, which are committed against a great God: and makes us liable to great wrath, he sees the smallest sins, for he is light in the LORD: The Sun of Righteousness has darted-in His beams into his soul: where the sunbeams come, there moats are seen; when in the night of ignorance and superstition mountains are covered from our eyes, sins that reach as high as heaven: This man discerneth small sins, and is humbled for them, for he is light in the Lord; and he walks in the light; he has a word for every thing, and thereafter he moves: Therefore it is, that he delights so much in the good Word of God, more as was said, than in his ordinary food; he is still looking into his Father's will, for there he looks to found all concerning him; And he knows in all his heart, and in all his soul, that not one thing of all the good things, contained in that book, shall 
Jos●● 23. 14.  fail: All shall be made-out unto him, through the hands of his Mediator, in the fittest time, as it has been to all the servants of the Lord, before him, and shall be, To all after him, unto the world's end. And now it is the desire of his soul, that all may partake of the good Word of God; taste the same sweetness in it, as he does, and see the same wondrous excellencies in this law as he sees. It grieves his soul, and he weeps in secret, that there should be any places in Judah, where God is not known; where the dead bury the dead, and the blind lead the blind every day: where there are like Priests and like People, one as brutish as the other. Therefore he contends mightily, that able and fit men be sent-out to all towns and Cities, who can instruct, teach, and catechise young and old, (the old needs instruction as much as the young, more necessary to both than their daily food, to be instructed) in the good Word of God; he sets to his shoulder with all his might, that the Lord Christ may be liftedup to his Throne, that his Ordinances may be setup in their purity, not mixed, nor mated with the mixtures of men, and their fooleries: for where the good Word of God is setup, whether in a Town, or in a man only, there idols fall: By the same degrees as the Lord Christ is exalted, idols are thrown down; If he hear the good Word of God is preached, than he knows what will follow, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, the idols of his own heart, these are fallen; and the idols in the land shall be shaken-out of the land too, and than Christ shall be the desire of the nations: All these things shall be according as the Lord Christ takes to Himself power; As light breakes-out, so darkness vanisheth away: By the same degrees as the Word goes forth, and the ordinances are setup, so superstition, heresy, and profaneness falls. Therefore all his delight is in the Word of God, and in those, that are the publishers of it, and so he concludes.    

CHAP. FOUR The Sanctification of the Lords day, an excellent means to posture a Kingdom.  
The profanation of it must work contrary effects; The Bishop's Doctrine and practice m●st notorious that way; The means by which they pre●●●led with the people and made them as brutish as themselves. The Par 〈◊〉 ●●t do work now as all the Worthies of the Lord before them: but Than they w●rk● to purpose, when the Bishops are cast-out and their book● into the s●e, whereby we have been taught, yea compelled to profane the Lords d●y by a l●w; and when the ordinances and good laws touching that sole●●e mat●●r, are indeed and fully executed.  
THere is one day in the week of special observation set apart for special services, more specially for the making known this good Word of God, the declaring, interpreting, giving the sense thereof unto the people; This is the Lords day, the only Holy Day, deputed and set-apart for that Holy Holy service, to be performed in public and private: We must observe now in passage, the counter workings of the Adversary, the Devil and his Angels; These marred the beauty of this Day, more than of any day: they plotted as great a dishonour to that Day as their fathers did to the Lord of that Day, when they plaited a crown of thorns for His head: the Adversary and enemy did; what did they do? All the Christian world knows what, and did they know not more of their witchcrafts, profanations, impieties, iniquities, not more but what they did against the Lord's Day in scorn of That Day, and the Lord of that Day, even that were enough to tender them as they are, odious and abominable unto all the world to the world's end.  
A. The world knows, and must not forget their virtues; the Bishops did some good works, and they wrote a few good books, that they did;  
B. A few indeed; I have much to reply to that, and some replication is made. But I will say no more to that here but this, and this I will insist upon, They did profane the Lords Day by a law, that they did, and having said that I have said all; When the Lord complains, says Mr Calvin, [he is much quoted to justify the taking liberty on the Lord's Day: and a liberty to change that Day to any other day in the week, which every sober man knows now (for the light is clear) that all the wiles, depths, policies of Satan could never effect, and never shall, for so the Righteous God decreed, that the Jews Sabbath, a memorial of the Creation: and the Christians Sabbath of the Redemption, should be both so observed to the world's end, as that the six-dayes of the week should be kept entire not broken: But though Calvin be quoted for this negligent conceit] yet thus he says, when the LORD complains, That His sacred Majesty is contemned, His commands slighted; 
Ezek. 20. 21.  that His people have provoked Him more than any people; than the Lord says no more but this, They have polluted my Sabbaths; intimating this now, that, as the honour and height of Religion in those days consisted specially in the due observation of the Sabbath Day: so now in the observation of the Lords Day: And that the breach of that law, and the pollution of that sacred Rest was the greatest disobedience than, and so the compliment, the very filling-up of their iniquity now. But so the Bishops and their Cerastes have done, they have so polluted that Holy Day, their Lord's Day, so polluted it, as the heathen never did their days sacred to their gods: for they thrust forth those Pastors, that were not so brutish as themselves, and set up a Minstrel in his stead, and a Maypole, and gave free liberty to all that would, the Minstrel to play, and the people to dance before it. This was the readiest way that could be thought on (and that the Bishops knew very well) to cut the sinews of a nation; to weaken, to enfeeble a people, to make them fit for war, said that cursed paper, To make them fit to be devoured by war, as it is at this day.  
I will stir-in the Bishops sink a little more, for it is fit that their stink should go through the land, and come-up into the nostrils of all the inhabitants there at this time: for now God's Hand is sore uponus, it may be we will consider what Bishops we had, and what an Advousion of libettie they gave us, and how we accepted of it, as men in covenant with Hell, and in love with death; The Lord is now warring with the land, He is pouring down His wrath upon us, and we complain bitterly: O that we could understand what our Priests have done, and what we have done; They made voide the law of God, and we loved to have it so, and never considered what would be the end thereof; never thought of that. Let us think of it now, and than we shall say, The LORD is Righteous, we, our Princes, our Priests, and our people, we have all sinned a great sin, they in giving, we in taking pass-times, and sports on the Lord's Day, which were not lawful on any Day: but on the Lord's Day, how stupendious, how astonishing a profanation on that Day! They and we [but if our Priests have no consideration, how should we consider, and yet we had a natural light, which we should not have putout] we should have thought upon some other Day, for now we have done just as the strumpet did, I have Peace offerings with me this day, said she, I have paid my vows, come let us take our fill of love; Her Adultery had been heinous on any day, but this greatly aggravated her sin, that the selfsame day she had been at the sacrifice and Altar, the very same day she went to the Adulterers bed [some Popish votaries are reported to be very foul this way, rising from the harlot's sides to consecrated the Sacrament, and than from the Sacrament to the harlot's bed] our Priests have committed as great a sacrilege in this point, touching the Lord's Day; and, which aggravates the same, they have commanded the same sacrilege, that we should rise from our seats in the Church to drunkenness, to a profanation of God's Name, to riot and wantonness, for all this is in this granted liberty, as in a root of bitterness, springingup, whereby many are defiled: and we must grant it to be as sacrilegious and foul every whit, to rise from our seats at Church, to go to the Alebench, to tipple there, or to the Maypole to riot there, as it is to come from tippling and rioting unto our seats at Church, there to present ourselves before God and His People, with them to partake of the Holy holy Word of God.  
I pray you let us consider this also, that this liberty does not only profane the Day, which we, common people, are not sensible of, but it doth utterly deform the Solemnity and Beauty of the Day, even to the eye and ear of the meanest Person and of the lowest conceit; The Beauty of the world is but from that comely order, wherein every creature is placed, and thence the Beauty and comeliness of the body, Our little world, in the conformity and comely proportion of the parts with the whole: so also the Beauty and comeliness of the Day consisteth in the suitableness and congruity of services upon the Day, that they be homogenial, and consistent one with another, and holding some conformity with the holiness of Him whose Day it is. Experience tells us, That comely upper-parts and lowerparts uncomely suit not well: Because comeliness stands in ●n oneness, in a fit agreement of many parts to one: If one should take away but the hair from of one of the eyebrows, it would diminish nothing (saith August.) from the 
D● Civit. lib. 〈◊〉. cap. ●2.  bulk of the body, but very much from the beauty of the body: so exactly and curiously hath the Lord framed it, so decently, and every part in such order, giving comeliness to every part, and a fit agreement of all the parts with one. And certainly, He that hath made the body so comely, and stamped upon it such beauty, doth require that we make an honourable account of our body, as of the Temple of God: and maintain the beauty of the Day also in keeping unto such Duties as are comely, holding a congruity, a correspondency, a consistency with the holiness of the Day, and with the Lord of the Day. If we should see a body whose upper-parts were like a man, and whose lowerparts were like a beast, we could not well tell what to call it, but a monster it is in nature. And is it not as monstrous to see one part of the Day dedicated to God, in services suitable unto Him, and beseeming His Majesty! [for if we are to entreat the servants of Christ in a Godly sort 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, in a comely fitting manner, as is worthy of God, and as we may expect acceptance at His hands: much more should we so observe, and use the Lords day, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, as becometh the Lord of the 
3 Joh. 6. Qui ingreditur ad placandum non de●et egredi ad exacerb●ndum, neque enim 〈◊〉 officij est indulgentiam poscere & iracundiam provocare. Sed aliud ora hominum aliud corda agunt, & dum verbis praeterita mal● plangunt sens● futura meditantur, etc. Denique si 〈◊〉 quisp●am scire quid in templo ●ujusmodi homines cogitaverint videat quid sequatur, Salu. the gub. l. 3. p. 89, 190. Ingyrum acti, potestatem ●undi quò vellent, etc. Buxh●●mj Quest. Rom. 4● p 128.  day.] And is it not I say, as monstrous to see one part of the day dedicated to God, and another part of the day devoted to the Devil, in such sports and pass-times as are suitable to, and advantageous for the enlargement of his kingdoms; let me contribute hither, Salvians words, which are to this purpose; Now I come into God's house to partake of the ordinances there, that I may obtain grace, and be edified, or built up therein: Than I goe-out to trample upon grace, and to throw away what before I had received: Nay I comeinto God's house, to appease God's wrath, than I goe-out to provoke His anger, as if it were not so much as the anger of a man: Now I comein setting my face towards God, than I goe-out turning my back upon Him. This is to provoke the HIGH And LOFTY ONE; To make Him (in the day of our trouble and outcry,) to turn to us the back also and not the face: It is to make ourselves, and our sacrifice an abomination.  
Hitherto I have been opening the Bishop's Charter, the height, breadth and extent of it, which those Princes have indulged, extended and enlarged (for they must bear the odium of it) to us ward. They made us a free-people after the manner the Romans used to make their servants free; They turned them round, bid them look what way pleased them best, and take it: So the Bishops said to us; When you have sa●e out your hour at Divine-service, than take your own way, as is best pleasing in your own eyes; If to the Alehouse, than thither; If to the Maypole, than thither. And that we may not doubt of the validity of this Charter, it was ratified and confirmed to us by great Divines, English, French, Dutch, but all spoke English to us, in several Treatises and Sermons; The first 
a Dr White Pi●hop of Ely, now gone to his own place.  Treatise enveighed against the Sabbatarians [Those indeed, who, in the strength of God, and His command, did and now do, sanctify a rest unto the LORD.] A second 
b Dr Hey●●n a notable, , writes an History of the Sabbath; A third 
c D● D●●, a ca●e not hal●e baked; he is ●alled Dove, a silly man without an heart.  appears by his scribble to be one of the Tribe, and faction: but carried the dispute warily, shown his spirit against God and good men, and now has declared himself a very malignant.— A fourth 
d Dr 〈◊〉, a notori●es blasphemer.  preached against the Day, told us it was no Sabbath. A 
e Dr Turner a notorious Divine.  ●ift grants it to be a Sabbath, but intended only for master and servant, to riot all that day, reserving; only two hours for Divine service: and he thanks the holy Fathers of the Church for granting that liberty. A sixth 
f Dr Prideaux than; now Bishop would be. , whom I should have named first, because he was Chaire-man in Oxford, did read a Lecture upon the Sabbath.  
Now he that can read and hath examined what he reads, has seen clearly, that these Treatisers, and Sermonists have given no more honour to their LORDS DAY, than the Romans gave to their Goose's holiday, (such a day they had in their Calendar.) 
Aug. de Civit. 2. 2●.  But we common-people read nothing, nor regard what is written: We harken only to what others say, make use of their readings and observations, specially upon such a subject as this is, of liberty: And thus we have heard those say that have read our Priest's books, and observe unto us, That our Priests in the first place,  
1. Put-in this Caution: we must not call the Day, Sabbath (a sanctified rest) that was Jewish [they might call it Sunday, for that is no more heathenish than Moonday is.]  
2. They assured us. That the fourth Commandment had no binding power with a Christian, [That pleased the people well, we might riot as aforesaid, for we had the leave, yea the command of the Magistrate, and no law against it; for a Law, without a binding 
Lex sine coertione null●.  power, is like a b●ll without a clapper.] Thus we were made freemen, turned round, and at liberty to take what way they pleased.  
3. They told us moreover, That they who would not run with us into the same excess of riot, were too superstitious, as the Sabbatarians were of old, and the Jews before them. These words did eat like a Gangrene, It is necessary, I tell the Reader what these Sabbatarians were, and how the Jews some of them of old were charged. The Sabbatarians in the enemy's account, and as they told us, were almost as superstitious, as the Jews were, who, in obedience to God's command [Abide you every man in his place: 
Exod. 16. 29.  let no man go out of his place on the seventh day] but mistaking it quite, kept themselves to their place, and to the same posture of body, (kneeling or holding up the hands) all day long, wherein they had set themselves in the morning. I'll reply a word to this in passage; That, though the Adversary quotes his Author for this, yet this is an horrible lie, impossible to be true: For choose the easiest posture of body that is conceivable, sitting, or lying, or standing, or kneeling, and you cannot keep to it all day long. But suppose, that there were some of them so superstitious, so to do; yet this cannot prove that the Sabbatarians ancient or modern, were as superstitious as these Jews are said to be.  
Yes says the enemy to all goodness; The Sabbitarians were, and now are, almost, as superstitious as the Jews were; For though they did not abide and keep to one place, yet they do keepe-to one work all day-long: They hear at Church, and they repeat at home, and in so doing they cross the practice of the 
This fellow considered not, That where the Lord Himself is, there is a Sermon: And the place where the Lord Christ came, He made it a Synagogue to His servants. In Deo hoc speciale est, quod quem●unque locum su● dignatur presentiâ sanctificat. Cat. Eccles. 39  Lord Christ Himself, who statim a Synagogâ, presently from the Synagogue went unto Simons house to dinner: for now He had ended His Sabbath days work. O horrible! what a blasphemy is this! This is Pocklington, a notorious— and blasphemer. I pass over this blasphemy, noting this by the way, That the enemy could not speak more pestilent and corrupting words, than these are to our ears; Alas! our manner is not to repeat Sermons; Not, not sooner are we out of the Church, but our talking is of Oxen, and making of furroughes. As for the word of God, if we are not asleep, we let itin, never ruminate or chooe upon it; it will nourish as our meat does we think, though we never think of it afterwards: A damnable conceit! yet we are strongly conceited, that so careless we may be, for the enemy sets before us the example of the LORD JESUS, so blaspheming the steps of the LORDS ANOINTED: I forbear now, that I may proceed a little farther: And i'll grant,  
That the Sabbatarians, ancient and modern, are not almost, but altogether as superstitious as were the Jews of old, they will abide in one place all the Sabbath long: Be it so, so that place be not in an Alehouse, or before a Maypole. But indeed it was no better than superstition, to keep to one place and one posture all day long; And yet their superstition will rise-up in judgement against the monstrous profaneness of our Priests and people, one giving, and the other taking a liberty to rise-up from their seat at Church, to play and riot on the Lord's day. The Habbasens, says Brerewood, 
Inquiries, 25.  thought it not lawful for them, after the receiving of the Sacrament, to spit that day till the setting of the Sun. This was superstition too; but yet this reproves our brutish Priests and people, the one giving the other taking an excess in tippling and drinking that day, till they overcharge themselves so, that they must spew that day. But thus charitable our Bishops and Priests are, to us, they will not have us be superstitious, because we are Christians; thank them for that; But let us remember, because we are Christians, we must not walk more lose than did the Heathens; Not, say they, nor aught we to be so strict in observing our Lord's day as the Jews were in observing their Sabbath day: We are not bound-up so close as were the Jews; we have more liberty than they, for we are not under the Law, but under grace.  
True; but take we heed of turning such grace into wantonness: Mr Jewell instructs us very well at this point, from his book I take these words, Under the Law, than it was, Christ shall come; now it is, Christ is come: shall come, and is come, are sundry words, but Christ is all one 
* Yune Chri●●us ventures, 〈◊〉 Christus venit; venture as & venit d●versa verba sunt ●●●dem Christ●●. : (So) The Jews had their Sabbath than, we have our Sabbath now; Than, and now, are divers words, the Rest is the same to both, and the Reasons the same, binding both: but our band is the stronger. Stronger! Infinitely stronger. And let the Anti-nomian, he that is against the whole Law (if there be such a mad fellow in the world, for ●ure he is not sober) let him hear this, as it refers only to the fourth Commandment. Tell me, why should the Christian take more liberty in the world, than the Jews did? why should the Christian be more lose on his Lord's day, than the Jew was on his Sabbath-day? Good reason you will say, Because the Jew was held under a yoke like Isacher, crouching down under that burden: But Christ has made the Christian a freeman. That is true, and he is free indeed. But, as it is the greatest honour in Heaven, so it is the greatest engagement on earth, to serve before Him: Where there is a breaking of the yoke; there is a making that people go upright 
a Leu. 26. 1●. Qu●a pura est pupilla oru itum para esset 〈◊〉 bo●●inis vit●. Degu● Dei l. 3 p. ●8, 84. Pl●● ex●● it Deus a Christianis, etc. A●e●●a 〈◊〉 rel ●atio est, ●●● M●●●●o devoti●●em no●●●um ●et oh ●●p. ●avit Salu. ad Eccle. Ca●h l. 2. p. 38 4, 38. , walking according to the truth of the Gospel. Salvians words are very remarkable, The life of a Christian should be kept as pure as the apple of his eye: than he puts it down positively, and proves it notably, That God doth require more of Christians, than of the Jews. Christians have greater prerogatives than the Jews had, why than is not our bond of obedience, as strong as the●●s was? Yes, doubtless, and the reason is plain, which he gives forth with a full hand, and in full weight, and demonstration of the Spirit: That the Christians prerogatives are above the Jews; So he infers, and concludes, Therefore we pay more, because we own more: therefore we must be more devout, because the Lord hath purchased our devotion at a greater price. So Salvian. I'll now draw-up to this conclusion, which I found made to our hands, a thousand years ago 
a Lege Osiand. Epit. C●nt. 6. l. 4. c. 14. Art. 1.  That we are to set-apart and to sanctify a day to the Lord, and to sanctify it as the Lords day, in exercises well fitting the day, and enjoined by Statute-Law, long since upon the day, and the foregoing evening of the day: And, which is yet more observable, enjoined also, That the Priests, implacabiliter and in an holy indignation, should very severely punish such as would violate this Statute-Law; I thought it fit to put down this Statute in the last place, enacted a thousand years ago, that we might see, what a wide difference there is, betwixt the Priests now, and the Priests in those days; The Priests than implacabiliter, they must have no peace with them, who wilfully broke the Law of their God; who would not apply themselves to the duties of the day; and, on the evening before the day prepare themselves for those duties: So the Priests a 1000 years ago in those dark days; our Priests now in the Sunshine of the Gospel, implacabiliter, they were in a rage with those, who would not teach the people, yea command them to riot, to dance, to drink, to spew on that day: Ah Lord, what Priests have we in our days, how different from those in those days? Our Priests have committed a great sacrilege, never the like; The Lord Christ reserved to Himself but one day, gave us six days; our Priests took from their Lord, that one day, and gave it to the people, that they also might plat a garland of May-flowers, and, in scorn of their Lord and His day, set that garland upon that day: We had six days, the Bishops and Curates had exceeding many Holidays (the Church can spare them every one) yet the Bishops spared to take any one of our six days, or of their own holy-days, though (so many) and took that one day, set that scorn upon the Lordsday. An horrible sacrilege.  
We hope the Worthies of the Lord will observe all this; they will implacabiliter, they will be carried with an indignation against these vile Priests, who have walked so contrary against God, and good men. I know, what has been done against these Priests, and their books, and that many wholesome Laws, and good ordinances are made, and issued forth; blessed be God. But yet God will have more done against them, who have done so presumptuously against Him; more must be done against them than is a bore taking from them their office; They commanded the people of the Land to riot, to drink, to be drunken, to spew on the Lord's day; the Lord will have them spued-forth for this: And for these Infidels books, [I say Infidels, for when they do believe unto salvation, they will confess, and show their deeds, and bring forth their books, 
Acts 19 19  with their own hands, and burn them before all men, as we read they dealt with their books, which yet had not bewitched the people, so as these Infidels books have done] these must be purged in the fire; That all the Christian world may take knowledge, that the Church of England abhors those more than heathenish doctrines contained therein, which have laid the whole Land [I can take no good man of from communing with his own heart; and searching out his sins also, added to the common heap, and as fuel to the common fire] under the wrath of the Lord: So as the wonder is, that the whole Land is not Hormah, utter desolation: The Lord is gracious, He remembers he has a people in the Land, whose souls abhorred that profanation; But because of those heathenish books, permitted in a Christian Church, therefore a fire is kindled against Jacob, and anger is come up against Israel: 
Psal. 78. 21. ver. 49.  Therefore the Lord has cast upon us the fierceness of His anger, wrath and indignation, and trouble: He has sent evil angels among us. We cannot doubt but the consideration hereof and of the premises, will kindle the zeal of our Worthies, and make it burn seven times hotter than ordinary. They will take for an ensample Nehemiah, who loved his Nation, and was zealous for it, and fervent in spirit, for the glory of his God, which he shown in nothing more, than in vindicating the dishonour put upon the Sabbath day, The same reason of zeal for the Lords day. We will observe with all observation, how zealous Nehemiah was, and what kindled his zeal, and set it all on a flame, made him so earnest; what was it? The judgement of God, like a great mountain, was still before his eyes: The people did not harken to hollow the Sabbath day, says 
Nehe. 13. 17.  he, and not to bear a burden entring-in at the gates: Therefore the LORD kindled a fire in the gates thereof, which is not quenched at this day: Nehe●iah remembers the people of that sore bnrning, 
Jer. 17. 27.  (hotter than was that at Taberah) the thoughts of that heated him so, that he contends with the Nobles and Merchants about it, and chargeth the Priests and Levites touching that matter. 
Numb. 11. 3.  The zeal of the Nobles and Worthies now need rise not higher, than as Nehemiahs' zeal risen than: and so high it should rise, for there is the same cause; The fire of God's wrath is now burning amongst us, which must put fire to their zeal: And as their zeal riseth, so superstition, heresy and profaneness will fall: for the readiest way to strengthen and fortify a Nation, to make it fit for war indeed, to make it the head of the Kingdoms, is to take the clean contrary way, the Adversary took to enfeeble and weaken a Nation, to make it the basest of Kingdoms. To kindle our zeal, and to make it yet more fervent for the Lords day, the due sanctification thereof, both in public and private, I will add this; If our Reformers shall show their zeal in removing those prophaners of the LORDS DAY; and in burning those books which have given a liberty that way, and have spread over the Land other 
1 King. 8. 58, 60.  damnable doctrines, Than will the LORD remove far-off His Northern Army, those locusts; which have devoured every green thing, where they came: The Lord will drive them, and their Prince, with His tempest, into a Land barren and desolate: And He will restore unto us the ●ares, which that Army has eaten: We shall eat in plenty and praise the Name of the Lord, that has dealt wondrously with us, Amen. So I conclude. The only way to quench the fire entred-in at our gates, is to show our zeal of spirit, fervent and seething hot, for our LORDS DAY: for as the Lords day, and His worship, on that day, is maintained, so will the Lord of the day maintain the cause of His servants at all times, as the matter shall require, that all the people of the earth may know, that the LORD is GOD, and that there is none else. I descend now to the good Soldier, to see how devout he is in his observation of this day.  

§ FOUR The Lords day is a good man's delight.  
THis is the day, which the Lord has made, this man will rejoice and be glad in it: The day wherein He records with rejoicing, and meditates on the glorious ways of salvation, particularly the Resurrection of the Lord Christ, and that plenteous Redemption by Him. He calls this day, honourable, a day of observations; and so he engageth his soul to keep it; and on this day to stock his soul with his gathering, for all the days following, maintaining his communion with the Father and the Son through His Spirit, in the means and exercises proper to and becoming the day: And so keeps-up on the mount all that day (as human frailty can give leave, man is supposed in a Christian:) for he looks to keep a day in Heaven, which shall never have night, whereof the first seventh day was a figure or type: for that day is not described by evening and morning, as were the other six, which consisted of light and darkness; but that seventh was all day or light, figuring-out the Saints perpetual joys in Heaven, where he, with 
Gen. 23. M● A●s.  the Saints of light, shall enjoy a perpetual Sabbath, or rest, even a long day, a perpetual light, where is fullness of joy for evermore.    

CHAP. V The administration of the Sacraments in right order, of high concernment to a Kingdom.  
That these aught to be administered by, and unto sitting persons.  
IT is a matter of high consideration, how exact and accurate the zealots in all ages, good Kings and Princes, all have been touching Temple or Church-matters: Kings gave their attendance and all diligence thereunto: It was their charge they thought, and their honour, we are sure, to see unto it, that all the filthiness was carried out of the Temple, every thing provoking in God's sight removed: that the vessels there, even those be cleansed; the Priests and Levites, who did execute the charge of the Lord, that they be purified; the people sanctified; all things must be done decently and in order for the great Feast was now preparing, they were to keep the Passeover, unto the LORD GOD of Israel 
a Read 2 Chr. chap. 29. & 30. chap. 34, 35. 1 Joh. 2. 16. . It is enough to point at these things, and now to show in a few words (in so clear a case) how all this relates to us, and is written to provoke them to give all diligence, and to be zealous, whom the LORD has set as overseers in such high matters. I'll only set down briefly, how it has been; They, whom it does concern, and are assembled together for that high end, will consider how it aught to be.  
Next to the LORDS Day, nothing has been more profaned, than have the LORDS Sacraments, seals of the righteousness of Faith. The Sacrament of Baptism has been administered by sons of Belial, who knew not the LORD: And to those children, whose Parents, both father and mother, were openly profane, made no acknowledgement thereof, neither cared, nor could, nor would give a reason of their faith, or hope that is in them: I will only add this to be enquired into, whether a Parent; presenting his child to the Sacrament, is not to give first an account of his faith, and reason of his hope, that is in him, and of his interest to the covenant? Certain it is, that, if the Parent were so to do, he would present himself and his child before the Lord and His people in a more solemn manner, and with more consideration. We all know how questions have been answered, and matters slubbered over, I FORSAKE THEM ALL; What do you forsake? All, that is in the world, the lusts of the flesh; the lusts of the eye; and the pride of life. The Good LORD pardon His servants, we have spoken, we know not how often, very unadvisedly with our lips; When we said we forsake them all; we forsook nothing at all; Even at that solemn time, and before the Congregation, there was nothing in sight, but the lusts of the eye; and pride of life. We slubbered over, with our Parson's help, another question as unadvisedly, as the former, and made answer thereunto; ALL THIS I STED FASTLY BELIEVE; All what? That, though the Minister can but sprinkle water upon the child, he can neither cleanse the water, nor can the water cleanse the child, yet the LORD CHRIST has done both, and her●● in this Sacrament. He gives us clean waters, Blood to justify, Water to sanctify, All Himself, and all in Himself; and all this, we said, We steadfastly believe. O Lord! we understood not what we said, We cannot have Faith, and no knowledge. Lord! pardon the iniquity of thy servants; We have provoked Thee exceedingly this way, in not considering what we said; We have sinned, It is in the purpose of our hearts to do so not more. This now I have set down by way of enquiry only; The Lord instruct us to discretion touching these matters.  
The other Sacrament has been (for what is done, I leave to the wise to judge) as much profaned by brutish Priests, and by us, a brutish people, as much, I say, nay more than the former: To say all, I will say, in Mr. Calvins words; The Sacrament of the Lords Supper has been too commonly administered by such vile Persons, whom you would have disdained to have set with the dogs of 
Job 30. 1. 〈◊〉. ●oeda per●●stio, dum sine delectu impudenter se i●gerunt s●elesti & palam flagitio si homines, quos nemo honest us & verecundus ad communem convictum admitreret? ut ad●uc miramur unde rot bella. Calv. ●n prim● ep●st. ad Cor. cap. 11. ●er. 30.  your flock: and given to those whom you would not admit to a common table; He adds, and do we wonder wherefore it is that we are devoured by the sword, eatup with famine, consumed with the pestilence; that the LORD has opened His Armoury, drawne-out against us all the weapons of His indignation; do we wonder at this? Why do we wonder? the 'Cause is apparent, and in every man's eye; Let us never look to see an end of our miseries, till our lives be amended: and this horrible profanation of the Lords Table, so highly provoking in God's eyes, be taken away. Blessed be God, there is we hope all possible care taken, touching these great matters, for the removing the ignorant and brutish Parsons, the setting in their places the honourable and the precious, that all may be done about these Tremenda mysteria, knowingly, conscientiously, decently, and in order. To press this upon those to whom this care doth specially belong, I'll take leave to contribute this to this place. There is one clause always said at the Burial of the dead, where at good men have scrupled very much, they have pronounced those received to mercy, who have gone in a way most contrary to mercy all their life long. In handing-forth the Bread and Wine to the people, they utter words, which are more to be scrupled at, when they give forth those consecrated signs of the Bod● and Blood of Christ to those that are brutishly ignorant, or openly profane. Here I'll tell the Reader a sad Relation; though he may have heard of it before, yet, perhaps, not so well considered on, as now it may be, thus it is related; A man that had laidup treasure for himself, but was not rich towards God 
b Luke 12. 21. , fell sick unto death; he perceived plainly his soul was now required of him, and an account of his stewardship; he sends in post-haste for his Pastor as the manner is, demands of him whether he could give him any comfort; The Minister after some consultation with him, answered, not, not any comfort for him, he had walked contrary thereunto serving the creature more than the Creator: No comfort for such servants said the Minister; say you so, says the sick man, (for now he was sick-indeed) how have you deceived me! You have, from time to time spoken most comfortable words to me in the Church, and can you give me no comfort now on my sickbed? How often have you said thus unto me; The Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ which was given for thee: than you bade me, Take and eat; Take and drink, in Remembrance that Christ gave Himself for me? And can you give me no comfort now? Oh! you should have denied me comfort than, when time was, and so I might have been in a way for comfort in this needful time now that my days are cutting of, I must have time not more. Had you told me than when time was, that the Childrens bread belonged not to me, than I might have be thought myself of my miserable condition, and have asked more grace. But you, giving me the Lord Christ, I thought all was well; These words pierced the ears, and the very heart of the Minister, so it is reported; And well they might, and engaged his care for after time, to understand, as fare as man can do, the state of His people, whether they be worthy to whom he gives the Body and Blood of the Lord Christ. It is enough to engage all Ministers to the same care: and to hastenup as near as can be, to the pattern in the mount, to be patterns and examples before the people, going before them in an holy way, teaching their people publicly, and from house to house, testifying 
Acts 20. 20, 2●.  to them every one, Repentance toward GOD, and Faith toward the LORD JESUS CHRIST. Amen.  

§ V A good man precise in these high matters.  
THe good soldier has much to say here, and much against himself, but his scribe cannot set it down; he puts-up his supplication to his God, that he would not regard what he did, and how he walked in the days of his ignorance; nor be extreme to mark what His servant has done, and does now in the days of light: he does acknowledge that the sin of unworthy Receiving is his sin also, he cannot quit himself of it: That sin is gone into the common heap, and helps to make as the fire kindled in the kingdom, more scorching: so also, the herbs the sow●er, but yet the Passeover the sweeter: I mean, it helps to increase a godly sorrow, and through the exceeding mercy of His Saviour, it makes his Joy the fuller. And now, for the present time, and hereafter before He 
§ 11. 2 Cor. 5. 9 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 We strive as the men of the world for the highest preferment and rooms in the world.  presents himself at that table, he searcheth his heart, and prieth into it as narrowly as the Jews into their houses, which was said before: and so he is a worthy Communicant in God's acceptation: and the lower he falls now before the Lord in humility, the higher he riseth in his Faith, and acceptation with the Lord, which is the earnest labour and travel of his soul, even that he may be accepted of Him. Amen.    

CHAP. VI A Nationall Covenant mighty to establish and fortify a Kingdom.  
There are objections against it, specially two charges. 1. That it engageth to maintain Religion by the sword. 2. That it is as a body without an head. There is a scruple concerning our undertaking the Defence of the King's Person resolved: And objections against the prosperity of the Covenant answered.  
WE have seen with our eyes, that the servants of the Lord working with God this Day have wrought as great a Salvation for the Kingdoms, as Jonathan for Israel: We have observed the way (it is but one and the same) they went-in, the very steps and degrees of their happy proceed. And now we are come to the highest step, the entering Covenant with the high God, which contains much, nay, all the forementioned, for all that went before, has a direct tendency hereunto, as to its end, next to the glory of GOD; The engaging the heart of a Kingdom as one man, unto one God; The interesting, intitling Him to the kingdom, the giving-up the Government of it into God's Hands, which is the way to make a Kingdom so strong, so well fortified, that all the devils in hell, with those in the Air, and all their sworn servants on earth can have no power against this Kingdom now to do it hurt; though they rage against it, and, to their power given unto them, do storm it, yet they cannot hurt it: for the kingdom is brought-up to God; the Government yeelded-up into His hands; He will look to His own. But I was saying, as this covenanting with God was the End, and tendency of all that went before, so this contains the means, and perfects them; I mean thus, The first step towards this work was the casting forth the accursed Persons and things; these will return again; the heart of the kingdom will deal with these, as Israel of old dealt 
Jer. 34. 11.  with their servants when the siege was removed, they will take themin again: But now the Kingdom has covenanted against these, they have sworn to maintain war against them, and their encroachings, they will never serve dumb idols any more, thus they have covenanted; No peace with themselves any more, so far as self is its self; no peace with Rome any more, or her idols, no peace with any thing that makes roomth for superstition, heresy, profaneness; no peace with any of these any more, as a Kingdom looks to maintain their standing, and peace with God ●vermore. And because the Kingdom has found how prevailing fasting, and praying, and praising, and preaching is, to advance this work, and to complete the business; They have covenanted with their GOD to maintain all that, which has brought them-up to Him into that sacred Band, viz. to be in fastings often, to pray continually, to praise the Lord while they have any being, to holdout the Gospel what they can unto the whole land. Wal●s shall be visited; The places of the earth so full of cruelty; lights shall be sent down thither; choice Ministers shall be appointed for that great ●nd, who know the terror of the Lord, and will persuade men to understand the will of their Father, and will declare it; do consider how Holy the Lord's Day is, and will have it so observed; Do feel the weight of the charge of souls, and by the grace of God will quit themselves like men of God, in the discharge of their Duty. So I have recalled the sum of that which went before, and given a taste of that which should follow. I should now demonstrate and make clear to the Reader, how mighty a Nationall Covenant is to establish and secure Kingdoms; That indeed a Covenant is the One thing necessary for that great purpose: But I am 
Mr Caryl. Mr Coleman. Mr Case.  happily prevented herein by the labours of excellent men: many very excellent Sermons, full speeches, and Treatises not a few, are extant touching this great business: I will say not more ●●r it, unless by way of answer to that which is said against it; many cavil against it, and some question the lawfulness of the Covenant; That I may set it free from these cavils, and put the Covenant out of all question, I will dissolve my speech continued hitherto into a short Dialogue.  
A. There is a Covenant talked-off, and entredinto by some few, which seems to engage three nations: But not the one nation have taken it, not not Scotland; and not above a third part of our own Nation.  
B. True, and I will give you a mighty reason for that anon.  
A. You can never give me a Reason, why ye should all enter into covenant as one man, To maintain Religion by the sword. Christian's must be sufferers, as meek as sheep before the shearers, as their great Master was, from whom they have their names. Can you give me any one example of any in any ages of the world, that stood-up with their swords in their hands to maintain their Religion?  
B. Verily I could, though a man of small reading, give you twenty examples ancient and modern both; whole Kingdoms, particular cities, that these have all in all ages, as matters did require, stood up with their swords in their hands to maintain their Religion, Laws, and Liberties; But I will confine myself to a beggarly 
The less of man, the more of God; The weaker the men, the stronger their God.  example (as the adversary calls it:) I'll instance in those beggarly poor peeled people (so their lords made them, and so they esteemed them; so the Mastiffs of the world toused these sheep of God's pasture,) the Waldenses inhabitants of Angrogne and Luserne in the County of Pied mont. These poor people (so rich in faith) were persecuted from place to place, as David by Saul, like 
Book of Martyrs, p. 871.  a Partridge on the mountains by the Nimrods' the Mastiffs of those Days. They parleyed upon the business with their Ministers, Whether they should take the sword into their hands for their defence or not? It was resolved at first, Not: They might not, though their blood was shed, yet they must in any case take heed of bloodshed: so away the poor people ran, and their Ministers with them, whether they could, like a chased-bird to that mountain, and to that rock; and that did but enrage the enemies (the popish lords) the more. Than some other Ministers in the places adjoining tell the poor people, that their Ministers were quite mistaken, they assure them that all the laws of God and man, the law of Nature and of Nations do allow them their sword, wherewith to fence their throats, and maintain their lives; and, if to maintain life, than much more to maintain their Religion, which is more than life: so the poor people were resolved. But they would, as before they had done, deal with their Lord of Trinity (it is not pertinent to give you the reason of the name) by petitions, and supplications, desiring only that they might holdfast their God, and keep fast to their Religion: for that is the way to keep God with them: It would not be granted, no answer could they hear: but, To the fire with them 
* They could gain nothing of their adversaries hands by entreaty, but knocks. ; to the fire: Than they fell to praying, and fasting, their best weapons.  
A. We allow that, and Tears too, the Church's weapons, but no sword.  
B. You should not interrupt me, I was saying, they prayed fervently, they spent, as a great commander did, 
r Ante bellum in oratione jacuit, Sal. de Gub. li, 7. p. 251.  a whole night in prayer, being to go into the field next morning: so these prayed in prayer, were earnest with the Lord God of Hosts, and in His strength they marched into the field the next day, so soon as it was light: for says the story, The Lord would make His people know, that they aught to defend their life, that precious thing, and their Religion (their crown) with the sword: And how spiritful they were; how well they quitted themselves; how an old-man dealt with his potent Adversary; how a youngman 18. years of age dealt with his mighty enemy: how four chased forty, and forty put an hundred to flight, this is marvellous to consider, which I leave to the Reader. Only this I'll tell him, that the adversaries and enemies said openly, that the Waldenses had bewitched and charmed their weapons: Indeed so they had done; but it was with prayers, and strong cries to their God. O how omnipotent Prayer is! for the strength of GOD is in it. But I must pass it over and proceed: When this poor people had worsted their adversary, he would parley with them than; and they were willing to yield to any thing, so they might keep their God, and to His Faith. But notable it is, whensoever they sounded to a parley, than the Waldenses were at a loss: for their adversaries were treacherous, took advantage against them still when they met to treat of peace: Whereby the LORD GOD would assure His servants still, That they must not treat with idolaters: And so they left treating, and fell to fight again, and prospered in their battles to a wonder; for they brought down God to their side: The sword of the Lord and of Gideon; We know what that has done, and we are as confident for the after time.  
A. You have told me a modern history, not an hundred years old, sure I am the Primitive Christians were sufferers all, in all times.  
B. Yes, you may be sure of that, while Ethnic Rome (the Dragon) raged: and Anti-christian Rome (the Beast) reigned, all this while the servants of God must be sufferers: wherever that ravenous beast set her foot, there must follow a treading down, as in our days.  
A. But my meaning is, The Christians never resisted, they suffered and endured patiently.  
B. True, they did endure patiently the wrath of GOD: but they did not expose their throats to the wrath of man; they were fighters too, as they had power in their hand, and law on their side: and they were as glorious in fight for Christ, as in suffering for Him: and they did it by the same Faith, By Faith they put to slight the Armies of Aliens. The servants of the Lord Christ have been sufferers 
Heb. 11. 34.  a great while; they have suffered in Germany, suffered in France, in Ireland they have suffered, what shall I say? the spoiling of their goods and of their lives? yes and more, they have suffered heavy things, even what the rage of the enemy's wrath could inflict upon his poor people, I cannot express what suff●rers they are in Ireland; nor what sufferers they are in England. I say not more. But the scene shall turn shortly. The sufferers all this while are fighters now, and shall be more than conquerors anon. The servants of the Lord shall be delivered, and their adversaries shall come into their room. Certainly though the enemy and adversary thinks he has prevailed over the Church of God; he has brought her low, even to the dust of death, in some places to a dry-Bone, yet Spirit and life shall comeinto these Bones again, and the Lords warriors shall not sit down, till they shall execute the wrath of the Lord upon that bloody city, rewarding her even as she rewarded them: and doubling unto her double according to her works: for this is the charge of the Lord; In the cup which 
Rev. 18. 6, 7.  she has filled fill to her double. They, who are engaged upon this service must execute the vengeance, than these are fighters sure: Therefore the servants of the Lord may fight, nay must fight, and will fight: It is their sword which must eat the whore's flesh, and drink her blood: And this is not done by prayer, though Prayer has a great stroke in it; but by fight with the sword: Therefore I conclude yet again, The servants of the LORD may use the sword: It is their charge from the Lord. But that you may be more fully and clearly resolved at this point, That Christians may use the sword, I'll now ask you one question, and you shall resolve it yourself.  
B. Has the Lord Christ had any battles fought in the world: or are His battles fight now?  
A. Yes sure, for there is large mention of the Lords battles in the sacred records : and of a levying war against the Lamb (that is) against the Lord Christ: I cannot doubt of this.  
B. Who are those that have fought the Battles of the LORD in all ages of the world?  
A. I cannot tell their names, but sure I am, they have been the faithful servants of the Lord in all ages.  
B. Very well, than the servants of the Lord may fight.  
A. Yes, the Battles of the Lord.  
B. You are sure the servants of the Lord will fight no other battles, only war against them, who war against the Lamb.  
B. One question more, who do fight the Lords battles at this day?  
A. The Lord's servants sure, The King and his Armies.  
B. You considered not what you have said, you must recall it again: I shall assure you now, that your answer is not short of blasphemy; It reacheth even to that height, even to a sin, that shall not be forgiven to men: For your own sake harken; The LORD CHRIST had wrought an amazing work for His poor 
Mat. 12. 23.  creature, man, whom the Devil had possessed, made him blind and dumb, he could neither see, nor speak, nor hear; The Lord Christ throwes-out the Devil, and so torments the tormentor. The people, beholding this amazing work, said, Is this the son of 
ver. 23.  David? (that is) Is this the work of a mere man? Yes, said the Pharisees, a mere man, and no more, has done this: And for that, he has done above the strength of a man, he has done by Beelzebub the Prince of Devils. The Lord Christ heard all this, and 
ver. 24.  knew their thoughts, says the Text, (i e.) he knew that their thoughts had more malice, more of Hell in them than their words shown forth, yet their words were abominable, contrary to a clear light; And put words and thoughts together, they reached to a blasphemy against the HOLY GHOST 
* 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, etc. L●g Basil. Reg. Brev. 273. : So said the Lord Christ, and proves it: For, says He, the Devil will not putforth his strength against himself, to spoil his own house, to thou pieces his own kingdom; Men may say so, that the Devil will do so, fight against himself, that so they may darken that, which will be more cleared than is the Sunbeam; but no man thinks so: and the LORD knows the thoughts. You will consider this, and than you will not dare to say, what, you are not such a fool, to think, That the King and his Armies, (Atheists and Papists all) will pluck down their own house of gods; throwout their own Idols, destroy their own kingdom; fight against their god, the Pope; you cannot think they will do to: Than I pray you do not say so; for you hear it proved from the LORDS own mouth, it is blasphemy so to speak.  
A. I speak not my own words, therefore they must not be charged upon me. The King has protested, you and all men know what, and we all know how often: And the prime Bishop Primate of the world undertakes, I hear, to satisfy every man touching that matter; he is the oracle in Oxford, no man departs from him, but he is fully resolved in his heart touching the lawfulness of the King's way, and war: and so they clap their hands upon their breast saying, The voice of God and not of man, he has cleared the point of Resistance, how fully! Let me add one thing more, That the Bishop is said (but indeed I do not believe hearsay) to cast an odium upon your praying and fasting people in London, Ministers and others, that they fast to debate and strife, and how they may take away their King's Crown and life.  
B. To quit you and set you clear of this Bishop first, though it should be last. The Primate is a well known man, of more reading than ordinary, and of less judgement than is conceivable; It is certain, God has not given him a discerning spirit; he is very credulous; It is verily conceived, that if a man will swear that snow is black, or your kitchen fire will not burn, or that evil is good, he will believe him; A very good natured man, if that be good. Nay some do believe, That, if the Devil should come to the Primate, protest and swear unto him, that he (and his angels) love God's people, seeks their preservation, he will be a wall about them and their houses night and day; if the Devil should vow and protest so much, the Bishop would believe the Devil also, that he will not swear and lie. No credit to be given to what the Bishop says, but yet, I wish from my heart he had said nothing: for what ever he says, though, That Papists will fight for the Protestant Religion, there be fools enough in the world will believe him: The Lord pardon what the man hath spoken, if he has spoken as it is reported: howsoever he has need of the largest indulgence from the Lord. But for your part, you will believe your own ears: for you hear and see both what is said and done at London, upon our public fast-days: do our Ministers there, do the people 
A King must protect ●is people, their King will do it, f●r it is the office of a King.  there, fast to debate and strife? do the Ministers there speak good for their King, [so they do acknowledge him at this day, though he has castoff the care and protection over His people] do they speak good for him before the Lord? Speak; do they or do they not?  
A. They do, God is witness, their souls are witness, our ears also, that the Ministers of the Lord wrestle with the Lord night and day for their King, that his heart may be brought-up to GOD, and his Person to the Parliament.  
B. I will add what cannot be contradicted, not not by the Devil himself; That the King (though he has not showed himself a King to his poor people) yet is he in their hearts, and a King of prayers in their mouths: O! how do the servants of the Lord desire, how importunate are they that he may be a King of praises; And let the servants of the Lord pray without ceasing; though Samuels mourning, was not heard for Saul, yet it was heard for 
1 Sam. 15. 35. 16. 1.  David, whom God gave to His people, a King after His own heart. Prayer is no vain work, it shall have a return, if not what we would, yet what is better; And what hinders the return of prayers, the Lord, that knows the King's thoughts, knows, it is his sin, that lieth in the way, that sin of— and so I come to his protestations; You say he has protested three times, That he and his Armies, will maintain the true Protestant Religion: That he fights the battles of the Lord, so you say.  
A. I told you indeed, that the King said so, and you know, and all the Christian world knows, that so he has said, and protested seven times.  
B. Truly I do not know it, for I never heard him say it; I have read his Protestations, and they are penned by I know not whom: and indeed I am content to be a sceptic in these days, not to credit, oversoone what I see or hear; and yet I will never deny what I understand. If the King has protested, that he will maintain by his Irish and English Papists the life of his poor people, and the life of Religion, as I understand he has protested once and again, than— The Lord has heard his wor●s, and knows his thoughts, and there I leave the matter: for how high this sin reaches, the Lord Christ has said. This only ●le add, it shall be easier for his Queen, in the day of judgement, than for him; for first, she came indeed into a Land of visions, but where her Seers (our Bishops) were blind. It is affirmed, that not long after her coming over hither, the now Archbishop yet in name, was asked whether the Protestant and Papist had not one and the same way to Heaven? He answered, yes, both one and the same way: That is true enough, if both would take the same way. But this was the Bishop's meaning, That the way was as passable, and the door to Heaven set as wide-open to all comers by the intercession of the Virgin Mary, as by the Mediation of the LORD JESUS CHRIST; And now it is all one to her, whether she embraceth the Lord Christ, or an Image (she says) in His likeness; And so she can with more boldness persecute the LORD CHRIST in His members, and thinks she does the Lord good service: because the servants of the Lord do serve their Lord and Him only, and do abominate Idols: But this is the point, what she does she does professedly, she fights for her (holy) Fathers house, and the house of her gods: and therefore she has prepared an Army, and instruments of death in abundance, for that purpose; and she does not say now, much less protest, that she has hired these men, and prepared these instruments; pawned the Jewels of the Kingdom; been at all this cost to establish the Religion truly Protestant; her do, her say, her thoughts, (though all abominable this way) yet they do all agreed: I conclude, It shall be easier for her in the day of judgement than for, etc. And now I have gained my scope, the end I did drive to, and you must be brought-up to it whether you will or not, and conclude with me;  
1. That the Lord God has had His battles always in the world, ever since there was a kingdom in the world setup against His Kingdom, which is not of the world: He has had His warriors also to fight His battles: for these words relate one unto the other. I conclude.  
2, That these battles of the Lamb against the Beast, and of the Beast against the Lamb, will now in these our times, rise to the greatest height of opposition: because now the prophecy must be fulfilled, and the judgement upon the Beast must be executed; Reward double unto her: In the cup, which she hath filled, fill to her double: I conclude.  
3. That these are the servants of the Lord, who fight these battles now; and to say contrary, is to say that the Beast will wound herself, will pour down a viol of wrath upon her own head; that the bloody City will shed her own blood with her own hand; that the Devil will be divided against himself, and oppose, yea destroy his own kingdom: To say so, for so we cannot think, is blasphemy against the Holy Ghost. In the last place, we must conclude;  
4. That these warriors, who now fight the Lords battles, are not come forth into the field, as a great Commander, to show the absoluteness of his command, brought-forth a great Army, to pick Cockle shelts. Not; They fight for their Lord Christ, to maintain His Cause, His Crown, His Sceptre, the Diadem of three Kingdoms, (the Gospel) and the Crown of their rejoicing now, and in that Day of the Lord, the day of His appearing, when His warriors shall be made more than conquerors, receive their palms into their hands, and their crown (set) upon their heads: Therefore they are resolved to stand to it, to quit themselves like men, to be vahaut for their God, for His Christ, for His cause 
* I heard a man say, who had lost an eye in Br●insord fight, That had he had a 1000 eyes and as many lives, he would be content to sacrifice them all to this Cause. , and City of God; and this is matter of high praise; that the Lord has continued them to these days; their lives, liberties, livelihoods, that they may expend all, livelihood, liberty, life and all, to testify the Gospel of the grace of God. Blessed be the Lord, who has given such gracious spirits, unto the sons of men.  
A. You have cleared your Covenant at that high point, The lawfulness of bearing Arms for defence of Religion; But you swear also, to defend your King's Person.  
B. Not, but we do not. What man dares swear, that he will defend His Person, who rusheth upon the Angel's sword every day, as blindfolded as Balaam did. As the King is a public person, and walks in Gods high way, we swear to defend him: yea if we should swear the contrary, which never any but God's enemies have done, unto whom his loule too much cleaveth, yet the Laws would defend the King's person and Crown both: But while he walks as a private person, and as his will leads him, in his own way without GOD, and without the law, we cannot undertake for him: We will pray for him, and seek to rescue him out of his own hands, and the hands of them, who hate his soul: But we cannot swear, nor do we swear, to preserve his Person and Authority, unless in the preservation and defence of the true Religion, and liberties of the Kingdoms. The Lord God has made a covenant with His poor servants, that He will defend them, that He william. Lord! what is man that Thou shouldst regard him? but that Thou shouldst set Thine own guard about him, what a wonderful mercy! Yet so the Lord does; He will set a guard of Angels about His servants bed, and about his path, and about all his ways: A wonderful grace ● And we read, that these ministering spirits, are never more readily employed, than in their dispatches and workings for the salvation of man: I say again, A wonderful grace ● But now the man must be gracious; he must look to his way; he must keep in God's way; If he str●ggle-out, walking in by-paths of his own choosing, he forfeits this great privilege, and charter of preservation; he walks as one out-lawd, a man from whom the defence is gone: If the man walks in the way of Cain, he has no Letter patent for safety now, not more than Cain had; A man walking in his own way, a way of sin and death, goes-out from the presence of the Lord, and from under His protection, The conclusion is; We, swearing to defend the King's Person, do undertake to do our utmost that way in the Preservation, etc. And this is as much as God. Himself undertakes; which may suffice to clear that scruple, if any such there be.  
A. But surely if your Covenant were of God, it would have a freer pass through the Land, whereas this meets with a mighty opposition.  
B. The best sign, that it is of God: for the more of God is either in a Person or in a Thing, the more the Devil and his angels, will bend their force and fraud against it: I told you at the first, I would give you mighty reason, why there are so mighty obstructions, why Hell gates have stood and do stand wide open against the holy Covenant; The reason is; Because it is holy, therefore the Abomination of desolation, the King's Army, spread-over the whole Land by the King's command, has indignation against the holy Covenant; and therefore the heart of the King is against it also.  
A. Now you are at the top and head of the business, and there you must resolve me, that I may resolve others, who do much question the lawfulness of your Covenant, because it is as a body without a head a headless Covenant.  
B. It is an headless objection; he has but little brain, as the saying is, a man of no understanding, who makes this objection. That Covenant wants not an head, which has the Lord Christ, the Head of His Church, chief in it, and all the concernements of His Church contained therein, which is abundantly sufficient, to tender this Covenant most solemn and sacred.  
B. But you have not the Principal verb, the King in your Covenant.  
B. Yes that we have, and there is an undertaking there to preserve his Person, and his Crown; and if that way does not take, neither his Person nor his Crown can be preserved.  
A. My meaning is; ye have made a Covenant without the King, which makes it questionable to me and many others, whether your Covenant be lawful? Tell me; Was it ever known, That Princes and Worthies brought their King and people into Covenant? Not never; The King evermore brought his people into Covenant with their God: and indeed there is no decency in it, if it be otherwise, nor is there order: It is a plain guiding and leading that, which should lead, the head I mean.  
B. You have asked me a Question, and you have answered it yourself: you shall correct your question, and i'll correct your answer; Was it ever known that Princes and people brought their King into Covenant? Not, say you. Yes, say I: Princes and people have brought their King-up into Covenant: But what if we had no example, nor precedent from former times: It will not therefore follow, that Princes and Nobles may not enter Covenant with their God; to take Him for their God; His Christ for their King; His Gospel to be subject to it, without their King; If he be a child and cannot; ignorant, in such an high matter, and cares not; conceited, and believes not; or wilful, and will not be drawn to enter Covenant with his God. We say of a Parliament (the highest House in the Kingdom) They cannot always walk and work by precedents: but if their ●athers have ot done that, which may be a precedent now unto them; than may they, as matters may require, do that, which may be a precedent to their children. They, who make Covenant with their God, have a precedent for so doing, you may be sure, more ancient than the world is, but let that go. The safest, the surest, the only way to fortify, and strengthen a Kingdom, is, to bring a Kingdome-up, and into Covenant with their God, To serve, to serve (it is twice repeated) the LORD their GOD. If the only sure 
● Chr●. 34. 33.  way to secure a Kingdom, than it must be done; The Princes, and Nobles, and Worthies must bring themselves, their King too (if they can) the people also (if they will) up into Covenant with their God; They must do it; they stand bound to do it, though they had no precedent for it: What if there be no precedent fo. it, yet the Cause, th' extremity, never the like: Therefore the Worthies must do it, as they love themselves and the Kingdoms, and their children after them, they must do it, and so be a precedent to their children. And blessed be God so they have done, and they have an example, a precedent for so doing; Jehojada a Priest, he postureth the Kingdom, order the Militia, and which is the chief work, Jehojada made a Covenant between (Him) GOD and between all the people: and between the King, that they should be the Lords people. There is a precedent.  
A. True, Jeho●ada did it, but he was a chief man, the Government was upon his shoulders.  
B. True, say I too, And will you not give the same power to all the Princes and Nobles, all the Worthies, all the Faithful in all three Kingdoms, which you give to one Prince in Israel?  
A. Yes, God forbidden else; But I conceive there is a wide difference betwixt what Jehojada did, and what the Parliament have done; Jehojada might do what he did, for it was his place, and he might govern the King being a child, in his nonage, but seven years old, The Parliament may not do as they have done [I reason as a man according to my ignorance and little understanding in these matters] their K●ng is six times seven years old, of that age, which the Latin call a constant age.  
B. I am pressed to it: Cursed is he, that flattereth with his mouth, when he is to speak for his King and Kingdom: In dread of that Curse, I answer; That there is a greater engagement upon the Worthies now to do as they have done (which is the same, which Jehojada did) than was upon Jehojada: he had to do with a child-King in his nonage, yet he made the Bond strong between God and the King: and the King and the people; a strong bond, that he should be King to rule for the Lord, the Lords King● and the people the Lords people. The Worthies now, have to do with a Manking, in his dotage. Dotage! It is more than so, he has given-up his power into his enemy's hands; himself and his Kingdom into the hands of them, that hate him, and his good people: The Worthies now must make the Bond stronger than ever, if stronger can be, for these have to do with a King, who does walk most contrary to what a King should do; A King is God's Deputy, ruling for God; he puts-forth all his power against. Go● A King must protect, guard, defend his poor people, (therefore made He thee King,) to maintain the Defence, and to keep-out the wild Beasts; he takesaway the defence, breaks-up the hedges, lets-in grievous wolves to destroy his poor people. A King rules over men, he must be just; This King breaks God's people 
● Sam. 23. 3. Psal. ●2.  to pieces, he is so unjust. A King must judge the poor of the people and break in pieces the oppressor; he condemns the poor, and needy men, grinds their faces, and breaks in pieces the oppressed. A King must build-up the house of his Kingdom, and God's house there; he plucks all down, and if he had power in his hand, he would reign down fire and brimstone upon it: Mighty reason● all these, why the Worthies should make their Bond-strong, like a triple cord, which cannot be broken; Jehoiada brings-up all Judah into covenant with their God; A strong bond: the bond is stronger now, Scotland and England, and Ireland are come up to their God, there is a threefold cord. God be praised.  
A. But Jehoiada did all he did to establish the King in his throne.  
B. Very true, and this is as true, that the Princes now in Parliament have taken the same way to establish the King's Throne, which can be done by no other means but this, By making a Covenant between Him (God) and between all the people: and between 
● Chro. 2●. 16.  the King, that they should be the Lords people; Wicked men, vile Priests, brutish Pastors, fools, to whom it is an abomination to departed from evil, these fools will make cavils here, and exceptions against this; what? making a covenant between God etc.  
A. The King would have no such covenant made, nor will he enter into it.  
B. We know that well enough, his heart is against it, yea he has indignation against it: but in so doing he sets his heart also firm as the Leviathans heart against his own peace, and the peace of the Kingdom, for ask from one end of heaven to the other, and inquire concerning this matter, Whether there be any other way to save a King and Kingdom but this, To make a Covenant between God and between all the people: and between the King that they should be the LORDS people: Therefore we conclude, if the King will have nothing to do with the Covenant, if he will despise that Oath of GOD, than he shall have nothing to do with the Bl●ssing, he rejects that also against his own soul. But yet he may live to see his people prospero, as certainly they shall, being made the Lords, being entered into covenant with their God, and made the LORDS people: The King may live to see this, he may behold it with his eyes, even peace upon Israel, but he shall not partake of that Blessing, being out of Covenant with his God.  
A. Why, but the King is not involved within the Covenant, therefore, though he does despise it, he cannot be involved in the curse.  
B. A bold speech, and as bold an inference, the King not involved in the Covenant! The Princes have made a Covenant between GOD, and between all the people (and between the King too) That they should be the LORDS people; And the King not involved, not concerned in it? The King is concerned, he is involved in it; All his dear pledges are there; All his concernments, All his good people, and all the bad, all the Malignants too, All this and all these are involved therein, in this Covenant, as much as Joash was, and all the people were concerned in that Covenant, which Jeho●ada had made. Joash was but a child seven years old, and he understood like a child; And for the people, you cannot conceive that they could be all gathered together at Jerusalem; There was a Congregation, which we now call a Parliament, the Captains of hundreds, and the Chief of the Fathers; and when they had slain that vile person, that murderess, than Jehoiada makes a Covenant which involved all the people, even to the utmost parts of Judah; There is no doubt but Athaliah that wicked woman had her favourites at court, and some in the city, and countries too, as vile, as wicked and idolatrous almost as she herself was, who secretly, if not openly, as that cursed woman did, called out Treason, Treason. But wherever they were, though as far remote from Jerusalem as Wales is from us, yet were they involved within that Covenant at that time: And so are they involved in this Covenant at this time, which the Princes in the two houses of Parliament, (I mean by two houses, Scotland and England, and God be praised they are made one also) have now entered into. I know, for all the Christian world knows, that there are some who murmur● now, and some mock, and some call out, Treason, Treason, calling others by their own name; But yet, they are involved in this Covenant they and all their families, they and their wives, their children and servants. I will give you one instance for all this, it will suffice to satisfy any reasonable man; The Princes of Israel had made a league with the Gibeonites. The children of Israel journeyed and 
Josh. 9 17.  came to Gibeon, and they would smite it with the sword. Not, but they must not. Not? Had the people made any league with Gibeon? Yes, that they had, for the Princes had made a league with them, and what the Princes have done, the people have done; and they must stand to it. Than all the Congregation murmured at the 
Verse. ●●.  Princes. That was not well that the people would murmur against the Princes. But yet their murmuring would not serve their turns, We have sworn unto them by the LORD GOD of Israel, now therefore we may not touch them. We may not! That is true, and all Reason for that, for We Princes have made a league with Gibeon, so it may be objected. But the words are mistaken; We includes Princes and people, we have made a league with the Gibeonites, and with us the people, now therefore we may not touch them. What the Princes have done, the people have done; We Princes have made a Covenant, We and You must stand to it; can it be imagined that the Princes can be bound, and the people lose? now therefore not WE (that is, neither we nor you) may touch them: Princes make a Covenant as they make a Law, not for men asleep but for men awakened; that all may take notice of it, none plead ignorance, etc. Indeed I thought to have proceeded, But I understand very well that this one Scripture is sufficient to stop 
* Contradictions of sinners will n●t cease, till th●y cease to be.  the mouths of all the Malignants in London, and brutish Pastors in Wales, where they roar and storm, and open their mouths now against the Covenant, I will say no mo●e to that.  
A. You are very brag now; you boast much of your Covenant.  
B. You are mistaken, We boast in the LORD all the day long: Who has instructed His people to discretion, and, by His Almighty Arm has brought them into covenant.  
A. And what great matters have you done now, since you entered into covenant?  
B. Not great matters we, but the GREAT GOD that delights to use small things has done great things by little means. Indeed I could be large here, I could go from North to South, and tell what great things he has done, Indeed I could. The sum would be this, Little means and a great GOD has effected great things, wherein we rejoice; Ever since the LORD has brought His people into covenant, He has wrought for them, and with them, and in them, like a God; He has prospered His people wonderfully; delivered them miraculously, marvellously separated betwixt His people and the Egyptians, here and there the Lord has, etc. but I see the book swells bigger than I would have it, I must forbear.  
A. What has the Lord done, the malignants, as you call them, observe no such matter.  
B. Do they not? Whether they observe or not observe, no matter, God's people must observe the works of God and the operations of His hands; so must all, whom the God of this world has not blinded, observe what the God of heaven has done for His friends, and against His enemies ever since the taking of Bristol, and entering Covenant with their GOD; They must observe how the proud men have fallen; how the Lord has punished the host of the 
Isai. 24. 21.  high ones, that were on high; How He has brought them down, etc. But the wicked will not observe it, those wild Asses will traverse their way still, till their month come, than they shall be big 
Jer. 2.  with sorrows, and than they shall be found: When pains are upon them, when the LORD shall tear them to pieces, as a lion teareth the cawl of the heart, and goes away, leaving them in a torn 
Hos. 5. 10.  and helpless condition; when He shall put them into the fire of 
Ezek. 2●. 20.  His wrath, and leave them there (the utmost of judgements) than they shall observe.  
A. Well: leave that unto your LORD GOD, and let us come to your Dear brethrens the Scots, as you call them; Long looked for are come at last.  
B. Yes, that they are, blessed be God, who has put such a zeal into them, such a love, as strong as death, much water could not quench it. They came out in the coldest season, in their zeal to GOD'S house are they come forth, for their vows are upon them; And the Lord is with them, and with their families, whence they came-out: The Lord will not leave them, who are engaged upon His service; the Lord will go before them still, and be a ●●re-ward unto them; He will be to them a sun and a shield; He will be all to th●m, who are All for Him, He will be all which their families shall need, or what their souls, and God's Cause shall require, Amen.  
A. But what have they done, the Scots, I mean.  
B. I cannot tell; But sure I am, the Host of God, a people in Covenant with their God shall do 
a Dan. 11. 32. ; it is not expressed what, but great things we are sure.  
A. Shall do! Boast not of that, the Armour is but girding on yet, it is not put of: Tell me, for we heard you say, If the Scots were come, all were done; they would carry all before them; Newcastle and all: Is your expectation answered?  
B. Yes, the expectation of the Righteous, for they expect no more from the creature than what the creature can do; And that is nothing, unless the Lord shall be pleased to work with it, and than the creature shall do great things: our expectation indeed, who have little or no faith in God, but all in the creature, our expectation is not satisfied: And it is well it is not. It may learn us also, weak creatures, as weak as water, ebbing and flowing, as the News is from the North, up-and down; as the means are in sight or as the Arm of flesh is before us, so we rise or fall; It may learn us after so many experiences of the commings-in of God unto us, to do dontrary to what we have done, to put little or no faith in the creature, all in God. Blessed be God, who does check our vain hopes for excellent purposes, to wind-up our hearts to Him; Indeed we do, what in us lies, to break our own Arm to pieces, by laying strength upon it, which it cannot bear, and not upon Him, who is Mighty: while we are so conceited of the Creature, that it can do so much, God can do nothing; But the Lord we hope has taught us now to look-up to Him, and there to rest, in expectation of all from Him; And now that we can do so, we can assure ourselves, that the LORD will use His precious servants in the North, and every where, and do great things (exploits) by their hands, for which His servants will give Him the glory; they know the cause is His, the Kingdoms His, the People His by Covenant; the Lord will work like a God now, as always He has done, for a people in covenant with Him. Amen.  
A. I know not what God will do in future times, what has He done at this Day? here you have made a long discourse concerning this and that, a third means, and a fourth, all tending to strengthen, and fortify a Nation, and a Person, and to tender them as a well of brass: See yourself speak! Are the Kingdoms strengthened? The one Kingdom is not, the other, this Kingdom, is torn to 
Hos. 5. 10.  pieces: God tears it like a lion, and seems to go His way; And Scotland scarce able to defend its self.  
B. O what love than have our brethrens, dear indeed, shown to us! To put their lives in their hands, that they might ●ave our lives; To come forth in such a season, that they might help us to quench the fire in our houses, when they have so much to do to defend their own houses! what love is this! But they are a people in Covenant with their God, and with His people: It is enough. But the Lord who returns a Dish of cold water, will return this love sure sevenfold into their bosoms, to them and to theirs, He will undertake for their Land too, Amen. To answer you now;  
1. I have indeed spoken, as I could, touching this and that, the third and the fourth means, mighty to posture and fortify Kingdoms, whether you respect the People or a Man only; These are mighty means and sufficient, God working with them, to bring to pass this glorious end: You cannot blame the means; how they are used, that is the question, which I will not resolve here. As was said of Scanderberges sword, It had done and would do great matters, but than Scanderberges Arm must set it on: So these things I have treated on will do great matters, but they must be well managed, and an Almighty Arm must accompany them; And this I will say more, that  
2. This posturing work, whether you respect a Nation or a man only, is a glorious work: See now, I pray you, what hinders and recards 
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. Niz. Ep. 100  this work! We expect Great and Glorious things, but not from the Great and Glorious God; we stand gazing upon the creatures-arme, and do departed from God Almighty; If the creature be weak, we are weak; if means are small, we are men of small hope; yet the Lord does weaken means, and check them, that men may know they are but men, not God; their horse's flesh and not spirit: He does make the means of small and of no account in our eyes, that He might greaten and heighten himself in all the people's sight; and yet (ah Lord!) how weak is our faith! we cannot get-up our dependence, to place it above, though there it never failed, was never disappointed.  
3. You say, Ireland is not (that is) it is wholly desolate 
a Jer. 50. 13. ; Grant that, yet God is just, for Ireland was wholly oppression 
b Jer. 6. 6. : There are great desolations, there were great abominations 
c Leu. 26.  amongst His own people there, it is Tabarah 
d Numb. 11. 3. ; The fire of the Lord burns there; Much scum is in the pot, very much dross there. But yet, I do not grant, that it is wholly desolate; there is a remnant there, and God is good unto them yet, even to the pure in heart; the LORD has indeed wounded Ireland with the wound of an enemy, with the chastisement of a cruel 
e Jer. 30. 14.  one: and for the multitude of their iniquities has the LORD done this, because their sins were increased: And yet the Lord says in the very same case; All this, the Lord has done to Ireland; is but a correction and in measure; He will not make a full end of His People: but He will make a full end of His adversaries (i e.) He will destroy them utterly, they shall be wholly desolate. The Lord is refining Ireland now, and, which is very comfortable, He sits as a Refiner 
f Mal. 3. 3. , that is, He sits by His people's furnace (of affliction) while they melt there, and will see to it, that their dross shall be consumed only, and not His people, they shall be purified; so than, Ireland is, and though she is but small and low, yet the great GOD that raiseth from the dead, can raise them again: It is a wilderness: Eden before, a wilderness now: Now I will up; says the LORD. They are as dried bones, can they live? We must not question it, life and spirit shall comein by the very same means, which the adversary and enemy has used for the driving-of all life and spirit out; By the cessation of Arms there, and calling-over those murderers bither; By these very means shall that people live: for never was it known from the beginning of days to this day, That man's very short Arm could outreach the ALMIGHTY'S ARM. And let me give you an account of my Faith touching this bleeding country of Ireland; I verily believe, that the Reserve, the Remnant of the LORD there, shall help to fulfil the prophecy, they shall help to reward her enemies double according 
Rev. 18. 6.  to their works. And the ground of my Faith is GOD'S Promise, They shall take them captives, whose Captives they were: 
Isai. 14. 2, 3. 4, 5.  and they shall rule over their oppressors. And it shall come to pass, etc. I pray you read it out, it is as comfortable for England brought to that condition now, that her people need comfort; now therefore they must read and consider such promises, which will be sweeter than Sugar kept under the tongue. To make answer now, as it relates to England.  
1. It is a torn Land indeed; Is that a wonder? Not, This is the wonder, that there is any whole part in all the Land.  
2. It is a torn Land, and the LORD has torn it; He tears, but 
Hose. 5. 14.  He does not go away; He stands by His torn pieces, they shall come together again, for the LORD will gatherthem, and unite them so, as they shall stand the firmer, and faster together for ever. The Lord's fire is in Zion, His furnace is in Jerusalem: The Lord will not leave His people there, He will stand by them, while they melt, nothing but the scum and dross shall goe-out; He is winnowing, cleansing His Church now, not the lest grain shall 
Amos 9 ●.  be lost.  
3. It is a torn Kingdom indeed, pillaged, peeled, rob, spoiled; Woe, woe, woe to him (he is many, a legion) that has done this, has torn, rob, spoiled his own Land; Hear what the Lord says, Thou shalt be cast-out like an abominable branch, Thou shalt not be joined with thy fathers in burial; because thou hast 
Isa. 14. 10.  destroyed thy Land, and slain thy people. The seed of evil doers shall never be renowned: O terrible! I proceed;  
4. All these tearers, and spoilers, and Robbers in the Kingdom, their strength and their power in themselves, and in their strong-holds, does but argue the difficulty of this posturing work; it does argue no more; And that is nothing, to dishonour, or discourage the work, but to honour the work very much, and to enliven and quicken the workers. Hell-gates stand wide-open now against this work; a clear argument that the work is of God, and the godly will proceed in it with the more courage and resolution; The Devil roots now, his servants rage, what will you conclude from thence? The 
a Gaudeo sic Satanam indignari & blasphemari quoties a me tangitur, Luther, 2 Epist. ad. Am●.  Devils are pinched now, his servants are 
a Gaudeo sic Satanam indignari & blasphemari quoties a me tangitur, Luther, 2 Epist. ad. Am●.  pricked at the heart 
b Quod signum misorie gloriae est omnes haeretici detestantur, Hier. Isa. 41. 10. , they gnaw their tongues now, because they see the breaches in Jerusalem's walls are making-up, the work must prospero; A wide door is opened, (that is,) the passage for the Gospel is widened more; you must expect as Paul said, many Adversaries, all the Devils in Hell, and in the air, and all his servants on earth. The difficulties in a work clear it to be of God; honours the work, and the workmen: I shall contribute more to this anon. I would conclude now with a word of comfort from God's mouth to His people in England, the City of God there, Fear not, fear not, [I know not how often it is repeated, for the securing and establishing of the Church.] O thou afflicted, tossed with tempests, and not comforted shall I say? Not, The Lord has comforted thee in thy greatest discomforts, in thy greatest agony He has strengthened and helped thee; thy punishment has been less, indeed, than thy sin; thy punishment is but a correction, indeed, and in measure: The Lord sits as a Refiver over thy furnace; lift up thy head now, thy redemption draws near, it is at hand, when the prey of the terrible ones shall be delivered, 
Isa. 49. 25, 26.  when thy mourners shall be comforted, when thou shalt see thy desire upon thine enemies, when the LORD shall give thee an EXPECTED END; A gracious promise. What end is that? 
Jer. 19 11.  A GLORIOUS END; His servants, who keep their watch, and to their work, have heard and known what end their LORD makes, cannot expect any other end, than glorious, from a GOD, so full of mercy and of glory. Certainly, the Lord will make a full end with His Adversaries now, His people shall see such a destruction all over the King's Army, as has not been yet seen, nor shall be the like unto it, till Gog and Magog be slain, the last enemies 
Eceeh. 35.  the Church shall meet with upon earth; and no sooner she meets with them, but she shall overcome them; presently upon sight of them, they shall see their carcases fall on the ground, not by the sword of a mighty man. The Church expects now the like confusion 
ver. 3. 4.  upon her adversaries, now her Lords men of war shall tender their adversaries double. It will be a glorious end to His people, who weight for Him; an end fare exceeding expectation, for the servants of the Lord will consider the way their LORD has walked-in before them all this while; His goings-out against their adversaries; His commings-in towards His friends, these have exceeded all expectation. Certainly the end will exceed much more; This is much to be considered on.  
1. The LORD has suffered the adversary and enemy to blow upon the backs of the righteous, and to make long furrows. True, but His people see with open face all this has been greatly conducing to a glorious end, the making fruitful the field of the Church. Our taskmasters have been many, their burdens and yokes grievous. These have been but outward, upon the body; the Lord has taken-off spiritual yokes, burdens of conscience, grievous to be borne, not a few: A mighty consideration, to assure His people, they shall have an Expected end.  
2. The Lord has indeed given His people the bread of adversity, and the waters 
b Isa. 30. 20.  of affliction: All this is grievous, yet not so grievous as this is comfortable, Thy teachers shall be removed into a corner not more: thine eyes shall see thy teachers. (I'll add,) and thy murderers, vile Prophets and Priests cast-out. An unspeakable mercy, Amen.  
3. The Lord has emptied our purses, taken from us (our superfluities, things that may be spared very well, snares unto us) our silver and our gold, He has lessened and cut-shorter our provisions we had made for the flesh: Well, and what if we never have such provisions any more, such full tables, such fine , etc. Surely the soul will be no loser by that; and we should count nothing a loss, whereby the soul is no loser: and nothing a prosperity, whereby the soul does not prospero. But what provisions has the LORD made for our souls? that is to be considered on, as matter of high praise. What if the LORD will bring famine upon the sword, which, when we look upon our sins, we may expect? What if He bring us to a morsel of bread, to make us look to our crumbs, which, in plenty we would not do; nor regard His example, Who could have multiplied every crumb into a loaf, yet would have the fràgments gathered-up, that nothing be lost: What if they, who far deliciously every day, be brought to 
* The poorest mercies have the richest thanks.  barley loaves, and two small fishes; This was the LORD CHRIST'S fare, and there is no mention of drink, says one, 
* Basil. Reg. tub. 18.  likely that was water; yet for this poor fare, in our account, the LORD of the creatures gave thanks: Why should the servant look to far better than his Master; it's enough for him to far as his Master, though his fare be course. So now, if the LORD should cut short our provisions, yet if we can remember, and be humbled, that in the days of plenty, we forgot the giver of all blessings, than we may see cause enough, to be thankful for our barley bread; and matter of abundant praise, that we are like to have plenty of the word of God; Want of bread makes a famine, as the saying is: But the scarceness of the word of GOD is the famine indeed. Brown bread and the Gospel is dainty fare, said he, who could prise that unestimable gift. God's people have the Gospel, and like to have it in abundance, and they have enough.  
4. And so to conclude, the ways of God have been mercy and truth towards those that fear Him; His servants may say, nay they do say, Whatever their Lord has taken from them of the earth, (of that, which is earthly) He has recompensed with Heaven, with that which is heavenly. A good exchange. Verily they can say, not a stroke the Lord has given, but it has been healing; not a wound He has made, but in mercy, and in measure: and if it has seemed deep, and wide open, it has been to search it to the bottom, and to expedite a perfect cure. Truly, the consideration is admirable; If the frowns from the Lord be comfortable, what will His smiles be? If the strokes from His hand be healing, what will the kisses from His mouth be! If His wounds be but a correction, and that in measure, what will the binding-up the breach be, and the healing of his stroke? how overslowing will be the cup of His consolation! If the way He has gone-in here before His people, be so full of grace; If the means He has used for the restauration of His Church, be so full of glory, what will the end be? An expected end sure (that is) a glorious end, which the glorious God will make. Not more is to be done now, by His poor servants, but do their duty, and their work, hearty, earnestly, servently; wait for GOD patiently, depend on Him faithfully, six upon Him steadfastly, keep close to Him, and to the Covenant resolvedly: Remember the LORD, Who is great and terrible; 
Neh 4. 14.  and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives, and your houses, We have entered into Covenant to do so, to standup for God, and to stand to our Covenant, that is all we have to do. I leave the Nation now, and come to the Man.  

§ VI Entering into Covenant with God, a mighty means to posture a man's self;  
And to tender him mighty, able to prevail with God, and over men: he walketh as a man in Covenant with his God, both ●●ome and abroad, above himself and the world; he is of much use to his private wealth, but of more use to the public.  
HE takes the same way still to posture himself, which the Worthies have taken in posturing the Kingdoms, he enters into Covenant too; But as hardly brought-up to it as the Kingdom was, with much ado, yet at length it is done; he had fasted, he had prayed, he had praised too, and the good word of GOOD was as a sword in his hand to slay those enemies, which would not have his Lord rule him: but till he had prayed and praised, I may add and preached himself into Covenant with his God, his enemies, self, self-will, self-reason, selfseeking, self-pleasing, that accursed person, and things returned upon him still, would force a reentry: Thus I say it was until he came-up to God fully and indeed, to enter Covenant with Him, & to keep unto Him, fully resolved with full purpose of heart to amend his ways, and cleave unto God: till he was resolved 
Acts 11. 23.  as Joshua was, who made his own heart the centre of Reformation, till he had so done, he had done nothing to purpose. I cannot set down here how often this man assayed at this Covenanting-work, nor the warpings of his spirit; as I cannot set down his failings and fall down, and up again: So, nor can I set-down the mournings of his spirit, for all this, and more than I can name; We shall hear of this anon; This is to benoted hence; that this Covenanting work is not a work of a day or two, nor an easy work. We suppose now the work is done, he is in Covenant with his God, and resolved with full purpose of heart to stand to it; he has laid his soul under sacred bands: and because his heart would startle-aside and draw-back, like an unruly heifer, he binds himself, as were the sacrifices, to the horns of the Altar, with sacred coards, faster and faster, with strong purposes and resolutions to hold fast to his rule and close to his God.  
A. But is all peace with this man now; finds he no molestation or trouble from his adverlaries, the Devil, world or flesh.  
B. Never more than now; As it fares with the Kingdom now, now it is entered Covenant with God, now the Devil roars, and his angel's rage, they proclaim war with it now, and vow to storm it every hour: So the Devil, world and flesh deal with this man now in Covenant with God, now Hell-gates are set wide open upon him: but through God, he shall be delivered from them all; his enemies would storm him and some ground they get upon him sometimes, and down he is, and when he gets-up he is tossed like a locust, rather like a Ship in a tempest; but this is his confidence, his Head is above, his Lord Christ is risen, therefore though he be stricken into the place of dragons, yet, when he is himself, and can consider wisely of God's do, he assureth himself, he shall rise the higher, the lower he is fallen; and so we will behold the safety, the security, the peace of this man; peace, peace, perfect peace, In war peace, in necessities and persecutions, peace; in sickness peace, in death peace, peace; But of this anon: he is as a die, a cube, a square body, throw him whether you will, into the place of dragons, if you can, you cannot-overthrow him, he stands still, firm in his faith, and strong in his God; This is he, that is as the chariots of Israel, and horsemen thereof; the chief Ammunition, the better part of a Kingdom's Artillery. This is he, that has chased a thousand, nay he has put ten thousand to flight, legions of Devils, all the Princes of darkness, Principalities and powers, the Prince that ruleth in the air, and mightily in the children of disobedience: All the fiery darts, from those adversaries, he has quenched; all that power, he has overpowred, in His strength, through Whom, he can do all things; And now for the world, he is at a point; the pleasures and profits there, do not take him, nor ensnare him; the changes of sorrows there, do not greatly move him, not so as to put him of from his bottom; He is rooted and established in Christ, nothing now can do him hurt, nothing falls out unto him as a plague; the hurt from the sword, the evil of the sickness, is taken away from him, he feels it not; And for the furious rage of his adversaries, he laughs at it, as he may do, who maintains his peace with God: They would storm him every day, but they cannot; he has chambers to enter-into where he is safe till the indignation be over; The adversary would cut of all succours from him from all quarterns; he mocks at them, and rejoiceth in the Lord, the God of his salvation; he has done his duty, which is his work, and is resolved still so to do; for the rest he is not careful, he commits all to God, soul and all, in well-doing; and now can stand still, waiting the salvation of God, with whom he is in covenant, to whom he has liftedup the hand, and subscribed his name: And for whom, the Lord now has liftedup His hand, that He will make-out unto this man, all Himself, (and all is in God) His Power for him, His Wisdom for him, all for him; God's Attributes all shall be laid-out for him, who will layout himself, all he has, and all he is; his estate, and his life, for God: All in God, and all is God, shall be laid out for this man, that will expend himself and be spent for God: the Angels also, these shall be his guard; all the creatures for his use and service; and for his head, an helmet of salvation now, and a crown of glory at the last; But this is reserved till the last.  
It may be said, these are but words, talk only and not more; We must see this man speak; he has lifted up his hand to the HIGH GOD we must see how he acteth with his hand; He hath spoken with his mouth, let us see how he fulfils with his hand; The meaning is, we must see how he lives: how lives he? Exactly according to God's rule; the word of God, that is his rule, and he drives-on mainly in all he does to the glory of God, that His God may be glorified, that is his end; he is not a talkative man, he is practical; he is not for words but for power 
a 1 Cor. 4. 19, 20.  he ponders his steps, than he walkes-on boldly, confidently, 
b prov. 10. 9 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It signifieth both the confidence or boldness, which men have, trusting in God and walking in his ways: and the safe and secure estate, wherein God setteth them from danger of evil. Mr. Ley.  for he walks uprightly, and does all things decently and in order: he spies narrowly into a Church way, for that is an holy way, and waits wisely their determination, whom, he himself amongst others, have chosen, and appointed to consult about that way: In the mean time he prays, hearty, and does his work earnestly, and spieth narrowly into the way of his own spirit, how suitable His spirit is to a Churchway, that holy way, and how becoming a Christian: and so his main work is, while others are about the public, with and about his own heart, that, it may be kept as the Temple of God, the Holy of Holies there; And about his own house, the ordering and settling of that in a Church way, that his house may be the Church there, which was the praise of them, whose praise is in the Gospel. And now he is in a Church way indeed; and if none will go along with him, he will go alone, for he knows he is in the right touching the ordering his own heart, and his own house in a Church way sure, for he centres all, he has liftedup his 
* There is the neglect, the Lord discover it to Cities and Countries all the Land over.  hand unto, in his own heart, which he makes the centre of Reformation, and so goes on orderly, he with his household, and than to the house of GOD, where, doubtless, he can order things if he be called to it, even in a Church way as in his own house, decently and in order: but we look upon him in his own house, where he is a chief Parliament man, the chief Ruler and Speaker therein; His care is to walk in a Church way there, he walks after inward gracious principles, he strives not after outward privileges: and so his example reproves many in these days, who neglect their own houses altogether, and yet contend for a Church way; A notorious failing, and the less excusable, because they are so forward for a Church way, and go cross to it in their own houses. This man not so he is precise and exact in his walking amidst his house, as becometh a man whose vows are upon him; he falls to his work, and to his proper work, he hath an offic● and he waits upon it: he knows his station, and keeps to it; his Relation, and he answers it (a man is not good who is not good in his Relation) he walks in 
3 Joh 4.  Truth, and he doth faithfully whatever he doth to them within, or those without, to brethrens or to strangers; If he ruleth, he doth it 
ver. 5.  with diligence, and with tenderness, respecting not his but their good, whom he is set over, not yours but you, his standing Rule. 
Rom. 12. 8.  Whatever his relation is, he stands bowing himself to it, and to answer it fully; if a Father, a faithful father; if a master, a faithful master; if a servant, as sure enough he is, how high soever he is in the world, a faithful servant; he giveth all diligence, he useth all faithfulness; The sum is, he seeks not his own (as all do, and so all goes to ruin) but the things, which are JESUS CHRIST'S 
c Phil. 2. 22.  he stands like a stock holding the balance, which way the public. weigheth he goes; his thoughts cannot stoop any other way; he is in his house as the ship Admiral to the other ships, he carries the lanthorno, he shines before his children, and servants, conversing graciously with, and before them, holding out a light unto them by his conversation amidst of them.  
But what service does he for the public? A great deal; not one man in the world more than he, because he is so much at home, and where ever he is, communing still with his own heart; he is a great enemy to GOD'S enemies, the rebels now in the Land: But a greater enemy, if greater may be, to the Rebellion in his own heart, or that he meets with from those God has made him Ruler over, and chief Overseer; The Rebellion there vexeth him most, for that, he knows, grieveth the Spirit of his God most of all. Therefore his chief care is now to search his own tent, his heart, his house; knowing very well, that if there he any stop in the Church's victories, the cause is, some accursed things not discovered in the Church's Tents. And this he would have wisely considered-on by the Commanders in chief and Leaders after them, and by every common soldier that follows them. That their chief enmity might be exercised against that enmity which is in their own hearts and tents, against God and His pure Worship: That they would contend most eagerly against the Rebellions there, for this will give the clearest testimony, whether their hatred of Rebels, and this (highest) Rebellion now in the land, be a right hatred; and whether the desire of having the land purged of them be a right desire. If a Man's spirit be not most liftedup with indignation against the Rebellions in his own heart, whether thoughts or idols there; his boastings are vain, and his attempts likely to be as vain, touching the casting-forth the Rebels out of the land. This is the way this good Soldier takes, his complaints are most against the rebellions within doors; and as his chief hatred is against them, so also his chief hatred, and firstborn of his strength is against this or that, which is an offence to his GOD, and to cast that out, and so he becomes a very public person, a good part of the Kingdom's Militia, as the Chariots of Israel and the horsemen thereof, as was said. Indeed he is all for the Public, and no body for himself; but yet, that it may far well with the Public, he deals and communes most with himself, and his own heart, the rebellions there troubles him most; and if there be a discomfiture given to the Armies of the Lamb, or a check to the proceed in the Church-affaires, and her concernments, he thinks verily the rebellions within caused all this, Israel's tents were not well searched, the accursed thing is not found out, therefore this man prieth and spyeth most at home; and is not so desirous to have the plagues removed (the sword, famine, pestilence, 
Ezek. 14. 21.  noisome beasts) as those sins removed, which furbished the sword of God and Man, let lose those beasts, gave them a commission, and bade them slay and not spare, [Sa●bath-breaking, strange vanities before the eyes, idols in the heart, daughters of a strange god, the blood of the innocent shed; and not required, bearing with those that are evil, which a good Church cannot do 
b Rev. 2. ●. ;] these he would have removed. A woeful mercy to have a judgement removed from a land, and the sin that brought it in to continued upon it. It is not a remove, it is but an exchange of a lighter judgement for an heavier; as it was with Sodom, the Sword was removed, Abraham delivered them from that, but fire from Heaven consumed them afterwards, because (that sin) continued and increased in them to a greater flame, so as they were consumed in a proportionable punishment, fire from Heaven consumed them, and their city, who were consumed in the fire of their own lusts: If sin, which causeth the judgement be not removed, there can be no remove of a Judgement, but an exchange only, and for the worse ever, and more grievous to the body; or which is worst of all, the judgement may be taken of from the body, and laid upon the heart and soul, and that is a judgement indeed, the nearest on earth to the suburbs of hell; blindness of mind, hardness of heart: so as men commit sin with greediness, and are past feeling, can pretend a care of grieved consciences, when their own are seared with an hot iron, and as hard as the neither Millstone. I conclude, This man prayeth, Remove the judgement, good LORD, from of the Nation: but in mercy, remove our sins first, else a worse thing follows, which GOD forbidden. We have seen what this man is at home in his Closet, and amidst his household; what abroad in the world; what in his private house; what in the house of God; what he is for his private wealth, what for the Common; he is good at all times, in all places; does good to all, what he can do, hurt to none, though in the power of his hand so to do: he prospers in all things, for his soul prospen, and so he would have all to prospero. Amen.    

CHAP. VII. Mistakes about a Parliament,  
That one is not a mistake, but a blasphemy; what our mistakes or of n●es are, and how corrected; what a Parliaments defence is, what their work, and what the mistakes touching that work.  
THe Parliament cannot rise higher, nor do more for themselves and the Kingdoms than they have done, for they are come-up to GOD, they have made themselves the LORDS Parliament; and the people the LORDS people by covenant. They have no more to do but consider well, what they have done; and to stand to it. We have read before how the holy Covenant is gainsaied, opposed, blasphemed; now I come to the Covenanters; The chief and Leaderson to this sacred work are the Parliament, and see what a mistake there is about them, they are counted no Parliament or but a pretended one, and that is as good as none. The Adversaries and enemies are willingly and wilfully mistaken sure, 
(1).  they take themselves, an Assembly of Robbers in Oxford, for a Parliament: And the convention of Princes, Nobles and Worthies in Westminster, for a pretended Parliament: so they seem to take it. A mistake shall I call this? well, let it go; But if it be a mistake, it is as wilful a mistake as ever was heard of in the world, and as full of malice. For my part whatever I call it, a mistake, or the like, I must think it to be, and it shall be proved to be, a blasphemy, and that in an high degree, a blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, for this is the case, and thus it is opened and cleared. The Parliament have put-to all their shoulders to exalt the Lord Christ upon His Throne in heaven (the Church:) and to set their King upon his His Throne on earth: never any Parliament have done like them, for they have endeavoured their utmost to take away the wicked from before the King, 
a Prov. 25. 5.  to hold and to keep him in the Throne of God, that he might be a King for God, rule for Him, do Justice and Judgement to all His people; and so to settle a Right Sceptre in His hand, and 
Psal. 45. 6.  a Crown upon his head, that it might stand fast there, till the appointed time, and than but exchange it neither, a crown of earth for a crown of glory; And in so doing they have said to their King Indeed and in Truth, O King live for ever; the eternal GOD be thy Refuge, and underneath the everlasting Arms; Thrust out the enemies from before thee, and destroy them: Thus have the Parliament wrought, and endeavoured for their King; God, Angels and men are witnesses of this, the Parliament call all these to record with them touching this matter.  
They in Oxford (an Anti-parliament indeed) have done all contrary, cross and against their KING in heaven, and their king on earth; Dethrone their LORD CHRIST they cannot; but they have dethroned their King on earth, they have cast-him out of the Throne of God; They have driven him out from abiding in the in-heritance of the Lord; They have set him up a Throne at Oxford, put a reed into his hand, I say, a reed, (a Sceptre of unrighteousness, which will pierce his hand and his heart:) and in truth, a crown of thorns upon his head, which so vex and trouble him night and day, that he can have no quiet. It must be so, Every thing has rest in its proper place, out of that place, and no rest; The King is out of his place, and now the Adversary drives him-on in the path of the destroyer up to the horses bridle in blood, so furiously, that the Adversaries suffer him not to stand still and consider, that the Angel's sword is before him, for if they would suffer him to consider, he would say as Balaam did, If it displease Thee, LORD, I will get me back again. 
a Numb. 22. 34.  Displease the Lord! The Lord is infinitely displeased with him, He is angry with him every day. And see now the King's condition, how miserable it is! He, that had GOD, and His Law for him, while he sat in God's Throne, has now all against him, GOD and all; his Anti-parliament has exposed their king naked, and shelterlesse to all the spouts of God's indignation, and vials of His wrath: His person is indeed fallen into the hands of Thiefs, and Robbers, they have taken him, from his God, and his God from him; They have taken from him his people's hearts too, The Lord give him to see what his adversaries have done against him, and discover this their iniquity to his soul.  
2. The Parliament have done those works for God, for His Church, for the promoting of God's Kingdom, which were not possible to be done by mere men, or men alone, not working with God all this time and God with them. The Anti-Parliament have done all they could do, to promote Popery, to bring the land under an Antichristian yoke and an Egyptian Tyranny, according to the effectual working of Satan in them, and with them all this while. From these premises it is concluded from the sacred Scripture, that to 
Matt. 12. 24. Joh. 15. 24. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. sil. Regul. hreus. 273. Works live clear Testimony Joh. 10. 25, 37. Isai. 30. 12. Psal. 62. 3.  call this no Parliament, or that in Oxford a Parl. is a blasphemy against the holy Ghost. The Reason is, Because it is To deny the fruits of the Spirit in men, the operations of God's Hand with and toward His servants: and to attribute these to the Devil and His Angels. The servants of the Lord will leave this— to the Lord, let Him alone to punish this, They have committed themselves, and their Righteous Cause unto the Righteous Lord; the Judge of all the world will do right: The Adversary shall proceed but a little farther, for their folly is manifest unto all men. Doubt it not, Reader, thou shalt see with thy eyes this Anti-Parliament confounded in their own ways, for they trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon; Its stands now as a bowing wall and tottering sense; its breach shall come suddenly at an instance, for the Lord shall break it as the breaking of the Potter's vessel, so he will break it to 
Isai. 30. 13.  pieces, and will not spare: The Lord is gracious; He has passed-over mistakes, such as we shall read of presently, and corrected them; But this blasphemy, etc. For now the Lords best servants and most loyal subjects are called Rebels, and Traitors: And they that are so indeed, Robbers and Murderers, Mighty hunters before the Lord, these are called Marquesses, Earls, Lords, Knights, and Doctors of Divinity; The more vile and treacherous they are, the more honourable and dignified they are: The Lord has heard this blasphemy, He looks upon it, He will require it. I will close this with two consectaries. The first is,  
1. That the Covenant is of God, for Hell is moved at it, all the Irish Rebels, and English Monsters are grieved and have indignation against it: Therefore Holy, and of God, else their hearts could not abominate it.  
2. For the Covenanters, they shall lift up their faces without spot, they shall be steadfast and shall not fear: The LORD shall clear their innocency: their upright dealing shall shine forth as the morning. But the eyes of the wicked shall fail, and they shall not 
Job 11. 10.  escape; and their hope shall be as the giving-up of the Ghost. Amen.  
Sober men have been mistaken and offended here also, almost as much about the Parliament, as the Barbarians were about Paul, 
(II.)  now he was a murderer, presently after he was a god: It is an 
Acts 28.  hard matter to keep a mean betwixt too much and too little; good men fall sometimes upon the extreme; But it is upon some sudden suggestion, they are quickly from-off-it again: we will see now what the mistakes have been; what has caused them, and how corrected.  
1. It has been some offence of heart unto some (for a little time) to see a rebellious, stiffnecked people fight themselves into slavery, servants that will not be made free; than also (for I must huddle) to see a viperous generation of men sticking fast upon the hand of the Parliament: An offence indeed, to see the Worthies of the Lord waste out themselves, their time, and their spirits (if I might call it a waste) to make us freeman, free in the Lord: and, us again so requiting the Lord and them: and to hung upon their hands some of us, as vipers upon Paul's hand. Settled and serious thoughts have corrected and removed this offence, considering  
●. That this was the measure, which was meated forth unto the Lord Christ Himself; He came amongst His own, they received Him not; He wrought wonders amongst them, they regarded them not; He would have made them freemen, they would not, they were free already, nor did they so much as thank Him; how high their wrath reached we all know: And that they quitted Barrabas and condemned Jesus; there is nothing now that is new, I can give but an hint only, and more needs not. 2. Considering that it is the best sign of a good cause to see evil men, Papists and Atheists, all the Christian world over, contending against it: And of a good Parliament to see a viperous generation, an Anti-Parliament, sticking upon their hands, stinging of them, fight with them, setting themselves in a Diametrical opposition unto them. Moore considerations there are, but these may take of that mistake.  
2. It was an offence of heart at first, to see so many on the King's side; to follow-on in a direct path to ruin; This offence was taken away by considering: 1. That when Leaders and Captains drive-on furiously in the path of the Destroyer, others will drive after 
2 Sam. 31. 5.  as furiously as they; We know who fell upon his own sword, which his Armour-bearer seeing, he fell likewise upon his sword 
2 Chron. 12. 1.  and died with him; And that Rehoboam forsaking the Lord, all Israel forsook the Lord with him. 2. It was remembered also, That not many nobles, not many wise stand on Gods-side, and up for Him; Not, the fewest and the poorest in the world: so it has been, and if it be so now, it should be no offence; Saul, who persecuted David with open face, and in a clear light, had almost as many 
3 Sam. 24. 2.  thousands with him, as David had hundreds, and those chosen men out of all Israel (that is) valiant, stout, well-appointed, and fit for war: David, that stood up for his own defence against an enraged King, had but an handful of men, and those most of them in distress, 
4 Sam. 22. 2.  and in debt, and discontented. This consideration resolves its self into this conclusion, That a murderer may have thousands on his side, all choice men (I mean, right and fit for war:) and a faithful servant of the Lord may have few on his side, nay none that look after him; This was David's case, yea, the Church's case, just; her adversary called her an Out-cast, saying, This is Zion whom no man seeketh after; No man: so it may be with the Church and 
Jer. 30. 17.  people of God, and yet the Church still, and a very clear evidence that she is the Church, whom God looks after and seeketh after; Therefore is she called Sought out 
b Isa●. 62. 12. : It is not the Church's case now, the Lords Name be praised; many Noble, many wise, many learned are on the Church's side now; even all the truly noble, truly wise, and learned throughout the three Kingdoms do now appear on the Church's side, as they did for David after God had cleared His upright dealing as the noon day, and humbled him. But this is not the distinguishing mark; as not whereby to know Saul from David; so nor whereby to know which is the Parliament indeed; not by the number of nobles and worthies, [unless (as now) toward the latter end, after God has cleared His Church's cause, emptied His servants hearts, made them know (the difference betwixt) the service of a Parliament, and the service of an 
2 Chro. 12. 8.  Anti-parliament, as the Lord says, in the like case:] but this is the infallible mark, observe to which Assembly or Parliament the Edomites, Adversaries of Judah, all the Papists in the world join themselves: This observation never fails. True it is, men in distress, and in debt, may join themselves to the Parliament (though not one for a hundred such, who are joined to the other side.) But these Edomites, Irish and English murderers, never come-up to the Parliaments side, not one of them, unless as Doeg came to the house of Abimelech, to get advantage against David, and to hasten destruction upon Israel: Observe than to which side these Edomites are joined, English and Irish Monsters, and this will clear that mistake, none like it.  
3. It was a great offence to hear both parties protest the same thing, To be for GOD, for the true Religion; for the Rights and liberties of the subject: And it is an offence of heart, and staggers some at this day, To hear the King, seduced by his Anti-Parliament, protesting and declaring all this, and commanding it to be read in all his Churches on the LORDS Day. What? That they seek peace, and pursue it: and are stout and resolute for the defence of the true Religion, Laws and Liberties of the Kingdom: and they say, harken all ye people, for they will have their loyal and lawful intendments, made known and declared to the people in that very place, where the Oracles of God should be declared: Indeed this has been an offence to some, and may stagger simple ones at this day. But the wise in heart were never offended at it, for they considered, first,  
1. That truth was never opposed, Religion never persecuted, but under the vizor of truth, and semblance of Religion: nor ever were the Laws and liberties of the Kingdom, and of the Church of Christ oppressed, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, as we say, with a bore head, but under a Cap of Maintenance, (that is) under a pretext, To maintain all Laws, liberties, Religion, and all: In nomine Domini incipit omne malum, an old Proverb, and an old device of the Devil; his Pope began just so long ago, By the grace of Almighty God, and His Authority entrusted to me, I will; what will he do? or what did wise men expect would follow those premises? Omne malum, all the mischief that he could do, an utter subversion, as power was in his hand, of all the Laws, Rights, liberties of Christ's Kingdom. I could tell the reader, and assure him, that the most abominable heresies, horrid iniquities, all these came-in under a Cap of Maintenance, to defend and maintain their contraries. It must needs be so, else it were not possible that the adversary could prevail; he must not tell the people, that he will take away their Rights and liberties (Religion is the lest of the people's thoughts,) and make them slaves: If the Devil should say so, he would have no subjects; Not, he must transform himself, and his ministers into Angels of light; he must tell the people by the mouths of his Ministers in the Churches, as Absal●m did, just so, ye shall have justice now 
a 2 Sam. 1●. 4, 7, 8. ; and that they may be assured of it, he must tell them, he has vowed a vow unto the LORD, and he must pay it; and than Absolom struck at David's Crown. This is a prime consideration, and of large use, the sum thereof is this; They, who will make work for Friars in England, setup Popery here, must do as the Friar does, shave his head, but he puts on his cap, that all the world may not know him to be a bald— So he, who would make work for Mass Priests, now must put-on a Cap of Maintenance; he must seem to maintain all that he has a mind and full purpose to destroy; Rights, Laws and liberties of the Kingdom, Religion and all: Let the wise in heart consider;  
2. That this proffer of defence and semblance of maintenance, as aforesaid, is old and rotten, it is become very unsavoury now; They remember very well, that the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin offered fair this way, their service to the bvilders, and reformers, the Worthies in Parliament at Jerusalem; We will build with you, said they, for we seek your God as ye do; and we 
Compare Ezra 4. 2. with a King. 17. 29, 33.  do sacrifice unto Him ever since the time; what time? If we compare Scripture with Scripture, we shall know what worshippers they were, by their own confession; ever since they could make gods of their own, fear the LORD and serve those gods, ever since. There are the same offers tendered now to the Parliament, the same protestations made now; they are rejected with the same disdain now as than, you have nothing to do with us to build, we ourselves together will do our work, and serve the LORD. So these adversaries were answered than, and so now; and than it follows as it now does, what the aduersaries of Judah 
ver. 3, 4. Psal. 9 16. Rem meditan dam summ●.  did to weaken the hands of the people, and to trouble them in building. Higgaion Selah this, a matter that has been very much meditated upon, and now cleared.  
True: The wise in heart may be resolved here, and cleared, but how shall the common-people be resolved at this point; When they hear these offers and undertake for the defence of their Laws and liberties declared unto them in their Churches, they must needs think all this to be as true as the Gospel: for nothing, they think, but truths are declared there, so they think, do they not?  
Not; they cannot think so now; they have been used to such Declarations; The King (so we were persuaded) would have his Declaration touching the sanctification of the LORDS Day, with Minstrels and May-games, this he would have read in his Churches, and his legit ut Clericus, his Ministers did read it Clarke-like: But that all the Christian world might know how abominable that Declaration was, which yet was declared to the people from the mouth of his Ministers, in his Churches, the servants of the Lord adjudged it to the fire, to be put thereinto by the 
June, 1643.  hands of the common Hangman, which was done.  
There was another Declaration, and the King commanded it to be read in his Churches, by his Ministers, to his people; And so it was, That the LORDS best servants and most loyal subjects were Traitors and Rebels all. But see the turn and tides of things, that year, and the year after, [Indeed as wonderful, as was the turning of Jordan back, for according to that time it must be said, What has the LORD done?] The Tables were turned, than, and the Images broken to pieces there; and the next year after, there, at the same Desk, and by the same Minister, these Traitors and Rebels before, must be declared to be, as indeed they are, the Kings most loyal and best subjects: The people cannot be deceived now, with the King's Declarations, quaere peregrinos vicinia rauca reclamat; If the King's Ministers will have his Protestations and Declarations to be received and credited, they must sand them over to the remotest Lands, where the inhabitants are wholly ignorant, what servants, ministers, instruments, the King has and works-by: where the people never heard, nor saw, nor felt what their— actions are. Indeed the people of England are sottish and brutish enough, for the mostpart our Pastors are such: But the King's party must not think, that we have neither eyes, nor ears, nor any other faculty, whereby we understand the incoherence, inconsistency and disagreement of things; we can hear what is spoken, and we do see what is done: and we see, how contrary words and actions are one to the other. Nay though 
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, etc. Basil. Ep. ● 2.  the Devil has possessed some of us, made us blind and dumb, we can neither see, nor speak, nor hear, yet we have one sense which will never leave us till we die; we can feel. And now, though we have no more sense of Religion than our brutish Pastors and vile Priests have, yet from this sense we conclude, first, 1. That Papists openly so or in heart, will not maintain the Protestant Cause, for they have burnt the Protestants in the fire: nor will they, at this time, edify and build-up the house of GOD, whatever they will have declared to the walls there; for they have set our houses on fire over our heads, and threaten us yet more. 2. That the adversaries of Judah will not become friends now, unless for advantage; that they, under colour and semblance, and show of friendship, may worke-out the subversion of Judah. 3. That robbers, spoilers, murderers, will not defend our Laws, just rights and liberties, for we feel what they have done against us, like evening wolves, they have destroyed all where their foot could come, they have made our Eden, and garden of the LORD, as a wilderness: Our sense has told us, these men, rather beasts-likemen, have done like themselves, as saith the Proverb of the ancients, wickedness proceedeth from the wicked man: And whatever 
1 Sam. 24. 13.  their Declarations are to the Churches and people there, yet they will do as always they have done, who are men full of all subtlety, and all mischief; children of the Devil; enemies of all righteousness, that will not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord. Lastly, As we are quick to feel where we are pinched, so we have a little understanding (so much as our children have, for that sufficeth) to know, which party, the Kings or the Parliaments, does wrong us, does make us smart; we can judge of works and of works, what the King's party does, and what the Parliaments party; what are the undertake of the one, and what of the other: One scruple there is, and that troubles some of us, not a little.  
A. The King, by his evil Counsellors, hath forced an Oath upon us, and now we have taken it, we think we are bound to stand unto it, as you to your Covenant.  
B. Not, for so you are able to resolve yourselves. You have so much understanding, you say, as to judge betwixt works and works, what are agreeable and correspond with Law and right reason, what are contrary to both. The judgement is as easy betwixt Oath and Oath, Covenant and Covenant: The Parliament have sworn and must not repent to maintain the Rights of their LORD Christ, and of the Lord their King; The privileges also and just liberties of their subjects all. The other side, a contrary party, have sworn clean 
Salu. de gub: lively 4. 135, 136. Per Christum, quia tollo illu●s per Christum, quia o●oido illum. Rem ac substantiam.  contrary to all the forementioned, and must repent or perish for ever. Now judge you of your Oath, whether you must stand to it or not, after I have told you what Salvian tells me, which is this, There are some men such sinners, so abominable, That they will swear by the Lord Christ, that they will spoil & rob His subjects, yea, & kill them too. I'll tell you how I was answered th'other day, by a Lordlike oppressor, who had ground the face of a poor man, my neighbour, turned him (as the good Ministers now adays are turned) out of all, took from him all his livelihood. The poor man entreats me to entreat for him, I did; Sr, said I, deal not so unjustly in taking away this poor man's livelihood, you have taken away, his life 
a Deut. 24. 5. Quicquid hominis vitam ex necessitate tolerat. Vibrant in os meum truces oculos juravi inquit. etc. Quid ampli●● sacerem? Discessi.  This Lord bend his brow upon me, and looked fierce like a lion, than told me, He must do as he had done, and must not do otherwise. Why must you not? I replied; And he to me, By the Lord Christ I'll do it, for by Him I have sworn. Ah Lord! The man is beside himself, stark mad. I'll speak not more to him, so I departed. Here is a clear case, I have done: so much to remove the mistakes about the Parliament, the taking of the offence, if any be, against their Persons.  
There is some mistake about their defence, that that does consist 
(III.)  in numbers of men, and strength of ammunition, walls, gates, and bars. Indeed this is a defence very considerable, and when the Lords time is come (it is at hand) and His servants 'cause fully tried (as Davids was) than the North shall give-in to His Church's help, and the South shall not keep-back; East and West will standup; every man will stand upon his own guard, without taking gain of money 
a Judg. 5. 19 . But this we reckon not upon as a defence to be leaned upon; These are but the small feathers of God's protection; the great out-spreadig wing, as the out-spread firmament of His Power, is the LORD GOD Himself with His Twenty thousand 
b Psal. 68 17. 2 Kin. 6. 17.  Charets, even thousands of Angels, the Lord among His people, as in the holy place: He is the Defence of His people, even all those that are, and seek His Glory; the Lord is their Defence, or He creates a Defence upon His Assemblies, all the Glory 
c Isai. 4. 5. ; His defence is a created defence; it defended His servants when their Soul lay among lions, amongst those, that 
d Psal. 57 4.  were set on fire with rage, yet defended; how they were defended they cannot tell, but they were defended, A created preservation is above man's apprehension. But so the servants of the Lord may know themselves to be the Glory, the Assemblies of the Lord; and therefore nothing can dismay them; when it is said, this strong-hold is lost, and that town gone, yet the Parliaments strength fails not, it is not gone, for GOD is not gone, that strong-hold continues, even God in His holy place, an EVERLASTING 
e Isai. 26. 4.  STRENGTH, and that is a sure ground of EVERLASTING CONFIDENCE. God is all, and always works most gloriously than, when He works alone, when the Creature is gone, and the proud helpers do stoop under Him 
f 1 Job 9 13. , than He works like a God. Never so for his adversaries; (that is) He never wrought for them with an Arm made bore of flesh: His Arm has wrought for His Adversaries, but still He hath clothed it with flesh, and they have called flesh their Arm; and given it all the glory. The conclusion is, the Adversaries defence is of their own making, or but imagined. The Parliaments defence is created, so wonderful, that it is above apprehension. God is called their Defence, their strong Tower, a Refuge for His Servants, therefore GOD with His people will answer all objections against them, Remember the Lord, who is great, there is the defence, none such, 
Neh. 4. 14.  the Rock, not like the adversaries rock, the enemies themselves being Judges; under this defence, the shadow of this great Rock, march you on-ward, Ye Worthies of the Lord, be not afraid of your adversaries, Remember the Lord, who is great and terrible: and fighe for your brethrens, your sons, and your daughters; your wives, and your houses. Spare them not, for they will not spare you, and fear that the Lord will not spare you neither, if you spare them; God has commanded, Be zealous for Him, as Phineas was, 
Numb. 24. 8.  smite those adversaries as Phineas did, and than expect the plague will cease: And so I come to the last thing in proposition, the work of a Parliament, and to clear the mistakes about that work; what the work is first, though I think, the Malignants are not so brutish as to question it.  
1. Their work is, the setting-up every thing in its place; the 
FOUR  LORD CHRIST upon His Throne above in His Church; His Deputy the King upon His Throne below; Religion in its place, and the Law in its place, (which must do us Right when the King will not,) that's the work, to give 
* Inventae sun● leges cum ab uno viro, etc. Cic. ossic.  the Kings of Heaven what belongs to Him, and His King on earth what belongs to him; his Prerogative its length, and the subjects Privilege its Right, that the King and his good people may rejoice together, and not, as it has been, when the King and his Favourites, sat drinking, that is, rejoicing; the City of God, his people there were in perplexity, (i e.) sat mourning: Not, the Parliament must endeavour, as they can, that all may rejoice together, or all mourn together; there is harmony, a good consent and agreement, befitting still a Christian King, and a Christian people. This is the work of a Parliament; they would have it understood of all, it is to reform things out of order in Church and State, and set them to rights, that there be a good understanding betwixt the King and people. In a word, it is called a work of Reformation.  
Sober men are mistaken here also, and in an extreme still; sometimes they see obstructions like mountains in the way of Reformation, and than they think, It is a work will never be done, the child of Reformation will stick at the birth still: Than again, they see the mountains made a plain, than they think the work will be done presently: th●se are hasty thoughts, which men making haste, are full-of. Sober men see the vanity of these thoughts quickly, and as quickly correct themselves and their roving thoughts with perfect and settled thoughts, as these, and so they come-off from the first extreme considering,  
1. That we expect now a manchild to be borne (i e.) a complete Reformation: The sober man must think now and settle upon the thought, that the production and bringing forth of a natural birth into the world (whereto nature is so helpful) is the wonderful work of God, and ascribed to His Hand. Nature indeed travels hard, and many throes she makes, as if she would throwout all her spirits, and strength, and breath at one cast: And yet, when nature has done all she can, to her utmost, she cannot outact herself, there the child sticks at the birth, and there it must stick, till an Almighty Hand fetcheth it forth, not the midwives; Not, Thou art He that tookest me out of my mother's womb, says David. That Deliverance he ascribes to God; and it assures him for the time to come, that he shall be delivered in his greatest straits, for so he comforteth himself (I'll note it by the way) against his jeering adversaries, David trusted on the Lord, said they, that He would deliver 
Psal. 22. ●.  him let the Lord deliver his servant now, seeing He delights in him. So the Lord will, says David, and he thinks his adversaries are mad to think the contrary; But how is David assured, that the Lord will help him out of those straits? Yes, the Lord will deliver me, says he, and he is assured, for the LORD delivered me in greater straits than these, when I was in my mother's womb, straits indeed, He took me out thence, says David; the sober man considers this with all his heart, and  
2. If such an Agony, so much trouble, and so many throws before a manchild be borne, he considers what an Agony there must be, what throws, what contentions, what strive, before a NATION be borne, before Zion brings forth her children! Ah Lord! but I must suppress my meditations, an hint must satisfy: Only the sober man wisely considers this with it,  
3. That it is now as once it was, the adversary has stood before 
Rev. 12. ●.  the Church all this while she has been in travel, and ready to be delivered, to devour her children so soon as they be born; and now that they are borne, and secured by the LORD Himself, and carried as upon Eagles' wings, strongly, swiftly out of his reach, yet the adversary stands watching his advantage, and if his hands cannot reach these children, yet his mouth shall; for now also, as in former times, he has cast-out of his mouth water as a stood after the 
ver. ●5.  Church, that he might 'cause her to be carried away with the flood: thus the man considers, and  
4. That the servants of the Lord have taken the readiest way that could be taken (a way that never failed, it cannot fail now, whereof before) to mid-wife-forth this Birth; And how wonderfully they have wrought with God, and God with them, is now the wonder of all the Christian world: We have had wonderful Births, I have not a fit word, for the Almighty's Hand has brought themforth, and the longer they stuck at the womb, the more complete they were. But it is said, the MANCHILD is not borne yet, (i e.) the work is not completed, though man has wrought with God all this while, and GOD with man, which made sober men think that the work would be speedy, and sudden. These were as hasty thoughts as the other were distrustful, and in another extreme. Thus they are corrected by considering first.  
1. The instruments or means God works by; By men most times, I need not add, weak, for man implies it; though he may stand for a thousand in our choice, yet he must not stand so in our account; Man is but a cipher indeed, and standing alone he is nothing So one of the best and ablest men of the world, has accounted himself 
a 2 Cor. 12. 1●.  nothing; not to be accounted of: And so are we to accounted of him also, Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostrils, for wherein is he to b● 
b Isai. 2. 22.  accounted of? It would be well with us i● we of low degree could look upon men of high degree, and they upon themselves as Nothings, for than they and we would labour to bring-downe GOD unto men, and to carry-up our spirits unto God, to six upon Him steadfastly, and so our spirits would be more constant and settled, we should be able to stand still (which now we cannot do,) and wait the salvation of God: As for men whether low or high, they are all the sons of men (i e) Nothings, vanity, No trust to be put in them; God only is all, and does all, and as He lets forth Himself to His creature, or withholds His hand, so His creature is and acteth; If we think that men can do any thing of themselves, than we think of them above what is meet: But if God will join himself to men, (those Ciphers,) as he has done, and is pleased to do, than one man is an hundred quickly, and ten a thousand.  
You will say now, why are not things done suddenly as we expected? why is not Reformation completed? There is mighty reason for that; though God joins His hand to man's hand, yet He goes His creatures pace, slowly but surely: He works as a God, and His works are discerneable; But men work as men; though they go GOD'S way, yet they walk their own pace. And see in passage the goodness of their God, He does account of men as workers together with him; He will go with them their pace, do their work for them, and yet deal with them, as they with their little children, let them take the honour of the work, which He has wrought: But wo● unto them now, if they so requited their LORD, not ascribing to Him all the glory. Let us looke-over the register of God's works, which He has wrought by men, or which men have wrought, these three last years, working with God. I see my work growes-bigge under my hand: seeing I have not ●●e skill to lessen it, and yet have shortened my meditations, let me greaten and heighten the work with the great and high works of the Lord; who ever was the instrument, God wrought them; I'll be as quick, in recording them, almost, as is a thought; and yet the reader's understanding shall go along with me, if he has laidup these works and pondered them in his heart.  
The first work in sight (after they had made their prayer and supplication to their God, to bring Him down to them and their work) was the opening the prison doors to the righteous, and shutting them upon the ungodly ones. Than the wicked did ●●ee as before an earthquake, for the wrath of the Lord pursued them. Than yokes were taken of the necks, and burdens from of the shoulders. The Bishops were choked with their own Oath, the fire coming from themselves consumed them, and their own lips swallowed them up, as the lips of fools: Than they were 
Eccles ●0. 1●.  heaved-at, as the stomach heaves at some indigested bits, to castthem-forth, but nature was not yet strong enough; Than there was an heaving again and again, and yet it would not do: but they were heaved-off from their strong foundation. Than a trieniall Parliament; and a long Assize. Than a Protestation was entered into, for God wrought with men. Than a great Champion, that had set his foot upon Church and Commonwealth, was cutshort by the head: Than the bloody Inquisition, High-commission and Star-chamber Courts were taken away, those snares were broken. Than a breach was made-up, which the adversary would have made wide as the sea, and a Pacification, etc. O Lord! how wonderful! Remember still, God works like a God, though He goes man's pace. Than the Tragedy began in Ireland, to end in England; and o how active the Bishops were, to bring over the stage hither; to set it-up here: And while they were a working, they wrought themselves out of the Lords House; and shut themselves fast-up in prison, with their own hands. Than the earth was moved, for it was smitten terribly, and swords now drawn, but could draw no blood, O wonderful! Than every man to his strong hold, but they were safe among Lions, who made God their refuge. And now there was a kind of checkerworke all along, many strokes of read, and some white; the Lord mingled judgements and mercies, but all was mercy and a fruit of love to His Church and people; things were so dispensed, that His people might know, that they had grieved their God: apparent tokens of Divine wrath towards the Land, and clear manifestations of loving kindnesses towards His people, for than the adversary girded and girded himself, and God broke him as often to pieces. Sometimes the Lord walked contrary, and backward, we fools thought so, but than He went forward, strait-on to the white and butt, He tended to from all eternity: and all His way though cross to us, were very direct, we fools can discern it now: Sometimes His servants risen high, than f●ll as low, but their falls were their advantage, and tended wonderfully to give them assurance of an expected end: Than the wiles and depths of Satan were discovered, a plot as deep as hell, and as full of malice as the Devil: But from that sour this sweet, for than a second Covenant was entered into; And all this time (which must be remembered) the malignants palaces were than, as now they are, their prisons: So the beauty of the Bishop's excellency is stained, and the prophecy fulfilled, Wild beasts of the desert shall lie there, and their houses 
Isa. 13. ●●.  shall be full of dole full creatures. This turning the Bishop's palaces into prisons must be remembered still, and how their Curates spewed themselves out of their houses, or their houses spewed them forth. Than Hell-gates were set wider open, if wider could be, and there issued forth an horrid Proclamation; Than a Kentish untimely birth, an hellish Rebellion, which ran its self presently-out of breath, and expired. But God wrought gloriously still, for now He brought-up three Kingdoms into Covenant, and one Nation forth for our help. O wonderful! I must now pass over the victories God gave His servants, and the discomfitures also; there was wonderful mercy in all: But on this our thoughts must devil, though I pass it lightly over. GOD'S House, appointed by Him to be an house of prayer, but made a den of thiefs, is now turned to the same use it was intended, made an house of prayer: and these merchants, with their servants, are cast-out; when this is done all over the Land, than the work is completed; but blessed be God for what is done, for ever praised be His Name, Amen.  
And so we have seen what man can do, when he stands alone by himself, just nothing: for he is a cipher; But if God will work by him, than he, that was nothing before, or but as a cake of barley bread, shall smite the host of Midian, overturn their tents, 
Judg. 7. 13.  and lay them along, as our worthies have done. Indeed the more contemptible the instrument is, the more glorious God's hand is, as when He works with an Ox's goad, or jaw bone of an Ass; than heaps upon heaps, and the work is wonderful. And if so when He works by His instruments, what manner of work, and how glorious, which He wrought alone, going His own pace; Than His work was as quick as His word, which says the Psalmist, went forth swiftly, witness the Heavens and the Lights there, which we see but cannot apprehended: and the earth with the creatures there: All these He wrought alone, He spoke the word and they were created. And what manner of salvation will that be, which, the LORD says His own arm, He alone will bring? A created defence is above our apprehension, so will that salvation be.  
Thus we have considered the workmen, they work as men; God works with them, and works as God; but goes His creatures pace. Sober men consider.  
2. The nature of this work; it is a dethroning all illegal power; a casting-out all illegal things, whereunto nature (corrupt) contributes nothing, but all she can against it: So does the Devil and all his angels; for nature will not depose its self, nor the idols she has setup; nor will Satan and his angels dethrone themselves, whatever they prate to the contrary: This work is, as was said, a rectifying of things amiss in Church and State, the recovering of truth and peace, which our sins have taken from the earth; the establishing religion, the worship and service of God, according to the rule, and word of God. This is the nature of the work, which has been said the third time, that the simple might understand, and consider wisely of it, and than he will not say, it is a work of quick dispatch. It was not quickly concluded, where to begin, there was such a confusion in things. Indeed there were as many breaches in the Church and State, as there be holes in a Seive, which the wise 
Cam. in vi●a Mela●ch. p. 29.  man thought, he would make hold water, but could not tell where to begin his work; Melancthon makes great use of this comparison, to set forth the state of the German Church an hundred years ago, and was a prognostic of the troubles and desolations there now: such a confusion there was in Church and state at this time, such as that was in the German Church, so as a wise man indeed, with a natural eye, could discern nothing but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 all things in a confusion, like the empty place, without form, and nothing in place: so many breaches in Church and state, that it was impossible with man to know where to begin; Nor is it possible now to know when they shall make an end. God that makes a path in a wilderness, has taken his servants, in their maze, by the hand, and led them throughout hitherto. To clear the difficulty of this work, and what makes it so difficult, I will compare it with the adversaries work. Their work was to advance POPERY. And truly their work wenton as their word, very swiftly; Let there be altars built, crucifixes and images made, it was done. Let Prayer be stinted, let Ministers mouths be stopped, it was done. Let the LORDS Day be profaned, let there be no Sermon in the afternoon, not one; and let Reading go for preaching in the forenoon, it was done. A way with the bands of God, His laws, away with Covenants, those shackles to the flesh, away with them (and let our covenant with hell stand,) all this not sooner commanded, but it was done, quick work. We cannot mistake the reason; here was a compliance with flesh and blood; nature was pleased here, the world pleased, and the devil pleased; this leaven (our natures being soured with it from the beginning) soured the lump, the whole land quickly? for what should hinder? Nature, flesh, the world, and the Devil gave in their help presently, so things were done suddenly. The Parliaments work was and is as we heard, a counter-work, To exalt the LORD Christ; to advance and spread His Gospel, to remove and take away that, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 him (a 
2 Thes. 2. 7.  legion) that letteth now, will let, Persons and Things: I will not stand to clear the difficulty of this work, which sense and reason have made so clear and so demonstrative. I'll only say, the Difficulties (as great as are imaginable) honours the work, and the workmen, if they be enlivened thereby, and provoked to put out their strength, all their activity in this work, so visibly now and apparently the work of God. Indeed 1. These difficulties should be so fare from discouraging, that they should hearten, and put more spirit into every man, that he put to more strength 
a Eccles. 10. 10. ; these difficulties speak unto him, Arise, sleeper, such a work in hand, and such 
jonah 2. 6.  opposition, and such a tempest raised to hinder the same, and asleep now! up sluggard, and pray to thy God. 2. Indeed that is to be considered also, the straits and difficulties make the servants of the Lord more prayerful; now they pour out their prayers; Now they are earnest, and importunate; Now they will not let God alone; Now they will give Him no rest; their Lord has brought them within sight of the promised end, now as Daniel did, they set their face unto the LORD GOD. 3. And the greater the straits are, 
Dan. 9 3.  the fuller their hope is, they are carried with a stronger gale of Faith through them to the promised and Expected End. We have considered the nature of the work, it is hard and difficult, carried through the straits; this honours the work, and the workmen, it makes them more active, more spiritful, more prayerful, more hopeful, I might add, and more joyful; for through those straits, and slouds of great waters, they are carried with full sail, full 
● Col. 2. 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. 1 Thes. 1. 5. ●ieh. 6. 11.  assurance to their promised wealth place, where their joy shall be full. In the last place, that the man may not make haste, he considers;  
3. That the promise touching this work, the completing of it, is, de futuro, God will restore, He will build-up Zion, His Tabernacle, after it is fallen; I know not how low, but not too low for His hand to raiseup again. But I'll pass over this; Blessed be God that his Promise is so near accomplished, that He has brought His servants so near unto an expected end.  
Here is a Paralogism ᵃ now to be considered on, (for thereby 
Col. 2. 4.  unstable souls are infinitely beguiled) touching this work, the easiness and facility of the same. Thus they reason; the means whereby this Posturing, this Reforming work is effected, are very easy, Praying, Preaching, etc. these were no sooner commanded but done; than why is not the work done? the means are easy, and quickly performed, therefore the work is an easy work, and of quick dispatch, whether you respect a Nation, or a Man only; there is the deceit.  
The Man shall make answer to this in the next Section, where he will tell you that fasting, and praying, and hearing, etc. are but outworks, bodily exercises, the outside of Duty, which are of little use. The man will show us the inside, and truth of these duties, which do the work indeed. I'll close this Chapter with a pretti● story, which may not be impertinent to show us the inside of a duty, and what it is that does the work. It is thus related, That a poor man's field proved very fruitful, it was likely to yield him a very rich increase; his neighbours envied and reproached him, saying, he was a witch, and wrought with the Devil, and conjured 
Plin. lib. 18. cap. 6. ceu pelliceret venesiciis.  their corn into his ground; Nor did they only say so, but they summoned the poor man to make his appearance before the Judge, there to answer his indictment for witchcraft. The man makes his appearance, brings with him a lusty and strong Wench, his daughter well fed and clad, together with his oxen well fed too, and strong to labour, with all his implements of husbandry, all these he presented before the honourable Court: At which sight the Court stood at amaze. At last the Judge questions the man, Fellow, said the Judge, what means all this, what makes thy daughter, and thy oxen here, here is nothing will be said against them. Like your Mastership said the poor man, a plain fellow, You must indite 
Venesicia mea haec sunt: nec possu● vo●is ostendere luc●brationes, vigilias, sudores.  these, for these are my witches, all the spirits in sight, that have conjured my ground; This is my witchcraft. I have brought my daughter here, that I may tell your goodness, I do not trust servants, nor her neither, not farther than I can see her. I do my business nesse myself, or see it done; But yet this is the lest part of my witchcraft, I cannot show your learning what my watch have been about my ground, when my neighbours were fast in their beds or lose in the Alehouse: nor what my careful diligence was, early and late, to keep and maintain my fences about my ground; nor how sweat has furrowed my brow, and how my spirits have wasted; but these are the spirits which make my ground fruitful. The application is easy whether we respect the Nation, or a man 
This posturing work is more advanced in the Closet than in the Court.  only. These outworks, bodily exercise, outward performance, something they do towards the strengthening a Kingdom, whereof Ahab and the inhabitants of Niniveh are great examples: And something they do to make the field of the Church fruitful. But it is the inward-works, the workings of the Spirit, the strive, the wrestlings there, these do the work. It will appear now in the next Section, for now I am coming to the Good Soldier, to remove the mistakes about his person, and work, and I will go along with him in his warfare to his world's end.  

§ VII. How the Good Soldier beares-up himself above his oppressions.  
This Good Soldier is mistaken, his adversaries oppress him, and blaspheme him daily; how be beares-up himself; and what his consolations are under their oppressions; and how he answers their blasphemy. We mistake him, and he mistakes himself: Some mistake about his Armour: We and he are mistaken in his posturing work; he thought it an impossible work, we think it very possible, and easy; He rectifies our mistakes touching the chiefest duties of a Christian.  
THis man is a Good Soldier of Jesus Christ; That is enough to tell you, What he is? he is Body, and goods, and life, and all he is for the Parliament; he has liftedup his hand to the most High God, that so he will be, and he will stand to it; he will standup for God, sure, he will spend himself and be spent for his Lord Christ, who gave Himself for him, washed him in the Laver or Bath of his Cause, his Truths, his Rights, the Privileges of his Lord's Kingdom: for that is the way, the only way, to maintain the King's crown, and the Kingdoms of this world from shattering to pieces. And seeing his Lord Christ, and the Lord his King, and all the three Kingdoms are concerned here, the man thanks God hearty, that he has a body, and goods, and a life, all spared and lengthened out unto him until this time, when he may offer all, pour out all, as his prayers, for such a Cause as this, and for the Governors of Israel, the maintainers of this Cause; O, his heart is towards all them, and every one that offered themselves willingly. 
* This man is of the Martyr's mind, Shall I dye but once for Him, that died a cursed death for me, to make me blessed for ever? What no more stripes, not more shame for His sake, who was put to open shame for me? What no more goods to loose for Him who was made poor, that he might make me rich?  Now you need not suppose that this man has enemies enough; the broken University of Oxford, and all the whole Anti-Parliament there, all these are his enemies, and will do him all the mischief they can; their Court- Rab shakeh blasphemes him every week, whom he regards no more than the Moon does the barking of a Dog; he is not afraid of the Beasts of the earth, not he. The University protesteth against this man, that if he be a Divine, he shall never be a Doctor; 
a This man regardeth their honours not more than Peter did the money, Their honours perish with them. Act. 8. 20.  they have no dignities for honest men; the higher his deserts are, the lower his esteem shall be: And if he be a Gentleman, he shall never be a Knight, etc. for they can command the Kings Sword. Simple fellows, Scholars and no more? Tell this man of honours, and of their bestowing, whom God has honoured. A right Mordecai he, 
b He came again to the King's gate, Esth, 6. 12.  the same man at the gate, on horseback, and on foot. A rock indeed, be the seas raging or be they calm; is there a pleasant Sunshine, or does that wind roar called Huroclydon, 
c Acts 24, 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, etc. in cp. ad Col. ca 4. Hom. 10. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉, &c Ibid. Job 38. 31.  this man is, as the rock is, still the same. But the adversaries have plundered his house, done him all the mischief they can, he is on God's side, and they threaten to burn his house too, and if they could they would dig-up the good man's grounds, put all his earth into baskets, and cart it to Oxford. This is the great offence now adays; I pray you let me tell you from another's mouth, how this man neglects all this: and than, how he comforts himself under his pressures. His adversaries, says chrysostom, would lay load upon his loins (for he is a Righteous man;) he runs the faster now, and beares-up the stronger. They would, by their hard dealing, hinder his course; they cannot do it, it is impossible; why? his course is spiritual in heaven, there his conversation is; you cannot bind such a Runner, not more than you can bind the sweet insluences of Pleyades: or lose the bands of Orion. Indeed it is in vain to storm this man, or to threaten so to do; for, as is said of Joseph, if the storm increaseth, and riseth high, he as a Pilot riseth higher, and rideth securely above all the floods of great waters: there is his security and his comfort. He has been at 
Chrysoft in Gen.  a loss, because he would be loyal and obedient; It is not a loss; if the world call it so, they are mistaken, it brings in an infinite gain. It is not possible to take a shorter way to be rich, than to be at a loss for Christ: none feel more sweet experiences of the Lords compendious providences, than they, who are resolute in their 
Compendia proviaentia.  obedience: They may safely expect God in His admirable ways of providence, when they will resolvedly walk in his ways of obedience, when the servants of the Lord have given glory to God in relying upon His wisdom, power and truth, they shall found Him employing these for their direction, assistance, and bringing-about all things to their desired issue: yea above whatever was looked for, or thought of. None of these things this man is now rob of could yield him any comfort but from an influence, through them, from Heaven; This influence, the adversaries cannot stop not more than they can bind the sweet influences of the Pleyades or Sun beams; what comforts he had before from houses, lands, friends, etc. the same the Lord now instills immediately from himself: and the immediate comforts are the strongest comforts.  
That which (to a man unacquainted with God's deal) is a ground of utter despair, the same, to a man acquainted with the ways of God, is a rise of exceeding comfort: for infinite power and goodness can never be at a loss; neither can Faith, which looks to that, ever be at a stand: whence it is, that both GOD and Faith work best alone. There is enough in Religion (if practised in power) to bear-up the soul against all imputation laid upon it; It hath this singular grace and pre-eminence in it, that either it guardeth us as an heavenly shield from all calamities; or else conducteth us safe through them, and permitteth them not to be miseries: It either giveth honours, promotions and wealth; or else more benefit by wanting them, than if we had them at will; It either filleth our houses with plenty of all good things, or maketh a salad of green herbs, more sweet than all the sacrifices of the ungodly. The man abides now with meekness, and waits with patience the time when with his eyes he shall behold his redeemer, Who liveth and is Mighty, Who will, in His appointed time, repair and makeup all His Church's breaches; will restore unto them all those years, the locusts have consumed, the cankerworms and these caterpillars; will wipe all tears from their eyes; will clear Jacobs face, so that he shall wax pale not more; will cheer up his heart, that it shall never droop again. And this appointed time is at hand; when Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be right glad. And so much to the pressures from the adversaries hand: and how the servant of the Lord bears himselfe-up under these pressures: I thought it very useful for these hard and perilous times. I come now to their blasphemy. What is this fellow? We need not question it, he is on Gods-side, on the Parliaments side, than he is a Traitor and a Rebel; so his adversaries belch-out their words, calling him by their own name: 
* Me de suo nomine vocat. Cic. parad.  The man thanks them very hearty for that; he takes it for a greater honour than if they should make him a Knight (of the post,) Lord, Earl, marquis or the like. A great honour to be vilified, miscalled for God's Cause, to be reproached for His sake. So their fathers reproached all the Worthies of the Lord in all ages: If they were true bvilders in God's account, than were they Rebels and Traitors in the enemy's account: Their fathers said as much against Christ Himself, that the Devil was in Him, He was a Samaritan and had 
Joh. 8. 48.  a Devil. Indeed this man glorieth very much in this, that he is as his Master was, so reproached, so persecuted, so blaspemed. What says he now in way of answer to these blasphemies? Nothing, he spreads this blasphemy, as the King the letter, before the LORD; His Lord shall answer it, and so He will; He will answer it by Himself: for God is blasphemed, and not the man; His grace, His image upon the man, His actings in the man to and for his God; that, that is it, the butt and white, at which malice bends her bow, and shoots her arrows, even devouring words: God must answer this by Himself, for He is blasphemed, the man will say nothing. The reproach is against his LORD and Master, He will require it; if there were nothing of GOD in the man, not more than is in his adversaries, they could agreed very well, for than Rebels and Traitors all, and no offence at all; but God and godliness in the man, there is the butt and white, God will answer it. And now the man will sit down and mourn for these his adversaries in his spirit, who, he is verily persuaded, [considering the season, and clearness of light, and malice so apparent in their reproaches, not against him, but God Himself and His Image upon him, His actings in him) have blasphemed the HOLY GHOST. He mourns for them, and so he comes of from that sad and mournful subject, the blasphemer and his blasphemy, And now I come to the mistakes about this good man.  
We are mistaken, and he both, and in extremes all. Sometimes we may think, that this man so magnified here, and so magnifying his office, is some goodly man to look upon. Not, it may be not, look upon his outward visage, and may be there is nothing to be desired; he is made so conformable to his LORD once, that he may be but a contemptible outside now. And so we are quickly corrected, for thinking of him above what is meet. And now we fall into the other extreme; though we have not so base and vile thoughts of him as his adversaries have, such as Goliath had of David, yet our thoughts are too mean concerning him. But let us remember, that his adversaries conceits, and ours too, will be corrected one day: It is a point of wisdom to correct them now, while there is time, and hope; for our conceits hold merely by the tenure of ignorance, (The adversaries conceit not so) There is council enough in the sift of Wisdom 
* Wisd. 5.  to correct us all, if we take it seasonably, ponder and consider well of it: The consideration of those words, will correct our mistakes touching the man, or nothing will do it, till our mouth come, and endless pains rest and abide upon us for ever. But whatever our conceits are of 
Laudanti●us facile credu●us etiam mentientibis, seu falsus honor ●uvat, etc. Ilier.  him, though they do heighten and lessen fools, who harken what others say of them, rather than what their own consciences say, these our conceits of him, whether high or low, cannot make him conceited of himself: As he doth, touching peace, so much talked-of, and harkened after now adays, he hearkens and lissens what GOD says, for He speaks peace: So touching that we call praise, esteem and accounted in the world; If he have it from GOD and good men, he has enough. It is a very small thing with him to be 
1 Cor. 4. 3.  judged of man's judgement; He, that judgeth is the Lord: and all his labour or ambation is (for he labours as an ambitious man does after honours in the world) to be accepted of GOD: By the 
2 Cor. 5. 9 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉.  grace of God he is what he is; in himself nothing, but all in God; wise in His wisdom, strong in his strength: And he has nothing he can call properly his own, but sin: what comeliness he has (his chiefest is as the Churches is, within 
c Psal. 44. 13. , Glorious there) God put it upon him 
d Ezech. 16. 14. Pro. 25. 11. Like apples of gold with pictures of silver; his zeal shines without, it burns within. Rev. 4. 10. He receives all from God through Christ; his graces have their strength and stability in Christ, and so his condition is more stable than Adams was. 2 Cor. 12. 7.  Whatever grace he has he boasteth not, but in GOD, for he has received it: and all his receipts, he does cast down (as the Elders their Crowns) before Him that sitteth upon the throne.  
Yet we must note before we leave his person, That this man may be mistaken about himself; very possible, that his conceit of himself may be too high, and sometimes too low; too high and exalted above measure through the abundance God has given him: but than God puts a thorn into his flesh, some strong master-like temptation, and down he is brought upon his knees, as Paul was; than he sees how weak he is, and how little cause of boasting or exaltation in himself; and now if he glory, he will glory in his infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon him: But he finds it hard to keepup to his peg, for now he is too low, he speaks too meanly of grace its self, and that he should not do of a crust of bread, for it comes from God, opening His hand: But he has abundance out of God's treasury, and yet he speaks murmuringly, as if he had received nothing, and than he cannot be thankful; He has no grace, not he, no faith, no love, he has received nothing: nothing! he has the grace of humility, poverty of spirit, he is emptied of himself, he sees himself to be nothing, and is this nothing? He fears God above many; loves God above all; and though he says he has no faith (so low he is) yes, he has, for he clings to his Lord Christ, and cleaves unto Him; and, though he says he has no interest in his Lord, yet, if you question him at that point, he will tell you, he will not give away his interest he has in his Lord Christ (for He is his Heaven) for a thousand worlds. An happy mistake this, yea glorious 
* A glorious grace humility, which layeth a foundation whereon to build a glorious Temple. : Yet let the man take heed he does not deal unkindly with his God, and tender himself unthankful for such grace. We know he is thankful for a bit of bread, lesser than such a poor mercy; how much more for that grace, the grace of humility, if he has no more? (but where ever there is an emptying grace, there will be a filling grace,) for this makes the man honourable in God's esteem, precious and of high account: Hear what the Lord says to him; Thou, pressed with tribulation and poverty, dost say, Thou art poor; but I say, thou art rich, for thou possessest all things. Thou dost want nothing, because 
Rev. 2. 9 2 Cor. 6. 10.  thou knowest what thou wantest, and labourest after a supply, as after the most loveliest thing, more after grace, than glory, so God says. Read again, This man has overcome the world; and is all for another world, where his Lord Christ is; Now he reads what follows, he shall inherit all things; and I will be his God and he shall be my son: Here is enough to correct the mistakes this man 
Rev. 117.  has of himself.  
What his Armour is and the several pieces of the same, all the 
III.  world knows, that are not willingly ignorant. That Armour without is not despised by him, nor neglected: But that, which is not 
Ephes. 6.  in sight, which David, coming against Goliath had put on, that makes the man like flint, and brass, and renders the shocks, and blasts of the terrible ones against him, as fruitless and harmless, as a puff of wind against a mountain of brass. It was spoken before, upon all the glory (and he is a great part of it,) there is a defence; even upon all those, that are, and seek God's glory; And see now how confidently he walks, as bold as a Lion; he laugh● 
Job. 5. 22.  at the sword, and famine, neither the read horse, nor the pale horse, can affright him; His heart is fixed trusting in the Lord; And he walks accuratly, precisely, exactly, according to the line of men, as becometh a man so protected, so defended, that has a guard of Angels still about him.  
A. But makes his adversary no offers upon him?  
B. Yes, and more than offers, he buffets him oftentimes, and sometimes, once or twice, the adversary clubbed him down: but he was quickly up again, and stood more strongly and kept his watch, and his Armour about him, more carefully for ever after.  
A. But does the man never straggle out of his way, and so from under the eye of his guard, the Angels of God?  
B. Not never; I do not mean, that the man keeps still in the same walk; that he makes no fault, nor turn at no time; The man has wander, and like a sheep straggles sometimes; but his shepherd overlookes all this, and looks himout; his Lord God beholds him in the way, wherein he walks most constantly, and would walk steadfastly for ever; He pitieth His servant in his by paths, and his servant loathes himself because of his wander, and scatter that way: It is the high way, that this man's soul desireth to keep unto, and the high way of the upright, is to departed from evil; that is his way, and he keepeth his way, and preserveth 
Prov. 16. 17.  his soul, and so he is preserved. A well postured man indeed: how he came to be so well armed, so meet for defence, and offence; what a labour and work this is comes now to be considered.  
The man was mistaken about this work himself, he was in an 
FOUR  extreme; he thought it could never be done. We are in another extreme, we think it is a work quickly done. I intended to be large here, as the matter and work does require, presuming I might make this the most useful of any thing in the book: But because it has so much exceeded its proportion, and the common rates, i'll suppress a good part of my meditations, and lay those, I shall express, as close together as possibly I can, In the order I proposed. 1. This good soldier thought, that this his posturing work would never be done; he may think so still, you may say: for, as was said, it is a work still doing, and never done, not completed till he dies, as we shall hear afterwards. But his meaning is, and his thoughts were, that he should never see the work brought on-ward to that perfection, as now he sees it, considering what a work it is: The exalting the Lord Christ in his heart, as Lord there (where He is He will be a Lord) Thrusting-out or casting-down all the lusts-like-lords there) he had many lords there till he had one LORD there a: The setting-up the law of God in his mind, and bringing-up his mind thereunto: In two words, the work and labour is, 
Multos domivos habet qui unem non habet. Animae sexum non haben●.  to deny himself, and to takeup his cross, and follow the LAMB wherever he goes. I shall never be able to do this thought he (this son or daughter, for neither souls nor Heaven has sexes,) And truly, though this was an hasty thought, yet very excusable. The man could not tell where to begin his work, and he can but tell when he shall make an end, whereof anon. At length he understood by reading; that he must begin with God, seek Him by fasting and praying, so to bring Him down to him, and his work. This was another work: o! how high the work, and how low his spirit! yet that was the way, he must not leave of following-on to seek the Lord; he must use the means hearty, and so he did, yet the work was not done. Done! The great work was behind, the engaging work; the engaging his hand, and heart, and spirit to the Lord, and against His adversaries, though beloved lusts, as his right eye and arm, yet he must say to them all, and every one (his own iniquity, and that within his house or tabernacle 
a Job 11. 14. ) get ye hence 
b Isa. 30. 22. : I have engaged my heart, espoused my soul and spirit to my LORD CHRIST, He must have it, get you hence, what have I any more to do with Idols 
c Hosea 14. 8. ? (The Lord heard him speaking this, and observed him) o how hardly was he brought-up to this engaging work? The way of the righteous is on-high indeed, a bringing back the heart from the earth, whereunto it is fallen flat, (and made all earth till Heaven came into it) and up to God: But up it was brought, and, like a stone indeed, down again it falls with its own weight. The man can tell you better than I what stops and pauses he made in this work, what backslidings (not in heart,) what start aside (not in spirit,) what warpings, what declinings! A great while before he could attain to aconstancy, a fixedness of spirit; And this he attained-to, not before he discerned plainly, that his canning his ability was nothing; his strength was to sit still (that is) seek GOD and His strength, and depend thereon in God's way, and never forsake that confidence, for God watcheth over such a work, so pleasing in His sight; and He hearkeneth to the desire of them that fear Him: So that all the stopps, pauses, obstructions, walls, mountains in his way to this work, did but serve to make this man also more careful, watchful, prayerful, spiritful, hopeful, joyful: For though his warfare be not yet completed, nor never will be in this world, though all is in expectation, de futuro, and so runs the promise (my servant shall eat, and drink, and rejoice) yet Gods grace 
Isa. 6●. 13, ●4.  is sufficient all this while; He is the Undertaker to complete the man and his work. And now the man has a good portion in hand, as an earnest-penny, or as a bunch of grapes, to assure him, the full vintage and harvest in Heaven, where is a length of eternity, which his thoughts, at the largest extent, cannot measure: And all that length of— eternity, the man shall have a full fruition; of what? that cannot be expressed. But so he has cleared his own mistakes touching the impossibility of this work. Now if we will harken to him, he will clear our mistakes on the left hand, touching the easiness of this work: for our conceit is, that the means, (prayer, hearing, reading, etc.) this man has used to posture himself, are easy. But he will tell us, it is but a conceit; we are infinitely mistaken: He will show us our mistakes in order, and correct them, first our mistake touching Prayer.  
1. Prayer is no easy work, unless you mean the Bishop's work, their Common-prayer, which they called Divine service. This man cannot acknowledge any common-prayers; nor can he conceive, there is any divinity in these prayers, that are so called; for first, we must not come before God with common hands, than not present unto Him common-prayers; We dare not present such prayers to our governor's 
a Mal. 1. 8. . 2. We expect no common-mercies, but such as GOD, Who bestows as a God, useth to give to His peculiar people: we must not than petition after a common manner. 3. Common-prayer at the best, can have but a common acceptance: but we must pray, and labour 
b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉.  in prayer, that we may be accepted of Him. 4. As the Censer without fire was never instrumental to remove a plague: so, nor was this common-prayer efficacious for that purpose: for it has no divinity in it; they that look for divinity in those prayers (these words, in no sober man's construction, can reflect upon them, that made the prayers; there was, we doubt not, much of God in them:) but to look for Divinity in this Divine service, argues as much ignorance as was in those people, who looked for the Moon in the Asses-belly; Thus it is related, 
Cum nostra memoria sit populus qui lunam ab asino epotam crediderit, Ludou. Vives comment. in Aug cap. 16. lib. 10. de Civit.  The reflex and shadow of the Moon was in the water while the Ass was drinking; presently a cloud over-shadowed the Moon, than the people thought, the Ass had swallowed-up the Moon; And after they had indicted the Ass, (as the Papists did the Rats and Mice, for eating their breaden gods) they rippedup the Ass' belly expecting to found the Moon there: He that tells the story assureth us, that he could remember, that such a brutish people there were in his days, an hundred years ago: And so it might be, for we have Pastors and people more brutish in our days, who think, that the Spirit and power of God, is in their Common-prayer, which they call Divine service, and make it an Idol; as ridiculous every whit as to think, that the Moon was in the Ass' belly. Having cleared that rub in the way, he proceeds to tell us; That indeed, reading of prayer is an easy work, for there is no fervency, no power from Heaven; but praying in prayer, that is labour and work both, a fervent, an hot work, like the working in metals, and there is power in it, a power from Heaven, even the spirit of power. I do not say now, that no prayer is a prayer, that has not all this heat and power in it; I know there are degrees of heat: And as there were degrees of Psalms, or Psalms of degrees: So there are degrees of Prayers, and prayers of degrees, some higher, than some; some more fervent than some, some fuller of spirit than some: But every true prayer has an height in it, an heat and fervency in it, a power in it, which comes down from Heaven, and raiseth the prayer to Heaven, to the bosom of God, else it is not properly a praying, but a saying (for I date not call it a prating or babbling) nor will I say, that such ● liveless saying of prayers has no acceptance with Him, who heareth the Ravens, but I will say, that such a saying of prayer, is not a praying in prayer. But so the man prayed, he prayed in prayer, before he could remove the accursed things: But first of all, which should be noted first, when first he prepared his heart, and stretchedout his hands, he put iniquity fare away; he cleansed his heart 
●ob 11. 13, 15.  from loving and liking of sin: and, what he could, he cleansed his house, he suffered not wickedness to devil there; than he liftedup his face without spot, he is steadfast and does not fear. So little to rectify our mistakes touching prayer, no easy work. Praising is the highest, the most refined work of a Christian: I cannot speak a little of it, therefore i'll say nothing.  
2. Nor is Fasting an easy work, I mean to sanctify a fast. To afflict, not the body only, but the soul with fasting. What is that? To charge upon the soul all the national and his personal grievances, his sins the cause of all this, with the circumstances and aggravations of these sins; to charge them upon himself, the (Causam sociam) the helping cause of this bloodshed, etc. I and of the shedding of the Lord Christ His blood too; his sin pierced his Saviour's sides; This is to sanctify a fast; and not to hangdown the head like a bulrush for a day, that is no fast. 3. Nor to rest and cease from labour: so the Ox can do, and the Ass; but this is not to sanctify the LORDS Day: This is it, To keep a day to the Lord so, as to be in the spirit all that day, having his fellowship with the Father and the Son: not by our will to do our own wills, nor speak our own words, nor think our own thoughts; to keep as on the mount, in meditation upon the glorious work of Creation by the Father; and those admirable ways of Redemption by GOD the SON; this is to sanctify a Rest; and so our mistake is rectified touching that matter; That that is no easy work.  
4. To hear at home and at Church is an easy work, for it is but the form and shell of duty, now to hear, and presently as soon as the word has been sounding in our ears, to talk of our Oxen, and making of furrows, or to ask what news? this is not hearing, this is provoking the Lord; It is to turn His Grace into wantonness, not improving the light, not harkening to the voice of nature; this is an easy work. But to hear with an hearing ear, nay an hearing heart 
* 1 King. ●. 0. , to hear so as to chew upon it, consider on it, and to make it sink down, this is hearing, and an hard work: so to Read with care and endeavour to understand (else reading is nothing, or as the Parrots prating, but ridiculous.) To Hear and Read and to profit, there is the Power. These are distinct things, no easy work. To carry a Library in your brain is no great matter. But to have, as one had 
b Lectione assiduâ & meditatione diuturnâ pectus suum bibliothecam fecerat Christ. Hieron. lively 2● Ep. 22. , a Library in your heart, full of Christ, His Word dwelling there richly, that is the praise; The head may be full, and the heart empty. You may read and hear good books, good Sermons, and you may be never the better, the worse rather: To hear will tender you as unclean as those beasts, which did not chow the Cud; much reading and much hearing without chooing upon it, and whetting of it upon your heart, is but like much eating and drinking, not digesting; it clogs the stomach and causeth sore sicknesses; I might have been more brief in so clear a matter, but yet it is a great matter wherein we are infinitely mistaken; Therefore I will add this also to be considered-on, that every thing must be done to edification; that must be the end of our Reading, hearing, singing, speaking, praying; But so to hear, read and sing, that I may be built-up by it in my most holy Faith, is no easy work: To read, to hear, so as bring-up my heart to close with it, to yeeld-up its strong holds, to submit to the law and obedience of it in every thing the word commands or forbids, even to the cutting of the right arm, or plucking-out the right eye, the parting with the dearest and sweetest lusts: So to hear as to obey (for that is hearing indeed) so to hear as to let the Word sink down into the heart to abide and engraft its self there; so to hear as to conclude my soul under it, this is Reading, this Hearing: this is to profit by both.  
A. Why but God teacheth to profit, and so he says, and you say the man must do this and that, he must close with the Word, and submit to the Word, and let it sink down; and I know not what; these are but words, he can do none of all this, God must work in him the will and the deed.  
B. That is true, but it does not follow; Therefore man must do nothing; man must be doing to, he must stir-up himself to meet the Lord: he must keep himself in the way and walk of the Spirit, he must raise up his spirit, put forth all the activity of his soul; when he comes to read and to hear God's Word, he must turn every Word he hears or reads into a Prayer, that God may bless it to him, and turn every word into Grace; that strength and light of nature, and reason and conscience, that God has given him, he must use and improve to the utmost as a faithful steward of that little. I know that man is nothing, and without Christ he can do nothing; And yet I think I may say, that man shall not be condemned for what he cannot do, but for what he could and did not do, not do, not improving the talon he had. Man is not merely passive in receiving of the word; a fond conceit, which makes a man lie-still and sit-still at home and at Church, and turn over the leaves there as a natural fool does, or as a door turns upon its hinges; Man, I say, is not merely passive, the Word worketh upon him, not as Physick in a Basin, or Glass, but as Physick drunk down, and in his body. The Word is as rain drunk into the earth, or as meat taken into the body; let the man look what kind of ground he is, and how his meat does digest; for if not a drop of rain falls in vain, nor a bit of bread given us in vain, than nor the Word of God sure; it does the work wherefore it was sent, and therefore the Good Soldier puts forth all the Activity of his soul, all his power; he reads and he hears to profit; he reads and hears that he may be an infinite gainer; he has taken in all the Word of God, and it is a dweller with him, that was his end, therefore he reads and hears, that the Word of God may devil with him and richly in all wisdom. And 
Col. 3. 18.  as his richeses are great that way, so he lays them out as liberally teaching and admonishing others as he has occasion; He is one of the plainest Commentaries upon the Scriptures that is in the world; ●he plainest, I say, for others comment upon it by writing, he by living; he expounds it by his feet, and teacheth it by his finger's ends, the best Exposition, the best teaching in the world, for he teacheth by Example. A lively Text man, for the Word of God is legible in Text letters all his life over 
* I pray you read Mr Caryls Exposition upon Job, pag. 3. ; A blessed thing when our Ministers can see our Hear, and behold our Readins in our walkings and conversations amongst them! But this they shall never see till they have persuaded with us, their hearers, to go home and meditate on what we have heard, and so to whet it upon ourselves, and ours: for if so be we do after our manner, so soon as we go forth the Church doors, we talk of Oxen, and making of furrows, or ask after news, we think not of what we heard, than there is a moral impossibility 
* Our Ministers knowing what our manner is, what a Liberty our Bishops gave us; and the terror of the Lord, will press this upon us, and endeavour mightily to prevail with us touching this matter.  that ever we should profit by what we have heard or read.  
A. You have well advised us touching Hearing and Reading; but indeed we know not whom to hear, nor what to read: for besides our own observation, A loyal Convert (turned over lately out of Litchfields press in Oxford) has told us that most of our Teachers and people to, are Anabaptists, Brownists, Separatists, Atheists, Antinomians, Turks.  
B. Do not you know that the Scholars of Oxford are passed all shame? Let the world judge, if there be Atheists in the world, Antinomians (men that set themselves against the law) or Turks in England, whether these are not in Oxford on that side: and whether that poore-Schollar be not one of them, hoping to get preferment that way, let all the world judge. Yet we do grant that we have Atheists amongst us, for we have some here that stand for the Anti-Parliament there. And Antinomians also: for, if against the Parliament, they are against all laws too. Indeed some there are that are called by that name amongst us, who, I am verity persuaded, understand the Law and Gospel better than he or I do; a●d than they cannot but approve the one, and embrace the other hearty: some also there are, that are honoured with that name, and yet are very ignorant of both Law and Gospel; But we hope, not willingly, much less wilfully, ignorant: and therefore there is hope, they will see their error, and amend it shortly, now that so clear lights shine forth before them.  
And now we have but three Sectaries remaining with us; But grant him his saying, that there be six, nay, sixteen, yet this is no wonder. Epiphanius, says Mr Jewel, rehearseth-up fourscore sundry heresies; and Augustine many more, which sprang-up even together with the Gospel: what than says he, was the Gospel 
Apol. 3. p. Cap. 2. d. 1.  therefore not the Gospel, because heresies sprang up withal? or was Christ therefore not Christ? or was Christ and His Gospel the cause of these heresies? Not sober man will say so, this rather, that this is a great argument of our Part, that this same doctrine, which we teach, is the very Truth of the Gospel of Christ: for neither is cockle want to grow without the wheat; nor yet the chaff without the corn: I'll read on in Mr Jewels words, for so he answered his adversaries than, so we now, the objection is the same, the answer must be the same, That the world seethe now right well, thanks be given to our God, that we have neither bred, nor taught, nor kept-up these monsters: And you must believe us in all this, if you will read our books (those that go with licence to the Press) or hear our Sermons. I should say more, but this may suffice and satisfy every sober man; yet the admonition is good, Take heed what you hear 
a Mark 4. 24. ; Take heed how you hear 
b Luke 8. 18. . And let all your gains and Incomes by your Hearing and Reading be expended and laid forth in your life and conversation. Amen. I proceed.  
5. It is an easy matter to do after our manner, throng-in to the Table of the Lord, there to partake of those Tremenda mysteria, the signs of the Body and Blood of the Lord: But so to come as the Good Soldier comes, To receive virtue thence, To take and eat by Faith, this commands a great work of examination before hand, what brokenness of heart I bring thither? what strength of love? what life of Faith?  
6. In the last place, to covenant with the Lord, to lift up the hand, to subscribe our name, it is but the outside, the carcase, the bodily exercise of the duty and profiteth little, and is easily done; But to lay the soul under sacred bands, to engage the heart to God, that the man will be wholly the Lords, wholly for His work, His service, All his actings shall be to His Lord, and for Him, do any thing, suffer any thing, be any thing or nothing, so his LORD may have the glory; Liberty nothing to this man; Richeses nothing; life not accounted of, for the man is nothing, he is not his own; he is wholly for and laid-out for his God: An hard work to bring-up the heart to this. To what? why to live in another, to speak and to act in another, and for another; to be all for another and nothing for himself, to refer all to God, to receive all from God, and to be in a man's self nothing at all: It is a costly work, but he has sworn to it, he has liftedup the hand; and subscribed the name: As the beast to the horns of the Altar, he has bound himself to God with full purpose of heart, that he will be his LORDS servant, all for his LORD. Amen. And this may suffice to show the nature of these works.    

CHAP. VIII.  
Sickness, Death's Harbinger and Death its self are known enemies to nature, and the Conquerors of this world: yet this Good Soldier is more than conqueror over both, which is m●d● plain by a distinction the Sacred Scripture makes betwixt sickness, Death and Death.  
THis man has brought God down to his soul, and he has brought-up his soul to God, engaged to Him: And he has, (and he has all things, for he has God 
a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 (i e.) All things, Gen. 33. 11. ,) he has in his Lord Christ's, there is his confidence, and the stability of his graces: And all he has, he layes-out for Christ, that is his duty: as all his actings are to Him, so are they for Him; An happy man indeed! he is out of the reach of his Adversaries, the evil of sickness, the Power of death cannot reach him, is not able to hurt him. We suppose now, and yet that we need not do, for it is an uncontroleable Truth, That weakness, weariness, and faintness is that SQVIRE of the Body, which still attendeth nature: And this man, though he may bear it out for a time, and think to wrestle with this Squire, yet he must yield to it anon, take-his-bed, as we commonly say, lye-down there, tumble-upon it, turning-on this side towards his friends, they cannot help him; than on the other side towards the wall, as the good King before him, and prayed 
b 2 King. ●0. 2●. . But all this while, this man is not sick. It is a Paradox against all conceit and reason, a very riddle, I know, but we shall easily read it, if we will read the Scriptures, and as these direct us, distinguish of sickness; There is sickness full of wrath: A sickness full of comfort. This is very considerable; of infinite use, therefore I must infist upon it.  
There is a sickness full of wrath, And wrath with his sickness 
c Eccles. 5. 17.  Ah Lord! now it is a sickness indeed: The Lord deliver us from that sickness wherein is wrath, for that is to be delivered from al● evil. Wrath makes it a sickness, a pure sickness, for therein is wrath; It is not the pain of the head, nor of the stomach, nor of the heart, which makes it a sickness: Not, not; It is wrath that makes it a sickness; Wrath! The Lord deliver us from it, for it makes health a sickness, eating, drinking, playing, sporting, but a sickness, all these; Mark the words, All his days also he eateth in darkness. Darkness! what is that? It follows, Much sorrow. The man indeed feels not the sorrow, he is jocund and merry, but the more sign of more wrath, which he shall feel anon in his month 
d Jer. 2. 24. , when pains come upon him, than he shall say, I am sick; for he feels wrath with his sickness; Wrath was upon him before, when he was eating, drinking, sleeping, God was angry with him every day, (all his days, he did eat in darkness, says the Text) 
Psal. 7. 11.  he was not sensible of this till now his day, and month is come, now he is sick indeed, for he has wrath with his sickness. Indeed we should not pass over this lightly, but I must proceed when I have given the sum only of what I should have spoken, which is this, 1. Wrath with a mercy, be it health, peace, all outward prosperity, makes all but a sickness: 2. Love, the will of a heavenly Father with sickness, weariness, faintuesse, with war, and all outward molestations, and inward troubles, makes all healthy, sound and well. That is the sum, the use is this, To put every man upon this work in the conscionable use of all means, while health is, and yet his month is not come, whereby to pacify wrath: if he be not careful this way with all his care, than thus it will be when his month comes, and his eyes be open; than not only every griping in his sickness, but all that he called health, and all he did in his health, will come unto his remembrance with a sense, and relish of wrath: Therefore use all means to pacify wrath. And so I come to the other sickness full of comfort, this good man's sickness the Love of God, the face of God upon this man fills his heart top full with comfort: Though pains be upon him, and a sore sickness, yet he will not say, I am sick.  
A. But may not God withdraw His face from this man, even at such a needful time?  
B. Yes, that he may, for a night, and the man may apprehended wrath in it, and that apprehension makes it a long night: but joy comes in the morning, abundantly recompensing that night's sorrow. God will not pled against his servant with His great power: Not, but He will put strength in him 
a Job 23. 6. .  
A. May not this man have a great distemper upon him, such as may make him watch his opportunity to knock his head against the bed●sted? so I think I have observed it.  
B. Possible so, and such may be the distemper of his disease; but yet the spirit is not out of frame; And now his friends will look to him sure; and suddenly the fit will be over, and than the man is himself, and asketh his friends, (jealons of his behaviour) whether he did speak unadvisedly with his lips? Not said they, and they said very true, for it was his disease, not the man. And the man is very joyful at this. O said he, for so I have known it to be, I would say nothing that might dishonour my God.  
A. I but the man may be ground to pieces with a keen and cutting stone in his reins. 
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. Chrysost. in Cap. 18. Matth.   
B. May be so, and yet no wrath in this. It is the will of his GOD, the love of his heavenly Father, so to exercise His son or daughter for a minute; the love of a Father, no wrath in all this.  
A. But the man has a loathsome disease upon him, that we call 
Seeming mercies are plagues when they come from wrath: And seeming plagues are mercies when they come from love: said the Preacher, who gives forth the whole mind of God in the Scriptures, and his words by weight. Mr Marshal. Text Numb. 25. 11. April 22  the plague.  
B. True, but not a plague to him, no plague in that house, whatever we see upon his door, or tokens upon his body, yet no plague there, if wrath be not there. Put it down and conclude thy soul under this truth, That where is, there is a plague; Where no wrath, no plague: If wrath be pacified, the plague is gone; If wrath be not pacified, the plague remains, be it sword, famine, pestilence, or wild beasts: from hence this is the result, Talk ye of Peace till your tongues are wearied, there can be no peace so long as wrath is not appeased; but appease wrath, and than peace indeed, Peace, peace, whether you respect a nation or a man only.  
A. But this man's acquaintance may be removed from him; Because of his sore disease, like a leprosy, a separating sickness, he may be alone, and none ●o comfort him.  
B. Not possible, granting still, that there is no wrath. None to comfort him! said you; God speaks comfortably to him, never so comfortably as now, now all are gone from him; now he feels the greatest comforts, the strongest consolations: God comforts 
Isa. 66. 13.  him now, as one, whom his mother comforteth (o how does a mother comfort her sick child!) so will I comfort you, and you shall be comforted. Ai, for his God undertakes for His servant; his God will comfort him, it is not possible he should say now; I am sick●  
A. Not sick! his head aches, and stomach aches, and back aches, and his heart aches, and yet says he not, I am sick!  
B. Not; The Inhabitants shall not say, I am sick, for his iniquity is forgiven 
b Isa. 33. 24. : There is the point, wrath is gone, sin, that causeth wrath, that is forgiven; his flesh and his heart, those fail him, but God does not fail, He is the strength of his heart, and 
●sal. 73. 26.  his portion for ever. And now I come to that we must all come to, death; we can pull-out the sting of it quickly, if it be as quickly done as said; Than we must distinguish of deaths also, There is a kill death; and there is a quickening death.  
A kill death; wherein a man at once, dies twice, dies a second death; dies once, and dies ever; ever dying and never dead, a kill death. The sacred Scripture assureth us it is so; They are dead, they shall not live 
a Isa. 26. 14. : they are deceased, they shall not rise. What is this? I cannot express how terrible it is, It is a dying for ever, or a living for ever in the mouth and jaws of death; A living in death for ever, a continuing not in the shadow, but in the darkness of death for ever, for the morning Star shall dawn upon him, nor the Sun arise: A darkness, where he shall never see the day, a perpetual, an everlasting night. There is another Scripture as terrible, I will kill her children with death 
b Rev. 2. 23. , who shall be so killed? is cleared from the context, that woman Jezabell, as mischievous to the Christian Church as she was to Israel; That woman, and her children, her and her disciples, who have drunk-in the wine of her sornications, she and they shall be Killed with Death; Killed. with Death! It is very terrible, God may open upon the mother and her children His Armoury 
c Jer. 50. 25. ● Hose. 9 13. Cruent is caedi●●●. Jun. , she may bring forth her children to the sword, to be eaten-up with famine, consumed with the pestilence; devoured with wild beasts, as now a days, and yet not killed with death. To be killed with death, is, when death seizeth upon the woman and her children, gnaws on them for ever, they shall dye and never dye; perish utterly, and never perish, they shall fall by death into an ocean of misery, like a millstone, and there be killed with death, such pains as are unconceivable; and, which is the killing indeed, the Hell indeed, everlasting pains, which makes every day of pain (if there were any day in Hell) an eternal night of misery. It is a kill death, when every minute's pains, has the sense of eternity in them.  
2. There is a quickening death; Thy dead men shall live 
e Isa. 26. ●●. : death is no death to them, life rather; It comes unto the godly swallowed-up in Christ his death (I think I may apply it so) that they may have life, and have it in abundance 
f Job. 10. 10. . There is a short controversy marvellously carried in a full contrariety of words, but meeting in a point of an eternal truth; The controversy was concerning the Ruler's daughter: The LORD CHRIST said of her, she is not dead 
g Mat. ●. 24. : The standers by laughed Him to scorn, for saith St Luke, they knew she was dead 
h Luk. 8. 53. : dead and yet not dead, a truth in both; she was dead to nature, alive to Christ, Who is the resurrection and the life: the body is not dead to Him.  
There are two other expreslions very notable; He shall not see death, nor taste death; he sees it not as a conqueror, a king of tenrours, but conquered, unstinged, spoiled, and led-captive: he looks upon as old Jacob upon his sons wagons; or the Prophet upon his fiery chariot, so he looks upon death. He tasteth not of death, no wrath there; It is wrath, the kill with death, that is the gall of Asps; but now the wrath is gone; The man said before, I am not sick, for my fin is pardoned, and all wrath taken away; And now he is sick indeed, Sick of Love; It is the will of his heavenly Father, that his sickness must unto death, and a fruit of His rich and abundant love through his Lord Christ, by His Spirit, that he should neither see death, nor taste it, but see death swallowed-up in 
Isa. 38. 17. Chashak●●.  life and immortality; Indeed he is sick of love, for the Lord has loved his soul from the pit: His loving kindness was better than life to this man all his life long; what it is unto him now at his death cannot be expressed; but you shall hear his Song of Loves.  

§ VIII. The good Soldiers Triumphant Song.  
THis man is (supposed) now ready to breathe out his soul into the bosom of his Father; the time of his departure is at hand; his work is done; he has fought a good fight, he has finished his 
● Tim. 4. 6.  course, kept the faith: He has nothing to do now, but to die. And that was his care all his life long, To set all his house, and goods there, body and soul and all in that order, that he might have no cumber, nothing at all to trouble him, in that hour of temptation, no other work to do than but to dye. He has but one Song to sing now, which, though his body be weak he can sing in the spirit: When he had strength of body, he sang all Davids Maschills, Psalms to give instruction; all his mictams, those precious songs therein recording the rich mercies, and the abundant loving kindness of his God: And than he asked his soul, what wilt thou tender unto the LORD for all these? And than he resolved upon it, to praise his God while he had any being: Than he sang the Psalms, to call to remembrance; than when he was lively and 
Psal. 38. 70.  strong he chanted-forth the 30, 31, 32, 103, and 116, 120, and so to the end of the book of Psalms; all these he has sung with rejoicing: Now he has but one Psalm to sing, and it must be very short, he will lengthen it out in Heaven, as long as eternity is long, for ever. Now he lifteth up his body, if it be not too stiff, and heavy; and his eyes, if he can, if he cannot, his spirit is willing, and the spirit carrieth forth the voice, when the tongue moves not; O my soul, exalt, magnify the Lord thy God, He remembered thee, when thou wast nothing; regarded thee in thy low estate; when thou wast in thy blood, worse than nothing, than He called thee, said to thee, live, live; than He washed thee with clean waters, a dorned thee, took a way thine iniquity, transgresson and sin, forgave all thine iniquities, healed all thy diseases; redeemed thee out of all adversity; held thee in life, kept thy feet from falling. Come Lord Jesus, faithful and true, whom I have trusted; I have committed my soul into thy hands, for thou hast redeemed it LORD God of truth. His last words. And now his warfare is ended, and he completed; In the very point of his dissolution, he is made perfect. Now he is where he conversed on earth, and delighted to be even where his love, his joy is, with His Lord Christ blessed for ever, 
Rev. 22.  (He was his Heaven upon earth, and is his Heaven now;) and with the Saints of light, singing together the song of Moses, and the Lamb, Hallelujah for ever and ever.  
Let my way be as this man's way; my course as his course, my life as his life; than my end shall be like his, and the recompense of reward the same, Amen. So be it. Amen and Amen.     

A Postscript to the honest hearted Reader.  
THree sheets of paper (for I must not call it a Book, that has neither truth nor reason for its patrons) were this very hour put into my hand, called A Loyal Convert. The scribble is stuffed with the highest Treason, horrible treachery, abominable blasphemy, the basest flattery, vilest compliancy, with willing and wilful ignoranc●, all these, all throughout. Take it apart; The Epistle first is proud, lofty and insolent; his own, who knows nothing as he aught to know, and his own heart worst of all. The following papers have attained their scope; To gainsay reason; To cross sense. To blaspheme God and His Scriptures, His King and His people, all the Kingdom over. The Malignants applaud it, every one says; No doubt of that, and the fairest Argument that the scribble and the scribe is as brutish as themselves are, I call God to record upon my soul, That the Epistle and the scope of the following pages, is as I have in short declared it to be: And that 
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. Ephes. 4. 14.  I have so done for this only reason, That unstable souls, who are carried with every wind, like straws or leaves in Autumn, (many, every where) may not be beguiled with Paralogismes, Oxford's wild Sophistry now adays,  
A. But here is no Answer you will say, where as the silly Scholar has Ob. and An. all along his papers.  
B. He has indeed, but his Objections are as silly and ridiculous as are his Answers: Yet while was any hope, by braying she fools, to get out their folly, these their Arguments, such as they are, has answer after answer from Scripture and Reason both; But seeing he will be a fool still; will bring old and worn Arguments, with blasphemies to boot, we have our command doubled, answer him not: To what purpose should they be answered, who will acknowledge no other God, but their King; no other wor●●ip● but what is in their Service Book: who will not see the right hand of the Lord liftedup now [though never more gloriously since the day He was liftedup from the earth, as it is now, and all these years, since the Parliament sat:] And can see nothing ● all, with all their eyes, wrought by the contrary party, but through the depths of Satan, and treacheries of his Angels, right men for 
Pessimum est qutoquid agitur a desperantibus. P●in. 〈…〉  honour, unless they can overcome God himself, and thrust the Lord Christ out of his throne: no answer to these men. But one word more to the honest hearted reader; who may be taken w●● such silly stuff, he met with in the forementioned; he may b●● little transported beyond his own principles of nature and right reason: Hardly possible, yet possible; Than let him read Allegiance not Impeached; I assure him upon the word of a Christian if he be not willingly ignorant, The reading that book, will 〈◊〉 the man to his right mind again, and keep him close to right principles for ever.  
FINIS.