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<DATE>2007-10-03</DATE>
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<NAME>Elspeth Healey</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<BIBNO T="oclc">12056199</BIBNO>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>VVhol&s;ome Severity reconciled with
CHRISTIAN LIBERTY.
OR,
The true Re&s;olution of a pre&s;ent Con|trover&s;ie
concerning Liberty of
CONSCIENCE.</P>
<P>Here you have the Que&s;tion &s;tated, the middle
way betwixt Popi&s;h Tyrannie and Schi&s;matizing
Liberty approved, and al&s;o confirmed from
Scripture, and the te&s;timonies of Divines,
yea of whole Churches:
The chiefe Arguments and Exceptions u&s;ed in <HI>The
Bloudy Tenent, The Compa&s;sionate Samaritane,
M. S. to A. S.</HI> &amp;c. examined.
Eight Di&s;tinctions added for qualifying and
clearing the whole matter.
And in conclu&s;ion a Paraenetick to the five Apo|logi&s;ts
for choo&s;ing Accommodation rather
then Toleration.</P>
<P>Imprimatur. <HI>Ia. Cranford.</HI> Decemb. 16. 1644.</P>
<BIBL>Augu&s;t. contra primam Gaudentii Epi&s;t. c. 5.</BIBL>
<Q>Ab&s;it autem ut i&s;ta per&s;ecutio dicenda &s;it hominum, cum &s;it potius pro hominibus liberandis
per&s;ecutio vitiorum, qualem facit aegris etiam diligentia medicorum.</Q>
<BIBL>Idem contra Epi&s;t. Parmen. lib. 1. cap. 7.</BIBL>
<Q>Prius enim preb<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="3 letters"> &s;e non e&s;&s;e Haereticos vel Schi&s;maticos, <GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="2+ letters">m demum de indignis poenis
&s;uis lividam emittant vocem, &amp;c. nos corporum per&s;ecutores vocant, &s;e animarum interfecto|res
non vocant.</Q>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI>
Printed for <HI>Chri&s;topher Meredith,</HI> and are to be &s;old at the
Signe of the Crane in <HI>Pauls</HI> Churchyard. 1645.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="2">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>To the Chri&s;tian and courteous Reader.</HEAD>
<P>_IT cannot be unknown to any, except &s;uch
as are ignorant of Satans devices, and
altogether &s;trangers to the Hi&s;tories
of former times, that when&punc; the Church
commeth out of Idolatry, and out of bit|ter
&s;ervitude and grievous pre&s;&s;ures of con&s;cience, all her
&s;torms are not over her head, but &s;he begins to be a&s;|&s;aulted
and afflicted more then before with here&s;ies,
&s;chi&s;mes, and home-bred di&s;turbances. Which through
the manifold wi&s;dome and over-ruling di&s;pen&s;ation of
God, who worketh all things according to the coun&s;el of
his will, is <HI>Englands</HI> lot this day, that this may be to
tho&s;e in whom the Lord hath no plea&s;ure, <HI>a &s;tone of
&s;tumbling, and a rock of offence, that they may
goe and fall backward, and be broken; &amp; &s;na|red,
and taken:</HI> that others, <HI>who are approved,
may be made manife&s;t;</HI> yea, that <HI>many may be
purified, and tried, and made white;</HI> and that in
the i&s;&s;ue God may have the greater glory in making a
&s;overaign remedy out of poy&s;onfull Ingredients, and his
<PB REF="3">
people may &s;ay, <HI>ble&s;&s;ed be the Lord God of I&s;rael
who only doth wondrous things.</HI></P>
<P>But now will the Sectaries be contented (as Chri&s;ts
witne&s;&s;es in former times were) to be examined and
judged according to the word of God, and if they be
found to be what they are accu&s;ed to be, then to &s;uffer
accordingly? Nay, if &s;o, they fear they &s;hall run too
great a hazard. Therefore they cry out for toleration
and liberty of con&s;cience, hereby going about not only
them&s;elves to fi&s;h in troubled waters, but to improve at
once the manifold advantages of &s;ympathi&s;ing with the
principles of the mo&s;t part of men among&s;t us; for as it
is a common plea and bond of union among all hereticks
and &s;ectaries, how many &s;oever their divi&s;ions and &s;ub|divi&s;ions
be among them&s;elves;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>See</HI> the Review of the Cove|nant.</NOTE> yea, they give (in this)
the right hand of fellow&s;hip to the Prelaticall&punc; and ma|lignant
party, for they al&s;o put in for liberty of con&s;ci|ence:
and as carnall and prophane men de&s;ire nothing
more then that they may not be compelled to any religi|ous
duty, but permitted to doe what &s;eem good in their
own eies. So liberty of con&s;cience is a &s;weet and taking
word among the le&s;&s;e di&s;cerning &s;ort of godly people,
newly come out of the hou&s;e of bondage, out of the popi&s;h
and Prelaticall tyranny; I &s;ay the le&s;&s;e di&s;cerning &s;ort,
becau&s;e tho&s;e of the godly who have their &s;en&s;es exerci|&s;ed
to di&s;cern good and evill, know that liberty of here|&s;ie
<PB REF="3">
and &s;chi&s;me is no part of the liberty of con&s;cience
which Chri&s;t hath purcha&s;ed to us at &s;o dear a rate.
But is there no golden hook and taking bait for the
Magi&s;trate? yes &s;ure; for his part he is told that he may
puni&s;h any breach of peace or civill ju&s;tice, or a tre&s;pa&s;&s;e
again&s;t the State and again&s;t civill authority, but
yet not put forth his power again&s;t any man for here&s;ie
or &s;chi&s;me, being matters of religion and of con&s;cience.
As if both Polititians and Divines had been in a great
error when they &s;aid that the end and u&s;e of Magi&s;tra|cy
is to make <HI>bonum hominem,</HI> as well as <HI>bonum
civem,</HI> a good man as well as a good commonwealths
man. Shall I adde further, that all who wi&s;h well to
the publike from principles either of religion or policy,
want not here their own tentations, per&s;wading to a to|leration
of &s;ectaries, in regard of the nece&s;&s;ity of an u|nion
again&s;t the common adver&s;ary, and the great ha|zard,
if not certain ruine, of the cau&s;e, by our own rup|tures?</P>
<P>Vnder the&s;e fair colours and hand&s;ome pretexts doe
&s;ectaries infu&s;e their poy&s;on, I mean their pernicious,
God-provoking, Truth-defacing, Church ruinating, &amp;
State-&s;haking toleration. The plain engli&s;h of the que|&s;tion
is this: whether the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate be kee|per
of both Tables: whether he ought to &s;uppre&s;&s;e his
own enemies, but not Gods enemies, and pre&s;erve his
<PB REF="4">
own ordinances, but not Chri&s;ts Ordinances fro~ violation.
Whether the troublers of I&s;rael may be troubled. Whe|ther
the wilde boars and bea&s;ts of the fore&s;t mu&s;t have
leave to break down the hedges of the Lords vineyard;
and whether ravening wolves in &s;heeps clothing mu&s;t be
permitted to conver&s;e freely in the flock of Chri&s;t.
Whether after the black Devil of Idolatry and tyranny
is trod under our feet, a white Devill of here&s;ie and
&s;chi&s;me, under the name of tender con&s;ciences, mu&s;t be
admitted to walk up and down among us. Whether not
only pious and peaceable men, (whom I &s;hall never con|&s;ent
to per&s;ecute) but tho&s;e al&s;o who are as a pe&s;tilence&punc; or
a Gangrene in the body of Chri&s;t, men of corrupt minds
and turbulent &s;pirits, who draw factions after them,
make a breach and rent in I&s;rael, re&s;i&s;t the truth and
reformation of religion, &s;pread abroad all the ways they
can their pernicious errors, and by no other means can
be reduced; whether tho&s;e al&s;o ought to be &s;pared and
let alone. I have endeavoured in this following di&s;cour&s;e
to vindicate the lawfull, yea nece&s;&s;ary u&s;e of the coer|cive
power of the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate in &s;uppre&s;sing
and puni&s;hing hereticks and &s;ectaries, according as the
degree of their offence and of the Churches danger &s;hal
require: Which when I had done, there came to my
hands a book called <HI>The &s;torming of Antichri&s;t.</HI>
Indeed, <HI>The recruting of Antichri&s;t,</HI> and <HI>the
<PB REF="4">
&s;torming of Zion,</HI> (if &s;o be that I may anabaptize
an Anabapti&s;ts book) Take one pa&s;&s;age for in&s;tance,
pa. 25. <HI>And for Papi&s;ts,</HI> &s;aith he, <HI>though they are
lea&s;t to be borne of all others, becau&s;e of the
uncertainty of their keeping faith with Here|ticks,
as they call us, and becau&s;e they may be
ab&s;olved of &s;ecurements that can ari&s;e from
the ju&s;t &s;olemn oaths, and becau&s;e of their cru|elty
again&s;t the Prote&s;tants in divers Countries
where they get the upper hand, and becau&s;e
they are profe&s;t Idolaters, yet may they be born
with (as I &s;uppo&s;e with &s;ubmi&s;sion to better
judgments) in Prote&s;tant government, in point
of religion, becau&s;e we have no command to
root out any for con&s;cience, &amp;c.</HI> Why then? is
this to &s;torm Antichri&s;t? or is it not rather a &s;torming <HI>of
this party,</HI> in the prevailing whereof <HI>God will have
far more glory then in the prevailing of the
Popi&s;h and Prelaticall party,</HI> as him&s;elf &s;peaketh,
pa. 34. And if he will &s;torm, &s;ure &s;ome of his Ladders
are too &s;hort. <HI>If any one rail again&s;t Chri&s;t</HI> (&s;aith
he, p. 23.) <HI>or deny the Scriptures to be his word,
or affirm the Epi&s;tles to be only letters written
to particular Churches, and no rule for us, and
&s;o un&s;ettle our faith, this I take may be puni&s;h|ed
by the Magi&s;trate, becau&s;e all or mo&s;t Na|tions
<PB REF="5">
in the world doe it.</HI> That all the Nations&punc; in
the world doe puni&s;h for the&s;e things, I am yet to learn:
and tho&s;e that doe, doe they not al&s;o puni&s;h men for o|ther
ways of un&s;etling the grounds of faith be&s;ides the&s;e?
The declining of &s;ome of the Epi&s;tles as being letters
written upon particular occa&s;ions, and no rule for us,
is an error which hath been pretended to be no le&s;&s;e con|&s;cientious
then tho&s;e errors which now he will have in|dulged.
La&s;tly, if he would needs &s;torm, why would
be not make &s;ome new breach? I find no materiall ar|guments
in him for liberty of con&s;cience, but what I
found before in <HI>the bloudy Tenent, the compa&s;|&s;ionate
Samaritane,</HI> and <HI>M. S.</HI> to <HI>A. S.</HI> &s;o that my
en&s;uing an&s;wers to them &s;hall &s;erve his turn. And
now Reader <HI>buy the truth, and &s;ell it not.</HI> Search
for knowledge <HI>as for hid trea&s;ures.</HI> If thou reade&s;t
with a unprejudiced mind, I dare promi&s;e thee through
Gods ble&s;sing a &s;atisfied mind.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="discourse">
<PB N="1" REF="5">
<HEAD>THE
TRUE RESOLUTION
of a pre&s;ent Controver&s;ie concer|ning
Liberty of Con&s;cience.</HEAD>
<P>_COncerning this Que&s;tion there are three opi|nions;
two extreams, and one in the middle.
So it is re&s;olved not only by D. <HI>Voctius,</HI> in
his late Di&s;putations <HI>De libertate con&s;cientiae,</HI>
but long before by <HI>Calvin,</HI> in his Refuta|tion
of the errours of <HI>Servetus,</HI> where he
di&s;puteth this very que&s;tion, Whether Chri&s;tian Judges
may lawfully puni&s;h Hereticks.</P>
<P>The fir&s;t opinion is that of the Papi&s;ts, who hold it to be
not only no &s;in, but good &s;ervice to God, to extirpate by
fire and &s;word, all that are adver&s;aries to, or oppo&s;ers of the
Church and Catholick Religion.<NOTE PLACE="marg">In <HI>2^a^m&punc;</HI> 2^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> di&s;p. 1. quae&s;t. 11. punct. 3.</NOTE> Upon this ground <HI>Grego|rius
de Valentia</HI> tells us there were 180. of the <HI>Albigen&s;es</HI>
burnt under Pope <HI>Innocentius</HI> the third; and in the Councell
of <HI>Con&s;tance</HI> were burnt <HI>John Hus</HI> and <HI>Hierome</HI> of <HI>Prague.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Suarez de triplice virtute, Tract. 1. di&s;p. 23. &s;ect.</HI> 2. layeth
downe the&s;e A&s;&s;ertions. 1. That all Hereticks who after
&s;ufficient in&s;truction and admonition, &s;till per&s;i&s;t in their
error, are to be without mercy put to death. 2. That all im|penitent
Hereticks, though they profe&s;&s;e to be Catholicks,
being convict of here&s;ie, are to be put to death. 3. That re|lap&s;ing
Hereticks, though penitent, are to be put to death
<PB N="2" REF="6">
without mercy. 4. That it is mo&s;t probable, that Here&s;i|archs,
Dogmati&s;ts, or the authors of an here&s;ie, though tru|ly
penitent, yet are not to be received to favour, but delive|red
to the civil &s;word. 5. That a heretick who hath not
relap&s;ed, if before &s;entence pa&s;t again&s;t him, he convert of
his owne accord, he is not to bee puni&s;hed with death, but
with &s;ome &s;maller puni&s;hment, &s;uch as perpetuall impri&s;on|ment,
or the like. <HI>Ibid. Tract. 3. di&s;p. 12. &s;ect.</HI> 12. hee &s;aith,
that Schi&s;maticks may be puni&s;hed with almo&s;t all the pu|ni&s;hments
of Hereticks.</P>
<P>Azor. In&s;titut. moral. Tom. 1. lib. 8. cap. 14. &V;tri&abque; ver&ograve;,
tum relap&s;i, tum alii, quando pertinaces &s;unt, vivi igne exuruntur:
&s;i ver&ograve; pertinaces non &s;int, prius &s;trangulari &s;olent, &amp; po&s;tea com|buri.
<HI>See the like,</HI> Becan. Summa part. 3. Tract. 1. quaest. 6. &amp;
9. Turrian. in <HI>2^a^m</HI> 2^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> di&s;p. 56. dub. 1. <HI>Some of them al&s;o
maintaine the compelling of Infidels to be baptized, as</HI> Sco|tus
in lib. 4. Sent. di&s;t. 4. quae&s;t. 9. <HI>and they who follow him.</HI></P>
<P>The &s;econd opinion doth fall &s;hort, as farre as the former
doth exceed: that is, that the Magi&s;trate ought not to in|flict
any puni&s;hment, nor put forth any coercive power up|pon
Hereticks or Sectaries, but on the contrary grant them
liberty and toleration. This was the opinion of the <HI>Dona|ti&s;ts,</HI>
again&s;t which <HI>Augu&s;tine</HI> hath written both much and
well, in divers places: though him&s;elfe was once in the
&s;ame error, till he did take the matter into his &s;econd and
better thoughts, as is evident by his Retractations, <HI>lib. 2. cap.
2. &amp; epi&s;t.</HI> 48. In the &s;ame error are the <HI>Socinians</HI> and <HI>Armi|nians.</HI>
See <HI>Peltii Harmonia, Artic. 21. Nic. Bodecher. Socinia|no.
Remonstranti&s;mus. cap.</HI> 25. See al&s;o <HI>Grotii Apologeticus,
cap. 6. pag. 130. Theoph. Nicolaid. Refut. Tractat. de Eccle&s;ia,
cap. 4. p.</HI> 33. The very &s;ame is maintained in &s;ome Bookes
printed among&s;t our &s;elves in this yeare of confu&s;ion: viz.
<HI>The bloudy Tenent: Liberty of Con&s;cience: The Compa&s;&s;ionate
Samaritan: John the Bapti&s;t:</HI> and by M^r. <HI>Goodwin</HI> in his
<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">EOMAXIA, <HI>pag.</HI> 50. and in his <HI>Innocencies Triumph, pag.
8.</HI> In which places he denyeth that the Magi&s;trate, and par|ticularly
that the two Hou&s;es of Parliament may impo&s;e
<PB N="3" REF="6">
any thing pertaining to the &s;ervice and wor&s;hip of God <HI>un|der
mulcts or penalties.</HI> So <HI>M. S.</HI> to <HI>A. S. pag. 53. 54. 55. &amp;c.</HI>
di&s;puteth again&s;t the coercive power of the Magi&s;trate to
&s;uppre&s;&s;e Here&s;ies and Sects. This power the Presbyterians
doe a&s;cribe to the Magi&s;trate, as I &s;hall &s;hew by and by:
Therefore I &s;till averre, that M. <HI>Goodwin</HI> in denying and op|po&s;ing
this power, doth herein (as in divers other particu|lars)
a&s;cribe much le&s;&s;e to the Magi&s;trate then the Presby|terians
doe: which overthroweth that in&s;inuation of the
five Apologi&s;ts <HI>pag.</HI> 19.</P>
<P>The third opinion is, that the Magi&s;trate may and ought
to exerci&s;e his coercive power, in &s;uppre&s;&s;ing and puni&s;hing
Hereticks and Sectaries, le&s;&s;e or more, according as the na|ture
and degree of the error, &s;chi&s;me, ob&s;tinacy, and danger
of &s;educing others, doth require. This as it was the judge|ment
of the orthodox Ancients, <HI>(vide Optati opera, edit. Al|ba&s;pin.
pag. 204. 215.)</HI> &s;o it is followed by our &s;ounde&s;t Pro|te&s;tant
Writers; mo&s;t largely by <HI>Beza</HI> again&s;t <HI>Bellius</HI> and
<HI>Monfortius,</HI> in a peculiar Treati&s;e <HI>De Haereticis &agrave; Magi|&s;tratu
puniendis.</HI> And though <HI>Gerhard,</HI><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Brochmand. de magi&s;t. polit. cap 2. quae&s;t. 3. dub 2. Fatemur idololatras i&s;tos cra&s;&s;os, qui a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">os &s;educunt, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="3 letters">|dendos e&s;&s;e. Et in<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">a. Haereti|cos qui &egrave; terri|torio principis exire ju&s;&s;i, de|trectant ob&s;e|quium, ac pace~ publicam tur|bant, vita plecti po&s;&s;e, damus faciles. Et infra. Haereticos tan|quam fal&s;arios, ca&s;tigandos &amp; pu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">endos e&s;&s;e cen&s;emus, &s;ed non morte, ver&ugrave;m carcere, exilio, excommunicatime. Vide Cal<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">in. Refut. error. Mich. Serv<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ti, pag. 694. inter opu&s;c. Scimus tres e&s;&s;e errorum gradus: &amp; quibu&s;dam fatemur dandam e&s;&s;e veniam, aliis modicam ca&s;tigationem &s;uffic<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">re, ut tantum manife&s;ta impietas capital. &s;uppl<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">cio plectatur. Fideles &s;aepius Paulus <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ortatur ut &s;e invicem tolerent, quamvis aliqua &s;it inter eos di&s;&s;en&s;io: nempe &s;iqua levis &s;uper&s;titio &amp; in&s;citia &s;implicium men<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">es occupat; ut <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">am patientia corrigere poti&ugrave;s &s;tudeant, qu&agrave;m intemperanter ad vindictam e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">erveant. Secundum errorum ge|nus, et&s;i ca&s;tigationem meretur, mediocr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters"> tamen adhibenda e&s;t &s;everi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">as: tantum ne indulgenti&acirc; alatur eorum improbitas &amp; contumacia qui fidei unitatem &s;cindere cuperent. Sed ubi &agrave; &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">is fun|damentis convellitur religio, dete&s;tandae in Deum bla&s;phemiae proferuntur, impiis &amp; pe&s;tiferis dogmatibus in <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">x<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">tium rapiuntur animae; denique ubi palam defectio ab uni<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">o Deo, pur&acirc;&abque; do|ctrin&acirc; tentatur, ad extremum illud remedium de&s;cendere nece&s;&s;e e&s;t, ne mo tale venenum lon|gius &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">rpat. <HI>This Treati&s;e is approved by</HI> Bulling<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">r <HI>in an Epi&s;tle to</HI> Calvin. Vide Calv. E|pi&s;t. p. 197. <HI>where he addeth:</HI> Dudum D. Vrbanus Regius un<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> cum omn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">bus Luneburgen. Ec|cle&s;iae mini&s;tris, edito etiam l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">bro Germanico, o&s;tendit jure divine &amp; humano coerceri Haereti|cos. <HI>Concerning moderation he &s;aith after:</HI> Scio tibi nec crudele e&s;&s;&egrave; ingenium, nec te ul|lam atrocitatem approbare: quis n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;ciat etiam h&icirc;c modum adhibendum e&s;&s;e? At quomodo Ser|veto Lernae haere&s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">n &amp; pertinaci&s;&s;imo homini parci potuerit, non video. <HI>When</HI> Monfortius <HI>had &s;tated the que&s;tion thus:</HI> Sunt quidam qui volunt omnes Hereticos, hoc e&s;t, ab ip&s;is di&s;&s;ent en|tes, interfici, &amp;c. Beza <HI>an&s;wereth him:</HI> Ergo &s;i potest, vel unum nominet qui a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t omnes Hae|reticos cen&s;uerit interficiendos, aut ita &s;ibi placuerit ut alios omnes diver&s;um &s;entientes pro hae|reticis habuer<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t.</NOTE> <HI>Brochmand,</HI> and o|ther
<PB N="4" REF="7">
<HI>Lutheran</HI> Writers, make a controver&s;ie where they need
not, alledging that the <HI>Calvini&s;ts</HI> (&s;o nicknamed) hold as
the Papi&s;ts doe, that all Hereticks without di&s;tinction are
to be put to death: The truth is, they them&s;elves &s;ay as
much as either <HI>Calvin</HI> or <HI>Beza,</HI> or any other whom they
take for adver&s;aries in this Que&s;tion, that is, that Hereticks
are to be puni&s;hed by mulcts, impri&s;onments, bani&s;hments,
and if they be gro&s;&s;e idolaters or bla&s;phemers, and &s;educers
of others, then to be put to death. What is it el&s;e that <HI>Calvin</HI>
teacheth, when he di&s;tingui&s;heth three kindes of errors:
&s;ome to be tolerated with a &s;pirit of meekne&s;&s;e, and &s;uch as
ought not to &s;eparate betwixt brethren: others not to be
tolerated, but to be &s;uppre&s;&s;ed with a certaine degree of &s;e|verity:
a third &s;ort &s;o abominable and pe&s;tiferous, that they
are to be cut off by the highe&s;t puni&s;hments?</P>
<P>And le&s;t it be thought that this is but the opinion of &s;ome
few, that the magi&s;trate ought thus by a &s;trong hand, and
by civill puni&s;hments &s;uppre&s;&s;e Hereticks and Sectaries: let
it be ob&s;erved what is held forth and profe&s;&s;ed concerning
this bu&s;ine&s;&s;e, by the Reformed Churches in their publicke
Confe&s;&s;ions of Faith. In the latter Confe&s;&s;ion of <HI>Helvetia,
cap.</HI> 30. it is &s;aid that the magi&s;trate ought to <HI>root out lies and
all &s;uper&s;tition, with all impiety and idolatry.</HI> And after; <HI>Let him
&s;uppre&s;&s;e &s;tubborne Hereticks.</HI> In the <HI>French</HI> Confe&s;&s;ion, <HI>art.
39. Therefore he hath al&s;o delivered the &s;word into the hands of
the Magi&s;trates, to wit, that offences may be repre&s;&s;ed, not only
tho&s;e which are committed again&s;t the &s;econd Table, but al&s;o a|gain&s;t
the first.</HI> In the <HI>Belgick</HI> Confe&s;&s;ion, <HI>art. 36. Therefore
hath he armed the Magi&s;trate with the &s;word for puni&s;hing them
that doe evill, and for defending &s;uch as doe well. Moreover it is
their duty not only to be carefull and watchfull for the pre&s;erva|tion
of the civill government, but al&s;o to defend the holy Mini&s;tery,
and to aboli&s;h and overthrow all Idolatry, and counterfeit wor&s;hip of
God. Beza de haeret, &agrave; magi&s;tr. puniend,</HI> tells us in the begin|ning,
that the Mini&s;ters of <HI>Helvetia</HI> had declared them&s;elves
to be of the &s;ame judgement, in a booke publi&s;hed of that
Argument. And toward the end he citeth the <HI>Saxon</HI> Con|fe&s;&s;ion,
<PB N="5" REF="7">
<HI>Luther, Melancthon, Brentius, Bucerus, Wolfangus
Capito,</HI> and <HI>Bullinger.</HI> The Synod of <HI>Dort, Se&s;.</HI> 138. in their
&s;entence again&s;t the Remon&s;trants doth not only interdict
them of all their Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall and Academicall functions,
but al&s;o be&s;eech the States Generall by the &s;ecular power
further to &s;uppre&s;&s;e and re&s;train them.</P>
<P>The Arguments whereby this third or middle opinion is
confirmed (that we may not build upon humane authority)
are the&s;e.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Stratag. Satan. lib. 3. pa. 150, 151. Sed &s;unt qui tantum u&s;que ad Chri&s;tum vigui&s;&s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">am lege~ putent, &amp;c. Et poenam illam corporalem aeternae damnationis typum fui&s;&s;e, &amp;c. Quae quidem conjectura a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">eo mihi non inepta vi&s;a e&s;t, ut quam|obrem rejici po&s;&s;it non inve<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">irem; ni&s;i ei<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">atin in lege po&s;ita refragare|tur. E&s;t en<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">m in lege: Vt omnis I&s;|rael audiens timea<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">, neque <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word">&punc; ac quicquam admittat ej<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;modi. Quae certe ratio perpetuo v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">get.</NOTE> the law, <HI>Deut.</HI> 13. 6, 7, 8, 9. concer|ning
the &s;toning and killing of him, who
&s;hall &s;ecretly intice people, &s;aying, <HI>Let us go
after other gods.</HI> If it be &s;aid, that this law
did bind the Jews only, and is not morall
nor perpetuall. I an&s;wer, <HI>Jacobus Acontius,</HI>
though he be of another opinion concerning
this que&s;tion then I am, yet he candidly and
freely confe&s;&s;eth, that he &s;eeth nothing in
that law, which doth not belong to the New
Te&s;tament, as well as the Old; for &s;aith he,
the rea&s;on and ground of the law, the u&s;e and end of it, is
morall and perpetuall, <HI>ver. 11. All I&s;rael &s;hall hear and fear,
and &s;hall doe no more any &s;uch wickedne&s;&s;e, as this is among you.</HI>
But yet, &s;aith <HI>Acontius,</HI> this law doth not concern Here|ticks,
who beleeve and teach errors concerning the true
God or his wor&s;hip; but only Apo&s;tates who fall away to
other gods:<NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg">Pelargus in Deuter. 13 Qui bla&s;phemi &s;unt, qui Eccle&s;iam &amp; Rempub. a|perte t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="3 letters">bant, qu &s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> &s;unt m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ritas incur|r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="3 letters"> poeras: cae|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="4 letters"> corrige<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">di &s;unt, modi&s;que alas <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word">, ex<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">mplo Theo|do&s;ii &amp; Ju&s;ti|niani Imperato|rum, apud So|cratem lib. 5. c. 10. Theodo&s;ius <GAP DESC="foreign"> u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">|be ej<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">cit.</NOTE> In this I &s;hall not much contend with him;
only thus far, if Apo&s;tates are to be &s;toned and killed accor|ding
to that law, then &s;urely &s;educing Hereticks are al&s;o to
receive their mea&s;ure and proportion of puni&s;hment; The
morall equity of the law requireth thus much at lea&s;t, that if
we compare Here&s;y and Apo&s;ta&s;y together, look how much
le&s;&s;e the evill of &s;in is in Here&s;y, &s;o much and no more is to
be remitted of the evill of puni&s;hment, e&s;pecially the dan|ger
of contagion and &s;educement, being as much or rather
more in Here&s;y then in Apo&s;ta&s;y; yea, that which is called
Here&s;y being oftentimes a reall following after other gods.
<PB N="6" REF="8">
But the Law, <HI>Deut.</HI> 13. for puni&s;hing with death&punc; as
well whole Cities as particular per&s;ons, for falling away
to other gods, is not the only law for puni&s;hing even capi|tally
gro&s;&s;e &s;ins again&s;t the fir&s;t Table. See <HI>Exod. 22. 20.
He that &s;acrificeth unto any god, &s;ave unto the Lord only, he
&s;hall be utterly de&s;troyed,</HI> Exod. 31. 14. <HI>Every one that defileth
the Sabbath, &s;hall &s;urely be put to death,</HI> Levit. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">4. 16. <HI>And
he that blasphemeth the Name of the Lord, he &s;hall &s;urely be
put to death,</HI> Deut. 17. 2, 3, 4&punc; 5. <HI>If there be found among you
within any of thy gates, which the Lord thy God giveth thee, man
or woman, that hath wro<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ght wickedne&s;&s;e in the &s;ight of the Lord
thy God, in tran&s;gre&s;&s;ing his Covenant, and hath gone and &s;erved
other gods and wor&s;hipped them, &amp;c. Thou &s;halt bring forth that
man or that woman unto thy gates, even that man or that wo|man,
and &s;halt &s;tone them with &s;tones till they die.</HI></P>
<P>It will be asked, But how doth it appear that the&s;e or any
other Judiciall Laws of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> doe at all appertain to us,
as rules to guide us in like ca&s;es? I &s;hall wi&s;h him who
&s;crupleth this, to read <HI>Pi&s;cator</HI> his <HI>Appendix</HI> to his Ob&s;er|vations
upon the 21, 22, 23. Chapters of <HI>Exodus,</HI> where he
excellently di&s;puteth this que&s;tion, Whether the Chri&s;tian
Magi&s;trate be bound to ob&s;erve the Judicial laws of <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI>
as well as the Jewi&s;h Magi&s;trate was. He an&s;wereth by the
common di&s;tinction, he is obliged to tho&s;e things in the Ju|diciall
law which are unchangeable, &amp; common to all Na|tions:
but not to tho&s;e things which are mutable, or pro|per
to the Jewi&s;h Republike. But then he explaineth this
di&s;tinction, that by things mutable, and proper to the Jews,
he under&s;tandeth the emancipation of an Hebrew &s;ervant
or handmaid in the &s;eventh year, a mans marying his bro|thers
wife and rai&s;ing up &s;eed to his brother, the forgiving
of debts at the Jubilee, marying with one of the &s;ame
Tribe, and if there be any other like to the&s;e; al&s;o Cere|moniall
tre&s;pa&s;&s;es, as touching a dead body, &amp;c. But things
immutable, and common to all Nations are the laws con|cerning
Morall tre&s;pa&s;&s;es, Sins again&s;t the Morall law, as
murther, adultery, theft, enticing away from God, bla&s;phe|my,
<PB N="7" REF="8">
&s;triking of Parents. Now that the Chri&s;tian Magi|&s;trate
is bound to ob&s;erve the&s;e Judiciall lawes of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI>
which appoint the puni&s;hments of &s;ins again&s;t the Morall
law, he proveth by the&s;e rea&s;ons.</P>
<P>1. If it were not &s;o, then it is free and arbitrary to the
Magi&s;trate to appoint what puni&s;hments him&s;elf plea&s;eth.
But this is not arbitrary to him, for <HI>he is the Mini&s;ter of
God, Rom.</HI> 13. 4. and <HI>the judgement is the Lords, Deut. 1. 7.
2 Chron.</HI> 19. 6. And if the Magi&s;trate be <HI>Keeper of both Tables,</HI>
he mu&s;t keep them in &s;uch manner as God hath delivered
them to him.</P>
<P>2. Chri&s;ts words, <HI>Mat. 5. 17. Think not that I am come
to de&s;troy the Law or the Prophets, I am not come to de&s;troy, but
to fulfill,</HI> are comprehen&s;ive of the Judiciall law, it being a
part of the law of <HI>Mo&s;es;</HI> Now he could not fulfill the Ju|diciall
law, except either by his practice, or by teaching o|thers
&s;till to ob&s;erve it; not by his own practice, for he
would not condemn the Adultere&s;&s;e, <HI>Joh.</HI> 8. 11. nor divide
the Inheritance, <HI>Luke</HI> 12. 13, 14. Therefore it mu&s;t be by
his doctrine for our ob&s;erving it.</P>
<P>3. If Chri&s;t in his Sermon, <HI>Mat.</HI> 5. would teach that the
Morall law belongeth to us Chri&s;tians, in &s;o much as he
vindicateth it from the fal&s;e glo&s;&s;es of the Scribes &amp; Phari|&s;ees;
then he meant to hold forth the Judiciall law concer|ning
Morall tre&s;pa&s;&s;es as belonging to us al&s;o: for he vindi|cateth
and interpreteth the Judiciall law, as well as the Mo|rall,
<HI>Mat. 5. 38. An eye for an eye, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P>4. If God would have the Morall law tran&s;mitted from
the Jewi&s;h people to the Chri&s;tian people; then he would
al&s;o have the Judiciall law tran&s;mitted from the Jewi&s;h
Magi&s;trate to the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate: There being the
&s;ame rea&s;on of immutability in the puni&s;hments, which is
in the offences; Idolatry and Adultery di&s;plea&s;eth God
now as much as then; and Theft di&s;plea&s;eth God now
no more then before.</P>
<P>5. <HI>What&s;oever things were written af<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">retime, were written
for our learning, Rom.</HI> 15. 4. and what &s;hall the Chri&s;tian
<PB N="8" REF="9">
Magi&s;trate learn from tho&s;e Judiciall laws, but the will of
God to be his rule in like ca&s;es? The Ceremoniall law was
written for our learning, that we might know the fulfilling
of all tho&s;e Types, but the Judiciall law was not Typicall.</P>
<P>6. <HI>Doe all to the glory of God, 1 Cor. 10. 31. Mat.</HI> 5. 16.
How &s;hall Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trates glorifie God more then
by ob&s;erving Gods own laws, as mo&s;t ju&s;t, and &s;uch as they
cannot make better?</P>
<P>7. <HI>What&s;oever is not of faith is &s;in, Rom.</HI> 14. 23. Now when
the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate puni&s;heth &s;ins again&s;t the Mo|rall
law, if he doe this in faith and in a&s;&s;urance of plea&s;ing
God, he mu&s;t have his a&s;&s;urance from the Word of God, for
faith can build upon no other foundation: it is the Word
which mu&s;t a&s;&s;ure the Con&s;cience, God hath commanded
&s;uch a thing, therefore it is my duty to doe it, God hath
not forbidden &s;uch a thing, therefore I am free to doe it.
But the will of God concerning Civill ju&s;tice and puni&s;h|ments
is no where &s;o fully and cleerly revealed as in the Ju|diciall
law of <HI>Mo&s;es.</HI> This therefore mu&s;t be the &s;ure&s;t prop
and &s;tay to the con&s;cience of the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate.</P>
<P>The&s;e are not my rea&s;ons (if it be not a word or two ad|ded
by way of explaining and &s;trengthning) but the &s;ub|&s;tance
of <HI>Pi&s;cators</HI> rea&s;ons: Unto which I adde, 1. Though
we have clear and full &s;criptures in the New Te&s;tament for
aboli&s;hing the Ceremoniall law yet we no where reade in
all the new Te&s;tament of the aboli&s;hing of the Judicial law,
&s;o far as it did concern the puni&s;hing of &s;ins again&s;t the Mo|rall
law, of which Here&s;y and &s;educing of &s;ouls is one, and a
great one. Once God did reveal his will for puni&s;hing tho&s;e
&s;ins by &s;uch and &s;uch puni&s;hments. He who will hold that
the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate is not bound to inflict &s;uch puni&s;h|ments
for &s;uch &s;ins, is bound to prove that tho&s;e former
lawes of God are aboli&s;hed, and to &s;hew &s;ome &s;cripture
for it. 2. That Iudiciall law for having two or three wit|ne&s;&s;es
in judgement, <HI>Deut. 19. 15. Heb.</HI> 10. 28. is transfer|red
even with an obligation to us Chri&s;tians, and it con|cerneth
all judgement, as well Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall as Civill, <HI>Mat.
<PB N="9" REF="9">
18. 16. 2 Cor.</HI> 13. 1. and &s;ome other particulars might be
in&s;tanced in&punc; which are pre&s;&s;ed and enforced from the Iudi|ciall
law, by &s;ome who yet mind not the obligation of it.
To conclude therefore this point, though other judiciall
or foren&s;ecall laws concerning the puni&s;hments of &s;ins a|gain&s;t
the Morall law, may, yea, mu&s;t be allowed of in
Chri&s;tian Republikes and Kingdomes; Provided always,
they be not contrary or contradictory to Gods own Iudi|ciall
laws: yet I fear not to hold with <HI>Junius, de Politia
Mo&s;is</HI> cap. 6. that he who was puni&s;hable by death under
that Iudiciall law, is puni&s;hable by death &s;till; and he who
was not puni&s;hed by death then, is not to be puni&s;hed by
death now; And &s;o much for the fir&s;t argument from the
Law of God.</P>
<P>A &s;econd argument we have from divers laudable exam|ples
in the Old Te&s;tament; <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> drew the &s;word again&s;t
Idolaters, <HI>Exod.</HI> 32. 27. the children of I&s;rael re&s;olved to go
out to war again&s;t the <HI>Reubenites</HI> and <HI>Gadites,</HI> when they
under&s;tood that they were building another Altar. <HI>Jo&s;. 22.
12. Elijah</HI> commanded to &s;lay the Prie&s;ts of <HI>Baal, 1 Kings
18.</HI> 40. In <HI>A&s;a</HI> his time there was a Covenant for putting
to death &s;uch as would not &s;eek the Lord God of their Fa|thers,
<HI>2 Chro. 15. 13. Iehu</HI> &s;lew the Prie&s;ts of <HI>Ahab,</HI> and
the wor&s;hippers of <HI>Baal, 2 Kings</HI> 10. 11. 24. Fir&s;t, &s;earch|ing
and making &s;ure that there were none of the &s;ervants
of the Lord among them, <HI>ver. 23. Io&s;iah</HI> &s;acrificed the Prie&s;ts
of <HI>Samaria</HI> upon their own altars, <HI>2 Kings 23. 20. Nebuchad|nezzar,</HI>
though an Heathe~, being convinced that there was no
god like the God of I&s;rael, made a Decree, that who&s;oever
&s;peaketh bla&s;phemy, or uttereth any error again&s;t God,
<HI>&s;hall be cut in pieces, and their hou&s;es made a dunghill, Dan.</HI> 3. 29.
As for tho&s;e who&s;e errors and corruptions in religion were
not &s;o great, there was &s;ome (though not the highe&s;t)
&s;everity u&s;ed again&s;t them: <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> was &s;o angry with
the people that were &s;educed into Idolatry, that he burnt
the <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">alf which they had wor&s;hipped, and ground it to pow|der,
and &s;trewed it upon the water, <HI>and made the Children of
<PB N="10" REF="10">
I&s;rael to drinke of it, Exod.</HI> 32. 20. Thereby teaching them (as
<HI>Hierome</HI> and others give the rea&s;on) to abhorre that Idola|try,
while their Idoll did pa&s;&s;e from them among their own
excrements. <HI>A&s;a</HI> did remove his mother <HI>Maachah from
being Queen, becau&s;e of an Idoll which &s;he had made in a grove,</HI>
1 Kings 15. 13. <HI>Jo&s;iah</HI> cau&s;ed all that were pre&s;ent in <HI>Jeru|&s;alem
and Benjamin to &s;tand to the Covenant. 2 Chron.</HI> 34. 32.
which could not be without either threatning or inflicting
puni&s;hment upon the tran&s;gre&s;&s;ors; there being many at
that time di&s;affected to the Reformation.</P>
<P>O but &s;aith <HI>M. S.</HI> to <HI>A. S. pag.</HI> 51, 52. Idolatry and Ido|laters
were the adaequate object of that coercive power in
matters of religion, whereof we reade in the Old Te&s;tament.
Nor doe we read that ever the Iewi&s;h Kings or Magi&s;trates
attempted any thing again&s;t Sectaries or Schi&s;maticks. I
an&s;wer, 1. The object of that coercive power of <HI>Jo&s;iah,
2 Chron.</HI> 34. 32. was generally the matter of the Covenant,
that is, the taking away not only of Idolatry, but of <HI>all abo|minations,</HI>
and <HI>a walking after the Lord, and keeping of his Te|&s;timonies,
and Statutes, and Commandments,</HI> ver. 31. 33. <HI>Nehe|miah</HI>
did drive away the &s;on of <HI>Elia&s;hib</HI> the high Prie&s;t, not
for Idolatry, but for marying the daughter of <HI>Sanballat,</HI> and
thereby defiling the Covenant of the Prie&s;thood, <HI>Nehem.
13. 28, 29. Ezra</HI> made the Chief Prie&s;ts, the Levites, and
all I&s;rael to enter into a Covenant and to &s;wear, that they
would put away the &s;trange wives, and that it &s;hould be
done according to the Law, <HI>Ezra</HI> 10. 3. 5. and who&s;oever
would not come to Ieru&s;alem for this thing, was not only
him&s;elf excommunicated from the Church, but all his goods
forfeited. <HI>v. 8. Artaxerxes</HI> decreed puni&s;hment for all who
&s;hould oppo&s;e the Law of God, and the building of the Tem|ple:
wherein he is &s;o far approved, as that <HI>Ezra</HI> ble&s;&s;eth
God for it, <HI>Ezra 7. 26, 27. Who&s;oever will not doe the law of
thy God, and the law of the King, let judgement be executed
&s;peedily upon him, whether it be unto death, or unto bani&s;hment, or
to confi&s;cation of goods, or impri&s;onment, &amp;c.</HI> which doth not
concern Idolatry only, but generally the laws of God, <HI>v. 25.
<PB N="11" REF="10">
Set Magi&s;trates and Iudges which may judge all the people, all
&s;uch as know the laws of thy God.</HI> He who wrote <HI>Liberty of Con|&s;cience.
p.</HI> 27. 28. is &s;o far confounded with this laudable De|cree
of <HI>Artaxerxes,</HI> that he can &s;ay no more to it, but that
it was the commandment of God, not an invention of men
which <HI>Artaxerxes</HI> did thus impo&s;e, which is as much as we
de&s;ire. But 2. Sects and Schi&s;mes are to be puni&s;hed as
well, though not as much as Here&s;y and Idolatry. There are
degrees of faults, and accordingly degrees of puni&s;hments.
<HI>Augu&s;tine</HI> wrote an Epi&s;tle to <HI>Bonifacius</HI> upon this occa&s;i|on,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Tom. 2. Ep. 50.</NOTE>
to &s;hew that the <HI>Donati&s;ts</HI> had nothing to doe with the
<HI>Arrians,</HI> and &s;o were not to be puni&s;hed with &s;uch rigour
and &s;everity; yet he advi&s;eth that moderate mulcts and
puni&s;hments may be laid upon them, &amp; that their Bi&s;hops or
Mini&s;ters may be bani&s;hed. In his 127 Epi&s;t. he intercedeth
mo&s;t earne&s;tly with the procon&s;ul of <HI>Africk,</HI> that he might
not put to death the <HI>Donati&s;ts,</HI> but repre&s;&s;e them &s;ome other
ways. We have al&s;o a &s;cripture example for puni&s;hing Secta|ries
who are not Hereticks. It is agreed among interpreters,
there were in <HI>Iudah</HI> two &s;orts of high places, &s;ome on which
God was wor&s;hipped, others on which idols were wor&s;hip|ped,
&amp; it is mo&s;t manife&s;t from <HI>2 Chro.</HI> 33. 17. and from the
reconciling of <HI>2 Chro.</HI> 15. 17. with <HI>ch.</HI> 14. 3. 5. the one &s;ort was
the high places of Idolatry, the other, the high places of wil|wor&s;hip;
yet the Prie&s;ts of the latter, as well as of the former,
were puni&s;hed by <HI>Io&s;iah,</HI> as <HI>To&s;tatus</HI> proveth from <HI>2 Kings</HI> 23.
and the text it &s;elf is clear, for he put to death the Prie&s;ts of
<HI>Sama<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ia,</HI> who had &s;acrificed in the high places of Idolatry,
<HI>ver&s;.</HI> 20. but as for tho&s;e who &s;acrificed in the high places
of wil-wor&s;hip, becau&s;e they &s;acrificed to the Lord only (as
the word is, <HI>2 Chron. 33. 17.)</HI> therefore <HI>Io&s;iah</HI> did not put
them to death, only he cau&s;ed them to goe out of all the
Cities of Judah, and to cea&s;e from the Prie&s;ts office, &s;o that
they dur&s;t not come up to the Altar of the Lord at Jeru&s;alem,
only they were permitted to eat of the unleavened bread a|mong
their brethren, <HI>ver.</HI> 8, 9. which is parallel to that
law, <HI>Ezek. 44. ver&punc;</HI> 10, 11, 12, 13, 14. a prophecy concerning
<PB N="12" REF="11">
the Chri&s;tian Temple, and the times of the New Te&s;tament,
w^c^h reacheth a blow to another &s;illy &amp; &s;hort-&s;ighted eva&s;ion,
u&s;ed both in the <HI>Bloudy Tenent,</HI> and in <HI>M. S.</HI> to <HI>A. S.</HI> that all
this coercive power exerci&s;ed in the Old Te&s;tament was ty|picall,
&amp; therefore not imitable now in the New Te&s;tament.
Whereunto I further reply, 1. The rea&s;on of all that coer|cive
&s;everity was morall and perpetuall, as was &s;hewed be|fore
from <HI>Deut.</HI> 13. 11. Next, why did they not prove that it
was typicall? &s;hall we take their fancy for a certainty?
They have neither Scripture nor Interpreters for it. 3. They
confound the Judiciall lawes of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> with the Ceremo|niall,
making the Judicatories and Ju&s;tice typicall no le&s;&s;e
then the Ceremonies. 4. They doe utterly overthrow the
inve&s;titure of Chri&s;tian Princes and Magi&s;trates with any
power at all in matters of Religion, from the Old Te&s;ta|ment.
So that one may not argue thus: The godly Kings
of <HI>Judah</HI> did remove the monuments of Idolatry and Super|&s;tition,
therefore &s;o &s;hould the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate doe.
The mo&s;t arrant malignant may an&s;wer in the words of M^r.
<HI>Williams, chap.</HI> 109. that the Civill power or State of I&s;rael,
&s;o farre as it attended upon the &s;pirituall, was meerly figu|rative:
Or in the words of <HI>M. S. pag. 51. There are two
rea&s;ons very con&s;iderable why the Kings of Judah might be inve|&s;ted
by God with a larger power in matters of religion, then Kings
or Magistrates under the Go&s;pel have any ground or warrant to
claime from them. Fir&s;t, they were types of Chri&s;t</HI> (but by the
way how doth he prove that <HI>A&s;a, Jehu,</HI> and <HI>Jo&s;iah</HI> were
types of Chri&s;t?) <HI>which no King under heaven at this day is.
Secondly, not the people onely, but the very land over which they
ruled were typicall.</HI> 5. The puni&s;hment of per&s;ons was a part
of their reformation, as well as the de&s;truction of monu|ments,
and why mu&s;t we follow their example in the one,
more then the other? If we &s;mart under both their di&s;ea&s;es,
we mu&s;t apply both their remedies, or neither.</P>
<P>The third argument is drawne from the New Te&s;tament.
The magi&s;trate <HI>beareth not the &s;word in vaine, for he is the mi|ni&s;ter
of God, a revenger to execute wrath on him that doth evill,
<PB N="13" REF="11">
Rom.</HI> 13. 4. But I a&s;&s;ume; Hereticks and Sectaries doe evill,
yea much evill, e&s;pecially when they draw many others af|ter
them in their pernicious wayes. It was the ob&s;ervation
of one of the greate&s;t Politicians of this Kingdome,<NOTE PLACE="marg">See Bacous E&s;|&s;ayes pag. 11, 12.</NOTE> <HI>That he|re&s;ies
and &s;chi&s;mes are of all others the greate&s;t &s;candalls: yea
more then corruption of manners.</HI> One of his rea&s;ons is, becau&s;e
<HI>every &s;ect of them hath a diver&s;e po&s;ture or cringe by them&s;elves,
which cannot but move deri&s;ion in worldlings, and depraved poli|ticks,
who are apt to contemne holy things.</HI> I know it will be an|&s;wered,
If any Sectary make a breach of peace, or di&s;turb
the State, then indeed the magi&s;trate ought to redre&s;&s;e it by
a coercive power. So <HI>John the Bapti&s;t, pag.</HI> 57. So M^r. <HI>Willi|ams,
chap.</HI> 52. an&s;wereth, <HI>Rom.</HI> 13. 4. is not meant of <HI>evill</HI> a|gain&s;t
the Chri&s;tian e&s;tate, but of <HI>evill</HI> again&s;t the Civill
State. <HI>M. S. pag.</HI> 53. 54. tells us that he is not for the tole|ration
of Sects and Schi&s;mes, except <HI>only upon this &s;uppo&s;ition,
that the profe&s;&s;ors or maintainers of them be otherwi&s;e peaceable
in the State, and every wayes &s;ubject to the lawes and lawfull
power of the civill Magistrate.</HI> I an&s;wer, the experience of
former times may make us &s;o wi&s;e as to fore&s;ee that here|&s;ie
and &s;chi&s;me tendeth to the breach of the civill peace, and
to a rupture in the State as well as in the Church. What com|motions
did the <HI>Arrians</HI> make in all the Ea&s;terne parts?
the <HI>Macedonians</HI> in <HI>Greece?</HI> the <HI>Donati&s;ts</HI> in <HI>Africke?</HI> How
did the <HI>Anabapti&s;ts</HI> rai&s;e and foment the bloudy warre of
the Boores in <HI>Germany,</HI> wherein were killed above 100000
men?</P>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Tantum relligio potuit &s;uadere malorum.</HEAD>
<P>How &s;atanicall was <HI>Julians</HI> de&s;igne to bring the Chri&s;tians
to nought, by granting liberty of con&s;cience to all the here|ticks
and &s;ectaries that were among them? But &s;uppo&s;e the
Commonwealth to runne no hazard by the toleration of
Here&s;ies and Schi&s;mes, I an&s;wer further, 1. The Text, <HI>Rom.
13.</HI> 4. &s;peaketh generally, and we mu&s;t not di&s;tingui&s;h where
the Scripture doth not di&s;tingui&s;h. 2. Tho&s;e that are in au|thority
are to take &s;uch cour&s;es and &s;o to rule, that we may
not onely <HI>lead a quiet and peaceable life,</HI> but further that it
<PB N="14" REF="12">
be <HI>in all godline&s;&s;e and hone&s;ty, 1 Tim.</HI> 2. 2. The magi&s;trate is
<HI>keeper of both Tables,</HI> and is to puni&s;h the violation of the fir&s;t Table, as well as of the &s;econd. 3. <HI>Willany man,</HI> &s;aith <HI>An|gu&s;tine,
who is in his right wit, &s;ay to Kings, Doe not care by
whom the Church of God in your Kingdome be maintained or op|po&s;ed:
it doth not concerne you in your Kingdome, who will be re|ligious,
who &s;acrilegious: to whom notwith&s;tanding it cannot bee
&s;aid, It doth not concerne you in your Kingdome, who be cha&s;te,
who whori&s;h, &amp;c. Is the &s;oules keeping faith and truth to God a
lighter matter, then that of a woman to a man?</HI> He confe&s;&s;eth
in the &s;ame Epi&s;tle,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Epi&s;t. 50. Non|null <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">fratribus videbatur, in quibus &amp; ego eram, quam vis Donati&s;tarum rabies u&s;que|quaque &s;aeviret, non e&s;&s;e petendu~ ab Imperatori|bus, ut ip&s;am haere&s;im juberent omnino non e&s;&s;e, paenam constituendo eis qui in illa e&s;&s;e volui&s;|&s;ent: &s;ed boc potius con&s;titueren<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">, ut eorum furio&s;as violentias non paterentur. <HI>Notwith&s;tan|ding he acknowledgeth a great mercy of God in inclining the Emperors heart another way.</HI> Hive ergo factum e&s;t ut Imperator religio&s;us &amp; pius perlatis in notitiam &s;uam talibus cau&s;is, mallet pii&s;&s;imis legibus illius impietatis errorem omnino corrigere, et eos qui contra Chri&s;tum Chri&s;ti &s;ign<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> portarent, ad unitate<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters"> Catholicam terrendo &amp; coerceudo redigere, qu&agrave;m &s;aeviendi tantummodo auferre licentiam, &amp; errandi ac percundi relinquere.</NOTE> that he and &s;ome other <HI>African</HI> Di|vines
were &s;ometime of that opinion, that the Emperour
&s;hould not at all puni&s;h the <HI>Donati&s;ts</HI> for their here&s;ie or er|ror,
but &s;uch of them only as &s;hould be found to commit any
riot or breach of peace, e&s;pecially the furious and violent <HI>Cir|cumcellions.</HI>
But afterward he confe&s;&s;eth that the Emperour
had as good rea&s;on to repre&s;&s;e their pernicious error, as their
furious violence.</P>
<P>A fourth Argument is drawne from the names which the
Scripture giveth to Hereticks and Sectaries, holding forth
the extreame danger of tolerating and letting them alone.
They are called <HI>ravening wolves, Matth.</HI> 7. 15. and <HI>grievous
wolves not &s;paring the flocke,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Calv. Re<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ut. er|ror. Mich. Ser|veti. Porro cru|delis e&s;t i&s;ta quam laudant clementia, oves exponere in praedam ut lu|pi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> parcatur. Et infra. Quid enim ab&s;urdius e&s;t, quam furta &s;ever&egrave; puniat Judex, &s;acrilegiis licentiam dare? quam &s;uum cui&abque; honorem &s;alvii tueatur, laceranda~ impiis exponere Dei gloria~?</NOTE> <HI>Act. 20. 29. theeves and robbers,
John 10. 8. Their word eateth as a canker, 2 Tim.</HI> 2. 17. and is
as <HI>a little leaven leavening the whole lumpe, Gal.</HI> 5. 9. They are
<HI>troublers of I&s;rael, Act. 15. 24. Gal.</HI> 5. 12. Shall the troublers
of the State be puni&s;hed, and the troublers of I&s;rael go free?
Shal Phy&s;itians cut off the member that hath a Gangrene in
it, becau&s;e it indangereth the whole body, and &s;hall the
<PB N="15" REF="12">
great State phy&s;itians &s;uffer the Gangrene to &s;pread in the
Church? Shall mens bodies, goods, and pur&s;es, be &s;o farre
cared for, that theeves and robbers mu&s;t not be &s;uffered,
but ju&s;tice done upon them; and &s;hall tho&s;e have immunity
who &s;teale away &s;oules from Chri&s;t, and rob us of the pearle
of truth? Nay &s;hall the poore &s;heepe be &s;o much looked to,
that the wolfe mu&s;t not be &s;pared; and &s;hall we &s;uffer the
&s;oule-de&s;troying wolves to enter, yea abide peaceably a|mong
the dear-bought flock of Je&s;us Chri&s;t?</P>
<P>Other Arguments might be added, but let the&s;e &s;uffice at
this pre&s;ent. I come next to an&s;wer all the materiall obje|ctions
which I have either read or heard (to my be&s;t re|membrance)
alledged again&s;t this coercive power of the
Magi&s;trate in matters of Religion.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg">To&s;&s;anus in lo|cun. Sunt qui hoc loco abu|tuntur ut pro|bent non e&s;&s;e &s;u|mend em &s;uppli|cium de baere|ticis. Cart. wright. Hi&s;t. Chri&s;ti ex 4. E|vaig. lib. 2. p. 145. Sed hoc <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> Haeretico|rum patroni ad clientum &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">or<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> in<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">unitatem a&s;erendum abu|t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ntur. Quibus vel ex hoc ip&s;o loco re&s;i&s;titur. Et primum quidem quoniam hoc loco de to &acirc; improborum univer&s;itate extirpanda agitur. Nihil igitur im|pedit quominus quidam ex improborum turb&acirc; del bati, &s;upplicio trad<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ntur. Quo <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ni&s;i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ita &s;it, quo fundamento verbi Dei fares, homicidae, pr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ditores, &amp; c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">n&s;imiles <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">orte mulct<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">r? Nam &s;i &s;alva hujus parabolae doctrina, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">i in crucem agi aut capite truncari po&s;&s;int, nedum baer<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">tici multo magis mortis poen&acirc; plectantu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">. Si enim peritura bona &amp; hanc vitam <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ripi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">s, &amp;c. Si Principie maje&s;tatem v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">olans, &amp;c. n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">dum, &amp;c. Deinde modo ita evellantur ut triticum non n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">&agrave; eradicetur, bon&acirc; cum parabob<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters"> veni&acirc;, ex<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">mi po&s;&s;e liquet.</NOTE> the Parable of the Tares is objected: Chri&s;t will
not have the tares to be pluckt up, but to grow together
with the wheat untill the harve&s;t, <HI>Mat.</HI> 13. 29. 30. In this
argument M^r. <HI>Williams</HI> in his <HI>Bloudy Tenent</HI> putteth a great
deale of confidence. But I am as confident to di&s;cover the
&s;trength of it to be le&s;&s;e then nothing. For fir&s;t he taketh
the tares to be meant neither of hypocrites in the Church,
whether di&s;covered or undi&s;covered; nor yet of tho&s;e who
are &s;candalous offenders in their life and conver&s;ation, but
only of Antichri&s;tian Idolaters and fal&s;e wor&s;hippers: which
is a mo&s;t fal&s;e interpretation. Chri&s;t him&s;elfe expoundeth it
generally, <HI>ver&s;. 38. The good &s;eed are the children of the King
dome: but the tares are the children of the wicked one.</HI> And <HI>ver&s;.
41.</HI> the tares are expounded to be <HI>all that offend, and which doe
iniquity.</HI> This being the cleare meaning, it will follow un|deniably,
that if the Magi&s;trate mu&s;t &s;pare tho&s;e who are
meant by tares in the Parable, then he mu&s;t &s;pare and let a|lone
<PB N="16" REF="13">
all &s;candalous offenders, murtherers, adulterers, drun|kards,
theeves, &amp;c. when any &s;uch are di&s;covered in the vi|&s;ible
Church. But this cannot be the meaning of the tares
in the Parable, &s;aith Mr. <HI>Williams, chap.</HI> 24. that wicked livers,
oppo&s;ite to the children of God, &s;hould be under&s;tood. For
then,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> <HI>wri|ting upon this par<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">e mo|veth this do<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">:</HI> Si pro|h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">be<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ur eradi|cati<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span"> ad me&s;&s;em<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">e|nenda e&s;t pati|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">is, quomodo ej<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">eadi &s;u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t quidam de me|d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">o no&s;trum? <HI>I'le an&s;wereth</HI> Inter triticum et zizania qued nos appellamus la<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ium, quamdiu bed a e&s;t &amp; nondum culmus venit ad &s;picam grandis &s;imil<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">|tudo e&s;t, &amp; i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;ce<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">endo aut nulla aut per|di&s;&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="3 letters"> di|&s;ta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ia. Praema|net ergo Dom<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">|nus, ne ubi quid ambiguum e&s;t, cito &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">entiom proferamus, &s;ed Deo Jud<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ci terminum re|&s;ervemus.</NOTE> &s;aith he, when Chri&s;t &s;aith, <HI>Let the tares alone,</HI> he &s;hould
contradict other ordinances for the puni&s;hment of evill do|ers
by the Magi&s;trate. But this is a ba&s;e begging of the que|&s;tion:
for he well knew that tho&s;e again&s;t whom he di&s;putes
hold that his expo&s;ition of the Parable contradicteth the
ordinance of God for puni&s;hing Idolaters and Hereticks, the
que&s;tion being whether this be not an ordinance as well as
the puni&s;hment of &s;candalous livers. Be&s;ides, if the tares be
Antichri&s;tian Idolaters, and they mu&s;t not be pluckt up, but
&s;uffered to grow till the harve&s;t, as he expoundeth, this con|tradicteth
other Scriptures, which &s;ay that the &s;word mu&s;t be
drawne again&s;t Antichri&s;tian idolaters, and they thereby cut
off, <HI>Revel.</HI> 13. 10. and 17. 16.</P>
<P>But I proceed to a &s;econd an&s;wer. If by tares I &s;hould
&s;uppo&s;e only to be meant Idolaters, Hereticks, and fal&s;e wor|&s;hippers
(which is a glo&s;&s;e contrary to the text, as I have de|mon&s;trate)
yet their argument will not conclude the for|bearing
or &s;paring of &s;uch, except onely in &s;uch ca&s;es, and &s;o
farre as the true wor&s;hippers of God cannot be certainly
and infallibly digno&s;ced from the fal&s;e wor&s;hippers, as the
wheat from the tares: as <HI>Jehu</HI> would not de&s;troy the wor|&s;hippers
of <HI>Baal,</HI> till he was &s;ure that none of the &s;ervants of
the Lord were among them, <HI>2 King.</HI> 10. 23. The rea&s;on why
the tares are not to be pluckt up, is, <HI>le&s;t while ye gather up the
tares, ye root up al&s;o the wheat with them, ver&s;.</HI> 29. Now when
a man is &s;ure that he plucks up nothing but tares, or rather
thornes, without the lea&s;t danger to the wheat, how doth
the Parable &s;trike again&s;t his &s;o doing? If <HI>M. S.</HI> will not
beleeve me, let him beleeve him&s;elfe, <HI>pag. 50. For my part,</HI>
&s;aith he, <HI>when the Civill Magi&s;trate &s;hall be farre enough out of
this danger of fighting again&s;t God, I have nothing to &s;ay again&s;t
his fighting with &s;uper&s;tition, here&s;ie, &s;chi&s;me, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P><PB N="17" REF="13">
Thirdly, what if I &s;hape yet another an&s;wer to the argu|ment
out of M^r. <HI>Williams</HI> owne words? <HI>chap. 27. I acknow|ledge,</HI>
&s;aith he, <HI>this command [Let them alone] was expre&s;ly &s;po|ken
to the me&s;&s;engers or mini&s;ters of the Go&s;pel, who have not ci|vill
power or authority in their hand, and therefore not to the civill
Magi&s;trate, King or Governour.</HI> Now therefore what a bloc|ki&s;h
argument is it, to rea&s;on from this Parable again&s;t the
coercive power of the magi&s;trate in matters of religion? If
there mu&s;t be a forbearance of any &s;everity, we mu&s;t for|beare
Church cen&s;ures and excommunication a way of roo|ting
out the tares, which M^r. <HI>Williams</HI> him&s;elfe ju&s;tifieth as
much as we doe.</P>
<P>Fourthly, and if the utter extirpation and plucking up of
Hereticks by capitall puni&s;hments, &s;hould be under&s;tood to
be forbidden in the parable, (as it is not) yet the &s;topping
of their mouths, the di&s;&s;ipating and &s;uppre&s;&s;ing of them,
&s;ome other coercive way, is not forbidden, as <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tome</HI>
noteth upon the place, whom <HI>Euthymius</HI> and <HI>Theophylactus</HI>
doe follow in this, allowing of coercive, though not capitall
puni&s;hments.</P>
<P>Fifthly, <HI>Calvin, Beza,</HI> and our be&s;t Interpreters, take the
&s;cope and intent of that parable, not to be again&s;t the im|moderate
&s;everity of Magi&s;trates, but again&s;t the immode|rate
zeal of tho&s;e who imagine to have the Church rid of
all &s;candalous and wicked per&s;ons, as wheat without tares,
corn without chaffe, a flock of &s;heep without goats, which
hath been the fancy of <HI>Novatians, Donati&s;ts</HI> and <HI>Anabapti&s;ts.</HI>
The parable therefore intimates unto us (as <HI>Bucerus</HI> upon
the place expoundeth it) that when the Magi&s;trate hath
done all his duty in exerci&s;ing his coercive power, yet to
the worlds end there will be (in the Church a mixture of
good and bad. So that it is the univer&s;all and perfect purging
of the Church, which is put off to the la&s;t judgement, not
the puni&s;hment of particular per&s;ons. Neither doe the &s;er|vants
in the parable aske whether they &s;hould pluck up this
or that vi&s;ible tare, but whether they &s;hould goe and make
the whole field rid of them; which field is the generall vi|&s;ible
<PB N="18" REF="14">
Church &s;owed with the <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">eed of the Go&s;pel; and &s;o
much for that argument.</P>
<P>Another negative argument is this. Such a coercive
power in matters of religion, maketh men hypocrites and
&s;even times more the children of hell. Chri&s;ts Ordinances
put upon a whole City, or a Nation, may more <HI>civilize</HI> and
<HI>moralize,</HI> but never <HI>chri&s;tianize</HI> them; &s;aith M<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>Williams,
chap.</HI> 82. I an&s;wer, this argument doth utterly condemn <HI>Jo|&s;iahs</HI>
Reformation as &s;infull, for the cau&s;ed all <HI>Judah</HI> to &s;tand
to the Covenant, as we heard before from <HI>2 Chron.</HI> 34. 32.
yet <HI>Iudah</HI> became thereby more hypocriticall. <HI>Treacherous
Iudah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but fained|ly,
&s;aith the Lord,</HI> &s;peaking of tho&s;e very days of <HI>Io&s;iah,
Ier.</HI> 3. 6. 10.</P>
<P>2. This argument maketh al&s;o again&s;t the puni&s;hment of
adulteries, murthers, thefts, robberies, &amp;c. for unle&s;&s;e filthy
lu&s;t, hatred, and covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e in the heart be mortified,
and men convert freely and &s;incerely, the reducing of them
to a morall conver&s;ation maketh them hypocrites, and nee|rer
hell then before.</P>
<P>3. There are two &s;orts of Chri&s;ts Ordinances: &s;ome for
the <HI>communion of Saints:</HI> others, for the <HI>conver&s;ion of &s;inners:</HI>
It is far from our thoughts to admit, much le&s;&s;e to compell,
a whole City, or Nation promi&s;cuou&s;ly, to the u&s;e of the
former. But yet converting or reducing ordinances may and
ought to put upon all whom they concern. The means mu&s;t
be u&s;ed and mens hearts left to God.</P>
<P><HI>Object.</HI> 3. This Doctrine of the Magi&s;trates coercive
power, maketh many to &s;tumble at the Presbyterian Re|formation,
as a bloudy Reformation, as a building <HI>of Zion
with bloud, and Ieru&s;alem with iniquity, Mic. 3. 10. An&s;w.</HI> 1.
We have not &s;o learned Chri&s;t, we abominate the Popi&s;h
and Prelaticall tyranny. We know that <HI>the &s;ervant of the
Lord mu&s;t not &s;trive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, pa|tient:
In meekne&s;&s;e in&s;tructing tho&s;e that oppo&s;e them&s;elves, if
God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledg|ing
of the truth, 2 Tim.</HI> 2. 24, 25. yet he who &s;aid &s;o, could al|&s;o
<PB N="19" REF="14">
&s;ay, <HI>I would they were even cut off which trouble you, Gal. 5.
12.</HI> It is my &s;ouls de&s;ire that the &s;ecular coercive power
may be put forth upon tho&s;e only who can by no other
means be reclaimed, &amp; who can be no longer &s;pared with|out
a vi&s;ible rupture in the Church, and the manife&s;t dan|ger
of &s;educing and mi&s;leading many &s;ouls. A Presbytery
is not &s;o ill a neighbour, that no man who hath the lea&s;t dif|fering
opinion may live be&s;ide it.</P>
<P>But 2. this objection doth as much &s;trike again&s;t the
<HI>New England</HI> government, as again&s;t the government of
the neighbouring reformed Churches. For in <HI>New Eng|land</HI>
there hath been &s;everity enough (to &s;ay no wor&s;e) u|&s;ed
again&s;t Hereticks and Schi&s;maticks.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Th<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">s doth <HI>Au|gu&s;tine</HI> argue a|gain&s;t the <HI>Do|nati<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1+ letters">s</HI> who pleaded &s;o much for liber|ty of con&s;c<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1+ letters">ce to them&s;elves, and yet gave no liberty of con&s;cience to others where they were able to hinder it.</NOTE> And here I mu&s;t
appeal the con&s;ciences of tho&s;e who now plead &s;o much
for liberty of con&s;cience and toleration in this Kingdome,
were they able to root out the Presbyterians and their way,
&amp; could find civil authority inclinable to put forth the coer|cive
power again&s;t it, whether in that ca&s;e would they not
&s;ay, that the Magi&s;trate may repre&s;&s;e it by &s;trong hand, if it
cannot be otherwi&s;e repre&s;&s;ed. It is not without cau&s;e that
I put this Quere to them; for <HI>M. S. pag.</HI> 50. (a pa&s;&s;age be|fore
cited) doth allow of the Magi&s;trates fighting again&s;t a
doctrine or way which is indeed &s;uper&s;tition, here&s;y, or
&s;chi&s;me,<NOTE PLACE="marg">C<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">nt<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">aluer. Petil.<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">. 2. c. 89. Noli<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">rgo<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">d. ce. c, ab&s;it&punc; ab&s;it &agrave; no|&s;tra co~&s;ciertia, ut ad n<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;tram fide~ aliquem com|pell<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">mus facitis enimubi pote&s;tis; ubi autem non facitis, non po|te&s;tis, &s;ive legii &s;ive invid<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">ae ti|more, &s;ive re&s;i|&s;tentium mul|titudine.</NOTE> and only pretendeth to be from God, when it is in|deed
from men. Al&s;o that pamphlet called <HI>As you were, p.</HI> 3.
tels us that it was neither <HI>Gamaliels</HI> meaning nor M^r <HI>Good|wins</HI>
meaning, that every way pretending to be from God
mu&s;t be let alone, but that only we are to refrain &amp; let alone,
till we are certain that we are out of danger of fighting a|gain&s;t
God, while we endeavour to overthrow it. Now I a&s;|&s;ume,
there are &s;ome who plead for liberty of con&s;cience,
who profe&s;&s;e that they are certain and fully a&s;&s;ured, upon de|mon&s;trative
proofs, that the Presbyteriall way is not from
God, nor according to the mind of Je&s;us Chri&s;t (which is
hinted to us both in the pamphlet la&s;t cited <HI>p.</HI> 5, 6. &amp; in <GAP DESC="foreign"> pag.  25.) Therefore according to their principles they
mu&s;t allow of the putting forth of the civil coercive power a|gain&s;t
<PB N="20" REF="15">
the Presbyteriall way. And if &s;o, what a grand impo|&s;ture
is this? what a deceiving of the world? what a mock|ing
of the Parliament and of the Kingdome? to plead gene|rally
for liberty of con&s;cience, when they intend only li|berty
to them&s;elves, not to others that are oppo&s;ite to them.
Which appeareth yet further by <HI>the compa&s;&s;ionate Sama|ritane,
pag.</HI> 10. he &s;aith that no man is to be puni&s;hed or
di&s;countenanced by authority for his opinion, <HI>unle&s;&s;e it be
dangerous to the State, pag.</HI> 23, 24. he di&s;cour&s;eth again&s;t the
opinion of Presbyterians as mo&s;t dangerous to the State.
Therefore he would have the Presbyterians di&s;countenan|ced
and puni&s;hed by authority, and intendeth liberty only
to the <HI>Separati&s;ts, Anabapti&s;ts,</HI> and the like.</P>
<P>I have done with three objections, but I have three words
more to &s;peak with <HI>the compa&s;&s;ionate Samaritane,</HI> i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> an&s;wer
to his three arguments for liberty of con&s;cience, in which
though all the &s;trength of his di&s;cour&s;e doth lie, I hope to
make him a&s;hamed of them, if he can at all blu&s;h.</P>
<P>His fir&s;t argument is this, <HI>What&s;oever a mans rea&s;on doth
conclude to be true or fal&s;e, to be agreeable or di&s;agreeable to
Gods word, that &s;ame to that man is his opinion or judgement, and
&s;o man is by his own rea&s;on nece&s;&s;itated to be of that mind he
is: Now where there is a nece&s;&s;ity, there ought to be no puni&s;h|ment,
for puni&s;hment is the recompence of voluntary actions, there|fore
no man ought to be puni&s;hed for his judgement. An&s;w.</HI> 1.
The que&s;tion is not whether a man ought to be puni&s;hed for
his judgement, but whether a man ought to be puni&s;hed
for &s;uch profe&s;&s;ions or practi&s;es in religion, as are found to
be pernicious, hurtfull, and de&s;tructive, to the glory of
God, the truth of the Go&s;pell, the Ordinances of Chri&s;t, the
reformation of Religion, the peace of the Church. I know
he will be ready &s;till to &s;et on foot his argument, for that a
mans judgement and rea&s;on doth &s;o nece&s;&s;itate and conclude
him that he cannot chu&s;e but profe&s;&s;e and practice as he doth.
Therefore I adde 2. this argument of his &s;triketh again&s;t the
ju&s;tice of the Parliament done or to be done upon Malig|nants,
for as much as their judgement bindeth them, and
<PB N="21" REF="15">
their rea&s;on doth nece&s;&s;itate them to judge and &s;peak and
act as they doe. 3. It &s;triketh at the very ju&s;tice of God
upon reprobate and unbeleeving men, for as much as they
cannot receive the things of God, <HI>1 Cor.</HI> 2. 14. cannot hear
the words of Chri&s;t, <HI>Joh.</HI> 8. 43. cannot receive the &s;pirit of
truth, <HI>Ioh.</HI> 14. 17. But 4. the formall &s;olution is this; there
is a gro&s;&s;e fallacy in the argument, for we mu&s;t di&s;tingui&s;h
nece&s;&s;ity, there is a <HI>naturall nece&s;&s;ity,</HI> which takes away the
<GAP DESC="foreign">, and a <HI>morall nece&s;&s;ity,</HI> which takes away the <GAP DESC="foreign"> of
a mans being of another judgement or way. Again, there
is an <HI>ab&s;olute nece&s;&s;ity,</HI> and a <HI>hypotheticall nece&s;&s;ity.</HI> Now
the nece&s;&s;ity of a Hereticks judging thus, becau&s;e his rea|&s;on
concludeth him thus, is not a <HI>morall</HI> nece&s;&s;ity or
obligation upon him, as if it were not lawfull to him to
judge or doe otherwi&s;e, (nay he ought and is bound by the
word of God to judge otherwi&s;e, and doe otherwi&s;e) but it is
a <HI>naturall</HI> nece&s;&s;ity, (I meane of &s;infull nature) and that not
<HI>&s;imple</HI> and <HI>ab&s;olute,</HI> neither, but <HI>hypotheticall</HI> only, and upon
this &s;uppo&s;ition that he hath not yet opened his eyes to re|ceive
more light, nor &s;et his heart &s;ingly and in the feare of
God to &s;eeke more light. So that the plaine Engli&s;h of this
<HI>Samaritan</HI> argument is this: Though Gods word bindeth a
man to &s;uch a duty, yet if his owne erroneous, perver&s;e and
corrupt judgement conclude him &s;o farre that his opinion
cannot agree with the word of God, and him&s;elfe cannot
be brought to the practice of that nece&s;&s;ary duty; &s;uch a
man ought not to be puni&s;hed. Or as if one &s;hould argue
thus: He that hath borrowed from me a thou&s;and pound,
hath by his owne &s;ault di&s;abled him&s;elfe to pay it: there|fore
I may not call him to an account for it.</P>
<P><HI>But let us &s;ee whether this</HI> Samaritan <HI>be happier in his &s;e|cond
argument. Which is this:</HI> It's knowne that the Fathers,
Generall Councels, Nationall A&s;&s;emblies, Synods and Parliaments
in their times have beene mo&s;t gro&s;&s;ely mi&s;taken: and though the
pre&s;ent times be wi&s;er then the former, &amp;c. yet &s;ince there re|maines
a po&s;&s;ibility of error, notwithstanding never &s;o great pre|&s;umptions
to the contrary, one &s;ort of men are not to compell ano|ther,
<PB N="22" REF="16">
&s;ince this hazard is run thereby, that he who is in an error
may be the con&s;trainer of him who is in the truth.</P>
<P>An&s;w. 1. Farewell Parliaments, if this argument hold
good. The Parliament may fine no man, impri&s;on no man,
bani&s;h no man: they may compell no man to A&s;&s;e&s;&s;ements,
Taxes, Exci&s;e, Billeting of Souldiers &amp;c. And why for&s;ooth?
becau&s;e they may not pre&s;ume of an in&s;allible and unerring
&s;pirit, but may erre, and have erred as well as other men.</P>
<P>2 He argueth from the hazard of compul&s;ion, it may
fall out that he who is in the truth may be con&s;trained and
per&s;ecuted. True: it may fall out &s;o; and the Lord &s;ave
us that we never be acce&s;&s;ary to the per&s;ecuting of any who
is in the truth, for &s;o it may be againe through mens cor|ruption
and abu&s;e of the magi&s;trates power, (&s;o the be&s;t
things may be abu&s;ed.)</P>
<P>But the liberty of con&s;cience which he pleadeth for, runs
a farre greater hazard, even the hazard of not only &s;haking
but overturning truth, and peace, and religion, and ordi|nances,
and Church, and &s;oules, and all. To the ruine of all
the&s;e, and to a thou&s;and mi&s;chiefes, this kinde of liberty
prepareth a broad way, and openeth a wide doore; and it
is better, as he &s;aid, to live where <HI>nothing is lawfull,</HI> then
where <HI>every thing is lawfull.</HI></P>
<P>3. It followes not that becau&s;e Parliaments may not pre|&s;ume
of an unerring &s;pirit, therefore they cannot be certaine
that they are in the truth concerning this or that particular,
&s;o that they may confidently compell men to it, without
feare of fighting again&s;t God. The acknowledgement of a
po&s;&s;ibility of error, and that we know but in part as long as
we are in this world, may well con&s;i&s;t with mens fulne&s;&s;e of
per&s;wa&s;ion from the light of Gods word, concerning this or
that truth to be beleeved, or duty to be done.</P>
<P><HI>I make ha&s;te to his third argument.</HI> To compell me, <HI>&s;aith
he,</HI> again&s;t my con&s;cience, is to compell me again&s;t what I beleeve
to be true, and &s;o again&s;t my faith; now what&s;oever is not of
faith is &s;inne: to compell me therefore again&s;t my con&s;cience, is to
compell me to doe that which is &s;infull. <HI>And,</HI> Againe I am coun|&s;elled
<PB N="23" REF="16">
by the Apo&s;tle to be per&s;waded in my owne minde of the
truth of that way wherein I &s;erve the Lord, &amp;c.</P>
<P>An&s;w. 1. This al&s;o &s;haketh loo&s;e Parliamentary autho|rity;
though the Gentleman who wrote the&s;e arguments
pretendeth to &s;tand for it, as much as any other. His argu|ment
will conclude (if it concludeth at all) that the Parlia|ment
may not compell Malignants, di&s;affected per&s;ons, Re|bels,
to any thing which they are not per&s;waded in their
own minds to be right. It is again&s;t my con&s;cience, wil the
Antiparliamentary malignant &s;ay, to contribute to the war,
to acknowledge this for a Parliament, as long as the King
doth not acknowledg it; to reveal &s;uch a de&s;ign, or to confe&s;&s;e
this or that plot again&s;t the Parliament, whe~ I am examined;
therefore I &s;hal &s;in if I do &s;o, for what&s;oever is not of faith is
&s;inne, and the Parliament &s;hall compell me to &s;inne, if they
compell me to doe &s;o. <HI>For though the thing may be in it &s;elfe
good, yet if it doe not appeare to be &s;o to my con&s;cience, the pra|ctice
thereof in me is &s;infull, which therefore I ought not to bee
compelled unto,</HI> &s;aith the <HI>Samaritan.</HI> If hee &s;ay his argument
is only concerning matters of religion, I an&s;wer, Whatever
his intention be in offering the argument, the very na|ture
and force of the argument it &s;elfe driveth univer&s;ally
again&s;t the compelling of a man to any thing what&s;oever
which is again&s;t his owne con&s;cience, except he will &s;ay that
it is a &s;inne to &s;erve God again&s;t my con&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ience, but it is no
&s;inne to &s;erve the Parliament again&s;t my con&s;cience. Saith
not the Apo&s;tle, <HI>WHATSOEVER is not of faith is &s;inne:</HI>
and, <HI>He that doubteth is damned?</HI></P>
<P>But 2. when the Apo&s;tle &s;aith &s;o,<NOTE PLACE="marg">An e&s; de Con&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">. l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">b. 1. cap. 5. Agere &s;aepe l|c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t, man<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">nte dub<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">tatione &s;peculativa.</NOTE> he doth not exclude all
manner of doubting, as the Ca&s;ui&s;ts well ob&s;erve, but only
practicall doubts: for a man may have his con&s;cience mo|rally
and practically certaine, &s;o that he may doe &s;uch a
thing lawfully, and with confidence that he is doing the will
of God, and yet withall he may be perhaps fluctuating in
&s;ome &s;peculative doubts concerning that very thing. For
in&s;tance: a Chri&s;tian may come to the Lords Table with
&s;o much faith (I meane not now the faith of the per&s;on
<PB N="24" REF="17">
which ju&s;tifieth before God, but the faith of that action) as
maketh his comming lawfull, though his thoughts be exer|ci&s;ed
with &s;ome doubts concerning the truth of his repen|tance
and faith. A &s;ouldier may in faith goe out to warre,
being a&s;&s;ured that what he doth he may doe without &s;inne,
but yet he hath happily his owne &s;peculative doubts con|cerning
the nature, cau&s;es, and ends of the warre. A man
may with freedome and per&s;wa&s;ion of minde (&s;o farre as
concerneth his practice) &s;ubmit to Presbyteriall govern|ment,
who yet perhaps hath not throughly &s;atisfied him&s;elfe
concerning the grounds and warrants which it hath from
the word of God.</P>
<P>The <HI>Samaritan</HI> will reply (it may be) that he hath <HI>no faith
at all</HI> concerning the practice it &s;elfe, and that he may not be
compelled to doe any thing again&s;t his con&s;cience, for that
were to compell him to &s;inne. To take off this, I adde 3.
If the thing be indifferent, I confe&s;&s;e no man is to be com|pelled
to it again&s;t his con&s;cience, for this hath beene the
tyranny of Papi&s;ts and Prelats, to compell men again&s;t their
con&s;cience to certaine rites which them&s;elves acknowled|ged
to be meerly indifferent, &s;etting a&s;ide obedience to au|thority
in &s;uch things, which (&s;ay they) is not indifferent.
But if the word of God either directly or by nece&s;&s;ary con|&s;equence,
make the thing nece&s;&s;ary, and &s;uch as we cannot
leave undone without &s;inne and breach of duty; if there
be &s;uch an obligation from the word, then may a man bee
compelled to it, though again&s;t his con&s;cience.</P>
<P>But then you will &s;ay, I am brought into a nece&s;&s;ity of
&s;inning, for if I obey not, I refu&s;e a duty; if I obey, I doe it
again&s;t my con&s;cience. <HI>An&s;w.</HI> This nece&s;&s;ity is not <HI>ab&s;o|lute,</HI>
but <HI>hypotheticall,</HI> is not <HI>per&s;e,</HI> but <HI>per accidens,</HI> &s;o long as a
man retaineth the error of his con&s;cience, which he ought
to ca&s;t away. You will &s;ay againe, &s;uppo&s;ing that my con|&s;cience
cannot be &s;atisfied, nor made of another opinion
then now I am of, whether in this ca&s;e, and &s;o long as it
&s;tandeth thus with me, may authority compell me to obey
again&s;t my con&s;cience, and &s;o to &s;inne? or whether ought
<PB N="25" REF="17">
they not rather permit me not to obey, becau&s;e my con|&s;cience
forbiddeth me. <HI>An&s;w.</HI> The thing being nece&s;&s;ary,
as hath been &s;aid, it is <HI>pars tutior,</HI> yea, <HI>tuti&s;&s;ima,</HI> that a man
be compelled to it, though it be again&s;t his erring and ill
informed con&s;cience. I know &s;o long as he hath &s;uch an
erring con&s;cience he cannot but &s;in in obeying. But the
&s;in of not obeying is greater and heavier: for this is a &s;in
<HI>in the fact it &s;elf;</HI> that a &s;in <HI>in the manner of doing only,</HI> being
not done in faith: this is a &s;in <HI>of it &s;elfe,</HI> that is a &s;in only <HI>by
accident:</HI> this is a &s;in <HI>materially;</HI> that is a &s;inne only <HI>inter|pretatively</HI>
to him, becau&s;e he thinks &s;o: this is a &s;in <HI>for the
&s;ub&s;tance;</HI> that a &s;in <HI>for the circum&s;tance:</HI> this cannot be
made to be no &s;in, for the nature of the duty cannot be al|tered;
that may cea&s;e to be a &s;in, for the mans con&s;cience
may through Gods mercy and ble&s;&s;ing upon the means, be
better informed. So that there can be no doubt but this is
every way a greater &s;in then that, and con&s;equently more to
be avoided. And thus I have di&s;patched the <HI>Samaritane</HI> who
did undertake to pour oyl into the wounds of the Separati|on.
<HI>Medice cura teip&s;um.</HI></P>
<P>The next thing comes in my way, is an argument brought
for liberty of con&s;cience, from <HI>Gamaliels</HI> &s;peech in favour of
the Apo&s;tles, <HI>Act. 5. 38, 39. Refrain from the&s;e men &amp; let them
alone: for if this coun&s;ell or this work be of men, it will come to
nought. But if it be of God ye cannot overthrow it, le&s;t haply ye
be found even to fight again&s;t God.</HI> The &s;trength of his argu|mentation
did lie in this <HI>D<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">lemma;</HI> this doctrine or way is
either of men, or of God. If it be of men, you &s;hall not need
to repre&s;&s;e it, for it will come to nought of it &s;elf, which he
proves by two Hi&s;toricall in&s;tances of <HI>Judas</HI> and <HI>Theudas.</HI>
If it be of God, it is in vain to &s;trive again&s;t it, for it mu&s;t
prevail, and the coun&s;ell of heaven mu&s;t &s;tand. Therefore
be what it will be, there is no danger to let it alone. But
on the other &s;ide, if ye goe about to repre&s;&s;e it, ye runne the
hazard both of fighting again&s;t God, and of provoking the
di&s;plea&s;ure as well of the <HI>Romanes</HI> who have not permitted
<PB N="26" REF="18">
unto you the liberty of capitall puni&s;hments, as of the peo|ple
of the Jews who magnifie the&s;e men and their way.
This is the whole &s;ub&s;tance, &s;en&s;e, and &s;cope of that &s;peech
of <HI>Gamaliel</HI> in the Councell. Hence did &s;ome argue for a
toleration to <HI>Servetus</HI> and other Hereticks. And though
this their way was then di&s;covered to be their folly, <HI>yet their
po&s;terity approve their &s;ayings.</HI> The &s;ame argument is u&s;ed in
that pamphlet called <HI>Liberty of Con&s;cience, p.</HI> 34, 35. Upon the
&s;ame foundation doth M^r <HI>Goodwin</HI> build in his <GAP DESC="foreign">,
and the Paraenetick for <HI>Chri&s;tian liberty, pag. 2. and</HI> 11. &s;up|po&s;ing
the credit and authority of <HI>Gamaliels</HI> &s;peech, for
matter of truth to be one and the &s;ame with other &s;criptures,
and that there is nothing in all that &s;peech but what is fully
con&s;onant with the word of God, unque&s;tionably &s;o acknow|ledged.
So M^r <HI>Goodwin</HI> affirmeth, <HI>p.</HI> 10. and after him one <HI>P.
P.</HI> which is by interpretation, <HI>Poor Pamphleter,</HI> fals in the
&s;ame ditch; he might well call it <HI>As you were,</HI> for he makes
that party to be never a jot more in the right. Fir&s;t of all
he will contend with us that Prote&s;tant Interpreters doe
commend <HI>Gamaliels</HI> &s;peech,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Calv. Refut. Error. M. Ser|veti. Gamali|elis authoritas perperam abil|lis adducitur, &amp;c. Gamaliel amb<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">g<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">ns quid rectu<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;it, qua&s;i caecus in tenebras, neque buc n<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">que illuc &s;e con<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">er<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">e audet: &s;ed &s;aspendi<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;enteatiam. In erim ex veris p<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">incipiis malam con&s;eque<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">tiam clicit, nihil adbiben lum e&s;&s;e co<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;i&s;i<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">, quia deus quod &s;uum e&s;t tuebitur: quod autem ab homi|nibus e&s;t, p<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;um ibit, &amp;c. Putidius e&s;t quam ut refu<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">ati<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">ne ind<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">g<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">a<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">, quod quidam ex propha|norum ho<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1+ letters">mnum dictis colligu<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1+ letters">, Si de cultu dei &amp; legis doctrina hab<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">tur quae&s;tio, non e&s;&s;e crimen morte aut vinculis dignum. P<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="3 letters">rgus in Act. 5. Sic in cau&s;ae qualitate &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;pen&s;us hae|ret; nec proba<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">e <GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">n<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">c improbare pote&s;t apo&s;tolicam doctrinam. Et infra. Ex judicio hominis in foro prudentis, n<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">utiquam Theologice conclud<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">ndam, quod &agrave; paenis &amp; correctionibus &s;it ce&s;|&s;andu<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">, quia deus ad &s;candala tolle ida &amp; m<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1 letter">la pror&s;us eradicanda ip&s;e &s;ufficiat. Magi&s;tratus enim officium ex 13 Rom. v. 4. &amp; aliunde notum e&s;t.</NOTE> and ju&s;tify M<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="missing" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>Goodwins</HI> Do|ctrine.
Sure I am, <HI>Calvin</HI> takes <HI>Gamaliel</HI> to be a godle&s;&s;e
Polititian, and a Neutrali&s;t, and his &s;peech to have a great
error in it. So &s;aith <HI>Pelargus</HI> upon the place.</P>
<P>But to &s;ave me a labour in looking upon other Interpre|ters,
becau&s;e the <HI>Poor Pamphleter</HI> appealeth fir&s;t to <HI>Pi&s;cator</HI>
and <HI>Beza,</HI> and afterwards to <HI>Gualther,</HI> (as M^r <HI>Goodwin</HI> did
<PB N="27" REF="18">
before him) let him be judged by the&s;e and no other. <HI>P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;|cator</HI>
&s;aith plainly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pi&s;cat. Non &s;uit rectum (Gamaliclis con&s;ilium) ratio|ne illius conne|xi, Si<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;t ex hominibus con|&s;ilium &s;ic eopu ho, di&s;&s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">tur<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> q<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">atcaus voluit collegas inde college e, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">mi|g<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">tur e&s;&s;eip&s;is clahorandum ut opus illud di&s;&s;olvant. Nam et&s;i novationes bumano con&s;ilio &amp; aulac<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">&acirc; &s;a&s;|ceptae, tandem di&s;&s;olvnn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ur: tamen officium Magi&s;tratus e&s;t, operam dare ut illas compe&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ant &amp; prohibeant, &amp; eju&s;modi novatores pro merito pumant, &s;ed prae<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">te legitima c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">gn tione cau&s;ae. Beza, Noncert&egrave; quod Evangelio faveret (Gamalicl) ni&s;i Di&s;cipuli &s;ui Sauli fait di&s;&s;i|milis, (infra 22. 3.) &s;ed quod homo e&s;&s;et moderatus &amp; vereretur ne caedem Apo&s;t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">hrum con|tra Roma<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">orum authoritatem factam, gravius aliquid &s;equertur. Gualiher. Pernicio&s;i&s;&s;imi dogmatis occa&s;ionem hinc venantur, quo nullius conatus quantumvis improbes, nullius etiam err<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">res quantumvis impios &amp; bla&s;phemos vi coercenlos e&s;&s;e c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">amant. Vnde aliud &s;equi non po|te&s;t quam univer&s;ae di&s;ciplinae <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">um politicae tum eccle&s;ia&s;ticae cen<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ul&s;io: fru&s;tra enim geret Ma|gi&s;tratus gladium.</NOTE> that <HI>Gamaliels</HI> &s;peech was not right, while
he &s;aith, <HI>If this coun&s;ell or this work be of men, it will come to
nought,</HI> his meaning being that therefore they &s;hould let it
alone. <HI>Beza</HI> thinks <HI>Gamaliel</HI> &s;pake not from love to the A|po&s;tles,
but from fear of the <HI>Romanes. Gualther</HI> thinks it a
mo&s;t pernicious Tenent which &s;ome build upon this place,
concerning the toleration of here&s;ies and errors. Yea, <HI>Beza
de Haereticis &agrave; Magi&s;tratu puniendis,</HI> citeth and approveth
<HI>Calvins</HI> judgement, condemning <HI>Gamaliel</HI> for Neutrality,
and his &s;peech of error.</P>
<P>The&s;e learned Divines have &s;o well opened and cleared
the point, that there is no place left for what the <HI>Poore Pam|pleter</HI>
hath &s;aid, yet two things more I mu&s;t take notice of
in him. He &s;aith it was not for any fear of the <HI>Jews</HI> or <HI>Ro|manes</HI>
that <HI>Gamaliel</HI> gave this advice. Not for fear of the
people of the Jews, for that <HI>would be but at the Apo&s;tles ap|prehen&s;ion,
not execution.</HI> What non-&s;en&s;e is here? the people
were angry at laying hands on the Apo&s;tles, but there was
no fear of their wrath if the Apo&s;tles &s;hould be killed. Not
for fear of the <HI>Romanes</HI> wrath, which, &s;aith he, they often
regarded not, as <HI>Acts</HI> 23. 27. A place which confuteth
him&s;elf, for when the Jews would have killed <HI>Paul, Clau|dius
Ly&s;ias</HI> came with an army and re&s;cued him: a danger
which we mu&s;t think the wi&s;dome of <HI>Gamali<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">l</HI> &amp; the coun|cell
could better fore&s;ee, then that rude and furious multi|tude,
which would have killed <HI>Paul.</HI></P>
<P><PB N="28" REF="19">
Next he will not yeeld &s;o much as that <HI>Gamaliel</HI> did
doubt whether the Apo&s;tles doctrine were from God or
not, and that he made it an uncertain ca&s;e. In this Sir you
have <HI>faced about,</HI> &s;ure you are not <HI>As you were,</HI> for M^r <HI>Goodwin</HI>
him&s;elf &THgr;&Egr;&Ogr;&Mgr;&Agr;&Xgr;&Igr;&Agr;, <HI>pag.</HI> 11. &s;aith, that <HI>Gamaliel in point of
judgement or con&s;cience, was &s;till but where he was, doubtfull and
in &s;u&s;pence with him&s;elf about the bu&s;ine&s;&s;e.</HI> Well, but why hath
he now denyed that <HI>Gamaliel</HI> made it a doubtfull and uncer|tain
ca&s;e? <HI>He might,</HI> &s;aith he, <HI>and in all likelyhood did thus
expre&s;&s;e him&s;elf for fear or policy: So did Hu&s;hai &s;trangely for an
hone&s;t heart in that ca&s;e of Davids, in his coun&s;ell to Ab&s;alon,
2 Sam.</HI> 17. yet <HI>Hu&s;hai</HI> made a round lie, even again&s;t his
knowledge. Look about you my Ma&s;ters, know whom ye
tru&s;t; here's a generation of men, pretending to a more per|fect
and Saint-like reformation then others, but yet they
think it no fault to lie and di&s;&s;emble for good ends. Nay
that's not all, <HI>pag.</HI> 4. an&s;wering to an objection made a|gain&s;t
tho&s;e who doe commend and magnifie them&s;elves,
for greater gifts and graces then other men have; He tels
us it is no fault for a man not only to compare, but preferre
him&s;elf to another, and that on purpo&s;e to heighten his own
e&s;timation. Which how &s;weetly it agrees with <HI>Pauls</HI> do|ctrine,
<HI>Phil. 2. 3. In lowline&s;&s;e of mind let each e&s;teem other
better then them&s;elves;</HI> let every &s;ober and moderate &s;pirit
judge. How now, <HI>poor Pamphleter?</HI> is it not enough
for you to defend a lying tongue, but you will needs de|fend
pride too? tho&s;e are two (I am &s;ure) of the &s;even
things which are abomination to the Lord, <HI>Prov.</HI> 6. 16, 17.
And here I leave the <HI>poor Pamphleter</HI> with this black mark
upon him; I will not proceed to an&s;wer <HI>a fool in his fooli&s;h|ne&s;&s;e,</HI>
le&s;t <HI>I be like unto him;</HI> thus far I have an&s;wered, <HI>le&s;t he
be wi&s;e in his own eyes.</HI></P>
<P>Only I adde one thing more in an&s;wer to that argument
for liberty of con&s;cience, from <HI>Acts</HI> 5. 38, 39. Suppo&s;e <HI>Ga|maliels</HI>
principles to be good, and this &s;peech to be of truth
and authority, (which I have proved it is not) yet it is not ap|plicable
to the toleration of hereticks and &s;ectaries now, that
<PB N="29" REF="19">
ca&s;e of the Apo&s;tles being extraordinary, and great miracles
wrought by them, to the conviction of their mo&s;t malig|nant
oppo&s;ites, <HI>Act.</HI> 4. 16.</P>
<P><HI>Some it may be will object further from</HI> I&s;a. 11. 9. <HI>a place
objected in the</HI> Paraenetick, pag. 3. They &s;hall not hurt nor de|&s;troy
in all my holy mountaine. <HI>And</HI> Luke 9. 54. And when
his di&s;ciples James and John &s;aw this, they &s;aid, Lord wilt thou
that we command fire to come downe from heaven, and con&s;ume
them, even as Elias did? But he turned and rebuked them, and
&s;aid, Ye know not what manner of &s;pirit ye are of, for the Sonne of
man is not come to de&s;troy mens lives, but to &s;ave them. <HI>A place
objected by</HI> Nicolaides Refut. tract. de Eccl. cap. 4.</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w.</HI> That prophecy concerning the Chri&s;tian Church,
<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 11. 9. is not to be under&s;tood generally, as the word
&s;oundeth, for then adulterers, murtherers, &amp;c. are not to be
hurt and de&s;troyed by the Chri&s;tian Magi&s;trate. The mea|ning
therefore is, that tho&s;e who have formerly been as Li|ons
&amp; Wolves to the poor Lambs of Chri&s;t, &s;hall either be
renewed and changed in their nature, or (which is more
probable) &s;hal be &s;o re&s;trained and overawed by the power
and providence of God, that it &s;hal not be in their power to
hurt or de&s;troy any of the Saints for the truth or the Go&s;pels
&s;ake. <GAP DESC="foreign">, <HI>Neither &s;hall they bee
able to de&s;troy any:</HI> So the <HI>Septuagints.</HI> God &s;hall &s;o pre&s;erve
and protect his Church, that &s;he &s;hall be like a Lamb
among Wolves, or like a Kid among Leopards, or like a
Childe putting his hand on the Cockatrice den, and yet
&s;hall not be hurt nor de&s;troyed thereby. And as this pro|phecie
guardeth and protecteth none but tho&s;e who are in
Gods holy Mountaine, profe&s;&s;ors and lovers of the Go&s;pel,
and the ordinances of Je&s;us Chri&s;t: So our Lord Chri&s;ts re|buke,
<HI>Luke</HI> 9. 54, 55. &s;triketh not again&s;t any ju&s;t and ne|ce&s;&s;ary
&s;everity, but again&s;t a private vindictive &s;pirit, and
carnall blinde zeale: It being the purpo&s;e of Chri&s;t, then,
mo&s;t of all other times, not to exerci&s;e violence, (as tyrants
doe in conquering new dominions) but to conquer and &s;ub|due
&s;oules by his doctrine and miracles, with a &s;pirit of
<PB N="30" REF="20">
meekne&s;&s;e, e&s;pecially having to doe with the <HI>Samaritans,</HI> or
any other who had never yet knowne nor received the
Go&s;pel. Even tho&s;e who &s;ay mo&s;t for a coercive power to
be put forth again&s;t Heretickes and Schi&s;maticks, doe not
allow of the compelling of Infidels, Pagans, or Jewes, by ex|ternall
puni&s;hments to receive the Go&s;pel.</P>
<P>But now after all this debate upon the que&s;tion in hand,
and after all the&s;e arguments for the affirmative and for
the negative, &s;ome will happily de&s;ire and expect &s;ome fur|ther
modification and explanation of the matter in certain
po&s;itive conclu&s;ions or di&s;tingui&s;hing a&s;&s;ertions. For who&s;e
&s;atisfaction I &s;ay,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, there are five &s;orts of toleration proceeding from
five different principles. 1. Of <HI>indifferency.</HI> 2. Of <HI>policy.</HI>
3. Of <HI>pretended con&s;cience</HI> and <HI>equity.</HI> 4. Of <HI>nece&s;&s;ity.</HI> 5. Of
<HI>charity.</HI></P>
<P>The fir&s;t is when the Magi&s;trate is a Nullifidian, Neutra|li&s;t,
and Adiaphori&s;t, e&s;teeming as <HI>Gallio</HI> did, <HI>que&s;tions of the
law</HI> and of the Ordinances of Chri&s;t, to be <HI>of words &amp; names,</HI>
or things <HI>which he careth not for, Acts</HI> 18. 14, 15.</P>
<P>The &s;econd is when the Magi&s;trate tolerateth hereticks
and &s;ectaries for his own profit, or &s;ome &s;uch intere&s;t of po|licy,
&s;uch as maketh the Pope to tolerate the Jews in <HI>Italy,</HI>
yea in <HI>Rome</HI> it &s;elf, where they have their &s;ynagogues, cir|cumci&s;ion
and liturgies, becau&s;e his profit by them is greater
then by the very Courtizans; yea, be&s;ides their certain tri|bute,
he doth &s;ometimes impo&s;e on them a &s;ub&s;idy of ten
thou&s;and crownes extraordinary for &s;ome &s;ervice of the
State, as <HI>Europae &s;peculum, pag.</HI> 221, 222. hath repre&s;ented to
us. And whether the States of the united Provinces do not
grant tolerations upon the like intere&s;ts of their own profit,
I leave it to the judgement of their own con&s;ciences.</P>
<P>The third is the toleration pleaded for here, by M^r <HI>Willi|ams,
the compa&s;&s;ionate Samaritane, &amp;c.</HI> as if ju&s;tice, equity,
duty, and con&s;cience &s;hould make the Magi&s;trate forbear all
coercive power in matters of religion. All the&s;e three I
utterly condemn, and the former arguments doe &s;trongly
militate again&s;t them.</P>
<P><PB N="31" REF="20">
The fourth kinde of toleration,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Kekerman. cur&s;. philo&s;. di&s;p. 35. probl. 14. <HI>doth agree to the&s;e words of the</HI> Je&s;uit Becan<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">s. Ta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">t&s;i prin|ceps aut Magi|&s;tratus Catholi|cus omnibus mo|dis impedire de|beat, libertae|tem rel<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">gionis, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t dictum e&s;t: &s;i tamen i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">l facere non pe&s;&s;it &s;ine graviori incommodo boni publici, pote&s;t eam tolerare tanquam minus malum, ad evitandum majus, quod <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">alioqui &s;equetur. Polan. com. in Dan. 3. 29. Magi&s;tratum Chri&s;timum d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">cet veram rel<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">gionem, &amp;c. in <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> repub. con&s;tit<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ere, &amp; quidem &s;olam, &amp;c. Incidunt lamen non|nunquam tempora quibus optimi Reges ac Magi&s;tratus, pa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">is publicae retinendae cau&s;i, vita<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">|darumque inte&s;tinarum &s;editionum nece&s;&s;itate a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ducti, c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">gun<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">r exemplo peritorum <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span"> veluti tempe&s;tati cedere, &amp; &s;uper&s;titio&s;os errante&s;que f<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">rre: ut potius aliqua &amp; respub. &amp; rel<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">gio habeatur quam nulla. <HI>Both the&s;e Writers doe purpo&s;ely frame this an&s;wer to the que&s;tion concerning toleration.</HI></NOTE> ari&s;ing from nece&s;&s;ity
which hath no law, may well be mourned for as an afflicti|on,
it cannot be condemned as the Magi&s;trates fault. Even
a <HI>David</HI> may have cau&s;e to complain that the &s;ons of <HI>Zer|viah</HI>
are too &s;trong for him. In &s;uch ca&s;es as the&s;e, our Di|vines
have given a relief to the con&s;cience of the Chri&s;tian
Magi&s;trate, purging him of the guilt of this kind of tolera|tion;
provided always, that he hath endeavoured &s;o farre
as he can to extirpate here&s;ies, and to e&s;tabli&s;h the true re|ligion
only. Which hath nothing to doe with that princi|ple
now defended, that the Magi&s;trate though he may never
&s;o ea&s;ily, yet he ought not nor cannot without &s;in exerci&s;e a
coercive power in matter of religion.</P>
<P>The fifth and la&s;t is that kind of toleration whereby the
Magi&s;trate when it is in the power of his hand to puni&s;h and
extirpate, yet having to doe with &s;uch of whom there is
good hope either of reducing them by convincing their
judgments, or of uniting them to the Church by a &s;afe ac|commodation
of differences, he granteth them a <HI>Super&s;e|deas;</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Calv. Be<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ut. Error. Mich. Servet<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> hic tene<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">a e&s;t prudentia &amp; moderatio, ne vel pro cau&s;a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> ta|mul<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">u <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> e&s;&s;er|veant principes, vel immani &s;e|vit a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">d &s;angui|num <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> im+rua<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">.</NOTE> or though there be no &s;uch grounds of hope concern|ing
them, yet while he might cru&s;h them with the foot of
power, in Chri&s;tian pity and moderation, he forbeareth &s;o
far as may not be de&s;tructive to the peace and right govern|ment
of the Church, u&s;ing his coercive power with &s;uch
mixture of mercy as createth no mi&s;chief to the re&s;t of the
Church. I &s;peak not only of bearing with tho&s;e who are
weak in the faith, <HI>Rom.</HI> 15. 1. but of &s;paring even tho&s;e
who have perverted the faith, &s;o far as the word of God and
rules of Chri&s;tian moderation would have &s;everity tempe|red
<PB N="32" REF="21">
with mercy: that is (as hath been &s;aid) &s;o far as is not
de&s;tructive to the Churches peace, nor &s;haketh the founda|tions
of the e&s;tabli&s;hed form of Church government, and
no further: the&s;e la&s;t two kinds of toleration are allowed;
the fir&s;t three are wholy condemned.</P>
<P>My &s;econd di&s;tinction is concerning the
puni&s;hments inflicted by the Magi&s;trate
upon Hereticks.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span">. &amp;c. Sed timor dei, aequitas &amp; prudentia judicis intelliget ex circum&s;tantis quomodo punienda <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> &s;edactoribus &amp; &s;eductis <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span"> &amp; pervicax rebel|lio, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span"> &amp; minime <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span">.</NOTE> They are either <HI>extermina|tive,</HI>
or <HI>medicinall.</HI> Such as bla&s;pheme God
or Je&s;us Chri&s;t, or who fall away them|&s;elves
and &s;educe others to Idolatry, ought
to be utterly cut off according to the law
of God. But as for other Hereticks, they
are to be cha&s;tened with medicinall pu|ni&s;hments
as mulcts, impri&s;onments, ba|ni&s;hment,
by which through Gods ble&s;&s;ing
they may be humbled, a&s;hamed, and redu|ced.
Not that I think the proper end of
civill and coercive puni&s;hments to be the
conver&s;ion and &s;alvation of the Delinquent,
(which is the end of Church cen&s;ures &amp; of
Excommunication it &s;elf) but that the right
method of proceeding doth require that
the Magi&s;trate inflict the &s;maller puni&s;hments fir&s;t, that
there may be place for the offenders bringing forth of
fruits worthy of repentance, and he may be at lea&s;t re|duced
to externall order and obedience, being per&s;wa|ded
by the terror of civill power, which may and doth
(when ble&s;&s;ed of God) prove a preparation to free obe|dience,
as the needle is to the thread, or the law to the
Go&s;pell, &s;ervile fear to filiall fear: and that the Magi|&s;trate
&s;tep not up to the highe&s;t ju&s;tice till other puni&s;h|ments
have proved ineffectuall: which made <HI>Con&s;tantine</HI>
puni&s;h the Hereticks of his time not with death, but with
bani&s;hment, as is manife&s;t by the Proem of the Councell
of <HI>Nice.</HI> In &s;uch ca&s;es it may be &s;aid to the Heretick of
the Magi&s;trate&punc; <HI>He is the Mini&s;ter of God to thee for good,</HI>
<PB N="33" REF="21">
more good I am &s;ure,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Magisilla per|&s;equebatur Sa|ram &s;uperbien|de, qu&agrave;m illam <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span">: illa enim domi|nae <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 span"> i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">|juriam, i&s;ta im|pen<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">bat &s;uper|biae di&s;ciplina. Ep 50. Beza de Haeret. &agrave; Magi&s;tr. puniend. Tacco quod toties adver&s;us <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 word"> istas &amp; Circum|cell<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">nes Augu&s;tinus te&s;tatur experientia ip&s;a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">doctus, pl<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ro&s;que <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">o e&s;&s;e inge<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">io ut nulla re magis qu&agrave;m &s;everitate in efficio contincantur: a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">&ograve; ut quod initio poenae formidine vitae unt, id ip&s;um po&s;tea libenter fugiant, &amp; a&s;peritatem illam &s;ibi &s;aluberrimam fai&s;&s;e te&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">entur.</NOTE> then if the golden reins of civill ju|&s;tice
&s;hould be loo&s;ed, and he &s;uffered to doe what he li&s;t.
Therefore <HI>Augu&s;tine</HI> likeneth this coercive puni&s;hing of
Hereticks to <HI>Sarah</HI> her dealing roughly with <HI>Hagar,</HI> for her
good and humiliation. I conclude, connivence and indul|gence
to Hereticks is a <HI>cruell mercy:</HI> correction is a <HI>merci|full
&s;everity,</HI> and a <HI>whole&s;ome medicine,</HI> as well to them&s;elves
as to the Church.</P>
<P><HI>Thirdly,</HI> we mu&s;t di&s;tingui&s;h betwixt the coercive po|wer
of the Magi&s;trare in matters of religion, and the abu&s;e
of that power; when we ju&s;tifie the power, we ju&s;tifie not the
abu&s;e of it; and when we condemn the abu&s;e, we mu&s;t not
therefore condemn the power. <HI>Acontius Stratag. Stat. li. 3.
pag.</HI> 147. buildeth much upon this notion, let a man ima|gine
that his lot is fallen in tho&s;e times when the truth is
per&s;ecuted by authority, when the Magi&s;trate ju&s;tifieth the
wicked and condemneth the godly, (which hath been the
more ordinary condition of the Church) and then let him
accordingly &s;hape the re&s;olution of the que&s;tion concerning
the Magi&s;trates puni&s;hing of Hereticks. Will not a man
think (&s;aith he) it had been better that Hereticks had not
been puni&s;hed, then that upon pretence of coercive power
again&s;t Hereticks, the edge of the Civill &s;word be turned to|wards
the Preachers and Profe&s;&s;ors of the truth? But not|with&s;tanding
of all this, truth mu&s;t be truth, and ju&s;tice
mu&s;t be ju&s;tice, abu&s;e it who will. Parliaments and Synods
have been many times enemies to the truth, and have a|bu&s;ed
their power in matters of religion: mu&s;t we there|fore
deny the power of Parliaments and Synods? or mu&s;t
we ca&s;t off any ordinance of God becau&s;e of the abu&s;e of
it? If the thing were indifferent, the abu&s;e might take a|way
the u&s;e: not &s;o, when the thing is nece&s;&s;ary. I adde
(which is well ob&s;erved by <HI>Calvin)</HI> when <HI>Jeremiah</HI> was
<PB N="34" REF="22">
accu&s;ed and arraigned as worthy to die, his defence is not
this, <HI>You ought not to vindicate religion with the &s;word, nor put
any man to death for the cau&s;e of con&s;cience,</HI> but this is it, <HI>Know
ye for a certain, that if ye put me to death, ye &s;hall &s;urely bring in|nocent
bloud upon your &s;elves, and upon this city, and upon the
inhabitants thereof: for of a truth the Lord hath &s;ent me unto
you to &s;peak all the&s;e words in your ears, Jer.</HI> 26. 15. Neither
did ever the Apo&s;tles (though often per&s;ecuted) plead the
unlawfulne&s;&s;e of per&s;ecuting men for here&s;ie, but they plea|ded
the goodne&s;&s;e of their cau&s;e, and that they were no He|reticks.</P>
<P><HI>Fourthly,</HI> I di&s;tingui&s;h betwixt bare opinions or &s;pecula|tions,
and &s;candalous or pernicious practices, as M^r <HI>Burton</HI>
doth in his <HI>Vindication of the Independent Churches, pag. 70. You
mu&s;t di&s;tingui&s;h,</HI> &s;aith he, <HI>betwixt mens con&s;ciences and their
practi&s;es. The con&s;cience &s;imply con&s;idered in it &s;elf is for God,
the Lord of the con&s;cience alone to judge, as before. But for a
mans practi&s;es (of which alone man can take cognizance) if they
be again&s;t any of Gods Commandements of the the fir&s;t or &s;econd
Table; that appertains to the civill Magistrate to puni&s;h, who
is for this cau&s;e called</HI> Cu&s;tos utriu&s;que Tabulae,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Bullinger. ubi &s;upra. Dum e|nim fides fal&s;a in animo &s;epul|ta latet, no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> in|ficit quenquam ni&s;i infidelem, puniri<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters"> po|te&s;t infidelis: ubi autem fid<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">s laten erumpit in bla&s;phemias, ac deum palam <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">cerat &amp; pro|ximos quo&s;que infi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">it, coercen|dus e&s;t blasphe|mus &amp; &s;edu|ctor, ne malum latius &s;erpat.</NOTE> <HI>the keeper of
both Tables:</HI> for this he citeth <HI>Rom.</HI> 13. 3, 4. and addeth.
<HI>So as we &s;ee here what is the object of civill power, to wit actions
good or bad, not bare opinions, not thoughts, not con&s;cience, but
actions.</HI> And this is his an&s;wer to the Interrogatory con|cerning
the lawfull coercive power of civill Magi&s;trates in
&s;uppre&s;&s;ing here&s;ies. In which he hand&s;omely yeeldeth the
point, for who doth advi&s;e the Parliament to puni&s;h men
for their thoughts, or bare opinions, or for con&s;cience
&s;imply con&s;idered in it &s;elf? It is for preaching, printing,
&s;preading of dangerous opinions, for &s;chi&s;maticall, pernici|ous
and &s;candalous practi&s;es, for drawing factions among
the people contrary to the Covenant, for re&s;i&s;ting the refor|mation
of religion, for lying and railing again&s;t the Cove|nant,
the Parliament, the a&s;&s;embly of Divines, or again&s;t
the reformed Churches.</P>
<P><HI>Fifthly,</HI> we mu&s;t di&s;tingui&s;h the per&s;ons who are in the
<PB N="35" REF="22">
Error, whether <HI>Here&s;iarchs</HI> and <HI>ring-leaders,</HI> or whether <HI>fol|lowers</HI>
only, and &s;uch as do <HI>actiagere;</HI> whether <HI>&s;chi&s;matizing,</HI>
or <HI>&s;chi&s;matized;</HI> whether more <HI>weake,</HI> or more <HI>wilfull;</HI> whe|ther
<HI>&s;educers,</HI> or <HI>&s;educed;</HI> whether <HI>pious,</HI> or <HI>prophane,</HI> or <HI>Phari|&s;aicall;</HI>
whether peaceable, moderate, calme, docile, or turbu|lent,
factious, fierce, railing, ob&s;tinate, incorrigible. So that
when the thing is brought from the <HI>The&s;is</HI> to the <HI>Hypothe|&s;is,</HI>
there is very much to be tru&s;ted to the prudence, circum|&s;pection,
<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>The Papi&s;ts fall very farre &s;hor<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> in di&s;tingui&s;hing the per&s;ons, and proportioning the pani&s;hments. For in&s;tance &s;ee</HI> Tannerus Theal. Schol Tom. 3. di&s;p. 1. quae&s;t. 8. dub. 6. n. 129. Hac poena (mortis) ubi recepta e&s;t, affici, tumon nes r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">lap&s;os, etiam&s;i couverti denuo veli<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t, tum omnes po&s;t admonitione pert<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">nace<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">, etiam&s;i nunquam relap&s;i &s;int. A<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters"> veroqui nec re<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ap&s;i &s;unt, nec in per|tinac<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">a per&s;everunt, nec ali<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">s per|verterunt, licet in r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">gore mortem nihilominus promereantur, ordina|ri&egrave; tamen mortis poena a&s;&s;ici non &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">|len<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">, &s;ed carceris perpetui. <HI>As for that puni&s;hment commonly cal|led</HI> Irregularity, <HI>he will have it to fall not only upon the Hereticke him&s;elfe but upon his &s;onnes and nephewes.</HI> Ib. n. 111.</NOTE> and ob&s;ervation of tho&s;e who are
in authority, to &s;et apart tho&s;e for puni&s;h|ment
who re&s;i&s;t Reformation, as <HI>Jannes</HI>
and <HI>Jambres</HI> did re&s;i&s;t <HI>Mo&s;es, 2 Tim.</HI> 3. 8. and
are &s;aid to trouble the Churches, <HI>Act. 15. 24
Gal. 1. 7. &amp;</HI> 5. 12. and to trouble them more
or le&s;&s;e, as they are more or le&s;&s;e troublers
of I&s;rael. Let not the Magi&s;trate feare to
&s;ay to every <HI>Achan, Why ha&s;t thou troubled
us? the Lord &s;hall trouble thee this day, Jo&s;. 7.
25.</HI> Other &s;educed ones the Magi&s;trate is to
command <HI>&s;ub poena,</HI> and cau&s;e them &s;tand
to the Covenant of God, as <HI>Io&s;iah</HI> did, if
they cannot be per&s;waded to doe it willing|ly.
If the Magi&s;trate mi&s;carry in a mi&s;ap|plication
of his coercive power, let him an|&s;wer
to God and his con&s;cience for his error.
It is not in my thoughts either to plead for
or allow of the per&s;ecuting of pious and peaceable men.</P>
<P><HI>Sixtly,</HI> as the <HI>reformation</HI> and <HI>pre&s;ervation</HI> of religion differ
much from the <HI>propagation</HI> of religion: &s;o the coercive po|wer
put forth in the &s;uppre&s;&s;ing of Here&s;ie or Schi&s;me, is a
thing of another nature then the compelling of Infidels by
the &s;word to receive the Go&s;pell. Let the <HI>Pope,</HI> and the <HI>Spa|niard,</HI>
and <HI>Mahomet</HI> propagate religion by the &s;word; that
is not it I plead for. None of the Gentiles was of old com|pelled
to be circumci&s;ed, but being circumci&s;ed he might be
compelled to keepe the Law of <HI>Mo&s;es.</HI> Al&s;o if &s;trangers of
the Gentiles were &s;ojourning or trading in the land of I&s;|rael,
<PB N="36" REF="23">
they might be compelled to ab&s;taine from the pub|licke
and &s;candalous breaking of the morall Law, <HI>Nehem.
13. 16. 21. Exod.</HI> 20. 10. which things did belong to the
<HI>pre&s;ervation,</HI> not to the <HI>propagation</HI> of religion.</P>
<P><HI>Seventhly,</HI> to e&s;tabli&s;h by a law the toleration, liberty and
immunity of &s;uch a Sect or Way, &s;o as all that will may
joyne in it, is a thing of mo&s;t dangerous con&s;equence. But
to permit &s;uch or &s;o many per&s;ons of a Sect to enjoy the li|berty
of their owne con&s;ciences and practices, with &s;uch li|mitations
as &s;hall be found nece&s;&s;ary, is a <HI>tolerable Tolera|tion,</HI>
I meane a thing though not to be wi&s;hed, yet to be al|lowed.
<NOTE PLACE="marg">T. Livius De|cad. 4 l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">b. 9. p. 696. edit. Ba&s;il. 1549. Datum deinde con&s;uli|bus negotium e&s;t, ut omnia Bacchana<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ia Romae p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">imum, deinde per to<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">am Italiam derac. e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t: extra quau &s;i qua ibi vetu&s;la<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ara, aut &s;ig aum c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">n&s;ecratu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter"> e&s;&s;et; in reliquum deinde S. C. c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">um e&s;t, ne qua Bacchanalia Romae, neve in Ital a e&s;&s;ent. Si qui<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">tale &s;acrum &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">nne &amp; nece&s;&s;arium duceret, nec &s;ine religione &amp; piacul<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;e id omittere pi&s;|&s;e apud Prae<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">orem urbanum profi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">er<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">tur: Praetor Senatum con&s;uleret &s;i ci permi&s;&s;um e&s;&s;et, cum <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">n Senatu centum non minus e&s;&s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">t, ita id &s;acrum faceret, dum ne plus quinque &s;acrificio in|ttre&s;&s;ent.</NOTE> The <HI>Romans</HI> in their Heatheni&s;h way did put a dif|ference
betwixt the&s;e two: when they aboli&s;hed the <HI>Bac|chanalian</HI>
fe&s;tivity and di&s;charged it, they granted no tole|ration
to &s;uch as plea&s;ed &s;till to ob&s;erve it: only they were
content that &s;ome few upon leave fir&s;t obtained from the
Senate, and upon certaine conditions, might be permitted
to continue their owne practice, as to their part.</P>
<P><HI>Eightly,</HI> there is al&s;o a great difference betwixt <HI>Toleration</HI>
and <HI>Accommodation.</HI> By <HI>accommodation</HI> I under&s;tand an a|greement
of di&s;&s;enters with the re&s;t of the Church in pra|cticall
conclu&s;ions, &s;o that if any difference be, it is in their
<HI>principles,</HI> not in their <HI>practices,</HI> and &s;o not obvious, apparent
and &s;candalous to people. I had rather goe two miles in an
<HI>Accommodation,</HI> (yea as many as the word of God will &s;uf|fer
me) then one mile in a <HI>Toleration.</HI> For in that way there
is no &s;chi&s;me, no rent in I&s;rael, but <HI>the Lord one, and his name
one.</HI> In this way there is <HI>Temple again&s;t Temple,</HI> and <HI>Altar
again&s;t Altar, Mana&s;&s;eh</HI> again&s;t <HI>Ephraim,</HI> and <HI>Ephraim</HI> again&s;t
<HI>Mana&s;&s;eh,</HI> and they both again&s;t <HI>Judah:</HI> a mi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;y from
which the Lord deliver us. I doe not deny but if a &s;afe and
<PB N="37" REF="23">
happy Accommodation be impo&s;&s;ible, &s;uch a Toleration as
I have formerly &s;poken of, is not to be di&s;allowed. But the
Accommodation is a more excellent way, and that which is
to be rather embraced, yea endeavoured for and followed
after, according to the Apo&s;tles rule, <HI>Phil.</HI> 3. 15, 16. (which
<HI>I&s;idorus Pelu&s;iota</HI> did long &s;ince ob&s;erve to be the be&s;t and
happie&s;t way of putting an end to divi&s;ions and di&s;&s;entions
in the Church) <HI>Let us therefore as many as be perfect be thus
minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwi&s;e minded, God &s;hall re|veale
even this unto you. Neverthele&s;&s;e whereto we have already
attained, let us walke by the &s;ame rule, let us minde the &s;ame
thing.</HI></P>
<P>If it be &s;aid, <HI>Quor&s;um haec?</HI> what doe I conclude from
all this? It is to leave this confirmed and &s;ealed truth in the
bo&s;ome of the High Court of Parliament, and of all infe|riour
Magi&s;trates according to their place and intere&s;t, un|der
them, That it is their duty, <HI>without re&s;pect of per&s;ons, to en|deavour
the extirpation of Here&s;ie and Schi&s;me, and what &s;oever
&s;hall be found contrary to &s;ound doctrine, and the power of godline&s;&s;e,
left they partake in other mens &s;innes, and thereby be in danger
to receive of their plagues; and that the Lord may be one, and his
name one in the three kingdomes:</HI> And to <HI>endeavour the di&s;co|very
of all &s;uch as have beene or &s;hall be evill instruments, by hin|dring
the reformation of Religion, or making any faction or partice
amongst the people, contrary to the &s;olemne League and Covenant,
that they may be brought to publick triall, and receive condigne
puni&s;hment, &amp;c.</HI> Which as they had great rea&s;on to &s;weare
and covenant, &s;o now they have greater rea&s;on to performe
accordingly; and as it is in it &s;elfe a duty, and we tyed to it
by <HI>the oath of God,</HI> and <HI>his vowes that are upon us,</HI> as <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">rai<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ly
as ever the &s;acrifice to the hornes of the altar: So we are to
take &s;peciall notice of the unhappy con&s;equents which fol|low
upon our &s;lackne&s;&s;e, &s;lowne&s;&s;e and &s;l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">thfulne&s;&s;e, in ful|filling
that &s;acred Oath, <HI>viz.</HI> The hindring of uniformity,
the continuing and increa&s;ing of a rup<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">ure both in Church
and State, the re<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">arding of Reformation, the &s;preading and
multiplying of Here&s;ies and Sects, while every one doth
<PB N="38" REF="24">
what is right in his owne eyes; the great &s;candall given
both to enemies and friends: to enemies, who are made to
thinke wor&s;e of our Covenant, becau&s;e we doe not performe
it: <HI>The Review of the Covenant,</HI> printed at <HI>Oxford,</HI> upbrai|deth
us with this: that Here&s;ie and Schi&s;me was never more
&s;uffered, and le&s;&s;e &s;uppre&s;&s;ed in <HI>London,</HI> then &s;ince we &s;ware
to endeavour the extirpation of the &s;ame: To friends al&s;o,
who are mightily &s;tumbled by our promi&s;ing &s;o much, and
performing &s;o little in this kinde:<NOTE PLACE="marg">Judicent con|&s;cientiae ve&s;trae, quomodo omne Haere&s;ium ge|nus inultum permitti, multifaria &s;chi&s;matum &s;cmina impun&egrave; &s;pargi, &amp; prophana er<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">orum dogmata pa&s;&s;im in vulgus proferri po&s;&s;int i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="2 letters">llacivitate, quae tam expre&s;&s;o, &s;ancto &amp; &s;evero juramento &s;e&s;e co|ram D<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">o devinxit, ad omnes errores, h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">re&s;e, &s;chi&s;mata &egrave; domo D<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">i ejicienda.</NOTE> which the <HI>Wallachian</HI>
Cla&s;&s;is in their late Letter to the Reverend A&s;&s;embly of Di|vines
at <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter</HI> (printed before <HI>Apollonius</HI> his Booke)
doth &s;adly and &s;eriou&s;ly lay to our con&s;ciences.</P>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<HEAD>A Paraenetick.</HEAD>
<P>BEfore I end, I have a word of exhortation for the five
Apologi&s;ts, and &s;uch others as &s;hall (I tru&s;t) agree with
the Churches of both Kingdomes, not only in one Confe&s;|&s;ion
of Faith, but in one Directorie of Wor&s;hip. Me thinks
I heare them calling to me to &s;ay on. <HI>Et tu mi fili?</HI> &s;aid <HI>Cae|&s;ar.</HI>
And mu&s;t you al&s;o brethren, give a wound to the bo|dy
of Chri&s;t? Doe not, O doe not involve your &s;elves in the
plea of Toleration with the Separati&s;ts and Anabapti&s;ts. Do
not partake in their <HI>Separation,</HI> le&s;t you partake in their <HI>&s;up|pre&s;&s;ion.</HI>
Let us heare no more Paraeneticks for Toleration,
or liberty of Con&s;cience: but as many as you will for a <HI>ju&s;t
and mercifull Accommodation:</HI> a thing mentioned by that
Author, <HI>pa.</HI> 3. but not &s;ought after. If you be the Sonnes of
peace, you &s;hall be characterized by this <HI>Shibboleth,</HI> you
will call for Accommodation, not for Toleration; for one
way,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Gen. 13. 7, 8.</NOTE> not for two. Let there be no &s;trife betweene us and
you, <HI>for we be brethren:</HI> and is not the <HI>Canaanite</HI> and the <HI>Pe|rizzite</HI>
yet in the land? O let it not be told in <HI>Gath,</HI> nor pub|li&s;hed
in the &s;treets of <HI>A&s;hkelon,</HI> Let it not be &s;aid, that
<PB N="39" REF="24">
there can be no unity in the Church without Prelacy. Bre|thren
I charge you <HI>by the Roes and by the Hind<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">s of the field,</HI>
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cant. 2. 7.</NOTE> <HI>that ye awake not nor &s;tirre up Je&s;us Chri&s;t till he plea&s;e;</HI> for his
re&s;t is &s;weet and glorious with his welbeloved. It &s;hall bee
no griefe of heart to you afterward, that you have plea&s;ed
others as well as your &s;elves, and have &s;tretched your prin|ciples
for an Accommodation in Church government, as
well as in Wor&s;hip, and that for the Churches peace and e|dification;
and that the eares of our common enemies may
tingle,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Act. 9. 3<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">.</NOTE> when it &s;hall be &s;aid, <HI>The Churches of Chri&s;t in Eng|land
have re&s;t, and are edified, and walking in the feare of the
Lord, and in the joy of the Holy Gho&s;t are multiplyed.</HI> Alas, how
&s;hall our divi&s;ions and contentions hinder the preaching
and learning of Chri&s;t, and the edifying one another in
love! <HI>Is Chri&s;t divided?</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle. There is but one
Chri&s;t, yea the head and the body makes one Chri&s;t, &s;o that
you cannot divide the body without dividing Chri&s;t. Is
there &s;o much as a &s;eame in all Chri&s;ts garment? Is it not
woven throughout from the top to the bottome? Will you
have one halfe of I&s;rael to follow <HI>Tibni,</HI> and another halfe to
follow <HI>Omri?</HI> O brethren, we &s;hall be one in heaven, let us
packe up differences in this place of our pilgrimage, the be&s;t
way wee can. Nay, we will not de&s;paire of unity in this
world.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Jer. 32. 3<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">.</NOTE> Hath not God promi&s;ed to give us <HI>one heart and one
way?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ezech. 11. 19.</NOTE> and that <HI>Ephraim &s;hall not envy Judah, and Judah &s;hall
not vexe Ephraim,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 11. 13. 14.</NOTE> <HI>but they &s;hall flee upon the &s;houlders of the
Phili&s;tims toward the Ea&s;t,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Joh. 17. 21.</NOTE> <HI>they &s;hall &s;poile them of the Ea&s;t to|gether?</HI>
Hath not the Mediator (whom the Father heareth
alwayes) prayed that all his may be one? Brethren, it is
not impo&s;&s;ible, pray for it, endeavour it, pre&s;&s;e hard toward
the marke of Accommodation. How much better is it that
you be one with the other Reformed Churches, though
&s;omewhat &s;traitned and bound up,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pro. 17 1.</NOTE> then to bee divided
though at full liberty and elbow-roome? <HI>Better is a dry mor|&s;ell
and quietne&s;&s;e therewith, then a hou&s;e full of &s;acrifices with
&s;trife.</HI> Doth not the Solemne League and Covenant binde
you &s;incerely, really, and con&s;tantly to endeavour the nea|re&s;t
<PB N="40" REF="25">
(marke <HI>neare&s;t)</HI> uniformi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">y and conjunction in religion:
and that you &s;hall not &s;uffer your &s;elves directly or indi|rectly
to be withdrawne from this ble&s;&s;ed union and con|junction.
I know there is a &s;pirit of jealou&s;ie walking up
and downe. O beware of groundle&s;&s;e feares and apprehen|&s;ions.
<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mat. 7. 1.</NOTE> <HI>Iudge not, le&s;t you be judged. Iudge not according to ap|pearance,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Joh. 7. 24.</NOTE>
<HI>but judge righteous judgement.</HI> Many fal&s;e rumours
and &s;urmi&s;es there have beene concerning the Pre&s;byterian
principles, practices, de&s;ignes, <HI>Expertus l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="tech" EXTENT="1 letter">quor.</HI> I am per&s;wa|ded
if there were but a right under&s;tanding one of anothers
intentions, the Accommodation I &s;peak of would not bee
difficult. Brethren, if you will not hearken to whol&s;ome
coun&s;ell, you &s;hall be the more inexcu&s;able. I have in my
eye that law of God,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Lev. 19. 17.</NOTE> <HI>Thou &s;halt not hate thy brother in thy heart:
thou &s;halt in any wi&s;e rebuke thy neighbour, and not &s;uffer &s;inne
upon him.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Pro. 27. 6.</NOTE> <HI>Faithfull are the wounds of a friend. Therefore love
the truth and peace.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Zech. 8. 19.</NOTE> Yea, <HI>&s;eeke peace and pur&s;ue it.</HI></P>
<P>Con&s;ider what I &s;ay.<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Pet. 3. 11.</NOTE> The Lord guide your feet in the
way of peace. And O that God would put it in your hearts
to cry downe <HI>Toleration,</HI> and to cry up <HI>Accommodation!</HI></P>
<P><HI>Amen, Amen.</HI></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
