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<NAME>John Latta</NAME>
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<HEAD>DICTATED THOVGHTS Vpon the Presbyterians late petitions for compleat and univer&s;all power (in Divine Ordinances) to be conferred upon the PRESBYTERS by Humane Authority.</HEAD>
<P>_SUrely if the&s;e Presbyterians did but know indeed what <HI>the true Religion</HI> is, and did <HI>account</HI> it <HI>the life and crown of all</HI> their <HI>I berties and priviledges</HI> (as they pretend) they would not &s;o endeavour to infringe the outward (much le&s;&s;e the inward) liberties and priviledges of the profe&s;&s;ors thereof, as they have done and do. If <HI>the manner of a pure and perfect reformation in all Chri&s;ts ordinances</HI> were not hidden from their eyes, which they pretend to <HI>account the beauty of Religion,</HI> they would never &s;eek, thus to compell by civil &s;anction, uncivil per&s;ons to divine obedience, but hate the ca&s;ting of holy things to dogs, and pearls before &s;wine, and not torment tho&s;e by con&s;traint to wor&s;hip God, who&s;e wor|&s;hip is abhorred by God. A mind well informed, knoweth that Gods true wor&s;hip mu&s;t proceed from the mind: The mind mu&s;t be moved by rea&s;on, not by rigour. To con&s;train men to the po&s;itive duties of the fir&s;t Table of Gods Law, is not mans, but Gods. It's the devine unction of the word (not the civil &s;anction of the world) that frameth men in a &s;pirituall po&s;ture plea&s;ing to God. Tho&s;e per&s;ons that go this way to work, and whom <HI>God</HI> hath &s;o <HI>much honoured</HI> to <HI>promote and accompli&s;h &s;uch a reformation</HI> lay the foundation of the Lords hou&s;e upon the rock, and are to be accounted as tho&s;e famous witne&s;&s;es were <HI>in the days of King Edward, and Queen Elizabeth of happy memory.</HI> Tho&s;e that do o|therwi&s;e, are &s;andy foundation-layers, friends to <HI>the midnight of Popery,</HI> and enemies to the <HI>&s;weet dawning day of reformation.</HI> What <HI>double honour, divine providence hath devolved upon this age,</HI> by cau&s;ing the light of the truth of Ie&s;us Chri&s;t to &s;hine in the world <HI>exhibiting</HI> whol&s;ome directions according to the perfect <HI>directory</HI> of the word of God, we de&s;ire to <HI>accept</HI> from the directers <HI>with all thankfulne&s;&s;e.</HI> But in this work of &s;uch high concernment, all the axes, hammers, and tools of mens inventions, we utterly reject, knowing that &s;uch poli&s;hers are no good reformers, but great poluters of the &s;anctuary of the mo&s;t High.</P>
<P>Spirituall minded men (not per&s;ecuting &s;pirits) know that Ie&s;us Chri&s;t is the Lord of all admini&s;trations, and that he hath <HI>e&s;tabli&s;hed</HI> the <HI>government</HI> and di&s;cipline of his <HI>Church,</HI> &s;ufficiently and firmly in his Word, and hath cur&s;ed tho&s;e that add thereun|to, or detract therefrom. To it all per&s;ons mu&s;t yeeld &s;ubjection, and not dance about the golden calfe of their own invention, much le&s;&s;e de&s;ire it to be e&s;tabli&s;hed by a <HI>civil &s;anction,</HI> for that will not ea&s;e the extremity of their <HI>perplexed</HI> and <HI>amazed &s;pirits,</HI> nor heal the di&s;tempers of our di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Nation. Neither can the Parliament, though <HI>excelling former Parliaments, pre&s;erve Chri&s;ts precious ordinances (and in particular the Lords Supper) from all contempt and profanation</HI> (as the&s;e Presbyterians &s;peake) for that cannot be in this world: If they do their utmo&s;t endeavour to keep all ignorant and &s;candalous per&s;ons therefrom, are we to de&s;ire (or doth God require) any more of them in that particular? But &s;urely, if it be true as the&s;e petitioners &s;ay, that <HI>En|gli&s;h Parliaments never had &s;uch a learned, pious, and faithfull Synod, to hold forth &s;incerely the mind of Chri&s;t, and the model of Church government agreeable to his will, as this Parliament hath, and yet Church government and di&s;cipline to this very day doth remain une&s;tabli&s;hed.</HI> Then by this it may appear that the Synod hath been either very negligent, and would not, or deficient, and could not e&s;tabli&s;h it, and &s;o have not held forth &s;incerely the mind of Chri&s;t agreeable to his will, as is pretended: and the&s;e Presbyterians them&s;elves affirm, that their <HI>confe&s;&s;ion of Faith, &amp; publick Catechi&s;me, mu&s;t nece&s;&s;arily take up a far longer time then can po&s;&s;ibly be &s;pared from &s;etling of government, without many unavoydable and de&s;parate mi&s;chiefs:</HI> And whereas they would have it brought to pa&s;&s;e by <HI>civil &s;anction,</HI> that is Temporall power, to con&s;train all men of and in the Nation, both high and low, rich and poor, bound and free (under pain of corporall puni&s;hment) to do according to their determinations, in matters of wor|&s;hip; And therefore do they in their petition, call out for <HI>a compleat power to be e&s;tabli&s;hed upon the Presbyters;</HI> It appeareth they conceive that the government of their Church will not be e&s;tabli&s;hed without it, at lea&s;t in their way, and according to their mind; for without the Temporall &s;word, their Kingdom; Power, Glory, Preheminence, and Maintenance, which they &s;tand for, fals to the ground. But their pre&s;&s;ing argument is, that <HI>no Parliament ever had &s;uch, and &s;o many forcible engagements upon them from God, and unto God, as are upon this</HI> And I wi&s;h the Lord would engage them to him and his more abundantly. And whereas the&s;e &s;ay, that <HI>the City of London did never &s;o flouri&s;h with &s;uch a con&s;cionable and painfull ministry, as at this day:</HI> I de&s;ire they were all more con&s;cionable and painfull in good, and then the City of London would flouri&s;h indeed But whereas the&s;e que&s;tion <HI>whence then &s;hould it be that the children being come &s;o near to the birth, there is yet no &s;trength to bring forth?</HI> If they mean their two children, <HI>viz.</HI> power and maintenance; it is becau&s;e the Man child Ie&s;us Chri&s;t with his rod of Iron, is about to cru&s;h the Prie&s;tly power and maintenance, which they have conceived in their minds, and &s;o much cry out for with their mouths.</P>
<P>But the&s;e men who will not be content to bear with others in Religion, call out for others to bear with them; &s;aying, <HI>Bear with us a little in this fervor of our &s;pirits (it is for our Religion, Reformation, and the Hou&s;e of our God, &amp; we cannot hold our peace)</HI> They cannot hold their peace! and why? becau&s;e they have not temporall power, to &s;top the mouthes of tho&s;e who &s;tand for their Religion, and the Hou&s;e of their God, and cannot hold their peace, more then they; though not in craving for temporall power a|gain&s;t the Presbyterians, as the Presbyterians call out for it again&s;t them. <HI>What way &s;oever we ca&s;t our eyes</HI> (&s;ay they) <HI>we cannot but &s;ee mo&s;t &s;ad fruits of the not &s;etling of Church government to this day:</HI> Here they &s;till lay their old creeping accu&s;ation, as if Church government were not e&s;tabli&s;hed! Surely, If the Angels of the Lord had not &s;mitten them with &s;pirituall blindnes, they would before this, have found the door of the vi&s;ible Church; And if their hearts had not been hardned by the deceitfulnes of &s;in, they would ere this have entered into it: for Church government was e&s;tabli&s;hed by Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, and put in execution by his Saints long ago, though contrary to the minds of the common multitude, and their blind guides; yea, they waited not for the pow|er or command of civil Magi&s;trates, [for Queen <HI>Mary,</HI> and &s;uch as &s;hee, would never a&s;&s;ent unto the true Religion] but the Saints did &s;et them&s;elves to do the work which Chri&s;t had &s;ent them about, and do remain, through the power of God, unto this pre|&s;ent day, executing the Eccle&s;ia&s;ticall and Mini&s;teriall power of the Go&s;pel, though contrary to the decrees of men. And it is not the want of &s;etling Church goverment, which cau&s;eth &s;o many heri&s;ies, which they &s;peak of. Heri&s;ies do ari&s;e, that tho&s;e who are approved, may be made manife&s;t among&s;t us: 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 11. 19 convincing the &s;infull &s;ects with &s;ound po&s;itions, and not with &s;atanicall per&s;ecutions, which will neither provoke them to good, nor deter them from evil, peoples per&s;ecuting them with the &s;word, and not convincing them by the word, hath hardned their hearts, and made them to ble&s;&s;e them&s;elves in their own &s;educing waies, &s;uppo&s;ing them to be the per&s;ecuted waies of God, and all men as they do perceive this Presbyterian way to be a per&s;ecuting way, do endeavour to draw back their &s;houlders, and &s;tand a far off, and beware of &s;uch an envious mon&s;ter, that will &s;uffer no man to dwell peaceably by him in the world, unle&s;&s;e they be of the &s;ame Religion with him, yea, by this means &s;ome precious truths of Chri&s;t, taught by the Presbyterians, are by &s;ome (not credited, but) &s;u&s;pected, by other&s;ome exceedingly contemn'd as fal&s;hood, becau&s;e handed by per&s;ecuting &s;en&s;uall &s;pirits, whereas, if the&s;e would content them&s;elves with the gift of God, not tormenting, but ad|moni&s;hing &s;uch (by the Scriptures) in the &s;pirit of meeknes, without ranker, malice, envie, evil &s;peeches, or rigorous actions, the deceived would be undeceived, Heriticks may be converted, and heri&s;ies &s;uppre&s;&s;ed, though as damnable and dangerous as the&s;e their po&s;itions are fal&s;e and &s;candalous: But the&s;e Presbyterians taking it for granted that Church government is not &s;etled to this day; They conclude &s;aying, that <HI>hence many abhominable errors, and damnable heri&s;ies are broached among&s;t us without controul,</HI> without controul! (&s;ay they) Hereby it appeareth they would have power from the civil magi&s;trate to controul, as if the word were not a &s;ufficient weapon, but &s;uppo&s;e the blind Presbyters were all made controulers, they had need of good &s;pectacles to di&s;cern who to controul, lea&s;t they controul truth in&s;teed of error, and controul their betters, who excell them in wi&s;dom, piety, and hone&s;ty; Their armes mu&s;t be long and &s;trong, le&s;t they in controuling of others, are controuled them&s;elves, and their own weapons fly in their own faces. O old malice! the feeder of faction, and breeder of divi&s;ion, that do&s;t &s;o eye and envie the &s;weet unity, harmony, fidelity, and victory of the Engli&s;h Armies under the command of the Parliament, when wilt thou come to an end? Thy fore|fathers the blood-thir&s;ty Bi&s;hops, and their &s;harking &s;havelings, would never be quiet, till they were in&s;nared (as they are) in the vain works of their own hands, &s;urely as they did, &s;o do&s;t thou; and as they are, &s;o &s;halt thou be; The precious truths which Ie&s;us Chri&s;t hath &s;ealed with his blood, are trampled under foot by thy children, thy &s;ervants prophane the pure and holy ordinances of Chri&s;t. Is there any of the&s;e presbyters that do not polute, prophane, and trample under foot Chri&s;ts precious truths? are they not their own witne&s;&s;es again&s;t them&s;elves? who have ca&s;t down the Bi&s;hops, and are &s;et in their &s;eats, build up &s;uper&s;titiou&s;ly, what before they puld down; ca&s;t down the Prelates callings as Antichri&s;tian, yet from them do they derive their ordination, who have it from the Pope of Rome, that &s;econd bea&s;t, mentioned <HI>Rev.</HI> 13. 11. which ro&s;e up out of the earth, having 2. horns like the Lambe, but &s;peaking as the dragon And hence I beleeve the ordinances of Chri&s;t are wofully profaned by per&s;ons gro&s;ly ignorant and &s;candalous, and al&s;o by per&s;ons of knowledge, that do not walk up to their light: for the Presbyterians have had time enough, and have not yet excomunicated their prophane comunicants, nor &s;eparated them&s;elves from them, but have their children baptized by, and receive the Supper from, &s;uch who are &s;candalous in their callings, time-&s;erving popelings, wandring &s;tars, Antichri&s;tian Prie&s;ts, who have no calling to the work of the mini&s;try, more then Ieroboams prie&s;ts; They &s;ay <HI>multitudes of un&s;table &s;oules have fallen off,</HI> But from whence? not from the Church of Chri&s;t, but from the Church of England, in which they were before un&s;table, but not the more for falling off therefrom. And if any one maintain <HI>&s;trange Sects,</HI> (as they &s;peak) It is not the Sepa|rates; for they with&s;tand them all, and particularly the &s;ect of bla&s;phemous per&s;ecuting treacherous Presbyterians, and will not pray with them, much le&s;&s;e &s;uffer them to be incorporated into their &s;eparated A&s;&s;emblies, unle&s;&s;e they renounce their erronious o|pinions; and therefore the&s;e Presbyterians charge the &s;eparates fal&s;ly: neither do they &s;et up <HI>illirerate per&s;ons to be their Pa&s;tors,</HI> but &s;uch, that the meane&s;t of them is able to confound the greate&s;t popi&s;h Presbyter in the world, and that by &s;ound arguments from Scripture, without carnall weapons. And though <HI>thy manage their meetings with boldnes,</HI> becau&s;e they are righteous, and confide in tho&s;e who are called Gods, and children of the mo&s;t High, <HI>(P&s;al.</HI> 86. 2.) yet they are far from <HI>in&s;olency</HI> (as the&s;e in&s;o|lent Presbyterians lyingly &s;peak) and furthe&s;t of all from <HI>contempt of all authority:</HI> for they acknowledge authority, knowing it is the ordinance of God, and therefore they will not re&s;i&s;t the higher powers, but protect them with their lives and e&s;tates, as is appa|rant to this day; but the Pope conceiveth that all power is given unto him, and that therefore who&s;oever he be, whether magi&s;trate or other, that contemns his authority, he contemns all authority, even &s;o &s;ay the Presbyterians, <HI>in contempt of all authority, to the di&s;turbance of the City, every one doing that which is right in his own eyes, and there is no cour&s;e to reclaim them;</HI> all which accu&s;ations are notorious fal&s;e: for the &s;eparates bring not the lea&s;t di&s;turbance in the City, but it is Demetrius and his craft&s;men, who incite the rude multitude to di&s;turbe them at their meetings, to the danger of their lives; And if any tran&s;gre&s;&s;e the &s;econd table of Gods law, it being made known to the magi&s;trate, he hath power immediatly to puni&s;h him as it is meet according to the law And tho&s;e that tran&s;gre&s;&s;e the fir&s;t table of Gods law, means is u&s;ed by the mini&s;ters of the Go&s;pel to reclaim them al&s;o (by the &s;pirituall &s;word of Gods word, which is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for in&s;truction in righteou&s;nes) 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 3. 16. whether they be none-Churchers, omni Churchers, Anabapti&s;ts, the &s;ect of the Libertines, prophane Presbyterians, Heathens, Iewes, Turks, Papi&s;ts, or any &s;ect under heaven; And if any of all the&s;e rebell again&s;t the rules of morality, the magi&s;trate (without the mini&s;ter) hath power to puni&s;h him according to his offence: and the mini&s;ter without the magi&s;trate may (and doth) u&s;e the &s;pirituall power which the Lord hath given him, to per&s;wade the Con&s;cience; and therefore the&s;e Presbyterians in &s;ay|ing that <HI>every one doth that which is right in his own eyes, and there is no cour&s;e to reclaim them,</HI> do thereby ca&s;t an a&s;per&s;ion not only upon the people in generall, but on the magi&s;trates and mini&s;ters in &s;peciall. And &s;uch fire-brands as the&s;e Presbyterians, cau&s;e the <HI>unnaturall &s;tames of divi&s;ion (e&s;pecially about Church government) In the &s;ame kingdom betwixt people and people, In the &s;ame City, betwixt mini&s;ter and mini&s;ter, in the &s;ame congregation, betwixt Pa&s;tor and flock, yea, in the &s;ame family betwixt master and &s;ervant, betwixt Parents and children, betwixt husbands and wives:</HI> And it appeareth thus, becau&s;e when &s;ome differ from other&s;ome, and walk up to their light, then do the Presbyters, teach the Presbyterians to per&s;ecute them divers waies, &s;eeking to draw them back by carnall compul&s;ion, and the tender con&s;ciences not being willing to be forced, further then the light of rea&s;on in them: immediatly the fire of contention, proceeding from the Presbyterians &s;ecred con&s;ciences, breaks forth into a flame, as it is &s;pread over Kingdoms, betwixt people and people, in the &s;ame City one mini&s;ter vilifieth another, in the &s;ame congregation (or pari&s;h) the mini&s;ter and the people are at it, yea, in families, the Presbyters &s;et the ma&s;ter to per&s;ecute the &s;ervant, and in|courage the &s;ervant to de&s;pi&s;e the ma&s;ter, who is not of their mind, hence ari&s;eth per&s;ecution again&s;t the children by the father, and again&s;t the father by their children, yea the husbands are taught by the antichri&s;tian Presbyters, to lord it over the con&s;ciences of the wives, and wives to per&s;ecute their husbands: in&s;omuch as when any one declareth him&s;elf to be a &s;eparate, or an independant, immediatly their neere&s;t Presbyterian friends alienate their affection, becau&s;e he differs from them in judgement, and break out into many bitter and reproach full contentions, and open per&s;ecutions, no marvell then that <HI>God hath of late manife&s;ted divers &s;ad and remarkable tokens of his di&s;plea&s;ure again&s;t England and Scotland, both by &s;word and pe&s;tilence,</HI> and de&s;troyed many thou|&s;ands, what may the impenitent remnant then expect, who are not killed by the&s;e plagues, <HI>Rev.</HI> 9. 20. but the cup of the wine of Gods wrath, to be powred out without mixture, <HI>Rev.</HI> 14 10 judgement without mercy, upon them who &s;hew no mercy; <HI>Iam.</HI> 2 13. Surely it is laid up in &s;tore with God, and &s;ealed up among his trea&s;ures: To him belongeth vengeance and recompence, their foot &s;hall &s;lide in due time, for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that &s;hall come upon them make ha&s;t, <HI>Deut.</HI> 32. 34. 35. And &s;urely the divi&s;ions between mini&s;ter and mini&s;ter, pa&s;tor and flock, is not among&s;t the &s;eparates but rather in the Church of England: neither do the &s;eparates <HI>de&s;pi&s;e Orthodox mini&s;ters,</HI> nor <HI>di&s;courage them in their mini&s;try,</HI> nor <HI>di&s;harten</HI> or <HI>deterre hopefull plants from the mini&s;try:</HI> But it is the monopolizing Presbyters, who &s;eek to bind all preaching in their own hands, as if none had the &s;pirit of God to divide the word aright, but they, and &s;uch as are authorized by their patentee-licencers for preaching, even like unto tho&s;e 4. Angels which John &s;aw, &s;tanding upon the four corners of the earth, to hold the 4 winds of the earth, that the wind &s;hould not blow on the earth, nor on the Sea, nor on any trees, <HI>Rev</HI> 7. 1. Therefore if it were tryed and examined the <HI>Orthodox all mini&s;ters</HI> would prove to be the independant preachers, and not the Presbyterian praters, that think when they have got up in the pulpit, they may crow without controul, And in&s;teed of godly ruling, fall to ungo&s;ple like railing, at the people of God, to the &s;adding of the hearts of their owne hearers, and cau&s;ing the be&s;t affected among&s;t them, to for&s;ake their publike a&s;&s;emblies of England, and go where they may be better edified, even among&s;t tho&s;e who are by the Presbyterians pretended to be <HI>teachers of new Go&s;pel,</HI> but as the Presbyterians do by the &s;eparates, &s;o the Epicurian Athenians did by Paul, &s;ome &s;aid, what will this babler &s;ay? other&s;ome, he &s;eemeth to be a &s;etter forth of &s;trange Gods,? becau&s;e he preached unto them Ie&s;us, and the re|&s;urrection; <HI>Acts</HI> 17. 18. But <HI>Paul</HI> was not &s;o as they would have had him to be, but reproved their &s;uper&s;tition, even &s;o the &s;eparates are not as the Presbyterians would have men think them to be, they plead not for <HI>the univer&s;all toleration of all religions and opinions,</HI> but would have all to profe&s;&s;e and practize the true Religion (not that any religion is to be per&s;ecuted) but all rebellions pro&s;ecuted, neither do they <HI>wilfully contemn the &s;abbath, and month-daies of humiliation, backt by the authority of Parliament,</HI> much le&s;&s;e do they <HI>open a wide door to all prophane&s;&s;e and licentiou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> as the&s;e Presbyterians maliciou&s;ly &s;peak, if that were true, <HI>the hearts of the truly godly,</HI> would <HI>groan</HI> more then they do, and <HI>our brethren of Scotland</HI> would have more cau&s;e of <HI>a&s;toni&s;h|ment</HI> then they have: And as for the <HI>enemies &s;corning and in&s;ulting,</HI> we are not to regard it, but walk &s;o in offen&s;ively, that they may be convinced, and acknowledge the Spirit of God in us, and not a&s;pirit of giddines, which (if the&s;e &s;peak true) they &s;ay the Presbyterians are <HI>given up to:</HI> And whereas the&s;e &s;ay, tho&s;e <HI>look at this City as a &s;tage of faction and herifie;</HI> that is a &s;lander put upon this honourable City (for no better end (as may be well conceived) then to breed a combu&s;tion among&s;t the Citizens, by ra&s;ing per&s;ecution again&s;t hone&s;t well affected men, under the notion of independants) meerly out of &s;pight, to mi&s;chief the City, which hath been &s;o active in defence of the Kingdom, again&s;t tho&s;e rebels and traytors, and their a&s;&s;i&s;tants, who irriligiou&s;ly &s;corn and inhumanly fight again&s;t both Church and State, the true Religion, and profe&s;&s;ors thereof, But herein the proverb is verified, he that walketh uprightly in his way, is an abhomination to the wicked, And yet, though their <HI>distempers</HI> &s;hould <HI>grow more incu|rable,</HI> and the <HI>reformation</HI> of the generality of the people, every day <HI>more difficult and improbable,</HI> yet no doubt but God will have his number, in &s;pight of all malignant oppo&s;ers, the remnant &s;hall return to the mighty God of Jacob, and he will &s;ave them, The con&s;umation decreed &s;hall overflow with righteou&s;nes, from God to them, which people he hath formed for him&s;elf, and they &s;hall &s;hew forth his prai&s;e, and ha&s;tily, according to their holy Covenant (when the great mountainis become a plain) compleat the re|formation in all the de&s;ireable perfections of it, not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord.</P>
<P>Surely if the&s;e Presbyterians did but &s;eriou&s;ly <HI>con&s;ider the&s;e things</HI> they would (do, what they &s;ay they <HI>could</HI> do) even <HI>pour out their very &s;ouls in</HI> them, and be in bitterne&s;&s;e for their &s;weet Saviour, the crim&s;on blood of who&s;e tender heart, they have &s;pilt, by their piercing &s;pear of per&s;ecution, and <HI>in this concerning cau&s;e of God and Religion,</HI> they would joyn peaceably and unanimou&s;ly with the Parliaments cordiall friends, again&s;t their mortall enemies, and <HI>&s;pare neither their prayers, nor tears, nor outward e&s;tate, nor limbs, nor blood, nor</HI> their <HI>deare&s;t lives, for</HI> the publick, But endeavour in the way of holynes, <HI>highly to pro<GAP DESC="illegible" REASON="faint" EXTENT="1+ letters">rte a &s;peedy and perfect reformation in all matters of Religion, and value it above their worldly comforts, and ca&s;t out fear of all worldly cro&s;&s;es,</HI> and re&s;olve rather to &s;uffer per&s;ecution, with Gods people, then per&s;ecute them, and behave them&s;elves meckly, lovingly, and moderately towards all men. Then may they ju&s;tly expect to have the favour and countenance of heaven, and to be accounted by the ho|ly inhabitants of TSion, of that coele&s;tiall number, whom <HI>God &s;hall fully ble&s;&s;e with compleat deliverance.</HI></P>
<P>Wherefore they might do well to <HI>importune</HI> the Parliament, not for per&s;ecution, but for a publick toleration.</P>
<P N="1">1 <HI>That as</HI> they <HI>tender the happines</HI> of the mi&s;erable members of the Church of England (which the&s;e term a <HI>mi&s;erable Church) the true pro&s;perity of this afflicted City,</HI> and di&s;tracted <HI>Kingdom, the timely comfort of all</HI> their <HI>reall friends, the &s;ea&s;onable cure of all</HI> their <HI>deep di&s;tempers, before they grow remedile&s;&s;e, the ha&s;tning of the Kingdoms enlargement from all its pre&s;&s;ing di&s;tre&s;&s;es, its enjoyment of all contrary ble&s;&s;ings from the Lord, the exaltation of the name of God, who&s;e glory is now</HI> by the mem|bers of the Church of England, <HI>prophaned to the du&s;t,</HI> and their <HI>Faithfull performing of Covenant</HI> and promi&s;es, they <HI>would make all po&s;&s;ible ha&s;t</HI> forthwith to &s;uppre&s;&s;e <HI>by their civil &s;anction,</HI> all &s;uch per&s;ons, who violently break the bounds of civillity, and morality, by oppre&s;&s;ing tender con&s;ciences compul&s;ively, again&s;t the very light and law of nature, and right rea&s;on, which being done, will be more forcible for bringing a &s;peedy reformation, then a thou&s;and &s;uch Synodian models the&s;e Presbyterians boa&s;t of, and &s;ay the <HI>Synod according to their wi&s;dom have pre&s;ented.</HI> And let them cau&s;e a confe&s;&s;ion of Faith [according to the word of God] to be produced forthwith, and <HI>a Catechi&s;me,</HI> according to it, that &s;o ignorant per&s;ons may be rightly informed in their minds, and per&s;waded to enter into aright &s;pirituall order, which is the readie&s;t way to e&s;tabli&s;h <HI>Church government,</HI> and not &s;eek to &s;ettle <HI>Church government</HI> fir&s;t, and make a beleef and <HI>Catechi&s;e</HI> afterwards, which di&s;orderly manner of proceeding, it &s;eemes the&s;e Presbyterians can patiently endure, yea, greedily &s;wallow down, approve of, and ju&s;tifie. But away with all tenets that make way for this popi&s;h maxime, that men mu&s;t beleeve as the Church beleeves, &s;urely they are happy who are far enough from &s;uch a Church, that cannot &s;pare time to produce a confe&s;&s;ion of Faith, le&s;t unavoydable and de&s;|parate mi&s;chiefs &s;hould (as the&s;e &s;ay) come unto them Ye Presbyterians, take heed what ye do, enter not into the fellow&s;hip, before you are in the faith, le&s;t your latter end be wor&s;e then your beginning, examine, try and prove your &s;elves, come not into the holy a&s;&s;embly, &s;it not down in the Lords Sanctuary, without the wedding garment, lea&s;t the wrath of God fiercely &s;ieze upon your poor &s;oules, and make you as mi&s;erable in puni&s;hment, as you are in &s;in, and bind you hand and foot, and ca&s;t you into the dark dungeon of everla&s;ting perdition, to be tormented evermore in the pre&s;ence of the holy Angels, and in the pre&s;ence of the Lamb, where the victory of the Saints, &s;hall not be the glory of &s;inners. Then that harlot Tyre &s;hall &s;ing no more melodious &s;ongs of remembrance, but &s;hall be utterly forgotten. And all the &s;ermons of her fal&s;e prophets (which preach for hire) &s;hall be as &s;entences of condemnation unto them, when the mountains and hills of magi&s;teriall power and authority &s;hall not be able to hide or cover them from the wrath of the Lamb.</P>
<P N="2">2. The&s;e Presbyterians &s;hould not have petitioned unto men for <HI>power</HI> and authority, to confer upon the Presbyters, that which is only in the power of God. Divine right mu&s;t be &s;ought for only from God, Humane power from men in authority. The greate&s;t men on earth can give no more then what them&s;elves have; but the&s;e would have the Parliament to give them &s;uch a compleat mea&s;ure of power and authority, as may fully enable the Presbyters to maintain all Chri&s;ts &s;acred ordinances, in their highe&s;t &s;plen|dor and purity, held forth in the word, &amp;c. This is Gods gift, and none other,&mdash;and he will give it to his Church and Presbytery, and to none el&s;e in the world. Its an inhe|ritance which cannot be purcha&s;ed by the temporall &s;word, all the carnall weapons in the world will not procure it: for the Lord will fight again&s;t &s;uch fighters, who in&s;teed of a holy and glorious reformation, bring a &s;infull and &s;hamefull defamation, adding to the&s;e di&s;tractions, more de&s;tructions, and ruinations, in who&s;e &s;ecrets, let not the &s;ouls of the Saints enter, their glory let them not unite unto them in their impure, imperfect, and impious waies: for though the path of the ju&s;t, is as the &s;hining light, which &s;hi|neth more and more unto the perfect day, yet the way of the wicked is as darknes, they know not at what they &s;tumble. <HI>Prov.</HI> 4. 18. 19.</P>
<P>O that the Lord would open the eies of the&s;e Presbyterians, that they may &s;ee their &s;inne, and turn unto him, and behold that holy mount Zion, which the Lord will more and more e&s;tabli&s;h upon the top of the mountaines, and exalt above the hilles, that they may di&s;cerne the light of God, and walk uprightly therein, then they may with holy re&s;olution &s;ay, that though they repent of their former &s;inne, yet they &s;hall not repine at their future doings, or &s;ufferings, in reference to the po&s;e&s;&s;ion and practice of the glorious truths of God, But expect con&s;tancy from God to continue triumphing in his prai&s;e, for crowning his &s;pou&s;e with &s;pirituall glory, and for lifting up the hearts of his Saints in the&s;e &s;acred things to do worthily.</P>
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