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<DATE>2014-03-26</DATE>
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<NAME>John Pas</NAME>
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<P> ENGLANDS REIOYCING AT THE PRELATS downfall.</P>
<P>OR, GODS GOODNESSE and mercy to <HI>England</HI> in de|livering them from the cruell tyran|ny of blood-thir&s;ty <HI>Prelats.</HI></P>
<Q><BIBL>PSAL. 34. 19.</BIBL>
<P><HI>Many are the troubles of the Righteous, but the Lord delivereth them out of all.</HI></P></Q>
<Q><BIBL>PSAL. 90. 15.</BIBL>
<P><HI>Comfort us according to the dayes that thou ha&s;t afflicted us, and according to the years we have &s;een evill.</HI></P></Q>
<P><HI>ENGLAND,</HI> Printed in the yeare of the down-fall of the <HI>Prelats.</HI> 1641.</P>
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<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
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<HEAD>THE PREFACE.</HEAD>
<P>CHri&s;tian Reader, thou ha&s;t here pre&s;ented unto thee in this &s;mall Treati&s;e, the cruell Tyranny of the wicked Bi&s;hops, and <HI>Gods</HI> goodne&s;&s;e and great mercy in ea&s;ing the Land of them, in turning their plots to their own De&s;truction, and in making them a deri&s;ion to all the world: Therfore let us all ble&s;&s;e and prai&s;e <HI>God</HI> for all his mercies to us, and long and de&s;ire the downfall of <HI>Rome,</HI> and al his brood, with all the enemies of the Church, that &s;o our Church may be a glorious Church, even to the coming of our <HI>Lord Ie&s;us Chri&s;t,</HI> even &s;o be it, <HI>Amen.</HI></P>
<CLOSER><SALUTE>Farewell.</SALUTE> <SIGNED><HI>Your Friend in</HI> Chri&s;t.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
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<DIV1 TYPE="text">
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<HEAD>ENGLANDS REIOYCING at the <HI>Prelats</HI> downfall, Or, <HI>Gods</HI> goodne&s;&s;e and mercy to ENGLAND in delivering them from the cruell Tyranny of blood-thir&s;ty <HI>Prelats.</HI></HEAD>
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL>PSAL. 123. 3.</BIBL> Have mercy upon us &ocirc; Lord, have mercy upon us, for we have &s;uffered too much contempt.</Q>
<Q><BIBL>PSAL. 120. 6.</BIBL> My &s;oule hath too long dwelt with him that hateth peace.</Q>
<Q><BIBL>PSAL. 119. 126.</BIBL> It is time for thee to worke &ocirc; Lord, for they have de&s;troyed thy Law.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_THere ever hath bin, and is now, and &s;till there ever will be (&s;o long as the <NOTE PLACE="marg">Gods people will have ene|mies, as long as they continue here.</NOTE> world &s;tands) enemies again&s;t the Church and People of <HI>God,</HI> bloody enemies, cruell Tyrants: but &s;till the <HI>Lord</HI> ever hath bin, and is now, and will be the
<PB REF="4"> deliverer of his People; the <HI>Lord</HI> doth confound their enemies and trap them in their own &s;nares; they lay baits privily to intrap the Righteous, <NOTE PLACE="marg">The wicked lay &s;nares for the Righteous, and are &s;nared them&s;elves.</NOTE> and are &s;nared in their own &s;nares; the <HI>Lord</HI> who &s;its in heaven, and eyes and beholds the wayes and plots of the wicked: he wi&s;ely orders and con|trives their own plots to their own De&s;truction, as witne&s;&s;e that helli&s;h Powder Trea&s;on of blood-thir&s;ty <NOTE PLACE="marg">Papi&s;ts are cru|ell Tyrants to Gods people and Church.</NOTE> <HI>Prelats,</HI> who &s;ought to have blowed up the whole A&s;&s;embly of <HI>Parliament;</HI> and when they thought them&s;elves mo&s;t &s;ure, then <HI>God</HI> di&s;cove|red it, and turned it to their own Ruine.</P>
<P>And al&s;o in Queen <HI>Maryes</HI> dayes, how cruell <NOTE PLACE="marg">In Q. <HI>Maryes</HI> time were bloo|dy dayes with the Papi&s;ts.</NOTE> were they to all Chri&s;tians, in&s;omuch that who|&s;oever would not turn to them to wor&s;hip <HI>Baal,</HI> there was no mercy with them, but to fire and <NOTE PLACE="marg">No mercy to be had of Papi&s;ts.</NOTE> faggot they mu&s;t goe, bloody-minded men they were. But yet the <HI>Lord</HI> in the end did overthrow <NOTE PLACE="marg">God will over|throw their plots.</NOTE> them and con&s;umed them; they mu&s;t not alwayes Tyrannize over <HI>Gods</HI> people: For though <HI>God</HI> let them alone for a time, yet in the end he will laugh at their de&s;truction: <HI>The rod of the wicked &s;hall not alway lye on the backe of the righteous, God</HI> will ea&s;e them, and deliver them.</P>
<P>And now al&s;o <HI>God</HI> is very good to his people, farre beyond all hopes or expectation: for our <NOTE PLACE="marg">God will not for&s;ake his people.</NOTE> Lordly <HI>Prelats</HI> have &s;o Lorded it over all <HI>Gods</HI> people, as &s;carce any have bin free from trouble, but that the Bi&s;hops, our Lordly <HI>Prelats</HI> have per|&s;ecuted them by Pur&s;evanting knaves, &s;ome way <NOTE PLACE="marg">Pur&s;evants are knaves by <HI>Bon|nirags</HI> confe&s;&s;i|on.</NOTE> or other: and their impudencie was grown to &s;uch a height, that Mini&s;ters dare hardly Preach; and if they did, they were tyed to a ju&s;t houre:
<PB REF="4"> and Pur&s;evants were redy to in&s;nare them if they <NOTE PLACE="marg">That was be|cau&s;e they would have brought in Po|pery under the name of Reli|gion.</NOTE> &s;poke any thing again&s;t Popery: Nor people could not a&s;&s;emble them&s;elves together in any duty in private, much le&s;&s;e publick, but they were had before his Grace, and were mockt and &s;coft at by the name of <HI>Puritans,</HI> and many other ab|&s;urd names, &s;o that they had the world at their beck and command, that all the world groaned <NOTE PLACE="marg">Bi&s;hops were never more ha|ted then now.</NOTE> under them, they were (I meane our Lordly <HI>Pre|lats)</HI> a burden both to Church and State.</P>
<P>How had they corrupted <HI>Gods</HI> wor&s;hip, abu&s;ed his Ordinances, de&s;pi&s;ed his Mini&s;ters, rejected <NOTE PLACE="marg">The <HI>Lord</HI> hath bin very much wronged.</NOTE> his Word, di&s;honoured his Name, prophaned his Sabbaths, per&s;ecuted his people, and robbing <HI>God</HI> of his Honour. O Brethren, the&s;e are grievous things: and when a Land is guilty of the&s;e things, <NOTE PLACE="marg">and ju&s;tly might the <HI>Lord</HI> have done it.</NOTE> the <HI>Lord</HI> mu&s;t needs avenge him&s;elfe, as faith the <HI>Lord, Shall not I vi&s;it for the&s;e things?</HI></P>
<P>Con&s;ider in the fir&s;t place, how they have cor|rupted <MILESTONE N="1"> <HI>Gods wor&s;hip,</HI> in turning their Table <HI>Altar|wi&s;e,</HI> and rayling of it, and making the people come up to it, and kneel round about it; in read|ing their Second Service there; and in con&s;ecra|ting <NOTE PLACE="marg">They all are for the out&s;ide <HI>wor|&s;hip,</HI> and never look after the heart within.</NOTE> the Table or Chancell, as though the Table or Chancell had bin more holyer then any part of the Church el&s;e; and al&s;o in wearing the white Surplice, Lawn Sleeves, Tippet, foure corner Cap, &amp;c. as though <HI>God</HI> required the&s;e out&s;ide Ce|remonies, when as indeed this is a corrupting of <HI>Gods wor&s;hip,</HI> and &s;o bowing at the Name of <HI>Je&s;us,</HI> as if that were above <HI>Jehovah</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, con&s;ider how they have abu&s;ed thine <MILESTONE N="2"> ordinances, in &s;etting up of Idolatry and Super|&s;tition,
<PB REF="5"> and labouring to pull down thine Ordi|nances by their good will: they would not have <NOTE PLACE="marg">All things were hatefull to him, but Idolatry.</NOTE> us have a Lecture once a week, nay not on the <HI>Lords day:</HI> for they &s;et out a Book for Liberty on the <HI>Sabbath,</HI> in &s;pending the afternoons in Sports and Pa&s;t-times, and &s;o putting down all Sermons in the afternoones, as one of the <HI>Prelats</HI> mo&s;t no|toriou&s;ly <NOTE PLACE="marg">But this was the way to their own de&s;tructi|on, as now you &s;ee.</NOTE> boa&s;ted and &s;aid, <HI>I thank God I have but one Lecture in all my Dioce&s;&s;e:</HI> &ocirc; mo&s;t wicked Bla&s;|phemour, to thank <HI>God</HI> that he hath done wick|edly: &ocirc; this is a high contempt of <HI>Gods</HI> Ordinan|ces, and abu&s;ing them, when men &s;trive with all their might and maine to &s;ubvert the Ordinan|ces of <HI>God,</HI> as our proud <HI>Prelats</HI> did.</P>
<P>Thirdly, con&s;ider how they have contemned and de&s;pi&s;ed the Mini&s;ters of <HI>God,</HI> as that they would not &s;uffer them to teach: for if they did, they mu&s;t cringe, and bow, and be very Ceremo|niall; or el&s;e if they will not, they are clapt up in Pri&s;on. And of late that &s;infull Synod made an <HI>Oath,</HI> that all Mini&s;ters mu&s;t take, and &s;o they thought to in&s;nare all good Mini&s;ters, for none would take it that feared <HI>God,</HI> and then by thi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>Oath,</HI> they would have &s;ilenc'd all good men, &s;uchs a plot it was, that one would have thought all the Devils in hell could not have thought: but now it is cleane contrary to their expectation.</P>
<P>Fourthly, con&s;ider how they rejected his Word in adding and dimini&s;hing what they plea&s;ed, and in being carele&s;&s;e and negligent of his Word in rejecting <HI>Gods</HI> Word and Religion, &amp; &s;etting up of a Religion of their own, and in making a &s;et forme of Prayer, as they plea&s;ed, for Mini&s;ters to
<PB REF="5"> &s;ay before their Sermons, as if &s;o be none were &s;o holy as they (as they thought them&s;elvs) when in|deed none were &s;o wicked as they: &ocirc; this rejecting of <HI>Gods</HI> Word would have cau&s;ed him to have ta|ken it away: For where a People once rejects his Word, then he departs from them.</P>
<P>Fiftly con&s;ider, they have di&s;honoured his Name, by &s;wearing by his Name, as <HI>Lord,</HI> or <HI>God,</HI> as many of our <HI>Prelats</HI> doe, who (at lea&s;t &s;hould know better) doe, yea many of our Ceremoniall Mini&s;ters, that will come out of a Tavern or Ale|hou&s;e, and goe up in the Pulpit to preach, and call upon the name of <HI>God,</HI> whenas this is a di&s;honour|ing <HI>Gods</HI> name, and a mocking him to his face, when they &s;ay and promi&s;e one thing, and doe clean contrary. <HI>God</HI> commands us to <HI>honour him,</HI> and we di&s;honour him, to honour the creatures, wicked men.</P>
<P>Sixtly, Con&s;ider how they have prophaned his Sabbaths, in giving men liberty on the Sabbath: wheras <HI>God</HI> hath &s;et it apart to be kept holy to him&s;elfe, they gave liberty to men to prophane the Sabbath, to make it a day of mirth and Pa|&s;times: &ocirc; this is mo&s;t abominable, they contradict <HI>God,</HI> and break the Fourth Commandement, wherein <HI>God</HI> has commanded men to keep the Sabbath day holy: and how is it kept when they keep it unholy, and prophane it?</P>
<P>Seventhly, Con&s;ider how mo&s;t barbarou&s;ly they per&s;ecuted <HI>Gods</HI> people, in di&s;membring and disfiguring, and whipping, and Pilloring, and Fet|tering, and Impri&s;oning, and Bani&s;hing, and Si|lencing, &amp;c.</P>
<PB REF="6">
<P> As fir&s;t, in cutting off tho&s;e Three Worthy <NOTE PLACE="marg">Three Worthy Champions of <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> &s;uffered all patiently.</NOTE> mens Eares, Mr. <HI>Burton,</HI> Dr. <HI>Ba&s;twicke,</HI> and Mr. <HI>Pryn:</HI> and then Fining them, and Bani&s;hing them to Perpetuall Impri&s;onment, which was again&s;t both the Laws of <HI>God</HI> and men: for they were not found guilty of any thing: &ocirc; it was mo&s;t cruell dealing, not like Chri&s;tians, but as dogs. And al&s;o good Dr. <HI>Layton,</HI> that hath bin both branded and whipt, and his no&s;e &s;lit, and Impri&s;oned. And <NOTE PLACE="marg">This was the Chri&s;tian mans tryall.</NOTE> Mr. <HI>John Lilburne,</HI> that hath bin whipt and gag|ged, and Fettered, and Pillorified, and Impri&s;o|ned. And &s;o many other of <HI>Gods</HI> Children did the Lordly Prelats per&s;ecute, and Tyrannize over. How did they Lord it over all men in their bit|ter High Commi&s;&s;ion, wor&s;e then the Spani&s;h <NOTE PLACE="marg">All will turn to their owne ruine.</NOTE> Inqui&s;ition: but Pride now hath had a fall, <HI>they now are fallen into the Pit that they digged for others.</HI></P>
<P>Seventhly, they robbed <HI>God</HI> of his glory, and <NOTE PLACE="marg">Robbing <HI>God</HI> of his glory, giv|ing all to the creatures that <HI>God</HI> &s;hould have.</NOTE> honour, they for&s;ook the living <HI>God,</HI> and &s;et up Images, and Idols, and they wor&s;hiped them: this was in &s;ome places, and they would have had it in all places, had not they bin cro&s;t of their de&s;ignes; for how many &s;cores of Mini&s;ters had they Si|lenced, and &s;et up dumb dogs in their Rome, that &s;o they might (when all good Mini&s;ters were put out) rule as Lords and Kings; and every one &s;hould have honoured them: for in their Courts they &s;ate like <HI>Gods,</HI> and not like Men, making every one &s;ubject to them; and thus they robbed <HI>God</HI> of his honour: &ocirc; the&s;e were heavy things, and cer|tainly <HI>God</HI> will be avenged of the&s;e <HI>Prelats:</HI> and indeed now he hath begun, in that he hath turned all to their own ruine and de&s;truction. <HI>God</HI> in
<PB REF="6"> pitty and mercy towards his people, called a Par|liament, which <HI>England</HI> longed for, contrary to our wicked Bi&s;hops mind: for they little thought of a Parliament, for if they had, they would ne|ver have Tyrannized &s;o as they did; they thought they might doe what they would, for no body dur&s;t &s;ay, why doe you &s;o? The truth was, they neither feared <HI>God</HI> nor man, for if they had, they would have thought then that <HI>God</HI> would have called them to an account for all, and then they would not have done &s;o: but <HI>they were departed from the living Lord, and did according to their own hearts lu&s;t,</HI> as in <HI>Ie&punc;</HI> 9. 13. 14. <HI>They have for&s;aken my law which I &s;et before them, and have not obeyed my voyce, neither walke thereafter. But they have walked after the &s;tubbornes of their own hearts.</HI> Yea they have walk|ed very &s;tubbornly before <HI>God,</HI> doing all things contrary to <HI>Gods</HI> will, as in <HI>Le.</HI> 26. 1. 40. <HI>They have walked contrary unto me:</HI> and therfore &s;aith <HI>God</HI> in the next ver&s;e 41. <HI>Becau&s;e they have walked con|trary unto me, therefore will I walke contrary unto them. God</HI> will &s;erve them in their own kind: for <HI>they that for&s;ake him, he will for&s;ake them, and</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg">Mi&s;erable are al they whom the <HI>Lord</HI> departs from.</NOTE> <HI>leave them to their own de&s;truction:</HI> as you &s;ee he hath done the&s;e Lordly Prelats: they for&s;ook <HI>God,</HI> and <HI>God</HI> for&s;ook them, and hath brought <NOTE PLACE="marg">They are de|&s;cended from their Palace to their Pri&s;on.</NOTE> them to their own de&s;truction: that wheras be|fore they &s;ate as Lords and Kings in their Pal|lace, now they &s;it as Pri&s;oners in their Pri&s;on, yet they never thought of this, nor if any had told them of it, would not have beleeved it: for they thought it was impo&s;&s;ible, they had &s;o &s;eated them&s;elves. And I dare be bold to &s;ay, that had not the <HI>Lord</HI> cro&s;&s;ed their wicked de&s;ignes by
<PB REF="7"> this time <HI>Canterbury</HI> would have bin entring into his Pope&s;hip: for as a worthy Knight &s;ayes, <HI>He</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg">But the little great man was deceived.</NOTE> <HI>pleads for a Pope&s;hip under the name of a Patriarch,</HI> and it was too true, as was apparent by his acti|ons, and by what he intended to doe; as to have &s;ilenced all Godly Mini&s;ters with that damnable <HI>Oath</HI> hatcht in Hell; and then we &s;hould have had fire and fagot. But &ocirc; ble&s;&s;ed, and for ever ble&s;&s;ed and prai&s;ed be the <HI>Lord</HI> our <HI>God,</HI> that hath ea&s;ed the Land of this great burden: for they are of late hated of all men, both Scotch men, and Eng|li&s;h men: for they by &s;ending over the Scotch Service Book, and impo&s;ing it on them, was the cau&s;e of all this: they could not be content to rule and Lord it here, but they mu&s;t there al&s;o too, &amp; &s;o made a rod for their own back: for they by that meanes brought the Scots hither, and &s;o they bred hatred between the two united King|domes, and would have made them pierc'd their &s;words in one anothers &s;ide. But the wi&s;e <HI>God</HI> hath now brought them into &s;hame and confu&s;ion, that now our Lordly Prelats hang down their heads, for this happy Parliament hath quell'd all the <HI>Canterburian</HI> Faction, that now they have nothing to &s;ay: and now I beleeve they wi&s;h they had ne|ver bin Bi&s;hops at all, but &s;ome handicraft Trade, which indeed there are too too many more, are more fitter for the Plough then the Pulpit, Idoll Mini&s;ters, that are negligent in <HI>Gods</HI> wor&s;hip, and in preaching his Word; when as <HI>God</HI> &s;aith, <HI>Cur&s;ed are they that doe the worke of the Lord negligently,</HI> Jer. 48. 10. And how negligent are our Lordly Bi&s;hops, that do not preach once in a whole year,
<PB REF="7"> when as Bi&s;hops &s;hould be preaching Bi&s;hops, and not Lording Bi&s;hops: for in <HI>Zacha.</HI> 11. 17. <HI>Woe unto ye Idol &s;hepheards that leave your flock, the &s;word &s;halbe upon you,</HI> &amp;c. And yet how many Idoll &s;hep|heards have we now that fami&s;h their flock, and are idle and lazie? and how many Idoll wor&s;hip|ers &s;uch as wor&s;hip Idols, when <HI>God</HI> forbids it, as in <HI>Levit.</HI> 19. 4. <HI>Ye &s;hall not turne unto Idolls, nor make your molten Gods, for I am the Lord your God: yet they made them graven Images, and wor&s;hipped them, for all that the Lord forbids them, and they walked every way &s;tubbornly again&s;t God:</HI> and therfore &s;ayes <HI>God</HI> in <HI>Pro.</HI> 1. 24, 25, 26. <HI>Becau&s;e I have called, and ye refu&s;ed, and I &s;tretched forth my hand, and none would regard, but have de&s;pi&s;ed my coun&s;ell, I will laugh at your de&s;truction, and mocke when your feare cometh.</HI> And al&s;o in <HI>Jer.</HI> 9. 13. <HI>Becau&s;e they have for&s;aken my Law which I &s;et before them, and have not obeyed my voyce, I will &s;end a &s;word after them till I have con&s;umed them:</HI> So that <HI>God</HI> leaves tho&s;e that leave him, yea tho&s;e that walke not in the way of <HI>God</HI> &s;hall not pro&s;per, as you &s;ee the&s;e wicked Prelats that did all according to their own wills, and &s;o run headlong to de&s;truction, for tho&s;e things which <NOTE PLACE="marg">Nothing that they take in hand again&s;t the godly &s;hall pro&s;per. <HI>Zach.</HI> 9. 9.</NOTE> they &s;ought the ruine of others with, have turned to their own ruine; and <HI>England</HI> hath great cau&s;e to <HI>rejoyce at their downfalls,</HI> for they were ene|mies to <HI>God</HI> and his people; as in <HI>Lament.</HI> 3. 59, 60. <NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Lamen.</HI> 3. 59, 60</NOTE> <HI>Lord thou ha&s;t &s;een our wrongs, the fore judge thou our cau&s;e. Thou ha&s;t &s;een all their vengeance, and all their devi&s;es again&s;t us;</HI> and 64. <HI>Therfore give them</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg">The <HI>Lord</HI> will recompence them.</NOTE> <HI>a recompence according to the works of their hands</HI> Now the <HI>Lord</HI> hath refre&s;ht his people wonder|fully,
<PB REF="8"> in relieving of them: for now the <HI>Lord</HI> hath brought home tho&s;e 3 Worthies, that were Ba|ni&s;hed <NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>God</HI> can do all things.</NOTE> &s;o farre, contrary to all our expectations, for few thought to have &s;een them all here alive againe: but all things are po&s;&s;ible unto <HI>God.</HI> And &s;o in &s;etting at liberty other Captives, as &s;ilenced Mini&s;ters, and others. O this is a great mercy, that <HI>God</HI> out of his free mercy and love to his people &s;hould give them &s;uch a gracious delive|rance from the cruell Tyranny of the&s;e Prelates, who ruled and raigned as Lords over them: for the wicked mu&s;t not thinke alwayes to Tyran|nize over them, and thinke the <HI>Lord</HI> will not avenge him&s;elfe of them, no, no, for the <HI>Lord</HI> hath promi&s;ed to his people the utter ruine of their enemies at la&s;t: yea, the <HI>Lord</HI> hath &s;aid, <HI>All things &s;hall worke together for the be&s;t of them that love him.</HI> And therfore, though they be per&s;ecuted, it is not alwayes, it is but for a time. Now <HI>God</HI> will &s;tand up to plead their own cau&s;e, that wheras <NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gods</HI> cau&s;e &s;hall be pleaded.</NOTE> before his people were called in que&s;tion, and Impri&s;oned; now they who called them in que|&s;tion; are called in que&s;tion them&s;elves, and have the &s;ame puni&s;hment inflicted on them, as they <NOTE PLACE="marg">They are paid with their own coine.</NOTE> would have inflicted on others: for our Lord|ly Bi&s;hops, and other inferiour Doctors, that &s;ilenced other good men, are now &s;ilenc'd them|&s;elves, and that according to ju&s;tice: for there is no Court like unto the <HI>Parliament</HI> for ju&s;tice and <NOTE PLACE="marg">No Court like unto the <HI>Parli|ament.</HI></NOTE> equity; now all things are called in que&s;tion that were wrong, to be &s;et right. But in my Lords Court at <HI>Lambeth,</HI> there was nothing but inju|&s;tice. Pur&s;evanting knaves would come and do|mineere <NOTE PLACE="marg">No ju&s;ti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> at al.</NOTE> and carry any one, who they would,
<PB REF="8"> before his Grace, and make them &s;pend their money, and their time; and in the end know not why, nor for what; they were brought in, and <NOTE PLACE="marg">And yet there was no remedy&punc;</NOTE> there was no helpe at all for it. But here the <HI>Parliament</HI> is a Court of ju&s;tice, doing no man wrong, but righting the wronged, and ea&s;ing the oppre&s;&s;ed. And I hope the <HI>Parliament</HI> will take it into con&s;ideration, that there may be no Bi|&s;hops, for the Church may be governed without <NOTE PLACE="marg">No Bi&s;hops. No Bi&s;hops.</NOTE> Bi&s;hops: or at lea&s;t, if there be, to curbe them of their power, that if they doe ordaine Bi&s;hops, that they may be preaching Bi&s;hops, and not <NOTE PLACE="marg">Bi&s;hops that will preach, it may be wilbe accepted of.</NOTE> Lording Bi&s;hops, not have &s;o much power and Authority as they had, and not &s;o many benefi|ces, when many good men are without: but I leave all to that grave and honourable A&s;&s;em|blies di&s;po&s;ing, be&s;eeching <HI>God</HI> to protect, and keep them, and continue them together.</P>
<P>But to conclude, here you &s;ee <HI>Gods</HI> goodne&s;&s;e <NOTE PLACE="marg">For Conclu&s;ion.</NOTE> to his people, in curbing the Prelats: and here let all take notice and ob&s;erve (all that are the ene|mies <NOTE PLACE="marg">It is in vaine to work mi&s;chief again&s;t the Church of <HI>God.</HI></NOTE> of the people of <HI>God)</HI> that it is in vaine to plot or contrive any mi&s;chief again&s;t the godly, &s;eeing that <HI>God</HI> turnes all to their own ruine, &s;ee|ing that <HI>God is their God, and they his people,</HI> yea they are <HI>his Iewels,</HI> and therfore he will have a care of <NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gods</HI> people are his delight: therfore he will have a care of them.</NOTE> them, that none doe hurt them: why then this is for great terror to the wicked, that <HI>though they &s;it up early and late, night and day to invent mi&s;chiefe and wickedne&s;&s;e again&s;t the people of God,</HI> yet it is in vain, for all is turned to their ruine: why then Brethe|ren in <HI>Chri&s;t,</HI> rejoyce all ye godly, <HI>&s;hout for joy, thy</HI> <NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Zach.</HI> 9. 9.</NOTE> <HI>King cometh unto thee.</HI> O here is matter of great
<PB REF="9"> joy, <HI>Chri&s;t</HI> is come to bring deliverance, all the enemies of the Church, and his Go&s;pell is falling, the <HI>Prelats</HI> downfall is ha&s;tening; and then the <NOTE PLACE="marg">It is begun al|ready.</NOTE> Go&s;pell of <HI>Je&s;us Chri&s;t</HI> will flouri&s;h more then ever before, and &s;hine more clearer: for &s;o long as the enemies of it raigned, it could never &s;hine forth in its cleare light: therfore let it be alwayes all our Prayers to <HI>God,</HI> that he would accompli&s;h the downfall of <HI>Babylon,</HI> to ruine that man of Sin. And <HI>Lord confound all the enemies of thy Church and people: let them be confounded and put to &s;hame that &s;eek after my &s;oule: let them be turned back, and brought to confu&s;ion that imagine mine hurt.</HI> P&s;al. 35. 4.</P>
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<CLOSER><SIGNED>Written by an ill willer to the Romi&s;h brood.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
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