this guilt nor yet be innocent from Perjurie seing that the King according to the Faith and Practise of the present professing Generation is a lawful King and nourishing Father to the Church and so by consequence is a Member of the Church and therefore Subject to the Laws thereof which I think the Assembly will not deny considering that his Mercies comes under their inspection as is to be seen by their praying for prosperity and a Blessing to his undertakings And why should not his sin and miserie llikewayes be marked and testified against or else we shall never reform our selves But some will object and say that the King has owned and countinanced Presbytrie in Scotland and declared Enmity against Prelacy Answer This he hath done by way of an Erastian Toleration and that from Self Interest as is to be seen Because they Tolerat his sin and becoâ—es obediâ—nt to his corrupt unlawful Commands by keeping of sinful Fast dayes and Thansgiving days and the like And that both contrair to Scripture and the principals of Presbytrie which the Prelatick party out of wilfulness will not do So that from this his Faithfulness doth not appear unless that his Zeal were universal against all the Prelatick party I say in other places as well as here For certainly it is to be followed with Zeal and hatred in the other Kingdoms as well as here it being evil in it self and according to that true Axiom quod Malum est per se non mutatur a Circumstantjis that 's to say That which is evil in it seâ—f cannot be changed from circumstances of place So I say unless that this Zeal be universal it can noways be sound and reall But it may be furder objected that there was good reforming Kings in Judah who did not take away the high places And why may nâ—t our King be owned as a Lawful Reforming King although Prelacy be not altogether abolished Answer The difference is very great As 1 The Reforming Kings of Judah were never Anointted or brought to the Throne by the Priests of the High places But your king was brought to the Throne of Britan principaly by the English Prelats the Lords spritwall as they were called 2 the priests of the high places were never in court or near to the Thâ—one with the Reforming king of Judah But the English Prelats are 3 the kings of Judah never bult the high places in the time of their Reformation but your king hes set up Prelats in England since his coming to the Throne I instance Mr Gilbert Burnet 4 we never read that the kings of Judab Sacrificed in the high places in the time of their Reformation But your king heares and communicats with the prelatick party in worship 5 the Reforming kings of Judah did never swear to defend the high places in the time of their Reformation by opposing and hindering these that would have destroyed them But your King has Defended the high places for the past and present time from these that would have destroyed them So that from this you see that your Kings practise doth nowayes quadrat with the practise of the Reforming Kings of Judah And that because in them it was a sin of deadness and infirmity But in him a willful deliberat contented sin as is to be seen by the laying aside the endeavour of the duty and much more the Perfection thereof in its sincerity Furder you say do we not think him our lawful King and is he not a blessed Instrument in Gods Hand to work so great Deliverance for you and us Answer This we have clearly denyed from the forementioned grounds and objections and we think any single eye that is not by assed and prejudged will assent to what we have said And if any be of that judgment which I am not viz That it might please the Lord for a time to continue Kingly Government in this Land and to raise up a King to rule in Righteousness for the good of his Church and People I say then it might be expected that he should be set upon the Throne with cleaner hands than Blood shedors Test-takers and Erasâ—â—an Indulged Proffessors who hath never yet acknowledged their sin Nor yet prepared themselves for Mercy And whatever you may think of this Revolution in calling it a Deliverance Yet far be it from us to think so as to let such Dreams or Delusions enter into our Heads or Hearts seing there is no promise from the word to believe so Now from what is said above I think it shall appear that the Oath of Allegiance cannot not be given to the present Person on the Throne nor yet to any Successor who shall walk in his steps For what is applicable to the one shall still be applicable to any other of the same practise Now I shall in the next place proceed to the Grievance given against you which is â—hat there is corruption in the Constitution as it is now established being under the bondage of an Erastian Yoak submitted to Which charge you deny as false And then interrogates if we know what Erastianism is It is likely you say few of us do Ans Some of us knows as much of Erastianism as can be said by some of the most famous Learned Divines in Europe And I think our Faithful Ancestors hath not leâ—t this contraversie in the dark as is to be seen by Learned Mr. Gilhespie in his Aarons Rod where he penteth out Erastianism so full as that the capacities of the Vulgar may understand Furder you say do we noâ— consider how sinful and highly uncharitable it is to Accuse Judge and Censure the Godly Ministers of this Church who formerly wrestled against Erastianism as so contradictorie to themselves and Treacherous to their Master as to betray his Interest and the Church Priviledges to an Erastian Yoak Ans This is no argument to prove that they are now Faithful because that they once were so Are not the best of Men subject to sin and fallings And can do nothing of our selves without the Lords Assistance and the help of his holy Spirit And hath not some of the Godlie Kings of Judah Built again that which formerly they Destroyed as Solomon Asa Joash and hath not many Professors in our days walked contrair to their Profession They who once were Remonstrators formerly against Erastianism were seen publiklie to appear in the Street of Edinburgh in the Parliament Closs to the derision oâ— many hundreds puting up an Address and Supplication to a Poâ—ish King for an Erastian Toleration and Lioertie as they called it Now this was the sin of a great many which sin hath been Benjamin like Espoussed by the whole Assembly First in their complying with the Benefite as they called it and then being passed over with silence connivance which should have been confessed Yea and in a well constitute Church should have been Censured and Punished with the Sword of Ecclesiastical Discipline But with you there is
they are Reformed And not join with us in so far as we are Reformed Resp Our joining is not to â—e understood a constituting of our selves with them But only an approving of their Doctrine in so far as it is agreeable to the Word oâ— God and the Constituâ—ions of the Reformed Church of Scotland Likewise we can approve of your Doctrine to be sound when considered in the abstract as it may be distinguished from you But Subjectiveâ—ie considered in you as to practise and application in this we differ as I shall afterward make it appear when I come to the impurity and unlawfulness of your worship Quest What is the difference betwixt these Chuâ—ches in Holland Geneva Garmany and the present Eâ—astian Church Res The Churches abroad are under an â—mâ—erfection in that they are not come to the hight of Reformation requiâ—ed of in the word of God such as the constitutions and Covenanted engagments of the Church of Scotland And therefore they are under the Lords wrath and fatherly anger being under an Eâ—astian Deadness and infirmity ever and while they Reform as in Rev 3 2. Sâ—rengthen the things which remain and are ready to die foâ— I have not found thy works perfect before God Now seing the Lord reqâ—ires perâ—ection in Reformation in it's sincere endeavour then ought we not to constitut our selves in assisting anie Church in war until they come to our Reformation either in practise or promise let us not be pleased where God is angrie But on the other hand the Lord dealâ—th as an angrie Judge towards a Church going on obstinatlie in defection And therefore they are diametrically opposite one to another as in Heb. 10 30. If any Man draw back my Soul shall have no pleasure in him So that when all this is considered then it will appear That the difference is very great betwixt an imperfection and a defection and that both in Practise and Doctrine Now we declare That we dare not join with you in your worship And that because it is contrair to our Faith and Conscience 1. First In respect of your mission by reason of the changing of your holding in taking your power and liberty as you call it 1 From the Bloody Magistrat Charles the Second in the Year 1679 by that sinful Act of Indemnity after Bothwel where ye left the Fields came eo the Houses And likewise did endeavour to observe the Limitations contained in that Act And also did acknowledge him to be your lawful King in Prayer before God altho' a Declared Tyrant and stated Enemy to the Work of Reformation For which Tyranny you ought at that time to have joined with the Suffering Party in casting him off rather than to have hearkened to that sinful Act The end of which was to break the Church This you did contrair to the advice of the wise Man Pro. 23 3 6 Eat not the Bread of him who hath an evil Eye neither be desirous of his dainties for they are deceitful meat 2 and now ye have taken your Constitution from the Corrupt Tolerating Magistrat who neither hath taken the Covenants Coronation Oath nor yet can take it as he is now Circumstantiated being cloathed with Prelacy And therefore your Assemblies and Ordinances are Bastard and Evil Begotten because they neither do nor yet can run in the Channal of a Covenant of Reformation So that in this the Foundation and Being of your Church is not consonant to the state of our Church in the dayes of our Ancestors And therefore from the consideration of this we dare not in Conscience acknowledge your power and mission 2. As to the effects I mean the power of Conversion which you ascribe unto your selves in converting in this we differ and that because it is condemned in Scripture ae in Jer. 23 22. But if they had stood in my Counsil and caused my People to hear my Words then should they have turned them from the Evil of their ways and from the Evil of their doings We acknowledge that you may begâ—t Children of your own kind to believe and practise with your selves in your Era stian Backsliding courses by puting on a naked external Profession of Presbytrie with natural and morall piety flowing from a natural Conscience making them fit stones for your Erastian Building But to make them fit Stones for the Lords Church by leting them see the Lands Sins and Deâ—ections and the Perjured actings of Covenant-breaking that you are guilty of both as to time past and now present this you will not do your selves And therefore will not suffer others like to these spoken of Mat. 23 13. Obj. But it is objected that this too hard a Sentence will we Condemn all How prove we that Conversion is not be ascribed to the present Church Ans Far be it from us to condemn anie but these whom the Holy Ghost condemneth and describeth for Wicked and Ungodlie Men See for proof of this Psal 1 and 2. And consider iâ— and then you will see who is the Christian Psal 1. 1. and who are Christs Church Psal 2 I say the Godly Man is said not to sit in the counfel of the Uâ—godly nor yet to stand in the way of Sinners which cannot be said of voâ— who has taken the Indulgence and Toleration under your late Kings and has given no Testimonie against them the which defect is a silent consenting and approving of the thing But on the other Hand in prayer besore God did acknowledge them to be your lawâ—ul Kâ—ngs which was a sitting in the Counsel of the Ungodly by approving that the Persons elected to the Throne were lawful and these who did elect them were the true and lawful Sons of the State in whom the power was which to affirm is false for both of them had devested themselves of that power that belonged to them as Men and Christians by stateing themselves Enemies to God and Godliness as was to be seen in their setting up of Prelacie and Supremacie and in sheding the Blood of the Godlie Now when all this is considered doth it not appear that you belong to the Categorie of ungodlie Men described here in this Psal But in the next place I say conversion is a leaving of Sin and turning to God Now to ascribe this to you were to affirm a contradiction that is That a Man may be Godlie and Ungodlie simul et semel that is to say Once and together in that he may serve two opposites viz. Christ and the Idol of Supremacy which to affirm is false For the Lord will not dwell under the Idols Roof as in Cor. 6 15. Moreover Psal 2 you see who are Christs Church I say they are these who owns Jesus Christ as King and Head of his Church and maintains his Laws Doctrine and Discipline whose opposite Wicked men are for they will not submit to Church Discipline nor incorporat themselves under Christs Banner as in vers 2. 2. But this indulged Church
no Testimonie given against the sin proportionable to the offence for at best your Testimonie hath been but like to that of Eli to his Sons 1 Sam. 2 24 25. Which Testimonie will never be approven of God for Faithfulness as in Chap. 3. 13. Because his Sons made themselves vile and he restrained them not So that now you see we charge you with Erastianism upon sufficient grounds although the Indulgence and present Toleration had never committed but when all is considered then how great is the ground of Accusation against your Erastian practise But furder you say what are the instances brought to prove so grievous an Accusation Ans For proof of your Erastian Constitution I shall first lay out to your your consideration the being of your Church as it is founded on the Oath of Allegiance to an unlawful King who walketh contrair to our Covenants Coronation Oath and Fundamental Laws And therefore doth distinguish from a Lawful King and Faithful Subject to the Crown and Kingdom of Christ who should be a nourishing Father to the Church and Terror to Evil doers But according to the forementioned Ground and Objections there is a contrair walking So that obedience and subjection to him is not Subordination to the Lord as to a Magistrat that exerciseth his power Circa Sacrat And therefore no Minister nor Subject can swear to him without being guilty of changing their head Christ Jesus And also of making a Sacrafice of the Rights and Liberties of the Church by Burieing our Covenanted Engagments and giving up the Fundamental Laws unto the Will and Lust of Man So that your present state and Liberty is not any thing else but a sinful Toleration purchassed by price of Conscience founded on a mutual Tolerating of one another which makes a joint Conspiracie against Christ and his cause by making I say a Sacrafice of the Doctrine and Discipline of the Church by your partiality and silence at the sins of the Throne 1 I say in Government the Intrinsical power of the Tolerating Magistrat doth appear in that the Will Awe and fear of the Magistrat Rings Rules and Principalie is followed in your Assembly by that Negative Voice of your King in that you dare not Act or do any thing though lawful and necessar until the Tolerating Magistrat think fit to Tolerat I mean in things external and easie which doth not strick against the sins of the Throne Yea how oft hath the Assembly meet together and goten little or nothing done and all for want of the will of the Magistrat to preceed and draw them But Secondly The intrinsical power of the present Magistrat appears in Doctrine in your Infidelity in Burieing the sins of the Throne As 1. In Tolerating Prelacy and Popery throughout the Kingdoms 2. The black Articles contained in the late War by joining with the Popish party contrair to the Writing of Mr. Gilhespie which was owned and approven by the Church in the dayes of our Ancestors 3. The wasting and Impoverishing of the Land in time of Peace by Cesses and Impositions spending these Exactions in pride and Lust bestowing a great part of them on corrupt Members of Parliament in order to make them â—ervicable Instruments for carrieing on those sinful actings 4. The change that 's in Doctrine Prayer and Practise by the command of the Magistrat as to the desisting and leaving of the Warr with the King of Fâ—ance in the Year 98 and 99. Now let it be yealded that the War was lawful on the matter Which cannot be denyed he being an oppressing Tyrant and stated Enemy to God and Godliness And therefore the necessar causes and circumstances of War being found in him which is Aggression on the Lives and Liberties of the Subjects which was compleated on them though â—ot perfected on us From which Aggression the absolute necessity and Indispensability of Militating did flow Now this being then the causes of War was good and valide on the matter the end being the Glory of God and saftie of the Subjects and Kingdom Then why should it not have been proceeded in a right manner by seeking the Lords power and Presence and by refusing sinful Association Either with Protestants who were not willing to come up to the height of our Reformation Or yet with Papists or Malignants who were Enemies to it Also in a good Action there should be perseverance therein Seing there is more diligence required in the end of an Action than in its beginning There being no change in the Enemy he being the same now if not worse than in the time of War For still he Persecuteth the Protestants therefore peace should not have been made with the Enemy although there might be sad loss according to the Example of Israel in the matter of Benjamin who after they had fallen twice enquired of the Lord the causes thereof by Weeping and Fasting and searching out their fin So ought you to have done But both matter and maner are abussed and layed aside by the Command Fear and Awe of the Magistrat So that he whose overthrow in prayer you sought and Tyrrannie you confessed must now be passed over with silence and connivance allthough he be the same now that he was then And all this is done by the command of the Tolerating Magistrat whose Servants ye are tossed with the wind of their powre like to these spoken of in Psal 1. 4 much of this obedience is to be seen in your fast days and thanks giving days which manifasts the Intrinscicall power that the Magistrat hath in makeing you obey contrair to the word But thirdly the Intrinscicall power of the Tolerating Magistrat appears in the neglect of Discipline in that you dare not do any thing in the Assembly in order to the censuring Confessing and setting of days of Humiliation a part for the sins of the Throne Such as manifest Perjurie in the Breach of the Coronation Oath the joining in War with the Popish party the sad Oppressions in the Land by Cesses and Impositions the Tolerating of Poperie and Prelacie throughout the Kingdoms Now in a well constitute Church all these Sins ought to be confessed and in case of obstinacy to be Censured and Punished with the Sword of Ecclesiastical Discipline to â—he height even to Excommunication Seing that the Assembly acknowledgeth that there should not be partialitie in Ministers and therefore without respect of Persons they are to reprove Kings as well as other Men they being Subjects to Christ and receaved into the Church by the Vows of Baptism But all this is laid aside through fear and awe of the Magistrat by your obedience to the Supremacy they ruling intrinsically in you as to matter of practise as is to be seen in your Assemblies how that your King has the Negative Voice which declares that the Supremacie is yet infit in this Land although not screwed up to that height in all its formalities that it was in the Year 61. 62.
and all others preceeding since the Year 1661 did publish a Declaration at Lanerk which is as follows The Act and Apologetick DECLARATION of the true PRESBYTERIANS of the Church of SCOTLAND January 12 1682. ALtho we ought to take in good part whatever God in his Infinte Wisdom hath for the Punishment of our sins carved out unto us and eye and acknowledge him alone in it and altho we alwise ought to acknowledge Government and Governours as ordained by him in so far as they rule and govern according to the Rules set down by him in his word and Constitutive Laws of the Nation and ought to cast the Mantle of Love on the lesser errors of Governours and give the best countenance to their Administration that the Naure of their Actions will bear Yet when all these Laws both of God and the Kingdom Conditional and Constitutive of the Government are cassed anuled by pretended Law the highest of Usurpation an inexplicable prerogative in matters Ecclesiastical and Arbitary Government in Matters Civil is arrogat when a Banner of impiety Prophanness and Atheism is avowedly displayed against the Heavens and a Door opened to Abominations of all sorts and sizes and the remedy thereof still denyed by him who should be as a Sun and Shield to the People when the Parliaments who ought to be the grand trusties of the Kingdom to whom it belongs in such a Case to secure the Civil and Spiritual interests are so prelimited by Law as no true Son of the state and Church hath liberty to sit and Vote there So that the Parliamenâ—s and all places of publick trust and offices of the Kingdom from the highest to the lowest are made up of none but these who are corrupted oyerawed overuled and bribbed what shall the People do in such an extremity Should they give up their reason as Men Their Consciences as Christians and resign their Liberties Fortunes Reason Religion and that all to the inexorable obstinacy incurable wilfulness and Malice of these who in spite of God and Man And notwithstanding of their many Oaths and Vows both to God and his People are resolved to make their own will the absolute and soveraign Rule of their Actions and their strained Indulgencie the measure of the subjects hope and hapiness Shal the end of Government be lost throw the Weakness Tyrrany and Wickedness of Governours And must the People by an implicit submission and deplorable stupidity destroy themselves And betray their Posterity and become objects of reproach to the present Generation and pity and contempt to the future Have not they in such an extremity good ground to make use of that natural and radical power they have to shake oâ—f that yoke which neither we nor our fathers were able to bear which accordingly the Lord honour'd us in a generall and unprelimited convention of the States and several shires of Scotland to do a convention of unperlimitted members Aconvention of men who had only the glory of God the good of the common wealth before their eyes The like whereof the present reigning Tyrant could never since his home comeing pretend to At which convention he was most legally and by general consent cast off by the Declaration afterward published at Sanqubair by speciall warrand from the said convention But that we may not seem to have done that or yet to do the like upon no grounds or yet upon few or small grounds we shall hint at some few of the many thousands of the misdemaners of the now cast off Tyrant in his overturning of our Church and state And First at his very entrie as if he had attained to Neros desire at one blow in his first Parilament he cut of the neck of that Noble constitution of Church and state which our noble and worthy Auccstors had made and not thinking it enough treacherously and falslie to perjure himself he made consitutions and Laws if it be not an abuse of language to call them so as none but fouls of his own feathers and such as would run with him to the same excess of riot should have access to the very meanest place or office in the Kingdom and tho' that in it self is enough yet not the Thousand part of what he hath done Secondly did he not take to himself a licentious sphear exceeding all measure divine and humane Tyrannicall obtruding his will for a law both in Matters civell and Eccelesiastick makeing us a lawghing stock to the Neighbouring nations who imagined that what he was doing however Tyrrannious in it self to be consonant to our Laws blaming the badness of our Laws instead of the badness of the Governours whereas there is nothing less cousonant to the Tenor and End of ours and all others Divine and Humane For we have reason to praise the Lord who so eminently assisted our Ancestors in framing our Laws So that we may upon good grounds say That there is no Nation in civilibus has beter and in Ecclesiasticis so good as we having by Gods great Providence attained unto a more excellent Reformation than any Nition The observing of which Laws was the very constitutive and absolute Condition whereupon he was admitted to the Royal Office and without which he was not to have the exercise of his power And to which he was most deeply and solemnly Sworn oftner than once with his hands lifted up to the most high God himself declaring the subjects â—y no longer to remain or continue than the Ends and Constitutions of these Governments were pursued and preserved by him All which are contrair to his engagments foresaid by his pretended and as soresaid constitute Parliaments cassed and annuled and these Laws no more made their rule but his own will by his Letters So that we are made the reproach of the Nations who say only that we have the Law Letters instead of the Letter of the Law Thirdly Hath it not been his constant method to Adjourn and Dissolve Parliaments at his pleasure when they tho his own Creatures were so sensible of his Misdemanors as that they began to question when questioned by them ye may easily conjecture what they were Fourthly Hath he not stated himself as Supream head over all persons in all causes Civil and Ecclesiastick and by vertue of that arrogantly arrogated power fabricated a Chimerick Government Peagantry in the Church with such Ludibrious eminence Pompious power and pride through the vanity of Mens deprived imaginations the grievous and misterious abyses from whence have eshewed all the calamities and woes all the languishing sorrows and confounding shames and reproach which in this day of blackness and darkness hath involved polluted and pestered the Church and Kingdom and thus have approven himself to be Defender of the Faith under which the Godly party true Sons of the Church and Nation have been groaning these twentie Years bygone and great numbers Murdered and slain in the Fields and led as Lambs to the Slaughter upon