our Souls and the forgiveness of our Sins which shews it to be an Effect of that Popish Doctrine of meriting Salvation by good Works and that he granted this as an Expiation for his Sins Here now Reader thou maist see what he was whom this Priest calls a Nursing-Father of the Church and what Church it was he nursed He was bred a Monk made a Deacon then a Bishop absolved from these Vows by the Pope went in great Devotion to Rome gave there an Hundred Marks a Year to buy Oyl to keep the Lights burning in St. Peter 's Church as they call it another Hundred for the same Vse to St. Paul 's and a third to the Pope and granted this famous Charter as the Priest calls it for Tythes to the Idolatrous Priests of the Church of Rome as an Expiation for his Sins and a means to merit Heaven according to the impious Doctrine of that Idolatrous Church and yet this is the Basis or Foundation that my Opponent a pretended Protestant and one that would be taken for a Minister of Christ hath laid whereon to build his Claim to Tythes as a Gospel Maintenance namely The famous Charter of King Ethelwolfe to which he ascribes â—oâ— great Virtue and Efficacy that he saith If Tythes were not due by a divine Appointment they are now due by a voluntary Dedication of them How suitable this Dedication of them is to be pleaded and insisted on by a Protestant Minister not to say a Minister of the Gospel in respect both of the Person dedicating the Persons to whom and the End for which the Dedication was made let every true Protestant judge To manifest yet further the Corruption of that time and Apostacy of that Church I will here add what the Clergy on their Part undertook in Consideration of the said Charter to perform accordâ—ng as I find it set down by Spelman in his Brittiâ—h Councils out of Malmsbury and Matâ— Westminster It pleasâ—d aâ—so saith Malmsbury Alhstan and Swithin the Bishops of the Churches of Shirburne and Winchester with their Abbots and the Servants of God to appoint that upon the Wednesday in every Week all our Brethren and Sisters at every Church should sing fifty Psalms and every Priest say two Masses one for King Ethelwolf and another for his Nobles that consented to this Gift for a Reward and fâ—r an Abatement of their Offences Pro mercede et refrigerio delictorum suorum are the Words Mat Westm. hath Saluâ—e instead of Mercede and that they should say for the King so long as he lived Oremus Dâ—us qui justificas for his Nobles also while they lived Presende Domine but after they were dead for the Deceased King by himself and for the deceased Nobles in common And be this as firmly appointed during all the Days of Christianity as that Liberty is appointed so long as Faith encreasith in the Nationâ— the English And these things saith Ingulf speaking of the Charter were done at Winchester in the Church of St. Peter in the Year of our Lord's Incarnation 855. the third Indiction on the Nones of November before the great Altar for the Honour of Mary the glorious Virgin and Mother of God and of St. Michael the Arch Angel and of the Prince of the Apostles St. Peter as also of our holy Father Pope Gregory Malmesbury adds And of all Saints And the Charter saith Ingulf King Ethelwolf offered upon the Altar of St. Peter the Apostle But then saith the Parishioner they were given in a blind and superstitious Zeal which makes all void to us This saith the Priest is another mistake for Tythes being given to God for the Maitenance of his Ministry no Blemish in the Dedication of them can alter their Property page 146. Answ. Here he begins to speak plain perhaps before he was aware He tells us That by this Dedication Tythes were given unto God for the Maintenance of his Ministry I have shewed before that they were given for the Maintenance of the Popish Clergy for there was not at that time any other publick Ministry for them to be given to Now then when he shall say they were given to maintain God's Ministry can any other Construction be made of his Words then that he calls that Idolatrous Priesthood of the Church of Rome God's Ministers Next though it appears they were given by Papists to Papists for Popish Service that is in plain Protestant English by Idolaters to Idolaters for Idolatrous Ends yet he will not allow that they were given in a blind superstitious Zeal no that 's a Mistake he saith here and again page 147. speaking of those Papists that gave Tythes in an ignorant Zeal he adds in a Parenthesis as some suppose but we do not grant So thâ—n it seems the Papists Zeal in providing this Maintenance for those that were to perform their Idolatrous Worship was not a blind and ignorant Idolatrous Zeal Is this fit Language for a Protestant-Preacher's Mouth What Zeal is that I pray that upholds Idolatry by maintaininâ— Idolaters Is not that a superstitious blind Zeal And can any hearty Pâ—presâ—arâ—â—â—ny that to be the End of those Donations But he saith That no Elemâ—sh in the Dedication of them can 〈◊〉 their Property Answ. I perceive then he is for having all he can get be it dedicated by whom it will or bâ—â—r it will he wants nothâ—ng but Power to revive all the old Donations of the Papists given in the midâ—ight darkâ—sâ— of Popery to redeem thâ—ir Souls â—ut of a supposed Purgatory nay so gâ—neral iâ— hiâ— Assertiâ—n No Blemish c. that noâ—hing once dâ—dicated by whomsoever would seem to come amiss to him not the Offerâ—ngs of the Gentiles to their Heathenish Deities not the Endowments of the Turks to their Mahumetan Priests nor yet the Thirty Pieces of Silver The Price of Innocent Blood had Iudas chanced to have dedicated it would upon this Position have been unwelcome to this man could he once but have got them into Possession To make good his Assertion he offers a parallel Case as he calls it in Scripture That sayes he which comes nearest is the Case of Two Hundred and Fifty Men who offered Incense yet there was a vast Difference between them the Two Hundred and Fifty offer'd in a Stubborn Rebellious Manner and these in an Ignorant Zeal as some suppose but we do not grant p. 147. Answ. Observe Reader that this Case of Corah Dathan and Abiram with the Two Hundred Fifty Men offering Incense is brought to parallel the Dedication of Tythes by which he sayes they are now due The two hundred and fifty offered he says in a stubborn rebellious Manner and he calls it a Damnable Sin yet makes that a parallel Case to this of offering Tythes and sayes it comes most near it Has he not found out a pretty Parallel Has he not matcht his Case well But that sayes he which will give us most Light into our present Case are
the Conscience Their Teaching is but like that of the Scribes not having divine Authority whereas the Preaching of the true Ministers was in Demonstration of the Spirit and of Power that the Faith of the Hearers might not stand in the Wisdom of Men but in the Power of God But there is yet another Cause why the People are not profited by their Ministry namely the Evil Lives of the Ministers which this Priest gives his Parishioner leave to express perhaps more plainly then â—e shall have Thanks for at least from some of his Brethren for sayes the Parishioner Now that you have put me upon it I shall give you the true Câ—â—se of mens Non-proficiency and indeed Separation which is occasioned by the Scandalous Lives of sâ—me Ministers whose Behaviour is such that thâ—y have caused both themselves and Doctrines to stiâ—k in the Nostrils of the People This indeed is something to the Purpose and to this the Priest thus replyes That there are Scandalous Ministers in the World is too sad a Truth and which indeed ought to be lamâ—nted in the mâ—st Brinish Tears Let none think the Priest has herein over shot himself either in the Objection or Answer For like a wary man he probably considered that it was in vain for him either to conceal or deny that which every Body knows His Art therefore and Interest it is by a free Confession a little to paliate and what in him lâ—es to extenuate the Crime and therein to be sure he will not be wanting For sayes he It ought to be considered that in a setled National Ministry such as ours is consisting of great Numbers in holy Orders it cannot be expected to be otherwise but that some men for a Corrupt Interest will intrude themselves into these sacred Offices which is not to be charged upon our Function since there was a Judas amongst the chosen Twelve Answ. Here then as to matter of Fact Habemus confitentem reum we need not seek for Evidence the Priest himself pleads guilty acknowledging the scandalous Lives of Ministers but when in his endeavouring to mitigate the Fault he from their Number argues the unavoidableness of it and saith it cannot be â—â—pected to be otherwise but that some men for a corrupt-interest will intrude c. He is so far from mending the Matter that to my Understanding he makes it much worse then it was before for by this he renders them arrant Hyppocrites Cheats Imposters if not something worse by the Similitude of Iudas whom our Saviour Christ called a Devil Iohn 6.70 71. Besides it is much he should say these scandalous Ministers intrude themselves seeing all men that know any thing of them know that according to the Constitution of their Government none can intrude themselves into their Ministry but they must be admitted and have Letters of Induction as I think they term them from the Bishop now then the Question naturally rises Why would the Bishop admit such Hypocrites into such sacred Offices as they call them and the Answer as naturally follows why he did not know them to be such But then alas may the People well say we are now in worse case then before for how shall either we or he be assured that they are not most of them such here they are all at a loss If the People would judge them by their Fruits by which Christ said they should be known the Priest foreseeing the Danger that would ensue tells them by Fruits is not meant outward â—onversation though from what immediately follows viz. not every one that saith Lord Lord shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven but he that doth the Will of my Father c. and again Many will say unto me in that day Lord Lord have we not prophesie in thy Name c â—nd then will I profess â—â—â—o them I never knew you depart from me ye that work Iâ—â—quâ—ty nothing can be more evident then that Life and outward Conversation are the Fruits intended there bâ— Christ. But sayes the Priest By Fruits are meant the ill â—onsequences of their Doctrines so that he would be sure to put the people upon that Way of Tryal by which they should be lâ—ast able to discern for if those wise and great learned men who admit these scandalous Prâ—achers cannot by the ill Consequences of their Doctrines discover those corrupt Inteâ—ests for which they intrude themselves how alas should the ignorant vulgar do it But how scandalous soever these Ministers are how corrupt soever the Interests for which they intrude the People it seems however mâ—st hear them must maintain them that 's the Drift of his Discourse and because the â—uakers think otherwise he reputes them worse then the very Papists the Reason's obvious the Papists â—nd he jump togethâ—r and as with one Voice endeavour to subject the People to the Clergy how corrupt how scandalous soever Alas poor People miserably enthralled to their own Servants whom good or bad they must keep how much harder is their Lot in this Case now then was that of the primitive Christians They were not permitted only but exhorted nay commanded to withdraw themselves from every Brother that walked disorderly 2 Thess 3.6 And to the Corinthians the Apostle is more particular I have written unto you saith he if any man that is called a Brother be a Fornicator or Covetous or an Idâ—later or a Railer or a Drunkard or an Extortioner not to keep Company with such an One no not to eat Had the Christians then so striâ—t a charge given them to separate from such disordâ—rly Walkers suâ—h corrupt and sâ—andalous Persons though they had but the Name of Brethren and to see their Converse their Company their Society as men not fit to be eaten with and must People now be tyed up fettered to such and constrained not only to seed with them but even to be fed by them Were such then thought not worthy to be converst with as Brethren and must they now be received and admired as Fathers as Teachers Unhappy change though I have great ground to suspect a man to be a Fornicator though I know him to be Covetous though I fear he is an Idolater though I hear him râ—â—l though I see him drunk ever and anon and feel â—â—s Extortion upon all Occasions must I notwithstanding acknowledge this man to be a Minister of Christ and have recourse to him for Teaching and Instruction in the divine Mysteries of the Heavenly Kingdom God forbid yet take notice how this Priest argues for it Page 15. The Scribes saith he and Pharisâ—â—s wâ—re got into Moses 's Chair our Saviour bids not the People pull them down but gives them an eternal mark the Epithet an eternal Document how to behave themselves when such Teachers fall to their Share viz. Whatsoever they bid them to observe that to observe and do c. Maâ— 23.3 Answ. Here first it may be worth our noting
as to make it impossible for him to sin for you know he did as tâ—â—lly sin such a Perfection he never lost nor did Christ gain such a State for us in this World Answ. 'T is strange a man should so often beat the Air and fight with his own Shadow here again he wrests the Case from a Possibility of not sinning to an Impossibility of sinning But if Câ—rist did gain such a State for us in this World as Adam lost in respect of Righteâ—â—sness and Innocency then to be sure Christ hath at least gained such a State for us in this World as renders it possible for a man to live without Sin for such a State Adam lâ—st Hear what the Priest at length grants We are indeed saith he by Christ and the Grace of God put into such a State as that we may please God considering what he now expects and accepts through Christ as well as Adam could considering what God required then page 43. Very good he required Faith and Obedience then of Adam he requireth Faith and Obedience now of us He gave Adam Power to believe and obey he gives Power now to believe obey for he is not an hard Master whatever some think of him he requires no more then he gives Power to perform and yet he requires to be served without Sin Nor is it at all repugnant to Reason that the strongest should prevail our Saviour plainly afâ—â—rms it in his Parable of the stâ—ong man keepiâ—g his House tiâ—l a stronger then he come and overcomes him Now is not Christ stronger then the Devil Hear what the â—postle saith Greater is he that is in you then he that is in the World Why then should it seem so impossible a thing to any that the Devil Sin which is of him should be overcome in this Life Christ was the Author of that Faith which overcomes the World but who was the Author of that Faith which holds it impossible to overcome Be of good Cheer saith Christ I who am your Captain your Example whom you are to follow and imitate I have overcome the World there by letting you see that the world may be overcome What then is the Reason that it is not Will any lay the Blame upon God God forbid but many will say man is weak and full of Frailty and compassed about with Infirmities Man indeed is very weak but God is pleased to â—isplay his Strength through man's Weakness Saâ—an indeed is vâ—ry strong but God is stronger then he and binds the strong man and dâ—spossâ—ssâ—s him with all his Goods The Buffetings of the Enemy are oftimes thick and hard yet still the Grace is sufficient Paul of himself could do noâ—hing yet was able to do all things through Christ who workeâ—h in his both to will and to do of his own Pleasure Thou hast wrought all our Works in us said the Evâ—ngellical Prophet Was there any Sin in those Works Why had Christ the Name Jesus given him but because he was to save his People from their Sin and was â—e to save them from some Sins only and not from all Iohn said of him He will throughly purge his Floor and must we now think he will purge it but in Part The Author to the Hebrews saith He is able to save them to the utteâ—mâ—st that come unto God by him All outward Diseaâ—es he cured perfectly and shall the Maâ—adies of the Soul be cured but by haâ—â—s The Apostle Paul tells the Romans That the old man is crâ—cifiâ—d with Christ that the â—â—aâ— of Sin might be destroyed and that he that is dâ—ad is free from Sin Nay How shall we saith he that are dead to Sin live any longer therein And again Being made free from Sin ye became the Servants of Righteousness What mean the Scriptures in so many places to hold forth a State of Freedom from Sin in this Life if no such thing is to be here expected They that are Christ's have crucifiâ—d the Flesh with the Affections and Lusts saith Paul He that hath suffered in the Flesh hath ceased from Sin saith Peter There is no Condâ—mnation to them that are in Christ Iesus saith Paul who walk not after the Flesh but after the Spirit If there be no Condemnation to them there is no sin committed by them for wheresoever there is Sin there is also Condemnation for Thâ— Lord will not justifâ— the Wiced If we walk in the Light as he is in the Light then have we Fellowship one with anothâ—r and the Blood of Iesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all Sin saith the Apostle Iohn So Paul to the Corinthians Having therefore these Promises let us cleanse our selves from all Filâ—â—iness of the Flesh and Spirit perfecting 〈◊〉 in the Fear of the Lord. And with what Zeal doth the same Apostle pray for the Thessalonians The very God of Peace sanctifie you wholely and I pray God your whole Spirit and Soul and Body may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Iesus Christ. With what fervor of Spirit did that Good Man pray for that which had he lived in this untoward Age he might happily have been blamed for expecting But consider Can it be indeed profitable for any man to live in sin or injurious to him to be freed from it Nay is not sin on the contrary the greatest Hurt and Injury that ever did or can befal Mankind Why then is this man so angry with us for believing it 〈◊〉 to be preserved from Sin and in that Faith desiring to be preserved from it and endeavouring to live without iâ— Does not himself â—ay pag. 34. It is good to set the Mark as high as may be so that we may be excited to endeavour nobly And will he notwithstanding blame us for not setting the Mark too low How unfairly are we dealt with Thus far in Dâ—fence of this truly Gospel Doctrine of beâ—ng perfectly deâ—iâ—ered and preserved from Sin Now to all you Priests and others who set your selves in Opposition thereunto this in short I have to say Repent Repent and cease to pervert the Right Way of the Lord lest in the Day when he maketh Inquisition for Blood ye be found guilty of destroying the Souls of many For verily as the Evil Spies discouraged the Heart of the Children of Israel that they should not go into the Land which the Lord had given them by telling them they were not able to overcome their Enemies but that the People of the Land were stronger then they Even so do ye discourage the People at this day from pressing after a pure and sinless State by telling them it is not possible to attain thereto in this Life Yet â—owing Pillows under their Armholes and daubing them up with untempered Morter ye perswade them it shall go well with them although they sin against the Lord. Thus ye strengthen
the Sacrifice of a Fool. If he had disliked it yet he might one would think have spoken less uncivilly of it had it been but for their sake whom he could not but know to have used it but at this time it seems his Ill will â—o us got the upper Hand of his Respect to them But consider Reader doth this Practice deserve so foul a Reflection as he hath bestowed upon it Solomon when he spake of the Sacrifice of a Fool said Be not rash with thy Mouth and let not thy Heart he hasty to utter any thing before God for God is in Heaven and thou upon Earth therefore let thy Words be few Judge now whether is more like the Fool in his Sacrifice he that waits upon the Lord to receive from him what he shall speak and speaketh only what he doth receive from him and that according as the Holy Spirit giveâ— him Vtterance and no further nor otherwise or he who is so rash with his Mâ—uth and whose Heart is so hasty to utter that he is scarce well settled in his Seat ere his Tongue begins to run whose Tongue is unbridled at his own Command and he can begin when he will and end when he will say as much as he will as little as he will and what he will so that all is in his own Power Yet from these Words of Solomon he saith we may take notice that the Spirit of God is so far from owning these Extemporary Exercises in his Worship that they are reproved by him page 114. Answ. If he insists on the Word those thereby meaning Rash Hasty and Foolish Exercises he had as good have said nothing that being nothing to the Purpose but if he intends that all extemporary Exercises are so far from being owned by the Spirit of God in his Worship that they are reproved by him I tell him he errs and runs unavoidably upon one of these Absurdities either that the Apostles did not speak by the immediate Inspiration of the holy Spirit extemporarily and without Premeditation or that if they did so speak yet God dâ—d not own it in his Worship but reproved it Either of which I think he will be more considerate then in cool Blood to assert He goes on thus page 115. 'T is not the Nimbleness of the Fancy Quickness of Invention Readiness of Elocution Fluency of Speech or a ready Tongue that God is delighted with with these we work upon the Imperfections of Men and these are natural Faculties with which the worst of Men have been endowed such as Achitophel and Tertullus whilest holy Moses was naturally defective in his Vtterance Answ. He said right indeed With these we work upon the Imperfectâ—ons of Men for these are the chiâ—f Tools he works with and Mens Imperfections the matter he works upon but he might if he pleased have put humane Learning in among his natural Faculties for God is no more delighted with that in this Worship then with the other and that is but a Natural Attainment which the worst of Men have acquired as well as the other even such as Achitophel and Tertullus all which notwithstanding renders neither the one nor the other evil or unserviceable in their proper Places but blames the Abuse and Mis-application of them But he saith We must not overthrow that plain Advice which St. Paul gives to Timothy Till I come give Attendance to Reading Exhortation and Doctrine Meditate on these things give thy self wholely unto them that thy profitting may appear unto all 1 Tim. 4.13 15. Answ. When he called this plain Advice methinks the very Word Plain might have put him in mind to have dealt plainly He gives us here the 13 th and 15 th verses but what made him leap over the 14 th was he afraid of it what 's the matter is there any thing in it that he thought would be too hard for him Let us hear what it saith Neglect not the Gift that is in thee which was given thee by Prophecy with the laying on of the Hands of the Presbytery ver 14. No wonder that he shunned this Verse for here 's the Gift of God mentioned which Timothy had in him and which was given him by Prophecy c. And he was as plainly advised to meditate on tâ—is and give himself as fully to this as to any of tâ—e rest not to say something more also in as mucâ— as his Profitting in the rest had no small Dependence on his dilligent Attendance to this We see now the Reason why this was stept over He saith page 116 He have great Reason to be truly thankful that the Scriptures are traenslated into the vulgar Languages but then we are beholden to the Learning of the Translators Answ. We are indeed very sensible of the Goodness and Love of the Lord to us in that he hath been pleased so to order it that we can read the holy Scriptures in our own mother Tongue and we are truly thankful unto him for it Nor would I detract a Tittle from the due Praise of the Translators or in the least undervalue or disesteem that Learning which they made use of in their Work which I always a knowledge to be good serviceable in its right place as an outward Means as writing also and Prinâ—ing have been to bring the Scriptures into that Language which I most readily understand and herein I acknâ—â—leâ—ge I receive a Benefit by Learning and am thus far beholden thereunto and so I am to Printing also and to Writing much more for without the first of these the Scriptures could not have been so common easie to come by but without the latter they could not have been at all but this is still but the outward Part and as it were the Bark Rind or Shell the Sap the Substance the Kernel lies within and is beyond the Reach of humane Learning that the divine Spirit is alone able to give but to set up humane Learning in the Room as it were of the Spirit and attribute that to humane Learning which properly belongs to the Spirit namely to disâ—lâ—se and reveal the Mind of God this is not true Honour but an Abuse to Learning But he saith If Learning were at first necessary for the translating of the Scriptures it is still as necessary for the Interpreting of them Answ. If by interpreting he means according to the common Acceptation of the Word an Opening and giving the Sense and Meaning of the Scriptures I deny his Consequence for though Learning was at first necessary to turn the Words out of one Language into another yet it is not necessary to give the Sense and open the meaning of the matter contained in the Words because it neither was designed thereto nor is capable thereof for as in Natural things what man saith the Apostle knoweth the things of a Man save the Spirit of Man which is in him even so the things of God knoweth no man but the Spirit
and shall eat your Flesh as Fire ye have heaped Treasure together for the last Days In which Places the last Days cannot reasonably be understood of the time of Ierusalem's Destruction But to shorten the Work I will grant him that the Last Dayes did then begin to which that Prophecy had relation let him prove that the Last Dayes are at an end or that the Spirit was to be poured out in some part only of the Last Dayes and not in all if he will have the pouring forth of the Spirit to be now ceased Our Saviour when he promised to send the Comforter told his Disciples He should abide with them forever And at that very time when he commanded his Disciples to wait at Ierusalem to receive the pouring forth of the Spirit he promised to be with them alwayes even unto the End of the World I have now done with his Discourse upon this Subjâ—ct namely of Humane Learnâ—ng and Divine Revelation I will add a Testimony or two of other men of sufficient Note and Credit to shew we stand not alone in this matter and leave the whole to the impartial Reader 's Judgment The first shall be of W. Tindall a faithful Martyr who thus writes It is impossible to understand in the Scriptures more then a Turk for whosoever hath not the Law of God written in his Heart to fulfill it Again Without the Spirit it is impossible to understand them And in his Answer to Morâ—'s Dialogue he sayes When thou art asked why thou believest thou shall be saved â—y Christ answer Thou feelest that it is true and when he asketh How thou knowest that it is true answer Because it is written in thy Heart if he ask Who wrote it answer The Spirit of God and â—f he ask How thou camest first by it tell him Thou wast inwardly taught by the Spirit of God and if he ask Whether thou believest it not because it is written in Boâ—ks or because the Priests so preach answer No not now but only because it is writtâ—n in thy Heart and because the Spirit of God so preacheth and so testifieth unto thy Soul c. Thus far Tindal To him I will add Iohn Iewel a zealous Defenceâ— of the Protestant Religion The Spirit of God sayes he is bound neither to Shaâ—pness of Wit nor to abundance of Learning Oft-times the UNLEARNED see that thing that the LEARNED cannot see Therefore saith Christ I thank thâ—e O Father Lord of Heaven and Earth because thou hast hid these things from the Wise and Prudent and hast revealed them unto Babes even so Faher for so it seemeth good in thy sight Mat. 11. Therefore adds he Epiphanius saith Only to the Children of the Holy Ghost all the Scriptures are plain and easie Again True it is sayes he Flesh and Blood is not able to understand the Holy Will of God without SPECIAL REVELATION therefore Christ gave Thanks unto his Father for that he had revealed his Secrets unto the Little Ones and likewise opened the Hearts of his Disciples that they might understand the Scriptures Without this SPECIAL HELP and prompting of God's Holy Spirit the Word of God is unto the Reader be he never so wise or well LEARNED as the Vision of a sealed Book But this Revelation is not special unto One or Two but GENERAL unto ALL them that be the Members of Christ and are indued with the Spirit of God Thus far Iewel These men we see although themselves very well learned yet aâ—cribe not their Knowledge of God and their understanding of the Scriptures unto their Humane Learning â—tudy or Natural Abilities but to the Inspiration and Revelation of the Divine Spirit Bâ—t let us further observe what some others also of that Age have said on the same Subject Iohn Bradford an eminent Martyr in his Answer to the â—rch Bishop of Yâ—rk says thus We do believe and know the â—criptures as Christ's Sheep not because the Church saith they are the Scriptures but because they be so being thereof assured by the same Spirit that spake them I. Philpot another Godly Leaâ—nâ—d Martyr having in the beginning of his Bâ—ole written this Sentence Spiritus est Vicarius Christs in terris i. e. The Spirit is Christ's Vicar or in Christ's stead on Earth gave this Answer to B. Bonner inquiring the Reason of his so writing Christ since his Ascension worketh all things in us by his Spirit and by his Spirit doth dwell in us c. I conclude with Bullenger Unless the Holy Spirit inspire our Minds and guide our Tongues we can never either speak or hear any thing concerning him with any Worth or Profit For as none knoweth the things of God but only the Spirit of God so men fetch the understanding of Divine Things and Knowledge of the Holy Ghost from NO WHERE ELSE then from the same Spirit By this Reader thou mayest see that it was not Humane Learning Natural Study or Vniversity Education that these Good Men trusted to of old for the right understanding of the Scriptures but the Spirit of God which dwelt in them from which they received the Understanding of Heavenly Things CHAP. IX Of Tythes I Am now come to the Priests Delilah the very Darling and Minion of the Clergy TYTHES which were wont to be claimed as of Divine Right but I do not find this Priest hardy enough to adventure his Cause upon that Title No though he pretends to be a Minister of the Gospel yet he takes the Law for the surer holding and therefore betakes himself chiefly to that Yet something he would say for the other too though not so much from himself as others Let me tell you sayes he that those that insist upon the Divine Right of Tythes as much as to say I do not derive them not from Levi but Melchizedeck It is then inquirable Whether or no Tythes were ever due to Melchizedeck That which should make them due must be a Command They were not due to the Levitical Priesthood until they were commanded to be paid but after they were commanded to be paid they beâ—â—me due and so long as that Command stood â—n force it was an Evil to detain them But we do not find throughoâ—t the Scriptures any Command from God that Tyâ—hâ—s should be paid unto Melchizedeck With what Reason then can any affirm â—hat Tythes were due unto him That he did once receive Tythe of Abraham I grant but that it was not a proper Debt or just Due belonging to him and which Abraham had done Evil in detaining I offer these Reasons to prove First That Moses sayes expresly He gave him Tythes He does not say He paid him Tythes but He gave him Tythes which the Apostle referring to useth also the same Phrase To whom also Abraham gave a Tenth Part and again Vnto whom even the Patriarch Abraham gave the Tenth c. To gave we know imports one thing to aâ— another