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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	church_n	pope_n	rome_n	5,434	5	6.6788	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A90952	An answer to Grifith Williams Lord Bishop of Ossorie his book, intituled, The great antichrist revealed, never yet discovered, and proved to be neither pope, nor Turk, nor any single person, nor any one monarch or tyrant in any polity.	Pressick, George.; Williams, Gryffith, 1589?-1672. Great antichrist revealed, never yet discovered, and proved to be neither pope, nor Turk, nor any single person, nor any one monarch or tyrant in any polity.	1660 (1660)	Wing P3294A; ESTC R182040	110,354	119

make and institute Officers and Offices in the Church which Christ ordained not nor will not own but will say unto them Get ye behind me or depart ye cursed I know ye not by these Lordly Titles and Jurisdictions that you have exercised I ordained them not for will any man fearing God that is in his right wits think that Jesus Christ and his Apostles who had an immediate call from Christ to their office and were endowed with an infallible and unerring spirit that they did not know better then any Pope or Prelate councel or other what Officers and order was best for the Church but that men dare presume to reject and neglect Christs order and institutions and make orders and institutions of their own it is good to draw neer to God but it is dangerous to go from him and run out of his way that he hath prescribed for us to walk in it is said Rev. 2.1 That Christ holdeth the stars in his right hand by stars is meant the Pastors of the Church which while they walk in Gods way Christ holds them in his right hand to keep and direct them as it is said He shall keep thee in all thy wayes and he is a powerfull keeper and a faithful maintainer of all his faithful servants but those that walk out of Gods way have no promise of protection in such cursed crooked ways Thus having hitherto set down the manner of the great Antichrists appearance how he came to his Throne by the removing of the Heathen Emperours which was it that hindred until it was taken out of the way and also of the falling away of the Bishops before the councel and of the Bishops in the councel of Nice how both fell away from the institutions and example of Christ and his Apostles and the first primitive purity both as to the election of Bishops and other Church Officers and as to the election of membert to sit in councels all which rules is laid down in the Scripture for us to walk by which the Bishops and councel not only fell from but they made new institutions and canons of their own without and contrary to the Scripture which was both as Midwife and Nurse to bring forth and Nurse up Antichrist to his full strength c. And now I come to speak of the thing that Antichrist should do after he is come and the Apostle saith 2 Thes 2.4 That he should oppose and exalt himself above all that is called God How Antichrist exalteth himself above all Gods or that is Worshipped so that he as God sitteth in the Temple of God shewing himself that he is God Bellarmine to excuse the Pope that he should not be Antichrist saith from this Text That Antichrist shall not suffer any God either true or false nor any Idol to be worshipped but only himself but this cannot be here meant by this Text for the Text saith He shall sit in the Temple of God the Scriptures notes out Antichrist to be a false Prophet now a Prophet whether true or false must be a Prophet to some God and when he sits in the Temple of God let Bellarmine tell us whether this must be in the Temple of another God or in his own Temple if in anothers Temple then he must own a God above him if in his own Temple then the Apostle spake improperly for he should not have said He sits in the Temple of God as God but rather He sits in his own Temple as God and how should Antichrist be known by this sign when it is not known what manner of Temple he should have but we will take the words as they are in the Text and leave Bellarmines deceitful Glosse St. Hierom interpreteth Antichrists sacrilegious pride to be a kind of immoderate power over all Religion for thus he saith Autichrist shall war against the Saints and overcome them and shall be puffed up with so great pride as he shall attempt to change Gods Laws and Ceremonies subjecting all Religion to his own will In which he points out the Pope of Rome to the life to be the great Antichrist for that humane Authority the Councel of Nice gave him he hath improved that in the present Church of Rome and so far as the Popes power extends the Laws of God are almost abolished and new instituted Orders Officers and Discipline is established and almost all things is become new as is shewed in the former part of this book yea 150 new Religious orders and not one of them of Christs institution and many more things the like so that by the Testimony of St. Heirome the Pope of Rome must be the great Antichrist and man of sin and son of perdition that exalts and opposeth all that is called God that is Psal 82.6 all earthly Magistrates I said ye are gods but ye shall die like men c. and it is manifest that the Pope of Rome doth claim and excreise authority over all Emperours Kings and Princes who are earthly gods and over all authority Civil and Ecclesiastical and he hath promo●ed and established false worship and siteth in the Temple of God shewing himself that he is God that is he sits both in his own person and by his power and authority in the Christian Congregations shewing himself that he is god that is an earthly god and the greatest of all earthly gods by his commanding power over other earthly gods and that Christian Assemblies where the Pope exerciseth his power is called the Temple of God see the Ephes 2.22 In whom you also are builded together for a habitation of God through the Spirit and 1 Cor. 3.16 17. Know ye not that ye are the Temple of God and if any man defile the Temple of God him shall God destroy Look to thy self Pope and all Popelings for●ve have defi●ed the Temple and Church of God and him shall God destroy for the Temple of God is Holy which Temple are ye that is all true believers and 1 Cor. 6.19 What know ye not that your body is the Temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you which ye have of God and ye are not your own for ye are bought with a price Let the Pope and his Prelate then take heed how they defile these Temples that God hath bought with so dear a price that they defile them not with their humane institutions and ceremonies c. So that as it is said of the Pope of Rome in his extravigance that he is neither god nor man but a middle person between both so he sits in the Temple of God as god over all Emperours Kings and Princes c. He sits in the Christian Assemblies and Congregations which is the Temple and House of Gods there he sits claiming and exercising a power over them all as a God thus you see how lively the Holy Ghost in this Text hath Pictured out the Pope of Rome to be the great Antichrist and man of sin sitting

and to furnish him with such authority as the falling away of the Bishops and the councel of Nice hath furnished him withal for the Arian falling away was palpable and known to the world therefore men were more shie of it neither would it serve Antichrists turne to shelter himself under it for Antichrist was to be one that should pretend to truth but by deceit now this falling away of the Bishops and the councel fitted them to the life for they as he pretended to the truth and as grosse as their actings and falling away was comparing it with the Gospel institutions as above from which they fell yet few hath discerned it if they have they have been so over-powred that they durst not mutter against it and the acts of that councel hath been cryed up as lawful acts of a lawful councel whereas you see by these four Scriptures above mentioned neither was the councel lawful nor their act lawful and so undiscernably it was the bringer forth of Antichrist that man of sin and son of perdition which hath been 1300 years in the world and yet was so covertly brought forth that men will not yet believe he is come The next Text I shall treat of for the discovery of the great Antichrist is Rev. 9. For I shall but give a hint at some of the chief ver 1. And the fifth Angel blew the Trumpet and I saw a Star fall from Heaven unto the Earth and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit and he opened the pit and there arose a smoke out of the pit as the smoke of a great furnice and the Sun and the Air was darkned by the smoke of the pit and out of the smoke came forth Locusts upon the Earth and to them was given power as the Scorpions of the Earth have power and in the 11 ver it is said That they have a King over them which is the Angel of the bottomlesse pit whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in the Greek Apollyon which Expositors say doe both signifie destroying By a Star falling from Heaven to Earth is meant some eminent person in the Church falling from heavenly things to earthly things which some think is meant of some Master of an Heresie but Joachimus Abbas thinks it to be some Clergy-man and both is true and may easily be found in one man namely the Pope of Rome the great Antichrist for he is both a Clergy-man and a Master of Heresie yea and of more Heresies then ever one man was Master of For as I have proved in the first part the present Religion of the Church of Rome is composed of above forty several Heresies and this Star falling from Heaven to earth cannot so fitly be compared to any man upon the earth as to the Pope for this Trumpet is thought to blow about the year 607. at which time Pope Boneface the Third obtained of Phocas the Traytor and Murthering Emperour who murthered his master granted the Pope to be called universal Bishop to get the Popes favour to help to uphold him in his usurped Throne of Murther and he again as a requiral confers upon the Pope this usurped and Heretical Title of universal Bishop over all other Churches other preceding Popes had been striving long to obtain that dignity of universal Bishop but could not obtain it till now also John Bishop of Constantinople sought for it upon which account Gregory the great did write in his Fourth book Epistle the 34. By this pride saith he what thing else is signified but that Antichrist is at hand and again in the same book saith he The King of pride meaning An●●christ is near coming to us and which is not lawful to be spoken there is an Army of Priests ready to fight his battels that is these Locust here spoken of that when the Pope the fallen Star opened the bottomlesse pit the Locusts came out of the smoke of the pit which is these Priests Gregory saith should fight Antichrists battels for when the Po●e received this Title of Universal Bishop he also received the Key of the bottomless pit to let out these Locusts for now his authority and jurisdiction was inlarged I hope Gregory being a Pope himself and in a manner prophesied of this but about three or 4 years before it came to passe methinks Bishop Williams and others might give some credit to it seeing it did come to passe so soon after and should not thus fight against the truth as he doth c. The Key was given to the Pope after this manner the Emperour by his Edict decreed that the Pope of Rome should have full power to call and dismiss Synods to confirm or abolish whatsoever was decreed in the Synods at his pleasure and that the City of Rome should be the head-s●ring from whence all Ecclesiastical government and orders should issue and how forth whereas before that Constantinople was so accounted because there the Emperour had his feat unto whom those prerogatives did formerly belong as Pompon letus saith in the history of Phocas Antichrist hath the Keys of Hell not of Heaven and what was there then that this Key could not open after he had received this power there was other Popes that fell before this as lesser Stars we may count them because their fall was not so great Antichrist was but then in his groth but now he was grown up to his full Stature This Pope was the great Star to whom the Key of the bottomlesse pit was given for now he was furnished with compleat Authority every way to do all the works that belonged to Antichrist to do he brags indeed that he hath the Keys of the Kingdome of Heaven but you see the Holy Ghost tells us that he hath the Keyes of the bottomlesse pit of Hell and calls him the King of the Locusts which come out from thence and so he is for all the rabble of the popish Clergy are at his command for when the order of Jesuits which doth exceed the rest for Learning c. were confirmed it was ordained that they should be at the Popes command to undertake any service that he should require of them in any Kingdome and that readily and willingly without puting him to any charge or asking a question or reason of the thing commanded this shews his Kingly power over these Locusts for as Solomon saith Who may say unto the King what doest thou thus you see how lively the Holy Ghost hath set forth the Pope by what his practise now is to be the King of the bottomless pit see for proof of this Christianus Franken Colloq Surius and Hospinian This King of pride Antichrist the Pope he opens the bottomlesse pit and there arose the smoke of the pit Mr. Brightman saith by this smoke is meant the over-spreading of Heresie both in Doctrine and Superstition in Worship and we may well take the words in that sense for as a great smoke doth darken the

but upon this account the Holy-Ghost did foresee the Pope would cast off the Ordinances and institutions of Jesus Christ and would devise and institute new Ordinances Offices and Officers in the Church as I have named before a hundred and fifty new religious orders and not one of them of divine institution which are as so many names of blasphemy whereby Christs Institutions his Laws his Truths his Ordinances are rejected and blasphemed by their Idolatry and Superstition besides the blasphemies named before of the Embassador of Cicily who cryed to the Pope thou that takest away the sins of the world have mercy upon us and grant us thy peace and the Bishop of Modrusium in the Councel of Lateran calling the Pope the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah The Popes blasphemous names and their Saviour and the Bishop of Bepontum who called this Beast the light of the World all which blasphemous titles the Pope applyed to himself and many more the like so that he is full of these and such like names of blasphemy and as for his scarlet colour by it may be meant his abominable wickedness in sheding the bloud of the two Witnesses and other of the saints and servants of God of which monstrous murthers both the Whore and the Beast are guilty and also his Cardinals and Prelats they are said to be drunk with the bloud of the Saints Martyrs of Jesus Christ as if they had died their Robes in the bloud of Martyrs for they have all their scarlet Robes as badges of the scarlet coloured Beast that they may be known to whom they do belong each one resembling the children of Kings Judg. 8.18 nay Cardinals peark up above Kings Lord Metropolitans above Earls and Lord Diocesans above Barons and every one in their order above those that are in civil honour Bellermin in his third Book of the Pope Chap. 13. doth confess that by the Whore in this place is meant Rome but he would have it understood of heathenish Rome the first 300 years from Christ and not of Rome as Christians but that cannot be for then Antichrist came while heathenish Rome stood and in so saying they contradict themselves for they say that Antichrist shall not come till three years and an half before the last Judgment but this is most false For first how should Antichrist do all that is to be done by him in three years and a half Secondly Rome is not the Whore at any time but when the Beast hath his residence there for she is to sit on him and Antichrist could not be there while Rome was heathenish for then Antichrist had been come and gone long before but this is the Beast and Antichrist that now fits Pope in Rome I think it is sufficiently proved that this Beast is the Pope the great Antichrist whose seat and throne is the seven hilled City of Rome which is so clearly described and set out by several marks and characters in the Scriptures that he neither hath been nor never will be found in the world if not in Rome for these things cannot properly be applyed so universally to any c●ner place in the world as to Rome nor to any other person so as to the Pope who by the true applications of all these prophecies is the great Antichrist and man of sin and Rome is not the Whore of Babylon at any other time before until Antichrist the Pope had his residence there It is he that teacheth the Doctrine of Divels forbidding marriage and commanding to abstain from meats usurping authority over the consciences of men which is the greatest tyranny in the world laying impurity upon those things he sorbiddeth as marriage and meats which God allows of both and annexing an operative holiness and power both satisfactory and meritorious to the observation of the things he enjoineth though it be contrary to what the Law of God alloweth and this very thing if there were nothing else proves the Pope to be the great Antichrist for herein he is honoured and obeyed before Christ and above Christ The Popes trial proving him to be Antichrist for Christ's precepts and his word is rejected and the Popes words and orders his canons and institutions is observed and obeyed let the Bishop of Osserie and the Pope and all his Conclave deny it if they can that this very one thing makes him to be the great Antichrist and this thing cannot properly be applyed to any one else in the world besides him It is this Antichrist that took his beginning from the falling away of the Bishops by their pride and contention before the Councel of Nice and the fall of the Bishops in the Councel of Nice falling from the primitive institutions to human institutions this is he that came to his Throne upon the removal of the Heathen persecuting Emperors which hindred his revealing as 2 Thess 2.7 8. this is the great Antichrist who had his first birth and bringing forth about the year 328 in the Councel of Nice this is he that exalteth himself above all that is called God c. this is the Antichrist that intrudes his unwritten traditions upon the Churches of Christ with more vehemency than Canonical Scripture this is he that falcified the decrees of the Nicen Councel to establish his own principality over all other Churches this is the Antichrist that assumes to himself a divine power and is honoured with divine honour which he received from the Embassador of Cisily the Bishops of Modrusium and Bepontum c. this is he that hath a hundred and fifty religious orders in his Church and not one of them of Divine institution which also shews that he is before and above Christ for number of Officers and Offices in the Church and therefore he is the great Antichrist Let Papists if they can find these marks in any other besides the Pope this is he whose Religion is composed of above forty several Heresies this Popish Antichrist is the Star that fell from Heaven to Earth Revel 9.1 unto whom was given the Keys of the Bottomless-pit c. This is he that challengeth an universal power as head over all Churches as Christs Vicar this is he out of whose mouth came three unclean spirits like frogs which are the spirits of Devils working miracles he it is who is the Patron of all the legends of Lies and fained Miracles this Pope and Antichrist it is to whom the Dragon gave his Power his Throne and great Authority this is he who is the King of the bottomless Pit who hath the Locusts and Frogs at his command as his subjects this is he that made war with the Saints and killed the Witnesses of Jesus Christ and took away the life and authority of the Scriptures in the Councel of Trent This is he that for money hath tolerated forty five thousand Whores at once for himself and his Clergy at Rome and allows of Sodomy c. This is he who hath

how much more shall the blood of Jesus Christ who through the eternal spirit offered himself without spot to God cleanse your consciences from dead works to serve the living God 3ly He is a Prophet to teach instruct his Church every man would be content to have him for their Jesus to save them from their sins but few are willing to have him for their Christ that is to be their King Priest and Prophet to rule and govern c. And first the Pope denies Christ his Kingly office in his Church to rule and govern it by his own instituted Ordinances and Officers c. for the Pope hath in his Church one hundred and fifty several Orders of Church-Officers and religious Orders which not one of them is of Christ nor his Apostles institution which in the former part is nominated by their names Secondly the Pope denies Christ his Kingly office in challenging an universal Power and Authority over all Churches which Power and Authority belongs only unto Christ The Pope denying Christ his Kingly office and not to any man upon earth Thirdly in making his Laws and Decrees equal or rather above the Decrees and institutions of Christ for the Popes Laws are observed as forbiding marriage and commanding to abstain from meats and many other the like and Christs Laws are rejected that doth allow of these things which the Pope prohibits and forbideth many things as invocation of Saints worshiping of Images Adultery and Fornication and many the like which the Pope alloweth thus Gods Law is neglected and the Popes observed Fourthly the Pope denies Christs Kingly office in his instituted Ordinances by establishing his own humane inventions of Masses Crosses Crucifixes Prayer upon beads and in an unknown tongue Pilgrimages Conjuration or exorcism and the like and seting up a religion composed of above forty heresies as is named and shewed before And fifthly in denying and bloting out the second Commandment that forbids the worship of false Gods or of the true God in a false way and giving the worship and honour that is due to God to the Virgin Mary to Saints and Images all which is a denying of Christ his Kingly rule and Government and which makes the Pope of Rome to be the great Antichrist here spoken of in this Text as well as in others before named Secondly The Pope of Rome denies Christ the exercise of his Priestly office for first whereas it is said Heb. 9.25 26. that Christ is entred into Heaven to appear in the presence of God for us not that he should offer himself often for then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world and Chap. 10.14 for with one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified but this the Pope denies in his practice The Pope denies Christ in his Priestly office that Christs once offering himself is satisfactory to take away sin and therefore he is offered again by the Papists every day and sometimes in many thousand places in one day in their Idolatrous Masses from which practice of theirs I shall propound one question viz. where or what Text of Scripture can they or any man bring to prove that either the Pope or any of his shaveling Priests Jesuites or Friers are commanded to offer Jesus Christ an unbloudy propitiatory Sacrifice for the quick and the dead or in what part of Scripture are the massing Priests called Sacrificers in the New Testament and authorized to sacrifice Jesus Christ or did ever the Apostles offer Jesus Christ a Sacrifice for the quick and dead if these things cannot be proved by Scripture to be of Christs institutions then it cannot be denyed but the Pope doth deny Christ both of his Kingly and Priestly offices and so he is the great Antichrist and man of sin that was prophecyed of to come into the world Secondly the Pope and all Papists deny Christ his Priestly office in offering up their prayers to God in any other name or by any other intercessor or mediator but Jesus Christ only John 16.23 verily verily I say unto you whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name he will give it you and 1 John 5.14 this is the assurance that we have in him that if we ask any thing according to his will he heareth us but we have no assurance in any text of Scripture to be heard in the name of the Virgin Mary nor any other Saint nor no Scripture to prove that to ask in their name or to make them mediators or she Mediatrix as they call the Virgin no Scripture proves it to be according to his will and therefore have no promise to be heard with acceptance for there is no other Mediator between God and man but the man Christ Jesus 1 Tim. 2.5 so that by these Scriptures it is clear that the Pope doth reject and deny Jesus Christ in his Priestly office and not only so but the Pope is guilty of the sins of many hundred thousands more whom he doth make to deny Christ in his Kingly and Priestly offices and leads them without repentance to destruction with himself Thirdly the Pope of Rome denies Jesus to be Christ in denying Christ the exercise of his Prophetical office to teach and instruct his Church for whereas all the Service and worship that is given and done to God ought in every thing to be performed both as to the matter and the manner of performance according to the word of God and the example of Christ and his Apostles and their institutions both for Ordinances Officers and Offices the Pope of Rome and Church of Rome doth not so far as I know perform any one part of Gods worship and service in any one Ordinance Pope de●● Christ 〈◊〉 Propheti●● office nor with any one Church Officer rightly elected to his Office according to Jesus Christ and his Apostles examples and institutions in their preaching they come the nearest but both their Sermons are stuffed with many foolish fictions and fables so that a man may justly say they do not preach but prate for no man preacheth but he that preacheth Christ and their Preachers even those that are esteemed the best and greatest Schollars are not of divine institution no more than Anabaptists and lay Preachers their Eucharist their Baptism their Prayers their Masses name what you will there is so much of human invention mixed with it that bring it to the touch-stone of the word of God and divine institution and it will upon tryal prove so full of drosse that it will not hold out weight in the B●●lance of the Sanctuary therefore the Pope of Rome is Antichrist Did ever Christ or his Apostles institute any one of 150 neligious Orders they have in their Church or did they eestablish a Religion and force men with fire and sword to the observation of it and that composed of above forty Heresies did they ever in Baptism use Crism Spittle Oyl Salt or

a Papist if they be Papists that live in Cloisters and Mo●●steris secluded as he saith from the world who did preach the true Faith and right Service of God and published our ●●●istian Religion in which word our Christian Religion includes himself for one of that Religion preached by the Cloisterers c. for the space of one thousand two hundred and fixty years free from any bloudy persecution for the profession of their faith which no Church in Europe was but the popish Church therefore seeing it is thus that we have now found him out what he is we need no longer wonder why he misapplyeth Scripture and forsaketh the opinion of all other Writers to find out a new Antichrist and to stickle so hard to excuse and defend the Pope And that it may clearly appear that he takes the Papist Church of Cloisterers c. to be the true Church and their Doctrine to be the Orthodox Doctrine and their Faith and Service of God to be the true Faith and right Service of God as in his 27. page so in the 7. page speaking of one of the Witnesses which he saith is these Orthodox Bishops and of the Witnesses prophecying in sackcloath 1260 years by his own interpretation he saith their prophecying in sackcloath doth signifie their conforming themselves unto the Doctrine that they preached not their mourning for the polution of the true Church which saith he during that time of 1260 years of their Prophecy was not poluted as Mr. Mead and others do suppose a strange interpretation differing from all men that ever I read or heard of that the true Church of Christ should be without any bloudy persecution and without any polution The Church saith the Bishop without trouble 1260 years for the space of 1260 years and yet the Witnesses of Christ to be all that time clothed in Sackcloath which is a mourning weed and did alwaies signifie that those that wore it were in a sad and low condition a deformed and mournful estate stripped of all their glory as those are that go in black mourn at Funerals whereas if the Bishop's interpretation of the glory and beauty of the Church had been true that it had been without trouble and without polution the Witnesses should rather have put on their glorious and beautiful garments and have rejoiced in the prosperity and glory and purity of the Church which he saith was without polution but the word of God tels us another story of the cause of the Witnesses wearing Sackcloath Revel 17.7 8 that the Beast that cometh out of the bottomless pit should make war against them and overcome them and kill them and their corps should lie in the street without burial c. and was this a time in which the Church was not poluted 〈◊〉 the Witnesses and faithful Worshippers persecuted wh● they must be slain and their bodies lie without burial I leave it to the godly-wise to judge how the Bishops interpretation can be true that is so contrary to the Scriptures And whereas he saith the true Church of God had rest and was freed from any bloudy persecution for the profession of the true Faith and right Service of God for 1260 years beginning the year 382 the quite contrary will appear to be most true for as ancient Histories do relate the Apostolical Protestant Religion Of the first planting the Gospel in England was settled in England in the later end of the reign of Tyberius the Emperor under whom Christ suffered Gildas saith that Joseph of Aramathea was sent by Phillip the Apostle into Brittain who here laid the foundatiou of Christian Religion Origin in his fourth homily on Ezechiel saith that the true Faith of Christ was in Brittain before Elutherius was Bishop of Rome which was about the year 180 after Christ Nicephorus in his second Book Chap. 40. saith that Simon Zelotes did also preach the Gospel in Britain by all which it doth appear that England received the Christian Faith long before Austin was sent hither by Gregory the great for he indeed sent him hither to settle Popery 600 years after Christ but not to settle the Gospel of Christ for that was settled before as doth appear in the beginning of this Book At a treaty between the Nobility of England and Hingist King of the Saxons about the year 460. where neither party was to have any weapons Hingist secretly ordered the matter his men had every one a long knife in his hose that upon the watchword given every man should kill him he talked with so that there was murthered that day upon the place of English Nobility some stories say 460 by the Saxons the King was taken prisoner for whose ransom London York Lincolne Winchester with other strong holds being granted the Saxons made havok of the English Nation destroyed the Citizens pulled down Churches killed the Pastors of the Churches burned the Books of holy Scriptures and all this and more to be done by Heathens upon Christians it seems is no bloudy persecution in Do●●or William's account the Church had free liberty c. saith he This persecution continued in Brittain for in the 〈◊〉 568 Ministers were driven out so that the Arch-Bishop London and York were both forced to fly into Wales but fore this there was eleven thousand Christian Virgins murthered there was about this time above two thousand Monks at the Abby of Bangor in Wales who were driven out of Brittain who all lived by the sweat of their brows and labour of their hands these men differed nothing from other ordinary men but only in strictness of life and were such as now are called Puritans or Round-heads for Augustine saith ●imative ●onks were such as now are called Puritans c. there was such as were called Monks that were but lay-men only led a more severe and strict kind of life than others in his Book De moribus Ecclesioe Chap. 13. also Hierom ad Heliodorum one thing saith he appertains to Monks another thing to them of the Clergy and in the 4. Canon of the Councel of Calcedon it is provided that Monks should not meddle with matters of the Church Sozomen saith in his 3. Book Chap. 16. speaking of Monks of that time which lived in Cities and had several Mansions and differed nothing from other men but that they were of a stricter life which since by their enemies have been called by other names as names of infamy as some in our time are called Puritans which if saith he taken in the right sense if they deserve it tends to their comfort and prayers Athanasius a man to be credited of all in his epistle de Dracontium saith that he knew both Monks and Bishops married men and had Children and such were the Protestant Monks of Bangor this is shewed more fully in the beginning of this Book About the year 833 the Danes invaded England spoiled Churches murthered Ministers with men women and children after a

dumb Image The terrible voise of the Image of the Beast and caused it to speak out plainly for as Christ said of himself Matth. 28.18 All power is given unto me in Heaven and in Earth even so the Pope who calleth himself Christs Vicar assumes unto himself upon earth all power in heavenly and earthly things that both Emperors and Kings should stoop to him and hold their dignitie from him As Pope Adrian said in an Epistle to the Arch-bishop of Trevir From whence hath the Emperor his Empire but from us therefore he ruleth by us also behold the Empire is in our power to give it to whom we will for this cause are we set over Nations and Kingdoms by God to destroy and pluck up to build and to plant for by me Kings reign assuming that to himself which is due only to God And Pope Innocent Look what difference there is between the Sun and the Moon so great is the power of the Pope ruling over the day that is saith he over the Spiritualty above Emperors and Kings ruling over the night that is over the Laitie To me saith Pope Galasius Emperors and Kings be more inferior than Lead is to Gold I could multiply things of this nature but I do but hint at things and leave it to more able pens but these are most terrible voices of an Image for the Pope is as you have heard above both the first and the second Beast and therefore he is both the Beast and the Image of the Beast and whatsoever Adoration is given to either it is given to the Pope for he gathers all the water to his Mill and he being so powerful and so proud it is no marvel if he cause that so many as will not worship this Image that they should be killed And thus he makes the Image of the Beast to speak what he pleaseth and makes Emperors and Kings much more Peasants to swear fealty unto him And verse 16. And he maketh all both small and great rich and poor bond and free to receive a mark in their right hand or in their forehead and that no man might buy or fell save he that had the mark or the name of the Beast or the number of his name Antichrist is not contented to have the Image of the Beast made and worshiped that is in an external form of Ecclesiastical Government like unto the form and government that had been among the heathen Romans and Egyptians for Idolatry and superstition in which indeed the Pope doth exceed them for he hath more feigned Idols Saint gods of he gods and she gods and breaden gods than ever the Heathens had nor is he content to have all these gods worshiped and adored with the same Adoration that is due to the true God nor to put a spirit into this Image to make it speak by his Clergie with such terrour as you heard above all this will not satisfie this insatiable Beast but he will have them marked as his hired servants or rather as his Vassals or Slaves as men use to mark their beasts and sheep that they may be known to be his and to whom they do belong this mark is all those waies and means whereby men shew their obedience to this Beast and it is said verse 8. That all shall worship him whose names are not written in the book of life let the followers of the Beast consider it in time for the Text tels them that they have no part nor portion in Jesus Christ while they follow Antichrist If it be the good pleasure of God I desire that their Understandings may be enlightened to see the danger before it be too late we heard above that those that would not worship the Image of the Beast should be killed now this may be some other punishment to refuse the Beasts mark as fines or imprisonment or confiscation of goods or the like besides their not being suffered to buy and sell the mark of the Beast in the forehead or right hand is a submission to practice and proofess and yield obedience unto the Decrees Canons Laws and Religion that is commanded for the forehead doth signifie the profession and the right hand the action so that in one of them every man must acknowledge the Pope to be Lord of his Faith and shew it forth either in profession or practice or else he must not buy nor sell that is they must not enjoy those priviledges nor be capable of such preferments a others are that profess and subscribe their canonical obedience The mark or his name or the number of his name what the mark is I have declared above and as for the name the Pope would have his Vassals to bear his name as children bear the name of their Parents and what is that Three marks of Antichrist the beasts name it is from his own name Pope to be called Papists or from his usurped title of universal Bishop to be called Catholicks for the name universal signifies Catholick so as children bear their Fathers name so they bear the Popes name to be called Catholicks but this title both the Pope and his followers do falsly assume to themselves for the Catholick or Universal Church doth comprehend all believers from the beginning to the end of the world which the Romish Church cannot do for there was Churches that is included in that name almost 4000 years before there was any Church at Rome but besides these there is another mark or number of his name which Expositors say is Latinos that is Professors of the latine Religion or latine Kingdom and to acknowledge the primocy of the latine Pope now here are three sufficient witnesses to prove the Pope to be the Beast here spoken of that no man must buy nor sell that hath not the Beasts mark or his name or the number of his name and here are three names derived from the Popes name his title and his latine service which all are applyed to his followers and cannot so fitly be applyed to any one in the world besides and the Scripture tells us that in the mouths of two or three Witnesses every word shall be established therefore I see not how it can be evaded but it must be granted upon this evidence that the Pope is the Beast here spoken of and so consequently the great Antichrist and man of sin and that no man shall buy nor sell preach nor pray nor enjoy the priviledges that other men enjoy if either the Pope or his instruments can hinder them except they have the mark of the Beast or his name or the number of his name for it is ordained in a Decree that no man ought to speak to those with whom the Pope is at enmity Gratian said that soveraign obedience was due unto the Pope and that it was not lawful for any man to commune with him with whom the Pope was at enmity for some deeds of his neither can he be in the Church