did any earthly Prince challenge that he could not erre nor that none must controll him if he did There have been Laws made to controll the greatest Princes Nebuchadnezzar was taught to be controlled that in the end Shadrach Mesech and Abednego goe away rewarded 3. The Catholick Church and the Pope is the head of it claimes a power of binding and loosing To bind mens consciences by his Laws and to loose mens consciences by his Indulgences and that not ministerially as Ministers do from the Word but by a Juditiary power to dissolve the bond of naturall Obedience incestuous Marriages Oaths and Covenants in Marriage Natural relations between Parents and Children and morall Relations between Princes and Subjects There is not any bond that he cannot loose nor any liberty which he cannot restraine And this not over a few only but over the vast world so far as it is Christian And 4. It is a great thing he speakes and he speakes it not behind the door when he challengeth Soveraign dominion in way of advancement of Religion over all Kingdoms so as to depose their Kings and dispose of their Kingdoms leave any State to choose where he hath power If his Crowne be to be fetched from Rome as it was in former times when it was most active He will set it on but dash it off againe out of the plentitude of his power to â—et up and throw downe at his pleasure He opened his mouth to speak great things He is never so in his element as when he doth hold forth such vast authority and divine propriety proper to the Father Son and holy Ghost Now as he speaks great things so blasphemes against God and wherein Against his Name and Tabernacle and them that dwell in heaven Against his name All these are blasphemies against Gods name to attribute all these divine properties to a beastly man to a great beast And it is blasphemy to ascribe any divine honour or to put it upon any creature Images served the holy Ghost calls blasphemy Isa 65. 7. You have blasphemed me upon every green hill And in Ezek. 20. 27 28. he complaines of the like blasphemy that they blasphemed him by their Idolatires In Mar. 2. 7. Why doth this man speak blasphemies who can forgive sins but God onely It were to speak blasphemy in any but in Christ Secondly It is against his Tabernacle that may be either meant the body of Christ as 1 John 14. He tabernacled amongst us Or it may be meant the visible Churches such as are instituted by him For the body of Christ it is blasphemy to go to every Masse Priest to make him the body and blood of our Saviour Or if you understand the Tabernacle to be the Church that is the Temple of God 1 Cor. 3. 16. Now to call the Church of Christ a Conventicle of Hereticks and Schismaticks it is blasphemy and so they count all the Churches here And for the Saints in heaven to put upon them divine worship to build Temples to them to put up Prayers to them to keep Holy-dayes to them it is blasphemie to them it is a great dishonour Paul and Barnabas when they saw men to come and offer sacrifice to them Men and brethren why doe you these things you cannot do us a greater injury And for the Saints in heaven that is pure Churches he condemns them for Hereticks and Schismaticks and as unworthy of Christian communion and Christian burial these are blasphemies So you see the meaning of this Scripture There was given him a mouth to speake great things and to blaspheme God in his Name in his Tabernacle in those that dwell in Heaven Thus hath he done many yeares and thus doth hee still Now for the reason of the point you see the point stands upon two branches 1. That such power was given him 2. That he did effectually and abundantly put it foâ—â—h He opened his mouth Let mee give the reasons of both 1. Why such power was given him it was First from God in his just judgement to punish the unthankfull world that received not the love of the truth Therefore the Lord gave them over to efficacy of delusions to believe lies That they all might be damned who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousnesse 2 Thes 2. 10 11. This is the just judgment of God that since they refused the simplicity of wholsome Doctrine and had itching eares they should have such men as came with the subduing word of the Law to speak great things and they should have what they aske This is from Gods just jugement A second Reason is from Satan for God concurred and Satan concurred and Christian Princes concurred herein Satan concurred for this reason that he might be avenged of God and despight the name of Christ that had cast him out and dethroned him from his divine power That whereas he was the great God of the world and the God of Israel but a puny God of the lesser Nations now hee is to be no God to trust on but like a Toad or Serpent this doth so enrage the venome of the old Devill that he powrs forth a flood of malice and venome against the Church and Christ as much as may be to testifie to the world hee would be Lord and the Lord Jesus should not prevaile And if he may not be God he will set up a Beast that shall be adored as God And it is a great despight to Christ to advance a Beast that shall carry great State and power and dare and will speak greater things then all the Churches of Christ I as great as the Lord himself shall speak look what one speaks the other wil speak it all and speak it abundantly As the Devill himselfe sometimes said to Christ All these will I give thee if thou wilt fall downe and worship me The same doth he speak at this day and he will speak without controll Another reason that binds Satan so to speak is not only his old enmity to Christ but from his malice against the Church When hee saw that the seed of the woman had thus dethroned him and cast him out of divine power he powrs forth a flood of malice after her and he sends forth an ugly Beast that if he can may root out the face of Christianity and root her out from the face of the earth Rev. 12. 15. These are the Devils reasons that mooved him to stirre up the Beast and to give him a mouth to speake so boldly as hee did But why will Christian Princes be so prodigall to submit themselves to him God had committed to them the care of the Churches that all Churches should live peaceably and quietly under them in all godliness and honesty why would they so degenerate and suffer the Bishop of Rome so to arrogate and speak such great blasphemies The reasons were 1. Because they were ignorantly blinde It was a time of palpable darknesse darknesse
sword into the head of their Guides Leaders where they lived and though they were by former Lawes engaged by way of Homage yet now they may take up the sword of their own defence and maintenance in witnesse bearing to the Truth to the last bloud In such cases the case is much altered for their Princes and supream Governours they are all subject to the Laws and Oath of the Kingdome and they have no power but according to the Lawes which are made If therefore they take up a power against Law and contest with the people of God then this power which these holy men did exercise to maintain their peace against all opposition to be raised against them is lawfull For a fourth use it may teach all the people of God not to measure a cause by the event nor persons by accidents that do befall them lest they should condemn the generation of the Just It was a grievous temptation Asaph lay under to see the ungodly prosper and have what their hearts could desire and himselfe plagued all the day long and chastned every morning Psal 73. 3. to 13. and by this meanes he condemned the generation of Gods children But no matter though the Beast prosper and the Saints are overcome yet the Beast is a Beast when he prospers and the Saints are Saints though they be overcome therefore let us not judge of things according to their appearance Fifthly It may teach all the Saints in this Countrey or where-ever not to trust the pretences of deceitfull men especially such as are not sound in Religion and take heed also how you trust upon your own strength let me put them both together for brevity sake We know not how soon any of us may be tempted in this kind what warres may be raised against this Countrey though wee have none for the present nor feare none yet in time we know not what may come what are we better then our Fathers The Beast of Rome still lives his 42. moneths is not yet out though his power he much weakned but his Agents still live He is able to blow a coale to those that look for salvation from him to do this great and glorious service to the Catholick Church and cause And if it please the Catholick Church then it grows a great businesse to root out Hereticks to blast them by censures of Excommunication and Civill State if it were so we stand upon our own defence you see It behooves you therefore as you desire to be faithfull to God to Religion to your Churches and Common-wealths to your Wives Children Estates as you desire to be faithfull to his Ordinances to the Kingly Priestly and Propheticall Office of Christ to attend to that which these Saints neglected that is to say to attend to the word of Faith and to the wisdome of God Trust not upon the experience of your Captaines or Souldiers to fight by Land or Sea Trust not upon your Castles or Vessels by Sea any thing you have or may have Trust not upon the pieces of Ordnance they are all vaine things to save if you stand in need and yet of use Be prepared in this kind that you may be instrumentall to Gods providence but trust not in them they are but the Arm of flesh And if Wars come against New-England it will be from Principalities and Powers and flesh and blood will not be able to with-stand them They will be Principalities from Hell or the great Beast the Catholick Church or from the Image of this Beast otherwise there is no feare of any War but if any War do come trust not in those means you have nor though all the Natives in the Countrey were on your side and if any great Protestant States should offer you help use them but do not trust in them It was the way of overcoming the Saints of God they trusted on the arm of Flesh and that was their great folly and that brought the hand of God against them therefore see your Faith be sincere and upright to him Secondly Leane not to the wisdome of carnall reason nor trust not to faire pretences you shall have your liberties longer established only something or other you must give way to and some principall ones must be singled out to treat of peace but it was the ruine of this State It behoves the Saints to sanctifie God in their hearts to trust upon his grace to cleave to the word of God trust what the Lord saith and not what deceitful men say It was a grave saying of an ancient Prince in England Obey according to the Law and you obey the King but if you obey what comes suddenly out of his mouth or against Law you obey not me as King And that is it which Christian Religion teacheth no Religion teaches a man more to obey Kings in wholsome Laws to obey them it to obey God in them for Princes are subordinate to God himselfe The people do concur in making some Laws in every Common-wealth and Princes have transcendant power over the People and God forbid any should spring out of this Countrey to plead against their Governours and weaken their forces but keep their Scepters fresh from one Generation to another yet this is the best service done to Kings service according to God If Laws be made let a man yield active obedience to them if they be good and passive if they be evill but against Law contrary to the stream of Law to make a man think himselfe bound in such a case it is to flatter Princes and Powers and not to yeeld professed subjection to them Therefore it behoves the people of God to know upon what terms they stand that wee may carry our selves like loyall Subjects and Christians that the name of God may not be dishonoured by any weaknesse of ours and starting aside on any hand or other Rev. 13. latter part of the 7. vers And power was given him over all Kindreds and Tongues and Nations WEe come now to the fourth thing which these words hold forth and that is the power or as the Greek word hath it the authority which is here sayd to be given to the Roman Catholick Church and that is over all Kindreds and Tongues and Nations The note is this To the Roman Catholicke visible Church was given very ample jurisdiction and authority over all the Christian world if we may so speake or as in the Text over all Kindreds Tongues and Nations And he meanes Kindreds Tongues and Nations of such Countreys which were wont to be subject to the Empire of Rome which were then counted all the Civill Nations of the world To open it briefly It was given him over all kindreds tongues and nations Here are three words and one include another Nation is the largest for in a Nation there may be many Tongues and in one Tongue there may be many Kindreds He had dominion and soveraignty over all Nations or over the
an admirable honour they put upon the Church of Rome and upon the Head of it what ever the first Beast did the second Beast also did and so in worshipping the one they worshipped the other and in admiring one they admired both 4. They expresse their admiration in this that they will undertake establishing of Laws from the Sea of Rome and persecution of such godly persons as did not submit such as were different in their minds from the Catholick Church if they never so little swerve from that they undertook to execute the Laws of the Church And if the Church declared him him to be an Heretick there was no more to do the Common-wealth presently put him to death And as they took upon them persecution of their Subjects at home so the Subjects took upon them to depose their Princes and might depose them if they would not submit their power to the Pope so that there was no subsisting without submitting to them And which is a branch of this they undertook a vast and costly War abroad against the common Enemy the Turke whereas in very deed whilst the Pope stands it is not possible any War should prosper against him for it was for the sinne of Rome that the Turk was advanced a barbarous and beastly Enemy to punish a beastly Religion This was their admiration And all the world wondered after the Beast He meanes as he expounds himselfe ver 8. Those whose names are not written in the book of the life of the Lamb. They that were redeemed from the world they were not of the world though they lived in it but those in the world that were of the world they did honour this beast and were subject to him and gave all their devotion to the Catholick Church And when I say all the world I meane all the Christian world which was the visible face of the world the reputed world These barbarous Nations were not then so owned but as for the Eastern world they were all willing to give way to this transcendant Usurpation of the Bishop of Rome in a generall Councell at Asia They looked at the reigning and Imperiall City of Rome as the chiefest Seate of the Catholick Church the highest throne of that Church and were content that no Councell should be ratified but by him If hee ratified a Councell in so many Canons it was established if he did not then they were not and the Emperors were willing it should be so because they found insufficiency in themselves to maintaine the Royal City of Rome against barbarous Nations And therefore they thought it State-policy to maintain the Bishop of Rome and let him grow up to as great power as he could It was as they thought the preservation of their State but it was indeed their ruine so they willingly gave their power to the beast Now the barbarous Nations that had not forsaken the Country and had builded them houses they that were not driven out as many rested in some parts of the Empire they willingly closed with such a Religion as was pretty savoury to their apprehensions they began to comply with it and put their necks under it Charles the Great having received the Kingdome of France from the Pope he did his best endeavour to bring the people to yeeld themselves but the people were somewhat sowr and rugged that way to be wrought upon Therefore the Pope had another sophistry to help himselfe He sends three Apostles Gregory the Great he was one Apostle that he sent for England and he brings great Reformation that is he sways the whole State to the Bishop of Rome and those that would not yeeld were miserably slaughtered And Bonifacius he did the like in Genevah and in France and Denmarke and Germany And where ever the world was Christian it was now Catholick all submitted to the Church of Rome and so by this means all the world admired him they received doctrine and worship from Rome they will goe for pardon of Sin thither They make Pilgrimages to Rome Appeals to Rome From thence they receive their fundamental Constitutions Dispâ—nsations Persecutions deposition of Princes They receive and undertake generall war from thence for the recovery of the holy Land And in one word in such admiration the Beast of Rome was that it was a Proverb among them He ruled all the world and therefore he ruled all the Churches and was esteemed to be God on Earth Thus did all the world wonder after the Beast and admire him and so did they also hiâ— power They did excâ—â—dingly admire his power Who is like unto the Beast who is able to make warre with him It is not cleare adoration but it is an attributing to the Beast that which is peculiar to God Who is like unto the Lord our God Exod. 15. 11. It is a style of the high and mighty God This admiration of this wonderfull power and holinesse it is now added to the Pope Who is like unto the Beast who is able to make warr with him Who is the Lord of hosts but our God as if he were invincible For they had found that when some of the Grecian Emperours that had given their power to the Beast did vary in point of judgment as they did not love to take up the worship of Images then the Beast is offended and excommunicates him and deprives him of his Empire and gives it to Charles the Great takes away the Kingdome of France puts him into a Monastery removes Fredericke first and second And what he did with King John of England you know He deprived him of his Kingdome and hee makes some of them do very hard penance whiles he was solacing himselfe with his Harlot She being more compassionate then he besought his Holinesse to have compassion on him and so he sent him back yet afterwards they made him away And his Son when they came to Crown him it must be with the Popes foot and when he hath done he dasheth it off to shew that he hath power to take it as easily from him as to fell it from his head Though great men and greatly beloved of the people all is nothing if they be alienated from the Pope All mens affections are his when he turns the whole body turns when the head moves the whole body doth accordingly So that it was marvellous admirable power that he had whom he would he set up and whom he would he pulled downe Peter he said gave it to him and he did what he would to those that were on the earth this is great power They professe if their holy Father carry many millions of soules to Hell yet no man must say Sir why do you so All appeals were from him so that there is transcendant soveraign power and indeed divine such as no man can attaine Power to pardon sin power to bind Conscience to dispence with the Law of God to interpret and judg of Scripture as he sees cause and this
discharged of this burden This was very plausable to carnall reason especially if they gave so much to such a Monastery that they may offer so many Sacraments for them for they look at the bread in the Lords supper as a propiatory Sacrament here were so many means to satisfie the consciences of those that were superstitious as nothing could be devised to give better content to the spirits of men in those dayes any man that knowes it shall finde it true that when the conscience is terrified with the curse of Gods Law and never shewed the true way of fellowship with Christ no man is so tender and conscionable in the performance of all duties as they If you will have them kisse the Popes foot or give so much to a Monastery and by this means Hell shall be shut against them and Purgatory discharged But for assurance of Salvation in Christ they could not endure that they that stood for that they tell them what you will not have men doe good workes away with that faggot and halter for such Hereticks Thirdly there was a third Reason and that was from the great reverence of all Councells and Synods to the Sea of Rome The City of Rome had wont to be the imperiall City now in such a case as this they thought it but reasonable In heathenish Rome they gave all worship to them and so let Christian Rome give all their worship to the chief Head there and so to their mother Church all Catholicks would incourage others so to doe and so by this means there were such incouragements laid for admiration and adoration that you may not wonder at what the holy Ghost saith That when the wound was healed all the world wondred after the beast saying who is like unto the beast who is able to make war with him Not the Emperors of the East and West not the King of England France Spain nor all that have been of greatest force they were none of them able to hold up their heads against this great Beast The use of this point is thus much First you may observe from hence that Universality and Prosperity though they be given for two notes of a true Church by the Papists yet indeed they are but sopisticall deceitfull delusions They are not such marks of a Church as are peculiar to a true Church here is Universality All the world wondred after the beast and here is Prosperity all the world adore and admire the Beast Who is like unto the beast who is able to make war with him Not all the Princes of the world So that here is externall prosperity for so they call it here are both these concur and they doe indeed argue a Catholick Church as Bellarmine saith but note this that Catholick Church which is visible which is the Roman visible Catholick Church the Scripture holds it forth as a great and ugly and monstrous Beast look not therefore at these as any good marks and signes by which Jesuites and Seminaries are wont to draw to deep devotion to the Catholick Church for all the world have run this way there is but a handfull a few of such as are otherwise minded what is Genevah and some others to Rome what have they been able to doe in comparison of the Church of Rome which is the Church of Churches none have been able to doe as they Secondly we may see the danger of this admiration and adoration the deadly and desperate danger of adoring the Catholick visible Church and the Dragon It is the cunning of these Priests and Jesuites to draw men by all means to be at least devoted to the Catholick Church and to submit their power thereunto for they say there is no union with Christ the head unlesse you be united to the visible head on Earth this is their usuall plea Now marke what the holy Ghost speaks in this Text he doth say that all the worship of this mother Church is but the worship of the Dragon Men are devoutly adicted to give up their souls to the Devill when they give up themselves to the Catholicke visible Church the Lord professeth he is not honoured by them they professe honour to he-Saints and shee-Saints and dead Saints and to all relicks and remnants of them the honour of them is given unto the Devill and not to God That look what Paul saiâ—h of heathen Rome John speaks of christian Rome This I say saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 10. 20. That the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to Devils and not to God and I would not that ye should have fellowship with Devils And so this saith John the holy Apostle equall to the Apostle Paul or next him but here guided equally with Paul in the Authentical word of God he saith They that worship God according to the prescript of the Church of Rome they worship the Devils and not God they worship the Dragon the old Serpent So that it is not so light a matter as Gallants at Court and great Kings apprehend they will be reconciled to their mother Church they will goe a Pilgrimage that is devised by the Pope and perform duties as their ghostly Father directs them and have their bead-prayers In all this what do they doe This is a worship to the great beast but this is the issue and substance of it they doe indeed worship the Dragon It is not the Lord Jesus nor God the Father nor the blessed spirit that is thus worshipped but this is indeed the worship of the Devill Thirdly this may serve to teach us to blesse the name of the Lord that hath delivered us from this admiration and adoration from this wofull Captivity and Calamity whereto our Fathers have been enthralled All those of them whose names are not written in the Lambs book of life they were all led this way and it is a marvellous deliverance that God hath wrought for us in taking our Religion from universality and from outward prosperity It is sometimes a snare to Christians this kinde of Government that we have and they are apt to say what doe any of the great Nations of the world for worship and Government did you ever know any such thing authorised in any Kingdome There is an inward principle in us by nature to doe as all the world doe what are we more wise then they It is a great temptation but we have cause to blesse God that hath wrought deliverance for us But what if all the world did worship the Devill as time was when they did what if all the world worship the Beast and the Dragon that gave power to the Beast must we doe so And as they are not grounds of our worship so they are fit grounds of unfeigned thankfulnesse to God that hath delivered us from that Religion by which all the world was bewitched to give their Crownes Honours Bodies and States to the devotion of the visible Catholick Church and to the
more and more after that time Rev. 13. 7. And it was given unto him to make warre with the Saints and to overcome them and power was given him over all Kindreds and Tongues and Nations WHen the Devill that is to say the Dragon could not find any longer resting place in heaven that is to say he could no longer enjoy Soveraign and divine worship as the great God Constantine and his Successors having brought in Christ and his worship alone instead of all the gods of the Gentiles He therefore to revenge himselfe makes warre against the Church that were the rooters out of Pagan Idolatry This warre because he could not manage by himselfe it being very strong he therefore raiseth two Beasts out of his power the first and second Beasts in this Chapter the first from vers 1. to the 10. The second from vers 10. to the end of the Chapter It was a third Roman State not Rome-Pagan nor Rome-Christian but Rome-antichristian that is to say the Roman visible Catholick Church This is described many wayes by a wound given him upon one of his heads for a season that when Rome was sacked he was almost in a forlorn estate and despairing of recovery but being healed the effects were 1. The worlds admiration after the Beast 2. Their worship both of the Beast and of the Dragon which is Satan himselfe The third event is Power or as the word signifies Authority ver 5 6 7. And this Power and Authority did stretch forth it selfe to three employments First He had power given him to speake great things and blasphemies He might speak blasphemy by authority The second power that was given him was to continue or to be doing to be acting and working all in all for the number of 42. moneths which in the former Chapter is described by dayes and the dayes meant years 1260. yeares which have been at large spoken to The third power and authority given him was To make warre with the Saints and that not a vain and loose war but an effectuall prevailing war a victorious war It was given him to make warre with the Saints and to overcome them There was also a fourth power given him and that was dominion over all the Kindreds Tongues and Nations All Christian Kingdomes they did all of them submit their Crowns and Scepters to this Beast the Roman Catholick visible Church whereof the Pope is the seventh head for he had seven heads and ten horns Five of them were fallen the sixth then which was the Caesars and the Pope he was the seventh Two of these Powers have been opened Power to blaspheme and Power to continue and be doing I come now to the third Power or Authority given to this Beast and that is to make war with the Saints and to overcome them The note then is shortly this The Roman visible Catholicke Church had power to make warre against the Saints yea and to overcome them They are in a manner the words of the Text explained in their true meaning The warre that he speaks of as I conceive in this place is not a spirituall warre though that also this beast did make for he caused all that dwelt upon the Earth to admire and adore him and that was spirituall war But he speaks of such a warre here the effect whereof is killing with the Sword Hee that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword vers 10. As if God would reward him in his owne kind He that slayes many thousands of Christians with the sword that is by the power of warre he himselfe shall at length be destroyed by warre also So that he speaks of a war fought by Arms by slaughter and blood-shed by open expedition of Military persons fighting in the quarrell of this beast against the Saints of God There is another warre mentioned in the 17. Chap. of this book where it is said this Beast and the ten Horns that is the Christian Kings that shall give their power and authority to this Beast shall make warre with the Lamb and they which are of the Lambs side are called and chosen and faithfull and here they are called Saints But there you shall see it is not the same kinde of warre but differing there from what is here for there it is sayd They shall make warre with the Lamb and the Lamb shall overcome them but here it is said He shall make warre with the Saints and overcome the Saints So that one of these warres he speaks of when he that hath smitten others he shall be smitten himselfe that is towards the end of his Authority then the Lamb shall make warre and overcome him but in the meane time he hath power to make warre and overcome them it is therefore a bloody warre And it is not said that he began this war as soon as he began to do for here are sundry acts and passages of Authority before he comes to this transcendant power to violent warre Hee was admired and adored in the consciences of all Roman Catholicks Hee had done many things spake great blasphemies many a day and yeare together And in the end he receives also this power to make warre with the Saints that he was able to muster up such an Army of his owne or his Horns that is those Princes that were obedient to him as he was able to make warr Now this Scripture I conceive was accomplished in his wars against the Waldenses and Albingenses in the 12. Century after Christ they held all things conformable to the Scriptures and the Fathers as they called them and every way Orthodoxall only they blasphemed the Church of Rome this Beast could not tell what he had against them otherwise but otherwise he commended them for their honesty piety and good dealing and there was nothing culpable in their doing but that they spake against the Church of Rome now against them did the Pope and the Catholick Church procure many expeditions of sore warre for many yeares together and in conclusion rooted them out of the Countrey and scattered them up and downe some to some part of France some to Bohemia some to Germany some to England and some to one place and some to another though the Papists did confesse that the people were not rooted out but scattered and where-ever they came they propagated their Religion that it was more and more spread where they came but they overcame them for they slew as stands upon Record about ten hundred thousands of them and did burn up their Cities and Cattell fel'd their wood that there might be no more Hereticks nestled in that wildernesse and they did take a course that Midwives and Mothers and Infants in the womb all should be slaughtered by fire and sword that there might be no more continuance of that Generation So that in this War the Pope did mightily prevaile and prospered so farre that he spread all Christendom and in one battle did overcome a great many
he goeth They kept themselves undefiled of this Antichrist of Rome were not defiled with the whoredome of this great beast in all things they consented with the Doctrine of the Primitive Church and their hypocrisies and whoredomes and coveteousnesse were things that would by no means be borne therefore the Pope who was the great head discerning he was thus contested against and as they say blasphemed he thinks he does nothing though he destroy Turkes and Sarazens and Aegyptians and whoever took the Sepulcher of Christ as long as those Heretickes at home were not subdued therefore he thinks it as meritorious a worke to subdue them as ever to fight for the holy Land But there was another thing that made the war for no warre can be made but by levying of Forces on both part◠And therefore a second was their taking up of Armes in the just defence of their liberties both of conscience and outward man For if the Catholick Church had raised up all these Forces and they had quietly submitted themselves like sheep to the slaughter there had beene no warre then there had been massacres It would have amounted to that as the massacre in Paris that a man did not lift up his hand but they were slaughtered like dogs in the street Though they come with fire and sword yet unlesse they resist with fire and sword it cannot be said to be war Some set in against them though their weaknesse caused them to presume but it was to weak a businesse for flesh and bloud Wee wrestle not against flesh and blood but against Principalities and Powers and spirituall wickednesses They which trust to flesh and bloud shall be deceived as these men they stood out and sometimes prospered while the Earl of Tone and some other Princes joyned together though they were but few they prospered but war is not one Battel or two and in the end they were overcome and this Beast prevailed and that 's the reason of the 2 d part how he came to make warre against the Saints For the 3 d How came he to overcome them Truly not by strength he had very little that way but First he overcame them by their a little too much confidence in the arme of flesh when they see the King of Aragon set on they come to be a little set on by the power of the King and a great Battell recoyled by trusting to the arme of flesh You read in Heb. 11. 34. That by faith the Saints waxed valiant in Fight turned to flight the Armies of the Aliens but when our faith runne in another channell that we grow confident not in the Lord Jesus by trusting in him but on the arme of flesh we know what is said in Jer. 17. 5. Cursed be the man ye though he be a good man that trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arme and whose heart departeth from the Lord It withers it cannot stand against the potent Army that rise up against them though their enemies were never lesse in number nor never lesse provided yet they prevailed more then ever before The second Reason was by their attention to politick and deceitfull Treaties of peace for when they saw the men were good Souldiers valient in battell and able to fight it out and they found the 3000. that were to fight for plenary pardon three years had served out their time and they had got as they thought their souls saved they would go home now and they had got peace by this carnall confidence of theirs So they perceived this war would be troublesome and the Hereticks were like to prosper therefore they gather in the cheif Leaders to Treaties about peace and great pitty that such bloud should be shed therefore for the honour of Rome it were needfull to cease the warre and so would draw their cheif Leaders to firme leagues of Peace and then they kept their best Generals in Prison and thus when they had got them to yeild to their pretences then they had their neckes under their girdles and their throats under their axes they might hew them out of measure Insomuch that the King of France hearing of such cruell massacre he sent to know what their Religion was and though he sent expresse charge that none of his Souldiers should offer violence to them yet they concealing his Letters they went on in massacring the poor Saints and scattering them up and down in so much that they prevailed partly by the Saints cleaving to the arme of flesh and by trusting their false pretences And there is a third Reason mentioned in the 10. vers saith he Here is the Faith and Patience of the Saints It was Gods pleasure to make it the season of the Patience of the Saints It was the season wherein Antichrist should swell to his height and the Saints be brought low and their Patience be tryed to the utmost and it being a time of the Saints Patience it must needs be a time of their suffering and suffer they did with much patience but yet they were not utterly exterpated for some fled to France and some to England and so propagated Christian Religion which after turned to the conversion of many John Husse and Jerome of Pragues Doctrine grew and spread more till God raised up Luther to set forward the power of the Gospell Thus you see the truth of the Doctrine For the use then First it may serve to let us see whence is the power of waging war for the Text saith it was given To him it was given to make war with the Saints All men cannot receive this as our Saviour saith in another case but they to whom it is given It is not an easie matter for any to be 〈◊〉 to wage war it requires great store of persons and great store of Treasury and Fountain to maintaine both And besides all this it require◠no small measure of Wisdome and Policy to undertake such designes all these you see the Lord gives and gives them to those that his soul take no pleasure in and to those that in his esteem are men of beastly spirit◠yet he gives them power to make warre He may blesse himself in his rule and bravery that they were able to 〈◊〉 against Infidels and after against Heriticks as they called them but indeed the Saints of God but you see God gave power unto this Beast which is therefore no cause of triumph or glorying that he hath recived such a power for you see it may be given to these that are enemyes to the Lord Jesus Secondly observe this much That the Lord himselfe doth acknowledge even his poor children on Earth to be that which is commonly by priviledge sequestred to the holy Saints in Heaven He calles them Saints We think Saint-ship is a peculiar priviledge to the Saints in Heaven when they have ended their dayes in peace and a good conscience then they are accounted Saints and Angels but the Lord accounts
of their works And this is the very doctrine of a Covenant of works And this is all the doctrine of the Arminians onely they do acknowledge justification by faith and differ in point of Faith and the merit of works A third Reason may be this The worship of creatures is a going a whoring from God and so of destruction unto such as go a whoring from the Lord in that way All worship of creatures with divine worship is called going a whoring from God Hos 4. 12. They have gone a whoring from under their God so in Psal 73. 27. Thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee And the Church of Rome is known to go a whoring after the worship of Saints and Angels and Iâ—ages and thiâ— great Beast mentioned in the Text and the Pope the head of it They place their salvation in beleiving as the Catholick Church beleives They place their salvation in reconcilement to the Catholick Church and are more solicitous of it then of reconcilement unto God by Christ Col. 2. 18 19. You read of some there that do not hold the head but lay hold upon Angels and that is Idolatry now that is spoken of the Church of Rome For a fourth reason of the point Without unfeigned repentance and lively faith there is no hope of salvation Luke 13 5. Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish And without faith it is impossible to please God Heb. 11. 6. Now the repentance which the Roman Catholick Church holds forth what is it but such as Judas did performe They require contrition Judas he was deeply wounded and broken Mat. 27. 3. And they require confession He came unto them before whom he had done evill and said I have sinned in betraying innocent blood And they require satisfaction He came and brought the mony and threw it into the Temple and would by no means meddle with it Here is the repentance of the Church of Rome and all for ought I know that they require I finde no rule of repentance in this Catholick Catechise but I finde it in Judas which will end in despaire which is the common end of an hypocritical repentance as Stephen Gardner came unto it and so they will do or else dye in Nabals stoninesse And for their faith The faith of the Elect is described to be a confidence and evidence Heb. 11. 1. So expound Heb. 3. 14. If we hold fast the confidence the word is all one with subsistance it is such a confidence as doth give a being and subsistance unto the thing beleived it doth as truly make them to be as if they were actually extent But what say they to this They look at is as presumption and an abomination yea it will cost a man his life to hold forth such a Faith And for evidence they do professe it to be incompatible to a christian and their Faith is some conjecture but no certainty Now gather up these things If the Roman Catholicks have no better Faith no better repentance then their Religion holds forth if they receive Christ no otherwise and worship God no better and have no more interest in God then their Religion leads them to let all the world look to it for there is none of all the elect of God can live and dye so But why is this a point of so serious and deep consideration and attention that is taken First from the weight of the point as most concerning our salvation Secondly it is a point that generally men are deaf to hear and slâ—w to understand and beleive And therefore he doth cry out and make a solemn proclamation If any man have an eare to hear let him hear Why are they so unable and unwilling to understand They look at it as a monstrous blasphemy to speake thus of the Roman visible Catholick Church Then the Reason why men are so slow of heart to beleive it and none beleive but them which are taught of God is taken First from the spirituallnesse of the things themselves They are spirituall matters and cannot be discerned but by spiritual understanding 1 Cor. 2. 14. A naturall man doth not discern the spiritual mysteries of iniquity nor the spirituall mysteries of discerning Grace nor can they because they are spiritually discerned The second Reason why none but faithful intelligent christians do understand it 〈◊〉 taken From Gods gift of Grace unto them to understand it To you it is given to know the mysteries of the Kingdome of Heaven Mat. 13. 11. But being not given unto the world the world doth not understand it For the use of the point First it may serve to refute the damnable principle of the Roman Catholick Religion which is this That for every Nation and Kingdome to be reconciled to the Church of Rome i. is of necessity to salvation Whoever he be that hath ears to heare let him hear saith the holy Ghost that to be reconciled to the Catholick Church and subject to that Church and the head thereof it is of necessity the way to damnation if a soul so live and so dye For this purpose the Text is as plain as possible Rev. 20. 15. Whoever is not found written in the book of life is cast into the lake of fire This Roman Catholick Church hath not his name written in that book of life and therefore of necessity they must be cast into the lake of fire Let all Noble men and Gentlemen hear this that they may not listen unto the whisperings and croakings of the Locusts of the bottomlesse pit Much God hath borne with men in their ignorance but if ever men have belonged unto God they have known the way of a better faith and repentance then ever Popish Religion have taught them and the holy Ghost hath helped them in their private prayers and reading or in conference with others to understand the same Obj. 1. You will say unto me but this is a very uncharitable censure Answ Whether doe you thinke it more charity to forewarn men of a desperate danger or to be indulgent to men and to tell them they may be saved in both Religions when the word of God is playn against it What charity count you that to gull men in a charitable but a foolish conceit of their own good estate It is cruell charity and most uncharitable when the Holy Ghost doth professâ— Their names are not written in the Lambs booke of life whosoever worship the Beast Obj. 2. But you will say Are not all the Catholicks in the world perswaded of it that the devotion to the Catholique Roman Church is a way of salvation Catholiques are confident of it and you Protestants dare not deny it And then I pray you whether is it not safer to be devoted to that Church wherein all confesse there is a possibility of salvation then unto that Church in which one say there is salvation the other not Answ We answer So farre