those that sent them And then the remainder of the Peeres and Commons which are scarce a fourth part of them call themselves the Parliament and all the known rights of Soveraignitie does this Epitome of Parliament assume unto themselves and exercise yea the House of Commons alone notwithstanding their Protestation to God for the Defence of the Lawes and Libertie of the Subject by warrant under their Speakers hand beyond all Law and example imprison Subjects that were never Members of their House and deny them their Habeas Corpus And not onely invade the Libertie of the Commons but presse upon the House of Lords the voting of things which in a full House they had before upon mature advice orderly rejected They seconded a tumultuous Petition that demanded the names of the Lords that had dissented from the Commons House though the dissenters were the major part of the House of Lords This Epitome of Parliament hath taught that which never Parliament knew before That their Members may not without the Order of their House be restrained no not for Treason And professing tender care of the Kings Honour and safetie hath authorised Bookes wherein His Soveraignitie is made subject to the Representative of His Subiects and wherein the deposing of our English Kings by their Subiects is declared warrantable and upon the authoritie and warrant of this Parliament must the poor Christian Subiect that is under their power against his Conscience act and give aide to the Armie which against the Kings expresse Command and Proclamations they have levied when though conscious horrour and shame will not suffer it to be acknowledged to be raised against the King yet are their Souldiers sure they shall meet with no other opposite than with their rightfull Soveraigne and His Followers arming for the safetie of His Person for defence of the iust rights of the Crown for the due Priviledges of the first of the three Orders of Parliament and for the necessary power wherewith He is to protect Religion Lawes and Subiects of His Kingdom Who that makes conscience of what he does as one that must make account for it before the great Tribunal where a little integritie though now despised and a little innocence of cause shall bring one more support than either King on the one side or Parliament on the other or Armie on either side who I say thereof mindfull can against the thousand witnesses of his conscience recede from the dutie which all his life till now hath both by Law and Christian Religion been inculcate to him and reiecting all cast himselfe soule bodie and fortunes wholly upon the new-found warrant of strangely conditioned apparition of Parliament These and other particulars that may be instanced in take off the confidence and repose that one would otherwise have in the two Houses especially when they setting on foot claimes and pretences not agreeing with the dutie that men from their youth have found their consciences ever bound unto go not the faire and open way of satisfaction to have in so high concernments the Parliament Rolls as freely and fully searched on the Kings behalfe as on the Parliaments and to have their new and strange learning as freely argued by the Kings Councell and by the Judges as by the instruments of the Parliament but as the Papacie in invading the Soveraignitie of the Church Voted her selfe into the Supremacie and then suppressed all examination of the Truth by damning all Writings to the contrary and branding the Authours and users of them with the name of Heretickes So we invading the Soveraignitie of our own State Vote our selves into it brand with the name of Malignants all that concurre not with us in it interdict them the freedome of search and discoverie of the Truth and damne their Writings as scandalous and seditious Pamphlets and so making them Vote-convicted State Heretickes We thenceforth hold no Faith nor Truth to be kept toward them but prosecute them as Enemies to the State for no other offence but because we have made them Malignants popishly affected dissolute desperate blood-sucking Cavaliers and plunderers Yet truly if we consider the qualitie of them that adhere unto His Maiestie and to His Cause do now lie under that censure we shall finde them the flower and greater part of our Nobilitie and Gentrie of the Kingdome the greater part of His Majesties Honourable Privie Counsell yea and of His Great Councell too even of the Peeres and Commons the chiefe of the Judges and with them the opinion of the residue even of that whole Profession the spirits and prayers of the farre greatest part of the Clergie and the hearts of the greater part of the most substantiall men of the Commonaltie whose soule and conscience presented with the consideration of these things would not shrinke with inward horrour to thinke he should either attempt or give aide to the cutting off not like David of a lap of his Soveraignes ordinary garment but of this lively apparrell-politique of his Soveraigne wherewith for safetie as well as ornament His Majestie is now begirt nay to cut off the very limbes of his Civill bodie and not without eminent danger to His Sacred Person how loud and frightfull would the spirit of David crie in the eares of his guilty conscience The Lord forbid I should do this thing to lift up my hand against the Lords Anointed O but Religion is now at stake and it is not to be believed that popishly affected Counsellours and Commanders with the helpe of a popish Armie should so much forsake their own ends as to fight for Establishment of the true Protestant Religion truly it is sincerely confessed it is not likely and therefore I shall never believe that the Designe of Reforming our Religion by the hands of Brownists Anabaptists and Sectaries which by a constant and credible report is believed to have been so much fostered and advanced by the Cardinall Richelieu and the late French Embassadour as that Chambers the Cardinals Secretarie was on purpose sent into the Scotish Armie here in England was ever with intent of Establishing the true Protestant Religion or that for the Protestant Religions sake the death of the Cardinall was by some of our active Parliament men in our hearing lamented as of a great friend of the Parliament or that the great correspondence and intercourse observed to be between the late French Embassadour and Master Pym was for the advancement of the Protestant Religion But where is any popish Armie under the conduct of popish Commanders that according to the Designe of popish Counsellours is likely to oppresse the Protestants and advance Poperie Certainly both his Maiestie and his Protestant Followers are well assured that not any part of the Warre is managed by the Designe of persons that are so affected but who knowes not the ground of calumnie The King must either denie his Subiects that are Papists the protection of his Armie and refuse their aide and service or
without any claime of right made by the two Houses and our Law hath not a surer badge of right than continuall and unquestioned possession Besides the Parliament it selfe 7. E. 1. declares unto the King that To him of right belongs straightly to defend that is to forbid all force of Armes and thereunto they are bound to assist him as their Soveraigne Lord The Statute 11. H. 7 18. reciteth Where every Subject by the dutie of his Alleageance is bound to serve assist his Prince and Soveraigne Lord at all seasons when need shall require c. In the 3. of Edw. 3. The House of Commons disclaime the having cognizance of such matters as the guarding of the Seas and Marches of the Kingdom And by the Statute 25. E. 3.2 It is made High Treason for any to meddle with the Militia so farre as To levie Warre against the King or to aide them that do it And we all know that to levie Warre without Commission from the King or to give aide unto it is by our Law to levie War and give aide against our Soveraigne Lord the King His Crown and Dignitie And we never knew of any exception out of that Law in case the Warre were levied by Authoritie of the two Houses And when we have not in our power to search the Parliament rols for clearing these things If besides our published Statutes our Law-bookes have any authoritie we have not onely Bracton whom they insist upon but other authentique Law-bookes concurring with him who all speaking of the King and the Houses do expresly say that seeing The King hath no Peere The King cannot be iudged by them So that whatsoever authoritie is in the constant practice of the Kingdom and whatsoever authoritie in the known and published Lawes and Statutes all do conclude the Soveraignitie in the person of the King and the alleageance faith obedience of the Subject even of the Subject virtually united in the Bodie Representative to be inevitably devinct and obliged to the person of the King The Soveraignitie both of the frame of the State and positive Lawes of the Kingdome being fixed in the person of the King and the Alleageance of the Subject by Law inevitably thither assigned then comes in Religion and fortifies and enforces all those bonds of dutie and obedience and that under the severe menace of damnation which when it is in divers precepts and examples well known unto us abundantly set forth in the Scriptures It will not be safe for us to let slip the consideration of two examples especially The Children of Israel being redeemed out of Egypt baptized in the Red Sea and brought for triall into the wildernesse as they were the type of the Church of God in all Kingdomes whatsoever in this world so Moses their Governour was the type of that regall power under which the Church of God in this world was generally to be governed so as though he were not a King in point of interest for the people were not yet in the Countrey that was to be the Kingdom neither was Moses of the Tribe to whom the Kingdom was promised yet saith the Text He was King when the heads of the people were assembled Moses so personating the kingly Office when as yet there was no expresse command concerning obedience and subjection more than Honour thy father and thy mother and he that curseth father or mother let him die the death It happened that Corah Dathan and Abiram rebelled against him and their rebellion was but this they in the behalfe of the Congregation of the Lord because that it was holy every one of them and the Lord among them question Moses his Soveraignitie charge him and Aaron that they exalted themselves above the Congregation of the Lord and that Moses had not kept touch with them to bring them to a Land that flowed with milke and honey but sought to starve them in the wildernesse while blinding the eyes of the people he might in the mean time make himselfe a Prince over them and out of jealousie of this they refused obedience to Moses and would not come at him when he sent to call them and so much was their cause believed to be just and right as that they were seconded with two hundred and fifty Princes of the Assemblie famous in the Congregation all of them so confident that they durst joyne issue with Moses and put themselves upon triall by Gods immediate judgement in the case and they were also backed with many thousands of the people This was the Rebellion the Judgement we all know to be most exemplar Judgement that ever was given in any case The Heads of the Rebellion Corah Dathan and Abiram with their wives their children and all their substance were swallowed up of the earth they went down quicke into Hell saith the Psalmist The two hundred and fifty that invaded the holy Office were slain with fire from Heaven and fourteen thousand and seven hundred of the people that favoured their attempts and murmured at the Judgement were in an instant in lesse than Aaron could get his Censer with fire from the Altar and run among them consumed in a speedy plague It will be objected that Moses was a man of extraordinary calling and that Rebellion against an ordinary Governour though a soveraigne King is not like Rebellion against a Governour of so extraordinary calling and priviledge all that granted yet this exemplar Judgement comes home to manifest the hainous sin of rebelling against Kings at this day Moses had an extraordinary calling he could not else have been a type of regal Authoritie but in type He was King when the heads of the people were assembled He had the Priest made subordinate to him He shall be unto thee instead of a mouth and thou shalt be unto him instead of God And had the Magistracie derived from his Authoritie to beare the burthen with him God took off the spirit that was upon him and put it upon the seventie two Elders So Moses was clearly endued with regall power and for trangression against that very Authoritie of his was the Judgement made so exemplar It could not be exemplar in regard of any other Authoritie which he had then and no other since either had or could have but that we may know the Judgement was exemplar against Rebellion against regall Dominion which would often be committed in the later dayes the holy Ghost speaking against the seducers deceivers wch in the later dayes should make perilous times describes them not onely by being Cursed speakers disobedient to parents that is as well to Civil parents as Natural traiterous headie high-minded resisting the truth like them that resisted Moses Despising Dominion despising Government speaking evill of Dignities of those that are in Authoritie of those things which they know not c. but by this likewise that They perish in the gainsaying of Corah The other
else their aide and service must make his Armie a popish Armie surely not to admit them into his Armie when they cannot otherwise be safe were uniustly to deny them the protection of Subiects and to spare them either in their personall or pecuniarie assistance were with inequalitie toward his Protestant Subiects and with danger to their Cause to refuse his needfull duties from the Papists though therefore Protestants should never lay down their iealousie of the growth of Poperie yet should they not let it so abuse them as to make them believe they have no danger to feare but onely Poperie especially now when Schisme and Sectarisme do with such authoritie invade us and when nothing can more advance the bringing in of Poperie if it be possible than the confusion in Church and State that does inevitably follow them the expectance whereof was the cause that made the Cardinall and the popish partie from beyond sea so effectually labour the promoting of them Undoubtedly if Poperie be at this time to be feared it is to be feared from the prevailing of Schismatickes by the Designe and manage of so potent and active forraigne Instruments of Poperie and it would returne with comfortable satisfaction to our consciences that having for a feigned feare of Poperie engaged our selves in reall Rebellion we should finde our paines rewarded with the felicitie of becomming instruments of the evill that at so deare a rate we did unnecessarily resist When in every thing considerable to resolution the conscience is on every hand so strongly beset with reasons all concluding for obedience to our Soveraigne and for our utmost assistance to His Cause How weak is the sole Authoritie of an imperfect representative of Peeres and Commons so to possesse the conscience with perswasion to the contrary as upon it to venture the present and eternall safetie of ones selfe and of so many thousands in our Israel But say that this world were onely to be considered in the businesse let us yet but see what must needs be the event in case the Parliament Forces which God forbid should prevaile either they must leave the Soveraignitie in the King as it was before and content themselves with strict Lawes against all grievances that may be feared in Religion or in Government and then they bring no more to passe then what His Majestie before their Warre did of himselfe and does yet gratiously offer or else they must take the soveraigne power from the King into their own hands and leave him no more at most than the contemptible name of King then shall we loose our old legall Government and be governed by the absolute arbitrary and tyrannicall way of their Votes and they to secure themselves in that new and uncouth way of Government that they must institute must to the overthrow of Trade and intolerable burthen of the Subject keep the Kingdome under perpetuall Garrisons and then what with the Faction and discord of our ambitious New-States what with the unrulinesse of the commanding Souldier and what with the attempts of those whose fidelitie will ever excite their utmost endeavour for their Soveraignes never dying right we shall fall into an incessant Civill Warre untill the Kingdome being ruined the Soveraignitie returne into the hand to which it rightfully belongeth Unles therefore it please God that our great Metropolis of London partaking rather of the wise spirit of the men of Abel than of the obstinacie of Gibeah the Benjamite shall either deale so effectually with those that there reside in shew of Parliament as that they bring them to yield to the equalitie of a free and legall Parliament and so provide against future grievances without any violation of the Rights of the Crown or else in case they refuse shall like the Abelites deliver unto the King the Heads of those Opposites that rise up against Him We may assure our selves that that Citie like those of Gibeah and Benjamin are hardened to all our Israels punishment and to their own destruction and may as they did prevaile once and again against the residue of the Kingdome untill they have fulfilled Gods determined Visitation upon the Land and then consummate all with their deplorable destruction FINIS A DISCOVERIE OF LONDONS OBSTINACIE AND MISERIE THere hath been many Admonitions sent from His Majestie advising that Citie of their own preservation yet they have continued stubburne though they cannot but see the hand of the Lord to assist all the King's Majesties proceedings whereas their actions are so farre from prosperitie that they winde themselves wilfully and force others ignorantly into miserable adversitie Furthermore though God hath manifestly fought against the Rebells for the King giving Him Victorie in many Battailes when all humane helpes and advantages were on the Rebells side though God hath miraculously and beyond the hope of man restored unto Him the hearts of the people which the Heads of this Rebellion by slander had stolne from Him though from small and contemptible beginnings in the eyes of His Enemies few or none standing for Him but God and the justice of His Cause God hath prospered him into many mighty Armies which render Him formidable to the proudest and stoutest of the Rebels though every Victorie hath been seconded by a tender of Peace and with an overture of Pacification so that as Himselfe speakes in that Declaration published Iuly 30 1643. He could not probably fall under the scandalous imputation which hath usually attended His Messages of Peace that they proceed from the weaknesse of His Power not love of His People Lastly though like an indulgent Father of rebellious Children He hath courted this Citie and wooed it by many pardons many and often repeated Acts of Grace and Favour to recall us to our former Loyaltie if ever we were Loyall yet inconsiderate unthankfull wretches as we are we over-look or sleight all these invitations for instead of returning we have added this as the complement of our other Rebellions that whether more unthankfully or undutifully I cannot tel we have cast dirt in our Soveraignes face and slandered the footsteps of Gods Anointed as if He were guiltie of all those Miseries which at this time threaten the subversion of this Nation we will no longer wound the King secretly through the sides of his evill Counsellours or Cavaliers but charge Him directly and point blanke as in that most seditious Declaration or whatever you will call it presented by Sir David Watkins and that broken Citizen out at elbowes called Satten Shute to the Common-Councell and by them to the remainder of the Lower House if it be not breach of Priviledge to call it so How willing have we obeyed every Commandment except God and the Kings How forward have we been to employ the large Revenues of our severall Companies and Brotherhoods as heretofore to excesse and gluttonie so now to support this Rebellion How ready even beyond our abilities have we been to submit to every Taxe
example is that of David Saul was a wicked apostate King from whom The Spirit of God the inward anointing was departed Saul reiected from raigning over Israel So by God himselfe declared David in his stead by God provided to be King and to that end by Gods command anointed by all which David's priviledge then was more above the priviledge of all Subjects now than Saul's priviledge of that time was above the priviledge of Kings at this day and yet David for all those circumstances so much authorising him and dis-authorising Saul did not know Who could lay his hands upon the Lords Anointed and be guiltlesse Nay he did but lay his hand upon Saul's garment to cut off the lap for a testimonie of his loyaltie and innocent intention toward Saul and yet even for that saith the Text his heart smote him that he cried out The Lord forbid I should do that thing to my Master to lay mine hand upon the Lords Anointed his reason we may know in the other words of his The Lord shall smite him or his day shall come to die or he shall descend into battaile and perish the Lord keep me from laying mine hand upon him plainly inferring that to call Princes to account belongs onely to God that God hath time and wayes of his own to do it in and will do it and that therefore man must not meddle with the doing of it for if anointed David might not intermeddle with rejected Saul much lesse may common Subjects meddle with their unrejected Soveraignes Sufficiently therefore do these examples shew the heinousnesse of Subiects lifting up themselves and resisting the person of their Soveraigne upon what pretence soever Now while the severitie of these examples and other passages of Scripture iustly striking terrour into every soule does make us wonder what great straight of humane affaires could be so violent an impulsive with us as to make Christian Subiects contrary to sworne Faith to Law and to Religion not onely disobey their Soveraigne but resist invade the soveraigne rights and imploy their Soveraignes Militia Shippes Forts Armes Treasure yea and his own sworne Subiects too against Him truly all that the most searching thought can finde to secure his conscience with against the horrour of so foule a guilt is that otherwise we feare or pretend to feare that His Maiestie seduced by evill Counsellours by popishly affected Prelates Courtiers and Cavaliers should destroy our Law our Parliaments our established Forme of Government and change them into tyrannnie and the true Protestant Religion into Poperie This this Feare or pretence of Fear alone is all the warrant we can finde for our unparallelled proceedings against our Soveraigne And if this before the Tribunall of God and of our own Lawes be not sufficient for our excuse then have we nothing to discharge us of the guilt of publique violence robberie murder periurie treason resistance of the Ordinance of God and of forcing others against their consciences by act or aid to resist with us Now all these evils are universally committed all over the Kingdome and all these evils upon no other warrant done than that the good of Reformation as is pretended may come thereon So make we the Word of God of none effect while we entertain and preferre the Jesuitique tradition before it and maintain that what is for the good of the Church must be done notwithstanding any bonds of dutie of Faith or Oath whatsoever to the contrary And if we examine the grounds of this Feare and what iust suspition and probabilitie of such an innovation as is pretended to be feared is given We see for our assurance to the contrary that His Maiestie after once He was truly informed of our grievances condescended not onely to give us ease of them but to make His Acts of Grace in them at once exceed the Acts of all His Predecessours since the granting of our Magna Charta and did not onely in present relieve our sufferings but often invoking the Sacred Maiestie of God as a severe Witnesse of His purpose for the time to come tie Himselfe for ever to settle matters of Religion according to the purest times of the Protestant Church of England with such ease for tender Consciences as by a lawfull iudgement of the Clergie should be iudged fit and to governe according to the known Lawes of the Land Here is little signe of one led by evill counsaile or of a minde that would subdue Law Religion to the satisfaction of His private will This shewes our Fear to be both groundles and wicked and indeed after this if iealousie it selfe could yet make scruple of any thing how easie were it for the wisdome of the Bodie Representative by preparing a Law of severitie against the instruments of innovation exposing their persons and fortunes to certain ruine nullifying the innovations themselves and discharging the Subiect from all obedience and conformitie unto them to have secured the Kingdom against all manner of fear in that kinde when as His Majestie freely offers His Gracious assent to any Act that should in that behalfe be necessary But if what cause what ground what reason of dutie soever we finde though constantly and universally received for true both by the judgement of our Law and by the authoritie of our Religion we must notwithstanding reject all to believe the all concluding judgement of the Bodie Representative whom we never knew to have such Supremacie of iudgement till it selfe bearing witnesse of it selfe did tell us so it cannot yet but make much to the satisfaction of the conscience to examine how well the two Houses now sitting do attain the condition of a full and free Assemblie of the two Houses of Parliament that pretend to have such iudgement And first it is known that the House of Commons now sitting however elected was never yet perfected by a right determination of Elections but that some set as Members there that ought not to have been returned and some are not received that yet were rightly chosen some are excluded for having hands in Monopolies and proiects and others as much interessed in them for their assured affection reteined the greatest part of both Houses by meanes of popular menacings tumults poasting up of names branding men with the name of Malignants things never known before in Parliaments and again undeserved expellings from the House or imprisonings have been so over-awed that they have been forced to suppresse their Votes to give them contrary to their iudgements to hide themselves or to flie from the Houses the residue of both Houses and among them the Knights and Burgesses which the Countries sent to reside in Parliament that there the whole Representative advising together might with the more safetie Vote and consent for us they make over their Countries trust to a few Committees of their own and wholly betake themselves to martiall Offices and imployments exercising in them a new found arbitrary power over