the Scriptures of Truth c. This is to inform you That all our Books and Declarations that for these many years have been published to the World do clearly testifie to the contrary but yet for your sakes this is now given forth That God who is the Only Wise Omnipotent and Everlasting God we do Own and Believe in who is the Creator of all things both in Heaven and in Earth and the Preserver of all that he hath made who is God over all blessed forever to whom be all Honour and Glory and Dominion and Praise and Thanksgiving both now and for evermore And that Jesus Christ is his Beloved and Only Begotten Son in whom he is Well-pleased who was Conceived by the Holy Ghost and Born of the Virgin Mary in whom we have Redemption through his Blood even the Forgiveness of Sins who is the express Image of the Invisible God the First-born of every Creature by whom were all things created that are in Heaven and that are in the Earth Visible and Invisible whether they be Thrones or Dominions or Principalities or Powers And we do own and believe that he was made to be as Sin or an Offence and Curse for us who knew no Sin and was Crucified for us in the Flesh without the Gates of Jerusalem and that he was Buried and Rose again the Third Day by his own Power for our Justification and we do believe that he Ascended up into Heaven and now sitteth at the Right-Hand of God And that this Jesus is the Foundation of the Prophets and Apostles and our Foundation so that there is no other Foundation to be laid but what is laid even Christ Jesus and that he tasted Death for every man and shed his Blood for all men that he is the Propitiation for our Sins and not for our Sins only but for the Sins of the whole World For saith John the Baptist of him Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the Sins of the World John 1.29 And we do believe That he is our Alone Redeemer and Saviour even the Captain of our Salvation who saves us from Sin as well as from Hell and from the Wrath to come and destroyes the Devil and his Works who is the Seed of the Woman that bruises the Serpent's Head to wit Christ Jesus who is Alpha and Omega the First and Last That he is as Scriptures of Truth say our Wisdom Righteousness Justification and Redemption neither is there Salvation in any other For there is none other Name under Heaven given among men whereby we must be saved it is he alone who is the Shepherd and Bishop of our Souls he it is that is our Prophet whom Moses long since testified of in Acts 3.22 23. A Prophet shall the Lord our God raise up unto you of your Brethren like unto me him shall you hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you and it shall come to pass that every one that will not hear that Prophet shall be Destroyed from among the People He it is that is now come and hath given us an Understanding that we may know him that is true and a Rule in our Hearts even his Law of Love and of Life in our Inward Parts which makes us free from the Law of Sin and Death And we have no Life but by him For he is the Quickening Spirit the Second Adam the Lord from Heaven by whose Blood we are cleansed and our Consciences sprinkled from Dead Works that we might serve the Living God by whose Blood we are purchased And so he is our Mediator that makes Peace and Reconciliation between God offended and Us offending being our Surety of the New Testament and the Oath of God the New Covenant of Light Life Grace and Peace the Author and Finisher of our Faith Now this Lord Jesus Christ the Heavenly Man Emanuel God with us we all own and believe in whom the High Priests raged against and said He had spoken Blasphemy and the Chief Priests and Elders of the Jews took Counsel together and put him to Death the same whom Judas betray'd for Thirsy Pieces of Silver which he had from the Priests who gave a Large Sum of Money to the Souldiers to broach a Horrible Lye namely that they should say That his Disciples stole him away by Night whilst they Slept And after he was risen from the Dead you may see in the Acts of the Apostles how that the chief Priests and Elders Persecuted the Disciples of this Jesus for preaching Christ and his Resurrection this we say is that Lord Jesus Christ whom we own to be our Life and Salvation Now concerning the Holy Scriptures We do believe That they were given forth by the Holy Spirit of God through Holy Men of God who spoke as Scriptures of Truth say As they were Moved by the Holy Ghost in 2 Pet. 1.1 and that they are to be Read and Believed and Fulfilled and he that fulfils them is Christ And are profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction and for Instruction in Righteousness that the Man of God may be perfect throughly furnished unto all Good Works 2 Tim. 3.16 and are able as Divinely Inspir'd to make us Wise to Salvation through Faith in Christ Jesus And we do believe That the Scriptures are the Wordâ— of God for it s said in Exod. 20.1 God spake all these Words saying c. meaning the Ten Commandments given forth upon Mount Sinai and in Rev. 18. saith John I testifie unto every man that heareth the WORDS of the Prophesie of this Book if any man addeth unto These and if any man shall take away from the WORDS not Word of the Book So in Luke 1.20 Because thou believest not my WORDS and John 5.47 15.7 14.23 12.47 So that we call the Scriptures as Christ and the Apostles call'd them and as the Holy Men of God call'd them namely The WORDS of God Another Slander and Lye they have cast upon us is namely That we should teach the Negars to Rebel A Thing we do utterly abhor and detest in and from our Hearts the Lord knows it who is the Searcher of all hearts and knows all things and so can witness and testifie for us that this is a most Egregious and Abominable Untruth For that which we have spoken and declared to them is to exhort and admonish them To be Sober and to Fear God and to love their Masters and Mistresses and to be Faithful and Diligent in their Masters Service and Business and that then their Masters and Overseers will Love them and deal Kindly and Gently with them And that they should not beat their Wives nor the Wives their Husbands nor multiply Wives nor put away their Wives nor the Wives their Husbands as they use frequently to do and that they do not Steal nor be Drunk nor commit Adultery nor Fornication nor Curse nor Swear nor Lye nor give Bad Words to one another or unto any
will he not learn Righteousness c. O! it is not the work of Christ's Ministers to fall upon the Righteous and persecute the Innocent and let Swearers Drunkards Whore-Masters and Adulterers go free And do you not pronounce the Blessing of God to be upon them and Peace be unto them all in the State and Condition wherein they remain unconverted For are not the words general in the close of your Service And is this the best Entertainment you can afford Strangers viz. To Slander and Belye them Is this the best Provision you have for them in your Houses Surely these are very course Complements from such Persons as are lookt upon by others and by themselves too as Men of no small Breeding But this is no good Breeding nor manifests good Education but bespeaks the Educator not to be of Christ nor of God and this is the Production and Fruit of your Studdyings Is this to follow the Apostle's Advice who exhorts To Studdy to be Quiet 1 Thes 4.11 And 2 Tim. 2.15 16. Studdy to shew thy self approved of God a Workman that needeth not be ashamed rightly dividing the Word of Truth but shun Prophane and Vain Babblings for they will encrease to more Ungodliness c. And saith Solomon Prov. 12.22 Lying Lips are an Abomination to the Lord but they that deal truly are his Delight And in chap. 10.18 He that hideth Hatred with Lying Lips and he that uttereth a Slander is a Fool. And Psal 101.5 Who so privily Slandereth his Neighbour him will I cut off Read Rom. 1.28 29 30 c. And consider you that call your selves Ministers Are the Scriptures of Truth of no value of no use with you nor with your People which saith That whosoever is angry with his Brother without a Cause shall be in danger of the Judgment And whosoever shall say unto his Brother Racha shall be in danger of the Council But whosoever saith unto his Brother Thou Fool shall be in danger of Hell Fire Mat. 5.22 Now do you not know what this means Ought not this to be more seriously heeded by you Priests and your Hearers as you would not undergo the Penalty or how can you How dare you bring your Gift to the Altar before you be reconciled to your Brother And you that persecute or go about to persecute are you not of the number of those that mingle their Sacrifices with Blood O! what will become of you that persecute and speak all manner of Evil against God's People for Christ's sake Hesaith Blessed are the Merciful for they shall obtain Mercy But what then will likely be your Portions who ate Cruel and Unmerciful Further he saith Blessed are the Meek for they shall inherit the Earth What then will become of you who are Furious and Envious Again saith he Blessed are the Peace-Makers for they shall be called he Children of God Then what will become of you who stir up to Contention Dissention and Persecution this is no Gospel no Glad-tidings How can you say the Lord's Prayer Forgive us our Trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us So mark you are no more forgiven then you do forgive Mat. 25. Depart you Cursed into Everlasting Fire c. Why what 's the Matter For saith he I was an Hungred and ye gave me no Meat I was Thirsty and ye gave me no Drink c. But you may answer and say Lord When saw we thee a Hungry or a Thurst or a Stranger c Then will he say Insomuch as you did it not unto the least of these you did it not unto me And these shall go into Everlasting Punishment There you see the Sentence is given already you have heard it and you may read it there about the latter end And Mark If he dealt so with those then that did no good how much more sorer Punishment shall be inflicted on those that persecute such c. And so you that do profess and make a Trade of Christ's words for Money and persecute him where and in whom he is made manifest are not you made manifest in the sight of the Son to be the very Antichrist's professing Christ and yet are found Enemies to him and acting perversly against him and to be in the number of those inwardly ravening Wolves in Sheep's Clothing Christ speaks of in Mat. 7. and those evil Trees and evil Ground that bringeth forth nothing but Thistles Bryars and Thornes wherewith to rend and tear and prick the Lambs of God And are you not of the number of those who build up and adorn and garnish the Tombs of the Righteous even Christ's Sepulchre and observe his days and their dayes and yet persecute him and the Saints Where do you read that Christ or any of the Apostles gave any Command unto you for to observe dayes unto them And where was it ever the practice of any of the People of God all along the Bible either to keep Christmas-day or Candlemas-day or Childermas-day or All Saints-day or Michaelmas or Lent c Had you not all these from the Popes And how can you cry out against Popery and yet live in the practice of those things which you have from them and that they have set up If you will have a Mass for your Candles why not as well a Mass for your Cows and your Horses your Sugar-Canes and your Potatos We do not read that Isaac observed his Father's day or Jacob observed Isaac's day or did the Jews observe Joshua's or Moses's or Aaron's day or that any of the Saints did observe the Apostles dayes and called them Holy-Dayes Yea did the Apostles observe Christ's day or Stephen's day or James's day or any of the Apostles and Disciples of Christ and called them Holy-dayes Let us see the Scripture for it For you pretend the Scriptures to be the Rule for your Practices and yet how dare you say so and act quite contrary to the Scriptures of Truth For did not the Apostle leave the People of God to their Liberty in Rom. 14.4 5 6 7. concerning observing of days He that observed a day he was to observe it to the Lord and he that did not regard the day to the Lord they were not to judge one another about such things but you have thrown away this day also that do act contrary in judging and persecuting one another upon this account And doth not the Apostle judge and reprove the Galatians for observing dayes and tells them That they were Bewicht and calls them Fools Gal. 3.1 O foolish Galatians who hath bewitched you that you should not obey the Truth And chap 4.10 11. Ye observe Dayes and Times and Moneths and Years I am afraid of you lest I have bestowed upon you Labour in vain How came you to be so wise as to observe them and compel others to observe them do you not make your selves wiser then Christ or any of the Apostles What Wisdom is this think you that you should by it
force People to observe dayes came not this Power and Wisdom first from the Pope and not from the Apostles nor from Christ Jesus if you have it from Christ Jesus and the Apostles let us see where it is convince us with Scripture And where I say do you find in Scriptures that Christ or his Apostles did ordain the day you call Christ-Mass and the rest of the dayes attending it which you call Holy-dayes But to say the Truth you may rather term them Unholy by reason of the Ungodly and Debaucht Heathenish Practice So that whereas you pretend to Honour the Lord Jesus in and by them you do no other indeed but dishonour him and do Persecute others that will not do as you do and so break the Command of God who saith Six dayes shalt thou labour c. and here your Command is that they must play more then Six Dayes Now tell me if you can how many hundred of years after Christ and the Apostles were these days first observed as Holy-dayes and set apart to be kept as you do now keep them O! the Whoredoms and Debauchery and Drunkenness the Excess Sensual Pleasures Carnal Delights Carding Diceing Dancing that these dayes are filled up with so that the Devil hath more Work done him in these dayes then in many other dayes before or after So let the Witness of God in your Consciences answer Yea or Nay and let all Sober People judge whether or no I speak not Truth when I say God is more dishonoured and his Name prophanened and taken in vain and blasphemed more in the twelve Holy Dayes so called then in three times the number of them let I say your Consciences and all sober people judge So here you may see how the Apostle judged them that did observe days But consider whether or no doth the Kingdom of God stand in Meats and Drinks and Washings and in Days Nay nay it stands only in Righteousness and in Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost which Kingdom all people are in the first place to seek after And then concerning your Fasts in Lent c. the Lord will say Who required these things at your Hands as it is in Isa 58.3 4. Wherefore have we fasted and thou seest or regardest not c. Behold saith the Lord in the day of your Fasts you find Pleasures and exact all your Labours ye fast for Strife and Debate and to smite with the Fist of Wickedness Ye shall not fast as ye do this day to make your Voices to be heard on high Is it such a Fast as I have chosen a Day for a man to Afflict his Soul Is it to bow down his Head like a Bull-Rush And wilt thou call this a Fast see the Contents of the Chapter above where it is reproved for Hypocrisie But is not this the Fast that I have chosen saith the Lord To loose the Bands of Wickedness to undo the heavy Burdens to let the Oppressed go free and that they break every Yoak Is it not to deal thy Bread to the Hungry c. Now whether your Fast be such yea or nay let your own Consciences judge And the Apostle commands us to pray every-where lifting up holy hands without Wrath or Doubting 1. Tim. 2.8 Now consider this are not your hands like those fists of Wickedness and are you not full of Wrath and Doubting or are your Hands Clean and Holy Let the Witness in your Consciences judge and see if those Actions and Practices be not found among you as was amongst them whom the Prophet speaks of here which is called Hypocrisie as was said before And did not Judas carry the bag who was a Thief who betray'd his Master And are not they for his Bag and Money to hold it by intayle even all who are the Betrayers of Christ now in this day where he is made manifest in his People I say do they not betray him now and seek to crucifie him in his members or his members for his sake And is it not the Son of Perdition spoken of 2 Thess 23. who exalts himself above all that is called God whom Christ will destroy with the breath of his mouth and the brightness of his coming Look into your selves and read this if you can But are not such now worse then Judas who carried the Bag for we never read that Judas persecuted any for not putting into his bag as too too many now a dayes do and have done who will not go without the bag And are not all such Transgressors of Christ's Command who bids them go without a bag or Scrip and Freely you have received Freely give How will such answer Christ think you at the day of Judgment when they are brought before his Throne and before him at his Judgment Seat who then will say unto them Depart you Cursed c. but to his Sheep on his right hand Come ye Blessed of my Father c. and so enter thou into the Joy of the Lord and the other into everlasting Punishment who have been persecuting others for Worshipping the living God in Spirit and in Truth which Worship Christ Jesus set up above 1600. years since as you may read in John 4.23 24. Now Friends to look into your Families and into your own Practices are not we to see that first you are to be approved before you do minister both you and your Families For are we not to try all things and to follow you no farther then you follow Christ And were not thâ—â—ereans accounted Noble in that they searcht the Scriptures to see whether or no that which the Apostle had delivered them were according to the Law and the Prophets And must we be more ignoble then they think you and now to try whether you are in the steps of the true Prophets and of Christ and of the Apostles or in the steps of those False Prophets they cryed out against must we not try here by the Scripture viz. by the Prophets words and by Christ's and his Apostles Words Then for the Trying you the Apostle saith in 1 Tim. 3.1 2 3 c. A Bishop must be Blameless the Husband of One Wife Vigilant Sober of Good behaviour given to Hospitality apt to teach not given to Wine no Striker not Greedy of filthy Lucre but Patient not a Brawler nor Covetous one that ruleth well his own House having his Children in subjection with all Cravity Now are you Blameless are you Sober of Good behaviour and are you given to Hospitality are you apt to teach 'T is Storied of one Parson Gray of this Island being at a Feast the custom was for the Cups to be often handed about one of Brandy the other of Sack but as for the Sack the Parson cared not much for it having had enough of that Liquor whereupon said the pretended Reverend Parson when he saw the Cup of Sack come about again which he cared not for Lord saith he If thou wilt let this Cup
And had not he your Originals and was not he an Orthodox man and yet could not see Christ And did not the Priests and the Jews speak Hebrew naturally And the Grecians was not Greek their Natural Language and yet they could not see Christ nor could any of the Priests open Scriptures to the People but incensed them against Christ as you may see John 19. And is it not said in the Revelations That the Beast and the Whore had Power over the Tongues Rev. 13.7 And doth not the Apostle there call the Tongues Waters Chap. 17.15 And in 1 Cor. 13.8 Doth he not say That Tongues shall cease And where are your Originals then Now the Original viz. the Word is not that it that makes Divines for was not John the Divine a Fisher-man and who made him a Divine was it not Christ the Word that made him so For they had no Colledges nor Universities nor Schools to serve Seven Years in as Mechanick Men do and when they are out of their Time then they set up where they can have the best Trading And was not Paul a Tent-Maker and Aquila and Priscilla Tent-Makers and was not Luke a Physitian and was not Mathew called from the Custom and Peter and others of the Apostles were they not Fisher-men and yet were they not Preachers And were not Abraham and Noah Husbandmen and Isaac a Husbandman and a Grazier and was not Lot a Grazier and an Husbandman and were not Moses and David Shepherds and did not Moses keep his Father's Sheep in the Wilderness and David his Father's and was not Jacob a Shepherd twenty years with Laban his Uncle whom he faithfully served and was not Elisha a Plowman and Amos a Herdsman a Keeper of Cattel and a Gatherer of Fruits and what were the rest of them And so were not these Lay-men as you term them and these Mechanick-men that gave forth the Scriptures And can you make a Trade of Lay-men's and Mechanick-men's words whom you allow and approve of and yet will not suffer Lay-men and Mechanick-men to Preach and Teach and Speak now adayes I pray you consider and read the Scriptures and read your selves Did any of these serve Seven years at the School before they went to preach and learn the Seven Liberal Arts or Sciences whereof Musick is one are not they accounted by you University men as the Seven Seals of that Book spoken of in the Revelations and so is the Arms of your University at Oxford which is as much as to say That you are the only Persons that are fit to open those Seals and is not this to give John the Lye who said None was found worthy to open the Seals of the Book but the Lamb the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah Rev. 5.1 2 3 4 5. But what Parsonages or Vicaridges and Benefices had these Lay-men these Mechanicks these Husbandmen these Graziers Shepherds Customers Plowmen Herdsmen and other Tradsmen for Preaching and giving forth these Scriptures or what had Paul and his Fellow-Teat-Makers or Peter and his Fellow-Fisher-Men I pray you let 's see some Scripture for your Revenues and Parsonages Christ saith They shall take no Scrip nor Purse no Money with them and they should be contented to eat such things as are set before them And is there any thing more in the whole World got by any Trade now adayes by all them that serve Seven years or by the Husbandmen before mentioned now in the World that get more by their Callings than you do who call your selves and are called Priests and Ministers all Christendom over both amongst Papists and Protestants than you do I say by these Shepherds words and Plowmen Fishermen and Tent-makers words who never served seven years at your Colledges which were given freely forth at first by which you now get such great Revenues that you will not suffer any others neither Shepherds Plowmen nor Husbandmen nor Fishermen nor Tole-Gatherers hardly to meddle with their Fellow-Fishermen Fellow Plowmen Fellow-Husbandmen Fellow-Shepherds words I pray take the right Measure and the right Weights and measure your selves and see whether you would be so served your selves And do you think that you can open such men's words before mention'd with your Tongues and Languages now Whereas Pilate and the Jews and the Grecians could not open them then and are there better Tools think you to open them now then there were then not a whit It was said by one of your acknowledg'd and own'd Fathers St. Augustine so called upon that verse The Kingdom of Heaven suffers Violence c. saith he to this purpose A company of poor Mechanick and Tradesmen Tinkers Weavers and Cobblers c. do take the Kingdom of Heaven by Violence when such great Doctors and Learned as we are thrown down to Hell But further Is it not written in Isa 54.13 c. All thy Children shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be the Peace of thy Children In Righteousness shalt thou be Established c. And many shall gather together amongst them but not by me saith the Lord. Whosoever shall so gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake and no Weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper and every Tongue that shall rise up against thee in Judgment thou shalt condemn c. Now mark Is not this fulfill'd now adayes upon them that are Taught of God yea by you Ministers so called And in John 6.45 where Christ speaking to the Jews saith he It is written in the Prophets They shall be all taught of God every man therefore that hath heard and learnt of the Father cometh unto me Now this we witness this day and therefore it is that there is so much murmuring against us And in Rom. 10. The Word of God is nigh thee even in thy Mouth and in thy Heart That is the Word which we Preach saith the Apostle which every one is to Hear and to Obey And the Apostle relates in Acts 2. when the professing Jews mockt the Apostle saying They were drunk with New Wine Peter answering told them it was the third Hour of the Day and so not likely to be in Drink But this is that which was spoken of by the Prophet Joel And it shall come to pass in the last dayes saith the Lord I will pour out of my Spirit upon all Flesh and your Sons and your Daughters shall Prophesie and your young Men shall see Visions and your old Men shall dream Dreams and on my Servants and on my Hand-maids I will pour out in those days of my Spirit and they shall Prophesie Now this same we witness in our days as the Apostles did in their days And we see your Sun is turned into Darkness and your Moon into Blood verse 20. and your Sun is gone down and your Stars are fallen from Heaven as was prophesied in the Revelations And in Heb. 1.1 2. God at sundry times and in divers manners spake in times past unto the