the nations. Such as drunk the blood of the saints, the prophets and martyrs, did make war against the saints, and overcame them. But now the saints and the Lamb have the victory; glory to the highest. And to that which they ravened from, are people come now.

William Dell's book, called, A Stumbling Stone.' His principles follow.

P. HE saith, 'The carnal church is a great enemy to Christ's church.' And they are offended at Christ, because in him there was no human nor earthly thing,' page 13. It is the greatest error that reigns under antichrist's kingdom, to affirm that the universities are the foundation of ministers. And Peter undoubtedly taxeth the universities, with such men to be false doctors, false prophets, out of which proceed all the teachers in the world, in their towns and cities, under the whole kingdom of antichrist, which have such doctors and teachers in the university for the whole world,' page 27.

A. The rest of the priests and teachers which are come from the universities, and such as have set up themselves to be teachers, (as in this book ye may see,) say that Christ in heaven hath a human body, and others say that he hath a human soul, and thou say st, there is no human or earthly thing in him. And forasmuch as thy saying it is the greatest error under antichrist's kingdom, to say the universities are the fountains of ministers.' That is a true word; it will be well for thee if thou be not caught in this fountain among these errors, maintaining of them; for such are they that quench the spirit, and speak the scriptures in that spirit which they came not by. And these are they that have deceived the whole world. And all such as make ministers in their wills, quench the spirit, limit the Holy One, despise prophesying, make a trade of scriptures which came not by the will of man, for the satisfying of their own wills. And happy would Dell have been, if he had lived in what he spoke.

Gyles Fermin, called pastor of the church at Shalfor in Essex, his book called, Stablishing against Shaking.' His principles follow.

P. HE saith, Take away learning, and England becomes a dunghill.'

A. Peter and John were unlearned men, yet were no dunghill. P. He saith, True teachers plead hard for their people's ears. The Quakers say we are not ministers, because we preach for hire; and are covetous and divine for money; and the apostles took wages and maintenance,' and saith, they eat, and drank,' &c. and he saith, The Lord did ever beteem his ministers honourable wages,' page 5. And 'the labourer is worthy of his hire,' page 6.

A. When the apostle speaks of taking wages, of eating and drinking, to them that examined him, he speaks this among the saints, gathered out of the world, from among Jews and Gentiles. This was not spoken to such as held up temples, tithes, and priests, but a gathered, separated people from them. And the gospel they preached, the power of God, opened the hearts of the people to give unto them, and not by an outward law. And the great work of the apostles was not to wrangle about their maintenance, as is the great work of the man-made ministers now in our age, such as divine for money, and prophesy for money. And hire was ever looked upon to be the false prophets wages, who are without the spirit of God that gave forth the scriptures; for the spirit of God would never value, equal, or measure his gift with the earthly things. And when the apostle speaketh of the labourer being worthy of his hire, he saith, Who goes a warfare at his own charge?' and they that were taught, were to communicate every good thing to them. This still was spoken among the saints, this was not spoken in temples, and synagogues, and to them that took tithes; for those were warred against by them that were in the substance: and the warfare was to bring people to the substance; out of the first Adam to the second; and out of the shadows. And that whereby the ministers had the double honour, was the life and the power: such measured not a gift with earthly things; which brought them to lay down all their estates at the apostles' feet; which was more than tithes. But this gospel we see not among you, nor this power, the power of God; neither preachers nor hearers. And the apostles did not bid the Gentiles, nor the Jews that were in their forms and inventions, and traditions, that had elders among them; they did not bid them obey them that had rule over them; but they brought them from under those rulers, from those elders to Christ the substance, the elder brother: and so who was grown more than another in the life, was the elder, and watched over the weak. And it is manifest that you never received the gift of God, whose work is thus to jangle for outward things. For the gift of God which is perfect, would break through the imperfect, and raise up the witness to give freely.

P. He saith, No man can be a good text man unless he have attained to the languages which hath cost us so much; and he cannot know

the errors but by learning.' And saith, he may thus speak for the necessity of arts, without which men cannot be sufficient ministers.' A. None are made ministers of Christ by arts, nor by languages; let them get all the languages upon the earth, they are still but naturalists, and men learning other men's natural language; he who hath learned but that which is natural, knows but that which is natural, what another natural man can speak; and all their arts are there. Now that which makes a minister of Christ is beyond the natural: yea, all the natural languages upon the earth; and seeth before they were. Let it cost them never so much, yea gold and silver, a wedge of gold, and the most precious things upon the earth, cannot purchase, nor make a minister of Christ; that which makes them is the spirit of God, and none know the scriptures given forth from the spirit of God, but with the spirit of God. Nor do any know the errors but by the spirit of God. Now if all men upon the earth have scriptures, in every one of their natural languages; yet none of these know the errors, nor the scriptures without the spirit of God from which they were given forth.

P. He saith, If the magistrates could find out any other way for maintenance for ministers, they would part with tithes, which have been these many hundreds of years.' See page 9. And there are many ministers will not take their tithes, but they compound with the people for their tithes.' And 'we dare not trust the people for maintenance. But we see care hath been taken for us many hundred years before we were born,' &c. See page 10. And why do not the Quakers charge us with idleness, as well as with taking wages.'

A. Are ye not all a company of idle fellows, bred up at schools in the pride and filthiness of the earth? And when ye come out ye raven after great benefices, and trouble parishes, and stir up the people to envy against one another, like a company of madmen, and sue, and hale people up and down to courts for maintenance. Are not these the works of belly-gods? And is the magistrate the lord of the vineyard, that he must allot a maintenance to the labourers? Hath not Christ already told his ministers what they must have? and were not the apostles to go forth without any thing, and to trust the Lord, and the people, which you dare not trust? And ye dare not trust the gospel to maintain you; but you have a set benefice, or augmentation, or a magistrate's power to give you maintenance before you go out to a parish. Oh! how are ye biting and devouring one another for such things as were not accounted of, or esteemed among the saints, who suffered joyfully the spoiling of their goods, by such devourers as you are! And is that your deceit, to compound with people for their tithes? and is that your cloak then, to say you do not take tithes? And since the days of the apostles, in the apostacy, since the power of God, the gospel, hath been

up.

lost, which men should have preached and lived on, have tithes been set So you that have had the form of godliness, denied the power, (the gospel,) and have ravened from the life of God, your gospel will not maintain you; and ye cry, help magistrate, help law, cast into prison, summon up to courts,' and this hath been your work for many hundred years for maintenance. And so all sober men that stand and look on are ashamed of you. Thus the poor people are deceived with your false covers, and wolfish spirits. You have gotten the sheep's clothing upon your backs; but now are the vials, and hail storms fallen upon your heads, which make many of you gnaw your tongues; and now are the thunders coming out, and the plagues, which make many of you fret yourselves.

P. He saith, False apostles and deceitful workers, and satan transforming himself into an angel of light,' &c. See page 11.

A. Christ said false prophets, and antichrists, the inwardly raveners in the sheep's clothing, should come; the apostles saw they were come before their decease, who were devouring, as most of the epistles declare of them; the apostles saw them before their decease; that made a prey upon the saints; that served not the Lord Jesus Christ but their own bellies. Now since the days of the apostles hath the world run after them; and they have devoured the world, and they have gotten the sheep's clothing upon their backs: therefore have ye deceived the world. Now, you have been the skirts, and the suburbs of this great city; the day hath declared you, your city is besieged, and the Lamb and the saints have conquered it: by whom the saints have been slain, and their blood drunk. In which city hath a trumpet sounded, and the piping hath been, and the mourners have gone about the city. But now are come to her lamentation, desolation, and wo, and to all her merchandise, that hath builded up and thrown down, whereby the world was brought into confusion; the faith, and truth, and life, and love being reprobated from, and that the saints were in, that gave forth the scriptures. That which the apostles saw coming in before their decease, which Christ said should come, hath ruled and reigned, since their decease, until this day that Christ hath come and made it manifest.

P. He saith, The devil could not do mischief in the church where the candle is burning, and light shining: but he gets on his garb: and the weakest of children are carried about with every wind of doctrine.' See page 17. He saith, The prince of darkness is transformed into an angel of light, he walketh in the churches." See page 18.

A. The church of Christ is the pillar and ground of truth, which truth the devil is out of, and abode not in it: he walks on the outside, and is not in the church, and so, child n thou knowest not, that are

heirs of the kingdom of Christ, and are of his church, the pillar and ground of truth. And the devil, and false prophets, and mother of harlots, though they have all the sheep's clothing, they cannot get into the church where the candle is, and the burning shining light: not the devil with all his garb,' as thou callest it. Let the whore who hath ravened from the spirit of God, be arrayed never so gorgeously, that is the church, the pillar and ground of truth, that is in the spirit of God, where the candle is burning and light shining; this the whore, devil, wolves, false prophets, antichrists, and beast, are out of, raging on the outside, in the earth? So the church of Christ is the pillar and ground of truth, and here the elect is known that cannot be deceived. And the devil, the prince of darkness, though he transform himself into an angel of light, he doth not walk in the church, for the church is in God, the pillar and ground of truth, and out of that he is, and all his apostles, and his messengers, and truth is atop of him, and them all, and with it they are shut out.

P. He saith, Honour is the expressing of the inward respect that we bear to persons,' and many scriptures he brings for bowing and for master, page 23. and so stumbles at thee and thou.

A. Which shows he never learned his accidence, nor Bible, and is a transgressor of Christ's commands, who saith, Be not of men called master; for ye have one master even Christ, and ye are all brethren;' and a transgressor of the law, for they that respect persons commit sin,' and are convinced of the law as transgressors, and reprobate concerning the faith, which is held without the respect of persons. And though they bowed in the old time: several bowed before the angels: yet Christ is come by whom all things were made, the salvation to the ends of the earth; to whom powers, principalities, thrones, and dominions must be subject: to whom angels, and thrones must bow; yea things in heaven, and things in earth, and every tongue confess him to the glory of God, and every knee bow:' and there people come into the unity, and there they hold the head.

P. He saith, The Quakers' light teacheth to forsake the scriptures; and set up a spirit in man, which will not be examined by scriptures.' See page 26.

A. He is out of the truth who speaks it: for the Quakers have not received the spirit of the world, but the spirit of God; by which they know the things which are freely given of God, and know the scriptures given forth from the spirit of God: and with the same spirit the scriptures are owned again.

P. He saith, Paul swore, after Christ, and the angels swore,' page 27. And saith, I wonder Paul should so forget himself, and sin so VOL. III.

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