his fpirit, to illuminate their understandings, that one fhould not impofe upon the other, but commend them to God: Be brotherly, patient, long-fuffering, ready to help the weak, inform the ignorant, fhew tender'nefs to the mistaken; and with reafon and moderation to gain the obftinate.' In fhort, Proteftancy is a reftoring to every man his just right of inquiry and choice: and, to its honour be it ever fpoken, there is a greater likelihood of finding truth, where all have liberty to feek after it, than where it is denied to all, but a few grandees, and thofe too as fhort-fighted as their neighbours. But now let us Proteftants examine, if we have not departed from this fobriety, this Chriftian temperance? How comes it that we, who have been forgiven much, have ourselves fallen upon our fellow-fervants, who yet owe us nothing? Have not we refused them this reasonable choice? Have we not threatened, beaten and imprifoned them? Pray confider, have you not made creeds, framed faiths, formed and regulated a worship; and ftrictly enjoined all mens obedience, by the help of the civil power, upon pain of great fufferings, which have not been fpared upon Diffenters; though they have been, in common, renouncers and protesters with you, against the Pope and church of Rome. For this the land mourns, heaven is displeased, and all is out of due

course.

To give us the fcriptures, and knock our fingers for taking them; to tranflate them that we may read them, and punifh us for endeavouring to understand and use them as well as we can, both with refpect to God and our neighbour, is very unreasonable upon our Proteftant principles. I wish we could fee the mifchief we draw upon ourselves, and, which is worse, upon our caufe; for the Papift, in this cafe, acts according to his principle, but we against our principle; which fhews, indeed, that we profefs the better religion, but that we also are more condemnable. If we will confider it feriously, we fhall find it not much more injurious to fcripture, truth and good confcience,

that

that we believe as the church believes, than that we believe as the church fays the fcripture would have us believe. For where is the difference, fince I am not allowed to use my understanding about the fenfe of fcripture, any more than about the faith of the church? And if I must not receive any thing for faith or worship from fcripture, but what is handed to me through the meanings of the church, or her clergy, I fee myself in as ill terms, as if I had fat down with the old doctrine of believing as the church believes. And had the controversy been only for the word fcripture, without the use and application of it, (for, at this rate, that is all that is left us) truly the enterprise of our fathers had been weak and unadvised: but because nothing less was intended by them, and that the tranflation of the scripture was both the appeal and legacy of those Proteftant ancestors; for the reafons before-mentioned, I must conclude we are much degenerated from the fimplicity of primitive Proteftancy, and need to be admonished of our backflidings: and I heartily pray to Almighty God, that he would quicken us, by his repeated mercies and providences, to return to our first love, to the light and spirit of his Son, that we may become fons indeed; the ground of true Christianity, and from whence the true miniftry hath its fpring, which is open and free to those that are proficients in that holy school.

Let the fcriptures be free, fober opinion tolerated, good life cherished, vice punished: away with impofition, nick-names, animofities, for the Lord's fake; and let the fcripture be our common creed, and pious living the teft of Chriftianity, that God may please to perfect his good work of grace he has begun, and deliver us from all our enemies, both within and without.

SECT.

SECT. VI.

Of the propagation of faith by force.

Am now come to the laft point, and that is, propagation of faith by force: in which I fhall, with the ecclefiaftick, confider the civil magiftrate's fhare herein for though the churchmen are principally guilty; who being profeffed minifters of a religion which renounces and condemns force, excite the civil magistrate to use it, both to impofe their own belief, and fupprefs that of other men; yet the civil magiftrate, in running upon their errands, and turning executioner of their cruelty upon fuch as diffent from them, involves himself in their guilt.

That in this Proteftant country laws have been made to profecute men for their diffent from the national worship, and that thofe laws have been executed, I prefume will not be denied: for not only our own hiftories fince the reformation will furnifh us with inftances unbecoming our pretences, as the cafe of Barrow, Penry, &c. in queen Elizabeth's time, and others in the reign of king James and Charles the firft, but our own age abounds with proofs. Thoufands have been <excommunicated and imprifoned; whole families < undone; not a bed left in the houfe, not a cow left ' in the field, nor any corn in the barn: widows and ' orphans stripped without pity, no regard being had to age or fex: and what for? Only because of their meeting to worship God after another manner than ' according to the form of the church of England; but yet in a very peaceable way.'

<

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Nor have they only fuffered this by laws intended against them, but, after an exceffive rate, by laws known to have been never defigned against them, and only intended against the Papifts: and in these cases four times the value hath not ferved their turn. We can prove fixty pounds taken for thirteen, and not one penny returned, as we made appear before a com

mittee of the late parliament, which is the penalty of four offences for one; to fay nothing of the grofs abuses that have been committed against our names and perfons, by men of ill fame and life, that have taken the advantage of our tenderness, and the prefent posture of the law against us, to have their revengeful and covetous ends upon us. And though we are yet unredreffed, not a feffion of parliament has paffed these seventeen years, in which we have not humbly remonstrated our fuffering condition: we have done our part, which has been patiently to fuffer, and modeftly to complain: it is yours now to hear our groans, and, if ever you expect mercy from God, to deliver us. The late parliament, juft before its diffolution, was preparing fome relief for us, if that parliament could think of it, yea, begin it, we hope you will finish and secure it.

The better to remove all fcruples or objections, that politically or ecclefiaftically, on the part of the ftate or the church, may be advanced against us in this request, I fhall divide this difcourfe into two parts: first, Cafar's authority; next, the church's power in things that relate to faith and confcience; with my confiderations upon both.

Our bleffed Lord and Saviour, Jefus Chrift, did long fince diftinguish the things of Cafar from the things of God, in his plain and notable answer unto that infnaring queftion of the Jews, "Is it lawful to "pay tribute to Cæfar, or not? Render," fays he, "unto Cæfar the things that are Cæfar's, and to God "the things that are God's:" that is, divine worship, and all things relating to it, belong unto God; civil obedience to Cæfar. God only can be the author of right acts of worship in the mind: this is granted by all; therefore it is not in the power of any man or

Note, The greateft part of what follows in this fection, was first printed by way of appendix to the Continued Cry of the Oppreffed for Juftice,' anno 1675.

• Mat. xxii. 17, 21.

men

men in the world, to compel the mind rightly to worship God. Where this is but attempted, God's prerogative is invaded, and Cæfar (by which word I understand the civil government) engroffeth all. For he doth not only take his own things as much as he can, but the things appertaining to God alfo; fince if God hath not confcience for his fhare, he hath nothing.

Let

My kingdom," fays Chrift, " is not of this world; nor is the magiftrate's kingdom of the other world: therefore he exceeds his province and commiffion whenever he meddles with the rights of it. Christ have his kingdom, he is fufficient for it; and let Cæfar have his, it is his due. "Give unto Cæfar "the things that are Cæfar's, and to God the things "that are God's." Then there are things that belong not to Cæfar, and we are not to give those to him which belong not to him; and fuch are God's things, divine things, things of an eternal reference: but those that belong to Cæfar and his earthly kingdom, must be, of duty, rendered to him.

If any fhall ask me, What are the things properly belonging to Cæfar?' I answer, in fcripture language, "To love juftice, do judgment, relieve the "oppreffed, right the fatherlefs, and in general be a "terror unto evil-doers, and a praise to them that do "well" for this is the great end of magiftracy; and in these things they are to be obeyed, of confcience as well as intereft.

But perhaps my anfwer will be reckoned too general and ambiguous, and a fresh queftion started, Who

are the evil-doers, to whom the civil authority ought to be terrible?' But this ought, in my judgment, to be no queftion with men that understand the nature of civil authority; for thofe are the evil-doers that violate thofe laws which are neceffary to the preservation of civil fociety; as thieves, murderers, adulterers, traitors, plotters, drunkards, cheats, vagabonds, and the like mifchievous and diffolute perfons; men

VOL. IV.

f John xi. 38.]

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