The excellency of a gracious spirit Delivered in a treatise upon the 14. of…The excellency of a gracious spirit Deliuered in a treatise upon the 14. of…

yea, and witnesses for them, that their lives are other lives, singular from other men; and in this witness their souls rejoice.

yea, and witnesses for them, that their lives are other lives, singular from other men; and in this witnesse their soules rejoyce.

But is there not a proud fantastical singularity? may not pride, sullenness, and fancy, carry men on in singular ways, differing from other men, conceiting themselves to be wiser than others, loving to satisfy some odd humours of their own? ⟨p. 156⟩If it were any choiceness, or excellency of their spirits, it were another matter, we would not speak against them; but it is this proud, hypocritical, humorous singularity, we speak against.

But is there not a proud phantasticall singularity? may not pride, sullennesse, and fancie, carry men on in singular wayes, differing from other men, conceiting themselves to be wiser than others, loving to satisfie some odde humours of their own? ⟨p. 156⟩If it were any choicenesse, or excellency of their spirits, it were another matter, we would not speake against them; but it is this proud, hypocriticall, humorous singularity, we speake against.

To this I answer; If you indeed should do as they do, if you should live after a different manner from the common course of the world, having no other principles than those you have, it would certainly be singularity, pride, hypocrisy, and humour in you; and thus your consciences would tell you, and that because you had not principles to carry you out in this way, you have not spirits suitable to it; and you judging of others, by that you see in your selves, this makes you to think, the different ways of Gods servants, is only from pride, and humorous singularity; yea, and they themselves know, that there was a time indeed, where in if they should have done, as now they do, it would have been no other in them, then that you