A reply to Dr. Mortons general Defence of three nocent [sic] ceremonies viz. the…A reply to Dr. Mortons generall Defence of three nocent [sic] ceremonies viz. the…

It is an odious and detestable thing with God, that the same field of the Lord should be tilled by ungodly and godly Bishops together; If in the same Church Popish Doctrine be taught with the Doctrine of the Gospel; Finally, if sacraments, ceremonies, and rites, partly Apostolic, and partly Popish, be used, and the Church be clothed with them as with a garment of linsey-woolsey. For what agreement hath light with darkness? And therefore those things which be not of God, but from them who have defiled Gods worship, are utterly to be cast away, which the Lord himself commanded to be done, when he charged utterly to destroy all things which appertained to those who should give us counsel to follow strange Gods, and to burn their garments, and all their stuff with fire in the middest of the street, to show our detestation of such Seducers, and that they might be an execrable thing to the Lord. And who knoweth not that these garments are a part of the household stuff of that Romish Seducer? There shall cleave nothing of the execrable thing, saith he, to thy hand, that the Lord may turn from the fierceness of his wrath, and multiply thee, as he hath sworn to thy Fathers, &c. Wherefore to bring these garments, seeing they be the household stuff of Antichrist, into the Church of Christ, what is it else then to provoke God to anger, and to kindle his fury against us? Certain it is, that he who is a true friend ⟨p. 104⟩of Christ, will never seek to have the ornaments of Antichrist in his own house, and much less will he suffer them in the Temple of Christ. For who can endure the arms of his enemy in his own house, and specially in the chiefest room of the same? And if God will have a thing destroyed and abolished, who are we that we dare build it up again. But it is Gods will that after the death of Christ all garments of Aaron and Levi should be abolished: and he hath plainly enough manifested every where, that in these our days he would have all ungodly and vain ceremonies, pomps, deceits, and paintings of the Papists driven away by the shining brightness of the Gospel: because these things have no power in them to kindle and increase godliness, but greatly avail to the quenching of the same.

It is an odious and detestable thing with God, that the same field of the Lord should bee tilled by ungodlie and godlie Bishops together; If in the same Church Popish Doctrine be taught with the Doctrine of the Gospell; Finallie, if sacraments, ceremonies, and rites, partlie Apostolicke, and partlie Popish, be used, and the Church bee cloathed with them as with a garment of linsey-wossey. For what agreement hath light with darknesse? And therfore those things which bee not of God, but from them who haue defiled Gods worship, are utterlie to be cast away, which the Lord himselfe commanded to bee done, when hee charged utterlie to destroy all things which appertained to those who should giue vs counsell to follow strange Gods, and to burne their garments, and all their stuffe with fire in the middest of the street, to shew our detestation of such Seducers, and that they might bee an execrable thing to the Lord. And who knoweth not that these garments are a part of the houshould stuffe of that Romish Seducer? There shall cleave nothing of the execrable thing, sayth hee, to thy hand, that the Lord may turne from the fiercenesse of his wrath, and multiplie thee, as he hath sworne to thy Fathers, &c. Wherefore to bring these garments, seeing they bee the houshold stuffe of Antichrist, into the Church of Christ, what is it else then to provoke God to anger, and to kindle his furie against us? Certaine it is, that he who is a true friend