A30122:393
The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor showing…The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor shewing…
The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor showing that the day of grace may be past with him long before his life is ended : the signs also by which such miserable mortals may be known / by John Bunyan ; to which is added his Exhortation to peace and unity among all that fear God.The barren fig tree, or, The doom and downfall of the fruitless professor shewing that the day of grace may be past with him long before his life is ended : the signs also by which such miserable mortals may be known / by John Bunyan ; to which is added his Exhortation to peace and unity among all that fear God.
London: printed for J. Robinson, 1688
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Secondly; You must not only choose Men of Counsel; but if you would design the Unity and Peace of the Churches, you must choose Men of courage to govern them; for as there must be Wisdom to bear with some, so there must be Courage to correct others; as some must be instructed meekly, so others must be rebuked sharply, that they may be sound in the Faith; there must be Wisdom to rebuke some with long-suffering, and there must be Courage to suppress and stop the Mouths of others. The Apostle tells Titus of some whose Mouths must be stopped, or else they would subvert whole Houses, Tit. ⟨p. 50⟩1. 11. Where this Courage hath been wanting, not only whole Houses, but whole Churches have been subverted. And Paul tells the Galatians, That when he saw some endeavour to bring the Churches into Bondage, that he did not give place to them, no not for an hour, &c. Gal. 2. 5. If this course had been taken by the Rulers of Churches, their Peace had not been so often invaded by unruly and vain Talkers.
Secondly; You must not only chuse Men of Counsel; but if you would design the Unity and Peace of the Churches, you must chuse Men of courage to govern them; for as there must be Wisdom to bear with some, so there must be Courage to correct others; as some must be instructed meekly, so others must be rebuked sharply, that they may be sound in the Faith; there must be Wisdom to rebuke some with long-suffering, and there must be Courage to suppress and stop the Mouths of others. The Apostle tells Titus of some whose Mouths must be stop'd, or else they would subvert whole Houses, Tit. ⟨p. 50⟩1. 11. Where this Courage hath been wanting, not only whole Houses, but whole Churches have been subverted. And Paul tells the Galatians, That when he saw some endeavour to bring the Churches into Bondage, that he did not give place to them, no not for an hour, &c.