The dying man's testament to the Church of Scotland, or, A treatise concerning scandal…

1. It cannot be denied, but such a case may be, and ⟨p. 127⟩often de facto is, that Church-officers are defective in the exercising of Discipline upon scandalous persons, what from negligence, what from unfaithfulness, what from fainting, or some other sinful infirmity at the best, as may be gathered from the second and third Chapters of the Revelation.

1. It cannot be denied, but such a case may be, and ⟨p. 127⟩often de facto is, that Church-officers are defective in the exercising of Discipline upon scandalous persons, what from negligence, what from unfaithfulnesse, what from fainting, or some other finfull infirmity at the best, as may be gathered from the second and third Chapters of the Revelation.

2. Though this be true, yet possibly it is not always their fault when it is charged on them: as suppose, 1. That no private person, or, possibly even the complainer, hath admonished such persons as are counted scandalous, nor have given-in sufficient proofs of their scandal to any Church-judicatory; or, it may be, many are counted scandalous who cannot legally and judicially be found to be such; for it is more easy to assert a scandal, than to prove, even often when it is true: and it being rather a ground of irritation than edification, when a process is entered, and not convincingly made-out, Therefore often in duty some processes are abstained. Sometimes also Church-officers may be faithfully dealing with persons to recover them from scandals, and yet not find it fit for edification to proceed to high Censures; In such cases, Church-officers cannot reasonably be blamed, and those who complain would pose their own consciences, if they have exonerated themselves and done their duty, and have put it to the Officers doors, before they account it their fault: And it is most unbecoming for persons to charge others and to be defective in their own duty, which necessarily inferreth the other. And if it were as difficult and weighty a task to calumniate and groundlessly to charge Church-officers with this, as it is, faithfully to follow private admonition, there would not be so much of the one, and so little of the other. And if it be rightly looked to, it will not be easy to charge them with gross defects (and if they be not gross, the matter is not so to be stumbled at, they being in the exercise of Discipline as in other things) for, that