and this cannot but be matter of great humiliation unto us in these sad and distracted times, when besides our civill breaches, which threaten desolation to the State, there should be so many and wide divisions in the Church; That after so long enjoyment of the Word of God, the Scripture should be to so many men as a sealed book, and they like the Egyptians, have the dark side of this glorious pillar towards them still; that men should be tossed to and fro l•ke children, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, and suffer themselves to be bewitched, devoured, brought into bondage, spoiled, led away captive, unskilful in the word of righteousness, unable to discern good and evil, to prove and try the spirits whether they be of God, always learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth;1 and this not only in matters problematical, or circumstantial, wherein learned and godly men may differ from one another, & yet still the peace and unity of the Church be preserved (for things of this nature ought not to be occasions of schism, or secessions from one another) but in matters which concern life and godliness, touching the power of Gods law, the nature of free-grace, the subjection or •he conscience unto moral precepts, confession of sin in prayer unto God, and begging pardon of it: the differencing of true Christian liberty from loose, profane •nd wanton licentiousness, and a liberty to vent •nd publish what perverse things s•ever men ⟨p. 127⟩please; the very being of Churches, of Ministers, of Ordinances in the world; the necessity of humiliation and solemn repentance in times of public Judgements; the tolerating of all kind of Religions in Christian Common-Wealths; the mortality of the reasonable soul, and other the like pernicious and perverse doctrines of men of corrupt minds (the Devils Emissaries,) purposely by him stirred up to hinder and puzzle the Reformation of the Church; These things I say cannot but be matter of humiliation unto all that fear God, and love the prosperity of Zion; and occasions the more earnestly to excite them unto this wisdom in the Text, to hear what God the Lord says, and to lay his righteous ways so to heart, as to walk steadfastly in them, and never to stumble at them, or fall from them.
and this cannot but be matter of great humiliation unto us in these sad and distracted times, when besides our civill breaches, which threaten desolation to the State, there should be so many and wide divisions in the Church; That after so long enjoyment of the Word of God, the Scripture should bee to so many men as a sealed book, and they like the Egyptians, have the darke side of this glorious pillar towards them still; that men should be tossed to and fro l•ke children, and carried about with every winde of doctrine, and suffer themselves to be bewitched, devoured, brought into bondage, spoiled, led away captive, unskilfull in the word of righteousnesse, unable to discerne good and evill, to prove and try the spirits whether they bee of God, alwayes learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth;1 and this not onely in matters problematicall, or circumstantiall, wherein learned and godly men may differ from one another, & yet sti•l the peace and unity of the Church be preserved (for things of this nature ought not to be occasions of schisme, or secessions from one another) but in matters which concern life and godlinesse, touching the power of Gods law, the nature of free-grace, the subjection or •he conscience unto morall precepts, confession of sinne in prayer unto God, and begging pardon of it: the differencing of true Christian liberty from loose, profane •nd wanton licentiousnesse, and a libertie to vent •nd publish what perverse things s•ever men ⟨p. 127⟩please; the very being of Churches, of Ministers, of Ordinances in the world; the necessity of humiliation and solemne repentance in times of publick Judgements; the tolerating of all kinde of Religions in Christian Common-Wealths; the mortality of the reasonable soul, and other the like pernicious and perverse doctrines of men of corrupt minds (the Devils Emissaries,) purposely by him stirred up to hinder and puzzle the Reformation of the Church; These things I say cannot but be matter of humiliation unto all that fear God, and love the prosperity of Sion; and occasions the more earnestly to excite them unto this wisdome in the Text, to hear what God the Lord sayes, and to lay his righteous wayes so to heart, as to walk stedfastly in them, and never to stumble at them, or fall from them.
- 1Sunt qu•edam falsae opiniones quae ulcus non gignunt: Sunt etiam errores venenati, qui anim•m depascu•tur, vid. Plutarch, de superstit.
