Joshua Redivivus, or Mr. Rutherford's Letters

To the right honourable my Lord LOWDON. (17)

MY very noble & honourable Lord, Grace, mercy and peace be to you, I make bold to write to your Lo: that you may know the honourable cause ye are graced to profess, is Christs own truth. Ye are many ways blessed of God, who hath taken upon you, to come out to the streets, with Christ on your fore-head; when so many are ashamed of him, and hide him (as it were) under their cloak, as if he were a stolen Christ. If this faithless generation, (and especially the Nobles of this Kingdom,) thought not Christ dear wares, and Religion expensive, hazardous, and dangerous, they would not slip from his cause as they do and stand looking on, with their hands folded behind their back; when lowns are running away with the spoil of Zion on their back, and the boards of the Son of Gods tabernacle. Law and Justice are to be had to any, especially for money, & moyen; but Christ can get no law, good cheap nor dear. It were the glory and honour of you who are the Nobles of this land, to plead for your wronged bridegroom, and his oppressed Spouse, as far as zeal & standing law will go with you. Your ordinary logic from the event (that it will do no good) to the cause (and therefore silence, is ⟨p. 46⟩best, till the Lord put to his own hand) it is not (with reverence of your Lo: Learning) worth a straw: Events are Gods, let us do, and not plead against Gods Office, let him sit at his own helm who moderateth all events. It is not a good course to complain that we cannot get a providence of gold, when our laziness, cold zeal, temporizing, and faithless fearfulness spilleth good providence. Your Lo: will pardon me, I am not of that mind, that tumults or arms is the way to put Christ on his throne, or that Christ will be served & truth vindicated only with the arm of flesh and blood: nay, Christ doeth his turn with less din then with garments rolled in blood. But I would, the zeal of God were in the Nobles, to do their part for Christ: and I must be pardoned to write to your Lo: this: I dow not, I dare not but speak to others, what God hath done to the soul of his poor, afflicted, exiled prisoner: his comfort is more then I ever knew before, he hath sealed the honourable cause I now suffer for, & I shall not believe that Christ will put his Amen & ring upon an imagination: he hath made all his promises good to me, and hath filled up all the blanks with his own hand: