A76988:135
The arraignment of errorThe arraignment of errour
The arraignment of error: or, A discourse serving as a curb to restrain the wantonness of mens spirits in the entertainment of opinions; and as a compass, whereby we may sail in the search and finding of truth; distributed into six main questions. Quest. 1. How it may stand with Gods, with Satan's, with a mans own ends, that there should be erroneous opinions? Quest. 2. What are the grounds of abounding errors? Quest. 3. Why so many are carried away with error? Quest. 4. Who those are that are in danger? Quest. 5. What are the examens, or the trials of opinions, and characters of truth? Quest. 6. What ways God hath left in his Word for the suppressing of error, and reducing of erroneous persons? Under which general questions, many other necessary and profitable queries are comprised, discussed, and resolved. And in conclusion of all; some motives, and means, conducing to an happy accommodation of our present differences, are subjoined. / By Samuel Bolton minister of the Word of God at Saviours-Southwark.The arraignment of errour: or, A discourse serving as a curb to restrain the wantonnesse of mens spirits in the entertainment of opinions; and as a compasse, whereby we may sail in the search and finding of truth; distributed into six main questions. Quest. 1. How it may stand with Gods, with Satans, with a mans own ends, that there should be erroneous opinions? Quest. 2. What are the grounds of abounding errours? Quest. 3. Why so many are carried away with errour? Quest. 4. Who those are that are in danger? Quest. 5. What are the examens, or the trials of opinions, and characters of truth? Quest. 6. What waies God hath left in his Word for the suppressing of errour, and reducing of erroneous persons? Under which generall questions, many other necessary and profitable queries are comprized, discussed, and resolved. And in conclusion of all; some motives, and means, conducing to an happy accommodation of our present differences, are subjoyned. / By Samuel Bolton minister of the Word of God at Saviours-Southwark.
London: printed by G. Miller for Andrew Kembe, 1646
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.
There are so many truths now to be made known at the end of all things, that if there should not be many errors, and those dangerous errors also, we should be in danger to receive all under the notion of truth, to close with all, and swallow all that comes under that pretext. Where now by the abundance of errors, we are made more wary, more watchful. If it be given out that there is a great deal of false Coin, of light gold abroad, it will make men careful of what they receive, which if it were not so, we should receive all that comes; So here, certainly God would by this permissive providence of his, have us take heed as well what we hear, as how we hear, he would have us to take heed what we receive. God seems to speak, he would have us to entertain truth not traditionally, but knowingly, not because it is the mind of such and such men, but because it is the mind of God; not because discovered by such and such men, but because revealed of God.
There are so many truths now to be made known at the end of all things, that if there should not be many errours, and those dangerous errours also, we should be in danger to receive all under the notion of truth, to close with all, and swallow all that comes under that pretext. Where now by the aboundance of errours, we are made more wary, more watchfull. If it be given out that there is a great deale of false Coyne, of light gold abroad, it will make men carefull of what they receive, which if it were not so, we should receive all that comes; So here, certainly God would by this permissive providence of his, have us take heed as well what we heare, as how we heare, he would have us to take heed what we receive. God seemes to speake, he would have us to entertaine truth not traditionally, but knowingly, not because it is the mind of such and such men, but because it is the mind of God; not because discovered by such and such men, but because revealed of God.
In our days, in regard of the multitude of errors, God seems to speak to you, to be more then ordinarily wary in the receiving of truth, to receive it knowingly, weightily, humbly, to receive it after sound debates, not suddenly, least you be deceived ⟨p. 19⟩