The magistrates portraiture drawn from the Word, and preached in a sermon at Stowe-Market…The magistrates pourtraiture drawn from the Word, and preached in a sermon at Stowe-Market…

Thirdly, consider the solemn Obligation that lies upon us, by a National Covenant, (famous through the Christian world, and we infamous for the breach of it,) to promote, and procure with our utmost endeavours the Reformation of the Land. God hath, I believe, most of your hands to show for this, and darest thou who hast bound thy self in such a Covenant, give thy voice for an unworthy man to sit in Parliament, whom thy conscience, (if thou wouldest have patience to hear it,) will tell thee, he will never be the man that will help on that work with any Vote of his, yea, that is an enemy to it, and fears it more then desires it? if thou hast got the mastery of thy conscience, so far as to do this bold act, let me tell thee what thou doest; thou comest this day to declare in the face of all the Country, yea, before God, men, and Angels, that thou art a forsworn wretch; and if thou gettest this brand upon thy forehead once, go where thou wilt, thou dragest a chain after thee, that will bind thee over to the fearful ⟨p. 27⟩expectation of Gods wrath; that (come it sooner or later) will take hold on thee. And now tell me, hadst thou not better have been asleep in thy bed, yea, sick in thy bed, yea, dead in thy grave, then to have come hither to do so unhappy a days work? Oh, think when thou goest this day to give thy suffrage for any that thou didst see the Covenant with thy hand at it spread before thee; durst thou then venture, to blot out what there thou hast wrote, by a wicked and unworthy choice? Suppose one should put himself under an oath of friendship, to promote the good and welfare of another, to his utmost power, (as Jonathan to David) and this his friend, to whom he is thus engaged, falling sick, should trust him to bring a Physician to him, and he should fetch a murderer to poison him, or an Empiric which by his ignorance should kill him (which comes to all one) Oh, how would his oath rot upon his conscience? This thou doest, only with this aggravation, thou doest it to a Nation, he to a private person; before therefore thou subscribest, spend one thought more upon the matter. Consider, thou standest at the greatest advantage of paying thy vows, and performing thy Covenant this day, that thou mayest in all thy life;

Thirdly, consider the solemn Obligation that lies upon us, by a National Covenant, (famous through the Christian world, and we infamous for the breach of it,) to promote, and procure with our utmost endeavours the Reformation of the Land. God hath, I beleeve, most of your hands to shew for this, and darest thou who hast bound thy selfe in such a Covenant, give thy voice for an unworthy man to sit in Parliament, whom thy conscience, (if thou wouldest have patience to heare it,) will tell thee, he will never be the man that will help on that work with any Vote of his, yea, that is an enemy to it, and feares it more then desires it? if thou hast got the mastery of thy conscience, so far as to do this bold act, let me tell thee what thou doest; thou comest this day to declare in the face of all the Countrey, yea, before God, men, and Angels, that thou art a forsworne wretch; and if thou gettest this brand upon thy forehead once, go where thou wilt, thou dragest a chaine after thee, that will binde thee over to the fearful