A92140:570
A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved
A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved by Mr. John Goodwin, John Baptist, Dr. Jer. Taylor, the Belgic Arminians, Socinians, and other authors contending for lawless liberty, or licentious toleration of sects and heresies. / By Samuel Rutherfurd professor of divinity in the University of St. Andrews.A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved by Mr. John Goodwin, John Baptist, Dr. Jer. Taylor, the Belgick Arminians, Socinians, and other authors contending for lawlesse liberty, or licentious toleration of sects and heresies. / By Samuel Rutherfurd professor of divinity in the University of St. Andrews.
London: printed by R.I. for Andrew Crook, 1649
Chapter 20: The parable of the Wheat and the Tares, discussed and cleared.
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.
Answ. If a Becold fly to Munster, and gather a number of ⟨p. 244⟩robbers in to him,1 and upon pretext of conscience kill and destroy, and if that City will join with him, and defend such bloody heretics, we think under the New Testament sadder punishment is due to him, because the sin is more heinous, and the false Prophet so flying to a City, is not only a false Prophet, but a public robbing murderer. And the punishment should be greater as the Lord augments punishment for greater sins, as is clear, Heb. 2. 1, 2. so should his deputy the Magistrate do, and no doubt, the Lord slayeth millions of more, with the destroying Angel, of both pestilence and sword now (as manifestly never such documents of saddest divine vengeance was seen on a City in the Old Testament, as was to be seen in the City of Jerusalem) by the sword of Titus Vespasian, because they had slain the heir Christ; but Papists burning of men quick, because they adhere to the truth of Christ proves nothing, and we think a Julian now deserves a rougher death at the hands of men then any seducer or blasphemer under the Old Testament, and how ever, men with their wit think Servetus got more then heaped justice, because he was burnt for probabilities and niceties. I doubt not but men void of the zeal of God, if they had lived when the son of the Egyptian was stoned, and Baals Priests, and the Idolaters, Exod. 32. (who both acknowledged Jehovah that brought them out of Egypt, and the Scriptures and ten Commandments) which then were killed, would say the same, and many did say the same very thing of these, that they say now of wicked Servetus, but they but judge of sin, and measure divine justice with their own yard.
Answ. If a Becold flye to Munster, and gather a number of ⟨p. 244⟩robbers in to him,1 and upon pretext of conscience kill and destroy, and if that City will joyne with him, and defend such bloody hereticks, we thinke under the New Testament sadder punishment is due to him, because the sinne is more hainous, and the false Prophet so flying to a City, is not onely a false Prophet, but a publicke robbing murtherer. And the punishment should be greater as the Lord augments punishment for greater sinnes, as is cleare,