Chapter VI: Preface: Christian Reader, (6)

I. These enemies of God, having once got footing again, with the favour and the fawnings of the foolish nation, went on fervently to further and promote their wicked design: and meeting with no opposition at first, did encourage themselves to begin boldly. Wherefore, hearing of some ministers peaceably assembled, to draw up a monitory letter to the king, minding him of his covenant engagements and promises (which was though weak, yet the first witness and warning against that heaven-daring wickedness then begun) they cruelly incarcerate them. Having hereby much daunted the ministry from their duty in that day, for fear of the like unusual and outrageous usage. The parliament convenes January 1, 1661, without so much as a protestation for religion and liberty given in to them. And there, in the first place, they frame and take the oath of supremacy, exauctorating Christ, and investing his usurping enemy with the spoils of his robbed prerogative, acknowledging the king 'only supreme governor over all persons and in all causes, and that his power and jurisdiction must not be declined.' Whereby under all persons and all causes, all church officers, in their most properly ecclesiastic affairs and concerns of Christ, are comprehended: And if the king shall take upon him to judge their doctrine, worship, discipline, or government, he must not be declined as an incompetent judge. Which did at once enervate all the testimony of the 4th period above declared, and laid the foundation for all this Babel they have built since, and of all this war that hath been waged against the Son of God, and did introduce all this tyranny and absolute power, which hath been since carried to its complement, and made the king's throne the foundation of all the succeeding perjury and apostacy. Yet, though then our synods and presbyteries were not discharged, but might have had access in some concurrence to witness against this horrid invasion upon Christ's prerogative and the church's privilege, no joint testimony was given against it, except that some were found witnessing against it in their singular capacity by themselves. As faithful Mr. James Guthrie, for declining this usurped authority in prejudice of the kingdom of our Lord Jesus, suffered death, and got the martyr's crown upon his head: And some others, for refuting that oath arbitrarily imposed, were banished or confined, when they had gained this bulwark of Christ's kingdom; then they waxed more insolent, and set up their ensigns for signs, and broke down the carved work of reformation with axes and hammers. In this parliament, 1661, they past an _act rescissory_ whereby they annulled and declared void the national covenant, the solemn league and covenant, presbyterial government, and all laws made in favour of the work of reformation since the year 1643. O horrid wickedness! both in its nature so atrocious, to condemn and rescind what God did so signally seal as his own work, to the conviction of the world, and for which he will rescind the rescinders, and overturn these overturners of his work, and make the curse of that broken covenant bind them to the punishment, whom its bond could not oblige to the duty covenanted; and in its design and end so base and detestable, for nothing but to flatter the king in making way for prelacy, tyranny, and popery, and to indulge the licentiousness of some debauched nobles, who could not endure the yoke of Christ's government, and to suppress religion and righteousness under the ruins of that reformation. But O holy and astonishing justice, thus to recompence our way upon our own head! to suffer this work and cause to be ruined under our unhappy hands, who suffered this destroyer to come in before it was so effectually secured, as it should not have been in the power of his hand (whatever had been in his heart, swelled with enmity against Christ) to have razed and ruined that work as now most wickedly he did, and drew in so many into the guilt of the same deed, that almost the whole land not only consented unto it but applauded it; by approving and countenancing another wicked act framed at the same time, by that same perfidious parliament for an anniversary thanksgiving, commemorating every 29th of May, that blasphemy against the Spirit and work of God, and celebrating that unhappy restoration of the rescinder of the reformation; which had not only the concurrence of the universality of the nation, but (alas for shame that it should be told in Gath, &c!) even of some ministers who afterwards accepted of the indulgence (one of which, a pillar among them, was seen scandalously dancing about the bonefires.) And others, who should have alarmed the whole nation _quasi pro aris & focis_, to rise for religion and liberty, to resist such wickedness, did wink at it. O how righteous is the Lord now in turning our harps into mourning! Though alas! we will not suffer ourselves to this day, to see the shining righteousness of this retribution: And though we be scourged with scorpions, and brayed in a mortar, our madness, our folly in these irreligious frolics, is not yet acknowledged, let be lamented. Yet albeit, neither in this day when then the covenant was not only broken, but cassed and declared of no obligation, nor afterward when it was burnt (for which Turks and Pagans would have been ashamed and afraid at such a terrible sight, and for which the Lord's anger is burning against these bold burners, and against them who suffered it, and did not witness against it) was there any public testimony by protestation or remonstrance, or any public witness? though the Lord had some then, and some who came out afterward with the trumpet at their mouth, whole heart then sorrowed at the sight; and some suffered for the sense they shewed of that anniversary abomination, for not keeping which they lost both church and liberty. It is true the ordinary meetings of presbyteries and synods were about that time discharged, to make way for the exercise of the new power conferred on the four prelates who were at court, re-ordained and consecrated thereby renouncing their former title to the ministry. But this could not give a discharge from a necessary testimony, then called for from faithful watchmen. However the reformation being thus rescinded and razed, and the house of the Lord pulled down, then they begin to build their Babel. In the parliament 1662, by their first act they restore and re-establish prelacy, upon such a foundation as they might by the same law bring in popery, which was then designed; and so settled its harbinger diocesan and erastian prelacy, by fuller enlargement of the supremacy. The very act begins thus: 'For as much as the ordering and disposal of the external government of the church, doth properly belong to his majesty as an inherent right of the crown, by virtue of his royal prerogative, and supremacy in causes ecclesiastic--whatever shall be determined by his majesty, with advice of the archbishops, and such of the clergy as he shall nominate, in the external government of the church (the same consisting with the standing laws of the kingdom) shall be valid and effectual. And in the same act all laws are rescinded, by which the sole power and jurisdiction within the church doth stand in the church assemblies, and all which may be interpreted, to have given any church power, jurisdiction, or government to the office-bearers of the church, other than that which acknowledgeth a dependence upon, and subordination to the sovereign power of the king as supreme.' By which, prelates are redintegrated to all their privileges and pre-eminencies, that they possessed 1637. And all their church power (robbed from the officers of Christ) is made to be derived from, to depend upon, and to be subordinate to the crown prerogative of the king: whereby the king is made the only fountain of church power, and that exclusive even of Christ, of whom there is no mentioned exception: And his vassals the bishops, as his clerks in ecclesiastics, are accountable to him for all their administrations; a greater usurpation upon the kingdom of Christ, than ever the papacy itself aspired unto. Yet, albeit here was another display of a banner of defiance against Christ, in altering the church government of Christ's institution into the human invention of lordly prelacy, in assuming a power by prerogative to dispose then of the external government of the church, and in giving his creatures patents for this effect, to be his administrators for that usurped government; there was no public, ministerial, at least united testimony against this neither. Therefore the Lord punished this sinful and shameful silence of ministers, in his holy justice, though by men's horrid wickedness; when by another wicked act of the council at Glasgow, above 300 ministers were put from their charges; and afterwards, for their non-conformity in not countenancing their diocesan meeting, and not keeping the anniversary day, May 29, the rest were violently thrust from their labours in the Lord's vineyard, and banished from their parishes, and adjudged unto a nice and strange confinement, twenty miles from their own parishes, six miles from a cathedral church, as they called it, and three miles from a burgh; whereby they were reduced into many inconveniencies. Yet in this fatal convulsion of the church, generally all were struck with blindness and baseness, that a paper proclamation made them all run from their posts, and obey the king's orders for their ejection. Thus were they given up, because of their forbearing to sound an alarm, charging the people of God, in point of loyalty to Christ, and under the pain of the curse of the covenant, to awake and aquit themselves like men, and not to suffer the enemy to rob them of that treasure of reformation, which they were put in possession of, by the tears, prayers, and blood of such as went before them; instead of those prudential fumblings and firstlings then and since so much followed. Wherefore the Lord in his holy righteousness, left that enemy (against whom they should have cried and contended, and to whose eye they should have held the curse of the covenant, as having held it first to their own, in case of unfaithful silence in not holding it to his) to call them out of the house of the Lord, and dissolve their assemblies, and deprive them of their privileges, because of their not being so valiant for the truth, as that a full and faithful testimony against that encroachment might be found upon record. Nevertheless some were found faithful in that hour and power of darkness, who kept the word of the Lord's patience, and who were therefore kept in and from that temptation (which carried many away into sad and shameful defections) though not from suffering hard things from the hands of men; and only these who felt most of their violence, found grace helping them to acquit themselves suitably to that day's testimony, being thereby prevented from an active yielding to their impositions, when they were made passively to suffer force. However that season of a public testimony was lost, and as to the most part never recovered to this day. The prelates being settled, and re-admitted to voice in parliament, they procure an act, dogmatically condemning several material parts and points of our covenanted reformation, to wit, these positions, 'That it was lawful for subjects, for reformation or necessary self-defence, to enter into leagues, or take up arms against the king: And particularly declaring, that the national covenant, as explained in the year 1638, and the solemn league and covenant, were and are in themselves unlawful oaths, and were taken by and imposed upon the subjects of this kingdom against the fundamental laws and liberties thereof, that all such gatherings and petitions that were used in the beginning of the late troubles, were unlawful and seditious: And whereas then people were led unto these things, by having disseminated among them such principles as these, That it was lawful to come with petitions and representations of grievances to the king, that it was lawful for people to restrict their allegiance under such and such limitations, and suspend it until he should give security for religion, &c. It was therefore enacted, that all such positions and practices founded thereupon, were treasonable.--And further did enact, that no person, by writing, praying, preaching, or malicious or advised speaking, express or publish any words or sentences, to stir up the people to the dislike of the king's prerogative and supremacy, or of the government of the church by bishops, or justify any of the deeds, actings, or things declared against by that act.' Yet notwithstanding of all this subversion of religion and liberty, and restraint of asserting these truths here trampled upon either before men by testimony, or before God in mourning over these indignities done unto him, in everting these and all the parts of reformation, even when it came to Daniel's case of confession, preaching and praying truths interdicted by law; few had their eyes open (let be their windows in an open avouching them) to see the duty of the day calling for a testimony. Though afterwards, the Lord spirited some to assert and demonstrate the glory of these truths and duties to the world. As that judicious author of the Apologetical Relation, whose labours need no eulogium to commend them. But this is not all: for these men, having now as they thought subverted the work of God, they provided also against the fears of its revival: making acts, declaring, 'that if the outed ministers dare to continue to preach, and presume to exercise their ministry, they should be punished as seditious persons; requiring of all a due acknowledgement of, and hearty compliance with, the king's government, ecclesiastical and civil; and that whosoever shall ordinarily and wilfully withdraw and absent from the ordinary meetings for divine worship in their own churches on the Lord's day, shall incur the penalties there insert.' Thus the sometimes chaste virgin, whose name was Beulah to the Lord, the reformed church of Scotland, did now suffer a violent and villainous rape, from a vermin of vile schismatical apostates, obtruded and imposed upon her, instead of her able, painful, faithful, and successful pastors, that the Lord had set over her, and now by their faintness and the enemy's force, robbed from her, and none now allowed by law to administer the ordinances, but either apostate curates, who by their perjury and apostacy forfaulted their ministry, or other hirelings and prelates journeymen, who run without a mission, except from them who had none to give according to Christ's institution, the seal of whose ministry could never yet be shewn in the conversion of any sinner to Christ: but if the tree may be known by its fruits, we may know whose ministers they are; _ut ex ungue leonem_, by their conversions of reformation into deformation, of the work and cause of God into the similitude of the Roman beast, of ministers into hirelings, of their proselytes into ten times worse children of the devil than they were before, of the power of godliness into formality, of preaching Christ into orations of morality, of the purity of Christ's ordinances into the vanity of men's inventions, of the beautiful government of the house of God for edification, to a lordly pre-eminence and domination over consciences; in a word, of church and state constitutions for religion and liberty, all upside dwon into wickedness and slavery: These are the conversions of prelacy. But now this astonishing blow to the gospel of the kingdom, introducing such a swarm of locusts into the church, and in forcing a compliance of the people with this defection, and that so violently and rigorously, as even simple withdrawing was so severely punished by severe edicts of fining, and other arbitrary punishments at first; what did it produce? did it awaken all Christ's ambassadors, now to appear for Christ, in this clear and claimant case of confessing him, and the freedom and purity of his ordinances? Alas! the backwardness and bentness to backsliding, in a superseding from the duties of that day, did make it evident, that now the Lord had in a great measure forsaken them, because they had forsaken him. The standard of the gospel was then fallen, and few to take it up. The generality of ministers and professors both went and conformed so far as to hear the curates, contrary to many points of the reformation formerly attained, contrary to their covenant engagements, and contrary to their own principles and practice at that same time; scrupling and refusing to keep the bishops visitations, and to countenance their discipline and power of jurisdiction, because it was required as a testification of their acknowledgment of, and compliance with the present government, and yet not scrupling to countenance their doctrine and usurped power of order required also by the same law, as the same test of the same compliance and submission. Its strange that some yet do plead for persisting in that same compliance, after all the bitter consequents of it. Other ministers lay altogether by in their retired recesses, waiting to see what things would turn to: others were hopeless, turned farmers and doctors: others more wily, staid at home, and preached quietly in in ladies chambers. But the faithful thought that this tyrannical ejection did not nor could not unminister them, so as they might not preach the gospel wherever they were, as ambassadors of Christ; but rather found themselves under an indispensible necessity to preach the gospel and witness for the freedom of their ministry, and make full proof of it, in preaching in season and out of season: and thereupon as occasion offered preached to all such as were willing to hear; but at first only in private houses, and that for the most part at such times, when sermons in public surceased (a superplus of caution.) But afterwards, finding so great difficulties and persecutions for their house meetings, where they were so easily entrapped, were constrained at last to keep their meetings in the fields, without shelter from cold, wind, snow, or rain. Where testifying both practically and particularly against these usurpations on their Master's prerogatives, and witnessing for their ministerial freedom, contrary to all law-interdictions, without any licences or indulgences from the usurper, but holding their ministry from Jesus Christ alone, both as to the office and exercise thereof; they had so much of their Master's countenance, and success in their labours, that they valued neither hazards nor hardships, neither the contempt of pretended friends, not the laws nor threatnings of enemies, adjudging the penalty of death itself to preachers at field conventicles as they called them. Now having thus overturned the church-government, by introducing prelacy, to advance an absolute supremacy; the effects whereof were either the corruption, or persecution of all the ministry, encouragement of profanity and wickedness, the encrease and advancement of popery, superstition, and error, cruel impositions on the conscience, and oppressions for conscience sake, by the practices of cruel supra-Spanish inquisitions, and all manner of outcries of outragious violence and villany: the king proceeds in his design, to pervert and evert the well modelled and moderated constitution of the state government also, by introducing and advancing an arbitrary tyranny; the effects whereof were, an absolute mancipation of lives and liberties and estates unto his lust and pleasure, the utter subversion of laws, and absolute impoverishing of the people. For effectuating which, he first procures a lasting imposition of intollerable subsidies and taxations, to impoverish that he might the more easily enslave the nation; next a further recognizance of his prerogative, in a subjection of persons, fortunes, and whole strength of the kingdom to his absolute arbitrement, 'in a levy of militia of 20,000 footmen, and 2000 horsemen sufficiently armed with 40 days provision, to be ready upon the king's call to march to any part of his dominions, for opposing whatsoever invasion, or insurrection, or for any other service.' The first sproutings of tyranny were cherished, by the cheerful and stupid submission generally yielded to these exorbitancies; under which they who suffered most were inwardly malecontents, but there was no opposition to them by word or action, but on the contrary, generally people did not so much as scruple sending out, or going out as militiamen: never adverting unto what this concurrence was designed, and demanded, and given for; nor what an accession it was, in the nature and influence of the mean itself, and in the sense and intention of the requirers, unto a confederacy for a compliance with, and a confirmation and strengthening of arbitrary tyranny. After the fundamental constitutions of both church and state are thus razed and rooted up, to confirm this absolute power, he contrived to frame all inferior magistrates according to his mould: And for this end appointed, that all persons in any public trust or office whatsoever should subscribe a declaration, renouncing and abjuring the covenants; whereby perjury was made the chief and indispensible qualification, and _conditio sine qua non_, of all that were capable of exercising any power or place in church or state. But finding this not yet sufficient security for this unsettled settlement; because he well understood, the people stood no ways obliged to acknowledge him but only according to the solemn covenants, being the fundamental conditions whereupon their allegiance was founded (as amongst all people, the articles mutually consented betwixt them and these whom they set over them, are the constituent fundamentals of government) and well knowing, that he and his associates, by violating these conditions, had loosed the people from all subjection to him, or any deriving power from him, whereby the people might justly plead, that since he had kept no condition they were not now obliged to him, he therefore contrived a new oath of allegiance to be imposed upon all in public trust both in church and state; wherein they are made to oblige themselves to that boundless breaker of all bonds sacred and civil, and his successors also, without any reciprocal obligation from him to them, or any reserved restriction, limitation, or qualification, as all human authority by God's ordinance must be bounded. Whereby the swearers have by oath homologated the overturning of the very basis of the government, making free people slaves to the subverters thereof, betraying their native brethren and posterity to the lust of tyranny, and have in effect as really as if in plain terms affirmed, that whatsoever tyranny shall command or do, either as to the overturning of the work of God, subverting of religion, destroying of liberty, or persecuting all the godly to the utmost extremity, they shall not only stupidly endure it, but actively concur with it, and assist in all this tyranny. Alas there was no public testimony against this trick, to bring people under the yoke of tyranny; except by some who suffered for conscientious refusing it, while many others did take it, thinking to salve the matter by their pitiful quibbling senses, of giving Cesar his due. Whereas this Cesar, for whom these loyal alledgers plead, is not an ordinary Cesar, but such a Cesar, as Nero, or Caligula, that if he got his due, it would be in another kind. Strange! can presbyterians swear that allegiance, which is substituted in the place of the broken and burnt covenant? Or could they swear it to such a person, who having broken and buried the covenant, that he who had sworn it might have another right and allegiance than that of the covenant, had then remitted to us all allegiance founded upon the covenant? However, having now prepared and furnished himself with tools so qualified for his purpose, in church and state, he prosecutes his persecution with such fervour and fury, rage and revenge, impositions and oppressions, and with armed formed force, against the faithful following their duty in a peaceable manner, without the least shadow of contempt even of his abused authority, that at length in the year 1666, a small party were compelled to go to defensive arms. Which, whatever was the desire of the court (as it is known how desirous they have been of an insurrection, when they thought themselves sure to suppress it, that they might have a vent for their cruelty; and how one of the brothers hath been heard say, that if he might have his wish, he would have them all turn rebels and go to arms.) Yet it was no predetermined design of that poor handful. For Sir James Turner, pursuing his cruel orders in Galloway, sent some soldiers to apprehend a poor old man; whom his neighbours compassionating, intreated the soldiers to loose him as he lay bound, but were answered with drawn swords and necessitated to their own defence: In which they relieve the man, and disarm the soldiers, and further attacked some others oppressing that country, disarming ten or twelve more, and killing one that made resistance. Whereupon, the country being alarmed, and fearing from sad experience Sir James would certainly avenge this affront upon the whole country, without distinction of free and unfree, they gather about 54 horsemen, march to Dumfries, take Sir James Turner prisoner, and disarm the soldiers, without any more violence. Being thus by providence engaged without any hope of retreat, and getting some concurrence of their brethren in the same condition, they came to Lanark, where they renew the covenant, and thence to Pentland hills; where, by the holy disposal of God, they were routed, many killed, and 130 taken prisoners, who were treated so treacherously and truculently, as Turks would have blushed to have seen the like. Hence now on the one hand, we may see the righteousness of God in leaving that enemy to him, whom we embraced, to make such avowed discoveries of himself, without a blush to the world, and to scourge us with scorpions that we nourished and put in his hands: And also, how justly at that time he left us into such a damp, that like asses we couched under all burdens, and few came out to the help of the Lord against the mighty, drawing on them Meroz's curse, and the blood of their butchered brethren; after we had sat, and seen, and suffered all things civil and sacred to be destroyed in our fight, without resentment. And though the Lord, who called out these worthy patriots who fell at Pentland to such an appearance for his interests, did take a testimony of their hands with acceptance by sufferings, and singularly countenanced them in sealing it with their blood; yet he would not give success nor his presence to the enterprise, but left them in a sort of infatuation, without counsel and conduct, to be a prey to devourers, that by a sad inadvertency they took in the tyrant's interest into the state of the quarrel. Which should have warned his people for the future to have stated the quarrel otherwise.