The Doctrine of the Sabbath, Title page 1 – Author to the reader
THESES SABBATICAE. OR, THE DOCTRINE OF THE Sabbath: WHEREIN The Sabbaths I. Morality. II. Change. III. Beginning. IV. Sanctification. are clearly discussed.
Which were first handled more largely in sundry SERMONS in Cambridg in New-England in opening of the fourth COMMANDMENT.
In unfolding whereof many Scriptures are cleared, divers Cases of Conscience resolved, and the Morall Law as a rule of life to a Believer, occasionally and distinctly handled.
By THOMAS SHEPARD, Pastor of the Church of Christ at Cambridge in New England.
What evill thing is this that ye do, and prophane the Sabbath day? did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this City? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by prophaning the Sabbath.
Nehem. 13 17, 18.
If ye hallow the Sabbath to do no work therein, then shall there enter into the gates of this City Kings and Princes.
Jer. 17.24.25.
London, Printed by T. R. and E. M. for Iohn Rothwell. Sun and Fountain in Pauls Church-yard. 1650.
THE Preface OF THE AUTHOR To the READER.
THat a seventh part of time hath been religiously and universally observed both under the Law and under the Gospel, is without all controversie; the great doubt and difficulty which now remaines concerning this Time, is the Morality of it, whether it was thus universally observed in the Christian Churches by unwritten Tradition, or by Divine Commission; Whether from the Churches Custome or Christs Command. Whether as a Moral Duty, or as a Humane Law; for although some would make …he observation of such a portion of time the soure fruit of the Ebionites superstitious Doctrines, yet all the Ancient and best Writers in the purest times do give such honour to it, that whoever doubts of it must either be utterly ignorant, or wilfully blinded in the knowledge of the Histories and Doctrines of those times; and must desire a Candle to shew him the Sunne at noone day: Clemens onelyonly seemes to cast some staine upon it by making all dayes equall, and every day a Sabbath; but upon narrow search, his meaning may appeare, not to deny the observation of the day, but onelyonly to blame the froth and vanity of sundry Christians, who, if they externally observed the day, they cared not how they lived every day after: nor is it to be wondred at, if Origen turne this day sometime into an Allegory and a continuall spirituall Rest-day, who miserably transformes (many times) the plainest Scriptures into such shapes, and turnes their substance into such shadowes, and beating out the best of the Kernels, feeds his guests with such chaffe and husks; and although many other Festivals were observed by those times, which may make the Sabbath suspected to be borne out of the same womb of humane custome with the rest, yet we shall finde the seventh dayes Rest to have another Crowne of glory set upon the had of it by the holy mēn of God in those times then upon those which superstition so soone hatcht and brought forth, so that they that reade the Histories of those times in observing two Sabbaths in some places, Easter, Whitsunday, yea divers Ethnick and Heathenish dayes, will need no other comment on those texts of Paul, wherein he condemnes the observation of Dayes; which beginning to flie abroad in the day light of the Apostles, might well out-face the succeeding ages, and multiply with more authority in darker times; yet so, as that the seventh dayes rest (call it what you will) still kept its place and ancient glory, as in the sequell shall appear.
When therefore the good will of him who dwelt in the burning bush of the afflicted Primitive Churches, gave Princes and Emperours to be their nursing fathers; pious Constantine among other Christian Edicts, injoynes the observation of the Lords Day: wherein (if he was bound by his place to be a nourishing father) he went not beyond his Commission, in swadling and cherishing this truth and appointment of Christ, and not suffering it to dye and perish through the wickednesse of men; the power of Princes extending to see Christs Lawes observed, though not to impose any humane inventions and Church constitutions of their own. Its true indeed that this Princely Edict was mixed with some imperfection and corruption, it following too short in some things, and extending too far in others; but there is no just cause for any to stumble much at this, that knowes the sick head and heart by the weak and feeble pulse and crasie temper of those clouted, though otherwise triumphing times.
The Successours of this man-child (borne out of the long and weary throwes of the poore travelling Church) were inlarged generally in their care and conscience to preserve the religious honour due to this day, untill the time of Charles the Great, who in the latter end of his reign observing how greatly the Sabbath was profaned (especially by the continuance and leaudnesse of Church-men) did therefore call five Nationall Councels (which I need not here mention) in all which the Sabbath is advanced to as strict observation to the full, as hath been of late yeers condemned by some in the Sabbatarian Reformers: that it is a wonder how any man should cast off all shame, and so far forget himselfe, as to make the Sabbath a device of Fulco, or Peter Bruis, Eustachius, or the Book at Golgotha, and put the Visor of Novelty upon the aged face of it, as if it were scarce known to any of the Martyrs in Queen Maries time, but receiving strength and growth from Master Perkins, was first hatcht and received life from under the wings of a few late Disciplinarian Zelots.
And it cannot be denied but that the Sabbath (like many other precious appointments and truths of God) did shake off her dust, and put on her comely and beautifull garments, and hath been much honoured and magnified since the times of the Reformation; the doctrine and darknesse of Popery (like that of the Pharisees) not only obscuring the Doctrine of Faith, but also of the Law and obedience of Faith, and so hath obscured this of the Sabbath; only herein they did excell their forefathers the Scribes and Pharisees, for these added their own superstitious resting from things needfull and lawfull to their meerly externall observation of the day; but they (unto their eternall observation of the name of the Day) added their abominable prophanations to it, in May-games and May-poles, in sports and pastimes, in dancing and revellings, and so laid it level, and made it equall (in a manner) to the rest of their Holy dayes; that as they came to shuffle out the second Commandment almost out of the Decalogue, so in time they came to be blinded with that horrour of darknesse, as to translate the words of the Commandment into some of their Catechismes, Remember to keep the Holy Festivals, and therefore those Worthies of the Reformation who have contended for all that honour which is due to this day, are unjustly aspersed for pleading for a jewish and superstitious strictnesse, when the cause they handle is no other in truth, then to vindicate the Sabbath both in the Doctrine and observation of it from Papists prophanesse; and therefore all the world may see that under pretence of opposing in others a kinde of Iudaizing upon this day, the adversaries of it do nothing else but maintain a grosse point of practicall Popery, who are by Law most ignorant and grosse prophaners of this day, and therefore when many of Christs servants are branded and condemned for placing so much of Religion in the observation of this day, and yet Bishop White and some others of them shall acknowledge as much as they plead for, if other▪ Festivals be taken in with it ordained by the Church, (as that they are the Nursery of Religion and all vertue, a meanes of planting Faith and saving knowledge, of heavenly and temporall blessings, and the prophanation of them hatefull to God and all good men that feare God▪ and to be punished in those which shall offend) they do hereby plainly hold forth▪ what market they drive to, and what spirit acts them in setting up mans posts by Gods Pillars, and in giving equall honour to other Festivals and Holy dayes, which those whom they oppose do maintaine as due to the Sabbath alone, upon better grounds.
The Day star from on high visiting the first Reformers in Germany enabled them to see many things, and so to scatter much, yea most of the Popish and horrible darknesse which generally overspread the face of all Europe at that day; but diverse of them did not (as well they might not) see all things with the like clearnesse, whereof this of the Sabbath hath seemed to be one: their chiefe difficulty lay here; they saw a Morall command for a seventh day, and yet withall a Change of that first seventh day, and hence thought that something in it was Morall in respect of the Command, and yet something Ceremoniall because of the Change: and therefore they issued their thoughts here, that … was partly Morall and partly Ceremoniall, and hence their observation of the day hath been (answerable to their judgments) more lax and loose; whose arguments to prove the day partly Ceremonial, have (upon narrow examination) made it wholly Ceremoniall; it being the usuall unhappinesse of such arguments as are produced in defence of a lesser Errour, to grow big with some man-child in them, which in time growes up; and so serve onelyonly to maintaine a farre greater; and hence by that part of the controversie they have laid foundations of much loosnesse upon that day among themselves, and have unawares laid the corner stones of some grosse points of Familisme, and strengthned hereby the hands of Arminians, Malignants and Prelates, as to prophane the Sabbath, so to make use of their Principles for the introduction of all humane inventions under the name and shadow of the Church; which if it hath power to authorize and establish such a day of worship: let any man living then name what invention he can, but that it may much more easily be ushered in upon the same ground: and therefore though posterity hath cause for ever to admire Gods goodnesse for that abundance of light and life poured out by those vessels of glory in the first beginnings of Reformation, yet in this narrow of the Sabbath it is no wonder if they stept a littele beside the truth; and it is to be charitably hoped and beleeved, that had they then foreseen what ill use some in after ages would make of their Principles, they would have been no otherwise minded then some of their followers and friends especially in the Churches of Scotland and England, who might well see alittle farther (as they use to speake) when they stood upon such tall mens shoulders.
Its easie to demonstrate by Scripture and argument as well as by experience, that Religion is just as the Sabbath is, and decays and growes as the Sabbath is esteemed: the immediate honour and worship of God which is brought forth and swadled in the three first Commandments, is nurst up and suckled in the bosome of the Sabbath: if Popery will have grosse ignorance & blind devotion continued among its miserable captives, let it then be made (like the other Festivals) a merry and a sporting Sabbath; if any State would reduce the people under it to the Romish Faith and blinde obedience againe, let them erect (for lawfull pastimes and sports) a dancing Sabbath; if the God of this world would have all Professours enjoy a totall immunity from the Law of God, and all manner of Licentiousnesse allowed them without check of Conscience, let him then make an every-day Sabbath: if there hath been more of the power of godlinesse appearing in that small inclosure of the British Nation then in those vast continents elsewhere, where Reformation and more exact Church-Discipline have taken place, it cannot well be imputed to any outward meanes more, then their excelling care and conscience of honouring the Sabbath and although Master Rogers in his Preface to the 39. Articles injuriously and wretchedly makes the strict observation of the Sabbath the last refuge of lies by which stratagem the godly Ministers in former times being drivē out of al their other strong holds, did hope in time to drive out the Prelacy and bring in againe their Discipline; yet thus much may be gathered from the mouth of such an accuser that the worship and government of the Kingdome and Church of Christ Iesus is accordingly set forward as the Sabbath is honoured; Prelacy, Popery, Prophanesse must down and shall down in time, if the Sabbath be exactly kept.
But why the Lord Christ should keep his servants in England and Scotland to cleare up and vindicate this point of the Sabbath, and welcome it with more Love then some precious ones in forraigne Churches, no man can imagine any other cause then Gods own Free Grace and tender Love, whose wind blowes where and when it will; Deus nobis haec otia fecit, and the times are coming wherein Gods work will better declare the reason of this and some other discoveries by the British Nation, which modesty and humility would forbid all sober minds to make mention of now.
That a seventh dayes rest hath (therefore) beene of universall observation is without controversie; the Morality of it (as hath been said) is now the controversie; in the Primitive times when the Question was propounded Servasti Dominicum? hast thou kept the Lords Day? their answer was generally this, Christianus sum, intermittere non possum; i. I am a Christian, I cannot neglect it: the observation of this day was the badge of their Christianity. This was their practise; but what their judgment was about the Morality of it is not safe to enquire from the tractates of some of our late Writers in this controversie; for it is no wonder if they that thrust the Sabbath out of Paradise, and banish it out of the world untill Moses time, and then make it a meere ceremony all his time till Christs Ascension, if since that time they bring it a peg lower, and make it to be a humane Constitution of the Church, rather then any Divine Institution of Christ Iesus; and herein, those that oppose the Morality of it by dint of argument, and out of candor and conscience propose their grounds on which they remaine unsatisfied, I do from my heart both highly and heartily honour, and especially the labours of Master Primrose and Master Ironside, many of whose Arguments and Answers to what is usually said in defence of the Morality of the day, who ever ponders them, shall finde them heavie; the foundations and sinewes of whose discourses I have therefore had a speciall eye to in the ensuing Theses, with a most free submission of what is here returned in answer thereto, to the censure of better minds and riper thoughts, being verily perswaded that whoever finds no Knots or Difficulties to humble his spirit herein, either knows not himselfe, or not the Controversie: but as for those whose chiefe arguments are reproaches and revilings of embittered and corrupt hearts, rather then solid reasons of modest minds; I wholly decline the pursuit of such creatures whose weapons is their swell, and not any strength, and do leave them to his tribunall who judgeth righteously, for blearing the eyes of the world, and endeavouring to exasperate Princes, and make wise men beleeve that this Doctrine of the Sabbath is but a late Novelty, a Doctrine tending to a high degree of Schisme, a phanatick Iudaizing, like his at Tewksbury Sabbata sancta colo. i. e. a peece of Disciplinary Policy to advance Presbytery, a superstitious seething over of the hot or whining simplicity of an over-rigid, crabbed, precise, crack-brain'd Puritanicall party: the righteous God hath his little dayes of judgment in this life to clear up and vindicate the righteous cause of his innocent servants against all gainsayers, and who sees not (but those that will be blinde) that the Lord hath begun to do something this way by these late broyles? the controversie God hath with a Land, is many times in defence of the controversies of his faithfull Witnesses, the sword maintaines argument, and makes way for that which the Word could not; those plants which (not many yeers since) most men would not beleeve not to be of Gods planting) hath the Lord puld up: the three innocent Fire-brands so fast tyed to some Foxes tayles, are now prety well quencht, and the tayles almost cut off; this cause of the Sabbath also the Lord Iesus is now handling; God hath cast down the Crownes of Princes, stained the Robes of Nobles with dirt and blood; broken the Croziers, and torne the Miters in peeces for the controversie of his Sabbath, Jer. 17.27. he hath already made way for his Discipline also (which they feared the precise Sabbath would introduce again) by such a way as hath made all hearts to ake, just according to the words never to be forgotten, of Mr. Udal in his Preface to the Demonstration of Discipline. The Councel of Matiscon imputed the irruption of the Goths into the Empire, to the prophanation of the Sabbath. Germany may now see, (or else one day they shall see) that one great cause of their troubles is, that the Sabbath wanted its Rest, in the dayes of their quietnesse. England was at rest, till they troubled Gods Sabbath. The Lord Iesus must reign; the Government of his House, the Laws of his Kingdom, the Solemn days of his worship must be established; the cause of his suffering and afflicted servants (not of our late religious scorners at Ordinances, Lawes and Sabbaths) who are now at rest from their labours, but in former times wept, and prayed and petitioned, and preacht and writ, and suffered, and dyed for these things, and are now crying under the Altar, must and shall certainly be cleared before men and Angels: Heaven and earth shall passe away, before one tittle of the Law (much lesse a whole Sabbath) shall perish.
But while I am thus musing, me thinks no measure of tears are sufficient to lament the present state of times, that when the Lord Iesus was come forth to vindicate the cause and controversie of Sion, there should rise up other Instruments of spiritual wickednesses in high places, to blot out the name and sweet remembrance of this Day from off the face of the earth; the enemies of the Sabbath are now not so much malignant time-servers, and aspiring brambles whom preferment principally byassed to knock at the Sabbath; but those who have eaten bread with Christ, (a generation of professing people) do lift up their heel against his Sabbath: so that what could not formerly be done against it by Angels of darknes the old Serpent takes another course to effect it by seeming Angels of light; who by a new device are raised up to build the sepulchres of those who persecuted the Prophets in former times, & to justifie all the books of sports, & the reading of them yea all the former & present profanations, yea scoffs & scorns against the Sabbath day. For as in former times they have Ceremonialized it out of the Decalogue, yet by humane constitutiō have retained it in the Church; so these of later times have spritualized it out of the Decalogue, ye out of of all the Churches in the world. For by making the Christian Sabbath to be only a spirituall Sabbath in the bosome of God out of Heb. 4. they hereby abolish a seventh dayes Sabbath, and make every day equally a Sabbath to a Christian man. This I hope will be the last, but it is the most specious and fairest colour and banner that ever was erected to fight under against the Christian Sabbath; and is most fit to deceive not only some sudden men of loose and wanton wits, but especially men of spirituall, but too shallow minds. In times of Light (as these are reputed to be) Satan comes not abroad usually to deceive with fleshly and grosse forgeries, and his cloven foot, (for every one almost would then discerne his haltings) but with more mystical, yet strong delusions, and invisible chaines of darknesse, whereby he bindes his captives the faster to the judgment of the great day. And therefore the watchword given in the bright and shining times of the Apostle, was, to Try the Spirits; and, Believe not every Spirit; And take heed of Spirits, who indeed were only fleshly and corrupt men, yet called Spirits, because they pretended to have much of the Spirit, and their doctrines seemed only to advance the Spirit; the fittest and fairest cobwebs to deceive and intangle the world in those discerning times, that possible could be spun out of the poysonfull bowels of corrupt and ambitious wit.
The times are now come, wherein by the refined mysticall divinity of the old Monks, not only the Sabbath, but also all the Ordinances of Christ in the New-Testament are allegorized and spirituallized out of the world: And therefore 'tis no marvel when they abolish the outward Sabbath because of a spirituall Sabbath in Christ, if (through Gods righteous judgment blinding their hearts) they be also left to reject the outward Word, because of an inward wo…d to teach them; and outward Baptisme and Lords Supper, because of an inward Baptisme by the Holy Ghost and spirituall Bread from Heaven the Lord Christ Iesus; and all outward Ordinances, Ministries, Churches, because of an inward Kingdome and Temple: and the Argument will hold strongly, that if because they have an inward Sabbath of Rest in the bosome of Christ (which I deny not) that they may therefore cast away all externall Sabbaths, they may then very well reject all outward Baptisme, Lords Supper, all Churches, all Ordinances, because herein there is also the inward Baptisme, spirituall feeding upon Christ and inward Kingdome and Temple of God. But thus they wickedly separate and sever what God hath joyned and may well stand together, through the madnesse of which hellish practise I have long observed almost all the late and most pernicious errours of these times arise; and those men who have formerly wept for Gods precious Sabbaths and Ordinances, and have prayed for them, and pleaded for them, and have offered their lives in sacrifice for them, and fought for them, yea, that have felt perhaps the comfort, sweetnesse, and blessing of Gods Sabbaths, yea the redeeming and saving-power of Gods Ordinances to their owne soules; yet through pretences of more spirituall enjoyments above, and beyond, and without all these, they can part with these their old friends without weeping, and reject them as polluted rags, and fleshly formes, and dark vailes and curtaines which must be drawne aside, that so they may not hinder the true Light from shining in them.
This therfore is the reason why the love of man… at this day is grown cold toward the external Sabbath; because the internall and spirituall Sabbath is now all in all: And therefore many men walk either with bold consciences, and will observe no Sabbath; or else with loose consciences, thinking it lawfull to observe it (if men will injoyn it) but no… thinking that they are tyed and bound therunto from any precept of God. That place of Hebrews 4. which they so much stick to▪ wants not light to demonstrate that the Sabbatisme there may well agree not onelyonly with the internall, but the outward Christian Sabbath: but some of the ensuing Theses will serve to cleare up these things. This onelyonly I feare; that because of these indignites done thus to Gods Sabbaths even by the under-workings of some of Gods owne people, that the time hastens, wherein if no man should speake, yet the right hand of the sore displeasure of a provoked God by plagues and confusion upon the glory of all flesh, will plead for his own Name, and for that in speciall which is engraven upon the forehead of his holy Sabbaths. Jerusalem remembred with regret of heart, in the dayes of her affliction and misery, all her pleasant things, and especially this of the Sabbath, Lam. 1.7. If the dayes of our rest and quietnesse cannot make us to relish the good things of his Temple in the fruition of our Sabbaths; then doubt not of it, but that the dayes of our affliction shall make a remnant to remember that they were pleasant things: of all the mercies of God to Israel, this is reckoned to be one of the greatest, that he gave his Lawes to Israel, Psal. 147.19, 20. And of all Lawes, this of the Sabbath; (For so the remnant of the Captivity acknowledged it, Nehem. 9.14. who perhaps had far lower thoughts of it before their bondage. And if the very making of it known be such a sweet mercy, what then is the rest and peace of it, the blessing and comfort of it? for which I doubt not but many thousands are admiring God in heaven at this day. And shall a shady imagination of an Every-day-sabbath, make us sell away for nothing such a heavenly and precious season, and make it common? The Lord Iesus wisht his Disciples to pray that their flight from Jerusalem might not be in winter, nor on the Sabbath-day, Matth. 24.20. accounting it a great misery, that his people should lose the publike benefit (through the disturbance of any) of one Sabbath-day; (for be it Iewish or Christian Sabbath, I now dispute not; sure I am it was a Sabbath-day, which it seemes was to continue after Christs Ascension to the Father, and therefore not wholly ceremonial) And shall we account it no affliction or misery to fight or flie, to ride or go, to work or play, to heare the Word in publike, or stay at home upon the Sabbath-day? Is it no mercy in these dayes to injoy many Sabbaths, which was so sore a misery in Christs account, and in the Apostles dayes to lose but one? if mans heart be lost in the necessary cumbers of the weeke, (upon the Sabbath) the Lord is wont to recall it again to him; if any feare that the time of Grace is past, the continuance of the Sabbaths, (the speciall seasons of grace) confutes him; if a mans soul be wearied with daily griefs and outward troubles, the bosome of Iesus Christ (which is in speciall wise opened every Lords day) may refresh him; and shall we have and professe so little love to such a time, (more precious then gold to humbled hearts) as to cast away such a rich portion of precious time, and make it common under a pretence of making every day a Sabbath, which is either impossible to do▪ or sinfull: the loudest voice (one of them of the love of Christ, which now sounds in the world continually in the yeers of his people, is this, Come into my bosome ye weary sinners and enjoy your rest; and the next voice to that is this of the Sabbath to call us off from all occasions, and then to say to us, Come to me my people, and rest in my bosome of sweetest mercy all this day: Which call would not be a mercy, if it were every day; for then our owne occasions must be neglected, which the wise and fatherly providence of God forbids; and spirituall work onelyonly minded and intended, which God did never command: Nor should any marvel that the voyce of the Law should containe such a voyce of Love, and therefore should not think that this controversie about the Law (or for this one law of the Sabbath is unfit and unsutable to these Evangelicall and Gospel times: for although the Law is dreadfull and full of terrour as considered without Christ, and is to man fallen a voyce of words and a voice of terrour and feare, which genders unto bondage; yet as it is revealed with reference to Christ, and a people in Christ, so every Commandment doth spirare amorem (as he speaks) and breaths out Christs love, for which the Saints cannot but blesse the Lord with everlasting wonderment that ever he made them to know these heart-secrets of his good will and love, especially then when he writes them in their hearts, and thereby gives unto them the comfort thereof. And verily if it be such a sweet voice of love to call us in to this Rest of the day, certainly if ever the Enlish Nation be deprived of these seasons (which God in mercy forbid) it will be a black appearance of God against them in the dayes of their distresse, when he shall seeme to shut them out of his Rest in his bosome by depriving them of the Rest of this day. What will ye do in the solemne day, in the day of the feast of the Lord? For lo they are gone because of destruction; Egypt shall gather them, Memphis shall bury them, their …ilver shall be desired, nettles shall possesse them; thorns shall be in their Tabernacles; the dayes of visitation are come, the dayes of recompence are come, Israel shall know it; the Prophet is a foole, the spiritual man is mad, for the multitude of thine iniquity, and the great hatred. Hos. 9.5, 6, 7. But let men yet make much of Gods Sabbaths, and begin here; and if it be too tedius to draw neere to God every day, let them but make conscience of trying and tasting how good the Lord is but this one day in a week, and the Lord will yet reserve mercy for his people, Jer. 17, 24, 25.26. for keep this, keep all; lose this, lose all: which lest I should seeme to pleade for out of a frothy and groundlesse affection to the Day, and lest any in these times should be worse then the Crane and the Swallow who know their times of returne, I have therefore endeavoured to cleare up those foure great difficulties about this Day in the Theses here following.
1. Concerning the Morality.
2. The Change.
3. The Beginning.
4. The Sanctification of the Sabbath.
Being fully perswaded that whosoever shall break one of the least Commandements, and teach men so, shall be called least in the Kingdom of God. I do therefore desire the Reader to take along with him these two things.
1. Suspending his judgment concerning the truth and validity of any part or of any particular Thesis, untill he hath read over the whole; for they have a dependance one upon another for mutuall clearing of one another; and lest I should bis coctum apponere, and say the same thing twice, I have therefore purposely left out that in one part, and one Thesis which is to be cleared in another, either for proofe of it, or resolution of objections against it; and although this dependance may not so easily appeare (because I have not so expressely set downe the method) yet the wise-hearted I hope will easily finde it out, or else pick out and accept what they see to be of God, in such a confused heap; for it was enough to my ends if I might lay in any broken pieces of timber to forward this building, which those that are able to wade deeper into this controversie, may please to make use of (if there be any thing in them, or in any of them) in their owne better and more orderly frame; for it hath been, and still is my earnest desire to heaven that God would raise up some or other of his precious servants to cleare up these controversies more fully then yet they have beene, that the zeale for Gods Sabbaths may not be fire without light, which perhaps hath hitherto been too little through the wickednesse of former times, encouraging the books one way, and suppressing those of most weight and worth, for the other.
2. To consider that I do most willingly give way to the publishing of these things; which I could in many respects have much more readily committed to the fire then to the light; when I consider the great abilities of others; the need such as I am have to sit down and learn; the hazards and knocks men get only by coming but into the field in Polemical matters, and the unusefulnesse of any thing herein for those in remote places where knowledge abounds, and where to cast any thing of this nature, is to cast water into the Sea; I confesse I am ashamed therefore to be seene in this garment; and therefore that I have thus farre yeelded, hath beene rather to please others then my selfe, who have many wayes compelled me hereunto; the things for substance contained herein were first preached in my ordinary course upon the Sabbath dayes in opening the Commandments; the desires of some Students in the Colledge, and the need I saw of resolving some doubts arising about these things in the hearts of some ordinary hearers among the people, occasioned a more large discussing of the controversie; to which I was the more inclined, because one among us (who wanted not abilities) was taken away from us, who had promised the clearing up of all these matters; when therefore these things were more plainly and fully opened and applyed to the consciences of some more popular capacities as well as others, I was then put upon it to reduce the Doctrinall part of these Sermons upon the fourth Commandment, into certaine Theses for the use of some Students desirous thereof; when being scattered and coming to the view of some of the Elders in the Country, I was by some of them desired to take off some obscurity arising from the brevity and littlenesse of them by greater enlargements and a few more explications of them which promising to do, and then coming to the bearing of many; I was then desired by all the Elders in the Country, then met together to commit them to publike view; which hitherto my heart hath opposed, and therefore should still have smothered them, but that some have so farre compelled me, as that I feared I should resist and fight against God, in not listning to them; in which many things are left out, which perhaps might be more usefull to a plaine people, which then in the application of matters of Doctrine were publikely delivered; and some few things are added, especiall in that particular wherein the directive power of the Moral Law is cleared against the loose wits of these times. We are strangers here (for the most part) to the books and writings which are now in Europe, but its much feared that the increase and growth of the many Tares and Errours in England, hath been by reason of the sleepinesse of some of the honest husbandmen; and that those who are best able to pluck them up, have not seasonably stood in the gap, and kept them out by a zealous convicting and publike bearing witnesse against them by word and writing, and that therefore such as have with too much tendernesse and complyance tolerated Errours, Errour will one day grow up to that head that it will not tolerate or suffer them to speak truth; We have … Proverb here, That the Devil is not so soon risen but Christ is up before him; and if any of his precious servants have slept and lien longer a be… then their Master hath done, and have not spoke… or printed soone enough for Iesus Christ in other matters, yet oh that in this matter of the Sabbat… God would betimes awaken; and that these weak…nesses might stirre up their strength: for I muc… feare and foresee that if it be not done, there is a… houre and a nick of temptation in such a juncture … times approaching, wherein the enemy will come … like a flood, and rise up from all quarters against the Doctrine of the Sabbath, and then farewell all the good dayes of the son of man, if this be lost, which then men shall desire to see and shall not see them. I have therefore been the more willing to let my owne shame and weaknesse appeare to the world (if so it be found) if this might be any meanes of doing the least good for keeping up the price of Gods Sabbaths in the hearts of any; I have therefore spent the more time about the Morality of the Sabbath, because the clearing up of this, gives light to all the rest.