The Bloody Tenant of Persecution for the Cause of Conscience, Part 3 · Chapter 53 – Chapter 55
CHAP. LIV.
Peace.
I Pray now (lastly) proceed to the Authours Reason why Christs Disciples should be so far from persecuting, that they ought to blesse them that curse them, and pray for them that persecute them, because of the freenesse of Gods grace, and the deepenesse of his Councels, calling them that are Enemies, Persecutors, No people, to become meeke Lambes, the sheep and people of God, according to 1 Pet. 2. 20. You which were not a people, are now a people, &c. and Matth. 20. 6. Some come at the Last houre, which if they were cut off because they came not sooner, would be prevented, and so should never come.
Unto this Reason the Answerer is pleased thus to reply:
First in generall; We must not doe Evill, that Good may come thereof.
Secondly, in particular, he affirmeth, that it is evill to tolerate seditious evill doers, seducing Teachers, scandalous livers: Toleration discussed. Upon this point hath Mr. John Goodwin excellently of late discoursed.and for proof of this he quotes Christs reproofe to the Angel of the Church at Pergam…s, for tolerating them that hold the doctrine of Balaam; and against the Church of Thiatyra, for tolerating Iesabel to teach and seduce, Revel. 2. 14. 20.
Truth.
I answer, first, by assenting to the generall Proposition, that it is most true, like unto Christ Jesus himselfe, a sure foundation, 1 Cor. 3. Yet what is built upon it, I hope (by Gods assistance) to make it appeare is but hay and stubble, dead and withered, not suiting that golden foundation, nor pleasing to the Father of mercies, nor comfortable to the Soules of men.
It is evill (saith he) to tolerate notorious evill doers, seducing Teachers, scandalous livers.
In which speech I observe 2 evills:
First that this Proposition is too large and generall, because the Rule admits of exception, and that according to the will of God.
1. It is true, that Evill cannot alter its nature, but it is alway Evill, as darknesse is alway darknesse, yet
2. It must be remembred, that it is one thing to command, Evill is always Evill, yet permission of it may in case be good.to conceale, to councell, to approve Evill, and another thing to permit and suffer Evill with protestation against it, or dislike of it, at least without approbation of it.
Lastly, this sufferance or permission of Evill is not for its ownsake, but for the sake of Good, which puts a respect of Goodnesse upon such permission.
Hence it is, that for Gods owne Glorie sake (which is the highest Good) he endures, that is, permits or suffers the Vessels of Wrath, Rom. 9. And therefore although he be of pure eyes, and can behold no iniquitie, yet his pure eyes patiently and quietly beholds and permits all the idolatries and prophanations, all the thefts and rapines, all the whoredomes and abominations, all the murthers and poysonings; and yet I say, for his glory sake he is patient, and long permits.
Hence for his peoples sake (which is the next Good in his Son) he is oftentimes pleased to permit and suffer the wicked to enjoy a longer reprive. Therefore he gave Paul all the lives that were in the ship, Acts 27.
Therefore he would not so soone have destroyed Sodome, but granted a longer permission, had there been but 10 righteous, Gen. 19. Therefore, Ierem. 5. had he found some to have stood in the gap, he would have spared others. Therefore gave he Iesabel a time or space, Revel. 2.
Therefore for his Glory sake hath he permitted longer great sinners, who afterward have perished in their season, as we see in the case of Ahab, the Ninevites and Amorites. &c.
Hence it pleased the Lord not onelyonly to permit the many evills against his owne honourable ordinance of Mariage in the world,Deut. 24. but was pleased after a wonderfull manner to suffer that sin of many wives in Abraham, Iacob, David, Salomon, yea with some expression which seeme to give approbation, as 2 Sam. 12.
Peace.
It may be said, this is no patterne for us, because God is above Law, and an absolute Soveraigne.
Truth.
I answer, although wee finde him sometime dispensing with his Law, yet we never finde him deny himselfe, or utter a falshood: And therefore when it crosseth not an absolute Rule to permit and tolerate (as in the case of the permission of the soules and consciences of all men in the world, I have shewne and shall shew further it doth not) it will not hinder our being holy as hee is holy in all manner of conversation.
CHAP. LIV.
Peace.
IT will yet bee said, it pleaseth God to permit Adulteries, Murthers, Poisons: God suffers men like fishes to devoure each other, Habac. 1. the wicked to flourish, Ier. 12. yea sends the Tyrants of the world to destroy the Nations, and plunder them of their riches, Isa. 10. Should men doe so, the world would be a Wildernesse, and beside we have command for zealous execution of Justice impartially, speedily.
Truth.
I answer,Two sorts of commands both by Moses and Christ. we finde two sorts of commands both from Moses and from Christ, the two great Prophets and Messengers from the living God, the one the type or figure of the later: Moses gave positive Rules both spirituall and civill, yet also hee gave some not positive but permissive for the common good: So the Lord Iesus expoundeth it.
For, whereas the Pharises urged it, that Moses commanded to give a Bill of Divorcement and to put away: the Lord Iesus expoundeth it, Moses for the hardnesse of your heart suffered or permitted, Math. 19. 17, 18.Math 16. 17. 18.
This was a permissive The permission of divorce in Israel.command universall to all Israel, for a generall good, in preventing the continuall fires of Dissentions & Combustions in families (yea it may be Murthers, Poysons, Adulteries which that people (as the wisedome of God foresaw) was apt out of the hardnesse of their heart to breake out into, were it not for this preventing permission.
Hence it was that for a further publike good sake, and the publike safety, David permitted Ioab, a notorious malefactor, and Shimei and Adonijah, &c. And civill States and Governours in like cases have and doe permit and suffer what neither David nor any civill Governour ought to doe or have done, were it not to prevent the hazard of the whole, in the shedding of much innocent blood (together with the n…cent) in civill combustions.
Peace.
It may be said, Ioab, Shimei, Adonijah, &c. were only (as it were) reprived for a time, and proves only that a season ought to be attended for their punishment.
Truth.
Answ. I answer, I produce not these instances to prove a permission of Tares (Antichristians, Heretikes) which other Scriptures abundantly prove, but to make it cleare (against the Answerers allegation, that even in the civill State permission of notorious evill doers, even against the civill State, is not disapproved by God himselfe, and the wisest of his servants in its season.
CHAP. LV.
Truth.
I Proceed.Usurie in a Commonweale or Civill State lawfully permitted. Hence it is that some Generals of Armies, and Governours of Cities, Townes, &c. doe, and (as those former instances prove) lawfully permit some evill persons and practices. As for instance, in the civill State, Vsury, for the preventing of a greater evill in the civill Body, as stealing, robbing, murthering, perishing of the poore, and the hindrance or stop of commerce and dealing in the Commonwealth. Just like Physicians, wisely permitting noysome humours, and sometimes diseases, when the cure or purging would prove more dangerous to the destruction of the whole, a weake or crazy body, and specially at such a time.
Thus in many other instances it pleased the Father of lights the God of Israel, to permit that people, especially in the matter of their demand of a King, Permission of the Tares in the field of the world for a twofold good.(wherein he pleaded that himselfe as well as Samuel was rejected.)
This ground, to wit, for a common good of the whole, is the same with that of the Lord Iesus commanding the Tares to be permitted in the World, because otherwise the good wheat should be indangered to be rooted up out of the Field or World also, as well as the1Of the good Whe…e. ares: and therefore for the good sake the Tares, which are indeed evill, were to be permitted: Yea and for the generall good of the whole world, the field it selfe,2Of the whole world, …he field it selfe. which for want of this obedience to that command of Christ, hath beene and is laid waste and desolate, with the fury and rage of civill War, professedly raised and maintained (as all States professe for the maintenance of one true Religion (after the patterne of that typicall land of Canaan) and to suppresse and pluck up these Tares of false Prophets and false Professors, Antichristians, Heretickes, &c. out of the world.
Hence illae lachrymae: hence Germanies, Irelands, and now Englands teares and dreadfull desolations, which ought to have beene, and may bee for the future (by obedience to the command of the Lord Iesus, concerning the permission of Tares to live in the world, though not in the Church) I say ought to have beene, and may bee mercifully prevented.