Exceptions Against some Passages Relating to Infant Baptism, Section 3
Sect. 3.
THis we say more, That the Papers we sent you at your earnest request, were not by way of contest, thereby to give an occasion for the Reciprocation of a saw of debate with you or any other. But to give you our Reasons for our conscientious dissent from Mr. Hr. his way and yours, since yours is his. Now whether you hear or forbear, accept, or reject, is not the burden of our care, unless, as we have said, upon your own account. We do not more tenaciously, then Cant. 1. Isa. 35. 8.conscientiously hold the way chalked forth, and tracked (being and high and causey way) by the foot-steps of the flock, And swarving there-from, yea but a little, a child, we hope pointing us to the way, from whence we are declined, shall lead us in it by the clue of sacred Scripture in his hand; But if he shall decline from that, which followers of God as deare Children, do not wittingly do, the greatest Goliah in your National Church, is but a Child or Infant of days in our account, who yet may be an old man in account of years.
And so we will take off our hands from this pulling and thrusting a line of Debate, like a Saw, to and fro… betwixt us, by Reciprocation of Answers; for cui fini, or bono, to what end, and who shall have the profit? we may say as to the Mat. 28. 8. Mark. 14. 3.Reciprocation of this Saw of debate; To what purpose is this waste of time, and spirits, we say, and purse too; why this waste? you say to justifie your free Admission to all Church Administrations, The people are all holy; and Sancta Sanctis; holy things to holy persons. We say all are not holy, but visibly, or in sight some are, and they very many, unholy, and unclean, as are Dogs and Swine, therefore give not that Mat. 7. 6.which is holy unto them, saith our Lord; yet say you, you know what. Tares visibly, and apparently Tares, openly wicked before Israel, and before the Sun, are not fit to live in a civil society, but are cut off, say we: They are fit to live in a Church-Society though; to be admitted to Church-Communion notwithstanding say you. You will account all within, till the Magistrate shall cast them forth. Well; but why all this waste? or to what end the Reciprocation of this Saw? To speak thereunto a little more, That all are holy, will answer all that can be said; which answer of yours ye have put so often to the ears of your people, that now it is in their hearts to live and dye with it in their mouths, They are an …ly people, and as such to be accounted, and dealt out unto: And so they are rendered, as we say, but the word is too short, as Judgement proof, so also Sermon proofe against all the Artillery mounted against them in Gods word; all that volley of woes thundered out against them by the Sons of thunder; Let Aethiopians, Turks, Jews, Infidels be affrighted at the hearing of this thunder: They were born in a Church and baptized there, and eo nomine, &c. should they not do well to make a feast, as Herod did on their birth day; quite forgetting their birth-sin (washed away, they may think in their Baptism) yet hath it given conception to all their mighty sins, and manifold transgressions, as also to all the sorrows of their life; Well, what more? Nay we know not, for say what can be said against this generation of men, and against their Admission to Church Communions, who are of their Father the Devil, for the lusts of their father they will do. What though? ye have armour of proofe, like Achilles his Buckler, or Target, which will bear off all this, it shall not come near them. Ye have a foreign, an universal Answer, We are a Church, and all holy; we may call it, we think an universal Remedy, or by that name an herb is called All-heal, we are all healed at Baptisme, and now are all holy, and eo nomine, we are to be admitted, and so forth; which minds us of what blessed Perkins saith, in reference to universal grace pleaded for (take it in passage) It is universal Atheism, said he. But to proceed, Just so that Generation before us, with whom the Lord hath dealt as pleased him, put off all our Lord Christ s…id to them, or against them, or his Prophets before him; We are an holy seed, as our father Abrrham was, so are we; he is our Father, and we his Children.
And now that our thoughts are upon this, we wil… take leave to read that Dispute we meet with in the eighth of John and the issue of it, and thence conclude what will be the issue of ours; I know, saith the Lord Christ, that ye are Abrahams seed (after the flesh) but ye are the Devils seed, having his spirit, for ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you, verse 37. ye have his spirit sure, for ye do what ye see your father do, verse 38. They turn upon him with this, Abraham is our Father. That cannot be, saith the Lord, for then ye would do the works of Abraham, you would walk in his steps. But ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the Truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham; you do the deeds of your Father, vers. 40, 41. They reply, we be not a bastard like breed. Thou shall never drive us from this hold-fast, or make us beleeve that Abraham is not our Father, we will call him father on earth, and God our father in Heaven, for he and we have one Father, even God, vers. 41.
Ye are wholly mistaken, saith the Lord, if God were your Father, ye would love me, verse 42. for every one that loveth him that begat, loveth Him also that is b…gotten of Him, 1 Joh. 5. 2, Love the Father, love the Son, but ye seek to kil the Son, which will witness against you, ye are of your Father the Devil, and the lusts of your Father ye will do, verse 44. Then answered the Jews and said unto him; say we not well, that thou art a Samaritane, and hast a divel; thus they will have the last word, and therewith their privil…dge, which it but a poor one, To have Abraham for their Natural, and the Devil for their Spiritual Father: But this is after the manner, and there is the issue of the dispute, and so we have read the issue of ours; therefore why all this waste? we wil cease, as was said, from this pulling and thrusting a line of debate, like a Saw to and fro betwixt us, by Reciprocation of Answers, that we may in this brief return a few words to those personal matters in your Paper, which some one of us at length stumbled upon: And first,