Letter Entreating a Friends Judgment, To the reader
To the Reader.
NOw thou mayest reade the Books thou hast, haply, heard much ſpoken againſt; and mayeſt now give thy judgement thereupon: If before thou hadſt ſo done, thou mighteſt now judge thy ſelfe for being too haſty in ſo doing. The Booke had gone abroad a fortnight ſooner, had I not deſired heartily, and accordingly prepared to affix unto it ſome after-lines, the iſſue and reſult of after-thoughts. But theſe were not thought ſeaſonable; not now to t… art and croſſe … other, ſetting judgement against judgement, and standing ſingle to many, and thoſe Divines at Sion (which yet my conſcience tels …, I could doe, and yet maintaine the peace of Zion, and the bands of the brotherhood whole and entire:) But the contrary war feared: and, thereupon, judiciouſly (I ſpeaks from my heart) concluded, with strong reference to our LORDS practiſe in a different caſe, leaſt we ſhould offend them, who would Mat. 17. ….not be offended. That the after-lines muſt periſh as an untimely birth; or lye at the place of the breaking-forth of ſuch children, the conceptions and iſſue of our thoughts, formed and made legible to the world: ſo a bar was put-in againſt them. Be it ſo, and beſt content I am, it ſhould bb ſo, rather then any the leaſt and juſt offence ſhould be given to them, who indeed ſhould not be offended.
Only this I would take leave to ſay, The ſearcher of all hearts knowes; That, what by His aſſiſtance I have done in the former, or the after-work, I have done all, not to pleaſe or displeaſe any man: And therefore, if men had been diſpleaſed, (that was the feare) they are but men; As I cannot be careleſſe of it; ſo I cannot be carefull about it, for my teſtimony is with-in, and my witneſſe above, That, All I did was done to pleaſe God: In ſtrong references to His glory; The beating-out the way of Chriſt; The making His Government (upon His ſhoulders) glorious before our eyes; The compoſing theſe ſa…d differences amongſt us, in ſpeciall th…ſe, th…n have been occaſioned by Mr Edwards his Books; The rendring him more gracefull to his people; his gifts and graces alſo more uſefull to the Church in after-time: And that, if the Brethren have walked as men; or, as it is ſuggeſted, then that they ſhould be humbled for ſo walking, give glory to God, take diligent care, to make their watch the ſtronger, that they doe ſo no more: And that they ſtand no longer at a diſtance (as it is conceived they due) with thoſe, who love them next to their own ſoules; But rather to communicate to us, whoſe debtors alſo they are, their Scripture light, whereby we may more cleerely diſcerne into their ſo questioned way of Church-Governement, That ſo, the Truths there being cleered; The errors there beaten-out, the one may be embraced, th' other rejected: As all theſe things before ſpoken, were the very bent and true intention of my ſoule, ſo helpe me God, Amen.
I will cloſe with the Apoſtles words, becauſe I would leave them fixed upon our hearts; Stand ye faſt in one ſpirit, with one mind, ſtriving together for the faith of the Goſpell. And in nothing terrified by your adverſaries aPhil. 1. 27, 28.. No; though they are high now, yet be not terrified, God is ſtill above them; and we are not ſo low, but an Almighty hand can raiſe us up againe: And if we are at the loweſt now, then now be not terrified, encouraged rather now; for now will the hand of the Lord be ſtretched-out to work a glorious deliverance, even now, now, now; ſo often repeated in one verſe, to aſſure us, That God is then neereſt to His people, when they are at the loweſt ebb of miſery: and fartheſt off from His adverſaries, when they are at the higheſt pinnacle of their ſeeming prosperity. Now I will up ſaith the LORD: A gracious promiſe! we muſt looke unto it, and … upon it; The word is never more comfortable, then now, now that the workes and providences of God stand croſſe thereunto; and Gods hand is rough and heavy upon the loynes of his ſervants: Then the voice is ſweetest, when the hand is heavieſtbWhen the Church is up, and the Adverſaries are down, then ſeiſe has matter to feed upon: But when, as now, the Adverſaries (ſeem) to be high, and the Church low, then there is aboundant matter, …i…h …ſes for Faith to feed on.
A. Yea but now is the Adverſaries day for mirth and laughter; they are gladded to the heart now, in the day of their King; we can ſee them drunk with joy and with wine too *This is the manner of the Malignants rejoy…ing on the … of their King, To take their fill of the creature, ſo as to … the reaſon to a drunkenneſſe in the day time; As five roarers were found to be the laſt Lords day (Sept. 9) and paid for their drunkenneſſe what the Law commanded them and their Hoſtis: And one kiſſed the ſtocks to teach him more, and then reaching forth their hands with ſcorners, Hoſ. …. 5.
B. Let them laugh, it is their day, they think; and they know not, That their day is comming. Give them leave to be merry, but not to be drunk; it is the houre of their joy, and but for an houre. He that laughs anon, laughs too, ſayes the Proverb. But we muſt laugh manners, and render him more ſober man.now, and be heartily merry, after a godly ſort now; for, now we ſee their day is comming aPſal. 37. 13.. Comming! It is come, if the Adverſaries of the Lord be at the heightest, and His ſervants at the lowest: Now we muſt be glad, becauſe now will I ariſe ſaith the Lord; when? At this preſent time; therefore be nothing terrified, encouraged rather when the enemy is raiſed high, even to the zenith of his exaltation, then be encouraged, for hearken and heare; Now will I ariſe, ſaith the Lord; Now will I be exalted; now will I lift-up my Iſa. 33. 10.ſélfe; now, now, now; now expect, That the Lord will come-in to magnifie Himſelfe before Iſrael, and before the Sun. And then the Adverſary falls, then, then, then; as that Adverſary Senacharib did, by the ſword of the Lord; In whoſe hands I cannot tell, but by the ſword of the Lord he ſhall fall; and the lower his fall ſhall be, the higher his exaltation was, Amen. Therefore ſtand faſt in one ſpirit, ſtriving together for the Faith of the Gospell; and be nothing terrified by the Adverſaries; but by all theſe providences be mightily encouraged rather in the worke and ſervice of the Lord, through the Might and Power of the Lord, Who hath made-forth to His ſervants a ſure word of promiſe, That He will give them an expected End.
Imprimatur, JOSEPH CARYL.
End of the text · Hezekiah Woodward, Letter Entreating a Friends Judgment (1644)