The Bloody Tenant Washed and Made White in the Blood of the Lamb, Part 2 · Chapter 20
TO CHAP. XX.
THe maine Objection which Mr. Williams made againſt the Eſtate of our Church-members, was chiefly this; That though he acknowledgeth them to be godly, yet not ſufficiently ſeparate from Antichriſt. And that he endeavoured to prove, 1. From the Texts that call for ſeparation from Babylon, Iſa. 52.2 Cor. 6. Rev. 18.2. From the confeſſion of ſinnes made by Johns Diſciples, Mat. 3. and the Proſelyte Gentiles, Acts 19. To both theſe we have returned Anſwer already.
His third Objection followeth from Haggai 2.13, 14, 15. where the Prophet telleth the Church of the Jewes, That if a Perſon uncleane by a dead body, doe touch holy things, thoſe holy things become uncleane to him. And ſo (ſaith he) is this Nation, and ſo is every worke of their hands, and that which they offer here is uncleane. And from hence he argueth; That even Church-Covenants made and Ordinances practiſed by perſons polluted through ſpirituall deadneſſe, and filthineſſe of Communion, they become uncleane to them, and are prophaned by them: which he ſolemnely deſireth might be adviſedly weighed.
Whereto my Anſwer was; That if he had well weighed this place himſelfe, he would never have alledged it to his purpoſe. His purpoſe was to prove, that Churches cannot be conſtituted of ſuch members, as are uncleane by Antichriſtian pollutions: or if they be ſo conſtituted, they are not to be Communicated with, but ſeparated from. To prove this, you alledge (ſaid I) this place, where the Prophet acknowledgeth the whole Church to be uncleane, and yet neither denieth them to be a Church truely conſtituted, nor ſtirreth up himſelfe, or others to ſeparate from them. If you ſay, why, but they were uncleane.
I anſwered; Be it ſo. But were they therefore no Church truely Conſtituted? Or to be ſeparated from? Did not Haggai, and Zachary themſelves Communicate with them? And did they not call others alſo to come out of Babel to Communicate with them, even whileſt Joſhua the High Prieſt was ſtill polluted with his uncleane Garments? Zach. 2.6, 7. with Chapt. 3.8.
Whereupon I tooke occaſion to cleare up to him the occaſion, and ſcope, and true ſence of the words at large, as may appeare in the Letter, which having gathered up I ſaid, That if he did apply it to the Point in hand, it would reach nothing neere to his purpoſe. Hypocrites in the Church, yea and godly ſincere Chriſtians themſelves, whileſt they attend to the world more then to the things of God, (as at that time the Jewes did) both their perſons, and their labours, and their Civill Oblations are uncleane in the ſight of God:
Therefore the Church of Chriſt cannot be conſtituted of ſuch: or if it doe conſiſt of ſuch, the People of God muſt ſeparate from them. You might well have gathered
Therefore the Church of Chriſt, and the members thereof muſt ſeparate themſelves from their hypocriſie and inordinate love of this world, or elſe they and their duties will ſtill be uncleane in the ſight of God, notwithſtanding their Church-Eſtate.
This Collection tendeth to edification; the other to diſſipation, and deſtruction of the Church, and wreſteth Bloud inſtead of Milke from the Breaſts of holy Scripture.
This Text is ſo evident, and pregnant, and full againſt himſelfe, that I could not but marvell, why he ſhould alledge it, and eſpecially why he ſhould deſire it might be throughly weighed, and the Lord to hold the ſcales himſelfe. How doe you then thinke, that he will hence inferre his Concluſion; That Godly perſons, if uncleane, cannot conſtitute a true Church? or if they doe, they are to be ſeparated from? Surely not from the words of the Text, nor from the ſence, which I make of it: nor from any ſence, which himſelfe can give of it. How then? OnelyOnly from his miſtake of my words, and that ſurely either through a drouſie Oſcitancy, or a ſleighty Precipitancy.
What (ſaith he) have I ſpoken more then Mr. Cotton himſelfe hath uttered in his Explication and Application of this Scripture; As,
1. That Godly perſons may become defiled, and uncleane, by hypocriſie and worldlineſſe.
2. While they lye in ſuch a condition of uncleanneſſe, all their offerings, perſons, labours are uncleane in the ſight of God, notwithſtanding their Church-eſtate.
3. The Church cannot be conſtituted of ſuch worldly Perſons (though otherwiſe godly and Chriſtian.)
Or 4. If they doe, the People of God muſt ſeparate from them. Theſe be (ſaith he) Mr. Cottons own expreſſe words.
Reply. He might as well ſay, theſe be the expreſſe words of Chriſt, Hang all the Law, and the Prophets, becauſe Chriſt ſaith, (Mat. 19.40.) upon theſe two Commandements, Hang all the Law and the Prophets. So theſe be my expreſſe words; The true and genuine meaning of the place, if you doe apply to the Point in hand, it will reach nothing neere to your purpoſe. Hypocrites in the Church and godly Chriſtians themſelves, whileſt they attend to the world more then to the things of God, their perſons, their labours, their Civill Oblations are all uncleane in the ſight of God. Ergo. The Church of Chriſt cannot be conſtituted of ſuch: or if it doe conſiſt of ſuch, the People of God muſt ſeparate from them.
Who ſeeth not that attendeth to what he ſeeth, that in theſe words I expreſſe not mine own meaning or reaſoning, but his: and that I expreſly ſay, The true meaning of the Text will nothing neere reach to his purpoſe, and ſo bring in his reaſon, in forme of an Enthymeme, which he draws from it? But if I had made that Enthymeme the expreſſion of mine own meaning, and of the meaning of the Text, it had ſully and cloſely reached his own purpoſe.
The next words following might alſo plainly have cleared my meaning to him: when in ſtead of that falſe collection which he gathered, I tell him, you might well have gathered: therefore the Church of Chriſt, and the members thereof muſt ſeparate themſelves from their hypocriſie, and their inordinate love of this world: Or elſe they and their duties will he ſtill uncleane in the ſight of God, notwithſtanding their Church-eſtate.
This Collection tendeth to edification: the other to the diſſipation, and deſtruction of the Flock, and wreſteth bloud inſtead of milke from the Breaſts of holy Scripture.
Doe I not here plainly expreſſe two ſeverall, and contrary Collections from the Text, the one his, the other mine own; the one tending to edification, the other to deſtruction? And yet this falſe collection, and miſapplication of the Text, which is his own, and a manifeſt Perverting both of the Text, and of my words, he will needs force upon me, contrary to my meaning, and contrary alſo to my expreſſe words above in the entrance of mine Anſwer to this Text. Where I ſay,
Your purpoſe was to prove, That Churches cannot be conſtituted by ſuch perſons as are uncleane by Antichriſtian pollutions: or if they be ſo conſtituted, they are not to be communicated with, but ſeparated from. To prove this, you alledge this place where the Prophet acknowledgeth the whole Church of the Jewes to be uncleane: and yet neither denieth them to be a Church truely conſtituted, nor ſtirreth up himſelfe or others to ſeparate from them.
What by the way he diſcourſeth of the Excommunication in the Nationall Church of the Jewes, ſomewhat hath been ſpoken to it above. When he ſaith, That their Ceremoniall Excommunication was either putting to death in Canaan, or Captivitie out of Canaan. If he meane this was all their Excommunication, I cannot aſſent to it. King Ʋzziah was neither put to death in Canaan, nor carried captive out of Canaan, and yet he was Excommunicated both from Temple-worſhip, Synagogue-worſhip, and all familiar communion of the Saints.
Againe, when he maketh it an Excommunication from God, in caſe God ſell his Church into ſpirituall Captivitie, to confuſed Babyloniſh Lords, and worſhip, and that ſo he driveth them out of his ſight: He might remember, that God ſometime ſold his people under the Bondage of Babyloniſh Lords, even in the Land of Canaan, (Jer. 40.9. & 42.10, 11, 12.) And yet he had not ſtraight way driven them out of his ſight.