A Good Soldier Maintaining His Militia, Postscript
A Poſtſcript to the honeſt hearted Reader.
THree ſheetes of paper (for I must not call it a Booke, that has neither truth nor reaſon for its patrons) were this very houre put into my hand, called A Loyall Convert. The ſcrible is stuffed with the higheſt Treaſon, horrible treachery, abominable blaſphemy, the baſeſt flattery, vileſt compliancy, with willing and wilfull ignoranc…, all theſe, all throughout. Take it apart; The Epiſtle first is proud, lofty and inſolent; his own, who knowes nothing as he ought to know, and his own heart worst of all. The following papers have attained their ſcope; To gain-ſay reaſon; To croſſe ſenſe. To blaſpheme God and His Scriptures, His King and His people, all the Kingdome over. The Malignants applaud it, every one ſayes; No doubt of that, and the faireſt Argument that the ſcribble and the ſcribe is as brutiſh as themſelves are, I call God to record upon my ſoul, That the Epiſtle and the ſcope of the following pages, is as I have in ſhort declared it to be: And that foreign. Epheſ. 4. 14.I have ſo done for this only reaſon, That unſtable ſoules, who are carried with every wind, like ſtrawes or leaves in Autumne, (many, every where) may not be beguiled with Paralogiſmes, Oxfords wild Sophiſtry now adayes,
A. But here is no Anſwer you will ſay, where as the ſilly Scholl…r has Ob. and An. all along his papers.
B. He has indeed, but his Objections are as ſilly and ridiculous as are his Anſwers: Yet while was any hope, by braying she fooles, to get out their folly, theſe their Arguments, ſuch as they are, has anſwer after anſwer from Scripture and Reaſon both; But ſeeing he will be a foole ſtill; will bring old and worne Arguments, with blaſphemies to boote, we have our command doubled, anſwer him not: To what purpoſe ſhould they be anſwered, who will acknowledge no other God, but their King; no other wor…ip… but what is in their Service Booke: who will not ſee the right hand of the Lord lifted-up now [though never more gloriouſly ſince the day He was lifted-up from the earth, as it is now, and all theſe yeares, ſince the Parliament ſate:] And can ſee nothing … all, with all their eyes, wrought by the contrary party, but through the depths of Satan, and treacheries of his Angels, right men for Peſſimum eſt qutoquid agitur a desperantibus. P…in. …honour, unleſſe they can overcome God himſelfe, and thruſt the Lord Chriſt out of his throne: no anſwer to theſe men. But one word more to the honest hearted reader; who may be taken w… ſuch ſilly ſtuffe, he met with in the forement…ned; he may b… little transported beyond his own principles of nature and right reaſon: Hardly poſſible, yet poſſible; Then let him reade Allegeance not Impeached; I aſſure him upon the word of a Chriſtian if he be not willingly ignorant, The reading that booke, will … the man to his right mind againe, and keepe him cloſe to right principles for ever.
FINIS.
End of the text · Hezekiah Woodward, A Good Soldier Maintaining His Militia (1644)