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pelling in, and reduces it to a condition like that which the Britons complain of in our story, driven to and fro between the Picts and the fea. If after excommunion he be found intractable, incurable, and will not hear the church, he becomes as one never yet within her pale, a Heathen or a Publican," Mat. xviii, 17, not further to be judged, no not by the magiftrate, unless for civil causes; but left to the final fentence of that judge, whose coming fhall be in flames of fire; that Maranatha, 1 Cor. xvi, 22, than which to him fo left nothing can be more dreadful, and ofttimes to him particularly nothing more fpeedy, that is to fay, the Lord cometh: in the mean while delivered up to Satan, 1 Cor. v, 5, 1 Tim. i, 20, that is, from the fold of Chrift and kingdom of grace to the world again, which is the kingdom of Satan; and as he was received" from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God," Acts xxvi, 18, fo now delivered up again from light to darkness, and from God to the power of Satan; yet fo as is in both places manifefted, to the intent of faving him, brought fooner to contrition by spiritual than by any corporal feverity. But grant it belonging any way to the magiftrate, that prophane and licentious perfons omit not the performance of holy duties, which in them were odious to God even under the law, much more now under the gospel; yet ought his care both as a magiftrate and a chriftian, to be much more that confcience be not inwardly violated, than that licence in these things be made outwardly comformable : fince his part is undoubtedly as a christian, which puts him upon this office much more than as a magiftrate, in all respects to have more care of the confcientious than of the prophane; and not for their fakes to take away (while they pretend to give) or to diminish the rightful liberty of religious confciences.

On these four fcriptural reasons, as on a firm fquare, this truth, the right of chriftian and evangelic liberty, will stand immovable against all thofe pretended confequences of licence and confufion, which for the most part men moft licentious and confused themselves, or fuch as whose severity would be wifer than divine wisdom, are ever aptest to object against the ways of God: as if God

without

without them, when he gave us this liberty, knew not of the worst which thefe men in their arrogance pretend will follow yet knowing all their worft, he gave us this liberty as by him judged beft. As to thofe magiftrates who think it their work to fettle religion, and thofe minifters or others, who fo oft call upon them to do fo, I truft, that having well confidered what hath been here argued, neither they will continue in that intention, nor thefe in that expectation from them: when they fhall find that the fettlement of religion belongs only to each particular church by perfuafive and fpiritual means within itfelf, and that the defence only of the church belongs to the magiftrate. Had he once learnt not further to concern himself with church-affairs, half his labour might be fpared, and the commonwealth better tended. To which end, that which I premised in the beginning, and in due -place treated of more at large, I defire now concluding, that they would confider ferioufly what religion is: and they will find it to be, in fum, both our belief and our practice depending upon God only. That there can be no place then left for the magiftrate or his force in the fettlement of religion, by appointing either what we shall believe in divine things, or practife in religious, (neither of which things are in the power of man either to perform himfelf, or to enable others) I perfuade me in the chriftian ingenuity of all religious men, the more they examine feriously, the more they will find clearly to be true: and find how falfe and devifeable that common faying is, which is fo much relied upon, that the chriftian magiftrate is "Cuftos, utriufque Tabulæ," Keeper of both Tables, unless is meant by keeper the defender only: neither can that maxim be maintained by any proof or argument, which hath not in this difcourfe first or laft been refuted. For the two tables, or ten commandments, teach our duty to God and our neighbour from the love of both; give magiftrates no authority to force either: they feek that from the judicial law, though on false grounds, especially in the first table, as I have shown; and both in firft and fecond execute that authority for the moft part, not according to God's judicial laws but their own. As for civil crimes, and of the outward man,

which all are not, no not of those against the second table, as that of coveting; in them what power they have, they had from the beginning, long before Mofes or the two tables were in being. And whether they be not now as little in being to be kept by any chriftian as they are two legal tables, remains yet as undecided, as it is fure they never were yet delivered to the keeping of any chriftian magiftrate. But of these things perhaps more fome other time; what may ferve the prefent hath been above dif courfed fufficiently out of the fcriptures: and to those produced, might be added teftimonies, examples, experiences of all fucceeding ages to thefe times, aflerting this doctrine but having herein the fcripture fo copious and fo plain, we have all that can be properly called true ftrength and nerve; the reft would be but pomp and encumbrance. Pomp and oftentation of reading is admired among the vulgar: but doubtlefs in matters of religion he is learnedeft who is plaineft. The brevity I use, not exceeding a small manual, will not therefore, I fuppofe, be thought the lefs confiderable, unlefs with them perhaps who think that great books only can determine great matters. I rather choose the common rule, not to make much ado, where lefs may ferve. Which in controversies, and those especially of religion, would make them less tedious, and by confequence read oftener by many more, and with more benefit.

CONSIDERATIONS

Touching the likelieft Means to remove

HIRELINGS OUT OF THE CHURCH.

Wherein is alfo difcourfed

Of Tithes, Church-Fees, and Church-Revenues;

AND

Whether any Maintenance of Minifters can be settled

by Law.*

To the Parliament of the Commonwealth of ENGLAND, with the Dominions thereof.

WING to your protection, fupreme fenate! this liberty of writing, which I have used thefe eighteen years on all occafions to affert the juft rights and freedoms both of church and ftate, and fo far approved, as to have been trusted with the reprefentment and defence of your actions to all Chriftendom against an adversary of no mean repute; to whom fhould I addrefs what I ftill publifh on the fame argument, but to you, whose magnanimous councils firft opened and unbound the age from a double bondage under prelatical and regal tyranny: above our own hopes heartening us to look up at last like men and chriftians from the flavish dejection, wherein from father to fon we were bred up and taught; and thereby deferving of these nations, if they be not barbarously ingrateful, to be acknowledged, next under God, the authors and beft patrons of religious and civil liberty, that ever these islands brought forth? The care and tuition of whofe peace and fafety, after a fhort, but fcandalous night of interruption, is now again, by a new

First published 1659.

dawning

dawning of God's miraculous Providence among us, revolved upon your fhoulders. And to whom more appertain thefe confiderations, which I propound, than to yourselves, and the debate before you, though I truft of no difficulty, yet at prefent of great expectation, not whether ye will gratify, were it no more than fo, but whether ye will hearken to the juft petition of many thoufands best affected both to religion and to this your return, or whether ye will fatisfy, which you never can, the covetous pretences and demands of infatiable hirelings, whofe difaffection ye well know both to yourselves and your refolutions? That I, though among many others in this common concernment, interpofe to your deliberations what my thoughts alfo are; your own judgment and the fuccefs thereof hath given me the confidence: which requests but this, that if I have profperoufly, God fo favouring me, defended the public caufe of this commonwealth to foreigners, ye would not think the reafon and ability, whereon ye trufted once (and repent not,) your whole reputation to the world, either grown lefs by more maturity and longer ftudy, or lefs available in English than in another tongue: but that if it fufficed fome years paft to convince and fatisfy the unengaged of other nations in the juftice of your doings, though then held paradoxal, it may as well fuffice now againft weaker oppofition in matters, except here in England with a fpirituality of men devoted to their temporal gain, of no controversy else among proteftants. Neither do I doubt, feeing daily the acceptance which they find who in their petitions venture to bring advice alfo, and new models of a commonwealth, but that you will interpret it much more the duty of a chriftian to offer what his confcience perfuades him may be of moment to the freedom and better conftituting of the church: fince it is a deed of highest charity to help undeceive the people, and a work worthiest your authority, in all things elfe authors, affertors and now recoverers of our liberty, to deliver us, the only people of all proteftants left ftill undelivered, from the oppreffions of a fimonious decimating clergy, who fhame not, against the judgment and practice of all other churches reformed, to maintain, though very weakly, their popish

and