God, which spirit is infallible, and gives an infallible judgment; which spirit was to try the false prophets that were gone out into the world. P. In some places thou said, 'the scriptures were dark, and hard to be understood.'

A. And here thou sayst, 'It is plain, and easily to be understood,' page 8. Mark thy confusion; for the scripture is not understood without the spirit.

P. He saith, There is an infallible judgment, which may be made from the scriptures without the spirit,' page 9.

A. Who can judge infallibly without the spirit? Christ told the Pharisees (who had the scriptures) they were of the devil,' and judgment they had neglected, and he did not own their judgment to be infallible. And the apostle saith, what they knew who were separate from the spirit, they knew naturally as brute beasts, Jude 10 and 19. though they spoke high words in hypocrisy. And there art thou with thy infallible judgment (as thou saidst) without the spirit, (which is proved fallible.) There is no infallible judgment to be given that stands without the spirit; they that judge without the spirit, will judge amiss, and not infallibly, as the Jews did of Christ, and as the natural brute beasts did which Jude speaks of; there art thou.

P. And he further saith in the same page, that the scripture is to be judge of the spirit, and a light sufficient to judge of doctrine and manners,' &c.

A. The Jews had not an infallible judgment that had scripture, but stood against Christ the light, and judged him to be a devil. That judgment was not infallible, and their doctrine and manners were not right, which stood against Christ the light.

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P. He saith, The conclusion is, that the scriptures is the foundation of an infallible judgment concerning things contained in them, and not the spirit,' page 10.

A. So he hath thrown out God and Christ, and the spiritual man, who was before the scripture was, who was the cause of the giving them forth, and the inspiring them through the saints, which the scripture saith, 'shall judge the world, yea angels.' And he may say upon this conclusion, that the world and the devil have the judge, for they will get scripture.

P. He saith, He that can bridle his tongue is not a perfect man.' A. Which is contrary to the apostle James, who saith he is, and so thou art out of James' doctrine.

P. But the saints have not Christ in the flesh,' page 12.

A. Contrary to Christ and the apostle's doctrine, who said, they were of his flesh and of his bone, and should eat his flesh, and they that eat his flesh have it in them.

P. He saith, Christ within sufficient for all things to teach them, and to make them perfect as he is, and as God is. Now,' saith he, 'such a having of Christ as this is, we assume not, nor dare assume. And we declare against it as a satanical delusion, and the Quakers are the poor creatures that confess this in them,' page 13.

A. And you that are not made perfect by Christ the truth, you remain out of truth, in the delusion, and so you are out of the apostles' doctrine.

P. The pastor saith, that such a voice as comes immediately from God we have not heard, and such an immediate inspiration as this from God we have not received, nor do we wait for it,' page 13.

A. So showing himself to be of them that God never sent. So you are as the Jews that could say, 'Moses heard the voice of God,' and the prophets heard the Lord's voice. But their own ears were stopped to the voice. For Christ said, 'Ye have not heard the voice of God at any time.' And ye say ye look not for it. And you that deny immediate inspiration, have denied the power of the spirit, for that is immediate, and the ministers of Christ witness it.

P. All that pray by the spirit, and speak by the spirit, and do not show a miracle, are impostors,' page 14.

A. Many prayed by the spirit, and spake by the spirit, that did not show miracles at the tempter's command, though among believers there are miracles in the spirit, which are signs and wonders to the world, as Isaiah saith. But these are the impostors that pray, and speak, but not by the spirit of God.

P. Because the Quakers say, that such as preach and speak, but not by the spirit of God, are the false prophets which the Lord never sent, this the priest saith is an evil design, wherein lie venom and poison. A. They were and are in the evil design, that spoke not, nor preached not from the spirit of God, and lie in the venom and poison. P. He saith, though Christ was then in heaven, and spake not,'

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A. Contrary to the apostle, who said he had spoken to him, and hath spoken to us by his son, as Acts and Hebrews.

P. He saith, All that are brought to the faith of Christ, are not built upon an immediate voice that comes from God to themselves, nor to any others who are their teachers.' See page 15.

A. Who shows he never received faith from God, which from him is given, which faith is immediate: through which faith they have access to God who is immediate. And he goes about to overthrow all teachers made by the will of God, and by Christ, and the revelation of Jesus; for how can they be ministers, if they have not the ministry revealed to them? So, he that denies revelation, doth not know the son nor the VOL. III.

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Father; and denies himself to be any true minister, (but by man's will, which is not immediate,) who minister of the spirit, and are immediate in the spirit, which thou art not.

P. He saith, that there may be much fallacy and delusion in revelation.' That God did not intend immediate teaching, nor to give out an immediate voice in after ages, which should direct and guide men in the ways of salvation,' page 16.

A. Which is contrary to the scripture, which saith, All the children of the Lord shall be taught of the Lord;' and, He that is of God heareth God's word;' and that is immediate, and lives and endures for ever. And there is no fallacy nor delusion in the revelation of God, but all fallacy and delusion are out of it.

P. And he saith, Timothy had not his knowledge immediately, and yet he was in the faith.' And he saith again, 'The faith which was once delivered immediately from heaven to the saints, cuts off all from having any faith more delivered from heaven, and of all other immediate voices from thence.'

A. So he hath shut out Christ who is the author of every man's faith, to whom every one is to look, who was before scripture was. That which was once delivered to the saints, and given to the saints, the saints now must know, they must know their giver and deliverer, and must know from whence the faith comes in this age, as well as in the other age. For if they have but words that speak of the saint's faith, how they had their faith delivered from God; if the saints now have not their faith delivered to them from God, as those in ages past, they have but words, as the devil had, who stood against the author of the faith, Christ the light and the truth, and as the Jews had, but were out of the saint's faith, and stood against them that were in it. And Timothy had immediate teaching, for he had the testimony of the Lord, 1 Tim. and thou sayst he had not immediate teaching.

P. He saith, There must not be waiting for an immediate word, but that word which hath been already to the prophets and apostles; none have the word spoken as it was to the prophets and apostles, they must have it mediately,' &c. page 17.

A. The word that was spoken to Isaiah, the apostle felt immediately, which the pastor saith he did not; for there was no scripture but came by immediate inspiration. And the word is immediate, and all the ministers of Christ preach the immediate word, and wait for it, and the outward written words with ink and paper are mediate.

P. He saith, 'But an overcoming of the body of sin, such as delivers from all sin in this world, is expressly against the scriptures,' &c. page 18. A. Contrary to Rom. vi.; contrary to the apostle to the Colossians,

where he had put off the body of sin; and contrary to Christ, who saves and cleanses from all sin by his blood, and blots out all sin. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin.'

P. He saith, that Christ is in heaven in his humanity, therefore not to be seen, not to be heard, not to be handled by us or any others that live upon earth, and they cannot give their own assurance,' &c. page 19.

A. So shows that they were never made ministers by him, who never saw him, nor heard him, so never handled the word of life from the Father nor the son, nor saw it, nor heard it, so are the pastors that spoil the flock. And he is the earthly Adam and humanity, but Christ the second Adam is the Lord from heaven.

P. He saith, that Timothy was commanded to preach, and yet had not heard, nor seen, nor handled any thing of Christ,' &c. page 20.

A. Contrary to the apostle, who bid him to stir up the gift in him, and told Timothy he was in the faith, and he was to be strong in the grace of Christ. And whosoever hath faith, knows Christ to be the author of it, and knows something from Christ; and so thou hast confuted thyself.

P. He saith, that the saints do not see Christ, for the heavens contain him,' page 20.

A. The apostle saith, they sat with Christ in heavenly places;' so he is contrary to the apostle. And Christ was in them, and walked in them, and God dwelt in them, and Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates.'

P. He saith, The whole mind and will of Christ and God is left them in letters,' page 21.

A. The apostle saith, it is past finding out; the unsearchable wisdom, and the secret things belong to God, and are revealed by the spirit, and no man knows them but by the spirit.

P. And he saith, The gospel is the letter,' &c.

A. The apostle saith, it is the power of God; and the letter kills, and many may have the form, and deny the power, and so stand against the gospel, which is the power of God.

P. And he saith, 'The devil shows his spite and spleen in them who say they have the word, as it was in the beginning, against the scriptures,' &c. page 22.

A. That is not so; for they that have the word that was in the beginning, own the scriptures, and are not against them, but are in that which fulfils them.

P. He saith, that all the saints receive the spirit of Christ, yet never heard his voice.'

A. This is confusion, for the sheep of Christ know his voice.

P. He saith, They are uncovered,' when commonly they have two

caps on their heads: and the people are covered when they have hats on their heads,' &c. page 29.

A. This is according to thy deceitful teaching and learning.

P. He saith, The scriptures is the voice of Christ to them,' &c. A. And Christ said to the Pharisees that had the scriptures, they never heard the voice of God at any time. John v. For they were not put forth amongst the sheep. But the sheep heard the voice that gave forth the scripture, and came to the life, and Christ the end of them.

P. And he saith, 'There is an immediate voice which speaks within, which we have never heard, nor do we know it within ourselves experimentally, and we believe and hope that we never shall know it,' &c, page 30.

A. And so shows, that they never knew the spirit of the Father speaking within them, but follow their own dreams and spirits, and stop their ears against that of God in them; and that immediate voice within, which is the spirit of inspiration, and the word of God in their hearts, which men should obey, they call the voice of the devil, and pray to be delivered from.

P. And he saith, To say Christ is within them, doing all immediately and infallibly within them, and so say it is Christ and the spirit within them, and not they.'

A. Now this he calls a spirit of delusion. But the apostle saith, I live, yet not I, but Christ in me.' And, 'He works all in us, and for us, after his own good pleasure.' And this was not a spirit of delusion in them. And this thou art reprobated from, and found in thy own works.

He

P. And he said, 'that which was within them, was not eternal and infallible,' when the Quakers asked him, whether it was or not. said, 'Nay; that which judged in them was not eternal and infallible;' and saith, they assert no such thing as that concerning themselves." And he saith, Though all the saints have the spirit of Christ dwelling in them, which is eternal and infallible; yet that this spirit should do all that saints do, and should say all that saints say, and should judge for them both of persons and of things after an infallible manner; and that they should neither say, nor do, nor judge any thing by any understanding of their own, but the spirit, all this we deny.' These are his words, page 31.

A. Which is contrary to the apostle, who saith, As many as are the sons of God, are led by the spirit of God.' And Christ acts all in them, and for them; and the fruits of the spirit,' &c. and the spiritual man judgeth all things.' And that is it which leads the saints to divide and discern all things, both temporal and spiritual, the spiritual wisdom of God which gives them a spiritual understanding, which men must rule withal, but not with their own, that comes to nought. And you that