Now what wise Christian can make dainty of admitting so necessary and just a distinction; since common experience tells us there are many meteors, that for the time shine like bright stars over our heads, which ere long we find under our feet resolved into a base and slimy slough? What heart can desire a more full and satisfying determination; wherein both sides have their own, and we quietly enjoy what is true in both? When thus much is mutually yielded, let him be branded for an enemy of peace that will farther contend.

Now when the Christian reader hath seriously perused these differences, especially as they are propounded and arbitrated by that grave professor and prelate of our church on the one side, and those other our learned and worthy divines on the other side, let me appeal to his better thoughts, what he finds here worthy of a public division. Well may the schools pick hence matter enough for their theological problems; but what should either the pulpit or the press do with these busy and bootless brabbles?

My brethren, let our care be to study and preach Christ, and him crucified to work the souls of men to faith, repentance, piety, justice, charity, temperance, and all other heavenly virtues; that they may find cordial testimonies in themselves of their happy predestination to life, and their infallible interest in the precious blood of their Redeemer. Let us beat down those sins in them which make them obnoxious to everlasting damnation, and strip them of all comfortable assurances of the favour of God. Let us not undiscreetly spend our time and pains in distracting their thoughts with those scholastical disquisitions, whereof the knowledge or ignorance makes nothing to heaven. The way to blessedness is not so short that we should find leisure to make outroads into needless and unprofitable speculations. Never treatise could be more necessary, in this curious and quarrelous age, than De Paucitate Credendorum. The infinite. subdivisions of those points which we advance to the honour of being the objects of our belief, confound our thoughts and mar our peace. Peaceable discourse may have much latitude, but matter of faith should have narrow bounds. If, in the other, men will abound in their own sense, always let unity of spirit be held in the bond of peace. Since God hath given us change of raiment and variety of all intellectual provisions, as Joseph said to his brethren, let me to mine, Let us not fall out by the way.

Now, by the dear bonds of brotherhood, by our love to our common mother the church, by our holy care and zeal of the prosperous success of the gospel of our Lord Jesus, let us all compose our hearts to peace; and rest ourselves in those common truths which sober minds shall find abundantly sufficient whether for our knowledge or salvation.

I have done. And now I make no other account but that it will fall out with me, as it commonly doth with him that offers to part a fray both parts will perhaps drive at me, for wishing them no worse than peace. My ambition of the public tranquillity shall willingly carry me through this hazard. Let both beat me, so their quarrel may cease. I shall rejoice in those blows and scars which I shall take for the church's safety. Men's fingers do so itch after the maintenance of their own opinions, that they can hardly contain themselves from flying upon the fairest moderation of any umpire. Yet I may safely profess, that herein I have carried myself so indifferently, that as I have hid my own judgment, so I have rather seemed partial against my own resolutions.

If any man object that I have not fully stated the questions on both sides, and drawn my accorded propositions out of the heart of those tenets which both parts will yield to be their own in an adversary's sense, without waiving any consequences that shall be deduced therefrom; let him receive answer to the former of these, that it were a fit task for him that intended a full tractation of the points controverted, and is already too much done by others: my drift is only to pick out of both what may sound towards concord: he that would describe the way to some remote city of mark, thinks it not needful to map out before the traveller every town and village of all the shires through which he should pass, but only sets down those that lie in his road. To the latter, that it is a more strict rule than needs to be put upon an agent for peace: for, as it is but just on the one side that every man should be allowed to be his own interpreter, and prejudice and ill will can never make good gloss; so on the other side it is lawful and meet for moderate minds to make their best use of those savoury and wholesome sentences which fall from the better mood of an adversary.

Such, so far as they come home to me, shall gladly reconcile him to me: let him look how in the rest he can be reconciled to himself. Very shame shall at the last drive such a one, if he be

ingenuous, from incompatible propositions. In the meantime, the good that he offers I will not refuse; and leave the evil to his avoiding as a man that meets with a slack debtor will not be unwilling to take what small sums he can get, till either more may come in or he may conveniently sue for the rest. It is good to hold the ground we have got, till by the power of truth we

can recover more.

Not that I could readily take up with the palpable equivocations of an Arius or Pelagius. No wise chapman will suffer himself to be paid with slips. Truth and falsehood will necessarily descry themselves. Neither is it hard for a judicious reader to discern a difference betwixt yielding and dissembling. Where I see a man constant to himself in a favourable assertion, I have reason to construe it as a fair coming off towards reconcilement. If nothing but the rigour of opinions shall be stood upon, what hope can there be of peace?

To shut up, therefore: if what I have here meant will be as well taken and well improved, I shall have comfort in the quieting of many hearts and many tongues: if not, at least I shall have comfort in the quietness of mine own heart; which tells me I have wished well to the church of God: to whose awful sentence I do most humbly submit myself and these my poor endeavours; professing myself ready to eat whatsoever word she shall dislike, and desirous to buy her peace even with blood.

Now the God of Peace incline the hearts of men, as to zeal of truth, so to love of peace! And since we are fallen upon those points which are disputable to the world's end, as we see in the practice both of the Romish and German and Netherlandish churches, the same God compose the minds of men to a wise moderation, and bind up their lips in a safe and discreet silence; that if our brains must needs differ, yet our hearts and tongues may be ever one!

AMEN.

A LETTER

CONCERNING

FALLING AWAY FROM GRACE.

MY GOOD MR. B.

You send me flowers from your garden, and look for some in return out of mine. I do not more willingly send you these than I do thankfully receive the other. I could not keep my hand from the paper, upon the receipt of your letters, though now in the midst of my attendance.

As my desire of your satisfaction calls me to write something, so my other employments force me to brevity, in a question wherein it were easy to be endless.

I am sorry that any of our new Excutifidians should pester your Suffolk, although glad in this, that they could not light upon a soil more fruitful of able oppugners. It is a wonder to me to think that men should labour to be witty to rob themselves of comfort. Good sir, let me know these new disciples of Leyden, that I may note them with that black coal they are worthy of: troublers of a better peace than that of the church, the peace of the Christian soul.

They pretend antiquity. What heresy doth not so? What marvel is it if they would wrest fathers to them, while they use scripture itself so violently?

For that their first instance of Hymeneus and Alexander, how vain it is, like themselves! Nothing can be more plain than that those men were gross hypocrites: who doubts therefore but they might fall from all that good they pretended to have? what is this to prove that a true child of God may do so? "But," say they, "these men had faith and a good conscience :"-True;

such a faith and goodness of conscience as may be incident into a worldly counterfeit. "Yea, but," they reply, "a true justifying faith:"-I think such a one as their own: rather I may say these men deserve not the praise of Hymeneus's faith, which is nothing in this place but orthodox doctrine. How oft doth St. Paul use the word so to his Timothy! Tim. iv. I: In the latter times some shall depart from the faith; interpreted in the next words, and shall give heed to spirits of error and doctrines of devils and, 2 Tim. iii. 8, he describes his false teachers by this title, reprobate concerning the faith; which I think no man will expound of the grace, but the doctrine. "Yet," say they, "there is no necessity binds us to that sense here:"-but the scope of this place compared with others may evince it. That which follows plainly points us to this meaning that they might learn not to blaspheme. Their sin was therefore an apostasy from the doctrine of the gospel, and casting foul aspersions upon that profession; so that an opposition to wholesome doctrine was their shipwreck. They except yet: "A good conscience is added to this faith; therefore it must needs be meant of justifying faith:" -Do but turn your eyes to 1 Tim. iii. 9, where, as in a commentary upon this place, you shall find faith and good conscience so conjoined, that yet the doctrine not the virtue of faith is signified. St. Paul describes his deacon there by his spiritual wealth : Having the mystery of faith in pure conscience. No man can be so gross, to take the mystery of faith for the grace of faith, or for any other than the same author in the same chapter calls the mystery of godliness. It is indeed fit that a good conscience should be the coffer, where truth of Christian doctrine is the treasure therefore both are justly commanded together; and likely each accompanies other in their loss and that of Irenæus is found true of all heretics; Sententiam impiam, vitam luxuriosam, &c. Yea, but Hymeneus and Alexander had both these then, and lost both :"-They had both in outward profession, not in inward sincerity. That rule is certain and eternal, If they had been of us, they had continued with us. Nothing is more ordinary with the Spirit of God, than to suppose us such as we pretend; that he might give us an example of charity in the censure of each other of which kind is that noted place, Heb. x. 29; and counteth the blood of the testament, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing; and those usual elogies which are given to the churches to whom the apostolical letters were

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