66 the LIFE of the L, I B. I. But thofe that thought otherwife, Said, That there is no power but from God, and therefore none againft him or above him ; and therefore none againft or above his Laws] : which how true foever, feemeth not at all to decide our Cafe : For thoughit follow neveçfo much that fuch Ads againft God arenot As of Au- thority, yet the fame Perfon that bath not Authority todo abir, may have Autho- rity in other matters, and may be our rightful Governour, and therefore mull be obeyed in all things lawful, ( though not in this ;) and his Perfon defended. And therefore how they could refute to receive the King, till he confented to take the Covenant, Iknow not : unlefs the takingof the Covenant had been a Condition on which he was to receive his Crownby the Laws or Fundamental Confutation of the Kingdom ( which none pretendeth ) Nor know I by what power they can add any thing tothe Coronation Oath or Covenant, which by his Anceftors was to be taken,without his ownConfent.But in their Zeal for the Church,the Scot, did caufe the King, when he wascome overto them, not only ( moron, murandi, ) to take the Covenant, but alfo to publifh aDeclaration to the World, that he did it voluntarilyand heartily, and that he lamented the Sins of his Father's Houle, ac- knowledgingthe Guilt of theBloodof the late Wars, &r.] In all which it feem-, en to me and many others that they mifcarried diversways : x. In impaling Laws upon their King, for which they had no Authority. z. In forcing him to difho- nour the Memory of his Father , by fuch Confef$ons. ;. In tempting him to (peak and publilh that whichtheymight eafily knowwas contrary to his heart,and fo to take God's Name in vain. 4. And in giving Cromwell occalion to charge them all with diffrmulation. Irog.What Tranfa&ions there were between the King and the Sear, for the Ex- pediting of his Coronation, and what Preparations were made for an Army to de- fend him, and what Differences among the Partieshereabouts, I (hall not defcribe, there being enow`ofthem that were upon the place who can do it better: But to return to England, as loon as they underftood what the Seer, had done, the Se&a- ries in England reproached them as Fools and Hypocrites, that by loch a Pageantry mockt themfelves; and would make the People believe that. the King was turned Presbyterian, andwas a CordialCovenanter, when they had forced him to fay and do that which they might well know hedid abhor. And they prefently re- folve to invade the Scots, tokeep them from invading England, and not to (lay till they came in upon this Land, as heretofore. So that Cromwell is in Scorlond with his Army before they were well felled in their Affairs. This much increafed the alienation of the Peoples heartsfrom theCromwellians : for though they might fop- pofe that the Score intended to bring the King into England, yet few believed that he might begin with themby an Invalion, it being too much tohave refilled them at home. g roá.When the Soldiers were going againft the King andSears,I wroteLetters to fameof them to tell them of their Sin , and defired them at Tall to begin to know themfelves : it being thofefame men that have fomach boafted of Love to ail the Godly, and pleaded for tender dealing with them, and condemned thofe that per. fécuted them or refrained their Liberty, who are now ready to 'imbrue their Swords in the Blood of fuch as they acknowledge to be Godly,audall becaufe they darenot be perjuredor ell/loyal as they are. Some of them were faded at there Letters, and (O blindnefs!) thought mean uncharitable Cenfurer that would fay that they could kill the Godly, even when they were on their march to do it: For howbad foever they 1pake of the Cavaliers, ( and not without too much defect as to their Morals) they confef ed that abundance of theScots were godly Men. And afterward thofe thàt I wrote to better underfoodme. § roe. At the fame time the Rump (or Commonwealth) who fo much abhor- red Perfecution , and were for Liberty of Confcience, made an Order that all Mi- nifers ihoeld keep their days of Humiliation, to fall and pray for their Succefs in Saarland: and that we fhouldkeep their Days of Thankfgiving for their Vi&ories ç and this upon pain of Sequeftration : fo that we all expeeted tobe turned out : but they did not execute it upon anyfave one in ourparts. For my part, inftead of praying and preaching for them, whenany of the Corn. mittee or Soldiers were my hearers, I laboured to help them to underftand, what a Crime it was to force men to pray for the Succefs of thofe that were violating their Covenant andLoyalty, and going infuch aCaufeto kill their Brethren : And what it was to force Men togive God thanksfor all their Bloodfhed, and to make God's Minters andOrdinances vile, and ferviceable to fuch Ceirrïes, by forcing Men to run to God on fuch Errands of Bloodand Ruine; And what it is to filch
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