!78- ~ :AS11/nt or 4Brute. Part IiJ and bkffing of your Countries ? What you would do by th~m rhat doby thofe that corn~ nea-rcil: to them among you. ' ·- CHAP. V. Times cf Holimfs Are the Beft Times e. AND n?w I have given yow all this Evidence, I dar ~ leave it . to the Jadgemem of any man th(lt ii fit: to judge, Whet her H be the godly or'ungodly that are the Better Magiftrates , or JJc tter PP~jlors of the Churches, or Bettcr-Membcr.r of the Com– mon-wealth, or of any Society ? Judge now whether the Places :tnd Timu are not Beft that are moft G1Jdly ? A.nd whether it be the G()dly or the Vngodly, that are tbe Trouhlers of the .world ? · And yet it hath ever been the practice of ung.9dly men, to· «Zhargc it upon them that Fear the Lord , that all tHe troubles of the world are long of them. We wereall quiet, fay they, before thu ReligionAndprecifenejl troubled us; and this is it, that jinceit t".:lme amoHg m, hath[et tJJsa/l tcg.ether by.the ears.] . But if thefc men beyet reafonable, I defire them to confider, I. That thu hath11lW~yes been the old complaint of the moft wi(~ k._ed men, 'Which Godhimfelf bath teftified llt,ainft ~ When Lot did but gently admonifh the abominable So.domites to forbear avil~ lany not to be named, Gen. I 9· 7, 8, 9. [ 1pray you Brethrrn,drJ mtfo wickfdly J What fa id they to him ? and how did they take it ? Why [ thqfaid,ft.>tnd bacf<._: t~tnd they fgziJ. ag1in, This Om fellow c1tme in to fojourn, and he -will needs be a '/udge ! Naw wilt 'We dudwer[e with thee then with them.] Is not this the cafe bed n:we€n tls now?How are we unpeaceable ? Becaufe we areagainft fin ? If we woNid hinder men from wronging God , and from condemning their own fouls ,and others, then forfoor~, we are their troubterJ, andwe judge thtM, and we difturb thetr .Peace ~ Jufi like the Sodomites , [ Thefeprecife fe/lrrws ,{ll) thty,wlilneeds be our (HdgeJ" , and we m.ufl be ruledby~hem ; .before t~ey c~me ~ttn~rJng us 'We ht~dnolle of thu ado ; J But dtd not God, th~nk)oel> de~jde. the. controverfie arilht ~ ~c ti~g ~~~k Let a~d hts famrly ---.. -- · ---·· -- ~way9
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