63 of God confound them, by their mvne imaginations, wee may iustly Jcarc they will at last obtane their full wish. But to deale impartially, w0c must, with sadneose enough, confesse, that the wolfe came into the fol d in a shecpe's clothing, and wrought more slaughter tha t way among the lambs, thc ll he could ban! done in his owne skin ; for it is tru 3 that many of wilt and parts, discontented, when they could not ,obteine the preferments the ir ambition gaped at, would declare themsel ves of t he pmitane party, and snch were either bought of, or, if the adversary would not give their price, seduc'd their devout hearers, sometimes into undiscreete opposition, to worke out their owne revenge, others that had neither learning, nor friends, nor opertunities to arrive to any preferrements, would put on a forme of godlinesse, finding devout people that way so liberall to them, that they could not hope to enrich themselves so much any other way. Some that had greater .art and parts, finding there was no inconsiderable gaine to be made of the simple devotion of men and weomen, applied their witts to it, and collected greate summes for the advancement of the religious interest, of which they converted much to their owne private uses. Such as these tempted the people of God to endeavour to shelter themselves in humane pollicies, and found out wayes, by bribes and other not ]esse indirect courses, to procure patrones at court, and to seU up against the prelates with countermines and other engines, which being of man's framing, were all at last broken. The puritane party being weake and oppress'd, had not faith enough to disowne all that adhered to them for worldly interests, and indeed it requir'd more then humane wisedome to discerne at the least all of them, wherefore they, in their low condition, gladly accepted any that would come over to them, or encline towards them; and their enemies through envie at them augmented much their party, while, with iniuries and reproaches, they drove many, that never intended it, to take that party; which in the end got M
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