Nathaniel Ward

“ If Reformation were come thus neer, I should hope Composition were not farre off: When hearts meet in God, they will soon meet in Gods wayes, and upon Gods termes. But to avoid prolixity, which steales upon me; For Composition, I shall compose halfe a dozen distichs concerning these kind of Wars; wishing I could sing asleep these odious stirres at least on some part, with a dull Ode. He is no Cobler that cannot sing, nor no good Cobler that can sing well ”

“ I have cause enough to be as charitable to others as any man living; yet I cannot but feare, that those men never Moored their Anchors well in the firme soile of Heaven, that are weather-waft up and down with every eddy-wind of every new doctrine. ”

“ Is Majestas Imperii growne so kickish, that it cannot stand quiet with Salus Populi, unlesse it be fettered? Are you well advised, in trampling your Subjects so under your feet, that they can finde no place to be safe in, but over your head: Are you so inexorably offended with your Parliament, for suffering you to returne as you did, when you came into their house as you did, that you will be avenged on all whom they represent? Will you follow your very worst Councell so far, as to provoke your very best, to take better counsell than ever they did? ”

“ Are you so angry with those that never gave you just cause to be angry, but by their too much feare to anger you at all, when you gave them cause enough? Are you so weary of Peace, that you will never be weary of Warre? Are you so willing to warre at home, who were so unwilling to warre abroad, where and when you should? Are you so weary of being a good King, that you will leave your selfe never a good Subject? Have you peace of Conscience, in inforcing many of your Subjects to fight for you against their Conscience? ”

“ It is not thousands of Opinionists that can pinion his Everlasting armes, I can hardly beleeve there is a greater unbeleever then my Selfe, yet I can verily beleeve that the God of Truth will in a short time scatter them all like smoake before the wind. I confesse I am troubled to see Men so over-troubled about them ”

“ Woe be to them, who ever they be, that so trouble the wayes of God that they who have found the way to Heaven, cannot find the way to Church: And woe be to them, that so gaze at the glorious light, they say, will breake forth in the thousand yeares to come, that they make little of the gracious Truth that hath been revealed these sixteen hundred years past. ”

“ Is it not a most unworthy part for you to bee running away from your Subjects in a day of battel, upon whose Pikes you may come safe with your naked breast and welcome? Is it honourable for you to be flying on horses, from those that would esteeme it their greatest honour, to beare you on their humble shoulders to your Chaire of Estate, and set you down upon a Cushion stuffed with their hearts? Is it your prudence to be inraged with your best friends, for adventuring their lives to rescue you from your worst enemies? ”

“ If God would vouchsafe to give his Majesties Religion and Reason, power to fling his Wills head over the Wall, in matter of Composition, and his Subjects strength to throw their lusts after it, Arms would be soon laid down, and Peace soon taken up. They that are not at peace with God, are not at peace with themselves, whatever they think; and they that are not at peace with themselves, cannot be at peace with others, if occasion provokes, be their natures never so good. ”

“ No man ever saw a gray haire on the head or beard of any Truth, wrinckle, or morphew on its face: The bed of Truth is green all the yeare long. Hee that cannot solace himselfe with any saving truth, as affectionately as at the first acquaintance with it, hath not only a fastidious, but an adulterous heart.
If all be true we heare, Never was any People under the Sun, so sick of new Opinions as English-men nor of new fashions as English-women: If God helpe not the one, and the devill leave not helping the other, a blind man may easily foresee what will become of both. ”

“ I cannot imagine why the Holy Ghost should give Timothy the solemnest charge, was ever given mortall man, to observe the Rules he had given, till the comming of Christ, if new things must be expected. ”

“ He is a good King that undoes not his Subjects by any one of his unlimited Prerogatives: and they are a good People, that undoe not their Prince, by any one of their unbounded Liberties, be they the very least. I am sure either may, and I am sure neither would be trusted, how good soever. Stories tell us in effect, though not in termes, that over-risen Kings, have been the next evills to the world, unto fallen Angels; and that over-franchised people, are devills with smooth snaffles in their mouthes. A King that lives by Law, lives by love ”

“ Ill Counsellours are very ill Gamesters; if they see their own stake a losing, they will play away King, Queen, Bishops, Knights, Rooks, Pawnes, and all, before they will turne up the board: they that play for lusts, will play away themselves, and not leave themselves so much as a heart to repent; and then there is no Market left but Hell; if the case be thus, it is to no end to look for any end, till one side make an end of the other. ”

“ Warring and jarring men are no builders of houses for God, though otherwise very good. Instruments may be well made and well strung, but if they be not well fretted, the Musique is marred. The great Turke hearing Musitians so long a tuning, he thought it stood not with his state to wait for what would follow. ”

“ I fear many holy men have not so deeply humbled themselves for their former mis-worshippings of God as he will have them before he reveales his secrets to them: as they accounted things indifferent, so they account indifferent repentance will serve turne. Son of man, if my people be ashamed of all that they have done, then shew them the forme of the house, and the fashion thereof, else not, Ezek. 43. 11. A sin in Gods worship, that seemes small in the common beame of the world, may be very great in the scales of his Sanctuary. Where God is very jealous, his servants should be very cautelous. ”

“ Not to tolerate things meerly indifferent to weak consciences, argues a conscience too strong: pressed uniformity in these, causes much disunity: To tolerate more than indifferents, is not to deale indifferently with God; He that doth it, takes his Scepter out of his hand, and bids him stand by. Who hath to doe to institute Religion but God. The power of all Religion and Ordinances, lies in their purity: their purity in their simplicity: then are mixtures pernicious. ”

“ I feare, if Authority doth not establish a sutable and peaceable Government of Churches the sooner, the bells in all the steeples will ring awke so long, that they will hardly be brought into tune any more. ”

“ Every singular Opinion, hath a singular opinion of it self; and he that holds it a singular opinion of himself, and a simple opinion of all contra-sentients: he that confutes them, must confute all three at once, or else he does nothing; which will not be done without more stir than the peace of the State or Church can indure. ”

“ Shall the chiefe bearing wombe of your Kingdome, [Pg 67] be ever so constituted, that it cannot be delivered of its owne deliverance, in what pangs soever it be, without the will of one man-midwife, and such a man as will come and not come, but as he list: nor bring a Parliament to bed of a well-begotten Liberty without an entire Subsidy? Doe not your Majesty being a Schollar, know, that it was a truth long before it was spoken, that Mundus est unus aut nullus, that there is Principum purum unum, which unites the world and all that is in it ”

“ And prudent are those Christians, that will rather give what may be given, then hazzard all by yeelding nothing. To sell all peace of Country, to buy some peace of Conscience unseasonably, is more avarice than thrift, imprudence than patience: they deale not equally, that set any truth of God at such a rate; but they deale wisely that will stay till the Market is fallen. ”

“ Did the servants of Christ know what it is to live in Reformed Churches with unreformed spirits, under strict order with loose hearts, how formes of Religion breed but formes of Godlinesse, how men by Church-discipline, learne their Church-postures, and there rest; they would pray as hard for purity of heart, as purity of Ordinances. ”

“ Wee are very sorry to see such professed profanenesse in English Professors, as industriously to lay their Religious Foundations on the ruine of true Religion; which strictly binds every conscience to contend earnestly for the Truth: to preserve unity of spirit, faith and Ordinances, to be all like-minded, of one accord ”

“ Did I say a Kings mercy? what can I say more? no man on earth, can shew more mercy then a King, nor shall need more, when he comes to give an Account of his Kingdome: Nor did ever any Parliament merit more mercy than this, for they never sinned, that I know, I meane against the Common and Statute Law of England: it is pity they who have given so many general pardons, should want one now. ”

“ First, that no practicall sin is so sinfull as some errour in judgement; no men so accursed with indelible infamie and dedolent impenitency, as Authours of Heresie. Secondly, that the least Error, if grown sturdy and pressed, shall set open the Spittle-doore of all the squint ey'd, wry-necked, and brazen-faced Errors that are or ever were of that litter; if they be not enough to serve its turne, it will beget more, though it hath not one crust of reason to maintain them. Thirdly, that that State which will permit Errors in Religion, shall admit Errors in policy unavoyably. ”

“ It is said, Though a man have light enough himselfe to see the Truth, yet if he hath not enough to enlighten others, he is bound to tolerate them, I will engage my self, that all the Devills in Britanie shall sell themselves to their shirts, to purchase a Lease of this Position for three of their Lives, under the Seale of the Parliament.
It is said, That Men ought to have Liberty of their Conscience, and that it is Persecution to debarre them of it: I can rather stand amazed then reply to this: it is an astonishment to think that the braines of men should be parboyl'd in such impious ignorance ”

“ Doe you not know Sir, that, as when your people are sicke of the Kings-evill, God hath given you a gift to heale them? so when your selfe are sicke of it, God hath given the Parliament a gift to heale you: Hath your Subjects love been so great to you, that you will spend it all, and leave your children little or none? Are you so exasperated against wise Scotland, that you will make England your foole or foot-stoole? Is your fathers Sonne growne more Orthodox, then his most Orthodox father, when he told his Sonne, that a King was for a kingdome, and not a kingdome for a King? ”

“ First, that Truth is the best boone God ever gave the world: there is nothing in the world, any further then Truth makes it so; it is better then any creat' Ens or Bonum, which are but Truths twins. Secondly, the least Truth of Gods Kingdome, doth in its place, uphold the whole kingdome of his Truths; Take away the least vericulum out of the world, and it unworlds all, potentially, and may unravell the whole texture actually, if it be not conserved by an Arme of superiordinary power. Thirdly, the least Evangelicall Truth is more worth than all the Civil Truths in the world, that are meerly so. ”

“ That no man ought to forsake his owne countrey, but upon extraordinary cause, and when that cause ceaseth, he is bound in conscience to returne if he can: We are looking to him who hath our hopes and seasons in his onely wise hand.
In the mean time we desire to bow our knees before the Throne of Grace day and night, that the Lord would be pleased in his tender mercy to still the sad unquietnesse and per-peracute contentions, of that most comfortable and renowned island, that at length He may have praise in his Churches, and his Churches peace in him, through Jesus Christ. ”

“ It is, your, now or never, to muster up puissant Armies of Prayers to the Mercy Seate; your Body Representative, is now to take in hand, as intricate a piece of worke, as ever fell into the hands of any Parliament in the world, to tye an indissoluble knot upon that webb which hath been woven with so much cost and bloud, wherein if they happen to make one false maske, it may re-imbarque themselves and you all into a deadly relapse of scorne and calamity. ”

“ I am bold to say that since the pure Primitive time, the Gospel never thrived so well in any soile on earth, as in the British; nor is the like goodnesse of nature, or Cornucopian plenty else-where to be found: if ye lose that Country, and finde a better before ye come to Heaven, my Cosmography fades me. I am farre from discouraging any, whom necessity of Conscience or condition thrusts out by head and shoulders: if God calls any into a Wildernesse, Hee will be no wildernesse to them, Jer. ”

“ If a Christian would picke out a way to thrive in grace, let him study to administer grace to them that want: or to make sure a blessing upon his Family; let him labour to multiply the family of Christ, and beleeve, that he which soweth liberally, shall reap abundantly; and hee that spareth more than is need, from them that have more need, shall surely come to poverty: yea, let me say, that he who forsakes the meanes of grace for Christ and his Churches sake, shall meet with a better bargaine, namely, grace it selfe. ”