Extract of a Letter from Connecticut, March 14, 1742.

Hope the Extravagances of Davenport, Allen, and their Club at NewLondon, in burning a great Number of good old orthodox heavenly Books, fuch as Willard's Body of Divinity, Shepherd's Sincere Convert, &c. which perhaps you have heard of, will open fome People's Eyes, and make 'em afraid of the Wilds of Enthusiasm. We are credibly informed, that they held a Faft three Days together not long ago at the Shepherd's Tent, in order to know whether a young Man, viz. one Gun from Sunderland, who offered himself, was converted, and fo fit for their Society; but could have no Answer to their repeated Prayers, till they purged the House of Achan, one of their Number, whom they had before fufpected; but as foon as this was done, and they began to pray, the Spirit was poured out upon Gun and his Father, though in another Room, and filled them with Raptures, and prelently the whole Houfe was full of the Spirit, which convinced them all, that Gun was such an one as belonged to them, &. * *

Extract of another Letter from Connecticut, March 16,

MR

TR Davenport, in my Audience, the last Week, before a confiderable Number, has retracted thofe ftrange Opinions which he had lately unhappily broached, as Enthufiaftical and Delufive, taking Shame to himself, and acknowledging the Juftice of God in leaving him to himfelf, &c. Jofeph Crofwell.

The following odd Preachment was communicated by a Correfpondent in Bolton, New-England, as it was printed and published there. 1743.

Rav. Ser.

The DEDICATION.

THE foregoing Preachment I never expected could fee the Lite, or elfe I fou'd have taken more care both in compofing and delivering of it; but it feems a Gentleman who heard it and took it down in Short hand infifted upon the Publication of it, fo was obliged to publish it to prevent its being Printed without my Correction. And as you are a Gentleman which of late bave taken of the force and Edge of the fevere bloes which have been diffign'd against Me, which have given a Mortal flab to My Intelectuall & Moral karater! I can doc no less then condole with you under the honor that is Done you: As for thefe Opofors 1 look upon them no others then Kitchen Winches who the more they scour brafs Candelfticks the briter they are and I hope you will at last come out as gold purified seven Times, that is as brite as Nebuchadnazars Image which was made partly of Clay and partly of other metal. As you have always been fo good as to patronize Me I can doe no

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lefs than didicate this Preachment to you, and doubt not youl Forgive Me wherein I bave used your own expreffions ftil hoping for your patronage Agreable to your diftinterested partiality and goodness. I hope youl excufe

My loguacity & prolixity for I am in great baft.

Your obedent

bumbel farvant,

J. P.

The Hidden Life of a Chriftian. A PREACHMENT.

Col. iii. and 3d. Ye are dead, your Life is bid with Christ in God.

T

HARE was an ORATOR for the Davil that prached from thefe Words a few Lecture days ago in this Towne, and he made fuch miterable Work with the Text that I fhould not doe juftice to the subject, If I did not make a Preachment u pon the fameText this Future part of the Day-He endeavoured to proven that a Criftians Life was not only hiden from the obfervafhon of others but in a great measure it was hidden from himfeif, which is as much as tofay that a Man or Woman may be the Sons of GOD and not know it, which is damnable Doctrine, and leads to Hell & Damnafhon, for prove of this fatanical Doctrine he faid, That the Children of GOD were fome times under fpirital dereliction and divine confolation whereby they were reduc'd to great dout about there fpirital ftate and Condifhon, arifing u pon the hidings of God's face From Them, that they began to queftion whether they were really Elected or not, or to ufe other words whether they ware in a Juftified Eftate, or no: Which Doctrine is contrary to the Experience of the Generation of God's Children, and has a Direct Tendency to Drive Poor Soles to defpare, & it is contrary to Many places of Holy Word. I think we rede in the fcripture that whom God loves he loves to the end, now How can GOD love you and you not know it, do you think that and arthly Parent can have an affection for his Child and, he question and dout about, it, because for his Crimes he may corect him, now & then : Dont you remember my Brethren that JOB was Once under the hideings of God's face, when he faid, Oh, that it was with me as in Time paft, when the face of GOD'S reconciled countenance shined u pon his Soul, Now take Nottice he Obferves that God's reconcil'd countenance once fhine'd u pon him, and that could not be unless he was elect, therefore he comforts himself I Say, with thinking that it will fhine agen.

Befides does not David when in a dul Frame cry out, Why art thou defquieted Ob my Sole, Hope thou in God &c. Nay I doe afure you my Brethren, that if you are Elected & Juftufied you wil have allways as clear Evidence of it in this World as ever you wil have when you come to Haven it felf, and if you are in any doubts about your fpirital Condition, you may Infar that you are not the Children of GOD. So that this fhould be Improven as a Caution to the Saints how they here fuch Preachers who are fo Ignorant as to tell a Man they may be converted and not know it, Indeen they may be Men of Learning, and Talk finely u pon fpeculative & practical points, but it is not likely they will be a fed as the means to fave One poor Sole.

But I have been fo long u pon the Supplemant of his Difcourfe that its high

high Time I should come to the Entroducton of the Words, You are dead, that is you are fallin with Adam in his First Tranfgrefhon. Your Life is hid with Chrift, that is no One can tel the Time of your, Natral Life nor when it wil End. With Chrift in GOD, That is GoD preferves your Lifethro Chrift. Having faid thus much by way of Explination of the Words I fhall farthar Illuftrat them in the following Methud.

And First, I fhall fhow & Evidence that every Natral Man is Dead wile he Liveth.

And Secondly When he is Regenerated or Juftefied he may be faid to be a live.

Thirdly, His Life is hid with Chrift in GoD.

And here First I fhall fhew That every Natral Man is Dead wile he liveth And this Will apparantly appear if we confider that the Life of a Natral Man will certainly come to an End, It is appointed for all Men once to Dye, He may be of a Robus Strong and Tender Conflitushon, and value hinfelf u pon the Strength and Buety and other Accomplishments of the Mind and think that his Days fhall never come to an end, yet fo fure as he is now a live, he will very fhortly dye.

Again, The Natral Man is Dead if we confider he has not one spark of fpirital and divine Life in him, nether can he do any one thing towards obtaining it, more than a Dead Man can rife himself to Life. But Latly here, the Natral Man is Dead as he never fhall obtain Eternal Life. Thus much for the first Propofishon.

I come now to the Second Propofifhon which is this, Viz.

When the Sinner is Juftified or Regenerated he may be faid to be a live: He than has a Pranciple of Life dropt up in his Sole, and to prepare him for this he must be in great A gony, fo as to Cry out, Fal Down & Fome at the Mouth, like a Man in a Convolfhon fit, but you have seen so many happy fubjects of late of this Work in this place that I need not spend Time to lay any thing further upon this Head, but fhall preceed to the 3d & laft Head of Discorse,

His Life is bid with Chrift in GOD. And here it is hid in the following Refpects- (1) As he doth not know the Time of his own Death, this is a Secret intirely in the breft of GOD, It is appointed for all Men once to Dye, but the Time when is known to no Man, but GoD and Christ know the very Moment, to that in this fence there Life is Hid, and in this fence & this only it may be faid to be hid from Themselves, that is there Natral Life.

zdly. This Spirital Life is Hid from the Obfervafhon of Man, they cant See the Principals they act from, neither doth their Lite always fhine before Men that they feeing there Good Works glorify there hevenly Father. But very often the Good Man is obliged to cover and Conceal his Goodness, left he should be Laffed at & Redicul'd by the Opofers of the prelent Work, who Scof at Every Thing Superftafhious & Rafhional, fo that if a Good Man that has receiv'd New Lite fhoud difcover his Piety to the World he may hurt his Karacter & Buffnefs, for the Times are Now fo Bad that the Riteous Man is difpifed while the Wicked & Deibolical Men have there Abbettors, and thofe that wil Juftify them in the moft Flegrant Crimes. Thus much for the Doctrinol handling the Words. I now preceed to the

E

APPLICATION.

From what has ben faid we may Infar the fafety of the Riteous Man, notwithstanding the Attemps of Wicked Men, to deprive him of his Life. Thofe that have a Mind to be fingularly Good have allways met with Opofifhon, thus it is at this Day, and so it has ben from the airlieft Days of Criftanity, even as far back as Zoriaftes a great Reformur of the Criftan Religgon among the Perfhans, who was caled a Impoftor, the fame Tretment his Succeffours have met with in This Country, Witness the A buses that have ben to the Karacters of Wd, Tt, Dt & C, for there grate Zele in carrying on a further Reformafhon; and fence these Holy & good Men have met with fuch Tratement it is no Wonder that I am fingled out, for the Songe of the Drunkard. Nay the Mallace of the Opofers of the prefent Day is fo great that if it ware equal to thare Strength thare would be Murder committed upon fome of the Dear Servants of GOD if the Laws did not reftrane them. For you cannot but remember that One Thursday Night a great Numbers of Ruffeans & Villans came with Clubbs and Stafts to embru thare Hands in our Blood. And thare bitter Speches and hard Words Scofs & Jeres would quite defcourage me in my Duty, were it not that I am veryly perfwaded in a Judgment of Charity that they that are my Enemyes are the Enemyes of GoD alfo. I am acquainted with fome of them and GOD'S knows the reft. I would as foon converse with the Davil as I would with fuch Men, and whoever lives to fee them u pon a Death Bed will fee the Room full of Davils ready to hurl thare Damnd Soles to Hell.

And it cannot but raise Joy in the Breaft of every confiderate Mind to confider as the Old World was Deftroyed by a Conflagration of Water, fo this will be by an Enundation of Fire, when the Good Man fhall drop up to Haven, and the Wicked strict Moralift fhall fore below, then My Brethren will be the Time for your reward, and they will be convinced of their Folly when it is to late, Let this be Matter of Confaulafhon to you wile you are in this Walderness and draw you above the Thrats of thefe Profane fcoffers. Nay tho they may be Grate in this World, yet if they are not truly pious you may Trade them under your Futt.

And here I cannote but be thankful for the grate Vectory I have obtained over them in detacting a Grate Vallin one of the Champons of the Poffe, I am fure I have given the Davils Kindom a grater Bloe than has ben given to it this 100 years paft, to the eternal confufhon & unconfern of all his wicked and Deibolical Abetors.

Thus my Brethren wile I am puling down the Kingdom of Satan I am despised while thofe that are bulding of it up are carefte & adorde.

To Conclude, let us All endeafore to get an Intrefte in the Devine life and then it is Impofibel for Man or Davils or even the Opofers of this Work to deprivé us of our Natral Life. AMEN.

A VINDICATION of the Honeft, Learned and Pious JOHN FOX, and his Acts and Monuments of the Church, from the Cenfures and Afperfions of fome modern English Writers, particularly thofe of the Anabaptift Sect. In which Dr Wiclif and his Followers are further vindicated from the false Accufation of their being Anabaptists.

LORD! who shall dwell in thy Tabernacle? Who fhall reft upon thy holy Hili? Even he that leadeth an uncorrupt Life, and doth the thing which is right, and fpeaketh the Truth from his Heart: He that hath used no Deceit in his Tongue, nor done Evil to his Neighbour, and hath not flandered his Neighbours. He that fetteth not by himfelf; but is lowly in his own Eyes, and maketh much of them that fear the LORD. Pfalm XV. 1, 2, 3, 4. of Cranmer's Tran. Edit. 1539, 1566.

TH

HE cruel Treatment of thofe who adhered to the Reformation of Religion in K. Edward VI's Reign, during the fhort one of his Sifter Q. Mary, occafioned Q Elizabeth to order, by her Injunctions at the very Beginning of her Reign, That the O⚫dinaries fhould exhibit to her Vifitors their Books or Registers, or a true Copy of the fame, containing the Caufes why any Perfon was imprisoned, famished, or put to death for Religion; and, that the • Vifitors should enquire, what Books of holy Scripture were delivered to be burnt or otherwife deâtroyed, and to whom they had been delivered; what Bribes the Accufers, Promoters, Perfecutors, ecclefiaftical Judges, and other the Commiflioners appointed within the feveral Dioceffes of this Realm have received, by themselves or others, of thote Perfons who were in trouble, apprehended or imprifoned for Religion; what moveable Goods, Lands, Fees, Offices or Promotions had been wrongfully taken away, in the Time of Q. Mary's Reign, from any Perfon who favoured the Religion now fet forth. Laftly, how many Perfons for Religion had died by Fire, Famine, or otherwife, or had been imprisoned for the fame?' What the Returns made to thefe Enquiries were, or whether they were put into the Hands of the learned and diligent Mr John Fox to digeft and put in Print, is to me uncertain. However, four Years after he published a Book with this Title. Actes and Monumentes of thefe latter and perilous Days-Gathered and collected according to the true Copies and Writings certificatorie, as well of the Parties themselves that fufered, as

فرله

The Defign of writing this Hiftory was first fet on Foot among the Exiles abroad in Q Mary's hard Days, and many of them were concerned in it, to fupply Fox with Matter from England. The Chief of thefe was Grindal afterwards Bo of London and Archbp of Canterbury. From him Fox had the Hiftory of the holy John Bradford, and the Letters writ by him in Prifon, befides many other things. It was agreed upon by them, that this Hiftory-fhould be writtea both in Latin and English,-and fo it was. It was first printed beyond Sea in Latin at Bafil 1559. Strype's Annals of the Reformation, &c. Vol. I. p. 250, 251.