THE just God of Heaven, being provoked by Sin, beyond the Bounds of Grace & Pardon, (though he be the Fountaine of Mercy it self) yet will he manifest his Power when he is so provoked, which makes him to suffer Monsters to Ty­rannize, Scillaes, Mariuses, Neroes, Dioclesians &c. which brought little Laud to our displeased Affections: such ravening Wolvet, like cruell Beares, are fittest to associate the hungry starved Monsters, beyond the Alpes high Hils, and not to mixe themselves into our mercifull go­vernment; for the King of Israel is a mercifull King, & out Lawes are full of pitty, and, which is above all, we professe the worship of a gratious, and mercifull God; and thus we learn, that when a people are opprest with Tyranny, let them call upon the Lord, and returne from all their evill wayes; and then the Lord will set them free, and give them victory over those Tyrants, that so cruelly oppresse them: as blessed be his holy name, he hath now done for us; covering their faces with shame amongst us; so that we may say with the Poet:

When the Lord made England first a Protestant church, he bestowed upon her a great Blessing: he made her the spouse of Iesus Christ, whose Members are his Saints on earth: this was a happy marriage for our Nation and herein have we bin happy ever since. Onely what hath bin Eclipsed since by Popery, makes us miserable most of all; though by many other wayes we sin: yet this hath bin our greatest misery. God was provoked by our sins, when he did threaten us with Famine. Plague Warres, & we have often felt his gentle Chastisements, but we did not repent, and turn unto the Lord, & enter into Cove­nant with him: we cryed like wanton Children whilst we felt the smart, but hated not the Cause; God sent us good Ministers to gather his people unto him; but the en­vious mans tares sprang up faster in our rotten hearts, then Gods good seed: and Satan raised up opposers, even of those godly Preachers themselves, to stop their mouthes: Then the Lord permitted blind unpreaching Prelates, & Mi­nisters to be thrust into our Churches; who, whilst they allured us with the beauty of the Temple walls, & drew our affections to behold the huge Cedars of the church Mountaines; but fed us not with the Word of God: they fed us with Leaves and Acorns, like the Beast of Rome, and with-held from us the truth of Scriptures, the savory venson for our soules; and O how blind we were, to sit still; as if we had enough! But oh, the sad groans, and heave sighes that passed from the Soules of Gods holy people, the zealous Professors amongst us! When Bishop Laud was made Arch-bishop of Canterbury; his [Page]disaffection to the Truth of Protestant Religion, caused his designs to be expected as Tyrannous in his Metro­politan See, and to be as terrible to the Church & Chil­dren of God, as the fierce winds and stormes, to the halfe-drowned Passengers in the turmoyling waves of the troubled sea many were our prophets to foretel this sad disaster. And if we looke upon this Monster, we shall see how high in pride he soar'd, whilst all Opposers of his will were indangered thereby to incurre his great displeasure, whose prosecution was without pitty.

This Ork directed his course like a Canterbury Ty­rant, against the faithfull, godly, & Religious Protestants, labouring to suppresse Purity: yet being zealously affe­cted with Romish superstition, and blind Popery, roaring in a blind devotion; yet was his sent so sharpe, that it was hard for any sincere, godly Professor, to shun his pawes, either in himself or his Agents So was his pow­er also great, in so much, that few could escape him; so that alwayes, his Prisoners had little hope, either to fight or flye. Amongst the rest, look upon Reverend Mr. Bur­ton, a grave, and worthy, Religious Divine; how he suf­fered under him, and that for no just cause, that I could ever heare; but because he was so pure, so holy, & that tyrants will grew so great, that neither piety nor pity, wife, nor Children, would work upon him: No, he must have bloud, his eares must be cut, & that in vild disgrace upon the Pillory, when the tender eyes of all spectators, could not refraine weeping, to behold so sad a spectacle. Looke upon D. Bastwicke, a meek, courteous, affable Gentleman; yet to please the fancy of the bloud-thirsty Monster, must suffer his eares also to be cropt. And how hath Master Pryme, that admired Lawyer, whose Pious, and Godly Conversation, is transcendent above most; yet had his eares twice clipt, his Cheekes burnt with an hot Iron, his Bookes burnt before His Face, [Page]& each of them constrain'd to live in exile, from wives, Children, families, flock, friends: O monstrous cruelty, thus to trample on the blond of holy Christians; what shall I say of D. Laiton, M. Lilborn, Nathaniel Wickins, and many others who have bin cruelly imprisoned, cen­sured, whipt, fined beyond the bonds of charity, or Chri­stian ty, who have bin afflicted with the vast Cave of his illegall, and unjust proceeding Courts, and his large family of Rotchet Prelates; which comely Matrons, have curbed the mouthes of faithfull Ministers, whilst this great Goat keeper himself, hath destroyed the grasse upon the Mountaines, prepared to f [...]ed the sheepe.

What lamentation was there then amongst the Saints, and godly people; how did they mourn to see the Church silled with popery and superstition, and Popist Innovations, and instead of the Ministers of God (in many places) were set the Priests of Baal. The good people of the land prayed for Reformation, but rested (almost) despairing of release.

The Scots they rise, and tell our Kingdome, that the Orcke of Canterbury, that great Monster, and his Agents, have kept away their sister, the Church of England, from Christ her spouse, and have polluted her with Popery; & that themselves also, are in danger of the same sad disaster and protested that they would lose their lives, before they would permit that their Doctrine should be corrupted.

Hereupon a Parliament was called, which gave both us and them hope of Reformation; we poore soules were so taken with the Parliament; that we thought our selves in Heaven at a trance, as if all was then done; but yet neglected the chiefest thing on our part, Repentance, and Conversion to God: we forgot the Lord, and thought our deliverance past: some few dayes passed sweetly, but politike Canterbury was so diligent; and Catulous of his owne Inventions; he laboured in the day, and con­trived in the night to hinder our Designes, and to ob­scure [Page]the bright day starres then appearing; & though not for his Sect, whose intents were wicked▪ but being provoked by our sins, God thwarted our hopes in that Parliament, by a dissolution therof: This gave his grace­lesse Laud, great satisfaction, his heart began to sore a­gaine, as high as ever: but this bred sad thoughts upon the hearts of good people, but they were constrain'd to patience, waiting Gods appointed time.

The Scots were counted Rebels, and traytors, Soul­diers were banded, warres were begun, bloud was shed on both sides, and oh how beyond all admiration was the sword so soone sheathed againe: had they gone or, O the lamenta­ble spectacles that our eyes would have seene ere this, our Chan [...]els might have flowed with bloud, and husband, wife Child, &c. have parisht before each others eyes: yet none able to helpe, the sword spareth neither the gray haire, nor the tender babe, old age, nor virginity? But ever blessed be our God who hath preserved us.

The Tyrant of Canterbury, provided a sorrowfull cup, for the Saints he drove his flock, and called his Goates together, themselves constituted ungodly Oaths, & sin­full Canons, to confirme their Designes, and their silken Doctors, labour to establish them, whose readinesse and diligence, was, as if they soar'd on Eagles wings, to per­fect the same; whilst good and godly men, wept & be­wailed the Calamities we then groned under.

The great Monster, still inflamed with cruell Rage, would have all power, and all Lawes subject to him, and his Courts: nay, he would have mens meanes forced from them, and like a cruell Ork, in his owne quarrell, drawes the 3. Kingdomes to a Controversie, to make them swimme in bloud; but O our God, Deliver us we beseech thee from cruell bloud-thirsty Tyrants. And ever blessed be our good God, who in our greatest need, in the midst of this distresse, haeh set us free againe, by an happy Parliament, from that forlorne and wofull Condition, in [Page]which we were, under so great Perills? O let us there­fore praise our good God, & enter into Covenant with him of new Obedience, and write the memory thereof to our unborne Posterity for ever.

Let us looke upon this cruell Ork, as he is a Traytor convicted by the High Court of Parliament, and lying under the heavy sentence of death: by whom we have so long bin plagued, and groaned under yet now (by Gods providence we shall find) the troubled State set free.

Let us againe cast our eyes upon Gods, most ample blessings in the testimony of his favours, that we enjoy a mercifull King that loveth his people, and as carefull of our peace and profit: Let us, I say, magnifie the felicity of our Realme of England, for the gratious and mild go­vernment of our Royall Soveraigne, and the calling sit­ting, and confirming, of that great Assembly of wise Se­nators in Parliament, whose proceedings appeare like the Balme of Gilead, to our diseased Nation.

Laus Deo.