NOW are the Daies, doubtless, whereof Christ and his Apostles forewarn'd us; That there should be a departing or falling away from the Faith: (1 Tim. 4. 1. 2 Pet. 3. 3. Jude 18.) and that because of Ini­quities abounding, the love of many should wax cold, Matth. 24. 12. Cold for Christ, and the true Chri­stian Religion; Nay, They shall even deny Christ, 2 Pet. 2. 1. 2 Tim. 2. 12. And these things, with many more are come to pass at this very day.

And this hath proceeded from the cursed design of the JESUITES, and the rest of the Romish Faction, who debauch many great Ones, and they, by their wicked Example (which almost car­ries the sorce of a Command with it) the whole Comonalty, (by deluding them with pretences of Venial sins, and Pardons, &c.) For is not Whoring, Swaring, Drunkning, Lying, Aequivocating, &c. become as a mighty Stream overflowing the whole Land, thereby fitting us for some worse Judgment, if the Plague, the Fire, and other Punishments we have had, do no good upon us. Therefore be steadfast: How dreadful is it to consider, and what a sure Token of approaching Judgment is it, to see

I. Many quandam zealous Protestants, grown of late so cold, (colder since the PLOT than before) so narrow spirited and basely timorous, (thinking 'tis a great piece of discretion, and that they shew an emphatical piece of Wisdom) That when Discourse is raised in Com­pany, concerning POPERY, they will either shift it off with a Drool, force some other Dis­course, or sneak away, in hopes to save their Bakon, (cujus contrarium verum est,) so that, real­ly, they are asham'd, or half afraid to own themselves Protestants: Shewing not so mch zeal for the true Worship of the true God, as a Turk does for Mahomets, or a Heathen for his Idol: hereby declaring that they have sat under a dead Ministry, of whom God hath said, They shall not profit the People. Those that never felt the Power of God, under an Ordinance, in turning them from all Sin, and shewing them the desperateness of their Condition without Christ, a holy Life, &c. will turn to any, the worst of prevailing Religions, especially to that which tol­lerates Sin, as Popery do's: nay, makes it meritorious, as murdering Kings, burning Cities, &c!

II. Others are so pusillanimous, so dirty, and dastardly; That they dare not own the Truth, when they hear it traduced and impugned by men popishly affected: when e'n the Spi­rit of God and their own Consciences prompt them to speak: as if they were asham'd of Christ, (See Mark 8. 38.) and with Spira, desperately quench and resist the Motions of the Holy Ghost: and if any put them to it by Interrogatories, they'l answer with an Equivocation, or an Italian shrug: Know, they that dare not Speak for Christ, will hardly either Do or Suffer for him; These are light Wheat, that will soon be blown aside, if the Wind rises a little: especially, if Euroclydon blow hard.

III. There is also another sort, who, tho they will talk pretty freely concerning the PLOT, &c. yet their words are so cunningly and artificially placed, as if they were coin'd on purpose: Yea their Expressions are many times so ambiguous, and savoring of the JESUITS canting Querks, that the wisest Man alive can hardly tell what to make of them: and all these three aim at the same thing, viz. hoping, by Silence, Indifferency, and Neutrality, to find favour of the Papists, if they should get uppermost; which is the greatest Folly imaginable: as I could evince by many woful Examples, in the Rebellion, in Ireland where they were most egregi­ously perfidious, promising the Protestants quarter, but in stead thereof murdered them in cold Blood: And this one Relation, shall serve in stead of many, whereby you may see, if you will, what you are to expect when they have the Sword, &c. Take it faithfully as I receiv'd it from Captain Edward Leventhorp, and others.

DUring the late Wars in Ireland, A Castle well mann'd with English, Protestants, being suddenly and straightly besieged by the Enemy, in so much, that in few daies, they were reduced to so great Extremity, that they must of necessity either starve, or yield to the Mer­cy of the merciless and implacable Papists (whose tender Mercies are Cruelty; as all along the Maryan Dayes, the Troubles in Germany, and the Irish Rebellion hath been proved.)

Hereupon, the Day and Hour being appointed whereon they should march out of the Ca­stle, without any thing, save only their wearing Clothes: These Noble Souls (I call them so for their Magnanimity for the Cause of Jesus Christ) came out of the Castle, and as soon as ever they came forth, so soon were they surrounded by the Enemy; as you see in this Figure: who, with drawn swords in their hands, waited only for the Word of Command to fall on, and cut them in pieces: whilst, the other poor Souls were upon their Knees, one while calling upon God for Mercy, and another while crying to their Enemies for Pity: but the Papists had sworn the Ruine of them all, and had done it too, if GOD by a strange and wonderful way had not prevented it. For, just as the Commander was about to give the Word, to fall on, and spare none of the English Soldiers; GOD, I say! put it into the Commanders mind, to ask them one Question first: and it was this, He demanded if there were any Roman Catholicks among them? if there be (said he) let them draw out, and separate from the rest, who were to stand still: The Word was no sooner out of his Mouth, but out came three or four, and con­fest themselves Roman Catholicks, and withall antedated their Religion: after them, came half a dozen, and at the heels of them half a score more, and divers others after them, and all ac­knowleding themselves Catholicks, ante-dating, as the first did. Whereat the Popish Com­mander turn'd about and smil'd: and when no more would come, he asked the rest that stood Firm, If they were resolv'd to dye PROTESTANTS? They, (like true Christians, Heaven born Souls indeed) answered, That they would not change their Religion to save their LIVES!

Say you so? Quoth the Popish Commander! But what, I pray, Do'nt you think the others that separated from you good Catholicks? No, (said the stedfast Soldiers) because they never own'd themselves as such till now, and they do it for fear of Death.

I verily believe it, (said the Commander) for I thought as much before. Then turning to the rest of his Officers and Souldiers, he said, Them yonder, meaning those that separated, are but Counterfeit Catholicks, and the Rogues do it only to save their LIVES, and to abuse us, for they will run away the next Opportunity: Therefore, by GOD, they shall dy every man of them, and the other for standing so bravely to their Principles shall live; and whom I would soo­ner trust, upon any occasion, than the other, or any such Time-serving Rascals, as they are!

In short, he put all the Revolters to the Sword, and saved the other for their brave Re­solution: and not only so, but sent them with a safe Conduct to the next English Garrison, having as many of his own sent in Exchange, that had been Prisoners. By this noble Act, the said Commander won great Applause amongst the English.

Now, consider this, all ye that think to save your Lives and Estates by temporising and basely ante-dating your Religion, or dirtily complying with, and fawning upon every base pi­tiful (the most of them are no better) Papist before hand, as if ye would forespeak Friend­ship, as I am too sure many do. And possibly, you that are next to, removed but one little step from them, may find some favour, for a very little time, from them, till you and them, if they can by any idle foolish pretence get you to assist them against such as are more zealous against their Idolatries: But, when their work is so far done, then they will more easily cut you off too, for the least step of Reformation since Qu. Maries daies, their Soul hates, even as the purest worship. For I can liken them to no better a Crew than Rogues and Thieves that live in an honest place; who will carry it very fairly among the Neighbourhood, to have som [...] [...] dies good word at a pinch: so they, make to some one party to shelter under them: and the [...] only Polyphemus's Courtesy will be yours, that is, to dy last; when you have seen the Throats of others cut, your own turn comes next.

There are Seven sorts that above all others are most likely to turn Apostates, viz. The Cove­tous, the Ambitious, the Self-lovers, the Over-nice, the Formalists, the Ignorant and the Fearful. See Rev. 21. 8. Mat. 10. 33. Mark. 13. 13. Rev. 2. 10. 25. 1 Cor. 16. 13. Phil. 4. 1. 1 Cor. 10. 12.

These 7 include the first three abovenamed; and are wrapt up in the word HYPOCRITE; and amongst them, there are divers great Professors even of all sorts, who (as well as the loose, ignorant, debauch'd, prophane Protestants) for fear or favour, may joyn with the Papists against sincere Protestants; as the Lutherans joyned with Papists against the Calvenists, An. 1567. and about the 10 year of Q. Eliz. especially when allured thereto by the curious Arts of Jesuites and their Proselytes, the P [...]ltring Baites of Profit and Preferment. Seconded by the lusty (tho feigned) Promises of some principal Papists and their Agents. But God can (and perhaps will) bring it so to pass, That such revolting Wrethes, may be served as they above mention'd: or, if not so, yet they cannot escape Vengeance: for I am confident they will perish by one means or other, perchance by the hands of true Protestants: And, for my own part, I do profess, (if God will make use of the Arm of Flesh, in our defence) I would sooner give quarter to French or any other outlandish-Papist, than any English Apostate whatsoever (Laity or Clergy) that should joyn in Arms with them, or our domestick or home-born Papists against the Pro­testants Cause.

And I write this with an heart that never yet feared the greatest or the proudest Papist in the World: who have been at the routing of such, almost an hundred times, in my junior daies: and therefore, I think, I should know the better how to deal with them now; if they will needs force us to it, by falling upon us first: for till then we will not stir one foot: Let them other­wise provoke us never so much, as they have done very often, and do daily: besides burning of London, Southwark, &c. But as crafty Fowlers as they are, they shall not catch old Birds in the Chaff.

For, In all Gods Armory, there's no defence for the Back, the Runagade, the Apostate must everlastingly perish. O Apostate bethink thy self betimes!

Notwithstanding all this, Let us, and all that think they stand, beware lest we fall, (1 Cor. 10. 12.) as they may, without Divine Assistance: Self-Confidence being a most dangerous Rock on which many have split, even in this present Age: Remember the Apostle Peter: and the Apostate Pendleton, in the Book of Martyrs.