There are another sort of men that raise up Jericho, that revive all the heresies that were damned to hell by the ayicient Councih. The heresy of Pclagius was damned to hell by the ancient councils. The African coun- cils, divers of them, divers synods, wherein Augustine himself was a party, they condemned Pelagius's heresy.'-i-- Are there not men now abroad that will revive these heresies ? And there must be expected nothing but a curse where this prevails ; for they are opinions cursed by the church of God, that have been led by the Spirit of God heretofore ; such opinions, I mean, as speak meanly of the grace of God, as if it were a weak thing, and advance the strength of free-will, and make an idol of that ; and so, under * Cf. Note/, Vol. II. page 194.— G.
THE UNPKOSPEROUS BUILDER. 25
the commendation, and setting up of nature, are enemies of grace. These are those that build up Jericho.
3. There are a company that build up Jericho likewise, persons that will venture ^ipon the curse of founders of colleges, dc, those that have left statutes, and testaments, and wills, established and. sealed them with a curse, as it were, against the breakers of them ; yet some make no more bones of breaking these, either statutes or wills, than Samson did of breaking his cords ; as if they would venture upon the curse of former times, and per- sons that very likely were led by the Spirit of God, and could say amen to their curses, as if they were nothing like Hiel, that would venture upon the terrible curse of Joshua; come what would, he would break through all.^
4. But the Jericho especially that a world of people go about to build again, is popenj. How many have ye to build up the walls of Jericho again in this kind ? But to make this a little clearer, because the occasion leads to this something, I will be the larger in it.
Quest. How came they to build these walls of Jericho ? By what means came this religion that is so opposite to the religion of the Scripture ; this religion, that was gathered by the Council of Trent into one sea, as it were, that whosoever drinks of it dies, as it is in the Eevelation, xx. 14. How comes this religion ? How crept it into the world ?
Ans. I could be long to shew that it came by degrees. While the husbandmen slept, then the devil sowed his tares by heretics and such like. It grew by degrees. And then the world was scared and terrified with shows and fancies ; as with the succession of Peter, that is a mere fancy ; and then they were frighted with excommunications, the terrible sentence of the church. And then again it is a kingdom of darkness, popery is. By little and little they brought in ignorance, not only of the Scriptures, but of other things. They had their prayers in an unknown tongue, forbidding the Scriptures and the like. In the night they might do what they would, when they had put out the candle. When they had buried the knowledge of the word of God they might bring in any heresy ; many ways they came in.
Now the preaching of the gospel is the means to pull down these walls of Jericho, it is the going about the walls of Jericho. By the preaching of Luther and others, the walls have fallen, though not utterly ; yet notwith- standing, in the last hundred years there hath been a great ruin of popery.
Quest. What means have they now to build the walls again ? How they bestir themselves ! There is a new sect of Jesuits, that are the spirit of the devil for knowledge and industry. It is a strange project they have now to build up the walls of Jericho again ; and three things they have in their project, and these are to set up the pope again, and a catholic king under him, as he is the catholic head of the church, and to set up the Council of Trent in the full vigour. These are the main projects they labour to set up, and so to build Jericho again this way ; and what coui'se do they take ?
Ans. The devil hath a thousand wiles. I cannot reckon all the instru- ments of Satan. Who can tell all his wiles ? They go about to build the walls of Jericho again among other ways.
By shutting out of all light by their terrible inquisition, a most cruel thing. By the tyranny of this inquisition, they shut out all light of God's truth in all places where popery is established.
Then again they have all Satan's arts to build up Jericho, by slanders
23 THE UNPROSPEROUS BUILDER.
aud lies. They labour to estrange the hearts of people what they can against the truth of religion, and therefore they raise all the Hes and slanders they can ; nay, and they will not sutler so much as a Protestant writer to be named, but the name of such a one, say they, be blotted out. Then they have their Index Puiyatorias,-^ to purge all that savour of truth that favour our cause. And then they have their dispensations. And, to cut off other things, for where should I end ? indeed their policy is almost endless in this kind ; they have the quintessence of their own wit and of Satan's to sharpen them in this kind.