An answere vnto a wicked & infamous libel made by Christopher Vitel, one of the chiefe English elders of the pretended Family of Loue maintaining their doctrine, & carpingly answeringe to certaine pointes of a boke called the displaing of the Fam. Aunswered by I. Rogers.

Answere.

O Lord we b••seech thée turne the [ 44] harts of thes•• deceaue•• people, and graunt them thy hol•• s••irit, y^• they may discern thy truth tau••ht in thy ho¦ly word, and not geue ea••e vnto an••e which teach cōtrary therto, ouerthrow their deuices, brig to light their de••••••ts for thy holy names sake. That we thy childrē may rei••yce ouer their t•• uersiō & so together with one voice, magnifie & praise thy glorious name▪ and that those straying sh••••p may be brought in to thy fold again, 〈◊〉〈◊〉 it be thy bles••••d wil

Reueale vnto them O Lord we be∣seech thee, the office, and death of thy sonne, our Lord and Sauiour: that they tasting the swetenes thereof, may ••orsake the confidence they haue in their perfection, and that we may all acknowledge onely Christ Iesus to be per••ite: and we our selues, dust, and dung, and whatsoeuer is vile: let n••t Sathan lead thē captiue, but O Lord we besech thee, pull them out of the Lyons mouth: and conioyne them to

thy holy Church, out of which, they haue wandred ouer long, in doctrines of men.

Let thy strength appeare O Lord, and let our weakenes be made open to them: let the effect of thy Gospell breake into their hartes of stone: that they may tast, & féele, how sw••ete the Lord is in mercy towardes sinners: and how seuere to such as iustify thē∣selues.

And if it stand with thy good will & pleasure, thus to cōuert thē, at the sute of our earnest prayers: we shall for the same, geue thankes in thy Church e∣uermore. But if thy Churche shall haue thereby, their tryall made knowē to the world: herein O Lord kéepe thy children, and such as loue th•• Lord Iesus, & embrace the ioyfull tidinges of the Gospell, in thine owne bosome: that they be not led away, with any pretences of pietye, into error, or cor∣ruption: but defend them as thou hast promised:* 1.1 that what pittye, a Father hath ouer his childrē, lyke pittye thou

O Lord wilt shew vnto thē: which we besech thee graunt vs, for thy sonne Ie¦sus Christ his sake: to whome with the holy ghost: be honor, land prayse, power, and dominion: from euerla∣sting, to euerlasting, So be it.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Ps••lme. 1.