me, Matth. 4. 9. The children are to plead with
their mother, to put away her idolatries; and it
is no more than duty to do it. Plead with your mo∣ther,
plead, she onely is faulty, for she is not my wife,
neither am I her husband: Let her therefore put away
her whoredomes out of her sight, and her adulteries
from betweene her brests, Hos. 2. 2.
In the substance of worship, it is false and cor∣rupt,
by mingling mens traditions and inventions,
with Christs commands and institutions, which is a
vaine worship: In vaine do they worship me, teaching
for doctrine the commandements of men, Matth. 15.
9. To frustrate Gods law, and put it by, by this
meanes. For laying aside the commandement of
God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of
pots and cups, and many other such like things ye do,
Mat. 7. 8. Full well ye reject the commandement of
God, that yee may keepe your owne tradition,
Verse 9.
It is thus when men by constitutions make their
inventions as thresholds, without which you cannot en∣ter
into a house, into the Church, to any office or
ordinance, or as posts which uphold a house, with∣out
which the Church will fall and go down. They
have defiled my holy name, saith the Lord, in their set∣ting
of their thresholds by my thresholds, and their posts
by my posts, Ezek. 43. 8.
In the externall forme and circumstance, ma∣ny
superstitions be to be cast out, injunctions not of
God, not good, after the doctrines and comman∣dements
of men, Col. 2. 22. to which a Christian
redeemed by Christ hath no reason to be subject,