Seuen goulden candlestickes houlding the seauen greatest lights of Christian religion shewing vnto all men what they should beleeue, & how they ought to walke in this life, that they may attayne vnto eternall life. By Gr: Williams Doctor of Divinity

To the Christian READER.

Deere and Christian Reader:

THe more grace any man receiueth from God, the more thankefulnesse and ser∣uice he oweth to God: And I con∣fesse God hath shewed me farre more then vsuall fauours, which I assure my selfe he denyed to many farre more worthy of loue, then I poore worme could any wayes thinke my selfe to be; for he hath three times at least bestowed my life vpon me: first, in making me as he did all other men; secondly, in redeeming me, as he doth all righteous men; and thirdly, in preseruing me from the hands of wicked men, who though they gaue not any life vnto me, yet induced by the malice of Hell, and assi∣sted by the subtilty of Satan, did combine with a craftier cruel∣ty, then euer (that I could finde) the Arrian Bishops did against that innocent constant Athanasius, to take away my feeble life; for when the proud were risen vp against me;* 1.1 and the congregation of naughty men had sought after my soule, and compassed me on euery side,* 1.2 so that there was no man to helpe me; yet when I prayed vnto my God,* 1.3 that he would not leaue me in the dayes of my trouble, and in the time of the proud, when I had none other help, then did he awake as a Giant out of sleep, and preserued my body from destruction,* 1.4 he saued me from the mouth of the King of Lyons, and according to the multitude of his mercies, hee deliuered mee from the teeth of them that were ready to deuoure me, and out of the hands of them that sought after my life;* 1.5 yea, he was so gracious vnto me, that he left me not vntil mine eyes did see their desire vpon mine enemies, not their destructiō, which my soule desired they

might neuer taste of, and I pray God they desired the same themselues, but their suppression, so as they might neuer tri∣umph in the miseries of Gods seruants, nor trample the bloud of innocents vnder feet: And therefore seeing God hath been so gracious vnto me, I haue most constantly resolued by the assistance of his Spirit, not onely to praise his Name for his goodnesse and to tell what he hath done for my soule, but also to dedicate my whole life wholly to his seruice, to despise the vanities of this life, to abandon all the pleasures of this world, to be carelesse of all earthly things,* 1.6 but what may make in ordi∣ne ad deum, to helpe me the better to serue my God, and with Iohn Baptist to consume my life in the preaching and penning of Gods Word, and maugre all the malice of the proudest Pre∣lates in the world, to speake the truth, as my conscience tels me, though my wife and children should all begge, and my body be burned for the same: I will neuer count my life deare vnto me, to spend it in his seruice that so often gaue it me: And because I desired to doe that which I thought best for the edifying of Gods Church, I haue applied my selfe to treate of these ensuing theames, which doe containe the chiefest points and the most necessary grounds of all Christian Religion: for, besides my naturall inclination, euer tending rather to pacifi∣cation then contention, I thinke we haue more neede of funda∣mentall instructions, which are necessary for all men, then of any controuersiall positions, which may satisfie some men, that perhaps desire rather to informe their iudgement, then to reforme their manners: And in the handling of them I haue intermingled the positiue declaration of the truth, in a schola∣sticke forme, with a forcible application of the same vnto our soules, for the framing of our liues, to make vse of what wee learne: for I approue not so well the handling of Gods word with too slender inforcement of the same vnto our conscien∣ces, as the schoolemen did, & their too much addicted follow∣ers vse to doe; nor yet meerely to stand vpon exhortations with too slight expounding the most principle grounds of Religion, which I feare to be the fault of too many amongst vs: And therefore the one being but as a foundation without roofe, and the other as a building on the sand, or in the ayre vpon reeden

pillars, I haue euer adiudged it the best course to knit both to∣gether, to make both a perfect buiding. If I haue done well, it is that which I desired, but if I haue done slenderly, it is that I could attaine vnto;* 1.7 And therefore I will be euer of that Fa∣thers minde, which in all his workes and writings, desired not onely pium Lectorem, a courteous Reader of his labours, but also liberum Correctorem, a free reprouer of his faults; but so that they doe it friendly, to blame in their iudgement where it is equity, but not to blaze my faults vnto the world, which is a breach of charity; and that they doe as well accept of what is good, as except against what is ill herein; for I know there be many, Momus-like, Qui vel non intelligendo reprehendunt,* 1.8 vel reprehendendo non intelligunt; that doe shew their folly in repro∣uing others, when out of enuy or ignorance they blame that good of others which they haue not, or know not themselues: And for these there is none other helpe, but to be carelesse of their censures, and to pray against their wickednesse. There be faults escaped in the Printing, the most of them be literall, as the mistaking of e for ae, & econtra, and such like faults of no great moment, especially to him that knowes how hard it is to make things perfect; and therefore I hope they shall be ei∣ther mended with thy pen, or pardoned without thy censure: for other things I onely desire thy prayers for mee, and thou shalt euer finde his paines and prayers for thee, which loueth thee and all men in Iesus Christ, with all vnfainednesse.

GR. VVILLIAMS.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Psal. 86.14.
• * 1.2

  Ecclus 51.
• * 1.3

  Vers. 2.
• * 1.4

  Vers. 3.
• * 1.5

  Vers. 7.
• * 1.6

  Quae possessa onerant, amata inquinant, & amissa cruciant.
• * 1.7

  Aug. proaem. l. 3. de Trinit.
• * 1.8

  Idem. contra Faust. l. 22. c. 34.