The answer to William Penn Quaker, his book, entituled, The new witnesses proved old hereticks Wherein he is proved to be an ignotant [sic] spater-brain'd Quaker, who knows no more what the true God is, nor his secret decrees, then one of his coach-horses doth, nor so much; for the oxe knoweth his owner, and the ass his masters scrip, but Penn doth not know his maker, as is manifest by the Scriptures, which may inform the reader, if he mind the interpretation of Scripture in the discourse following. I. That God was in the forme, image and likeness of mans bodily shape, as well as his soul from eternity. ... VIII. What is meant by the armour of God, the wilderness, and the wilde beasts I fought with in the wilderness. / By Lodowick Muggleton.

CHAP. XIV. (Book 14)

Thirdly, Penn quotes 2 Pet. 3 9. The Lord is not slack concern∣ing his Promise, as some men count slackness, but is lo g suffering to us∣ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to re∣pentance. Penns Argument drawn from these words, saith he, The long-suffering of God, either related to the Elect or Repro∣bate, or neither, and saith, not to the Elect, because there is no need of fearing their perishing; and saith, not to the Reprobate, for there is n•• possibility of their repentance, and saith, therefore to neither: and saith consequently, either the place is spurious or deceitful, or else those kind of Elections and Reprobations are meer Phantasms; and saith, Let these few instances serve, of those hundred that might be mentioned most expressely to con∣firm the same.

This is the whole strength Penn hath, and Scripture he hath brought, to prove that this Principle of Election and Reproba∣tion is accursed by Scripture, Also Penn hath given eight Rea∣sons against Gods Prerogative Power in Election and Reprabati∣on, but they are the very absolute Reasonings of a Reprobate, and he hath discovered himself plainly to be one of the seed of the Serpent, a Reprobate that will be damned to eternity, in that he harh opposed, denied and blasphemed in a high nature the Prerogative Power and Will of God, in charging the Creator with being unrighteous, unjust, and more truel then men or de∣vils, for electing some men to salvation, and reprobating some men to damnation for his own glory. First, saith he, it renders God most unwise. Secondly, he saith, it greatly disparageth his

Justice. Thirdly, he saith, it quite destroys his mercy, and ren∣ders him the most cruel of all Beings. He saith, but above all things it strikes at the very Root of Gods Rectitude and faithful∣ness, and makes him worse then the worst of men or devils. Fifth∣ly, he saith, this principle would defile his ete••nal inherent holi∣ness, by making him as well the fa••h r of sin as of destruction. Sixthly, he saith, but this would st••in the gl••ry of the Almighty, unless it be compleated in the eternal destruction of far the great∣est part of mankind, Seventhly, he saith, this dest••oys all Gods Works in reference to Gods unalterable Decree, because Man cannot by his good works nor his evil wo••ks alter Gods D••cree, saith he, and therefore will I give my self unto the liberty of the flesh, and enjoy the pleasures of this life whilst I can have them. Eighthly, he saith, it destroys all Government, since who cares how desperate he is, or what injury he does, who conceiting to himself his Post is pitcht, his estate set, and that unchangeably, but breaking all Laws, takes his revenge on what will bring him to condign punishment for his exorbitancies.

Answer, That these reasonings ••roceeded out of the imaginati∣ons of your own heart, which is the devil, that replies against Gods Prerogative Power, do you know that a Prerogative Pow∣er is above all Law, and there is no disputing against that Power except you be able to wage war with him; there is no way to deal with a Prerogative Power which is above all Law, but by submitting unto it, for what a Prerogative Power doth, it is for his own will and pleasure to set forth his glory, and there can be no glory to that power if all were happy and none miserable; therefore if God should not pre-ordain some men to be saved to set forth the glory of his mercy, and pre-ordain some men to be damned, to set forth the glory of his Justice. What ground should any man have, to praise God for his mercy towards him, seeing all men may obtain the same if he will, then if I have ob∣tained it by my righteousness, I received no mercy from God, it was a reward du•• for my righteousness; but seeing the case is so,

that all men by nature are children of wrath, that is, all men are concluded under sin and death, as well the seed of Adam, the elect seed, as the seed of the Serpent, the reprobate seed; so that these two seeds have replenished the earth with millions of men and women, more then can be numbred; now these two seeds being sown in the field of this world, and they are both fallen from that excellent estate that God created them in, viz. the Serpents seed is f••llen from that Angelical estate wherein he was created; and t••e seed of Adam is fallen from that Paradisical and innocent state he was created in, so that God hath sowed the field of Adam fallen, as Wheat in the field of this World; and he hath sowed the seed of the Serpent fallen from his state, as tares in the field of this world, aod they both grow together.

Now, it would make a man admire, and think it impossible for God to separate these two seeds again, evcn the tares from the wheat, that is, the seed of Adam from the seed of the Serpent a∣gain, and that the seed of Adam, the Wheat. the Elect of God, shall be gathered into Gods Barn in the Kingdom of glory; and the tares, the seed of the Serpent, the Reprobates, shall be burnt with unquenchable fire here upon this earth in the Resurrection, when time shall be no more; but saith doth comprehend how God can do this, therefore it is said by Paul, That all that died in Adam shall be made alive in Christ; but those that died in the Serpent-Angel shall never be made alive in Christ, why, because all that died in Adam are the Elect of God, and shall be saved in the Re∣surrect••on, and all that died in the Serpent are reprobated, and shall be damned in the Resurrection, and this God will do for his own glory, neither could his glory be so exceeding splendent if he did not do thus.

Again, how is it possible that any man should know himself a R••probate, and that God hath pre-ordained him unto eternal damnation for to set forth his glory? or how shall any reprobate know his post is pitcht, his state set in Gods Decree, whereby to

encourage him to be avenged of that Decree, and act wickedness the more. This is impossible, for any reprobate to know himself to be a reprobate, and that God hath appointed him to be damn∣ed, except he do such things as Cain and Iudas did, and then he would avenge himself, nor do no wicked Action to any but to himself, as Iudas did; for it is the nature of reason in man, that if he did certainly know that he should be damned, let him do well or ill, then would he be more righteous then before; for the cause why men do such wickednesses and exorbitancies, it is be∣cause they do not know that they are reprobated, and shall be damned to eternity; if they did, they would avoid the doing those things seven times more then they do.

For the n••t knowing a man is pre-ordained to be damned, is one main cause that makes him Act such wickedness as he doth, because he not knowing he shall be damned, he hopes for mercy, notwithstanding his wicked Actions, which if he knew he were a reprobate, he would Act better things then he doth now he doth not know it; as for example, if you Penn the Quaker had known your self to be a reprobate, as well as I do, you would never have blasphemed against the living God in the forme of a man, as you have done: now you do not know your self to be a reprobate, and pre-ordained to be damned.

For this I say, a man may by faith know his own salvation and election, and the salvation of others, therefore it is that Pe∣ter saith, Make your Calling and El••ction sure, for if you do these things you shall never fall; so that a man may be sure he is elected and shall be saved: but man by s••b••r reason, can never know that he is reprobated, and sha••l certainly be damned, though he may fear he shall, yet he hopes he shall not. Again, a man being sure of his own salvation and election, he knoweth perfectly that another man is a reprobate: as for example, I do perfectly know that you William Penn, George Whitehead, George Fox and several others of you, Quakers, that they are reprob••tes, a••d pre-ordain∣ed

to be damned to eternity, to set forth Gods glory as vessels of wrath: this I do perfectly know, but you know it not, and which way will you deliver your selves from Gods decreeing you in the seed to be damned to eternity, for Gods glory; and my knowing it will be so unto you in the Resurrection; for as I know my self to be of the seed of Adam, the seed of faith, and shall be saved; so I do perfectly know that you are the seed of the Ser∣pent, the seed of reason, and must be damned, and you no ways can avoid what I have said.

In the next place, that the Reader may be throughly convinced of Gods Prerogative Power, and submit unto it, as I have done, in his electing and reprobating men and women, some to be sa∣ved, and some to be damned: the Scripture is as full for this very thing, as for any one point whatsoever as may be seen by these Scriptures following.