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Show 'A Treatife Df Oaths. l-or.. t. 614 . 1 . ConJtf<tnfit;n to a DrftO. 167). .Ambrofius faith, Swearing 11 011 ~ 1~ 1. Evill iqcreafed, .when Aftn ap- ~ Cbr {ihom faith, .An Oath came tn w JT;pjj Turvy. Agilln, comm,1• ,. , r:ftfn/aitbful, wbtll •ll_Tbings_ 0"(;;"''}1 }.(, What is more (than Tta, Hebr.c.6. P To Swetzr i's of the.Devil, jumg 'Jrl a , . Hom.9. on &c) is of Evil. Agam, r. 1 ofTJutTJ or P~Jtfl14alzry. All:s 1· Swearmg took us Bt:gmmng JOT wan d but rod Tbmgs, ond ufed [tlr ~d'~.~~'1;.~: il.uguflm faith, An Oatt '/ 11~1 ;.;;,~ng]!o":. wbtcb wt pray tbar wt may b~ tiOc. t~e Infirmuy of or bert, w J(') I , • o, Mae. ~· d 1 dehvered. S fi emg 11 u uxlflW/JJito Lye. Whtclr Ibid a'CbromatJut faith, Wbat nted r.ocfi we';;[ Oaths and by lea\'Ing off Lymg, • fhows that Lying wu th~l occa on ' Oaths vanHh as pnpr:~a 011e0at1J bclong.r not to VirtJte. 0JJP!a1.14· Titelmannus faHh,fi r. h Sweanng zs Py Indultence. On Mat.~· .dlbt:rtKs JHagmu alto' b permmed of Infirmity. bfi Vit.Chr.,,:z. Ludlllph•s fJJth, J:ln [/ , WtiS OJJr Savzollr teacbnb, that an Ot~t prung t.J2. Burgenfh cites Jerom, aymg, On Mat.~· fiom rbe Vicu of Men. b be Evzls of Men'.r He4rts an,d .iUanners, o{ 04ths, Btlbop Gnuden alfo tells usb T'r)/ffimulntzon.r and Frauds of many Cbriflums, P• '7• 23· tbt Jea1"{" ••f///ff,"f:J ~~fuumtes nrt fttcb, at iYs t~ LDJ'r{'I. ~ 011 Mat.~· :::~;J;l:~:Oa~bs nnd ;udEmt.tPTin~ ELffy'i' :::OJ a Remedy or Ex· 36, 37· MORALLY, or PR Junr Cbr ifoftom Theodoret, :md others pt ]tro;. (with many of the F~thers, ereaf?'er) m;ke this the Reafon why here omined, becaufe l~rgely cued l Swearin , That they UJere bJJt zn tbe Dcut. 6. •3, God indulged the Jews m the Ufe ko t from s!nrmg bJ. falft Gods; whtch 14, ~~. Stntt of lnfan'l, an? t?ey F,.g~:b~:Jt,lt fear the Lbrd thy God, andJwear by the Scripture ts plam tn . :fler otl;er Gods, for God JS a ;ealoJJs God, &c. bu Namt; Tt fh•U not gd'fl fed with Swearing by hiS Name, that ~ Which {hews, that he 1 pen . b f: lfe Gods becaufe they wou ·mtgh-t take them off from Swxanntgth: T~uc God J, fo that Swearing 1i thereby acknowledge them,. an no ' only better than 1dolarry. . . RE ASONS. why ,., rannot ta.!< Jtth iws iLlti-breemrta),iN a, nttih Sawt eWarl-' gnpJs ew oe j[ ar other Men have Jone, and yet Jo. IT • Crujj and Ground of Oatbs, viz. Perfii~• HE fitft is~rawn from the oj-:e God's lnftrutl:ions to a\'oid thote ~ . oJtfnrjs, Diflruft. a_nd F4ljbooh . iven Man to anfwer his Command~ l l!ateful Crimes' The AbtluyJUfchat f 'bod's Gift: For if Swearing cam~ '(i and Man's Duty to makfte t&ato·in:'u!ation and FalfhoQdt_ it io a mofci!Jud by Perfidioufnefs, Dl ru , I 1 with- them . or that as the Rt e an Confequence that it ol!ght tog~ oR.ire and lncre~fing of Oaths; fo theADeb • lncreafing of thofe Evils were t e . fhould be the Decreafing ana ~ creafing and Extirpation of thofe Evlls,ld be no Truth in the Rule of Con~ )ifhingof _0 aths; otherwtfMhe!e w~ffanu rationt Le,tis ufj•tltx; pedTb~t uarieSt nor Reafon m that aXIL; pot be Ce.ffotion of tbe Late~: _Ex ,,. t/JC ceafing •f the Rt:'..\"'1 •( tbc o ob;ai~ what they are defigned to .. Meand ents are no longer UJeiu. t £"w,t. Dife:lfed Men only W:lnt Remed~es. an. are fw::~llowed up of theli - I s, either Whip nor Spur, She ts.~u Lame Men Crutches; Handly ~eeds "·n fi ak Truth without Extowngs; fxoitry O faotrh hs earr efe laf If oarot do MfR aen co ksf tVom t~ ee Mindp,e altogether ufelefs ~~~~~re lnt.e • grity fways. f Reafon will deny vic That Sweamfg . This, we prefume, no Mar. ·~b Perfidioufizefs. and hope it will bei3s ff2~ CtJm' in, and ought to ~o ou~ WI fi ' ·e That God hath I_rcqliuee ~tOt lyg~r a~nott, h abty l epraofpt hIt e rsw talnl dheApv~g~•a , ~ee;~o~~d' Men for fuch Impieattned s, VoL. I. A Treatife of Oath~.' and ftriClly required Truth and Righteoufnefs; as, if<•· )9. J, 4· ]er. 9. ~. 5· Roll!. 12. 19. Gal. 5·19, 20, 2t. Col. 3· 8, 9, 10. ]v.ffi. 24. '4· 1 Sam. 12. 24. I King. 2. 4 · Epb. 4· 25. an~ by abundance 6~ other Pbces in Holy Scripture. And that G·Jd fbould enJoyn Man any Th1ng rh:1r he hath not impowered him to Perform, is unwonhy of any M:!tJ acknowledg1ng a God fo much as to conceive. Jr is truci, thar the unprofitable Sen•anc in the PJrable, is reprefenred to entertain fo blafphemous a Thought of his Maker, that he was fO bnrd a Mnjlcr, at to reap where be Jid not jOUJ; but the fJmC Parable alfO acquaints us of the dreadful Confequence of that Prefumprion : The Prophet Micah preached another DoUrine, The Lord b11tb fhewid thee, 0 Al1tn1 tobat is good: .t!trd tvbat doth the Lord r~q11ir~ tif tb~e, btu to do jujlly, to love A1crcy, and to ·walk Humbly (t)ith thy God? For this End hlth rbe Groce of God app~t1red unto 11U Mcu, as fpeaks the ApoftJe P:ut! to Tit~t5, that. tbey .fhould be ft~ugbt to de11y UngodlhuJs and TVorldly Lulls, whrch emenng and over·runnmg the World, maae \VJy, amon_s.: other ~xpedienrs, for that of Oaths; fo tl1at to live thar Life which needs no Oath, Man is both Requir"d and Impower'd: And as it is only his Fault and Con• demnJtion, if he doth nf)t; fo certainly there C.ln be no Oblig'arion upon him, who liveth th:n Life of Truth and Integrity, to pf'rp'etu:rre thaf which rofe, and therefore ought to f.tiJ, with Fall'hood and Perficfioufr1efs : The Reafon of the Thing it felf excufes him; for, he that fears Untr6rh, needs not SweJr, becaufe he will nor Lye, to prevent which, Men ex:1ft: Swearing: And he thar doth not fear tel1ing Untruth, what is his 0Jtft wonh? He that makes no Confciencc of that Law that forbids Lying,. will he make any Confcience of Forfwearing? Veracity is the befi Security; and Truth-fpeaking, the noblefi Tye :1nd firmefr Teftimony th:u can he gi· · ven. This we declare to you, to be both our Judgment :1nd Attainment; we fpeak not Boafiingly, hut with Humility, before the Great Lord of Rea· yen and Earrh, to whofe alone Power we do unanimoufly afcribe the Ho .. nour: He hath taught us to fpeak the Truth, the whole Truth, and nothing hut the Truth, as pl:linly and readily wirhour an 0Jth as with an Oath, and to abhor Ly!n_g :lS much as Perjury; fo that for us to Swear, were to tJke his Holy Nc1me in vain: Nor :ue we therein ltngula'r; for that not only Chriftian Fathers, Martyrs and DoCtors, bur alfo ]~tot and alfp.tpaetahrt.n s have had tltis Senfe of the Rife of Oaths, as will hereaf<er fully II. Our Second Reafon, why we refufe to comply whh this Cullom, and our Superion ought not to impofeit, is this, /r rtJOuld grt~ti}ie Dijlntjh, b~tn;tJr ]ea!oujies, andJubjcEI Truth, and thofe tbtJt love ir, to th~ fame theclu, Curbs, and Prevention.t that btiVe been invented again/1 Fraud; whereby the Honour of a nobler Profeffion, the Power of a. veracious Ex:1mple, and the juft Difference that ought robe m:1de betwixt Trufiinefs and Diffidence, Integrity and Perfidioofnefs, are utterly loft. How is it poffible for Men to recover that ancient Confidence, that good:' Men repofed in one another, iffome don't lead the Way, and hofd forth to the World, :1 Prin,iple and Converfation beyond the Nece·ffity of fuch ex· traordin::~ry Expedients? At prefent, People lie all on a He:rp; and the greateft Truth finds no more Fa:vour than the gre:rtelt Fraud ; Fidelity muft wear the Shackles worldly Prudence hath m:rde a~inft the evil Con~ fequences of Cozenage, and fubjetl her felf to the Cuftoms brought up through Fraud, or go to Go:d. Be plea fed to confider, that Truftinefs_ did not all at once quit the World, nor will it. rerurn univerfaJly in the twm~· ling of an Eye t Things mlift be a11owed their Time for Rife, _Prog~~ ~nd Perfcilion: And if ever you would fee the World planted Wlfh erlmmve Simpliciry and FairhfulnefS, rather cherifh. th:m make Men Sulferers for refuling to Swear, efpedally if they offer the fame Caution to cbe La\'1' With him that will Swear. We dare not fwear bec::~ufe we dare not Lye, and that it may appear to the lVorld, that we can fpeak the T!tHh upon eafier Tt:rms than an Olth : For us then to be forced ro fwear, Js to makeus do a needlefs Thing, or to fufpeil our own Honell-y. The firft we~~~: Mic • .s. r,. |