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Show Chap. 2. call it) in their Church-eftate, which was not done without impofttion of !..mdr, which fome judicious Divines have conceived tobeonecaufe,whJ! imp.•fttion ofhrmd< is reckoned as one of th~ Crx.Princip/trof the fumd:ztion ofCbriflian R.<iigim, Hebr. 6. 2. For it could not be a principle of the foundation of Chriltian.fa,ith; it mufl therefore be a principle of the foundation of Church eftate and pracr, Now then, if all thentemherrof the Church w~rc anciently confirmed in the full fruition of their Church e!tate by impofitim of h.mdr, then there were none of thc ·membm of the ~hurch,but had rfceivcd i~ttpofition ofhdJtdJ, much more the ruling Eld.rr, who were over and above the former, ordained tothe4' publique office by impojition of hand;; and fo having received imJWfition of hand! themfelveS) they might the more freely impofc hands upon others. · 3· The third Reafon, which moveth the ac!verf:tries of ruling Elders to conceive that mling Elders are not intended in this Text "of Tinmby, is, becaufc that many Jea·med and ancient Divines «have debated and !ifted the force of thefewords, and not one of " chetn ever fo mnch as furmif<d any fuch thing co be contained in " this Text :as Cbry[ojiome,Jerome,Amln-ofe,'theopbylalf, with others; cc yea,~IJ L-ty-dder!l:ip is afiraOf;er to allAntitptity fm· 15 oo.ycers. A1ljw. Though With tbankfulndfe and reverence we rcadilyac• knowledge and a~ceJ?C the Labours of thefe ancient Divines, yet we cannot but conceive It to be much partiality, to fay they fiftcd or wh~ch is all one, diligent! y fc~rched, the force of the[e w;rds in. Timor by,_ and. cha~ they never fo much as ftumifed any fuch thu~ contained~ thiS Text, as rHiing Eldos ; for Cbry{ofltml£ on "this place, pmtmg the que/lion, what it is to mle rPeOl An• : fwereth himfe_lf, _in twot.hings: iirll, in laying down (as a good « S~epheard)htslrfefor h1s tbeep: fecondly, in fparingnonein . h1s grrvernment. Tbeopbylalf refieth in the fonnerof thefe · Jerolfl "interpreterh Elders that mk well,to be Elders whofn!JiU :heir of "fice; Ambro[< mterprcteth them to be good Diffcnftrr and faithfuU. l:'~:e is nothing in :~11 thcfe expreffions. that argu• >. tb ~ny diligent lstctng of the for.;e of the words, or excludeth fuch ruliKtg Elders, as d_oc attend ch!efly t~ rule, not to teaching: wee look uponit as a d.cmfu/1 and v.>m-glnrzoUf flonrilh, to bcare the world in hand th.lt Lay Eldtrfhip is a firanger to all Antiqnicie for 15oo. yeares~ decdtfuY, Sea:. z. ---------- not Stra~Jgtrs to .Antiqr~ttie. 2 9 -dtceitf~e/1. for they know wee dlfclaime Lay Eldtrjhip, (properly fo called) ~s themfelves doe; yea more then. tbcmf~ves, who doe prefer L"J Eldm to the highefr places ofJudrcaturc m the Church, riext to the Bifhops: For tholl!;h fome of the Brethre? plead for Lay Eldm, and bring proofes tor them, both from Scnpture, and out of Aatiquitie, yet herein they rather !peake after _the language of their oppo!ites, then according to their owr:c chmce ; for t~ey meane no more then non-p,-,acbing Elderr:An~ m thC: places which they quote for them out of Ant.iquitie, w~erem Senzors are fomeiimes diftinguifhed from Pmbytm, fomcttmes from C~m< ; the words Pwbytm and Clertlf, are there taken m?re frnCl:ly t~en their proper and ufuall meaning will be~r? to :V1t, for Preacbmg Prerbyterr: otherwife Smiorr cannot be ~tfl~ngm!hcd fr~m Pre;br terr, in propriety of fpeech ; the one Ggmfymg the fam_e 1~1 La_tmc, which the other doth in Grccke : nor can they b~ dtftmg:ufhcd from Cleru<, bm by a xdl~"xfrt<TK. It is .. Jfo a vain-g111rl0Uf Houn!h to ·av{)uch "&1/ing Eldm It rangers t~ all Antiqnitie,, fo: I50o.,yeares; for 1. If that were true, yctit WJ!l not evmce Rulmg Ekkrs t~ be no ~rdin:mce of God, though fu long difcominued :The kecpmg the feafr of Tabernacles in booths, was negle.:l:ed oft he Church. ofi(r~el m;tny hundred yea res; to wit, dnrin~ the g rc~tefr part_ot theAJJJrian Mon:zrcby , and alto the whole time of the Babylonwz MonJrcby, yea toward the end of the Perflan j]Wonarcby, ~ch. 8. 17. The long difule of an ordinance of God, doth not make Jt of none effi:Ct ; though a contrary cuflome nuy be of fo.xcc to abro~ate an hunune Law . .2. I twas revealed to the Apoflle J ulm, that for the fi>ace of 1260. yea res, (which when_foe~er they began, to~ke np the eatefr part of the!C I soo.) Anticb>·ift bore filch ~v :ay Ill the Ch gr h that he trJd under foot the Cou•t and the bo!J Czm all th.a~ whlle~ Rtv. 11. 2, 3. And then when Amicb,·iji had all the power in his owne hands, no marvell if h: to?ke ~way all power ~rom the R.u/m which Chrift did ordame m hts Chnrch, efpccMily fi1ch .Rultr),whowhilefl they !tood,neithe: his R"le,~or the I mag~ ofit could enter or !tand. Forfetnp Rulmg Elder: m every Con gr~tion to cranfatl: (together with th~ prcachmg Elders) all Church government within the CongregatzuTJ.>~ and what u~e will there be ·of prtfontments of Officers of Cat!Jed,·3ll and DlOcefon ·Churches abroad? And,for·the former put of this:l')00· Y~h.rchs · ( W IC |