aintain and
plead for the lawfulness of that which establishes or supports prelacy
or popery in the nations. This appears rather like a sincere endeavor in
them to promote whatever is contrary to sound doctrine, and the power of
true godliness; and that, because an apostate people approves thereof,
contrary to _Exod._ xxiii, 2: "Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do
evil." Again, the _third_ article binds to preserve the rights of
parliaments, and the liberties of the kingdoms, and the king's authority
in the preservation and defense of the true religion. But how
inconsistent is it therewith, to own and defend an authority that in its
constitution and habitual series of administration, is destructive of
all these precious and valuable interests? It is full of contradiction,
and a mocking both of God and the world, to pretend to own and defend
the destroyers of the true religion, in the defense of religion, as
_Seceders_ do in their mock acknowledgment of such as are sworn to
maintain Prelacy, in opposition to the reformed religion. The
contradictoriness of this principle of theirs to the _fourth_ article,
needs no illustration. Again, the owning of an authority, which is
reared up and stands upon the footing of the destruction of the
covenanted union, and uniformity of the nations in religion can never be
consistent with the _fifth_, article, which binds, to an endeavoring,
that these kingdoms may remain conjoined in that firm covenanted union
to all posterity. In like manner, as the _sixth_ article obliges to a
defending of all that enter into that League and Covenant, and never to
suffer ourselves to be divided, and make defection to the contrary part;
it must be a manifest contradiction thereto, not only to defend such as
are enemies to that covenant, but even in their opposition thereto. And
it is a making defection to the contrary part, and from that cause and
covenant with a witness, to plead the lawfulness of the national
constitution, which is established upon the ruins of a covenanted work
of reformation, as _Seceders_ do; whose principle and practice, in
opposition to what is professed in the conclusion of the covenant, as
well as what was the very design of entering into it, is, instead of a
going before others, in the example of a real reformation, a corrupting
of the nations more and more, and going before them in the example of a
real apostasy and defection from the reformation, so solemnly sworn to
be ma