[Sidenote: Christ forbidding his followers to permit leaven in the church, doth not forbid to permit leaven in the world.]
I add, they have not produced one scripture, nor can, to prove that the permitting of leaven of false doctrine in the world or civil state, will leaven the churches: only we find that the permission of leaven in persons, doctrines, or practices in the church, that indeed will corrupt and spread, 1 Cor. v., and Gal. v.; but this reason should never have been alleged, were not the particular churches in New England but as so many implicit parish churches in one implicit national church.
_Peace._ Their third reason is, it will dissolve the continuity of the state, especially theirs, where the walls are made of the stones of the churches.
[Sidenote: The wall, Cant. viii. 9, discussed.]
_Truth._ I answer briefly to this bare affirmation thus: that the true church is a wall spiritual and mystical, Cant. viii. 9.
That consequently a false church or company is a false or pretended wall, and none of Christ’s.
The civil state, power, and government is a civil wall, &c., and—
Lastly. The walls of earth or stone about a city, are the natural or artificial wall or defence of it.
Now, in consideration of these four walls, I desire it may be proved from the scriptures of truth, how the false spiritual wall, or company of false worshippers suffered in a city, can be able to destroy the true Christian wall, or company of believers.
[Sidenote: A spiritual wall cannot properly impair the civil.]
Again, how this false spiritual wall, or false church permitted, can destroy the civil wall, the state and government of the city and citizens, any more than it can destroy the natural or artificial wall of earth or stone.
Spiritual may destroy spiritual, if a stronger and victorious; but spiritual cannot reach to artificial or civil.
_Peace._ Yea; but they fear the false spiritual wall may destroy their civil, because it is made of the stones of churches.
_Truth._ If this have reference to that practice amongst them, viz., that none but members of churches enjoy civil freedom amongst them, ordinarily,[213] in imitation of that national church or state of the Jews, then I answer, they that follow Moses’s church constitution, which the New English by such a practice implicitly do, must cease to pretend to the Lord Jesus Christ and his institutions.