abuse it never so much, nor is hee so abstemious as to intercede with the Magistrate that all matter of drunkennes be banisht the Commonwealth, and yet for the fear of a less inconvenience unpardnably requires of his brethren, in their extreme necessity, to debarre themselves the use of Gods permissive Law, though it might bee thir saving, and no mans indangering the more. Thus this peremptory strictnes we may discern of what sort it is, how unequal and how unjust.
But it will breed confusion. What confusion it would breed, God himself took the care to prevent in the fourth verse of this Chapter, that the divorc't beeing maried to another, might not return to her former Husband. And Justinians law counsels the same in his Title of Nuptials. And what confusion els can ther bee in separation, to separat, upon extrem urgency, the Religious from the irreligious, the fit from the unfit, the willing from the wilfull, the abus'd from the abuser, such a separation is quite contrary to confusion. But to binde and mixe together holy with Atheist, hevnly with hellish, fitnes with unfitnes, light with darknes, antipathy with antipathy, the injur'd with the injurer, and force them into the most inward neernes of a detested union, this doubtles is the most horrid, the most unnatural mixture, the greatest confusion that can be confus'd?
Thus by this plain and Christian Talmud vindicating the Law of God from irreverent and unwary expostions, I trust, wher it shall meet with intelligible perusers, som stay at least of mens thoughts will bee obtain'd, to consider these many prudent and righteous ends of this divorcing permission. That it may have, for the great Authors sake, heerafter som competent allowance to bee counted a little purer then the prerogative of a legal and public ribaldry, granted to that holy seed. So that from hence, wee shall hope to finde the way still more open to the reconciling of those places which treat this matter in the Gospel. And thether now without interruption the cours of method brings us.
