On the Petition etc.

to bring the blessed work of the Ministry into a deep contempt among the Christian World. Now, not a word is mentioned in the first Book regarding the holy Writers, nor from the Holy Scripture: thus the Translation does not come into play either; and the work of the Ministry is hardly mentioned as if in passing, and without the slightest belittlement, perhaps once in the 24th chapter. And if the first is also such an offensive and such a harmful Book: how is it that these men show us no samples of it? But of the well over 90 places that they point out in their written supplement from both books, I find no more than 5 drawn from the first; where at most I would only not give enough honor to all such Teachers who keep people in superstition: without it once coming down to the Word of the Lord; not even to the Translators; nor to the work of the Ministry, but to some Ministers, of whom I shall speak shortly. See, so ready were they to accuse me, that for such a small reason (if it might be so at all, for we shall see that afterward) my first book must also be a very offensive and harmful Book.

But if they could only prove it from the second, I would still hold this to their credit: therefore let us see what force of truth may have forced these men to so unmercifully burden their colleague. They do not actually dare to say that it was my intention and aim: but that I use such language, as if it were so, to entirely darken the luster of the Word of the Lord. But if I truly use such language, then I am either too wicked or too dull. Wicked, if I know what I write; and therefore am not ashamed to show myself that I feel so. But if not: then I must be duller than I have ever known, not even knowing what I say: if I have the audacity to honor God and His sanctified Word with such language, which cannot be understood otherwise than that my intention must be to darken the luster of the Lord's Word. A terrible charge indeed; may God forbid! But what has so incited those men against me, to speak such slanderous language of me? Is there reason? Is there cause to be found in my Book? They say yes, and that it shall appear from Extracts and Appendices; which they indeed delivered with their Petition, but did not see fit to include here. I have them nonetheless: and shall therefore take this blindfold from the Reader's eyes, in which they have woven together so many kinds of slanderous crimes to my charge with 8 letters of the alphabet, without showing the least bit of the weave of that fabric: which I doing, shall soon make the Reader see something else.