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Against William Lily

John Vicars (1579 or 80-1652) · 1,045 words · 5 min

The source for this document is https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo2/A95877.0001.001

Project Note

This is licensed under Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND. This license allows reusers to copy and distribute the material in any medium or format in unadapted form only, for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator.

The source of this document is the Early English Books Online (EEBO-TCP) website. Those books were transcribed in a character for character manner and can be very cumbersome to read since there was no standard spelling during that time. Many spelling variations such as "unlesse", "vnlesse", and "vnles" regularly appear.

This project was conceived to clean up those books as much as possible and make them more accessible to the interested reader, leading to the creation of a massive list of variant spellings and their corrections. This was used to clean up the text, but is of course only as complete as the list itself. Because of the nature of the original transcription, some words have missing characters or places where the original language (e.g., Greek) was not transcribed. This effort does not change that. Be aware that the original transcription can also be faulty and in some cases entire sentences may be missing.

Although this is no substitute for a properly compared, proofed, and scholarly edition, I believe that the result is a document which is far more accessible, particularly for searching for terms using standard spelling. The document has been cleaned and presented in what I hope is a pleasing and useful format for the vast majority of Christian brothers and sisters who just want access to read these spiritually nourishing works.

However, a word of warning: The Puritans were a very diverse group of people and their age was characterized with godliness, but also much upheaval, disputation and strife. They disagreed on many doctrines and some of these works contain less orthodox or Scriptural views than others. The reader is strongly advised to read with discernment, particularly if it is unknown whether author is trustworthy.

This project took a huge amount of time and skill to bring to fruition. I would particularly like to thank David Jonescue for the initial list of Puritans he found on EEBO and the concept behind this project as well as the continuous, unceasing efforts toward seeing this complete. Without his labor, this would not be available. Alex Sarrouf was invaluable in providing the initial list of over 7,000 spelling variations he had identified and corrected, as well as continuing to review more than 16,000 additions to that list for any typos.

Logan West
(with David Jonescue and Alex Sarrouf)
www.puritansearch.org

Against William LI-LIE (alias) Lily, that MOST AUDACIOUS ATHEISTICALL Rayling RABSHECA, that Impious WITCH or WIZZARD, and most Abhominable SORCERER, or STAR-GAZER of LONDON, and all his Odious ALMANACKS, and Others.

Written by John Viccars Schoolmaster of Christ Hospital, few days before his death, which he had prepared for the Black Monday, turned white since his dissolution.

Isaiah 47. 12, 13, 14.

Stand, now with thine Inchantments, and with the multitude of thy Sorceries, wherein thou hast labored from thy youth: if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if so be thou mayest prevail: Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy Counsels; Let now the Astrologers, the Stargazers, the Monethly Prognosticators stand up and save thee, from those things that shall come upon thee. Behold, they shall be as Stuble, the fire shall burn them, they shall not deliver themselves from the power of the flame.


Acts 13. 8, 9, 10.

But, Elymas this Sorcerer, with-stood Paul and Barnabas, (just, as the Sorcerer Lily, does all the Blessed, Reverend, and Religious Disciples and Presbyterian Minnisters of Jesus Christ;) Whereupon, Paul filled with the Holy-Ghost, set his eyes on him and said, O, full of all Subtilty, and all Mischief, thou Child of the Devil, thou Enemy of all Righteousness! wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?

EPIGRAMMA: In Lillium, bardum Astrologastrum:

LIllius est quid vis, est bardus; perditus, audax,
Est mendax, asinus, Li-lius Astrologus.
Demon strat nomen, Te, mendacissime Li-li,
Nomine, bis Mendax dicere, re{que} magis.
Istis, Quid levius, quibus est pro numine nomen
Mendacis, magis est qui levitate, levis.
Candida, mi Li-li non sunt Tibi Lilia nomen;
Vix, inter vepres nomen habere potes.
HOw vain, how light, how foolish, & how naught,
Are all that praise Thee? & thy books have bought?
To call you Lille, more, it were a scorn,
Your Name's a Netile, Thistle, Briar, or Thorn;
Your head, your Pen, your Tongue, do pinch and sting
More than doth Nettle, Briar, or any-thing.
To Li-lie now, all men may well say, fie,
Because your Name says, twice, to you, you lie.
But, if you say, you have an L. init more,
Then add you fifty-lies to two, before;
Thus, Lies, for weeks make-up a just New-year;
O brave! what Almanaker have we here?
Finis.

Aliud, in Eundem OR, The foresaid Latin Epigram Englished and Enlarged.

LIllie is ought that's naught, Dunce, Wretch, past shame,
Li-lie's an Ass, Star-gazer. Lyes doth frame.
Li-lie, thy Name shows thee a monstrous Liar,
In Name, a double-one, in Deed, much higher.
What's Idler, than to idolize his Name,
Whose lying-self's more flashie than a flame?
White Lily's no fit name for Li-lies base,
Scarce among Thorns may we such Henbane place.
Yet, thus it ever was, and is so still,
Faire names, oft, given to things and Men, most ill.
Thus, Jeroboams Calves called worship fair,
Thus, that notorious hypocritick-pair;
Both Ananias and Sapphira had
Two gracious names, themselves exceeding bad.
Thus divers Popes, as Clement, Cnnocent,
Had specious names, natures most turbulent
Thus in our days, that devellish Doctor Lamb,
Favorite to the Duke of Buckingham,
And this our filthy Li-lies elder Brother
For wicked Witcherie, just such another;
Thus Sr. John Lamb a persecutor base
Of God's dear Saints; and, little Laudes less Grace
Of Canterbury; and his chirping Wren
Had, all, fine names; but monsters were of Men,
For Craft and cruelty, and wickedness,
All haters of the power of Godliness.
And, so, this filthy Lily, Atheist vile,
Seemes, with a pretty name, to gull, beguile
Credulous fools, with's devellish false Praedictions
Stigian Inchantments, figure-casting fictions.
Thus, with fair veils, O how this wretch doth wrong,
The best of God's dear Saints, whom, all along,
In all his wicked works, He does besweare,
With devellish Lies (whose very shoes to bear
This Atheist is unworthy) And, with fell
And furious rage (like * Cerberus of Hell
That stigian Tripple-Headed Hel-Hound base)
Our precious morning-Sermons does disgrace,
Calls them, jejune, rebellious, vile, and vain,
And, Presbyterian-Bag-pipes. O profane,
Accursed Atheist! O incarnate Devil!
Foe to all goodness, friend to infernal evil.
But, certainly, our just and righteous God,
In time, will make him feel with wrathful Rod
Of just revenge, for all his devellish spite,
Against his Saints; As, once, he made it light
On * Doctor Lamb, his brother; If, the Lord
Grace of repentance does not him afford.
But, say, besides; what reason has this Wretch,
Toad-like, with Pride and Rage, to strut and stretch
Himself, in admiration of his skill
Of star-gazing-Astrology, most ill,
As he it uses? Since (as Linguists know)
From th' * Hebrew-root, Astrologus do grow
The Latin Sterens, Sterquilinium,
Which genuinely, do unto thusmuch come;
Astrology is but a Dun-hill vile,
And Astrologians, Dung, base Knaves; with guile,
And lying Divinations fravght most full,
The mad-head Multitude to cheat and gull.
And as the Devil whom Endors Witch did call,
Instead of Samuel, to appear to Saul,
Did deal with him, mixed seeming-piety
To check and chide Saul's said impiety
In coming to the Devil, when God had left him,
And of his Grace and help had quite bereft him:
Even so, this filthy dreamer, Li-lie vile,
Credit to gain, and slylier to beguile,
With his false Dreams, doth scripture intermix▪
And thus, still personates the Prince of Stix,
Satan, his Master, All his pamphlets ore,
And, with these Cheates, This witch does rage and roar;
Triumphing, if his Delphic-Divinations
But once hit right, for manifold frustrations.
Let, therefore, Zim, Jim, all Alectoe's train,
The Satire, Shrich-owl, vulture flock, a main,
To lying Li-lie, in a chorus round,
And dance and sing, with hideous yelping sound,
Let vagrant Jipsies, fortune-tellers base,
Come to him, likewise, and with brazen face,
Chaunt-out their lousie joy, and stygian gladness
In this their lying Almanakers madness
And when the dance is done, their sport is ended,
Bring him to's place; Thus, Earth shall be befriended.
Finis

Exodus 22. 18. Levite. 20. 27.

Thou shalt not suffer a Man or Woman that is a Witch Wizzard, Necromancer, or one that deals with Familliar Spirits to live among you.

Printed in the Yeare when the Astrologers and Mountebanks lost their Judgments, 29 March, 1652.