A collection of the several books and vvritings, given forth by that faithful servant of God and his people, George Fox, the Younger Selections. 1662 Fox, George, d. 1661. This text is an enriched version of the TCP digital transcription A40330 of text R328 in the English Short Title Catalog (Wing F1996). Textual changes and metadata enrichments aim at making the text more computationally tractable, easier to read, and suitable for network-based collaborative curation by amateur and professional end users from many walks of life. The text has been tokenized and linguistically annotated with MorphAdorner. The annotation includes standard spellings that support the display of a text in a standardized format that preserves archaic forms ('loveth', 'seekest'). Textual changes aim at restoring the text the author or stationer meant to publish. This text has not been fully proofread Approx. 612 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 170 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. EarlyPrint Project Evanston,IL, Notre Dame, IN, St. Louis, MO 2018 A40330 Wing F1996 ESTC R328 13166427 ocm 13166427 98246 2248532295

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Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A40330) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 98246) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 417:9) A collection of the several books and vvritings, given forth by that faithful servant of God and his people, George Fox, the Younger Selections. 1662 Fox, George, d. 1661. Penington, Isaac, 1616-1679. [11], 3-279 p. Printed for Robert Wilson ..., London : 1662. "Compassion to the captives" has special t.p. The epistle to the reader signed: J.P. [i.e. Isaac Penington?]. Cf. NUC pre-1956. Some pages are stained; pages 138, 234, 249, and 252 are faded with loss of printed in filmed copy. Pages 130-145 and 230-255 photographed from Union Theological Seminary Library copy and inserted at the end. Reproduction of original in Bodleian Library. eng Society of Friends. eebo A collection of the several books and vvritings, given forth by that faithful servant of God and his people, George Fox, the younger. Fox, George 1662 339 101922 44 0 0 0 0 0 4.32 B The rate of 4.32 defects per 10,000 words puts this text in the B category of texts with fewer than 10 defects per 10,000 words. 2005-09 Assigned for keying and markup 2005-11 Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2005-12 Sampled and proofread 2005-12 Text and markup reviewed and edited 2006-01 Batch review (QC) and XML conversion

A Collection Of the Several BOOKS AND WRITINGS , Given forth by that FAITHFUL SERVANT OF GOD and his PEOPLE , GEORGE FOX , the Younger .

LONDON , Printed for Robert Wilson , at the Sign of the Black-spread Eagle and Windmil , in Martins Le Grand , 1662.

The EPISTLE to all true friendly READERS .

LEt the Works and Words of the Lord , wrought in , and spoken by and through his holy Servants , be of everlasting Memory to all Ages and Generations to come , that the Lord God which formed all Mankind , may have glory in all the Works of his Hands , even for ever and ever .

Surely Friends , for sundry righteous Causes , my Spirit could desire a Recordance of the ensuing Writings .

One , in that they are the Fruits of the Labours of a Valiant Souldier , yet Meek Follower of the Lamb of God ; who through Travels , Trials , and Exercises , in divers manners , in Faithfulness , Boldness , Courage , and Undantedness , Persevered in the Power of God , Kept the Faith to the End , and Finished his Course in that which the Lord Almighty accepts of , and now Rests in Glory with the Lamb and his Troops of Angels , which I signifie unto you as is sealed unto me by the Spirit of Life and Immortality .

Another is , in that the Work it self ( to euery true understanding Heart ) may plainly appear to be of God . In one respect by his Prophesies , certain of which became fulfilled , whilst yet he bore the Body about him ; in another respect , by his plain , pure , clear , candid , and righteous dealing with all sorts , without respect of persons , to whom he directed his Sayings , viz. Thunders to the Rocks and Mountains , and Streams of sweet milk , wine and honey , to the Blessed Living Babes of the Blessed living God .

Yet not by this do I appear before any clear Eye , as a person promoting a person in the seat of the hearts of People ; for alas the dust is already returned to earth again , and the Spirit to God who gave it : but though the Creature is fallen , flatted and converted to its proper center , I cannot but in remembrance of that Spirit which once bore it as its Tabernacle , in that Vessel , to walk and wade through many trials , afflictions and sorrows , for the seeds sake of its own Father , since it s now entred into the Bosom of the Father , as a Life lept out of a lump of clay . I say , I cannot but in a Recordance of it , and in a Concordance with it , even in the self same substance say , though the Name of the Wicked shall rot , yet let the Memory of the Righteous live , let his day be as a blessedness in every eye , and the testimony of his Life a rejoycing in the hearts of the upright . Surely I need not study a Motto , nor dive into Invention to fetch up an Inscription to be engraven on the Tombe , since the Names of the Faithful are in the Book of God , and their glory is in him for ever .

But this I may say to the livers , and ( as yet ) remainers in the Power of the same testimony , which he with others have held as a Pattern and Example ( to those which follow after ) to the end . He that hath finished his Course in faithfulness , hath this advantage of him that yet remaineth and hath his Testimony to finish , viz. In that he is redeemed from all causualties which might happen by temptation or otherwise , yea and from all possibilities of losing the Crown of immortal Life , and Reward of the Kingdom of everlasting Glory and Joy , being already possessed of the unchangable Inheritance , even where causualties and temptations reach not ; the which causualties and temptations are incident in some respect or other , to the pure , upright and faithful , whilst yet in the body of flesh or tabernacle of clay , where it can be felt and senced .

And therefore to all such I say , fear and dread the living God , to the end of your days , that in the same life you may all finish a testimony for God , as he that is gone before you . Yea again I say , fear the same God whilst yet you bear a Testimony for him , lest by any means you should fall from the Life of the Testimony , and the last of your day become the least glorious unto you .

And I in the fear of my Father , do live in the love to you , which often breatheth forth my heart in the Spirit of supplication and prayer , constraining me to put up requests to the Throne for you , the which ( as the Spirit breaths ) is desired may also by you be done in the behalf of your Brother in the innocency of the Lamb ,

J. P.
A TABLE Of the Principles Heads contained in this Book . 1. COmpassions to the Captives ; wherein is shewed that the Way of God is but one . pag. 3. 2. Something in plainness to the Officers and Souldiers . p. 13. 3. A strong and Terrible Alarm to the Inhabitants of the Earth . pag. 21. 4. A Visitation of Love unto all People . p. 26. 5. An Exhortation to all Families . p. 42. 6. The words of the Everlasting true Light . p. 47. 7. A word to the People of the World , who hate the Light ; with a few Queries to such Professors as stumble at the Light . p. 57. 8. Honest , Upright , Faithful and plain dealing with thee O Army of the Common-wealth of England , ( so called ) p. 73. 9. A few plain words to the Army and others , about the choice of a Parliament by the voyces of the People . p. 92. 10. His Message predicting the down-fall of the Parliament , directed to the Parliament and their Army ( so called ) p. 101. 11. A Noble Salutation and faithful greeting unto Thee Charles Stuart , &c. Wherein is contained ; First , several wholsome sound Exhortations ( and weighty things opened ) unto thee O King . p. 105. 2. Concerning the Overturning of thy Father , &c. Pag. 108. 3. Concerning thy coming so far into Power again , &c. p. 113. 4. Concerning the great danger thou art in . p. 115. 5. Concerning Religion and the Spirit of Persecution . p. 121. 6. Concerning what Government and Governours , the People of the Lord ( called Quakers ) stand for , and what they stand against . p. 124. 7. How we resolve in the strength of the Lord to stand for that which is Righteous , and against that which is Unrighteous . p. 125. 8. Concerning a Government and Governours , wherein there may be something seen to be good , and something bad . p. 126. 9. Concerning Plotting , or using a Carnal Weapon , and from whom we expect deliverance . p. 227. 10. Concerning Revenge . p. 129. 12. Honest plain down-right dealing with the People called Episcopal men and Presbyterians . p. 135. 13. A Few Queries to the Teachers of the Espiscopal Society . p. 140. 14. The Testimony of God , To those Rulers , Teachers and People of this Present Age , where the Headship of the Church is given to man . p. 143. 15. The Dread of God's Power uttering its voyce through man unto the heads of the Nation . p. 155. 16. A Message of Tender Love unto such Professors as have retained any true Sincerity , Simplicity , and Zeal for God in their Professions . p. 163. 17. A True Relation of the cause of his Imprisonment by the Magistrates at Harwich . p. 193. 18. His Faith touching 4. Particulars Demonstrated . 1. Concerning Jesus Christ the Saviour of the World . 2. Concerning Justification . 3. Concerning the Resurrection . 4. Concerning Everlasting Glory and Eternal Misery . p. 208. 19. Englands sad Estate and condition lamented . p. 212. Several Epistles to Friends , who are gathered into the Light of Life . 1. A General Epistle and tender Greeting sent unto the Flock of Christ . Pag. 230. 2. An Epistle to all who love the Lord Jesus Christ in Sincerity . p. 241. 3. To the Called of God , who believe in the Light of the Lamb. p. 245. 4. The Breathings of true Love from the Immortal Seed , in the Prisoner for the Lord , unto his People . p. 250. 5. To the Tribulated Fock of Christ in Bonds , or elsewhere ; Salutation . p. 263. 6. Touching compelling of Engagements . p. 267. 7. That none can hinder the Determined Will of God . p. 269. 8. Concerning his laying down the Body . p. 270. 9. For the Common-wealths men , both in the Parliament and Army . p. 272.

COMPASSION TO THE CAPTIVES : WHEREIN Is shewn unto them , the Way of God , Which is but one , which is not known in the many Sects and Opinions that are in the dark World , but in the Light , which comes from Christ , which condemns the World , with its deeds : So they that live in the many Sects and Opinions , their wayes are seen and denied by the Children of Light , who dwell in Him , who is the Way , the Truth , and the Life .

With something in plainness to the Officers and Souldiers of the Armies ( in General ) in England , Scotland , and Ireland .

Also a strong and terrible Alarm , sounded out of the Holy Mountain , against the Inhabitants of the Earth .

Given forth for the Innocent Seeds sake , which is scattered abroad in the dark World .

By me who suffers for the Testimony of Jesus , and keeps the word of his Patience , ( in the common Goal of Edmonds Bury , in the County of Suffolk ) where I have suffered above forty nine weeks , through the envy and cruelty of Sions Oppressors . I am known to the world by the name , George Fox , the Younger .

London , Printed for Robert VVilson , at the Black-spread-Eagle and VVind-Mill , in Martins le Grand , 1662.

Compassion to the Captives . Wherein is shewn unto them the Way of God , which is but one , which is not known in the many Sects and Opinions which are in the dark World : But in the Light which comes from Christ , &c.

THerefore this is unto you , in whom there is any desires to know the way of the pure God , who are scattered abroad in the dark World , and are yet groping in the dark , in the many Sects and Opinions . Jam. 4.3 . You ask and receive not , because you ask amisse , you have been wandring from Mountain to Mountain and from Hill to Hill , but yet you have found no resting place ; for you have sought in your own wills , and have run in your own imaginations , and have not at all considered what it was that guided you , but in darkness ye have walked , and ye know not whither , 1 John 2.11 . and ye have joyned , some with one Sect , and some with another , and in your own wills have contended each of you for your Opinions ; and yet ye have not been satisfied in your minds ( many of you ) whither that was the Truth that ye contended for , or not ; for doubtings have oftentimes arose in your minds , and you have been many times struck with fear , and then you have sometimes in tenderness desired that you might know the way of God aright ; and ye have been some of you brought somewhat down , and then you have been afraid to run into those evil Practises which formerly you have acted and delighted in : Yet this hath been but for a time ; for ye knew not what that was that struck you , but in your Imaginations you have consulted , and then in your own wills you have sate down and said within your selves , that you would never act such wickedness again ; but this being in your wills , you have not found Power to resist the Temptations of the wicked one : Neither have you found any Power over your lusts , for by them you have been drawn away , Jam. 1.14 . and so have run into the same wickedness again , and then some of you have been ready to despair ; and other times you have accounted God an hard Master , as the slothful servant did , Mat. 25.18 , 24 , 25. for you are yet in the same Nature and Practice that he was in ; for your Talent also is hid in the Earth , and your earthly minds are above , and rule , and you are subiected by the Powers of the Earth ; so that those weak desires that yet remain in you towards ●he l●●ing God , are greatly oppressed by the Earth , and kept in Bondage and Captivity by the Powers thereof , and Leanness and Barrenness is in your Souls : now while you continue thus , striving in your own wills or imaginations , profess what you will , you cannot have any true Peace , nor rest in your minds , neither can you receive any satisfaction to those desires which are real after God ( I say while you thus act ) Therefore consider your wayes speedily , and hate not the Covenant of God , nor contemn his Promise any longer .

Now this is the Promise of the Lord , speaking of his servant whom he hath chosen , even the Son of his Love , saying , I will give him for a Covenant to the People , and for a Light to the Gentiles , that he may be my Salvation to the ends of the Earth ; Isa. 42.6 . & 49.6 . And Christ Jesus the Son of God saith , I am the Light of the World : John 8.12 . And John , who was a true Minister of Christ ( and bore witness of him ) saith , He lighteth every man that cometh into the world , John 1. chap. 9 . v . So you have all received a Light from Christ , and this Light shineth in Darkness , but the Darkness cannot comprehend it : And this is the Condemnation of the World , that Light is come into the World , and men loved Darkness rather than Light , because their deeds were Evil : And he that doth Evil hateth the Light ; neither will he bring his Deeds to the Light , lest it should reprove them : John 3.19 . Therefore you that desire to know the Way of the Pure God , be not high-minded , but repent , and come down to the Light of Christ in your Consciences ; that is the Light which shews you Sin and Evil , and this the Way , Christ Jesus the Light , he is the Way to the Father , and no man cometh to the Father but by him , Joh. 14.6 . Therefore as the Light appears in you , to shew you the Evil of your doings , take heed to the Light , and wait in it , that you may see Condemnation pass upon that which hath led you into the Evil of the World , and that you may come to be sensible of a guide to your minds , to guide you out of the Evil ; that so the Cross of Christ may be known and submitted unto by you ; and that through the Cross , Righteousness may be learned and obedience brought forth unto the living God ; For as you wait in the Light , ye will see what that is , that hath oppressed your Souls ; and as you come to own that which appears in you to cross your own wills , and wait in it , you will come to see Death , pass upon that which hath kept your Souls in Death , and your Souls will be refreshed , and your desires which are real and simple after God , will be strengthened ; but you must wait in the Light , which makes all things manifest , Eph. 5.13 . and it will let you see , that your way to Peace is through the War , and through the Judgment ; and Christ's words you will witness to be true , who said , I come not to send send Peace on the Earth ; for as you come to wait in the Light , ye will see the Earth disturbed , and the Thunders of the Lord ye will come to know , and the Earthquakes , and the Famine , and the War , and the Pestilence , and these are the beginnings of sorrow , Mat. 24.7 , 8. but all these things must come to pass , and blessed are they that are not offended in him ; Mat. 11.6 . for the Fire and the Sword you must all know , and come through , before you come to know the Peace which is in the Lamb of God ; for by Fire and Sword will the Lord plead with all Flesh , and what cannot stand there , must be consumed : But at these things be not troubled , but wait in the Light , which makes them manifest , and in it believe , and the Power of the Lord you shall find present with you ( as in patience you wait upon him ) to carry you through whatsoever he calls you unto . And this I declare unto you all , The way is strait that leadeth to Life , and few there be that find it : Mat. 7.14 . For except you stand in that Power which God hath given you , and in it deny your selves , and take up the Cross , ye cannot be Christs Disciples : Now your Power is in the Light which comes from Christ , who hath enlightned you ; & waiting in the Light , with it you will come to see the emptiness of all the Profession that is in the world : And you that have followed the Priests , as you come to own the Light , and wait in it , with it you will see them to be the Deceivers ; and to be in the steps of those that the true Prophets , Christ Jesus , and the Apostles cryed against ; and you will see them to be such as commit the horrible and filthy thing in the Land , and so in the steps of those which the Lord sent Jeremiah to cry against ; Jer. 5.30 , 31. and they are such as Preach for hire , and Devine for money , Mic. 3.11 . and feed with the fat , and Cloath with the Wool , and make a prey upon the People , Ezek. 34.3 , 8. and they seek for their gain from their quarters , Isa. 56.11 . and while you put into their mouths , they cry Peace unto you ; but put not into their mouths , & they will prepare War against you , Mic. 3.5 . ( for if you give them not Tythes , they will sue you at the Law ) & such as were in these Practices , Micah , Ezekiel , and Isaiah cryed against ; & such stand praying in the Synagogues , & have the chiefest Places in the Assembles , and Greetings in the Markets , and are called of men Master , and such Christ cryed wo against , Mat. 23. 6 , 7. And they are such as go in Cain's way ( in envy ) and run greedily after the way of Balaam , and such Peter and Jude cryed wo against , 2 Pet. 2. 14 , 15. Jude 11. they having hearts exercised with covetous practices , being proud , boasters , heady , high-minded , lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God , having eyes full of adultery , which cannot cease to sin ; and for Doctrin they teach , that their Hearers cannot be free from sin in this Life , and so plead to uphold the Devil's Kingdom , and through their subtilty beguile unstable souls , leading silly women captive , laden with sins , and carried away with divers lusts , ever learning , but never able to come to the knowledge of the Truth , 2 Tim. 3.2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7. and through covetousness and feigned words , they make merchandize of the People , having a form of Godliness , but denying the Power thereof , 2 Pet. 2.3 . and of such the Apostle bad beware , and from them turn away : And you that have left the Priests , and are got in your own wills and carnal imaginations somewhat nearer the Saints practice , ( imitating what they did , who were in the Life of what they professed ) as you come to own the Light , and wait in it , with it you will see that which you have acted , that it was but the self-separation , and that you took it from the Letter , and never received a Command from God for it , but what ye did , it was as ye imagined , to imitate those who had a Command once from God for what they practised ; But they knew when those things which stood in the figure were to have an end , and to pass away ; and they knew the end of all things to be at hand , and they grew into him who is the fulness of all things , Eph. 4.13 . but these things you never knew ( who have been acting in your own wills and imaginations ) for you never yet came to know the Life of Truth ; and so that Joy and Delight which you had at any time in the hight of your Profession , it withered ; and your practises in your Profession ( which stood in the beggarly Elements , and carnal Washings and Observations , wherein some of you have been exercised ) they have waxen-old and wearisom unto you : These things , as you come to Believe , and wait in the Light , you will see to be true , and that yet you are ignorant of him , who hath established the Law of Commandements , contained in Ordinances ; and you will see that you have been the Theeves and Robbers , who have been climbing up another way than by the Door CHRIST JESUS , and you will see in his Light , as you wait in it , that you must come to loose what you have gathered in your own Wisdom and Imaginations ; and that your Building must fall , because it was not builded upon the Rock ; and you will see how you have been daubed with untempered Morter ; and that your Labour hath been in vain , because ye were not builded by the Lord ; and that your Wisdom must be turned into Foolishness ; and so to the Beginning you must all come , to the Light of Christ in all your Consciences , and to learn to wait in it , that a true and a sure entrance into the way of God you may find , thaye henceforth be no more tossed to and fro , and carried about with every wind of Doctrin , by the slight of men and cunning craftiness , whereby they lye in wait to deceive you ; but that you may now come to know the Teachings of God , and to be subject to his Teachings , and to obey his Voice , and to know it from the voice of Strangers , and no more to follow Strangers , but to return unto the Lord with all your Hearts , and to submit your selves unto him in all humbleness and lowliness , as the Light teacheth ; and that you may all come to know your own measures and abilities which God hath given you ; for he giveth to every one according to their abilities ; and that you may all keep down to your own measures , and none of you to be exalted above his measure , but all there to wait , to see the Wisdom of God revealed in you , that so you may grow in Wisdom , and Power , and Strength , and Might , in the knowledge of God , who reneweth their strength that wait upon him .

So here is your Power and Strength to resist Temptations ; All to wait in the Light which comes from Christ , unto whom all Power is given ; For in the Light you will see Temptations as they arise , and waiting in the Light , ye will receive Power from him , from whom the Light comes , to withstand the Temptations , and to overcome the Tempter , as he overcame who is gone before , even Christ Jesus the Word of God , who was before the World was , who overcame the World ; he is the same that ever he was , he changeth not ; and they that believe in him , and wait in his Light , they receive Power to overcome the World , and them he redeems out of the World ; and they are not conformable to the Fashions , and Customs , and Wayes of the World ; but they are transformed by the renewing of their minds , and their minds and affections are set upon Heavenly things , so as you wait in the Light , you will see the worlds Words , and Fashions , and VVayes , all to be burdensom to the seed of God ; and if you love the Light you will know and find that Power present , by which you will be made able and willing to cast off every weight and burden as they are seen with the Light ; and giving up in obedience to the Light , keeping in the Cross , you will find peace in your measures ; and you will see the Lord present to water and refresh that of himself in you , and to cut off and purge out what●oever oppresseth and hinders the growth of his own Plant in you ; and so you will become fruitful in your places and measures unto the Lord , and he will take delight in you , and feed you with food convenient according to your growth and necessities ; and he will be your God , and you shall be his People and Sheep of his Pasture ; and you shall grow into the Covenant ; and he will take away you stony hearts and give you new hearts , and write his Law therein , and you shall know his Teachings , Heb. 8.10 , 11 , 12. and he will be merciful unto you , and forgive all your iniquities , and you shall know the Blood of the Covenant which shall cleanse you from all sin , 1 Joh. 1.7 . and you shall know the Son , and he shall make you free , Joh. 8.32 , 36. and he will reveal the Father unto you , and you shall be no more barren nor unfruitful , but the VVilderness shall become a fruitful Place , and the barren Land a fruitful Field , and the parched ground shall become a place of pleasant Springs , Isa. 35. and the Lord God and the Lamb will take delight in your Feasts , and make their abode with you : These things will the Lord in his time accomplish , and ye shall know them , and be witnesses of them , if you will indeed hearken unto his Voice and obey it , and keep his Covenant , and return unto him with all your Hearts , and submit your selves to the Light of his Son in all your Consciences , and then you shall be hid in the Day of the fierce VVrath of the Almighty , which he is bringing upon the heads of the ungodly ; for although he hath long forborn them , yet the cry of his Elect is not forgotten , Luke 18.7 . for now his long sufferings towards them , shall be turned unto their everlasting contempt ; for even now is he arising to take vengeance upon the Oppressors of his righteous Seed ; and wo unto all those that are found in the Army of the Dragon ; for he shall be taken with the false Prophet , and all those that have received the mark of the Beast , and they all shall be cast into the Lake that burneth for ever ; this is the second Death , Rev. 20.14 , 15. and this is the Portion and Reward of all those that are found fighting against the Lamb ; therefore you that are warned of the destruction , which is speedily to come upon those that have cast the Law of God behind their backs , and crucified the Son of God ( and are yet fighting against his Kingdom ) the Light in their Consciences condemns them eternally : Stay not , but come out from among them , lest partaking of their sins , ye also partake of their plagues , Rev. 18.4 . which are their due , and now to be brought upon them ; take heed that you delay not , for the Judgement hasteth greatly ; but if you refuse to hearken unto the Counsel of the Lord , and resolve to go on in your own wills and imaginations , and reject the Light of his Son in your Consciences , which he hath given you to lead you out of your own wills and imaginations , and so give your strength unto Strangers ; then will those desires which are yet in you towards the living God soon dye ; and you will grow more dark , and wax stronger , in your imaginations , and you will become enemies even to the very appearance of Truth ; and your hearts will become hard , and you will be found guilty of the blood of the Son of God ; and you will wax worse and worse , 2 Tim. 3.13 . and so you will grow fit for the Plagues and Judgements of the righteous God ; and the blood of his Son will cry for vengeance against you ( as Abels did against Cain , Gen. 4.10 . ) and the Lord will hear the cry thereof , and will pour forth his Judgements upon you ; and then shall the Light in all your Consciences arise and witness to the Judgements of God that they are just ; and it shall let you see that you were warned of your destruction often times by it , and that ●ou had a time given you to repent in , Rev. 2.21 . and then you shall be made to confess that your destruction is of your selves .

So in love to your souls I have written this , in which your present condition ( which is miserable ) is plainly declared unto you , and the way to come out of it by Christ Jesus the Light ; and the Priests ( who have long deceived many of you ) are here laid open in plainness ; and such as act in their own imaginations ( by imitating those who dwelt in the Life of what they professed ) also , what you have gathered and gained all this time ; you have been making a Profession of God ( is here declared ) and the end thereof , and what you shall attain unto if you will diligently hearken unto the Voice of God , and obey the Light of his Son in all your Consciences ; and where your Power is to obey , is here shewed unto you : So here is Life and Death set before you , Deut. 30.19 . now if you yet refuse to hear , you shall not be able to plead ignorance in the day when God calls you to an account , for I have cleared my Conscience unto you in the sight of God , and am clear of your Blood , Ezek. 33.9 . and am witnessed by the Light of Christ in all your Consciences , which Light is your Teacher if you love it , but your condemnation eternally if you hate and reject it . Therefore whilst you have time prize it , and despise not the day of your visitation ; but to day if you will hear the Voice of the Son of God , come down to the Light in all your Consciences ( which reproves you for sin , and shews you the loss that ye are yet in ) and wait in it , and harden not your hearts , nor despise the long sufferings of God , neither linger through sloathfulness any longer , lest he give you up wholly to your own wills and vile affections and lusts , Psal. 81.11 , 12. which lead you into wickedness and perverseness , and so God overtake you there , and bring his Judgements upon you , and you perish with the wicked in your stubbornness and Rebellion . So hear , fear , and do no more presumptuously .

From me , who am a sufferer for the innocent Seeds sake , who labours and waits in the power of the living God , for its deliverance out of Bondage and Captivity . G. F.
Unto you the Officers and Soldiers of the Armies , in England , Scotland , and Ireland .

REmember , how at the beginning of the late Wars in these Nations , that many of you were of the lowest of the People , according to the account of men : and you were poor and contemptible in the eyes of your Enemies , who disdained and scorned you , and thought soon to have made a prey upon you : But I bear you Record , that then many of you had a zeal for God , and against his Enemies ; and according to your knowledge some of you acted faithfully for a time ; and then some of you had a desire to grow in the knowledge of God , and to act for him ; and some of you were come so far as to see the Priests to be Enemies to the Truth , and such as deceived the People ; and your Zeal waxed hot against them and their Idolatry , so that you robbed them of their abominable Attire which they had caused the deceived People to provide them ( to wear in the time of their Idolatrous Worship ) and some of you did help to break down their Images and Altars which were in the high places where they worshipped : And thus far ●ou did that which was right in the sight of God ; and you saw that the Priests laid heavy burdens upon the People , Mat. 2.3 , 4. and oppressed them greatly , in forcing them by an unjust Law to give them the tenth of their Labours , and you saw several Laws which were made and upheld by the wills of ( Tyrants in these Nations ) to be contrary to the Law of God : And then you Promised and Vowed unto God , if he would deliver your Enemies ( which then were many and great ) into your hands , that then you would take off that great Oppression , which by unjust Laws were laid and continued upon the People ; and that those Laws concerning Oppression and constraining men to Worship contrary to their Consciences , should be regulated or disannulled , and made of none effect ; and that all men should have their Liberty to Worship according to what they knew ; and that none should Tyrannize over the Consciences of their Brethren , to compel them otherwise ; but that all should have their Freedom and Liberty therein : These things you Promised and Engaged to do ; and you caused many People to Engage to be True unto you , and to stand firm with you , that so you might recover their Liberties and outward Rights , and bring them out of Bondage in which they were ( then ) held Captives by their Enemies ; and upon this Account the People furnished you with Money and VVeapons , to War against their Oppressors ; and you cryed then unto the Lord in your Distresses , and he was pleased to hear you , and he smote your Enemies with Terror and Fear , and overthrew all their wicked devices , and frustrated all their designs , and brought to naught all their mischievous plottings against you ; neither suffered he them to stand in the day of Battel before you ( because they trusted in their own strength ) but he gave them into your hands for a Prey , and whom ye would ye slew , and whom ye would ye preserved alive ; and you spoiled them , and they became Servants and Bond-men unto you , and you ruled over them as it is at this day : Thus God by his own Power delivered them into your hands , and preserved you in the day of Battel , and was seen mightily amongst you , and wonderfully delivered you out of their hands , and gave you outward rest and ease from your outward Enemies ; and your Name became a Terror and an Astonishment unto the Nations about , when they heard of those Acts , which God had wrought by you . But now the love of the Lord unto you , and the day of your Distress by you is forgotten ; and your Vows and Promises which you then made unto God and Man , are neglected and slighted by you ; for as great or greater Oppression and Burdens yet remain upon the People , as were then , and now many of you are possessed of your Enemies Houses , and Lands , and Goods , and some of you are waxen rich through the spoil of your Enemies , and the greatness of your Pay , and some by doing Violence ; and so through your Riches and abundance , many of you are grown high-minded and proud ; and many of you through idleness and fulness of the Creature are grown exceeding wanton and lustful , and now run on in the common pollutions of the world , and some of you are grown exceeding covetous , and are become grinders of the faces of the Poor , Isa. 3.15 . and defrauders one of another ; and many of you now are seeking and contriving ( in your own Wisdom ) how to grow greater , and to excel others in earthly Riches and Honour ; and to establish your selves there by the strength of the arm of flesh ; and some of you are boasting of you strength , and valour , and stoutness , Jer. 9.23 , 24. and are oftentimes telling how you killed , and wounded , and took , and destroyed your Enemies ; and this is oft done by you , when you are devouring the Creation upon your ungodly lusts , and when you are gaming and spending away your precious time in vanity ; and here you remember not how God by his own Power delivered them into your hands , neither give you him the Glory ; but ascribe it to your own strength and wisdom , and boast in the Creature , and so forget the Creator ; and so that simplicity and tenderness that was once in some of you , is destroyed and murdered by the lusts of the flesh , which are highly exalted in you ; and that Zeal ( that was once in some of you for God , and against his Enemies , and those unjust Laws which by them were made and upheld ) is now lost , and your ears are not open unto the cry of the Oppressed , whom once you promised to set free from their Oppressions ; but now some of you are become upholders of , and pleaders for those Laws and Customs which formerly you cryed against , and strengthners and upholders of such as oppress tender Consciences , though once you pretended that you fought for the Liberty of Conscience , and now by those unjust Laws ( which you saw to be contrary to the Law of God ) do many suffer in these Nations , some Imprisonment , and some the spoyling of their Goods , some because they cannot pay the Priests Tythes , for if they should , they must deny the unchangeable Priest , which took not Tythes , but abolished the first Priesthood , and disannulled the Commandement that gave Tythes unto them that were of the first Priesthood , which was a figure of him that was to come ; but now is he come who is the substance and sum of all Types and Figures , even the everlasting High-Priest which changeth not ; so the first Priesthood is changed , and the Law is changed also : Heb. 7.12 . Therefore they that witness the unchangeable Priest , they deny the changeable Priests , and for Conscience sake cannot uphold them ; and some suffer Imprisonment for Declaring and Publishing the everlasting Truth ( as they are moved of the Lord ) in the Markets , & Assemblies , and Congregations of the People , and some of late time have been Stock'd and Whipp'd , and some wounded and despitefully used for the same ; and some , when they have been peaceably met together ( in the fear of the Lord to wait upon him ) in their own houses , or upon their own ground , or some of their Brethrens , not being troublesome outwardly to any man , they have been then and there abused , & some have been violently haled away to the Magistrates , who without shewing them any Law which they had transgressed , hath forth with sent them to Prison , and some have been stoned , and kicked , and buffeted , and spitted upon , and mocked ; and some have had their doors and windows broken , and they scarce permitted to abide in their own houses : And these things have been acted , some of them by the Priests , and some by the Rulers and Souldiers , and rude multtude , who are strengthned in such actions , and suffered so to act by the other ; and some of the servants and chosen ones of the Lord have lately been cast some into Prisons , & holes , and dungeons , and there have lain until the outward man hath perished ; and many of the Children of the most high God , are yet in Prisons in this Nation , for witnessing forth the pure Truth of God , and not for the breach of any just Law : neither could our Persecutors , when we have been brought before them , shew any Law which we had transgressed ; ( when some of us have demanded this of them , that if they had any Law against what we had acted , that they should read it to us ) not withstanding this they have sent us to Prison again , and there caused us to be kept and some of late time , as they have been going peaceably to visit and relieve the servants of the Lord who are imprisoned in this Nation , they have not been permitted , but have been stopped by the way ; and some of them have had their money taken from them , and then forthwith they have been sent to Prison , and there are kept ; and some have been Fined and Imprisoned , for entertaining or lodging of the Servants and Children of the Lord , who have come peaceably and for peace to their houses ; and some lately hath been presented , and money hath been demanded of them , because for Conscience sake they could not go to the Steeple-houses , to hear the hireling Priests and Deceivers on the first dayes of the weeks .

Now consider these Practices , how contrary they are to the Vows and Engagements which you have made and taken , and contrary to the Liberty which once you pretended unto : I have not written these things unto you because I am a sufferer ; for I neither look for help or expect deliverance from you ; neither are my sufferings wearisome or grievous unto me ( because I know I suffer in innocency ) neither do I look for any help ; or have I any helps in the Earth ; but these things was I moved to write unto you that you may consider how you have neglected and slighted that which you Promised to do , when you were in your distresse and trouble , if God delivered you out of them ( who now hath delivered you ) and that you may see how you have rewarded evil for the good that the Lord hath done for you ; and how you have not onely lyed unto Man , but unto God .

So come down to the Light of Christ in all your Consciences ( unto which Light all the Powers of the Earth must bow ) and with it search your hearts , and try your wayes , and it will shew you your back-slidings and the evil of your doings ; and repent speedily , and do your first works , and return to your first Integrity , and do violence to no man , neither accuse any falsly ; and be content with your Wages , and submit your selves unto the true Light , which lighteth every man that cometh into the World , that with the Light you may see the violent and false Accuser judged and cast out of you ; that so with the Light which makes manifest your present estate , you may be brought out of the Fall , and out of the Losse which you are yet in : But if you refuse to return unto the Lord ( who hath so marvelously delivered you out of the hands of your Enemies ) & to pay your Vows to him : Verily the living God will arise and set free the oppressed , and destroy their oppressors , by his own Power and outstretched Arm , and not by you , neither shall you have the honour of it ; and he will cast you off , and by his own Power will he bring you down , and destroy you , and root you out . Remember how he lately by his Mighty Power brought down and destroyed those that Rebelled against him ; and even as he cast out them because they oppressed his Righteous Seed , so also will he cast out you ( if you repent not speedily ) because you have not wholly followed his Counsel , to destroy , and break down , and root out whatsoever did oppresse his People ; but now he hath given you deliverance , and ease from your Enemies , you have forgotten the day of your Calamity ( wherein you cryed unto the Lord for help ) in which day you were oppressed by your Enemies also ; and now ye are set down in ease and fulness , and regard not the cry of the oppressed , but you your selves are become oppressors also ; so what you did act for God in the time of your trouble shall not be once named or mentioned unto you , because you continued not faithful unto the end ; but in your back-slidings and unrighteousness ( wherein you have delighted ) you shall perish , and you shall receive your reward with the unrighteous . And so remember you are warned of the destruction that is to come upon back-sliders and ungodly men ; if you perish your blood be upon your heads , I am clear of it , having cleared my Conscience unto you ; and verily my desire is ( God is my witness ) that you might return unto the Lord with your hearts , and break off from your iniquities by true Repen●ance , that so he might heal your back-slidings , and that you might come to know the Salvation of your Souls ; now your Power to act righteously is in the Light which comes from Christ ( who is the Wisdom , and Power , and Righteousness of God ) unto whom all Power is given , and he hath given unto every one of you a measure of his Light , which if you love , and believe , and wait in it , as it arises in you , that is your Teacher to teach you the Truth , and to guide you to God , who is Light , and if you walk in the Light , then shall you have fellowship with the Children of Light ; but if you hate and reject the Light which shews you Sin and Evil , that is your Condemnation from God , John 3.19 . and from the Saints in Light Eternally .

This from the motion of the Lord in me , who for several years was amongst you and had a great zeal ( as some of you once had ) against Tyrants and unjust Laws , by which the people were & are greatly oppressed ; and in that time I suffered much hardship ( as to the outward man ) and was oft in jeopardy of my life , as many of you have been : which I was willing then to endure and to pass through , for the suppressing of Tyrants and unjust Laws , which by them were made and upheld : But the Lord , hath called me out from among you , & hath made me a Souldier in the Army of the Lamb , who shall overcome all his Enemies ; although for a time he suffer like a Lamb , yet he will arise like a Lyon upon his Enemies at unawares , and he will tear , & tread down , and consume , and destroy them , and none shall be able to deliver out of his hand . I am now a sufferer also for the everlasting Truth , and not for the breach of any known Law ; and thus the Rulers in this Nation ( who persecute the Innocent ) reward me evil for good : but in the Power of the living God , I stand a witness against all Persecutors and Tyrants , who seek to make a prey upon the lives of the Righteous , by which Power I am preserved out of their hands , and kept above all sufferings ( and time , and place ) which they are permitted to inflict upon me for a time for the tryal of my faith ; but my cause is the Lords , and he will plead and revenge it . Remember from whence you are fallen .

G. F.
A Strong and terrible Alarm sounded out of the holy Mountain against the Inhabitants of the Earth , &c.

WOe , wo , unto you Rulers , Priests and People , who live without the fear of God , and do hide your abominations in hypocrisie and dissimulations ; you are got into several Sects and Opinions , and there some of you have long made a Profession of God with your tongues and lips , but your hearts are removed far from him , so that your Profession stinks in the Nostrils of the Almighty ; and he loaths and abhors your Preaching and Praying ; for you are weighed , and you are found too light , your coverings are too narrow , they will no longer hide you ; for now you are searched with the true Light , which makes you manifest , and rips off your coverings , so that your nakedness appears , the day hath made you manifest ; and now is the Light risen , and with it you are seen to be out of the Life of Truth ; yea , you are found to be the greatest Enemies to the life that be upon the earth ; for you Murther it in the particular , and you hate and persecute it wheresoever it is brought forth ; yea , and in all its appearances you seek to suppress and murther it . Remember your fore-fathers cryed , Not this man but Barrabbas , and your cry and Practice is seen to be the same in nature now ; for the Robber and Murderer is set free , and hath his Liberty in and among you ; and in you and by you , is the Son of God cryed against and murdered ; yea , ye are the betrayers and murderers of him , and his blood you are guilty of , and it cryeth for vengeance against you unto the Lord , who hath long forborn you ; and because his Judgements were not speedily executed upon you , you have strengthned youe selves in your wickedness and imaginations , and have provoked the Almighty to wrath , and have not considered that his long-suffering towards you was to have drawn you to Repentance ; but the day of your Visitation you have despised , and have hated the Light of his Son in your Consciences , which hath often shewed you your Evil Deeds , and so have trampled , the blood of the Covenant under your feet , and have done despight unto the Spirit of Grace , and hath chosen to follow the vain imaginations of your own hearts , and have contemned the Counsel of the Lord , and would not that he should reign over you ; for which cause his Iudgements linger not against you , but are ready to be poured forth upon your heads , even upon you , who have sold your selves to work abomination in the sight of the Lord , and are worshipping in the house of your Imagery , and have joyned , and are become one with the great Whore of Babylon , who hath made her self drunken with the blood of the Saints and Martyrs of Jesus ; but now is she come in remembrance before the dreadful and terrible God , and now shall both she and her Lovers be Plagued and tormented together .

Therefore you Nobles and Rulers , Captains and Mighty men , Priests and People , High and Low , Rich and Poor , Bond and Free , who hath committed Fornication with her , awake to the Iudgement , and behold , your King , the old Dragon , which is the Divel and Satan ; for he is come forth and deceives you , and he is come to gather you to the Battel of the great Day , which is at hand ; for the Harvest is ripe , and the Wine-press is full , and your Fats overflow , and the measure of your Iniquities is great , and now will God be avenged on you , who will bring you all down unto the valley of Discision , even there shall the Day of the Lord be upon you , which will be a day of pain and anguish , a day of blackness and gloominess , and of thick darkness unto you that have slain the Witness of God , and have made merry over him ; your mirth is almost at an end , and instead thereof shall be mourning and bitter Lamentation , which shall come upon you in one day ; and now is the day of Vengeance proclaimed , now is the Trumpet sounded forth , behold the LYON roareth : Therefore , Oh! all ye Inhabitants of the Earth , fear and tremble before the living dreadful God , and dread ye his Name , for now is he arising in his Glory and Majesty , to shake terribly the Earth ; the noise of a Trumpet goeth before him , which soundeth an Alarm : Strong and Mighty is he ; there goeth a Sword out of his mouth , and a Threshing instrument is in his hand , wherewith he will cut down the tall Cedars , and thresh the , Mountains to dust : A fire proceedeth out of his mouth also , which shall devour and burn before him , and none shall be able to quench it : And the breath that cometh forth of his Nostrils shall scatter the Earth , as the VVhirl-wind scattereth the dust ; yea , terrible and dreadful will he be unto you wicked , who live in the Earth , you shall not be able to behold nor stand in his presence : Therefore weep , and howl , and lament for the misery that is coming upon you ; for a total destruction is at hand ; yea , the Lord hath decreed an utter overthrow of the Earth , and the Inhabitants thereof ; for now shall his overflowing Scourge pass through the Earth , and the Besom of his destruction shall sweep you away , for your VVhoredoms , and Murders , and Idolatry , and Drunkenness , and Swearing , and Lying , and VVantonness , and Prophaneness , is come in remembrance before the dreadful and terrible God , who will be avenged on you at once .

Rejoice ye Saints who are clad with Zeal , and shout for joy you Sons of the most high God , and sing ye Heavens , and you that dwell therein ; for the Lord is risen , ye are Witnesses thereof ; behold he cometh with ten thousands of his Saints to Iudge the Earth in Righteousness , and to execute his Judgements upon his and our Enemies : The Vials of his VVrath are made ready to be poured out upon them , and his Indignation is waxen hot against them , which shall burn , and slay , and consume them unto the end ; Glory , Glory , Honour and Dominion , and Praise be given unto our King , who liveth for ever ; for he is worthy to reign over all , who was dead , but now is he alive , and liveth for evermore : And he hath redeemed us from the Earth , and hath brought us above the Earth , to reign with him up - the Earth : Eternal Praises to our King for evermore , who is above all , and over all ; who was before the VVorld was , and hath brought us to be before the VVorld , to reign with him eternally above the VVorld , and our Enemies are to be plagued and tormented in our presence , and we shall rejoyce over the smoak of their torment , which ascendeth for ever : Now here is the joy and cause of our rejoycing , who have followed the Lamb through great Tribulation , and are brought above the Tribulations , to dwell in the presence of the living God ; this is joy unspeakable , and full of Glory , which shall never have an end : Hallelujah to our King for evermore .

Edmonds-Bury Common Goal , the 22. day of the 7th . Month , 1656. By me George Fox , whose natural Birth , and outward being was at Charsfield , in the said County of Suffolk .
A Visitation of Love unto all People , ( in whose hearts there are any true honest tender desires , begotten towards God and his Righteousness ) In what Sect , or Opinion , or Profession soever they be , who are not in the Light ; especially unto such who have felt something of the workings of the Life and Power of God in them , and yet notwithstanding have been led by the subtilty of the Serpent , from the Life and Power of God , into many Sects , and Opinions , and Forms , which are without the Life and Power of God ; and herein the subtil workings and devices of the Serpent , whereby he deceives the hearts of the simple , is clearly made manifest . Friends ,

GOd , the higher Power , unto whom the soul is to be subject , he only hath immortality , and dwelleth in the Light ; and he is Light : And he hath freely given his Son into the world , ( by whom the world was made ) for a Covenant of Light ; and he is the true Light , which lighteth every one that cometh into the world , that all men through him might believe ; who is the VVord of God , in whom is Life , and that Life ( mark ) is the Light of men ; and the pure Grace of God , which bringeth Salvation ( by which the Saints are freely justified ) hath appeared unto all men ; yea , the the Eternal God of Truth hath appeared unto you in his Son Jesus Christ , the true Light , and with this Light hath God made manifest unto you your sin and evil deeds , and with the measure of the Light of his Son ( in you ) sometimes hath he appeared in his mighty Power , whereby he hath smitten you for your sins and evil deeds , and he by his Power hath broken you into tenderness , and brought you down into lowliness for a time , and then by his unresistible Power thus working ( in you ) did beget a holy Seed , from whence pure desires and breathings after God hath often arose ( in you ) which seed could not , nor cannot be satisfied without Gods living presence ; Now ye , not standing in the Power which convinced you , and smote you , and broke you into tenderness , and brought you down , and then begot a holy Seed in you ; from whence a pure unfeigned love to God hath oft sprung ( mark ) you not minding the workings and movings of this Power in you , nor waiting in it for to receive counsel , you entered into reasonings and thoughts , which the subtilty ( which is the Devil ) presented in you ; and so ye hearkned not to Gods voice ( the power which had wrought so in you ) but you entred into reasonings with the subtilty ( which abode not in the power ) and this begot a questioning in you what that should be , which had so appeared in you , and broken you into such a tenderness , and had wrought such a sudden change in you , which you were not able to resist ; And ye going into the reasonings in your minds ; thus you turned from the pure Power of God , and then sin ( which separateth from Gods presence , which he by his Power worketh in you , had in measure smitten and brought down in you ) arose again , and got the Dominion in you , and so you going thus from the Power wherein ye should have waited to have been preserved in the tenderness , ye soon lost the tenderness and fear , which the Power had wrought in you ; and then hardness of heart soon grew in you again , and then the Seed which God had begotten in you ( which cannot be satisfied without his presence ) that began to be sorely oppressed in you , by the sin ( which separates from Gods presence ) which got up more and more in you , through your turning from the Power which ye once felt manifested and working in you against sin : And then a grievous weight or burden came upon the Righteous Seed in you ; and then it began to groan and cry to God from under the burden and weight of iniquity that was upon it , and then the Light appeared more brighter in you again , ( for the Seeds sake which suffered in you ) and shewed you that you were wrong ; then the Light judged you for the wrong , and then trouble came upon you , and encreased in your minds ; and then the Serpent , the Subtilty , the Devil ( which abode not in the Truth ) he appeared likewise in you , and begot a hurrying and a confused noise in your minds , and then presented many things unto you , and stirred you up to do them , that so he might draw ye from hearkening unto the Light ( wherein you should have waited to have heard and known God's Voice and Counsel , and to have seen and heard what God had required at your hands ) and thus the Subtilty , which is the Devil , who was a murderer from the beginning , and abode not in the Truth , sought to draw you from the Light ( which is the Truth ) that so he might murder the Righteous Seed , which God had begotten in you , ( unto which Seed the Promises are ) Now your minds being drawn from the Light , which convinced you of sin , you entred further into sin , and then you could not find any power for to resist sin , because you went from the Light which shewed you your sin , wherein ye should have waited to have received power against sin , and then the Seed suffered in you , by the sin which ye were entred into exceedingly ; and trouble increased more and more in your minds , ( this hath been the condition of some of you ) and then the Subtilty drew you into reasonings and consultings what to do , that so the burden which you felt , and the trouble in your minds might be removed : So ye hearkning unto the Subtilty , he then presented several things unto you to be done , some of which once were commanded by God to be done by them unto whom the Command came ; and so the Subtilty perswaded you , that you must do those things likewise , before ye could have peace , and witness the burden and trouble removed , which ye felt ; So he haing drawn you out of the sensibleness and feeling of the Light and Power of God , your understandings became wholly darkned , as unto the Counsel of God , and then these things which the subtil enemy presented , exceedingly pleased the affectionate part in you , and some of you he perswaded to act such things as God never commanded any to act ; and so ye going from the Light ( which never changeth ) and hearkning unto the Subtilty ( which leads into changeableness ) here ye began to run into Sects and Opinions , and Heaps , and Parties , and Divisions ; yea , here is the ground and rise , and beginning of all Sects and Opinions in the world , peoples going from the Light and Power of God , which leads into the Substance , and into oneness of mind , and hearkning unto the Subtilty , which leads but into the likewise of Truth , and into self-separation and Divisions , and changeableness of mind ; and when the Serpent had drawn you into several Opinions and Practices in your VVorship , then he fed you with knowledge , that so each of you might be able to plead and contend for your Opinions and Practices ; and then he begot a strong , hot , hasty will in you ( which hath been called Zeal for God , whereby he drew you into hot contentions one with another , and so by little and little he raised up a secret envy and prejudice in you , one against each other , till at length some of you brake forth into rage , and scorn , giving one another scornful Names .

And thus the Mysterie of Iniquity wrought in many of you , until the Seed grew weak in you , ( as to your feeling ) and became as a dead thing unto you , being thus strangled in you , by your going from the Power , into those things that the Power of God never moved , or drew you to act , ( but the Serpent , which abode not in the Power ) So then you were not sensible of such a burden indeed , as ye were once sensible of , when the Seed which God had begotten in you , was more quick and lively , and then the Subtilty perswaded you , that now you were right , because you felt not such a burden and trouble in your minds as you once did ; and then a joy sprung in you for a time , and then the Subtilty perswaded you , that you were now entred into the VVork , and Service , and VVorship of God ; and that he had given you some reward , because you were not sensible of such a burden , & trouble in your minds as ye were before you acted those things in your VVorship ; and thus the Subtility beguiled some of you : But this condition continued not long with you , for God's eternal VVitness ( which ye had as it were slain , and made merry over it ) that arose and appeared in you again , for the Seeds sake , and disturbed and broke that false peace , and joy , and perswasion , that you were got into , ( through transgressing [ and going from ] that which is pure of God in you , and acting those things in the Transgression , which God never required at your hands ) and then with God's witness , the Light , you saw your selves wrong again , and the Light judged you for your forwardness , and then you begun to loath those Practices in your worship , which before you delighted in , and then something you came to feel stirring in you again , which was not satisfied , but breathed , and groaned , and cryed unto the Lord ; and then you were in a fine tender condition again ; But then the Subtilty soon appeared in you again , and presented some other new things unto you , and called those which he had formerly led you into , old , empty , weak and beggerly things , and thus he wrought in the subtilty , to draw you from hearkning unto that which made manifest your Condition unto you ; and thus he hath drawn some of you into most of the Sects and Opinions that be in the World , and through them , and thus in the subtilty hath he wrought in you to save his head , ( or life ) for he knew that if you had hearkned unto the truth of God as it appeared in you , and had obeyed it , that then God's Power would mightily have been made manifest in you , whereas the Seed immortal would have been raised up in you , which would have bruised his head .

So take notice how the Lord's love , the Light , hath followed you , and checked , and reproved you for your hastiness and forwardness , and hath shewed unto you the emptiness and deadness of all the profession and worship that ever you have run into .

And sometimes when you have been brought into lowliness and tenderness ; by the Power of the Lord which hath smitten you , then the Lord hath opened mighty things in you unto his Seed , which breathed and thirsted after his Righteousness , and could not be satisfied without it , and then the Serpent hath wrought in you again in the subtilty , to lead you from that which opened , and from the pure , and so lead you up in the boasting Nature , to hold forth those things in the fleshly Principle which the Lord opened unto his own Seed ; and thus he hath kept you out of the Life and Power of Truth , and he hath filled some of you with strange imagimations , and expectations concerning God and Christ , and his appearance without you ; and so all along he hath strove to keep you from minding Gods appearance within you , by drawing your minds into the visible changeable things , and yet the Lord in love to his own Seed hath spared you ; so mind the Lords long patience , and forbearance which hath been great towards you , for his Seeds sake in you , which breathes and thirsts after his Righteousness , and cannot be satisfied without his life and presence .

And truly friends my love is exceeding tender and large towards you in whom there is such a pure tender Seed stirring , and my desire is ( who have seen the emptiness of all Profession without the life ) that you might come to witness the Seed satisfied in you ( with the Pure Power , and Life , and Virtue of the Living God ) which hath suffered long in you , and hath not been satisfied by reason of your disobedience unto the Light .

Therefore in Tender Bowels of Love and Compassion unto you , I do freely declare unto you all , The New and Living way which hath been from the beginning , which is CHRIST JESUS , the true Light which lighteth every one which cometh into the World , whereby every one of you believing in the Light , may come to receive a particular satisfaction from Christ , from whence the Light doth come .

Friends , The manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withall , but you have transgressed and gone from the manifestation of Gods Spirit in your own particulars , and so it is impossible for you ever to profit in the things of God , or come to receive a particular satisfaction , until you come to own that , and believe in that , which you have transgressed and gone from , which was given you to profit withall , and to lead you into the substance , which giveth satisfaction .

Now the manifestation of the Spirit doth shew unto you your runings , and willings , and actings , and strivings that ye have been in , whereby ye could never obtain satisfaction unto that in you which breathes to do the Will of God ; now you must mind that which makes manifest these things unto you , and as you take notice of that ( which is the Light ) and wait in it , you will come to feel it drawing you into stilness , and coolness , and quietness of spirit ; and then with the Light you will come to discern the subtilty , and the motions thereof , which have oft beguiled you , by drawing you from quietness and stilness , into the Airy imaginations , whereby he hath tossed and unsetled your minds ; and as you waite in that which doth make manifest , ( which is the Light ) and believe in it , you will come to feel something arising in you , in Power to Judge and condemn the subtilty , as that stirs in you to draw you from waiting upon God , and then you will come to know and feel , the spirit of Judgement and burning , placed in you to purge you , and as you wait in the Judgement in patience and stilness , you will come to hear the still voice that is spoken of in the Scriptures , saying , This is the way ( and shewing it unto you ) and when you see the way , as you wait in that which shewes it unto you , then you will come to hear the Command in Power , saying unto you , walk in it , and then you will come to know your Teacher which cannot be removed into a corner ; and so here the path of the just ye will all come to know and witness in your selves , which is the shining Light which shineth more and more , until the perfect day ; for as you all wait in that which calls for stilness and silence to the flesh and the motions thereof , ye will come then to see more Light , and so ye will come to witness what David spoke to be true , who said to God , In thy Light shall we see Light , and then the just ( which hath been long oppressed and burthened in you ) will begin to spring , and as you believe and wait in the Light , your minds being staid in it , you will come to feel God's Living Power working and opperating in you , condemning and removing that in you , which hath oppressed and burthened the just , and so by God's pure Power , ( as you wait and continue in it , ) you will come to feel and witness the just holy Seed raised up in you , from under that which did oppress and burthen it ; and here you will feel the captive come out of captivity by the Gospel , which is the Power of God , and the Prison door set open , and the Prisoners set at Liberty ; And then as you wait in the Light you will come to feel God's pure Powerful Presence , and Life and Virtue runing through you , which will refresh the Seed , which is tender , and give satisfaction unto it ; and so as you all wait low in the fear of God , watching in the Light , that nothing may get up in you to boast and glory which is not of God , you will then feel your love exceedingly encreased towards the Pure Living Truth of God , and your whole delight will be to walk in the Truth , in Righteousness and Holiness , ( without which no man shall see the Living God ) and as you all walk in the Light obeying it , you will come into the Pure Fellowship , and Communion and Unity of the Saints , and then you will feel the Life , which is the Blood of Jesus Christ cleansing you , purging and purifying you from all Sin : and so as every one of you abide in the Faith , feeling it , and standing in the Power of God that will purifie your hearts , and give you victory over the World , and then you will come to receive a particular satisfaction from Christ the Power , which is the Author and ground of the Saints Faith , and you will feel God's Spirit , and Power , and Life as you dwell in it , drawing and leading you into whatsoever he requireth you to do ; and as you all wait and are still in that which doth discern the thoughts and the intents of your hearts , and makes them manifest unto you , you will clearly come to discern the Subtilty and the motions thereof , which would draw you to act such things as the Lord doth not require you to act .

So all take heed to that which discerns the thoughts and intents of your hearts ; for this is a measure of the Word of Life , which is quick and powerful , and as you all wait in it , you will feel it to be so : for you will feel it dividing the precious in you from the vile ; and this is the Ingrafted Word which is able to save your Souls .

So this is not written to feed the carnal mind in any ; but it is written for your sakes , who are truely breathing and thirsting after God's Righteousness , and cannot be satisfied without it ; that so you may all come into the true Light wherewith you are enlightned , and that you with it may come to see how you have been tossed and tumbled up and down by the Subtilty of the Serpent , in those things which could never give you true peace nor satisfaction ; and that now through believing in the Truth and Obedience of the Spirit , you may all come to witness a particular satisfaction , and that you may come to feel the pure Image of the Holy God restored in you , even his everlasting Righteousness , his Power , his Wisdom , his Life and Glory raised up in you , to have Dominion , and to rule over all the earth , and to subdue it ; that so the pure God of Life and Virtue might be glorified in your mortal Bodies , and that you might all come to feel and witness an everlasting habitation of Rest , and Peace in him ; who is worthy of all Honour , and Praise , and Thanksgiving , and Dominion for evermore , Amen .

Now some of you who have been antient Professors , will say to us , If we should joyn to you , we must lay down all then that ever we have professed ; and what , have we been Professors so many years , and yet have to begin all a-again ? Have we known nothing of God all this time ? this is hard .

To this I answer , Friends , if you come to joyn to the Truth , you must then lay down , and leave , and forsake all that , which you have held up and practised in your own wills , which you were never led or required to hold up or practice by the Spirit of Truth ; but I do know and own , that there was a pure living Principle of God , oft stirring in you , in your Professions ; by which Principle of God , you oft saw that you were wrong , and that you did that which was not well-pleasing the sight of God in your Profession ; for that Principle of God in you , the Light , judged and condemned you for many of your actions which you acted ; and sometimes the Lord's Witness brought you into a tender low condition ; and then opened things unto the Seed in you , but you not taking heed to the Light , to be the guide and stay of your minds , you continued not long in that condition , but you consulted with the Subtilty ( which drew you from God's Witness ) what you should do , and so waited not in that , which brought you into tenderness to receive God's Counsel in that ; but you took Counsel of the Serpent , and your own Hearts , and so ran into things which God never required at your hands , and therefore God had no regard unto your Worship , because it was not in the Spirit , and in the Truth , you not being guided therein by the Spirit of Truth ; So unto that which was in the Beginning you must all come , which is Christ the true Light , who hath enlightned you ; and you must learn of Him , who is the Light of Life , the VVord , and the Power , by which all things were made , and are upheld , and you must be subject unto the measure of Him in you ; and this his Measure , if you submit to it , that will bring you to cease from your own wills and works , and to wait in silence and patience , to see and feel Christ the Power of God , to work all your works in you , and for you ; and if you own the Light , that will plainly shew unto you how God formerly appeared unto you , and how you went from his appearance ; so the Light will own that which God opened unto you at any time , but it will deny and condemn your own imaginations , which you mixed with that which God opened unto you ; and so unto this Witness of the Lord you must all come , and believe , and wait in that , which will separate the precious from the vile , before that can be satisfied in you which breaths after God .

So my tender love and compassion is unto that in you which is not yet satisfied , but doth truly hunger and thirst after the Life and Power of Truth ; and my Soul doth travel for freedom and satisfaction of that Seed , and I suffer with it , and bear many things for its sake , for I have true Unity and Fellowship with that in you , and I know it , and am known of it ; but I cannot have Unity with many of your Practices , which ye have been in , because they have caused the Seed in you , ( with which I have Unity ) exceedingly to suffer ; you not being guided and led into them by the Spirit of Truth ; and so against all such Practices I do bear witness in the Spirit of Meekness , and I labour in the Spirit of Love , to turn Peoples minds unto the manifestation of the Spirit of Truth , which is given to every man wherewith to profit .

So all People , feel that , and mind that , and hearken unto that which oft riseth in your hearts , against Lust , against Covetousness , against Pride , against vain and needless words and thoughts , and against all evil in its appearance ; and as you all mind this Principle which moves and stirs in you , against all evil , you will feel it divide your good words from your bad words , and good thoughts from bad thoughts , and good deeds from bad deeds ; and that which divides betwixt these , and shews you the difference of them , this is the Word which Moses and Paul wrote of , which is nigh in the mouth , and in the heart ; Yea , this is the Word of Reconciliation , which reconciles to God ; this is the ingrafted Word , which is able to save the Soul .

Now you being turned to this Word , even to that which discerns the thoughts and intents of your hearts , as ye wait in this , let the Subtilty appear never so subtilly to draw your hearts after any thing , or into any Practice , which the Lord requireth not of you , then this Word , which is the Power , it will make it manifest unto you , and it will stop you from entring into any such Practices , if you wilfully resist it not ; and believing and waiting in this Word , it will not suffer you to speak any hasty unsavoury words , or word , and then ye will come to be truly sensible of a bridle to the tongue , without which all Religion is vain ; and this Word , ye taking it to be your guide , it will bring you into savoury sound words , seasoned with the Grace of God ; and so as your words , and actions , and lives , come to be ordered by this Word ( Christ the Power of God ) they will reach unto the Witness of God in every one where ye come ; and if ye will hear this Word , and regard it , and not resist it , it will work true Faith in you , by which you will feel your hearts purified from sin , and ye will feel it giving you Victory over the World , within and without ; and if ye keep in this Faith , ye will not make haste , for ye will feel the Eternal Light ( which is the Life of the Word ) calling and drawing you out of the hasty nature , into soberness , stilness , and quietness , and meekness of Spirit , and so ye will feel your strength renewed in the Lord , as ye all wait upon him in his Light ; and all believing in the Light , ye will not come into condemnation ; and as ye all wait in that which discerns and reveals the thoughts and the intents of your hearts ( which is the Word of Power ) this also will divide between your good thoughts and your bad thoughts , and the good motions and the bad motions , which you will see stirring in your minds ; and if you hold fast the Word of Truth , it will preserve and keep you out of the bad thoughts and motions , and it will joyn you unto the good , and ye will come to feel the operation of the Spirit , and Life , and Power of God in you , to shake , and overturn , and work out that ground ( which hath been in you ) from whence the bad words , and bad thoughts , and bad motions have arose , which have burdened the oppressed and tender Seed in you , which you never could witness satisfied with all that ever you have performed ; but as ye all believe , and wait in this unchangable measure of God , you will come to feel the burden taken off the Seed ; and ye will come to feel and witness more true durable peace and satisfaction in one hours waiting upon God , than ever you felt and witnessed in all the words that ever you have heard from any man or woman in all your lives , or in all your Practices , that ever you have practised ( before you were brought to wait upon God in his Gifts , which he hath given you to profit withal ) although in those things which we have practised , I know ye have had a great joy appearing in you for a time , but it was not durable nor lasting ; for when God's true and faithful Witness , ( the Light ) appeared and shewed you how that God never required those things at your hands , which you had practised , then your joy and peace withered and came to an end , which you appeared sometime to have in those Practices ; and if at any time ye came to feel some little peace , and joy , and refreshment , through what God opened to the Seed in you , when by his Power ye were brought into some tenderness , ye soon lost this also , by going from that which brought you into the tenderness ; But as you all come into the Obedience of the Spirit , and abide in it , this will bring you into the seasoned Life , and then ye will come to feel and witness pure peace , and joy , and refreshment , and satisfaction , which will last and abide for ever with you , if ye abide in the Spirit ; and then ye will be made willing to lay down and deny all that which ye have been acting , which ye never were led and guided to act by God's Pure Holy Spirit ; and to deny all such also , as would draw you to act that which God requireth not at your hands .

So take heed of such as daub with untempered morter , and heal deceitfully , who will speak peace , when there is no true peace , ( but the pure Witness of God condemns ) for such , with good words and fair speeches , deceive the hearts of the simple , keeping them ever learning , but never able to come to the knowledge of the Truth ; and these through covetousness and feigned words , make merchandize of poor People , for they have a Form of Godliness , but they deny and resist the Power , and therefore from such turn away .

And all mind that , and feel that , and be subject unto that , which for sin condemns sin in the flesh , and then you will feel the Spirit of Judgement , and Burning , and Righteousness , through which the Seed is redeemed , which Seed is Heir of the Kingdom of God ; So all wait in the meek , lowly , quiet Spirit , that ye may come to witness this Holy Seed , which delights to do the Will of God , ( by the power and Life of God ) raised up in you , satisfied , and brought forth out of captivity .

And look not out , nor strive after great and high things beyond your measures ( for that puffs up , and leads into confusion and dark imaginations ) but all wait and be still in the measure of God's Light manifested in you , that so you may come to feel him revealing his secrets and mysteries unto the Babes , which cannot live or be satisfied without him .

God is making known that , and stirring that in the hearts of People ( throughout the World ) which doth and shall confound and overturn all the Wisdom of this World , and the subtilty of the Serpent ( from whence all the Worlds Wisdom arose ) and therefore the hand of the Lord will be terrible and heavy upon the disobedient , who disobey and transgress that which he hath put into their Hearts , ( whereby he is opening a mighty understanding in the People ) But the everlasting Blessing , and Peace , and Joy , and Glory of the Lord over all shall arise , and rest upon all those that joyn to , and believe in , and obey that Word which is nigh , in the mouth , and in the heart .

By a Labourer in the Power of Truth ( which doth make free ) for the Deliverance and Freedom of the Righteous Seed . George Fox , the younger .
An Exhortation to Families , who have desires to serve the Lord God in their several places , that they may all learn in the Light of Christ Jesus , the Wisdom and Power of God , who is the true Teacher .

O Ye Fathers and Mothers , stand in the pure fear of the Lord , and wait in his Light , that ye may receive his living Wisdom , and live in it , that so ye may be ordered by it , and with it order all things to God's glory , and bring up your Children in the fear of the Lord , watching over them in the seasoned savoury Life of God , not suffering them to live in wildness , nor idleness , nor vain talking ( unreproved ; ) but in the sober , meek Spirit , and in the Authority of God's Lamb , reprove them , and that will reach the Witness of God in them , and correct them in the Fear , and Wisdom , and Freedom of God , in the Patience ; and follow not their foolish wills , neither correct them in your own wills , nor in hastiness , rashness , or passion ; for if ye do , then that will use the Rod , which is to be beaten with the Rod of God , and that will make your Children more stubborn and wicked , and this will offend God ; but stand ye in God's Counsel , and discourage nothing in your Children , but evil , and let them have that which is meet , just , and reasonable , and no more , that none of God's Creatures be wasted ; and be ye patterns and good examples ( in all holiness , gravity and uprightness ) unto them , and let them have sufficient liberty to go to godly Meetings , and rather stir them up and encourage them to go to such , than hinder or discourage them ; and keep your minds out of them unto the Lord , and let your love to them be in the Lord , that so ye may feel his Blessing coming upon you and them .

And all ye Children , who have Parents , honour ( and be obedient unto ) them , in the Lord , and mind the Light of Christ ( in you ) and that will not suffer ye to be wild , nor wilful , stubborn , nor vain , but it will check and reprove ye for all evil , and if ye will own its reproof , and believe and wait in it , it will lead ye out of all evil , and it will bring ye into soberness and meekness , tenderness and innocency , and preserve ye in it , and it will bring ye to know and remember your Creator in the dayes of your youth , and it will reveal God's Power and Wisdom in ye , whereby ye will be kept in true order : So suffer not your minds to follow vanity , neither walk in stubbornness towards your Parents , ( nor others ; ) I warn ye in God's fear , lest he shorten your dayes , and cut ye off by his righteous Judgements ; but mind his fear , and wait therein , that ye may feel his Grace , and be taught by it , and be obedient unto it , and then ye will feel the Mercy and Blessing of the Lord .

And all ye that are Masters and Dames , wait in the true Light , that ye may feel Christ the Power and Wisdom of God , to be your Master , that so ye may rule in your Places , in his Fear and Wisdom ; and lay no more upon your Servants , than ye would be willing should be laid upon you , if ye were in their places and conditions : ( Mark that ) and forbear threatning them , and be not hasty to turn them away , if they be willing to abide with you ; but in Patience and Meekness shew them their Place and Service , and therein teach them , if they know it not , and let them have for their Service , that which is convenient , just and reasonable , that they may have no just cause to murmur or complain ; and keep out of covetousness , lest that hinder you from giving them sufficient liberty ( who desire it ) for going to the Meetings of the People of the Lord ; and if in the Wisdom of God ye see freedom to turn any away , give them sufficient warning , that they may provide themselves other wayes , for this is just and reasonable ; and be not hasty nor rash with them , nor run into jangling with them , but if ye have cause to reprove them , let it be in the Fear and Wisdom of God , in the Freedom and Authority of the Truth , and that will reach unto the Witness of God in them ; so be not High-minded , but fear , and be patterns unto them in the lowly , meek and quiet spirit and bear with the weak , and forgive them that trespass against you , and render not evil for evil to any , but overcome evil with that which is good , and live in that which overcomes evil , that so the Truth of God may be exalted over all .

And all ye that are Servants , live in the Fear of the Lord , and wait in his Light , and be obedient thereunto , and also be obedient ( in your places ) unto those that are your Masters and Dames ( according to the Flesh ) not onely to the good and gentle , but also to the froward , serving them in Faithfulness and Uprightness of Heart , doing what ye do for them , as diligently , faithfully and willingly , as ye should do any thing to the Lord , for this right in the sight of God ; and take heed that none of God's Creatures be lost , or wasted under your hands , through your neglecting them , or slothfulness in your places ; & do not falsly accuse any , or speak evil behind any one's back , thereby thinking to get the favour or love of any , or upon any other account , for that is evil ; and be as diligent in your places , when your Masters or Dames are absent , as when they are present , for this is just and right ; and be not stubborn nor wilful , neither use many words to your Masters or Dames , and if you know not well how to perform your service aright , then in true humility be willing to learn , and take heed of High-mindedness and Pride , or of being wise in your own eyes ; and when you have any spare time allowed ye , ( being free from outward imployment ) see that ye spend it in the fear of the Lord , in waiting upon him in his Light , that so all vain talking ; corrupt Communication , foolish jeasting , and all vanity may be kept out of ; and give ye not way to that mind which is unstable , which would be oft shifting , and going from place to place , for this is not right in the sight of God ; but wait in the Light , that ye may be staid , and setled in your minds ; and if ye see freedom in the fear of God ( mark that ) to go to another place , then give your Masters or Dames sufficient notice of it ; and if any of you , who know the Truth , come to be moved of the Lord to go to any place in his service , be faithful to the Lord , and when your service which he required of you is done , then return to your places again ( except it be otherwayes ordered in the Fear and Wisdom of God ) and be diligent in your places , doing the same that ye would others should do unto you in the like condition ; and mind the Lord in all things , and above all things , and be faithful unto him , and he will be your reward .

And all ye Fathers , and Mothers , and Children , and Masters , and Dames , and Servants , who have the Creatures of God to buy or sell , or to Exchange , live in the fear of the Lord , that ye may feel his Wisdom to guide you in your trading , and do not speak better or worse of the Creatures then you know them to be , thereby to get the greater gain , for that is Idolatry , it arising from Covetousness ; but wait to feel God's Spirit to bridle your tongues , and use but few words in your trading ; and if ye ask a question therein , do it in simplicity , and keep in the Light which is equal , that when ye offer or ask a price for the Creatures , it may be in equality ; and let that be your rule , and not the price of the Market , except that be equal , that so ye may reach the equal principle one in another ; and then stand to your word , and here your yea will be yea , and your nay will be nay , and so you will be kept in the Doctrine of Christ , with his Light , out of all Evil ; and ye abiding in the Light , it will bring ye to do to every one , as ye would be done unto ; and take heed that ye stir not up the impatient , crooked , disorderly Nature , one in another , with your words or actions ; but bear one with another , and forgive one another , and when ye tell each other of a fault , do it in the Fear and Wisdom , and Meek Spirit of God's Lamb , that so ye may restore each other therein ; and when ye have any convenient time , assemble your selves together in the Name and Fear of the Lord , and wait every particular in the Measure and Gift of God in you , which is given ye to profit withal ; and all wait together in the Light , and believe in it , that ye may be Children of the Light , and therein watch unto Prayer , and one over another , and this will beget ye into unfeigned love ; and walking in the Light ye will have true unity , and fellowship one with another , and the blood ( which is the Life ) of Jesus Christ you will feel cleansing you from all Sin , and so ye will come into the unity with God . Also , to feel his Word , his Power , and Wisdom ( in you ) by which all things were created and made , and are upheld , that therein ye may be ordered in the particular , and that therein ye may use and order all God's Creatures , to his Glory ; and then all false Weights , and Measures , and Wayes , and Worships will be destroyed , and then shall Truth , Equity , Righteousness , and true Order and Mercy prosper , and run down as a River : So let your Faith stand in Christ Jesus the Light , and Wisdom , and Power of God , and then true Worship , true Weight , true Measure shall be set up and established , and then shall the Lord be exalted over all the works of his hands , and so ye will feel his blessing ; unto him belongeth the Dominion and Honour , for he is worthy of it for evermore , Amen .

By George Fox , the Younger
The Words of the Everlasting and True Light , Who is the Eternal Living God , and the King of Saints , which he gave unto me his servant , to declare unto the Inhabitants of the Earth , and unto all such as have any true tender desires in them after Righteousness , and Truth .

HEarken , O ye Nations ! and give ear ye Inhabitants of the Earth : Thus saith the Lord God of Heaven and Earth , whose Name is the Light , I am the Lord , and there is no other that can save ; I the Light Created all things , and formed and made you all of the dust , and I breathed into you my Light , my Life , that ye with it should have been guided , and led in my Wisdom , to have ordered all things which I have Created , and to have ruled over them all , that I in you might have been honoured and exalted over all the works of my hands , which I the Light Created ; But from me the Light ye have departed , and ye have hearkned unto the Subtil Serpent , which is the Devil , ( who abode not in me the Light , the Life , the Truth , which Created all things ) whom I have cursed above all the Beasts of the Earth , who is the Seed of Enmity ; and ye hearkening unto him , he hath begotten you into Enmity against me the Light ; and so hath begotten and led you into the Curse , and so he is become your Father and Leader , whom I have cursed , and all that ye bring forth and act in him . I have cursed , because it stands in the Enmity against me the Light ; yet I the Light have looked upon you , and pittied you , because of the loss that ye are come into , and the darkness that is come upon you all , through your departing from me the Light .

And I the Eternal God have sent him , who was glorified with me before the World was , by whom I made the World , who is not without me , nor I without him , but he is in me , and I in him , and He and I , and the Spirit that proceed's from Us , are one Being and Substance . ( Mark ) I the Eternal God have sent him into the World , who was glorified with me before the World began , and he is called my Son , because he is the Express Image of my Glory , and bears my Name , the Light , the Life , the Truth , which is but one , and he is my Love unto you the World ; and that is he that lets you see the Enmity and darkness that ye are in , and how years departed and gone from Me the Life ; and for this end I have sent him a Light , that ye all through him the Light might believe , that so he who shews you your Sins , your Enmity , your Darkness , ye believing in him , might receive power to come out of it , and that he might save you from the curse which ye went into , when ye hearkned to the Serpent , whom I have cursed , who is become your Leader .

But I have sent you the Light to be your Leader , to lead you from the Serpent , and out of all that which he hath led you into . ( Mark ) out of Enmity against me , out of Darkness , and so out of all unrighteous words , and deeds , and thoughts : And I the Eternal God have given my Son , the Light , power to plague , and to judge , to condem , and to destroy all those that will not hear him ( the Light ) who makes manifest unto you your unrighteous words , deeds , and thoughts , which the Serpent hath led you into ; and because ye live in these , I cannot have fellowship with you , nor reveal my secrets unto you , but my anger is kindled against you ; but if ye would hearken unto my Love , the Light , which lets you see all that ever you have done , and own him to be your Leader , and receive him , and give up your selves to be guided by him , then you shall feel his Power in you , ( which I have given him ) to lead you out of Enmity , and Darkness , and the curse , and out of all Sin , which was the cause of the curse , and so to destroy that Nature in you , which the Serpent hath begotten ye into , and to beget you again into the Nature of himself ; the Light , in whom I am well pleased , and then my anger would be turned away from you , and I should have fellowship with you again , as I had in the beginning , and the Serpent's head ye should come to witness bruised ( who drew and led you out of me the Life ) & the Tree of Life , which I shut you from ( because of your disobedience , ye should come to know it ) and to feel it , and to feed upon it again , and I should delight to do you good .

But ( O ye disobedient ) ye are from this , because ye despise Me , my Son , my Spirit , who are one , who are Light and Life , which is not far from you ; for I the Light give unto every one of you Life , and Breath , and you and all things are upheld by me , the Light , whose presence filleth Heaven and Earth ; and I have long spared you , and my patience and long-suffering towards you hath been exceeding large ; but you in your imaginations have put me a far off , and ye will not own me , the Light , the Life in you , because my appearance in you hath been , and yet is to make manifest Sin and Evil in you , and to check and reprove you for it , and to call you out of it ; and therefore you are offended at me ; and you whom the Serpent , the Prince of the Power of the Air hath led out of me , into airy imaginations , you scorn me , the Light in you , and count me a low , poor , weak thing , not worth the taking notice of , because I have been patient towards you , and have tenderly , meekly , and lovingly made manifest unto you Sin , and Evil , in its appearance , and hath reproved you for Evil gently ; therefore you have disobeyed me , and dishonoured me , and called me a Natural Light ; and ye have said , I the Light am not able to save those that believe in me ; and many of you have got my words , which I the Light spoke in my servants of old , and ye in the Enmity , give other meanings to my words , and so with my words mixed with your own meanings and imaginations , ye fight against me the Light and Life within you , and so against my Children , which bear Testimony of me , the Light , who lighteth every one that cometh into the World ; and these your iniquities I have long born , and you have grieved my Spirit , which haah long strove with you , and I the Life have been oppressed in you , and by you : But verily , my Spirit shall not alwayes strive with you , neither will I the Light , alwayes bear your iniquities ; for verily , I the Lord God Almighty , ( who am the Light , which have made manifest your iniquities unto you , which some of you call Natural , and say , that those who are led and guided by me the Light within , which makes manifest Sin , that they are guided by a spirit of Error and Delusion . ) [ Mark ] I will make you know your blasphemy , and you shall know and feel to your Everlasting destruction , ( if you speedily repent not ) that I the Light [ which le ts you see Sin , and reproves you for it ] am Spiritual , and am the Spirit of Truth , who leads all those that receive me out of all Error and Delusion , into all Truth : and i 'le make you know , that I the Light am a consuming fire , which none can quench ; for now will I the Light and Life arise , who have so gently reproved you for sin , and called you out of it , and have so long suffered in you , and by you , as a Lamb , yea , I will arise , and ease my self of my adversaries ; I will not spare any that will not own me , the Light , but I will overturn you all , without respect of Persons , and I will give to every one according to the fruits of their doings . I matter not what name ye are called by , whether it be King , Protector , Prince , Duke , Lord , Iudge , Iustice , Parliament , Priest , Lawyer , gathered Churches , Army , Gentry , mean Men , or Beggars , ( Mark ) I the Light made you all of one blood , I formed you all of the dust , I breathed into you the breath of Life , I gave you the Light to lead you , & to order you , and that ye in it should have walked and ordered all things to my Glory ; but many of you have slighted me , the Light in you , & would not take Counsel of me , nor be ordered by me , but have chosen to follow your own hearts lusts , and have taken counsel of the Serpent , & have chosen him to be your Leader , & in his Wisdom ye have walked , and by him ye have been ordered , and by him ye have ordered things to the dishonour of me , the Light , whom many of ye call Natural . Mark , I the true Light will arise , and will plague and torment all you that disobey me , and will not turn at my reproof ; I will bring such heavy judgements upon you , as have not been felt ; I will be a swift witness against all the wicked ; I the Light will stop the mouths of vain talkers , I will confound the wisdom of wise men , I will make diviners mad , I will bring down the high lofty spirits of men , I will make ye bow unto my Name , the Light ; you shall feel it is not Natural nor weak ( as some of you have said of it ) for it shall break you to pieces , and all your Profession and Wisdom , which is out of the Light , I the Light ( in you ) will confound it all , i 'le break all Sects and Opinions , and gathered Churches ( so called ) which are not in me ; I the Light in you , will take away all Peace from the Earth , yea , i 'le bring you to your wits ends , i 'le burn your Heavens , all your Joy , your Peace , your Righteousness , which stand in the Power of Darkness ; I the Light in you will consume it all ; i 'le burn Heaven and Earth , i 'le burn within in and without , i 'le strike with astonishment , with fear and amazement , with madness and destruction ; i 'le bring Plagues within , and Plagues without , until I have consumed all you mine Enemies , who will not own me , the Light within : I the Light will overturn Kingdoms and Nations , and Rulers of all sorts , and Armies , and gathered Churches , which will not own me , the Light in them , to guide and lead them .

Wo unto the Murtherers , Whoremongers , Thieves , Cheaters , Swearers , Lyars , Hunters , Gamesters , Vain-talkers , and all workers of iniquity , who hate me , the Light , who have made manifest your abominations , and reproved you for them : I have been pressed with your iniquities , but I the Light will arise upon you , and if ye will not hear and return speedily , i 'le fall upon you , and grind you to Powder ; and all , both high and low , rich and poor , Professors , or not Professors , and all time-servers , who will not own me , the Light in you , and return to me the Light , I will make no difference of you , because of your names or places , but I will break you to pieces like a potters vessel , i 'le tread you like mire and clay in the streets , and i 'le make you know , that I the Light ( which lighteth every man which cometh into the World , that all through me should believe ) am the true Eternal God , which Created all things , and that by me , the Light , all things are upheld , and that there is not another beside me that can save ; for I will famish all the Gods of the Heathen , and destroy them , and those that worship them , and will not repent and turn unto me the true Light , i 'le make a short work , I will cut it short in Righteousness , and I the Light will be exalted over all the Earth , and i 'le prove my self to be stronger than all in this Generation .

And all you who are scoffers and scorners , who scoff and scorn at my children , who in this the day of my Power , have trembled at my Word : Mark , i 'le make you assuredly to tremble and quake ; yea , you who have despised me , the Light , and have scoffed at my workings in my People , I the Light in you will make you to drink the cup of Trembling , and ye shall not be able to resist it , and then ye shall know that I the Light am he that will work , and none shall be able to stop me , yea , I the everlasting light will wound , & none be able to heal ; I will kill , and none shall be able to make alive : Therefore consider what I say , before the day of your visitation be wholly past , and return unto me , the light in you , and repent , lest my long patience come to an end , and so I destroy you utterly .

Now all people , in whom there are any true tender desires after Truth and Righteousness , I the true Light in you did beget them , and if ye will hearken unto me , the Light in you , I will let you see all that which doth oppress those desires in you ; and I will not onely shew you that which doth oppress those desires in you , but I the Light ( if ye will receive me , and learn of me ) will teach you to deny , and to resist all that which is contrary unto me , which doth oppresse that which I have begotten in you ; and if ye will believe , and wait in me , the Light , I will give you Power to resist all that which is contrary unto me , and I will destroy all the works of the Serpent in you , and bruise his head , and I will purge out all your iniquities , and forgive all your trespasses , & I will change your nature , and I will make you new Creatures , if ye will hearken unto me , and obey me the Light in you ; and I will make you partakers of my Divine Nature ; and I will judge , and condemn , and consume all that in you , which is contrary to my Nature , if ye will abide in the Light ; and I will take away all Darkness , and earthly-mindedness ; and I will reveal my secrets and mysteries unto my Seed in you , and I will cause you to delight alone in me the Light of Life , and I will feed you with the Bread of Life , and ye shall drink of my Life , and ye shall be satisfied ; and I will manifest my Power more and more in you ; and if ye will be faithful unto me , and obey my voice , and wait upon me , the Light , then I will make the crooked wayes strait before you , and the rough wayes smooth , and I will destroy the Power of Darkness within and without you ; and if ye will follow me , I will lead you out of the World , and Worldly cares , into patience , into meekness , and into stilness and quietness of spirit , and whatsoever you suffer for my Names sake , I will be your exceeding great reward , and I will be your dread , and ye shall be the dread of Nations , & I will be your Glory , and ye shall be the Glory of Nations , and I will reign over you , and ye shall reign over all the World , in my Light , and Life , and Power ; and if ye continue in me the Light , I will give you Dominion over all your Enemies , within and without you , and I will make them all bow before you ; and I the Lord God of Light and Life , will be your Redeemer and Saviour , your Rock , your Shield , and your Defence ; and if ye will wait in my Life , it shall be your Life , and I the Life will destroy the destroyer , within and without you , and I will bring you out of all trouble , and restlesness , and dissatisfaction , and I will be your peace , and your rest , and your satisfaction , and ye shall lie down in me the Light of Life , and none shall make you afraid . These things shall you come to witness in the work of your regeneration , and much more than is here expressed , if ye be faithful unto me , the true Light in you , who have no fellowship with any thing that is Evil ; and then I wil purge all Evil out of you , and even as I am , so shall ye be also ; yea , I will work this work , and perfect it in you , if ye continue and abide in me , the Light .

Now if any should say , that here is nothing spoken of Christ , in what I have here written ; I answer , what I have here written , is the words which the Father , who is one with Christ the Son , gave unto me to write , in which words the true Christ is owned , and a Testimony given of him , and no other .

But further , in the Fear and Wisdom of God , for the satisfaction of the simple , I do declare in plain words ; That I do believe in the true Christ , the Lord of Life , who was glorified with the Father before the World began ; and I do believe that he was in due time made manifest in that body of flesh , who was called Jesus , and that in him the fulness of the Godhead dwelt bodily , who was supposed to be the Carpenter's Son , whom the Jews Crucified without the gates of Jerusalem ; and I have remission of Sins through his blood , who is the Lord of Life , and he was buried , but he is risen , and Ascended , and sits on the right hand of the Majesty on high : This is the Christ I own , who also was , and is Crucified in Sodom and Aegypt by the rebellious ; yea , he is Crucified afresh , and put to open shame now , by those that trample the blood of the Covenant , the Light of Life under their feet , and count it an unholy or a natural thing , and such act despightfully against the Spirit of Grace ; and such Murther the Seed which keeps the commands of God ; and such will God the Light overthrow and burn to ashes , as he did Sodom and Gomorrah ; but all that love and obey the true Light ( which is the fire ) shall be saved and preserved by it , and shall remain unhurt ; but all that hate and disobey the Light in them , that is their condemnation , the Light .

These are faithful and true sayings , and things also that must shortly come to pass , and he witnessed .

Postscript . READER ,

WHo ever thou art , be moderate , and take heed of disobeying , and despising the true Light ; for if thou dost , thou disobeyest and dispisest the True and Eternal God , who is Light , and that is his Name , whereby he is and will be known in this Age and Generation .

Therefore stumble not at the Light which lighteneth every one which cometh into the World ; for if thou doest , thou stumblest at God , his Name , at Christ the Word , ( by which all things were made , and are upheld ) at the Door , the Way , the Truth , and the Life , at the Rock , at the Elect Stone , and these all are but one , and if thou stumble at these , what ever thou art , thou shalt be broken .

But they that obey and believe the true Light , they shall be made Children of the Light , and shall be taught of God and shall walk in his Light .

G. F.
A Word to the People of the World , who hate the Light , to be witnessed by the Light in them all ; VVherein is shewed unto them , what the Light is , which is the condemnation of the VVorld with its deeds ; and what the Spirit of Truth is , and what it leads them into , who are led by it ; and what the Spirit of Error is , and what it leads them into , who are led by it : And also they are here exhorted to repent whilst they have the Light , to believe and walk in the Light , lest darkness come upon them , and they into it be cast , where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth . Also a few Queries to such Professors as stumble at the Light , the Word , the Kingdom , and Spirit of God within , and tell People that none can be free from sin in this Life , and yet say , that they own the Scriptures .

LIght is come into the VVorld , and the VVorld hates it , Joh. 8.12 . and the whole World lyeth in wickedness , 1 Joh. 5.19 . And this is the Condemnation of the VVorld , that Light is come into the VVorld , and men loved the Darkness rather than the Light , because their deeds were evil ( saith Christ ) Joh. 3.19 , 20. And every one that doth evil , hateth the Light , neither cometh to the Light , lest his deeds should be reproved ; But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the Light ; for whatsoever doth make manifest is Light , Eph. 5.13 . and Christ Jesus he is the true Light , which lighteth every man that cometh into the VVorld , Joh. 1.9 . Drunkard , thou hast a Light given thee which comes from Christ ; and that is the Light which lets thee see that thou shouldst not be drunk ; so here thou hast learned thy Condemnation ( which is the Light ) Swearer , and Lyar , and Fighter , and Quarreler , thou hast a Light given thee which comes from Christ ( who saith , Swear not at all ) and with this Light , thou seest thou shouldst not swear , nor lye , nor fight , nor quarrel , for the Light in thee witnesseth against these things ; so here thou hast learned thy Condemnation ( the Light ) Scoffer , Scorner , Mocker , Railer , cursed Speaker , foolish Iester , vain Talker , Couzener and Cheater , the Light that shines in thy Conscience , though thou canst not comprehend it ( Joh. 1.5 . ) because thou art darkness , it is pure and eternal , and never consented unto evil , but stood and stands a VVitness for God , against all evil ; ( Mark ) this Light , this pure VVitness oftentimes hath appeared and doth appear unto thee , and in thee , and lets thee plainly see that thou shouldst not act any of these evils before mentioned , and it often checks and reproves in secret , when thou dost so act ; so here thou hast learned what Condemns thee , ( which is the the Light ) Eph. 5.5 , 13. Proud one , Wanton one , Lustful one , Covetous one ( who art an Idolater ) Backbiter , Whoremonger , Gamster , Sporter , and Prophane one , who walkest on in laciviousness and excess of the Creatures , in Revellings , Banquetings , and abominable Idolatries , and whoever thou art that acts any manner of unrighteousness whatsoever , it is sin , and it is of the Devil ; but the Light that lighteth every man that cometh into the VVorld , that is the Son of God , who is made manifest for this very end , that he might destroy the works of the Devil , 1 Joh. 3.8 . and He ( mark ) the Son of God , hath given thee a measure of his Light , and that is the measure of his Light in thee , which lets thee see that thou should not act any of these abominations before-mentioned , but it oft appears in thee to convince thee of thy evil deeds , and reproves thee , and judgeth thee for thy wickedness ; so here thou hast learned thy Condemnation , which is the Light , which makes manifest unto thee thy abominations .

And thou who makest a Profession of the Saints words , but art found to be out of their Life , and in thy dark carnal mind and imaginations run'st into their words ( the Scriptures ) and calls them the VVord of God , and thy Rule , and the way to know God ( and yet thou livest contrary to the Scriptures , and art out of the knowledge of God , whom to know , is life eternal ) Mark , the Light wherewith thou art enlightned withal , it comes from Christ ( who lighteth every man that cometh into the VVorld , and his Name is called the VVord of God , Rev. 19.13 . and he is the way to God , and no man knoweth the Father save the Son , and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him ) Mat. 11.27 . and this Light which comes from the Son of God , oftentimes appears in thee , and shews thee that thou art out of the Saints Life ( though thou profess their VVords ) and the Light lets thee see that thou art a Thief and a Robber , and art climbing up another way ( in thy imaginations ) than by the Door , ( Joh. 10.1 . ) which is Christ ( from whence the Light doth come ) and this Light in thee , which makes manifest to thee thy condition , it oftentimes confounds thee and thy imaginations ( which thou hast raised out of thy dark mind , concerning the Scriptures , which were given forth in the true Light ) and the Light oftentimes convinceth , reproveth , and judgeth thee , of and for thy hypocrisie , and dissimulation , and feigned love , and humility , and will-worship ; and lets thee see that thy worship is not that Worship which the Lord requireth ; for that is in the Spirit , and in the Truth which God requireth , Joh. 4.22 , 23 , 24. and thou being out of the Light ( not being guided by it ) art out of the Spirit , for the Spirit is Light , and the Light is the Truth , and so out of the true Worship in the false , worshipping thou knowst not what ; so here with the true Light thou art condemned , and so hast learned but thy Condemnation .

Therefore all People , both young and old , high and low , rich and poor , bond and free , who yet live in any of these evil deeds before-mentioned ; mind that which makes manifest your evil deeds unto you , which is the measure of the pure God , which he hath given you to profit withal , and this measure in you convinceth you of sin , and reproves you for it ; now mind to stand in that which doth convince ; for that is the Power : and as you stand and believe in that which doth convince you , it will lead you into true Repentance never to be repented of ; for it will bring you to repent of , and to forsake all your evil deeds and hard speeches ( Jud. 15. ) which you will see in the Light ( which never consented unto sin ) that you have acted and spoken against the living God ; so believe in the Light , which shews you sin and evil , and wait in the Light as it ariseth and appears in you , to shew you your estates and conditions ; now if you believe in the Light , and wait in it , you will come to receive Power from Christ ( from whence the Light doth come ) to overcome evil , and to withstand the Tempter , when he appears to tempt you to evil ; and the Light ( believing in it ) will preserve you out of the evil , and lead you out of the death and loss that ye are in , unto Christ the life and Saviour of the Soul .

But if you hate the Light ( which shews you sin and evil ) you hate Christ ; for I am the Light , saith Christ , John 8.12 . and if you hate the Light , you hate the way to the Father , for I am the way to the Father , saith Christ , who is the Light , Joh. 14.6 . and if you hate the Light , you hate the Truth , and you hate the Life , for I am the Truth and the Life , saith Christ , the true Light , who lighteth every man that cometh into the World , Joh. 1.9 . and 12.46 . and if you hate the Light , you hate the Covenant of God ; for I will give him for a Covenant to the People , and for a Light to the Gentiles , saith God , Isa. 42.6 . and 49.6 . and if you hate the Light , you hate the Power , for all Power is given unto me both in Heaven and in Earth , saith Christ the Light , Mat. 28.18 . and if you hate the Light , you hate the Word of God , and so you hate God and Christ ( who are One , John 10.30 . ) Mark , for in the beginning was the Word , and the Word was with God , and the Word was God ; all things were made by it , and without it nothing was made that was made , in it was Life : ( Mark , in the Word was Life ) and the life ( of the Word ) was the Light of men ; and John , a man sent of God , bare witness of the Light , that all men through Him might believe ( Mark ) through Him , who lighteth every man that cometh into the World , John 1.1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9. and God is Light , 1 Joh. 1.5 . and God and Christ are One , Joh. 10.30 . 1 Joh. 5.7 .

So you that be turned from the Light ( which shews you sin and evil , mark what you are turned from ) you are turned from the Way , and from the Truth , and from the Life , and from the Covenant of God , and from the Power of God , and from the Word of God , and so from God and Christ , from whence the Light doth come , and into the Darkness you are turned and gone , and the Prince of Darkness ruleth in you ( Eph. 2.2 . ) that so you cannot find any power over your own perverse Wills , nor over your Lusts , nor over any Sin there , being gone from the Light in your own particulars ; in which Light , if you believed and waited in it , you would receive power to overcome sin ; but you not believing in the Light , you believe in him who leads you from the Power of God into sin , and there he perswades you that you must live ( in sin ) so long as you live upon the Earth ; and you have believed and received this Doctrin of him , and you teach it to others , and so are become the Devils Ministers , and so you deny the end for which the Son of God was made manifest , which was to destroy the Works of the Devil , and to take away sin , 1 Joh. 3.8 . Mat. 1.21 . and yet many of you feed your selves with hopes of Life and Salvation , but your hopes are vain and will perish ; be not deceived , God will not be mocked , for such as you sow , such shall you reap , Gal. 6.7 , 8. Ye that live after the flesh , fulfilling the lusts thereof , you shall surely dye ( if ye repent not speedily ) Rom. 8.13 . and you that sow to the flesh , shall of the flesh reap Corruption ; The day of the Lord hasteth greatly , wherein you must give an account unto him , who will judge you righteously , and reward you according to your deeds done in the Body ; and all you who have been slothful , and have hid that in the Earth which the Lord gave you to profit withal , you will be turned into utter darkness , Mat. 25.30 . John 12.35 . Therefore while you have the Light , believe and walk in it , lest thick darkness come upon you , even such darkness as may be felt ; the day of your Visitation prize , lest the things that belong to your peace , be wholly hid from your eyes : Consider there is a time when the Candle is lighted , and when you may see ( if you search with it ) what is in the house ; but mark , this time will not alwayes continue with the wicked , for the Candle of the wicked shall be put out , Prov. 24.20 . Yea , the Spirit of the Lord shall not alwayes strive with man , Gen. 6.3 . Therefore cease from your dark imaginations , which several of you have got into ; for whosoever followeth the imaginations and thoughts of his own heart ( which all who believe not in the Light do ) they run on in darkness , and know not whether they go ; and such are under the wo , putting darkness for Light , & Light for darkness , calling the Spirit of Truth , the Spirit of Error , and the Spirit of Error , the Spirit of Truth , Isa. 5.20 . as all the world do , who lye in wickedness , and hate the true Light , which lighteth every man that cometh into the Word ; which Light reproveth you for your wickednes ; and this Light you call a Spirit of Delusion and Error ; and you say , that those who are guided by it , are deluded and led into Error : Oh! take heed of Blasphemy against the pure God , who is Light ; Mark , the Spirit of Error , what it is , and what it leads into ; it is that which abode not in the Truth , and it is a Murderer , and was so from the Beginning ; and they who walk not in the true Light , they walk and are guided by this Spirit , and some by it are led to murder , some to steal , some to be drunk , to swear , to lye , to cheat and cozen one another , to fight , to game , and some it leads into vain laughter , foolish jesting , corrupt communication , cursed speaking , wantonness , lust , whoredom , fornication , and into covetousness , [ which is Idolatry ] into pride , variance , strife , railing , back-biting , envy , wrath and malice , false accusing the Innocent , and into all manner of ungodliness , into feigned love , self-seeking , dissimulation , hypocrisie and feigned flattery , and to hate the very appearance of Truth , Eph. 4.29 . and 5. Gal. 5.19 , 20. Now examine with that which reproves you for sin in secret , and it will let you see that you bring forth many of these cursed Fruits before-mentioned , and so are deluded and guided by the Spirit of Error ; now the true Light [ which lighteth every man that cometh into the World ] comes from the Spirit of Truth , and that is the Truth , and it witnesseth against all these evil deeds before-mentioned , [ which are out of the Truth ] and they who believe in the Light [ which makes manifest sin and evil ] and wait in it , they receive power from him from whence the Light came , John 1.12 . to abstain from evil , and to overcome sin and evil , [ and this I witness ] and that Spirit which tempts the Creature to evil , is the Spirit of Error : So we who believe in the true Light , which is the manifestation of the Spirit of Truth , which is given to every man to profit withal , 1 Cor. 12.7 . we by it are led out of Error and Delusion , into the perfect Truth of God , and to act those things which are well-pleasing in his sight , Mat. 11.29 . they being learned and wrought in the Light which comes from the Son , in whom the Father is well pleased , Joh. 3.21 . and this true Light in us is our Guide and Teacher , and this brings us who wait in it , to understand the Scriptures of Truth ; which was given forth from the Spirit of Truth , and it brings us into that which the Scriptures speaks of , into the Life and Power of God and to witness that which the World talks of ; for they will talk of Faith in Christ Jesus , though they witness not what they speak : but we who believe in the Light , are made ( by the power of God ) Children of the Light ; and we witness Faith in Christ , which Faith purifies our hearts , and gives us victory over the World , Act. 15.9 . 1 Joh. 5.4 . and the Light leads us into meekness , into soberness and love unfeigned , into holiness and uprightness , into sound and pure Judgement , into Mercy , into Patience , when we are reviled and persecuted ( and at all times ) into long-suffering and Truth in the inward parts , to do unto all men , as we would they should do unto us ; yea , it leads us who abide in it , into all Truth , Joh. 16.13 . and this is not of our selves , for it is the free Gift of God , who freely gave his Son for a Covenant of Light , which ligheth every man that cometh into the World ; and we who have received the Gift of God ( the Light ) by the Gift we are brought to bring forth these fruits , which are contrary to those which the Spirit of Error leads the Children of disobedience to bring forth , Gal. 5.22 , 23. For although we the Children of Light , are accounted to be in Delusion and Errour , Gal. 5.22.23 . yet it is but by you who bring forth the Cursed fruits , which the Spirit of Errour leads you to bring forth ; so in the Light , Life and Power of God we stand over all false Accusations and Reproaches , and Persecutions , and in the patience of Gods Lamb we bear them all , and our love goes forth to your Souls , who wilfully oppose your selves , and we declare unto you that the long-sufferings of the Lord towards you , is to draw you to Repentance , Rom. 2.4 . and I have directed you to that which will shew you , what you ought to repent of .

Therefore consider your wayes speedily , all you that forget God , lest he tear you in pieces , and there be none to deliver you , Psal. 50.22 . for verily , this I declare unto you in the presence of the Lord , that if you go on and continue in stubbornness and Rebellion against the Pure God , and despise his love , and reject his counsel , and still refuse to hearken to the Light of his Son in your Consciences ( which reproves you for Sin , and is freely given to you , to lead you out of Sin unto God , if you wilfully do not resist it ) Mark , when the measure of your iniquity is filled up , then will he arise upon you at unawares in his fury , & Wrath , & Indignation , Mat. 24.50.51 . and his eye shall not at all pitty you , but he will bring his Plagues and Righteous Judgements upon you , which shall consume you both root and branch , if you will not be gathered in the day of his long patience and forbearance , which is the day of your Visitation , wherein you may come to know the things belonging to your peace , if you do not wilfully resist the Power that is offered and committed unto you ; But if you resist the Power , then the Lords righteous Judgements will assuredly come upon you , and you will receive to your selves Condemnation ; and if you continue in your wickedness until the day of your visitation be past , then shall the Light in all your Consciences ( which hath oftentimes shewed unto you your evil deeds ) arise and witness to the Judgements of God that they are just , Zek. 2.7 . so whether you will hear or forbear , Remember you are warned in your Life time .

By a Friend to your Souls , and a Lover of the Creation of God , GEORGE FOX , the Younger .
A few Queries to such Professors as stumble at the Light , the Word , the Kingdom and Spirit of God within , and tell People that none can be free from Sin in this Life , and yet say that they own the Scriptures .

1. Qu. ARE not all by Nature Darkness , and doth not the Light shine in Darkness , yea or nay ?

2. Qu. Can any come to see themselves to be Darkness , but with the Light which shineth in the Darkness , yea or nay .

3. Qu. Is there any way to come out of Darkness and Death , and to receive Life , and to be made Children of the Light , but by believing in and following of Jesus Christ the true Light ( which lighteth every man that cometh into the World ) yea or nay ?

4. Qu. Must not all be turned from Darkness to Light , and from Satan's Power to the Power of God , before they can receive remission of sins , and an inheritance among them that are sanctified , yea or nay ?

5. Qu. Can any come into the true Faith ( which purifies the heart , and gives victory over the world , without which none can please God ) but by hearing the Word of God , yea or nay ?

6. Qu. And is not Christ the Light , the Word of God ; and is not Christ the Light , the Author and Finisher of the true Faith ( which saves and justifies ) yea or nay ?

7. Qu. And is not the Word nigh in the Mouth and in the Heart , that men may obey it and do it , and is not Christ the Light , the Word , that Prophet , which all that hear him not are to be cut off , yea or nay ?

8. Qu. And is it not Christ the Word , which discerns and reveals the thoughts and intents of the heart ; and is not he the ingrafted Word which is able to save the Soul ; and is not he the Grace of God which bringeth Salvation , and is sufficient ( which hath appeared unto all men ) and is not he the Word of God's Grace ( which is able to build up and keep from falling ) which People are to be commended unto , yea or nay ?

9. Qu. And is not God Light , and is not the shining of him in the hearts of People , which gives them the knowledge of himself in the face of Jesus Christ , yea or nay ?

10. Qu. And is not Christ the Light , the hope which purifies as God is pure ( which Anchors and stayes the Soul ) to be known within ; & are not People tossed like a Ship ( in a tempest ) without an Anchor , till Christ the Hope be felt within , to stay and Anchor them ; and is not Christ within the Hope , a Mystery which hath been hid from Ages and Generations , and are not all they in the reprobate state , who know not Christ within them , yea or nay ?

11. Qu. And is not God's Kingdom Light ; and is it not like a little leaven that is hid in Meal , and as a grain of Mustard-seed that is sown in the Earth , and like a Pearl hid in the Field , or like good Seed sown in the Field , both on stony , thorny , high-way , and good ground ; and is not the world the Field , where the Seed of the Kingdom is sown ; and is not the world in mans heart ; so , is not Gods Kingdom within men , yea or nay ?

12. Qu. And is not the manifestation of the Spirit given to every man to profit withal ; and do any worship the Father of Truth aright , but those that worship him in the Spirit and in the Truth , and is not the Light the Truth , yea or nay ?

13. Qu. And is not Christ the Light , that Word which reconciles to God ; and is it not he that must open the understandings of men , before they can understand the Scriptures , and are not People in Errour , and in jangling and strife about the Scriptures , till Christ the Light , the Spirit of Truth , the Power of God ( from whence Scriptures were spoken ) be known and owned to guide and lead them , yea or nay ?

14. Qu. And is not this the Cause of so many Sects and Opinions , and Divisions as are , and of such strivings as are about Scriptures and Religions , because People know not , or own not the Spirit of Truth , ( from whence Scriputures were spoken forth ) to lead and guide them ; and is it not like that People should run into Sects and Opinions , and Divisions and Strife , if they know not , or own not the Spirit of Truth to guide and lead them ; and if the Spirit of Truth were known and owned to guide and lead them , would it not lead and guide them out of Sects and Opinions , and Divisions , and Strife , and would it not bring People to be of one heart , and of one mind , and into Unity with God , and one with another , and with the Scriptures , yea or nay ?

15. Qu. And doth not Christ the Light , the Spirit of Truth , for Sin , Condemn Sin in the flesh ; and must not that be owned which makes manifest , reproves and Condemns Sin in the flesh , before the Ministration of Life and Peace can be witnessed , yea or nay ?

16. Qu. Is not the Unity of the Spirit the bond of Peace ; and must not People come into Unity with the Spirit , before they can come into true Peace ; and doth not the Spirit of Truth reprove men for Sin who live in it ; so must not People come out of Sin , before they can come into Unity with the Spirit , and so into true Peace ; or hath the Spirit any Unity with Sin , or is there any true Peace to the wicked , who live in Sin , yea or nay .

17. Qu. And is not Christ the Light , the Word , the Rock of Offence , and the stone of stumbling unto the disobedient , in whom the Prince of the Power of the Air ruleth ; but is he not Elect and precious to them that believe and obey him ; and is it not he that ruleth in them , and leads and guides them in the way of Peace , yea or nay ?

18. Qu. Do not as many as believe in the Light receive Power to become the Sons of God ; and are not those the Sons of God who are led by the Spirit of Truth , and are not those that do not believe in Christ the Light , nor are guided by the Spirit , bastards and not sons ; and are they not condemned already , who do not believe , and is not the Light their Condemnation , yea or nay ?

19. Qu. And shall not Darkness ( yea , great Darkness ) come upon them , who do not believe and walk in the Light , and shall not they stumble and fall , and be broken , yea or nay ?

20. Qu. And shall not they who believe and walk in the Light , be made Children of the Light , and be kept from stumbling and falling , and shall not they have fellowship with the Father and the Son ( from whence the Light comes ) and one with another ; and doth not the blood of Christ cleanse them from all Sin , yea or nay ?

21. Qu. Can any have fellowship with the Father and the Son , and the Saints in Light , but those that walk in ( and are guided and led by ) the Light of Christ Jesus , which he hath enlightned them withal , yea or nay ?

22. Qu. Can any deny themselves before they see themselves ; and can any man see himself but with the Light which Christ hath enlightned him withal , which makes manifest Self ; and can any be Christ's Disciple , but he that denies himself , and takes up the Crosse , and comes after Christ the true Light ; and are not all they thieves and robbers which come before Christ the Light , and are not such enemies to the Crosse of Christ ; and is not the Crosse of Christ the Power of God ; and is not the Crosse ( and the Preaching of it ) foolishness to the wise of this World ; and is it not a stumbling block to such as in words professe they know God , but in works deny him yea or nay ?

23. Qu. And they that commit Sin , and cannot cease from Sin , are not they of the Devil , and are not they the Servants of Sin , and so free from Righteousness , and have they not eyes full of Adultery who cannot cease from Sin , are they not adulterated and whored from the Life of God , and though they promise liberty to themselves and others , yet are not they servants to corruption , and do not they live in the flesh , and are they not dead while they live , and so out of the true Faith , and can such please God , yea or nay ?

24. Qu. And they that believe in , and obey Christ Jesus the true light , doth not their faith stand in the Power of God , and doth it not purifie their hearts , and give them victory over the World , and do not they who witness ( in the Life ) the manifestation of the Son of God , also witness that he destroyes the works of the Devil , and takes away their Sin , and makes an end of transgression , and changes their Nature which was subject to Sin , and makes them partakers of his Divine Nature , and throughly purges and sanctifies them with his Living Truth , and doth not that make them free from Sin , and so make them servants of Righteousness , and doth not that make vessels of honour fitted for the Masters use , and are not such dead unto Sin and alive unto God , and can such live any longer in Sin , and having mortified the deeds of the Body through the Spirit , shall not they live ( but not to themselves , but to God ) and are not these Christ's ; and have they not crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts thereof , yea or nay ?

25. Qu. Shall any man see the Lord without Holiness ; and ought any to name the Name of Christ , but those that depart from Iniquity ; and is that the Faith of God's Elect which doth not purifie the heart , nor give victory over the world ( but is without the works ) or is not this dead Faith , and but the Faith of Devils , and shall any be saved or justified by this Faith , yea or nay ?

Consider of these things ye Professors , who stumble at the Light , and tell People , that none shall be free from sin in this Life .

26. Qu. And when is the time , and where is the place , and what is the name of it ( if not in this Life ) that men shall be made free from sin ? ( answer plainly , that I may see how much ye differ from the Papists in this particular ) or do ye believe that corruption ( and that which is imperfect ) shall enter into Heaven , and inherit in corruption , yea or nay ?

Answer , these Queries in plainness , according to the Scriptures ( if ye be able ) if not , then submit unto the true Light , which will let you see your thoughts , your darkness , your unstableness and ignorance of the Scriptures , and repent and believe , and wait in the true Light , that you may come out of your thoughts and darkness , and unstableness and ignorance , into that which the Scriptures declare of , to feel Christ the Saviour ( from whence the Light doth come ) to redeem and save ye from sin , and to keep ye out of your own thoughts , inventions and imaginations ; that so your minds may come to be stayed and settled in the Power of the Lord , which moves against sin .

By one who witnesseth God , Christ , the Light , the Word , the Spirit of Truth ( and these are one ) and the Kingdom of God within me ; and so am come to the thing that the Scriptures testifie of , which was before Scripture was , in whom the Scriptures ends , and the Tabernacle of God is witnessed with men , and his presence is felt , which filleth Heaven and Earth , and the Heaven of Heavens cannot contain him ; Glory to him in the Highest . GEORGE FOX , the younger .
Honest , Upright , Faithful , and plain dealing with Thee , O Army of the Common-wealth of England ( so called ) without flattery , in true unfeigned Love to Thee ; with something more particularly unto the Officers of the Army , and those that joyn with them in the outward Government of this Nation : Wherein Truth , Uprightness , and Equity is declared for ; and Deceit , Wickedness , Oppression , and Tyranny , is declared against .

AT your first going forth , there was a true honest Principle , which stirred in the hearts of many of you , which convinced you of sin in the particular ; and it also shewed you the desperate Wickedness , Cruelty , Tyranny , and Oppression , which was upheld by unjust and unrighteous Laws and Rulers , whereby the honest People were much Oppressed ; and in several of you there arose a true Zeal against this Abomination , and then I know your lives , and what you had , were not dear to some of you , but were freely given up to do your Nation service , in breaking down that Oppression and Tyranny which was brought upon it by the Enemies of God , and it ; and then a mighty courage and boldness arose in many of you , against Oppression and Oppressors , and the Lord appeared with you against them , because they were his Enemies , and sought to destroy the very appearance of Truth ; and then many of you were low and tender , and the hearts of such People as had honest desires in them , and breathed for Liberty , they were much affected with you , and the Cause you declared for , and vowed and engaged to be true and faithful unto ; and then the Lord appeared with you in the field , giving you mighty Victories over your Enemies , that so he might make way for his living Truth to be spread , which was then stirring in his People ; and the Lord weakned his Enemies before you , and ye saw his mighty hand therein , and his mighty Work ( in overturning those his Enemies ) prospered in your hands ( for he made you instruments therein ) until he had scattered his Enemies , and then he gave you power and opportunity to accomplish that you had vowed and engaged to do , and which his Light in your hearts had shewed you , that you ought to have done .

But you not keeping to that which first appeared in you , and made you sensible of the Oppression that was upheld by the unrighteous Laws , Lawyers , and Rulers ; an earthly selfish Spirit , got up in many of you , which exceedingly encreased Covetousness and Pride in you ; and then the greatness of your Pay , and the spoyl of your Enemies , and idleness , and the fulness of the Creatures , began to be more delightful to many of you , than the Liberty you once declared for ; and then some among you began to see how deceit and hypocrisie crept in amongst you , and appeared against it ; but you whose hearts went after your covetousness and self-seeking , soon stopt them , either by threatning them , or by advancing them into greater places , or by turning them out of the Army ; and thus you began to back-slide , and then deceit began to wax strong among you , and several of you began to settle your selves in the Earth , and in your Enemies Estates , and then you little regarded the Oppression that others suffered under , you being at ease your selves ; and thus the Enemy beguiled you , and deceit wrought in you , even as it did amongst some of the Sects and Opinions ; for in many of them there was a true Principle of God stirring once , which convinced them of their own sins , and also shewed the cruelty , wickedness , and deceit of the Bishops and Prelates , and others , and caused them to witness against such ; but they not keeping to the measure of God in them , a worldly , carnal , deceitful Spirit encreased in them , and then they soon began to settle themselves in another form , ( without the Life and Power of God ) which was as bad in the nature and ground of it , as that they had witnessed against , only it had another Name .

And in the same manner have ye acted ; for ye going from the measure of God in you , which shewed you the cruelty of the Oppressors , which ye had fought against ; ye soon began to settle the same thing in the nature and ground of it , among your selves , which you had sought against in others , only ( in deceit and hypocrisie ) you gave it another Name .

And then truly great Wickedness encreased among you , ( which made the hearts of the righteous sad ) even the same as abounded among your Enemies ( whom God overthrew for their Wickedness ) yea , for then many of you ran into Hunting , Hawking , Bowling , Horse-racing , Drinking , and other vain Games , and Sports , and Lusts , and Excess , and Pride , both in your Diet and Apparel ; and your behaviour was grown so lofty , ( many of you ) that you became a burden to all honest-hearted People , who once had an honest love going forth towards you ; but this your Wickedness caused their love to wax cold towards you , and many who were true Friends , became ashamed of you , because of your back-slidings .

And you raised up the spirit of enmity and bitterness in your Enemies more and more against you , by these things which you ran into ; yea , you gave them great advantage by your back-slidings , and some of you saw these things many times with God's Witness ; but ye not keeping to God's Witness in you , deceitful fears arose in you , which stopt the mouth of Truth in you , when you should have witnessed against the Wickedness that was amongst you ; and your fears were , lest you should have been turned out of your Places , and upon this account , deceit was grown so strong among you , and treachery , that ye durst not speak your minds one to another , for fear ye should be betrayed one by another , and so turned out of your places : And thus deceit and a slavish spirit possest ye , even until you had lost your Dominion and Authority over your Enemies ; and then many of you became afraid to do that which was just ( many times ) lest your Enemies should be more displeased with you ; and in deceit ye bowed , ( many of you ) even to your Enemies , and sought more to please them , than to do that you had engaged to do ; and then you turned out many of your Friends , and took in many of your Enemies , and mixed your selves with them ; yea , you turned out many of your faithful Friends , only for coming into the Life and Obedience of that which many of you professed in words , and pretended once that you fought for the Liberty of .

O Army ! this is plain Truth to thee , without flattery ; and thus falshood overspread you , until the honest Principle that once stirred in you , was almost destroyed , and then ye little regarded the sufferings of the Innocent , nor the Oppression that was in the Land , but ye rather sought to establish your selves in the honour and fulness of this World ; but ( poor creatures ! ) ye could not settle your selves in a peace there , for your Enemies dayly plotted against you ; and had it not been just with the Lord to have suffered your Enemies to have destroyed you , because of your grievous back-slidings and wickedness ? O consider it , consider it while ye have time , and prize the Lord's loving kindness , that he should yet spare you , and yet give you time to repent .

And seeing the Lord hath shewed you your back-slidings , with his eternal Witness in you , and hath begun to frustrate the designs of those that would have cut you off in your back-slidings ; and ye confess ( some of you ) that you are willing to take shame also to your selves wherein you have back-slidden ; therefore seeing it is thus , all mind that of God in you , which sheweth you your back-slidings , and believe , and wait in that , to feel that nature judged and destroyed in you , wherein all this Wickedness and Deceit hath lodged ; and keep in the fear and dread of the Lord God , that so ye may receive his pure Wisdom , whereby ye may be ordered in the particular , and that ye in God's Wisdom and Fear may come to Rule ( in your places ) for God , to be a terror to evil-doers , and an encouragement to them that do well .

And take heed of a selfish , earthly spirit in the particular , and of the Honour , and Glory , and Gain of the World , ( for that the Lord is against ; ) Oh! there is a strong , deep root of it in many of you , which the Spirit of Judgement and burning , and the Ax of God is to destroy ; therefore wait to feel its Work in you .

O Army ! in thee was I several years together , in which time I saw the mighty appearance of God with thee , even in the time of the outward War ; and when the War was ended , I left thee , in obedience to the appearance of the living God unto me ; who called me out of thee by his Powerful Word in my heart , through which he hath sanctified me , and hath brought me into the life of that Truth , which I , and many of you in the Army professed in Words .

And I can truly say in the Fear of the Lord , That my love hath been , and yet is tender towards you , for the good of your souls ; and I have seen your conditions , and have considered them in the Spirit of the Lord , and I cannot flatter any of you , but must deal plainly and truly with you and all People .

Truly in many of you there is an exceeding lofty , proud , covetous , deceitful nature ; and in others of you , there is a lofty , proud , lustful , devouring , wanton , vain nature ; though many of you I know have felt a measure of the Power of God ; yet verily ye have so back-slidden , that iniquity hath gotten a strong hold and root in most of you ; therefore ye must keep down to the Witness of God in you , which searcheth your hearts , and will let you see what is there , that so the Lord 's righteous Judgement ye may all feel , and own it upon that nature in you , which is contrary to the living God ; for if ye keep not to the Spirit of Judgement , I know whatever you have declared in words , that a selfish Spirit will get up more and more to act in you : And verily Friends , if you keep not your minds to the measure of the pure God in you , a secret boasting will be ready to get up in you , of what you have done , and then you will soon forget where you are , and your minds will run further and further into your Commissions , and into your great Houses and Lands , which many of you have got ; and others minds will run into your Souldiers places , and ease , and idleness , and these things will beguile you if take not heed , and you will soon forget the Oppressions then , that others suffer under ; and if ye should do thus , verily the Lord God would soon overturn you , and break you to pieces .

Therefore all wait in the Light which shews you sin and evil , that so by it ye may be brought to deny your selves , and to come out of the loftiness that ye have been in , into the true humility , ( which goes before the true honour ) and come into moderation , both in your Diet and Apparel , and in all things , and this would answer the Witness of God in all People ; and that being answered , it would beget again a love in them towards you , which you lost when you went into the excess . Therefore be sober , and watch in the Light of the Lord Jesus Christ , which he hath enlightned you withal , and believe in it , that so ye may be preserved by it , out of the deceitfulness of this World , and that ye may be kept faithful in your places , for the preserving of the outward Peace and Liberty of the Nation , while ye feel a Freedom in that which convinceth you of evil , for the bearing a carnal Weapon ; and know the manifestation of God's Spirit in you , and wait to feel the motions of it , and be obedient thereto , and this will bring you to do violence to no man , nor to accuse any falsly ; but it will bring you out of all such things , if you keep to it , and it will make you to be content with such wages as may find you Food and Raiment , and things necessary and convenient for your Places ; and this you would then be worthy of .

So know the Lord hath a mighty Work to do , therefore wait in his Light , that ye may be kept truly sensible of your Places , and go not beyond them , but keep in the Fear of the Lord , and wait to know what God requireth of you in your places , lest the Lord cast you out . So remember you are warned , and it is in tender love to your Souls .

This following , more particularly concerneth the Officers of the Army , and Rulers of this Nation , than the Army in general .

Take heed of raising or continuing War with other Nations ( in your own wills ) for to get your selves a Name , and to get their earthly Treasures , as some of you have been instruments to do ; for the Lord's hand hath been , and yet is against that , and he will not prosper you therein ; therefore be you warned , and know that this is a warning unto you from the Lord God ; and seek peace , and eschew evil , and learn to do well , that the Blessing of the Lord ye may come to feel , and that this destroying of Creatures about Religion , and the Honour and Gain of this World may cease .

And take heed how ye meddle with Religion , for that hath split and broken many Rulers before you ; therefore set not up one S●ct , and throw not down another by an outward Law and force , for that is wrong , and the Lord is against that ; but wait in his Light to receive his Counsel , that so ye may be kept in God's Wisdom , and that therein ye may be instruments in the hand of the Lord , for the keeping of the outward Peace of these Nations which are under your Command .

And take heed of hearkning unto such , who in the King's time cryed him up , and ran to him to give them a Law to settle them in their Worship ; and then again in the Parliaments time ran to them , and cryed them up , begging a Law to settle Church-government , ( as they call'd it ) and then in the late Protector 's time cryed them up , and Petitioned unto them with many feigned flattering words , and begged a Law of them to settle them in their Worship ; now these are the deceitful workers , who teach for filthy Lucre , and are time Observers , who through covetousness and feigned words , makes merchandize of the People ; and these quench the Spirit , and despise Prophecying , and change with the Times and Governments , let them be never so contrary ; and these are neither true to God nor man , but are men-pleasers , and such serve not the Lord Jesus , but their own bellies ; and these wanting the Power of God , run to the Rulers for an outward Power to uphold them ; these are whored from the Life of God in their own particulars , and these seek to stop the Life of God where ever it appears ; therefore take heed of upholding or setting them up by an outward Law , lest you become the Beast [ mark that ] which carrieth the Whore , which is to be taken with the false Prophet and the old Dragon , ( the Father of all unrighteousness ) and cast alive into the Lake .

Now the true Worship and Religion which stands in the Spirit , and in the Truth , must be set up , and established , and upheld by the Power immortal , and not by an outward Law .

But let your Law stop that in ( all whereever it appears ) which wrestles with flesh and blood , and fights with the creature about Religion ; for this Spirit could never make manifest the true Worship and Religion , neither would it suffer others to do it , who had the Spirit of God , if it could stop them by an outward Law or force ; so that which fights , wrestles , and strives with the Creatures about Religion , is not for Christ , but is ante against Christ and the Apostles , who wrestled not with flesh and blood , but with the Power of Darkness , and with the Spiritual Wickedness in high places ; that so Wickedness and Deceit might be destroyed in the Creatures , and that the Creatures might be preserved ; and their Weapons were not Carnal , but Spiritual .

But they that cry out to the Rulers for an outward Law to uphold their Worship and Religion , they War not with the Spiritual Weapons , but with the Carnal , and these destroy the Creatures , but cannot destroy the Wickedness ; and these have quenched the Spirit in their own particulars , and these would quench it in others , and will not suffer him that hath something revealed unto him , to speak , but cry to the Magistrates , or to the rude multitude , for help , and so flee to their Carnal Weapons ; and those being stirred up by their Teacher , some of them oft-times beat those that have the Truth to declare in their Synagogues , and hale them out , and rail on them , and spit upon them , and sometimes Buffet , Stock , Whip , Imprison , and mangle the Creatures , and so mar and deface the Workmanship of God ; and this hath been the work of Antichrist in all Ages when Truth hath appeared against Deceit ; and such cannot truly say , Truth hath prevailed on their parts , when they have thus Beaten , and Haled , and Stocked , and Whipped , , and Imprisoned the Creatures ; but Violence there at that time hath prevailed , by which they that have had the Truth to declare , oft-times have been stopped from speaking it .

So let none do Violence to one anothers Persons or Estates , but let your law take hold on them that would do so ; but let th●m alone in their Profession , and then it will soon appear who is in the Truth , and who are Ministers of Christ , and of the Spirit ; for those that are in tht Spirit of Truth , will assuredly prevail over them that be in the Spirit of Deceit ; and this will be manifested soon , if there be no Violence done to them who be in the Spirit of Truth , thereby to stop them from speaking the Truth , and then the Truth will reach unto the Witness of God in Peoples Consciences ; and then many who could nor discern the Truth while there were such strivings and fightings with the Creatures , will come to see and feel it ; and then Truth shall prevail , and deceit shall fall whereever it be , and what covering soever it hath got , it shall be ript off ; and he that is in the Spirit of Truth , and abides in it , shall overcome all false spirits .

Now I know ye are not altogether ignorant , how that the lives and goods of several in this Nation have been made a prey upon by the Priests , who have robbed and spoiled both the Fatherless , Widows , and others ; and have ●mprisoned several unto Death , by a Law made by the Popish Kings , and since strengthened by those that are called Protestants , concerning Tythes , and these before mentioned have suffered thus for not paying Tythes . Now Tythes in the Law given by the Command of God unto Levi , the changeable Priesthood , ( who was to have no inheritance among his Brethren ) was for the maintenance of that Tribe , and also for rhe Fatherless , the Widows , and the Strangers : but Christ being come after the order of Melchisedech , he is the everlasting unchangeable High-Priest , ( not made by a carnal Commandment , but by the power of an endless life ; he offering himself up once for all , put an end to the changeable Priest-hood , which was made by a Law which gave them Tythes ; so this Priesthood and this Law was changeable , this Priesthood could not continue by reason of Death ; so this Priesthood being changed and ended by Christ the unchangeable Priest , made by the power of an endless life , there was a necessity also of a change and end of that Law , by which the changeable Priests ( who could not continue by reason of Death ) were made , which gave them Tythes ; then Christ the everlasting High-Priest , made by the power of an endless Life , by the same Power he made Ministers , and freely gave them gifts for the work of the Ministry , which was for the perfecting of the Saints ; and in the power of an endless life sent he them forth , saying , Freely ye have received , freely give ; and into what house soever ye enter , and they receive you , ye may eat such things as are set before you , for the work-man is worthy of his meat . These were Work-men , and they first planted a Vineyard , and then ate of the Fruit thereof ; first gathered a Flock , and then did Eat of the Milk thereof ; sowed Spirituall things , and reaped of their carnal things , unto whom they had sown Spirituals ; Preached the Gospel , and lived of the Gospel ; these were not made Ministers by the will of man , nor by an outward Law , neither received they their maintenance by an outward Law , nor compelled or forced any to pay them ; neither robbed , or spoiled , or imprisoned they any that would not give them Maintenance ; but they had a necessity laid on them to Preach the Gospel , and they did so , and coveted no mans gold , or silver , or apparel ; and these sought not Peoples goods , but them ; and their diligence and care was not to make the Gospel chargeable , for having food and rayment , they were therewith all content ; and they received it of such also ( mark that ) as did receive them and their Testimony , and so oppressed no man .

But Paul foresaw that after his departure grievous and ravenous Wolves should enter , that would not spare Flock ; and Christ prophesied of them also ; and these entred before John's departure ; and he warned the little Children ( who had the anointing abiding in them ) to take heed of them , for they were the Antichrists , and and went from the annointing in the particular , and so from those that were in it ; and then the murthering spirit got up in these , and the World went after these who spared not the Flock , but killed those that had the Testimony of Jesus , which is the spirit of Prophesie ; and these Antichrists having lost the spirit , being ravened from it in their own particulars , and having killed those that were made Ministers by the Spirit , who had freely received , and freely gave ; then they set up their Schools and Colledges , there to make Ministers by the will of man , and then made a carnal Law , whereby they had Tythes given them ; for these had not freely received , neither would they freely give ; so Tythes among the Gentiles were set up by the devouring , murthering spirit by a Law , by which Law they are yet upheld , ( and not by God ) and they that yet receive the Tythes , are found in the devouring , murthering spirit , ( many of them ) who have devoured many Peoples goods in this Nation , who could not for Conscience sake pay Tythes , and have caused several others to be kept in Prison until Death for the same . And this hath been the work of Antichrist , who hath the sheeps clothing , the good words , but inwardly is the ravening Wolf .

And in this Work many of the Priests of England have been found of late , as is manifest by their Fruits ; and they have the same unjust Law to oppress and destroy the innocent still ; notwithstanding some of you have pretended and declared much to the contrary long .

Now many of the Priests , when we tell them of this their cruelty and oppression , they will say , They are Ministers of the Gospel , and he that Preacheth the Gospel , God hath ordained that he should live of the Gospel . Well , we say so too , That we are Ministers of the Gospel , and he that Preacheth the Gospel , ought to live of the Gospel ( which is the Power of God ) and ought not to have any outward Law to compel any to give him whereon to live . So this is that which we ( who have learned to do unto all men , as we would they should do unto us ) would have , That he that Preacheth the Gospel should live of the Gospel , and not on that which comes by the force of an outward Law ; but the Priests Maintenance is contrary to the Maintenance of the Ministers of the Law or Gospel .

Therefore , first let there be no outward Law to hinder or restrain any People from hearing any whom they believe is a Minister of the Gospel ; nor yet to compell any to hear any one whom they believe is not a Minister of the Gospel ; for an outward Law can but restrain or compel the outward man , but the heart none can restrain from Evil , nor compel to the good , but the Law and Power of God onely in the heart ; therefore let there be a free Liberty for all people to meet concerning their Worship , provided that under pretence of meeting to worship , they meet not to Plot for the overthrowing of the outward Governours by an outward Power ; for if that can be proved and made manifest , truly , then let such suffer by an outward Law .

And likewise , let there be no Law to compel any one to maintain any Teacher , neither let there be any Law to restrain any one from giving any thing to their Teacher , ( for this is but equal ) so let the People have Liberty herein , that so this oppression about the Maintenance of Teachers may cease ; And then it will soon appear whether these Priests be Ministers of the Gospel , and whether their Gospel will maintain them ; yea , or nay .

But many of the Rulers have said , If we should not provide Maintenance for our Ministers , then Preaching would soon fall , and then many People would become Heathens .

I answer , He that is a Minister of Christ , the Power of God , which is the everlasting Gospel , a necessity is laid upon him to Preach the Gospel , and wo be unto him if he Preach not the Gospel : And he that is sent forth by Christ , is not to take thought what he shall eat , or what he shall drink , or wherewithal he shall be cloathed ; for his heavenly Father knoweth that he hath need of all these things , and provides them for those that he sends forth , ( without an outward Law to compel it ) that so they lack not any thing .

Now that Ministry which the forcing an outward Maintenance for it , will cause it to cease , [ mark ] this Ministry never did any good or service for God , nor ever can ( that is God's Truth unto you ) at the furthest ; this Ministry hath but brought People to draw near unto God with their mouths , and to appear to honour him with their lips , when their hearts have been afar off , but this Ministry could never bring any into the true knowledge of God , and Christ , whom God hath sent and freely given for a Covenant of Light ; and without this knowledge , all People upon the Earth are without the Life Eternal , and so are Heathens , whatever they profess in words , though they may make long Prayers , and think to be heard in their much speaking , as the Pharisees and Hypocrites did , whom Christ call'd Heathens ; therefore consider what a Ministry you have upheld , and do uphold .

So let that Ministry fall which cannot stand without an outward Law for to compel an outward Maintenance for it ; for the Lord regards it not , but his hand is against it , and against that which would uphold it , and both must fall together .

So what is here declared concerning Religion , and the Maintenance of Teachers , and the like , it is in the Equal Royal Law of Liberty , which is , To love thy neighbour as thy self , and to do unto all as we would be done unto .

And so if the spirit which we are led and guided by ( who are called in scorn Quakers ) be not able to prevail over that which we oppose in others as Error , then let us be manifested to be in the Error , and let us fall ; onely let there be a fair Tryal , and let there not be such beating , and haling , and tearing , and mangling , and stocking , and imprisoning of the Creatures as hath been ; for where such things have been acted , many have been stopped at that time for speaking the Truth , yet notwithstanding the Truth hath prevailed over all , and shall prevail . And if that can be proved against us truly , that we plot at our Meetings , or at any other time against the outward Governours , to overturn them by an outward power or force ; then let us also suffer ( as I said before ) by a just Law .

And if he that sends us forth , will not provide Food and Raiment for us , then let us want ; and if we cannot live of our Gospel which we Preach , without an outward Law to compel us an outward Maintenance ; and if our Ministry will not stand without it , then let us want whereon to live , and let our Ministry fall .

And let none be compelled to uphold another's Meeting-place ( concerning their Worship ) for that is Oppression ; but let every one uphold their own ; and that sort of Professors that will not uphold the Place where they meet to Worship , let their House fall , and then it will appear where the earthly Spirit lodgeth ; for they that compel others to uphold another's place of Worship , do but cover and strengthen the earthly Spirit ; therefore let there not be such havock made of Peoples Goods , as hath been of late upon many , who could not give to the upholding another's Meeting-house ; for that is out of the equality , in the Oppression and Tyranny .

So come into that which is equal , and keep in that , and that will bring you to act that which is equal and just unto all , and to break all outward Laws that are not equal and just , but tend to Tyranny and Oppression ; and truly there are many Laws and Customs in this Nation , whereby the Innocent are opprest ; so wait to feel the Power of God , that ye may Rule and Govern in that , ( for the Lord ; ) and feeling the Power of God , and keeping to that , it will bring you out of all deceit and transgression in the particular , and so to stand over all deceit and transgression in the general , and it will also bring you to judge righteously , without respect to persons ; and this will reach to the Witness of God in all Consciences .

So wait to feel the higher Power to rule over the evil doer in the particular , and to know and feel the Authority of God there , and then ye will come to rule over all evil doers in the higher Power , even in the Authority of God , and then that of God in all Consciences where ye come to Rule , shall answer to your Government .

But if ye give way to the evil doer in the particular , and let him have the Liberty there , [ mark that ] then that will cause the Just to suffer in the particular , and then the same will give way and liberty to evil doers without , whereby the Just without will come to suffer also .

Therefore keep to the Power of the Lord in your particulars , ( you who have felt it ) and that will bring ye to do Justice unto all , without partiality ; and this will make you honourable in the hearts of the People , and then shall Righteousness , Truth , Equity , Mercy and Justice , prosper over all , and be exalted ; and all deceit , unrighteousness , and unrighteous wayes shall be confounded . So remember , He that ruleth over men , must be just , ruling in the Fear of God .

Something after .

ANd all ye that are Officers and Rulers now , who have tasted of the pure Power of the Lord God , and have felt it stirring in you , against all Oppression and Tyranny , whereby also ye were made to witness against the back-sliding of others , even to the losing of your Places , ( some of you ) some being turned out , and others that could not stay for Conscience sake .

Well , keep to the Power of the Lord which ye have felt , and do not abuse it ; but wait in it , that ye may be kept low in his fear , that so those who are come to see their back-slidings , and do repent them , may come to have unity with you , and you with them , in that , which kept you in any measure out of the back-slidings , and which hath also brought them to see theirs , and to repent of it ; for that is but one in you both ; it is even the measure of the pure God which is given you to profit withal ; therefore in that all wait to receive the Wisdom which is from above , that in it ye may all be preserved and kept in unity together , and that therein ye may be instruments for the settling and preserving the outward Peace and just Liberties of the People of these Nations , which are under your charge .

But verily , much of the Wars which have lately been entred into , have not been for the Peace , Safety , and Well-being of these Nations , ( for the Power being lost , Pride and Lust was the ground of them ; ) Therefore all mind the Lord's Wisdom and Counsel , that peradventure ye may find , and see a way how to stop them , lest ye bring Enemies upon heaps , both upon your selves and these Nations ; for yet verily , breaking , breaking , overturning , and yet overturning will be among all those that will not submit to the Counsel of the Lord , and wait in his Light , to be led and guided in his Wisdom ; for he will be known to Rule in the Kingdoms of men , and he will exalt his own Name over all .

Many are your Enemies within and without , therefore be not high-minded , but fear , lest they prevail over you .

The Lord is near unto all those that fear him , and trust in his Name , to deliver them ; but those that go out of his Fear , and trust in the wisdom or arm of flesh , they shall be broken ; the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it .

Given forth in the former part of the 3d. Month , 1659. By one who loves the prosperity of the Truth , and the good and well-being of all Creatures , GEORGE FOX , the younger .
A few plain Words to be considered by those of the Army , or others , who would have a Parliament that is chosen by the voices of the People , to Govern the three Nations : Wherein is shewed unto them , according to the Scriptures of Truth , that a Parliament so chosen , are not like to Govern for God , and the good of his People . Also something to the other part of the Army , and the New Committee , who turned out , or own the turning out of the late Parliament .

GReat are the cryings out of some of you of the Army , and the People of these Nations , concerning the dissolving of the late Parliament , and it appears with a pretence of a very great Zeal , that you have for Liberty , Equity , and Justice , and the general good of the three Nations ; and you appear in a great fear , that if the People lose the enjoying of Parliaments , that then they shall lose their Birth-right and their Liberty , both as Men , and as Christians ; and that Equity shall be laid aside , and that the People must be Ruled over by a Tyrannical Power of rebellious men , whose Wills must be the Laws that the People must obey . But you say , if the Parliaments be chosen by the People , then in effect , the People make their own Laws to be Governed by , because they chose their Law-makers themselves ; and this is England's Birth-right you say , and it is just and equal that the People should en●oy it ; and if they do not , then the preservation of the People of God you say is lost , and all good Government will cease , and the People will be made a Prey upon , and so the three Nations will be ruined at once ; and therefore seeing such things are like to come to pass , if a Parliament chosen by the People be not upheld , some of you have said , you will assert their Cause to the last drop of your blood .

Answ. Friends , It 's good to be zealously affected in a good Cause ; and it 's good that the zeal be according to knowledge ; and it 's precious to have the zeal moderated with the Wisdom of God ; Therefore I exhort you in that Life and Wisdom which is of Christ , my Master , ( who came not to destroy mens lives , but to save them ) that you would mind the Dread and Fear of the Lord God , which is the beginning of Wisdom ; therefore be moderate , and in coolness consider these things which I shall declare unto you , which in waiting upon the Lord , he by his Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding opened in me , concerning the chusing of Parliaments by the Voices of the People , and I know that you who truly desire the good of God's People , and that Mercy and Justice might be established by righteous Laws , ( whereby Equity and Justice might b● done unto all , without respect of persons ) may clearly see with God's Witness in you ( which will answer to my words ) That you are not like to see your desires fulfilled , by a Parliament that 's chosen by the Voices of the People ; mark the reasons ; Because the greater part of the People that are admitted to chuse Parliament men , are such as do not truly desire the good of God's People , whatever they may profess in words ; therefore it being in their Power to chuse whom they will among themselves ( as it is ) because most Voices carry it ; they will chuse such men , as are like minded with themselves ; that 's plain , and according to the Scriptures , for the World love their own , as saith John ; and now for proof , that the greater part are not such as desire the good of the Lord's People , I would have you consider , how that the Scripture saith , That the flock of Christ is a little flock ; and Christ saith , Strait is the gate , and narrow is the way that leadeth unto Life , and few there be that find it ; but broad is the way that leadeth unto destruction , and many there be that walk therein ; and though Israel be as the sand of the Sea , yet but a remnant shall be saved : Now if ye believe these Scriptures , then may you see that a Parliament that is chosen by most voices , are not like to act for God , and the good of his People ; and it hath been the complaint of the soberest and honestest men in several Counties , when they should have chosen Parliament men , that they could not chuse such a man as they judged would act singly for the good of the People of God and the Country , because they were over-voted by the wild disaffected People , who sometimes have been stirred up by their Priests , to vote for such a man as the Priests knew would act for their covetous , oppressing self-interest ; and in some places some great proud men , who desired to be in Authority , have feasted the People , and sent Gifts to them with flatteries , thereby striving to get the People to vote for them , promising them to stand for their Liberties , when it hath been but to serve their own self-ends , and thus the People have been deceived ; and if at any time in some Counties and Places , the honest sober People have chosen some honest-men to serve in Parliament , yet there being so many in the Parliament that have sought their own Honour and Gain , that such men as were honest , and would have made just Laws , and have acted for Equity and Liberty , they have been hindred ; because what is done in Parliament , is done by most voices also , and the honest party in the Parliament having been the lesser party , have been over-voted also : The Light in your Consciences will witness that these things are true .

And whereas it is said , That it is England's Birth-right , that the People should chuse their own Law-makers .

I answer , Then many thousands of men in England have been wronged of , and kept long from their Birth-right ; for such as are not Free-men of some Corporations , or have not Free-land of their own , are not permitted to chuse Parliament men , ( mark that ) though they be far more honest and understanding men than many that are Free of such Corporations , and have such Land ; so that it 's but a part of the People that must chuse Law-makers : And further , he that hath Free-land worth forty shillings by the year in several Counties , he may give his Voice in several Counties where his Land lyeth , for several Parliament men , when as he that hath Land but in one County , cannot have the same priviledge , though he be a far more honest man ; and he that 's a Free-man of that Corporation , that finds a Parliament man , or men , and hath Free-lands in the Country also , he may chuse both in the one , and other ; but he that is not Free of such a Place , he may not have the like priviledge , though he be more honester than the other : And this arose from the same ground , that negative Voices arose from ; and it hath been the Manner and Custom of England , to call and chuse many wise men , after the flesh , and many mighty and Noble men ( so called ) to be Parliament men , that so we see the calling and chusing of Parliaments in England , hath been exactly contrary to God's calling and chusing : Read 1 Cor. 1.26 . ( and therefore such Parliaments are not like to act for God , and the good of his People , but against them ) But that which God hath called and chosen , shall confound and bring to naught the Wise , and the Mighty , and the Noble things ( so called of the World ) ( and this the Lord will bring to pass ) that so no flesh may glory in his presence : Read 1 Cor. 1.27 , 28 , 29. And likewise the chusing of Parliament men , according to the Custom of England ( which is called its Birth-right ) stands in respect of persons , and not in equality ; for the rich , covetous , oppressing men , who oppress the Poor , they have the only power to chuse Law-makers , and they will chuse to be sure , such as will uphold them in their Oppression ; and the poor man that is oppressed , though he have no power allowed him to chuse , yet he must be subject to the Laws which they make who are his Oppressors , or else he is accounted a Rebel ; so what right think ye is the Oppressed like to have , when his Oppressors chuse the men that are to be Judges of his Cause : and thus the rich men oppress the poor , and draw them before their Judgement seats , as they did in Jam●s his dayes , Jam. 2.6 . These things being considered , ye may see the unequalness and partiality that hath been in chusing of Parliaments , according to England's Custom , and how unlike it is that a Parliament so chosen should make England a free Nation , seeing the great Oppressors of the Land ( viz. ) Priests and Lawyers , and the great wicked , covetous , persecuting men , are so much concerned in the chusing them ; so that if Parliaments so chosen should continue , the People of the Lord are not like to be set free from their Oppression , ( though Parliaments and Rulers have been made to do many good things by a Power which many of them scarce knew ) but the Lord hath a further thing yet to do in the Nations , than either Protectors or Parliaments would submit unto ; therefore the Lord hath thrown them by , but they had first a day of tryal given them , and now is the Lord trying others : and if they will not do his Work , in breaking every yoke , and letting the oppressed go free , God will assuredly break them with a greater destruction than came upon those before them . Therefore let your moderation be known unto all men , for the Lord is at hand ; and thirst not after blood , lest the Lord give ye blood to drink ; and we know that Kings , and Protectors , and Parliaments have made fair pretences , and have given themselves fine Titles , and have pleaded that they had a just right to , and a necessity for their Authority , and sought to get into the affections of the People by smooth words and large promises , to carry on their own design , but their hearts were not right before the Lord ; and therefore he broke them , and their Titles ; and know that the People that fear God , they matter not Titles and high Names , but they look for righteous actions to be brought forth ; and many see that a Parliament that was chose by the most voices of the outwardly rich People , were not like to act righteously ; and therefore they are willing to wait to see what the Lord will do by others ; and we see that People have been in great Blindness , in contending for Parliaments so chosen ; so let this Wisdom be learned and lived in , which is better than the strength of fools , who oft perish in their passion and folly .

And now Friends in the Army and Committee , that have turned out the Parliament , Dread ye the Lord God , and mind the equal , just , noble Principle of God in you , which hath stirred against Tyranny and Oppression , and make it not your business to declare only for Freedom , as some before you did , and did not the thing they declared for ; but in the Fear and Wisdom of the Lord , go ye on to act for the good of all his Creatures ; and seek not your own Honours , but singly do the same , both for your Friends and Enemies , that you would have them do for you , if they were in Authority as ye are ; and until ye come to this , ye are not like to prosper ; the Lord abhorreth the lying , flattering , double , deceitful tongue and heart ; and the People also have been wearied with fair words , because the actions have been wanting that should have accompanied the said words .

Remember how you have cryed out against the Oppression of a forced Maintenance for Teachers , and now ye are tryed , and have Power given you to break that Oppression down , which some of you I say have desired others to do ; therefore abuse not your Power , but leave the People free to maintain their own Teachers ; ( mark ) The Ministers that Christ sends forth , they have no need of you in this particular , as to provide Food and Raiment for them , for their Heavenly Father knows that they have need of those things , and provides it for them without an outward Law to compel it , that so they lack not any thing ; and that Teacher that will not consent to this , he serveth not the Lord Jesus , but his own Belly , and that is his God ; and such a one can never profit the People , and ( mark ) if ye should take away Tythes , and Command by a Law any other Maintenance from us for Teachers , that would be the same Tyranny and Oppression in the nature and ground of it , that Tythes were , and we must bear our Testimony against it also , and our Lives , or Estates , or both , must yet suffer ; therefore if ye do thus , you leave Us in the same Bondage as before : And let Laws be provided , that are righteous , just , and equal , according to that of God in the Conscience ; and let such be impowered to execute them that will hear and determine Causes freely , according to righteousness ; and let causes of difference between man and man be heard in every County , and when by plain proof of two or three witnesses ( without transgressing Christ's doctrine ) it come to be manifested who have done the wrong , then let the Executioners of the Law be impowered to cause the party or parties , to restore for the wrong that is done according to Equity , that so this abominable Oppression about the Law and Lawyers may be broken down ; and thunder down all ungodly gamings , and shews , whereby the foolish wild People are cheated of their moneys , and spend away their precious time to the dishonour of the pure God .

And let the People of the Lord have their Liberty , to speak his Word freely , where and when his Spirit leads them and gives them utterance ; and let the Law take hold on such as would wrong any man's Person or Estate .

And let the dread of the Lord be upon your Spirits ; and wait in his Light , to receive his Wisdom , that therein you may be ordered in the particular , and in it order all things to his Glory , that ye may remove all that which is standing , which is contrary to the Will of God .

And meddle not to establish Religion and Teachers by an outward Law , for verily if ye do , ye will be broken ; let that alone to Christ , whose work it is : Consider all that went before you of late years , that would be medling with such things , the Lord broke them to pieces , and they were warned in their day , as ye are now . And let not your many Victories which ye have obtained , nor your being preserved in so many overturnings ( wherein ye have been made instrumental ) nor your strength , courage , nor wisdom , puff ye up ; for thus saith the Lord God , even as earthen vessels are in the hands of a Potter , ( who hath power to dash them one against another , until they be broken , or to break them in pieces with another thing , that appears more weak than they ) even so are you in my hand , saith the Lord , and I can confound your Wisdom , and take away your Courage , and smite you with faintness , and dauntedness of Spirit , in the twinkling of an eye ; therefore seek not your selves , for if you do , your day shall be but short .

Remember you of the Army had Power once before to have acted for the good of your Nation ; but the subtilty in some who sought themselves ( whom God hath since blasted ) beguiled you , and ( mark ) some of you sold your power for Commissions , and others for nothing but flattering words , & so betrayed your own integrity , and the Cause of your Country ; & now you have power again , do not abuse it ; serve not the lusts nor the self-interest of any man or men whatsoever , but serve the Lord and your Generation faithfully : Mark , if you consent to deceit , and make an agreement with death , through fear or any self-end whatsoever , God will break that agreement , and bring shame upon you for it . And Friends , there is a lofty , proud , self-seeking Spirit yet amongst many of you , which if you cease not from , it will be the cause of your destruction ; and truly , if you provoke the Lord to break you , it will be more heavy and terrible , than the breaking of those that were before you ; therefore let the Lord be minded , and linger not about things , but be valiant , and act faithfully for the just Liberty of all , without respect of persons ; and let revenge be forgotten , and this will overcome your Enemies , and make you truly honourable in the hearts of all People . This is your day , prize it , and let your deeds make it manifest to the People , that you have not sought your selves , ( in this which you have done ) but the general good of all , and then you will need the fewer words to prove your Enemies lyars , who have accused you to be self-seekers . And now wo is coming , both upon Teachers , Rulers and People that are in the good words , but out of the good deeds and Life ; and the Eternal God , who is the Light , will break , shatter , confound and overturn , untill the good Life come up and be set on the top of all ; and now the name of Truth only , will be too narrow a covering , for it is the nature of Truth it self that will be able to cover , and to be a sure hiding-place in this the day of the Wrath of the Lamb.

From a lover of the Truth of God , and all his Creatures , GEORGE FOX , the Younger .
For the PARLIAMENT of England and their ARMY ( so Called . )

YOur day into darkness is turned ; the Sun is gone down over you ; you have had a large day , and Power given unto you , to have done the Will of God ; but you have abused the Power , and slighted your day ; and you have refused to do the Lord's work , and have sought to serve your selves , and not the Lord ; Therefore in Justice and Righteousness , is the day wherein you might have wrought for God taken from you ; and the thick dark night of confusion is come upon you , wherein you are groping and stumbling , and cannot work ; the Decree is gone out , and sealed against you , and it cannot be recalled ; you are not the men ( as ye stand ) in whom God will appear to work Deliverance for his People , and Creatures ; ( and yet deliverance shall come , but nor according to mans expectation ) But as for you , ye have rejected the Counsel of the Lord , and grieved his Spirit , and he hath long born you ; yea , you are departed from the Lord , and his presence is departed from you ; indeed he hath hewed with you ( and if you had been faithful to the End , he would have honoured and prospered you , and would have been your sufficient reward ) ye were his Ax , but you have boasted your selves against him ; therefore as you have Beaten and Hewed , and Broken others , Even so must you be Beaten , Hewed , and Broken ; for you have grievously provoked the Lord ; And if he should now suffer that Tree , which ye have cut to fall upon you , and to break part of you it were just .

O ye Treacherous , Wilful , Proud , Self-seeking People , who have despised the Counsel of the Lord , and would not take warning though he hath sent his Prophets and Servants early and late among you , some of whom you have imprisoned and despitefully used ; what will ye do now ? whom will ye now flee unto for help ? seeing ye are departed from the Lord , & are now rending and tearing , biting and devouring one another , for proud ambitious self ends ; ( Mark ) if ye would now build again , the thing that you once destroyed , That shall not be able to hide , or shelter you from the wrath of the Lamb ; that way whereby you think to strengthen your selves , thereby shall you make your selves much weaker , and help forward your own destruction ; you are now , but a rod , remember your end , which hastens greatly ; now breach upon breach , insurrection upon insurrection , overturning upon overturning , heaps upon heaps , division upon division shall there be , until he come to Reign , whose right it is ; and all Nations must bow before him , else he will break them with his Iron Rod.

They that trust in , or lean upon you for help , it is as if they leaned upon a broken Reed which is not able to help it self , nor others ; indeed you have been made to do many good things , but you would not go through with the work which God will have accomplished ; and therefore are these things come upon you ; Therefore tremble and dread before the Lord , ye who have been as strong Oakes , and tall Cedars ; for now shall your strength fail you and you shall be weak , even as the weakest of men ; but if you would yet believe in the Light , and truely submit to God's Righteous Judgements , many of you might come to witness your Souls saved , in the day of the Lord ; though many of your bodies are to be thrown by ( because of your grievous backslidings ) as not counted worthy to be the Lord's workmen .

There is a small remnant yet among you ( for whom my Soul breaths ) who may be winnowed out ; and if they will own the Judgements of the Lord , and truly and throughly deny themselves , and follow his leadings , he will heal their back-slidings , and purge them ; that so they may be instruments in his hand : But they that will continue with you , in your sins , shall partake with you , of your Judgements .

The Rod of the wicked , shall not alwayes rest upon the back of the Righteous ; yet even as gold is tryed , so shall they be , that they may be White and without Spot , before the Lamb : but God will avenge their cause , and wo then will be to their Oppressors , and then shall the Majesty , and Glory of the Lord fill his People ( who have long been troden under ) and they shall be the dread of all Nations , the zeal of the Lord of Hosts shall perform this .

A Copy of this in Print was given to each Parliament Man , before General Monck came into London , with his Army from Scotland : And it is now reprinted that People may see that the Lord hath fulfilled already , many of the words which he gave unto his Servant and Prophet , to declare unto them , and that they may see , that there hath been a true Prophet's Message among them , and that People may take heed that they slight not the Lord's Prophets as they did , whom he hath now broken .

11th Month ( 59 ) From one , who am made willing both to suffer , and to Reign with Christ ; even to follow him whithersoever he goeth , George Fox the Younger .
A Noble Salutation , And a Faithful GREETING Unto THEE Charles Stuart , Who art now PROCLAIMED KING OF England , Scotland , France , and Ireland .
I. Several wholesom , sound Exhortations , &c.

LET thy Moderation be known unto all men , for the Lord is at hand , whose presence filleth Heaven and Earth ; and let such a Nobility appear in Thee , as to try all things , and to hold fast that which is good ; and either to read , or to hear with patience before thou judgest ; for Wisdom becometh a King , and true Reason , Solidness , and Patience , him that is a Ruler of the People . [ Mark ] The God of Heaven hath put into my heart to write unto Thee , and in tender love both to thy Soul and Body , to lay before Thee several things , whereby thou mayest come to see and consider , how the mighty Hand and Justice of the Invisible God hath been in these overturnings and changes , which have happened in these Nations of late years , therefore consider these things ; The Mighty God , the Everlasting Father , He is the King of Kings , and the Lord of Lords , and the whole Earth is his , and the fulness thereof , and he Ruleth over the Kingdoms of men , and giveth them unto whomsoever he pleaseth : Yea , he pulleth down one , and setteth up another , and there is no overturning or changing the Kingdoms , but it is either by his Commission or Permission ; and the Lord doth not do any thing , neither suffereth he any thing to be done , unto persons or Kingdoms without a Cause ( though he may do whatsoever he pleaseth ) and who shall call him to an account ? Yet all his doings are righteous , and his wayes are just and equal altogether : And it is for the unrighteousness sometimes of a King or Kings , and sometimes of a People , and other times of both , that the Lord doth break , or suffer a Nation or Nations to be broken ; and when he determines to break a People , or to change Governments ( or to suffer such to be done ) in vain do men strive to preserve or uphold them ? and the Lord may , and doth make whomsoever he pleaseth his Instruments , for to do his determined Work ; and when they have done his Work , then he may do whatsoever he pleaseth with them ; and many times his Instruments , when they begin his determined Work , appear very contemptible unto many : Yet such speak foolishly , and without understanding , who say , That such Instruments are too weak and cannot prevail , seeing all power is in the hand of God , who can give Wisdom , and Strength , and Courage , unto whomsoever he pleaseth ; Yea , so much as may accomplish his Work ; and he very oft-times , by that which appeareth foolish , weak , and contemptible , confoundeth and bringeth to naught that which appeareth to be Mighty and wise , that no flesh should glory in his presence . And when his Instruments have done his Work ( and he determines to break , or suffer them to be broken again ) let them appear never so Wise , Bold and Mighty , yet vainly do they speak , who say , Such a Wise , Bold and Mighty People cannot be broken , seeing the Lord can do whatsoever he pleaseth ; who suddenly can turn man's Wisdom into folly , his strength into weakness , and his boldness into dauntedness of Spirit . Now such things as these O King , come oft to pass , and none of them without a Cause ; and they that are truly Wise , learn further , and get understanding through all these things : Therefore is true Wisdom better than Strength , and a right Understanding is better than an earthly Crown : Therefore O King , wait to feel the noble Principle of Wisdom , which God hath inspired Thee withal ; for there is a measure of it in Thee , though it hath been hid , and that measure is the Light , which Christ the Wisdom of God hath enlightned Thee withal , which Light in Thee is that which never had fellowship with darkness in Thee , or its deeds , nor concord with the Devil or his Works ; but makes manifest and reproves all such things ; which Light , being received in the love of it , and believed and waited in , man becomes a child of it , and so it gives him a good understanding , and opens an eye in him , whereby he comes to see the hand , and workings , and appearances of the invisible God ; and this Light is the free Gift of God , which is come upon all men ; which being rejected , and a man not liking to retain it in his knowledge , he profesing himself then to be wise , becomes a fool , and brings condemnation upon himself for rejecting that , which should minister all things unto him pertaining unto Life and Godliness . Therefore O King , give all diligence to receive the Gift which God hath placed in thy heart , that so thou mayest be acquainted with Wisdom , and that thou mayest be filled with moderation , gravity , and patience , and come to a right understanding and discerning , that so thou mayest rightly look upon things past , present , and to come , and see them as they were , are , and shall be .

II. Concerning the overturning of thy Father , &c.

COncerning thy Father , and those that took his Part , There was an eminent hand of God in breaking them down , and bringing them under ; and God did it not without a Cause ; for the Iniquity in them provoked the holy God to anger , and the hight and pride of their spirits grieved and pressed the Spirit of the Just God ; and after he had a long time born with them , and warned them with his Eternal Light in their Consciences , yet they repented not , but still grieved his good Spirit by many provocations , and waxed higher and higher against him in disobedience ; his anger then was kindled against them , and his indignation waxed hot ; and he arose in the fiery spirit of his jealousie , to ease himself of his Adversaries , and avenge himself of his Enemies ; and because the Living , Wise , Eternal God ( who made all the Nations of the earth of one blood , and is no respecter of persons ) saw that those that took part with thy Father , were generally ( according to outward appearance ) accounted the wisest , richest , noblest , and stoutest men ( mark ) and that they did glory in their Wisdom , Riches , Nobility , Stoutness , and Strength , and vaunted themselves over those that were made of the same Blood ; He ( the living God ) did then appear in contemptible Instruments , ( as to outward appearance ) as in Trades-men , Plough-men , Servants , and the like , with some others , whom I know thy Father's Party made a mock at , and even scorned them as it were , and thought it too low and too base a thing , to engage War with such a contemptible People ; yet in such , I say , did the Lord appear to carry on that Work which he had determined , even to bring down the loftiness of man , and to stain the pride and glory of flesh , and that thy Father's Party might have come to see that they were but men , made of the same earth and blood that others were : And the Lord God appeared mightily in those his Instruments , giving them Wisdom , Courage , and Strength to mannage a War against a far more Mighty and Wise People ( as to outward appearance ) than themselves , and they prevailed daily against their Enemies : And the affections of the People run forth and inclined towards them : And God struck thy Father's Party with dauntedness of Spirit , and turned their wisdom backwards , and prospered them not in the Field ; but sometimes caused them to Flee before their Enemies , and other times gave them into their hands ; and yet they repented not , neither did they humble themselves before the Lord ; and some fretted and strove , and some Blasphemed and Cursed , even for madness , to see how they were Defeated ; yet they strove in vain , for God was against them , and they grew weaker and weaker , until they were even wholly subdued , and brought under their Enemies , and given into their hands for a Prey ; That so they durst not scarce act , or speak any thing against their Enemies : And God suffered Thy Father to be delivered into their Hands : And thus the Lord stained the glory and pride of that People , which took part with Thy Father and Thee , by a low and contemptible means , as to outward appearance ; Though I do verily believe , that those in whom God did appear against thy Father , thy Self , and those that took that part , did act several things against you , beyond their Commission they had from God , yet he did permit them : And in several of them , who did engage against Thy Father and his Party , there was once a tender , honest , good Principle , in the day wherein they were low ; and there were true desires in some of them , after a just Liberty , both as appeartaining to Conscience , and in things betwixt man and man ; and they were truly sensible of many Oppressions that were in the Nations , both in matters of Religion , and in the Laws and Customs of the Land ; and they cryed unto God when they were low , and Vowed unto him ( and engaged unto man ) That if he would deliver their Enemies into their hands , that then they would remove all Oppressions , and make the People of these Nations a Free People , and that they should have their Just Rights and Liberties , both as Men , and as Christians . Now after Thou hadst also stroven against them ( with a perfidious People , to wit , the Scots ) and ye were defeated ; the Lord gave their Enemies so into their hands , that they had as much outward Power in these three Nations , as they could desire ; and they also became a Dread and a Terror to some Nations about them : And they had Power and Opportunity to have removed all Oppressions out of the Land ; but alas , Covetousness and self-seeking Lusts sprang up in most of them , and leavened them ; And when they had Rest and Fulness ; they forgot the Lord , who had raised them from a low degree ; and they forgot the Oppression of their Brethren also , and regarded not to pay their Vows to God and Man : But after a time the Chief of them got into thy Father's Houses and Lands , and into Thine , and into some of those that took your parts , and others they sold , and so thereby became great in the Earth : And then their Lusts encreased , and they grew wanton against the Lord also , and boasted themselves over those whom they had conquered ; And some of them began to creep into those Places and Things themselves , which they had cryed out against in others ; And so built and set up the same Thing in , and among themselves , which they had thrown down , and destroyed in another ; only in Deceit and Hypocrisie , they got other Names for them . Then several of the Army that were amongst them , when they saw their Deceit and Wickedness ; and that they did not intend the thing which they did pretend , durst not for Conscience sake continue any longer amongst them ; but left them several years ago , and declared against them : And others since , that feared the Lord , were turned out by them ; so that in a short time many of them became greater Oppressors and Persecutors , than those whom they conquered , and so provoked the Lord to anger . Then the Lord raised up many Prophets and Servants , and sent them amongst those who had acted thus treacherously ; and some also wrote unto them , and laid their Abominations plainly before them , and shewed them wherein they had erred , and exhorted them to Repentance ; and plainly shewed unto them what the Lord required at their hands : And sometimes were made to Reprove them sharply and plainly , and prophesied unto them , That the Lord would confound and break them to pieces one against another , and suffer them to be destroyed , if they repented not speedily : but they would not hearken , but grew stiff-necked against the Lord and his People , and suffered many of them to be Oppressed , and their Goods spoyled , and some of them to be Imprisoned unto death in their Names : And thus they Rebelled against the Lord more and more , and boasted of their Strength , and Wisdom , and Valour , and so forgot how that it was the Lord that raised them up from a low degree , and gave them Power over their Enemies : And thus they wrought grievous provocations in his sight , so that then the anger of the Lord was kindled against them ; and as they forsook him , so he forsook them ; and at length he gave them up to the Counsels of their own Hearts , because they had rejected his Counsel : And then they began to divide and split amongst themselves , and to betray one another for self-ends ; and their courage began to fail , and faintness and deadness of Spirit seized upon them ; And having plunged themselves so far in Covetousness and Lusts , the Cloud of Error grew so thick upon them , that they could not see the Cause that they once were so zealous for : And when Confusion fell upon them , and they groped like blind men , and knew not at what they stumbled ; neither knew they for whom , nor for what to stand ; but sometimes cryed up , and engaged for one Thing , and shortly after cryed against it , and threw it down again ; and some of them cryed for one thing , and others brought forth another thing ; and so like Babel's builders ( whom God determined to scatter ) they acted ; and their Eye being blinded , they wrought their own Destruction ; and few of them saw it until it was come upon them ; and them that did , were as men amazed , and knew not how to help themselves . And thus the just hand of the Lord came upon an Hypocritical , Deceitful , professing People , who in Words have made a great professing that they knew God , but in Works they have denied him ; and therefore hath the Lord taken away their strength for the present , and turned their wisdom backwards , and stained their glory , that they also might come to see what they were , and what the Lord did for them , and what they are fallen from , that so haply some of them may come to find repentance , and to be humbled under the Mighty Hand of God , and the Lord may heal their backslidings , and may raise up his own Eternal Witness in them ( the Tabernacle of David ) which hath been fallen down .

III. Concerning Thy coming so far into Power again , &c.

NOw observe the hand of the Lord in thy coming so far into Power again , and those who took part with thy Father & Thee . First , consider the cause of it ( in the fear of the Lord ) and thou wilt find that it is because they unto whom God gave such Power over you , were not faithful unto God , as hath been said before , but grieved the Spirit of the Lord with their hypocrisie from day to day , talking for Liberty , but behold they brought forth Oppression , and so became worser than you that went before them , who did not Profess so much for Liberty in words : And this I know , that if they had been faithful unto the Lord , thou and those called thy Friends , could not have come over them thus as ye have done ; Therefore let no man deceive thee , by perswading thee that these things are thus brought to pass , because the Kingdom was thy own proper right , and because it was with-held from thee contrary to all right ; or , because that those called Royallists are much more righteous than those who are now fallen under thee ; For I plainly declare unto thee , that this Kingdom , and all the Kingdoms of the Earth , are properly the Lords , and that he may and doth give them unto whomsoever he pleaseth ; and whensoever he please , he may take them away again , and give them unto others ; and when he doth thus , it is not contrary to right : And this know , that it was the just hand of God in taking away the Kingdom from thy Father and Thee , and giving it unto others ; and that also , it is now the just hand of the Lord to take it again from them , and bring them under Thee ; though I shall not say , but that some of them went beyond their Commission against thy Father , when they were brought as a rod over you , and well will it be for thee , if thou becom'st not guilty of the same transgression now thou art brought over them ; and this consider , that those who are call'd thy Friends , who were conquer'd , have humbled themselves but little under the hand of the Lord , but are still found to be in great transgressions ; and also consider the manner how this thing hath been wrought , and carryed on , concerning the bringing in of thee again , that so there may be no fleshly boasting ; for the thing is plainly discerned by them whose eye is single , and I shall declare it unto thee : Mark ; The Army having acted so deceitfully , the lusts and gain of the world blinded their eye , and they having so far provoked the Lord , untill his Decree was sealed against them , and he had determined that they should be broken ; after they had split among themselves , and turned from one thing to another , and knew not where to rest , and the Lord suffered some of them to rise up from among themselves to deceive the rest , and so they through dissimulation ( in professing to stand for those who had so eminently stood against thy Father and Thee ) got Power to weaken and turn out those that were really against thee , ( as disturbers of the Good Old Cause , as they termed it ) and so by little and little strengthened those that stood for thee ; and thus the deceived blind men provided a Rod for themselves , and so by little & little wrought themselves under it , and it is just upon them ; For the rod is for the fools back . So let this be considered , that this was not carryed on by the stoutness of those that stood for thee , nor yet by a visible plain down-right dealing , but rather through the hidden mystery of deceit , which was suffered to work against those whom God had determined should be broken , that so by the same way whereby they had deceived others , which was by pretending to stand for that which they did not intend : I say , even by the same way , they in the end should be deceived themselves : So let none glory in what is done concerning this thing , as if it were done by their Valour or Wisdom , though I can truly say , the hand of the Lord hath permitteed these things , and that for the Cause before mentioned , and he will be glorified in all these Overturnings .

IV. Concerning the great danger thou art in , in thy coming in , &c.

ANd also , consider the danger that thou art in , in thy coming in as King of these Nations , for it is exceeding great as things stand ; and this hath been much upon me to lay before thee , and it is in tender love both to thy Soul and Body ; for I plainly see that if thou shouldst come in upon the account of the People called Presbyterians , if thou shouldst refuse to bow to what they would set up , or if thou shouldst not satisfie the ungodly covetousness of their Priests , there is several of them would be ready to serve Thee as they did thy Father , if they were permitted . And if thou do come in upon the account of those People called Old Royallists , ( Mark ) truly , though I do believe they would abhor such a thing as to sell Thee , yet the iniquity of many of them is so great , and there is so much Swearing , lusts and vanity amongst them , that except they repent , they are not like long to prosper , but the hand of the Lord will assuredly break them also . And furthermore consider , there are a deceitful People in these Nations , for there are many thousands that now appear highly for Thee in words , that if they could see a likelihood of a change , they would appear as much or more against Thee : Therefore consider thy standing , and be not high-minded , but fear , and take heed lest thou fall ; and never go about to Engage the People unto thee by Oaths , lest thou cause many to forswear themselves ; for truly this People , a great part of them are a perfidious People , as they have manifested themselves , who one while have sworn for a King and Parliament , and shortly after , they have sworn against a King , single Person , or House of Lords ; and shortly after they have sworn or Engaged for a single Person again , and called one another Lords ; and a little after they have turned against that Government , and cryed up a Parliament again ; and now the same People are generally crying up a King again ; And truly those Rulers who have imposed so many several Engagements upon the People , they have done exceeding evilly therein : And how abominably have these dirty , deceitful , covetous Priests acted in all these changes ? O it is hard to utter their deceit ! who one while they have prayed for a King & Parliament , and when they saw the King was likely to fall , and that he was no wayes likely to maintain them , then they turn'd against him , and prayed only for the Parliament , and asserted their Authority , and cursed them that would not go out to help against the Mighty . And shortly after when Oliver Cromwel had turn'd out the Parliament , and set up himself , then they cryed up ( and prayed for ) him , and many of them began to assert his Authority to be just ; and when he died , many of these Priests began to address themselves to his Son , & fawned upon him , that he might provide for their god , which is their belly , and they appeared to be sorrowful for his Fathers death , and blasphemously termed him the light of their eyes , and the breath of their Nostrils ; and they told Richard that God had left him to carry on that glorious Work which his Father had begun ; And some of these Priests compared Oliver to be like unto Moses , and Richard to be like unto Joshua , who shall carry them into the promised Land ; But surely these blind Priests are yet in Aegypt , the land of Darkness , and there are like to die except they repent . And surely those that made Oliver , Chancellor of one of their Vniversities , they hoped he should have continued longer in his place than he did ; But it is manifest that they are such as the Prophet said , Night should come upon them , and they should have no Vision . And how soon did some of them turn for a Parliament again , when the Army turned out Richard ? And when George Booth made a Rising , and they thought there would be a turn , then some of them cryed out against the Parliament , and began to curse such as would not go out against them ; And when George Booth was taken , then many of them began to Petition to the Parliament , and to excuse themselves , that they had no hand in that rising ; And now they are generally crying up , and praying for thee , and all this is for their bellies ; therefore if thou wilt believe them , and trust to their prayers , thou art worthy to be deceived by them ; And all that will uphold them in that state they are in , and compel others to maintain them , they are not like to prosper , for the hand of the Lord is against them , and that Scripture is fulfilled upon a great part of these Nations , like Priests like People , who are given to covetousness and deceit , and will turn and appear for any thing that is for their gain ; Yet this I testifie in the Lord , that such Ministers as the Scriptures of Truth own , I own ; And such a Maintenance as Christ allowed his Ministers to take , I have unity with ; And I know , that such as are his Ministers , will be there-withal content , but such Ministers as will not , they serve not the Lord Jesus Christ , but their own bellies , and such I cannot but declare against . Therefore now O King be Wise , and cleave unto the Lord with thy whole heart , and he will teach thee to love thy Enemies , and to do unto all men as thou wouldst they should do unto thee , if they were in thy Condition , and thou in theirs ; and this is the Way for to prosper ; and this will Engage the Lord for to stand for thee ; and also it will reach the witness of God in all People , and thou wouldst become honourable in their hearts ; and hereby they would be engaged and drawn unto thee more than by Oaths or force of Arms ; But if thou wilt not hear , and do the thing that is just and right in the sight of the Lord , then will the Lord appear against thee ; and when thou hast filled up thy measure , thou shalt be assuredly broken ; and then shalt thou know that God hath spoken unto me . * * Since the writing of this before it could be delivered , we have seen a Declaration put forth by Thee , by which in part this is answered , which as this and the rest comes to be fulfilled , the Lord will bless & prosper Thee . And if thou dost not speedily seek to stop this abounding ungodliness which flows in this Nation ( and which hath much increased since there was a likelihood of thy being brought in ) verily an evident hand of God shall come upon thee , which thou shalt not in any wayes be able to escape . Therefore consider it speedily , for verily , the Mighty God is greatly displeased by reason of the great wasting and spoil that is made of his Creatures , in a way of rejoycing and triumphing concerning thee ; O how is the Devil , the destroyer , let loose in this Nation ! and the streets thereof become like unto Sodom ; and Peoples mouths are filled with Oaths , and bitter Cursings ; And they go stammering and staggering because of Drunkenness , and sober People that fear the Lord can scarce pass in the streets without being scoffed at , threatned , or having violence done unto them , by those that appear for thee , who bitterly will curse , and wish that which they call the Pox and Plague upon us , and the next words cry out and say , God save King Charles : Oh consider these things , and seek to stop them , least they become thy burthen ! And also when we have been peaceably met together to wait on the Lord , and to hear and declare the everlasting Truth , we have been abused , and part of our Houses and Windows broken , and some of us knockt down and torn , as though they would have pulled us limb from limb , and our blood drawn , knocking us down without respect had to Age or Sex , & this they say thou wilt bear them out in , and they expect an order , they say shortly from thee , either to banish or hang us all ; and in thy Name was I commanded and fetcht out of a Meeting at Harwich , upon the first day of this week , and haled to prison without being examin'd , and without a Mittimus ; and this was , because I was made in the Dread and Power of the Living God , to cry aloud against the Cursing and Rudeness , which I then heard and beheld amongst the People in the streets ; and I was made to utter these words and say , Wo , wo unto the Rulers and Teachers of this Nation , who suffer such ungodliness as this , and do not seek to suppress it : And for this was I put in Prison , O King , for these things will the Lord God visit , and if thou seekest not to stop them , thou wilt feel God's hand for it ; Verily I declare unto Thee in the fear of the Lord , I never heard of , nor beheld so great prophaneness , as I have done within these few weeks past : Oh! it is hard to utter how much Wine and strong Drink hath been devoured in waste , by Peoples drinking of healths unto Thee ! some upon their knees , and some otherwise , even until some have been so drunk , they could neither speak or go right ; and what abundance of Wood hath been wasted and devoured in making of great Bon-fires ( as they call them ) which they have done as they say to rejoyce because of Thy coming ; Yea even such great Fires have been made upon this account , that they have been dangerous both unto Cities and Towns ; and such noises have been heard of late in Cities and Towns , as scarce ever have been the like , by shooting of Guns both great and small , and by ringing of Bells , and by People singing and laughing , and shouting like riotous mad men , and the Streets in several places strown with flowers , and the like ; and this is done in rejoycing concerning Thee : And what abundance hath been devoured in Feasting , and Banqueting , and abominable rejoycings ? And also , consider in what great need poor People are of such Creatures as have been thus devoured , and consider what can be the end of all these things ; now the Lord is my witness , when I have seen and felt this ungodliness , a tender pity hath arose in me towards Thee , because I have beheld the danger that Thou art in , which is exceeding great : Let no man deceive Thee by perswading thee , that Thou art in a safe Condition , because the outward strength of the Nation appears to be at thy Command ; For consider this , Oliver Cromwell , and his party had as much of that strength , ( or more once ) as Thou hast now , and those called thy party , were faln as much under them , as they are now under Thine ; And yet consider how their strength was taken from them , and how it vanished away like smoak : Yea , the Lord is righteous and powerful , and if he speaks but the Word , it must be fulfilled , and there is no People too strong for Him ; for all Nations in comparison of Him , are but as the drop of a Bucket , and as the small dust , which his breath scattereth as he pleaseth ; and truly , God is highly provoked , therefore take heed what thou dost .

V. Concerning Religion , and the spirit of Persecution .

ANd as concerning Religion , I exhort and warn Thee , in the Name and Fear of the Lord , to take heed that thou bind not the Consciences of any , and that thou suffer no other means to be used about Religion , but what the Apostles used ; for all this killing , and imprisoning , and persecuting about Religion , the Lord abhors it ; Yea , the Papists killing , and imprisoning , and persecuting of the Protestants , and the Protestants killing , and imprisoning , and persecuting of the Papists , and others about a Form of Religion , these things are of the Devil , the destroyer , in them both , and not of Christ , who came not to destroy mens lives , but to save them : And consider , Cain was the first Murderer about Religion , who slew Righteous Abel , and Cain was for it a Vagabond : And the Vagabond Jews persecuted Christ and the Saints ; and the Saints , since Christ suffered without the gate by him and for sinners , used no persecution about Religion , but Christ said , that inwardly ravening Wolves should come : And Paul prophesied , that after his departure , grievous and ravening Wolves should come , who would not spare the Flock ; and before John dyed he saw them come , and said to the Saints , Little Children , ye have heard in the last times , that Antichrist shall come , ( mark ) even now ( said he ) are there many Antichrists already come , whereby we know that it is the last time : So mark , these Antichrists killed those that held the Testimony of Jesus , which is the Spirit of Prophesie : And here the Whore adulterated from God , got up , and she drank the blood of the Saints and Martyrs of Jesus , and the Kings of the Earth committed fornication with her , and drank her Cup ; And she sate upon Nations , Kindreds , Tongues , and People ; So all this imprisoning , and killing , and whipping , and stocking , and stoning , and mangling of the Creatures about Religion , is practised among the Heathens , and the Antichrists , the Apostatized Christians , who are gone out from Christ , and the Apostles Spirit and Doctrine ; for they wrestle not with flesh and blood , but with Principalities and Powers , and Spiritual wickednesses in high places : So they fought against Spiritual wickedness , and not against Creatures , and the Weapons of their warfare were not Carnal but Spiritual , ( mark ) they used no imprisoning , stocking , whipping , stoning , hanging , burning , banishing , or mangling of the Creatures , to perswade or turn them to their Religion ; neither did they use any other force ( to turn people to the pure Religion ) than that which proceeded from the Invisible Power of God's Eternal Spirit in them , which struck at the Spiritual wickednesses , and the evil thoughts and imaginations which were exalted in People above the knowledge of Christ ; and so they sought to bring the wickedness into Captivity , and not the Creatures ; but to bring them into Liberty , by turning them from Darkness to Light , and from Satan's Power , into the Power of God ; and them that had known the Truth , and turned from it , and became Hereticks , after the first and second admonition ( if they would not hear ) they rejected , knowing that such were condemned in themselves . But they did not give order to kill such , for that had been the way to have sent them head-long ( as one might say ) unto Hell : And as for such as withstood the Apostles , and would not receive the Gospel , but opposed the Truth and themselves , after they had gently and patiently dealt with some , and taught and instructed them concerning the Kingdom of God ; and reproved and warned others , and they would not receive them and their Testimony , they turned from them unto others , and left them unto the righteous judgement of the Lord , which was to be revealed in flames of fire upon those that would not obey the Gospel ; but they did not persecute any , nor use any outward force with any about Religion ; neither did they give any command for such a thing ; and to preserve in the Truth such as were come to it , they used patience , meekness , long-suffering , and sound Doctrine ; and kept them , and commended them unto the ingrafted Word ( which was nigh in their hearts and in their mouths ) the which was able to save their souls ; and did not threaten to persecute them if they did not turn out of the Truth : Therefore , they that persecute about Religion , are not for Christ , but Antichrists , that is , against Christ . So take heed , that Thou dost not set up persecution about Religion , upon any pretence whatsoever , nor tolerate it ; For the Lord God hath brought forth a People in these Nations , and will bring forth more , that cannot , nor may not bow unto any other thing in their Worship , than unto the Name of Jesus , whose Name is called the Word of God : And if Thou oppressest this People , the Lord wil assuredly take away Thy Power , & avenge their Cause ; ( mark that ) for he careth for them ; And verily , we have not another to trust in , than the Name of the Lord , and we know that to be a strong Tower , which is able to preserve us ; and we know , That he will not suffer any thing to come upon us , but what shall work for his glory and our good . But these things are spoken unto Thee , that Thou mightest fear the Lord , and mightest not pull judgement upon thy own Head .

VI. Concerning what Government and Governours the People of the Lord ( called Quakers ) stand for , and what they stand against , &c.

THis I declare in the Truth and Presence of the Lord , and I know , there are many thousands in these Nations , that are of the same mind with me , that it is not for the Name , that may be put upon a Government , that we either stand for , or against ; but it is a righteous Government ( according to the higher Power , which is according to that of God in every man's Conscience ) which we stand for , and earnestly desire after , both in things appertaining to God and man ; And we , for our selves desire no greater Liberty , either in things Religious , or in things Civil betwixt man and man , than we desire all others might enjoy : And if such a Government as this be set up , then if he that is Chief , in taking care and seeing that Justice may be done to all without respect of persons , if he be called a King , a Judge , a Protector , or a General , we shall not be against either or any of the Names ; Or if the care and trust be laid upon more , if they be called by the Name of a Parliament , or a Council , or a Committee , or King and Parliament , or any , we are content , and shall willingly submit unto Righteousness from them , or any of them as our duty . And it is that which is unrighteous ( which is called a Government , wherein Oppression , Partiality , and Cruelty is exercised , either in things relating unto conscience in matter of Worship , or in things civil betwixt man and man ) that we stand against ; and if such a thing be set up and called a Government , and if the chief in it be called a King , or a Judge , or a Protector , or a General , or a Parliament , or a Council , or a Committee , or King and Parliament , we cannot stand for any of the Names , nor submit unto the unjust things commanded by them , any other wayes , than through a patient suffering under it ; And this according to the strength of the Lord , we shall be willing to do .

VII . How we resolve in the strength of the Lord , to stand for that which is righteous , and against that which is unrighteous , &c.

THe way how we shall stand for the Righteous Government and Governours , is , by yielding all due lawful obedience unto them and their Commands ; and by labouring in the Power of the Lord , to bring down , and to keep under the evil lust in People , which is the cause of all Wars , and Rebellions , and Transgression : And , as much as in us lies , we shall endeavour to live peaceably with all men , and perswade others unto the same ; And so , by a Godly Conversation , we shall be patterns unto others : And this will be an adorning of good Government , and Governors , and a help unto them ; And this we resolve in the strength of the Lord to do .

Also , the manner how we shall stand through the Power of the Lord against that which is unrighteous ( though it be called a Government , and against unrighteous Governours ) is , by bearing our Testimony against them in the Power of the Lord ; and by yielding no other obedience to them , than in submitting patiently to suffer and endure , whatsoever punishment the Lord shall suffer them to lay upon us : And this shall turn against them daily , and weaken them , and bring shame upon them ; For Persecution , is to them that persecute us , a token of Perdition ; but unto Us of Salvation , and that from the Lord .

VIII . Concerning a Government and Governours , wherein there may be something seen to be good , and something bad , &c.

ANd as concerning a Government or Governours , wherein there may be something good , and something bad ; This I say in such a case , whatsoever is good in either , we shall be ready through the Lord's strength to submit unto , and own , and we shall labour to preserve and cherish that : And as the Lord shall move us , we shall be willing to shew the Governours in plainness what is wrong in them , and in the Government ; and if they refuse to hear us , and afflict us , we shall in patience yield our Bodies to suffer under that which is bad in either ; however , we shall discountenance it , and labour through the Power of the Lord in a Spiritual Warfare to destroy it , that so it may further appear , that we are not against Magistracy , but for it , ( it being God's Ordinance ) and that we are only against that in Magistrates and People , which would , and which doth defile and pollute the place of Magistracy .

IX . Concerning Plotting , or using a Carnal Weapon , and from whom we expect Deliverance , &c.

ANd I further testifie in the Lord , that I do not intend , neither have I any such thought in my heart , either to plot for , or against Thee , or any other upon the Earth ; for I do not expect deliverance by a carnal Sword ; and yet I know , deliverance shall come with , or without the help of man ; and in vain have been , and shall be , all the strivings , compellings and murderings about Religion , Church and Worship ; for man may as well say to the Sun in the Firmament , Stand thou still ; Or to the Sea , Be thou dryed up , as hinder one jot of the Lord 's mighty workings in this his day ; for , his Work , yea , his strange work shall be brought to pass , and mine eye sees it , and not any mortal shall be able to hinder it . And into the belief of this , I know that the Lord hath gathered several thousands into the same mind with me , that are called by the name of Quakers ; and we could desire , ( if it were the Will of God ) even that all men were of the same mind : And those that are otherwise minded , we shall leave them unto the Lord , to do what he pleaseth with them : And we are freely given up unto the Will of God , and we have committed our Cause unto Him , and He shall bring it to pass , that so it may plainly be made manifest , that we are a People saved by our God , from whom we expect deliverance : And he hath made us willing to wait , until he bring it to pass : And this we are confident of , that the Everlasting Gospel ; which is the Power of God , shall again be Preached unto all Nations , Kindreds , Tongues , and People ; and that the Whore of Babylon , the Beast and his Horns , and his Names , which have prevailed against the Bodies of the Holy People in the night of Apostacy , shall cease to prevail against the Saints ; and that Babylon and her Merchants shall be thrown down and confounded ; and then shall the Saints of the most High possess the Kingdom . And we do believe , that God will overturn , and overturn , until he hath brought to pass the thing that he hath decreed , which is , to establish Righteousness in the earth , and then shall there be Judges as at the first , and Counsellors as at the beginning ; and Kings shall become Nursing-Fathers , and Queens shall become Nursing-Mothers , and the Kingdoms of this VVorld shall become the Kingdoms of the Lord and of his Christ ; and hereof we have an assurance in the Spirit of Truth , and yet we never expect to know Christ after the flesh to reign , but he shall reign over all the Earth , whose Kingdom is an everlasting Kingdom , and all Powers shall serve and obey him , who is King of Saints .

X. Concerning Revenge , and what may follow if it be sought , and what if not , &c.

TAke heed of seeking Revenge ; O let not the Enemy of thy Soul , within or without , get Thee into Blood : Vengeance is the Lords , and he will repay it : Therefore wherein thy Enemies went beyond their Commission against thy Father , or any that took his Part , leave that unto the Lord , who will reward every one in Righteousness , according to their deeds done in their Bodies ; And consider how far Christ was from seeking or desiring Revenge , when they murdered him as concerning the flesh , who said , Father forgive them , for they know not what they do . Oh mind that Spirit , and consider he was greater than thy Father , and he was free from all Transgression ; and wherein thy Enemies did evil in any thing against thy Father or Thee , and those that took your Part , freely forgive them , and render not evil for evil unto any man , but overcome evil with that which is good . O King , this were the way for Thee to be established in peace , and so to end thy dayes : Oh that thy Heart were thus inclined ! that Mercy , and Righteousness , and Peace might be found to reign in Thee , and that Mercy might Triumph over severity ; then might'st thou prosper , and many of thy Enemies , and also of those that are called thy Friends , might be converted unto God , and so ye might be united in true love one unto another , and this were better than conquering by force . And consider this , there are many that acted against thy Father and Thee , whom the Lord intends good towards , though I know , that several of them through Covetousness and Envy , have done exceedingly wrong in many things : Yet consider , how Christ taught his to pray , Forgive us our trespasses , as we forgive them that trespass against us ; And I do verily believe , that if they turn unto the Lord , and truly humble themselves under his hand , and believe in the Light of his Son , and obey him , that he will freely forgive them all their Transgressions . But if thou resolvest to avenge thy self , and those called thy Friends which have suffered , and to keep under those which are now fallen under Thee , by a heavy yoke , either in matters of Worship , or otherwise , I know it will exasperate the spirits of many against Thee , and it will raise up the desperate aggravating part in man , and so the thing may kindle again in the murdering Spirit ; And the Lord may suffer it to break forth into blood , which if it should , it may be the sadest time that ever thou yet sawest ; for this I know , and do stedfastly believe , that after God hath tryed his People , he will assuredly bring an overflowing scourge upon this Nation , and many shall fall and perish by an eminent hand and judgement of the Lord , except they repent speedily : And verily , there is but a little space given to prevent this great Judgement and Destruction ; because the Lord hath already born long , and his patience hath been exceeding great , and he hath sent many of his Servants and Prophets to warn this Nation and others , and many thousands have believed us , and are gathered into Peace with us , notwithstanding they see a great Judgement to come upon the Earth ; and though many have believed us , yet alas , the far greater part hath either beaten , or imprisoned , or scoffed at , or slighted and rejected us , or the Testimony which we hold ; and some have spoyled our goods , and imprisoned some of us to death , and some of us have been killed for the Testimony of Jesus , and the Word of God ; And so , many in the Nations are waxed worse and worse ; And when the Lord hath smitten some , they have revolted more and more ; and when he hath raised up others , and given them prosperity , they have then fed themselves without fear , and forgot the Lord , and waxed wanton against him . Therefore seeing people will neither hear the Prophets of the Lord , nor regard the Light of his Son in their Consciences , which checks and reproves for sin and evil in secret , nor turn to the Lord when he smites them , nor regard his Truth when they have prosperity , the Lord will leave striving with such a People , and bring sudden destruction upon them , and deliver his chosen as he did just Lot . So , we are given up to the Will of the Lord , and do patiently wait for his mighty appearance to deliver us , who have long been a suffering People , who have suffered both by Parliaments , Army , Protectors , and by those called thy Friends also ; yea , we have suffered , and been most cruelly entreated , even by Rulers , Priests , and People , Professors and Prophane , because we could not joyn unto the evil in either , but we have been made to reprove them for it , and to exhort them unto that which is good ; and so we must yet do , so long as we find the Lord requiring it at our hands , though for it we be hated and persecuted unto death ; yet knowing that it is without cause on our part when we suffer , we have peace with God , through our Lord Jesus Christ , in all our sufferings ; and our lives are not dear unto us , that we may finish our course with joy , and our Testimony for the Lord , which he hath given to bear , though it be sealed with our blood ; for we certainly know , that the Lord is our reward in whatsoever we do or suffer for his Names sake .

And now O King , as thou expects the Blessing and Presence of the Lord with Thee in thy Government , Fear and Dread his Presence , by standing in awe of his living Witness , the Light , which he hath placed in thy Conscience to guide and direct Thee in all thy wayes , that his wrath may be turned away from Thee , that so this Scripture might not be fulfilled upon the People of this Nation , God gave them a King in his anger , and he took him away in his sore displeasure . But if it should prove so , I shall have peace , for I am clear of thy blood , in as much as in plainness I have let Thee see how things have been , and how they may or shall be , and wherein thy danger stands , and how that Righteousness only establisheth the Throne . And my desire is , if it be the Will of God , that thou mightest consider them in the Principle of Life and Wisdom , and thereby come to be preserved and saved from that Destruction , which in God's Eternal Light I see Thee in great danger of .

Thus in Innocency and Truth , and in Uprightness and Sincerity of heart , I have freely declared unto Thee what was laid upon me , and it is in true , tender , and unfeigned love , both to thy Soul and Body : And that this is true , God is my Witness , and the Witness of himself in thy Conscience shall answer unto it ; unto which I leave and commend Thee , from which thou canst not hide thy thoughts : So to the Lord God of Life be Glory , and Dominion , and everlasting Praises over all , to whom it doth belong , Amen .

Given forth in Harwich Goal in Essex , the 16. day of the 3d. Month , called May , 1660. Where I suffer for the Testimony of Jesus , through the envy of the Devil , who is the false accuser of the Brethren .
POSTSCRIPT .

THough this Treatise was more especially laid upon me , to write it unto the KING , and therefore to him was it directed ; yet I could not but publish it , because its service reacheth so far in several Particulars , unto those also , that have been engaged in the late Wars on both sides ; as in declaring the Mighty Hand , and working of the Invisible God therein , and for what cause these things have been suffered , and how they have been effected ; which being truly considered , may cause many to bow before the Lord , and henceforward cease rejoycing , in the destroying one of another , and rather admire the Lord's mighty and strange workings , whereby he hath taken away the cause of boasting ( in the Arm and Wisdom of flesh ) on both Sides ; that so , none might glory , but in the Lord : And many other things are declared in this Book , as a Testimony , both against Hypocrisie and Prophaneness ; and what God will do , if Repentance be not come unto speedily ; and also , the Innocency , and Just , and Equalness of the Way , and Order of the Truth , and such as live in the Life of it , both in many things appertaining to Religion , and in things Civil , is here Demonstrated ; with many wholesom Exhortations tending to Righteousness and Peace , and the safety both of King and Nation ; and the contrary witnessed against , which may be of great service to many , if they in the Fear of God will read it , and receive his Witness in them , the Light of Christ , which will answer to the Truth ; and for no other ause do I Publish it , but that ( if it be the Will of the Lord ) Truth and Peace may be encreased ( which this directs unto ) and that Violence , and Wars ( which this bears witness against ) might cease , and that so God may have the honour of all , unto whom it doth belong .

From the Counsel and Nobility of the Royal Seed , the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah , the Everlasting King of Righteousness , who reigneth in George Fox , the Younger .

A Coppy of this was delivered in Writing by Richard Hubberthorn , into the Kings hand at White-Hall , the 4th . day of the 4th . Month , 1660. And this may be of service to any of those called Royallists ( or others ) if they in Moderation will Read it , and for that Cause it is upon me to send it abroad in Print .

Honest , Plain , Down-right-Dealing WITH THE PEOPLE CALLED Episcopal-Men , and Presbyterians . In this Seasonable ADVICE given unto them , and their TEACHERS . FRIENDS ,

YOu both pretend in Words to be Friends to the KING , now let your actions shew forth the same , lest ye ( in this Cause concerning the King ) be found like those who in words professed to know or love another King , but in Works denyed him , Tit. 1.16 . Therefore , labour not to perswade the King to set up either of your Forms of Worship in this manner , ( mark ) as to compel by outward Force all others to conform thereunto , or else to persecute them ; for if you do thus , and if the King should hearken unto either of you , and fulfill either of your wills in this particular , ( mark ) you to whom he so consents unto , would shortly be made manifest to be the greatest Enemies to the King in the Nations : And not only the Kings Enemies , but Enemies to your selves also , even to the endangering of the destruction both of the King and Your selves ; for if the King shall set up either of your Forms , and compel all others thereunto , or else Persecute them ; ( mark ) you two are so inverate one against another , and have acted already so cruelly one against another , that thus it will be with you , ( mark ) you that the King so sets up , will seek to avenge your selves , and to Lord it over the other , Mat. 5.44 , 46. and neither of you are able to suffer in patience , ( and to forgive your Enemies ) as the Ministers of Christ were to do , Mat. 6.15 . that so which-soever of you were put under the other , you will be watching to Plot both against the King and them that are set over you ; and if you that are put under , can but get an advantage against the other , which-soever of you it be , ( mark ) even the Mercies of you would be cruelty towards those that kept you under . And if either of your Forms should be set up , as before mentioned , you who be set up in that manner will be in great danger of being destroyed , and that for these reasons .

First , Because it is not owned by the Lord , that any should set up a Worship , and compel others to it by outward force or Persecution ; and this is the way in which either of you would proceed , if ye had Power , and thereby you would Engage the Lord against you and your Worship ; for the worship which he owns , is in the Spirit and in the Truth , John 4.23 , 24. and nothing but the Power of his Spirit can compel thereunto ; and they that rebel against this Power in matter of Worship , are for it to be punished thereby .

Secondly , Because the Lord hath decreed to remove Oppression and Persecution , and to judge and blast that spirit which hath exercised cruelty against the Saints , and to set up Righteousness , and to give his People their just Liberty to worship him according to the leadings , and requirings of his Eternal Spirit in them ; ( mark ) and if either of your Forms should be set up ( as before mentioned ) it would strongly oppose this Decree of God which cannnt be broken , and therefore it would engage the Lord to destroy you .

Thirdly , If one of you be set up , and ye be impower'd by the King to compel by outward force all others to your Worship , or else to Persecute them ; ( mark ) this will exasperate the spirits of most of the other Sects against the King , and you that shall be so set up ; and it will engage all them of the Sects that are in the fighting nature , and can use a carnal Weapon for their own defence , to joyn together as one man against the King , and either of you that he should so set up . Therefore if you would be true Friends either to the King , or your selves and your Nation , labour not with the King to establish either of your Forms ( or any other ) as before-mentioned ; but if ye own CHARLES STUART to be King ; be content that HE may Rule over all as one , keeping the outward Peace among you all , by providing just Laws to punish any that would hurt any mans Person or Estate upon any unjust account whatsoever , or any that shall run into open prophaneness , Mat , 7.12 . and be content that others may have as much Liberty to Worship their God in that way they are perswaded to be right , as ye desire to have in that ye think is right ; and lay by all these Carnal Weapons , as Prisons , Fires , Gallows , Stocks , Whips , and all outward violence , and use none of them ( mark ) about compelling to a Worship , : 2 Cor. 10.4 . But you that are Teachers , come forth with your Spiritual Weapons ( if you have them ) and smite at the Spiritual Wickedness that is Exalted in the Creatures , if ye be able , wrestle with that , and not with the Creatures ; and if without using outward force and compulsion , ye can plant a Vineyard ( as the Apostle did ) then eat of the fruit thereof , Eph. 6.12 . and if ye can thus gather a Flock and keep them , then Eat of the Milk thereof ; and if ye can sow Spirituals then reap of their Carnals that receive you and your Testimony ; and if you be sent forth by Christ , then you will not lack any thing , Luk. 22.35 . but if you dare not come to this tryal , then it will plainly appear that you are such as serve not the Lord Jesus Christ , but your own bellies ; and that you are not sent of God , but run , and he hath not sent you ; and speak , but he hath not spoken unto you , and therefore you cannot profit the People , Jer. 23.32 . ( mark ) And if the outward Peace be kept by the Kings Law , that so none may do violence to any man's Person or Estate , then you need not fear if you be in the Spirit of Truth , 1 Joh. 4.4 . but that ye shall overcome them that are in the Spirit of Error , and make them manifest when they do oppose you , Acts 6.9.10 . but if you dare not come to this Tryal , then it will plainly appear that you are in the Spirit of Error , and such as cannot stand except they be upheld by the Powers of the Earth .

Again , and if God should suffer this , that either of you could prevail thus far with the King , as that he should set up either of your Forms , and give you a Law to compel or Persecute outwardly , ( mark ) thereby you might make many hypocrites , who might pretend to joyn unto you , ( to save ●heir 〈◊〉 or Estates ) until they could find an opportunity to destroy you ; but by all your outward force , you can never convert any unto God ; for it is Christ , the Immortal , ingrafted Word , which is onely able to convert unto God ; and it is the work of the true Ministers to turn People from Darkness to Light , and from Satan's Power unto the Power of God , Acts 26.18 . and to direct them to the Word which is nigh , in the mouth , and in the heart , Rom. 10.8 . and to commend and keep them to that ; and to exhort them in meekness to receive the ingrafted Word , which is able to save their Souls , Acts. 20.23 . Jam. 1.21 . 2 Cor. 10.4 . and they must not use any Carnal Weapons to do their work withal , but Spiritual : Therefore if you would be counted Christ's Ministers , lay by your Carnal Weapons , and use them no longer about Religion ; neither press the King to set up or uphold either of your Forms of Worship by outward force ( as before mentioned ) lest thereby you become Instruments to destroy the King , your selves , or the Nation .

So though King CHARLES be accounted and suffered to be Head in things between man and man , yet let CHRIST JESUS the everlasting King , be accounted and suffered to be Head of his Church , that so He may have that which is due unto him , Eph. 5.23 . & 4.13 . Col. 1.18 . and this were the way for the true Church and the King , and these Nations to prosper ; and the way for the false Church , the false Prophets , and all Plotting , Usurping self-interested men to be confounded .

And this is the desire of me , who am a sufferer for Righteousness sake , contrary to any Law of God , or known Law of the Nation . GEORGE FOX , the Younger . From my Chamber ( the place of my confinement ) in Lambeth-House , ( the 14th . of the 4th . Moneth , 1660 )

where I have perfect Peace with God through Jesus Christ , in whom I have true Liberty as a Son , according to the appointment of the Father .

I cannot flatter any , but must speak the naked truth unto all ; and I seek the Peace of my Nation , and the good of all men ; and I cannot fight with any Creature , but I can fight with the Spiritual Wickedness , though it be in the High Places .

A Few Queries to the Teachers of the Episcopal Society , ( so Called . )

Qu. 1. WHo was the first Institutor , ( of a man to be Supream Head of the Church next and Immediate under Christ , and ) of Arth-Bishops , and Lord Bishops , and from whence had they their Original ? Did not these things arise since the Apostacy ? and have they not been Practised by the Apostatised Christians , since the Antichrists went out from the true Apostles ? Or were these things Practised by the true Apostles ? Or did they confesse any more than one Head of the Church ? Or that to them there was any more than one Lord ? And was not that Head and Lord Jesus Christ ? Col. 1.18 . And whether they that make , or confesse other Lords , or another Head of the Church than Christ , do not walk according to the course of the Gentiles , which know not God , and contrary to the Command of Christ , and the Practise of the true Apostles ? 1 Cor. 8 , 5 , 6. seeing Christ said to his Disciples , the Gentiles exercise Lordship one over another , but it shall not be so with you ( mark that ) for he that will be greatest amongst you , let him be servant unto all , Mat. 20 ▪ 25 , 26 , 27. And where was any of the true Apostles or Ministers of Christ , called Lord-Bishops or Arch-Bishops ? Or where was there any King in their time , called the Supream Head of the Church next unto Christ ? Or where did they prophesie that it should afterwards be so among the Saints ? Or is not this rather a part of the Cup of Fornication , which the Whore of Babylon , hath caused the Kings of the Earth to drink in the night of Apostacy , yea or nay ?

Qu. 2. And who was the first Inventer of Surplices and Tippits ( as they are called ) did the true Apostles and Ministers of Christ use any of them in their Worship ? Or had they Organs and Singing Boys dressed in White , going , and Singing in their Worship ? From whom had all things their Original ? And are any of these things required of the true Worshippers , which the Father seeks , who Worship him in the Spirit and in the Truth , John 4.23.24 . ( if they be , prove it by Scripture ) Or are they not come up since the Apostacy ? and are they not Practised amongst the Will-Worshippers , yea or nay ?

Qu. 3. And who first invented this for a Baptisme , ( viz. ) that a Teacher should Sprinkle a little water on a Childs face , and make a Cross on its forehead , with his finger ; and that there should be God-Fathers , and God-Mothers ( as they are called ) to name the Child ; from whom had all these things their Original ? Did the true Apostles Practise these things ? Or are they not come up in the night of Apostacy ? And why do you call those that name the Children , God-Fathers , and God-Mothers ? Hath God any Fathers or Mothers ? Answer to every particular in plain English according to the Scriptures , that poor People may see your Ground , and Foundation , and Rule for all these things ; And do you believe that any can be free from sin in this life , and keep Gods's holy Will and Commandments ? If not , then how dare you enjoyn those that you call God-Fathers , and God-Mothers , to Promise and Vow these things in the Childs name , ( mark ) that it shall forsake the Devil and all his works , ( mark that ) the pomps and vanities of this World , and all the sinful lusts of the flesh , and that it should keep God's holy Will and Commandments ? now if you say , they may forsake all these things , and keep God's Holy Will and Commandments ; then will it not overthrow what you Teach your selves at other times ? and if People do not or cannot forsake the Devil and all his works , the pomps , and vanities of this wicked World , and the sinful lusts of the flesh , and keep God's Holy Will and Commandments ; then do you not cause them you call God-Fathers , and God-Mothers , to Promise and Vow lies and impossibilities in Childrens Names ?

Now Answer these things in Plainness and Moderation , without fleeing to your Carnal Weapons ; and be not like those , that instead of answering , have raged , and persecuted those that have Queried them . There are many things more appertaining to your Worship which I cannot own to be Right ; but I would see , how you will get through these things , and what satisfaction you are able to give concerning these few , and then as the Lord moves , you may hear of many things more which are to be Queried .

The 22 d. of the 4th . Month , 1660. From a Faithful Souldier of the Army of the Lamb ( which must get the Victory , ) for whose Testimony I suffer in Lambeth-House . George Fox , the Younger .
THE Testimony of God To those Rulers , Teachers , and People of this present Age , where the Headship of the Church is given to Man , and to such as strive to have it so , and to those that set themselves in the seat of God , by taking upon them , that which properly belongs to God and Christ , who are one . Wherein God's Controversie with them is plainly Demonstrated , Opened , and given by the Spirit of Truth , which is made manifest in that earthen vessel , which is called George Fox , the younger .

HEarken O ye Kings , and Give ear ye Rulers , Teachers , and People of all sorts ( who are striving against the Spirit of God in its workings : ) The Lord's Controversie is great this day , and few there be that rightly understand it ; Therefore are ye confounded , broken , and breaking one of another , and cannot be healed , until you return to , and receive and obey that which will shew you with what God's Controversie is : Therefore consider this , The inspiration of the Almighty giveth understanding , Job 32.8 . Yea , the life of the Immortal Word , which is the Light of men , John 1.4 . giveth to understand the mind of the Eternal God ; Therefore to the Light which the Word hath enlightned you withal ; Take heed , John 1.9 . for that is the faithful Witness of God , and to that in you all ( who shall hear the Testimony which God hath given me to bear ) shall I be made manifest ; for that shall answer to the words of the most High , which I have to utter ; Therefore let all flesh be silent , that Truth may take place , and that the words of the Holy One may be heard and received .

Thus saith the Lord God , My Controversie hath not been , nor is not with man , any further than as he is departed from me , and joyned to , and become one with the man of sin , that wicked one , the Son of Perdition , who is exalted in man , above me the Eternal God , and opposeth me , and sitteth in my Temple , shewing himself to be God , in taking upon him that which properly belongeth unto me , for he commands and leads them with whom my Controversie is , into whatsoever and whithersoever he pleaseth , and they are become subjects unto his Kingdom , so that they will not that I should Reign over them : but they have taken Counsel of my Adversary , who hath taught them also to take ( as it were ) my Honour ( which I will not give to another ) unto themselves ; and so they are become one with my Adversary : And by his Power they also ( in many things ) have set themselves in my stead , in taking upon them to do things which did properly belong unto me , and they in thus doing , have slighted and rejected the thing that I have done ; and thus the Abomination which maketh desolate , standeth in the place where it ought not ; For which cause I will visit , saith the Lord God .

And now You with whom God's Controversie is , ( who have given the headship of the Church to man ) that you may further see your Error . ( Mark ) and consider these things , It did properly belong to the Mighty Eternal God , to Ordain a Head for his Church , and he unalterably Ordained one Head thereof , which is Christ , the second Adam , the Lord from Heaven , the quickening Spirit : Yea , he gave him to be Head of the Body , which is the Church , the fulness of him that filleth all in all , that he in all things might have the preheminence , in whom all fulness dwells , Col , 1.18 , 19. Ephes. 5.23 . and 1.22 , 23.

And by the appointment of the Father , he giveth forth all the Laws and Ordinances which his Church ( that is the Congregation of the Righteous ) are now to observe ; and whosoever will not hear him in all things , and follow his leadings , and obey his voice , are to be cut off ; For all Judgement is committed unto him , John 5.22 , 27.

But many of you who ( in several Nations ) are called Christians ( with whom the Lord's Controversie is great , unto the dishonour of God ) You have taken upon you to Ordain other Heads of the Church then Christ , and they shall give forth Laws and Ordinances for the Church to observe , and they that will not hear your Heads , and observe their Laws and Ordinances , you will cut them off , or Persecute them ; and in thus doing you have slighted and rejected the thing that God hath done , and ye have set your selves in his stead ; And this is a great Cause of God's Controversie with this Age , and until this abomination be removed and broken down , God will remove and break down all in whomsoever it doth reside , and all such as would uphold it , whatsoever their names be called ; For whosoever will strive to uphold that Authority in themselves or others , which properly belongs to God and Christ ( who are one ) shall not be able to stand in this the day of God's Controversie ; neither can the Nations be setled in true Peace , until that be given up to Christ , which properly unto him belongs , and is his Right ; for though the Lord hath long born with great patience , yet now the time hasteth , that the Heir must be Possest of that which the Father hath given unto him , and they that will not freely give up to him his due , must be broken .

And now , O England , to Thee I speak ( mark ) this did not serve to end the Controversie of God with Thee , when thou didst take the Headship of the Church from the Pope , and gave it to the ( outward ) King ; Neither did that end God's Controversie with Thee , when thou didst take it from thy King again , and gave the Nature or Power of the Headship ( though not the Name ) unto an Assembly of Priests called the Synod , whom thou Authorizedst to give forth directions and Ordinances for the Church to observe ; and if after thy long Changing of it thus , one from another , Thou now give it to thy ( outward ) King again , ( as many in thee strive to do ) this will not end God's Controversie with thee neither ; For these things do not at all answer the intent of God ; for the Lord will not own , that a King should be called the Supream Head of a Church , no more then he will own that a Pope should be so called ; Neither will he own any to exercise the Office of Headship in his Church , but Christ onely , Whom he hath given unalterably to be the Head thereof ; Therefore whether it be Pope , King , Priests , or any others , that will not submit to Christ , and own Him alone to be the Head of the Church , must be slain by the Sword of his Justice ; Therefore O England , Take heed what thou dost , and provoke not the Lord yet further against thee in this particular ; for , until the Headship be wholly given up to Christ , God's Controversie cannot cease .

And furthermore , it doth properly belong unto God and Christ ( who are one ) to make and Ordain whomsoever they Please to be Ministers ; and those Ministers are to follow those orders and directions , and to declare those words unto the People ( and not what they will themselves ) which the most High gives unto them ; and they are to go to such places as He sends them unto , to declare His Will ; and they are to receive that for their Labour which He alloweth them , and they are to abide in those places , observing those orders and directions which he gives unto them ; and they are not to remove , but at His pleasure , and as He gives them freedom , or by His order , which they must observe .

But in these things also , Man hath set himself in the stead of God ; For men in these Nations have made , and some yet do make and Ordain whomsoever they please to be Ministers , and those Minsters are to follow those orders and directions , and to speak those words to the People which Man giveth unto them , ( and also they may in some things speak more if they will ) and they are to go to such places as man sends them unto , and there to declare that which man in his will hath prescribed and set down ; And they are to receive for this their Labour that which man alloweth them ( with what more they can get to satisfie their greedy minds ) and they are to abide in those places , observing those orders and directions which man gives unto them , and they are not to remove but at man's pleasure , by his order , or as he gives them Freedom .

And thus hath man , even the man of Sin , set himself in the stead of God , and would force all to bow unto him ; and so man in this state hath rejected the Will of God , and his Work ; for such a one whom God makes a Minister , and sends unto places to declare his Will ( unto the People , as he hath received it from God ) such a one is counted a Vagabond and a disturber of the Peace , and Persecuted by such as are exalted in their fleshly minds , above the witness of God ; And for this cause also is God's Con●roversie with Nations , and they cannot be established in true Peace , until they give unto God and Christ , that which to them belongs , ( which they have held from God by usurpation ) therefore whether it be Popes , or Kings , or Parliaments , or any other men that will assume this to themselves which alone belongs to God and Christ , they must and shall be broken , let their strength be never so great : For the Lord ( who is Mighty ) will take to himself this his proper Right in making Ministers which shall observe his Will , and he will provide for them , and such as are made by man he will Confound ; Therefore O Nations , take heed what you do , and run not your selves any more into these things , lest you further increase God's anger against you .

And as Christ is the Au●hor of the true Faith and not man , so he is the Defender of it , and not man ; Therefore that Title must be given unto Him , and not unto man , or else God's Controversie cannot cease .

Again , it is God's proper Right to give Laws unto man , Isa. 33.22 . For there is one Law-giver , who is able to save and to destroy , Jam. 4.12 . And the Law is not made for the Righteous , but for the unrighteous , 1 Tim. 1.9 . And the Law is to go forth of Zion , Mica . 4.2 . Isa. 2.3 . Now in this particular also , man hath set himself in the Seat of God , and so hath dishonoured the one Law-giver , by setting up many Law-givers , who not being guided by the pure Spirit of the Lord , have made Laws contrary to the Will of God , whereby the Righteous have been Punished and Oppressed . Now in this particular , man hath exceedingly corrupted his wayes ; for which cause God's Controversie is exceeding great ; And until man submit to the one Law-giver in this particular also , ( who is able , both to save and to destroy ) God's Controversie cannot cease ; for the Law which God gives , is not against the Righteous , but against the unrighteous .

But how are the Laws of these Nations like to be such , ( let the witness of God in all you answer ) seeing by man it is given into the hands of man in such a manner as it is to make Laws ? ( Mark ) Have you not read in the Scriptures of Truth , that the Flock of Christ is a little Flock , Luke 12.32 . And that , though Israel be as the sand of the Sea , yet but a remnant shall be saved , Isa. 10.22 . Rom. 9.27 . And again , strait is the way , and narrow is the Gate that leadeth unto Life , and few there be that find it ; ( mark that ) because broad is the way and wide is the Gate that leadeth to destruction , and many there be that go in thereat , Mat. 7.13 , 14. Now mark and consider these things , seeing that the Righteous are fewer in number then the unrighteous , and that the Law-makers are chosen by the most voyces ; ( and that of the richest People outwardly ) how are the Righteous like to be preserved in outward freedom by the Laws that are so made ? Doth not the World love his own , John 15.19 . And will it not provide for its own Life and Liberty ? And is the life and Liberty of the Righteous one with the world , ( Read Wisdom , the 2. Chap. ) Will not that which is for the freedom of the one , be for the bondage of the other ? Oh! the Lord hath beheld this abomination , and his Soul abhors it , and his Controversie is with the Nations , because of the grievous Oppression , Oaths , & Violence , which fills the Earth partly by this means ; Oh! how do the rich oppress the poor , and draw them before the Judgement seats ? Jam. 2.6 . And how do the haughty vaunt themselves over the meek ? And how is Judgement turned backward ? For he that departeth from iniquity maketh himself a prey to this Generation , Isa. 59.14 , 15. And though several overturnings have been , yet is iniquity still at a great height , and increaseth exceedingly ; And what will it advantage a Child to flee from a Bear and joyn to a Lyon ? Verily the day is come , wherein there is no hiding place of safety for the Righteous , but purely in the Name of the Lord , and blessed are they that alone trust therein . For the help of the meek standeth in the Name of the Lord , ( Psal. 124.8 . Hos. 13.9 . ) And happy are they that abide in it , for the day will be terrible and dreadful unto all that have not a habitation in the Name of the Lord the King of Saints ; For Violence and Oppression shall come to the full , and then shall the Lord Roar out of his Habitation , and he shall strike the Inhabitants of the Earth with Astonishment , and Faintness , and Deadness of Spirit , shall seize upon the mighty men , and weakness and fear upon th● strong and bold of the Earth ; for the Lord will appear in his mighty Power to take the Kingdom , and to relieve the oppressed , and to help the needy , and they shall be strong in him .

Be wise therefore O ye Kings , and learn Wisdom ye Iudges and Rulers of the Earth , Return unto the Lord and serve him with fear , Tremble before the Glory of his Presence , and Kisse the Son , lest he be angry and you perish by the way ; For his wroth shall suddenly burn , & then , blessed are all they that trust in Him , ( Read Psal. 2. ) Therefore strive not with the Lord any longer , by withholding his Right from Him , but give unto him his due , and resign up to him and his anointed the things that he doth require , for the Lamb must get the victory , and he must have the Preheminence in all things , yea , he must be the Supream Head in all Spiritual things , and the only Law-giver to his People ; yea , he with the Higher Power must ordain and send forth Ministers and Labourers into his Church , Vineyard , and Harvest , for he only can fit them for the work , and not man ; and he will take care that they shall not lack any thing , ( Luke 22.35 . ) For the Earth is the Lord's , and the fulness thereof , ( Psal. 24.1 . ) And he will constrain People with his love ( which is better than outward force ) to give his Ministers Food and Raiment when they have need thereof , and they will be contented there-withal , 1 Tim. 6.8 . Therefore meddle not with these things any more , I warn and exhort you in the Love of God : For it belongs not unto you , but unto God and Christ , who are one , and let Christ only be acknowledged to be the defender of the Faith , who is able to perform that Office to the full , which man is not .

And let the one Law-giver be minded and owned in man , to give forth Laws to punish Transgressors , that so the Judgement may be the Lord's and not man's , for so it ought to be ; and he that Ruleth over men , must be Just , ruling in the Fear of God , ( 2 Sam. 23.3 . ) And they that Fear the Lord and hate Covetousness , ought to be Judges and Rulers ( Exod. 18.21 . ) to see and take care that the Law of God be put in due execution , judging righteously , without respect to persons , ( Prov. 24.23 . ) doing to all men , as they would they should do unto them , keeping out of Bribes and Gifts , that the eye may not be blinded , ( Exod. 23.6 , 7 , 8. And such Rulers as these , will the Lord set up and Honour , unto whom he will plainly shew his Righteous just Law , which he wil have executed upon Transgressors , and men shall be subject unto them for Conscience sake , and they only shall be a terror to evil doers , and encouragers of them that do well , and they shall be guarded with Righteousness , and the Lord shall bless them with the dew of Heaven , and they shall send forth a good savour into the Earth , and then shall the Inhabitants of the Earth learn Righteousness ; For Judgement shall run down as Water , and Righteousness as a mighty stream ; for the Judgments of the Lord shall be rightly executed , and self-ends shall be denyed ; and then shall Praises , Dominion , Honour , and Obedience , and all that is the Lord's , be yielded unto him the King of Saints ; And until this come to pass , God's Controversie shall not cease : But there will be Breaking , and Overturning , Oppressing , and Spoyling , and Insnaring one of another , and they that come uppermost , and will not give unto the Lord his due , but set themselves in his Seat , whatsoever words they profess , or let them appear never so strong in the arm of flesh , yet they shall be broken down with dishonour ; and Plagues and Torments shall be the Portion of the Hypocrite that bows to deceit ; and Babylon must fall and perish ; for strong is the Lord which judgeth her , ( Rev. 18.8 . ) And in vain do men seek to establish themselves in that which the Lord is against , and wo will be unto them that are found in the State of Capernaum and Edom , ( Read Obediah 3.4 . Mat. 11.23 . )

And now ye Rulers , Teachers , and People , remember you are warned , and it is in true love to your Souls and Bodies , therefore Repent whilst you have time left you , that you may be saved , though it be so as by fire ; and speedily resign up to the Lord , that which properly belongeth unto Him ; for verily , the day dawneth apace , which shall reveal that man of sin more and more , who hath set himself in the Seat and stead of God , whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of his Mouth , and abolish and destroy with the Brightness of his coming , ( 2 Thes. 2.3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8. ) And the day of the Lord shall even so come as a Thief in the night ; And when the wicked shall say Peace and safety , then shall come upon them sudden destruction , even as the travel of a woman with Child , which by no means can be escaped , ( 1 Thes. 5.2 , 3. )

Be still O ye Saints of the most High God , keep clear of Babylon , take heed of being ensnared dy her , cleave not to her flatteries in any wise , but follow the Lamb whithersoever he leadeth you ; and hold fast the Word of his Patience in the true Integrity of your hearts , that so ye may stand and endure the Tryal to the end ; and whatsoever you suffer for the Testimony of God , you shall have a full reward for it , if you faint not : This in the Word of the Lord , is unto you .

Lambeth-House , the 28th . of the 4th . Month , 1660. POSTSCRIPT .

ANd if I could write no more , yet this is the Testimony of Truth , to the Rulers , Teachers , and People of this present Age ( in what Nation soever this may come ) Mark , you must all come to the Light of the Lord Jesus Christ ( the Lamb of God ) who hath enlightned you , that with the Light you may come to see what is contrary to the mind and will of God , both in your Laws , and Governments , and in the constitutions thereof , and in your Ministry , and Worship , and in the constitutions thereof , and in all your Conversations ; And that which you see with the Light , to be contrary to the mind and will of God , ( in any of these things before-mention ) you must deny , and give it up to be consumed by the Spirit of Judgement and burning ; and you must give your full consent that the Lamb of God ( the Light of the World , the second Adam , the Lord from Heaven , the quickning Spirit , who is one with the Eternal Father ) may have the preheminence in all things ; And that he may Rule in you all , over you all , and lead and guide you all , in all things , before you can witness that God's Controversie with you is fully come to an end ; And all them of the Nations that are saved , must walk in the Light of the Lamb : Therefore let every particular in their several stations , come to a true honest search speedily , and cast off , and deny that which the Light will let you see that God is against , that so haply God may stay the mighty Judgement ( which otherwise must come ) which is nigh at the door , which will sweep away the ungodly .

These are faithful and true sayings , and things which must shortly be fulfilled ; therefore , blessed will every one be , that will hear and obey the Counsel of the most High ; for the day of the Lord draweth nigh .

And now ye Rulers , if ye resolve to build up that which God hath thrown down by an out-stretched Arm ; and if you strive to establish your selves in that which God's Controversie hath been , and yet is against , you will undo your selves for ever ; for you will engage the Lord against you , who assuredly will be too strong for you , and break and confound you , as opposers of his mighty work ; therefore take heed what you do , the Lords decree shall stand .

George Fox , the younger .
THE DREAD Of Gods Power , UTTERING ITS VOICE Thorow MAN , unto the HEADS of the NATION .

OH ! ye Mighty men , who sit upon the THRONE , that are Exalted into Power , and brought into great Authority . Do you indeed know the Hand that brought you up thither ? And do you rightly understand the End of your coming into Power again ? And do you certainly know the Work which God requires at your hands ? And do you indeed see the true Leader , which is to lead in the Way and Work of the Lord ? And do you Feel and Witness that your Hearts are truly Enclined and Prepared towards the Work of the Lord ? Or are you not ignorant of these Things ? And do you not rather feel your Hearts enclined towards REVENGE , and to make your selves Great , and to get your selves a Name , and to follow that which is pleasing to your own Eyes , and to Condemn that which God hath Justified , and to Justifie that which God hath Condemned , and doth Condemn ?

Let there be an honest search made with the Witness of God in your own hearts , which will shew you the thoughts , and the intents thereof ; and think not to flatter your selves , as others have done before you , by conceiving that you are safe enough , because the Arm of Flesh is with you , and at your Command : For verily , verily , Thus saith the Lord God , I will yet make the Powers of the Earth to know , that I am God , and there is no other ; and that I can do whatsoever I please , and my Purpose and Decree shall stand unalterable ; And I will bring to pass the thing that is in my Heart , and none shall let it ; for in its season it shall be accomplished .

Oh! Hear ye Rebellious and live ; be not so stiff-necked and wilful , like those that went before you ( who would not hear Reproof ) lest I make you a hissing , and scatter you with more dishonour that any that went before you ; for my Anger is kindled , and my Jealousie is waxed hot against the Man of Sin . My Decree is to Dis-throne him , and to take the Kingdom my self , and to slay his Subjects that will not turn at my Reproof , and be subject to my Government ; Therefore seek not your selves , neither follow the Devices and Iniquity of your own hearts any longer ; for I the LORD am coming to plead with all flesh , and I will make mine Enemies know , that I have Power to accomplish my own Work , though I should find all the Armed men , and the men in Authority , against me .

Now this is my Decree ; I will set up Righteousness in the Earth , and I will establish Equity and Mercy amongst the People ; I will remove Oppression from off the Earth , and I will Search out , and overthrow the Ground and Foundation thereof , in whomsoever , or in whatsoever it stands ; even , as I overthrew Sodom in the dayes of old ; and they that will not haste out of it , shall certainly be destroyed , saith the Holy One ; who will break the Potsherds of the Earth that withstand him , and consume the Stubble , the Thorns , and the Bryars , that set themselves in Ba●tel against him , who is a consuming Fire .

Therefore , Oh ye Heads of the People ! Consider your Wayes , and weigh your Actions in that equal ballance ( the Word of God ) which will shew you the thoughts and the intents of your hearts : for verily , the Lord God is highly displeased , and your hearts are seen not to be right before him ; Therefore consider your Foundation upon which you build , lest your building fall with great dishonour and loss , when the Storm comes , which shall come to try it .

Mark , Were You , or your Fathers and Friends , able to keep your selves in Power , when the Lord formerly appeared against you , to cast you out before your Enemies , because of your Rebellion against him ? Or were your Enemies able to keep you out of Power , and themselves in , when the Lord appeared against them , to Split and Confound them , and to turn their day into darkness , and to bring you in as a Flood over them , because of their treacherous dealing with the Lord , and because they perverted the Cause and Power that was put into their hands , serving themselves and their Lusts , and not the Lord ? Verily , as they were not able to stand , no more will you be able to stand and keep your Places ( except you repent ) and own , that your Enemies had a a just Cause put into their hands against you : And so , put a difference betwixt the Cause , and That which perverted it , and not judge and condemn both together ; for if you do , verily I say unto you , when you have filled up your measures , you will assuredly fall without recovery , though you were ten thousand times stronger than you are , and although not one man appeared against you with a Carnal Weapon .

Consider , Was it a Carnal Weapon that brought you in ? Were you not brought in without a stroke outward ? And is not the Lord the same ? Is his hand shortned ? Hath not he the hearts of all Flesh in his Power ? And can he not turn them as he pleaseth ? Can he not root out , and overthrow whomsoever he will ? And if he will do it without outward means ▪ can any resist his Will ? Or if he will do it by outward means , cannot he provide it himself , contrary to man's expectation ? Therefore , Dread ye the Maiesty and Power of the Lord , and fear before his Dreadful Name .

Friends , I must deal plainly with you in the sight of God , who hath made me a Prophet to the Nation , I may not flatter any of you : My Life is in the hand of my Maker , and not one hair of my Head can fall to the ground without his Providence . He hath redeemed my Soul from Hell , and my Mind from the Earth ; and he hath given me his good Spirit to lead me : I am henceforth no more my own , but I am the Lord 's , who hath formed me for his Praise , and hath brought me forth , that I may sound forth his powerful Truth amongst the People . Therefore must I not fear Man , neither must I be afraid of the Sons of Men.

Verily , your Spirits are seen to be too high for the Work , which God will have to be wrought in the Earth ; and you are found in that your selves , which the Lord will work against . And he is loaded with the pride and excess that ye ( and many in the Nation ) are in ; and his Soul abhors the Vanity , Musick , and Pleasures which ye delight in .

Oh how hath Iniquity abounded since ye came into place ! and how is Oppression and Cruelty encreased and continued , upon them that seek the good of all ! Now consider this , That which the Lord was wroth with you for , and threw you and your friends out for before , he will not own that now , nor that you should revive and establish that again : For the Lord's Controversie is yet against those things , ( though he hath thrown out a treacherous People , who perverted his Cause ) Therefore , try your Foundation , before you build and settle ; for verily , whatsoever is not founded upon CHRIST JESUS , the Rock of Ages , ( whether it be in things Religious , or in things Civil ) the higher it is built , the greater will its fall be ; and every ones work must be tryed by fire , what Foundation soever they build upon ; and great will be the Destruction and Consumation ; for nothing but what can abide the fire shall remain : And verily , there is exceeding much , both in Governours and Governments , Laws , Ministry , Profession , Trades , and in the Constitution of them , as they now stand ( and in the Conversations of the People ) which is to be utterly destroyed by the fire of the Lord's Jealousie , and the day hastens which will try every man's work of what sort it is ; and that which is for the fire , neither high words , nor outward strength shall be able to save it .

Oh! The Spirit of the Lord is grieved , and pressed , with the Iniquities and Whoredoms of this Generation . Oh! the Waste and the Spoyl , that is made of the Lord's Creatures , excess in Apparel , excess in Diet , and deceitful Feastings , and Banquetings ; and each strive to exceed one another , not scarce knowing what to invent , to eat and to drink , or to put on ; or what Musick , or Images and Vanities to invent to please the Carnal Eye and Ear ; and in the mean time , your own flesh , or them of the same blood , lye , go , sit , or stand in your streets , crying for a piece of Bread ; and many of your Lame , and Blind , and Sick , and others , both in Prisons and other places are ready to Famish .

Oh! Consider these things speedily , and mock not at the Lord's Menssengers ( as some before you have done , when they have been warned , as you now are ) lest your bonds be made strong also , and lest the Lord smite you with a Curse , and send you Famine or Want , in the room of your Abundance and Superfluity ; and Rags instead of Ribbons , Feathers , Gold , and Silver Lace , and Gorgious Attire ; and howling and mourning instead of your Musick ; Songs , and Oaths .

Oh! It 's hard to utter the abomination that flows and swells in this Nation ; it is a shame to the Rulers , to suffer these Stage-playes , Mount-banks , and vain Sports and Shows , whereby the Lord is greatly dishonoured , and foolish People are cheated of their money , and the Creation is devoured and wasted , and Mens lives sometimes endangered .

Oh! How have men invented mischief and vanity , to stir up lightness and vanity one in another . Oh ye Rulers ! is not this a horrible wickedness , that a man who hath his right natural senses , should be suffered to feign himself to be a Natural Fool ? and that he should be suffered to speak any light vain words he pleaseth , even what he can invent , to stir up lightness and vain laughter among you ? Have you not manifested your selves to be slighters of the Apostles Doctrine ? ( read Eph. 4.29 . & 5.4 . )

† † This Abomination have I beheld several times out of my Prison Window . And is this an honour for the Chief of you , to have a company of Men and Boys , drest up with Ribbons and Bells about their legs , and one acting like a Fool with a Ladle in in his hand , dancing before you , even like a company of mad distracted men , making a noise like a company of Carriers Horses ?

Oh! the Life of God is grieved with these things , and all that fear his Name loath them , and it is a shame that ever such things should be suffered in a Land .

Therefore , O ye Rulers , let all this ungodliness , and superfluity of naughtiness be laid aside , and receive with meekness the ingrafted Word , which is able to save your souls , Jam. 1.21 . and that will teach you to love even your Enemies , and to forgive them ; and to put a difference between the pretious and the vile : And it will keep your hands from blood , and your hearts from desiring after it , if you will obey it ; and it will shew you with what God's Controversie is , both in your Government , and Worship , and Conversations ; and it will teach you to deny it ; Yea , if you will own its Teachings , it will teach you to deny all ungodliness and worldly lusts , and to live godly , righteously , and soberly in this present world , Tit. 2.11 , 12. But if you will not return to the Word , which is nigh in your mouths , and in your hearts , that you may obey it , and do it , ( Deut. 30.14 . Rom. 10.8 . ) verily this know , that neither your Strength nor Wisdom , shall be able to deliver you , from the just hand of the Lord , which shall find out all his Enemies .

Therefore , if you would escape the overturning hand of the Lord , Repent speedily , and humble your selves before the Lord , and forgive your Enemies ; love Mercy , Compel none to your Worship , nor to uphold your Teachers ; and be willing that the Lord alone should send forth Labourers into his Harvest , and that he may lead them by his own Spirit , that they may speak as that gives them utterance , and limit or quench it not , but let all have their Freedom to Worship God in the Spirit ( who know it ) according to the manifestation of it , which is given to every man to profit withal , ( Joh. 4.23 , 24. 1 Cor 12.7 . ) for such a Worship the Lord owns .

And take away that grievous Oppression of Tythes , and forced Maintenance , which hath cost some their lives , and many a great part of their Estates , who for Conscience sake have been made to witness against it . Undo every Heavy Burden , and break every Yoak , and let the Oppressed go free ; And let Christ Iesus , the everlasting King , have the preheminence in all things , Col. 1.18 . for these things the Lord will have to be accomplished and brought to pass ; and if you will not submit to him in this his work , he must and will remove you .

And this further consider , Oh! take heed that none of you , upon your Beds or elsewhere , devise Cruelty and Oppression , and how to avenge your selves upon your Enemies ; and then , when you are assembled together , confirm it by a Law , because you have power so to do ; for the Lord abhors that , who is appearing to give to all men according to the fruits of their doing , and he will not respect any man's person .

Now if by your Strength you can hinder the Sun from rising and setting in its season , and if you be able to stop the Thunder and Lightning from having its operation , or to hinder the Wind from blowing , and the Rain from descending , then may you hinder the Decree of the Lord , and by your Strength you may stand in Power and Peace , and flourish for a long Season , though you serve and avenge your selves to the full , and though you rebel against the Lord , and oppress his Heritage .

Lambeth-House , the 28th . of the 5th Month 1660. Written ( as moved and given by that eternal Power , which only can preserve and deliver the righteous ) by a Prisoner for the Lord , who am given up to his Will in all things . G. F. the younger .
A MESSAGE OF Tender Love Unto such Professors as have attained any true sincerity , simplicity , and Zeal for God in their Professions ; Or who ( after their Backslidings and Apostacy from the former appearances of God unto them ) are now in this the day of Tryal ( which is begun ) brought to feel any fresh Desires , and living breathings , and thirstings renewed in them towards the Lord .

OH ye Professors ! who have tasted of the Word of God's Grace , ( in any measure ) and who have formerly had any true Tenderness in you , and Zeal for God ; Oh friends ! in Bowels of much Tenderness and Love , am I drawn forth to write unto you ; yea my soul breaths mightily to the Lord for you , who have now any true hungrings and thirstings renewed in you after his Righteousness , and in whose hearts there are any true simple desires retained , to know the Will of God , and to do it .

Friends , The Eternal Being , which giveth being to all his Creatures , hath largely manifested his love unto the World , in giving his onely begotten to be the Light of the World , ( who doth enlighten every one that cometh into the World , that all through him might believe ) and inasmuch as he in the fulness of time sent forth his onely begotten ( full of Grace and Truth ) into the World , in a body which he had prepared him , therein to do his will , which body the onely begotten of the Father freely gave , and offered up for a Sacrifice for Sin , and so according to his Grace he tasted Death for every man , and by his offering himself once for all , he hath put an end to all the Sacrifices and Offerings mentioned in the Law , which could not make the Comets thereunto perfect , ( nor those that offered them ) as appertaining to the Conscience : So Christ the one Offering is become the Propitiation for the sins of the whole World , * * So that none shall be able in the day of the Lord to plead , or say , Lord because our first Parents fell from thee , and became dead unto thee , and so were driven out from thy presence , and we being brought forth in this unreconciled state , there was no way left unto us to approach or come near unto thee , to lay hold of the Grace , that thou offerest unto all , by reason of thine Anger ; I say none shall be able thus to plead : For Christ the Fathers Love hath consecrated a way , by his freely giving up himself a Propitiatory Sacrifice which appeaseth God , and therefore it is said , that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself , not imputing sin unto them . So he that perisheth it shall be for his own sins , not for his parents ▪ but because he believed not in Christ , who hath freely made a way for him to come unto God , and by the power of his life visiting him , puts him in a capacity to receive the free grace , which bringeth salvation , which to all men hath appeared . who wrought Eternal Salvation for all them that obey him : And here is the one Offering which perfects for ever them that are sanctified . And he having accomplished the Will of the Father , in that body which was prepared him of the Father ( in which he came into the World ) he again left the World ( he not being of the World ) and ascended unto the Father ( from whence he proceeded ) and sate down on the Right Hand of the Majesty on High , and is now Glorified with the same Glory that he had with the Father before the world began ; yea the same that descended into the lower parts of the Earth , is also the same that ascended far above all Heavens , that he might fill all things ; and being one with the Father , and in the Father , and the Father in him , his presence filleth Heaven and Earth ; and being the Son in the Father , he hath Power as the Father , to quicken whomsoever he will , that all men might honour the Son as the Father , by whom all things were made , that were made , in whom we live , move , and have a being ; and he hath a Name given him above every name ( to which all things must bow ) which is called The Word of God , or Jesus , because he is a Saviour , and saveth his People from their Sins . This is he that is given to be the Head of the Body , which is the Congregation of the Righteous , the fulness of him that filleth All in all ; that he in all things ( in whom all fulness dwells ) might have the Preheminence , being the express substance of the Father's Glory , & the very vertue of his Being , one with him in Nature , and one in Name ; for as the Father is Divine , so the Son is also Divine ; and as the Father is called the Light , so the Son is also called the Light ; the Father is called The Mighty God , so is the Son also : Yea the Son's Name is called ( Wonderful ) The mighty God , the everlasting Father ( mark that ) the Prince of Peace , of whose Government there shall be no End .

Now in the Father there is Life , and in the Word the Son , there is Life , and this is one ; and this Life proceeding from the Father and the Son , is that one Eternal Spirit , which is not to be limitted : Yea God is a Spirit , and Christ is the Lord that spirit ; yea he is the second Adam , the Lord from Heaven , the quickning Spirit , by whom the free gift is come upon all men , to justifie them that believe in the Life , and he that believeth not , he is condemned by the Life , which is the Light that doth enlighten every one that cometh into the World ; so the gift that is come upon the unbeliever , that condemns him , because he believeth not in the Light , but loves the Darkness better .

Now Friends , This is he ( the Light ) who giveth you a Being , and upholdeth all things by the word of his Power , and hath been near unto you ever since ye have had a Being , and he hath beheld all your actions ; yea he hath discerned all your thoughts , none of them could be hid from him , for he knew them long before . This is he that telleth unto man what his thought is , and The Lord of Hosts is his Name . This is he who hath reproved you , and set your sins in order before your eyes . Oh! How oft hath he brought you into a sensibleness of your Conditions ? How oft hath he smitten you for Sin , and broken you into Tenderness by his Power , when you have seen your loathsom state ? Oh! how oft hath he begotten true Tender desires , and breathings in you , after the Knowledge of his Will ? And how hath he appeared unto you , and shewed you the Darkness , Ignorance , and Idolatry that many of you were formerly in ? And how oft hath he begotten loathings in you against those things that you saw ( with his Light ) to be evil ? And how oft hath he kindled a zeal in many of you against the works of the Devil ? And how have you felt his Tender Love sometimes opening your understandings , and drawing you into that which is good ? Oh! How hath he sometimes brought some of you into lowliness of mind , and given you to see the vanity of this world ? And how hath he opened a door of hope unto you , & given you a measure of faith ( sometimes ) concerning your Eternal Salvation ?

And how have some of you then felt a willingness begotten in you to deny your selves , and the glory and vanity of this world , and to take up that , and to bear that , which appeared to cross your carnal minds , and to do unto others as ye would they should do unto you ? And how did the Pride , and Glory , and vanity of this World become a burden to many of you in that day ? Oh! How have some of you cryed out and said , you had rather cease to live , than not cease to Sin ? Oh Friends ! This was a good beginning , and some of you came further than others in the way that was good ; yea surely a good sweet Presence of God was among many of you in the day when you were low and tender , and several of you were sensible of his love in that day , while sincerity and simplicity abode in your hearts . Oh! How did the Lord hear your cryes in that day , when many of you cryed unto him for deliverance ? Oh! How did he overturn your Enemies before you which oppressed your consciences ? And how did he give you outward rest , and peace , and Liberty to worship him , according as he had made himself manifest unto you .

But Oh Friends ! there hath been a sad day of Apostacy among many of you , and many of your Teachers have caused you to err ; for as they went from the simplicity and Tender Life in themselves , that once had stirred in some of them against the worship of the Beast , they then ran into many words , out of the Power and Life that had stirred in them , and so lost the simplicity and true zeal they once had for God . And then they also drew you from that Tender Life and Power that had visited you , into many words of other men's Conditions , and so the true simplicity that had been in you soon decayed . And as you were drawn from the Life and Power , and Spirit of God in your selves , the subtilty within and without drew your minds after the Tree of Knowledge , and as you reached forth to that , and received and fed of that , you dyed as to God , and became more and more alive unto sin , and grew rich in knowledge , and that puffed many of you up , and so poorness in Spirit , and the hungerings and thirstings after the Life of God , which sometimes in you had been felt , you lost . And such of you were oft sent empty away from your Worships ; mark , empty of the vertue , and refreshments , and sweetness which the Lord fills such with , as are poor in Spirit , and lowly in mind , and hunger and thirst after his Righteousness . But others among you , I know , went oft from your Worship full , though it were but of the declaration of others conditions , and their own conceivings , and a false joy . And several of you who had seen the Lords mighty hand , and had been witnesses of his Power , both within and without , when you got into outward ease , and peace , you soon forgot his goodness ; and some of you growing great in the Earth , were lifted up in your minds , you then turned back , and licked up that which you had formerly vomited out , and then hardness and dryness came upon many of you ; and then that which the Lord had wounded in many of you , ( to wit , the lustful nature which should have been crucified by the immortal Power ) revived and became healed again : And then a false liberty you run into , and so into excess , and then several of you become Oppressors and Despisers , even of such as the Lord by his mighty Power had gathered from your dead Forms and Wayes : And many of you provoked the Lord unto anger several wayes , for which cause he hath now sent a rod to scourge the back-sliders ; and them that were more faithful , must also be proved by the same . Oh friends ! much might truly be said unto many of you , concerning your great Apostacy , and your bringing of this Day of Tryal , or causing it to be brought upon you : But although I may hint something unto you concerning those things , yet that is not the thing which is chiefly upon me at this time : But this is that which lay much upon me ; to wit , to bring to your remembrance something of the former loving kindness of the Lord unto you , and to exhort you who have back-slided , to return to the first love that was begotten in you towards the Lord , and to keep to that Principle of Life , which did begin a good work in you , & to strengthen and encourage you to go on in the work of the Lord . For as concerning your Apostacy , I hope many of you are convinced of that in a great measure , by the witness of God in your own Consciences ; and it is not my desire to upbraid you with that , which I hope in some measure is already become loathsom unto your selves ; neither would I add to your sufferings ( in whom there is now a true tenderness towards the Lord ) in this the Day of Tryal ; for I believe many of you have , or will have , as much of them as you can well bear ; but my tender desire is , that you may be brought to feel so much of the Power of God in your selves as may support you , ( and keep you in patience ) in all your Tryals , until such time as the Lord shall make you fit for deliverance .

Now I do believe , that some of you have retained a greater integrity and simplicity in your Profession than others , and have not so deeply Apostatized from that which God made known unto you of himself , as others have done ; and some of you I know have long been burdened with the Apostacy that others among you have fallen into . And I know several of you also , have long gone under a burden , even concerning your own deadness , barrenness , and unprofitableness , you being made sensible thereof by the VVitness of God in your own Consciences . And when ye have heard others rejoycing , and telling forth their experiences , as they called them , ( which was much of it the Saints experiences of old , which these had not attained unto , any otherwise but by gathering their words out of the Letter , or from man ) then hath sorrow , doubtings , and fears filled your hearts .

Now as there are several conditions among you , so also here are several things spoken unto each condition ; therefore you must mind the VVitness of God in your selves , which makes manifest unto you your several conditions , and that will let you see what of these things that are here written , properly belongeth to each of you , which is my desire that you may receive ; for my tender love in the Lord Jesus Christ is unto all your souls , who truly breath after the Lord , desiring your eternal good ; and that you may be brought into the enjoyment of that Life , and Power , and Presence , which only can give satisfaction unto your immortal Souls .

Therefore as you tender the good of your own souls , & eternal Peace , Cease hunting abroad ( in your imaginations ) and leave off wandring from Mountain to Hill , and from Hill to Mountain , ( where several of you have even wearied your selves for very vanity , & have not found a resting place ) and return Home . Retire your minds inward unto that which oft springeth in you , giving you the sensible knowledge and feeling of your particular conditions , and putting you in remembrance of the dealings of God with you in times past ; for that which thus springeth in you , is the Gift of God , which is given you to profit withal . Oh Friends ! turn not from this Gift in your selves , as you have done ; for by your turning from this pure Life , when it hath visited you ( by its oft putting you in remembrance wherein you went wrong ) you have come to loose the sensibleness of your condition , and the enemy of your Souls thereby hath gotten great advantage against you , and then you have been drawn and led by him into that which could not profit you : Therefore all mind that Gift of God in your selves , which maketh you sensible of your present conditions , and which oft begetteth true desires in you , to do the Will of God , and which hath brought some of you into lowliness of mind , and to walk humbly with the Lord , in his pure Fear , for some time . For if ever you come to witness the true desires of your souls satisfied , and you established in true Peace , you must receive the living Principle of God in your own particular Vessels ; which Principle , I call the Light , it being a proper name for it ; because it maketh manifest all things that are justly reproved , and whatsoever doth make manifest , the same is Light . But I shall not desire to tye up any of you to give this Principle of Truth only the name of Light ; for if you come to believe in it , and receive it in the love of it , and walk in obedience to its drawings , leadings , and requirings , I shall not matter if you call it the Truth , or the Gift of God , or the manifestation of the Spirit of God , or the Grace of God , or the ingrafted Word , or the manifestation of God , or Christ , or a measure of the Eternal Being , or Fulness , or Divine Nature , or any other name which may truly be given unto it . But this is that which I desire , That you all may receive the thing it self , which hath so oft made manifest your conditions unto you , and sometimes brought you into brokenness of Spirit .

Object . But some may say , When we have had our conditions made manifest unto us , and when we have been brought into brokenness of spirit , and have had tender desires begotten in us towards God , to do his VVill , it hath oft been , either when we have been reading the Scriptures , or hearing them Preached , or read by others ; and therefore we believe the Scriptures have done these things to us , rather than any thing within us .

Answ. Friends , I shall not deny but that your conditions have been made manifest unto you , and that you have been brought into brokenness of Spirit , and have had true desires begotten in you , to do the Will of God , sometimes when you have read , or heard the Scriptures read , or Preached unto you : But this I say unto you , It was not the Scriptures that did these things , but it was the Gift of God in your own hearts at that time ; as I shall plainly declare unto you . ( Mark ) Thus it was ; when you have read , or heard others read or speak such words of the Scriptures of Truth , as were suitable to that condition you were then in , or which did declare against such things as you were guilty of , ( mark ) then hath the Witness of God arose in you ( sometimes ) and plainly spoke to your understanding part , and convinced you that you were guilty of such things as were spoken against , in such a Scripture as you read or heard ; yea , it was the measure of God's Truth in your own Vessels , that hath so made manifest your particular conditions unto you , and hath perswaded and overpowered you , and made you believe , and sometimes confess particularly , that thou wert the man , or woman , or child , that was guilty of that , or hadst need of that which thou then didst read or hear , that the Scripture declared against , or of . And when the Power of God hath thus wrought in you at that time , when you have heard or read the Scriptures , you have sometimes indeed been brought into brokenness of Spirit , and render desires have been begotten in you towards the Lord : And the Lord hath also appeared unto some of you , sometimes in the Night season , or as you have been about your labour , or otherwise ; and some of you have felt his pure Power working in you , whereby your understandings in some measure have been opened , and your conditions plainly made manifest unto you , and much tenderness hath been begotten in you , even when you have neither heard nor read any thing outwardly , but the pure operation of the Spirit and Power of Truth in some of you hath done these things , and wrought your minds into lowliness , meekness , and quietness . And then hath the pure love of God been felt ( in some measure ) whereby your souls have been refreshed .

So Friends , the Holy One is neither by you to be limited to the Scriptures , nor yet from the Scriptures , in any wise , as to his appearance to his Creatures ; but you are to learn to wait in the measure of his Grace , which hath appeared unto you , and you are to watch in the Light for his further appearance unto you : And as you come to wait upon the Lord in his pure Fear and Dread , you will feel your minds wrought into stilness , and so you will come to hear the pure Voice of God and Christ ( who are one ) and become acquainted therewithal ; and his love you will feel arising in you , whereby you will be constrained to obey it , when or where-ever you come to hear it ; and then you will see the Lord is not to be limited , either to time , or place , or means outward ; but you will see that he manifesteth himself to his Creatures , even when , and where , and howsoever he pleaseth .

And truly Friends , As concerning these things which the Lord hath suffered to come to pass of late , it is exceeding righteous and just with him to suffer those things to be effected ; for truly ( as you know ) he was much provoked thereunto , and his patience towards many of you was very great ; yea , he spared you long , and yet many of you ( whom I now hope are brought to see your brck-slidings ) regarded not his goodness , but walked very carelesly , and some of you wantonly before him ; yea , many of your minds ran into the earth , and its pomps and vanities again ( after a tenderness had been begotten in you towards the Lord , and a loathing of such things ) and Covetousness and Pride encreased among you , and so lusts , and fulness , and ease was then delighted in , and the honour of this World sought , and received one of another ( and not that which cometh of God onely ) and those that could not give you that honour that perisheth , such by some of you were hated and mocked at , and yet you professed much of Religion in words . But alas ! the hearts of many of you were removed far from the Life of Truth , in which the Lord is worshipped , and so the Sincerity and Zeal which once appeared in some of you for God , and the love which had sprung in you to him , and one to another ( in the day when you were low and tender ) grew cold and died in you , as you departed from the measure of the Life of God . And thus the Lord became grieved , and pressed with your back-slidings , and his Soul loathed your Sacrifices ; and he then saw that a day of Tryal would be better for you than a day of Prosperity . So in Righteousness as from the Lord , is this day brought upon you , and also in love to your Souls , and so it shall prove unto you , if ye will now turn unto the Lord with all your hearts , and humble your selves under his Mighty Hand . Yea some of you who lately have had the enjoyment of great Estates , and outward Liberty , and Honour , and Companions , and have now lost them , or part of them , I do believe that you will be made to confesse ( to the Glory of God ) that it is his love to you in suffering them to be taken from you ; yea some of you will come to see that the Lord is just and merciful unto you in suffering your Idols to be stript off , & taken away . For you will see how some of you have Idolized men , the World , and its honour and glory , and Forms without the Power of an endless Life . Oh Friends ! I have a secret hope for a Remnant of you , that the Lord by this kind of dealing with you , will bring you near unto himself , and that a day shall come wherein you shall be made to say , that It was good for us that we were Afflicted .

But Friends , you that come this to witness , you must mind the free Grace of God that bringeth Salvation , which to all men hath appeared ; yea , ye must own and receive it in its pure Teachings , and wait in the Virtue of it , to receive Power to deny and forsake the Ungodliness and Worldly lusts , ( which it will make manifest unto you ) that you have been addicted unto ; and must wait to feel it drawing you into Godliness , Righteousness , and Soberness , and into Patience and Contentedness with the Will of God , which is a precious thing . Truly they they that do not wait to come into , and to be kept in Patience in this day of Tryal , their sufferings will be great . And if the fretting impatient , murmuring Nature be given way and leaned unto , that will aggravate the Sufferings exceedingly , and beget Torment in the mind .

Therefore you who desire to come into , and to be kept in true Obedience unto the Lord , in this the day of Tryal , be watchful in the Light , and abide in the pure Fear of the Lord , which is the beginning of Wisdom ; and take heed of the subtilry of the Serpent , who will seek more and more to beguile you , and to lead you aside from the way of God . Verily Friends , if you do not retire your minds inwards , unto the Life of Jesus , ( which is the light of men ) you will be deceived , yea if you do not receive the spirit of Truth to be your guide , and Leader , and obey the same , you will still run into those things which cannot profit you , and the renewed desires in you towards the Lord will be strangled .

Now I know some of you have formerly found the Lord's Leadings and Teachings , in some measure , in the day when he drew you out of Episcopacy ( so called ) and raised up a zeal in you against the Lording spirits in the Bishops , and against the dark way of their imaginary Worship , and if you had kept low in the pure Fear of the Lord , I know he would have further appeared unto you . But here was the loss of many of those that the Lord , had appeared unto , ( Mark ) they did not abide in his Tender Fear , neither did they continue waiting upon him ( for Teaching ) in the measure of Life , in which he had appeared unto them ; but many of them going from his Witness in themselves , they soon began to imagin another Form of Worship which is called Presbitery , and many sate down and setled in that , and did not mind the Leadings of the Life which had appeared , and in some measure quickened them ; and so much Deadness and Barrenness came upon such as would not be subject to the drawings of the pure Life of God . But those that kept their integrity in any measure , and waited upon the Lord , the pure Life opened things further unto them , as they were able to bear ; and they were drawn a little further , and a fine Freshness and Tenderness and Love appeared in them for a time : But so soon as they had settled themselves in another Form , which is called Independency , then many of them not willing to follow the Leadings of the Life , any further then the Articles which they had drawn up , and agreed upon , would admit of , whereby the freshness that had appeared in some of them , began to wither . Yet some who still desired to go on , according to the Leadings of the Life , the Life opened things further unto them , and they left the other ; but they not continuing in the true waiting upon the Lord to be led by him , several of them also ran into another Form , called Anabaptism , wherein many began to settle . But some of them I do believe took up that , far more simply than others ; for they being pressed outwardly to it by their Teachers , and also finding in the Scriptures , that the Saints of Old Practised such things , they letting in reasonings , and not waiting in the pure Life that had stirred in them , to be led by that in all things , their eye became vailed , whereby they could see no further , but looked upon that to be their duty , to wit , to go in the water , and so durst not omit it . But the pure Life which had visited them sprang up afresh , and wrought mightily in some of them , and shewed them the emptiness of the water outward ; and let them see , that it is the Baptism inward ( with the holy Spirit and with Fire ) which saves , and brings to the answer of a good Conscience ; And that no Form is to be minded any further then the Power is felt to lead into it , or then the presence of the Lord is witnessed in it . And thus the Lord by his pure Life hath gathered Thousands out of the Forms before mentioned ; and I do believe that he will yet dayly gather more and more into the Power which is endless .

Therefore all you who are yet left in any of those forms before mentioned , or any other , or out of Forms , who have retained any thing of the former Tenderness and Smiplicity which was begotten in you by the appearance of the Lord ; And all you who are brought to see your backslidings , and are now brought to feel any true desires , and thirsting after God renewed in you , my tender love reacheth forth unto you all , in the Life , Power and love of God , wherewith I am loved , and in which I am preserved . Oh! that I could feel you bound up and established with me in the unchangable Truth of God , where satisfaction and Peace is received , and where nothing can make afraid . Oh! that ye would freely yield your selves obedient servants unto the Righteousness of God , which is revealed from Heaven against all unrighteousness of men , ( Mark ) that is the thing which you must become obedient unto , God's Righteousness which appeareth in you against all unrighteousness . And all wait in that which moves against Sin , for that is the Power of God , which you must be turned unto , and receive , before you can receive the remission of Sins , and an inheritance among them that are sanctified , by the Faith which Christ Jesus , the Righteousness of God is the Author and finisher of .

And Friends , you must all mind the present manifestation of the Power of God , and what it now draweth and leadeth unto ; For if you should now run into those things wherein you have formerly enjoyed something of the presence and Life of God , yet if you feel not the pure Power of the Lord God , now drawing you into them , deadness will come upon you more and more , and the tender desires that are renewed in you towards the Lord will be destroyed . Oh! consider this , the day of the Lord is far broke forth in Light and Knowledge , and he is yet making it brighter and brighter , unto them that truly wait upon him : yea he is leading them by the hand of his love from one degree of Grace , and Faith , and Knowledge , unto another , and changing them from glory to glory . And he is powring from vessel to vessel , that the dregs may be left by themselves . Yea he is sifting , and winowing , that the Chaff , and the dross may be taken away , and so the Seed which standeth approved may be made manifest . And he is bringing thorow the fire , and thorow the fire , because the day hasteneth , and draweth nigh , in which he will make up his Jewels , and consume the chaff and the dross . Therefore look not back , neither be afraid of the rage of man ; seek not to save your selves by bowing to his Will , but look to the Lord who declareth unto you what your thoughts are , and gird up the loins oF your minds , and watch and be sober , and hope to the end , all you who through patience , and experience , are come to know any thing of the true hope , which maketh not ashamed .

And Friends , concerning Faith and the Promises of God , there hath been much Profession and talk of those things amongst you : But now the day is appearing which will try all Professions , and every one's work must come to Tryal . Therefore consider your Faith , and the Ground , Author , and effects of it : For there is a dead Faith , and a living Faith , and a ground for both ; Now the living Faith hath Jesus for its Author , and the power of God for its Ground ; and its effects declare it to be the living Faith , for it works in them that have it by love , unto the purifying of their hearts , and it is their victory over the world . These were the effects of the living Faith in the Saints of old , and it hath the same now , as they can witness who have received it . Now there is a Faith which stands but in Words , not in the Power , and this is a dead Faith , it cannot work , it purifies not the heart , it gives not victory over the world , nor access to God , as the living Faith doth .

Oh Friends ! Labour not to content your selves with a dead Faith , but wait that you may hear the leaving Word by which the living Faith comes . Now a man may declare of the Word of Life , as the Scriptures do , and many may believe the words to be true , and profess the same ; and yet if they receive not the living Word , or VVitness in their own hearts , their Faith will prove but a dead Faith , and they will have but words for its ground ; but they that hear the VVords of Truth declared , or read them , and then feel the living VVord arising in themselves , witnessing to the words that they have read or heard , that they are true , over-powering them to believe the same ; or if the VVord of Life speaketh to any ones understanding , when words outwardly are not spoken , and they be over-powered by the Word to believe the same , such come indeed to feel and know how the living Faith cometh , and is wrought .

And they come also to see that this Faith stands in the Power of God , and not in words , and that Jesus ( who saveth from sin ) is the Author of it . And all that come into this state , if they wilfully turn not from the Power , they will feel their Faith increased in and by the Power , and the effects of it will daily come to be manifest , which will be an evidence unto them to prove that it is the living Faith , for they will feel it giving them access to God .

Oh ye Professors ! I speak what I know and witness , and without this Faith you cannot please God .

And concerning the Promises of God , this know :

The Promises are unto the Seed , Not unto Seeds as of many , but unto the Seed , which is One , which is Christ . So all that come to have right unto the Promises of God , they must come to be of the Seed unto which the Promises are . Now it is the Word of Life which begetteth unto God , and brings to be of the Seed which is the Heir of the Promises of God . Therefore wait in the appearance of the Word of Life , that by it you may be begotten into the nature of the incorruptible Seed , and become born of it , that so you may be made meet to be partakers of the precious Promises . Oh that ye would hearken diligently and obey , and your Souls should live . The Lord's hand of tender love and pitty is stretched forth towards you . Oh! be not rebellious any longer , lest he cease striving with you . Truly many of you have mightily provoked the Lord unto anger , and grieved his Spirit in this particular , ( Mark ) in your applying Promises , as you have termed it ; for many of you have stollen the words which declare of the Promises which are to the Seed of Life , and you have applyed them unto the wrong Seed or Birth ; yea , you have gathered the good words ( out of the Scriptures ) that were written unto them who were born again of the incorruptible Seed , and you have applyed them unto your selves , in the corruptible unregenerate state ; and when you have done thus , the Witness of God in your own Consciences hath oft arose and condemned you , and broke the false peace & joy which you had created to your selves , by stealing the Saints conditions and experiences , and applying them to your selves , calling them yours , and saying , it was so with you , when it was not ; yea , many of you have said , your sins were washed away in the Blood of Christ , and that you were freely justified in the sight of God by his Grace , and your Teachers also have told you it was so ; yea , they have Preached peace unto you ( because you put into their mouths ) even while you lived in your sins : But the pure Grace of God hath appeared in your hearts and condemned you . And when you have been thus judged by the Witness of God , your false peace hath been broken , and then some of you have run to your Teachers ( who had cryed peace unto you , and daubed you up with untempered Morter ) and told them your conditions , how you were condemned in your selves , and how you had lost the peace and joy that you formerly had , and how judgement was felt in the room of it . Then some of your blind Guides have told you , that that was the Devil that condemned you , and brake your Peace , ( and thus they have brought themselves under the Wo , Putting Darkness for Light , and Light for Darkness ) and then they have told you , you must apply the Promises , and act Faith ( as they call it ) upon the Promises in the Scriptures , and keep unto them . And thus they have sought to daub you up again , and to draw you from the pure Spirit of Judgement ; and some of you who have received their words , have then strove against the pure Witness ( which condemned you ) and counted it the Tempter , and have laboured in your wills to get from under its pure Judgement , and to force your selves into a belief and perswasion again , that those things , to wit , the Promises belonged unto you . And thus have you fought against the Witness of God , and denied its Testimony , and strangled it , and so got into a false peace again ; but others of you have been kept more sensible of its judgement , and have not dared to deny it , because you have seen that ye were not fit for the Promises ; for you have seen with the Light , that you were out of the condition which is required of such as come to be partakers of the Promises . Now it hath been a great saying among many of you , That you must act Faith upon a bare Promise in the Scriptures , as your Teachers have taught you ; and they have told you , That Abraham believed God upon a bare Promise , and so must you . Oh consider this well ! The Word of the Lord came unto Abraham , saying unto him , Fear not Abraham , I am thy shield , and thy exceeding great reward . And again the Lord spake unto him , saying , I will bless thee , and make thy name great , and thou shalt be a blessing ; and Abraham believed God in these Promises , and others , and he obeyed him : So Abraham's Faith was reckoned unto him for Righteousness , and he was called the Friend of God , because he believed and obeyed him . Now if you were come to hear the Lord speak unto you as Abraham did , then you ought to believe whatever the Lord promised unto you , that he would perform the same ; But if you only get these Promises or others , out of the Scriptures , and then apply them unto your selves , and say you believe it is , or shall be so with you , as it is expressed in those Promises , and yet you never heard the Lord say any such thing unto you , ( Mark ) you do but deceive your selves ; for such a belief ( or acting of Faith upon the Promises as you call it ) will never be accounted unto you for Righteousness ; Neither will you come to find such Promises so gotten fulfilled unto you by the Lord . And you are also to consider this , That many of the Promises in the Scriptures were given forth upon Conditions , and except you come to witness the conditions fulfilled in you by the Power , you are not like to witness such Promises made good unto you . And also there are some Promises spoken of in the Scriptures , which naturally belong to the Immortal Seed , that were by the Lord given forth unto it , without expressing any conditions , because the Seed is free , and doth the Will of God naturally : Now all that come to have right to such Promises , and to witness them fulfilled unto them by the Lord , they first must be converted into the nature of the Seed , by the working of the Immortal Word in them . Therefore you that have true desires after the Lord , wait to feel the work of the Word of Life in your own hearts , that so by it you may be made meet ( as I said before ) to be partakers of the Promises .

Verily Friends ! Many of you have much to pass through , before you can come to feel and witness the Lord ministring his precious Promises of Life and Peace freely unto you . Oh! He waiteth to be gracious unto you ; yea , he hath long waited . Oh! That you would now turn unto him in the drawings of his Power and Life , and cease willing , and running , and striving in your own wills and wayes , and wait to be guided and led by his Spirit , into those things which he requireth at your hands .

Oh Friends ! It is the inside , it is the inside that must be cleansed ; for whilst that is polluted and unclean , the Lord regardeth not the Worship : It is he that searcheth the heart , and tryeth the inward parts ; you cannot hide any thing from him ; For he beholdeth all your goings , and actings , and thoughts .

Now I know many of you will oft make large confessions of your sins ; but Friends , there is a further thing to be minded , ( Mark ) you must also come to forsake them , or else you cannot find the mercy . Therefore hearken diligently unto the call of the Lord , and believe and wait in that which makes manifest sin , and calleth you out of the same , for this is holy , and consenteth not unto sin , it hath no fellowship with darkness , nor concord with the Devil . Now this is the living Truth ; by this you may know it , ( mark ) it is contrary to whatsoever is not of the Truth , and it opposeth evil in the very appearance thereof . Oh that you would hearken unto this ! and receive this in the love of it , when it appeareth in you , that so by the Life , and Power , and Vertue of it , you might be saved and cleansed from your sins . Oh Friends ! if you ever come truly to be made free , it must be by the Truth ; if ever you come to be sanctified , it must be with the Truth : Now the Word is the Truth , and the Word is very nigh you , even in your mouths , to shew you your evil words , and also in your hearts , to shew you the deceit and thoughts thereof ; yea , its Vertue goeth through all things , and its Power upholdeth all things , in it is Life , and that Life is the Light of men . Oh that you would believe in it ! that you might be made the children of it : This Word is Immortal , and it is able to destroy the Devil and his Works , and to save your Immortal Souls . Oh Friends ! though its appearance in you be in judgement , yet resist it not , neither turn from it in any wise ; but when it convinceth you of any evil , and begetteth any love in you towards its judgement . Oh then abide in that love , and then you will see how Christ comes for judgement into the World to judge the Prince of the World , and to cast him out , and to make blind that eye which hath been open , and hath seen in the worldly carnal Spirit , and to open that eye which hath been kept blind by the God or Prince of the World . Yea , as you wait in the righteous Judgements of Christ , you will feel him opening the eye of the understanding part , with his Invisible Light , whereby you will come to see into the Invisible things of God . Oh Friends ! you must own Christ the Word of God , in the way and ministration of his Judgements ; yea , you must own him in the Spirit of Judgement and Burning , before you can truly witness that you are reconciled unto God . Oh! wait to hear the Voice of Christ in your inward man , and be content to bear his yoak , and wait in stilness , that patience in you may have its perfect work ; and if any of you see with the Life of the Word , that your hearts are hard and rocky , keep but in patience , and wait in that Life which maketh you sensible of your condition , and you will feel the pure operation of the Word , smiting as a hammer , which will break your hard hearts into tenderness ; Yea , you will feel them dissolved , melted , and changed , by the Power of the Word , as ye believe and wait in the same ; and then you will know experimentally , that the Word of the Lord is as a Hammer , and as a Sword , and as a fire , and as Fuller's sope ; for you will feel it breaking and cutting down , burning up , and washing out all the hard , fruitless , defiling nature ; and then you will come to know Christ's Fan in his hand , for you will feel him Purging the Floor , by separating the Chaffy dirty nature from the tender Seed , which delighteth to do the will of God : Now as you come to feel this within , you come to witness his Baptism , with the Holy Spirit , and with Fire ; yea , here the washing in the Regeneration , and the renewing in the Holy Spirit , comes to be witnessed : And here Christ's work comes truly to be felt and known , which is to destroy the Devil and his Works , to blot out Transgression , to take away Sin , to cause the old things to pass away , and to make all things new . Oh Friends ! wait to feel and witness this work , and think not that your saying , Christ hath done all for you will profit you , while you live in the old fleshly Birth ; for verily , verily , I say unto you , That except you be born again , you can in no wise enter into the Kingdom of God . Therefore wait to feel this inward work , that so you may know Christ formed in you , his Mind , his Spirit , his Disposition , his Nature , and then you will come to the new Creature , and to witness the Election which avails and obtains . And here the Circumcision without hands you will come to know , which is the putting off of the body of the sins of the flesh , by the Circumcision of Christ ; And this brings to be the Jew inward , whose praise is not of man , but of God ; and here 's the true Israel of God , upon which the mercy comes ; and here 's the true Elect Seed , unto which the Promise is ; and they that come to this , are born from above , and are Members of Christ's Body , of his Flesh , and of his Bones ; and they are come to the Riches of the Mystery which hath been hid from Ages and Generations , which is Christ in them the hope of Glory .

Oh Friends ! These things are not written unto you , that you should feed upon the words , and seek to get a Rest there ; but these things are written in tender bowels of Love , unto such of you as truly hunger and thirst after the new Life ; That so as the Lord's witness ariseth in any of you to witness unto the Truth of them , and to give you any understanding in the same , you may joyn to his witness , and believe and wait in the same , to feel these things fulfilled in you . So as you wait in the Invisible measure of God , you will come to be sensible how far you are changed , in which Birth you live , in which Birth your minds are centered , and so of which Birth you are ; for as it is written , even so will you see it to be that , That which is born of the flesh is flesh , and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit ; And they that are after ( or of ) the flesh do mind the things of the flesh ; But they that are after the spirit do mind the things of the Spirit ; And that they that live in the flesh cannot please God . And as you mind that Life which oft-times ariseth in you , and makes you sensible of your Conditions , you will plainly come to know it in your selves , that to be carnally minded , it is death , but to be Spiritually minded it is Life and Peace ; For you will see if the enemy of your Souls can get your minds into Carnal things at any time , that then deadness and death cometh over you , and you become dead as unto God ; until his witness ariseth in you to quicken you again ; But as your minds are kept in obedience to the Spirit of God , & you minding the things of it , which it openeth unto you , ye will feel Life and Peace springing in your Souls , and that from the presence of the Lord .

Therefore be diligent in this the day of your Visitation , ( which yet in mercy is continued unto you ) & as the Lord maketh manifest unto you , that any of the Forms , that you have been , or are yet in , are empty and dead , and then appear in spirit to draw and lead you out of them ; O be not like stubborn , Rebellious , wilful Children , that will not follow their father any further then may please their own wills , but hang back & murmure ; I say take heed of giving way to such a spirit , least the Lord leave striving with you , and give you up wholly to follow the deceit of your own hearts , for the Lord will not alwayes strive with man ; But the day shall come , wherein the Lord will withdraw himself from the Rebellious , and he that is filthy let him be filthy still .

Oh Friends ! I see a day which will be terrible unto the Disobedient ; For when the Lord hath tryed his People , and gathered the sincere hearted out of all Forms unto himself , he will then sweep away the refuge ( that will not be gathered in the day of their Visitation ) with a mighty Destruction ; And the day hastens in which this shall be accomplisht by the mighty Arm and Power of the Lord , which is now working in secret . Therefore wait to be led and taught of him , and heed not the Rage and Cruelty of man , neither bow to his Perverse will , but know that the Lord hath given bounds to the Sea , that although it roar , Rage and swell , and cast up mire and dirt , yet it cannot go beyond its bounds .

Therefore be Patient and commit your Cause unto the Lord , and seek not to avenge your selves , but leave it unto him , who will avenge the Cause of his People . And wait in the feeling of the Truth in your selves , that so you may feel the pure Life of Christ to be a stay to your minds , in all your Tryals and Temptations . Oh poor hearts ! this is a precious thing to come to be sensible of the true stay and guide to the mind . O keep to that which maketh your Temptations and thoughts manifest , and believe and wait in that , and then you will feel that to be a stay to your minds , and you will feel the Lord's secret strength revealed in you , enabling you to stand in whatsoever Tryal or Temptation he shall suffer to come upon you , or to be presented unto you ; yea , as you are faithful to the Power that he commits unto you , you shall not be tryed beyond your strength , but you shall feel the Lord supporting you ; and by his Power he will work your minds into contentedness with his will in all things ; And if you will follow the Power of the Lamb , which is that which moves against Sin , and taketh it away , you will come to feel your hearts and minds drawn , and Redeemed out of the Earth thereby ; and you will be made willing to give up , and to part with all , and to follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth .

Now if your spirits come to be brought into this frame , then whatsoever man can do unto you , it will not be able to move you . Oh! that you would wholly give up your selves to wait upon the Lord , in the pure manifestation of his Spirit , and cease contending and pleading for those things which the Spirit of the Lord requireth not at your hands . Oh! that you would now mind to obey the pure requirings of the Life of Jesus in your selves , and that would bring you into lowliness of mind and meekness of spirit , & into true love to God , and one towards another ; and not only to love your friends , but even to love your enemies also , and to forgive and pray for them that despightfuly use you ; and then you would indeed bear the Image of the Lamb , and witness his Kingdom set up in you ; and this would bring you in patience to wait , until he arise to plead the cause of his People , and to avenge himself on his and their enemies , and to make the Kingdoms of this world his , and the People subject to his Government ; which shall certainly be aceomplished in its Season , and the day draweth nigh .

So the Lord God Almighty manifest himself more and more unto you all , in whose hearts there are any true , sincere , honest desires to know and do his Will ; and who are willing to follow him as he appears to lead and draw you , and the Lord of Life manifest his strength unto you , and gather you by the Power of his Christ into the everlasting Covenant of Life , Rest , and Peace .

This is the sincere desire of my Soul , whose bowels yearn towards you , whose souls are breathing and thirsting after the endless Life of Righteousness . And this is Message of true love unto you , in which it is sent forth among you according to the instructions of the Almighty ; yea for your sakes is this written , whose Souls are panting after the Lord , in what form or society soever you be in , who are willing to follow the leadings of his Life , and to submit to his will , as it comes to be made manifest unto you ; and many of you , in whom there be such honest desires , I see are now in a bewildred condition , in this cloudy and dark day which seems to approach , not knowing well what to do , or which way to take , or where to find rest or safety , by reason of the want of the knowledge of a true guide to your minds ; I say , for the informing of your understandings , and for the strengthening of those desires in you , which are sincere towards the Lord , was I drawn forth in much tenderness and bowels of unfained love to write unto you , that you might be brought to be sensible of the gift of God in your selves , and to know what that is , that is to guide your minds , and in what you are to wait to receive the true Teachings , that so your minds may come to be stayed upon the Lord , and that may be gathered into his Name , wherein the true help and safety is ; and that you may avoid whatsoever would be a hinderance unto your growth in the simplicity of the Truth . Therefore I exhort and warn you to take heed of following your own thoughts and imaginations any longer , but freely give up to be led by that Principle of Life , which cannot consent to Sin , but appears to call , and draw you out of the same ; You need not fear that that will deceive you , but whatsoever would draw you from that Life , that is the Deceiver .

And hearken not any longer to such Teachers , as are greedy of filthy lucre ; for such make a prey of you , and cannot profit you at all . And take heed of hearkening , or joyning to such Teachers or People as will turn to , and comply with any worship or thing , that may be for their advantage , as they account ; and that they may save themselves from sufferings ; for such are Luke-warm , and the Lord will spue them out , and their shame and filthiness shall appear , and they shall become loathsom both in the sight of God and man ; Therefore avoid them .

And as there are few Teachers amongst the Professors , whom I believe for Conscience sake dare not turn back and lick up that , which they formerly were made to vomit out and deny ; so also there are many that would willingly turn to any thing for their bellies , if they might be received , that will not now be accepted of ; and these that see they cannot keep their places by their turning , they will appear zealous ( especially in secret ) against those things that they find some tender-hearted ones cannot bow unto ; and so with good words and fair speeches , they will thus seek to deceive the hearts of the simple , and all this is but for their Bellies ; Therefore take heed of such .

And take heed of joyning any longer to such as are settled upon their Lees , who as one might say , are even glued to a Form which is void of the Power ; For seeing they were to be turned from who had the Form of godliness , because they denyed the Power ; much more are they to be turned from , who stick in a Form , which cannot he truly called a Form of godliness , and therein contend , and fight , and strive against the Light , which is the Power ; And of this sort there are many in several of the Sects , whose searedness , dryness & hardness is exceeding great , though they profess much of godliness in words , yet in much perversness , wilfulness , and crookedness they oppose the Life and Power of the same , and will neither enter the Kingdom themselves , nor suffer those that gladly would , but in a ridgid austere manner , seek to keep the People subject to them , that they may be Lords over their Consciences . Oh Friends ! you that are tender-hearted come out from among such , for the Lord's hand will be stretched out against them in a terrible manner ; And all wait in the tender Principle of the Fathers Love and Life which hath visited you , and begotten sincere desires in you after himself , and the Knowledge of his wayes , that so you may be strengthned in the inner man ; and feel your Faith , Hope , and Patience increased , that so you may be able to stand in the Tryal without fainting , feeling the Lord to be your strength , and continual Preserver .

This is the sincere and hearty desire of him who is a sufferer with the true Seed where ever it suffers , and yet I am gathered in the Spirit , into the everlasting Kingdom and Covenant of Peace , rest and quietness , where nothing can make me afraid .

By a Prisoner for the Testimony of Jesus , who am freely given up to his Will , and in patience do wait to see his Kingdom set up over all the Kingdoms of the Earth , that he over all may Reign , whose Right it is . GEORGE FOX , the Younger .
A TRUE RELATION Of the unlawful and unreasonable Proceedings of the Magistrates of HARWICH in ESSEX , against the People of the Lord ( called QUAKERS ) Also the manner of their Imprisoning of GEORGE FOX the younger , whom they with ROBERT GRASSINGHAM accused to the PARLIAMENT ; And also the manner of the PARLIAMENTS Proceedings against them .

IN the Year 1656 , it was so ordered of the Lord , that there came unto the Town of HARWICH some of the People called Quakers , and one of them spoke a few words to the People as they were coming from the Steeple-house , and so they passed into an Inn ; but the then MAYOR hearing thereof sent unto them , commanding that they should depart the Town , which they had not freedom in the Lord presently to do , but after a short space they went out ; And it being upon them to return again , they did so and lodged at that Inn all night , and the next day they peaceably passed away ; so not long after , the Woman that kept the Inn , was commanded to come before the Magistrates of the Town , who appeared to be offended with her for lodging of those People , and made her to promise them , that she would lodge no more such Persons , by threatning to take away her License , if she did ; so great was their envy at the appearance of the Truth in that Town : But it pleased the Lord , that shortly after , some of the Inhabitants thereof were convinced of the Truth ; and so a way was made for Meetings there , and several received the Truth in the Love of it , in and about that Town ; so that they could not for Conscience sake pay to the repairing of the Steeple-house any longer ; and therefore had not freedom to Bury their dead in the ground belonging thereunto ; but they joyned together , and bought a parcel of ground to Bury their dead in ( as did Abraham , the Father of the Faithful . ) So in the Year , 1659. it was so ordered of the Lord , that one who lived a little out of that Town died , and several People were accompanying the dead Body to bury it in the place purchased for that end ; but one of the Magistrates hearing of it , sent the Constables with a Guard , commanding them not to suffer the dead Body to be laid in that place ( though the grave was made ) and by the command of that Magistrate , the dead Body was taken away by force , and buried in the Steeple-house Yard .

Also in the eleventh Month of the same Year , there dyed another Friend near the same Town , and several Friends came along with the dead Body , to have buried it in the place afore-mentioned ; a Grave also being made , but Miles Hubburd , the now MAYOR , and the other Rulers , would not suffer the dead Body to be laid therein , but caused it to be taken away by force , and so they carried it and set it by the Sea-side , where it lay above ground , part of two dayes and one night , and then it was covered over with small stones ; but by whom I know not : Of these things a Record is kept , by Friends in Harwich .

Also in the 3d. Month , in the Year , 1660. I being in Essex , in the work and service of the Lord , whereunto he hath called me by his mighty Power , and therein sent me forth , to publish his Everlasting Truth , which he is spreading abroad in this the day of his Power , by which he is gathering those that breath and thirst after his Rightcousness , out of the dark Wayes and Worships of this World , into the true and living Way and Worship , which Christ Jesus , the true Light , in the dayes of his flesh spoke of ; which is in the Spirit and in the Truth : I say , as I was labouring in the Work of the Gospel in that County , I had much drawings in the Spirit of Truth , to appoint a Meeting in the Town of Harwich ; and that such thereabout who had desires to hear the Truth of God declared , might have notice given them , that in the Will of the Lord I purposed to be there on the 13th day of the Month aforesaid , it being the first day of the Week ; so notice was given of the Meeting some dayes before ; and upon the first Day in the Morning , there were about forty peaceable People , ( as Men , Women , and Children ) coming in a Boat over a River which runs by the Town unto the Meeting ; but the Magistrates of the Town hearing thereof , sent some Officers to the water-side to hinder them from coming on shore ( who were peaceably come to wait on the Lord , and to hear the Truth declared ) so these Officers , with a great number of rude People , did hinder those peaceable People from coming on shore , and forced them back again ; also the same Morning Robert Grassingham sent two of his Servants with a Boat , to have fetched over some of our Friends to the Meeting , but the Officers would not suffer them to go over , but charged them in the King's Name to come back , and carried them before the Magistrates ; who commanded that they should forthwith be set in the Stocks , and they were so ; and there were kept for some hours .

And thus the Magistrates of that Town encouraged the rude People against Us , by their unjust proceedings : Now it is usual with the Magistrates of that Town , to suffer such as come to their Steeple-house-worship , to come or go over the water upon the first Day of the Week .

And about a Month before , on the first Day of the Week , the MAYOR being informed that some of our Friends were coming over , he with some other Officers of the Town , went down to the water-side , being bent against the Innocent ; but when the Boat came on shore , it appeared that they were other People , who were going about their occasions ; and when they saw the Mayor , they said unto him , We made bold to come over ; he answered them , — It was well enough , I thought ( said he ) you had been QUAKERS ; — and thus did he manifest his partiality in the sight of many in that Town ; so notwithstanding the Rulers cruelty , in causing about forty of our Friends to be forced back , and setting two in the Stocks , as afore-mentioned ; we that were in the Town peaceably assembled our selves together in the fear of the Lord , to wait upon him ; and for near about the space of two hours I had liberty to Preach the Gospel to the People , being filled with the Power of the Lord ; but within a short time after the space afore-mentioned , there came a great company of rude Sea-men , with others of the Town , and the house being filled before with peaceable People , these rude ones could not easily get in ; but when they saw that they could not get well to me , because of the press of People , some of them then cursed me bitterly , biding that they call the Pox and Plague upon me ; others crying out — hang him Rogue , hang him ; — and another conspiringly said , — Let us get a Halter ( which is a long Rope ) and therewith pull down the House upon the Rogues ; — others cryed out , — The King is coming now , who will hang or banish you all , — ( it being a little before his coming . ) Now when I heard and saw this great ungodliness , the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon me , and I was filled with his unresistable Power , in which I was made to utter these words , saying , Wo , wo , unto the Rulers and Teachers of this Nation , who suffer such ungodliness as this , and do not seek to suppress it ; then went some of the multitude and accused me to the Magistrates , who presently came and commanded the chief Constable ( and some others ) to fetch me out , who forthwith pressed in , and in the King's Name commanded me to go with him ; and so he brought me out of the House into the Street , where the Rulers stood amongst the rude multitude , then he that was MAYOR said hastily , — Which is he , which is he ? — some answered , — This is he , — ( pointing towards me ) then said the MAYOR to the Constables , — Take him and put him into Prison ; — then said I to him , if I have done any thing worthy of death or bonds , I shall not refuse either , but I desire Thee to shew me what Law I have transgressed ( if thou be able ) which thou oughtest to do before thou sendest me to Prison , that I may know for what thou sendest me thither ; he said , I should know that afterward ; but he would neither let me know my Accusers , nor could he shew me any Law I had broken ; neither would he tell me for what cause he sent me to Prison , nor did he at all examine me , but commanded the Constables to take me away ; so I was forthwith haled to Prison , without a Mittimus .

And Robert Grassingham , whose outward being was at Harwich , being at the Meeting out of which I was haled , he innocently in tender love went along with me to Prison ; and as he went in the street , he seeing the rude multitude thronging me , said to the Constables , You ought to see the Peace kept , and not to suffer the rude People to abuse the Prisoner ( or words to this effect . )

So some time after I was imprisoned , there was a Mittimus sent to the Goalor , signed by Miles Hubburd Mayor , Anthony Woolward , and Daniel Smith ; wherein I was falsly charged , with causing a tumult in that Burrough , and disturbing the Peace thereof ; and thus they sought to cover their Persecution , by false accusing of the Innocent , whom the Lord acquits ; but the rude , cursing , tumultuous , Peace-breaking People ( whom they had let up and strengthned by their unlawful proceedings ) had nothing done unto them , but were let go free ; yet all this did not satisfie their persecuting Spirit , but they further proceeded in their cruelty , and accused both me and Robert Grassingham to the PARLIAMENT ; Now as for R. G. I know nothing that they could pretend against him , except they were displeased with his going with me to the Prison , as afore-mentioned ; nor did they in the least charge him to his face with any thing ; but the MAYOR some time before that , did say unto him , in the hearing of several Friends ; — If I could but get you out of the Town , then could I deal well enough with the rest of the QUAKERS ; — but the Lord hath a Seed in that Town , which fears not the rage of man , though one of their Brethren , ( through the cruelty and unlawful proceedings of those Rulers ) be taken . From them at present : So the PARLIAMENT upon the receiving of their false Information , issued forth an Order for the bringing up of R.G. and Me : A true Copy thereof , is as followeth .

Munday , May the 21th , 1660.

The House being informed , that two QUAKERS , that is to say , George Fox , and Robert Grassingham , have lately made a disturbance at Harwich , and that the said George Fox , who pretends to be a Preacher , did lately in his Preaching there , speak words , much reflecting on the Government and Ministry , to the near causing of a a Mutiny * * As for the Government and Ministry of the Town of Harwich , their streets like Sodom , have shewn its effects : And the Angels and Lot might as justly have been charged with making a disturbance in Sodom , when the ungodly thronged Lot's Door , as RG . and I in Harwich , as the sober Reader may see : Also , when I was in Prison there , I have seen out at the Window , many go staggering with Drunkenness in the street , and both in the day and in the night , they have come to the Gate and cursed me bitterly , and stammered our Oaths by reason of Drunkennes , and then cryed , — God save KING CHARLES , — saying , — He would hang the Quakers , and the Anabaptists ; and these have gone unpunished : But when sober People have come to the Gate to hear the Truth declared , them the Goalors Company hath thrown water upon , and the MAYOR hath come and commanded them to depart from the Window , and the Goalor hath come and shut it up , and threatned me . , and is now committed by the Mayor and Magistrates there .

Ordered , That the said George Fox , and Robert Grassingham , be forthwith brought up in Custody , and that the Sheriff of the County of Essex do receive them , and give his assistance for the conveying of them up accordingly , and delivering them into the charge of the Sergeant at Arms attending this House .

Ordered , That the thanks of this House be given to the Mayor and Magistrates of Harwich , for their care in this business .

William Jessop , Clerk of the Commons House of Parliament .

So after they had kept me ten nights in Harwich Prison , the Sheriff of Essex , with several armed men , came for me with the Order afore-mentioned ; so a great company of men with Halbards fetched me out of the hole wherein I was put ( which was not four Yards long , nor so broad as long ) and these men would not suffer me to speak with the MAYOR ( though I much desired it ) but they guarded me through the streets , and delivered me to the SHERIFF and his men , who were to bring me up to LONDON ; so as we were coming upon the Road , we met with Robert Grassingham , who was coming from London towards Harwich , in pursuance of an Order which he had received from the Commissioners for the Admiralty and Navy , for the refitting of one of the King's Frigots , which then lay in that Port , whereof he was then Ship-wright ; but notwithstanding R. G. shewed his Order to the Sheriff , yet he brought him back to London with me , and delivered us into the Custody of the Sergeant at Arms attending the House , who the same night committed us to Lambeth-House , and gave Order ( as the Goalor said ) That but few of our Friends should be suffered to come at us ; and when any were suffered , that then some should stand by and hear what was said ; and if any Letter went from us , or came to us , that the Goalor or some of his Family should hear them , which was observed for some time : Also we were confined to our Chamber , for the space of six weeks and upward , and had not that Liberty allowed us to walk in the Yard , which all the other Prisoners had ; and another time the Goalor said , that the Sergeant had given him an Order , — That no person should come at me , no not so much as to bring me Food ; but indeed the Goalor suffered my Food to be brought in ; but as for others which came to visit me , they were kept back for some time : so near about three weeks after we were committed to Lambeth , we wrote to the PARLIAMENT , and sent the Writing enclosed in a few lines to the Speaker ; but he doing nothing in the thing , we caused it to be Printed , and several hundreds of the Papers were given to the PARLIAMENT Men : A true Copy is as followeth .

For the HOUSE of COMMONS , Assembled in PARLIAMENT , at Westminster . Friends ,

BY your Order touching us , Dated the 21st . of the Third Month , called May , we understand you have been falsely informed concerning us , by some who have falsely accused us ; Therefore this is our just and reasonable request ; that we , together with our Accusers , may face to face be brought before you ; and if any thing can be justly proved against us worthy of Death , or Bonds , we shall not refuse either ; But if there can be nothing justly proved against us , then ought our Accusers to be ashamed , and we to be acquitted .

Now we do believe it to be unjust and unreasonable , that a man should be halled out of a peaceable Meeting , as one of us was at Harwich in Essex , and sent to Prison without being Examined , or a Mittimus ( onely for declaring against the Cursing and the Wickedness of the Rude People , and against such as suffer such Ungodliness , and do not seek to suppress it ) and there to be kept ten nights , and from thence to be transported unto this place ; and that we both should be here confined to our Chambers , as we have been , for about three weeks last past , seeing nothing is proved against Us , nor we yet brought to Examination ; neither did your Order express any such Confinement : so these things are laid before you in plainness , that justice herein may be done by you .

By us who are Sufferers for Righteousness sake , and we have and shall have Peace in our Suffering , and in writing our selves thus , except we were convinced by the Law of God , or any just Law of our Nation to the contrary . Geo. Fox , the Younger . Robert Grassingham . Lambeth House , the 15th . of the 4th . Month , called June , 1660.

A Copy hereof was delivered to the Speaker of the House , of Commons , inclosed in a Letter to himself , in these words following ;

For the Speaker of the House of Commons , Friend ,

WE desire thee to Communicate this inclosed to the House of Commons , it being a few Innocent , Just and Reasonable words to them , though not in the Eloquent Language of Man's Wisdom , yet it is in the Truth which is Honourable .

We are friends to Righteousness and Truth , and to all that are Found therein . R. G. G. F.

And being informed that as yet nothing is done in Answer to those Reasonable and just desires , which are above mentioned ; It is therefore thought meet to have it Printed , that so each Member of Parliament , as well as Others in outward Authority , may be acquainted with our Innocency , who ( with many others ) unjustly suffer Bonds and other Cruelties .

This in tender Love , is a Warning and Visitation to you all , that in this your day of Tryal , you continue not Oppression upon the Righteous , nor Afflict the Meek , whom the Lord regards , lest you fall as those whom God cast out before you .

Yet notwithstanding all this , the PARLIAMENT would do nothing in our business ; Then some who desired that we together with our Accusers might be brought to a hearing , went to some of the Members , and desired that it might be moved in the House ; but they would not ; then a Reason was desired , Why not ? Their Answer was , Because our Paper was not a Petition , nor directed with this Title ( To the Right Honourable the House of Commons , &c. ) and except we would Petition and give them that Title aforementioned , we might lie where we did if we would ; and yet they confessed , that there was little of Fact charged against us , and that our Paper was Rational , and our request therein Reasonable .

So because we have learned to speak truth in plainness to every man , and could not for Conscience sake give flattering Titles to any , least our Maker should take us away ; nor Petition any but him ; therefore were we denyed Justice , and are made a prey upon by those who seek honour one of another , and not that , which cometh from God onely .

So after we had lain about fournteen weeks in Lambeth Gate-House , without being examined ; then one of the Members of PARLIAMENT moved our business in the House , whereupon an Order was made ; a true Copy whereof followeth ;

Thursday the 30th of August , 1660.

Ordered , That George Fox and Robert Grassingham , who by vertue of a former Order of this House , were taken into custody by the Sergeant at Armes attending this House , for some disturbance at Harwich , be forthwith Released , and set at Liberty , upon Bail first given to Render themselues , when they shall be in that behalf Required .

William Jessop Clerk of the Commons House of PARLIAMENT .

Then shortly after this Order was issued forth , the Sergeant at Armes sent his Clerk , to demand Fees , and Chamber Rent of us ; then I asked him before several Witnesses , if we were detained onely for that ? he then said , He knew not but that we were Freed , and that we might go , if we would pay his Master , who had sent him to demand fifty pounds of us for Fees , besides Chamber Rent ; for which the Chamberlain of the Prison told us , That the Sergeant demanded ten shillings a week ; So we denyed to uphold such wicked oppression , and could not for Conscience sake satisfie his covetous and unrighteous desire , but chose rather to suffer , than to come forth by yielding to such a horrid oppression ; yet were we willing to have given him to the full value of all the things we made use of in the Chamber , and it being the highest room in a lofty Tower , and all the Windowes open , it was not fit for men to Lodge in , by reason of the Wind and Rain beating in , until we had gotten them Glassed , without any charge to the Sergeant ; and we had so little of his in our Chamber , that we offered this ( to wit ) that if two reasonable men would prise the things , we would pay him for them , and give him the Things also ; or if he would not stand to that , then we would give him two shillings and six pence a week , for the time we had been there ; We also told our Keepers , that if we denyed to give them any thing , that they could recover by Law , the Law was open , but they ought not according to their own Law to keep us upon that account , but to tutn us out , and then take their course at Law ; And so we demanded our Liberty several times ; but notwithstanding all this , the Sergeant detained us still .

And the day before the PARLIAMENT Adjourned , our Names in a List with other Prisoners in his Custody , was given in to the Parliament , who notwithstanding their Act of Indempnity and Oblivion , and their former Order , for our being forthwith Released and set at Liberty ; they made another Order , That it should be Referred to the Kings Privy Counsel , to consider of us , and to give such Order touching us , as to our Liberty , or to continue under constraint , as they should find Consistent with the Publick Peace , and the mean time we are to remain in the Sergeants Custody ; so by this Order we are still detained , and nothing is yet done by the Privy Council touching us .

Now let the Reader consider , how unreasonably and contrary to Law we have been used , who have been kept seventeen Weeks in this Prison , and never brought to any examination , Besides the time that I was kept in Harwich .

Now if the PARLIAMENT had rightly weighed and considered the matter , when they Ordered the thanks of the House to be given to the Mayor and Magistrate of Harwich , for their care in that business touching us ; truly , they might have found more cause to have reproved them for their folly , than to have given them thanks .

For if it had been true , that we had made some Disturbance at Harwich ( as it is said in the Order for our Release ) yet if the Magistrates of Harwich had rightly understood their duty , and if they had not been blinded with the mad zeal of Persecution , they might have seen that it belonged to their place to have ended the matter of a disturbance , and not to have troubled a Parliament with such a frivilous thing ; But it is certain , that Persecutors in all Ages were blind : And what a thing is this , cannot three Justices of the Peace ( so called ) nor a Parliament determine in the matter of a Disturbance ( if it had been so that we had made one , which we did not ) but that such a thing ●s that , must be turned over to the Kings Privy Council to be considered of ? or is it because they would keep the innocent in Prison , and are ashamed to bring them to an examination , having nothing justly to charge them withal ? I leave this to be answered , by that of God in all who shall read this .

And seeing there have been many false Reports touching the cause of our imprisonment , and also that some of our enemies have reported , that we may come out of Prison if we will ; it was upon me to publish the manner of our Imprisonment , and of our being kept , and by whom , that the truth of the matter may plainly be seen ; which being truly considered , People may see that it is even now as it was in the Prophets dayes of old , For Judgement is now turned backward , and Justice standeth afar off ; Truth is fallen into the Streets , and Equity cannot enter ; yea , Truth faileth , and he that departeth from Evil maketh himself a prey , and the Lord hath seen it , and it displeaseth him , because there is no true Judgement , Isaiah 59.14 , 15. and as they did in the dayes of Amos , even so do this Generation ; yea , They now turn Judgement into Wormwood , and leave off Righteousness in the Earth , they hate him that rebuketh in the Gate , and abhor him that speaketh uprightly ; Therefore will the Lord break forth like fire , Amos 5.

Lambeth-house the 21st of the 7th Month , 1660. G. F.
HIS FAITH Touching Four Particulars DEMONSTRATED . I. Concerning Jesus Christ the Saviour of the World . II. Concerning Justification . III. Concerning the Resurrection . IV. Concerning Everlasting Glory , and Eternal Misery . Written for the satisfaction of some tender consciencious Persons , who had heard false Reports of Him , and others of his Judgement , touching the things above Written .

First , AS concerning Iesus Christ , that was supposed to be Joseph the Carpenter's Son , who as concerning the Flesh was Crucified , and put to Death at Jerusalem , between two Thieves , upon the Cross at Mount Calvary , I do believe he was the Son of God ; and that that very Body that the Souldier pierced , was the very Body that was prepared by the Father for Christ the true Saviour to come in , to do the Will of the Father that sent Him : And I do believe that by the Grace of God he tasted Death for every man , that as many as believe in ( and obey ) him , whose Soul was made an Offering for sin , might have Eternal Life through him , who gave his precious Life a Ransom for many .

Secondly , I do believe that no man can be Iustified by the Works of the Law , nor by any VVork of his own ; but He or She that is Iustified in the sight of God , it is freely by his Grace , through Faith in Christ Iesus , who creates such unto Good VVorks , which God hath ordained , that they that are justified should walk in .

Now God through his Free Love hath made Me a Witness of true Iustification ; And I testifie in the Lord , That it is not my Works that Iustifie me ; but it is the LORD alone , who worketh my Works in me , and for me , according to his own good pleasure ; who loved me , before I loved him , and manifested his Love to me in the Covenant of Light , whereby he drew me after himself , and gave me strength to obey and follow him in the manifestation and drawings of his Love ; which whilst I did reject , I was justly condemned of the Lord , and could not witness Iustification in that State , although I sought it , and talked much of it , as many Professors now do : but GOD , who is rich in Mercy and Love , shewed me how he had given me Power and Ability to receive his Truth in the Love of it , through which I am now Saved and Iustified .

Thirdly , Touching the Resurrection ; It is a Mystery , which the carnal mind can never comprehend ; but they that come to Witness a part in the first Resurrection , which is Christ Iesus the Light of Life ; they in his Light may come to perceive the Mystery of the Resurrection ; but if Truth can be received and understood , then it will appear and be manifested to such , that I do not deny the Resurrection : For I do verily believe , that the hour is coming , in which all that are in the Graves , shall hear the voice of the Son of God , and shall come forth ; They that have done good , unto the Resurrection of Life , and they that have done evil , unto the Resurrection of Condemnation : But to fools that say , That this Body of natural flesh and bones shall be raised ; I say , That Body which is sown , is not that Body that shall be ; but God giveth a Body as it pleaseth him , yet to every Seed it s own Body : Now there is the Seed of the Serpent , and the Seed of Christ ; and they that can discern the Body of each Seed , are not the Fools which are questioning how the dead shall be raised ? and with what Bodies they shall come ? for they know all mankind will be found to be one of these Seeds , and that every Seed shall have its own Body .

Fourthly , Truly , if I did not believe that there was a Glory to come , more than what is here , surely although the good Presence , Peace and Consolation of God is in me , and his Glory rests richly upon me , yet I should think my self to be in a more miserable condition than very many ; but for the Glory that is set before me , which Christ [ in me ] is the hope of , ( which anchors and stayes my soul ) I am content to endure the Cross , and patiently to bear the affliction and sufferings of this present Life , not counting them worthy ( though ever so great ) to be compared to that Eternal Weight of Glory , which I do believe shall be revealed and given unto me , in the World to come .

And as I do stedfastly believe , That there is a Glorious State to be entred into after this Life , by all them that shall be found in the Immortal Seed , wherein they shall be swallowed up of Life , Glory , and Immortality ; so I certainly believe , that there is a Woful , Dreadful , Horrible State to be entred into after this Life , by all them that shall be found in the Seed of the Serpent , wherein they shall be swallowed up of Perpetual torment and Misery , where the Worm dyeth not , but shall gnaw everlastingly , and the Fire goeth not out .

Westminster Pallace-yard Gate-house , the 12th of the 1st . Month , 1661. A Prisoner for the Word of God , yet a Free-man in the Lord Jesus Christ ; Glory to him in the highest . George Fox , the Younger .
ENGLANDS SAD Estate and Condition lamented , IN THIS Just Complaint , Taken up against the greatest part of her Inhabitants , because of their great Abominanations , and Treacherous Dealings , both with God and Man ; for which Cause , the Terrible and Righteous Judgements of the Lord are coming upon them and the Land . Wherein is also contained some PROPHECIES and EXHORTATIONS .

OH England , England ! The Abominations of the greatest part of thy Inhabitants , who can declare them ! They have reached Heaven , so as they are come up before the Lord , the Jealous God ; and Wo unto that part of thy Inhabitants , who have sinned out the Day of their Visitation , and have wholly slighted the Day of God's Patience , and long Forbearance , and would have none of his Reproof , but have altogether rejected the same , and have made a mock at Sin , and have sported themselves with their own Deceivings and Lusts , and have gone a Whoring from under the God of their Lives : Wherefore thus saith the Lord , the only God ; I will make such become a Hissing and Reproach , and my Anger they shall not be able to Escape , because of their provoking Abominations , and Treacherous Dealings , both with Me and Man .

Oh England , England ! How have , and yet do , a great part of thy Inhabitants rush into Idolatry , and all manner of Profaneness and grievous Abominations , even as the Horse and Mighty rush into the Battel ! How do they drink in Iniquity , even as the Ox , or Parched Ground , drinketh in Water ! Oh! What manner of Lamentation shall I make for thee , my Native Country ! Or , What manner of Complaint may I take up against a great part of thine Inhabitants , who have long sought , and yet seek thy Ruine and Destruction ! Verily , their Actions have declared them to be like the Inhabitants of Sodom ; Yea , their sins have rendred them to be as bad as those of Gomorrah . O they have Vexed the Righteous Soul ; Yea , and they have grieved the Spirit of the Lord from Day to Day , with their Unjust Conversations . They have multiplyed their Transgressions , and heaped up their Iniquities , till they are become as the Sand on the Sea-shore , without Number . Oh! The Lord hath long striven with them ; yea , he hath also long born their Iniquities , he would have gathered them to himself out of their Abominations ; yea , he would oft have healed them , but they would not ; but they have stiffned their Necks , and hardned their Hearts against the Lord and his Counsel , day after day ; and have chosen their own wayes and works , even to their own hurt , and would by no means be reclaimed ; for when the Lord hath reproved them ( by the Light of his Son in their own Consciences ) and set their sins in order before their eyes , they have stopped their Ears , and closed their Eyes , and wilfully Rebelled against the Power of God , and trampled upon his Witness [ the Light in them ] as a thing of naught , counting it not worth the taking notice of . And when the Lord hath raised up Prophets , Children and Servants , and sent them out , commanding them to lift up their Voices like Trumpets , and to shew the People their Transgressions , and to Preach Repentance and Amendment of Life : Yea , to warn and exhort them to turn from their Sins to God , and to lay before them their great Abominations , and to Prophesie what should come upon them , if they would not turn from the evil of their Doings , Oh! how have a great part of thy Inhabitants Scorned , and Derided these ! Yea , how have many of thine Inhabitants Beaten , Whipt , Stockt , Stoned , and Imprisoned some of these till Death , for bearing their Testimony for the Lord , against a crooked and perverse Generation , who hate such as speak uprightly , and abhor such as reprove Sin in the Gate ; that so it is even thus come to pass in thee , O England , That he that departeth from Iniquity , maketh himself a Prey to this Generation of Evil doers , whose hearts are set upon their Lusts , Idolatry , and grievous Abominations ! and the Lord hath beheld it , & it displeaseth him , because there is no true Judgement ; for these Evil doers are all gone out of the way ; yea , there is none of them that regard to do the thing that 's Just and Good , any further than it may be advantagious to their own Corrupt Designs .

Oh England England ! How oft hath the Lord God smote thy Rulers , and Mighty , and Proud men ! how oft hath he laid their Honour in the Dust ! Yea , how oft hath he Overturned and Confounded thy Mighty men , even thy Men of War , with thy Princes , Nobles , and Captains of Thousands , Hundreds , and Fifties ! O how oft hath he Overturned thy Governments . and Changed thy Governours ! But how few of them have so regarded the Out-goings of the Lord in all these things , as they ought to have done ? And how few of them have rightly Weighed and Considered the Causes for which the Lord hath brought or suffered so many Changes in the Land ? Or , have those who saw the Causes that provoked the Lord of Hosts thus to Act , lalaboured so to remove them as they ought to do ( or might ) have done ? Nay , assuredly they have not ; for the Lusts of this World , and the Pride of Life , hath blinded the minds of most ; and such who have seen what their Duty was , the honour of this World , and that cursed Self-interest , hath stopped and hindred most of them from doing those things which they saw they ought ( and which they had opportunity also ) to have done . Oh! how have the new Governours , in almost every Change of late , cryed out of the Tyranny and great Oppression of those whom they did Succeed ? And how have most of them Vowed unto God , Declared to , and Promised the People , That they would remove the Burdens and Oppressions that the fore-going Rulers had Laid and Continued upon them : But alas ! very few of them have regarded their Vows , Declarations , and Promises , , either to God or Man ; but in Treachery and Deceit have they gone on , serving themselves and their own Lusts , and not the Lord , nor their Generation fai●hfully : For , although many of them have been very large in Promises and Good Words , ( whereby they have long sought to Deceive the hearts of the People ) yet it is but very Little that hath been done for their true Liberty ; because that wicked Spirit , which seeketh to make it self great by the Ruine of others , hath Ruled , and doth yet Rule , in the hearts of many Rulers ; & this is of the Devourer and Destroyer , who cannot forgive Enemies , but cryes out of Rebellion and Treason , labouring to exasperate the Spirits of others , that so occasions may be gotten , if possible , against them , thereby to bring them under , and keep them in Bondage .

Oh England , England ! Such is thy Sad Estate and Condition , that several of thy Rulers are , and have been , as roaring Lyons , even greedy to Devour ; and many of thy Teachers have been , and yet are , like Troops of Robbers , robbing and spoyling of many of thine Inhabitants . Oh! How have most of thy Priests Temporized , and Daubed with every Power , as they have come up in the many Changes ! How have they encreased Envy , Wars , and Destructions , amongst thy Rulers and People ! How have they one time Cryed up , and Prayed for the same Thing , which at another time , they have Cryed down , and Prayed against ! Oh! Who shall ever believe them ? Their god is their Belly ; and who is it that many of them would not joyn unto , if thereby they might be upheld in Pride , Idleness and Fulness ? How oft would they Change again , and again ? And what Idolatry is there , that many of them would not run into for their Bellies sake ? Ah poor Nation ! Are they not yet striving to kindle a Flame within thy Bowels ? Hath not the Lord divided them ? And are they not labouring with all their might to Divide and Rend thy Inhabitants yet more and more ? Yea , surely and it is just with the Lord to suffer it to be so ; because of the greatness of their Abominations , which are daily encreased .

Ah poor Land ! How art thou overspread with Wasters and Spoylers ! who like Caterpillars devour thy Pleasant Fruit. Oh! the Whoredoms and Idolatries that are daily committed and acted in thee ; Who can Declare them ! Oh! thy Chief City , thy Chief City , that Bloody City ! Can its Abominations be Parallel'd in the Earth ! Surely it hath exceeded Sodom in Wickedness . The Lord is very Angry with a great part of its Inhabitants , and his Vengeance is nigh to come upon them . Wo unto you Whoremongers , Drunkards , Gluttons , Swearers , Cursers , Blasphemers , Cheaters , and Idolaters ! Wo unto you , Proud , Wanton , and Prophane , Vain Persons ! Wo unto you , Mountebanks , Stage-Players , Bear-Baiters , Gamesters , and all manner of Abominable Workers , and you that Build up Towers , Scaffolds , and vain Heathenish Representations , and such like ; and make and garnish Images , to draw Peoples minds after Idolatry , and for your cursed Gain and Lusts , in pretence of Honouring your King . Oh! How are People drawn into Gazing and Wondring after these Abominations ! It grieveth the Righteous Soul to behold such great Wickedness ! Oh! You Wicked and abominable Workers , & Devourers of the Creation ! The Lord God will meet with you in a time when ye are little aware of Him ; He 'l Stain your Pride , Vain Glory , and Idolatry , and give you your Portion amongst Devourers ( except you speedily Repent ) and your Abettors , Strengthners , and Helpers forward of such Ungodliness ( that do it knowingly ) and Delighters therein , The Lord will not acquit you , He 'l smite you for these things , and that right soon . Oh! Ye Idolatrous People , Do you think , that the Lord God of Pitty and Patience , suffered your King to hide himself from his Enemies in an Oak , for that end , that ye might Devour his Creatures in making an Idol of it ? Is this the use you make of that which you say was God's Mercy towards you ? Is not this the way to turn those things , that might have been Mercies to you , into Plagues and Judgements ? Oh! How do you Dayly provoke the Lord against Your selves , and your King ? Oh! You Wicked Workers , How dare you make Representations of Destruction and Ruine ? How dare you make a Sport of such things ? Verily , your Provocations are great , wherewith you provoke the Just God ; And it will be Just with him to bring Ruine , Desolation , and Destruction upon you and your City ; Verily , great is the Judgement that is nigh you , and your sins draw it on you apace . Do you think that the Lord cast out Back-sliders , Hypocrites , and Vnfaithful men , to set up and establish Idolaters and open Prophane Persons ? Nay surely : Therefore Tremble ye Wicked Workers , and Howl ye Prophane Idolaters , for the Mighty and Terrible day of the Lord is near to break out upon you . Thus saith the Lord God , I 'le Scatter , I 'le Scatter , I 'le Split , Divide , and Separate : I 'le Break and Dash to pieces , and none shall be able to Gather , Bind up , or Ioyn together : For mine Anger is kindled , and my Jealousie shall burn till I have devoured mine Enemies , saith the Lord .

Therefore ye People of Enland ( that yet live in wickedness ) who have not wholly sinned out the day of your Visitation , To you I now speak ; You that feel the Lord yet striving with you ; O Return , Return speedily unto the Manifestation of his Spirit , whereby he strives with you , to shew you your abominations , and to draw and lead you out of the same ; O be not still Stiff-necked , but hearken to the Word of the Lord , which sheweth you the thoughts and Intents of your Hearts , and hearken and be obedient to the Call thereof , that so by its Power you may Hasten out of Babylon , both Young and Old , Rich and Poor , High and Low , Noble or Ignoble , Professor or Profane , who yet are there ; For the Lord's Controversie is great with Babylon her Merchants , and Inhabitants , and he will not much longer spare , but he will suddenly smite , and none shall be able to hinder his stroak ; Yea , yea , he will wound and none shall be able to heal ; For the measure of her Iniquities , Idolatries , and Whoredoms are nigh full , and the Wine of her Fornications , hath caused the Fatts to overflow , and she is come up into remembrance before the Lord , the Just God , who will Plague her and all her Merchants and Inhabitants according to their Abominations , whereby they have grievously provoked Him . Therefore , come out of her , whilst Mercy and Time is offered , lest you perish with her in her Judgements , which the Lord is Strongly and Swiftly bringing upon her .

Oh England , England ! A day of Sorrow and Calamity is coming upon many of thy Inhabitants , I have long been sensible of it ; even a day of such Breaking , Confusion and Judgement , as hath not been for a long space ; For thy People have wearied out the Lord with their Iniquities , and grieved his holy Spirit with their Abominations , dayes without number .

Oh England , England ! The Lord hath a Precious and Holy Seed in thee ; Yea , He hath a Remnant , which he hath Raised by his Power to , and for himself , which are exceeding precious in his sight ; and these a great part of thine Inhabitants have Shamefully entreated , and grievously Oppressed , and Persecuted ; And they have Patiently born the same , and have laboured in the Life of Innocency , and Spirit of Emanuel , to Inform thy Rulers and People in the Things that are Just and True , and have shewn them the Wayes which have , and do Displease the Lord , and have Exhorted and Warned thy Inhabitants , Time after Time : But notwithstanding their Doctrine , Lives , and Conversations have manifested their Innocency and Uprightness of Heart before God and Man ; Yet have many of thy Rulers , Priests , and People , Oppressed them more and more ; Some Spoiling their Goods , others Imprisoning their Bodies , in filthy Holes and Dungeons , till several of them have Sealed their Testimony for the Lord with their Blood , which cryeth for Vengeance in the Ears of the Almighty , and the Lord hath heard the Cry thereof , and hath looked down and beheld the Actings of the sons of men , and he is near to Visit ; Yea , the Lord hath beheld , and doth behold , the Snares that have been , and are laid for the Innocent , who have no other Helper but him alone ; and therefore they have Committed their Cause unto Him who shall bring it to pass : Yea , he hath taken Notice , how several of thy Rulers have combin'd together , and endeavoured to Force His Babes to Violate his Royal Law , and to Break his Command ( who saith , Swear not at all ) to Uphold and Obey theirs , which is Contrary to his ; Yea , He hath taken Notice of the Cruel Sufferings , and great Temptations of his People , who , many of them , are yet Imprisoned , and both their Bodies and Estates threatned to be Destroyed ( by some evil men ) if they will not break the Royal Law and Commandment of Christ , which he hath placed in their hearts to Obey and Do. Oh! The Lord hath seen the Partiality and Evil Intents of several of the Judges and Rulers of this Land , who have had Power to let the Innocent go free , and yet keep many of his Ministers and Servants ( many of which have outward Estates ) Prisoners in many places ; although they have no more against them , than against those whom they have turned forth , which is nothing else but for their Obeying the Command of Christ in them , ( who this day saith unto his People , Swear not at all , as he said to his Disciples formerly ) and for meeting together , and Speaking and Praying in his Name , for the Edifying , Comforting and Building up one another in their most holy Faith . The Lord hath also taken notice , that when some of the Rulers might Relieve the Innocent , and let the Oppressed go free , they will not ; and then to cover themselves , they will say , They cannot act contrary to the Law : But when a Ruler will act that which he hath no Law for , he can then plead a Prerogative Royal for that : and thus are the Innocent Lambs of Christ made a Prey upon .

Oh! the Oppressions of his People , and others , are great this day in thee , O Land ; and the Crying of the Fatherless , the Widows and the Needy is come up before the Lord God of Compassion , who will thorowly plead the Cause of his People , and the Poor and Needy of the Land .

Oh England , England ! I have oft heard and treasured up what the Lord hath said in me , concerning thy Inhabitants ; but now must I declare it in the Appointed Season : Thus hath the Lord spoken in me for a long time , concerning thy Inhabitants , saying , The People are too many , the People are too many ; I will thin them , I will thin them : [ Mark ] that is , He will make them fewer , for they cumber the Ground . And the Spirit of the Lord hath oft signified unto me , for a long time , That an Over-flowing Scourge , yea , even an exceeding great and terrible Iudgement is to come upon thee , O Land ! and that many in thee shall fall and be taken away in the Judgement ; and the Spirit of the Lord signifieth unto me , that the time draweth nigh , and that the Decree of the Lord is so firm , that though some of the Lords Children and Prophets could appear so , as to stand in the Gap , yet should not that alter his Decree , onely in the Righteousness of the Lamb they shall be hid and saved from his Wrath , whatever may be done to any of their Bodies ; but his fierce Wrath and Indignation shall be poured forth upon the Ungodly , and a great Desolation and Destruction shall there be ; for he will overturn and overturn , till he hath dis-throned and thrown down the Man of Sin , and exalted and established the Kingdom of his Dear Son , over all the Kingdoms of the World ; and the Kingdom and Dominion , and the Greatness of the Kingdom under the whole Heaven , shall be given to the Holy People , the Saints of the Most High , whose Kingdom is an Everlasting Kingdom , and all Dominions shall serve and obey him , who is King of Saints .

Behold , ye Despisers , and Wonder ! This is the Work which the Lord will accomplish by his own Power , though you will in no wise believe it ; but you shall feel , even both Hypocrites and Prophane , that the Lord is able to bring to pass the thing that is in his heart .

And you now think to set up and establish your Idolatry , and to live in Prophaness without controul ; and you who appear so hot against some of these things , and labour to stop and pull them down ( mark ) that you might set up and establish your own Hypocritical Will-worship in another dark dead Form ; I will frustrate you both , saith the Lord God , and you shall grind and waste one against another , as the upper and nether Milstone ; And I will pluck out from you , and preserve a holy Seed , beyond expectation ; and I will be avenged on you for that which you have already bruised , or shall yet bruise , [ mark ] And I will hurry and hurl you round with a mighty Stream ; for the Waters shall roar and swell : And after I have executed my vengeance upon the Rebellious and Treacherous Dealers , I will then bring forth the Remnant of my Holy Seed , which shall be preserved from their Fury , and they shall spread over all , in my Life , Power , Knowledge and Wisdom , wherein they shall stand in Dominion ; Yea , and they shall rule the Earth in Mercy , Justice , and true Judgement ; and they shall forgive and love their Enemies ( as they do at this day ) and do the thing that is just and good unto all , without respect of Persons ; yea , they shall seek the good of the whole Creation in the true love and self-denial ; for the Spirit of Love , Meekness , Healing and Restoring shall mightily fill their tender Bowels , and my Blessings shall fill their Dwelling-place , and the Earth , for their sakes : these things will I accomplish by my own Power , and in my own time , saith the Lord God .

But although these things , touching the holy Remnant , shall certainly be fulfilled in their Season ? Yet before they be fully accomplished , great will be the Tryals of many of the Righteous , & there will be great Judgements executed in thee , O Land , by him who oft-times maketh a fruitful Land barren , because of the Wickedness of them that dwell therein ; and Just will it be with Him to deal so with thee , because of the great wickedness of the greatest part of thy Inhabitants , who are departed and separated from the Spirit of Mercy , Love , Compassion and Healing , and are labouring to Devour , Oppress , and Destroy one another , and the whole Creation .

Oh England , England ! There is also a People in thee who are come to see the Great Idolatry and Superstition , which many are now striving to revive and set up in thee ; yea , there is a People in thee , which see and believe that the Worship which is now a setting up , with the Vain Musick , Altars , Masse in English , and the foolish needless Garments of the Priests , and such like Popist stuff , that these things are Idolatry , Folly and Vanity , and but a mocking of God , and yet some of these People will run after this Vain Worship , for self-ends , flavish-fear , and to keep themselves in esteem with , or amongst those who plead for it : And others there are in thee , who instead of being sorrowful for such Abomination and Superstition , or reproving the Practicers thereof in the solid , seasoned , savoury Life and holy Dread of the Lord God , they write and speak scossingly of those things , even to the stirring up one of another into Vain Laughter , and so make a Sport of others Idolatry ; and this grieveth the Spirit of the Lord also , and doth not convince , but exasperate and harden those that are zealous for their blind Worship and Superstition .

There are also a great number of brittle , fiery , rash , unsatisfied People , in thee , O Land , who are as unstable as water ; and these rebelling against the Light , not knowing the way of it , because they abide not in the Path thereof , they are restless , rouling , and raging oft-times like the Sea ; One time they will have a Parliament , and cry out , They shall govern and heal them ; and when they have gotten them , in a short time they grow weary of them ; And then another time , they will cry out for a King , and say , He shall heal them , and make up their Breaches : But these people are not long of one mind , for they are much like the Athenians , who spent their time in little else but either to tell or to hear of some New thing· These People also are like mighty Tydes in thy Channels , O England , which one while run with Violence , driving all unsetled , light , unfixed things one way , and shortly after run with as much violence the contrary way : Therefore in a miserable condition are those Rulers whose strength is in such a People ! And until Rulers come to be settled , and fixed in Him who is the Rock of Ages , and singly to rule in , and for Him , whom the Winds and the Seas obey ; who maketh the Waters to stand on heaps , and divideth them hither and thither , and altereth the natural course of Tydes as he pleaseth ( as he hath done thine of late , to shew thee the Figure of the People ) they can never be safe , neither will the People be still'd long together ; but there will be Swellings , Ragings , Overflowings , sore Breakin gs , and Ruines .

Oh! that the foregoings Rulers would have been perswaded to have Received him for their Teacher , who ruleth in the Kingdoms of Men , then should they not onely have seen , what the Lord cast out others before them for , but they should have been taught how to have denyed all those things which the Lord was angry with others for , and they should have received Power to have abstained from the same ; but they would not hear and obey the Lord , nor his Prophets , and therefore were they cast out also .

And therefore , Oh! that the Rulers that now are , would be perswaded ( whilst they have their Day ) by the Lord and his Servants , to receive the Lord Jesus Christ , to be their King and Teacher , and then they should not onely see for what cause the Lord cast them out , and others in their Age , but they should be taught to deny and forsake all those things which God was angry with them , and others for , and they should receive Power to do those things , which they and others before them left undone : But alas ! How few are there that will Hear , Regard , and Obey the Prince of Life and his Followers , and therefore is Desolation coming as a mighty Flood , which none shall be able to stop .

Now all People , in what Sect or Opinion soever , in whom there are any true Breathings and Desires after the Lord , and the way of his Holiness , Fear not , neither be Dismaid , because of the Rage , that you may yet see the waters of the Land in , and because of the Confusion and Cruelty of the People ; But stand still in that Life which begetteth Breathings and Thirstings in you after the Lord , that you may come to see and feel his Salvation , and that you may be gathered into that Patience , Meekness , Contentedness , Rest , Peace , and Satisfaction , which many of the dear Lambs and Children of my Father are gathered into ; wherein they ly down , and none can make them afraid , though Bodies and Estates be oppressed and abused . Oh! Stick not , Stick not in your Forms without Power , neither Flee the Cross , any longer ; but wait in the True Simplicity , to feel God's hand of Tender Love , which he reacheth sorth to , and manifesteth in you , to lead and guide your minds into his Pure Worship , which is in the Spirit and in the Truth . Oh People ! This is the Worship that he will set up . He will be LORD and LAW-GIVER in the Consciences of his People , and those that will not be content that EMANUEL should Reign over them , he will Slay them with the Sword of the Spirit , The words of his Mouth .

Oh! Hearken , hearken a little , and stand still , that you may hear the voice of the True Shepherd in your own hearts , who calleth for Truth in the Inward Parts ; & he will discover what lodgeth Within , and He will shew you the Way wherein you should walk , and he will let you see what the Cross is unto , and He will teach you when you are alone in your Beds , or where-ever you are ; if you will receive Him who giveth you Life and Breath , whose gentle Reproofs and Instructions are the Way of Life .

Therefore you in whom the Breathings and Desires after the Lord are , Consult not with Flesh and Blood , neither reason against the Cross , but submit to every Appearance of God's Power in you , which appeareth to Crucifie the Fleshly Birth and Nature ; which hath stood , and doth stand in Rebellion and Emnity against the Pure and Precious Life , and Requirings of the Lamb of God ; that so that Mind which is at enmity against God , and that Nature in you , which is Disobedient to his Commands in Spirit , may come to be Crucified ; that so there may be a Change Inwardly felt and witnessed , by the working of the might Power of Christ in your Inward Parts ; and then the Desires and Breathings which are Begotten in you after Righteousness , they will be strengthned , and the Teachings of the Almighty will be truly known ; and you believing in the Power , you will receive Power to obey and Practice whatsoever the Lord shall make known unto you by his Spirit , to be his Will and Requirings .

Oh People ! Let the Dread of the Lord Seize upon your Spirits , in this the Day of his Power , wherein he is Trying , Sifting and Winnowing the Nations ; and wait to feel that Life arise within you , which beareth Testimony against all evil , within and without ; that so ye may become more and more acquainted with the Teachings , Drawings , and Leadings thereof ; that thereby you may be drawn and led out of those things which have kept your Souls in the Death , & hindred you from enjoying the Pure Peace of God . And this know and consider , that all that come to witness their Souls raised out of Death , and brought to enjoy the Peace of God , they must Believe in the Life of the Quickning Spirit , which is the Second Adam , the Lord from Heaven , who for Sin , Condemneth Sin in the Flesh , and appeareth in the Inward Parts of man , to work out Sin and Transgression , ( which hath Separated from God ) and so to make clean the heart and inside of Male and Female .

Oh People ! This is the Work of Christ the Son of God , even to make manifest and destroy the Works of the Devil , and so to reconcile man unto God , by the Virtue of his own Life , which he gave a Ransom for many ; and blessed are all those that believe in the Life of the Son of God , and feel and know it manifested in their mortal flesh ; for they shall witness the Power of it to make all things new , and so their Souls will come up in the hand of God , and his Peace will be Received and Enjoyed .

Oh People ! Wait to know , and feel this Work of Christ within you ; that so you may be made able to Stand in the Judgement , and to Endure the Tryal , and that you may be Hid from the Wrath of the Lamb , which is nigh to come upon the Rebellious . Oh! Consider this , Those that are his Followers , they come thorow many Tribulations , and their overcoming their Enemies is by His Blood , not by a talk of it , but by the Virtue and Power of it , sprinkled in their Hearts , which washeth and maketh them White , Clean , and without Fault before God . Oh People my Bowels yearn ! my Bowels yearn towards you ! whose Desires in any measure , are after the Lord : O that you would now Return with all your hearts unto Him , and obey the Voice of his Power in you ; then should you be made able to stand , and endure the fiery Tryal which is come and coming . Oh! the Day hastens wherein all Profession that is not grounded in the Life and Power of the Lord Jesus Christ ( whatever the shew of it be ) it will be so shaken , that an utter Blasting and withering shall come upon it ; and for that cause the Lord doth , and will yet suffer great Tryals to come , both upon the Professors , and Possessors of his Name ; that so his Children [ the Possessors ] may be manifested unto all , and discerned from all that are but Professors , though never so fair and seemingly Covered ; For all Coverings but what is of the Power and Spirit it self , shall be too Narrow ; and all that are not Covered with the Spirit and Power of Emanuel , their Shame and Nakedness shall appear more and more . This is the Testimony which the Spirit and Word of Truth giveth ; therefore , He that hath an ear to hear , let him hear , before the day of his Visitation be wholly past , and the things belonging to his Peace he hid from his Eyes : For yet a little while and the Voice shall be , He that is filthy , let him be filthy still ; For the Spirit of the Lord shall not alwayes strive with Flesh , but his Plagues and Indignation shall be poured out upon such as will be gathered in the Day of his Patience , long Forbearance , and Free-Love ; and He or She that Loveth Father , Mother , Husband , Wife , Children , House , or Land , Liberty , Honour , or any Thing more than the Life of the Lamb , shall be counted not worthy of him , and plainly manifested so to be : Read this who can ; and he that can receive it , let him : For the Time draweth nigh , that these Sayings must be fulfilled .

Printed the 13th . of the Second Month , 1661. GEORGE FOX , the Younger .
SEVERAL EPISTLES To FRIENDS Who are GATHERED into the Light of Life . A General EPISTLE and a tender Greeting , sent unto the Flock of Christ , who meet together to Worship the Father and the Son , in the Spirit of Truth ; to be read in the Fear and Wisdom of God amongst them .

DEAR and tenderly beloved Friends , and ●hildren of the most High God , who have felt and tasted of his eternal Word of Life , and have been acquainted with the workings and operations thereof , whereby you are begotten again unto a lively Hope , and are brought to know that Life , which you were alienated from , and that Covenant of Promise , which ye were strangers unto . Oh Friends ! unto you is my Love in the Lord Jesus Christ exceeding great , and for you do I oft Pray to the Father of Life , that ye may be kept stedfast in that Life , which ye have felt and tasted of , and that nothing may move you from that hope and confidence , which God hath begotten in you by the working of his mighty Power : Oh dear Babes ! let the Love of our God break and melt you into the meek tender Spirit of the Lamb ; and let the consideration of his Mercy and Grace , which to you he hath shewn , overcome you , and make you sick of Love : Oh how can I express his Goodness , for it is beyond utterance ! yea , his loving kindness to you-ward , hath been exceeding large , who in an acceptable time hath appeared and visited you with his tender Love , the Light of the World ; and by his unresistable Power hath he caused you to feel the day spring from on High , even the breaking forth of Light in your hearts and inward parts ; yea , this did he do for you , who were as Sheep without a Shepherd , scattered upon the Mountains , in the cloudy and dark day : Oh Friends ! how did his Love reach unto you , when ye were Enemies unto him ? how plainly did he shew unto you the evil of your wayes , which had separated you from his presence ? and how tenderly did he hold forth his hand of Love , to lead you out of that which had made you miserable ? and how did he give you strength to walk when ye were lame , and inclined your hearts after that which he shewed unto you to be Good ? and how did he manifest his eternal Power and Righteous Judgement in you , against the body of sin ? and how did he beget and quicken a Righteous Seed in you , which cannot live but in his presence ? and how mightily hath he opened the eye of your understandings by his eternal Spirit , that ye are brought to see the false Wayes and Worships of the World , wherein ye were once intangled ? and he hath also given you to see the Way to himself , and the Worship which he regards , in the Spirit of Truth , wherein you are come to know that which only can give satisfaction , and make you eternally free . Oh let the unexpressable Love of the Father never be forgotten by you , my dear Friends ! but all keep to , and dwell in , that eternal Immortal Power of an endless Life , which ye have felt and tasted or ▪ and let your minds be kept to the workings and operations of the same , that so none of you may be daunted by the enemy within or without ; but all wait in the eternal Light , the Foundation of God , which can never be shaken , that so your minds may be girded up , and you kept upon your watch , and your ear kept open to the Lord , that so when he calls ye may answer , and when he teaches , ye may observe and obey , that so your souls may live ; and that ye may see his eternal Will in all conditions , and be contented therewithal , then will you feel the peace which none can take away . And Friends , give all diligence to obey the Word of Wisdom , that ye may be known to be its Children , and that ye may feel and witness your growth into the nature of the Immortal Seed , whose Kingdom is not of this World ; that so your Redemption from the earth , and all earthly things , you may know , through the blood of the unspotted Lamb of God ; which blood , is the Life which he gave a Ransom for many , which Life is manifested in your mortal bodies , that through Faith in it ye may be saved .

And know this my Friends , henceforth you are not your own , for you are bought with a price , and you are called with an holy calling , that you might glorifie the Lord in your Bodies and Spirits , which are the Lord 's . Oh my Friends ! let not your delight be placed in the things of this World , for then will you be intangled ; but wait in the feeling of the pure Power of the Lord God , that ye may be kept and preserved thereby , that so ye that marry , may be as if you married not , and that ye that have of this world , as if ye possessed not , and that ye may be kept in the living Wisdom of God , in the ordering of all things that are given unto you , that so the Glory of God , and the honour of his Eternal Truth may be minded in all things ; and that your minds and hearts may be drawn out of all created things , and ye kept single and chast unto the Lord , that so , if it were his Will , that ye should be separated , either from Wife , or Husband ( outwardly ) or Children , or Houses , or Lands , or any outward thing , for his Name sake , that ye may be kept in that temper and frame of mind and Spirit , that ye may resign up all freely without murmuring , that so ye may be known to be followers of the Lamb , whithersoever he goeth ; for my Babes , it is given unto you , as well to suffer for his Names sake , as to believe ; and hereby shall the World know that ye are redeemed from the earth , if ye in patience and innocency give up to the Will of God in all things : Therefore dear hearts , wait in the Power and Life of God , that ye may feel your strength , and courage , and boldness for the Lord increased , that when you are tryed , ye may stand in that Spirit of Life and Meekness , which will give you eternal Peace in all your sufferings and Tryals ; for the Lord will try you , that ye may see , and know him alone to be your strength , and that the world may know , that ye are a People saved by the Almighty God ; And this know , that ye that are faithful , shall not be proved beyond your strength , for the Lord will be with you in all your Tryals ; and the more that you are persecuted for his Name , the greater shall his power be felt in you , and the more your Enemies afflict you , the greater shall be your joy , and this shall torment your Enemies : So Friends , let patience have its perfect work , that ye may be perfect and entire , wanting nothing ; for the Lord will make up his Jewels , and he will take away all the dross , and nothing shall remain , but that which will abide the Tryal in the fire ; for the Lord hath been loaded with the sacrifices of many , who have professed his Name , but have not been subject to the leadings of his Spirit , but have grieved it from day to day ; Therefore will the Lord God try all Professions , and the chaff shall be blown away , and all false coverings shall be stript off , and men shall appear as they are ; yea , the chaff which some time seemed to joyn to the Wheat , shall be driven to and fro , until the fire consume it , or until it mix it self with the mire where the Swine wallow ; but God will have regard unto his Seed , which is weighty : And Friends , a day of Calamity will come upon ●hem , who have worshipped , and do Worship , 〈◊〉 ●●known God at a distance , and pretend the Worship of the 〈◊〉 God ; for they shall call , but their God shall not answer , and they shall fret themselves , and fear and terror shall sieze upon them , and many shall joyn to , and fall under that , which they have called and esteemed Babylonish : But there is a remnant yet to be gathered , both from among the Professors and Profane ; Therefore dear hearts , let your circumspect walking in the Life of Righteousness , reach the Witness of God in all Consciences , and let your soberness and patience smite your Enemies . And you that are strong in the Lord , and in the Power of his Might , are Able to endure much , bear ye with the weak , and encourage and strengthen the feeble , and let your tender love and care be over such , as ye feel have true breathings after the Lord , though they have had little of a knowledge of the Declaration of Truth ; and let your words to , and before them , and all men , be seasoned with Grace , that ye may minister unto the Grace in the Hearers .

And ye that are weak , and yet have a true Love begotten in you towards the Lord , all wait in the feeling of the Truth in your inward parts , that your minds may be wrought into subjection to the Lord , through the working of his eternal Power in you ; and when you are tempted , heed not the temptation , but heed the Light that makes manifest the temptation , and believe in the Light , and keep to it , and ye will feel the Lord's presence and strength breaking forth to deliver you , and to make a way for you to escape the temptation , and if at at any time ye be overcome by the subtilty of the Devil , and then the Light arise in you , to make manifest the Transgression , and to judge you for it , then joyn to the Light , and love the Judgement , and Will not , but be still , until it works through , and breaks forth into Victory ; and if ye see Iniquity abound , then take heed that your Love wax not cold ; and if ye see some fall from the Truth , and turn back with the Dog to the Vomit , and with the Swine that was washed , to the wallowing again in the mire ; and if ye see some for fear of persecution start aside , or for the love of this World depart from the Faith , or turn from the holy Commandment , which was delivered unto them , upon any account whatsoever , let none of these things move or trouble you , for such things will come to pass ; but blessed are they that are not offended with the Light , but suffer and endure all things unto the end , for they shall be saved . But this know Friends , that the Lord God will try you , and you must pass through Perils and Tryals , not only among the open prophane ones , but also among such as have known the Truth , and turn from it ; yet know my Friends , that God will not try you further than he will give you strength to endure the Tryal , if ye be faithful unto him . Therefore watch and be sober , and wait in the Life , that ye may have salt in your selves to savour withal ; and be not weary , neither faint in your minds , nor let not in distrust , but hope to the end , and be confident that God will appear and work deliverance for his People ; but if it be his Will that ye must yet be further tryed , and that he will yet suffer the wicked to flourish , and spread forth themselves as a green Bay-Tree , and that ye must yet bear your Testimony for the Lord by greater sufferings : Oh Friends murmur not ! but hold fast your integrity , and know certainly , that whatsoever any suffer for the Lord , they shall not lose their reward : Therefore all Friends , be valiant and strong , and bold for the Truth upon earth ; and walk humbly with the Lord , and wisely before your Enemies , that so , ye by doing the thing that is right in the sight of God , may put to silence the foolish and ignorant , for this is the Will of God . And Friends , walk patiently towards all men , knowing that ye sometimes were ignorant , and foolish , and disobedient ; therefore let your pitty and patience towards them ( that be disobedient ) be known ; and wait that ye may be ready to shew them the thing that is Good , and to instruct them concerning the way of Righteousness ; or if you have not words given you , then let your Conversation Preach forth Righteousness , that so haply God may give some of them Repentance , and that ye may be made instruments for the bringing them unto the acknowledgement and knowledge of the Truth ; and live in the VVisdom and Power of God , that so your Enemies may have nothing against you justly , but if they will persecute you for any thing appertaining to a good Conscience , be not dismaid ; or if they falsly accuse you , and falsly swear against you , and so ye become reckoned among the Transgressors by them , be not troubled , but be patient , and keep to the VVitness of God ; for thus the wicked served your Master , who gave his back to the smiter , and his cheecks unto them that plucked off the Hair , and the Servant is not greater than his Lord : So let nothing be too dear to be given up for the Lord ; and bow not to any thing , but to the Name of Jesus , whose Name is called the VVord of God , by which we must overcome and break through all this ungodliness : Oh the Lord keep you faithful and patient in your Tryals , for much have we to pass through and to overcome , through the patience and long-suffering of the Lamb. So let none be exalted above their measures , nor cast down by letting in of fears , but all dwell in the living Nobility of the Immortal King of Righteousness , and keep in subjection to his Government , and meet together oft in his Name , though the Sea and the Heathen Rage , and the People imagine vain things , and though the Kings of the Earth , and the Rulers rise up together , and take Counsel against the Lamb , and his followers ; and though the rude multitude may persecute you , and the VVhore may drink some of your Blood , yet be not dismaid , neither fear ye at all , for in vain do they strive , for the Lamb shall get the victory ; glory to him in the Highest .

And so Friends , keep your garments unspotted , ye , who have washed them in the Blood of the Lamb , and be exceeding tender toward such Professors as have a tenderness in them towards God , in what Sect soever they be in ; for poor Creatures , they are to be pittied , and the Way of Truth is to be shewn unto them , and this day will bring some of them unto the Principle of God in themselves , and they must come unto that , before they can find a true stay to their minds ; and them that come not to that , and keep not to that , will wither as the grass upon the house top . Oh Friends ! I can even rejoyce and sing for joy , notwithstanding the rage and strength of the Enemies ; for I see the day that approacheth will be exceeding good for Truth , and for Friends that dwell in it ; for they that stand approved shall be made manifest , and the upright shall not lose , but gain through all these things ; and certainly , when our God hath tryed us to the full , he will appear for us ; and though our Enemies were as the sand of the Sea , and as strong as Gyants , yet shall they fall as untimely fruit , and our GOD shall consume and weaken them by the Majesty of his Power , and an exceeding desolation shall come upon the Earth , and a Besom of destruction shall sweep away many .

Therefore dear Hearts , be stedfast in the Lord , and keep the Word of his Patience , and know , that not one hair of your Heads shall perish , nor any thing shall be done unto any of you , but what the Lord will be glorified by , and you shall receive a full and a sufficient reward for it , if ye continue faithful : So live in the Power and Seed of God , that ye may possess the Kingdom , the eternal Peace , Joy and Righteousness , which stands in the Power : And love fervently ; Oh Friends , let that abound more and more one towards another , and by this shall men also know , that ye are taught of Christ , if ye love one another ; and wait that ye may feel the springs of Life in your selves , and feed upon that which proceeds from God , that ye may grow up in the Power and Life , and Wisdom of God , and therein be established : So the Almighty Power , Life , and Wisdom of God , keep and preserve your for ever , Amen . The Lord God Almighty keep you fresh and lively , meek , tender , and innocent , and fill you with every good word and work , which accompanieth Peace and Godliness ; if any Decree unrighteous Decrees , heed them not , for the Decree of God shall stand , which is , to establish Righteousness in the Earth ; and in the Power of the Lord , we shall break the bonds of the ungodly , and cast their cords from us : So the Spiritual Weapon war withal , and stand in the Faith , and hold fast the Word of Truth , that through it you may feel and witness your sanctification , and the Birth Immortal raised up over all , which is the Heir of the Kingdom without end , and assuredly God will do mighty things for his Poples ; therefore be ye comforted and strengthened in the Lord , and dwell in and keep his Covenant , and answer his requirings in the Light of Life , and live in the retiredness , and in the Wisdom of God , that your Enemies may have no just occasion against you , and that ye may be preserved out of their snares ; and if they Imprison you , and falsely accuse you , or spoyle your Goods , or Persecute you any manner of wayes , keep in Patience , and freely forgive them , and suffer as Lambs in the true Innocency , that so your Peace with the Lord may be preserved in all conditions .

And Friends , let the Dread and Majesty of God fill you ; And as concerning the changing of Times and Governments , let not that trouble any of you , for God hath a mighty work and hand therein ; and he will yet change again , until that come up which must Reign ; and in vain shall Powers and Armies withstand the Lord , for his determined work shall come to pass ; but what is now come up , it 's just with the Lord that it should be so , and he will be served by it : Therefore let none murmur , nor distrust God , for God will provoke many to zeal against unrighteousness , and for Righteousness , through things which are suffered now to work for a season ; yea , many whose zeal was even dead , shall revive again , and they shall see their back-slidings , and bewail them bitterly , and God shall thunder down from Heaven and , break forth in a mighty noise , and his Enemies shall be astonished , and the workers of Iniquity confounded , and all that have not on the Garment of Righteousness , shall be amazed at the mighty and strange work of the Lord , which shall be certainly brought to pass ; but my Babes , look ye not out , but be still in the Light of the Lamb , and he shall fight for you : So the Almighty hand which must Break , and Split , and Divide your Enemies , and take away Peace from them , preserve and keep you whole , and in Unity , and in Peace with it self , and one with another .

Lambeth-House . the 3 d. day of the 4 th . Month 1660. I am your Dear Friend and Brother in the Kingdom and Patience of Christ , who am a Prisoner for his Testimony , and keep his Word , and am made as willing to suffer bonds , or to dye for his Name , as to declare and publish it amongst men : Eternal living Praises , and Hallelujahs over all , be unto him for evermore , Amen . George Fox , the Younger .
AN EPISTLE UNTO All who love the Lord Jesus Christ in Sincerity , who are made partakers of the riches of his Grace , and meet together to wait upon him therein , to be read in their Meetings , in the Fear of the Lord .

DEAR Friends , whom the eternal God hath visited with his own Life and Power , and thereby hath called you out of the Darkness of the World , into his Marvellous Light , and hath begotten and quickned a Seed in you , unto which pertaineth the Promises of Life and Peace , and also hath opened a good understanding in you , by the measure of his Eternal Spirit , and hath brought you into a feeling , and a sensibleness , and a savour of that which ministers and reacheth to ( and refresheth ) his own Seed . Oh Friends , great is the Love of the Lord God unto you , and large is his Eternal Riches ; let not his everlasting Love be forgotten by any of you , neither slight nor neglect his rich Mercy ; but dear Friends , dwell in the living measure of his Grace , and hearken diligently unto the Voice of the Lamb ; so shall you be refreshed with the living Presence of the Father , and the Fountain of Life shall be enlarged unto you , whereby the Babe of God shall be strengthned , and grow up in stature . And when you are met together to wait upon the Lord , Oh! feel his living Gift in your selves , and be obedient to the motions and operations thereof , that so the Presence and Power of the Eternal God may be felt and enjoyed in your Meetings , ( and at other times ) for the bringing down , and working out , of all that which is contrary to himself in you , and for the working you into the express Image of his own Glory , and for the bringing you into the perfect Obedience of his own Life and Power , that the Nature of the Lamb ( which takes away the sins ) ye may all grow into , that so the Patience of Christ may be felt and witnessed in you all , and that it may have its perfect Work in you , that therein you may possess your Souls ; then shall the Lord enlarge your understandings , and ye shall grow into the meek quiet Spirit , wherein your savour and discerning shall be encreased , and ye shall feel the gentle leadings of the invisible Life , whereby satisfaction and refreshment shall be received unto the Seed Immortal .

So dear hearts , let the living Measure of the Eternal Father of Life , and Power , and Wisdom , be your continual Stay and Habitation , that so , if any shall come among you , that are out of the true savour and feeling of the Life in themselves , and shall act or speak any thing among you , that is out of the Life , that ye then may not be drawn out of the savour and feeling thereby , but wait ye singly in the innocent , patient , long-suffering Spirit of Christ , and that will preserve you out of the fretting , and murmuring , and thoughts , and reasoning , and out of the enmity , and it will keep you settled and quiet , and in Unity with God , and with all who abide in his Life ; and this will reach the Witness in them , who are turned from it , into the rambling unsettled state ; and if ye feel the Seed burdened , then wait in the true Patience , in the fervent Love to the Truth , and then the Lord's Counsel you will know , and his Wisdom you will receive , and his Power you will feel , whereby ( as you are obedient thereto ) the burden will be removed , and the evil will be judged , ( that caused the burden ) and the Seed will be refreshed , and the Unity of the Faith will be known , and the weak there will be preserved , and so the Peace will be Witnessed , and the Truth will be adorned , and its Enemies shall be ashamed .

Oh my Friends , dear is the everlasting unchangeable Truth of God unto me , which he hath made known in and among us in this his Day ; and dear and precious are all ye unto me , who abide in it , for therein is no Schisms , nor Parties , nor Rents , nor Envy ; for who goe into those , first goes from the simplicity of the naked Truth , in which ( they that abide in it ) the Patience , and Forbearance , and Unity is felt by them ; and such as go out of it , must feel the Judgement ; but all who abides in the Faith , shall not come into Condemnation .

So the LORD GOD Almighty of Heaven and Earth , preserve and keep you all in Patience , in Innocency , in Uprightness , and in Obedience , unto the living measure of his Power manifested in you , Amen .

Now Friends , that which ministreth unto the Seed Immortal , know that Ministration in your selves , for that is profitable , and that is durable , and fadeth not away ; and let the exercise of your minds be in that which is living of God , when you are met together ( and at other times ) that so ye may be kept out of that which comes to an end , in the feeling of the Power of an endless Life ; that so the Seed of Life may be raised up in you all , and ye established in it , to live in it for ever ; in which Seed , the end of words is witnessed . Oh Friends , there cannot be another Truth , or Power , or Saviour , Preached unto you , that you are to mind , than that ye have already heard and felt , but the same you are to wait to feel an enlargement in ; Therefore be valiant for the Lord , and prize the worth of his unchangeable Truth , and watch and be diligent , that his Spirit of Life and Power may quicken you , and that his Virtue and Nourishment may be felt and lived in , whereby Fruits of Eternal Righteousness and Praises over all , may be given unto him , and that ye may be preserved fervent unto your first Love in him , whose Eternal Day is dawned ( and broke forth ) of Salvation , of Life , of Power , of Immortality ; Glory , Eternal Praises everlastingly , be rendred unto Him , from the meek , lowly , quiet , peaceable Spirit , which is risen , and arising in his Babes , and tender Plants , whereby he stayes , and settles , and satisfies them , even in the day of Tryal , and in the day of Prosperity .

I am your Dear and tender Friend and Brother in the Power of God , in which I labour , for the gathering of the Seed , for the bringing into , and keeping in the Unity of the Spirit , which is the bond of Peace . George Fox , the younger .
TO THE Called of God , Who Believe in the Light of the LAMB , To be read in their Assemblies in the Pure Dread of the Lord .

DEar Children and People of the Eternal God , who have known the working of his Mighty Power , and have been exercised in the Operations of his Eternal Spirit , whereby he hath begotten your minds out of the world , in a great measure , and hath brought you into a feeling of his Eternal Presence , which filleth Heaven and Earth , wherein is the Joy unspeakable unto them that are reconciled to God by the Lord Jesus Christ , the Immortal Word : Friends , you unto me are exceeding precious , and my Desires and Breathings to the Lord for you , are exceeding strong , that ye may be preserved in the sence and feeling of the Power of an endless life , and that you may be all kept in the true Faith and obedience of the truth , which lives for ever ; all minding to answer its requirings in every particular , and waiting to feel its Springings arising in you , whereby you may feel it quickning you up to God , that so your Faith , and trust , and Confidence may onely stand in him , who is able to deliver : For Friends this know , the Lord will assuredly try you to the uttermost , and you must come through the fire which will consume your enemies : Therefore dear Babes be stedfast in the Lord according as he hath made manifest himself unto you , and wait and watch in that measure of his Life in you , which onely is able to keep your minds and hearts out of the Earth , and the things thereof , and as ye singly wait upon the Lord , you will feel the growth of that Birth in you , which is not of this world , which can endure the fire ; Oh my Friends , wait to feel your growth and Translation into this Birth , which doth the will of the Father naturally ; this is the Seed unto which the Promises are ; this is the Elect which obtains , and cannot be deceivid ; this is the Heir of the Kingdom without end ; this will God Crown with Victory , when the measure of it's Sufferings is fulfilled ; this Seed must work through all it's Enemies , and work them under it's feet ; Oh! wait in the Eternal Power to feel and witness it in the particular , and be patient till God bring forth his Work outwardly ; Look not out , neither be dismayed at the strange transactions of the times , but look to the Lord , who onely can save by what means he pleaseth , and let the Lord alone to appear as he pleaseth ; onely be you watchful , that when he appears , you may be ready for his appearance , and watch in the Light which will give you clearly to see his appearance , and what he requires of you ; that so living obedience unto him may be yielded : Oh Friends , Take heed that the things of this World draw not away any of your hearts : Remember it is them that are redeemed from the Earth , that must Reign in , and with the Lamb upon the Earth : Take heed that your love stands not in any thing , or things , that is of this world ; for the Tryal will be great unto such : Dear hearts , I know that some of you have suffered the losse of much for his Name sake already ; oh faint not , neither be weary , for all your Sufferings are known unto the Lord ; and he will not alwayes so try you ; but he will sufficiently recompence you , if ye abide to the end : Therefore watch unto Prayer , and Pray in the Spirit , as it moves you thereunto , that you may be kept through Faith unto the end of the Tryal , that you may be prepared and made fit for the deliverance , which must come by an outstretched Arm ; and when you are tryed deeply , either in Prisons or otherwise , ( oh Friends ) murmur not , but feel the Lord's strength to support you , that you may not bow to the Enemy , in any wise , whose day is but short , and therefore he is wroth and rages ; for such as bow to any thing , but the Name of our King , verily their torment and perplextty will be exceeding miserable , when the Lord shall deliver his chosen , who kept their integrity , and loved not their estates , nor lives , but gave up all for his Name sake : Therefore dear Friends , hearken you to the voice of the Lord , and keep you to the leadings of his Eternal Spirit , and let his Dread fill you hearts .

And you that feel but little Sufferings and Tryals , take heed of a wrong security , and of a false ease and Liberty , least the day of the Lord come upon you at unawares , and a violent storm unlookt for ; and you that are in deep Sufferings and Tryals , be not you cast down , but know that the Tryal of your Faith is exceeding precious , and if you keep your minds stayed upon the Lord , then will you learn much in such a time , and you will feel the presence of God , and the virtue of his Power , inwardly refreshing you ; and you will feel the Power of his Majesty giving you Authority sutable to the Condition you are in : So as all Friends are kept in that which gives you the sence and feeling of your conditions , that Principle of Life will work your minds and hearts into contendedness with the Will of God , which is your Sanctification ; So let the bond of Peace be minded in all things , for it is comely amongst Brethren .

And now the God of Life and endless Virtue and Power watch over you , and Minister unto every one of you , that which is sutable to your present conditions ; and the Lord God Almighty preserve and keep you Low , Humble , Meek , Tender , Innocent , upright , Faithful and valiant , ( out of the Snares of the Enemy ) and give you Peace in all your Tryals ; and let the Patience of his Lamb be increased in you , that you may stand unmoveable upon the Rock of Ages , and retain the Life which quickens in your understandings : And the Lord God open and keep open your discernings , that by no meanes the subtilty may beguile the similicity in this the day of Tryal : Eternal Father unto thee I commend all thy Flock , that thou Father may fill them with Wisdom , Strength and Courage , that to thy Glory they may be preserved in their several places and measures ; to whom be Dominion and Glory everlasting for thy endless riches , for thou Lord art worthy to Reign over all ; Even so come Lord God and take thy Kingdom .

I the Prisoner for the Lord salutes all you , who loves the appearance of Christ , in that love which abides for ever . GEORGE FOX , the Younger . Lambeth House the 14th of the 5th Month , 1660.

SUrely it was thee O Lord , that gave bounds unto the Sea , that the floods thereof could not overwhelm thy chosen ; thou canst let forth the winds and suffer a storm , and thou canst make a Calm when thou pleasest , have thou the Glory of all , Thou King of Saints , thou Saviour of Israel , thou canst do whatsoever thou pleasest ; therefore will we trust in thy Name , neither will we fear what man can do unto us , because thou wilt not forsake us , but thou wilt plead our Cause in the sight of our adversaries , and they shall know that thou art our God , who art able to save to the uttermost ; O Lord our Righteousness , we will praise thy Name , for thy Mercies indure for ever ; our eyes O God are unto thee , for we have no other helper ; our Faith O Lord standeth in thee , who canst not forget thy People ; Thou hast revealed and brought up Jacob , who wrestleth with thee , and prevails as a Prince , therefore must the Blessing come ; O Lord the Birth , the Birth cryeth unto thee , thine own Elect , which long hath been Oppresse● ; ●hou canst not deny thy self , therefore have we Faith and Hope which maketh not ashamed ; Oh , Lord 〈◊〉 unsearchable are thy wayes ; Thou hast even amazed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , with the depth of thy Wisdom , thou on●ly wi●l have the Glory of their deliverance ; and therefore 〈◊〉 thou suffered these things to come to pass : 〈…〉 Righteous in all thy Judgements , onely preser●e thy People ( which thou hast gathered and will gather unto thy self ) in the day of Tryal , that so they may sing of thy Power , and Magnifie thy Name in the Land of the Living .

George Fox , the Younger .
The Breathings of true Love , from the Immortal Seed , in the Prisoner for the Lord , unto his People .

DEear Friends , Brethren and Sisters in the Light , called to be a People , loved of God the Father in the Lord Jesus Christ , Grace , Love , and Peace be multiplied amongst you , through the abundant manifestation of the Spirit of Life , proceeding from the Father and the Son .

My Children , and beloved Friends , the God of all Truth hath appeared unto you in the Everlasting Covenant of Light , and Life , visiting you in an acceptable Day , and Time ; making known unto you his Eternal Truth , by the Revelation of his Mighty Power in your Mortal Bodies ; whereby he brought you indeed to feel and know the miserable Estate and Condition that ye were in ; and he hath also given you to see him upon whom help is laid , and you have received him ( who is the Salvation of God ) through the drawings of his Mighty Power ; and you are brought to know and believe , That Salvation is not to be had in another ; yea many of you have received the Covenant of God , and do indeed know that your sins are washed away in the blood thereof ; for you have the witness in your selves , and the word of reconciliation is felt and known in your hearts , whereby abundance of Peace and Joy unspeakable is witnessed , and the Kingdom is come , of which there is no end ; and some of you are placed together therein , in Christ Jesus ; and many others of you , the called of the Lord , are travelling thitherwards through the Righteous Judgements of the Lord , in the Spiritual Warfare , and in the Faith and Patience of the Lamb.

Now my Friends , Be you stedfast in the Truth of God received ; you have been a suffering People most of the time since the Lord hath brought you in any measure into the obedience of his Glorious Truth and Gospel , ( which is the Power of God ) and you have abode in his fear , and singly given up to his will ; you have mightily been preserved , and you have felt the hand of a tender Father upholding you , and giving you Peace and content , when you have lost much of this world , and the honour and pleasures thereof for his Name sake : Oh Friends ! He hath not been wanting unto you , he hath seen your sufferings , and hath looked upon your afflictions , and hath ministred strength proportionable thereunto , that you might not faint , nor be weary ; Oh! let not his Mercies and Fatherly care and loving kindness be forgotten by any of you ; but let them for ever be had in remembrance ; so shall the reward be witnessed .

Now Friends , the Lord hath suffered a Cloud and a Mist as it were , to spread it self in these Nations , whereby an evil savour is gone forth , which by fire must be taken away , in which he will yet further try his People , that they may be as gold , separated clearly from the dross , and that they may indeed be truly gathered and redeemed from the Earth , and all earthly things ; and that they may wholly look unto him for deliverance , and know that he indeed is the alone refuge and hiding-place in the day of distress : Therefore let all , who know the Power of God , retire inward , and watch in the Light of the Lamb , that you may feel the movings of the Life in your own Vessels , and be kept in obedience to its drawings and leadings , in this day of Tryal , Temptation and Darkness , which is spreading it self , for a Moment ( mark that ) lest any of you be scattered ; for the Enemies work is , an● will be , to seek to draw you from your strength and true guide , which , where he attains it , great will be the sorrow and loss of such .

Therefore my dearly beloved Friends , who have tasted how good the Lord is , in the tender bowels of Christ , I beseech you , be fervent in love to God , and one towards another ; and be watchful in the Light , and therein watch one over another , and strengthen , and comfort , and encourage , and build up one another , in the work and service of the Lord : And if any ( through the temptation of the Enemy ) hath at any time spoken or done any wrong to another , even as God in Christ , forgave you , so freely forgive ye one another ; and be ye plain-hearted one to another , and ●e ye reconcil●d in that which destroys all prejudice , and purges out all hard thoughts , that so the Unity may be witnessed in that Love , which thinks no evil , and the one Head and Master over all submitted unto ; and let the gathering be unto him alone , that so the blessing may be multiplyed in and amongst you , unto the Glory and Praise of him that gives the encrease . And be diligent in Meeting together ( whilst you may ) in the Name and Power of the Lord , and be watchful in the measure of the Life of God , that you may feel your strength renewed and encreased in the inward man : For Friends , this is a day which will try every one's strength ; therefore dwell in the Power , in which the true gathering is , that ye may not scatter abroad ; for he that gathers not , scatters abroad ; and he that goes from the drawings of the Power , gathers not . Now Friends , as ye keep in the drawings and springings of the Invisible Life , ye will be knit together in one Life , and there will be no striving who shall be greatest ; but every one will be serving the Lord in their several places and measures , and one another in Love ; and as this is abode in , the weak in somethings , and at sometimes , may help the strong , and the stronger in other things , may help the weak : Oh Friends ! be as Children of one Father , dwelling in Innocency and Love together , helping one another ; Be ye indeed as Members of one Body , knowing that the nourishment to the several Members thereof comes frome one Head ; and considering that every Member hath not the same Office , yet of exceeding Service , as each moves and acts in true Love to the Body , and therefore ought to be born and owned in their respective places ; and if any Member would act any thing , that might hurt the Body , or any part of it , either through being out of the sence , what is of Service to the Body , or otherwise , then if another Member or Members be made sensible of the same , it , or they , are bound in Love to the Body , to seek to hinder the same , and in tender love to restore the erring Member , that so the Body may be kept in true Order , and every Member seeking the good one of another . Oh Friends ! consider how the Members , even of the true natural Body , serve one another in Love ; how does one cover another ? how does one bear , and strain , and labour for the good of each other , to help one another ! and how much more ought these things to abound in the Spiritual Body , of which Christ is the Head ?

And now , that which chiefly lyes upon me at present to you is this ; That ye all , in the feeling of the pure Life and Power of God , may keep ; and that where there hath been any watching for advantage by any ( among you ) against one another , or strife of words , or prejudice , or striving to Lord it one over another , or strangeness one towards each other , that these things be utterly laid aside and resisted ( for where these things , or any of them , take place , they eat as doth a canker , and devour the Babe which should inherit the Promises , and receive the Blessing ) and that in tender Bowels of Love ye receive and embrace one another ; and that all whatsoever hath tended to the contrary in any , may dye and be forgotten , as if it had never been ; that so the Birth Immortal ( which hath been quenched in some ) may spring and grow in the Vertue of the Father , that its strong cryes , both in the Male and in the Female , may pierce through the Clouds , and reach unto the Father of Life and Power , and wrestle with him , until the Blessing be given abundantly ; yea until he make bare his Arm in the sight of his Enemies , that the Oppressor may cease , and the Land may be swept of evil doers , that so a way may be made for the further spreading of his everlasting Name and Truth , and for the exalting of the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus over all the Kingdoms of the World .

Ah Friends ! the Unity , the Unity ( in the Spirit ) the Love , the Love ( from a pure heart ) is exceeding precious ; the yearning of Bowels one toward each other ( in the Lord ) the Faith , the Patience , the Watching , and Breathing , and Groaning , and Sighing , and Praying , and Crying in the Spirit and Power of Emanuel , is able to astonish the Heathen , and to confound Armies , and Powers , that withstand the Kingdom of the Lord Christ , and to cause Vengeance to come upon such as will not Repent and turn to the Lord , in the day of their Visitation , even in the day of God's long Patience and Forbearance , but set and bend themselves against the Lord and his Anointed .

Now Friends , here is our strength , and these are the Weapons which we must war withal , against all this ungodliness that is come , and coming up : Therefore every particular , hearken diligently unto the Call of God , in the inward parts , and wait in the meek Principle of Life , that each may know and feel their own proper Gift or Gifts , Weapon or Weapons , and that every one may be kept sensible of the Teachings of the Captain of our Salvation , that so ye may be expert in handling and using of it , or them , to the glory of him , who hath called you to War against Babylon : And dear Friends , if any who love the Truth , be yet further oppressed , and their Goods spoyled by the false Prophet or Beast , as many will be ; Oh! be ye tender-hearted towards such , and know that the Earth is the Lord's , and the Fulness thereof , and they that follow the Lamb , are redeemed from the Earth : Therefore ye , who know the Life , dwell in it , that your Redemption from all earthly things may be witnessed , and that your Bodies and Estates may freely be given up to serve the Lord , and one another , whilst you are suffered to enjoy them . Friends , I know many of your Bodies and Estates have been , and yet are so given up ; but these things I speak by way of remembrance , to stir up the pure mind in all , who breath after the Truth , that love unfeigned may be maintained and encreased among you , that ye may be all as Children of one Family , dwelling together in Unity and Peace , contented with the Will of the Father ; and be not at all discouraged or daunted , because of the strength , and malice , and cruelty that is in the Adversary , but be still and Patient in the Faith , and stand out of all mortals , in the sence of the Invisible , Immortal Power of God ; and in that , Meet oft together , and visit one another [ whilst you may ] and be as Lambs amongst Wolves , and the LORD our God shall appear for us , and fight against our Enemies , as he fought in the dayes of old against the Enemies of his Seed ; yea , he shall confound our Enemies , and bring them to naught , and bring Liberty to his People , when he hath tryed them to the full ; be Patient , and doubt not , though the Day must be hot , yet it shall be but short , for the Elects sake ; Watch and look not out , He that will save his Life shall lose it , but he that is willing to part with it , shall find it eternally . So the endless , eternal Father of Life , of Power , of Wisdom , of Peace , of Love , of Salvation , gather , and knit , and unite you together , and preserve and keep you in the melting Power and Love of the Lamb , that ye may be as a Garden of Spices , that your savour may be pleasant unto the Lord , and unto all that breath after him , in this the day of Tryal , Amen .

Ah my dear Friends ! you have had a large and glorious day allowed you , for the begetting and gathering of you into the precious Faith , and the Unity thereof ; and many precious opportunities have you had , for the assembling your selves together in the Name of the Lord ; and plenteously hath his eternal sweet Power and Life been manifested in and among you ; and as you have waited therein . Oh! how have you felt the Blood of the everlasting Covenant , the Life of Jesus purging and purifying your Consciences , that therein you might hold the Mystery of that Faith , which is your Victory over the World . And now my Friends , the Lord our God hath seen it good , that ye may yet be tryed ; yea , you must further be tryed , your Faith , your Strength , your Patience , must all be tryed , and that by fire ( as I said before ) that a pure People you may be ( who stand and endure the Tryal ) unto the Lord ; yea , a glorious People shall ye be , whose beauty and splendor shall fill the Earth .

Therefore my dearly beloved in the Lord , be watchful I beseech you , and turn in , and keep low , in the feeling of the eternal Power in your own Vessels , and know that every particulars strength lyeth there , and ever particular will be tryed . Therefore keep to your particular strength , and be obedient to the Power in all its movings , that so by it your minds may be drawn off all things that can or may change , and come to an end , and become wholly centered in the unchangeable endless Life of God : Then my Friends , nothing can harm you . But verily , if any of your affections be centered in Husbands , Wives , Children , or any earthen Vessel , or visible thing whatsoever , so as that you cannot be willing to part with all , if it be required at your hands , then may your sufferings be great and dangerous unto you . Therefore I beseech you be followers of the invisible Life of Jesus , in all its appearances anddrawings , that so by it you may be taught how to use all visible changeable things unto the Glory of the Lord , whilst you are permitted to enjoy them . And that you may be made willing to give up , and to part with all ; ye● , even with your lives also , if you be called thereunto , for the Tryal of your Faith ( or that your Enemies thereby may fill up the measure of their Iniquity , and that Judgement may come upon them to the full . ) And whilst you have outward liberty , for the keeping your Meetings together , be diligent therein ( as I said before ) and when any of you come to be hindred from such opportunities as you have enjoyed , Oh! then be patient , and wait upon the Lord for strength ; and if in any place it should come to pass , that but two or three of you could come together , neglect not that ; for if in the pure fear and love of God you be kept , it will be profitable & comfortable unto you . And dear Friends , you who are but weak in the Truth , to you I now speak ; Take heed of looking out at any of us , whom the Lord God hath drawn forth by his own Power and Love , to declare his living eternal Truth , unto you ; I say , look not out at us ( as for strength or teaching ) but look to the endless Life in your selves , which we have directed you unto , in which your strength and satisfactory Teaching is ; for we may be removed far from you ( as to the outward ) but the Life and Power , by which you and we stand , abideth with and in you ; and we ( as to the outward ) may be bruised , broken , and slain , for the Testimony of Jesus , and the Word of God , which we hold ; But the Life and Spirit of God and the Lamb , dwelleth for ever with you that believe in it ; and if ye crucifie it not to your selves , there is none that can slay it . And while you have Us , or any of Us , among you , I exhort and warn you all , and that in the Name and Authority of the Lord , that ye look not upon , or think of any of Us , above what we are , lest thereby you should hurt your selves ( or any of us , ) but according as God hath distributed unto us of his Heavenly Treasure , even so know us , and feel us , and receive us in the Lord , and know no man after the flesh , neither admire any thing but the pure Life of God , and the Birth born of him ; and know , that what of God's treasure we have in our earthen Vessels , we have received it from the Lord , that none might glory or boast ( in what they have ) over another . And what we have received , it is partly for your sakes , that we might impart of the same unto you , as good Stewards of the manifold Grace of God , and although we are become the Lord's Free-men , through the work of his eternal Power and Spirit , yet are we your Servants in Christ , and so let us be accounted among you , for that is our place and duty , even to serve you in the Lord , and to stand given up , to spend and be spent for you ; and if we should not so walk among you in all humility of mind , I know the Lord would soon withdraw his glorious Power and Presence from us , and then what should we be more than others , nay , how much less and weaker ?

So dear Friends , keep in the pure Fear , and live in the true favour , that ye may have a true sensible feeling one of another in your present conditions ; and that ye may be able to strengthen one another in the Lord . And if at any time , any be felt not to be in so clear and living a condition as they formerly have been in ; Oh! take heed how you judge of those things , and beware of prejudice , or of a Spirit that would rejoyce , because advantages at such a time may easily be taken , for that is accursed in the sight of God ; But keep ye in the dread and Wisdom of the Lord : And they that reprove , or exhort , such as are come to loss in their conditions , let it be in that Spirit which can bear and suffer all things ( that are to be born ) for the Seeds sake , in the true patience and meekness . Oh Friends ! this is the restoring , healing , strengthening , consolating Spirit , which is of great price with the Lord , and in this live , and you will feel the Blessing , the Peace , and Mercy upon the Israel of God , and you will be meet helps one to another .

And now dear Friends and Babes , you who watch for Peace and Unity in Righteousness , and can bear and endure all things ( that may be born ) for the Elects sake , my Life is bound up with you in the overcomings of God's Love ; and I am refreshed in you , and I partake of your Peace and Joy , and meet and kiss you in the meek Spirit , and rejoyce with you in the work of the Lord : my Friends , go on in the power of God , and build up one another in the living Faith , and wait therein together , that in the eternal Power ye may feel Dominion over all the cruelty of the Enemy ; for it 's the Faith in the power that must break through all this wickedness , and bring down all this ungodliness , that is spreading it self as if there were no end of it : But Friends , as in the dread of the Lord ye keep , you will see the power of Darkness vanish away , and they that act in it shall be chained under , though for a moment they have liberty , for the Tryal of our Faith : But verily in the Power of the Lord God , I can truly rejoyce over all these things , because I see the Lord's presence and loving kindness in a wonderful manner amongst those that truly wait upon him , and trust alone in him for deliverance , even in the time of their Tryals ; and because he hath given me stedfastly to believe , That he will bring deliverance for his People , and set them over all the Powers of the Earth by his own arm : Therefore let none murmur , not think that the Lord is slack concerning his appearing for his People , but let every one that knows the Truth , in that patiently wait , and endure whatsoever the Lord suffers the wicked to do unto you in the day of his long Patience and Forbearance , which he in compassion grants unto them , that they might come to repentance and amendment of Life , which if they wholly slight , and will not be gathered in their day , he hath power enough ( and will execute it ) to destroy them , and to deliver his People , that trust in him .

So in the pure Life , and Power , and Vertue of the Father be ye stayed , and quiet in your minds , and wait to receive your daily Bread and Water of Life from him , that ye may grow up in the eternal , and be established for ever , in the Power of an endless Life : Oh Friends , if any look out in this day , they will let in weakness ; and whosoever feels weakness , let them abide and believe in that which makes them sensible of their weakness , and they will gather strength , and be able to stand .

And as for you , my dearly beloved Friends , who are come to witness your Redemption from the earth by the Blood of the Covenant , and are now following of the Lamb whithersoever he goeth , leads , draws , or commands you ; I know you are come to the Anointing , and have received it , and that abides in you , and you into it are comprehended ; so that you need not any man to teach you , but as the same anointing that abideth in you doth teach you , for that is true , and there is no lye of it ; and that teacheth you of all things ( which are suitable to your conditions ) and it sheweth you things to come , and with it you are able to try Spirits and Doctrines , and even as it hath taught you , ye shall abide in him , the Lord , that Spirit . And where this is felt and witnessed , there is liberty ; and sitting and waiting in this , you are fed with the Bread from above ( which giveth life ) and refreshed with the springs from beneath ( which makes its way through the Rocks and Mountains to the pleasant Valleys ) and you that are come to this seat , you are able to judge of things within and without ; and although you have not need to be taught by letters , yet I know , you that are come to this state , can bear the Word of Exhortation to be sounded among you , that so it may reach unto them to whom it is of service , for the stirring up of their pure minds , that so the Life and Power immortal , may in the freshness and purity of it be felt in and amongst all the Flock , and that in the sweetness and vertue thereof you all may be kept and preserved , in pure Unity and Peace with God , and one with another . So the Blessing and Mercy of the Almighty , rest and abide for ever upon you all , who delight in the Truth which is eternal .

And Friends , take heed how you receive reports , and report them again , for there is a great danger in those things , and there is and hath been very much wrong among people upon that account , for many thereby are begotten into strange lying wonders , and some into questionings and fears in their minds , and some into false joys and foolish expectations , and some into prejudice one against another , because false reports have been received and reported again . Therefore that you may be clear of these things , be you very mindful , watchful , and careful , that you report not any thing but as you have a certain ground for the Truth of it ; and as you may see a service in speaking thereof , or else you had better be silent to those things , and let them dye , that so Truth , Unity , and Peace may be lived in , and abound amongst you in all things .

London , the 8th of the 8th Month. 1660. I am your endeared Friend and Brother , in the Bowels of Christ , whose Life is freely given up to answer the Will and requirings of the Father ; travelling for Unity , and Peace , and Righteousness amongst men , where its wanting ; and greatly rejoycing with all those in whom it abounds , and is felt and witnessed . George Fox , the Younger . Behold ! how good and how pleasant a thing it is , for Brethren to dwell together in unity .
TO THE TRIBULATED Flock of Crhist , In BONDS or elsewhere , SALUTATION .

AH ! my indeared Tribulated Brethren , Sisters and Friends , both in Prison and out of Prison , Sufferers in Body , Estates or otherwise , for the holy powerful Eternal Truth as it is in Jesus ; O blessed are you ye Lambs of my Father's Fold , who are faithful to him in the Testimony he hath given you to bear ; your Reward is great , which in no wise shall fail : Dear Babes drink in the Life abundantly which Emanuel hath placed in you , and feed at the Table that my Father hath Richly spread for you with food , sutable for you , in your several growths . Oh! the Word , the Word of Eternal Life is appointed for your food , feel it in your selves and go no more out ; Oh! how strong are the drawings thereof , and how pleasant is the Virtue of it ? How are they overcome with the love of it , that abide therein , Oh! my Brethren and Friends ; our strength , our safety , our Peace and Satisfaction is this , therefore let it for ever be the Habitation of your delight . O this day is Glorious to all that stand given up in the Fathers will , whose heatts and minds are drawn and Redeemed out of all those things that perish with the using . Oh! ye Babes , how strongly do I feel you in the Power of love , who are Retired out of all fading , changeable , ending things , into the Eternal , Invisible , unchangeable endless Life of Righteousness ; verily when I think upon you , and behold you in your Habitation , I am even Raised with Joy and Love ; Oh you that keep your Garments pure and clean in the Life of the unspotted undefiled Lamb , how are my tender Bowels refreshed in you ? verily I cannot Express the Love that is in me to you ye Lambs of my Maker ; hold fast , hold fast the word of his Patience , it shall Crown you , it shall Crown you in the End , by it shall you overcome through Faith , yea by it your Enemies shall be brought under you , and in it shall you be Exalted over your Oppressors . Oh! who can declare the Glory of the Lord , as it shall be manifested in this Age ? for verily he will work wonders in the Earth , and in the Heavens , till he hath brought to pass the thing that is in his heart ; in vain do all the Potsheards of the Earth strive against the Former and Upholder of all things , for he will Exalt his Son and his Righteous Kingdom , and establish it in Righteousness over all the Kingdoms of the World , and they must bow thereunto .

Therefore my Indeared ones , be still in the Light and Life of the Lamb , that you may behold the going forth of the Lord in his Glorious Power in this Day , wherein he is Sifting , Winowing , Purging , and trying , that nothing but the Wheat , and the Gold may be left : Oh Babes , dwell in love and Peace together , in the powerful anointing which the Father hath poured forth upon you as a full gift , and placed in you as a true Teacher and a Leader , and let all keep to the holy drawings thereof , and Answer the Requiring of the same . O! blessed are you that bear the Testimony therein ; and quench not the Springs and arising of it , neither go without it , but simply and innocently obey its pure leadings ; and as you are kept in this , if any are not able to bear you , you will be able to bear them , for you will have nothing in your Precious Eye and Mind , but nakedly and simply the Honour and Glory of your Tender Father , who will cause Bowels of Love to open in you one towards another , in the merciful , forgiving , forbearing , healing Spirit , which will fill your Precious immortal Souls , whereby you will be able to gather and allure others into the same .

Oh! my Friends dwell out of all mortals , in the Immortal Power and Love of the Father , and know the Birth that inherits the blessing , and abides in Covenant with God , which breaks and disanuls death's Covenant and brings over death and its Power into the Tryal and Dominion of the Lamb.

O ye Innocent Babes and Plants , who in Prisons , holes and Dungeons are cast , because you dare not grieve the Spirit of the Lord your God in obeying man's unrighteous Decrees , my Father's love is exceeding great to you ; your Righteous Iust Cause he will fully Plead , therefore leave it wholly to him , and in the overcomings of his Power and Tender Love solace your selves , and quietly lie down in his will , till he bring you forth in his own Dominion : Oh! you are Precious unto me , who cannot defile your Testimony for any outward enjoyment ; my Bowels , my Bowels are filled with the streams of Love , and Life , and Compassion , which flow forth to you ; O my Prayers , groanings , Breathings , Reach unto the God of Life both day and night for you ; Oh my beloved ones , watch , watch one over another in tender Bowels , and bear the weak and feeble in your Arms and Bosom of love , and let Mercy and Peace fill your Habitations , and God shall work your Deliverance for you in his appointed time . O Friends you are witnesses of that Truth , which must spread over all the world , and never be extinguished more ; but to the brightness of its rising many shall come : And all of what degree soever that set themselves against it shall fall before it , yea , they shall not prosper , the Lord hath spoken it : onely Remember he will thorowly try his gold that it may be manifested unto all ; So the Precious Life , Power , Peace and Virtue of my Fathers ' , be multiplyed in and among you , till you all come to the Stature of the fulness of Christ in God Eternal . Amen .

From Westminster Palace Yard , Gate-house , the 2d of the 1st . Month , 1661. Your dear , tender , and loving Brother , in the humble melted broken contrite Spirit of Christ , who am filled with his streaming consolating Virtue , Joy , Peace , Love , and everlasting Refreshment . George Fox , the Younger .
Touching compelling Engagements ; this in the Truth I say .

A Fearful , hard , unbelieving heart in man , was the ground from whence those Engagements arose ▪ They that stand & live in that ground , cannot trust in the Lord but make flesh their Arm ; and therefore where such have Power , they seek to force and compell men to Swear , Vow , and Promise , and Engage to be true to them , and to seek to preserve them ; But whosoever do Righteousness , and Rule therein , God is their trust , and his Arm is their strength ; and such are a Dread and a Terror to Evil Doers , and a praise to them that do well , and their hearts are inclined by the Lord to such Rulers . Now he that desires to turn a fearful hard unbelieving heart , out of that state , he must seek to turn it from the false refuge , strength and security of it , made to preserve it self in that state ; and so direct it to that which must break it , and its confidence in its false refuge : Also if a man puts trust and confidence in Bulwarks of Earth , that cannot preserve him , and labour to fortifie himself therein by building them higher , and believes that if he gets them higher , he shall be safe ( Mark ) he that stands by , and knows certainly that such a one is deceived , and doth see that he cannot be safe in that place , and yet for self ends upon any account whatsoever , shall help the deceived man to build his Bulwark higher , that man doth not do well in so doing , he doth not as he would be done unto .

Are not the Children of Light Engaged , and bound to God in the bond of love , to resist every thing that is Evil , and to do unto all men as they would they should do to them , yea to serve and obey the Lord in all things ; is not this our Covenant with God ; therefore can we consent to any Evil Custom of man without breaking Covenant with God ; and have we not seen , counted , and declared this to be an Evil Custome that hath been upheld among the Sons of Men , ( Mark ) for them that get upper most in the many changings , still to force and compel others to Engage to them ; Oh! consider this seriously .

But what if the Ruler will take that for an Engagement to him that my Principles leads me unto , whether he command me to it or not , may not I lawfully give him that , if that will save me from suffering , and if it be so , that he will Persecute me , if I do not so Engage to him ?

It is not lawful for thee to do evil that good may come thereof ( Mark ) the Persecuter is not of God , but of the wicked One , and he is not to be bowed unto ; whatever thou suffer , thou oughtest not to be compelled to Engage to any ; that compelling custom is Evil , and is to be resisted in the Lambs Power ( Mark ) Although I dare not but serve the Lord God according to the Principle of his Truth in me , yet if any man should come and say thus unto me , If thou wilt not Promise and Engage unto me , that thou wilt serve and obey the Lord thy God , I will Persecute thee , but if thou wilt , I will not ; I say , though I knew he had Power to Persecute , and execute the same , yet I dare not Engage or make such a Promise to him , whatever he were .

First , Because I know the Lord requires no such thing at my hand .

Secondly , Because if I did , I should in so doing , bowe and yield to the compelling Power of a Persecuting Spirit , which is not of Christ , but against him ; and this will dishonour and offend the holy God , and bring me into sore bondage also : therefore I dare not for Conscience sake , yield to that Evil Custom of Engaging to man , which hath been upheld in the compelling Persecuting Power , among the Sons of Men.

From one that truly seeks the good of the whole Creation , and can freely give unto Cesar the things that are Cesar's , but I must give unto God the things that are Gods ; who also desires that the Authority and honour of Truth , may be preserved , whatever become of me . George Fox , the Younger .
None can hinder the DETERMINED WILL of GOD.

WHat my Father hath Determined for these men to do , no man can stopt it ; Oh! that Patienec might be abode in by all that know his Name , and his Will submitted unto by them that he hath called . O be still , strive not , but Drink the Cup which my Father suffereth to be given ; I know it will be bitter to some : but whosoever striveth against it shall come to loss and shame ; for the Lord will yet further Try his People , till it be fully and clearly manifest who are the Approved in his sight : This he will certainly do ; Therefore let not the present Calm beget a wrong security in any , for loe the Day hastens , and comes swiftly , that another storm must arise ; and in Vain will it be to flie to the Tall Cedars and strong Oakes for shelter ; for nothing but the Name of the Lord can preserve in that Day .

Written the beginning of the 4th . Month , ( 61 ) GEORGE FOX , the Younger .
Concerning the departure of Dear GEORGE FOX , the Younger ; or words spoken by him a little before he was taken out of the Body .

THis may inform Friends , that as formerly he was a man full of the Power of the Lord , whose living presence dayly did accompany him ; so also in the last Visitation of his outward man , even till the laying down thereof , it was largely continued to and with him ; for he lay ( although weak in body ) as a man dayly renewing his strength in the Lord even to the last , whose living powerful presence was seen and felt to be very powerfully present with him ; yea he was so fill'd with the Power and presence of the Lord of Life , That he said ( although very weak as aforesaid ) That he would even shout and sing for Ioy of heart ; and so did Exhort Friends to keep in that Vnity which he had so long travailed for : And then with much fervency of Spirit he Prayed , and exhorted all Friends , To keep their Garments unspotted of the World , because great was the Day of Tryal that was at hand ; Recommending all Friends to the Lord , with his Dear love to all the Faithful Lambs and Babes of the Lord , and taking his leave of Friends fell a sleep in perfect Peace with the Lord , being in perfect memory to the last .

This Testimony was Received from a Friend , who was with him in the time of the weakness of his outward man , even untill the laying down thereof .

This is for you who are called Common-wealths men , both in the Army and Parliament , to read ▪ Wherein are many plain and true things declared unto you ( which are suitable to your present Estate and Condition ) that ye may consider them in the same , that they are sent unto you , in which is in Truth and in sincerity and singleness and uprightness of heart , in that love which thinks no Evil ; even in obedienae unto the Spirit of the Lord which also saith , Try all things , and hold fast that which is good . Friends ,

IN several of you , I know there hath stirred , and doth oft stir a pure true living Principle of God , which hath begot ( and doth beget ) true honest and upright Desires and Breathings in you after Righteousness , true Liberty and Freedom ( and loathings of Oppression and Tyranny ) and it hath been in the hearts of some of you , and much upon you to break down Oppression and Tyranny , and to remove Oppressors , and to make void all such Laws , as make provision for Tyranny and Oppression , whereby the Oppressors have long been strengthened in their Oppressing the People of this Nation ; and some of you have felt the weight and burden of Oppression and Tyranny ( under which the Innocent suffer ) and it hath been much in your hearts to set up Righteous Laws , whereby all People might have Equity and Justice done to them and for them , by such as you have had thoughts to put in Authority , which would do just and equal things between Man and Man without respect to persons .

These things the Lords witness ( in you ) hath shewed unto you , that they ought to be done by you , and some of you have breathed and desired much to do these things , when ye have owned the pure movings and stirrings of the measure of the Life and Power God ( in you ) which hath stirred and moved ( in you ) towards Righteousness , Equity , Mercy and Justice ; But hitherto ye have been much hindred in this work .

And truly Friends , there are many things yet remaining in and among you ( mark that ) which hinder and stop you in this work of true Reformation , and they will stop you therein ( mark that ) so long as they bear rule in and among you , and are consented to ( and regarded ) by you ; many of those things are as followeth .

First , There are many that pretend that they are of you ( mark that ) which have joyned unto you in some outward appearance , but it is more for fear of loosing their places , and the riches and honour of this world , than for to the Cause of Equity , Justice and true Liberty ; And these are in the Priests nature , who for covetousness and self ends , can change with the times and Governments , and pretend they are for them ( so long as they will hold them up ) and such are neither true to God nor their Country , for they can lay down their Religion which they have pretended to stand for , and deny the Cause of their Country , if it will make most for their own Gain , and then say it was the Lords doing , and they are satisfied in it , though it be quite contrary to that , which they have formerly contended for : and of this sort there are many among you , which stop the work you ought to do .

And several of you also , in whom the Truth of God hath stirred against Oppression and Tyranny , verily your minds are yet so much in your Commissions and Places , and in the love and honour and Wisdom of this World , that this stops you in the work ye ought to do . And some of you have so many relations ( mark that ) that have such a great gain in those very things , which greatly Oppresse the People of this Nation ; and also some of your selves are concerned in these things ; that so ye cannot tell how to take away Oppression wholly , without taking away their and your own gain ; and these things being looked at by you , they exceedingly stop you in the work you ought to do , because herein private self ends , and respect to Persons by you are preferred before the general good of all .

Now Friends , whilst your minds , and thoughts , and hearts run into or after any of these things ; They ( with the Enemy of your Souls ) will not suffer you to do that which is equal , no further ( to be sure ) then it will stand safe for the upholding and preferring of yout relations , and your own private particular self ends .

Therefore all wait in that which is pure and living of God in you , which will shew you all Deceit , if ye keep to it , that so by it your minds may be redeemed out of all self and respect to Persons , that so all particular private self ends and respects to Persons , may be denyed and utterly trampled upon by you , and that the general good and freedom of all , without respect of Persons may be minded and acted for by you , that so ye may serve the Lord God and your Generation in singleness and uprightness of heart , and then the Lord will honour you , and he will be your sufficient reward .

Verily it is a mighty thing , and it is highly to be prized by you , especially ye of the Army , that ever the Lord God should make use of you again , and again put an opportunity into your hands to do that which you formerly promised and vowed unto the Lord ( and your Nation ) to do , seeing ye so slighted ( mark that ) the former opportunities , which the Lord God gave you , and acted so Treacherously and Deceitfully as ye did in your back-slidings ; and if ye should slight this opportunity also , do not expect another ( be not deceived God will not be mocked ) therefore consider these things and mind to answer the Lords love yet continued unto you .

But if ye look out at or suffer your minds to run into ( mark ) the greatness of your Places , or after your gain , or the honour of the World , or if ye look out at love or hatred of your Friends or known Enemies , or at any particular self end whatsoever ; These things will strangle the Principle of God in you , which moves to do that which is equal and just unto all , and then the tender Seed in you , which feels the weight and burden of Oppression , that will be murdered , and then the deadness and hardness of heart will come upon you more and more , and ye will settle deeper and deeper in the death ; and verily if ye should do thus , ye would become even as Sodom and Gomorah unto the Lord , and he would overturn you with a great and mighty destruction ( as he did them ) therefore remember you have been warned .

So look at none of these things , but look ye to the Lord God , and mind the movings of his Life ( in you ) and be obedient thereto , and as Oppression and Tiranny and Injustice is made manifest unto you ( by the Light of the Lord in you ) in the Power of the Lord committed unto you , break it down and overturn it , and set up and establish Righteous Laws , Equity , Mercy , and Justice and true Liberty in its Place , and then you nee● not fear what Man can do unto you , for the Lord will then be your preserver .

So the Lord God hath once more tryed you ; Now if you love Father , Mother , Wife , Children , Houses , Lands , Commissions , Honours of the World , or any particular self end whatsoever , more then the work of the Lord ; or if ye prefer any of them so as thereby to stop the Lords work , or if you do the Lords work negligently ( which he hath once more put into your hands ) verily ye shall not be counted worthy to be the Lords workmen .

So remember Saul ( who was made an example that others might take warning ) who slew but part ( of that which was to be distroyed ) and saved a part alive , and therein he was stubborn and disobedient ; Now if ye should destroy but part of the Trranny and Oppression , which is utterly to be distroyed ( mark that ) and preserve part of it , take heed lest the Lord rent you from your places for your stubborness and disobedience , as he rent Saul from his Kingdom for his .

Therefore Awake , Awake , and wait in the Light , to feel the Lord's strength , that therein your zeal and courage for him may be renewed and linger not in things as ye have done , but dwell in the Power of the Lord ( ye who have felt it , and do not abuse it or resist it any longer ) and in his Power act for the Freedom and just Liberty of all his Creatures , & this will bring honour unto the Lord , that so ye in whose hearts there is a singleness , an honesty , an uprightness unto the Lord , ( may keep your selves from being defiled with the corruptness of others ) and so be preserved in his Wisdom and Power , in the Breakin gs , Overturnings , or Purging , ●nd Separating , that yet must be in the Nation ,

And Friends in the Army , when will the Spirit of ●●●hteousness and Equity be clearly manifested among you , to rule you thus , that so long as ye bear an outward Sword it might be onely turned against Evil Doers , and not for the upholding any Oppression whatsoever , but for the breaking down of all Oppression , and Tyranny wheresoever it is found , and for keeping the outward Peace , whilst equal and Just Laws be established , whereby the Just Liberties , and outward Freedom of the Nation , might be enjoyed ; and not to make a trade of using your Swords , to enrich your selves by them , by heaping up outward riches , and to feed your lusts ; But whilst ye use your Swords , to be content with such wages as might but even find you things necessary , and convenient for your Places .

Now if this Spirit lead you , then self denyal will be manifested in you indeed , and they that called you a mercenary Army , then should be ashamed ; for if Tyranny and Oppression were destroyed , and Equity , true outward Liberty and Freedom were established , and the Enemies of it so brought to nought , that so there were no need of you , this Spirit if it ruled you would make you as freely willing then , to lay down your Places and Swords , as ever any of you were made free to take them up , and then to fall upon improveing the Creation in the fear and Wisdom of the Lord , and to be content to enjoy an equal proportion and share of the Liberty ( with your fellow Creatures ) which you have fought for ; and if it were thus , then ye might truly be called the Common-wealths Men , or servants .

But if ye carry a Sword & expect and desire still to carry or uphold a sword to make a Trade of ( mark that ) then I know you will not utterly bring down Oppressors and Oppression , and firmly establish outward Liberty though ye could , lest your Trade should fall : Now if you do not act singly for your Nations good ( stand out of all self ends whatsoever ) but still continue making a Trade of using your Swords , then you cannot truly be called the Common-wealths servants , but such as serve your selves , and such as are their Masters , though you receive wages of them .

And Friends , there are many things done lately in the name of the Keepers of the Liberty of England ; Now ( mark ) ye should first make England a free Nation , and set it at Liberty from all its Oppression and bondage that it is in ( befo●e ye take such a name upon you ) and then in the fear and Wisdom of the Lord , see to preserve and keep its Liberty , and then ye might truly be called the Keepers of the Liberty of England . But if ye do not first set it at Liberty and then keep it , and ye be called the Keepers of the Liberty of it , ye will be but like unto those which had a name that they lived , and yet were dead ; and like the false Christians who are puffed up with a name , but are out of the nature which belongs to the name .

This from me who have a tender love going forth unto all , both in Parliament , Army , and others , who have any true Breathings or Desires ( in them ) after Righteousness , Truth , Equity , Mercy , Justice , and true Judgement ( which I wait to see set up and Establi●hed ; ) And I honour the higher Power , and am subject thereunto , where ever , or in whomsoever it doth appear ; which Power hath made me a watchman unto you to warn you to watch for your Souls and for Peace ; And in obeying this Power , I am clear of , and free from the blood of all men . Given forth by Geo. Fox , the Younger .

The Ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the Wise .

He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own Soul : But he that heareth reproof getteth understanding .

Friends , the reason why this comes last , is , because a Copy of it could not be obtained till such time as the foregoing writings were Printed ; otherwise it had come in order with the Rest of his Books .

THE END .
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