AGAINST BABYLON AND HER MERCHANTS IN ENGLAND; One Groan more, From under the Altar, breathed forth from the grief of the Spirit, for the Sufferings of the Saints, by reason of her Cruelties and Abominations, and the filthiness and of her Fornications.  
Under the burden of God's wrath against the present Rulers, Priests and People of England, that repent not and give glory to God; that have drunk of her Cup, and Refuse to come out of her at God's Call, but remain in the false Church and Worship still, that's not taught by God's Spirit.  
With a Warning to all such, that they prepare to meet the Lord in the Way of his Judgements; and as they have partaken with her in her sins, that they expect also to partake of her plagues which are ready to be poured forth from the Lord God, who is mighty that judgeth her, and will certainly avenge the blood of the Martyrs on her, for Babylon's Destruction is God's Determination in England, and the world.  
Behold your Day is past and the Night cometh, and God's fulfilling Day draweth nigh.  
Therefore let all the Lord's People hasten out of Babylon, in which all men are that follow not the Light of the Lamb, that are not guided & led by the present Teachings of God's Spirit, & let them that are faithful in the Land, be faithful still to follow the Lamb whithersoever he goes, for it's given to him and his Followers to overcome.  
Written by one that travels in spirit for zions deliverance, JOHN ANDERDON.  
London, Printed for Robert Wilson, in martin's near Aldersgate, 1660   

To those of the present RULERS PRIESTS and PEOPLE OF ENGLAND, That repent not and give glory to God.  Cain hath slain his Brother Abel, because he was more Righteous than himself; Therefore thus saith the Lord, 
woo to that bloody City, to that rebellious house, whose Tents are the coverings of Antichrist, whose deeds out-pass the deeds of the wicked, whose habitations are the habitations of cruelty, which murder the just and shed the blood of the innocent, whose iniquities cover the Earth, as the waters cover the Sea; whose abominations are gone up to Heaven, that the holy God of Heaven and Earth is provoked to anger against you; who yet say in your hearts, is not our strength great, and is it not our right to Reign, and is not this great Babel that we have built? wherein you intend to make you a name, that you may not be scattered in the Earth, as a people driven out from the presence of the Lord: And the arm of flesh is your confidence; as if the strength of Sodom and Egypt should keep you from the wrath of the God of Israel; and that great Whore Mystery Babylon the Mother of Harlots, that rides on the scarlet-coloured Beast, that decks herself with fine linen, Purple and Silk, whose merchandise is on Gold and Silver, and precious Stones, on Wine, and oil, and fine Flower, and Wheat, and Beasts, and Sheep, and Horses, and Bodies, and Souls of men, who hath drunk the blood of the Saints, now saith in her heart, Am not I a Queen, and shall see no sorrow? And her Merchants and Tradesmen of all sorts, ranks and orders, cry aloud, great is Diana of the Ephesians, because of their crafts which brings them their gain from their quarters; her Prophets prophesy falsely, her Priests bear rule by their means, and the people love to have it so; who say unto them that despise the Lord, ye shall have peace, and to them that walk after the imaginations of their own heart, none evil shall come upon them; so that they are Prophets of lies, deceit and falsehood, that say, the wicked shall prosper: And a horrible thing is committed in the Land, the whole head is sick, the whole heart is faint, that from the sole of the foot to the crown of the head there is no soundness in you, but full of wounds and putrifying sores, full of corruption, which stink in the nostrils of our God; yea, and your ways are become wholly corrupt and abominable before the Lord; So that Mercy and Truth, Righteousness and true judgement are not found amongst you; but cruelty and oppression lodgeth within you; for by Swearing, and Lying, and Killing, ye break out, and blood toucheth blood; So that the Lord God is come down and will surely visit for these things, he hath taken view of all your actions and evil deeds done under the Sun, which grieve his Spirit all the day long, that his Soul is weary to bear your abominations which are great in the Land, for ye have not done the thing that is right in the sight of the Lord, but have provoked him more than any that have gone before you, having again set up the abominable thing in the Land which maketh desolate, and have not regarded the Counsel of the Lord, to walk in his ways, and to bring forth Righteousness and Truth in the Earth, which the Lord expects; that Christ's kingdom might be known amongst the sons of men, whose right it is to Reign, who is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.  
But you would not have this man to Rule over you; but have gone a-whoring after the gods of the Heathen in false ways and worships, after the corrupt lusts and wicked imaginations of your own hearts; ye have stumbled also at that Stumbling-stone and Rock of offence, CHRIST JESUS the Light of the world, and the only way to the Father, upon which many have fallen and are broken; And what think ye, that they on whom the Tower in Siloe fell, were greater sinners than any that dwelled at Jerusalem? Nay verily, ye also that repent not shall know, that it shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of God's Judgements than for you, who have had so much & large experience of the Lords ways & dealings towards you and the people of these Nations, of what the Lord required at your hands in the day of your visitation, which ye have not regarded, but have cast the Lord's Counsel behind your backs, and would not come to him who is the New and living Way, the Truth and the Life; CHRIST JESUS the Light of the world, the rightful King and lawgiver of Nations, that ye might in him have found peace and rest in the Land of your Nativity; that ye might have eaten the good of the Land, and prospered as the glory of Nations; but ye have revolted and rebelled against the God of Heaven yet more and more; and though he hath smitten you, ye have not regarded, but have forgotten him days without number; and though he hath waited long also to be gracious unto you, to have gathered you, but ye would not, but are gone back again into Sodom and Egypt, into your bad old ways of Sin and Iniquity, Superstition and Vanity, in the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and pride of life; that your wickednesses and abominations are abounding in the Land more than ever, as if ye had said in your hearts, that God sees you not, and that the Lord hath forsaken the Earth, because his Judgements are not speedily executed upon such evil-doers as these are, that sit down to eat and drink, and rise up to play, and commit Whoredoms, and say, to morrow shall be as this day, and much more abundant; as if your Return and all the strange Arts and Works of Wonder which the Lord hath wrought and brought to pass in this Nation, were even to this very end, that you might live at ease in the flesh in your pleasures, pride and vanities, and in cruelties and oppressions, to triumph over the just on your old dregs and lees of corruption, settled as if ye could not be moved.  
But blindness and security in judgement is happened unto you, that ye having eyes might not see, and hearts, and might not perceive, that the Lord God Omnipotent ruleth and reigneth in the Kingdoms of men, and giveth them unto whomsoever he will, that in the Clouds he is come to judgement, Yea and he will arise and plead the cause of the innocent, and by no means acquit the guilty: He will make Inquisition for the blood of the slain, and certainly avenge the blood of the Righteous, which cries loud from the Earth for vengeance upon Cain that hath slain his Brother, and his cruelty shall not pass unpunished, but he that hath done this wickedness in the Land, with God's Mark is he Marked, and shall become a Fugitive and Vagabond in the Earth, and shall seek to hide himself from the avenger of blood, but sin shall lie at his door, and God's Righteous Judgements shall overtake him wheresoever he flies, because of his Brothers innocent blood, that ceaseth not to cry Day & Night for Justice to be done upon the Murderer, that hath slain the Just; Yea and God shall multiply his Plagues and Judgements upon them that have shed Innocent Blood in the Land, and no Coverings shall hide them from the fierceness of God's wrath; neither shall the City that Cain hath built with Blood, nor the Towers of Babel, though never so lofty be able to shelter the wicked from the terrible stroke of God's anger and just Judgements which hasten to be accomplished in this Nation; for they are a Rebellious and gainsaying people, with whom the Love and Mercies, the Patience and Long-Suffering of our God prevails not: But ye have hardened your Hearts, and stiffened your Necks even for a Day of Slaughter, that the Lord is weary to bear Your Iniquities, and to suffer with your sins any longer; And therefore hath determined to cut short the work in righteousness for the Elects sake, who are made as the dung of the Earth, and offscouring of all things; but the meek of the Earth the Lood will exalt, and the High and Lofty ones he will bring down from their Seats; the wicked will he scatter in their imaginations. And all your Carnal confidences shall fail you in the day of great distress, perplexity and anguish that's coming upon every soul that obeys not the Light, the Gospel of God, by which ye might have been gathered, and so have been honourable by doing the Lord service in the day of his love to you, if ye had known and considered the things that belongs to your Peace, and the kingdom's happiness.  
But now the Day is gone over Yourheads, Your Time is past, Your Glory shall be turned into shame; Your Sun shall let at noon day, and the Night is come upon You, that Ye shall not see to work any more for the Lord; but shall grope in the dark, to fulfil the measures of Your Iniquities, & Treasure up wrath against the Day of wrath, and Revelation of God's just judgements, until the overflowing Scourge of Destruction come upon You, for the Abominations that are gone forth into all the Land; And who is there amongst all the Lord's Servants in the Land, that shall say, Lord spare them? against whom God's wrath is kindled, and upon whom he purposeth to pour out the Vials of his sore displeasure; because they have rejected his Son from being their King and Lawgiver in these Nations, unto whom all Principalities and Powers must bow; whose sceptre is a sceptre of righteousness, in which the establishment of God's Government is for ever. And whither think ye to fly, and what think ye to do in the day of Your Calamity, who are covered over with the tents of the wicked, with sin and iniquity, as with a Garment, in that day when the Lord shall strip off all false coverings, and search and try you to the uttermost of his Judgements? That as God's Patience and Long-Suffering hath appeared more abundant to you than others, so shall his judgements and execution of his fierce wrath be more swift and sudden upon you: And as your Return hath been more wonderful in the eyes of the Nations, than those Noble Acts the Lord hath done before in the Land; by so much the greater astonishment and judgements, terror and Amazement shall you be smitten: Yea and the nearer Israel's deliverance out of Bondage is at hand, so shall the Plagues of Egypt increase upon Pharaoh and his Host, who will not let Israel go to serve the Living God. And the Nations shall know that our God is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, which worketh Wonders in the deep, and maketh war with Amaleck from Generation to Generation; and who shall prosper that is against the Lord and his anointed ones, the chosen Generation that are blessed with God's presence? And who is there amongst all the mighty Host of the Uncircumcised, that shall lift a hand against the Sword of the Lord, and of Gideon, and prosper? for its God's determination that Christ's Government in righteousness and Truth shall be established in this Nation; And blessed are that remnant that know it and are made subjects thereof, though all the World band against them, yet the Faithful followers of the Lamb shall prevail and reign with him on Mount Zion for ever and ever; for God hath blessed them, and who shall curse them? And they that have been the envy of Nations in God's work, shall be the Glory of Kingdoms; and they that have been as it were not a People, shall become a great and mighty Nation, as they are Chosen, Faithful and True in the lamb's War of righteousness, in which Victory and Dominion over all shall stand for ever, without Sword or Spear; for the Lord God will work wonders in the Earth, and accomplish his great work in this the day of his Power; the which ye will not believe, though a man declare it unto you: Behold therefore ye Despisers and wonder, when the day of Your misery cometh upon You, as a Thief in the Night, when there shall be none to deliver You, though You then cry to the Rocks and to the Mountains to fall upon You, and cover You from the wrath of the Lamb, who must reign until all his Enemies are subdued, and who shall withstand his Spirit or resist his Power, that he should not ride on Conquering, and to Conquer, until he hath accomplished God's great work of Salvation in the Earth? In which Reformation, Liberty and Freedom to the Sons and Daughters of Zion, is known, and perfect Peace and Establishment in God's Covenant of Light and Life witnessed; against which the Gates of Death and Hell shall not prevail; Though the people rage, and the Heathen imagine mischief in their hearts, Yet the Lord's work shall go on and prosper in the Land, to the shame and confusion of all the opposers thereof, who take not warning by the downfall of others that have gone before them. But here is our Rock that splits all the Powers of the Earth, even that Rock of Ages, of which Israel drank in the wilderness, out of which flows the waters of Life for ever: But ye have hewn out unto yourselves broken Cysterns that will hold no water, and will not come to the Lord the Leader of Israel, and Fountain of Living waters, that Your Souls might live; So that Your Rock is not as Our Rock.  
The Lord hath often Declared and Proclaimed Repentance to the Rulers, Priests and People of this Nation, from time to time, by his Servants the Prophets that have been sent forth in the Power of his Spirit, and that he expects a Worship in Spirit and Truth (and a Government in righteousness) in this Nation to be established in his own way; No longer in the oldness of the Letter, but in the newness of the Spirit; and that he requires such to worship him, and that he will no longer be served with the abominations of the Egyptians, which sit in Darkness & under the Power of Death, and come not to the Light of Life in which God is well pleased; but this Seed of the Kingdom that's likened to a Grain of mustardseed, is that which all the wise Builders in the world's wisdom have stumbled at, and rejected as a thing Common and Unclean, and too mean and foolish for them to take Counsel of; and so all their wisdom hath been confounded and turned into foolishness, because they would not become fools, that they might be wise in the way of God's Salvation; for it is a Righteous thing with the Lord, to stain the Glory of all flesh that hath been exalted above his Fear in the Earth, and that that which hath boasted and gloried above the Cross of Christ, should now be abased and ashamed, yea and shame shall cover the Faces of the Wicked, and all visards shall be taken off from all Faces, and every man shall appear to be as he is in the Day of the Lords Search in the Land; and all the deceitful Coverings of Antichrist, stolen from the words of the Prophets, of Christ and the Apostles (without the Life and Power of God in Christ Jesus) shall be stripped off, and found too narrow to hide from God's wrath, as these that have gone before you, and exceeded you therein, finds true by sad experience, that it's not Words and Pretences, but Truth and righteousness, (the Coverings of God's Spirit) that saves and delivers 〈◊〉 People in the time of Straits and distress of Nations.  
And though you or others could now after so many Years experience, beget a Reformation and Worship (of which there is little Hopes and less appearance) that you could make your Image speak, even with the Tongue of Men and Angels, and come not into the right Spirit, to know the Voice of the True shepherd Christ in you, all your Labours, Services and Performances of worship (as you may call it) would be no better than the cutting off a dog's Neck, or offering of swine's Blood, which is altogether abominable in the sight of the Lord: For men have so long talked in words of Religion, Righteous Laws and Just Government to be set up and established, that the Lord's Spirit hath been long grieved therewith, and he hath cast them out as unprofitable Servants, because they came not to the Light, to God's Righteous witness and Principle in themselves, which teacheth men to do justly, to love Mercy, and to walk Humbly with their God; for God's Government is a Righteous Government, and its said on Christ; And can men reasonably expect, that Ministers of unrighteousness, and Servants of sin and Satan, should set up a Righteous Government for God, as they stand in that Ground and Nature which is condemned by God's Righteous Laws for ever? Can he that is not Born of God, do the Will or work of God to his Praise? Or can any evil Tree bring forth good Fruit? no not one.  
It's high time for men (if ever they will) come to the Light, to the Root and Ground of things in themselves that is good, that they may know of what Spirit they are of; for most men in this Nation will confess (I believe) that there is a Spirit of Truth which doth the will of God, and there is a Spirit of error which is of the Devil, and against God in the world; Now that Spirit (as the Scriptures testify) that confesseth that Christ is come in the flesh, is true, which is the Power of God that destroys the works of the Devil in the Creature, in the Root and Ground that is evil, from whence all wickedness proceeds, even out of the heart of man where Satan's seat hath been; And so this same Spirit that reproves the world of sin, and condemns sin in the flesh, leads us and those that follow it, out of sin and transgression, and mortifies lust in the Root, and leads us into all Truth, and teacheth us to deny ungodliness and Worldly Lusts, and to walk Righteously, Soberly and Godly in this present World, no longer in the oldness of the Letter, but in the newness of the Spirit, according to the Rule of the new Creature, Christ in us the hope of Glory, which changeth and reviveth us in the Spirits of our Minds, whereby we are enabled unto every good word and work, according to the measure of his eternal Spirit working in us, in which we are taught to deny our own wills, and to do God's will in Earth as it is in Heaven; the enmity in the carnal Mind, being destroyed by the cross of Christ, which is the Power of God unto Salvation, unto all them that believe; From which all people and Nations that turn away, they crucify Christ, and do but cast lots about his Vestment, and retain at the utmost, but a form of godliness without the Power; and so worship a God in their imaginations ignorantly, and come not to witness and feel the word of Life in themselves, which begets the Creature again into the likeness of God's Image, by destroying and casting out that which is begotten in man by the Seed of the Serpent, which is God's and the Creatures enemy. And so as the enmity is destroyed in the Root and Ground, and the cause of separation from God done away, so the word of Reconciliation comes to be known and witnessed; for there cannot be Peace and Reconciliation with God, so long as that stands, even Sin and Iniquity which Separates from God, against which his wrath is for ever; and there can be no Communion between Light and Darkness, no Fellowship between Christ and Belial, for he that is joined to an Harlot, is one with the Harlot, and he that is joined to the Lord, is one Spirit, unto which no unclean thing can be joined; Therefore he that will be joined to the Lord, and know his Maker to be his Husband, must first know a Separation from sin and Satan, by the word of God which purifieth the Heart, and cleanseth us from all filthiness of Flesh and Spirit; And this is the Blood of sprinkling which cleanseth the conscience, the Life of Christ made manifest in us, in the measure of his Eternal Spirit given every one to profit withal, in which we come to know the Father and the Son, whom to know is eternal Life, without which in the presence of the Lord, all people and Professions are yet dead in sins and trespasses, and not come again out of the fall into God's Creation which is blessed, but remains under the Curse, Enemies in their minds to God and Christ, by reason of wicked works.  
And as the Spirit of Truth draws the mind to within, to the knowledge of God in the heart, and worketh contrary to the will of man; so the Spirit of Antichrist worketh with the will of man contrary to the Will of God in all things, and draws the mind forth into Airy conceptions, into vain Notions and Imaginations, of worshipping an unknown God afar off; and he that is led by this spirit seeks self in all things, honour and praise of men; delights to live in words, in the talk of God's Work, Kingdom and Glory to come, and cannot endure to sit still to wait to feel the present work of God's Power, and Enjoyment of God's presence within; for that destroys the devil's kingdom, root and branch; for if lust by God's Power be mortified in the heart before sin be conceived there, from whence shall it be brought forth? For out of the heart proceeds Hatred, Malice, murders, Adulteries, Fornications, and all manner of sin and uncleanness; So that there can be no hopes of better fruits, until the Tree be changed, until a new heart be known, wherein the Righteous Law of God is written, and the Light shineth; that so out of a good heart, the good Treasures of life may flow forth, and fruit to the praise of God brought forth: And he is true indeed, that seeks not his own, but the glory of him that sent him, which is Christ's work for ever, who is sent of the Father to do his Will in us, and we in him, according to the measure and operation of his Spirit in us, which worketh both to will and do according to his good pleasure; in which as we wait and abide we are blessed for ever, and the body is kept in unity, and every member in its proper place and office, which is the Order of Saints, and Government of the Church in God, in which is peace and safety.  
And now ye Wise Men, Rulers, Priests and People of England, who will not be instructed by God's Spirit, that ye might learn Righteousness, and live: All ye that refuse to come out of Babylon at God's Call, that reject the Light of the Lamb, in which the Nations of all them that are saved must walk; ye that will not cease to do evil and learn to do well, that will not break the bonds of the Oppressor, and let the Oppressed go free, but daily add sorrow to the afflicted, and grieve the upright in heart in the Land; whose fear towards God is not taught them by the precepts of men, whom the Lord regards and tenders as the Apple of his Eye, who have eaten his Passeover with bitter herbs, and the Lord will spare them as his choice Jewels in the day of his fierce wrath upon the wicked; after so many years experience of the grace, favour, patience, long-suffering and goodness of our God, which should have led you to repentance, if you had obeyed God's Voice, and followed his Counsel; What have you now to plead for yourselves before the Lord, whose wrath is turned against you, and the Testimony of a good Conscience ye have not, and who shall plead for you? And what may be said on your behalf, that have neglected so great Salvation, and kept Christ Jesus so long out of his Right and Kingdom; Why the Lord God whose ways are equal and just, should not arise in his fierce wrath, and in his hot displeasure sweep you away with the besom of destruction, and give you your portion in that lake that burns with fire and brimstone; and as ye have drunk of the whore's Cup which hath made all Nations drunk with the wine of her fornications; and as ye have partaken with her in her sins, why ye should not according to God's Righteous Decree and Judgement, partake of her plagues: Consider these things, and show a reason if you can? and who shall deliver you in the day of her judgements, from her plagues and torments which hasten, and in one day shall come upon her? And the Spirit saith, Spare her not, but give her blood to drink, yea, fill to her double according to the measure of her abominations, for she hath drunk the blood of the Saints, and is worthy to drink the Cup of the Wine of God's fierce wrath and indignation, without mixture; And in the hour of her torments, when the Ten Horns, the Executioners of God's vengeance on her, shall strip her naked and make her desolate, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire, who amongst all the Lord's people in the Land shall pity her or plead for her? But rejoice over her to see the smoke of her burnings, and give Praise, Honour and Glory to the Lord God Almighty, whose Judgements are Righteous and True, for that he hath avenged on her the blood of the Saints their fellow Servants, that have suffered and been slain for the Testimony of Jesus; yea, and my spirit saith, Come Lord Jesus, come quickly, and give her the Cup of the father's fierce wrath to drink, for she hath corrupted the whole Earth with her fornications.  
And now thus have I written, that all the Lord's People may hasten to come out of Babylon, and drink no more of her Cup; and that all that remain in her, may expect to partake of her Plagues: And let all the faithful in the Land be faithful and watchful still, that a spirit of security and drowsiness, which is the shadow of death, come not over them while Judas the traitor sells his Master, and betrays the Son of man into the hands of sinners. But I say, watch and pray, and keep to the word of God's Patience, that ye may be all kept in the hour of temptation and trial that's coming upon all flesh; for wickedness abounds, and the flood is nigh; I say, be faithful unto death, and ye shall have a Crown of life; and account your lives of no value, that God's glory may be made known amongst the sons of men; and quit yourselves like men, and faithful followers of the Lamb whithersoever he goes, to whom it's given to overcome, and ye shall be blessed for ever, and more than conquerors, through him who is the Captain of our Salvation, in whom we are the called of the Lord in Truth and Righteousness, the redeemed Ones of the Earth, that shall reign with our King on Mount Zion for ever and ever; where Salvation is for walls and for Bulwarks, into which the enemy cannot enter, but is shut out into utter darkness, where is weeping and wailing, and gnashing of teeth, torments day and night, in that lake that burns with fire and brimstone, where the worm dies not, and the fire is not quenched, in which the wicked and ungodly shall live for ever, which is the second death.  
Prepare therefore ye People of England, to meet the Lord in the way of his judgements, for his mercies prevail not with you, and your iniquities are almost full; therefore the Lord hath a just controversy with the Inhabitants of the Land, and will plead with all flesh touching his heritage; for with much Patience and Long-suffering hath he tried you all, and given you a Day and Time to Repent and Return, that ye might have brought your deeds to the Light, and the Transgressor to judgement in yourselves, where Satan's seat is, and so have escaped the wrath to come; but ye would not, but have chosen darkness rather than light, because your deeds are evil; so that ye sit down in confusion in Babylon that's for destruction, and reject the instructions of God's Spirit that hath called you, and would have brought you out of her; And what can ye there expect in her, but to fall & perish together with her, whose downfall certainly draweth nigh in this Nation of England first the figure of Nations; for the Saints sufferings are daily increased (as the Goals bear witness, & their manifold other grievances and cruel oppressions in the land) by her Sorceries, Whoredoms and Abominations; and the Lord's Spirit is grieved, which shall sink her down, even to the nethermost Hell, as a millstone with violence by God's Power cast into the bottom of the Sea, that shall never rise again: Let him see that can see, and read what the Lord is doing in England, as the first of the Nations in the Earth, wherein the wonderful works of the Lord declare themselves in the Revelation of Jesus Christ, in this the Day of his Power; and let him that escapes the Judgements of the first Woe, repent and give glory to God before the second Woe come: Amen, Hallelujah.  
The 5th of the 9th Month, 1660. JOHN ANDERDON.  
THE END.