OH YE HEADS OF THE NATION Who are set in the SUPREME AUTHORITY Thereof, and are at this time Assembled in PARLIAMENT, Hear ye the Word of the Lord, as it came unto me the sixth day of the fifth Month of this present year, concerning you.  
By AMBR. RIGG.  
LONDON, Printed for Thomas Simmons at the Bull and Mouth near Aldersgate, 1659.   

THE Lord God Almighty of heaven and earth who reigns on high by his power and strength, whose mercy endures for ever▪ Hath now so loved the world that he hath sent his only begotten Son out of his own bosom for a light into the world, that whosoever will receive, believe and follow him shall not perish but have everlasting life.  
Now it being the good pleasure of his heavenly will, first to visit these three Nations of England, Scotland, and Ireland, and to send his Son into them to seek and search out his sheep, (according to his promise made of old, Ezek. 34.) and to gather them from the mouths of the Idol dumb shepherds that hath made a prey upon them, which work is already begun, and many are gathered by his right hand into his Covenant of life, and are taught of him, and established in his righteousness, against whom no weapon form shall ever prosper, for whose sake the immediate hand of God's eternal power hath been often seen to be stretched forth against his and their enemies (in divers manner of ways) who would not let his Seed go free to offer to him a sacrifice in righteousness but laid heavy burdens upon his people which they have long groaned under, and their oppressors were often warned as Pharaoh was by Moses before God's judgement came upon them, but when they still stopped their ears and hardened their hearts from hearing the cry of the oppressed, then did the Seed cry unto the Lord, whose complaint he hath heard, and for its sake hath mightily appeared again and again, and hath rebuked and overturned Protectors, Counsels and Parliaments that he might bring to pass his noble acts which he promised to perform in the days of old by the mouths of his servants the Prophets; so let your ears be open if you do intent to stand.  
And them which he hath called and chosen in these three Nations of England, Scotland and Ireland within this late years hath not been wanting to lay before Protector and Parliament (who then had the power in their hands the grievous & cruel yoke of bondage which they were held under by the seed of evil doers (viz. Priests and Lawyers) who had power given from them to lay more grievous burdens upon the chosen of God than all the oppressors that ever was read of before▪ except the blood suckers in Queen Mary's days, yea the Priests under a colour of Law from Protector and Parliament hath far exceeded all the false Prophets that ever was heard of before them, in cruelty, tyranny and oppression, the which cannot be paralleled; which I hope you who now fits at the Stern of these Nations are not ignorant of, therefore did the Lord suddenly appear, (even when Protector, Parliament and Priest had joined together to take Counsel against the Lord and his anointed) and in a short time rebuked and overturned them and their Counsels who stopped their ears at the cry of the oppressed, and would not regard the chosen of the Lord whom he sent often to them to try their hearts and to warn them in love and tenderness while the power was in their hands to take off the oppression and exactions from his people, but when they had refused time after time, the Lord scattered them as chaff, and dashed all their glory in one day, by bringing to nought all their Counsels which was not right in his sight; and all this hath been done by his right hand for the establishing of righteousness in the land, and for the preservation of his chosen ones whom the gates of hell shall not prevail against.  
Theresore now be awakened and warned all you unto whom the government of these Nations is now committed, let the dread and fear of God be upon every one of you with whom there is no respect of persons or taking of gifts, take heed, oh take heed how you tread in the steps of them that are gone before, for know assuredly that God will not pass by that in you which he hath condemned in them before you; therefore hath God chosen you, to try your hearts also, whether they be right in his sight, which if they so be found, he will bless and prosper you in whatsoever you take in hand, and your enemies shall dread before you, and shall not be able to gainsay nor withstand you, but all their Counsels and plottings against you shall be suddenly confounded and the Lord will crown you with dominion over all your enemies.  
So let this suffice you, oh ye Princes of England, remove violence and spoil, and take the exactions from the people of God, and fear not man whose breath is in his nostrils, for the earth is filled with violence and grievous spoilers is, and hath been in the Land, who hath not spared the flock of God, yea they who have reproved sin in the gate hath been greatly made a prey upon by them who are inwardly rávening wolves.  
Now if these things be not removed by you (who now hath power in your hands) the Lord remove you and overturn you as: he hath done them before you; for a short work in the earth will the Lord now make and will overturn, overturn all, till he come to reign whose right it is, who will break every yoke from every neck and relieve the oppressed; for besides many great oppressions in this Land, the oppression of Tithe is the most cruel and Antichristian, especially to them that professes to live under the Gospel; what a violence and spoil hath been in this Land within this few years by upholding that oppression? how hath the ravening wolves made a prey upon the Lambs of Christ who for conscience sake could not uphold that cruel oppression of Tithe? which all the Priests in England is never able to prove by Scripture that ever Tithe was due to the Ministers of the Gospel by the Law of God; for within this late days I had a meeting with some of the highest of them, and it was desired of me and several hundreds of the free born people of England, that they would prove by Scripture that Tithe was due to the Ministers of the Gospel by the Law of God, and Tithe should be paid unto them without any further ado, but this they were not able to do, but laid aside the Scripture and the Law of God, and fled to the powers of the earth, saying, that it was confirmed by so many Parliaments from age to age, and so it was become a custom; this is the Priest's plea, when they have no Scripture to uphold their Autichristian practices, which the Lords hand is against, they make the Parliaments a cloak for their wickedness; but take heed, I warn you who now are assembled in Parliament, how this is covered any longer by you, for they that cover iniquity shall not prosper, and he that seethe evil and consenteth to it, shall be confounded and brought to shame.  
So beware how this iniquity is countenanced by you; let not the false Prophets make you their cloak for their covetous practices, for I believe there is few so blind but they see tithes Antichristian under the administration of the Gospel, unless it be the blind guides whose mouth is put into; yea, many of them dare not to say that it is according to the Law of God, though for a long time they affirmed it was, but now it gins to be so manifest to all, that they are ashamed of that, and saith it is given them by act of Parliament; oh▪ away with this mire and filth, throw it out of your house, lest it bring a curse upon you and your posterity for ever.  
For the spirit of the Lord will not always strive with you, nor the mouths of his messengers always be opened to warn you, but the time cometh suddenly (If you will not hear and lay these things to heart to relieve the oppressed) that you shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord, and this is the word of the Lord unto you all.  
And furthermore what a talk hath been, and care been taken for maintaining of godly and painful Ministers, which if it had been so indeed, it had been well, but the contrary is much manifested, as concerning godliness; if it be the Priests that preach for hire, that is meant, their own mouths (within these late days) hath made them all Liars who calls them godly, For they have confessed themselves to be wicked and ungodly in the hearing of many people, and that the very sins of their prayers were able to bring the judgements of God upon this Nation; this was at one of their fasts for the violation of times, as they said, and confessed themselves, That they came together to pray against sin, with as bad hearts as they did commit it, and spoke against the present powers, and said, they tolerated deceivers, and prayed to put a curb in their nostrils, and much more of their filthy stuff, which is too tedious to mention. Now if these and such like be called godly Ministers, who then is wicked and ungodly? let the witness of God in all consciences judge.  
And it is not an unknown to many thousands of the good people of this Commonwealth, the covetous practices, and ungodly deeds of these and such like, that is, and hath been called godly Ministers, how that they have caused many to err by their unsavoury conversation and unholy walking, living in all manner of jacivousness, so that none is able to turn from the evil of their ways. Oh consider of it and lay it to heart, For the cry of the oppressed is great; my soul is even loaded and oppressed to hear it, how great is the complaint in every Town and City of the hireling Priests by all sorts of people? yet they that work so much wickedness is set up and called godly Ministers, when their daily practice shows the contrary to all that is not wilsully blind; and I believe some of you are not ignorant, How that within these late days such were joined together with the powers of the earth to bring the Nation into misery and slavery, if the Lord bade not mightily appeared, and suddenly confounded their counsels (for his chosens sake.) and … tered the wicked as chaff; and shall such always be set up and called godly Ministers, and be maintained in deceit and wickedness? Oh I warn you once again to take heed what you do in this thing; For the Lord will not always be mocked, nor suffer the oppressed always to cry unto him and not lend his ear unto them.  
Will not these company of Priests come cringing and bowing to you now for their bellies, which is their god, and flatter you as they have done them before you? and if you lend your car unto them, they will lead you to destruction as they have done many before you; therefore let them he called together and proved by the Scripture, whether they be godly or no before us and you, and tried as Baal's Priests were, and if they so be found in the doctrine of Christ, they will be content with the same wages, which they who were sent forth by Christ had, which I hope none that fears God will deny; but if they be found contrary to the doctrine, and out of the true Apostles practice (as their daily practice manifests) then let them be testified against and denied of all, Lest God's judgement come upon this Land because of the iniquity of Priests and people, for the land is almost full of adulterers, and because of oaths the land mourns, and the pleasant places is dried up; For that which formerly was in a measure dost oyed is now beginning to be set up again, both by Priests and people; as Herbert Morley one of the Rulers in the County of Sussex, professed openly upon the bench in Lewis, That he had rather that Prelacy were up again then that the truth should appear, which he called babbles; this was spoken in the hearing of many witnesses: And John Fag another of the Rulers of that County (who formerly in the appearance stood for the Nations freedom from Kingly power) hath been known (within this late years) to have Cavaliers often to resort to his house to gaming and sporting and Hunting, and feasting, and rioting in the time called Christmas, which formerly was denied, this may be witnessed by good testimony, which if these (and more which might be mentioned) go on, the Nations will soon be brought to misery; therefore look about you while you have time, for they are not your greatest enemies that deals most plainly with you, The Lord give you an understanding to know the truth, and your friends from your foes.  
Another Priest whose name is Robert Baker of Rottingden in Sussex who hath received hire of that people near this thirty years, said in the Pulpit within this late days in the hearing of several witnesses, That he and his hearers were worse than the damned spirits that now lay roaring and yelling in Hell, and that their sins did exceed many of theirs that were now in infernal misery, and said that they were fruitless trees▪ yet not with standing, he the said Baker hath from year to year taken the people's money, and hath not profited them at all, yet he is set up and called a godly Minister amongst the rest, and had power given him within this late days to take twelve Oken, six Cows and a Boll, worth near an hundred and twenty pounds for one years' Tithe of land, that the rent of that land is about an hundred pounds per annum from a friend, whose name is Nicholas Beard, and returned nothing again.  
Will not the cry of this and such like cruelty reach to heaven? Surely the Lord will visit for these things, and his soul will be avenged on such a Nation as this; Was not Zion ploughed as a field? And did not Jerusalem become on heaps because of these things? Was ever any Nation so deeply involved in iniquity by a company of hireling Priests, as this Nation? and yet these go under the Sheep's covering and are called godly Ministers, Oh read the Scriptures and be not wilsully blind, lest it be said of England as it was of Jerusalem, Oh how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a Hen gathereth her chickens under her wings (mark under her wings) but ye would not; therefore shall your enemies cast a trench about you and compass you on every side, because you have despised the day of your visitation, and rejected the counsel of God to your own destruction.  
Therefore with speed, Let all grievances be removed, and set men over the people that will execute judgement in the gate, that the land may be cleansed of evil doers, and lend your ear and show mercy to the poor and oppressed, who hath long laid under the heavy yoke of bondage; for if you suffer that oppression to stand in the land, for which God overturned them bofore you, the Lord will overturn you likewise.  
So that which will make you truly honourable and truly noble, is to search out every matter of wrong, without respect to any person, and to regulate these things which hath long been amiss, and to be a terror to all evil doers whatsoever; and to set over the people men to rule that truly fears. God and hates covetousness, that they may rule for God and not wholly for man, as it hath been this many years; for gifts and rewards hath blinded both. Priest, Lawyers and people, and hath perverted the way of the just which hath kindled the indignation of God against this land, which cannot be quenched until the streams of righteousness and true judgement run down this Land; so while you have time and power in your hands, consider of the oregoing lines which is written in true and perfect love to the seed of God in you all;  By a friend of the Commonwealth of England called A. R. 
THE END.