A DECLARATION CONCERNING Fasting, and Prayer.  
OF THE TRUE FAST, WHICH RAISETH UP the Foundation of many generations; which is not the hanging down of the head like a Bulrush for a day.  
ALSO; A DECLARATION OF THE FALSE FAST, where is the hanging down the head like a Bulrush for a day, and the bonds of iniquity standing, which iniquity separates from God, while that is standing, the foundation of many Generations is not seen.  
AND SHOWETH, The Prayer that God accepts, and what he hears, that which is from his Spirit, and showeth what Prayers he hears not, which is contrary to it, which God accepts not; and here you may see the difference between the true Praying and the false.  
Aug. 9 London, Printed for Thomas Simmons at the sign of the Bull and Mouth near Aldersgate. 1656.   

Concerning Fasting.  
TO all you that be keeping Fasts, who smite with the fist of wickedness, & fast for strife and debate; against you hath the voice cried aloud like a Trumpet. Now to you, and to all, that you may come to know the true fast, which is accepted, and the fast which is in the strifes, and the debate, and smiting with the fists of wickedness; which fast is not required of the Lord: Behold, in the day of your fast you find pleasure, and exact all your labour; behold, mark, take notice, you fast for strife and debate, to smite with the fists of wickedness, you should not fast as you do this day, to make your voice known on high; is it such a fast that I have chosen, saith the Lord? a day for a man to afflict his soul; is it to bow down his head like a bulrush, to spread sack cloth under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and acceptable day to the Lord? consider all you that do fast, see if it be not hanging down the head for a day like a bulrush, and are in strife and debate, and to smite with the fists of wickedness, whose voice you make to be known on high, but this fast is not with the Lord accepted; but that which leads you from strife, from debate, from wickedness, which is not the bowing down of the head as a bulrush for a day, and yet live in exacting and pleasure, this is not accepted with the Lord, but that which separates from all these before mentioned, which separates from wickedness, debate, strife, pleasures, smiting with the fifts of wickedness, that which separates from that, brings to know the true fast which breaks the bonds of iniquity, and deals the bread to the hungry, brings the poor that are cast out to his own house, and when he sees any naked, he covers them, and hides not himself from his own flesh; here is the true fast which separates from them, where the bonds of iniquity are standing, and the heavy burdens of the oppressed remaining, and the yoke not broken, who deals not the bread to the hungry, and brings not the poor to their own house and sees the naked, but lets him go unclothed, and hides himself from his own flesh; yet such will make their voice to be heard on high, as Christ speaks of the Pharisees, which sounded a trumpet before them, and disfigured their faces, to appear to men to fast, but the bonds of iniquity were standing, strife and debate was standing, striking with the fists of wickedness standing, that made their voice heard on high, who had their reward; but that which brings to the true fast, which appears not to men to fast, but unto the father which sees in secret, and the father that seethe in secret shall reward thee openly; this fast separates from the Pharisees fast, and them that bow the head for a day like a bulrush; and this is it which brings to deal the bread to the hungry, and to clothe thine own flesh when thou seeft them naked, and bring the poor to thine house, and to lose the bonds of wickedness; mark, this is the fast, and to undo every heavy burden; mark again, and to let the oppressed go free; this is the fast, and to break every yoke; and thou that observest this fast, then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily, and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rearward, then shalt thou call and the Lord shall answer, thou shalt cry and he shall say, here I am; if thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke, the putting forth of the finger and speaking vanity, and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul, then shall thy light arise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noonday; the light brings to know this fast, and walking in it this is kept, and he that believeth in darkness abides not. And again, the Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought and make fat thy bones, and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring whose waters fail not; these are them which are guided with the light which comes from Christ where the springs are. And again, they that shall be of thee that keeps this fast, shall build the old waste places, shall raise up the foundations of many Generations, and thou shalt be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of the paths to dwell in, that which gives now to see the foundation of many generations, the light which separates from all which is out of the light, and they that go out of the light, though they may pretend a fast, bowing down the head for a time, yet they are far from this fast, that doth raise up the foundation of many generations, and is repairer of the breach and restorer of the paths to dwell in; that which doth give to see this foundation of many generations; and these breaches that are to be repaired and restored, and paths to dwell in is the light, which brings to know the true fast, and where this fast is known, which is from wickedness, from debate, from strife, from pleasures, from exacting, from the voice that is heard on high, from the speaking of vanity, from the bonds of iniquity which breaks every yoke, let's the oppressed go free, here the health grows where the morning is known, righteousness goes forth, the glory of the Lord is the rearward, and the light riseth and the soul is drawn out to the hungry and satisfies the afflicted soul, and the springs of living water are known and felt, the waters fails not, here the Lord guides continually, and the foundation of many Generations comes to be seen and raised up, and the repairer of breaches is here witnessed, and the restorer of paths to dwell in, but all such as be from the light which the Prophets were in, with which they saw Christ, and such to be in fasts, where was strife, where was wickedness, where was debate, where was bowing down like a bulrush for a day, lifting their voice on high, and the bonds of wickedness yet standing and the burdens unloosed, and the oppressed not let go free, and the yoke not broken, the nakedness not clothed, the bread not dealt to the hungry and the foundation of many generations not raised up until these things before mentioned be broken down, on such the light breaks not forth as the morning, and the Lord hears not that, and such have their reward, and such their iniquities have separated them from their God, and their sins have hid his face from them that he cannot hear, and such their hands are defiled with blood and their fingers with iniquity, whose lips have spoken lies and tongues have muttered perverseness; none called for justice, nor any plead for truth, they trust in vanity and speak lies and conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity, they hatch cockatrice eggs and wove the spider's web; he that eateth of their eggs dies, and that which is crushed breaks out into a viper, their web shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works; mark and take notice, their works are works of iniquity the act of violence is in their hands, their feet run to do evil, they make haste to shed innocent blood, their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, wasting and destruction is in their paths, the way of peace they know not; there is no judgement in their do, they have made them a crooked path, whosoever goes therein shall not know peace; mark, such go from the light, therefore is judgement far, neither doth justice overtake; and here is obscurity, and here is the walking in darkness, and here is the groping like blind men as though they had no eyes, and their stumbling at noonday in the desolate places like dead men, and here is the roaring like bears and mourning sorely like, doves, and here judgement is looked for, but there is none, and salvation is put far off, for the light is denied which gives to see it, but here the multiplying of transgression, and their sins testifying against them, and the transgression that was within them, and their iniquities which they knew in transgressing & lying against the Lord, speaking the things they should not, when that they knew with that of God in them they should not speak it, so departing from the way of God, speaking oppression, revolting, conceivings and uttering forth from the heart words of falsehood; here is Judgement turned away backward, and Justice stands afar off, truth is fallen in the streets and cannot enter; yea truth falls, and he that departeth from iniquity makes himself a prey; yea the Lord saw it and it displeased him: These are such that are in the fast which God doth not accept, and are not in the true fast, whose light breaks forth as the morning; but these are such that be in the false fast, who grope like blind men, and that which gives to know the true fast and the false fast is the light, which is the eye that gives to see each, where the true Judgement is, and the iniquity standeth not, nor the transgressor, nor the speaker of lies, but that is judged and condemned with the light which makes it manifest; and who be in this fast when they call upon the Lord, the Lord will answer them here am I; and here truth is pleaded for and falsehood flies away, but who be out of this fast in the perverseness, tongues uttering perverse things, are stumbling and groping like blind men, which be from the light, in the iniquity which separates from God, who hides his face from them that he will not hear; going from the light, goes from the Lord and his face, so this is it which must be fasted from, for this is it which separates from God, and here comes the reward openly, which condemns all that before mentioned, which is contratrary to the light, injustice, iniquity, transgression, vanity, and that which brings forth mischief, which hatcheth the cockatrice-eggs, and weaves the spider's web; he that eateth of these eggs dyeth (mark) that which is crushed breaks out into a Viper; (mark again) their web shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works of vanity, acts of violence is in their hands, this is all from the light in the wickedness; their feet run to do evil, make haste to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of vanity, wasting and destruction is in their path, this is all from the light: again, the way of peace they know not, there is no judgement in their go; they have made them crooked paths, whosoever goes therein shall not know peace: (mark) who goes in their way that know not the way of peace, shall not know peace, whose path is crooked where there is no judgement in their go; (take notice) no judgement in their go; and this is all from, the light, which manifesteth that which is to be judged where the covenant of peace is known, where all that which is contrary to it  is kept out, which all who live in those things  contrary to the light in the false fast, they may mark their path and behold their reward, who be out of the light stumbling and groping like blind men, which they that be in the true fast are from all them separated, their words, their actions and fruits, and their fast whose fast breaks the bonds of iniquity, and whom the Lord hears, and to whom righteousness springs forth and goes before them; the glory of the Lord is the Reerward.  
G. F.   

Friends every where, keep the Fast to the Lord, which keeping it the foundation of many Generations will be raised up, therefore friends to you this is the word of the Lord God, to you all, to keep the Fast every where to the Lord, which raises up the foundation of many Generations.  
Concerning Prayer.  
Now that all may come to know the true praying, which is with the Spirit, & with the understanding, and here you come to know the praying with sighs and groans which cannot utter words with a sigh and a groan, & so as this spirit comes to guide & lead, ye come to the Father of Spirits, whom he hears, & he is nigh unto all that call upon him in truth, who call upon him with their hearts, whose hearts are nigh unto him; these come to know the praying, every where lifting up holy hands without wrath & doubting. Mark, a praying with holy hands lifted up without doubting, or wrath; so I will that men pray every where, (mark this) but see that you pray without wrath & doubting, & your hands that you lift up be holy hands, for this differs from the Pharises praying, for they were in the wrath against the life, they were in the doubting and said to Christ, How long makest thou us to doubt? & their hands were not holy, but full of blood; and these stood praying in the Synagogues, & with a pretence made long prayers, which devoured widows houses, which widow had not an husband, (mark) which should receive the greater condemnation; and such as these were in the fasts, & in the praying, which the Publican was more justified than they, that did but smite upon his breast, who went home sorrowful, his sighs or groans was more justified than the Pharises long prayers; for such as have not the life, the spirit that gave forth the Scripture to guide them, as the Pharises had not, that were in the long prayers, in the wrath and doubting, not holy hands, but their hands were full of blood, who delivered the Just to be crucified, and shed the innocent blood. Now all you that do pray, who think yourselves better than them the Scripture speaks of, who were in the wrath and doubting, and not holy hands; consider and see, have you that spirit that gave forth scripture? do you pray with the spirit? are your hands holy that you lift up? do you pray without wrath and doubting? are not you calling upon God with your lips, and your hearts wand'ring after your riches, your pleasures, & so the heart far from God? Is not the spirit in prison that should teach to pray? and is not here all the vain repetition, (mark) vain repetition, who pray not with the spirit, who are in the doubting and the wrath, hands not holy, call upon God with their lips, hearts afar off? That of God in all is my witness, where it is in prison, where it is out of prison, to which I speak. And such as pray not with the Spirit wait not for the Kingdom of God to be done in earth as it is in heaven, nor know not the daily bread, nor the day, neither do they forgive men their trespasses that trespass against them, neither will your father forgive your trespasses, such as forgive not men their trespasses that trespass against them; so when you pray forgive men that trespass against you, than your heavenly Father will forgive you your trespasses that you have transgressed contrary to the Spirit; and here you shall pray without wrath or doubting; for it teacheth to pray which doth forgive, and that is forgiven which inherits the Kingdom, and eats the daily bread, which witnesseth the Will of God to be done in earth as it is in heaven, and he calls him father which is in heaven.   
The End.