A Serious Warning and Caution UNTO George Keith, And to many Others.  
AS ALSO, A RELATION OF SOME EXPRESSIONS FROM George Keith, Concerning His REASONS which He then gave, for Opposing and Exposing the QVAKEKS, When at His Place at TVRNER's- HALL..  
The Intention of the Publication of which, and more that is in this Paper contained, is proposed for a Public and General Good of All.  
LONDON, Printed in the Year, 1700.   

A Serious Warning and Caution unto George Keith, etc.  
WHEREAS on the 18th of the Month called August, 1700. was seen affixed upon the great Pillars of the Exchange, on Cornhill-side, a Paper in Print, entitled; A Serious Call to the Quakers, Inviting them to return to Christianity: Containing many Quotations (so termed) out of the Books of divers Quakers, etc. Which Quotations are said to be attested by Eight Ministers of the Church of England; wherein George Keith in his Goliah-like Spirit, doth offer to prove the same to the Quakers Faces, etc. to be Monstrous, Heretical, and Antichristian. But there is a Stone which is cut and a cutting out of the Mountain, without Hands, which is risen, and arising, in this Nation, which will dash to pieces in the Head, the Work and Works of this Goliath, with his Champions; for the Lord the invisible and mighty God is on his way, to sustain and support his distressed and exercised People, let their Exercises be of what nature or kind soever; and the Faithful amongst this People shall be preserved, such that do not seek to be setting themselves up great in this World, that deny themselves of Self and Self-Love, and Selfish Worldly Interest, but are seeking after the invisible and only wise God, and our Lord Jesus Christ, for the everlasting welfare of their never dying Souls; as also seeking, desiring, and praying for the eternal welfare and good of their Relations, Neighbours, and loving Countrymen, of what Judgement or Persuasion soever. And notwithstanding all the Mists and dark Fogs that may arise out from the Bottomless-Pit, and of fallen Angels, the Faithful, Humble, and Lowly minded and hearted amongst this People, the Lord, the mighty God and Creator of all things, he by his great and invisible Power, will preserve them, in despite of whatever Satan and his fallen Angels can or may be suffered to do, or attempt.  
And the Author of this Paper doth something admire that those called Bishops and Ministers of the Church of England, should suffer themselves to be so Imposed upon, to think that this poor Apostatised Man and Creature, should be of service unto them, to be an Instrument to help to bring the Quakers back to the Church of England: I do affirm and assert, That you will in the Lord's time see yourselves Mistaken, although it may be some Particulars, such as George Keith, whom 'tis supposed you take something the more notice of, because he may have something of outward Learning, and therefore the fit Tool to be made use of on the aforesaid occasion, who like him, have forsaken their inward, and spiritual, and first Love unto the Lord, which hath provoked the Lord to withdraw from them, and to give them up unto the guidance of their Souls Enemy, and to follow their own darkened Understandings. And this I am made to declare unto you that are called Bishops and Ministers, etc. that the same Arm, Strength and Power, that did secretly and inwardly sustain this People in their former Sufferings, Exercises, and Persecutions, I do affirm and assert, through the unexpressible mercy, and goodness, and favour of Almighty God, is now in a wonderful secret manner prevalent in the Assemblies of this People; but it is much my Belief, and I fear, that the Lord will make some of them Examples unto the World of his displeasure for their Unfaithfulness unto him, notwithstanding they may, it may be, keep to the outward Profession amongst this People, because of their secret withdrawing in their Hearts from the Lord, who hath been good and gracious unto them many a time, and delivered them many a time, because of their getting again too much into the Love, and Spirit, and Things of this World; of which I can remember a time when the Lord suffered many of them to be stripped from almost all worldly Enjoyments, and in that Day the Lord was with them, and sustained them in a low and exercised Estate, and was near to them to do them good; and the Lord is the same at this Day, and will be the same to all that shall be so happy as to have their reliance and dependence always upon him. Now as to the Spirit and Disposition that hath, and is of late Years and Months entered into this, to be pitied and lamented, poor Apostatised Man George Keith, I do affirm and testify, it is no other than the same that was in the Prophet Balaam of Old; who for Balack's Rewards, notwithstanding the Lord had forewarned him, yet would go with Balack to endeavour, (like this poor Creature) for Enchantments against Israel; But the Lord turned his endeavours of Cursing of Israel into Blessings; the Lord is not changed, he is now the same at this very day. And this is the same Spirit that was in wicked Jeroboam, who made Israel to sin, in causing them to worship his Golden Calves, to cause them that they should not go up to Jerusalem, to worship and offer unto the Lord, as the Lord had commanded; and is the same Spirit that made wicked Cain kill his Brother Abel, because the Lord had accepted of Abel's Offering; and is the same Spirit that in the Old World mocked at Righteous Noah, when he was Building the Ark, at the Commandment of the Lord; and is the same Spirit that was in Dathan and Abiram of old, that withstood Moses and Aaron, the Servants of the Living God, who the Lord had commanded to lead his People Israel out of Egypt's dark Land, Slavery and Bondage; the Lord caused the Earth to open its Mouth and swallow them up: So at this Day, those that inwardly in their Hearts which departeth from the Lord, the Earth opens its Mouth, and they are swallowed up in the Love of this World, and in the Love of Earthly Things and Enjoyments: and this is the Spirit that was in the false Prophet Zedekiah, the Son of Chevah of of old, that smote the Prophet Micah the Lord's Prophet upon the Cheek; who said, Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from we to speak unto thee? And is the same Spirit that ruled in the unbelieving Jews of old, who Crucified our Lord, the Lord of Life and Glory, the great Saviour of the World, and of Mankind; it is the same Spirit that was in the unbelieving Jews, that Stoned that blessed Martyr Steven, who told them of their Rebellion and Stubborness against the Lord, and how they Rebelled against his good Spirit; it is no other but the same Spirit that caused Demas of old to embrace this present Evil Word, complained of by that worthy Apostle and Servant of the Lord, Paul, who lamented in his Day and Time to this effect, That all were seeking after their own, and not the things of the Lord, who could not be content with a low Estate which the Lord doth bless; having Food and Raiment to be therewith content, and to follow the low and humble Example of our only and blessed Saviour the Lord Jesus Christ; who, although, was Heir of all Things in Heaven, and in the Earth, yet denied himself of all things taking off the World, only a little sustenance, and a little something for outward Covering, viz. a Garment which we read of was without Seam, without Rent; and so is his Spiritual Garment witnessed, and known to be at this Day to a little Remnant; he alone is worthy of the Glory, who is for ever blessed: And where the Rents are, and where the Envy and Bitterness of Spirit is, and where the Runing out are, from the Truth and blessed Spirit of God, and of our Lord Jesus Christ; let it be be amongst what People, Name or Denomination soever, such do not keep under the Spiritual and Seamless Garment of our Lord Jesus Christ; notwithstanding they may not be a wanting of high Pretences, and making in Words a great and specious Profession of him, much like the Jews of old, who counted themselves the Children of God and Abraham's Seed; yet would needs have Christ the blessed Messiah to be a Blasphemer, and what not, speaking Despicably of him; saying, Is not this the Carpenter's Son? whose Father and Mother we know; and are not his Brethren hear with us? Calling him a Deceiver, and how that he did cast out Devils by Belzebub, etc. And such as before go into the Love of this present World, and too much effects the Enjoyments thereof; and such go into a Spirit of Prejudice and Envy, and lets in a persecuting Spirit against their Brethren, that cannot Worship after the same way and manner, as they themselves are pleased to do; which is too much like Cain's Spirit and Disposition. And this envious Spirit of prejudice, to my former too great and woeful Loss, and hurt, to my great Unhappiness; having entered into my poor Soul, through my too much giving way unto my Soul's Enemy, after I had a long time made profession with the People called Quakers, to that Degree, that I almost loathed the sight of any of the said People; but the Merciful God, who had visited and tendered my Heart, in my early and young Days, who had been many a time good unto me, who continued to follow me in my Rebellious State, and State of Apostasy from him, justly brought upon me, Outward and Worldly Disappointments, and blasted my Endeavours, as to Outward and Worldly Affairs; yet providentially opened a way still for an outward Subsistance.  
Yet again, I forgot the Lord, who had showed so much Mercy and Goodness unto me; and the Enemy again stole away my Heart from following him, by little and little, so that I lived in much and great Excess, too much to mention hear; but the Lord still continued to follow me, according to his wont Mercy and long forbearance, and in a remarkable way visited me with his Judgements. It being now near Four Years since, by laying his Afflicting Hand upon my Body; by which my Body came to be afflicted with divers kinds of Indispositions and Weaknesses, and that of a long continuance; and also inwardly visited my Soul and Spirit with Judgement, wherein my former Disobedient and Rebellious State was set before me, as in a Glass; the Lord having found me in this deplorable State, and nothing but Eternity, in a dreadful manner, seemingly to appear in my view; and that which greatly Exercised my distressed Mind, was the unaccountable hardness of my Heart; when if the World had been in my Power to have given, I could gladly have parted with it, to have had my hard Heart broken, and tendered by the good Spirit of the Lord, and at that time to have witnessed lasting Peace to my poor never dying Soul. So the Lord in great Mercy unto me, having brought me every way very low in his time, which was a time of great Love indeed, he did not forget to show his great Love and Mercy unto my greatly distressed poor Soul, and brought my Heart and Spirit into much brokenness and tenderness; for which I have abundant cause to be always thankful unto the Lord for ever, to bless and praise his Honourable and Worthy Name, so long as it may please the Lord to give me a Being in this Mortal Body.  
The weighty, solid, and serious Consideration, of which great and unaccountable Mercy, great Favour and Love of Almighty God to me, hath occasioned a concern of Mind in me towards others, that may have Apostatised from the Lord as I have done, in slighting his tender and compassionate Visitations; to warn others that may have declined in their Hearts from the Lord of Life and Glory, as I to my former great Unhappiness have done: And this former unhappy State and Condition of mine, may also serve to be a warning unto all sorts of People, of what Persuasion or Judgement soever, that they do not provoke a merciful God as I have done: For my belief is, that the Lord is not a wanting, to afford in some degree and measure, a time of Visitation unto all, so as to leave all without excuse, of what Persuasion or Judgement soever, when he shall come to Judgement. And it is my belief, that at that Day the Question will not be so much, what People's Judgements and Religious Persuasions may have been; but whether in their Lives and Conversations, they have not lived in Rebellion against the good Spirit of the Lord; so as in that Day be found Workers of Iniquity, so as to incur that woeful Sentence of, Go you Cursed into utter Darkness, etc.  
And as before expressed, having through the great goodness of the Lord, in some measure obtained Forgiveness, and Mercy, and Favour at his Merciful Hand, hath occasioned a concern upon my Mind, to go to visit this, to be lamented Apostatised, poor Man, George Keith; which accordingly I did, about the Months called February or March last, before he had given over Acting at his Stage at Turner's- Hall, and some Months before he tooks Orders upon him in the Church of England way; it being upon my Mind, to warn and caution him against that Spirit of Prejudice, which I had a Sense of he was entered into: And I can truly say, I found Love in my Heart reaching towards him; and amongst the Expressions which he made to me, at the close of what past, I holding him by the Hand, being earnestly dissuading of him from that undue proceedure of his. He replied, What wouldst thou have me to do? wouldst thou have me to go into the Street with my Wife and Family? And this, if need be, I can Testify to the Face of George Keith to be ineffect, if not the very express Words, which came then from the Mouth of George Keith, against whom I have nothing of Prejudice, but Christian Tenderness, Love and Good Will in my Heart: And it would be well for him, if he would whilst it is called to Day, to turn unto the Lord with a sincere Heart in true Repentance, and to put up sincere Cries and Breathe unto the Lord, as I through the Goodness and Mercy of the Lord have been made to do, to Cry unto him in much tenderness and brokenness of Heart for forgiveness, and for Mercy, and not to be ashamed to take Shame upon himself in sincere Repentance, again to return unto the Lord.  
No Worldly Interest moved me to this Concern, neither am I, nor have I been insighted hereunto by any Person, or Quaker living: The Lord is my Witness, I have had a Concern to conceal my Concern of Mind from them, until it be Published unto the World: And the Author of This, in Sincerity, hath Christian Love and Good Will, and Christian respect to all Solid and Sincere-hearted People, of the Church of England Persuasion and Way; as also, to all others, that do not too much affect Worldly Interest, that affects a Christ-like Selfdenying State, that desireth the Welfare and Happiness of all that can love Enemies; that like Christ our Lord, who came to do good unto all, even unto the Rebellious; that when his Persecutors were Crucifying of him to Death, he cried, Father forgive them, they know not what they do. He did not cry for Fire to come down to destroy his Persecutors, but submitted his Will unto his Father's Will, which he came into the World to do, to die for Sinners, for the Rebellious, that through him? and what he suffered for lost Man, lost Man might be redeemed unto God out of the fallen State. So in the tender Love of Almighty God, with which he is waiting to do the Sons of Men his Creation good withal; I bid all to farewel. Seeing no necessity for me to subscribe my Name to this Paper, I having more than once signified it unto George Keith, as likewise my place of Abode and Calling, etc.  

A POSTSCRIPT.  
Friendly Reader,  
AS to the giving this our Adversary, and the Adversaries of Truth what they insist upon, relating to their Disingenuous way of taking Scraps of their Quotations, out of our Friend's Books, as best suits with his, and their Inveterate prejudiced Minds; and that also in a bitter persecuting Spirit, and Disposition against a peaceable People; not only out of divers of our Friend's Writings, that are yet living: And if they have not already, may as they find freedom, give a more Sincere Sense than their Opposers have done, of what may be objected, and unfairly opposed, and exposed by their unfair and partial Adversaries, Sordid, Biased, Disingenuous Insinuations: And whether it doth not look unfair in These, our, and the Adversaries of Truth, to rake m the Embers of the Dead, that are out of the Body, divers of them Years since; so not in a capacity to Vindicate what was then in their Time and Day, upon their Hearts to Write, for, and on the behalf of that Way and Blessed Truth, they in their Day and Time were made Professors, and Possessors of; on the account of which, they underwent great Sufferings, and greatly Suffered; for Whom we have good Reason to believe, are at Rest with the Lord. And whether this to be Pitied and Apostatised Man George Keith is not partial in a high Degree, as to these his Quotations; when as he himself in those many Years he was amongst the said People, I have reason to believe, was not without a considerable share in Writing for, and vindicating that Truth, which I believe he once sincerely and firmly believed, that he hath not so much as made one Quotation out of his own Writings, when among the said People; and notwithstanding his public owning to have been formerly with them Guilty, both in Doctrine and Practice of Error, and what is proposed and desired by the Author of this Paper, is that the , and simple-hearted, and unwary may not be hurt, nor let in a Spirit of prejudice, by any means, work or endeavour, by the endeavours of any poor Envious, Bewildered and Darkened Apostate, or Apostates; who like Esau of old, sells their Birth rights for a Mess of Pottage, for a little present Worldly Enjoyments, a little Worldy Gain, etc. In which I am assured, they cannot have true and lasting Peace, to their neverdying poor Souls; but Horror, Anguish and Trouble of Mind, Heart and Spirit; For there is no Peace to the Wicked, saith my God: Which the Author of this Paper, to his unexpressible Sorrow, Grief and Anxiety of Spirit, hath by woeful Experience been acquainted withal. Farewell.  
Written in London, in the Seventh Month, 1700.   
FINIS.