Ranters of both Sexes, Male and Female: BEING Thirteen or more, taken and imprisoned in the Gatehouse at Westminster, and in the New-prison at Clerken Well. WHEREIN John Robins doth declare himself to be the great God of Heaven, and the great Deliverer, and that his wife is with child with Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. With divers other blasphemous Opinions, here truly set forth. Maintained before the Right Worshipful Justice Whittacre, & Justice Hubbert.  
Written by John Taylor.  
There is a Pamphlet in this kind, written with too much haste, I know not by whom, with but few truths, which in this are more largely expressed.  
London, Printed for John Hammon. 1651   

Ranters of both Sexes, Male and Female: being thirteen or more, taken and imprisoned in the Gatehouse at Westminster, and in the New prison at Clerken-well.  
ALthough many thousands, of us poor mortals cannot perceive with our bodily eyes, or by our darkness of Reason and dulness of Understanding, see or know any Visible Church Militant upon Earth, yet Christ hath a Spouse, which he knows and protects, assists and preserves; and is with her always to the end of the world, which the gates of Hell shall never prevail against. This Church hath always been opposed, oppressed, and molested by Heretics, who with their cursed opinions have done their uttermost endeavours to rend and tear her in pieces, with swarms of Sects, Sectarians and dangerous blasphemous opinions and divisions.  
All these Heretics, Schismatics, and Sectarians (by reason of their multiplicities of opinions, and diversities in their irreligious Religions) did hate one another with a most inveterate and deadly hatred, insomuch as they scorned and despised to converse, eat or drink together, they would never meet or congregate together, at any of their public or private exercises of their blind zealous devotions. Yet notwithstanding all these several and various disagreements, they always concurred and agreed together, to ruin the race, and Rebel against the Lord and his Anointed; The Devil would permit them to join in league against God and his Church, Edomites, Moabites, Ishmalites, Ammonites, Amalekites Gebabites, The Philistians, Tirenians, and Assyrians. Ephraim against Manasses, Manasses against Ephraim, Herod against Pilate, Pilate against Herod, Sadduces, Pharisees, Herodians, Libertines, Cillicians, Cerenians, Astans, and Alexandrians. All those did hate one another and yet they agreed together, as the 83 Psalm specifies, and the whole relation of our Saviour's life and death doth express it by the pens of the Evangelists, and Acts of the Apostles.  
I have a Recital of the Names and Opinions of many wicked and detestable Heretics, Heresies, and blasphemous wretches, but that I will not hold my Reader in too long and tedious suspense, Therefore I will now proceed to the matter intended, and promised in the Front and Title of this Book.  
About the tenth or twelfth of May 1651. there were apprehended and taken in an unlawful Assembly these persons following: 

Thomas Kerbye,  
Thomas Tidford,  
Anne Burrell,  
Elizabeth Sorrell Widow,  
Elizabeth Sorrell junior.  
Marry Vanlopp.    
These were brought before the Right Worshipful Laurence Whitaker Esq (a judicial Justice of the Peace and Quorum, for the County of Middlesex) he did examine the said parties, and found their opinions to be so blasphemous, and damnable Heretical, that it amazeth me with horror to write them, and I am sure it will strike terror and astonishment into the hearts of any true Christian, either to read or hear it. They are termed, or called by the name of Ranters, and their Opinions they affirmed to be as followeth.  
They said that they did believe that one John Robins is God the Father, and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, and that the Child which is yet unborn, and now in the womb of Joan Robins, (the wife of the aforesaid John) shall be the Saviour of all those that shall be saved, both in this world and in the world to come; And that Cain (who murdered his Brother Abel) was the third person in the Trinity. And that all those that do deny it, do deny their own salvation.  
They believe also that the said John Robius had power to raise the dead.  
This was all which they acknowledged to be the grounds and principles of their Faith and Religion, for the which detestable and execrable Blasphemies, they were all six committed Prisoners to the Gatehouse at Westminster, and there they do remain till some course of Law and Justice may order them according to their demerits.  
Also here followeth a true Relation of seven others of the said Crew, (whereof John Robins (their supposed ungodly God is one) their Names are as followeth; and they are all in the New-Prison (or Bridewell) at Clerken-well.  

John Robins.  
Rich: King.  
Joshua Garment.  
Joan Garment.  
Joan Robins.  
Margaret Hollis,  
Eliz: Haygood.   
To give a further Testimony of the truth of what is before written, I desire the Reader to take notice of the Copy of their commitment by a Warrant or Mittimus, from the Right Worshipful Tho: Hubbert Esquire, one of the Justices for the Peace in the aforesaid County of Middlesex.  
A true Copy of Justice Hubberts Warrant, for committing these seven persons to the New-Prison at Clerken-well.  
Middlesex.  
YOu shall by virtue hereof receive into your Custody, the Bodies of John Robins, Richard King, Joshua Garment, Joan Garment, Joan Robins, Margaret Hollis, and Elizabeth Haygood, being persons that are great Blasphemers and unlawfully assembled together: The aforesaid Robin's being acknowledged by them to be God Almighty, and their great deliverer; and for holding very gross and blasphemous Opinions, as appeareth by their several examinations taken before me, and behaving themselves very rudely and uncivilly, clapping their hands, and fillipping with their fingers, casting themselves down upon the ground, and singing, and useing strange postures. Requiring you safely to detain and keep them in your Custody, till they shall be delivered by due course of Law; and this shall be your Warrant.  
Dated this 24th of May 1651. Signed THO: HUBBERT.  
Thus the Devil shows by his raging, that his reigning draws towards an end, sometimes his Malice works upon particular persons, as upon Noah in Drink, Let with Incest, David with Adultery, etc. But his whole and main general drift ever hath been, and ever will be, to disturb and destroy the Church of God, to sow his mischievous tares of damnable Errors, and mingle his hellish seed of Sects and Schisms, with the pure and all-saving Word of God; of which not only the sacred Scriptures do mention frequently. But amongst all Nations in all ages they are declared in Histories, as in Eussebius, Socrates. St. Augustine, and all the ancient Fathers do testify; and for the present, the proofs of these miseries are most plain and too lamentable apparent.  
Nor were people ever grown to such an impudent height of impiety, as they are at this day; for in King David's time, he wrote that The Fool said in his HEART there was no God, whereby I note that though that Fool were an Hypocrite, yet he was ashamed to speak with his mouth, the blasphemous Atheism which he said in his heart.  
But now, in these times we have amongst us the hardened hearts and shameless impudence of Pharaoh, and cursed Rabshecka, too many there are that say in their hearts, and speak with their tongues, Who is the Lord?  
It is no new work of Satan, to sow Heresies, and breed Heretics, but they never came up so thick as in these latter times: They were wont to peep up by one and one, but now they sprout out by huddles and clusters (like locusts out of the bottomless pit) They now come thronging upon us in swarms, as the Caterpillars of Egypt. They have turned our bethel to Babel, (the house of God out of all Order, into all disorderly confusion) The Church of Christ hath more than one Enemy to cope withal, she hath many new adversaries, that it is hard to find names for them,  
We have more than a good many of such as are called, Adamites, Novatians, Annabaptists, Brownists, Nicholaitans, and counterfiet Catholics, Arminians, Antinomians, Newtralists, Familists, Lutherans, Independents, Roundheads, Dippers, Seekers, Shakers', Ranters, with many others not worth the naming: these are all professors to be Protestants, every one pretending to be in the right, and not any of them but are contrary one to another; So that it were a hard task to make search for the Protestant Religion, or to find a Congregation of Religious Protestants.  
There is not any one of these forerecited Sects that do agree in opinion with other Sectaries, or with themselves; As I have read in a German History, that when Luther had first opposed the Pope, and the Lutheran doctrine was newly revived (or newly hatched) then presently, several strange Opinions and Religions, began to increase, and multiply. Some hot-brained preachers, said that the Catholic or Romish Religion was too lose, and full of liberty, and that Luther's was too strict and harsh, therefore they would have a middle way between two Religions, to extract one (or none) and because these people were so giddy pated that nothing could please them, they were called Caput Rotundi (or Roundheads;) which shows that the name of Round-head is near of a 150 years' antiquity. These mad people molested Germany much, they had one amongst them whom they called Joseph, and his Wife they said was the Virgin Mary, and she being with child, they said, that the child in her womb was the Messiah, and Saviour of the World. Germany could not suppress them, insomuch that after many Battles and bloody Bicker, with the loss of 50000 men's lives, the woman's time of delivery came, and she was fairly brought to bed with a Girl, whereupon all the seduced Rabble fled and dispersed themselves several ways, and the counterfeit Joseph and Mary, were both burnt for a warning.  
The like stir was kept in Westphalia, by one John, a Cobbler of Leyden, he had three Prophets (as good men as himself) named Knipper Dolling, John Matthew, and one Rottman, They preached mad delicate Doctrine, and they crowned the Cobbler (John of Leyden) King of Munster, at last the Bishop (who was lawful Lord of the Province, and City of Munster) made war upon the Cobbling King, and after he had begirt the Town with a straight siege some few weeks, provision so much failed, that the Streets were full bestrewed with famished karcasses, the City was taken by assault, and the King was surprised, and pulled in pieces with hot Iron Pincers, his Prophets, and Associates had also their rewards according to their Merits.  
And it is not yet 50 years passed since one William Hacket of Owndell in Northamptonshire a Wheele-wright, did affirm himself to be Jesus Christ, he had seduced two Gentlemen so far that they did believe him to be their Saviour, and they proclaimed him to be so, they ran crying out in the streets of London, that jesus Christ, was come with his Fan in his hand to purge his floor, and that he was at john Walkers house at Broken Wharfe. This noise and outcry, raised a great hurly burly in the City, till in the end Hacket was taken, drawn, and hanged in Cheapside, for his odious blasphemies against God, and high Treason against Queen Elizabeth; Copinger, and Arthington (his two prophets) were imprisoned, one in the Compter in Woodstreet, the other in Bridewell, where they died miserably.  
Also in the year of our Lord 1611. the 9th of King james, one Bartholomew Legate (an Arian Heretic) did deny Christ to be God, for the which he was burned in Smithfield on the 18th. of March, in the year aforesaid. And on the 11 of April following, was burned one Edward Wightman for the same blasphemous opinions, Wightman suffered at Litchfield. The King did offer them both mercy if they would recant, but they refused mercy, and died obstinate.  
Concerning these 13 Wretches, whom I have taken occasion to write this short Relation of, All that I can say for them, is to desire God to grant his blessed spirit to cast out the accursed spirit out of them, and that all Heresies, Sects, and Divisions may be expelled from the true Church, that through, in, and for Jesus Christ (all that do profess to be Christians) may be the faithful sheep of the true shepherd, and eternally, happily of his one and only blessed sheepfold.  
FINIS.