Faithful Warnings, Expostulations and Exhortations, TO The several Professors of Christianity in England, as well those of the Highest as the Lowest Quality.  
TOGETHER, With a Testimony against divers great Errors in some Teachers, and other Hearers, under strict Profession of Religion; occasionally written some time ago in Opposition to divers Atheistical Notions delivered by Dr. P—, in a Sermon Preached on the Death of the Late QUEEN; and now Illustrated with several Openings of many places of Scripture, concerning the Great Doctrines of the Christian Faith and Religion.  
To which is added, Two Letters written from the Minister of Port-Royal in Jamaica, giving a full Account of the great Destruction that came on that Place (for its great Sins) by the Dreadful Earthquake that was there in the Year 1692.  
AS ALSO, An Epistle of Bartholomew Tertian, written to the Waldensian Churches, wherein are many wholesome Christian Exhortations and Reproofs, of Sports, Dancing, etc. And a Historical Relation of a Dreadful Monster that appeared at Palermo, a Seaport in Sicily, Destroying some Thousands of People, in the Time of Marcus Aurelius, in Judgement to them for their great Wickedness.  
With other Things, very Useful to Recover all Mankind out of his Fallen State into Paradise again.  
By JOAN WHITROWE.  
London Printed, and are to be Sold by E. Whitlock, in Stationers-Court near Stationers-Hall, 1697.   

Thou shalt not hate thy Brother in thy Heart, bu● thou shalt plainly rebuke thy Neighbour, and suffer him not to sin, Levit. 19.17.  
Thou shalt not avenge, nor be mindful of wrong against the Children of thy People, but shalt love thy Neighbour as thyself, I am the LORD Levit. 18.19.  
When I shall say unto the Wicked, O Wicked Man, thou shalt die the Death, if thou dost not speak and admonish the Wicked of his Way, that Wicked Man shall Die for his Iniquity, but his Blood will I require at thy Hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the Wicked of his Way, to turn from it, if he do not turn from his Way, he shall Die for his Iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy Soul, Ezek. 33.  
My Son, hast thou sinned? Do so not more, but Pray for thy former Sins, that they may be forgiven thee, Eccles. 21.  
Flee from Sin as from a Serpent, for if thou comest near it, it will by't thee: The Teeth thereof are as the Teeth of a Lion, to slay the Souls of Men, Verse 2.  
All Iniquity is as a Twoedged Sword, the Wounds thereof cannot be healed, Verse 3.  
Whose hateth to be Reform, is in the Way of Sinners; b●●●● that feareth the LORD, Converteth in ●●●rt, Verse 6.  
He that keepeth the Law of the LORD, ruleth his own Affections thereby; and the Increase of Wisdom is the End of the Fear of GOD, Verse 11.   

To the KING, and Both Houses of PARLIAMENT, I humbly present this following Treatise.  
THE Reason why I presume so high in my Dedication, is, you being his Vicegerents on Earth, are the great Instruments in GOD's Hand, who can Cure the Nation of its Malady, and Heal the Languishing Diseases, and so make up the Breaches thereof; which if GOD is pleased (tho' now at last) to honour you with this great Work of Reformation, to advance the Kingdom of CHRIST in the Earth, you will not only give occasion to your Dearest Friends, but your greatest Enemies shall Bless, Praise, and Magnify the LORD of Lords on your behalf, for than shall that Prayer be answered, Thy Kingdom come, and Thy Will be done, in Earth as it is in Heaven; and will not this be a Glorious Day, when instead of Killing and Destroying one another, we shall Pray one for another? Than we shall be Christians indeed, not only in Name, but in Nature. O Blessed Day will this be, to love the LORD above all things, and your Neighbour as yourselves; here will be an end of Covetousness, that great Idolatress, Abomination of the Land, and Merciless Idol of all the World, an end of Lust, the Mother of Penury, which never obtains what it seeks, an end of Malice, Deceit, and Discord: Here the Work of Justice shall be Peace; here you will be Just, and do that which is Lawful and Right; here you will not Oppress the Poor and Needy, nor Spoil any by Violence, but will restore the Pledge, every one to his Neighbour, and so do Justice to the Widow, and give your Bread to the Hungry, and  the Naked with a Garment, and will execute true Judgement between Man and Man; Whoredom, and Wine, and New Wine, shall not take away your Hearts; here you will not Oppress nor Vex the Widow, Fatherless, the Stranger, nor the Poor, neither will you respect Persons, nor receive Gifts nor Rewards, because the Gift blinds the Eye of the Wise, and perverteth the words of the Just, that you cannot see to reprove Sin in the Gate; for behold the Eyes of the LORD are upon all the Earth, to show himself strong with them that are of a perfect Heart toward GOD, to love him, and keep his Commandments; and here you shall be the Blessed, If you walk not in the Counsel of the Wicked, nor stand in the Way of Sinners, nor sit in the Seat of the Scornful; but your Delight to be in the Law of the Lord, and in his Law meditate Day and Night. O Happy People who are in such a Case; yea, Blessed for Ever are they whose GOD is the LORD! Than Blessed shall you be in your going out, and in your coming in, if the KING and his PARLIAMENT join together Unanimously in this Great Work, to exalt the Name of GOD in the Earth, and for the perfecting thereof, take to them the Zeal of Josias, the Courage of Jehosaphat, the Love and Zeal of David, who said, The Zeal of thine House hath eaten me up: And, O how I love thy Law, it's my M●●itation all the Day: I love thee dearly, O LORD. And thus he goes on expressing the Indearedness of his Affection to the LORD, and his Holy Ways, making Vows and Promises, saying, I will walk in my House before thee with a perfect Heart; I will set no wicked thing before my Eyes; I hate the work of them that fall away, it shall not cleave unto me: A froward Heart shall departed from me; I will know no evil: Him that privily slandereth his Neighbour will I destroy; him that hath a proud Look, and a high Heart I will not suffer; mine Eyes shall be upon the Faithful of the Land, that they may devil with me: He that walketh in a perfect Way, he shall serve me, there shall no deceitful Person devil in my House; he that telleth Lies shall not remain in my sight; thus will I destroy all the Wicked of the Land, that I may cut of all the Workers of Iniquity from the City of the LORD: Mark how he would destroy them; not by taking away their Lives, but by putting them out of their Offices, to depose them from their Trusts: Oh! that I might be so happy to prevail with the King and his Parliament, to try this way of winning the People of this Land; first, by their own Pious Lives and Conversations, the King in his Court, and every Member in Both Houses of Parliament, particularly, every one in his own House, (and Both Houses of Parliament to purge out the Atheism and Antichristianism) and when this is done, the greater number will be on the LORD's part, to set up CHRIST, and to throw down Antichrist, that you may prospero and live long in the Land which the LORD hath given you; for David Reigned Forty Years by taking this way of method, to purge his own Heart, House and Kingdom; and you hear how highly the LORD styles him, to be a Man after his own Heart; and will you, O ye Princes! be negligent in so great a Work both Internal and External, wherein so great a Happiness doth consist, as your Prosperity in this World, and your Eternal Joy and Heavenly Felicity in the Life to come, for a Momentary Life of sinful Pleasure, which you know not but that Moment may be the last of your Enjoyment, as Christ said, Thou Fool, this Night shall thy Soul be required, and you know that it was David's true Repentance, and deep Humiliation, that brought him into so great Favour with GOD; you hear how great the inward Travail of his Soul was, to bring forth the Will of GOD in all things as he required, which was the Ground from whence all his good External Actions of Government in his House and Kingdom did proceed: Nor did David hid his Light which he had received of GOD under a Bushel, but set it up to all the World; for that end, no doubt, that all might see wherein he fell, and by what means he obtained Mercy, and so he came to sing of Mercy and Judgement, unto thee, O LORD, said he, I will sing: He was not ashamed to Confess the GOD whom he served before Men; not, not, before the Gods will I sing praise unto thee, exalt the LORD our GOD, and fall down before his Footstool, for he is holy. Holiness becomes thy House, O LORD, and the place where thine Honour dwelleth; and thus was his whole Life a Life of Prayer and Praise, and admiring the LORD in all his wondered Works. Again, as David was, as it were, proud of the LORD, in making his boast of him, in vehemently loving him, praising, admiring, and exalting him above all things Visible or Invisible; even so doth GOD own David before all the World, and makes his boasts of him; and the good that he did to Israel was for his Servant David's sake; for, said the LORD to the Prophet Ahijah, I will not take the whole Kingdom out of Solomon 's hand, but he shall be Prince all the Days of his Life, for David my Servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept my Commandments, and my Statutes; but I will take the Kingdom out of his Son's hand, for his Father Solomon 's Sin; yet I will give him one Tribe, that David my Servant may have a Light always before me in Jerusalem; and so the Mercy goes on in his Line till it comes to Christ: But was this a bore Historical Service or Worship that GOD was so well pleased with in him; was it his going to the Temples, and offering Sacrifices? Not, for he speaking in the Person of Christ, said, Sacrifice and Offering thou wouldst not, therefore I come to do thy Will, O GOD, in a Body which thou hast prepared; and, said he, the Sacrifice which God requires, is a broken and a contrite Heart, and this Sacrifice David offered plentifully to the LORD in GOD's House, within him in his Soul, in his most inward parts, which is GOD's Temple and Dwelling-place; for Heaven is my Throne, and the Earth my Footstool, than where is the place of my Rest? for all these things have I made, saith the LORD: And saith the Apostles, God dwelleth not in Temples made with hands: So than that outward Temple was but a Figure of the inward Temple, which was destroyed with the Glory thereof: And the innermost Sanctuary, where the Highpriest was only to come, was a Type or Figure of the inward or innermost place in the Soul, where GOD will be worshipped, and whose Right it is to have his Habitation there, in the Holiest of Holies; as our Lord and Saviour said to the Samaritan Woman, Ye worship ye know not what, the time cometh, and now is, that the Father will be worshipped neither in this Mountain, or that Mountain, nor at Jerusalem itself, but in Spirit and in Truth; for such the Father seeks to worship him; altho' they were to wait at Jerusalem to receive this Promise of the Father, the Spirit of Truth, which would lead them into all Truth, as their Lord said to them, when their Hearts was filled with Sorrow at his departure from them, It is expedient for you, saith he, that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you, and when he is come, he will reprove the World of Sin. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Here you may see how weak and ignorant the Disciples of our Lord were, whilst only his Bodily presence was with them, tho' pure, chaste and holy; how ignorant were they of Divine Inspiration, Heavenly Revelation, and the Secret Mysteries of the Kingdom? Which made Christ say, It's the Spirit that quickens, the Flesh profiteth nothing: And so saith the Apostle Paul, Although I once knew Christ after the Flesh, yet henceforth know I him so not more. So here you see he leaves the outward, and comes to the inward, saying, The Law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus, hath made me free from the Law of Sin and Death: Here's a great change in Paul, since he was crying out of the Body of Sin and Death, saying, Who shall deliver me? Yet in this deplorable state, from a sight of Sin under the Law, there arises a little Comfort; I thank GOD, saith he, that with my Mind I serve the Lord, tho' my Flesh wars against the Spirit, and tempts me to Sin; yet here is no evidence that Paul yielded to the Tempter, but contrary, overcame the Temptation. I besought the Lord thrice, said he, and who can te● but that thrice was threescore; and th● Answer makes good the Effect, My Grac● said GOD, is sufficient for thee: So her was the Grace presently at hand to help and strengthen Paul to overcome th● Temptation, The Grace of GOD which hath appeared to all Men, teaching them to deny all ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live righteously and holily in this present evi●● World; so that if you join with the Grace as Paul did, and give up your strength and might to it; but if you deny to give up your strength and might, and join to the Temptation, than you resist the Grace where the Power is placed, and can have no Benefit thereof; for it's no Sin to be tempted, but to yield to the Tempter is the Sin; for our Lord himself was tempted, but he powerfully resisted to the Death; and so did Paul, and so he followed Christ, and bids us all do the same, Fellow me, saith he, as I follow Christ; so Christ is the Captain, the Leader, the Lawgiver, and his Soldiers receives the Command from his Mouth, to follow him the Captain of our Salvation, resisting powerfully and manfully, fight our way through all the Snares of Hell and Death, as that worthy Person of the Church of England said in his following Letter.  
And thus, O King and Princes, you have the Example of all the Holy Fathers from Righteous Abel, and of all the good Kings, from David until this time, whose Names and Acts are upon Record, to be in Everlasting Remembrance before the Lord, and throughout all Generations, for a Memorial and Praise to all who follows their steps, in loving the Lord, and fulfilling his Commands. But on the contrary, they that followed their pernicious Ways, both Kings, Princes, and People, that disregarded the Lord, and sought not the Honour of his Glorious Name, because of which, their Names became a Stink, a Proverb, a Byword of Reproach, not only to themselves, but all the Heathen round about them, till at last he cast them as Dung from his presence.  
But before it came to this, how long was his Righteous Soul grieved with their Rebellions against Him and his Holy Laws, yet still he sent Messenger after Messenger to reclaim them, declaring b● them his Will and Pleasure; but the● slighted his Messengers, and evil-intreated them, and so went on so long till hi● pure Spirit was as it were weary with striving; and thus they sinned out the Day of their Precious Visitation, till the fier● Indignation of the Lord took hold o● them, and than as Dindimus said to Alexander the Conqueror, They shall know th● Pains justly inflicted by GOD upon unjust Men; for he is a Judge of all Injuries, an● the Sighs of those that are injuriously treated become the Pain of those that injure them●  
Than O ye Rulers of the People, seeing it is to be so, how great is you Charge, to make Laws for the Glory o● GOD, and with all your Power to pu● them in Execution; and to this you mu●● take his Jealousy for your Armour, an● put on Righteousness for a Breastplate and take true Judgement instead of an He● met, and put on Holiness for an Invincible Shield, and sharpen his fierce Wrath for a Sword to Fight with him against the Unwise, as that great Champion Ph●●nehas stopped the Plague from the Childre● of Israel, by his Valour, and fiery Zeal for GOD against the Workers of Iniquity; and if you do the same, who knows ●ut that GOD of his Infinite Mercy may ●top the Decree [that is gone forth against these Kingdoms of your Dominions] which are Great Plagues, and Amazing Judgements, and are just ready to break forth, if a speedy Reformation doth not prevent them? Than Woe and Alas what will become of all your Gallantry, Pride, Pomp, Ostentation, and Inordinate Lust that captivates Men, which now a whole World is not able to satisfy? Will the Honour and Glory of a perishing World avail you than! Not; but be a gnawing Worm in your Consciences, which will make you Curse your Lovers, who were the Cause of your fooling away so Great a Glory, for so frivolous Vanities, and false Delights.  
But will the destroying Angel pass by you because of your Greatness? O not, the Great and the Small, they are all one to HIM; but the Greater you are in Power, being Officers of HIS Kingdom, if you Judge not right, nor keep the Law of the Most HIGH, to fulfil the Will of GOD in all things, than horribly and suddenly will he come upon you, to giv● you the Reward of your Works; for th● Lord will not hold him guiltless that bea● his Sword in vain, and so Blasphemes h● Holy Name.  
And indeed it's dreadful to consider th● Original of these things, which are, whe● Men sand their Sons to the Universities t● learn something that is good, to be se● viceable to GOD and the Common wealth; but instead of learning good they often learn all manner of Evi● as Pride, Cunning, Craft, Subtilty, ho● to overreach the Simple, and to depriv● him of that which he hath gotten by hi● Sweat and Labour; and here they lear● to Mock, Scoff, Blaspheme, Curse, Swears Cheat, Lie, with all shameless Vices, etc. If but one among them appear that feareth GOD, they shout and wonder at him as if he were an Owl, and count him a● Fool or Madman; and here they learn all Impudence: And these are they that must be Trusted with Churches, Schools, Universities, and Ordained to be the Shepherds of Christ, also these are preferred to Civil Governments, and Places of Trus● and Authority in Commonwealth; and such Superiors commit the greatest Wickedness, and the Inferiors learn of them: For as it was said, the Superior by his Craft and Subtilty gets the Estate of the Inferior to himself, by his Oppression and Extortion, and so constraineth the poor Glly Souls to labour hard, to maintain the Pride and Luxury of the Rich, and must be the Slave, Afflicting and Consuming his Body, when, at the same time, the Rich Man's Dogs fares better than the Needy Soul, and all this must be counted Equal, Just, and Right, altho' it be contrary to Nature itself, but having its Centre in the Dark or Bottomless Pit, where one Property of Darkness afflicteth, tormenteth, and tortureth the other, ●nd where the Life is at Enmity with it ●elf; and than another sort of Inferior ●earns of the Superior to maintain a Luxurious Life, by Covetous Cozening, Cheating, Lying, Over-reaching the Sim●le, and so Robbing one another of their Rights, Measures, and Weights, without Pity or Compassion to their poor digressed Neighbour; and if notice is ta●en of it, by way of Reasoning or Reproof, the Answer is, they are forced to do so, to exact more Profit, and 〈◊〉 to extort from their poor Neighbour without Mercy or Compassion, because of the Oppression they lie under themselves, thus breaking the Precious Commands of Christ, who saith, Love th● Neighbour as thyself; and whatsoever 〈◊〉 would have Men do unto you, do ye that un● them; but contrary to this Heaven's Maxim, the Inferior doth all this to follow the Superior in Riotousness, Luxury Pride, and the like; for what the Superi● doth in State and Delicacy, that the Inferior doth in a Beastial manner of Lif● and thus wickedness is wrought by wickedness, till the World is filled with Violence, and the Devil becomes Prince ov● the Body and Soul of Mankind.  
Wherhfore seeing this to be the Cou● of the World, their Force to be evil, 〈◊〉 their Course not right, I thought it 〈◊〉 Duty to Cry unto you, O ye Princes 〈◊〉 the People! as the Woman of Abel cry● to Johab for Mercy, even so cry I un● you, that you would be Merciful 〈◊〉 your own Lives and Liberties, by Enco● raging and Establishing Righteousness and Suppressing all Vice and Wickedness that ye may be able to stand before the Almighty and most Terrible GOD, who shall come to Judge the Secrets of men's Hearts, together with their Public Actions; in his fiery Zeal, and severe Judgement, when the Superior and Inferiors Works must be put into the Fire, and here tried; or otherwise, how will the superior be able to endure, when the Infe●or-shall Cry out in the Anguish of his ●oul, saying, Woe, woe, be unto you Supe●ors, for giving me occasion by your Examples to be Wicked, Lewd, and Unrighteous: ●o be unto you that did not restrain us from ●ning against our Creator.  
O than how will the Superior be able 〈◊〉 stand before the Judge of all the Earth, 〈◊〉 tender an Account of his Office, where●● he hath been set and placed for that ●d, to hinder Injuries, and all Unrigh●usness, and to keep the Wicked in ●ve, by Reproof, Correction, and Pu●hment; but alas! instead of taking ●s way of method to save Souls from ●struction, it hath been the study of 〈◊〉 Superior how to satisfy his Covetous ●terprize, by getting the Estate of the ●erior to himself, and so hath coveted his Money more than the good of h● Soul; this is the Rule of the World, th● is the Course both of Superior and Ins●rior, of the Shepherd, and of the Shee● devouring one another, as the great Fishy in the Ocean devour the small, and a● this under a Notion of Religion; Christ Passion and Sufferings must be the Cloak for all these Abominations: Here if the can but Confess themselves to be Christ ans with their Lips, tho' they lodge t● Whore of Antichrist in their Hearts, th● are secure: But Oh! ye False Shepherds 〈◊〉 all sorts, throughout the World, who profess him in words, but climbs up into t● Sheepfold another way than by Chr● the Door, who are the ground 'Cause 〈◊〉 all the Errors which the People lie inta● gled in, by casting the Garment 〈◊〉 Christ's Sufferings over the Hypocrite and Deceivers, who have hardly the sh● dow thereof, how much lesle the su● stance? How will you Answer it, wh● Christ shall require an Account of 〈◊〉 Sheep from you, who have wittingly a● wilfully for Favour of Money, Rich Honour, and Reputation, covered the S● both of the Superior and Inferior? I● Christ do so, who told every one the Truth to his Face? He did both bruise and heal, not for Favour or Respect to the Person of any, but according to the Will of his Father, and ought not you to do the same? Ought not you to be their Pattern in well-doing, as he was? And than truly tell them they must Fight against Pride, Lust, and an Hypocritical Life, that they must with speed go out of themselves, and enter into Righteousness, Love, and Humility; telling them plainly, that the Passion of Christ will benefit none, unless they turn from their evil, false, wicked Ways and Purposes, with a true and unfeigned Repentance; for so said our Lord, He that reputes and forsakes shall found Mercy; and to him the Sufferings of Christ are powerful and profitable; and here he enters into Covenant with GOD, and is partaker of the sure Mercies of David; thus you would stand for GOD, and be a Witness against all Unrighteousness.  
Wherhfore, I beseech both Old and Young, Superior and Inferior, in the Bowels of the Love of GOD, whilst it is called to Day, that is, whilst the Door of Mercy is yet open to you, which I am a Witness for the Lord is; turn you, 〈◊〉 turn you this Moment, put it not of til● another time, but whilst it is to Day har●den not your Hearts, for you know no● but this may be the last Visitation of th● Love of GOD, that Ever may be te●dered to you; for the Earth is now filled with all manner of Wickedness, the fier● Wrath of GOD is at hand, the last Judgement is at the Door, GOD will purge 〈◊〉 sweep the Earth with Fire, and than giv● every one his due Reward.  
I have seen the Harvest ripe, th● Grapes and Fruit just ready to drop; an● it was said to me, This Crop of Wickedness shall not stand, meaning througho● the Universe; therefore I humbly be that you will not neglect this great Salvation, which the Holy GOD tenders 〈◊〉 you at this time; and say not in yo● Hearts, Who shall ascend to fetch it fro● above, or descend to fetch it from b● neath, because it is in you; the Word 〈◊〉 Faith is in you, the Power to do 〈◊〉 Will of GOD is in you, because Chri●● the Hope of Glory, is in you, and in hi● is the Power placed; so that you need 〈◊〉 go to the Universities for it, or Travel beyond the Seas in far countries' to seek for Wisdom in remote places, for she standeth at the Door of your Hearts knocking, saying, Open to me my Beloved; and if she found a Soul that is emptied of itself, hungering and thirsting after the Love of Christ, as David's was, when he said, As the Hart panteth after the Water-brooks, so panteth my Soul after thee, O God, than she there reveals herself; but if the Soul yield itself to her for a full Possession, than she penetrateth through it with her inflaming Fire of Love, and unlocketh Mysteries to the Soul; so that there is no more need of searching, and painful toiling about it, for every simple Man may attain it, if he do not hinder himself by his own willing and running from GOD to the Creatures: As for Example, the Prophets and Apostles who were simple ignorant Men, before they were called, and than after they were called, they waited to receive the Promise, and in this waiting state they received the Blessing; for said Christ, Blessed shall that Servant be, who is found waiting; so here the Soul witnesseth what John said, That which we have tasted and handled of the Word of Life, we declare unto you: They declared it to them, but they could not give it to them, they could only give direction how to attain it, but could not give them the Life and Virtue thereof, that they must seek themselves; as Christ said, Seek, and ye shall found, knock, and it shall be opened to you the Mysteries of the Kingdom of GOD, the Heavenly Wisdom, which is first pure, and than holy; and whose awakeneth to he● betimes, saith Solomon, shall have no great Travail, for he shall found her sitting at his Door. To think upon her, saith he, is perfect understanding, and whoso watcheth for her, shall be soon without Care, for she i● the School-mistress of the Knowledge o● GOD, and a pure influence that floweth from the Glory of the Almighty, therefore can no defiled thing come unto her● I loved her, saith he, above Health, an● purposed to take her for my Light; for he● Light cannot be quenched, because Love is the keeping of her Laws, and the keeping of he● Laws is the assurance 〈◊〉 Immortality, and Immortality maketh 〈◊〉 near to GOD therefore the desire of Wisdom leadeth to the Kingdom.  
If your Delight be than in Thrones and Sceptres, O Kings of the People, Honour Wisdom that you may Reign for Ever; for if Richeses be a Possession to be desired in this Life, what is Richer than Wisdom, that worketh all things? I, said Solomon, preferred her before Sceptres and Thrones, and counted Richeses nothing in comparison of her, neither did I compare Precious Stones unto her; for all Gold is but a little Gravel, in respect of her, and Silver shall be counted but Clay before her; wherefore I prayed, and understanding was given me, I called, and the Spirit of Wisdom came into me; for when I perceived I could not enjoy her, except GOD gave her, and that that was a point of Wisdom to know whose Gift she was, than I went unto the Lord and besought him, and with my whole Heart, I said, O GOD of my Fathers, and LORD of Mercy, which hast made all things with thy Word, and ordained Man through thy Wisdom, that he should have Dominion over the Creatures, which thou hast made, and governed the World with Equity and Righteousness, and executed Judgement with an upright Heart; give me that Wisdom which sitteth by thy Throne, and put me not out from among thy Children; for, tho' a Man be never so perfect among the Children of Men, yet, if thy Wisdom be not with him, he shall be nothing regarded: Thy Wisdom, O Lord, which was with thee when thou made the World, which knew what was acceptable in thy sight: O sand her out of thy Holy Heavens, and from the Throne of thy Glory, that she being present may labour with me, that I may know what is acceptable in thy sight; for otherwise who can know thy Counsel, without thy Holy Spirit; for so the Ways of them which are upon Earth are reform, and Men are taught the things that are pleasant unto thee; and are preserved through thy Wisdom.  
So far the Wisdom of Solomon, which may give you to understand the way he came by all his Excellent and Unheard of Wisdom; he prayed and sought the Lord with his whole Heart, as David his Father did, daily waiting at Wisdom's Gate; and well had it been for him if he had never departed therefrom; which may be a Caution to all Princes to watch and pray, jest they enter into Temptation: So this is that Wisdom and Power from on High that you are to wait for, O King and Parliament, even the Spirit of Truth to lead you into all Truth, to be with you in Council, to go before you in all your Acts, whether Internal or External; for without this you can do nothing which will be Acceptable to GOD, or Good Men.  
Wherhfore, O Parliament of England, let my Council be Acceptable to you, and break of your Sins by Righteousness, and your Iniquities by showing Mercy to the Poor: But if you will not receive this Admonition, I'll weep in secret for your Sins; therefore I beseech you, let not such a Spirit be found in the Parliament House, as shall presume to make a Mock or a Derision at these great and weighty Truths, as knowing the Penalty thereof, That whosoever falls on that stone shall be broken, but on whomsoever he falls shall be broken to pieces.  
The next is, if I may be so bold to ask, Why the Tax is laid so heavy upon the Commonalty? I know the Answer may be soon given, Because the Nation is much in Debt, and the King greatly necessitated for Money to Pay of his Fleet and Army: Well, but why than do you lessen your own, by Taxing your Lands lower than before, whereas you ought rather to have made the People's Burthem lighter, and your own heavier, as all o● you being Men of Considerable Estates, and best able to bear it, which would hav● tended not only much more to your Honour, but also lessened the People's Complaints and Murmur against you which I hear daily to my great Grief.  
O that the Wisdom from above had been with you, to have directed you more equally to have laid them; which 〈◊〉 humbly propose, Whether the High Heads, Black Patches, Rich and Costly Apparel, Playhouses, all sorts of Gaming Drunkenness, Whoredom, Swearing, Cursing, taking the Name of GOD in vain, Feasting and Rioting, Cozening and Cheating, Over-reaching the Simple False Weights and Measures, Long Periwigs, a great Tax to be laid on them Washes, Paintings, all sorts of Sports Perfumes, Packs of Dogs, Costly Furniture in Houses, Jewels, Rings, Necklaces, with all the rest of those needless Vanities; and all Taverns, and other Houses, that suffers any to have more than their Necessity requires, to be largely Taxed, both the Giver and Receiver; and the Cursed Playhouses to be severely Taxed, and Players greater, and every particular Person, Men, Women, and Children, that goes to them, greatly Taxed, according to their Quality; also many other things of this kind, which your Wisdom may found out to lay heavy Taxes upon; and here no Mouth justly could have been opened against you, except the wicked, whose Mouth GOD hath determined to stop; and, by these Noble Acts of Righteousness and Justice, your Name would have been as Precious ointment poured forth, the Perfume hereof, as a good Savour, would have ●ast forth its fragrant Smell, to the furthermost parts of the Earth; and here GOD would have Honoured you, O parliament of England, with a Name and ●ame beyond your Predecessors, as the ●ord hath promised, saying, They that Honour me I will Honour, but they that Disregard me, shall be by me Disregarded, Samuel: So whether you will hear, or forbear, I have Discharged my Duty and am a Witness for the Lord, that he is clear of your Blood.  
J. W.   

THE PREFACE.  
FIRST I declare myself to be no Teacher, for the LORD hath tried many in that matter, but hath found none so fit for that Work as himself, Glory to ●im for ever: But as a Fellow-labourer ●n the Vineyard of my Lord, or as a Beg●er who hath received a good Alms, ●ends all her Fellow-beggers thither.  
Secondly, I declare myself to be in the Universal Love of GOD to all Mankind, without Respect to Persons, Sects or Opinions.  
Thirdly, I have no Malice in my Heart 〈◊〉 any: And that it hath not been from a spirit of Prejudice that I have undertaken 〈◊〉 Correct their Faults, but from an In●med Love, and Burning Zeal to GOD's ●lory, and the good of all Mankind; that a necessity lay upon me which I could 〈◊〉 ways avoid, without being Disobedient to GOD's Command; yea, Woe had bee● to me, if I had not done it, neither cou●● I have laid down my Head in Peace; for● lay upon me as the weight of a Millstone before I gave up to the Will of GOD neither have I any Prejudice against t●● Church of England more than the re●● but an Honourable Esteem for some ●mong them (as I have for some amo●● all the rest) which I shall declare: 〈◊〉 Printing a Letter which one of the Chu●● of England sent me, upon the Reading 〈◊〉 my last Book, Printed in the Year 16● Which Letter declares him to be of 〈◊〉 Faith of a true Christian, and I wo●● all the Church of England, and all other both Priests and People, were of 〈◊〉 Mind, to Love Righteousness, and h● Iniquity: So, as to be daily Fights their way, through the Snares of Hell a● Death: And the Torrents of Belial: honestly desiring to resist unto Blood, 〈◊〉 to the perfect Death of the Body of 〈◊〉 and so be made Conformable to our d●●est LORD JESUS. Here's the Wo●● a Christian, deeply to be engaged aga●● ●●e Enemy of his House, this War would ●ickly put an End to the Devil's Kingdom, and than your Swords would be turn●● into Ploughshares, and Spears into Pru●●ing-hooks: to dress your own Vines, that ●●u may bring forth Fruit to the LORD ●f the Vineyard, an Hundred Fold, and than ●●all you Learn War not more.  
J. W.   

THE LETTER  
My Dear Friend in our Emanuel,  
I Read over this Evening the Book 〈◊〉 bestowed upon me, being your Tha● givings for the King's Safe Return, 〈◊〉 the Reading whereof, I received a most 〈◊〉 doubted Testimony of its Divine Origi●● and at the same time had so clear a sight 〈◊〉 your Happy State in GOD, and far 〈◊〉 vanced Growth in the Second Adam, t●● my Heart was knit unto you, lifting up 〈◊〉 Heart to GOD in Thankfulness on j●● Behalf, for his Extraordinary Grace besto●● upon you, in making you so Signal a Wit●● for himself, in the midst of this most Cro●● and Perverse Generation, and so shining Light in this Dark Night of Apostasy: W● Blessed Daughter of Zion, be not discour● tho' you do not see all the Fruit of your 〈◊〉 bours in the LORD which you may des●● but let this Stay, Comfort, and Support 〈◊〉 Heart, that GOD, even your GOD, hath Sworn, that the Word which is gone out of his Mouth, shall not return in vain, but shall accomplish the thing he sent it for; they that sow to the Flesh, can expect no better Crop than that of Corruption; but you, thrice Blessed Soul, have sowed your Tears, your Prayers, your strong Cries, your Watch, your Fast, your Unwearied Labour of Love, for the K— and Late Q—, for England, for all the Three Nations; yea, for the whole World, in God, in the Land of the Living, where not one Grain of what you have sown can miscarry, but must spring up in Light, Life, Love, Joy, and Eternal Glory: Whilst I writ this I am melted into Tears of Joy, and Ravished with a Pisgah-sight of the Beauty, surpassing Loveliness, and transcendent Sweetness of your Portion, and Inheritance of all the Saints in GOD. And no wonder when Moses himself, when he took the same Prospect, burst out into this Transported Rapture, Happy art thou, O Israel, who is like unto thee? A People saved by Jehovah, etc. And the Man after God's own Heart cries out for Joy, The Lines are fallen to me in pleasantness, and I have a lovely Inheritance: And the foregoing Verse tells us what this Portion and Inheritance is, Jehovah is the Lot of mine Inheritance: And how can the sight of such an Inheritance but Charm, Ravish, Transport, Fill, and Overcome with Joy unspeakable, and full of Glory? My Dear Friend, in this our Blessed Inheritance, let us often meet and rejoice in this Land of the Living; and in your approaches to the Throne of Grace; forget not your Unworthy Brother, who in this Valley of the shadow of Death, amidst of great Weakness of Soul and Body, is daily fight his Way through the Snares of Hel● and Death, and the Torrents of Belial, earnestly desiring to resist unto Blood, even t● the perfect Death of the Body of Sin, and s● he made Conformable to our Dear Dearest LORD JESUS, whose sweetest Name is m● Salutation unto you, my Dear Friend, and i● whose sweetest Love I desire even to Rest with you, and all the Saints, who am known to yo● by the Name  
C. H.   

Some REMARKS on a Sermon, Preached on the Death of the Late QUEEN, etc.  
BEcause the Days of my Mourning are not yet over, for my Beloved Lady, the Late Queen, therefore I must take leave to Assuage my Sorrow ●nd Ease my Grief; which I can no ways ●o, but by clearing my Conscience: For ●t hath lain upon me as a great Burden, which I had hoped length of time would ●ave Removed; but I found, by sorrowful Experience, the longer the time, the heavier the Burden; therefore I will declare it, ●oping thereby to found Relief. Upon our Dear, the late Queen's fatal Death, many Sermons were Preached; some of them I perused, wherein I had some Satisfaction, especially one Preached in ●he Tower, which I had great Unity with the most part of it: But after this I ●a● another by one called a Doctor of Divin●●  
Thus I have briefly accounted 〈◊〉 this Expression in my Text, of calli●● Rulers, and those none of the best, 〈◊〉 the Name of Gods and Angels, and t●● by the Holy Ghost himself, whom no● can have the Blasphemous Impudent to Charge any with Flattery in so ●●ing: Thus saith the Doctor.  
Now I shall not dare to presume to sa● the Holy Ghost Flatters, in giving such ●●tles to Mortals: Not, I thank God for 〈◊〉 Grace that hath taught me other way but I may presume to say, this Doctor one of the greatest Flatterers, exce●● that in the Gospel to Herod, that ever Read of in any History; and what 〈◊〉 can Propose to himself, or any oth●● more than Flattery, 〈◊〉 deliver such thin● in such an Atheistical Age as this is a●stery to the Wise; but it's like his oth●● Doctrine, where he saith, The Que● taught them Virtue, those of the be● Quality of her own Sect, and She Practised it herself in a right manner, a●● to the best advantage; not as a Su●● Melancholy Humour, a piece of Pevi●●ness and Moroseness, or a Superstitious Restraint from the Innocent Freedoms & Pleasures of Life which has affrighted so many from it.  
O what Scurrilous Names he gives the Practice and Absteinuous Life of our Blessed Saviour, the Holy Prophets and Apostles, and all the Primitive Christians, as well as those of latter Ages: But did you ever hear of any that were true Christians, or the true People of God, that had not there times of private Retirements, as may be found throughout all the Holy Scriptures, the Book of Martyrs, and other Ancient Ecclesiastical Histories which declares of their Retirements and Abstinences, as Fast, Watch, and deep Humiliations▪ and for this End they did perform this 〈…〉 First, To Obey the Command of Go●; and Secondly, To get the Victory over themselves, their own Wills, Ways and Works; which this Man calls Innocent Freedoms and Pieasures of Life; which were the very things the Christians were to deny themselves in; for what more Pernicious than the Pleasures of Life to a Soul that's fight its Way through all the Snares of De●● and Hell, to Obtain a Heavenly Inh●tance, an Immortal Crown of Glory, 〈◊〉 the Joy of which the true Christians den●● the Pleasures of Life, took up the Cross Christ, and Despised the Shame.  
But the False Christians, who sa●● They were Christians and were not; 〈◊〉 were of the Synagogue of Satan, Th● Lived in the Pleasures of Life, whose G●● was their Belly, whose Glory was th● Shame; for they minded Earthly thin● and so became Enemies to the Cross Christ, that Crucifies the Pleasure's 〈◊〉 Life, and Mortifies the Liberty of t● Flesh; with the Affections and L●● thereof: A Woeful Day was it to o● well Disposed Queen, when this M●●came to be her Teacher, who Taught the Pleasures of Life to be the right Ma●ner and the best Advantage; which, ha● she followed his Prescriptions, she h●● never answered, in the lest measure, t●● End of the Lord in her coming into England: But, Blessed be God, sometimes s●● had a better Teacher, who shown h● that strait was the Gate and narro● was the Way that led to Eternal Happiness and Everlasting Blessing. O that she had thoroughly followed the Dictates of His Holy Spirit, than had her Days been Prolonged, and she Advanced to that Degree of Honour, that all her Predecessors never attained to: Again saith this Doctor, She gave them Patterns of Virtue, not Uncouth or Fantastic, affected Unnatural, such as we meet with in the Legends; but what are agreeable to Civil Life; and to all the Stations of this World; what Christianity and the plain Laws of God require of us; and those things which they had not forbidden, she did not think necessary to forbidden herself: The undue Rigours and Severities of some Indiscreet Persons have done great harm to Religion, by Condemning those things, as absolutely Sinful, which are so only by Accident, but in themselves Innocent, such as Dancing, Playing at Cards, going to Plays, and the like; our Admirable Queen could distinguish here between Duty and Prudence, between Unlawful and Inexpedient; she would not refuse those common Diversions, nor use them too much; she would not wholly keep from Plays, as if they were utterly Unlawful, but went very rarely to show she did not much approve them, and that sh● thought her time much better spent another way, in Reading, Prayer, and Meditation, and Private Devotion in he● Closet.  
Not Thanks to this False Teacher that she thought her time much better spent another way, in much better things in Reading, Prayer, and Meditations. This was the Infinite Love and Mercy of God to her: For had she not bee● Visited with the Lord's Loving Kindness otherways, than through such as him, sh● had been Swallowed up in those Gulf of Vanities, which they had prepared fo● her common Diversion: But she w● withheld by a Secret Hand, tho' she kne● it not, from Running so much into th● Excess, as they had privily laid for 〈◊〉 She being under them, and they over h●● She had a great Spirit for God, and wo●● have done Generous things: But she w● kept back by them; their Power was 〈◊〉 'bove hers; she, precious Soul, might w● say as David did, These Sons of Serv● are too hard for me: As the Doctor aforesaid declares, for out of his own Mouth he shall be Judged, who taught our Innocent Queen, that the Cursed Abominations of Plays, Cards, Dancing, and the Pleasures of Life are Innocent in themselves; yet notwithstanding the predominency of his Barefaced Lies, the Spirit of God had that Influence, by striving and wrestling with her, as to show her she should not approve of them; and that she thought her time much better spent another way; what an Admirable Temper, and Excellent Inclination was here in her to be wrought upon; here was the good Ground indeed for the precious Seed of the Kingdom to be Sown in, had she had the Good Husbandmen about her, such as Paul and Apollo's, and such as Bartholomew Tertian, Pastor to the Waldensian Churches of the Valley Pragela. I say, had she had such Faithful Labourers to Encourage her own Pious Inclinations; O what Excellent Fruit had she brought forth, both to God and Man; but alas she was Compassed about with the Contrary, such as brought up new Doctrine, contrary to the Doctrine of Christ, and all the Primitive Christians; who Preached the Cross of Christ, which is the Power of God to them that believe in the Sufficiency thereof, to give the Victory over all Sin and Iniquity; if the Soul abides in it; that is, in the Cross, and goes not out from it. They that do thus, shall receive Power to become the Sons of God, for they shall Grow from one Degree of Grace to another, till they come to the perfect Stature of the fullness of God in Christ Jesus their Lord and Lawgiver; this is the Reward of the Cross of Christ, which is the Power of God.  
But if you follow your Blind Atheistical Guides, who Teaches you to go from one Playhouse to another, and from one Dancing-house to another, and from one Game of Cards to another, and from one Pleasure of Life to another; till you, Prodigals, spend your Portion both External and Internal, and so have nothing to Feed on but Husks, you must expect the just Recompense of Reward, as our Saviour said: For the Blind Guides, and those that are led by them to fall into the Pi● of Destruction for Ever: But this Idle Shepherd, that hath Fed himself, and not the Flock; what do I say, not Fed the Flock; Yes he hath with Lies and Deceit; or else what means his saying, That the plain Laws of God do not forbidden to go to Plays, Cards, Dancing, and the Pleasures of Life; and those things, saith he, that the plain Laws of God had not forbidden; the Queen did not think necessary to forbidden herself. O Behold this Doctor, what Pains and Advantage he takes to uphold the Kingdom of Antichrist, and to throw down the Kingdom of Christ: Woe and Alas, it's no wonder that our Sweet, Humble, Meek-Spirited Queen, did no more of this great Work of Reformation, before she went of, when she had such about her, that would say any thing for the Wages of Unrighteousness; any thing that the Devil put into their Wicked Hearts for filthy Lucre Sake; as this Man of Belial can have the Impudence to bring forth his Works of Darkness, which he hath fetched out of the Bottomless Pit into the Face of the whole World: That when he had Hatched his Cockatrice Eggs to bring forth a Viper to destroy the Souls of all Mankind.  
I'll call Heaven and Earth, and God the Judge of all, to Witness against his Lying Doctrine; and all the Spirits of just Men in all Ages, of all Sorts and Sects whatsoever, to be Judge, whether this is Doctrine fit to be Preached in this Atheistical Age, or among a Christian People? And he hath not only the Impudence to Justify those Cursed Vices, but to Condemn those that Bear their Testimony, for the Lord, against all such Abominable and Hellish Practices: For, saith he, the undue Rigorous Severities of some Indiscreet Persons have done great harm to Religion and Virtue, by Condemning those things as Absolutely Sinful, which are so only by Accident, but in themselves Innocent; such as Dancing, Playing at Cards, going to Plays, and the like. O that it might be according to his saying, to have done great harm to that Devilish Religion that he is of, which is the Pleasures of Life, and his Vicious Virtue.  
O LORD GOD Everlasting, Holy, Just and True, When wilt thou stop the Mouths of these Lying Teachers, that Presumptuously take thy Ever Blessed Name into their  Mouths, and Hates thy Holy Pure Spirit, to reform their Vicious and  Lives.  
But, pray take notice, how high this Spirit of Error, charges the Holy Prephets and our Blessed Lord and Saviour, and his Blessed Apostles, who followed His Heavenly Doctrine of Self-denial with the Primitive Christians and the Blessed Martyrs, who were Living Witnesses against all such false Doctrine, and sealed to the Crucifying and Selfdenying Life of Jesus with their Blood; and those Blessed Protestants the Waldenses, whom the Protestants of our Age own to have been their Ancestors, and from them, you say, you have your Religion; but how much your Doctrine and Lives Resemble theirs, all their Histories fully declares, where they have writ whole Volumes against all your Ungodly Practices, as Dancing, Music, sing, Cards, Dices, Plays, Pride Fantastical Dresses, your wicked Sports; and with a Burning Zeal declares against the very Houses, where such Cursed Abominations are Practised, which Houses in some Cases might be useful, viz. The Tavern which, say they, is the Fountain of Sin, the School of the Devil; for when the Drunkard goes to the Tavern, he goes upright, but when he comes forth, he cannot go at all, he has lost his Sight, Speech and Hearing: The Lectures that are Read in this School of the Devil, are Gluttonies', Drunkenness, Oaths, Perjuries, Lying, Blasphemies, Flatteries; and divers other wicked Villainies, & pernicious Effects, by which the Heart is withdrawn further and further from God. So far these precious Waldenses and first Reformers of the Protestant Church; and further, say they, of Dancing, Music, and the like wicked Recreations, which this False Teacher saith, are Innocent.  
Dancing, say they, is the Devil's Procession, and he that entereth into his Procession, the Devil is the Guide, the Middle and the End of the Dance. So many Paces as a Man maketh in Dancing, so many Paces doth he make to go to Hell; a Man Sinneth in Dancing divers ways in his Pace; for all his Steps are Numbered; in his Touch, in his Ornament, in his Hearing, Sight, Speech, and other Vanities; and therefore we will prove first, say they, by Scripture, and afterwards by several Reasons, how wicked a thing it is to Dance. The first Testimony we shall produce, say they, is in the Gospel, where it pleased that Heathen and Tyrant Herod so well, that it cost the great Prophet John Baptist his Life; the second is in Exodus, when Moses, coming near the Congregation, saw the Calf, and the People Dancing, he cast the Table of the Law of the LORD from him, and broke it to pieces at the Foot of the Mountain, and afterwards it Cost Three and Twenty Thousand of their Lives: And again, say they, Those that Dance break their Promise and Agreement they have made with GOD in Baptism, when their Godfathers promised for them, that they shall renounce the Devil and all his Pomps, and Dancing is the Pomp of the Devil, and he that Danceth maintaineth his Pomp. And again, say they, A Man breaks the Ten Commandments of God: As, 1. Thou shalt have no other Gods but me; and here they make out most fully what our Saviour said, His Servants ye are whom ye obey; and so saith Jerom, Every Man's God is that which he serves and loves best. And so these precious Waldenses goes o● most Excellently, making out at large to the end of that Discourse, the Breach of a●● the Commandments, by the practice 〈◊〉 that one Accursed Thing of Dancing which is too long for me to insert here. Bu● hear also what Augustine saith, The Miserable Dancer knows not, that as many paces as he makes in Dancing, so many leaps he makes to Hell: And further this Famous Augustine for his Knowledge in Church-Affairs, whose Sentences wer● Oracles, he saith, That Plays, and a● such Recreations, are more Pernicio● and Abominable than those Idolatrous Sacrifices, which were Offered in Ho● nour of the Pagan gods.  
I myself can Witness to the Truth 〈◊〉 this Learned Man's Testimony; for ho● pleasant were those Vanities to my Senses And how did they Captivated my Min● from God, till the Lord, in his Infinit● Compassion, by the Light of his Hol● Spirit, showed me the wickedness there of? Yet after I was showed the Evil 〈◊〉 such Vanities, how great was my Sufferings before I came fully of from deny in myself those Cursed Pleasures, as Plays, Dancing, Singing, and the like, wherein I myself have been one of the Chief Actors therein? And how often did the Lord follow men, in the Secret of my Soul, with the Reproofs of Instructions, saying, Why wilt thou do this, and sin against God? O than, as soon as I could get from my Company, I have gone out, as Peter did, into a private place, and wept most bitterly before the LORD, begging his Assisting Power, and Heavenly Strength, against the next Temptation, to resist it, promising by his Assistance never to do the like again. Thus the Lord follows his Creature, sometimes in the heat of Temptation, in the very Act; and sometimes when it is over, in the cool of the Day, as he did to Adam, condescending so low as to lie knocking and calling at the Door of our Hearts (till his Locks are wet with the Dew) in the Night of our Apostasy, Wooing and Beseeching the Soul to receive his Love, saying, Open, open to me, my Beloved, and I will make an Everlasting Covenant with thee, even the sure Mercies of David: But alas! How should such give Entertainment to him, who have made a Covenant with Death and Hell, to disinher it him the true Heir and Subscribe themselves Servants to Sir for Term of Life, as their False Teachers tell them, That they may go to Plays, Cards, Dancing, and the Pleasures of Life, the Pomp and Glory of the World for Term of Life; these are the Guests that must he Entertained with Voluptuous Fare, with their whole Heart, Soul, Strength and Might; but their Saviour, the King of Eternal Glory, must lie in a Manger among the wild Beasts, to be trod underfoot, to be spit upon, scoffed and scorned at, to be beaten and buffeted, to be Crowned with Thorns, to be Crucified afresh, and put to an open Shame; this do ye, ye Church and People of England, of all Sorts and Sects, who treads underfoot the Son of GOD, and counts the Blood of the Covenant an unholy thing, by your often transgressing against his Righteous Laws, and Smothering, and Murdering his Holy Witness in your Hearts, that would rise and bear witness against your ungodly Ways and Works: For is it not so, when the Priests of the Nation, whose Lips should preserve Knowledge, are the great Instruments to lead the People into all Error, Ignorance and Blindness; and trains them up with the highest Encouragement in the Broadest Way to utter Destruction; and the great Lamentation is, the People Love to have it so: Now, what think you will the LORD do in the End thereof? Why, saith he, I will Feed this People with Wormwood, and give them the Waters of Gall to Drink: O heavy Portion; but seeing you, O ye Priests, are the Fundamental Cause of this bitter Portion to the People, therefore Woe be unto you; Woe be to the Priest that Preaches Lies in the Name of the Lord; Woe be to the Priest that causes the People to Err, by their Lies and Flatteries, and the LORD never sent nor commanded them; but they have their Commission from the Devil, the Father of Lies, who was a Liar from the beginning, and the Works of their Father they will do; which is evidently seen by their Fruits; You shall know them, saith our Saviour, for a good Tree cannot bring forth Evil Fruit, neither can a corrupt Tree bring forth Good Fruit: Therefore, by their Fruits, you shall know them; for tho' they may Speak good Words, that is not to be the Touchstone; for the Devil himself can Speak good Words, as witness, what he said to Christ, We know thee, who thou art, the Holy One of God. Can there be a higher Confession than this; and further it is written, They may Speak with the Tongue of Men and Angels, and have not Charity; such Words are but as Sounding Brass: Even so, tho' these Priests may use their Tongues, by which they get their filthy Lucre, yet they have no Charity, which is Love to GOD, and the Everlasting Good of their Neighbours, but instead thereof, they have Proclaimed upon the House Top Open Rebellion against the Lord, and against his Anointed; saying, Let us break their Bonds, and cast away their Cords from us; let us Dance, Sing, Play at Cards, go to Plays, and Enjoy all the Pleasures of Life; for who is the LORD, that we should Fear him; O ye Fools that hate knowledge, know ye not that he that is in the Heaven shall Laugh; the Lord shall have you in Derision, he shall Speak to you in his Wrath, and Vex you in his sore Displeasure: Than shall you hear the Decree, Thou art my Son, this Day have I begotten thee: Ask of me, and I will give thee the Heathen for thine Inheritance, and the utmost Ends of the Earth for thy Possession; Thou shalt Crush them with a Sceptre of Iron, and Break them to Pieces as a Potter's Vessel: Than shall you hear, O ye Treacherous Deceitful Priests, who are neither Faithful to GOD nor Man; tho' now your Lust makes such a Noise, your Cursed, Covetous, Earthly Self-Interest Cries so loud, Give, give, that, tho' the Charmer Charms never so wisely, you are like the deaf Adder that will not hear: But than you shall hear, when the Righteous Judge of all the Earth shall Summon you to appear before his Tribunal, to give an Account of all the Souls that you have Slain by your Lies and Flatteries; so that none could turn from their Evil Ways, that received your daubing, sweet, deceitful Words; Crying, Peace, peace, when there was none but utter Destruction in the way that you have prescribed to them; therefore you shall give an account of all the Souls that you have Slain by your Lies and Dreams; and the Blood of all that hath not, nor do not, fear the LORD, and turn from their Evil ways, shall lie at your Door, except you speedily Repent; and turn from all your Abomination which you have committed against the LORD and his People.  
And further, in the Fear and Dread of the LORD, and in a Holy Zeal for his Glory, I must lay the Blood of our Virtuous, Dear, Innocent Queen, as heavy as Led upon your Heads; because you Healed her Wound slightily, and Spoke Peace to her, when sudden Destruction was at the Door, as appears at this Day: For how great was the Loving Kindness of the LORD, in visiting her with his Mercy and Truth, declaring to her his Mind and Will; tho' through Contemptible Vessels to Eyes of Proud Flesh, which hath ever been his Way, and for that End, to slain the Glory of all Flesh, that no Flesh might Glory in his Presence; As I myself, among the rest, had the Henour, though Unworthy to be his Messenger, to declare his Mind and Will to the late Queen, both in Print, and Private Writings, all which fully declares the Labour of the Spirit of the Lord with her, and that he would have Honoured her with the great Work of Reformation in these Kingdoms of her Dominions; and I see●ing so much of the Powerful Operations of the Love of GOD in Visiting the Queen with his Will and Counsel: I expected some Excellent Work to be brought forth in answer to the LORD's Requiring: But when I waited, time after time, and year after year, and saw so little Fruits of my Labour; I humbly Inquired of the Lord, what the Reason was, and why it was so; whereupon the LORD, in his Condescending Goodness, was pleased to answer my Request, by the Revelation of his Word by Day, and also by Dreams or Visions of the Night; which were so many that would fill up much Paper; therefore I shall only Instance part of one sight, which I had a little before the Queen's Death, which is as followeth: I thought I saw myself in a large Room in White-Hall, where I saw my dearest Lady, the Queen, sit on a Seat a little higher than the People, with her Ladies, Priests, and Servants, round about her; some of them Reading to her. After a while I looked, and on a sudden the Queen was down upon the Ground, and all that sat about her, lay a top of her, as if they would have Crushed her to Death; insomuch that I Cried out with a Vehement and Lamentable Cry, The Queen will be Smothered, what shall I do; the Queen will be Smothered? After this she was gone from under them by an Invisible Hand, none of them knew how, nor whether; they Run to and from, as Distracted, seeking her, but could not found her; nor is it to be Expressed the Distress I saw her Ladies, Priests and People, who had lain upon her, in Crying out one to the other for her, but all in vain; for, my thoughts, she was gone to be seen not more; I myself sought her with bitter Mourning, but could not found her.  
By the first of this sight, I was given to understand, she was under them, and them over her; and therefore could not do what her Pious Heart was Inclined to: The next was, her Removal from under their Yoke.  
Well is it, I hope, with her, that it is so; for the longer she had Continued under their Controlling Power, the worse it would have been for her, except she had had Strength to have Obeyed the LORD, rather than them; but to you, O ye Priests, it is the Judgement of GOD; for Just is the LORD in Removing her:  
For you were unworthy of such an Excellent Governess, who might have been an admirable Instrument in the Hand of the Lord, for the Reforming these Atheistical Nations, and bringing back the People from their Idolatrous Ways, from Worshipping their Gods of Silver and Gold, and the Work of their own Hands; together with the rest of the Abominations of this Age; as the like had not been in our Memory, had you but Assisted her with good Counsel, to have strengthened her weak Hands, and you joined with her in the Work.  
But, instead of being Instruments, to put your helping Hand to this great and weighty Work of Reformation, to recover the Children of Men out of their fallen State into the Glorious Liberty of the Sons of GOD; some of you are, and have been the chiefest Instruments the Devil hath to bring them into Bondage, to sink them into the Pit of Destruction, to damn them into Hell Fire, which is prepared for the Devil and his Angels, and for all those that forget GOD, so as not to keep his Commandments: For is it not so, O ye Priests, when Christ our Saviour tells us, That strait is the Gate, and narrow is the Way that leads to Life, and few there be that found it; and that broad is the Way, and wide the Gate that leads to Destruction: And he that taketh not up his Cross, and followeth not me, is not worthy of me: Take my Yoke upon you, and Learn of me.  
These are the Commands of CHRIST, O ye Priests, than what is his Cross? What is it to Learn of him? What is it to bear his Yoke? What is it to deny Self? Is it to go to Plays? Is it to Dance? Is it to Play at Cards? Is it the Pleasures of Life? Answer, Ye, False Teachers, are these the Cross of Christ, which is the Power of GOD against all such Works of Darkness, is this to Learn of him, to go to Cards: Do you follow him, when you go to Plays or Dancing? Or do you not follow your Father the Devil, whose Works ye will do?  
Oh! ye Runagates, whether are you gone; what Hue and Cry shall be sent after you, to bring you back to the Primitive Church, from whence you are fallen, who are gone so far a Whoring from the LORD after your Idols and Inventions, as to proclaim upon the House top, that the Devil's Works are Innocent.  
O ye Adulterers, whom shall we bebieve, our Saviour, or you? Our Saviour that Commands us to strive to enter in at the strait Gate; for, saith he, that's the Way to Life: Or you that tells us the Pleasures of Life, that leads to Destruction, are Innocent.  
Ye, Foreheads of Brass, with what Face durst you presume to Preach such Doctrine in a Pulpit; shall Treason be Spoke against an Earthly Prince, and no notice taken thereof: But you have Spoken high Treason against the KING of Righteousness, and are stirrers up and proclaimers of open Rebellion against the Lord of Hosts, and against his Anointed Christ: You are bold indeed. Again, I say, shall any be so Presumptuous to Speak Treason against an Earthly King, and not be called to an account: But this Preacher of Lie hath done worse against the King of Eternal Glory, than whatsoever could acted against all the Kings or Monarches in the World; and yet none hath laid it to Heart, or so much as said, What hast thou done?  
For, as it was in Jeremiah's time, so it is now; when the Roul was Burnt, saith the Text, Yet they were not afraid, nor rend their Garments; Neither the King, nor any of his Servants.  
Therefore, O England, England, what Lamentable Lamentation shall be taken up for thee; there is not a Man to be found in thy populous Cities, or vast Countries, that hath so much Zeal for the LORD of Hosts, as to take this matter in Hand, to Vindicate the Truth of the Everlasting GOD, with this Uncircumcised Philistine, who hath defied the Power of the Living GOD; but every Man taking up his own Quarrel, to pled his own Interest; and their fierce Zeal is so hot for Self, that they are Sheathing their Swords in one another's Bowels; which Swords should be turned every one against the Enemy of his own House; for that should be the Work of this Day: But contrary to this, here is Brother against Brother, and Friend against Friend, to the great Dishonour of GOD and Religion; and being so busied in this Evil Work, they do not mind the Cry that's gone forth. viz. Who will be on the Lord's part; who, against the Man of Sin, Now Iniquity is filling up to the Brim? Who will come forth to help the LORD, against the Mighty? Who will be so Valiant for GOD, as to throw Jesabel, with her painted Face and tired Head, out of the Window, for the Dogs to Eat her Flesh and Drink her Blood? He sought for a Man, but could found none to take his Righteous Cause in Hand: Therefore his own Arm shall bring Salvation, nothing shall hinder it; and seeing there was no Man, among all the wise Rabbis and Learned Doctors of our times, that hath so much Love or Zeal for the mighty GOD that gives them Breath and Being; therefore the LORD, who stains the Glory of all Flesh, in his Wisdom hath opened the Mouth of a silly Ass, to Rebuke the Malice, Lies and Madness of this false Prophet, as one just Recompense of his Reward: The next Recompense shall be that he, and whosoeve else Concerned, shall answer for all t●● Neglect of our late hopeful Queen in he● Service and Dury to GOD, in the Act of Reformation, and for the Sins of all th● Souls that have been deceived under their false Ministry, except they speedily Repent with the deepest Humiliation and thorough Reformation to turn from all the Evil of their pernicious ways; Confessing their Sins, and Condemning themselves worthy to be cut of for ever from the Lord, and all his Heavenly Hosts, Saints, and People.  
But if you will not thus give Glory to my Righteous Name; Than will I Rend you, by my strong Hand and my outstretched Arm, from all the Delights of your Eyes: I will pull you out with Hooks, and your Posterity as with Fishbooks; for tho' you Build your Nests in the Stars, from thence will I pull you down, and I will get me a Name and a Fame in your Destruction: Therefore Repent and Forsake, that you may found Mercy, saith the LORD.  
Upon these last Words I was Melted into Tears, and Cried out, O Lord God, wilt thou have Mercy upon such as have, not only themselves Rebelled against thee, the Holy GOD, and thy Righteous Laws, but ●aused Multitudes to go out of thy Ways, unto the Byways and Crooked Paths, till they wandered into the Dark Night of Apostasy, and so sat in the Region and Shadow of Death, and to this Day sees no way out! O LORD GOD wilt thou have Mercy on such: And here again my Heart was broken to pieces before the LORD, Crying out, O who is like unto Thee! This makes good thy Word, which saith, Thou hast no Pleasure in the Death of a Sinner, but rather that he would turn from his Evil Ways and Live: And therefore hast thou sent thy Prophet's Early and Late, and are still sending them; for thou art a God that art never weary of well doing; therefore, O who is like unto thee, Jehovah! Lord who is like unto thee, to be admired of all those that Loves thee, and keeps thy Commandments: And they that know thee, will put their whole Trust and Confidence in Thee, the Eternal Goodness: But thy Enemies shall lick the Dust, and shall be as the Chaff of the Summer's 〈◊〉; but they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall run in the Ways of thy Commandments, and not be weary, and Walk in the Ways of the LORD, and not faint: This Honour, Power and Dignity, have all thos● that seek thy Face in Truth.  
Wherhfore, I beseech you, Friends Neighbours, and People, of all Sorts and Sects, under what Denomination soever● by the Mercies and Love of God, that you come out from among these Hireling Shepherds, who leave you to the Wolf to be devoured: I mean those false Teachers that give you the lest Liberty to fulsill the Lusts of the Flesh: I beseech you, now at last, before it be too late, consider the ill Effects it doth produce for you to Live and Dye in your Sins: I beseech you again and again, in the Bowels of Christ, Consider how much you are the better at the Years End, for all your Hearing, Preaching and Praying? How much of the World have you overcome? How much Pride have you overcome? How much Earthly-mindedness? How much Lies and Deceit? How much Cozening and Cheating? How much Malice and Hatred? Besides Drunkenness, Whoredom, Gaming, Feasting, and all Sinful Delights; and are not many, that wear the Cloak of Religion, guilty of the most part of these Abominations?  
Therefore, pray Consider, if you have not forsaken these Groser Evils, which are detestable, not only to the Pure and Holy God, but the very Heathens: How will you deny yourselves in those things which are more Lawful in themselves, which is the Duty of every Christian, so far as GOD requires it of them.  
Wherhfore, seeing it is so, that you grow not better, but rather worse and worse; deceiving, and being deceived, under all your Church Discipline, Ordinances, and great Gatherings to Meetings: Seeing these outward Services bring you not further than to a Historical Faith, and only a bore outside Profession of God and Godliness; without having an inward Power and Life of Righteousness; it's high time for you all to separate yourselves one from another, but more especially, You of the COMELY ORDER, as you call it, and every one seek the LORD apart, every Family apart, every Individual apart, the Husband apart, and the Wife apart; and there to Prostrate yourselves before the Lord, lying at his Footstool, never leaving Him, till you have Received the Blessing from on high; which Blessing to be Emptied of yourselves; your o● Ways and Works, Gifts and Parts, 〈◊〉 whatsoever else you hold out of the L●● of Christ, for your Eyes have seen t●● Dangerous Consequence of your goi●● out of that Poverty of Spirit into th● Richness of Spirit, hath produced, Pride High-mindedness, Haughtiness of Spirit lifting up yourselves above your fello● Creatures; and being so puft up in Pri● and Self, that nothing lesle will serve yo● than to Reign as Kings; and if th● cannot be obtained, to set your Feet 〈◊〉 the Necks of your Friends, than you g● to War, and so Sheath your Sword's 〈◊〉 each others Bowels, and so make t● Name of God a Stink in the Nation and Religion a Byword of Reproach a● mongst the Heathen.  
Just so it was with the Christians in th● Emperor Constantine's Reign, till the he● vy Wrath and Judgements of God bra● in upon them; and do you think to Escape, being found in the same Work Not, you will surely Drink of the same Cup, except you speedily Repent; there fore Return from whence you are fallen and do your first Works; and say not in your Hearts; We are a Rich and a Mighty People: But consider with yourselves how quickly the Lord can bring you down, even to the Ground.  
Again, I must say, if these be the Fruits that are brought forth, by all your Preaching, Praying, and Hearing, to swell in Pride, to by't, tear, and devour one another; this is no comely Order, but great Iniquity, horrible Distraction, and miserable Confusion, to the Amazement of all the Beholders, that ever a People, who pretend to so high a Dispensation as you have, should fall as Stars from Heaven to Earth, as it hath happened among some of you; your Leaders, as well as others, being the cause thereof.  
Wherhfore, Woe and Alas! Seeing these Lamentable things are come to pass, is it not high time for all Tongues to be turned into Silence, and all Mouths to be in the Dust, and all Heads covered with Ashes, and Loins with Sackcloth: And from thence to come before the Lord with weeping and wailing, even as a Woman in the strongest Travail that ever was: Acknowledging your own Backslidings and great Unworthiness to lift up your Eyes to him: That thus, by bearing the Indignation of the Lord, you may, if polsible, appease his Wrath which is Kindled against you; that so you, beyond all others, by your true and unfeigned Repentance, by Watch and Fast, and deep Humiliation; for that was the way by which some of you came to God in the beginning, when you were little in your own Eyes, and nothing in your own Sight; and that is the way now, by which you must come out of your fallen State to God again, by the suffering Life of Jesus; for he is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; and none can come to the Father but by him; by his Suffering Life, by his Death and Bloody Passion, both without and within in your Souls, you must know the bitter Agony he was in, when he Sweat Drops of Blood for your Backsliding from him, or to speak more plain for your Crucifying of him afresh, and putting him to an open Shame; as witness the foresaid.  
Therefore you, that are guilty of these things, come down from your exalted Spirits, and sit down in the Dust, and Mourn most bitterly, for the Miseries that is coming upon you, except you speedily Repent.  
And now, to all People every where, both Old and Young, Rich and Poor, that would Inherit Eternal Life and Glory, Endless Joy, Everlasting Peace and Happiness to all Eternity, this is your way to obtain it, through the Agony of Christ's Internal Sufferings; this is Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life; and none can come to the Father but by this Way: He that goes another way, than through the Agony of his Soul, is a Thief and a Robber, and comes but to Steal, as our Saviour saith.  
Mark that, To take that which is none of his own; but he that feels it in his own Soul, it's his own, as the Samaritans witnessed, and said, John 4.42. unto the Woman, Now we Believe, not because of thy saying, but because we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the World: And as he himself said to Thomas, Reach hither thy Hand, and thrust it into my Side.  
So this Soul hath it not by bore hear-say, but he feels the Agony of his Sufferings in his own Soul, and so he comes 〈◊〉 have the fellowship of his Sufferings, and to bear in his Body the Die of the Lord Jesus; and this is his Daily and Hourly Work, to Mortify and Crucify the Deeds of the Flesh, and to leave nothing undone that God requires to be done: And, in order to this, he sets a Holy Watch over his own Soul, keeping his Heart and Mind close to the Lord, always in Communion with his Blessed Holy Spirit; and his Holy Exercise brings you into Acquaintance with him, as it is written, Acquaint thyself with the Lord, and be at Peace; and said our Saviour, Agreed with thine Adversary in the Way: And by this Agreement the Partition Wall is broken down, and than God and the Soul comes together, who were at such a distance one from the other, that the Lord said, As far as the Heavens are from the Earth, so far are my Thoughts from yours, my Ways from your Ways. But in this State of the Souls Union with God, it's quite contrary; for the Soul is so filled with the Love of Christ, that its whole Delight is to follow him in his Footsteps, and to keep his Commandments in all things; believing it to be the Sign or Token of her Love to him; as he himself said, If ye Love me, keep my Commandments; and she knows this to be the Living Faith which gives the Victory over all Sin, and brings the Soul into the Obedience of Christ actually, not in Conceit, which is the Fruits of the Dead Faith of those whose Fear towards God are taught by the Precepts of Men, who believes Christ to have taken away the Sins of Believers passed present, and to come without actual Repentance, and actual Forsaking; although the Promise was upon no other ground than this, He that reputes and forsakes, shall found Mercy.  
Alas for such, how they deceive and cheat their own Souls; for here they may make merry over the Witness of God, and so make Shipwreck of a good Conscience without Control. O Fools that hates Knowledge, to believe that the Son of the Living Eternal God Emptied himself of all his Glory, in coming out of the Bosom of his Father, to take upon him an Ignominious Death, through Agonies of Sorrows and Griefs, bitter Death, and bloody Passion, strong Cries, Groans, Sighs and Sobs, Watch and Fast, cruel Mockings and Scourge, Exposing himself to all the Malice that Men or Devils could invent, to save you in your Sins; what think you, Was this the End of his coming from Heaven to Earth, to secure you in your Sins? Alas, poor Mortals, how Ignorant are you of the End of his Office! How is he your Saviour, if he do not save you from your Sins; for otherways you have no Right to his Merits; you have no Right to his Sufferings, if you do not suffer with him: For you are to fill up that which is behind of the Sufferings of Christ in your Mortal Bodies, as the Apostle saith: And so his Sufferings comes to be your Sufferings; and thus you are Obedient to his Commands; who, by his mighty Power in you, Works both the Will and the Deed: For of yourselves, you can do nothing; but by Him, through Him, and with Him, you can do all things, Destroy the Devil and all his Works: For, by believing in his Power, you come to receive Power, as it is written, To as many as Received him, to them he gave Power to become the Sons of God: But if you do not receive this Gift of God, which is his Son, you cannot receive Power: You must receive him, in the Love of him, & believe, in his Power, that he is God All-sufficient to perfect the Work which he hath begun in your Souls; For without Faith it is Impossible to please God. Therefore this is your Work, to Pray and wait upon God for this Living Faith, for the Faith of the Son of God, which must give you the Victory over all Sin and Iniquity, as our Saviour said, If ye have 〈◊〉 Faith as a Grain of Mustard Seed, you shall say unto this Mountain, Be thou Removed, and it shall be done. What Mountain? The Mountain of Sin. And again, said he, O Woman, great is thy Faith, be it done unto thee, as thou hast Believed: And in another place it's said, He could not do many mighty Works there, because of their Unbelief: And in the Prophets it's written, If you do not Believe, you shall not be Established.  
So you see the dangerous Consequence of Unbelief, the very cause why the Children of Israel could not enter the promised Land, because of their Unbelief; which Canaan, you know, was a Type or Figure of the Spiritual Canaan● the Eternal Rest of that Soul that Travels on to know the Lord, and never takes up a Rest by the way in no External things whatsoever; but Fights its way through all the Temptations, Trials, and Tribulations; and so runs the Race that is set before it, to obtain the Price of the High Calling the Heavenly Jerusalem; if they hold out to the End, they come to an Innumerable Company of Angels, and the Spirits of Just Men made perfect; and 〈◊〉 God the Judge of all, which the Living Faith, the Faith of the Son of God leads to. But your dead Faith keeps you in Death and Destruction for ever: For said the Prophet, The Dead cannot Praise thee, nor those that go down to the Pit cannot Celebrated thy Praise: Yet you of this Generation are so presumptuous, tho' you are Dead in Trespasses and Sins, to Sing the Praises and Hymns of those, who had born the heavy Wrath and Indignation of the Lord, for their Sins; and was resolved to bear, and would except of no Deliverance, but from God.  
None of the false Teachers, deceitful daubing Flatterers, Crying Peace, when Defluction was at Hand; Crying, The ●emple of the Lord! the Temple of the Lord! Not, not, These Holy Ones knew what the Temple of the Lord was better than so: This is the Temple of the Lord, said they, if ye thoroughly amend your Ways and your Works, if you Execute Judgement between a Man and his Neighbour, and Oppress not the Stranger, the Fatherless and the Widow; shed no Innocent Blood, nor walk after other Gods to your own Destruction, Jer. 7. which Chapter gives a more full Relation of what God Requires of Mankind in general; and as was said, It was not their Blind and Lame Sacrifices would do their Work, whilst the Idol of their Imagination and Abomination stood in their Temple; they knew the small Scourge that was prepared to whip out the Buyers and Sellers, Money-Changers, and those that made his House a Den of Thiefs; I say, they knew the Work that God called them to, better than so; which made them Cry out, I will bear the Indignation of the Lord, until he arise and Pled my Cause: And another saith, I will wait upon the Lord all the Days of my appointed time, until my Change come. What Change did Job wait so long for? To 〈◊〉 Changed from the Power of Satan to the Power of God; he waited to be Changed from doing his own Will, from doing ●is own Works, from speaking his own Words, from thinking his own Thoughts, and in this State he was partaker of the Rest of the People of God, and kept Holy the Sabbath Day: And thus David, he was a Man after God's own Heart, because in this State, he answered the End of his Creation: For Man was Created for this very End and Purpose, to Love God and keep his Commandments; and here he hath Communion and Fellowship with his Creator and Maker: But out of this State, he is worse than the Beast that Perisheth.  
So you see the Servants of the Lord could not be Satisfied with any thing lesle than Victory over all Sin and Iniquity: And that great Apostle Paul, after his strong Warfares and weary Travels, gives this account, that he had not been beating the Air, but had so fought as to obtain the Crown: I thank God, saith he, through Christ, who hath given me the Victory. It was through Christ he obtained it, through his Suffering Life, which he was made partaker of, through his Holy Cross, wherein he places the Power of God to them that Believes in it; but as he said, A Rock of Offence to them that do not.  
A Rock of Offence indeed to them that gets above it. This Holy Cross, which he Glorified so much in, that Crucified him to the World, and the World to him; that was his Glory, the Victory that he had got over the World, and he returns Thanks to God, who had given it him through Christ, through those Soul-Sufferings which Paul had so great a share in, and which was Christ in him the hope of Glory: So Paul was made One with Christ, by his Internal and External Sufferings; and here our Blessed Lord's Prayer was answered, when he said, Father that they may be One, as we are One; I in them, and thou in me; that they may be made perfect in One: Father I will that they which thou hast given me, be with me, even where I am; that they may behold my Glory.  
Now Observe, The place where he was than, was his Suffering Life; he was just going to Die upon the Cross, and from thence into his Glory.  
O the Height and Depth of this Love who can declare it, that our Saviour should Pray to the Father, That where he was, there we might be also; who, in his secret Wisdom, knew what State w●● best, and safest for us, whilst we were on this side the Grave, to be kept in, to be partakers with him in his Suffering Life; this bespeaks more of his Endless Love to us, than if he had set Crowns of Diamonds upon our Heads, and given us all the Glory of a Perishing World: For in this Soul-suffering we are made One in him, we Eat his Flesh and Drink his Blood; and so by the Virtue and Nourishment of his Life, we grow up in him, who is our Head, and our Immanuel in his Love and Faith, in his Chastity, in his Heavenly-mindedness, in his Humilty and Self-denial, Merciful Loving Kindness, and in the Power of all his Heavenly Virtues: If we abide in him, and go not out from him to the Creatures, to vain Man for help; for here you must cease from Man, whose Breath is in his Nostrils, wherein is he to be accounted of, not at all in this Work of the Souls perfecting; your Work here is with God, and not with Man; your Work is to keep in your strong Travel, with your Eye fixed on God, for his Power to bring forth what he begets in you, for otherways all your work will prove but false Conceptions, if you do not see, of the Travel of your Souls: And being Faithful to God in this Work, you shall see the Will of the Holy ONE brought forth in you, in perfect Obedience, and than in this State you come to the Anointing, that Teacheth you all things; yea, the deep things of God: And you need not that any Man should teach you, but as the same Anointing teacheth you; so you shall abide in it. Here you come to the discerning of things that differ in Nature and Effect, by the Tasting and Handling of the Word of Life; here you shall come to the Law of the Spirit of Life, which shall set you free from the Law of Sin and Death, being filled with all Spiritual Life and Power, to do the Will of God in all things; and in this State you shall behold Christ's Glory, as he desired of the Father: And this take from one that, upon Trial, hath proved it; whosoever beholds his Glory, shall tread the World's Glory under their Feet, and scorn the Pomp and Effeminacy thereof, and values it no more than the Dirt they tread on, further than for them to serve the Lord, and his Creation therewitth and so far redeemed out of it, that i● would be their Joy to have no occasion to make use of the lest part thereof; and so far of are they from coveting the encumbrances of it, although to procure great Richeses, that they grudge the very time that is spent in serving the Necessity of their outward Man. So precious 〈◊〉 time to them, and so great is their Love to God; that, if they had the Years o● Methusalem added to their Days, they were all too few to attend and wait upon the Divine Majesty of the Eternal Goodness.  
Thus all the Children of God were found in this Holy Exercise, David waited upon the Lord more than the Watchman waited for the Morning; this is your Labouring in the Vineyard: And being Faithful in this Exercise, you are the wise Virgins who had Oil in their Lamps who were ready to enter in with their Lord into the Marriage Chamber.  
But I hope you understand, by the foregoing Directions, what I mean by the word Waiting, that it is not your bore going to Church, nor receiving the Sacrament, nor saying, Lord have Mercy upon us Miserable Sinners, and the rest of your Historical Service; for here you may stick till the Day of your Death, and be but Hypocrites, Mockers, Scoffers, and filled with Malice and Hatred against any appearance of Good, which by sad Experience is seen, that the most part of you are too guilty of to my knowledge; that your very Poor that receive Alms are so Proud and Malicious, that it is a Happiness to have nothing to do with them: This I speak to let you know what Fruit is brought forth by your Preaching, and their Hearing. What I say unto you, I say unto all the rest of the Churches, to examine themselves how far they are guilty of this Iniquity, to repent and forsake with speed, that they may found Mercy: For it's not their outward Services will please God, tho' they are a little more finelier dressed than yours, but it's Truth in the inward Parts that God requires: Neither at Jerusalem, nor in this or that Mountain will the Father be we shipped, but in the living, powerful Operation of his own Spirit and Power.  
I have told you the way God will be found in, which is to wait upon him 〈◊〉 the Sense of your own Nothingness and Poverty, and in the silence of all Flesh for you have wearied him with your words, therefore will he turn you into Silence.  
And now to you, who are not guilty o● these grosser Sins, but are Convinced o● the Truth of all this, yet come not in●● Faithfulness, but climb up another wa● than through the Cross, by getting Eas● to yourselves, in going to hear Men, by reading, by talking much of God Friends, this will not do your work, you do but waste your precious Time; altho' these things may be done in their time and season; But must it be with you as it is with the Ignorant, ever learning, and never come to the knowledge of the Truth? Do not you know, that it is only the Truth that can make you free? And have not you had some Experience, that one Day with the Lord is better than a Thousand elsewhere? To wait upon him in that Soulsearching Exercise as Jacob was in, when he received the Blessing: It's a fine pleasant way for you to go to hear Discourses of God, and to sit before him as his People; this is an easy way, but will this do your work any more than the rest? Deceive not yourselves, for as you have more Knowledge than others, so more is required of you, which if not answered, than what unavoidably follows is this, He that knows the Will of his Master, and doth it not, must be beaten with many stripes; for if you go out of your Travail into Sloth and Ease, how do you think the Manchild should be Born that must Rule the Nations with a Rod of Iron, Rev. 12. For unto such as keeps in their strong Travail and Cries mightily to God to be delivered, is a Child born and Son given, whose Government is upon his Shoulders, whose Name is Wondered Counsellor, the Mighty God, Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace; but if your Pains go of, there is no hopes of a living Child, which made the Prophet cry out so vehemently, saying, Wherhfore do I see every Man with his Hands upon his Loins, as a Woman in Travail: But in the Old Translation it's thus, We have heard, terrible cry, fear and disquietness; for what else doth this signify that I see● Namely, That all strong Men smite every Man his Hand upon his Loins, as a Woman in the pains of her Travail. Who ever saw a Man Travail with Child, inquire and see? their Faces are marvellous pale▪ alas for this Day which is so dreadful that none may be likened unto it! And alas for the time of Jacob's Trouble, from the which he shall yet be delivered, for in that Day, saith the Lord, I will take his Yoke from of thy Neck, and break thy Bonds; they shall not more serve strange Gods under him, but they shall do service unto God their Lord, and David their King, whom I will raise unto them: And as for thee, O my Servant Jacob, fear not, saith the Lord, be not afraid, O Israel, for lo I will help thee from far, from the Land of thy Captivity, and Jacob shall turn again, and shall be at Rest, and Prosperous in Life, and no Man shall make him afraid; for I am with thee to help thee, saith the Lord; and tho' I shall destroy all the People among whom I have scattered thee, yet will I not destroy thee, but correct thee with discretion. I am sorry for thy Hurt and Wounds, there is no Man to meddle with thy Cause, or to bind up thy Wounds; there may no Man help thee, all thy Lovers have forsaken thee, for I have given thee a Cruel stroke, and chastened thee roughly, for the multitude of thy Misdeeds and Sins have I done this to thee; why makes thou moan for thy harm? I myself have pity of thy Sorrows, Jer. 30. Now you hear what the Lord saith, that the Work of Regeneration is not Man's Work, but God's Work, there shall no Man help thee, it is I that have wounded thee, and I will heal thee: Here you see Man is quite thrown aside, and none left together but God and the Soul; the next Work is, Man must be Born again, before he can enter the Kingdom of God: and here the Prophet Jeremiah, Chap. 31. brings in Ephraim to this Work, saying, I heard Ephraim that was led away Captive complain on this manner, O Lord, thou hast Corrected me, and thy Chastning have I received as an untamed Calf; Convert thou me, and I shall be Converted, for thou art my Lord God; yea, as soon as thou turnest me, I shall refo●● myself, and when I understand, I shal● smite upon my Thigh, for verily I have committed shameful things: Oh! let my Youth bear this Reproof and Confusion: Upon this complaint, saith the Lord, I thought thus by myself, Is not Ephraim my Dear Son? Is he not the Child with whom I have had all Mirth and Pastime? For since the time I first communed with him, I have him ever in remembrance, therefore my very Heart driveth me to him; gladly and lovingly will I have Mercy upon him, saith the Lord.  
These two Chapters concerns the whole state of all Mankind, both in his Fall and Restoration, in his true Repentance, and God's Gracious Mercy. I call that true Repentance that reputes and forsakes, as said the Prophet, Hast thou sinned? do so not more. But here you hear of the Infinite Goodness of God, how he waits for the Souls return, and how ready he is to receive it into his Mercy: Is not Ephraim, saith he, my Dear Son? Is he not the Child with whom I have had all Mirth and Pastime, and so goes on parlying with the Soul: Here's Pastime for you the Christians of our Age, that knows not ●●ow to pass away your precious time, but in Cards, Dices, Cursed Plays, and the like, hear you what the Lord saith to the Penitent Sinner, for since the time, saith he, I first communed with him, I have had him ever in my remembrance, therefore, saith he, my very Heart driveth me to him, gladly and lovingly will I have Mercy on him: Here you may know the Pastime that God delights in, and wherein his Communion and Fellowship stands, and what moves him to this endeared Mercy and Compassion, is a broken and contrite Heart, that trembles to offend him in any kind whatsoever, judging and condemning yourselves for doing the lest Sin, as well as the greatest that grieves his Holy Spirit in you: And as you read Ephraim's return in the History, pray try if you can read him within you, in your own Souls, without which, no Christians,: And as I told you before, the next work after the return, is the New-birth: And shall I bring to the Birth, saith the Lord, and not cause to bring forth? Yes, I will 'cause to bring forth, if you wait upon me in that Heart-searching Exercise that Jacob was in when he received 〈◊〉 Blessing, for there you are in the way 〈◊〉 will be found in, and if I found you at whatsoever time I come, whether in the second or third Watch, waiting upon me to receive my Power, to do my Heavenly Will in all things, than will I come in, and sup with you, and 'cause you to eat of the Banquet which I have prepared with all manner of delicious Food, the Ravishing Enjoyments of my Heavenly Love: But you hear what state the Soul must be found in, not a state of worldly Pleasures, or sinful Delights; not, not, but a state of Mourning, and deep Sorrow, as you hear of Ephraim, bitterly crying out against yourselves for serving your Lusts in any kind whatsoever, tho' in things more just and lawful, if God forbids; and so laying the Axe to the Root of the corrupt Tree, cut it down, and cast it in the Fire of God's Wrath, and there Sacrifice your Lusts and vile Affections, together with your own Wills, that as you bear the Name of Christians, so you be living Witnesses of the unspotted, chaste, and undefiled Life of Christ Jesus: For as Adam through Lust fell from his Paradisical ●state into the Beastial Nature, by eating of that Forbidden Tree, and so brought the Curse, Death, and Destruction upon all Mankind; even so by Christ, in his pure, spotless, chaste, innocent, heavenly Life, shall all be restored out of the Curse into the Everlasting Blessing, and be brought out of their fallen state into Paradise again, where they have the Fellowship of Angels, by keeping chaste to him in Body and Soul, admitting of no other Lovers but himself alone; and this Men and Women may do, tho' in a Married state; for Marriage is honourable, and the Bed undefiled, but Whoremongers and Adulterers God will judge: This Doctrine may seem strange to the World, but I have good ground for what I say on this account, which is our Saviour's own words to his Disciples, as I remember, in his Discoursing of the Resurrection, saying, There be some that be Born Eunuches, and some that are made so by Men; but there is some who have made themselves so for the Kingdom of Heaven sake, yet all are not able to bear this saying, but his Disciples were able to bear it; To you, said he, it is given to know the Mysteries of the Kingdom, but to the World in Parable 〈◊〉 therefore to you, sincere Christians, 〈◊〉 deliver this, and not unto the World.  
And that great Apostle Paul was of his Royal Master's Mind, and followed him in his steps of Holiness and Chastity, wishing that all Men were as he was, to have power over their own Wills, to keep their Virgin pure, whether in Marriage, or out of Marriage, prophesying that the time should come, That they who had Wives should be as if they had none, and they that used this World, as if they used it not; and so in all things else, to witness God's Redeeming Power, as he said to Virgins, that they should be Holy in Body, Soul, and Spirit; for your Bodies, saith he, are the Temples of the Holy Ghost; and God hath said, I will devil in them; shall I than take the Temple of God, saith he, and make it the Member of a Harlot, God forbidden.  
The Apostle Paul had to do with as unholy a People in his time as we have in ours, which made him sorely complain of some; he was feign to give them Milk instead of strong Meat, and as it were, parlying with them of what inconvenience 〈…〉 the satisfying their inordinate 〈…〉, what encumbrance it brought upon ●●em; and it's certainly so, as it is to be seen daily with our Eyes, the Miseries and Sorrows the poorer sort brings upon themselves, who are under the Curse indeed several ways, getting their Bread with the sweat of their Brows, being driven out of Paradise into the Earth, and also bring poor Infants into the World to know an Ocean of Sorrows, which must lie heavy at their Doors who is the Cause, and as they grow up in Age, so in Sin and Wickedness, and than become the multiplying Brood of the Ungodly: And the Middle Sort and Rich are not without their Trials and Afflictions on this Account; for how many of their Children of all sorts, both of Professors and Profane, comes to utter Destruction? For how rare a thing it is to see any soberly inclined among a multitude? But not one in a Thousand comes so to fear God as to keep his Commandments; than see what Pains the Christians of our time take to increase the Devil's Kingdom: But for the Elderly and Aged, whose length of Days should have taught them the Mortification of their Lusts, for them 〈◊〉 Live in that Beastial Nature they 〈…〉 worse than the Beast that perisheth; who, once a Year for Propogation, but no further. Therefore, the Beast shall rise up in Judgement against all Mankind in that Nature; but it hath been said of Old, The Woman shall be saved in Childbearing. Yes, verily so she shall, but what Birth is it that must bring Salvation to her? I hope none is so Ignorant as to Imagine it to be a Fleshly Birth; for than all the Women in the World that bear Children, Bastards or any, must be saved: Therefore it's plain, that that is not the Birth she is to be saved by; but the Blessed Babe that was Born in a Manger, is he which brings Salvation, which the Inn would not Entertain; it being so full of Guests, so full of Lusts to Satisfy, so full of Worldly Cares and Cumberances, how to be Rich, how to add House to House, Land to Land, and One Thousand Pound to another. So here's no room for the New Birth, the Babe of Life, the Immortal Babe, the Begotten of the Father that brings Salvation, to be Brought forth but among the wild Beasts, it must 〈◊〉 till the Visitation from on High, and 〈…〉 the Seed of the Woman shall bruise ●●e Serpent's Head; the holy Seed, whose Substance is in it, which is engendered in the holy Womb of the pure, chaste, undefiled Virgin, which must Bring forth this Lamb of God that takes away the Sin; this Glorious Emanuel, who is appointed for this great Work, to Kill the Serpent and his Seed; and for that End hath he tasted Death for every Man, that we through his Death, by being partakers thereof, might have Everlasting Life. And here comes in the Restoration out of Adam's Fall, by being Baptised or Plunged into his Death, to Die with him upon the Cross, being fully resolved to suffer with him the Wrath and Anger of the Father: Here's the Faithful Spouse! Here's the Beloved Lady, who is so inflamed with her Beautiful Lord, that if he who is the Chiefest of Thousands to her Die, she the Faithful will Die with him; if he is Wounded and Pierced, she'll be so too; if he go down into Hell, she'll take fast hold of him, and go down with him; for where his Presence is, there's her Heaven, as David said, If I go down into Hell, thou art there. Not unlike 〈…〉 was Pompeia Paulina's Love to Seneca 〈…〉 Noble Husband, whom Nero put 〈◊〉 Death, that she refused to Live when he was Dead; as the History reports, he● Veins was cut as well as his; but Nero hearing thereof, fearing her Death would bring him great Reproach, because of her Noble Alliance in Rome, sent with all speed to have her Wounds stopped, that, if it were possible, to save her Life; which, tho' she being half dead, was done, and she, against her will, lived; but always with a pale hue, and wan complexion of Face, to declare how much of her Life was gone with Seneca her Dear Friend, Philosopher, and Husband.  
And had this great Roman Lady so high a Value for an Earthly Husband, because of his Worth and Goodness, as not to value her own Life for his sake? And shall we be shorter than she in our Duty and Affection to our Heavenly Husband? And set a higher Value upon the vain Enjoyments of a sinking, perishing World, than not to give up our Lives to the Death of all that is in it, for his sake who Died for us; yet, said our Lord, he that 〈◊〉 seek to save his Life shall loose it, but he that gives up his Life for my sake shall found it, and receive an hundred-fold of the Dear Enjoyments of his Ravishing Love, which out-ballances all the fiery Trials, Temptations, and Tribulations; for as they go through the Valley of Tears, they dig up Fountains, and as a Spring it all appears when thou fills their Pits; and if it were not so, the Soul would sink if it did not drink of the Brook by the way: They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength: I will strengthen, saith he, the weak Hands, and feeble Knees: In this state the Soul is Heir to all the Promises; they are all Yea and Amen in Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, who sets free from the Law of Sin and Death.  
And here the Soul is not kept in Bondage in things here below, but as it is called out of Egypt, so it's delivered out of the House of Bondage; and so the Bondwoman and her Son is cast out, and the Freewoman kept in; Jerusalem, from above the Mother of all the Faithful; and as you go through the Valley of Teats, this fiery Baptism, you shall be led down with him your Beloved Lord into the Pit; but fear not, for it is 〈◊〉 him you must suffer, and with him you must obey, that in all things he may be with you, and you with him; for he is the Election, therefore make him sure to yourselves, both in Life and Death, than shall you be changed with him; and tho' 〈◊〉 go down in the lower parts of the Earth in the Carnal, he shall raise you Spiritual; tho' sowed Weak, yet raised in Power. If you rise not, but with him, as he raises you; if you cast not of the Yoke, nor fly the Cross, as ●●●y have done, nor heal your own Wound; for tho' your Wound may be Mortal, yet the Cure is Immortal; and what tho' you go down in Shame and Reproach, as your Lord and Master did before you, yet shall you be raised in Glory, and covered with Immortal Honour, and Eternal Life, with Power and Strength to fulfil the Will of God, and the Answer of a good Conscience, which through this fiery Baptism, and holy Resurrection, you shall attain, as a Servant of God said, I must decrease, but he shall increase: I Baptise you w●●● Water, but he shall Baptise you with ●ire, and the Holy Ghost, whose 〈…〉 is in his Hand; he shall thoroughly purg● his Floor, and gather his Wheat into th● Garner, but the Chaff he will burn up with unquenchable Fire: When this work is done, all the work of a Christian is 〈◊〉.  
Now comes in the first Resurrection of whom the second Death shall have no Power; for as you have gone forth weeping, carrying precious Seed, so now you must return with Joy, and bring your Sheaves with you; for here, in this Fiery Baptism, ●●ich hath been the Furnace wherein you have been melted and tried, the Dross is left in the Furnace, and you are come forth as the Gold Seven times refined; wherefore now you are fitted for the Society of Angels, and the Spirits of Just Men made perfect; you are come to God the Judge of all, where you shall be attended with his Glorious Presence, and the Ravishing Enjoyments of his highest Love; and here shall be given you the Garment of Praise for the Spirit of Heaviness; your Fellowship and Communion shall be with the Father and the Son, Night and Day Visions and Revelations attend you here; for here the old Heavens and Earth are passed away as a 〈…〉 and all things are become new; new Heavens, and new Earth, wherein devil Righteousness, and wherein you shall see the Glory of God, and sing the Songs or Moses and the Lamb, Hallelujahs for Ever Amen. But still I hope you understand how you came by this Heavenly Mansion that it was through Christ the Way, though rough the Humanity of Christ, and not to climb up to the Deity, before you have hardly entered into the Humanity, how much lesle than to go through the whole The perfect Death of the Body of Sin, such are Thiefs and Robbers that climbs up another way than through the whole Humanity; these of all Sex, steals the Word from their Neighbour, and say, The Lord saith it, when he hath not spoken to them; these can prate like Parrots of the Death, Sufferings and Resurrection of Christ, and pride themselves with their Tongues being covered with the Mantle of Christ, and so deceive the People; therefore to you, who are here, of all Sorts and Sects, whether in Gatherings, or out of Gatherings, without respect to Persons, who are guilty of this foregoing Iniquity, I have this to say to 〈◊〉, the time is swiftly coming upon you in which it shall be said, Friend, how camest thou hither without thy Wedding-garment; that is, the Humanity of Christ, which makes the Soul ready: And you ●●o are got to the uppermost place with●●● bidding, shall with Shame and Con 〈◊〉 of Face be brought down to the 〈◊〉; you shall be brought down 〈◊〉 your high Places in that Day, and 〈◊〉 Lord alone shall be exalted; and 〈◊〉 vain shall you cry, Lord, we 〈◊〉 at and drunk in thy presence, we 〈◊〉 come to the highest State, to Perfection itself; the Answer will be, But 〈◊〉 me you thither? Departed from me ye 〈◊〉 iniquity, I know ye not; yet it's 〈…〉 Soul may have been once in 〈…〉 state as it boasts of before Christ; 〈◊〉 is, to have eat and drunk in his Presence, and cast out Devils; that is, overcome some of its Sins, Lusts, and Corruptions; but here was its Misery, it looked upon itself as something in this Work, and so fell to Loving and Admiring itself, thinking now I have done enough, now Soul take thy Ease, thou art increased with Goods; and thus in● of going on in a watchful state to increase its Talon, it lays it up, or buries it; a● than Soul take thy Rest indeed, go 〈◊〉 Sleep; and here it is in this state of Security, that the Enemy comes and sows 〈◊〉 Tares, which is Pride, Arrogancy, a● Deceit; here the Soul looks upon it 〈◊〉 to be something; I am Rich, and i● creased with Goods, I have Gifts, Part and Eloquence, I can use my Tongue, 〈◊〉 will exalt myself by domineering au● throwing down others; I am above th● Law; nay, above Christ; what are t● Sufferings of Christ to me? I am abo● his Cross, in the Liberty, I am at my ow● Hands, out of his reach, I am got to th● Godhead, above the Manhood, I am Rich● I want nothing, 
This State a Person who lately came out of the Country to the City, declares herself to be in.  I hav● attained to Perfection ● self; but Oh! thou M● serable, Hear what th● Lord saith, I will reprove thee, and set thy Sins in order before thee 〈◊〉 and tho' thou exalt thyself above the Stars from thence will I bring thee down: Hast thou attained to Perfection, and goes up and down hearing Lies, entertaining false sport's, Backbiting and Slandering the Innocent, Judging and Condemning the Just without Cause, and all this in Secret; also refusing to bring forth the Accusers; besides abundant more thou art Charged with, not fit to be mentioned here. Now if this be Perfection in thee, than what is Imperfection? Let the Righteous Principle in all judge; where was thy discerning of those whispering Spirits? How great was thy mistake, to entertain Lies for Truth, Evil Spirits for Saints? This was gross Darkness, and horrible Wickedness: I could have born these Lies, knowing him that is True, whose Shoe-latchets I am not worthy to unloose, that went before me through bad and good Report: But my end in reproving thee, in one respect is, if it were possible, to undeceive thee; the other is, the Glory of God; for it lessens his Omnipotency and Glory, to call that Perfection which is so great Imperfection: And further, I must be so plain as to tell thee, that it seems to me thou art so far short of Perfection, that thou dost not understand what Perfection is; Perfection doth not consist in speaking much of God, or in having a large Knowledge of God, so as to Dis●●● with great and big words, as with 〈◊〉 Tongue of an Angel, thou mayst be a L●cifer for all that, and so wholly Imperfect; but it consists in the deepest Humility Annihilating thyself to Nothing, in the midst of all thy Gifts, Virtues and Grace, which is unknown to me if thou hast any and take this for a Maxim, That the deeper thou art in Perfection, the lesle thou wilt boast of it, for it will declare itself, if thou art silent: Perfection seeks not itself in no kind whatsoever, but the Glory of God, and the Good of Souls; and there is no way for a Soul to accomplish this, but by taking upon it the Humanity of Christ, his Passion, his Agonies of Soul in thy Soul; and not only to taste a little the Bitterness thereof, and than get into Sloth, and idle Carelessness, and so to take up a Rest by the way in the knowledge of that sight, and than to aspire and climb up to the Godhead; dost thou think that small Taste, Glimpse, or Light was given thee for that End? Not, but for thee to see more clearly to the end of the Mystery of the Godhead, in the Manhood, and not to climb up to his 〈…〉 alone, and leave his Manhood and 〈…〉 behind; this brings the greatest 〈…〉 chief that can befall the Soul; it will 〈…〉 just as if it looked at the Sun in its full strength, to dazzle and blind thee quite, 〈◊〉 that thou shalt neither see thyself, nor it, for its Glory: But if we humble ourselves to his Manhood and Passion, there he hath promised to speak to us. Go down, saith the Lord to Jeremiah, to the Potter's House, and there thou shalt see my Work, how I can make a Vessel, and mar it again, if it doth not please me: Yea, Lord, so thou canst, I am a Witness of thy Power, that thou art the Potter, and I was the Clay; and thou didst make me a Vessel of Honour, as I thought, but I was broken in thy Hand; so thou returned and made me another Vessel, as seemed good to thee the Holy ONE to make me, yet a Vessel for thy Praise, tho' of another Fashion: I must declare it, on this Occasion, without boasting, to the Glory of God.  
There was a time in which, if ever any Enjoyed a Heaven upon Earth. I Enjoyed it than; I was as it were shut up in God, and as the Prophet said, He saw Men like Trees, I saw them as Shadows; I was Dead to the World, and 〈…〉 Things in it, and only Alive to 〈…〉 refused to have Society, though with 〈…〉 best of Men and Women, as I though for my Fellowship and Communion was with the Father, and the Son, Day and Night, for which I withdrew myself out of the City and Towns, into the Fields and Woods, where I spent my time from Morning till Night, in Contemplating his Glorious Power in all the Works of his Hands, and singing Praises and Hallelujahs to his Ever Blessed Name; I could not touch with the World; I did but once in that time Discourse of God and his Kingdom, and it was as if I had committed Adultery with the Creatures, and defiled my pure Garments; altho' the Hearers so wonderfully affected, crying out, O what Service she might be to come forth in the World! Here you may see that God may condemn, when Man justifies.  
I am not able to declare the state I was in at that time, Prayer was turned into Praise; for what I had Travailed in Pain for, I was now in the Possession and Enjoyment of; I was in Unity with the whole Creation, my greatest Enemies 〈…〉 to me as my Dearest Friends; I was ●eague with all the Beasts of the Field, ●s, Bears, and Tigers; I sat in the 〈◊〉 with the roaring Bulls as with Lambs, and with the Birds I sang Melodious Praises; I took Care for nothing, my whole Care was cast upon the Lord, believing He, whom I served would take Care for me, for I had overcome the World, the Flesh, and the Devil, and had lost myself in God; Visions and Revelations attended me Night and Day; I always saw in the Night what the next Day brought forth; the opening of the Scriptures was wondered, but I could not writ, being so filled with Ravishing Joy, yet kept in the deepest Humility before the Lord; I was as Innocent in reality as a young Child, and it was impossible to move me to Anger; I could not reprove for Sin, nor exhort to Righteousness, for all my Concern was with God, Praising and Admiring him in all the Wonders of his Glorious Works, Adoring him in such exalting Joys above a Mortal Tongue to express; my Senses were all shut up in him; the Ravishments of his Heavenly Life and Love was so great, that I was as it were ready to burst ● vent, which was one occasion of go● remote into desolate Places; yet 〈◊〉 this High Enjoyment, I never four 〈…〉 Trumpet, or ever declared to any one how it was with me; but, I do believe, had I remained in this state, it would have declared itself, for to me the Marriage of the Lamb was come, and his Wife had made herself ready, for now my Beloved was mine, and I was my Beloved's, under whose shadow I sat down with great Delight.  
But I had not been in this Heavenly Mansion half a Year, when the Enemy of Man's Eternal Peace, and Heavenly Felicity, that old Dragon, called Lucifer, cast his Floods after the Woman to Devour the holy Child; but the Child was taken up to God, and the Woman left in the Wilderness, where she hath been tempted and tried; for as I told you, whilst I was here Solacing in the Bosom of my Beloved Lord and only God, a false Report was raised of me, which through the earnest Desire and Over-perswasion of some Endeared Friends, I went to London to found out the Author, but in this thing I highly displeased ●d the Lord, tho' all my Enemies fell ●e me with Shame and Confusion of 〈…〉, to the great Satisfaction of those my Friends, but to my unspeakable Loss: For, first, I disobeyed the Command of the Lord; and, secondly, I left that Great and Glorious Work he had called me to, which was to have my Heavenly Communion and Fellowship with him the Ever Blessed, to touch and defile myself with such Evil Creatures; and than the Work which I thought was wholly done, I was than to begin again, as if I had never gone through it, which was the Travail of my Soul in Watching, Prayer and Fasting, which hath been my Exercise ever since, and must be till the second Restoration, which I wait for; and of the Trials, Temptations and Tribulations, that have attended me ever since, I could writ a Volume, and not declare the one half; yet in all this, the Angel of his Presence hath been with me, to guide me in the Way, and to bring me to the Place which he hath prepared; yea, the Lord is with me as a Giant, or as a Mighty Man, who hath and shall make my Enemies moulder away as the Dust; for he is my Joy, and my Delight, his Glo● Presence is with me Day and Night; ● hath led me down into the Deep, where I have beheld his Wonders, and by his strong Hand, and out stretched Arm, he drew me from the Pit, and hath set my Feet on him the Rock of Ages, so that I shall never be removed; he hath established my going, wherefore will I praise him, because he is Good, and his Mercy endures for Ever; he gives me Songs in the Night, Praises for Ever, he hath put a new Song into my Mouth, and upon every Trial he renews his Praises; therefore will I pour out my Heart and Soul into him, unto whom be Infinite Love, and Endless Obedience, Now, and for Ever, Amen.  
And as I was telling you how he was the Poster, and I the Clay; and how he was making me a Vessel of Honour, but I broke in his Hand, than he returned and made me another Vessel, as seemed good to the Glorious God, the Holy Potter, whose Works are deep, and his Ways passed finding out; and now he hath made me a Vessel and is fitting it for his Praise; Glory be to him for Ever.  
〈…〉 this I propose to the Reader, whe● his was not one Degree of Perfection was brought to by the Power of God; yet not such a Degree, but that I fell a● Adam did, tho' not in the same thing, but by disobedience to that Heavenly Command, who had said to me at that time, I am God All-sufficient to Vindicate my own Name, walk thou before me, and be thou perfect, and I will make all thy Enemies thy Footstool; for the Tongue that is lifted up against thee shall never Prospero; which was fulfilled at that time, as I said, to my great loss. Therefore let all that Boast they stand, take heed lest they fall; for if I had taken heed, as I ought to have done, to the precious Word of the Lord, I had not fallen.  
I did not think ever to have Published this, but that it should have gone to the Grave with me in Silence; but because there are so many, running to and from, Crying, ●o here, and lo there: Wherhfore I set down this for that End, to be a  to some, and a Touch Stone to others; to try their State, how far they are entered into the State of Perfection: For who are fully Perfect, never falls more.  
Therefore let no one Boast it ● putting on his Harniss, as if they h● it of, for the Day will declare every O● Work, of what sort it is. And this, le● those be assured, whom it doth concern, the nearer to Perfection, the lesle they will Boast of it; for I say again, it will declare itself; And, had I stayed a little longer, I was so Inflamed with the Burning Love of God to all Mankind, that I had Poured it forth in the Streets as I went along, not his Wrath and Indignation, but his Inflaming, Melting, Dissolving Love, which had Issued itself forth in such a healing Life, that Miracles would have been wrought thereby: For Oh! the earning and melting Bowels that I have had to poor Orphans, as they have lain in the Streets, almost Eaten up of the Evil and other Distempers, which I have Cried to the Lord to heal them: I thought, if I had had a little more Faith, it would have been done. I have had numberless returns of Prayer, and I am sure, whoever comes to the State of Perfection, shall have the Power attend them that Christ Jesus had to work Miracles; they shall also be healed themselves in Body, Soul and Spirit; no Sickness shall attend them, none of the 〈◊〉 Diseases of the Land shall cleave un●em.  
Although this is the Miracle of Mira●es, the Change of the whole Man, his Restoration out of his fallen State, to be Translated out of the Earthly into the Heavenly, where the Tempter can come not more. Wherhfore let none deceive themselves, to think they are what they are not, but come down from your Exalted Imaginations into the low Valley, the Valley of Anchor, where God will try your Works; and if you can abide Devouring Fire, and devil with Everlasting Barning, than are you Stones fit for God's Building, not else; for God's House must be Built with Tried Stones, and the Stone which the Wise Babel Builders have Rejected, is now to be made the Head of the Corner, because it is a tried Stone Elect and Precious. Therefore try and prove yourselves; for the nearer you come to God, the deeper in Humility; the more you Love God, the more you will Hate and Abhor yourselves, and all Self-interest; the World, instead of being ●our Delight and Pleasure, will be your greatest Burden; all things will be 〈◊〉 besides the Enjoyment of God alone: 〈◊〉 as it is with those that are next to a Kin● so will your whole attendance be to th● Pure Divine Spirit within you, giving no admittance for any to go in or out, but what belongs to that Secret One, all wand'ring Thoughts and vain Imaginations will be resisted and put by for that End, to defend and preserve that Holy Spirit from all manner of Contumelies and Injuries; and if thou wilt have it to preserve and Honour thee, thou must give up thy whole Strength to Love, Serve and Obey him; for here the Soul must give up itself with all its Power and Strength into the Hands of God, for otherwise it's impossible to be Saved out of the Horrible Pit of Destruction, as it was showed me in a Vision of the Night, For God Speaks, saith Job, to Man in Visions of the Night, when deep Sleep is upon him, and Man preceives it not.  
Thus it was with me, I saw myself stand over a deep and dangerous Pit, upon a very narrow slip of Wood which lay a cross the Pit; which, if I had stirred or moved, I had fallen into the Pi●; I Cried out aloud with a Vermin and Lamentable Cry for help, 〈◊〉 none would come; although I looked to the right Hand and to the left, where 〈◊〉 Creatures; but at the last, though it was long, and I could stand not longer, but just falling into the Pit, in the twinkling of an Eye, there appeared a mighty Man of a wondered Stature, I thought I never beheld the like for Height and Bigness, neither in Form or Figure, with a bright Shining Light, Glorious to Behold, about him, and stood before me by the side of the Pit, and stretched out his Hand to me, and bid me give him my Hand, which I did; than he bid me give up myself to him with all my Strength, and with all my Might; and the Force, Might and Strength I gave up myself to him in, I cannot compare with any thing in this World, but a Woman in the strongest Travail and greatest Pain that ever was known, to bring forth a Child into the World; for, notwithstanding his strong Hand, and outstretched Powerful Arm in pulling me to him; yet was I feign to Labour with such unutterable Force and Strength, to give up myself to him, or else I could not have been saved out of this horrible Pit.  
This was a wondered Discovery me of the Way of the Lord in M● Redemption, how he must work ou● Salvation with Fear and Trembling, ● how Man must join with God in t● Work, and so to be Workers together as the Apostle Paul saith, and this sig● fies the Labouring in the Vineyard, and In● proving the Talon, and helping the Lor● against the Mighty: Yet in all this gre● Work, the Creature must be nothing itself, and before the Lord; but th● Lord must be all, and the Creature n● thing: For it hath done nothing b● what was Commanded it, and this strip● it of all its own Works, Gifts and En● dowments, and so the Soul stands empty and naked before the Lord, waiting fo● his Mercy; for seeing the Creature without him can do nothing, what hath it to boast, that is, of its own, but its Infirmities; for could I have helped myself, when I was falling into the Pit, than it had not been the Lord; but I stood helpless, poor and miserable, Crying to the Creatures for help, but none came; tho' I looked to the left and right Hand, but no help whilst I sought it from Man; 〈◊〉 when I Cried to the Lord, he appear●● as a Mighty Man, which fulfils that promise, I have laid help on One that is Mighty: And again, Call upon me in the Day of Trouble, and I will deliver thee, and thou shalt Glorify me. Than it's not unto ●s that the Honour belongs; not, but to ●hy Glorious Name be Endless Praises.  
So here's nothing to the Creature, but Shame and Confusion of Face, when it comes before the lord O than, faith Jacob, I am not worthy of the lest of all ●hy Mercies: What am I, and what is my Father's House, saith another. And here the Creature Nothinginsing itself, and entering into its own nothing, its first Original, and so sits in the lowest place, as the Master Commands, and as he himself was their Example, who Humbled himself to the Death; and in this State were all the Prophets and Apostles kept ●n; in all their Richeses of Gifts and Gra●es, One Crying out, My Leanness, my ●eanness! Another Cries out, I am like an Owl in a Desert: Another, O wretched Man that I am: Another, I am not worthy ●o untie his Shoe Latche●: Again, I am ●ot He: Another, Though a King, I am Poor and Needy. Now shall any pres● in their Proud, Exalted, Lordly, Luc●● an Spirit to say, This is a feigned Humil● God will Silence that Tongue that sh● utter such Blasphemous Lies.  
Wherhfore go on, thou Soul, whoe● thou art, and be not discouraged; k● but in his Footsteps of Obedience, and Jesus Feet, as a second Mary Magd● and thou art safe enough; what, though't Enemy in a Scoffing Vaunting, Ish● Spirit say, What's She? What's her Wo● If a Fox go up the Wall, he shall break it d● Neh. 33. Let it be so, Lord, if the W● be of Man; but if it be of God, an● Glory, the Foundation thereof; than the Cunning Fox, with all his Craft● Subtilty, run to and from, and try to th● it down.  
Therefore, go on, O my Soul, and 〈◊〉 you Holy Builders, whose Building 〈◊〉 Foundation is God; lay but the St● which the wise cunning Master Builds have Refused, at the head of the Cor● of your Building, which is Christ, 〈◊〉 Rock of Ages, the Elect and Prec● Stone; let him be the Beginning a● End of your Work, and than let 〈◊〉 ●ah 's Rail, and Sanballat Mock, Tobiah the Ammonite Lie and Jeer, the Lord shall be with you to the Disappointing and Confounding of all your Enemies: For did his Power, Wisdom and Strength attend an External House, whose Materials were all External, and Men the Builders; all which was but a Representation of the Internal Work, and will he not be with you in his Power, Wisdom and Strength, in the Building his House from above, the Heavenly Jerusalem, the Holy City of the Living God, whose Builder and Maker is God himself: And shall not his Powerful Presence be with you, if you Faithfully follow him, the Captain of your Salvation, with the Sword of the Spirit in the one Hand to keep of the Enemy, and the working Tool in the other to build the Temple of his Holiness, and repair the Breaches thereof; for are ye not the Temples of the Holy Ghost, and hath not God said, I'll Devil in them; why are ye than so slack in bringing back the King to his Holy Habitation, I mean the King of Glory. Open therefore, ye Everlasting Doors, and let the King of Glory in, was Ezra, Nehemiah, and the rest of the Builders, so Vigilant and mirable Diligent in the External Building, as to Watch and Ward Night and Day, with their Swords Girded upon their Loins, and so builded, Watching in the Night, and Labouring in the Day, not putting of their , but for the Washing: Notwithstanding the● public and secret Enemies, who lay in a Bush, to Destroy them, that so the Work might Cease; yet how did the Lord Discover their Enterprises, and delivered them that served him, and how did the Enemy Serpentine Spirit try every way to put them into Frights and Fears, raising False and Scandelous Reports, and all to Accomplish their Malice against God, that the Work of the Lord might Cease; but notwithstanding all the Trials, Temptations, Mocks, Scoffs and Jeers of their Malicious Adversaries, and the False Brethrens that joined with them; yet how Courageously and Valiantly did they go on, and never ceased, till the Work was Finished, and than how was their Mouths filled with Praises in such abundance, that in rapture of Joy they Cried out, Praise his Glorious Name, which Excels above all thanksgiving and Praise; this is a great Figure and Type, there is not a greater in all the Holy Scripture of the Internal Work of the Soul: And was the Lord thus with his Servants in the Outward Work, and will he not be with you in the great Work of Regeneration, and the new Birth; yea surely, he will certainly be with you, if it be in Deed and in Truth, than New, and not the Old under the Title of the New; for many Deceivers are gone out, Crying, Lo here, and Lo there; but go not you out after them, but keep you on your Watch-Tower in the Day, and in your Wards in the Night, and never rest till the House be Built, the Temple Finished; that he may fill it with his Glory, and than your Eyes shall see how far the Glory of the latter House Exceeds the Glory of the former; and here you shall be ready to meet your Lord, as a Bride Adorned to meet her Husband in the purest Chastity of undefiled Souls: And this is the Glorious Day which all the Prophets Prophesied of to the pure in Heart, to them who are come forth of the Furnace Purer than the Gold Seven times Refined, to those Holy Ones who have followed their Lord through many Tribulations, and Washed their Long-suffering Robes, and made them White in the Blood of the Lamb; these are they to whom the Glorious Day shall appear, here's the joy of his Salvation; the Melt, the Dissolving, the Raptures, Extacy, the Embraces, the Melodious Praises, the Heavenly Hallelujahs, the Communion of Saints, the Fellowship of Angels, the giving up Body, Soul and Spirit; all into the Hand of this Supreme Good to be Deiformed, being Raised above Nature, to a State of Incorruption and Immortality; and by this means become Instruments of the Endless Glory of God, the Portion of all those who follows the Example of our Dearest Lord Jesus: But what is all this to the wicked and ungodly, who casteth his Law behind their Back, to what End is it for you to desire it; for the Day of the Lord shall be Darkness, and not Light, to you who will not part with your Sins, but hugs them in your Bosom, till the Day of your Death, and than to be Summonsed up to the Bar of Judgement; and all you false Tongues, Whisperers, Backbiters, Slanderers, false Accusers, Judgers and Condemners of the Just, and Justifiers of the Wicked; you Proud in Heart, tho' not in Habit, who are covered with the Mantle of Christ; to deceive, if it were possible, the very Elect. The Day of the Lord shall be Darkness, and not Light, to you, wherein you shall stumble and fall.  
A Dark and Gloomy Day, a Day of Dread and Fear, Terror, Horror, and Amazement to you, lukewarm, of all sorts; and, tho' you run to the Rocks and Hills to cover you, yet in vain; for all Covering shall be too short, and you shall be stripped Naked and Bore.  
I have seen the Day of the Lord as Fire and Brimstone upon the Wicked; and I have seen the Heavens Open, like the two Leaves of a Door, and the Vials of God's Wrath, and fierce Indignation, Pour down upon the Earth, as Water out of a Millpond, when the Floodgate is first Opened; and when I saw it, I fell upon my Knees, with my Eyes looking up to Heaven, wring my Hands, and Crying out most Vehemently, saying, Mercy, Lord, Mercy! O Righteous God, be Merciful, for thy Mercy Sake: Stop it, Lord, stop it: O Mercy, Mercy, Mercy! For thy Infinite Compassion Sake, be thou Merciful: And thus I continued for the space of half an Hour; yet I saw it not stopped; neither is this that I mentioned in my last Book: O the Dreadful Sights I have had of the Judgement of God, which are to be Executed in the World, now in these latter Days; and also of the Glorious Reign of Christ in the Earth, of the many Revelations thereof; I shall mention one here, but I am not able to give you a Description as it was, for it is beyond my Tongue of utterance.  
I, and a few more Women with me were in a Glorious Place, where there was a Bed, and in the Bed there was a Woman, and the Woman had Travailed, and brought forth a Child, which was a Son: The Woman was All-Glory, the Child was All-Glory, the Bed All-Glorious, the place where we were was All-Glorious, far beyond the Sun in its full strength, far beyond the Polished Gold; and I, with the Woman that was with me, sitting a little from the Bed side; there is no Tongue can declare our State; we were Translated into a Glorious Shining Brightness, and new Angelical Bodies, filled with Unutterable, Heavenly, Ravishing Joys, and Sounding Melodious Praises, inwardly, in our most inward Parts; but no Sound, or Voice to be heard outwardly: My Soul being so filled with this Ravishing Glory, that my Body, tho' new, was ready to burst, as a Vessel that's filled with New Wine, which wanted Vent, and being so filled with this unutterable Exalted Joy and Infinite Glory; I, bursting out, said, O my God, is it come, meaning the Glorious Day; The immediate Answer was, Not yet: And this Appearance was about the time the Queen Died.  
And thus, I have had the Manifestation of his Righteous Judgements, which are to be Executed in the Earth, in his appointed time: He hath also been pleased to give me the Revelation of his Mighty Appearance in the Earth, to Restore Mankind out of his fallen State, and from the Tincture of his Love in my Soul, which hath been the Occasion of my great Travel and Labour, to put Souls in the way wherein God will be found, to attain this great Salvation; and which ought to be the Work of all such as Prophesy or declare of the Kingdom of Christ entering into its Succession, to Labour mightily with Mankind, to prepare for his coming; for they cannot but understand how terrible a Day it will be to all the Workers of Iniquity; tho' to those that waits for his Appearance out of Sin, shall the Son of Righteousness arise with Healing in his Wings, and they shall go forth, and grow up as fat Calves in the Stall, and shall tread down the Wicked, as Dust under the Soles of their Feet, in the Day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of Host, Malachi, 4.2, 3. But to the Wicked (saith God) the Day cometh that shall burn as an Oven, and all the Proud; yea, and all that do Wickedly, shall be Stubble; and the Day that cometh shall burn them up, and shall leave neither Root nor Branch, saith the Lord of Host: So you hear what a Dreadful Determination there is against ●he Wicked of all Sorts, without Respect to Person or Sect; to the Proud, and all that do Wickedly: Now what a wondered Concern aught there to be upon you Ministers, of all sorts, that the People may be found in a Posture, suitable to meet the Lord; in this the Day of his most Terrible Appearance, wherein he will be as a Refiners Fire, to Purge the Sons of Levi, and to Refine them, as Gold is Refined: Now, whether this great Work doth not lie on your part to be done, before the Day of his coming, that there may be found that in you, and them, that can stand in devouring Fire, and devil with Everlasting Burning; which you know there is nothing can, but that which is pure, as the three Holy Children Walked in the midst of the fiery Furnace, Praising God, and not so much as their  Singed, or the smell of Fire upon them; but you know the same Fire Devoured their Adversaries; wherefore, I say, that this is the Work of our Day, that there may be nothing found in us that the Judgement is to, that his Anger can take hold of, than happy shall we be, than, Come, ye Blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you; ent●● you into the Joy of your Lord. Wherhfore, I say again, you Ministers have a great Charge lies upon you, to perform your Duty to God and Man, to see that ye walk in all things like your Pattern, both in Life and Doctrine, that your Doctrine be such as to Kill Sin in the Birth, before it be brought forth; nay, in the Conception, that the Root and Ground of Iniquity may be removed, that the good Seed may be sown in the good Ground, that it may bring forth to God an Hundred fold.  
And all you, who profess yourselves the Ministers of Christ, aught to have a wondered Care what Doctrine you deliver to the People, that it be sound, and without mixture, that it be the very same with the Doctrine of Christ, without Equivocation, or private Meaning; for here hath been the Mischief to all Mankind, the Iniquity of their Teachers in this thing, which God himself heavily complains of; telling them, they gave for Doctrine the Precepts of Men. Wherhfore, none ought to give out to the People any thing but what makes for God, and the increase of his Kingdom, which is the Doctrine and Life of Christ; and not to speak or writ the Conceits and Imaginations of their own Brain: For is not this the Imagination of your own Brain, to imagine that Christ Died for your Sins, and you are to be Saved by his Merits, without the Power of his Life working you into the New, and out of the Old Nature of Sin and Iniquity.  
That Great Apostle Paul, makes a distinction between his Words and the Lord's Word; for tho' he had to do with a People that would have slighted Christ, the Gift of God, and turned back again to magnify the Law; altho' Christ was the End of the Law, for in him the Law was fulfilled; and now some of you are as much in the Extreme as they, for you throw away the Law, which is Holy, Just, and Good, if not abused: For, say you, God Justifies Sinners by the Righteousness of another, by the Obedience, and by the Sufferings, and by the Death of another this is Miracle, say you; but the Law of Righteousness that was given at first; that Law, Do this and live; be thou holy, be thou perfect, and thou shalt have the Reward of it; here is nothing answering to Miracle, say you, which is your great Mistake: For if Obedience to the Will of God is not Miracle, what is? Will Christ's Obedience to the Father perfect the Soul's Work, without the Soul's Obedience to Christ? The Law in itself made nothing perfect; but Christ, being the End of the Law, the Law was fulfilled in him; be thou holy, Christ was holy; be thou perfect, Christ was perfect; so he was the Perfection of the Law, in him the Law was perfected: Here Christ hath done the Will of God, Lo I come, as it is written of me, to do thy Will, O God: Now Christ hath fulfilled all that was commanded the Creature in the Law; is there nothing now for Man to do? Yes sure there is, to come to Christ; he calls, Come unto me all you that are weary (with toiling under the Law) and heavy laden, (still with your Sins) come unto me, and I will give you rest; take my Yoke upon you: What was Christ's Yoke, was it not his Fire-Baptism of Sufferings, Death, and Resurrection? You have toiled all Night but caught nothing, while you were under the Law; but now, cast your Net on the right side of the Ship, and you shall found: Take my Yoke upon you: So you see here's a Yoke still, tho' you are from under the Law: Take up my Cross, deny yourselves; but take notice, you must confess me before Men, or I will deny you before my Heavenly Father: Confess thee, may some say, so we do daily externally; the Answer is, but that will not do your Work now with me, you have had enough of that under the Law; but what hath it profited you, now you are come to me, the Grace of God which teaches to deny all ungodliness and worldly Lusts, and to live Righteous and Holy in this present evil World; this is the Effect of this Grace; and than, if my Grace takes this Effect, it brings Salvation, but no other ways.  
And thus by Grace ye are Saved, that works out the old, and works in the new, so here's works still, Works of Holiness and Righteousness, for the Grace of Christ doth not make voided the Law, but hath fulfilled it; otherwise God would destroy his own Works, which he doth not; but only makes it of another Fashion; for in the Law the Power was wanting; but in the Grace of God is the Pow●● of God placed, which is Christ Jesus, 〈◊〉 Grace, Wisdom, and Power of God, a● to as many as received him, (the Grace into their Souls) to them he gave Power to become the Sons of God: But to them tha● refuse this Gift of God to be their Teache● and Leader out of Sin, or turns this precious Grace into Wantonness and Lasciviousness, Pride, Pleasures, and worldly Lusts, to them it is no Saviour, but a● Judger and Condemner; for do you thin● this Grace of God, which hath appeare● to all Men, is an idle Grace? You ar● grossly mistaken, it's a working Grace you must work with it, or else it will no● work with you; and what is your work▪ You must give yourselves all up to God for him to work his own Will in you; and to this, you must Watch and Pray continually against the Tempter, that when your Lord comes he may found you waiting upon him for his Power, to resist and overcome the Devil and all his Works, the Pomp's and Vanities of this wicked World, and all the sinful Lusts of the Flesh, and to keep God's holy Will and Commandments, and walk in the same all the Day● of your Lives, and this is a state of Perfection: And is there no Reward for him that is found waiting? O yes, Blessed is that Servant, who when his Lord comes shall found him waiting, he will make him sit down at Table, and gird himself, and serve him, Luke 12. Again, and again, Well done thou good and faithful Servant, enter thou into the Joy of thy Lord: Saith another, Verily, there remains a Reward for the Righteous: And saith our Lord, He will make him Ruler over his Household, and over all that he hath.  
O, what Precious Promises of Reward is here! He will not only make him Ruler over all the Land of Egypt, as Joseph was; but over the Egyptian Darkness which blinds the Soul, that it cannot see its way to God, over his own Will, Desires, and Evil Inclinations: As the Divine Beggar, (if it be lawful to give that Title to a Mortal Man) it was to him, who said to S. Thaulerus, another Excellent Man, Titled a Famous Divine, who by the space of Eight Years had continually importuned the Lord by Prayer, conceiving he wanted the right Knowledge of the Truth, notwithstanding all his Human Learning, and spent who Nights therein, begging of God to ●f him know Him, and know himself, and to show him any Man that might teach him the Way of Truth; and, on a certain time, when he was inflamed with a most vehement Desire thereof, a Voice, from Heaven thus spoke unto him; Go forth, and there thou shalt found a Man that can teach thee the Way of Truth; and, going forth, he found there a certain Beggar, with patched and torn Apparel, and with dirty Feet; to whom, by way of Salutation, he said, God give thee a good Morning: The Beggar replied, I do not remember I ever had an evil one; and thus he Answers to all his Desires and Questions, insomuch that this Learned Man was Astonished, and desired him, now at last, to speak more plainly, which 〈◊〉 Beggar did, most Excellently unfolding the Mystery thereof, the whole being too ●uch here to relate, I shall only mention the latter part: Than said the Beggar to Taulerus, Thou sayest moreover, that God would be pleased to make me Happy; whereunto I answered, That I had never been unhappy; for I am fully resolved, through his Grace, to adhere, and only to cleave to the Wi●● of God, as the best, and abandoning my own Will, into which I have so wholly poured out my own Will, that whatsoever he wills, that I will also; and for this Cause, as I said, I was never unhappy; seeing that I will cleave to his Will only, and have wholly resigned my own proper Will: To this Taulerus answered, This is very strange; but what, I pray thee, wouldst thou say, if the Lord of Majesty would Drown thee in the Bottomless Pit, wouldst thou than be content with His Will? The Beggar said, Drown me in the Bottomless Pit! Why certainly, if he should, I have two Arms by which I would still embrace and clasp fast about Him; the one is, True Humility, and that I lay under Him, and by it I am united to His most Sacred Humanity; the other, and that is the Right Arm, is Love; which is united to His Divinity; and by this Love given to me, from Himself, I hold Him so fast, that he would be forced to go down to Hell with me; and it were much better for me to be in Hell with God, than to be in Heaven without him.  
By this Discourse Thaulerus learned, that the most Compendious Way to God, is a true Resignation, with profound Humility.  
Hereupon, Thaulerus spoke again to the Beggar, and asked him with Admiration, saying, Good Lord! whence camest thou? The Beggar said, From God. The Learned Man, Where found'st thou God? Beggar, Even there, where I left all the Creatures. The Learned Man, But wher● didst thou leave Him? Beggar, In humble and clean Hearts, and in Men of good Will, which are His Temples and Dwelling-place. The Learned Man, I pray thee, Friend, who art thou? Beggar, Who am I? Surely I am a King; and Jesus himself hath Crowned me with Peace, Power, and Rest. The Learned Man, Art thou a King? But where is thy Kingdom? Beggar, The Kingdom of Heaven is within me, in my Soul; and I can now, and do, by His Power in me, so govern and command all my inward and outward Senses, that all the Affections and Powers of the Old Man in my Soul, are conquered, and are in subjection to the New Man in me, which Kingdom, no Man can doubt, but that it is better than all the Kingdoms, Sceptres, Crowns and Glories of this World. The Learned Man, Lord! what brought thee to this Perfection? Beggar, My silence, subline Meditation; and, above all, my Union with the Everlasting God of Peace and Rest, which is my Kingdom; and, to say the Truth, I could rest in nothing which was lesle than God; and now, having found my God, I have forsaken the unquiet World, and, in Him, I have found Everlasting Peace and Rest.  
Here are the words of Christ fulfilled; here was a Man that was a Partaker of all his Precious Promises; here was he that was made Ruler over all that he had; here was Two that were gathered together in his Name, and he in the midst of them; here, were the Faithful Servants, who, when their Lord came, were found waiting, for Him to give them their Portion of Meat in due Season; the first had attained to Regeneration, and the New-Birth, to Perfection itself, he was come to the Power and Kingdom of God within him, by which Power in him, he could so govern and command all his inward and outward Senses, that all the Affections and Powers of the Old Man in his Soul, were conquered, and brought into subjection to the New Man in him: Here was a Man that witnessed to the Power of Christ actually in him, and not in Conceit as Formal Christians.  
The second was John Thaulerus himself, (if we may believe the Ancient Copies) who, by the space of Eight Years, had continually importuned the Lord by Prayer, conceiving he wanted the right Knowledge of the Truth, notwithstanding all his Learning, and spent whole Nights therein, begging of God to let him know Him, and know himself.  
If I may be so bold as to ask you, how many such Learned Divines comes out of your Schools of Oxford and Cambridge, that notwithstanding all their Learning, goes back again into their own Nothing, and becomes as a little Child to learn their A, B, C, crying, Father, show me, teach me, the Way of Truth, which is to know Thee, and to know myself?  
This Divine, as the History styles him, did he go to Man for this Knowledge of God and himself? Not; but to God only; for he had all the Learning Man could give; he had been at the Universities, from whence he had the Title, A Learned Divine; yet, you see here, he was as Ignorant of the true Saving Knowledge, as he who was a Ruler in Israel was of the New-Birth; yet had a Belief of Christ that he was the Messiah; so it was with the Learned John Thaulerus, he had an outward Historical Faith of God in Christ, but that would not do with him now, when the Spirit in him was making search after the deep things of God, to know Him, and to know himself; which is a Key to open the Cabinet of Divine Mysteries, the highest Knowledge Man can attain to in this Life; for to know God is Life Eternal: And that Soul who truly knows God, in and through Jesus Christ, shall quickly know itself, and be made to cry out, Woe is me, for I am undone; because I am a Man of polluted Lips, and I devil in the midst of a polluted People, for mine Eyes have seen the King, and Lord of Hosts.  
But than again, O thou Soul, this is the very state, in the Sense of thy own Nothingness, where thy Lips shall be touched with a Coal from the Altar, which shall take away thy Iniquity, and than thou wilt be ready to go on the Lord's Errand, tho' dreadful, Go unto this People, and say unto them, ye shall hear indeed, but not understand; ye shall plainly see, and not perceive: Make the Heart of this People fat, make their Ears heavy, and shut their Eyes; lest they see with their Eyes, and hear with their Ears, and understand with their Hearts, and Convert, and he heal them: Than, said the Prophet, For how long Lord? Than answered he, Until their Cities be waste, without Inhabitants, and the Houses without Man, and the Land be utterly Desolate.  
O Amazing Message! What Destruction to come upon a People, when they are Blind and Deaf: O Astonishing Judgement! But how long doth the Lord bear, and wait upon a People for their Return, that he may show Mercy to them before thy are thus Sealed up? Surely till his Locks are wet with the Dew of the Night, till his Holy Spirit is weary with Striving, and than the Breath ceaseth from before him, which he hath made; Than shall they Call, but I will not hear; for us I called, and they would not hear; so shall they call, and I will not hear them, saith the Lord; than shall their Seers be ashamed, and their Diviners confounded, when they shall have no Answer of God: But, saith the Lord, it shall be said unto them in that Day, Call upon your Gods of Silver and Gold, let them deliver you now that had your Hearts, Pride, Pleasures, wherein you spent your precious time; of which time you gave me a little to ●ock me, when you came into your Idols Temples, with your Abominations before my Eyes, to Provoke me to Destroy you, and your Idols, out of my sight; that so your Abominations may cease from before me.  
But Oh! Ye false Shepherds, the Woe will be unto you, who are the cause of all these things, tho' the People Love to have it so; yet Woe will be unto you, who have bred them up in this Historical Way of outward Ceremonial Worship, as the poor Jaimaco Minister said, To keep up some Show of Religion: But what good did their Bartholomew Shows do them, when the Plagues and Vengeance of God fell upon them, for mocking him with their Shows of Worship? Doth the Infinite, Unspeakable, Incomprehensible Glory want a Show to come before Him? Carry your Hearers to Bartholomew Fair, and to the rest of your Cursed Playhouses, the Abomination of the Land, to see your Shows of Worship, where your Hearers brag and boast, they can Learn as much as at a Sermon; truth indeed, for the most of your Church-Sermons, and Play-House-Sermons are alike: For a Proud Lustful People Worships in the one, and a Proud Lustful People Worships in the other● for other ways, what means your Stage-Players Attire, and your wanton Carriages, Playing and Toying one with another, as you sit before your Priest: This I have seen with my Eyes many Years ago, with more of your Abominations too many to Insert here, to the Abhorring your Sacrifices; and the same Behaviour is amongst some of you still, as I am Creditably Informed by some of your Hearers: So here's like Priest, like People; Children of Belial, fat Kine of Bashon, Sons of Eli, every one Neighing after his Neighbour's Wife: O ye Adulterers and Adultresses! Have ye not Houses to sport yourselves in? O ye Presumptuous Ones! How is it ye are not afraid the Ground should Open and swallow up you, and your Idols Temple together? Which plainly Appears some of you are so much tinctured with an Atheistical Faith, as to believe there is neither God 〈◊〉 Devil: Woe and Alas! What Lamentable Lamentation shall be taken up for the People of these Nations, who have such Pastors as destroy and scatter the Sheep of his Pasture: O what shall I say? I have not Words to declare my Grief, for my Heart breaketh within me, as Jeremiah's did, because of the Hireling Priests and False Prophet's Filthiness, who commit Adultery, and walk in Lies; they strengthen the Hands of the Wicked, that none can return from his Wickedness; They are to me, saith the Lord, as Sodom and Comorrah: Therefore will I Feed them with Wormwood, and give them the Writers of Gall to Drink. For, from such Preachers in England is Profaneness, and all manner of Wickedness gone forth into all the Land: I am a Witness of this Truth, for what can I say of the Wickedness of some Priests, from a Girl of Nine or Ten Years of Age; which I myself have been both Eye and Ear Witness to; besides all their Abominations that I have heard from others; which is beyond my Tongue to Express; and when I was at London, I was in a place where a Priest, and Three Men more 〈…〉 (or Devils in the Shape of Men) were, 〈◊〉 Backs were to me, and my Face to them so I saw them, and heard their Discourse The Man's Discourse was Lascivious, and I heard not one Word, but either at the beginning or end thereof, was, God Dam● them! And, God Damn their Blood! their Priest Joaking Merrily with them, and Laughing out right Hearty at their unclean, lascivious Discourse: I bore the Burden of their Wickedness so long, whilst I could bear it not longer, and than I Reproved the Men and their Priest; the Priest Mocked and Scoffed; but the lewd Men, as Surprised, were more moderate, and would have heard me longer; but the Priest pulled and hurried them away; the People that heard, went away Sighing and Lamenting at their own Condition: Now, is not here cause of a Bleeding humiliation, that a People, that bears the Name of Christ, should have such Monstruous Beasts for their Teachers? It's no wonder our Land is overrun with the Spirit of Atheism: Is here not cause to make Proclamation of Fasting, Sackcloth, and Ashes; as I, unworthy Messenger, did in your Ears, a little before my Dear Lady, Queen Mary's Death, when the Lord Commanded me to go to London, I knew not for what, for I had been there a little before, therefore had no Business of my own; but it lay upon 〈◊〉 weightily, saying, Thou must go to ●don; which I did, tho' in a great ●ross to my own Will, and Landing at Queen-hive, I went directly into Cheapside, which was not my usual way; where I saw Multitudes of People in their Balconies and Windows, and the Sreets so filled with People, that it was very Troublesome, either to stand or go: I enquired why it was so, the People Answered, The Ministers are going to their Feast; than I stood still, and humbly Inquired of the Lord what his Pleasure was with me, now I was come to London; his immediate Answer was, Call them to Fasting. Than I continued there till they came by, and I went with them from the middle of Cheapside, till I came into Cornhill, and than, in the Dread and Power of the Lord, I opened my Mouth to them, and said, The Lord calls for Fasting, and you go to Feasting: He calls to Weeping and Mourning, and Girding with Sackcloth; but 〈◊〉 stead of this Exercise, behold you have Jo and Gladness, Slaying Oxen, and Killing Sheep, Eating Flesh, and Drinking Win● and so I went along with them, declaring the Word of the Lord throughout Cornhill, and part of the next Street; 〈◊〉 when I had finished my Testimony, Ind● them, and Returned that Day to Patney● Now, O ye Teachers, where was your Discerning? Where was your Divining, Revelation, Knowledge and Sight; 
* As some of you Titled the Queen.  the Light of your Eyes, being taken from you; had you that Spirit of Revelation, from on High, that the Children of the Prophets had, when their Master Elijah was to be taken from them; when the Children of the Prophets came out to meet Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take away thy Master from thine Head this Day: And Elisha said, Yea, I know it: So here was the Scholars Inspired with the Revelation thereof, as well as the Master: But where was your Discerning, from the Master to the Scholar, of so great a Change as our Dear Lady, the late Queen's, being taken away from your Head? Than is it not happened to you, as it was to your Forefathers, that Night is come upon you, that you have no Vision, and the Day is become dark that ye cannot Divine; And why? Because your Gifts and Rewards have blinded your Eyes, that ye could not see to reprove Sin in the Gate, your Lives of Ease and Pleasures, as saith the Text, Ease slayeth the Foolish, and the Prosperity of Fools destroy them; your Hundreds and Thousands a Year, your Honours and Glories of the World have stood between, and withheld you from standing in the Gap, to keep back the Anger of God from destroying the People; will not these be Spots in your Feasts, in that Day when the Lord shall say, You have fed yourselves, and not the Flock, therefore will I feed you with Judgement; and in that Day, saith the Lord, you shall be ashamed of your Priesthood; for you shall not longer wear a rough Garment to deceive; for in that Day, you shall say, I am no Prophet, but an Husbandman; for Man taught me to be an Herdsman from my Youth up: Than, Changed ye Priests, shall ye be made to speak Truth, that Man taught you from your Youth up, tho' hitherto ye have spoken Lies, and 〈◊〉 The Lord taught you; and saith that Te● In that Day, saith the Lord, I will cut of the Names of the Idols out of the Land, and they shall not more be remembered; and I wil● 'cause the false Prophets, and the unclean Spirits, to departed out of the Land: And if anya should yet Prophesy, his Father and his Mother that begat him, shall say unto him thou shalt not live, for thou speakest Lies in the Name of the Lord, and his Father, and his Mother, that begat him, shall thrust him through when he Prophesieth: O wondered! that the very Begetters of your Lies and Falshood should destroy you, and s● your Destruction comes to be of yourselves, and not of the Lord; this also shall be the holy Zeal of the true Regenerated Soul, to destroy, without Mercy, all, both old and young of the Darlings, and dearly beloved Sins in its own Soul; for Agag must be hewed to pieces, before the Lord in Gilgal; the very place where the Disobedient Offering was to have been offered, Samuel 15. But, said the Lord, I will 'cause the Prophets, and the unclean Spirits to departed out of the Land; meaning, saith the Margin, the false Prophets and Teachers, who are the Corrupters of all Reli 〈◊〉; whom, the Prophet here saith, the ●rgent calls unclean Spirits: But this ●●phesie goes further, and, in all the ●and, saith the Lord, two parts thereof shall be cut of and die; but the third part shall be left therein: And I will bring the third part through the Fire, and will fine th●, as Silver is fined; and will try them, ●●old is tried; they shall call upon my Name, and I will hear them; I will say it is my People, and they shall say, the Lord is my God, Zachariah 13. Hear, what must be done to the People of both sorts, the Reprobate Silver must be quite destroyed, the other must be tried in the Fire, and fined as Silver and Gold is fined, before God will own them to be his People, whereof you have one of the greatest Representations happened to you, that ever befell a People in this latter Age of the World; therefore observe, and take notice, I beseech you, for it is of great Matter and Weight to you all, and not only to you, but to the whole Universe throughout the whole World; for as you have done to your Silver, so will God do to you; this is the Word of the Lord to you, of all Persuasions whatsoever, 〈◊〉 out respect of Persons, who owns the ex● a God and Christ, who, in the sight 〈◊〉 the Lord, are grown Corrupt, as 〈◊〉 have done to your Idols of Silver and Go●d so will God do to you; he will melt yo● and try you, and purge you with Fir● and refine you with Coals, and so take 〈◊〉 way your Dross by Fire: But, if you● all Tin, he will consume you wholly and the old, tho' never so good and larg● shall not pass but by weight; it will ● weighed in the Balance of the Sanctuary ● and, if it be found too light, it must 〈◊〉 melted down, and new Coined, and so must be made all new; and than shall the Heavenly Image be stamped upon it, the Beauty of his Holiness; than shall be the new Heavens, and the new Earth, where● in dwells Righteousness; the old shall pass away as a Scroll.  
Oh! how the Lord hath punished you, with your Gods; your Gods hath been your Plagues, and shall be yet more your Whips and Scourges; for the Day is swiftly coming upon you, that you shall throw your Gods of Silver, and your Gods of Gold to the Bats, and to the Moles of the Earth; and ye, yourselves, and run into the holes of the Rocks, for 〈◊〉 the Lord, and from the Glory of 〈◊〉 lajesty, when he shall rise, in the 〈◊〉 of his Might, to destroy the Earth, and than the high look of Man shall be humbled, and the Proud Loftiness, and Haughtiness of Man shall be abased, and the Lord only, and alone shall be exalted in that Day; for the Day of the Lord of Hosts, shall be upon all the Proud and Houghty, and all that is Exalted, and they shall be brought low; upon all the tall Cedars, and all the strong and sturdy Oaks, and upon all that hath made Gold their Hope, and the Wedge of Gold their Confidence: For, as you have not answered the End of the Lord in your Treasures; neither will he Answer your End, in the Enjoyment of them; for he hath determined, in his Secret Counsel, to rend you from them, and them from you; and in that Day, which is even at your Doors, you shall know, that the Earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof; and that you are but Servants or Stewards; and now his Day is come, to call you to an Account of your Stewardship, and to require his Silver and and Gold, and his Ra● Treasures at your Hands; and ther● 〈◊〉 shall know how you have Trespass●● on the Lord's Lands; and Claimeds' 〈◊〉 priety to yourselves, which you Go● Right to, further than for Food and Raiment, which the God of the whole Earth allows to all Liberally; for so it was 〈◊〉 the beginning, till the Fall, till 〈◊〉 Lusted after that that was forbidden; and so it was after Christ's Departure, whe● the Power of God bore Rule; they ha● all things Common, when the Church o● Christ was in its Lustre; and so it will be again in the Restoration; there shall be not more Thy and Mine, but all the Lord's; and he shall be served therewith and the Glory shall be to him for E● ver.  
The next is to the Shepherds of Israel, Woe be unto you that Feed yourselves, ye Eat the Fat, and Cloth you with the Wool; ye kill them that are Fed, but ye Feed not the Sheer the Weak have ye not Strengthened, the Sick have ye not Healed, neither have ye bound up the Broken, nor brought again that which was driven away; neither have ye sought that which was lost, but with Cruelty and with Rigour have ye Ruled them, and they were scattered without a Shepherd; and when they were Dispersed, they were devoured of all the Beasts of the Field.  
Wherhfore, O ye Shepherds of Israel, ●ear ye the Word of the Lord, Thus saith the Lord God, because my Flock hath been spoiled, and my Sheep devoured; therefore, thus saith the Lord, Behold I come against the Shepherds, and will Require my Sheep at their Hands, and I will 'cause them to Cease from Feeding my Sheep; neither shall the Shepherds Feed themselves any more; for I, the Lord, will search my Sheep, and seek them out; for as the Shepherd searcheth out his Flock, so will I seek out my Sheep, where they have been scattered in this Cloudy and Dark Day; and, I will feed my Sheep, and bring them to their Rest, saith the Lord God. I, the Lord, will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen the weak: But, I will destroy the Fat and the Strong, and I will Feed them with Judgement; for, because you have thrust with Side, and with Shoulder, and pushed all the weak with your Horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; therefore will I help, and they shall not more be spoiled, and I will Judge between Sheep and Sheep; between the Fat Sheep, and the Lean; between the Rams and Goats; and you, my Sheep, shall know, in that Day, that I am the Lord, when I have broken the Cords of their Yoke, and delivered you out of the Hands of them, that that served themselves of you; and I, the Lord, will be your God; and I will make an Everlasting Covenant with you, a Covenant of Peace; I will 'cause the Evil Beasts to Cease out the Land, I will be your God, and my Servant David shall be Prince over you. Now, you know that that David was a Type and Figure of Christ, and David was a Man of War from his Youth, I mean the Spiritual War, of which the outward War was but a Figure; and how deeply he was Engaged in the Internal War, the History of his Life fully Declares; and this is he who was a Man after God's own Heart, in bearing his Righteous Judgements for Sin, and so it runs in the Line, till it come to Christ, the Lord's David, who is to be Prince over you for Ever.  
And here I take occasion to say to the ●ishops, who are now in Power, that they ought not to suffer such Doctrine (as was by the forementioned Doctor of Divinity) to be Preached in a Christian Nation, as gives the lest Toleration for any liberty to Sin; for otherwise what signifies a change of the Old Bishops to you New, if there is no Reformation in Religion thereby? For not only is the Practical part neglected by this Man's Doctrine, but Toleration proclaimed upon the Housetop, for the Door to be open that lets in all manner of Ungodliness, which is the very thing that destroys Nations and Kingdoms; for what need we fear all the Enemies in the World, if it were not for our Sins? It's the Sins of a People that draws down the Wrath and Vengeance of GOD upon Nations and Kingdoms; and ought not you to be the Persons to stand in the Gap, to keep back the Judgements of God, by your holy and selfdenying Lives in your several Stations, by your Watch, Fast, and deep Humiliation, Preaching in Doctrine the Sufferings of our Lord Jesus, to bring the same to be the Duty of every true Christian, to suffer with him in his Se● sufferings, that as he suffered both in So● and Body, who had no Sin, for us Sinners, and so made his Soul an Offering for Sin, to Redeem us by his Precious Blood from all Iniquity, so we may, by the same Power in him, be partakers with him of the same Sufferings in Soul and Body, as he, our Lord, by his Power and Strength shall enable us; that so, in our own Souls, we come to feel for him a share of those unmeasurable Sufferings he, our Saviour, felt for our sakes, and to this Day feels the same, if we Rebel against his holy Laws; he suffers in us, and we Crucify him afresh; therefore our Sufferings are never to be at an end, whilst he suffers in us; whilst we do the lest thing that grieves his Holy Spirit in us; and this is the only Sacrifice that is acceptable to him, your suffering with him; for this is more than all your Preaching, Praying, and Hearing, out of this Life; for what cares he for all your multitude of words, which hath nothing but Self-interest at the bottom, they are as great Abomination to him as the Jews and Pharisees of old were, who wearied him with their words so long, till they ●ought his Long-suffering to an end. The same is your Case, Oh! ye Bishops, and Priests, and Teachers, of all Sorts, who seek yourselves more than the things of Christ, which is the very reason why you do not profit the People, to turn them from their evil ways, because you yourselves are out of the Way, out of Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life; for it's plain his Ways are not your Ways, nor his Works your Works; your Voluptuous Life of Fleshly-liberty being witness: But if there be any among you, Bishops, Priests, and Teachers, who are otherwise minded, which I hope and believe there is some, why come ye not forth to help the Lord against the Mighty, now in this Day wherein the measure of Iniquity is filling up to the brim? Where is your Ensign hung forth, to show that you are on the LORD's part? What signal Testimony do you give, that you are for the LORD's Christ? There be many Talkers of him in high Notions, which he values no●; for his Day is at hand that shall try both Words and Works: How many of these great Talkers, and high Pretenders to his Religion, g● with him to suffer? How many of these are his Companions, in his Soul-sufferings, and are willing to be Crucified with him? Not, not; here all forsake him; but it may be some may stand afar of, bewailing him, and crying, Alas! Alas! But what good doth that Alas do to him; Doth it mitigate his Pain, or assuage his Grief? Not; but add to his Burden: Weep not for me, saith he, but weep for yourselves, for the Miseries that are coming upon you: So you hear what Christ saith, Weep for yourselves, for the Miseries that are coming upon you, humble yourselves under the Mighty Hand of God, suffer for your own Sins; be grieved, in the very innermost parts of your Souls, for all your Rebellion against my holy Laws, and there suffer in Heart-breaking Sorrow, in Watching, Fasting, and great Tribulation: And the deeper your Exercise is here in barring the Indignation of the LORD, the more you please him; for when you suffer most, he suffers lest, and this pleases him, for us to bear the burden of our own Iniquities; for it was his time, when he was on the Earth, in his Body of Flesh, to bear the burden of our Sins; but now it's our time to distharge him, and bear our own burden, so long as the Root and Ground of Iniquity remains in us; and than when we are washed, purified and cleansed from all the filthiness both of Flesh and Spirit, by his Righteous Judgements, than will he arise and pled our Cause: So, ye Teachers of all Sorts and Sects, this should be your Work, to bring People to this work of Regeneration; first, by your own Example, and Life of Holiness; and than labouring with them in Doctrine: But if neither your Life, nor Doctrine will Reform them from their Pride and Life of Vanities, than it's time for you to turn into Silence, and stand Dumb before them, with your Loins girded in Sackcloth, and Heads covered with Ashes; and thus, by your Faithful Obedience to GOD, you may be instruments to Convert them, and save your own Souls: And how can you quit yourselves before the Lord, otherways than to mourn in Sackcloth and Ashes, seeing no other Fruits are brought forth [by your Ministry] than Pride, Envy, Worldly-mindedness, and all the Sins of Sodom, and other Nations, wh● GOD destroyed from of the Ear●● reigns here: What became of the Old World? What became of the Jews, who trusted in their Service as much as you? How often were they, and their Temple destroyed, till at last they were swept away as a Refuge of Lie? And, do you think to escape, who are guilty of the same Iniquity? Yet, they thought themselves secure in their Ways and Works, whereof they proudly boasted; for when the Prophet pronounced the heavy Wrath of GOD against them, their Answer was, Why? Wherhfore hath the LORD pronounced all this great Plague against us? Or, what is our Iniquity, and what is our Sin, that we have committed against the LORD our GOD? The Answer was, Because your Fathers have forsaken me, saith the LORD, and have walked after other Gods, and have served and worshipped them, and forsaken me, and have not kept my Law, and ye have done worse than your Fathers, for behold you walk every one after the stubbornness of his own wicked Heart, and will not hear me.  
Here you may see how they filled up ●●e measure of their Father's Iniquity; for although they did not worship other Gods, it may be judged by us, because they had a sight of their Father's Wickedness; yet God Charges their Sins upon them to be greater than their Fathers, to walk after the stubbornness of their wicked Hearts, and not to hear him, and obey his Commands, all which are the very Sins of the People of our Nations, and this Generation who walks after the stubbornness of their wicked Hearts, and will not fear the LORD, though he sends his Messengers early and late, as he did to them.  
I humbly entreat you, that Read this Book, to Read the foregoing Plagues and Judgements that are pronounced in the foregoing Verses: For this great Sin, in walking every one after the stubbornness of their wicked Hearts; this Scripture hath often been pressed upon my Mind, when I have been writing to this People, and now I think it my Duty to impart it to them, that every Soul amongst you, of all Sorts and Sects, might seriously and weightily consider, how far they are guilty of this great Sin, to walk 〈◊〉 the stubbornness of their evil Heart 〈◊〉 and not to hear HIM, that they ma● Repent and Forsake before it be to● late; and think not that your outward Services, and Duties, though Comely Orders, will do your work any more than it did theirs, whilst you keep back the One Offering, which is Self, that Accursed Thing which is to be Offered up once for all, which was our Saviour's Offering, who Offered up himself Once for all, who was Accepted of GOD, and this is the only Offering Acceptable to GOD, to offer up Self. Self in all its Appearances, whether in the Lust of the Flesh, the Lust of the Eye, or the Pride of Life: It must be Offered up, and Self in every Respect; whether the Love of the Word, Honour, Name, or Fame; all must be brought to the Cross of Christ, and Die there; for, as in your first State, you were Dead in Trespasses and Sin; So now you must be Dead to Sin, and Alive to Righteousness; otherways no Christian; For, as in Adam all Died, so in Christ all are made Alive: In Him, Mark that; Not out of Him: O 〈◊〉 Reverence that is in my Soul to Him, 〈◊〉 the writing of this Word, In Him; for 〈◊〉 of Him there is no Salvation; in his ●●●ure unspotted Life, in his Humility, in his Patience, Meekness, and Long-suffering; in his Universal Love to all Mankind, in his Soul-sufferings and bitter Agony: For, as he knew all this in his Righteous Soul and Holy Body, so must we in our Sinful Bodies; for as our High Priest, and Aaron bore the Breastplate of Judgement upon his Heart before the LORD, so must we bear the Judgements of the LORD upon our Hearts; because we have Sinned against him, as it is written, Zion shall be Redeemed through Judgement; for Christ did not come to Destroy the Law, but fulfil it; for, said he to John, Suffer us to fulfil all Righteousness: So our Righteous Aaron fulfilled the Law, when he had tasted Death for every Man; that we, through him, might do the same, through is Death, and through his Resurrection without the Gate of Jerusalem, that we might be partakers thereof, by our Death to Sin, and the Resurrection of his most Holy Life in us; for that was the End of the Spilling of his Precious Blood, to Redeem us from all Iniquity▪ And thus we are made Partakers of t● Benefit of his Death and Resurrection. ● we Die to Sin, and Rise to Righteous 〈◊〉 For GOD so Loved the World, that 〈◊〉 his only Begotten Son, that through 〈◊〉 might have Life. Here the Love 〈◊〉 Extended to all; but he, or she, th● 〈◊〉 not accept this Gift of GOD, 〈◊〉 his Son, hath no benefit of his D● 〈◊〉 Resurrection; I say, Accept him 〈◊〉 Souls, to be your Teacher, Lea●●●vernour and King over all in 〈◊〉 you to yield yourselves, to 〈◊〉 to the Guidance of his Holy Spi● 〈◊〉 not doing your own Will, spea● 〈◊〉 own Words, nor thinking 〈◊〉 Thoughts; but doing the Wi● 〈◊〉 Heavenly Father in all things, 〈…〉 him above all things, and not your 〈◊〉 but for his sake. In this State yo● 〈◊〉 all the benefit of his Death and direction, but otherways, out of th● 〈◊〉 you do but deceive your Souls, to 〈◊〉 he Died for you, without being ●●kers of this his Holy and Incor● 〈◊〉 Life; and your Dead Faith is the 〈◊〉 why you remain still in your Sins, because you do not believe in Him, you be 〈…〉, but not in HIM; you believe 〈◊〉 his Death outwardly, that the Love of God was such, to sand his Son ●o Die for Sinners, which is Everlastingly True; let that Mouth be stopped, and 〈◊〉 for ever put to Silence that de●●●●; but what is this to you, who 〈◊〉 believe in his Power to Redeem, 〈◊〉 ●ood to Cleanse, Wash, and Pu●● 〈◊〉 from your Sins, whilst you are 〈◊〉 ●de the Grave, in this Life; this 〈◊〉 your Faith; but your Faith is to 〈◊〉 ●ie in your Sins, and so it comes 〈◊〉 recording to your Faith, as Christ 〈◊〉 ●he Pharisees, If ye do not believe 〈◊〉 He, you shall Die in your Sins. ●oy want He? He the Blessed Saviour, 〈◊〉 ●●ove to Mankind induced him to 〈◊〉 himself of all his Glory, and took 〈◊〉 an Ignominous Death: O ye ●hriscians! Here's your Pattern; what do you do for him? Do you forsake 〈◊〉 Pride and Lusts for him; your 〈◊〉 and Pleasure for him; your Self-⟨…⟩ in all Respects for him? He hath one all this for you; but wherein is your Love to HIM? In what; In doing worse than your Fathers the 〈◊〉 in Crucifying afresh, the Son of 〈◊〉 and and putting him Daily and Hou● to Shame: Your Fathers, the Jews, Cr●cified but once his Body; but y● Crucify both Body and Soul, you a● Daily Piercing him, with your Spe● of Pride, Avarice, and Self-interest; yo● are Hourly Pricking his Head with ● Thorns of your Lusts, and Pleasure● Malice and Envy; you hate the 〈◊〉 Appearance and Image of him in his savants, and them that fears him; 〈◊〉 hate him that Reproves Sin in the 〈◊〉 you do all this to your Saviour; whe● fore, how many Thousand times wor● are you than the Jews, who did not o● him for their Saviour? Oh! How y● Dishonour the Lord! To call him yo● Saviour, when you can give no Evident thereof? How many of the Numberless Sins you are guilty of, are you save● from? for if you commit Sin, Sin is o● the Devil, and his Works you do, bu● Christ came to destroy the Works of th● Devil; hath he destroyed them in you● Than is he your Saviour, but no further 〈◊〉 wherefore, in vain do you believe hi● outward Death and Resurrection to be 〈◊〉 Benefit to your Salvation, who do not witness his Blood in your Souls to cleanse you from all Sin and Iniquity; for, by the Law all things were purged with Blood, which was a Type of the Blood of the Immaculate Lamb of GOD, which was spilt to Redeem us from all Iniquity, and from dead Works, to serve the Living GOD; so than it's neither your dead Faith, nor dead Works will save you from Damnation; not, but you ●●ust Eat his Flesh, and drink his Blood; 〈◊〉 so said our Saviour, Except ye eat my Flesh, and drink my Blood, you can have no Life in you.  
The Blood is the Life which runs into the Veins and Vital Parts, and nourisheth, causing to grow.  
It's an easy way to believe Traditionally in the Righteousness of another, but what will that avail me, if I am not made Partaker of his Righteousness by Faith and good Works? For otherwise it's just as much as to say, Thou shalt eat Food to nourish thy Body, and I will live by what thou eatest; even so is this sort of Imputed Righteousness; for, Faith without Works is dead, as the Apostle 〈◊〉 saith, Show me thy Faith without 〈◊〉 and I will show thee my Faith by my Works I believe there was some in this Blind Conceit in the Apostle's time, that were High Talkers and Vain Babblers of the Righteousness of Christ, who were little Possessors thereof, which was the Cause of his so great and severe Reproof, as you may Read, from the beginning of his general Epistle to the end, wherein he exhorteth them to Patience and Prayer, and not to boast of an idle Faith, but to declare a true Faith by lively Fruits, and to this, saith he, But wilt thou understand, O thou vain Man! that Faith which is without Works is dead: And further, saith the Apostle, What availeth it, my Brethrens, tho' a Man, saith he, hath Faith, when he hath no Works, can that. Faith save him? This question is answered but vainly, by some who have the Form of Godliness, but denies the Power. Yes, say they, By Faith we are saved, without the Works of Love; no Human Work is of any avail in this case, only by the Faith in his Blood shedding, for the manifesting and declaring 〈◊〉 righteousness; whence follows, say 〈◊〉, that nothing is more needful for 〈◊〉; than to exercise ourselves in the ● Faith. To which I Answer, That no Human Work of the Creature is available; but was not Abraham's Work, a Work of Christ, when he Offered up Isaac? And was not his Work the Work of Love, which so highly pleased the Lord, that the Everlasting Blessing was placed to him, and in his Seed for ever? That is, to them that would follow his Steps in Faith and Obedience, to the Holy Seed Christ Jesus; who, although he was a Son, yet learned he Obedience by the Things that he suffered: And so it is with all the Faithful, who walk not after the Flesh, but after the Spirit; such take him for their Pattern, with their whole Souls, Strength, and Might; they follow him in his Holiness of Life and Conversation, to be Conformable to him both in his Life and Death, and so of his Resurrection, believing in his Power, that he is GOD All-sufficient to slay the Serpent, and his Seed, humbly waiting in the deep sense of their own Nothingness upon him, for his Strength to overcome the Enemy of their Souls, in 〈◊〉 Temptations, that so, by the pow● 〈◊〉 Operation of his Holy Spirit in th●●●, they may work out their Salvation with fear and trembling, and so to be made more than Conquerors, through his Eternal Love; who, by his powerful workings in us, works out the old leaven, th●● so we may be made a new lump in him, Holy as he is Holy; that as he who hath called us to this Heavenly Work is Holy, even so we may be Holy in all manner of Life and Conversation; so you see here is Works, and not vain Words; here th● Law comes to be fulfilled, as our Saviour said, Not one jot or tittle of the Law should go unfulfilled: for, said he, I am not come to destroy the Law, but to fulfil it: And again, saith he, Suffer us to fulfil all Righteousness. And did Christ Jesus fulfil the Law? So must we; and than, when we have fulfilled it, we are no more under the Law, but under Grace; for the End of the Law is Grace, The Grace of GOD that teacheth to deny all Ungodliness and worldly Lust, and to live Righteously, and Holily, in this present evil World. But you, who are not come to witness this Life brought forth in you, you deny the ●●ace of God, and turns it into Wantonness; wherefore the Law takes hold of you, as Transgressor's of it, and will bring you under it; though you boast against it, as if you were got above it, yet it hath power to bring you down under it, and ●●ke you pay the utmost Farthing; for the Law is our Schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, therefore Holy, Just, and Good: Than how dare any speak slightingly of that, wherein there is so great Service, as to be a Preparative for a more Glorious Manifestation? Is it not Excellent to be a Faithful Servant? And is not the Joy of the LORD prepared for such? Than, who is he or she that presumes to call the Obedience barely Legal, and slightingly call it the Servant state, to such, I say, you are so far from fulfilling every jot and tittle of the Law, that I question whether ever you came to fulfil one jot or tittle thereof; than, if so, how far are you of Christ Jesus, in whom the Love of the Godhead was perfected, and Manhood also, who laid down his Precious ●ife for Sinners? Are you come to this point, you that boast of a more Glorious Ministration than the Law? Do you 〈◊〉 the Everlasting God, with all your Hear and Soul, Strength and Might? Do you admit of no other Lovers but him alone? Do you love your Neighbour as yourselves? where's your proof of it, you vain Babblers, who love yourselves more than all? How much of your Pride, Lusts, Earthly-mindedness, Self-interests, Honour and Glory of a perishing World have you forsaken for his Sake, who forsook all for yours; yet, you vain Talkers, together with all Christendom, as it were, are heaping up your Hay, Straw, and Stubble upon this Foundation, of the Death of Christ, and you to live and dye in your Sins, as if this was the End of the Suffering and Death of Christ to secure you in your Sins; you, vain Boasters of the Blood of Christ, who pleads more for your Sins than any Malefactor pleads for his Life before a Judge at the Bar; here your Love to Christ is manifest, in your loving and hugging your Beloved Sins, and secret Lusts in your Bosoms, and than pleading so strongly for them; for what a Man loves most, he pleads most for; wherefore, see what manner of christians you are, who instead of be● obedient to Christ's Commands, to ●ge and condemn Sin, and yourselves, or sinning, you vindicate yourselves, and justify your Sins; and thus, instead of being Christ's Friends, you are his greatest Enemies, who profess him with your Mouths, and in Works deny him; and so Blasphemes his Holy Reverend Name among the Heathen, which GOD will certainly call you to an Account for, who are calling him, Lord, Lord, but do not the things that he Commands; and here you are proved to be no Christians; but as Jews, under the Law, whilst Sin hath Dominion, and not under Grace, for all your proud Boasting; you that live in Pride, Luxury, Wantonness, Pleasures, Covetousness of any sort, as Self-interest, Self-love, in any Concern whatsoever, wherein the Glory of GOD is not the End thereof, ye deny the Grace of GOD that brings Salvation; and you that hates the Innocent without Cause, you deny the Grace of God; you Envious Ones of all Sorts, but especially you that makes a Profession of Religion above all others, who separate yourselves from all, yet you are guilty of their Abomination shall you be counted the People of GO● who goes up and down secretly slandeing the Innocent? Ye Whisperers, Backbiters, and Notorious Liars, is not the Poison of Asps in your Mouths, and your Envious Tongues sharper than a Twoedged Sword, to slay the Innocent? Altho' the LORD hath commanded in his Holy Law, saying, The Innocent and Righteous thou shalt not slay; yet dare you in your Actions presumptuously say, Who is the Lord that we should obey him? You Instruments of Cruelty, I must say to you as Christ said to your Forefathers the Pharisees, I have done many good Acts among you, for which of them do ye stone me? How often have I forgiven your Iniquity, and returned you Good for all your Evils, and done what hath lain in me to stop some from uncovering your secret Parts, and publishing your Abominations on the Housetop? But it was beyond my Power, for the Just GOD had decreed it so to be, that the same measure you had meted to others, should be measured to you again; yet all this hath not humbled you, but you are as Proud, Stiffnecked and Rebellious as ever; wherefore, GOD himself will yet humble you, and in that ●ay your Hypocrites covering shall be too short; you, lukewarm Professors, GOD will spew you out: Dare you pretend to so high a Dispensation, and walk in the Blackness of Darkness, wherein some of you are fallen, as was Prophesied of you Years ago.  
I shall speak not more here, for the tender regard I have to some among you, but declare the rest to you in Writing, and shall expect you to prove your Lies, or otherwise take what they will produce upon your own Heads, for I value not my own Name, but the Precious Name of the LORD, which I profess, whose Honour and Glory is more to me than Ten Thousand times Ten Thousand Lives; and so consider these things, you, whose Malice is your Laws, and whose Religion is vain, that knows not a Bridle to your False, Envious Tongues, how easily may you be proved to be no Christians? For, by their Fruits you shall know them, saith Christ; so your Fruits makes you manifest whose Servants you are; for according as your Fruits are, so shall your Judgement be; and you above others who pretend to the highest Knowledge of GOD shall be Condemned, For if the Light the is in you be Darkness, how great is that Darkness?  
The next I am to speak to, are such who please themselves with the Passion, Death, and Satisfaction of Christ, and do apply and impute the same to themselves, as a Pardon or Gift of Favour, and yet remains still Unregenerated, Worldly, and Sensual; such a Christian is every ungodly Man; and to those, I say, the Devil would be an Angel again upon such terms as Grace applied from without; but to forsake his Craft, Subtilty, Pride, Deceit, Self-love, with all the rest of his Serpent's Nature, to be Born again, and to become as a little Child in Innocency, Humility, and God's Heavenly Love, this pleases him not, neither doth it please the Titular Christian, who would put upon himself the covering of Christ's Grace, and apply his Merits unto himself, by an Historical laying Claim to a Promise, and yet will not enter into the Adoption and New birth, altho' Christ saith, He that goes another way, is a Thief and a Robber, and shall never enter the Kingdom of God. For what is Born of the Flesh is Flesh, saith Christ; and, to be Fleshly-minded, saith the Apostle, is Enmity against God: But to be Spiritually minded is Life and Peace. And with this Spiritual Mind the Servants of the LORD ever served their LORD and Master, and do still serve him with all their might, and with all their strength; yea, with all their might they give up their Hearts, according as he requires, saying, Son give me thy Heart; and so they give it him, with Body, Soul and Spirit, for Him to dispose of, as seems good in His sight, and as may be most for His Glory; they offer up all to Him as a whole  offering in His own Flaming Love, which he hath sh●● abroad in their Hearts, that fills them to the brim, so that their Cup overflows; and therefore cannot but Invite all to taste and see how good the LORD ●s; for the Love of Christ constrains us to keep his Commandments, who said, When thou art Converted, Strengthen thy Brethrens; and thus he calls us to the Heavenly Banquet of his Love, to Eat and Drink with Him at His Table, whose Meat was to do the Will of His Heav● lie Father, as He said, Sacrifices and Offerings thou wouldst not; than said I, Lo I com● in the Volume of the Book, as it is written of me, to do thy Will, O my GOD, my Body as thou hast prepared. And to us, sai● he, Learn of me to do the Will of God, a● I have done the Will of GOD, and forsake yourselves, as I have forsaken myself of ● my Glory, both Heavenly and Earthly, a● betook myself to Watching, Prayer, an● Fasting, for a defence against all the Assault and Temptations of the Devil, and all Ev● Spirits, their Lies, Revile, Mocking Envy, and Slanders; and to be willing 〈◊〉 bear and endure all things for my Name Sa● as I endured my FATHER'S Anger an● Wrath for your Sakes; and here you answer the End of my Sufferings, and a●● workers together with me, and not against me, if you forsake the Devil and all his Works, as you have vowed in Baptism, which are the Pride, Pomps, Pleasures, and Vanities of this World, Covetousness, and all Self, desiring nothing but the Glory of God, and that his W● may be done in your Earth as it is in Heaven; if you do these things, than are yo● my Disciples, saith Christ; but not otherwise: Not, true Christians, Please yourselves with your Historical Faith, and Feed thereon; but you shall starve in the End, as the Swineherd did when h● went from his Father's House to Feed upon Husks; for this know, to believe ●arely in the outward Sufferings and ●eath of Christ, without having an in●ard Life and Power of Faith, to give ●e Victory over Sin and Iniquity, is Tabel and Confusion: And an External imputed Righteousness, and the External Assumed Adoption, and Particular Election and Rejection, or Reprobation from eternity, is without Foundation; for Christ said, You must be born again, or ●lse you cannot enter the Kingdom of God. ●o you may see, if your Eyes were open, where He hath placed the Election, that ●t is in the New Birth, and the Resurrection in the Old: Jacob and Esau, who were ●s Types or Figures of this; in Jacob was placed the Election, for he was a Type ●nd Figure of Christ, in his Obedience, Humility, Sufferings, and Selfdenying ●afe, and loved the Election, so as to ●uy it with a Price; in Esau the Rejection, for he Rejected his Election, a● Despised it, so as to cell his Birth-rig● for a Mess of Pottage, and so was R● jected, but not that he was Personals and wholly from all Eternity, Predest● nated to Damnation; this is a great mistake from a False Faith, for whatsoever was Evil in Jacob was Rejected of God, as well as in Esau; but here was the Figure, as indeed most the Old Testament is a Figure of the New, till ● comes to Christ, the End of all Types Figures and Shadows of good things t● come, and in Him the Figure stands i● the Divine Power, who is the Holy Seed to which all the Promises are made, wh● doth bruise the Head of the Serpent ● us, if we yield up our Bodies, Souls an● Spirits to Him, to work in us all hi● good Pleasure; For to as many as receive● him, to them he gave Power to become th● Sons of God. For, as I said before, Go● placed his Love, or hatred, in two Seeds wherein is the Election or Reprobation; that is, Jacob and Esau, who was a Typ● or Figure of the declared Will of God in the refusing the one, and choosing th● other. Now, pray observe, that tho● these two came out of one Womb, yet ●ere they of contrary Natures, the one as a cunning Hunter; that is, Crafty, ●●tle, Selfended, Wild-man, and so a Reprobate; therefore God hated him, or that Spirit in him: But Jacob was a plain, innocent, selfdenying Man; therefore God Loved him, as Christ said of Nathaniel, Behold an Israelite indeed in whom there is no Guile: So, in these two are placed the Election or Reprobation; in the Good the Election; and in the Evil the Reprobation; and not that GOD Ordered it so in the beginning: Not, not; for than how is Man's Destruction of himself? Or, how shall the LORD be clear of his Blood? For, shall not the Judge 〈◊〉 all the Earth do Justice? Yea, let GOD ●e True, and every Man a Liar, Perfect ●s the Work of the Mighty GOD, for all His Ways are Judgement. GOD is True ●nd without Wickedness, Just and Righteous is he; but they have corrupted themselves towards Him, by their Vices, not being his Children, but a froward and crooked Generation, Deut. 23. Wherhfore Men ●ught to Dread and Fear before the might GOD, in putting such Conclusions concerning the Children of GOD, a● God had, out of his own purpose, beg● ten Condemnation to One, and hardn● him, that he could not come to the 〈◊〉 doption; and chosen to himself another that he could not be Lost: This is a● groundless Fiction, there is no Foundation from Nature, or from the Holy Scripture for it: It proceeds from the Darkness of the Bottomless Pit; this ha●● been one great Cause why so many ha● run to desperation; for, instead of destroying Sin in them, they have destroyed themselves; this makes voided the offerings and Death of Christ for all Mankind; than where is the Universal L●● of GOD to all? O do not have su● hard thoughts of GOD, as that he wou● have but a few Saved, for his Will 〈◊〉 That all should be Saved, but Man will no● You will not come to me, saith Christ, th● you may have Life; all the Holy Father and Patriarches, as Adam, Noah, Abraha● Isaac and Jacob, were Figures, there a● always two Figures Represented; Chri● and Adam, a Good and a Evil Man: A● so Cain, Ham, Ishmael, and Esau, we● Ties of the Corrupt Man; and A● 〈…〉 Isaac and Jacob, were Types of 〈…〉, who opened himself in the Di 〈…〉 Covenant, and set himself forth ●●ough these Holy Men: Before the corrupt Children of Adam, as a Light ●feshew them the Evil of their Ways, and a Preacher to Convert them: For God did not sand His Son into the World, to Condemn and Destroy the World; Poor miserable corrupt Man! But he sent Him into the World, among the Godless Crew of Evil Men of all sorts, Professors and Profane, to call them from their Evil Ways, that they, through doing his Will, might be saved from their Sins, is it is written, The Willing and the Obelient shall eat the good of the Land. So we see it's not only the Will, but the Obedience that GOD requires; and by this GOD will not accept the Will without ●he Deed: Not, for than he must do more ●or Man than he did for his Son Jesus Christ, who humbled himself to the Death, to satisfy his Father's Wrath, and ●ve must do the same that He did, humble our Souls to the Death of all Sin and ●niquity; this is the Duty of every true Christian, to go through that Agony of Soul our Saviour went through, or 〈…〉 ●●ceptance with God; we must brin● 〈…〉 our Honour, Glory, Name, Fame, the interest, Pride, Deceit, worldly P●●sures, Worldly-mindedness, Malici● Envy against the Innocent, Justifying 〈◊〉 Wicked, and Condemning the Righteous, or whatever else is Abominable in the sight of God, all which must he brought to the Cross of Christ, to he Crucified and Slain to us, and we dead 〈◊〉 such Works of Darkness, and after a full Redemption from all Sin and Iniquity than to live in the deepest Humility 〈◊〉 looking upon ourselves to be what we are, that is, just nothing, and God to be all; giving him the Glory of al● his own Works, who works all ou● Works in us, and for us, unto whom be Thanks, Honour, and Glory, Now, and for Ever; and thus to be Baptised into his Death, and to have the Fellowship of his Sufferings, otherwise no satisfying the Wrath, or appeasing the Anger of God, without which no● Remission of Sins; for it is with the unconverted Soul as it was with Hagar when she fled from her Mistress Sarah, the Angel 〈…〉 of the Lord met with her by the way, ●●bid her return and humble herself to 〈◊〉 Mistress; this Hagar, and Ishmael, 〈◊〉 in her Womb, was a Type of the inregenerated state of all Mankind in their First Birth, who are Mockers, Scoffers, and Runagates from God; for the Rebellious Self-will of Nature was in Ishmael, which he received from his Mother Hagar, which was a Mocker of the New birth, out of which stock Esau took his Wives in contempt, disdain, and spite to his Father and Mother; the Ishmaelites who were of the Line of Mockery, which was great grief of Heart, and anxiety of Soul to Isaac and Rebeccah, and the same Spirit rules to this Day in the Children of Disobedience of all sorts, but especially many of the Church of England, who are the greatest Mockers, Scoffers, and Revilers of all sorts, but their own Sect, that this Age can produce, insomuch, that a Man or Woman who fears God, can hardly pass along the Streets, without being branded with Nicknames, as Presbyter, Quaker, or such like; but especially if they are not in the same Excess of Pride in Habit that they are in, than they are made a Scorn and a Deri● to Fools; or as an Owl among spec●● Birds, and that by those of Older Ye● as well as Children, who profess, 〈…〉 preach Christ in Words, but in Works deny him; who commanded them that professed him, to follow him in his Footsteps; and his Apostle Peter, who saw his Glory and Transfiguration in the Mount, commanded also, that those that professed the Gospel of Christ, should not Adorn themselves as they did in the time of their Ignorance of Christ, naming in particularly, not in broidring the Hair, not in Rich and Costly Attire, Gold and Silver, and such like; but alas! How do the Babylonish Dresses of our Age, fit for Stage players than Christians, as you might view yourselves in Bartholomew Fair, exceeding all former Ages of the World; and those that do not run in the same Excess with you, are made an Abomination to you, crying out against them as Heretics, for not worshipping your Idol-gods, your Heathen-dresses; is this to follow Christ in his Footsteps, to be Adorned with the hidden Man of the Heart, which is Christ in you, the Hope of Glory; and to be Adorned in Modest Apparel, as be●●s the Gospel of Christ, that, as he who 〈◊〉 called you is Holy, so for you to be ●oly in all manner of your Life and Conversation, seeing, that without Holiness none shall see GOD: But perhaps you will think of yourselves, we are Holy, we keep close to the Church, or we keep close to Meetings; Friends, I must tell you, that is as great an Abomination as the other, for you to appear before the Lord as his People, when your Hearts goes a Whoring from him after your Idols, and Cursed Inventions; this is to mock God, and abuse your Liberty; is this to Worship God as Christ commands? Is this to follow the Examples of good Old Jacob, the Type and Figure of Christ, who buried all his Idols under the Oak at Sechem, before he went up to Bethel to Build an Altar to worship the Lord God, who appeared to him when he fled from his Brother Esau, as he himself said, when he commanded his Household, and all that were with him, saying, Put away the strange gods that are among you, and cleanse yourselves, and change your Garments, for we will rise from hence, and go up to Bethel, and I will make an Altar the● unto God, which heard me in the Day of 〈◊〉 Tribulation, and was with me in the W●● which I went; and than they gave unto 〈◊〉 cob all the strange gods which were in their Hands, and all their Earrings that were in their Ears; and Jacob hide them under the Oak at Sechem; than they went on their Journey, and the fear of God was upon the Cities that were round about them, so that they did not follow after the Sons of Jacob, for their Cruel Murder at Sechem, which was the high Favour of GOD to preserve them from their Enemies: You may also see what Acceptance they had with GOD for this great Work of Reformation; you may also read in the History, how the severe Hand of GOD followed Jacob whilst their strange gods were amongst them, from his departing from Laban to Bethel; first, how Laban pursued him, than Esau came against him; Rachel's Nurse died by the way, Dinah's Ravishment, the Murder at Sechem, and his Beloved Rachel died by the way.  
O England! England! And thou London, the City of Abominations, this is thy state at this time; therefore put away your strange gods from among you, and 〈◊〉 your Idols out of the sight of the Ho●● GOD; cleanse yourselves of all your idolatrous Ways and Worships, change your filthy Garments, both of Flesh and Spirit, which the Idols of your Abominations have polluted, and come to Judgement; Repent, and come to Judgement; Judge yourselves, Abhor your Sins, and yourselves for sinning thus out the Day of your Precious Visitation, and GOD's Long Forbearance, casting all your Abominations out of his sight; and, every one with their Hands upon their Loins, mourning for your Iniquities, as a Woman in strong Travail, and bitter Pains, for your so often offending so Gracious a GOD, piercing and grieving the Holy Spirit of so Dear, Merciful, and Loving a FATHER, who waits to be Gracious, and hath no pleasure in the Death of a Sinner, but would have him turn from his evil Ways and live; wherefore, he in his Boundless Love, hath set before them Life and Death for them to choose, only here it is stated, he that will have Life, must go through Death for it, through the Flaming Sword that turns every way, which must separate you from your Levers and Lust; I say, the Flaming Swor● which he hath placed at the Garden 〈◊〉 Eden, to keep the way of the Tree of Life, which Flaming Sword is the Suffering Life of Jesus, the Son of GOD, which he hath ordained for Man's Redemption, that is, to be Baptised into his Death, and to Suffer with him, as he hath appointed, both in Soul and Body, Internal and External, which the Soul is called to it, in our own Souls, to know that bitter Agony for our sinning against him, that he knew for our Sins against his Heavenly Father; and thus the Wrath of GOD is Satisfied, and his Anger Appeased, by treading into his Son's Steps, by working with him, and not without him; without him we can do nothing, but in him, and through him, in the powerful working of his Holy Spirit in us, we can do all things, destroy the Devil and all his Works, in him Victoriously Triumphing over Death, Hell, and the Grave, and all this by his Divine Power working in us, which Glorious Power must be always waited for as at the Pool of Bethsaida, in the deepest Poverty of Spirit, in that Poverty of Spirit which Christ gave the ●lessing to, in his Blessed Sermon which ●e preached upon the Mount, in the deepest Sense of our Impotency, waiting upon GOD in the Living Faith which gives the Victory; for without the Faith of the Son of God, it is impossible to please God; but by believing in his Power, and setting a holy Watch over our own Souls, continually praying, intentively waiting to receive what we pray for, and this is his way which he will be found in, and wherein he himself walked, when he was upon the Earth; and thus you are workers with him in his Vineyard; and, abiding in him the Vine, you shall receive Power to bring forth Fruit, both to God and Man; for he is the Power and the Glory, and if you abide in him, and he in you, you shall receive an Unction from the Holy One, that shall teach you all things, and you shall have no need for any Man to teach you, but as the same Anointing teacheth you, so shall you abide in it: Here is the Teacher of Teachers, as Moses, the Man of GOD, said, None like GOD, O Righteous People, who Rideth upon the Heavens for thy help, and on the Clouds in his Glory; the Everlasting God thy Refuge, and under his Arm thou art p● served for Ever; he shall cast out the Even before thee; and, by the Word of his Powe● destroy them; than the Beloved of the Lord shall devil in safety, in a Land of Wheat and Wine, and his Heaven shall drop with Dew. Here you may see what shall be done to the Man whom the King delighteth to Honour; for the Man that comes to the Unction of the Holy One, to the Anointing Power, he ceaseth from Man, whose Breath is in his Nostrils: Oh! What an Eternal Good would it be to all Mankind, to come to the Teaching of God's Holy Spirit in himself; and than, from the beginning of the stirring Motions thereof, to keep close to God in that frame of Spirit, which Christ Commands; to Watch and Pray-continually, and whatever the Soul wants ask it of God, who gives liberally, and upbraideth none; and not to go out to the Creatures, to no Man or Woman upon the Earth, except God requires, but to keep close to GOD in this diligent, watchful state, in close Communion with the Lord; let the inspeakings of your Souls be to GOD, seeing it is, as Christ said, That whatsoever is to be known of GOD, it is manifest within you; therefore keep within, go not out, for without you shall found Dogs, Wolves, and Tigers, which will tear and devour the Precious Food of Christ's Flesh and Blood from you; but within you shall found Christ, the Hope of Glory, who by his Heavenly Manna, and Virtuous Power, shall Heal your wounded Souls, and Redeem you, by his Precious Blood, from all your Sins, Weaknesses, Frailties, and Backslidings; but than you must come to him, and not run away from him to the broken Cisterns, and will not come to him the Fountain, when he Invites you to him, saying, Come unto me all you that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you Rest; and you shall found Rest for your Souls: And, Dear Friends and People, this is the very reason why you do not found Rest, because you do not come to Him, who is the True and Everlasting Rest to the People of GOD, but runs away from Him, the Power of GOD, to the Creatures, from Man to Man, from Mountain to Hill, and so you weary yourselves in the Fire, and brings forth nothing but your own Works, which must be burnt up●● for, when he comes to call you to an Account for the Talent he gave you, and finds it not Improved, than his Wrath is kindled against you, and than in vain you may call to the Mountains and Hills, in whom ye trusted, to cover you from the Wrath of the Lamb.  
For Christ himself positively said, Neither in this Mountain, nor that Mountain, will the Father be Worshipped, but in Spirit and in Truth: Wherhfore, in vain is all your Worship, from the highest to the lowest out of the Spirit of Christ, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the Sin: But, O the Love of Christ! How Undeclareable is it in calling the Soul to him; Come unto me; come of from the barren Mountains, and the exalted Hills, down, down, into the low Valley; Learn of me, for I am Meek and Lowly, and you shall found rest unto your Souls: But did he bid them go to this Man, or that Man: Not; but, quite contrary, commands to Cease from Man, whose Breath is in his Nostrils; For wherein, saith the Prophet, is he to be accounted of: Indeed Christ, in his Complaint, sent them to the Scripture, saying, Search the Scripture, for in them you think 〈◊〉 have Eternal Life; and them are they 〈◊〉 Testify of me; but you will not come to 〈◊〉, that you may have Life: ●●or, being they were so Ignorant of the Internal, and their Wills so strong for the External, he sends them to the Scriptures, which is as much as to say, there you have the Literal Knowledge of me; but what will that avail you, seeing that is but the Shell, and my Life the Kernel: Will the Shell ●ourish you without the Meat: Not more will the External Knowledge of me and ●y Sufferings, declared in the Scriptures ●f Truth, avail you, without the Powerful Operation of my Holy Spirit working in you, out of the Old Nature of Sin and Iniquity, into the New Life of Holiness and Righteousness; but the Husk will serve the Prodigal to feed on, whilst his time is out, and than he shall be called to an Account for his running away from his Father's House; for the Complaint is, You will not come to him that you may have Life: Not but that the Holy Scriptures are of most excellent Use, to them who are upright in Heart and Soul, who loves the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Everlasting Truth, more than their Pernicio● Ways; such are as the labouring Bees t● suck Sweetness out of every thing, 〈◊〉 turns all to a right and good Use; but 〈◊〉 idle Drone, devours all, and no Fruit 〈◊〉 be seen of the Bees Labour, but turns all into its Droanish Nature; so doth all that Reads the Precious Scriptures, that treat of the Life and Death of Christ; with their dark Lights, as Christ saith, If the Light that is in you, be Darkness, how great is that Darkness: If they come not to the Spirit of God, that gave forth the Scriptures to Interpret, and give them the right Understanding of them.   

Epistle of Pastor Bartholomew Tertian, written to the Waldensian Churches of the Valley of Pragela; thus Translated, JESUS Be with you.  
To all our Faithful and Wellbeloved Brethrens in Christ Jesus, Health and Salvation be with you all, Amen.  
THESE are to put you in Remembrance, and to Admonish you, my ●ethren, hereby Acquainting myself of at Duty, which I own unto you all in 〈◊〉 behalf of God; Principally touching 〈◊〉 Care of your Soul's Salvation, accord 〈◊〉 to that Light of the Truth, which 〈◊〉 most High God hath bestowed on us; ●●at it would please every one of you, to ●rease, Maintain and Nourish, to the ut●most of your Power, without Dimi●●tion those good Beginnings and Ex●ples, which have been left unto us by 〈◊〉 Forefathers; whereof we are no ●●s worthy; for it would little profit us to have been renewed by the Father Visitation, and the Light which 〈◊〉 been given us of God; if we give 〈◊〉 selves to worldly carnal Conversation which are Diabolical, Abandoning 〈◊〉 Principle, which is God, and the Salvation of our Souls, for this short and Temporeal Life; for the Lord saith, What doth it profit a Man, to gain the whole World, and lose his own Soul: For it would be better for us never to have known the Way of Righteousness, than, having known it, to do the contrary. Let m● therefore entreat you, by the Love of God that you decrease not, nor look bac● but rather increase the Charity, Fear an● Obedience, which is due unto God, and to yourselves, amongst yourselves; and stand fast in all those good Principles which you have heard and understood o● God, by our means; and that you would remove from amongst you all vain Conversation and evil Surmises, Troubling the Peace, the Love, the Concord; and whatsoever would indispose and deaden your Mind to the Service of God, your own Salvation, and the Administration of the Truth; if you desire that God should be Merciful to you, in your Goods Tempo●● and Spiritual, for you can do nothing 〈◊〉 thou't him; and if you desire to be ●irs of his Glory, do that which he Commandeth, if you would enter into Life, ●eep my Commandments, Mat. 19.17.  
Likewise, be careful that there be not Nourished amongst you any Sports, Gluttony, Whoredom, Dance, nor any lewdness or Riot, nor Questions, nor Deceits, nor Usury, nor Discords; neither support or entertain any Persous of a Wicked Conversation, or scandal or ill Example amongst you: But let Charity and Fidelity Reign amongst you, and all good Example, doing to one another as every one desires should be done unto him; for otherwise it is impossible that any should be Saved, or can have the Grace of God, or be good Men in this World, or have Glory in another.  
And therefore, if you hope and desire to possess Eternal Life, to Live in Good Esteem and Credit, and to Prospero in this World, in your Goods Temporal and Spiritual, Purge yourselves from all disorderly Ways, to the End that God may be always with you, who forsakes not those that trust in him; but know 〈◊〉 for certain, that God heareth not, 〈◊〉 dwelleth with Sinners, nor in the So that is given up unto Wickedness, nor 〈◊〉 the Man that is subject to Sin: Therefore let every one cleanse the ways of his Heart, and flee the Danger if he would not Perish therein.  
I have no other thing to writ at this present, but that you would put in Practice these things, and the God of Peace be with you all, and go along with us, and be present amongst us, in all our sincere, humble and fervent Prayers; and that he will be pleased to Save all those his Faithful that trust in Christ Jesus.  
Entirely Yours, to do your Service in all things possible, according to the Will of God. Bartholomew Tartain.  
In the Year of Rome 720. and in the 43. Year of the Age of Marcus Aurelius, upon the 20. Day of August, about Sunset, at Palermo, a Seaport in the Isle of Sicily, there chanced a thing Perilous to 〈◊〉 who than saw it, and no lesle 〈◊〉 readful to them who heard of it after●●ards; whilst they of Palermo were celebrating a great Feast, with much Joy, for the great Spoils which they had taken at Sea from the Numidians, and which the Pirates purposed to divide among themselves, they were partly prevented by the Magistrates, and partly by the said Accident; for when the People were returned to their Houses, there appeared in the City a Dreadful Monster in this Form, He seemed to be of the length of three Cubits, his Head was Bald, so that his Skull did appear, he had no Ears, but two Holes in his Neck, whereby it was supposed he heard, he had two  Horns like a Goat, his right Arm was longer than his left, and his Hands were like the Hoofs of Horses, his Shoulders and Head were both of one height, his Shoulders shined like the skirts of a Fish, his Breast was Airy, his Face, in all things, like unto a Man, save that he had but one Eye in the midst of his Forehead, and but one Nostril; from the middle downward nothing could be seen, because he sat in a Chariot which concealed 〈◊〉 the Chariot was in Fashion like 〈◊〉 Chariots than used, and drawn 〈◊〉 Four Beasts, two Lions before, and tw● Bears behind; within the Chariot stoo● a great Cauldron, with Ears, wherein this Monster sat; it wandered a grea● pace through the City, from one Gate to another, casting out Sparks of Fire, which caused so great a Fear throughout the City, that Women with Child Miscarried, and some Died out right with Fear: Men and Women, great and small ran to the Temple of Jupiter and Mars, and Februa, making Importunate Prayers, with sad Cries; at the same time the Pirates were in the Governors' Palace, whose name was Solyno, Born at Copula, and in that Palace, the Spoils being kept; there the Monster came, after it had wandered through the City: And cutting of one of the Lion's Ears, wrote with the Blood thereof upon the Palace Gate these Letters, R. A. S. V P. I. P. P. These Letters were diversely Interpreted, so that the Interpretations were more than the Letters: but in the End a Prophetess, greatly Esteemed for her Sense, opened the true meaning ●f the Letters: This was the Sub●ance.  
Tender to other Men that which belongs to them, if you will possess in Peace that which is your own.  
The Pirates were wonderfully afraid of this Command, and the Woman highly Commended for her Exposition, but the Injunction was not obeyed: The Monster went the same Night out of the City unto an Hill named Jamicia, and there remained three Days within sight of the City; the Lions and Bears terribly Roaring, and the Monster casting forth Flames; during all which time there was neither Bird seen in the Air, nor Beast in the Field near that place; and the People offered great Sacrifices to the Gods, yea their own Blood to appease their Wrath; three Days being passed, there appeared in the Element a marvellous dark Cloud, seeming to Darken the will Earth, and than it began to Thunder and Lighten so terrible that many Men Died, and divers Houses fell to the Ground; and at last there came such a Flame of Fire from the Monster that it burned the Palace where the 〈◊〉 rates were, and all that was there 〈◊〉 Consuming the very Stones thereo● yea the Tempest was so great that th●● fell above two Thousand Houses, a●d more than ten Thousand Persons Died in the said Tempest, in that place where the Monster stood; upon the same Hill the Emperor built a Sumptuous Temple to Jupiter in Memorial thereof; of which Temple Alexander the Emperor made afterwards a strong Castle, this is taken out of the Epistles of Marcus Aurelius the Emperor.  
Thus you have an Evidence of two Witnesses, one of Divine Credit, and the other Recorded by one of greatest Fame among Heathen Philosophers and Emperors, to show how Dangerous it is to neglect Justice, and not to Tender to every Man his own when God Requires it to be done.  
You see your Work, and what is to be done; that it is not your Contending about the Body of the Ever Blessed Saviour, which was the Pure Case or Holy Temple where his Glorious Heavenly Life was closed in, they must be Infidels ●eed who deny that, if ever he had 〈◊〉 Christ to them, for the very De●●emselves, who are in Chains of ●●●ness, confesseth both his Humanity ●●d Divinity. But he, the Blessed, would ●ot Accept of their Confession, because ●●ey were not in the Life of that they ●●d Confess to; you may see it's an easy ●●ing to confess to the Truth, from a ●●ght of it, but this will not do the Souls Work; not, it's the Life that is to be ex●lted above all Knowledge, all External Knowledge; but it's Eternal Life to know the Lord, and Jesus Christ, whom he hath sent in the Powerful Operation of his Holy Spirit working out the Old, and working in the New; that, by the tasting and handling of him, the Word of Life, we may have the Fellowship of his Sufferings; and so know the Power of his Resurrection; and this is saving Knowledge, to be Baptised into his Death which will bring the Soul into the real Possession of his Eternal Love, which is Everlasting Life; as a most Excellent Man said, Assure yourself there is no security in any State, but that of Dying and Anhilation, which is to be Baptised into Christ's Death, that we Live the 〈◊〉 Mortification; our best way is th● to divest ourselves of all, that 〈◊〉 Child Jesus may Govern all; all that 〈◊〉 be Imagined in this lower World is 〈◊〉 small Concernment, tho' it were th● losing all our Goods, and the Death 〈◊〉 all in it; this poor Anthil is not worth● of a serious Thought, had we but a litt●● Faith and Love, how happy should w● Esteem ourselves, in giving away all to attend not more, save on God alone, and to say, my God, and my all; let us therefore Encourage ourselves to lead this Life, unknown and wholly hid from Man, but most known and intimate with God, divesting ourselves and chase out of our Minds all those many Superfluities and many Amusements which brings with them so great a Damage, that they take up our Minds instead of God; so that when I considered that which thwarts and cuts into so many pieces, this Holy, this Sweet and Amiable Union which we should have continually with God; it appears that it is only a Mounsieur, a Madam, a Compliment and Chatting; indeed a mere Foolery; which, notwithstanding, doth ●●vish and wrist from us the time that is so Precious, and the fellowship that is so Holy and so ; there is nothing in this World so separate from the World as God, and the greater the Saints are, the greater is their Retirement into him: This our Saviour taught whilst he Lived on Earth, being in all his Visible Employments united to God, and retired into the Bosom of his Father.  
Here was a Man Mortified to the World, and Quickened to some tastes of a Supernatural Lise, adorned with so much Zeal and Piety, tho' a Young Noble Man of admirable Parts, as well as great Birth; as History Relates.  
Next a Man of great Fame, Sr. W●●●er Raleigh, being an Extraordinary Man, as our Nation has produced his Advice to his Son, viz. Exceed not in the Humour of Rags and Bravery, for these will soon wear out of Fashion: And no Man is esteemed for Gay Garments, but by Fools and Women. On the other side, seek not Richeses basely, nor attain them by evil Means: Destroy no Man for his Wealth, nor take any thing from 〈◊〉 Poor; for the Cry thereof will pierce● Heavens: And it is most detestable, afore God, and most dishonourable befog worthy Men, to wrist any thing fro● the Needy and Labouring Soul: Go● will never Prospero thee, if thou offende● therein [A most worthy Saying! But h● adds,] Have Compassion on the Poor and Afflicted, and God will Bless thee for it▪ Make not the Hungry Soul sorrowful; for if he Curse thee in the Bitterness of his Soul, his Prayer shall be heard of him that made him. Now, for the World (dear Child) I know it too well, to persuade thee to dive into the Practices of it; rather stand upon thy own Guard against all those that tempt thee to it, or may practise upon thee; whether in thy Conscience, thy Reputation or thy Estate: Resolve that no Man is Wise or Safe, but he that's Honest. Serve God; let him be the Author of all thy Actions: Commend all thy Endeavours to him, that must either whither or prospero them: Please him with Prayer; lest, if he frown, he confounded all thy Fortune and Labour, like the Drops of Rain upon the Sandy Ground. Let my Experienced Advice, 〈◊〉 Fatherly Instruction sink deep into 〈◊〉 Heart: So God direct thee in all thy ●●ys, and fill thy Heart with his Grace.   

Two Letters from the Minister of Port-Royal, in Jamaica, June 22. 1692.  

Dear Friend,  
Doubt not but you will, both from 〈◊〉 Gazettes and Letters, hear of the ●reat Calamity that hath befallen this ●sland by a Terrible Earthquake, on the ●th. Instant, which hath thrown down almost all the Houses, Churches, Sugar-Works, Mills and Bridges through the whole Country. It tore the Rocks and Mountains, and destroyed some whole Plantations, and threw them into the Sea, but Port-Royal had much the greatest share in this terrible Judgement of God; I will therefore be more particular in giving you an Account of its Pro●eedings in that place, that you may know what my Danger was, and how unexpected my Preservation. On Wednesday the 7th of June, I had bee● Church Reading Prayers, which I 〈◊〉 every Day since I was Rector of P● Royal, to keep up some show of Religion among a most Ungodly Debauche● People, and was gone to a place hard b● the Church, where the Merchants use to meet, and where the Precedent of th● Council was, who acts now in Chie●● till we have a new Government; wh● came into my Company, and engage● me to take a Glass of Wormwood Wine with him, as a whet before Dinner, he being my very great Friend, I stayed with him, upon which, he lighted a Pipe of Tobacco, which he was pretty long a taking; and not being willing to leave him before it was out, this detained me from going to Dinner to one Captain Ruden's, where I was to Dine 〈◊〉 whose House upon the first Concussion Sunk first into the Earth, and than into the Sea, with his Wife and Family, and some that were come to Dine with him; had I been there, I had been lost. But to Return to the Precedent, and his Pipe of Tobacco; before that was out, I found the Ground rolling and moving under my Feet, upon which I said to 〈◊〉 ●ord, Sir, what's this? He replyingly Composedly, being a very Grave an, It is an Earthquake, be not afraid, will soon be over; but it increased, and ●e heard the Church and Tower fall, ●on which we ran to save ourselves; 〈◊〉 quickly lost him, and made toward morgan's- Fort; which, being a wide o●en place, I thought to be there secu●est from the falling Houses: But as 〈◊〉 made toward it, I saw the Earth open ●nd swallow up a Multitude of People, ●nd the Sea mounting in upon us over the Fortifications. I than laid aside all thoughts of escaping, & resolved to make toward my own Lodging, and there to meet Death in as good a Posture as I could: From the Place where I was, I was forced to cross and run through two or three very narrow Streets, the Houses and Walls fell on each side of me, some Bricks came rolling over my Shoes, but none hurt me; when I came to my Lodging, I found there all things in the same order I left them, not a Picture, of which there were several fair ones in my Chamber, being out of its place, I went to my Balcony to view the Street in whiee● House stood, and saw never as I down there, nor the Ground so●m uncracked; the People seeing me the●● cried out to me to come and Pray wi●● them; when I came into the Street, every one laid hold on my  and embraced me, that with their fear and kindness I was almost stifled; I persuaded them at last to kneel down and make a large Ring, which they did, I prayed with them near an Hour, when I was almost spent with the heat of the Sun, and the Exercise, they than brought me a Chair, the Earth working all the while with new motions, and tremble, like the rollings of the Sea; insomuch that sometimes when I was at Prayer I could hardly keep myself upon my Knees. By that time I had been half an hour longer with them, in setting before them their Sins and heinous Provocations, and in seriously exhorting them to Repentance, there came some Merchants to me of the Place, who desired me to go aboard some Ship in the Harbour, and Refresh myself, telling me that they had gotten a Boat to carry me of; so coming 〈…〉 the Sea, which had entirely swal●● wed up the Wharf, with all those goodly Brick Houses upon it, most of them as fine as those in Cheapside, and too Entire Streets beyond that: I, upon the tops of some Houses which lay leveled with the surface of the Water, got first into a Canoe, and than into a Longboat, which put me Aboard a Ship, called the Siam-Merchant, where I found the Precedent safe, who was overjoyed to see me; there I continued that Night, but could not Sleep for the returns of the Earthquake almost every hour, which made all the Guns in the Ship to jar and rattle: The next day I went from Ship to Ship to Visit those that were Bruised and a Dying, and to Pray with them, and likewise to do the last Office at the sinking of several Corpse that came floating from the Point, which indeed hath been my sorrowful Employment ever since I came Aboard this Ship, with design to come for England, we having nothing but Shakes of the Earth, and Thunder and Lightning, and foul Wether ever since; and the People being so desperately Wicked, it makes me afraid to stay 〈◊〉 that Place; for that very Day this scribble Earthquake was, as soon as Nigh came on, a Company of lewd Rogu● whom they called Privateers, fallen 〈◊〉 breaking open Warehouses, and House deserted, to Rob and Rifle their Neigh● bours whilst the Earth Trembled under them, and some of the Houses fell on them in the Act: And those audations Whores, that remain still upon the Place, are as Impudent, and Drunken as ever. I have been twice on Shoar to Pray with the Bruised and Dying People, and to Christian Children, where I met too many Drunk and Swearing, I did not spare them, nor the Magistrates neither, who have suffered Wickedness to grow to so great a height; I have, I bless God, to the best of my skill and power, discharged my Duty in this place, which you will hear from persons that come from hence; I have Preached so seasonably to them, and so plain in the last Sermon I Preached to them in the Church; I set before them what would be the Issue of their Impenitence, and Wickedness, that they have since confessed, that it was more like a Prophe●● than a Sermon; I had, I confess, an ●●pulse on me to do it: And many times ●ave Preached in this Pulpit, things ●hat I never premeditated at home, and could not, me-thought, do otherwise. The day when all this befell us was very clear, offered not the suspicion of the lest Evil; but in the space of three Minutes, about half an hour after Eleven in the Morning, Port-Royal, the fairest Town of all the English Plantations, the best Emporium and Mart of this part of the World, exceeding in its Richeses, plentiful of all good things, was shaken and shattered to pieces, and sunk into, and covered for the greatest part, by the Sea, and will in a short time be wholly eaten up by it; for few of those Houses that yet stand, are left whole, and every day we hear them fall, and the Sea daily incroaches upon it; we guests, that by the falling of the Houses, and opening of the Earth, and the inundation of the Waters, there are lost Fifteen Hundred Persons, and many of good note, of whom my good Friend Attorney General Musgrove, Provest Marshal Reves another, my Secretary Reves another, William. Tu● Thomas Turner's Brother, is lost, Mr● mer escaped, but his House-mate, 〈…〉 Watts, is lost.  
I came, I told you, on Board this Sh● in order to come, but the People are so importunate with me to stay, I know not what to say to them; I must undergo great hardships if I continued here, the Country being broken all to pieces and dissettled, I must live in a Hutt, eat Yams and Plantans for Bread, which I could never endure; drink Rumm-Punch and Water, which were never pleasing to me. I have writ to sand a● Younger Person, who may better endure the Fatigue of it than I can; but if I should leave them now, it would look very unnatural to leave them in their distress, and therefore whatever I suffer, I would not have such a blame lie at my Door; and I am resolved, that by reason of the present distress, to continue with them a Year longer: They are going all in haste to Build a new Town near the Rock in Linnavea, the Guardian of this Island. The French from Pituguaveis did attact this Island on the ●●rth side, but were all defeated and ●●stroy'd, it being about the time of the earthquake.   

June 28. 1692  
EVer since that fatal Day, the most terrible that ever I saw in my Life, I have Lived on Board a Ship, for the shake of the Earth return every now and than; Yesterday we had a very great one, but it seems lesle terrible on Shipboard than on Shoar, yet I have ventured to Port-Royal not lesle than three times since its Desolation, among the shattered Houses to Bury the Dead, and Pray with the Sick, and christian the Children. Sunday last I Preached among them in a Tent, the Houses that remain being so shattered, that I durst not venture to Preach in them; the People are overjoyed to see me among them, and wept bitterly when I Preached to them: I hope by this terrible Judgement, God will make them reform their Lives, for there was not a more ungodly People on the Face of the Earth. It is a sad sight to see all this Harbour, one the fairest and goodliest I ever saw● vexed with the Dead Bodies of Peony of all all Conditions floating up 〈◊〉 down without Burial, for our great 〈◊〉 famous Burial-place, called the Pallis●●does, was destroyed by the Earthquake, and the Sea washed the Carcases of those that were Buried out of their Graves, their Tombs being dashed to pieces by the Earthquake, of which there were Hundreds in that place: Multitudes of Rich Men are utterly ruin'd, whilst many that were Poor, by watching Opportunities, and searching the wracked and sunk Houses, even almost while the Earthquake lasted and Terror and Amazement were upon all the considerable People, have gotten great Richeses. We have had Accounts from several parts of these Islands, of the Mischiefs done by the Earthquake; from St. Ann's we hear of above 1000 Acres of Woodland changed into the Sea, and carried with it whole Plantations, but no place suffered like Port-Royal; where whole Streets were swallowed up by the opening Earth, and the Houses and Inhabitants went down together, some of ●hem were driven up again by the Sea, ●hich arose in those Breaches, and wonderfully escaped; some were swallowed up to the Neck, and than the Earth shut upon them, and squeezed them to Death; and in that manner several are left Buried with their Heads above Ground, only some Heads the Dogs have eaten, others are covered with Dust and Earth by the People which yet remain in the place, to avoid the stench. Thus I have told you a long and a sad Story, and God knows what worse may hap yet; the People tell me, that they hear great Bellow and Noises in the Mountains, which makes some very aphensive of an Eruption of Fire; if so, it will, I fear, be more destructive than the Earthquake. I am afraid to stay, and yet I know not how, in point of Conscience, at such a juncture as this, to quit my Station.    

These few following Lines were Occasiona●● writ, in Answer to one that was of 〈◊〉 Opinion, That there was nothing to do for the Creature, till the Day of God's Power of which Power she was Ignorant, and ho● to attain to it.  
IN the Day of my Power, saith the Lord, my People shall be a willing People; therefore we must wait upon God for the Day of his Power, for so the Lord Commands, whether he comes in the Second or Third Watch, we are to be found waiting in the Cross of Christ, which is the Day of his Power; The Cross of Christ, saith the Apostle, is the Power of God. Than it is not Wood, Gold, Silver, or precious Stones: Not, but the Power of God; here the Soul is to wait at the Pool of Bethsaida, for the Angels going down into the Water, John 3. And, tho' he tarries long, and others steps before thee, be not discouraged, but keep waiting for him; He that Believes, maketh not haste; he that will come, shall come, and will not tarry; he that will cure thee of thy Malady, if he finds thee waiting upon him, in the sense of thy own Poverty 〈◊〉 thine own Insufficiency; but be sure 〈◊〉 keep constantly waiting, and in deed Humility, for it is the Humble God will each; for, although he Loves his People, yet all his Saints are in his Hands, and they are Humbled at his Feet, to receive his Heavenly Commands, Deut. 33.  
Therefore, O my Soul! Be sure thou sit in the lowest place, that he that hath bidden thee to the Rich Banquet of his Eternal Love, may vouchsafe to say unto thee, Come up higher into the Contemplation of my Heavenly Life, where thou shalt see my Glory: Therefore help us, O Lord, to wait continually, and to do thy Will at all times; and do thou watch over us for Good, and keep thy Vineyard as thou hast promised, and Water it every moment, lest any hurt it, that the Plant of thy Renown, which thy own right Hand hath Planted, may prospero and grow as Lebanon, & as the Tree that's Planted by the Rivers of Waters, that is Replenished by the Glorious Sun of thy Love, to bring forth all manner of pleasant Fruit, delightful to thy taste; some Fifty, some Sixty, and some an Hundred Fold, of Holiness and Righteousness in the deepest Humility, 〈◊〉 profoundest Adoration, O God of 〈◊〉 Incorruptible Life, to thy Boundless P●● and our Endless Peace and Joy in thy Blessed Spirit, Amen.  

Concerning denying ourselves.  
There be some that say, not only in Actions, but presumptuously in Words, that they cannot deny themselves; than why do not such quit the Christian Profession, for if they cannot, nor will not deny themselves, than they are no Christians; for Christ saith positively, Ye cannot be my Disciples, except ye deny yourselves; it's not the Name, but the Nature of Christ's Life that makes a Christian, for they had a Name that they Lived, when they were Dead, Rev. 3. To these, saith the Spirit, awake and Repent; and if thou wilt not Watch, I will come on thee as a Thief, and thou shalt not know what Hour I will come upon thee. Than there were some that were neither cold nor hot, To them, saith the Spirit, because thou art neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out: In this State, see how the miserable Creature deceives itself, to think it is something, when it is worse than nothing; for thou sayest, ●●m Richardo, and Increased with Goods, and have ●●d of nothing; and knowest not how thou art ●etched and miserable, poor, Blind and Naed; how many thousands, at this day, of the christians of our time, are in this woeful State of Self security, who think it a high State of Christianity to be not better than the Beast that perisheth, and in not being in the excess of the debauched atheistical Spirits of this age, who believes there is neither God nor Devil, neither Resurrection nor Judgement; and so gives up their Bodies and Spirits to Commit all manner of Abominations, with Greediness; never ceasing, till they have destroyed their Bodies as well as their Souls; for, being Sold and given up to serve their lascivious Lusts, there is no stop nor stay till their Destruction comes as a Whirlwind, and than they shall know that there is a God, Resurrection, and Judgement.  
As I was going from the Printers, Conversing with the Lord, and Contemplating of his Glorious Power, being filled with Harmonious Praises in Melodious Sounds; yet as it were in deep Conflict of Spirit; and thus going on till I came about the middle of Pater-noster-Row, where I stood still and beheld; and, as I looked with Admiration, these Words, in great Power, spoke aloud in my Ears, This is London, the City of Abomination, this is the Abominable City, this is the City of Abomination; this is the Abominable City: And these words were Repeated over and over, till I came abou● middle of Cheapside, and than in, a mig●● Power, this word was added, Woe to the Cit●● Abomination, Woe to the Abominable City; thus crying louder and louder with a might strong & powerful Voice, that I had much a● to contain myself from pouring it forth in t●● Streets; & thus it continued till I came to Bishopsgate-street; after which Exercise I humbly Prostrated myself before the Lord, crying to him for Mercy for these poor Nations, for it seemed to me to be the sealing of the Vision, which I saw when the Heavens Opened whereupon I fell into the same Exercise, and am not from under it to this Day.  
And upon another sight which I had a little before the Fire, at White-Hall, I writ a Paper to our Dear and Excellent Queen, telling her therein, that the Sword of the Lord was drawn and Furbished, two Edged, yea three Edged, and only wants Commission. Wherhfore, O Queen, make haste, for the Lord's Sake, make haste, there's but an Inch of time, arise in the Lord's Strength, and put thy Power in Execution; Fear none, but the Lord, O Queen, let him be thy Fear, and let him be thy Dread, and take Queen Esther's Resolution, who said, If I Perish, I perish, for they that will seek to save their Lives, shall lose them, & so went on, declaring to her the very thing that came to pass to my unspeakable Grief, which Paper I had Printed at this time, but for fear of renewing the King's Sorrows.    

A Confession of the Christian Faith which was made at Constantinople in the Year 1585. by one, who being complained of as a great heretic, gave this Answer and reason of his Faith, to some 〈…〉 and Greek Christians, as 〈…〉 several Jews and Turks that 〈◊〉 present.  
WE Believe that there is One, First of all things, which comprehends them all, which cannot be comprehended of any: That there is One Cause, and One Essence of all Things that have a Being: One Supreme Good, which we call GOD, whom we know in this Mind, and honour in Speech, showing by Goodness and Welldoing, that we are the Children of our Father, the Supreme Good.  
We Believe in One Jesus Christ, w● is the Perfect Example and Pattern of 〈◊〉 Children of GOD, whom we are to fo● low in patiented Suffering of the Creature and in love to our Neighbours, and so become Temples of his Spirit, where the 〈◊〉 Divine Worship which is acceptable 〈◊〉 GOD, the highest Good, is Well●●g.  
〈◊〉 Believe also in the Holy Ghost, 〈…〉 we feel the Operative Power of this 〈…〉 Good in ourselves. We are all in 〈◊〉 Communion of Christ, and they, who ●y this Communion, are born again ●●to this Power, and thereby Deified, being raised above Nature to a state of Incorruption and Immortality, and by this means become Instruments of the endless Glory of GOD.  
Without holding these things none can have a true or right Faith.  
Quest. Why were you Born?  
Answ. For GOD's good William.  
Q. For what end were you Born?  
A. For the Glory of GOD.  
Q. What is your Religion?  
A. Welldoing.  
Q. What is your Profession?  
A. Our own Nothingness.  
Q. What is your Comfort?  
A. GOD's Almightiness.  
Q. What is your Prayer?  
A. To be Resigned, and Will-less.  
Q. What is your Life?  
A. GOD's Goodness.  
Q. What is your Death?  
A. A Translation into the Glory of GOD.  
Q. What do you hold amongst so many Religions as there are in the World?  
A. We Believe of GOD in Goodness, we think of our Neighbour in Love, and meanly of ourselves.  
Q. Are you Baptised?  
A. Yes; and are yet willing to be Baptised.  
Q. Wherewithal?  
A. With Water, which the moving of the Spirit of GOD drives from our Hearts, through our Eyes, and incorporates us in his Love, at times when it seem good unto him.  
Q. Do you Celebrated the Lord's Supper?  
A. Yes, many times and often.  
Q. In what Church or Communion?  
A. In the Church or Communion GOD  
Q. What do you hold of Christ's Body What is his Flesh and Blood?  
A. Christ's Flesh is a constant enduring Patience, and his Blood is a Divi●● Operative Living Love: Where this Flesh possessed in Patience, and where this 〈◊〉 lives in Love, there is the true Con●●nion of the true Body of Jesus C●●▪ This suffering Flesh, and this lov●● 〈…〉 of Christ makes us Children of 〈…〉 by means thereof we have 〈…〉 with the Son of GOD. The 〈…〉 and Good Nature of GOD comes into 〈◊〉 and that cannot be without a Tr●●stantiation, or a change and distracted our evil Nature.  
Q. Have you no other Sacraments 〈◊〉 remonies than these?  
A. The forementioned we 〈…〉 willingly Observe and Celebrated wi●● 〈◊〉 if so it seem good unto you; and w●● other may be besides these, we will wh●●ly leav● to yourselves for to avoid D●putes. And so I take my leave of you▪  
Jesus Animae Consolatio semper.  
FINIS.