give it him Now these three overturns in Rev. 8. 13. are called three woes that follow the voice of the 5. 6. and 7. Angels Rev. 9. 1. When the 5. Angel sounds you see Essex falls from the King and opens the way of rebellion as I foretold the said Earl he should do before this Parliament began And this woe ruinates the Protestant party till ye come to ver. 12. where he saith one woe is past And ver. 13. 14. the 6. Angel soundeth and four Angels that were bound were loosed This signifies the tolleration and liberty to all sorts to preach And now independency gets up and this second woe falls on the Presbyterian party untill you come to Rev. 11. 14. where he saith the second woe is past and behold the third woe cometh quickly Rev. 11. 15. the seventh Angel soundeth and then the King and Protestant party gets the power again gloriously And this third woe falls on the Independent party So that after 3. woes or 3. overturnes the Crown comes to him whose right it is by a decree of God Ezek. 21. 27. And the purpose of God shall stand according as he hath sworne Isa. 14. 24. And what is decreed against it shall not stand Isa. 28. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. Consider what I have said and the Lord give you understanding in all things 2 Tim. 2. 7. FINIS To His EXCELLENCY THE Lord Generall Cromwell AND His Honourable Councell of the Army at White-Hall The Petition of Arise Evans living in Black-Friers desireth in Gods glories behalf the Kingdoms behalf your Honors behalf and the whole Worlds behalf That you would with your Most serious thoughts consider these few lines following Humbly shewing THat the Petitioner having the knowledge of Gods secret Counsell being called thereto hath declared it freely to all these 19 years as you may see in his Book called A Voice from Heaven written in the yeare 1651. and directed to the Commonwealth of England And also further the preparation of God in him to the same purpose from his Nativity to this time And the effects thereof you have also in his Book called An Eecho to the Voice from Heaven written in 1652. In which Books is sufficiently shewed Gods determination by the actions God hath done in fulfilling the words of your Petioner from the date of the said Books to this time and you may conclude God wil fulfill the remainder thereof so that as sure as the Parliament is dissolved so sure shall the King come to his Throne as it is sufficiently proved in the aforesaid Books And indeed if your Honors look into your Petitioners Works and seriously read his Books you shall find that he would not turn water into bloud or smite the earth with a curse Rev. 11. 6. as it hath already been done by these unnaturall civill Wars but rather would turn bloud into water and water into wine to cherish the heart of the sorrowfull And that the waters and tears of repentance might wash away the guilt of blood and become wine of consolation to this Nation in their union with their KING without which conjunction to their native and right KING there is no hopes of peace certainty and safety to this Nation Most Noble Worthies whose actions are glorious though yet imperfect the great Mountain Parliament is become a plain before you Next in order the KING is to be exalted signified by the head-stone as you see Zach. 4. 7. Crown all your actions by setting him up and be glorious for ever For I am sure if you speedily proclaim him KING you will glorifie God thereby and save an Ocean of English bloud from being spilt and have such conditions of perfect peace from GOD and the KING that you and your seed may be his glorious Nobles for ever And therefore because time is short use your Jewell for the best advantage while you have it lest you lose it as the said Parliament did for want of using it aright according to the Petitioners instructions The Petitioner doth humbly desire your Honors to set up the KING upon his throne Charles Stewart by name Do this and live for ever 1 Joh. 2. 17. John 11. 26. He humbly desires you also to read these said Books May 16. 1653. present And your Petitioner shall ever pray c. I Did not think to put this Petition into print so suddainly but that I find the general spirit of the Nations and men of all sorts of judgements exceedingly disquieted as not knowing what to do at this time but crying to me as if they expected that God will do some great things by me for the settlement and peace of this Nation It is truth I dare not deny it and to Gods glory be it spoken that I have received Talents from him which I must not hide but shew to all how far God is pleased to proceed how far God is pleased to proceed in his work by me beseeching all men to look unto him who is the Man of Peace to them I meane King CHARLES Every one saith to me why do not you who have this wisdome of God go to the General and shew him the way and to the Councell to shew them these things Alas I am at too far a distance from them for to be heard by them Men in such places cannot hear such a low voice as mine is It must be a generall Petition of the whole Nation joyned together as one man that they will hear Therefore I could wish that the Souldiery did but hear a voice behind them saying Return to your first Principles You went out to fight for King and Parliament but now there 's none I know that God will bring in the King again and my hearts desire is that I might perswade men that the Kings coming to his Throne might be without bloud-shed and that no party should any longer retain a spirit of revenge And to set you in a way of composure I could wish that all both Souldiers and others would Petition our worthy Senatours to make their peace with the King and to receive him upon good and glorious terms for the King and subjects For if the King come in by the sword you will become Slaves and force him to use tyranny For Tyranny is a fit punishment for Rebels neither would I have any to Petition our Worthies with kisses or fine words as Judas came to our Saviour that had his band of men to second him or as at the beginning of these times the Scots Presbyters and Covenanters came with their Petition on their Pikes-points to our late King Let not men presume to do so now be their party never so great For though now they think that the Authority hath a dependency upon them and that there is no Authority left save that Yet there is a spark of fire remaining as it were under the ashes which is able at an instant to devour them all Therefore I beseech you Petition in simplicity
saith this is their policy they lost more and they concealed it and it is signified in these words there shall be many dead bodies in every place and they shall cast them forth with silence In ver. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. ye have the sins and cause why the judgment is come set down and that it is not for any fault found in the publique worship of God but for covetousnesse hardnesse of heart towards the poore and the deceit of the people and their neglect in the worship of God For the same cause there is a generall rising throughout the Land and the Kings party utterly overthrown In ver. 9. ye have the Kings untimely death signified by the Sun going down at Noon for the Sun signifies the King 2 Sam. 23. 3 4 5 6 7. Mal. 4. 2. Gen. 37. 9 10. In v. 10. ye have the great mourning for the Kings death and a wrathfull indignation declared by way of revenge upon the enemies at last In ver. 11 12. ye have the form or worship or Common-prayer book taken away so that the Elect cannot hear it read anywhere which book is called the words of the Lord and the word of the Lord and by this you may know that book to be the only true form appointed of God before hand the rule of the spirit of truth the which rule Jesus foresaw and promised to send the spirit to give it for he knew by this word that I do now open unto you that there was a rule to come forth and the forme of it in all things was a secret thing kown to none but the Father therefore Christ commits the directions of the Church in the true worship to the spirit so that untill this time the Church is tossed to and fro because there was no rule known till now Ioh. 16. 13. and now ye are come to a perfect rule given by a perfect man Eph. 4. 13 14. In ver. 13. ye have the constancy of the Kings party to their Religion and King Rev. 14. 4. and their thirsting for their Religion and King again In ver. 14. ye have the States party up signiby the sin of Samaria the God of Dan the manner of Bersheba all which were Idols But saith he they shall fall and never rise again implying thus much that the King and his party though now down shall rise again and stand for ever AMOS 9. In v. 1. the King is risen again and stands upon the altar that is the Scaffold where he suffered and offered himselfe there he triumpheth and commandeth to smite Lintell that is the Speaker of the House of Parliament and cut them all on the head and slay the last of them all this is said of the Parliament to shew that they shall not escape the hand of this mighty Lord In ver. 2 3 4. ye see there is no place in hell nor in heaven nor in the top of the mountains nor in the bottome of the Sea nor anywhere else for them to escape his hands but he pursueth them and takes them In ver. 5. ye have a generall rising caused by his hand throughout the whole land and the Parliaments party utterly overthrown In verse 6. ye have the glorious building of the King in the heavens above all the Kings of the earth and the power he obtained by his sufferings and his glorious name next to Jesus as being his most excellent servant of all others In the 7. verse ye have the wrath of God declared against the Parliament for their killing the King and destroying the Kingly power by which God delivered them from the bondage of Popery and he looks upon them as black children of Ethiopiaus for these ungratefull acts In verse 8 9 10. ye have Gods wrath upon the whole Kingdome he tells them that those who depend upon their power and think they can prevent the evill that it shall not overtake them saith he they shall surely perish but the rest he will save as wheat is winnowed and saved and taken from the chaff In verse 11 12. ye have the Kings Tabernacle or Court see up again and his Kingdome Inlarged over all the earth In verse 13. ye have the King and his party taking all again from the Parliament and their party signified in these words The plowman shall overtake the reaper and the treader of grapes him that draws forth that which is not his own For the King coms from the altar and gives commission to the treader of Grapes that is some one of his seed that shall reigne to cut down the Grapes that is the party now standing as you see both parties The Reapers first and the treader of Grapes after gets the victory Rev. 14. 14 15 16 17 18 19 20. In verse 14 15. ye have the King and his parties captivity ended c. Their building and planting and their enjoying of the fruits of their labour and the promise that they shall possesse their land without any molestation hereafter for ever and ever And now I beseech you look upon this Scripture and lay it to heart and consider how ye have seen before your eyes this 8. Chapter of of Amos fulfilled as I have interpreted it unto you and you see there the rule to worship God by all which is made plain for you to see as well as I that you may be saved I beseech you also to lay to heart and consider this nineth of Amos where you may see perfectly according to the promise of Christ the things to come Ioh. 16. 13. Never had people the like shewed them as ye have now so plain from these two Chapters O take heed that ye slight it not but make use of it for your salvation For if ye be cut down and cast into the winepresse of the fiercenesse of the wrath of God almighty ye are undone for ever and ye may see how to prevent it Rev. 14. 18 19. Rev. 19. 15. by what hath been spoken And this I say to the Parliament to the Army and to all others Do the work for it must be done Be ye valiant set up the King for if Forraigners do it ye are undone And you may see it will be done by a strong power I have also some things to shew you out of the first of Isaiah and it chiefly concernes this City of London which in regard of its action now is called Sodom and Egypt Isa. 1. 10. Rev. 11. 8. and that it was a faithfull loyall City in the time of Queen Elizabeth when she was received by the Citizens out of the Tower and with joy accompanied to Westminster and though now this City be an unfaithfull harlot yet she shall be restored againe to her former faithfulnesse Of this I shall in briefe shew you Isaiah 1. ver. 1. to ver. 10. ye have the King and his party signified with their condition that now they lye in brought upon themselves by their sins and this
to dispute for the justnesse of his cause God loosened his tongue and he spake fluently as many can witnesse First when he went for shelter into the Scots army Mr. Henderson the greatest Champion Minister in Scotland slew himself in disputing and striving with the King Secondly Mr. Cook that drew his charge in his charge against the King calls him a second Solomon for wisdome Thirdly Mr. Lilly in his book called Monarchy or no Monarchy is forced to say of the King He was a man inclined to no vice Fourthly the Plea for the Commonwealth of England Colonel Ioyce saith that the King was of a far more excellent spirit than M. Love who was the most valiant Minister in all England and suffered for it Would ye have an able wise faithfull wise undefiled good spirited perfect man in all things justified of God of men of his most deadly enemies Look upon K. Charles he is so justified of all Again consider his great faithfulnesse as he was was engaged to defend the faith and church of Christ committed to his trust at his Coronation after he lost his Armies and three Kingdoms and was in the custody of the Parliaments Army he might have had his three Kingdoms again restored to him upon terms destructive to the faith and Church of Christ but rather then so he chuseth to lose his Kingdoms and also his life for the defence of the faith and church committed to his trust who ever did the like and what glory is too great for such a King Again consider how perfect his love was not only to his friends but also to his most deadly enemies who took his life and Kingdoms from him I mean you Souldiers So far was he from seeking revenge upon you for all you did against him that he praiseth you for gallant valiant men and wishes that he had had such men as ye may see in his book and last speech to his Son and therefore ought not you in equity to requite him with the like love and though you cannot give him his life again yet to be a means to cause him that is his name to reign For you see by the Word of God that he must reign and will not you now you see 't is right be the instruments to bring it to passe There be two Commandements that sound in mine ears continually One is this Thou shalt not fellow a multitude to do evill neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgement Exod 23. 2. The other is Thou shalt not hate thy Brother in thine heart thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy Neighbour and not suffer sin upon him Lev. 19. 17. My silence is a sin unto me I should hate you if I did not tell you the truth The States flatterers say that the power is radical in the people derivative in the Parliament But the word of God saith that the power is radicall in God derivative in Kings and that promotion comes not from the East nor from the West that is from any people but God is the Judge he puts down one and sets up another Psa. 75. 5 6 7. and by me Kings reign Pro. 7. 15 16. Power belongs to God Psa. 72. 11. For this cause Melchisedeck is said to be from all eternity lest any should argue and say that he had his Kingly power from men Heb. 7. 1 2 3. For a man to make a thing better than himself and then fear honor and obey it as his God is the grossest idolatry and men do so when they claim the power to set up rulers Hos. 8. 4 5 6. for men to make themselves gods is idolatry Rulers are called Gods Psal. 82. 6. therefore those people are idolaters that take upon them to set up Rulers for themselves and God will require it Again I say that power which is of men is opposite to that which is of God neither can both stand together Christ saith intimating the power of John Baptist Luk. 1. 77. was it from heaven or of men Mat. 12. 25. is all one as if he had said Is it from heaven or of hell for what 's opposite to heaven but hell again saith he Act. 5. 38 39. if this Councell be of men 't will come to nought but if it be of God it will stand is all one as if he had said if it be of the devill it will come to nought but if it be of God it will stand for what 's opposite to God but the devill Some will say there is no power but of God Rom 13. 1. Therefore the States power is of God I answer that which is of men is not of God The States power is of men therefore not of God but in this sense ' is of God God by his foreknowledge did foresee this State and permitted it to continue so long But that God is the author of this State is denied For 't is clear that the Dragon gave him that is the Beast or State his power and his seat and great authority Rev. 13. 2. Therefore they have not their authority or power to act of God but they have their power permitted to continue so long a time as the devils had a time which they claim Mar. 1. 24. Mat. 8. 29. But Paul understood that the power of the Romans was of God for it was enclosed in Caesar and Caesar was a King John 19. 12. 15. and Paul calls him the Minister of God Rom. 13. 4. because he had not his power of men but of God But saith he the powers that be Rom. 13. 1. hence you draw your conclusion that the States power is to be submitted to though it be of men I say no for he speaks there of the power which is of God a Kingly power and all the stop in these words the powers that be is in regard Caesar was not a Christian but a heathen and therefore not altogether right yet he calls him the Minister of God in regard his power was of God and not of men therefore thus much the Apostle saith here that the power that is of God and not of men you must submit unto in outward affairs though the King be a Heathen and whereas he saith Rom. 13. 1. there is no power but of God he doth absolutely deny this power as it is now the States power to be any thing else but a jugling shew of Sathan admired at by them that perish as he defines it 2 Thes. 2. 8 9 10. it hath all power in shew yet it is but a deceiveable lying wonder of no substance As Juglers make us believe they have many rare things but when we need such things alas there 's nothing at all Now the power that is of God alwayes descends from heaven as you may see Rev. 10. 1. Rev. 11. 1. 2 3 4 5 6. Rev. 18. 1. Rev. 20. 1. intimating that it comes from God alone But the other power is said alwayes to ascend