seen the Locusts and Smoke at home in thy own Pit which now is come out And then thou tellst of thy Dream and hunting the Fox with Hounds which thou didst much affect and art thou turned into this same loose Nature again and thou applies thy filthy Dream to G. F. one of the Lambs of Christ thou wast hunting him in Esau and Nimrod's Nature But when thou art Confounded and thy Mount on Fire then remember the Journal of thy Life And G. F. hath not been hid the Prisons and Goals manifested that neither hath he hid himself under smooth Words For hast not thou been finding fault with his Words calling them Rabshekas and Reproaches all along thy Book see in pag. 32. Now to say they are smooth what Contradictions are these and said He Reproached J. P. in speaking plainly to him And thou sayest That G. F. loves none but who calls him Master or to receive his Mark or Number of his Name This is false in R. R. who is given up to forge Lyes and three times thou goest over to fill up thy â—ook withal in the Enmity that G. F. gave J. N. his Hand to Kiss which is false For G. F. would have taken him by the Hand and he reâ—used it and then thou fallst a Railing at G. F. and one day thou wilt know that it was not the Spirit of the Dragon nor Words without Life that G. F. spake to thee neither doth he bear any Enmity to the Innocent but is out of the Enmity the Lord knoweth it and if thou wert in the Love thou wouldst see it And then thou manifests thy Envy against E. B. and saith that He spoke great things and spoke many Mysteries and then scoffingly sayst So did Balaam that erred from the Spirit Doth not R. R. here manifest his Spirit like Ishmael his Hand against every man who thus compares E. B. that Innocent Servant of the Lord with Balaam and if thou hadst laid down thy Crown and denyed thy self as did others thou wouldst not have brought forth such as is in thy Book And thou tellst Of the Beast that hath yet a Golden Head standing and the Dragon tearing and rendring But if thou hadst seen this tearing Spirit in thy self thou wouldst have stopt thy Mouth And R. R. saith He sees the People are weary of the Manna that comes down from Heaven Gods Spirit and Life in them This is thy own condition with other of thy railing Expressions in this page and these Words thou hast not spoken by the moving of the Spirit of Grace for thou art not seasoned with it as may be seen in pag. 41. and 42. And as for the Flesh-Pots of Aegypt thou speakst of see if thou be not seeding in them And R. R. saith He had rather speak five Words from the Spirit of Grace moving then ten Thousand Words from hit Vnderstanding though never so true c. Answ R. R. need not Praise himself in this whose Words proceeds neither from the Spirit of Grace nor from a good Understanding as sober People that read his Book may see and judge and thou that condemnest the Innocent and justifiest the Wicked mayst read thy Portion And R. R. saith O Jerusalem how oft have I sought to find Love in thee towards thy Brethren c. how oft have I pursued after it bearing all Sins and Evils on my Body that he might gain the Love of his Brethren Answ R. R. these are but boasting Words without Life as thy Fruits declare it in thy Book and the Fruits of thy Spirit doth not manifest Love And R.R. saith He believes he might have been received into Fellow ship amongst us But then he saith he must first have turned the Truth of God unto a Lye and speak Evil of things that he knew to be good and denyed his Testimony and betrayed Jesus Answ Nay such a Spirit as this we could not have received into Unity but let R. R. look at home and see if he hath not done this already and if that be Good which J. N. hath condemned and if that be R. R's Testimony and a betraying of Jesus that the Light of Christ condemns R. R. may keep his Testimony to himself And we cannot believe that R. R. did bear all Sin and Evil on his own Body as he saith in pag. 44. Then R. R. tells us Of he that loves his Enemies speaks Evil of no man rewards Evil with Good and doth not salute his Brother only this it he that is Heir of all things and must Reign Answ But where is the Life of this Love in R. R Let the Reader see if he hath shewed forth the Fruits thereof in his Book and if not then he cannot Reign with Christ according to his own Judgment Doth he speak Evil of no man Doth he love Enemies hath not he rewarded Evil for Good And wast not thou before in thy Book contending more for Tradition then the Command of Christ who saith Swear not at all read pag. 35. and 44. And thou speakst of the Son of the Bond Woman called of Men Master c. which wilt not let his Brother go free c. Answ Art not thou called of men Master and callst others Master Read thy self and come down from thy Mount to the Witness of God in thee and see if thou canst put a difference between the two Seeds in thy self And thou sayst thou hast seen many mighty Men fall But it were better that thou didst see thy self in the fall And thou sayst Abide thou in that which thinks no ill and thou wilt be safe Answ R. R. had better have taken this Counsel to himself And R. R. saith When others Hearts shall fail them for fear that have begotten Children in Adultry that have imagined Mischief in their Hearts against the Innocent and have climbed up into their Fathers Bed But R. R. might very well have applyed this at home and kept it there and not have let it gone out into the World For we the Believers in the Light of Christ Jesus do own every appearance of him whether it be in Groaning or Sighing Hymn or Song and those are manifest that do betray the simple Ones whose Blood lies under Skirts and R. R. might have kept these last sayings at home And R. R. writes to his Dear Heart and saith Enter thou not into their Secrets nor say a Confederacy with the Blood-thirsty man c. Answ Is not this R. R's condition who would make G. F. a Blasphemer and what must Blasphemers be done withal and whose Bloody Hands must first be upon his Head Is not thy Nakedness here seen that hath long lain hid in secret and hast thou not Preached it now atop of the House of the Worlds Spirit And thou would see the dear Lamb once more under the Fig-tree not opposing Gods Spirits leading c. nor lending an Ear to Reports Answ But why hath not R. R. applyed this at home and practised it then he would not have Printed so many false Reports and Lyes of twenty Years standing as have been before instanced and if he had not followed his own understanding and his passionate angry Spirit and fathered the Fruit of it upon the motion of God as in pag. 40. it might have been better with him and not to have plucked up the Wheat with the Tares And thou sayst We should be in one Love and the Lord rebuke him that seeks occasion c. Answ Now let all tender sober Christians judge whether R. R. is not come under this Rebuke by his own Judgment hath not he sought occasion and made occasion in matters of Strife which has been twenty Years standing some more and some less and which were dead and buried and forgiven by us long ago which dead thing thy Spirit hath raised up which every Spirit raises its own but thy Spirit hath manifested not to bear the Fruits of the true love of God in Christ Jesus but the Spirit of the World that lusts to Envy Height Pride and Arrogancy and Turbulent and Revengeful as you may see in pag. 40. and throughout his Book Of what thou sayst thou hast returned to G. F. in this thou hast manifested thy self to be void of the Lamb-like Spirit of Jesus and the true Humility Learning of him nor one of his Disciples thou dost not bear that Badge or Mark by which they are known neither hast thou shewed forth the Nature of Grace which should Salt and Season thy Words let the Reader see whether the words in thy Book are not Unsavoury And many more Scoffing things there are in thy Book which indeed are not worth mentioning but this which is written it is for the sake of the Simple For our Lives are out of Strife in Christ Jesus our High-Priest who is over his Houshold of Faith in whose House there is Bread enough Praised be the Lord. And they that be out of this Light be out of his House then they may Mummur because of the Famine From them who love God and his Son and all that he hath Created who Worship God in the Spirit and Truth which the Devil is out of whose Fellowship stands in the Gospel and Power of God in which the Devil cannot come who desire R. R's Repentance that he might become a new Man and put off the old if it be the Will of the Lord. THE END
Something in ANSWER TO A BOOK Printed in 1678. Called The Hidden Things Brought to Light With ROBERT RICH of BARBADOES his Name to it And Printed for Francis Smith at the Elephant Castle in CORNHIL He hath put forth his Hand against such as are at Peace The Words of his Mouth were smoother than Butter but War was in his Heart His Words were softer then Oyl yet were they Drawn Swords against the Righteous Printed in the Year 1679. An Answer to Robert Rich's Book c. WHerein he hath gathered up some old Letters and Papers that were written many Years ago by J. Naylor and J. Parrot And also something written and spoken to them by G. F. when they acted Things contrary to the Truth and likewise a Letter from R. M. of Barbadoes to J. P. Wherein the Envy and Malice of R. R. and others that have printed these Papers may be seen and not the Love of God First As for J. N. The Lord opened his Understanding that he came to see himself and gave forth a Book of Recantation and Repentance of his running out and became a good man again but so did not J. P. Did not he run into Swearing and Trooping and Drunkenness and Looseness And cd he not so dye without Repentance Let J. Taylor and Friends at Jamaica speak that had sorrow enâ—ugh with him and with Robert Maling also And it had been well if R. R. had come to have seen himself and repented a J N did then he would not have justified J P. in his running out which many came to see and repented and did bless the Lord for it But if R. R. had repented as J N. did then he would have let them lain quietly in their Graves and not have raked into their Ashes so many Years after they are dead But such Disquieted Apostases and Restless Spirits have no quietness but in such work that wanted some Matter to publish to the VVorld a fit work for Francis Smith to get Money by And these Letters of J. P 's nor J N 's R. M 's nor R. R 's were never sent to G F in their Life-time nor since they were dead he never saw them till printed in this Book to the VVorld this is an Unchristian Spirit in R. R. therest that have printed them and it shews much Malice and Envy of R. R. that hath done it so long after they were dead which J. N. hath Condemned and was Reconciled to his Brethren before he dyed and not to Print or send them to G. F. while they were living and this is not like Civil men And in the Preface there is manifested a great deal of Malice against G. F. First he saith All are subject to err And R. R. saith in pag. 37. that J. N. knew no Sin Contradiction And In J. P's Mouth there was found no Guile as in pag. 1. And yet J. P in pag. 19. calls himself Vnworthy man and that he is Vder and Worser before the Lord then we have presented him in the Eyes of men So let R. R. mark J. P. then hath he not Erred in this Book let him apply it at home and let tâ—e Reader see And thou sayest Every Man may know his own Heart but not anothers Answ Dâ—d not Stephen Judge of the Hearts of others when he said to such as thee art Ye stiff-necked and Vncircumcised in Hearts and Ears c And as for thy despising Words as mean Servant c. That is but thy despising words like to the Jews that called Christ the Carpenters Son And we are not Injurious to Christians as thou falsly saith but established in the true Christian-Religion in the Light of Christ Jesus neither are we opposite to our own Principle the Spirit of Truth that leads into all Truth and goodness and all Persons that are truly sincere and in true simplicity we have Unity withal And this Book of R. R'â— is not the work of Sinâ—ere Persons nor of such as are in the Simplicity of Truth And thou speaks of some in the simplicity of their Hearts have some time consented with him both in Doctrine and Practice bare an undeniable Testimony against him that he is highly Injurious to Christians and seâ—ks an unjust and oppressive dominion over their Consciences contradicts by his Practice his own Principle Answ Here thou hast fulfilled that Scripture Who went forth from us who were not of us But in simplicity of Heart that thou might have spared And in what is G. F. or others Injurious to Christians And in what do we seek an oppressive dominion over their Consciences and contradict by our Practices our own Principles So these are but thy Railing words which we deny But to testifie against unruly Spirits that make their Will their Conscience which is not this is not Injurious to true Christianity And thou tellst a great Story of the Pope the Princes and Bishops and such as are led away with carnal Interest and Passion Ambition Singularity Self-conceitedness and desire of vain Glory c. Answ The Authors of this Book might very well apply this at home for it suits their own Spirit and neither G. F. nor the Quakers do condemn them that walk in obedience to the Light of Christ in their Consciences but such are disobedient to the Light of Christ that call Darkness Light are condemned by the Light And Pride and Sensorious Passion as thou call it though might have kept at home And thou sayest that G. F. and the Quakers c. fly to the great Number they are the Body c. Answ Nay art not thou boasting in thy great Number of Dissenters see the Preface But the Quakers fly to Christ Jesus who is the head of their Body the Church they being living Members and dost thou envy at this And had the Light in thee ruled over thee and the rest of Opposers thou and you would have been in Unity with the Children of Light and the Light of Christ which lighteth every man that cometh into the World is the true Light and unerring Guide by which every man may see himself and judge himself and see his Saviour that dyed for him And thou sayest The Principles of Protestantism and all the Reformation which requires every man to judge for himself against any Number c. Answ But they had better follow Christ and his Light and Spirit and not their own Judgments by which they might be baptized by one Spirit into one Body And we have not openly betrayed our Principle the Light in every man as thou falsly sayest but maintain it And as for the Papists talking of their greâ—â— Number let them answer for themselves it s nothing to us And for thy reckoning up a Catalogue of them that have been Quakers and afterward dissented from them Thou hadst thy liberty and hast put thy self in the Number with the rest of the contrivers of this Book And thou might have put in how
G. F. is against Magistrates bearing the Sword nor the Government of Christ Jesus For Christ saith his Kingdom is not of this World if it were his Servants would fight And R. R. after he hath spoken in pag. 30. of the Magistrates Imposing Faith and Worship c. Then he saith Let G. F. consider whether the same Spirit of Imposing upon others hath not been evidently demonstrated in his Vnquiet and Vncharitable proceeding against his Brethren which is no better then the Beast where ever it be found though among the Quakers Answ R. R. why canst not thou speak without Reflection as for Uncharitableness thou hadst better have kept that at home for hadst thou been in the Love thou wouldst not impose upon us to believe J. H's false Articles against G. F. because thou believest them who believest a Lye which G. F. hath sufficiently cleared And in comparing G. F. and the Quakers like to the Magistrates imposing Fâ—ith upon People In this thou art out of Charity and thy comparison is too lite â—or G F. and we turn people to the Light of Câ—rist who is the Author of their Faith And though our Friends in Rhodâ— Island had the Government for many Years though they had many forts of Religions among them yet they did not impose Religions nor Faith upon any And so thou goes on and tellst a Story of the Pope and Lucifer c. and the true Faiâ—h and Worship of Christ c. and how the Apostacy sprang and from whence it sprang and of such whose Tallon are grown like Monsters and such as are supporters of false Prophets c. Answ But R. R. if thou sawest thy self with the Light of Christ and what Spirit thou art of it were better for thee and if thou seest thy own Tallon and what thou hast supported and where thou art And thou speaks of informing G. F. and others how far he owns the Civil Power in pag. 30. and 31. as in things only External and transferring Jurisdiction upon the Shoulders of Christ Jesus So also thou mayst Reflect from hence of thy deportment towards others c. Answ In this thou dost not reach nor hit the matter in thy Accusation For the Government of Christ and the Civil Power we know very well without thy Information and the Lord is to rule in the Conscience with his Light Grace and Spirit and it hath been our desire that all might obey the Lord and the Magistrates either Active or Passive And as for thy many other Reflections indeed they are not worth mentioning And in pag. 32. That which G. F. writ to J. P. which thou callst Reproaching did not he turn like a Dog to the Vomit and what was his End let them of Jamaica speak and what was his pretended Paper of Curses in keeping on his Hat in time of Prayer and afterward could put it off to Men as R. R. often speaks of in this Book And G. F's Words were not from the Spirit of Rabshekey neither are they written against G. F's own Life and Practice neither are they particular'd to himself neither is he fallen upon the point of his own Sword and so wounded that he can never recover Nay it s R. R. that would have it so but he is mistaken And thus saith R. R. hath the Bramble with the consent of the Trees made himself King over the Children of Pride Contention and Strife Nay this R. R. might have applyed at home for is there not Contention and Strife in thy own Breast and hath lodged there this many Years and now is come forth concerning so many persons after they were dead which thou hast published to the World and we knew J. P. very well and thee and would he and thee had known your own Spirits And thou sayest Where hath J. P. smitten at G. F. in all his writings and this he challenges G. F. to prove with all his Men of War c. Answ These are scoffing Expressions and let the Reader see in J. P's long paper read pag. 4. where I suffered T. R. to Taunt very sharply at him c. These are false Expression and where he goeth over and over how we told him of his Charges and Costs which was his own fault speaking that to others which we spoke privately to him and making comparison in abusive way of divers Ministers Expences at home and his Reflecting upon Friends for telling him of his Evening-Meetings that brought Persecution and Sufferings upon Friends that some turned their Backs of the Truth and making comparison with the Meetings kept at G. Roberts's And what are these words Perfideous-dealing Truce-breaking as in pag. 12. and 13. and G. F's Judgment Hasty and Rash and G. W's forwardness see a Catalogue of these things in pag. 13. Thy ill dealing with me a Catalogue of his bad Language might be gathered up though he scossingly saith I have proof of thy piety what they are Besides his Language in other Papers and all these things were false and not true for the Lord knoweth our Tenderness and G. F's towards him But all these things have been buried in Oblivion But R. R. this raises the Dead and not the Living And if J. P. and R. R. had been in that Love that can bear all things then why did you so complain and if J. P. had denyed himself and was of no Reputation his Letters nor thine do not shew it so and if he had waited for the Resurrection from the Dead his End would have manifested it and not gone into such loose Actions And as for thy speaking of that Shame and Reproach wherewith his Enemies did cover him if not from the Generation G. F. calls Friends and yet from others that must succeed him as David did Saul in the Kingdom Answ And if R. R. and his others do succeed J. P. take heed lest your end be like his and not like Davids but Sauls And as for Reproaches that R. R. might have kept at home the Lord knoweth we sought his good in Writing or Speaking to him and not to Reproach him And R. R. saith G. F. is now turned to the Witch of the Mind man 's own Wisdom c. which can certainly raise all man's fancies or fears to trouble him and then walk like him possessed among the Tombs and Ghosts of Darkness and converses with those evil Familiars Zims and Imms of the Desart c. Answ If R. R. hath not manifested a great deal of Enmity here in these Railing Expressions let the sober in Heart judge and whether he hath not banished the Spirit of Faith Love and Charity from him and his slandrous foul Mouth had better have kept these Lyes at home and applyed them to his own Spirit and to such as prâ—nted his Book for G. F. is clear of them And then R. R. makes a great Noise about J. P's Amity and Vnity and about the papers concerning his Hat and saith That J. P. sometimes pluckt off
his Hat in time of Prayer and at other times kept it on and this was his freedom pag. 33. Answ And in pag. 7. J P. saith The Lord required it on him to keep on his Hat in time of prayer and for him to do contrary to the Motion of the Spirit and thereby to Sin against his God So here R. R. and J. P. contradict one another And R. R. saith Even as his Light and freedom led him to shew that the thing was to him indifferent What R. R. a command of God and sin against God and yet a thing indifferent and father this upon the Light Oh father not such Imaginations of your own Brain upon the motion of the Light and Spirit of God! but dread and fear the living God And G. F. doth not by Subtilty and Craft endeavour to bless that which God hath cursed neither doth G. F. preach to the World that the Light is an uncertain thing But that R. R. might have kept at home Neither is G. F. an Enemy to the Leadings of the Light nor a Judge above it nor his Friends called Quakers the Lord knoweth this R. R. might have kept at home But R. R. saith Whether G. F. be clear from presecribing and imposing upon others what himself practices as his pretended Form c. this will be worth the pains to examine because it may tend to undeceive the minds of the simple Ones who are engaged to follow him as their Lord and Leader either for love of the Loaves or some Carnal Ends c. Answ Now let the sober Reader see whether this again be not the Spirit of Malice and Scoffing Expressions For it was never the practice of G. F. to direct People to follow him neither for Loaves nor Carnal ends but to follow Christ their Lord and Leader for such would soon fall off in the time of Sufferings and Tryals as follow for Carnal ends And as for Pastors spoiling Gods Heritage R. R. might have kept that at home with many more Reproachful words he hath in this pag. 33. And we and G. F. uncovering our Heads in time of Prayer in publick Assembies it hath been our practice in the Spirit and Power of God from the beginning before either J P. or R. R. came among us or the Ranters did oppose us and t was the practice of the Church in the Apostles day the Men to be uncovered and the Women covered And R. R. might as well find fault with the Apostle and call it his Set-Form and pretended Custom as ours For if it had been good for Males to have prayed covered the Spirit of God in the Apostle would not forbid it in which Spirit the worship of God is and if R. R. doth pray with his Head covered in an Assembly doth not he pray like a Woman covered and so Transgresses the Apostle's Doctrine and his Spirit And doth not the Apostle reprove such men as pray covered or would have the Women uncovered like the Men and so make no distinction in the Sexes And so G. F. preached the Apostles practice and in this he was no more an opposer then the Apostle So the Apostle nor G. F. were no opposers of the Faith first delivered to the Saints the wise in Heart can judge though the Ranters oppose it and thou and J. P. have kept Hats on in time or Prayer but R. R. can deceive none but such as himself and in this G. F. doth not judge his Innocent Brethren and we know that God doth not justifie you in keeping on your Hats in time of Prayer publick Assemblies no more then he did the Ranters And R. R. saith Why must Hat be kept on in common Civility and put Hat off in worshipping of God Answ And R. R. why must it be put off to Man and not to God in time of Prayer in which they shew forth the Image of God and why are men so offended if they have not that honour and is R. R. offended because he hath it not or the printers of his Book and if he be wiser men then he and they are not And all this that R. R. hath said concerning J. P of wearing Hat in time of Prayer and himself he hath not undeceived any neither will he please any that is sincere and sober except it be the Ranters and was there not a time that R. R. could not bow and is there now a time that he can put off Hat to Men and Women and bow and scrape hath R. R. in this followed the Light that convinced the Saints and him if ever he was and now come to be seared as with an hot Iron Let him examine whether that was the true Faith and Light the Apostles were in that led him from such things which now he is gone into again and if so whether hath he not made himself a Transgressor according to the Apostles Doctrine And R. R. Queries What is the Name Quaker which thou givest to thy self c. was this done that it might be known who thou ownests and who are thy men of War to fight under the Number of thy Name c. Answ Let all People see if R. R. and the Printer of this Book be not in the same Nature as the persecuting Independant Justices who Scoffingly called us Quakers in the Year 1650. because we did Tremble at the Word of God And as for Men of War and Fighters R. R. and J. P. might have applyed that at home with their Guns and Carnal Swords for we are men of Peace and the believing in the Light of Christ Jesus doth distinguish us from the Haters of the Light So its Malice in thee to say that either G. F. or we gave the Name Quaker to himself And R. R. saith What is thy form of Words in Thee and Thou but a customary Singular Speech another Node of speaking then is commonly used which no way respects the Truth of what is spoken c Answ Was it not the Language of God and the Language of Moses and the Prophets and the Language of Christ and the Apostles in the Declarations of Truth Plural and Singular And was not that the true form of words that they declared the Truth in and so acceptable and is it not Confusion to speak Plural when they should speak Singular contrary to the Bible and all teaching Books and didst not thou once speak it thy selâ— and what art thou now so far degenerated from it that thou fight st against us in and like the Spirit of the World and though the Disciples declared the Truth to every man in their own Language did they not declare it Singular and Plural Read the Acts. And R. R. saith What is the refusing to Swear after the manner as the Magistrates command while in the m an time you will call God to witness to what you affirm for Truth Is this any more then to oppose the Magistrates Form by your own c Answ Nay R. R. this
shews the Nâ—mness of thy Spirit and thy Error from the command of Christ and the Apostle who forbid Swearing So it is not a Foâ—m of our making but it s a Form or Command of Christ Jesus and calling God to witness in speaking the Truth is not Swearing by Jesus Christ the Truth and the Oath of God And as for kissing the Book there is no Example for that not in the Old Testament when there was Swearing And its false to say that G. P. or we when we call God to Record for the Truth which we declare own that to be Swearing and this is not straining a Gnat and swallowing a Cammel as thou scoffingly sayst And hadst thou distinguished between Ceremony and Substance thou wouldst not have called it our Form not to â—wear and where dost thou prove Verity Verily a kind of an Oath And how dost thou prove by Paul calling God to Record upon his Soul to be Swearing and the Son comes to fulfill the Oaths that were in the Old time and Genesis Exodos Psalms Acts 2. and Heb. 3. do not prove swearing in the New Covenant no more than outward Offerings of Beasts and Circumcision c. And we have the Son which is more then the Letter that doth fulfil Swearing in the Old time and we are come to Christ who gives us Life and he is come who hath given us an understanding and we are in him that is true So all Swearing hath been since Man sell from Gods Image but Christ is come who renews us up into the Image of God who ends Swearing and sets up Yea and Nay in the lieu of it And R. R. saith We have our appointed dayes and set-times for our Meetings to worship God and this thou scoffingly calls New-Moons and saith Are not these Formal and Customary and rather more to set up some distinction from other Sects then from any clear Testimony the Lord at all times loads them into These Observations and these Traditions are become Idols thou sayest as Papists c. Answ And why is R. R. angry at our Set Dayes and maliciously calls them Traditions and Idols as the Papists R. R. would become Judge of all but himself but he had better have judged himself and seen himself whether he had not been without all Form confused and empty And did not the Apostles and the Church meet together the First day of the Week and commanded them not to forsake the Assembling of themselves together as the manner of some did But it is like thy Evil Spirit hath no Peace in such Meetings and as for grievously Persecuting these are Slandrous words in applying them to us thou who art in Cains fear And the true Light and Life of Christ Jesus and his Spirit hath led us to meet together and to praise the Lord and worship him and in which Light we do hold Christ the Head who bruiseth the Serpents Head though thou one of Hagars Children dost Scoff at us and the true Light which is the Life in the Word by which all things were made makes us greatly to differ both from the Papists and thee And whereas R. R. saith We often scourge J. N. by casting him out of our Synagogues and by false Reports and sold him into Egypt and that our Strife and Contention is about Ceremonies and that our Holiness and Righteousness is of the outside of the Cup and Platter and not in the inward Circumcision of the Heart c. And then R. R. when he hath forged all these Lyes cries Hallelujah Answ The Lord knows that all this is Envy that comes from R. R's malicious Heart and his own evil Surmisings and from an uncircumcised Heart and our Holiness and Righteousness comes from Christ Jesus and J. N. in the worst of his time would not so Revile us as R. R. doth and as for false Reports evil Surmisings and outside Cup and Platter this R. R. might have kept at home with his Strife and Contention and doth R.R. think to sell us to his Brethren AEgyptians with his false Reports and evil Surmisings that he hath Printed against us The Son of God had a place in AEgypt when Herod did seek to kill him And what is this but Envy against our Form which was the Form of the Apostles and them that walk in the fear of God and what we claim to our selves in the Light of Christ we would have all to walk in who are taught of God though we Exhort one another and Edifie one another and Build up one another in our most Holy Faith and we cast out none but if they go from the Light and Spirit of Christ they cast themselves out of the fellowship in it And as for the Spirit of Vsurpation and causes the Creation to groan and breeds the Famine c. Let R. R look to that and we know that the Stone which the Builders rejected is become the Head of the Corner and is marvelous in our Eyes who gives us plenty of Bread and Milk and Wine without Money And if R. R. and they that printed this Book had known this we should not have had so many foul Expressions from his Mouth and Uncircumcised Lips as here may be seen in pag. 35. And G. F. and we know that Christ lighteth every man that cometh into the World and they that hate it have not the same measure and God doth send his Labourers into his Vineyard some at one Hour and some at another and art not thou Persecuting Scoffing and Reproaching of them let thy Book speak thy Spirit and whether thou art subject to that Light or Spirit which God hath distributed to thy Mortification and Reformation or Condemnation Let the Book speak whether thy Language does not betray thee to be the Tongue of the AEgyptian Sea And thou sayst Why may not God enjoyn that as an Ordinance to day and give hit Power to it which also to morrow he may lay aside as useless Answ Prove that in the New Covenant where God and Christ did so in that which is Substantial that God with-drew his Power from any such thing and left it no better then a dead Idol And was the Bazen Serpent Temple Tabernacle Offerings Jews Ceremonies enjoyned by the Lord as an Ordinance one day and another as useless and a dead Idol or were they not to continue except the Brazâ—n Serpent till the Seed came the time of Reformation And R R. dost not thou say When thou hast been speaking of Jewish Ceremonies and Sacrifices such also aâ—e many things at this day both among the Quaker and other Sects which have been Shadows and Figures of good things to come which are beautified in their Season whilst the presence of God was in thâ—m but that being with-drawn they became as dead Idols c. Answ But what are these forms of good things to come among the People of God in the New Covenant called Quakers doth not R. R. Dote and not know what