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A27132
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A message sent forth from the risen seed of God being a faithful expostulation and testimony concerning the unjust and hard dealings of the rulers and people in England who have a hand in the cruel oppressions and sufferings of the people of God called Quakers.
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Bayly, William, d. 1675.
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1662
(1662)
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Wing B1533; ESTC R25913
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8,299
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11
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A MESSAGE Sent forth from the RISEN SEED OF GOD BEING A faithful expostulation and Testimony concerning the unjust and hard dealings of the Rulers and people in ENGLAND WHO Have a hand in the cruel oppressions and sufferings of the people of God called QUAKERS HArken and give ear ye Sons of men and consider what ye are doing in making snares traps and Gods 〈◊〉 Innocent people what have we done against the Righteous holy God or against any of his Laws or against any righteous just Laws of men since we were a people called and chosen of God out of the ways and vanities of this worlds that you should thus oppress abuse and persecute us as if we were not worthy to â—â—â—e upon the face of the earth Why do ye thus built us as a 〈◊〉 upon the Mountains as sheep for the slaughter What evil have we done or what is our offence that you like Saul persue us If you pretend and say we are breaker of the Kings Laws or Queens Laws or Acts of Parliaments or the like of this be the only cause then let me query or reason with you in Gods behalf What are those Laws or Acts of Parliament and the ground of them by which a harmless and Innocent people are thus caused to suffer who breaks not the Law of Christ and of God but worship him in the Spirit and truth with our heart and understanding minde and strength and loves our neighbour as our selves as God is witness and even prayeth that God would open the eyes of them that hate us and despitfully use us had not them in Daniels time and in the Jews time and in Shedreck Mesheck and Abednegos time Laws and Decrees sealed with Kings seals which was against God and his dear children which worshipped him in spirit and truth as we do now who suffered such things for the tryal of their faith and patience for a season yea he suffered Cain to kill his brother Abel about sacrifice and worship he suffered Judas to betray Christ our elder brother and the Rulers and Preists to crucifie and murder him by a Law but what Law was it by which the Son of God was out to death judge ye was it not made in mans will by that spirit that protect the good words and had the sheeps Cloathing that did say and not do and were not the Scribes and Pharisees and Rulers and Chief Preists Hipocrits that did so and had not they their portion in the Lake that burns And did not he say to them if you have done these things to the green tree what will they do to the dry And was not he had from Prison to Judgment and 〈…〉 amongst â—â—ngressors and is it not so now between you and us as it was then the enmity between the two Seeds and Births read and let Gods witness which reproves you in secret answer And did not he suffer the Prophets to be stoned by the great professing City and is 〈◊〉 and Prist Pasâ—ir to smite Ieremiah on the mouth and to 〈◊〉 put in the 〈…〉 Dungeon for speaking the truth and sufferd Zachariah 〈◊〉 be slain between the Porch and the Alter and Stephen to be stoned for witnessing against Temples made with hands any many such things God did suffer that evil and a 〈…〉 upon his servants and tender Children who saith to their oppressors in this age as he did then fill ye up the measures of your Fathers that upon you may come the vengeance for all the righteous bloodshed from Zachariah to this day Are not you in the way of Cain are not you in the way of the Jews are not you in the way of the Heathen that did rage and the people that did imagin vain things who took Counsel together against the Lord and his anointed ones saying let us break their bands asunder and cast away their Cords from us and are not you now saying within your selves and among your selves let us break their meetings and cast away or banish their strength from us that their name may be bloted out and their remembrance from amongst us but he that sits in Heaven hath you in derision who will laugh at your callamnity and mock when your fear and destruction cometh as a whirlwind Are you not like Herod that subtil Fox who sought the young Childs life as soon as it was born was not he prevented though he slew all the Males in that Region about two years old or under and are you nor like Pharoah and those dark Egyptians Enchanters Magicians and Wise men who said let us deal wisely with them least they multiply and become great in number and so injoyned the Midwives to kill all the Males of the Hebrews but was not Moses then born and hid from them in an Ark of Bulrushes whom God had appointed to be the leader deliverer of his people out of Egypt even thus are you deceived and God will prevent you and your intents as he did them and theirs whose Decrees were frustrated and Laws and Counsels of none effect for God hath sworn by himself and he will performe it that no weapon formed against Iacob or his seed shall prosper nor any Inchantment or divination against his Israel shall prevaile for he hath determined to exalt Truth and Righteousness in the earth and to throw down wickedness oppression Idolatry and ungodliness and he will take the wise in their own craftiness and lay low even to the dust all the powers of the earth who exalt themselves against him and his heritage he respects not the persons of men but will trample the ungodly as in a Wine-press in his fury for his seed sake who hath said to us his babes and children concerning our oppressions fear ye not the face of man nor the revilings and threatnings of the sons of men whose breath is in their nostriles that shall be made as grass the moth shall eat them up like wool and I 'le plead my cause with them in their Consciences by my own witness which seeth in secret and beholds all their hard speeches and ungodly deeds which they have proudly spoken against me and my people for vengeance is mine and I will repay it saith the Lord Therefore hear now ye Rulers Priests Souldiers and people this day in England who are brewing your hands in the blood of the Innocent and let me reason with you concerning these things What was Cain and his way to which the woe belongs to this day was he not of the wicked one who slew his brother about worship and sacrifice and are not they of the wicked one the murderer from the beginning so now let Gods witness in you answer and what was Balaam and his way who loved the wages of unrighteousness whose madness and folly the dumb Asse with mans voice reproved if you have ears to hear hear for many that hath been as dumb rod upon by you and your predesessors begins now to speak with
plead her cause with all her Enimies Or will your saying we have a Law or an Act of Parliament and by our Law or Act they ought not to meet above four or five by our Law they ought to be imprisoned or banished or they ought to dye or abjure the Land save you in the day of my fury saith the Lord will your Kings Laws or Queens laws or Parliaments laws or decrees stand you in stead help hide or save you when I shall descend upon you in flames of fire rendring vengeance on all them that obey not my Law and Gospel written and preached in the heart of every man and woman under Heaven or will your lying Indictments aad Warrants plead for you which you say my people meet in force of Armes in contempt of the King his Crown and dignity or will your writing them dangerous seditious and wicked Sectaries and disloyal persons cover you will not all Englands sober people give you the lye in these things who knoweth our manner and conversation among them yea and will not the witness of God in your own Consciences testify the same with them or will Elizabeths Statute 35. or she her self rise from the dead to keep off my vengeance that is hastening upon you for your lyes injustice and cruelty will your writing the Assemblys of my people unlawfull make them so in my sight was not Daniels prayer unlawful and the Apostles preaching forbidden by the Rulers but was it so in my sight judge ye might not they have said as well as you they break the peace of Kings and people were there not great stirs and tumults in all ages about my people against them in whom my spirit of truth was manifest could the whole Land bear my servant Amos his words Consider what peace is broken or against what peace my people are whose weapons are not Carnal and what people are terrified by them or their meetings in my name and fear in Truth and Righteousness as you have written to the great terror of the people by your lyes to render them odious and let my witness in you answer for I am not come to send peace on earth but a sword and a fire which is already kindled and you shall never be abe to quench it for I have raised my seed in my children and have placed them as a brazen wall in the midst of Nations against the flood of ungodliness Idolatry and wickedness else you had ere this been destroyd as Sodom in whom I will manifest my terrible power and Kingdom which hath no end against the Devils Power and Kingdome which must end against Oppression and Oppressours murder and Murderers injustice cruelty Idolatry and hypocricy and all manner of ungodliness and unrighteousness of men which power shall grinde the grinders and bruise the bruisers and oppressours of my people and shall tread upon Princes as upon morter for I am arisen and come and coming in thousands and ten thousands of my saints and Children who tremble at my word to convince all that are ungodly of their ungodly deeds and hard speeches and to execute my Judgements upon the rebelious and gainsaying Generation and I will gather my Lambs into my bosom and the Seed of Iacob into their own Land and the meek shall inherit the Earth and the poor in spirit shall possess my Everlasting Kingdom against which work now begun neither you nor all the Rulers of the darkness of this World your Kings Queens and Parliaments with their Laws and decrees Gog nor Magog Sodom nor Gomorah Egypt Death nor Hell with the strength and gates of it shall be able to prevaile or overcome I the Lord God of Heaven and earth that made the Worlds in mine eternal word and unchangeable decree hath spoken it Therefore these things in the fear of God if you have any and in soberness consider for it shall stand a living Testimony which shall not be made void but is dropt upon you as an hour of Gods Visitation the which if you slight and repent not of your deeds and unrighteous proceedings against his people you shall be left without excuse in the Terrible day at hand which hastens upon you as a Woman in travel that is ready to be delivered and you shall not escape Therefore prise your time and be not proud nor Rebellious for the Lord hath spoken neither be ye mockers least your bands are made strong but beleive and tremble and remember the King of Ninnive who shall rise up in Judgement against this Generation and Condemn it for a greater then Ionah and a greater then Solomon is risen among us who respecteth not the persons of men but will plead with all flesh which hath Corrupted its way by fire and Sword and the Slaine of the Lord shall be many even all the workers of Iniquity which hateth reproofe despiseth good Counsel and doth not chuse the fear of the Lord. So this is unto you a Visitation and warning from him that lives for ever of whose blood I his servant am clear having obeyed his voice whether you hear or forbear I am a Traveller for Sions sake and a trembler at the word of the great dreadful God the Righteous Iudge of quick and dead and a follower of the Lamb through the great tribulations loving not my life to the death for his sake Halelujah Amen W.B. And FRIENDS TEll me how you came to be Christians and by what Law you were lead to Christ was it Queen Marys Law without you or Queen Elizabeths which you now Act by or was it the new Covenant which God made unto his people If these Laws before mentioned as Queen Elizabeths or Marys be now the scoolmaster when came they in force And when was Moses the just man the leader of the people out of Egypt and the Law which God gave to him disanulled And when was the Covenant broken between Moses and God did not he stay 〈◊〉 wrath and stand in the gap between God and his people and prayed to God for them and God heard his prayer and his wrath was turned away from Israel whom Moses lead out of Egypt to be tryed in the Wilderness as many are at this day blessed be God and Moses the Instrument which brought them thither and cursed be they who disobey the command of God given to Moses which is fulfilled in Christ the Elder brother and them that follow him who breaketh not the commands of God given to Moses but fulfilleth them in his sufferings which is now making up at this day Have a care what you do in fighting against God in his Members you who profess your selves to be Christians Magistrates persecutors of others who are members of Christs body who was persecuted by cheif Preists and Rulers who professed they had more knowledge of God then them they persecuted but their Condemnation was the greater for that they were sayers and not doers as many of you are at this day professing Christ in words but serving an hypocritical generation Woe to the Pharisees saith Christ and woe to the Christians now who profess Christ in words and in their works and practises deny him who make long prayers and their hands full of cruelty and blood and makes their seat a place of violence that Justice and Truth cannot be heard but the simple and upright in heart will learn Judgement and the prudent in Queen Elizabeth and Marys Laws who refuse the Law of God to be their Rule will God cut off though called Justices Cheif Preists or Rulers Look ye to it for the hand of Justice and true Judgement is lifted up that the heritage of God shall be known not by the Law of Queen Elizabeth or Mary which is now in hand but by Jesus the King of the Jews the Son of the living God the highest amongst men the greatest in the Consciences of all his people Swear not at all saith he who is come to be Lord in the Conscience and â—one else shall Rule over his Heritage though now it seems to be trampled upon by injustice and unrighteousness which is Acted by unrighteous men who are but as the drop of a Bucket and dust defore him Therefore dread the Lord ye Kings and Rulers for the Judgement is now seting up which respecteth not the ways of Kings because the heart of Kings are in the hand of the Lord who can turn them as a River of Water which way he pleaseth and their Life is in his hand as a span Therefore I say dread the Lord all Flesh for the day of the Lord hastens and is even at the doors To the truth of which I subscribe M.B. SEek not by Laws made in mans will The blood of Innocents to spill For if you do the Law of God With in your heart shall be the Rod Which shall you smite with stroaks full soar And you Condemn for evermore For your decrees which are unjust They shall not stand Gods Counsel must Professions words and prayers long He hath no pleasure in Without the life of righteousness All Scarifice is Sin The day is broke and God's just stroake On Hypocrites must come Their many words and Carnal swords Can't save them from their doom Amen THE END Printed for W.M. 1662.