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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	call_v	holy_a	place_n	4,457	4	5.1998	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A35122	A defence of the true church called Quakers (come and coming out of the wilderness, Babylon, and the dark night of the apostacy of Antichrist into their own land, which is Sion the mountain of holiness, there to worship the Lord in spirit and truth) against the several sects and sorts of people, called Independants, Separatists or Brownists, Baptists, Fift-Monarchy-Men ...	Crook, John, 1617-1699.; J. C. (John Collens), d. 1682.	1659 (1659)	Wing C7202; ESTC R35612	46,726	58

his power that none was able to enter thereinto till the seven Plagues of the seven Angels were fulfilled none could fully behold and enjoy the Glory of the Lord till all his Plagues and Judgements were executed upon the Transgressor and transgression within which being finished an enterance was ministred into the New Jerusalem that came down from God whose light was clear as Chrystal and wherein John saw no Temple that is he saw no outward Constitution of a Church visible by those two signs of Water-baptism and Laying on of Hands which were called the first Beginnings or Principles in the Hebrews or breaking of Corporal Bread but the Lord God Almighty the Lamb were the Temple of it that is whosoever hath a dwelling place in God who is perfectly pure holy is in this day to be accounted a Member of this holy City which also had no need of the Sun to shine by day nor the Moon by night nor the light of a Candle all created helps and shadows were uselesse there for the Lord God alone and the Lamb are the light thereof so that by this Scripture alone are all you Baptists for ever silenced for pleading for a necessity of Baptism or laying on of Hands or breaking of Bread or Mens Teachings or Scripture-light without the true light opening them because after the coming out of Babylon there is to be no visible Temple so as to say lo here or loe there which is by a shadow or sign nor no need of any such thing to distinguish the Saints from the World or lead them up to God for they shall see his face even by his immediate light and his Name shall be in their Foreheads even by his pure Image of Innocency and Righteousnesse which shall most plainly appear to the view of the World and so by these two things shall the Glory of the second Temple be greater than the Glory of the former And if any of you shall say This state and time is not yet come and therefore the s●gns visible Administrations must be practised I Answer Those that can truly say they do believe in Christ the Light and have forsaken sin as aforesaid and are purely moved to be Dipped in Water c. to help their weakness or in obedience to the inward Command let them do it and prosper but let them not sit down there alwaies or strive to bring back others thereto that see no need thereof yea rather that it would be but a hurt and cloud unto them for although many of the Saints the Lambs followers yea perhaps most do not yet witnesse a full entrance into the aforesaid Condition yet in all of them the Temple of God is opened by the light of the Lamb and the Vials are pouring out daily to destroy sin in them that vails the perfect sight of God and so now their work is to look stedfastly forward till all impediments that hinder their perfect and continual Peace be removed and not to take up their time by the way about the Exercise of those things which must not shortly appear or be of any use Thus are your skirts also discovered and your House left unto you desolate for ye have not been faithful to that pure Principle of God which at first stirred in some of you and might then move you to be Baptized with Water but are set down in a fleshly rest not waiting for the spiritual Baptism that should have made you dead to the World and Crucified you with Christ and also have Exercised you by its pure Gift in all your worshippings and goings forth so that ye hereby not growing up in that which is living and eternal are grown more earthly sensual dead carnal and formal than divers years ago when I walked among you yea even as dead and dry as the Priests themselves preaching in such a method as they setting up your Desks and Pulpits and Clocks and Hour-glasses to see how the time goes away and your Members sitting some of them in their Pride and all of them gazing upon an Image in a Desk or Pulpit yea and some of you so degenerate from your first Principles that ye as do the Independants so called mingle your selves with the Nation about sending out a Ministry yea and some of your Chief Leaders have lately not blushed openly to declare That you hold it your Duty to stand by and preserve so much as in you lies the publick Ministry of the Nation whom ye judge ought to have their Liberty So it seems ye are ready to defend them in offending and afflicting those who in the tenderness of their Consciences and holy Zeal for the dreadful pure Name of their God cannot maintain or feed but openly oppose the false Prophets the Ministers of Antichrist the Emissaries of Satan and deceivers of thousands of Souls of which sort these publick National Ministers are as denying Christ Jesus the Son of God to be both a King a Priest and a Prophet which thing you Baptists some years ago did earnestly affirm and declare For take away the Law of man from maintaining them to Usurp upon Constrain or Punish others and they are no more than other men But t is no wonder that ye so declare your selves who are so far degenerated and leavened with the Principles and Interests of these Pharisees who say and do not that ye shew the greatest Opposition to the Saints holy and zealous Practises as irrigular or out of Rule But ye have not declared what those Practises particularly are nor what rule they are out of whether that of the Old man or of the New Lord what a Church or Spouse of Christ are these pretended Believers Baptized become who have not a word to plead for him whom they own to be their Husband against the Beast but would submit in silence to any humane Government nor against the false Prophet but have a hand to preserve him accounting those that do in this day of the Lord oppose them both to be irregular as though they thereby would cast the whole bulk of persecution and rage and malice of the multitude upon the Lambs followers who are called and chosen and faithful in their measures of life and as being themselves afraid what man could and can do unto them Neither would your Independant Brethren have us to be Countenanced or Intrusted by the Nation when as none know aright how to Govern others but those that are themselves governed by the Lord Jesus who are anointed to Govern as well as to Preach for the spirit of true Government is a pure and majestical Gift of God not consisting in whorish and pompous state but in the beauty and Glory of simple Truth and naked Justice which layes the Rod upon the back of the Transgressor and smileth upon the wel-doer impartially And O Nation because thou considerest not this therefore are not thy breaches healed but rather increased unto this day Oh be ye ashamed to

acknowledge Christ and the Scriptures in words but oppose and betray his pure Life wherefore he commandeth his wi●nesses now to fight with her with the sword of his mouth in the Power of Wisdom which is better then outward strength and so they act and speak as he moveth and enableth them keeping to their own gift measure and work as the Apostles and Saints formerly did to theirs and not regarding how they acted or spake so as to be moved or troubled at it as to question their call to the work of the Ministry for they know if they receive the witness of man the witness of God is greater which witness is his light within them which plainly sheweth them and sealeth in them though the whole world gain-say it that they have felt in themselves the Baptism of the spirit and fire whose effects I before declared and so the operation of his living Word which hath brought thousands of others to believe in the same light and many to feel also the same living Word and spiritual Baptism which hath shaken the Earthly part within like a cottage and also the outward body of some putting words in their mouths to declare his righteousness in the great Assembly and magnifie his Holy Name in the Congregations of his Saints this was that greater work that Christ said his Disciples should do then he had done because he went to his Father for the Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified this is really witnessed among us the Spirit sealing it in our hearts so that we witnesing the one Lord one Faith and one Baptism we are thereby baptized into the one body and being many are one bread and so the true Church that is come and coming out of Babylon and out of the wilderness Glory be to the Lord for ever who hath thus visited and Redeemed his People for this living Power is the gift it self tongues miracles prophesie c. are but the gifts flowing as streams from this fountain now if the Lord do keep back some streams and give us more of the fountain in this his day we are not loosers but gainers by that and so the more to be owned as the Church of Christ But ye will say when the Church was brought out of mystical Babylon John declareth there was an Angel who flow thorow the midst of heaven with an everlasting Gospel to Preach to them that dwell on the Earth and to all Nations kindreds tongues and People which since we see not how that could be without the gift of tongues sheweth us that the true Ministry must have the very same visible gifts now as the Apostles had before they undertake to go forth That People were never truely called out of Babylon before the Preaching of this everlasting Gospel is certainly true and that it is to be Preached to all sorts of People upon the Earth is as cer●●in but that this Gospel must not be Preached to some till the gift of tongues be given where by it might be declared to all is false for the Wisdom of God teacheth his People in what manner and order he will proceed in the publishing his truth throughout the world it must begin first in Sodom and Egypt where our Lord Christ the light and life hath been crucified I mean the Anti-christian State which under pretence of professing Christ opposeth him this Beast indeed is many headed and consists of divers Nations but they must not all be cut off at once but by degrees we know by experience what ever ye believe that he hath begun his work in this Isle of the North wherein we live and that there have been wayes made somewhat to awaken other Nations also the pure Language being known a tongue hath not been wanting to speak to them in and in this one thing do I behold Gods great Wisdom that he hath taken the wise in their own craftiness that whereas the Antichristian Priests have as the Hebrew and Greek so especially idolized the Latine or Romane tongue all over Europe whereby it s become a general Language hereby a good occasion is given to spread the truth throughout all these Nations of Christendome so called also so much hath been the mutuall commerce betwixt these Antichristian People for many years as counting each other to be Christians that in any of these Nations it may be either spoken in their own Language or by an Interpreter which last way is not to be despised for the mighty God brings and will bring to pass great things in these last times by weak beginnings and none is to despise the Day of small things yea the voice hath been hard in Turkie already and if any of you shall say But what had they to do to go thither without the gift of the Tongue I answer you must ask him that moved them thereto even by turning in to Gods witness which is his true light within every one of you and waiting there for Counsel ye shall know the Lords secrets and feel his Power to arise which shall bring you into Unity with their Spirits who knew their Call which ye will not then dispute but in the mean time him that is ignorant let him be ignorant but however know that your unbelief cannot make the truth of God of none effect But is it not Prophesied by Isaiah concerning the Church that he will turn his hand upon her and p●rely purge away her dross and take away all her tin and will restore all her Judges as at the first and her Counsellors as at the beginning afterwards she shall be called the City of Righteousness the faithful City Zion shall be Redeemed with Judgement and her converts with Righteousness whereby it appeareth that at the Restauration of the Church the second time which is a very refining time and of Redemption through Judgement and Righteousness which ye talk so much of the Ministry of the Church shall be as they were at the first gathering of it by the Apostles and so gifted just as they were The endowing of the witnesses at their Resurrection shall be with the Spirit of life from God entring into them and so they shall be as at the first for that is the gift it self which brings into Unity of Spirit all the Prophets Apostles and Saints in all ages and into Unity in Ministry as declaring one Everlasting Truth for substance and from one Eternal Root but in respect of the gifts and operations of that one Spirit or Gift it may be different at sundry times and seasons according to the work that is to be done and the various workings of the Spirit it self So God who at sundry times and divers manners spake to the Jews by the Prophets spake in the last times by his Son by whom also he speaketh sundry wayes at sundry times though not a sundry truth for the Apostles bare witness to the true light that lightneth every man and to the Word nigh in the

mouth and heart as Moses also witnessed and so do we now by the same Spirit they were for taking up and standing in the Cross fulfilling of all Righteousness and for separation from every Idol and all Idolatrous wayes and so are we now and that not only in word but in deed and in truth they would not go forth to speak and suffer in their own strength without power from above felt to enable them thereunto neither dare we the like without the same Power so then here are now Judges as at the first the same Spirit of Judgment proceeding yea the Lord in his People rather coming more near to Judgement and Counsellours as at the beginning those that exhort and reprove in the same Authority whose words the earthly mind is even less able to bear than formerly for Plagues and Woes unsufferable and so scorching vials are now pouring forth upon the seat of the Beast and the Whore and hail-stones fall from Heaven upon the wicked like the weight of a talent and those who speak in all wisdom to the Saints themselves are seen so ministring from the life to the same immortal life whereby they are built up unto a perfect man so that neither are they to be denied to be Counsellours as at the beginning because they do not exhort People to be Baptized with water c. for they find not that in their spiritual Commission yea see by the internal light the end of all shadows which must and do flee away at the very dawning of this bright day of the coming of the Son of man which shall never set more for saith the Lord to the Church Thy Sun shall no more go down at noon increase it shall but not decrease So here now is the true Tryal of the true Church and Ministry when the sign of the Son of man is seen in Heaven even himself appearing in his People as a universal light enlightning every one as the lightning which shineth from one end of Heaven to the other as also by the Baptism of Fire and the Holy Spirit which is felt really amongst us for as Eliah in Jezabels time said when there was a contest about his being a true Prophet or whether Baals prophets who were 450 were such or no he that answereth by fire let him be God so the Lord answering Eliah by fire a lively figure of this spiritual Baptism it licked up the water which was in the ditch and wood and fleshly offering a true representation of the consuming outward shadows the hay wood and stubble that Paul speaketh of whereby he alone was known to be the Lords own Prophet and the other though many to be false ones and so he had dominion over them and slew them So say I now to all Sects and Gatherings and Opinions in the world where the Lord God Baptizeth with fire consuming and burning up the dross filling his People that wait on him with a Holy Jealousie for his Holy Name and against all evil in thought word and deed where the outward earthly tabernacle as well as the inward is shaken where all shadows are made to vanish as needless in such a day as this there is the true Church visible and the true Prophets and Witnesses who slay all false prophets with the Sword of Christs mouth laying them by spiritual Judgement under Eternal Condemnation they repenting not and so casting them into the lake of fire And in this sense is that place in Jer. 30. to be understood which I believe ye called S●ekers much stick at where the Prophet fore-telling the Restauration of the Church after the captivity said The City should be builded upon her own Heap and the Palace remain after the manner thereof and that their Children should be as aforetime and their Congregation be established before the Lord and their Nobles should be of themselves and their Governour proceed from the midst of them c. to wit by the building the Church upon the same true Foundation as formerly even Christ the true light and bestowing on it the same spiritual gift which was the Spirit of truth the Fathers Promise to all true believers So establishing them upon the Rock of ages against which the Gates of Hell shall not prevail out of whom should go forth such Ministers who should be Noble and Valiant for the Truth Christ himself the Head of the Church being their Governour who from the midst of them ariseth in his strength to scatter all their enemies and to punish all that oppresse them as the Lord hath said he will do by the same Prophet so that the Palace remains after the manner of the former as enjoying the substance though the shadowes and same gifts in all things be not practised by the Saints or found amongst them for the Prophet Amos Chap. 9. fore-telling of the raising up of the Tabernacle of Dav●d that was fallen down c. said That the Lord would build it as in the dayes of old Now we find that the Apostle James in Acts 15. applieth this Prophesie to the raising up of the Gentile Church in those dayes which was truly applied thereunto because although the Jewish Church of old was very far different both in matter and manner of Administration from the Churches of Christ then yet it was builded as in the dayes of old because it was established upon the Foundation of Abraham with whom the Covenant was made both to the carnal and spiritual seed and because the substance was felt and witnessed which was the same in the Saints in all ages Wherefore I exhort ye all called Seekers if ye will find what ye say ye se●k after to come to the light in your own selves and wait low in it so shall you find the vail to remove from off your understandings whereby the true faithful witness Christ Jesus will be seen to stand up and so all impediments stumbling blocks taken up from the Letter without will be removed and a right understanding of the Scriptures be given so as to discern of the times and seasons but ye must first come to the Cross by owning your Reprover for sin and deny the pride pleasures interests folly and vanities of this world so as not the longer ye seek the worse ye grow as 't is too manifest some of you have done for it is the humble that he will teach and his secret is with them that fear him so as to shew them his Covenant for so have I found it by experience which Covenant of light being witnessed ye will easily see your way to Sion and your Leader thither not standing still for lack of gifts in others or wanting an Administrator of external ordinances but will keep to your own and find in due time such pure Power to arise as will administer to you in his own Sanctuary and make you Minister that to others which will plainly shew that ye are those who are called chosen

faithful though ye never speak with any other Tongue than your Mother Tongue or do any outward Miracle yet speaking and declaring of all his wonderful works Now come I to stand up in defence of the Truth and true Church of the first born against all you of what sort soever you be or under what name soever ye go who being out of all those aforenamed Sects lift your heads on high snuffing up the wind and think it too low a condition for you to believe in the true light within you which secretly reproveth for all sin and evil and so to wait humbly and silently therein with the People of God called Quakers in derision because they tremble at the Word of the Lord and are afraid to offend in the least thing that of God in them for so must you much deny your selves both in wisdom talking and behaviour amongst men with whom ye converse which Cross would to them seem a ridiculous and foolish thing in you Ye will say perhaps ye are above Ordinances or shadows and can live satisfied of your selves by that which ye know and are taught of God without joyning to or walking with any But consider Friends there is one great Ordinance which ye must never get above but be in subjection to if ever ye will have true Peace with the living God and that is Christ the true light who shines in every ones heart either as a Justifier or Condemner who is the great gift of the Father to the Sons of men and him whom he hath ordained to save or destroy for ever Now whatever men may talk or tattle or boast of themselves this is a more certain truth sealed in me by the Spirit of the Lord God that whosoever he be that truly believeth in Christ the light doth whatsoever the light leadeth unto and that one special thing which it leads unto is to bring the Creature Soul Body and Spirit into a right frame and order out of its own will into the Will of its guide which is the light so as that man shall not walk at random speak or do as it pleaseth him but shall freely and naturally love the Society and joyn visibly in the bond of Amity with those that believe and walk in the light knowing a time of silence as they do and a bridle for the tongue so as to keep his mouth as with a bit and this is to walk in the foot-st●ps of the Flock for in this manner doth the good shepherd put his sheep forth go before them in this his day the states and conditions of all those who have been in spiritual captivity so requiring it nor is it enough for any of you to say is God tied up to a Form For we know this is no form or frame of mans devising but what the light naturally and mans condition necessarily calls him into for if his delight be with the Saints and those that excel in vertue as Davids was who had a sincere heart he cannot but come amongst them in love and if they there wait on the Lord he to wait with them if they seek the Lord he to seek him with them if they love the Lords Judgements and Reproofs he to love them also and if they rejoyce in the Lord he to rejoyce also this is to be like minded and affectionate one to another hereby doth the pure and unfeigned love appear the Unity or the Onety in the Spirit is witnessed here is a Church visible in a sweet and spiritual order and yet out of any invented or humane form for although we know and say that mans order is confusion yet we also know and say that God is a God of order not of confusion Now what is more comely than for Friends and Brethren in the truth to live together in Unity and in what way can this Unity be more shewen than by meeting and assembling together to wait upon the Lord to know his Counsel to feel his Teachings to speak when he speaketh to move when he moveth and to rest when he resteth Is not this Gods way of leading his People to Canaan yea and in Canaan is not this one part of walking in the light of the Lamb is not this a part of that one heart and one way that the Lord hath promised to lead his People in is not here a spiritual Harmony and hereby doth not the Saints in a great measure appear to be a City set on 〈◊〉 Hill that cannot be hid Let that of God answer in every one of you and not your own high conceivings But ye will be ready to say What difference is there betwixt you and other Sects in this they meet together as you do in an appointed place and at a set hour they pray sit and hear one speak to them c. and you do the like Doth not right reason unless any be past reason tell you that if Persons meet they must have a Place to meet at or in and that they must also know the time of their so assembling why then do you argue against necessity it self But if the end of your so objecting be to destroy all general Assemblings of the Saints together then I say you speak not in Gods Wisdom nor know not the thoughts of his heart for the Apostle who was in the Wisdom of God and had received the Spirit of Truth to guide him saith Exhort ye one another daily least any of you be hardned through the deceitfulness of sin and whereas perhaps ye may think such Meetings are needless because of this day of the Lord that is risen and arising the same Apostle argues quite contrary saying Not forsaking the Assembling of your selves together as the manner of some is but exhorting one another and so much the more as ye see the day approaching Oh! People consider that the perfect day of the Lord is most exceeding desirable of all the Children of light therefore the more they espy it the more they seek after it Now Exhortations or other Declarations that come from the light of life raiseth the light of life in others and so brings on the day for it is like fire begetting fire or like face answering to face in a glass not like the dead and dry words of other Assemblies where there is no waiting in the light first to feel the life but a continual trading and going on in self-strength but ye cannot nor dare not deny but that we do so wait and all words spoken out of that are judged by the same and if any one among us look out after words and is not as well satisfied without them as with them if the Lord will have all flesh keep silence before him that dissatisfaction is Judged also Besides if ye were in that which giveth a right discerning ye would see that words spoken from the life are altogether ●eedful for the conjviction and conversion of the world 〈◊〉 directing their minds to the true light