the Scriptures of Truth c. This is to inform you That all our Books and Declarations that for these many years have been published to the World do clearly testifie to the contrary but yet for your sakes this is now given forth That God who is the Only Wise Omnipotent and Everlasting God we do Own and Believe in who is the Creator of all things both in Heaven and in Earth and the Preserver of all that he hath made who is God over all blessed forever to whom be all Honour and Glory and Dominion and Praise and Thanksgiving both now and for evermore And that Jesus Christ is his Beloved and Only Begotten Son in whom he is Well-pleased who was Conceived by the Holy Ghost and Born of the Virgin Mary in whom we have Redemption through his Blood even the Forgiveness of Sins who is the express Image of the Invisible God the First-born of every Creature by whom were all things created that are in Heaven and that are in the Earth Visible and Invisible whether they be Thrones or Dominions or Principalities or Powers And we do own and believe that he was made to be as Sin or an Offence and Curse for us who knew no Sin and was Crucified for us in the Flesh without the Gates of Jerusalem and that he was Buried and Rose again the Third Day by his own Power for our Justification and we do believe that he Ascended up into Heaven and now sitteth at the Right-Hand of God And that this Jesus is the Foundation of the Prophets and Apostles and our Foundation so that there is no other Foundation to be laid but what is laid even Christ Jesus and that he tasted Death for every man and shed his Blood for all men that he is the Propitiation for our Sins and not for our Sins only but for the Sins of the whole World For saith John the Baptist of him Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the Sins of the World John 1.29 And we do believe That he is our Alone Redeemer and Saviour even the Captain of our Salvation who saves us from Sin as well as from Hell and from the Wrath to come and destroyes the Devil and his Works who is the Seed of the Woman that bruises the Serpent's Head to wit Christ Jesus who is Alpha and Omega the First and Last That he is as Scriptures of Truth say our Wisdom Righteousness Justification and Redemption neither is there Salvation in any other For there is none other Name under Heaven given among men whereby we must be saved it is he alone who is the Shepherd and Bishop of our Souls he it is that is our Prophet whom Moses long since testified of in Acts 3.22 23. A Prophet shall the Lord our God raise up unto you of your Brethren like unto me him shall you hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you and it shall come to pass that every one that will not hear that Prophet shall be Destroyed from among the People He it is that is now come and hath given us an Understanding that we may know him that is true and a Rule in our Hearts even his Law of Love and of Life in our Inward Parts which makes us free from the Law of Sin and Death And we have no Life but by him For he is the Quickening Spirit the Second Adam the Lord from Heaven by whose Blood we are cleansed and our Consciences sprinkled from Dead Works that we might serve the Living God by whose Blood we are purchased And so he is our Mediator that makes Peace and Reconciliation between God offended and Us offending being our Surety of the New Testament and the Oath of God the New Covenant of Light Life Grace and Peace the Author and Finisher of our Faith Now this Lord Jesus Christ the Heavenly Man Emanuel God with us we all own and believe in whom the High Priests raged against and said He had spoken Blasphemy and the Chief Priests and Elders of the Jews took Counsel together and put him to Death the same whom Judas betray'd for Thirsy Pieces of Silver which he had from the Priests who gave a Large Sum of Money to the Souldiers to broach a Horrible Lye namely that they should say That his Disciples stole him away by Night whilst they Slept And after he was risen from the Dead you may see in the Acts of the Apostles how that the chief Priests and Elders Persecuted the Disciples of this Jesus for preaching Christ and his Resurrection this we say is that Lord Jesus Christ whom we own to be our Life and Salvation Now concerning the Holy Scriptures We do believe That they were given forth by the Holy Spirit of God through Holy Men of God who spoke as Scriptures of Truth say As they were Moved by the Holy Ghost in 2 Pet. 1.1 and that they are to be Read and Believed and Fulfilled and he that fulfils them is Christ And are profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction and for Instruction in Righteousness that the Man of God may be perfect throughly furnished unto all Good Works 2 Tim. 3.16 and are able as Divinely Inspir'd to make us Wise to Salvation through Faith in Christ Jesus And we do believe That the Scriptures are the Wordâ— of God for it s said in Exod. 20.1 God spake all these Words saying c. meaning the Ten Commandments given forth upon Mount Sinai and in Rev. 18. saith John I testifie unto every man that heareth the WORDS of the Prophesie of this Book if any man addeth unto These and if any man shall take away from the WORDS not Word of the Book So in Luke 1.20 Because thou believest not my WORDS and John 5.47 15.7 14.23 12.47 So that we call the Scriptures as Christ and the Apostles call'd them and as the Holy Men of God call'd them namely The WORDS of God Another Slander and Lye they have cast upon us is namely That we should teach the Negars to Rebel A Thing we do utterly abhor and detest in and from our Hearts the Lord knows it who is the Searcher of all hearts and knows all things and so can witness and testifie for us that this is a most Egregious and Abominable Untruth For that which we have spoken and declared to them is to exhort and admonish them To be Sober and to Fear God and to love their Masters and Mistresses and to be Faithful and Diligent in their Masters Service and Business and that then their Masters and Overseers will Love them and deal Kindly and Gently with them And that they should not beat their Wives nor the Wives their Husbands nor multiply Wives nor put away their Wives nor the Wives their Husbands as they use frequently to do and that they do not Steal nor be Drunk nor commit Adultery nor Fornication nor Curse nor Swear nor Lye nor give Bad Words to one another or unto any
Corner-Stone the Foundation of the Prophets Apostles and us as is said in John and we are those who have obeythe Commands of Christ who enlightens every Man that cometh into the World that all through it might believe who said Believe in the Light this is his Command that they may become Children of the Light John 12.36 So we know That as many as receives him to wit Christ the Light that enlighteneth every one that cometh into the World to them gives he Power to become the Sons of God John 1.12 And this we Witness and can say Behold what manner of Love is this that we should be called the Sons of God and Heirs of Christ who makes us sit together in the Heavenly Places in Christ Jesus who formerly were dead in Sins and Trespasses Eph. 2. And we have received the Unction from the Holy One through which we come to know all things The Anointing which we have received of him abides in us and we need not any ones Teaching us but as the same Anointing does teach us all thengs and is true and is no Lye and even as it hath taught you ye shall abide in him 1 John 2.27 It taught the Saints in the Apostles dayes and us in ours therefore we must abide in him as they did to wit in Jesus And the Light of Christ which shines in our Hearts which God hath commanded to shine out of Darkness doth give us the Light of the Knowledge of the Glory of God in the Face of Christ Jesus And this is the Heavenly Treasure we have in our Earthen Vessels that the Excellency of the Power may be of God and not of us 2 Cor. 4.6 7. So as we walk in the Light as he is in the Light we have Fellowship one with another and the Blood of Christ the Son of God which sprinkles our Hearts and Consciences cleanseth us from all Sin 1 Joh. 1.7 And whereas many Lyes and Scandals you have cast upon us to wit our Denying of God Christ and the Scriptures c. They are all False For Christ we know own and believe his Incarnation Passion Death Resurrection Ascension and Glorification And the Scriptures we own to be the Scriptures of Truth And Scriptures signifie Writings and we own the Scriptures to contain the Words of God which we learn of God and given forth by the Holy Men of God and are profitable for Doctrine for Reproof for Correction and Instruction in Righteousness 2 Tim. 3.16 17. And whereas we have been accused for Denying Original Sin and Owning Perfection here in this Life To which we answer That there is an Original of Sin we deny not but your Doctrine of Original Sin we do deny as you state it For doth not Original signifie the Beginning and the beginning of Sin was it not the Devil For we do affirm it was neither God nor Christ And did not Christ come to destroy the Devil and his Works and so destroy the Original So we must tell you we hold Christ and not the Devil who was and is the Original of Sin and Imperfection I say again Christ who was before the Devil was who was glorified with the Father before the World began who bruises the Serpents Head and the Heads of all Deceivers Lyars and Slanderers and False Prophets and Anti-Christs And in him we are to wit Christ Jesus who is our Salvation Mediator and Redeemer And as for your Accusing us for holding Perfection Answ What must we not hold God who is Perfect and must we not hold Christ who is Perfect and his Work and Worship which is Perfect and his Religion which is Perfect that comes from himself and the Gifts of his Spirit and Grace and Faith which are Perfect Are not all his Gifts Perfect and must we not receive them in this Life yea must not our Bodies be the Temple of God and of Christ and of his Holy Ghost And then must we not hold them who are Perfect and own Perfection And is not the Command of Christ to us to be Perfect as our Heavenly Father is Perfect And was it ever the work of the Prophets and Apostles to preach up Imperfection for Term of Life but always both the Prophets Christ and the Apostles pressed and presseth us to Perfection and what do they press us to that which is Impossible to be attain'd unto What will you say that their Words were of no Value What will you liken Christ and his Apostles words unto For were there any that ever denied the Doctrine of Perfection saving only Presbyterians Independants and Baptists and you who have got the Forme of Godliness but deny the Power thereof which brings out of Imperfection to the perfect Head Christ Jesus who is the way to God And therefore you do not only deny the perfect Power but also are short of having the Form of Godliness And will not Christ present his Church Perfect that is without Spot or Wrinkle unto God the Father who is the pure Head of it And how will you present your Church to God What will you present it to God with a Body of Death and a Body of Sin Do not you deny Circumcision in this namely the Circumcision of the Spirit that is made without Hands by putting off the Body of the Sins of the Flesh by the Circumcision of Christ And do not you deny Christ's Baptism who came with his Fan in his Hand to purge his Floor thoroughly whom We see is come and doth increase and do see the decrease of John I say He is come with his Fan in his Hand who will thoroughly purge his Floor and burn up the Chaff with unquenchable Fire and gather his Wheat into his Garner a safe place And this We witness and so must all People before they go to their Graves For this is the Baptism that the Devil would fain have People to deny and his Ministers and Messengers and then he fils them with Chaff For as the Apostle saith to the Church By one Spirit we are all baptised into one Body whether we be Jews or Gentiles Bond or Free He doth not say that by Water we were all baptised into one Body For we see many Bodies baptised with Elementary Water and yet do destroy one another Now mark the Words We are all baptised into one Body that is the Church of the First-born and Christ is the Head of this Body 1 Cor. 12.13 So this is the One Baptism spoken of Ephes 4.4 5. There is one Body and one Spirit even as you are called into one Hope of your Calling one Lord one Faith one Baptism one God and Father of all who is above all and through all and in you all Mark that Through all and in you all Unto every one of us is given Grace according to the measure of the Gift of Christ praised be his Name forever Grace and Truth is come by Jesus Christ yea that Grace which brings Salvation which hath appeared
one else For there is something in them that tells them That they should not Practice those Evils or any other before mention'd Which if notwithstanding they should do them that there are but two Ways the one that leads to Heaven where the Righteous go the other that leads to Hell where the Wicked and Debancht Whoremongers and Adulteres Murderers Lyars Thieves go To the one the Lord of Heaven and Earth will say Come ye Blessed of my Father inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the Foundation of the World but to the other he will say Depart ye Cursed into Everlasting Fire prepared for the Devil and his Angels The Wicked into Everlasting Punishment but the Righteous into Life Eternal Mat. 25. Now consider Friends that it s no Transgression for a Master of a Family to instruct his Family himself or else some others in his behalf but rather that it is a very great Duty lying incumbent upon them As Abraham did and Joshua did as to the first the Lord said I know that Abraham will command his Children and his Houshold after him and they shall keep the Way of the Lord to do Justice Judgment that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him And as for Joshua said he Josh 24.15 And if it seems Evil unto you to serve the Lord choose you this Day whom you will serve whether the Godds which your Fathers served that were on the other side of the Flood or the Godds of the Amorites in whose Land ye dwell But as for me and my House we will serve the Lord. And further consider this That it is a Duty lying upon us to Pray and to Teach Instruct and Admonish those in and belonging to our Families it being the Command of the Lord the Disobedience to which will incur the Lord's Displeasure as you may see in Jer. 10.25 where it s written Pour out thy Fury upon the Heathen that know thee not and upon the Families that call not upon thy Name Now Negars Tauny Indians make up a very great part of Families here in this Island for whom an Account will be required at the Great Day of Judgment when every one shall be Rewarded according to his Deeds done in the Body whether they be Good or whether they be Evil In that Day I say of the Resurrection both of the Good and of the Bad of the Just and of the Unjust when the Lord shall be revealed from Heaven with his Mighty Angels in Flaming Fire taking Vengeance on them that know not God and obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ who shall be punished with Everlasting Destruction from the Presence of the Lord and from the Glory of his Power when he shall come to be Glorified in his Saints 2 Thess 1.8 Here follows the Addition VVHereas divers Reproachful Speeches by some of the Priests and People of the Island of Barbadoes were cast upon George Fox since his arrival here its manifest that the Devil was the Author of them to prevent and pervert the Minds of People from the Living Truth of God and the Right Way to God to wit Jesus Christ of whom the said G.F. inform'd the People that so they might all come to inherit Christ Jesus and so inherit the Substance viz. Christ their Teacher their Way their Prophet of whom Moses prophesied long since That him they should Hear their Bishop to Over-see them and their Shepherd to Feed them and their Minister that Ministereth Grace and Life and Truth unto them who is their Rock and Foundation of the Prophets and Apostles and of us who in Scorn they call Quakers yea of that Christ who bruised the Serpent's Head and destroyes the Devil and his Works So he is the Way to God to the pure God who is the Pure Foundation of many Generations is the Life of all Mankind that have Life for as they all dyed in the first Adam so the Life they have is in the second Adam to wit Christ Jesus by whom the World was made who was Glorified with the Father before the World began Now I say every one must receive him in whom they have Life Eternal who is the Son of God and so receiving him they receive the Faith of the Son of God and receive his Blood that sprinkles their Hearts and Consciences from dead Works that so they might serve God in the new Life in Christ Jesus I say that Christ Jesus that was Crucified without the Gates of Jerusalem who was born of the Virgin Mary and was Dead and Buried whom Judas betray'd to the Chief Priests for thirty pieces of Silver who afterwards arose out of the Grave even the third day though the Magistrates and Priests set a Watch a Guard of Souldiers upon his Sepulchre and the chief Priests gave the Souldiers large Money to say That his Disciples stole Him away by Night This Christ I say is our Life who Dy'd for our Sins and is Risen for our Justification who remains in the Heavens at the Right hand of God until the restitution of all things And we say He is Manifested and Revealed in us and we are in him by his Light Power and Spirit and he hath taught us what to believe in to wit the Light as you may see in John who saith He is the Light and commands us to believe in the Light that we may be the Children of Light And so we are Believers in the Light to wit Christ Jesus and have the Witness within our selves And after we believ'd we were seal'd by the Spirit of Promise and we can set to our Seal That God is True in all his Prophets and Promises concerning his Son and the Doctrine of the Apostles that preacht Christ's Birth and Life Miracles Sufferings his Death and Resurrection So we do confess him before men to be our Shepherd our Way and our Foundation and the Head of his Church and he is our Bill op our Minister and our Priest who is made higher then the Heavens Holy and Harmless and this we are not ashamed to confess before men Now as for the Filthy and Unsavory words that have been cast upon me they are all False O! that People should bend their Tongues to invent filthy Lyes and that others should be given up to believe a Lye So that Say … of Christ is fulfilled They shall speak all manner of Evil◠you for my sake But yet this we can truly say The Lord forgive them if it be his will if that they have not sin'd out their day and we do earnestly desire their Repentance if there be any place found for Repentance But truly it is much if God's Wrath and his Sore Judgments do not fall heavy upon them in this Island a great measure whereof they have seen and felt already and that not long since both by the Plague that swept Multitudes away as with a Besom and by a very great Fire that