heart and thus you see briefly how the wisdome of the flesh is an enemy to Christ borne in us 2. She cannot endure to let us see the dying of this Christ in us although wee are the very Persons that Crucifieth the Lambe a fresh and put him to open shame yet She will perswade us otherwise and thus poore self-seduced man Crucifies his Saviour every day afresh and yet is so deluded by him-selfe that he seeth it not Consider then O man that thou art this Spirituall Jerusalem where Christ is slaine thou art that Judge that condemnest Christ in the motions of his Spirit lettest Barabhas or thy base lusts goe uncontrouled all the faculties of thy soul and the powers of the inner-man mis-led by the wisdome of the flesh are as it were the voice of the People Crucifie him Crucifie him thy sins are those speares that Pierce Christ in spirit in thee and thus O man thou art the dayly Crosse of thy Saviour and how happy shouldest thou bee if thou did'st discerne all this that so thou mightest looke upon him whom thou now piercest and mourn for thy iniquity but the designe of this whore thy fleshly wisdome is to darken thy eye from beholding of this She will rather tell thee that the good man is not at home Christ is not in thee in his Sufferings And thus poore man mis-led by the Whore becomes that deceitfull Pilate that washeth his hands of the blood of this innocent Spirit whom it hath dispitefully Crucified But Secondly Christ may be said to dye in a Christian another way which also this whore cannot endure we should see and behold and that is when Christ dyes in flesh to us and in us for some times Christ lives in fleshly appearances of him self in a Christian some Christians the highest discovery of Christ that they have attained unto is fleshly formes and fleshly Ordinances thus many a christian enjoyes Christ as really and as comfortably as the Disciples did the Naturall flesh of Christ now Christ he would needs dye depart goe away from his disciples in the flesh that so hee might come in a higher and more glorious dispensation to them even so oft-times Christ doth likewise dye in a christian to all outward and fleshly dispensations and this death the wisdome of the flesh cannot endure that the soul should discerne how often doth God goe out of all low appearances to a Christian Insomuch that a poor Christian many times can finde no Christ in his forms no comfort in ordinances no joy in duties and performances but with Mary stands weeping at the Sepulchre or those dead dispensations where Christ is buried and can see no appearance of Jesus in them but all this while it seeks the living amongst the dead thus Christ dies in a Christian to all fleshly appearances many times And truly looke what sorrow fell upon the spirits of the poore disciples for the departure of their Lord in the flesh from them the like sorrow and griefe falls upon that Christian from whom Christ is departed in all outward dispensations Christ compares that present estate and condition of the disciples to a Woman in Travell Joh. 16.21 22. and yee now therefore have forrow saith Christ Behold O Christian the lively Image of our condition when Christ crucifies his own flesh to us in all those outward dispensations wherein formerly wee have injoyed God Happily heretofore we have seen much of God in our outward formall fellowships one with another in fleshly Ordinances as Baptisme of water and breaking of bread but now happily Christ is crucified in all these things to us and wee finde nothing but dead flesh there nothing that can administer any spirituall comfort in any of these things see nothing but forme bare Flesh bare Water bare Bread and Wine in so much that wee now confesse that our highest attainments of the knowledge of Christ hath been but a knowledge after the flesh now here lyes Christ crucified to all these things the soul dead to its wonted discoveries Now the designe of thy Fleshly wisdome is to darken this death of Christ in Thee Shee cannot endure that the Soul should move out of its fleshly discoveries for She loves the outward order and fleshly decency of all these things and therefore She 'l tell Thee that Christ must be found here or no where and thus keep the Soul in bondage to her self in so much that the poore creature goes again and againe to his outward worship and yet findes no living Christ there nor is possessed with any more comfort in them then proceeds from the power of the flesh wheras indeed the Soul should bee willing to waite in this dead condition for the returne of the Spirit to lye empty and bare at the gate of mercy out of all those formall dispensations from whence Christ is departed waiting for the Comforter and therefore my councell is to all those who see Christ dead to all such carnall and fleshly dispensations in them Christian wait upon the Lord and thou shalt renew thy strength Christ must have his time to lye in the grave hidden from thee in all his appearances to thee but this know he will see thee againe in a more Spirituall discovery of himself it is but a while and he that shall come will come and will not tarry and will take thee up into himselfe above these Types and Figures hee will bee thy Water and Bread and Wine to thee hee will bring thee to the injoyment of the Substance and thou shalt no more live upon the Shadow thou shalt live upon the kernell and not alwaies bee cracking upon the shell For if wee be dead with Christ wee shall allso live together with him but be sure in the meane time that thou beware of the Whore least She by her appearances to thee in all outward Worships make Thee believe that Christ is living in all those things wherein he is dead and buried And thus in briefe you see that this Strumpet the wisdome of the flesh is an enemy to the discovery of Christ in us And now me-thinks by this time wee may see who is the great Anti-Christ that John speaks of in his first Epist 4. Chap. 3. ver That every spirit that believes not or denies Christ come in the flesh is Anti-Christ and what is it now that denies Christ come in the flesh If thou wold'st know Christian what this Anti-christ is and where She lyes thou needest not goe far to discover it thou needest not go to Rome Canterbury or Westminster but thou mayest finde that Antichrist in Thee denying Jesus to be come in thy flesh Oh all ye that would faine shew your selves professed enemies to this Antichrist that man of sin who seekes to destroy Roote and Branch all those in whom you conceive there are the appearances of him Returne Returne O man into thy own Bosome and there behold him lying secretly in thy owne
ANTI-CHRIST in Man OR A discovery of the Great WHORE that sits upon many Waters Wherein is declared what that Whore or inward Mystery is together with the destruction thereof by the powerfull appearing of Christ in us By JOSEPH SALMON a Member of the ARMY Rev. 18.2 And he cryed mightily with a strong voice saying Babylon is fallen is fallen and is become the habitation of devils and a cage of every unclean and hatefull bird Ver. 20. Rejoyce over her thou heaven and yee holy Apostles and Prophets for God hath avenged you on her LONDON Printed for Giles Calvert and are to be sold at the Sign of the Black spread Eagle at the west end of Pauls To all those who desire to be acquainted with the Mystery of Godliness and especially to those my beloved friends and Brethren in the Lord with whom I have formerly walked in outward formall Communion both in City and Country MY dear friends whose I am in the bowels of unfained love considering with my selfe that there is nothing more requisite to be known then these two great mysteries the mystery of godliness and the mystery of iniquity and likewise pondering how much all flesh is opposite to the discovery of these two mysteries I have presumed to dictate my thoughts unto you in this small Treatise wherein I have briefly and infirmely discovered unto you what the Lord hath manifested unto me of the spirit of Antichrist that is in all of us It may be that I may be supposed by many of you in this little volume to endeavour the subvertion and overture of that forme and discipline that you for the present walk in but I assure you from the truth of my heart that I intend no such thing but shall rather incourage any of you to continue in that dispensation where the Tord doth manifest himself to you in the same only this know dear friends that the Lord hath his movings towards his people to some he shewes himself more clearly to seme more obscurely to some he makes the flesh of Christ comfortable and joyfull that is the discovery of himselfe in flleshly dispensations to others he crucifies his own flesh as I may so say that is dyes departs goes away in the flesh or fleshly formes and dispensations and this is my condition for the present I were a wretch if I should deny the appearances of God to me in that way you now for the present stand in but now it hath pleased God to move out of these things to me I now see that all the knowledge of Christ that they could set out to me was but o knowledge of him after the flesh in a word I see that Christ hath crucisied himselfe to me in all these things in which before I enjoyed his fleshly presence insomuch that I now waite with the Disciples where Jesus hath appointed me even at the gates of wisdomes house and at the posts of wisdomes doors for the return of the Spirit for I believe this departed Jesus will come again but it shall he in Spirit not in flesh and will make himself to be that substance to me really which I catched at in the shadow typecally and this through mercy I doe in some measure enjoy and though in much imperfection yet so sweetly that henceforth I desire to know Christ after the flesh no longer Now as concerning this Treatise it self I desire you to look upon it as comming from a Child in the understanding of the divine things of God and if you suppose your selves to have come to more maturity in divinity then my selfe and that you think that you can speak in more glory then I have done I hope you will be so muh the more engaged to passe a charitable censure upon the stammerings of my Infancy If any of you shall notwithstanding testifie any rigednesse of spirit against me in this particutar herein I joy and rejoyce that the Lord in his time will bring you to live so in the light of that Sunne as that you shall see all your now present light to be darknesse and your forme to be flesh and then you will not be bitter against any poore Saint that desires to enjoy God in a more high dispensation then your selves in the meane time I desire your prayers to the Lord for me and I shall for ever commit you into his hands who I hope ere long will dye to you in all these outward things as he hath to me and by his rising and second comming in you will so manifest himself to you that you shall see him to be the spirituall water bread and wine without and beyond all these types and shadowes which is the dayly prayer of him who still professeth himself to be your brother by that one Baptisme of that one spirit into that one body and for ever remain yours til death Joseph Salmon ANTICHRIST in Man OR The discovery of the great WHORE that sits upoh many waters THere hath been much controvercy about the finding out of this great Whore that spirit of Antichrist which God shall judge and whom Christ shall destroy by the breath of his mouth and the brightness of his comming and in this eager persuit of her to find her out in her scarlet colours riding upon the Beast some men have atained to glimmerings some to a more perfect discovery of her some there are that affirme this great Whore to be the Pope some the Presbyter some the Episcopacy now these men have seen the Whore but in a fleshly discovery they take the fruite for the tree the streame for the fountain in a word they have seen her outside but not her inside they know her in the History but not in the Mistery for upon her Fore-head is written MISTERY BABYLON THE GREAT c. Rev. 17.5 Know therefore O man whomsoever thou art that judgest the whore by these carnall conceptions of her that thou art far deceived by her in her fleshly appearances to thee Thus while the sons of men seeke to behold this Strumpet in her proper sphere and center they deceive themselves by looking too fleshly and carnally upon her know first then O man that this great whore is in thee whil'st thou seekest to behold her without thee whil'st thou beholdest her in other men shee is in the mean time acting in a Mystery in thee whilest thou despisest the appearance of her in other men shee hath by guile caught thee and by her Mysterious workings insnared thee and hath stolen thy heart from God and good ness she imbraceth the in her armes she kisseth thee with her mouth she deceiveth thee by her flatteries whilest thou thinkest thou hast nothing to doe with her shee is in thy bosome whilest thou thinkest shee is far distant from thee and this is done in a mistery and thou seest it not Now then looking upon this Whore spiritually not carnally in us and not out of us in the Mystery and not in the
12.7 That when the woman had brought forth her man childe which was to rule all Nations with a rodde of Iron the woman upon the birth of this man childe fled into the wildernesse and when the woman was in the wildernesse then saies John I saw war in Heaven Michael and his angels fought against the Dragon and the Dragon fought his angels and what 's all this to me truely Christian me thinks this warre in Heaven is a sure symptom of the day of Judgement the end of this world in us when God hath by his owne power brought forth this man Jesus in us and hath given him power to rule and raigne in this woman or weake passive Christian the Soule presently upon the birth or bringing forth of Jesus in it is imediatly in a wildernesse or lost in it selfe and lyes as one amazed at this sudden worke of the Lord and in this bewildred condition of the creature Sathan he gages warre upon it shoots his fiery darts at it pursues the woman with Herod and seekes to devoure both Christ with the christian also now therefore christian know that thy Soul is this Heaven where this great battel is fought thou being in a lost bewildred estate as not knowing which way to escape the woundings of Sathan and the fiery darts of the wicked but standest as a sencelesse lifelesse marke for thy spirituall enemies to shoot at but Michael thy spirituall Prince Christ Jesus hee fights for thee against that Dragon that whore that antichrist that labours to devoure thee so that thou art that poor passive that lyes stone still whilest the Serpent stings thee and the Dragon exercises his cruelty upon thee till at last this Michael our Prince Christ Jesus hath by his own power and strength cast out and so routed this Dragon this old Serpent vers 9. That now his place is no more found in Heaven or in thy soul and thus maiest thou see Christ Judging the Whore this Serpent in thee insomuch that now this loud voyce is uttered from Heaven or the Soul of a Saint as in vers 10. Now is come salvation and strength and the kingdome of our God and the power of his Christ whereas before nothing but the dreadfull voyce of hel wrath anger fury and judgement nothing but warrs and rumours of warrs heard in thy soul yet now the day is come Christ is come to Judgement in us and hath condemned the whore in us now the voyce of salvation is heard in thee whereas before thou apprehendest God as David did sometimes to have shot the arrowes of his wrath at thee and to have battered thy soul in peeces by the thundering Cannon of his wrath yet now thou seest there is a cessation of these tumults in thee and thou now seest that sweet messenger of God the eternall Spirit drawing neere towards thee with its white Flagge of peace joy comfort and salvation bringing comfort unto thee by telling thee thy warfare is accomplished thy iniquity is pardoned and thon hast received double at the Lords hands for all thy sins and then further now strength is come also which is another part of the voyce from Heaven alas how feeble and how weake faint and unable was the Soul before the spiritual resurrection of it for the birth of this Child Jesus in it is the regeneration or new birth of a Christian the wildernesse the woman fled into is that mortified dead lost estate of a Christian the Grave where the Soul is buried to every living action and the overcomming or conquering of the Dragon or the spirituall serpent the wisdome of the flesh is the resurrection of a Saint or that spirituall day of Judgement of the whore in us Now as Jesus raised up himselfe by the power of the Father from out of the bowels of the earth so by the strength and power of this Jesus who is the resurrection and the life a Christian rises out of this dead condition and so her mortall putting on immortality and corruption putting on incorruption here is death swallowed up in victory The Christian now as he hath formerly been planted with Christ in the likenesse of his death so likewise now in the likenesse of his resurrection it bears now no longer the image of the first dead Adam but is risen in the likenesse of Christ out of earth and flesh which formerly he was involved and buryed in and by his rising againe overcomes the Dragon by the blood of the Lamb kills the great Goliah the wisdome of the flesh and this is all by the strength of that Strong man Christ Jesus who is entred into his temple or the heart of man and silences all these earthly rumors and commotions in him and so is the second part of the voyce from Heaven fulfilled Now is come not only salvation but strength And then Thirdly The Kingdome of God that 's come also and the power of his Christ our Saviour taught his Disciples whil'st hee was in the flesh and knew him only after the flesh I say he taught them to pray thy Kingdome come so that the Kingdome of Christ in that sence was not yet come to the Disciples even so it is with every poore Christian that hath attained to no more knowledge then the flesh of Christ can teach them that do not know Christ any other waies then by the beholding of his fleshly substance as Christians doe in all outward and fleshly ordinances that see no more nor know no more of Christ then Bread Water and Wine and outward formes and order can teach them the Kingdome of God is not come to them yet while the Woman was in the Wildernesse the Kingdome of God was not come in her but when She by the strength of God was Risen and had overcome by the bloud of the Lambe then She cryed now the Kingdome of God is come the Woman was fed in the wildernesse ver 6. in our low and lost estate God he feeds us with milke because the Kingdome of God Christ in the measure of the Spirit is not yet come to inable us to beare stronger meates in the wildernesse or weake condition of Saints God feeds them with manna but when he brings them into Canaan he then compasseth them about with the flowings of Milke and Honie this Canaan is Christ the true Rest of a Christian the Kingdome of the Father in the Saints who drawes up the Soul from these low dispensations by degrees as it were till he hath seated it in himself brings the Soul out of the fleshly knowledge of himself into spirituall discoveryes of his Excellency so that now the Soule prayes no more in the imbecillity of the flesh thy Kingdome come seekes no longer in fleshly Formes and Ordinances for the kingdome for it is already in them and they live in the injoyment of it Now is come Salvation and strength and the Kingdome of God and the power of his Christ the Dragon and his Angels they