herein that when thou gavest an Alarm to Oxford Wallingford Banbury or any other of the Kings Quarters whether thou didst not as well therein mind thy Friends of their Duties as well as thou didst desire to put the Kings Friends to hardship and upon Difficulties And finding so much cause for it as I do occasioned partly by the Rigour of others in places of Authority in other parts as well as by thy cruelty to those our Friends who are as good Friends to Kings Charles as those with such Eagerness thou didst formerly put to such hardship Imprison and hang up I have I say good reason upon this account to say what I have said And if thou seem to take Exceptions at my saying we are as good Friends to King Charles as those thou so dealt withall To this I shall answer and let thee know that thou art a far greater Enemy to King Charles the Second herein then thou wast to his Father King Charles the First King Charles the Second and the Duke of York in thy so hastily hanging up and making such Havock of his Friends at Abington or else where But to speak in the Language of David though in another case 1 Chron. 21. 17. As for these poor Sheep what have they done Pick and chuse take the Offenders if thou findest them such and hang them up if thou judgeâ—â— meet but 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 Suffer for nor with the Guilty nor the peaceable with the violent I say again that thou didst never do the King nor 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 greater Myschief in the height of all thy fury against them and their Friends then thou doest King Charles the Second 〈…〉 God 's People their Liberty when they should 〈◊〉 their several and respective Meetings praying to the Lord yea and crying mightily to the great Iehovah for his assistance and help to be showred down upon him that as he hath given him such a Benefit as to enjoy himself again in this Land of his Nativity that so God would enable him to make sutable Returns for such Benefits bestowed considering the great Danger of the neglect of it that will redound both to him and his people as I shewed him in my Fannaticks Mite cast into the Kings Treasury as in the whole discourse of it is evident and not onely so but also to pray for the great Council that are now going to Sit that God would blesse it both to the King and his People and that what they do they might be directed by the Lord so as that they might be a Blessing both to the King and his People to the setting a period to these Oppressions that are upon the Free-born People of England who several of them have been and are Imprisoned without any Just and Legal Cause and that the Oppressor might cease out of the Land and that there might be no more leading into Captivity and that complaining in our Streets might have an End that the Alarm of War and the sound of the Trumpet might be banished our borders that so the People of the Land might beat their Swords into Plow-shares and their Speares into Pruning-hooks that all may act out of a Principle of peace with them who some of them onely are Fighting the good fight of Faith that so they may lay hold of Eternal Life the Weapons of whose warfare are not Carnal 2 Cor. 10. 4. That they in their Meetings might also Pray for their Enemies and them that hate them and despitefully use them and for thy Self O Richard Brown that God would shew thee what thou art now doing that the Lord Christ would cause thee to hear a Word from Heaven saying Richard Richard why persecutest thou me I am Iesus whom thou Persecutest O what Benefit would this be O Richard Brown to thy poor Soul I say again what a Benefit would it be to thy poor lean languishing sick Soul to find thy Self to become a Preaching Paul of a Persecuting Saul Didst thou but know the Efficacy of the servent Prayer of a Righteous Man though poor though mean though despica ble in the Eye of the world though unlearned as to Humane Learning yet a Prayer of such a man accompanied with Faith and made to the Lord in the Name of Jesus Christ by the help of his own Spirit that helps our Infirmities that Spirit that is from the Lord and knowes the Mind of the Lord that makes Intercessions to the Lord with Sighs and groans that cannot be uttered and he that searcheth the heart knoweth what is the minde of the Spirit because he maketh Intercession for the Saints according to the will of God Rom. 8. 26 27. And now O Richard Brown consider with thy self seriously what harm such a Prayer would do thee the King or his People nay consider with thy self and that seriously too whether thou dost not do evilly in what thou doest do in that thou blockest up the Meetings of Gods People such as thou hast nothing at all against in the least but as to the matter of their God I say again and again yea and I could wish with all my Soul that I had but such a voyce as that I could but speak it so as that thy Soul might be truly sensible of it that we are some of us an Innocent harmless People such whom thou nor any man as to actions of violence or any manner of ill will either to the King or his People in the least unless it be for wishing and desiring the same thing to King Charles the second thy Self and all his Subjects as once our aged Brother Paul did to King Agrippa Acts 26. 29. I would to God that not onely King Charles and thou O Richard Brown but all that are Englands Subjects this day were altogether as to my Principles both to God and man as I am And now O Mayor I would have thee seriously to consider what my End intended in this my Giving thee this Alarm is and if thou doest not know as I fear thou doest not in the singleness of my soul I shall let thee know it is not for any Revenge I bear thee for God is my witness I lie not I do it not for any such End but that if possible thou mightst make a right Improvement of it and that thou mightst for the time to come even quit thy Self like a Man yea that thou quit thy Self as thou pretendest thy Self as a Christian that so thou wouldst in the Spirit of Love Meekness and Moderation if thou hast it instruct persons that are out of the way and not to cause them to say of thee as the Indians said of the Spaniards that were once so cruel to them That if a Spaniard went to Heaven they did not desire to come there Yea I say I shall let thee know that as the Lord Christ intendeth not a destruction to that Soul that he requireth his Church should be delivered up unto Satan but that it should be for the
A Fannaticks Alarm Given to the MAYOR IN HIS QUARTERS By one of the Sons of Zion become BOANERGES To Thunder out the Judgements of God against Oppression and Oppressors Together with some Flashings of Pure Gospel-Lightnings really intended for the enlightning the Eyes of the Understanding even to the beholding of Him who is Invisible By HENRY ADIS a Baptized Believer undergoing the Name of a Free-willer and also most ignomineously by the tongue of Infamy called a Fannatick or a mad man Wo to the Bloody City Nahum 3. 1. For they professe that they know God but in works they deny him being abominable and disobedient and to every good work reprobate Tit. 1. 16. For I have seen Violence and Strife in the City Psal. 55. 9. For they eat the Bread of Wickednesse and drink the Wine of Violence Prov. 4. 17. LONDON Printed for the Author an Upholâ—ster living in Princes Street near Covent-Garden 1661. A Fannaticks Alarm Given to the MAYOR IN HIS QUARTERS By one of the Sons of Sion become BOANERGES O Earth Earth Earth Hear the Word of the Lord Ier. 22. 29. To Thee O Richard Brown I speak in the Words of the great Iehovah given in into his Servants and Prophets by his Eternal Spirit by vertue whereof thus saith the wisest of men The Merciful man doth good to his own Soul but he that is cruel troubleth his own flesh O man consider thy wayes what hath been thy Work for these many years last past What good didst thou do to thine own Soul in thy mercy thou shewedst to the Kings Friends at Abington Were not thy tender mercies there the mercies of the wicked even meer cruelty Prov. 11. 17. And now the Tide is turn'd art thou ready to say of thine own Violent Actings as once old Iacob did of Simeon and Levies cruel dealings against the Shechamites Gen. 49. 7. Cursed be mine anger for it was fierce and my wrath for it was cruel Or rather art thou not going about to plaister up that old inveterate malignant and festred Sore with a far worse Plaister than was the Sword that made that Wound So that it may be said to Thee in the words of the Prophet Ier. 13. 23. Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the Leopard his spots no more canst thou do good that hast been accustomed to do evil Art not thou now with double and triple diligence breathing out Threatnings and Slaughter Saul-like against the Church of God as if they had been or at present were the Kings greatest Enemies but hadst thou ever been a Scholar in Christs School and hadst been tutored by his Usher that Holy Spirit of Truth whose Fruit is Love Ioy Peace Long-suffering Gentlenesse and Goodnesse Meeknesse and Temperance Thou wouldest then have taken out a far easier Lesson than Cruelty Violence Malice and Oppression and wouldest also have experimentally known that Christs Laws teach the best Loyalty to Earthly Princes and the purest Love to our very Enemies And now I speak of Love give me leave O Richard Brown to speak some few words in love to Thee who appearest by thy violent Actings to be a bitter Enemy to King Iesus in persecuting him in his Members and therein pretendest thy self to be a great Friend to King Charles the contrary whereof I hope will be manifested hereafter in this discourse in its due place In the mean time in love I shall let thee know my End of this my Alarm that so I might prove my Thundering to be natural consisting as well of Lightning if possible to the enlightning the eyes of thy understanding as well as to shew Thee the Judgements of God against thy Violent and Inhumane Dealings to which purpose I am at this time come to beat up thy Quarters and in Christian Love to deal with Thee and to speak after the manner of men like a Consciencious Lawyer to lay before Thee the worst of thy Case like an Honest Physitian to shew the True state of thy Body like a careful Chyrurgian to search thy noysome and festred Ulcers to the quick and with that charitable Samaritan Luke 10. 34. pour in Wine and Oyl that thy Wound may be both searched and supled that so if possible thy Soul may be saved in the day of the Lord. And herein I shall follow the example of the Lord himself Isa 1. who that he might the better perswade Israel to a thorow Reformation and a perfect Return to him his God he first layes before him the evil of his wayes telling him as I by his assistance in his words shall tell Thee That from the Crown of thy Head to the Sole of thy Foot there is no whole part in Thee thy Head is Sick and thy Heart is Faint thy Hands are full of Blood Therefore Wash thee make thee Clean put away the evil of thy Doings cease to do Evil learn to do Well seek Iudgement relieve the Oppressed Iudge the Fatherless and plead for the Widdows keep men no longer in thy cruel Custody to make so many Fatherless and Widdows as it is at this day in keeping those many poor Innocent harmlesse Baptists and others under restraint in doing which thy danger therein I shall lay down before Thee by Thundring out the Iudgements of God against such Violent and Oppressing Actors that so as in a Glass thou mayest clearly read thy self both what thou art and what thou shalt be or what will hecome of Thee And then give thee in some Clear Bright and Glorious Flashes of Pure Gospel Lightning to enlighten thy Inward Man in order to thy Recovery out of this thy Miserable Poor Blind Naked and Despicable Condition even to the Translating thee out of the Kingdom of Darkness into the Kingdom of Gods Dear Son unless thou beest wanting to thy self In order whereunto I shall once more cry out and say O Earth Earth Earth Hear the Word of the Lord for thus saith the Lord by his Prophet Isa. 33. 1. Wo unto Thee that spoilest and thou wast not spoiled that dealest Treacherously and they dealt not Treacherously with Thee when thou shalt cease to spoil thou shalt be spoiled and when thou shall make an end to deal Treacherously they shall deal Treacherously with Thee For God is a just God and many times dealeth with the Sons of men by the Law of Retaliation for Adoni-bezek said Threescore and ten Kings having their Thumbs and their great Toes cut off gathered their meat under my Table as I have done so God hath done to me Judges 1. 7. And Nathan said unto Divid Seeing thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the Sword of the Children of Ammon Therefore the Sword shall never depart from thy House 2 Sam. 12. 9. So also saith Samuel to Agag King of the Amalakites 1 Sam. 15. 33. As thy Sword hath made women Childless so shall thy Mother be Childless among women and Samuel liewed Agag in pieces before the Lord in Gilgal Therefore Wo unto them that decree
in the wetting if ye will neither endure the Fullers scouring nor the Refiners Purifying you cannot expect to offer a Pure Sacrifice in Righteousnesse Consider Friends that God is now provoking you to jealousie by a People which upon a Scripture account are not a People as he did Israel of old Rom. 11. 11. And will you be as stupid as they Have they not lain by you Have you not seen their Courage their Constancy and their Boldnesse both in their Sufferings and their Meetings And can you give out so easily Have we not a far better ground to Suffer then they Have we not Larger Promises than they For Eye hath not Seen Ear hath not Heard neither hath it ever entered into the Heart of Man to conceive what God hath laid up for them that Love Him Oh I beseech you Consider if such things be laid up for them that Love Him Let us examine our Wayes and see whether we have Loved Him his Laws his Statutes his Ordinances and his People as we ought to have done Have we had that Love to the Lord his People and the whole Creation as we ought to have had Hath the Conversion of Souls been esteemed in our Eyes Hath the Establishing and Confirming of Souls been delightful to us Have we laid forth our selves to make the Wayes of King Iesus Amiable Lovely and Desirable to all men Have we by our Constancy in our Assemblings together according to the Requirement of the Lord gone on with Christian Courage and Boldnesse not Fearing the Wrath of the King O Friends Consider whether the Love of King Iesus who laid down his Life for you that you might Live to Eternity or the Wrath of King Charles hath been most taking upon your Affections The Breach of whose Proclamation take it at the worst that can be imagined could but bring you to the Grave that cannot contain nor hold you long For the Sea shall give up the Dead that are in it And Death and Hell or the Grave shall Deliver up the Dead that are in them And all shall be judged every Man yea every Man according to his Works And at which time if our Wovks are not found Perfect before God the second Death must be our Portion Oh! That they were wise that they understood this that they would Consider their Latter End Deut. 32. 29. O Consider what your Actings have been may not the Lord Christ say to you as once he said to his Disciples Mat. 26. 40. What could you not watch with me one hour What could ye not hold it out with the Foot men how think ye you will be able to run with the Horse men And may not I say to you in the words of our Apostle Gal. 5. 7 8. You did Run well who did hinder you that ye should not obey the Truth This perswasion cometh not of him that called you who said Mat. 5. 34. Swear not at all Oh Consider Friends the saying of our Apostle in vers 9. How that a little Leaven Leaveneth the whole Lump How many eyes are and have been upon you and such as you are that do thus undervalue the words of your Master King Iesus What can be expected from poor Souls such as are but Tender Lambs of Iesus O I beseech you have a care for you that have known much from you God will require the more O then have a Care and Consider that so ye may give up your Account with Ioy and not with Trembling Oh that they were wise but to set Eternity before their eyes that so they might please God not at all fearing the faces of Men. Yet herein I would not be mistaken yea I say again I would not herein be mistaken for I do not in the least perswade to Rebellion against King Charles to Gratifie King Iesus for that is not agreeable to his Law But I would have them in obeying King Iesus to obey King Charles and in obeying King Charles to obey King Iesus As thus I would have them obey King Iesus in all his Laws Statutes Ordinances and Appointments not Fearing King Charles nor his Proclamations And yet I would have them according to the Requirement of that Servant of King Iesus Rom. 13. 7. To Render to King Charles Custom Tribute Fear and Honour I would have them Obey King Iesus and to be so careful to avoid Forswearing as not to Swear for that Yesterday and this to Day and the other to Morrow for to Day and against to Morrow as it is at this day with Thousands But I would have them so to avoid the danger of Forswearing in every Case as that I would have them in no Case to Swear at all according to Mat. 5. 34. Iams 5. 12. The which in my Fannaticks Testimony against Swearing is cleared And yet I would have them according to the Requirement of King Iesus to be as faithfull in their Yeas and Nays to King Charles yea and Faithfuller too than those his Subjects that Ram Dam Rend Tear Swear and Forswear I would also have them so fear King Iesus as that I would not have them fear King Charles for Rulers are not set up for a Terrour to good Works but to the Evil Rom. 13. 3. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the Power do that which is good and thou shalt have praise of the same for he is a Minister of God to thee for good but if thou do that which is Evil be afraid for he beareth not the Sword in vain for he is the Minister of God a Revenger to execute wrath upon them that do Evil Rom. 13. 3 4. But here me-thinks I hear multitudes will be ready to object and say If King Charles was set up for this end and had the Sword of Iustice for this Cause put into his hands why is it as it is with us at this day Why are we in several Goales and Dungeons in most Counties in England when we are found no evil Doers when they have nothing against us in any thing save in the matters of our God who saith by his Son Swear not at all Nay why are and have been several Imprisoned that have sworn And why have some Persons been forced to pay Fees as Traytors though they have Sworn before they were put into Prison and not taken from Meetings neither but from their own habitations if the Magistrate as the Scripture saith be set up to be a praise to them that do well why were we thus rudely Hurryed Why cryes out several in Newgate are we thus cruelly Imprisoned by Richard Brown and kept in without Tryal Why were we cry out some thirty of them committed to Newgate the 10th Day of Abib Exod. 13. 4. or the first Month from our peaceable Meeting out of Beech-Lane by the City Marshal and the rude Rabble and saw not the face if a Magistrate till the Eighteenth day after that we were carryed before him the tenderest of whose Mercies are meer Cruelty
both of him that shall give out such a Commission and thee that shalt gain it of him that shall Execute it and of all that shall rejoyce at it and consent to it yea for all be they High be they Low be they Rich be they Poor be they Young be they Old be they Free be they Bound King or Subjects I say in the words and I hope in the Spirit of Truth with my Brother Stephen I shall Pray The Lord lay not this sin to their charge and in the words of him that was not ashamed to call his Congregation Heb. 2. 10. nor his Disciples Brethren Sisters and Mothers Mat. 12. 49 50. I say in his words I hope by the help of his Spirit I shall cry out and say Father forgive them they know not what they do Luke 23. 34. For this is a day in which we must expect nothing lesse but Mockings Iearings Scoffings and Deridings Buffettings Banishments and Imprisonments with Torturings and cruel Deaths for I perceive by the Hatred Malice and Malignity of the generality of the Sons and Daughters of Men that it must fare with us in our Crooked and Adulterous Generation as with the Flock of God gone before yea and with our Master himself who was said to have a Devil John 10. 20. And at length Away with him Crucifie him Crucifie him Mat. 27. 22. The Apostles Peter and Paul were both put to death in the last year of the Emperour Nero Paul was Beheaded and Peter was Crucified with his head downwards saith Eusebius Pamphilius in his third Book the first Chapter O Friends Consider what are your Fears what are your Doubts Did ye not run well in a Sun-shiny day who did binder you you lay all your Confidence in an Arm of Flesh and is it vanished with it Shall so many of us come out of Aegypt with Israel of old And shall our Carkastes fall thus as did theirs in the Way Shall but some few Calebs and Ioshuahs enter into Canaans Glory of the old Stock Numb 14. 22 23 24. What need we Fear are not all our Hairs numbred Can the Two Witnesses be Slain till the Forty and Two Moneths be expired and their Prophesies fulfilled Doth not the Nation ring of your Apostacy in this Cloudy Day Do not that People called Quakers upbraid us with your backslidings in one County and another a third and more O Friends It is the burthen of my Soul to hear such Actings as I hear and that my rejoycing towards you and on your behalfs in my Fannaticks Letter in page 5. c. is to so little purpose I well hoped it might have proved an Instrument in Gods Hand of much good unto you but I fear it was much slighted and undervalued because it dropped not from a tall Cedar but sprung up from so mean and low a shrub But to such Souls I must say in the Words of the Prophet Isa. 40. 28 c. Hast thou not known Hast thou not considered Hast thou not heard that the everlasting God the Lord the Creatour of the ends of the Earth fainteth not neither is weary There is no searching of his Understanding He giveth power to the faint and to him that hath no might he encreaseth strength Even the Youths shall faint and the Young men shall utterly fail But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with Wings of Eagles they shall run and not be weary they shall walk and not be faint for of a Truth God is no respecter of Persons but in every Nation he that feareth Him and worketh Righteousnesse is accepted of him Acts 10. 35. And now why should I much wonder to see such Apostatizing times when the Lord by his Servant telleth us That day shall not come except there come a falling away first at whose coming he himself putteth it to the Question Whether he shall find Faith on the Earth Luke 18. 8. And this is the use that through mercy I make of these times I see hereby my Saviour was a True Prophet And this is a Confirmation to me that I am in the Truth in which time I also see and feel such Halings before Magistrates to Prison in this time when Iniquity doth so much abound And Secondly This leads me out of my self to stand by the strength of Him that is Mighty by whose strength onely I have yet stood and still hope to stand It was by his strength that I lived and survived the dampnesse of the Dungeon void of Light or Air those ten Weeks together It was by his help that our Consciences were kept undefiled and by his help it was that way was made for us in the Hearts of the greatest of the Nation to Release us without Fees It is by the help of Iosephs God that was with him in the Prison Gen. 39. that it was so well with us as it was It was by the help of Daniels God that sent his Angel to shut the Mouths of the Lions that we were preserved from harm amongst a company of rude people Felons and others it was by the help of the God of Shadrach Meshach and Abednego that we came out of our Dungeon without harm And by the help of him that walked with them in the fiery Furnace it was that we were constantly refreshed comforted and supported it was by the help of him that turned again the Captivity of Iob that we were brought again from our Captivity it was by the help of him who inabled David to break through a Troop and to leap over a Wall that we are at present Escaped from the Guards of Souldiers that watched our Gates night and day it was by the help of him who sent his Angel to strike off Peters Chains and to open the Prison-doors that we were inlarged it was by help of him whose grace is sufficient for poor Souls that we were supported in our Spirits Yea it was by the good will of him that burned in the Bush that our Zeal for the Cause of Christ was and still is continued Oh then let me beg you in Gods Fear not to droop in this Cloudy day for there is no Crown but for the over-commer no Reaping but for him that doth not faint Oh then let the hands hanging down and the feeble knees be strengthened and held up and look up and lift your heads for your Redemption draweth nigh the day of Jesus is at hand the Kingdom of God is even at the door for yet a little while and he that shall come will come and will not tarry and the Iust must live by Faith And now Rich. Brown I would have thee know that though I speak to my Brethren in this City Nation in some part of my Discourse yet it is not besides my business for thou well knowest that it is the nature of an Alarm so to do to Rouse Friends as well as Enemies I shall Appeal to thine own Practice