he which is the bringing in of a better hope by which ye draw nigh unto God And every man that hath this hope in him purifies himself even as he is pure 1 John 3.3 And the Apostle Peter saith Blessed be God and the father of our Lord Jesus Christ who according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus from the dead 1 Pet. 1.3 And â—â—is is none of the hypocrites hope for the hope of the hypocrite doth perish and the hypocrite hath no right nor interest in the â—oe and living hope which is the promise of the Lord to the heirs of his promise The Immutability of his councel confirmed by in oath that by two immutable things by which it was impossible for God to lye we might have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us which hope we have as an Anchor of the soul both sure and steadfast But this is nothing to the dissembling hypocrites and professors of the world who deny the light Christ Jesus the second Priest and hath set up a Priest without them and hath a Church without them and I hope without them and a rule without them and a guide without them These are none of the heirs of the promise for the Promise and Covenant of God is within and the second Priest the unchangeable Priest which is surely of a better Testament and bringeth in a better hope who is the Covenant made with an oath who is the refuge for the righteous to flie to which is the hope set before them But this is a mysterie to all ye carnal professors who are yet in your sins and your uncleannesse and yet will tell of faith and hope and God and Christ But your root is rottennesse your ground is curst and corrupt and your chaffe is to be burnt The fire is kindled which cannot be quenched and the day of the Lord is come which burns as an oven and all your filthy profession and deceitful rotten hypocrisie shall be as stubble And though ye give your goods to the poor and your bodies to be burnt and do not believe in the light and turn to the light and walk in it it is nothing for so long as you do not walk in the light ye know nothing at all of Charity which suffereth long which envieth not which vaunteth not it self puffeth not up rejoyceth not in iniquity but rejoyceth in the truth This ye are far from who are in your envy wrath malice persecution pleading for sin against perfection and against the light which discovereth and makes manifest all sin and uncleannesse your profession of God and Christ in word when in works ye deny him will not serve you the Lord abhors all your profession and hypocrisie Therefore give over your deceitful dissembling and turn to that which rips you up and layes you naked and bare before the Lord God from whom you cannot hide your selves And to the light of Christ come to be tryed and searched the tryed stone which layeth judgement to the line and righteousness to the plummet for Sion is redeemed through Judgement and her converts with righteousness Therefore give over deceiving of your souls for he that doth righteousness is righteous even as he is righteous And all sin and uncleannesse the light condemns And if your hearts condemn you God is greater Therefore do not deceive your souls but search and try your own selves for if ye know not that Christ is in you ye are Reprobates And so all forms and all professions try your own selves and to the light come to be tryed and there you will see your rotten profession will be too light and do not deceive your souls but now ye have time prize it while it is called to day consider and do not forget God lest he tear you to pieces while there be none to deliver you And this is in love to all your souls which ye shall eternally witnesse to be truth If ye turn to the light which is my witnesse and if ye hate the light and turn from the light the light is your condemnation And when the books of conscience is opened and all Judged out of them then shall that witnesse of God in you witness me that this is love to your souls And so whether ye hear or forbear I have cleared my conscience and the Lord is clear of your blood And your foundation and bottom I know and comprehend but the Rock which ye know not shall break you to pieces though ye have the outward writings and declaration which was spoken from another state and condition then ye are in And these words ye take and make your own when as ye are in another condition and of another seed then that which the promise is to For it is not to seeds as to many but to one seed which is Christ the light and corner-stone which ye builders refuseth yet ye account it railing to be called Theeves and Robbers though ye have nothing but what ye steal from others Ye take Moses words who was a servant of the Lord sent to bring Israel the seed of God out of bondage and ye who are the Egyptian task-masters with his words keeps the seed in bondage To Moses state ye never came which brings out of the house of darkness you who denies the light and yet you will profess Moses word Now let that of God in all your consciences which is just and equall judge whether ye be not theeves and robbers in this yea or nay And ye take the Prophets words which received the word from the Lord which the Lord spoke to them and ye professe these words and ye slay the Prophet which the Lord promised to raise 〈◊〉 unto Moses which he hath said every one shall hear who bringeth the seed out of Egypt and with these words ye crucifie the just and garnishes his Sepulcher and so ye are found the painted Sepulchers which hath slain the righteous which Christ speaks of Now see if ye be not the blinde guides and hopocrites in this which Christ Jesus cryed woe against to them whom he found in the same steps as ye are in who had Moses and the Prophets words which writ of him and prophesied of him but he told them they knew them not For if they had known Moses and the Prophets they would have known him And so ye go beyond those in Christs time and exceed them in hypocrisie and deceit for ye take Christ Jesus his words which he spoke before he was offered up and since he is risen again and ye professe them and with these words ye deny the light which he hath said he is the light and which John who was the faithfull witness and more then a Prophet witnessed of him which he witnessed to be the greatest that was born of women and Christs testimony and Johns testimony ye deny who denies
A TESTIMONIE OF THE TOUCH-STONE FOR ALL Professions and all Forms and Gathered Churches as they call them of what sort soever to try their ground and foundation by AND A TRYAL by the Scriptures who the False Prophets are which are in the world which John said should be in the last times by Margret Fell ALSO SOME OF THE RANTERS PRINCIPLES Answered Therefore thus saith the Lord Behold I lay in Sion for a foundation a stone a tryed stone a precious corner-stone a sure foundation Isai. 28.16 The stone which the Builders refuseth is become the head of the corner Psa. 119.22 Now therefore are we no more strangers and forreigners but fellow-Citizens with the Saints and Houshold of God and are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets Iesus Christ himself being the chief corner-stone Eph. 2.20 Vnto you therefore which believe he is precious but unto them which bee disobedient tâ—â— stone which the Builders disallowed the same is the head of the Corner 1 Pet. 2.9 LONDON Printed for Thomas Simmons at the sign of the Bull Mouth neer Aldersgate 1656. TO all the Professions of the World And to all the forms which all the professors lives in To the light in all your consciences which comes from Jesus who is the fathers Covenant of light and life The Lamb who is the light of all the Nations that are saved which now shines in all your consciences to this in you all do I speak that with it you may search and try your standing and ground and foundation The Church is in God the father of our Lord Jesus Christ Christ Jesus the corner stone who hath said upon this Rock I build my Church Paul writ to Timothy how to behave himself in the house of God which is the Church of the living God the Pillar and ground of Truth For saith he without controversie great is the mysterie of godliness God manifested in the flesh justified in the spirit seen of Angels preached unto the Gentiles believed on in the world received up to glory Now Professors look about you and see where your footing and where your foundation is who do profess a God and a Christ afar off and denies the light of Jesus Christ which manifests him in the flesh How can you know him or confess him in the flesh who denies him to be manifested in you What ground have ye to build upon when you know nothing of him but what ye have from a profession without you Oh consider seriously and turn your minds to the light which will let you see your foundation to be rotten and sandy which ye floolish builders are building in your imaginations Babel in the Air professing the Scriptures without which were declared and spoken from a living and eternall principle within And this ye take and build upon But where is your foundation where is your ground where is your root who denies the corner stone the light Jesus Christ the light and Rock of ages which all the Prophets and Apostles and holy men of God is founded and built upon A profession of this will stand you in no stead for the holy seed is risen the substance of all and the life of the Scriptures which spoke them forth is manifested The word which was in the begining which was with God which word was God he who was dead is alive whose name is called the Word of God who lives for evermore This word which we have seen which we have heard which our hands have handled this we declare unto you by which Word the World was made and without which nothing was made which was made This is manifested and witnessed praises living praises be to the living God And this is he that will break to pieces all your rotten profession you cannot stand before him his rod of Iron where he rules will dash you all to pieces ye potsheards of the earth who have set up the Image whose head is of gold whose breast is of silver whose feet is part Iron and part Clay The little stone cut out of the Mountain without hands sticks at his feet and overturns his foundation you and your Diana shall fall and stone shall become a great Mountain the mouth of the Lord of Hosts hath spoken it and you who take the words spoken from the life of God and professeth them and God and Christ without you and ye prosecute the same life which gave them forth which now is made manifest in his people Ye make up the measure of your fore-fathers which shew the Prophets and ye garnish their Sepulchres ye are in their steps that killed the prophets that beat the servants and would also kill the heir your fruits makes ye manifest Ye are the graves which men go over painted Sepulchres with words and professions of their outside but within are full of rotteness and dead mens bones The Candle of the Lord God is lighted by which he searcheth Jerusalem and hath found you out the day of the Lord which is coming upon you which makes all things manifest This will lay you open To the light in all your consciences do I speak that to it you may learn to see what ye know of the living God there there he is unknown to you yet as he was to the Athenians whom ye ignorantly worship though he be not far from every one of you Therefore put him not far off you but call upon him while he is near and seek him while he may be found If ye will hear his voice harden not your hearts while it is called to day Now you have time prize it this is the day of your visitation your profession without you will not serve you it strikes in the Lords nostrils and all your righteousness shall be spread as dung upon your faces it is as filthy rags and as the early dew it shall pass away and never be mentioned He is come who convinceth the world of sin of righteousness and of Judgement therefore your righteousness which is not the righteousness of Jesus Christ is condemned by him who is the righteousness of the father and the expresse Image of his glory The glorious brightness of his coming makes manifest the man of sin which hath so long sitten in the Temple of God exalted above all that is called God in you it is time to come wherein he is revealed Therefore cease from your abominations and outward professions of forms and colours without the life and power and purity of truth it self For the glorious light makes you manifest and all your covers is too narrow the roe from the living God is to them and all coverings which is not his pure spirit it is to be rent And though ye may seem fair on the outside this will not hide you he who searcheth the heart and tryeth the reins is come before whom all secrets is bare and naked Therefore turn into the measure of the light which ye have received from the
have your minds that ye may come to witness cleansing and purging within that ye may come to see the uncleannesse which proceeds out of the heart which defiles the man Mat. 15.18 19. For out of the heart cometh evil thoughts murthers adulteries fornications thefts false testimony slanders these are the things which defiles a man How will you teachers and you professors who looks without you and turns from this which should cleanse you within How do you look that that which is without you should cleanse from this uncleannesse within Let that of God in your consciences now see how you can be cleansed by this when ye turn from it But now if ye turn to the light which makes these things manifest and dwell and abide in it then will ye abstain from them and so come to witnesse cleansing For he that walketh in the light as he is in the light the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin And Christ Jesus saith Luke 6.45 A good man out of the treasury of his heart bringeth forth that which is good and an evil man out of the treasury of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil for out of the abundance of his heart his mouth speaketh And why call ye me Lord Lord and do not the things which I say Whosoever cometh to me and heareth my sayings and doth them I will shew you to whom he is like He is like a man which built an house and digged deep and laid the foundation on a Rock and when the floods arose the streams beat violently upon the house and could not shake it for it was built upon a Rock But he that heareth and doth is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth against which the streams did beat violently and immediately it fell and the fall of that house was great Now professors here 's your building eternally you shall witnesse this Parable fulfilled upon you the tempests and storms is coming upon you your house will be beaten down it cannot stand for ye have been sayers a long time and not doers of the word your house which ye have built is without foundation it is not founded upon the rock Christ Jesus Ye who denies the light he saith into you why call ye me Lord do not the things which I say upon him shall ye be beaten to pieces and all your prefession It is known and seen ye are made manifest ye cannot hide your selves Therefore let the time past of your lives suffice and repent while ye have time least the whirl-winde of the Lord come upon you and destroy you ere ye are aware and remember that ye are warned in your life time Ye who talkes of faith where is your foundation who denies the light Christ Jesus the corner-stone whose blood washeth and cleanseth and purgeth away the filth of the daughter of Sion What will your faith advantage you who are yet in your sin Is not that faith vain which doth not purifie the heart The Apostle Paul saith Now the end of the Commandment 〈◊〉 Charity out of a pure heart and of a good conscience and of faith unfeigned 1 Tim. 1.5 And again he saith Holding the mysterie of faith in a pure conscience 1 Tim. 3.9 And the Apostle John saith For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world and this is the victory that overcometh the world even our faith 1 John 6.4 Now see your faith hath overcome the world and given you victory over sin else never talk of faith for ye are yet in your sins all who is of the faith by which the just lives denies your faith for ye who are alive to sin crucifies and slayes the Just â—et who is in the faith of God the just lives by his faith And so now here ye may read your faith by your works For the Apostle James saith What doth it profit though a man say he hath faith and hath not works that faith cannot save See what comparison James makes James 2.16 Even so faith if it hath not works is dead being alone Yea a man may say thou hast faith and I have works shew me thy faith without thy works and I will shew thee my faith by my works Now see how blinde ye are who reads these Scriptures and professes them and yet talks of faith and lives in your sins Oh the righteous God will plead with you for all your deceit and hypocrisie Thou believes there is a God thou dost well the devils believe also and tremble Therefore know Oh vain man that thy faith without works is dead And what is thy works who art yet in thy sins Is not sin the work of the devil Oh that ever ye should be so blinde and befotted Will the fig-leaves of your profession cover your nakednesse Nay the Lord hath found you out and all your coverings is too narrow And your faith which is holden with respect of persons which the Apostle exhorts from the Lord God abhors But if ye had true living faith as a grain of musterd-seed ye might say to this mountain be thou removed into the Sea and it would be so But to you whose faith is dead who are yet in your sins this is a mysterie Therefore repent and turn to the Lord God and believe in the light which is rising and shining in your consciences he it is who is the resurrection and the life whosoever believeth in him though he were dead yet shall he live Therefore hearken diligently to the Prophet which the Lord is raising in this his day and believe in the light For whosoever doth not hearken to this Prophet is to be cut off Turn to the light and believe and hearken diligently that your souls may live Why will ye give your money for that which is not bread and your labour for that which profiteth not The pure everlasting fountain of life is set open and the voice is calling to every one to come All that thirsteth to come and buy wine and milk without money they that have been sold for nought shall be redeemed without money The blood of the everlasting Covenant which brings again the Lord Jesus from the dead is poured forth and shedding for the redemption of Israels seed Therefore all turn to the voice that calls ye this is the way walk in it And that which turns and draws your minds towards God the light which cometh from the father of light turn to and there will ye witnesse a living hope which was that hope which Paul the Apostle was called in question for the resurrection of the dead who was a Minister of God who watched for the soul which your Ministers of death knoweth not nor hath no hope of but their labor is to keep you in the death But if ye wait in the light of Jesus Christ who is the resurrection and the life which is the mysterie which is Christ in you the hope of glory For this is
know the liberty of the Sons of God which Law cuts down all thy carnall apprehensions of God Oh thou blasphemer dost thou say that there is no such thing as lawfull and unlawfull godlinesse and ungodlinesse would thou lay wast the Scriptures and make void the righteous Law of God which takes hold of the transgressor and would thou trample upon the blood of the New-Covenant and count it an unholy thing Oh the day of vengence is coming upon thee and the Lord God is cloathed with vengence against thee and all such as thou art And thou who sits at the Table of devils art shut out from the liberty of the Sons of God and knows not the condition that Paul had passed through For when thou knows that it will be death and destruction to thee And this thou shalt eternally witnesse before ever thou come to know the living God R. And whereas thy sayest This is the liberty that the Sons of God are to stand fast in and to thrust out that which would shew any evil in any thing whatsoever seeing in God all things are lawfull and for every thing under the Sun there is a time and a season Answ Thou blasphemous beast that thrusts out all that would shew any evil in any thing who art in thy fleshly liberty and lust of uncleanness and all manner of filthiness thou art shut out from the presence of God and all that are of him with that which shews sin and evil and that shews and knows thee to be for destruction and condemnation in the lake that burns And this limits thy liberty and cuts it short And the liberty of the Sons of God thou nor none of thy spirit shall ever know which is purchased by Jesus Christ which thou art a crucifier of and an enemy to and this was the liberty the Apostle exhorts to stand fast in which bindes and chains thee and condemns thee and who is in this liberty sees thee the devils bond-slave And what is in God thou knows not neither knows thou what God is And thou art under the Sun the Moon and the Stars lying wallowing in thy earthly lust and unncleanness and the earth is cursed for thy sake and the living God hath curst thee above all the beasts in the field R. And whereas thou sayes One councell orders all and one wisdome effects and determines all and of one all learn knowledge and wisdome and this councell nothing resists This councel were they ordered by who crucified the Son of God Answ Thou art the Rebellious stiff-necked and uncircumcised who art not ordered by the Councel of the Lord And in that thou saith one Councel orders all thou art a Lyar and the Lord witnesses against thee wherefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against Amaziah and he sent unto him a Prophet and it came to pass as he talked with him the King said unto him art thou of the Kings Counsel forbear Then the Prophet forbore and said I know that God hath determined to destroy thee because thou hast done this and hast not hearkened to my Counsel 2 Chron. 25.15 16. Here is the Kings Councel and Gods Counsel And Solomon saith But ye have set at nought all my Councel and would have none of my reproof I will also laugh at your calamity and mock when your fear cometh Prov. 1.25 to 30. And thou art one of the wicked Councellors that doth imagine evil against the Lord and he will make an utter end of thee and all of thy spirit For though ye be folded together as thorns are drunken as drunkards ye shal be devoured as stubble fully dry there is one that come out of thee that imagines evil against the Lord a wicked Councellor Nahum 1.11 And thou hast made it manifest that thou art one of them that took Councel together to put him to death And thou who crucifies him rejects his Councel Luke 7.30 And thy wisdom is carnal sensual and divellish James 3.15 1 Cor. 1.19 and by the wisdome of God thou and thy wisdom shall be destroyed R. And thou sayest He that hath faith and liberty to do all things to him nothing is unclean nor unlawfull to him every thing is pure Answ Thou who hast liberty to do all things art unclean filthy and polluted and art without faith and thy liberty is bondage and from the living God thou art driven to under the curse and bondage of Corruption and thou that art servant to sin art free from Righteousness Ro. 6.20 And to thee who art in the lust of uncleanness acted by the dark power and to thee who art unclean and impure nothing is pure whose conscience is defiled and thou brings a Scripture in 1 Tit. 15. where it is said To the pure all things are pure Oh thou Blasphemer what is this to thee who art defiled and filthy Doth not the Apostles words follow But unto the unbelieving is nothing pure but even their minds and conciences are defiled They profess that they know God but in works they deny him being abominable and disobedient and unto every good work being reprobate and there thou art R. And whereas thou saith The seed of the serpent is cursed and no blessing belongs to it and the seed of God God will save God will save his own what doth mans doing advantage him or not doing disadvantage him Answ Here thou serpent hast made thy self manifest to be the cursed seed indeed who hath twined and twisted about tempting into sin and transgression all thy paper through and pleaded for lust filthinesse and uncleanness and liberty of the flesh which lusteth against the spirit and now at last thou hast uttered forth thy blasphemy and confusion and laid thy self open to all If thou wilt have two seeds the seed of the serpent and the seed of God In this thou hast overturned and confounded all that ever thou hast spoken in thy paper before So thou art judged out of thy own mouth and all that thou hast pleaded for before thou hast overturned by this Before thou said God was darkness as well as light and both being alike to him and all acted by one power and good and evil one and sin and holinesse one and all things that be are wrought by one wisdome And said invention is found out by that wisdome And whatsoever hath been done in darkness may be done in the light and that God loves and takes pleasure in all things And now thou sayest the seed of the serpent is curst these are thy own words And here thou art found with lyes and confusion in thy mouth and so thou serpent art curst And all lying is of the devil he is the father of all these Blasphemies that thou hast uttered And thy actings doth not advantage for thou treasurest up wrath against the day of wrath and the wrath of the Lord God will finde thee out and the plagues of God thou shalt witnesse for they are thy portion R. And whereas thou or some of thy spirit hath said that there was nothing betwixt you Ranters and the quakers only they did not see all things to be theirs so were in bondage but they would grow up to you Answ Them whom thou calls quakers doth utterly deny thee and all of thy Principles and all the Ranters is by us denyed and your Practises we abhor And in the eternall light which never changes do we see you and know you And with that which was before the world was do we try your spirits and comprehend your bottom and foundation and Race you out from the presence of the Lord and all who are of him And in the dread and power of the living God do we Judge and try you and your God which is the God of the world and the Prince of the Air which now is come to be judged and do judge and condemn both him and you into the Lake which burns And this is from the quakers which you say is not yet come to you but is from you separated eternally M.F. Errata Page the 2. l. the 22. for shew r. slew l. the 32. for learn r. turn p. 3. l the 10. for it is time to come r. his time is come p. 11. l. 30. for let al that try you r. let that try you p. 12. l. 8. for profess r. possess l. 9. r. profess FINIS
not so much as observing a day or not a day unto the Lord But art the servant of sin and uncleannesse speaking great swelling words of vanity and allure through the lusts of the flesh through much wantonnesse those who were clean escaped from you who lives in error and so while ye are promising your selves liberty you your selves are the servants of corruption 2 Pet. 2.18 19. For of whom a man is overcome of the same he is brought into bondage And the liberty of the Sons of God thou nor none of thy spirit shall never know And thou who hast liberties to all things art shut out from the liberty of the Sons of God which is purchased by the Son of God who bindes and chains thee and thy liberty RANT And whereas thou sayest Man in his Carnall apprehensions of the one power which is God calls one thing clean and another thing unclean but in the sight of God all things are good and clean But to man that esteem and apprehends a thing to be evil to him it is evil but in the sight of God all things and all wayes are clean and good Answ Thou who art carnal and in thy apprehensions knows not the power which is of God nor favours the things which be of God and that which puts the difference betwixt the clean and unclean and makes the separation betwixt the precious and the vile to this thou art an enemy but this hath found thee out and hath separated thee and all of thy spirit from God and all who are of him on the left hand amongst the Goats thou art and all of thy nature and of thy spirit is for the fire and destruction and the sword of the Lord shall cut thee down root and branch who art the cursed tree that cannot bring forth good fruit and in the sight of God thou art filthy polluted and unclean who to thee is a consuming fire and thou art before him as stubble Thou brings a Scripture in the 14. Rom. 14. where the Apostle saith There is nothing unclean of it self but to thee who art art unclean filthy and polluted there is nothing clean but all is defiled by thee who lives in the lust of uncleannesse RANT And whereas thou sayest Whatsoever hath been done in darknesse may be done in the light as swearing lying drunkennesse cheating which being done in the light are done in faith and what is of faith is not sin Answ Here thou hast made it manifest that thy light is darknesse that thy faith is vain who art yet in thy sins and that thy God is the god of the world and that the Devil who is the father of lyes and of oaths and drunkennesse and of all sin is thy God And so as I said to thee before thou and thy god is to be bound and chained by the Angel who hath the key of the bottomlesse pit and art to be cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the Beast and the false Prophet are and shall be tormented day and night for ever Rev. 20.10 R. And whereas thou sayest One power act all things which appear sometime in darknesse and sometimes in light sometimes in glory sometimes in shame as to the Creature yet in God light and darknesse glory and shame is one I the Lord do all these things so one power Answ That power that acts thee is limitted and bound and chained and comprehended and thy compasse is known and seen with that which was before thee and thy power was which seals thee up in thy torment for evermore And thy glory is thy shame and thy God is thy belly who mindes earthly things And thy power acts in the darknesse and with the light which never changeth which comes from Jesus who is the light of the world thou art condemned into the pit of darkness and from God who is the father of light thou art shut for ever eternally who doth all things by his power R. And whereas thou sayest All things that be are brought out by one wisdome which inventions all that are found out by one wisedome are found out And no invention opposeth this wisdom every invention being found out by this wisdom Answ Here thou serpent is spewing forth thy poyson and blasphemy indeed which would lay the deceit and subtilty of the serpent which lodgeth in thy bosom upon God But the Lord God lifteth up his hand against thee to overthrow thy seed who hath joyned thy self to Baal-Peor and provoked the Lord to anger with thy inventions and the plagues shall break in upon thee for the Lord will take vengence upon thy inventions who art defiled with thy own works and goes a whoring after thy own invention Psal. 99.8 106. Psal. 28.39 And the righteous God will be avenged on thee for thy blasphemy and thou brings a Scripture in Prov. 8.12 where Solomon saith I Wisdom dwells with prudence and finds out knowledge of witty Inventions Oh thou blasphemous Beast this is a mysterie to thee which lives in thy lusts and uncleannesse He saith in the next verse the fear of the Lord is to hate evil pride and arrogancy and the evil way and the froward mouth do I hate Dost thou so who art pleading for all manner of vilenesse and filthinesse Oh thou abominable wretch who lives in that which Solomon hated R. And thou sayest Men in their dark knowledge of the one power in his several workings say one number worships one God the god of the world another company a God which is not of the world when as God is but one working according to the good pleasure of his will Answ Thou who art in thy dark knowledge under the Prince of the power of darknesse doth not know nor never shall know the eternall power of the living God but to thy destruction for he is come and made manifest which reproves the world of sin and of righteousnesse and of Judgment John 16.8 and now is the time that thou and thy God is judged and thy number as thou calls them who art of the number of the Beast Rev. 13.18 And the one God which was before thee and thy god was thou knows not which shall be God when thou art in the lake R. And whereas thou sayest God loves and takes pleasure in all things in darknesse as well as in the light for darknesse and light is both alike to him Answ That is false and Blasphemy for in thee who art darknesse God doth not take pleasure neither love for God hath no pleasure in wickednesse neither shall evil dwell with him The foolish shall not stand in his sight he hates all the workers of iniquity and will destroy all them that speaks lyes The Lord doth abhor the bloody and deceitfull man God hath no pleasure in fools Psal. 5.4 5 6. Who is there among you that would shut the doors for nought neither do ye kindle fire on mine Altar for nought I have no pleasure in you saith
the Lord of Hoasts neither will I accept an offering at your hands Mal. 1.10 And thou brings a Scripture in the 139. Psal. 12. which Scripture thou shalt witnesse upon thee fulfilled for thy darkness shall not hide thee nor cover thee for the Almighty shall finde thee out and the wrath of the Lamb Thou who doth live in pleasures on the earth and art wanton and nourisheth thy heart as in a day of slaughter and hast condemned and killed the Just Jam. 5.5 And thou shalt receive the reward of unrighteousness as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time 2 Pet. 2.13 who art a lover of pleasures more then a lover of God and art serving divers lusts and pleasures 2 Tim. 3.4 Tit. 3.3 R. And whereas thou sayest one power doth all things evill and good being so to the low apprehension of man but all alike in God Answ That is false and blasphemy that power that acts thee doth evil and cannot be good Mark 1.18 And thou art the evil and not the good who calls the evil good and the good evil and thou art he that hateth the good and loves the evil Rom. 3.12 Micha 3.2 And thy resurrection shall be for damnation John 5. 29. And thou brings a Scripture Amos 3.6 which is fulfilling the Lion is roaring and the prey is taking and the bird is fallen into the snare and the trumpet is blowing in the City and thou art afraid and the evil that shall be done unto thee the Lord doth it R. And whereas thou sayest Darknesse may be made light as the one power makes himself known who is light and all whose deeds are light though darkness to the Creatures present apprehension Answ Thou who art darkness it self and so an enemy to the light and a hater of the light thou shalt never see light And to thee the eternall power of the living God is made known for thy destruction For where Christ is made manifest he is made manifest to destroy the works of the devil and thou art vain in thy imaginations and thy foolish heart is darkened R. And thou brings a Scripture Isaiah 42.16 where it is said I will bring the blinde by a way they know not I will lead them by pathes that they have not known I will make darkness light before them and crooked wayes straight Ans. Here let the Scripture confound thee who art yet blind and unled into the way and the pathes that thou art in leads to destruction and the way of peace thou knows not But art in the crooked wayes of filthinesse and uncleanness and art not yet come to be ashamed of thy graven Images and molten Images which thou calls thy Gods R. And whereas thou sayes What doth holiness save or ungodliness destroy as you apprehend them to be Answ Holiness saveth that which thou the ungodly destroyes and the Lord God who is a jealous God his anger is kindled against thee and will destroy thee from the face of the Earth For he that defiles the Temple of God him will God destroy and miserably will he destroy the wicked men Mat. 21.41 And thou that makes the members of Christ the members of an harlot and saith meat is for the belly and the belly for meat but God shall destroy both it and thee and the body is not for fornication but for the Lord 1 Cor. 6.13 15. And now we know what hath with-holden that he might be revealed in his time and the mystery of iniquity doth already work in thee onely he who letteth will let untill he be taken out of the way and then shall that wicked be revealed whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming that they might all be damned who believe not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness 2 Thess. from the 3. to the 13. And here is thy portion and this thou shalt finde fulfilled and witnessed to thy destruction For thou Son of perdition and man of sin is revealed R. And thou brings a Scripture in the 12. Eccl. 7. where it is said dust goeth to the earth and the Spirit to God that gave it Answ But he that spoke this lived not in filthiness and undeanness for he saith that which thou lives in is vanity which thou filthy beast would set up which was pulled down in him Neither doth thou know those conditions he spoke before he said these words But to thee they are a mysterie and thy spirit doth not return to God for to the place of torment amongst the devils and damned in hell doth thy spirit return where is weeping wailing and gnashing of teeth R. And whereas thou sayest That which befals the sons of men befals beasts they have all one breath all go to one place is the one dyeth so dyeth the other all are of the dust and turn is the dust and what preheminence hath a man above a beast Answ Thou art as the beast that perisheth who art in the place of Judgement where wickedness is and the place of thy righteousness where iniquity is which is all in the wickedness and transgression And now is the time that God is judging thee and thou art made manifest to be the beast and the false Prophet which is to be turned into the Lake And this befals all the sons of men who are in the beastly nature thou lives in and all who are in that nature that worships the beast and goes all into one place of torment as thou shalt finde But that which is prepared for the lake shall not return to the dust though thou would have it so and thou beast and thy spirit which is of the beast that goes downward to the earth Thou knows not the spirit of a man that goes upward For thou art he whom the decree of the most high is gone forth against and thy portion is with the beasts of the field and thou art driven from the Sons of men And thy heart is made fat like the beasts and thy dwelling is with the wilde Asses the 5. Dan. 21. R. And whereas thou sayest Man in his carnall apprehensions of God accounts one thing lawful and another thing unlawful calls one way godly and another way ungodly When as there is no such thing for he that is in the liberty of the Sons of God to him all things are lawful as they were to Paul Answ Thou who art in thy carnall apprehensions of God is in the world without God and thou art alive without the Law not come to know the Law yet but art dead in sins and trespasses And thou that lives in pleasure art dead while thou lives and thou lives unto sin and so art free from righteousness the Law which is holy just and good shall cut thee to pieces and thou art not yet come to know the Law nor what is lawfull which every one passeth through before they come to