rest and the Lord hath respect and hears and in bowels of pitty he arises to help he stretcheth forth his Arm and brings the Mountains down he comes forth in power and makes the Hills to melt he utters his voyce and the Earth trembles he kindles a fire and consumes it into Ashes he brings Man into the Nothingness and dissolves the old Birth into its dust he causes the old Heavens to pass away with a noise and he melts the Elements with fervent heat and Man no longer lives therein but his life is taken away and he lies slain and dead and there is no motion in him until the Spirit of Life from God come into him and create him new into the holy Order of Life and so gives him breath and being as in the beginning and he is made and fashioned with the hand of God and is the Workmanship of God in whom he now receives his life and out of whose bowels he draws his breath whereby he is perfectly renewed in the spirit of his nind and hath no old thing upon him nor Earthly part abiding in him but through the fire of Refinement he is made dean and out of the Virgins Womb he springs and sucks the beast which giveth Life whereby he grows in strength and in wisdom increases and comes into the stature of the fulness of Christ and partakes of his divine nature all old things being put off and all done away in the fire of Refinement he comes forth of the Furnace a naked Child and a new Creation springs and a new Creature Man is made and rises with the lamb in his nature and the Pearl's glory he is cloathed withal and into the holy order of Life he is restored and hath his way in the pleasant Paradise and his food from the Tree of life and his motion stands in the Power and Wisdom of the Seed which is come into dominion and reigns in its pure quality and property without any mixture and there is no Corruptible thing abides upon it but in the Refining Fire is purged and consumed and as Man abides the Fire and waits 〈◊〉 the Judgment he puts off the Old in which he hath lived and he puts on the New and is translated and here man truly â—…kes to himself and receives Christ the Seed of Life and putteth him on whereby he feeleth Christ made unto him Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption and in his Power and Wisdom he brings forth a New Creation in the holy Order of his pure Life in which the six dayes works are passed thorow and the Separation and Consumption is wrought in the Furnace where the Fire cleanseth and the seventh â—…y is come unto which is holy unto the Lord in which Man â—…osts from all his own works as God did from his and sits down in the power and wisdom of the holy Seed and rests in the stilness of its divine Nature of which he truly is made a partaker and in it he is transformed and stands in the holy Order of the New Creation in which he is perfectly made a new Creature and hath his motion in the new Heavens and new Forth wherein dwels Righteousness and with Righteousness he is covered as with a Robe and Holiness is become his Vesture and he bears the Heavenly Image in the Life and is lovely and amiable to behold and is in the sight of the holy God very good Thus is the New Creation finished with all the host of it and is brought forth in the holy Order through the effectual working of the holy Power and Man is changed and renewed in the holy Birth of the Immortal Seed and again is placed in the Paradise of pleasure and is not senced from the Tree of Life but hath access unto it and it is his dayly food and he lives by it and rests in the comfort and consolation of it which is Life without end CHAP. X. The Way and Works of Man in the New Creation AS Man believes in the Light which from the Life shines forth and in his own Conscience is made manifest he comes to the Righteous Judgment of God who passeth Sentence against him and condemns him to death where upon the Cross he is Crucified and there he dies unto himself with all his hearts lust both in thought word and deed then doth the Fire take hold and burns and consumes and through its operation wholly dissolves the old Man and destroyes all his deeds and through destruction unto the Corruption there springs a holy pure Generation which hath its Conception in the Matrix of Eternity and is brought forth in the holy Order of Life and in this holy Generation is Man restored into his first Order and is truly the Off-spring of God and hath his motion in the Power and Wisdom of God and in this Restoration Man is changed and becomes a new Man in Christ and his way and all his works are new and he becomes a Well-doer and is accepted of God in Christ the Beloved and here Man finds the new and living Way which makes him a new and living Man and leads him unto the living God and this is the Way of Holiness in which the clean feet walk and Man that is in it ordered he is in the way of Peace and is led into the green Pastures of Everlasting Refreshings and he walketh continually by the pleasant Streams and hath his Course by the River that makes glad the whole City and in the holy Life of the Immortal Seed is his Life bound up and he is ordered in the motion of it and he doth not stir but in the holy order of it and it is the strength of his Reins and the girdle of his Loyns and keeps Man in close Communion with it whereby he is strengthened to run the way of every Command and there is no feebleness upon his loyns but perfect strength in the motion of the holy Seed which carries him as upon Eagles wings and he runs and is not weary he walks and is not faint and his way is holy and his works holy unto the Lord and he is Created in Christ Jesus that he should walk in them and is no more his own but in the Lords disposing and truly serves the Lord in Righteousness and true Holiness and he no more thinks his own thoughts nor speaks his own words nor works his own works but is moved and acted in the Power and Wisdom of the holy Seed of which he is born and made a new Creature and his works are works of Holiness proceeding from the Life of Christ and man is holy as he is holy for unto good works he is Craated in Christ and his delight in the new Creation is in the thing that is good and in a new and living Way he walks and brings forth new and living Works in the living Power and Wisdom of the holy Seed and thus Man is changed and is made a Holy Man a Righteous Man
the Eternal Word in the Wisdom make Man in his own Image and breathed into him the Breath of Life and he became a living Soul and the Lord God filled him with Wisdom and Understanding and gave him Dominion over all the Works of his Hands and Man in the Wisdom of God ruled over them all he stood in the Wisdom and received Counsel and had his Way in the Holy Life he walked in the Paradise of Pleasure and fed upon the Tree of Life he lived in still communion with his God and his living Soul stood in his living Virtue and the Breath of Life was alwayes reaching to it he was in the pure Oneness with God that made him and the Image of the Holy Life was upon him and he was in the Power Wisdom and Strength of God and bare the Image in Righteousness and true Holiness without any mixture and all things stood clear in the Separation as they were created and there was no mixture to defile Then did the Wisdom behold his Work and lo it was very good in his sight and he had great pleasure and delight therein and his Mercy Love Goodness and Tenderness was to it and his Blessings and Peace was upon it and Man enjoyed the living Presence of his Maker and did partake of his Love Mercy Blessing and Peace he had a free course unto the Well-spring of Life and there was nothing stood in his way to let him so the Breath of Life was breathed and in it the Soul lived and was in perfect unity with it and this came into Man through the Wisdom of the Creator according to his own pleasure and as it seemed good in his own sight it was not a thing from without but the pure operation of the Power and Wisdom within after he had formed an earthly Body and brought forth a visible Creation that he might fill it with his heavenly Treasure and with his Holy Life which in his Wisdom he breathed into it and brought forth the Man in his own Image and there was no mixture in his Life and Being which is the earthly bodies Nature and it is a Compounded Vessel yet so prepared and formed in the Wisdom as to be a Vessel for the Incorruptible Image of Life which had its course through it and filled it with its heavenly Being and there was no mixture of the Earthly in it And this was the Man that was made after God in Righteousness and true Holiness and bare his Image in perfect Glory and the Body was prepared to be a Vessel fit for his own use who made it that he might fill it with his Pure Holy Life which he breathed into it in his Wisdom whereby Man became a living Soul and bare the Heavenly Image and here Man stood in obedience to the Father of Spirits who had made him a spiritual holy righteous Man and fed him with spiritual holy Food and Man had no will nor desire after any Creature but stood in the Eternal Will and ruled over all the Creatures and his desire was to enjoy the Holy Life in which he was generated and brought forth and what he desired to partake of in the Life it was ministred unto him according to the good Pleasure of the Creator in whom he had his Life and Breath and lived in the pure Enjoyment of the Eternal Being in which he was daily comforted and continually satisfied and in this state no Sin or Evil was committed by him nor no Curse reached him nor no Death was upon him nor no Grave did hold him nor no Wrath went forth against him but in the Mercy he liued and Mercy was his portion and his delight was in his Maker and with him he walked day and night and he had Liberty in Paradise without Restraint and the Tree of Life he had free course unto and the Cherubims and flaming Sword were not set to fence it So was Man created in Righteousness and served God in Righteousness and lived in the Life of Righteousness and he was not in the mixture of any Unrighteous thing but was created in the Wisdom of God and bare the Image of God which drew its Breath and Life from the holy Fountain of its Generation and stood in the Eternal Essence of the Divine Nature and so did the Everlasting God of Wisdom Power and Strength bring forth his own Work in which his own Name was glorified and then he rested from ill the Works that he had made CHAP. II. The state of Man in the Degeneration and also the Serpents Working VVHen the Pure Creation was finished in the Eternal Power and Wisdom it rested in the Holy Order of Life and was in the Pure Harmony and Oneness with the Creator and there should have rested in the Holy Order and not have moved â—â—t in the Power and Wisdom of Life but there was a part which did not keep its station but moved out of the Wisdom and wake the Order and did aspire towards the Equallity of the Holy Essence for which cause it was cast down by the Power and driven into the lowest parts of the Creation and was there to have its place and habitation at the furthest distance from God and his Anger kindled against it and he drove it down in his Anger and his Wrath abides upon it and it is sealed down in the Anger and Wrath without recovery and this is the place of that part which kept not in the holy Order of the pure Creation but aspired to have been equal with the Power and his name is Serpent the Devil and his place is Hell the bottomless Pit where the Almighty God exerciseth his Wrath without ceasing because through the Aspiring the Creation went out of its holy Order in which it was created good and in which it should have rested with God and have had its Order in his Power and Wisdom and when this Aspiring Part was cast down into the Lowest Part it became beastly carthly sensual and devilish and was more subtil than any Beast of the Field and having now lost his place in the Pure Creation and cast down in the Separation where the Almighties Wrath was exercised upon him without ceasing and he was alwayes in the Torment of the Anger and Wrath which sealed him down without recovery then did he labour with his Subtilty to draw out of order that which yet did keep its station and order and to beget a motion out of the moving of the Power and the Lord God having given a Command unto Man in the day that he put him into Paradise and charged him Not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil for in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt dye saith the Lord God which the Serpent knowing and having in his fall seen through the Creation he attempted the Woman because she was nearest unto Man being given as one meet to be an help unto him and being also the weaker part of the Creation
that the Light doth not only shew him his Sin and convince him of it but if he turn obey and believe in it so it will take the Sin away and purge his Conscience from the dead works and redeem him out of all the Lusts which the Serpent hath generated in him and hath begotten his Life into and he will know his Redeemer liveth and Salvation he will feel in the Light which doth condemn his sin in the flesh and here Drunkard is redeemed out of Drunkenness a Swearer from Swearing a Lyar from Lying a Covetous Man from Covetousness an Angry man from Anger and so out of all Vain Pleasures Sports Jesting Headiness Wildness Customs Fashions and Traditions that are in the World through Lust With the Light Man is redeemed through its Righteous Judgment for with its pure searching quality it finds out every secret thing of the old lustful nature and proceeds against it in Judgment so that the Serpent cannot escape the Light but with all his Subtilty he is found out and as Man believes in the Light so doth the Judgment fall upon the Serpents head and though it be long before Man can give up himself truly to deny all things that he is convinced of to be evil or before he can get clearly thorow or to the end of much that he is turning from or before he can witness a perfect Regeneration through the fire of cleansing yet as Man in the Light believes and follows it the Work is going on and prospering and the Lusts and evil deeds are dying and the Serpent he is weakning and doth not come upon Man so furiously and forcibly as formerly but his Temptations are weaker and Man in the Light he is stronger and stands with courage to resist him and as Man feels at any time dominion over the Serpent and that he is able as he abides in the Light to resist him so doth his strength and courage encrease and he stands boldly in the battel and yeelds not when temptations come but brings them under and treads them down and as the Serpent comes upon Man and appears to tempt him into that Lust which Man is making war against Man stands prepared unto battel and is strong and of a good courage and goes forth against him in his first appearance and in the power of the Light placeth true Judgment upon his head and bruiseth him and so Man is preserved from him and abstains from Evil in the appearance of it and this is the Serpents great design to keep Man alive to himself and to delight in his hearts lusts whereby he ruleth over him and takes him captive at his will and he is not willing to let him go if all his subtilty can hold him therefore many Temptations come upon Man after he is convinced and comes to own the Truth of God and as he converts and turns unto the Lord he is many times sorely beset in his way and often ready to be driven quite back again and hence it is that Man finds such a strong Warfare in his Spiritual Travel and finds it such a hard work to come into the Regenerated State because there he must deny himself and forsake all his hearts Lusts and lay down his Life in the Judgment and abide the Fire of Refinement and as Man in the Light begins to approach near unto this great Work then the Serpent strives in his subtilty to withhold him and keep him back and so the two in their contrary natures are felt in the strife and this Gate is strait and few there be that find it And as Man stands faithful and abides in the Light he will feel strength to support him when the Enemy thus violently pursues him and he will stand a Conqueror over those Lusts that have had dominion over him and when the Serpent finds that he cannor keep Man in the Inordinate Affection and lead him forth to satisfie his Lust to the full as he had wont to do then in his subtilty he abates his Temptation and perswades Man that he may use things moderately and keep out of Excess for it is the Excess that makes it to become Evil and so to be condemned but if he cease from Excess the moderate use will not bring Condemnation so he tells the Drunkard if he keep himself from being drunk he may moderately keep his Friend company and he may be merry with him and he tells the Proud in heart if they use not Excess in their Apparrel they may go decently according to their quality and the like Temptations for other Lusts he hath and he tells Man the moderate use of them will not bring Condemnation but here some have found him a Lyar as he is who came to abstain and restrain from the Excess of many things which once they were serving their Lusts in and caine down to that which the Devil called Moderation but found it was in the hearts lusts still and with the Light was still condemned and judged and no rest nor peace could be found until the Devil was wholly denied and the hearts Lusts given up to the Crosse and there crucified and thereby Redemption perfectly wrought in the Power of Christ and then comes the right use to be made of ill things in their place with true moderation and in the use of them in the Redeemed state there is no Condemnation for they are received and used in the fear of the Lord and what is useful and no more and there is no Lust abiding that reacheth forth beyond the present need and there is the Blessing felt but Man that hearkens to the Serpent and takes that for Moderation that he calls so he is deceived and though he lessen the use of that which the Light reproves him for in the Inordinate Affection yet will the Light still condemn him and judge him in his own Conscience until he come to the Power and there have his Lust truly Crucified So the Serpent tells the Drunkard he may drink moderately and be merry with his Friend he tells the Proud he may put on such Garments as are suitable to his quality amongst men so that he keep within the bounds of Moderation And many have here denied common Drunkenness and yet satisfying the old lust in the Excess And many that cannot wear so many Ribbands nor great Cuffs as sometimes they could yet they must have some bunches of Ribbands and little Cuffs Then saith the Devil thou art now in the Moderation and dost no more or hardly so much as becomes thy quality And now to give one true and faithful Experience though many in these things might be truly demonstrated I know a Man who once was alive to himself and served his Lusts and loved Pleasures more than God and in one thing the Serpent had sealed his life more than in many others and his delight was chiefly in it and after he came to obey the Light of Christ in his Conscience it was clearly