to bear a faithful Testimony against their Hireling Priests and in the Name of the Lord and in his Living Power did she testifie That they were out of the Right Way and not sent of God and therefore did not profit the People at all And she cleared her self that it was not in the least in Emnity or Ill-will that she had towards the Priests but that the Lord had made her a living Witness against their Wayes and Covetous Practices to which some of them answered That they did believe her for they believed that she wished all well Witnesses hereof as being often present with her in the time of her Weakness and hearing these words with more to the same Effect John Beck her Husband Isabel Gardner Elizabeth Ware Thomas Gardner Agnes Gardner John Dickinson Elianor Dickinson Elianor Corney With several others that might be mentioned Concerning Sarah Beck my dear wife this Testimony I have to bear THat she was a Woman truly fearing God and had a true and real Desire after Truth and Righteousness and after the Welfare Prosperity of it both in her self all that professed it that those that knew it not might come to the Knowledge and Obedience of it And after I came into acquaintance with her and did move her to Marriage Oh! how Solid and Weighty she was insomuch that she would often say Marriage is a weighty Thing and did often desire and breathe to the Lord That we might proceed in it in the true Fear of the Lord and then our Love and Unity would abound one towards the other and so it did And after we were married her whole desire and breathing was that we might both be kept in the true Fear of the Lord in all our Undertakings and in a living Sence of the Truth and of the Goodness of the Lord towards us and this Desire being True and Real it was encreased so that she grew in the Gift or Measure that God had committed to her and being faithful and obedient so that she came to have her Mouth opened to pray to God in our Family whereby I was often refreshed and broken into Tenderness through the living operation of the Power and Gift of God in her which did freshly livingly spring in her many a time so that a living Testimony and a good Remembrance remains upon my Heart continually concerning her And often she said O! that we may be kept faithful to the End that we may never Offend the Lord so that her Desires Breathings and Groanings were after the Lord Night and Day that she might not lose her Peace with him and this was also granted unto her for in the time of her Sickness and outward Exercise she was patient and contented though her Exercise was many times very sharp yet she did patiently bear it and said many times It will be over and that she had true Peace with God and her Heart was full many times with Praises unto God that he had kept her in Perfect Peace with him and being kept in this Condition she was a Refreshment to Friends when they came to visit her And when she drew near her time of the giving up of her Natuarl Life she bid Call in the Family and she took me by the hand and then took her leave of us one by one bidding us Farewel and then she prayed while one could understand what she said then she laid down her Head upon her Pillow as though she would have fallen asleep and so she gave up her Natural Life without either Sigh or Groan like an Innocent Lamb and she is gone to her Rest with her Maker and Husband who had betrothed her unto himself in Faithfulness JOHN BECK I have this to say concerning my dear Child Sarah Beck THat as she lived an Innocent Life so was her Latter-end Comfortable and although it hath been a near Excercise to me to part with such a dear Child yet truly can I say that the Consideration of her Everlasting Well-being doth stay my Mind and the Remembrance of the Love of God to her doth often break my Heart for in the time that she lay on her Dying-Bed I have several times found her very Tender and much Broken and when I had ask't her How she was she said It is even the Love of God that breaks my Heart and the Consideration of his tender Dealings with me And she said to me Dear Mother let nothing trouble thee for there is nothing at all that troubles me So I can testifie to these Lines above-written for I was much with her in the time of her Weakness and we were often well refreshed together with the Incomes of God's Love then she said Oh this was a good Meeting we have met with the Lord. Isabel Gardner A Testimony lives in my Heart concerning my dear Sister Sarah Beck the Wife of John Beck whose former Name was Sarah Gardner THis I can truly testifie That she was an inoncent Woman and one that did truly fear the Lord in her day and wished the well-fare of all People yea even from a Child was her Heart set to seek the Lord and the prosperity of his blessed Truth which the Lord had made her with many more partakers of blessed be his Holy Name for evermore and I certainly know that it was her chiefest care faithfully to serve the Lord and obey him in whatever he required of her And it was sometimes required of her by the Lord to exhort others to Faithfulness and to improve the Gift or Talent which the Lord had committed to them and the Lord did alwayes give her Power and Ability to perform faithfully whatsoever he required of her for which she did as was her Duty return the Praise and Honour unto him over all Surely her Love was Universal I have often heard her say Oh that all would come to the knowledge of the Truth and live therein Methinks I wish that all People would truly fear the Lord. So far was she from bearing any Ill-will towards any that she wished the Everlasting Well-fare of All and it was her earnest desire unto the Lord that he would preserve her faithful unto himself and that she might live to his Praise while she lived and as the Lord had put it into her Heart to seek true Peace with him so blessed be his Name he preserved her in the same to the end of her dayes For on her dying Bed she did often signifie that she was content whether to live or dye saying That she had sweet Peace with God and she said It makes my Heart glad when I remember my End it will be the Happiest Hour that ever came to me Yea she did often signifie what great Joy and Peace she felt singing Praises unto the Lord and making sweet Melody in her Heart saying Oh thou Ocean Ocean Oh Fulness Fulness Oh! who would not but fear the Lord and serve him all their dayes Oh the Joy that is laid
A Certain and True RELATION OF THE Heavenly Enjoyments AND Living Testimonies Of God's Love unto her Soul Participated of from the Bountiful Hand of the LORD and communicated to her in the time of her Weakness of Body Declared upon the Dying-Bed of SARAH the Wife of JOHN BECK of Dockrae in the County of Westmoreland who departed this Life the 13th Day of the 6th Moneth 1679. The Souls of the Righteous are precious in the Eyes of the Lord and they shall be had in Everlasting Remembrance Blessed are the Dead which dye in the Lord even so saith the Spirit for they rest from ther Labours and their Works follow them Rev. 14. 13. Printed in the Year 1680. A Testimony that Sarah Beck the Wife of John Beck did bear and signifie of the Love of God which she was sensible of when she was very Weak of Body and on her DYING-BED SHE continued seven Weeks and one Day after the Birth of her Daughter Sarah and all the time of her Weakness she was very patient and freely given up and resign'd to the Will of God often signifying She was Content whether to Live or Dye saying She had sweet Peace with God And on the First day at Night being the 3d of the 6th Moneth she was worse than before and in the Morning she grew very ill and weak so that it was thought that she had been gone and when she recovered she said She was Well I was very well if I had gone But after that she was raised by the mighty Power of God many times to praise and magnifie the Name of the Lord saying Oh thou pure God! Oh thou pure God! O thou blessed God! O my Saviour Honoured be thy Name Praised be thy Name Renowned be thy Name And when she had rested a little being very weak she desired of the Lord that she might praise his Name again before she departed out of this Tabernacle and the Lord by his Living Power did raise her up in a wonderful manner contrary to the Expectation of them that were with her and his Living Presence did surround her insomuch that she could not contain but brake forth into a sweet Harmony and fung Praises unto the Lord even to the rendring and breaking of the Hearts of several and true refreshing of the Souls of the sensible Ones that were with her who had true Unity with her yea she was so overcome with the Love of God and the Joy of that Endless Life into which she is now entered that she cryed forth aloud Magnifie the Lord O Magnifie the Lord O Magnified be thy Name O thou God of my Life Glory to thy Name thou Helper of Israel and said O Friends Praise the Lord O Praise him every one of you for surely Heaven is open I see God in his Glory O! he shines Friends do you not see how God shines O God! thou shinest in thy Beauty of Holiness O what a Light is here sure Heaven is open I see God on his Glorious Throne and his holy Angels And she sweetly praised the Lord and said O Lord thou hast satisfied my Soul I desired that I might Praise thee and thou hast satisfied me Honour Glory and Halelujahs unto thee O thou God of my Life Oh! I feel sweet Peace and great Joy Oh! the Joy that is laid up for the Righteous Oh! who would not but fear the Lord who would not but be faithful And she was taken ill again and was very Sick so that it was thought several times that she had been gone but the Lord again did raise her up and she would have said aloud O Lord O God! let me Praise thy holy Name once more before I depart out of this Tabernacle And the Lord did answer her earnest Desire and by his Eternal Power gave her Ability to Praise Magnifie and Glorifie his Holy Name as before to the refreshing and comforting of Friends that were with her and some that were no Friends in the Truth said Surely God was with her And she did often signifie what great Joy and Peace she felt saying Surely never greater Joy can be desired than what I now feel And at another time she said My Physician is come O God! thou art my Physician and thou hast Cured me I matter not for all the Physicians in the World for I believed in thee and thou hast Healed me And she said My Soul is near ready to be offered up unto the Lord as a Living Sacrifice And took her leave of her Husband and the rest of her Friends taking them by the hand and kissed them and bid them Farewel one by one saying with a chearful Countenance I am near going she said This sweet End will come it makes my heart glad when I remember my end It will be the Happiest Hour that ever came to me She remembred her Love to Friends and said I desire that Friends may be faithful And when it was thought that she was in great Pain and very Sick so that some said It was very hard she answered Nay it is very easie for the Lord sweetens it Oh! thou Glorious God thou hast satisfied my Soul I am filled with thy pure Presence O thou Keeper of Israel Praised and Magnified be thy holy Name forever for thou art Worthy and thy Mercies and Goodness are Endless O Righteous God! O who would not but Praise thee O that I may Praise thee while I have Breath and Being as indeed she did for even at the hour of her Departure she praised the Lord very sweetly and said Call in the Family they being called in Now said she Rejoyce Friends and reached forth her hand to her Husband and holding him by the hand made sweet Melody in her Heart to the Praise and Honour of the Lord and to the great Comfort of Friends that were with her and said Dear God several times together being very Weak what shall I render unto thee for this Evening Sacrifice And so went on in Prayer and Praising the Lord till her natural Strength failed and then turned her face to the Pillow and lay still like an innocent Lamb as indeed she was and said no more even as if she had fallen a sleep being the 13th of the 6th Moneth 1679. in the Evening Many other sweet and comfortable Words she spake which cannot be remembred to the full but as she lived an innocent Life so was her Latter end comfortable and she hath laid down her Head in Perfect Peace with the Lord her Maker and Redeemer Well the Lord shall have the Praise the Honour and the Glory over all and not any Creature for he is worthy as she hath often said both in her Health and also in her Sickness for she would alwayes lay the Creature Low and God to have the Glory of his own Work who is worthy blessed over all forever And in the time of her Weakness several came to see her that were not Friends before whom she was moved
up for the Righteous And in all the time of her weakness of Body she was very patient and freely given up to submit to the Will of God saying O Lord I will wait upon thee with patience till my Change come for surely thou art worthy to be waited upon Oh thou God of my Life Oh that I may Praise thee while I have Breath and Being Yea that was her earnest desire both for her self and others both in her Health and Sickness as indeed I with several more was a Witness that she had her desire granted for even at the Hour of her departure she Praised the Lord very sweetly and the last Words that she uttered were in Prayer unto the Lord and in praising of his Holy Name and so passed away quietly as if she had fallen asleep And now although I with many more unto whom the Lord made her Serviceable am sensible of a great want of her yet of this I do conclude that though it be our Present Loss it is her Everlasting Gain So unto the Lord do I desire to commit my Cause who is able to supply all our Wants and to make hard Things easie as we truly eye him and have our whole Dependance upon him who is God over all blessed forever Now what I have here written concerning my dear Sister the Lord knows my Heart it is notin the least to set her up above her place as if she had been able to do any thing of her self but as the Lord did enable her as she often confessed unto the Lord That of her self she was not able to do anything but all her Help and Ability was in the Lord alone So unto him be the Praise over all and not unto any Creature for there is none that can perform any acceptable Service unto the Lord but as he enables them therefore unto him be the Honour and Praise of his own Work forever Agnes Gardner This is my Testimony concerning Sarah Beck THat I travelled with her in her Exercise both in her Health and in her Sickness and her Desire was That all might be Faithful to what was made manifest unto them and in the time of her Weakness of Body I can truly say That I was sensible of her Exercise and did bear a share with her and said several times to her That I did believe that the Lord would turn it to her Joy whether it was to live or dye and when the Time came that the Lord comforted her I can truly say I was comforted with her and so I can truly say that I had such Unity with her that that which was her Joy was my Joy and that which was her Sorrow was my Sorrow So I can bear witness what is above-written for I was much conversant with her in the time of her Weakness ELIANOR DICKINSON PEACE is sown for the Righteous and Joy and Gladness for the Upright in Heart they are certainly Blessed and truly Happy who answer the holy Call of God by pure Obedience as this our beloved Sister hath done for she chose the Truth to be her Path and her Delight was in it even from a Child and as she grew in Years so she grew in the Truth and by Faith therein was a true Witness of God's heavenly Word of Power manifested in her Bosom by the Virtue of which her Soul was made alive by Christ who is the Light the Life the Power by which she came to be reconciled to God again and so became a true Witness of his Name and Saving Health and therein did extol his Praise and magnifie his Power as she hath often sweetly done not only in her Health but also in her Sickness to the Refreshment of many and as she lived an Innocent Harmeless Life she being of a mild Lamb-like Disposition so she ended her Dayes in Innocency and being Redeemed from the Earth laid down her Head in Peace and though her outward Body be gone to the Dust from whence it came yet her Spirit is ascended to God that gave it and her living Testimony and good Savour that she hath left remain as Comfortable Memorials upon our Minds desiring That we may so live and so finish our Course as she hath done knowing that all who endure to the End shall be saved So being satisfied and perswaded that many Friends are of the same Faith and Belief concerning her I rest with this Testimony in my Heart which is here expressed Robert Barrawe My Testimony concerning my dear Sister Sarah Beck is THat she was an Innocent Woman and from her Childhood till her Dying-day she alwayes minded good things for when she was a Child she had an Eye to God that she did not offend him and loved good Friends well and as she grew up in Years so she grew in the Truth of God alwayes desiring the Prosperity thereof so that her Diligence exceeded many of her Equals in Years and the Lord was with her and she grew in the Truth and he put his Word in her Mouth and she faithfully declared it as the Lord required her whether as in a Publick Testimony amongst Friends or otherwise to warn People to Repent and Turn unto the Lord to whom he did send her and she was faithful in all things as the Lord gave her Utterance for she was but a weak Instrument but as the Lord was her Strength unto whom she would alwayes return Praise for he alone was Worthy for it was the Glory of God that was most in her Mind and she was wholly given up to serve him in all his Requirings and his pure Fear was truly placed in her Heart so that when the Lord did visit her Body with Weakness and as she grew Weaker outwardly so was her Strength renewed 〈◊〉 and she grew stronger and stronger in God so that 〈◊〉 cryed aloud when she was very weak of Body so that she was ready to faint away as to outward appearance and Praised and Magnified the Name of the Lord as is testified in the foregoing Testimonies and often exhorted Friends to Faithfulness I was often with her in the time of her Sickness and I was well refreshed with her for when her Sickness did but a little abate then she would be Praying and Praising the Name of the Lord often signifying to us what Joy and Peace she did feel to the Satisfaction of her Immortal Soul and to the great Comfort of us her Friends who had sweet Unity with her and although it was a great Exercise to us her near Relations to part with her being a living Instrument in the hand of God by which we were well refreshed many a time yet we can certainly say to the Joy of our Hearts That it is her Everlasting Gain and she hath laid down her Head in Perfect Peace for I can truly say That I am often well refreshed and comforted in the Remembrance of her my dear Sister Well the Lord gives Life and Breath and takes it away when he pleases for he is Worthy forever blessed be the Everlasting Name of our God for he is Rich in Mercy and Endless in Loving-kindness O! that we may alwayes dwell low before God and return him Living Praises over all for he alone is Worthy saith my Soul Thomas Gardner THE END