your selves to be of them the Apostle speaks of that would be some body in conference but not in possession and hath got the form which the Apostle bids turn away from for immediate you have denied and so you are to be denied with the power and as touching Abraham Isaac and Jacob and Paradice and the Prophets and the holy men of God silence flesh for immediate you deny and all these things who knows them are immediately sent of God for all Scripture being given forth immediately by the Spirit and is of no private interpretation but holy men of God spake as they were moved of the holy Ghost And here you are manifest to be no Ministers of the Spirit but following your own inventions who saith you are not sent forth immediately as the Apostles were and here you may well enough stumble at the light who denies that you are sent forth immediately as the Apostles were And here all the children of light may see you to be formalists Joseph Kellet John Pomrey Paul Glisson and the rest who saith you are not sent forth immediately I command you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to give over deceiving the people and be silent you murtherers of their souls who saith you are not sent forth immediately as the Apostles were make a scorn and derision of them that would have you live in what you speak but go on for destruction is your portion in the vain and blasphemous philosophy you are and your conclusion shall stand for your selves who are in the rottenness of your hearts and body of iniquity and you are not as the Apostles were and so you have denied the life that gave forth the Scriptures for all Scripture being given forth immediately and they that gave them forth were sent of God and you that go forth to preach which saith you are not sent forth immediately are in the state of them that err'd not knowing the Scripture for they are not known but with that Spirit which gave them forth which was immediate And here with all the children of light you are judged not to be of God nor sent of God out of your own mouths Whereas you say That them you call Quakers do admonish you to wait in silence till God open your mouths and they would not have any to read pray and teach but when the Spirit of the Lord leads them We cannot close with this Here all the holy men of God shall witness against you I take them all to record and you to be contrary to them and your prayers to be abomination and your teachings not of the Spirit and contrary to the Apostle who said He would pray with the Spirit And here you are contrary to his doctrine and contrary to the Scripture and the Apostle said The holy men of God spake as they were moved of the holy Ghost and they speak as the Spirit gave them utterance and Christ saith The Spirit of the Father speaks in you And here again you are contrary to Christs doctrine and the Apostles who cannot close with the Spirits praying and the Spirts teaching And there you shew you are Babylon again and in the error err'd from the life and doctrine of the Apostles And here I leave you to be judged by all the children of light and to walk out of the foot-steps of Christ and his flock who say you are not sent immediately as the Apostles were but praying in families and reading and instructing of children and bringing up in the fear of the Lord and teaching according to the Apostles doctrine we own who was a Minister of the Spirit but not of the letter And this we seek to bring all people to into the life which gave forth the Scriptures and all your experiences and teachings are to be trampled upon who cannot close with the praying of the Spirit and the Spirits leading to pray and teach Here out of the Apostles doctrine you are seen clearly to be with all the children of God Now you say To the best of your understanding That them you call Quakers gives equal liberty for men and women in assemblies to pray Here you do shew your selves to be them that would limit the Spirit of God for God saith He will pour out his Spirit upon all flesh and his sons and daughters shall prophesie the Apostle saith They may all prophesie one by one And here you shew again you are contrary to the Apostles doctrine and your understanding to be bruitish and as touching the assemblies of the Saints silence flesh or their prayers either for either male or female with the Spirit of the Lord they may teach or pray but you that deny the Spirit and cannot close with his praying or teaching either you have got a popish law of Queen Maries that when some hath been moved to come into your Synagogues some hath been beat some stoned some stocked and haled before Magistrates and imprisoned as many in these northern parts may witness Whereas you say They speak after their trembling with an extent voice as the Oracles of God and them you call Quakers do not leave you time to try their sayings as the Apostle did to the Bereans O ye lyers doth not the whole Scripture witness trembling and the Saints gave forth the Scriptures and such had the Oracles of God and we witness the same Spirit now the Saints in light you cannot deceive but the blinde you may lead into the ditch for a while And whereas you speak of magnifying papers equal to the holy Scriptures The same Spirit which gave forth the Scriptures which gives forth now is as true as the Scriptures and not contrary to the Scriptures He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit saith Whereas you are tormented at those that forsake pride in apparel and receiving honour of man and giving honour to man is it not according to Scripture and the doctrine of Christ who saith How can ye believe which seeks honour one of another And there you shew your selves to be out of the belief and the doctrine of Christ which cross the Saints doth pass through to eternal life which cross is to the world which cross you live without who are puft up And whereas you are speaking for your schools and learning There you shew where you are in the first nature not in that as the Apostles were in who counted all loss and dung and denied all his bringing up and learning in the first birth for the excellency of Christ when he knew the excellency of him Whereas you speak of buying and selling Now you shew where your mindes are yet lawfulness justice and equity we own for this is of God righteousness in man yea nay in all communication we own and all filthy merchandize we trample upon where we see you to be your mindes in the earth your God is your belly you glory in your shame and to be the evil beasts the
present world and rejoyce evermore and they sung Hallelujah and the kingdom of God stands in righteousness joy and peace in the Holy Ghost Here I charge you in the Spirit of the living God to be lyers And you say That the children of God are found groaning all their life long under the burthen of sin Now I take all the children of the light to judge you and may see the Scripture to witness against you and see that your experience is contrary to the Saints in Scripture and as touching the second coming of Christ as you speak silence flesh who stumbles at his light for you that stumbles at his light stumbles at him But blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath given us an understanding with his light which you stumble at You Priests have been looked on to be the props and pillars of the truth but now the truth hath discovered you to be the props of Antichrists kingdom having the form as the Pharisees had And again you are speaking of the Apostles faith and the seed and the promises and of Abraham Isaac and Jacob All these are our witnesses who witness the promise of God to the seed but as for you that stumble at the light you have but the form as the Pharisees had who saith you are found all your life time groaning under the burthen of sin Here you shew your selves to be them that lead silly women captive led away with divers lusts ever learning but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth that the Apostle spoke of but lies groaning under your sins who said They haâ— put off the body of sin and was made free from sin Here your experiences are tried again to be contrary to the Scriptures and the Saints lives so we have weighed you to be contrary to the Scriptures and the Apostles you that say you lay groaning under the burthen of sin bound under the temptations and snares of the divel who are without God in the world And whereas you say That whosoever bids man take heed to the light within which the eternal Word hath enlightned which enlightens him which enlightneth every one that cometh into the world in attendance thereto puts man besides the way of life and saith This assertion puts men quite besides the way of salvation to attend upon that light which comes from the eternal word If this put men aside from the way of life and put men quite beside the way of salvation to wait upon the light which comes from the eternal Word Here again I take all the children of light to record how you are confused and are beside the way of life and salvation for none knows the way of salvation life peace and righteousness but who owns this eternal light which is in the eternal Word and so here all may see it is you that bring men quite besides the way of life and eternal salvation and terms the light of Christ to be the light of nature and not pure And so there you blasphemers are discovered to be the foxes that spoil the vineyards And you say What shall we think of Paul who found the law in his members warring Here you shew you are stangers to Pauls condition when you have learned it you shall know it but them that stumbles at the light stumbles at his condition and here your experiences are tried again to be contrary to the Scriptures You say You grant to walk up to the law or light of nature shall have the light of Grace or Gospel revealed to him and yet you say You never knew the Gospel bestowed upon any such person and say You more then doubt whether ever they stood before the throne of glory Here you are confused let the Reader take notice was not the light of Moses the light of the Gospel who wrote of Christ shall they receive Light Grace Gospel and not stand before the throne of glory you grant they may receive it then here they may fall from the throne of glory which you was accusing them of you call Quakers before they that fall from the light fall from the eternal salvation And so O man thus thy condemnation ariseth of thy self Whereas you say Men taking heed to the light which Christ hath enlightned them withal takes away the ministration of the Gospel and shuts the kingdom of God from men Here you have manifested your selves to be in the generation of the Pharisees who hath the letter to talk of as they had but the light wherewith Christ hath enlightned shuts not the kingdom of heaven from men but you that denies the light shuts the kingdom of God from men and so denies the Gospel and them that hate this light preaches not the Gospel but their own inventions and takes away the authority of the Scriptures who are in the same nature of your fathers that murthered the Prophets Christ and the Apostles and you the children of them now where the life and power is made manifest among the Quakers you act the same part of your fathers which all the righteous blood was shed by Whereas you say Your chief contention is for the Gospel administred by man Here you contend for that the Apostle denied not by man had he received it neither was he made an Apostle by man And here your Spirit is tried to be contrary to the Apostles and the Scripture Whereas you say You know not how any should believe unless they hear the testimony of the Apostles or their words Here you shew you to be in the generation of them who hoards the Apostles words as your fathers read the Prophets and Apostles words but persecuted Christ Blessed is he that believes and sees not And you say You cannot tell how men should believe unless they saw the Apostles conditions Here you shew your selves to be in the Jews doting condition who are Ministers of the letter and your faith is theirs and both is dead he that believes is born of God without Scripture and yet witnessed in Scripture And whereas you slander and say Them you call Quakers aimes to beguile you of Scripture themselves they say this Light or Gospel within you it is the sure word of prophesie Here let all see you to be lyers whether we do not set the Scriptures in the heart of every one for every one having the light within which shews his evil deeds which light is his condemnation that hates it this is Scripture within Here we do not take it from them but that every one might possess it within as it was given forth from within from the life and that they might take heed to the sure word of prophesie till the day-star arise in their hearts as the Apostles exhorts the Saints and that was within And so here again we do not take Scripture from you but it is that you might be seen to be lyers who seek to draw people from the light within from the
lost sinners who saith It is nowhere found but in the Scriptures And here you shew you are in the state of the Jews which would have had life in the Scriptures and would not come to Christ but persecuted him as you do now them where the life is made manifest this I say This light wherewith Christ Jesus hath enlightned it will shew the greatest sin yea unbelief and waiting in this light which Christ hath enlightned their salvation is made manifest but all you that hate this light you are enlightned with it and it shall eternally condemn you and you give it the term of a natural light and a moral which there is no Scripture for that speaks of moral as p. 5. but this light which you stumble at so much and give it these terms with it you shall be condemned you may as well say Christ is moral which there is no Scripture for and there the plagues is added to you for adding your own inventions to that which was given forth from the eternal Spirit of God And whereas you say But we conceive not how Christ is preached out but by them who brings the word of God whose feet are beautiful Here you have shewed forth you have no infallible judgement not the Spirit that gave forth the Scripture which judged them that did conceive where you are living in your conceivings and terms the light to be as a moral law as you call it and so with the same eternal Spirit you are judged for which there is no Scripture for moral and so establisheth Paganisme and heathenish Philosophy and abundance of such stuffe you have in your book And we do witness the same Christ as ever was made manifest and there is no other name under heaven by which we can be saved And we see you in the same generation that crucified him you who are stumbling at the light that enlightneth every one that cometh into the world but it is because your deeds are evil who shall be condemned with it which gave forth the Scriptures You say in p. 6. It is by Scripture-light of the Prophets and Apostles which once was read or heard or else how could they know it Here you shew that you are in the state of the Scribes and Pharisees which read Moses and the Prophets which prophesied of him and wrote of him and they persecuted him the light which enlightneth every one that cometh into the world And so do you which hates the light And you are speaking of the Spirit that brings to God and of Faith in Christ And you that stumble at the light that Christ hath enlightned every one withal that cometh into the world You stumble at the Spirit and Faith both and hears not the Gospel but stumbles at the first Principle and you have nothing to do to talk of Saints Ministers nor of the second Adam but are of the first Adam To that in your consciences I speak be but honest and that will let you see it and here 's a difference between you and the Saints for the Saints to whom the Epistles was written that walkt in the light we make a difference between you that hate the light and them that walk in it for you that hate the light take the Saints words which was declared from the light and make a profession of their words but with the light you shall be condemned from among the Saints and to you this is the word of God and Christ which was the Light cried wo against such Pharisees and hypocrites as you are which stumbled at the light You boasters say You know no man after the flesh no not Christ And yet you stumble at the light which enlighteneth every one that cometh into the world And you that stumble at this light stumbles at the foundation Christ the Prophets and Apostles for this light was in them that gave forth these words and so it is the light within that opens them again and he that walks in the light as saith our Lord and master Christ he shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life and he that owns the light owns the word and doth not weaken the authority as in your p. 4. you say and this we witness And you Priests slander us with a foolish jealousie But you that stumble at the light stumble at Christ the Authority of all the Scriptures and you that stumble at the mystery between the Jews and the Gentiles which Christ cometh to put an end to the outward oracles of the Jews to bring in the Gentiles so the state of Jew and Gentile within you know not who stumble at the light This brings in and this condemns out Priest And you are talking of mount Sinai in matters of moral righteousness Reply O ye shameless men where doth the Scripture speak of moral righteousness and as touching mount Sinai silence for you are not come out of Egypt and this is in your p. 5. Whereas you say Natural man runneth to mount Sinai for righteousness in his personal obedience which you say these men put them upon Here I charge you That you know not what you speak for this lght of Christ judges down your immediate personal obedience and self-righteousness and natural-estate whom the wrath of God abides upon and the plagues of God for that is your due for mount Sinai you are not come to and there exhorting people to the light is to bring them to Christ and mount Sion in the life of the Scriptures which it speaks of Priest Your speaking of the body of Christ once offered to God at Jerusalem for an attonement for all Reply This Christ we own and know him no more after the flesh and you that stumble at his light stumble at Christ and know him not according to the flesh but are in the generation of your fathers that persecuted him But you say If any one destroy your Faith and make sleight the person of your glorified Saviour O you hypocrites what have you to do to talk of a glorified Saviour that stumble at the light and what talk you of Faith who stumble at the light your Faith is vain and will fade away but Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ we own and so it is you that trample upon the blood of the new covenant as in p. 9. And whereas you say You do confess God the Father of Lights natural and spiritual and that the eternal word lightens every mans candle whereby man sees the eternal power and God-head of God but nothing of the mystery of the Father and of Christ as a Mediator is seen but onely by the children of God What a confession and doctrine is this by you for you confess that man may see the eternal power and God-head of God and the Father and know nothing of the mystery of the Father and of Christ as a Mediator and he that knows the Father knows the Son and he that knows the Son knows the
the works of the devil and his servants ye are to whom ye obey and this light must be owned before he be owned Wherein ye cry out Ye cannot hold your peace for the deceit we seem to lay upon Christ and his Spirit which is but the light of nature not the light of Christ as a mediator Ye blasphemers who calls the light of Christ the light of nature which Jesus Christ is the light that enlightneth every man and is the Mediatour wherein ye are found to be them that draw back to perdition and not to the saving the Soul in drawing from the obedience of the light which is the light of Christ in man which shews him his natural condition which the Apostle exhorteth to take heed unto until the day dawned and the day-star did arise and such experienced ones as you are lives in jealousies which are as strong as death who stumbles at the light of Christ and calls it natural O high blasphemers You shew along that you are them that hates the light and hate them that walk in it who are troubled at them you call Quakes who saith That the light of Christ doth discover their thoughts and sin and yielding to it power is given from God to stand against thoughts and sin And this you call free will And as it is written They that waited upon the Lord their strength was renewed and here let all the children of light which be in the light contrary to their own wills and contrary to the will of man you judge and therefore it makes you stumble at it and here in this you have denied all the waiting upon God in the light and watchings with the light which hath declared that all your watchings and waitings is without the light an imitation which is to be condemned with the light and many derisions and reproaches have you given forth in your book but these we wave because they do not touch us And whereas you say While you change the Name and call the light Christ Here you have declared you are not Ministers of the letter Christ saith He is the light of the world so say we so it is you cannot own his name but stumbles at the light stumbles at the Mediator so if the babes of Christ should be silent the stones in the walls would cry out against you And whereas you say Reformation reaches not the work of regeneration O ye blinde Hypocrits and corrupt Judges doth not the same that reforms regenerate but you are without both And whereas you say By his disobedience not obeying the light he may fall from that eternal salvation which began to work in him by the power of light And this is your implies and so you interpret our words as you do the Scriptures you that oppose the light you oppose your eternal salvation and as touching eternal salvation you that stumble at the light are for eternal destruction and condemnation with the light which you stumble at and who turnes from the light turns from the salvation and draws back into perdition And whereas you say There is no mention made in any of your papers of eternal salvation from the wrath to come or condemnation of hell by any atonement or price of blood or sacrifice from the dominion of evil by Jesus Christ Eternal salvation from the wrath to come and condemnation of hell I witness by the price of blood of Jesus Christ which is without you and from the dominion of evil by Jesus Christ which your fathers crucified you their children seek to crucifie him where he is made manifest which stumbles at the light and thou ands do begin to confess That they are made free from the wrath to come the dominion of evil by Jesus Christ who is the same yesterday to day and for ever which witness the price of blood by which they are redeemed which makes them clean from your generation which hate the light Priest And now you come to declare your own belief you speak of the promise of the power of the Father and the Gospel and the lost sheep and Faith But to you I answer which stumble at the light you stumble at the promise at the power of the Father at the Gospel and at the Spirit as you plainly make it appear which scorns them you call Quakers which in the Scripture there is a cloud of witnesses against you And whereas you say If they can tell how the bones grow in the womb of her that is with child they may come neer to trace out this work of God We who are in the second birth know the first and how things genders and works and so with it we discern where you are And whereas you say You are children born not of blood nor of the will of man nor after the will of the flesh but of his own will hath he begotten us by the word of truth O ye thieves and robbers I charge in the presence of the living God to be so for these are John's and James's words who speaks of being born not of blood nor of the will of man but of his own will hath he begotten us what have you to do with these things that stumble at the light so you stumble at the truth and how can you glorifie God the Maker who stumbles at the light and so it 's you that deny the resurrection for we do witness the worst sort of men turned to God with his light so we witness the Scriptures fulfill'd Publicans and Harlots enter in before you Priest 2. You are speaking of waiting on Christ for renewing of strength morning by morning Ye enemies of God how can ye wait upon Christ who stumble at the light and writes against it for if you waited upon Christ according to the Scriptures you would own the light and there would be unity in the light but this light which ye stumble at shall condemn you to be no waiters upon the Father nor Christ And whereas you are speaking of the Saints assemblies Reply You that stumble at this light stumbles at the Saints assemblies as you make it appear in this book and the Sons of God and the children of Faith and as you say You are tied to all means so you would tie all to your means and the Lord is tied to none Here you shew you are not of the Lord for who are of the Lord are freed from ties and from the Ordinances of men and outward means which you finde your spirit is tied to contrary to the Spirit of God for where the Spirit of God is there is liberty And whereas you say The children of God all their life-time are found groaning under the burthen of sin Here your Spirit and experiences are tried again to be contrary to the Scriptures and all the Saints for the children of God born of God doth not commit sin and he that is born of God overcomes the world and as he is so are we in this
Gospel and from the day-Star So it is you that takes Scripture away from people and layes it waste and makes it of no effect And again you are inquiring whether there be a prophetical light in every one Here you have given Christ a new name contrary to Scripture who saith he is the light and enlightens every one but here you shew out of what land you are come who cals the light prophetical And you are inquiring what this light in man prophesieth of Here you shew your selves to be strangers again from it and hates it the light wherewith Christ hath enlightned who are inquiring What is the day-star when you love the light you shall know what it prophesieth of and what the day-star is but with this light you shall be condemned and you are under that saying of Christ Light shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not And here you preach forth your selves to be blinde guides who are strangers from the day-star And you say The Scripture was written for you learning and to make you wise to salvation through saith in Christ Jesus These were the Apostles words to the Saints which shew your selves to be them which have the words of the Apostles and Christ as your fathers which had the writings of the Prophers but was not wise unto salvation but persecuted Christ as you do where he was made manifest And whereas you say The Scriptures they lay aside as waste This is another of your lyes they are not true to you if they be not in your hearts as they were in them that spoke them forth O ye thieves which are making thieves where are they that are stealing the word from his neighbour useth their tongues but ye are the thieves which have not the Spirit which gave forth the Scriptures it was written for our learning who are come into the life of them that gave it forth as it was spoken to the Saints but the seed of evil doers is condemned with the life that gave it forth for it is against them and it is for the perfecting of the man of sin And whereas you are slandering in your p. 20. By their doctrine you say the Scriptures are â—urned into allegories This shall stand for your selves the Scriptures we own without any private interpretation for no prophesie of them came by the will of man And whereas you say Some dare not quite lay aside the Scripture You are the busie mindes that are spoken of for the Scriptures are not laid afide but witnessed every Scripture in its place for shame give over your lyes and you that denies the light of Christ and saith It is not pure denies all the openings of all the Scriptures and the Spirit of prophesie and the testimony of Jesus and the instruction of all children of God in Scriptures As for your stories and false applications those applications shall turn upon your selves for they are not worth mentioning and you that deny this light you neither read right nor understand the Scripture right And you say It 's more sure then a voice from the excellent glory concerning the word of prophesie which is to be tended upon more then one risen from the dead This word of prophesie you know nothing of which denies the light which Christ hath enlightned withal your prophesie is the letter which is death and nothing of the excellency of the glory you know who stumble at the light Whereas you say They say this light is the anointing from the Father and that they need not teach one another I answer In this light waiting the anointing is known which is received from the Father but your darkness cannot comprehend this light So you know not the anointing which stumbles at the light which keeps you out of the garden of which you talk of breaking down the walls it is but your walls that are broken down that stumbles at the light and with it you are condemned out of the garden and all the Saints favours And for saying they need no man teach them but the Lord this is witnessed among thousands and they need not say Know the Lord who are come into the new covenant this is witnessed And you say This destroyes Pastors Elders Bishops and plucks the seven stars out of the hand of Christ You enemies of God is not Christ the covenant which was promised who are in him need not say Know the Lord and is not he the end of the seven Stars and Bishops and Pastors and Elders and are not all these in their places to bring up to the stature and fulness of Christ and those we witness in their places but you are such who stumbles at the light Whereas you slander and say It cuts off all instructions All yours it doth who stumbles at the light but who dwells in the light are moved of the Lord daily to instruct and that which doth instruct the same doth convince and that is eternal and the word of God is the fame now which shall hew you down to the fire and the dung and hammer you down to the dust and all your twisting twining inventions which here is much of in this book which is not worth mentioning vented forth but with the light you are comprehended which you stumble at And again you say The teaching of man is implyed and not excluded Here again you are contrary to the Scripture and are excluded from the Apostles doctrine which preach glad tidings which was not made by the will of man And whereas you speak of believing Christ in them and that they perish for want of believing Christ made manifest in their flesh Here you have proved your selves to be reprobates and if he be not made manifest in you the works of the devil are standing and not destroyed And the Apostle spoke of a dying with Christ and a rising with Christ and they were to take heed to the sure word of prophesie as to a light shining in a dark place but this Christ is without you and not made manifest in you as the Apostle speaks which Christ was in them except they were reprobates Here your life is contrary to theirs and with the life which is the life of all the Saints you are judged out of the life of the Scriptures and to be reprobates you speak of Christ without you and the Apostles spoke of Christ in you except you be reprobates And Christ in you the hope of glory Christ the same yesterday to day and for ever we witness him made manifest amongst us and raigns as King the same which ever was made manifest among the Saints but you and your fathers in your generation persecuted him for he is without you as he was without your fathers as you may read in Matthew which be of the seed of your fathers the high Priests Whereas you say That them you call Quakers use the words of the Scriptures and say The kingdom of heaven is within you And
this you speak to the world Here you have shewed your selves to be as the Pharisees which looked for the kingdom of God to come by observations Christ said Behold the kingdom of God is within you to the Pharisees and they were of the world and if those words be spoken to your generations they are not believed with you as they were not with your fathers And as touching John's baptism and the Gospel silence flesh for you are far off that who stumbles at the light and you are sons of formality You say You hold a visible order of the Church in the body and is not of the substance of the kingdom that cannot be shaken and yet in the Church We that ye call Quakers do believe ye and tread that ye call a visible Regiment and Church under our feet as natural for natural is visible and your Church is a Steeplehouse and for denying it we suffer persecution as Stephen did for denying the temple who saw the substance so do we with that which cannot be shaken which is the substance and therefore deny your Steeplehouse which can be shaken and your Sacrament and your standing forms and your sprinkling Infants there is not a word in the Scripture that speaks of a Sacrament and sprinkling Ye heathens that live altogether in formality And as touching Pastors and Elders and the Saints practice you know nothing of who stumble at the light who are in your elementary things Elders and Members Pharisee-like who sets themselves against Christ this is to comprehend you all under what form soever which stumbles at the light which shall condemn you all To that in your conscience I speak And whereas you say You do abominate Babylons confusion Then you must abominate your Mother which hath been and is your Nurse for in Babylon you are and all your prayers abomination and out of the doctrine of Christ who denies the light and calls it natural and not pure who are in the state of Popery and Episcopacie and you are Familists which you have mentioned in your book which turns upon your selves for in the nature of all those things you are who are in the sects with the light which Christ hath enlightned are you judged to be not in the unity for the society is visible and that joynes not to the body of Christ for what joynes to the body of Christ is invisible and in the light we have unity in which all the Saints had and see you to be in the whole body and bulk of iniquity which is raised from Christ You say You must not expect them your Ministers Deacons and Elders to be sent forth as the Apostles were immediately It 's manifest they are not Here you have raced your selves from all the Prophets and Apostles from all the Elders and Deacons and all the Teachers and Ministers of the Gospel and the effect of all your Ministery hath shewed you to be the body of all the sects Heresies Schismes and Errors and to be the doctrine of devils for you say you are not sent forth immediately as the Apostles were then let all take notice who sent you And here you shew forth God never sent you for whom he sends he sends forth immediately and this you deny to be sent forth immediately as the Apostles were And here I charge you in the presence of the living God to be them he never sent 2. To use your tongues 3. Such as Christ cried wo against which have the chiefest place in the assemblies and such as make a prey upon the people which the Lord sent Ezekiel to cry against and Jeremiah and the rest of the Prophets and to be such as Jude speaks of which went in the way of Cain after the error of Balaam which perished in the gainsaying of Core which the wo is to and what you know you know naturally as bruite beasts in these things you corrupt your selves speaking high things in hypocrisie having mens persons in admiration because of advantage which Peter spoke of and Jude who saith you are not sent forth immediately as the Apostles were And here you declare you were never sent of God and your Spirit contrary to the Apostles and in the doctrine of men for in Babylon you are who saith you are not sent forth immediately as the Apostles were for the Apostles said The holy Ghost hath made them overseers and that is immediate and invisible And you say Your society is visible We know it is so and so is your Communion too in outward elementary things and your bread and wine in your Steeplehouse-Church and your Sacrament sprinkling Infants so all this is visible and mediate and imitation out of the doctrine of the Apostles and the doctrine of Christ we own every tittle of it in the same Spirit that gave it forth and so all your casting out in your assemblies and your taking in which you say is not immediate is contrary to the doctrine of the Apostles for with the power and life they cast forth and with the power and life they took in which was immediate And you which say You are not sent forth immediately as the Apostles were have cleared your selves from the Church of Christ the pillar and ground of Truth which is immediate and so all your overseeing is natural and carnal and the natural man perceives not the things of the Spirit of God And here you have cleared your selves openly to all the children of light to be the spirit of error the beast the false Prophet which is not sent forth from God immediately as the Apostles were as ye confess so you are them which the Apostle John in the Revelation spoke of which was sent forth immediately from God to cry against such as you which was not sent forth immediately from God which Spirit is made manifest now which sees you now as they saw them then whom God sends forth immediately to cry against you now as they did then who are in the state of Paganisme who stumble at the light and confess you are not sent forth immediately with the immediate you are judged Whereas you say Them you call Quakers bids you speak no more then you can experience and live in And such you call for their pains painted Sepulchres which those words shall stand for your selves for Christ gave them to your fathers who had the Prophets words as you have the Apostles who spoke that they did not live in as you do as Mat. 23. but them that spoke forth the Scriptures and spoke what they lived in which you have declared your selves from who hath got the outside of the letter and makes a scorn and derision of them who would have you to live in what you speak as they did that gave forth the Scriptures and there you have shewed again what spirit you are of that would not live in what you speak and have cleared your selves from the Faith for Abraham possessed and you have manifested
Apostle spoke of and them as Christ spoke of coming in sheeps skins but now you are made manifest to be the wolves with the light which you stumble at as your fathers ever did Whereas you say The righteousness by faith or power of Christ in you is not to be rested in Nay from this you are excluded the power of Christ in you and the Faith and Righteousness who stumbles at his light who saith you are not sent immediately as the Apostles were but the just lives by his Faith And whereas you say The externals of the Gospel are to be used with the power of godliness and transacted to the glory of Christ Here all may see your confused muckie stuff who would mix your externals with the everlasting Gospel power of Godliness and glory of Christ And your external religion not abolished to the new creature things that be external and worldly Here you shew your selves to be enemies to the cross of Christ and your external Religion is carnal which the new creature feeds not upon and the pure Religion you are cleared from which is to be kept unspotted of the world and this is eternal and all old Ceremonies and your external Religion comes here to be trampled upon with the new creature where all things are become new but from this you are cleared and kept without who stumbles at the light Something to that you call your confession of apparel and faith this is your doctrine if you see a man boast in apparel be not troubled it may be all his portion in the world Here you shew you are holders up of the world and whom ye are friends to and Lot's righteous soul was grieved at their filthy conversation and holders up of boasters you are which the Apostles doctrine denies both and said it was excluded and gives way to that the Apostles declared against and though you say the Scripture declares against pride and wantonness in apparel yet you would not have it declared against and saith If thou see a man boast in apparel be not troubled And here you shew again what Spirit you are on the world loves its own contrary to the righteous soul Whereas you say Apparel grew in use for distinction of sexes and qualities of persons modesty and custome of the country and members of societies and greater matters Was it the apparel that grew in use for distinction of all these there you are who knows one another outwardly with your apparel who are in the customs of the country without in the fashions of the world without the doctrine of Christ and not in the kingdom of Christ and we know all creatures were created to be used in their places as servants to us and whatsoever we do and use it must be to the glory of God So all your pride amongst you rich and proud ones must down the sword of the Lord is drawn out of the sheath and fitted for the slaughter take warning all you proud and lofty ones that are numbred for the sword and all your bags of honour as you call it must be trampled upon for that which is in esteem with you in your generation is abominrble to the Lord but all men in the Lord we honour In the lusts of ignorance you are and you would make people believe it was their apparel which kept off the bruitish sort of men In the lusts and in your ignorance you are in the wanton world ignorant of the true God who confessed you was not sent before as the Apostles were and so you have not learned Christ and know not his coming and all this dirty stuff is not worth mentioning You say You declare against those who hath cast off the denying of respecting of men and you call this abominable pride Here you manifest your selves who make no distinction among men for all men in the Lord we honour but all men out of the Lord are not to be honoured for ungodly such as you are are for condemnation and the beast is not to be worshipped who hates the light as saith Jude As for your speaking of the fine linnen of Saints and the new name silence flesh and vain bablers who are without in the world but thieves who have got the Saints words but in the generation and nature of them you are that put the Saints to death who saith The persecution is much taken off in England One of your Mothers which two servants of the Lord were moved to go to Cambridge were whipped and scourged till their bodies were torn and many in your Synagogues in the North some stocked stoned beat and many imprisoned as in Carlile Kendal York Chester Lancaster Newcastle which these Goales now doth witness it the fruits of your Ministeries and now it self doth shew it's Babylon and Core and not sent immediately as you confess it as the Apostles were and God is bringing down your pride your honour renown and glory the sword of the Lord is drawn against you take warning and against all your gluttony and drunkenness which you are speaking of in your book which is not worth mentioning which shews where your mindes are but I shall let it stand for your selves And sometimes you seem to be against these things and then you turn to your God again and so denies the living God Something you do write and oppose the law of community as you call it Here you are against the Spirit of life for they that did believe were of one heart they that do believe are born of God and amongst such there was was no oppressour no taskmaster it 's said all things were common no man said This is my own but with the Spirit of the living God which sanctifies all such bruitish sensual lustful devilish and worldly covetous taskmasters oppressors and whoremongers thieves lyers cursed speakers as you are who live in all unrighteousness and in pride loftiness hath no part in this communion for no unrighteousness shall inherit the kingdom of God but your law and community is without and we deny it and you to have any part in this communion but in the lake that burnes who stumbles at the light in which there is unity and saith it is not pure and that you are not sent as the Apostles were immediately who act sin and unrighteousness and stumbles at the light so all the ungodly you think are let loose but here is no bait for them but are kept out you and them both with that in which is your communion but all the conditions of the Saints passages travels and progresses we own in their places and who acted under figures and shadows we own but you who are not come to Christs doctrine who is not come to give your coat yet who hath two you we deny And as you say giving a coat of two to him that hath none This torments you you stumble at this as at the light you enemies of God and murtherers with the
lusts you shew where your hearts is without pitty or compassion who wilt not cover thy own flesh but it is that you may be made manifest and you have shewed that you are out of the doctrine of Christ you have been pleading for your interest in the earth there is your God and with the doctrine of Christ you are judged and your community we abhorre but the communion of the Saints we own and servants in their places diligent serving the Lord and children obeying their Parents in the Lord and forsaking all for the Lord and he that doth not is not worthy of him This we witness Whereas you are slandering and saying We are breaking marriage bonds and wedlock because we question what Scripture the Priests have to marry people and take money for it O ye enemies of God where do you read in all the Scriptures that the Priests are to take money for marrying of people such trades we deny if you call that wedlock Marriage is honourable in all things where the the bed is undefiled and that we own but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge and such we deny and all the Priests practises which they have no Scripture for and therefore we question them with authority and deny them both Whereas you are speaking of some that are not free to be Tenants Is the Lord drawing his people from under you taskmasters as from under Pharaoh which are proud and oppressors which you Priests have been examples of and taught the people And this torments you now you Priests because you are against it who have been the oppressors of the creation and are but the Lord is gathering his people from under you now as he did from under Pharaoh and doth proud Pharaoh begin to rage if this torment you you shall see more come with everlasting songs upon their heads singing over Pharaoh and his host The song of Moses and Lamb is begun to be heard in our land and the children of Israel which had their land-marks What 's that to you Egyptians proud and covetous who are for destruction as your father Pharaoh was who was an oppressor proud and a taskmaster Therefore wo to you bloody Cains which are compast under the wo you are of the stock of them that build Babel who are Babylon harlotted from the living God and your Mother hath sit as a Queen deckt with her colours but now the time of her widowhood is come and loss of children and she hath lost many children and that many Kings and Merchants of the earth laments crying Alas alas Whereas you are speaking of tumults and attempts put this not far from you for this may be seen in some of your generation this shall stand for your selves as it is made manifest what tumults are in your congregations And your boasting as giving up your bodies and estates But let these words return upon your selves again and see where your bodies are where your lives and estates are for many lies in prison because they will not pay Priests Tythes which is contrary to the Lord Jesus Christ and his doctrine which the Apostles ever lived in for he never sent you for you confess you are not sent immediately as the Apostles were You say There is not a prophesie in all the Scriptures that takes away all outward teachers Here I am full of the Spirit and power of the Lord to declare against you for in John he saith Ye need not any man téach you There is mans teaching outwardly denied and in Heb. 8. he saith Ye shall not teach every man his neighbour saying Know the Lord for all shall know him All who are in the new Covenant witnesseth this and who witness the new Covenant witness the Son of man and Jeremiah prophesied That they shall no more teach every man his neighbour saying Know the Lord And here you enemies of the God are raced out of the Covenant and are ignorant of the Lord And Ezekiel saith Thus saith the Lord I will deliver my sheep from their mouthes that hath devoured them such as you that have sought for the fleece and for the wool and I will search out my sheep and finde them out and feed them upon the top of the mountaines saith the Lord of hosts he that hath an ear to hear let him for he feeds upon the top of the mountains of Israel And Isaiah saith All the children of the Lord shall be taught of the Lord and much peace shall they have and in righteousness shall they be established And here let this prophesie judge you to be out of the new Covenant and contrary to the Prophets and Apostles which say You are not sent immediately as the Apostles were so how can you witness their conditions so here you have brought your selves under the chain And Jeremiah saith The Lord speaks in him Behold the dayes come saith the Lord that I will make a new covenant not according to the covenant I made with their fathers but this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel After those daies saith the Lord I will put my laws in their inward parts and in their hearts will I write them and I will be their God and they shall be my people And all these Scriptures I charge you all ye Priests of England to have laid waste and have brought none into the new Covenant neither are you there your selves who stumble at the light and denies the first principle They that need no man to teach them such you write against and speak against and so deny the new Covenant and bring the conditions of those that were not come to the Covenant to oppose the new Covenant them that are in it And for quoting many Scriptures of the Epistles and bringing the conditions of the Saints written in the Epistles and not knowing what condition they were written to let the readers of the book examine the Scriptures which you bring in your book and then they will see how you wrest the Scriptures to oppose the truth and how ignorant you are of the Scriptures You are bringing the Apostles which said If we minister unto you spiritual things it is least if you minister unto us carnal things This was spoken to them that denied the Priests the Saints and would not hold up such Priests as you Priests of England which seek for your gain from your quarter and have Balaams wages which is a horrible filthy thing and which the wo is upon and seeks for the fleece and makes a prey upon the people and if they will not give it you sue men at the law did ever the Apostles so Here O England let thy teachers who are in their whoredom from the life be witnessed against by all the Prophets and Apostles life and let all thy whoredoms testifie against thee in thy face for with the eternal life of them all thou art judged eternally You are speaking of Christs sending forth his and say