Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	father_n	power_n	son_n	12,372	5	5.6553	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A95059	The true Levellers standard advanced: or, The state of community opened, and presented to the sons of men. By William Everard, Iohn Palmer, Iohn South, Iohn Courton. William Taylor, Christopher Clifford, Iohn Barker. Ferrard Winstanley, Richard Goodgroome, Thomas Starre, William Hoggrill, Robert Sawyer, Thomas Eder, Henry Bickerstaffe, Iohn Taylor, &c. Beginning to plant and manure the waste land upon George-Hill, in the parish of Walton, in the county of Surrey.	Everard, William.	1649 (1649)	Wing T2716; Thomason E552_5; ESTC R205713	15,458	23

The True Levellers Standard ADVANCED OR The State of Community opened and Presented to the Sons of Men. By William Everard Iohn Palmer Iohn South Iohn Courton William Taylor Christopher Clifford Iohn Barker Ferrard Winstanley Richard Goodgroome Thomas Starre William Hoggrill Robert Sawyer Thomas Eder Henry Bickerstaffe Iohn Taylor c. Beginning to Plant and Manure the Waste land upon George-Hill in the Parish of Walton in the County of Surrey LONDON Printed in the Yeer MDCXLIX To all my fellow Creatures that shall view these ensuing Lines THE God of this world blinding the eyes of the men of the world have taken possession of them and their Lives Rules and Raigns and in a high measure opposeth the everlasting spirit the King of Righteousness both in them and on the whole Creation bending all its wit and power to destroy this spirit and the persons in whom it lives rules and governs making Lawes under specious pretences yea and penalties too that all Nations Tongues and Languages shall fall down and worship this god become subject yea in slavery to it and to the men in whom it dwels But the god of this world is Pride and Covetousness the rootes of all Evil from whence flowes all the wickedness that is acted under the Sun as Malice Tyranny Lording over and despising their fellow Creatures killing and destroying those that will not or cannot become subject to their Tyranny to uphold their Lordly Power Pride and Covetousness I have had some Conversation with the Author of this ensuing Declaration and the Persons Subscribing and by experience find them sweetly acted and guided by the everlasting spirit the Prince of Peace to walk in the paths of Righteousness not daring to venture upon any acts of injustice but endeavouring to do unto all as they would have done to them having Peace and Joy in themselves knit together and united in one Spirit of Glory and Truth Love to their fellow Creatures Contentation with Food and Rayment shewing much Humility and Meekness of spirit such as these shall be partakers of the Promise Blessed are the Meek for they shall inherit the Earth Secondly For this action of theirs in labouring to Manure the wast places of the Earth it is an action full of Iustice and Righteousnesse full of Love and Charity to their fellow Creatures nothing of the god of this world Pride and Covetousnesse seen in it no self-seeking or glorying in the Flesh Vouchsafe to reade or view over these ensuing Lines yee Powers of the Earth Oh that Reason might sit upon the throne of your hearts as Iudge I am confident there is nothing written in anger or hatred to your persons but in love to them as fellow Creatures but against that which have bound up your own Spirits in slavery if you could speak impartially your own Consciences can bear me witnesse and only bears sway in your forcing you to exercise Tyranny scourging and trampling under foot your fellow Creatures especially those whose eyes are opened and can cleerly discover the great Devil Tyranny Pride and Covetousnesse working to and fro upon your Spirits and raigning in you which will prove your own destruction The Angels that kept not their first Estate are reserved under Chains of darknesse unto the Iudgment of the great day The whole Creation are the Angels of the everlasting Spirit of Righteousnesse they are all ministring spirits speaking every Creature in its kind the Will of the Father The Chariots of God are 20000 thousands of Angels Psal c. But yee the great ones of the Earth the Powers of this world yee are the Angels that kept not your first estate and now remain under Chains of darknesse Your first Estate was Innocency and Equallity with your fellow Creatures but your Lordly power over them both Persons and Consciences your proud fleshly imaginations lofty thoughts of your selves are the fruits of darknesse which you are kept under The whole Creation groaneth and is in bondage even until now waiting for deliverance and must wait till he that with-holdeth be taken away that man of sin that Antichrist which sits in the throne in the hearts of the men of this world the Powers of the Earth above all that is call●d God I know you have high thoughts of your selves think you know much and see much but the Light that is in you is Darknesse and how great is that darknesse They that live in the light of the Spirit can discover that to be the blacknesse of darknesse which you count light And truly a great Light a bright Morning Star which will flourish and spread it self shining in Darknesse and darknesse shall not be able to comprehend it though you Spurn never so much against it I expect nothing but opposition mockings deridings from Lord Esau the man of Flesh I know it will be counted in the eye of Flesh a foolish undertaking an object of scorn and laughter but in this is their Comfort and incouragement That the power of Life and Light the Spirit by whom they are commanded will carry them on strengthen and support them rescuing them from the Jaw of the Lyon and Paw of the Bear For great is the work which will shortly be done upon the Earth Despise not Visions Voyces and Revelations examine the Scriptures Prophesies are now fulfilling be not like Josephs Brethren speak not evil of things you know not For whatsoever is of God will stand do what you can though you may crush it for a time the time is neer expired it will spring up again and flourish like a green Bay tree What is not of the Father will fall to the ground though you bend all your wit power and policy to keep it up but of that will be no Resurrection That the eternal Spirit may enlighten you that Reason may dwel in you and act accordingly is the desire of your Loving Friend and Fellow Creature JOHN TAYLOR April 20 1649. A Declaration to the Powers of England and to all the Powers of the World Shewing the Cause why the Common People of England have begun and gives Consent to Digge up Manure and Sowe Corn upon George-Hill in Surrey by those that have Subscribed and thousands more that gives Consent IN the beginning of Time the great Creator Reason made the Earth to be a Common Treasury to preserve Beasts Birds Fishes and Man the lord that was to govern this Creation for Man had Domination given to him over the Beasts Birds and Fishes but not one word was spoken in the beginning That one branch of mankind should rule over another And the Reason is this Every single man Male and Female is a perfect Creature of himself and the same Spirit that made the Globe dwels in man to govern the Globe so that the flesh of man being subject to Reason his Maker hath him to be his Teacher and Ruler within himself therefore needs not run abroad after any Teacher and Ruler without him for he needs not

while we are about his work and we have bin made to sit down and count what it may cost us in undertaking such a work and we know the full sum and are resolved to give all that we have to buy this Pearl which we see in the Field For by this work we are assured and Reason makes it appear to others that Bondage shall be removed Tears wiped away and all poor People by their righteous Labours shall be relieved and freed from Poverty and Straits For in this work of Restoration there will be no begger in Israel For surely if there was no Begger in literal Israel there shall be no Begger in Spiritual Israel the Anti-type much more Sixtly We have another encouragement that this work shall prosper Because we see it to be the fulness of Time For whereas the Son of Man the Lamb came in the Fulness of Time that is when the Powers of the World made the Earth stink every where by oppressing others under pretense of worshiping the Spirit rightly by the Types and Sacrifices of Moses law the Priests were grown so abominably Covetous and Proud that they made the People to loath the Sacrifices and to groan under the Burden of their Oppressing Pride Even so now in this Age of the World that the Spirit is upon his Resurrection it is likewise the Fulness of Time in a higher measure For whereas the People generally in former times did rest upon the very observation of the Sacrifices and Types but persecuted the very name of the Spirit Even so now Professors do rest upon the bare observation of Forms and Customs and pretend to the Spirit and yet persecutes grudges and hates the power of the Spirit and as it was then so it is now All places stink with the abomination of Self-seeking Teachers and Rulers For do not I see that every one Preacheth for money Counsels for money and fights for money to maintain particular Interests And none of these three that pretend to give liberty to the Creation do give liberty to the Creation neither can they for they are enemies to universal liberty So that the earth stinks with their Hypocrisie Covetousness Envie sottish Ignorance and Pride The common People are filled with good words from Pulpits and Councel Tables but no good Deeds For they wait and wait for good and for deliverances but none comes While they wait for liberty behold greater bondage comes insteed of it and burdens oppressions taskmasters from Sessions Lawyers Bayliffs of Hundreds Committees Impropriators Clerks of Peace and Courts of Justice so called does whip the People by old Popish weather-beaten Laws that were excommunicate long ago by Covenants Oaths and Ordinances but as yet are not cast out but rather taken in again to be standing pricks in our eys and thorns in our side Beside Free-quartering Plundering by some rude Souldiers and the abounding of Taxes which if they were equally divided among the Souldiery and not too much bagd up in the hands of particular Officers and Trustees there would be less complaining Besides the horrible cheating that is in Buying and Selling and the cruel Oppression of Landlords and lords of Mannours and quarter Sessions Many that have bin good House-keepers as we say cannot live but are forced to turn Souldiers and so to fight to uphold the Curse or else live in great straits and beggery O you A-dams of the Earth you have rich Clothing full Bellies have your Honors and Ease and you puffe at this But know thou stout-hearted Pharaoh that the day of Judgement is begun and it will reach to thee ere long Jacob hath bin very low but he is rising and will rise do the worst thou canst and the poor people whom thou oppresses shall be the Saviours of the land For the blessing is rising up in them and thou shalt be ashamed And thus you Powers of England and of the whole World we have declared our Reasons why we have begun to dig upon George hill in Surrey One thing I must tell you more in the close which I received in voce likewise at another time and when I received it my ey was set towards you The words were these Let Israel go free Surely as Israel lay 430. yeers under Pharaohs bondage before Moses was sent to fetch them out Even so Israel the Elect Spirit spread in Sons and Daughters hath lain three times so long already which is the Anti-type under your Bondage and cruel Task-masters But now the time of Deliverance is come and thou proud Esau and stout-hearted Covetousness thou must come down and be lord of the Creation no longer For now the King of Righteousness is rising to Rule In and Over the Earth Therefore if thou wilt find Mercy Let Israel go Free break in pieces quickly the Band of particular Propriety dis-own this oppressing Murder Oppression and Thievery of Buying and Selling of Land owning of landlords and paying of Rents and give thy Free Consent to make the Earth a Common Treasury without grumbling That the yonger Brethren may live comfortably upon Earth as well as the Elder That all may enjoy the benefit of their Creation And hereby thou wilt Honour thy Father and thy Mother Thy Father which is the Spirit of Community that made all and that dwels in all Thy Mother which is the Earth that brought us all forth That as a true Mother loves all her Children Therefore do not thou hinder the Mother Earth from giving all her Children suck by thy Inclosing it into particular hands and holding up that cursed Bondage of Inclosure by thy Power And then thou wilt repent of thy Theft in maintaining the breach of the eight Commandment by Stealing the Land as I say from thy fellow-creatures or yonger Brothers which thou and all thy landlords have and do live in the breach of that Commandment Then thou wilt Own no other God or Ruling Power but One which is the King of Righteousness ruling and dwelling in every one and in the whole whereas now thou hast many gods For Covetousness is thy God Pride and an Envious murdering Humor to kill one by Prison or Gallows that crosses thee though their cause be pure sound and good reason is thy God Self-love and slavish Fear lest other serve thee as thou hast served them is thy god Hypocrisie Fleshly Imagination that keeps no Promise Covenant nor Protestation is thy God love of Money Honor and Ease is thy God And all these and the like Ruling Powers makes thee Blind and hard-hearted that thou does not nor cannot lay to heart the affliction of others though they dy for want of bread in that rich City undone under your eys Therefore once more Let Israel go Free that the poor may labour the Waste land and suck the Brests of their mother Earth that they starve not And in so doing thou wilt keep the Sabbath day which is a day of Rest sweetly enjoying the Peace of the Spirit of Righteousness and find Peace by living among a people that live in peace this will be a day of Rest which thou never knew yet But I do not entreat thee for thou art not to be intreated but in the Name of the Lord that hath drawn me forth to speak to thee I yea I say I Command thee To let Israel go Free and quietly to gather together into the place where I shall appoint and hold them no longer in bondage And thou A-dam that holds the Earth in slavery under the Curse If thou wilt not let Israel go Free for thou being the Antitype will be more stout and lusty then the Egyptian Pharoah of old who was thy Type Then know That whereas I brought Ten Plagues upon him I will Multiply my Plagues upon thee till I make thee weary and miserably ashamed And I will bring out my People with a strong hand and stretched out arme Thus we have discharged our Souls in declaring the Cause of our Digging upon George-Hill in Surrey that the Great Councel and Army of the Land may take notice of it That there is no intent of Tumult or Fighting but only to get Bread to eat with the sweat of our brows working together in righteousness and eating the blessings of the Earth in peace And if any of you that are the great Ones of the Earth that have been bred tenderly and cannot work do bring in your Stock into this Common Treasury as an Offering to the work of Righteousness we will work for you and you shall receive as we receive But if you will not but Pharoah like cry Who is the Lord that we should obey him and endeavour to Oppose then know That he that delivered Israel from Pharoah of old is the same Power still in whom we trust and whom we serve for this Conquest over thee shall be got not by Sword or Weapon but by my Spirit saith the Lord of Hosts William Everard Iohn Palmer Iohn South Iohn Courton William Taylor Christopher Clifford Iohn Barker Ferrard Winstanley Richard Goodgroome Thomas Starre William Hoggrill Robert Sawyer Thomas Eder Henry Bickerstaffe Iohn Taylor c. FINIS

thy self over thy Brother the first was from the time of thy coming in called A-dam or a stop-age till Moses came and there thou that wast a self-lover in Cain killed thy brother Abel a plain-hearted man that loved righteousnesse And thou by thy wisdom and beastly government made the whole Earth to stinck till Noah came which was a time of the world like the coming in of the watery Seed into the womb towards the bringing forth of the man child And from Noah till Moses came thou still hast ruled in vaunting pride and cruel oppression Ishmael against Isaac Esau against Iacob for thou hast still been the man of flesh that hath ever persecuted the man of righteousnesse the Spirit Reason And Secondly From Moses till the Son of Man came which was a time of the world that the man child could not speak like a man but lisping making signs to shew his meaning as we see many Creatures that cannot speak do For Moses Law was a Language lapped up in Types Sacrifices Forms and Customs which was a weak time And in this time likewise O thou teaching and ruling power thou wast an oppressor for look into Scriptures and see if Aaron and the Priests were not the first that deceived the people and the Rulers as Kings and Governors were continually the Ocean-head out of whose power Burdens Oppressions and Poverty did flow out upon the Earth and these two Powers still hath been the Curse that hath led the Earth mankind into confusion and death by their imaginary and selvish teaching and ruling and it could be no otherwise for while man looks upon himself as an imperfect Creation and seeks and runs abroad for a teacher and a ruler he is all this time a stranger to the Spirit that is within himself But though the Earth hath been generally thus in darknesse since the A-dam rise up and hath owned a Light and a Law without them to walk by yet some have been found as watchmen in this night time of the world that have been taught by the Spirit within them and not by any flesh without them as Abraham Isaac Iacob and the Prophets And these and such as these have still been the Butt at whom the powers of the Earth in all ages of the world by their selvish Laws have shot their fury And then Thirdly from the time of the Son of man which was a time that the man-child began to speak like a child growing upward to manhood till now that the Spirit is rising up in strength O thou teaching and ruling power of the earthy man thou hast been an oppressor by imprisonment impoverishing and martyrdom and all thy power and wit hath been to make Laws and execute them against such as stand for universal Liberty which is the rising up of Iacob as by those ancient enslaving Laws not yet blotted out but held up as weapons against the man-child O thou Powers of England though thou hast promised to make this People a Free People yet thou hast so handled the matter through thy self-seeking humour That thou hast wrapped us up more in bondage and oppression lies heavier upon us not only bringing thy fellow Creatures the Commoners to a morsel of Bread but by confounding all sorts of people by thy Government of doing and undoing First Thou hast made the people to take a Covenant and Oaths to endeavour a Reformation and to bring in Liberty every man in his place and yet while a man is in pursuing of that Covenant he is imprisoned and oppressed by thy Officers Courts and Justices so called Thou hast made Ordinances to cast down Oppressing Popish Episcopal Self-willed and Prerogative Laws yet we see That Self-wil and Prerogative power is the great standing Law that rules all in action and others in words Thou hast made many promises and protestations to make the Land a Free Nation And yet at this very day the same people to whom thou hast made such Protestations of Liberty are oppressed by thy Courts Sizes Sessions by thy Justices and Clarks of the Peace so called Bayliffs Committees are imprisoned and forced to spend that bread that should save their lives from Famine And all this Because they stand to maintain an universal Liberty and Freedom which not only is our Birthright which our Maker gave us but which thou hast promised to restore unto us from under the former oppressing Powers that are gone before and which likewise we have bought with our Money in Taxes Free-quarter and Bloud-shed all which Sums thou hast received at our hands and yet thou hast not given us our bargain O thou A-dam thou Esau thou Cain thou Hypocritical man of flesh when wilt thou cease to kill thy yonger Brother Surely thou must not do this great Work of advancing the Creation out of Bondage for thou art lost extremely and drowned in the Sea of Covetousnesse Pride and hardness of heart The blessing shall rise out of the dust which thou treadest under foot Even the poor despised People and they shall hold up Salvation to this Land and to all Lands and thou shalt be ashamed Our Bodies as yet are in thy hand our Spirit waits in quiet and peace upon our Father for Deliverance and if he give our Bloud into thy hand for thee to spill know this That he is our Almighty Captain And if some of you will not dare to shed your bloud to maintain Tyranny and Oppression upon the Creation know this That our Bloud and Life shall not be unwilling to be delivered up in meekness to maintain universal Liberty that so the Curse on our part may be taken off the Creation And we shall not do this by force of Arms we abhorre it For that is the work of the Midianites to kill one another But by obeying the Lord of Hosts who hath Revealed himself in us and to us by labouring the Earth in righteousness together to eate our bread with the sweat of our brows neither giving hire nor taking hire but working together and eating together as one man or as one house of Israel restored from Bondage and so by the power of Reason the Law of righteousness in us we endeavour to lift up the Creation from that bondage of Civil Propriety which it groans under We are made to hold forth this Declaration to you that are the Great Councel and to you the Great Army of the Land of England that you may know what we would have and what you are bound to give us by your Covenants and Promises and that you may joyn with us in this Work and so find Peace Or else if you do oppose us we have peace in our Work and in declaring this Report And you shall be left without excuse The Work we are going about is this To dig up Georges-Hill and the waste Ground thereabouts and to Sow Corn and to eat our bread together by the sweat of our brows And the First Reason is this That we may

an universal Consent of making the Earth a Common Treasury that they may live together as one House of Israel united in brotherly love into one Spirit and having a comfortable livelihood in the Community of one Earth their Mother If you look through the Earth you shall see That the landlords Teachers and Rulers are Oppressors Murtherers and Theeves in this manner But it was not thus from the Beginning And this is one Reason of our digging and labouring the Earth one with another That we might work in righteousness and lift up the Creation from bondage For so long as we own Landlords in this Corrupt Settlement we cannot work in righteousness for we should still lift up the Curse and tread down the Creation dishonour the Spirit of universal Liberty and hinder the work of Restauration Secondly In that we begin to Digge upon George-Hill to eate our Bread together by righteous labour and sweat of our browes It was shewed us by Vision in Dreams and out of Dreams That that should be the Place we should begin upon And though that Earth in view of Flesh be very barren yet we should trust the Spirit for a blessing And that not only this Common or Heath should be taken in and Manured by the People but all the Commons and waste Ground in England and in the whole World shall be taken in by the People in righteousness not owning any Propriety but taking the Earth to be a Common Treasury as it was first made for all Thirdly It is shewed us That all the Prophecies Visions and Revelations of Scriptures of Prophets and Apostles concerning the calling of the Jews the Restauration of Israel and making of that People the Inheritors of the whole Earth doth all seat themselves in this Work of making the Earth a Common Treasury as you may read Ezek. 24.26 27 c. Jer. 33.7 to 12. Esay 49.17 18 c. Zach. 8. from 4 to 12. Dan. 2.44 45. Dan. 7.27 Hos 14.5 6 7. Joel 2.26 27. Amos 9. from 8 to the end Obad. 17.18.21 Mic. 5. from 7 to the end Hab. 2.6 7 8.13 14. Gen. 18.18 Rom. 11.15 Zeph. 3. c. Zach. 14.9 And when the Son of man was gone from the Apostles his Spirit descended upon the Apostles and Brethren as they were waiting at Ierusalem and the Rich men sold their Possessions and gave part to the Poor and no man said That ought that he possessed was his own for they had all things Common Act. 4.32 Now this Community was supprest by covetous proud flesh which was the powers that ruled the world and the righteous Father suffered himself thus to be suppressed for a time times and dividing of time or for 42 months or for three dayes and half which are all but one and the same term of time And the world is now come to the half day and the Spirit of Christ which is the Spirit of universal Community and Freedom is risen and is rising and will rise higher and higher till those pure waters of Shiloe the Well Springs of Life and Liberty to the whole Creation do over-run A-dam and crown those banks of Bondage Curse and Slavery Fourthly This work to make the Earth a Common Treasury was shewed us by Voice in Trance and out of Trance which words were these Work together Eate Bread together Declare this all abroad Which Voice was heard Three times And in Obedience to the Spirit Wee have Declared this by Word of mouth as occasion was offered Secondly We have declared it by writing which others may reade Thirdly We have now begun to declare it by Action in Diging up the Common Land and casting in Seed that we may eat our Bread together in righteousness And every one that comes to work shall eate the Fruit of their own labours one having as much Freedom in the Fruit of the Earth as another Another Voice that was heard was this Israel shall neither take Hire nor give Hire And if so then certainly none shall say This is my Land work for me and I 'le give you Wages For The Earth is the Lords that is Mans who is Lord of the Creation in every branch of mankind for as divers members of our human bodies make but one body perfect so every particular man is but a member or branch of mankind and mankind living in the light and obedience to Reason the King of righteousness is thereby made a fit and compleat Lord of the Creation And the whole Earth is this Lords Man subject to the Spirit And not the Inheritance of covetous proud Fesh that is selvish and enmity to the Spirit And if the Earth be not peculiar to any one branch or branches of mankind but the Inheritance of all Then is it Free and Common for all to work together and eate together And truly you Counsellors and Powers of the Earth know this That wheresoever there is a People thus united by Common Community of livelihood into Oneness it will become the strongest Land in the World for then they will be as one man to defend their Inheritance and Salvation which is Liberty and Peace is the Walls and Bulwarks of that Land or City Wheras on the otherside pleading for Propriety and single Interest divides the People of a land and the whole world into Parties and is the cause of all Wars and Bloud-shed and Contention every where Another Voice that was heard in a Trance was this Whosoever labours the Earth for any Person or Persons that are lifted up to rule over others and doth not look upon themselves as Equal to others in the Creation The hand of the Lord shall be upon that Laborer I the Lord have spoke it and I will do it This Declares likewise to all Laborers or such as are called Poor people that they shall not dare to work for Hire for any Landlord or for any that is lifted up above others for by their labours they have lifted up Tyrants and Tyranny and by denying to labor for Hire they shall pull them down again He that works for another either for Wages or to pay him Rent works unrighteously and still lifts up the Curse but they that are resolved to work and eat together making the Earth a Common Treasury doth joyn hands with Christ to lift up the Creation from Bondage and restores all things from the Curse Fiftly That which does incourage us to go on in this work is this We find the streaming out of Love in our hearts towards all to enemies as well as friends we would have none live in Beggery Poverty or Sorrow but that every one might enjoy the benefit of his creation we have peace in our hearts and quiet rejoycing in our work and filled with sweet content though we have but a dish of roots and bread for our food And we are assured that in the strength of this Spirit that hath manifested himself to us we shall not be startled neither at Prison nor Death