Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	heart_n	holy_a	lord_n	17,551	5	3.7649	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A86654	The visitation of the rebellious nation of Ireland. And a warning from the Lord proclaimed, to all the inhabitants thereof, to make their peace with him before hislong [sic] suffering come to an end. With a lamentation over its unfruitfulnes and rebellion after so many visitations. And an exhortation to all the honest hearted, to meet the Lord by repentance, while the patience of the Lord continues. Or the sealing of the Lords testimony unto all sorts of people in that land, by his servants, after their several months sore labours, and travells, and sufferings therein, who loved not their lives for the seeds sake. Also some particular papers, written in that nation, to severall sorts of people. I. A warning, to the heads, and rulers, and people of Dublin. ... VII. An invitation to all the poor desolate souldiers, to repent, and make their peace with the Lord, and their duty shewed them, what the Lord requires of them. By them who are sufferers, for the seeds sake; waiting for the building of distressed Sion: F.H. E.B.	Howgill, Francis, 1618-1669.; Burrough, Edward, 1634-1662.	1656 (1656)	Wing H3188; Thomason E880_6; ESTC R202550	29,686	40

shamefully and laid thy hand of oppression upon them and rejected their message of glad tidings and would not be instructed in the way of the Lord unto salvation but gave heed unto the false visions of thy lying Prophets and took counsel against the Lord of thy Inchanters persecuted the faithfull by unjust Imprisonments and dealt wickedly with the Lords chosen and made unrighteous decrees in thy wrath and sealed them in thy cruelty and made a purpose in thy heart to root out the Seed of Jacob and to lay wast the Lords Heritage O Ireland hereby in the Name of the Lord thus far I seal my Testimony in faithfulnesse unto thee and binds up my many burdens and travells and reproaches and Tryalls and sufferings in thee in a few words which is the word of the Lord concerning thee Yee Heads and Rulers that sits upon the Throne Repent and turne to the Lord from whom you are grievously revolted by wofull backslidings a grievous sin have you committed a grosse sum of hainous abomination is recorded against you the righteous God will meet you in his judgements and once more will appear in the fire of Indignation against you and your mountains of pride and vaine-glory and selfe-exaltation shall be layed wast as your enemies were before you and as you have thought to doe to root out the Seed of Jacob and to spoyle the tender grapes of the Lords vintage even so shall it be done unto you and your destruction cometh as an armed man and you cannot escape nor fly to hide your selves from the wrath that cometh which is kindled already to devoure the pleasant Palaces of your wicked hearts delight Woe is me for you you that are exalted upon your mountaine of ease and liberty having forgotten the rock from whence you are hewn who were raised out of weaknesse to reprove the mighty and gives not glory to the Lord neither considers what he hath done for you but are become ingratefull and disobedient children and of a double heart and tongue professing liberty of the pure conscience but living in corrupt fleshly bondage oppressing the just and slaying the holy One and neglecting the cry of the innocent having made your fingers as heavy as your Fathers loynes the hand of the Lord is against you and his wrath will break out upon you who strengthens the hand of evill doers and gives liberty in your dominions unto the scum of the Nations to possesse your Land in peace and will not give place unto the Seed of Jacob but fortifies your selves against him and will not suffer him to inherit how full is your Land of murderers of drunkards of lyars and swearers and of prophane persons of sugitives and vagabonds and runnagades who is protected by your Law to possesse in peace but in wrath have you turned your sword against the upright and have made Lawes to limit the Spirit of the Lord and to uphold deceit Therefore Repent of this your sin who hath endeavoured to prevent the Lord and humble your selves ye lofty for the purpose of your hearts are broken and a scattered Seed remains in your Dominions which the Lord will blesse and which you cannot be able to suppresse and as pricks in your eyes will it stand a witnesse against you in your hypocrisie and cruelty and the more ye lay yokes upon it the more it will spring forth Therefore be wise ye Rulers and Judges and leave to imagine mischiefe and lay your hands upon your mouths and open them not any more and turne in your minds to the light of Christ Jesus wherewith you are enlightned and it will let you see what you have done and will set your sins in order before your eyes and will justly reprove you who have not done as you would be done unto but have cast the Law of God behind your backs and not regarded the call of equity and if you love the light of Christ it will change your mindes and will bring you to Repentance from sin unto God and from the Dominion of ●a●an unto the Kingdome of Christ Jesus the light is your Teacher if you love it and will guide you in the wayes of God but if you goe on in your wickednesse it is your condemnation eternally and shall seale to the justnesse of the judgements of God when they come upon you now you have time and a faire warning prize the day of your visitation before the decree of vengeance be sealed against you and repentance be hid from your eyes lay it to heart you are but men and not God and your strength flesh and not spirit if you own the light it will manifest the will and counsell of the Lord unto you and give you power to act righteousnesse unto God wherein you will be accepted Consider least you goe down to destruction and there be none to deliver you ANd unto all you that doe professe the name of the Lord and have got the forme of the Saints worship in your imaginations and have separated your selves into an outward conformity without the power of righteousnesse brought forth in you and would be called members of the Church of all sects and sorts Repent ye of your hypocrisie and stop your mouthes in the dust for you are weighed in an equall balance and are found wanting and are tryed by the searcher of hearts the light of the world and are found corrupted deceitfull are you in the root and cursed in your branch of deep and secret hypocrisie pride and coveteousnesse and the love and glory of the world and fleshly exaltation abounds among you as branches of the root wherein you grow and how can you bring forth good fruit out of your cursed ground your knowledge is bruitish and vaine and your outward conformity is a wearinesse to the Lord for you are found fighters against him and opposers of Christ Jesus and denyers and contemners of his light by which he hath lightned every man that comes into the world you stumble at the foundation and builds upon the sand one of you building a wall and another daubing it with untempred morter your hearts are not upright with the Lord but flatters your own soules which of you hath denyed the world for Christ or what have you laid down for him in your vaine imaginations you worship God ignorantly making his Commandements voyd through your transgressions You stand in the cursed Nature alive to the world following the vaine delights thereof resisting the way of the Lord through your wisdome which is foolishinesse with God you have the profession of the Scriptures in your naturall knowledge but you are without the life thereof out of the unity of the one spirit of life in severall meanings and opinions which is death and in vaine conceits are you scattered upon the barren mountaines where your soules are starved and strayed in the cloudy and dark day and you are devoured under your dumb Idoll Shepheards who are in Cains way of

condemnation and such a Government will stand for the praise of them that doe well and encouraging of the upright but if such bear rule and handle the Law which know not God nor is not ruled by him these will abuse the Law and will be a terrour to righteousnesse and good works and will strengthen the hands of evill doers and will let vice and wickednes escape unpunished This I speak in love to all your soules to the informing of all your minds that you may know your place and how to exalt justice and judgement the light of the Son of God by which every man is lighted is but one in all just righteous and equall the same in him that hates it and transgresses the righteous Law as it is in him that loves it and judges all transgressions And this light of Christ by which all men is lightned is the seate of justice and of true judgement and the ground of all good wholsome Laws and every Law that is contrary to it is for condemnation by it Therefore I say waite in the light by which you are lightned to receive the pure Law of God to judge all causes by and make no Law in your own wills nor act not in such Laws made by the will of man for such Laws is oppression and tyranny lodges in them and false judgement and such God hath and will cast out who acted from that ground So be ye warned by their fall and judge not after your own thoughts nor sensuall carnall wisdome nor follow not your own wills nor the counsell of your own hearts but stand in Gods counsell and fear his name and tremble at his presence and waite to be guided by him in his holy Law which all unrighteous counsells and vaine affections and false judgements will condemn in your own hearts then you will truly know how to judge your brethren in equity righteousnes how to reward well doers how to punish evil doers according to the measure of their transgressions and according to the light in their own consciences by which they being convinced from your Law of the evill of their transgression will confesse your Law and judgement to be just and equall and you to be righteous Judges here you judge for God and bears not the sword in vaine but is a terror to transgressours and to the disobedient and lawlesse against which the Law was onely added to slay unrighteousnesse but it was not made for the righteous whose consciences are exercised towards God and towards man by the pure Law of God written in the heart and upon such and over such your Law hath no power for they are one and in union with that Law which is righteous and doth witnesse the justnesse and goodnesse and holinesse of it but if you make a Law in your own wills and judge by such a Law then you will make the innocent suffer and oppresses them who walks in the Law of God and in the exercise of a pure conscience Christ was put to death by such a Law and the Saints in all generations was persecuted by such Laws which was made in the will of man contrary to the will and Law of God therefore take heed to your selves least God hew down you and your Law together and condemn you by his righteous Law eternally which Law of God needs not to be made but is made already and to be witnessed by the light in every mans conscience to justification or condemnation and is revealed in all that love righteousnesse So take heed what you doe and know your place and the length and breadth of your Law which is committed to you which is to keep the outward man in good order and the Nations in peace and truth and from theft and murder and adultery and fighting and quarrelling and drunkenesse and wronging one another and such like such who acts these things walks contrary to the light and so brings themselves under the penalty of the Law but over the inward man your Law which is outward hath no power to bind to limit or to tie too or from any way of worship in Religion but let Religion defend it selfe and lay not your Law upon the conscience to exercise dominion over it for it is Christs seat in whom he will rule least you be found tyrants and numbred for destruction nor limit not the Spirit of the Lord how when where and by whom it must speak for the holy men of God in all ages ever cryed against such Laws as was contrary to the Law of God and did limit the Spirit of the Lord and against such Rulers as did judge false judgement and for gifts and rewards and against such Priests and Prophets as preached for hire and divined for money and sought for their gaine from their quarter and made a prey upon the people and through coveteousnesse made merchandize of soules therefore be ye warned if such you uphold by a Law which acts those things which the Scripture declares against which the holy men of God gave forth by his Spirit the Scripture which you professe shall stand a witnesse against you and the Law of God will condemn you and God will lay your honour in the dust and cast you out of the seat of Judgement as he hath done the power of the King Bishops before you but judge the cause of the poor needy of the widow fatherles joyn mercy with judgment and lay your swords upon oppression and all tyranny and wrong dealing that the land may be cleansed of evill doers and equity and righteousnesse may flow down and the Nation in good order may be kept in peace and righteousnesse and so God will establish you among his children who are taught of him alone and are far from oppression to the light of God in all your consciences I doe speak which if you make Laws contrary to it and judge contrary to it it is the eternall condemnation of you and of your Lawes and judgement And remember you are warned in your life time and my conscience is cleared to you and in the day of the Lord you shall witnesse me to be true and this to be the word of the Lord to you whether you will hear or forbear Written to you by a friend of righteousnesse and true judgement from the Spirit of the Lord as moved of him in love to all your soules to go abroad among the heads and Rulers and Judges in Dublin and else where through the Nation of Ireland from one who is called a Quaker by scorners whose name in the flesh is Edw Burrough Written at Dublin the 23 of the 8 month 1655. And now O ye Heads and Rulers happy had you been if you had taken the counsel of the Lord and submitted to have obeyed his word which came to you as moved of him but in that you have neglectted have made Laws in your will exercised Lordship over the

nature and likenesse that your souls may be satisfied therewith and all that hunger and thirst after righteousnesse shall be filled with the true food Therefore wait all you that fear the Lord and meet together in his counsell and wait for his Law that you may walk therein and lay aside the works of darknesse which are made manifest by the light and also condemned in all that come to Sion Spend not your time in the vaine deceits of the world nor follow not the delights thereof for according to your works must you be judged in the day of the Lord Depart from iniquity and all the works of the flesh pride and coveteousnesse lying swearing and double-dealing and all the fruits of unrighteousnesse let them be judged and let the time past be sufficient that you have wrought evill and now returne and work righteousnesse in God by the light which all that lovees works in God And deceive not your selves with a deceitfull covering of selfe making and selfe righteousnesse professing the Scriptures in your carnall minds which was given forth by the Spirit and is not understood but by the same Spirit while the first nature stands alive in you you cannot please God but is in the enmity against him humble your selves and come down to the light and search your hearts thereby Woe unto the lofty and high minded who will not be instructed but hates reproofe Woe is unto all lyars and swearers and whoremongers and vagabonds and prophane persons such cannot inherit the kingdome of God nor enter to within the gates of the City but are to be troden in the wine-presse of the wrath of God for ever and ever Therefore awake awake ye carelesse and unbelieving and fear and tremble ye children of disobedience who hates the light and loves your evill deeds and upholds your false Prophets whom God never sent and will not own the Lord to be your teacher the light in your conscience is your condemnation for this is the condemnation of the world that light is come and men hates it So be you warned all people the day of the Lord is at hand and now he calls therefore hear his voyce and hearken to his light which is of Christ which onely is needfull to salvation and there is no other name given for salvation And if you will not hear and receive this day of visitation which in love appears unto you you shall hear in the day of visitation of vengeance and behold the Lord comes quickly make straight his pathes the light is your teacher if you love it and your condemnation if you have it Written from London to go abroad in the Nation of Ireland as a visitation to all sorts of people and is the sealing of the Lords testimony unto that land as moved of the Lord in love and pitty to lost soules by Edw Burrough A Warning to the Heads and Rulers and people of Dublin HEar the word of the Lord oh ye Inhabitants of the City of Dublin ye Rulers and Magistrates Governours Collonels Captains and Souldiers and all ye people of the City and ye Inhabitants of the Land of Ireland my word is to you all saith the Lord Oh thou City of Dublin in the day of thy calamity when sorrow fear paine and tribulation was upon thee when thou was compassed about with adversaries who cryed ah ha we will make thee as a plaine and as a wildernesse as we have done the rest of the Nation And they said in their hearts none should be able to deliver you out of their hands but said we will cut off and destroy at once that our selves may be exalted I the Lord who changes not was as a fortresse and as a bulwark about thee and made thy heart couragious against them and delivered thee out of their hands even from a people whose hands was full of blood and whose mercies were cruelty and whose hearts were hardned against me and had sould themselves to work evill in my sight and counted it their glory to despise my name and to abhor all righteousnesse in their hearts And in that day when they opened their mouths wide as a Leviathan to swallow thee up and make thee a heap of stones and a desolation Then I made thy walls as iron and thy gates as brasse and thy batteries strong and guarded thee and compassed thee about with my strength and I made thy face as an Adamant against them and delivered thee by my out-stretched arme and by my power out of their hands and brake the teeth of thy enemies and put a hook in their jawes and brake them before thee as a potters vessell and powred out my indignation against them as a flood and my wrath as a stream swept them all away and I gave their carkases to fall by the sword and for the fowles of the aire to feed upon and hath made them perish in my wrath and cut them off in my sore displeasure and made their names stink in the Nations and their Princes are cast out as a withered branch and are perished with the uncircumcised and their glory and renown is turned into reproach and everlasting infamy and are rotten and become as dung and as mire to tread upon in the streets Therefore thus saith the Lord unto thee oh Dublin and to thy Inhabitants O Nation of Ireland take heed and beware least thou be lifted up in thy heart and say my hand hath done all this but give glory and honour to me saith the Lord who am the God of the living who dwells in the light and now beware that the same root of bitternesse spring not up in thee as did in them whom I cast out before you And oh you Rulers and Heads of the people I have sent to try you and this I require of you Doe justice love righteousnesse and ease the oppressed and take heed of seeking your selves and your own honour and glory and renown in the earth nor Lord it not over your brethren who have born a part of your suffering and the Nations in the heat of the day Lift not up your selves as the Gentile Lords whom I cast out who exercised dominion one over another and did grind the face of their brethren and made them as slaves and intreated them shamefully and because of this I cast them out and hath given their dominion to others and their houses and lands you possesse which you builded nor planted not Now therefore take heed unto your selves and be of a perfect heart before me For my righteousnosse is to be revealed in the earth and now I am about to declare my name and my power and my glory will I reveal in the earth and will poure out my Spirit upon my sons and my daughters whom I have and will send abroad to publish my name and declare my cousell to the ends of the earth that the Nation may know me whom for many generations they have worshipped ignorantly Therefore be

ye all warned stint not me 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not me the holy one of Israel saith the Lord by your power nor make no Law against me so as to think in your hearts to make me subject to any creatures will for I am the Lord who works and who shall hinder and will bring my purpose to passe and none shall let therefore I say unto you limit not me how where by whom and when I must speak for I have chosen the weak things to confound the wife the mighty and the honourable and now I will be no longer flattered with words but he that is of an upright heart will I honour and he that seeks himselfe will I abase therefore now while you have time prize it and neglect not the day of your visitation And oh you Rulers uphold not these by a Law whom I have made the people of my curse who have devoured Gods heritage and have flattered the Nations and their Princes and their Rulers and have sought themselves every one seeking for his gaine from his quarter for with them above all my controversie is against and my wrath shall be accomplished upon them for they have caused my people to erre and they that said they have spoken in my name know me not therefore my people is lost because there hath been no vision among them But now saith the Lord a stem is sprung up and the star of Jacob shall arise and the earth shall be filled with light and my righteousnesse shall flow as a stream and my glory have I and will I to my servants reveal who have denyed and doe denie themselves and follow me unto them is my will revealed Therefore hearken oh ye people and give eare thou Nation of Ireland and all your people from highest to the lowest thus saith the Lord Though thou be parched and thy skin peeled off thee and become as a wildernesse and as a reproach and as a lamentation for all that passe by thy walls I will build and thy breaches which is as the Sea will I make up and thou shalt be no more a proverb nor a reproach nor a hissing to the Nations and to all that passe by for because of unrighteousnesse the Land said I wast and gave it to the spoiler so now if thou wilt hearken unto me I will repsenish thee againe and the remnant that I have spared shall be blessed Therefore all ye people give eare and take need of lying swearing cursing drunkennesse coveteousnesse whoredom drunkenness hypocrisie dissimulation and worshipping strange Gods for those and many more abominations that was committed among the people I cast them out and made them a reproach and executed my wrath upon them Therefore fear me who am near who inhabites eternity and dwells in the light I am near saith the Lord and my light is revealed in your consciences and there mind my light which convinceth and shews you every one your sins and love it and bring all your deeds to be tryed by it and there you will see me revealed in righteousnesse to all you that waite upon me and keep your selves from the pollution of the heathen and so the way of righteousnesse you will know as you hearken unto me saith the Lord who dwells in the light which is the life of men and searcheth the hearts of the sons of men by the light Therefore unto the light take heed this is present with you in which God manifests himselfe here is all your teacher loving it here is your condemnation hating it as Christ saith who is the light So all people of the Nation I have cleared my conscience unto you as I was moved of the everlasting God And so be you all warned least the same thing come upon you as did upon them whom I cast out and trod under foot saith the Lord Dub. 16 of the 6 Month 1655. A lover of your soules and one that hath borne with you in suffering and shall rejoyce with you as you own the Lord who hath visited you called after the flesh Francis Howgill An Information to the Heads and the ground of the Law layed down to the Judges and Justices and to all that handle the Law in that Nation ALL ye Heads and Rulers and Judges and Counsellours and all you that sit in Counsell together in the Seat of Justice and Judgement from whom the Law doth goe forth into the Nation and all you that handle the Law take heed to your selves for the living God of power is judge of you and over you all to you all I speak the word of the Lord without respect to any of your persons but is a lover and respecter of righteousnesse and true judgement and justice that I may stand clear of your blood for God hath laid it upon me to give you warning which if I doe not your blood will be upon me and if this you refuse to hear and obey your blood be upon your selves for ever Christ Jesus is the light of the world the true light which lightneth every man that comes into the world and by which every one of you is lightned which light if it you love and be guided by it will lead you out of the worlds way and nature and unrighteousnesse and will give you an entrance into eternall life and peace and an assurance in Christ when this world ceases to be and in this world it will teach you how to serve God in righteousnesse in your generation and to give righteous judgements and counsell among your brethren without respect of persons for the Law of God respects no mans person nor Justice regards not the person of the mighty the light of Christ Jesus in all your consciences and in all mens consciences is just and one with Christ and one with the Law of God in its measure and condemneth the unjust and all works of wickednesse who against it doth act by which light every one of you being guided your own consciences in particular will be exercised towards God and towards men and by him you being ruled and judged will know how to rule and to judge for him in the world among men who are required for God to rule and judge in righteousnesse and equity and none can rule for God but who are ruled by him with his light which shines in the conscience by which you being governed will by it governe in the earth righteously You are not to judge for gifts and rewards for if you doe you judge not for God but for your selves and you and your judgement is to be judged and condemned with the righteous Law of God which is free but such who fear God and hates coveteousnesse and gifts and rewards are to bear rule and such will handle the Law righteously and will be a terror to evill doers who doth not fear God but acts contrary to the light of Christ in their own consciences and so transgresses the just Law and brings themselves under the guilt and so under

cause before you and to the light of Jesus Christ in all your consciences we appeal in this our cause of righteousness and innocency to be judged thereby We are men fearing God and working righteousnesse and are friends to the Common-wealth of Israel and are exalters of justice and true judgement in the earth and are subject to all just power and to every just ordinance of man for conscience sake and have suffered the losse of all and have borne part of the burden with you that we might obtaine the freedome of the righteous seed and the liberty of tender consciences to serve the Lord in his own way and we are well known to the Lord though strangers to you and are free men in the record of heaven though now sufferers unjustly under your present authority who hath taken the place of exercising Lordship over our pure consciences and hath imprisoned us and endeavoured to give judgement of banishing us onely upon false accusations and informations and slanders without the proofe or testimony of any accusation of evill justly laid to our charge And to you hereby be it known that not for evill doing doe we thus suffer for to this present no man hath convinced us of any evill nor justly proved the transgression of any Law martiall or civill against us though we stand accused of many grievous things of which we are clearly innocent in the sight of him that lives for ever and doth nothing more desire herein but to be tryed by the Law of equity and righteousnesse and judged according thereunto By vertue of command given unto us by the eternall Spirit of the Lord came we into this Land of Ireland contrary to the will of man not to seek our selves nor our own glory nor to prejudice your Nation nor Government nor to be hurtfull to your Common-wealth but with the message of the Gospel of Christ Jesus we came to turn from darknes to light and from the power of Satan to the power of God and to minister the word of reconciliation and salvation freely without a gift or a reward unto lost soules and hereof God is our witnesse and also we have the seals of our Ministry which unto us herein can give testimony by the same Spirit and this are we ready to seal with our blood And these six months and upward have we laboured in travells and sufferings and reproaches and have passed through your Cities and Towns in sobernesse and meeknesse have we preached the kingdome of God and have holden forth the word of truth and the testimony of Jesus and our lives have we not loved till this day though sometimes dangers on every side hath beset us that we might hold forth the faith of Jesus the author of our profession in the exercise of a pure conscience both by doctrine and conversation and herein we are justified in the sight of God and who is he that condemns us and doth call heaven and earth to record and the light in all mens consciences who have heard our doctrine or seen our conversation to witnesse for us herein and we challenge all you Nation of Ireland our very enemies to prove the contrary though otherwise we stand falsly accused and falsly reputed to be disturbers and makers of disorders to the breach of publique peace and such like grievous things upon the false information whereof a Warrant was issued out from the chief Ruler and Counsell of Ireland and we thereby was apprehended in the City of Corke and haled by guards as malefactors to before the Counsell in this City where none of all these false accusations was or could be proved against us nor the transgression of any known Law could we be convicted of and though occasions was sought against us yet none could be found and though snares was laid for our feet yet were we not entrapped but was cleared in the sight of God witnessed by the light in all their consciences and was found innocent and without reproofe in the eye of the Lord and by our innocency was their orders of false accusations made of none effect and we thus far proved to be guiltles before the throne of true judgment yet notwithstanding contrary to the light in their own consciences and contrary to the just Laws of the Nations which afordeth freedome to the freeborn and righteous were we committed to prison without conviction or any guilt charged upon us or the least appearance of evill towards any mans person though falsly accused yet nothing given true testimony of against us whereby our boldnesse in the way of the Lord could be discouraged as having the testimony of the Spirit of God bearing us witnesse in the Holy Ghost that in all good conscience towards God and towards man we have lived unto this day and so are without reproofe in the sight of God and all just men and though upon search and examination we were found guiltles thus far yet further hath the enemy the Devil prevailed in cruelty against the innocent that it is endeavoured that we be banished under the account of vagabonds which last accusation is the most false and urighteous for we challenge this of whom have we begged or to whom have we been burdensome or whose bread have we eaten for nothing or what evil have we done where is the testimony of your slande●s but innocently doe we suffer these things bearing reproaches and binding the cruelty done unto us as chaines about our our necks and as crowns upon our heads having the assurance that for well doing we suffer these things from the hands of the Rulers through the lies and slanders of the teachers who are in Cains way of persecution till they have fulfilled their measure of wickednesse and be laid wast as the wildernesse And this is our cause and hereby it comes before you by the light of Christ in your consciences to be judged if your hearts be not altogether hardned and your minds wholly blinded and we lay it at the doore to receive sentence from you and without respect of your persons holds forth our guiltlesse cause before you not begging any thing from you but herein to clear our consciences that you may save your selves from this untoward generation whose root is corrupt and fruit bitternesse for while we have breath from the Lord and injoynment of his presence our duty is to serve the Lord in bearing witnesse against injustice and all cruelty and oppression and shall appeal to receive justice from the present power which now rules for in the name of the Lord we challenge our priviledge of freedome as being freeborn till we be accused guilty by the just Law of equity unto which we are subject for conscience sake and not to any mans will but by word and writing is bound by the Law of God to bear witnesse against the unjust proceedings herein of the Heads and Rulers of Dublin and shall seale our witnesse against them and against their unrighteous decrees

sealed in their cruelty against the innocent with our blood if thereunto we be called Dub. 26 of the 12 Month 1655. Francis Howgill Edw Burrough A Challenge to the Priests of Dublin to try their God and their Ministry and their worships WE the servants and faithfull witnesses of the most high God called and chosen of him and redeemed out of Nations kindreds tongues and people who are Ministers of the word of life and reconciliation and messengers of glad tidings and salvation unto captive and weary souls our glorying is onely in the Lord and not in our selves who are by the world in scorne called Quakers who are at this present in outward bonds for the testimony of Jesus Christ in Dublin and who have been in the labour and travell of the Gospell of God this six months and upwards in this Nation of Ireland according to the will of God ordained hereunto and moved and commanded by his eternall Spirit into this his work for the Seeds sake which is not of this world to the gathering of it into the fold of everlasting peace and to the clearing of the Lord from the bloud of his enemies that they may be left without excuse by his powerfull word given unto us and uttered by us and herein we are a good savor to God both in them that perish and in them that believe and for this cause have we denyed our dearest and nearest Relations and loves not our lives unto death that our testimony we may finish which is committed to us of the Lord and because of this are we labourers under many burdens and travells in many afflictions and sufferings and are abundantly reproached and our Lords truth of which we bear witnesse greatly infamed by many slandering and back-biting tongues especially by the Teachers and professed Ministers in the eares of their people and hearers slandering us with being Jesuits and deceivers and seducers and hereticks and blasphemers and witches and such like and we of those false accusations being clear and our Lords truth the testimony which we hold wholly innocent and are willing to be tryed and proved and made manifest to the Inhabitants of this City and Nation in the sight of God This therefore am I moved to give forth and hereby in the name of our living eternall God of heaven and earth whom we serve and worship in that way which is called heresie doe send it abroad as a Challenge to all you Teachers and pretended Ministers of what sort and forme soever and to all you people whom it may really concerne and especially to all you in the City of Dublin and places elsewhere in Ireland to whom this may come that you meet us in the City of Dublin at some publique place at a conveniant time appointed by you at which place and time if the Lord permit by the permition of the Counsell of Ireland whose prisoners we are we shall you meet then there to have a faire and sober dispute in the presence of all people who may desire to be informed or satisfied concerning us and you in these things whereof you can accuse us and also of those things by way of sober questions which we have to propound to you not for any end to our selves not to set up a kingdome of our own God is our witnesse but that the way of our God may be made manifest and all deceit and errour discovered and all people may be informed the way to salvation and as you are true to your God and will answer for him and are willing to be made manifest in your way of worship and doctrine and Ministry you are not to neglect but hearing to answer our desires and the desires of many hundreds that you and we may be made manifest in the sight of God to all mens consciences who are in truth and who are in errour that shame and condemnation may come upon the guilty and truth may be exalted over all deceit Given under our hands who are prisoners for the testimony of Jesus whose names in the flesh are Francis Howgill and Edw Burrough You are desired to send your Answer of these Propositions to us and if you consent to meet us let sufficient notice be given abroad that the Inhabitants of the City and country may know five or six dayes time before Sent forth the 23 of the 12 Month from the Sergeant at Armes his house in Dublin This was sent to the Priests of Dublin but no answer to this day have we received from them whereby it is manifest that they are not true to their God nor willing to be tryed and made manifest but loves darkenesse and hates the light and back-bites in secret and cannot give a witnesse openly but falls before the tryall and truth reigns over them and is exalted over their deceit A Discovery of the Idoll dumb Shepheards in that Nation and a Lamentation over their starved and strayed flocks THe day of the Lord is approaching and the day of account draws near upon you the Inhabitants of the earth the time of your Covenant is expired made with death and hell and the Lord God will plead with you and reckon with you and give unto you a just reward every one according to your deeds even the condition of your Bond Ye Shepheards and Pastors of the flock and Teachers of the people what account will ye render to the Lord in the day of his appearing Should you not have gathered the flock and fed them and taught them in the way of righteousnes preserved them from straying abroad but instead thereof you have scattered them upon the barren mountaines and have starved them and have strayed them and led them into by paths of idolatry and made a prey upon them and have fed your selves of them and the heritage of the Lord hath been wasted by you and the pastures of the fold eaten up by Wolves and devourers and Lyons whelps which made the flock afraid driven them into secret corners of darknesse leannesse and poverty where they are dead for want of food O ye Shepheards your account will be wofull and miserable in the dreadfull day which is hastning upon you not one lamb have you brought forth to perfection to lie down in peace in the fold but have nourisht it into the nature of a dog and a wolfe and you have fed them with swines flesh and with the husk and milk they have not received from you thereby to grow up unto God in his Image and not one fleece hath the Lord gathered from all your flock you Teachers Shepheards and Pastors your debt of wickednesse is a grosse sum of great abomination in the Record of account you have taught innocent children into subtle hypocrisie out of uprightnesse into guile you have taught lies instead of truth and thereby hath the people been instructed into error sects and false opinions and not one child have you taught perfect in the way of the Lord neither