Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	holy_a	lead_v	truth_n	7,417	5	5.9440	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A79907	The voice of truth, uttered forth against the unreasonablenes, rudenes, and deboistnes of the rulers, teachers and people of the island Barbados. Through one, who hath suffered by them, for the testimony of a good conscience, and the word of God, known by the name of Thomas Clark.	Clark, Thomas.	1661 (1661)	Wing C4562A; ESTC R171379	7,419	13

THE VOICE OF TRUTH Uttered forth against the UNREASONABLENES RUDENES and DEBOISTNES of the RULERS TEACHERS and PEOPLE of the Island BARBADOS Through one who hath suffered by them for the Testimony of a Good Conscience and the Word of God known by the Name of THOMAS CLARK LONDON Printed for Robert Wilson 1661. The Voice of Truth uttered forth against the Unreasonableness Rudeness and Deboistness of the Rulers Teachers and People of the Island BARBADOS OH ye Rulers and Magistrates who are now in Authoritie how do you slight the Goodness of God in this the day of your Visitation inasmuch as you have caused the Innocent to suffer and let the guilty go free Oh Friends how doth wickedness abound in Townes and Countrey and also in your own Families where first it ought to be punished as also in your own Particulars in so doing you would become good Examples in your own Families and also general Patterns of good throughout the Land so would you be a Terrour to the Wicked and Evil Doers and a Praise to them that do Well and herein would you answer the Righteous Law of God written in the heart which is according to the Apostles Doctrine but being out of that which bringeth into the Moderation in your own Particulars ye cannot with safety punish others for the things whereof you are Guilty and so living in the Excesse your selves others eyes are upon you and take example by you to do as you do and to follow after the fame excesse of wickedness and such are accepted of you and countenanced by you whereby the wicked are become very strong insomuch that they run into wickedness with greediness and commit Lewdness as with Zeal and so Mercy and true Judgement is forsaken in the Land and the Righteous Law of God which is to do unto all men as you would they should do unto you is turned backward and Righteousness and Equitie is counted a Ridiculous thing and the Holy Spirit of God which teacheth the Law of the Lord leadeth into all Truth this is made a mock of and is had in Derision dayly throughout the Land and the Blood of the Everlasting Covenant of God is trampled upon and accounted of as an horrible thing and thus it is come to passe and thus you suffer to be done unto them who keep in Gods Holy Covenant and obey the Holy Spirit of God and do Meditate on his Righteous Law Day and Night by which they are led and guided up to God and in all things to do as they would be done unto and for declaring this in Doctrine Life Conversation and for bearing our Testimonies against false Prophets against false Teachers such as Preach for Hire and will be drunk in Tavernes and other places Who are Covetous Proud Boasters Heady High-minded Lovers of Pleasures more then Lovers of God c. Tim. 3. Such as the Apostle spoke of and bore his Testimony against and for our declaring against them and such as follow them in those things who are become one with them like Priest like People all in the Errour out of the Fear of the Lord committing all manner of Lewdness and runing dayly into all manner of excesse of wickedness with greediness In consideration whereof many is the time that my Life hath been heavily burthened and my Soul grieved which hath caused me to walk Sorrowfully day after day to see how greedily the People run on to their Everlasting Destruction fat up themselves in wickedness as the Ox for the slaughter Oh! ye Rulers when I have considered how these People are strengthened by you thus to run on in Lewdness and all manner of Prophanness against the Righteous God that made them then hath my heart been grieved for you and have hazarded my Life for you and for them and have freely given up my Life for your sakes being thereunto required of the Lord whose Tender Visitation hath been over you by whom I have been sent amongst you at your Meetings to acquaint you that it was the Day of Gods Love and Visitation towards you and to declare against your ungodly Worship Lives and Practices to the end you might hearken thereunto and that you might be turned from the Darkness to the Light and from Satans Power unto the Power of the Living God which is the same the Apostles Preached and brought People into for which Doctrine they suffered grievously by the Men of that Generation even as I have done by the hands of this Generation for bearing the same Testimony as they did namely my Wife haled out of her house by Samuel Graves Priest who also tore off some of her Clothes in the open Street in sight of many People by which my Children that were crying about her were affrighted and received hurt thereby and my People beaten from their work and haled by the hair of the head and threatned with grievous Language what he would do unto them this was done by the said Graves and his Wife and my self abused very much at several times for Truths sake once haled to the Stocks and there set till the Priest had done and after committed to Prison once for coming to their Meeting at Speights Town to shew the Magistrates that were there how the Priests People were beating and abusing some of my Friends with sore Kicks and heavy Blowes with Staves and Cudgels which thing was suffered to be done in sight of the Magistrates and the People that did it were strengthened by them and for declaring unto them my Friends Sufferings how they were abused that they might still the People by whose Wickedness my Friends lives lay in danger In answer thereunto Command was given to take me away the which was done by wicked People who sorely beat me with great Cudgels and Staves with sore Kicks on my Belly and other parts of my Body and so they carryed me to the Stocks with my hands and feet with the small of my back cross a Cudgel shaking and abusing me in that manner unto the Stocks as a sheep carrying to the Butcher and after with my Friends committed to Prison Another time for putting up a Friends Paper at the Parish house called Lucies Church in which Paper was declared against Drunkenness and all manner of Wickedness exhorting People to turn therefrom and repent thereof for which thing I was taken into the house by one of their Church Officers called Miles Scotto who said I should receive no wrong with whom I went in where Priest Gray and his People were met together and spake these words to the People I came in at the request of the said Scotto who Promised I should receive no wrong but before I had fully uttered these words my Hat was pulled off and by the People I was haled to the door and thrown down three or four steps and I getting up they fell upon me and beat me with Cudgels untill I fell down as dead and as I lay in

Sabbath who is ready on the Seat of Judgement and is Mighty in Majesty and Power and whose Countenance is Dreadful to the Wicked and Oppressors cannot stand before him Yea verily this I say unto you ye Bryers and Thorns for so ye are before him he is a consuming Fire who will assuredly burn you up except you speedily Repent and depart from the Evil of your doings else overturned and destroyed you shall be as some that are gone before you for verily his Controversie is against you and you have wearied the Lord greatly in his long-sufferings and forbearing with you inasmuch as he hath given you a Day to Repent in and you Repented not and have sent his Servants and Messengers from far to Declare amongst you and ye hearkned not and hath tendered his Son unto you and ye received him not and though he hath long cryed unto you ye have not hearkned at all neither have ye had regard unto his Voice but have grieved his Holy Spirit and have slighted his Messengers and done much wrong to his Prophets and for these things is the Wrath of the Lord kindled against you and his sore Indignation is ready to be poured forth upon you for verily again I say unto you that the Crying Sins that have been Committed in this Land Oh ye Rulers are again brought into Remembrance before the Lord God Almighty and cry loudly Day and Night for Vengeance because ye have been careless and do not yet Repent for these things but are greedy and eager many of you to afflict and punish the Innocent without a Cause who hath in Dear Love and Tender Pitty to your Precious Souls warned you of these things that you might Repent and turn unto the Lord while there is yet help for you whereby you might escape his Wrath that is coming upon you and for so doing have we been accounted by you as Fools and made men and those that do Wickedly are accounted Wise among you and such do you Honour as your Counsellors but thus saith the Lord Wo to him that takes Counsel but not of me for what ever that man doth his Work shall not Prosper Therefore ye Rulers come forth of your Worldly Wisdom which is Foolishness with God by which Wisdom the wise Men of the Earth ever took Counsel against the Lord and against his People to do them hurt as well in Ages Past as now for then by their Wisdom they set themselves against Christ and put him to Death and by their Wisdom they Exalted themselves above him and in their Wisdom they withstood the Apostles and Banishod him out of their Coasts and in their Wisdom they suffered much Violence to be done unto them by Cruel Mockings Scornings Reviling Stocking and Imprisoning them even as you have done and suffered to be done unto us this they did and suffered to be done unto the Apostles notwithstanding all their Learning and Wisdom And thus they went on and made great havock of the Church and People of God in divers Places and those things the Apostles laid before them being sufferers under them as we have laid our sufferings before you who have been and yet are fufferers under you And thus the Rulers and People ran on in their own Wisdom in the Apostles times crying against them they were a Dangerous People and there were many that followed after them and that Paul he turned the World upside down and if they were suffered to go on the Romans would come upon them and take their Places and their Nation from them This was their Cry then and the same is your Cry now against us and thus you have raised False and Evil reports of us under a pretence of an Insurrection made in England by a party of Bloody men and have added to it our Friends as though they had had a hand in that Bloody Plot which is a very contrary thing for Christ Jesus he came not to destroy mens lives but to save them and him we take for our Example Who said All that use the Sword shall perish by the Sword Mat. 26.52 And this we say unto you that we have put off our Swords and cast aside all Carnal Weapons never to make use of them more and the Lord hath given us Spirituall Weapons with which we make War not with the Persons of any men but with the Man of Sin that dwelleth in them and with Spirituall Wickedness that sitteth in the high Places this also was the Apostles Warfare and this also is our Warfare and our Weapons are but one and we are all of one mind of one heart and one Spirit and we live in Love one with another and desire to do good unto all men and here we are brought out of the Strife and out of Contention out of Envy and Malice and so we are far from Oppression and shedding of Blood we live out of Falshood and Lying speaking the Truth from our heart so that we have no Swearing amongst us nor need of going to Law and herein we do the thing that is well pleasing to God and we have no Condemnation for it and this is that we labour for to bring People to out of the Evil Doing into the Well doing out of Envy and Strife into Love and Unitie that all may be brought into the same with us to live in Love and Peace and Quietness and live in the Enjoyment of Gods Precious Presence for Evermore and this is that our Souls long for that it might be well with every Soul upon the Earth Therefore know this O ye Rulers and Magistrates this is the thing the Lord requireth to be done that ye forthwith stand up and put forth the Sword of Justice with speed and let true Judgement be Executed throughout the Land that the Heathen may fall before you that the Innocent may no longer be punished and let the guilty go free Therefore ye Rulers once more I say unto you be ye wise in this your Day which is far spent for yet a little while will the Lord spare you to try you to see whether you will hearken hereunto or not and if ye resist and still go on in Rebelling against the Lord then suddain Destruction cometh in which Day you will find no help in the Earth And this was upon me from the Lord to lay before you which I have done in Love and Tenderness unto you and in Faithfulness to my Maker that whether you will hear or forbear I have cleared my Conscience before the Lord. Who am one that truely desires the good of you all that you all may be partakers of Gods Precious Mercy even as I am my Bonds onely excepted which I wrongfully suffer by you THOMAS CLARK Written in the Common Prison in Barbados 11th 2d Month. 1661. THE END