head with Notions and comprehending of Mysteries which were very pleasant and delightful unto me Thus I wandred up and down from one tree of knowledge to another and in many a by-path I trod seeking for rest but found none and though the Spirit of innocency often cryed in me Return return and come into the narrow-way which leads to life yet I flattered my self that I had been there already and that I was now come to the Borders of Canaan one while conceiving my self there and set down with Abraham Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom but by and by a branch from the old Root would arise in me and break forth into passion rash and hasty words and overturn all my Confidence again and give me to understand I was not in that Kingdom for that there was nothing of Pride or Passion self-conceit or vain laughter or foolish and idle talking and jeasting but giving of thanks and rejoycing in the Lord continually and that they who were in that kingdom were led by the Spirit lived in the Spirit and walked in the Spirit and were at rest in the Lord injoying the fellow ship and society of just mens Spirits Now that I was not here I was clearly convinced often and instead of enjoying this state I had the other set before me as my Condition and the Lord let me see how my poor Soul was be-wildred And then after 14 years wandring up and down I began to see and find my way out and not till then Then I saw my self at a loss and in the dark and was made to confess That if I had perished in the Wilderness yet the Lord was righteous in my destruction because that when he would have led me by the gentle motions of his Spirit and Light in me yet I Refused it and went forth to men chusing the tree of Knowledge and neglecting the tree of Life for my â—ood But blessed be the God of Israel who is not a barren wilderness to those that seek him in truth and singleness of heart He shewed unto me the way that I should walk in to wit The strait and narrow â—ath which leads to Canaan and that by a foolish people in the Worlds esteem was I directed the way to eternal life But after I was perswaded of the way to life and convinced of the truth as it is in Jesus and after the seed of the Kingdom began to stir in my earthly tabernacle and to take root to my heart then the Enemy came in the form of an Angel and set me on a suddain upon the Pinacle of the Temple where I was made to beleeve I saw over all the Children of truth and was ready to sit down there also But after the Lord in his rich Mercy had let me see my danger and how I had been misled by the Angel of false Light He directed me to the low valley there to abide and assured me that if I would be a true Disciple of Christ indeed I must take up the Cross daily and follow him and be obedient to his Light in my Conscience which convinceth of the most secret sin And now that I may bring in my Testimony to the truth which was once delivered to the Saints and which now is again made known to the Children of the most High and That I may set to my Seal to the Doctrine of the Cross I here Declare to all the Sects up on earth and to all people high and low Professor or Prophane That the despised people whom the scorners of this age call QVAKERS are the true Disciples of Christ Jesus viz. Such amongst them as are faithful followers of the Lamb and obedient Children of the Light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world By them is the Everlasting Gospel preached again to the Sons and Daughters of men and blessed are all those that hear and obey the sound thereof The glad tydings of Salvation I say is preached by them and whosoever he be that shall bring any other Gospel is disowned by all the true Disciples of Jesus and Sons of the Light They are the Sheep of Christ and amongst them is the true Shepherd of Israel known and he goes in and out before them To them and in them hath the Light of the world appeared and the life of men communicated himself and I must say I sate in darkness till I heard them These are they who having past through all forms are come into the power and are knit together into one body whereof Christ Jesus is head These are they who take up their daily Cross and follow him These are they who pass through great tribulation and through many and fiery tryals These are they who are the true Worshippers who worship the Father in spirit and in truth and love not their lives unto death These are they who are Redeemed from the Earth though upon it These are they that are come to Mount Sion and to the City of the living God and to the innumera 〈…〉 of Angels and to the Spirits of just and 〈…〉 and to the General Assembly of the fir 〈…〉 se Names are written in Heaven These are 〈…〉 who are Sons of God and are led by the infallible spirit into all truth These are they who are joint-Heirs with Christ whose fellowship is with the Father and the Son in the Spirit and they shall Reign with him for ever and ever Glory be to his Name for evermore Friend by these I say was I directed to obey the light in my Conscience which convinceth of sin when nothing else can and to which they direct all men who are in the dark to follow In so doing was I brought out of darkness into his marvelous Light Glory be to the Light and to the Laâ—â— for evermore Thus I have given thee a short account of my journey so far and now can boldly say with David My hearts is fixed my heart is fixed and I have nought to do now but to give thanks and to follow the Lamb of God whithersoever he goes And now Friend let me ask thee Is the Lord the desire of thy soul And dost thou pant and breath after him as the Hart doth after the Water-brooks Is truth in the inward parts the thing thou would have And art thou indeed and in truth a true seeker of the Kingdom and restless till thou findst it Then let me advise thee Seeke the Lord where he may be found to wit in thy own heart for that it his Temple and there will he dwell if thou be upright I say the tabernacle of the Lord is with men and there only will he be found Scourge then out those Buyers and Sellers that dwell there suffer not the House of God to be a den for Thieves and Robbers to reside in for whilest thou givest entertainment unto them the Lord will not make his abode with thee Put therefore the evil thing out of thy Camp that so thou mayest receive
at Jerusalem must live in us and we in him and so must we know him even to lead and guide us out of all error sin and vanity into all truth righteousness and stability if we ever know him to salvation I know your minds have been abroad and peradventure yet are as mine was but I never knew my Saviour whom I sought without until I turned my mind inward and found him there No more can ye If them art still abroad wandring upon the barren Mountains O come down for I am well assured there is no food there for thy hungry soul The day I say is far spent and the night at hand wander no longer in the coasts of Egypt and Land of darkness where no Light is nor true Guide to lead thee but hasten into the low Valley search deep into the bottom of thy heart come to Meekness Patience and humility of spirit and there O there wilt thou meet with thy true Guide and that Light which alone can lead out of darkness all the faithful followers of it Reproof to him that faith the Light within is natural and that the Light of Christ was carnal and darkness as some have affirmed THou knowest not what thou sayest O man that sayest the Light is natural carnal or insufficient nor whereof thou affirmest Hast thou been a Teacher or Hearer in England for many years and a professor of Religion and yet knowest not Jesus Take this for thy portion thou who despisest the riches and goodness of the Lord in his Son Christ The Light or Talent which thou now hast shall be taken from thee and thou the unprofitable servant cast out into outward darkness vvhere shall be nothing but weeping wailing and gnashing of teeth because thou hast rejected the Light within which is Gods Witness in every man and hast judged and denied it Know this That thou by it shalt be condemned for ever I say the day of Grace and long-suffering of the Lord which would now lead thee to repentance will not alwayes last the Light or Candle of the Lord in thee will not alwayes shine but the night of darkness in which thou shalt ever remain will overtake thee where thou shalt be shut up in Chains for evermore then oh then it vvill be too late to vvish thou hadst not slighted the light in thy conscience and called it carnal darkness and insufficient for it now is and then will be more then a thousand Witnesses against thee The Light of Christ I say is not carnal is not darkness is not insufficient to lead blind man out of darkness into the marvelous light of the Lord for by it and it alone have I been lead from the one into the other and can set to my seal of a truth That God is light and Christ is light and that his light is in every man and it is and will be the condemnation That Light is come into the World but men love darkness rather then light because their deeds are evil and ful of darkness Friend This I am bold to declare as in the Light of the Lord That there is no other way to be saved from eternal darkness but by coming unto Christ the light of the World and walking in his light if so thou do as he is in the light then and not till then shalt thou have fellowship with the children of Light and the blood of Jesus will cleanse thee from all sin Some Queries to them that say Revelation is ceased and that the Saints must not now expect such glorious manifestations as were in the primitive times and that say no man hath the infallible Spirit now MAny there are who in this state of darkness do believe and say That Revelation is ceased and that the infallible Spirit is not now known amongst the Saints and that they are not to expect such glorious manifestations now as were in the primitive times The ignorance and gross darkness of such I cannot but bewail and for the opening of their understandings shall propound unto them some Queries As first Whether is not Christ the same to day yesterday and for ever and the holy Spirit the same and as operative quick and powerful now as ever Or hath it lost its powerful operation now Is the Lords love to his Saints less now then before Or is his hand shortned that he cannot save to the uttermost as well now as ever Where is it said which ye so boldly affirm That Revelation is ceased or shall ever cease from the Saints or Spouse of Christ Hath not the Lord promised that in the later dayes he will pour out his Spirit upon all flesh and his sons and his daughters shall prophesie And hath not John said That the light of that day shall be as seven dayes and that there shall be no need of a Candle nor light of the Sun for the Lord God shall be the light thereof What is it that in the night of darkness when thou art lying upon thy bed of Adultery and carnal pleasure sporting thy unsatiable soul in the lusts of the flesh discovers and reveals the wickedness of thy heart unto thee What is it that in the day time checks thee for thy wanton eye and pride of life when none without perhaps dares accuse thee What is it that discovers unto thee in thy Chamber of Imagery the secret Adultery of thy heart when no outward eye sees thee What is it that brings to thy remembrance things past as if they were but yesterday and sets thy secret sins in order before thee What is it that tells thee thou hast committed the sin against the Holy Ghost and for which thou canst never receive pardon when committed Oh! how is it that thou shouldst suffer the instruments of Satan to work such a belief in thee and so far to put out the eye of thy Faith and of thy reasonable soul also as not to see thy self in a delusion when the Scriptures do positively say That no man knows the Father but the Son and him to whom the Son wil reveal him Matth. 12.27 Tell me poor soul whether thou canst be so ignorant of the Scriptures as not to know this That he that worships the Father must worship him in spirit Dost thou not know that the holy spirit is a spirit of Revelation wheresoever it is Dost thou not know that that is its work in man and that if thou hast not this Spirit of Christ thou art none of his Friend it 's an infallibly sign thou deniest the spirit that sayest Revelation is ceased it being its proper Work And thou that sayest No man hath the infallible Spirit now Let me ask thee also Hath the Lord no people in this Age to bear testimony to his Truth Do none know the Lord novv And are none in the Way of Truth Is this thy Faith Then knovv thou for certain thou art led by a spirit of delusion and whilest thou thus believest thou canst never
which should give an entrance thereinto which is the Light of Christ in every conscience and which is the true light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world Know ye not that the whole Creation groaneth to be delivered from under the power of the Beast and false Prophet to wit the corrupt Magistrates and the persecuting and Antichristian Ministers of the Nations Do ye not know that these have had Dominion over the Saints of the most high God for many hundred years past doing and executing their own pleasures upon the bodies and estates of the children of God as well in our dayes by cruel tortures untill death as in Queen Maries dayes upon the Martyrs that suffered burning then who ye notwithstanding could not worship the Beast nor his image nor give their power to the Dragon which all the world have wondred after Do ye not know that the Man-child hath been caught up to God the woâ—an fled into the Wildernesse and the Devil had the power over all Nations If not then know the time is now hasting that the Man-child is coming to rule the Nations with a rod of iron and to some he is already come and all must bow to his righteous Scepter for he will rule in righteousness and all the sturdy Oaks must be hewn down the proud and lofty looks of man must fall and his tyrannicall and unjust power be taken from him The Lilly of the Valley must be exalted and the Beast and false Prophet cast alive into the Lake where they shall be tormented for ever and ever Let none of you now for my love to lost man be so scandalous as to say I disown Magistracy and Ministry for if you do I here again in the presence of the Lord and before all the world pronounce you to be Lyers and false Prophets for I so far own both the true Magistracy and Ministry which is of God that I well know and am assured the Nations cannot be happy till both are establisht in righteousnesse and true Judgement in the fear of the Lord I say till truth and righteousnesse be set up false Doctrine error and heresie disowned by those men in power and the false Prophet and the Beast cast alive into the Lake The truth Will be suppressed and the Ministers of the Gospel persecuted yea though Christ Jesus himself should come again in the flesh the Professors of this age would call him deceiver and be as ready to whip scourge and imprison him to death as they have done his members But blessed for ever be the holy name of our God the false Prophet is known by his life and Doctrine and the beastly nature in all persecuting Magistrates is seen and discovered so that let their Profession be what it will be they are made manifest and cannot hide themselves from the eye of the Lord nor from the discerning Spirits of his Saints who do his will and who worship him in Spirit and in truth Friends the dreadfull day of Gods fiery indignation hangs over your heads and will inevitably fall upon you without speedy Repentance and this the servants of the Lord see and forwarn you of in love to your souls but you like blind Balaam see not the sword drawn against you and ready to cut you off You are blinder then the dumb Asse who saw the sword hang over his Masters head when he himself did not Oh read your portion in the 11. Zech. 17. and take it to ye for unlesse you spedily repent and turn to the Lord you will surely have it where the Prophet of the Lord pronounceth a Woe to the Idol-shepherd saying The sword shall be upon his arm and upon his right eye his arm shall be clean dryed up and his right eye shall be utterly darkned Friends every mans work must be tryed by fire of what sort soever it be therefore let none of you think to escape the fiery tryall for our God is righteous and will reward every man according to his work THE END