done much harm in them by bereaving them of the feeling they once had of the truth of God and of them that walked in it and they thus hardning their necks against the Lord and his precious servants nor not willing to remain subject to the Spirit of the Lord in themselves which had exceedingly striven with them to bow them to subjection nor not being willing to forsake that which was so dear to them which yet remained in them unmortified which having again gotten power and strength the Lord hath finally ceased striving with them and hath given them up to themselves and to their own wills and hath left them to themselves and thus were they at last made vessels of wrath nowithstanding the great and unspeakable long-suffering of the Lord that the Lord might manifest his power and righteousnesse upon them and some of them are made already so sad dreadful and lamentable examples whose misery is unspeakable and whose recovery is not to be expected Oh miserable above all misery much better it had been for them that they had never known the truth of God And my dear unfeignedly beloved friends seeing it hath pleased the Lord after his so great and long suffering forbearance and patience so to reveal his righteousness upon some as before mentioned who have not remained in subjection to his Spirit unto the end Oh let this than serve as a living example unto us lest that any of us at any time should be found in the like unbelief and unfaithfulness and that the Lord therefore should use the like righteous severity against us which he hath done unto them for what are we more then they if our minds should come to be drawn out and alienated from the grace of God in our selves whereby we have had such a feeling of the Lord of his truth and of those that walk in the same I say if that Satan through his subtilty should come to scatter our minds from the feeling thereof in our selves what should we then be better then they but it would be more like that such misery and wrath should be suffered to come upon us as is come upon them And now seeing that it is so that the mind can be so easily moved and drawn out from that in which the Immutability consisteth through the manifold temptations snares deceivable subtilties and subtile seducing of Satan even as its possible the most have found by experience in themselves Let us therefore keep perpetually in the light in our own particulars heartily loving embracing cleaving unto and uniting our minds to it for that same that convinced us in the beginning of our sins and unrighteousness is the same that must preserve us to the end for in the same is lite mercy and peace and through being preserved holily in the same we become partakers of the vertues of eternal life as they are in Christ Jesus for through the light hath the Lord opened our understandings and in the light have we seen and felt the fulness of grace and through the same the unspeakable mercy of the Lord is perpetuated which every morning is renewed to his Children who continually in his fear and in his light do wait upon him calling upon him in his light praying praysing and thanking of him for his unspeakable love grace and mercy which he so often and abundantly hath manifested to them whereby they are often overcome in themselves and constrained to humble themselves before the Lord in true tenderness brokenness simplicity and uprightness of their hearts from the bottom of the same to glorifie his holy Name Oh my friends how doth my soul long for all your establishment in the truth according to your faithfulnesse and uprightnesse of heart and after your simplicity singlenesse and tendernesse before the Lord that you might be exalted and established above all that which would arise to hinder you in your precious running and holy intent that you therefore might be found stedfast and diligent keeping your watch in the light that he who goes about continually as a roaring Lion seeking whom he might devoure might never have cause through any of his subtilties through deceit to trap or ensnare any of you and that before you your selves be aware of it or by bringing one thing or other into your hearts therewith to trouble and disturb you and to spend your time and through such occasions may seek to draw your minds from the light and from watching in the same even as he hath done with some who had neglected the watch in the light over whom he hath gotten power they having made shipwrack of faith and of a good conscience having scattered that which once with diligence they had gathered and having lost that which once they were sensible of so with the Dâ—g turned to his vomit again and with the Sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire again and that after they were in measure washed And though in the beginning of their Apostacy and degentration they gave credit unto Satan who sought to make them believe or rather to imagine that they should be no lesse then they were before not then the people of the Lord but that they should be more perfect and become better holier perfecter simpler uprighter and faithfuller then these who simply wa'ked in the truth and more established in it but finally it became manifest what Satan was determined to do with them and the same it manifest it when they could hide that no longer which was grown up in their bosomes when that came to break out which they had for a long time secretly hidden Oh that Satan should ever so far prevail over any and now that the like might not come to passe concerning any of us who are yet sensible of the grace of God in our selves and of his everlasting and unchangeable truth in our own particulars therefore is my heart so often turned to the Lord and pured forth before him praying for the salvation of Israel and for all in Israel that are of a tender and broken heart that Satan might not in any wise bereave them of their simplicity in the light or of their tendernesse to the truth yea because of this for the truths sake is my life often poured forth before the Almighty Father praying and interceding in much travel sweating and waking night and day that the Lord might be pleased through his unexpressible grace and fatherly mercy to obstruct that which Satan hath purposed and determined for this I may say plainly he hath not yet ceased neither hath he yet despaired neither is he who is the accuser of the brethren cast out of all but goes yet about as a devouring Lion seeking whom he may devour Oh therefore my dearly beloved and pretious Friends is it not exceeding needful to keep our hearts perpetually in the light upon the watch to the Lord in openness and simplicity that nothing but the Lord alone and his work and truth might have
that all that the Lord wrought in them and for them was for their good for whose preservation the Lord even sought to do what he knew needful to be done yea even as for us whereby they have also been constrained to forsake much for the truths sake and have been sometimes a good favour to the same and their service was once before the Lord not very unacceptable so long as they remained little before him and and little in their own eyes when their hearts were broken and tender and when they were single before the Lord and given up to his will and so long as they did not turn their eye backward but remained diligently waiting in the daily Crosse and in the love of the same and when they had put on the same as a garment and as breast-plate before their breast and as a girdle upon their loyns had girded it in which time of their tendernesse and fruitfulnesse the Lord found cause to manifest his large love unto them and very much open some of them and enlighten the eyes of their understandings and gave them knowledge and wisdome and in a great measure gifted them with authority and courage even to the admiration of their enemies who had sought to provoke them to resist that truth which they bore testimony of but often had the power over them yea to tread upon the imagined wisdome of the wise as upon dung and to sing the song of triumph over them these and many more remarkable things hath the Lord brought to passe concerning them and often in such a condition hath he made them sensible of his grace and mercy of his kindnesse and love of consolation and refreshment yea in short of the powers and vertues of the world to come without end and of the everlasting Judgment so that one might ask what hath not the Lord done for them or what hath the Lord omitted to do that he should have done for them so that it hath not in any wise been wanting on the Lords part but alas now when they had gotten some wisdome yet neverthelesse through the grace of God in such a time when they were as fools in their own eyes yea as ignorant fools not knowing any thing and when they were become sensible and partakers of several good gifts in the time of their tendernesse and when they were little in their own eyes and when they kept close to the light and loved the daily Cross But oh not stedfastly abdiding upon the watch in the light and fear of the Lord until than the Lord should be pleased to become all in all in them and until that he had totally consumed him that had the power of death to wit Satan and that they might have learned to have known him and all his devices subtile deceivings and deceivable appearances therefore have they been through his cunning snares and subtilties detained and as an untimely birth have not been brought forth unto life for as Satan is exceeding cunning and goes continually about seeking whom he may devour even so is he an utter enemy to mans peace with the Lord and seeks upon divers manners how he may obstruct the same yea even as the Lord is labouring night and day for mans preservation to judge the evil and afterwards to shew mercy even so is Satan busie night and day to accomplish that which he hath determined And although there was a time wherein he could not easily seduce them yet did he not despair corcerning them but took his opportunity and appeared to them when they had taken up some rest in a more glorious form and changed his countenance as if he had been an angel of light seeking to imitate in motion and appearance that which before had proceeded through the power from the life yea even as the Magicians of Egypt who through their witchcraft could imitate much of that which was done by the power of the Lord even so this deceivable seducer And on the other hand even as Israel through the mighty hand of the Lord was redeemed out of Egypt for whom the Lord had done such wonderful things nevertheless this being but a little over and they not imprinting all those things which the Lord had done for them in their hearts then were images soon made and Idols set up and then they said Behold Israel these are thy gods which have brought thee up out of the ladn of Egypt and even so was it with them before mentioned when Satan had drawn their minds from the watch in the light and they being become wise in their own eyes hearkened to the imaginations and inventions of their own hearts and then did they make unto themselves Images of the every finest gold saying in their hearts to them these are your Gods but he who is a very jealous God will not have any god served honoured nor worshipped besides himself who in a short time hath manifested such unspeakable grace mercy and goodness to them he beheld this their present condition with much sympathizing and heaviness over them and sought with great kindness in much long suffering and tenderness to warn them from them sometimes powerfully convincing them of his truth in their own consciences and oftentimes making them sensible of the danger which they are in in laying their heart and condition clearly open before them seeking then friendly to reprove or to judge that which will not be subject to his spirit but alas the Judgment was become heavy to them yea too heavy especially to the perverse part and the Cross was become bitter and there being yet something remaining ever in them not yet mortified nor wholly forsaken and though the same could not wholly reign nor have the dominion while they were tender before the Lord loved the Cross and abode in the light yet nevertheless hath it afterwards encreased and is become strong until that it finally did sufficiently get the dominion again But oh what hath the Lord born with them and how graciously and mercifully hath he handled with them and laboured with them for to bring them off from it yea how hath he laboured with them and not alone the Lord but also his Children and faithful servants who also being constrained through love were very diligent in watching over them for the best as in the truth it became them in much watchfulnesse tendernesse and wisdom but their minds being drawn out through the subtilty of the enemy from the light life and feeling of the Unity and an evil sharp eye that looked out being opened in them then did they seek to pervert every thing to the worst sence that was done by those who simply and uprightly from their very heart feared the Lord whether in their dealing with them or towards them or otherwise And when the evil and perverse eye was opened in them then did prejudice and hard thoughts creep in against their Neighbours which when it was let in encreased as a Canker and hath
the possession in our hearts And whatsoever Satan should propound or seek to make you believe thereby to take an occasion to draw out your minds from the light and from the grace of God in your selves regard him not nor look not at his temptations nor enticements neither unite your minds unto the same for otherwise you might be ensnared before you were aware but look upon the Lord and his light which manifests his temptations and joyn you unto the same for therein is the preservation and salvation and in the same is there power enough to preserve you from the temptations that you be not overcome with the same nor with the subtile subtilties of the enemy much less that you should perish in them And so my Friends keep close to the Lord in your own conditions and do not easily let in any thoughts against any or concerning any matter for thereby might you come easily to neglect the watch in the light whereby the enemy might seek an occasion to draw out your minds from the light and to alienate you from it and then should he have an opportunity to perfect his work which he would willingly perfect and if thoughts arise what sort soever they are or whatsoever happen or what things soever are brought into your Minds well be circumspect in all things and be not too forward in any thing neither give too much place too suddenly to any thing in the mind for thereby some have suffered loss but whatsoever appeares or comes up receive it not too suddenly but bring it to the light of the Lord that it may be thereby weighed and tried And if any thing at any time be found in any of you by the light of the Lord not to be pure nor to proceed from the life watch against it and give it no place but judg it out with the ground from whence it proceeds and tread it under your feet for if you should be slack in wholly forsaking of it in judging of it in the ground and not presently to reject it after that it is through the grace of God opened and shewed to you not to be of him nor of his Spirit but to be a deceivable temptation of the enemy and yet never the less I say through negligence and carelesness to suffer it to harbour in you oh this is very dangerous which some with sorrow to their great prejudice have found by experience when it had gotten the dominion over them and had occasioned a desolation before they were aware And seeing the power of my love is so strong through which I am often made with tears to intercede unto the Lord for all your preservation therefore is my heart the more open to you neither can I conceal from you the manifold cunning devices and subtil deceits of Satan through which he hath so sadly overcome some and also what he is determined yet to do if that he can find any from the watch in the light and from the grace of God in themselves for indeed this I must once more say neither can I well omit it to wit that Satan goes yet about seeking wherein whereby and who he may deceive And the Lord knows how it should tend to my comfort ease and refreshment in him if that it were possible that ye all might be spared for to inherit life everlasting yea truly I do not know any one thing that would be more acceptable to me or that could refresh me more in the Lord then your stedfastness faithfulness and establish in the truth and therefore I say is my heart so open to you and tender over you neither can I conceal from you what Satan hath determined hoping that peradventure it may tend to your peace And now having declared that which for a long time hath been before me and hope to return to my resting place not knowing but that I have done that which was required of me So the Almighty Father and preserver of life keep you all that you may be stedfastly established for to stand unmoveably in his truth to the end to the praise of him that hath called you Translated in love to the Brethren whom in true love I salute and in the same do rest their entire Brother W. C. Your dear Friend and tender Brother in the fellowship of the Gospel of life P. Hendricke Amsterdam the 6th of the 11th Moneth 1664. THE END