Selected quad for the lemma: truth_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
truth_n	know_v	spirit_n	world_n	6,961	5	5.3573	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A54467	Persecution appearing with its own open face, in William Armorer as will be sufficiently manifest to all that may impartially read this following relation of the cruel proceedings of the said William Armorer, with some others, against the innocent people of GOd called Quackers, in the town of Reading, in the county of Berks, of his taking them up, and imprisoning great numbers of them, and of the continuance of their sufferings to this day, being almost three years and a half : and of his unwearied and cruel practices against that innocent people from time to time : discovered and laid open, to the end that lyes and false reports may be stopped and that the King and all people may be rightly informed, and truly acquainted with the case, as it is clearly and truly in it self.	Armorer, William.	1667 (1667)	Wing P1658; ESTC R12485	70,047	89

their obedience unto his requirings And do ye think to gain honour if ye proceed against us in afflicting of us because we cannot transgress the Royal Law written in our hearts I tell you no for we are a people that desire to spend our dayes here in this world in the fear of God and to follow him in all things which he doth require of us to keep his Commandments and his Statutes and to worship him according to his mind in spirit and in truth And this is all we desire which is our right and priviledge as we are free-born people in this our Native Country That we may have liberty so to do but if for so doing and nothing else we must suffer as ancient Christians have done we are content knowing that the Lord will plead our cause and will care for us and we cannot deny him to please men but must still to ourlives end serve and obey him and wait upon him and worship him in spirit and truth having engaged our hearts so to do in that he hath made known himself to us and by his Eternal Power redeemed us out of the world and the sinful ways thereof and shed abroad his love in our hearts and we are perswaded and do know of a truth That the Lord hath been and is with us in this his way which we now walk in and can you in reason and equity expect that we should deny that way in which we have found the ●ord to satisfie and refresh our souls and to make our hearts glad Or is it doing as you would be done by Would you think it right to be persecuted and afflicted for walking in that way which you are perswaded in your selves you ought to walk in If not do you fulfil the Royal Law which is To do to others as you would be done unto Wherefore consider betimes and have not a hand in afflicting of innocent people because of their consciences But break off your sins by righteousness and your iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor in spirit and afflicted people of God who suffer at this day for no other thing but for keeping the commands of the Lord Jesus Christ and for his Worship For what is the matter Who have we hurt or wronged in any thing that here is such furious and unchristian-like proceedings against us And if our Adversaries have nothing against us but because of our obedience to the Law and Worship of our God is this such a crime at this day that honest people for so doing should be so eagerly and violently proceeded against and that snares and traps should be laid to catch and ensnare them Well the Lord takes notice of these things and he will arise for his own Name and Seeds sake before whom the Mountains must bow and tremble and the high places of the earth which stands in his way shall be removed and the Lord God will cut his own way thorow them before whom all Nations are but as the drop of a bucket and as the small dust of the ballance and they that strive against him cannot be blessed And therefore be wise and considerate ye Rulers of the Earth lest ye be found opposing of and striving against that Eternal God that gives us all life and breath and a being here in the world who will be too strong for you if you shall think in your hearts to stop and limit his appearance in the hearts of his people and bind the Conscience in which it is his Right and Prerogative to rule and no Mans upon the Earth from following the Lord in what his Light leads and draws it unto which will be Usurpation and great sin charged upon you in the day of the Lord when you shall come before the Throne of his Justice and give an account unto him Wherefore kiss the Son stoop and bown unto the Light of God's Son which appears in your hearts and convinceth you of sin least the anger and indignation of the Lord be kindled and flame and break out like devouring fire and burn in your own hearts so as it can never be quenched Here are many of us Prisoners in this Gaol and have been long wh●ch is not unknown to you both men and women and almost some whole Families and several Aged People many because we cannot break the Command of our Lord and Master Jesus Christ who hath said unto his Followers Swear not at all because he leads them and keeps them out of the strife and out of sin and wickedness into Love Peace and Truth from which mankind was degenerated when the swearing came in which was to bind the conscience because they were gone and erred from the love and truth of God in the heart which Christ our Saviour restores into again and says unto such swear not for truth binds them and their yea is yea and their nay is nay and because we cannot break this Command of Christ we are ensnared and do suffer at this day and many may be exposed to utter ruin in this world because thereof and the guilt of the ruin of innocent people and families may come upon you if in a rash and unchristian-like spirit ye run on against them which may be in your power to prevent the sufferings and cryes of whom will enter into the ears of the Lord God of Sabbath who will hear and have regard thereunto if men do not regard and will recompence those that trouble his into their own bosoms And others here are that suffer for worshipping God in spirit and truth according to the Scriptures who cannot forsake the ancient Doctrine and practice of the Apostles who exhorted true Christians not to forsake the assembling themselves together and we cannot but perform that Christian and innocent duty for which occasion is sought against us by such as have given way to that spirit of enmity which always appeared against the way and worship of the true God which such that are joined unto will feel their reward and portion with and their inhumane and illegal proceedings may in time be more fully and manifestly declared and laid open to the world Now are these things worthy of such strait bonds and close imprisonment even to the endangering the lives of your peaceable Neighbours who have not done any man wrong but because of the tenderness of their Consciences towards God they must be thus used so that hereby at least their health in the outward man comes to be impaired by reason of keeping in and being kept from their honest Callings and Employments in the Creation so that these things tend to the destruction of men women and children and civil commerce among men and only because of their faithful obedience to the Lord in what they are perswaded in their hearts unto by his Eternal Spirit and constancy in his way which they can never deny whatever they suffer in this world neither can any of these things I am perswaded seperate us who

but see the end of his Accusers and Persecutors Jer. 24. And the King repealed that Law in which he pleased God And again Isaiah Jeremiah and others were persecuted by their own Nation the Jews for bearing witness against their evil practises by word and conversation and because they could not conform to their unrighteous Laws yet the Jews pretended to worship the true God and did profess love and service to him in words which some perhaps may think were more justifiable then those Persecutors before-mentioned who worshipped nothing else but Creatures and the works of mens hands But that cannot be for persecution for Religion and tender Conscience sake in whomsoever it appeared was never of God nor practised by good men And it is worse and more wicked in them who profess the true God then in those who neither know nor own him in words and a bare profession of God his Law and Ordinances cannot justifie any man or people in the sight of God while that nature and spirit rules in them which leads to persecution And the chief Priests Scribes and Pharisees had a large Profession of God and Scriptures and had the Law of God read among them every Sabbath-day and did many things which God commanded to be done and yet persecuted Christ that was the Substance and said they had a Law and by their Law he ought to dye Joh. 19. And his Apostles were also persecuted by them as Blasphemers and such as changed their Laudable Customs and Laws and turners of the world upside down because the Lord was with them in whose Authority they preached the Gospel and struck at the very root of Iniquity Wickedness and Oppression and their vain Customs which the people then could not endure to hear beat down but the then Rulers commanded them to preach no more in the Name of Jesus and they gathered great multitudes together sometime by the Sea-side on Mountains Fields and in upper Chambers separate from the Jews and Heathens Synagogues and Temples and many did suffer great afflictions by reason thereof And thus in brief Reader thou mayest see and remember how righteous men that truly feared God and wrought righteousness in the earth have been persecuted and cruelly intreated both by professors and prophane And as it was then He that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after and walked in the Spirit even so it is now in this our day wherein the God of Heaven hath appeared unto us and visited us in his everlasting Love and Mercy by the Light and Spirit of his Son Christ Jesus which we have received and by which we are led into all Truth and Righteousness and from the filthy conversation and wayes of the world to bear witness for God his Way and Worship as it is made manifest to us because of which we also have been persecuted and cruelly intreated since the Lord gathered us to be a people and many have dealt hardly with us and rose up against us for these twelve or fourteen years and all sorts of people from the high professor to the prophane that have been in power in the world have pushed at us But now more abundantly and particularly one William Armorer a Justice so called and his Abettors as may be seen by this following Relation who hath appeared against us in this Town of Reading more like a Monster in nature then a man and much less like a Christian though he would be so accounted as also the rest of our Persecutors would But their works do make him and them manifest and according to their proceedings which thou wilt here find gathered into as short a compass as we could well to keep the substance of things thou mayest judge of him and them for we desire not to lay open the cruel dealing of our adversaries farther then to relate their own actions neither have we put a worse face upon it then it is really in it self But if it doth appear ugly cruel and monstrous it is their own we have not wronged them in one particular that we know of neither have we filled paper to amplifie with many words to make a large volume to set out the cruelty of his and their proceedings and how contrary it is to the known Laws of the Kingdom but to leave that to thy ingenious understanding as thou shalt read the Relation to make up that which for brevities sake we have omitted and the reason why it has lain so long and not been published as many have both expected and desired was because we did not desire to lay open his cruelty or to make a noise of our sufferings for in that we have the infallible testimony and evidence of Gods Eternal Spirit in our Consciences that we suffer for well doing and for righteousness sake we are fully satisfied in our selves if it had been buried in Obiivions Grave but would rather have him amend and repented but seeing he still continues to deal hardly and cruelly with us and not only so but misrepresents us and falsly accuseth us to many who do not know his proceedings against us we cannot but bring these things to publike view for the clearing of that blessed Truth and Testimony for which we suffer and our innocency which is deeply concerned herein and to satisfie all people who have heard the rumour thereof as also that he may see and remember what he hath done against us and leave off his bad intents and work of Cruelty and repent of them And Reader thou wilt find by this following Relation That the chief Cause of this our Suffering is Because we cannot svvear at all it being forbidden by Christ Jesus whom we must hear in all things and by his Apostles and being inwardly perswaded in our Consciences by his Spirit That we as Christians ought not to swear in any case as the true Christians have been heretofore we dare not do it And also because we meet together to seek God to wait upon him and to ask Petitions of him as we use to do with our doors open Because of this we are accused as Plotters breakers of the Kings Laws c. and thronged up in Prisons and sentenced to Banishment from the Land of our Nativity and all the Crime they can find us guilty of is Because we confess we meet to seek the Lord or wait upon him and this our Adversaries accounts sufficient ground to proceed against us whereby it is fully manifest That it is against the appearance of Good of Sobriety of Truth and Righteousness that this old Spirit of Cain of the Sodomites of Haman and of the cruel Jews is risen in William Armorer and some others who take occasion against us because of the Law and Worship of our God else he could have nothing against us nor justly accuse us but because he himself comes to our Meetings again and again as thou wilt see and finds us seeking the Lord or asking Petitions of our God

sufficient though I do it not W. A. said No you must do it W. L. said It seems doing Allegiance is the thing that is required He answered Yes W. L. I own Allegiance to the King and am willing to do all his just and lawful requirings as a Subject in things pertaining to this world and will promise thereunto W. Armo●er● You must swear to bind you for if you break your Oath you a●e damn●d W. I. Will not the breaking of my promise be matter of condemna●i●n to me W A. a●swered No or to that effect W. L. said The Scripture saith that no Lyar shall enter into the Ki●gdom of God and the Devil shall receive damnation for lying But still he asked me to swear I told him that Christ and the Apostles forbid swearing and the succeeding Chri●tians denyed ●o swear as Polycarpus and others And swearing upon a Book was set up by the Antichr●stian Power and J●stinian the Emperor was the first Institutor of it as I read of and ●t will ●dd nothing to the King for me to kiss th●s Book neither will it do him any good And therefore why should it be put so much upon me seeing I will do Allegiance W. A sa●d he co●ld not help it and bid the Gaoler take him away if he would not swear and said he might go a●d conv●nce the ●arliament that ma●e the Law and he was sworn to execute the Kings ●aws W. Lamboll asked ●im why he would put such Laws in execution wh●ch he could not defend by the Scriptures nor right reason Then he bid the ●aoler take him away W. L. said The Lord God everlasting in whose presence I am justified in th●s thing and before whose Judgment-seat we must all appear knoweth my heart that I do not deny to swear out of stubbornness nor out of obstiracy or denying Alleg●ance to the Ki●g but only and alone for Conscience s●ke towards God and because Christ Jesus whom we are to hear in all things saith Swear not at all c. The Oath be●ng read to William Tompson and the Book held to h●m said Alas ●s th●s all that ye can do so often to tender us this Oa●h to insnare us And that he did own what was read and could promise the things contained in the Oath ●●e Cler● havi●g g●ven him the Book he said Out of th●s Book can I pr●ve ●hat it is not lawful to swear at all W. A. sa●d That is in you● communication W. T. Nay it is not at all which are Christs words to them that were followers of h●m I say unto you● Swear not at all which comprehends all swearing but let your yea be yea and your nay nay for whatsoever is more cometh of evil W. A. began to be angry with him because he did not answer whether he would or would not swear W. T. I can promise the things contained in the Oath and is not that sufficient Mayor said That doth not answer the Law W. T. If I do that which the Law requires or the substance of the Oath it will not be accepted W. A. being peevish and angry thrust him going he crying for Justice W. A. told him he should have it done W. T. appealing to the Mayor for Justice he said William I am in place to do the Kings business and to execute his Laws and I must do it W. T. said But thou must have an eye to the Law of God in it The Book being held to Tho Speed he said I chuse rather to obey that Christ which you profess who said Swear not all then you who say swear W. A. VVill you that 's enough take him away T. S. Is this thy Justice to command me to be taken away to prison for saying I chuse rather to obey Christ then thee Then they asked John Boult if he would take the Oath of Allegiance Who answered As for my part I am a man that makes conscience of my ways and I have great cause to respect the Lord and to eye his way and truth and as he hath made it known in me I shall in that truth follow him in his holy way and that which he hath made known to me to be evil that I dare not do lest I should break my peace with my God which I cannot do for all the world W. A. You cannot take it can you J. B. I cannot go against my Conscience nor do that which the Lord hath made known to me to be evil W. A. said VVhere did you learn that out of your nail the Friend being a Shoomaker by Trade J. B. reproving of him for his jeer said Nay the Lord hath made it known unto me Some other discourse passed between them which for brevities sake we have omitted and the other two also had some discourse to the same purpose On the 12th of the first Month called March 1665 VVilliam Armorer came again to the Meeting and sent for the Gaoler who being come he sent Leonard Coale James Lavell and VValter Emerton to the Gaol without either Warrant or Mittimus And at the same Meeting took Christopher Page Henry Adams Anne Sharp Margaret VVhiteheart Anne Godard Ann VVeeden Eli● Lavell the younger and Mary Mathew and sent them to the Counter and then went into the house of Tho Curtis and puld out his Man-servant Henry G●oss and put him into the Meeting-Room and said he run away out of the Meetin● though the man was never at our Meeting all his life-time as we heard of and so sent him to Gaol and at night he sent for them all to his house where was Justice Dolby also and tendered the Oath of Allegance to L. Coale J. Lavell and VV. Emerton and committed them to the Gaol and told Henry Gross Tho Curtis his man that he was mistaken in him and let him go again the rest he sent to the Gaol for three days except A. Sharp who was committed upon the third Account The second of the second Month called Ap●il 1665 came VV. Armorer and Edw D●lby to the Meeting and took Christo Cheeseman Hannah VVebb Anne Harrison Eliz Tudway Eliz d ee the younger Do●othy Clarke Hannah Kent and Hannah Lomboll and being brought to his house by the Constable Samuel House he examined H. Lamboll and H. Kent about their age and being little let them go and sent the other five to the Gaol for three dayes and Christo Cheeseman upon the third offence The fourth of the second Month called April the Sessions for the County of Berks was held at Newberry to which place the Prisoners to whom the Oath of Allegiance had been tendered were brought viz. Tho Curtis and Anne his Wife George Lamboll and Sarah his Wife Tho Tudway John Paine James Marlow Joseph Coale Rob Pocock Benjamin Coale VVilliam Yeet John Tray Richard Green Thomas Ba●tlet VVilliam Lamboll VVilliam Tompson Leo Key Anthony Sadler John Boult Tho Speed Leo Coale James Lavel and VValter Eme●ton and being brought into the Court were called

Gaol and I sent them They said But did you write them He answered Nay Did you indite them said the Mayor I will not answer to such questions said T. C. read the Paper and then I will say more to it So they gave him the Paper and he read it and being reading that part which saith Because of swearing the Land mourns Alderman Johnson said that was vory true And having read it T. C. said it was every word true and should stand for ever and he did own it Then said VVilliam Armorer I will send it to the Council T. C. said I would they had every one one of them A Copy of which here follows THE Eternal God from whom no secrets can be hid sees your doings and the eye of the Lord beholds the way that now you walk in and the works you are about who are persecuting his Lambs and impr●soning his people who for the fulfilling of his commands and walking in his ways have chosen the sufferings of this present world rather then all the glory and pleasure that this world can afford them and we have counted up our cost and do find upon serious deliberation That it is better for us to dye by the hands of the hard-hearted and cruel men of this world in and under the favour love and friendship of the Lord then to lose our peace with him by making shipwrack of our faith and peace of conscience which the Lord hath given us and we have truly debated pondered and considered this our present state of hard and cruel suffering in our own bosomes and weigh'd our hearts in the ballance of Gods truth and there is nothing in all this world that could make us to leave our Wives and Families our Callings Estates and Employments but this very thing namely The Truth of our God and the Worship of Christ Jesus the profession and practise of which at this day is the ground of this our sufferings And whereas you press us so hard to take the Oath of Allegiance and come to your Church We do declare in the sincerity of our hearts That the ground and cause why we cannot take an Oath in any case although it be to the loss of our Estates and Life is Because Jesus Christ and his Apostles hath commanded us not to swear at all and it is not lawful for us in any case to break Christs command And if any of your Ministers Doctors Priests or Bishops can make it appear by Gods Word or the Scriptures that it 's lawful for us to swear and may swear and not fall into damna●ion we will take it And therefore cease calling for us to swear and break Christs commands till your Doctors Bishops ●●●rates or Ministers or some of them hath convinced us that it may be done and Christs command not broken There is too much swearing already and because of swearing the Land mourns And as concerning coming to your Church we have with much gravity considered the true state of the Church of which you are members to see if possible we might come to you and join with you and not lose our peace with God and this we find That you have called your selves by the Name of the Church of Christ but the nature of Christians and of the Church of Christ is denyed by you For the Pride we daily see and the Oaths we daily hear from the Members of your Church is sufficient to make a Heathen or a Turk much more a Christian quite out of love with it And further the cruelty that is practised by your members as haling men and women out of their peaceable Meetings and casting them into Prison contrary to the Lord Jesus Christ's Practise and Doctrine is ground enough for us to believe that you are neither members of Christs Church nor children of God nor heirs of his blessed Kingdom for if you were members of Christs Church you would not act such high blasphemies against the living God as to swear by the Blood and Wounds of God and God damn me and God confound me and when you have so done enter in●o your Church and cry aloud We beseech thee to hear us goo● Lo●d and this is top common among the members of your Churc● Now in the coolness of your hearts con●ider what it is you ar● so earnestly pe●swading us unto How ca● we come among ●●u a●d joy● in prayer with such as act this gre●t ● wickedness If we should come and join with you the Lord migh●●●mn us all together for it is the same tongue the same lips and ●he same spirit that swears before you enter that when you are entr●d ca●●s to ●od to hear you so that the words of the Apostle are ●ul●●lled Out of the same mouth p●oceedeth blessings and cursings Oh ye unw●se ●n 〈◊〉 ye know not God neither of what spirit you are an● ther●●ore be advised before it is too late for in love to ●ou● sou●s do we declare unto you That if you will have us joy● to you your way must be to joyn to the Lord repent of the wickedness that you have done and return to the Lord God and p●● away the evil of your doings and cast out from among you the P●oud and the Drunkard the Swearers the Murderers the Adulterers and Whoremongers and all other filthiness of flesh and spirit that is amo●g you and then clothe your selves with meekness and pa●●ence ●s the Church of Christ was in the dayes of the Apostles an● the● if we will not joyn with you and come to your Church let ●ur b●ame be upon our heads for till then although you call your selves Christians you are but Antichrists servants that opposes Christ in this the day of his appearance And though you may comp●l b● force and cruelty many to joyn with you in words you do but make them ten-fold more the children of the Devil and a t●ousand-fold more in a capacity to do you mischief and truly such Christians you have enough already and this was the way that your forefathers walked in whom God overthrew and razed their Name ●ut of the Land of the living Therefore boast not your selves over us as if the Lord had forsaken us because we have none in the Earth to take our part or p●ead our cause or a● if your day should never have an end or as ●f ●he Lord had ●o regard to his suffering-people nor took no no●●e of your cruelty towards them for certainly when we have fil●ed up the measure of the sufferings of Christ that is yet to be filled up and you have filled up the measure of your cruelty and hard-heartedness the Lord will divide between cattel and cattel and you shall not escape his fierce Vengeance and fiery Indignation therefore in love to your souls do we send this that you might be warned before it is too late for the wicked shall be turned into Hell and all that forget God as the Scripture plainly declareth and we