that they lived but were dead from that true Life that was in Christ Jesus whom in words they Professed And though the passage we feel now to be as hard of coming from amongst the false Christians and Turks as it was for the first true Christians to come from amongst the Jews and Gentiles yet the Almighty Power of our God is able over all and through all to carry us to the End whom he hath called and saved with a mighty Salvation ever praised be his Name and who will yet save his beloved Seed Israel and gather them from the East and West and from the North and South to sit down with Christ in his Kingdom And this is no ill News to any but who are glewed to Deceit and married to Iniquity But it is good News and glad Tidings indeed to all that love their Souls and the Honour and Glory of Truth more than the things of this perishing World And I could desire that all who are apt to reason as the Jews did when they heard the Declaration of the Gospel of Peace and Kingdom of God which stands in Righteousness and Peace saying If we let this go on then the Romans and others will come and take our Place and Nation I say that they would consider that the very course which they to wit the old Jews in the denial of the Truth took for saving of themselves brought utter destruction upon them and their Nation But what shall vain Man in his foolish fall'n Wisdom and Earthly Reasonings think to be wiser than God and to have a greater Care and Love to the Creation than God himself who made it hath What shall Angels at the Birth of Christ sing Glory to God on high and Good-will to Men and yet when the way of God in Christ is published for bringing this great Work of Salvation to pass vain Man must come in with his false Mind and say This is the way to confound all Order and destroy all Good and that this Doctrine turns the World upside down and that the Messengers of Christ are Pestilent Fellows and movers of Sedition O Earth Earth tremble before the Lord for thou shalt never have Peace in ' thy own ways thou shalt never be saved by thy own Strength thou shalt never be established by thy own Counsels thou shalt never have true Peace nor Plenty within thy Borders until thou believe the Gospel which saith Learn of Christ whose Kingdom is not of this World and whose Weapons are not Carnal but Spiritual mighty through God not for the pulling down of outward Walls and Bodies but for razing and pulling down and destroying the strong Holds of Sin and Satan in the Hearts and Lives of the Children of Men. For after that saith the Apostle the World by Wisdom knew not God it pleased God by the Foolishness of Preaching such Doctrine as this which is a Cross and stumbling Block to all Flesh to save them that believe So lay things to Heart ye People of the World and Inhabitants of all the Earth for God's purpose is not to exalt any Man or Men of this World nor to glorifie any Flesh but to exalt his own Son Christ Jesus the Heavenly Man the Lord from Heaven the Truth over all of whose Kingdom and Government there shall be no End And all that Obey his Voice and for Obedience thereto are made willing to Suffer with him shall Reign with him for evermore But all others whether they be called Christians or Turks or whatever else shall be as the Dust or Chaff before the Wind to be scattered as the Lord by his Spirit from the beginning hath said and at this Time speaketh in his Servant Thomas Taylor To Loose and Wicked Professors HOW long O ye People will ye sleep and slumber in a dead Form of Religion without the Life and Power of Godliness How long will ye dote upon the shews and appearances of Things where the Substance is wanting Can the Soul of Man live upon that which perishes and passes away with the using as the things of this present time do How long shall the Trumpet of the Lord be sounded in the Land before the People prepare themselves to serve the Lord and worship him in Spirit and Truth as he requires How long shall the Judgments of the Lord be in the Earth before the Inhabitants thereof learn Righteousness O the hardness of the Hearts of the Children of Men this day upon the Earth how past feeling are the Men of this Generation grown and without Understanding Never was Sodom more secure The Day is dawned and the Sun is up and yet they lye fast locked up in the deepest Sleep of fleshly Ease and carnal Security And because the Lord suffers not his whole Displeasure to arise at once upon them therefore they go on to harden themselves in their Sins as the People of old did whom the Lord overthrew in his Wrath And so because Judgment is not speedily executed upon their Evil Deeds therefore they set their Hearts to go on in their old ways of Sin Vanity and Uncleanness and so cover themselves but not with the Spirit of the Lord nor any of the pure and Holy ways thereof but take Counsel one at another and strengthen themselves in the Arm of Flesh Wo wo unto you O wicked and evil People who harden your Hearts against the Lord who shall sufficiently bewail you or what Lamentation shall be taken up for you With the Mourning of them that mourn for the Dead slain by the Sword cast out into the High-ways to be trodden under Foot shall you be lamented Thomas Taylor To Protestants OYe poor People called Protestants in the sence of the Love of God to my Soul and pity to yours do I write these Lines It is many Years now since it pleased the Lord to deliver you from the bloody Conspiracy of them called Papists in that Powder Plot and you have kept a Yearly Remembrance of it in an outward Day in an outward manner Acclamations Organs and other bodily Exercises but alass your Souls lies still in the Death Ignorant of that Heavenly Deliverance and Resurrection from Sin which the Saints in Light witness to the everlasting Praise and Glory of his Grace daily and hourly to be remembred and at no time to be forgotten And for want of this your Offerings cannot be accepted of the pure God who looks for Spiritual Obedience from the very Heart of all that receive any Blessing Mercy or Deliverance from him either for their Souls or Bodies But truly the Lord God is not pleased with your Organs Ringing of Bells and Singing and shouting on the top of a Steeple or any vain words of Thankfulness for an Offering to him and you still remaining in that nature which grieveth his Holy Spirit And so you dishonour the Holy Lord God the Creator of all things by your base and low thoughts of him judging his Thoughts to be like your
are come to know Christ and his Anointing in them to teach them are turned from such And though these Deceivers have proceeded for a time to wit during the late Night of Apostacy which Paul 2 Thes 2. spake of to deceive many yet now that the Light is risen again from under the Earth they are manifest and can proceed no further Let none therefore now be so void of understanding as to brand the true Messengers of Jesus Christ in this Day with the Name of Deceivers because they declare Truth not only publickly but also from House to House by virtue of the Holy Spirit only for so did the Apostles themselves and yet were no Creepers into Houses for creeping into Houses denotes the Work of the Children of Darkness who run without the Lord Jesus Christ his Spirit or Authority in their own Wills for Self-ends as before leading about People in their silliness and sinfulness all their Days as by woful Experience in the late Ages of the World since the Apostles Days hath been fully manifest wherein the World hath wondred after the Beast And as there were false Prophets among the People saith Peter even so also shall there be False Teachers among you who shall privily bring in Damnable Heresies c. 2 Pet. 2. But how may these be known may some say By their Fruits saith Christ ye shall know them And of this sort are they saith Peter in the same Chapter who through Covetousness with fained words make Merchandize of People and by walking after the Flesh in the Lust of Covetousness and Vncleanness and Despite of Christ's Government even deny the Lord that bought them These are the Presumptuous Ones indeed who count it Pleasure to Riot in the Day-time speaking evil of the worthy things that God works and makes manifest in his Children which these Presumptuous Ones know not And these false Teachers are of those whose Eyes are full of Adultery and that cannot cease from Sin For how should they seeing their Heart is exercised with Covetous Practices loving the Wages of Unrighteousness like Balaam as he to wit the Apostle Peter there speaks And therefore those that see not these are Blind indeed and those that these Teachers can deceive may well be said to be without a Foundation And hence it hath come to pass that through such Teachers Wickedness and Peoples Ignorance the World hath been as a Wilderness And now therefore is the Lord according to his Blessed Promise bringing up that knowledge of himself and his Christ again that shall make the Wilderness a fruitful Field and sweet smelling Garden for himself to be glorified in And this knowledge of God shall cover the Earth as the Waters do the Sea And thereby shall all hurting and destroying be done away from amongst Men Isa 65. last as is this Day witnessed amongst such where this Knowledge of God hath place Glory to his Name for Ever So now therefore all ye Kings Princes Potentates and Rulers of the Earth see in what Principle you stand and upon what Foundation you grow and whose Work you are a doing whether God's or your own True Magistrates are not a Terrour to the good but to the evil But how can ye see the good and the evil truly asunder or know what to punish and what to protect if you come not to the Light Christ Jesus that true Light which lighteth every Man that cometh into the World as was said before to take Counsel at him for he is the Wonderful Counsellor and whatsoever makes things truly manifest is his Light and with it every hard thing is known and every secret thing found out but without it nothing but all People that walk in the Darkness of their own Understandings do err in Vision and stumble in Judgment and so know not what they do nor whither they go And this way that seemeth good in the Man 's own Eye is that which always tended to Death and disordered all things And by such a Judgment Barrabas was Released and the Innocent Jesus delivered to be Crucified and by this the false Prophets in all Ages were protected and born up and the Dear Servants of Christ cast out as a thing of nought So arise arise awake awake to Righteousness and Sin not for the Lord is on his way to give unto every Nation and each People therein Rewards according to their Works without respect of Persons And until God's Righteousness rule in all and over all how can any thing stand let that of God in all Consciences judge so lay things to heart for this is the Day of your Visitation Also you Bishops and high Teachers who are pleased in your Minds because accepted of Man consider Are you accepted of God Is your Sacrifice so pure and your Persons so innocent that the Holy God can receive them Is your Doctrine so sound and Life incorrupt that none can justly blame it Have your Hands handled the Word of Life which you speak of to others And do you know in your selves what that living shâ—rp and powerful Word of God is which the Apostle Heb. 4. speaks of which divides betwixt Joint and 〈◊〉 Soul and Spirit and discerneth all the thoughts and intents of every Heart And are your Hearts cleansed by it And do you Preach and Minister this internal living and eternal Truth the Word to the People or the dead Letter only See how it is For the Fruit â—ow must be the real Witness of every Trees Nature Have you received the Free gift from above Then sell it not for Money Would you be counted Ministers and Embassadors for Christ and would you have the Children of Light to own you Then approve your selves to them as Paul did to the Brethren in his Days 2 Cor. 6.3 c. In much Patience in Afflictions in Necessities in Distresses in Stripes in Imprisonments as dying yet alive in the Hearts of the Hearers by the Power of Truth c. And let all People see that you mind the good of the Soul and God's Glory more than the World and your own Self-ease and Advantage For the Day is dawned that makes all things manifest And lay by your Carnal Weapons and make proof of your Spiritual Weapons if you have any and try a little how you can perswade Men to be of your Mind by that means For People begin to question much the forcing of Men into Religion by the carnal Sword and outward Constraint whether it be of God or no. For it 's found by Experience that into what People are forced by the outward Power by the same means may they be forced out of that again and so remain restless and without a Foundation until the Truth it self settle them So set not up your rest in the Wilderness much less in Egypt but look towards the Holy Land the undefiled unmoveable Foundation and suffer others to do so too And those that have spied out the good Land hinder them not
ascended far above all Heavens and out of all Figures and Shadows that he might fill all things with his Holy Substance And as in former Days he gave some Apostles some Prophets some Evangelists and some Pastors and Teachers for the Perfecting of the Saints for the Work of the Ministry for the Edifying of the Body of Christ till we all saith the Apostle to wit the Heavenly Body not the Body of Sinful Earthly Flesh come in the Vnity of the Faith and the Knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect Man unto the Measure of the Stature and Fulness of Christ Ephes 4.11 12 13. Even so the Lord is now giving forth of his Spirit to his Children Born of his Spirit for enabling them in this Day of Restoration for the Work of the Ministry for the perfecting of the Saints and fitting them for Glory and this now after a long Night of Darkness and Desolation is to the Praise of his Glory who hath made us in this his Blessed Day as he did his Faithful Followers in the Beginning accepted in the Beloved to shew forth his Praises to Ages to come whom he will also raise up by Christ Jesus together with us to magnifie his Mercies for Evermore But that the Parish Teachers of these Times who Preach for Hire and Divine for Money loving to be called of Men Master and like the Pharisees of old love to go in Long Robes and receive Honour one of another John 5. are such to wit so given of Christ and begifted from Heaven and fitted for so great a Work as to perfect the Saints as those before in Eph. 4. mentioned were I utterly deny and their Fruits as also the Fruits of their Hearers make manifest that they are of another Sort Seed and Generation even such as the Prophet Jeremiah speaks of and declares against who have run and God never sent them For why they waited not for the Word of God to speak in them and by them but stole the Words from their Neighbour and used their Tongues to say The Lord-saith when the Lord never spoke by them Ier. 23.30 and therefore saith the Lord these Teachers shall not profit the People at all Verse 32. For what are their Chaffy Words to the Word of God Verse 28. So the Teachers of the Parishes this day get into the Pulpit with the Words of the Prophets and Apostles in their Hand and Sin in their Hearts as those other did dreaming over them for Filthy Lucre and cry to the People BELOVED yea Beloved because they put into their Mouths Hear the Word of the Lord as you shall find it written in such a Chapter and such a Verse when the Lord never spoke to these Hirelings nor sent them thus to preach but they are Men made Ministers Men of the Evil World and great Lovers and Pleaders for it and therefore the World hears them 1 John 4.5 But â—â—e true Messenger of Christ saith for himself and his Brethren We are of God and the whole World lieth in Wickedness And saith Christ to his Disciples Ye are not of the World as I am not of the World for if you were of the World the World would love you for the World loves its own but now I have chosen you out of the World therefore the World hates you John 15.18 19. So all People fear the Lord God for the Name of Christians without the Nature of Christ will do you no good at all for the Lord is come to search all that called Christendom with Candles and to pull down the lofty Hearts and Looks of all amongst them called Christians first and then of all the World besides for now is the Lord exalting his great Name over all as in the Beginning before the Antichrist Beast False Prophet and Whore got up and who shall stop the Passage of this mighty Jehovah in the great Work of setting up his Kingdom over all the Kingdoms of the Man of Sin that the Kingdoms of this World may become the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ whose Right alone it is to Rule and Reign according to that Saying in the Prophet I will Overturn Overturn Overturn till he come to Rule whose Right it is And now Wo and Misery begins to take hold of all Hypocrites and all the Wicked because of the arising and appearing of the great God from Heaven this day who is on his Throne judging in Righteousness and in Righteousness making War whose Fiery Word his Two-edged Sword goes out of his Mouth not only to discover but also to destroy and consume the Man of Sin in all the Earth And now the Hireling Teachers of all sorts the Merchants of Mystery Babylon shall cry Alas alas that great City People begin to see us and they will not Trade with us nor buy our Merchandize as in former days but declare against it see Rev. 18.10 11. O yea it cannot be otherwise for now the Witnesses that lay slain in the Streets of the great City Sodom and Egypt Spiritually so called are arisen and stand upon their Feet praised be God And now Judgment is given to the Saints of the Most High God Dan. 7.12 25 26 27. So that though the great Antichrist under many Shapes and Appearances hath spoken great words against God his Truth and People and hath oppressed the Saints yet now the Judgment of God being set against him his Dominion shall be consumed and destroyed and the Saints of the Most High God shall have Dominion and Reign with Christ whose Kingdom is an Everlasting Kingdom and all Dominions shall serve and obey him to wit our Lord Jesus Christ for whose Blessed Name and Truth 's sake the Holy Tremblers who Tremble at his Word and follow him in the Regeneration do this day suffer it is so Thomas Taylor In the Year 1679. Something in Answer to some Passages in that Wicked Antichristian Book written Catechism-wise by some Popish Stickler for his Master the Pope the Romish Antichrist and his Followers Printed at Douay and Subscribed H. T. IN his second Chapter he saith Faith is necessary to Salvation and that Faith is firmly to believe Matters of Faith because God hath revealed them Then say I Not the Pope But saith he again It is not enough to believe all that is written in the Bible but we must believe also Apostolical Traditions citing 2 Thess 2.15 Now say I in answer hereto That through wresting and abusing of this Scripture have they made way for bringing in all their Filthy Popish Stuff whereby Thousands and Ten thousands of poor Peoples Souls both have been and are at this day miserably deluded for certainly the Traditions which the Apostle there tells of whether by Word or Epistle where all of one nature and not directly contrary or contradictory one to another But the Popish Traditions though they may falsly call them Apostolical are directly contrary to Holy Scripture But saith he The Apostles Creed is not in the
Christopher Taylor 's TESTIMONY Concerning Thomas Taylor MY deceased Brother Tho. Taylor was a Man who in his tender Years had a Sence of Sin upon him and saw a Necessity of coming and attaining to a State of Righteousness and Faithfulness to God that he might please him so that for several Years he was exercised under the Spirit of Bondage and great Fears lest he should miss of Eternal Salvation and so come to be a true Seeker and Inquirer after the best Things and the Lord was Good unto him in a preparative Work as I may say before he came to know the Sabbath of Eternal Rest in Christ Jesus And as Light and Life appeared and sprung up in its Measure in the Land of his Nativity the Lord in Mercy gave him a Share in it and a Fear came upon his Heart to preserve him in a State of Integrity and Simplicity which kept him very Sober in his Conversation and Restrained him from many Evils others fell into so that he was accounted by many in those days who were Honest-minded to be a Religious Consciencious young Man And the Lord gave him Sights and Openings of good Things at hand and opened a Door of Hope unto him that he should see the Lord's Blessed Day of his Heavenly and Powerful Appearance and with Cornelius waited and longed for God's Kingdom and Powerful Appearance unto his Soul And when that blessed Instrument in God's Hand George Fox came into the North to preach and declare the Everlasting Gospel of Glad Tidings to Mankind and to such who were waiting to be delivered from the Bondage of Sin and Unrighteousness this Dear Man was glad and was convinced of the Truth which was demonstrated in the Evidence of God's Spirit and Holy Power unto him and many others So that the Light and Truth broke up in him to the breaking of his Heart before the Living God and the making of his Soul tender in Humility and the Dispensation of the Spirit of true Judgment and Burning seized on his Inward Man and pure Tremblings before the Lord seized upon him and Judgment did so effectually take place in the Operation of the Authority of the Mighty God that his Inward Man rejoyced that now he was come to know one of the Great Days of the Son of Man And the Work of the Lord was begun in his Heart so that his Soul cried mightily to God for Judgment to Judge and Condemn for ever all that was Contrary to the Word of his Pure Power And the Lord heard his true Cries which himself by his own Grace had raised up in him and extended his Mercies to him and fulfilled that Saying A bruised Reed shall be not break and smoaking Flax shall he not quench until he send forth Judgment to Victory So Victory he came to know and Deliverance to his Soul through the Exercise of Faith and Patience in the way of Righteousness and the Lord raised him up to be a living Witness to his Heavenly Power and the breaking forth of its Blessed Day of Light and sent him forth to Preach the Everlasting Gospel and to turn many to Righteousness and he became a Faithful Labourer and Servant of Jesus Christ in his Harvest and Vineyard and many are his Witnesses how Faithfully he served God and how truly he cared for the Flock of Jesus Christ where-ever he came and laboured in the Faith as one wholly given up to Spend and be Spent in that Work the Lord had committed to him Many and Great were his Sufferings from Wicked Men who sometimes lay in wait for him to have taken away his Life and tedious it would be to repeat the Hardships he underwent and great Sufferings he endured by the Malicious instruments of Satan But the Lord delivered him thorow all the Scourgings Buffetings and Evil Treatments of Unreasonable Men. As to Imprisonment he suffered much in several Prisons in this Nation as at Appleby in Westmoreland at York Leicester and Coventry and last of all above ten Years Imprisonment in Stafford and was there Premunired because he could not Swear He was a Faithful Prisoner of Jesus Christ and kept his Blessed Testimony over the Heads of Wicked Brutish Savage and Unreasonable Men he met withall in his Imprisonments It is hard to utter what he passed thorow in those Evil Dens amongst such Savage Beasts but the Lord upheld him blessed him and delivered him out of all and Dear and Near he was unto his God who upheld him Everlasting Honour be unto his Name Deeply am I affected when I read him in the Sence of Life how Safe the Lord kept him so that the Course of his Life was Eminently Exemplary so Grave Tender and Humble he was and Self denying Well it is and will be for all who are so truly preserved to God as he was I am perswaded none can justly tax his Life and Conversation or present a Spot or Stain upon his Garment whilst he lived after he was called to the Lord's Work and Service Oh! have I said in my Heart What Happiness is it to those who are so kept and safely preserved to Honour God and Preach his Gospel as well in Life and Conversation as in Words and Doctrine And as to his Testimonies in Writing which are here given forth to be read they are plain and easie to be understood by every unprejudiced Person that reads them in Simplicity with the Light of Christ there are various things testified against the Sins and Evils of the Times for he laboured much for the Nations and Peoples Good that they might be kept out of Debauchery Wickednesses Games Sportings and Evils of all sorts that if possible such Evils as too much abounded in our Nation might not have that Liberty or Pestilential Disposition as to Leaven and beget People further from God and as a Leprosie to spread over the Nation Also he was tender over the Lord 's Innocent People lest they should fall on the right Hand or on the left and so lose their Habitations in the Truth He was right spirited to discern the Wiles of Satan and to instruct and give Warning to such as might be misled into any Evil Condition under the Pretence of Truth to fight against it I believe he was never known since he preached the Everlasting Gospel committed to him to turn his Back of any Enemy to give way to him of what Size or Sort soever he was or how Subtle soever the Devil could make him the Lord gave him a Sight beyond the Subtlety of Satan and when he was Spent in the Service the Lord had called him unto in a good old Age he departed this Life and finished his Course with Joy and Everlasting Rejoycing to the Praise and Glory of the Everlasting God who for ever is to be admired of all his Saints honoured and magnified for ever and for ever more World without End Amen Christopher Taylor Thomas Taylor 's TESTIMONY Concerning his FATHER A Short
which hath defiled the Earth with her Abominations Ye make haste to fill up the measure of your Iniquities as though the time would fail you to make your selves perfect in Wickedness And ye seem to entertain Christ as the Heathens of Old did their Idols who thought The more Vain Lustful and Wanton that they were the more they pleased their Idols and offered a more acceptable Sacrifice to their Gods But O! be humbl'd for these things lest the Lord carry you back again into the Belly of Egypt and Blackness of Babylon's Darkness whither ye have manifested too much a Mind to return And as a Just Recompence for all your Unrighteousness he Swore in his Wrath That ye shall never enter into his Rest. Thomas Taylor Something as it came to mind of what passed at the Assizes in Stafford betwixt the Judge and the People of God called by the World Quakers But the Reproach of Christ is to us great Riches and the Scorners God will Judge WE being called to the Bar we came up in the Dread and Fear of God and in the Love of Justice with our usual Garments on Judge And the Judge asked us If we knew where we were To whom it was Answered Ans Yea we stand in the Presence of the Lord God of Heaven and Earth before whom all are Judge Then he bid Fine us Forty Shillings a piece for keeping on our Hats and then caused our Hats to be taken off Ans To whom it was Answered That some of the Men called Justices now in Authority had been heard to Condemn Oliver Cromwell for such a thing Here the Judge spoke something of Oliver Ans But where is it read in Scripture that the Apostles suffered for keeping on their Hats To which the Judge replied They had no Hats And so proceeded to other things But here by the way all may take notice that the Scripture speaks of Hats in Dan. 3.21 which was long before the Apostles time and surely the Apostles had something to cover their Heads withal whether called Hats or Caps is not material And that it is not putting off the Hat but putting away deceit from the Heart that Honours God's Authority Now as concerning the Oath the Judge asked If we would take it We Answered Christ taught us not to Swear but said Let your Yea be Yea and your Nay Nay for whatsoever is more cometh of evil Then said the Judge You have spoken many words more than Yea and Nay To which was Answered That 's not it for the Lord doth not forbid his People to speak more words as need is in his Fear but he intends plainly this That when we affirm a thing we should affirm it in the Truth and what we deny to deny it also in the Truth and both without an Oath For though under the Law where Strife was there was also Oaths yet now Christ being come to make an end of â—trife he ends Oaths also and the occasion of them Judge Then you must be the Expounders Ans Not we but the Spirit of God in all Saith the Judge But we read that God Swore but where is it read that the Devil Swore To which was Answered by one of us yea the Devil both did and now also doth Swear in the Mouths of all wicked Men and that falsly also Then here about the Oath of Allegiance was read And it being read one of us Answered whose Name was T. T. It seems this Oath was made against them called Papists And as for Popery I do here declare as in the Presence of the Lord against it and their wicked Tenents such as there is mentioned And for our good Desires for the King and all Men is in like sincerity also now acknowledged This is as it were the substance of the Oath said the Judge Then said I Let that serve Judge But why will you not Swear Ans Because my Yea is Yea and my Nay is Nay without Swearing And I do not deny to Swear in Contempt of Authority but in Conscience to God And so all People may see that if I suffer for this it is not for substance but circumstance or so Judge But how shall we try Matters of Difference without Swearing Ans By Faithful Witnesses without Swearing Judge But what if they witness false Ans The same may be said concerning Swearing For you do not know by a Man's meer words without further Trial more when he Swears falsly or truly than when he speaks falsly or truly And so if ye had the same Law against False Witnesses as is against False Swearers it would be all one Judge But we have not such a Law Ans But you may have And here all People consider what the Law of God amongst the Jews that were under the Law in such Cases as this was see Deut. 19.16 to the end The words are these If a False Witness arise up against any Man to testifie agdinst him that which is wrong then both the Men between whom the Controversie is shall stand before the Lord before the Priests who were Types of Christ to come and the Judges which shall be in those days And the Judges shall make diligent Inquisition and behold if the Witness be a False Witness and hath testified falsly against his Brother then shall he do unto him as he had thought to have done unto his Brother c. If such a thing as this were minded Would not this keep the Wicked in awe Judge Reach him the Book Ans What Book is it Is it not the Scripture Yea said the Officer Then said I That Book witnesses against Swearing now to Christians Judge and Officers You must lay your Hand upon the Book and kiss it Ans I must lay my Hand upon my Heart when I speak Truth as I do now And the Lord saith not that we should kiss a Book but Kiss the Son lest he be angry See Psalm 2. last Now as concerning Meetings The Judge charged us with meeting contrary to Law We answered Not contrary to the Law of God And the Apostles and Saints did meet separate from the rest of the People Judge What are none the People of God but of your Gang And said something of those formerly called the Godly Party Ans We are manifest to that of God in all to be such as fear God and so let us not suffer for the Name until you can prove some Evil by us Judge The Judge spoke of our coming to that called their Church a Steeple-house Ans And we wished him to prove there by Scripture where Christians were limited either to that or to any place whatsoever Which he could not do And then said I It 's read in Scripture That Men should lift up Holy Hands to God in every place without Wrath and Doubting But for such passages as these the Judge was at length troubled and though he had been moderate a good while yet he wanted all Patience and so thought to proceed against
one Neighbour to another and one Nation to another Come let us all be humbled before the Lord God of Heaven and Earth who made us all of one Blood to dwell together upon the Face of the Earth in Truth Goodness and Love to serve one another and so as Branches of one Tree to receive Life and Vertue and Power from our God into our Souls to strengthen us unto his holy Work who came not to destroy Mens Lives but to save them whose Kingdom is not of this World and therefore is not set up or maintained with Carnal Weapons Violence and Spoil but by the Eternal Spirit of our God whose Fruit is in all Goodness and Righteousness and Truth And let not the wicked Devil the Destroyer deceive us any more by his Lies and Delusions but let us all with one Heart and Soul resist his Temptations When he perswades us to seek to be great in the Earth and be avenged on them we count our Enemies let us not hearken to him but let us over come their Evil with Goodness and not to seek the Destruction of their Persons or Spoil of their Estates as the Heathens do that know not God but let us follow the Example of Jesus Christ God manifest in Flesh who when he was reviled reviled not again but prayed for such as despitefully used him O come let us follow this meek Lamb in Righteousness and Truth and learn of him in our Heart who is Meek and Lowly that we may find Rest for our Souls who rebuked his Disciples who would have had Fire to come down from Heaven to destroy the Samaritans that would not at that time receive Christ For what knowest thou O Man but the Samaritans may in time come to a better Mind and then thou wilt see it was thy Will and not God's that desired their Destruction in their Sins For Christ would have all to be saved and come to the Knowledge of his Truth But many will not come to him that they might have Life and so their Destruction is of themselves and their Condemnation just And who are those now therefore that withstand the Doctrine of the Truth which said Love your Enemies and seek not the Destruction of their Persons and the Spoil of their Estates but seek by good Doctrine and good Life to bring them out of their Sins And if they will not but rather hate thee for thy good Will be content thou hast quitted thy own Soul and art clear of their Blood and so thou becomest a Sufferer with Jesus Christ and shalt Reign with him in due time I say who are these now on the Earth that withstand Truth and continue in the hateful destroying Ways of the Old Jews and Gentiles but such as will not be counselled by the Lamb of God the Suffering Seed who said Learn of me for I am meek and lowly in Heart But are Men of Corrupt Minds who account Gain and Worldly Honour and Promotions more than Godliness who cries Peace to themselves in their Sins And that same Spirit in them which crieâ— that false Peace in them is the same that stirs them up to Kill Destroy Oppress and Spoil one another for Selfish and Worldly Ends. But the Lord is arisen to Judge all these Evil Things and to Redeem a Seed to serve him as in the beginning of the Gospel before Antichrist the Murderer got up amongst them that professed Christ in Words but denied him in Deeds who had a Name that they lived but were dead from that true Life which was in Christ Jesus whom in Words they professed And though the Passage we seel now to be as hard of coming from amongst the false Christians and Turks as it was for the first true Christians to come from amongst the Jews and Gentiles yet the Almighty Power of our God is able over all and through all to carry us on to the end whom he hath called and saved with a mighty Salvation ever-praised be his Name and who will yet save his Beloved Seed Israel and gather them from the East and West and from the North and South to sit down with Christ in his Kingdom And this is no ill News to any but who are glewed to Deceit and married to Iniquity but it is Glad-tidings indeed to all that love their Souls and the Honour and Glory of Truth more than the things of this perishing World And I could desire that all who are apt to reason as the Jews did when they heard the Declaration of the Gospel of Peace and Kingdom of God which stands in Righteousness and Peace saying If we let this go on then the Romans or Others will come and take our Place and Nation I say that they would consider That the very Course which they to wit the Jews in the Denial of the Truth took for saving of themselves brought utter Destruction upon them and their Nation But what shall vain Man in his foolish faln Wisdom and earthly Reasoning think to be Wiser than God and to have a greater Care and Love to the Creation than God himself who made it hath What! shall Angels at the Birth of Christâ—sing Glory to God on high and Good-will to Men and yet when the way of God in Christ is published for bringing this great Work of Salvation to pass vain Man must come in with his false Mind and say This is the way to confound all Order and destroy all Good And that this Doctrine turneth the World up-side down And that the Messengers of Christ are pestilent Fellows and Movers of Sedition O Earth Earth Tremble before the Lord for thou shalt never have Peace in thy own Ways thou shalt never be Saved by thy own Strength thou shalt never be Established by thy own Counsels thou shalt never have true Peace nor any Plenty within thy Borders until thou believest the Gospel which saith Learn of Christ whose Kingdom is not of this World and whose Weapons are not Carnal but Spiritual Mighty through God not for the pulling down of Outward Walls and Bodies but for razing and pulling down and destroying the strong Holds of Sin and Satan in the Hearts and Lives of the Children of Men For after that saith the Apostle The World by Wisdom knew not God it pleased God by the Foolishness of Preaching to wit such Doctrine as this which is a Cross and Stumbling-block to all Corrupt Flesh to save them that believe So lay things to heart ye People of the World and Inhabitants of all the Earth for God's Purpose is not to exalt any Man or Men of this World or to glorifie any Flesh but to exalt his own Son Christ Jesus the heavenly Man the Lord from Heaven the Truth over all of whose Kingdom and Government there shall be no End And all that obey his Voice and for Obedience thereunto are made willing to Suffer with him shall reign with him for evermore But all others whether they be called Christians or Turks
that we are sufficient of our selves to think a good Thought but our Ability is of God who hath made us able Ministers of the New Testament not of the Letter but of the Spirit for the Letter kills but the Spirit gives Life And that which the Eye hath not seen nor Ear heard nor hath entred into the Heart of Man or Humane Heart to conceive hath God reveal'd to us by his Spirit for the Spirit searcheth all things yea the Deep Things of God and which Things we Preach or Speak not in the words which Man 's or Humane Wisdom teacheth but which the Holy Ghost teacheth comparing Spiritual things with Spiritual 1 Cor. 2. But this R. B. comparing Spiritual Things with Carnal is not wise who because Old Men and long Students in Arts and worldly Sciences are most Wise or likely to be so therefore they that Labour and Study most in Books of Divinity so call'd get most of the Spirit 's Teaching O sad that ever the Minds of the Children of Men should be so cover'd with Darkness and yet read the Scripture of Truth which witnesses to no one thing more than to the Free Teachings of the Spirit of God without Humane Helps For all the Help that is Humane or that Man who is ab humo that is from the Earth can afford is but Natural and of this World which comes to nought therefore is it said That none of the Princes that is the Chief Men of this World knew the Mystery of Christ and his Kingdom then which made them so Band against him see the 2d Psalm And the Natural Man with all his Natural Means discerns not the things of the Spirit of God because they are spiritually discern'd So every one that would know the Mind of the Spirit of God must come to feel through the Most Holy Faith a measure of it in themselves For after ye believ'd ye were Seal'd with the Spirit of Promise saith Paul And the Word is nigh thee even in thy Heart and Mouth O thou that hast an Ear to hear hear what the Spirit speaks even the Word of Faith which we Preach Therefore go not forth from the Anointing of God in thy Heart to hear the frothy and false Doctrine of such as R. B. who have run and set up themselves by their Humane Helps in the Place of Teachers and God never sent them and therefore they cannot profit the People at all but lead them about like silly Women laden with divers Sins and Lusts yea in their Prayers and best Performances as is manifest and so not being sent and enabled by God's Spirit they can never lead you to it but from it as is manifest Also R. B. in Page 6. before-mention'd saith The Objection hath much Confusion in it And how proves he that But by saying 1. It confoundeth the Spirit 's teaching us by inditing the Scripture with the Spirit 's teaching us the meaning of the Scriptures 2. And it confoundeth the Common Knowledge of Divinity with the Saving Knowledge of it No Man cometh to a Common Knowledge fit for a Teacher of others without the Spirit 's teaching by the Scriptures for that was the first part of the Spirit 's teaching us to inspire the Prophets and Apostles to deliver a Teaching Word to the Churches by which we might all be taught of God through all Generations But many Men have Excellent Common Knowledge by this Word and by the Common Help of the Spirit without that Special Help which begetteth Saving Knowledge And all Knowledge requireth Time and Labour to obtain it though the Spirit giveth it and though it may be sanctified to us in a little time but that may be a means of saving others which saveth not the Man that hath it And in Page 114. farther saith Take them not for no Ministers that want Grace totally And marvel not that Gifts are more necessary to the validity of Ministration than Grace is he may perform the Office of a Minister to the Benefit of the Church that hath no Saving Grace at all Thus far R. B. O! What Sorcery and Egyptian-darkness is here to make void the New Covenant and Free Gracious Teachings of the Spirit of God in these Days and to Establish the Letter in the room and stead thereof which only witnesses to is and is a Declaration concerning what the Spirit of God did in them and in the World before Christ's coming in the Flesh and what was done during his being in it and what the Spirit would do in the Believing Souls and in the World after that time But this the Hirelings do that they by their trading with and giving their false meanings upon the Scriptures they may keep the People in Blindness and so from the Anointing and Teaching and Enjoyment of that Spirit that was in them that gave forth Scriptures that they may not see their deceitful Doctrines and Merchandizes lest they should buy no more of them For no Man that knows the badness of Babylon will buy them any more and then will the Merchants of Souls mourn For they that know the Lord and his Spirit 's Teaching in them which is the Good Old Way yea and the ever New Fresh Profitable and Living VVAY will follow no more such Men as would bring in and establish a Graceless Ministry as this R. B. doth here to his Shame But such Graceless Priests the Lord will have none of nor his People neither For my Sheep hear my Voice saith Christ and a stranger they will not hear Surely a Graceless Man is this Stranger They to wit graceless Men saith John 1 Epist 4. are of the World and the World hear them we are of God Stewards of the manifold Grace of God 1 Pet. 4.10 And they that are of God hear us And so Ever Bless'd and Prais'd be the Great and Glorious Name of the Lord Jesus who hath restor'd to them that Obey him the Glorious Doctrine of the Spirit 's Teaching as was in the Apostles Days according to his true Promise where all in the Truth of which we the People of God in Scorn call'd Quakers are Members is done in and by the Holy Spirit prais'd be God and nothing own'd amongst us but what is so done Here is Praying in and by the Spirit and Preaching in and by the Spirit and Singing in and by the Spirit of our Holy Lord God and so the Head being Spiritual and the Members of the Body every one Spiritual for we are all Baptized by one Holy Spirit into the one Heavenly Body our Food is also Spiritual Heavenly Bread and Heavenly Wine and the Water Spiritual that sanctifies us and makâ—s us clean to God in all our Sacrifices and Services For Christ gave himself for his Church which is his Body that he might wash it and present it spotless to himself and without all Deformity by the washing of Water even the Water of Life in the Word of Life the Creating Word of the
the one to smite their Brethren and the other to Excommunicate them ☜ the one to cast them into Prison as Schismaticks and the other to cast them out of the Church as Prophane c. And so for this thy summing up and concluding God hath concluded thee with the wicked Persecutors whom the Judgment of his great Day will meet But hold O! R. B. thou that art thus hot and without all fear in pleading for the Devil's Kingdom I say when the Lord bids us and we obey him in separating from the Wicked is this all one with the Sin of Persecution Oh thou Unjust Man the Lord will be terrible to thee in the Day of his Wrath which is nigh at hand to come upon thee if thou repent not for all thy Villany against him and for all thy daubing deceitful words in the beginning and end of this Direction the Lord sees thee to be a Fighter against him and thy Reward will be according to thy Works as he hath said and all the Rocks and Mountains of the Wicked World for whom thou pleadest shall not hide thee from his stroke As testifies the good Spirit of the Lord Jesus in his Servant Thomas Taylor Some more of the strange Sayings of this Richard Baxter in his Book Page 219. GODLY Men are much liker to be in the right than Vngodly Men. Answ This shews what a Stranger he is to the certainty of Godliness Page 220. Sometimes the worser sort of Men may hold fast the Truth Answ This is a gross Lie for the bad cannot hold fast the good unless in Prison If any better Persons deny Infant-Baptism the worser Sort of People would be all against them and yet be in the right Answ Thus Sprinkling of Infants for which there is no Scripture must needs be wrong whosoever hold it and the Corruption of it appears so much the more because the worser Sort are so much for it Many do take a Form of Prayer or Liturgy to be unlawful meerly because the most of the worser Sort are for it Answ If thy Hearers be so bâ—dly-taught yet those that are taught of God forbâ—ar such things as they know he requires not of them but what Form or Liturgy is that which the most of the worser Sort of the People are for is it not that which speaks Peace to the Wicked by telling them they were Regenerated by sprinkling a little Water on their Faces or the like when Infants And that they shall be saved though they continue in Sin all their Lives long But the Hour cometh and now is that neither in the invented Forms of the Hypocrite's long Prayers nor in the short invented Forms and Liturgies of the Prophâ—ne but in Spirit and Truth as the Lord Jesus enables them will God be worshipped and served by his People for the Day is dawned and the Shadows fly away and as the Day doth more and more arise in its Glory will all the things of vain Men pass away Page 221. The sum of his 44th Directions by his own setting down runs thus Ye take the Examples of Religious Men to be one of your most Perilous Temptations and therefore labour to discover especially what are the Sins of Professors in the Age that you live in that you may especially watch and fortifie your Souls against them And adds That sometimes the strictest Sort run in a Gang after one Opinion and sometimes after another Answ Here I Appeal to that of God in all that fear his Name and are alive to Truth whether this do not wholly tend to the hardening of Pharaoh's Heart against the People of God in these Days who are in the Truth it self and not in Opinions as the Hypocrites are For though such as are begotten into Forms of Religion without the Truth by the Hirelings do never cease from erring yet the truly Religious who are begotten to God by Christ walk in the Way undefiled which the Fools who are upright in Heart cannot err in But this his telling of running in a Gang is a filthy and reproachful Speech wholly of Ashdod and the Lord will judge thee O Enemy for thy work R. B. and therefore let all that fear God take heed of this Man 's Soul-defiling and Heart-hardning Doctrine for out of the dark and wicked Kingdom wherein he and all such live is the Lord calling his People And to conclude If any would see this Harlot in its fine Dress and the Crooked Serpent in its glittering Colour on the Head which must be bruised and yet with his Sting in his Tail which is full of Venom let them consider that 44th Direction which runs thus Desire the highest Degree of Holiness and to be free from the Corruptions of the Times but â—ffect not to be old and singular from ordinary Christians in lawful things for instance If it were to go in a meaner Garb than others and as the Quakers not to put off the Hat or with the Friars to go barefoot or in a distinguishing Habit that all Men may see and say This is a singular Person in Religion it is easie to see how this gratifieth Pride Answ But now that the Lord is arisen according to his Promise Isa 27.1 which saith In that Day the Lord with his sore and great and strong Sword shall punish Leviathan the piercing Serpent even Leviathan that crocked Serpent and he shall slay the Dragon that is in the Sea Therefore I say it is that the Dragon is so wrathful to pour forth his Floods of Persecution after the Heavenly Woman and her Man child And there fore it is that the Crooked Serpent in such Men as this is is so at work every way seeking with their Cunning and Crafty Deceitful Doctrines to pierce the Heart the Life of Truth by their Darts and so with their fair colourable words as the Apostle speaks to deceive the Hearts of the Simple and Ignorant People but the Lord taketh the Wilely in their own Craftiness and the Pit they dig for others themselves fall into and the Lord 's Spiritual Sword of Truth pierces through all their Lives and Dead in the great Sea and Puddle of their own Iniquities before the Lord and his Saints this Day they lye Glory to his Name the Mighty God over all who is worthy For what more glistering and fair-seeming words can the Serpent give than to say Desire the highest Degree of Holiness and to be free from the Corruptions of the Time But that this R. B. intends no such thing no nor believes that any shall ever attain to any such thing whilst on the Earth is most manifest by the whole current of his Doctrine for not only in his former Books where he hath publickly declared That sinless Perfection is the Doctrine of the Devil hatch'd in Hell c. But even in this very Book it fully appears what an Enemy he is not only to the highest degree but even to Holiness it self where amongst his
unsound unchristian and ignorant Sayings it fully appears that this Bryan is one of them who have neither seen nor known Christ seeing he would bring in the Heathen into the Temple without the Word And so Who is more Ignorant and Prophane than this Priest Bryan himself as also his Brother R. B. who is not ashamed to make such a one a Tutor or Father of Ministers who is ignorant of the very Door and Entrance into the Church and of Christ's second Coming Nay who is ignorant of his first Appearance which was for Judgment even to whip the Buyers and Sellers and all Prophane ones out of his House as he said himself For Judgment come I into this World What Pastors or Teachers can such Tutor as are so ignorant of Christ's Kingdom and so admit the Ignorant and Prophane into their Church or Cage of unclean Birds for the Church of Christ which is visibly seen and known by the Spiritual Eye to be his Body is Holy and into it can no unclean thing enter as saith the Scripture Rev. 21.27 but into the World's Church may both Ignorant and Prophane enter and dwell But at such dishonest Gain as is gotten by such Doctrines as this of Bryan and R. B. hath the Lord long shaken his Hand Is this your Ware that you sell to the People at so dear a Rate Is this your Straw and Stubble that you seed them with But no Man of any Understanding in Heavenly Matters will buy any more of your Merchandize For God is come to teach his People himself and the Spirit of God is felt and witnessed amongst us praised be God yea and in our very Hearts to teach us and by which we feel Christ come again the second Time without Sin to Salvation according to his Holy Promises and by whose all-powerful Word of Faith and Heavenly Presence in us are we joyned together unto him in one Holy Body Glory to his Name over all for he is worthy And for that Saying That Christian Princes have not less Power to abolish Idolatry and by Law and Penalties to compel the Subjects in Matters of Religion where there is a parity of reason than the Jewish Kings under that Law had I answer and say That all are not Christians who are so called and this crying up the Worldly Magistrates Power in Matters Spiritual is the only In-let into Persecution of the Tender-hearted People of God who cannot bow to every thing the World sets up yea though it come under the name or shew of Christian Religion and if the Image be of Gold never so goodly yet wanting Life and Power they cannot bow to it I say They who Preach up the Worldly Princes under what Name soever to have Power over the Consciences of People in Matters purely Spiritual as the whole Body of Christian Religion is are Antichristian and the great Enemies of that Liberty which Christ hath purchased for his People and which the Apostles sealed unto with their Blood saying in such cases Let every Man be fully perswaded in his own Heart And who art thou that judges much less forcest and compellest as Bryan and R B's Doctrine would have it another to his own Master to wit God the Judge of all he standeth or falleth see Rom. 14. at large but what account will those Daubers give to the Lord for all the Innocent Blood they have caused to be shed these many hundred Years is Sad to consider For though such Magistrates as are evil inclined are not free yet the False Teachers who by their Lies stir up yea and bring forth that evil Inclination into real Actings against the Good shall receive the greater Condemnation And yet notwithstanding all the Evil both in the one and in the other the Lord will certainly carry on his great Work to his own Praise which he hath begun Glory to his Name for ever And the Beast Whore and False Prophet shall alive together be cast into the Lake prepared for them and into the Pit which they had digged for others Also whereas he saith That it sufficeth that we have Examples in the Old Testament for the Magistrates Power in Church matters though none in the New Testament I say It is no more true than if we should reason for an outward worldly Temple Sacrifices and Circumcision now because there is Examples of these things in the Old Testament and for Revenge and Retaliation now because it is mentioned in the Old contrary to Christ For though it hath been said of old saith Christ an Eye for an Eye and a Tooth for a Tooth yet I say to you my Disciples under the New Covenant If any Man smite you on the one Cheek turn to him the other and the Apostle saith Dearly beloved avenge not your selves butif thy Enemy hunger seed him c. and so Christ being come and all Power in Heaven and Earth given him Is not he in these Spiritual Matters relating to the very Soul and Conscience the only Lord Law-giver and King and Supreme and ought of right to rule in his own House and Temple which is in Man and those that will not that he should Rule must bow before him and be ashamed before his Face So that now the Son of God being come and seated by right of Inheritance the true King and Heir upon David's Throne to Rule in Righteousness for ever in the Hearts of his Children he commands the true Seed of Israel to obey his Heavenly Voice Law and Doctrine spoken and written within as those outward and typical Kings did command the fleshly Seed of Abraham to keep Moses's Law written without and as those that obeyed not that outward Law of Moses were lyable to the Punishment of that Law so they now that obey not Christ's Spiritual Law written in the Heart and Conscience by his Holy Power are lyable to the Eternal Judgment of Jesus Christ the Judge of Quick and Dead as he saith The Father judges no Man but hath committed all Judgment to the Son And as for the worldly Magistrate he is to Rule in outward things betwixt Man and Man to see that every one as to the Body and outward Estate be well behaved one towards another and not to bear the Sword in vain as hath been too much in use even amongst many called Christian Magistrates as well as others from whence it hath come to pass that for the sake of the Poor whom the worldly Powers have oppressed as well in Temporals as Spirituals the Lord hath overturned them one Sort after another as they were found in the Abuse of that Power and Trust which was put into their Hands for the Protection of and Encouragement and Praise of the Good and Punishment of the Evil doers but not the contrary according to that of the Prophet I will overturn overturn overturn till he come whose Right it is And so until Truth Righteousness Goodness Equity and Justice rule both in the Hearts and Lives of
heavy Burdens that lye upon Soul or Body and so in Deed and Truth to let the Oppressed go free and to break every Yoke and to be Merciful Pittiful and Tender-hearted one to another according to Jesus Christ O! this is the Fast that pleaseth God that which his Soul and the Soul of the Righteous Loveth But to see People gather together for a few Hours of a Day and in a few or many Formal Words Confess Sin and Wickedness and yet Live in it this is Abominable in the sight of God and all good Men. Therefore all Awake Arise and stand up to Judgment O all ye People of the Earth who are found in such Deceitful Worship for God is not Mocked neither will he be at all Reconciled to you until you from the Heart put away all your Sins whereby his Glory this Day is so much stained and until you bring forth Fruits of Righteousness and such Words and Works daily as are worthy amendment of Life Thomas Taylor Something in Answer to some Passages in that naughty Book called A Looking-Glass for Ladies HE saith in Page 89 and 90. There are two sorts of Love One Legal The other Evangelical The First which is Legal is to Love God with all our Hearts all our Souls and all our Might This saith this Man no Man can attain unto in this Life no not the Regenerate themselves To which I Answer That this Man shews plainly that he knows not what he saith but is not only a False Witness against God and his Work in his Regenerate People but also a manifest Contradicter of himself for saith he Evangelical Love is when a Man begins here truly to Love God 2. When he doth daily grow and increase in this Love 3. When he is Constant in the same to the end so that nothing can draw him from God This he and all that sort will in words confess the Regenerate in this Life may do and yet not love God with that Love the Law requires What Contradiction is this Is not this Love perfect and answerable to God's Law when one First Loves God truly Secondly Grows and Increases daily in this true Love and Thirdly When one is so constant in the same that nothing can draw the Soul from it And therefore saith the Apostle Rom. 8.3 c. That which the Law could not do in that it was weak through the Flesh God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful Flesh and for Sin condemned him in the Flesh that the Righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the Flesh but after the Spirit Now let any who knows God give in his Witness if this Man do not deny the very End of Christ's Coming in the Flesh which was as the Apostle saith here to fulfil the Law in and for his People that they might love the Lord their God in Christ Jesus with all their Heart Soul and Might according to his Holy Law as one well said That which the Law requireth the Gospel fulfilleth But such Men as this who flatters the faln Sons and Daughters of Adam by pleading for respect to their Persons knows nothing of the Matter in themselves but only as they imagine from the Letter without they tell every Man his Dream to his Neighbour and so by their false Doctrines and Self-contradictions as is manifest here do daily make the shame of their Nakedness appear and their Envy to the Servants of God whom they Reproach under the Name of Quakers appears very much in such sayings as he there sets down saying This serves to reprove the Quakers who are possessed of Perfection through Satan's Pride and adds O that ever a poor Worm of the Earth a very Lump of Sin and Corruption to think that he dare look God in the Face in a sinless Condition These need not a Psalm of Mercy saith the Lying Spirit in this Sam. Smith that writ that Book these will not be beholding to Christ To which I answer and say First It 's Blasphemy to say That the Regenerate Man's sinless Perfection is proud Satan's Work For it is Christ's Blessed Work to perfect his Saints as Eph. 4.12 13 14. and Chap. 5.25 26 27. And Secondly It 's a false Slander and unjust Accusation of us whom the World calls Quakers to say That we either say or think that any Worm of the Earth or Lump of Sin and Corruption either dares or ever possibly can look God in the Face or ever attain to a sinless Condition for Earth Sin and Corruption cannot enter into God's Kingdom or inherit Incorruption But this we say That the Regenerate who are Born again even Born of God of the Incorruptible Seed of his Heavenly Ever-living Word are sinless and perfect in Christ Jesus with whom they are one and in him do in all Holy Humility and Acceptance with the Father stand before his Throne where no Earth nor lumps of Sin and Corruption nor no false Accuser of the Brethren nor Respecter of Persons can ever come Again whereas this Man Sam. Smith saith The Evangelical Love before described is far short of that Love the Law requireth is a false Witness and Accuser of Christ as though he came to destroy or make void the Law But do not think saith Christ that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets but to fulfil And is not this the great Thing and Sum of all the Law and the Prophets thou shalt love the Lord God with all thy Soul Mind and Strength And doth not Christ the Power of God fulfil this in his Members Yea yea as Paul said expresly in Rom 8.4 before mentioned That the Righteousness of the Law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the Flesh but after the Spirit But now such as profess the Letter and want the Life and so walk not after the Spirit but the Flesh these do not love wholly nay not at all in Truth and so with this Smith are Breakers of the Law of God and so not at all in the Kingdom of God The next thing observable in this wretched Man's Book aforesaid called The Looking-glass is his grievous Opposition against the Doctrine of Perfection Where he saith That there is none so Godly Righteous or Religious here in this Life or can attain to that Measure of Grace to be Perfect but stands in need of the Exhortation Prayers and Godly Advice of others To which I answer and say That though godly Exhortation Prayers and Advice amongst Brethren of Christ be lovely yet for him to say There is none so perfect but stands in an absolute Necessity of these from Man is not true for the Apostle speaking not to the Teachers only but to the Brethren of Christ in general 1 John 2.27 These Things I have written to you concerning them that seduce you but the anointing which ye have of God the Holy One teacheth you all things and you need not that any Man teach
are approved may be made manifest He doth not say Heresies come for want of a Pope and General Council And I may add another Reason and that a main and universal one and that is Peoples either not living in the Spirit or not walking in the Spirit and so not keeping the Vnity of the Spirit in the Bond of Peace And so not keeping the Head to wit Christ in whom if the whole Body be coupled and knit together increase of the whole Body to wit the true Church is made to the Edifying of it self in Love and not otherwise Eph. 4. This is the Cause and continual Cause A Second Reason of those Differences saith that Popish Book is because the very Ground work of Protestancy is That all Men even the whole Church of God are Fallible and subject to Err so that they cannot pretend to Certainty or Infallibility saith he for any one Point of their Belief To which I say if any Protestant say the whole Church of God is Fallible and subject to Err if they understand the Church as Paul doth in Ephes 5.25 26 27. and as he doth in 1 Tim. 3.15 or as Christ doth in Mat. 16.18 where it is said The Gates of Hell shall not provail against it they do not well For though all Men as Men in Adam the Earthly are not only Fallible and subject to Err but also really in Deceit and Error yet in Christ Jesus the Second Adam the Lord from Heaven that quickning preserving Spirit of Truth there is no Fallibility nor Error as the Apostle saith 1 John 3. He that abideth in Christ sinneth not Ver. 6. And he that is Born of God sinneth not nor can sin Ver. 9. But what is all or any of this Glory to the Pope or his Synagogue which he falsly calls the Church of God For they do not attribute the Infallibility to the Eternal Spirit which is in every true Member of Christ's Church which is their Leader into and Preserver of their Souls into all Truth but to the Pope and General Councils as though Infallibility were annexed to the Dream of Peter's Chair and not to Christ's Spirit in the Faithful O the Abomination of Desolation that is in this Popish Doctrine But what is there such Unity amongst these Deluded Disciples of the Pope Surely nay for as we read there was amongst the Jews the several Sorts and Sects of Pharisees Sadducees Libertines Cirenians Alexandrians and the like yet all against Christ So in the Popish Hierarchy there are the several different and divided Sorts and Sects of Franciscans Dominicans Jesuits Cappuchins Carthusians and others all agreed this Day as of long time they have been against the Blessed Crown Kingdom Dignity and Dominion of our Lord Jesus Christ But these with all the rest of Mystery Babylon's Merchants have cause to wail because the Light and Spirit of God in Christ Jesus is broken forth in Power and great Glory this Day to judge them all that the Kingdom not Worldly but Heavenly may be given to the People of the Saints of the Most High God for an Everlasting Inheritance as in Dan. 7.27 Here also I may well take notice of some other words that this Popish Pleader hath in his Book Treating of this Matter viz. Since then saith he to be of one Religion is to be of one setled Perswasion in Points of Faith and seeling cannot be without Infallibility or Necessity it is not well possible that any two Protestants or Sectaries to be of one Religion every Man Expounding the Scripture as he lists and no one having Power to Controul the others Exposition of it I Answer and in the Power of Christ do grapple with this Beast that arose out of the Sea and with his Image also and do say That no Humane Conceit nor Natural Man's Exposition with the help of all the World's Wit and Skill whether Pope or other is infallible or binding or controuling But by the same Spirit that gave forth Scripture whether in a Fisherman Tradesman or other now as well as formerly is the Scripture rightly Understood and Expounded So the true Oneness in Religion stands in the Oneness of that Spirit that gave forth Scripture and gives a right understanding of it and of all things as the Apostle saith The Anointing which ye have of the Holy One teacheth all things and by it you know all things 1 John 2.20 And he that hath not this Spirit is none of Christ's Rom. 8.9 And he that is guided by this Spirit is a Spiritual Man and so not to be judged or controuled in his Spiritual Concernment by any Man of this World neither Pope nor other as saith the Apostle 1 Cor. 2.10 15. It is so But whereas he tells of every Man Expounding the Scripture as he lists I say this is the Pope and all his Priests Fault and of all the wicked World besides who are not in Heart and Life subject to that one Pure and Holy Spirit that is of Jesus that leads Spiritually into all Truth which Truth is one And so though they that are of another Spirit may agree never so much and in never so great numbers in their several Ways of Deceit yet the true Religion of God's Holy Ones in Light they still remain ignorant of And so his Blindness of imagining that Protestants and Sectaries as he calls them cannot be two of them of one Religion doth hereby fully appear For not only they but all the People of the Earth under what Name Notion or Profession soever are either the Children of Light or Children of Darkness and so not only two but all of the same sort may and do agree in the Root in their Religion if it may be called so though we know there is but one true Religion and that is truly and properly the Religion of God's People the Children of his Light even that which in Purity and Holiness binds their Hearts to God And so by this word Controuling which this Remish Agent here useth it is easily seen how the Pope hath set up and maintained his Wicked Kingdom that is to say by a Worldly Controuling Power over Mens Souls and Consciences and not by the Power of Truth For if his Earthly Power with his Worldly Assistants were taken from him his Decretals Expositions Bulls Excommunications and Curses for not obeying his Commands would be of little force this Day in the Earth because of the Light that God hath raised up in the Hearts of People this Day to discover him Glory to his Great Name for Evermore And so the true Judge and Controuler of all Judgments and Controulers is on his Throne this Day judging in Righteousness and on his White of Glorious Power going on Conquering and to Conquer the Man of Sin in all Lands and his Holy Ones in Light His Called Faithful and Chosen follow him with great Joy of Heart Rev. 19.11 12 13. He that hath an Ear let him hear what the Spirit
true Standing and ever Continuing Worship of God which is in Spirit and Truth For saith Christ God is a Spirit and they that Worship him must do it in Spirit even in his own Spirit and Truth So then they that are in the Flesh the Carnal Mind cannot Perform this Worship and so cannot Please God but a Carnal-minded One can observe your Days whether Fasts or Feasts and say all your Prayers and do all your Devotions which you are outwardly Exercised in from the one end of the Year to the other and so get a Name yet this avails nothing to the Kingdom of God Nay Paul the Apostle speaks further If I give all my Goods to Feed the Poor and my Body to be Burnt and have not the Love of God the true Charity Understanding within to Purge thy Heart from Sinful Self in the matter it is nothing For true Christians do not do good Works noâ— suffer for well doing that they may merit Salvation thereby but being saved freely by Grace through the Redemption which is in Christ Jesus they do good Works from the Heavenly Nature of that Holy Root that bears them and brings them forth as good Trees to Glorifie God in their Bodies and Souls which are his Tit. 3.8 And the Apostle Charging Titus to Exhort Believers to good Works was not because they were Saviours but because they were Profitable to Men as well as the Prophets And as for our Religion which the World and all the outside Professors of it look so slightly at and speak so Contemptibly of we would have you as well as the rest to know that it is truly Ancient Catholick Christian and Apostolical as having its Rise and Foundation in and from the Eternal Word which is Christ in us the Hope of our Glory whom the Apostle to the Colossians Preached as a Mystery formerly hid but then Revealed to the Gentiles even Christ in the Flesh the Hope of their Glory through Faith in his Name and this is God's Foundation the Foundation of Christ's Church another Foundation can no Man lay than this which God hath laid and this is the Rock not Peter but Christ who Peter by the Revelation of the Father Confessed unto And so through Faith in this Word Christ the Foundation and Rock of all the Righteous that ever were or ever shall be do we deny all the false Faiths and Works of all who have gotten the Name but want the Nature of true Christian People and so in the true Faith which gives Victory over the World and in the Name of Christ which is above every Name do we separate from them and meet together to Worship God in Spirit and Truth as he Requires us and his Blessed Presence in the midst of us according to Promise do we abundantly feel and witness to the great Rejoycing and Establishing of our Souls in Righteousness when thus met together And therefore do we Exhort all that Name Christ whether call'd Papists or Protestants to have Fellowship with us because our Fellowship is thus truly with the Father and the Son Therefore Awake Awake stand up from your Dead Faculties and Dead Worships that Christ who is the true Everlasting Way you may walk in and Worship in where no Uncircumcised or Unclean in Heart can come and if this you do not believe and bow your Heart accordingly to obey let me tell you as one who hath received Mercy to be Faithful you can never be Established with the Establishment of the Righteous for this is the Day that burns as an Oven where in all the Proud Wicked and False Professors and Confessors must be as Stubble and neither Root nor Branch must be left them because they will not have him the true Promised Seed and Heir of all things to Reign and Sway his Righteous Scepter in them and on them O! Look up to the Lord in a Trembling Soul and True Contrite Spirit to find Favour in his sight before the Door be shut and you stand without saying Lord Lord open to us And he Answer you in his Wrath because of your Unbelief and Disobedience saying Depart from me I know you not Workers of Iniquity for all are Workers of Iniquity in their highest Performances and greatest Conceits of themselves whose Works are not wrought in God that Spirit and Holy Power that Cleanses the Heart from all Sin and so brings Life to Light for God to be Praised in for the Dead cannot Praise him So consider what I say and be not Proud lest your Bands be made strong and your Feet stumble and then Fall upon the Dark Mountains where you have been too long Wandering Neither be so Foolish as to say This is but a Quaker who hath gotten some new Upstart Religion or so for in good Earnest I tell you the Truth which will stand when all Deceit and Devices of Men of corrupt Minds will come to naught for in the true Poverty of my Spirit hath the Lord according to Promise manifest his Blessed Kingdom in me and the pure Hunger and Thirst of my Soul which was after him and his Righteousness that he Graciously satisfied And therefore am Constrained in pure Love to your Souls to invite you as well as others to come out of the Prodigal State into the Heavenly Fathers House Christ Jesus as himself said My Father is in me and I in him and as the Apostle said It pleased the Father that all fulness should dwell in him for in this House and no where else is there Bread enough true Living Bread for the Hunger of the Immortal Soul as he said of himself in John 6. before any thing was spoken concerning the Bread and Wine at his last Supper I am the Living Bread the Heavenly Bread and when the Hearers Carnally Questioned How he could give them his Flesh to Eat he told them The Flesh Profiâ—ed nothing it was the Spirit that Quickened So come away Come away from your Carnal Conceivings of a Heavenly Man the Lord from Heaven to be Comprehended in a little Earthly Bread or Wine seeing the Heaven and the Heaven of Heavens contain him not much less outward Temples and outward Elements of Bread or Wine For unto his Light that is night you which shineth in your Dark Hearts though your Darkness Comprehend it not must you come and there wait for the Day to dawn in you or these Mysteries of his Kingdom you can never truly Know but in your Darkness grope and stumble for ever as People without Eyes and though this Heavenly Seed the Word the Light appear little in you yet despise it not for in it is the Blessing and if you receive it and in it abide you will know all this and it will work in you as Leaven in Meal till your whole Lumpâ— ' Heavenly Sweet and Pure and so as Christ said If thy Eye be single to wit single in and to the Lord in his Light to Believe and Walk then thy whole
TRVTH 's INNOCENCY AND SIMPLICITY SHINING Through the Conversion Gospel-Ministry Labours Epistles of Love Testimonies and Warnings to Professors and Profane With the Long and Patient Sufferings of that Ancient and Faithful Minister and Servant of JESUS CHRIST Thomas Taylor Who finish'd his Course in the Year MDCLXXXI 1 Thess 2.5 6. For neither at any time used we flattering words nor a Cloak of Covetousness God is Witness Nor of Men sought we Glory c. LONDON Printed and Sold by T. Sowle next Door to the Meeting-house in White-Hart-Court in Gracious-street and at the Bible in Leaden-hall-street near the Market 1697. AN EPISTLE TO ALL Friendly and Impartial READERS THE Ensuing Collection is Recommended to your Serious Perusal Charitable and Tender Considerations wherein expect not to find either Empty Flourishes Curiosity of Speech or Acquired Eloquence but Plainness and Simplicity wherein the Substantial Truth is sincerely aimed and pointed at The Author by the Grace of God through Jesus Christ being Converted from a Literal Worldly and Mercenary Priest tho' one of the Better Sort to be a Spiritual Minister of Christ and Free Preacher of Righteousness in Life and Doctrine knowing that Gospel-Ministers and good Preachers must be good Livers none being meet to Convert others to God or Christ but who are first truly Converted themselves by his Power This Innocent and Upright-hearted Man Thomas Taylor seeing the great Corruptions Pride and Covetousness and other Enormities among too many of the Worldly Teachers Priests and Hearers was the more Fervent in his Testimony against them who pleased themselves and others with good Words whilst they lived Bad Lives This our Deceased Brother and Servant of Jesus Christ when Sufferings or Storms approached or Wolves appeared to Devour did not Flee with Hirelings nor Flatter with Temporizers nor Admire Mens Persons for Advantage but as one having a fixed Confidence in the Lord and true Zeal for his Glory was Valiant for his Truth on Earth and used much Plainness in his Ministry Testimony and Warnings both to High and Low Professors and Profane not sparing Disguis'd Hypocrites or Deceitful Workers no more than Open and Gross Offenders but as a Partaker of the same Spirit and Life the Primitive Ministers of Christ were in according to his Measure was Exercised in the like Sincerity Uprightness and Self-denial intimated in 2 Cor. 2.17 For we are not as many which deal deceitfully with or make Merchandize of the Word of God and 1 Thes 2.3 For our Exhortation was not of Deceit nor of Vncleanness nor in Guile Ver. 4. But as we were allowed of God to be put in Trust with the Gospel even so we speak not as pleasing Men but God which trieth our Hearts Ver. 5. For neither at any time used we flattering words as ye know nor a Cloak of Covetousness God is witness Ver. 6. Nor of Men sought we Glory neither of you nor yet of others c. In like manner this Faithful Servant of Christ whom we now speak of did not sooth up People in their Sins nor sow Pillows under their Arm-holes like False Sin-pleasing Prophets but in Tender Love and Pity to their Poor Souls Faithfully Warned them and Perswaded them to Repentance as one knowing the Terrors of the Lord and Revelation of his Righteous Judgments against all Unrighteousness of Men being also sensible when the Lord had spoken who can but Prophesie And when he saith Cry aloud and spare not lift up thy Voice like a Trumpet and shew the People their Wickedness Abominations and Transgrâ—ssions What Faithful Messenger dare be silent He was a true Encourager of Vertue and Witness against Vice and Profaneness and the Lord was with him in his Christian Labours Mâ—â—â—stry and Deep Sufferings Wherefore Friendly Readers let not the Simplicity of his Stile nor his Plainness Sharpness or Zeal against Hypocrisie or Deceit offend you in the following Collection or any Passages therein we hope there is nothing in them justly offensive or that may not bear a Charitable and Just Construction with the Impartial and Unprejudic'd if any thing should seem Dubious Though where Prejudice or Envy is against Persons or Things how Just soever it will carp and quarrel at the Clearest Truths as hath appeared both from Envious Apostates and other Enemies to Christ and his Followers The Holy Scriptures themselves not escaping the Causeless Cavils of Irreligious and Atheistical Persons This Faithful and Zealous Servant of Christ was Divinely endued with a Gospel-Spirit and Ministry and was of a True Christian Gentle and Humble Disposition and his Judgment was mix'd with Mercy and Compassion to poor Souls and his Company and Society was Sweet and Acceptable to all the Faithful in Christ who had a True and Spiritual Knowledge of him and Acquaintance with him He sincerely affected Christian Humility Poverty of Spirit and Simplicity in Christ beyond all Artificial Painting and Humane Acquirements And seeing the Vanity of all Airy Notions Scholastick Craft and Self-righteousness he laid it all aside and was Refin'd from all that Dross esteeming the pure Gold the Heavenly Treasure the Excellency of the Knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord above all therein asserting his Sincerity and Innocency when a Prisoner in about 1665 in Praise to the Lord God who supported him in his Sufferings Patience and Innocent Condition Concerning which please to observe his own Testimony inserted here as followeth viz. This is my Confidence in the Sight of the Lord God and my Clearness before all People that though I have been hated and persecuted and evil spoken of by many these many Years yet it hath altogether been without Cause I praise the Lord. For I can truly say That I never sought the Hurt of any Man living upon the Earth though in Matters of Religion or otherwise he was never so contrary to me or against me Yea the Terrors of God and his Truth did preserve my Heart from seeking my own Revenges but taught me still to commit my Cause to God and he according to his Word did still bring forth my Righteousness as the Light and my Judgment and Just Dealing as the Noon-day Psal 37.5 6. to his Holy Name 's Praise and my Soul 's great Rejoycing and did still let me see that the patient abiding of the Meek is never forgotten of God And so though I have been kept here a Prisoner above four Years for my pure Conscience sake to God yet to the King and the People under whom I Suffer have I done no Harm nor can think or intend them Evil but have endeavoured in all things in the Power of God as a true Christian to live peaceably with all Men as those that have known me from the beginning can witness For I never drew Sword nor Plotted against any nor could ever perswade any others so to do but have still lamented the Misery of Mankind to see them instead of Loving and Helping one another contrariwise Hating Biting Devouring and
agree to set at naught The living Virtue by which Saints are taught And so at large the wicked Mind is left In Vnbeliâ—vers to make up by theft And stealth in their out-side and vain Profession What they of Truth do want in true Possession But Babes of Zion feed upon that Bread The real Substance Jesus Christ their Head Which came from Heaven and thither hath them led With him to rest in his Eternal Bâ—d They feed upon him in the Mistery Hid from the Raven and the Vulters Eye For where the Body is the Saints Resort And there are kept secure as in a Fort Of Brass or Iron where the Table 's Ready All day full fraught with Dainties for the Needy Yea for the Needy and the Hungry Soul To take and freely Feed without Controul When false prophane Professors in the double Mind Much seem and dream they Eat but all 's but Air and Wind. Of Prayers WHen as a tuned Instrument my Mind is in the Lord Well set and with his Power Assist O then I can Record The mighty Acts and wonders great of him that Rules on High And of his great Magnificence from whom the Heavens do fly And Earth also when he is pleased to make his Power known In Mercies and in Judgments deep for such as are his own When â—â—e an Arm of Help doth reach unto the needy Soul When he the daring Power of the Enemy doth Controul O then I say what Treasure can before his Presence stand Before his Glorious Face who is the Lord of Sea and Land Where Kings and Princes are as Dust and nothing in his sight Yea all who in their carnal Minds against his Glory fight Yet he doth make his Residence with every humble Heart That loves his Name and from his Truth by no means can depart His presence is their perfect stay and they in him can say He is our Rock that nothing shall our Spirits much dismay Yea though our Troubles for a Night or so upon us lye Yet in the Morning we are Saved as we to him did cry So be it Concerning ZION IF I Jerusalem forget a People sav'd from Pride Then let my Skilful Hand forget the warbling Harp to guide And if Mount Zion in my Joy I do not still set up Then let my Tongue cleave to my Mouth and taste of Sorrows Cup. said David So shall the Seed of David now in Heart and Pen endeavour The Praise of Zion to Record and of her God for ever And Blessed are those Men on Earth that with us now take part In this our Work of Innocence when all the rest must smart For how can Israel 's Kingdom be the Portion of such Wights As will not have God's Truth to Raign but still against it Fights The Life more than Cloaths and Meat O Lord God my Life is in thy Service and my Soul 's Everlasting Peace and Satisfaction in thy Love all the Things of this World are of an empty fading Nature and yield not the least true Content unto the Immortal Soul but only answer a Mortal Necessity as the Apostle saith Meat 's for the Belly and the Belly for Meats but God will destroy both iâ— and them so Cloaths for the Back and the Back for Cloaths but God will destroy both it and them and so for other things of the World they serve but only for Worldly and Temporal Necessities but now Man made in the Image of God breaths after a more Excellent Good than this World hath to give for in the Soul which is Mortal there abides an Immortal Desire and from that an Immortal Cry after that Holy and Heavenly Food of Life which is in the full Hand of God to give and so when that is received and digested in the pure Mind then goes forth Praises and Thanksgivings to the Lord the pure and fall Fountain of all Everlasting and Eternal good Things and so happy they who come through the Obedience of the Truth to have their Hearts seasoned with this Heavenly Salt of the Word of God the Living Word which abides for Ever For in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and that Word was God and is the Lise and Light of Man and all places in Man which is not filled with this Living Light is full of Darkness and the dark places of the Earth are full of the Habitations of Unrighteousness and Cruelty and there is engendred all the Ravenous Birds and Beasts of Prey all the fiery stinging Serpents and every Venemous Thing which annoys hurts and disquiets the Living Plant which God hath planted in the Paradise of his Pleasure and seeks to devour the Man-child as soon as it is Born but into the Arms of the Eternal Power of Life is the Babe taken and by the Choicest Angel is the Plant watered and defended and so the wicked is disappointed of his Prey and therefore doth he retreat into his Den of Darkness gnawing his Tongue because of his Plagues So be it O Lord our Strength and mighty Joy How Glorious is thy Name within our Hearts We cannot cease to Preach thy Truth Though for it at us Satan shoot his Darts Though Hell be broken loose upon the Earth To vent its Malice for a little time And make the Righteous Man his Butt to shoot at Yet God will Plague them for their mighty Crime The greatness of their Evil passeth thought Their Sins in number far exceeds the Sand And therefore will the Lord against them plead With all his Judgments in his Wrathful Hand And though great Trials be to try the Faith Of pure and upright hearted People now Yet that pure holy Power will us defend Who makes the very Devils fear and bow To the Unsatiable Devourers of Strong Drink WHat Hellish Spark is that in your Inflamed Brest Which neither suffer's God nor Man to Rest But doth disorder even the whole Creation Bringing God's Judgments thick on every Nation Ye will not hear nor learn the thing that 's good But eat and drink up Sin your daily Food Be filthy still ye filthy Ones and when Your Measure is full your dreadful Doom comes then Thomas Taylor HE that to Glory would attain And many Happy Days would see His Tongue from Evil must refrain And eke his Heart from Sin keep free He must both watch and ward in Heart And persevere in that good deed Lest Satan wound him with his Dart As he doth all that take not heed Such must not promise to themselves Great things on Earth as Sinners do Who build and plant and root therein As from it they would never go But he that to the Heavens would come To dwell in that which never fades Must not in the World set up his Rest Nor shelter under Mortal shades TO MY Dear Friends every where O My Friends and Faithful to God whose Hearts are Tender and Zealous after the Lord and his Honour in this day of the Tryal of our most
evil part and a full Resurrection of the spiritual over it so rests your Dear Brother in the Unity of the same Blessed Living Victorious Faith Thomas Taylor From the Place of my Confinement for the Everliving Testimony of Jesus in the Fifth Month 1664. TO Friends in LONDON OYE my Dear Friends and Beloved of the Lord in the City of London my Love in the Lord Our Life is drawn out at this time to salute you with an Epistle of pure and unfeigned Love because you are Dear and near unto my very Heart in the feeling Life which hath given us the Blessed Victory over all Sin and Works and Words of Death to serve the Will of our Heavenly Father with all Fervency and Perseverance in our Day Age and Generation to the Praise and Glory of his Grace in Jesus Christ our Lord whom our Souls can never cease to love because the Savour of his good Oyntment is ever fresh upon our Souls and his Law of Life it is that we daily seel to have set us free and to keep us free from the Law of Sin and Death Praised be the God of our Salvation for his unspeakable Gift though the Enemy of one hand say we are no Christians and on the other hand call us a Form and bark at our Holy Unity and Blessed Agreement in the ever-living Truth and exercise of it for the good one of another and Service of all Yet over all these unclean and unrighteous Spirits and all others of like nature we are more than Conquerors and like a Rock unmoveable which the Enemy may split himself with dashing against Yet Praised be the Lord our Rock stands sure for it is Holy Pure and Everlasting and the Gates of Hell shall never be able in the least to prevail against it nor us as we upon it continue rooted and grounded in the Love of God and one of another in his Seed where all the Promises of Life and Salvation are Yea and Amen for ever And so you my Dear Friends and much longed after in the Lord when I consider the many Tryals and great Contradiction of Sinners of all sorts which for the Love and Zeal of our Holy Lord God and his unchangeable Truth you have endured from the beginning my Heart is greatly affected with the Glory and cannot but Praise the Lord for you that you are even become as a Bullwark of his Truth in the midst of a crooked degenerate and Back-sliding Nation who though like Sampson's Foxes they look with Faces several ways yet in Heart are one every one with Firebrands and Stings in their Tails like Scorpions to do Mischief by stirring up the bad part in People against the Simplicity of the Gospel of Love and Life of our Lord Jesus Christ which would gather unite and heal all of all their Soul-Maladies for ever if they did not make themselves unworthy of But O how the Truth to you doth still abide in its Lustre and Glory without Alteration knowing that you as we your Brethren in the same every where are set for the Defence of the Gospel The Lord hath set his Love upon us and it is from Everlasting to Everlasting and therefore in his Name and perfect Goodness may we safely trust and Storms will be over and his unspeakable Peace and Joy which is with us and hath so unspeakably refreshed us shall be with us for ever We need not go to the Egyptians for help as the Wicked do for in the God of Israel is our Hope and Help who keeps Mercy and Covenant with his Dear People for ever and ever And when I also consider how the Samballat and Tobias of this Age say on one hand What will these silly returning Captives do And on the other when I see the little Horn with a Countenance more stout than his Fellows in his very Words of Reproach and Work of Scattering tell of your Scattering whom God hath gathered I cannot but say O Lord Bless thy People whom thou hast so powerfully delivered and govern and keep their Hearts in perfect Peace with thee through all and over all even as thou dost this day for ever and ever that many may come to the Brightness of our day and Glory of our Kingdom which is not of this World but of God eternal our Father who is over all Blessed for ever So under the Shadow of his ever-blessed Wing my Dear Brethren and Sisters dwell and here is the true Munition of Rocks where the Living Bread is sure and the Living Waters never fail rests your Dear Brother in the Patience and Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ at present in outward Bonds for the Testimony of his Truth in this place Thomas Taylor Stafford 21st of the 12th Month 1667. And I desire that this may be communicated as the Nature of it requires to the whole Flock of God in and about the City in the precious Wisdom of God with Bowels of Love unto you all So be it TO Friends of SUDBURY Side DEar Friends and Well-beloved in the Lord Brethren and Sisters in the Holy Covenant of his Everlasting Love my very Heart and Soul doth dearly salute you all and often do I remember you in the Dearest Affections of unfeigned Love as is meet knowing your Love and Tenderness to God's Truth and me your Dear Friend and Brother for the Truth 's sake from the beginning and how the Lord of his Infinite Love in Christ Jesus hath separated us from the present evil World for himself to hold forth his Vertues before the Children of Men in a pure Life and so to feed at his Table as the Faithful do in the unspeakable Fellowship of his Eternal Spirit of Life and Peace whereby O how often yea how continually he hath and daily doth refresh feed and strengthen our pure Minds as in the simplicity of our Hearts together or asunder as to the outward we have and do daily wait upon him and in his Light are staid upon his Power in our inward Man to the Praise of his Glory which makes us that we cannot but love him and one another in and for him and so we cannot but remember him and one another and so pray for and rejoice in one another's welfare as living Members of his Heavenly Body who is over all God Blessed for Ever who is the Shepherd and Bishop of our Souls and therefore we shall not want nor miscarry as we abide in his Love and this we know Dear Hearts that as we keep his Commandments we do abide in his Love and are at Rest in his Power Many from the Letter may say God is their Shepherd or so and therefore they shall not want but truly Friends there is none can say this in Truth but who are led by him and subject to him in Heart and Life they are the Sheep of Christ who hear his Voice and follow him in the Regeneration not losing their first Love but growing and continuing in it
His limitless Nature to a creatural Form like thy self as the Wicked do who know him not And so of that Beast and mysterious Babylon thou art who this day with their many Heads and Horns and Forms of False Knowledge and Worships and Churches so called do all with one Consent push and fight against the Lamb the Light and Son of the Incomprehensible and Infinite Father and his Faithful Followers but the Lamb both hath and ever shall have the Victory and the Mouth of all Iniquity shall be stopped saith my Soul And so well had it been for thee if thou hadst continued Faithful amongst us but a Wanderer and Unfaithful in Heart hast thou been many a day and so the Whore that watched in the Evening for the unwary young Man hath caught thee in her Net and there thou art a Slave in the Bands of Darkness to the great Wounding of thy poor imprisoned Soul Thomas Taylor TO George Ward And those that had Fellowship with him GEorge Ward to thy self and those in Fellowship with thee whether Speakers or Hearers a few Words from the Movings of God in my Heart You are weighed in the Ballance and are found wanting and the Glory of the Holy Kingdom of God you are fallen short of in your Unbelief and have not a Heart as yet to walk in the strait and narrow Way that leads unto it You have not suffered your Minds and Souls to be guided by the pure Light of Jesus Christ that hath Visited you in great Love in these Days but have rather chosen to follow your own Thoughts and wrong Expositions of Scripture to your great hurt And because you have Preached and Professed that washing the outward Water is the only Gate in the Christian Fellowship you are both to loose your Credit amongst Men by owning the more Excellent and Everlasting Way though it be most plainly declared and by the Spirit demonstrated to you in these Days And so you go about to Establish that which makes nothing perfect in Opposition to the Power of God which only makes Perfect And so you resemble them of old who stuck in the Shadows of the Law in Opposition to him that was the End of the Law and came to fulfil it Christ Jesus over all God Blessed for ever And so if I could have found in you a true Desire after God's Kingdom may be I might have gotten a little Liberty to have Reasoned with you at this time of the things thereof But seeing there hath been so many Endeavours and Desires in us after your Eternal Good and ye will not come to Christ to know him in you that you may have Life for this time I thus rest in Peace with my God the Righteous Judge believing that in his own Way and Time he will Silence every Tongue that moves against his Blessed Truth the Light and those that love it and follow it in the Regeneration in this Day of his Power wherein the willing People are brought up through the Death of the Flesh to serve the Lord in the Land of the Living in new Jerusalem as our Souls do this Day ever Praised be his Name the Arm of his Holiness for it is worthy And now where is the Disputer of this World who pleads for seen things which Quicken not the Souls and will not have the Invisible God who is the Resurrection of the Life to Rule in them but are glad when they can get any thing seemingly that makes for them in their perishing Way But our Work is Praised be God to hold the Faith which was once delivered to the Saints in a pure Conscience and in the Ability that God giveth us to help to bring People to God where is the true Rest for ever And those that will not submit their Minds Hearts and Souls to the Light of the Eternal Word which is nigh in the Heart shall never be Established in Righteousness and Peace but shall weary themselves in the very Fires for Vanity and this we have Learned through many Tribulations Blessed be God for his Unspeakable Gift and so if you be Wise be Wise for your Souls and Learn with us to sit in Silence at Jesus Feet to know what he requires of you and cease your running and doing without him for you have spent too much time in Vain already seeing the Spirit of the World is unfallen in you Rests your Souls Friend and a Lover of the whole Creation of God being become a willing Sufferer for the Holy Seeds Sake And whereas you or some of you seem Offended that Widdow Cock hath left you and come amongst us and say she hath done it and yet given you no sufficient Reason and Satisfaction for her so doing I say that Reason I suppose she hath shown sufficient to some of you but to give Satisfaction to you in it that is hard seeing you Speak Evil of the Good Way of God which she hath tasted of amongst us for of a Truth the Lord and his Power and Presence is with us Blessed be his Name for ever And she stayed too long upon the barren Mountains where your Flocks Feed Thomas Taylor TO A Plundering Priest YOUNG Man all thy Prayers Preachings and Praises are Abomination to God so long as thou keepest the Just in Bondage Thou being but newly as it were come on to the Stage of the World begins thy part very badly if thou hadst been as an old over-grown Tree in Customs of Covetousness less could not be expected from thee than what some in Swaledale have sound But thou being as I hear a young Man under the Notion of a Schollar nay more of a Minister of the Gospel to fall on a Suing People at Law and putting in Prison upon account of Hire quite stains all thy Glory and blasts thy Reputation with the Odium of a Hireling and Fersecutor Thou might consider if the God of this World had not blinded thy Mind what thou daily as it were reads in the Scripture Whatsoever ye would that Men should do unto you even so do unto them for this is the Law and the Prophets And if thou be not come so far as the Law and the Prophets thou art most unfit to take the Gospel into thy Mouth For without all question if thy Condition had been Michael Râ—w's thou would have accounted it hard Measure to have been so dealt withall as thou hast dealt with him A Man with a Wife and ten or eleven Children depending much upon his Labour for their Maintenance and this Man to be put into Prison and there kept from year to year for nothing at all but because for Conscience-sake to God he cannot put into thy Mouth What a Cry this hath and will have in the Ears of God it concerns thee deeply to consider for he is well known not to with-hold Right from any where it is due But though his Sufferings for time be long yet thine if thou repent not will be very
much longer for it is a very fearful thing for thee thus in thy Sins to fall into the Hands of the Living God So whilst thou hast time prize it and say not within thy self that thou shalt have Peace though thou continue in this thy Hard-heartedness for certainly there is no Peace from the Holy Just and Merciful God to any abiding in the Paths thou walkest in So if thou hast an Ear hear what the Spirit of Truth saith unto thee in his Servant Thomas Taylor To those that Rejoyce in Bells and Bonefires WO Wo from the Lord to this Heathenish manner of Rejoycing with Bells and Bonefires Have you not learned it from those Wicked People called Papists for Deliverance from whom you seem to Rejoyce And so instead of honouring God with your Mirth you greatly grieve and burden his good Spirit And therefore your â—ins remain and Judgment after Judgment still waits for you until you turn to God with your Hearts which yet to this day you have not done O People of Stafford and of all England who delight in such vain things yea though Mercy after Mercy you have been tried with yet still you are doing what you should not do and leaving undone what God wills you to do and so indeed have no Spiritual Health or Soundness in you but all full of Putrifying Sores you are and so unfit to enter God's Holy and Heavenly Temple And that which makes your Wound uncurable you cannot endure to have your Wounds searched to the bottom but such as can dawâ— you over with their untempered Mortar and call you good People and good Christians when your Lives loudly witness the contrary those you account your Friends And therefore will the Lord judge you according to your Deeds and according to the Fruit of your Doings will he reward you if you speedily return not to him with your whole Heart for a short Work will God make upon the Earth when neither one Name nor another nor one Profession nor another shall be able to hide the Wicked from his Stroke for it 's in the Truth it self as Truth is in Jesus that the safe Hiding-place will be and â—o where else as saith his good Spirit in his Servant Thomas Taylor To them that plays the Fool upon the Stage THOU that plays the Foolish Man upon the Stage and invents all the Lyes and vain things that ever thou canst to move Laughter in the Rude Multitude which is Madness as Solomon speaks and all this for filthy Lucre I demand of thee whether thou believest that there is a God that will call into Judgment all Mens Words and Deeds yea to the very Thoughts and Intents of the Heart and whether Christ's words are true which say that for every idle word that Men shall speak they must give account thereof in the Day of Judgment And if this be true as most true it is then how wilt thou stand in thy multitude of vain idle unclean and corrupting words before the Righteous Judge of Heaven and Earth whose Wrath is kindled against all such as have even thus sold themselves to do Iniquity And his Judgment is near and the Judge even at the Door therefore in love to thy Soul I write this that if possible thou mayst repent and not Perish Eternally O ye People whose Eyes are abroad and whose Minds are in the Vanities of this World wandered from the Lord How can ye behold such Men as these doing such Foolish things upon the Stage without all fear of God and care what any one that fears God can say against them and yet profess themselves to be Christians How can ye forbear to reprove them Doth not the Apostle say to Christians Have no Fellowship with the unfruitful Works of Darkness but rather reprove them And this is a Work of gross Darkness for People to profess Christ to do these Deeds of the Heathen who said their Tongues was their own and they may use them at their pleasure But God will call into Judgment every vile vain and unclean Word and account must Men give for them and then Wo to the Wicked and all that love Lyes and such vain Inventions as this Foolish Man upon the Stage for filthy Lucre doth practice So People fear God and repent of your Deeds for the Lord God is at the Door ready to judge the present evil World for all their Iniquities Thomas Taylor Against Mass-Times WO to this degenerate World of People called Christians What shall be said concerning you and who shall declare your Misery For as you have multiplied your Transgressions as the Sand of the Sea so will the Lord multiply his Judgments and Plagues upon you for you have violated the Laws and broken down the Bond of that everlasting Covenant that should have redeemed and kept your Souls to God and you have wholly suffered the Spirit of this wicked World to carry you away Captive by Millions and Multitudes into the Land of Darkness and Wickedness which is Spiritually called Sodom and Egypt where our Lord was Crucified and is at this day trodden under foot by you where the Abominations of the Heathen and Superstitions of the Jews are kept up by you and practiced in the face of the Sun and many of them held up by force of a Law and such as depart from the Iniquities thereof even become a Prey to you So that the Lord hath dashed you together for many Generations like a Pot-sheard one against another and will yet dash you together for your great Iniquities and grievous Idolatries and will raise up his Plant of Renown from amongst you and become the Teacher of his People himself and they shall no more be a Prey to the Teeth of the Dragon Wolf nor Fox but shall feed in the good Pasture as in the beginning before Antichrist was and the Temples of Antichrist with the False Worships therein shall be a Desolation for evermore Wo Wo to all ye observers of Mass times and Tides and Seasons of the Year wherein the Spirit of this wicked World which is called Satan God's Adversary and Antichrist Christ's Enemy sets you at liberty to do all those Evils and abominable Works wherewith the Spirit of the Holy Lord God that made you is so much burdened and gâ—ieved from one end of the Year unto the other so that he can smell no sweet Smell in any of your Sacrifices that you offer up unto him because of the gross Darkness of your willfully deceived Hearts and the great Filthiness of your polluted Hands O how the Lord and his good Spirit in all is pressed under the weight of your Iniquities as a Cart under her Sheaves And therefore hath the Lord rejected your Confidence and called you Loruhamah not Beloved and Loammi not his People for as the Plant of a degenerate Vine are you to him a Field over-grown with Weeds and your Spot is not the Spot of his People and therefore into the great Captivity are
laid to Heart and not at all to be slighted And therefore I say unto you O People even you that love your Souls and are not yet come to the true Rest Christ Jesus in Spirit but are wandering from Mountain to Hill after the Hireling-Teachers one day after another and yet are not satisfied with their empty Words but are dead dry and barren in Heart as to the Power of Godliness after all your Money spent and Labour taken I said Is not this an evident Sign that it is not Bread that hath by them been ministred to you but the Chaff of Mens Inventions For saith the Lord Does not my words do good to them that desire after me But alas People the Hireling's Words which he sells you for Money are not the Word of God but only what he hath gathered and conceived from the Letter of another Man's Line and so cannot profit you though you should hear never so much of it no more than Chaff can feed And so do not say the Fault is not in our Teachers but only in us For I say unto you in the Spirit of Truth the Fault is now in you both for the Day of God is dawned and now you are both warned and so are left both without Excuse There was a Time of Darkness and Ignorance which God winked at but now the Life is manifest and the true Light that enlightens being broken forth through the Clouds you are hereby warned and all every where exhorted to Repent So harken to the measure of that Light that shines in your dark Hearts which convinceth you of Sin and Unbelief and would lead you from them this is the Word of the Spirit of God that is nigh you where-ever you are and from whose sight you can hide nothing though never so secret Here is your Guide to God and Life eternal if you love it and here is the Door that shuts you out from God and his Glory if you hate it so prize your time and while you have time learn to know this Light of Christ in your Consciences to be your Teacher and only Guide For why will ye die why cease you not from Man whose breath is in his Nostrils that broken Cistern Time will come when Fools will wish they had been wiser and when God's Witness will be remembred and when such as now Suffer for Righteousness sake will be had in Honour Rests as always your Friend Thomas Taylor And you that go carelesly by this Window and do not regard the Word of the Lord Hear the Word of the Lord ye Careless ones ye go and come from the Steeple-house and in your Minds secretly conclude that you shall have Peace and no Evil shall come upon you when the Lord God hath spoken no Peace to you for there is no Peace to the Wicked and there you are even in the Wickedness under the Wrath of God for the Wrath of God abides upon all the Children of Disobedience And verily the Lord is arising in mighty Power to Judge the World by Jesus Christ whom ye have Crucified and whose Counsels you have set at naught and have chosen rather to follow the Hireling-Teacher and his ways than the way of the Lord God So consider what is here said and run not head-long to your own Destruction for what account can ye give to a pure God in the day of his fierce Wrath who are not yet at all cleansed from your Unrighteousness Will your crying Lord Lord Save ye who are found doing your own Wills and satisfying your own Lushs without Repentance To that in your Conscience I speak which in the day when the Book of your Conscience is opened will justifie the Truth of these things against you all who in the broad way are found at that day to Condemnation and the Day is at hand and the Judge is at the Door and Wo will be to such as put it far off Rests the Lord's Servant still in this Prison but the Truth cannot be bound Thomas Taylor To King Charles the Second concerning Persecution c. IT is in my Heart as from the Lord God of Heaven and Earth to warn thee to stop the Current of that grievous Persecution which is raised up against us the Harmless People of God in Scorn called Quakers for our pure Conscience sake at this day For of a Truth the Lord God hath raised us up in his eternal Love to be his People to bear his Name in Righteousness before the Children of Men and so to exercise our Consciences in a pure Love and true Good Will towards God and all Men as he hath taught us and doth teach all that come to him And therefore weigh things well in thy Heart in the cool of the day and be not a means of injuring us for this the Exercise of our pure Conscience for truly the Lord Jesus Christ is highly displeased already for what is done against us O consider consider Doth not his Holy Eye behold and his Heavenly Heart consider the great Wrongs that are daily done us for his Names sake our Bodies imprisoned our Estates spoiled our Meeting-houses pulled down yea whole Families ruined as to the outward World for no other cause but because we cannot cease to meet together in his Name as he requires us and required his in a most harmless and peaceable manner as his People in former Ages did and as we have always done since we were to God a People And never let it be said that Charles the Second disappointed the Good People of the Land under his Government of their Expectations for behold we looked for the Continuance of Good Things from thee because of some words passed out of thy Mouth but behold great Evil hath ensued O let not the Evil Counsel of thy own Heart or of others cause thee to go on in that which will certainly bring God's Judgments upon thy Soul and Body and the whole Nation if it be persisted in as this present undertaking against us will do We desire not your Ruin no more than our own but this we know certainly and the Scripture of Truth abundantly witnesses it That never did any Prosper who did or suffered to be done so great Injury against a Harmless and Innocent People as we are known to God to be O let not the King believe any longer the vain and false Suggestions of evil Men against us If we had had any Mind against the King's Welfare we should not have had that Boldness that we have in God's sight and thine but now knowing in our Consciences that all our Endeavours have been from the beginning how to gloâ—ifie God and to serve all Men in Love to this day therefore are our Hearts in God's Truth greatly strengthened and emboldened to hold forth our Innocency before thee and all Men For the Righteous are bold as a Lyon praised be God for ever And why should it seem strange to thee or any at this day that
Thoughts and that such a sorry Service as you offer to him will please so great a Majesty Truly the Lord might justly give you into the hands of those he hath thus delivered you from because of your Sins and because you lay not his Goodness to Heart as a truly thankful People do So whilst you have time prize it and awake out of Sleep and come to the Light of God in you the Soul's Searcher and it will let you see the Truth and Seasonableness of my Words that you may repent of all your Sins and sinful Sacrifices and learn to offer unto God your whole Heart to be disposed of to his Will and Service that by his Power he may purge you and through his Righteous Judgments he may make you clean in Heart for his use who is over all blessed for ever And who is seeking such Holy Worshippers in this day of his Power wherein he is arisen to purge the Earth with his fiery flaming Word and to slay the wicked with the Sword of his Mouth Thomas Taylor To the Sons of Vanity YE Sons of Vanity whose Exercise and Delight is not all in God and Goodness but in Sin and Vanity to the darkning and separating of your Souls from that blessed Peace which the Saints in Light enjoy with the Lord God O the miserable Desolations that Sin in this Night of Apostacy hath made in the Earth yet Glory to God though the Egyptians sit in the grossest Darkness yet the Children of Israel who fear the Lord and work Righteousness have Light in all their Dwellings And in that Light they stand Witnesses for God continually against all vain Inventions and cruel Sports of Men of corrupt Minds whom God will Judge and severely Punish in his Judgment-Day O consider this ye Cock-Fighters Bull-Baiters and all that forget God for the Judgment hastens and who shall stand in the Gap for wilful Transgressors What did ye seem to humble your selves lately in a Publick Fast for your Sins and are you so quickly turned again to the Vomit of your old Vanities How should the Lord but smite the Land for these things From a Servant of God these Thomas Taylor Who they are that only Rejoyce in the Birth of Christ NOne can rightly Rejoyce in the Birth of Christ but the Spiritual New-Born in Christ Those that think to please Christ with Eating and Drinking and Sporting and Playing are Garnally-minded and the Carnal Mind cannot please God Rom. 8.6 7 8. so it s manifest that the Service and Kingdom of God stands not in Meats and Drinks and foolish and worldly Delights but in Righteousness and Peace and Joy in the Holy Ghost Rom. 14.17 For Meats for the Belly and the Belly for Meats but God will destroy both it and them saith the Apostle But God will never destroy such as Serve and Worship him in Spirit and Truth all the days of their new and redeemed Life and so it is manifest the more Spiritual that any one is the more are they dead and separated from that foolish Mind and vain Customs that the evil World loves and lives in And on the contrary those that make most Provision for Flesh to satisfie it in the Lusts thereof let the time be what it may are the greâ—test Enemies to Christ and their own Souls So let things be well weighed and considered and it will appear to the open Eve that God is not more dishonoured in any Twelve Days of the Year than in these that People pretend most to Honour him in which to a Godly Heart cannot but be matter of great Sorrow as saith the Apostle Phil. 3.18.18 Many walk of whom I have told you often and now tell you even weeping that they are Enemies to the Cross of Christ Whose end is Destruction whose God is their Belly and whose Glory is in their Shame who mind earthly things And this is the miserable and woful Condition of too great a part of the People that in these days bear the Name of Christians over whom the Spirit Mourns Thomas Taylor A Testimony against Persecution to King Charles the Second and his Magistrates THough our Sufferings be little accounted of in the Eyes of those that Afflict us yet be assured they are seen to be great and many in the Eyes of God our Heavenly Father for whose Name and Truths sake we suffer and for this are his Judgments begun to be poured out upon the Land for though the People of the Land of all sorts be guilty of many other Crying Sins yet this one Sin of Persecuting the Righteous for their pure Conscience sake is and always hath been the most Grievous in the Eyes of Jesus Christ whose Glory is mainly concerned in it as one may see by that in Acts 9. where it is said by Jesus from Heaven Saul Saul why persecutest thou me The Jews and Saul thought they had done well so to persecute those Poor Members of Christ in those days because they would not conform to the Ceremonies of their Law and Service but Jesus saw it was done against him in them what was done against them So though many may think they do well in doing thus against us in these days because we cannot conform to your Customs contrary to that of God in our Conscience Yet know assuredly we are justified in the sight of God for what we do and he will assuredly plead our Innocent Cause as he did the Sufferers for Truth in those former Days and it will not be well with the Land so long as these Yokes of Oppression are upon us who desire nothing more than the Peace Welfare and everlasting Good of the King and all People but alas it will not be so long as the Law which should be laid upon the Wicked Drunkards Swearers Unclean Persons and Wasters of God's Creatures upon their Lusts is thus laid upon the Righteous who live Peaceably Righteously and Godly in this present evil World And so you Judges be awakened to true Judgment and Justice and know aright for what both Land and Sea mourneth at this day and let the King also and all People know the same and know that it is for all your Sins and especially for the hard Usage of us the Peaceable and Innocent People of God in Scorn called Quakers for our Pure Conscience-sake and Holy worshipping of our God in Spirit and Truth as the Lord Jesus Christ hath taught us And so till this with the rest be repented of How can the Lord accept you or be for you Yea though Noah Daniel and Job stood before God to intercede for you yet his Heart cannot be for you so long as your many Sins and this grievous Sin before mentioned do remain Yea though you should meet together every day in the Week and call it a Fast and seem in the outward to humble your Souls yet till these Burdens of Sin be removed from off your Souls and the Yokes of Oppression from off
which it is gone forth and by calling in all such Acts and Decrees as are gone forth either before or since its Writing whereby the pure Seed of God in these Islands either have been or may be imbondaged and the good Spirit of God limited For it is not fit that the Lord God of Glory should be stinted or limited in his Way For he is a free Spirit and will not be tyed or bound up to any outward Form whatsoever but will have his People Worship him in Spirit and Truth and to be acted forth in the World in such a form â—s he himself by his Holy Spirit pleaseth to order them unto And this is was and ever must be the order of the true Church in God built up of lively Stones Elect and Precious of Abraham's Seed 〈…〉 for ever By a Servant of Jesus Christ and a Well-wisher to th◠〈…〉 and all People upon Earth earnestly desiring the Welfare of all God's Creation that it may be delivered from the Bondage of Corruption and my Weapons are not Carnal but Spiritual For if my Enemy Hunger I am taught to feed him if he Thirst to give him Drink if he seek to do me any Evil to overcome his Evil with Goodness as the Lord hath dealt with me and not to avenge my self because it belongs to the Lord God for ever who is worthy of all pure Obedience for evermore Thomas Taylor This last part dated in the Fourth Month 1662. Against Lotteries IS it not sad O all People to see such wicked and deceitful Inventions as these Lotteries still on Foot and passing too and fro in the Land uncontrouled after all the late Manifestations of God's Anger against the Nation and People thereof O! when will People lay God's Judgments to Heart and cease to Cousen and Deceive one another Is there any so blind that they see not these filthy things called Lotteries to be one of those Abominations that have come out of the bottomless Pit to deceive the People withal and so to defile the Nations to the pulling down God's heavy Judments upon you O all People who are either the Inventers or Upholders of them so cease cease from all such sinful and ungodly Things whose Foundation is Covetousness the very Root of all Evil and mind the fear of the Lord God lest the day of his Patience pass away from you and you be shut up in that woful Darkness and Hell of Misery for all your Sins where is nothing but weeping and wailing and gnashing of Teeth for evermore Rests a Witness for God in his Power against the Sin of all People without respect of Persons and blessed are all who take warning betime for the Lord is arisen out of his Holy Place to ease him of all his Adversities Thomas Taylor To Stafford O Stafford Stafford thy Judgment lingreth not thy Condemnation slumbreth not thine Iniquity aboundeth and thy Transgressions are multiplied daily as the Sand of the Sea yea thou makes haste to fill up the measure of thine Iniquities that the Indignation when it cometh and behold it cometh swiftly and the Wrath of the Almighty whom thou hast grieved may be seen justly to come upon thee in the sight of all O the mighty Patience and Long sufferance of God hath been great towards thee in sparing thee hitherto 〈◊〉 but thou hast not at all answered the Goodness of God towards thee thou art a Stage for all manner of Sin and Sinners to act their Part in thee and thou a Partaker with the Ungodly in all their Ways and so must thou assuredly partake with them of their Plagues as sure as ever thou hast been of one Mind and Heart with them in their Sin O the haâ—d-heartedness of thine Inhabitants that could never Repent nor lay things to Heart for your good unto this Day nor say within your selves What have we done though the Lord hath made me a Warner and a Reprover unto you all this Fifteen Years both by Words and Writing in Love Truth and Faithfulness that your Souls might live and not dye shewing unto you the Evil of your Doings that you might Repent and turn from them but you would not hear nor amend your Lives to this Day but have increased your Sins as the Old World whom God destroyed with Water and Sodom whom the Lord consumed with Fire and like Jerusalem whom God gave into the hands of a cruel Enemy for all their mighty Sins over whom the Prophet Jeremiah lamented because they would not hear and over whom Christ wept because they would not believe And so my Soul hath long and yet shall weep in Secret for your Pride if you will not now at length before it be too late humble your selves and repent of all your unholy Ways and Worships whereby God's Soul is burden'd for you are most manifestly of those that say Lord Lord in a dead form of words out do not at all what he by his Spirit requires of you but the contrary and so you taking his Holy Name so manifoldly in vain he will not hold you guiltless in his Judgment Day so wo wo will unavoidable be your Portion from the Lord God and everlasting Banishment from his Holy Presence of Life except as is said ye speedily Repent in the deepest Humility and Godly Fear as saith his Spirit in his Servant Thomas Taylor To the Mayor of Stafford AND now to the Mayor of Stafford who so busieth and troubleâ—h himself without cause about the Harmless and Peaceable Meetings of the People of God in their own Houses if he would get true Praise with God and good Men and Comfort to his own Soul let him look into the Streets and open places of the Town and use his Authority to the restraining and hindering of that great Wickedness and abominable Debauchery and Heathenish Practices that are committed there at such times as these called Christmas i. e. in the face of the Sun And let him now stand up for God who is grieved and burthened with such things if he would find Mercy to his Soul for an Account to God must all give of their Stewardship For what bad Customs shall one find amongst the Heathens which at such times as these are not practiced by the People of England who in words profess Christ But alas what will such a Profession do where the Life and Power of Godliliness is wanting Rests God's Servant and all your Souls Friend Thomas Taylor For them that Rule in Stafford O Unrighteous People What will ye do in the Day of the Lord when the Just and Holy God who lives for Ever doth call you 20 Account for all your doings Do you judge it an Evil and punishable by the Law for one of us though never so truly moved of God to come amongst you when you are at your Worship to speak a few words in a peaceable manner for your good and yet can see no Evil in your selves to come in great Companies amongst us
your Flesh Nay nay it is most manifest in your Lives as your words before set down prove against you to be otherwise So in God's fear give over Mocking of God and deceiving your own Souls and the little Infants and turn to the Lord in Spirit that he may teach you lest his Wrath break forth upon you as it did upon the People of old who went on in their Sins and there be no Remedy Thomas Taylor Concerning Burying and Churching of Women c. AT the casting Mold upon the Corpse in the Grave the Priest shall say in the Burial these words For as much as it hath pleased Almighty God of his great Mercy to take unto himself the Soul of our dear Brother here departed we therefore commit his Body to the Ground Earth to Earth Ashes to Ashes Dust to Dust in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal Life c. And now lest any should say they do not here say this in a particular Application of these words to that present Dead in the Collect afterwards in the same Burial they say That when we shall depart this Life we may rest in him as our hope is this our Brother doth And that at the general Resurrection at the last day they may be found acceptable in his sight c. In their Churching of Women There is read the 116 Psalm or the 127 instead of that which in former times was read wherein The Sun shall not burn thee by day nor the Moon by night But still to understand the Woman whatever she be must be considered of the same Heart and Soul as David was when he wrote these words which is very often as contrary as Light is from Darkness for afterwards they say without fear Save this Woman thy Servant and answers which putteth her trust in thee And afterwards pretend to give Thanks for the Delivery of that Woman whoever she be which they call God's Servant from the Pain and Peril of Child-birth c. Then the Woman must offer the accustomed Offering now what these are I know not but the Priest it seems doth But why do they not enjoyn them the Offerings of Moses seeing you have your Pattern from thence For in all the New Testament I never read of a Priest Churching of Women In their Weddings they Swear c. saying both the Man and the Woman and that after they have promised before all to live together as Man and Wife which one would think were sufficient but what can be sufficient where Truth is wanting they must say And thereto I plight thee my Troth and yet not content with this neither It is there said Then shall they again loose their Hands and the Man shall give to the Woman a Ring laying the same upon the Book with the accustomed Duty to the Priest and Clerk O here is the Business this is that Wheel that carries all on to wit Money and all is for Money amongst the Hirelings And the Priest taking the Ring shall deliver it unto the Man to put upon the fourth Finger of the Womans left Hand what Sorcery is here and the Man holding the Ring there and taught by the Priest it may well be said such a Priest as this that 's blind for it 's certain God never taught such a thing as this shall say With this Ring I thee Wed with my Body I thee Worship and with all my Worldly Goods I thee endow And this they must pretend to do In the Name of the Father c. Thus taking God's Name continually in Vain in their vain and uncircumcised Lips Visitation of the Sick And in this the Priest of the Parish be he never so Notorious a Sinner himself yet he must say coming in Peace be to this House and why because Christ said to such as he sent in the Power of his own Spirit that they going upon the Message of the Gospel might say where they entred Peace be to this House or so But really God will not be mocked for what have Hirelings and wicked Men who abide not in Christ's Doctrine to do with Peace What because Paul by the Power of Jesus cast out Devils out of People must therefore the Exorcists the Sons of Seva though he was chief of the Priests do so Nay but must be given to know through Judgment their bold Presumption see Acts 19.13 c. And here must the Sick Man though never so bad be prayed for thus O Lord Save thy Servant which putteth his Trust in thee c. But what O bold Priest if the Lord should even then call thee to Judgment and say to thee How dost thou know he is my Servant and putteth his Trust in me What signs of this hath he given in his Life and Conversation or since thou came in for the Tree is known by his Fruits Would not the Priest be struck Dumb Yea as surely as ever the Man was who dared to come to the Wedding without a Wedding-Garment O what dawbing with untempered Mortar is in all heir Doings The Lord will ease himself of all such Burdens as these Men and Things are to his holy Soul and ever blessed pure Spirit But some may say it 's left to the Priest's liberty whether he will so Pray for him before he have Confessed him or nay Grant it be but what then O may the People or Priest say the Creed was read to him and he asked punctually whether he did believe it or no and the Sick Man answered That all that he did stedfastly believe I answer Did he so Then see in the Book how that came about even by their own means for the Book saith That after the Priest hath asked the Sick Party whether he believe those Articles of the Creed that the Sick Person shall answer All this I stedfastly believe Then it seems he must say so right or wrong O these Men made Forms and Customs of Praying Confessings and Professions what Havock they have made in the World And afterwards it 's so that if the Party feel himself burdened with Sin and confess it and desire Absolution the Priest shall Absolve him in these words Our Lord Jesus Christ who hath left Power in his Church to Absolve all Sinners who truly repent and believe in him of his great Mercy forgive thee thine Offences And by his Authority committed to me I Absolve thee from all thy Sins In the Name of the Father Son and Holy Ghost And yet in the next words called the Collect Pray for the Forgiveness of his Sins as though nothing were done as indeed there is not O Confusion The last thing in the old Service is the Commination or Denouncing of God's Judgments against Sinners to be used on the first day of Lent or at other times as the Ordinary shall appoint Thomas Taylor A Testimony against Bull and Bear-Baiting O Ye Magistrates of Stafford my Heart was grieved for ye and your Town to see and hear Bulls
to take it from them whether they will or no I say is not this a manifest Token that such Ministers are not sent of Christ seeing he said to his Freely ye have received freely give and the Apostle said We seek not yours but you But if you say the same Apostle also said If we have ministred to you Spiritual Things is it a great Matter if we partake of your Carnal Things 3. Then I Query to let pass the Question here concerning what you minister whether it is Spiritual or Carnal whether ever the Apostle or any true Minister of God and Christ either under the Law or Gospel did ever use any other Means for that they had allowed them of God but the Power of the Word only Or did ever the Apostle or any Minister of Christ receive much less compel by worldly Force any Maintenance for Preaching from such as denied them to be true Ministers And so such now as not only compel Wages from their own Hearers but even from such as they do no Work for do plainly manifest by their Fruits that they have run and God never sent them and are so far from being Successors of the Apostles in their Spiritual and Heavenly Ministry as that they Merit to be accounted of the Kind of Old Eli's Sons who by their Doings caused the Offerings of the Lord to be abâ—oâ—red 1 Sam. 2. from Ver. 12 to 18. 4. Whether such as cannot content themselves with the Incomes of one Parish though it be Sixty Eighty or One Hundred Pounds a Year but seek after one or more Parishes or Places of Revenue besides are not out of Measure Covetous and so palpably out of the Doctrine of Christ and so Idolaters seeing the Apostle saith Covetousness is Idolatry Eâ—â— â— 5. 5. Whether did ever any Minister of Christ's sending Preach up the Tenth of Peoples Labour or Encrease of the Earth and earthly Things as a standing Gospel-maintenance for his Ministers seeing the Apostles Writings are wholly silent in the thing And now if any of you in your high Minds think much or strange to be question'd concerning these things such may know that these are the latter Days spoken of by Jeremiah Chap. 23.20 21. wherein God hath done and is doing great things for his People And in these latter Days saith the Prophet there you shall consider perfectly of the pouring forth of God's Wrathful Indignation upon the false Prophets and Teachers who have run and God never sent them as also throughout that whole 23d Chapter of Jeremiah is to be seen Also concerning the false Prophets and Teachers you may read John 10.1 c. Isa 56.9 c. Ezek. 34.1 Mic. 3. 2 Pet. 2. with divers other Scriptures which speak of the false Prophets and Teachers also of the true Ones from all which these few amongst many plain and necessary Conclusions following may be gathered viz. 1. The true Prophet Messenger or Teacher is sent of God as before in the Power and Spirit of God with the living Word of God which is as a Hammer and a Fire to break the hard Hearts in sunder and to burn up the Chaff and Dross in the Minds of Disobedient People who know God's Will but do it not but hold the Truth in Unrighteousness The false Prophet or Teacher he runs in his own Will and having stolen the Word from his Neighbour useth his Tongue to say the Lord saith when the Lord never sent him and so with good Words and fair Speeches deceives the Hearts of the unwary Hearers making glad the Hearts of Hypocrites and crying Peace when the Lord hath not spoken it 2. The true Prophet Teacher or Minister as he hath received freely so he ministers freely but the false Teacher as he runs in his own Will so he ministers for a Self-end and if People put into his Mouth he cries Peace but if otherwise he prepares War against them and out of his corrupt Heart cries Give and can never have enough 3. The true Minister hath a Mouth always open for God and against Sin and Evil in every Appearance of it without respect of Persons and like a true Watcher gives notice of the Wolf's approach and doth not flee when the Wolf comes but opposes him in the Loss of all because Christ's Sheep are dear to him But the Hireling fleeth because he is a Hireling and careth not for the Sheep and as concerning Sin it may live in People for Ever for him for he cannot bark against Sin he is so full of it himself for how can he that is an Unclean Covetous Proud Person himself with a Face stand against such Sins in others nay nay the barking of such must needs be against such as do from the Heart depart from Iniquity and so separate from such as live in it according to the Call of the Lord. 4. The true Prophet Minister or Teacher fights the good Fight of Faith and his Weapons are Spiritual and not Carnal and so he sights not with Flesh and Blood to destroy Mens Persons Liberties or Estates but his War is with the wicked Devil the Power of Darkness in Men that separates Mens Minds Hearts and Souls from God and brings them into Sin 's Captivity and so under God's Wrath and so the true Minister's Work is to Preach People out of that woful Condition into the Liberty of the Sons of God But the false Teacher or Minister his Weapons are Carnal and he runs to the worldly Powers to help him against such as oppose his evil Doctrine and Practice crying Men of England c. help as the Jews cried out against Paul Men of Israel help and so matter not though they weary the Magistrate and set all the World in an Uproar to keep themselves up in their high Places of Deceit and so prove the greatest Enemies against God's Truth and his Servants of all other as is abundantly to be seen in Scripture concerning the Priests and their Confederates who Presecuted Christ to Death and raged against his Followers because of their holy Testimony for God against their Soul-destroying Ways 5. The true Messengers and Ministers of Jesus Christ as they are powerfully sent of God so they work effectually for God for the edifying of the Body of Christ and perfecting of his People in Holiness to God But the false Teacher as he hath run without God so his Work is for strengthning that Part in Man to wit the Serpent's Wisdom which is against God and wars against the Simplicity of Christ and Good of the Soul in all and so they being themselves out of that Heavenly Power which perfects the Soul to God and gives it perfect Victory over all Sin they cry No Perfection here no perfect Victory over Sin on this side the Grave and so they lead about a People laden with Sin and Lust silly as Woman in the Transgression ever learning and never able by their Means to come to the Knowledge of the Truth itself
is above all and over all who was before the World was and hath brought us to reign with him eternally above the World Now here is the Joy and cause of our Rejoycing who have followed the Lamb through great Tribulation and are brought above the Tribulations to dwell in the Presence of the Living God This is Joy unspeakable and full of Glory which shall never have an end Hallelujah to our King for evermore By a Friend Thomas Taylor Watching for Sin WO to you that wake to Sin and watch for Iniquity that spend their Days in Vanity and so bring themselves with Sorrow to the Graves and their Souls to the Pit of Destruction The Trumpet of the Lord is sounding to awaken you to the Judgment of his great Day which burns as an Oven against all the Workers of Iniquity upon the Face of the whole Earth The Apostle saith Awake to Righteousness and Sin not But you that observe these Popish Wakes and Antichristian Revels you awake to Sin and Unrighteousness with the Strength and Delight of your uncircumcised Hearts like the Heathen that know not God The Papists appointed a Feast at the Dedication of their old dead Mass-houses and you their Children who uphold these Wakes bear witness against your selves that you were never yet in heart truly separated from their Idolatries O the Blindness and Deadness of your Teachers that cannot bark against this dead Idol And therefore doth the Lord warn you all to stand up from the Dead that Christ may be your Light to see such wretched and Soul destroying Vanities as these Wakes are that so through Repentance for them you may find Mercy and not perish with them that perish from the right way Rests God's Servant Thomas Taylor A Warning to the NATIONS To Layaside all Prejudice and Enmity The Ground of Strife and Wars And to come and Embrace the Light of Christ Jesus that they may see themselves and come to be Saved and Healed and United in the Love of God THE Indignation of the Lord is upon all Nations and his Fury upon all their Armies he will greatly distress the Inhabitants of the World he will now plead the Cause of his Covenant of Light against all those that withstand his Glorious Appearance and Work of Restoration in this the day of his Mighty Power wherein he is giving the Kingdom of his Everlasting Peace to Israel's Seed under the whole Heavens who fear his Great Name and tremble at his Almighty Word of Life which shakes not only Earth but Heaven also And now is the Lord God Almighty bringing forth his Glory to light and creating the new Heavens and new Earth wherein dwells Righteousness according to his Promise Isa 65.17 c. wherein the People beat their Swords into Plow-shears and their Spears into Pruning-hooks never to learn War any more but every one now that believes in the Truth Christ Jesus the Light and true King of Righteousness and Peace shall sit under him the true Vine and none to make them afraid Isa 2.2 c. And now even now is the Lord God Almighty arisen and got up into his high Throne of Majesty and everlasting Glory to Reign and of this his Peaceable Kingdom which he hath begun to set up in his Trembling People there never shall be End The true Israel of God is now coming up out of the Spiritual Egypt indeed to possess the true Land of Promise the Inheritance and Free Gift of our God and no Inchantment shall now stand against God's Spiritual Host nor Divination against the Redeemed of the Lord who have known his Wonders in the Deep and known the Out-goings of God's Power against Pharaoh and all his Host in the Red Sea of his Fiery Indignation And now will God be exalted in Judgment and avenged in Righteousness upon all Nations and People under Heaven who hold the Truth in Unrighteousness and will not that God's Holy Son Christ Jesus the Light should reign though he be come to Reign and Judge in the Earth For to him the Light who lighteth every Man that cometh into the World is all Power in Heaven and Earth given And his Light shines freely into all your Hearts O all People of the Earth and shineth in the thickest Darkness to make manifest the Creator's Will to all your Consciences though your Darkness O People comprehends it not but it comprehends you and all your dark Ways and destroying Phoughts and lets you see plainly That for all your great Workings and toilsom Labour in an Out-side Profession in your Earthly Wills you have wrought no Deliverance in the Earth but your Souls Enemies still stand in strength And it lets you see that for all your Striving and Fighting and Killing and Spoiling and Destroying one another about Earthly Things you have done no good at all but brought God's Judgments upon all your Souls and pierced your selves through with many Sorrows And therefore the Heavenly Voice sounds through the Earth and calls aloud in your Ears and knocks at the Door of your Hearts O all People of the World High and Low Professor and Prophane Jews and Gentiles Christians so called and Turks Arise Arise Awake Awake turn in your Minds to the pure Light of Jesus Christ the Judge of Quick and Dead the Son of the eternal God Creator of Heaven and Earth who died for your Sins and rose again to give you a New Holy and Everlasting Life in himself through Faith in his Name And behold he lives for evermore And all see and search diligently in your selves what you know of his Holy Life made manifest in you to destroy the Body of Sin and Death in you which in the days of Darkness hath filled your Vessel and brought your very Soul Mind and Heart into the Thraldom of that Wicked One who is called the Devil and Satan and compassed with Terrors and Fears and Affrightments your very Life and whole Man because of the Wrath of the Almighty which you by your Sinful and Unrighteous and Unholy and Cruel Doings both against God and your Neighbour have stirred up against you And behold the Earth languisheth because of these things and the Children of Light who are redeemed to God out of these sore Evils and grievous Plagues do mourn for you and bewail your Misery Night and Day as well knowing in the Light of the Lord what your woful End will be if these Bryars and Thorns and noisom Weeds the proper Fruits of the Curse be still suffered to grow in you and cumber God's Ground Oh! how nigh unto Cursing is that Field which God's Rain rains upon and yet brings forth no better Fruit than Killing and Slaying and Spoiling and Cousening and Cheating and Defiling and Oppressing one another besides Lying and Swearing and Cursing and Drunkenness and Pride and Persecution of God's Righteous Seed with all other Abominations of the World against the Holy Light c. Checks and Reproofs of the good Spirit of the
Provision for the Flesh to satisfie it in the Lusts thereof with Meats Drinks Pleasures Pastimes and all manner of foolish Inventions but that People should abstain from Fleshly Lusts because they War against the Soul And did not the Apostle weep for such as made a God of their Belly and Gloried in their Shame and minded Earthly Things and plainly tells them That they were â—nemies to the Cross of Christ and their End was Destruction Phil. 3. And so thou whoever thou art that pretends to Honour Christ by making Provision for thy Fleshly Part to satisfie it in the Lusts thereof thou art no Servant of God and Christ in this but a denyer of his Truth and so instead of following Christ in the Regeneration and daily Cross and Self denlal thou follows Christ's Enemy the great Antichrist and Satan who hath seduced the Minds of People from Christ's Doctrine and Life into the Doctrine and Life of all Unrighteousness and so they that Eat and Drink and Game and Sport after the Custome of the Heathenish World their Professing of Christ in Words will do them no good in the Day of the Lord when God will Reward every Man according to their Deeds for now instead of a Holy Pure Righteous Self-denying Life which God requires thou offers him an unclean Sacrifice of an unholy and corrupt Life which he will not accept And so many shall come in that Day and say Lord Lord Open unto us to whom he will Answer I know ye not depart ye Workers of Iniquity O dreadful Sentence to such as it hits who like Esau sell their Birth-right for a mess of Pottage and chuse rather to follow the Fleshly Sinful World in the broad way to Destruction than the Lambs of Christ in the streight way that leads to Life Eternal So all Awake and Arise from your dead defiled Customs and Practices of Sin to the pure clean Fear and Worship of God for God is a Spirit and Christ is a Spiritual Lord and will be Worshipped and Served in Spirit and Truth and who is this Day seeking such to Worship him who shall bring forth Fruits to him worthy amendment of Life And one thing is needful saith Christ and Mary that sate at his Feet hearing his Word chused that good Part which shall never be taken from her but Martha was cumbred about much in the outward as too many are now and that in a Heart far from that of Mary's Heart to their Souls great disadvantage So he that hath an Ear let him hear for these Words are Faithful and True Thomas Taylor To the King O That the King and all his Councils the Parliament and the Rest would hear and believe these Words for in the Truth of God's Spirit and Uprightness of my Heart are they thus written and sent to them for that purpose Consider of your ways for thus saith the Lord the Holy One Creator of Heaven and Earth Mine Anger is kindled against you because you have not made a Separation betwixt the Precious and the Vile but have numbred my People who tremble at my Word with the Transgressors and will not hear the Voice of my Mouth to let my Israel have their Liberty to meet together in my own free Spirit as I have Taught them to wait upon me and to Edify one another in their most Holy Faith but you will Punish them and Afflict them and evil Intreat them for this and surely if you go on in this Work and think to destroy this my Heritage from being a People upon the Earth and to Root them up from bearing a Testimony to my Name in their Holy Assemblies before the Children of Men I will Work Wonders yea I will Work Wonders and make all the Earth to know that these your Thoughts and your Doings are against the Lord and his People as truly as ever Pharoah and Egypt and the Nations there abouts in that Day of Israel 's Oppressions and Deliverances did know have you no Vnderstanding that you would eat up my People as Bread saith the Lord in whose hand is your Breath Oh! that you could once lay things to Heart what you have done and what you should do and not still take Counsel at a wrong Spirit which hurries you thus on in a way that is not good to the grief of God's Spirit and in the end if continued in your own Destruction have you not Heard and do not you Read what God hath done in former times to great Kings and strong Nations for their Doings against his People and do you not know that the same Evil Spirit which causes you in other things to do what you ought not to do and to leave undone what you ought to do is the putter of you forward in this grievous Work of Persecuting the Seed of God who Fear and Tremble at his Word and work out their Salvation with Fear and Trembling as the Lord Commands and who in their Meetings never had nor at this Day have any other end but to Glorifie their God the true God over all in obeying his Voice with a true good Will in our Hearts towards all Men without the least thought of Evil to any as God's true God over all Men without the least thought of Evil to any as God's true Witness in all Consciences where it is harkened unto doth plainly Testifie at this Day as it hath done ever since we were to God a People For from War Bloodshed Wrong and Spoil hath the Lord called and delivered our Souls into his Holy Habitation of Truth Peace and Love that as Lambs we might in the midst of the Earth stand in Christ's Innocency to hold forth the Virtues of God who hath Blessed us in Christ Jesus with the Knowledge of himself whom to know is Life Eternal And so if you hate us because God loves us what will be the end O Consider consider this matter is of the weightiest Nature And so though at present by reason of the Darkness that is upon your Minds you do not see us as we are but present us to your selves as Evil-doers or so yet seeing you know in your own Consciences as in Words also you often Confess that in other things you are miserable Offenders you ought to be more Moderate Sparing and Careful what you do in this present matter concerning us because where Sin is and remains there must of necessity be a want of Ability as to the right judging and discerning of Men and Matters Spiritual as Christ foretold of some that through the Error of their Minds should think they did God Service when they were Killing his Children This was a sad Mistake Therefore let this be upon your Hearts when you lye down and when you rise up and when you sit in Counsel and walk by the Way to keep you from Sinning this great Sin against God for never did any strive against God and Prosper and thus in God's Spirit having given you in a few Words
Everlasting Father which is Spirit and Life the Resurrection and the Life in every believing Soul for we are Redeemed from Death thereby that we might for Ever hereafter serve God in the newness of his own Spirit and not in the oldness of the Letter as all such do as know no other Teaching Word but the Letter as this R. B. doth and so they having gotten a little Brain-knowledge by their Humane Helps and not by the Spirit of Truth they wrest Scripture to their own and others Destruction desiring and boasting themselves to be Masters and Teachers of others whilst themselves need teaching what the very Principles or beginning Doctrines of the true Christian Religion is as is plainly manifested by his seeking to bring in a graceless Minister or Wolf into Christ's Fold surely the Wolf comes not but to rob and destroy All that ever came before me saith Christ are Thieves and Robbers and never came in by the Door as its plain the Graceless Man doth not but hath climb'd up another way by his Humane Helps as Baxter speaks and to this purpose see John the 10th and Mat. 23. where Christ at large sets forth such Wolfish Teachers who can perk themselves up in Places of Teachers by the World's help outwardly but will neither enter into the Kingdom of God themselves nor suffer others but shut up the Kingdom of Heaven against Men by such deceitful Doctrine and Antichristian Inventions as this R. B. hath by saying That Gifts are more necessary to the validity of Ministration than Grace is and that he may perform the Office of a Minister to the Benefit of the Church that hath no Saving Grace at all And all Knowledge requireth Time and Labour to obtain it though the Spirit giveth it which last saying doth directly thwart and contradict the Scripture which saith I was found of them that sought me not Isa 65.1 And Paul sets believing and working in this great Matter of the Knowledge of God and Christ to Salvation one against the other as the way of the Law and Gospel for to him that worketh saith he is the Reward reckon'd of Debt not Gift of Grace but to him that Believeth it is of Grace to the Glory of God's great Love to Man for saith the Scripture God so loved the World that he gave his Son that whosoever on him believe should not perish but have Life Eternal And none can truly say but those are the best knowers and wisest People that have Eternal Life in them though they never laboured for it nor sought for it and so such as this R. B. who looks at all as obtain'd by Time and Labour they are those Spiritual Proud Ones who are swelâ—ed so big with Spiritual Pride that Self-idolizing Sin which as himself saith in his second Direction so called is the great Rebel against God the chief part of the Devil's Image that one Sin which breaketh every Commandment the Heart of the Old Man the Root and Parent and Summary of all other Sin the Antichristian Vice which is most directly contrary to the Life of Christ c. and these Letter-wise Men that have parched together a Garment of Fig-leaves to cover their sinful Nakedness are Proud of meer supposed Spiritual Excellencies for the way of the Blessed Spirit and its free Gifts and free Workings in the Children of Men they are strangers unto and then through their Humane Learning and lost Labour having gotten a little or a great deal of talk from the Letter of the Scripture concerning Religion in their Earthly Spirits which sees nothing of the Kingdom of God they condemn the Generation of the Just whom God teacheth and Blesseth with all Spiritual Knowledge in Heavenly Things and call them Spiritually Proud because they cannot but speak very highly and yet in the truest humility of Heart concerning the great Things that God hath done for their Souls and because they cannot join with the Wicked whom God abhorreth neither in their Worship nor other sinful Customs And so out of that Old Bottel come all those unsavoury Expressions of R. B. before-mentioned against the free Teachings of God's Spirit yea so great an Enemy he is to the wholsom Doctrine of Free Grace that Page 7. he saith Is it not Blaspheming of God's Spirit to make it the Patron of Mens sloth and idleness under pretence of Magnifying Grace To which I answer That pretending we deny and truly say with the Apostle That God who commanded Light to shine out of Darkness hath shined in our Hearts to give us yea most freely without our own La-Labour or any Humane Help The Knowledge of the Glory of his Kingdom and those that call this Doctrine either in the Apostle or us a Patronizing of Sloth and Idleness are those that do really Blaspheme God's Spirit which teacheth it But many Texts saith R. B. commands us diligence and sloth is a great Sin To which I say the Scripture indeed commands a diligent Improvement and holy Exercise of the free Gifts which the Spirit hath given the Faithful But the Scripture never said that Humane Labour and Helps are the Means to be used for getting the Spirit 's Teachings and without which no Knowledge in Spiritual Matters is now received Stir up the Gift of God in thee saith Paul to Timothy so say I but he no where puts the Humane or Carnal Man to Work or Labour to get the Spirit for that is quite contrary to this Scripture Gal. 3.2 as also Rom. 9.16 Obj. But this R. B. asks this Question Why hath God setled a Teaching Office in his Church and commanded all to attend and hear and learn if we are taught by the Spirit without Man's help Why were the Apostles sent forth into all the World c Answer Here is the great stumbling of these Unbelievers the Worldly-wise Ones indeed what because God in his free unlimited Spirit did begift Men and in his own Spiritual Power sent them forth to preach and publish all abroad the Glory of his Kingdom and Good Will to Men cannot People therefore be taught by the Spirit without Man's help What Reasoning's this When the Scripture expresly saith That all the Gifts and Abilities Helps and Means of bringing People to God and the Knowledge and Enjoyment of all the Good Things of his Kingdom are meerly solely and wholly from God and his Blessed Spirit 's free Gift in Christ and not from Man at all And therefore when the Corinthians began to look at Man whether Paul or Apollo or Cephas he calls it Carnal and said Christ was not divided signifying plainly it was Christ and the Spirit of his Power that alone did all in all as Christ said Joh. 15. Without me you can do nothing for in the True Church Christ ever was and ever will be all in all and and Man nothing as Paul said of himself Paul is nothing But in the False Church where R. B. is pleading for Man yea Graceless Ministers Man
Follies and false Doctrines I may here mention as one may read it in that Book of his that I have under hand to wit in Page 114. are these words It may be unlawful saith he in a Ruler to command a thing that will do no good because it is a Vain Command and maketh Men spend that time in vain and yet be the Subject's Duty to do it Answ This is such Doctrine as Paul's Enemies taught who said Men might do evil that good might come of it whose Condemnation was just So to avoid Sufferings from Men he would have us to obey Unlawful Commands which will do no good but rather a great Evil to wit make People spend pretious Time in vain Away with such Ant christ an and Heathenish Stuff for all true Christians abhor it in their Hearts as the Lord the good Shepherd hath Commanded them And now R. B. to that part of thy feigned Prayer Page 252. where in words thou seemest to desire That God would stir up some Faithful Friend to tell thee with convincing Evidence where it is that thou hast Miscarried that Contrition may prepare thee for the Peace of Remission Here the Lord hath contrary to thy will and desire stirred up one in Faithfulness and Love to thy Soul and the Souls of the poor deluded People whom thou hast deceived to tell thee plainly of thy Faults and grievous Miscarriages as by what is convincingly in these Lines set down doth appear and might be more abundantly if all the Miscariages in this Book only to let pass all thy other were answered unto in particular but these in this Answer of mine being as it were least of what the rest are may satisfie at present And Oh that the Righteous Judgments of God may come upon thy Heart and the Hearts of all them who are in the same false fleshly Confidence with thy self whose very Prayers are not without Sin that you may never have Peace Day nor Night until you humble your selves before the Lord and Repent of all your hard Speeches and Evil Deeds that you have spoken and done against him and his Servants for the Truth 's sake that if it be possible you may be saved from the Wrath that will certainly come upon you if you Repent not for that old wicked Paper full of Lies as I made manifest before thee and some of thy Company in thy Study to thy Shame at Kidder minster which thou writ'st in the Pride of thy Heart against us in Oliver's Days when thou wast lifted up Entituled Reasons to Perswade why no Reasonable Man can be a Quaker amongst the rest of that kind which thou art not Humbled for to this Day as I perceive by this Book do all stand upon Record before the Lord the Righteous Judge against thee for in those thy doings and all that kind against the manifest and manifold Appearances of Christ in his People of every degree thou hast plainly declared thy self to be of Rabshekah's Spirit who Railed against the Living God and his despised Israel and of that Spirit that Jannes and Jambres who withstood Moses in his work under God of calling Israel out of Egypt and as the Lord Pleaded the Cause of his People in those Days so will he as he hath for ever plead our Innocent Cause against thee and all his Enemies for of a truth the Lord God Blessed for ever hath raised us up to be his Servanâ— Sons and Daughters to bear his Name in Righteousness before the Children of Men in a pure Holy Witness against all the false Ways and Worships of false Men so be it and so it will be as hard for thee and all to kick against the Pricks as it was in Persecuting Saul Acts 9. Read and consider lest the Day pass over you as it did from the unbelieving Jews who would not receive God come and manifest in the Flesh in those days to whom Christ said Ye will not come to me that ye might have Life but they would seek it in the killing Letter and as it were by the works of the Law until mid-night Darkness and utter Desolation came upon them For Oh how the Earth is filled with Violence because of such Doctrines and Teachings as this R. B. and such Men brings forth for behold how the Field of his Followers and Admirers are all overgrown with Briers and Thorns and noysom Weeds as the proper Fruit of their accursed Doctrines as this R. B. himself sets down in his 48th Direction Page 236. of his Book in these words that is to say Oh Friends how bad are we our selves What Pride is in our Hearts What Ignorance in our Minds So wanting are we even in the lowest Grace Humility that we have scarce enough to make us take patiently as now we are giving out upon others So Selfish as Dishonoureth our Profession with the Brand of Contradictedness and Partiality so weak that our Duties are lyable to greater Censures than we can bear and our inward Graces weaker than our outward Duties This must needs be so in the Duties of the Graceless Minister thou pleads for of such ungoverned Thoughts that Confusion and Tumult instead of Order and Fruitful Improvement are the daily Temper and Imployment of our Imaginations This must needs be so in you that Live in such Opposition to the Life of God manifest in his Children at this Day So Passionate Impatient and Corrupt that we are a trouble to our selves and others This must needs proceed from such a corrupt Fountain and a Dishonour to the Gospel it is so and a hinderance to the Conversion of those whom our holy Exemplary Lives should win to God So strange to Heaven as if we had never well believed it that is so and therefore the Sheep of Christ deny your Voice you who are such Strangers to him And to say all in one so empty of Love to our dear Redeemer and to the God of Love that our Hearts lye vacant to entertain the Love of Worldly Vanities ye Hypocrites what have you to do to name Christ who are thus Unbelieving and Unredeemed and to fly back from the serious Thoughts of God which should be our daily Work and Pleasure and fly from the Face of Death as if we should be the worst when nearest to our God Oh Hypocrites how can you for shame call God yours when you are thus beyond measure bad when Scripture saith He that saith he knows God and keeps not his Commandments is a Lyer and the Truth is not in him see 1 John 2.4 And Repent lest ye all perish together Priests and People for the Lord is arisen to Judgment and none can stand before him which hath unclean and filthy Garments as you are covered with whom R. B. here puts on to be Teachers of others and yet remain your selves with him under such woful Sins and Condemnation as is here spoken of But surely if you did believe and feel inwardly that it were so bad
the Life and Vertue of what they do profess And praised be God for Ever who through his Grace gives our Souls the Victory but as for this R. B. and his Followers who are so full of that earthly faln Wisdom which receives Honour of Men and judges of things according to the Flesh I say for them to seek God's Honour and glorifie him in such low contemptible things as this is is at present far from them but to put off the Hat in Honour to proud Flesh and to love gâ—eetings in the Markets and to go in long Robes as the Old Pharisees did and to be called of Men Master and the like which gets Praise and Applause of the World though Christ forbid it never so much I say these things they like better the more is the pity see Mat. 23. and so it appears who are in the Selfishness Pride and Hypocrisie and who are not and so is the Scripture fulfilled which saith In that Day it shall be seen who are they that fear God and who not Glory to God for his unspeakable Gift and not unto us but to thy Name be the Praise O Lord. What would this R. B. if he had been in those Days have said of Christ of whom it was said That he taught the Way of God truly and regarded not the Persons of Men then surely he put not off a Hat in Honour to proud Flesh as ye do I say would not this Man have called him some odd Conceited Singular Proud Fellow like as his Predecessors the Pharisees of those Days who received Honour one of another did No question but he would for if he do thus to us his Servants what would he have done to him our Lord and Master But happy are all they in this Day who chuse rather to suffer the Affliction and Reproach with Christ and his People than to enjoy the Pleasures of Sin which are but for a Season So be it Also because this R. B. in Page 27. of his Preface saith That People are far more averse that is contrary or against to Communion or Concord with the Parish Churches than the Conforming Ministers are and yet he seems in his Epistle to Bryan's Book to be unwilling that People should think he hath Conformed though he hath pleaded for it and against Separating from the Parish Assemblies and Worships as now manag'd And also seeing that Bryan as he saith is or was silenced for Nonconformity himself I desire all that reads these Lines to take notice of what a strange uneven and unrighteous Spirit these Men are of in their creeping and twisting and twining to and fro yet the Eye of the Lord and his Blessed Spirit in his Children this Day doth easily spy them out Sometimes they are all for Conformity and against Separation by any means and plead the Common-Prayer-Peoples Cause with all their might as it were and yet presently they are all on a fire against any that shall think they are Conformists Nay says R. B. How can any judge him to be a Conformist who is silenced for Nonconformity But if this Man sometime a Head to those called Presbyterians at and about Kidderminster and Bryan of the same Nature sometimes a Teacher at Coventry be not Conformed or be not yet Conformists as well as others of their Brethren who have long since swallowed down the Old Common Prayer Service as they called it which they rejected in Oliver's time because it hindred them then from devouring the Peoples Labours and seeing they plead so shamelesly for it now and also seeing this R. B. in express words confesseth That they are not so much against Conformity with the Common-Prayer Service as the People are What may be the Reason of this strange thing to wit That they do not in all things conform in Deed and Practice as well as in words save only as is plain to me this because they judge that their Admirers are not yet sufficiently wearied out with keeping off nor sufficiently moulded and fitted in their Minds for coming in and therefore they have lingred and may yet linger a while longer before they do openly and before all appear Conformists desiring if possible to see the People in before them for these Two Chief Presbyterian Priests so called are already in the Parish Stuff in their Judgment and with their Minds and Hearts already or at least would be thought so to be by the wicked World of whom they are Lovers Yet they see not how to vend their flattering Doctrines if their Admirers Conform not and come not in with them or rather be not in the Pit before them so weak and wretched a thing is Man yea the best-seeming of the Sons of Men out of the Truth Oh! how truly fulfilled by these Men are those words of the Apostle where he speaking of the False Hypocritical Ontside Teachers of that Time saith With good Words and fair Speeches they deceive the Hearts of the Simple Therefore ever-praised be Christ who hath opened our Eyes to see and perswaded our Hearts to avoid such Wolves in Sheeps clothing as this R B. and Bryan are for what finer and higher Talk or Skin or Clothing can the Wolf get than to make Sermons of dwelling with God and the like as this Bryan doth When it 's manifest he neither knows God nor his Way nor his Dwelling-place but is inwardly ravened from that Good and Blessed Spirit of Truth and Honesty which should commend him to God The Wolves Nature in R. B. is already in this Writing set down and manifest and now I come in the Light of the Lord to make manifest some of his Brother Bryan's And first shall set down that Blasphemous Passage of his in p. 291 and 292. of his sixth Sermon in that Book of his Intituled Dwelling with God c. where he saith I am not ignorant that many of you whose Habitation I question not but the Lond is who have your Habitation in several Countries of this King dom have drunk a deep Prejudice against all the Parochial Congregations whereof you are Legal Members and where all you were Baptized and thereby were made the Members of Christ the Children of God and Heirs of his Kingdom I fear some of you will startle at these Expressions found in the Common Prayer but if you consult the Holy Scriptures you will find them warranted in a Sacramental Senon and your Prejudice hath so far wrought upon you that you have forsaken the assembling of your selves together with your Neighbours in the publick Meeting-places Thus far this Bryan Answ But ever praised be the Lord who hath delivered us from the Mouths of such manifest Wolves as these are who in times past were hidden but are now fully seen who though his Brother R. B. says his Mouth was stopt or silenced for not Conforming yet here it seems it is wide open still according to his and their Custom to manifest his Folly and wicked in-side against the
For what one Sin O ye People Teacher or Hearer that you were guilty of Seven or more Years since is there which you are not actually in at this Day he that was Drunken or Proud or Covetous or Lustful or Pleasurable or Unjust or the like in times past is found so still no Amendment no Washing of Sin away by all your Doings from amongst you for indeed Words and outside Performances could never do away Sin And so in vain is your Worship whilst your Fear is taught by the Traditions of Men and not by the Power of the Spirit of God according to Scripture for the Kingdom of God stands not in Words but in Power And the Redeemed of the Lord Worship in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the Letter Heb. 7. Col. 1. for the Letter-Law made nothing perfect but the bringing in of the better Hope doth which is Christ in Man the hope of Glory And so you wanting the Humble Penitent and Obedient Heart your Confessions are in vain and are rather a Mock-service than any true Sacrifice to God And so for want of a pure Heart you can neither see God nor approach to the Throne of his Heavenly Grace but stand Self-condemned your own words being witness against you And so you go on saying after your blind Guides That you are all your Lives long Miserable Offenders following too much the Devices and Desires of your own Hearts Offending against God's Holy Laws doing what you should not do and leaving undone what you ought to do till you are so full of the Leprosie of Sin from Head to Foot that there is no Health nor Soundness in you And then thus continuing from Year to Year to the end of your Days what Sacrifice can God accept at your Hands for the very Prayers of the Wicked are Abomination to the Lord. And therefore whereas in this State you so often call God Father you lie and do not the Truth For he that doth Righteousness is born of God but he that committeth Sin is of the Devil both Christ and his Apostle John being Witnesses see John 8.44 and 1 Epistle of John Chap. 3. and Verses 6 7 8 c. And so for the Words of that called the Absolution which follows wherewith the deceitful Priest would doub himself and you over I declare for the Lord they are no 〈◊〉 fit to either of you whilst you continue in your Sins as it 's manifest o◠do yea those very Words in that same Absolution where it is said He Pardoneth and Absolveth all such and I may add none but such as do truly repent and unfeignedly believe his holy Gospel shuts you all out from the Benefit of God's Absolution and Pardon For such as truly repent and unfeignedly believe the Gospel are healed of the Sickness of Sin and so have Health and Soundness in them and are not Miserable Offenders as you are but blessed Believers yea a chosen Generation born of God as Scripture saith John 1.13 And he that 's born of God Sinneth not for his Seed remaineth in him and he cannot Sin because he is born of God 1 John 3.9 Then certainly such Holy Ones as these Live not in a Continual Breach of God's Commandments as you do And so for the Lord's Prayer it belongs not to you whilst you continue doing the Deeds of the Wicked One for it was taught the Disciples and Followers of Christ who had God indeed for their Heavenly Father because they were really Born of him even of the Immortal and Incorruptible Seed of his Living Word which abode in them and they in it and so were Disciples indeed But alack for you who instead of forgiving as you would be forgiven are seeking your own Revenges and are learning of the Men of this World who know not God nor his Kingdom no nor so much as the Door nor entrance into it For the Heavenly Kingdom is still uncome to such as believe not in the Light which Christ the Door hath Inlightned them withal but love Darkness more than Light because their Deeds are evil For such as love to be called of Men Master and are Proud and Covetous and live in the daily Breach of God's Commandments could never love the Light nor bring their Deeds to be tryed by it because it is an Everlasting Reprover of all such And therefore saith Christ the true Light Therefore doth the World hate me because I witness against their Deeds that they are Evil. And so your most Hypocritical Proceeding to say O Lord open thou our Lips and our Mouth shall shew forth thy Praise shews plainly you heed not what you do for both the Priest and you have opened your Sinful Lips times without number without God's Spirit of Regeneration opening them for that as yet you never waited for and therefore your Sinful Mouth could not nor cannot shew forth God's Praise for the Dead Praise him not For it 's only such as Live in Christ as the Saints do not in Sin as you do that Praises him Glory to his Name that hath Abolished Death from amongst his People and hath brought Life and Immortality to Light in them in this his Glorious Day wherein he is Judging the great Whore which hath defiled the Earth grievously with her Fornications and the Day of God is Glorious which thus brings forth all the hidden things of Darkness to Light And Blessed are they and they only that walk in the Light of God's Holy City into which no unclean thing can ever enter So all ye People of the Earth who are thus found only in the Confession but not in the Forsaking of Sin shut your Mouths and cease taking God's Name any more in vain For certainly the Lord will not hold such Guiltless as take his Name in vain And take heed of applying those Scriptures to your selves whilst you live in Sin which belong only to such as witness Redemption from Sin as those words in that 95th Psalm following do which say O come let us sing unto the Lord let us heartily rejoyce in the strength of our Salvation for he is the Lord our God and we are the People of his Pasture and Sheep of his hands c. O stand in awe of God O People and do no more so presumptuously for his Sheep you are not who are so Deaf to his Voice and so Rebellious to his Word as you have and do daily every way manifest your selves to be O what Salvation can such witness as are so deep in their Sins for Christ Saves his People from their Sins from their Disobedience from being miserable Offenders and is the Saving Health of his Heavenly Anointed ones he leaves them not in the Darkness where the Sin is committed but brings all his Followers to the Light of Life where the ever Blessed and Holy and perfect and acceptable Will of God is both known and done and then of such it is truly said They are
of the Lord wherein he is so lovingly caâ—â—ing them out of their Darkness into his Marvellous Light And as for the Visitation of their Sick and Churching of their Women as they call it that Mosaical Rite there is such bold calling of every one who can but say a few words by rote the Servants of God and putters of their Trust in God and the like it even burdens the Spirit of the Lord to bear it And to hear a poor wretched Man who hath run and God never sent him to say That by the Authority of God given him he Absolves the Sick Man from all his Sins Such had need take heed lest the Judgments of God fall on them as it did upon those Presumptuous Jews the Priests Sons mentioned Acts 19.13 c. And for their Burials as they do in the rest so do they in this and are most grievous Daubers and Takers of God's Name in vain and they are not afraid to say indifferently of one as well as another that they have a Hope yea a sure and certain Hope of their Resurrection to Life Eternal though they have been never so Notoriously Evil in this Life yea though they have said but a little before in their Commination Cursed are the Vnmerciful Fornicators and Adulterers Covetous Persons Idolaters Slanderers Drunkards and Extortioners and both Prieft and People said Amen to it And though they be found living and dying such yet now at their Burial all must be daubed over with a Resurrection to Life Eternal But here is the Device by which the Hireling lives for what by their Doctrines and Words in their Sprinklings in their Confirmations in their Communions in their Burials yea in all their Doings there is such a Bewitching of the People and strengthning the Hands of Evil-doers that none returns from their Evil Ways but all lyes in Death and Darkness without remorse none smites upon his Thigh and saith What have I done But with Death they make a Covenant and with Hell are they and their Multitude at Agreement but with the Over flowing Scourge of his Wrath will the Lord sweep away all Lying Refuges and the Lord is begun to make a Blessed Separation between the Precious and the Vile Glory to his Name for Ever So be it so be it O! the set Wages and Hire in every Parish seconded with an Outward Law to compel it and the many stinted Forms of Words and Actions in their Services made ready to their Hands and Enjoined upon them upon Pain of being uncapable of the Wage and Hire appointed for those Doings is such a Bait to the Mercenary Minds of the Men of this World that it even draws and drives by heaps into the Ministry such as God never sent nor would never come of themselves but for the sake of that filthy Lucre. But God is shaking his Hand against such Dishonest Gain and the Lord hath and is restoring to us the Ancient Ministry as in the Apostles Days where all was done by the Ability of God's own Spirit in such as had freely received the Gift thereof and therefore could and can freely give Glory to his Name for Evermore Amen and Amen Thomas Taylor A Testimony for the Lord the good Shepherd and true Minister of the Sanctuary and true Tabernacle which God hath pitched and not Man against all the false Shepherds and Hireling Ministers and Teachers of the World under what Name or Notion or Form soever who have run and God never sent them and therefore cannot profit the People at all HEAR the Word of the Lod God that is gone forth against you like a Flame of Fire in this the mighty Day of the arising of the Almighty Power of the Lord God Almighty who is jealous of his Honour and who is tender of the poor Souls whom you have deceived and do daily make a Prey of for filthy Lucre your End is come 2 Pet. 2. 2 Cor. 3.13 Dan. 5.26 27. the Day hath Revealed you and in God's Ballance are you weighed and found altogether wanting and therefore is your Kingdom departed from you and now the Lord God is setting up his own most Heavenly and Everlasting Kingdom in the Hearts of his People Dan. 7. who in the Leadings of his Light are come out from amongst you and who through the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of their Testimony have gotten Victory over the Beast the Whore and false Prophet who have desiled the Earth with their Abominations Lies and Lewdness Dan. 7. and he will yet gather more from amongst you And now the Kingdom under the whole Heavens is and shall be for ever the Portion of the People of the Saints of the most High God whose Kingdom is an Everlasting Kingdom and all Dominions shall serve and obey him who liveth for ever who is arisen in this his Glorious Day not only to reveal but even to destroy to the uttermost the Man of Sin that Son of Perdition in all the Earth 2 Thess 2. which hath sate in the Temple of God as God saying he was God and hath long Exalted himself above all that was called God which alone ought to be Worshipped but the Lord is arisen to dethrone him even that Wicked One who would not suffer the true Seed the true Heir Christ Jesus the true Light to Reign but hath always like an enraged Beast pushed with his Horns against the Lamb in every Appearance whereby the tender Buddings of Truth in many People have been often hurt and the Growth of the good Seed often hindered and some of the feeble Ones even in their comings out of Egypt have been out off by this Spiritual Amaleck the Dragon upon which the Whore the false Priesthood and Ministry Rides whom God will have War with for ever and will destroy him to the End for now is the Ancient of Days upon his Throne and the Thrones of the Wicked are cast down and One like unto the Son of Man Acts 9.10 11. to wit the Lord Christ Jesus in and with his numberless Number is come with the Clouds of Heaven for as sure as he went up so is he certainly come again and broughâ— near to the Ancient of Days Dan. 7.26 27. and is in the actual Possession of that Kingdom Glory and Power given him of the Father that all People Nations and Languages should serve and obey him for his Dominion is an Everlasting Dominion which shall not pass away and his Kingdom that which shall not be destroyed and now the Judgment is set and the Books are opened Glory to the Lord for ever and now is the Revelation of all Things Rev. 16.19 and fulfilling of all Things which hath been spoken of by the true Witness since the World began And now the Tything Hireling Priests and Merchants of Babylon who by their Works deny Christ come in the Flesh run to the Powers of the Earth and Cry out Rev. 18.15 16. and
in them for by your own Confession you are miserable Offenders all the Days of your Life and have no Health in you and so cannot endure to hear of Perfection or perfect Soundness on this side the Grave Eph. 9.11 12 13. Yea though you read in Scripture That Christ's Ministry perfects to God Epâ— 4. Yet there is not so much Faith amongst you as a Grain of Mustard seed to believe any such thing for if any come to be healed by Christ and so made perfectly found to God and witness forth the same they are not for your Company even you who have no Health in you but are miserable Offenders Oh you that cry out against Separatists and Separation Jude 18.19 what a woful Separation have you made you are of them who have separated your selves from the Lord in Unbelief and are sensual not living in God's Spirit but in the broad Way of the World Oh when will you be weaned from the Breasts of Mystery Babylon and learn to suck at Truth 's Breasts Zach. 13.1 Rev. 22.1 c. and draw Water out of God's Well which in the Light and Life of Jesus Christ is opened to the true Hungerers and Thirsters after Righteousness this day But you have transgressed the Everlasting Covenant and offered Violence to the righteous Law of the Lord Jesus and miserably wrested and perverted the Holy Scriptures 2 Pet. 3.16 which witness of him and his glorious Appearance in these latter days and this you do that you may establish your own Traditions that you may keep your selves up in the Earth in the Glory of this World and esteem of Fallen Man John 5.44 who knows not Christ nor his Kingdom and therefore hath the Lord already discovered your Skirts and will yet daily more and more 2 Thess 2.8 by the bright shining forth of his Light make you so manifest naked and bare that every Eye shall see the Shame of your Nakedness Isa 66.24 And to the Nations of them that are Saved who walked in the Light of the Heavenly Jerusalem shall you be an abhorring for ever and the Redeemed of the Lord shall daily flock to Zion out of your Frozen Land to offer their Spiritual Sacrifices to God upon his Holy Altar and shall see the Smeak of your defiled Sacrifices go downward as Cain 's did Gen. 4.5 which God had no Respect to And the Smoak of your Torment shall go up for ever and ever Rev. 14.11 for strong is the Lord that judges you because you have given his Lambs Gall and Vinegar to drink Rev. 16.19 and have pushed them with Side and Shoulder and therefore a bitter Cup will God give you to drink Oh how hath the Lord borne with you How hath his Voice uttered it self amongst you in your Streets in your Assemblies saying in your Ears O Repent repent Give Glory to God by giving over to deceive your own and the poor Peoples Souls which are precious to God O ye that have exalted your selves into the Place of Teachers and are untaught your selves into the Place of Bishops and Overseers of others and have not looked into your own Hearts and Souls to see what grows there Mich. 3.6 7. O the deep Sleeps and Slumbers that you are seen to be in this day even all you who have ran and God never sent you and therefore you have not nor never can possibly in that State profit the People at all Oh all you that love to be call'd of Men Master and Doctor and Lord Bishops and Arch Deacons and such-like worldly Titles which Christ Mat. 23.10 11. the meek Lamb and lowly in Heart did always forbid and his Spirit is against for ever and ever and saith It shall not be so amongst his but he that is greatest must be least and Servant of all not in feigned Words and deceitful Shews Mat. 20.25 26. Mat. 15.13 but in Deed and in Truth Glory to the Lord who is arisen to root up the false Ministry and to bring in his own as in the Beginning That the Earth may be covered with the Knowledge of God Isa 11.9 Hab. 2.14 and Jesus Christ our Lord as the Waters cover the Sea Amen and Amen O ye Priests and Parish-Teachers When will ye consider of the Entrance of your selves into your Offices and the People into your Church You have laid another Foundation than Christ hath laid Christ said to his Messengers and Ministers John 20.21 22. Heb. 7.16 As my Heavenly Father hath sent me so I send you But Christ was not made a Minister by the Law of a Carnal Commandment but by the Power of an endless Life And so you that are Ministers of the Letter and made Ministers thereof by the Law of a Carnal Commandment and your Fittedness for the Work is gathered not from the Holy Spirit 's Ability 1 Cor. 1.20 21. Rev. 3.18 19 20. but from some Worldly Endowments as Natural Languages Arts and Parts which can only fit a Man for a Heathenish Oratory but could never help in this great and Heavenly Matter of Christ's Kingdom and your Bishops being made by the Humane Powers could never say That by the laying on of their Hands you received either the Holy Ghost or any Gift of it And so you being of the World and impowered by the World how can you claim Audience or Obedience from Christ's Members who know not to follow your Voice which is the Strangers Voice and so you Men of the World are heard 1 John 4.5 upheld and obeyed by the World who are ignorant of Christ's Voice from the Strangers Mat. 15.14 and so being such blind Guides whether can you lead the People but into the Ditch And there you are Isa 55.2 who are always doing what you ought not to do and so have no Health in you and so dangerous to joyn to and are miserable Offenders Isa 56.10 Isa 1.4 5 6. for taking the poor Peoples Money for that which is not Bread and causing them to spend their Labours for your Traditions and empty Sound of Words which are never able to satisfie their Souls John 10.1 And you are very miserable Offenders also in not only coming in by a wrong Door your selves but also in perswading the poor deceived Multitude that you enter them into the Pale of the Church by your Baptizing or Sprinkling of them when Infants for which there is no Scripture Nay more as your common Custom is and as is said before that you regenerate them by it for God never regenerated any by a Means which he never ordained as this Usage of yours is manifest to be So all your Entrances being impure and your Foundations Unspiritual and Unscriptural what Building must needs be builded thereupon the wise in Heart do easily see So you and your Work being Mystery Babylon Mat. 7.26 Rev. 17.15 and 14.11 the Lord God of Heaven is engaged
you but as that teacheth you c. and you know all things And these things saith another Apostle to the Brethren do I write unto you by way of remembrance not absolute Necessity as this Man speaks to stir up your pure Minds And this Doctrine of the Hirelings is only to keep up their Masterly Power over the poor Peoples Consciences and indeed denies the Gift of God's Spirit and coming of Christ in the Flesh and the very End of his Ministry which was for the perfâ—cting of the Saints even in this Life See Eph. 4. at large But the Hirelings Doctrine which perfects nothing but Sin keeps People always learning laden with divers Sins and Lusts but never brings them to the Knowledge of the Truth which sets free from Sin and therefore from such according to Christ's Doctrine ought all People to turn away But what must this Sam. Smith and his Fellows who would be accounted Masters of Assemblies be taught of others Indeed they stand in need of teaching for they have run and God never sent them and therefore they cannot profit the People at all as is here manifest The Reasons of this Smith for denying Perfection saith he is Because the Best of God's Saints and Servants in this Life are not capable of Perfection And is any Child saith he put by his Master into the highest Form the first day he comes to School Or doth he not lead him on by degrees The Apostles themselves that had the Spirit and so in a Capacity of more plentiful Revelation than we are yet Christ tells them he had many things to tell them but they could not bear them then And for this he brings John 16.12 To which I answer That this Man here doth manifestly abuse Scripture and by that the Nature of his Naughty Spirit in all his Discourse is easily seen For here he saith they had the Spirit and yet could not bear Christ's words whereas Christ in that place makes the want of the coming of the Spirit the very Cause why they could not then bear his words and therefore he saith in the very next words in that of John 16.13 Howbeit when the Spirit of Truth is come he will guide you into all Truth and shew you things to come And so this Smith is one of them that abuses and wrests Scripture tending to his own and others Destruction But whereas he saith That the Apostles who had the Spirit were capable of a more plentiful Revelation than they are that 's true for they to wit such Hirelings and Wresters of Scripture as this Smith is are Sensual not having the Spirit and so are far from receiving any Vision or Revelation from God seeing it 's their common Doctrine to deny Immediate Teachings and Revelations from God for that 's ceased say they But for him to say as these his words would insinuate That the Apostles in those Days were capable of more plentiful Revelation than any are in these Days is false for God is the same to his now as then and such as are Faithful in a little now shall be Ruler over much as well as formerly and saith Christ I pray not for these only but for all that shall believe on me through their words that they may be one as we are One. And for his Reason or Proof That the Best of the Best of the Saints and Servants of God in this Life are not capable of Perfection the very Child or School-boy he speaks of may come forth and consute it For what though a Scholar be not perfect in his Book at first doth it follow that he never shall be while he lives He may as well say so as the other for his Comparison doth utterly make void his false Doctrine against Perfection as Experience of all Men both Masters and Scholars proves But what a Mountain of Enmity is risen up in these Deceitful Teachers of these Times who love to be called of Men Master against that Heavenly Doctrine of sinless Perfection is manifest to all in this that though they can allow of a Perfection in all Arts and Sciences in their kinds yea and of a Perfection in the growth of all other Creatures in this kind but cannot endure to hear tell of much less to allow of a Perfection in the Children of the Everlasting Father God over all who is this Day well witnessed upon his Throne Ever Praised be his Name bringing forth his Heavenly Birth and Babes and so making all things new But who ever but this Slanderous Spirit in this Smith said That though People have lived in Drunkenness Swearing and open Prophaneness many Years yet if but once come to be lifted as he scornfully calls it into that Society to wit of such as he and the rest of the World in Scorn call Quakers that presently they are perfect and without Sin And then like the troubled Sea he foams out his own Shame and adds saying in that forementioned Book I Challenge all the Quakers on Earth and in Hell to give a sober answer to these Texts of Scripture Eccles 7.2 1 Kings 8.46 Prov. 20.9 Answer By these words of this Enemy of God and his Perfect Work in his Saints any who judge in the Light of God in the least measure may see the Rancour and Malicious Blind Nature of that Spirit by which he was acted O! that ever Men should take upon them to be Ministers of the Gospel as such would be accounted and yet utter such base words Did ever any Enemy of Truth from the beginning of the World to this Day make such a Challenge What! must People come out of Hell to give thee a Sober Answer What! hath Passion and Envy so blinded thy Heart as to imagine that the Inhabitants of Hell can resolve Questions and that in soberness nay nay they must be Heavenly People that give truly sober Answers in such weighty Matters as these and therefore thy unsober wild words in these Matters shews where thy Dwelling is to wit not in Heaven amongst the Saints and Spirits of Just Men made perfect but in the Earthly Sensual and Devilish Wisdom amongst those who are Enemies to Truth and Perfection and so Ministers of Antichrist who plead for Sin during tearm of Life and not of Christ who came for that very end to perfect his Saints and to present them himself even in this Life without spot or wrinkle or any such thing Eph. 5.25 c. And so the Reproachful and Malicious words of this Sam. Smith against the People of God called Quakers and their Holy Doctrine of Perfection put aside I say concerning those Scriptures he mentions and first to that Eccles 7.20 For there is not a Just Man upon Earth that doeth good and sinneth not that Solomon here speaks of Men under the Law and of the Generation of the First Adam in the Fall amongst whom there is not indeed a Just Man that doeth good and sinneth not but this doth not make
void the Covenant of God with his Elect in Christ Jesus the Second Adam the Lord from Heaven for as is the Heavenly so are they that are Heavenly And so whosoever is Born of God and abideth in Christ sinneth not for he that sinneth hath neither seen Christ nor known Christ as the Apostle saith expresly in 1 John 3.6 9. And herein is that saying true 1 John last If we say we have not sinned to wit in the First Adam or Flesh we make God a Liar but now being Translated out of that Kingdom of Darkness into the Kingdom of the Dear Son of God the Light we put on Christ's Nature which is Holiness and Righteousness without which none shall see God Blessed be God for his Unspeakable Rich Gift And so though in the First Man 's faln Nature there is Sin and Death yet in Christ Jesus there is Life Righteousness and Everlasting Peace And if thou wouldst not have Death the Wages of Sin thou must come out of the Flesh into the Spirit of Christ where Life and Everlasting Peace is witnessed This is the Day of the Lord 's Mighty Working wherein he is separating the Sheep from the Goats and making the difference plain and manifest betwixt such as serve God and such as serve Sin And for that other Scripture 1 Kings 8.46 which saith There is no Man that sinneth not it must in like manner be understood as the former to wit of Man in the First Adam or faln Fleshly Nature where all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God and in which state of Sin and Unbelief whosoever abide they do sin daily But this toucheth not at all the sinless and perfect state of the Children of God in Christ Jesus where Sin which is the Devil's Work comes not as was said before for the Prince of this World hath no part in me saith Christ And therefore who art thou that lays Sin to the Charge of God's Elect Thy own words shall be thy Burden but Peace on God's Israel for Evermore And for that third Scripture Prov. 20.9 Who can say I have made my Heart clean I am pure from my Sin I say No Man can say that he hath made himself so though in Christ Jesus he is so for not of our selves but of God's alone Mercy and Free-gift in Christ Jesus it comes to pass that the Elect Vessels are cleansed and made pure in Heart according to that well-known place Eph. 5.25 26 27 Christ gave himself for his Church that he might sanctifie and cleanse it with the washing of Water by the Word that he might present it himself a Glorious Church not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing but that it should be holy and without blemish Is not here a Company made clean indeed yea clean at Heart and pure from Sin in and by Christ Jesus Therefore let all the Enemies of Christ and his perfect Work be silent for ever So be it But above all it seems strange what he sets down in that Defiling Book called The Looking-glass where he saith That Philpot Bradford and Cranmer confessed That they were vile sinful and wretched Hypocrites even at the State when to be burnt for their Religion I say either he or the Printer or Relator of the History or all of them do greatly wrong them Sufferers or else their Condition is greatly to be lamented who had so much Zeal and Boldness as to Suffer for the sake of their Conscience and yet had so little Knowledge and Understanding of the Mystery of God and Christ as not to know the washing of Regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost no better But we leave this and so proceed to see what there is in those Scriptures which he saith the Quakers make so much use of to prove Sinless Perfection The first is Psal 37.37 Mark the Perfect Man and behold the Vpright for the end of that Man is Peace The second is Heb. 6.1 Therefore leaving the Principles of the Doctrine of Christ let us go on to Perfection The third is 1 Cor. 2.6 Howbeit we speak Wisdom among them that are perfect The fourth is 2 Cor. 13.11 Finally Brethren farewel be perfect To all which I say It 's most plain to every pure Eye that these Scriptures with many more that might be brought to the same purpose prove sufficiently a Sinless Perfection otherwise it is no Perfection at all if not Sinless of God's working for every Work of God is Sinless and Perfect for that Perfection which is in or with Sin is the Work of the Man of Sin and is that Perfection which pleaseth his vile sinful hypocritical Members so well And so whosoever marks and beholds this imperfect and unbelieving Generation shall plainly see their End is Trouble and Misery and therefore it is that our words which we speak this day from the Lord concerning the great things of his Kingdom are accounted no better than Folly and Error amongst these sinful Opposers of God's Work of Sinless Perfection in his Saints and so these Opposers are never going on to God's Perfection but backwards from that of God in them which should lead them to God and so their Back and not their Face turned to God they are ever learning but never able to come to the Knowledge of the Truth as it is in Christ Jesus which perfects to God all that come to it And so how can they for shame exhort their Hearers to Perfection who are themselves the great Opposers of God's perfect Work in his People above all others To conclude That which remains at present to be spoken to that filthy Looking-glass is to wipe off a heap of Lies and Dirt which he hath falsly charged upon the Innocent and Harmless People of God called Quakers as in p. 249. where he saith That we disown the Ordinances of Christ and his Gospel the Word preached by his Ministers Church-order Baptism and Supper of the Lord Prayer Singing of Psalms the Publick Ministry as no Ministry of Jesus Christ Albeit saith he God hath set his Seal thereto in the Conversion of many Souls To all which in a word I answer and say The Lord both hath and yet will rebuke that Lying Spirit by which this Book was written And in particular to the several parts of this false and notorious lying Charge against us I say That the Ordinances of Christ and his everlasting Gospel we dearly love and own and the Word preached by his Ministers but not the Ministers of Antichrist we dearly own and delight in for the Word of God which the Ministers of Christ which he sends preach is Spirit and Life not the dead Letter for the dead Letter which the Hirelings preach for filthy Lucre we know to be no better than Chaff compared with that living Word which the Ministers of Christ preach for the Letter of the Hireling killeth but the Spiritual Word of the Gospel of Christ gives Life the Word of the
of the Faithful who naturally only proceed from such as do but in general only profess the Christian Religion though their Lives even in your Judgment are judged to be no better some if not many of them to be I say no better than Heathens is such a piece of Darkness and Wretchedness that the Earth groans under it and the Spirit of the Lord is burdened with your Doings as a Cart under Sheaves And whereas thou brings that Scripture Mat. 18.10 to prove that by little Children he intends the Natural Infants is so gross that it shews thou wilt not see for those little ones whose Angels Christ said did always behold the Face of his Father are plainly said to be such as believed in him Ver. 6. and humbled themselves like a little Child and so he still brought little Children as Figures and Examples to Men that they might come to the Birth of God in them which Heirs his Kingdom according to what is said before Rom. 9.8 and John 3. That which is Born of the Flesh is Flesh and that which is Born of the Spirit is Spirit Also as to that which thou brings against our Objection from Mat. 28.18 concerning Infant Baptism it is nothing but thy groundless Argument drawn from a falfe Supposition of our understanding of the place as though we understood the reason wherefore Teaching is to go before Baptizing because of the meer standing of the words in the Sentence and so troubles thy self to prove by other Scripture That Precedency of Action is not always deducible from the Precedency of Words For thou maist know that we do not say that Teaching goes before Baptism meerly because it is placed so in words though in that place that is true but especially because of the Nature of the Thing as is manifest amongst many other Reasons 1. By your own Confession that the Sacraments do not beget Faith but only confirm and that Faith cometh by hearing the Word Preached 2. From the Practice of those that Baptized with Water in the first Times as is to be seen in Scripture where none were Baptized with Water but upon Teaching first going to the Understanding of such whatsoever you imagine to the contrary from the Goaler's or Stephana's Families 3. From the Judgment of those that Compiled that Catechism which saith What is required of Persons to be Baptized The Answer is Faith and Repentance And so because they in their dark Minds and Self-will would needs have Children into that Ceremony right or wrong they devised that strange and unheard of and unreasonable Custom of Sureties or Godfathers and Godmothers to Promise that for the Children which the Lord never required of them and indeed is most unreasonable to think possible for can any Promise for another that they shall do such things as forsake the Devil and all his Works c. especially for Infants whose Minds and Hearts are wholly hid from such Presumptuous Promisers But what if the Lord should require the Performance of this Promise in the Day of Judgment on behalf of such Infants that when they come to Years are found following the Devil and all his Works Would'st thou be content to suffer the Punishment of such Disobedient Ones for their Sin Were it not just thou should'st seeing thou wast the Surety or Undertaker for them and they have failed Must it not therefore fall on thee except thou Repent And so if thou be Damned do not say that we Damn thee for it 's thy self that art the Cause and God and his Servants are clear of all your Blood And do not trifle and say as one of you said See these Men can bring a Proof out of our Catechism and therefore it is so and so and drew this wretched word forth from it The Spider draws Poyson out of the same Flower the Bee draws Honey The Heathens might have said so to Paul who brought their own Authors against them And did his bringing some true words out of their heaps of false prove all to be good and he a Spider for so doing any more than our present Work make us Spiders or allow of all that 's written in that Catechism Nay nay the Lord is Judge between us and he sees who are in Heart true Lovers of him and his Truth and who are not and will give every one according to their Works and that is our Joy Glory to his Name for Ever and so at this time rests the Lord's Servant Thomas Taylor This Writ upon Occasion of a Visitation so called UNto you who are called Divines In Love are sent these following Lines And so if you are Wise you 'll not Disdain A few plain Verses from a Heart that 's plain They 'll serve as Monitors unto that part In you which is grown dull with weight of Art And evil Customs in these lazy Times Wherein the Truth 's Extirpate Prose and Rhimes Wherein Ambition Pride and Cruelty Is like a Fiery Flame advanc'd so High That if with Moistning showers it go not out It will consume the Tree both Branch and Root Wo to the Shepherds that lead the Flock amiss And follow Cursed Covetousness what 's this Save gross Idolatry to give to th' Earth Your Hearts which is the due of him that gives you Breath And Wo to People when even for a Word A Man's Offender made then comes the Sword Then comes the Plagues of God upon that Land To cut off Sinners who against him stand And Wo to People when their Bishop's Blind That neither sees nor knows their Sores to Bind Who feeds himself with Thoughts of Worldly Glory And knows not that his Life 's an empty Story And knows not that the Holy One Beholds How such the Sheep impound in dirty Folds How they the Fleece and not the Flock do seek Howl howl ye Shepherds Roar Lament and Weep The Day of your Dispersions is at Hand You shall no more the Lambs Tear Kill and Rend But Heaven and Earth shall Joy the Day to see Wherein the Sheep from Bondage shall go free Weep Weep and Wall all strong and stout of Heart Who with Proud Babel's Whore have taken part Upon a Bed of Sorrow you must lye Because the Cursing thing you come so nigh What Madness is in Men in these bad Days That will not heed what Christ and Scripture says That will not once believe that God will come And give upon your Deeds a Righteous Doom What are your Ears and Eyes so clos'd that ye God's Truth will neither Practice Hear nor see Hath Midnight Darkness all your Senses drown'd That of God's Truth you 'll not endure the Sound Must every vain Invention Suffered be And with a Brasen Face i' th' Land go free And only such as do Proclaim God's Day Be stopt and from your presence sent away Into some nasty Prison or such Place To spend their Days in Sorrow with Disgrace As though the Great and Holy One of Heaven Would not pour out
way of the Simple and Upright in Heart that all Pure Holy Praises in a Living Obedience of his Gospel might be given to him And amongst those Enemies of God thou Tho. Hall hast risen up in great Malice and Wickedness through the hardness of thy Impenitent Heart heaping up Wrath against the Day of Wrath upon thy own Soul and doing despight against the Spirit of God's Grace that hath sought by all means possible to win thee to Repentance but thou hast closed thy Eye and stopped that Ear in thee that should see and hear the Things of God and so instead of believing in and following the Lord Jesus and his Gospel thou hast in pretence chosen the Killing Letter of Moses's Law to thy own Confusion and hath set at naught the Son of God by Mocking and Scoffing at his Light and Spirit in these Days as the Rebellious Jews did at him of Old who derided him and his Doctrine saying They were Moses's Disciples but as for that Fellow Christ as they Blasphemously called him they knew not whence he was So thou would'st be accounted a Disciple of Moses and Pleader for his Law and Ordinances which never did nor never can make any thing perfect as the Apostle sheweth at large in his Epistle to the Hebrews but as for Jâ—sus Christ he is of little Value to thee nor hath any room in the Inn of thy Corrupt Heart but thou wouldst make him a Drudge to thy unclean Will that when thou hast done him and his Spirit and Light all the Despight thou canst thou would'st have him to Save thee for a feigned Profession sake which stinks in his Nostrils for from the Lord I do here again declare unto thee that all thy Prayers Performances and Pleadings are Abomination in his sight And as I have often said his Hand is lifted up against thee and will assuredly in his own due time fall heavy upon thee and will grinde thee to pouder except thou speedily Repent for in the Wages of Balaam thou art in the great Captivity wandred far away from the Everlasting Gospel of the Son of God and a meer Stranger to the Law and Covenant of his Peace not knowing neither what thou sayest nor whereof thou affirmest when thou Talkest and Writest of Moses Law and Ordinances and would'st set them up as the Jews did and do to vail and hide Christ the End of the Law from the Minds of the People For even as the Apostle said of the Opposing Jews in his Day so I may truly say of thee That even to this very Hour for want of Faith in Christ the Vail of Darkness and Ignorance is upon thy Heart for all thy Reading and Talking of the Letter of Scripture for thou wanting Faith in Christ the Light who hath the Key of David in his Hand which is his Light and Spirit thou gropest like a Blind Man for the Way and canst not find it nay though it be most plainly witnessed unto in the Scriptures and declared of to thee by us the Servants of Christ in these Days yet for all that can be said or writ to thee thou though the Wickedness of thy Unbelieving Heart remainest as Ignorant of Christ and his Covenant and Spiritual Law of Life as if thou hadst never heard nor seen any thing thereof as by what now follows I know to every seeing Eye will most plainly and easily appear And now to his purpose God willing I shall set down some of thy Errors as I find them in thy last Papers which are so gross and manifest that little more than the bare setting of them down will be needful to discover that filthy Puddle of Enmity and deep Sink of Sin that lyes hid in thy Corrupted Heart against the Lord Jesus and his Blessed Spirit of Truth the only Guide of all Believing Souls in these Gospel Days And first thou T. Hall says See whether a Man ought not to give his Ears and Heart and Soul and Body and Eyes to harken to and believe as duly to the Moral Law as to Christ the Prophet Nay there is more Charge and Command lyes upon the Observation of the Law than for the Gospel as by Moses 's several places of Warning and in respect of several Dangers though it be said He that harkens not to the Prophet Christ shall be cut off there is as much spoken of the Law I Answer Who but an Unbelieving Jew could ever thus have gone about to Undervalue and Dethrone the Lord Jesus Christ as this Tho. Hall doth who lays more weight upon the Observation of Moses's law which had the Shadow than upon the Everlasting Gospel of the Son of God and so he neither believes Moses nor the Prophets nor Christ and so he is captivated in the great Captivity of the Spiritual Assyrian the Devil who hath blinded his Mind lest the Light of the Glorious Gospel should shine unto him See 2 Cor. 4.3 4. For Moses writ of Christ saying Deut. 18. The Lord thy God shall raise thee up a Prophet like unto me him shalt thou hear in all things c. Now the Lord Jesus being this Prophet when he appeared in the Days of his Flesh he made manifest to such as believed in him what was necessary for them then and the rest of the Fathers Mind and Will after his Ascention by his Blessed Spirit as he said John 16.12 c. I have yet many things to speak unto you but ye cannot bear them now howbeit when he the Spirit of Truth is come he will guide you into all Truth for he shall not speak of himself but whatsoever he shall hear that shall he speak and he will shew you things to come He shall glorifie me for he shall take of mine and shall shew it unto you All things that the Father hath are mine therefore said I he shall take of mine and shall shew it unto you So by this it 's evident that this T. H. speaks not by the Spirit of Truth for he would set up Moses the Servant above Christ the Lord of all and so instead of glorifying Christ dishonours him exceedingly And as Moses had so plainly writ of Christ and â—â—ected all to harken to him when he appeared upon Pain of Eternal Death so did also all the Prophets write of the Glory of Christ's Day and pointed to him as the Sum and Substance of all over all God Blessed for Evermore And so in the Transfiguration when Moses and Elias the Servants were gone Christ only was left with an Eternal Witness of God out of the Bright Cloud saying This is my Beloved Son hear him Mat. 17.1 c. And so this Tho. Hall is a grievous Liar who says There is more Charge and Command for hearing Moses than Christ for even then when the Law was in use amongst the Jews yet Moses as from God doth Charge all upon Pain of Death to hear and obey the Voice of Christ in his Appearance as is said before
or audience in so much that the boasting Spirit began to get up in some of them as in this John Reynolds as though nothing should stop their passage and so would have all accounted Liars that had said to the Contrary But behold the Wisdom if God in suffering things so to come to pass that all things might be fully manifest And so an Act of Parliament must come out against them unless they will Conform And then lo behold this shower of Rain forces in their tender Heads as not being able to endure the sharpness of the Storm for want of the true Spiritual Armour For Words and Profession could never secure any from the Fiery Trials that are still ordered in the Wisdom of God for the manifesting of every Seed So if these ensuing answers may be serviceable unto any of these Zealous Hearts to provoke them to a further search of themselves and be a means now when they are something low to give them a sight of any thing wherein they have Sined against God and Erred from his way of Life and so to move them to Repentance it will be well and a gladding of my Heart and of my Brethren who cannot but desire and endeavour not only theirs but even the good of all Men yea of them that either in times past have or at this day do shew the greatest Enmity against us for we know they none of them understand aright the Innocency of our Hearts to them and the Fear and Love of our Souls to God and his Truth for if they did how could they forbear to Love us But Glory to God for ever that hath given us not only to believe but even as need is to suffer for his Name and Truths sake and to pass by great Offences done to us which in Love to the Soul we could desire might be also the Portion of all that name Truth Rests God Servant Thomas Taylor Ignorance and Error REPROVED c. JOHN REYNOLDS A Paper of Queries coming to my hand as seems from thee to John Finch and John Payton of Dudly and weighing it well I could not but in obedience to God write something to it not so much for the use of these two young men who by the Light that God hath raised in them do see thy deceit therein as for the sake of some simple people who are as yet admirers of thee and deceived by thee and such like who under a pretence of zeal for the letter of Scripture and things you have set up in your wills under the name of Ordinances not knowing nor considering that Christ is come the end of all things to them that believe Though you may sometimes unwillingly light on Scriptures that speaks the thing and so if by what here may be said the Truth may more appear and their simple Souls be helped God will be Glorified and that will be Reward sufficient But before the Queries themselves be answered something may be said to that which goes before them in that Paper and from that I have noted the nature of thy Fawning Flattering Self-contradicting and Confused Spirit but to hide that from the Light thou backs thy sayings with quotations of Scripture as though mentioning what the Holy Men of God spoke by the true Spirit could prove that to be a true Spirit which acts in thee Nay nay the day is dawned Praised be God and the Sheepskin no longer can hide the Wolves from being seen of the Lambs of Christ for such hear Christs Voice and follow him and so are Children of the Light but the Stranger they will not follow though he may Paint him self over never so cunningly with words but all your fair words in the beginning of your work ye Fair-sayers whether in Pulpit or in Press is but to make way for your sting that follows for you resemble the Scorpion whose sling is in his Tail mentioned in Revelations for the end of all thy fair words here is but to draw these young men from the simplicity that is in Christ and his Light that Lighteth every man that cometh into the World for the great Malice of thy Heart is against the sufficiency of Christs Light in every man and so would have something to be added to it from without that so thou may'st bring in thy own traditions but what condition shall one gather by thy words these two Men John Finch and John Payton were in at the writing of these Queries to them for one while thou seemest to apply Scriptures respecting the conditions of the unbelieving Jews to them and another while thou applies those that respect the condition of pretty well-grown Christians But however the sum of all is to perswade them from following the Light of Christ in them as not being sufficient and so thy love is not testified unto them in Deed and in Truth as thou say'st it is but in meer Hypocrisie and Deceit as may further appear But what is that Soul enlightning Commandment Psalm 29.8 Whereby thou seemest to desire they may be enlightned Is it this letter without or the Light of Christ within If thou say the letter as thou must say or else thwarts the whole current of thy Doctrine and then all that have Eyes may see thee to be an outward Jew only But if thou say with us it is the Light of Christ that shineth in Darkness John 1. which at the Commandment of God shineth out of Darkness 2 Cor. 4. to give the knowledge of Gods Glory to Man in the Face of Christ then the business about Sufficiency of the Light between us is at an end and the Truth stands over the from thy own words The next is when thou hearest the Scripture mentioned thy Windy Slightly Crafty Doctrine of Deceivers Ephes 4.14 then thou shoots thy Sting at the Innocent and would'st have People believe that is to be applyed to us who Preach Christ and his all-sufficiency in and for every one that can Receive Him who is near every Man and by his Light shineth to Conviction and Judgment in every Man who would have all Men to be saved and come to the knowledge of his Truth which is nigh in the Heart and in the Mouth but this was the Apostles Doctrine and so not to be condemned in us but thou goest on telling of two ways of Deceiving the one thou namest the upper way which thou say'st is by Philosophy the Traditions of Men Rudiments of the World and Sciences falsly so called And Praised be God thou art as it were forced by the Light in thy Conscience to acquit us from being of this Number but truly the Light in our conscience tells us expresly that thou John Reynolds art one of them that areiâ—n this upper way as thou callest it of deceit for of Philosophy Traditions of Men Worldly Rudiments and false Sciences is the Body of thy Divinity made up as well as other of thy Brethren the Hirelings â—â—ou would'st condemn for the difference
dwels keeps People always learning and never brings any to the Knowledge of perfecting Truth of the Lord Jesus for how should it For they have Run and I never sent them saith God therefore they shall not profit the People at all Jer. 23. And under this woful Condition lieth all the World of unbelieving People who believe not in the Truth Christ Jesus but follow their own dark Spirits which see nothing of the Kingdom of God nor the Holy Worshippers therein A long and dark Night of Apostacy hath passed over the World since the Apostles time wherein the Spirit of Antichrist and Devils hath wrought effectually in the Children of Disobedience as was foretold to the blinding of their Minds and hardning their Hearts against the Everlasting Gospel of Truth the Heavenly Light and Power of God unto Salvation and hath so deluded them that they have thought they were doing God service when they were Persecuting his Truth and Members of his Body as many in the same dark deluded state do at this day but now the Lord is lifting up his Standard against that great Whore Dragon false Prophet and their Armies who Gog and Magog like would devour the Lambs of Christ And now no Weapon formed against Christ his Truth and People shall ever prosper any more at all but the Lamb shall have the Victory and the Kingdom Dominion and Greatness of it shall be given to the Saints of the Most High God whose Kingdom is Everlasting and that Nation Kingdom and People that will not bow to Truth will moulder away and come to nothing as the Lord hath said For now is the effect of every Vision fully to come and no more at all to be prolonged And therefore Wo Wo to the Inhabitants of the Earth and the Sea who are putting the Day of the Lord a far off crying Peace Peace when there is no Peace for there is no Peace to any who will not have Jesus Christ the true Light that Lighteth every Man that cometh into the World to rule in them and over them for his is the Kingdom Glory and Power and he will Reign for Evermore in the midst of his Enemies Glory to his Name without ceasing Amen and Amen saith my Soul whom thou hast Redeemed O Holy One of Israel to set forth thy Praise amongst the Living in Jerusalem thy Holy Hill so be it So now O all ye that love Righteousness and daily wait to see the Heavenly Kingdom thereof set up in you and in all People I T. T. your Brother in the Joys and Sufferings of the Gospel having had through the Mercifulness of our God and Father perfect knowledge of his Good Way from the beginning of this Day of his Love which hath dawned upon his Beloved Seed in these Islands and in all the World do declare and bear my Testimony for God amongst many Brethren that there is no way to God the Father of Light but by the Light Christ Jesus that true Light that Lighteth every Man that cometh into the World with a Light that is Pure Free Spiritual and Sufficient that all Men through it may believe and so be led out of Darkness Sin and Death the ways of Sin into the Marvellous Light and Life of Righteousness and true Holiness and so into Fellowship with the Holy God without which Holiness none can see him nor enjoy him for ever For this Gift of God the Light is Holy and in all that believe and receive it it brings forth it s own Blessed Image which is Holiness And it is Free and works according to its own Blessed Nature in all that joyn to it setting them free from all their Spiritual Enemies whatsoever and so making them Free-born Children of the Heavenly Jerusalem which is free for evermore from all the false and imbondaging Impositions of the Man of Sin whatsoever And so also because this Heavenly Gift of God Christ Jesus the Light who Lighteth every Man John 1.9 is perfect and shines in the Heaâ—t therefore it doth of its own Nature make perfect every Man that wiâ—h their Hearts receive it and so come to God by it It makes perfect to God as pertaining â—o the very Heart and Conscience of all its Lovers for if you Love the Light you Love God from whence it comes for he that Loves him that is sent â—oveth also him that sent him And therefore I say unto all People upon the face of the Earth that all that Faith Hope Worship Religion or whatever it may be called That stands not in and is not carried on in this Power of God the Light which Lighteth every Man is nothing worth Every good and perfect Gift saith James cometh down from the Father of Light who is Unchangeable and it shines in the Heart of every Man though the Darkness which through the Full hath gotten place there comprehends it not yet the Light is there a sure Foundation a tried Corner-Stone Elect and Precious Blessed are all that fall upon it so as to be broken into Godly Sorrow and Tenderness of Heart and Blessed are all that Build upon it they shall be called the Elect of God Precious Sons and Daughters of Zion and their Building shall never fail them nay the Gates of Hell shall never prevail against their FAITH because it standeth in the Power of God Christ Jesus the Light that ever Liveth to keep them in a good and safe Condition that thus come to God by him The Day is dawned which makes all things manifâ—ll Praised be God forever even the Spirit of Truth which leadeth into all Truth is come and the Holy Anâ—iâ—ting is witnessed in all that believe in the Name of the Living Unchangeable God which Teacheth all things and it abideth in the Faithful Hearts and is sufficient And he called the Light Day and so the joyful Day which the Lord hath made being come we will Rejoyce and be Glad in it though the Children of Darkness be never so Angry For the Lord our Strength will maintain our Cause against all his Foes for evermore so be it And now though the Children of the Night be many and Professors of the Letter of Scripture that want the Life of it come forth as so many Armies to plead for and contend for their several formed Ways and invented Worships against the Children of God this day who Worship God in Spirit and in Truth yet Greater is he that is in us then he that is in the World and so though we are forced to Build in this our Holy City New Jerusalem with our Spiritual Sword in our Hand yet we are all well content finding the Lord still with us in this Day of the Restoration of all things And so though Tobiah and Sanballat with all the Heathen Mock and carry false Reports concerning us to the Rulers of the Earth yet through the Help of our God we are enabled to go on in our Holy Spiritual Work in the Lord 's Holy City
and Temple and the Word of the Lord Prospers in our Hand and in our Hearts And though they say we deny the Ordinances of God because we cannot plead for or put confidence in a Shadow or Figure yet holding the Head Christ Jesus the Light and Life Eternal we are safe enough and have the Witness of God in our Hearts Justifying us and Sealing in our Hearts our Acceptance with his Majesty which is our Peace and Assurance for ever for Praised be the Name of God for ever who hath given us an understanding to know him that is true the Son of God and we are in him that is true who is the Everlasting Ordinance of God and in him are we Baptized with a Baptism made without Hands and our Supper is with the Lord in Spirit and Truth where we are daily given to feed freely at his Table whose Body is Meat indeed who said I am the Living Bread that gives Life for ever John 6. And he that Believeth in me and feedeth on me shall never Dye chap. 6.50 51. God gave the Children of Israel Manna in the Wilderness and they died notwithstanding but my Father giveth you the true Bread For God so loved the World that he gave his Son to be the Light and Life of Man and so to as many as Received him then and do Receive him now to dwell in their Hearts by Faith to them he gave and daily doth give Power to become the Sons of God whose Birth is not of the Mortal Seed of Flesh and Blood nor the Mind or Will or Words thereof but of the Incorruptible Seed of the Word of God Eternal Real and Essential which Lives and Endures for Ever which perishes not with Using as mortal thing do but it Lives and Triumphs in its own Creating saving Sustaining Upholding Comforting and satisfying Virtue and Power for evermore well witnessed in the Hearts of Spiritual Believers this day For in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God and by it wore all things made and it was and is the Light and Life of Man and he Delighted and doth also this day greatly Rejoyce and Delight in the habitable parts of his Creation For I will dwell in them and walk in them who open unto me saith the Lord who by his Servant said Behold I stand at the door and knock and by his Servant also now saith Behold the Lord stands at the door of your Hearts all People and whosoever opens unto him he will come in unto them and the pure in Heart shall see the pure and Holy God supping with them and they with him and they shall drink abundantly of the Heavenly Wine with Jesus Christ in the Fathers Kingdom fresh and Living for now is the Lord rending away the Vail the Covering that hath been upon the hearts of People and making to all People the Feasts of fat things full of Marrow and of Wine upon the Lees well Refined And now is the Lord God Blessed for ever fulfilling the Promises of his Great Love in Christ Jesus which have been since the World began in this day of the pouring forth of his Holy Spirit whereby the Holy City New Jerusalem is felt come down from God out of Heaven and God himself dwelling with Men even the Tabernacle of God with Man as was said before all Holy Praises to his Name Yea he that sits upon the Throne hath made and is daily making all things New and now the Lamb is known to be the Light of his People and they need no other for the Anointing which they have of him Teacheth all things and now is Jerusalem a rejoycing indeed and her People a joy but now the Uncircumcised in Heart and Ear who do always resist the Holy Ghost are greatly troubled and offended by reason of the great Darkness and enmity of their Hearts because they cannot in their unclean mind enter in for into this City no unclean thing nor any that loves or makes a Lie can enter for now the Serpents meat is Dust and his Head is bruised Glory to God for ever See Isa 65.17 c. Rev. 21.1 c. Acts 7.51 52. And now are all the Climers who have not come in by the door but are Climed up another way in their unclean minds whom Christ calls Thieves and Robbers â—seen and by the same that discovers them Judged and Condemned these are they that have taken away the Key of Knowledge and will neither enter into the Kingdom of God themselves nor suffer those that are entring into enter These are they whom Christ-cries wo against who love to be called of Men Master heady and high minded Men with the great Train of their seduced Followers who Plead for them and Fight for them because they cry Peace to them in their Sins and tell them they must never be Perfâ—ct whil'st they are here but must carry about them a Body of Sin without all Hope of ever being free'd from it whil'st on Earth and so in effect deny the end of Christ's coming who came to set free the Soul by destroying the Body of Sin also they deny the very end the very end of Christ's Ministry for when he Ascended up on High he gave gifts to Men for the work of the Ministry for the edifying of the Body of Christ and for the Perfecting of the Saints Ephes 4. Come ye Contenders against Truth Is not the Perfecting of the Saints in Holiness by bringing them out of Unholiness and in Faith out of Unbelief and into the Spirit out of the Flesh and all Fleshly and Perishing Observations And doth not the Ministry of Christ which is the true Spiritual Ministry attain its end and do its work to the utmost Yea yea though the Ministers of Antichrist Fret and Foam and Gainsay and Contradict and Blaspheme and spend their strength in Vain and perfect nothing but their Sins yet the Work of the Lord goes on and Prospers and the Body of Christ is Built up and the Songs of Sion Sung in the Holy Land and none can take part therein but the Redeemed of the Lord who are redeemed from the Earth into the Heavenly Society and Church of the First-born whose Names are written in Heaven and who follow the Lamb whither soever he goes these are not Defiled with the Cup of the great Whore for they are Virgins and have Oil in their Lamps and so need not go to the Merchants of Babylen to buy And so all People bow to Truth in the inward parts for obedience to that is the Sacrifice which God requireth and better than all other Sacrifices all your Sabboth out of this are but meer Druggeries and all your Will worship Ceremonies and Traditions being out of this are but meer mock Services yea out of this to wit the Light and Truth in the inward parts your very Faith is vain and your Hope of none effect and your Prayers Sin for unto
like Not knowing what they say nor whereof they affirm when they speak of such things because to the Kingdom of Heaven within in Man they are Strangers Eyes they have but see not and Ears but hear not for the inward Eye which should see have they fast closed and the Ear which should hear have they shut lest they should see and hear and be converted and be saved But Blessed is the Eye that sees the Kingdom of God which he hath set up and is setting up in his Trembling People and the Ear that hears the unutterable Word of the Living Father which raiseth the Dead they shall ever be Prasing of him in the Congregation of the Righteous where none can come to make affraid for these Love and Fear the Lord and that frees them from the Fear of Vain Man whose Breath is in his Nostrils But all whose Religion stands upon the Sandy Foundation of Mans Wisdom and Thoughts and Doings which Perfects not to God these will be like the Chaff which the Wind scatters to and fro the Regenerating Power of Gods Eternal Spirit they being ignorant of in themselves all their shew of Religion is meer Hypocrisie and the Religion of Hypocrites shall never be established for all who gather not with Christ shall scatter and every Plant that his Heavenly Spiritual Hand hath not Planted shall be rooted up O! What Darkness have you wrapt your selves in and how is the Understanding Part clouded in you that you will neither see nor learn to know the things that pertain to Everlasting Life Can you say the Branches of the fallen Tree the first Adam are Unholy and Corrupt because of the Unholiness of the Root And will you not see that the Members of the Heavenly Man Christ Jesus who never fell are Holy because of the Holyness of the Root For if the Root be Holy so are the Branches Anoint your Eyes with Eye-Salve that if possible you may see and know a better Root in you than the fallen Mans Nature to grow on that the Kingdom of Holiness you may feel come near you For they that are in the Flesh cannot please God whatever they may profess And this adds to their Misery that when they have brought forth the Deadly Works of the Flesh they would charge them upon Gods Elect and make their Works like their own These Fleshly ones are great Enemies to Christ and his Righteousness and his Members for they that are in Christ are New Creatures and to Abel and his Offering God hath still Respect though Cain and his Offering was always Rejected because Polluted with Sin as the Prayers and Performances of all Hypocrites are at this day Therefore for this purpose was the Son of God manifested and is at this Day Received of the Faithful even to destroy Sin which is the Devils Work And in him to wit Christ Jesus the Light is there no Sin nor Sinsul Narure So they that Love Christ and Walk in his Life and Light please God for he is that Way Undefiled wherein no Unclean can Walk but the Redeemed are here And what if I should set down the words of Jesus to wit Whosoever abideth in Christ Sioneth not whosoever Sinneth hath not seen him nor known him 1 John 3.6 Can you believe it I know you cannot whilst you stand reasoning with Flesh and Blood not Believing in the Light that Lighteh every Man that cometh into the World but call the Light of Christ in Man Natural and thâ—n put the Letter which only witnesses to the Light instead of it And then the Enemy works in your Natural Earthly Wisdom causing you to wrest Scriptures to Establish your Empty Forms which maks nothing Perfect and this was the Sin of the Old Jews who though they talked of the Messiah yet when he appeared they would not come to him that they might be saved and so under the Dead Profession of the Letter they lay Slain And tho' they had a Zeal for God as you have now yet it was not according to Knowledge and so stumbled at the Stumbling-Stone and so in their dark minds would needs keep up the Forms and Shadows of things in opposition to the Substance the thing it self Christ Jesus when he appeared as you do now O! that you could be perswaded of this how well would it be for your Poor Souls in time to come Therefore now that the True Heavenly Everlasting All-sufficient Light is broken forth again from under the Clouds after the long Dark Night of Apostacy turn your Minds in to know a measure of it in you and wait therein to be led out of all the Dark Paths of Sin and Error by it For I am the Way saith Christ the Light that true Light which Lighteth every Man that cometh into the World and I will send my Holy Spirit of Truth to lead into all Truth He is come and his Promise fulfilled Glory to his Name forever And do you not know that Christ is in you except you be Reprobates saith the Apostle And if we walk in the Light as he is in the Light then have we fellowship one with another and the Blood of this innocent Lamb cleanseth from all Sin and washeth from all Unrighteousness all real Comers thereunto saith the same Spirit Therefore go not forth for without are Doggs and all Liars but Truth and the Kingdom of it is to be found within nigh in the Heart O how Beautiful is the Way of the Just Holiness is the Girdle of their Reins continually their Hearts ponder deep things in Holiness they do no Iniquity who walk in this Everlasting Undefiled WAY Christ Jesus the Light for by the Light are they led out of all Defilements and to such there is no occasion of Stumbling O stoop down low with your minds to the Light of Christ in you that convinceth you of Sin and Evil that through the Light the true Door and Daily-Cross to the Carnal Mind you may come into the Sheep-fold for all who clime up another Way are but as Thieves and Robbers and must be judged as Goats and set on the left hand because they would not hear Christ's Voice the Light in the Conscience to be led by it Great Wo to the Climers over the Door such neither receive Christ nor his Servants whom he sends but choose rather to follow such as love to be called of Men Master and live in the respect of Persons and Persecuting Nature and daub over an old Heart with fair Promises of Life as it is amongst you this Day for what tho' some in the outward stand against you for your Form and Words sake as the Heathen of old did the outward Jews yet both those outward Jews then as you outward Professors do now stood and do stand against Christ and us for his Truths sake For we find it true from you all that whosoever walketh in Christ and holdeth forth his Life and so Worshippeth God in Spirit and Truth shall
be hated of all men whether Professors or Prophane who are out of that Life and Holy Worship even for Christs very Name and Life's sake because it is a Cross and Offence to all the World who are in their own Wills under what Form or Profession soever who are gotten into a Profession of Christ without Christ and the daily Cross which his Followers bear Therefore all who are climed up into the Tree of an outward Profession without the true real seeling and Spiritual acquaintance with the daily Cross and fiery Law of the Lord and flaming Sword which Guards the Tree of Life which is in the Hand of the Angel of the Covenant for the cutting down of the Man of Sin that the Birth Immortal which is Holy may onter in and possess the Inheritance must come down again I say they must come to the beginning from which in their fallen Wisdom they are wandred to learn of him in Silence who speaks from Heaven whose Word is nigh in the Heart before ever they be established for except you become as little Children not in Talk but in Truth ye cannot enter God's Kingdom O ye People hearken awhile whether Teachers or Hearers You who have been feeding upon the Tree of Knowledg and never came through Gods Judgments the Flaming Sword to the Tree of Life Your Food is Death your-Works will Burn and your Fig leaf-Covers will fall off you and you be left Naked and Bare to the shame of your Nakedness as in the day that you were Born For what is any Covering unless it be that of the Spirit of Christ The Lord God who is of Purer Eyes than to behold Iniquity will bring your Deeds to the Light of his Judgments from which you cannot flee and before him will nothing stand but that which is Pure Your defiled Preachings Prayings Singings Hearings Readings will be rejected and cast out as Dung from the Presence of the Pure Holy God that is a consuming Fire You have multiplied words without Knowledge Ye have not been neither yet are ye Doers of Gods Will to the Witness of God in your Consciences I speak therefore in vain do you say Lord Lord and he will not hold them Guiltless that take his name in Vain Your Garment is not of the Pure White Linnen which is the Saints Righteousness but Linnen and Woollen is your Covering a thing forbidden by Gods Law Your Field is not sowen with the one Heavenly kind of Grain the Good Wheat but another Seed have you mingled with it and the mixture is so great that the Bad hath almost choaked and covered the Good in you If you will work you must into Gods Vineyard and be exceeding Diligent and Laborious in Spirit in plucking up the Weeds by the Roots in you the Light of Christ in your Conscience waiting in it will give thee Understanding But Wo will be to them who call the Light Darkness and put Darkness for Light and so suffer the Good in them to wither and nourish the Bad Part in them which is like the Grave that never hath enough but is always learning at Man without and not at Christ within and Ministring from the outward Dead Spirit of the World and not from the measure of the Living Spirit of Christ and so not taking heed to the Word of Faith which is nigh in the Heart the Word of Christ which is Spirit and Life they never get Victory over their Sin as is manifest but go laden Teacher and Hearer all their Life long with divers Sins and Lusts as was said before So Wo to the selfish Workers who speak their own words and think their own thoughts on this the Holy Sabbath Day of the Lord God wherein he hath given his People rest from all their weary Labour and Burdens The outward Day the first Day of the Week shall not Cover you nor be a Sabbath to you but in the breach of Gods Holy and Everlasting Spiritual Sabbath of Rest you being found you must bear his Judgment Behold all ye that kindle a Fire this Day and that compass about your selves with Sparks walk in the Light of your Fire and in the Sparks that ye have kindled yet know that your reward from the Lords Hand is to lie down in Sorrow I say all you who feed upon and whose Faith stands in the wisdom of Vain Mans words raised up in the subtility to please the itching Ear and not in the Power of God which washeth the inside a Day of Scattering cometh upon you it cometh and a grievious Whirl-wind from the Lord and the Pleasant Breasts of Mystery Babylon which you so much delight in shall be dried up for the Lord hath rejected your Confidence because you have rejected his Good Word and Counsel and chosen your own Delusion and evil entreated his Servants whom he sent rising up early and sending them time after time to warn you to come out of all your Dead Forms and Dead Faith into the Living Virtue and Power of his eternal Spirit of Truth to Worship him there and to know it in you but you would not therefore the Lord will yet do that Great Work and Wonder amongst you he will confound the Wisdom of your Wise and bring to nought the understanding of your Prudent Men and they shall be as Women weak and feeble the Mouth of the Lord hath spoken it and the Songs of your Temple shall be Howlings in that Day because of the Vine of Sodom that will bear no more Grapes but so many as have drunk of the Wine of her Fornication must Drink of the Cup of Gods Wrath. And all you who talk of your Faith and suffering Condition and yet Live in your Sin you know not what Spirit you are of for the same mind that you think to suffer in is it which by Transgression grieves the Spirit of God and stands against the setting up of his Kingdom in your selves and the Testimony thereof in his redeemed Ones this Day And so if you could give your Bodies to be burnt in this your Unsaved and Unsanctified Condition it would prosit you nothing at all Wherefore come out from amongst them all you that would be happy and touch no unclean thing but give your Hearts to the Lord to know his Light in you to teach you and he will receive you and hide you from the Wrath that is to come upon all that are not in him as saith his Spirit in his Servant This is a Message of Truth to all you in and about Stafford and those of like Spirit with you elswhere who go under the Name of Presbyterians Teachers and Hearers to Read and Ponder in the cool mind that you may know what the Lords Mind is concerning you in this his day wherein he is manifest with his Fan in his Hand to purge the Floor that he may gather to himself the good Wheat and burn up the Chaff For we knowing the Terrors of the Lord
the Powers of the World as we are at this day But whereas thou speakest of every Man that is not so ordained thy self and your selves who never were ordained by the Holy Ghost as they were for when did the Holy Ghost in your Assemblies say as in Acts 13.2 Separate such and such for the work I have appointed them unto Nay nay you have run and God never sent you for you never heard his Holy Voice at any time and therefore you profit not the People at all but make them more Cunning to Dispute against the Truth than they were before they followed you But what Ordination of Man had Paul at his first going out to Preach See Gal. 1. he received not the Gospel by Man and went not to Man no not to the Apostles themselves for Ordination and Commission to Preach but immediately Preached Christ as many have done and do at this Day who go under the Reproach of the name Quaker And so God is Restoring his Church to its Primitive Purity and Power to the stopping of the Mouth and confounding the Wisdom of all Flesh whether called Pope Cardinals Bishops or Presbyters that the true Eldership and Body of Christ to God's Glory may again appear And what Rules and Orders are and shall be in this true Church is known to God and by him Manifested and to be Manifested to the Body it self and not to the World for the World must neither have the right Understanding nor Management of those things no more than they had in those Days when it was said I stand not to Mans Judgment for the Holy Anointing must be all in the Church of God for ever Qu. 10. Thy Tenth and next Query is a plain discovery of thy Folly and of thy manifest Enmity against the simple Appearance of Truth in any discovery and though thou say the Scripture is thy Rule yet by it thou canst not endure to be Ruled but plain Language it self is thy Burthen and therefore thou askest how it can be said that ever Christ or his Apostles or Patriarchs or Prophets used the words Thou and Thee when they never spake English And how can it be unlawful for us to use the word You to each other since the same words in Hebrew Greek and Latin that signifie Thou signifie You in the Singular Number also and may be Translated You as well as Thou and so it seems thou say'st 2 Sam. 15.27 Answ John Reynolds Didst thou Read this Query twice over Or didst thou at all Consider what thou said'st in it Was either the Fear of God or Care of thy own Credit before thy Eyes when thou writest it Surely neither But thou hast judged in thy self with thy vain Thought that because thou hast used to blind thy poor Hearers and make them believe any thing for Truth thou speakest or writest therefore it will be so with others Nay nay the Day is dawned the Lord hath given his People an Eye whereby all Covers are seen through and to this Light thou hast manifested as much Nakedness and Blindness to be in thee as in the grossest of them that say Mass at Rome or read Common-Prayer in English Nay I do believe many of them would be ashamed to argue thus as thou dost to wit because Christ his Apostles Patriarchs and Prophets did not speak in the English Tongue that therefore they used not the words Thou and Thee How came the Translators to Translate their Words when they speak to a particular Person Thou and Thee and never You as may all over Scripture be easily found thou may'st as well say Christ his Apostles Patriarchs and Prophets said nothing at all that is Recorded in Scripture in the English Tongue because they spoke not English so the Lord hath catched the Wise in his own Craftiness but thou goest on and say'st the same words in Hebrew Greek and Latin that signifie Thou signifie You in the Singular Number also and may be Translated You as well as Thou which I say is altogether false for You is not at all Singular but Plural altogether and so the Translators of the Bible knew and therefore never Translated their Singular Term in the forraign Language to you in English but Thou and Thee as is before mentioned and for that place in 2 Sam. 15.27 thou set'st down and says it seems that You is used to a singular there it shames thee for if envy to the Truth had not Blinded thee thou mightest 〈◊〉 fee that the King speaking to Zadock and saying Your Sons and you speaks not of Zadock and his Son but of Zadock and Abiathar and their Sons as the very words next after and in Verse 29. plainly shew and so here thou hast committed that great Error thy self that thy Generation use to Charge falsly upon us to wit in taking a piece of a Verse that seems to make for thy purpose and leaves out the rest that shews fully the Sense Qu. 11. Thy Eleventh and next Query is for the World where thou undertakest the part of an Advocate for Flesh not only pleading for the Honour that is below but also for the Manner of it Thy Doctrine is very pleasant to the fall'n Man and the World cannot hate such Preachers as thee for ye are not only of the World but chief Master-Builders of the old House of the fall'n Adam who loves the Earthly Honour But now that Christ the second Adam is come the Lord from Heaven above the Earthly Man let all Flesh bow before him and give up his Honour to him otherwise this shall be fitly applied unto you that Christ said unto the Jews How can you believe that not only receive but also seek and plead for Honour one of and from another John 5.44 For Christ received not Honour from Men Verse 41. So that tho' there was a time that Angels were bowed unto which were greater than Flesh Gen. 19.1 yet a time came that Angels denied that Honour Rev. 22.9 For now the Son himself was Glorified of whom it was said And let all the Angels of God Worship him Heb. 16. And at his Name shall every Knee bow Phil. 2.10 And Christ said to the Devil who was like his Children that would now be Worshipped Thou shalt Worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve The Devil and Haman would be bowed unto but the true Jew will bow only to God But thou queriest and say'st Qu. Whether did the Saints in Scripture-times Sin in giving Honour that is say'st thou A Civil or Inferiour Honour unto Men and upon occasion Testifying the same by Honorary Words or Deeds Answ To which I answer and say All that the Saints before the coming of Christ did is not to be an Example to us now but we must all now that would be approved to Christ take him for our Example and to follow no Man for our Example further than they followed or do follow him and when the Apostles speak of
Honouring all it must be understood as in some place is mentioned in the Lord and that is not with Cap and Knee and false Flattering Titles and Gestures as the World useth but in Heart and Truth as the Spirit of God moveth So that a Man must first be in the Lord out of the first fall'n false Mind otherwise he knows not at all how to Honour either God or Man but is a Dissembling Wretch making fair Shews outwardly of Love where nothing but War and Self-love is in the Heart See 2 Sam. 20.9 10. Jude 16. Thus Children being in the Lord do through the Lord Honour Parents aright thus Servants in the Lord Honour their Masters after the Flesh aright and so Church-members the Elders Wives their Husbands the Ruled the Rulers Yea thus they Honour their Faithful Brethren aright and in a Word all Men and so the Scripture is fulfilled in them But what Honour do these Faithful Ones look for from Men Nay nay they believe and seek for that Honour that comes from God only and so the Scripture will not help the fall'n Man now to his Honour which is his Life but as the Scripture saith He that would save his Life must loose it And so all you Hypocrites of the World who are giving Honour to Proud Flesh and receiving Honour from it cease your Work and let Christ have his due or verily he will break you all in pieces with his Iron Rod. But in the end of thy Query thy Conscience a little checking thee for this vain Work thou wouldst daub over the matter by telling People the Honour from below which thou hast been pleading for must not be in Opposition to but in Subordination to God's Honour Nay nay I say the true Christ the Son of God is come and all Power in Heaven and Earth is given to him and so all Honour and Glory and Worship is his due and the due of none else to whom be it given of all his Angels and Servants both now and for evermore So all People hearken and hear a word for your good would ye be Honoured Then Honour the Lord by obeying his Voice and he will Honour you in due time though for doing his Will you loose the Worlds Honour as assuredly ye will if once ye be Faithful Qu. 12. The next Query Consisteth of a great Boast of the Ministry as though it were Unrebukeable And thou queriest whether that Ministry can be lawfully Condemned as Antichristian which the Lord hath owned and sealed with the Conversion of many Souls Answ To which I say if your Ministry were such as this thou speakest of then indeed it were not safe to condemn it But where are these Converts thou speakest of to be a Convert is to be turned from Darkness to Light and from the Power of Satan unto God bring forth the Man that can witness thee to be a Minister of the Gospel this way that he may give us an Account of the true Hope if he have it in him But Men cannot gather Grapes of Thorns nor Figs of Thistles so thou being such an Evil Tree as thou hast manifested thy self in these Queries to be how can a true Convert be expected from such a Ministry But thou say'st it s in Power c. and that many stubborn Sinners have been brought down unto their Faces and to confess that God is in you of a Truth But I say it will be hard for thee to bring forth such a Man for when I use to come amongst you to declare Truth against your Deceit as the Lord ordered me I found a heap of hard-hearted Sinners more like to destroy the Creature than to be Witnesses of Truth O shameless Men that bring forth such bad Fruit And yet with a Whores Fore-head dare take the Scripture which speaks of Prophets in God's Church in God's Power and apply it to your selves who deny the sufficiency of Christ's Light in Man and know nothing but meerly by the Letter without as thou for thy own particular hast made manifest and so are sensual not having the Spirit as was noted in the third Query I observe also in this present Twelfth Query the Ignorance of the Grace of God for when thou hast falsly Boasted of your Ministry what it hath done thou say'st is not this the Grace of God that bringeth Salvation Tit. 2.11 12. I say no your Ministry not being the true is far from being the Grace of God there spoken of But if it were the true Ministry it were not that Grace there spoken of for the true Ministry is but a service to that Grace not the Grace it self for the Grace of God is that which hath appeared unto all Men and that which brought Salvation to Jew and Gentile as God's Gift without Words or Works and which was the Teacher of the Apostles themselves as well as others And so when People would have been setting up Paul for his Ministry's sake he denied it as nothing in comparison of the All-sufficiency of the Grace of God and the Word thereof to which only at best he was but a Servant But if it could be manifest that any under or amongst you were Convinced of the Evil of their Ways in some measure and so in their Dark Minds set upon a seeking after the unknown God which is the most can be found amongst you and that rarely neither this is no warrant either for them to stay with you who are Ignorant of the Way out of Sin unto God neither is it any proof for you to be Gospel-Ministers nor your Ministry to be a Gospel-Ministry For the Gospel-Ministry is not only Convincing but Converting and Perfecting Eph. 4.11 12 13. which work ye have utterly denied and so shut out your selves for ever from the Gospel-Ministry and amongst the Priests of the Letter Law at best must you be reckoned which made nothing Perfect and hence it is that you are such bitter Enemies to the Spiritual Ministration or New Covenant mentioned Rev. 8. And such earnest Contenders for the outward Shadows outward Law Tythes Temples Days Priests c. as is now every where found But for the True Power and Gospel-Ministration it is risen above all your Languages and Tongues and hath darkened the Glory of all your Fleshly Forms and Likenesses And the Babes of God are in Obedience to God turned and turning from you unto this his Power that perfects to God for ever And Pharoah and all his Host will not now be able to hinder Praises to the Lord God for ever Qu. 13. In this next Query thou goest on seeking false Covers to hide thine and your Nakedness asking How can the Quakers Condemn your Congregations because of some Wicked Unprofitable Hearers when Christ himself say'st thou did not Convert all his Hearers And for this thou bringest Mat. 11.20 and Mat. 23.37 and Isa 49.4 I say all this will not cover your Nakedness Oh ye Teachers nor your Congregations for what have you