in the Fear the Lords Name is Known and the Safety in it and the Wicked One cannot Touch though he may strongly Tempt But as he Appears he is Judged and the Innocency Preserved and the Simplicity Retained which is Exceeding Precious to be Enjoyed For Innocency and Simplicity is ever Accompanied with Joy and Felicity And to be in Union with the Innocent Life is Joy and Peace and the Love Arises and Sheds abroad in the Heart whereby the Heart is Overcome to Love God and all Babes born of the Innocent Life in which perfect Unity is Felt and the Love hath a Free Course Knits the Heart unto God unto one another whereby a Tenderness Springs one towards another So that Humility is the Way to come into true Unity where there is nothing Remaines but Love out of a pure Heart that seeks not to be Exalted but still to be Humbled And in this Path the Love and Life of God hath a Free Course in Every Particular and Meets in the Unity and Embraces each other where the Innocent Life hath its Rejoycing and in true Love and Tenderness reacheth to its own in each Vessel and in this State there is true Satisfaction and Contentment And a great Carefulness there is lest the sweet Savour of it should be at any time Lost And it is of a Bearing and Long-suffering Nature and in the Humility keeps in the Feeling and Possesses its Portion and it hath Enough as it Partakes of the Love in the Unity And it strives not after the Enjoyment of any thing but Waits to keep in the taste of the sweet Savour of the Life it Covets not to be Rich that thereby it might be Exalted but keeps down in the Poverty and in the Humility Inherits Life and Immortality And it Travels in Lowness and Plainness for Preserving in Love and Peace It seeks not after Worldly Glory for of the World it is not but the Power of an Endless Life it is and in many hath the Lord God Revealed it who therein Feel his Presence and Peace his Love and Grace and are Partakers of it through his own good Will and his Love is Felt wherewith he Loves his own and there is a Watchfulness to abide therein So that he Reveals it more and more according to his own Pleasure whereby the Innocency is strengthened and the Glory of its holy Life spreads in the Vessel and so a Death comes upon Self with all its Glory and a New Life in the Seed is Felt which lives to Gods Glory and when at any time the Love is not Felt nor the Refreshings of it Tasted then doth the Babe sit in the Lowness and wait in the Patience until the Spring Opens in its own Freeness and when it Opens none can Shut as when it Shuts none can Open and when it Opens it fils with Love and mightily goes forth to Heal and Bind up in Unity And though in the Innocent Life Unity cannot be broken yet who are not born of it have not Unity with it nor with such as are truly of it But something would be Exalting out of the Humility which God doth not give Grace unto But where the mind keeps down in the Light this cannot Enter but is kept under Judgement through which Innocency is brought forth and in Love it doth abound and draws the Heart into it and fills it with the Excellency of its Treasure whereby the Heart comes to be perfectly United to it and unto all that are Born of it and thereby there is Oneness made in Christ and then no more Twain but One New-Man in him who makes Peace and Reconciles to God the Father in one Spirit in which Union is Felt with God and with all born of God and there is nothing so Sweet as here to dwell together and to come into this Habitation is Joy and Peace for Ever And in this holy Birth of the Seed there is but one Heart and Mind and so one People unto the Lord God who are truly his own People his Chosen Generation his Royal Off-spring and he is Raising them in his Authority to Trample Satan under foot who labours in his Subtilty many and divers ways to wrong the Innocency and in nothing more than in breaking Unity but his head is bruising and he must go down into a bed of sorrow and the Innocency come up into Peace and Joy in the way of the Humble is this known and in the path of the Poor it is brought forth and perfected and no way is so safe as the way of the Humble for there is Gods Teachings known and his hand is felt that brings down into Death and quickens and raises a new Life that seeks nothing but his Glory and as it is brought forth it travels to Convert Sinners unto God and when they are Converted then to Strengthen them and Build them up in their most holy Faith and so to bring every one to the measure of God that they therein may be Edified and Comforted And this is truly the Son of Humility whose Travel is for Peace and Unity and the Lord God is satisfying the travel whereby the Faithful in Unity Rejoyce together who have born the burden and heat of the Day and have not been slack in their Testimony but through Perils and Dangers have Travelled to gather People unto God and to bring them into the Unity of the Spirit of God which he is largly fulfilling in this day And as the Mind keeps down and waits in the Stilness so doth the Life arise and in it is the Desolate Comforted and the Needy relieved and the Love and Unity is Felt and Enjoyed and with its strong Cord it Joynes perfectly together and knits the heart into Oneness and makes a willing People in one pure heart whereby the one onely true God is Served and worshipped and in his own Work Praised And this Honour have all the Saints who are born of the Innocent Life the Lord God is with them and amongst them And in the midst of Afflictions his Comforts delight them and his Goodness abounds in them And this is Joy for Mourning and Gladness for Heaviness and in the Humility the Garment of Praise is Received and the Birth Immortal is Cloathed with it and God gives his Grace unto it and therein it is Beautified and Honored and this Honour cannot be attained until Humility go before And this is the Honour which the Lord God is bringing forth by a Strong Hand and by an Outstretched Arm and in this Simple Innocent State the Springs of Life are Felt and the Streams thereof have a free Course and they Flow in the Heart whereby the Love is felt in its fresh Visitations and the Mercies in the Renewings and the Heart is gathered into it and is made One with it So that there is a Habitation known in the Love and from the Love nothing can Separate but the Heart is more and more Quickned to Love
God and to Love all the Children of God and this Flows out of a pure Heart servently and truly loves the least Babe and Succors and Relieves the Weak and Feeble And with this Garment are the Humble Cloathed and are very Beautiful and amiable and the Lord keeps them in his saving strength so that in Love they do abide and it increases more and more in them and in it they grow up to Perfection and when the Love is perfect all Fears with their Torments are cast out So that to Endure Afflictions is Joy and not worthy to be compared to the Glory of Innocency Revealed And this keeps close with God and girds up the Mind into perfect Union with him where the Life is felt and sed upon which doth truly satisfie the Desire of the Hungry and in this State there is Contentment and in Content there is perfect Peace and Joy So the Way of the Humble is the Sweetest Path and in Choosing of it there is great Reward for in it is Innocency found and there doth Love spring and abound and the Life is tasted in which Innocency is Increased and the growth of it is in a sweet pleasant valley where the streams hath their Constant Course and is alwayes touching and nourishing the Root which causes every Branch that partakes of the Sap to become Exceeding Fruitful and the Vesture is then made Glorious with which the Kings Daughter is Beautiful within and when the Darkness at any time works to draw out of the Humility and to betray the Innocency the Watch discovers it and the secret workings of it and in the Light it is seen to be of that nature which will defile the pure Innocency and near the Beauty of its holy Image so with the Light it is Judged and is not touched and from it Innocency is Preserserved and still springs in it s Purity and spreads it self more in its tender Life and beautifies the House of its Holiness and the Image of it is Love and in its holy Life is Unity and Peace The Mind that keeps Low feels it and waiting in the Humility it is Known in the Enjoyment of it and the Unity is with it and with all that are born of it Then the Love is like a fresh stream that cannot cease its Course nor stop its Flowings but must shed it self abroad and Embrace its own in the Unity and there is no habitation that yields the like Peace Blessed are they that are Born into the Love and Life of the Innocent Immortal Seed for they are Children of the Kingdom without End and are bound up in Unity and keep the Bond of Peace And here was the holy Order of Gods Creation before Transgression and it was Very Good in his fight and into this Order of Unity and Peace is the Lord God Restoring by the Resurrection of Life in which the Seed is known and its holy Order in the Unity and in its own Innocency it Creates Peace and hath its Ministration in its self and gives forth 〈…〉 requires whereby every Member is Supplied and the whole Body in Unity Nourished and Comforted and so grows up unto an holy Temple in the Lord which He fills with his Glory and hath the Preheminence and is the Head unto whom all the Members are subject and He binds them up in the Bundle of Life and makes them partakers of his Divine Nature in which they are truly One and his Love constrains them to love Him and to love one another and hereby they are perfectly known to be his Disciples and his Chosen Inheritance and He ordains Peace for them and gives it to them and men cannot take it away from them and they in the Love and Life and Peace of the Seed Rejoyce together and are comforted one in another So in the Humility the Seed of Honour springs and reveals its Innocent Life and spreads abroad the Glory of its Renown and all the little Babes it covers with its own Innocency and cloathes them with a Garment of Righteousness whereby they are translated into the Heavenly and stand adorned with Purity and Chastity and profess the Treasure of Wisdom and Life And this is the Cause that the Lord God will plead and who abides faithful in it shall receive their Reward and shall come to the End of their Testimony in Peace and Joy and shall meet with a Portion to answer their Tribulation and this Testimony doth truly spring from the Innocency and in Meekness and Humility is given forth and unto the Innocent reacheth in the Love and Life of Unity that unto it the Gathering may be and every one may feel it in the Increase and therein grow up into the measure of the statuâ—e of the Fulness of Christ for as the Fear abides upon the Heart so is the Mind kept down and low and walks in the Humility in which 〈…〉 there is safety and when at any time it is lifted up and exalted by any Wile of the Enemy and that there is a departing out of the Fear and a going from the Path of Humility then comes Trouble and Sorrow and as the Light is minded the particular state is opened and it is seen what is uppermost and bears Rule in the Heart and by diligent waiting the present Condition opens more and more so that the Book of Conscience and the things that are written therein are made manifest and they are discerned with an Understanding and it is seen what the Union is with and if it be not Innocency in the True Love and Unity the Light Reproves it and Judges it and the Judgment being waited in the Innocency springs and encreases and in the midst of Judgment Mercy reaches to it and in the Mercy it grows and comes into Dominion then is His Mercy known over all His Works and in the Mercy Love and Unity is preserved So nothing is more safe than for every one to be minding their own House and see how their own Family is provided for that every Particular may in themselves feel Good Order and their own Habitation keep in Peace and Quietness which gives true Satisfaction and Contentment and every one will then feel the Good Order of the Body in Unity and will Enjoy their Peace and daily Consolation and this is Exceeding sweet and precious and more to be desired than whatever is beside it that the Innocent Life of the Holy Seed may reign and that it may be the Garment of all that this day bear Testimony unto God's living Truth So will the Glory of its Renown spread over the Nations and the Beauty of its Holiness shall still ravish the Hearts of many and the Lord God Everlasting whose Love is without End He will certainly plead with all that stand in the way and break down the High Mountains that are proudly exalted and He will feed the innocent Babes and increase their strength and make each one stronger than the strength of Enemies and who walks in the way of the Humble they do know that God will not spare the Proud neither withhold his Grace from the Humble but He will lay down the one and exalt the other for he will have the Seed to Reign and in this holy Birth of the Immortal Seed an Immortal Inheritance is possessed wherein the Blessing and Joy and Peace is obtained which doth constrain to give up the Body and Spirit to glorifie God and all that abide Faithful with God and walk in their own measures received He will Replenish them with his Goodness and satisfie them with Marrow and Fatness for He will bless the Humble and crown the Innocent with Glory and Renown for ever The Day of the Lord is glorious in which He hath gathered a People to walk in his Fear and to follow Him in the Path of Humility where He teacheth them and makes them to understand His Precepts and He fills them with his Love and spreads it over them and keeps them under the Shadow of it where they rest in the Feeling of his Presence and thereby their Hearts are Enlarged to Him and His Love Constrains them to keep a Conscience void of Offence and neither to sin against Him nor to do any Violence unto Men but to walk soberly and peaceably and to behave themselves in Love and Tenderness unto All People and in the One Spirit hath the Lord gathered them and in the One Spirit He hath bound them up and they are His People and He is their God and dwells amongst them and walks in them and the Prince of Peace orders them and they are His Royal Army in whose Love and Life they stand in Unity and give up their Bodies and Spirits unto God that his own Will may be done and the Intents of his own Heart performed and his own Name therein glorified WILLIAM SMITH From Worcester County Goal being there a Prisoner for Obedience to the Command of Jesus Christ Second Month 1661. THE END
THE BANNER OF LOVE Under Which The ROYAL ARMY is Preserved and Safely Conducted Being a Clear and Perfect Way out of Wars Contentions With A Short TESTIMONY unâ—â— the VVAY of PEACE Given forth for the Edification and Comfort of all that Truly fear God Written by the hand of One who bears Good Will to all Men WILLIAM SMITH LONDON Printed for Robert Wilson at the Sign of the Black Spread-Eagle and Wind-Mill in Martins Le Grand 1661. THE Banner of Love Under which The ROYAL ARMY is Preserved and Safely Conducted THE Loving Kindness of the Lord God is abundantly made manifest and with the Cords of it the hearts of many are drawn unto him and made willing to Love Serve and Obey Him and to Deny what is contrary to him and to Follow his Leadings to come into more Acquaintance with Him whereby there is a true Tenderness begotten which doth earnestly Thirst after Him and there is nothing so Dear as His Love and for His Love the World is Denied the Thirst is more and more increased after God and presses after more Communion with His Love and in the Breathings the Love opens and the Streams thereof reach the Thirsty and with the sweet Savor of it the Thirsty is Refreshed and it becomes exceeding Pretious and in it Strength is Renewed and the Bones are made Fat and so the breathing Babe is Nourished and this Fountain is Freely Opened that all that Thirst may come and all that Hunger may be partakers of the Love of God and in the Light of Christ it is obtained For it is given of God to seek those that are out of the Love and to bring them into the Love and as it appears to discover that which Separates from the Love the mind Turning unto it the Judgement takes hold and that which separates from the Love is Denied and upon the Cross crucified and the power removes it out of the way whereby there is Ease given to that which is Oppressed and the wâ—y is cleared of that which Separated from God and so the Light Leads out of the Earth and all Earthly things and Leads up to God the Fountain of Eternal Love in whose Pure Presence the fulness of Joy is found And as the Light is believed in so is the Translation wrought and the Power puts off the Old and makes all New and a Birth comes to be Born that is of God and it loves the Father and delights to do His Will and the Father spreads his Love over it for a Banner by which it is Protected and Preserved in its Growth and Increase and what it makes War against the Love is a Banner over it and the furious Beasts are thereby Stopped and also driven back and that which Presses after Communion with God it goes forward and the Banner of Love is Spread over it and this is the great Battel to be Fought and unto it hath the Lord God gathered a Remnant and orders them under His Banner by which they are Encouraged to make War in Righteousness and in Love to overcome their Enemies and in Patience to silence the foolish and gainsayers and of the Immortal Seed is this Royal Army Born and they are Conquerours through Him that loves them and spreads his Banner over them and their Weapons are Love and Patience by which they overcome and they do not think ill to their Neighbors but Love their Enemies and are Ready to do Good to those that are contrary minded and they would have all come to the Love of God that they might be saved and what the Father Leads them unto His Love Constrains them to follow and when they are Persecuted the Love Constrains them to Bless and in Patience they Endure it and seek no Revenge upon it but overcome Evil with Good and this is the Royal Army of the Lamb who are Born again and redeemed out of the World and their Union is with that which was before the World therefore are they Persecuted and Evil entreated by the World who are Separated from the Love which they are partakers of and over whom it is spread for a Banner and they have nothing in their hearts but Love and Good Will to all men And this is an Army that the Lord God hath gathered and is gathering from amongst the Earthly Warriors whose strength is in the Horse and his Rider and the Lord God puts into their hands the Spiritual Weapon and with it they go forth to Battel and they seek to Save mens Lives and not to Destroy them their Weapon is Stretched forth to cut down the Proud Lustful Nature from whence all Warrs arise and so to bring People to the Meek and quiet Spirit and to Live Peacebly with all men And this is not like the Aliens Army who are strangers unto that Spirit that Leads into Love and Good Will and to do Justly and walk Humbly with God it is quite of a contrary Nature The Aliens Army draw their Swords and kill one another the Royal Army have put up their Swords and would have all men Saved and who needs to fear such an Army whose Banner is Love And their Weapons Good Will There need no Horsemen and Strong Armies to oppose them nor Prisons to quiet them for they are Marching under the Banner of Love and in Love Meet their Enemies and Quench their Fury and whatever can be done against them Love is their Banner and with it they are wonderfully Preserved and as any thing arises to turn them back the Love Protects them and is a sure Refuge for them and with it they stand Armed and the fiery darts are quenched and though the wicked may strike Exceeding soare yet doth the Love Defend and Preserve and from it there goes forth a mighty Strength that Drives back the wicked One and overcomes him and under this Banner is Safety and in this Royal Army is Love and Good Will and to be Born into the Love there is Strength Received and the Enemy is Driven back and confounded and all that keep under the Banner they are kept from Danger For It goes before and Leads Forward and It also comes behind and is the Rereward so that the Army is Compassed about with Love and it is the Banner over them and Safely Conducts them in their travel and makes their Passage Easie so that they willingly go forward and march boldly in the strength of Love in which they are stronger than their Enemies and One falls at the Right hand and Another at the Left and as they would Stop for going forward the Love Wars against them and Overcomes them for there is nothing Stronger than Love It makes an Easie Passage and drives that back which stands in the way and whatever Rises it Falls again and the Armies of the Aliens are put to flight for in the Strength of Love One chases a Thousand and the Army of Royalty Marches forward and takes Possession and they are kept