at the door of your hearts knocking let him in remember what Christ said to Jerusalem Jerusalem O Jerusalem thou that killest the Prophets and stonest them that are sent unto thee how often would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings and ye would not But her calamity came of a sudden and so let her be an Example for you speedily to repent and put away the evil of your doings cease to do evil and learn to do well for fear the wrath of the Lord destroy you for the time was when all the Kings of the earth would not have believed that the Adversary should have entered the gates of Jerusalem and all the inhabitants of the world would not have believed that the Enemy should have entered the gates of Jerusalem for the sins of her Prophets and of her Priests which were full of iniquity as the Priests of England are who have shed the blood of the Just in the midst of her And therefore wo wo to thee O England if thou dost not speedily repent and put away the evil of thy doings for the Lord desireth not the death of a sinner but that he may live Therefore turn ye turn ye for why will you die O house of Israel And come to be within the promise of the Elect of God for the Lord loveth his saints and he preserveth the faithful and mercy shall embrace them on every side For he is nigh to them that are of a broken heart and he saveth them that are of a contrite spirit therefore blessed are the people whose God is the Lord the people who he hath chosen for his own inheritance for the eye of the Lord is over them to preserve them and to keep them in all their wayes and to preserve them in famine and thousands shall fall before them and the plague shall not come neer them for the destroying Angels shall pass over their heads Therefore all dear hearts fear the living GOD who is a God of power and he is dreadful to all the workers of iniquity but a God of love and joy and consolation to all those that fear him and that delight in his Commandments to do them Therefore fear the living God and wait upon him that you may finde pure wisdom flow in upon you from on high For every good and perfect gift cometh down from above from the Father of lights who doth powerfully manifest himself unto his Babes and Children and doth flow from heaven with fresh discoveries of his love unto his belved Ones that they can say feelingly Their beloved is their and they are his and he draws them by the cords of everlasting love that they are refreshed at the well-spring of life And therefore return return forsake your idol-shepherds and embrace Christ which is the Light for he is the true Shepherd and Bishop of your souls in whom the sure mercies of David are enjoyed and the glory of Israel is witnessed even the free Covenant of light in which the true Prophets did stand who is the Rock of Ages and is the Light of the World and is perfect Righteousness and they that are in him are righte us by his Righteousness for he hath for ever perfected all those that are sanctified and he commandeth his to be holy as he is holy and pure as he is pure and Be ye perfect saith Christ as your Father which is in heaven is perfect and the Cross of Christ is the mighty power of God unto salvation unto every one that believeth And by this saith Christ shall you appear to be my Disciples by taking up the cross dayly and following me and Gods witness in every man will shew him the Cross of Christ what it is for that will shew all those that are faithful to it what is the will of God in every thing for it is that pure Thing of God in man that never did consent to sin nor never will but shews man all that ever he did and so we may say with the woman Come see a man that hath told me all that ever I have done Is not this the Christ said she And so dear Hearts this is your true Teacher Emmanuel God with us and the Lord is a strong Towet the Righteous fly unto it and are safe and they are hid in that invisible life which is in God and they know the life of God and they walk in his dayly presence and the arm of his strength is revealed dayly unto them which bringeth salvation And therefore come off from all your Idol shepherds and from all your false Forms of worship unto the Lord who is bringing his people off from the barren Mountains where they have fed upon husks and chaff and he is become their â—…cher himself and he will feed them with the finest of the Wheat and they shall drink of the well-spring of Life and never thirst again and they shall finde that one day in his Courts is better then a thousand elsewhere Now the Priests must know That an old Mass-house is not the Courts of God for the Church of Christ is the Pillar and Ground of Truth and as many as were baptized were baptized into Christ and They that are in Christ are new creatures old things are passed away all things are become new and Your Bodies are the Temples of the holy Ghost and him that defiles the Temple of God him will God destroy And so dear Friends and Brethren and Sisters and Fathers and all You that do fear the Lord Take heed how you hear and take heed whom you hear for I do see dangerous seducers and deceivers abroad in the world besides the Priests even such as the Apostle Peter speaketh of that even would beguile the saints out of their simplicity if they could even as the serpent beguiled Eve such as have eyes full of adultery beguiling unstable souls hearts exercised with covetous practises having forsaken the right way and gone astray following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor which loved the wages of unrighteousness these are wells without water clouds that are carried with a tempest to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever For when they speak great swelling words in the Name of the Lord they allure through the lusts of the flesh through much wantonness those who were clean escaped from them who live in Errour while they promise them Liberty 〈…〉 themselves are the servants of corruption for of whom 〈…〉 overcome of the same is he brought in bondage for 〈…〉 they have escaped the pollutions of the world through 〈…〉 knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ they are 〈…〉 intangled therein and over-come the latter end is 〈…〉 with them then the beginning For it had been better 〈…〉 yhem not to have known the way of righteousness then after 〈…〉 have know it to turn from the holy commandment deli 〈…〉 ed unto them but it is happened unto them according to 〈…〉 true Proverb 〈…〉 dog is turned to his own vomit againâ—◠〈…〉 sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire And amongst the 〈…〉 other so called that saith he was born in Holland â—…t he is the dangerousest person that ever I read of or heard of next unto that grand Apostate Spira and I fear he had more Brethren I shall do my endeavour to finde them out and then publish them to the world that all men may take notice of them And my Advice now unto you from the Loâ—… is That you all dear Hearts wait low in the counsel of the LORD GOD and when you have got into the simplicity of Christ stay in it and abide in it and wait in the power and strength of GOD that you may be kept out of the wiles and suggestions of the roaring Enemy who stirreth up Enemies without and Enemies within and all to keep your Crown from you Put on therefore dearly beloved in the Lord the whole armour of God that you may be more then Conquerours through Christ that loveth you even as Paul was and learn the wisdom which is from above which is pure peaceable gentle easie to be intreated full of mercy and good fruits be humble meek lowly be broken-hearred be contrite-spirited let patience possess your souls For ye were as sheep going astray but ye are now returned to the Saviour and Bishop of your souls Christ Jesus Unto his keeping I commit you To whom be given everlasting Praises Honour and all holy Hallelujahs to Him that liveth for ever and for evermore world without end The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all Those that set Their Faces toward Sion and seek it with their Soâ—… sire To which my Soul saith AMEN FINIS Deut. 13. Chap. 18. 2 Pet. 2. Baal
Chron. 34. And Josiah did that which was right in the sight of the Lord and walked in all the wayes of David his father and declined neither to the right hand nor to the left Ezra 7. 10. For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord and to do it Vers 25 26. And thou Ezra after the wisdom of thy God that is in thy hand set Magistrates and Judges which may judge all the people all such as know the Laws of thy God beyond the river and teach ye them that know them not and whosoever will not do the Law of thy God and the law of the king let judgement be executed speedily upon him whether it be unto death or to banishment or to confiscation of goods or to imprisonment Neh. 1. 5. O Lord God of heaven the great and terrible God that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him keep his commandments Neh. 10. 29 They came to their Brethren their Nobles and entered into a curse and into an oath to walk in Gods Law which was given by Moses the servant of the Lord and to observe and do all the commandments of the Lord our God and his judgements and his statutes Job 1. 1. There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job and that man was perfect and upright and one that feared God and eschewed evil Isa 2. 3. Let us go up to the house of the God of Jacob and he will teach us of his ways and we will walk in his pathes for out of Sion shall go forth the Law and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem Sanctifie the Lord of hosts himself and let him be your fear and your dread Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose minde is stayed on thee because he trusteth in thee Trust ye in the Lord for ever for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength The wayes of the just is uprightness Thou most Upright dost weigh the pathes of the just yea in the ways of thy judgements O Lord have we waited for thee the desire of our soul is to thy Name and to the remembrance of thee Thus saith the Lord of hosts the God of Israel Amend your wayes and your doings Trust not in lying words saying The Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord the Temple of the Lord for if you throughly amend your wayes and your doings if you throughly execute judgement between a man and his neighbour if ye oppress not the stranger the fatherless and the widow and shed not innocent blood in this place neither walk after other gods to your hurt then will I cause you to dwell in this place in the land that I gave to your fathers for ever and for ever Behold ye trust in lying words that cannot profit will ye steal murder and commit adultery and swear falsly and burn incense to Baal and walk after other gods whom ye know not and come and stand before me in this house which is called by my Name and say We are delivered to do all these abominations But this thing commanded I them saying Obey my voice and I will be your God and you shall be my people and walk ye in all the wayes that I have commanded you that it may be well unto you Behold the dayes come saith the Lord that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch and a king shall reign and prosper and shall execute judgement and justice on the earth in his days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely and this is his Name whereby he shall be called The Lord our Righteousness Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man that the righteous sin not and he doth not sin he shall surely live the soul that sinneth shall die but if a man be just and do that which is lawful and right and hath not eaten upon the mountains neither hath lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel neither hath defiled his neighbours wife neither hath come neer to menstruous women and hath not oppressed any but hath restored to the debtor his pledge hath spoiled none by violence hath given his bread to the hungry and hath covered the naked with a garment he that hath not given forth upon usury neither hath taken any increase that hath with-drawn his hand from iniquity hath executed true judgement between man and man hath walked in my statutes and kept my judgements to deal truly he is just he shall surely live saith the Lord God And they that be wise shall shine as the stars in the firmament for ever and ever and they that turn many to righteousness as the brightness of the firmament And in that day will I make a Covenant for them with the beasts of the field with the fowls of heaven and with the creeping things of the ground and I will break the bow and the sword and the battel out of the earth and will make them dwell safely and I will betroth thee unto my self in righteousness for ever yea I will betroth thee unto my self in righteousness and in judgement and in loving kindness and in mercy I will betroth thee unto my self in faithfulness and thou shalt know the Lord. The Lord also shall roar out of Sion and utter his voice from Jerusalem and the heavens and the earth shall shake but the Lord will be the hope of his people the strength of the children of Israel Then shall Jerusalem be holy and there shall no stranger pass through her any more For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel Seek ye me and ye shall live But upon mount Sion shall be deliverance and there shall be holiness and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy But I will sacrifice to thee with the voice of thanksgiving I will pay that that I have vowed salvation is of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that make my people err that bite with their teeth and cry peace and he that putteth not into their mouths they ever prepare war against him But truly I am full of power by the Spirit of the Lord and of judgement and of might to declare unto Jacob his transgressions and to Israel his sin Hear this ye heads of the house of Jacob and princes of the house of Israel that abhor all judgement and pervert all equity they build up Sion with blood and Jerusalem with iniquity the heads thereof judge for reward and the priests thereof teach for hire and the prophets thereof divine for money yet will they lean upon the Lord and say Is not the Lord amongst us no evil can come upon us Therefore shall Zion for your sakes be plowed as a Field and Jerusalem shall become heaps and the Mountains of the house as the high places of the Forests The Lord is of purer eyes then to behold evil and cannot behold
iniquity When the Lords appearance cometh upon the soul then he cuts away all Idols and they shall be no more remembred the appearance of the Lord giveth sight to the blind Christ Jesus enlightneth every man that cometh into the world and that is Christ the Son of the most High that checketh for evil in every one and that is the true Teacher Follow that it will bring thee out of all evil for it leadeth unto perfect peace Ye shall not say Lo here is Christ or lo he is there but the Word is nigh thee even in thy heart and in thy mouth and this true Teacher will keep thee from the very appearance of evil The Lord Jesus promised the Comforter should come after his departure and Peter received it for he being full of the Holy Ghost there was three thousand added by his Ministry at once and the Apostles when-they had prayed the place was shaken where they were assembled together and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost and they spake the Word of God with boldness Now Christ is the Bread of Life And he that eateth the bread that I shall give him saith Christ shall never hunger and he that believeth in me saith Christ hath everlasting life and he that eateth the bread that I shall give him shall live for ever And those that are risen with Christ set their affections on the things above where Christ sitteth at the right hand of God and they do not minde earthly things for as they have born the Image of the earthly Adam which is sin unto death so they must bear the Image of the heavenly which is obedience unto righteousness the end whereof through his mercy that enableth them to bear it is everlasting life and salvation and he that is born of God sinneth not because he is born of God neither can he sin because he is born of God for he that committeth sin is of the devil Now consider these sayings and ponder them in your minds for where the Lord cometh his presence is very dreadful and terrible and he destroyeth all Graven Images and grindeth them to dust he maketh that heart deny himself and take up his Cross dayly and follow him When a stronger then the strong man armed cometh he destroyeth his strong holds and divideth the spoils and maketh the heart clean A new heart saith the Lord will I give thee and a new spirit will I put into thee and I will lead thee and be thy everlasting reward and strength to support thee for I dwell in the humble and delight to give life to my contrite ones for with the holy wilt thou be holy and with the contrite and pure will I be pure saith the Lord. Now by thy words thou shalt be justified and by thy words condemned Now this is from the true Lover of all your souls the seed of God in you that groaneth after the deliverance of it may come forth from the state of bondage and corruption and thraldom where it is kept that it may come to the glorious liberty of the Sons of God Almighty the most high who with continual praises with one heart and in oneness of spirit sing continual Praises and Hallelujahs to Him that liveth for ever and ever who alone is worthy of all everlasting praises from his own henceforth and for ever Now I shall shew the signs marks and characters of good Magistrates as the Lord giveth of them as I find in Scripture and by the manifestation of his Spirit within me I know it is the Lords desire that Judges and all Magistrates should be such as feareth the Lord and hateth covetousness and worketh Righteousness that judgement and justice may run down like a mighty stream and Rivers of waters Moses was a good Magistrate he executed the Law with Justice upon all without respect of persons or gifts or rewards according to the command of the Lord who was the Lawgiver For the Law came by Moses but Grace by Jesus Christ Deborah was a good Magistrate and the children of Israel came up to her for judgement and she judged Israel at that time and the Lord was with her and made her lead away the Captives and lead them into Captivity that oppressed his people for she was just before him and the Stars from Heaven fought in their courses for her against the enemies of truth and the river Kishon swept them away and the Land had rest forty years and the Lord caused the Mighty and the Nobles to be in subjection unto her and the Lord went before her and the earth trembled and the heavens dropped the clouds dropped water Gideon was a good Magistrate and the Angel of the Lord appeared unto him and said The Lord is with thee thou mighty man of valour go in this thy might and thou shalt save Israel And the Lord said unto him I will be with thee And the Lord said unto him Peace be unto thee thou shalt not dye and the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon and Gideon did as the Lord had commanded him And Gideon said That neither I nor my Son shall rule over you And the Land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon Solomon was a good Magistrate and God said unto him Because thou askedst this thing and hast not asked the life of thy enemies nor long life for thy self neither riches for thy self but hast asked for thy self understanding to discern Judgement behold I have done according to thy words lo I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart so that there was none like thee before thee neither after thee shall arise any like unto thee and I have given thee that which thou hast not asked both riches and honour so that there shall not be any like unto thee amongst the kings all thy dayes And Solomon said His meditation was stayed on the Lord all the day long and his meditation was of his goodness kept in the Lords fear And Solomonraigned over all Israel forty years Asa was a good Magistrate he was perfect before the Lord although the high places were not taken away in his time he reigned one and forty years and the people had much comfort by him made sore lamentation for his death for they by his appointment entered into a solemn League and Covenant That whosoever would not seek the Lord God of Israel should be put to death whether small or great whether man or woman and all Judah rejoyced at the oath for they had sworn with all their hearts and sought him with their whole desires and he was found of them and the Lord gave them rest round about And Asa reigned in peace seven and thirty years Hezekiah was a good Magistrate and he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord according to all that David his father had done and wrought that which was right and truth in the sight of the Lord according to all that David his father