My private footsteps and my Love for man
Are surely publish'd by her written hand;
But for my public theatenings that are here
You judg'd them hard, but they shall be severe,
If now I see you shew more love to man,
To clear his honour, than for mine you'll come
The Truth to try-If you'll not seek to know,
I tell you plain, that hard my hand shall go;
For I'm the Lord, that she has written here,
My private Love to man she hath made clear;
But public threatenings and my wrath severe,
I tell you now, shall come upon the Land,
If not for ME you will the Trial stand,
To know if she has forg'd my Name or no-
And to the press these threatenings now must go,
Because this shadow here I did ordain;
And see the Bill is put in by my friend,
To have the truth in all be fairly tried.
And now they'll surely find, if I'm denied,

That hard my Judgments now shall be for man,
If for my honour they refuse to stand
The Truth in every thing to prove and try,
Since now for man they easy did comply,
To bring the Trial hasty on for man;
And for my honour now I bid them stand,
For I am the Lord, that every soul shall see,
That now commands this Bill put in to be;
And if to prove it you do not regard,
I tell you plain, my hand you'll find it hard;
For there are Libels printing now I see,
Against my honour, and they cast shall be,
Because they're printing now against my Name,
Against thy writings men are going on.
Then sure I say they're printing against ME,
And that with fury all your Land shall see,
If men don't hasty come for to prevent,
And say, we'll try the cause with one consent,
To know from whence the Bill doth now appear
Against my honour men are printing here.
They must confess it is in man or thee;
For if thy writings do not come from ME,
Then thou art wrongly printing in my Name;
And then mankind I'll surely put to shame,
If they in love for ME do not appear,

To prove from whence it came, and see all clear;
Whether or no they do come from the Lord
They all must judge it by the written word,
Which from the world is now seal'd up from man.
For there in secret I have laid my plan,
The faith and wisdom first in men to try,
And then behind they'll find my wisdom lie,
The truth of all I then shall surely clear,
And they shall find the Lord of Lords is here.
That men in libels printing now they be
Against my honour I do plainly see;
And so I say they surely shall be cast-

For that's the way my Jury now shall burst,
I say, these ignorant men for to condemn.
And now to try the Cause I'm boldly come;
No&to her So with their libels let them to appear
Before my Jury, and I'll cast them there;
Because their words they, never can defend:
To write against the Lord will man pretend,
When I do tell them, I AM LORD of all
That in thy writings do this Nation call?
And LORD of LORDS I'll surely prove to be;
And hard is my hand, that every soul shall see,
If men don't find a week for to appear
To bring the Trial, and to see all clear.
So here the words are parted into three,
And as they are parted so twill surely be,
If men don't hasty bring thy Trial on,

To know from whence the libel now doth come.
For every soul that now have eves to see,
They sure must know 'tis in the Men or thee;
And now I tell them it is in the Men,

And that they'll find, I'll prove it in the end."

These last words were given to me, in answer to the letter you sent me, the same day with the newspapers, of the men at Stourbridge, that are now printing a book against my writings, which is so clearly explained, if my writings are of God, they are printing against the Lord; but if my writings are not of God, men shew no love to his honour to let me go on in his Name, to say the Lord saith, if they can prove the Lord hath not spoken by me; and that is as equally impossible for man to do, without searching into every truth, and trying them the way the Lord hath commanded them to be tried, as it is for a man that is stark blind to judge of colours. Neither can any man judge colours in the dark, yet in the dark they pretend to judge them, but are afraid to come to the light, fearing their deeds should be reproved. This Communication I am ordered to send to you to have it put in print with all speed. I am ready and willing to stand every trial to prevent the Judgments that threaten us, and that hang over our heads. I shall give you part of the letter I received from my friend: "There is a book now in the press, printing, and where seve

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al heads have been engaged in it, that are attacking yourself, your writings, and your abettors."-In answer to myself, no man can injure my character without he doth it by falsehood and lies: for my character will bear the strictest scrutiny as to any thing the world can lay to my charge; but as to my writings, and from what Spirit they come, I am ready to stand the trial. If they can be proved from any Spirit, but the Spirit of the living Lord, I will freely give them up, and burn the whole. But I cannot suffer my judgment to be so easily imposed upon as to believe such wondrous wisdom, council, and truth, can come from any Spirit but from the God of Wisdom and of Truth, before it is tried by the touchstone of truth, and then the Lord will make the truth clear before them. Then how can men pretend to judge of things they know nothing about? For none but them that have searched into my writings can be judges of the truth they contain; and as to the manner of the writings that men condemn, it is but the fulfilling the Scriptures; for it is written, The wisdom of God is foolishness to men-and the wisdom of man is foolishness with God; and this truth is plain and easy to be understood, as men so foolishly pretend to explain the hidden mysteries of the Bible by their own wisdom; and they have explained it so many ways that the Bible can have no meaning or explanation at all by the wisdom of men for the wise men, the learned, and the good men, have drawn so many judgments different from each other, that they have made the Bible like å rope of sand, that cannot join together; and so they make their own wisdom, that will soon break in sunder. But the foolishness of God is wiser than all the wisdom of men, like a threefold cord, that cannot be broken. As soon as I had written these words, from my own observation, I was answered in the following lines:

Now from thy wisdom, I will answer man :
Thou'st plainly seen their wisdom like the sand,
That 'tis impossible for man to join;
But now my foolishness I'll make it hang
Just like a threefold cord, that is not broke
By strength of man, unless you do it cut;
And now I tell thee, if men cut it here,
Just like the rope of sand shall all appear,
I say in pieces-so I'll break your Land:
And here I'll end it by the rope of sand;
Unless they'll come and join it with my word,
And then I'll join them like a threefold cord;
Because my weakness, every soul shall see,
Is stronger than the strength of man can be;
And so my folly in thy writings here

Is conceal'd in wisdom, that no man can clear,
To prove them weak or foolish in the end.
But for to try men's wisdom, I intend
To bring it round in this weak foolish hand,
To prove that men were like thy rope of sand,
That by their wisdom they could never join;
But like a threefold cord they'll now find mine
To break in pieces all their ropes of sand,

For so they'll find my threefold cord shall stand."'

Here I am ordered to end my Book; and put in print that a Book is publishing against my Writings; and it is said to me, the Book is full of blasphemy, which will be proved hereafter. But I do not believe the men designed to print blasphemy against the Lord; but they cannot write against his words, ways, or wisdom, without it. This letter you are desired to send hastily to the printer. And here the Book ends. So now, my dear Miss Townley, I hope your great fatigue for the present is over. I must conclude, with my earnest prayers that the Lord will add a double blessing upon you. Please to remember me to all friends. Adieu,