London, when the Lord had added more to the number, to make up the twelve. Now as men take it upon them to explain the Scriptures, that such and such things were fulfilled, when they see a likeness of it, they cannot see a clearer likeness in the Scriptures, than this is, being fulfilled; as my writings made in 1792, were sealed with seven seals; and were not broken when they came to Exeter with a design to have them broken. Now it is said in the Scriptures, the seals were not broken the first time they were proposed; and St. John said, I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open. and read the book; but the answer was given, he should weep not; because the Lion of the Tribe, of Judah prevailed. I shall here further observe, from Mr. Bruce's words: he saith, "I am ready to sit in judgment against myself, and all mankind, to free the woman, and pray God to cast all on Saran, that arch ehemy of the human race. Here were his words pleaded on earth, before his departure, like the words which are said in the Revelation would be pleaded by the saints in heaven; for if we discern the chapter, it is said, they would plead the merits of Christ's death and suffering for mankind, saying with a loud voice,.: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing;" therefore we must discern that intercession is made in heaven by the saints, before the Lamb comes to open the Book; and this is consistent with all the Scriptures; because we are commanded to ask and receive; and it is said, Ye have not, because ye ask not; then, to fulfil the Scriptures of truth, it is plain that intercession is made in heaven, as well as on earth. And now we must discern how it stands in the chapter, and how the whole circumstancehappened concerning Mr. Bruce and the seals; when they were first proposed, they were not opened, for want of the twelve; and they wept much for Mr.

Bruce's death at that time, when the letter came; but after that the Lord added more to the seven, and the seals were opened, the books were read, and judgment was sat on them: and as our Saviour compared the likeness of the kingdom of heaver to the likeness of things on earth, there cannot be a Scripture more literally fulfilled than this chapter was, from the singular manner the whole happened. So in this the wisdom of the Spirit shines much brighter and clearer to me, to prove the truth of the Scriptures, than ever I saw them pointed out by man:. and we may see from Mr. Bruce, by what he saith in his letter, "I have constantly prayed for the coming of Christ's peaceable kingdom, that this was his prayer on earth, and this is said in the Revelation would be the language of the saints in heaven! so the church militant and the church triumphant would be united together in one union; and this is plainly proved by what were his prayers and petitions here on earth, that that would be his petition in heaven, for Christ's Kingdom to be established, and Satan's power to be destroyed.-But Mayer saith that the explanation respecting Mr. Bruce, in the 34, 35 pages of the Seventh Book, was given by the devil. To this I answer, that it was out of Satan's power to have ordered a thing in that manner, and to bring such a likeness together, to prove the Scriptures true, that things in heaven and things in earth should have a likeness of what John saw in heaven: this Satan could not accomplish.

Now I shall come to another observation of his. He saith, I have a devil without, and a devil within. To this I answer, devils without will be through the world every where, as long as Satan's power reigns; and there is no man upon earth, who hath a knowledge of himself, but will allow he hath experienced the truth more or less, from the temptation of the devil. But now I shall come to a devil within; this he must mean is being possessed with a devil. In

this I shall answer for myself; it is from the witness I have within, and the strong faith I have in the mercies of God, the heavenly joys I often experience from the visitation of his Spirit, the faithfulness and truth that have followed his words, the hatred I feel in my heart against every appearance of evil, that are a witness to me, that my visitation is from the Lord. But if men call this the spirit of the devil, let them tell me, by what spirit those are led, who delight in every evil, and every cruelty one towards another, whose vices I hate? And my own conscience is more than ten thousand witnesses of-what lieth within; therefore man can be no judge for me; it is by my own master I must stand or fall; and as to my outward character amongst mankind, it will bear the strictest scrutiny.

But now I shall come to another observation in his letter; the questions I put to him he refused to answer, saying,

"It is part of a work I intend to publish; however if you wish to argue calmly, and to make the Scriptures the arbitrators between us, I should have no objection of an interview with you. If you decline this challenge, never more say, no one could contradict your as · sertions."

Now to these words I shall answer. Could a man be so void of reason as to believe, after receiving such insolent letters from him, that I should meet to dispute with him? If he had sent to desire an explanation together, in answer to my first letter, I should certainly have given him the meeting; but after discovering himself to be full of ignorance and abuse, that would be but doing as our Saviour said-casting of pearls before swine; and this our Saviour forbids, in Matthew vii. 6-"Give not that which is holy unto the dogs; neither cast ye your pearls before swine, least they trample them under their feet and turn again and rend you." Now I must refer the readers to his

first letter to me, and my answer to him, wherein I
reasoned with him on the manner that the Scriptures
were explained to me; and though I told him from
the different judgments drawn by men, I could not
rely upon their judgment; and some of his expla-
nations of the Bible I thought as wrong as others
had been; but in this I did not abuse the man; and
had he been a man of sense, wishing to come to a
clear explanation, or judged he could confound me
from the Scriptures, he would have requested an in-
terview, without giving abusive language; but after
the letters that he had sent, he must have a great
share of ignorance, and I may add assurance, to re-
quest an interview with me.
Did he suppose I am
so ignorant as not to discern what spirit he is of, to
answer for myself to such a man? it would be but
doing, as our Saviour said in Matthew vii. but as to
confuting me, it is out of his power; as I have seen
the books that he hath published, and cannot see
any explanation of the Scriptures in them, any more
than what the commentators upon the Bible, and
ancient history inform us of, that have been written
in ages past; but as he hath brought these things
together, saying, the time is at hand for their fulfil-
ment, how dare such a man as he deny the truth of
the Spirit to me, when I wrote in 1792, before any
of these things appeared, that the end of all things
was at hand; that the second Psalm would be ful-
filled, that the Lord would have the heathens for his
inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for
his possession; and that all the earth should come
to the knowledge of the Lord, and sing his praises?
And the manner that the Lord would go on with tu-
mults and war was then fortold; now all these things
together, with all the other events, must have con-
vinced a man of sense that my visitation was from
the Lord, if he believed these days were at hand;
therefore out of his own mouth do I condemn him;
and if he be endowed with a grain of reason, he must
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know it was out of his power to confute me; but he would be confuted himself from his own belief that the time is at hand when these things will be fulfilled. But to tell me that my visitation was from the devil was like the serpent in the beginning pleading to Eve: but as he hath made an observation that, after he sent me that insolent letter, I reproved him warmly, wherein he said I was filled with a devil, I ask him what spirit St. Paul was filled with, in Acts xiii. 9, when he reproved Elymas, who is mentioned in verse 9 as a false prophet, a Jew, and who strove to turn the deputy from the faith of the revelation of the Holy Ghost given to the disciples? Now all men must know why this man's malice was provoked; because he knew that if the deputy believed in the revelation that was given to the disciples, he would look to the teaching of God through them, and not rely on the doctrine of the other; this swelled the pride of the Jew, thinking his teaching would not be exalted, if the word of God was believed. So Paul being full of the Holy Ghost, full of the Spirit of the Lord, he threw down the wisdom of man; and this the enemies of Christ could not bear, in the days of the Apostles; and the same spirit we see in men now; they are filled up with their own wisdom, and their own learning; therefore they cannot bear any teaching that comes from God; because it throweth down the pride of men and this the Scriptures assure us the Lord would do in the latter days. But as this man hath observed that persons cannot be led by the Spirit of God, if they are provoked to anger to hear that Spirit condemned; I will ask every man of sense, how any one can be led by the Spirit of God, and hear the Spirit condemned, without being provoked to anger? then they can have no love for the Lord: It is said, Paul being filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on the man, and said, O full of all subtlety and all mischief, thou child of the devil, tbou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease