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to pervert the right ways of the Lord! And he that denieth all spiritual teaching, must deny all the right ways of the Lord; because every good and perfect gift must come down from the Father of Light; for what man is he, who can know the counsel of God, or who can think what the will of the Lord is? for the thoughts of mortal men are miserable, and their devices are but uncertain.

Now I shall come to a further observation in his letter. He saith, if Mr. Fisher had it in his power to have been a benefactor, to me, I should have supported him in all his assertions, however inconsistent with revelation and reason, and notwithstanding they evidently bore the appearance of blasphemy; and laments that government had not investigated into my writings. To this I answer, that I can prove this assertion false concerning Fisher; as there have been those who have assisted me in the work, knowing it was too great an expence for me to carry on by myself; and judging it a work of the Lord, they have assisted in it; but when they began to go into wild errors, and wrong inventions, they and I have separated, and I have returned their favours back again; therefore it is not from any favours received of man, that makes me support them in an error; neither does the Spirit support them in errors; because I have been ordered to return their favours, and reprove them, when they have went into wrong principles, inventing things that were never said through me, or by me; and these things are known to the world, as they stand in public print. The most faithful friends and believers, when they have drawn a wrong judgment, have been reproved in love; though they were not condemnedfor their wrong judgment, but mildly told their judgment was wrong; and the things they could not understand were more clearly explained unto them, to shew them where they drew their judgment wrong. So that no one can say the Spirit that visits

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me acts with art or deceit, to uphold men in things that are wrong; so therefore Mr. Mayer's assertions. are entirely false. And as to Mr. Fisher; had it been in his power to assist me in carrying on the work, I should now return his favours, in like manner as I have others; because the Lord will have faithful labourers in his vineyard, that they may enter into the joy of their Lord. But as to government's looking into my writings, they have had every invitation to do it: and have been a plied to by me and my friends, from time to time, as it is for the good of the public that they were ordered to go out in the world.

But as Mr. Mayer has taken it upon himself to write in this malicious manner against the Spirit that visits me, counting all the wisdom of the Spirit foolishness, I shall take notice of the folly of his wisdom; though I confess he hath brought forward to the world what was the judgment of ancient writers and commentators on the Bible, as they explained from their judgment in ages past of what was done in former ages; but when he comes to explain from his own wisdom, he clearly discovers his own folly. In a book intitled, An Appeal to Reason, he says, in the 31st page, "The finishing of transgression and making an end of sin, or restraining the evil one, I presume hath a particular allusion to the general reformation produced by the preaching of the Gospel, in the days of Christ and his apostles; for thereby the dominion of Satan was restrained, and the Kingdom of Christ set up, agreeable to Daniel ii, 44. The Christian religion was, in a few years, spread over a considerable part of the then known world, in spite of every opposition; and though the primitive Christians were persecuted wherever they went, deprived of many of the comforts of this life, obliged to hide themselves in caves and holes of the earth, and dwell among the wild beasts of the forest; yet it hath

been continued and preserved through the darkest ages, and against the most violent persecutions, to the present period; and notwithstanding the malice of devils and men, the combined powers of the kingdoms and empires of the world, and the many subtle efforts of deists to poison its pure streams, it is still flourishing." Now here is the wisdom of a man, who writes to have me depend upon his wisdom and to confute me, how wrong the Spirit is by which I am led; but were I visited by a spirit so contradictory to all sense and reason, as this man's wisdom is, then I should judge I was led by the spirit of error, and not of truth; for where can a man's understanding be, to say, "The finishing of transgression and making an end of sin, and restraining Satan's power could allude to a time when he himself allows the malice of the devil and the combined powers of his kingdom reigned in such full force, as to make the Christians who were the followers of Christ to hide themselves in caves and holes of the earth, and dwell among the wild beasts of the forest? Can this be called making an end of sin, or finishing of transgression, when it went on with a high hand in man? and can it be called restraining Satan's power, when his power raged with the utmost fury, that the Christians were forced to fly into caves, or to live with wild beasts, sooner than be in the world, which God created to be a peaceful habitation for man? This madness must convince every reasonable mind of the weak judgment there is in this man, who speaks against the Spirit of God, and now is setting up his own wisdom in opposition to divine revelation; for if we come to the Scriptures of truth, our Saviour plainly told his disciples that HIS Kingdom was not then of this world; that man's Redemption would not take place till his Second Coming; and then HE saith, "Lift up your heads, for, lo! your Redemption draweth nigh. And if we mark the prophecies of our Saviour's Birth, what Simcon

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said, when he was brought into the Temple, "This Child is set for the fall and rising again of many Israel." So, from this Prophecy, we see that the fall followed by the unbelief of the Jews. And now we must come to the Parables, which our Saviour spoke of for the end: "These mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring them hither and slay them before ME." But these enemies were not then destroyed; neither was the prince of this world cast out and cut off; and the devils theirselves knew the time was not come; when our Saviour cast them out of men, they said, Art thou come to torment us before our time? Therefore the Scriptures plainly assures us, that the finishing of transgression was not then; neither was sin put an end to; but the Gospel of Christ was then preached; yet his peaceable Kingdom was not established; but when that is established, then will evil be done away, and not before; and thus our Saviour taught us to pray for the Kingdom of God to come. Now as God and Christ are said in the Gospel to be united as ONE, from the voice that came from heaven, saying, This is my BELOVED SON, in whom I am well pleased: and the FATHER honoureth the SON; and the Son the FATHER; for he dwelleth in GOD, and GOD in HIM. So the persecution against Christ and his Gospel must be against the Lord; against the Father as well as the Son; therefore the transgression of men is not finished; neither is sin put an end to, but reigns with a high hand, as our Saviour told his disciples it would reign till the end: for in the world they would have tribulation; and this would continue till his coming; sin and sorrow would abound till HE came to take out of the world all that offended and did wickedly; to establish his Kingdom in peace and righteousness, as it was designed for man, before the foundation of the world: and this our Saviour died to accomplish; to suffer for the transgression of man, that he might destroy

him that had the power of death, that is the devil, and bring in his kingdom of righteousness and peace. But where is the man who can say it was then accomplished? or that Satan's power was then destroyed? as it is said in Revelation xx, his power shall be detroyed, that he shall deceive the nations no more, till a thousand years shall be fulfilled; then will transgressions be finished and sin have an end, when the author of sin is chained down and then will the dominion of Satan be restrained, and the Kingdom of Christ be established, according to Daniel vii, who saith, I saw in the night-visions one like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of Days: And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all nations and languages should serve him: and his kingdom should not be destroyed: but be given to the saints of the Most High, to take the kingdom and possess the kingdoin. This is the kingdom that will be brought in to finish the transgression, and make an end of sin. I might enumerate Scriptures enough to fill a volume, which assure us, when the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of God, and the Lord makes an end of sin, that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of things in heaven and things on earth, and acknowledge the Son to the Glory of the Father; but when was this ever completed all men must answer, never; then I ask those who profess to believe the Scriptures of Truth, or the Gospel of Christ, whether they believe it ever will? Those who answer it never will, must deny the Gospel; because our Saviour expressly says, in St. Matthew v. 17-" Think not that I am come to destroy the Law or the Prophets; I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil : Verily I say unto you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the Law, till all be fulfilled." Then let them mark what is said by the prophets Isaiah xxv. 8" He will swallow up

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