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of the wrath and judgment of the Almighty, and that thou must drink before thou comest to know the seed of God come from under all the power of wickedness in thee, and that is the world; and Christ, who bore the sin of the whole world, and felt it, and was under it, was offered, and is over it all, and makes his enemies his footstool.

P. The false interpretation of the enemy,' he saith that every man's work must be tried with fire, what sort it is,' and 'you shall hardly gain a speech of one sort or other, sometimes, from the Quakers,' and this thou calls dumb devil.'

A. And thus thou showest where thou art, who hast not known a time to be silent, before thou didst know a time to speak. And the dumb devil hath been found amongst yourselves, you priests; for when many of the Quakers have been moved of the Lord to come to speak to you in your pulpits, you have proved the dumb devils, turned your backs, and have gone your ways, and spoken never a word to them. And thy works and all men's shall be tried by the fire, and that is not perverting scripture, as also saith the apostle. And thou never hast past through the wrath of God, but it is yet to come, and the sufferings of Christ thou knowest not.

P. And it will be a lie and delusion, for the spirit when it sanctifies the hearts to go about to tear their hearts out of their bodies, when David's bones were broken, and his flesh would scarcely cleave; it is far from me to think that this was under the apprehension of wrath; shall a man think that he suffered for his sanctification?'

A. The spirit of God tears out the old hearts, and so, before man is sanctified throughout he must know suffering, and his wretched state; yet sanctification brings peace in the end, and life. And David's condition thou art ignorant of, and knowest not; for he was sensible of the wrath before his sins were removed as far as the east is from the west, and he had joy and peace; but trembling and quaking is become a mock and scoff amongst you, for there is a trembling and rejoicing, and there is a trembling in the sorrow.

P. When the Quakers are commanded many times to go, they have not that leisure to dress them: this is a hard master surely, not Christ, therefore satan, for the Lord is not wont to do things ignorantly to deceive his servants. And they are brought to fast from all manner of food three nights and three days, most feeble, wretched creatures, contrary to the law of nature; so they are not capable of bearing the glory of God, so ministers of antichrist, and they are made to deny their callings and possessions. I would eat more than I desired, because I would give no offence.'

A. In this thou hast showed thy ignorance of the scriptures, and Christ; for he that is on the house top, let him not come down to put

on his clothes. And they that went on his message were not to take two coats: and when they went on his message, they did not go to dress themselves with boot-hose-tops, and double cuffs, and ribands, and rings, as the priest doth; and what God doth, it is in his wisdom, beyond the ignorance of mankind, and they that receive it must be in his fear. And Christ is not a hard master, as thou thinkest, because some go, not dressing them in their apparel, who go to do his command; but thou who art wicked and slothful, hast so judged with the wrong and false judgment. And many of the saints have fasted till they might number their bones; and Christ fasted, and this was not contrary to the law of nature, and did not make them incapable of receiving the glory of God; neither was it antichrist. And thou who art of him, canst eat and drink more than thou hast desire, because thou wouldst not offend others, and that is contrary to the law of nature. And the saints forsook their callings and possessions, and the world; but you priests run into great possessions, which you get out of poor people's labours; so you are like the false apostles and antichrist, not like Christ and his apostles.

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P. They have a gloss put upon Christ's words to his disciples, when he bids them that they should take no care what to speak, it should be given them in the same hour. And of their going naked, I never knew the mind of the Lord discovering by any of his servants, neither under the old nor new covenant. And these dreamers go to a place, and do not know what to say till they come to the place.'

A. Philip was sent to a place, and then it was told him what to say, when he came to it. And he was not a dreamer, but thou art, who goes without a command from God, and runs when he never sent thee, and follows thy own spirit. And they that speak as the spirit gives them utterance, and moves them, take no thought, but it is given them in the same hour; and thou that art out of this, art in the glosses. It was the mind of the Lord for Isaiah to go naked, and to strip himself in Egypt and Ethiopia, as many are moved of the Lord to go naked among you of spiritual Egypt and Ethiopia, and to put off their clothes; which is a figure to you, that the sheep's clothing must be taken off of your ravening wolves' backs.

P. Thou sayst, For the present thou dost not apprehend any thing more, but that the devil shall transform himself into an angel of light. And there are hardly a people to be found that cry out more against sin, and the appearance of sin, and unrighteousness, than they do, as far as I know, or have heard, to declare them to be carried forth as ministers of righteousness.'

A. Thy apprehension is vain, and judgment false; for the devil transformed himself into an angel of light before the apostles' decease,

and so is transformed in you, who have the words, but out of the life; for the devil could not transform into the apostles, while they were in the life. And you are antichrist that are crying out against sin and unrighteousness, and live in it; but the Quakers are the enemies of sin, and the friends of souls, who are the ministers of righteousness, and declared so to be in all your consciences, to be in the life of all the prophets, apostles, and Christ, and they do see that you are transformed into their words, but out of the life, and with that judged.

P. 'I am persuaded the Quakers do not tell a lie, that satan he will either choose to do some things, as healing some infirmity, and turning water into wine, and the like; this is a deceitful way enough, that all the belly-gods in England may become Quakers; this labour of mine may make thousands to refuse their errors and delusions, because it can be done through a great light that is in antichrist.'

A. The Quakers are in the truth, and out of the lie, and they see you are in it, for antichrist is turned from the light; and the devil is not he that turns water into wine, and heals the sick and infirmities, nor antichrist, but the true Christ; where did you read that they turned water into wine, or healed the sick? Therefore, thou and you, by your delusions and errors, labour to deceive thousands. And thou hast cleared the Quakers from being in the error or delusion, for thou sayst, they dare not lie,' then they are not of the devil, who is the ground of all error and delusion. And you priests are the greatest belly-god sin the nation, for you devour up the tenths of the nation, of poor husbandmen, and so you cannot endure the power that makes to tremble, so cannot endure the salvation.

P. What if one of these Quakers should be sent to a blind leader of the people, and a man is not able to reply a word, and it may be, a good scholar.'

A. They you in scorn call Quakers have been moved by the power of the Lord God, to come against such as thou art, leaders of the blind, though you have been great scholars, and when you have not been able to resist their spirit, but found naked from the spirit of the Lord, you have cried to your rulers and magistrates, to help take them away, cast them into prison; and these have been your weapons, and antichrist's court and fort, and the wolves in the sheep's clothing, strong against them that are in the apostles' and Christ's power, and life, and doctrine, and now you are discovered.

P. The crucifying the son of God afresh, that is, Christ without, or else in the heart of another, not in his own that doth it,' and thou sayst thou engages thy affections to the seekers, because of their attainments.'

A. He that crucifies Christ afresh to himself, first crucifies him in

his own heart, before he crucifies him in another's heart without him; and it is the affections that thou art joined with to people, and not with the spirit, to the notional attainments; for hadst thou been in the spirit, thou wouldst not have written such a book as this is against the truth; or hadst thou answered the principle of God in the seekers, or minded the life in them, or in thy own particular, you might have lived in unity with God and scripture. But whither art thou turned now, to thy great fat benefice? and didst steal some words from the seekers, and sell them to poor people to make a trade of them.

P. Thou sayst thou wouldst have all people take a right way in opposing the Quakers, with a strong understanding in the scriptures to reason with them.'

A. All your understanding and your reasoning, if you get all the scriptures, are not able, being out of the life that gave forth the scriptures, to resist the spirit of the Quakers, which is that which was in them that gave forth scriptures, though you may gainsay and oppose like Cain, Core, and Balaam; but wo unto you!

P. 'I shall give my consent, if the Quakers transgress our laws, they might have double punishment; and if you will not believe the truth that comes from them, I hope you will believe it as it comes from the mouth of God; with speed forsake the Quakers' society wholly, public and private.'

A. Here is thy confession again, and judgment, and thy injustice; wouldst thou have double punishment inflicted upon them that break the law? and dost thou say that the Quakers are the mouth of God, and if you will not believe the truth as it comes from them, believe it as it comes from the mouth of God; and yet must people wholly forsake the society of the Quakers, public and private, and call this overcoming strong questions? This is the strengthening of strong questions, overcoming you that are in the deceit, who are to be judged.

P. That God is all, and in all.'

A. The scripture saith so, God is all, and in all, and through you all, and over you all, blessed for ever; and this is not to justify any profaneness nor wicked actions, but it is you that would not have the Lord to have room in your hearts, that would not have him to be in people, nor have him there to reign.

P. 'I have some time told the Quakers, that I did conceive the design of antichrist was to bring them in the end to work all manner of uncleanness; I now judge they are carried from one degree to another to act righteousness.'

A. Here thou confounds thy imagination, and hast showed thou hast followed thy own spirit; and thy false prophecy is come to an end,

and thou hast proved thyself to be a dreamer, for they are in the righteousness, which comprehends thee.

P. Thou sayst, The Lord doth not regain any of our age to walk so, they that are called the Anabaptists, and yet thou ownest them.”

A. Dost thou own that which the Lord doth not require? and do they practise that which the Lord doth not require? And so thou hast given judgment upon thyself and them both.

P. I having also communion with my former society, which is broken off through the mysterious working of antichrist, I would have spared my pen for a few lines, but for the sake of a very few in the nation; and I have not time to write one line, from first to last, twice; expect not from me an army of reasons and arguments.

A. Thou hadst better have spared thy pen and tongue both, than have written that which thou hast written, whose communion is with the mysterious working of antichrist, and there are but few in the nation but will see thy work is but fuel for the fire. And abundance of stuff thou hast in thy book, which is not worth mentioning, but will fall upon thy head. In the day of thy judgment the witness shall

answer.

Priest Tombes, Baptist, of Leominster. His principles as

followeth.

P. THE words John i. 9. [enlighteneth every man,] are meant of a natural life or light.'

A. Christ that doth enlighten every man that cometh into the world, this light is not natural, neither is he natural that is called the power of God; who was before all natural lights, sun, moon, and stars, were made; and so this light doth enlighten every man that believes in it, and is their condemnation that doth not believe in it; that is above all natural: for the light that 'doth enlighten every man that comes into the world,' that all men might believe, is not natural life or light, but of the divine nature, which is above nature; for in him was life, and the life was the light of men,' and he is the salvation to the ends of the earth. And in this thou hast showed thy ignorance, and dost not preach that which people are to believe in.

P. Thou sayst, the ministers of Christ may seek what they shall have by the year, and are not to go up and down to towns, and eat and drink what is before them, as those did.' Luke x. 7.

A. We do believe such apostate ministers from the doctrine of Christ and his apostles as you are, who have thrown aside the doctrine

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