The third, "Cursed is he that denieth the Sabbath-day; and let all the people say, Amen."
In this last they make the people curse themselves; for on the Sabbath-day (which is the seventh day of the week, which the Jews kept by the command of God to them) they kept markets and fairs, and so brought the curse upon their own heads.[103]
Now were the priests in such a rage that they posted to Edinburgh to Oliver Cromwell's Council there, with petitions against me. The noise was that "all was gone"; for several Friends were come out of England and spread over Scotland, sounding the day of the Lord, preaching the everlasting gospel of salvation, and turning people to Christ Jesus, who died for them, that they might receive His free teaching.
After I had gathered the principles of the Scotch priests, and the sufferings of Friends, and had seen the Friends, in that part of Scotland settled by the Lord's power, upon Christ their foundation, I went to Edinburgh, and in the way came to Linlithgow, where lodging at an inn, the innkeeper's wife, who was blind, received the Word of life, and came under the teaching of Christ Jesus, her Saviour.
At night there came in abundance of soldiers and some officers, with whom we had much discourse; and some were rude. One of the officers said he would obey the Turk's or Pilate's command, if they should command him to guard Christ to crucify Him. So far was he from all tenderness, or sense of the Spirit of Christ, that he would rather crucify the just than suffer for or with them; whereas many officers and magistrates have lost their places before they would turn against the Lord and His Just One.
When I had stayed a while at Edinburgh, I went to Leith, where many officers of the army came in with their wives, and many were convinced. Among these Edward Billings's wife was one. She brought a great deal of coral in her hand, and threw it on the table before me, to see whether I would speak against it or not. I took no notice of it, but declared the Truth to her, and she was reached. There came in many Baptists, who were very rude; but the Lord's power came over them, so that they went away confounded.
Then there came in another sort, and one of them said he would dispute with me; and for argument's sake would deny there was a God. I told him he might be one of those fools that said in his heart, "There is no God," but he would know Him in the day of His judgment. So he went his way.
A precious time we had afterwards with several people of account; and the Lord's power came over all. William Osburn was with me. Colonel Lidcot's wife, and William Welch's wife, and several of the officers themselves, were convinced. Edward Billings and his wife at that time lived apart; and she being reached by Truth, and become loving to Friends, we sent for her husband, who came. The Lord's power reached unto them both, and they joined in it, and agreed to live together in love and unity as man and wife.
After this we returned to Edinburgh where many thousands were gathered together, with abundance of priests among them, about burning a witch, and I was moved to declare the day of the Lord amongst them. When I had done, I went thence to our meeting, whither came many rude people and Baptists.
The Baptists began to vaunt with their logic and syllogisms; but I was moved in the Lord's power to thresh their chaffy, light minds. I showed the people that, after that fallacious way of discoursing, they might make white seem black, and black seem white; as, that because a cock had two legs, and each of them had two legs, therefore they were all cocks.[104] Thus they might turn anything into lightness and vanity; but it was not the way of Christ, or His apostles, to teach, speak, or reason after that manner.