Moreover, yet if your more sure way of teaching from God were Vision it self, yet it is impossible for you to enjoy any true and lasting Peace, unless it swallows up all your former Writings produced from your own Spirit, without an immediate Commission from God, and in the room thereof, perswade your Soul to pour in your Oil, into the natural Wounds of oppressed Persons, under what Opinions or Appearances whatsoever.
Again, you say, O Lord God, pity the Captivity of Man, yea, pity the Captivity of thy own poor Seed, hear the Prayers of that Spirit that interceedeth with thee for every thing, not according to any fleshly Imaginations, but according to Truth and Righteousness of thine one Ballance. From the God of Truth, to this I answer, concerning that Spiritual Captivity of the Elect, in Reference of a right understanding of the Creator, you need not trouble yourself about that, unless you think through much importuning the unchangeable God, may be perswaded to loose their Bonds before the decreed time thereof; but if you think that Glory of God's Eternal Love towards them, will provoke to their Spiritual Darknesses through the invisible Appearances of his own pure Light, then you may know, until his own Glorious Season, that all the Desires of Men or Angels are of no Effect, no nor of the Son himself, if you imagine a Father besides. 'Tis confess'd, when the Time draweth near of some great Deliverance of the Chosen of God, usually the Lord provokes his People to cry unto him with Sighs and Groans, which cannot be uttered but from the innocent Spirit of his Spiritual redeemed ones, as his Due, he may receive all Honour, Praise and Glory for their Deliverance out of their natural Darknesses, unto his marvellous Light.
Again, I declare from the true Light of the true God, that the Spirit which entereth with the Creator for all Mankind, upon the Account of his Eternal Happiness, was never principled upon a Spiritual Foundation of Truth, whatever subtile Expressions of God's righteous Ballance proceedeth from him. Moreover, is it not the new heavenly Glanses of Christ Jesus in Man's dark Soul, which upon an immortal Account, becomes all Light, Life, or ravishing Glory in him; and of the contrary, is it not the absenting Voice or Virtue of the uncreated Spirit of the Lord Christ Jesus, that occasions Mens Spirits to be full of Satanical aspiring Wisdom about the Creator; and whence think you cometh this to pass, or possible could be of the Spirit, if the Creator were, and Angels were essentially living in one another there.
Again, if your literal Request unto the Lord God, as in Reference unto the miserable Captivity of poor Mankind, lying under the miserable Yoak of unmerciful rich Tyrants, especially over his own innocent Seed or chosen People, then this will most necessarily follow; nay, you cannot deny it, if there be any Light in you, that all your conceived Spiritual Speakings, or Writings, or Prayers, in the Great Day of the Lord Jesus Christ, will become but fiery burning Death in you of utter Darkness, according to the true Saying, If that Light in you be Darkness, how great is that Darkness. Unless as before said, answerable to your Profession of Love unto God, and Pity unto Man, you are a bountiful Reliever of his oppressed Ones, according to his Bountifulness towards you, then mind the Virtues of Christ Jesus thus shining in you, will occasion from the refreshed Bowels of his own Seed new Spiritual Acknowledgments, and a loving Return in the Lord for you, why because it is rare to find a merciful rich Man.
Friend, I certainly know that if you are one of God's Elect, you cannot be offended with me for writing the Truth, though at present, I be contrary to you in Spirit. Again, you write that you would beg unto the Lord for me, both with Tears and Blood, and you would speak somewhat concerning me, but you are afraid to open the Spirit before the Season thereof. Friend, As to that if ever the Lord of Life and Glory manifest himself to your Soul, then you will see clearly the Vanity of those Words.
Moreover, if I should tell you, that in the pure Eyes of the Lord Christ Jesus, that one Handful of your Silver Tears, are of more Value than a Horse Load of your Tears and Blood, you might account it a very strange saying from me; truly I unfeignedly believe it will be found a principal Truth, when our Lord Jesus Christ shall say in the Day of Judgment, Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you, for when I was a hungry, ye fed me; Go ye Cursed into everlasting Fire, when I was an hungry ye fed me not. So that without Controversy, there is nothing in Man comparable to Love, Mercy and Forgiveness, even to his greatest Enemies.
Again, It is a marvellous thing, if you or any other Man, should have a Spiritual Gift to distinguish between Divine and Diabolical Appearances, and yet defer the Examination thereof to another Season, or did the most wise God ever Commission any Man or Angel to make a Discovery of any Spiritual Counterfeits, and yet that Messenger remaineth dark in his own Understanding, concerning the Creator that sent him. I remember such a like Scripture Saying as this, him whom you ignorantly worship, declare I unto you. Moreover, if the most wise Creator, either visible or invisible by himself or Angel, hath appeared in your Spirit, whereby unto your thinking, I was clearly discovered as a deceived Person among the rest, is it not a strange thing that you should have Power over that Light above Men or Angels, before you for the producing of it at another Season, the Creator himself will visible make it manifest, even so come Lord Jesus Christ, for thy glorious Namesake, come quickly, and in the visible Sight of Men and Angels bear Record whether thy Holy Spirit sent me (as I have declared almost these three Years) or no. Again, when the Lord made Choice of such a simple poor Man as I was, as many can witness in the City of London, that have known me about these twenty Years, that I might instrumentally discover the two principal Heads of mischievous Darkness in the Land; as namely, John Robins past, and John Tawney almost spent, truly I had no Power in me to put by his Message until another time; why because (whether you can believe it or no) his Voice was so Glorious in me, that it shun as the Sun, and it was of Motion swifter than Thought, and so pleasant to be declared by Tongue; yet for all that Godlike Glory piercing in me, and through me, there arose a Desire in me to be eased of that Burden of the Lord committed to my Charge, because of that sharp Sentence that I was to declare against any Man that should despise it; then the Lord spake again unto my Soul, Words of turning Death, of sensible unutterable Darkness, answerable to that Jonas-like Rebellion in me, against so great convincing Glory; and truly I was compelled immediately to cry unto him for Deliverance from the Wounds or Anguish of my Soul, that I might presently obey his Word that shined in me with such Light, and Majesty, and Glory in whatsoever it should command me.
Wherefore Friend, happy are you if preserved from slighting an Appearance, that is contrary unto your Light, though it strike at the Foundation on which is built all your Spiritual Enjoyments; for alas, you know in the End, all false Lights will be made manifest unto those that possess the true Light of Eternal Life in them; Blessed therefore are those, that in Obedience unto the Creator from a purified Spirit are compassionate to all Men, but especially to those innocent Appearances, in the Name of the Lord, though they all differ in their Declaration for them. If there be but one true Messenger from the Lord among the rest, they shall as formerly, receive an Angel of God unawares, and with him be Partakers of the Glorious Secrets of the everliving God, to their eternal Consolation: For this I know, from the Spirit of Truth, that those that are left under a Spirit of rejecting and despising of false Appearances, coming forth in the Name of the Lord, they not clearly knowing them to be so, they will as readily despise a true Messenger of the Lord to their eternal Hurt; wherefore are all those, that neither Honour nor Life it self is dear unto them, but upon an Account of Spiritual Wisdom amongst wise Men, when the Glorious Things of Eternity, though in base Appearance presented unto them, from that Spiritual Rock of all Ages, which is our Lord Jesus Christ, God and Man, is one distinct Body or Person glorified; for whatsoever Men dream from their imaginary Gods, of two or three Persons, or a vast incomprehensible Spirit, essentially living in all Things and Places; from an immediate Voice from the highest Heavens, I positively affirm against Men or Angels, that there neither is, nor ever was any other God or Creator, but that God-man Christ Jesus, which was nailed to the Cross, the which Glorious God will one Day visibly appear with his mighty Angels, to the Everlasting Terror of those that reject his Person, as to love a thing for an infinite God to dwell in or to be; yea this very true God in Opposition to all other Gods, Men, or Angels, is already come with his invisible pure piercing Light, to make an everlasting Distinction between the imaginary notional Mysteries of Men in rational Darkness, and the Spiritual Mysteries of his everlasting Kingdom, by true Inspirations from an holy and unerring Spirit. Even so come Lord Jesus Christ, visibly also according to thine own Word, come quickly. Amen.
Yours with all the Elect, in that only wise very true God, which in the Sight of Men and Angels visible appeared in Flesh, and in that very Body of Flesh and Bone, is ascended far above all Gods, Heavens, Angels, or Men, and there to remain until the Resurrection of all elect Things, or the Judgment-Day, whose uncreated Spirit of fiery Love, is all Variety of immortal Crowns of new ravishing Glories, prepared for all those that long for his visible appearing, to make an everlasting Separation, between the merciful Elect, and unmerciful Reprobate.