CHAPTER XII (3)

“Now, truth hath an honour in the hearts of those who are not Friends; so that all Friends being kept in the truth, they are kept in the honour, they are honourable, for that will honour them; but if any lose the power, they lose the life, they lose their crown, they lose their honour, they lose the cross, which should crucify them, and they crucify the just; and by losing the power, the Lamb comes to be slain. And as it is here, so will it be in other nations; for all Friends, here and there, are as one family; the seed, the plants, they are as a family. Now all being kept in that which subjects all, and keeps all under, to wit, the Seed itself, the life itself, that is the heir of the promise; that is the bond of peace; for there is the unity in the Spirit with God, and with one another. For he that is kept in the life, hears God, and sees man’s condition; and with that he answers the life in others, that hear God also; thus one Friend that is come into that, comprehends the world. But that which Friends speak, they must live in; so may they expect, that others may come into that which they speak, to live in the same. For the power of the Lord God hath been abused by some, and the worth of truth hath not been minded; there hath been a trampling on, and marring with the feet, and that abuseth the power. But now every Friend is to keep in the power, and to take heed to it; for that must be kept down, which would trample and mar with the feet, and the pure life and power of God is to be lived in over that, that none with the feet may foul or mar, but every one may be kept in the pure power and life of the Lord. Then the water of life cometh in; then he that ministereth, drinketh himself, and giveth others to drink.

“When any shall be moved to go and speak in a steeple-house or market, turn in to that which moves, and be obedient to it, that that which would not go, may be kept down; for that which would not go, will be apt to get up. And take heed on the other hand, that the lavishing part do not get up, for it is a bad savour; therefore that must be kept down, and be kept subject. Wait in the light of the Lord, that ye may be all kept in the wisdom of God. For when the Seed is up in every particular, there is no danger; but when there is an opening and prophecy, and the power stirs before the seed comes up, then there is something that will be apt to run out rashly; there is the danger, and there must be the patience in the fear. For it is a weighty thing to be in the work of the ministry of the Lord God, and to go forth in that. It is not as a customary preaching; but it is to bring people to the end of all outward preaching. For when ye have declared the truth to the people, and they have received it, and are come into that which ye speak of, the uttering of many words, and long declarations out of the life, may beget them into a form. And if any should run on rashly into words again, without the savour of life, then they that are come into the thing that he spoke of, will judge him; whereby he may hurt again that which he had raised up before. So Friends, ye must all come into the thing that is spoken in the openings of the heavenly life among you, and walk in the love of God, that ye may answer the thing spoken to.

“And take heed all of running into inordinate affections; for when people come to own you, there is danger of the wrong part getting up. There was a strife among the disciples of Christ, who should be the greatest; Christ told them, ‘The heathen exercise lordship, and have dominion over one another; but it shall not be so among you.’ For Christ the Seed was to come up in every one of them; so then, where is the greatest? for that part in the disciples which looked to be the greatest, was the same that was in the Gentiles. But as any one comes here, to live in the word that sanctified him, having the heart sanctified, the tongue and lips sanctified, living in the word of wisdom that makes clean the heart, and reconciles to God, all things being upheld by the Word and power;—as there is an abiding in the Word of God, that upholds times and seasons, and gives all things increase, and a dwelling in the Word of wisdom; if there be but two or three agreed in this on earth, it shall be done for them in heaven. So in this must all things be ordered by the Word of wisdom and power, that upholds all things, the times and the seasons, that are in the Father’s hand, to the glory of God, whereby his blessing may be felt among you; and this brings to the beginning. So this is the word of the Lord God to you all, Keep down, keep low, that nothing may rule or reign in you, but life itself.

“Now, the power being lived in, the cross is lived in; and wherever Friends come in this, they draw the power and the life over; they leave a witness behind them, answering the witness of God in others. And where this is lived in, there is no want of wisdom, of power, of knowledge; but he that ministereth in this, seeth with the eye which the Lord openeth in him, what is for the fire, and what for the sword, what must be fed with judgment, and what be nourished. This brings all down, and to be low, every one keeping to the power; for let a man get up ever so high, yet he must come down again to the power, where he left; what he went from, he must come down again to that. Before all these wicked spirits be got down, which are rambling abroad, Friends must have patience, must wait in patience, in the cool life; and he who is in this, doing the work of the Lord, hath the tasting and the feeling of the Lamb’s power and authority. Therefore all Friends, keep cool and quiet in the power of the Lord God; and all that is contrary will be subjected; the Lamb hath the victory, in the Seed, through the patience.

“If any have been moved to speak, and have quenched that which moved them, let none such go forth afterwards into words, until they feel the power arise and move them thereto again; for after the first motion is quenched, the other part will be apt to get up; and if any go forth in that, he goeth forth in his own, and the betrayer will come into that. And all Friends, be careful not to meddle with the powers of the earth; but keep out of all such things; and as ye keep in the Lamb’s authority, ye will answer that of God in them, and bring them to do justice, which is the end of the law. Keep out of all jangling; for all that are in the transgression, are out from the law of love, but all that are in the law of love, come to the Lamb’s power, in the Lamb’s authority, who is the end of the law outward. For the law being added because of transgression, Christ, who was glorified with the Father, before the world began, is the end of the law, bringing them that live in the law of life, to live over all transgression; which every one must feel in himself.”

More was then spoken to many of these particulars, which was not taken at large as delivered.

After this meeting was over, and most of the Friends were gone away, as I was walking in John Crook’s garden, there came a party of horse, with a constable to seize me. I heard them ask “who was in the house,” and somebody answered, “I was there.” They said, “I was the man they looked for;” and went forthwith into the house, where they had many words with John Crook, and some few Friends that were with him. But the Lord’s power so confounded them, that they never came into the garden to look for me, but went their way in a rage. When I came into the house, Friends were very glad to see them so confounded, and that I had escaped them. Next day I passed thence, and after I had visited Friends in several places as I went, came to London, the Lord’s power accompanying me, and bearing me up in his service.

I had not been long in London, before I heard that a Jesuit, who came over with an ambassador from Spain, had challenged all the Quakers to dispute with them at the Earl of Newport’s house:[58] whereupon Friends let him know that some would meet him. Then he sent us word “he would meet with twelve of the wisest and most learned men we had:” a while after he sent us word “he would meet with but six;” and after that, he sent us word again, “he would have but three to come.” We hastened what we could, lest, after all his great boast, he should put it quite off at last. When we were come to the house, I bid Nicholas Bond and Edward Burrough go up, and enter into discourse with him; and I would walk a while in the yard, and then come up after them. I advised them to state this question to him, Whether or not the church of Rome, as it now stood, was not degenerated from the true church, which was in the primitive times, from the life and doctrine, and from the power and Spirit that they were in? They stated the question accordingly; and the Jesuit affirmed, “that the church of Rome now was in the virginity and purity of the primitive church.” By this time I was come to them. Then we asked him, “whether they had the Holy Ghost poured out upon them, as the apostles had?” He said, “No.” “Then,” said I, “if ye have not the same Holy Ghost poured forth upon you, and the same power and Spirit that the apostles had, then ye are degenerated from the power and Spirit which the primitive church was in.” There needed little more to be said to that.

Then I asked him, “what Scripture they had for setting up cloisters for nuns, abbeys and monasteries for men, for all their several orders; and for their praying by beads, and to images; for making crosses, for forbidding meats and marriages, and for putting people to death for religion? If,” said I, “ye are in the practice of the primitive church, in its purity and virginity, then let us see by Scriptures, wherever they practised any such things.” (For it was agreed on both hands, that we should make good by Scriptures what we said.) Then he told us of a written word, and an unwritten word. I asked him “what he called his unwritten word:” he said, “The written word is the Scriptures, and the unwritten word is that which the apostles spoke by word of mouth; which,” said he, “are all those traditions that we practise.” I bid him prove that by Scripture. Then he brought the Scripture, where the apostle says (2 Thess. ii. 5), “When I was with you, I told you these things.” “That is,” said he, “I told you of nunneries, and monasteries, and of putting to death for religion, and of praying by beads, and to images, and all the rest of the practices of the church of Rome, which,” he said, “was the unwritten word of the apostles, which they told then, and have since been continued down by tradition unto these times.” Then “I desired him to read that Scripture again, that he might see how he had perverted the apostle’s words; for that which he there tells the Thessalonians ‘he had told them before,’ is not an unwritten word, but is there written down, namely, that the man of sin, the son of perdition, shall be revealed, before that great and terrible day of Christ, which he was writing of, should come: so this was not telling them any of those things that the church of Rome practises. In like manner the apostle, in the third chapter of that epistle, tells the church of some disorderly persons, he heard were amongst them, busy-bodies, who did not work at all; concerning whom he had commanded them by his unwritten word, when he was among them, that if any would not work, neither should he eat; which now he commands them again in his written word in this epistle, 2 Thess. iii. So this Scripture afforded no proof for their invented traditions; and he had no other Scripture-proof to offer.” Therefore I told him, “this was another degeneration of their church into such inventions and traditions as the apostles and primitive saints never practised.”