ways, by whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of, and through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandize of you, whose judgment lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not,' he compareth them to the 'fallen angels, whom God spared not, that had sinned, but cast them into hell, and under the chains of darkness to be kept unto damnation;' and compares them to Sodom, and the old world that was destroyed, who walk after the flesh, and the lusts of uncleanness, and as natural brute beasts, &c. having eyes full of adultery, that cannot cease from sin, beguiling unstable souls; they have hearts exercised with covetousness, &c. which forsaking the right way, have gone astray, following the way of Balaam, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;' mark, and try yourselves by this scripture. They are wells without water, and clouds that are carried away with the tempest up and down, to whom is reserved the blackness and darkness forever; for in speaking the high swelling words of vanity, they beguile with wantonness through the lusts of the flesh, them that were clean escaped from them, who are wrapped in error,' mark, in error, a sad wrapping, promising themselves liberty, and are the servants of corruptions; for of whomsoever man is overcome, even to the same is he in bondage, but it had been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness;' but the proverb is come upon such, the dog is turned to his vomit, and the sow that was washed, to the wallowing in the mire again.'

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So come, try yourselves, ye teachers, by this chapter, who say ye have not the same power and spirit the apostles had, see if ye be not found in these practises, who shall receive the wages of unrighteousness, as they who count it pleasure to live deliciously for a season: spots they are, and blots, delighting themselves in their deceivings, in feasting with you: so ye may see these could creep amongst the church, and such in their very works deny the Lord that bought them; as now many will say, that Christ did not die for all men, and what is this but to deny the Lord that hath bought all men? though all men do not live to him that believe it, yet he tasted death for every man;' and ye may sce those false teachers and prophets, they had high swelling words, and a profession, but their life was quite contrary to Christ and the apostles: so all you that profess the scripture to be your rule, come try yourselves by it, and see whether you be found in the life and practice of the apostles, or these false prophets, which they declared against; for the good words ye may get, and the sheep's clothing, but out of the sheep's nature and life, but try yourselves by 2 Pet. ii. throughout, whether you walk in the apostles' steps and doctrine, or in the ways of such as they testified against. And in 1 John ii. there you may see how he describes the false prophets and antichrists, who said then, they were come already,' and therefore exhorted the saints to keep to the anointing within them, which they had

received from God, and they needed not that any man should teach them, but as the same anointing doth teach them, and as it did teach them, they should continue in the Father and the Son, and these things have I written, concerning them that seduce you: so seducers, deceivers, false prophets, and antichrists, drew people from this anointing within, being gone out from it themselves, though they might keep the sheep's clothing, and outside profession, and the prophets' Christ's and the apostles' words, but resisted the Holy Ghost, like the pharisees and chief priests; and then they might say, as you do now, that they had not the same Holy Ghost as the prophets and apostles had. And John saith, whosoever abideth in Christ sinneth not, neither can he, because the seed of God remains in him;' but do not you say, they must sin while they live upon the earth, and carry the body of sin and death to the grave; and is not this contrary to John's doctrine; but John saith, he that hath this hope, purifies himself as he is pure,' but do not you say, you cannot be pure on this side the grave, and there is no overcoming of sin on this side the grave; and is not this opposite to John's doctrine again; so what is your profession of the scripture worth in that hope which doth not purify, which is the hope that will perish? and John saith, little children, let no man deceive you, he that doth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous,' mark, is righteous; this was the present time, before they go to the grave: and do not you deceive people, that say, they cannot be righteous, but must have and carry that unrighteous body of death and sin to the grave.

And John saith, 'whosoever hates his brother is a man-slayer, and no man-slayer hath eternal life abiding in him, and he that hates his brother is in darkness, and walks in darkness, and knows not whither he goes, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.' And do not you hate your brethren for whom Christ died, when you persecute and cast them in prison to death, and spoil their goods; come, try yourselves by the scriptures, and by 2 John iii. for Christ that tasted death for all men, he gives a command to love one another, and to love enemies; to love them which love one again, this was the pharisees' love, which they had in their outward profession without life; but come and try yourselves, ye teachers and professors in Christendom, by that which you say is the rule, and see if the scriptures will not find you to be men-slayers, and that you have not eternal life abiding in you, as the saints had, that loved God, Christ, and one another, and enemies. And in the third epistle of John, he saith, because that for his name's sake,' to wit, Christ's, 'they went forth and took nothing of the Gentiles;' and now mark, do not you take of others who are not of your church; and the apostles that went forth for Christ's name's sake, took nothing when they went forth among the Gentiles, but do not you take of them, whom you call heretics, and

deceivers, and deluded ones, which may be walk more in the life of Christ than yourselves? do you not force them, or sue them that do not give you a maintenance? The apostle saith, they were 'not to eat with such as walk disorderly;' where did ever the prophets or apostles take maintenance, or force them to give them a maintenance, as they called antichrists and deceivers, and heretics, or deluded ones? Let us see where the scripture gives you a rule for this: and where did ever the Jews take tythe-pigs? were not swine unclean by the law? or tythegeese, or tythe-foals? and though the law gave tythes to the priests, yet the gospel saith, freely you have received, freely give:' And if you priests do say, you are of the tribe of Levi, and if you are of the tribe of Levi, how is it that you take of so many sorts of people to make priests of; for the Levitical priests were all of one tribe, but yours of many; but Christ who came of the tribe of Judah hath ended that priesthood that came of Levi's tribe, and the law by which they were made, and the commandment that first gave them tythes.

And the apostle saith, 'look to yourselves that ye lose not the things which we have done, but that we may receive a full reward; whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God; he that continueth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son,' mark, hath them; if there come any among you, and bringeth not this doctrine, receive him not into your houses, neither bid him God speed; for he that biddeth him God speed, is a partaker of his evil deeds;' for how can he bid him God speed, that is without the Father and the Son, and transgresseth, and doth not abide in his doctrine, though he may have a great profession of Christ and the apostle's words, and yet hath not seen Son nor Father, which is the substance of all.

Therefore come ye priests and professors, try yourselves; have ye the Father and Son? do you abide in the doctrine of Christ, 'freely ye have received, freely give?' try yourselves by the scriptures, and the 2d epistle of John, and let God, and Christ, and the scriptures judge.

And the apostle Peter saith, through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandize of you,' to wit, the people. Now consider how many sorts of religions there are, and the priests and the teachers thereof, that have made merchandize of the people, hath there been in Christendom since the apostles' days, 2 Pet. ii. 3.

'But the merchants of the earth shall weep and wail over her, (to wit, Babylon) for no man shall buy her ware any more.' Rev. xviii. 11. And Peter saith in 2 Pet. iii. 3. first understanding that there shall come in the last days mockers, which shall walk after their ungodly lusts;' and have we not sufficiently experienced this, both from the leaders and hearers, who have mocked at the spirit of God, which should mortify their lusts, and at the movings of the spirit of God, and yet make VOL. V.-7

a profession of the scriptures, which no prophecy of it came in the old time by the will of man; but holy men of God spake as they were mo 'ed by the Holy Ghost; and you not being in the same moving of the same Holy Ghost, professing the words that were given forth by it, and mock at it, where it is manifested in life and power, and say there is no having the same Holy Ghost now a-days, as they had, which Holy Ghost leads into all truth now, as it did in the apostle's days, where it is received and not resisted, like your forefathers, and none come into all truth but by it, though they may have all the scriptures given forth from it, from Genesis to Revelations.

And Jude in his general epistle warns the church of deceivers, and bids the saints earnestly to contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints; for there were certain men crept in, which were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men they are, which turn the grace of our God into wantonness, denying God the only Lord, and our Lord Jesus Christ,' which are compared to the angels that kept not their first state, but left their own habitation, whom he hath reserved in everlasting darkness, under chains, unto the great day;' and they are compared unto Sodom and Gomorrah, 'that followed strange flesh, that were set forth for an example, and to suffer the vengeance of eternal fire;' and are compared to such as God had delivered out of Egypt, 'whom God destroyed, that believed not;' which are called 'filthy dreamers, that defile the flesh, and despise government, and speak evil of dignities, and speak evil of those things which they know not; whatsoever things they know, they know naturally as brute beasts, without reason, in those things they corrupt themselves.'

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Now consider ye elders, and teachers, and professors, you that say, that neither yourselves nor others have the same spirit, and Holy Ghost, and power that the apostles had now in your days; then is not what ye know, ye know naturally? and do not you in those things corrupt yourselves, who plead for the body of sin and death to the grave? do not you plead in this for that which defiles your flesh, and speak evil of that dignity which should work it down? and have you not made a mock of the grace of God, which brings salvation, which teacheth the saints, and hath peared unto all men? for faith and grace is not natural (which Christ is the author of,) but is the gift of God; and was it not, and is it not well for the saints to contend for the faith which Christ is the author and finisher of in them, which is God's gift, and purifies their hearts, which brings them to have access to God? is it not good to contend for this faith, the work of Christ in their hearts, seeing such that turn the grace of God into wantonness, and in their works deny the only Lord and our Lord Jesus Christ, though in words they may profess him, whose ways are like Sodom, and the angels that left their first habitation, and to the

children of Israel, that after God had delivered them out of Egypt, believed not, whom God destroyed; therefore it is good for the saints to contend for the faith and grace of God, that comes by Jesus, which saves them, and brings their salvation, seeing there is so many that turn the grace of God into wantonness, and contend for their body of sin, and death, and imperfection to the grave, and walk despitefully against the spirit of grace, and seeing so many speak evil of those things they do not know, and deny the power and spirit the apostles had, which would give them knowledge, for what they know they know naturally as brute beasts, the worst sort of creatures; now are not all your tongues natural, and learning natural? did they not begin at Babel? and did not Pilate and the Jews set them a-top of Christ when they crucified him? and hath not the beast and the whore (mentioned in the Revelations) power over the tongues, that sits upon the waters? and are not the tongues called waters? but Christ is risen above them, and all natural things; and may not a parrot be taught to speak any language? and is not all what know, ye know naturally, that say, you have not the same power and spirit of God, and Holy Ghost as the apostles had? pray you come, try yourselves, and measure yourselves by this scripture, and see if you be not found in these practises, that Jude warns the church of; for how can ye know spiritually, that deny the light that shines in the heart, to give the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ Jesus, who mock at this light, and call it natural, and the Quakers' idol.

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And further the apostle saith,' Woe be unto them, for they have followed the way of Cain, and are cast away by the deceit and error of Balaam's wages of unrighteousness; these are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, without all fear feeding themselves, clouds without water, carried about with winds, corrupt trees without fruit, twice dead, and plucked up by the roots, they are the raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame (and have we not seen you rage sufficiently?) they are wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever; these are murmurers, complainers, walkers after their own lusts, whose mouths speak high swelling words of vanity, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage, (mark, there is the ground of their preaching,) but beloved, remember the words which were spoken before of the apostles, and of our Lord Jesus Christ, how that they told you, that there should be mockers in the last times, which should walk after their ungodly lusts (these are makers of sects, fleshly, having not the spirit) of some have a compassion, in putting a difference, and others save with fear plucking them out of the fire, and hating even the garments spotted by the flesh.'

And now come ye professors and teachers, and try yourselves by these scriptures; do not you plead for the body of death and sin to the grave?