THe rule of equity planted by God in every mans Conscience is so strong and vigorous, that in spight of [...]he stoutest and strongest h [...]arted man, it continually and undauntedly accuses or excuses him, to his face, in publick, in private, in afflictions, in [...]a [...]i [...]g, in feasting, according as he [...]i [...]ket [...]; peaketh or practiseth, good or evil, in sincerity or in hypocri­sy; so as he continually heareth from within himself, and that so loudly too, as drowneth all the acclamation of flatterers; the noise of 10000 drums and trumpets, [...]o nor all the O [...]dinance upon a feasting day can out-roar this i [...] ­ward v [...]yce; [...] in the midst of all jollity, noyse, musick, dalliance, it will be heard: Proclamations of Kings, Declarations, V [...]tes of P [...]rliament, cryes of Cities, P [...]ple, Nations ar [...] bu [...] [...]ares o [...]t, if once offended.

A most blessed a [...]d up [...]i [...]ht Judge it is, judging impartially of the action and intention, accor [...]ing [...]o [...]he u [...]q [...]stionable rule of Gods justice: So that thou (who ever th [...]u art that hast thriven and prospered in thy wickedn [...]ss, and hast do [...]e it up [...]n such plausible pretences as might and doth often dec [...]ve [...]he very El [...]ct: pl [...]ad thy success unto thy conscience, and tell thy conscience (as thou [...] to do thy ignorant flattering and timerous hear­ers) that he that is the Lord [...]f Hoasts, the God of battels hath given test in o­ny on thy side by many conti [...]uall, ev [...]n miraculous victories; and it will immediatly tell thee; Cain after he had sl [...]in his innocent brother Abell, might as justly have u [...]ged the same argument in his justification.

No, if thou wilt live in peace with G [...]d, and hold friendship with thine own Conscience, th [...]u must neither regard success, nor the acclamations of fl [...]tt [...]rers, not the appro [...]ation of preachers nor the acceptation or rejoycings or feastings of p [...]ple; but b [...]fore thou act or do any thing, inquire the mind of God in his holy word, and take councel then of thine own conscience, and accordingly act or not [...]ct, and stand clear in thy judgment from all pas­sion and corrupt aff [...]ction in understanding what that voice within thee speak­eth, [Page 4]and swerve not for thy life or any worldly thing, from that easily known and ap [...]oved rule of equity, of doing as thou wouldest be done unto; if thou doe, assure thy self, thou wilt be condemned of thy self; and if thy conscience [...]ondemn thee, God is greater then thy conscience, and will not aquit thee ( [...]oast thou never so much of success) so everlastingly true will that saying of God to Cain prove in all times and cases; If thou dost evil, sin lyeth at the doore.

The serious consideration whereof as it is necessary for all times, so especi­ally in this time and age we live in, the voice of Gods word and the voice of conscience being never more neglected, men seeming not to regard any thing but the praise and approbation of another, and no argument so generally used for justifiing mens actions, yea of war, of killing and slaying of men of all sorts, yea of pious religious known friends, as success and prosperity in the un­dertaking.

And therefore it may prove good counsel to all sorts of men, yea the highest, strongest and most succesful, timely to hearken and give good heed to the voice of their own consciences, and to marke in all ages how conscience workes, and how surely the judgements and vengeance of God followes all such as make sleight of that rule of equity he hath therein planted.

God is the searcher and tryer of the Reines, a most exact observer of mens intentions, holding perpetuall intelligence with the conscience of every man, Conscience being Gods agent.

Observe how God and Conscience workes together with Cain and Abell, and so work they with all sorts of men, Gen. 4.5. the text saith, Abell was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground; and they were both so Reli­gious, as they did apply themselves unto God by way of sacrifice (a sacri­fice of thanksgiving) vers. 3. And it came to pass in process of time, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an Offering unto the Lord: vers. 4. And Abell he also brought of the firstlings of his flock, and of the fat thereof, and the Lord had respect unto Abell, and to his Offering; but unto Cain, and to his Offering he had no respect. See how God observes the reallity of the heart, as the words And of the fat thereof, import; Cain was meerly formall and in shew, Abell reall; see then how this works on Cain, he soon discerns Gods non-accep­tance, which should have wrought his repentance; now he swels against the light of his own Conscience, and was very wroth, and his countenance fell; Conscience disturbs him, vers. 6. And the Lord said unto Cain, why art thou wrath? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou dost well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou dost not well, sin lyeth at the door: (thy Conscience will be sure to tell thee of it) vers. 8. And Cain TALKED with Abell his bro­ther, and being in the fieild together slew him; it is probable under colour of [Page 5]Treaty and friendship; never was cause more unjust, yet strength and inju­stice prevailes, and might be justified, if success were a good argument with God or Conscience.

But see how God and conscience follow him, thy Brothers Bloud saith God cryeth unto me from the ground, thou art cursed from the earth, a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth: And Cains conscience echoes to the Lord, forcing him to cry out, My punishment is greater then I can bear: And from thy face shall I be hid, and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth: And it shall come to passe, that every one that findeth me shall slay me: Now conscience enforces him to acknowledge that never failing rule of equity, what mea­sure thou hast met unto others shall be met unto thee again; though when time was, he could not prevail with him to doe as he would be done unto.

And though this be the way of God in all ages, yet still vaine man renoun­ces the cleer judgment of God in his own conscience, goeth on in wayes of blood, cruelty and injustice, and if God immediately take not vengeance, he addes iniquity to iniquity, and boasts that God by successe haah given cleer testimony of the righteousnesse of his cause, of the equity of his proceedings, and in effect, that Cain is more righteous then Abel, because Cain was too strong and too politique and slew him.

But this is so deceitfull a way of judging, as it is wonderfull, a time admit­ting the least dram of Christian knowledg, should admit; The experience of all times, ages, places, persons, evidencing the weaknesse or wickednesse there­of: I saw (saith David) the wicked flourish, but I looked, and behold his place was no more to be seen; fatall are the rejoycings of the hypocrites, and of the man that pursueth the righteous unto blood.

What greater wickednesse can there be in the earth, then for a man to hate his Brother because God loves him? to hate him to the death, because he offers unto God a more acceptable sacrifice; because his heart is more cleer and more large in thankefulnesse unto God for his extraordinary fa­vours.

Yet this is the case betwixt men that have long time lived together as bre­thren in these times, men that have been bosome friends, children of one cause, made dear unto each other by mutuall obligations of love, of friendship, and of defence, carrying their lives and their strength in their hands more for others safeties then for themselves; yet now in processe of time that they have been at Peace, and have gotten sheep to keep, and land to till, shame in some, and conscience in others importunes for sacrifices of thanksgiving unto the Lord of Hosts that hath preserved them, and given them strength to goe through with so many victories.

The effects of shame produce leane sacrifices; those that when they were [Page 6]in the storme and doubtfull how to get forth, that promised mountains of free­dom and redresse of grievances to the people in thankfulnesse to God, are no sooner out of the Storme, but Mole-hils a [...] great m [...]tters with these our first-born Officers: And becau [...]e our well meaning Abels are mindfull what they promised, what the poor people that stuck to them deserve, and in conscience and thankfulness [...] to God off [...]r now the fi [...]stlings of their fl [...]cks (the best they can imagine) and of the fat, the pu [...]est of the [...]r love, and thinke the utmost of their freedome, and the rem [...]vall of all gri [...]vances, and that for ever by an A­greement of the People littl [...] [...]nough in lieu of so great merci [...]s, so large and fair opportuniti [...]e of doing good.

B [...]cause God manif [...]sts his accep [...]nce unto the sacrifice of those innocent Abels, [...]y th [...] T [...]stimony of all u [...]el [...]sh men, increasing their num [...]ers conti­nually, and manif [...]sts his di [...]resp [...]ct to those Cains and their Musty- [...]ffering, by the Generall complaints of all goo [...]-hearted people.

Our Cains grew v [...]ry wroth, and their countenance fell, and the Lord said un [...]o them by his faithfull Servant Master Sal [...]marsh; Why are yee wroth, and why are your coun [...]enanc [...]s fall [...]? if you doe well and performe your promises and e [...]g [...]gem [...]nts to the people, your conscien [...]es cannot witnesse agai [...]st you, shall you not be a [...]epta [...]l [...] both of God and man? but if you doe evil, if you break all promises and engagem [...]nts with all sorts of people as yee have done, and now thinke to fl [...]tter God and man with crying Corban, with s [...]tting dayes apart to fast in, and to hang down the head for a da [...] like a B [...]lrush; Nay, to give no more to the Na­tion [...]or all the bloud and misery it hath suff [...]red, but a Bulrush but the shad [...]w of Freedom and ease of Burthens; nor to render no more honour to God for all his mer­cies, but to set up your selves in t [...]e places [...] those you have removed with the price of oth [...]s bloud: If you doe this evill, know then (saith he) sinne lyeth at the door, and the Judg [...]ment of God shall pursue you as it did Cain; yee shall in time be cast out as un [...]vory salt that hath lost its saltn [...]sse, the love of God, and the aff [...]ction of the peopl [...] shall forsake you, and the feare of Cain shall be upon you, you shall be a­fraid of your selves, and thos [...] that a [...] neerest to you; and though ye may prevaile against some of the Abels and sl [...]y them, yet in time yee shall be as vagabonds and runagates upon the earth, and your consciences shall tell you continually, that it sha [...]l come to passe, that every one that is neer you, shall slay you, every one that findeth your delusion shall destroy you.

But though God by him in effect told them long since thus much; yea, and though already they have found much of it come to passe; yet all this and more hath but hardened the hearts of all our Cains; nor would they give eare to the voice either of God, his servants, or their own consciences, but with Ahab they have sold themselves to worke wickednesse.

They have TALKED with those Abels, they have flattered them, they have [Page 7] taken them out-into the field upon renewed promises, and renewed repentan­ces, they have made them a Game, a [...]d v [...]ntured their lives in their defence; but all this in treachery, and now at length in processe of time its come to passe that those Cains arose against those Ab [...]ls, in time of Treaty, and to [...]k them, and murthered them.

And having done, hand joynes in hand, and as before a Jesabels F [...]ast was proclaimed, and men of B [...]lial hired to sweare, those Abels, and Nabot [...]s sough [...] to destroy all R [...]ligion and to levell all mens estates: so having killed and taken possession, their conscienc [...]s are yet more dead then Cains; they ha­ving notice that those Abels and Naboths were sto [...]ed and dead, these Jesabels worse then Cains, said to Ahab their confederates, Come let us rise and take pos­s [...]ssion, let us eat, drinke, and be merry, let us Proclaime a day of Thanksgi­ving.

Almighty God who hath owned our cause, and given testimony against these Atheists, these Levellers, as he hath done against other enemies by giving us Successe, the undoubted testimony of his approbation; he hath blessed our perfidiousnesse, our cruelty and our murthering of our Brothers, as he blessed Cain against Abel his Brother, and Jesabel and Ahab against Naboth: Therefore let us eat our meat with gladnesse, and drinke our wine with merry hearts, for God now accepteth our facrifice.

But being at Grocers-hall in the midst of their Jollity, Pride, and Feasting, the spirit of Eliah comes into the Consciences of these Caines, with this dis­mall Message from the Lord.

Hast thou killed and taken possession? (are ye so proud and pompered with success?) in the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, of Locki­er and the rest; shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine O Faixfax, and thine O Crumwel; and thine, and thine O Parliament, O Councel of State, O Major, O Aldermen, that thus countenance those bloody inhumane and treacherous Monsters, and thine O Officer, and thine O Souldier that wil­lingly hadst an hand in slaying thy most innocent and righteous Brethren, Abells and Naboths, under the name of Levellers; and I will bring evill upon thee, and will take away thy prosperity, and will cut off from thee him that pisseth against the wall: and thy Feasts shall prove unto the chiefest guests, as the Earl of Sommersets Feast when he espoused a Strumpet (as ye have done corrupt interests) as Buckinghams Feast before his fall (against whom no complaint could be heard) as the Kings Feasts at Mayor Freemans, when he had corrupted him (as ye have done this covetous Mayor) to betray the Nations Liberties (calling it the triumph of Peace) he never prospered after it; The Mayors tongue was cankered and cut out, that had made a false report, for white sope: Essex was so Feasted, and Hollis and his Facton was so Feast­ed, [Page 8]rejoycing in iniquity, but they are all perished and become as the dung of the Earth.

Look! look! saith conscience and tremble! see you not Belshazzar like an hand writing upon the wall! R [...]ad, what wr [...]tes it? what sh [...]ke ye, ye stout­est men of war! fear ye, ye men of greatness! [...]tart ye ye covetous wretches! what writes it, that ye are so much amazed? the thing is truth; your own consciences will tell you so when you woul [...] sl [...]ep; your Kingdom is rent from you, your reign is at an end, your wine i [...] mingled with innocent blood, and your venison is the fl [...]sh of free-born English-men, and it shall breed a Pestilence among y [...], that shall d [...]vour you: God will awaken the Consci­ences of the upright in the Army and all places, and they shall abhor and detest you; yea a devouring seed shall be raised up that shall tear you in peeces, and there shall be none to deliver you; for the very hope of such Hypocrites shall rott; after this so Impudent, Abominable, Atheisticall, or blasphemous Defi­ance of God: never, never look to prosper; your strength is departed from you, the people hate you, God and your own consciences must be your Ene­mies; and ye may truly say with Cain, my punishment is greater then I can bear. I, and I, and I shall be a Fugitive and vagabond upon the Earth, and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me, shall slay me. So may all thine Enemies perish O Lord God.