A Cry, A Cry: A sensible Cry for many Months together hath been in my Heart for the QUAKERS Return out of that Egyptian Darkness they have long lain in, to the grief of the Souls of the Righteous, and those that truly loved them.
O Ye that were my Friends, I am constrained in bowels of Love, and much tenderness, to beseech you (who are not stupified) that you will with all speed consider seriously what is become of the Talent, I say, that Talent which was given in to prove you; for the Most High this day calls for an Account of You unjust Stewards. Oh how excessively do you run headlong, wasting that which was committed to your charge! Oh be ashamed and blush! But indeed the unjust Steward will know no shame. Verily the Lord▪s Hand is against you, and even a great Mist, and thick Darkness is fallen upon You, so that you grope at Noon-day: Therefore in the simplicity of my heart I desire you to arise from your self-conceitedness; for in the Power of Him that is the searcher of all hearts, I tell You that this is not your Rest, it is polluted, and the Famine is grievous to behold, for the Corn is wasted, and the Fig-tree doth not bear; yea, the Plague is begun in some of your Houses, and yet You search not diligently to heal the Wound; it is deep, it is deep. O return, return unto the LORD, ye fallen Men; how have you betray'd your trust? Have you not put the Lord of Life to open shame? have you not cryed, Crucifie him, Crucifie him? have you [Page 2] not spoken loftily against the Lord's Anointed? are you not found in the Ballance of scant measure, yea, scant measure indeed? Therefore I must tell you, (O that you could feel me in the just ballance of Love) for your Backsliding and Rebellion, to Judgment you must come. A true saying indeed, They which led thee, caused thee to err.
Wo unto you that are revolted from the Lord; Oppression, Oppression is in the midst of you, for you are found to deal very treacherously with your Brethren: Therefore He that searcheth the Heart and trieth the Reins, He it is that hath made you a Contemptible People. Oh consider when you were Children, and little in your own Eyes, how were you beloved? O seek now the Peace of the City, and let the Captives return, for it is high time. In the Humility Peace is found. If a search be made with all your Hearts▪ then will the Faithful say, Come, and let us return unto the Lord, for we have polluted his holy Name.
Oh what will become of you that have turned Judgment backward, and have hated him that reproveth in the Gate! and him that speaketh uprightly unto you, you have daily in derision. Doth not Cruelty lodge amongst you, O ye backsliding false-hearted Men? Why do you call your selves the People of the Lord? surely you must first arise from the dead, before you can assume that weighty and honourable title; for it belongs not unto you, but to the Children, the Lord's Heritage.
O you that are fat and full, and very rich too. I must tell you, that it is the Meek and the Lowly that shall inherit the Kingdom, and not You, because you are so seated upon the throne of Iniquity, that the Throne of Righteousness can have no fellowship with you. O when will you cry out unto the Lord and say, My leanness, my leanness! I pray you now consider (in the cool of the day) how often the Lord's Love hath been handed forth unto you for your everlasting Redemption; surely He will not always strive with you, ye vain Men; you have highly provoked Him; yea, your provocations have been very grievous against the Lord and His little Ones: verily the time is fulfilled which a Servant of the Lord Prophesied concerning you, That the Sword of the Lord, which is now drawn, is not to be put up, until you humble your selves and be brought low. O consider how your Elders and Teachers are found Revolters this day, the beloved Fruit of whose Womb is as Dung before the Lord. Wherefore be awakened and look about you, and behold and see how the Cities are shut up, and few amongst you that mind it; but the Upright-hearted that are separated from you, they lay it to heart. O when will you speak [Page 3] very Man Truth to his Neighbour, and execute the Judgment of Truth and Peace in your Gates? If you do this in Truth and Sincerity as to the Lord, then surely He will not loath your Offerings, for verily as yet they are Abomination unto His Righteous Soul. O why are you slidden back, by a perpetual backsliding? And do you not hold fast the deceit of your corrupt Hearts, and refuse to return to the living God? Nay, have you not set your Abominations before the eyes of the Just One? Verily you have forgotten the Lord, and that to the hurt of your own Souls; Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of Him that cries for Purity. It is high time to call for cleansing, a clensing is required this day, yea verily the Camp of the most High must be clean, there is no room for the running Issue, nor the Leper.
O that my Counsel might find acceptance with you, then would you break off your Sins by Righteousness, and turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in his hands, that there may be a ceasing from innocent blood, and from all manner of iniquity! Which day hath long been lookt for by the Upright-hearted. O have you not been an Assembly of treacherous Men? O return again and be valiant for the Truth, and proceed no longer from evil to evil: for why do you refuse to know the Lord? and why are you gone from the Antient Paths, and walk in paths not cast up, where the rubbish choaks up the Good old Way?
Now consider, the Lord knows your manifold Transgressions, and your mighty Sins, how they afflict the Just, and oppress the poor. Alas! alas! He regardeth nor the offering of your fat Beasts; surely if you were the Ministers of the Lord, there would be found amongst you [in this dismal day] great searching of Hearts, and a sinking down, saying, What is the matter that we are under so many Calamities? O why transgress you thus against the Lord? Verily you can never prosper; Why? because you have forsaken the Lord, and He hath forsaken you.
O bear with me a little, seeing that many amongst you glory and boast exceedingly after the flesh. I must tell you, Not You that commend your selves, are approved; but whom the Lord commendeth, indeed, that is he. But no marvel that this is come upon you: for Satan himself is crept in amongst you that love the chiefest Seats in your new Synagogues, and the uppermost places at your Feasts; who devour Widows houses, and for a shew make long Prayers, for which your Condemnation will be the greater. O what iniquity have you found in the Just Holy One of Israel, that you are gone so far from [Page 4] Him, and walk after your own Inventions! O consider, did not the Lord plant Thee a noble Vine, an holy right Seed? how then art Thou turned into the degenerate Plant of a strange Vine? Surely Your own Wickedness shall correct You, and Your Backslidings shall reprove You.
O search your Hearts with a single Eye, and ponder well what Your Meetings are for: Are they not to exalt your Selves, and to make You seem more holy than You are? Can You think they are for the better? nay, You have lost the better part, which once you had, and instead of that, you have got a custom to utter your own Imaginations, which indeed are but the words of an imperious whorish Woman, who sits in the midst of You, decked with filthy polluted Rags, like a Monstrous Woman with her strange Apparel. O it is time for You to throw out this Abominable Harlot, if ever You will be Honourable, and without reproof before the Lord and his faithful Servants.
I must also mind You of your unworthy dealings with a Servant of the Lord, J. P. how You have rendred him to the Nation, as one of the worst of Men, to be distracted, instigated by the Devil, and in that spirit that crucified Christ, &c. intending thereby his utter Ruine and Disgrace. Was not this a Blood-thirsty spirit? was not this the spirit that murdered the Just in all Ages? O how can You have the Confidence to look him in the face without remorse! Who amongst You hath he wronged? and yet how have you revil'd, and endeavoured (as much as in you lay) to incense the Magistrates and People against him! witness your Paper, dated the 10th day of the Month called August, 1670, &c. And had not the Magistrates been more merciful than You, he might have perished through Your Instigation.
Many a time I have wondred in my heart why You should so much despise, revile and reject J. P. and yet own many amongst You who have been guilty of such notorious Crimes, that many of those You call [of the World] would detest and abhor: but it seems Your delight hath been to defame a clean and an Upright Man without cause. Surely the day will come that there will be a searching of hearts for these things; then every one of You will be sensible of his own Sore, and feel his own Grief. And the desire of my Soul is that it may be so: for. I take no delight to mention these things, but that you may see the evil of your doings, and repent.
Ah! how long shall vain thoughts, and wicked imaginations lodg [Page 5] within You? O when will Ye cleanse your Hearts from secret Sins? O when shall it once be, saith my Soul? Surely Ye cannot but confess that your Defence is departed from You: for You have provoked the Lord to cry out, How long will this People provoke me? how long shall I bear with this evil Generation? O how good was God unto You while ye were of clean hearts! but now You are so corrupt, that the Almighty can take no pleasure where you stand. O consider how wickedly you have acted your parts in the Sanctuary, that was once the Lord's dwelling-place, but now a den of Thieves and Robbers; but you cannot rob God of his Honour in his Chosen Ones; surely the Lord will not pass by your offences, until you acknowledg and return from them. O how long will it be ere you attain to Innocency! How is my heart enlarged this day to praise the Lord God of my Life! for his Loving-kindness hath been wondrous great towards my Soul, in saving me, that I did not partake with Your Idolatry: And indeed, it was high time for me to depart; for I saw You sought after New Gods, whom my Soul abhorred, blessed be GOD for ever! so that you forsaking the Prince of Peace, War entred into your Gates, and now Ye sit as Men of War, lording it over the Consciences of your Brethren. But the Lord will not leave them in your hands: for a Scattering is begun, and in the Day of his Power there will be a Glorious Manifestation of the Lord's own begetting; so that there will be no need of running from Sea to Sea, to hear a Divination of Dead Men among the Tombs: For the Prince of Peace is come, and coming, gently to lead those that are with young. And though You have rejected Him, yet the Lord waits to be gracious, if You will accept of his Appearance in You, and resolve to follow Him fully: if not, he will utterly reject You, so that you shall have no portion in the Land of the Living: for you know you have been warned time after time by the Lord's faithful Servants who came amongst you, because their defence was with them. Oh Praises, Praises be unto our Father, who hath made us to stand fast in that Liberty wherewith He hath made us free, so that we are not now any longer to be ensnared again with the yoak of Bondage amongst false Brethren.
The time of Joseph's love to his Brethren could no longer be hid, because of their great distress, but he must make himself known to them, to hasten them to the Land of Goshan; for the Famine which had been for some years was very sore, insomuch that there was no Bread left. Oh come, come away and feel me in the Land of the living. I beseech you, regard now no longer your old rotten stuff, but come and dwell [Page 6] for evermore in the Lord's Land, where you will want for nothing that is good. If you will but obey Him, and stand in awe of Him, then who can withstand the Lord's Mercy towards you?
Oh you that have been faithful unto the Lord, he hath chosen you to stand before Him this day; therefore be faithful in your several places. The day and hour is come, that we are now no longer to bow to Man, but to every Manifestation of the Lord God of Life and Power.
Thus in the Sincerity and Simplicity of my Heart I have served you, and in so doing I have my reward.
A Postscript.
VVO, Wo to you that oppress your Brethren! using all Craft and Policy to stifle their tender Consciences who cannot own you to be their Head; therefore a Day of Distress, Confusion and Perplexity is come, and coming upon you: and those evil Reports you have falsly cast upon them, will manifestly appear to be true of your selves. False Coin shall not always pass for current Money; and let George Fox, and those that uphold him, remember 'twas Jeroboam the Son of Nebat that caus'd Israel to sin, and who did evil above all that were before him: and as his Name was branded to posterity, even so shall Yours be.
This following was formerly writ by another.
MY Soul saith in the bitterness thereof, O what wilt thou do for thy great Name? shall it be dishonored, and shall none lay it to heart? shall the leadings of his Spirit be departed from, and shall none take it to be their Guide? where are they that are valiant for the Truth, and are steadfastly set to follow the Lord fully?
[Page 7]Where's the mind that's so humbled, as to follow Him through all Reproaches? and where are they who live by Faith, and not at all by sight? where's the hungerers after the true Bread? and where is the slain mind to all visible things? where are the often visiters of the Seed? and where are its true and faithful companions? who suffers with It in its forsaken state, and who joyns to It in all exercises? who are now so upright in heart to Him, as to break off from all outward fellowships, both in Transgressions and seeming Righteousness, that the pure Marriage-State they may come to know, even to be of his Flesh, and of his Bone? This is the Virgin unto whom He is joyn'd, that hath put away all other Lovers, and whose full satisfaction is in the enjoyment of Him alone. This, this is He who hath been sought after in all Forms; and this is He, whose pure Appearance makes them all vanish before Him. He is come, He is come; but who can receive Him? The Eye that's abroad cannot see Him; the Mind that's at ease cannot behold Him: they that are full, see no want of Him; they that slumber, hear Him not: but the Silent Waiter hath joy in his Presence. Even so, O Lord, let thy Childrens whole delight be in Thee.
I have often heard the voice of one crying in the Wilderness, Prepare ye the Way of the Lord: and in sadness I have said, Who are preparing for Him? I know assuredly He will appear, and then will all be ashamed that were at Rest without Him.
THe Bows of the Mighty Men are broken, and the LORD is the Refuge of his People.
The Poor hath cry'd, and hath been heard; the Humble shall be exalted, and the Proud brought low.
Trouble, faint-heartedness and weakness is seizing upon the Hypocrite: But Peace, Courage and Strength is encreasing upon the Upright and Simple-hearted.
Deceit is brought to light, the deeds of Darkness discover'd, and the Glory of Righteousness shall shine.
The Boaster is brought to Shame, the strength of the Lofty is become weakness: shall not the hearts of the Upright rejoice in fear and trembling?
The Warf [...]re indeed is great, and Temptations many to draw back▪ but blessed are they who look not out at hardships, so Peace may be obtained in the End.
LONDON, Printed in the Year, 1678.