OVer you O ye scattered people in Barbadoes do I lament; O how have ye refused to be healed! O how have ye despised healing. O how have ye despised the Love of God, which hath long and often been proffered unto you! O how have ye turned the grace of God into lafciviousness! and like Swine have delighted in wal­lowing in filthiness, your abommable practises have ye gloried in, and have made a sport of wickedness, sporting in your dallying and wantonness, out of the fear of the Lord, spending your time in pleasures, and in vain delights, living as the beasts of the field without the knowledge of God, committing idolatry, eating and drinking, and rising up to play, which thing is abominable in the sight of God; O how is the image of the Devil exalted among you! and the image of God defaced and utterly lost, so that there is no mark of it to be seen a­mong you, but the image of the Divel how plainly is it discovered among you, even in all places where you are, the swearer by his swearing shews whose image he bears, the lyar by his lying, shews who is his father, the drunkard by his drun­kenness shews what he delights in, and what God he serveth, the deceitful man by his deceit shews he knows not the image of God, the oppressour whose life is wicked, and whose end is accursed shews what a diveli [...]h wicked spirit he is gui­ded by, who to get to himself cares not what those that are under him suffers, who to get of the earth into his possession, and increase his unrighteous Mammon, (which is his God whom he serves) cares not what murder is committed by him to fulfil his unrighteous and covetous ends, (I speak concerning you, who like unnatural beasts have been the death of many of your servants, by withholding from them convenient food, for want of which many have perished under you, but his Mammon will not save him in the day of the Lord, for that, for which (like a fool) he hath ventured his soul and lost it to get, will not purchase him one drop of cold water in hell to cool his tongue with: and truely ye swearers, covetous lyars, cozners, deceitful ones, and oppressors, thither must ye go, ex­cept ye repent, the Divel whom ye now serve cannot deliver you, ye he will re­joyce over you when you come thither, as he doth now at your present folly, who follow him in the broad way which leads to destruction, which ye earnes [...]y follow, but ye conside not that the end of it is torment, out of which there shall be no redemption; how have ye despised the voice of God? how have ye despi­sed the call of the Lord to repentance, and have hardned your hearts against the loving kindness of God, which hath been profered to you day after day, and time after time, ye have despitefully used those who have been sent unto you, and accounted them your friends who have daubed you up with deceit; you have been bold for your idol-dumb shepherds, who have been cur, sed examples to you of wickedness and prophaneness, in swearing in drunkenness, in rioting in quar, relling, in lyings in dissembling, these men who have lived in these wicked pra­ctises [Page 2]are those whom ye have accounted your friends, and for your love to these, the servants of the Lord, who have been sent to warn you, have ye despitefully used, some with scoffs and reproaches, some with blowes and punches, and some with shedding their blood, as I am a witness against you, and being wilfully mad, many of you have said (when ye have taken those who have been sent unto you, and used them according to your unreasonable wills) hang them, others have said hanging is too good for them, and this is because they lay before you your wickedness, and declare against your service, wherewith you mock God and dis­honour his name, for if Turks and Indians should see your violence and madness (as hath been declared to you) into which you fly forth (either before, in or af­ter your service, if any of the servants of the Lord come among you, would they not cry shame on you? and think it strange that such should talke of a pure and holy God, who act so filthily; be ashamed ye wicked ones to take the name of God into your mouthes, who hate to be reformed, who hate to be reproved, who hate to return from your filthiness, sit down and lament ye careless ones, cast off your garments of mirth and joy, and take unto you sackloath, humble your selves lest ye be destroyed; for behold the day is coming and neer at hand, that your joy and rejoycing shall fly far from you, and hovvling and lamenting shall overtake you, vvhich ye shall not be able to fly from, for behold a storm of thunder and great hail, and a day of terrour and thick darkness shall come upon the vvicked, vvhich none shall be able to deliver them from, neither from it shall they be able to deliver themselves, but in it shall be overwhelmed, if ye still con­tinue to go on in vvickedness, ye shall perish, none shall be saved but those vvho repent, none shall be delivered but those vvho return to the Lord, therefore re­turn vvhile you have time, returne before the overflovving scourge doth over­take you, vvhich shall svveep avvay the refuge of lies, vvith all vvho put their trust in it, no such refuge vvill stand before the Lord, and vvoe unto you that fly not to him for refuge, no place vvill be found to hide the great ones of the earth from the presence of the Lambe though they cry to the Mountains and hills to fall upon them, yet shall they not be hid, for their refuge shall be svvept avvay, though ye fly to your teachers for refuge, yet shall they not deliver you, for then vvill their filthiness appear, and they vvill have so much need of a hiding place as you, though novv they flatter you and call you Christians, vvhile ye are ene­mies to God and his vvaies, and ye call them Ministers of Christ, and fight for them, yet the deceiver and the deceived shall perish together, vvithout speedy repentance, the blind leaders, and the blind that follow them, shall both fall into the ditch together, who return not, lift up your eyes on high, and behold how your iniquities hang over your heads, as a black cloud, behold how the ven­geance of God is ready to fall upon you, vengeance in flames of fire you must expect who are wicked, the cup of the Lords fury is filled for you, who have made your faces as brass, and hearts as stone against the Lord; ye shew by your perversness what generation you are of, ye are of that generation which alwaies resisted the holy Ghost, who alwaies fought against God, who alwaies reproched the truth, who alwaies were enemies to God, and children of the Divel, ye bear the image of him who hath begotten you, and ye cannot abide to hear his king­dome declared against, and therefore do ye imagine a vain thing, and are ga­therd together against God and his Christ, but kiss the son lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, for if his anger be but a little kindled, blessed are those that put their trust in him, but woe unto them that trust not in him, save your [Page 3]selves by speedy repentance, and think not because repentance is profered unto you, therefore it may be time enough to repent when ye have served the Divel so long as ye can, for verily none of you know how soon ye may be cut off, none of you can say ye shall live a month longer, and how can ye then say ye will re­pent half a year or a year hence, or more, this is the way where in the divel leads you, ye put off repentance till such a time, and think ye will repent then, but when the time is come, the abominable practises are beloved as much, yea it may be more then they were before; and none of you are so ignorant but ye know that except ye repent ye shall all perish, and consider what a sad condition that will be, would it not make you tremble and quake if you did truely consider of it though none now are more the objects of your re­proch, and scorn, and malice, then those that tremble at the presence of the Lord, take heed to your selves, it is better to lose the joye of the world for a time then lose your own souls for ever: will flattering of your selves save you? will saying that the Lord is with you and no evil shall befall you (while you live in filthiness and uncleanness) deliver you? will not the Lord punish you and your shepheards, together for the abominations of your holy things? will crying Lord Lord, we have professed thy name, and talked much of the Scriptures, and have spoken much of thy truth, save you in the day of the righteous judgement of God, from going into hell with the Divel and his Angels? which is a just re­ward for all the wicked, nay be not deceived, ye must be regenerate and born a­gain, or, cannot inherit the kingdome of God; your proud hearts ye proud ones must come down, before ye receive Christ who is humble, without whom no salvation ye can witness, ye envious ones, your envious natures must be ab­horred and forsaken, before he who is the Covenant of God, who is love, is recei­ved in you; drunkards, you must forsake your drunkenness and learn moderation, before Jesus Christ ye do witness, who teaches moderation in all things, without vvhom ye cannot please God; and ye who are covetous, who are griping for the earth, your idolatry you must come to forsake before ye knovv Jesus Christ, who is the Common-wealth of Israel, vvithout vvhom all is accursed and ye will be left poor, and naked, and miserable, though by violence you have inlarged your possessions, and made your selves great in the earth.

O consider ye Merchants, who are selling that which is spiritual for that which is carnal, who are selling the health of your souls, to satisfie your covetous minds and are selling the everlasting inheritance to get wealth in the earth, ye are foolish and not wise; ye have not yet learned the true wisdome, ye have spent your time in vain, if ye come to cast up your accounts ye will find it so, ye have lost by your trading and not gained, there is a pearle whose price ye know not, seek after it for it is pretious, and when ye have found it, sell all ye have as yet got to purchase it, so shall ye have gain enough, and abundance of riches, yea, the price of that pearl cannot be cast up, therefore no longer spend your time for that which is not bread, and your labour for that which satisfies not, but come unto him where ye may have enough of all things and aboundance of riches; for while ye come not to witness the godly pearl, ye never have enough, though you could purchase the whole vvorld; but being possessed of this pearl, you will have enough of all things; truely I cannot but sorrow for you who despise it, and think that a little of the earth is better then this pearl, it is because you are ig­norant and sottish and have not accounted right, you have overprised that which is not worthy to be esteemed, and have undervalued that which is alone to [Page 1]be prised, like Esau sell your birthright for a mess of Pottage, cast up your ac­counts again, and reckon rightly, for the Lord is coming to call you to an ac­count then will it be known whether ye have been faithful servants, who have gained with your Lords money by trading: consider betimes, for he is near at hand who will call you to an account, it will not be enough for you to say that the Lord is a hard master, that will not save you from being cast into utter dark­ness, who are wicked and sloathful servants; if there be any among you who is wise, let his wisdome appear in preparing to meet the Lord by speedy repentance by putting away drowsiness, and doing that which is just.

And now ye drowsy professours, who are found in the abominable practises be­fore mentioned, who have tasted of the goodness of God, and have made much mention of his Name, ye are to be sharply reproved above others, for ye have known that which others for want of the knowledge of have perished; your sin is greater then others, your abomination is aggravated in a far higher measure then others, for others have beenbold to do wickedly, having you for an exam­ple to them, others have said within themselves, may not I be covetous, proud, wanton, and scornful, for such a one is so, who hath more knowledge then I have, and thus through your looseness have ye caused the name of the Lord to be blasphemed, yea are to be beaten with many stripes, because ye knew the ma­sters will out did it not; ye knew that ptide the Lord did abhorr, ye knew you should not be wanton, ye knew that covetousness is idolatry, these things ye knew but practised not, therefore your condemnation will be greater; cease from your dead images which you are seeking to put life into by your subtile in­ventions, your images are to be broken and ye are to be scattered, if there be any of your former honesty, and zeale towards God remaining in you, return be­fore the fury of the Lord break forth to consume his enemies vvho trust not in him, be ash [...]med of your levvdness and impudence, and take unto you modesty, and talk not of the condition of the saints no further then you can vvitness them fulfilled in you; call not God Father, till you can vvitness that vvhich is begot­ten of God doth rule you, consider hovv ye have blasphemed the name of God, vvhile you have called him Father and Lord, but have done the vvorks of the Divel, consider hovv the vvay of truth hath been evill spoken of through your loosness, vvho have called your selves by the name of God and Christ, yet novv are found talking of and pleading for the liberty of the flesh; O be ashamed and confounded, is this the end of your profession? is this the end of your talk? is the liberty of the flesh that wch. ye have been contending for all this while? will God be thus served? will not he be avenged on such a generation as this? who hath thus deceitfully dealt with him; take heed ye are not stronger then God; what will become of this chaffe, when he who is a consuming fire shall plead with it? will this abide the fire? will this stand before the Lord? pure is his name, pure is his power, let all that defiles and works abominations depart from him, for it cannot dwell vvith him, neither doth he delight in it; therefore O ye professors, vvho are lifted up in a dead unsavoury, and putrified profession, come dovvn and depart from your filthiness which ye have long lived in, or for ever you must de­part from the presence of God; ye are like tall Cedars, but your boughs vvill be lopped, and your beautiful branches (wherewith you have deceived many who have admited your beauty) shall be taken from you, then shall the old stump from whence these branches have grown, be seen to be as wood fit for the fire; your profession is discovered, and your nakedness is seen, therefore repent while you [Page 5]have time, and it is a day of visitation to you.

And now O ye parents who have many children, consider vvhat it is children are given you for; is it to bring them up in pride, and idleness, vvantonness and luxury? do ye herein discharge the duty of parents? should ye not have sought the Lord your selves, and have instructed your children in his fear, this ye should have done, but contrarily, you have forsaken the Lord your selves, & wrought wickednesse, and have brought up your children in your own abominations, in pride, in wantonesse, in disdain, in deceit, and whatsoever is abominable in the sight of God; must ye not give an account for these things? must ye not answer for your children, whom ye have caused to go astray, how hath goodness been hated by you? even so that many of you, yea for the most part, if there hath ben any tender in any of your children, and if any of them have turned, abside in any measure from following your wicked steps, then hath it been your work to smother those desires, and have cryed out of melancholy, and say that children should be merry and laugh, and such like; and thus vvalk in the broad way your selves, and bring up your children to follow your own steps; how will ye give an account before the Lord? how will you answer for these things before him, who will punish you for these things? How many is there among you who have been forward in teaching their children to curse and swear, and in hearing them to be ready at it, have been delighted? have not many of you taught your children to lye and dissemble, and have called them good children, wh [...]n they have been expert at it? O horrible wickedness! vvas ever any like this? is it not a shame that such a thing should be named, much lesse practized by those who call themselves christians? will not the Heathen who have not heard of God, rise up in iudgement vvith this generation, and condemn them for their filthiness.

Now to the light of Christ in all your consciences do I appeal (which doth condemne these wicked practises before mentiond) whether these things be not so, the testimonie of that seek, for that will not lye, though yee will, and is a teacher to all who follow it, and are guided by it, but is for ever the con­demnation of all who despise and disobey it, and remember that your sins have been laid before you, ye stubborn ones, who hate to be reformed, and now the time is past, and ye are in the pit, out of which there is no redemption, remember that a day was profered to you, and that there was a time wherein it was said to you, to day if you will hear his voice, harden not yur hearts, So I rest.

A Prayer concerning such as are made Ministers by the II of man, and a n [...] exhortation to all sober minded people to come out from among them.

Vhat ministery is that which is upheld by a Law given forth in mans will con­tray to the Law of God, if it be not Antichristian? and whether or no their [Page 6]Ministery was from God that haled out of the Synogoues, or those that were haled? And whether Paul's Ministery was not according to what you now perse­cute, who went into the Synagogues to reason with them, after the same man­ner as wee doe novv, vvho received not his Ministery from man, neither had it by man, though he was brought up at the feet of Gamaliell, he counted that which he learned there, as dung and drosse, in comparison of the excellency of Jesus Christ; and now with the Same light, your form of prayer, and form off preaching without the power, it is as drosse and dung to me, and to all that live in the life, who know Christ to be the high Priest over the houshold of God, whose Government is on his shoulders, who will not acquit the wicked, neither shall the evill doer escape his hand; for the hand of the Lord is streched out, and by the bareing of his arme are we Saved from all our trang [...]essions, which by no other means could be done; for when I wallowing in my blood, and no eye pittied me, nor none could cure my disease, when I went through the vale of misery, in the cloudy and dark day, when no light appeared, then was I fol­lowing men, but darkness was over the whole earth in me, which was my great sorrow, but sometimes hope was an anchor, that it should not be alwaies so, but when the flood came I was as one overwhelmed with sorrow, for all my actings, and my prayers returned in vain; while I was acting for life, the living suffer­ed in me, which groaned for deliverance, and the groans of that was heard, and not my prayers, then the Son of Righteousness appeared to me, with healing under his wings, then he rent the vail, and uncovered all that I had done, and shewed me the book wherein all my actions were set down, that I had acted a­gainst him ever since I was a childe, and indeed I could read in it, and knew what was written there, then was the acceptable yeer of the Lord God, and the day of vengeance to the ungodly in me, then was the vials of the wrath of God powred forth upon me without mixture, and indeed it was given me to drink deep­ly but I desired that I might be spared, but it was to let me see that I had Sinned against God, and I should bear his indignation, untill he did plead my cause, for I was condemned, but the Blood of the Son of God ransomed me and brought me into freedom, which by no other meanes could be done; then he shewed me his doctrine, and writ his Law in me, and placed his word in my heart, which is an everlasting witness for himself, and against all the world, that their deeds are evil, who by his power hath shaken, and caused all my bones to trem­ble, and to stagger like a drunken man, but the remainder of himself could not be Shaken, for he was stricken, and by his stripes were we healed, and by his light we see all hirelings, and persecutors to be out of his doctrine; therefore we de­ny them; So all people who fear God come out from among them (least yo [...] be partakers of their plagues) as I have done. M. F.

The difference between the worlds relation which stands in strife, malice and wickednesse, and the Saints relation which stands in love, life, peace and joy [...] the Holy ghost.

The Relation which stands in destroying, is by the children of the light denie, all such who live out of light, and out of it walke, who wear the old garmet, whose minde is corrupt, and hath a wisdome; and with it know not God, ad hath a knovvledge & with it corrupt themselves, & hath a humility, but feiged, and hath a worship but in the will, and hath a righteousnesse but in the self; nd speaks the high words but it is in hipocrisie, and hath a liberty but in the [...], where the spirit is in prison, who in Caines way is gone, and hath not a habitaion [Page 7]in God, whose affections are below in the earth, and serve the lusts and the plea­sures, whose conversation is among the wicked, and there is the worlds relation where lodgeth the strife and the debate and deceit, and disdain, and setting up that which God will throw down, now vvhile this is standing which is contrary to the light, they that in the light do vvalke, and be in it, these hey deny, and Sees that vvhich leads nature out of its course, and vvhat sets the vvhole course of nature on fire, and there the vvhole vvorld are in confusion, and all the tongues are unbridled, vvhere povver over them is not, vvhile that reignes vvhich leads nature out of course, his religion is vain, and that re­lation stands out of truth, but all such as to the light are turned, See vvith the light (and that doth manifest vvhat leadeth nature out of course,) the mariage that is honourable, and vvhat sets the vvhole course of nature on fire, and vvhat leads nature into course, vvhere the pure relation and the en­trance of it is received, vvhere the self and its righteousness is denied, and the righteousness of Christ received, vvhere the vvorship of the vvill is denied, and the vvorship of God in Spirit and Truth received, vvhere self righteousnes is de­nied, and Christ the righteousness of God received, & the former conversation put of & the conversation in Heaven vvitnessed, the affections belovv changed, & the affections vvhich are above come to; here is the pure Religion knovvn vvith­out guile, vvhich are out of Cains vvay, vvhere the habitation in God is vvit­nessed and seen, vvhere the just lives by his faith, and honouring in the Lord knovvn, and the true humility Learned of Christ, vvho is not of the vvorld, though it by him vvas made, vvho lighteth every man that cometh into the vvorld, vvho is mans vvay out of it; vvhich light is mans condemnation if he do not beleeve in it; and the relation vvhich is in the vvorld (vvho hate the light,) is in the lust, where the perversenes is in the love of the world, vvhere the envy is, vvhere the invention is, selfeishness, crossenesse, perve [...]s [...] ­ness, back-biting, maliciousnes, filling with unrighteousness, yet they have a love, yet they have a relation, now the light which comes from the beloved Son of God, where the Love of God is received, the worlds relation is denied, for the relation of the world destroyes and devoures, but the children of the light, which be in the relation out of the World, live in peace, unity, and fel­lowship, and comfort enjoyed in the holy Ghost, so all you that professe relation in words, and envy lodgeth in your hearts against one another, and yet flat­ter one another to your faces, and backbite one another, behinde the back, such relations we deny, and have a witness in your consciences against it; And all that profess a relation one to another, and love and friendship with the tongue, and in heart deceive one another, and cozen, and cheat one ano­ther, and lie, and dissemble one with another, all such relations we deny, and have a witness in your conscience against it: And such as professe religion, or worship, or humility, righteousness, and the Scripture, Christ and the Pro­phets words, & live out of their life, and live in envy and malice, and yet pro­fesse you have a relation to Christ, and God, whom ye have not seen, and you love him, and do not love them whom you have seen, such relations we do denie; & all such as cry up your experiences, high notions, manifestations, as you call them, dispensations as you call them, and live in pride, strife, and envy, debates, derision, scornes, loftiness, highmindedness, you be out of the light and out of the way, in corners, and out of the pure relation, we have a witness in your conscience against those things, which lets you see what you pos­sess, [Page 8]and will let you professe no more if to it you hearken, which turns from the world and the relations therein, for all who beleeve not the light, and are not to it come, have a love, but it is in the world; and a relation, but it is in the world, which is enmity to God, so that relation which is enmity is denied with the light, that love which is enmity, is denied with the light, which leads to the pure relation, which envres not, where the destroyer, and devourer is rebu­ked.

THe faith of such no better then the faith of the Pharisees who onely believe of a Christ, because the Scriptures declare of him, but the faith of them who dwel in the life and power of God and follow the Lamb who thersoever he goes, is that faith wch▪ overcomes the world, to believe of a Ch [...]ist because the Scrip­tures declare of him, is to believe as the Pharisees did believe, who were the per­secutors and murderers of the just, but to believe in th [...] light, the life that gave forth the Scriptures is seen, and Christ is believed in, and here he hath the wit­ness in himself, and comes to be a child of light and born of God, which birth overcomes the world, and now saith Christ they hate the light because their deeds are evil, and will not bring their deeds to it, because the light will re­prove them, and this is the condemnation the light saith Christ; and now it doth appear them that hate the light, priests, teachers, people, young and old hate the light, and will not bring their deeds to the light, because the light vvill reprove them, neither vvill they suffer other that vvalke in the light, and love the light, and bring their deeds to the Light and shew their dees with the light, and reprove them with the light, because they hate the light, and them that walk in it, and cast them into Prison, and so are stumbling at the light all sorts of people, (mark) it is the light that they hate, saith Christ, they hate the light which reproves their evil deeds, and this light is that which the world and the teachers thereof cannot endure to be talked off, but hate it and them that walk in it, & it is the light that is so much stumbled at, so because their deeds are evil, and they walk in darkness, there is a proof, for they that walk in the light stumble not, but come to receive the light of life, here Christs words [...]s fulfilled amongst them that hate the light, and will not bring their deeds to the light, because the light will reprove them, for that which doth make manifest is light, so that which makes manifest they cannot endure, but would be in the da [...]k, and keep their deeds in the dark as it is manifest, and saith Christ the Divel shall cast some of you into prison, he is out of the light out of the truth, and a lyar, and a murtherer from the beginning, which now is seen with the light, and trampled upon, and all that owne not the light which cometh from the word, are the wicked feeds men, sowing abroad their tares, their lies, the evil reports, and them that are gone from the light, that comes from the word of truth, are gi­ven up to believe lies and reports, and may cry up darkness, if you hate the light what have you to cry up else, if you turn from the light, pittyful preach­ing, which hates the light, which manifesteth all the vvorks of darkness.