ings is now to conquer. What if the wicked nature, which is as a sea casting out mire and dirt, rage against thee! There is a river, a sweet, still, flowing river, the streams whereof will make glad thy heart. And learn but in quietness and stillness to retire to the Lord, and wait upon him; in whom thou shalt feel peace and joy, in the midst of thy trouble from the cruel and vexatious spirit of this world. So wait to know thy work and service to the Lord every day, in thy place and station; and the Lord make thee faithful therein, and thou wilt want neither help, support, nor comfort.

Thy friend, in the truest, sincerest, and most constant love.

London, 1st of Ninth Month, 1675.

To CATHARINE PORDAGE.

AH! MY POOR, DISTRESSED, ENTANGLED FRIEND,

I. P.

While thou seekest to avoid the snare, thou deeply runnest into it: for thou art feeding on the tree of knowledge, in giving way to these thoughts, reasonings and suggestions, which keep thee from obedience to that which hath been made manifest to thy understanding. And thou mayst well be feeble in thy mind, while thou art thus separated from Him who is thy strength, and lettest in his enemy. This is not the right feebleness of mind which God pities, nor the right way of waiting to receive strength. Why shouldst not thou act, so far as God gives thee light? and why shouldst thou not appear willing to obey him, even in little things, so far as he hath given thee light? What if I should say, that all this is but the subtlety of the serpent's wisdom to avoid the cross, and is not that simplicity and plainness of heart towards God, which thou takest it to be; and that thou art loath to be so poor, and low, and mean in the eyes of others, as this practice would make thee appear? Thy friend in the truth, and in sincere love,

Amersham, 25th of Ninth Month, 1675.

I. P.

TO MY DEAR SUFFERING FRIENDS IN SCOTLAND.

DEAR FRIENDS AND BRETHREN,

Who have partaken of the tender mercy and blessed visitation of the Lord.

Oh, blessed be the Lord, who pitied and helped us in our low estate, and whose tender love and mercy hath followed us, from his first visiting us, to this present day! And indeed, the Lord is with us, (what can we desire more?) preparing us for himself, preserving us in the life of his blessed truth, building us up more and more, and causing his Spirit of glory and living power to rest upon us, and the virtue thereof to spring up in us day by day.

Oh, the beauty and glory of the day of our God increaseth upon his heritage, blessed be the name of the Lord! And to what tend all the workings of the contrary spirit and power, but to eat out its own interest and kingdom, through the Lord's blessed ordering of things; so that all things work together for good, and for the advancing of truth, and the growth of it in the hearts of God's heritage.

So, my dear friends, none look out, either at outward or inward sufferings; but to the Lord only, whose life, Spirit, and power is above them, and bears up all over them, who are in spirit joined to him, faithfully waiting upon him; which God daily teaches and enables his to do. Thus, my dear friends, feel the Lord's presence and power among you, who is always near his, but especially in the time of their straits, trials, and sufferings: and wait to feel the life springing, and doing its proper work in each of you day by day; working out what is to be wrought out in any, and working more and more into the glory of the heavenly image; that through the sufferings, ye may come into the glory, and be crowned with the glory, virtue, holiness, righteousness, and dominion of life over all; and thus the Son may sit upon his throne in you, and wield his holy and righteous sceptre, and give you dominion in and with him, over all that would veil life, or keep it under, in any of you. Vol. III.-42

So, my dear friends, be strong in the Lord, with the strength of the Lord, with which he is clothing those whom he hath emptied and made weak; for the trials, temptations, and afflictions prepare for, and (as I may say) lead into the possession of, the desired inheritance; where all that the soul hath breathed and waited for is bestowed upon it, by the bountiful hand of the Father of mercies, who keeps covenant and merey for ever, and renews covenant and mercy day by day.

So the tender God of my life, and Father of the blessings and mercies of my once greatly distressed and miserable soul, instruct you, preserve you, watch over you; exercise your spirits most advantageously, daily open you to himself; keep you empty and naked before him of all your own clothing and righteousness, and fill you with that which flows from the pure, living fountain; to the unspeakable joy of your hearts, and the glory of his own name over all for ever.

Be of good faith, my dear friends, look not out at any thing; fear none of those things ye may be exposed to suffer, either outwardly or inwardly; but trust the Lord over all, and your life will spring, and grow, and refresh you, and the love and power will purge out, and keep out, what would hinder its growth; and ye will learn obedience and faithfuluess more and more, even by your exercises and sufferings; yea, the Lord will teach you the very mystery of faith and obedience; (oh blessed lesson!) and ye shall not be disappointed of your hope or crown, by any thing the enemy can plot or bring about against you, but have the weight of glory increased and enlarged by his temptations and your many sufferings; the wisdom, power, love, and goodness of the Lord, ordering every thing for you, and ordering your hearts in every thing,-you having given up to him, and keeping them continually given up to him, in the holy seed of truth, in which he hath in some measure already joined, and is daily more and more joining, you to himself.

This is the salutation and tender visit of the love of your brother in the truth; whose breathings are to God for you,

and his praises unto him, through the sense of his being with you, and daily showing mercy to you, upholding and preserving you in the midst of your sore trials and afflictions.

London, 5th of Fifth Month, 1676.

I. P.

DEAR BROTHER,

TO HIS BROTHER ARTHUR.

I have been a traveller after the Lord from my childhood, and great misery have I undergone for want of him. That which I wanted was his Spirit, life, virtue, and redeeming power to be revealed in my own heart. Oh, blessed be the Lord! beyond my expectation, he hath directed me where to wait for this within, and hath revealed it in me; and now I can say in truth of heart, and in the sense of that birth which God hath begotten in me, "Lo! this is my God whom I so wanted and waited for;" and I find him stronger in my heart than the strong man, which possessed it before he cast him out from thence, and made a spoil of his goods. And now, dear brother, how can I hold my peace, and not testify of the love, mercy, and good-will of the Lord towards me, and invite others to the redeeming power, of which the Lord in his goodness hath made me a partaker? And now, brother, a few words respecting thy return to what I sent thee; not for contention's sake (the Lord knows my dwelling is in that life and peace which shuts them out), but in the tender love and care of my heart concerning the eternal welfare of thy soul, which I would not, by any means or device of the enemy, have eternally deceived.

All sides may agree in notions about the regenerating power; but all do not receive the regenerating power, nor are truly regenerating in the sight of God; nor come to witness the head of the serpent inwardly crushed, and his works destroyed, and kingdom laid waste inwardly by this power; which must needs be, before a man be translated out of the kingdom of darkness, into the kingdom of the

dear Son. There is a kingdom of darkness inwardly, which the unbelieving and disobedient to God's Spirit and power dwell in; and there is a kingdom of light inwardly, wherein the children of light dwell with God, and walk in the light as he is in the light.

But that the work of regeneration is only begun in this life, and not finished till the other life, that is a great mistake. For the Scriptures testify, that salvation is to be wrought out here, and not hereafter. Christ had all power in heaven and earth, and he sent forth his Spirit and power to work out the work here; and his sanctifying Spirit and power is able to sanctify throughout, in soul, body, and spirit; and the gifts of the ministry are for perfecting the saints, till they all come in the unity of the faith, unto a perfect man, that they may be presented to God perfect in Christ Jesus. The holy leaven is put into the lump here, and it is able to leaven the lump here; and holiness is not only to be begun, but perfected in the fear of God, as the apostle exhorts, who did not exhort to a needless or impossible thing; and the whole armor of God is able to defend the whole man from all the assaults of the wicked one; for greater is He, in the saints, that preserves from sin, than he that tempts to sin. Oh, how precious is it to war with the enemy in this conquering faith, and to resist him therein! that he may still flee away, for fear of God's power and sword, which will pierce him and can easily overcome him.

There is a state where the spirit is willing, but the flesh weak: yet it is not so where the spirit is become strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. There is a holy hill of God, a spiritual Zion, a mountain whereupon his house is built, which the wing of the Almighty overshadows; and his sheep that are gathered by the great Shepherd and Bishop of the soul feed there, and none can make afraid. The flesh will be rebelling against the Spirit, until it be destroyed by the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. But when a man is really crucified with Christ, and dead to sin, sin hath no more power over him; for Christ lives in him and reigns in his heart over sin and the temptations thereof.