As for those whom thou callest ministers, if I should speak, concerning them, the very truth from the mouth of of the Lord, thou couldst not, in that state wherein thou standest, receive it; yet am I far from accounting them the offscouring of the earth; for I look upon them as wise and knowing, and as of great beauty in the earthly learning and wisdom; but surely, not as having "the tongue of the learned," "to speak a word in season to him that is weary;" nay, they are men unlearned in this kind of learning, and such as toss and tear and wrest the scripture, in their uncertain reasonings and guessings about the sense of it, and in the various doubtful interpretations they give.

And whereas I am blamed for not putting a difference between the profane and scandalous ministers, and the reverend and godly sort; my answer is, They are united in one ministry: and the question is not concerning the persons, but the ministry; in which they are one,—their call one, their maintenance one, their way of worship and preaching one, their standing and power of government one; which is not by the power and presence of the Spirit, but by the strength of the magistrate. But the true gospel and ministry is spiritual, and cannot stand nor be upheld by that which is carnal, neither in its call, maintenance, government, or what else belongs to it. When Christ came in the flesh, the words he pronounced were not so much against the profane and scandalous among the Scribes and Pharisees; but against those that appeared most strict, and were accounted among the Jews the most reverend and godly. And, were it not for the appearance of godliness in these men, the persecution of the present times had not been so hot, the good old cause so lost, and the work of reformation (inasmuch as relates to men) so overturned as at this day. O―! there was once a good thing in divers of them, which my soul would rejoice to see revived; but as the seat of government eat out the good that was in the bishops, so gaping after the seat of government hath sunk the good thing in others also; and made their eye so dim,

that they cannot see the mighty breakings forth of the Spirit of Christ in his people.

I. P.

TO RICHARD ROBERTS.

R. R.

THOU didst acquaint me that Timothy Fly, the Anabaptist teacher, did charge me with denying Christ's humanity, and also the blood of Christ, which was shed at Golgotha, without the gates of Jerusalem; and that I own no other Christ but what is within men.

Sure I am, that neither T. Fly, nor any other man, did ever hear me deny, that Christ, according to the flesh, was born of the Virgin Mary, or that that was his blood, which was shed without the gates of Jerusalem. And the Lord, who knoweth my heart, knoweth, that such a thing never was in my heart; nay, I do greatly value that flesh and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and witness forgiveness of sins and redemption through it. Yet, if I should say, I do not know nor partake of his flesh and blood in the mystery also, I should not be a faithful witness to the Lord. For there is the mystery of God and of Christ; and that is the soul's food which gives life to the soul, even the living bread and the living water. For there is living bread and living water; and the flesh and blood in the mystery, on which the soul feeds, is not inferior in nature and virtue to the bread and water. There is a knowing Christ after the flesh, and there is a knowing him after the Spirit, and a feeding on his Spirit and life; and this doth not destroy his appearing in flesh, or the blessed ends thereof, but confirm and fulfil them.

The owning of Christ being inwardly in his saints, doth not deny his appearing outwardly in the body prepared; unless T. F. can maintain this, that the same Christ that арpeared outwardly cannot appear inwardly. "Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?" 2 Cor. xiii. 5. "And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin," &c. Rom. viii. 10. "Christ

in you, the hope of glory." Col. i. 27. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him." Rev. iii. 20. "I will come again," saith Christ: Ye are now in pain, as a woman in travail, full of sorrow for the loss of my outward, bodily presence; but I will come to you again in spirit; see John xvi. and John xiv. 17. "He," that "dwelleth with you, shall be in you:" and then, when the Bridegroom is inwardly and spiritually in you and with you, "your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you." John xvi. 22. And so, the apostles and primitive Christians did "rejoice with joy unspeakable, and full of glory," 1 Peter i. 8. because of the spiritual appearance and presence of the Bridegroom. And yet, there is no other bridegroom, who now appears in spirit, or spiritually in the hearts of his, than He that once appeared in the prepared body, and did the Father's will therein.

I. P.

ADDRESSED TO THE INDEPENDENTS AT CANTERBURY.

I HAVE been a seeker after God, and a worshipper of him from my childhood, according to the best of my understanding; and, at last, sat down in that way which is called Independency, believing it to be the way of the gospel, and entering into it with much fear and seeking of God. In which way, the Lord had regard to the uprightness and tenderness of heart, which he had formed in me.

But, at length, the Lord's hand fell upon me, breaking me all to pieces therein, as to my inward state; for what cause, I had then no knowledge at all of; but mourned before him unutterably, night and day, and lay panting and languishing after him, who was the only Beloved of my soul. Many pitied me, but none could reach my state, but, after much serious discourse with me, greatly wondered: and some said, it was a prerogative case, and would, questionless, end in good-will and mercy from the Lord to me. I parted from that people in great love and tenderness;

they expecting my return to them again (the love between me and them being so exceeding great, and I having let in no prejudice against them), and I knowing nothing to the contrary.

But it pleased the Lord, after many years, when my hope nearly failed, to visit me in a wonderful manner, breaking my heart in pieces, giving me to feel his pure, living power, and the raising of his holy seed in my heart thereby; insomuch, that I cried out inwardly before him, "This is He, this is He whom I have sought after, and so much wanted! this is the pearl, this is the holy leaven! do what thou wilt with me, afflict me how thou wilt, and as long as thou pleasest, so that at length I may be joined with this, and become one with this!" So the eye of my understanding was from that day anointed, and I saw and felt the pure life of the Son made manifest in me; and the Father drew me to him, as to a living stone, and hath built my soul upon him, and brought me to Mount Zion, and the holy city of our God; where the river of life sends forth its streams, which refresh and make glad the holy city, and all the tabernacles that are built on God's holy hill. And indeed, from this holy hill and city, the law and word of life doth issue, and the inhabitants of the rock of life hear it, and are friends to the Bridegroom, and glad of the Bridegroom's voice, and follow the Lamb, the Shepherd and Bishop of their souls, whithersoever he leads; who leads them into the pastures of life, and folds of pure rest, and gives them eternal life to feed on, and his peace and patience to possess their souls in.

O ye Independents! whom I have loved above all people, and never had thoughts of rending from you, but was forcibly taken by the hand of the Lord out of your Society; yet not without a desire to return to you again, if the Lord pleased to make any way thereto;-I say, O ye Independents, above all professions the one most dearly beloved by me! oh that ye could hear the sensible, experienced testimony that is on my heart to you concerning my Beloved, concerning his appearance, concerning his church, concern

If ye could but

ing his way, his truth, his kingdom. It is nigher than ye are aware, and above all that ye can comprehend concerning it. Oh that ye might inwardly know these things! Turn in, turn in: mind what stirs in your hearts; what moves against sin, what moves towards sin. The one is the Son's life, the Son's grace, the Son's Spirit; the other is the spirit and nature which is contrary thereto. come to the sense of this, and come to a true, inward silence, and waiting, and turning at the reproofs of heavenly wisdom, and know the heavenly drawings into that which is holy and living; ye would soon find the Lord working in your hearts, to stop the issues of death, and to open the issues of life there; and ye would find yourselves anointed daily by the Lord (for there is not a day but we need to see, nor a day but the Lord gives sight), and an understanding also would be given you to know Him that is true, and the "eternal life," 1 John i. 2. and an abiding in him that is true. And, abiding here, ye cannot fail of receiving power (from him who ministers according to the power of the endless life), not only to overcome sin and your souls' enemies, but to become sons to God, with delight performing his will. And that yoke, which yokes down and subdues sin in you, will be easy, yea, the ease, pleasure, and joy of your souls. The Lord open an ear in you to hear as the learned, that ye may become experiencers and possessors of these things; for, of a truth, the Lord is arisen to shake terribly the earth, and to build up his Zion, and to give unto his people "a peaceable habitation and sure dwellings and quiet restingplaces" upon Mount Zion. Isa. xxxii. 18.

To FRANCIS PORDAGE.

I. P.

FRIEND,

There is a mind, which can never know nor receive the things of God's kingdom; and yet, this mind is very busy in searching and inquiring after them.