THE CONCLUSION.

GLORIOUS was the estate of the church before the apostasy, for purity of doctrine, for holy order and discipline, for love to God, one to another, and to all men (even of enemies), for faith in God, for the presence and power of his Spirit among them (insomuch as the unbeliever coming among them, might find his heart and state reached to, and be forced to confess and report that God was in them of a truth), for singleness and uprightness of heart, meekness and innocency of spirit and conversation, for zeal for God and his truth, suffering the spoiling of their goods, imprisonments, stripes, and many other ways, both from the heathen, and also from the professing Jews, who had been the church once. Oh! what shall I say concerning the beauty and loveliness of that state? Ye that would know it, oh! wait to feel it in that which gives the true sense of it.

But over this glorious state came a dark, thick, corrupt night, wherein the kernel was lost, and the shell defaced; wherein the house, which had been swept and garnished, became again recovered and possessed by the wicked spirit. And how great hath this darkness been! Oh, what a kind of church hath appeared in the world, wherein the spirit of enmity hath dwelt and acted in men, under the name of Christianity! So that instead of loving and seeking the good of enemies, they are ready to rend and tear one another for every little difference, and will be lords over men's faith, requiring men to practise things in religion before the Spirit of the Lord teacheth them so to do, which the apostles did not. For though they had from God the express knowledge of what was truth, and could certainly instruct and build up men therein, yet they were not lords over men's faith; but if men were otherwise minded than according to what they knew and taught, they could wait and bear with them, bidding them walk so far as they had attained, and God, in his due time, would reveal the rest.

also. Oh that men were come to this spirit again! then they would be Christians indeed, and then they might be known to be Christ's disciples, by their loving the brethren and fellow-disciples. But without this love, men's religion. is but a tinkling cymbal, making a noise and sound of somewhat, but not having the true nature or virtue of religion in it.

Now will it not be a glorious day, when the Spirit of the Lord cleanseth away this thick darkness, and causeth the light of his pure truth to arise and appear again? Why, there is such a day to be, wherein the true church, which was reproached and driven into the wilderness, is to come. out of the wilderness again, and her witnesses stand on their feet again, and her seed to spring up in the power of life, following the Lamb, who marcheth on fighting with the sword of the Spirit (the word of his mouth), conquering and to conquer thereby the corrupted antichristian world, even as he did at first the corrupt heathenish world.

The Lord will purify his temple, and cleanse the world by the plagues of his angels which he hath prepared, making way for the beauty of his truth, and the church of his gathering; wherein he will bring forth his righteousness, wherein his power shall appear, wherein his presence shall be made manifest, wherein that which shined before in the primitive church shall shine again in this new-reared building of his, insomuch as men shall be forced to say: This is the church of Christ indeed, God is here of a truth; this is the Gospel-Jerusalem indeed, which is built upon the holy hill of Zion; in which innocency, righteousness, truth, love, sweetness, peaceableness, and the gentle nature and Spirit of the Lamb lives and reigns; and the Lord bless thee, O habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness.

Now, of a truth this work is begun. The times of refreshment are come from the presence of the Lord. The Lord hath heard from heaven, pitying the cries of his seed, and hath visited their souls, causing the light of life (even the pure light of the everlasting covenant) to shine upon their tabernacles. But whoever would know these things,

and partake of them, must come in at the door, by the guidance of the Spirit, through the light which is with him. And he that would enjoy the full light (even the shinings forth of the sun at noon-day) must begin with its glimmerings, even that in the heart which discovereth and draweth out of the corrupt state of the world towards the Father. Oh! hear and live. Do not dispute about it, but wait to feel it; upon the feeling of it, despising the shame, and taking up and enduring the cross, and so bearing the reproach and sufferings of Christ in thy age and generation. And as thou obeyest, thou shalt know of its doctrine; but out of the pure faith and obedience, there is no true, sound, deep, rooted knowledge; but all of that kind must be parted with, for the knowledge which is of the faith, and which is made manifest and increased in the obedience; which knowledge is of a far more excellent kind and nature, than that which thou art to part with for it. The Lord guide thy mind, and stretch forth his hand to help thee, who, from the least touch of a pure nature and spirit, desirest after the pure truth and way of eternal life. Amen.

This testimony, here held forth, is faithful and true, and (I know) the witness of God in many hearts will answer to it; and happy is he that maketh a right use of it. For, so doing, his soul will not fall short of the pure, living truth, nor set up any thing else for truth which is not.

TO SUCH AS ARE NOT SATISFIED WITH A PROFESSION, WITHOUT THE TRUE LIFE AND Power, but have sincere DESIRES IN THEIR HEARTS AFTER THE LORD HIMSELF, and a WILLINGNESS TO BE ACQUAINTED WITH HIS PURE LIVING TRUTH, and with the SOUL'S TRUE GUIDE and Leader;

THIS EXPERIENCE IS IN MY HEART TO EXPRESS UNTO YOU, WHICH WE HAVE ALL ALONG WITNESSED IN OUR TRAVELS OUT OF THE DARK, CORRUPT LAND, INTO THE LAND OF LIFE AND PURITY.

WE have still found the willer, the runner, the self-striver, the wise, comprehending part, &c., left behind; and the grace of God alone able to lead towards him, and the birth which is of and by grace still to obtain the mercy. And Christ is our life, and in the union with his Spirit lies all our ability and strength; and that knowledge of Christ, which we witness to be life eternal, we did not meet with whilst we thought to have it in the Scriptures, but it hath been all along revealed to us by God's Spirit; so that we can truly say, flesh and blood did not reveal the Son to us, but the Father. Yet that which the Scriptures testify concerning Christ is exactly true according as it is there related, and is so acknowledged and really owned by us; though we obtain not our knowledge of Christ by the letter, but by receiving a principle of life from God; and coming into union with his Spirit, we came to the true knowledge and owning of the letter; which as it came from the life, so can it only be rightly read and understood in the life from which it came: so that he that is out of that, cannot but err concerning the letter, and misjudge concerning the things of God; whereas he that is guided by, and lives in God's Spirit (receiving his knowledge there), cannot err concerning the Spirit, or concerning the letter; but hath

that within him, which gives to him, and preserves him in, the true sense and understanding of both.

Now, friends, this is an excellent thing indeed, to come to, and be acquainted with, and receive that, which the Scriptures testify of; to wit, to receive Christ, to feel union with him in his Spirit, to enter into the new and holy agreement with God, into the everlasting covenant of life and peace, to feel the partition wall broken down, and the wall of salvation reared up, and the defence which is thereby; to find the law of God, the law of life, the law of the new creation, written in the heart; the pure fear planted there by God, which keepeth the mind and spirit from departing from him; to have his Spirit put within, causing to walk in his ways, and to keep his statutes and judgments, and do them; and so to have union and fellowship with the Lord in that which is pure and living of him, in Christ the new and living way, which was before the fall, and leads the obedient out of the fall, even beyond Adam's state, into himself who never fell, in whom is no sin, nor erring, no, not for the wayfaring man, though a fool, who often erred and wandered before he came thither; but there the Father's hand, even the hand of eternal power, is felt, which none can pluck out of. Oh! that ye knew the infallible Leader, and were turned from darkness to light (and did believe therein), and from the power of Satan unto God, that ye, through his Spirit, might undeniably witness the mysteries of his kingdom, and partake of and enjoy that which his love, grace, and mercy, plentifully distributes among his children that wait upon him in one way, under the holy ordering of his Spirit; which was long harped at and longed after by many of us; but we could never meet with it, till the Lord in his mercy caused the light of his day to shine into our hearts, which chased away the darkness of the night, and made the things of the day manifest.

Are ye of the house of Jacob? Are ye of the right seed? Are ye of the true breathers after God's holiness, after the life and righteousness of his Zion? Oh! then come ye, know, acknowledge, receive, and wait to walk in the light of the