‘For the King and Parliament, &c.

‘Friends,

‘The God of heaven hath put it into my heart to write a few words unto you, in the fear and dread of his name, and in the counsel of his own will, concerning the work which ye have taken in hand against him and his people; this is not the end and work for which the Lord God hath permitted you into the places of government and rule, in this nation, (nor the way for you to prosper, nor to prolong your days in the earth,) thus to persecute and afflict an innocent and harmless people, who are peaceable, and walk uprightly towards God and man; therein endeavouring, in all things, to keep their consciences void of offence, and who have no helper in the earth but the Lord alone; neither is their kingdom of this world, but they are verily the children and servants of the most high God, whom he hath gathered from amongst men, and from the kindness of the earth, to be the first fruits unto him, and to the Lamb in this age; and we are his, and not our own, he hath brought us, and redeemed us unto himself, and to him alone have we committed our innocent cause, and he hath undertaken to plead it for us, with all our adversaries; and no weapon formed against us shall ever prosper, but be broken to pieces.

‘Therefore friends, be awakened and open your eyes, and see what a stir and ado here is in this nation; to haul and drag up and down a company of tender, innocent, and harmless people, men and women, and children, from their peaceable meetings, who meet together in the fear and tender love of God, without any evil or bad intent toward any; but have good-will and compassion toward all men, even to the worst of our enemies, as the Lord bears us witness; and these are they that are driven as sheep to the slaughter, and thrown into your noisome jails, and prisons, and houses of correction; by rude and brutish people, your servants, whom you have set on work by your authority, till many of them have (patiently) suffered till death, whose innocent blood will assuredly be required at your hands, (though they shall not go free of the guilt, who have had the least hand in it, without speedy repentance.) And thus ye may see and read, how the disciples of Christ Jesus, are as sheep and Lambs in the midst of wolves in this age, and as a lily among thorns, and all this is only for obeying his commands, and for worshipping the everlasting invisible God, in the spirit, and in the truth, according to the Scriptures, the which, if you knew and understood, you would tremble to think what you have done against them, to cause so many of the little ones, which believe in Christ, so grievously to suffer, who said, it were better a millstone were hanged about his neck, and be drowned in the depth of the sea, that should offend one of these little ones, that believe in me; and as true as Christ Jesus suffered, and rose again, and as God liveth, who raised him from the dead, we are some of those his little ones that believe in him, who, (in derision and scorn in this age,) are called Quakers, as ye might call Moses, the prophets and apostles, (in days past,) who did quake and tremble at the presence of the Lord, who is the same now as ever he was, though the ungodly know him not, nor his power: and we are of that poor and afflicted people, mentioned Zeph. iii. 12. 19. “Whose trust is in the name of the Lord, who will undo all that afflict them.”

‘But what shall I say unto you; if ye will not, or cannot believe our faithful testimony, (or the testimony of God through us,) and the innocency of our cause and sufferings, neither will ye believe, if one should rise from the dead and declare it unto you; for many tender visitations, and timely warnings, and gentle reprehensions have you had, from the pure spirit of the Lord God, both from his witness in your own consciences, and from his faithful servants, and messengers, who have written and declared unto you in his name and power in this your day. And as for my part, who am one of the least of the thousands of Israel, I could willingly have been silent as toward you at this time, but the Lord, whom I serve in my spirit, hath laid it upon me to warn you once more, for whose sakes I have borne a burden, in the true sight and sense of your sad estate, and of the day of thick darkness, wrath, and distress, which is hastening upon you from the Almighty.

‘Wherefore be not proud nor rebellious, but hear, and obey the word of the Lord; for thus saith the Lord God that made heaven and earth, let my innocent people alone, and touch them not any more, as ye have done; for they are mine, and I have called them, and chosen them, and redeemed them; they are my jewels, which I am making up, they shall show forth my glory before men to the whole world; I have anointed them, and I will preserve them and deliver them, and crown them with an everlasting salvation. I will rebuke kings and rulers for their sakes, and distress nations, and dethrone the mighty from their seats that rise up against them, as I have done; and let my everlasting gospel have a free passage in these nations; and do not reproach and afflict my servants and messengers so any more, whom I have chosen and sent to preach and declare the way of life and salvation to the ends of the earth, but bow your ear and your heart unto them and their testimony, that it may be well with you, and prolong your days; for he that blesseth them shall be blessed, and he that curseth them shall be cursed, and every hand shall wither that opposeth them, as hath been, and shall be, henceforth for ever: I the Lord have spoken it.

‘But and if you will not hear, but will still persist, and go on, as ye have done, to oppress my heritage, and harmless people, and make war and opposition against my power and truth, and thus set yourselves and your power against me, the living God, I will bring you down suddenly, to the astonishment of nations, and I will cut your day short, and turn your pleasures into howling and lamentation, and shame and contempt shall cover your memorial as a garment. Thus will I work for the deliverance of my seed, and none shall let it; for the year of my redeemed is come, and the day of vengeance is in my heart, to plead its cause with all flesh.

‘Therefore, consider your ways, and see what ye are doing, and what the effect of this your work will be; ye are but men, and the children of men, who were but as yesterday; your breath also is in your nostrils, and your life is but a vapour, which will soon vanish away: you labour in the very fire, and bring forth wind, which blows up the flame of that which will consume you, and deprive you of all happiness for ever: O that ye had but hearts to consider it! For the more you strive with the Lord, and oppress his people, the more will they multiply, and grow stronger and stronger: and you shall wax weaker and weaker, and your works shall be your heavy burden; for life and immortality is risen, and the power of God is stirring in the hearts of thousands, and light and understanding, the excellent spirit which was in Daniel, is breaking forth like the lightning, which shines out of the east into the west, in the sight of many people, whereby they know, it is the day of the coming of the Son of Man, with power and great glory, that every eye may see him, and they that have pierced him shall mourn bitterly: so, your labour is in vain, and your works for the fire, and your striving with your Maker to no purpose, as to effect your end and aim. And of these things you have been often forewarned, and the Lord hath been very long suffering towards you, in sparing you thus long, and suffering you thus far to act against him and his dear people; and his mercy and forbearance hath been evidently showed in a large measure unto you, in deferring his heavy judgments thus long, which must have been confessed to be just upon you. And will you thus requite the Lord, by increasing your tasks of oppression upon his tender innocent people? O unwise and ungrateful generation! Hath not God yet showed you, that you should do justly, and love mercy, and walk humbly? But are these your fruits and practices, fruits of mercy or justice? Or if there be any tincture or spark of love, or humility in them, let God’s witness, the light in all your consciences, and in people, answer. I tell you plainly, that such fruits and doings among you, that profess yourselves Christians, have made the very name of Christ and Christianity, a proverb of reproach through nations, and have caused the God of heaven to be blasphemed; and how could it be otherwise, seeing you who profess the most knowledge of God, and have talked of converting the heathen, as some of your leaders have done, are found the least in the life and fruits thereof. But to what would they convert them? to pride and swearing, and drunkenness, and oppression, and all manner of excess, and to persecute people for their good conscience? They have no need of that; for, some of them have said, they did not use to swear and be drunk, &c. till they came among the Christians, and learned of them; they did not do so in their own country: ye are so far from converting them, being out of the life of what ye profess and talk of yourselves, that the very heathen or infidels, (as ye call them,) do judge and condemn you, who are making inquiry, concerning these your proceedings against this harmless people, among whom some of them have been kindly entreated, who visited them at the Lord’s requiring, though contrary in opinion and religion; and this doth rise up in judgment against you.

‘But, friends, have you yourselves been under sufferings, and some of you been driven into strange countries, or lands, for your cause, as it was called? Nay, did not the king himself once flee for refuge to a tree, to save himself from his enemies’ hands? If not, why are there such representations made of it, in so many places in the nation? And was not this as great a mercy and deliverance from God, so to obscure and preserve him, from them who pursued him, and many of you also? And are these things forgotten? Can mercy be loved, except it be remembered? And do you remember and love his mercies, by doing justly, and walking humbly with him, as he doth require? Or do you boast in vain glory, as if your own arm had done it, or your own strength or deserts had delivered you? If so, then God must needs be forgotten, and his mercies trodden under foot, and his visitations and counsels cast behind your back; and so, all that forget God, shall be torn in pieces, and there shall be none to deliver them, as it is written.

‘And were these your sufferings, which you sustained by them ye opposed, unjust and unequal? And if you should say, they were: then I say, it is much more unjust and very unequal in the sight of God, and all sober people that fear him, for you, thus to inflict such cruel sufferings as imprisoning, and stifling up to death in your noisome jails and holes among thieves and murderers, and to pronounce sentence of banishment upon an innocent, harmless, peaceable people, that do not oppose you in the least, with any outward force, neither do so much as the thoughts of it lodge within our breasts, as the Lord God knoweth, who hath called us to peace, but on the contrary have sought and do seek your welfare and happiness, both in this world, and in the world to come, which in time shall be manifest to the whole earth.

‘And if you say, your sufferings were unjust and unequal, though you did oppose them, and make war against them so long as you could, because they deprived you of your rights and privileges, and just liberties, and natural birthrights, &c. which were your due to enjoy, as being free-born of the nation: then how much more is it unjust, and unequal, and unrighteous, thus to inflict sufferings upon your friends, and oppress your peaceable neighbours, who are free-born people of the same nation, and do not oppose you, but are tender towards you, as aforesaid, and subject to all wholesome just laws, and tributary to you, for which causes we ought to have our just liberty, and enjoy the privilege of our birthright, which is our due so long as we live peaceably and harmlessly, but if it be not a privilege to be pleaded for, then are all your own grounds and reasons, and cause, without a foundation, and you and the whole nation may be swept away by any that are able to do it, without being charged with injustice or oppression, which is contrary to the just balance, the light of Christ in all people’s consciences. And as we are the dearly beloved people of the most high God, who doth bless us with his presence, and manifest his everlasting love and good-will towards us daily, and overshadows us with his power and tender mercies, whom he hath gathered out of the evil ways and spirit of this world, and all the vanities thereof, unto himself, to walk with him who is invisible, in the upright, blameless, undefiled life, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation; I say, considering these things, how greatly and unrighteously do our sufferings appear to all sober people, whose eyes are open, and will be more open to discern and savour the bitterness of that proud, envious, wrathful spirit, which thus hath acted and deceived you: and its end is numbered by them that have wisdom from above.

‘For friends, set aside the reproachful name of Quakers, and the other titles of derision and scorn, which the envious and blood-thirsty spirit hath invented to render the people of God odious in all ages, and tell me what ye have justly to charge against this people, whom you so furiously pursue to the dens and caves of the earth, to the loss of the lives of so many of them; by which children are made fatherless, and tender-hearted women, mournful widows, and let it come forth to open view, and declare it abroad, as your articles against them, to the whole world, and speak the truth, and nothing but the truth, as you use to tell one another, that all people may rightly know and understand the very ground and most secret cause, who do inquire, of these your present proceedings against them; for notice is taken by many, and ere long it must be manifest to all men, as the folly and madness of Jannes and Jambres were, that withstood Moses; for you withstand no less than him of whom Moses wrote; who said, “I am the light of the world,” against whom Saul was once exceedingly mad, and had thoughts to do very much against that way, which was then as well as now, called Heresy, till the light of Jesus, whom he persecuted, met with him, with his letters, or warrants, to haul men and women to prison, as your servants do, and smote him to the ground, and made him tremble, who, from that time, became such a Quaker, as you now persecute and imprison till death; but the light of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, will meet with all persecutors, and oppressors about religion, let them be never so mad, or think they ought to do much against that way, they call Heresy, as some of you have said, who have made a mock at the light, even publicly, which many took notice of, and even marvelled at such blasphemy in an open court, against the Saviour of the world: and there is no other name under heaven by which men shall be saved, but him who said, John, vii. 7. 12. and 16. “I am the light of the world, who lighteth every man that cometh into the world.”

‘And this is he, in whom we have believed, and of whom we have declared, and must declare and hear testimony, as long as we have a being; and the world shall know that our testimony is true; and for his name and truth only, do we thus patiently suffer the contradictions of sinners, as our brethren did by the zealous Jews in ages past; but you are not so zealous for Christ’s law and commandments, as they were of Moses and the prophets, which Christ ends and fulfils, who thought it was not lawful to do good on the Sabbath-day, as to heal the sick, for then would you “Do to all men, as ye would they should do to you;” for his law runs thus, “And be ye merciful,” &c. and “Love you your enemies; and swear not at all,” &c. as ye may read.

‘But behold, how both Jews and Gentiles take notice, and are ashamed and grieved, to hear and see what a deal of bad works you do, even on your Sabbath-day, as some of you call it, and how you profane the day of your worship, with your cattle, and servants, which are within your gates, what riding and running, and toiling, in rage and fury, like madmen, sweating, and swearing, and cursing, and dragging, and hauling the innocent members of Christ’s body out of their peaceable meetings, into your jails and holes; on your day of worship. But are your sacrifices, ye offer at that time, accepted? Have ye peace whilst these things are acting in your name, and by your authority? If you have peace and pleasure therein, let me tell you from the righteous God, you are hardened in your sins against him, and he will break your peace speedily, and turn your pleasure into bitterness and lamentation: and his innocent people’s meetings shall stand, and be increased; and their way shall prosper, and the truth shall spread and prevail, and have dominion over all nations; and their enemies shall fall and be confounded, let them strive what they can against them; for they are of God, and not of man, or the will of man, and they seek his glory and not their own; and such as abide faithful to him, shall triumph over all the principalities, and powers of the rulers of the darkness of this world, and make a show openly of the victory over all that do or may oppose them; for their life is immortal, and the Lord of heaven and earth is their strength, who is with them as a mighty terrible one; therefore shall their persecutors fall before them.

‘And let me tell you again, that by these your unreasonable, and unjust dealings, the understandings of thousands are the more opened; and the tender, sober part, or principle in them, doth feel the weight and burden of this grievousness, which you have prescribed, and do so eagerly pursue, to the imprisoning to death so many innocent persons and free-born people of this nation, besides hundreds are liable to the same, which yet remain in your prisons. And your unnatural, cruel sentence of banishment, to separate dear and tender husbands from their dear and tender wives, and tender children, and little innocent babes: Oh! how do you rend the bowels of the meek of the earth, whom God hath blessed? What is become of all your promises of liberty for tender consciences? God’s curse and vengeance will come upon you, and his plagues will pursue you to destruction if ye proceed in this work; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless; the Lord hath spoken it. If you had the hearts of men, or of flesh, ye would be afraid, and blush at the very thoughts hereof; my heart and soul melts within me, and I am even bowed down, with cries to God, in my spirit, to think of the hardness of your hearts.

---

‘God Almighty, cut short thy work in righteousness, and shorten the days of oppression and cruelty for thine elect’s sake; which cry night and day unto thee, and make known thy name and power to the ends of the earth; and let the heathen hear, and fear, and bow to thy righteous sceptre, and let the kings of the earth lay down their crowns at the feet of the Lamb, that through thy righteous judgments they may partake of thy tender mercies, which endure for ever; that their eyes may be no longer withholden, nor blinded by the god of this world, the power and prince of darkness, but that they may come to see thee, who art invisible, and enjoy the same precious life of pure unfeigned love, which abounds in the hearts of thy hidden ones; and receive thy peaceable wisdom, to be governed, and to govern therein; then would they surely know, that we are thine, and confess to thy glorious truth, and speak good of thy name, and magnify thy power, and no longer count the blood of thy everlasting covenant, (wherewith we are sanctified,) as an unholy thing.

‘But, O thou righteous, holy, pure, eternal God, art unknown unto all them that sit in darkness, and dwell in the spirit of enmity against thee and thy people; though thou art come near to judgment, according to the promise, Mal. iii. 5. And thy way of life and salvation is hid from them, therefore they hate us without a cause, and thus evilly entreat us in the darkness of their minds, and in the ignorance and hardness of their hearts; for which my soul doth pity them, and even entreat thee for them, that if possible their eyes may be yet opened, and their hearts yet softened, and their spirit humbled, that they may see what they are doing in the dark, and consider the effect of their work, which will assuredly follow: and if thy warnings and gentle visitations will not humble them, then let thy judgments awaken them, and bring them down, and humble them, that they may perceive something of what thou art doing, in these latter days, and art resolved to do to the ends of the earth, though the whole world should gather and band together to oppose thy work and people; for thou hast begun, and thou wilt go through and perfect thy work; thou wilt raise thy seed, and gather thine elect from the four winds, and bring them from the ends of the earth, and scatter the proud in the vain imaginations of their hearts; and thou wilt break thy way through all that oppose thee in this the day of thy mighty power, in which thou art arisen, as a giant to run his race, to finish transgression, and make an end of sin, and bring in and establish everlasting righteousness; that the kingdom of this world may become thy kingdom, and of thy Christ, as thou hast promised, and art now fulfilling; glory and honour, and thanks, and everlasting praises be to thy glorious name, world without end. Amen.

‘So friends, ye are and have been warned again and again by the faithful messengers and servants of the Lord, in love to your souls; and you are left without excuse, if never words more should be mentioned unto you; by which ye might perceive, how the Lord doth strive with you, that ye might repent, and be saved from the wrath to come, though some of you feel little of it in your own consciences; but his spirit will not always strive with you: for if you will not believe them, but slight and reject them, and neither make conscience of what hath proceeded out of your own mouth, nor regard to perform your own words and public engagements, in that which is just, which the Lord requireth of you, nor remember his by-past and present mercies, and long suffering towards you, but trample all under foot; I say, if it be thus with you, and you are resolved to go on, you will wholly be given up, and be exceedingly hardened, and grow desperate in cruelty and oppression against God, and his truth and people, till your whole earth is filled with violence; and then, (as true as God liveth,) will the flood come upon you, and ye shall fall after the manner of Egypt; and the weight of the dreadful judgments, due for all your abominations and cruelties, shall sink you down into the pit that is bottomless, and that suddenly, as the Lord hath spoken.

By his servant, who is a lover of the welfare of all your souls, and I am thus far clear of all your blood,

WILLIAM BAYLY.’

Written in the Tenth month, 1664, at Hartford.

‘To the King and both Houses of Parliament, thus saith the Lord.

‘Meddle not with my people, because of their conscience to me, and banish them not out of the nation because of their conscience; for if ye do, I will send my plagues upon you, and ye shall know that I am the Lord.

Written in obedience to the Lord,
by his servant,

GEORGE BISHOP.’

Bristol, the 29th of the Fifth month, 1664.

An Epistle to the Friends of Truth.

‘Grace and peace be multiplied among you, my dearly and much beloved friends, you that have received a blessing from God the heavenly Father in Christ Jesus, the Lord of glory; who by his unspeakable love, and his unchangeable light, hath drawn you off from the imaginary worships, and brought you in measure to know him who was from the beginning. Dear friends, keep in the light by which ye are enlightened, and in the knowledge of God, which every one hath received for himself; watching against the seducings of Satan; that your eyes may be kept open, lest deceit should prevail in any of you, by which truth might lose its splendour, and the brightness of the Lord become darkened.

‘I write these things to you in true love, and though but young, yet as one that takes care for you; for the Lord knows how often ye are in my remembrance; desiring for you, that ye may not only know the truth, but that ye may be found to be living witnesses of it: for I, knowing the preciousness of it, cannot but desire that others may also participate of the same; labour, therefore, for it, my friends, that so, when the Lord comes and calls to an account, every one may be found faithful according to what he hath received: for this is the talent which the Lord hath given, viz. the knowledge of him who is true, and who rewardeth every one according to his deeds: but the negligent and slothful servant said that his Lord was an hard man, and that he gathered where he had not strewed, and this was his condemnation: for the Lord said, “Thou knewest that I was an austere man; wherefore then gavest not thou my money into the bank, that at my coming I might have required mine own with usury?” Mind these things, my beloved friends, ye that have an ear to hear, and dig after this parable in yourselves; for we all have received talents, some more, and others less. Let therefore every one be faithful to the Lord, according to what he hath received; for truly some of you, I believe, have received five talents. Let it but be duly considered and seen in the light of the Lord, what knowledge ye have had of the eternal God beyond many, even when ye were yet in darkness: how often hath the Lord appeared, and clearly made manifest himself? And how abundantly hath he made it known in the heart, that he it was who was worthy to be feared and served? Certainly that is a great and weighty talent, and therefore the Lord may say justly, what could I have done more to my vineyard? O my friends, besides all this, he hath caused his eternal light to shine into our hearts, whereby we have seen the corrupted ways of the world, and paths leading to death. This, I say, the Lord hath showed us by his eternal light: glory and praises be given to our God for ever.

‘Dear friends, go on in that in which ye have begun; for I can hear witness for the Lord, that his love hath been abundantly shed abroad upon us, without respect of persons: because those that fear him, and work righteousness, are acceptable to him; and he makes his truth manifest among us, and causeth his peace and mercy to rest upon us. It is true, that Satan doth not rest to scatter this, and to sow doubts and unbelief in our hearts; but we keeping close to the Lord, are preserved from his snares; and happy is he who hath found a place where he is freed from tempests: but before this place be found, there are many hidden rocks that may be struck on, not unknown to me. And therefore I have true compassion on those who are not past them all yet; for shipwreck may easily be suffered on any of these.

‘Yet in all this danger there is something on which we may rely safely, and to which we may trust, being as a beacon, viz. the light shining into our hearts, though it be sometimes but as a spark, and so small, in regard of the manifold seducings, that it can hardly be discerned. Here then is no small grief and anguish; here all the mercies of the Lord, which formerly we enjoyed abundantly, are called in question, or doubted of; here is danger, and yet certainty; for by not sinning, the beacon is minded, and by relying on a true hope to be saved, we are preserved in the tempest. I write these things for the information of those that are travelling towards a city that hath a foundation, and whose builder and maker is God; for to such my love is extended, and my desire to the Lord for them is, that they may be kept by his power, to remain standing at his coming.

‘Dear friends, keep your meetings in the fear of the Lord, and have a care that your minds are not drawn out to hear words outwardly; but stand in the cross to that which desireth refreshment from without: and when at any time ye feel but little refreshment, let it not enter into your hearts that the Lord is not mindful of you; but centre down into yourselves, in the pure light, and stand still therein: then it may be ye will find the cause why the presence of the Lord is departed from you for some time; and ye putting away the cause, shall enjoy the Lord again to your comfort.

‘May God Almighty preserve you all by his power, lest any strife or discord be found among you; and may you grow up in love, and thereby be obliged to hear each other’s burdens; and let no transitory things cumber your hearts, but be resigned to the Lord; for that to which we are called, is not to be compared to that which is transitory, or perishing; since it is a treasure that is everlasting, and to which the world, and all that is in it, is but as dung; because the most glorious part of it is but vanity of vanities. O, my friends, let none be stopped by that which is an impediment to entering into the kingdom of heaven; but strive all to enter the narrow gate; and search every one of you your own hearts, with the light ye are enlightened with, which shall manifest your own states to you; and keeping there, it shall multiply your peace, and every one shall find therein his own teacher, as those have experienced who sought the Lord with all their heart. Now the God of all mercies, who alone is immortal, keep you and us altogether to the end; that so in these dangerous times we may remain standing, to the glory of his great name. O friends, keep out craftiness, and enter not readily into discourse with those that are out of the truth; for they speak in their own wills, and are crafty, and, knowing no bridle to their mind, it produceth that by which the simple and innocent are caught; but stand ye rather, and keep in that wherein ye see their subtilty; for then, though ye may not have a word to apologize for yourselves, yet ye shall be above them.

‘This is written from me, a young plant, in love to you, according to the gift received from the Lord. My salutation is to you all in the light of truth.

JUDITH ZINSPENNING.’