“My Dear Friends,
“The Seed is above all. In it walk: in which ye all have life. Be not amazed at the weather; for always the just suffered by the unjust, but the just had the dominion. All along ye may see, by faith the mountains were subdued; and the rage of the wicked, and his fiery darts, were quenched. Though the waves and storms are high, yet your faith will keep you so as to swim above them; for they are but for a time, and the truth is without time. Therefore keep on the mountain of holiness, ye who are led to it by the light where nothing shall hurt. Do not think that anything will outlast the truth, which standeth sure; and is over that which is out of the truth; for the good will overcome the evil; the light, darkness; the life, death; virtue, vice; and righteousness, unrighteousness. The false prophet cannot overcome the true; but the true prophet, Christ, will overcome all the false. So be faithful, and live in that which doth not think the time long.”
After some time it pleased the Lord to allay the heat of this violent persecution; and I felt in spirit an overcoming of the spirits of those men-eaters, that had stirred it up, and carried it on to that height of cruelty, though I was outwardly very weak. And I plainly felt, and those Friends that were with me, and that came to visit me, took notice, that as the persecution ceased, I came from under the travails and sufferings, that had lain with such weight upon me; so that towards the spring I began to recover, and to walk up and down, beyond the expectation of many, who did not think I could ever have gone abroad again.
Whilst I was under this spiritual suffering, the state of the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven, was opened to me; which some carnal-minded people had looked upon to be like an outward city dropped out of the elements. I saw the beauty and glory of it, the length, the breadth, and the height thereof, all in complete proportion. I saw, that all who are within the light of Christ, and in his faith, which he is the author of; and in the Spirit, the Holy Ghost, which Christ and the holy prophets and apostles were in; and within the grace, and truth, and power of God, which are the walls of the city;—such are within the city, are members of it, and have right to eat of the tree of life, which yields her fruit every month, and whose leaves are for the healing of the nations. But they that are out of the grace, truth, light, Spirit, and power of God; they who resist the Holy Ghost, quench, vex, and grieve the Spirit of God; who hate the light, turn the grace of God into wantonness, and do despite to the Spirit of Grace; they who have erred from the faith, and made shipwreck of it and of a good conscience, who abuse the power of God, and despise prophesying, revelation, and inspiration;—these are the dogs and unbelievers that are without the city. These make up the great city Babylon, confusion, and her cage, the power of darkness; and the evil spirit of error surrounds and covers them over. In this great city Babylon are the false prophets, in the false power and false spirit; the beast, in the dragon’s power, and the whore that is gone a whoring from the Spirit of God, and from Christ her husband. But the Lord’s power is over all this power of darkness, false prophets, and their worshippers, who are for the lake which burns with fire.
Many things more did I see concerning the heavenly city, the New Jerusalem, which are hard to be uttered, and would be hard to be received. But, in short, this holy city is within the light, and all that are within the light, are within the city; the gates whereof stand open all the day (for there is no night there,) and all may come in. Christ’s blood being shed for every man, he tasted death for every man, and enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world; and his grace that brings salvation having appeared to all men, there is no place or language where his voice may not be heard. The Christians in the primitive times were called by Christ, “a city set upon a hill;” they were also called “the light of the world,” and “the salt of the earth;” but when Christians lose the light, and salt, and power of God, then they came to be trodden under foot, like unsavoury salt. Even as the Jews, who while they kept the law of God, were preserved above all nations; but when they turned their backs on God and his law, they were trodden under foot of other nations. Adam and Eve, while they obeyed God, were kept in his image and in the Paradise of God, in dominion over all the works of his hands; but when they disobeyed God, they lost his image, the righteousness and the holiness in which they were made; they lost their dominion, were driven out of paradise; and so fell under the dark power of Satan, and came under the chains of darkness. But the promise of God was, “that the Seed of the woman, Christ Jesus, should bruise the serpent’s head,”—should break his power and authority, which had led into captivity, and had held man therein. So Christ, who is the first and the last, sets man free, and is the resurrection of the just and unjust, the judge of the quick and dead; and they that are in him are invested with everlasting rest and peace, out of all the labours, and travails, and miseries of Adam in the fall. So he is sufficient and of ability to restore man into the state he was in before he fell; and not into that state only, but into that also that never fell, even to himself.
I had also in this time a great exercise and travail of spirit upon me, concerning the powers and rulers of these nations, from the sense I had of the many tender visitations and faithful warnings, that had been given them, and of their great abuse thereof, who had refused to hear, and rejected the counsel of the Lord. And though I knew Friends would be clear of their blood, yet I could not but mourn over them, and gave forth these few lines following concerning them:—
“We have given them a visitation, have faithfully warned them, have declared to them our innocency and uprightness, and that we never did any hurt to the king, nor to any of his people. We have nothing in our hearts but love and goodwill to him and his people, and desire their eternal welfare. But if they will not hear, the day of judgment and of sorrow, of torment, misery, and sudden destruction, will come from the Lord upon them, that have been the cause of the sufferings of many thousands of simple, innocent, harmless people that have done them no hurt, nor have had any ill-will towards him or them; but have desired their eternal good for the eternal truth’s sake. Destruction will come upon them that turn the sword backward. Therefore do not blind your eyes, the Lord will bring swift destruction and misery upon you; surely he will do it, and will relieve his innocent people; who have groaned for deliverance from under your oppression, and have also groaned for your deliverance out of wickedness. Blessed be the Lord God, that he hath a people in this nation, that seek the good of all men upon the face of the earth; for we have the mind of the Lord Jesus Christ, that desires not the death of a sinner, but the salvation and good of all. Blessed be the name of the Lord our God for ever.”
While I continued at Enfield, a sense came upon me of a hurt that sometimes happened, by persons under the profession of truth coming out of one country into another, to take a husband or wife amongst Friends, where they were strangers, and it was not known whether they were clear and orderly, or not. And it opened in me to recommend the following method unto Friends for preventing such inconveniences:—
“All Friends that marry, whether they be men or women, if they come out of another nation, island, or county, let them bring a certificate from the men’s meeting of that county, nation, or island from which they came, to the men’s meeting where they propose their intention of marriage. For the men’s meeting being made up of the faithful, this will stop all wrong spirits from roving up and down. When any come with a certificate, or letter of recommendation from one men’s meeting to another, one is refreshed by another, and can set their hands and hearts to the thing. This will prevent a great deal of trouble. And then what ye have to say to them in the power of God, in admonishing and instructing them, ye are left to the power and Spirit of God to do it, and to let them know the duty of marriage, and what it is; that there may be unity and concord in the Spirit, and power, and light, and wisdom of God, throughout all the men’s meetings in the whole world, in one, in the life.
“Let copies of this be sent to every county, and nation, and island where Friends are, that so all things may be kept holy, and pure, and righteous, in unity and peace; and God over all may be glorified among you, his lot, his people and inheritance, who are his adopted sons and daughters, and heirs of his life. So no more, but my love in that which changeth not.”
14th of 1st Month, 1670-1.
When I had recovered, so that I could walk a little, I went from Enfield to Gerrard Roberts’s again, and thence to the women’s school at Shacklewell, and so to the meeting at Gracechurch Street, London; where, though I was yet but weak, the Lord’s power upheld and enabled me to declare his eternal Word of life.
About this time I was moved to pray to the Lord as follows:—
“O Lord God Almighty! Prosper truth, and preserve justice and equity in the land! Bring down all injustice and iniquity, oppression and falsehood, cruelty and unmercifulness in the land; that mercy and righteousness may flourish!
“O Lord God! Set up and establish verity, and preserve it in the land! Bring down in the land all debauchery and vice, whoredoms and fornication, and this raping spirit, which causeth people to have no esteem of thee, O God! nor of their own souls or bodies; nor of Christianity, modesty, or humanity.
“O Lord! Put it in the magistrates’ hearts to bring down all this ungodliness, violence, and cruelty, profaneness, cursing, and swearing; and to put down all those lewd houses and play-houses, which corrupt youth and people, and lead them from thy kingdom, where no unclean thing can enter, neither shall come! Such works lead people to hell! Lord! In mercy bring down all these things in the nation, to stop thy wrath, O God! from coming on the land.”