lams, and places for mad people; see how soon their senses are gone, where Satan hath a power to work strongly; and let them look to the selfmurders, where Satan gains an influence over the mind and heart; and let them look to every crime in men, if they are hardened on in sin, where Satan hath a full influence over the heart, that he can lead them every way to do evil. But now let them look to thy life, who hast feared sin from thy youth up; then will they presumptuously say that thy whole life hath been under the influence of the devil, to hate the evil and choose the good? Here men will find they have no strength to stand, no arguments to plead, when I begin in man to plead against them, and prove that such watchmen are all blind, that they are all ignorant, that they are all dumb dogs that cannot bark; because it is impossible for men to bark this way, to say that the hand of evil is upon thee in so strong and powerful a manner, without doing thee hurt, or giving thee pain. And therefore, with the thunder of my words shall I confound all such men, and like an earthquake I shall make them tremble before ME: for now they may stay theirselves with wonders, that they cannot find out or understand: but, without they see signs and wonders, they will not believe; and therefore marvel not in thy heart as to the way and manner I am working round to throw their wisdom and strength to the ground. Therefore I shall make them drunk, but not with wine; they shall be staggered, but not with strong drink: for I shall stir up jealousy amongst them, and I shall kindle a war against them, till I have prevailed against mine enemies and thine. And so they will find the truth of the words fulfilled this year, that I ordered thee to put in the papers last year; for like the letters I shall

go on.

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"Now come to the second letter; and know what I said in my Gospel-by the man's petition I spared the fig tree one year; and so I told thee, from one November to the other; but if they now turn unto the Lord, HE will have mercy on them, and to the most high God, He will abundantly pardon them. For now they will surely find that the King's business requireth haste

"For a quick work is hastening on,
And that they will surely find.
You little know what lies behind,
To make a quick work to appear,
Before that I have ended here.
So every letter they will find
Some truth to prove to all mankind,
That in this year will plain be seen,
When once my wonders do begin,
To let the truth to fly abroad;
They'll wonder at the ways of God,
And of my Gospel wonder more,
When I've unbolted every door,
That they'd no wisdom for to see
The way my coming first must be,
It is in Spirit, like the first-

The MOTHER and the BRIDE are plac'è
Both in one likeness to appear;
Then how my Gospel will they clear,
That as a BRIDEGROOM I can come,
To warn in Spirit of the end ?
My Gospel men do not discern,
The way nor manner I did warn:
I said, ye must be born again--
Look deep, ye learned sons of men.
So if to man, it is to Me
A second likeness men must see,
That some resemblance of the first,
For so the SECOND BIRTH is plac'd,
Which never could be understood,
Before I came to make it good,
Thus of the Spirit to be born,
When I my wonders do perform;
You ne'er discern'd the SECOND CHILD;
For here the learned all are foil'd.

"Now come to the third letter. I said that men did not know the ways of the Lord; for they were like the Jews of old, blind through unbelief: but now is the acceptable time; now is the day of salvation. Know, in this letter, I ordered the newspapers to be kept; for they will all find the prophecies true; and true they shall find them: for as the sudden surprise came to thee; so shall it come to them."

Call

"Now come to the fourth letter. Know I told thee that the ensuing year would be such as never was seen in England, since it was an ation; for if my commands were obeyed, that I sent blessings to the nation, such as were never experienced before; yet Satan's weapons would be strong with rage and fury. I shall answer thee from this prophecy, which no man can understand, by any wisdom, how to prove it true either way. to thy remembrance the history of England, and what dreadful scenes of sorrow and misery, wars and tumults, one with the other, plague and pestilence, that have been in the land, what years of sorrow thou hast read of; then if I bring all these miseries upon the nation, to excel them in sorrow, greater than they ever were; this nation must be destroyed, if these miseries come at home, and a powerful enemy abroad; so that it cannot come that way, to make this a happy land in the end, as I have promised. And now come on the other hand what blessings can I send to this nation, such as were never experienced before, to cause Satan's weapons to be strong with rage and fury? For this I said would be in men, like Sodom and Gomorrah; but if every earthly blessings attend this nation; that I conquer their enemies for them abroad, and bring every blessing to them at home, of the fruits of the earth, and the fruits of the fields, and enliven your na

49

tion by trade abroad, so that all may have labour at home; where is there room for Satan's fury to arise and work in the hearts of men against blessings of this kind? So that no man by wisdoni can clear this prophecy, to prove it true either way; but, from what alarmed thy fears and jealousy, I shall prove the truth of my words, that such a visitation as hath been to thee this year never happened in England, since it was a nation; and the blessings that will attend it, which I have told thee shall follow, to make this a happy land, and such blessings to this nation, as never were experienced before, since it was a nation; and yet Satan's malice will rise in men with fury, however clear the truth is proved, by my com mand being perfectly obeyed. Because lies will be invented, whatever prudent steps are taken, till my awful judgments come upon them, to cut them off for their blasphemy and lies; and therefore I warned thee so much of the Bishops, and sent out my threatenings so severe, if they refused to search into the truth: because, from the power they are invested with, and the places they are placed in, all must know, that they would not let their honour down, to be imposed upon with art and deceit, or wink at a contrivance to deceive the public, or to join in any confederacy of this kind; and therefore I ordered thee to apply to the Bishops, that no one might say, deceit was practised by thee or thy friends.

"And now discern the words further. I said that thy faith was a gift of God, which the world can neither give thee nor take from thee: and they will find, that the sound of thy MASTER'S feet is behind thee; and now the sound of thy MASTER'S feet is come unto thee."

A further explanation of the letters in the newspapers will be given in the next book. But now

D

the readers must understand, that the threatenings put in the newspapers do not all allude to this nation; they allude to the nations abroad; I mean the severe threatenings in the first letter. But this nation and the Jews must look to the promises, if they awake, as men out of sleep, to be convinced.-Isaiah i. 8, 9. xlvi. lxv. lxvi.-And now they may see the truth of these words - If I have no one come forward to plead my cause for me, the Lord is working a way for me to plead it myself, and shame all that shamed me, and confound all that confounded me. And let them remember, I had no knowledge of this present visitation, when the above promise was made

me.

And now I shall come to the Books of Wonders, which I have been informed many have complained they could not understand. At this I do not marvel; for I never understood them myself till now. First Book, page 82. Therein are my petitions and the answer of the Spirit: my pleading appears to be to our Saviour-

"And can it be, dear Lord of life,
That thou wilt stoop so low,
To such a worthless worm as me,
Thy secret truths to shew ?"

THE SPIRIT.

"Yes; I will stoop to such as thee;
My law is upon thy heart,

And not a word that's in thy mouth
Shall ever more depart;

But all shall come upon the lands,

As I myself decreed;

But those that call upon my Sox,
For them he'll intercede.
For him have I exalted high;

And those that do him fear,
My Son for them shall intercede
For I his voice will hear."