Some Certain, hidden, or vailed Spiritual Verities Revealed

ΑΠΟΚΡΥΠΤΑ ΑΠΟΚΑΛΥΠΤΑ

VELATA Quaedam REVELATA: SOME Certain, hidden, or vailed Spi­ritual Verities Revealed. Upon occasion of Various very prying, and critical Queries Concerning God, The Devil, & Man, as to his Body, Soul, and Spirit. Heaven, Hell, Judgement, &c. Propounded to George Fox, John Perrott, Samuel Fisher.

And after that (with a complaint for want of, and stricter urgency for an Answer) re-propounded to Edward Burroughs.

By two persons, choosing to notisie themselves to us no other way then by these two unwonted (if not self-assumed) Titles, viz. Livinus Theodorus, and Sabina Neriah. Which Truths (as there inspired by the Spirit of God) are here exspired in love to the souls of men.

From out of a Hole in the Gate-House at Westminster, through an Earthen Vessel there Imprisoned for the Testimony of Jesus, known among men by the Name of SAMUEL FISHER.

LONDON, Printed for Robert Wilson, 1661.

THese Returns to the Letter, and Replies to the Queries here ensuing, were in no wise written at first with any purpose of publishing them so generally as at the Press: But with particular respect to the satisfaction of those two private Querists onely, viz. L. T. & S. N. who have (on their part) so privily all along managed the matter of their enquiry, that we can truly say (notwithstanding our express desires to them of such a thing) we cannot learn to this very day, by any hint to us (as from themselves) distinctly either Who, or What, or Whence, or Where they are; their Let­ters bearing no date from any Sign or Place, whereby we might be put into a capacity to come unto any outward Cognizance of, or Acquain­tance with them; And themselves not willing (for ought I see) to be known to us either by their faces, or by the places of their abode, but onely by these two (I will not say Hypocritical, but) Aenigmatical names of Livinus Theodorus, Sabina Neriah. But so it was, that they never sending at all for our Answer to their Queries to that person nominated by themselves,[1] with whom it was left for them at their own request, but about five or six weeks after it was made ready for them, propounding their Queries all over again verbatim to E. B. together with not onely expressions of greater earnestness, and sharper eagerness after an Answer, but also a Letter of complaint against us three, G. F. J. P. S. F. as either nilling or neglecting, and not at all regarding to gratific our friends (as they style themselves) in a matter of so grand importance; and lastly, they not yet coming, nor so much as sending to me for it, though in a Letter left for them, and carried to them by their Messenger, it was long since signified to them, that it lies by me for them, if they would either call themselves, or send for it to me by any that might signifie to me where any of us (as occasion is) may speak with either of them; their Messenger also intimating (as I hear) that their expectation and desire now is of seeing something Printed as in An­swer to them; I held it meet, in no less love to their souls (who e're they are) and even to the souls of all men, then to my own, to commit and commend this long since written Reply in Print to their or any other persons, whether private, or publick perusal, in such manner and form as hereafter follows.

S.F.

Some certain, hidden, or vailed spiritual Verities revealed, &c.

FRIENDS,

YOU, who (tam masculiné, quam foemininé, and that (as may well seem, at least to some) mendaciter & fictitiè po­tius, quàm veraciter & sincerè) subscribe your selves (respectively) by these two more Latine, Greek, and Hebrew, then Engl [...]sh Names (which are significative of a nature and state which your selves are short of) of Livinus Theodorus, and Sabina Neriah.

I have seen your thirteen Queries propounded to G. F. J. P. and my self, or either of us, together with your (seeming sym­pathetical) Preface to them, wherein (after an acknowledge­ment of our Ministry as such, whereby people may be brought into a posture or frame of spirit, in which they may be capa­ble to receive the Mystery of Godliness, which ye believe also by the Light within us, to be in a great measure elucidated unto us) you express your selves in some other particulars in such wise, as gives me occasion (by way of Preface to my Answer) to pre­mise something as to them. You intimate of the things exhi­bited to us in your Questions, that they are matters of such weight, that the consideration thereof hath oft much reflected upon your spirits, so that you have gone sometimes to our Assemblies in hopes to hear Discourses of such like, as being of great concernment, and very pertinent for every one to know; but though ye have heard us promising felicity and consolation in the Creatures obedience, and threatning judgement and misery in its disobedience; yet we never ex­plicated (so as to your satisfaction) when, where, and in what man­ner they must of necessity participate of the one or the other. Hereup­on, and for other reasons by you alledged, viz. the profitable­ness [Page 2] of writing above verbal Discourses, as in which things discus­sed are more subject to be obliviated, wrested, perverted, and the intel­lect more obnubilated, then in the other (which all are reasons of little cogency (if there were no other) to enforce me to an­swer the curiosity of your itching minds in this case, sith I well know, that in the Power and Spirit of God, truth may be unfol­ded both much more, and to many more also, that are of open and honest hearts, in one hour by word of mouth, then it can by the writing of many days, to men, who have (pruritum cogno­scendi) more desire meerly to know, then mind to do what good is already known: I say (as you say also) that (causis supe­rius) you present to us the following Queries in writing, in order to receiving a satisfactory Answer in the same way of writing hoping it will not be offensive, sed potius cum delectatione accepta, (but acceptum ye should have said, had ye heeded what ye wrote) promising in case ye do receive our Answer in plain, honest, down-right words, ye will be obliged not onely to ac­knowledge your selves to be our friends, but, us also to be [...], and be ready to acknowledge the truth of our Principles be­fore, or to any that you shall hear oppose us.

Now truly Friends, here are (not a few) very fair pretences and seeming shews of simplicity, but yet (latet anguis in herbà) there is an eye (that is not evil neither, but pure and single) which sees more of the Serpent, then of the Saint in all this, and in the Queries that follow after it; and more of that sub­tilty of the Enemy, then of that simplicity that is in Christ, whose meat and drink it was to do the wil made known, whilst the other feeds, no higher then on that dust of desiring to know, and discourse of those many truths, which he never minds, nor means that they shall have so much influence upon his heart, or dominion over him in his life, as to order him rightly according thereunto, in either the one, or the other: Whereupon we could very well excuse our selves (as to the Lord) if we should answer you no otherwise, then by answering you not a word: And for my own part, though it is not at all offensive to me (if it never prove so to your selves) yet (as delightful as ye take it to be to us to be presented with your Queries, wherein ye shew your own delight to be in minding things too [Page 3] high for you, or for any but such whose dwelling hath been long in the deep, before ye are truly come to be well acquaint­ed with the first Principles of the Oracles of God within your selves) I take as little delight in, as I do offence at your own, or any ones presentments of this kind, it being altogether as endless, as it's easeless, and well-nigh as useless for us, as it's utterly rea­sonless for you, or any to engage us to it, or expect it from us, that we (who, howbeit ye, who come but sometimes to our Meet­ings (as ye say) have seldom heard us have so abundantly ope­ned the truth in those very points concerning God and man, as to his Body, Soul and Spirit, Heaven, Hell, the holy City, the Day of the Lord, and the Eternal Judgement; and so long directed people to that true Light which onely gives the knowledge of all these very things ye enquire after; and this not onely by our verbal discourses, but also in our Books, which are extant in all places to the publike view of all persons) should condescend to exercise our selves stil in writing the same o're and o're again, to gratifie every two or three single persons in private, in order to the feeding of every airy fancy, which would fain furnish it self for windy discourse thereof, with notions and comprehensions of those weighty Truths of God, which it's fitter for wise men to wait in silence on the Lord for the feeling the Truth of, within themselves, in that Light, out of which they can never be known, then in a flood of words to stand questioning and replying one to another about them, and which (though it's very pertinent, and also ne­cessary, yet) it's not more pertinent, nor necessary for every one to know, then it's necessary for every one, that would know them in truth, to know them by the manifestation of the Spirit of Truth, which leads into all Truth, within himself, there being no Dispen­sation nor Administration either below or beyond that of the Spirit in man, and the inspiration of the Almighty, that gives that Wis­dom and Understanding, whereby onely they, and all soul saving Truths can be discerned: So that it may be truly said of Christ (the true Light, who in measure enlightneth every man) as in or­der to the knowledge of God, a man's self, and all other mat­ters y [...] query about:

Si Christum nescis, nihil est si catera noscis;

Si Christum noscis, nihil est si [...]aetera nescis.

[Page 4] Ye have Moses and the Prophets within, viz. this written spoken, manifested in you, Quod tibi ne vis fieri alteri ne feceris, and (Retro) Whatever ye would that men should do unto you, do ye even so to them▪ This (saith Christ) is the Law, or Moses and the Prophets; but if ye will not be admonished nor perswaded by Moses and the Prophets, neither will ye be perswaded by such of us, who were once dead in sin with you, but are now risen to life by the power of God, which is his Light, and in the same sent to speak unto you from the dead.

And as for your owning or disowning of us to any such, as before you shall oppose us, it's little to us, if ye own us to be of the truth, unless ye come together with us into union with it; for we know (whether ye confess to, or deny us) that we are of God, & that the World lieth in that wickedness that cuts off from him; and that we are [...], such as hold forth that infallible ever­lasting Truth of God, which hath very amply revealed to us of its secrets; which Truth needs no man at all to plead for it (for it pleads both for it self, and for its Children) much less such as seem to side with it without in words, yet indeed resist the power of it in themselves: If ye be so wise as to submit to the teachings of it, ye shall be wise to yourselves, & to the salvation of your souls; but if you sleight or scorn it, so as to seek or seem to be above it, ye alone must bear it, in the judgement of it.

To conclude, though as one of this worlds fools may ask much more then many a wise man in Christ may think fit to answer to; so one that is a fool for Christ, may answer much more truth then many of the wise men of this world may think fit to acknowledge to be satisfactory; yet, that ye may not think, I say, that ye may not think we forbear to Reply upon the account of any such dif­ficulty or depth in your Questions, as transcends the capacity of those ye dealwith, whom ye deem (for all your owning them as above others) not a little inferior to your selves, and that (like the sluggard, who is wiser in his own eyes then seven men that can ren­der a reason) ye may not grow more prudent, then pudent, as ma­ny are apt to do in their own conceits, so as to judge them al­together unanswerable, if your Questions lye unanswered alto­gether, in at least some more hopes of your conviction and conver­sion by us, then fear of your contradiction, or confutation of us, I return to your following Queries, as hereafter follows.

[Page 5] Query 1. WHat is God really in himself, without any definiti­on? And in what did he dwell, and manifest himself before the foundation of the Heavens and the Earth was laid?

Answer 1. God, as he is really in himself, is beyond all defi­nition of ours at all, being not determined to his Hic & Hunc, as all created beings are, being (as to time and place) nec definitivé, nec circumscriptivé in either; but, if speaking by way of such description as those have made of him, who have seen and known him, may, de facto (as de jure, it ought to do) amount to the satisfaction of your prying minds, which would fain be intruding into things which ye have not seen. I answer, God, (whatever more he is, that's nothing to us, quae supra nos, nihil ad nos, the secret things of himself, are onely to himself, whose mind in all things absolutely, who hath known? But things reveal'd onely to us, to speak of, and to our Children) is really in himself, whatever he hath at any time, in and by his Son, revealed himself to be, in and to his holy Prophets, and Children; and whate­ver they in all ages (as moved by him so to do) have decla­red him to be, whether by word of mouth, or Scripture: And so whatever ye there read, God is, that God is really, indeed, and in truth, (viz.) a Spirit, Light, Love, that One, Omnipo­tent, All-sufficient, Spiritual, Substantial, Living, Everlasting, Infinite Subsistence, which hath his own being of himself, and gives being, life, breath and All things unto All, in whom we and all mankind, who are his off-spring, both live, move, and have our being.

Howbeit, there is not in every man, no not in all those that read of him there, and can speak of him; what they there read, the true knowledge of him so, or so to be; for they onely truly know him to be this or that, who witness him truly to be this or that to, and within themselves; & those [Page 6] know him not, who ere they are, that prate this and that of him (like Pyes and Parrets, which may be taught verba no­stra conari) yet come not to find and feel him so to be, as they say of him, by feeling after him in his own Light, by which he draws nigh to, and is not far from every one of us; by which (in ommbus aliqualiter, though not aequaliter) in some measure, though not the same measure, he manifests something of himself in every Conscience, and by which in, and to such as love him, and keep his Commandments given out in the same, he manifests himself in such wise as he will not do to the World; yea, in such wise that they can expe­rimentally say he is so or so, by what they see concerning him, and are made fully sensible of in themselves; in such wise that they have the witness of it in themselves, and can set to their seal, That God is, and that he is true, good, mer­ciful, faithful, just, righteous in taking vengeance; that he is a Judge, a Protector, a Saviour, a Redeemer, and whatever else he is said to be, even of a truth; yea in such wise as to say with Job, I know that my Redeemer liveth: With Mary, My Spirit rejoiceth in God my Saviour: With Paul, We are saved by his Grace; Christ liveth in me, &c. Whenas whoever thinks or sayes he knows God, because he can say something of him at second hand, in a form of words, and the same truth (perhaps) which he reads written of God in their Scriptures, who declare no more of him, than what their own eyes, ears, and hands, do see, feel and handle of him (as we do, and they did, who wrote of old that holy Scripture) and yet know him not nigher hand, in that which is of himself, with­in their own hearts, even that by which [...], not onely whatsoever is known of God at all, but also whatever is to be known of him, or knowable at all, is manifested in him, Rom. 1. 19. he deceives and mistakes himself; and whate're he thinks he knows of God, he knoweth nothing yet of him, or of ought else, as he ought to know, therefore saith the Wisdom of God, 1 Cor. 1. 21. In the Wisdom of God, The world by Wisdom knew not God. And 1 John 2. 4. He that saith, he knoweth God▪ and keepeth not his Commandments, is a lyar, and the truth is not in him. And to such wise sayers and knowers as these (and such were the Scribes, who were ever scraping in [Page 7] the Scriptures to find God, and his life; yet never knew him at any time, nor saw his shape, because they heard not his Voice, nor heeded his Word in themselves, Joh. 5 37.) God saith, Though ye say, God lives, yet as I live ye swear falsly. And why falsly? Was not that a truth, that God lives? Yes, but not a truth truly testified unto by them, (any more then what is testified in foro hominum, in mens Courts, by such as being not eye-witnesses thereof, have it onely by hear-say from others) because they witnessed to it but in stoln words, which they had, and heard from such, who knew him to live, while themselves knew him not to live within themselves. Where­as therefore ye Query, What God really is in himself? As God saith of himself, I am that I am; so say I, Deus est id quod est; God is what he is: And if ye, who by your asking of u [...], profess your selves to be yet ignorant of him, and so to worship (if yet ye worship him at all) an unknown God, as the wise Athenians did, would know him in any measure, as he is really in himself; My Counsel to you is, to stand still in his own Counsel, namely, his Light in your own Consciences, that in that you may be led forth into his life and likeness, even into the Image of his Son, the Light of the world, the righteous, pure, meek, innocent, gentle, loving, peaceable, in offen­sive, merciful, compassionate, tender, patient Lamb of God, that takes away the sin of it, who is the express Image of the Father, in that Light that manifests him, and all things (for whate­ver is manifest, is manifested by the Light) wait for his appear­ing in his own Spirit and Power to restore his own Image in your hearts; that as he appeareth, ye may appear with him in his glory, which is fulness of Grace and Truth, being trans­formed into his Image from glory to glory, by the operation of his holy Spirit, that as he appeareth, ye may be like him, and so see him as he is; then shall ye know the Lord, if ye thus follow on to know him, whose goings forth are prepared as the morn­ing to meet those that meet him in his Light, by which he shineth into our hearts, to give the Light of the knowledge of his own glory, in the face of Jesus Christ.

[Page 8] Finally, In answer to the latter part of this your first Query, I say, That Light which God now is (whom no such eye as you look after him with, who ask counsel of man on­ly concerning him, and not of himself alone, either hath seen, or can see) that same Light he ever was: And in that Light in which he now is, and dwells, (which is unapproach­able by every evil-doer, who hates the Light, which is come into him to save him, neither comes into it, lest by it his deeds should be reproved, and which he who doth truth comes to, that his deeds may be made manifest to be wrought in God) in that God was, and did dwell from ever­lasting; And as the outward Sun is not seen by any other na­tural Light, save that which shines from it self in the out­er world: So God neither is, nor can be seen by any other spiritual Light save that which shines from himself, into the inner world of men's hearts: And in that Light in which God doth now manifest himself, in the same did he manifest himself (if yet it be proper so to ask, and so to answer, as concerning him) before Time was, and before there was any Creature extant, to take cognizance of him by such a manifestation, even before the Foundation of the Heaven and Earth was laid.

Qu. 2. Whether is there a manifestation of God in every thing that hath a life, motion and being, in this outward Creation? And whether is a Creature to expect ever to know God under any other Dispensation or Administration, further then by the manifestation of the Spirit of God in him, which is given to, &c.?

Ans. This second Query stands in two parts, to the first of which I answer, Yes, as 'tis said, Deo plena sunt Omnia: Est Deus in nobis, agitante calescimus ipso: And not onely so, but also, Quaelibet aquae guttula, quaelibet terrae globula,

Praesentem (que) refert, quaelibet herba Deum.

To the second, I answer, Nay; there is no other way, di­spensation, or admininistration, in, or under which a Creature is to expect to know God, further then by the manifestation of [Page 9] the Spirit of God in him; for it is written, Rom: 1. 19. [...], (that is) Whatever is to be known of God, is mani­fest in men, for God doth shew it in them.

Qu. 3. Whether are the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Man, and the Spirit of the Devil, three distinct Spirits?

Ans. Yea, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of the Devil, and the Spirit of Man, are three distinct Spirits.

Qu. 4. Whether be they essentially impregnated in man? If so, When, and after what manner were the said Spirits infused into him?

Ans. In this Query there is a fallacy, called, A bene divi­sis ad male conjuncta; i. e. A question asked of many things together, which (in some sense at least) may be truly affirm­ed of some of them, but cannot be affirmed of them all: I answer therefore, They are not all three (as your Query seems to intimate) essentially impregnated in man; neither are they all three de esse homini; for first, as to the Spirit of God, a man may remain a man, i. e A man of the Earth (as to his Essentials) when the Spirit of God which was once given him, is (as David prayed it might not be from himself) no less then totally taken from him; therefore God's Spirit is not essentially impregnated in man. And as to the Spirit of the De­vil, Man was (Quod Esse) truly and formally man, before the Spirit of the Devil did prevail to enter him, and will be so again, when that unclean Spirit is again ejected and cast out of him, Quod potest vel adesse, vel abesse, sine subjecti inte­ritu quoad suum esse, hoc non est de essentia huic subjecto: That which may be differently, either in, or not in any subject, without the destruction of that subject, as to its essential be­ing, is not essential to the being of it: But so may be either God's Spirit, which is God's gift to man, after he is truly man, or the Devil's Spirit, which may be cast forth of man, and yet man truly remain man: Therefore neither of these are essenti­ally impregnated in him.

[Page 10] As to the second part of this fourth Query, wherein you ask, When, and after what manner the said Spirits were infused into man? It's of so little consequence to know, that it's well nigh as frivolous for one wise man to enquire after it, as 'tis impertinent and unprofitable for another to resolve it; and there­fore as to the two Spirits of God and the Devil, neither of which two are essential to man (as his own Spirit (in some kind at least) may be said to be, of which there is more hereafter spoken) I say onely this, namely, as to that of God, Quaerendum est potiùs, quomodo in bono illo spirits ambule­mus, quàm quomodo in nos d [...]erit. And as to that of the De­vil, thus, Quarendum est potiùs, quomodo ex malo isto evadere pos­simus, quam quomodo in nos invaserit.

Query. 5. What is the Spirit of man in it self? Is it natural, yea or nay? Is it mortal or immortal? And whether hath it a Be­ing distinct from the body (when expired?) If so, how, and where, clearly demonstrate.

Qu. 6. Whether is there a Soul in man distinct from the said Spirit? If yea, what is it? and where is its present scitnation in man? (plainly manifest it distinguishable) And whether (after the decease of a man) it hath a being apart from the body? If yes, Where? and whether in that state it be sensible either of consolation and happiness, or torment and sorrow? And after what manner shall it enjoy the one, or have the other inflicted upon it?

Qu. 7. Whether is it possible for the soul of man to live without a body? If not, Into what body doth it betake it self? Or how is it propagated to Eternity.

Qu. 8. What is its properties and operations? And what were them Souls spoken of in the Revelations, which John said he saw crying under the Altar? And what is that Altar? And where did he see it to be? And whether had them Souls bodies? If yea, What bodies were they?

[Page 11] Ans. As to this fifth Query, wherein you are busie, high­flown, cl [...]mbering, and over-curious in querying, What the Spi­rit of Man is; and whether natural, mortal, or immortal? And whether it hath a being when the body is expired? If so, how, and where, &c. With which fift Query, not onely the latter part of the fourth, but also the whole sixth, seventh and eighth (wherein ye are as critically inquisitive, running out into various Quirks, Quiddites, and Quomodities about the soul, as Quae? Quid? Ubi? Qualis? Quando? Quibus auxilijs? Cur? Under which forms of querying, one Pragmatical Spirit may ask more questions then many wise men may find either while, or will, or good ground to reply to) are so far co-incident, that one cannot be well clearly answered with­out the rest, I say thus, both unto it, and to the rest, Viz

That Man (as God at first made him) was a creature con­sistent of these Three, namely, Body, Soul and Spirit; each of which the Apostle prayes on the behalf of them (as in the Saints) that they might be kept blameless to the coming of our Lord Jesus *. Each of which,[2] though concurrent with the rest, to the compleat making up of that one compositum, or Creature called Man (as God at first made him) are yet distinct in themselves, and separable the one from the other.

First, as for the outward earthly body, which was framed of the dust of the outer earth, into which dust, (as into its first Principle) it must once return; that is, but the Earthly Taber­nacle, in which the Soul, (which is in truth more the Man, than it is) dwells, and hath its place of residence, and sci­tuation for a time.

As for the Soul, of which I say its so distinct from the Body, and from the aforesaid Spirit also, is that it's possible to have a Being, not only in conjunction with, but also after its separati­on from them both, of which you ask, Where is it's scituation in Man? I answer, If ye query (as ye seem to do) of its local scituation, it is plainly scituated in the body, which is a recep­tacle fitted for it, and is the outward Organ, which it Ani­mates, [Page 12] which, and in, and by which it Acts, while it is in it; which Soul is That Life of the body which is truly enough by the very Philosopher defined to be, Actus corporis Organici, qua­tenus est Organicum, whose definition of it is answer in part suf­ficient to your query concerning its Properties and Opera­tions.

2dly, And if ye ask, Whereabout, or in what part of the body the Soul is scituated? I say, It is Quid Totum in Toto, & Totum in qualibet parte, wholly in the whole, and wholly in every part of the body: But if ye ask after other then a local scituation, I say, the Soul, which is by Christ styled the man's self, and is so more than the outward Carcase, (compare Matth. 16. 26. with Luke 9. 25.) and is a more noble part of the Man than the other is; It is scituated [naturally] between two natural ones, viz. the outward earthly body, and the inward heavenly spi­rit of man; as it is [spiritually] between two spiritual Oppo­sites, viz. the impure corrupt flesh, and the pure incorruptible spi­rit; which (as contraries) do lust in fallen man, the one against the other.

And as to its having a being, a part from the body, after the decease of the body, or of the man, so far as to his outer body, I affirm it hath; and though in your dark minds, ye doubt the possibility of its being without a body, and there­fore feign a certain Transmigration of it of necessity into some other body, when it comes to pass out of its own; yet I deny, that as a meer Pythagorean dream: It's not necessary, that it must betake it self into some other body, when it departs from its own, in order to its propagation to eternity; for it is immortal as to any utter annihi­lation (howe're it may die by sin, from God, who is the tru­est life thereof, and so cease to be such a living soul, as at first he made it) and because immortal, therefore i [...] its nature eternal, i. e. never ceasing to have same Being or other, either good or evil to all eternity.

And since ye ask, If so, Where? I answer; If ye mean as to a local circumscription, it's as improper as impertinent so to ask, sith the soul which is a spiritual body, and so (as Christ [Page 13] the second man, the Lord That Spirit also is) a spirit as well as a Body is not in loco circumscriptivé at all: But if by Where? ye intend (as by the following words ye seem to do) in what state, namely, a state of bliss, or a state of torture; that may fall out to it indifferently, to be either so or so, according to that condition of distance and alienation, or of nearness and conjunction, that it stood in, to either God's Spirit, or the Devil's, at the time of its departure from the Body.

And whereas it's queryed, Whether in that state of sepa­ration from the Body, it can be sensible either of consolation and happiness, or torment and sorrow? I answer, Yes, Why not? (it being a Spirit) as well as other Spirits, viz. the Devils, who were most afraid of going into their torment, when they saw themselves ready to be cast forth into the deep, out of the bodies of those two men whom they once possessed; and the unclean Spirit, which when he is cast out of man, whom he once acted in, to his own content and pleasure, walks through dry places, seeking rest, but finding none, unless he can re-enter into his house, out of which he was ejected: And the souls under the Altar (of which ye are more Critical in querying, than I shall be careful in answering to that curious mind that would fain know what it cannot know, or if it could, it must not; which souls are said to cry for venge­ance on their adversaries, and therefore were sensible of the wrong sustained from them, and yet were souls, existent in an actual separation from, and without their bodies, being the souls of such whose bodies had been slain for the Testimony of Jesus.

3dly. As to the spirit of man, which is the best, highest, and most noble of the three aforesaid, which concurs to the consti­tuting of man in his primitive perfection, it is That breath of life, which God breathed into his soul after he had formed him (as to his body) of the dust of the earth, whereby he came to be a living soul; a soul that did partake of something of God's own life; whereby it did live in his sight; this is that living Prin­ciple of the Divine Nature, which man did before his degene­ration, and shall again after his regeneration, partake of; in re­spect [Page 14] of which, he was, and shall be again (as he takes heed to come into Union with it, and thereby to recover to his first estate) called the Son of God, as Adam was before he fell; and in respect of which he is said (principally) to be made af­ter God's own Image, and to be the very Image and glory of God; this is that incorruptible, immortal seed of God, which whoever comes to witness himself brought forth into the likeness of, is said to be born of God, to be of God, to be the child of God, that doth righteousness, and sinneth not, which who so doth is of the Devil: This is that breath of Gods own immediate breathing into man, that spark of life from him, who is the eternal Word, which was with God, and was God, in whom was the life, and his life was the light of men, which shineth in the darkness, in the dark places of their earthly hearts, who by the Fall are gone out from it into the lust, but the dark soul comprehends it not: This is that heavenly part, or spirit of man infused into him from above, which lusteth against the corrupt flesh, and against that evil spirit that hath entred into him, that lusteth to envy: This is that wch mounts upward, and strengthens such souls as stay by it to mount upward with wings as Eagles, towards him from whom it comes, while the earthly part both tends and draws the soul downward, so that in respect of that spirit of man it may be most truly said of God in his first making of Man,

Os homini sublime dedit, coelum (que) videre.

This is that noble, royal, righteous, holy seed, which while man was at first born, made, created and planted after the nature and image of, he was said to be planted a noble Vine; wholly a right seed, till by being alienated, separated, and estranged from it into his earthly part, he became a Degenerate plant of a strange Vine unto the Lord, a seed of evil-doers, that are never more to be renowned, unless they come again to be born of this holy seed, which is [...], from above, of this spiritual part, or spirit in man (which gives him the heavenly wisdom, which the wisdom of the flesh, that is from beneath, and but earthly, and animal, and Diabolical, is enmity against) and of this breath of life, or inspiration of the Almighty, which [Page 15] gives understanding by which he comes again to be a tree of righteousness, a plant of the Lords renown, the seed of the Kingdom, the Royal seed, that right seed, that holy seed, which is the sub­stance of the Oak when the leavs fall off the true man that God made, who in the doing of his will abideth ever, when the spirit of the Lord shall have blown away all flesh, and all That Mankind that is become the seed of the serpent, the gene­ration of the Viper, so that it shall wither as the grass, and come to nought as the flower of the grass, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the Oven: Finally, such a living soul as man at first became, when God first breathed into him this breath of spiritual life, to live and dwell in his life, light and presence, when the souls that live in sin, and are alienated from his life through the blindness of their hearts, must die for ever, and ever perish from the light of his coun­tenance. This spirit of man is the very principle of spiritual life to his Soul, as the Soul is the principle of natural life to his bo­dy; whereby as that becomes a living body through the uni­on of it with the soul; So the Soul respectively becomes a living Soul, through its Ʋnion with the said Spirit. These three are the three principles, after which the man is respective­ly, and differently denominated, sometimes after the one, sometimes after the other, prout occasio requirit.

In respect of the earthly body of which he is formed, man is denominated, 1 Cor. 15. [...], earthly, and is said to bear an earthly image, and hath his name ADAM, ac­cordingly, which by interpretation is Red Earth.

In respect of the soul he is denominated Animal, an Ani­mal man, Soully, or but sensual (as abstract from the afore­said spirit, Jude 19. These are they who are sensual, or (as the Greek word is) [...], i. e. Animal, having not the spi­rit, 1 Cor. 15. there is a natural body, or (as the Greek word is) [...] there is an Animal body, 1 Cor. 2. The natural man, or as the word is, [...], i e. The Animal man perceiveth not the things of the spirit; so also James 3. The wis­dom from beneath, which only the Soul is capable of, with­out the said Spirit, which gives that wisdom from above [Page 16] which is pure, peaceable, &c. is said to be [...], Earthly, Sensual; i. e. Animal, and Devilish.

In respect of his Spirit, and as he is denominated after that, which is in conjunction with the Spirit of God, that im­parts it to him, he is said to be a spiritual man, discerning the things of the Spirit, which the Animal man doth not, and discerning others who are but Animal, while himself re­mains undiscerned, by them who are below him, 1 Cor. 15. [...], 1 Cor. 2. [...].

And as to your asking concerning the spirit of man, whe­ther it be natural or no? I answer, That it is natural, i. e. per­taining to the very nature of that man which God first crea­ted, and of the man of God which to that primitive nature is restored; for howbeit it is of the Divine Nature, and so su­pernatural, as in reference to man in the fall, who is of the Devils marring, yet to the constitution of such a man as God at first made after his own Image, and Glory, to partake of his own Divine Nature, it is natural: And though it is as natural to man instatu corrupto, to sin, and break the Law of God, as for a natural bruit beast to drink in water; yet to that man, who is God's Image and glory, by participation of the Divine Nature, it is as natural (as it was to Christ, whose meat and drink it was to do Gods will, as also it is to the meer natural man to eat and drink outwardly) to observe his Law: And therefore such as obey the Law, are said by nature to do the things contained in the Law that is by that nature which man was at first created after, which is the Divine Nature, which the Saints are again according to Gods Promise partakers of, 2. Pet. 1. Otherwise, if ye speak of that Nature of the Devil, vvhich by sin man hath to himself contracted since his depar­ture from the other, it is as contrary to that nature to do good, as it is contrary to the other to do evil; and this is that nature by vvhich the Saints themselves, till they vvere saved by Gods grace, and quickned back again into the other, are said to be (Eph. 2.) The Children of wrath as well as other; and those sinners vvho have lost the first nature, are said there up­on to be without natural affection, i. e. Without such bovvels [Page 17] of mercy, pitty, love, and compassion to their own flesh, and fel­low-creatures, as they had vvhile they stood in the first nature. And vvhereas ye ask above in the fourth query of this spirit of man, as vvell as of God's and of the Devil's; Whether or no it is essentially impregnated in man?

I ansvver, That it is essential; that is, pertaining to the very being (and that constitutivé) of the Man aforesaid, viz. that man of God, vvhich vvas of Gods first creating, or is of Gods renewing back again into his own Nature, Image and glo­ry; yea, so, as that such a man cannot possibly be without it, though it is spiritual in it self, and so neither natural (as is said before) nor essential, either constitutive, or consecutive to the being of that man, that is in the transgression and alie­nation from God, and so degenerated from primitive manhood, into no better state than that of the Beast of the field, which is his figure.

And whereas ye query, Whether the said spirit of man is mortal or immortal? I answer, It is immortal, and neither mortal nor corruptible, but that immortal and incorruptible seed of God, even something of that living Word, which is said to be made flesh, and to dwell in the Saints, that is said to be in­grafted or put into man's heart, whereby he being begotten into the Will of God, is said to be born of God, and the Son of God; which Principle, or innate Word, being received with meek­ness, saves that soul from sin, and so from the second death, as it stands in union and conjunction with it; which Word is called (James 1.) [...], and is said to be made flesh, and to dwell in the Saints, John 1. as their life.

And whereas ye ask, Whether this spirit of man hath a be­ing distinct from the body, when expired; and if so, how and where?

I answer, It hath a being distinct, not onely from the body, when deceased; but from the soul also when expired; which spirit is quick, powerful, and quickning; and searching the soul in its secrets, and piercing so unto the marrow and reins, that all things are naked and bare before it, and nothing hid from its sight; Whereupon it is said of this spirit of a man, Prov. [Page 18] 20. 27. It is the Candle of the Lord, searching into the inmost parts of the belly: This is that Candle whereby the Lord doth search Jerusalem it self; this is that spirit of a man of which it's said, Who knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man that is in him? as none knoweth the things of God, but the Spirit of God, and he to whom the Spirit of God reveals them, which is onely to the spiritual man; who by his union with that Light of God in himself, which flowes from the Life, comes to be God's own Image and glory, which all his begot­ten ones do bear, whose glory is seen to be that of the Son of God, which is fulness of grace and truth.

And howbeit, the body and soul both may perish, as they seperate from this spirit, yet it lives and abides for ever, to­gether with all that doth the Will of God made manifest in it. This is that in respect of which, man regenerated by it, is man indeed, such a one as in reference to whom, man in the fall is but the beast of the field, as much falling short in the high­est of his meer Animals of the spiritual man, as the outward beast of the field doth of him who is meerly Animal; for man at his best estate, abstract from this, even every man is altoge­ther vanity, and a lye; yea, man in honor separated from that understanding which comes from this, is but as the beasts that perish: And men who seperate themselves from it in their sensual or Animal understanding, so as not to have the Spirit, must (for all their airy notions in the sensual part) once know themselves to be but beasts, or men by the halves; this is that spirit of a man which is able to sustain and bear all his infirmities▪ but if it be wounded by man's sin, who can bear it? Prov. 18. 14. This is that spirit of man that goeth upwards, and draweth the soul upwards toward God, from whom it is breathed into man; when the spirit of the beast, or bruitish man goeth downward to the earth from whence it came, and draws downwards, even to the Chambers of death, and the depths of Hell. This is that, of which while ye ask how, and where it hath a being (if so at all) distinct from the body? I answer in the words of Wisdom it self, Eccles. 12. That at the dissolution of the compositum, or whole man, which [Page 19] consists of the Three aforesaid, each from the other, then the body returns to the dust from whence it came; and the said spirit returns up to God that gave it: And that Soul together with it, that hath stood in the counsel of it; while that soul which the body dyes from, while they both lived together in sin dyes both from it, and from God that gave it, for ever; and is left naked, and divested both of its own body, and its own spirit also, and lyes in separation not onely from both these, but also from God, and his good spirit tormented among all evil spirits for ever.

Query 9. What, and where is that Heaven in which it's said God doth dwell? Is it above the Firmament, or must a Creature wait to know it manifest in him, and not otherwise?

Ans. Heaven, is the highest place in either outward and local, or inward and spiritual scituation, and therefore it is called [...]. The Heaven in which its said God dwells, is neither onely above the Firmament, nor onely under the Firmament, but both above it, and below it, and even every where; where he manifests himself in his love and mercy, goodness, grace and glory: And as he dwells in no place, so as to be any where (circumscriptively) included, so in every place; he is so, as to be no where at all excluded. So that if ye ask, Whether it is above the Firmament onely and not otherwise? I say, No; for it is also under the Firmament, or else the Son of Man could not have been truly said to be in Heaven (as he is John 3.) in that self-same juncture of time, wherein he was standing bodily, and speaking to Nicodemus here on earth; neither could the Beast be said (as he is, Rev. 13.) to blaspheme the Saints that dwell in Heaven, if they were not in Heaven whilst here on earth; For even He and His Worshippers (superstitiously) adore whatever they deem to be above the Skies, and blaspheme it not. Likewise the Apo­stles dwelling ( [...]) was in Heaven, Phil. 3. whilst they were bodily here on earth. Therefore Heaven is as well under, as above the Firmament; yea, it is in very deed in his peo­ples [Page 20] hearts, in every humble, broken and contrite spirit.

And whereas ye ask, Whether a Creature must wait to know it in himself onely, and not otherwise? I say, Not so nei­ther; for Heaven shall be manifest, and known not onely inwardly in their hearts, who wait for it; but outwardly also, to such as wait not for it within themselves (as Lazarus Bo­some was to the rich man's sight afar off) so far onely as shall tend to the aggravation of their anguish, who shall see themselves shut out everlastingly from sharing in it. To con­clude, the Heaven, which is God's Throne, God's House, God's Tabernacle, and the place of his Rest, where no Lyon, nor any Ravenous Beast shall be; where no Lyar, nor unclean one, that works abomination, hath any place; where none of the proud, prying, vulturous eyes can pierce far enough to discern the glory of it; where no haughty fowles of the air, that are lifted up with the windy wings of their own lofty notions, no high-climbing Capernaites, nor Thieves and Robbers, that are flying about aloft above the Door, which is the Light within, can ever sore high enough to enter, is not onely that high place, locally scituated above the Skies, but that high and ho­ly place also, of a low and humble heart, and a broken and con­trite spirit, that trembles at his Word; there he delights to ma­nifest himself, who is the high and lofty One, who inhabiteth Eternity, and to make his abode, even in them who are meek and lowly, who dwell on high with him in the Hill which he hath chosen; whose Hill is the highest above all the Hills, whose Jerusalem is his Throne, when all the Earth besides it, that are foes to him and it, must be as the footstool; and as no more then ashes under the soles of their feet; the Moun­tain of whose House is now establishing on the top of the Mountains, and exalting it self above all the Hills; so that all Nations shall go up unto it; while the proud and lofty dwel down below, in a low place: The way of life is above, where the upright walk, who are to have Dominion over the wicked in that Morning that is appearing; who dwell in Hell, which is beneath, and lie in the grave, and in the dust of the Earth, where Death gnaweth upon their intrals, and feedeth upon them as his Prey.

[Page 21] Query 10. What is Hell? and where is it? Is it a certain lo­cal place? or that, which through the creatures disobedience, is mani­fested in him; and that there is no other?

Answ. Hell is the Valley of Jehoshaphat, i. e. of the Lords judgment (as the word is in English) where with fire, and his sword he pleadeth with all flesh, where he easeth him­self of his Adversaries, and maketh his indignation known to his enemies, whither the Lord comes like a whirlewind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebukes with flames of fire; where the worm that eats in the intrals of the wicked never dies, and the fire is never to be quenched; The place that is ordained of old by the Lord, yea for the King it is prepared i. e. for the Devil and his Angels, the King of all the devou­ring crowned Locusts, which come up in That Smoke that as­cends out of the bottomless pit, and darkens the Sun and the Air, whose Name is Abaddon, and Apollion, i. e. (in Eng­lish) the Destroyer.

The Valley which is also called Tophet, or the Valley of the land of Benhinnom,[3] tipified by that which was of old about Jerusalem; & is its figure, where men sacrificed their friends through the fire to the Idol Moleck, which was their God▪ the Pyle where of is Fire and much Wood, and the Breath of the Lord, which is his Spirit in mens own evil Consciences, like a Ri­ver of Brimstone doth feed, and kindle it: This is that Valley of Jehosaphat, to which (as much a Riddle and Mysterie as it may seem to be, to say, Come up to the Valley) all the Heathen must be awakened and summoned to come up to account out of the dark Cells of their own deceitful and desperately wicked hearts, even to that Light, which is the least of Seeds, and lies lowest under the lust of the world, which is got above it in mens hearts; yet is in truth the greatest and highest Power, and seat of Judicature, which whoever resist and rebel against, receive to themselves Damnation: This is as a burning within, kindled under all mens fleshly glory, of which (mean while not denying it to be also a certain local place, as ye speak) we [Page 22] affirm that it is within in the Conscience of every Malefactor, or impenitent Rebel against the Light, where the wrath of God is manifested against sin, and on the Creature for its disobe­dience, where Heathenish People, not liking to retain God in their knowledge, nor glorifying him according to what know­ledge they have of him, but giving themselves over to vile affections, and to act things that are unseemly, receive (mark) within themselves (as 'tis said Rom. 1.) the just recompence of re­ward, that is meet for their works; where, as every one whose work is found approved by the Light that proves it, hath his rejoicing (with that joy which the stranger intermeddles not withal) in himself alone, & not in another, Gal. 5. So every one, whose work is reproved by the same, must bear his own burden, which none can ease him of, or take off from him, whoever he is: And this is Hell, which is the Lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death, where the fearful, unbelieving, and abominable, have their part, who have no part, nor portion in Gods holy City: And (in answer to the last clause of your sixth query) this I say is the manner of the consolation and happiness, or torment and sorrow, of which ye ask, After what manner shall the soul (if it be sensible of either, out of the body) enjoy the one, or have the other in­flicted on it.

Query 11. What is it in man that must be made sensible of the joy of the one, through obedience, or the torment of the other through disobedience, since what God hath loved, he loves to the end, and the Earth must return to the Earth, and the Spirit to him that gave it.

Ans. The soul of man is that in man, which when once de­parted from its body, which it's the Life of, and also from its a foresaid spirit, which is its life, must be made sensible of the consolation through obedience, or of the tribulation through disobedience, as it is written Ezek 18. The soul that sinneth shall dye, though the Seed of God (had it kept its union with it) would have kept it A living soul. So Rom. 2. it is written, Tribu­lation [Page 23] and anguish, indignation and wrath, must be upon every soul of man that doth evil; but glory, honor, and peace upon every soul of man that worketh good, whether they be Jews or Gentiles. And this with a non obstante to your words of ex­ception at the end of the query, viz. since what God hath once loved, he loves to the end; which are neither the words of Scripture, nor of the truth; for there it's said, having loved his own (which are such onely, who own him in his love) he loved them to the end; and this we say is unchangeably so, although this is also as unchangeable a truth of God, who cannot change; That having from everlasting hated the foreseen subjects of ungodliness, whom he afore unchangeably ordain­ed to be objects of his wrath and condemnation, he hated them unto the end, for as immutably as he loves Jacob, which is the righteous Seed that is ever blessed; he hates Esau or Edom, the Seed of evil-doers, which is never to be renowned; which because it is for ever the border of wickedness, therefore is it the people against whom God hath indig­nation for ever.[4] And this notwithstanding also your other words in the Query, viz. See­ing that the Earth must return to the Earth, and the Spirit to God that gave it: For, as I said above, then doth the evil Soul stand most nakedly open to its misery, and sensible of its tor­ment, vvhen it's divested of that body in which it took its pleasure, and of its spirit vvhich should, could, and vvould have led it once (but novv it cannot, the gulph being fix­ed) to those Rivers of pleasure that are at Gods right hand for evermore. And as for that soul that is found doing good, its most fully cloathed upon vvith its glorious House from above, and its joy and rest in God, vvhen it's uncloathed of its house of Clay, or earthly body, vvherein it dvvelt in bon­dage to, and vvas once groaning under the bondage of its ovvn corruption.

Query 12. What is that City that hath no need of the light of the Sun, nor the Moon to shine in it, &c.? And where is its situa­tion? And what is that honor and glory, which the Kings of the [Page 24] Earth must bring into it? And in what manner must they perform it? Also, how, and when shall they that are saved, be made inhabi­tants of it.

Answ. What need ye Query this of us, if either ye heed­ed the Light in you, which manifests all things in their proper seasons, to such as wait in it; or if ye had wel heed­ed that very Scripture either, out of which your Query seems to be fetcht, and founded? Where ye may as wel read what that City is that hath no need of the Sun to shine in it, as that it hath at all no need thereof, where it's evidenced to be those Saints of God that follow the Lamb, who is their Light, the new Jerusalem which is above, the mother of all the free­born Children of God, which is as a Bride adorned for her Husband, with whom the Tabernacle of the Lord is, and with whom he dwels; and as for the scituation of it, is it not ex­presly said (as in the Vision it was seen) that it comes down from God out of heaven? therefore 'tis a state here on earth, else also the Kings of the Nations could not be said to bring the glory of their Nations into it; i. e. to serve it with their glory; for it is to come to pass, that the Kingdom and nation that will not serve thee (saith the Lord, Isa. 60. 12.) shall perish, yea that nation shall utterly be destroyed) Whose glory that they are said to bring into it, or to serve it with, or minister to it withal, is not any of those unlawful, or sinful lusts, plea­sures, or licentious liberties, wherein they glory as in their shame (for as in maximâ libertate est minima licentia, so it's said, That no unclean thing shall in any wise enter thereinto, neither any thing that desileth, or worketh abomination, or maketh a lie) but their gain and substance, which the Lord himself saith he will consecrate to the God of the whole earth, and to the service of his truth, as they before in their blind minds consecra­ted it to the service of their Lord God the Pope, and the set­ting up of his trashy Traditions: For the Lamb, who is the Light of his holy ones, who are this City, is worthy to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing, and all created things; for, for his sake they [Page 25] are, and were created, Rev. 5. and for those that are with him on mount Syon, who are called, and chosen, and faithful, who are his Priests and Ministers (non nomine tantùm tenus) not in name onely, as the Popes and the Worlds Idol-shepherds are, but (reapse) indeed and in truth; who, as the Lord saith, Isa. 6. 6. shall eat the Riches of the gentiles, and in their glory boast themselves, improving the excellencies of the outward Creation in wiser ways, and to much better uses and ends, than such Drones as the Popes Divines, who have devoured the good of all Lands, under a meer pretence of serving Christ, in the service of their own lusts and bellies. And whereas ye ask, When shall those that be saved be made the Inhabi­tants of it? I answer, So soon as ever they are saved from the sin, which is that alone that slayes the soul, and sepe­rates it from its part and portion there; For blessed are they that do his Commandments, they have right to the Tree of Life, and to enter in through the gates into the City, without the which are the Dogs, who draw back from the truth, and lick up their old Vomit; who for all their dreaming that they eat and drink in the day while the Lord's Visitation passeth over them, shall yet wander to and fro for meat, and grud ge that they can never be satisfied; and at evening when they awake, and see the Sun is set upon them, they shall return, and grin like a dog, and go round about the City, but never enter to have any share in it, being clambered up above the Door, which is the Light.

Query 13. What are the Chains in which the Angels (who kept not their first estate) are reserved under darkness unto the Judgement of the great Day? And where is the place of their confinement? And what is the great Day, and the Judgement? We pray you plainly de­monstrate.

Answ. The Chains which the Angels who kept not their first estate, are reserved in, are the same under which men, who kept not their first estate, are also reserved under darkness, unto the Judgement of the great Day, & that is the darkness it self, into which they are both gone forth from the Light, which [Page 26] was That habitation they both left, in which they were created to stand, as 'tis said, the wicked are captivated in the cords of their own sins, and snared in the works of their own hands, viz. in the deceitful counsels of their own hearts, in their own corrupti­ons, under the bondage of which the whole Creation groans, and travels in pain together to be delivered; out of which Bonds, and Chains, and Fetters, Snares, and sore Captivity, there is no deliverance for men, who are all to come to judgement, but in Christ, who opens the Prison-doors, by that Spirit by which he went and preached to the Spirits which were in prison in the Dungeon of Egyptian darkness of old in the days of No­ah; wherein they remain reserved unto Wrath and Judgment, which from the Lord must first come upon them, as assuredly as ever they sinned, and as unavoidably as travel on a Woman with Child, which she cannot possibly escape; and the place of their confinement is where-ever the said rebellions spirits are; a place not of an outward, local consideration; for although every spirit is in loco definitivé, and determined to his Hic & nunc (excepting God onely, who cannot be so) yet a spirit cannot be said to be in loco circumscriptivè.

And as for the Great Day, and the Judgement thereof, It is the Light of the Lord, (for the Light he called Day, and the Darkness he called Night) and the Judgement that the said Light layeth to the Line, and to the Plummet, in every Creature that hates and rebels against the Light, which ministers condem­nation on the Transgressor, and reveals from God nothing but Vengeance, Tribulation, Wrath, and Anguish, Perplexity and Disappointment, Wo, Cursing, and vexation of spirit on every evil spirit, and on every soul of man that is found in evil doing; the Eternal Judgement of which day of the Lord, is over all the Oaks of Bashan, and Cedars of Lebanon, and pleasant Pictures, and fenced Towers, and high Walls, and all mans glory and pomp, which Hell now opens her mouth wide to receive & over every one, and every thing that is high and lifted up; and there can be no declining the Judgement of it so, but that (to versifie to you back again in your own way of Latine Rime, wherein ye con­clude [Page 27] your Queries, and I my Answer) you must expect and know, That

Quod sibi quis (que) serit praesentis tempore Vitae,

Hoc sibi messis erit, cum dicitur Ito, Venite.

To all your Queries above answered, you subjoin thes [...] two Verses.

Non pudor est quaeri, quae nescis sivé doceri:

Qui SCIT Laudatur, qui NESCIT vituperatur.

To which I return, and so conclude as follows.

Non pudor est quaeri, nec quaerere, at us (que) teneri

Quaerendo, at (que) queri est pudor, & nescire doceri.

Qui fructu crescit SCIT, quamvis plurima nescit;

Is quod SCIT nescit, qui tantum lumine crescit.

Qui bene SCIT (que) alitur, SCIT & ut sit gregibus Altor▪

Qui malé non aliter, quam ut se SCIRE hoc SCIAT Alter.

Haud qui SIT (que) Satur, facit at qui quod SCIT, amatur▪

Is, sibi quod datur, per quem (que) opus hoc operatur:

Qui SCIT Salvatur, SIT at ut SCIT, & ut SCIT agatur;

Qui SIT laud atur, qui NE SIT vituper atur.

Dixi.

• D
  • omini
  • ei
  • S
  • amuel
• ervus
• P
  • iscator.
  • astor.
  No shame to Ask, nor be Ask't, but to weary

Free Answerers out with Queryings, and to Query

The same o're, o're, and o're again concerning

Truths, which they are ever taught, yet never learning,

He who knows little, yet bears fruit, knows much,

No knowers know that they do know, save such;

Such Thrive, such know that they may be as Mothers,

Some know but to be known to know by others;

No knower, but the doer of what's known

Is lov'd, who works what's given him as his own;

Who knows is sav'd (this I must needs acknowledge)

Yet let him BE, and acted be by's knowledge;

Who Is what's by him known's of worth and prais'd,

Who Is not so's worth nought, despis'd, disprais'd.

S. F.

[Page 28]

What to themselves All Men

Sow now, (be't Good, or No)

That must each man Reap Then,

When Christ shall say, Come, Go.

FINIS.

Page 9. line 28. for differently, read indifferently.

FOOTNOTES

1. Viz. Robert Wilson, who together with my self, was then, and is still impri­soned in Westminster Gatehouse; where, and from whence also this present An­swer was written and gi­ven forth.

2. 1 Thess. 5. 23.

3. Therefore is Hell called by Christ, Matth. 5. 29 30. and by Iames, Iam, 3: 6. in Greek [...], ex [...] & [...] val­lis Hinnom quae alias [...] Topheth dici­tu, ter: 7: 31: Isa: 30: 33:

4. Mal. 1. 4.