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Show ( 272 ) they requited Evil for Good in all Ages, for rheir Love which they did bear ro the Souls of the Sons of Men ; and che fame mufi '-:e expect from this Generation, wherein we h_ve; we whom the Lord hath called to place h1s Name jn · and bath fen£ us forth in lhis Day of his Lo~·e co Preach his Everlafiing Gofpel to them which dwell upon rhe Earth, in. Love and Pity to their Souls; bur they regard 1t nor, ~hough we go Thoufands of Miles for the Seeds fake, which lyes in Dtath ; yet the Reward o~ our Labour, from rhem, is Prifons, and Whips w Scourge us wicbal, and Knives pr~pared to Cut off Ears and Irons hot, to burn m the Hand; thus are' we required Evil for Good, for Tefiifying againft the World, That their Deeds are Evil · and therefore do they Hare us, as they did Chrifr and his Apofiles, and call us Deceivers, Fools and Herericks, Jefuics, and the like ; becaufe we fpeak the Truth to the.m, .and cannor joyn with them in their Abommauons, ?ut fiand as Wirndfes for the Lord God, a~amll: them : Therefore po the Priefis and Rulers JOyn, Hand in Hand coge[her againft us, as they did againfi the rrue Prophets, Ch~·~tl and his Apoftles, as you may read in the Scrtptures of Truth, which bear T.etlimony to thefe Things. So, ~ear Neighbours and People, where this may come, Confider my End in Writing this umo you ; the Lord is my Wirnefs, That this is not \Vritten, as ~6 fer up OL}r felves, and pull down orhers; but ir is. wrirren for your fakes, that you might come ro fee the Deceir of your own Hearts, which harh long lodged in you, and alfo rhe Deceit of the Priefts "in this Generation, that (eek their Gai1' from their Quarter, and keep you Captive in Babylon an4 Egrpt, where our · · · Lord ( 2,~ ) Lord is Crucified, as they did many of us in time pall, where we were bewitched by their Sorceries and their fmoorh Words, in fpeaking . Peace ro us, when our Souls lay in Death, Unconvened in our fallen Eftares, as they are at this Day, fo they could not help us out of it, being in it themfelves : Thus were we led by them in Blindnefs for many Years together, ever Learning, and never able to come to the Knowledge of the Trmh by them ; if the Lord had nor looked upon us with an Eye of Pity, we had furely perifhed under their Teaching, becaufe they are our of rhe DoCtrine of Chrifi and his A pofiles, who was fem ro open blind Eyes, and turn People from Darknefs to the Light of Chrifi in them ; and from the Power of Saran to God ; but thefe Priefis labour, in this Generation, ro keep People in Darknefs, in Blindnefs, and in Ignorance ; in DeaLh, in their unconverted Efiare, that fo they might nqt fee rheir Dectir, as we do : The Lord open your Eyes, that you may fee how you have been led afiray our of rhe true Way which leads unto Eternal Life. Oh! my Love in Tendernefs runs our to you all, my dear Neighbours and Acquaintance, tn Bowels of Compaffion and Piry to your Souls, which lies in Death, as mine hath done ; but the Lord in his Brernal Love and Pity to my Soul, harh redeemed me from my fallen Efiate, and raifed my Soul from Death ro Life, and ouc of t~e Pit, whe~ein ic lay dead in Trefpaffes and Sms; and feemg the Lord hath done this for me, I cannot bm declare it to the Sons of l\tlen, and Praife his Name in the Land of rhe Living, who .h_arh done great Things for me ; and when ~ con~1der, and ponder ic in my Heart, my Soul ;tS rav1lhed with his Love, and broken imo Tears, tO |