O Ye men of London, who fit as Heads, and are as Lead­ers to the rest of the Nation in your proceedings; and to ye the inhabitants of the Subburbs thereof, do I speak; yea, to you chief men in Middlesex, who sit in the seat of Justice: What, think ye the Lord hath forsaken the earth? Or is it in your hearts the Holy One of Israel sees you not?

Consider and lay it to heart, slight it not; for God wil plead with you for these things: What, is Truth wholly become a prey amongst you, and Justice and true Judgement turned backward, that Equity cannot enter? And have you not on­ly the Names of Justice, and the words thereof painted upon the Walls in your Courts, and your hearts hardened against God and his Truth where it is made manifest? And is not this Scripture fulfilled in your generation, That he that departs from iniquity becomes a prey? And are not the proud count­ed happy? And are not them that work wickedness set up.

O ye men in Authority, consider these things, and lay it to heart; for do not our eyes behold these things in your Courts of Judicatory? And, are not these things brought forth a­mongst you, the prophane, licentious persons, drunkards and swearers, whores and whoremongers are set at liberty, and the poor despised Members of Truth kept in bonds for the exer­cise of a pure Conscience towards God and Man; for know this, it is for this very thing we suffer outward bonds and im­prisonments, with the spoiling of our goods, because we fear the Lord, and cannot run into the same excess with others, but keep our Consciences void of offence towards God and man.

So consider how cruel and hard-hearted you have been to­wards [Page 2]us; yea, like Pharoah's Task-Masters have you oppressed the Seed of Jacob; but know this, the mighty God of Jacob in whom we trust; wil as sure plead our Cause, as ever he did Is­rael's of old; who hath, and wil give us strength and patience to wait upon him for deliverance in his own time. So think not that pride, cruelty and oppression and them that delight therein, shall for ever reign, and Truth be for ever slain in the streets of spiritual Sodom and Egypt, where Christ was, and is crucified by the generation of Cain, Ismael and Esau, who were murderers, scoffers and persecutors of all the righteous Seed of God, from Abel to this very day; but know this, yes assuredly, Plagues, Plagues is prepared, Vials, Vials of the Wrath of Almighty God is to be poured forth without mix­ture upon the seat of the Beast, and upon the inhabitants of the Earth, whereby they shall gnash their teeth for very pain, and blaspheme the God of Heaven (who hath power over these plagues) that repeat not of their evil deeds, but curse their God and their King, which is Abaddon the Angel of the bot­tomless pit.

And so let none glory in their acts of cruelty, nor boast in their own strength, nor say as it was said in the Revelations, Who is able to make war with the Beast? For the little stone is cut out of the Mountain, which hath and wil smite the great Image; yea, and God's Plough is entered into the fallow ground, yea and all the bryars and brambles, call Cedars and sturdy Oaks shall not hinder its passage through the Earth, but in the fulness of time they shall be as stubble fully dryed, fit for the fire, and the wrath of the Lord God Almighty shall kindle upon them, and burn, and not be quenched til Judgment be brought forth in­to victory, and Truth and Equity come to reign, and Righte­ousness run down our streets; for this is what the Lord requires of every man, To do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with his God, and to love his Neighbor as himself, as the Scri­pture faith; and until then not a blessing, but a curse is to be expected.

And this is to all you in Authority, in whom the gift of God is not wholly slain, but some tenderness is left in you, & your Consciences are so far enlightened, that you cannot join in your hearts with the unjust proceeding of others, take heed [Page 3]how you join hand in hand with the wicked, neither be silent for fear of man when unjust Judgment is given against any; for if you do, God wil not hold you guiltless at his Judgement-seat; but as you are faithful to God, so shal you have your re­ward; but if you are silent, and wink at the unjust proceedings of others, whereby Truth and good men come to suffer, God wil require it at your hands, and that which he hath given, shall be taken from you, and ye bound hand and foot, and cast into utter darkness as wel as others, where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth for ever.

For know this, God did not set you in places of trust to seek your selves, but to act for him, and to be an encouragement to good men, and a terror to the wicked; and as you are faith­ful thereunto, you wil come over all the slavish fear of man, al­though they be higher in power then yourselves; and so you wil answer the end for which God hath set you, which is not to please men, but to do the wil of God, which cannot be done by you if you seek to save self; but God wil deliver the oppressed by another hand, and ye shall be cast out as dung upon the face of the Earth.

And what think you, ye Merchants of Babylon, who reign as Kings, and put the day of the Lord afar off, and push with your horns, and cry, Tush, away, where is the promise of his coming? doth not all things continue as they were since the Fathers fell asleep? and is not our Kingdom restored again into its strength and vigor as before? And are net the Towers of Babel rebuilt? And doth not the Whore our Mother sit as a Queen, with her Golden Cup in her hand? And have not we made Laws and Decrees that all both small and great, shall drink thereof? And how should she see sorrow, or we have cause to lament her downfall, which you say is so near?

Why hear this ye Merchants of Babylon who are crept out of your holes and dens, and are spread like Locusts upon the face of the Earth, and at your return is the Dragons Chain loosen­ed, and the smoak of the bottomless pit ascended, whereby the air is darkned, and what are you seeking long life here in thick darkness? (yea, as in Egypts Land, which may be felt) and are not your spirits as black as Hell, and as bloody as your Scarlet Robes? And do they not thirst after the blood of the Saints, to drink thereof, who cannot drink the Cup of your Fornica­tion? [Page 4]Nay, your day which is in darkness, is short, & the time is at hand wherein you shall be taken with the Beast and the Dragon, and cast alive into the Lake which burns with fire and brimstone for ever; for by your Sorceries is the Earth corrupt­ed? And shall not a devouring fire cleanse and purifie it again? yea, the smoak of your burning shall ascend up for ever, and for evermore; yea, dry trees twice dead, and pluckt up by the roots; yea, bundles, bundles for the fire are ye prepared both high and low, noble and ignoble, great and small, even as you would have devoured, so shall you be overcome; for God Almighty in whose hand ye are, wil plead with you, who are posting on greedily after your prey; but a hook shall you have in your nostrils, and the prey taken from between your teeth, and ye bound in chains, and cast into utter darkness, where shall be weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth for ever and for evermore, except ye repent; but if the Lord open the eyes of any of you, so that you come to see where you are, and be as fire-brands pluckt out of the burning, should we not rejoice, yea and sing for joy together to the Lord God & the Lamb for ever, who hath redeemed us out of Kindreds, Tongues and Na­tions, and put a new song into our mouths; and how can we but praise and magnifie his Name over all for ever, who hath done great things for his people, whose Name is worthy to be blessed, exalted and magnified over all for ever.

So let not the Merchants of Babylon think it a small thing; for us to return back again from New- Jerusalem the City of the great King, to their City Babylon, to sit under their Willows by the Rivers of Babylon; for there we cannot sing an Hebrew song, but must feed of the broth of their abominable things, which our souls hate, and hath no pleasure therein, but as living wit­nesses bear our Testimony for the Lord our God against their abominations as he calls us thereunto.

And so let none worship the Beast, nor bow to his image, for the everlasting Gospel is preached again, and the Angel doth flye through the midst of Heaven, and the cry is gone forth, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgements is come; & worship him that made Heaven & Earth, & the Sea, and the fountains of living waters; for Babylon the great is come up in remembrance, and the Judgment seat is set, & her plagues are begun, which shal never have [Page 5]end; the mouth of the Lord God Almighty hath spoken it. So be still ye Nati­ons, and keep silent ye Isles afar off; yea, tremble ye Mountains, melt away ye lit­tle Hills, for the Lord our God is risen in power and great glory, and is come to reign, and the Nations are angry at his appearance, who is come and coming in ten thousands of his Saints, to judge the world in righteousness, and to con­vince them of all their ungodly deeds & hard speeches they have ungodlily com­mitted; yea, Gog and Magog are gathering together to the battel of the great Day of God Almighty; yea, and he that rides on the white Horse is gone forth conquering and to conquer; yea, and the slain of the Lord shall be many, and the Fowls are gathering together to the Supper of the Lord God, that they may eat the flesh of Kings, and the flesh of Captains, and the flesh of mighty men; for Gogs numberless number hath appeared, & are appearing, and have drunk blood, and do thirst after it, and they shall be filled; yea, as they have done, so it shall be returned again into their bosoms; yea double unto her, double, accor­ding to her works, (Holy God of Life) and let thy servants the Prophets sound forth thy praises in the Earth; yea, let the Law go forth of Sion, and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem, and let the inhabitants of the Earth hear the sound thereof; for Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and the smoak of her torment ascends for ever and for ever. Therefore rejoice ye holy Prophets, and sing for joy ye Saints of the most High; for the Lord our God and the Lamb reigneth on Mount Sion and in Jerusalem, before his Antients gloriously; and the redeemed of the Lord are with him, with Palms in their hands, and songs of deliverance in their mouths; yea sing ye Babes, rejoice ye Lambs, for your King comes riding upon an Ass Colt, yea upon the Fole of an Ass; yea and his Lambs he carries in his arms, and gently leads those that be with young. So praises, praises, living praises be given to his holy Name over all for ever, whose Name is worthy to be praised, exalted and magnified over all for ever. So praise him O all ye sons and daughters, and sing aloud of his noble acts; for the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea, and the Lyon and the Lamb lye down together; and thou hast caused the root of Jesse to spring out of a dry ground; yea of a little one is there become thousands: O Lord, who can but speak well of thy Name, yea and tell of thy marvellous works, and speak of thy wonders in days past, yea and how thy loving-kindness extends to the ends of the Earth? for when we were in our blood, and no eye pityed us, thou hadst compassion on us, and washed us, and poured oyle into our wounds, and said unto us, Live; and caused us to rest under the shadow of thy wing when we were distressed on eve­ry side; yea when our Enemies were many; yea when the Floods overwhelmed us, and our hope was almost gore; yea then did thy secret arm of power uphold us, although we saw it not; yea thou brokest in upon us with thy living pre­sence, whereby we were refreshed, and our strength was renewed; and as we [Page 6]grew up in thy presence, then delightedst in us, and sought to do us good [...] thou girt us about with the girdle of Truth, and puttest a Bow into our hands, and in thy strength hath it been bent, and arrews have been sent forth, whereby our Enemies have been smitten and at the appearance of thy presence have they fell, yea, holy Lord God Almighty, strong and mighty hast thou been in plead­ing our cause with our enemies both within us and without us; yea, thou hast delivered us from the paw of the Lyon and the Bear, and hast caused us to tri­umph in victory over our Enemies; yea, thou hast done great things for us, and how can wo but speak well of thy Name, and tell of thy wondrous works, and let the people know that thou waitest to be gracious unto all: Whose loving-kindness is stretcht out to the ends of the earth, who in the secret of your hearts cryes, Come; if you wil return, come, and see if there be not balm in Gilead, and saving-health in Israel, and salvation in the Light of the Lord our God, which at present in the setret of your hearts condemns you for your sin, and reproves you in secret when no eye sees you, it condemns you, and sets your sins in order before you; yea and shews you all that ever you have done, as you hearken to it, love it and believe in it; yea, love that which con­demns you for your evil deeds, for it is the gift of God which comes from God, and leads to God again, from whence man is fallen; yea, it wil heal your backslidings, and pardon your iniquities, and blot out your transgressions, that they may be remembred no more; and so your hearts will become upright before God; for the cleansing you will come to know, and the purifying of your hearts will ye witness, yea the new life in the birth of regeneration, will ye know redemption in out of Egypt 's Land of darkness, into spiritual Canaan the everlasting rest of all the faithful and believing Israelite, and true Heritage of God.

Yea, let the Isles afar off tast of his goodness, and them that sit in darkness come away; for Light is sprung forth, and the night is far spent, and the morning hath appeared, and the day star is risen, yea the everlasting day of the Lord which shall never have an end, is come and coming, and his promises a fulfilling; yea and truth and righteousness shal cover the earth even as the waters cover the sea, whereat the Inhabitants of the earth are astonished, and fearfulness doth take hold on the hypocrite, yea & the ungodly men shal trem­ble, and cry to the Rocks and to the Mountains to hide them from the wrath of the Lord God Almighty & the Lamb; For the judgement of the great day is come, & the Saints do rejoice, and shall for ever sing Ha­lelujah, honors, blessings and praises be given unto the Lord our God, whose Name is worthy to be blessed, praised, and exalted over all for ever.

Written the 20. of the 4th. Month, 1663.