HEare Oh Virgine, Daughter of Zion, marte of the Nations, who sayest I sit as a Queen, and shall know no sorrow, Rev. 18.7. When as de­struction it at hand, and misery (as [Page 2] a whirle wind) shall take thee away. Yea, paine shall come upon thee, as the paines of a woman in travell. Thou saist thou art rich, and increas­ed with goods, and hast need of no­thing, and seest not how thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked. Rev. 3.17. Thy former Prophets prophesied unto thee of corn, and wine and oile, Joel, 2.19. but I have nothing to comfort thee withall, but the sword, famine, and pestilence. And though they spoke true, yet wouldest thou not beleeve them, but becamest un­thankfull and vaine in thy imagina­tions, and thy foolish heart was full of darknes, Ro. 1.21. therfore judge­ment is sprung up into hemlock, and thou art made bare & desolate. Yea, thou art returned with the dog unto the vomit, and with the swine that was washed, to the wallowing in the mire of thy sinnes, and in the sink of thine own ruine and perdition, 2 Pet. [Page 3] 2.22. Yea, thou hast multiplied thy transgressions yet seventimes more, and hast been more vile then the heathen.

Thou criest peace, peace, when as sudden calamity will overwholm thee, Jer. 6.14. Thou dwellest carelesse and secure, and seest not that the sword is at hand; yea the Philistines are upon thee, O England, and thy casting down will be in the midst of thee: for from within is murder, and slaughter and ru­ine, thy destruction is of thy selfe, and perpetuall desolations, if mercy prevent not, and happy will he be, that taketh thy children and dasheth them against the stones, except thou repent. Make mourning therefore, for England, and take up a lamentation for her, yea let the mourning women bewail her, as a wo­man mourneth for her first born or on­ly begotten; or as Rachel for her chil­dren, that would not be comforted be­cause they were not Matt. 2.18.

Thou sayst, that the Earth is full of the knowledge of the Lord, Isa. 11.9. [Page 4] and that God is with thee, that thou hast the divine oracles, Ro. 3.2. yea and that thou art the seed of Abraham, and boastest of the Temple, of the Sanctu­ary, Jer. 7.4. and of reformation, when as there is nothing but deformity in thee, and all things are turned into dis­order and confusion.

Is not unity the bond of peace and perfectnesse Eph. 4.3. and the establish­ment of all estates and kingdomes, and yet how little thereof is there to bee found in thee? For is not the father a­gainst the sonne, and the sonne against the father, is not the head against the members, and the members against the head? Is not the Presbyterian against the Independent, and the Independent against the Presbyterian? Is not the Brownist against the Anabaptist, and the Anabaptist against the Brownist? Is not the Libertine against the Familist, and the Familist against the Libertine? Nay, is not one Christan brother a­gainst another? so that the whole world [Page 5] seemes to be out of frame, & the foun­dations of the earth are shaken, yea, and the vaile of our temple is rent, from the top to the bottome, Mat. 27.51. Christ is dead and torne in pieces among us, and we have crucified the Lord of glo­ry, 1. Cor. 7.8. and put him to an open shame. Wee are fallen into the hands of theeves, and left for halfe dead; O good Samaritan heal us, and have com­passion on us! Is not the whole head sicke, and the whole heart faint? Isa. 1.5 yea, from the sole of the foot unto the crowne of the head, there is no sound­nesse in us, but we are full of wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores, wee have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with oyntment. Is not our Country desolate, our Cities are burnt with fire, have not strangers devoured our land in our presence, and are we not desolate as overthrowne by strangers? Are we not left as a cottage in a vineyard, and as a lodge in a gar­den of cucumbers, and as a besieged ci­ty? [Page 6] Verily, except the Lord of Hosts had left us a small remnant, we should have beene as Sodome, and we should have beene like to Gomorrah. Are not our goods according to the number of our cities, nay according to our tribes, and families, so that so many heads, so many severall sects and opinions? Is not Christ divided, and seems not Paul 1. Cor. 1.13. to be crucified among us, while as Christs precepts are neglect­ed, and Pauls Epistles abused? and while as some preach Christ of envie, and for filthy lucres sake, and some of good will, and out of a good consci­ence. Nay, hath not Baal as many false prophets among us, as Christ hath true Ministers? and do not many run before they are sent? the lowest and meanest of the people (to the dishonor of God, and scandall of the Nation) thrusting themselves in to bee Priests, to serve Christ at his Altar, while as Christ is neglected and persecuted in his poore saints and members.

[Page 7] O England, looke about thee! and see, whether these bee not the deadly and dangerous symptomes of an angry and offended God, and of thine appro­ching ruine and desolation. Yea, and that which is worse, thou hast false rea­chers in the midst of thee, which bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift damnation, 2. Pet. 2.1. Thou hast justified all Nations in their sinfull courses and abominable idola­tries; for thy blasphemies are gone up unto heaven, and in them thou hast ex­ceeded all people. The Jewes do only deny Christ but thou hast them which not only deny him, but also blasphe­mously use him and persecute him, cur­sing the time that ever they knew him, his word or sacraments; holding the divine truth to be but a fable, & a dead letter, and that all the meanes to grace and salvation, is but needlesse and un­profitable; that stockes and stones are God, and that God is in them. The [Page 8] Gentiles called Christ, the crucified God, but they never sayd that hee was weake and unperfect, in charging him with folly and ignorance. [Because some have affirmed that Christ did more hurt in teaching the Lords Prayer, and saving the Thiefe upon the Crosse, then ever he did good in all his life.] The Iewes called him a glutton, a wine-bib­ber, and a friend of publicans and sin­ners, and we do little lesse. The Turks grant him to be the great Prophet, and Messias that should come into the world, onely they deny him to bee the Sonne of God: there bee among us, that deny that ever there was any such thing as a Christ in the world; and fome that confesse him, but hold him to be no better then illegitimate, and a sinner. Yea, and that which is worst of all, this hath beene and is maintay­ned with a high hand, as if God did not see, and as if the Almighty regard­ed it not. For this our Land mourneth, [Page 9] and bleeds even unto the death. Nay, the cry thereof is gone up even unto the heaven, and hath entred into the eares of the Lord, pleading for venge­ance.

Repent therefore, O England, and doe the first workes, lest God remove the light of his countenance, and can­dlesticke from thee, Rev. 2.5. and give thee thy portion with them that shalbe without; even with dogges and force­rers, and whoremongers, and murde­rers, and idolaters, and whatsoever lo­veth, or maketh a lie.

Thou hast much teaching, and great is the company of Preachers, whereof some set forth Christ syncerely, pow­erfully and plainly: but where is thy conversion, or turning unto the Lord? Doth not pride, malice; cruelty, op­pression, covetousnesse, hypocrisie, pro­phanesse, contempt of Gods ordinan­ces, unprofitablenesse under the means, unthankfulnesse for mercies received, selfe love, hardnesse of heart, wilfull [Page 10] ignorance, and carnall security, reigne as much in thee as ever it did? Doeth it not sound as loud, yea louder, in the eares of the Lord, then ever it did, and yet wilt thou say that thou art reform­ed, that thou art a people beloved of God, and dwellest under the shadow of the Almighty? Wilt thou say, that thou art Gods choice vine, and doest thou bring forth nothing but the grapes of Sodome, and the vintage of Go­morrah? Dost thou professe Christ in word, and deny him in deed? Is not Religion derided, and faith and a good conscience made shipwracke of? Dost thou not heare, O England, the bleat­ing of Sauls sheepe, and the lowing of his oxen, 1. Sam. 15.14. Dost thou not▪ see, that judgement is waxen ripe, and how that vengeance is layd to the line, and how the Almighty is watching o­ver thee, for evill, and not for good; yet notwithstanding all this, wilt thou promise thy selfe peace in the midst of warre? What peace (thinkest thou) can [Page 11] there be to Ioram, so long as the whore­domes of his mother Iezabel, and her witchcrafts are so many, 2. King. 9.22. There is no peace (sayth my God) un­to the wicked, Isa. 48.22. Wherefore let my counsell be acceptable to thee, (O England) to break off thy sinnes by righteousnesse, and thine iniquity, by shewing mercy to the poore, if it may be a lengthning of thy tranquility Dan. 4.27. Let righteousnesse flow down as a streame, and true judgement as a strong water course. Seeke peace and insue it. Let the Kings throne bee esta­blished in judgement and equity, but let it bee thy chiefest care to advance Christ, in his throne and kingdome: for if thou advance him, he will honor thee, and they that regard him not shall be but lightly esteemed. Let Religion and the power of godlinesse be establi­shed, and looke up on the blubberd and bedewed cheekes of thy spirituall mo­ther the Church, for it is only she that by profession hath brought thee forth a [Page 12] Christian: O grieve her not, nor see her sit any longer in the dust, to bewail her rents and schismes, in the discord of her children. Repaire her beauty by bringing in good order and discipline, and let them even be cut off that trou­ble her, and the peace of this our Zion. Prepare to meet thy God, O England, for he is ready to take vengeance, upon all disobedient and unbeleeving chil­dren. And, Kisse the sonne lest hee be angry, and thou perish from the way, if his wrath be kindled but a little, blessed are all they that put their trust in him, Psal. 2.12. The which that we may all doe, God grant us his grace, love, fear, and unity of heart, for Christs sake, Amen.