Come Persecutors, Awake, Awake; hearken how the Cows and the Oxen Low in your Ears; when you lie down to Sleep, doth not their Lowing trouble you? And when you rise, are not you tormented at the Noise of their Lowing? Sleep as secure as you can, you will be awakened at last; and then the Noise of the Lowing of Cows and Oxen will sound in your Ears: In your Lying down, in your Rising up; in your Eating, and Drinking; in your going about your Business; it will be a dreadful Noise, when the Cause of the Innocent, whom you have wronged, comes to be laid before you.

Come Persecutors, Awake, Awake, hearken; Do you not hear the Bleating of Sheep, which have been taken from an innocent People, for keeping the Commands of Jesus? Stop your Ears as hard as you can, they will be opened at last; and their Bleating will be so loud sounded in your Ears, that you cannot avoid the terrible Noise thereof.

Come Persecutors, Awake, awake; hearken what a dreadful Noise is amongst the Pots, Kettles, Skillets, Frying-pans, Dripping-pans, Pewter-dishes, Flagons, Chamber-pots, &c. the which have been taken from an innocent People, for keeping their Conscience void of Offence towards God and man; that men take offence against [Page]the Innocent, when no Proof can be made thereof; that is the steps of the Wicked in all Ages: But hearken Persecutors, sure you are not so fast a sleep, but that you may hear the Ratling of these things in your Ears; well, they will make a fearful Noise at last.

Come Persecutors, Awake, awake; open your Eyes, they will be opened at last, and then the Beds, Cloths, Corn, Hoggs, Horses, Butter, Cheese, Bacon, & all sorts of commodities taken from Trads­men, out of their Shops, and working Instruments from poor people, Shoe-Leather, and abundance of other things, too long to name; all taken from an Innocent Harmless People, who seek the good and well-being of all men: At last all these things shall be laid before your Eyes, you shall not be able to shut them against them, nor to stop your Ears from the several dreadful Noises; but they must sound in your Ears, and you must know, that all these doings proceed from a corrupt rotten heart and mind, which is abhorred by the living God.

And now after all the Spoil, that hath been made on the Goods and persons of an innocent People, many of whose Bloods have been shed in your Streets, witness Horslydown Meeting: After all this, the matter of Fact which the innocent People, called Quakers, have bin accused of, it hath not at all bin prov'd against them; neither hath there been any cause of a ground given to suspect their Meetings to be any wayes tending to Sedition, &c. they having been always peace­able on their parts; and therein the Peace and Well-being of all hath been sought? When you are awakened, and the Book opened where­in your Wickedness is recorded; then will the Meetings of the Peo­ple of God, called Quakers, appear unto you to be as aforesaid. And so all you, who are wondering at a Peoples standing still in silence to wait upon the Living God, to receive Counsel from him, that by the same they may be guided in the Way and Path of Life: Would it not be good if all would do the same? And not run forward in Satans Counsels, in Envy, Hatred, and Malice, till you come to be bitten and devoured, one of, and by another: What is it the near to have the Names of Christians, when there is none of Christs Spirit or Nature in you. Be not Deceived, the Living God will not be Mocked; though in his tender Mercy, he hath yet spared many Vials of Wrath, [Page]and hath not poured them forth, but instead thereof he hath caused many to go out in his Dread, and Fear to testifie of his Good-will, upon repentance & amendment of life; but that Love having been slighted, the contrary will come heavy at last; and then your courage and valour which you have exercised against an innocent People, that will fail you; and Fear, and Trembling, and Amazement, that will seize upon you. Brambles and Thornes, whose nature is to Tear and Rend, cannot stand against a consuming Fire.

Come, hearken all that have had a Finger in this Dish; Have you not betrayed your Master? are you not called Christians? and should not Christians have all one Master? Did not the name of Christian come by him who is Master of all, and hath all Power in Heaven and Earth? And was it not given to them who came out of the Heathen­ish nature, who came under the Power, which was manifest to de­stroy the works of the Devil, and the nature of the Devils power, which is to Rend, Tear, and Devour; coming in Tr [...]op, as he did up­on Jobs Goods, in Troops of Caldeans, and Bands and Troops of Sa­beans? So have not you, who are in the same works now, as the Sa­beans and Caldeans were then (in spoiling the Goods of innocent men, who love that which is Good, and hate that which is Evil? Have not you betrayed your Lord and Master, having given your selves up to serve a wicked Ruler, he that is prince of the power of Darkness, who hath his rule in his Servants, who are departed from their obe­dience to him who is Lord and Master of all, and ought to be ser­ved and feared by all; since there is no blessing, nor any thing that is good, but what is of him, and from him, who created all, and up­holds all, who is Lord of all blessed for ever.

Come, be awakened, and hearken; Where do you find (by the Example or Doctrine of Christ Jesus, who is Lord of all, and hath all Power in Heaven and Earth) or do you read of any such works aforementioned, done by him or his Followers? No, no, you have betrayed him, who call him Lord, and yet live in such works of malice and revenge; he taught, and teaches quit contrary, even to learn of him, who is meek and lowly in heart, admonishing all to love one another, and to do good for evil, and to love Enemies; who dwels with them that are of a contrite and humble spirit, who teaches [Page]the humble and meek, and who washeth and clenseth his Followers from their filth, as in dayes past, so to day and for ever. Oh you betrayers of him, who have rendred him a hard Master, in that you deny him; for he is righteous just and true, and gives power to them that receives him, and obeys him patiently, to bear the reproaches, of the wicked, and to undergo their cruel mockings, scoffings and spoilings, till his pleasure is to plead the cause of the Innocent, who have no arm of Flesh, nor carnal Weapon; but their trust is in him who is Lord of all, unto whom all Tongues must confess, and every Knee must bow; though for a while, the Wicked, with their Ruler the Devil, may be loose, he must be chained at last, and cast into the Lake of Fire, where their part and portion will be, who continues serving him (a sad Bargain.) So all you Betrayers of the just holy Prin­ciple of Light & Life in your own hearts, be awakened, come see what a Dream you have been in, and what Dreamers you have followed, who are out of the Way of the Lord, and yet for lucre sake, by art and policy, keeps people confessing they are out of the Way of the Lord, perswading them its not to be found, or as if there were no such thing.

Oh, be awakened, and see what a Dream you are in, and what filly Dreamers these are, who have put from them Christ, the Way▪ the Truth and the Life, by which all that ever comes to God, it must be by him, whom many have found, so cannot but confess him before men, there being no other way out of Evil, and which brings and leads to peace; this is a perfect Way, and tryed Way, into which no Unclean Person, nor Envious Person can come into; he must forsake his Envy, and Uncleanness, and all the Devils works, if ever he comes there.

Come, don't stot your Ears, and shut your Eyes, it will all be in vain; for he that is Lord, Master and Creator of all, sees and beholds all, you can hide nothing from him, and he will call you to an Account; then, what can the Betrayers say?

Oh, you whose dayes are not quite over, consider what you are a doing, and what you are treasuring up; Malice, Envy and Hatred are from a corrupt root and ground, which is for Cursing.

Come, be awakened, cease to do evil, then learn to do well, if hap­pily you may obtain Mercy; restore the Pledge and repent: Keep nothing back that hath been taken by violence.

Be awakened, and see how filthy your hands are, through Malice and Cruelty, which hath brought a filthy Smell and Curse upon your Estates; a sad Portion for your Children, for their Fathers to die with their Estates entailed in the Curse, the which can never be removed, from Father or Child, till the cause of the Curse be re­pented of, and done away, and so the hands washed in innocency; until which time every one shall bear his own Iniquity, because of the accursed thing that is in their hands.

So out of love to Truth, and good will to all is this written, whatever construction you may make thereof, into whose hands it may come; yet in his sight who sees all things, I am cleared, that herein I wish the good of all.