THE Work of God IN A Dying Maid: BEING A short Account of the Deal­lings of the Lord with one SVSANNAH WHITROW. About the Age of Fifteen Years, and Daughter of Robert Whitrow, inhabiting in Covent-Garden, in the County of Middlesex. Together with her Experimental Confessions to the Power and Work of the Lord God, both in Judgments and Mercy to her Soul. Published for the Warning and Good of o­thers, who are in the same condition she was in before her Sicknss.

Printed in the Year 1677.

THE Work of God IN A Dying Maid.

FRiends and People, to whom these following Lines may come, these may give you knowledge, that being spoken unto by a Friend, of the State of Sick­ness, and Wonderful Expressions that were uttered by this Maid now Deceased, made me desirous to see her, and as a Mother fearing God, knowing what Joy it must be to have a Child that had Transgressed, to turn to the Lord with all the Heart, and to find Acceptance with [Page 4] the Almighty, as I have cause to believe she did; for he was with her, and I felt a living Power to opperate in her, that neither her Youth, nor Comliness, with any o­ther outward Expectation, that she formerly had or might have of the Glory of this World, left a place in her to desire any longer Life in this World, but as she had before I came, cryed out against her self, for loving and going to these Vanities and Parish Places of Worship; so now in my hearing she was much raised in her Spirit, in the Sense of the Joy that she believed she was entring into, praying and praising the Lord with a pleasant Melody, and desiring also that her Mother might be taken out of this Wicked World: I felt the Loving-kindness of God unto her, and she was brought near to me; the Lord shewed me she must Dye, and being [Page 5] the Only Child of her Parents; and having heard this tender-hearted Mother, had buried her Only Son not a Quarter of a Year before, which by relation was an excellent Child for his Years, not being Six and an Half, for Wisdom and Learn­ing, and Outward Comliness a very Beautiful Child, and one of a great Courage, yet of a very tender, sweet, loving Nature, and more than all, in Soberness pursuing of the better part, so I felt and know in these sudden and renewing Trials there was Judgment; and behold­ing her Mother's Quiet and Patient bearing of it, had this brought to my Remembrance, That they are blessed that can stand in Judgment; and none but a Tender Mother can tell what it is to have Hopeful Chil­dren so soon taken from them, and fee the Lord is Righteous in what he doth; and I that have drunk in­to [Page 6] this Cup, and a more bitter one, must confess, The Lord is Righteous in all, and his Judgments are true, but his Mercies are over all his Works, and his Love Everlasting, and who lives therein, gives Thanks for all things; and this appears to me wor­thy to be known and retained, that so Young a Hopeful and Beautiful Maid should be taken off from her Vanity, yet that the Mercy of the Lord should so freely extend it self unto her, that she might testifie against her own, and the World's Vanities and Worships; and tho' but in the last Hour, the Lord of Goodness granted her an Entrance into his Vineyard, and Power she received to magnifie his Justice and Mercy, that out of the Mouths of Babes and Sucklings will perfect his own Praise: And sure I am, the Dealings of the Almighty God with her on her Dying-Bed, was Fore­warning [Page 7] some, and Instruction to others, that all might believe, and come to the Obedience of the Life, where all may profit, and be built up unto Eternal Life, over Death and Hell, in the Life of Jesus our Lord, which is the Desire of Her that through Grace is a Lover of all your Souls, called

Rebecca Travers

SVsanna Whitrow sickned the 5th Day of the 3d Month, 1677. and lay until the 9th Day, under great Judgment and Terrors of the Lord for Sin and Iniquity, and about Four in the Afternoon she broke forth in exceeding Earnest­ness, crying to the Lord for Mercy, with Wonderful Words, till about three hours, then did the Lord hear her Cries, and answered the Desire of her Soul; and when she had ob­tained [Page 8] Mercy from the Lord, then did she fall into an exceeding travil in Soul and Spirit, praying mighti­ly to the Lord in the behalf of her Father, and so lay four or five Hours crying earnestly to the Lord for her Father, before we writ down any of her Words. Her Natural Spirits were almost spent before these Words were taken as follow.

‘Lord, Remember not his Offen­ces, let me bear them, Lord, let it be easie to him, Lord, make the Way easie; make his Friends to be Enemies unto him, that thou mayst have Mercy on him: Lord his Temptations are great; Lord, carry him through, O let him not perish with the World; Lord, do thou support him over this World: Should a little silly Dirt of this World draw away his Mind? O Lord, satisfie me whether thou wilt grant me my Desires: Blessed [Page 9] Lord, hear me; O Lord, hear me; O Lord, let his Mind be set on things above; Lord, fix his Mind upon thee; Lord, let me never rest (unsatisfied) Lord, help him; turn him, Lord, and he will be turned; Lord, if I leave him be­hind me: O Lord, help me; O Lord, help him: O Lord, hear me; O my Lord, I have not strength left; O Lord take him to thee; but, Lord, grant me my Request; O Lord, help me; Lord, take not away my Strength before thou hast granted my Desire. O Lord, my Desire is not to live in this Abominable World: Lord, if thou take me not to thy self the Tempter will come again: O Lord, my Heart can never rest, until thou hast turned him to thy self: O Lord, must I be taken a­way without any Satisfaction? O Lord, shall I have no help for my [Page 10] Distress? O Lord, Lord, there is no way for him but to Watch and Pray continually, lest the Tempter prevail. Lord, are my Sins for­given? O Lord, had not my Eyes been in those Vanities, my Heart had not gone after them: Lord, strengthen thou me, but to see my Desires: O Lord, can I pray no longer? O Lord, how hath my Strength failed, and my Heart de­cayed? O Lord, let all consider what is this Kingdom: O Lord, thou comest as a Theif in the Night: O Lord, I beseech thee to tell me, if thou hast granted my Desire? O Lord, thou wilt take me: O Lord, must I go before my defire be Answered? O, must I go? O, is there no delay? O Lord, let me but stay to hear an An­swer. I am very happy that I shall not live in this Wicked World: O Lord, I am going; O [Page 11] Lord, take me.’ Then to her Rela­tions, O why will you keep me so long? I shall be kept longer.

  • Robert Whitrow her Father.
  • Joan Whitrow her Mother.
  • William Nash,
  • Susanna Meurs, Nurse.

Sarah Ellis her Testimony CONCERNING Susanna Whitrow, To her Mother. A few Words which were expres­sed by this precious Child in the time of her Illness.

I Not thinking she was so near her End, did not bear in me­mory as many of her Words as I might have done: I can truly say, [Page 12] I was much refreshed in seeing the great Work and Power of the Lord upon her, and hearing the precious Words that proceeded out of her Mouth: When first I came to see her, she had lain about a Weekill; she seemed to be in much Extre­mity of Pain, and crying out to the Lord, saying, O Lord, the E­nemy has wounded my Heart, he has wounded my Head, and he has wound­ed my Hell; Come Lord, I make room, I make room, my Heart is open: O rip me up, and set me in thy Bosome, as thou didst the last Night: O, I feel the Enemy coming in like a Flood; Lord, drive him out.

Another time I went to visit her, when she was in great Con­flict of Spirit and Body, and her Mother withdrew from her, to seek the Lord, leaving her Father by her Bed-side, in which time she uttered little or nothing, but lay [Page 13] Groaning (she would hardly suffer her Mother to be from her, if she could help it) after a while her Mother came again, and she said, O Mo­ther Cease not, Cease not, though no one had told her, that her Mother was a praying to the Lord, but on­ly as she had a sence of it in her self; and when her Mother came to her again, she was in a sweet still Frame of Spirit, and cryed out, Ah! my dear Mother, O my blessed Mother, the Lord has shewed me, my Mother shall have a double Portion of his Spirit, yea, my Mother shall have a double Portion. This she spoke several times over, with many more precious Words, that are past out of my Mind.

Another time I came to see her, a Day or two before she dyed, and her Countenance was changed, and she looked very sweetly, and lay praising the Lord, saying, Oh my [Page 14] Saviour, my blessed Saviour.

Another time her Mother went out of the Room▪ in to the next Room about some Business, and she called earnestly to her Mother, and said, Ah! Mother, I had much in my Heart to have spoke to thee: Care not for this World; a little will serve us, we shall not want; the Lord will feed his People as he did Elisha by the Ravens; yea, the Lord will feed us as he did Elisha.

Sarah Ellis.

COncerning that False Report that was raised by some En­vious Persons, which she formerly kept Company with, hearing of her Change from that Vain Conversa­tion she had formerly lived in, they reported, That she was in love, and that that was the Cause of her Di­stemper. When her Father came home, and had given me a Relati­on [Page 15] of what those Persons had infu­sed into him, although I was satis­fied to the contrary, I went to my dear Child, and examined her con­cerning it, and because I would be clear, of what-ever might happen hereafter concerning it, I said unto her, My dear Child, thy Father and I will give our Consent freely for thee to Marry him, and we will do to the uttermost of our Power for thee, to make thy Life comfortable with him all thy days▪ Then she said,

My dear Mother, I thank you; but that Man is no more to me than one I never saw with my Eyes, neither will I ever him, if he had all the Possessions of the Earth: It's true, there was something betwixt us, he being very urgent with me upon the account of Marriage, proffering to settle a considerable Estate on me, and my Father at that time being a little harsh to [Page 16] me, I thought I would set my self at Liberty; but upon better Con­sideration, I told him, I would do nothing without my Father and Mother's Advice, which he was unwilling to; in that and some o­ther things I was dis-satisfied; I considered, if I should have him, I should be ruined; so, that small Affection I had to him, I with­drew; and before I fell sick this last time, I did desire never to see him more: And now, my Mo­ther I am clear of him, and all Men living.

Oh, my bowed down and bro­ken-hearted Mother! What hath been thy Sufferings in this Fami­ly? Oh! how hast thou been op­pressed with our Iniquities? Ah, bowed down! Ah! how often hast thou told my Father, The Lord would visit him with sore and grievous Judgment if he did not Repent, and [Page 17] turn from the Evil of his Ways? Ah! how often hast thou said, The Lord would plead thy Righteous Cause with us? Now the Day is come, thou hast so long warned us of; now the Lord is risen; now the Lord is broke in upon us. Oh how great hath been thy Care and Pains, which thou hast taken to bring us into the Fear of the Lord? Oh, thou Blessed of the Lord! Great shall be thy Reward, the Lord will give thee Beauty for Ashes, and the Garment of Praise for the Spirit of Heaviness: Bleffed be thou my Mother.

Her Mother being at that time Praising and Magnifying the Lord; then she said, ‘My bless­ed Mother, now is that Vision fulfiled, which the Lord shewed thee concerning me, That my Soul should bless thee, and thy Soul should bless the Lord.

Then she broke forth into sweet Melody, singing Praises unto the Lord.

[Page 18]Blessed are the Poor in Spirit; Lord, I am Poor, I am Needy, I need thy Strength continually to withstand the Temper. O Lord, stand by me, move not from me; for if thou go, the Tempter will come; I will hold the fast; thou art my Saviour; thou shalt save me from the Tempter. My dear Mother, send for that dear Friend (meaning R. T.) that prayed by me the other day; she is a preci­ous Woman; her Heart is up­right before the Lord, the Lord hath shewed it me; I love her; let her pray by me to the Lord a­gainst the Tempter: And send for that faithful Servant of the Lord W. P. The Lord will hear the Prayers of the Faithful; but I have been Unfaithful. O, how often have I sinned against my Saviour, the Light in my Conscience, which shewed me the Way I should walk [Page 19] in? O, how often hath he knocked at my stony Heart, saying, This is my blessed Truth, which the Quakers Preach, by which all Souls that I have made shall be saved in? Then I have said in my Heart, After such a thing and such a thing is ac­complished, I will leave off my Life of Vanity, and become a new Crea­ture. Oh! I was she that trusted in LYING VANITIES; I thought I should have had LONG LIFE, and then I did intend to serve the LORD in my OLD AGE.

Oh! how have I been against a Woman's speaking in a Meet­ing? but now, whether it comes from Man, Woman or Child, it is precious indeed. O that I could be with my Mother, the Lord is with her, that I might have a little time longer, that my dear Mother and I might go in the Country, and walk [Page 20] in a Wood together, that we might seek the Lord, and never lay our Eyes to-gether till we have found him.

Witnessed by me Ann Martin

O Lord, my Strength faileth, I wait upon thee, renew my Strength: O my holy Lord, be pleased to restore me to my former Health, then will I wait diligently upon thee; I will sit on the Ground, with my Head in the Dunghil; I will never lift up my Soul to Vanity; my Heart shall never go after the Sight of my Eyes. My dear Mother, pray for me; for whatsoever thou askest of the Lord, it shall be given thee.

My dear Mother, thou often hast told us of the Terrible and Dreadful Day of the Lord God that [Page 21] is at hand; O, it will be a dread­ful day to the Wicked of all sorts, the Lord hath shewed it me! O Wo, Wo, Wo to the Children of Scoffers; for as it▪ was in Elisha's day, so shall it be in this the day of the Lord's Power, the Bears out of the Wood shall devour them.

And treambling she said, ‘O I feel thy terrible Power, O God, strike Dread, Terror and Astonishment in the Hearts of thy Enemies; O in all Workers of Iniquity, who make a mock at Sin, and a Deri­sion of thy People, and take plea­sure in their abominable Ways, which thou abhorrest; O thou wilt make all Flesh tremble. O, my Mother, I have heard God's thundering Power rattle, rattle, rattle upon the Heads of his E­nemies; and the Lord hath shew'd me he will destroy this Place: A Wo will be to the Children of [Page 22] Pride in that day; and Wo, Wo will be to the Blind Guides that wear the long Robes, the false Teachers of this Nation: O did not our Blessed Lord say, If the Blind lead the Blind, both should fall in to the Ditch: Ah Lord! how should it be otherwise? for they hate the Light, and count it an in­sufficient thing. O did not our Blessed Saviour say, Believe in the Light, that you may be Children of the Light; and bid them all, Watch and Pray, lest they enter into the E­nemies Temptations? And how could they watch without Light? for they could not see the Tempter when he came in the Dark. Ah, that Scripture is fulfilled upon this People, That Darkness should co­ver the Earth, and gross Darkness the People; and then Night should be unto them, that they should not have Visions, and the Day shall be [Page 23] Dark that you shall not Divine. And this was Egypt's Darkness; Ah! but the Children of Israel had Light in the Land of Goshen: O extoled be thy Name thou God of Power; O, if thou wilt be pleased to restore me to my former Strength, O then I will speak of thy wonderful Pow­er; yea, my Voice shall be as the sound of a Trumpet, which shall Convert Sinners unto thee; yea, I will sit in the Dust, and cover my Head with Ashes, and put on Sack-cloth within and without.’

Then she taking some-what to Drink, lay still a little time after, but immediately broke forth with Joy in her Heart, making sweet Melody to the Lord, and so lay half an hour singing unto Lord, but not uttering any Words; then she broke forth into Praising and Magnifying his great Works.

[Page 24] ‘O that cursed Place, that House of Abominations, that Play-House, that abominable House, where they commit their abominable Whoredoms; God will destroy it.’ Her Mother said unto her, What House my dear Child? she answered,

That Church, as they call it, in Covent-Gar­den, the Members thereof are Proud Persons, and Covetous, and Deceit­ful, Lyars, Drunkards and Whore­mongers: Ah! my blessed Saviour said, We should know them by their Fruits. O these were my Cursed Fruits which I brought forth when I was a Hearer of that Church, Pride and Disobedience to my Pa­rents: How often have I adorned my self as fine in their Fashions as I could make me, yet they have looked upon me with Scorn, and despised my Dress, and said unto me, How like a Taudrey you have drest your self? You are not at all in the Mode: [Page 25] then I came home on their Sabbath Day, and gone immediately up in­to my Chamber, and locked the Door, and altered all my Laces, and so I have gone to their Wor­ship in the Afternoon Drest in their Mode, and then I have pleased them. Pray my dear Mother call my Father, I have something to say to him, I desire my Body may not be laid in that abominable place, but among the People of the Lord called Quakers; for now I am a true Quaker, now I tremble before the Lord and his Holiness; Come ye holy Prophets, who were Quakers and Tremblers at the Word of the Lord; come Moses, Jeremiah; come holy Habakkuk, now I am one with thee, now my Belly Trembles, my Lips Quiver, and my Heart Drops, because of the Lord, and the greatness of his Majesty.

[Page 26] O my Lord, yea my Lord; for so I can call thee, because thou ru­lest in me, and my Soul is subject to thee: But they have many Lords and many Gods; they have Gods of Silver, and Gods of Gold, the Work of their own Hands.

O Lord, my Strength fails; my Father, my heavenly Father; I wait upon thee; renew my Strength, my holy Father; be pleased to restore me to my former Health; then I will wait diligent­ly upon thee, I will sit on the Ground with my Head in the Dunghil, my Heart shall never go after the sight of my Eyes. My dear Mother, pray for me; for whatsoever thou askest of the Lord it shall be given thee. The reason why I desire to live is, because I have so greatly dishonoured the Lord in my former Life, and now I would live the rest of my time to his praise: [Page 27] For now if I live, I shall be as one rais­ed from the Dead, to declare his Won­ders: But what shall I say? Tho' one should rise from the Dead they would not believe.

She was exceedingly filled with the Indignation of the Lord against the Priests, and spoke very much a­gainst their Idle Practices and their Abominable Ways, which is not ta­ken in Writing, but these Words the Maid-Servant writ down as she spoke them; she cryed out aloud and said,

Father, O Father, these Priests that deceive the People they study all the Week what to say when Sunday cometh: O Fa­ther, but the day of the Lord is coming, that he will confound all their Study and all their Wisdom, and in that day they shall not be heard for their much speaking, they are Physitians of no Value.

My dear Mother, I fear I shall [Page 28] not have a place so near the Lord as my Soul desires; for I am sen­sible, there are degrees of Glory, and as the Creature acts here for the Lord, so shall its Reward be hereafter: I have done nothing for the Lord, but he hath done all for me, there­fore I desire to live, that I might live a Holy and Righteous Life, that my Conversation might be in Heaven, though my Body be here on the Earth, that I might invite all, as David did, to taste and see how good the Lord is: They have tasted of their perishing Life of Va­nities, yea they they have drunk a full Cup, their Measure is running over; O, but they never tasted the Joys, the unspeakable Ravishments of Soul that attend the humble holy Life of Jesus: Oh, if they had e­ver tasted the least Mite there­of, they would bid adue to all their dirty Life of Vanity; ah, they [Page 29] would not dare to spend their pre­cious Time in adorning themselves like Jezabels, Patching and Pain­ting, and Curling their Monstrous Heads; but O the Christian Life is another thing, they must not give themselves the liberty to think their own Thoughts, much less to act such Abominations as these.

After she had lain a while Prais­ing and Magnifying the Lord, then she spoke very deep and weighty things, which are not set down, concerning the Wise Virgins and their Lamps burning, and exhorted all to keep very diligently upon their Watch; for said she, ‘The Lord will come as a Thief in the Night, and in a Day when he is not looked for; therefore Watch and Pray continually; here the Tempter cannot enter; this is the way my Saviour spake off, when he said, You must take up your daily [Page 30] Cross; this is that Flaming Sword, which is spoken of, you must pass through mark that, you must pass through, it before you can come to the Tree of Life; this is the Cup my Sa­viour asked if you could drink off; and this was that Baptism he asked if you could be baptized withal: Come all you that call your selves Christians, what of the Life of Holy Jesus is in you? who was a Man of Sorrows; you light and airy Ones, you wild and wanton Ones, you that are Lovers of Pleasures more than God, you Workers of Iniquity who are always crying, Lord, Lord, but do not the things that I say, this shall be your dreadful Doom, that you are SATERS, but not DOERS; you Workers of Iniquity, that think you can never have enough of the Pride of Life, the Lust of the Eye, which is not of my heavenly [Page 31] Father; and so you are of your Fa­thor the Devil; for his Servants you are whom you obey. At another time she said,

I have heard them say, that my Mother is so grounded in her Religion, that it is impossible ever to turn her. My Mother is grounded indeed, she is established upon the Rock that shall never be moved; my Mother shall never be moved; her Name is written in Heaven; yea, in the Lamb's Book of Life; it is sealed, it is sealed, the Lord hath told me so, and bid me tell her, There should none be able to pluck her out of his Hand.

Come my blessed Mother, I have something to say to thee, thou art Mary, thou art Mary; my Mother, thou hast chosen that good part which shall never be taken from thee; thou shalt sit continually at the feet of thy Lord; Ay, this is my Mother's Portion; O what [Page 32] Portion is like this? this is more than to sit in the Thrones of Prin­ces.

Be ye holy as I the Lord your God am holy; this they say is Impossible. O, would the holy, just and true Lord command that which is im­possible? In this they count the Lord a hard Master: O but what can my Soul say of thy Power, when I sought thee, but could not find thee, I knocked hard, but none would open? for my Sins stood like Mountains, that I could not come near thee, I would fain have prayed, but could not; I lay several days and nights prostrate before thee, strugling for Life, but could find none; and I said, There is no Mercy for me; then said I, I will never leave thee; if I perish, I will perish here; I will never cease crying unto thee: Then I heard a Voice say, Jacob wrestled all night [Page 33] before he obtained the blessing: O then thy Word was strength to my Soul; O then my stony Heart was broken to pieces before the Lord; and then the Spirit of Pray­er and Supplication was poured into my Soul; and now I can sing, as David did, of Mercy and Judgment; unto thee, O Lord, will I sing; O with a rended Heart, and my Mouth in the Dust will I sing Praises unto thee my blessed Saviour. &c.

For several days she had a very great conflict in Soul and Spirit con­cerning the Tempter; and strong were her Cryes to the Lord for strength to overcome the Enemy; she was so deeply engaged in the ho­ly War of the Lord against the E­nemy, that she would not suffer her Head to be removed from the Pil­low, but said, It must be, as it were, nailed there till she had overcome the [Page 34] Tempter; she said, I would not suffer a thought to wander, if I move I shall be drawn off my Watch, and then the Tempter will prevail; then she had a Vision, and as it were the appea­rance of an Angel, giving us the full description thereof, which we have forgot, only that it was array­ed in White; she had also a Vision of the Tempter, which she said stood before her bound in Chains; then she said, It is finished, I have over­come, my Saviour hath bound him; then she broke forth into Blessing, and Praising, and Magnifying the Lord, that it is beyond the Tongue of Utterance to give a Relation thereof; for many Days and Nights together she would hardly suffer her self to Slumber, but would wa­ken her self to sing Praises unto the Lord, and to declare of his won­derous Works that he hath done for her Soul.

[Page 35] Some Friends came into the Room, but she saw them not, and after many sweet and precious Words, she said,

Don't you Feast, but Fast; you are the People that must Fast and Pray; and be you contented with mean things; O what matter for fine Houses, or silken Apparel; O remember him that sate on the Ground, but wore a Garment without a Seam, our blessed holy Lord, who went up to the Mountain to Pray, that with-drew himself into Gardens and Desolate Places of the Earth, my Soul hath Fellowship with him. O my dear Mother, if it please our dear and heavenly Fa­ther to spare me this time, we will get us into the Country to some little remote Place, amongst the Woods, where none can hear us: O then shall our Crys pierce thro' the Heavens, which shall make [Page 36] the Earth to Ring, and the Birds shall hear the Eccho thereof: O, there, my blessed Mother, will we sing Praises, Praises, Praises with rended Hearts, and our Mouthes in the Dust, to the one holy, holy Lord. O thou Glorious One, thou hast overcome my Heart, thou hast ravished my Soul; O thou pure, pure holy One, what shall I say of thee? or what shall I render to thee, for thy loving-kindness to me? O my Heart is overcome with thy love, Praises be unto thee for thy lo­ving-kindness to me. O how shall I do to set forth thy Goodness; for my Heart drops before thee?

Lord, if it be thy holy Pleasure to take me out of this Life, then let me have, I beseech thee, one whole Day, that my Tongue may never cease Praising thee.

And the Lord answered her Request.

All that Day she was wonderful­ly [Page 37] filled with the sweet Solace of the heavenly Life, singing Praises and Hallelujahs to the Lord, and spoke very much concerning the Lamb and his Followers, which had washed their Robes and made them White in the Blood of the Lamb; and towards the evening, while the Power of the Lord was upon her, there came in two Persons to see her, and she uttered many precious hea­venly Words, which were not ta­ken in Writing at which time these Words were spoken by her, O what matter for fine Houses and silken Ap­pearel: and so went on above half an hour, and with a very great weight upon her Spirit, saying, O Israel, what hath thy God done for thee? & then uttering many deep & weighty Words, she said, The Daughters of Sion are Haughty, they go with their out-stretched Necks, and their wanton Eyes; uttering many [Page 38] more deep Words; then taking up an inward Lamentation, she said, O what shall we do for the Daughters of Je­rusalem?

After several Days lying in the sweet Solace and heavenly Life of the Lord (in which time she utter­ed many heavenly things, which were not taken in Writing) she did express these Words,

O thou Be­loved of my Soul! what shall I say of thee? for thou art too won­derful for me: O Praises be unto thee: O come all ye holy Prophets, praise you the Lord with me: O praise the Lord O my Soul, upon the loud-sounding Instrument; ye Glorious Angels, you that excel in Glory, sing praises to him that sits upon the Throne: O how am I overcome! Ye Stones in the Street why rise ye not up to praise him that lives forever? O thou Light, praise thou the Lord; and [Page 39] thou Darkness, praise and exalt him above all things forever: O thou Son and Moon, ye Stars in the Firmament of his Power, mag­nifie the Lord above all forever: O all ye Fishes in the Sea, why come ye not forth to praise the Lord, the mighty God, who gives you Breath and Being? I will praise thee my holy Lord God, whilest I have any Breath: O praise the Lord O my Soul, sing praises to the God of my Salvation: O my holy One, my holy One, thou hast overcome my Heart: Ah! thou hast ravished my Soul. My dear Mother, I shall be as a new born Babe; I shall be very simple; but bear with me; for the Lord is with me.

My dear Mother, I must lay down this Body, the Lord will not trust me longer in this wicked World; happy am I, my Saviour, [Page 40] my Soul loves thee dearly; thy love is better then Wine; my Saviour, my holy One; how Glo­rious art thou? I have seen thy Glory; I am overcome, my Heart is overcome with thy sweet Coun­tenance: O how lovely art thou! I am ravished, my Heart is ra­vished with thy innocent looks, with the sweet smiles of thy glo­rious Countenance: O come a­way, come away; why dost thou stay? I am ready, I am ready.

Then lying some time very still I heard her in a heavenly Harmony, in which frame of Spirit she depart­ed without either Sigh or Groan.

Joan Whitrow her Testimo­ny concerning the Loving-kind­ness of the Lord.

OH Lord! Did I ever ask Riches or Honour of thee? But I have ask­ed Wisdom and Understanding; for I [Page 41] said in my Heart, The Marchandise of that, is better than the Marchandise of Gold and Silver; O Lord, thou art that Wis­dom my Soul asked, which cometh from above; that is first pure, and then holy, and thou art that Understanding my Heart sought for, more than for hidden Treasures; and did I ever ask Silver or Gold, or Houses, or Lands, for my Childrens Portion? but I have asked the Fear of the Lord; for I know right-well, if they had that, they had all Treasures: Ah! Glory, Glory, Glory be unto thee for what thou hast given me; O my Soul doth magnifie the Lord, & my Spirit doth livingly rejoyce in the God of my Salvation, who hath had regard to the low Estate of his Hand-maid, Oh! what shall I render unto thee for all thy Mercies towards me? but to stand continually upon my Watch-Tower, and to keep in my Wards whole Nights, that when my Lord comes in the second Watch, or in the third Watch, he may find me with my Loyns girded, and my Light burning, that so I may be ready in Body, Soul & Spirit, to enter into the Joy of my Lord. Oh my [Page 42] Soul! what hath the Lord been to thee here? even a place of broad Rivers: O the Height and Length, & the Depth and Breadth of the Love of God to my Soul, in this State: Oh! how hast thou come in and Supped with me, and caused me to eat of the Banket that thou hadst prepared, and caused me to drink of the Wine of thy Kingdom; so that my Cup hath overflowed, as it doth at this time, in the remembrance of thy gracious Goodness, what thou hast been to me in the day of Tryal, and in the many Tribulations, how thou didst set my Feet upon a Rock, and didst establish my Goings, Praises be unto thee; and yet this was a small thing of thy glorious Goodness, and bountiful Loving-kind­ness, but thou hast also given my Chil­dren a Name amongst the Living, and Crowned them with Eternal Life: Oh, Eternal Praises, and endless Hallelujahs be given unto thee, our everlasting Fa­ther: Oh did I ever think in the day when thou led'st me down into the Deep, that I should have thus beheld thy Wonders in this the day of thy mighty Power, wherein thou hast returned me [Page 43] the Answers of my Petitions, when I said unto thee, Let my Children be thy Chil­dren, otherwise I desire none; for one Child in thy Fear, O Lord, is more to me, than a Thousand in the Spirit of this World: Then did thy Presence over-shadow me, & my Soul was sweetly solaced in thy Love; Oh! then thou answered'st me and said I will be a Father to thy Children, and a Husband unto thee. Oh, thou Faithful One! who is a God like unto thee, keeping Covenant with them that Fear thee? for now thou hast performed thy Word unto thy Servant, Glory be to thee forever. Oh, thou Holy One! what hast thou done for me? no Heart can conceive, no Tongue can express the Riches of thy Love; for thou hast given me my Children again in the Resurrecti­on of thy most holy Life, though their Tabernacle be gone to its place, yet they live with me in the Spirit, for our Com­munion is with the Holy One. And now, O Lord, what am I, or what is my Family, that thou shouldst shew this great Kindness to? not unto me, O Lord, not unto me, but unto thy Name be the Praise; for what am I [Page 44] that I should offer up an Offering unto the Lord? for out of the Willingness of my Heart have I offered my Children unto the Lord, although my Children were as dear to me as my Life, and I could have laid down my Life for theirs, if the Lord had required it; yet I durst not ask thier Life of the Lord, although my dear Child so much desired it; but I said unto the Lord, Glorifie thy Name, let thy Will be done in my Ea [...]th, as it is in Heaven: And now, O Lord, by thy Hand thou hast brought this to pass, and for the Exaltation of thy glorious Name, thou powerful God, art striking Dread and Terror into the Hearts of thy Ene­mies; and all that will not bow to thee shall be slain before thee; for, O thou long-suffering God, how is the Throne of Iniquity established, and thou dis­poss [...]ssed of thy Princely Dominion, whose right it is to Reign in the Hearts of the Sons and Daughters of Men; but they have robbed thee of thy Right, and en­tertained thy Enemy in thy room; but now thou art come, now thy Day is come thou so long spake of by the Mouth of thy holy Prophets, That thou wilt dis­mount [Page 45] the Man of Sin out of his Throne, and set thy Son upon thy holy Hill; yea the Mountain of the Lords House shall be esta­blished on the top of all Mountains; for thou hast determined to destroy all Iniquity, and to bring in Everlasting Righteousness, A­men, Amen, saith my Soul; a llG ry, Glory, and Eternal Praises be given unto thee, thou King of Glory.

Joan Whitrow.

Concerning my dear Son JASON.

I Need not speak much; for most that knew him, did know what manner of Child he was; both in Person and Parts natural; therefore I shall only give a small Relation of some of the sensible Words that came from him before he fell sick, for the Satisfaction of some that desire it. Before he went to the La­tine School, he was in a most sweet hea­venly frame of Spirit, and had such a Zeal for Truth, that if any Lightness or Airyness did appear in any, at that time he was a continual Reprover of such; the precious Words that came from him at that time are past out of Mind; I writ [Page 46] down some of them, but they are lost, he delighted exceedingly to hear me re­hearse the noble Acts of the Lord, and would be exceedingly broken; he would often pray when he was alone; he did earnestly desire his Father upon his Death-bed, That he would let him go from him to the Wall, that he might pray to his God: He desired much to con­verse with me concerning God and his Kingdom, and would ask me deep Questions, with such heavenly Expres­sions, to the Astonishment of the Hearers, that I have often said in my Heart, This is the Inspiration of the Al­mighty that gives my Child this Vnder­standing: He loved the Lord and his People, and would often say, when he saw any that he thought were good Friends, It made his Heart glad to see them: He would often say, If I live, I shall be a good Quaker; I shall go forth, and declare the Word of the Lord; I shall be a true Minister; I will not Preach for Hire; I will proclaim the dreadful Day of the Lord against the Wicked. About three days before he fell sick, he said unto me, Mother, the next time I go to the Tavern [Page 47] they will bid me preach a Sermon to them in Latine; then I will say unto them, I will preach you a Sermon in English; and they will bid me say on; then I will say, Wo to the proud Persons, Wo to the Scoffers, Wo to the Drunkards of England; Wo unto them that rise early to follow Drunkenness, and to them that conti­nue until Night, till the Wine doth en­flame them; you Workers of Iniquity, what will you do in the dreadful Day of the Lord, that is coming upon Eng­land? for because you have wasted the good Creatures upon your Lust, the Lord will bring a Famine upon England. Mother, sometimes I have such a Trouble in me, that I am not so good as I would be, that I play so much, and do not every thing as you would have me; I pray to the Lord, and I say, Lord, destroy this wicked One in me, and put thy fear into my Heart, that I may never do any thing that shall displease thee; yet for all this, the Devil will come in, and take my mind off the Lord; oh, then I am so troubled that I say, Lord have Mercy upon me. The day before he fell sick, he did take me by the hand, and said, Mother, I shall [Page 48] dye, oh, that you might dye with me, that we might both go to the Lord together: Then I said, my dear Child, why dost thou de­sire to dye? He answered, That I might be always with my dear Lord God, and out of this Wicked World. When at any time he had seen me retired unto the Lord, he hath sate down by me, and would be mightily broken, and hath often said, weeping, Oh that I did enjoy that that you enjoy Oh, that I did know what the Fear of the Lord was, that my Heart might be made glad, as yours is. The Lord shewed me when he was three Years of Age, he was his beloved Child, and he would take him; and from that time I have expected his Death.

He departed this Life, not being Six Years and a half Old.

Joan Whitrow.
THE END.

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