God Almighty preserve you in him, your rock and foundation, that is heavenly and stands sure; that ye may be valiant for the truth upon earth; for the Lord and his glorious name; that ye may all serve him in your generation, and in his new creation in Christ Jesus, Amen.

And now that you are come into so much favour with the magistrates and powers, that they let you serve the office of a constable, &c. without swearing or taking any oaths, hereby Christ's doctrine and command and his apostle's is set up. I therefore desire that you may double your diligence in your offices, in doing that which is just, true, and righteous; so that ye may excel and exceed all that are tied or bound by oaths to perform their offices: and you can do it upon your yea and nay; so say and so do, according to Christ's doctrine and command. For Adam and Eve, by disobeying the command of God, fell under condemnation; and they that disobey the command of Christ, in taking oaths and swearing, go into evil, and fall into condemnation. Matt. v. and James v. My love in the Lord is to you all.

Kingston upon Thames, the 10th of the 5th month, 1688.'

G. F.

I staid at Kingston till the beginning of the seventh month, where not only Friends came to visit me, but some considerable people of the world, with whom I discoursed about the things of God. Then leaving Kingston, 1 went to London by water, visiting Friends as I went, and taking Hammersmith-meeting on my way. Having recovered some strength by being in the country, when I was come to London I went from meeting to meeting, labouring diligently in the work of the Lord, and opening the divine mysteries of the heavenly things, as God in his spirit opened them to me. But I found my body would not long bear the city; wherefore, when I had travelled amongst Friends there about a month, I went to Tottenham-High-Cross, and from thence to Edward Man's countryhouse near Winchmore-hill, and to Enfield; spending three weeks amongst Friends thereabouts, and had meetings at all those places. Then, being a little refreshed in the country, I returned to London; where I tarried, labouring in the work of the ministry, till the middle of the ninth month; at which time I went with my son Mead to his house in Essex, and abode there all the winter. During which time I stirred not much abroad, unless sometimes to the meeting to which that family belonged, which was about half a mile from thence; but I had meetings often in the house with the family and those Friends that came thither. Many things also I wrote while I was there, some of which follow. One was an epistle to the Quarterly and Yearly Meetings of Friends in Pennsylvania, New-England, Virginia, Maryland, the Jerseys, Carolina, and other plantations in America. Which was thus:

'My dear friends and brethren in the Lord Jesus Christ,

WHO, by believing in his light, are become children of his light and of his day; my desires are, that you may all walk in the light and in the day, and keep the feast of Christ, our passover, who is sacrificed for us, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but let all that be purged out, that ye may be a new lump, keeping the feast of Christ, our passover, with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Let no leavened bread be found in your houses, nor in your meetings, nor in the camp of God, or household of faith, which are the household of Christ; but all that sour, old leaven, which makes people's hearts sour, and burn one against another, must be purged out of the camp of God, and kept out. For the feast of Christ, our passover, must be kept in the new covenant with his heavenly unleavened bread of life. The Jews' feast in the Old Testament was kept with outward unleavened bread; and now in the New Testament, in the gospel-day, our feast is to be kept with the heavenly unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. Therefore friends, I desire you seriously to consider, and to keep this feast which the apostle directed the church of Christ to keep. Do not you see Christendom, so called, keep their feasts with the leavened bread of malice and wickedness? which makes them so sour, and their hearts so to burn one against another, that they have destroyed, and do destroy one another about religion. Therefore all live in the love of God, which keeps above the love of the world; so that none of your hearts may be choked or surfeited with these outward things, or with the cares of the world which will pass away; but mind ye the world and the life that is without end, that ye may be heirs of it. And, friends, you should strive to excel all, both professor and profane, in morality, humanity, and christianity, modesty, sobriety, and moderation, and in a good, godly, righteous life and conversation; showing forth the fruits of the spirit of God and that you are the children of the living God, children of light and of day, and not of the night. And serve God in newness of life; for it is the life, and a living and walking in the truth, that must answer the witness of God in all people, " that they, seeing our good works, may glorify our Father which is in heaven." Therefore be valiant for God's holy pure truth, and spread it abroad among both professors and profane, and the Indians. And you should write over once a year, from all your Yearly Meetings, to the Yearly Meeting here, concerning your diligence in the truth, and of its spreading, and of people's receiving it, both professors and profane, and the Indians; and concerning the peace of the church of Christ amongst yourselves. For, blessed be the Lord, truth doth get ground in these parts, many are made very loving to Friends, and the Lord's power and seed is over all; in which God Almighty keep all his people to his glory, A men. G. F. 'Gooses, the 28th of the 11th month, 1689.'

While I was in the city I had a concern upon my spirit with respect to a twofold danger that attended some who professed truth; one was of young people's running into the fashions of the world, and the other was of old people's going into the earth. And that concern coming now again weightily upon me, I was moved to give forth the following as a reproof to such, and an exhortation and warning to all Friends to beware of and keep out of those snares.

My desires are that you walk humbly in it; for when the Lord first called me forth, he let me see that young people grew up together in vanity and the fashions of the world, and old people went downwards into the earth, raking it together; and to both these I was to be a stranger. And now, Friends, I do see too many young people that profess the truth grow up into the fashions of the world, and too many parents indulge them; and amongst the elder some are declining downwards and raking after the earth. Therefore, take heed that you are not making your graves while you are alive outwardly, and loading yourselves with thick clay. Hab. ii. 6. For if you have not power over the earthly spirit, and that which leadeth into a vain mind, and the fashions of the world, and into the earth; though you have often had the rain fall upon your fields, you will but bring forth thistles, briers, and thorns, which are for the fire. Such will become brittle, peevish, fretful spirits, that will not abide the heavenly doctrine, the admonitions, exhortations, and reproofs of the holy ghost, or heavenly spirit of God; which would bring you to be conformable to the death of Christ, and to his image, that ye might have fellowship with him in his resurrection. Therefore it is good for all to bow to the name of Jesus, their Saviour, that all may confess him to the glory of God the Father. For I have had a concern upon me, in a sense of the danger of young people's going into the fashions of the world, and old people's going into the earth, and many going into a loose and false liberty, till at last they go quite out into the spirit of the world as some have done. The house of such hath been built upon the sand on the sea shore, not upon Christ the rock; that are so soon in the world again, under a pretence of liberty of conscience. But it is not a pure conscience, nor in the spirit of God, nor in Christ Jesus; for in the liberty in the spirit there is the unity, which is the bond of peace; and all are one in Christ Jesus, in whom is the true liberty: and this is not of the world, for he is not of the world. Therefore all are to stand fast in him, as they have received him; for in him there is peace, who is the Prince of peace, but in the world there is trouble. For the spirit of the world is a troublesome spirit, but the spirit of Christ is a peaceable spirit: in which God Almighty preserve all the faithful, Amen. G. F.

'Gooses, the 1st of the 2d month, 1690.'

Another I wrote while I was here concerning the ensign which Isaiah prophesied the Lord should set up for the Gentiles, which I showed was Christ. Of which follows a copy:

THE Lord saith, "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." Isa. xi. 9. "And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek, and his rest shall be glorious." ver. 10. And he shall reign over the Gentiles, and in him shall the Gentiles trust." Rom. xv. 12. This ensign is Christ, who was prophesied of by the prophet; which prophecy the apostle, who was a minister to the Gentiles, showeth was fulfilled in the New Testament. In this day of Christ, Isaiah saith, "The Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria and from Egypt, &c. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth." ver. 11, 12. This is in the day of Christ, and his gospel of life and salvation, which is preached to every creature under heaven, who "enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world," both Jews and Gentiles, that by his heavenly divine light they may see Christ, their ensign and captain of their salvation; so Christ is one ensign both to the Jews and Gentiles. Isaiah saith, "The Redeemer shall come to Sion." Isa. lix. 20. And, "This is my covenant with them, saith the Lord, my spirit that is upon thee (to wit, Christ) and my words, which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the Lord, from henceforth and for ever." ver. 21. "Arise, shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee." chap. lxi. 1. and the Gentiles shall come to thy light." ver. 3. "And the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee." ver. 5. (the sea is the world.) "The lord shall be thy everlasting light." ver. 20. And, "Thou shalt call thy walls, salvation, and thy gates, praise." ver. 18. And the Lord saith, "I will make the place of my feet glorious," ver. 13. “Heaven is his throne, and earth is his footstool," chap. lxvi. 1. "And he that puts his trust in me, saith the Lord, shall possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain." chap. lvii. 13. Which mountain is established above all the mountains and hills. Isa. ii. 2. The Lord saith (speaking of Christ) "I have put my spirit upon him, he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles." Isa. xlii. 1. "I will give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles; to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness, out of the prison-house. I am the Lord, that is my name,

and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. ver. 6, 7, 8. So Christ the light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen, and the Gentiles are come to the light of Christ. This prophecy of Isaiah concerning Christ, many of the Gentiles witness fulfilled, that "salvation is come to the Gentiles." Rom. xi. 11. God gave his glory to his son: and Christ saith, "the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them (namely, his believers and followers) that they may be one, even as we are one." John xvii. 22. Here you may see the promises and prophecies are fulfilled in Christ Jesus, whom God hath given for an ensign both to the Jews and Gentiles, and the captain of their salvation; and he doth enlighten every one that cometh into the world: that with his heavenly divine light they might see Christ, the Lord from heaven, their captain and ensign, and trust in him, their conqueror; who bruises the serpent's head, and destroys the devil and his works: and Christ and his followers overcome the dragon, beast, and false prophet. Therefore all Jews, Gentiles, and Christians, that come to believe in Christ, are to stand to their ensign, Christ, who is also the captain of their salvation, above all ensigns and captains below, for he is from above; therefore all are to trust in him, for he is certain and able to save to the utmost. He is the same ensign and captain to-day as he was yesterday, and so for ever, the first and last, the beginning and ending, the Lord of lords, and King of all kings upon the earth; and there is nothing certain to be trusted in below Christ Jesus, who is from above. You see in the scriptures, there were many ways and religions among the Heathen, as there were many sects among the Jews when Christ came; and now there are many sects or religions among the christians, who believe from the scriptures "that he is come," as the Jews believed he was to come.” But they that close their eyes, and stop their ears to the light of Christ, are not like to see Christ who hath enlightened them, to be their ensign and the captain of their salvation, that see not with the heavenly eye, nor hear with the heavenly ear, to see and hear their heavenly ensign and captain of their salvation, to convert and heal them; that they might follow him, and be of his holy camp, his heavenly soldiers, to whom he gives spiritual arms and armour, the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, the armour of light, and the shield of faith, (which will quench all the fiery darts of satan and give victory) and the sword of the spirit, the word of God, which shall cut, hammer down, and burn up all the strong holds of satan. Also he clotheth his soldiers with fine linen, white and clean, his righteousness, and shoeth them with the everlasting gospel of peace, the power of God: which clothes and shoes will never wax old. And all that are shod with the everlasting gospel, the power of God, will never wax old; but will stand all storms and tempests in the world. They that are shod with the gospel, the power