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<DATE>2008-3-31</DATE>
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<NAME>Elspeth Healey</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>THE
Condemned Mans
REPRIEVE,
OR
Gods <HI>Love-Tokens,</HI> flowing in upon
the Heart of WILLIAM BLAKE, a penitent
Sinner, giving him A&s;&s;urance of the pardon of
his Sins, and the Enjoyment of Eternall
Happine&s;&s;e, through the Merits
of Chri&s;t his Saviour.
Recommended by him (being a condemned
Pri&s;oner for Man-&s;laughter within the Statute)
unto his Si&s;ter, and bequeathed unto
her as a Legacy.</P>
<BIBL>Galathians 6. 14. 17.</BIBL>
<Q>God forbid that I &s;hould glory &s;ave in the Cro&s;&s;e
of our Lord Ie&s;us Chri&s;t, by whom the world is cruci|fied
unto me, and I unto the world.</Q>
<P><HI>LONDON,</HI>
Printed by Richard Bi&s;hop, <HI>Anno Dom.</HI> 1653.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="discourse">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="3" REF="2">
<HEAD>The condemned Mans Reprieve.</HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub"><HI>Gods tokens of Love, &s;ealed and lockt up in the heart
of a Saint, by the Spirit of God, with the key of Love:
The riches of Gods grace flowing in upon the &s;oul of a
Saint, expre&s;&s;ed with joy and thankfulne&s;&s;e to his abil|lity,
finding him&s;elfe unable to &s;peak what &s;weet ta&s;t,
what infinite con&s;olation, he finds in Chri&s;t Ie&s;us.</HI></HEAD>
<P>VVHat tempe&s;ts! what fiery darts of Sa|than
have been thrown at me! what
wounding of con&s;cience! what flames
of Hell fire fla&s;hing in my face upon remembrance
of my &s;innes, which I have acknowledged to my
God, in prayers and tears! how long did I pray and
de&s;ire others to pray for me, before I could finde
comfort! how long did the Devill lead me away
captive in &s;ins which I knew not to be &s;in, when I
thought I had comfort, and it was no true com|fort!
till thou O my mo&s;t lu&s;t and Loving God
did&s;t by the convincing power of thy Spirit, di&s;|cover
to thy poor creature his own emptine&s;&s;e, and
vilde condicion by nature, I had both <HI>&s;elfe love</HI> and
<HI>&s;pirituall pride</HI> within me; how willingly would the
Divell have po&s;ted mee to Hell with tho&s;e &s;innes,
had&s;t not thou, O my God, humbled me, and made
<PB N="4" REF="3">
me &s;ee my &s;elf in the looking gla&s;&s;e of thy Word,
with thy Spirit, I was meere vanity, as the du&s;t
that fleeth away! I confe&s;&s;e to thee (my mo&s;t ju&s;t
God) my repentance was not true, my &s;orrow and
tears thou regarde&s;t not, becau&s;e I was &s;elfe, till
thou threwe&s;t me down in my &s;elfe, and made&s;t me
humble; I perceive thou delighted&s;t not in mee,
nor had I &s;uch delight as now, (I ble&s;&s;e thy Name) I
do find; and doe here &s;et down in writing to the
prai&s;e of thy Name, to the exalting the eternal in|finite
mercies of thee my Eternal Loving God
in Je&s;us Chri&s;t; living in me to the &s;ole prai&s;e of
thy Name: how long was I under the &s;pirit of bon|dage!
how long did I fear the grand enemy of man|kind
the Devil! but Lord thou had&s;t compa&s;&s;ion
upon me when I was afar off, and how &s;weetly at
la&s;t in the mid&s;t of tears, and groans, dide&s;t thou
come and refre&s;h my fainting &s;oule with a &s;till,
low, but &s;weet voyce, <HI>Sonne be of good choar, thy &s;ins
are forgiven thee:</HI> how often Lord ha&s;t thou turned
my tears of &s;orrow into tears of joy! what com|fort
ha&s;t thou given mee in my prayers, when I
found by faith in thee, comfort from thee! how ha&s;t
thou &s;trangly, and powerfully, with faith in the
Lord Je&s;us taught me to pray unto thee, with thine
own Spirit! how hath my &s;oul often melted into
tears from the apprehen&s;ions of thy Love, and ma|ny
manife&s;t tokens of thy Love! thou ha&s;t put my
tears into thy bottle, my heart makes an ekko, as
thou emptie&s;t it, &s;o thou fille&s;t it again, and every
heart-tear &s;ounds a heart-filling joy, <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed are they
that mourn, for they &s;hall be comforted:</HI> oh what a calm
<PB N="5" REF="3">
doe I feele in my &s;oul in my meditacion of thee! and
yet Lord, when I look back upon the World, and my
own natural thoughts and con&s;ultacions with fle&s;h
and blood, what rough &amp; tempe&s;tious waves, do ari&s;e
in my mind! but Lord I tru&s;t in thee, and did I not
con&s;tantly &s;ervently call aloud to thee in my prayers,
(<HI>Lord help me or I peri&s;h</HI>) it were impo&s;&s;ible I &s;hould
be &s;aved: and how could I find &s;uch joy in tribulacion,
dide&s;t not thou keep up my heart by true &s;aving
Faith in thee my God, in and through Je&s;us Chri&s;t
the true con&s;olacion of my poor &s;oul, in this weak
creature?</P>
<P>O my God, I cannot expre&s;&s;e thy Love to my poor
&s;oul, it is infinite! I am but finite, I can but wonder,
and not enough, thou breathe&s;t into me full &s;treams of
thy Love: how doth my &s;oul earne&s;tly de&s;ire to emp|ty
it &s;elfe in thee! the more I expre&s;&s;e to thee, the
more thou fille&s;t me, how lovingly do&s;t thou refre&s;h
my &s;oul with thy ble&s;&s;ed Spirit! and how ble&s;&s;edly
my &s;oul yeeldeth to the love of thee my Love, by thy
Love in me: my Love, my Joy what melody do I hear!
what &s;weet low mu&s;ick, doth thy Spirit &s;ound in my
heart! O that thou woulde&s;t make it an In&s;trument,
that it live yet till it breath forth its &s;ound, and prai&s;es
to thy Name: name me for one of thy faithful &s;ervants
to whom thou intende&s;t to &s;ay, <HI>well done my good
and faithfull &s;ervant:</HI> Lord not my will, but thy Will
be done by me thy poor, and unworthy &s;ervant, on
Earth, as it is in Heaven, Lord I am thine, do with me
what thou wilt, Lord let mee heare thy voyce, let me
know it, that I may run willingly if thou call, pre&s;ently
let me be ready with my wedding garment, to meet
<PB N="6" REF="4">
thee &s;weet Je&s;us, if thou bid me &s;tay, give me pati|ence,
let thy Will be done by me, in me, with me, doe
what thou wilt Lord I am thine, command willing|ne&s;&s;e
in me to obey thee in all thy Commands, com|mand
what thou wilt my faith is &s;uch in thee, thou
wilt enable me; thou wilt not for&s;ake them that tru&s;t
in thee, Lord my tru&s;t is wholly in thee, Lord thou
knowe&s;t I am feeble, and weak, but thou art &s;trong and
powerful, oh my God uphold me with thine Almigh|ty
power, that I fall not from thee: I am vilde and im|pure,
mutable, but oh my God thou art holy, and ju&s;t,
pure, unchangable immutably good, my cheife&s;t good;
my God I am uncertain, but thou art certainly my
mo&s;t mercyful God: my wayes are not like thy wayes:
O that thou woulde&s;t direct my feet according to the
revealed Will of thee my God, but (O my God) I have
not kept thy Statutes, I have walked out of the way
in the Wilderne&s;&s;e of &s;in, but (&s;weet Je&s;us) thou &s;weet|ly
telle&s;t me thou art <HI>the way, the truth, and the Life,</HI>
I will therefore lay hold on thee, thou ha&s;t promi&s;ed
me thy Love; I am thine, &s;tay me, I am &s;ick: thou art
my life, comfort me, or I &s;hall die, warme my &s;oul that
it cool not, cheri&s;h me my Love, my heart will elce
fayl me, O God make me con&s;tant, faithfull, as thou
art faithfull, give me more golden apples of thy Love;
give, that I may give thee the prai&s;e of thy Love, give
me yet more of the riches of thy grace, that I may be
liberall to others, as thou art liberall to mee, expre&s;&s;e
more of thy Love to me, that I may extoll thee in my
expre&s;&s;ions to others, who are thy Saints and Servants,
who are part of my life, thou ha&s;t made us one in thee
and thou art one in us, thou art the Vine, we but bran|ches,
<PB N="7" REF="4">
O make us fruitfull, water our hearts, bathe our
&s;ouls in the Ocean of thy Love, open the Fountain of
thy Love, that we may &s;wim plea&s;antly in the &s;treams
of thy Love, till we come to thee the water of Life, the
head Spring of all our joy, with thee for evermore.</P>
<P>O my God, what joy doe I already &s;ee by the eye of
my Faith! I know not where I am; I &s;ee but dim light,
but my comfort is, I &s;hall come to more glorious
light, I &s;hall one day &s;ee thee perfectly, enjoy thee
more fully; I feel the reflexes and the glittering Sun-beames
of thy Love &s;weetly warming my &s;oul; my
eyes are watery with looking up to thee, the very ap|prehen&s;ion
of thy Beauty, the Sun-beames of thy Love
force teares from my eyes, thou art the cau&s;e I weep,
and joy of my weeping, thou make&s;t mee weep with
thy Love, I am &s;ick with thy Love, and thou heale&s;t
me with it, thou emptie&s;t and fille&s;t me, thou throwe&s;t
me down, and lifte&s;t me up, how doth thy Love play
with my &s;oul! and how doth my &s;oul play and delight
it &s;elfe with thy Love! my Love, my Joy, hide not thy
&s;elfe from me, but hide me in thee, let mee finde thee
alwayes in mee, that I may alwayes finde my &s;elfe in
thee; let me heare thy voyce pronouncing me faire,
then &s;hall I enjoy all thy hidden trea&s;ures, all thy va&s;t
po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions, all thy &s;parkling Beauty, glorious Holi|ne&s;&s;e,
divine Wi&s;dom! make &s;ure to me thy promi&s;es,
thy all-in-all in me, that I may be all in thee, who am
thine: What need I fear, that have thee for my De|fence,
that ha&s;t made mee more then a Conqueror
through thee, therefore I &s;hall want nothing; who
&s;hall lay any thing to my charge, being thou ha&s;t
freed me from my &s;ins? what &s;hould daunt me, or di&s;|courage
<PB N="8" REF="5">
me, that doe enjoy thy Love? thou po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e&s;t
my &s;oul, and defende&s;t me from my enemies with thy
power: What &s;hall &s;eparate mee from thee, who art
my God, and I am thy creature? the Law cannot pro|nounce
me cur&s;ed, for my Saviour hath kept it for me,
and &s;o pronounceth me ble&s;&s;ed; I am no more my own,
I am Chri&s;t's, and he is mine, he died for mee, he hath
mortified &s;in in mee, he hath &s;ubdued my &s;ins in me, I
finde no more pronene&s;&s;e to &s;inne, my de&s;ires are made
conformable to thine, I de&s;ire no longer to live in my
&s;elfe, but in thee my Chri&s;t; I regard not iniquity in
my heart, the love of my Chri&s;t makes mee loath my
&s;elfe and my ba&s;e corruptions, I have a ba&s;e e&s;teem of
my &s;elfe, I have a perfect hatred of &s;in, that I &s;ee lives in
me, I live not in it; the death of my Beloved that once
died for mee, hath mortified my &s;innes, they have no
rule over me, my Love, my Chri&s;t is my Ruler by his
Spirit, I can accept of no other Guide; though &s;inne
be in me, yet I am out of my &s;innes in my Chri&s;t.</P>
<P>O World, O Fle&s;h, O Divell, let mee alone, you
have nothing to doe with me, let me &s;erve the Lord
my God, for I am his, I was yours too long, get you
gone, I command you in the name of my beloved
Chri&s;t; though it be true that I did often tran&s;gre&s;&s;e
the Law, yet my Saviour he hath pleaded for mee, he
hath procured a pardon for all my &s;innes, and &s;ealed it,
he hath &s;et his hand to it, and hath put it &s;afe lockt up
with the key of his Love, in my heart by his Spirit, all
the Divels in Hell can never get it from me; I fear not,
you can but kill my bodie, you can doe no more; the
Lord will rai&s;e me up again at his comming, and then
my corruptible bodie will be made incorruptible, and
<PB N="9" REF="5">
this bodie which is mortall &s;hall be made immortall,
and glorious; then will this his Spirit which bids me
write, here come againe and own me, by the vertue of
my Beloved &s;hall I be rai&s;ed up again to meet the Lord
my God, with joy and rejoyceing, to the prai&s;e and
glory of his great and holy Name; this is true, for
Chri&s;t him&s;elfe (in whom only I tru&s;t for Salvacion)
hath told me &s;o, whatever you plead again&s;t me it is to
no purpo&s;e, for I have a righteous Advocate at Gods
right hand; nay further, I have Gods di&s;charge within
mine own heart, which is my acquittance, you have
nothing to require (O Law) but death the wages of
&s;inne, that pray take when&s;oever it plea&s;eth God you
&s;hall have it, as for my &s;oul my God by his free Grace
hath cla&s;ped it in his armes of mercy, I am his darling
his jewell, J &s;ee plainly that he delighteth in mee, hee
lives in me by his Spirit, and I in him by my Faith: al|though
I have (I confe&s;&s;e) broken the Law, yet Je&s;us
Chri&s;t kept it, and he hath &s;atisfied the ju&s;tice of God
it makes as much to my di&s;charge, as if I had kept it
my &s;elfe; as my Saviour was beloved of God the Fa|ther,
&s;o am I through faith in him: You'l &s;ay I tran&s;|gre&s;&s;e
the Law daily in thought, word, or deed, I &s;ay
no, it is not I but &s;in that dwelleth in me: I have a bad
neighbour, but Chri&s;t will give mee patience and cou|rage
to war again&s;t my enemie, it &s;hall have no power,
it may take the be&s;t Saint cowardly and unawares, but
I ble&s;&s;e God I have &s;trength from Chri&s;t by his Spirit
that beats him out of doores, he lodgeth not in my
heart, I have no room but for my Love, my Chri&s;t, I
am wholly his, and hee is mine; for &s;hould <HI>I</HI> regard
iniquitie in my heart, the Lord would not heare my
<PB N="10" REF="6">
praiers, <HI>I</HI> &s;ee by the eye of my faith that <HI>I</HI> am freed
from &s;in, though not free from &s;inning, <HI>I</HI> will rejoyce
though &s;in dwell in my fle&s;h, O my beloved Chri&s;t, <HI>I</HI>
&s;ee there is more good in thee for me, then there is e|vill
in &s;in again&s;t me: O my eternall God, thou art
more plea&s;ed with mee thy poore creature for my
Chri&s;t thy Son's &s;ake, then ever thou were di&s;plea&s;ed
with me for my &s;ins &s;ake, O my God I lay them all o|pen
before thee, I confe&s;&s;e and for&s;ake them, to come
to thee my God for mercy; thou ha&s;t promi&s;ed mee
forgivene&s;&s;e, for&s;ake me not my God, for I am re&s;ol|ved
(by the a&s;&s;i&s;tance of thy Spirit) never more to for|&s;ake
thee; do not thou leave me comfortle&s;&s;e, but &s;up|port
me by the Almighty power of thy Spirit within
me: how odious doth &s;in appear to my &s;oul! how fain
would the enemy of my &s;oul undermine it, and wea|ken
my faith in thee! what &s;trivings, and &s;ubtill temp|tacions,
hath the Devil to en&s;nare the &s;oul of thy Ser|vant
if he could! how fearfull am I when I think of a|ny
thing but thee! be thou therefore the continual me|ditacion
of my heart; how fearfull am I to look on,
orcommune with the World, or the vanities of the
World, lea&s;t they &s;hould draw away my minde and af|fections!
but Lord I ble&s;&s;e thy holy name I &s;ee thy
Love and mercy in this, thou lette&s;t me &s;ee all things
be&s;ides thee to be vanity and vexacion of Spirit, O let
me &s;ee thee and delight in nothing but thee: in&s;tead
of thinking of vain tran&s;itories, let thy Servant medi|tate,
as now, &s;o alwaies, of glorious eternities: and O
&s;weet God, let me think upon my &s;ins, and the vildne&s;&s;e
of my ba&s;e heart, to humble me in the &s;ight of my own
nothingne&s;&s;e, lay me low, to rai&s;e me high in faith, to
<PB N="11" REF="6">
rely wholly on thee, O that I might never act but as thy
faithfull &s;ervant, as becoming thy Son, that I may
be able to cry unto thee Father; though my actions
&s;eem to me (as they are) unfaithfull, yet Lord thou art
faithfull, a Father to me in Je&s;us Chri&s;t; oh &s;weet God
that thou woulde&s;t cau&s;e the &s;ight of my &s;ins to be as a
means to kill &s;in in me, let it make much to my &s;orrow,
that my heart is fal&s;e, but let it make much more to my
joy, that thou (my joy my God) art true; let it &s;ad thy
Servant, that I am &s;o &s;infull, but let it much more re|joyce
my &s;oul that thou my Lord Chri&s;t art holy, oh
let the Love of thee be my love, that thy holine&s;&s;e may
be made mine, when wilt thou oh my God? thou art
my comfort, thou wilt &s;hortly &s;et me free, that by thy
&s;trength I may triumph over this body of death: oh
my God though &s;in break off &s;omtimes my communi|on,
yet let i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter"> never &s;eperate my union with thee: how
do&s;t thou make me rejoyce even while I mourn over
&s;innes becau&s;e I &s;ee through Faith in thee &s;weet Je&s;us
they can bee no prejudice to my everla&s;ting &s;afety in
thee, &s;o much I perceive thou love&s;t mee, for thou
would&s;t not have given me &s;o much Faith in thee, did&s;t
not thou love me: my Love I am thine, and thou art
mire, I have vowed to thee, and thou wilt make mee
faithfull as thou art faithfull, becau&s;e I tru&s;t in thee.
O my God let mee have more encouragment from
thee, then di&s;couragement from &s;in; for though my
&s;ins reach the clouds, yet I &s;ee by the eye of my faith
the mercies of thee my God are above the Heavens;
though my &s;ins do overflow me, yet the free graces of
my God overflow my &s;ins: Oh &s;weet Je&s;us let thy Love
and Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e &s;o cover my &s;innes and imper|fections,
<PB N="12" REF="7">
that the Lord may &s;ee no iniquity, which thou
ha&s;t not &s;atisfied for, and pleaded for, and procured par|don
for me that am thy &s;ervant.</P>
<P>Oh my God thou knowe&s;t my wants, and troubles,
&s;uffer me at no time to be troubled at them, let me bid
all welcome, thy will be done, though thou cau&s;e &s;or|row,
yet wilt thou have compa&s;&s;ion according to the
multitude of thy Mercies; when my outward comforts
eb let me feel the high Springs of my inward joy, and
con&s;olacion in thee, flowing in upon my &s;oul: drown
thou all my &s;orrowes in the Ocean of thy Love: O my
God though I am not the &s;ubject of comfort, yet is
my comfort &s;ure in thee the object of my faith, Lord I
perceive thou laid&s;t it for me, when thou laid&s;t it from
me, thou lette&s;t me &s;ee by the Sun-&s;hine of thy Love,
what this impri&s;onment, malice of men, per&s;ecuting me
meaneth, as liberty, or the be&s;t contentment: I will not
therefore be di&s;contented, I could not be content, did
I not &s;ee it is thy Will, it is thy Will that I de&s;ire to
conforme my &s;elfe unto, &s;o come what will 'tis wel|come:
Oh my God let me have any thing or nothing,
let me abound with friends or have none, let me re|joyce
or be &s;orrowful, let me be in pri&s;on or at liber|ty,
let me live or dy, it is all one to thy &s;ervant; for
Lord thou knowe&s;t, I account nothing my joy but thee
my God, and to be in all things as thou wilt have mee;
O my God I de&s;ire not to bee at my own di&s;po&s;e or
choyce&punc; my choyce is thee, to re&s;t quiet in thy determi|nacion;
though thou &s;end me comforts, yet will I not
account them my comfort, but thee my comfort,
though I have no outward comfort, yet thou ha&s;t not
left me comfortle&s;&s;e, though I pa&s;&s;e through many &s;or|rowes
<PB N="13" REF="7">
and tribulacions, yet by the light of thy grace
thou di&s;perce&s;t the clouds of my &s;ins, and lette&s;t mee
&s;ee my way, its Heaven-ward to thee.</P>
<P>Deare &s;i&s;ter, woulde&s;t thou have &s;uch enjoyments?
&s;eek then, and thou &s;halt finde, but thou mu&s;t &s;eek di|ligently,
remove all lets and impediments, that may
hinder thy &s;weet union a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">d comunion with my Chri&s;t,
he is worth &s;eeking, worth finding, trifle not away
your precious time with the things of the World,
know that God allowes Dogges under the table &s;uch
bones to pick.</P>
<P>But let Je&s;us Chri&s;t be thy daily bread, let it be thy
meat and drink, to doe the Will of our Heavenly Fa|ther:
by this you may perceive (if Chri&s;t incline your
heart) and &s;ee by the ey of your faith in Chri&s;t &amp; finde
the way to Heaven is by Chri&s;t, by him only: &s;aith he to
you, <HI>I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life;</HI> one of the fa|thers
(I remember) &s;aith; the Way, without which we
wander: the Truth, without which we &s;hall run into er|ror:
the Light, without which we &s;hall &s;it in darkne&s;&s;e:
there is no other rea&s;on I can give to any that are out of
Chri&s;t why they are out, but it is becau&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter"> of their un|beleif,
they doe not beleive on him; every one is apt
to &s;ayl do, let me ask that man or woman then, did you
willingly and readily obey his voyce? how doe you
love him? do you te&s;tifie your love by your actuall obe|dience,
to the utmo&s;t of your abillities to keep his
commandements? are you out of your &s;elves? do you
live above the World? have you left off feeding upon
the vanities thereof? are you fed with the bread and
waters of life? are you delighted with the riches of
Gods Grace, accompting no want like to the want of
grace? doe you not more minde the riches of the
<PB N="14" REF="8">
World, the devices and de&s;ires of your own ba&s;e trea|cherous
hearts deceitfull carnall hearts, more then the
Will and Minde of my God? in breif, wou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">d'&s;t know
whether thou art in Chri&s;t then have regard to him;
where the trea&s;ure is, there the heart will be al&s;o.</P>
<P>My dear &s;i&s;ter, let not the World (which leads away
captive &s;o many) draw thee away: let all thy &s;ences bee
lockt up in thy &s;oul, and let that be full of Chri&s;t, let
thine eyes be delighted in the reading of the Word of
God: let your ears be &s;topt from hearing tho&s;e things
which &s;avour not of graces which edefie not, but hear
readily dilligently the tru &amp; &s;ound &s;peakings of God,
li&s;ten to the &s;weet low voyces, and &s;ecret whi&s;pers of
his Spirit: ta&s;t how &s;weet Ie&s;us Chri&s;t is to hungry and
thir&s;ty &s;ouls; &s;mell how &s;weet his garments are: feele
the &s;mooth, fine, wrought, and &s;ilken linning of the
Saints; &s;ee you minde what I have taken pains to write
you; hear, ta&s;t, &s;mell, &s;ee, feele, in your &s;oul that you
have in your body, the markes of my &s;weet Je&s;us; <HI>Gall:</HI>
6 and 17 ver&s;e, and then you will not accompt, or call
gold and &s;ilver, riches; nor advancement, honour; nor
learning, wi&s;dom; you will bee rich, honourable, and
wi&s;e without them, within your &s;elfe all in Chri&s;t,
Chri&s;t in you; and you will &s;ee all the glory of the
World, but skin-deep; a Sun bla&s;t defaceth it, like
Time, not abiding, pa&s;&s;ing away; a mear nothing but va|nity
and vexation of Spirit: pomp is but fancie, gold
but du&s;t, fame but breath, prai&s;e but a bla&s;t, the worlds
&s;weet is bittrernes: have you not found it &s;o? its love,
lovele&s;&s;e; its &s;plender, darkne&s;&s;e; its fullne&s;&s;e, empti|ne&s;&s;e;
its all, nothing, but vanity, and pray whats that? a
Saint may as well live and feed on the wind, as on the
<PB N="15" REF="8">
things of the World, it may fill the fancy and &s;tarve
the &s;oul, it may &s;tarve and leave the &s;oul empty of
grace; therefore have I bid the World fare-well wel|come
Heaven upon Earth, I have no comfort no hap|pine&s;&s;e
nothing without thee &s;weet Ie&s;us, I am thine,
and thou art mine.</P>
<P>Oh my dear Si&s;ter, beleeve me for my Chri&s;t's &s;ake,
there is no con&s;olacion but in my Chri&s;t; love no|thing,
look upon nothing, enjoy nothing, have no
contentment in any thing but what is of him, from
him, and by him, all to his prai&s;e: let God have all the
glory in Chri&s;t, let him be glorified for all, <HI>Iohn</HI> 1. 16.
beware of &s;pirituall pride, thy &s;elfe-flattering heart,
re&s;t not upon what you have received: read <HI>Rom.</HI> 11. 6.
<HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 2. 8. 9. build not your Tabernakle here, let not
that be your light, but let God be your light; eye not
your comforts &s;o much as the God of comfort; look
not &s;o much on your graces as on the God of grace,
repo&s;e your &s;elfe in nothing, quiet your &s;elfe in no|thing
but in God him&s;elfe: our graces are but wedding
attire, oyl in lamps; joy and con&s;olacion but wedding
chear, we are not &s;atisfied with it, the &s;oul is infinite:
<HI>Work out your Salvacion with fear and trembling,</HI> untill
you come to enjoy God fully, in the very bo&s;um of
Chri&s;t, co-heires with him: the &s;eeds of his word
&s;own in our hearts here, are but gleanings to what wee
expect; our be&s;t &s;ummer dayes here are but as nipping
winters, in compari&s;on of that everla&s;ting &s;ummer:
we look to enjoy an eternitie of the Sunny-&s;hinings of
Gods face, love, and glory, to &s;hine upon us in glory
with and to him for ever.</P>
<P>Tho&s;e rivers of joy wee &s;wim in here towards him,
<PB N="16" REF="9">
are but as a few drops in compari&s;on of that heigth
and depth, length and bredth, that bottomle&s;&s;e Ocean
of his Love laid up in Chri&s;t for us; our greate&s;t light
here below, is but as a dark Vault to God and the
Lamb: He is the light of that Citie unto which thy
Brother is going, endeavor to get in at the &s;trait gate,
remember it is not every one that calleth Lord, Lord,
&s;hall enter, but hee that doth the will of our Heavenly
Father which is in Heaven: be pre&s;&s;ing forward to the
mark of our high Calling, to arrive to the knowledge
of that Love which pa&s;&s;eth knowledge, to apprehend
our God as wee are apprehended of God: Re&s;t not
(dear Si&s;ter) till you come to Heaven, where our faith
&s;hall be &s;eeing, and our hope po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion. Ob&s;erve, let
your love bee pure for God, &s;eek not God for heaven,
but heaven for God, that heaven which is God who is
the heaven of heavens: God only in all, above all, and
beyond all: let him be our all-in-all in our Lord Je&s;us
Chri&s;t, by whom wee are more then conquerors; to
whom only (as is mo&s;t due) bee a&s;cribed by thee and
mee, the &s;ole glory and prai&s;e of this my writing to
thee: I be&s;eech the Lord, to give us heavenly wi&s;dom,
to under&s;tand &s;piritually the will and minde of God re|vealed
in his Word: &s;o I pray daily, fervently, and &s;in|cerely,
for thee and all the Saints and Servants of God,
with faith in the Lord Je&s;us, who&s;e &s;ervant I am, and
in him,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>Thy a&s;&s;ured loving Brother WILLIAM BLAKE.</SIGNED>
<DATELINE>Exon Iayle <DATE>June 25. 1653.</DATE></DATELINE></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
