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<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>A PREDICTION OF M^r^. EDWARDS HIS CONVERSION, and Recantation.</P>
<P>By WILLIAM WALVVIN.</P>
<P>LONDON, Printed by <HI>T. P.</HI> for <HI>G. Whittington</HI> and <HI>N. Brookes,</HI> at the &s;igne of the Angell in Cornhill, bel<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">w the Exchange. 1646.</P>
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<PB REF="2">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD>A PREDICTION OF MASTER EDWARDS HIS CONVERSION and Recantation.</HEAD>
<P>_THere hath of late &s;o much la|bour, and &s;o many good di&s;|cour&s;es beene be&s;towed upon Mr. <HI>Edwards,</HI> and with &s;o pi|ous and good intentions, that it is not to be &s;uppo&s;ed, &s;o many precious en|devours can be vaine or fruicle&s;&s;e, in refe|rence to his conver&s;ion.</P>
<P>In ca&s;es &s;o de&s;perate as h<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="2 letters">, the wor&s;t &s;ignes are the be&s;t; as wee u&s;e to &s;ay, when things are at the wor&s;t, they are neare&s;t to an amendment.</P>
<P>To an impartiall judgement, that &s;eri|ou&s;ly con&s;iders the violence of his &s;pirit, ma|nife&s;ted again&s;t harmele&s;&s;e, well-meaning people, that differ with him in judgement:
<PB N="2" REF="3"> He cannot but &s;eeme, at be&s;t, in that wretch|ed condition, that <HI>Paul</HI> was in, when hee breathed out threatnings and &s;laughter, a|gain&s;t the di&s;ciples of the Lord; and went unto the High Prie&s;t, and de&s;ired of him let|ters to <HI>Dama&s;cus,</HI> to the Synagogues, that if hefound any of <HI>this way,</HI> whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jeru&s;alem.</P>
<P>For certainly, had not Authority, in the&s;e our times, being endowed with much more true Chri&s;tian wi&s;dome then &s;uch teachers, and through the power thereof, had not re|&s;trained the bitterne&s;&s;e of his (and the like) &s;pirits; we had had (before this time) mul|titudes of both men and women, brought from all parts of this Nation, bound, unto <HI>London,</HI> if not burned in Smithfield.</P>
<P>But many there are, that feare, his condi|tion is much more &s;ad, and de&s;perate, then this of <HI>Pauls,</HI> (which yet the ble&s;&s;ed Apo&s;tle was much troubled to thinke on, long after his conver&s;ion, accompting him&s;elfe as one borne out of due time, and not worthy the name of an Apo&s;tle, <HI>becau&s;e he per&s;ecuted the Church of God.)</HI> It being exceedingly feared that in all his unchri&s;tian writings, preach|ings, and endevours, to provoke Authority again&s;t con&s;ciontious people, that therein
<PB N="3" REF="3"> he goeth again&s;t the light of his owne con|&s;cience, that he is properly an Heretique, one that is &s;ubverted and &s;inneth, being con|demned of him&s;elfe.</P>
<P>And indeed, who ever &s;hall con&s;ider, the exceeding Light that hath been darted from &s;o many Seraphick Quills, &s;hining round about him; amid&s;t his per&s;ecuting intentions, (all which he hath hitherto re|&s;i&s;ted) will find and confe&s;&s;e; there is cau&s;e to feare: So great a &s;hining and a burning light, that it cannot be doubted, but that hee di&s;cerneth, how unrea&s;onable a thing it is, that one erring man &s;hould compell or comptroule another mans practice, <HI>in things &s;upernatur all:</HI> or that any lawes &s;hould be made for puni&s;hing <HI>of mi&s;-apprehentions therein,</HI> wherein thou&s;ands are as liable to be mi&s;taken; as one &s;ingle per&s;on.</P>
<P>He mu&s;t needs know, that, only things na|turall and rationall are properly &s;ubject un|to government: And that things &s;upernatu|rall, &s;uch as in Religion are di&s;tingui&s;hed by the title of things divine; &s;uch, as the benefit and u&s;e thereof, could never have beene per|ceived by the light of nature and rea&s;on: that &s;uch things are not liable to any com|pul&s;ive governmen, but that therein every one ought to be fully per&s;waded in their
<PB N="4" REF="4"> owne minds; becau&s;e <HI>what&s;oever is not i<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter"> faith is &s;inne.</HI></P>
<P>He cannot be ignorant, how di&s;putable all the parts of Divinity are among&s;t the mo&s;t learned, how then can he judge it &s;o horrible a thing as he &s;eemes to doe, for men to differ, though upon the highe&s;t points: he knowes every one is bound to try all things, the unlearned as well as the learned: now if there be different under|&s;tandings, &s;ome weaker and &s;ome &s;tronger, (as there are) how is it po&s;&s;ible but then will (upon every tryall) be difference in de|grees of apprehen&s;ions: and &s;urely he will not &s;ay that weakne&s;&s;e of under&s;tanding is &s;infull where there is due endevour after knowledge: and though it &s;hould be &s;in|full in the &s;ight of a pure God, yet will he not &s;ay it is puni&s;hable, by impure and er|ronious man: But,</P>
<P>To rayle revile, reproch, backbite, &s;lan|der, or to de&s;pi&s;e men and women, for their weakne&s;&s;es: their meanes of trades and callings, or poverty, is &s;o evidently again&s;t the rule of Chri&s;t and his Apo&s;tles, that he cannot but condemne him&s;elfe herein: his under&s;tanding is &s;o great, and he is &s;o well read in Scripture, that he mu&s;t needs ac|knowledge, the&s;e cannot &s;tand with <HI>Love:</HI>
<PB N="5" REF="4"> that knowne and undi&s;putable Rule.</P>
<P>In&s;omuch, as if bad &s;ignes in &s;o de&s;pe|rate a ca&s;e as his is, are the be&s;t, &s;urely he is not farre from his recovery and conver|&s;ion.</P>
<P>With God there is mercy; his mercyes are above all his workes, his delight is in &s;hewing mercy: and the Apo&s;tle tells us <HI>where &s;inne hath abounded grace</HI> (or love) <HI>hath &s;uper-abounded:</HI> O that he would &s;tand &s;till a while, and con&s;ider the love of Chri&s;t, that he would throw by his imbittered pen, lock him&s;elfe clo&s;e in his &s;tudy, draw his curteines, and &s;it downe but two houres, and &s;eriou&s;ly, &s;adly, and &s;earchingly lay to heart, the things he hath &s;aid and done, a|gain&s;t a people whom he knoweth, de&s;ire to honour God: and withal to bear in mind the infinite mercy of God, <HI>that where &s;in hath a|bounded, grace hath over abounded:</HI> certainly it could not but work him into the greate&s;t and mo&s;t burning extremity that ever poor perplexed man was in, &s;uch an extremity as generally proves Gods opportunity, to ca&s;t his aboundant grace &s;o plentifully into the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;oule, as in an in&s;tant burnes and con&s;umes all earthly pa&s;&s;ions, and corrupt affections, and in &s;tead thereof fills the &s;oule with love, which in&s;tantly refineth and
<PB N="6" REF="5"> Changeth the wor&s;t of men, into the be&s;t of men.</P>
<P>May this be the happy end of his unhap|py labours: it is the hearty de&s;ire of tho&s;e whom he hath hitherto hated, and mo&s;t di|&s;pitefully u&s;ed; (nothing is to hard for God) it will occa&s;ion joy in Heaven, and both joy and peace in earth, you &s;hal then &s;ee him a man compo&s;ed of all tho&s;e opinions he hath &s;o much reviled: an Independent: &s;o far as to. allow every man to be fully per&s;waded in his owne mind, and to mole&s;t no man for wor&s;hiping God according to his con&s;ci|ence.</P>
<P>A Browni&s;t: &s;o far, as to &s;eparate from all tho&s;e that preach for filthy lucre: An Ana|bapti&s;t: &s;o far, at lea&s;t, as to be rebapti&s;ed in a floud of his owne true repentant teares: A &s;eeker: in &s;eeking occa&s;ion, how to doe good unto all men, without re&s;pect of per|&s;ons or opinions: he <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">ill be wholly incorpo|rate into the Family of love, of true Chri&s;ti|an love, that covereth a multitude of evils: that &s;uffereth long, and is kind, envieth not, vanteth not it &s;elfe, is not puffed up, doth not behave it &s;elfe un&s;eemly, &s;eeketh not her owne, is not ea&s;ily provoked &amp;c. And then: you may expect him to breake forth and publi&s;h to the world, this or the like recan|tation.</P>
<PB N="7" REF="5">
<P>Where have I been! Into what &s;trange and uncouth pathes have I run my &s;elf! I have long time walked in the coun&s;ell of the ungodly, &s;tood in the way of finners, and too too long &s;ate in the feat of the &s;cornful.</P>
<P>O vile man, what have I done? Abomi|nable it is!</P>
<P>O wietched man, how have I finned again&s;t God! It &s;hameth me: It repenteth me: My &s;pirit is confounded within me.</P>
<P>I have committed evils, of a new and un|paralelled nature, &s;uch as the Prote&s;tant Re|ligion in all after-ages wil be &s;hamed of. For I have publi&s;hed in print to the view of all men the names of divers godly well affected per&s;ons, and reproached them as grand Im|po&s;tors, Bla&s;phemers, Heretiques and Schi&s;|matiques, with out ever &s;peaking with them my &s;elfe.</P>
<P>And though I am con&s;cious to my &s;elfe, of many weakne&s;&s;es, and much error, and cannot deny, but I may be mi&s;taken in tho&s;e things, wherein, at pre&s;ent I am very confi|dent, yet have I mo&s;t pre&s;umptuou&s;ly and a<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">|rogantly, a&s;&s;umed to my &s;elfe, a power of <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">udging, and cen&s;uring all judgements, opi|nions. and wayes of wor&s;hip (except my owne) to bee either damnable, hereticall, chi&s;maticall, or dangerous: And though I
<PB N="8" REF="6"> have &s;eene and condemned the evill of it in the Bi&s;hops and Prelates, yet (as they) have I reviled &amp; reproached them, under the com|mon nick-names of Browni&s;ts, Indepen|dents, Anabapti&s;ts, Antinomians, Seekert, and the like:) of purpo&s;e to make them odi|ous to Authority, and all &s;orte of men: whereby I have wrought very much trouble to many of them, in all parts throughout this Nation; and have cau&s;ed great di&s;a&s;&s;e. ction in Families, Cities and Countries, for difference in judgement, (which I ought not to have done) Irritating and provoking on again&s;t an other, to the di&s;&s;olving of all ci|vill and naturall relations, and as much as in me lay, inciting and animating to the extir|pation and utter ruine one of another, in &s;o much as the whole Land (by my unhappy meanes, more then any others) is become a Nation of quarrels, di&s;tractions, and divifi|ons, our Cities, Cities of &s;trife, &s;lander, and backbiting; by occa&s;ion whereof, both our coun&s;ell and &s;trength faileth, and all the godly party in the Land, are now more lia|ble to abu&s;e and danger, whether they are Presbyterians, Independents, or others, then they have been &s;ince the beginning of this Parliament; though many of them are &s;o blinded by my writings and di&s;cour&s;es
<PB N="9" REF="6"> and &s;o perverted in their under&s;tandings, that they cannot di&s;cerne it: And where|fore I have done all this, O Lord God thou knowe&s;t, and I tremble to remember, for I have done it out of the pride and vanity of my owne mind, out of di&s;daine, that plaine unlearned men &s;hould &s;eeke for knowledge any other way then as they are directed by us that are learned; out of ba&s;e feare, if they &s;hould fall to teach one another, that wee &s;hould lo&s;e our honour, and be no longer e&s;teemed as Gods Clergy, or Mini&s;ters <HI>Jure divino;</HI> or that we &s;hould lo&s;e our domina|tion in being &s;ole judges of doctrine and di&s;cipline, whereby our predece&s;&s;ours have over ruled State and Kingdomes.</P>
<P>Or la&s;tly, that we &s;hould lo&s;e our profits and plentious maintenance by Tithes, offer|ings, &amp;c. which our predece&s;&s;ours (the Cler|gle) for many ages have enjoyed as their proper right, and not at the good-will of the owners, or the donation of humane au|thority: All this I &s;aw comming in with that liberty, which plaine men tooke, to try and examine all things; and therefore being overcome with &s;elfe-re&s;pect, and not being able to with&s;tand &s;o &s;trong temptations, be|ing al&s;o then filled with a kind of know|ledge
<PB N="10" REF="7"> that puffeth up: I be tooke my &s;elfe to that unhappy worke, to make all men odi|ous, that, either directly, or by con&s;equence did any thing towards the &s;ubver&s;ion of our glory, power, or profit.</P>
<P>In doing whereof, what wayes and means I have taken for intelligence: What trea|chery, inhumanity, and breach of ho&s;pitali|ty, I have countenanced and encouraged; my con&s;cience too &s;adly tels me, and my un|happy bookes (if duly weighed) will to my &s;hame di&s;cover.</P>
<P>The mo&s;t knowing, judicious, under&s;tand|ing men that oppo&s;ed me, or my intere&s;t, I knew were tho&s;e, that did and could mo&s;t prejudice our cau&s;e; and therefore I &s;et my &s;elfe again&s;t them in a more &s;peciall man|ner, labouring by any meanes to make them odious to all &s;ocieties, that &s;o they might not be credited in any thing they &s;pake.</P>
<P>The truth is: In this my perver&s;e and &s;ad condition, whil&s;t I &s;tood for maintenance of my corrupt intere&s;t, it was impo&s;&s;ible for me, truly to love a judicious or an enquiring man: I loved none, but &s;uper&s;titious or ig|norant people, for with &s;uch I could per|&s;wade, and over &s;uch I could bear rule: &s;uch would pay what&s;oever I demanded, and do
<PB N="11" REF="7"> <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">hatever I required: they &s;pake as I &s;pake, commended what I approved, &amp; reproach|<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">d, as I reproached: I could make them run point-blanck again&s;t Authority, or fly in the face of any man, for the&s;e took me real|ly for one of Gods Clergie, admired my parts and learning, as gifts of the Holy Gho&s;t, and beleeved my erring Sermons to be the very word of God; willingly &s;ubmit|ted their con&s;ciences and religion to my guidance.</P>
<P>Whil&s;t (as indeed it is) an under&s;tanding <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">nquiring man, &s;tudious in the Scriptures, in|<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="2 letters">antly di&s;cerneth me to be but as other lay|men, and findeth our learning to be but like other things that are the effects of &s;tudy and indu&s;try, and that our preachings are like any other mens di&s;cour&s;es, liable to er|rours and mi&s;takings, and are not the very Word of God, but our apprehen&s;ions drawne from the Word.</P>
<P>I confe&s;&s;e now mo&s;t willingly to my owne &s;hame, that there was nothing which I con|ceived effectuall, to work upon the &s;uper|<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="2 letters">itious or ignorant, but I made u&s;e thereof <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">s the Prelats had don before me, yea I &s;trict|ly ob&s;erved order in &s;uch things as few men con&s;ider, &amp; yet are very powerful in the
<PB N="12" REF="8"> minds of many; as the wearing of my Cloa<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter"> of at lea&s;t a Clergy-mans length, my Hat of a due breadth and bigne&s;&s;e, both for brim and crown, &s;omewhat different from lay men, my band al&s;o of a peculiar &s;traine, and and my clothes <HI>all black,</HI> I would not have worne a coloured &s;ute at any rate, that I thought enough to betray all, nor any trim|ing on my black, as being un&s;utable to a <HI>Divines</HI> habit.</P>
<P>I had a care to be &s;adder in countenance and more &s;ollemne in di&s;cour&s;e becau&s;e it was the cu&s;tom of a Clergy-man, <GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">his I did though I knew very well the Apo&s;tles of Chri&s;t, u&s;ed no &s;uch vaine di&s;tinctons, but being not indeed unlike other men, through any endowments from on high, or power of miracles, and yet re&s;oluing to maintayn a di&s;tinction, (being unable to do it by any thing &s;ub&s;tantiall, I) concluded it mu&s;t be done (as it long time had been, both in the Romi&s;h and Prelatique Church) even by vain and Fanta&s;tick di&s;tinctions, &s;uch as clothes and other formalities; and though I knew full well, that God was no re&s;pecter of per|&s;ons, and that he made not choi&s;e of the great, or learned men of the world, to be his Prophets and publi&s;hers of the Go&s;pell:
<PB N="13" REF="8"> but Heard&s;-men, Fi&s;her-men Tent-mak|ers Toll-gatherers, &amp;c. and that our Ble&s;|&s;ed Saviour thought it no di&s;parage|ment to be reputed the Sonne of a Carpen|ter: yet have I mo&s;t unworthily reviled and reproached, divers &s;orts of hone&s;t Trade&s;men, and other v&s;efull laborious peo|ple, for endevouring to preach and to in|&s;truct tho&s;e that willingly would be in&s;truct|ed by them, tearming them illiterate Me|chanicks, Heriticks, and Sci&s;maticks, meerly becau&s;e I would not have my &s;uper&s;titi|ous friends, to give any eare or regard unto them.</P>
<P>And for the&s;e re&s;pects, have I magnifi|ed our publique Churches or meeting pla|ces, and reproached and cryed out upon all preachings in private hou&s;es, calling them conventicles and u&s;ing all endevours, to make all &s;uch private meetings liable to that Statute that was enacted, and provid|ed to re&s;traine and avoyd all &s;ecret plot|<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="2 letters">ngs again&s;t the civill government, when in the meane time I knew the &s;criptures plainly &s;hewed, both by the precepts and practices of our Saviour and his Apo&s;tles, that all places are indifferent, whether in the mountaine or in the fields, on the wa|ter,
<PB N="14" REF="9"> in the &s;hip, or on the &s;hore, in the Syna|gogues or privat hou&s;es, in an upper or low|roome; all is one, <HI>they went preaching the Go&s;pell from hou&s;e to hou&s;e. Not in Ieru&s;alem&punc; nor in this mountaine, but in every place he that lifteth up pure hands is accepted. Where&s;o|ever two or three are gathered together in my name, there</HI> (&s;aith our Saviour) <HI>I will be in the mide&s;t of them,</HI> all this I knew: yet, becau&s;e the &s;uper&s;titious were (through long cu&s;tom) zealous of the publique places, I applyed my &s;elfe therein, to their humors and my owne ends, and did what I could to make all o|ther places odious and ridiculous: though now I &s;eriou&s;ly acknowledge, that a plaine di&s;creet man in a privat hou&s;e, or field, in his ordinary apparell, &s;peaking to plaine people (like him&s;elfe) &s;uch things as he conceiveth requi&s;it for their knowledge&punc; out of the word of God, doth as much (if not more) re&s;emble the way of Chri&s;t and the manner of the Apo&s;tles, as a learned man in a carved pulpet, in his neate and black formalities, in a &s;tately, high, and &s;tone-built Church, &s;peaking to an audience, much more glorious and richly clad, then mo&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter"> Chri&s;tians mentioned in the Scriptures: and may be as acceptable&punc; I have mo&s;t mi&s;era|bly
<PB N="15" REF="9"> deluded the world therein, and tho&s;e mo&s;t with whom I have beene mo&s;t fami|liar, and have thereby drawne off their thoughts from a con&s;ideration of &s;uch things as tended to love, peace and joy in the Holy Gho&s;t&punc; to &s;uch things as tended neither to their owne good nor the good, of others. I have beene wi&s;e in my own eyes, and de&s;pi&s;ed others, but I mu&s;t a|bandon all, I mu&s;t become a foole that I may bee wi&s;e, hitherto I have promo|ted a meere <HI>Cl<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">rgy</HI> Religion, but true Chri&s;tian religion; pure religion and unde|filed I have-utterly neglected: I have wre&s;t|ed the covenant from its naturall and proper meaning, to make u&s;e thereof for the e&s;ta|bli&s;hment of &s;uch a Church government, as would maintaine the power of the Clergy di&s;tinct from and above the power of Par|liaments, and &s;uch as would have given full power to &s;uppre&s;&s;e and cru&s;h all our oppo&s;ers, but I now ble&s;&s;e God, the wi&s;dom of Parliament di&s;cerned and prevented it.</P>
<P>I have been too too cruel and hard heart|ed again&s;t men for erors in religion, or <HI>know|ledge &s;upernaturall,</HI> though I my &s;elfe have no infallible &s;pirit to di&s;cern between truth and erors, yea though I have &s;eene them &s;o
<PB N="16" REF="10"> zealous &amp; con&s;cientious in their judgment<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter"> (as to be ready to give up their lives for the truth thereof, yet have I (as the Bi&s;hops were wont) argued them of ob&s;tinacy, and in &s;teed of taking a chri&s;tian-like way to convert them, have without mercy cen&s;ured, &s;ome of them worthy of impri&s;onment, and &s;ome of death, but I would not be &s;o u&s;ed, nor have I done therein as I would be done unto my &s;elfe.</P>
<P>I have beene a great re&s;pecter of per&s;ons, for outward re&s;pects, the man in Fine ray|ment, and with the gold ring, I have ever prefered whil&s;t the poore and needy have beene low in my e&s;teeme.</P>
<P>I have too much loved greetings in the market place, and the uppermo&s;t places a<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter"> fea&s;ts, and to be called Rabby.</P>
<P>And to fill up the mea&s;ure of my iniquity: I have had no compa&s;&s;ion on tender con&s;ciences, but have wrought them all the trouble cruelty and mi&s;ery I could, and had done much more but that through the goodne&s;&s;e of God, the pre&s;ent authority was too ju&s;t and pious to &s;econd my unchri|&s;tian endevours: My mercifull Saviour would not breake the bru&s;ed reed, nor quench the &s;mokeing flax, but my hard heart hath done
<PB N="17" REF="10"> it, O that I had not quenched, that I had not re&s;i&s;ted the Spirit, what fruit have I of tho&s;e things whereof I am now a&s;hamed; O how fowle I am, and filthy, yea how na|ked and all uncovered, my hidden &s;inne lyes open, I &s;ee it, and the &s;hame of it, and how fowle it is; and the &s;ight of it grieveth and exceedingly troubleth me. I would faine hide my &s;elfe from mine owne &s;inne, but cannot; it pur&s;ueth me, it cleaveth unto me, it &s;tands ever before me and I am made to po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e my &s;inne, though it be grievous and loath&s;ome and abominable and filthy above all that I can &s;peake, what &s;hall I doe? whi|ther &s;hall I fly? who can deliver me from this body of death? my &s;pirit is &s;o wounded I am not able to beare: Can there be mercy for me? can there be balme for my wound|ed &s;pirit, that never had compa&s;&s;ion on a tender con&s;cience? my ca&s;e is &s;ad and mi&s;|&s;erable, but there is balme in Gilead: with God there is mercy: with him is plenteous redemption, I will therefore goe to my Fa|ther and &s;ay unto him. Father I have &s;inned again&s;t Heaven and again&s;t thee, I am not worthy to be called thy child, make me as one of thine hired &s;ervants, I will faith|fully apply my &s;elfe to thy will, and to the
<PB N="18" REF="11"> &s;tudy of thy Commandements, yea I will both &s;tudy and put in practice thy new com|mandement, which is love, I will re|deem the time I have mi&s;pent: love will help me, for God is love, the love of Chri&s;t will con&s;traine me, through love I &s;hall be enabled to doe all things, &s;hould I not love him that hath loved me, and &s;hewed mercy unto me, for &s;o many thou&s;and &s;innes, &s;hall not his kindne&s;&s;e beget kindne&s;&s;e in me, yes love hath filled me with love, &s;o let me cate, and &s;o let me drinke, for ever, love is good and &s;eeketh the good of all men, it helpeth and hurteth not, it ble&s;&s;eth, it teach|eth, it feedeth, it clotheth, it delivereth the captive, &amp; &s;etteth the oppre&s;&s;ed free; it breakes not the bru&s;ed reed, nor quench|eth the &s;mokeing flaxe, farewell for ever all old things, as pride envy coveteou&s;ne&s;&s;e reviling, and the like, and welcome love, that maketh all things new, even &s;o let love po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e me, let love dwell in me, and me In love, and when I have fini&s;hed my dayes in peace, and my yeares in re&s;t, I &s;hall re&s;t in peace, and I &s;hall dwell with love, that have dwelt in love.
<PB N="19" REF="11"> May his meditations hence-forward, and his latter end, be like unto this, or more exellent and Heaven|ly, which is all the harme I wi&s;h unto him, as haveing through Gods mercy, in &s;ome mea&s;ure, learned that worthy and Heavenly le&s;&s;on of my Saviour, <HI>But I &s;ay unto you, love your enemies &amp;c.</HI> and may all that love the Lord Ie&s;us, increa&s;e therein.</P>
</DIV1>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="imprimatur">
<PB N="21" REF="12">
<OPENER><DATELINE><DATE>July 22. 1646.</DATE></DATELINE></OPENER>
<P>Imprimatur,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>JOHN BACHILER</SIGNED></CLOSER>
<PB REF="12">
</DIV1>
</BACK>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
