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<DATE>2011-04-03</DATE>
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<NAME>Mona Logarbo</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B110310.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="A91923">
<STC T="W">r1786</STC>
<STC T="T">e903_1</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99866465</BIBNO>
<VID>118740</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>Love to the Captives: OR, The love of God to the World;</P>
<P>Who &s;o loved the World, that he gave his onely begotten Son, to be the light of the World, that who&s;oever believeth in him &s;hould not peri&s;h, but have eternal life, and no man cometh to the Father, but by him, (who is the Redeemer of the Captives.)</P>
<P>Given forth for their &s;akes, who de&s;ire to turn to the Lord, or to &s;ee a return out of Captivity, de|claring the way to God, and where power again&s;t &s;in may be received, that your &s;ouls may no longer be held under the &s;nare of the Divel, nor you be made a prey upon by Deceivers, but come away to the light, which is the po|wer of God unto Salvation; and he that believes &s;hall be &s;aved, and he that believes not &s;hall be damned.</P>
<Q><P>For mine eyes have &s;een thy &s;alvation, which thou ha&s;t prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people I&s;rael,</P>
<BIBL><HI>Luke</HI> 2.30, 31, 32.</BIBL></Q>
<Q><P>Then &s;pake Je&s;us again unto them, &s;aying, I am the light of the World, he that followeth me &s;hall not walk in darkne&s;s, but &s;hall have the light of life, that was the true light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world,</P>
<BIBL><HI>John</HI> 8.12. and 1.9.</BIBL></Q>
<Q><P>And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men love darkne&s;s rather than light, becau&s;e their deeds were evill; for every one that doth evill hateth the light, nei|ther cometh to the light, le&s;t his deeds &s;hould be reproved; but he that doth truth, cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manife&s;t that they are wrought in God,</P>
<BIBL><HI>John</HI> 3.19, 20, 21.</BIBL></Q>
<P><ADD>february 11^t^h</ADD></P>
<P><HI>London,</HI> Printed for <HI>Giles Calvert,</HI> 1656.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB N="2" REF="2">
<HEAD>LOVE to the CAPTIVES, &amp;c.</HEAD>
<P>_REturn,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ho&s;: 14: 1. Joel: 2: 12. Mall: 3: 7. I&s;a: 5: 13.</NOTE> Return, O Captivated People, and &s;ee how you are fallen from innocency, oh how great Captivitie are you in? how darkne&s;s hath over&s;pread the wi&s;e men; and pride and covetou&s;ne&s;s hath &s;toln a|way the hearts of the greatmen, and op|pre&s;&s;ion is greatly exalted in the Rulers,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ho&s;: 4: 8. Prov: 13: 10. Obed: 3.</NOTE> and in&s;tead of pro|tection to the innocent, there is a Cry, away with him, to pri&s;on he mu&s;t go! Oh, what a fence is here made again&s;t e|quity, Truth faileth, there is no room for it in the &s;treets! and if oppre&s;&s;ion can keep out equity, it &s;hall not enter, and this is done again&s;t the Lord,<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a: 59.</NOTE> and he is di&s;plea&s;ed with it; Therefore while it is called to day, harden not your hearts, but turn to the Lord who hath all this time &s;pared you,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Heb: 4: 7. Prov: 28: 13.</NOTE> and gave thus long time, and yet hath not utterly con&s;umed you; and his long &s;ufferings towards you,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Lam: 3: 22. Rom: 2: 4.</NOTE> have been to have drawn you to repentance, that you might awake out of your &s;elf-&s;ecurity (wherein you have been lull'd a &s;leep) and ari&s;e from the dead works,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ephe&s;: 5: 14. Iohn 5: 25.</NOTE> and hear the voice of the Son of God and live: behold him, his witne&s;s is in your con&s;ciences; cal|ling you out of the evil of the world; it hath been in you, in the years pa&s;t, and in the daies long agoe, and when you have committed evil, it was a pre&s;ent witne&s;s again&s;t you, &s;ome|times letting you &s;ee evil before you acted it,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ephe&s;: 7: 13.</NOTE> and that you &s;hould not have acted evil, and have judged and condemned and brought trouble upon you for your evil doings, and &s;om|times when you have run ra&s;hly into the evil; not taking ad|vice of the Lord what you &s;hould have done, but have ru|&s;hed into iniquity, as a hor&s;e ru&s;heth into the battel; yet when you have done thus, if you in moderation did but con&s;ider what you had done, this witne&s;s, the light of Chri&s;t in your Con&s;ciences,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Luke 2: 32. John 1: 4.</NOTE> let you &s;ee you were wrong, and that you &s;hould not have touched the unclean, nor have acted in &s;in and un|cleanne&s;s,
<PB N="3" REF="2">and then you have been judged and condemned,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 Cor. 6.17. Rev. 18.4.</NOTE> by the witne&s;s of God in your &s;elves, which hath &s;mitten you inwardly, for the evil of your doings, and yet you returned not unto the Lord, to be guided by his witne&s;s,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ho&s;. 6.1.</NOTE> though it hath thus dealt with you, and if you had obeyed it, it had been your power to have led you out of evil,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Cor. 1.1<GAP DESC="illegible" EXTENT="1 letter">.</NOTE> and from under his power, who &s;ubjects to the evil, and it would have led you into Gods righteou&s;ne&s;s, where you &s;hould have found peace and re&s;t to your &s;ouls: But O you &s;illy people! you have &s;lieghted the day of your vi&s;itation, and neglected to obey the coun&s;el of the Lord, and have not minded the tea|chings of his power, the light in your Con&s;ciences, which is the Saints teacher;<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a 30.20.21. John 6.45.</NOTE> but you have &s;ought after God in your own waies, and have not found him, becau&s;e you have not &s;ought aright, nor walked in the obedience of the light, the witne&s;s in your Con&s;ciences, which condemns all evill,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Jo. 3.19 &amp;c. and 1.2.36.</NOTE> which if you had, you had cea&s;ed from your own works and waies, and it would have led you into the one way, which is Chri&s;t, who is the light of the world, and lighteth every man that cometh into the world, and no man cometh unto the Father but by him, the way, the light, the truth,<NOTE PLACE="marg">John 14.6.</NOTE> and there is no other way or name by which any can be &s;aved, but by him who is the light, unto whom you have not yeelded true obedience, nor given your hearts; but captivity yet remains upon you, and the Captivator is entertained, who hath led,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 5.5. Acts 8.21.23.</NOTE> and doth lead you in evil, and yet you lean upon the Lord while iniquity is &s;tanding, and the bands of it &s;trong in you, and your thoughts and de&s;ires is to enjoy the Kingdome of God; but they that take not up the Cro&s;&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Rom. 1.16. 1 Cor. 1.18.</NOTE> (that is the light which condemns all evil, which is the wi&s;dom and power of God in them that are &s;aved) &s;hall not enjoy the Crown, for the Crown is obtained through the Cro&s;&s;e, which leads out of the evil, to &s;erve God and deny Self, and &s;elf-works,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Luke 9.23, 24 &amp; 14.26. Matt. 10. Phil. 2.13. Exod. 14.13.</NOTE> and &s;elf-willing, and &s;elf running, and wait upon God who gi|veth both to will and to do, who&s;e own power doth his own work: And O that you could but &s;tand &s;till, and &s;ee this po|wer, the light (which leads into righteou&s;ne&s;s) break forth in you, to lead you out of captivity, then would you cea&s;e from your own works, and from your own willings and run|nings,
<PB N="4" REF="3">and from exalting &s;elf, and &s;etting up your own de|vices, invented in your fallen wi&s;dom, wherein your imagi|nations is highly exalted, above the knowledge of God, and there the wicked one hath his &s;eat,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 The&s;. 2.4. Rev. 13.8.14. 2 Cor. 11.14.</NOTE> and Anti-chri&s;t is exaled above all that is called God, and &s;itteth in the Temple of God, and &s;aith he is God, and &s;o deceiveth them that dwell on the earth, who is transformed into the likene&s;s of the truth it &s;elf, and is a leader of the children of di&s;obedience, in all manner of deceivablene&s;s of unrighteou&s;ne&s;s, and keeps you in captivity;<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 The&s;. 2.10. I&s;a. 5.13.</NOTE> and into much profe&s;&s;ion you are led, and many likene&s;&s;es and invitations are acted, and many &s;ects, and forms,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Eccle&s;. 7.24.</NOTE> and opinions ran into, though the life and power of God is lived out of, yea it may be not one of a thou&s;and that are acquainted with it, or that dare own them, who witne&s;s it forth as it is in Je&s;us, who are ready to &s;eal to their te&s;timo|ny with their bloods;<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 Tim. 4.3.</NOTE> and though you reject the power and te&s;timony of this pure life, yet you have heaped up Teachers to your &s;elves, and they have your prai&s;e, and are exalted by you, though I know, and if you did but examine your own hearts, the light of Chri&s;t in you would let you al&s;o &s;ee and know,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Jer. 23.21.22, 32.</NOTE> that they have not profited you, but the bands of in|iquitie yet is &s;trong in you, and them who you have &s;o &s;et up, and do exalt and prai&s;e to be rare Teachers, many of you do not under&s;tand what they &s;ay, nor they them&s;elves where|of they affirm, but many of you are in &s;uch &s;otti&s;hne&s;s, that when you are hearing the&s;e you &s;o allow of,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Tim. 1.7.</NOTE> that &s;leep over|comes you, yea, in the very time of your pretended wor&s;hip, and &s;ome of your your hearts run a whoring after the things and lu&s;ts and plea&s;ures and vanity of the world;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ezek. 6.9. Ho&s;ea 4.11.</NOTE> imagining or coveting, what to have to eat or drink, and to put on to your bodies, and inventing how to get money to &s;atisfie your lu&s;ts with,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Tim. 6.10.</NOTE> and how you &s;hould take plea&s;ure enough in your own beloveds, or deceitful lovers, which your adulterous hearts delights in; and thus you poor blind people are held captive, and though you draw near unto God with your lips, and profe&s;s his name with your tongues,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mat. 15.7, 8, 9</NOTE> yet your hearts is far from him; and thus have you delighted your &s;elves in vanity, following the wicked one, who hath &s;toln away your hearts, which runs a whoring from the living God, delight|ing
<PB N="5" REF="3">in the ceatures more than in the Creator, and thus you &s;pend your time in vanity, trea&s;uring up wrath again&s;t the day of wrath,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Rom: 2: 5.</NOTE> and thus in your pretended &s;olemn meetings and be&s;t duties as you e&s;teem of them, you euen add &s;in unto iniquity, your minds running a whoring from God, yea, when pretended to &s;erve and wor&s;hip God, and in the cap|tivitie where you are, where iniquitie is lived in, it cannot be otherwaies, for where the light is not your guide, there your wills is at liberty, and the wicked one &s;ubjecting you to vanity, and the light in which your minds &s;hould be &s;tayed, is rejected, and &s;o in vain is your wor&s;hip, and your drawing near unto God with your mouthes,<NOTE PLACE="marg">P&s;al. 66: 18.</NOTE> while iniquity is regard|ed in your hearts, and the light of Chri&s;t rejected,<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 58.</NOTE> which &s;hould lead you out of captivity, and break the bands of iniquitie; And this I know that in time pa&s;t, (when the night was upon me, and my &s;oul held captive, and the crea|ture made a &s;ervant to &s;in and corruption) I followed after &s;uch men as you have &s;et up to be your Teachers, yea, I fol|lowed them day after day, long together, and never found any &s;atisfaction to my &s;oul, by what I heard them &s;peak, though &s;ome prai&s;e of men I got thereby, yet mi&s;ery encom|pa&s;&s;ed me, yea, often day and night I &s;ought after the Lord, and that in tears, and my &s;oul de&s;ired after the Lord; but their teachings was &s;o dirty, and their words &s;o deceitful, and &s;o contrary to the life and power of God, that in&s;tead of a|wakning me to the Judgements of God,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 Cor: 15: 34. Ephe&s;. 5 4. Rom: 8: 20.</NOTE> they lull'd me a|&s;leep, and that in the very time of being to hear them, and though I was a con&s;tant hearer of them &s;everal years toge|ther, yet vanity and pride encrea&s;ed, and the vain mind and wicked thoughts were at liberty in the tim s of their &s;peak|ing, and I followed them till mi&s;ery overtook me, and the light in my Con&s;cience &s;hewed me the evil of their doings, and the vanitie of their words, and before I heard the ever|la&s;ting Go&s;pel, the light truely declared of, I &s;aw by the wit|ne&s;s of God, in the Prie&s;ts and people great wickedne&s;s, and my &s;elf to be one among&s;t them, and knew no way to reco|ver out of it, until the Lord revealed his power; and while I was a follower of the Prie&s;ts, I, in&s;tead of going to the Steeple-hou&s;e, have been made to go and lament my condi|tion
<PB N="6" REF="4">in a &s;ecret place, yea, from among&s;t men; (in a word) to &s;eek the Lord, and to bewail my &s;oul that was overwhel|med with iniquitie, and de&s;ired in tears to know the Lord, but the way I never found by the wi&s;dome of man, nor had known it to this day, if the Lord Je&s;us had not revealed him|&s;elf to me in his marvellous light, which often appeared to me when I knew it not; I &s;peak the truth I lie not, God is my witne&s;s who knows the &s;ecrets of all hearts, who is the righteous Judge, who will reward every man according to his deeds;<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a 59.13. Rom. 2.6.</NOTE> and every mans deeds &s;hall be witne&s;&s;ed in the pre&s;ence of the Lord, by the light of his Son in their con&s;ci|ences; And all people con&s;ider in your beds, and in your &s;ecret clo&s;&s;ets examine your &s;elves, and let the light in your con&s;ciences manife&s;t your conditions to you, (which light is pre&s;ent at all times, letting you &s;ee you &s;hould not com|mit evil) and then you will &s;ee that you know but little of the life and power of God, though in words you have made a large profe&s;&s;ion of his name, and this is it which the Lord requires of you, that you obey the light of his Son in your con&s;ciences, that's the light which lets you &s;ee the evil of your doings, and a mea&s;ure of it you have every one recei|ved, and obedience to it God requires,<NOTE PLACE="marg">John 1: 9. 1 Cor. 12: 7. 1 Sam: 15.22. Matt: 11.27.</NOTE> and doing this its better than Sacrifice; and all that comes unto God its in this light, and no man knows the Father, but them to whom the light reveals him, and &s;o all your profe&s;&s;ion of God, which is out of the light, is but vanity and iniquitie, and while pride and lu&s;ts is obeyed in the profe&s;&s;or, there is the hypocrite, the thief and the robber, running before Chri&s;t, profe&s;&s;ing his name,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Iob 15: 31. Mal. 4.1. Iames 4: 6. Matt: 23. Iohn 10: 8. I&s;a. 1: 12. Deut: 4: 30, 31</NOTE> being out of his life, God requires not this at your hands, but obedience the Lord requires, and the breaking off iniquitie is that which is well plea&s;ing unto God; And now is the day that the Lord calls unto you, and if ever you find redemption or recovery out of iniquitie, it mu&s;t be by the light, el&s;e you are lo&s;t for ever; and know this that you cannot enjoy two Kingdomes, if you enjoy the love, and delights, and plea&s;ures of the world, (which are enmity with God) you partake not of the joyes of the Kingdome of God,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Iames 4: 4.</NOTE> you cannot &s;erve God and Mammon; if you are &s;ervants to &s;in, you are not &s;ervants to God, and
<PB N="7" REF="4">to whom you yeeld your members &s;ervants to obey,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Matt: 6: 23. 1 Io: 3: 6: 8. Rom: 6: 16. Iohn 3: 16.</NOTE> his &s;er|vants yee are, whether of &s;in unto death, or righteou&s;ne&s;s unto life, and now the love of God appears towards you, that your nakedne&s;s may be covered, and your pollutions done away; O that you would but con&s;ider how the Lord hath waited on you to be gracious unto you, who hath gi|ven his Son a light, that who&s;oever beleeves in him &s;hall not peri&s;h but have eternal life,<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a: 42: 6. Iohn 3: 15,</NOTE> and this was the love of God to &s;inners, who hath given his Son, that in him you might have life, and this is the Lords mercy to you, and your ble&s;|&s;ing if you receive him, who is not of this world: And in your return to the Lord would my &s;oul rejoyce, and when &s;hall the day be &s;een, that you &s;eek no more your own ho|nor or delights, but the honor of the Lord?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Iohn 5: 44.</NOTE> and if you come to &s;ee and po&s;&s;e&s;s this, then you will &s;ee all fle&s;h to be as gra&s;s, and the glory of it to be as the flowers of the field,<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a. 40.6, 7, 8. I&s;a: 52: 7. Rom: 10: 15.</NOTE> which &s;oon withereth and pa&s;&s;eth away; then will be &s;een how beautiful are the feet of him that bringeth glad tydings to the meek, and then will you &s;ee how your &s;ouls have been captive, and that in the light is the pure liberty, and ble&s;&s;ed are they that receive it, and walk in the love of it, for there is no occa&s;ion of &s;tumbling, though it be a &s;tumbling &s;tone and rock of offence to the world,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Rom 9: 32, 33 P&s;al: 56: 9: 16 &amp; 62: 2. &amp; 94: 22. Heb: 11: 38.</NOTE> yet its the defence and &s;trength of the &s;aints and &s;ervants of God, of whom the world is not worthy, though by the world they are account|ed as the off-&s;couring of all things, yet their reward is in the Lord God Almighty, who is over all the world; And this I lay upon you all,<NOTE PLACE="marg">I&s;a: 56: 11. Ier: 5: 31: &amp; 23: 21: 22, 32 Ezek: 22: 28. Ezek: 34. Mica: 3: 5: 11. Mal. 2. Matt: 15: to 20 Matt: 6: 5. &amp; 23. 2 Tim: 3. 2 Pet: 2: 13. 14, 15. Iud: 11: 16. Lu: 13: 3: 5.</NOTE> as you will an&s;wer it before the Lord at the day of your account, that you take heed you hold not up &s;uch as you know have deceived you, or as the Scriptures witne&s;&s;eth again&s;t to be deceivers, le&s;t you partake of their &s;ins, and &s;o mu&s;t partake of their plagues; (and by their fruits you &s;hall know them) &s;o &s;ee that you come out from among&s;t them, and be you &s;eparate and touch no unclean thing, that the Lord God may receive you, and you may &s;ee forgivene&s;s of &s;ins, and iniquities blotted, and &s;o obey the life of the Lamb, who takes away the &s;ins of the world, and if you hate your part in him, your &s;ins remains upon your heads, and God is clear of your blood, and hath no delight
<PB N="8" REF="5">in the death of a &s;inner, but calls to the wicked to repent, that they may find mercy; and his witne&s;&s;e that reproves for evil is in you, and calls to repentance; and if you repent not, you peri&s;h; and this is in love to your &s;ouls, though it may appear folly to your wi&s;dome, to which I doe not &s;end it, nor do I look to be owned by it, but commend it to that of God in your Con&s;ciences.</P>
<CLOSER><DATELINE>Given forth in the Common Goal of <HI>Saffron-Walden</HI> in <HI>E&s;&s;ex,</HI> <DATE>the 1. day of the 11. month, 1656.</DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>By a &s;ufferer for the Te&s;timony of Je&s;us. <HI>G. R.</HI></SIGNED>
<POSTSCRIPT>
<P>Learn to know the Spirit of God, with it to try all things, and hold fa&s;t that which is good.</P>
</POSTSCRIPT></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
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