A general epistle to be read in the fear of God in and amongst the assemblies of his people by William Dewsbury. Dewsbury, William, 1621-1688. 1682 Approx. 15 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 6 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2003-11 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A35841 Wing D1270 ESTC R1346 13429903 ocm 13429903 99519 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A35841) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 99519) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 785:3) A general epistle to be read in the fear of God in and amongst the assemblies of his people by William Dewsbury. Dewsbury, William, 1621-1688. [2], 9 p. Printed for Benjamin Clark ..., London: 1682. Reproduction of original in Cambridge University Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng God -- Love -- Early works to 1800. 2003-05 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2003-05 Aptara Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2003-08 Jonathan Blaney Sampled and proofread 2003-08 Jonathan Blaney Text and markup reviewed and edited 2003-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion A GENERAL EPISTLE TO BE READ IN THE Fear of God. In and amongst the ASSEMBLIES OF HIS PEOPLE . By William Dewsbury . LONDON , Printed for Benjamin Clark in George-Yard in Lombard-street , Bookseller , 1682. A GENERAL EPISTLE TO BE READ IN THE Fear of God. In and Amongst the ASSEMLIES OF HIS PEOPLE . My Dear Friends , IN the Light of the Lord all Watch and Pray , that you may receive Power through Faith in the Name of Christ to Reign over your own Thoughts and Wills ; then will you Delight in taking up the Daily Cross to the Mortifying of the Earthly Members : That your Conversations may be as becometh the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Iesus Christ , which will make you Manifest to the Witness of God in every Conscience , that you are the Salt of the Earth ; that have kept your State and Habitation in God , and doth retain the Sweet Savoury Spirit of Life , which Seasons all your Words and Works , and Ministers Grace to all with whom you have any concern ; to the Exalting Gods Blessed Truth over all that Watch for Evil which will cause their Eyes to fail , and frustrate their Expectations for ever , Amen . And Dear Friends , I Beseech you be Faithful upon all Accounts , for the Service of the Blessed Truth of God ; to meet together in his Holy Fear , that you may receive the Holy Inspiration of his Spirit to Exercise you in what Service God is pleased to call you unto ; whether in Prayer to God , or in Exhortation to Build up one another in your most Holy Faith ; to raise up the the Life in all , that every one that 's Overcome with the Powerful and Heavenly Motions , cast their Mite into Gods Treasury , and give him his own Advantage ; so will you feel the Encrease of his Government in you that are Faithful , in the true Measure of Light and Life ; more and more he will give unto you , to the Edifying of one another in love : So will you become Epistles written in one anothers hearts , with the Pure Spirit of the Living God ; which will bind you up in the Vnity of the Spirit , and Bond of Peace ; and what Exercise soever is met withal , whilst you are in the Mortal Body , Pray to the Lord to keep you in the Life of his own Spirit ; that Patience may have its Perfect work , that if you be Smitten on the one Cheek , turn the other Cheek to the Smiter also , and if you be Reviled , Revile not again ; but in deep Humility and Patience Wait in the Pure , Meek , and Peaceable Spirit of our Lord Jesus who was made perfect through Sufferings : So are his Dear and Chosen Iewels , who bear his Name in Righteousness and have their Eye to the God of their Help , and their Confidence in the Lord alone . Oh ye Blessed of the Lord , BE Glad in his Name , who will not let any of you Suffer ( whose Confidence is in him alone ) any more than he will give Strength to Bear , and will Sweeten the Cup of your Tribulation with his Blessed Presence , which will cause your Hearts to Rejoyce and Sing in all your Tryals ; and will give you your Portion for ever with the Blessed Assembly , that Iohn Spoke of in the seventh of the Revevelations : A number that no man could number , that had passed through the Great Tribulation , and washed their Garments , and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb : Therefore are they before the Throne of God , and serve him day and night in his Holy Temple ; and he that sitteth on the Throne shall dwell among them , and Feed them and lead them to the Living Fountains of waters , where God will wipe away all Tears of Sorrow from their Eyes for ever . And this is your Portion , you Dear Children of the Living God , who in true Love to him have waited upon him , in the Light of Christ , To be Buried with him in his Spiritual Baptism , and made conformable to him in his Sufferings and Death ; Notwithstanding your Strict walking in Observations [ which must be done according to what the Lord manifests to you , or else you perish Eternally ] without True Repentance . And in the Deep sense of your Present Strait , being made Conformable in Measure to our Lord and Saviour ; you Cry as he did upon the Cross , My God , my God , why hast thou forsaken me ( when he bare the Sins and Transgressions of his People ) Even so do you his Dear Children in your Measure passing through the Great Tribulations , being made of the Number of the Slain of the Lord. Here is first a passing Through the Great Tribulation , and to be made of the Number of the Slain of the Lord ; and being truly Humbled into his Blessed Will , in the Deed Sense of the Poverty of Spirit , there Wait upon the Lord , until he Create you to a lively Hope , and give you a Possession of his Blessed Life , that is Hid with Christ in God , and so marry you to himself in his own Righteousness , which he gives you for to be your Wedding Garment . And now this Love of God constrains you to walk in all Strict Observations that are Required of you to be done ; but no more to Lean upon them for Life , but have now all your Obediences accepted of God through Faith in the Light , Life , and Name of Christ , in whom you now are the Righteousness of God for ever , in Giving up Freely to be Guided by his Spirit in Faithfulness to the end . Oh you ever Blessed and Happy People ! Who doth Witness Fulfilled in you what is here Written ; Lift up your Heads and Rejoyce in the Lord , and in the Almighty Power of his Humble , Meek and Pure Spirit , which makes Self of no Reputation , but through your Obedience to Christ Jesus the True Light , in whom you come to Witness the Lord to be One , and his Name One ; and you that never had Power to Believe in his Name , until he gave you Power to Believe ; you are One in the Lord for ever . And here is the Ioyful and Eternal Vnity with the Father in the Son , and one with another in the Love of Christ which bought us with his Blood , which the Gates of Hell can never Prevail against . And all you my Ancient Brethren and Sisters , that have Obtained this Blessed Dominion and Everlasting Inheritance . I Bless God for you , whom I do Believe will take Care to Answer the Desire of my Soul as before-written : For the Comfort of the Young and Tender Babes , for whose Sake I had this Concern upon my Spirit , to lay before them the True Passage into the Footsteps , where the Tribulated Companions have Travelled that are Married to the Lord of Life , and have upon them their Wedding Garment , that they may not come Short that are upon their Travel towards the same Inheritance in Christ the True Light , as before exprest . And I Dearly beseech you , whom God hath Sealed up ( with his Holy Spirit to your full Assurance of Gods Everlasting Love in Christ Iesus ) that you Watch over the Tender and Tribulated ones ; and in what possible can be done , to Strengthen their Faith , that they may come into the Heavenly Vnity with the Father in the Son ; and Sit down with all them , that have been made Conformable to Christ in his Suffering and Death , that in the Heavenly Resurrection ; Blessed and Everlasting Peace , they may Sing Halelujah , and High Praises to the Lord their God , over all the wrath that 's in the Children of men ; which will come to an end , and vanish away like Smoak , before you whom the Lord hath called in meekness and Patience to bear his Name in Righteousness , in the Sweet Savoury Spirit of Iesus Christ , over all Blessed for ever , Amen . In which the Lord keep you all , with my Soul , Faithful unto the end ; is the Breathings of the Spirit of your Brother and Companion in the Kingdom of Patience and Tribulation in the Lord Jesus Christ. William Dewsbury . ANd further , I have this to communicate to my Friends and Brethren ; that what hath come to pass these late years , for want of Watchfulness to be Guided by the Spirit of the Lord : Love hath been quenched in many , that Offences hath entred , and Separation followed ; which hath Deeply wounded my Spirit , who have endeavoured to the utmost of my Power in the Love of God to prevent such Proceedings ; and so have I done in many years past , in preventing Papers ready to be Printed from being Published , that were of a tendency to quench the Love of one towards another : And when Ieffery Bullocks Papers were published in Print , which would appear to the Reader of a tendancy as to the Breach of Vnity ; ( which would cause the Enemies of God to Rejoyce , it did so wound my Spirit , that for many Weeks , they that saw me did not expect that I would continue long in the Body : But God in his Mercy Restored Strength in his Appointed time . And when I did hear that some in the West , did intend to Publish in Print some Friends Weaknesses : I Bore my Testimony against such Proceedings , and told one that did Favour what was intended , That I would have my Hand Cut off , before I would Exercise it in such Undertakings ( as the state of Friends was at that time . ) And desired him , To speak to W. R. that he would not proceed in Publishing any thing of that Nature ; for if he did , it would be a prejudice to Truth , and would produce very sad Consequences that would follow , and my Spirit would be deeply wounded , as it is this day , through these Proceedings ; that voluntarily through want of Love , casts away the Iudgment , that is given to the people of the Saints of the most High God ( to keep all sweet and savoury amongst us ) into the Hands of the Enemies of God , as an inlet for them to come into the midst of us , to sit as Iudges and trample upon us . So to Clear my Conscience of all False Reports Cast upon me , as that I have Encouraged what is Brought forth as before written ; and to Satisfie all Friends in God , I have Laboured according to the Ability God hath given me , to Prevent the Publishing all things of that Nature , as aforsaid ; and have Endeavoured with all concerned , that I could meet with : to have a care of watching for Evil , lest they Provoke one another to Wrath , and so Quench the Love : But rather Look at the Good one in another , and in the Love of God , Minister , to Preserve them forth of any Weakness they did see lay near to attend them ; that so the Pure Holy Spirit of Light , Life and Love , that first Gathered us into it self , to be a People in God , and in his Blessed Authority to reign over what was , and is contrary to his Blessed Nature , may again Restore , ( where it is wanting ) in the Vniversality of its Blessed Power , to make up the Breaches , and to Restore the Desolate ones , in causing every one that Professeth the Biessed Truth of God , to love their Neighbour as themselves ; and so to do unto all , as they would have others to do unto them ; that so all concerned in the Exercise , in the Measure of the Grace of God in Christ , ( that seeks the Peace of his People ) may Stand as Saviours upon mount Sion , to the Honour of the Name of the Lord our God , and the Eternal Comfort of all that Love not their Lives unto Death , to serve the Lord , and his Dear and Chosen People , in the Meek , Patient , and Peaceable Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ. In which the Lord keep you all with my Soul ; that in his Pure and Peaceable Dominion , we all Reign , and throw down our Crowns before his Throne . and all Vnanimously Sing , all Glory , Honour , Praises , Thanksgiving , and Dominion be given to him , who is found worthy to sit upon his Throne in all our Consciences , Christ Jesus the True Light , and hope of our Glory , even so be it withall that Professeth his Blessed Truth : Saith my Soul in the Name of the Lord. From Warwick the 8th . day of the 3d. Month 1682. W. D.