Now, though the Mayor of Derby did not sign the mittimus, yet having
had a hand with the rest in sending G. Fox to prison, he also writ to
him after this manner:
‘Friend,
‘Thou art set in place to do justice; but in imprisoning my body,
thou hast done contrary to justice, according to your own law.
O take heed of pleasing men more than God, for that is the way
of the Scribes and Pharisees; they sought the praise of men more
than God. Remember who said, ‘I was a stranger and ye took me not
in; was in prison, and ye visited me not.’ O friend, thy envy is
not against me, but against the power of truth. I had no envy to
you, but love. O take heed of oppression, ‘for the day of the
Lord is coming, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud,
and all that do wickedly, shall be as stubble; and the day that
cometh, shall burn them up,’ saith the Lord of Hosts: ‘it shall
leave them neither root nor branch.’ O friend, if the love of God
were in thee, thou wouldst love the truth, and hear the truth
spoken, and not imprison unjustly: the love of God beareth, and
suffereth, and envieth no man. If the love of God had broken your
hearts, you would show mercy; but you do show forth what ruleth
you. Every tree doth show forth its fruit: you do show forth your
fruits openly. For drunkenness, swearing, pride, and vanity,
rule among you, from the teacher to the people. O friend! mercy
and true judgment, and justice, are cried for in your streets.
Oppression, unmercifulness, cruelty, hatred, pride, pleasures,
wantonness, and fullness, is in your streets; but the poor is not
regarded. O take heed of the wo: wo be to the crown of pride! wo
be to them that drink wine in bowls, and the poor is ready to
perish. O remember Lazarus and Dives: one fared deliciously every
day; and the other was a beggar. O friend, mind these things, for
they are near, and see, whether thou be not the man, that is in
Dives’s state.’
To those of the Court at Derby, he also writ the following exhortation.
‘I am moved to write unto you, to take heed of oppressing
the poor in your courts, or laying burdens upon poor people,
which they cannot bear: and of false oaths, or making them
to take oaths, which they cannot perform. The Lord saith, ‘I
will come near to judgment, and I will be a swift witness
against the sorcerers, against the false swearers, and against
the idolaters, and against those that do oppress widows and
fatherless.’ Therefore take heed of all these things betimes. The
Lord’s judgments are all true and righteous, and he delighteth in
mercy: so love mercy, dear people, and consider in time.’
And because the ringing of bells for joy, is a thing generally tending
to stir up vanity and immorality, he also writ a few lines to the
bell-ringers of the steeple-house, called St. Peter’s, in Derby.
‘Friends,
‘Take heed of pleasures, and prize your time now, while you have
it; and do not spend it in pleasures, nor earthliness. The time
may come, that you will say, you had time, when it is past:
therefore look at the love of God now, while you have time: for
it bringeth to loathe all vanities, and worldly pleasures. O
consider! time is precious: fear God and rejoice in him, who hath
made heaven and earth.’
Whilst G. Fox was in prison there, several of the professors came to
discourse with him, and he perceiving that they came to plead for sin
and imperfection, asked them, Whether they were believers, and had
faith? and they saying Yes, he further asked them, In whom? to which
they answering, In Christ; he replied, If ye are true believers in
Christ, you are passed from death to life; and if passed from death,
then from sin that bringeth death. And if your faith be true, it will
give you victory over sin and the devil, and purify your hearts and
consciences, (for the true faith is held in a pure conscience,) it
will bring you to please God, and give you access to him again. But
such language as this they could not endure; for they said, they could
not believe that any could be free from sin on this side the grave.
To which he answered, That then they might give over their talking
concerning the Scriptures, which were the words of holy men; whilst
they themselves pleaded for unholiness. At another time, another
company of such professors came, and they also pleading for sin, he
asked them, Whether they had hope? to which they answered, Yes, God
forbid but we should have hope. Then he asked, What hope is it you
have? Is Christ in you, the hope of your glory? Doth it purify you, as
he is pure? But they could not abide to hear of being made pure here,
and therefore he bade them forbear talking of the Scriptures, which
were the holy men’s words; for the holy men that writ the Scriptures,
(said he,) pleaded for holiness in heart, life, and conversation here;
but since you plead for impurity and sin, which is of the devil, what
have you to do with the holy men’s words?
Now the keeper of the prison, who was also an high professor, was much
enraged against G. Fox, and spoke wickedly of him. But it pleased the
Lord one day to strike him so, that he was under great anguish of mind:
and G. Fox walking in his chamber, heard a doleful noise, and standing
still to hearken, he heard him say to his wife, Wife, I have seen the
day of judgment, and I saw George there, and was afraid of him, because
I had done him so much wrong, and spoken so much against him to the
ministers, and professors, and to the justices, and in taverns and
ale-houses. After this, towards the evening, the keeper came up into
his chamber, and said to him, I have been as a lion against you; but
now I come like a lamb, and like the jailer that came to Paul and Silas
trembling. And he desired that he might lie with him; to which G. Fox
answered, That he was in his power, he might do what he would. But said
the other, Nay, I will have your leave; and I could desire to be always
with you, but not to have you as a prisoner. G. Fox, unwilling to deny
his desire, complied with it, and suffered him to lie with him. Then
the keeper told him all his heart, and said, he believed what he had
said of the true faith and hope, to be true: and he wondered that the
other man that was put into prison with him, did not stand to it: for,
said he, That man was not right, but you are an honest man. He also
confessed, that at those times when G. Fox had asked him to let him go
and speak the word of the Lord to the people, and at his refusal had
laid the weight thereof upon him, that then he used to be under great
trouble, amazed, and almost distracted for some time. The next morning
the keeper went to the justices, and told them, that he and his house
had been plagued for G. Fox’s sake. To which one of the justices, viz.
Bennet, said, That the plagues were on them too for keeping him. The
justices now to be rid of him, gave leave that he should have liberty
to walk a mile. But he perceiving their end, told the jailer, if they
would set down to him how far a mile was, he might take the liberty of
walking it sometimes: for he believed they thought he would go away;
and the jailer also told him afterwards, that this was their intent.
But he signified to him, that he had no mind to get his liberty that
way. And so he remained prisoner, and was visited by the jailer’s
sister, who was so affected with what he spoke to her, that she coming
down, told her brother they were an innocent people, that did no hurt
to any, but good to all; and she desired that he might be treated
civilly.
Now, since by reason of his restraint, he had not the opportunity of
travelling about to declare the doctrine of truth, he, to discharge
himself, wrote the following paper, and sent it forth for the opening
of people’s understandings in the way of truth, and directing them to
the true teacher in themselves.
‘The Lord doth show unto man his thoughts, and discovereth all
the secret workings in man. A man may be brought to see his
evil thoughts, and running mind, and vain imaginations, and may
strive to keep them down, and to keep his mind in; but cannot
overcome them, nor keep his mind within to the Lord. Now, in this
state and condition, submit to the Spirit of the Lord that shows
them, and that will bring to wait upon the Lord; and he that
hath discovered them, will destroy them. Therefore stand in the
faith of the Lord Jesus Christ, (who is the author of the true
faith,) and mind him; for he will discover the root of lusts, and
evil thoughts, and vain imaginations, and how they are begotten,
conceived, and bred; and then how they are brought forth, and how
every evil member doth work. He will discover every principle
from its own nature and root.
‘So mind the faith of Christ, and the anointing which is in you,
to be taught by it, which will discover all workings in you:
and as he teacheth you, so obey and forsake; else you will not
grow up in the faith, nor in the life of Christ, where the love
of God is received. Now love begetteth love, its own nature and
image: and when mercy and truth do meet, what joy there is! and
mercy doth triumph in judgment and love and mercy doth bear the
judgment of the world in patience. That which cannot bear the
world’s judgment, is not the love of God; for love beareth all
things, and is above the world’s judgment; for the world’s
judgment is foolishness. And though it be the world’s judgment
and practice, to cast all the world’s filthiness, that is among
themselves, upon the saints; yet their judgment is false. Now the
chaste virgins follow Christ the Lamb that takes away the sins of
the world: but they that are of that spirit, which is not chaste,
will not follow Christ the Lamb in his steps; but are disobedient
to him in his commands. So the fleshly mind doth mind the flesh,
and talketh fleshly, and its knowledge is fleshly, and not
spiritual; but savours of death, and not of the spirit of life.
Now some men have the nature of swine, wallowing in the mire: and
some men have the nature of dogs, to bite both the sheep and one
another; and some men have the nature of lions, to tear, devour,
and destroy: and some men have the nature of wolves, to tear
and devour the lambs and sheep of Christ: and some men have the
nature of the serpent, (that old adversary,) to sting, envenom
and poison. He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear, and learn
these things within himself. And some men have the natures of
other beasts and creatures, minding nothing, but earthly and
visible things, and feeding without the fear of God. Some men
have the nature of an horse, to prance and vapour in their
strength, and to be swift in doing evil. And some men have the
nature of tall sturdy oaks, to flourish and spread in wisdom and
strength, who are strong in evil, which must perish, and come to
the fire. Thus the evil is but one in all, but worketh many ways;
and whatsoever a man’s or woman’s nature is addicted to, that is
outward, the evil one will fit him with that, and will please
his nature and appetite, to keep his mind in his inventions,
and in the creatures, from the Creator. O therefore let not the
mind go forth from God; for if it do, it will be stained, and
venomed and corrupted: and if the mind go forth from the Lord, it
is hard to bring it in again. Therefore take heed of the enemy,
and keep in the faith of Christ. O! therefore mind that which is
eternal and invisible, and him who is the Creator and Mover of
all things; for the things that are made, are not made of things
that do appear; for the visible covereth the invisible sight in
you. But as the Lord, who is invisible, doth open you, by his
invisible Power and Spirit, and brings down the carnal mind in
you; so the invisible and immortal things are brought to light
in you. O therefore you that know the light, walk in the light!
for there are children of darkness that will talk of the light,
and of the truth, and not walk in it; but the children of the
light love the light, and walk in the light. But the children
of darkness walk in darkness, and hate the light; and in them
the earthly lusts, and the carnal mind choak the seed of faith,
and that bringeth oppression on the seed, and death over them. O
therefore mind the pure spirit of the everlasting God, which will
teach you to use the creatures in their right place; and which
judgeth the evil. To thee, O God, be all glory and honour, who
art Lord of all visibles and invisibles! to thee be all praise,
who bringest out of the deep to thyself; O powerful God, who art
worthy of all glory! for the Lord who created all, and gives
life and strength to all, is over all, and merciful to all. So
thou who hast made all, and art over all, to thee be all glory;
in thee is my strength, refreshments, and life, my joy and my
gladness, my rejoicing and glorying for evermore! So to live and
walk in the Spirit of God, is joy, and peace, and life; but the
mind going forth into the creatures, or into any visible things
from the Lord, this bringeth death. Now when the mind is got into
the flesh, and into death, then the accuser gets within, and
the law of sin and death, that gets into the flesh; and then the
life suffers under the law of sin and death; and then there is
straitness and failings. For then the good is shut up, and then
the self-righteousness is set atop; and then man doth work in
the outward law, and he cannot justify himself by the law; but
is condemned by the light; for he cannot get out of that state,
but by abiding in the light, and resting in the mercy of God, and
believing in him, from whom all mercy doth flow: for there is
peace in resting in the Lord Jesus. This is the narrow way that
leads to him, the life; but few will abide in it: therefore keep
in the innocency, and be obedient to the faith in him. And take
heed of conforming to the world, and of reasoning with flesh and
blood, for that bringeth disobedience; and then imaginations and
questionings do arise, to draw from disobedience to the truth
of Christ. But the obedience of faith destroyeth imaginations,
and questionings, and reasonings, and all the temptations in
the flesh, and buffetings, and lookings forth, and fetching up
things that are past. But not keeping in the life and light,
and not crossing the corrupt will by the power of God, the evil
nature grows up in man: and then burdens will come, and man will
be stained with that nature. But Esau’s mountain shall be laid
waste, and become a wilderness, where the dragons lie: but Jacob,
the second birth, shall be fruitful, and shall arise; for Esau is
hated, and must not be lord; but Jacob, the second birth, which
is perfect and plain, shall be lord: for he is beloved of God.