But that day the Lord's Power was sounded so in their ears, that they were amazed at the voice, and could not get it out of their ears for some time after; they were so reached by the Lord's Power in the steeple house. At night they took me out of prison, and had me before the Major, Alderman and Sheriffs of the town: and when I was brought before them, the Major was in a peevish, fretful temper; but he Lord's Power allayed him. Then they examined me at large; and I told them, how the Lord had moved me to come. Then, after some discourse had passed between them and me, they sent me back to prison again: but sometime after, the Head Sheriff, whose name was John Reckless, sent for me into his house: and when I came in, his wife met me in the hall, and said, Salvation is come upon this house. And she took me by the hand, and was much wrought upon buy the Power of the Lord God: and her husband, and children, and servants were much changed; for the Power of the Lord wrought upon them, and I lodged at the Sheriff's house, and great Meeting we had in his house; and some persons of considerable condition in the world came to them and the Lord's Power appeared eminently among them,. And this sheriff sent for the other Sheriff, and for a woman, they had had dealings with in the way of trade; and he told her before the other sheriff,, that they had wronged her in their dealings with her (for the other sheriff and he were partners) and that they ought to make her restitution: this he spoke cheerfully. But the other sheriff denied it; and the woman said, she knew nothing of it. But the friendly Sheriff said it was so; and that the other knew it well enough: and then having discovered the matter, and acknowledged the wrong done by them, he made restitution to the woman; and exhorted the other sheriff to do the like. And the Lord's Power was with this friendly Sheriff, and wrought a mighty change in him; and great openings he had. And on the next market day following, as he was walking with me in the chamber, in his slippers, he said, I must go into the market, and preach repentance to the people: and accordingly he went in his slippers in to the market and into several streets, and preached repentance to the people. Several others also in the town were moved to speak to the Major and Magistrates, and to the people, exhorting them to repent. Hereupon the Magistrates grew very angry, and sent for me from the Sheriff's house, and committed me into the common prison. When the Assize came on, there was one moved to come and offer up himself for me, body for body; yea life also: but when I should have been brought before the Judge, the Sheriff's man being somewhat long in fetching me to the Sessions house, the Judge was risen, before I came. At which, I understood, the Judge was somewhat offended, and said, He would have admonished the youth, if he had been brought before him: for I was then imprisoned by the name of A YOUTH. So I was returned to prison again, and put into a common goal. And the Lord's Power was great among Friends,; but the people began to be very ruse: wherefore the Governor of the castle sent down soldiers, and dispersed them; and after that they were quiet. But both priests and people were astonished at the wonderful Power, that broke forth: and several of the priests were made tender, and some did confess to the Power of them Lord. Now, after I was set at liberty from Nottingham Goal (where I had been kept prisoner a pretty long time) I traveled, as before, in the work of the Lord. And coming to Mansfield-Woodhouse, there was a distracted woman under a doctor's hand, with her hair loose all about her ears; and he was about to let her blood, she being first bound, and many people being about her, holding her violence: but he could get no blood from her. And I desired them to unbind her, and let her alone: for they could not touch the spirit in her, buy which she was tormented: so they did unbind her. And I was moved to speak to her, and in the Name of the Lord to bid her, be quite and still: and she was so. And the Lord's Power settled her mind, and she mended; and afterwards received the Truth, and continued in it to her death. And the Lord's Name was honored; to whom the glory of all his works belongs. Many great and wonderful things were wrought by the heavenly Power in those day: for the Lord made bare his omnipotent arm, and manifested his Power to the astonishment of many; buy the healing virtue whereof many have been delivered from great infirmities, and the devils were made subject through his Name: of which particular instances might be given, beyond what this unbelieving age is able to receive or bear. But blessed for ever be the Name of the Lord, and everlastingly honored, and over all exalted, and magnified by the Arm of his glorious Power, by which he hath wrought gloriously; and let the honor and praise of al his works be ascribed to him alone.
Now while I was at Mansfield-Woodhouse, I was moved to go to the steep house there, and declare the Truth to the priest and people. But the people fell upon me in great rage, and stuck me down, and almost stifled and smothered me; and I was cruelly beaten and bruised by them with their hands, Bibles, and sticks. Then the haled me out (though I was hardly able to stand) and put me into the stocks, where I sat some hours; and they brought dog whips and horse whips, threatening to whip me. And after some time, they had me before the Magistrate, at a Knight's house, where were many great persons; who seeing, how evilly I had been used, after much threatening, set me at liberty: but the rude people stoned me out of the town, for preaching the word of Life to them. And I was scarce able to go, or well to stand, by reason of the ill usage I had received: yet with much ado I got about a mile from the town; and then I met with some people, that gave me something to comfort me, because I was inwardly bruised: but the Lord's Power soon healed me again, And that day some people were convinced of the Lord's Truth, and turned to his teaching; at which I rejoiced.
Then went I out of Nottinghamshire into Leicestershire; several Friends accompanying me. And there were some Baptists, in that country, whom I desired to see and speak with; because they were separated from the public worship. So one Oats, who was one of their chief teachers, and others of the heads of them, came to meet us at Barrow; and there we discoursed with them. One of them said, what was not of faith, was sin. Whereupon I asked them, what faith was? And how it was wrought in man? But they turned off from that, and spoke of their baptism in water. Then I asked them, whether their mountain of sin was brought down, and laid low in them? And their rough and crooked way made smooth and straight in them? For the looked upon the Scriptures, as meaning outward mountains and ways: but I told the, they must find them in their own hearts: which they seemed to wonder at. And we asked them; who baptized John the Baptist? and who baptized Peter, John and the rest of the Apostles? and put them to prove by Scriptures, that these were baptized with water: but they were silent. Then I asked them; seeing Judas, who betrayed Christ, and was called the son of perdition, had hanged himself, what son of perdition was that, which Paul spoke of, that sat in the Temple of God, exalted above all that is called God? And what Temple of god that was, in which this son of perdition sat? And neither he, that betrays Christ within himself, be not one in nature with that Judas, who betrayed Christ without? But they could not tell, what to make of this, nor what to say to it. So after we had some discourse together, we parted; and some of them were loving towards us.
On the first day of the week following we came to Bargworth, and went to a steeple house, where some Friends were go tin; and the people locked them in, and themselves took with the priest. But after the priest had done, they opened the door, and we went in also; and had a service for the Lord among them. Afterwards we had a Meeting in the town, among several people that were high in notions. Then passing from thence, I heard of a people, that were in prison in Coventry for religion. And as I walked toward the hail, the word of the Lord came to me, saying; MY LOVE WAS ALWAYS TO THEE, AND THOU ART IN MY LOVE. And I was ravished with the sense of the love of God, and greatly strengthened in my inward man. But when I came into the jail, where those prisoners were, a great power of darkness struck at me; and I sat still, having my spirit gathered into the Love of God. At last these prisoners began to rant, and vapor, and blaspheme; at which my soul was greatly grieved. They said, they were GOD; but another of them said, we could not bear such things. So, when they were calm I stood up and asked the, whether they did such things by motion, or from Scripture. Then , a Bible lying by, I asked them for that Scripture; and they showed me that place, where the sheet was led down to Peter, and it was said to him, what was sanctified, he should not call common or unclean. Now, when I had showed the, that that Scripture made nothing for their purpose; they brought another Scripture, which spoke of God's reconciling all things to himself, things in heaven, and things in earth. I told the, I owned that Scripture also; but sowed them that that was nothing to their purpose neither: then seeing they said, they were GOD, I asked them, if they knew, whether it would rain tomorrow? They said, the could not tell, I told the, God could tell. Again, I asked the, if they thought, they should be always in that condition, or should they change? And they answered, they could not tell, Then said I unto them, God can tell, and God does not change. You say, you are God, yet you cannot tell, whether you shall change, or no. So they were confounded, and quite brought down for the time. Then after I had reproved the, for their blasphemous expressions, I went away: for I perceived, they were ranters; and I had met with none before: and I admired the goodness of the Lord in appearing so unto me; before I went among them. Not long after this, one of these ranters, whose name was Joseph Salmon, put forth a paper, or book of racantation; upon which they were set at liberty.
From Coventry I went to a place called Atherstone; and it being their lecture day, I was moved to go to their chapel t speak to the priests and people: and they were generally pretty quiet,; only some few raged, and would have had my relations to have bound me. I declared largely to them, how that God was come to teach his people himself, and to bring them off from all their man made teachers, to hear his Son: and some were convinced there.
Then went I to a place called Market-Bossoth, and there was a lecture there also. And he that preached there that day, was Nathaniel Stevens, who was priest of the town, where I was born. And he raged much, when I spoke to him and the people; and told the people, I was mad: (though he had said before to one Colonel Purfoy, that there was never such a plant bred in England;) and he bid the people they should not hear me. So the people, being stirred up by this deceitful priest, fell upon us, and stoned us out of the town: yet they did not do us much hurt. Howbeit some people were made loving that day; and others were confirmed, feeling the rage of both priests and professors: and some cried out, that the priest dared not stand to prove his ministry.
And as I traveled through markets, fairs and divers places, I saw death and darkness in all people, where the Power of the Lord God had not shaken them. And as I was passing on in Leicestershire, I came to a place called Twy-Cross, where there were excise men; and I was moved of the Lord to go to them, and warn them to take heed of oppressing the poor: and people were much affect with it. Now there was in that town a great man, that had long lain sick, and was given over by the physicians; and some Friends in the town desired me to go to se him. And I went to him in his chamber; and spoke the Word of Life to him, and was moved to pray by him; and the Lord was entreated, and restored him to health. But when I was come down the stairs, into a lower room, and was speaking to the servants, and to some people that were there; a serving man of his came raving out of another room, with a naked rapier in his hand; and set it just to my side. But I looked steadfastly on him, and said; alack for thee, poor creature! what will thou do with thy carnal weapon? It is no more to me, than a straw. The standers by were much troubled, and he went away in a rage, and full of wrath: but when the news of it came it his master, he turned him out of his service. Thus the Lord's Power preserved me, and raised up the weak man; who afterwards was very loving to Friends: and when I came to that town again, both he and his wife came to see me.
After this I was moved to go into Darbyshire, where the mighty Power of God was among Friends. And I went to Chesterfield, where one Britland was priest. He was one, that saw beyond the common sort of priests; for he had been partly convinced, and had spoken much on behalf of Truth, before he was a priest there: but when the priest of that town died, he got the parsonage, and choked himself with it. So I was moved to speak to him and the people in the great Love of God, that they might come off from all men's teaching unto God's teaching; and he was not able to gainsay. But they had me before the Major, and threatened to send me, with some others, to the house of correction; and kept us in custody, till was late in the night: and then the officers, with the watchmen, put us out of the town, leaving us to shift, as we could. So I bent my course towards Darby, having a Friend or two with me: and in our way we met with many professors; and at Kidsey-Park many were convinced.
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