also. This seemeth, saith reason in man, to be injustice and partiality, and not equal dealings in God. These words might be opened, but it would be too large. But I perceive by your letter, that the gate of Heaven which hath been opened unto you, when you knocked, and the cause why, in that you had faith in your heart to believe in this commission of the Spirit, when you heard the sound of it in your ears, by our writings and speakings; for which you do thank God, that experimentally you can speak this, that by his last messengers you have attained to that knowledge here, and assurance of being an inheritor of incomparable joy and glory hereafter.

Herein the door of your heart was opened by these messengers declarations, as the heart of Lydia was opened at the preaching of Peter: for this I say, that every true messenger that is sent of God doth keep the gate of Heaven, because none but such persons as God sends, have the keys of Heaven given unto them and there is but two keys, nor but two gates, the one belongeth to Heaven, and the other to hell. And God delivereth these two keys into the hands of those he sends; so that God's messengers are not only door-keepers of heaven, but door-keepers of hell also. I have known several persons in my time, that have desired but to be but a door-keeper in heaven; but I never knew any person that desired to be a doorkeeper of hell. But we his messengers are forced to be door-keepers both of Heaven and of hell; because God hath given these two keys into our hands; and these two keys that do open these two gates, is the knowledge of the two seeds of faith and reason. The key of faith opens Heaven-gate, and enters into that kingdom, and seeth indeed what God is, in his form

and nature and this key of reason openeth the gate of hell, and entereth into that kingdom, and seeth Lucifer, the prince of devils (even that reprobate angel that deceived Eve, which became the first mandevil, which begat millions of devils like himself ;) his form being the form of a man, and his nature being pure reason, fallen from its purity.

This is not a usual language. But seeing, as I said before, that you have knocked at Heaven-gate, and it hath been opened unto you, by us, God's messengers, therefore to you that have understood the mysteries of God becoming flesh, by which you have peace here in this life, and assurance of eternal life hereafter, in yourself. Therefore to you it shall be given to understand these three great mysteries of God's dealing with men, as followeth :

First. That God doth choose and ordain some particular man, and doth furnish him with revelation, to declare unto the people what the true God is, in the time of his commission. The first man God chose, after the fall of Adam, was Enoch; and God did furnish him with revelation to write books, wherein he did declare to the succeeding fathers of old, that were of the seed of faith, or seed of Adam his father; and this revelation of his walking with God, and what God was: he left this revelation to Noah, and Noah left it to Shem, and Shem left it to his sons, until it came to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So that Enoch's revelation and declaration to the fathers of old, and all that did believe the books of Enoch, they were as a parliament, to enact it as a statutelaw to their children, from generation to generation, for ever. And so it was with Moses and the prophets, and with Christ and the apostles.

The second secret is, that great difference that there is between reason's Heaven, which they do imagine, and the seed of faith's Heaven, which they are fully assured of; for the seed of reason's Heaven is without substance; there is no persons with bodies in reason's Heaven; there is none but spirits without bodies; there is neither God nor man to be seen, so no joy nor glory at all. But the seed of faith's Heaven hath a real substance to stand upon; and the person and body of God to be seen, and the persons and bodies of the holy angels, and of men, and all other creatures, to be seen in joy and glory, in that Heaven that God hath prepared for the seed of faith: so that there is a vast difference between the seed of reason's Heaven, and the seed of faith's Heaven.

The third secret; that though the prophets and apostles have declared in several of their writings, of that great and wonderful mystery of God manifest in the flesh; yet, in all their writings, from Enoch's to Moses's writings, nor the prophets writings, nor the apostles writings, nor Christ himself when upon earth, did ever declare or make known, not plainly, nor clearly, that great mystery of the devil become flesh, and doth dwell among men ; and that there is no devil to suffer eternal torments, but men and women, to the end of the world, and to eternity. I say, no writings of prophets or apostles have made known this great mystery, which concerns all mankind, but John Reeve and Lodowicke Muggleton, whom God chose in the year of the world 1651, as our writings

do declare.

These things I have written for your sake, and the sake of others of this faith there with you. Take leave; only my love remembered, with my wife's love, unto yourself, George Gamble and his wife, and

to all the rest of this faith there with you. and remain,

Your friend in the eternal truth,

I rest

LODOWICKE MUGGLETON.

London, June 22, 1682.

A Copy of a Letter wrote by the Prophet Lodowicke Muggleton to Mr. William Sedley, a Weaver and Dyer, a Believer of the Commission of the Spirit, living in Southampton, bearing date from London, the 12th day of January, 1683.

Loving Friend in the true Faith, William Sedley,

I RECEIVED your letter, dated January 4, 1683, wherein you complain of your great troubles you have gone through in these late years; what in oppression, I suppose you mean oppression for conscience sake. And your greatest troubles, I perceive, hath been in the natural concerns of this world; in respect of your first wife being dead, and leaving a charge of children behind her; and I perceive you have married another wife, and hath some charge by her also, which, you say, are in number five; thus poverty must needs come upon you like an armed man. These troubles are common to all married men and people, both poor and rich, but especially to the poor that do live by trade; for if trade doth fail,

poverty doth increase and grow exceedingly; for trade is a very uncertain thing, especially in a time of persecution; for trade and commerce hath taken the wings of the morning, and fly away in these our days; so that poverty cometh in upon the poor as a flood upon the dry land; this thousands can witness in this nation, as well as you, for want of trade. And poverty is the great common enemy in the nation at this day and time; and in regard this poverty and want of trade is so common, and so natural in this world, therefore it is that no eye pitieth the poor, let him be saint or devil, righteous, or unrighteous. Also I perceive by your letter, that all the rest of your faith in those parts are backslided, and hath forsaken their own peace, and hath conformed for fear of the loss of some of their worldly goods, or fear of imprisonment, even against their own conscience; some only upon threats, others having lost some of their goods, for fear of losing more, or all, have submitted and conformed; so that now you are left alone: these are days of trial, but few are able to stand the trial, to keep faith and a good conscience; and especially in most counties in England several hath conformed: so that in saving earthly riches, they have lost heavenly riches; for they will never recover that peace and assurance of eternal life, which they once had abiding in themselves; not while they live in this world; for you may read in the Scriptures, that he that doth fight the good fight of faith, and holdeth out to the end of this life, shall receive the crown of eternal life and glory; but he that looketh back, as Lot's wife did, to fetch something that was in her house, which she thought might do her a pleasure when she was got out of the flames of fire and brimstone, so it is with those that go back from the prin