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and so them that believe them may be said to receive faith from God; for he that receiveth a prophet, in the name of a prophet, receiveth him that sent him; and whoever receiveth a prophet, in the name of a prophet, shall receive a prophet's reward, which reward is eternal life; for prophets have little else to give. And if it be well considered it is enough, and as the woman's faith did draw virtue from our Lord, so there will virtue go from the commission of the Spirit as to your eternal happiness. Let Let your faith wholly depend upon it, and you shall fare no worse than myself doth: you shall have the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soul.

And that you may be sure I do declare you one of the blessed of the Lord to eternity. I thought good to write these few lines unto you, for your further confirmation of your eternal happiness after death.

Your faithful Friend,

and true Prophet,

LODOWICKE MUGGLETON.

June 2, 1662.

A Copy of a Letter written by the Prophet Lodowicke Muggleton, to Mrs. Dorothy Carter, of Chesterfield, bearing date July 14, 1662, from London.

Loving Friend, in the eternal Truth, Dorothy Carter,

MY love remembered unto you and to our friend Mr. Frewterill.

I understand by your letter, that you received the six books, and how you disposed of some of them, and of a maid that liveth with you, that is brought to believe this commission, which I am very glad to hear that one so young should be called by this declaration of truth, even as my daughter was, even at the sixth hour of the day, that is, in their infancy; for there is but the sixth hour, ninth, and eleventh hour; for the twelfth hour is the hour of eternity.

The sixth is youth or childhood, the ninth is middle age, the eleventh hour is old age, which is the last hour, then cometh the twelfth hour, which is the hour of eternity.

I do know but of two that are called at the eleventh hour, not these ten years, but at the sixth many, but most of all at the ninth hour of the day, that is, middle age.

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Also you desired a book all bound together, for that maid's brother, which Mr. Hatter did send in my absence. I hope you did receive it; I am glad to hear your faith and refreshment, that you find in this commission of the Spirit, in the understanding of those things declared by this commission. I make no question but that you shall increase in faith, light and life, to the opposing of all those blind and dark lights, the Quakers, that have no God but what is within them, and that light within them will be found in the end to be but darkness; and then how great will that darkness be! For their God and their light within themselves will perish to eternity; for though they seem to be the best of all the seven churches in righteousness of life, and do suffer more by the powers of the nation than any other, yet they are the worst of all the seven churches in point of doctrine; for they are absolutely the spirit of

antichrist, which denieth both the Father and the Son; for though the other churches do deny the Father to be a person in the form of a man, yet they will acknowledge that Christ, the Son of God, is now in heaven, in that body that suffered death; but these Quakers do deny, that the same body of flesh is now living, therefore the spirit of antichrist, which denieth both the Father and the Son to be a person; for those Quakers are but the very influence of John Robin's witchcraft spirit, he being the antichrist in this last age, which did shew such signs and wonders as is written of by John Reeve, and many more strange things than what was written, which was acted in my house by some of his prophets, which I am an eye-witness of before I had any knowledge of God, or knew what did belong to a commission, neither will any of his prophets or disciples own any such thing now, though they know that this witchcraft power was taken from him, and so from them, by that sentence of eternal death, which John Reeve had pronounced upon him.

Therefore it matters not whether the Quakers do believe any thing concerning him or no.

Are the Quakers so simple to think, that any of John Robin's disciples will tell him the truth how they were bewitched by him? No, nor no other man, neither could we ourselves, if we had not had a knowledge above him, and a commission too, we could neither have brought down his power, nor have known how, and by what means, he did procure it, with divers other actions, which his disciples did act, which I shall relate, if need be, when I see you.

The thing of concern in your letter is concerning these words of Christ: Swear not by heaven, for that

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is God's throne, nor by the earth, for that is his footstool; and so in another place, bade them swear not at all.

I know your desire is to know in what sense it may be said, Swear not at all.

You may remember it was said by Christ, Let your conversation be yea, yea, and nay, nay, for what cometh more is evil.

These words of Christ were not to his disciples, but to those Jews that were under the law of Moses.

Therefore it is that Christ doth expound the law, shewing what was said of old, and then giving in his judgment, which is thus: It was said of old, thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform the vow that thou hast made, and so forth, but I say, swear not at all, neither by heaven, and the like.

Which words (Swear not at all) was only to beat men off from swearing to unrighteous things, and from swearing vainly in their common discourse, as it is usual amongst men in these our days, as they did swear by heaven in those days, and by the earth, and by the city, and by a man's head, and those things did they in their common discourse. Therefore it was that Christ said, Let your yea be yea, and your nay, nay, be all, for need you use swearing in your common talk or dealings, for swearing in this kind is evil; for do not they do so now-a-days? Will not men swear by their faith, which true faith is the nature of God, which they know not? They will swear by God, and yet know him not; they will swear by God's blood, and yet they do not believe that he had any blood; and so God damn them, and yet they are loth to be damned, with many other oaths, which are frivolous, in their common discourse, which becomes evil and sin to them that

practise it, and a guilt upon the consciences of those that use it.

I would not have you think, that these words of Christ did take you off from all swearing at all, not as the Quakers do blindly imagine, that will not be a witness in any business; let it be of bonds concerning money, or other cases, in which they

know that the innocent will suffer and lose their right, for want of their witnessing to it; and they must do it in that form and order, that the law of the land hath ordained, else a man's word is worth nothing, though it be never so true; and the unrighteous hath gotten the better for want of an oath, and the innocent hath lost his right, through the blindness and ignorance of those that strain the letter of the Scriptures beyond the intent of them, neither can the judge help the innocent in such a

case.

But as for those oaths, that are imposed upon the Quakers and other people now of late, it is utterly unlawful for any one that hath any light or tenderness of conscience in him to take; for he that takes it receives the mark of the beast, either in the forehead, or in the hand, he shall not be suffered to buy or sell else. He that receiveth the mark in the forehead is he that doth take the oath willingly; and he that receiveth the mark in the hand is he that doth take the oath against his will, only for fear of imprisonment, or the suffering of loss in their estate; neither shall they be suffered to buy or sell except they receive the mark in their hand. And this is the state of this land at this day.

It will be well for those few of this faith that are preserved from that pollution upon the mind.

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