The state of the birth, temporal and spiritual and the duty and state of a child, youth, young-men, aged-men, and fathers in the truth : also, shewing that children are the heritage of the Lord, and that he hath glory in them / by George Fox.

The State of the BIRTH Temporal and Spiritual, &c.

THe State and Duty of a Child, Youth and Young-men, and the State of Aged-men and Fathers, it is the Lord that doth bring to the Birth. David saith, My Substance was not hid from thee when I was made in secret, &c. Thine Eyes did see my Substance, yet being imperfect, and in thy Book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there were none of them; for thou possessedst my reins when thou cover∣edst me in my Mothers Womb. Here you may see Gods infinite and All-seeing Eye, Work and Providence; the Darkness nor Secrets hide not from God, but the Night shineth to him as the Day, and the Darkness and the Light are alike to his All-seeing Eye, who made both; and therefore all are to consider how God hath made them, and fashioned them, Psal. 139.

And the Lord saith in Isai. 66. Shall I bring to the Birth, and not cause to bring forth saith the Lord? Shall I cause to bring forth and shut the Womb, saith my God? So here you may see, it is the Lord that fashions in the Womb, and brings it forth, both the Natural birth and the Spiritual birth, and opens the Womb and shuts the Womb, both the womb of the Morning and of Eternity, and of the Natural.

And the Lord said to Jeremiah, in chap. 1. Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee, and before thou camest out of the womb, I sancti∣fied thee, &c. And so, here all may see, and consider, and know them∣selves to be the great Work of God, that when God that forms and fashions you in the Womb, and brings to a Birth, and hath brought you forth, that you may chuse the Good and and forsake the Evil, that you may remember and consider that you are the Work of the Lord, and remember your Creator, and who hath fashioned you and formed you in the Womb, and hath brought you to a birth, and hath brought you forth to fear, and serve, and worship, and honour him that hath made thee, and brought thee forth; for as Solomon saith in Eccles. 12.

Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, whilst the evil days come not, or before the evil days do come. Now this is the Duty of all Youth, Males or Females, to remember their Creator, and let him not go out of their memory, so that they may be fitted to stand in the evil days when they come; for when they grow up to be young-men, then the evil days will appear, in which they may be tempted to Adultery, Fornication, Drunkenness, Theft, Murder, Lying, Cousening, Cheating, Unrighteousness, Ungodliness, Lightness, Wantonness, Plea∣sures, and other evils, by which they may forget their Creator by going into such evils, when they are tempted to such things; tho evil days are come to try Youth; for they that yield unto such evils before-mentioned forget their Creator, and forsake him; for Solomon saith, Train up a Child in the way he should go; and when he is old he will not depart from it, Prov. 22.6. Here is the Duty of Parents, and the Duty of Children, which is to be practised and followed. Now here is the Duty of Youth; To remember his Creator in the days of his youth, before the evil days come; But what must we do when we come to be yong men? What is their means and duty? David declareth in Psal. 119.9. Wherewith shall a young man cleanse his ways? By taking heed to thy Word, &c. Thy Word I have hid in my Heart, and do meditate on thy Word, that I might not sin against thee. So now, for all Young men to take heed to the Word of God in their hearts, and hide it in their hearts, and to meditate upon it; for the Word is called a Hammer, and a Sword, and a Fire, to hammer down, and cut down, and burn up that which would defile them in their Ways, Words and Hearts.

And the Apostle saith, That the Word of Faith which he preacht was in their hearts and mouths to obey it, and to do it, Rom. 10. And the engrafted Word was able to save their Souls, James saith. And Peter saith, That they were to feed upon the sincere Milk of the Word; but they which are hearers of the Word, and not doers of the Word, de∣ceive their own souls. And Christ said to his Disciples, Now ye are clean through the Word, &c. So this Word will keep the Ways and the Hearts of Young men clean; the Word of God, which is a sancti∣fying Word, a reconciling Word; and Christ told the Jews, His Word had no place in them.

And again, he told the unclean Jews, Ye have not his Word (to wit, the Word of God) abiding in you. So these Jews made a great Pro∣fession of the Scriptures, but had not the Word of God abiding in them, Joh. 5. then they were not like to be made clean by it.

And Christ said, Sanctifie them through thy Word; thy Word is Truth, (to wit, his Disciples and Believers.) And again, Christ saith, I have given them thy Word, and they have kept thy Word, (namely, his Disci∣ples) to wit, the Word of God, Joh. 17.

Now here you may see the Disciples kept the Word of God, which was the means to keep their Hearts, Ways and Words clean; but the Jews, Priests, Scribes and Pharisees, that made a great out∣ward Profession of the Scriptures, whose ways were unclean, and mouths full of foul unclean words against Christ; Christ told them, That the Word of God did not abide in them: And therefore though they had the Scriptures, and made an outward Profession of them, like the Professors of our Age, and others, who go from the means, the Word of God in their hearts, to keep their Ways and Lips clean, and to sanctifie them. Therefore they plead for a Body of Death to the Grave, and a Purgatory when they are dead, who live in a Pro∣fession of the Letter without the Word.

And John saith, I have written unto you young men, because you are strong, and the Word of God abideth in you; and you have over∣come the wicked one, viz. the Devil, by the Word of God, which was b••fore the Devil, was. So here you may see what is the means by which the Young mens ways are cleansed and sanctified, and what makes them strong, and to overcome the wicked one, the Word of God abiding in them; and therefore every Young man and all Young people are to love and obey, and do the Word of God, by which their Ways, Words and Hearts and all may be kept clean; for the Word of God is a Hammer and a Sword, to hammer down and cut down the Devil and his works, and a Fire to burn them up: So it is the Word of Power, the Word of Wis∣dom, the Word of Reconciliation, and the Word of Patience by which they overcome.

Now concerning Aged men, or Fathers in the Truth, John saith, I have written unto you Fathers, because you have known him

that is from the beginning, to wit, Christ Jesus: And John writes as a Father himself, who saith; That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our Eyes, which we have look'd upon, and our hands have handled of the Word of Life; for the Life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you, that eternal Life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us 1 Joh. 1.1.2.

So, here you may see not John in his Epistle, but also John in his Evangelist declares Christ in the beginning, and saith; In the begin∣ning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word; the same was in the beginning with God, and all things were made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made; and the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his Glory; the Glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of Grace and Truth, Joh. 1.

Now here you may see how John writes as a Father, that knew Christ in the beginning; and he writes to the Fathers that knew Christ in the beginning. So the Fathers knew him in the Glory that he had with the Father before the World began; and that all things were made by Jesus Christ: So they knew him as he was God, the Word; they knew Christ as he was a Man. The Word was made Flesh, &c. they knew Christ in the Promises and in the Prophesies; they knew him in the Figures, Types and Shadows made under the Law; they knew him, and of whom he was to be conceived, to wit, the Virgin; they knew him in his Birth, Life, Doctrine, Preaching, Miracles, Sufferings, Death, Grave, Resurrection and Ascension into the Glory with the Father and at his right hand; yea, the Glory which he had with the Father before the World began. So the Fa∣thers have known [Mark] have known Christ from the beginning, 1 John 2.14.

So here you may see the State of the Birth Temporal and Spiri∣tual, and the Duty and State of youth, the Duty and State of Young men and Young poople, and the State of Fathers in the Truth.

Kingston the tenth Month, 1682.

G. F.