The answer to William Penn Quaker, his book, entituled, The new witnesses proved old hereticks Wherein he is proved to be an ignotant [sic] spater-brain'd Quaker, who knows no more what the true God is, nor his secret decrees, then one of his coach-horses doth, nor so much; for the oxe knoweth his owner, and the ass his masters scrip, but Penn doth not know his maker, as is manifest by the Scriptures, which may inform the reader, if he mind the interpretation of Scripture in the discourse following. I. That God was in the forme, image and likeness of mans bodily shape, as well as his soul from eternity. ... VIII. What is meant by the armour of God, the wilderness, and the wilde beasts I fought with in the wilderness. / By Lodowick Muggleton.

CHAP. I. (Book 1)

Or three Records upon Earth, to wit, the Water, Blood and Spirit, Answerable to those three Records in Heaven of Father, Word and Spirit: And as this Ladder bad but three steps from Heaven to Earth, to signifie, that God would descend from Heaven but three times to speak unto men to the hearing of the eare, to give them Commission here on Earth, that they might all three A∣gree in one to bear Record to those three in Heaven, of Father, Word and Spirit, to be but one Personal God, in the Forme and Likeness of Mans bodily shape.

SO that God hath made the Clouds as a Ladder with three steps for the Angels and himself, to descend and ascend when he pleased:— and whereas it is said, that Jacob saw in his Vi∣sion the Angels come down the Ladder first, it was to signifie that the dispensation of Angels should be Acted first upon this earth by Moses and the Prophets: and whereas it is said, That God was upon the top of the Ladder that reached to Heaven:— and after the Angels were passed by, then God that sate at the top of the Ladder, he came down and wrestled with Jacob, to signifie, that he would descend from Heaven into the Womb of a Virgin, and become very man, and would suffer death, and shed his most pre∣cious blood for the redemption of the seed of Abraham and Isaac his Fathers:- and that his Apostles should bear witness that he shed his most precious blood:— And for this Record of theirs, their bloods should be shed also, which came to pass: and this was the Record of blood here upon earth, Answerable to the Record of the Word in Heaven; and this was the second step and dis∣pensation from Heaven Acted upon this earth by Christ and his Apostles:— and the third and lowest step of this Ladder is the dispensation or commission of the Spirit now in this last Age, when God spake unto John Reeve, and gave Lodowick Muggleton to be his mouth: This Commission of the Spirie hath bore witness here on Earth to that one God in heaven, called Father, Word

and Spirit, to be in the form•• of mans bodily shape and likeness; and that he made Man in hi•• own Imag•• and likeness, wi••hout any mental Reservation; an•• ••••is Record of the Spirit, it hat•• been in being upon this earth above 20 years; and as those that were spi••ituallized in the other tw•• Commissions, as Moses, Elijah and Christ, that ascended up to Heaven in a cloud, to signifie, that all the true seed in their Commissions in the Resurrection shall ascend up to Heaven in clouds also:— and so shall we the Witnesses of the Spirit, and all true believers of this third and last R••cord of the Spirit in the Resurrection rise spiritual bodies, and shall be caught up with clouds to meet the Lord in the Air; this is the true Inter∣pretation of Jacobs Vision.

Further, I s••y, it is clear by Scriprure, that spiritual bodies doth descend from Heaven in Clouds, and asc••nd to Heaven in Clouds, as may be seen Mat. 17.3. And behold, ••here appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him: This M••ses and Elias came down from heaven in a cloud upon that high mount••in, as may be seen from ver. 5. While he yet spake, behold a bright Cloud over-sha∣dowed them, and behold a voice out of the Cl••ud which said, This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear ye him. It is clear, that this bright cloud brought Moses and Elias from heaven upon that Mountain;— and they ascend••d up to heaven again in that bright cloud: so in Acts 1.9. While they beheld, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight, and carried him up to Heaven, as may be seen, ver. 10. so that spiritual bodies may ascend up to hea∣ven in clouds as charets, even as natural bodies are carried up and down in charets here upon this earth.

And this is to be minded by the Reader, that there never went any souls or spirits to heaven in a cloud without bodies:— for if the spirit ascended in a cloud, the body ascended in a cloud also:- they came both together, and go both together, and are never se∣parated the one from the other;— Furthermore, God hath made several sorts of clouds;— some bright and white clouds, and some

black clouds and clouds of fire:— and all these several sorts of clouds are Gods char••ts for spiritual bodies to ride in, or to descend or ascend, as may be seen, 2 Kings 1.11 concerning Elijah and E∣lisha, And it came to pass, as they still went on and talked, that behold there appeared a Charet of Fire, and Horses of Fire, and parted them both asunder.— Here the Rea••er may see, that God hath in hea∣ven Charets of Fire, and Horses of Fire:— and he hath command∣ed the strong whirlwind to do his work, to b••ar up the fi••ry hor∣ses and fiery charets, with the body and soul of Elijah in i•• to hea∣ven:— These things will seem to Antichr••st••an-spirited Qu••kers, who hath no saith in the Scriptures but as idle tales:— yet it i•• the real truth and Power of God to those that have saith to believ the Scriptures, and doth understand the Power of God to them, it will be peace and satisfaction of mind:— for these things are pos∣sible with God; and it i•• possible for the seed of Faith t•• believe, but it is impossible for the Seed of the Serpent, such as Penn the Quaker is, to comprehend or understand by his Reaso••, Gods Forme, Nature, nor handy Works not here on earrh, much less his handy Works in Heaven.

In the next place I shall give the R••ader to understand in a measure, how far a man may make graven Images, and how far not;— and why ••od was so ang••y with the people of Israel for making graven Images, and punishing them for it:— We read in the second Commandment Moses gave to Israel, the words are these, Thou shalt have no other Gods but m••, or before me: Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven Image, or any likeness of any thing tkat is in Heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the eart••: thou shalt not bow down to them, nor serve them, for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, &c.

Observe Reader and minde: First, that there is things in h••a∣ven above, as God himself, and Angels, and all other creatures in a glorious celestial state; likewise, there is things here on earth, as man, beasts and other creatures; and there is things in the a∣ters

under the Earth, as Fish and Fowl; Now observe, we finde in Scripture, that it was lawful to make graven Images of things in heaven above, as Angels and Cherubims, as Solomon did, yet God did not blame him for it, but rather commended him: like∣wise we see that cunning Workmen doth paint and carve out Images here upon earth; the Images and Pictures of Kings and other great men, and all sorts of beasts upon the earth, they are carved and painted out by skilful Workmen; also the skilful Workman with his Tools and Implements doth carve and paint out all kinde of Fish and Fowl that are in the Waters under the Earth, yet God doth not blame men for it, nor charge them wi••h doing that which is unlawful.