Letters

Front matter

LETTMRS* I

OP

ISAAC PENINGTON,

Contents

LETTER PAGE

I. Of a Growth in Grace amidst Distressing Exercises of Spirit. To Bridget Alley 13

II. The Compassion of the Shepherd of the Flock towards the Weak, &c. — How they should follow Him. To Friends 16

Letter I

or A GROWTH IN GRACE AMIDST DISTRESSING EXERCISES OF SPIRIT.

To Bridget Alley, My dear Friend: —

If thy heart come to feel the seed of God, and to wait upon him in the measure of his life, he will be tender of thee as a father of his child, and his love will be naturally breaking forth towards thee. This is the end of all his dealings with thee, to bring thee hither, to make thee fit and capable of entering and abiding here. And he hath changed, and doth change thy spirit daily ; though it be as the shooting up of the corn, whose growth cannot be discerned at present by the most observing eye, but it is very manifest afterwards that it hath grown. My heart is refreshed for thy sake, rejoicing in the Lord's goodness towards thee; and that the blackness of darkness begins to scatter from thee, though the enemy be still striving the same way to enter and distress thee again. But

2 13 wait to feel the relieving measure of life, and heed not distressing though ts, when they arise ever so strongly in thee ; nay, though they have entered thee, fear them not, but he still a while, not believing in the power v:hich thou feelest they have over thee, and it will fall on a sudden.

It is good for thy spirit, and greatly to thy advantage, to be much and variously exercised by the Lord. Thou dost not know what the Lord hath already done, and what he is yet doing for thee therein. Ah ! how precious it is to be poor, weak, low, empty, naked, distressed for Christ's sake, that way may be made for the power and glory of his life in the heart ! And, oh, learn, daily more and more, to trust him and hope in him, and not to be affrighted with any amazement, nor to be taken up with the sight of the present thing; but wait for the shutting of thy own eye upon every occasion, and for the opening of the eye of God in thee, and for the sight of things therewith, as they are from him. It is no matter what the .enemy strives to do in thy heart, nor how distressed thy condition is, but what the Lord will do for thee, which is with patience to be waited for at his season in every condition. And though sin overtake, let not that bow down; nor let the eye open in thee, which stands poring at that : but wait for the healing through the chastisement, and know there is an Advocate, who, in that hour, hath an office of love and a faithful heart towards thee. Yea, though thou canst not believe, yet be not dismayed thereat ; thy Advocate, who undertakes thy cause^ hatli faith to give : only do thou sink into, or at least pant after the hidden measure of life^ which is not in that which distresseth, disturbeth, and filleth thee with thoughts, fears, troubles, anguish, darknesses, terrors, and the like ; no, no ! but in that which inclines to the patience, to the stillness, to the hope, to the waiting, to the silence before the Father : this is the same in nature, with the most refreshing and glorious-visiting life, though not the same in appearance ; and, if thy mind be turned to it, not minding but overlooking the other, thou wilt find some of the same virtue springing up in thy heart and soul, at least to stay thee.

In and through these things, thou wilt become deeply acquainted with the nature of God, and know the wonderful riches and virtue of his life, the mightiness of his power, and the preciousness of his love, tenderness of his mercy, and infiniteness of his wisdom, the glory also, and exactness of his righteousness, &c. : thou wilt be made large in spirit to receive and drink in abundantly of them ; and the snares of the enemy will be so known to thee and discerned, the way of help so manifest and easy, that their strength will be broken, and the poor entangled bird will fly away singing, from the nets and entanglements of the fowler ; and praises will spring up, and great love in thy heart to the Forgiver and Eedeemer. Oh, wait, hope, trust, look up to thy God I look over that which stands between; come into his mercy! let in the faith which openeth the way of life, which will shut out the distrusting and doubting mind, and will close up the wrong eye, that letteth in reasonings and temptations, the wrong sense, and death with them.

Thus mayest thou witness, in and through thy Redeemer, the abundance of his life and peace.

I. P.

Letter II. The Compassion Op The Shepherd Of The Flock Towards Thi Follow Him

TOWARDS THE WEAK, ETC. — HOW THEY SHOULD

To Friends.

He that is weak and foolish among the lambs, continually ready to wander, both out of the pastures and from the fold, and thus to betray his life into the hands of the enemy ; — he who is continually scattering and squandering away what the Lord in mercy gathers for him, and freely bestows upon him ; who, through drowsiness and carelessness, hath lost the benefit of, and forfeited the sweet and tender visitations of the Most High, and is now become dry, dead, barren, thick, earthy; — my God ! let that soul feel the stirrings of the springs of life, and find some encouragements from thee, to hope in the free and large mercies of the Shepherd of Israel; who caste th not off his sheep because of their wanderings, because of their backslidings, because of their infirmities, because of their diseases, nay, not because of their hardness; but pursues them with his love, findeth them out, visiteth with his correcting hand according to their need, woundeth with his sword, and melteth in his fire, until he hath made them tender and pliable, and then he pours in the fresh oil of his salvation and sweetly healeth them.

my friends and brethren in the pure life ! be faithful to the Lord in returning him all the incomes of his Spirit; follow on in every drawing of his love, while any of the virtue of it lasts upon your spirits. Walk with him all the day long, and wait for him all the night season. And, in case of erring from him, or sinning grievously against him, be not discouraged ; for he is a God of mercies, and delighteth in pardoning and forgiving much and very often. What tender mother can be more ready to forgive and embrace the child, that appears broken and afflicted with her sore displeasure ! Yea, He gives brokenness. He melteth the heart, that he may be tender towards, and embrace it in his arms of reconciliation, and in the peace of his Spirit.

O my dear companions, and fellow-travellers in spirit towards the land of the living ! all the motions of the life are cross to the corrupt [part]^ — dwell [in the life,] draw the yoke close about your necks, that ye may come into unity with the life, and the corrupt be worn out. Take the yoke, the cross, the contrariety of Jesus upon your spirits daily ; that that

2* may be worn out whicli hinders the unity, and so, ye may feel your King and Saviour exalted upon his throne in your hearts : this is your rest, peace, life, kingdom, and crown forever. i. p.

Letter III. On Searching For The Hidden Treasure, And Selling All For It

To CatJierine Pordage.

Friend: —

Thy estate and condition hath been pretty much with me since I last saw thee. I am sensible how hard it is for thee, to give up to be reached by the seed and power of life ; how readily and easily thy ear and heart is opened to another, and the adulterer entertained, who hunteth after the precious life. This word of advice hath been much in my heart to thee this morning : sit down and count the cost of ploughing up thy field, and of searching after the hidden treasure of pure and true wisdom, and consider seriously, whether thou canst sell all for it, both inward and outward riches ] that, if thou do set thy hand to the plough, thou mayest not look back after any thing else, within or without, but mayest be content and satisfied with the pearl of true wisdom and life alone.

Now, if thou be truly willing in God's sight thus to do, thou must singly give up to follow the Lord in the leadings of his Spirit, out of all the ways of thy own wisdom and knowledge, out of all things wherein thou hast a life and delight out of him ; thou must not determine what thou hast a life in, but the Lord must search thy heart, and he will soon show thee (if thy heart be naked and open before him, willing to hear and learn of him) somewhat in thy heart, somewhat in thy ways, somewhat in thy words, thoughts, &c. which is contrary to his pure life and Spirit; and then, that must be denied and given up immediately. And afterwards, perhaps the Lord will soon discover to thee another lover, which hath had more of thy heart than thou hast been aware of; and so, thou must part with one after another, until thou hast parted with all : and this will prepare thee for the bosom of thy Beloved, who is a jealous Grod, and s«eth not with the eye wherewith man seeth. But, if thou be not thus singly given up, though thou should put thy hand to the plough, thou wilt be looking back some time or other : and that wisdom which draweth aside from the Lord will blind thy eye and deceive thy mind, and draw thee from the simplicity and nakedness of Truth, into some image or other of it, so that, instead of the pure Truth itself, thou wilt believe and embrace a lie.

Thou hast travelled long in the heights above the seed; Oh, consider, if that be not yet standing in thee, which could not have been found standing, if thou hadst known the true seed, and travelled there- -with. This enhances the price of Truth as to thee, that thou must part with more for it, than will be required of many others; yet, if thou be faithful to the Lord, and diligently follow him in the simplicity, Truth will at length recompense thee for all thy labors, sorrows, and travels. But a thorough work will the Lord make in thy earth, if thou singly give up unto him, and faithfully follow; and many devices wilt thou meet with, to turn thy mind out of the way, and to cause thee to shun the bitterness of the cross, and to kindle and nourish a hope in thee, that thou mayest find a more easy way to the same life and everlasting substance. The Lord hath reached to thee, and the Lord is willing to search thy heart, to find out the deceiver and enemy in his most secret lurking-places ; but, when the Lord hath found him out, thou must give him up t^ God's stroke, and not suffer him to find a shelter in thy mind to save him therefrom. For he is very subtle, and will twist. and twine all manner of ways to deceive thee and save himself; nor art thou yet acquainted with, or able to discern his devices. The Lord alone can help thee ; and he will help thee, if thou be not hasty to join with the enemy, nor give up thy judgment to believe what he represents, and seems inwardly to represent to thee as true ; but abide and dwell in the sense of thy own inability to judge, waiting to feel that which is true, pure, and living of Grod, judge in thee, not so much in demonstrations of wisdom, as in tender and secret drawings of the beginnings of a new nature^ away from what is of an earthly nature. For thou must come out of the spirit of this world, if thou wilt come into God's Spirit; and thou must come out of the love of the things of this world, if thou wilt come out of the spirit of this world ; for, in the love of the things of this world, the spirit of this world lodgeth and dwelleth, and thou canst not touch the unclean thing, but thou also touchest somewhat of the unclean spirit. Therefore, said John, from a true and deep understanding, ^^ Love not the world, neither the things of the world,'^ (if thou love the things of the world, thou lovest the world,) for, ^^if any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.''

The day of God's mercy and visitation is upon thee, who is visiting that spirit in thee which hath led thee aside, even with the judgment proper for it; that Zion in thee might be thereby redeemed, and thy soul converted to, and truly brought forth in righteousness. I. p.

11th of First Month, 1670. . •

Letter IV. The Duty Oe Being Content With What Is Made Known

The enemy kindles a great distress in the mind, by stirring up an earnest desire, and a sense of a seeming necessity, to hiow. When a motion ariseth,' how shall I do, to know whether it be of God or no ? For, if it be of God, it ought to be obeyed ; and, if it be not of God, it ought to be resisted ] but what shall I do, who cannot tell what it is ? I must of necessity fall, either into disobedience to God's Spirit, or into the snares of the enemy. Thus the enemy raiseth up a strength in the reasoning part, even unanswerable there. But what if it be better for thee, at present, to be darkened about these things, than as yet to know ? Can that possibly be ? will the strong reason readily say. Yes, that it may, in many respects. There is somewhat else would live and be acting in thee, if the clear and heavenly knowledge were given; and thou wouldst be centring in self that which thou receivedst from God ; yea, thou wouldst miss of the way of true knowledge, and never learn in every state to be content, nor know the pure way and actings of life in such a state. Truly, this is not the way of the child's knowing ; but the child knows, in resignation and subjection of its very knowledge ; and if there appear ever so great a necessity of knowledge, and yet knowledge be not given, it sinks, in fear and humility, into the will of the pure seed ; and there somewhat springs up (unknown to the natural wisdom, and not in the way of man's wisdom) which at seasons preserves and bears it up in such a state. But this is a great mystery ; yet sensibly experienced by the true travellers at this day.

Therefore^ retire out of all necessities; according to the apprehension of the reasoning mind; and judge that only necessary, which God, in his eternal wisdom and love, proportions out unto us. And when thou comest hither, thou wilt come to thy rest; and as thou abides t here, thou wilt abide in thy soul's true rest, and know the preciousness of that lesson, and of whom thou art to learn it, even, in every state to he content, I. P.

Letter V. On Faith In The Healing Power Of Christ

Friend : —

I have had of late some deep and serious thoughts concerning thee, and a sense of thee, as between the Lord and my own soul, yet I have not had any thing to signify or express to thee, till this morning. But somewhat this morning sprang up in my heart, sweetly and freshly, which I had pure drawings to impart to thee.

There was a quick sense of thee upon my heart, and in that sense this cry was in me : — Oh that thou wert acquainted with the pure, eternal power of the Lord, and mightst feel his outstretched arm revealed in thee, and witness the faith which stands in that power; and, in that faith, believe and wait for what God is doing, and willing to do, in and for

24 tenington's letters.

his children. ^^If ye had faith/' said Christ, ^^but as a grain of mustard-seed, ye should say to this mountain, Be thou cast into the midst of the sea, and it should be so.'' Indeed, the true faith, the pure faith, the living faith, which stands in the power, doth remove all the mountains that are in the way, and makes the crooked ways straight, and the rough ways plain. If thou had lived in the days of Christ's flesh, and wanted outward healing, and had been willing to come to him for healing, but withal had not come with faith that he was able and willing to heal perfectly, mightest not thou have missed of that cleansing and outward health and salvation, which others met with? For, did not he say, ^^Be it unto thee according to thy faith"? And is not he the Physician of the soul ? and is not his skill to be trusted and believed in ? He that hopeth, and believeth, and waiteth, and prayeth, and fighteth the good fight of faith, which gives victory over sin, Satan, and the world, — he may possibly overcome; yea, he that warreth lawfully, (that is, with the spiritual weapon, which is mighty through God,) he that warreth with this only, and with this constantly, shall be sure to overcome. For greater is He that is in the true believer, than he that is in the world.

Oh that thou mightest have experience of these things, and witness the banner of Christ's love and power displayed in thee, and the victories and conquests that are thereby, and the safety and peace which is under it ! For, of a truth, we do not speak boastlogly, but are witnesses of the majesty of God's love and power^ whicli we testify of. The Lord so enlighten and guide thee, that thou mayest obtain the desires of thy heart; for I really believe thy desire is after holiness and after communion with the Father and the Son, and with the saints in light : Oh that thou mayest be led into the true pure light of life, that there thou mayest enjoy what in this kind thou desirest !

This is from one, who singly, as in the Lord's sight, wisheth well unto thee. I. P.

Reading Jail, 27tli of Eighth Month, 1670.