Chapter II: Part I: Narrative Passages

NOTE.

The reference "C.J." indicates the Cambridge edition of
Fox's _Journal_, compiled from original MSS. (Cambs.
Univ. Press. 1911); "Works," refer to the Philadelphia
edition of Fox's printed works. Punctuation, which
varies in the different editions and is almost lacking
in MSS. and of course in literal transcripts, has been
altered or inserted by the compiler, as seemed needful.

Narrative Passages.

Self-Revelation.

Then the Lord gently led me along, and let me see His love, which was endless and eternal, surpassing all the knowledge men have in the natural state or can obtain from history or books, and that love let me see myself as I was without him. I was afraid of all company, for I saw them perfectly where they were, through the love of God which let me see myself. I had not fellowship with any people, priests or professors or any sort of separated people, but with Christ, who hath the key, and opened the door of Light and Life unto me. I was afraid of all carnal talk and talkers, for I could see nothing but corruptions and the life lay under the burthen of corruptions. When I myself was in the deep, shut up under all, I could not believe that I should ever overcome, my troubles, my sorrows, and my temptations were so great, that I thought many times I should have despaired I was so tempted.

(_Journal_, 8th ed., Vol. I, p. 12.)

The Inner Light.

Now the Lord opened to me by His invisible power that every man was enlightened by the divine light of Christ; and I saw it shine through all; and that they that believed in it came out of condemnation to the light of life and became the children of it; but they that hated it and did not believe in it were condemned by it, though they made a profession of Christ. This I saw in the pure openings of the light without the help of any man; neither did I then know where to find it in the Scriptures, though afterwards searching the Scriptures I found it. For I saw in that light and spirit which was before the Scriptures were given forth and which led the holy men of God to give them forth, that all must come to that Spirit, if they would know God or Christ or the Scripture aright which they that gave him forth were led and taught by.

(_Journal_, 8th ed., Vol. I., p. 35.)

A New Creation.

Now I was come up in spirit through the flaming sword into the paradise of God. All things were new and all the creation gave another smell unto me beyond what words can utter. I knew nothing but pureness and innocency and righteousness.

(_Journal_, 8th ed., Vol. I, p. 28.)

The Vision from the Hill-top.

And so we passed on warning people as we met them of the day of the Lord that was coming upon them, and as we went I spied a great hill called Pendle Hill, and I went on the top of it with much ado it was so steep. But I was moved of the Lord to get atop of it. And when I came atop of it I saw Lancashire sea (and there atop of the hill I was moved to sound the day of the Lord), and the Lord let me see atop of the hill in what places he had a great people, and so on the hill's side I found a spring of water and refreshed myself, for I had eaten little and drunk little for several days.

(C. J., 1652, p. 40.)

A Blow from a Bible.

And I went out of the meeting to the steeple-house and the priest and most of the heads of the parish was got up into the chancel and so I went up to them and when I began to speak they fell upon me and the clerk up with his Bible as I was speaking and hit me in the face that my face gushed out with blood, that I bled exceedingly in the steeple-house, and so the people cried, "Let's have him out of the church" (as they called it) and when they had me out they exceedingly beat me and threw me down and threw me over a hedge and after dragged me through a house into the street stoning and beating me, and they got my hat from me which I never got again and I was all over besmeared with blood.

(C. J., 1652, p. 36.)

A Mobbing.

A company of rude fellows as fishermen and the like with their fishing poles and the like fell upon me as soon as I was come to land, and beat me down to the ground and bruised my body and head and all over my shoulders and back that when I was sensible again I looked up and a man was lying over my shoulders and a woman was throwing stones at my face so I got up and I could hardly tell whether my head was cloven to pieces it was so bruised. Nevertheless I was raised up by the power of God and they beat me with their fishing-poles into the sea and thrust me into the sea a great depth and thought to have sunk me down into the water; and so I thrust up amongst them again and then they tumbled me in a boat, and James Lancaster went with me and carried me over the water and when I came to the town where the man had bound himself with an oath to shoot me all the town rose up against me, some with muck forks and some with flayles and forks and cried knock him on the head, I should not go through the town and they called for a cart to carry me to the graveyard and cried, Knock him on the head, but they did not, but guarded me a great way with their weapons but did not much abuse me and after a while left me, so when I came to some water I washed me. I was very dirty and much bruised.

(_Short Journal_, pp. 41, 42.)

A Night Among the Furze Bushes.

And after a while I went to an inn and desired them to let me have a lodging and they would not, and desired them to let me have a little meat and milk and I would pay them for it but they would not. So I walked out of the town and a company of fellows followed me and asked me what news, and I bid them repent and fear the Lord. And after I was passed a pretty way out of the town I came to another house and desired them to let me have a little meat and drink and lodging for my money but they would not neither, but denied me. And I came to another house and desired the same, but they refused me also, and then it grew so dark that I could not see the high way and I discovered a ditch and got a little water and refreshed myself and got over the ditch and sat amongst the furze bushes, being weary with travelling, till it was day.

(C. J., (I.), p. 30.)

A Long Cold Winter.

And so they committed me again to close prison, and Colonel Kirby gave order to the goaler that no flesh alive must come at me for I was not fit to be discoursed with by men. So I was put up in a smoky tower where the smoke of the other rooms came up and stood as a dew upon the walls, where it rained in also upon my bed. And the smoke was so thick as I could hardly see a candle sometimes, and many times locked under three locks. And the under-goaler would hardly come up to unlock one of the upper doors; the smoke was so thick that I almost smothered with smoke and so starved with cold and rain that my body was almost numbed, and my body swelled with the cold.

(C. J., II, p. 83.)

A Tortured Body.

And I went to bed but I was so weak with bruises I was not able to turn me and the next day they hearing of it at Swarthmore they sent a horse for me and as I was riding the horse knocked his foot against a stone and stumbled that it shook me and pained me as it seemed worse to me than all my blows my body was so tortured; so I came to Swarthmore and my body was exceedingly bruised....

And Judge Fell asked me to give him a relation of my persecution and I told him they could do no otherwise they were in such a spirit, and they manifested their priests fruits and profession and religion.

(C. J., I., p. 61.)

A Meeting in a Steeple-house.

He began to oppose me, and I told him his glass was gone, his time was out, the place was as free for me as for him, and he accused me that I had broken the law in speaking to him in his time in the morning and I told him he had broken the law, then, in speaking in my time. And so I called all people to the true teacher out of the hirelings, such as teach for the fleece and makes a prey upon the people, for the Lord was come to teach his people himself by his spirit and Christ saith, Learn of me I am the way which doth enlighten every man that cometh into the world, that all through him might believe, and so to learn of him who had enlightened them, who was the light, and so had a brave meeting in the steeple-house and the priest of the parish foamed like a pig through rage and madness but the truth and the power of the Lord came over all their heads.

(_Short Journal_, p. 45.)

A Vision.

And I saw a vision a man and two mastiff dogs and a bear and I passed by them and they smiled upon me.

(_Short Journal_, p. 71).

The Power of Truth.

The justices whispered together and bid the goaler take us away and so the goaler brought us away and almost all the people followed us out of the court and it was a mighty day for the truth. And so when I came into the goaler's house the goaler said, Gentlemen, you are all set at liberty and you know I must have my fees, but give me what you will, which a great service to the truth it was. And the sessions was just like a meeting, truth had such an operation in people's hearts.

(_Short Journal_, p. 106.)

A Consistent Sheriff.

In the evening I was brought to the sheriff's house and the sheriff's wife said that salvation was come to her house and all their family was wrought upon by the power of the Lord and they believed in the truth and this being the first day of the week the next seventh day the sheriff himself spake the truth in a pair of slippers in the market amongst the people.

(_Short Journal_, p. 2.)

Unity with the Creation.

And so after the meeting was done I passed away to John Audlands and there came John Story to me and lighted his pipe of tobacco and, said he, will you take a pipe of tobacco saying come, all is ours. And I looked upon him to be a forward bold lad and tobacco I did not take, but it came into my mind that the lad might think I had not unity with the creation. For I saw he had a flashy empty notion of religion. So I took his pipe and put it to my mouth and gave it to him again to stop him lest his rude tongue should say I had not unity with the creation....

One Cocks met me in the street and would have given me a roll of tobacco ... so I accepted of his love but denied it.

(C. J., I., pp. 44-45.)

An Airy Damsel.

And the next morning there was a lady sent for me and she had a teacher at her house.

And they was both very light, airy, people and was too light to receive the weighty things of God. And in her lightness she came and asked me whether she should cut my hair. And I was moved to reprove her and bid her cut down the corruptions in her with the sword of the spirit of God. And so after I had admonished her we passed away; and, after, she made her boast in her frothy mind that she came behind me and cut off a lock of my hair, which was a lie.

(C. J., p. 285.)

A Fat and Merry Captain.

And this captain was the fattest, merriest, cheerfullest man and the most given to laughter that I ever met with so that I several times was moved of the Lord to speak to him in the dreadful power of the Lord and yet still he would presently after laugh at anything that he saw; and I still admonished him to sobriety and the fear of the Lord and sincerity. And we lay at an inn at night and the next morning I was moved to speak to him again, and then he parted from us the next morning. But he confessed next time I saw him that the power of the Lord had so amazed him that before he got home he was serious enough and left his laughing. And the man came to be convinced and become a serious and good man and died in the truth.

(C. J., I., p. 203.)

A Highnotionist.

And after the meeting was done the pastor came and asked me what must be damned, being a highnotionist and a flashy man. And I was moved of a sudden to tell him that which spoke in him was to be damned, which stopped the pastor's mouth. And the witness of God was raised up in him.

(C. J., I., p. 114.)

Burning a Witch.

And from thence we went to Edinburgh again and many thousands of people was gathered there and abundance of priests about burning of a witch and I was moved to declare the day of the Lord amongst them and so went from thence to the meeting and a many rude people and baptists came in and there the baptists began with their logic and syllogisms but I was moved in the Lord's power to thresh their chaffy light minds; and showed the people after that manner of light discoursing they might make white black and black white.

(C. J., I., p. 297.)

Discerners of Spirits.

And there came another company that pretended they were triers of spirits; and I asked them a question: what was the first step to peace, and what it was by which a man might see his salvation? And they was up in the air and said I was mad. So such came to try spirits as did not know themselves nor their own spirits.

(C. J., I., p. 11.)

Prisoners Spreading the Truth.

And when friends was got among the watches it would be a fortnight or three weeks before they could get out of them again for no sooner had one party taken them and carried them before the justices and they had discharged them but then another would take them up and carry them before other justices which put the country to a great deal of needless cost and charges. And that which they thought to have stopped the truth by was the means to spread it so much the more. For then friends was continually moved to speak to one constable and to the other officer and justice and this caused the truth to spread the more amongst them in all their parishes.

(C. J., I., p. 231.)

A Veiled Condition.

When at any time my condition was veiled, my secret belief was stayed firm, and hope underneath held me, as an anchor in the bottom of the sea and anchored my immortal soul to its Bishop causing it to swim above the sea, the world, where all the raging waves, foul weather, tempests and temptations are. But O! then did I see my troubles trials and temptations more clearly than ever I had done. As the light appeared, all appeared that is out of the light; darkness, death, temptations, the unrighteous, the ungodly; all was manifest and seen in the light.

(_Journal_, 8th ed., Vol. I, p. 14).