Epift. 167 an old crazed bark at a fhore, and a wearied traveller at home, and a breathless horse at the rink's end. I fee nothing in this life but fin, and the four fruits of fin: and O what a burden is fin! and what a flavery and miferable bondage is it, to be at the nod, and yea's and nay's of fuch a lord-mafter as a body of fin! truly, when I think of it, it is a wonder that Chrift maketh not fire and afhes of fuch a dry branch as I am. I would often ly down under Christ's feet, and bid him trample upon me, when I confider my guiltiness: but feeing he hath fworn, that fin fhall not loofe his unchangeable covenant, I keep houfe-room amongst the rest of the ill-learned bairns, and must cumber the Lord of the houfe, with the reft, till my Lord take the fetters off legs and arms, and destroy, this body of fin, and make a hole or a breach in this cage of earth, that the bird may flee out, and the imprisoned foul be at liberty. In the mean time, the least intimation of Christ's love is sweet, and the hope of marriage with the Bridegroom holdeth me in fome joyful On-waiting, that when Chrift's fummer-birds fhall fing upon the branches of the tree of life, I fhall be tuned by God himself, to help them to fing the home-coming of our Well-beloved and his bride to their house together, When I think of this, I think winters and fummers, and years and days, and time do me a pleasure, that they fhorten this untwisted and weak threed of my life, and that they put fin and miferies by-hand, and that they fhall carry me to my Bridegroom within a clap. Dear brother, pray for me, that it would please the Lord of the vineyard to give me room to preach his righteousness again to the great congregation. Grace, grace be with you. Remember me to your wife.

Aberdeen, 1637.

Yours in his fweet Lord

167. To the Lady CULRO S S.

Jefus, S. R.

Rev. vii. 14. These are they which came out of great tribulation and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Race, mercy and peace be multiplied upon you. I greatly long to be refreshed with your letter. I am now (all honour and glory to the King eternal, immortal, and invifible !) in better terms with Chrift than I was. I, like a fool, fummoned my Hufband and Lord, and libelled unkindness against him; but now I pafs from that foolish pursuit, I give over the plea: he is God, and I am man. I was loofing a fast stone, and digging at the ground-ftone (the love of my Lord) to fkake and unfettle it; but, God be thanked, it is faft: all is fure. In my prison he hath fhewed me day-light; he dought not hide his love any long

er.

er. Chrift was disguised and masked, and I apprehended it was not he; and he hath faid, It is I, be not afraid: and now his love is better than wine. Oh that all the virgins had part of the Bridegroom's love, whereupon he maketh me to feed! Help me to praife: I charge you, Madam, help me to pay praises; and tell others, the daughters of Jerufalem, how kind Chrift is to a poor prifoner: he hath paid me my hundred-fold, it is well told me, and one to the hundred: I am nothing behind with Christ. Let not fools, because of their lazy and foft flesh, raise a flander and an ill report upon the cross of Chrift; it is fweeter than fair. I fee grace groweth best in winter: this poor perfecuted kirk, this lily among the thorns, fhall bloffom and laugh upon the Gardener; the Hufbandman's bleffing fhall light upon it. Oh if I could be free of jealoufies of Chrift, after this; and believe, and keep good quarters with my dearest Hufband! for he hath been kind to the ftranger: and yet in all this fair hot fummer-weather, I am kept from faying, It is good to be here, with my filence, and with grief to fee my mother wounded, and her vail taken from her, and the fair temple caften down; and my belly is pained, my foul is heavy for the captivity of the daughter of my people,and becaufe of the fury of the Lord,and his fierce indignation against apoftate Scotland. I pray you, Madam, let me have that which is my prayer here, that my fufferings may preach to the four quarters of this land; and therefore tell others, how open handed Chrift hath been to the prifoner, and the oppreffed ftranger: why should I conceal it? I know no other way how to glorify Christ, but to make an open proclamation of his love, and of his foft and fweet kiffes to me in the furnace, and of his fidelity to fuch as fuffer for him. Give it me under your hand, that ye will help me to pray and praife; but rather to praife, and rejoice in the falvation of God. Grace, grace be with you. Aberd. Dec. 30. Yours in his dearest and-only 1636. Lord Jefus, S. R.

168. To the Lady CARDONES S.

My dearly beloved and longed for in the Lord,

Race, mercy and peace be to you. I long to hear how your foul profpereth, and how the kingdom of Chrift thriveth in you. I exhort you and beseech you in the bowels of Chrift, faint not, weary not. There is a great neceffity of heaven; ye must needs have it: all other things, as houfes, lands, children, husband, friends, country credit, health, wealth, honour, may be wanted; but heaven is your one thing neceffary, the good part that shall not be taken from you. See that ye buy the field where the pearl is; fell all and make a purchase of salvation :

Epift. 168. think it not easy, for it is a steep afcent to eternal glory; many are lying dead by the way, that are slain with security. I have now been led by my Lord Jefus to fuch a nick in Christianity, as I think little of former things. Oh what I want! I want fo many things, that I am almoft asking if I had any thing at all. Every man thinketh he is rich enough in grace, till he take out his purse, and tell his money, and then he findeth his pack but poor and light in the day of a heavy trial. I found, I had not to bear my expences, and should have fainted, if want and penury had not chafed me to the Store-house of all. I befeech you, make conscience of your ways; deal kindly and with confcience with your tenants: to fill a breach, or an hole, make not a greater breach in the conscience. I wish plenty of love to your foul: let the world be the portion of bastards, make it not yours; after the last trumpet is blown, the world and all its glory will be like an old house, that is burnt to ashes, and like an old fallen castle, without a roof. Fy, fy upon us, fools, who think ourselves debtors to the world." My Lord hath brought me to this, that I would not give a drink of cold water for this world's kindness: I wonder that men long after, love, or care for these feathers; it is almoft an uncouth world to me, to think, that men are fo mad as to block with dead earth: to give out confcience, and to get in clay again, is a ftrange bargain. I have written my mind at length to your husband: write to me again his cafe; I cannot forget him in my prayers: I am looking, Chrift hath fome claim to him. My counfel is, that ye bear with him, when paffion overtaketh him; a soft answer putteth away wrath: answer him in what he fpeaketh, and apply yourfelf in the fear of God to him; and then ye will remove a pound weight of your heavy crofs, that way, and fo it fhall become light. When Chrift hideth himself, wait on, and make din till he return; it is not time then to be carelefly patient : I love it, to be grieved when he hideth his fmiles; yet believe his love in a patient on-waiting and believing in the dark. Ye must learn to fwim and hold up your head abovethe water, even when the sense of his presence is not with you, to hold up your chin: 1 truft in God, he fhall bring your ship safe to land. I counsel you, study fanctification, and to be dead to this world: urge kindness on Knockbrex: labourto benefit by his company; the man is acquaint with Christ. I beg the help of your prayers, for I forget not you. Counsel your husband to fulfil my joy, and to feek the Lord's face: fhew him from me, that my joy and defire is to hear he is in the Lord; God cafteth him often in my mind, I cannot forget him: I hope, Chrift and he have fomething to do together. Blefs John from me; I write bleffings to him, and to your husband, and the rest of your chil

dren

dren. Let it not be faid, I am not in your house, through ne

glect of the fabbath-exercise.

Aberd. Feb. 20.

1637.

Your lawful and loving paftor in his only, only Lord, S. R.

169. To JONET MACKCULLOCH.

Dear fifter,

Race, mercy and peace be to you. I long to hear how your foul profpereth. Iam as well as a prifoner of Chrift can be feafted and made fat with the comforts of God: Chrift's kifles are made fweeter to my foul than ever they were. I would not change my Mafter with all the kings of clay upon the earth, O! my Well beloved is altogether lovely and loving. I care not what flesh can do. I perfuade my foul, I delivered the truth of Chrift to you; flip not from it, for no boasts or fear of men: if ye go against the truth of Chrift that I now fuffer for, I fhall bear witnefs against you in the day of Chrift. Sifter, faften your grips faft on Chrift; follow not the guifes of this finful world: let not this clay-portion of earth take up your foul; it is the portion of baftards, and ye are a child of God; and therefore feek your Father's heritage. Send up your heart to fee the dwelling-houfe and fair rooms in the new city. Fy, fy upon thee, who cry, Up with the world, and down with confcience and heaven: we have bairn's wit's and therefore we cannot prize Christ aright. Coun fel your husband and mother to make them ready for eternity; that day is drawing nigh. Pray for me the prifoner of Chrift: I cannot forget you.

Aberd. Feb. 20. 1637.

Your lawful paftor, and brother, S. R.

170. To my Lord CRAIGHALL My Lord,

but with (reverence of the

Received Mr. L's letter with your lordship's, and his learned thoughts in the matter of ceremonies. I owe refpect to the man's learning, for that I hear him oppofite to Arminian herefies: worthy man) I wonder to hear fuch Popifh-like expreffions as he hath in his letter, as, your lordship may fpare doubtings, when the king and church have agreed in the fettling of fuch orders; and the church's direction in things indifferent and circumftantial (as if indifferent and circumftantial were all one) fhould be the rule of every private Chriftian. I only viewed the papers two hours fpace, the bearer haftening me to write. I find the worthy man not fo in this controverfy, as fome turbulent men of our country, as he calls

I i

refufers

Epift. 170. refufers of conformity: and let me fay it, I am more confirmed in nonconformity, when I fee fuch a great wit play the agent fo flenderly; but I will lay the blame on the weakness of the cause, not on the meannefs of Mr. L's learning. I have ever been and still am confident, that Britain cannot answer one argument a fcandalo: and I longed much to hear Mr. L. fpeak to the cause and I would fay, if fome ordinary divine had answered as Mr. L. doth, that he under-stood not the nature of Scandal; but I dare not vilify that worthy man fo. I am now upon the heat of fome other employment: I fhall (God willing) anfwer this, to the fatisfying of any not prejudifed. I will not fay, that every one is acquaint with the reafon, in my letter, from God's prefence and bright shining face, in fuffering for this caufe: Ariftotle never knew the medium of the conclufion; and Chrift faith, few know it. See Rev. ii. 17. I am fure, a conscience standing in awe of the Almighty, and fearing to make a little hole in the bottom for fear of underwater, is a ftrong medium, to hold of an erroneous conclufion, in the leaft wing or lith of fweet, fweet truth that concerneth the royal prerogative of our kingly and highest Lord Jefus: and my witness is in heaven, I faw neither pleasure, nor profit, nor honour, to hook me, or catch me, in entering in prifon for Chrift; but the wind on my face for the prefent; and if I had loved to fleep in a whole fkin, with the ease and prefent delight that I faw on this fide of fun and moon, I fhould have lived at cafe, in good hopes to fare as well as others. The Lord knoweth, I preferred preaching of Chrift, and still do, to any thing next to Chrift himfelf: and their new canons took my one, my one joy from me, which was to me, as the poor man's one eye that had no more: and alas there is little lodging in their heart for pity or mercy, to pluck out a poor man's one eye for a thing indifferent, i. e. for knots of straws, and things (as they mean) off the way to heaven. I defire not that my name take journey, and go a pilgrim, to Cambridge, for fear I come in the ears of authority, I am fufficiently burnt already. In the mean time, be pleased to try, if the bishop of St. Andrews, and Glasgow (Galloway's ordinary) will be pleas ed to abate from the heat of their wrath, and let me go to my charge. Few know the heart of a prifoner; yet I hope the Lord fhall hew his own glory out of as knotty timber as I am. Keep Chrift my dear and worthy lord: pretended paper arguments from angering the mother-church, that can reel and nod and stagger, are not of fuch weight as peace with the Father and Hufband: let the wife gloom, I care not, if the Husband laugh. Remember my fervice to my lord your father, and mother, and your lady. Grace be with you.

Aberd. Jan. 24. 1637

Yours at all obedience in

Chrift, S. R.

171. TO